“Thank you all for joining us this night. I take immense pride in my responsibility as Chief Defender, especially when it comes to the honor of the hopeknife ceremony. It is always a great privilege to bequeath Trunauan youths their hopeknives as they come of age.” Halgra stops speaking long enough to open an ornamental case and retrieve a slender, ornately decorated dagger hanging from a silver chain. “But tonight is a special occasion, for the recipient of this hopeknife is none other than my youngest daughter.” Once again, Halgra pauses, but this time she turns to talk to the child beside her.
“Ruby, by the traditions of our town, you have come of age. This hopeknife represents your responsibilities as an adult and defender of Trunau. You must be willing to use it on yourself, your fellow
Trunauans, and your family—even me, should it come to that. It will be a far quicker death than that which the orcs will offer, and providing it is your duty. Do you swear to guard Trunau from all comers, and to use your hopeknife only for its intended purpose?” Ruby—dusky skinned, black haired, and painfully shy—nods her head in response to her mother’s question. “If the orcs come, and there is no other option, this is where you cut—here, here, and here.” Halgra demonstrates which arteries to sever while Ruby watches. When she is finished, Halgra sheathes the hopeknife and places the necklace around Ruby’s neck before turning back to address the crowd.
“Tonight, Ruby becomes a full member of our community! Let us welcome her, and celebrate her passage into adulthood! Trunau forever!” The crowd echoes Halgra’s last words in unison, signaling the end of the ceremony.
Freya cheers and claps along with everyone when the ceremony is over. She groaned when the first game was announced. A tug-of-war? She'd be useless! So she decides to get to know some of the townspeople.
After Halgra is done with her speech she helps Ruby get set up with the tug of war and then seeks out Freya. "I wanted to thank you for staying tonight. I hope my canceling any caravans in and out of town wasn't to inconvenient for you. But with the special day I didn't want to take any chances. I've spoken to the owner of the inn your staying at and let them know that your stay is on me for making you stay around."
"Free inn stay? How can I say no?" Freya says with a big smile on her face. "Seriously though, don't worry about me. I'm just travelling about, looking to see all the incredible things in the world while I can. And your town seems nice."
A young man of average height with wispy blonde hair, hood drawn approaches Halgra, who happens to be conversing with a halfling.
Lowering his hood Aaron rubs his eyes for a moment, looking tired. "Well met Halgra, congratulations to you and your daughter." He glances down.
"Good day to you my lady." he says to the halfling at her side. "I hope it finds you well."
Kit cheers with the crowd as the knife was bestowed and makes his way over to the first game. He wasn't a native but in the past year he had made a comfortable living hunting for the town.
He waves to Halgra as he makes his way to the tug-of-war and volunteers for Ruby's side. He smiled to the girl and grabbed the rope with her. "Kit help. We win war of tugs!"
Freya smiles at Aaron and curtsies. "It does, good sir. Are you alright? You seem tired?"
With a sigh, and shrug Aaron returns the halflings smile with a half smile of his own. "I am tired. Though I shall survive, as do we all." he returns her curtsy with a stiff bow.
"Oooh! A tug-of-war contest. That'll be fun. Hi, Kit, that is your name, right? Won't a tug-of-war be fun? Who else wants to join in? My name's Lillian."
Kit beams a wide smile at Lillian. "Yes, Kit is Kit! More for the War tug! we will win for Ruby's honor!"
Dak watches the ceremony with pride. Though far older than Ruby in years, he is still young as an elf and he himself had only received his own hopeknife not to long ago. A member of the militia he goes to take his place with his friends for the tug of war, but seeing young Ruby's team so far only consisting of a rather feral halfling and a small woman he smiles to his brethren and says, "My friends, I fear the young lady is unfairly outmatched in this. I shall go help even the odds! Perhaps a few of you would would care to join me?"
Ayla see the Tug of War and thinks
"If I joined that it would become a one-sided match."
Hashar watched on to the ceremony, and never truley accepted there hope knife ideals. Being raised for most of his youth as a slave to the Heartstomper clan, he understood the horrors they could bring on helpless. But he endured it, and it gave him the drive to fight for what he truly wants.
The big half-orc is brought out of his past memories as he hears his rival from the hunts offer himself up for the tug of war contest. "Hmm they got a good chance with Kit on there side, but it would be fun to pull those guards into the mud." Hashar mumbles to himself.
Noticing the the large female watching on Hashar moves over to Ayla, "Hey I bet you 3 copper Ruby and her chums win this. You wanna take that bet Miss?"
Ayla looks at Hashar and replies
"3 coppers, that is pocket change.
If you want to make more, I know a way to do it."
she finishes with a smile.
"Pocket change that can get you a nice mug of mead, though I might be interested in getting a little extra coin." Hashar answers her reply and gives a curious smile.
Ayla replies
"Let's see if we can find a local or locals with a bit more coin, and place a bet with them."
She bends down the whisper in the Half-orc's Ear
And if they don't mention anything about joining the match, we join the side we want to win as given our combined strength and mass could win it easily if the groups are even."
"So what would you say to that plan."
The half-orc strokes his beard as he thinks it over for a few moments, and then gives her a nod of agreedment. "Let us find our prey." Hashar comments back. Then scans the crowd for a suitable target.
"Excellent."
Aaron watches the festivities from a bench. This was his home, his own Hopeknife ceremony had been very similar to this, as had his wife's. The people here were hard working and sturdy. Many like himself, were grim.
He smiled at the tug of war, watching Ruby and her team going back and forth with the rope.
He looked at the rubble of his house. Burned down less than a week ago. He had been staying with a neighbor and after he helped with the cleanup from the ceremony, he would rebuild it. A third time.
On his way to joining the tug of war the half orc's upper body seems to grow bigger and his nose seems to flatten a little bit. Hashar then taps one of the guards on on Ruby's side on the shoulder, "Thanks for saving my spot." Then motions him away with his thumb.
Ayla thinks as she readies to pull
"I'll save my Ki state, encase I need it."
With the great pull and the guards moving closer Kit cheers, "Ha, the War Tug will be ours!"
The halfling hunkers down to keep their lead.
Freya stands on the sideline and cheers. "Go Ruby's side! Go muscular Halfling!"
She quietly asks Halgra if she knows anything about him.
"Alright everyone, lets keep this up! Ruby will have a victory today if I have any say in it!"
Aaron gives up a cheer for Ruby's team as the contest is on. He sits back smiling softly, fiddling with the two hopeknives he carried.
"To know what you did to deserve this." he softly mouths the words spoken to him in his mind that day.
He needed a drink. Well, more accurately, I need to drink. he admitted to himself that it didn't stop at one usually.
He began to search the crowd for a vendor selling ale, wine, or mead.
"Let's give them a great be pull, all together now."
"Get ready for your mud bath!! Har Har!" Hashar taunts the guards on the other side.
Lillian begins singing a pretty song...
"Oh, pull, you big strong men and ladies. Oh, pull, you happy folk, all. Oh, pull, you lasses and laddies. Oh, pull, we'll all have a ball."
"Slippery hands there, Rodrick?" Dak teases.
Kit cheers and lifts Ruby on his short shoulders while dancing around. "Ha ha! The War Tug is won! The honor of Ruby is confirmed! Ha!"
Dak pats Ruby's head and says, "Congratulations, young one! Now we are both keepers' of the Standing Vow. And you are a champion today!" He walks over to Rodrick and extends his hand to help the man up. "Well tried, sir, but it appears you have been defeated." With a wink, he adds, "By a twelve year old girl. Lucky for us she's on our side."
After his deep orcish laughter Hashar moves to the guards, "You gave it a good try, but those two are stronger then they look!" He will then offer his hand to any of the fallen guards.
Ayla moves to the guards as well offering them a hand
"It was a good match, and you did your best."
Lying face down in the mud, Dak replies, "Ah, so you realize I must now swear a blood oath against you. And your children. And their children. All will feel the tender embrace of the earth when I defeat them in their future tug of war battles!!!" He cheekily throws a wad of dirt at Rodrick's face.
"Oh Kit...he's...umm...well beyond description." she says and then panics a little as he picks Ruby up on his shoulders. "Kit put her down...she's not a small child anymore...you'll hurt yourself."
"I can see that..." Freya says her voice trailing off as she is mesmerized by the sight of Kit picking up Ruby.
Her concentration is broken by Dak's spat with Rodrick. She uses mage hand to scoop up some mud and drop it on Rodrick's head while giggling madly.