MAIN SAGA ENTERPRISE | The Road to Woki-Tal

[Doctor Jax]

Amada Dy Ortiga
​

Feeling that the cart had come to a complete stop, Amada frowned lightly. She knew of the rift that separated Persia from the wild lands beyond the empire's purview, and she had thought they would be on the road for far longer. Climbing down out of the cart, the rider realized they had arrived far earlier than she had initially anticipated. Her constant riding on griffinback had evidently distorted her perception of road-travel.

"That's... new," Amada said at the back of the cart. "There wasn't a tower before. I've passed this area on patrol, and I don't recall it."

She looked back to the others in the cart, and she shrugged her shoulders, noncommittal.

"I suppose we wanted adventure and novelty, and we're getting it now. Anyone wanting to see that tower, I'm headed there."

Amada at first debated retrieving her griffin, Raya, but ultimately she decided against it. Should she scout ahead, she'd have no reinforcements on the other side. Best they move as a group, rather than split up. Already, she could see that Sokkari was on the bridge, Mobeen hanging back as he typically did.

"What sort of woman do you take me for, Mobeen?" Amada jabbed, a wrist resting on a short sword strapped to her waist. She had a short dagger on her other hip, more for utility than for fighting, but still useful nonetheless.

She began across the bridge behind Sokkari, seemingly fearless of the drop beneath her. She removed a spyglass from a pouch at her side. It wasn't a long-distance glass -- too large to fit in a bag at her side, too bulky to use while flying -- but this would give a better view of what was on the other side. She offered it to Sokkari.

"You look, I'll stab," she suggested. "And it will make Mobeen feel better. He might try to flee from his own shadow before too long."

@Kuno @unanun @Nemopedia @MiharuAya

 

[Nemopedia]

"Water is always kind," Pyre responded with enthusiasm, ignoring the wary eyes from the companions with Karim as he eagerly took the canteen and emptied its contents. He was parsed, travelworn to the bone and the heat of the weather wasn't helping.

A sneeze followed, triggered by the tickle in his nose at the waft of perfume that Pyre got all over him from the deft hands of Sareen, a genteel smile on the merchant's face as he revealed the bottle to the rest of the travellers, like it was a demonstration of the product itself rather than masking the stink that suggested Pyre hadn't showered in days, if not weeks.

Sareen in turn was all too grateful for the carriage to come to a halt. Fate had led them to the towers before more could anticipate and weigh in. Eager to get out of the cramped space in which their vagabond traveller stank up the air the merchant, joining Amada who already devised a strategy.

The tower looked simple enough to navigate from the outside. Straightforward as well, but from Amada's statement Sareen knew not to take the tower lightly, wondering who would put a tower here when towers were meant to watch and guard. "I have chalk, to mark our path, if needed," the man mentioned, patting the pouch of minerals he had before offering Mobeen a plain looking stone.

"If you bathe it in the sun now you will profit in the dark later," the male explains, not offering anything to the strategy of going front or back, but determined to stand somewhere in the middle and preferably far away from their guest. Not that he needed to, as the booming voice of a revived Pyre joined from the cart;

"I take the back!" Speaking of the devil, the man himself had peeled himself outside, hands resting on his hips while taking in the sight of the tower. "Looks shady enough," was his conclusion, the red blotches of his face grateful for the promise of reprieve from the wrathful sun before joining the main group that had been at the front.

"Heard you needed hands, Pyre is the name, ready to burn!" the man spoke in excitement, pretending not to notice the way the merchant Sareen stepped away from him.

 

[unanun]

The inside of the cart remained stuffy even after Baobao's companions left the carriage, the heat and musk somehow more oppressive without the bodies that put it there. The accountant tried her best to breath slowly, carefully, instead of throwing open the shades and sticking her head out into what would've been the equally hot desert air to gasp. As slowly as possible, she brought a kerchief to her hairline where dew of sweat threatened to coalesce into a bead, and dabbed it away before it could interfere with her makeup. Ahead the tower loomed. It almost reminded her of something in a locked away past, and before she knew it, she was standing outside and squinting up at its height, shying back into the shade when the sun reasserted itself on her skin.

 

[MiharuAya]

Karim Bahman​

As Karim watched the malodorous man empty his canteen, he blinked as if doubting what he saw. "You really must have been thirsty," he responded, forcing a light chuckle as he took the canteen back. Even though he was slightly disturbed to be left without water, he reminded himself that his first priority was others' well-being. Pyre certainly looked like he could use it, along with a long rest and a refreshing bath.

When the cart came to a stop, Karim eagerly exited the cart. The hot desert air hit him like a wall. It filled his lungs as if he sucked down a lung full of fire while the sun beat down on his skin. It was a shock, but he quickly became distracted as he gawked at his surroundings.

Karim had read about the Sagunz but never thought he would see it in person. It was as impressive and daunting as he had imagined. "Amazing," He remarked, stepping closer to the edge as he peered over the side. He could feel his heart racing, and he was reinvigorated with the excitement of this adventure.

After some discussion that Karim was only half listening to, it was decided that the group was heading towards the tower. Karim was happy to come along, wanting to take any chance he had to explore. But, instead of being honest, he piped up, "If there is potential for danger, I should come along in case someone gets hurt," as he quickly followed behind, looking all too pleased.


@Nemopedia