Mauja the FrostHeart
ice cold man watches earth die, eternal winter takes its reign

The stranger seemed almost chastised, as if ashamed of how assumed they were drowning. Mauja was torn between pity and the same strand of annoyance as previously, but pity won out - after all, hadn't it shown that he cared, that he tried to warn them of something that might've been going the wrong way? The monarch's face softened further, eyes flicking up to study the averted face. "Where I'm from, we have no sea." Ah. That would certainly explain his lack of knowledge about it, then, and for a moment Mauja turned his white head away, staring out across the vast, blue surface. It was darkening from light sapphire to dark navy; a hint of orange still flared across the surface where the sun was slipping away, but otherwise the ocean lay quiet and dark, forbidding. It hid many secrets, of that Mauja had no doubt.

The King made no reply yet to the statement of seas, or the lack thereof, but simply listened as Huyana, the nameless mare of the nicknames, quizzed him about the dead doe. He agreed that it was a curious thing to carry about, but the stallion was curious in his entirety, from his ignorance of the sea to the leather guard upon his horn. Still, he was undoubtedly unicorn, even though he was riddled with the strange things. Once more, Mauja found his gaze drawn to the blood dripping down. Coris' creamy legs seemed more pink from dried blood dissolved by salt water. From the corner of his eye, he caught a thin smile upon the stallion's face, prideful. Silently the FrostHeart approved. One should be proud of one's skills, but not brag about them or flaunt them in someone's face. He hoped this one wouldn't start doing the latter.

A leather worker? Well, it would certainly explain the bits of hide upon him, if he could manipulate such things... He lifted his pale eyes again to study Coris' broad face, noticing the way the amber eyes had drifted onto Huyana. This seemed to be a safe territory to speak within, for Mauja found no traces of the earlier apprehension and embarrassment in his eyes now, just curiosity and that brand of pride that was trademark to craftsmen. He gave a thoughtful shake of his head. "Each herd has the ability to elect a crafter of sorts," he begun to explain, giving Huyana another look from the corner of his eye - would she mind him taking over the conversation, if only briefly. "We have none yet, but whomever is picked will be blessed by the Moon with the power to work glass. We do, however, have an engineer, of sorts. He creates things... well, I be damned if I know how, but he makes what he calls machines, and they ..move around. I've never seen one of your kind, though. What do you do? What is it good for?" A similar spark of genuine curiosity had deflagrated in the King's eyes. He enjoyed learning, especially of things far off and exotic - cultures, and, well, things.