Drache

Wooden Swords Won't Be Enough (Ebonfort)

There were a few moments while watching the Orc Knight that Rilana very nearly brushed off the medic and stepped forward to handle the baby thing herself. Not that he wasn't doing an admirable job of enticing the creature into the leather bag without risking too much of his green skin, but being forced to stand still while her tortured flesh was scrubbed and stitched back together made it easy to see a million other things she could be doing instead.

Don't be foolish. Let them fix it or it will never heal right.

I know, I just don't think this requires quite so much bandage.

She could imagine the gryphon twitching his tail and glaring at her as though she were being unreasonable.

What are you going to do with it? There was no need to ask him to specify.

I...I don't know. I've never heard of a creature like this before. It's important to know more about it.

There was a wordless scoff. Don't lie, you just feel bad for killing a beast that was protecting its young. His mindvoice seemed smug.

It's a familiar story, though. You can hardly fault me for taking in an orphan.

That shut him up. Humbled, she knew that if he stood next to her he'd have lowered his head.

Don't do that. Just keep quiet until this is over so I can get us somewhere you can fly. She didn't have to put the strong need to wrap her arms around his feathery neck into words, he just knew, and he agreed.

Just don't ever let it bite me.

"I will do my best to rest my arm. I suppose my trip home will be longer than I planned." She took the salve and bandages, listening to her instructions with grave seriousness. She didn't want to end up disfigured by rampant infection or preventable scarring. "Thank you for taking the time." It was more than clear to the moon fey that foreigners were second-class here, but the medic had treated her first.

The medic departed and Rilana turned to take the satchel gingerly from Togan, testing it's weight as she slung it over her good shoulder, letting it settle against her shapely hip. Her lips parted, so eager was she to say her farewells and get out of there, but the orc spoke first.

It seemed that the entire universe was preventing her from going home. "I suppose I should," she sighed, more out of mental weariness than frustration, and nodded for the orc to lead the way. But her irritation was waylaid slightly by the sight of the larger creature trussed like a chicken and shoved into a wagon. Someone nearby mentioned that Svarak had subdued it himself.

Guilt.

Stop it, you did what you had to do.

She wasn't so sure.

But picking through the logic of her doubts would have to wait. The Warden was handing her a scroll and she glanced down at the stylized version of a lion's paw pressed into the wax. For her? From Lord Svarak? Speak in private? Her eyes widened. Was it some sort of trap? She reached to tuck the unopened scroll into her travel-pack but realized she had left it back in the stands. Hopefully it hadn't been stolen!

When the Warden went on to ask her what to call the strange, two-headed beast, Rilana's eyes fluttered closed and she lifted a hand to rub the spot between her brows with two slender fingers. After all this, and now she was being asked to be creative? Surely it had a name. "Call it..." a snippet of a child-hood rhyme flitted through her mind, "Call it a Balauradon."

She watched the squire long enough to see him scratch the word down, and then turned to Togan. She pressed her hand, dwarfed by comparison, into his.

"I shall count you as a friend, Togan. And if you ever find yourself in the wilds of the Frostell or the ice halls of Frigmount you should consider yourself welcome."

And then he was gone, leaving Rilana feeling both overwhelmed and bereft in the sudden lack of conversation. Without pause, she turned and moved swiftly for the stands, picking up her pack and vanishing into the grassland around the tourny field.

How Much is That Doggie in the Window? (Ebonfort RP)

The moon fey's slender un-hurt hand slid into Trix's as she stood up from the bench. Did didn't need the help, truly, but accepting the gesture was nice. They moved out into the sunshine and Rilana's long white hair verily glimmered with a faint pearlesence, and her eyes seemed to spark with light and shadow to give an impression of unfathomable depths, like the sea, or like blue ice.

'Lana flexed her stitched hand experimentally, testing the limits of the fresh sutures, her eyes following the white raven. The silver-tinged corvid had discovered the food stall and was pecking around for scraps on the ground. Rilana supposed that discarded bits of gristle wouldn't be missed by the few shoppers around.

Unlike Trix, the druid's thoughts were bent on home, the ache to once again see familier ice-bound mountains on the horizon a genuine discomfort in her chest. It was so strong that the lingering burn of the bites on her shoulder faded to the background. Her throat bobbed as she swallowed hard, the hundreds of miles of travel seeming even more daunting and tedious than when she had first set out.

Luckily for her, Trix had a knack for distracting her from her troubles. "Giving them very clear expectations and consistency in your commands is key." It struck her as odd that she was delivering the knowledge of dog training to a second person in less than a week. "Most dogs are suspicious of strangers and will instinctively growl and put themselves in front of you. Most people train that out of their dogs, but you will need to enforce it. You just have to train them to back down when you say so." She elaborated more as they walked, describing certain techniques for training the dogs to guard Trix's property, a person or area she designated, or herself.

After over long, she found herself looking into a pen of shaggy, rust-red bears, and remembered Echo. "Their colour is similar to a direwolf I met on my way to the tournament." They looked lazy and placid, not at all like the temperamental wandering hulks she had come across in her wanderings.

With her plate of food in-hand, she ate swiftly. A hot meal was a lovely thing after a month of trail rations, and she tried to ignore how...familiar she was with the smell of cooked bear. Sitting almost daintily on one of the benches, she heaved a sigh.

"I was hired by a...I guess you would call her a Princess, though her position is mostly ceremonial. I train Fjord-horses for many different purposes. One of your Lord Knight's wanted one for a war-mount so I came down to Ebonfort to deliver him. I miss him dearly, it's difficult to not get attached sometimes. I also train dogs, mostly for hunting or sledding, and falcons. Sometimes other animals. But I also spend a lot of time just...wandering. My mother called it the druid's curse." Her laugh was musical but short-lived as she glanced at Trix sidelong. "I'm sorry, it seems that a talent for magic is not welcome here. In Frigmount, most magic is celebrated."

When Trix mentioned someone special, Rilana shrugged her slender shoulders. "Only Khona, my...friend. He's a gryphon and mostly comes and goes as he pleases."

In her mind, the cat-bird huffed. Staying in the city is so boring. Of course I fly out whenever I can.

"But other than him, no one special." And there wouldn't be. Rilana was pretty, even by moon fey standards, but she had let herself become scarred and didn't make time for anyone who might be interested.

You liked the one with the lion eyes.

All the more reason to get home as quickly as possible.

Wooden Swords Won't Be Enough (Ebonfort)

The moon fey was pretty sure that she was shaking, her nerves jangling as exhaustion argued violently along her bones with a renewed impulse to flee. But her flightiness was mostly internal. On the outside she looked worried, but her back was straight and her hands didn't tremble when the orc approached. She naturally started to turn to follow his progress around her back to keep him in front of her, but his eyes were on the wound and she consented to let him look.

"Go ahead," she assented, fixing her eyes on the scene of upheaval around the arena. It was only then that she noticed the portal that was still open and her lips formed a small 'o'. Seeing the rift in the air was uncomfortably surreal and she glanced sidelong at some of the squires. It wouldn't do to leave that thing open would it? But even as she watched it, resolving to focus on something other than the huge orc, she noticed that the portal seemed to be shrinking and there were already people on the other side doing...something.

A pair of figures moved towards them and Rilana found herself looking up into the lion-like face of someone who was apparently Important. Her stunning blue eyes flicked to the shine of the crystal sword over his shoulder and one of her eyebrows twitched almost imperceptibly.

Rilana's surprise was even more apparent when he casually mentioned her home. Most people seemed to think she was some kind of elf. Lord Svarak seemed like the kind of person who, if anyone, would know more about the suspicions she had about the Frostfell's apparent isolation. She narrowed her eyes almost shrewdly at that, but kept her silence. It wasn't a conversation she was ready to try with anyone. In fact, she wanted to get home as soon as possible.

Unlike the orc at her side, Rilana, though not disrespectful, was obviously less impressed by this Lord Svarak. "I would like to say that visiting the southlands has been a pleasure, but given the circumstances I think I'll settle for saying I will have a few stories for my children one day." A ghost of a smile played about her lips, and she used it to mask the embarrassment when the Lord Knight reached for her ruined vest. "You didn't have to cut it, I would have taken it off." Now she would have to stop in Green Fall to buy a replacement.

There was a tinge of colour along her pale cheekbones as the piece of her caribou-hide vest came away and exposed her pert cleavage, but she stood her ground and didn't lift a hand to preserve some semblance of modesty, almost daring the two men towering around her to say something lewd. Fortunately, as the Lord Knight appeared, the squires doing nothing better than loitering seemed to have suddenly disappeared, so it was only the Charr himself she had to worry about. And he said nothing. She wasn't sure if that made things better or worse.

You wanted him to look.

Shut up, you overgrown pigeon!

In her mind she could see Khona's amber eyes smiling knowingly.

"Envoy?" She wasn't sure she liked the sound of that. "I'm just a horse-trainer. But I'll be thankful for whatever healing you can offer." It was only right that they help her after she risked her life, she supposed. She tried to sound appreciative and followed the Charr's progress as he moved towards the sloppy bag of flesh that had just flopped out of the shrinking portal. She was surprised that Svarak didn't simply squash the tiny two-headed chestburster, and as she watched it eat as he walked away she had an idea.

"Knight Togan. Will you please grab that thing and put it in something sturdy. A thick leather saddlebag might work. I wish to study it." She pointed to the creature, hoping none of the others would notice it.

NaNoWriMo Word Use

Noun
Obelisk - a stone pillar, typically having a square or rectangular cross section and a pyramidal top, set up as a monument or landmark.

Verb
Coruscate - (of light) flash or sparkle.

Adjective
Facetious - treating serious issues with deliberately inappropriate humor; flippant.

Your Choice
Rive [adj] - split or tear apart violently.

How Much is That Doggie in the Window? (Ebonfort RP)

It was good to sit, sheltered by the wide green leaves of deciduous trees with a warm breeze blowing. "Yes, that's what's important," Rilana agreed absently, not entirely commited to the conversation, rather, letting the flow of small-talk soothe her as it was meant to. "The Frostfell...I miss it. It's so beautiful, everyone should see it at least once. This place is beautiful too, just in a different way."

She glanced down at her hand as Trix worked, marvelling at how swiftly and efficiently she dealt with the wound. How many times would she have to be put back together again? Her silver brows furrowed and her eyes fluttered closed, wincing at the sting of the antiseptic alcohol and again when the needle pierced her skin, her fingers closing slightly. "Strange how much a tiny needle hurts after getting bitten by...by things." Her other hand came up to rub at the wound over her shoulder.

"You're very good at this." It was easy to compliment someone else when she was feeling so patherically miserable about herself. When it was all done, she flexed her hand a bit, feeling the sort of itchy pull as the sutures held her flesh together. "Thank you again."

She glanced down at the pups, impressed at how well-behaved they already wore, but not terribly surprised. But her gaze shot up at the mention of bear, her gaze suspicious until Trix continued.

"Oh. Yes, that would be lovely. I heard that you have black bears here? The ones I am used to are white or brown."

How Much is That Doggie in the Window? (Ebonfort RP)

Though her gait was stiff, the presence of Trix at her side kept her path out of the busy marketplace down to a brisk walk that didn't garner much in the way of unwanted attention. If it hadn't been for the gory events of the tourny, which were still very fresh on her mind by way of sickeningly sharp flashes of gore and anger and fear underscored with an everpresent dread of the authority in this land, she might not have been so quick to tremble. But the success of her unwise attack on the two-headed creature was no source of pride when it had resulted in attention by the Ebonfort knighthood.

Focusing on the sharp throb in her palm and Trix's voice, she fought the feeling that the world was closing in on her like a fur-hunter's trap. At a soft weight on her shoulder she turned, briefly surprised, and found her nose full of the warm summery scent of Trix's blonde hair. It was sweet, comforting, and after the first normal breath of it she took another, deeper, and squeezed her eyes shut until the two knights had passed. It was only once they were alone again that the moon few recognized the deception for what it was and...wasn't sure how to feel about how easily it worked.

Gorgeous eyes swimming with a mix of confusion, fear, and humiliation, Rilana looked down into Trix's face and bit her soft bottom lip. "I...thank you. I'm so sorry. You've been too kind to me. I hope you don't think I would ever steal." Glancing down at her hand and seeming surprised at the stark flash of blood againt her moon-white skin. "It seems that this land doesn't agree with me much. I keep finding myself bloodied and as terrified as a snow-shoe rabbit."

Once they found some of the benches she sat down, rather heavily in the face of how gracefully she normally moved. The raven landed on the fence across the road, watching with shoulders hunched rather morosely. Trying to get into her bag without smearing blood on it, she nodded to the bird. "I will have my work cut out for me, teaching her to be more cautious. I suppose I'm stuck with her." Thoughts of driving the beast away or killing it didn't even cross her mind.

Ebonfort

Thanks Twhirt! I'm always willing to RP with other Ebonfort peeps. Even if you don't want my character and just need some NPCs or something to bounce your character off of. Hit me up. :)

Wooden Swords Won't Be Enough (Ebonfort)

The passing of the chimera was to the sound of the huge bear, harsh breaths hot out of the sides of her muzzle as she savaged the snapped neck back and forth, worrying it with a gruesome wet snarl like an immense hound with a bone. But as soon as the plated body slumped, dangling lifeless and sagging from her jaws, the bear's fury began to bleed away like a mist scattered by a stiff, clear wind. The foul taste of the blood in her mouth was bitter and she was eager to be free of it, letting the gory slime drip from her wicked incisors as she backed up a step to sniff at the thing. It was true what they said about bears. The dead thing added no fuel to her ferocity and part of her quickly lost interest.

Clarity of mind was accompanied by a flood of doubt and confusion. In moments like these it was easy to understand why some moon fey assumed the shapes of animals more and more as they aged, finding solace in the simple lives of beasts as they forgot more and more of themselves. Rilana did not know what this thing was, but she was curious. Not just about why the frothy drool from each head seemed to smell different, nor even why snapping the spine leading to one head seemed to kill both instantly, but why the creature had been so vicious in the first place. Was it truly some fell monster summoned by the shrieking man solely to bring chaos and death and terror as it seemed? It would have been a comforting explanation. Comforting because it was so simple. But as the huge bear sniffed over the oozing remains, she wasn't so sure.

Movement at the periphery of her vision caught her attention. How easily she had forgotten the score or more of men! Turning, stepping on and over the beast as she turned to face this new enemy, she let out a suspicious roar-huff and stood up on her hind legs, towering over them. Her bulky forearms hung loose down her front, the blood-soaked ravaged one a bit limper than the other. Her snout turned with her focus as she eyed the men with a stern black gaze.

Rilana had no love of black-armoured knights. She'd been a fool! They were all staring at her now, weapons drawn. They would kill her, even if she changed back! Or maybe especially if she resumed her natural form. They would burn her at the stake. Or worse. She looked past them, turning back and forth, limping on the charred leg, no different from any other scared, cornered animal. Did they know what she really was? There was no way for her to be sure.

Would she have to fight her way through? If so, she'd better start now. The longer she waited the more men would arrive.

It took a moment to realize that the biggest man...no, he was an orc, was talking to her rather than issuing orders to his fellow fighters. Rilana paused, sagging forward to rest on three legs and perhaps hear him better. His hands were outspread and she recognized the universal gesture. His eyes were boring into hers and she realized that he knew.

Khona, what do I do?! she thought, not knowing if she should flee or fight.

Do neither, he replied, and with his smug tone she could imagine him preening his feathers and looking down his beak at her, his ear-tufts set at a haughty angle. You slayed the beast. Take pride in your kill. Secrecy is lost. If you run they will simply follow to make sure the snow-bear causes no trouble.

What if they kill me anyways? she fretted. Her fear on this matter went deeper than even she knew. In her mind she heard the rustle of feathers in reply. They will have to capture you first, but we can just fly away.

The moon fey was terrified, but Khona's snobbish flippancy came with a logic she couldn't deny, even if she didn't like it. She was weary, mind and body anguished and in agony. A few shuffling steps away from the gore on the field and she took a deep breath, concentrating hard to summon the energy from within, the concentration to return to her true form. It was similar to the drain she felt when working with her Familiars.

The bear blurred like a chalk drawing in the rain, shrank in on itself, and within a heartbeat or two resolved into the svelte, shapely figure of the moon elf in all her pale beauty. She was tall for a woman but still looked up at the fighters in the ring, her sapphire eyes sharp with both fear and pain in her arm. Changing shape didn't free her from the damage of the chimera's bite, and though her clothes were intact, her porcelain skin was an angry black and red mess under the hem of her reindeer-skin vest.

She swallowed thickly. Most of the weapons clutched in white-knuckled fists were wooden, but it hardly mattered. Letting out the breath she had taken before returning to herself, "My name is Rilana Aurorime'," she announced in a clear but tremulous voice as she waited tensely for whatever might happen next.

Ebonfort

@Twhirtley

The Silent Travelers is completed and needs a review. Thanks @Rekaigan!

The Silent Travelers (Ebonfort)

The hours crept on into darkness, the night coming on warm and peaceful. Rilana helped Alya set up a small camp for the night and both women with their furry friends settled down for the night. When morning light broke over the hill, Khona was gone, watching the world through Rilana's eyes. She was careful to Mark her Familiar when no one else could see, the process still new and a bit unsettling.

Together, they made their way to the tourny grounds before bidding each other farewell.