Discussing Deep Arden With Liya
Alec sits with his chair turned away from the table he's occupying by himself on the deck of the lodge, a beer sitting on its surface behind him. His sketchbook is out before him and he has a pencil out and at the ready in his right hand. However, instead of drawing, he stares absently into the distance at the trees while absently tapping the tip of his writing implement against the blank page before him, creating a cluster of lazy black dots.
Liya spent the night here, and then went out though not far for the day. She and Mayhem are now returning, loking perhaps a bit tired, but otherwise all in one piece. She waves to the folks on duty, a smile crossing her features, lighting them up. And then she heads for a seat, stopping as she spies someone she knows. "Hey there. You okay?" she asks, softly.
Alec looks up at her and nods, flashing a quick smile as though to prove it. "Yeah, I'm just thinking," he says, his gaze wandering out to the forest once more before focusing again on Liya. "A lot's been happening recently."
"Might I join you for a bit?" Liya asks, first. Mayhem mrowls briefly, but stays with Liya. "There has been a lot happening. Anything in particular got you thinking? Or should I not ask?" She puts a hand on the back of a chair, inquiringly.
Alec closes his sketchbook and scoots his chair back around to face the table. "Go ahead," he says, waving one hand toward an empty seat. "And what's most on my mind right now is what's happening in Arden. How much have you heard about that?"
"Heard what Harper and Zachary said the other day, about the forest maybe waking up and taking offence to our presence," Liya says. "And that I shouldn't go out deeper in Arden on my own any more. Is there more news than that?" She settles gracefully into the seat, and Mayhem moves to flop at her feet, partly under the table.
Alec nods and leans forward a bit after glancing around. "Did you hear Harper was attacked by the forest while out on patrol with another lieutenant?" Alec asks slowly, voice lowered. "And the person she was with, Mike, was killed..."
"I heard that the person she was with was killed, but it sounded like they were separated for some reason. And I didn't really get that she was attacked, in the brief conversation. That's - something to be reckoned," Liya says soberly. "Have you seen anything odd in the Forest of late?"
Alec shakes his head. "I haven't been in the forest since we've been told to stay out. And to be fair, Harper never expressly said she was attacked, just that she was patroling with him and that she needed to get checked over herself, so I just assumed she'd been attacked as well..." He pauses for a moment. "But a while before all this happened, I went with Marlene to visit Vael, and he was apparently preparing for something."
Liya nods her head. "I guess we shall see," she says. "I remember that Harper did look like she needed to get checked over, now that you say that. I hadn't thought she was attacked by the forest somehow though. That - shouldn't happen. At least not to my way of thinking." She frowns, now her gaze going out to the forest as Alec's was earlier. "Too much all going crazy at the same time, this is not good."
Alec gives a slow nod and stares down into his untouched beer, a slight grimace on his face. "I suggested to Moxon that we might be able to fix things by removing the people from the forest, since that seems to be what's triggering these events. But he said it wouldn't help, that it might redirect Arden to attack Amber itself." He grimaces. "Vael had all his 'children' together and apparently didn't seem like himself. Marlene sensed something was off about him immediately and handed me a trump to safety, just in case. It was my first time meeting him, though, so it's hard to say what was wrong."
"That is interesting," Liya says, tilting her head. "I have met Vael a time or two, but I don't now him very well. I suppose maybe now is not a good time to further that acquaintance really." She smiles, the expression wry. "Certainly is a lot to think about, isn't there? Are you also drawing?"
Alec nods slightly. "I was trying to, at least. It's hard to focus with my mind wandering, though..." He glances at his sketchbook, closed and on the table beside him. "Moxon wants to take me and Dirk out into Arden. I mentioned this to Harper and she insisted that she come with us. She said you have a garden or something out there that you wanted to see, and the more people we had, the safer it should be in theory."
"I do. I've had an herb garden out there for years. Moxon raids it every so often. Actually I don't mind if any of the rangers and friends raid it, so long as they don't kill any of the herbs," Liya says. "And I would not mind travelling with you all, if you are heading out. It would make things easier for me, I suspect."
"But right now, I should go get washed up, and then find some dinner. If you will excuse me?" she adds.
Alec nods. "Go ahead. I'm sure I'll see you later."
