Yssil just stared at the sylph as she laughed, the reason for her mirth completely beyond his understanding. "I wouldn't dare try anything that I know I am not ready for, Your Ladyship," the dracon young adult assured her. "And I am working towards gaining the necessary skill and experience. I am aware that it might take years to make significant progress. But if all goes well I should live long enough so I am willing to make the needed time investment," he commented. He took a moment or two to think about what kind of things he would like to conjure. "Whatever would best suit survival purposes first. A sword and a knife, a rope, blanket, clothes, perhaps a tent and a travelling bag...And if there's a way to conjure water and fire that could be useful. And whatever else you might suggest, ma'am." He finished with a light bow, intending to remain respectful to the sylph.
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Asteria
It was not at all unnoticed by Asteria how quickly Jason turned serious. So, not so much an annoyance as he was someone to be careful around, even if an ally. Though that went without saying for just about anyone, really. “I agree that we protect each other to the best of our abilities except for situations where the protector would have to expose him or herself to lethal danger. Even with the existence of healing magic and possibly other healing items we should still be careful. I agree on the sharing of information, whether new or old; whatever any of us know that the others don’t can likely be useful to all of us. The mana thing I’ll refrain from deciding either for or against until you give us more information,” Asteria replied. An alliance was one thing, getting used by Jason (or anyone else, for that matter) quite another.
“Interesting that a slime can learn magic. Perhaps so could a Dire rat. That would be worth testing out just to see if it can be done or not,” Asteria commented. “Do you think you could use that telepathy you mentioned to inform Mother Rat here that we are all allies? Though maybe you should test it one of us first – which I am assuming is what you wanted to test out anyway? You really should be clearer on experiments like that,” the female Dire rat finished dryly. So much for ‘sharing information’ already. Not that she expected this to go perfectly, but really.
“As for checking what you can or cannot do, Ed…I have recently obtained a skill called Monster Analysis I. That could help,” she added.
@Zeroth@Searat@Kazemitsu@Guy0fV4lor
Asteria
“Thank you,” she suffused her tone with warmth that she couldn’t express by forming a smile while possessing a rat’s muzzle. And she was pleased that Ed was content to let the past be exactly that, as well as being reasonable enough to not blame a witness. Admittedly, she could have done more to try stop Mei, but how was she supposed to know what would happened? And once she saw what exactly was going on, it was too late to do much. But, well, no need to think of that or elaborate on it if the slimes they were facing had no wish to know. And as she had hoped, the Monster Analysis skill was indeed able to differentiate between native monsters and human-souled-monsters. As such, she had noticed the big blue slime was a monster while the other two were (former) humans.
After that short observation, she looked towards the overbearingly friendly green slime. “…An acquaintance, to be honest,” she told him, somewhat reserved in answer to his loudness that she was both distasteful and just a bit wary of. Either Jason had completely missed that the two Dire rats had had a quarrel between them and had just managed to (somewhat) resolve it or he was simply playing the friendly card, rather poorly she might add. Though if he was honest about the alliance, Asteria would rather join than not.
“I’m Asteria,” she introduced herself, nodding to them both, remembering Asura’s name although he seemed to be the quiet sort and as such she might not even get to talk to him much, or at all. “And this here is Mother Rat,” she nodded to the larger Dire rat. “She’s native to this world so she can’t exactly understand human speech, but I hope we can get along nonetheless. She’s useful in a fight. Oh, and I would like to know what exactly you had in mind for an alliance, sure,” she directed this towards Jason, who seemed the most leader-like of them. She did hope he wasn’t always quite so…intense. Though she was a social creature, some individuals not only crossed the fine line from affable to grating, they happily traipsed on the other side seemingly purely so that they could annoy the rest of the population. But as long as they weren’t some sort of an unpredictable danger, she supposed she could accept an ally even if they did turn out to be annoying.
@Searat@Kazemitsu@Guy0fV4lor
Yssil watched on in awe as Aerta summoned forth a sylph. A sylph! He mentally noted the procedure, from the shape she had used – a triangle inside a hexagon, and from what she’d said that was only one possibility that would work – to the way she focused her mana, her respectful manner of speech when addressing the winged being, and the trinket she had gifted the sylph with. It was a simple necklace, but the elemental being appeared to favour the blue colour of the gemstone. Not too hard to guess with her sky-coloured robe, but Aerta must have known that information beforehand nonetheless. Obviously, she and the sylph had some shared history, and Yssil wondered for a brief moment what the details might be.
However, that thought paled in comparison to the interest he had for the (admittedly beautiful beyond belief) sylph. Was the female air elemental to be his teacher for a while? Or simply a consultant? He supposed he would find out. But truly, he had not often had the chance to be exposed to beings besides Dracons, and was glad for the opportunity to properly speak to one. And yes, he was aware that Adykon and Aerta housed a male half-nymph or some such, but there was much to speak towards the advantages of conversing with a female of one of those ethereally graceful species. Simply observing her was already quite appealing, what with her slender body, noble elven features, and magnificent wings extended behind her. And that was even without mentioning her magic! Yssil definitely felt a kind of a resonance, because she was purely aligned to the subtle and shifting energies of air, and one of his natural magical inclinations was the same.
“Yes...Your Ladyship,” he affirmed that he was a student, though he most likely didn’t need to do so. Also, he wasn’t entirely sure how to address her, but it was probably best to mimic Aerta and be courteous. Then she asked him what he sought to accomplish by conjuration. A deceptively easy to answer question, which he had to ponder over – and would have indeed done so, had she not mentioned that last possibility.
“Lover? N-no,” he answered, somewhat flustered. And honestly averse to the mess doing something like that could create if he thought about it. “The most I could ask would be a trustworthy companion, I suppose,” he began after a cough or two to (poorly) hide his embarrassment. “Someone to offset my weaknesses. Naturally, I am most capable with air and shadow magic. So far, I have found them to be most suited to offense and maneuverability. I can manage a basic form of defense by materializing shadows, but I’m more capable of evasion. Of course, even my best assets require refinement,” he sighed silently, knowing he wasn’t keeping his answer to the point anymore.
“That is, I would appreciate a single being I could depend on to be on my side when needed, perhaps one capable in defense and healing? I can also see the benefit in being able to conjure a multitude of lesser beings that could rush and distract and enemy. And lastly, being able to create some essential items would be nice too. In short, I believe that I am seeking variability,” Yssil trailed off, looking at the sylph hopefully. He was a bit anxious that his answer would displease or annoy her, but changing who he was was no easy task. And being eager to learn was at the core of him.
However, that thought paled in comparison to the interest he had for the (admittedly beautiful beyond belief) sylph. Was the female air elemental to be his teacher for a while? Or simply a consultant? He supposed he would find out. But truly, he had not often had the chance to be exposed to beings besides Dracons, and was glad for the opportunity to properly speak to one. And yes, he was aware that Adykon and Aerta housed a male half-nymph or some such, but there was much to speak towards the advantages of conversing with a female of one of those ethereally graceful species. Simply observing her was already quite appealing, what with her slender body, noble elven features, and magnificent wings extended behind her. And that was even without mentioning her magic! Yssil definitely felt a kind of a resonance, because she was purely aligned to the subtle and shifting energies of air, and one of his natural magical inclinations was the same.
“Yes...Your Ladyship,” he affirmed that he was a student, though he most likely didn’t need to do so. Also, he wasn’t entirely sure how to address her, but it was probably best to mimic Aerta and be courteous. Then she asked him what he sought to accomplish by conjuration. A deceptively easy to answer question, which he had to ponder over – and would have indeed done so, had she not mentioned that last possibility.
“Lover? N-no,” he answered, somewhat flustered. And honestly averse to the mess doing something like that could create if he thought about it. “The most I could ask would be a trustworthy companion, I suppose,” he began after a cough or two to (poorly) hide his embarrassment. “Someone to offset my weaknesses. Naturally, I am most capable with air and shadow magic. So far, I have found them to be most suited to offense and maneuverability. I can manage a basic form of defense by materializing shadows, but I’m more capable of evasion. Of course, even my best assets require refinement,” he sighed silently, knowing he wasn’t keeping his answer to the point anymore.
“That is, I would appreciate a single being I could depend on to be on my side when needed, perhaps one capable in defense and healing? I can also see the benefit in being able to conjure a multitude of lesser beings that could rush and distract and enemy. And lastly, being able to create some essential items would be nice too. In short, I believe that I am seeking variability,” Yssil trailed off, looking at the sylph hopefully. He was a bit anxious that his answer would displease or annoy her, but changing who he was was no easy task. And being eager to learn was at the core of him.
Asteria
Asteria startled mildly at the system notification; she had most certainly not expected to gain an analysis skill of all things. Hadn’t that been rather low experience-wise? Well, no matter. She now had an active skill, and was itching to try it out. Before she could do so however, her Mother let her know that she had found Ed’s scent. Obligingly, Asteria followed after her. They ended up near the Pool, a location Ateria had no yet investigated. The water seemed to reach surprising depths, but even so, Asteria wondered how it would be to swim in it. Since she’d been reborn as a beast, she had not yet had anything resembling a proper wash, though she didn’t find it too bothersome to make do the same way other beasts did – that is, by licking the grime off her fur. Besides, in a world full of monsters, jumping in was probably not the best and she wasn’t exactly confident of her current swimming ability, though she was pretty sure rats managed it decently. Around the pool were a few green herbs, but they were scarce in numbers.
Refocusing her attention back on the target she had went out of her way to seek out, she noticed Edward had moved towards a group of slimes, a green and a red one, as well as a larger blue one. The male Dire rat had just been addressed by one of the slimes. She assumed all of the creatures to be human, but used Monster analysis on them to confirm it. And despite their advantage, she decided to approach. Wary about being attacked and already thinking about possible escape routes in case the group decided that she could not be an ally, Asteria carefully went closer, but not so much that they would feel too threatened. Hopefully, Mother wouldn’t cause any additional animosity. “Edward,” she addressed him, not at all aware what he had just confessed to the slimes. “I’m glad I finally found you. I wanted to apologize for how things yesterday went down.” Asteria looked at him earnestly, willing to explain if he was willing to listen. “I understand if you can’t forgive it though,” she added, doing her utmost to appear agreeable, understanding, and contrite. This was why not making mistakes in the first place was better. The consequences of bad judgment tended to be nasty. And though she wanted to remain optimistic, she couldn’t help the tenseness of her body, fully ready to flee if it proved needed.
@Searat@Kazemitsu@Guy0fV4lor
Asteria
Mei appeared to be entirely too involved in dissecting the lizard’s corpse and fiddling with its removed poison sac to notice anything else. Shaking her head at her sibling’s eccentricities, Asteria made her way towards their Mother, nuzzling into her to wake her up if she wasn’t already. She waited patiently in case Mother wanted to have her breakfast from one of the lizard’s corpses. Then, she did her best to imitate what Mei had done the previous night, and attempted to communicate with Mother. Asteria nudged the larger Dire rat lightly, walked a few paces away from her, her head swinging from glancing at her Mother to gesturing to the rest of the cave, hoping to convey that she wanted her to follow. “Come,” she said, hoping it would help get Mother to do as she wished. Slowly, Asteria begun making her way to where the Dire rat family had encountered the pair of Wisps and another Dire rat the previous evening. Eventually, she picked up her speed, whether her Mother followed her or not, enjoying the wind ruffling her fur, the light jog energizing her. Unfortunately, the cave wasn’t an environment where one could take too much time to enjoy even life’s simplest pleasures.
When Asteria finally reached the location of yesterday’s unfortunate meeting, she stopped and used her sense of smell to her advantage. The most predominant scent was definitely from the two lizards they had killed there, but nonetheless, she managed to catch a hint of Edward’s scent and Ria followed it carefully. She tried to stay aware of her surroundings, but was most definitely concentrated primarily on tracking the other Dire rat down. And his scent led Asteria to the remains of no less than six dead creatures! There was a dead lizard, a pair of rats, a wisp, a goblin and a strangely coloured gelatinous spilling that was probably the “corpse” of a slime.
Asteria took it as a good sign that Edward’s corpse was not among these creatures. He must have truly had the devil’s luck to both happen upon such a group and survive the confrontation. Although she had recently eaten, Asteria was rather curios about what another monster would taste like and slowly made her way from corpse to corpse, trying to inspect each as best as she could to decide which one to try. The dead gelatinous mass had an awfully strange scent that she suspected was poison. The lizard was something she had already tried and as such it held no interest for her. The rats…She’d rather not do something so cannibalistic when there was no need to do so. The goblin she inspected much closely to see if it had any sort of a tool even a rat like herself could use, but it was pretty much naked…and incredibly grotesque. Offended by its smell and unwilling to taste it, she moved towards the last corpse, a wisp’s. Seeing it there only reminded her of what had happened the last night. But, she reasoned, it probably hadn’t been a human. She couldn’t claim to excel at differentiating one wisp from another, but this one probably wasn’t one of that pair that she and Mei had met yesterday. Unable to oppose her rising intrigue, Asteria sunk her fangs into the felled wisp, chewing thoughtfully. The heap of corpses here entirely lost her to Ed’s scent. Most likely, she would have to move farther away and hope she caught the track elsewhere. But which direction to take…?
@Zeroth
"Oh," Yssil answered stunned. He couldn't possibly imagine Aerta ever having been stumped on something. She was just so...experienced. He didn't want to think of her as old, because she wasn't, but somehow she seemed to be. "Thank you for telling me that. Will we be doing more of the same, then?" he asked, curious.
Ineraz Evrenarth
Husband of: Sera @Pupperr and Zeldria @Saltwater ThiefInteracting with: His brides, mostly Sera
“Exactly,” Ineraz answered, feeling incredibly smug that he had brought such a delectably vengeful side out of his little one. Now he simply had to make use of it…
Just then another Drakkan guard came wandering into the sparsely furnished corridor they were occupying. The male’s eyes lit up, evidence that he found whom he was looking for, and he jogged up to Ineraz, offering him a sealed scroll.
“I was told to give this to you directly,” the male commented as he transferred the correspondence over to Ineraz, who accepted but didn’t yet glance at the scroll.
“Thank you,” Ineraz murmured. Then, before the guard could leave, he continued. “Senn,” he addressed the green-eyed Drakkan with cropped white hair “I will need you to watch over my brides instead of Thinil. He is required elsewhere,” he stated meaningfully and rather darkly.
Ineraz finally perused the scroll, and recognized the seal immediately. He grinned maniacally, a perturbing obsessive glint appearing in his eyes. Sera, who was closest to him, might notice that his expression was somehow similar to when he had been conversing with her, though his desire this time was less so tied to thoughts of carnal pleasure – not that he’d exclude that entirely, but it wasn’t a priority in this case. Ineraz quickly recovered, assuming a neutral demeanour as he stashed the missive on the inside of his leather vest.
He put his arm around Sera and once again murmured to her shortly. “We can play with him in the dungeons. It will be slightly dark and damp, but I hope you won’t have as much a problem with it as you did with the cellar. Wouldn’t want something like that to detract from the fun,” he leaned down a bit more and offered a short reassuring peck to her neck. Expecting her to follow, he strolled purposefully toward Thinil. The dark-haired guard had his light hazel eyes averted, though any guilt that one might presume from his posture alone was belied by his flaring nostrils and lips pressed tightly into a line. Ineraz put a warning hand around the nape of his neck, keeping his grip firm, and turned towards Zeldria and Senn.
“I have a matter requiring my attention,” Ineraz asserted coolly. He didn’t much care whether Zeldria and the new guard knew he was about to punish the other Drakkan or not. “Wait for me in the nearest sitting room. I shall return soon and then we are going to the market,” he directed this to Zeldria, then looked at the other guard. “Senn, find a replacement for guarding the front doors. I hope you will not be as remiss in your Gem-watching as Thinil here has been,” Ineraz delivered the last sentence very dryly, obviously still quite unhappy with the guard who had dared make an attempt at punishing Sera in his stead.
He let his gaze fall on Sera once again and beckoned her to follow him. They silently maneuvered through several corridors until they reached a medium-sized but unassuming iron doorway which opened into a long and winding staircase; a different one than Sera and Ineraz had taken the previous night to reach the cellar. This one was slightly wider and led deeper underground, and although it was somewhat better lit, the visibility still wasn’t impressive. The dungeon itself, however, was. The walls here were also made of grey stone, but the material was a darker, sturdier, and rougher one. The entirety of the floor was packed dirt which added to the distinctly earthy scent of the dungeons.
The staircase deposited them directly inside a rectangular room occupied by a single Drakkan guard, an older but vicious and wild looking individual with long white tangled hair and a somewhat better kept beard, who was sitting at a wooden table to the left. He appeared rather bored and was polishing a sword lazily. He barely looked at the arrivals, and only grunted when he saw Ineraz, not even giving a second glance to the Gem or the Drakkan guard who were with him, and returned to his task. This room was practically littered with torture implements, some hanging from thick rusty nails set into the walls, while others were simply placed on the floor or on display inside sturdy wooden cabinets. The equipment was thoroughly cleaned, though frequent use had left some obviously a bit worse for wear. But the implements were all perfectly well usable, not the least because replacing them was a simple matter. The dirt floor which was harder to take care of had several visible blood stains of various ages splattered around it and the iron scent meshed quite nicely with the natural dampness and earthy terrain that were predominant here.
Ineraz picked up a single whip and took one of the cell keys, never releasing Thinil who was apparently just slightly nervous now, then opened another iron door into a long spanning corridor lined with cells. There were several intersections opening to other similar corridors and the path Ineraz led them down would seem labyrinthine to a stranger such as Sera.
It was but a few minutes until they arrived at a cell just like any other and Ineraz unlocked it, roughly pushed Thinil in by increasing the pressure on his neck, waited until Sera stepped inside, then locked it back up. Once locked, the cells would be soundproof, though each door had a small lockable window any guard could use to check in on the prisoners. The cell was small and barren and could either be left entirely dark or very poorly lit. The fact that it was lit now was simply for Ineraz’s and Sera’s sake. Ominously, the only items in the cell were sturdy iron chains and shackles nailed into the walls.
After that little detour, Ineraz led Sera back to the first dungeon room, where the elder Drakkan and the other torture implements were. He returned the whip and the key, ensured that someone would look after Thinil’s wounds properly and release him from the cell. With that done, he walked back to the first floor leisurely with Sera at his side. He searched for the room Zeldria was in and left Sera with her, Senn now in charge of watching them both.
“As soon as I return we shall head to the market,” he informed his brides. Then, he turned on his heel, and strode with purpose towards his study, where he knew he would have some privacy.
The study was small and plain, containing only a desk, a chair behind it, two bookcases, and a dark coloured settee which had seen better days. There was a single landscape painting hanging on the wall behind his desk, and several hunting trophies were mounted on the walls. Three smaller trophies were on his desk; one was an intricately carved black hoof serving as a paper-weight, another was a capped-off curled and hollowed horn sitting upright which had been designed as a rather fancy ink-holder, and the last was a somewhat more innocuous set of a wooden case lined with very fine fur on the inside, which held a high-quality quill pen the colour of steel grey and flecked with shimmering greens, fashioned from the feather of a noble but dangerous bird of prey.
Ineraz sat behind the ebony desk, and carefully took out the scroll he had received, taking his time to just observe the seal of Kereg-Kor. He opened the missive carefully and couldn’t help breaking out in a pleased laugh. Not only was Keregar the best Drakkan hunter and arguably the most vicious Warlord, he was also one of the oldest and most well-known members of their society. And for such person to express an interest in him…Ineraz traced the signature reverently, letting himself enjoy the moment of simple pleasure and excitement at being recognized for a short while.
Then, Ineraz composed himself with a sigh. There were political implications to this as well. Keregar was an individual who obviously favoured the elder prince, while Ineraz’s father was, as far as he knew, closer to the younger one and likely intended for the whole Evrenarth family to swear allegiance to him when the time was right. It wouldn’t do for his father to perceive any meeting with Keregar or future arrangements Ineraz might have as a betrayal. No, if Ineraz were to have any sort of contact with the Warlord of Kereg-Kor (perhaps even accompany the elder Drakkan to his estate as one of the chosen few, Ineraz dared hope), it would have to be entirely non-political. With a silent sigh, Ineraz wrote a letter of his own, choosing his wording carefully. He wanted his father to know the state of things. And as much as Ineraz sometimes genuinely loathed the man, he still respected him. And truthfully, he was intrigued by the younger prince’s ideas as well if not particularly charmed by what he knew of his demeanour. Meeting Keregar and perhaps even going to Kereg-Kor would not change that.
And if Ineraz had memorized the scent carried by the scroll, that was only for him to know. He did ensure to destroy Keregar’s missive as he wouldn’t want to leave such a thing lying around, and he most certainly couldn’t afford to keep it on his person at all times. He was well aware that the Warlord of Kereg-Kor wouldn’t be impressed by any kind of worship. Ineraz did not believe that acting with his usual professionalism would be any hardship; he did not like the man or even agree with him, he simply held a great deal of respect for him, or rather, for his hunting pursuits.
He stashed the letter he had written for his father on his person just as he had Keregar’s scroll, unlocked the room’s door, and went from the second to the third floor, where his father’s study was. There was a guard standing outside – there always was at least one, regardless of whether his father was inside or even in Železna Kri at all. Ineraz handed the letter which was sealed with the Evrenarth coat-of-arms to the guard.
“For my Lord father,” Ineraz commented. The male guard took it without even glancing at the message and knocked swiftly on the door. Ineraz barely concealed the sharp intake of breath he took, his blood freezing cold for the brief second where his heart stuttered twice, then returned to its usual beat, though he was still wildly surprised at the fact that his father was apparently at the estate, and he hadn’t even known since when that had been the case.
“My Lord wishes to see you,” the soot-skinned dark-eyed and dark-haired male Drakkan guard informed him.
Ineraz composed himself with a breath and entered one of the manor’s most opulent rooms. It was done in the same rustic style as the rest of the rooms, only much richer and despite the obvious decadence it was very tastefully composed. There was a wide, beautifully carved and elegant desk standing opposite the entrance, eight bookshelves arranged around the desk, an alcohol cabinet worthy of jealousy not far from where Na’ir was perusing several documents at his work-space, a seemingly new royal blue settee to the left of the doorway which was decorated with a variety of shimmering silken fabrics and comfortable pillows, and was partially hidden behind a delicately placed golden-coloured partition. There were four chairs in the room, one occupied by Ineraz’s father and three empty ones in front Na’ir’s desk. Barely visible between two bookshelves was a seemingly nondescript wooden door. The walls and floor were a light grey stonework but were mostly covered by an eclectic array of paintings, tapestries, rugs, and even a few potted plants here and there. All of the wooden furniture was a matching dark mahogany.
Na’ir himself managed to appear professional despite practically being sprawled in his chair, smoking his thin pipe elegantly. His clothing was a combination of black and teal with golden trimmings fitting nicely with the healthy tan of his skin-tone (a contrast to Ineraz’s own snowy pallor) and the dark brown of his upward curling horns, his hair a shade lighter and hanging almost to his waist in a mix of dreadlocks and braids. This was a man who obviously appreciated his creature comforts, but if anyone were fool enough to assume he was not a threat, they would not live long enough to be even able to consider otherwise, much less regret their mistake. Perhaps it was simply because Ineraz knew him well enough, but to him the intelligent and coolly assessing gleam in his father’s eyes conveyed everything. This was a Drakkan more than deserving of his title as a Warlord, and someone who could and would rip just about anyone to shreds whether with words or actions – if he had cause to. Currently, Na’ir was tapping lightly at a missive, one that Ineraz recognized as his own, and the older Drakkan’s usual amused smile, cultured demeanour, and knowing gaze were fully present.
“Father,” Ineraz greeted carefully, perhaps a bit stiffly. His gaze landed uncomfortably on the message which he had written to inform Na’ir of his future meeting with the Warlord of Kereg-Kor.
“This is not entirely unexpected,” Na’ir went straight to the business. “I wish you had discussed it with me, but I dare say you are now truly independent,” his tone was as light and non-threatening as ever, however Ineraz couldn’t help but feel that there was a hint of mockery and condescension in it.
Before he could say anything whatsoever in his defence or as an explanation, his father continued. “You should know that if you ever find yourself on the opposite side of the battle-field I will not hesitate to cut you down. Neither will any of your brothers,” this time, he was cuttingly firm. His smile however had not yet slipped and Ineraz wondered if he ever felt the strain in his cheek muscles from keeping up the unnecessarily pleasant façade.
“Now.” Ineraz thought he might be dismissed, but there was just the hint of someth- “I have heard how you punished one of my guards,” Na’ir stated dryly, raising an amused eyebrow. Ineraz inhaled sharply and his eyes widened just a fraction, but it was more than enough for his father to catch and understand his surprise.
His sire chuckled richly and Ineraz shivered minutely. “Yes, I have found out already. This is my manor,” he stated. Ineraz refrained from sighing even though he was beginning to see where this was going. “If I truly hadn’t been here, as you so obviously believed, you would have got away with your mistake,” Na’ir said with what passed fairly well for regret, but his subtle emphasis on that last word belied his tone.
“Your misconception, not to mention hypocrisy,” he drawled, disappointment now clear, “requires you to be punished,” he stated, pausing for a moment as he apparently considered how he would do so. “The same methods you have had the guard undergo, I believe.” Na’ir’s honeyed smile could have misled the most feral of killer bees. Ineraz however had to work rather hard to contain a wince or a scowl. Instead, he squared his shoulders and looked his father straight in the eyes.
“I understand,” he assured as calmly as he managed. Considering what was to come, he thought it was a very respectable attempt. And it was probably only due to one of his deeply hidden desires that made Ineraz think he saw a hint of pride in Na’ir’s stormy grey eyes for the span of a single second.
Na’ir smoothly stood up, not ruffling a single document out of its place, and walked with very efficient movements toward the other door, the one positioned between two bookshelves, and opened it, revealing what Ineraz already knew to be the Drakkan’s private torture chamber. Because of course he had to keep such a thing up here. Compared to the dungeons, this room was much cleaner, better lit, and had less implements for causing torment, but it served its purpose. Na’ir considered it the punishing room, which he mostly used to correct his sons’ behaviour when they truly crossed a line. After Ineraz followed his father inside, the door closed behind them with a soft click.
~
When Na’ir was done, Ineraz was glad for the chains. And though the gag muffled his cries (and prevented him from accidentally biting off his tongue), there was no such thing as stopping the damnable tears once his father went well past his pain tolerance. Na’ir was nothing if not fair – Ineraz had made a guard of his cry, and his father followed exactly the same procedure; he had had him bound, whipped, cut, and burned just a bit. Now, he was applying a soothing herbal mixture by rubbing it into his back, and as helpful as it would be for his wounds, it didn’t make Ineraz scream any less. Soon after, he was bandaged and unbound. Ineraz felt rather faint and trembled with the effort it took to stay standing up.
“I suggest you hurry up and go to your meeting place. The Warlord of Kereg-Kor isn’t one to be left idly waiting,” Na’ir’s tone was the picture of neutrality, and having said that he simply made his exit. Ineraz was grateful his father hadn’t made more of a fuss or used the opportunity to humiliate him any further.
Shakily, he put on his cloth shirt and the upper part of his leather armour, took several moments to regain his breathing, and used his water elemental control to rid himself of sweat and tears. Then he hastily left, going past his father in his study room without a word, and made his way to the nearest empty guest room to make use of a mirror. The thought that his eyes might be puffy almost made him laugh hysterically. Thankfully, his appearance was easily enough corrected, though his posture was now more rigid and his gait just a hint slower. It would have to do.
Pushing the burning and throbbing pain of his back muscles to a corner of his mind, Ineraz proceeded with the day’s plans and went to fetch his brides. They were ensconced with Senn in a quaint sitting room on the ground floor. Ineraz barely glanced at any of them as he entered and simply said “We’re going.” Then he turned, guiding them to the backyard.
From nearby the outside training grounds Ineraz picked up some of the weapons he had left there, taking his sword and bow alongside the dagger and hunting knife he rarely went without. As much as it added to his pain to carry the bow and quiver full of arrows strapped over his back, that was simply not something he could go without for meeting with the greatest hunter of Drakka.
Finally, he led them to the stables on the other side of the backyard, where he arranged for a wagon and four of his hounds to go along. The Gems could ride inside the wagon if they so wished, and doing so would certainly give them some privacy, but the scent of animals lingered heavily because the vehicle had often been used to transport captured beasts, slain prey, and his hounds’ pups. He let the hounds, who were large and bulky enough to easily reach the Gems’ knees and top their mass get briefly acquainted with his brides, but was unusually quiet for what would otherwise be an intriguing occasion to him. An hour or so before his scheduled meeting their little group made it to the market, where he would let his brides choose whichever clothing they desired, as long as they picked at least some that would be practical. Either way, he had final say on any piece they might pick out, though he didn’t intend to object too much. He had to conserve what little energy he had right now and prepare mentally for the meeting with Warlord Keregar of Kereg-Kor.
Yssil frowned as he watched the much smaller and rather shabby water-elemental appear next to Aerta. He turned more fully towards Aerta as he listened to her list the possible ranks of summoned or conjured elementals. "That...is honestly very disappointing that I've managed to produce only the weakest one," he sighed forlornly. "I thought I was much better in magic. Is it because I'm not suited to the ritualistic kind or because I lack training in it?" he queried.
Asteria
Even though this attempt seems to have been a failure, at least one skill has progressed…how frustrating that I don’t know which one, Asteria thought as she contemplated the latest system message. I’ll definitely have to work on my strength and dexterity somehow. After that it’s probably just daily practice. So, a significant time investment for a human-esque posture, she sighed silently. But at least her attempt had provided very valuable information, not the least of which was that her paws seemed to be strong enough that she’d be able to grab and hold onto an enemy while using her signature bite attack multiple times in quick succession.
Even more determined to work through the day on the skills she apparently lacked in severly, Asteria approached her sister, who was just finishing with her breakfast. “Well, that was informative,” she commented regarding her attempt at standing upright and fighting as a “proper” warrior. She noticed Mei seemed to be rooting through the lizard’s corpse even though she was done eating, as if searching for something. “What are you doing?” Asteria asked her sister curiously, her head cocked to the side as she watched her sibling’s attempts at…dissecting the creature? Perhaps her former medical skills would help Mei in whatever it was she was trying to achieve.
As Asteria looked on at her sister messing around with the lizard corpse, she considered the day’s plans. They could follow Mother again, and that may be what Mei would want to do seeing as she had been the one to start doing so the previous day. Asteria wouldn’t mind that, because they might learn something new, or at the very least, get another successful monster kill as a group. However, at the back of her mind, she had the niggling worry about what consequences Mei’s attack on another former human would have for them. Asteria had already given up on the two Wisps as lost causes; those two had surely already decided to attack them on sight. But the other Dire rat they had met might believe that what happened was all just a very unfortunate misunderstanding, which is exactly what it had been. If at all possible, Asteria wanted to track down Edward and see if he could be convinced that Asteria and Mei weren’t just some mindless psychos or something. The question was if Mei felt up to seeking out the other Dire rat or not. Well, that, and the cave was honestly such a volatile environment that they might yet again get distracted by whichever enemy happened upon them this time to try and end their lives.
@Jobst
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