Horse Sense
It's Tariday, Vhast 24 12:36:02 1019. The full moon isn't up. The tide is high and ebbing. Fair weather clouds drift through the blue sky from the west, along with the wind. The sunlight on the snow is dazzling, and it gleams on the ice.
H06: Fate's Spire, Hayatiento Aerie
High in the mountains, the eaglefolk aren't so affected by the wintry conditions, as they are accustomed to the cold that naturally results from high altitude. The main effect is that wild game is scarce, but such issues affect most societies. Coming in for a landing now is a mithral-clad griffon, its barding gleaming brightly in the dazzling light of day. On his back rides a Sildanyar dressed like a wilderness hunter.
It's true that the Wintry conditions didn't affect the Aerie as much, but it made it harder for a large majority of visitors to get to the Aerie without wings. Soren was here, at the Aerie as a visitor for the time being. He was spending some time among the Egalrin people, hoping none of them would notice he was marked the fool. It was liberating to be back in the chilled air, to feel the whipping winds of being so far above ground. But when the Griffon landed near the edge of the Aerie, curiosity won out. Soren slowly made his way around, stepping around a corner to watch inquisitively.
The elf dismounts with a light hop, and pats the griffon on his neck. The beast sits on its back end like a cat, then sets to preening its pinion feathers, purring gently. The elf makes his way silently toward the community gathering place, watching the people around him and scanning the structures there open to the local public. Settling his attention on a certain shop, he approaches it. A pair of fledglings watch him and whisper to each other, to which he responds, "Yes, lads. And we have excellent hearing, too." He smiles and continues on his way. <auran>
Soren perks a brow as the visitor meanders around, snickering when he responded to the fledglings, before following him into the shop. When Ga'Elian stepped inside, Soren kept his distance for a moment longer, before approaching the elf. "It's rare to see visitors up here, this time of year. Especially without goods to trade. Mind if I ask the occasion?" he asks with a tilt of his head.
Ga'Elian turns to regard the redhawk. "Oh, hello. You're right that I'm not here to trade today. Actually I have been tracking down some leads on a little mystery, and one of them seems to approach the aerie." He bows his head and says, "I am Ga'Elian of the Faravanilas Tribe in the Perianath Forest near Llyranost, but have been spending a large measure of my time about these parts lately."
Maybe visiting hours are in effect? Aya becomes somewhat apparent, perched on an outcrop of the aerie to look down over much of it. This includes the griffon and his sil pet as well as at least one of the feathered folk.
Soren tilted his head a bit, and nodded. "Soren, of the Windspeaker Aerie, hailing from the Roof of the World." he says, offering a handshake and a smile. "What Mystery? Anything I can provide assistance with?"
Ga'Elian says, "It's probably nothing, but a couple days ago a draft horse might have wandered here along the mountain road trailing its reins. You see, there was a freight wagon that crashed below an icy cliff, but the horse didn't go down with it. I'm trying to find the horse to see if there was anything on it that might shed light on the wagon's point of origin. Are you aware of such a horse turning up? I came in here to ask after a stable, but I'm not sure the Egalrins have a stable here. I might do better at the mouth of the nearby mines. The teamster was a dwarf, after all, and the freight company seems to operate along this part of the mountains regularly, from other clues."
"Couldn't it be that the horse was just smarter than the driver?" Aya asks, now from immediately behind Ga'Elian. "That's hardly a rare case, and it was the horse that survived, of the two. It needn't be a conspiracy nor mystery."
Coming out of a hut, A rather drab brown Egalrin opens her wings and feels the wind upon her wings before she looks to the side. "Greetings, and welcome to the Hayatiento Aerie. Is there something I can help you with? In my rather....limited fashion, as I only recently got here."
Ga'Elian glances up at Aya. "Imagine meeting you here. As it happens, the mystery I'm investigating has nothing to do with the horse's intelligence nor with its survival. Do you remember that box I took to the Artificer's Hall? The horse was from the wagon that it came from. I'm looking to see if there might be any clues in it as to where it came from so that I can try to track down who sent the box." As Masamya comes forward, he adds, "Have you any tidings of a stray horse wandering hereabouts in the last couple days?"
Aya dips her chin. "Yes, my memory is not that short. So, your question is 'where,' not 'why' or 'how.' The easiest way to answer that would be to ask the horse, wouldn't it?" A brow arches.
The corners of Ga'Elian's mouth lift into a smirk as he replies, "Now that would definitely raise the question of the horse's intelligence."
"Horses would have a tough time coming up this high. There are many rope bridges, as normal bridges would be blown over by the high winds and stone bridges would be destroyed little by little much like a river cuts away at the earth little by little." Masamya speaks over the wind this high up. "More likely, you could find your horse down in the Deluge Mines where our sister aerie is with the Dwarves...."
Ga'Elian says to Masamya, "Thank you. I'll look thereabouts then. Quite possibly this will not shed any further light on the matter, but as long as I'm here, I'll see what happens. I must confess, I don't visit these aeries often enough to know the paths between them very well."
Aya's mouth lifts on one side in a similar fashion. "Possibly, but it -was- the one who survived. That raises the question of the driver..." Her words trail off as she turns to the feathery one. "The horse didn't make it this far," she gestures a hand lightly to Ga'Elian, "only the investigator."
"Ah....then perhaps finding the pulled up grass and marks in the land to find the horse. It's, sadly, not something you can find from the air." Masamya says quietly. "the Deluge Mines are down that way," she says pointing over the edge, towards the ground. "And it's more likely the horse went in that direction. Where did it come from initially?"
Ga'Elian smiles. "Yes, tracking beasts in the wilderness is something of a specialty of mine. The difficulty is that the snow cover tracks very quickly. As for where it came from, the cliff where the wagon slipped over the edge is about a half mile north of here along the khazadi trade road just above the tree line. My observations indicated that the wagon was headed southwest --towards Alexandria-- along this area, although as you say, it now seems far more likely that the horse might have gone by the mines in search of forage or perhaps to return to a known location rather than ascending to this particular aerie. On the other hand, it may have fallen prey to a mountain lion or griffon. I won't know unless I find it, or hear of it from someone who did." He then bows to Masamya and says, "I am Ga'Elian." <auran>
"I am Masamya, of the Hayatiento Aerie, as I've said. Mountain lions aren't quite as prevailent in this area, I don't think, and I'm sure Mictlan would have seen the horse if it went that way. More likely, if it was spooked this long, it's by the river to get a drink. Running for that long...I'd be thirsty."
Ga'Elian chuckles. "Maybe. Anyway, it's clear that this is not the place to find it. Thanks for your time and eagerness to assist." He bows again and turns to rejoin his companion.
"It looks like your tracking skills will be put to the test," Aya comments to Ga'Elian as he returns to his superior. "We'll see if you fare better than the last one who followed the horse." The corner of her mouth lifts again before she turns to dip her chin to the helpful Egalrin.