Sins don't come clean ( Open )

[Mysteria]

Mysteria had been keeping a low profile around the kingdom. She dared not enter the castle grounds while uncertain of how Breton was behaving. For all she knew; Breton could of already sabotaged her loyal ties with Noku. Plus her stunt back in Bane was one that lost her title as Champion to her...Ex deity. So now she was backed in a corner with little option other than to not return to the castle for a x amount of time. With that thought, there was nothing else Mysteria could do other than avoid the people she had crossed. Morning had brought little comfort to the sorceress. There was gossip of a trial today for the former Captian Roland Walker.

A frown appearing on her lips as she thought back on the gossip. ' Forgive me, I can not be there to see your freedom. My prayers go out to you and Aveline. May be gods protect and watch over you both.' Mysteria thought while walking through the forest to the Crystal Springs. Her attire was simple, but elegant with gold trim and gold-leaf print designs on a emerald dress. The sleeves on her dress long and flowing which waved at her side while she walked. The metal arm hidden from view.  The morning crisp air was cool, creating scattered fogs within the forest as Mysteria approached the area in which the springs began. Once she could see the pools; A smile crept across her features. Perhaps with the world distracted by the trial, she could relax within a public place without worry.

Once she found a pool of moderate shallow depth, Mysteria did one last survey of the area around her before unraveling the tassels of her dress. The loose material falling to the black pebble rocks by the springs bank. Her eyes falling down to her metal arm that clasped at her flesh. Her natural arm reached up to caress the crafted piece. She traced her fingers down the arm, grasping the clasps and un-hooking the arm from her shoulder. Her hand having to take hold of the metal to pull it the rest of the way off, letting it drop to the ground below on-top of her dress. She didn't want to ruin it by getting wet after all. Killian had worked so hard on it for her to let it rust.

 Her hair cascading down her front and back side to cover her more sensitive areas before entering the warm pool. The water warm to the touch as she stepped into the shadow spring, stepping out further to the center before taking a seat down into the water. Her hair spreading out like a fan around her body/. Each strain of hair swirling around in the water in a wild fashion as she began to lean back and relax. A loud audible sigh escaping her lips as she sank further into the water.

[Sareth Edara]

Sareth had taken the first available moment after setting Cam about dealing wth arrangements and settling of his belongings to take one of their carriage horses and head for the springs that were just outside the city. He needed a place to relax that wasn't a cold metal tub and wasn't going to have him dealing with large amounts of unneeded protocol or guards.

The ride had actually worked up a little bit of a sweat for him and the horse as he had pushed him hard to make sure he had plenty of distance between him and the kingdom and well Cam. This was for Cam's own good as much as it was his own. He got off the horse and walked it through the forest to the springs finding one easily enough that seemed to be unoccupied. He shed his outer robes and even his belt with the swords still attached. He even dropped his jewelry onto the robe before his inner robe was shed along with his boots and pants. Finally free of the raiments of his office other than his family's signet ring that was rather firmly affixed to his right ring finger.

He stepped into the pool without really looking around and was sitting down before he noticed the bright pinkish purple hair that was across the pool from him. "Sorry I didn't realize the pool was taken, I was rather eager to get in and relax." His green eyes looked over the woman in the pool with him, something about her seeming very familiar when it dawned on him, "You wouldn't happen to be one of the Kray would you?" Curiosity got the better of him as it normally did when he wasn't having to be all formal or regal. He was actually really laid back and liked to just relax when he had the time and freedom to do so.

The metal arm that laid on her rather gorgeous dress didn't go unnoticed by him which meant that she only had the one arm, again curiosity was gnawing at him but he pushed that question aside. He wasn't going to be more rude than he had been by just climbing into the pool with her without even asking if she was okay with him joining her. The nudity didn't bother him at all though he wasn't making any attempts to leer at her or catch a glimpse of anything as he found her face a far more interesting feature to watch as it would show him far more than her body would about what was going on in her head. Then again he could just reach out with his empathic ability and get an idea of what emotion was strongest for her right now.

[Mysteria]

The water was at perfect temperature with the steam licking off her skin. Her head leaned back into the water, both ears submerged to cancel out the noise of the Forever Forest. The worries she had before washing away with each passing moment she fought to keep her eyes open. After a while, the battle was lost and Mysteria found herself dozed off within the pool.


Her body relaxed and her mind finally free of the thoughts that plagued her day in and out. The spring was exactly what she needed. The troubles of the world escaping into the atmosphere carried by the dancing vapors that came off the pool.


Had she been awake and her eyes both open, Mysteria would of noticed the man approaching the pool she was in. She probably would've said something to him, however, by that time it was too late. The man had already undressed and stepped into the pool. Mysteria’s eyes suddenly forced open, her attention drawing to where she felt a disturbance hit the water. The kray woman’s eyes going wide like dish saucers.


HE WAS NAKED?!


Of course he would be naked! This was a natural spring known for being a public and open bathing area, of course she wouldn’t be the only one out here with similar ideas. Mysteria’s ear tips were the first to turn. The shade a deep red traveled from the tip of her ears - All the way across her cheeks to her nose before slowly spreading to the rest of her features. Her body sinking into the water to cover any part that could be exposed, while keeping eye contact with the seemingly friendly male.


“ It...It’s okay. It’s a public spring after all. “ She managed to give a nervous smile, slowly inching herself up back to a proper seated pose within the pool. When he suddenly asked if she was a Kray, her body frozen in a rigid manner. Crap… Well yes, but not many people knew or even could tell her race unless they knew what to look for. So perhaps this man had some prior knowledge.


“ Indeed I am…. Is there a reason why you are interested?” She asked in curiosity, the red still apparent on her features. Her eyes glanced over to where she took her dress off and metal arm, quickly taking note of where they were for in case of emergency. She also took note that he too was staring at her metal arm, but said nothing of it as he turned his attention back to her. Her shoulders now exposed over the water surface, showing the scar where her right arm used to be.

[Sareth Edara]

She was far more red than she should be for the temperature of the water, was she not used to people joining her in relaxing? It was something to ponder as he kept studying her reactions to him. It was also a bit strange to watch her creep up out of the water to talk to him. He assumed that the public bathing that happened all the time in his homeland was not so popular here in Nova. He might have to make an effort to correct that practice if he was here long enough.

The way she went rigid was odd, were there issues with the Kray in this land? He could ask later after he answered her question as it was only polite and she seemed far too unsettled and he didn't want to push her too hard. "Hmm? Oh sorry it is just nice to see another of my mother's race is all. I'm half Kray myself obviously. Beyond my mother I've never met another Kray, it seems our race is rather lacking on population levels." He figured that would be enough for her to process at the moment, his arm were placed on the edge of the pool for now as he relaxed a bit more. He had to admit it had been a long time since he had gotten to just sit and chat idly with someone like this.

[Mysteria]

The man seemed to have good intentions. His question bringing a bit of comfort as she listened to him speak of his mother. So she was a kray? What the odds! Mysteria would've never guessed with the color of his hair and eyes; he barely resembled a Kray. Perhaps there were others out there that had survived when the Manna Gorge was formed. Then again, she didn’t look back when it all happened; So maybe just maybe there were other kray settlements out there which had no idea. Which brought a soft smile on the woman’s oval features as she looked at the man.


“ You must not be from Teair Nova then; Are you perhaps a foreigner? You seem familiar… “ She asked, not really sure why. Perhaps by passing glance. Either way, Mysteria’s eyes trailed over to his clothes that laid by the pool. The quality and design suggesting someone of higher standings of a ‘noble’. Her eyes shifting back over to him, the smile still remaining. “ I see, your mother didn’t tell you then. Kray in Teair are rare to come by indeed. Most have either left the area, traveled the Widowmaker and have made settlement elsewhere. Not many stayed around after the settlement in Heaven’s Pass was destroyed and the Manna Gorge born in its place. “ Her smile faded and she broke eye contact. The memory of that event replaying in her thoughts as she remembered why the settlement had been destroyed.. Her gaze falling to the water as she scooted back to find a large rock to lean against it. Her body no longer ridged and her posture more relaxed.


“ Forgive my rudeness, I am not used to bathing with company. “ She chuckled, her hair floating around her torso and legs like a veil within the water. “ My name is Lady Mysteria, Might I have the name of the company I’m sharing with this morning? “

[Sareth Edara]

He watched her move to lean on a rock in the pool, she at least wasn't so tense now which made him a little more comfortable. Her question about him being from somewhere other than Nova was right on the mark and he nodded, "I am from across the widowmaker. I lived in Pherana until recently and have to say that Nova is rather chilly compared to it."

The way she talked about the settlement that was here and the way that she reacted to talking about it was as if she was around when it happened which made her far older than him if she was. He didn't really care about that though he did move a bit closer to her before deciding to lean on the same rock just slightly farther to the side from her. "Well there is rumor of a settlement in the north of the continent I came from but I've never had the opportunity to seek it out to confirm. Kray are rare across the sea as well though that is just what I've observed."

"Ah sorry about that. I'm Sareth." he didn't put in his title or last name as he really didn't want them to sour the relaxed mood they had achieved. His green eyes looked around them a little bit to take in the scenery not realizing that his right hand was near her, the hand that had the ring on it. "At least it is quiet here, such a rare thing to come across in my life. So if you don't mind me prying but if you are a noble why are you avoiding the trial that is happening today?"

[Mysteria]

Mysteria lifted her head just a little from the rock where she was relaxing against. Her brow quirked in curiosity when he said he was from Pherana. A empire to itself that she had visited only a few times with the King. A large grin appearing on her features the moment he commented on the climate here compared to there. “ Ah yes, Pherana is a beautiful place. The temperature is different between the places; Unlike Pherana which is almost always warm all year round. Nova experiences all four seasons, which right now I am assuming we are coming into Flora Bloom. “ She smiled, looking up at the tree’s which were beginning to bud with flowers.


Her attention returning to Sareth as he moved in the pool to settle himself closer to her. Her eyes following him as he leaned against the same rock. He was indeed a bold one, perhaps young, though with being a half breed. She expected him to be at least in his early twenties in human years. Just from the way he carried himself, She expected him to at least be close to the royal family. He was far too educated and polite to be a commoner of the Pherana empire.


Her smile still carried as he talked and asked questions. Though deep down she felt a bit of guilt when he had reported there were less of the race outside of Nova. So releasing that much manna into the world did that much damage to her kind?.... The thought grim, but Mysteria kept her smile.


“ There was a settlement to the North… Though the Manna Gorge is its final resting place, It’s dangerous to travel there now. “ She sighed, her eyes widening and blinking for a bit when he finally gave her a name. Sareth? Sareth…… Where had she heard that name before? For a minute she sat in silence, pondering the name to herself while he continued to speak. Her attention being drawn back to the subject when he asked her if the Trial was happening today.


A frown quickly replaced her smile, as she noticed the sun begin to rise and seem to bask the world in a beautiful rose hue red. “ Aye, I was a noble, though not anymore. Now I'm just a simple commoner that tends to herbs and travel… As for the trial... That is happening today. All hell is about to break loose at the castle….. I just didn’t want to be there when it all went down.” she spoke in a calm manner, yet there was fear hidden behind her words. She knew her days of freedom were coming to a close and her sins were beginning to catch up with her. It would be only a matter of time now. Yet, for this brief moment, relaxing in a pool with this stranger, she felt safe and content. For now she would fight back the fear; A fear Breton had installed in her long ago and enjoy this morning away from the chaos that was currently happening back at the castle. " So what about you? Did you intend on going to the Trial?" She asked rather curious why he had asked if that was today or not. 

[Sareth Edara]

Well she knew quite a bit about Pherana but then again it wouldn't be odd for nobles to be taught of the kingdoms and empires that are known to them. When she didn't shy away from him moving closer to her he was a little relived though she didn't seem like one to jump on him if he told her his title either, in fact she seemed like one that might bolt to avoid being seen with him. So for now he would keep that secret a secret, "I'm actually planning to visit the gorge at some point during my visit. I want to look and see what might be left of that settlement and if there is anything of their culture or history left to retrieve. I'm actually really curious about that side of my heritage, not to mention my mother left me some cryptic warning should a side of my Kray nature had been inherited from her."

The changes in her emotional state were not getting past him right now as there were no others to drown them out. He could feel each time a subject made her uneasy, sad, or hurt. The gorge held a lot of sorrow and pain for her though. So he was fine with letting the subject of the gorge pass in and of itself for the time being. He sighed when she asked what he was going to do about attending the trial. "No I'm steering clear of it, not my politics, not my home. No need to get dragged into things that don't involve me too much. I'm here to study architecture not the workings of a court system." A little of the bitterness he felt for his father's court may have leaked into the tone of his voice before he could keep it under wraps like he normally had to due to the nature of his abilities.

"I have to say that I am inclined to agree that the rumors of these springs being some of the best in the world are correct. Can't say I could ask for better company either, pleasing to the eyes and a mind that can easily keep up with the conversation. Both very appealing qualities in a person."

[Mysteria]

Mysteria’s eyebrow raised the moment Sareth had mentioned he was planning on going to the Manna Gorge. The thought of Bane crossing her mind for a brief moment while he continued to speak. This would be bad if he were to snoop around too much and find out about the Fated settlement. She knew not his ties with the his homeland. Even his name kept repeating in her mind; her gut telling her to be wary and cautious of what she said. Fate had many allies now; countless fated that have aligned themselves over to him. Anyone could work for him with his influence becoming greater by the day. She knew he would be coming after her sometime soon. It was just a matter of when…. Though she kept a straight face in front of her company.


“ I see, You might want to re-think those plans. There is nothing out in the gorge now but raw active manna; If there was, its deep within the active manna vents. If you want information history and culture of the Kray, the Grand Library would have some books and scrolls you could look through. Of course nothing like knowing the actual thing, but it should be a start to helping you out.” Mysteria chuckled, twirling a few strands of hair between her fingertips. “ You must be talking about your ancestral transformation. All krays have the ability to transform into a dragon of their choosing; If they study every aspect of the beast and learn to become one with the draconic blood flowing through our veins. Your mother must of never learned for her not to teach you this…. “


Mysteria stopped playing with her hair, concentrating for a brief moment to allow two S shaped horns to emerge from her skull. The black horns curved back, allowing him to see them as they grew only a few inches.. “ This is just a small part of what you can do as a kray if you study and train your body to endure the pain of changing your bones…” She smiled warmly, feeling some sympathy that he was unaware of their inherited trait. Apparently not all Kray’s studied the art to transforming their body within the clans.

She turned over to press her chest up against the rock they were both leaning against. Her only arm visible and acting as a pillow against the smooth granite surface of the rock she was leaned on. Her eyes closing once he started to speak and talk about how he was not attending the trial nor interested in this land’s politics. A small snort escaped. “ I see.. I can respect not wanting to become involved with another lands problems.” She smirked, taking note of his tone and how he spoke while her eyes remained closed. He definitely had some form of schooling to have a passion or desire to learn more about architecture. Not a profession that made money quickly or something a commoner would choose.

Mysteria continued to smile as she let the heat from the water sooth her aching muscles.Her hair becoming like veins within the water, swaying with every movement made within the pool. Her breath becoming shallow as she relaxed and listened to Sareth talk about the springs. Her cheeks slowly becoming flushed with a red hue color before both eyes rapidly opened.

“ Y-You are a charmer, If the springs could express their feelings they would blush themselves. “ Shel chuckled, her cheeks still red in color. “ My the water is warm this morning. “ She interjected, doing her best to justify the redness of her face as she tried not to make eye contact.

[Sareth Edara]

She was a little over zealous about him going to the gorge which had him curious about what was hidden or buried there. He would set that curiosity aside for now as he had something much more important to focus on, even he wouldn't be so rude as to a woman who was being kind enough to keep him company since he had barged in on her. While some may have found the way the horns grew out of her head a bit creepy he found it rather fascinating. She must have mastered it long ago for it to seem so easy and fluidly done. He found them attractive in their own way as it showed a side of his kind he hadn't know existed and well they accented her appearance quite well.

Tempted as he was to take a peek when she moved to lay on the rock he behaved himself like he was supposed to by moral standards. She looked kind of cute in that shade of red that her skin was turning again and at least she didn't pry into why he was avoiding the politics of the kingdom right now.

He got a bit of a idea in his head and decided to act on it after her comment about the water being warm this morning. She was being a bit coy with him, an action he wasn't used to seeing in women then again he wasn't married off like some of his siblings back home so a lot of people were looking for that whole move up through marriage angle with him. Smoothly and oddly elegantly he moved around the stone to be at her back, a careful finger moving her hair out of the way.

His hands were then placed on her shoulders as he started to rub her shoulders taking his time to do this slowly while leaving a way for her to escape should she feel the need to do so. He was slowly working over her shoulders and neck before starting on her upper back. His hands were rough in texture though his touch was gentle as he worked on helping her muscles relax. Back home if he had done something like this and it was found out he would have never heard the end of it from his older siblings. "It seems strange to me that I'm calmer right now than I have been anywhere it is a shame this day will have to end at some point. Then again we can try to make the most out this time while the kingdom's eyes are focused elsewhere."

Taking his time to move his hands down her back inch by inch stopping to focus on knots in her muscles while keeping a semi respectful distance between them. During all of this he was keeping his fingers from brushing up against her breasts or even the curve of her butt more than just the slightest touch of the heel of his palms as he worked on the small of her back. Once he was satisfied the knots were gone he started cracking her back for her with well placed pressure on either side of her spine. Once that was done he moved her hair so it was cascading through the water behind her again and resisted the urge to run his fingers along the horns she hadn't put away yet. It did bring back a bit of memory about times recently that someone had said his eyes looked like they had slits like a snakes eye instead of the normal human eyes. He wondered if that was him shifting part of his body to be similar to the eastern style dragons he had been so fond of all his life. Hell he had stuck his nose into hundreds of books back home about them, one of the few things he got to do with his mother who preferred the western style dragons which lead to a lot of debates between the two of them about the better aspects between the two types.

[Mysteria]

Mysteria was not watching Sarieth when he started to move within the pool. She could feel the water move, but thought none the wiser. None had dared to approach her before in this state, so she froze when she felt something touch her hair. Her body becoming even more tense when she could feel her hair being pushed further aside at an unnatural rate. Was he coming up behind her?! Mysteria was about to turn her head to look around, when she stopped. Her eyes widened and her pupils narrowed quickly into slits like a serpent. Her pale skin on her shoulders and thighs speckled with beautiful teal and lavender scales. Something he would be able to see now that he was up close and personal…..

Mysteria’s entire body turned bright pink as she felt his hands touch her shoulders. He also began to speak to her, but she was too shocked to respond. What in the world? He had placed his hands on her! Mysteria froze, not completely sure what to do. She had never been approached like this before, so she was taken back by the sudden friendliness of the practical stranger. Her heart began to race in her chest as his hands ran over her body. Her skin would be pink under his hands, but over time the color would fade to its pale hue. The redness only remaining around her shoulders, neck and head. Hell, Mysteria could feel herself becoming overheated sitting within the spring with this man’s hands going over key joints on her body.

When he ran his hands over her ribs, She bit her lip and began to squirm. Completely red in the face; Mysteria jolted her arm down to cover over her breasts. Than began to wiggled her way along the rock and push herself off, quickly jerking herself out of his hands.. “ Ex-excuse me. I’m sure back in your country it’s okay to just touch a lady without asking, but I would like a warning first..” Mysteria warned, looking at him in the water while keeping her lower half still submerged underneath the water. Her arm barely covering up anything other than what was considered ‘indecent to show in public’ in the human society.

Even though she had some what scolded him, her cheeks still were flushed and carried all the way to the tip of her ears, face and neck.. “ I will admit…. I’ve never had a massage before. So I will compliment your dic~.” Mysteria began to stutter, before quickly correcting herself. “Skills! just wasn’t expecting it… That's all. “ She admitted, turning her gaze down to the water. Mysteria was mortified. She felt silly trying to explain herself AND now even more she had almost humiliated herself!

Mysteria dared not look at him now; She felt embarrassed already and knew he was still without clothes. The last thing she needed was to seem like a pervert for staring or worse! Sounding even more like a fool after just catching herself.

[Sareth Edara]

The slight change in texture on her shoulders had his eyes looking at the scales that she had formed on instinct, the color was a mixture of teal and lavender. An interesting combination of colors for a dragon which made him wonder what her fully transformed state looked like now not that he was going to push for her to change into it. When his seemingly flustered companion made her attempt to get away he moved to allow her to do so easier. He didn't want her getting the impression that he was trying to force himself on her or anything of that sort.

When she spoke about him just moving over and touching her with no warning he didn't really fell sorry for doing it since she had shown him something rather interesting about her draconic form. He held up his hands as he sunk back down to about mid torso in the water in an attempt to say he was sorry. She almost commented on the size of something else but stopped herself and changed back to talking about his actions. "I do apologize about that as I am the one at fault. I didn't think much about it to be honest you just looked really tense and I was hoping to help at least with the physical aspect of it by giving you a massage. I'll make sure that I ask permission in the future should I ever get another opportunity to meet you after today."

He backed off towards the edge of the pool and stayed there to give her plenty of space and to show her that he wasn't going to try again. Now he was starting to feel bad about it as he could see how red/pink she was now and well she seemed rather embarrassed by the whole event. Back home he might have found it amusing but for some reason he was feeling guiltier and guiltier by the second and it would seem that he may have gone a big further than intended. He closed his eyes and made a show of doing so to make sure she knew it was safe to get out of the spring if she wanted to right now. He did want to patch this up as she was a valuable source of information about his heritage and might be able to help him with learning to shift into his other forms and it seemed she had been around since before Castor's Calamity happened.

There was on thing he knew how to shift and that was his eyes something he did on instinct the first time and had learned to do on his own a little at a time. At first it gave him killer migraines but now it wasn't much of an issue for him. He shifted them while his eyes were closed and slowly opened them, "This is about all I can do right now for shifting on my own, it is rather useful for dealing with easily intimidated people though I think they've started calling me a snake demon because of it not that that fact isn't amusing in it's own right. If you don't mind me prying is your dragon winged with for legs or serpentine, wingless and has four legs? Sorry if I'm being too nosy too quickly, I'm pretty sure I'm a poster boy for the saying curiosity killed the cat."

[Mysteria]

Mysteria still refused to look at Sareth even though she could still feel his gaze upon her. Her features still vibrantly red, Though her back was turned to him. Her ears twitching as he spoke; apologizing for the most part, but explained his actions for why he suddenly decided to give her such physical treatment. Her lavender teal eyes blinked rapidly behind partly wet hair; knowing well he could not see her face or her reaction to his last comment about asking permission in the future. Her eyes wide, Mysteria felt her heart jump. ' What in the world was with this man? ' She thought, feeling ever more flustered as she heard movement in the water behind her.

Though it sounded as if he was moving away? Was he leaving? Mysteria pondered, some what hesitant to turn around and look to see if he had left. She didn't hear him get out of the pool. Perhaps he was still in the water some where? After a minute of contemplation, Mysteria turned her head to look over her shoulder. There she saw him on the other side of the pool with his eyes fully closed.

Mysteria blinked again, unsure exactly what to do at this point. She could run or she could stay. Either way, the man before her gave her the opportunity to leave with the decency of 'not looking' if she were to get out. However, Mysteria didn't move. Instead, she took this opportunity to 'scan' over her guest, while both his eyes were closed.


" Your apology is accepted. An perhaps if destiny allows are paths to cross again, I will be more accepting of the physical contact of a 'massage'. Or if you asked politely now, I would be okay for you to continue." Her eyes looking over his body, tracing over the muscles and details before noticing his eyes slowly begin to open. Her cheeks flush with bright red hues, but At this point, Mysteria was already beginning to turn herself around within the water. Her hair covering up the more sensitive areas of her flesh, but she locked eyes with him none the less.

So he was able to change his eyes? Fascinating. Mysteria thought to herself, before Sareth opened his mouth to speak again. She couldn't help but crack a smile when he made the comment that people would call him a snake demon for the way his eyes looked. Perhaps, it was a human thing to think 'snake' upon seeing someone of a dragonic kindred race. " I'm impressed you've learned even that without studying...As for my dragonic form..." Mysteria paused taking a moment to think this question carefully. " I prefer that of the western dragons. " she admitted, giving him a light smile.

[Sareth Edara]

While they were talking he seemed to be distracted with something which he had hoped would take longer to get here. With a sigh he looked at her, "It was nice meeting you Mysteria, but alas it seems my duties are catching up with me. I'm going to get out of the spring and get dressed now so you can look away...or don't" What had changed his mind so suddenly, he could hear the hooves of the horses of the search party that had most likely been sent to find him. He rose from the water and well was dressed far faster than any time any servant or Cam had ever seen him do so. He turned slightly towards Myst and gave her a slight bow, "My destiny be favorable enough that we should meet again Mysteria." With that he was walking off from the spring towards the sound of the horses leaving her to make her own escape/exit.