Submission (#2009) Approved

Quest: Resonance - Act 3
Act: Traveler Care
Word Count: 1608 words
Regional Affinity: Ealei (+1 AP)
Claiming Regional Affinity for: Velia [ELN1266]

( I am also using this to claim my mini-requirement, as Velia's adventuring outfit and gear is described here! I think I'm doing this right, haha)

It took a lot to get Oliver away from his comfort zone and homeland of Enmir. After what felt like eons of prodding and begging and teasing and pleading, Velia finally got him to agree to traveling with her. 




“You’re going to be all short and weird forever if you don’t get out there and experience the world,” Velia said in her best, sage-like voice. Oliver rolled his eyes, probably about to protest, but she continued on. “We’re going to visit someplace that is pretty close to Enmir, both in location and in … landy...scape!”




Oliver gave her a deadpan stare. But Velia wasn’t too worried! She was confident that he would see what she was talking about once they arrived.




Ealei had become one of her favorite places--aside from Strynhalde and her home of Faerindale, of course. She couldn’t wait to show Oliver around!




As they disembarked their ship and took to the docks, she stared up into the twisted roots and branches of Ealei. Far from her first trip, but the awe was still there, and very real. Much to her pleasure, she saw a similar wide-eyed expression on her friend and travel companion for today.




“Woah, this thing is…” Oliver searched for a word. “... impressive!”




“But wait! There’s more!” Velia directed his attention to the crystal clear waters, where they both peered at their wavy, mirrored reflections. “I bet you haven’t seen water like this in a long while, huh?”




It took but a moment for Oliver to dive right into the waters, paddling around and swimming with unadulterated joy on his face. She knew he’d like it.




“Oliver, come back! There’s more I have to show you!”




“It’s OK! Take care of what you came here to take care of. I’ll be right here!”




“Oliver!”




But Oliver took off swimming, leaving Velia alone on the dock with puffed out cheeks. If she had intended on coming here by herself then she wouldn’t have invited him in the first place. With a sigh she turned to pull her things from the storage compartment on the boat. She’d packed it pretty heavy, having intended to show Oliver how to pack for adventures (seeing as he rarely wanted to go on them).




Velia asked one of the adults on the dock to keep an eye on Oliver and to let him know that she headed into town. 





Her trip was a short one; the cities on the water were convenient because they were easier to see and reach than the towns built up in the trees, amongst the branches and the tree roots. Not that there weren’t plenty of tree roots here to make the docks wind one way and then the next. Some people had even built homes into the roots, which she found nice, and that it mimicked some of the houses she’d seen while traveling higher in the branches of Ealei.




That being said, it wasn’t long before she was smack-dab in the middle of the floating market, a series of  booths lining a wide pier, and a few purposely defunct docks. One of her previous visits had shown her just how extensive the selection was there, which made it perfect for her restocking trip. And, at the time it seemed like the perfect place to take Oliver--to show him what kinds of things to take with him when he finally got off his tushie and started adventuring like she and his other friends.




With an indignant huff, she looked between her feet, “Nimbus? Are you there?”




In silence response a little black ball of fuzz clambered out of her shadow, stifling a yawn, like always. Though they hadn’t been together long, it seemed that her Pomu was quite adept at predicting what she was going to ask of him. Well, most of the time anyway.




This happened to be, fortunately, one of those times. The little black creature pulled once, then twice in her shadow before it produced a bundle of fabric. “Thank you, Nimbus!” Velia cooed, nuzzling its head before opening the bundle and putting on the necessities…




First came her set of comfy black boots and gloves! Made of the same dark, durable material that Sybella had gifted her months ago. The same material as the black vest she shimmied into, and that would protect her from the most basic of cuts and scrapes adventuring tended to give. If Oliver decided he wanted to go out adventuring too, it wouldn’t be hard to convince Sybella and Briar-Bella to whip him up some gear. 




Velia did a quick glance around, only to find that her Pomu was a step ahead of her; it was already dragging her favorite purple cape and bow out of storage, and Velia eagerly put them on. Her cape had a rip in it near the end, but thread was among some of the supplies she wanted to grab at the market, so it would be OK…




Grateful, as always, Velia sat down and opened her black satchel, digging around a bit past her lunch and first aid kit to produce a few berries, offering them to little Nimbus with a smile. “You’re always so helpful buddy, thank you.”




With a silent nod, Nimbus hugged these berries to his chest before hopping back into her shadow, gone from sight. Whether pomus needed to eat (or ate at all), Velia wasn’t so sure. But Nimbus always seemed happy when she gave him little rewards and treats. Or, maybe he was thinking she wanted him to store them for later… 




Almost ready for her market adventure, Velia took out her favorite shell comb and raked it through her tail and fluff a few times (for fabulous), before adjusting her bow and trotting to a stall deeper in the market. 




‘Maps’ the stall read, and she eyed several of them, mostly trying to keep to local maps since her adventuring could only go so far--with her being a kittom and all. Larger trips meant having to ride in the caravan with the adults, and it was usually slow and boring and was more of a tour than an adventure. But she could at least use local maps to explore within the warded areas of a region and its towns safely. In fact, last time she found a cozy little nugget of roots that naturally grew enough moss to be a comfy little napping spot.




She knew someone who wasn’t going to get to see it this trip. A deserter named Oliver.




With a dejected sigh she looked over her shoulder to scan the crowd, hoping to see her brown-furred friend bounding toward her. But she should have known that Oliver couldn’t resist the water. Was he supposed to have been born a fish instead of an Elnin? Is that what happened?




“At least he won’t come out caked in mud like he does in Enmir,” she mused to herself looking at the maps. Hearing her mention the area, the shopkeeper all but thrust an Enmir map in front of her, though she protested. “I already have one! Thank you sir! Thank you!”




Another essential item she found she needed was a blanket and some towels. Now, she relied on Nimbus to keep hold of them for her, but they were important for her travels to the snowy land of Strynhalde or journeying to higher altitudes where even her fluffy mane and tail, and her massive ears could barely keep her warm. The towel, naturally was for when she tried to swim in any capacity and got drenched and became a big mop of ear and hair. It was a sight no one should see, let alone experience, so the towel was insurance that she’d be able to dry off as quickly and as comfortably as possible.





Provisions, small tools, rope and parchment were other things she usually had on hand, though she had to buy some ink--and fortunately the vendor there had plenty. In fact, she was able to snag a bottle of a brilliant purple sheen, and she couldn’t wait to write letters to her friends with it--er, take adventure notes. She never chose to travel at night unless she was riding with others, but she still always liked to pack a torch and a small lantern just in case.




After a long while of shopping, she found that she couldn’t really stay mad at Oliver. She was just a bit younger than he was, but far more well-traveled. But she realized it was probably because he had a lot more focus than she did. Most of her adventures were sparked by hearsay or promises of shiny things to gawk at. But Oliver, it seemed mostly liked to enjoy the sights… Not look for adventure but savor the  landscape. Especially if there was water.




“Hey.”




Oliver’s voice caught her attention, and she turned from the stall to face him. He was still soaking wet, unabashedly tracking water along the pier. But what caught her attention most were his outstretched paws, “You… might need this too. On your adventuring.”




He spread is fuzzy paws apart to reveal a smooth, pretty but overall unremarkable stone. 




“For luck,” he explained, glancing away. Velia stared at it.




“A rock? What makes it so lucky?” She was genuinely curious, but it appeared her question struck a cord because he shoved it into her hands and stormed away, grumbling about girls and gratitude and something about fighting off fish.




It… was a strange charm, but… Velia put it in her pouch. A new important, essential travel item. Well-wishes from a friend.