[CENTER][img]https://fontmeme.com/permalink/220514/6ea0912fb468ccb19edcbae9eb152162.png[/img]
[/CENTER]

[b][i][color=8882be]"No harm done....literally and metaphorically"[/color][/i][/b] he said with a chuckle and a grin. Her brother might have felt just a bit different if she'd used the blade. Thankfully that hadn't been the case and thankfully he hadn't gotten more injured than he already was. Still, it did beg the question as to why she was on edge. He was judging by her posture and demeanor that something had happened as she took his shirt and used The Art to clean the garment. The way she wrung her hands and seemed lost in her own thoughts. He was patient as he put the shirt back on and waited for her to speak. He raised an eyebrow when she eventually spoke in vague terms. [i][b]'It spoke to me'[/b][/i] was incredibly vague and unhelpful but she thankfully continued by explaining that she'd heard from That Which Breathes Below. He sat and listened when she eventually asked about the stories their Cor O'Si used to tell.

[b][i][color=8882be]"Vaguely. Though I'm also kinda hazy this morning..."[/color][/i][/b] he admitted with a sip of water. He was indeed following but he felt a bit embarrassed he wasn't recalling the stories. Not exactly anyway. A byproduct of too much drinking, a few too many blows, and a rambunctious childhood. He felt some of the fog clear a bit as she mentioned the stories of pilgrims who would journey great distances to see the temples of the Elderkin and Fledgkin, that the presence of such deities caused physical harm to those who weren't prepared for the encounter.

[b][i][color=8882be]"I remember her mentioning how her father would journey to Ar Shanta to make offerings to Tel'Arrn"[/color][/i][/b] he recalled. She continued to mention her encounter and how it felt: the pain, the voice or voices sending an icy chill through her. He frowned a bit. It did sound like That Which Breathes Below and it didn't bode well. She took his hand and pondered if what their grandmother had said was true, if this was the beginning of another terrible end. He set his water down before he rubbed her hand reassuringly, sighing gently through his nose. [b][i][color=8882be]"I don't know. I BELIEVE you saw something and you aren't one to lie, that's my job. I say we put this behind us for now until we know more. One occurrence doesn't necessarily mean the end times"[/color][/i][/b] he assured her. He pat her hand and offered a warm and reassuring smile.

[b][i][color=8882be]"Until then, I got a lead on something that might interest you"[/color][/i][/b] he said as he produced a parchment from his pocket. The parchment was a rough map with details written on the map that denoted that something was occurring there. A dig of some sort. [b][i][color=8882be]"I heard from a fairly reliable source that there was a Masari site uncovered only a few days journey from Nekhmu. Biggest and best preserved they'd ever seen according to them. If we get lucky, we might be able to get there and find a few things worth our time and worth someone else's money"[/color][/i][/b] he said with a smile.

[i][sub]• Ar Shanta - "The Elder Tree" Temple of the Hunter
• Tel'Arrn - "The Storm" God of the Hunt
• Cor O'Si - Grandparents[/sub][/i]

[hr]
[CENTER][img]https://fontmeme.com/permalink/220515/84a2c283838f4010b7655b2d2b51a88b.png[/img]
[/CENTER]

It had been at least 2 weeks since the Zitan by the name "Twitch" had left the Shining City. Twitch preferred being in the deserts rather than the cities that were within the stone barriers that shielded them. True, he found it all fascinating as an outsider but being an outsider also meant he was different and often despised. He made his peace with it and generally kept to himself. After all he was allotted the chance to explore the deserts and the remains of the Masari thanks to his employers and friends; Thessi and Tharos. Not many took well to Skavvers like himself. After all they were quite unpleasant and alien looking compared to the foreigners, though he'd likely say the same thing if the roles were reversed. He supposed he could understand the general animosity he supposed. It was the eyes he wagered, too many of them.

Thessi and Tharos however were different. The Twins had recognized he had a talent and didn't mean any harm. After a time, they employed him. After a bit more, they befriended him and even allowed him to keep some of the things he found out in the Dune Seas. In his time he'd managed to not only find a Masari Sentinel that was in relatively good condition but all the parts to get it operational again. True, it wasn't in pristine condition but Masari artifacts were second to none. You couldn't do better if you'd tried. Needless to say, that machine was quite useful out in the deserts when Twitch was alone. It wasn't easily killed either and could be dismissed into a small floating machine that could materialize and de-materialize the Sentinel. Quite impressive! Twitch wasn't quite sure how it was made, how it worked, or why but that was half the fun after all.

Now he was stuck in the Dune Sea and unable to move his skimmer. He examined the skimmer as night came about and shook his head in exasperation. He wasn't going to be able to salvage the skimmer or the items on board. Not all of them anyway. He tapped his chitinous finger against his jaw as he looked around and came to the conclusion that rather than abandon everything, he could build a sled that he could physically pull and save some of the more valuable artifacts. The Zitan started by summoning the Sentinel and instructing it to stand watch for intruders in a given perimeter, to which he thanked the Makers that it picked up on his sign language as he set to work salvaging wood and rope to build a large enough sled that he could comfortably pull and still save as much as possible. It was crude but it would serve him well enough.

A shrill screech caught Twitch's attention as the large humanoid machine sprang to life and drew its shield and spear. Twitch looked around to see there was nothing of note until he caught the machine's gaze at the cliffs above. Twitch didn't suspect it was an animal. It didn't smell like an animal anyway. He scanned the edge and could only assume perhaps it was an outsider.

[b]"You.....out-side-er? Hide......on.....cliff?"[/b] he called out. He didn't speak the common tongue well. It was clumsy and required a bit of concentration to communicate in such a way. A by product of being an insect like creature that developed in a different manner than the more mammalian creatures that roamed these deserts…