Chasing the Morning [Ayasha/Jacen]

A fearless being. A trapped soul. Both could be used to describe Ayasha down to the very finest of details. She had been courageous and curious her entire life, preferring the surrounding forest on the far edge of the Commonlands to the Village she provided for. Fruit gatherer; considered to be one of the dreariest of jobs amongst her people. Leave, collect fruit, and come back. Day after day, nothing changing. But she longed for the trees, for with the trees came exploration. Never going beyond the Great Oak of the Forest.

Stories of children being snatched past its tresses, consumed by the Outsiders. Access beyond that point was deemed forbidden, and trouble had befallen anyone who was caught. Great Grandmother spoke of the white men who lived in the beyond the Great Oak. They were described as vile creatures, seeking nothing but their own self-gain, torturing the weak, and fighting over fictional power that served no purpose. But Ayasha still wanted to explore the White Man’s Land. She wanted to know exactly what was behind the Great Forest. Who lived there? What was their ‘society’ like?

That particular morning, Ayasha had made her decision, though she couldn’t have picked a better time. The season of the berries was wearing thin, and not much time lingered for her to work up her pride and walk beyond the Great Oak. The sun was shining beautifully, a small chill in the air made the hairs on her arm stand to attention, something energizing in the way she had made her choice. Great Grandmother would still be sleeping just as everyone else in the Village, giving Ayasha the leeway to leave peacefully. Beginning the trudging walk to the Forest, berry pouch in tow, she took only a few mere steps from the village boundaries before someone had grabbed the crook of her elbow. Turning, she faced the very person she had wanted to avoid. Sakima.

Sakima was warrior in all the sense of a warrior. Nothing pleased him more than war, being able to hunt their enemies and bow them down. He stood for everything she didn’t believe in, and he was in love with her.

“Aya…where are you going?” The native language rolled off his tongue in a stern way, as a parent would to a stubborn child. It had
bothered her, but nonetheless she remained silent, glaring at the way he tried to possess her, attempting to control every step she took and every move she made.

Yanking her arm free, she continued up the worn dirt path, her facial features in a permanent scowl. And finally there came the reprieve of the trees, the soothing calm of the shade. But today, she in fact did not find the berry plants all that spectacular. She wandered further and further in, until the Great Oak stood with all its might and glory. The bark seemed scarred and brittle, but in truth the tree had been here as long as Aya could remember, and even longer still. It was the oldest tree of the entire surrounding forest, and at that moment Ayasha curled up her fists, and bare feet took a step into the unknown.

Arrogant, impulsive and mischievous: three words that were often used together when someone was asked to describe the young knight of the Hawkins family. From a young age, he’d been drawn to the idea of fighting for the kingdom of Luminiege despite growing up in a family of nobles. He could have lived the easy life and had everything handed to him, but instead he’d asked his parents if he could train to fight under King Stuart’s banner, wanting to be respected by the people of Luminiege like he’d heard the rest of those who fought for the kingdom were.

Running a hand through his dark, chin length hair, Jacen got to his feet after pulling on his boots before picking up his sheathed sword, belting it around his waist. Once he was ready, the young man headed over to where the other knights he was travelling with were already gathering around a small campfire where they were making a quick breakfast.
A few of the older, more experienced knights had been sent out with a group of the younger ones as part of their training, to help them learn to survive away from the comforts of their homes and see what it would be like when they had to travel for war or whatever other task the king sent them off for, Jacen being one of the younger ones there.

He had not enjoyed his first nights away from home so far; it was cold and uncomfortable sleeping on the ground with little more than a blanket. His body was sore and stiff; not helped by all the riding they’d done and he was not in a good mood; having slept horribly as a result.

Asking why they couldn’t just stay in an inn had just gotten Jacen a long lecture about them not always having such things available, that not every kingdom such places to stay in and knights didn’t always have the option of bringing things like tents with them, sometimes they had to travel with as little as possible besides their weapons; sometimes even without horses. He was glad the older knights had at least decided to ride out for this training, doubting after living the easy life for so long that he’d be able to walk as far out as they’d travelled.

With a groan, he sat down on one of the fallen logs around their campsite they’d set up by the edge of a forest -which was a relief to see after travelling across the empty grasslands- his back aching, possibly from having slept on a small rock, or just from the travelling in general; he really couldn’t tell anymore.
The meals they had were small, only having what they’d managed to catch and collect the day before, saving most of their breads and dried foods for when they really needed them and they left Jacen still hungry, used to having as more food at hand than he and his parents could even eat in one sitting. He’d only just finished eating when one of the older knights ordered him to go collect more firewood, Jacen pulling a face as he got up, hesitating slightly before heading into the forest.

What if he got lost in here on his own? What if he got hurt, or trapped somewhere? Jacen had no idea what he was supposed to do in those situations he realised, silently hoping nothing like that happened, trying to keep heading in the one direction as he searched for suitable fuel for their fire.
Sometime between forgetting which way he’d come from and how long he’d even been gone, Jacen suddenly heard a sound, causing him to freeze momentarily before remembering he was a knight. He quickly moved a hand to the hilt of his sword after dropping the wood he’d collected, carefully looking around for the source of the noise, ready to draw his weapon at the first sign of danger.

Exploring had caught Ayasha's attention like nothing else ever could, pulling at her cautious side more than usual. This was such a strange place, and with strange places came the potential to hold harm against anyone who was unfamiliar with the land. And that she was. The trees of the Great Forest gained vibrancy with each almost-silent step she took, almost as if she were high on adrenaline that was coursing through her veins. Her heart was hammering against her throat, pules quickened to the point of harsh breathing to keep her blood flowing at a constant pace. All the old stories had struck a fear into her nerves, her senses racing, reaching outwards to find just what it was that had her so on edge. Bending halfway, only at the knees, enough for her body to be hidden amongst the leaves and bushels of a number of various plant life, she panicked. A smell had caught on the wind, something definitely unfamiliar, metallic and husky, like a male after a hard days work, only different.

She toed forward, still bent, slithering around to try and find where the distinct scent came from. Maybe it was people, the white men...or an animal. But when, eventually, Ayasha pulled apart the bristles of a plant unknown to her people, her crystal blue eyes fell upon a creature she had never seen before in her life. It seemed to be a male, with darkened hair, yet more raven than her own. His body was covered by an indecent amount of a material that shined in the sunshine. Her eyebrows furrowed with slight confusion. What is this creature...man or beast?

The fairly small amount of bravery she felt she had left went towards standing from her hiding position. She had already, by accident, made enough noise for this being to obviously hear her, because now he seemed to search for where she hid. With her sense of bravery also came the thought that he might be even as nervous as she was, standing in the confines of the Great Forest that seemed to stretch on forever.

"Zer dira?" Her voice rolled off her lips in a nervous way, trying to speak forth to this thing. "Oihana zaude?"

Her head tilted toward the side as she eyed the rod he held in his...claw of sorts. The glimmering material amazingly had her confused. Maybe the stories of old were true after all, and maybe Great Grandmother was right...Ayasha shouldn't be there.

As he scanned the area for the source of the noise, Jacen had drawn his sword, holding it ready in his gloved hands, the metal on his vambraces shining in the weak light of the sun. The arm guards were one of the few pieces of armour he wore, the other being a leather vest lined with steel plates to protect his body. He wasn’t a fan of full body armour, not liking the restrictions it put on his movement, so he only wore enough to protect his forearms and torso. Under the armour he just wore a simple white, long sleeved shirt, pants and boots that were slightly worn from travel.

He pulled a face, confused when he heard a voice speak a language he wasn’t familiar with, hesitating before deciding to respond.

“Who…who’s there…?” Jacen asked nervously, though he was unsure if the person; wherever they were, would understand him. He looked roughly in the direction he thought the voice had come from, watching carefully for a sign of the one who’d spoken.

Normally the young knight would try to act brave, but he’d never been in a situation like this on his own before, not knowing exactly where the possible enemy was or if they were armed, or even if there others out there with them. It worried Jacen and he wasn’t sure what he was supposed to do. Should he stay and fight if necessary? Should he just leave now and inform the knight in charge?

“Show yourself.” He eventually said, sounding braver this time, adjusting his grip on his sword, ready to defend himself should he be attacked.

Stepping forward from the alcove of the various plants that seemed to grow there, Ayasha stood a minimum of yards away from the stranger of the forest. Or maybe in this case, she were the stranger, she didn't know but yet to care. What consumed her attention was the being standing amidst the trees, seeming like it didn't belong there. Aya had seen beings of the forest before, magical creatures, and they made her wonder about the rest of the world quite entirely. But never before had she seen a White Man before. In her barest opinion, White Man were the strangest creatures above any that she had seen previously to that day.

And he just stood there. Out in the open. As if the woods held nothing that could bring him harm.

Those shining blue eyes watched his movements carefully, as if he were bound to attack at any moment, Aya would be somewhat ready. Her digits clung tightly to the berry pouch which she still had in tow. And when his alien language met her ears, she tried hard to understand. Great Grandmother had taught the village a great many things, and different languages were one of them, yet Aya could only understand bits and pieces of what the man was trying to say.

It was fumbling in her mind trying so hard to remember the language of the stranger lands. She couldn't find the right words to this specific one, so instead she slowly raised her palms forward, dropping the berry pouch to the forest floor, a sign of peace throughout the Ohikolurrak, in hopes that maybe he would understand.

Hearing another sound among the trees, Jacen quickly turned to face the direction it had come from, almost dropping his sword in surprise when he saw it was a woman. He took a breath to calm himself as he adjusted his grip on his sword, keeping it ready just in case as he watched her warily. After a minute he calmed down enough to recognise the woman's gesture and slowly lowered his sword, though he kept hold of it in one hand by his side.

"Who are you...?" The young knight asked slowly, not recognising her at all, though that didn't surprise him seeing as he'd never ventured out of his homeland before now. He guessed though by her appearance that the woman was from one of the tribes he'd heard about and tried not to look worried about that fact, forcing himself not to just run off; half expecting there to be a while lot more of them watching him at that moment, ready to attack. "Are...are you alone?"