FA+
Shop
490
Views
Views
8
Favorites
Favorites
Category
Artwork (Digital) / General Furry Art
Species Mammal (Other)
Size 967 x 1280
File Size 301.5 kB
Report this content
More from nazcapilot
Listed in Folders
"Coincidence is a messenger sent by truth."
- Jacqueline Winspear
All these accidents/
That happen/
Follow the dot/
Coincidence/
Makes sense/
Only with you/
You don't have to speak/
I feel/
- Björk - "Jóga"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oFV4QCq9SEU
Once more, we're a part of this constant motion./
Give me the strength to keep my body going. Hide in/
darkness till the day is done. Exposed to so much/
danger, pacifying strangers. It's a story that I wrote/
for you, listen closely as I break through. This effigy/
is spinning free./
I dream of endless light, a life I sacrificed./
- Skyharbor - "The Constant"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eppE-34zuNk
Havasu Canyon / Arizona Territory / c. 1896
“There are no coincidences in this world.”
Uri Luria had reckoned in the wee hours this morning that today would mark an auspicious occasion. This thought came to mind immediately upon waking, and as the day progressed, the young woman found it difficult to dismiss the confidence she held in such auspices. Once these omens manifested in her dreams, Uri knew that, come what may, this day held a surprise for her. Although, most her visions’ imagery had faded with the rising sun, she could yet still remember one key detail: a stranger’s fortunate arrival. The jackal kept this in mind as she busied herself with her morning routine. She’d likely be gone for most the day traveling on foot, so there wasn’t much time to squander on idle daydreaming.
“It isn’t wishful thinking on my part to assume the best,” the young woman whispered to herself as she headed upstairs. “One day those signs will arrive, and everything will make sense.”
Her destination was one specific room in the center of this remarkable dwelling. Treading past sliding glass doors and enormous rotary gears on her way there, Uri felt that moment like she’d spent most her adolescence enclosed inside an ornate pocket watch.
“He’s never balked at my desire for independence. Anyway, this wouldn’t be the first time I’ve been left to fend for myself. Even with my duties, I doubt he would want me to languish all alone. That’s no way to live. For all its splendor, there’s no life here. Without him, or anyone else, it may as well be my tomb.”
Though try as she might, Uri was unable to rid her mind of such daydreams as she tended the extraordinary estate and its exceptional faculties. Carved inside a cavern and secluded from the wider world deep within the bowels Havasu Canyon, the house she lived in for the past six years was more akin to castle than chalet. From the time she was twelve, Uri knew the installation was more than what it appeared. Composed of smooth basalt bricks and maintained by a complex network of enigmatic machines, the house was alive somehow. With the interior constantly shifting of its own accord, there was hardly anything here which required constant maintenance. It was no stretch to suggest that the home quite literally took care of itself. That was why, in recent months, the jackal had taken the bold step to leave the house unattended for days on end. While she had done this initially to lessen the tedium and loneliness, the young women felt emboldened by her recent excursions into Prescott. Although invigorating, Uri always inevitably returned to this hidden castle she once called home.
“Maybe today’s the day,” she said with a grin, trying to temper her enthusiasm the moment she encroached upon her destination. “Maybe that’s the reason why I feel the way I do now. I don’t know what the water’s trying to tell me, but I wouldn’t have such dreams only for it all to mean nothing. In the end, if life won’t return here, I’ll seek it elsewhere."
The jackal reflected on this matter as she inspected the screen set before her near the back of the room. Much like most mechanisms inside the castle, the young woman had only the faintest idea how to operate it. Yet she knew enough to occasionally record any disturbances for analysis. Like the myriad peripheral appliances neatly arranged in this dark, windowless room, the device that operated this screen silently hummed with hushed electric impulses. The words which sped across the clear glass at arbitrary intervals were unlike any script she’d ever seen. Interspersed with diagrams and statistics specifying what appeared to be constellations, Uri could only theorize what they declared. Unfortunately, the only person she knew who understood this language in some capacity had been gone for the past six months. After all that time, there was still no indication when, if ever, he’d return. Despite his curious absence, Uri held firm that the kind rabbit who raised her for nearly half her life hadn’t just abandoned her or perished in the interim.
“I can’t entertain that thought,” she muttered, scrutinizing the images on-screen one last time. “It doesn’t matter how long I wait. He deserves the faith I’ve placed in him.”
While the young woman remained dissatisfied, she tried not to let the lack of real closure discourage her as she sped down the stairs toward the yawning foyer. The young woman took this opportunity to ponder her circumstances. The jackal remembered the peculiar set of heavy doors engraved into the rock. Uri had been led to see them only once six years ago, but all Philo said of these doors was that it was imperative for them to stay closed. Like most everything here, they required protection. This was the same for the ablution pool underneath the castle. While Philo never made it apparent, he always insinuated that her very presence here was to preserve the sanctity of such sacred relics. That her duty was to the castle was inherently intrinsic and essential.
“You've kept me safe this long, Philo,” said the jackal, making one last resolute look at the spacious interior, “I only wish I knew why you kept me here; but despite this lack of clarity, I can’t shake that feeling. The feeling that everything will happen as it should. Even now, I know you’re with me in spirit. Wherever you are, though, I hope you’re safe.”
Uri smiled softly and turned toward a smooth sheet of stone which, upon approach, parted in individual segments. As she crossed the threshold, those separate segments reformed into that same stone sheet behind her. The jackal was met by a wide spread of sunlight coursing into the cave from a couple shafts on high. A few wispy, gossamer-winged butterflies drifted around her in its circumference as she walked past at a steady clip. This area of the cavern system was the only portion therein where foliage of any kind could be found. Admiring the shrubs of lavender she passed, Uri followed the familiar sound of water conducting her toward the cave’s entrance. However, this water was not like any other source of fresh water you’d find anywhere else. In fact, this water, if one could call it as such, was partly the reason why she’d lived here these past six years. The door and the ablution pool both played vital roles. They were both on her mind now as she suddenly gasped from lack of breath.
“It’s him,” Uri said aloud, wheezing as she reclaimed her breath. A vision came to mind as the young woman stumbled. Flashing in her mind’s eye was the vision of a young man lying directly in the center of a carved pedestal she knew all too well. “The man I saw in my dreams. It’s got to be him.”
Determined, the jackal jogged deeper underground away from the entrance and closer to what she was here to protect. With Uri’s intimate knowledge of the intricate and circuitous cavern system, the crossing itself took only several minutes to traverse. With ease, the young woman found the carved stone steps which led directly to the pedestal she envisioned not moments ago. It was here Uri saw a man spread out and unconscious atop a raised platform. From the foot of the raised platform, the jackal saw small arcs of red electricity leap out his body only to return into the carved obsidian. Originally hesitant upon seeing the electricity, she paused to muster more strength and purposefully strode onto the pedestal. Thankfully, once Uri knelt beside the unconscious man on the smooth obsidian, the electric impulses withdrew from view. Cradling him in her arms, she could see that while this man, a jaguar, appeared ostensibly youthful, his untidy hair was an almost lifeless pale complexion. Not only that, but with his mouth hung open, the top two canines revealed the source of such an irregularity with razor-sharp acuity.
Blinking, she surmised the truth with a murmur. Enthralled by this chance encounter, Uri was more amazed than afraid.
“This is unreal. It shouldn’t be possible, but here’s all the proof. To think I’d actually stumble onto a vampire in these caves; and here I thought they only existed in stories Philo used to tell—”
“It’s you.”
“Pardon? I don’t believe we’ve met.”
“No, we haven’t, but,” he choked, grunting as sat up, “I’ve heard about you all the same.”
“Please. Don’t strain yourself. You must’ve hit your head.”
“I’ve seen your face. Back in town. Plenty of folk in Prescott have spread rumors about you. All their vulgar talk of some mysterious half-breed girl living in this canyon brought me here to you. The jackal the Havasupai see as one of their own. I came here to see you.”
“I’m not sure I can help you, mister. I’m hardly anything special. The same should be said for my work at The Daily Courier. Are you sure you’re well? I’d prefer not ignore any injuries you might have.”
The jaguar examined Uri’s expression as he rose to a standing position. His face was one of discreet disbelief as he adjusted the length of his overcoat. Although, once he regained bearings, the man’s countenance seemed to soften the longer he held her gaze.
“Thank you, miss. Truly, I thank you. I don’t know what would have happened if hadn’t come when you did.”
“Oh, don’t you worry. It wasn’t anything at all,” the jackal remarked as she stood up and offered the man her hand to shake. “By the way, I’m Uri. Uri Luria.”
With a wry smile and furrowed brow, the jaguar begrudgingly accepted the hand and said, “I must say, Miss Luria, the pleasure’s all mine. It’s as I’ve said, you’re the one I’m here to see, after all. It was fortuitous you even found me at all. With this cave being as large as it is, I could have easily fallen to my death and never be seen again.”
“No, there are no random events. You being here today was no accident. Just as it was no accident for me to find you here given the size of these caves. You were a needle in a haystack.”
“Be that as it may, I only hope you can tell me more about this place. To think this was all beneath our feet, and we were none the wiser.”
The pedestal upon which they stood was situated inside arguably the most resplendent cave within the entire system. Surrounding them were towering, vertical structures bolstering the high ceilings in every which direction. Most were obscured by a thick cover of mist, but many that could be seen were aglow with ethereal, bluish-purple hues shimmering in the low light. From where they stood, the space embodied an explicitly cosmic aesthetic with the glistening hues best resembling remote starlight in the night sky. So bewildering was this magnificent sight and all its wonder, that it honestly strained belief to consider this a worldly locale.
“The man who first brought me here all those years ago—the man I’d call my father—often referred to this as Lux Cathedra.”
“It must’ve been an overwhelming experience for him to see all this and think first of Latin.”
“I hope you don’t mind me asking,” Uri began, an impish smile emerging, “but there’s one thing I’d like to know.”
“Of course. You may ask me anything.”
“What does a vampire like you want with some half-breed girl like me?”
Wide-eyed, the jaguar was taken aback as he unconsciously felt his face.
“You can…see,” he said, whispering with abject incredulity. “through my glamour.” However, the shock didn’t last for long. Once the moment passed, he smiled. Unlike Uri’s smile, this grin was far more vulnerable. “I’m Jaime Johan Rejón. Though most call me Jaime.”
“Well, Señor Rejón, it’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance.”
As always, all praise should be given to
aerokat for all that you see here. Like always, she's done a fabulous job at establishing more of their world. Honestly, I really can't thank her enough for all the hard work and effort she's poured into these art pieces. I love seeing more of my character come to life through the aid of her talent; and I'm blessed to work with her as often as I do.
If you like what you see here, by all means, visit her gallery for more phenomenal art. If you like what you see there, then consider supporting her craft on Patreon:
https://www.patreon.com/poecatcomix/posts
art is © aerokat
Uri Luria and Jaime Johan Rejón are ©
nazcapilot
- Jacqueline Winspear
All these accidents/
That happen/
Follow the dot/
Coincidence/
Makes sense/
Only with you/
You don't have to speak/
I feel/
- Björk - "Jóga"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oFV4QCq9SEU
Once more, we're a part of this constant motion./
Give me the strength to keep my body going. Hide in/
darkness till the day is done. Exposed to so much/
danger, pacifying strangers. It's a story that I wrote/
for you, listen closely as I break through. This effigy/
is spinning free./
I dream of endless light, a life I sacrificed./
- Skyharbor - "The Constant"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eppE-34zuNk
Havasu Canyon / Arizona Territory / c. 1896
“There are no coincidences in this world.”
Uri Luria had reckoned in the wee hours this morning that today would mark an auspicious occasion. This thought came to mind immediately upon waking, and as the day progressed, the young woman found it difficult to dismiss the confidence she held in such auspices. Once these omens manifested in her dreams, Uri knew that, come what may, this day held a surprise for her. Although, most her visions’ imagery had faded with the rising sun, she could yet still remember one key detail: a stranger’s fortunate arrival. The jackal kept this in mind as she busied herself with her morning routine. She’d likely be gone for most the day traveling on foot, so there wasn’t much time to squander on idle daydreaming.
“It isn’t wishful thinking on my part to assume the best,” the young woman whispered to herself as she headed upstairs. “One day those signs will arrive, and everything will make sense.”
Her destination was one specific room in the center of this remarkable dwelling. Treading past sliding glass doors and enormous rotary gears on her way there, Uri felt that moment like she’d spent most her adolescence enclosed inside an ornate pocket watch.
“He’s never balked at my desire for independence. Anyway, this wouldn’t be the first time I’ve been left to fend for myself. Even with my duties, I doubt he would want me to languish all alone. That’s no way to live. For all its splendor, there’s no life here. Without him, or anyone else, it may as well be my tomb.”
Though try as she might, Uri was unable to rid her mind of such daydreams as she tended the extraordinary estate and its exceptional faculties. Carved inside a cavern and secluded from the wider world deep within the bowels Havasu Canyon, the house she lived in for the past six years was more akin to castle than chalet. From the time she was twelve, Uri knew the installation was more than what it appeared. Composed of smooth basalt bricks and maintained by a complex network of enigmatic machines, the house was alive somehow. With the interior constantly shifting of its own accord, there was hardly anything here which required constant maintenance. It was no stretch to suggest that the home quite literally took care of itself. That was why, in recent months, the jackal had taken the bold step to leave the house unattended for days on end. While she had done this initially to lessen the tedium and loneliness, the young women felt emboldened by her recent excursions into Prescott. Although invigorating, Uri always inevitably returned to this hidden castle she once called home.
“Maybe today’s the day,” she said with a grin, trying to temper her enthusiasm the moment she encroached upon her destination. “Maybe that’s the reason why I feel the way I do now. I don’t know what the water’s trying to tell me, but I wouldn’t have such dreams only for it all to mean nothing. In the end, if life won’t return here, I’ll seek it elsewhere."
The jackal reflected on this matter as she inspected the screen set before her near the back of the room. Much like most mechanisms inside the castle, the young woman had only the faintest idea how to operate it. Yet she knew enough to occasionally record any disturbances for analysis. Like the myriad peripheral appliances neatly arranged in this dark, windowless room, the device that operated this screen silently hummed with hushed electric impulses. The words which sped across the clear glass at arbitrary intervals were unlike any script she’d ever seen. Interspersed with diagrams and statistics specifying what appeared to be constellations, Uri could only theorize what they declared. Unfortunately, the only person she knew who understood this language in some capacity had been gone for the past six months. After all that time, there was still no indication when, if ever, he’d return. Despite his curious absence, Uri held firm that the kind rabbit who raised her for nearly half her life hadn’t just abandoned her or perished in the interim.
“I can’t entertain that thought,” she muttered, scrutinizing the images on-screen one last time. “It doesn’t matter how long I wait. He deserves the faith I’ve placed in him.”
While the young woman remained dissatisfied, she tried not to let the lack of real closure discourage her as she sped down the stairs toward the yawning foyer. The young woman took this opportunity to ponder her circumstances. The jackal remembered the peculiar set of heavy doors engraved into the rock. Uri had been led to see them only once six years ago, but all Philo said of these doors was that it was imperative for them to stay closed. Like most everything here, they required protection. This was the same for the ablution pool underneath the castle. While Philo never made it apparent, he always insinuated that her very presence here was to preserve the sanctity of such sacred relics. That her duty was to the castle was inherently intrinsic and essential.
“You've kept me safe this long, Philo,” said the jackal, making one last resolute look at the spacious interior, “I only wish I knew why you kept me here; but despite this lack of clarity, I can’t shake that feeling. The feeling that everything will happen as it should. Even now, I know you’re with me in spirit. Wherever you are, though, I hope you’re safe.”
Uri smiled softly and turned toward a smooth sheet of stone which, upon approach, parted in individual segments. As she crossed the threshold, those separate segments reformed into that same stone sheet behind her. The jackal was met by a wide spread of sunlight coursing into the cave from a couple shafts on high. A few wispy, gossamer-winged butterflies drifted around her in its circumference as she walked past at a steady clip. This area of the cavern system was the only portion therein where foliage of any kind could be found. Admiring the shrubs of lavender she passed, Uri followed the familiar sound of water conducting her toward the cave’s entrance. However, this water was not like any other source of fresh water you’d find anywhere else. In fact, this water, if one could call it as such, was partly the reason why she’d lived here these past six years. The door and the ablution pool both played vital roles. They were both on her mind now as she suddenly gasped from lack of breath.
“It’s him,” Uri said aloud, wheezing as she reclaimed her breath. A vision came to mind as the young woman stumbled. Flashing in her mind’s eye was the vision of a young man lying directly in the center of a carved pedestal she knew all too well. “The man I saw in my dreams. It’s got to be him.”
Determined, the jackal jogged deeper underground away from the entrance and closer to what she was here to protect. With Uri’s intimate knowledge of the intricate and circuitous cavern system, the crossing itself took only several minutes to traverse. With ease, the young woman found the carved stone steps which led directly to the pedestal she envisioned not moments ago. It was here Uri saw a man spread out and unconscious atop a raised platform. From the foot of the raised platform, the jackal saw small arcs of red electricity leap out his body only to return into the carved obsidian. Originally hesitant upon seeing the electricity, she paused to muster more strength and purposefully strode onto the pedestal. Thankfully, once Uri knelt beside the unconscious man on the smooth obsidian, the electric impulses withdrew from view. Cradling him in her arms, she could see that while this man, a jaguar, appeared ostensibly youthful, his untidy hair was an almost lifeless pale complexion. Not only that, but with his mouth hung open, the top two canines revealed the source of such an irregularity with razor-sharp acuity.
Blinking, she surmised the truth with a murmur. Enthralled by this chance encounter, Uri was more amazed than afraid.
“This is unreal. It shouldn’t be possible, but here’s all the proof. To think I’d actually stumble onto a vampire in these caves; and here I thought they only existed in stories Philo used to tell—”
“It’s you.”
“Pardon? I don’t believe we’ve met.”
“No, we haven’t, but,” he choked, grunting as sat up, “I’ve heard about you all the same.”
“Please. Don’t strain yourself. You must’ve hit your head.”
“I’ve seen your face. Back in town. Plenty of folk in Prescott have spread rumors about you. All their vulgar talk of some mysterious half-breed girl living in this canyon brought me here to you. The jackal the Havasupai see as one of their own. I came here to see you.”
“I’m not sure I can help you, mister. I’m hardly anything special. The same should be said for my work at The Daily Courier. Are you sure you’re well? I’d prefer not ignore any injuries you might have.”
The jaguar examined Uri’s expression as he rose to a standing position. His face was one of discreet disbelief as he adjusted the length of his overcoat. Although, once he regained bearings, the man’s countenance seemed to soften the longer he held her gaze.
“Thank you, miss. Truly, I thank you. I don’t know what would have happened if hadn’t come when you did.”
“Oh, don’t you worry. It wasn’t anything at all,” the jackal remarked as she stood up and offered the man her hand to shake. “By the way, I’m Uri. Uri Luria.”
With a wry smile and furrowed brow, the jaguar begrudgingly accepted the hand and said, “I must say, Miss Luria, the pleasure’s all mine. It’s as I’ve said, you’re the one I’m here to see, after all. It was fortuitous you even found me at all. With this cave being as large as it is, I could have easily fallen to my death and never be seen again.”
“No, there are no random events. You being here today was no accident. Just as it was no accident for me to find you here given the size of these caves. You were a needle in a haystack.”
“Be that as it may, I only hope you can tell me more about this place. To think this was all beneath our feet, and we were none the wiser.”
The pedestal upon which they stood was situated inside arguably the most resplendent cave within the entire system. Surrounding them were towering, vertical structures bolstering the high ceilings in every which direction. Most were obscured by a thick cover of mist, but many that could be seen were aglow with ethereal, bluish-purple hues shimmering in the low light. From where they stood, the space embodied an explicitly cosmic aesthetic with the glistening hues best resembling remote starlight in the night sky. So bewildering was this magnificent sight and all its wonder, that it honestly strained belief to consider this a worldly locale.
“The man who first brought me here all those years ago—the man I’d call my father—often referred to this as Lux Cathedra.”
“It must’ve been an overwhelming experience for him to see all this and think first of Latin.”
“I hope you don’t mind me asking,” Uri began, an impish smile emerging, “but there’s one thing I’d like to know.”
“Of course. You may ask me anything.”
“What does a vampire like you want with some half-breed girl like me?”
Wide-eyed, the jaguar was taken aback as he unconsciously felt his face.
“You can…see,” he said, whispering with abject incredulity. “through my glamour.” However, the shock didn’t last for long. Once the moment passed, he smiled. Unlike Uri’s smile, this grin was far more vulnerable. “I’m Jaime Johan Rejón. Though most call me Jaime.”
“Well, Señor Rejón, it’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance.”
As always, all praise should be given to
aerokat for all that you see here. Like always, she's done a fabulous job at establishing more of their world. Honestly, I really can't thank her enough for all the hard work and effort she's poured into these art pieces. I love seeing more of my character come to life through the aid of her talent; and I'm blessed to work with her as often as I do. If you like what you see here, by all means, visit her gallery for more phenomenal art. If you like what you see there, then consider supporting her craft on Patreon:
https://www.patreon.com/poecatcomix/posts
art is ©
aerokatUri Luria and Jaime Johan Rejón are ©
nazcapilot
Category Artwork (Digital) / General Furry Art
Species Mammal (Other)
Size 967 x 1280px
File Size 301.5 kB
Comments