Avatar: NAkor of Boreft
Lore submission for october.
Part 1
After Halkyone had told his story, I was both relieved and confused. I was relieved that Berenice was not cheating on Alexandros, her husband. I was also very confused by hearing the name Daniel again. A painter, again! And Daniel had told Halkyone to move back to Cyzicus when he was gone! And to go live in this house he painted! I was confused to the point of being dumbstruck and I think it showed on my face. Both Berenice and Halkyone looked at me with big worried eyes. When I got my thought sorted out, I asked Halkyone if Danel had painted a harbor. Halkyone looked surprised and told me that yes, Daniel had, in fact, painted a harbor. Halkyone said he was surprised by me asking that, because, as far, as he knew, Daniel had never shown that painting to anyone but him. It hung in his bedroom and he thought it was a mess. If I wanted to see it, I could. Halkyone also asked how I knew of that painting.
I couldn’t tell him the truth, of course. So I told him I had picked up a rumor in Thebes that a famous painter from Sparta had made a painting of the harbor there, but nobody had ever seen it. I told him, I was always fascinated by harbors and fleets of ships and would love to see it if I could. That part was true. The reflections of the sun’s rays in the waters in Ancient Greece is one of my favorite sights in the whole universe. I was very curious to see if this painting looked anything like the one Lady Fri had.
Halkyone stood up and led e upstairs to his bedroom to show me the painting. When I saw it, I was shocked! And part of me expected this all along. It looked exactly the same as Lady Fri’s painting!! It was definitely Thebes’ harbor with a warship in it. On closer inspection, I thought I did see a small difference. The warship had sails with a red emblem. I thought The ship in Lady Fri’s painting had a green emblem.
Part 2
After seeing the painting of the harbor Daniel had made, was left with more questions. Questions I knew I wouldn’t get answers to here. So I thanked Berenice and Halkyone and went to sleep for the night. The next morning I felt well-rested and I felt good about going back to Thebes. First, I needed to check up on Chloe. To see how she was doing. Chloe was awake and very frustrated that she couldn’t use her arm. Such a spirited young woman! I told her the world would survive her not killing Achelous for a few weeks, but she only looked more frustrated and angry after I said it. Quickly I told her, I would find some hunters to kill at least 100 every day for the next few weeks. That seemed to give her some comfort. I told her I would be going to Thebes and if there was anything she wanted me to tell her father. Chloe’s cheeks flushed red and he raised her broken arm with her other arm. “Please don’t tell him anything about what happened to me. Just tell him I like it here and that I’m doing fine. Oh, and that I miss him and Thebes, of course!” I told her I would do as she asked and that I agreed it would be best not to upset Alexandros, but on two conditions. She should not go out and fight the Achelous until he was fully recovered. And she should not go fight them alone. Fighters should always have an exit plan. Just in case anything goes wrong. Didn’t Daniel teach her that? He hadn’t. So I told Chloe that the best hunters have different armor sets, different weapons, healing devices, and vehicles for a quick retreat, and even then, they often hunt in teams.
Part 3
After I told Chloe this, she looked a bit confused. I told her I would come back in a month and explain this to her more. Leaving her a bit uncertain of herself seemed like a good assurance to not go out hunting Achelous on her own again. After telling Berenice and Halkyone goodbye, I left for Thebes. I could, of course, take the teleporter and be there in seconds, but I decided to swim and walk instead. The weather here in Ancient Greece is always nice and the water is always an excellent temperature for swimming. I decided to go south to a bit beyond Pergamon and then head west and swim to Thebes from there. This is not completely unfamiliar terrain for me and for travelers of the universe, this isn’t that big of a distance. After only a few minutes of walking, I encountered Achelous. Not a surprise. This is about where I saw Chloe fight them. But now I did start to wonder. Chloe was hunting these because Daniel trained her. In Thebes first and later, here. Daniel who also told Halkyone to move here after he was gone? I did not know if that was the same Daniel for sure but I do remember the Haruspex also asking me to hunt Achelous for them! 500 a week if I remembered correctly. Coincidence, maybe, but I got a strong suspicion there was something I didn’t see yet. But what?! My conviction that Daniel was a Haruspex, A Haruspex elder to be precise was stronger than it had been. I knew I had to find Daniel o get definitive answers. If I got them from him. If making Chloe hunt Achelous had been his plan from the start, this all showed he was a master at planning things. How had he done this? And very important, why?
Part 4
A bit further south, I saw some women walking around. Short spears at the ready. I recognized them as Myrinians. The monstrous versions of the nobble Amazons. Whereas the Amazons were fierce warrior women that only fought for the defense of others. Myrinians are blood thirsty monsters that attacked everything that is not one of them. If one e you, they all run towards you and attack. I always thought it best to avoid them, as I always do. I decided to stay at a safe distance and observe them first. Before attempting to cross their territory. As I observed their walking patterns, I thought of something. Instead of random movements, it looked almost as f they were walking patterns at random intervals. As if the were guarding something! I had never heard of Myrinians guarding something from any hunter, so I dismissed it as my imagination, but still…
After about alf an hour, I had seen the furthest they walked, so I could safely navigate around them. I knew a more difficult part of my trip was still ahead of me, but for now, I was safe at Pergamon. Pergamon, quiet and safe as it was now, Has been the place of some of the biggest battles in all of the universe. Well do most of us remember the army of Bonnie gathering here from all over the universe to fight the forces of evil here. My heart still beats quicker, thinking back to that time. All of those heroes, all of those ships. The fields here were littered with tat assembling army. And ten te onlaugth began. Wave after wave of enormous monsters came. And quick as they came here. They were mowed down by that army. Was that what the Haruspex elder meant when he said something had gone wrong with Ancient Greece? Was this what Daniel tried to prevent from happening again?
Part 5
About an hour later I saw them Hoof tracks! I knew I had come to the most dangerous part of my journey. Those hoof marks could only mean one thing. Centaurs! When the Haruspex made Ancient Greece they could have focused more on the positive side of ancient earth mythology they used to base t on. Centaurs in ancient earth mythology are fierce warriors, but Centaurs are also known for their wisdom. In Ancient Greece, Centaurs are definitely fierce warriors! If they are wise. I think nobody knows. They are incredibly fast, with their horse-like bodies, and jump very impressive distances. I started walking west-southwest from here. It went much faster and easier than I had expected. One time only, I saw a centaur in the distance and I was easily able to sneak past it. When I reached the water, I knew the rest of the journey would be easy.
From here on to Thebes, I did not expect to see anyone or any monster. I knew there was a shipwreck nearby that was guarded by sharks, but that was a fair bit to the north from here. It was a long, long swim, but the weather here is always great and I enjoy some solitude. The swim gave me time to think back on this whole adventure. I remembered meeting Alexandros for the first time only a month ago. “Hello, stranger, you caught me at my break. Grab a chair and let me tell you my story.” those words had been the beginning of a real friendship. And look what it had taught me. I had become a Haruspex VIP, learned a lot about Ancient Greece, and met interesting people like |Chloe, Berenice, and Halkyone. A sense of peace came over me as I swam in these gorgeously blue waters. O{n my left I saw an island with some huge Cyclopses on it. But they were far of and no threat to me. Next, I saw a rowboat with a man in it. I know I should have been very surprised, but for some reason, I wasn’t. It just made perfect sense that there ws a man in a rowboat in the ocean. He had something in the rowboat with him and when I got closer, I saw that it was an easel! The man stood up, turned around, and said “Hello Nakor, I am Daniel and I heard you wanted to meet me”.