Where'd The Water Go?

Now on the cusp of six months old Nelu started to explore beyond the castle walls, though not so far that he was outside Hallows territory. Today he was wandering along the outside of the western wall, along the shoreline with his raven companion in tow. Aster was flying in the air above him, looping and performing tricks every so often for it was a beautiful spring day, the kind meant to be cherished. Though he had yet to experience an Auster summer, Aster had warned him of the oppressive heat and humidity. As such he decided that for every nice day they had he'd do his best to get outside and do some exploring. He had a number of crafting projects in various states of completion within the castle walls. When the weather wasn't to his suiting he could just play inside.

As luck would have it, Aster had once been apprenticed to a warrior and a poet. He had a fascinating knowledge of making weapons and other items and Nelu was swift to ask the bird for all he knew and was willing to share. Aster of course, could be reluctant but with time the two were finding their rhythm.

Nelu wandered down to the shore, enjoying the light breeze and the lapping of the water along the beach. Sunlight streamed down on them and Nelu switched his direction to head right for the ocean. The sensation of sand beneath his toes was an interesting and not unpleasant one. Nelu batted at the sand before Aster came to land nearby him. The raven's feathers fluffed up a moment before smoothing back down. "Something's amiss…" The raven hopped from one foot to the other while staring out across the ocean. It was clear that something had literally ruffled his feathers.

Taking a few steps forward Nelu stared at the ocean, noting that it seemed like the tide was going out. His brow furrowed as he risked a glance at the sun. That was odd… "Aster, is not the tide supposed to be coming in? Why is the water receding?" The raven shook his head. "I have no idea, but I don't like it."

Nelu ventured forward just a little, stepping into the wet sand and marveling for a moment at how far he could see but the moment was short lived. His stomach twisted at the wrongness of it. This was not normal, not normal at all. Screeching up in a nearby tree caught his attention, and as he scanned the leaves he noticed a little squirrel monkey hanging loosely from a limb. What was most surprising was that he could understand her. She spoke the common tongue!

"Away from there young wolf! Something bad is coming, you best take shelter. Get up high!" As if to demonstrate she scrambled as high up in the tree as she could. Nelu glanced to Aster and nodded. "I think she's right. What goes out will surely come back in. I do not wish to be here when it does." Taking the squirrel monkey's advice he turned tail, kicking up sand as he scrambled off the beach and into the safety of the castle walls. Aster flew above him, keeping pace as well as keeping an eye out. Not content with just being inside the walls he scrambled up the stairs, room after room. His claws clicked on the surface as he ran. Should he tell his parents? He hesitated, uncertain if they’d think he was crazy. He swiftly peeked into their room but got no response. They were probably out and about.

Nelu opted to keep climbing the stairs, going until he reached the top of one of the turrets. Once there he bounded over to the nearest window and stuck his head out the window. He gazed out at the ocean. It looked like it had peeled back from the earth. He let out a few warning barks.

Scratching on stone caught his attention as the little squirrel monkey climbed up from the tree to sit in his window. "Have you seen this before," he asked. The monkey shook her head. "No, but I don't think it's good. Everyone is upset, I've seen many animals flee. My name is Samiri, may I stay here with you two for awhile?"

Nelu nodded. "Yes, of course. My name is Nelu, this is Aster." The trio settled in to watch and wait. Nelu hoped it was just an overreaction but it was hard to say and he believed in the old adage that it was better safe than sorry. If nothing happened he could go back out and continue his exploring and if not… well, there really wasn't anything he could do to prevent it. What would happen would happen. He could only react to it.