5th Fortuary, King’s Defiance of the 190th Age, 1 hour after dawn

“It’s not up to me Kiitu. Even if you had brought your aprigs all the way from Balic to sell them here at Ral’s Menagerie, it’s a Coliseum auction this morning - you and your herd won’t get into the receiving yard today.” The elven market guard towered over the exasperated little human as he spoke. “What! The boarding fees for another night on my 1500 head will ruin me, Topar!” The elf raised his gaze, seeming to ignore the human’s plight as he watched a pair of elves approach, snaking their way down the bustling lane of vendors hawking various animal products. The elf in the lead was tall, with deeply tanned skin and sun blond hair. He wore the traditional leather armor of a warrior of the Wind Dancer tribe, and carried a bone long sword on his left hip. Another elven warrior followed close behind the first; not quite as tall as the other, he had lighter skin, darker hair, and wore the traditional garb of the Sky Singer tribe. “Oh no! Then I’ll be pestered by a different damned aprigherd twice in a month!” Topar said as he stepped sideways to hip-check Kiitu out of the path of the oncoming elven warriors. “Come back this evening! If you’re lucky, you won’t need another night’s boarding!” he offered to the human as he let the elven warriors pass by without so much as a second glance.

The scent of animal musk and dung hung heavily in the air as the pair walked through the dimly lit passageway. “Now, you’re sure they saw the criminal exile, Aamuiko ‘Once an Airhunter’ here? In this tent of stone and wood?” As the tall, dust-covered elf spoke in his oddly lazy cadence, he gestured at the building surrounding them. They lingered at the mouth of the hall to allow their eyes to readjust and take in the sights of the elf-crowded courtyard. The dark-haired elf shaded his brow with his right hand, carefully surveying the courtyard as he replied “Yes, Dukkoti. My warrior was here before dawn for fresh z’tal eggs, and he bought them from this Aamuiko you seek. He assured me that it was the very same elf who disappeared from before our eyes the other night! We’ve checked all of the vendor stalls twice and still no sign of him. If he is here, he must be inside.” Dukkoti clasped the dark haired elf’s left forearm “Reward your warrior well if I can avenge my sister today, will you Abyuuk?”

As Dukkoti strode towards the door and raised his voice to be heard by those inside the bustling livestock market, Abyuuk was comforted to notice the number of Sky Singers that he recognized among the crowd. “Aamuiko ‘Once an Airhunter’ must die for his crimes! He is a defiler and a thief! He stole the property of my tribal elder, Lobuu Breezechaser, as well as the sun from my dear sister Riikaa’s face! We Wind Dancers sold him to the Tyrians to be used as food nineteen seasons ago and we hear now that he works here on The Hill selling food? Aamuiko, I have looked for you with every waking moment since I first saw you again ten nights ago! Come out of your city-cave, defiler! I’m here to end your life Aamuiko!” Dukkoti’s words caught the crowd and they erupted into cries of “Defiler!” “Deviant!” “Thief!” “Feed ‘im to the Klar!” As the crowd swelled behind Dukkoti and Abyuuk, an elderly elf intervened, rushing to the space between them and the exquisitely carved door. “Please, there is no justice in the indiscriminate violence of a mob!” The old elf’s voice dropped to a whisper as he leaned closer to Abyuuk and Dukkoti “Consider your surroundings. Making death threats outside of an establishment owned by those who run in the night isn’t the healthiest of choices…” He cast his gaze about the courtyard, the walls of which were covered in painted sculptures depicting many scenes of elves negotiating over livestock with varying numbers of legs. In every scene, Ral and Guthay were in the sky and painted black as a new moon. “I’d imagine that they’re open to negotiations, especially if he’s just an egg vendor” he said while gesturing towards a depiction of an elf selling muls and half-giants.

“We are grateful for your assistance Arvos, does your presence mean that the Clearwater will stand with us in supporting the Wind Dancer’s cause?” Arvos nodded at Abyuuk’s question as Dukkoti shouted over the old elf’s shoulder “Bring the exile out now! We know you have him in there!”

…

The young elf’s hands trembled, fumbling through leather pouches as he struggled to not listen to Dukkoti’s tirade. “Remember, the fleece is no longer necessary. Don’t let their words get under your skin - stay calm, stay focused, and think back on your lessons from last evening.” The lithe elf woman circled the young elf as she spoke, looking him over, her face fraught with concern. As she stood before him, he looked dejectedly down at the jankx nuzzling his hand from within his sleeve. “What has come over you these past few days? What happened to my smiling daeg Muiko, my dancing gardener who survived the Red Moon Hunt through his pure ingenuity?”

Muiko spoke slowly, his words flowing like kank honey “I just hid and-”

“Only because you knew where to find the gum arabic”

“- then I fled like a coward”

“Elves run even when not faced with overwhelming odds” she replied with a shrug.

“Dakhina, have you heard the lies they’re spreading about me? I shouldn’t have thought that I belonged here, I forgot that I was cast out. Mutami reminded me of that three nights ago when he took me to Dukkoti–”

Dakhina spoke over him “Forget what that kank rider Mutami did, he’s been dealt with for his choice of actions. Do you really think that I would have arranged all of this…” she gestures at the window overlooking the courtyard below “…if I thought any of their lies were true? If I didn’t think you belonged here with me, with us?” She scratched the jankx under the chin as she took Muiko by the hands. “Dukkoti is here now because I want him here now. There are more than 40 witnesses out there, handpicked for the ruse. None of them will see through your lie so long as you perform as you did at practice last night. Muiko, you breathe life into my heart like no other, and I have read yours - else I wouldn’t have chosen you to be my daeg; I have seen what these past two weeks have done to you. I want this over for us today. I cannot do this for you. I can only present you the opportunity to overcome this obstacle that has been placed in your way. You can do this. The time has nearly arrived, walk me through your lie.” The young elf took a deep breath as the jankx withdrew into his sleeve. “I walk out the back door of the Receiving Office, into the central yard, or better yet…”

“What’s all this about? What is all this ruckus in my receiving yard?” The pale elf cracked his bruised and bloodied knuckles as he approached the trio from behind an ornately embellished door. As he closed the door, it revealed a panel of carved and gilded leather depicting two sets of hands exchanging coins for a leash.

“Ral, I assume?” Arvos said

“Yes, now again: what’s all this about? I heard a commotion and expected a coffle of gith from the sounds of it!”

“Bring. Me. Aamuiko. Now!” Dukkoti spat the words at Ral from over Arvos’ shoulder.

“Aa-Muiko…No, I’ve never heard that name before. I can’t help you-” Ral’s reply was cut off by Arvos’ inquiry “Did you not say that the defiler was an egg vendor Abyuuk?” “Yes.” Abyuuk confirmed.

“What did my egg vendor do?”

“He is a defiler, cast out and marked for death by the Wind Dancers for his crimes against my kin. When we made the decision to take the 30 pieces of ceramic for him, not even his mamuk spoke in his defense, so grievous were his crimes!” Dukkoti leaned into Arvos’ back as he spoke.

“So, you sold him, thinking he would die, but now that you’ve found out he didn’t die, you’re struck with seller’s remorse and you want to buy him back just so you can kill him? Is that correct? Ten Silver.” Ral said through a smirk.

Dukkoti sputtered “I said nothing of the sort, I have no intention of paying for his life. I seek only to take it–”

Arvos hushed Dukkoti and announced “The Clearwater and Sky Singer Tribes have been moved by the plight of Riikaa Breezechaser as we have heard over these past weeks, and we stand in solidarity with the Wind Dancer tribe in demanding justice be done! We know who you are, Ral New Moons of the Night Runner tribe, and if you do not want to see your tribe run off by the combined ire of our tribes, you’ll do what you can to assist us in this!”

The elderly elf’s declaration was punctuated by a roar from within the stables, loud enough to be heard over the din of the courtyard. Ral’s face took on a look of panic “When did we receive the kirre?” he said as panicked cries began to be heard from within the stables. “I have to deal with this!” Ral shouted as he rushed to the office door. Just as Ral reached the door, Abyuuk cried out “Look there! In the next courtyard!” Through the portcullis Aamuiko ‘Once an Airhunter’ could be seen emerging from a hastily closed door and hustling across the courtyard towards the portcullis. As he closed the distance, the crowd moved towards the portcullis just in time to see the large, horned, eight-legged feline crash through the barred double doors behind Aamuiko. The beast locked eyes with him as he looked back and froze in terror. The great gray feline then held its brown striped body low to the ground and began rocking back and forth ever so gently. Aamuiko began flailing and screaming as he levitated off of the ground. The cries of the horrified elf were cut short as the massive cat pounced on its skybound prey. The pair landed with a resonant thud felt throughout the crowd, and the triumphant kirre thrashed its prize about, sending the decapitated head rolling towards the portcullis. As the beast began to feast, arrows peppered it from guards on high, armed with bows. The bloodied feline seized her meal and scaled to the roof with a single bound, still trailing a leash clutched by a ragged, severed arm. The muted sounds of a brief melee ensued before a rooftop guard popped up over the roof, shouting “We got it! It’s down!”

5th Fortuary, King’s Defiance of the 190th Age, 1 hour before High Sun

“I know it didn’t go the way you wanted it to, but I think you got your justice, Dukkoti.” Abyuuk said. Dukkoti looked down at the head in his hands. “The beast did a number on him, he’s nearly unrecognizable.” Abyuuk chuckled “Don’t tell me you question if it truly was him!” “No, of course not, I saw the fearsome creature tear off his head with my own eyes!” Dukkoti replied. “Ral didn’t even charge me for it. He tried at first, but I reminded him of Arvos’ words and the value he’ll no doubt get for the beast’s carcass. It is sad to see such a majestic and rare creature brought to such a piteous end, starved and skewered on a livestock market roof. A shame really, it hadn’t even reached the Coliseum as they intended for it. You’ve been a diligent brother over these past weeks Dukkoti, you should take a well-earned rest.” Abyuuk encouraged his friend.

“Hrmph.” Dukkoti sighed, he shoved the head into a sack as he turned and left.

“Did you hear how sure the old elf was of his words? ‘We know who you are, Ral New Moons!’” The pale elf chuckled heartily as Muiko placed his wooden game piece and in rapid succession flipped a number of round wooden discs on the square tray between them. “It is called inference, Tu’paani, we didn’t need to say anything to anyone.” Dakhina said as she entered the room and lowered herself onto the pillows next to Muiko. “We didn’t need to tell a lie at all. No, just to have My Love - Muiko here - paint all of the moons in the courtyard as New Moons.” She reached for a bowl of dried fruits and pieces of salted aprig as she continued, while also hand-feeding Muiko “Arvos is old and thinks he’s wise, so we’ll let him think he knows something. Just as Abyuuk, and I’m sure by now Dukkoti also, both know Mutami’s head is yours!” her glee is cut short as Muiko choked momentarily at the revelation.

“Mutami’s dead?”

“He knew how I feel about you and he chose to try to give you to that rabid dune runner!”

“Is that why you told me to have my head fall off in the spectral image? You planned to use Mutami’s head as a prop?”

“Yes, I gave it to Abyuuk not more than an hour ago.” she looked at Tu’panni “I wore your face for the exchange, I knew he wouldn’t see through it.” She looked back at Muiko, leaning closer to him “I tire of the elders’ refusal to recognize you as my daeg, though I am confident this is what will cause them to agree. Tomorrow we’ll cry out ‘You’ve done it my Love! You’ve convinced the Tribes you’ve died and yet you still live!’ The elders surely cannot deny that you truly live as a Shadow and are deserving of joining our tribe in full.”