It surprised people when they learned raw eggs could be mixed into cocktails. The only drink he'd heard suggested by non-professionals was eggnog. But that was doing the other drinks a disservice! A Golden Fizz was a sour drink served at room temperature and was best tasted in the mornings. A Pisco Sour fruitier drink that had a unique type of grape used in the recipe. There was even a coffee cocktail! All of these drinks involved eggs and were left completely forgotten. That was why he was in the middle of a grassy field hunting for ostrich eggs. He needed enough eggs to create the alcoholic beverages and help guests of tavern learn about drinks other than plain beer or simple whiskey. Those were fine drinks but often boring on their own.

"Now lets see, the locals told me the best area to search was over here." He muttered to himself as he held a map in front of his face.

After wandering around the field for a while, his nose finally picked up the sent of an ostrich nest. There was a tactic to check if the egg had a baby inside it so he wouldn't be eliminating a bunch of birds. He would just take the dud eggs and move on to the next. His movements were slow and he was creeping towards the nest. Finally he was close enough to feel it and the mom was nowhere in sight. He touched the eggs and figured out which ones were dud and which ones had living creatures in it. He found a dud egg and carefully picked it up. Rhydian began to sneak away with the egg until he bumped into something. When he looked to what was in front of him, he saw mama ostrich and she did not look happy.

"Okay so I'm gonna put this back real quick." He said nervously.

He began to walk towards the nest but instead of putting it back, he bolted away from the mama ostrich. The oversized bird chased after him and was inches behind him. The only reason he stayed ahead was because of his unnatural speed. Otherwise he would have been pecked to death.

"Its okay miss bird! This one is a dud, I swear!" Rhydian shouted.

The thing he really needed right now was a distraction. Something. ANYTHING!

Ever since Dalanesca, Jazrael’s patron goddess, had died, the demon felt… lost. She could never quite find her place, could never quite figure out where she wanted to be or where she belonged. Nowhere felt like home anymore – and since her goddess’s death, she had not even been able to jump from body to body like she had easily been able to before. She was sure the capability was still there, but she just hadn’t figured out how to do it without the extra power that had once been within her.

She had taken to traveling all across Revaliir, from Canelux, to Parvpora, and most recently to Onnen. Onnen was so unfamiliar to her in contrast with the other two continents, and it made her feel different – almost as though there were not as many painful memories tied to it. When she had reached the Sandawe Grasslands, it had called to her, and it had seemed like a wonderful place to wander.

It was quiet – that is, it was quiet, until she heard a voice yelling not too far from where she was. Turning her head in that direction, she could make out a figure in the distance. The figure seemed to be running from something, and sure enough it was running form an ostrich.

Jazrael stifled a laugh. It was rather ridiculous, wasn’t it? The sight of what seemed to be a grown man sprinting across the grasslands, fleeing from his large flightless avian pursuer? Jazrael made her way closer until she had reached the ostrich’s nest, where the running figure had started out. She could see the indent where the egg had been picked up, and she chuckled to herself. That must have been why the ostrich was chasing him. He must have grabbed an egg from the nest. She looked over the state of the other eggs and determined that the one he had grabbed must have been a dud egg, as the other eggs all seemed healthy. Of course, the ostrich would not have known that. The ostrich would just assume that it had one of its eggs stolen, and it would hunt down the thief.

Smirking to herself and realizing that she would be able to dispatch the ostrich rather easily if needed, she crouched down and picked up another egg, rolling it about in her hands. Rather loudly, she whistled in the direction of the ostrich and held the egg up above her head. Sure enough, it was enough to attract the bird’s attention. It stopped chasing its current prey and turned to face Jazrael, taking off at full speed in her direction.

Jazrael set the egg down quickly but gently back in its place, not wanting to harm it unnecessarily. As the ostrich neared her, she prepared a spell, a spell with the intention of transporting the ostrich and its nest to a different part of the grasslands, one where they would still be safe, but would no longer be able to pursue her, or the man that it had been chasing.

Just as the ostrich grew close enough, she muttered the incantation she had been thinking on, and like clockwork, the ostrich and its nest both disappeared, leaving behind the dud egg that the man had taken.

Jazrael nodded to herself in approval, glad that she was still capable of performing some of the magic Dalanesca had instilled within her. She called out to the man in the distance. ”What kind of bright idea did you have, pissing an ostrich off?” she yelled, a hint of humor in her voice. She made a move to walk towards him, hoping he would head her direction rather than have to have her close the gap on her own.

When she was close enough, she gave him a half smile, making sure both her hands were visible so as not to post a threat. ”Didn’t think I would see anyone else out here,” she said. ”I’m Jazrael, and as I asked once already… I’d really like to know why you thought this was a good idea,” she added, gesturing towards the egg the man held.

Rhydian clutched the egg like it would save him from a pecky death. Of course, he could attack the ostrich but he didn't want to. The mother was just defending her nest. It wasn't her fault that he wasn't paying attention. He continued running until he heard a loud whistle from somewhere behind him. Rhydian hadn't gone terribly far from the nest since he'd been running in circles. A young woman was holding up an egg above her head as a way to get the giant bird's attention. The ostrich gave out a shrieking call and bolted towards her nest. In a flash of magic, the ostrich and its nest were teleported to another part of the Sandawe grasslands. Then the woman shouted to him, asking why he had pissed off the bird. But there was a sense of humor.

"My plan was to not get caught. Not a good plan to be honest!" He shouted back to her.

Rhydian began to walk towards the stranger and held up the ostrich egg so she could see it. His face was beaming, as though he was incredibly proud of the egg that they'd managed to steal. Since she'd helped out so much, he was willing to make her some free drinks. Rhydian didn't see her as a threat, although she was certainly powerful, since she would have attacked right away instead of helping him out.

"Nice to meet you Jazrael." He said with a smile, "It wasn't my best plan but I just really needed an egg about this size. You see, I'm planning to make a large batch of Golden Fizz. I could have used a lot of chicken eggs but instead, I decided one large ostrich egg should do the trick!"

He gently placed the ostrich egg in his backpack, in a slot he had made with padding so it wouldn't break easily while he was traveling. Looking back to the woman, he realized it was strange for two of them to be out there. She didn't seem like a local. And there weren't many monsters running around for foreign adventurers to attack. Curiosity got the better of him as he had to ask her some questions.

"What about you?" He asked, "Taking in the sights of Sandawe or something?"

Jazrael felt a small wave of relief hit her as the man approached her, sounding friendly enough. She wasn’t necessarily concerned with protecting herself – she knew she was more than capable of that. She just wasn’t in the mood to fight anyone. Though she had been rather vindictive and evil when Dalanesca had still been alive, she had lost so much of that when the Reaper had died. Now, she was just content living, not swaying towards the sides of darkness or of light. Truth be told, it was rather boring and lonely, but she managed.

As the man neared and explained what he was obtaining the egg for, Jazrael perked up a bit. She was a fan of drinking in general, but this was a drink she had heard of but had not yet had the pleasure of trying. ”On a dangerous mission to procure ingredients for a drink? You sound like a man after my own heart,” she quipped. As if to prove the point that she enjoyed drinking, she moved her leg to the side, poking it out of the slit in her skirt, grabbing a flask that was attached to her thigh. She unscrewed the top and took a drink of the dark liquid housed inside before placing it back and standing back up. ”Never had the pleasure of tasting a golden fizz, but I’ve heard great things about them,” she continued.

She hesitated for a moment, her smile fading ever so slightly as the man asked what she was doing out in the grasslands. Of course, if she took the time to think about it, it was a little curious that she would just be out there wandering on her own, not really in search of anything in particular. If she were to just burst out and tell him the truth that she was a wayward demon stuck in that body after the death of her patron god, he would most likely think she was insane and either attack her or run away. Instead, she told the truth but in a much more vague manner.

”Well, I lost someone a while back, and haven’t quite felt like myself since then,” she began. ”I’ve found it hard to settle down in one place since then. I guess I’ve never really found anything that has made me feel like staying anywhere. I ran out of places to see in Canelux, and in Parvpora, so I made my way here to Onnen. Sometimes I like to distance myself from the rabble of people and… well, the grasslands are such a lowly inhabited place that it seemed like a good idea,” she continued. She shrugged a little bit. ”I guess it does seem kind of weird,” she added with a laugh.

”Mind if I ask your name?” she asked him after a beat. ”And, if you’re done hunting for dangerous eggs, maybe we could travel back to civilization together, and you can tell me a little more about this golden fizz drink so I know what to ask for the next time I’m in a tavern?” she offered. The grasslands weren’t a dangerous place by any means, but he seemed like he might make a good traveling companion, at least temporarily. Of course, she didn’t know him too well, so she could certainly be proven wrong – or right!

"Heh. This is actually one of my less dangerous attempts for ingredients." He admitted.

Not to mention the hundreds of quests he went on to fund his bar-tending tendencies. Jazrael showed off her stashed flash that was attached to her thigh. Putting his hands on his hips, he gave her an impressed look. Most he'd met only drank at certain hours of the day. Having a drink at her side at every moment was unique and something he appreciated. She than began to explain why she was here. Rhydian quietly listened as she talked about how she lost someone and was dealing with the after effects of it. He could relate to her desire to get away from people, although he had entirely different reasons for it.

"Oh right! I'm Rhydian." He said, "Heading back is probably a good idea. And hey, with you around I shouldn't get into trouble…too much."

Walking would make the trip a little longer but he didn't mind. Finding someone equally interested in his craft was rare so he didn't mind spending more time with her. Rhydian traveled by her side and decided to explain the golden fizz a bit more.

"Well lets see, the golden fizz is made up of lemon juice, simple syrup, egg yolk, soda water, and good ol gin." Rhydian explained as they walked, "I usually add ice cubs but its not a requirement. The best time to drink it is in the morning or with light meals. The sourness of the drink is good for the days where you don't want to be forced to feel happy all the time. It doesn't make you sad, but its a break from the sweetness of everything else. A reminder that its okay to feel bad and that you shouldn't keep all of that negative emotion inside."

The bartender had actually taken the time to ask people how they felt about the drink after having it. He had done experiments and gave the drink to people at certain times of the day. This was what he had found out. Despite what some may believe, each beverage had a different effect on the drinker. Sometimes it made them giddy, sometimes excited, and sometimes sad. But each had a unique style.

"I know it probably seems like I'm reading into it too much." He said rubbing the back of his head, "But this is how my guests have told me they felt. Each occasion needs a different drinks so I learn which ones fit which."

He really hoped she didn't think he was just some crazy weird man way into his alcohol.

Jazrael could not help but chuckle when the man admitted that this had not been his most dangerous attempt to gather things. He seemed pretty straight forward, and just had a rather nice presence to him. She appreciate that he listened when she was speaking – so often she came across people and when she decided to actually talk a bit, they always interjected with their own thoughts and opinions, never letting her finish her statement without interruption.

”Well, it’s certainly a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Rhydian,” she said, bowing her head slightly in acknowledgement. It was nothing formal, but it certainly gave way to the fact that, at one point in her life, Jazrael had been in an environment that required formality. ”But I wouldn’t be so sure about the trouble part,” she said, with a playful grin. ”Just because I ot you out of trouble doesn’t mean we won’t find some more to get into!” she quipped, but it was clear that her statement was made in pure fun rather than in a threatening manner.

When the pair began walking and Rhydian began explaining the golden fizz beverage in a more intricate way, Jazrael actually felt her mouth water a bit. ”That sounds incredibly delicious,” she said, after he had finished talking. ”And I don’t think it sounds like you’re reading into it too much at all. The way you describe it makes me want to try it even more,” she added. ”I have a lot of days where I’m not quite feeling the sweetness,” she concluded, clearly not necessarily meaning the flavor of her beverages.

As they walked, Jazrael gazed up at the sky. She could see that the sun was beginning to set deeper into the sky, and she knew that they had quite a ways to go still before they would be out of the grasslands. ”I’m thinking this might be a good place to stop and camp for the night,” she said. They were in a decent clearing where the grasses weren’t quite as long, since they had dried up quite a bit during the dry season. ”Unless you’re planning on walking all through the darkness,” she added with a joking jilt to her voice. She turned slightly, jostling the leather pack she wore on her back. ”I’ve got some bread, apples, and some whiskey in here – nothing fancy like you’re used to, but it’s good,” she said. ”And lucky for you, I’m an ace at starting a campfire!” she said, grinning.

With a wave of her hand, a small amount of twigs and medium size branches appeared on the ground, arranged into the perfect shape for a small campfire. Another wave of her hand, and a small flame had engulfed the wood, the fire now crackling at the perfect height. She removed the pack from her back and plopped down on the ground next to the fire, sticking her leg out enough to remove the flask from her thigh and take another drink, emptying it. She tucked it into the pack and pulled out a bottle that had been carefully wrapped in cloth so as the bottle would not break, proceeding to fill her flask back up before offering the bottle towards Rhydian. ”It’s Adelunan,” she said. ”A bit different, but it’s got a zippy hint of cinnamon to it,” she explained.

Jazrael was a fascinating individual to talk to. His life as a bartender led him to meet and talk with many strangers. He had heard their stories, wishes, sorrows, and much more. Recently he'd noticed the same story started to repeat as he had repeating customers. It was nice to meet a new face with a different tale. Jazrael insisted that they might find more trouble and he had to chuckle at that. She wasn't wrong.

"Fair point." He said with a smirk.

His words over the golden fizz beverage seemed to interest Jazrael and make a connection. Relief flooded through his mind when she understood what he meant. Most would accuse him of being overly interested in something that they found small or evil. She also mentioned days where it wasn't sweet but Rhydian didn't press the matter. Years of being behind the counter taught him that if people wanted to talk, then they would. Otherwise, don't mention it. The sun was beginning to lower from the sky and the moons were beginning to reveal themselves.

"How did you know? Curses! My plan of stumbling in the dark has been foiled!" He said jokingly, shaking a fist at the sky.

Walking over to the campfire she'd quickly made, he swung his bag off his shoulders and began to dig around until he found the tent. His bag was large, almost larger than him. Pulling out the brown tent, he began to set it up. It didn't take long since he was a fast worker and quick with his hands. Once he was down, he plopped down on the floor, tired from all the walking.

"Whiskey's good. Don't always need to be fancy." He said.

When he looked her way she'd pull out a bottle carefully wrapped in cloth. Adelunan with a zippy hint of cinnamon. Reaching into his back, he pulled out a wooden tankard. The name Rhydian was etched on the front and the handle had a wooden dragon wrapped around it. A gift from his folks from his last birthday that he brought everywhere. His father had made it and he preferred bringing a tankard wherever he went anyways.

"Good thing I came prepared." He said, "You know the first time I went to Adeluna, I got into a fight. It may be a surprise but I used to be a reckless kid when I was younger."

That last part he said with a bit of a chuckle since he knew the reckless part never really faded away. It just turned from wanting to fight everybody to climbing mountains to finish his grocery list. He held out his tankard, hoping that he would pour him a drink. 

"What about you? What's your experience with Adeluna?" He asked.

Rhydian’s humorous sarcasm was welcome as he quipped about wandering off into the darkness. It had been a while since Jazrael had found a reason to be amused with anything. She found herself at least a little grateful that she had come across someone who was both friendly and entertaining – and hopefully would prove to be an interesting conversationalist, too.

Jazrael had a moment where she realized just how odd she would have found this situation had things been the way they were before Dalanesca had died. If she had still been who she was then, she would have probably made an attempt to flay Rhydian alive and be having a good old time with him, for absolutely no reason what all. Instead, with the way her demeanor in general had changed, she sat upon the ground watching a stranger set up a tent, and found herself realizing that she would be sleeping on the ground as she had not been prepared for sleeping in the grasslands. She almost laughed out loud at the sheer silliness of the situation to her, but she kept it in, instead just watching him with a little bit of curiosity.

When he was finished and joined her next to the fire, she admired the tankard before pouring him some of the whiskey into the wooden vessel while listening to both the minor explanation of his past as well as the questioning on her experience in Adeluna.

”I actually spent a lot of time working in Adeluna,” she said, being entirely truthful. ”My boss was… really powerful,” she said – walking the line of truth, but not divulging the true information. It wasn’t that she cared if people knew that she was a demon, or even that she once served the Goddess of Death – it was more so the fact that her happening upon Rhydian had been rather pleasant thus far, and if he were to be a person who harbored ill will about demons or did not care for them, that pleasant time would be cut short and she would be out of a source of keeping her mind occupied once again. ”I spent a lot of time finding very particular things for her, so I experienced a lot of Adeluna – both the good and the bad. I got to know that place top to bottom, really.”

Again, she was telling the truth – as one of the messorem in Dalanesca’s court, Jazrael had been considered a procurer – she sought out certain souls that had made deals with Dalanesca as repayment on their end of the bargain. ”It was complicated work and then my boss, well… she passed away. I haven’t felt quite like myself since then,” she added, before taking a rather long drink from her flask. She set the bottle of whiskey down on the ground so that Rhydian would be able to take more if he wished.

”But, my story isn’t all that exciting.” Lie. That was a lie. ”What about you, though? Do you just spend all your time hunting for hard-to-procure drink ingredients? Surely someone with your mixological prowess must own your own tavern, or at least have a gig going somewhere!” she said with a grin and a bit of a laugh, chugging down a bit more of the whiskey. One of the joys she had found in losing some of her power was that she was actually able to feel the warming and inebriating effects of liquor now, which made drinking it not seem like such a waste.

While Rhydian assumedly replied to her question, she stuck her feet out in front of her, fiddling with the laces on her boots rather ineffectively, as though she were attempting to take them off.

He took a sip of whiskey and listened to her tale. The way she spoke made Rhydian wonder if there was more between her and her boss than just a professional relationship. Still, if she didn't want to mention it then that was her own business. Either way, after losing her boss it seemed that she was out of a job, which would disorient anybody. A death plus loss of work was devastating. He assumed that was the reason why she didn't feel like herself. He took a swig of his alcohol and placed the tankard on the ground. Then she claimed her backstory wasn't exciting and moved onto him. There was always more to tell but he decided not to press the issue.

"Suppose I could. Most of the coin I earn goes back to my folks but I still have plenty leftover." He said, "I guess I never wanted to stick around one place. You never see anything new or meet unique people that way. After all, I meet you through travel, didn't I?"

He gave her a smirk before turning his eyes back to the fire. Rhydian watched as the flames flickered and danced, burning the pieces of wood into ash. The fire comforted his mind and was an old friend of his. A source of light, a provider of heat, and a beautiful lively flower all mixed into one. Or perhaps that was just his natural senses talking. The alcohol was taking its toll and loosening his tongue.

"You know, as a teenager I had the talent for mixing things but I had a very different dream. I wanted to become the worlds greatest warrior." He said with a chuckle, "Can you believe that?….But one day I got into a fight I couldn't handle and got an injury that never quite healed. I can still fight of course. Yet I'll never be what I once was. Used to tell myself, if I just work hard enough and persisted endlessly I could one day reach that goal."

He chugged the rest of his drink down and cleaned off his face with his shirt.

"That's the thing about life… It throws you hurtles and obstacles until one day it gives you an unbreakable wall." Rhydian said, "You can spend years and years hitting it but the darn thing won't budge. Then you have to take a different path. It may not be in the direction you'd like and you may not end up at the destination you wanted. But its better than being stuck behind a stone wall. After a long time of hitting that wall, I realized that I had to give up that dream and let my skills guide me to another one."

Whenever he drank, it seemed more words came out of his mouth. He looked at the empty tankard then let out a small sigh before looking over to Jazrael. Rhydian realized that she was fiddling with her boots.

"Need help with that?" He asked with a chuckle.

Jazrael took the opportunity to sit back and relax, just listening as Rhydian offered more information on his past. She almost felt bad at the lack of information she had revealed about herself, but the more she was listening to him, the more she realized just how laid back he seemed to be. Maybe it would not be so bad if she told him the truth… but then again, it could end a lot worse than she was thinking. She took several drinks of her whiskey, eventually having to add more to her flask from the bottle she had set on the ground between the two of them. A pleasant warmth had spread throughout her body, and a soft blush was apparent in her pale cheeks. She felt… goofy, which was a word that she had hardly ever used in her entire existence. It was a good feeling. She did not feel the need to impress anyone, nor the need to put on a big or frightening show to intimidate anyone. Instead, she just got to be… well, herself, for what it was worth.

”Meeting me is totally worth almost being destroyed by an ostrich, obviously,” she quipped, laughing softly as she said it. ”You sound like you have a pretty optimistic outlook on life,” she said. ”Let me tell you, that is a change from the kind of people I am used to being around.” Okay, so ‘people’ might have been a bit of a loose term. ‘Souls’ might have been better. But it wasn’t entirely untruthful. She did spend a lot of time around miserable people. She just used to be the one making them miserable.

She laughed again when Rhydian offered to help her with her boots. ”No, no, I think I’ve got it… there!” she exclaimed, liberating one of her feet. The second boot didn’t give her as much trouble as the first had. ”How ridiculous is that? Me, having trouble taking off my damn boot…” she chuckled to herself before taking another drink of the whiskey.

”You know, you’ve been awfully generous about your history, but haven’t pressed on mine at all, even when I’ve been so utterly vague,” she said, sounding a bit thoughtful. ”I like that. So many people just feel the need to know everything about a person without that person volunteering it.” She grew silent for a moment as she contemplated sharing a bit more about her true nature. What could it hurt?

”You know, before my… boss died… I was a lot different than I am now. If I had met you under these circumstances, I would have made every effort either to get you into my bed, or to kill you,” she explained. She tried to keep an air of humor even though she was being truthful. ”I’ve got absolutely no reason to kill anyone now, unless it’s in self-defense… and as for that other part, well, that hasn’t been a big concern for me as of late, either.” She leaned back on her hands a bit, digging her toes into the ground a bit as she stretched back. ”I could certainly tell you a little bit more about my history, but I’m going to be honest, it’s… pretty dark,” she added. ”Maybe in the morning, when we’re walking back… or maybe later. I don’t know if I should share that when I’m drinking,” she added with a laugh.

Suddenly, she bolted straight up, an idea having entered her mind. ”Hey, I’ve got an idea!” she exclaimed suddenly. ”I have a really cool trick I learned from a wizard a long while back. I want to show you. I just have to go grab a couple of stones from near that river bed we walked past,” she said, and hopped up to her feet. She took another drink of her flask and placed it back into the garter on her thigh before taking off at a slightly quick stumble towards the river bed.

The river bed wasn’t too far from the campsite they had created, so it didn’t take her long to get there. From the looks of it, the river had been rather deep. It was completely dry now. Jazrael leaned down and grabbed a few stones – when she stood up to see if there were any others around that would work, she lost her footing, and suddenly found herself tumbling down into the riverbed. A shriek escaped her lips as she fell, certainly loud enough for Rhydian to hear back at camp.