Tales of the Jewel

Morning was was for prayers of forbearance, of mercy. As the sun climbed, Lamis piously joined those across the Sands in begging Shilah to hold back her wrath.

But now, she had finished her arc of the sky and cool crept from homes set beneath ground level, wafted in from the river, sunk and slithered along the streets, slowly stealing banked heat from the walls. Now Lamis came to the temple for the prayers of thanks, gratitude for one more day of not being scorched to death. She'd have preferred the proper hour of dusk, but the competition ate a bit of that hour. Was that a purposeful choice? Regardless, she makes her way through the streets to the welcome glow of lights within the temple.

After purifying hands and feet, she slipped her boots back on before proceeding.With a frown, she noticed that it seemed...sparsely decorated for so prestegious a temple in so rich a city. But, fancy or plain, all prayers rose through the air the same.

What a day.

Ali normally visited the temple in the morning. The day's events had made that impossible. And so, instead, he made his way there in the evening. His first part in the competition was done, and at this hour, he would likely have the temple all to himself. Just fine with him.

It was only after cleansing himself in the pool that he realized it was not so. Ali's breath hissed in surprise, his right hand clenching... and then he relaxed. Perhaps he was tired, to let his expectations dictate what he saw.

"My apologies, miss." He said, bowing an apology. "I should have seen you... it's just rare to see other visitors at this hour. My fault."

A simple bearded man in a drab robe stopped at the threshold of the temple before stepping inside, not long after Lamia went in. The most remarkable thing about him - if it could be called remarkable - was a chequered keffiyah on his head.

He lowered his head, muttering some prayers and performing some of the sacred gestures even before he purified his hands and feet, as if asking for forgiveness and permission to step into the sacred building.

Finally going inside, he slowly makes his way towards one of the places reserved for sitting. As he sees the woman also standing there for her prayers, he nods respectfully at her... then he notices the other man who went in at about the same time as himself. The guard from the previous night.

"Oh... my apologies as well, Sayyid. I hadn't seen you.", he said, nodding respectfully to him as well.

The were two times Tarset visited the House; sunrise, and sunset. The day before had been sunrise, but that morning had other plans, so she went straight from watching the competition to the temple. It was a little later than she was used to, but she wasn't foreign to being out after the lanterns were lit so to speak. It was pleasant that it meant that the House wasn't teeming with people like usual, so she counted her blessings.

Though she'd been raised in the Jewel more or less, she was still a Senpet, so her prayers were a bit different than the Mekham gestures. She even resorted to falling into her native tongue for them, something she rarely used otherwise. Once she'd finished her basic offers (for she'd never been overly pious), she washed her face and hands and feet. The water was more chill than when it was bright out, but she enjoyed the contrast a bit.

Finally she looked around at the gathered company. A few merchants that couldn't get away from their stalls before now were present, but she also noticed that some of the competitors had also come. She recognized Ali from the day before, but the other two... had they announced names at the tournament? She approached the trio and gave a respectful gesture of greetings. "Salam, and congratulations to you three for your showing in the competition today. You seemed to show well for yourself better than you said yesterday sidi Ali."

Ali chuckled softly. "It seems we're all surprising each other. It's good to see you again, friend Faruq." He inclined his head to the familiar man. "I hope you've been keeping comfortable today."

His eyebrows went up, and he inclined his head to the tall, muscular woman. "Thank you, miss Tarset. But please, I am no master." Still, unable to remain entirely modest, he couldn't help but grin a little as he gave a gently negating wave of the hand. "I just know enough to get by. If that turns out to be enough to earn myself a bit of acclaim in the festival, well, no one will more surprised than me, I assure you."

Lamis noticed those who entered after her certainly. She had the advantage there, honestly. They were moving, she was not.

Ali ibn Farid wrote: ↑

Thu Apr 29, 2021 6:34 pm

"My apologies, miss." He said, bowing an apology. "I should have seen you... it's just rare to see other visitors at this hour. My fault."

One eyebrow lifts, her smile a bit mocking though her tone was amused. "Why apologize? You didn't run into me, or...so far as I heard...offer prayers asking for my ruin. I'm not here for the attention, after all."

The amusement becomes laughter in turn. "See! We're all invisible here beneath the sacred dome, it seems. Salam alaikum to you all." Glancing up at the Senpet woman she adds, "I'm quite sure I saw you about the competition today, though hmm...not competing? You're hard to miss, lella."

Tarset smirked a bit at Ali. "You're allowed to brag a little, just remember this was just day one."

Looking to Lamis, she gave a small nod. "Indeed. Bow's are not my thing, but it is an interesting competition to watch. I suppose I always stand out against the many average Mekham that surround me, most of the time at least. You shot well sidi."

The compliment is acknowledged with a nod, then a shrug. "I got a bit cocky shooting things that are sitting so still. Good enough for a hunt, but.." her eyes shift to Ali, "there's a fair few already better by the rules of _this_ game."

"Solid shooting, sidi. Master or no." she adds. Wouldn't really be polite to discuss his performance as if he wasn't there. Perhaps mercifully, she doesn't comment on Faruq's shots. Congratulating him for a hit or two at the easy end would just be condescending.

Returning her attention to the Senpet woman, introductions seem in order even if most of them did announce themselves before the crowd. "So...Tarset? is it? You do stand out a bit even among the handful of Senpet at these events. And you stand like a warrior, even if Bow's not your weapon."

One hand lifts to rest fingertips at her own collarbone. "Lamis Naaji, Janan's rider and hunter among the Naaji near the Oasis of Six Steps."

Tarset looked a bit puzzled a moment before nodding, seeming to understand, putting a fist to her chest and bowing a little. "Tarset Kishan, yes. I take it Janan is your horse, you have the look of a rider Lamis. As for being a warrior... I have done work that involves fighting plenty of times, though I am no soldier or guard. Whatever job requires strength of body and mind, I am quite willing to do it usually. Around the Jewel, I tend to be called a Problem Solver."

Faruq keeps quiet through most of the chatter - it's not like he had that much to add to the discussion about their performance at the competition, anyway. The others had shot quite well - he certainly had not. That was the truth of the matter, and there was no shame or glory in admitting to that.

Still, it wouldn't be polite to just ignore them.

Ali ibn Farid wrote: ↑

Fri Apr 30, 2021 2:05 am

Ali chuckled softly. "It seems we're all surprising each other. It's good to see you again, friend Faruq." He inclined his head to the familiar man. "I hope you've been keeping comfortable today."

"It's a pleasure to see you again as well, friend Ali.

He nodded at him and Lamia. "It has been a pleasure to see the performance of those properly trained in archery today", he adds simply. "As I said earlier, I joined this event in the hopes of learning, and I can most certainly learn from seeing you shoot.

He then nodded at Lamia and Tarset, who he hadn't properly met before. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Sayeedaat Lamis and Tarset. Faruq Al-Farhan, humble citizen and physician."