Fledging

Chapter 26

AN: Hope you enjoy the recap that was suggested for me to start so you can remember what happened last! And I haven't been dedicating chapters in a long time so I'll fix that now by dedicating this to @Dipped_in_Chocolate for all the awesome comments and thoughts on possible improvements.  Thanks for always leaving me a message!  Also, longer chapter this time!! And now: 

Previously in Fledging:  Araceli's misgivings of Ora, the new skaal amongst their group seem to have been for nothing as her presence has been quite helpful.  She relays her story to Araceli, telling her that she was kicked out of her home for being to kind to enslaved pavox.  The journey continues on and soon they arrive at the small azinza village.  Amiri worries that he will not find enough food for himeslf as Araceli worries about  the more impending 'test' that she may have to go through to prove her lineage... if indeed it is as she now believes it to be.....

Chapter 26

                The village was nothing like I had ever seen before.  Instead of roads like the vroulk would have running throughout their towns, a grid of water canals scored the land below.  Each canal was crossed by a beautifully arched, wooden bridge connecting each section of land on which sat grass and mud huts.  The huts themselves were evenly spaced around the sections of land that were roughly two acres large and had a small stream leading up to each doorway.  Each waterway connected to one another and began to spill out into the river I had seen on our journey as well as the ocean that was only a short walk away from the village.

                The village itself was gorgeous, however it was the ocean that held my attention.  It was so large, stretching past the horizon with the white caps dancing across the surface as far as the eye could see.  The sound of the waves were soothing and I was lost in a trance listening to them, I didn’t want to move.

                “Let’s get down there, I’m sure we’ve been spotted a while ago.”

I blinked out of my trance and nodded as Kenneth urged his mount down the slope to the village.

                Now that I was past the shock of the view and the village itself, I could see many different people swarming the area.  A few walked on the land and over the connecting bridges while most were swimming in the canals, flashes of shining scales glinting in the lowering sun.  Eyes turned towards us as we approached and watched cautiously.  I saw one of the azinza pull himself out of the water and swing his sea green tail on the land by a hut.  Flicking the water off, he took a towel by the door and began to dry himself.  Slowly, his tail began to separate into a pair of legs and soon he looked to be nearly Vroulk except for a light green tint to his skin.  I adverted my eyes and looked around in awe, I didn’t know much about the azinza, but I already loved their village.

                A pair of men dressed in shorts, with necklaces of bones and teeth around their necks, were approaching us, spears in hand.

“They’re just being cautious, don’t worry about anything.  I’ll talk to them,” Kenneth explained to me as we closed in on the duo.  The others landed around us and at the sight of the two skaal, the two men seemed to hesitate before moving forward again as a few more from below came to join them.

“To what do we owe this surprise visit?”  The voice was deeply accented in a lilting, smooth tone as they spoke to Kenneth in his language.

“We wish to speak with the Secret Keeper on certain matters.”

“She has already given her allotted one answer this year.  She cannot be expected to answer all foreigner’s questions or else she would receive no rest, go seek your answer elsewhere, human.”