Chapter 7: Inquiry
Ki'ra was led by her two escorts to the coast on the outskirts of the village. Kanna had suggested they be as inconspicuous as possible, walking close to Ki'ra so as to hide the leather strap that was attached to the woman's bound hands. She remained cloaked, hidden beneath the large cowl. With her eyes veiled, she took the opportunity to covertly look around her, observing the Darkspears as they went about their daily activities and paid little attention to her.. Ki'ra was grateful for this as she was not sure what would happen if the Trolls found a stranger in their midst.
The walk also gave her a chance to observe Kall and Kanna. Despite her slight frustration with her captors, who seemed to deny that they were such, Ki'ra did not hate them. In fact, she was obliged by the fact they had rescued her and brought her as far as they did. She even had a growing fondness for Kanna, who had been the most amiable to her since their meeting a day ago. The Troll shaman, who had taken it upon herself to point out various facts about the village as they made the short trek to the coast, was warm and amiable. She was talkative and even though Ki'ra sensed that there was still much caution and distrust in her voice, she could tell Kanna was genuinely friendly.
The one named Kall, on the other hand, was silent and somewhat broody; Ki'ra was almost afraid of him. He was tall with a hulking form that contained what had to have been a massive amount of physical power. Though he walked and stood with a slight slouching arch in his back that seemed common of all Troll males, his body always appeared taut and tense, ready to react with nimble and deadly speed. His tusks were even larger than Akashii's, angled downward rather than up. One, Ki'ra noticed upon further inspection, was cracked slightly. His head was hairless save for a long dark green beard decorated with beads. His eyes, like Kanna's, were a bright azure color, though they were much less tender if not cold. The little fondness she had seen him exhibit had been only toward the yellow colored wind serpent named Goldwren, who flew close to his master, chattering softly.
"Is he your brother?" Ki'ra asked quietly, noting the similar features between them. Kall walked a few steps behind them, just out of earshot.
Kanna nodded. "Yes, my eldest brotha," she replied with a smile. "Don't let his aloofness make ya think he be a brute. He's actually nicer than he looks. He's just had a rough life."
"He just seems so…angry," Ki'ra said as she coyly looked behind her. The Troll hunter was oblivious to her gaze, looking off toward the sea. "I don't think he is taking too well to my being here."
Kanna chuckled. "He's like dat wit anyone he don't know. He's a hunter; hunters by nature be on edge and wary all da time. Kall is the youngest among my four brothas. When da other three went off to the Outlands to join tha fight against tha Burning Legion, he stayed here to watch after me and my fatha. He's protective and cautious because of it…neva let's his guard down."
When Kanna said "the Burning Legion", Ki'ra felt a cold chill run down her spine. She had shivered involuntarily, feeling all of a sudden very anxious and lightheaded. Unable to figure out why the words struck her with such fear, she shrugged off the feeling and looked down at her bound hands.
"Kanna," she began warily. "Why does Akashii insist on keeping me bound? If I did anything to make you suspicious or fearful of me, I swear I do not remember. You tell me I am not a prisoner, but I have felt like one since I awoke on the zeppelin."
Kanna bit her lip, glancing furtively behind her at her brother, then at Ki'ra. "Ah…I am sorry for dat, I really am. We don't mean to keep ya as a captive. But…" she whispered quietly, walking even closer to the woman. "Something did happen in Stranglethorn Vale when we found ya bein' chased. Ya—"
"Kanna!" bellowed the gruff voice of Kall, startling both women out of their conversation. "If Akashii did'na tell her, then it is not our place to do so. He must have done it with good reason."
"And what good reason would that be?" Ki'ra snapped angrily, wheeling around on the hunter before she could check her anger. "You have had me bound for a day now and I have been given no answer as for why! I have been complacent and cooperative without demanding a single answer! What reason do I have to continue to do so if I am not given justification for…for this confinement?"
Kall glared down at her, a slight scowl upon his rough face. Ki'ra, realizing how close she had stepped to him, felt her rage induced audacity falter as quickly as it came. "I-I…" she stammered slightly, lowering her head and backing away. "I mean, I just…I just want…"
"Kanna, you best take dis…halfling to the spring so she can cool her head," Kall snarled, his icy eyes fixated on the now trembling Ki'ra. "Ya know what she done and ya know what Akashii said…if ya wanna be the one to tell her, then so be it. I won't be a part of it." The hunter turned away, walking in the opposite direction of the shoreline with Goldwren following behind.
Ki'ra, breathing in deeply to calm her racing heart, looked at Kanna. "I-I'm really sorry," she muttered. "I didn't mean to get so angry or approach him like that. I'm…I'm just frustrated. I remember nothing at all, not even what happened before you found me. I'd just like to know something, anything, that may help me understand who I am."
The shaman, after watching her brother take a seat on cluster of rocks by the shore a small distance away from them, turned to Ki'ra and sighed. "Don't worry 'bout it," she said with a small smile. "I can understand ya wanting answers and all, especially in your state." Kanna began to walk again, this time letting go of the leather tether. "C'mon…da spring be just around this cliff."
Ki'ra, silent and somewhat embarrassed, nodded and gathered up the dragging rope and followed her around to a small cove. The rocky form looked as if it were an enclosed mound, yet as they got closer Ki'ra could see that it was semi circular formation with a small opening in one side. It jutted out of the dry surface of the earth and spread past the shoreline into the water. The opening was covered by curtain made from broad leaves and long strands of moss.
"This spring be a bathin' area," Kanna said as she pushed past the hanging leaves and walked into the cove. "Only da women come here and since everyone is workin' at dis time of the day, we'll have some privacy."
The inside of the cove looked as if it had been hollowed out. It was a large area, half submerged in a pool of water that filtered in from the sea and into the enclosed cove. Rocks jutted up from the dry ground; the lower flat stones were covered with woven mats and pads meant for sitting. The top of the inlet had been covered by leaves, moss, and reeds, creating a roof above the bathing area. Sunlight flitted in between the gaps in the handmade roof, casting rays of light that reflected off the water onto the rocks.
"It feels so good in here," Ki'ra said as she admired the bathing area, feeling the coolness of the sea refresh her flushed skin.
"Da Great Sea has been a blessing to my people," Kanna said as she began to remove her heavy mail armor, placing it on a nearby rock. "Long ago, da Trolls traveled across it to Kalimdor, bringing dem to their new home. Now, it brings nourishment and life to our tribe." Clad only in her cloth undergarments, the shaman walked over to Ki'ra and began to remove the rope bindings on her hands. "Da water has power within it…it will rejuvenate you."
Ki'ra blushed beneath her cowl as she tried not to gawk at the Troll woman's body, but failed. Kanna was a head taller than Ki'ra with a slender and toned form that was femininely muscled. Her upper arms were tattooed with bands of color and there was a similar tattoo around one of her thighs. When the ropes fell from her wrists, Ki'ra rubbed at them tenderly and looked down. "Thank you," she murmured.
The shaman smiled and turned away from the woman. She sighed as she gingerly stepped into the pool, letting the water rise up to her waist. "Don't worry, nobody will come here…" She exhaled as she waded deeper into the pool. "You be alright to take off that robe. I know ya want to relax a bit."
Ki'ra nodded but did not immediately attempt to undress. She felt beneath her cloak and robe, running her hand over the hard collar around her neck and thought of the mysterious tattoos on her skin. Strangely, she found was not embarrassed with the idea of being naked in front of a stranger. Yet she felt rather wary about completely revealing the tattoos and collar. She was quite certain that Kanna and perhaps even Akashii or others had already seen them, as she had been told she was scantily clothed when she was found in the jungle. But to willingly display the markings and strange contraption fully—why did it seem so wrong?
Yet as she watched Kanna blissfully settle into the cold water and felt her own dry skin, Ki'ra eagerly removed her cloak and robe. The cool atmosphere of the cove chilled her body, a welcome feeling after experiencing the almost harsh dryness of Durotar. The woman waded out into the water, exhaling with pleasure as it sent chills over her body and instantly refreshed her. She dipped her head under the water, letting it seep through her thick, matted white hair and over her flushed face. She gasped as she surfaced and then leaned against the rocky wall of the cove next to the shaman, closing her eyes in bliss. The water, just as Kanna said, was rejuvenating, whether from temperature or something more divine.
When she felt the Shaman's gaze upon her, Ki'ra glanced nervously toward her. Kanna immediately blushed and looked into the water. "I-I'm sorry…for starin'…" she muttered, swirling the surface of the water with her hand. "It's just…I never seen those kinda marks before…"
Ki'ra looked down at her half concealed chest in the water. The tattoos there arched over the crest of her bosom, disappearing beneath the base of the collar and wrapped around her shoulders. "It's okay," she sighed with a shake of her head. "I can't blame you. I wish I could see more of them myself. I'm sure there are more I cannot see."
Kanna nodded. "Ya, dey spread across ya shoulders and go all da way down to ya lower back." She leaned closer to the younger woman, looking at one of the marks shaped like a creature of some sort on her shoulder. I've traveled most of da lands of Kalimdor and the Eastern Kingdoms, at least where my kind is permitted. Bein' a shaman and all, I've studied a lot of symbols—runes, alphabets, glyphs, things like dat. I've never seen marks dat look like those though."
The woman bit her lip, considering Kanna's words, and turned in the opposite direction. "…Could…you look at them?" she asked quietly. "I mean…even though you say they aren't familiar to you, I would like your opinion on them…you could probably glean more meaning than I ever could."
Somewhat surprised, Kanna smiled. "I don't know if what I could tell ya would be correct, but I'd love to," she replied and moved in the water behind Ki'ra. "My fatha got me into symbology when I was little…made me study it all da time. It's very important to our people and he knew I would be a shaman, so it was only natural I'd get into stuff like dis."
Ki'ra blushed as she felt Kanna come closer to her and began to look at the marks on her back. The shaman was quiet for a little while, intently studying the markings. "Hmm…I thought these may be symbols of a language, but I think I was wrong," she mused after a moment longer.
"What do you mean?" Ki'ra asked.
"Well…" Kanna continued as Ki'ra felt one of the Troll woman's fingers brush against her skin, tracing the lines on her shoulders. "Symbols and marks can have all sorts of meanings. Some are meant to represent words and phrases, like an alphabet. Others are more symbolic of actual items, events, or even people...those are called pictograms. Dey are often more like pictures or drawings. These marks on ya back look like those…like they represent something specific, maybe even tell a story."
Ki'ra felt the thick finger trail down between her shoulder blades. "There is a circle here with a pattern in it…it almost looks like water…or even fire maybe. That would explain a lot considering—"
The shaman caught her voice in her throat quickly and was immediately silent. Ki'ra turned around, glancing at the Troll whose eyes were now lowered. "Would explain what?" Ki'ra asked, narrowing her crimson colored eyes. "Does it have to do with what you and Akashii will not tell me?"
Kanna remained quiet, her eyes staring into the water between them. "Kanna," whispered Ki'ra as she put her hands on the taller woman's shoulders. "I barely have any memory of myself or what I have done before you found me. I don't even know what I am or why I have these markings and wear this collar." Kanna's blue eyes looked up and were instantly held in a gaze with Ki'ra's blood red ones. "Please…if you can tell me anything that may reveal anything about myself, anything at all, I beg of you…trust me and tell me. I want to know."
They stood in silence, eyes locked on to one another. Ki'ra looked imploringly at the other woman, feeling a deep, desperate sadness well in her chest. Tears stung at her eyes. An overwhelming sense of loneliness, bitter and colder than the water she stood in, flooded over her as the questions she had been asking herself since early that morning swam in her head. Who was she? What was she? Where did she come from? What meaning did the markings and the color have?
"Alright."
Ki'ra looked up, surprised by the woman's answer. Kanna, her expression one of sympathy mixed with reluctance, gave her a small smile. She put her hands on the woman's, removed them from her shoulders, and held them tightly. "I'll tell ya…what happened," she whispered. "I don't know if it will make anything clearer for ya or only create more questions, but…ya have a right to know."
Ki'ra's heart raced with anticipation and anxiety as the shaman sighed deeply, her bright blue eyes sparkling with the reflection of the water beneath them. "When we found ya, in da jungle, da Gurubashi were chasing afta ya…."