It's been a long day after all. Zorah at last had some spare time to show Kaela around a little, and to get her something to eat. But there's the matter of Azhtar…

… that appeared to be settled when a cheetah kit pad-padded up, a bit younger than Kaela, and bid her to follow him. The path ended up leading to another part of the Temple …

In the corridor, every once in a while, some robed Templars walk by … but only once in a fairly large while. There isn't nearly so much traffic here as in most places.

This part of the Temple is in mild disrepair – functional, but not anything close to the spotless-clean state of the area dominated by the Office of Accounting.

The door indicated by the cheetah boy (before he shuffled off without answering any questions) is currently closed, and unlabelled.

Kaela pauses uncertainly at the door. Hesitantly, she reaches up to knock at it.

The door cracks open, revealing a green eyed young cheetah – though not as young as Kaela – dressed in white, with an enamelled wooden collar about her neck that identifies her at a glance as the property of the Temple – and, in particular, of a high-ranking Inquisitor. Jade-Eyes smiles at Kaela and gestures for her to step inside.

Kaela smiles up at her and steps the rest of the way inside.

While Jade-Eyes closes the door, Kaela has a chance to look at the chamber. It's a private space, evidently, little more than a bedroom, with a desk to one side, and a couple of narrow doors that might open to closets or adjoining rooms. The basic furniture is, well, basic. But the decor on the walls and on little shelves is far from that – Here and there are knick-knacks and trinkets that stir some faint remembrance in Kaela … and some that are similar to items she glimpsed in some of her dreams. Mementos of the Savan, and crafts that hint at its styles can be found about the room.

Kaela smiles at her tentatively. "Hi there," she signs.

Azhtar smiles and steps past Kaela, away from the door. (In this little entranceway, it's a little cramped.) On a shelf just inside the door is a wooden flute that has been crafted to suggest a Creen, its wings folded back along its serpentine body, paint suggesting the colors of its feathers, though much of it has chipped and peeled away. It looks functional, not merely a decoration.

"Would you like something to drink?" Azhtar signs. "I haven't much to choose from. Some juice, or I could put on some tea."

Kaela blinks a few times. "Tea?" She smiles slightly at the offer. "If you don't mind… We don't get tea much, at Lord Titus'… "

The taller cheetah busies herself, rearranging some cloths which have been set out and some sewing materials. Once that's out of the way, she smiles and nods, and disappears through one of the doors for just a moment … but quickly returns. "It will be just a little bit," she signs.

Azhtar rearranges some cushions to make for something resembling a seating arrangement, and sits down, gesturing toward another pile of the cushions for Kaela to do the same.

Kaela settles in the indicated pile of cushions. She shifts slightly, but smiles at Azhtar a little more. She slowly fidgets with her hands uncomfortably, uncertain of what to say.

The quarters may not be all that large, but at least it appears Azhtar is a pretty good housekeeper, and makes good use of the available space. But as for being a conversationalist, she seems about as uncertain as Kaela at first, fidgeting with her own hands in a similar manner.

Azhtar signs, "I've never met anyone else with green eyes before." She smiles, then quickly adds, "That is, a Savanite, of course."

Azhtar fidgets with her hands again, while she strains to think of some more small talk or some sort of ice-breaker.

After a bit more … there's a shrill whistle from the adjoining room. In a flash, Azhtar leaps up and is off through that door again. A few moments later, she's back with a tray, a pitcher and a couple of cups, setting it on a short table nearby.

Kaela blinks, startled. "What was that?"

Azhtar grins. "Tea," she signs, then holds out a steaming cup for Kaela, signing with her free hand, "Careful. It's hot."

Of course, drinking tea and chattering at the same time tends to be a much slower process, since it requires the use of Formal sign to accomplish with a single free hand and a minimum of thrashing about which might spill one's tea.

Kaela flushes lightly and nods, feeling a little silly. Of course. She reaches for the cup and gently blows on the dark liquid before sipping from it. Glancing up, she signs, "I once met another. With green eyes, I mean. Well, I sort of met her, anyways."

Azhtar sips at her tea, and her eyes go wide. "Really?"

Kaela nods. "In my dreams," she signs.

Azhtar mouths an "oh". Not that a Savanite would ever say such a thing, but City-sign tends to pick up such gestures.

Azhtar signs, "About the City … It is safe?"

Kaela takes another sip of tea before nodding. "The Priest-King is gone. The monsters are gone, I think. I didn't really see what happened to them, but they ought to be gone. There are still traps in the ruins, though."

Azhtar nods slowly. "How many know the City is safe?"

Kaela pauses a few moments in reflection, then signs, "You and me… I told Zorah and Mama… and Envoy. She went with me when I talked to the Priest-King and convinced him to leave… "

Azhtar looks surprised. "Envoy? The Exile?"

Kaela blinks and nods. "You know her?"

Azhtar smiles and her ears wiggle a couple of times. "Not precisely. My master, Inquisitor Melchizedek, is one of those responsible for processing Exiles." She sets down her cup to make the signing a bit easier, especially since using such words (and quasi-phonetics) in Formal is clumsy at best.

Kaela nods slowly, sipping some more tea. "Oh… "

"She seems to be like a child in the body of an adult," Azhtar signs. "And Melchizedek seems to have a weakness for children. I know that may sound hard to believe, but it's so, even though he has an angry and hateful heart." She frowns.

Kaela nods uncertainly, setting down her cup. "She insisted on coming along… "

Azhtar nods. "I gather that she is very curious," she signs, "to the point of excess."

Kaela nods softly. "I suppose… "

"I have been told that she has an impressive memory," Azhtar signs. " So, be careful what you sign around her," she adds with a wink.

Kaela grins at her. "She seems nice… and she already knows everything, anyway."

Azhtar sighs and nods. "That is not surprising … So … the Priest-King. What … What was he like? What happened? You said he went on to the Procession… "

Kaela fidgets a little. Might as well out with it. "I pretended to be his daughter. I wore her clothes and called him Father… and told him about what he had done. He didn't believe me, but… when I showed him… and when he remembered, he left." She doesn't mention that the palace exploded.

Azhtar furrows her brow, trying to keep up with this … "You … wore her clothes. And what he had done … and … he remembered and left?" She looks utterly confused.

Azhtar signs, "Do you mean the daughter of the Priest-King is someone who still lives in the City?" She looks positively incredulous but nonetheless intrigued.

Kaela signs, "My dreams… I saw what happened in my dreams. That's how I know about him trying to become a god. His daughter was also called Emerald- Eyes… And I dreamt about where she'd left her clothes when she fled the city, and they were still there. And I saw the Priest-King kill the rest of the royal family when everything went wrong… "

Kaela fidgets a little bit. "I talked to her in my dreams, too. A bunch of times."

Azhtar sorts through this … "But … the Priest-King … the city… that was ancient. How could there be clothes that she left there? And … so … you spoke with the Priest-King and … "

Azhtar looks dubious. "Do you still have the clothes you found?"

Kaela shakes her head. "The dress was made of some special fabric. There was a green sash, too, but it fell apart when I touched it." She fidgets a bit. "Lord Titus would have taken them if I still had them… or someone else would have… I hid them in the City of Hands… "

Azhtar nods at this, and sighs. "Still, it would have been nice if … Everything you are telling me is just so bizarre. I want to believe you. I just wish there were some … proof." She looks away. "Maybe … What kind of dreams did you have?"

Kaela fidgets a bit. She begins to list them off in faint signs as she thinks back over them. "First I dreamt about the Priest-King and the city being destroyed… then I dreamed about Emerald-Eyes hiding in a Monastery while soldiers searched for her to kill her… then I dreamed about meeting Emerald-Eyes a couple times… and she showed me dreams about a birthday party and a huge Creen-shaped airship… and then she showed me dreams about learning to dance, when I asked her to… Mama's real sick, and I was sorta hoping I could learn magic to heal her."

Azhtar signs, "Your mother? I remember something about Zorah's mother – yours, that is – being very sick. I'm sorry to hear about that."

Kaela nods a bit. "Emerald-Eyes said it was our curse… all the others died… her descendants have that happen to them… their skin turns gray and fur falls out, and the joints swell… "

Azhtar sucks in her breath.

Kaela signs, "She said that maybe it'd stop now, now that the Priest-King is gone… "

Azhtar signs, "You're suggesting … that YOU … are a descendant?"

Kaela blinks, realizing that she hadn't explained that. "She told me that only those with royal blood get green eyes when they're marked for magic ability… "

Azhtar blinks. "Green … eyes?" she signs.

Kaela explains, "That's why I decided to tell you about all this… "

Azhtar closes her eyes and shakes her head, smiling. Then, she looks back at Kaela, and signs, "There are so many prophesies and legends to choose between. Tell me – How many sisters do you have?"

Kaela signs, "Six older than me."

Azhtar smiles. "And … your mother was the seventh of seven daughters, yes?"

Kaela nods softly.

Kaela signs, "You too?"

Azhtar smiles, looking as if she's about to cry. She shakes her head, the smile fading a bit. "I have no family. I never knew my parents. Melchizedek took me in when I was a cub, and has told me nothing of how he acquired me."

Kaela reaches to offer a gentle hug, moving over to where Azhtar is seated.

Azhtar is in the process of bowing her head, signing, "It is an honor to be in your presence. If I may possibly be of service – " and then she blinks at Kaela's gesture. She stops, smiles again, and returns the hug.

Kaela shakes her head quickly. "You have green eyes… you must be of royalty too… " She smiles up at Azhtar quickly.

Azhtar signs, "Maybe … but I have had no dreams. And I have no heritage."

"But you," Azhtar signs, grinning. "Finally. After all this time." She looks down, a serious look on her face again. "I have no idea what is to be done next."

Kaela shakes her head a bit. "Me either… I mean, we can't go to the City while we're slaves… and without any way to get there… "

Azhtar looks to Kaela. "Is that what you wish? To go there again?"

Kaela looks up. "Don't you? It's the only safe place we could stay where they wouldn't find us and take us back here… "

Azhtar smiles. "It's in the middle of a Forbidden Zone … no airship could fly over safely. And surrounded by jungle… It sounds too perfect to be true." She wrenches her mouth a little. "That is, almost perfect," she signs. "But then, nothing worthwhile is simple."

Kaela smiles a little bit. "And there are a hundred forty-four of their best shamans still there… Last time I saw them they were still statues, but Emerald-Eyes said we might be able to free them, now that the Priest-King is gone… "

Azhtar blinks at this, and shakes her head, smiling again. "You must remember, Princess, I have not been through what you have been through. Shamans – as statues? I imagine you must have quite the story to tell."

Kaela's ears turn a rather surprising shade of pink. "Please… just Emerald-Eyes… or Kaela." After a moment she nods a bit. "They turned themselves into statues… to keep the Priest-King inside the palace."

Azhtar looks past Kaela, as if what she has just said registers as something familiar. "The living hands… " she signs absent-mindedly. She looks back. "Were they monuments shaped like hands? Like … " She reaches for a wooden carving nearby. "… this?"

Kaela nods several times.

The wooden carving has a sign that means "Hold". A sign of warding – or restraining.

Kaela adds, "They changed signs after the Priest-King left."

Azhtar puts the carving back. "The Twelve-Times-Twelve… " she muses. "But you said they could be freed? But … does that mean they might be alive, after all this time … or might it only mean that their spirits would be freed to go to the Procession?"

Kaela blinks! She obviously hadn't considered that. She signs, "Emerald- Eyes… told me that they were still alive… but that they could maybe be freed… I… don't know what she meant… "

Azhtar frowns. "Did she say anything about how they might be freed? I'm no shamaness." She pauses. "Are you?"

Kaela shakes her head. "She didn't say… and I've only started to learn to dance… " She admits, "I've been dreaming dance lessons… "

Azhtar smiles. "ance lessons? In your dreams? That is remarkable. So … you know … that's the only way that Savanites can use magic, then?" Azhtar signs. "After all, we cannot speak."

Kaela nods softly. "It's easier in my dreams… but I practice when I'm awake when I can… "

Azhtar frowns. "But … but your mother and father are still alive. Why … if there were an empire today, they would be our rulers, then… Then, surely your mother would know magic and have taught it to … " She squints. "Well, I guess to the eldest, if you didn't have any brothers."

Kaela shakes her head. "My oldest sister… Jezebel… she's learned… but I don't trust her at all… I think she's the one who got us all captured and sold… or that's what Zorah told me, anyway."

Azhtar signs, "Jezebel? … I have heard of that name. She is at the Mikide Estate as well – and she's your sister?"

Kaela nods softly, eyes slightly lowered.

Azhtar sighs again at this, eyes dropped. "She … " She looks back to Kaela. "Has she taught you any secrets? Any secret signs?"

Kaela shakes her head quickly. "I don't want to know her secrets. She dances with shadows at night… "

Azhtar lets out a long breath. "That is just as well," she signs. "There are some things that are happening that I can't fully explain … but I think she is aiming to gain power among the slaves. And with what you have told me, it is starting to make sense. She has a claim to royalty."

Kaela nods a few times, swallowing hard. "What can we do?"

Azhtar frowns. "I don't know," she signs. "She surely knows about the City as well, doesn't she?"

Kaela nods. "She said she was the one who told Lord Titus about it… so he'd send an expedition there… "

Kaela says, "I don't know if she knows it's safe now… "

Azhtar nods. "But … if you were to disappear, going off on some trip far away … surely she would be suspicious, yes?"

Kaela nods, looking down.

"I don't like her," Azhtar confesses. "There is something dangerous about her. Something powerful. But that attracts so many to her as well."

Kaela fidgets. "I… I could tell someone… about her marking… but she'd be killed… "

Azhtar frowns. "I … I could never do something like that. It … it would be wrong." She shakes her head.

Kaela nods a few times. "I… don't know how to stop her… "

Azhtar signs, "Nor do I. But … it is hard to stop someone when you do not know what has to be stopped. But… " she pauses. "When the time is right, you CAN get back to the City. I thing I can arrange for that. But … it would be a one-way trip; of that I am pretty certain."

Kaela shakes her head. "Sending just me… wouldn't be enough… We would need lots of us to rebuild the city… "

Azhtar's ears wiggle. "Oh! I know! I know… " She shakes her head. "I don't mean to be silly," she smiles.

Azhtar signs, "In any case, in my position, I have come to know very many Savanites in very many different places. I do not ask for favors from them lightly, but if there is any way I can be of assistance, please, let me know. I will certainly try to find out all I can about Jezebel."

Kaela nods softly, giving Azhtar another gentle hug, her tail making a quick swish of thanks.

Azhtar signs, "And … if you find out any more – especially about Jezebel's plans – I would appreciate it if you could somehow let me know. As for Zorah … she does not walk in the same circles I do. Telling her does not necessarily mean that she will tell me by any means. She might consider it … a family matter."

Kaela nods a few times. "I will… but… how will I find you?"

Azhtar smiles. "That may not always be quite so easy … but I know people even in your household. I'll ask one of my friends to check with you, to let you know that they can be trusted to convey a message along to me if need be."

Kaela smiles softly and nods. "Thank you," she signs.

Azhtar signs, "And thank you."

Azhtar gives Kaela a parting hug, then signs, "I look forward to seeing you again. Take care, Princess Emerald-Eyes." Her eyes twinkle.

Kaela flushes slightly, smiling up at her. "I will," she signs. Then she turns and heads to the doorway out.