Dragoncrest Cliffs pick up a crew in tortuga

it didn't take rhaegal long to get settled. then again, he had the luxury of having been seaside all of his life and though the cliffs were unfamiliar to him and would take some time to learn he picked up notable land marks as he gave himself a tour.

a heavy mist hung over the wilds, painting the cliffs in wintergrey; the salty seabrine that hangs in the air, adding a twinge of salt to the freshwater mist.

he gives his coat a shake, steps pausing momentairly before he continues on the tour: hard earth giving way to soft, shifting sands as he makes a beeline for the beach.

Njord, detached from the grapevine, had not heard gossip of a newcomer. The novel smell of a stranger was his first exposure. Except… the scent wasn’t strange at all. Curious, the seaman followed the Granite’s trail towards the beach and found a familiar silhouette meandering upon the shore.

“Atlantis?” Njord called as his eyes squinted as he peered through the mist. Was the youngster truly his nephew? Had another Sveijarn-Corten found their way to Sapphique’s coast?

atlantis?

rhaegal stops in his tracks, ears cupping back atop his skull as the name he'd thought he left back on mearas island finds him here.

he peers over his shoulder and then turns to face njord full on, though the mist worked hard to make his visibility not the greatest.

aye, rumbles rhaegal. uncle njord? he asks; uncertian but feeling confident he hadn't misplaced the voice. granted, he couldn't say that he knew his uncle well but there weren't many that knew him as 'atlantis'.

The cadence of Njord’s footsteps quickened, a happy bounce in his trot. The man did not hesitate in his approach and circled Rhaegal to take scent, a comfortable familiarity woven into his posture. The smell of sea brine was there, chased by notes of the inland Taiga. Where had his travels taken him? Njord had so many questions.

“It is good ta see you, lad,” Njord said warmly as he took a step back to better look over his relative. It was true that they did not know each other well. Njord had only been back to visit Meares Island a handful of times – a blip in the youth's daily life. Secondly, Njord had never been very close with Rhaegal’s father, Aegir. Growing up, the brothers were like oil and water. Yet, in their maturity, they had found common ground and harbored goodwill towards one another… especially with the recent coup and the death of Rhaegal’s grandsire. That was the last time he had seen the boy… at Valtyr’s wake.

Njord would do his very best to watch over his brother’s son, though the lad looked like he hardly needed it. He was not a boy, but a young man, and cut a figure like sharpened basalt.

“You av’ dispersed from Meares Island?” he observed. “How did you find yer way to Dragoncrest… to Sapphique?”

aye, rumbles rhaegal. it be good tae see ya too, uncle.

it comes as something of a surprise to see him but then again, not entirely. njord had came and gone throughout his ( short ) life and even then he was hardly the first corten, svejiarn or corten-sveijarn to disperse from the islands.

aye, i have. replies rhaegal and then after a soft clear of his throat says, 'n i go by rhaegal now. he only feels a little awkward saying it now and only because njord was family and has known him as 'atlantis' his whole life.

it just sorta happened, rhaegal admits with a lofty shrug of his shoulders. was lookin' fer a place on the sea. was the first one that i came across. the rest, as they said, was history.

“New name… new life,” Njord mused aloud with a knowing grin. He had once walked Rhaegal’s path not so long ago – a fresh greenhorn on Teekon’s shores.

He laughed from the belly. “I’m sure ye were not expectin’ ta find yer uncle in Sapphique. I hope I willnae cramp yer style," he admitted. Though the youth probably wanted to start a fresh slate, Njord found comfort in having a blood relative of his among their ranks. Perhaps the feeling as a pariah was at an end.

“Och, but we are practically strangers, aren’t we?” Njord observed. “It will be nice tae ken ye better.  Soon you’ll have tae meet my wife, Meerkat, an’ our boys Stingray an’ Swordfish.” Njord’s brows knit thoughtfully. “It will be good for them tae ken their cousin.” Another man in their life, Njord thought silently to himself.

aye, rhaegal murmurs. 'm nae ashamed of bein' atlantis, he adds quickly, for the fear that it might come across that way sits in suddenly, then and there. just tryin' tae find out who i am. though he imagined that if any could understand it might be his uncle njord. there be so many of us in meares island. tryin' to find myself in shadows wasnae workin'.

rhaegal feels a little better, a little less guilty after admitting that despite that njord hadn't asked nor required any sort of explanation.

nae uncle, rhaegal says with a small laugh that rumbles in his chest. 'tis i should who be worried about crampin' yer style. after all, njord had history here — belief affirmed when his uncle tells him of his mate and sons — and rhaegal was the proverbial wild card.

aye. i cannae wait tae ken you better, and meet yer wife and me cousins. it was almost a strange concept to rhaegal: whom hadn't thought of his uncle much until he came by to visit, that he had a whole life. it was as if the uncle that rhaegal remembered when he was a wee lad was a different uncle entirely than the one that stood before him.

“I understand,” Njord replied broadly. The redtail knew what it was like back on the island. What is was like to be a young upstart in the world. The desire – need – to raise your sails and chart your own piece of the vast sea.

Njord considered telling a cautionary tale to Rhaegal regarding a man’s true place in the pack… but he thought against it. It wouldn’t do any good to burden Rhaegal with his own biases.

He chuckled an easy laugh. “These days I am findin’ meself tae be a domestic man. There is plenty o’ room fer ye, nephew,” he encouraged.

Njord smiled, warmed by the thought of connecting his family with a blood relative. “Come, let me show ye some huntin' ground. We’ve been trackin' a herd near tha Tangle,” he suggested. For over a year, Sapphique had shepherded the Broken Antler dee. Haunt had been the first wolf to keep watch. After her passing, Njord brought it upon himself to pick up the torch. Though Sapphiquians were tied to the coast, they did depend on land for bounty.

“Perhaps we will find @Meerkat out that way," he added.

With a toss of the head Njord signaled Rhaegal to follow.

with taking a wife and having cubs, rhaegal cannot claim that he was surprised by njord's words of being a domestic man. aye, rhaegal murmurs. i suspect that be comin' with taking a wife and havin' bairns. he gives voice to his thoughts, trying to wrap his mind around the fact that he has family here.

and that he was glad for it.

what's it like? bein' a da? havin' a wife? it hadn't necessarily been his goal when he'd left the islands but he couldn't deny that there was an appeal to it; no doubt steeped deeply in the coming season.

he follows njord as his uncle leads the way, keeping his eyes open for any others of sapphique ...though he wouldn't know meerkat from any other ( with the exception of rosalyn and chacal ). what's she like? aunt meerkat, i mean.

The two traveled together and stopped when Njord found a recent path the herd had taken. He stepped aside so that Rhaegal may learn their scent as he reflected on his nephew’s question.

“My heart is full,” he answered decisively. “But tae be a husband an’ father isnae without its trials. I ‘av learned what it means tae be a partner… a provider… a man.” The deep tone of his voice implied things hadn’t gone smoothly for the Sveijarn-Corten.

Yet he laughed easily, knowing things were on the right path once again. “It all comes so easy tae Meerkat,” he said, admiration in his voice. “You’ll love ‘er. She’s kindhearted an’ strong with a steady disposition… an’ well bonnie,” he added, expression bright.

"Maybe you'll be findin' love on these shores, too, eh?" he said with a friendly bump to the shoulder.

it was not a sentiment that rhaegal could share: being a husband or a father; traits that he equated with being an actual man: one that was not just a man in number. still, he offers a sage nod of contemplation all the same.

a low chuckle passes betwixt rhaegal's lips at njord's suggestion, leaning into his uncle's bump of the shoulder. maybe, allows the leviathan. cannae say for sure what life has in store for me. another low, rumbling chuckle.

i'm just along for tae ride.

Njord liked to hear his Rheagal’s sentiments. He was excited for his nephew. A whole life yet to be explored!

Suddenly Njord could hear leaves rustling in the distance. His good ear cupped to listen. The herd was close!

Yet his posture did not change. They were scouting and touring Sapphique. They would not be harvesting a deer today.

They could see them moving quietly between the trees. For some reason, this group liked to stick together. “Tha’s the Broken Antler herd,” Njord advised. “They move through tha Tangle an’ Sapphique… their name coined by an ol’ packmate. There should be a… there,” Njord gestured. “A white doe.”

He watched her, a melancholy look in his eye. Haunt.

“We’ve been tendin’ this herd for some time, now,” he explained.

the rustle is noted by a soft tick of rhaegal's ear, but as he can hear the tell-tale click of their joints he knows it is prey and not another predator. his gaze does not search for them.

there is only soft surprise to hear from njord that it's a named herd, that it's been closely tended to by sapphique. it makes sense, of course. hunt it when the herd needed cull but otherwise keep it safe from other packs preying upon it.

or even, other predators.

his gaze moves only when the white doe is gestured to. an unusual sight. i cannae say i've ever seen a white doe before. he murmurs, brow furrowing softly.

Last from me!

“I ken she’s a good omen,” Njord said softly with a smile, feeling as if this hind was Haunt reincarnate.

“Come, I will show ye Glintwater next,” Njord offered. He would spend some time sharing the knowledge of the best fishing and frogging spots along the bank before releasing Rheagal to wherever his whims took him next.