Sunday, Alchemical Potions class
Zohruk takes in Bottger’s rebuke, nodding thoughtfully. ”You make a strong argument, sir. Those are indeed some useful abilities, and maybe I withdraw in haste. Perhaps I could have a few days to see how I might manage my time? Having started later than the others, it could be easy to fall behind, and I don’t want to disappoint.”
With Elyssa, Zohruk laughs at her story. ”That sounds hilarious. I think I'm getting an idea for another challenge with Vorin,” he says with a mischievous twinkle. As the pack of rats runs by, Zohruk follows Elyssa’s lead, grabbing the hidden dagger from the small of his back and hurling Dania after a rat.
Moonday, at the Chapel
It’s nice in here. I don’t see that it has all that much to do with the sun, but it’s nice. Zohruk returns Estella’s nod with what passes in his mind as a large yet polite smile, no fangs, and when he sees that she’s cleaning, his first thought is to check his boots. Dammit, I hope I didn’t track anything in here.
You are from the Bonewatch too?
”Yes I am, newly arrived just a few days ago. I am Zohruk; good afternoon,” he says, extending his hand.
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Eilidh waves at Estella and pulls another piece of parchment from her bag. Before she writes, she looks quickly at Zohruk. "She c-can't hear, and s-she may n-not be able t-to...not be able to read your l-lips with y-your f-fangs. I w-write...because of m-my s-stutter." She begins scribbling on the paper. "Hello Estella. Priestess Maria said I could bring this one here to see if he's actually a follower of Sarenrae, or if he's just faking it. I won't trust him at all until the priestess weighs in. How have you been since yesterday."
She turns back to Zohruk, being careful not to let Estella see what she's saying. "If you h-hurt her, I'll k-kill you. I r-really will. S-she's p-probably my b-best friend outside the B-Bonewatch."
Zohruk's face twists into an interesting blend of astonishment and aggravation. No hiding his feelings this time. "You are something else, do you know that? Is this your idea of 'giving me a chance'? So far today you've done nothing but insult me, and now you're making threats, too? Ridiculous ones, at that. I had better things to do today than listen to you act like a hysterical durokha, you know...!"
Zohruk stands up; he's on the verge of leaving.
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Eilidh blinks, shocked at Zohruk's outburst. After a moment of silence, she starts screaming back at him, her voice high and, in fact, bordering on hysterical. "I'm t-trying! D-do you know how many times your...okay, maybe not your...orcs f-from B-Belkzen t-tried to swarm over the w-walls when I was a g-girl? I hid in m-my room for m-months, petrified at the th-thought that M-Mother would g-get killed on c-campaign, or assassinated, or s-something, and n-now I've b-brought you h-here, th-the only safe, secluded p-place I have in Vigil, and you m-meet m-my friend who c-can't protect herself, and it's l-like inviting your oldest enemy t-to d-dinner. I sh-shouldn't have..." She trails off. You idiot! No-one was supposed to know that stuff. Only Kassie and Mother...now you look weak to the half-bre...to Zohruk.
"I should g-go. T-tell her I had t-to...had to go. A p-please don't hurt her." Eilidh stands quickly, heading out the door before Zohruk has a chance to. Once outside, she sits against the wall, tears running down her face.
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Zohruk roars at Allie's fleeing form, ”I. AM NOT. YOUR.
For a moment that feels like eternity he stands there, a tensed-up ball of frustration and white-hot anger. Why? Why is this so hard? I hid among the murderous scum of Urgir effortlessly, but I can't just walk among decent folk without all the Hells breaking loose?
He snaps back to the here and now, remembering that Estella is right there. Assuming she hasn't fled, he smiles weakly at her. "Your friend and I don't see eye to eye. I'm sorry you had to witness that." After he says that, he recalls what Allie said, that she may not understand his speech on account of his eyeteeth. Dejected, Zohruk slumps into a pew, and awaits whatever the rhuvolokh's punishment will be for fighting in a place like this.
Characters: Eilidh, Zohruk
The red-haired halfling smiles at Eilidh, shaking her head softly. ”He isn’t the first half-orc I’ve met. If he’s not beating someone with a mace, he is fine. Aren’t you, Z?” It seems that reading lips doesn’t extend well to fangs and strange orcish names. As the orc stands up in feply, the deaf halfling blinks and leans backward, looking confused. She glances to Allie’s shocked and face and flinches when the girl starts to shout.
Across the room, both petitioner and the priestess are staring. Maria stands up and quickly starts to make her way over. She pauses, reeling backward as Eilidh rushes to the doors a and out, the heavy oak slamming shut behind her. The priestess scowls and storms over. ”I do not know what issue the two of you have, but you must not bring that sort of screaming here.” She takes a deep breath, collecting herself and shaking her head.
”It seems both you and Miss Tilernos have many issues to work on.” She seems about to continue, but Estella stands up, tugging on Maria’s hand and flicking a few fingers into the air quickly, speaking in sign. Maria responds and sighs, nodding her head, turning to the shocked petitioner sitting in his seat and staring at the tense orc fighter.
The halfling, younger than Zohruk, rolls her eyes a little, placing small fists on her hips and frowning. ”Lastwall is not easy place to accept your kind. Lots of deaths by orc horde hands. But Sarenrae knows you are not one of them, yes. Her light shines strong on Eilidh. You are her first trial on the path of redemption.”
Despite the difference in age and title, Zohruk is struck by how the small halfling seems to be as, if not more, insightful than the priestess of the chapel.
Looking down into the pew, Zohruk sees Allie's pen and parchment, left behind in her haste to leave. He picks the pen up and starts scratching out a note to Estella. It occurs to him this might be the first time he's written something in Common; his hand fights the urge to use the angular runes that Orcish has appropriated from Dwarven.
"Belkzen isn't an easy place for _my_ kind, either. Every year, my tribe heads to Floodmeet, wondering if this is the year we'll be greeted by ten thousand axes wielded by orcs who've had enough of us being different.
I didn't ask for this. My chief struck a bargain with one of the Knights for me to come here; I don't understand how my being here changes anything..." As he writes that, an awful thought occurs to Zohruk: ...unless Madja sent you away because she knew something was coming, and wanted you kept away from what was to come. Growing queasy at the thought, he continues writing: "...but I'm here, not to cause trouble but to perform the task set before me.
Will the priestess still want to speak with me? If this is no longer a good time, I can come back.
I'm sorry I lost my temper there; I usually like to keep a lower profile than that."
Characters: Zohruk
Glancing toward the doors and letting out a small sigh, Estella frowns down at the writing. "Perhaps your task is to heal a rift on behalf of the Dawnflower in a favored daughter. If you still wish to speak to Maria, she will probably be willing to. I take no offense to your shouting...I can't hear it anyway!"
Estella smiles a bit at that, poking fun at herself. "I am an acolyte here if you need anything. Try not to irritate Allie..she is a good friend to have." With those words, the halfling hops off the pew and moves to the doors, having some uncanny insight that Allie wouldn't have gone far. Seeing the girl slumped against the wall, the halfling walks up to her slowly and places a small hand on her arm.
"Surpassing fear and venturing into the unknown is not easy."
In response to Estella's statement, Eilidh starts to speak, but quickly realizes that between her stutter and her sobbing, she's probably incomprehensible. Instead, she simply sits and holds Estella's tiny hand, waiting for Zohruk to be done in the chapel.
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Inside the chapel
Despite himself, Zoh chuckles at Estella's joke. After she walks outside, Zohruk gets up and walks over to Priestess Maria, bowing deeply when he reaches her. "Rhuvolokh, my apologies for the outburst. As you said, Allie and I have some things to work out. If you'll excuse me, I'd like to get to it. By your leave, I'll return when things a little less, well, this." Before leaving he makes brief eye contact with the other parishioner, and shrugs. "Sorry, man."
Steeling himself, Zohruk heads outside to find Allie and Estella. Mother, make me strong enough to try one more time. Holding out Allie's pen and ink, he says, "You left these inside."
If she makes any motion to get up, he'll offer a hand.
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Eilidh accepts the pen and ink, and pulls another sheet of parchment out of her bag. "Thanks, Estella. I'll give it a try. You can go now, if you want. Give me apologies to Priestess Maria."
Eilidh waits a moment before patting the stone stairs she's sitting on. "S-sit down. W-we have to t-talk." She takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly before drawing in another and beginning. "W-we're not likely to ever b-be friends, b-but we don't h-have to be enemies. T-trust starts w-with...trust starts with understanding each other, s-so here goes. W-we may h-have something in c-common. The D-dawnflower, she's a b-beautiful woman, w-with wings and a f-fiery sword l-like mine." She draws it slowly, hand shaking, and hands it to the half-orc. As she does, she breathes in and her eyes flicker, unsure what he's going to do now he has her weapon. "S-she's s-supposed to b-be about mercy and understanding, b-but th-there's...but there's another s-side to her. It relentlessly d-destroys her f-foes if th-they won't r-repent th-their evil.
I g-guess...I g-guess my r-role as one of the D-Dawnflower's servants is t-to hunt her enemies, b-but I'm s-still not that g-good at d-deciding what's an enemy and w-what's n-not." She looks at him, pushes herself up to her feet, and takes a step away. "Y-you c-can tell me wh-what your Burning Mother is l-like on the w-way back to the Bonewatch. I'm s-starving."
Sunday
Grimold nods slowly, pretending to mull things over before finally accepting the deal. He didn't much want to drag the encounter out any longer, but he had to at least feign deliberation in front of the Scorpion. In truth, he couldn't wait to be gone. The excitement of novelty had worn off, and every minute he lingered in the Scorpion's lair further risked overstaying his welcome.
Moonday
"That could work," says Grimold sheepishly. "Did you want to go right now? It would be better if you didn't wash." He gives her a couple other pointers, like making sure to wear her hair loose and ungroomed and carrying fewer weapons. "If you can cover up your Oathmark, that goes a long way too."
Kassie nods at Grimold and gives him a smile. "So you'll come with me then? Now would be perfect! Just give me a moment to get ready."
Quickly she heads back to the barracks and, heeding Grimold's advice, digs through her belongings until she finds the old dress and roughly unstitches the emblem, not being very careful. Grinning with the thrill of adventure, she moves through to the scrubs' bathroom and slips out of her training leathers and into the stained older dress. Well this is maybe a bit too short! It looks like a shirt on me! Well, at least its not too bad across the chest. Lucky I'm not too big up there." Thinking for a moment, she grabs the leather training pants and slips them on under the dress and turns to look in the mirror. Well I don't look too bad I suppose, but mother would have an absolute fit if she saw me, and I still smell a bit! But he did say not to wash." Heading back into the barracks, she drops her rapier to the bed and secures a wrist sheath and its dagger beneath her sleeve and straps another to her belt as she turns to Grimold.
"So, like I said, I'm trying to find a girl, Sophia, who apparently knew the boy I was looking for. Apparently he hasn't been around recently - since the fire I think, so I'm worried that,.. well maybe he knew something about what happened to your friends and something might have happened to him. Thank-you so much for helping me! I just know we'll make a good team! I couldn't find anything to cover the oath mark though. Do you have any gloves or anything like that I might be able to borrow? Well, what are you waiting for, let's go! Any ideas where we should start looking?"
Characters: Eilidh,Zohruk
The priestess inclines her head slightly at Zohruk, if stiffly. "Any of the Dawnflower's children are welcome under this roof." The man on the pew just shakes his head.
Outside, Estella snorts and pokes Allie. "You can say that yourself when next you arrive. She'll be out of sorts about it, but will of course forgive you." The girl gets up and slides back inside, waving at Zohruk as she closes the doors, trapping the two scrubs in the wide city together.
Characters: Grimold
The Mouth smiles and nods her head before telling everything they know. As soon as the words have left her mouth, a bag is tugged over your head from behind. You could swear there had been a wall there a moment ago. When you wake up, you do so with a faint headache and are in an alley not far from the Bonewatch.
Characters: Kassara, Grimold
The Old Butcher’s District is actually adjacent to where Grimold’s mother and sister live. [oocc]He’s very familiar with the area +4 competence bonus on any knowledge local checks needed to get around here.[/ooc] The area is a little inclusive and is actually poorer than where his family lives. Despite the poor condition, about half of the people living here are citizens. Many are veterans with grievous wounds who survive only due to donations and offerings from the government and its more wealthy citizens. He did spend a lot of time here though because the narrow streets, number of abandoned buildings and sloped roofs made childhood games more fun. It may, however, be more difficult finding Sophia here. The red-headed girl is unknown to him and, as a street rat, its unlikely she has any place she always lives. She’s also likely to be skittish around strangers and people who know her will not be willing to divulge information to strangers without a good reason.
ToilDay
Characters: All
A day like all others. The routine is still new to Zohruk and Grimold, but the Varisian is quickly adjusting. Early dawn, breakfast, down to the arena for only a few hours of intense training. Fisk berates Austyn for dropping his axe and Elyssa for surrendering too early. As before, there is a component of ranged weapons training. It seems he is focused on instructing you in an array of weapons this week--but at least you get to hold a weapon unlike the first two weeks.
After several hours of that, the bell tolls and the scrubs rush off to the Cathedral of Sanctum Iomedae for their lessons with Priestess Astrata. The wizened old priestess smiles when she sees Allie arrive on time and only scowls at the rest, slapping a few late scrubs with a wooden ruler.
Her lectures for the day finally turn from the lengthy religious history she's been doling left and right so far, delving into a few of the spells used to craft greater undead such as ghouls. She discusses basic tactics such as holy water and divine spells that can assist with destroying them.
At the end of her lecture, students are let out late--but with still enough time for a downtime action.
Zohruk takes Allie's weapon when it's offered, makes a few awkward swipes at the air with it, you are such a clod, and hands it back before he accidentally lops off someone's arm. "Lots of the pictures of her that my folks make, the sword is bigger, but yeah, that's the Burning Mother, all right."
Yikes, so now I've got to be the first one who explains all about our tribe to her? This would be easier if Yhrrilka was here. Wait, no it wouldn't, terrible idea. But it would be easier if you'd listened to more of what she'd had to say, instead of daydreaming about counting her scars under the moonlight.
Zohruk does his best. He tells Allie about the tribe's visit, almost 200 years ago now, by a fiery angel. "They tell us that angels are messengers, and this one had a message all right: that a terrible judgement awaited us unless we renounced our wicked ways, and embraced the Aghash Odreth."
"Whoever the old fool was that was the chief, if he's still got a name we care about, I don't know it, but he didn't want to hear it. So a woman named Khotra, she stood up and challenged him for the right to rule. He laughed her off, but he stopped laughing when Khotra let the sunshine into his heart, if you know what I mean."
"So Khotra became the first rhuvolokh of the tribe - that's like a priestess, 'leader of hearts', I guess - and we became the Aghash Rukon. The chief is usually a woman, but not always. Right now that's Madja Firehair. She's good people, 'cept when she sends her guys halfway 'round the world to cities full of armed maniacs. And also to Urgir," Zohruk hopes it's not too soon to try a joke.
"I heard a word that I think describes our tribe, a 'feudal' system. The weak serve the strong, but the strong protect the weak, so it cuts both ways. The Rukons, we can't go standing on a mountaintop, yelling at the other tribes to walk away from the old ways. That'll just make a lot of us dead. So we have created a reputation as like, tough but crazy. Castouts, I guess. The others pretty much leave us alone, but when they don't, we mess them up good so they know we're nobody's pushovers. We take in the ones that don't fit in among the other tribes, provided they're willing to embrace the Mother."
"Lately, Chief, she's been worried about the other tribes. So she made me go live in Urgir, listen to the... the things people say... Agh! I can't think of the word. Lie low, and listen, see if anyone was saying things like, 'Nice night, innit? Let's go wipe out the Rukons.' I did that until the day I got called home, found Sir Lukyan chatting up the Chief."
"Whatever the deal was they struck, part of it was that I come here and ruin the fearsome reputation of orcish warriors. In return, Chief sent out a few scouting parties, three by my count, looking for something Durante wants," Zohruk shrugs.
By this time, the two of them are almost at the gates to the Bonewatch. He pauses a moment. "I'm sure you think I'm here to spy, or murder, or something sinister like that. Far as I know, Allie, I'm here because an orc chieftain and a Knight of Ozem hatched some kind of crazy-a**ed scheme, in which I'm a pawn, a bargaining chip. I'm gonna keep at this, because if I don't I won't have a place in the world. You don't have to help me, but I'd appreciate it if you don't try and cut me down."
"Now, the other day, Scary Elf Lady told me Trainer, um, Luca? Teaches a course on thrown weapons." Jerking a thumb inside, he continues, "Do you know if our little wildfire made me late for that, and if not, can you point me to where it's taught?"
Eilidh listens to Zohruk tell his tribe's story, unsure of whether to trust him when he gets to the end. Instead of saying anything, she mumbles noncommittally and follows his subject change. "S-Scary Elf L-Lady? Oh! Sato. S-She's n-not scary, j-just m-mystic and fascinating. I've n-never heard of th-thrown weapons t-training, b-but I'm sure someone in the d-dorms will know about it. Sato t-teaches archery and p-penmanship. Actually, I th-think it's art and c-culture, but s-so far, it's j-just b-been writing f-fancy words."
Though she'd been looking forward to less background and more practical subject material, Eilidh can't help but doze a bit in the class. She stifles a yawn as Astrata asks her a question, ruining both her answer and her plans for the remainder of the day.
In place of her questions for Astrata regarding the Trial of the Rose, Eilidh heads back to the training field and practices her dodges, reminding herself how to position so blows deflect off armor or miss entirely.
Characters: Zohruk
It isn't hard finding Luca's class. It's actually taught where cohort two has their normal training. Much like cohort one, the training room features a wide sandy floor indented a half foot or so from the surrounding floor of stone. Wooden racks line the walls containing all manner of weapons including Brevic dueling swords, Chelaxian greatswords, Minkese meteor hammers and Kellid waraxes among others. The racks closest to the sands contain an array of small, light weapons obviously designed for throwing. Unlike most training weapons, these are all sharp. Many are unfamiliar to Zohruk--various sizes of star-shaped circles, simple circles, smaller stars with curved edges and straight edges--while others are familiar such as francisca throwing axes and, surprisingly enough, even an Orcish mandela.
There are about six scrubs scattered around the sands, lounging in some cases and standing in others. It seems Luca is much more laid back than other trainers, or Knights even, are. The older man stands before them, speaking while gesturing with a francisca.
"As I've mentioned, throwing your weapon is incredibly dangerous in a fight as you are discarding what you have in hand. This creates an opening for opponents. You are, more likely than not, one weapon short. We covered how to throw the more exotic weapons on the racks as well as the basics of improving aim. However, as I promised, we will talk today about some more advanced tricks. Remember, what you learn here is for the elite, those who become Knights of Ozem."
His statement is returned by a thump to the chest by all attended. Apparently, despite being lax, they are all very dedicated to their cause. Zohruk only recognizes a single person there--a scrub called Austyn in his own cohort. His only interaction with Austyn was when the large boy tried pushing Zohruk around, claiming the orc hadn't earned his place among them. The others are all unfamiliar.
Luca turns from them and hurls the weapon at a target. The axe makes a "thock" sound as it thumps into the target. He drops his hand at his side and the axe dislodges from its target and spins back to his hand. The group of scrubs stand up and let out gasps of surprise, a few clapping. The older trainer turns and smiles, taking a bow before looking up. "And that was without enchanting the weapon. Also, welcome newcomer."
During class, Daen kept thinking why this particular teach didn't mention Arazni. She was part of their history, part of their culture, and just because she was corrupted by someone else, all of a sudden she's persona non grata? The whole thing made him sick. Religions all over were just a bunch of empty promises and pleasant sounding platitudes that ended up making you feel empty. None of it had any meaning at all. When asked a question, Daen just glowered at her with unmasked contempt.
After class he left, intending to do some training to work out his aggression. After he was at the training grounds for some time, he saw Allie arrive, and he went up to talk to her. "Working on dodges? I can help you with that." What he really wanted to ask her about was Zohruk, but he didn't approach it right away.
Kassie follows Grimold down to the old butcher's district, looking around interestedly at an area of town she hasn't visited before. "So you grew up around here somewhere?" she asks. What was that like? I mean, did you have a lot of problems with thieves or anything? Mother always warned me against coming to these parts of town when we came to visit, so obviously I always wanted to see what it was like. Do you think I'll fit in alright? Who should we ask about finding Sophia?"
Toilday
After arriving late to the class, and earning a strike from the priestess, Kassie sits pondering the previous day's adventure as the priestess drones on about,.. well it was about something boring. She only Looks up to pay attention when Allie gets a question wrong, failing to repress a laugh at her sister's expense. Unfortunately, the priestess seems to think that turning and asking her to answer the question is a good idea. Not having even heard the question, however, Kassie sits blinking like a startled rabbit and earns herself another strike with the wooden ruler.
After class she briefly finds her sister "Can we talk at dinner?" she says as she straps her rapier to her waist, "I want to tell you all about what happened yesterday." With that she turns and quickly heads to the Duelling class with Baird.
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Moonday
S-She's n-not scary, j-just m-mystic and fascinating.
”Mystic, creepy. Poh-koohn, poh-kahn.” In a low voice, because you just know she’ll be right behind you if you say it loud, Zohruk says, ”She comes across like the Happy Fellow’s scary big sister.”
“But I’ve got to go. It was a nice change, talking to you without the insults, and the threats, and the screaming. I hope we can do it again. Nagh tig shenk’hat, Allie.” And with that, Zohruk bolts off to find Luca’s class.
Wow. Just, wow. Oh, and look at that, there’s even a little piece of home. Zohruk is rather impressed by the racks holding weapons from across Golarion, especially the Orcish weapon. When Luca welcomes him, Zoh is so thrown off by an authority figure not addressing him with contempt he almost misses that he’s the one being addressed.
”Thank you sir, it’s an honor to be here.”
As he watches Luca make that throw, Zohruk is quite impressed. He off-handedly remarks without looking at the student next to him, ”Damn, that’s something else, eh?” However, he then realizes he made that comment to the durnuk from his cohort who tried to push him around the other day, and follows with a dismissive wave of his hand, ”Feh.”
When class ends, if opportunity allows, Zoh goes to the instructor and gestures to the mandela. ”Hello sir, my name is Zohruk. That’s an original, not a replica made here, right? They’ve got a million names, varies by tribe and region. My tribe calls them zherkul, but outside Belkzen, they usually get called... mandelakh, I think, yes? I tried using them at Kolunzatokh but didn’t get far with them before I left.”
Toilday
Zohruk does himself no favors in the religion class, earning a crack with the ruler for a stupid question.
"Ma'am, can zombies run? My cousin says... Ow!!!" Okay, she might actually be scarier than Kovuk...!
At the training grounds, Eilidh looks at Daen for a moment. "Y-yeah, you'll d-do. I've b-been t-trying this thing I read about in Thirty-Six Strategems. It s-says th-that if you h-hold your shoulders like th-this-" She contorts her shoulders into an awkward slanting position "-that s-slashing attacks b-bounce right off. I h-haven't t-tried it against an actual opponent, th-though. All you h-have to do is h-hit me."
SPOILER
Moonday
While Kassie gets ready, Grimold puts on his street clothes. He leaves the lacing on his shirt sloppily undone and pulls on his patched-up pants. Making sure to arm himself, he slips one dagger into his boot and the other on his belt, and finally re-ties his green scarf around his head.
As he appraises Kassie's disguise, he tries to quash his self-consciousness. You're supposed to be looking this time, idiot! Fortunately (You mean unfortunately, says Felipe's voice in his head), the disguise does a lot to diminish Kassie's more attention-grabbing features. The contrast between the too-small dress and the looser-fitting pants sells the hand-me-down look. When she mentions that she can't find anything to cover up the shieldmark, he frowns. After staring at her hand for a few seconds, he's struck with an idea. He pulls off his scarf and hands it to Kassie. "Tie this around your hand, like it was a bandage." Once her disguise is complete, Grimold nods in satisfaction. "That will do." When she brings up the boy, Grimold drops his gaze. "Let's get out of here. We can talk on the way."
"You were told to look in the Old Butcher's District? That's near where I... where my family lives." The walk gives Grimold plenty of time to explain what he's discovered, as well as decide what he was going to do about it today. "I have some... friends... that I thought might have heard about these... matters. I went to see them yesterday." His exposition is interspersed with haphazard suggestions about how to fit in as he thinks of them. "Make sure to walk with small movements, don't swing your arms so much. The boy you were looking for... you might not find him. He's been missing for a few days. Keep your eyes a little lower, don't make eye contact. I don't know anything about this Sophia girl, but the boy may have been... taken... or worse... by the people who... who are... responsible." For some reason, Rolando is having a hard time speaking directly, either about the incident or about his meeting. It's as though it's all becoming unreal. After everything that's happened, it already feels as though it was happening to somebody else, like a character in a story. Like a story that isn't his to tell.
As they near the Old Butcher's District, Grimold elects not to mention the possible base of operations in the docks unless strictly necessary. It was unlikely that Sophia would have much else to tell them even if they did find her, but he was completely unprepared to storm a potential enemy stronghold. Besides, for once it seemed he was on Kassie's good side, or at least her not-completely-fed-up-with-him side, and he would rather not spoil it by having his throat opened and his guts spilled all over the ground.
Toilday
The Priestess's lecture is actually somewhat interesting today. Grimold doesn't have much taste for Iomedae's religion, but he'd been becoming more interested in magical creatures of all sorts, and especially in methods for fighting them. The specifics of the divine rituals are a bit over his head, but he grasps the concepts well enough. The most fascinating parts are learning what works and what doesn't. There were a number of inaccurate bard's tales; even some of the most popular were grossly mistaken. Those errors were probably responsible for more than one death at the hands of an undead abomination. "If the undead are weakened by the power of the sun, any spell that draws on that same power should weaken them the same, yes? But a light spell does not take its power from the sun, so it would be ineffective where a spell like daylight would be more useful."
During class, Grimold had noticed the new scrub didn't have any books. Deciding to take a chance at making a new friend, he approaches the half-orc in the hall after class. "Hoy! I'm Grimold. You are new, yes? I only arrived a week before you. It looks like you don't have all of your supplies yet; maybe I can help with that?"
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"That stance does indeed help, but only against particular attacks. Let me show you the difference between the ones it works for and the ones it doesn't work for, and we can work on those reflexes."
After several hours of training, Daen is not only pleased with their progress, but he's worked out what he wants to say to the aspiring zealot. The half elf figures that if she is physically exhausted, she would be more likely to discuss the matter as opposed to clam up and run off. He approaches the subject impassively, as if discussing the weather. "I've noticed you had a bit of an emotional reaction to the new recruit, but I've reassured people you are working on maintaining decorum and professionalism. Just beware of anyone from other cohorts trying to stir up dissension in our ranks. It certainly will not help us in the long run."
Characters: Zohruk
The class is smaller than Baird's dueling class had been but it still plenty difficult. It does mean, however, that each student gets a bit more personal training time. A tatooed kellid boy is throwing javelins at a target and concentrating on them using some of Luca's instruction. One of the javelines moves slightly and falls out of the target, but that's as close as he gets to completing the trainer's peculiar self-magic returning technique.
"Keep trying. Meditate. Focus. Not everyone has the ability to do it, but many do and simply do not discipline themselves enough!"
He assists Austyn in learning to throw a peculiar triangular crystal weapon that looks incredibly foreign. It almost seems like you need more than two hands to grip and throw it.
Finally, he introduces himself to Zohruk and has him practice with several basic weapons--axes, daggers, javelins and a chakram--too see how good he is. At the completion of class, the group departs slowly, covered in sweat, but smiling.
"An orcish mandela, we name them! It is an original from the Gutspear tribe. The weapon itself is actually from when we defended the Hordeline, it sees some use in our classes since we instruct every student on every weapon we can get our hands on. I'd be happy to show you how to use it, although I may be a little rusty."
Moonday
"Mandela, got it.". Yeah, humans love dropping that K sound off the end of words. "I was going to say Gutspear; they like that spur coming off the back of the curve, acts like a crossguard if you've got to use the blade in melee. I've been looking for something that offers some flexibility of use in melee and at range, and I'll gladly take any instruction you'd care to offer."
Toilday
After class, Zohruk finds himself approached by another of the members of his cohort. Seems sincere enough...
"Your pronunciation seems off; I think it's supposed to sound more like, 'Go back to Belkzen, fiend!' Hey, I'm Zohruk," he says, grinning, "And I've heard worse ideas than that one. Daen, Elyssa, got a minute?" Zohruk casts his eyes around for his cohort-mates.
Zohruk does his best to gather information about the things he might need. He looks at Ronaldo, If this khuvak is just trying to line me up as a mark I'm gonna be pissed... "Ready when you are. Daen, if I'm not back by dinnertime, light the signal fires and have the militias comb the booksellers!"
Daen gave a quick reply before heading off to train. "No, it's not necessary to attend more than once a week, in fact he does the same lesson twice, so it isn't hardly worth it. Make sure you practice for each week though, that's very important." He was a bit embarrassed still about having missed his practice time, he just would have to not be eaten by stirges again.
Characters: Kassara, Grimold
Raphael, an old man with teeth falling out who bears a shield-mark and always swore he was an actual butcher when the district had a thriving trade whispers conspiratorially about a red-headed menace living in an abandoned house down the street. Once the two reach the building..it looks incredibly unsafe. Windows lay shattered, a dead tree protruding from one and no door rests in the doorway. Within, no lights or activity seem to disturb the debris scattered on the floors. Grimold peeks into a room and finds two opium-addled individuals sprawled out staring a the ceiling. The odour of their use hangs thick in the air inside here. A few careful questions to them receive only spits and a hurled bottle that splashes a disgusting smelling liquid over both of them.
Fortunately, no one seems to think Kassara is anything other than that which she appears.
Characters: Kassara
Leo, Daen, Vorin and Jalen are absent from today's class. Ardis and Septima as well as, surprisingly, a large kellid from Septima's class are present. Those who do not have their own dueling blades select from the dulled sabres he brings before pairing off. Ardis eagerly takes the floor with Kassara after the Knight covers several new positions and strikes.
”Posta di donna is a low position. Some claim it is only for lower and mid attacks like so.” Baird's lunge moves lower and he slashes across the legs, sliding to the side smoothly. ”But the Fiore has always claimed otherwise. While not easy, you may execute rising blows, sottani, if you simply remember to stay in a rear-weighted position with your posta. This will allow you to strike downward with your true edge and upward with the false edge, simply keep your weapon arm loose.”
He gestures again, indicating the smaller group to emulate his stance. ”Practice the seven strikes, but do not grow frustrated if you find zwerch duplieren more difficult to initiate while in posta di donna. Many experts practice for months to prepare such a blow.” Ardis bows to Kassara as they carefully exchange blows, alternating between defender and attacker to practice fighting in the stance.
Characters: Zohruk, Grimold, Daen
It's not hard to track down Elyssa after Astrata's class, she's simply moving her way back to the dormitories. She waves to Daen and arches an eyebrow at Zohruk, ignoring Grimold. It seems she still hasn't forgiven him for the way he acted in the library a week or so ago. ”A broom? What do you think we are, witches?! It's alchemy not witchcraft! For that, you'd have to talk to Dazen. I'm assuming you're talking about Bottger's offensive class, yeah? You didn't seem so thrilled about potions!” She grins, shaking her head a bit.
”There's nothing required..but there are highly recommended texts. I got mine from this sketchy scriptorium that's not too far away. If you don't mind a few spelling mistakes and smudges, its quite affordable! I have my own set of vials and stuff too, but there's plenty in the classroom and you don't need to go get any. You might also find some of them in the library.” Elyssa quickly rattles off directions to a place she calls simply “Alacarty's sciptorium” warning that the owner is a spindly, kind of weird, old man.
Scriptorium
Alacarty is a name known to Grimold. He's visited the location before and it was where he obtained the delightful copy of The Cloud Castle of the Storm King. Once again he is faced with the cramped confines of row upon row of musty books. The spindly old man and his crooked spectacles waves down from atop a ladder, putting away several books out of a bag on his back. Its amazing how many books he seems to store within there without it seeming overly full or knocking him down. He places at least a dozen into a row before scuttling down the ladder like an ancient spider, each thin limb moving with a quickness despite age.
”Ah! Welcome! Welcome! Customers perchance? Come in! Come in! What can I do for you today! Perhaps you wish to have a letter written to a far away family member? Or you cou—Oh! You! I remember you, yes, you like stories? Hm? We have many in, many many. New things, yes. It has been many days—you read fast, hm? In need of something more? And an orc! Oh my, apologies. Half-orc, yes, yes? Hatch-ka! Perhaps you wish a letter sent to your people in some far away land?”
Before either of the two can even get a word in edgewise, the spider-like man has accumulated a stack of story books from seemingly thin air. ”How about the Godmother of Death? Or the Sun-Horse? I have this tome here full of stories from the Shaonti tribes or possibly Cudgel, Bestir Yourself! a wonderful tale of thievery from Qadira?”
Wealday
Characters: All
Training with Fisk ends with the group moving to the Crusader War College to practice history and tactics with Comell. He continues to discuss the first Shining Crusade and the tactics used when they were pushed against the canyons. Daen knows this is the time that Arazni perished, but it doesn't come up in class—as Comell said it wouldn't. He also spreads good news, however. It turns out that no one died in Dazen's exam. The tests are meant to seem cruel and difficult, but the magister is on standby with healing at all times. Apparently, it is used as a cover from time to time for expulsions or those who wish to leave quietly. The professor does not agree with this method and thinks it cruel to tell the scrubs lies, so he goes his own way. Fisk is one of the only trainers who continues to insist on using the cover with the other three having ceased it years ago.
On the way back to the dormitories, a boy with long brown hair and big eyes beckons to Daen. He stands with his arms crossed, a look of contained anger on his face. ”Daen Surtova?”
Clearly, it's not a good week for Eilidh's classes. She struggles once again to follow the lecture, and hardly pays attention when Comell reveals that Eckart didn't die.
In the wake of her second disastrous class, Eilidh slips out of the Crusader War College and heads to the market, trying to pick out a bow that suits her. Though her crossbow is certainly potent, she's been impressed with the speed and power of the one she tried in Sato's class, and spends most of the afternoon shopping. Eventually she finds one she likes and can pull, but the cost is too high. Dejected, she heads back to the Bonewatch.
Slipping through the illusory hedge, Eilidh arrives at the archery course, eager to see what tricks Sato might teach today.
Wealday
Kassie easily answers the Professor's questions throughout the class, for once her reading has covered exactly this topic, and she's able to clearly and articulately give examples both of the guerrilla tactics of the orcs, and of the counter-strategies used by the knights. When Comell reveals that Eckart is still alive, and that his death was a lie, she sits stunned, fuming that that the teachers, especially bloody Fisk, would treat them like this.
After class, still seething, she sees the angry-looking boy call Daen over. Already in the mood for a fight, she turns to watch.
Moonday
"That's a bust, then," says Grimold as they scramble away from the opium den. Taking a whiff of his sleeve where he'd caught the majority of the liquid, he cringes. "Maybe you should go back in and ask for a full bottle. It's the perfect match for your stylish garb. Just the right mix of toadstool, sauerkraut, and..." He trails off, taking another sniff of the foul stain. "Yes, I do believe there top notes have a trace of arsenic. Lovely, don't you think, miss Tilernos?"
Toilday
On the way to the Scriptorium, Grimold casually inquires about Zohruk's origins. "I would not have thought the Bonewatch would bring in a half-orc. Let me guess, did Eilidh catch you trying to invade and decide you were another redemption project?"
Alacarty's Scriptorium
Grimold watches in amazement as the old man pulls books out of the bag as if by magic. He starts to peruse the array the man puts before him before remembering their purpose here. "Just schoolbooks this time." He nods his head at Zohruk to indicate that he was the one who needed helping, but his gaze drops back down to the books still on the counter. He had almost finished The Cloud Castle of the Storm King, but spending all his money on books seemed like a poor use of his funds. Maybe just one? Turning to look around at the rest of the shelves, he's impressed by the diverse selection. The Bonewatch's library was larger by far, and yet all those dusty old times seemed the same. Grimold began to wonder if maybe the old bookseller might have some useful books that weren't so readily available in the Bonewatch's archives. After all, it wouldn't do to skulk around the library for books on traps and other such things.
Once Zohruk has been helped, Grimold continues to browse with feigned nonchalance. "You have quite the collection, Mr. Alacarty. You must be quite the scribe to have so many books. You probably have even more in the back room that other customers wouldn't even be interested in."
Wealday
Grimold tried to enjoy Comell's class, but so much of this history had happened so long ago, and most of it was terribly boring. Comell could tell the full story of Cayden Cailean's ascension and still put half the class to sleep. Grimold has to suppress a groan as the professor asks him some asinine question about military tactics. Do I look like a general to you? "I don't know. Why were they even pressed up against the canyon walls in the first place? Shouldn't the scouts have warned them so they could avoid being surrounded?" Of course, Kassara would know exactly what brilliant maneuver the Knights executed at just the right time to turn the tide of battle, snatching victory from the jaws of defeat as they always seem to do. How could a Tilernos not know simply everything about the Knights? Their great-great-great-ancestor's adopted camel's groom's secret lover was probably the commander or something. But shockingly, Eilidh seems to be even less interested in the exploits of her probably-family than Grimold does.
At the news that nobody actually dies in training, Grimold is relieved. He had been getting more and more nervous about Dazen's upcoming class, especially if they were going to have to fight those darkmantles.
Toilday
”Ah, I don’t know, Elyssa, I think you’d look good in one of those pointy hats,” Zohruk smiles. ”The potions class, I’m not gonna lie, it wasn’t what I think of when I think of alchemy, but, well, the man makes a strong argument, so I’m gonna try and keep up with you best I can.” After he gets the titles down, Zoh makes for town, “Thanks, Elyssa!
On the way to Alacarty’s, Zohruk gets a good laugh at Grimold’s question. ”Hah! Oh, man, that’s about the exact opposite of how it played out. No, I’m from, uh, from ‘over the river,’ if you take my meaning. My tribe, we’re not really like the others. One of the Knights, Lukyan Durante, struck a deal with my chief, she sent me here in exchange for looking for something Durante wants. Allie, no, she’s maybe, possibly just about calmed down from the die-heretic-scum phase of getting to know me.” Zohruk sighs. ”It’s freaking exhausting, carrying that kind of grief around, y’know?"
"So, 'another' redemption project? Allie's got other interests besides wanting to stab people? Or just me...?”
Inside the bookstore, Zohruk’s heart skips a beat at the old man’s offer to send a letter, but he’s incredulous, and dtries not to let his excitement at the prospect show. ”I’m sure you’ve got a nice little business here, sir, but am I really supposed to believe you can get a letter to my tribe in Belkzen?” He arches an eyebrow skeptically.
Unless Grimold takes it, a copy of Godmother of Death finds its way into the stack of material Zohruk is buying.
Wealday
Zohruk finds himself able to follow along fairly well with Comell's class, asking a few reasonable questions based on a few pages worth of reading he'd done the night before.
On his way out of class, something in the way a stranger's voice calls Daen's name sets Zohruk on edge. He tries to hang back in as nonchalant manner as he can manage, ready to jump in if Daen appears to be in danger. Make a move or get moving, mudak, I have to find my way to archery class...
Moonday
"That's a bust, then," says Grimold as they scramble away from the opium den. Taking a whiff of his sleeve where he'd caught the majority of the liquid, he cringes. "Maybe you should go back in and ask for a full bottle. It's the perfect match for your stylish garb. Just the right mix of toadstool, sauerkraut, and..." He trails off, taking another sniff of the foul stain. "Yes, I do believe there top notes have a trace of arsenic. Lovely, don't you think, miss Tilernos?"
Kassie lifts her own sleeve up to her nose and winces at the smell. "Gods! That stuff absolutely reeks! You're lucky, you just got it in your arm. Look at me, all over my shirt! I don't think this smell is ever going to come out! You certainly know how to show a girl a good time. What were they doing in there anyway? They didn't look very well."
Characters: Eilidh
The archery class seems a bit more full than usual, with several members from her own cohort including Gideon, Rans and Cilys. The thin girl smiles at Allie and moves to her side as Sato starts laying out weapons.
”Hey! I expected to see you here, this is the first time I managed to find my way to the class. I wish they didn't hide these..”
She trails off as Sato shoots a look toward them, indicating with her head to get into the archery line. ”We've covered several types of bows and started shooting, but today I want to go over crossbows. While most longbows have greater range and faster shooting rate, crossbows are easier to use effectively. A volley of bolts from a barely trained peasant psiloi can take a charging cavalry lance head on and inflict high casualties despite the great difference in training and cost to equip the two.”
The elf's large, singularly coloured eyes hardly blink as she speaks, staring down at the scrubs assembled. ”Today we practice shooting crossbows and then ducking behind a pavise to reload.” Aligned about 60 feet from the targets are a row of tower-shields shoved into the ground. This is a strategy that is not unknown to Eilidh and she knows she will have a good showing during the day.
Characters: Zohruk, Grimold
Alacarty's Scriptorium
Of course I could! It might cost a bit more, but I know a few magical types who could locate the appropriate person with the right description and such.”
As for school books? Ah! Scrubs, of course! Yes, yes! I have everything you could possibly need at a low, low price!” In the end, after some haggling and debate, Zohruk can get everything he'll need (or want) for 2 gold.
”Ah..we do have some dusty tomes in the back that may be what you are looking for?” As Grimold expected, Alacarty misunderstood and presents only a small collection of peculiar tomes including the aptly titled: Contortions of a Vudrani Acrobat. If he does make his intentions clearer, Alacarty does, in fact, have a book on lockpicking for 5 silver.
Eilidh gives Cilys a small grin. "I d-do t-too, b-but everything's a t-test here. I only f-found it last w-week."
When Sato sets the group to shooting, Eilidh shoulders her own crossbow. She shares a pavise with Cilys, the two girls each ducking out from one side to fire, and carries on a hushed conversation between shots. "Last week we p-practiced with real bows...Of c-course, these aren't b-bad...I used to d-do this when the orcs f-from Belkzen...raided around C-Castle Firenne...b-but with three f-feet of w-wall instead of t-two inches of wood...it's all about k-keeping an image of w-what's on the other side...th-that way you d-don't s-spend as much t-time aiming."
Moonday
Grimold goes silent for a moment at Kassie's question, glancing sideways. "They were addicts," he says. They probably don't have a lot of those at Castle Firenne. "There's a lot more to being poor than going to bed on an empty stomach." For a moment, he remembers his own short time at the bottom of a bottle before pushing the memories away. Still, he dwells long enough to hear Jorge's voice in the back of his mind, taunting him as usual. You never could hold your liquor, eh Grimold?
Sighing, he says, "It's getting late. We'll try another day, yeah?"
Toilday
Grimold is a bit surprised at Zohruk's description of events. That didn't really sound like the Allie he knew, but then he still didn't know her very well. Still, he nods in agreement; he does indeed know how exhausting grief can be, though his has been his own instead. "I'm sure Allie has many other interests besides stabbing you. For instance, I think she's trying to get Ardis to stab her." Grimold grins at his own joke, waggling his eyebrows for emphasis. "She's not so bad when you get to know her. I guess she can be a bit self-righteous, but you get that a lot with the Knights." He shrugs and runs a hand through his hair. "If it weren't for her and her sister, I'd be dead right now, so I owe them some gratitude at the least."
Alacarty's Scriptorium
Grimold quirks an eyebrow at the new books Alacarty pulls out. He's a dirty old man, isn't he? "This wasn't exactly what I... had in mind,"[/B] he says, even as he begins idly paging through one of the books. "How much?" Forbidden knowledge is still forbidden knowledge, after all.
Toilday
Grimold's news about Allie and Ardis is certainly news to Zohruk, and his joking delivery elicits a guffaw.
”HA-hah! Wow, no kidding? That's the two twitchiest roshkas I've ever met. If they get too close to each other, they're gonna burst into flames! But don't get me wrong, good on them, y'know? You don't always get to have who you want right there with you..." After that, Zohruk's smile gets a little wistful, with a distant look in his eye. I'd love to help those two out, but there's just no way that wouldn't get me back on Allie's stabby list, the bad version. "Allie and I had a big shouting match inside the Church of Sarenrae, and we may be over the worst of it, so now I'm just trying to not antagonize her, and hope she'll give me a fair shake at some point."
Inside Alacarty’s, Zohruk does his best to contain himself at the shopkeeper's offer. "I see. In that case, I may come back with something for you." Maybe just one letter to let Ril know I'm okay...
For the rest of the day, Zohruk can be considered more than a bit distracted.
As Grimold asks about the back-room material, Zoh's interest is piqued. When the old fellow is not right there with them, he whispers, ”What exactly are you looking for, man?" He picks up another of the storybooks, almost putting it on his pile but deciding against it. "Who's Qadira...?"
Back at the Bonewatch, Zohruk seeks out Elyssa.
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Toilday
Grimold's eyes widen in surprise at the news. "You mean Eilidh Tilernos actually used her outside voice while she was inside? In a church no less?" He claps the half-orc on the shoulder in mock sympathy. "Truly, Zohruk, you've brought doom upon your head. You must repent at once or else suffer the wrath of the Stuttering Tyrant!"
Alacarty's Scriptorium
Grimold gives Zohruk a sideways glance before drawing a sly smile across his face. "I doubt you'd be interested. After all, you're doing your best to stay out of trouble, aren't you?"
Toilday
Truly, Zohruk, you've brought doom upon your head. You must repent at once or else suffer the wrath of the Stuttering Tyrant!
Zohruk loses it right there in the street, roaring an intense, manic laugh. Grimold might have had concerns of violence if he hadn’t been the one to elicit this (and even then, who knows).
As quickly as it starts, Zoh controls himself. ”Oh.. mmm. Hah… hmm.” He looks Grimold in the eye, dead serious. ”I’m trying to be good, so that’s the only time I’m ever going to laugh at that joke; I hope you enjoyed it.” One last grin.
I doubt you'd be interested. After all, you're doing your best to stay out of trouble, aren't you?
”Yeah but I need something to do for fun, and it’s either this or accidentally stab Daen’s cousin six or seven times. I have to be more likely to get away with whatever you’ve got in mind. Wave this guy off, and we’ll at least talk…”
It was actually somewhat of a shock to realize that the "dead" cohort members were not actually dead. He'd crafted a bit of a narrative in his head concerning the whole situation with the rats, and possibly a saboteur at the Bonewatch, and Dazen was top of the list. The fact that he killed students in class was definitely one of the strongest pieces of evidence he had to tie him into that kind of situation, but now with that gone, he had to review what he knew. The problem was, he was so tempted to do that in class, that he actually performed poorly, and ended up looking pretty bad in front of Comell, which was embarrassing.
Daen turns his attention on the beckoning boy but does not come near to him. He learned that lesson a long time ago. "I'm from Brevoy, so I'll tell you something you should know. There's no one by that name. If you're looking for a Daen, you may talk to me. If you are looking for a Surtova, you'll have to talk to Leo from cohort two." While his words were calm and even, his finger twitched a little as he tensed his fingers. If it were to be a fight, he'd have to be ready for that. It was nice to have back up as well, with Kassie on his left shoulder and Zohruk on his right. It really helped with the confidence against an unknown threat.
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Toilday
Alacarty's Scriptorium
Grimold nods, but doesn't say anything else about the matter until after they leave the store. Once they're on their way back toward the Bonewatch, he explains, still keeping his voice down. "Rumor has it there are secret tunnels and sub-basements beneath the Bonewatch. I want explore them, but there are traps. They may even be magical."
In his head, Grimold's Mama's voice is scolding him. Rolando, how dare you? It is bad enough you get yourself caught up in this craziness, but you would bring a new friend into it as well? You shame me, my son. But Ducas's voice provides counterpoint. You'll need friends at your side, Grimold. Zohruk's a rough-and-tumble character; there probably isn't a better scrub at the Bonewatch to help you with this. Mama's voice butts back in with a sharp rejoinder. You stay out of this! All of this started with you and your stories. If there's anybody to blame for this whole mess with Felipe and the others, it's you, Ducas! Grimold tuned the voices out before Michael had a chance to reply. Once the voices started arguing with each other, it was best to just ignore them.
Characters: Grimold, Zohruk
Alacarty is lying about knowing messengers and being able to send letters into Belkzen.
”For these? Why let's say...three silver!”
Characters: Zohruk
The investigator's daughter looks skeptical, but shrugs. ”Which old book merchant? Most of the class uses the same one..I think there's something sketchy about him. I think he sells forgeries...I wouldn't trust him much, but he also does have a few magical trinkets that are worth fortunes so..I have no idea what's going on with him. I wouldn't be surprised if he could do it but I also wouldn't be surprised if he was lying about it or could do it but would rather just take your money and pretend to do it.”
Characters: Kassara, Daen, Zohruk
”Whatever your name is then. Yon cousin said thou were a coward and a dog, insulting your own family and spitting in the face of honor! I've heard nefarious stories about thou, knave, and do not think Iomedae would look kindly upon your type in the ranks of Knights.”
He approaches with a scowl on his face, not seeming to care that he's drawn a scene. The boy has mid-length hair of dull brown with high cheekbones and a thick nose. Overall, he looks fairly..average outside of his muscular build and the copper pin of the Inheritor on his shoddy half-cloak.
”The honorable number one of cohort two spoke proudly of how he took thou insults in stride and avoided challenging thou to a duel about it. I believe his action to be in the wrong, despite being kind, and he did not uphold the honor of our fair order. Thou whoreson impudent embossed rascal! Thou reeky toad-spotted lewdster! To insult those who have fought their way to the top of their cohort is not honorable and I, for one, shall challenge thee to a duel!”
He's a Lastwall native judging from the way he talks. And not a noble.
This is Basil stephenson, the current number one of cohort three. He has a small reputation as a zealot of Iomedae, claiming he has visions. He grew up the son of a peasant and fought hard to earn himself a spot in the Bonewatch. Basil is enamored with chivalry and old fables of Knighthoods, often speaking in an antiquated manner like the stories he reads from. Despite his rather erratic behavior, he also takes honor and glory very seriously.
He actually seems to believe what he is saying.
Characters: Eilidh, Zohruk
Cilys is, with Eilidh's nudging, a surprisingly good shot. She's nearly the Tilernos girl's equal in it and takes to the crossbow easily, cranking it back quickly if not as quickly as her companion. "Tests, tests, tests. This damn place is driving me crazy. Well, as if you have anything to worry about, you won't be kicked out this month.." She lets out a small, growl, kicking at the wooden shield and earning a long, blank stare from Sato.
Still seething with anger Kassie steps forward. "Basil isn't it?" she says, approaching him "I don't think we've met? I'm Kassara Tilernos and Daen here is my friend. Daen has more honour in his little finger than Surtova does in his whole body. Surely you heard that Leo ambushed Daen with four of his 'friends'. Does that sound like the act of an honourable knight to you? I was there and you were not. Surtova insulted Daen, not the other way around. Surtova tried to goad Daen into a fight but Daen refused. That is what happened." As she speaks Kassie's advances on the boy until she's face-to-face with him, her voice rising until she's almost shouting and her face flushed with anger. Her final words underscored by rapid pokes in the chest with her finger in time with her words. "Now. Unless you want to accuse me of dishonour, I suggest you turn and go. But first you'll bloody well apologise for what you just said to my "
Toilday, outside Alacarty’s
Zohruk hears Grimold out, and clearly seems conflicted as he thinks about it. ”I’m not saying yes, but I’m definitely not saying no. I’ve, uh, I’ve really got to think about this, okay? I can’t get kicked out because I was off exploring on a whim.”
Later, as Elyssa gives her opinion of Alacarty’s “services for hire,” Zohruk seems more than a bit crestfallen. ”Yeah, my gut was saying he’s full of it, I was just, you know, hoping. Woulda been nice to get word to Ril… Thanks, Elyssa.”
Wealday
I've got no idea who this durnuk is, but he's got that troubling look of a true believer. But it looks like Zohruk won't have anything to do here, as Kassie starts laying into the fellow. Wow. She ever decides to give up on life in Lastwall, she could probably be a ruvolokh in Belkzen. Now come on, pal, realize you're acting like an idiot, and just walk away. I have to get to my next class...