A Lone Hut

(continued from https://silveredgeisland.forumotion.com/t3p30-the-landing#41)

Ah VioletShore District. Yes there was more here then before. He had only build the frame of a house and now two frames where there. So strange. The completed Meeting House looked good though. He smiled at how nicely it was all coming along. He paused to hold out a hand to show of the small district so far. "I plan to make them bigger as more people arrive. Maybe by then I'll have to builders to help out while I'm in town."

No he really had to get going... Cupido rush towards the frame of the closest building in progress and picked up a large rolled up paper. Not only did it show the island he had also mapped where he planed to have all the districts. He held it out for Leah to take. "I have to go do some things back in town but feel free to go where you like. I plan to talk to you later so maybe come and find me in a while." He didn't have time to ask them about taking Jobs.

Leah thought the structures of these buildings were quite cute. Small little houses. When Cupido held the map towards her she took it unsure if it was safe. She unraveled it and took in the whole Island. Gosh it was huge. She looked for VioletShore District in aLeah thought the structures of these buildings were quite cute. Small little houses. When Cupido held the map towards her she took it unsure if it was safe. She unraveled it and took in the whole Island. Gosh it was huge. She looked for VioletShore District on the map.

Ah there they were. It was nice to know where you were in such a large place. So her boat had been South then. She held out the Map for Emphadon to see and pointed out the district. Looking up at the pacing Mayor she let her self give a small smile. "Um alright. Thank you for the map..."

Wait. He was just going to leave them there to do what they pleased? What kind of mayor?? Emphadon shut his eyes momentarily, composing himself. By the time he opened them again, he was watching Cupido walk away. He shook his head in disapproval. This man needed help.

Empha stood behind Leah, looking over her shoulder at the map. He pointed the district labeled Violetshore. "So we're here?" The island really was huge. He made special note of about how far the river extended north and of the lake just north of one of the districts, Rosefall. He looked at the map once a moment longer before contorting his facial features in a way that said "meh".

Emphadon back up away from Leah and took a look at the building frames around him. "This guy's got a long way to go before anyone can live here." The statement seemed to have an undertone of detachment. It reinforced his original plan not to remain on the island in a way that was still ignorant of Leah's thoughts to just the opposite.

"At least he was nice enough to give us a map... U lets goto the water, i'm boil and no doubt you are too." She looked him over with a worried look. Leah didn't want her partner in Island search to be uncomfortable. She rolled the map up and placed it safely under the frame work of a house. She jogged over to the river and bent down to get closer.

A hand ran though the water and it felt smooth and cool. Looking closer Leah could see some sea life. Interesting, the waters in the river down here must be brine like. Maybe the ocean use to be further up the Island then. A bass swam by and she almost feel in watching it. She couldn't drink this water, but maybe up stream further. "Emphadon? Will you stay here with me if I don't leave? It would be nice to have a friend." She knew they were only acquaintances, but they could become friends.

Emphadon's eyebrows furrowed at Leah's outtake on the situation. "Yeah, nice enough to leave us alone here with only a map. Some mayor." Empha ran a hand along the back of his neck and from there reached to scratch the area of his back between his shoulder blades. "Yeah, the sun and I don't get along very well."

He followed Leah out to the river again, and squated beside it. He dipped his own hand into the cool waters and just the one touch seemed to rejuvenate him. He pulled his hand back out and a steady stream of water trailed after his index finger. "Are you thirsty?" He manipulated the water to travel closer to Leah, then added for purposes of reassurance, "I can only move water, not any of the contaminants that might be in it. It doesn't get any purer than that."

Emphadon's expression became one of concerned confusion at Leah's question. She was actually considering staying on the island? "Where was that ship going? Weren't you headed somewhere?" Did she really just think she wouldn't be able to find a way off the island? Or was she really just interested in staying?

Ina way, Leah wanted to go and drink the water floating in front of her, but in another she knew she shouldn't, "I can't drink it." She twisted her mouth to the side in thought and sat down on her bottom. She started to take her shoes off. Maybe putting the into the water would feel nice.
Yes, she wanted to stay, it seemed Emphadon wasstrongly against the idea though. "Africa." Yes it was a strange place to go, but she had wanted to help, helping her wouldn't be much different would it?

Emphadon directed the water back over the river. He was going to let it back into the river gently, so as not cause a splash, but he got a better idea. He let his own feet dip into the river before dropping the water he was manipulating roughly back into the river. He caught the water that splashed in its wake though, and directed it to turn back in on itself before it could splash Leah.

Initially, Emphadon's fingers had been moving as though he were controlling a puppet. Now, however, he kept the motion of the water constant, and his hand still. The water rose up from the river, turned out in then back in, and met at a dip in the center of the figured where it fell back down into the river, as though out of a faucet. He did this partially as a means of distracting himself, and partially as a means of entertaining Leah.

"What's in Africa?" The question was meant to be more personal than it really was. He was asking what was in Africa for Leah specifically. He'd been to the continent himself and it seemed rather destitute.

Leah ducked as Emphadon did his trick. She was amused to a certain point. If he got her backpack wet she was going to be pissed. Now only would she be shocked by her electronics, but it would ruin her equipment! "Hey! Watch it!!" She laughed as the water didn't get to her. He was being silly, but there wasn't much todo, so she couldn't blame him.

"Oh, I was going to see if any tribes needed purification systems. I was going to find a care place, but I really was just looking for something todo. This is a nice enough adventure. I can always make a purification system here. That's my specalty. Electronic's Fairy." How Ironic. A fairy making things like that? You'd think fairy made flowers or rainbows.

Emphadon smiled along with Leah's laugh. Of course he wasn't going to get her wet. He let the water feature he'd created run one final course, ceasing to feed it water and allowed his hand to drop.

Empha's eyes grew in interest, but he only nodded at her explanation and then gave her a speculative look. "So you're settling for this place?"

(Sorry for the wait. And it's short. *dies* D'X)

At his question Leah fiddled with her hair, was there a wrong answer? "I think so. I needed a place to go, and I found one." She was a grown up. There was nothing wrong with taking care of herself. All she had to worry about is the crazy Mayor. Leah sighed and looked out into the water, wondering id others would find this place. It would be awful lonely.

Leah reached to pull her back pack off and look inside. Good, it was all dry. She put it next to her and pulled out a little robot. She gave it a zap and it started walking around and beeping. She smiled a little. Basic stuff.

Empha's chin rose a bit as he quickly gauged Leah's answer, then he nodded in response. "Just don't think you need to stay here if it isn't what you want." He considered his earlier idea to continue to South America and find someone to come out to the island for Leah. He could easily do it, but he'd let Leah make the decision for herself.

As for her earlier question, maybe he could stay for a little while. He hadn't been seeking anything in particular other than the basic knowledge he'd missed out on prior to his last 3 years of life. He supposed he could easily gain some knowledge on this island as well. The topic seemed to have strayed from this question however, and Empha didn't feel inclined to bring it up again.

His attention had been taken by a fish in the river. It was going nowhere fast trying to swim against against current for which it was too small to overcome.He memorized its strategy as it began to get repetitive, dancing from side to side, then pumping its tail-fin to make some progress, only to stop and go back three steps in an effort to conserve energy.

Emphadon looked back to Leah as he heard the beeping noise and laughed upon seeing the little robot. "Electronics fairy, indeed." He said looking up to acknowledge before refocusing back on the bot. He watched it with amused interest. Slowly, however, his expression changed into one of curiosity, then again into something unidentifiable.

He didn't know how those sorts of things worked, but he would have liked to. It was things like those that made him feel robbed of his life. Even just asking such a question would make him feel like a child asking why the ocean was blue. Were things like this common knowledge to other people? After thinking it over a moment longer, he laughed again. Maybe it was common knowledge to fairies, or maybe just "electronic fairies" specifically. He doubted it would be common for a mer either way though.

Her mind was closing to other options quite slowly, but it was. Her stubbornness was kicking in and Emphadon was going to have to deal with her choice. He seemed apposed to her stay yet, it wasn't his choice. Leah barely knew the guy! She made the robot walk towards him a little at a quick pace but swing away slowly as it was to close the water.

"I'm going to stay. New adventure here I come!" She let out a little laugh and picked the robot back up. Looking at it for a second she made her mind up and tapped it's head. The thing fell apart into its different pieces and she tossed them in her bag.

Empha couldn't help but smile at Leah's outtake on the situation. She called this adventure? He looked at the robot as if it were a toy. When it was dismantled and placed back in her back he looked back up at Leah.

For a moment he looked as though he were thinking something then, having apparently come to a decision, he nodded. "I guess I could stay here for a little while." He made no promises.

He would stay for a while? Awesome! A smile grew on her face and She made to hug Emphadon. He could teach her to swim possibly, and they could do all sorts of things. If this was a town Cupido was making she could get a job and maybe they would work together! Knowing that he was going to stay here lifted her attitude, the sense of adventure was strong.

Leah stepped away from him and to a gander at the map. She had left it by the house. She wanted to get to that lake. There was a feeling in her belly tough that night would come sooner than the lake. They had better head out for Town Square then. They could talk to Cupido and then find shelter for the night.

Emphadon accepted Leah's hug a bit awkwardly. He wasn't sure why Leah seemed to be so excited about this place. It didn't seem to have much to offer. Maybe it was just because he was used to places like Resine and Sisco, though. Underwater towns.

Empha stood and brushed some invisible dust off his pants. He used long strides to catch up with Leah once more. "So where are we headed?" He was severely hoping it was somewhere still close to the river.

Leah looked up as Emphadon came by. "I want to go to the lake to the North, but we will probably have to stop by town hall for the night." She pointed at the place on the map and trailed it from where the were. He was an Ocean guy, maybe maps were easier to read and estimate, but she barely knew him.

She looked around for her back pack and realize she was wearing it, a little embarrassed. How far had the Mayor gotten buy now? If Leah flew and held Emphadon for a few 100 meters they could catch up possibly...

Emphadon didn't have to look at the map to know that the lake was pretty far away. He did, however have to look at it to know the distance of the town hall in relation to the lake. He watched over Leah's shoulder as she trailed her finger along the map then shrugged.

"I'd be better off going back to the ocean for the night, but. The lake would be nice." He shrugged again. "I'm happy enough with this river though."

Hm, the ocean. That's right, Emphadon probably needed water. Hopefully the river would do, Leah didn't want him to go far. The heat had been making her sticky and her hair had stuck to her skin. Taking her hair out of its long ponytail she regathered her hair making sure to get all of the little bits next to her neck and over her shoulders. Instead of putting it back into a pony tail she started spinning the hair and it curled around to make a bun, which she held together with her hair ties.

"Let's get going then." She rolled the map up and stretched a little before starting to walk. "So, we might as well get to know each other a little, right? It'll be a long walk." She smiled a little, looking partly amused, partly annoyed. the grass was long and brushed against her legs. It was pretty here, but definitely annoying. Hopefully it was cooler in the fall.

Leah's hair was very... long. The thought forced him to chuckle. He had a certain nephew that would cringe at it's length. Empha walked alongside Leah, hands in his pockets. Grass under his feet was a feeling he had to get used to everytime he came on land. It seemed to be a different feel everywhere he went, whether it was dry and dead or long and lush.

He shrugged. "Well, I already know you're rather the adventurous one." He said this with a smile. "I do think you trust a bit too easily, though." This statement was meant to be in reference to Cupido, however he didn't realize how easily it could have been turned to reflect him.

It felt nice to have all her hair off of her in the heat. Leah couldn't help but laugh a bit at Emphadon, "Trust? Who said I was trusting anyone? Trying out might be a better word choice!" She smiled and walked along at an even pace. She wasn't sure trust was a good word. Why would she trust a stranger? In her mind, She was testing her thoughts on the person by seeing how they reacted. Yes it was a more skeptical look on things, but it had been siting in the back of her mind the whole time.

"So Emphadon, What's it like t live in the water?" She eased the situation up a little, feeling like it was going to become to tense. Leah really needed to get better at not creeping people out, yes, being fun and nice was much nicer than her serious side.

Emphadon chuckled a bit at Leah's response. "I think I do like that word choice better." He shook his head. "I wouldn't trust that man." A thoughtful look crossed his face as he tried to think of a valid reason behind this feeling, but it was really pure intuition. He shrugged. "He just seems sketchy."

Empha could't help but laugh at the question. He hadn't actually said he lived underwater, had he? Was this just Leah making an assumption. He gave another shrug, a smile crossing his face. "Wet?" Here he gave another laugh. "I don't always stay underwater though. It's different on land. Do you know the force of gravity alone can crush a jellyfish on land?" Empha looked to make eye contact with Leah, offering a smile. "It's different. You can call me Empha if you'd like, by the way. Emhadon's a mouthful."

Cupido did seem...sketchy as Emphadon put it. The man had seemed a bit, nervous bit to eager. There was definitely something strange about him. That Leah would agree about. She was sure there was a reason he was like that though. She wasn't going to judge him right off for a bad start, but it didn't help.

Wet, yeah. It was a dumb question. Thought the fact on the jellyfish was interesting she wanted to know about merpeople, not blobs of tissue. "Empha, yeah that's a little easier. So can you tell me about merpeople? I'm really interested to be honest. I have never seen one before you. And your way more interesting than Humans."

Emphadon was rather uncomfortable talking about mers with Leah. Truthfully, he'd never really considered himself a part of mer society, though he knew plenty about it.. He just felt as though he didn't have much place to talk about it. He'd tried to live among the mers, but it hadn't necessarily worked out.

"From what I've seen of humans, they're actually not much different. And by 'not much different', I mean petty. We were actually at war about three or four years ago." He shrugged. "I guess things are finally starting to calm down, but," he shook his head a bit. "I can't live with them."

Empha didn't seem to be to happy to talk about mers. Maybe she should just stop asking. Humans were similar to most humanoid species, that was true. They lacked something though. Each species had something about them a human couldn't do or they were better somehow, not just physically but something deeper. Fairies seemed to, at least her village, to large from mistakes much faster, and they were horribly all OCD. Except Leah of course. She was different.

She did agree with him on the petty part. "I ran away from my village when I was 17. Being what I am in a very...secluded place. It just didn't work out. My parents seemed happy enough I left. I'm better off now though. I can be the adult I want to be and I get to be with what I love most."

Empha could, in part understand what Leah was saying. Though, for him, seclusion had never been a problem. He'd lived relative seclusion for most of his life, his only company being his sister, and even then he couldn't talk to them. For him the issue arose when he tried to assimilate himself into mer society. He was simply, almost violently, rejected in this attempt.

"I'd rather live in seclusion than with the other mers." Empha began to move some of the water from the river again, directing it to travel, snake-like, up his arm. "None of them can do this. They're envious of it. They want to use it for purposes it's not meant to be used for. I never met my parents." Actually, they technically died before he was born... "What is it you 'love most'?"