((Luoma Stuff!))
To Evolve
xxxxxCamping is usually an enjoyable adventure, but the activity tends to get tiresome when it becomes a necessary part of survival for months on end. Although the entirety of the Civati population could comfortably hide beneath Majus’s wings during the Harsh Light, that was nothing like a permanent residence one could call a home.
xxxxx“There are mountains all around us! We could finally escape the Harsh Light for good!”
xxxxx“We do not want a repetition of what occurred at the Mount. We should build individual mounds to live in.”
xxxxx“What if we cut down the trees and use their wood like the humans do?”
xxxxx“What do the elves do? It must be more comfortable than the humans, however clever they are.”
xxxxx“Elves do little better than camp themselves, but what about the dragons?”
xxxxx“Idiot. Do you wish to expose yourself to the elements even more?”
xxxxx“What are we to do for shelter, then?”
xxxxx“Majus-vat, please do something for us,” Leta said to Majus, “We may have arrived, but we are lost.” The small yellow Civati had crawled out from under the dragon’s immense wings before the sun had disappeared behind the tall mountains around the valley.
xxxxx“A good rise to you, Leta-vat,” Majus rumbled in greeting. He could feel all the small Civati under his wings as they rested, and though he was loathe to wake them, this conversation needed to be had. “I have heard the murmurs. There was once a technique I heard the dryads used before they disappeared into the sea, and I am considering it,” he said.
xxxxx“The dryads sailed away from the continent?” Leta asked. Her head tilted to one side, both sets of her ears mirroring the motion.
xxxxx“They did not sail, little one,” Majus said, suppressing his chuckles so he wouldn’t disturb the other Civati still sleeping under his wing, “The dryads disappeared into the sea, but they did not sail. They were driven out of their forests by the humans’ need for building materials until there was only one place left for them.”
xxxxx“Did they drown?” a young voice asked from somewhere above Majus’s head.
xxxxx“Mathias, come down and join the conversation,” Majus said, tilting his head to one side so the small green Civati would slide off and have to join. “To answer your question, no. The dryads did not drown, but they changed. The stories tell that they transformed into nymphs who grow trees in the seas and oceans around the continent,” he finished.
xxxxx“What about the dryads prompted you to consider their shelters?” Leta asked him.
xxxxx“Supposedly, while they were still living in the land forests, the dryads molded their trees into places to live,” Majus said. He saw the confused looks on the two Civati before him and smiled. “We cannot mold the trees as they are, but if we can create homes that sustain themselves and grow larger on their own, it would solve our shelter problems. However, we are unable to mold the trees immediately, so this idea would have us wait even longer than we have. That will be difficult for us, since we have finally made it to the end of our Journey.”
xxxxx“Patience,” Mathias said.
xxxxx“I’m sure the others would understand, Mathias-vat, but I do not wish to press our family more than is necessary,” Majus said to the small green Civati.
xxxxx“Our family?” Leta asked. She seemed confused by the term he had used.
xxxxx“Yes,” Majus said, “Where I was adopted from, young members were born very differently. It involved one male and one female, and the young that came from them were considered their responsibility. Since the Civati do not operate under such rules, I have been using a comparison with Mathias. I was adopted by the Civati and became your brother. Now that I am Guide and Guard, you all are my responsibility. Where I am from, it would be as if a blood brother rose up and filled the role of one of the parents to lead his siblings.”
xxxxx“I was not born with you, but you are all family,” Mathias said. His solemn eyes locked on the brighter Civati with the same intensity he used for everything.
xxxxx“But what does blood brother mean?” Leta asked, avoiding the eyes locked on her.
xxxxxMajus twisted his face as he thought of a suitable explanation. “On the Journey, you witnessed how when a Civati fell and got a small wound, their body sent a red fluid to the surface. That is blood, and in cultures where it is important to know whose mother and whose sister one is, a family is considered to all have the same blood,” he tried.
xxxxx“So, when one bleeds, they all feel it?” Leta asked.
xxxxx“Something similar, yes,” Majus said, giving up slightly on defining such a strange concept to her. He couldn’t think of a way to explain it that wouldn’t be more confusing. “In my case, family is more of a bond than shared blood, which is why I can make the comparison,” the dragon finished.
xxxxx“How delightfully maudlin,” a sneering voice said from a red head.
xxxxx“Good rise to you, too, Peku-vat,” Majus said to the peevish Civati, “Did I wake you?”
xxxxx“No,” Peku said as he crossed his arms over his chest, “though it appears that many of the Civati wish to speak with you this Gentle Light.”
xxxxx“Please gather the Civati once the Gentle Light is fully visible, then. I wish to work this through together,” Majus said. He dipped his head toward the red Civati with his request. That should work to keep the elder appeased for a time.
xxxxxWhen the moon finished rising above the mountains, the Civati were ready and waiting for the dragon to speak. “Civati, I wish to welcome you all home, but I would not be a proper Guard if I did not keep you safe from the elements,” Majus said. His tone was not commanding, but his size helped to make the sound travel over them with seeming ease. Without hurrying, Majus continued, “As we did when discussing the Song, I wish to put forward a number of options and reveal to you what the dream Zemni-vat bequeathed to me has shown in more recent times.”
xxxxxThe crowd of Civati and their glowing dreams drew instinctively closer. In the past, Majus made decisions and explained them as they went. If he was asking for a discussion, then that meant he could not figure out the correct path on his own.
xxxxx“As I see it, there are many ways we can provide shelter for ourselves,” Majus said with his head lowered toward them, “We can find or carve out own caves out of the mountains around us. Too much, though, and we risk bringing down the walls that protect us from the outside. This rock is soft, so consistent carving would weaken it to the point of collapse, but if we limit the amount that is carved, the mountains should remain steadfast for many, many years.” There were some heads that bobbed as they thought of this, though the faces Majus could see looked like they were waiting for the other options first.
xxxxx“I have heard the thoughts to use the trees around us like the humans do,” he continued, “This is not a bad idea, but I would caution against this. It is much too easy to become confident in the quick and easy use of these materials. Without careful vigilance, the valley will be stripped of trees in the next hundred years.” There were a few surprised looks as Majus watched them. The surprise glowed on the faces as he spoke, then faded to a simple concentration as they considered what their approach had to offer.
xxxxx“Another option is to continue using my wings to protect you from the elements. However, despite my seeming ageless existence, I will eventually grow old. That end is still thousands of years away, but at that point, I will not be able to Guard you,” the dragon said. There were a number of gasps in the crowd as he bluntly confronted his mortality, but Majus smiled comfortingly.
xxxxx“Like I said, that end will not come to pass for a long time yet. However, there is one more option I would like to discuss with you,” Majus said. The crowd waited expectantly as Majus lifted one giant wing to gesture at the valley. “If we use the trees as they stand and mold them into living pods, then we may feasibly be able to create a sustainable source of shelter for as far as I have been shown,” Majus announced, “However, before you grow excited with this final option, be aware that it will take years to train the trees to grow as we want. I am not even certain we will be successful with the first trees we attempt. Please keep this in mind while discussing among yourselves. I wish to Guide you well, so offer me sights only you can see.”
xxxxxMajus watched with pride as his family began to discuss with their neighbors the benefits of each course of action. They even continued speaking when they climbed upon Majus’s broad back to do their regular exploration of this strange new valley they were calling home. They walked the perimeter, where Majus cleared the path of trees for those behind him. He heard them discuss mixing strategies and ideas, and when he called for Silence, he could feel the weight of each Civati deep in thought.
xxxxxToward the end of the Gentle Light, Majus froze mid-step. Bilibojo and Mathias had been sitting upon his head, discussing their own ideas, and now an image of their combined ideas rooted Majus where he stood. The base of the valley walls were covered with a layer of glistening rock, and behind that rock lay a single ring of tunnels and small carved abodes. Outside, the trees glowed with the dreams and Civati resting in their sculpted boughs. Unconsciously, Majus began to laugh. It was such a simple answer!
xxxxxWhen he told the Civati what he had seen, they all seemed ecstatic, and even Peku stared off in awe at the future Majus described. They started that very night. Whatever the Civati carved from their tunnel, they brought outside to the waiting dragon. There, he seemingly ate the jumble of rocks, heating his mouth and the contents inside until it was liquid and he could then slather it on the base of the cliffs. Whatever they took from the mountains went right back to them, reinforcing the walls just outside the large tunnel.
xxxxxMeanwhile, Mathias and Leta led a group of Civati each night to look for large, healthy trees they could mold to become shelters. When it came time to escape the Harsh Light, the Civati gathered under Majus’s wings, and when they began carving the small sleeping quarters within the walls, the young voluntarily let their older members take the first few.
xxxxxIt was a busy few years, only slowed by the incessant raining that happened once a year. As Majus had predicted, though, once the Civati finished their tunnel and the apartments within it, the trees were ready to be inhabited. The Civati grew adept at weaving the trees into living homes for themselves. Some even began experimenting with a second level on their trees, opening up more possibilities.
xxxxxAfter the tunnel was finished, however, there wasn’t much for Majus to do. Each Civati carried their Dream, so there wasn't a Vault for him to Guard, and the new valley seemed a perfect place for them, so there wasn't much need to Guide. He visited the Civati around the valley and called the Silence and Song, but other than the occasional quarrel, he was largely unneeded. There came a time when only one Civati remained with him during the Harsh Light. His green head remained firmly under Majus’s wing or atop the dragon’s skull, climbing the extensive horns there.
xxxxx“Mathias-vat, you should create a home for yourself,” Majus said one night, “You are the best weaver, and I know you assist the others wherever we stop, but would you not like a tree of your own?”
xxxxx“I will help family, but I want to stay with you,” Mathias said. Majus paused in his study of the landscape and looked under his wing at the Civati.
xxxxx“I am honored by your sentiment, but I will not be here forever. You should find others with whom you wish to live,” the dragon rumbled softly.
xxxxx“That is why I want to be with you now,” the green Civati said. There wasn’t much Majus could think of to challenge that logic as he felt the soft weight that was Mathias scamper up to his brow. “What are you doing?” he asked once he was seated in his usual spot.
xxxxxMajus chuckled and said, “I am trying to be useful. You know how you can see part of at least one wall of the valley from wherever you stand? I hope to make a map so that none will become lost so long as they can see the walls.” Majus studied his surroundings just a bit more, then turned to the wall. “I will carve in these landmarks where they stand, and next time I come by, I will carve beside them, so that travelers will know what lies beside the current mark.”
xxxxxMathias traveled with the giant dragon as he carved an image for the lake they passed. Majus made note of where the moon rose, and also where the cliffs created the natural entrances to caves where the valley’s rivers ran out. He noted the portion of the valley dominated by fruit trees, and he made a small monument on the edge where the Civati first entered their new home. Majus carved the direction of the sunset and the location of the “Sunless place” past the falls that fed the main river in the valley. He observed the clouds that seemed to constantly form around the peak of one mountain and brought rains. Mathias then helped identify the entrances to the tunnel that ran the perimeter of the valley, and Majus took notes on them as well.
xxxxxBy their third trip around the valley, other Civati were joining them for short times. “I have heard tell that a brother by Fruits found a new way to weave.” “The sisters by Sunset are taming one of the wild creatures in the area.” “Our family at Lake are sending a group to the center to sow the black tree seeds.” Majus gladly helped them along, since his traveling speed was much swifter, and the added conversation was very welcome.
xxxxxMathias and Majus continued to make their circuits around the valley, carving new details each night until the entire wall of the valley was covered above the canopy with delicate and intricate carvings depicting the interactions of the nearest landmarks. Within the swirling carvings were images of dragons and elves who peeked out of fanciful clouds and swirling stars. Humans made occasional appearances as well, but the real central species was the Civati people themselves. To commemorate their entrance to the valley, Majus carved a large Civati carrying many dreams. Since it was a landmark, it went all the way to the valley floor. Entrances had a simple column of fanciful designs, but this particular landmark was the most detailed.
xxxxxOne thing Majus never learned about, though, was the way the Civati emulated him. Within the tunnel, it became a personal challenge to decorate the walls in and around one’s apartment with images personally important to the artist. Within the trees, Civati carved the limbs with names and images, often leaving messages as they moved between the pods woven from living branches. At first, they used stones for their carvings, but some clever Civati noticed that the scales Majus dropped around the valley were harder to break and could be sharpened to a more permanent edge. Each scale was split in half to make attaching handles easier. The blades of these knives were a wine red, the sharpened edge a shade of midnight blue.
xxxxxWhile he was carving, Majus was also introducing new Civati to their family. Binti-vat, Japa-vat, Micah-vat, and Jespet-vat. Zanu-vat, Moya-vat, Yarem-vat, and Korim-vat. Larem-vat, Harite-vat, Amu-vat, and Vorcim-vat. All of these and more Majus named, and all he greeted with the same words.
xxxxx“This is your family. There will be troubles, and there will be arguments, but best of all there will be joy. Welcome home.”
((A/N: Hello, and welcome back to the world of Luoma! This is to be a short-lived visit, though. With my nonexistent forethought, I decided to set this world in the middle of a war. Terrible things happen in war. Anyway, I have discovered that the natural flow of the story might not live up to CS content rules. If you would like to continue reading about it, though, Fear Not! I can't link it directly because of the rules, but I can tell you how to find the new thread. Look up lazywriters.freeforums.net for the site. It will be there. As it is, I am totally continuing this storyline. I wrote an extra 35000 words of it during NaNo, and it's also kinda the reason why I haven't been posting here. Sorry not sorry? Anyway, I hope to see you there. If you don't decide to come over, that's alright, too. Thanks for reading. My updates here are going to get spotty until I'm done being absolutely crazy about Luoma.))
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