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Main Gates, Camp Jaha |
There are two sets of gates at the front of the Skaikru encampment, both overseen by the giant arch of Alpha Station's ring. The inner gates are a collection of metal plates making a solid portal that can be swung open to clear the road in and out of the camp. Ten meters further out is a wire gate, connected to an electrified fence. The gate too carries current, except when it has to be opened or closed. Above this exterior gate hangs a metal plate, letters punched out of it to spell 'Camp Jaha.' Outside the wire fence, a rolling meadow and several stands of young alder lead down to a small stream and then the shores of Lake Arkadia — or Lake Audo to the Trikru. A small range of mountains rises to the west, in the depths of thick forest. |
Thu Jul 07, 2149. |
It's not hard to find the camp of Trikru set a ways away from the towering metal and glass structure that once was called Alpha Station. As such things go, it's relatively small, only thirty people or so to judge from the fires, mostly out by now, and the detritus of mid-term living on the land. The gates of the camp beyond are open, watched over by men and women in black bearing rifles. While it doesn't look like exactly the most peaceful cohabitation there's at least currently no signs of conflict between Steheda Oxfor's peace delegation and the Skaikru 'city' beyond.
A girl is crouched by one of the fires. Armored, Starling's work if he's familiar with it, and armored, if he'd know Wren's back-up sword slung bandolier style across her back. In the broad strokes she looks both at home in the camp and amongst the few choosing to linger around it, but for one distinct issue. She's definitely not someone from Coesbur that he'd recognize, and she's just a little too pale and unmarked to pass as a proper Trikru.
Khesu is a patient man prepared to wait a day observing the Skaikru camp. Only he finds that his people have better sense than to be within the Skaikru walls, and enough of the Trikru are here to have set up their own camp outside of it. That goes a good distance to make him relax. After having watched for an hour or so from a distance, Khesu comes into his people's camp. He has indeed noticed Kai among them and details about her, but with a face he does not know. A few words are exchanged with his clansmen, a brief arm clasp and maybe a light slap to shoulders. This is a man that Kai will not know, having been absent these past weeks. He carries a bow with quiver as well as a knife and a long handled axe though at this moment he wears no armor and is bare to the waist, kill marks tattooed over the backs of his shoulders.
Kai's attention is drawn by the sound of an unfamiliar voice, the girl slanting a grey-eyed look over her shoulder with an assessing flick of her eyes before her attention dips back down to the camp below, idly scratching at a still shiny scar along her right forearm. There's no alarm or surprise in her expression, no concern present in the way she turns her attention back towards the camp, waiting for him to be within easy speaking distance before offering,"Steheda Oxfor is in Alpha with the Skaiheda at present." in Gonasleng, her pronunciation on Steheda just slightly off for all that her voice is placid.
Finishing his greetings among the first few he encountered, Khesu turns and starts to walk further into the Trikru camp and closer to Kai's position by her fire. She draws his attention and he comes to a stop close by to study her further. He drops to squat on his hams since she is also crouched down, and thus not to loom over her. Nothing is offered for a long moment before he speaks low in volume, "Who are you?"
That actually merits a flicker of a smile across Kai's face,"I am Kai kom Trikru, Wren's Second." there's a slow blink of her eyes as she turns her attention his way,"My apology's sir, I don't think we have met yet?" she inquires. She's crouched by one of the dead fire's in the late morning with Khesu crouched also nearby, watching camp Jaha as is her usual wont.
The barest thinning of his mouth but otherwise any thoughts or opinions he may have are kept to himself. Khesu continues to take in details of her person, having noted the recently healed scar on her arm, the timber of her voice, how she is poised. His own gaze flickers over the Trikru camp. He himself is relaxed, forearms lightly resting on his knees as he stays squat down by her fire. Eventually his eyes come back around to her. "You came from the Skai." It is not a question. "I am Khesu." Offered with nothing further about himself. "Tell me of how you came to be Wren's Second?"
Kai dips her head in acknowledgment of his statement as her attention shifts back towards the camp,"Khesu." she repeats, testing the intonation carefully,"My First would be able to answer that more clearly than I, sir. In the simplest regard, he offered, and I accepted. When Thripoda was destroyed and the kruheda declared war upon the skaigeda, I was among its defenders. We understood at that time that it was a war that we would not win, and endeavored to find a way to achieve peace with the kruheda. Myself and two others escaped the skaigeda and traveled to Coesbur, and from there to her war camp. Along the way he saw fit to offer me the honor of being his Second, and I agreed."
Khesu accepts what Kai offers quietly, keeping his face impassive. He finally shifts his position to sit fully upon the ground and ease his knees until he is comfortable and not close enough to the fire to have to feel it's warmth. "Escaped the Skaigeda. Defied your former people?" The warrior keeps his baritone quiet, pitched not to carry further than it needs to for Kai to hear him. Khesu pulls his small water skin around and opens it, then draws his long knife. Patiently he begins to clean dried blood from the blade, most of which has already been wiped off, now sitting cross legged. "Will you tell me of these Skaikru?"
Eventually, Elias comes wandering back towards the camp with an easy gait, though his clothing is looking a bit more ragged and worn for his exertion. He comes from a direction of the lake where an amassed variety of building materials are laid out. This also happens to be somewhat near the garden that's been started by some of the Skaikru Agro-Techs. Upon his full approach, the average-sized young man gives a quirky wave-salute to both Kai and her companion. Among the camp of Trikru and off to the side is a goldenrod-and-silver tent that he's been sleeping in since the beginning of the delegation. "Kai," he greets her with a smile before turning his attention to Khesu. "Yo. Ah laik Elias kom Skaikru." The greeting is fairly chipper and warm despite Trikru ingrained stoicism.
Kai can't help but grimace slightly at the phrase 'defied your former people',"I fulfilled my duty to them." is what she chooses to state instead before dipping her head in acknowledgement,"You must have come from far away." she surmises without rancor,"The Skaikru had a city in the sky.. and that structure you see there, was part of it. They thought that they were the only one's to survive the great war, and that Earth would be unlivable for quite some time yet. But there was a problem with the Ark, the sky city, and they chose to send one hundred of us to the ground. Many mistakes were made, and many died, but the sky city itself was dying, and at last the only choice for their survival was to bring the sky city itself down. Parts of it survived, along with their people, and the Skaiheda now resides down there." she chins in the direction of camp Jaha, pressing a hand to her side as she shifts to settle down and raises a hand towards Elias with a smile,"This is my Niron, Elias. Elias, this is Khesu kom Trikru, he just arrived."
Kai gives an interesting reaction to his fishing. Khesu eyes the skai woman turned Trikru, noting her hand to press against her side as she too shifts her position to sit fully. A faint nod, "I have been absent, aye." His attention flicks to Elias as the other arrives and approaches their fire. Quietly the warrior studies the skai youth with quiet interest. With bow and quiver slung over his back, as well as a long handled axe, Khesu is slow to respond to Elias's chipper greeting in the Trikru's own language. Kai gives him introduction so Khesu need not say anything, but he gives Elias a nod.
The camp is being watched, as usual, by Kai, with a side order of Khesu, and Elias has just come up from his work to join them,"How's the garden coming?" she asks of Elias before shifting her attention towards Khesu,"It has been.. interesting. Reapers were massing in Coesbur, we took them out not that long ago but unfortunately the Mountain decided to flatten the village. I'm hoping once the steheda is finished here that we might return to Coesbur and beyond. But for the moment we have been in Tondc."
Kai's grimace is met with a warm kiss to her cheek and a quick rub of her back with one hand. The contact is kept relatively brief, however, as he continues in the direction of Khesu with one hand outstretched. "Hey, good to meet you. Be welcome," Elias speaks up in the same warm, chipper tone. Another look is given back to Kai at her explanation and smiles at that. "I'm also happy to answer any curiosity you might have." The young man turns his head once more to look to Kai with the same cheery smile on his face. "The garden is doing well. We should have plenty of leafy greens, radishes, and tomatoes. Other stuff too, but in lesser amounts." With a shrug and a brief bat of his eyes, he turns his attention back to Khesu and his own outstretched hand towards him.
Morgan comes out of the camp's gate and pauses to look around. Spotting who he was looking for, or one of them anyway, he heads over in that direction. "Hey." hey says, nodding to Kai and Elias and giving a curious look at at Khesu before looking back to Kai. "I need some more Reapers."
Kai leans up into Eli's kiss with a nod of acknowledgment,"Excellent." she murmurs for him, noting Morgan heading over there way she asides to Khesu,"This is Morgan kom Skaikru approaching, he and Elias are also part of the hundred." that seems to be a distinction, at least as far as the girl is concerned, up nodding in Morgan's direction with the addition of,"Morgan, this is Khesu kom Trikru.. and really?" a pause,"You've learnt something, haven't you?" slowly she stretches to her feet, moving easier than she has been but still not fully healed yet.
Elias comes in close and Khesu changes his position to rise, wiping his knife off and sheathing it. His height looms over the Skai but not as much as Wren would, if he were here. This warrior's face betrays nothing, his dark eyes intent to look Elias over. There is a significant lack of response to the offered hand for a length before Khesu accepts it. His own grip is firm if brief with direct eye contact. No attempt to crush Elias's hand to try the others strength, nor is it a timid gesture.
Morgan's arrival likewise draws Khesu's quiet inspection. The armed warrior wears no armor, his torso bare in the summer heat and his kill marks clearly marked across the backs of his shoulders. A bow, quiver and sword are carried slung over his back by a leather strap, a knife on his belt. Kai is good with the introductions so the Trikru only gives Morgan a nod for acknowledgement. He chooses to keep his feet.
Horses! Gideon is guiding a pair of rather lovely specimens toward the gates. One is easily recognized as Asher's precious Steak and New Boots, but one is rather lovely gelding of deepest black with a white smattering on his nose and forehead, and four perfectly white knee-high socks. His tail and mane is salted in white, making it look like am ombre grey at a distance. She clucks her tongue softly at the horses, murmuring soft words of encouragement. Then she looks up to spot her uncle, and her expression warms almost immediately. "Khe!" She grins as she starts toward him, gaze flicking to Kai, Elias, and Morgan as she does.
"Yeesh," Elias asides to Morgan with a shake of his head and a deep breath taken inward. "That's…a tall order." A small frown makes its way to his features just briefly, but he's smiling again when Khesu takes his hand and shakes it. Elias' own grip is firm and though Khesu's face may betray nothing, he keeps an air of genuine warmth about him. Despite likely not being quite fit for being a warrior, it doesn't seem as if he's particularly timid. Hazel eyes hold eye contact. The contact is kept brief as Khesu is comfortable with, however, and he turns his attention then to Gideon as the sounds of hoof beats draw close. "Gideon," he greets her with a wave. "How are things in Tondc?"
"Heya Khesu." Morgan says, giving the man a nod before looking back to the others. "Yeah, we have. Bringing one back for an autopsy was a damn good idea." If he does say so himself. "We need to confirm it though so another Reaper or two would be good just to make sure. We also need some samples from Trikru to compare the findings to. Silver's going to try to get some but the more the better to control for natural variance." There's a momentary glance at Khesu. Hello stranger from a primitive barbarian society. I want your blood. Gideon's arrival may have forestalled an awkward conversation as he looks over then smiles. "Heya Gideon. I need some hair and blood samples. Would you mind giving me some?" For SCIENCE!
"I'm game, if the Steheda and my First 'll sanction it. As to samples.. you'd be better off having the Steheda ask himself. Though some might not mind." Kai's not really contradicting Eli so much as making sure she's clear about where she stands. Her attention shifts towards Gideon at the sound of the other woman's voice, but it's the horses that get her attention, SANB with a soft heh,"Man, Asher's going to be stoked to see Steak again." Her gaze shifts restlessly back to Morgan and then towards the gates of camp Jaha. Job? Job. Certainly it seems to have brought more liveliness to the grey-eyed girl than she's had since she limped in with the delegation.
At hearing their need for more Reapers, Gideon's brows arch high over her green eyes. She glances toward Khesu, murmuring, "<In Trigedasleng> The Skaikru healer is very demanding," though the words are said in some level of humor. She clicks her tongue again at the horses, and Steak and New Boots rests his head gently against the almost-black gelding. The two look comfortable, relaxed, even while the black shudders a few flies loose from his coat. "Alright," she says uncertainly. "I would not mind." Then she glances toward Elias, and rolls her shoulders slightly. "I would say that things are alright. It is… well… mostly good to be back in Tondc. I have not spoken to Indra again." Avoidance, much?
Khesu pays attention to what Morgan and the others say, though he keeps his own silence. Likely he does not understand precisely what Morgan speaks of with 'autopsy' being a strange word to him. Ah, Gideon! She has Khesu's attention at once, as soon as she arrives with the horses. Even as he starts to shift his position to greet her, Morgan gets a strange look at 'hair and blood samples'. The Trikru warrior then goes to embrace his niece once she is dismounted. Te hug is brief, him liking his personal space. Khesu looks her over with a critical eye and keeps his voice low, "<In Trigedasleng> I'm told Benning is here, and that she was hurt."
Elias nods to Morgan, but the gain of such things really isn't up to him. The Agro-Tech does acknowledge him despite his inability to assist. His gaze swings from Morgan to Gideon briefly. The name Benning is also recognized despite the language being spoken and it does perk his interest once again towards Khesu. Gideon's statement about Tondc is given a curious squint, though he doesn't press the issue for now. He does give her a pointed /look/ to convey his willingness to talk about it, however. With the look conveyed, he turns his attention to the conversation unfolding regarding the Reapers. "Any theories?" he asks Morgan.
She doesn't? Awesome. Morgan unzips the satchel and moves toward Gideon. "Thanks. Hold your arm out, palm up please? Barely going to hurt." Pulling out a vial of antiseptic and a square of clean bandage, he moistens it. "Yes, Elias. But we need to confirm first. Scientific method and all that. And it's too important to risk being wrong." Though they're totally right.
Wren is meditating, such is his way. He likes the grass off away from the gate, also gives him a good view of things. Well, it would if his eyes were open. Which they're not. He's sitting cross-legged with his hands upon his knees, looking more dead than alive and only presence of life that he gives away is the rising and falling of his breathing. Though his neck is still heavily bruised and that does put a damper on meditation. Still, it's better than doing nothing.
Kai grunts at Morgan, clearly, in her book that means that she doesn't have 'official' permission yet, which brings her restless gaze towards the gates again, worrying at her bottom lip before she looks to Eli and at least has the grace to look at least a little ashamed by her own eagerness to go smite more Reapers. She leans over to the agro-tech to give him a kiss of reassurance before her eyes settle on Wren. Thou shall not disturb the meditating First is definitely a thing as far as she's concerned, but damn right now she's tempted.
There was a hint of a smile for Gideon, but as Morgan approaches and moves into his niece's personal space to take her arm, about to do some strange and weird thing that she apparently consents to, Khesu nonetheless bristles a little. The tall Trikru male doesn't quite move to block the skaikru but he tenses subtly. Dark eyes are intent to watch, checking his own movement since this is something Gideon appears to be allowing. Even if Khesu does not understand what is going on, wary.
Gideon blinks in surprise when Morgan just jumps right to it. She tilts her head slightly toward Khesu and Kai, and then she rolls her shoulders. She offers her uncle a gentle squeeze to his own forearm, conveying that silent reassurance. "Okay." She actually shrugs out of her jacket, revealing those long and muscular arms. She hands her jacket and the reins of the two horses to Kai, giving the Second a look that says: Don't let them run off. Then she turns back to Morgan, stepping forward to offer him her arm. She glances around her slightly, and then chuffs out a soft breath, "We will get you another Reaper." Her teeth flash just a bit. "Dead or alive?"
Elias shrugs at Morgan and nods his head. "I was just curious as to what theories you're vetting," he says with a raise of a brow. Taking a breath then, he stands up straight. "Professional curiosity." Obviously, he knows what scientific method is. The young man shifts his attention then to Kai and smirks at her lightly. The eagerness she has doesn't seem to impact him quite as much at this point, evidently. As Kai leans in, he returns the kiss tenderly before giving her a playful nudge. "Just don't die."
Kai accepts the reins and the jacket from Gideon,"I want to come." she can't help but state emphatically before she looks back to Eli again apologetically again like 'sorry honey, but WAR',"Not planning on it. But you know how I love to make new friends."
Fiona emerges from…not the gates of Camera Jaha, but one of the Trikru's tents. She's dressed in Skaikru clothes and visibly chipper as she smoothes her hair a bit and has a look at the clump of people. There's an uplift of her chin in greeting to those she knows, and she makes her way over.
Not like Wren isn't bothered while he's doing whatever introspection that he tends to do while meditating. Usually he'll just pull himself out of it whenever he feels like he's done. And it's always hard to tell whether or not he's actually listening to what's going on not far off away from him. But the long grass is nice, the sun feels good on him, and he can hear the lake not far off. No matter where you are, one can find peace. If it's want to be found.
Elias gives a little shrug of his shoulders for Kai and wrinkles his nose a little at her. "Not leaving right this second, are you?" he asks, furrowing his brows to the girl. Despite the potential there, he does lean in to press another kiss to her forehead this time. Nodding to Morgan then, he inclines his head in a nod to the him and smiles. "Gotcha'."
"Well, I would need Wren's permission, first." Kai notes for Elias with a chin in the direction of the meditating man,"But if they're on to something, the sooner we head out the sooner we get back?" she points out with a glance in Gideon's direction again, settling for resting her head against the skaiboy for the moment because horses are wily and she's not about to risk losing the pair that she's holding for the archer at the moment.
Khesu watches what Morgan does with Gideon's arm and how she reacts to it. He has fallen silent and does not ask her again about Benning - she heard him and will fill him in on her own good time. Meanwhile he observes the others, listening to them as he stands a little to one side and relaxes that hint of tension. Kai's chin movement is noted and his own eyes go to picking out where Wren lies. Khesu notes Fiona as she comes out to join them.
"What's the blood draw for, Morgan?" Fiona asks of him, darting a look at Gideon. "<In Trigedasleng> I hope you liked the music. Also, I've met your sister." There's a wry smile before she introduces herself to Pontus and Khesu. "<In Trigedasleng> Hello. I am Fiona, ambassador of Skaikru."
Morgan gets out a small specimen bag and steps closer to Gideon. "As for Reapers, dead. One would be good, two would be great. We'll burn them all as agreed." Once is happenstance, twice is coincidence, three times is enemy action. Reaching up, he moves the hair on the side of Gideon's head so he can take hold of a few strands down by her scalp and yanks them out. He wants the follicles too. Putting them in the bag, he gives Gideon a smile. "Thanks." All done and everything goes back in the satchel. "To compare to the Reaper, Fi. We need a baseline of normal Trikru so samples from several are needed to be sure."
Elias nods towards Fiona in greeting before cutting his attention briefly to Wren and then to Kai once more. Again, he inclines his head in a nod to her and gives her a small smile. A quirk of his brow is given then and he glances back towards Morgan. "Hush hush about it," he says, giving a quick raise of his brows. "You do look like you're doing better. I'd feel better if you got cleared by Morgan first, but…you do what you do."
Yes, Morgan's actions are still very much suspect. Khesu watches, notes Gideon still not objecting as a few strands of her hair is yanked out. So very strange, all of that. He keeps his silence. At least until Fiona comes up to greet him and offer her name, speaking his clan's language. The Skaikru have only been here a few weeks and already know this clan's language? He looks her over before he speaks in Gonasleng, "I am Khesu kom Trikru. Uncle to Gideon and Benning." He is a stranger here, not seen by the Skaikru before. No hand is offered to Fiona to shake.
"Welcome to Camp Jaha." Fiona replies affably. She doesn't seem surprised at the lack of an arm to grasp. With a grin for Elias, she points out, "I'd have access to the medical report anyway." A pause. "I think." She looks back to Khesu. "Gideon has been a great help to us. I admire her greatly."
Kai's got her hands full between horses and jacket, not that she's inclined to complain. There's an up nod for Fi before her eyes slide towards Khesu, that piece of information filed away somewhere in the grey-eyed girls brain before she turns her attention to Elias,"Silver and Arlin have been checking on me a couple of times a day. But sure. Once he's done with his rounds, if he's willing." there's a glance towards the blonde guy,"I'm fine though, Eli. I swear."
"Let's just say that we know something, Fi. But we need to be very certain." Morgan tells her then looks over at Khesu. Gideon's uncle is he? "Care to contribute some samples yourself? It's pretty important for all of us." Hearing himself talked about, he nods to Kai and Elias. "Sure, I can take a look if you want. But it's up to her what she does."
Elias squints his eyes at Kai as she reassures him and also flicks the attention of his eyes to Fiona briefly. Finally, he nods to her and lets his lips twist in a light smirk. "Fine, fine. Just…you know. Be safe," he says, always seeming to want to convey this sentiment to her. Looking to Morgan then, he gives the other young man a shake of his head and then a slightly confused look. "Yeah, I know. Why would that be in question?"
Khesu does not look to be a very friendly man. One might suspect he's more likely to give Morgan a urine sample than blood, unless it were Morgan's. But he's also not being quite unfriendly either. Reserved, aloof. Watchful of these strangers. He notes Fiona's reply, looking briefly to Gideon, then back to this 'Ambassador of Skaikru'. Morgan regains his focus and Khesu gives his reply in his low rumble, "No." Another look to Gideon - if their Steheda or Kruheda has ordered them to comply with such a request, she can inform him.
Fiona looks over at Morgan like she has her suspicions, but gives him a nod, content to get details later. "You want me to ask Tuan and Britt?" She speaks comfortably of the two other Trikru to the young medic. Laconic Trikru be laconic. She's used to that.
Wren finally starts moving, but he doesn't seem inclined to move very far. Rather, he's plucking a long piece of grass next to him, toying with it. There's some fiddling around with it in his hand, then putting it next to his mouth. Whatever he did, it's making a musical note, almost like a whistle. Could he's just playing around with it. But hey, it's the simple things in life, isn't it.
"Always." Kai assures Elias, though the motion and sound from Wren draws his attention back his way,"Wren.. sir." she calls, pitching her voice in the range of audible but ignorable in an effort not to annoy him,"Morgan kom Skaikru is collecting hair and blood samples, and needs more Reapers in order to test a theory they are working on regarding them."
"I just mean that even if I said she shouldn't, she probably will." Morgan explains to Elias. Cause Kai is stubborn. He looks completely unsurprised at Khesu's refusal and just nods. "That would be great, Fi. Have them find Silver. She'll be asking Wren too, I'm sure." he adds, nodding toward him.
Anyone who lives in Camp Jaha (or stays in the vicinity of The Row for more than a few hours) always hears the sounds of construction sooner or later. Welding, buzz-saws, power screwdrivers, metal sheers. The list goes on. Right now, those sounds are dimmer today… because Jumar is on *lunch break* finally.
Dressed in overalls, tool belt on his waist, and welding mask up and horizontal, Jumar looks like he's been rolling in the dirt. Probably because he has. The Engineers overalls are dirty, and there's grime on portions of his face. There's a dataslate in his left hand (a high-tech tablet computer) and a plate of meat in the other. Instead of eating in the station today, apparently the Engineer has elected to head for one of the seats near the main gate, observing the interactions while he brings his work to lunch with him. He starts to eat the steak on the plate with one hand while he goes over stuff on the dataslate, thumb swishing data about.
Hmmmm. The various Skaikru get a final looking over before Khesu says something quite low to Gideon. A glance back to Kai, then an up-nod to Wren lying over there, but Khesu will speak with his fellow warrior later. Instead, he eases away from the knot of people and out of the Trikru camp, melting into the cover of the trees without saying anything further.
Khesu whispers, "Find me later." to Gideon.
"Oh. Yeah, I know that," Elias says to Morgan with a thin smile. "She is looking better, though. I'm not too worried." This is spoken, apparently, for both Kai and Morgan's benefit. To the former, he turns his head and gives her a broad smile. "If you get fucked up, just have someone get me again." This is accompanied with a poke of his tongue out at her. It's brief and playful and he's soon turning to regard the others at the camp quietly.
"What a charmer." Fiona says in the mildest of tones as Khesu departs. She looks at the others once more. "Thanks for looking into this, Morgan. If we can figure out what's going on with the Reapers, it'll go a long way for proving our worth." And that their tech has value.
Wren makes the whistle again with the piece of grass, before setting it down. Kai has his attention. "And the one he already has is not enough…for a sample?" he states evenly. "And you wish to go…find and kill some Reapers?" The idea of that makes rub unconsciously at the bruising on his neck. Then his attention on Morgan. "Asking me for what?" So no, maybe he really was just not listening.
Kai smiles vaguely for the two skaiboy's,"Helping is better than sitting here twiddling my thumbs." she notes for the pair of them,"And given that we'd be acquiring for Morgan, this would be the destination anyways." she points out before her eyes slide towards Fiona with a bare noise of vague amusement before her gaze shifts over to Wren,"No. He needs confirmation of the hypothesis. Which means samples from others. And if it will teach us what makes them the way they are, it is information that will help the Trikru as much as the Skaikru, yes? In the name of peace." violence in the name of peace, makes sense to her,"Some blood, and some hair, if you would?"
"No 'if's about it, Fi." Morgan assures her. And Kai goes on to explain so he doesn't need to. "You can have Silver take them, Wren. I actually don't have an extra vial." He'd have had to go get one had Khesu agreed but it was worth a shot to ask. "We'll be comparing it to the Reaper's blood and hair along with those from Gideon and whoever else we can talk into it. And from the other Reapers we get. Then looking at them all, we can say 'this is normal for Trikru' and 'this is normal for Reapers'. The difference between the two is important."
It doesn't take long for Morgans blood sampling and hair taking to get Jumar's attention. Even from his seat and eating, his face makes it clear he's surprise it took so long. "Well, didn't think any of them would be interested in that. Doing comparisons?" Upon hearing Wren speak… "he's looking for variety in blood samples. It's harmless. A pinprick that will heal almost immediately." Jumar gives a big old grin, "sounds like they have an idea of what they're looking for. It'd be in your best interest to give a sample, since it means progress towards dealing with the Reapers permanently." That's Jumar, blunt diplomat. Even these people should understand that, right?
Fiona flashes a smile at Morgan. "Good." she says with certain grim satisfaction. Jumar's interjection is regarded, and she gives him a nod of her head. "Hey Kai, " she says, seemingly out of nowhere. "Can I have a word?"
There's a mild look of concern on Wren's face, but other than that, it's a bit unreadable. "Very well." he states to Kai without so much argument on the matter. Maybe he's just taking her word for it on this instance. The matter of blood and any other kind of sample, he nods his agreement. "If Silver wishes I offer my blood, then I suppose I will give it. If it helps, though I'm unsure how. Perhaps it's not for me to know. But if I'm going to into battle once again, I would require a healer to look at my neck."
"So I can help them, then?" Kai asks of Wren for confirmation before nodding at Morgan,"He's a healer, too, like Silver. And well.. eh, they can explain it better, science isn't my thing." her gaze shifts to Fi with a dip of her head, waiting for Gideon to take back her jacket and the horses and reaching out to brush a hand on Eli's cheek before nodding at Fi,"Sure. In a moment." because letting Morgan check her wounds totally means actually opening her armor to give him access to the stitching at her neck and collarbone and the other one along her ribs.
"Your neck?" Morgan repeats, walking over to Wren. "Let me take a look. "Is this something new? Has Silver seen to it yet?" As he walks over, he explains. "Think of it this way. Lets say that we discover that all Trikru have ten apples in their pocket." Very small apples. "But every Reaper has nine apples and a pear. So the question is, what happened to replace an apple with a pear? Gimme a sec, Kai."
"Your blood tells a story." Fiona explains to Wren. "And by examining the blood's properties, you can learn things about a person. Like their ancestry, or certain kinds of sickness, or drugs."
Looking over to Wren, Elias does what he can to field his question, though he does lean in to the brush of Kai's hand against his cheek a little. "When we study something, we have to compare it against other samples to make certain that what we see is true," he says. "Morgan has an idea about the Reapers, but it doesn't become true until the idea is tested." With a flick of his tongue out between his lips then, he gestures towards Morgan briefly before turning his attention once more to Wren more fully. "We have a way of looking more closely at blood than a normal eye can see. In this way, Morgan and Silver may be able to discover what makes the Reapers…the way they are."
Gideon slides back into the gathering as if she had never disappeared. Her gaze shifts over to Fiona, nodding gently her thanks for the music. She even offers a small smile. "<In Trigedasleng> Thank you, Ambassador. It was a fine gift." Then she looks back toward Elias and Kai, head tilted. "What idea is this?" Her gaze slides back toward Morgan, brows arched a bit.
The look at Wren tosses at Kai is something that borders on questioning, but whatever that question is, isn't said. He simply nods. "Yes." he says, then adding, "But I will go with you." So no, she's not running off on her own. Or with someone he doesn't know. And now he's getting about three descriptions or explanations as to why they need his blood. "I understand, no need to over explain it. Morgan's example does well enough." And it's to that healer he focuses on. "Recent. Injuries sustained in Coesbur. I took a club to the neck that has never been healing. Silver has done an excellent job at my other injuries, but…she has been busy with working with you. So this remaining one still bothers me." And yeah, his neck is still pretty heavily bruised up. "But I will not trouble her with her work, since I believe that is what she is doing right now. So another set of eyes may be useful."
Kai nods for Morgan's words, electing to fluff her armor at Eli like she's flashing him, for all that she does have a tee underneath the stiffened leather,"You can leave the tent out.. or, if the delegation leaves, before we get back, you could put it up near the garden, yes? But I'll try not to come home with any new injuries." she suggests to him,"And that way it's close and.. stuff."
Morgan carefully feels Wren's neck. "Well, better than if it had been a sword. Doesn't feel like there's any excessive bleeding internally. Normal amount of swelling, I think. Looks like shit. Bet it hurts like hell. Drink willow tea for the pain. Also, come by the station and we'll get you a cold pack. That'll help reduce the swelling." At Gideon's question, he shakes his head. "We need to be sure before we say anything Gideon. It's much too important for us to say something then have it turn out to be wrong. Be certain though, we'll let everyone know soon as we're sure. So those Reapers…" Yeah, sooner the better.
Jumar tosses his welding mask to the side, onto the nearby table, but keeps his toolbelt. Meat is shoves into his mouth via fork, and his dataslate is given a glance as he listens. With the others chiming in already, and Jumar himself a complete stranger to Wren, Jumar keeps silent for now. Sure, he's been hostile in the past… but right now the Trikru aren't trying to kill them. Then, his attention shifts to Gideon, ohserving her briefly… then he looks about to say something, but her attention is elsewhere right now. Instead, Jumar's attention goes back to that dataslate, using the software keyboard to type out something with his thumb.
Fiona blinks at Wren. He'd just said he didn't understand how it would help just seconds before. But she just shrugs and turns her attention to Gideon. "You never did say if you got the music." she notes to the Trikru.
Elias smirks at Kai as she fluffs her armor at him, following it up with a roll of his eyes. "You're ridiculous," he says playfully. He leans forward then and presses a lingering kiss to her lips. "But I'll leave it out near the garden, yeah. It's quiet out there at night. No one out wandering…" Giving a wag of his brows at her then, he prepares to duck from an expected assault. "But wait…are you two leaving right this second?" Hazel eyes leave Kai's face and then shift to Gideon as if asking the same question to her.
"No, we're not. Not going off just the two of us to hunt some Reapers when we're both injured." Wren grunts, partially at the idea of hunting alone, and partly from Morgan poking at his neck. "I will do so. I understand your hesitancy, not wishing to give any kind of information until you'll sure. You'll get your body. Or bodies. If we don't return, assume we're dead."
The Archer rolls her shoulders again, arms crossed at her chest. She plucks a bit at adhesive band-aid that Morgan put over her blood draw wound, and she glances over toward Kai and Wren with a thoughtful look. Then she nods thoughtfully. "<In Trigedasleng> Wren, lend me your Second. I am putting together a scouting group for the Mountain with Grey… he has recruited some Skaikru, and I some Trikru." Joint operations for the win! "<In Trigedasleng> We will run across Reapers, and she can haul Morgan back a new corpse." Or one alive. She can't remember if Morgan said he wanted one alive or dead. Then she glances over to Elias. "No." She blinks owlishly. "I am not leaving this moment."
Fiona looks to the others briefly. "Good luck to you, when you do go." It occurs to her that Tuan may be on mission for this, and well…that's his job. With a little wave, she heads out.
Kai eyes Morgan and Wren, listening to the doc's verdict. She can catch names in Gideon's Treeslang, Second's obvious, but while she keeps half an ear on such things it's Elias she smiles at, returning the kiss gently only to snap her teeth at him threateningly,"Not leaving yet, see? All good." she assures.
That teeth snapping gets a blink and a glance from Jumar, but he doesn't comment. Instead, his eyes drift to Gideon. "Gideon, where'd you get the player? I've been curious for a while, but haven't had the chance to ask." He takes another bite of the steak after he speak, the dataslate lowered briefly as he asks.
"Also, ask Silver to see to it too." Morgan tells Wren as he goes over to look at Kai. "Let her take care of you. If you don't, she won't see it as you not wanting to bother her. She'll see it as you not trusting her to do her job well or something. Ok, let's see." he says to Kai.
Elias grins at Gideon and then shakes his head a little. "Oh, I was just asking. Things happen pretty fast these days." There's a gesture to Gideon then, as if to let her fill in the blanks as far as crazy days goes. "It's good to see you while you're here." Turning to Kai once more then, he gives a quick wag of his brows to her. As Morgan approaches, he dips his head in a nod to the other young man, stepping just a bit away from Kai while she gets checked out. He does look over to her and smile, though. "Well good."
Kai grunts acknowledgment to Morgan, shifting the collar of her Starling-made shirt so that the stitches at her neck and over her collarbone are at least partially visible. It's no doubt still ugly; the wound isn't that old. But for it's lack of age and given just how bad it looked on the day it could be so much worse. her attention shifts towards Elias with a faint smile,"Hey, I've been here.. just because I'm not inclined to go digging around in the dirt accidently murdering your plants.."
Wren gives a look over at Gideon. "<In Trigedasleng> I hadn't heard about that." he offers, rubbing at his neck some more when Morgan is finished with it. "<In Trigedasleng> Funny, my ex wants to borrow my Second? I suppose, you'll at least won't try to get her killed." he remarks with a degree of dry sarcasm with that, then nodding. Even if anything dealing with the Mountain isn't something to laugh about. And that shows on his face. "<In Trigedasleng> Very well. Do try to bring her back in one piece, if you could. I suppose I'll have to find a few others to go with me. I have no desire to go off on my own." Another nod goes to Morgan. "When she's not in your Ark City, I'll ask her to look at it again."
"<In Trigedasleng> No," Gideon replies, smirking at Wren. Then she shrugs and nods. "<In Trigedasleng> As long as she follows orders, she should come back just fine." Then she offers a small nod to those gathered, beginning to step further inside the city. "I have a meeting with Grey. Send Kai along this evening, Wren, so we can discuss plans." Ominous!
"My plants appreciate that," Elias says to Kai with a playful wink and a shake of his head. "I wasn't lamenting. I'm just glad you aren't leaving yet." A brief, mirthful chuckle. "If you're feeling better, though, you can help me move the tent out by the garden." Gideon's words draw his attention then and he looks from her and then to Kai again. Raising both brows, he mimics Gideon's owlish blinking almost as he regards Kai. Ominous indeed.
"Plans? Ah.. okay." Kai agree's before nodding at Elias,"Well, not right now at least? The delegation is still here. But I can? I need to find Fiona after Morgan's done poking me though."
"You are under Gideon's command once you meet with her, ending once you return after your task has been finished." Wren tells Kai. "But you will not be hunting Reapers, you will be tasked with something possibly equally as important. You asked it of me some time ago." Then he stands. "It appears I will have to look for a few others to go hunting with me."
Morgan looks over Kai's injuries and shrugs slightly. "Take it easy and it'll heal as well as it can, all things considered. Don't and you'll have problems. You didn't need me to tell you that."
Sure, no problem," Elias replies to Kai, giving her an up nod. "I'll wait up for a little while. I still have a ton of work I've got to get done today myself, yet." Pressing his lips together then, he gives her an apologetic look. "Fortunately, I should be able to work in another break to move the tent."
"I need to get this blood to the lab. I'll talk to you later." Morgan tells them. "Two Reapers. Dead. Thanks." That being said, he heads back to the station.
Khesu eventually returns, coming out of the alder trees and walking back to the Trikru camp outside of Jaha. He goes to where he'd dropped off his bedroll when he first arrived earlier and picks it up to find a good place to claim a spot for the evening ahead. The warrior does not unroll it yet, leaving it bound in the thin oiled skin. Instead, Khesu sits down on it and pulls off one of his boots. From it he shakes out a small pebble he picked up while walking down along the lake. He glances over towards the others, nothing Wren with the Skaikru and Kai.
"Yes sir." Kai agrees with Wren without question, though from the furrow of her brow, she has plenty of them, turning her attention to Morgan with a grunt,"Plenty of rest, don't try dragging Reapers through the woods by myself. Sounds about right. Thanks doc." there's a lopsided smile from her as she steps off with a look at Elias to say,"See? I'll be fine. I might have missed out on immunity to blood fever in the genetic lottery but wounds.. I heal fast." she sighs softly at Eli with a dip of her head,"Okay, I'll try to bring you by some lunch in a little while.. actually, I'll walk with you, I've got to find Fi anyways."
Sure, Jumar's been relatively quiet on his lunch break, but the others have their own things going on, and the Engineers mind has been on work throughout. Taking a brief glance to the others on occasion. His attention is mostly on his dataslate (a high tech tablet computer). His engineers overalls are dirty and grimy, as is his face. Presumably from being in the dirt for a while, and his tool belt hands there as he sits. After he's finished his steak though, Jumar takes the welding mask back up and plants the band around his head once more.
Khesu gets a look from Jumar though… those green eyes studying the newcomer briefly, even if his face is now shadowed by that upended welding mask.
"She'll explain what you'll be doing. Her and Grey are coordinating their mission and their work has more personal value to you, Kai." Wren grunts, starting to move away. "But now I must go find those that are willing to go hunting for some Reapers. Good luck, Second. Come back alive. No excuses." The big man nods once, then stalks off back to the Trikru camp.
As Kai approaches, Elias extends his hand out to her in offering. "Sure. I might know where she went, so we can take a bit of a detour. No sweat." The young man lifts a hand to wave to the others in the camp then before he starts leading Kai towards the shore of the lake where the hothouse is currently being constructed and a garden thrives nearby. "I know, I know. You've also had a lot of attention from the medics, to be fair. If Fiona's inside, I'll try to find her for you."
Those Skaikru sure are weird to him. Khesu pulls his soft leather boot back on and snugs the ties. He slips off the rest of his pack to dig out a tiny pouch that contains a whet stone wrapped in oiled leather, but it's the oily leather that he wants. His knife he cleaned earlier he now rubs the blade down to oil it. His dark eyes watch the others going about their business and indeed Jumar's strange head gear does catch his attention. Khesu watches such antics and keeps an eye on those who come and go from Camp Jaha in general with a wary alertness.
It's been no secret among the Arkers that Jumar considers Trikru lunatics for the most part. The reactionary way they declared war on their original camp and their attempted mass murder of the 100 did *nothing* to endear them to Jumar… but at least he's not being overtly hostile. "We're not gonna bite." Jumar squints a moment at him. "Well, some of the others might, but I won't." Jumar's on lunch break, having just finished his engineer duty shift and the remains of a steak on the nearby table shows he's about to transition into forge construction. The dataslate in his left hand stays down, "Welcome to Camp Jaha and all that."
A tiny form comes towards the front gates, she is dressed with a white hood covering everything but her unusual violet eyes, and wisps of pale white hair that tries to escape. Her normally bound curves are not today, and they are outlined in the long shirt that she wears, though to those who don't know her, she simply looks like a tiny curvy woman with a cross body bag of leather, that hangs flat as she pauses to see what is happening, or more, who Jumar is speaking to. It's clear she is heading out, but she does not yet seem in a hurry about it.
The knife only takes a few moments to oil. Khesu sheathes it, folds the thin piece of leather carefully around the stone and packs it back into his light traveling kit. As he has been addressed by one of the strangers, the Trikru warrior gets back to his feet and eyes the man who spoke to him. Khesu takes his time to study the gate, the fence, the guards posted with their strange things that are guns and there is no telling if this Trikru has the faintest idea what the boom sticks are, yet. After taking this fresh assessment, he begins to walk in Jamar's direction. This warrior stops a little outside of the gate where he can get a better look at Jamar, the strange thing perched on that man's head, and at Camp Jaha itself - without actually entering.
Jumar easily notices the stare and the 'deer in headlights' curiosity. Shi, however, gets his attention briefly. "Forge shift will be in three hours, Shi." Jumar gives in an aside to her, before he looks back to Khesu, "the Chancellor has given your people permission to come into the Row-" Jumar gestures from the gate, over to the town outside the massive Alpha Station, "-provided to abide by our rules. I'm Jumar, one of the Camps Engineers, novice metalworker, and tech expert." The gestures with his free right hand to the mask, "This is a welding mask. Protects my face while I'm using a welding torch." With that, he glances back to the Dataslate, inputting something.
Those violet eyes look slowly up to Khesu, she is very used to tall males and hell females, so it is not unusual that she takes her time to take in not only his form but his clothing and weapons. The knife that was placed up is watched curiously, a soft hidden nibble of her bottom lip before she finally let's her eyes meet the large Trikru, as she has met Wren and Que, Khesu does not seems horrible out of place. That means a smile touches her lips and she gives a nod of greeting, before her voice offers as well. "<In Trigedasleng> Hello.." She greets Khesu in Trigedasleng, but then keeps to English as she glances towards Jumar, "4 hours, I have gathering to do, and that normally takes awhile, but I'll be there.." Whatever the tiny girl does in a Forge is anyone's guess.
Jumar regains his attention and Khesu watches him. Less like a deer in headlights look and more cataloging details. "You are a maker." Then his baritone adds low, "What are your rules to enter?" Shi gains a nod from him for greeting. This one, so far, is spare with his words. She gets a curious look from him when he can better make out her coloring and realizes she is very short and not a child.
Jumar narrows his eyes at the word 'maker' "I suppose I am, in your terms. I'm more accomplished in fixing things like rovers and the station than making anything yet… but I'm practicing." Jumar than points to the sign next to the Gate… it's very, very big, and easily read… if you can read English, "those are the main laws. Chancellor had them put up so you can read them yourself." Shi gets his attention, then. "We'll just start without you, then. We have the schematics you sketched out for the next phase as it is. The forge is proving to be a real bitch to work out though… there's a lot of scrap that just doesn't fit."
Shi hasn't seen the sign herself, so she steps over towards Khesu and leans back to read it, because she is curious that way. At Jumar's words, she nods slowly, "It is much harder than I had hoped, but the plans should work, just a lot of changes to the metal needed…" Her voice is sweet and warm, husky even as she tilts her head at the sign and reads it out loud carefully. Because, well it's helpful. She then turns and looks towards Khesu, "You are one of the Warriors?" She then shakes her head gently, "They call me Shi, I don't think we have met yet?" she is polite if nothing else.
The Trikru warrior looks at the sign. Khesu tries to make heads or tails of it slowly but he's not very literate. Jumar gets a nod as if he comprehended perfectly, then he lifts his gaze to assess the fence and the watchers posted to man it. Aye, he's interested in their defenses, and the structures he can see beyond it. The wire wall /itself/ is strange, not all rusted and so much wire to it with stout posts. Cautious and yet curious despite himself.
Shi is being helpful, reading the sign out loud. How convenient.
The small woman is speaking to him even as Khesu steps a little closer to the gate and the fence. "Aye. Shi." He tries out the sound of her name before he rumbles low to add, "I am Khesu kom Trikru." A calloused hand is lifted and reaches out as if he's about to touch that fence to see how sturdy it is and if it might bear a man's weight.
Once introductions are made and that dataslate is down as Khesu starts to head for the fence… that hand *almost* reaches it before his better judgement finally gets the better of Jumar. Trikru might be lunatics, but they're lunatics the Ark is trying to make peace with. "You don't want to touch that. Unless you like potentially dying." He gestures to the fence, and a couple of the Guards give Jumar a look for spoiling the fun, "A thing called electricity is running through it. It hurts. A lot."
Shi is thankfully standing near Khesu and her tiny body is right there in front of him, grabbing his hand before it can connect to the fence. This movement calls her hood to fall and her pale features come into the light of the sun, beautiful but pale without color as she peeks up at Khesu. "Let's not touch it, and also don't push me back into it. I'd rather not take more damage.." And have people go after Khesu, but still, she is now right in his way, a tiny little bump holding the warriors arm, away from said fence.
Jumar's warning would have been enough to make him hesitate, but Shi makes certain of it. Khesu is faintly startled at her grabbing his arm to stop him and he looks at her. The wire wall, then Jumar are then eyed in turn. Clearly he is skeptical that this strange webbing of wire could possibly hurt him. That's absurd! Ridiculous. But, for now he makes no further movement to try to touch it nor to push Shi out of his way. Khesu does take a step back to disengage her touch on his arm. "E-lec-tri-city?" Yep, no. Not familiar with that one. "How?"
Shi drops her hand and pushes her hood back in place, she flushes but steps to the side and glances from Khesu to Jumar and back. "I"ll let Jumar explain it, but.." She looks around before she moves to pick up one of the sticks that area laying around from time to time and tosses it at the fence. If it does what it should, sparks go flying and there is a tiny burn on the wood. She narrows her eyes at the Guards on the wall, before she moves to head towards the lake. "Try and be good Jumar.." She calls before flashing a smile to Khesu before she ducks into the shadows as soon as she can. Damn Sun.
Oh, that's easy to fix. Jumar stands up, grabs one of the grounded tools from his tool belt, and heads on over. He heads a few feet away… them pops that welding mask down before he *whacks* the fence. This immediately causes a shower of sparks *away* from the two, "electricity. Bad."
Sparks fly, more from Jumar's contact with the fence than wood touching it. That makes Khesu jump back! It's like flint and steel to start a fire, a concept he does understand. But this is a lot more pyrotechnic even than that. More like grinding an axe on a turning stone. Now he's seen two different examples demonstrated, he gives a little more respectful nod, "I see." Yeah, he'll stay back from that fence. A glance is cast after Shi now she slips away, then back to Jumar, "You made this thing?"
Shi rolls her eyes when she hears Electricity Bad, but she does flicker a grin over her shoulders before the tiny girl disappears into the trees totally.
"I, and the other Engineers built it. We've been busy the last week here." Jumar starts to toy with the wiring then… his tool bouncing and letting sparks fly over and over. Amazingly, nothing catches on fire. Then again, it's all dirt nearby. "We didn't have this at the original camp, but this is definitely an improvement."
"Aye." It seems so, "And so people can not climb it?" Pain may be endurable, even burns, but there must be more than that to it. Khesu puts his hand back out but is careful not to touch it. "I feel no heat." He frowns, "Wire is hard to make. You have made very much of it. You would show me your forge?"
Jumar watches the electrical sparks play along the wiring a moment. "It isn't heat, it's a more pure form of energy." With that, Jumar puts his tool right next to the wires… and Khesu can *see* the electrical arc between it and the wire. It's a constant loop. "Perhaps. Are you a maker?"
Oh boy. Jumar sure has his interest. Khesu sees the other man can stand very close to the fence without harm so he comes very close as well to better see the tiny arc. If Jumar had wanted to trick him, frighten, humiliate, or hurt him, Jumar could have done so easily by letting him touch the wire wall. Khesu's dark eyes watch closely, "It is like lightning? But contained?" He his mouth a breath before he says low, "I have an interest." Seems this Skaikru has managed to loosen this Trikru's tongue.
Jumar watches the Trikru briefly, then starts to move the tool over the wire. The arc doesn't disappear… but it does flux a bit. "Along those lines. Lightning is electricity in a highly unstable state. The electricity here is being directed through the wire, since the wires are specifically made to rung through them."
Khesu thins his mouth, "Lightning can kill. Mochof, Ju-mar." He has seen enough for now. A polite nod is given to Jumar for taking the time to explain about the wire wall and the electricity. While he may be tempted to draw his axe and skim the fence with it, Khesu turns away and heads back into the Trikru camp. Entering Jaha will have to wait at least until after the evening meal.