It was rumoured that Slen was founded by a giant beetle. The insect was said to have fought a battle with Ayem, the god of dusk. The beetle, named Slen, wanted to be made a god for the furres of Furcadia, but Ayem denied it's right to be immortal. In retaliation, Slen decided to try to kill the god. They met on Mount Kuisp and they fought.
Slen was losing the battle. Her blue blood was everywhere and she had lost three of her legs. She had only two options: die in the hands of Ayem or blind him and run. The beetle did not want to die, so she decided to spray the god with her venom. With Ayem stumbling blind, the beetle made her way down to the plateau.
She could not get very far on three legs, however. Soon Ayem was able to track her from the stench of her blood. She arrived at the plateau, only to receive his wrath in the form of orange light. The beetle collapsed on the ground, dead. As her corpse decomposed, her blue blood drained into the Furric Ocean, creating the Linde River. Her back cracked open because of the orange light, leaving only four walls, hence the walled city of Slen. Her three legs were buried deep underground, but decomposed. They were hollow and supplied drinking water to the city from the retreating Linde. Still today, the walls smelt like a rotting corpse, the city furres were always supplied with drinking water through underground 'pipes', and the skies were always orange during the day.
Complete nonsense, Oylemanti thought to himself. He looked up, through his reddish orange hair, into the sky and saw that it was indeed orange. But it was always that way. He could not explain it, but he figured it was because he was at the base of the mountain. He had been to Slen on countless of occasions. But he did not believe in such superstition.
The villagers would often argue him by telling him that the walls themselves were proof. The lupine brushed his fingers along the North wall just as he did when the villagers asked him to years ago. He watched a few flakes fall onto his feet as he made contact. The walls were entirely made of this flakes. But he concluded, as he did years ago, that these flakes were a type of mica, stylish only in purple with golden hues ... and flaky. What really interested Oylemanti was the strength of the walls. They were like concrete. It may had something to do with the stench, which indeed smelled like a rotting corpse. Perhaps it was a type of mortar, a formula lost long ago during the Split of Xte.
Oylemanti brushed the flakes from his paws. The stench was on him now, but a good wash would take it away. He turned around and looked down Kuisp Street, towards the Temple of Ayem. It was the largest of it's kind apparently, probably due to the story of this city. Ayem rarely socialized with his 'subjects', so whatever legend that came up about him only amplified the desire to worship. If the god of dusk really were alive, Oylemanti doubted he would care about a temple in a carcass.
The grey lupine hopped in the opposite direction, toward the market and commercial area. While the temple was having service, the city appeared empty. It was the best time to gather supplies. The merchants who stayed open would often lower their prices to try to attract stray customers. Today, Oylemanti was one of those strays.
As Oylemanti hopped, he tried to decide what he should purchase for Chloria. He had been anxious for awhile now for their next vamp hunt. He particularly enjoyed it when it was just him, Chloria and her brother journeying to a hunting camp. Forestwind would often be very quiet, which gave Oylemanti plenty of time with Chloria all to himself.
The urban clearing before him made him stand still. The market was completely empty. There were no merchants around and the tables that would normally be full of assorted goods were clear. Apparently the priests of Ayem were successful converting the furres, Oylemanti mused. He gazed upon the shiny purple floor. The golden hues only brightened under the orange sky. It was eerie that the city could be so empty, he thought. He decided instead to hop to a bar he knew would be open.
Espio's was probably the furthest establishment away from the Temple of Ayem. It was still far enough from the walls so the stench was not noticeable. Ironically it only made it closer to the Vamp Alter, a religious institution for the furres of whom Oylemanti vowed to destroy. Slen, according to the City Curator, was a safe haven for all furres. Yet another reason why Oylemanti was disgusted with this community. Yet it was the only community close enough to gather supplies.
The lupine tried the door. It was open, he thought smiling. He would have some company after all. He entered and immediately noticed Espio behind the bar. She looked up at him and smiled.
"It's been a while now, Oylemanti," she said.
"Yeah I know," he chuckled, "How are you?"
"I can't complain. I still get business on Ayemday."
Oylemanti looked around the bar. She had less people than usual during the temple service. There were only a half dozen furres in here. They were mostly travellers, the lupine assumed, guessing from the luggage they brought with them. He gazed back to the canine bartender as he sat down.
"What can I get you?" Espio asked.
"Sandy Ale for me, thanks."
Espio laughed as she knelt for a glass, "I thought you hated that stuff."
"Like you said," he replied, "It's been a while since I've been here."
Espio placed the empty glass before him and turned around for a bottle. It was difficult to find, considering the drink was not a heavy favourite for most furres. Eventually she found it behind a bottle of Gillia Whiskey. As Oylemanti thought, the bottle was never opened.
"34 ASX," Espio said after reading the year it was made. She shook the bottle to keep the sediments in suspension. The canine then opened the cork and tipped the bottle. The fine gritty red liquid poured into Oylemanti's glass. He let out an impressed whistle. "Was that a good year?" he asked.
"I have no idea," she answered jokingly, "I'm younger than you are!"
"Ugh. Don't remind me," he said as he took a sip. The grains of sand whipped his tongue as the drink gradually entered his throat. It was a peculiar taste that he could not find anywhere else. He was not even sure if he really liked the taste, but it did remind him of a good friend...
"Can I ask you a question, Espio?"
"Always," the bartender replied.
"Why did you dye your hair bright green? It can't possibly make you feel younger."
Espio mocked a gasp and pointed at the lupine, "Says the furre that just aged before me. That drink doesn't do you any good. You should've seen your face when you sipped it!"
"There's nothing wrong with the drink," Oylemanti protested.
"I know. I don't serve bad drinks here. I said it doesn't do you any good."
Oylemanti felt one of his long ears twitch and noticed a chuckle from Espio immediately afterward. He shrugged and drank some more until the glass was empty. He swallowed it all and placed the glass down on the bar triumphantly. He grinned at Espio and waited for her response. There wasn't one. In fact, she was just watching him.
"Why are you staring at me?" he asked.
"I'm waiting for sand to pour out of your ears."
"I suddenly remember why I haven't been here for a while."
Espio gazed to the back of the bar. Her greyish white face changed from playful to worrisome. Oylemanti followed her stare and found a brown feline woman sitting alone in the corner. She was wearing a backpack and cautiously playing with her almost full drink.
"Her name is Exavia," Espio told him, "She's been coming here for almost a year now. She'd just sit there for hours with her ginger ale. She's always in some other world, totally oblivious to anyone. I don't even think she's from here."
"She doesn't talk much?" Oylemanti asked.
"Now and then she'll notice me and chat. She's not too revealing though."
"Do you mean her clothes or her background?"
Espio cuffed at him, "Obviously the sand is all in your head."
"You do tend to fall for the mysterious furres," Oylemanti reminded her.
"Yeah, but not ones who are distracted by shiny objects."
"Well in that case," he said as he stood up, "I'm going to say hi to her."
"Knock yourself out."
Oylemanti hopped to the brown furre's table. He sat opposite her and smiled. The furre did not notice him and continued to play with her glass. The lupine cleared his throat a little, hoping to gain her attention. He did not succeed.
"Hi," he said, "I'm Oylemanti."
She continued to play with her drink, oblivious to him.
"Espio tells me that you're Exavia. You live in Slen?"
The brown furre lifted her glass and took a very small sip. As she lowered the drink she suddenly became aware of his presence. Her reaction was not of shock, but more like a sudden disinterest. She placed the glass on the table anyway and smiled.
"Hello," she said.
"Hi."
"Who are you?"
"Oylemanti," he repeated. He decided to go along with this, "Who are you?"
"Exavia."
"Its a pleasure to meet you Exavia. I heard you were not from around here, is that true?"
"Oh," she frowned as she took another sip, "I didn't realize furres talked about me. What did they say?"
"Good things of course."
"Well that's good. But I'm not the first furre not to be from around here. So why are you so curious?"
Oylemanti shrugged, "I like meeting new people and learn about where they're from."
"And who is the most interesting furre you've ever met?" Exavia asked.
Chloria, Oylemanti thought as he bit his lip. But he would rather not reveal that to this furre just yet. He thought about the question very carefully before replying.
"I don't really have one in mind. Everyone is interesting."
"I like the way you thought about that before responding."
Oylemanti gazed to the corner of the table closest to Exavia. There was a piece of scroll paper with what appeared to be a sketch on it. He reached for it and had a look.
"Hey ..." Exavia protested.
"Did you draw this?" he asked, "Its very good."
"I didn't draw it," she replied coldly as the grabbed the paper from him.
"I'm sorry," Oylemanti said, "I didn't think it would be a personal item."
"It's alright," she assured him as she rolled it into her paw.
"I've never seen one before," he told her.
"What do you mean?"
"The picture. I've never seen a winged furre before. I heard stories that they existed long ago. Kinda frightening when you think about it."
"Why frightening?" she asked.
"I don't know... flying furres. It just doesn't seem normal."
She nodded, "You're right. And if I saw one I'd probably be very scared."
"Exactly," the lupine agreed.
Exavia got up suddenly and pushed her chair back. She nodded to Espio and looked back to Oylemanti. "It was nice meeting you."
"You're leaving?" he asked, "But you haven't finished your drink."
"It's yours," she said with a smirk, "But I do have to go."
She walked behind Oylemanti and opened the door. The orange sky was dominant as always as she walked out. The door closed behind her. The lupine turned back to the drink and sighed. He sensed Espio approaching him and watched as she sat on the other side of the table. She pushed Exavia's drink toward him.
"I just lost a sixth of my customers because of you," she teased.
"In that case," Oylemanti replied, "I'll have another
drink."
The stench was soon replaced by the scent of forest as Exavia walked away from the South Gate of Slen. She stopped suddenly and looked around. Content that no one was around to watch her, she ducked into the trees. She stopped again when she believed that she was far enough from the trail. She gently released her backpack and felt her wings leave the encased pocket she constructed to hide her secret in.
She flapped her wings a couple of times, like a stretch, removing any muscle knots that might have lingered when she was in the city. Exavia then placed the empty bag over her spread extremities for convenience. She looked down the dark forest and ran deeper in. Satisfied of her velocity, her wings took control and she flew through the trees and into the air.
Someday ... she would find her brother.
She was sure of it.