[PLOT] Training Day (Sadron, Toli, and Itsaso)

[Menelie]

Itsaso arrives at the palace dais just before the sun had reached its highest point. She looks around at the nearly-deserted space that had so recently been tense and awkward. It seemed almost serene now.

She wonders what today would hold. It appeared she was opening a new chapter in her life. A new and useful chapter. A chapter where she would get to use weapons and work her aggression out in a productive kind of way. Her head-fins twitch as she sees someone new.

"Oh," she says. "It's just you."  

[Menelie]

"I'm sorry," responds Anatolio, coming in from the back entrance of the palace. "Did I startle you?" Somehow he doubted it; this woman seemed ineffable. To be honest she frightened him more than Commander Sadron did.

Awkwardly Toli looks around. He wonders what the day will bring. He's gut-wrenchingly nervous about this whole training business. What if he had to let someone attack him? What if he had to attack someone else? He sighs and runs a hand through his hair. What had he gotten himself into?  

[HelMel]

Sadron slunk in and lounged on the throne. His head hummed a bit from the drinking and the night with that red head. He looked from Itsaso to Toli back to Itsaso and sighed. This hadn't even started yet, and he already felt like it was a pain in the a**. Anything pertinent he could have discovered today was lost.

"So... you guys ready for this? It's not too late to back out."  

[Menelie]

Itsaso puts her hands on her hips stubbornly. He wouldn't get rid of her that easily. "If I didn't know better, Commander, I'd say you were trying to get rid of us." She flashes him an almost sadistic grin.

Toli has to bite his lip to keep from laughing. At least the two of them would be fun to watch. He looks at Sadron and nods solemnly, wide-eyed. They'd be fun to watch assuming they didn't gang up on him.  

[HelMel]

The leader of Tariel's outer forces and hunters was still quite miffed at this whole debacle. Sadron easily grew sick of hanging around the palace; the courtly etiquette and politics grated on his nerves. The naiad preferred blunt, honest, and hardworking. The fact that Tari had even sent him out of the ocean to skulk around that tree annoyed him even now; not taking his report seriously was enough to consider striking it out on his own in the ocean.

Sadron was sure the fresh water was getting to their heads. The whole isle seemed to have an effect on his fellow naiads. They grew lazy and soft and muddy-headed, as if that strange magical hum that seemed to reverberate through the place changed something deep within the inhabitants. His hunting and survivalist lifestyle made him at least moderately wary. War would find them all useless, and his queen felt that his time was better spent teaching amateurs espionage than training forces for upcoming battles.

He needed to get out of the castle, and the idea of a huge storm and strong currents had him chomping at the bit to go for a long swim.

Realizing how lost in thought he had been Sadron looked over at the two with a huge grin, and clapped his hands together. "Who wants to go out into the ocean today?!?!?!" he asked in his most sarcastically perky voice.  

[Menelie]

The open ocean? At this time? Toli shifts nervously. "But Commander, there's a hurricane out there," he points out. He wants to trust Commander Sadron to keep them out of real threat, but he really doesn't put it past the clearly-upset Naiad to intentionally send them out into the storm. Perhaps they'd die, and he wouldn't have to train them anymore.

Toli runs a hand through his hair. Stop thinking such things, he mentally chastises himself.

Itsaso merely quirks an eyebrow as a reaction. It seemed like a stupid idea, but she has faith that there would be a larger purpose behind this exercise. She was a strong swimmer, of course, and sometimes the strong currents were fun to get the aggression out. She glances toward Commander Sadron. Perhaps that was why he wanted to go, she thinks. He appeared as a caged animal.

Itsaso shrugs casually. "Ready when you are, Commander."  

[HelMel]

"You can stay behind, if the water is too rough for you, Princess," he said to Toli. It was nothing to Sadron to leave one behind. In fact, he would not even get scolded by Tariel if one of the two chose to stay, not his fault.

He nodded to the ladypae. At least she had the guts. "Let's go."

Sadron lifted his spear from where it had rested by the throne and proceeded toward the exit.

With a careless toss of his head over his shoulder, Sadron called back to the two. "Make it fast, and ditch anything not important. It'll slow you kids down."  

[Menelie]

Itsaso mentally pouts. She wanted a spear.... Having nothing on her person, Itsaso just shrugs and follows Commander Sadron into the open ocean.

Toli sighs and hangs his head. He truly contemplates staying behind, but what kind of man would he be then? Nothing for it now but to follow. He darts to catch up with Commander Sadron and Itsaso. "So, um, Commander, what sort of exercises will we be doing?"

Itsaso rolls her eyes.  

[HelMel]

Sadron remained silent for a few miles southwest toward Waplei Marsh.. He could feel the unrest in the lake's waters with the approaching storm. There was less light from above, and the fish were scarce. He figured that the fish were probably smarter than the idiot now running toward the hurricane, but then he never much cared for what fish thought.

"First, Pinkie, we're going to wade through the marsh. Once we finally reach the cove, it will be nightfall," the naiad finally replied regardless of whether anyone but him even remembered the question. Sadron did not feel it was worth the effort to remember either of their names.

The naiad paused as a thought struck him. Whirling on the two he gives them both a sizing up. "Have you ever swam in the ocean, either of you?" He was curious as to exactly what he was dealing with; if these two had never been ocean swimming, he had his work cut out for him. They would never hold up to the pressure of deep sea swimming.  

[Menelie]

Itsaso listens intently to the Commander's response. She too had been wondering what sort of 'training' they'd get from the obviously upset Sadron. Not that she'd ever have asked. So they were headed for the marsh, eh? Wait, wading? Hmph. Senseless land-dweller way of moving. Why should she need to wade when she could swim perfectly well?

Sadron's abrupt question halts Itsaso. Had she ever swam in the ocean? "Have I ever swam in the ocean?" she asks, incredulous. "What am I, a child? Of course I've swam in the ocean." Really, the nerve! It was one thing to question the youth, but her? Itsaso is insulted. She folds her arms over her chest.

"Um, briefly," answers Toli timidly. He and his siblings had gone exploring once or twice in the deep ocean, but had always come back up when the pressure had gotten uncomfortable. It was a shame, really. The prettiest rocks and bits of glass always seemed to settle in the deepest parts of the ocean, untouched by any kind of creature. He smiles briefly, remembering his collection, then quickly suppresses it; this was no time for such childhood endeavors. Besides, the commander looked like he might give both of them a thorough tail-slapping.