khorne
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Linked Characters: Igostrom
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Post by khorne on May 18, 2019 21:15:56 GMT
Igostrom had roamed the land for a few years now. He had been to big cities, small towns, hamlets, everywhere. He yearned to fulfill his master's final wish, and find someone worthy of being his new master. His master's death had been so long ago, but he could still remember it like it had happened 5 minutes ago. It burned in the back of his mind. He could remember...
Igostrom was surrounded by death. Hundreds of fresh bodies, combined with the moans and screams of the wounded, and the dying. Men crying out for their wives, their children, their mothers. They littered the ground all around him. Those who weren't wounded were rushing about, carrying wounded to healers and the dead to mass graves. The stench of burning bodies was thick in the air. Igostrom himself was in rough shape. His armor that once gleamed was dull, completely covered in scratches and dents. His right flank of his human body was bleeding, and he was covered in numberless minor bruises, cuts, and even burns. He should have been in agonizing physical pain, but all he could focus on was Lord Biggsby, laying in his arms, bleeding out into the already blood-soaked dirt. Most of the right side of Biggsby's torso was completely gone, it was a wonder he wasn't already dead. Igostrom had been sprinting at top speed for the nearest of the hastily set up clinics, when he felt Biggsby grab his arm tightly.
"Igostrom... Stop... It's too late for me."
He looked down to see the source of the voice coming from Biggsby, who was in no condition to be awake or speaking, or even alive for that matter.
"My lord, please, save your strength! It's not too late, we have healers read-"
"NO! Igostrom, no healer can undo a wound of this magnitude..." Biggsby took a moment to cough and wretch violently, coughing up blood. "Listen to me carefully, my loyal servant. I am proud of you, I always have been. Ever since I met you in that forest, orphaned, and raised you, I have been filled with pride at what you have become. You were the son I never had. And I have one last request of yo-" Biggsby coughed up more blood, clearly only seconds from death at this point. "You must find a new rider, one worthy of your strength and skill. You will bind yourself to them, as you have to me. This, is my final wish. Do not concern yourself with the land, my brother will be a fine leader. Igostrom... Do as I ask. It is... an... order.........."
At this, Biggsby faded into death, his eyes drooping, and his body going limp. Igostrom couldn't do anything but cry. He screamed to the sky, far louder than the sounds around him. He staggered back to the camp, slowly realizing his own wounds. They were nothing, however, compared to his emotional pain he felt. He wanted to tear every orc asunder, until they were extinct as a species. He wanted... He wanted... He fell to the ground right at the camp entrance, as healers rushed to meet him there.
Igostrom snapped back to reality as he bumped into a merchant's cart, knocking some goods off the cart. As he sincerely apologized and helped to pick them back up, he mulled about his thoughts. He went over every potential person he had met in his travels, all of them failures. They had all either died, disgraced themselves, or not proven worthy. There was no one... no on-
Wait.
It's her. Of course! Kara! Why didn't he think of her earlier? Igostrom finished helping the merchant with renewed vigour, then rushed off to The Grumpy Badger, where he had first met her. He bolted down the street, jumping clear over market stalls and other obstacles in his way. He was excited. He was vigourous. He had found her!
All was as normal in The Grumpy Badger. Patrons sat around the tavern, making joy, drowning sorrows, the usual. Someone who would have been paying close attention, and had been by the door would have heard a faint *clomp clomp clomp* get closer and closer, louder and loude- BAM! The door to the tavern flew open, almost off its hinges entirely, with a large hoofprint now embedded into the wood. A massive centaur had burst into the tavern, eyes wide, scanning the entire room, as he mumbled to himself:
"karakarakarakarakarakarakarakaraKARA!"
He finished his mumbling as he found Kara in her usual place, at the opposite end of the tavern. He hurriedly made his way over, but was rather hindered as he had to wade through a number of people and tables.
"Kara! I nee- scuse' me- I need to talk- sorry- importa- pardon me- THING- coming through-" He finally finished making his way through the room, and grabbed Kara by the shoulders, looking directly into her eyes with a mixture of pure joy and excitement.
"KARA! Please, be my rider!"
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Jarovbees
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Playing: Solstice (Paladin 6)/Umbrae (Sorcerer 1/Warlock 4)/Avren Wands (Rogue 2/Sorcerer 1)
Posts: 706
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Post by Jarovbees on May 19, 2019 0:04:50 GMT
Solstice was seated at the bar with a clear view of the front door; not out of wariness, but curiosity and the fact that she was meeting Dhaunmyr and Kara to see this new home of theirs. Should she have brought a housewarming gift? Perhaps a belated one could work, since she honestly hadn't considered it until now. Hoping their new abode would be near her own, she perked up and waved as soon as she saw her shorter human friend...only for a centaur to burst in moments later and make a beeline for Kara himself. The attention in the room shifted from her presence to his almost instantly, and she couldn't blame them. There were even less centaurs in Waterdeep than firbolgs, apparently.
Her blue eyes widened as she looked him over, all sorts of questions surfacing, but his excited (and to be honest, rather loud) request caught her genuinely off-guard. Did centaurs usually accept or even allow riders? For all her time in the Feywild, she hadn't spent any quality time with that race in particular, and so she couldn't come up with an answer herself. But the fact that he was requesting it of Kara, one of the first people she'd met in Waterdeep and a person of proven merit, warmed her heart. Abandoning her order for now, the firbolg woman shamelessly listened in and joined the conversation.
"A rider, eh?" Her eyes were agleam with enthusiasm and pride, her Sylvan brogue very evident though she spoke in Common for the sake of her human friend. "If anyone can pull that off, it'd be Kara. You have excellent taste, good sir."
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Citrine
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6 Wild Blooded Sorcerer+ 1 Celestial Warlock
Posts: 328
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Post by Citrine on May 19, 2019 0:36:21 GMT
S itting there at one of the tables prior to this extraordinary outburst, was a pirate duo known to travel the bars and pubs together. Citrine and Amelia. Citrine was in her usual pub crawling aesthetic, leather, half corset, billowy shirt that left her back open for obvious reasons, and a more subdued version of her Captain's hat. Amelia was the same sort, but went for the greens and black instead of Citrine's red and gold. The duo were sitting confident on one side of the table while two others, both men, were growing in frustration on the other side. A deck of cards were spread out between all four. "Ye're cheatin!" One of the men exclaimed. "Proove et jou silly man." Amelia's cool island accent countered back, a long cigar in-between her fingers. Their argument over drinks and cards was postponed by the thudding, pub shaking, opening of the door. Clacking of hooves drew every eye in the room and Citrine's eye rose in confirmation. There weren't many centaurs in Waterdeep. "Oi, Aye've met teh lad before." She muttered to Amelia, who just nodded and continued to stare at the fact a centaur had come bursting in. He went up to the bar and a few of the locals there seemed to know him. A smaller girl was grabbed by the shoulders while a firbolg beamed happily. Citrine cocked her head, she'd not met those two before and had a wonder about what would bring a firblog... Oh by teh SeaShe'd spotted Dhaunmyr finally, seeing him next to the firblog. "Oi! Met him tae! He owes me ah night out come tae think o' et..." She grinned as she continued to whisper to Ameila. Contrary to the night she'd talked to the dark elf before she was much less drunk, not crispy in the wings, and very much more level headed. "Five gold teh smol one, tha' she say nou." Amelia patted her hip where her coin purse was, interrupting Citrine's comment on Dhaunmyr. "Ye think she's say nae?" She suddenly snickered at her own horse pun. "Nae." She snickered again. "She'll say 'Aye'. Double o' nothin'."
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Post by enchilada on May 19, 2019 0:57:04 GMT
Dhaunmyr had really done his best to make conversation with Solstice, but he was... she made him feel a little awkward. He felt obligated to be genuine around her, down to earth, but he couldn’t do it, not yet. In honesty, he didn’t feel like she would have been able to put up with his bullshit for very long. It was a weird hunch. But she was kind, and she was friends with Kara. So he wanted to be friendly with her.
But what was he supposed to talk to her about? Like, Kara? That was weird, and, crossing her off the list, he was all out of ideas.
And, unfortunately, the second he got to the bar, he ordered the strongest thing he could. It didn’t last long.
Then, a whole horse crashed into the room. Was that allowed? Is that allowed? OH, shoot. That was a... man, on a horse, except that was one entity. It was a shame, he had a nice body. Until he became horse. Then it was a horse. And that was the voice of — Eilistraee was testing him! That was the only answer.
The test was: don’t freak out and get fucking arrested.
Of course, he went straight for Kara, his friend Kara. He knew Kara. Well. It couldn’t get worse? He couldn’t think of anything that was in the realm of possibility to make things worse, so there was that working in his favour.
You know, he really felt like shouting Kara like that was a kind of him thing. He sighed. “Solstice? Miss Sols — what the fuck is he talking about?”
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Post by moralhazard on May 19, 2019 1:38:46 GMT
Kara was back at the Grumpy Badger. It wasn’t her favorite inn, although she thought the innkeeper was growing used to her. He largely ignored her these days, other than grudgingly asking her back for shifts. The best and worst part was that the Grumpy Badger was largely quiet. Other than one firey drunk she’d had to throw out, she mostly just spent her shifts standing and staring out over the room, occasionally helping the bartender explain to someone that, no, they couldn’t have another drink, or helping a drunk patron to their rooms.
Kara sighed.
Her eyes wandered the room. There was a woman who looked like a bird playing cards at the back; Solstice and Dhaunmyr were sitting at the bar, waiting for her. Their new house wasn’t too far from where Solstice and Toby did. She doubted Toby wanted to see her, particularly, but she thought Solstice did, which was nice.
Kara sighed again.
Another quiet shift. She’d go home soon, though. Home. It was a nice word and a nicer thought. Kara was glad to have a home again. It had been – a long time. Her eyes drifted over the room again, and settled on the door as it –
Flew open?
A familiar looking centaur charged in, and he was – calling her name? Kara stared, hands loose at her side, her glaive against the wall behind her. Igostrom charged for her – his hands were reaching out – Kara held herself as still as she could physically manage, jaw clenched so tightly a vein throbbed against her jaw, as Igostorm grasped her shoulders, gazed down into her her eyes and asked her to – ride him?
Carefully – slowly – Kara shrugged her shoulders, reaching up to take his hands off of her. She stepped back, very slightly; it was hard to look so much up at him. Only once those two problems had been dealt with did she think about what the centaur had – had actually said. Be his… rider? Kara could feel the eyes of the entire room on them both. She couldn’t really think straight; she didn’t understand what Igostrom was asking. What did that even mean?
Kara scowled at the centaur, flustered, upset and embarrassed. “I’ve already ridden you,” she told him.
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khorne
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Linked Characters: Igostrom
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Post by khorne on May 19, 2019 1:59:40 GMT
Igostrom was too excited to notice anyone else in the tavern except Citrine, who was REALLY hard to miss, but he noticed Kara was a bit taken aback by his behavior, so he would have to change a little bit. Explain some stuff.
"Well, yes, but this is different. Here, let's sit down and I'll explain everything." Igostrom found the nearest empty table and sat down at it, which is pretty much the same as lying down for him. He beckoned Kara over to him. "Way back when, years ago, when I was just a small baby, a roving band of orcs killed my parents. My former lord, Charles Biggsby, saved my life from that encounter. He raised me himself, and I served him as a knight and a mount for quite a while. Many times we had to beat back orc hordes from his lands, but one day they finally claimed his life in battle, giving me this in the process, to remember them by." Igostrom lifted up the right side of his shirt to reveal a large scar across the right of his belly. "I would have been the next in line as his adopted son for his lands, but he had a final request for me, as I held him dying in my arms. He wanted me to find someone new to call master, to be my Rider, who I would swear an oath to and follow into the depths of the Nine Hells, much as I did for Biggsby." Igostrom clasped Kara's hands in his. "Kara. I have been searching for 7 years for a Rider. Someone who would be worthy. You have strength of body and spirit, and you are the only candidate I've ever met who didn't either die in combat or dishonored themselves. I need this, Kara. I need you. I would follow you anywhere, just say the word."
Igostrom had calmed down a lot after explaining all that, and started to notice some of the more eccentric bar patrons, including Citrine. Hm, might say hi after this.
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Jarovbees
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Playing: Solstice (Paladin 6)/Umbrae (Sorcerer 1/Warlock 4)/Avren Wands (Rogue 2/Sorcerer 1)
Posts: 706
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Post by Jarovbees on May 19, 2019 2:28:00 GMT
Solstice, glancing back to Dhaunmyr shrugged. She couldn't say she had any firmer grasp of the situation than him, but couldn't help but like the centaur's enthusiasm, and approved of his interest in Kara. Though whether or not that remained so depended on Kara herself, as she didn't seem nearly as enthusiastic in response. "Haven't the faintest clue, lad. Let's listen in."
She stood by, seemingly not offended at the centaur being too excited to notice anyone else yet. Why would she be, when he's explaining himself now? The firbolg shamelessly followed and crossed her arms, absorbing the story as it was spun before her. She winced in sympathy a mention of lost parents...one thing they had in common. As the centaur revealed his scar, Solstice raised her eyebrows and nodded. "That's a right nasty one, there." She spoke softly, not wanting to interrupt the flow of the story. At mention of swearing an oath, she tilts her head. A paladin like herself, perhaps? As much as she wanted to ask, Solstice instead looked to Kara to see what she thought of all this. It seemed like a high honor, at least to the centaur.
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Citrine
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6 Wild Blooded Sorcerer+ 1 Celestial Warlock
Posts: 328
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Post by Citrine on May 19, 2019 3:32:36 GMT
L eaning closer, unashamably eavesdropping on the not so private, quite loud, events taking hold in front of them Citrine shushed the other two card players with a dismissive wave of her hand. "Aye, en ah sec boy-o's."It was a story that tugged on the heartstrings. No many how many times she'd heard someone experience something like it, it was painful to hear. Whistling, a long quiet sound when the scar was revealed (she couldn't see it, but she could imagine it well enough), the firebird leaned over Amelia's shoulder - engrossed in the story and events. When Igostrom looked around the bar, as if realizing he wasn't alone for the first time, she grinned and gave a mage hand thumbs up. She had no idea precisely what was going on, the implications of such a proposal - but it was a proposal nonetheless. But she supported what was going on 100%. And? She loved proposals. The drama, the flourishes, the results of boundless wooing. She touched the ring around her neck, a stupid smile on her face. Soon.
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Post by enchilada on May 19, 2019 7:47:00 GMT
Dhaunmyr twisted the rings around his fingers. Nineteen in total. He had wanted a round number, but it made the whole thing look unplanned and gaudy in a styleless way. As we all knew, Dhaunmyr was not a man of non-style. But he was one who struggled with a lot of social interactions, and it turned out, he struggled when his best friend was randomly asked something clearly very important and personal, right in front of him. This was of course a Kara thing, completely up to her, but he didn’t want it to be. He didn’t want it to be a thing full stop. This sounded a lot like a very close personal relationship.
He ordered another drink. Of course, that was fine, Kara could do what she wanted and he could do what he wanted. That was the setup, it was the way things were supposed to be. If she could put up with him sighing along to recounting his meeting with the cute boy of the week, and going out and not coming home and knowing very much so what he was doing, especially drunk, and especially alone, and especially in... danger, quite frankly... he could deal with something that looked completely positive and friendly and maybe a little dangerous? But in a battle, on purpose kind of way. Kara loved that stuff, didn’t she?
But this man was ignorant.
Dhaunmyr wasn’t sure if Kara would jerk away from him, or say something, or hit him. In honesty, she probably did not need to instigate violence. He finished the dregs of his first drink, took the second in jewelled hand, and did his absolute best to block out Citrine as he took shortened steps in his light blue, heavily patterned, pleated skirt. It wasn’t that it was tight around his legs, just that he was a little concerned for the slit and he needed at least a few more seconds to cool off.
He shouldn’t really care about all this that much.
Sipping his drink, Dhaunmyr danced a long, graceful hand over the man’s shoulder, and down his arm to his wrist. “Stop touching her, and continue your... whatever this is. You could do with learning to read people. Now, I don’t want to interrupt, so, pretend I was just a fancy magic voice in your ear.” And, satisfied, he pulled back, ready to dance away again. Well, perhaps a little less graceful in shoes like these, but he would try.
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Post by moralhazard on May 19, 2019 14:21:40 GMT
Kara scowled at Igostrom. She was working - right now, she was at work, and the innkeeper at the Grumpy Badger already didn’t like her. Kara glanced around the room - well, at least there wasn’t any trouble because every single eye in the room was on her already. She scowled harder.
Kara grabbed her glaive off the wall - the motion was quick and rough, but her hand as it closed around the glaive was almost tender. She brought it to the table Igostom had chosen, propping it against her chair and the edge, and sat. There wasn’t even the slightest hint of reclining or relaxation in her posture; she sat bolt upright, the angles of her body as stiff as if she had been measured, small scarred hands resting on the table.
Igostrom began to explain. The frown on Kara’s face deepened as she listened. She focused on the name Biggsby; he was clearly important to Igostrom. And - orcs. Orcs has killed the centaur’s parents, orcs were what he had grown up fighting. Kara nodded, fractionally. Her gaze dropped to the scar on his side, and her jaw tightened. She nodded again, the gesture a little bigger this time; it was a surprise he’d survived the wound that had left that.
But Kara knew a thing or two about surviving orcs.
Then the subject seemed to change a lot, and very (for Kara) abruptly. There was something about an oath and the nine hells, and then Igostrom’s hands were covering hers. Kara’s whole body went stiff and tense again, the vein along her jaw tensing again. Sitting, with her small arms above the table, the corded muscles that stood out against tanned and scarred skin were very visible, bulging in the dull light of the tavern.
He needed this? He needed - her? Kara scowled at Igostrom, confused, upset, and frankly embarrassed. He was offering to - follow her? Kara had no idea what to say, and she just - stared at the centaur, still scowling, her hands tight knots beneath his enormous one.
Dhaunmyr came over - his dark hand dancing down Igostrom’s arm was a shock, like two parts of her life meeting that Kara hadn’t expected. She jerked her hands back out of Igostrom’s grasp, using all the force she could muster, and this time hid them on her lap. She was a little sorry when Dhaunmyr turned to go; she wished he could make the whole rest of this go away as well.
Igostrom was still waiting for her answer. Kara dropped her gaze to the table, not quite able to look at him. What did he want from her? No, he had said that. To be his rider. What did that mean exactly? It was clearly not just physically riding him into battle, although it obviously included that as well.
Kara stared down at the table some more, focusing on the polished whorls in the wood. There was a little chip at the edge of it, she noticed, absently.
“Why have a rider?” Kara looked back up at Igostrom. Funny; she didn’t mind talking to him as much as she might have. Maybe it was being together in battle, but she didn’t worry that she would say the wrong thing, at least not yet. “You’re a good warrior.”
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khorne
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Linked Characters: Igostrom
Posts: 44
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Post by khorne on May 19, 2019 18:31:34 GMT
Igostrom barely felt the soft hand on his shoulder, his battle scars had numbed quite a few of his nerve endings, but he jumped a bit at the voice in his ear. He realized he was being forceful, and needed to back off some. He retracted his hands to his sides.
He was a good warrior? Well, he did know that. Not the best, nowhere near, but he could handle himself. But that wasn't what he needed. The wide smile slightly faded from his face into a warmer, more welcoming smile, as he began to speak more softly, more privately.
"Kara, I don't just need someone to fight with. Rider is more of an honorary title. What I need is purpose, Kara. I need guidance. To put it simply, I'm a soldier, Kara. Soldiers follow orders. My orders are... well, to find someone to give me more orders. You're great for that! You're a strong fighter, a wise commander, and just a great person!"
Igostrom looked down for a minute, then began to talk much quieter, so only those in the immediate vicinity, AKA Kara's friends, would know what he was saying. Unless they could read lips, that is. In which case, fuck.
"And... I know about your past. Not the whole story, what I know is you lost everything. I've seen it too many times in the eyes of young men. I can help you with that. More than most can. Even if you say no, I'll be there for you if you ever want to talk."
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Jarovbees
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Playing: Solstice (Paladin 6)/Umbrae (Sorcerer 1/Warlock 4)/Avren Wands (Rogue 2/Sorcerer 1)
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Post by Jarovbees on May 19, 2019 19:28:42 GMT
Dhaunmyr's interruption was met with an approving nod; for all that Solstice was fascinated by the centaur, she wanted her friend Kara to be comfortable as well and it was very obvious that she wasn't. She came to stand a bit closer to the shorter human woman, though refrained from physical interference unless it came to that. But since the centaur withdrew his touch, that was a good enough sign for the firbolg and she relaxed a bit.
Such praise lavished on Kara made her smile, though not as widely as before as she noted Kara's embarrassment. She couldn't disagree with any of those compliments, of course, and it warmed her heart to hear others see Kara as she deserved to be seen. He could tone it down, yes, but the firbolg woman agreed with the spirit of the message. If he could take Dhaunmyr's words to heart as well, as he seemed to, then that was a point in his favor.
Still, her gaze flitted back to Kara once again, thoughtful, before focusing on the centaur once more. She lowered her voice as well, not needing to speak to the entire tavern. "You seem a kind soul, and I can't fault you for your good taste. Kara's a fine lass. But there's no need to rush, is there? Some time to think about it might be appreciated, aye?" Her blue eyes meet Kara's, silently questioning if she'd rather Solstice stay out of this or would prefer she stuck around. Whatever the need in this instance, Solstice will provide.
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Post by enchilada on May 19, 2019 20:36:40 GMT
Solstice had the horse guy now. So he was being dealt with.
Cool.
Dhaunmyr pushed his way in between, back to him, and he crouched down in front of Kara. He just wanted to make something of a barrier between Kara and whoever this idiot was. He didn’t touch her, but if she needed it, his hands were hovering, as they usually did when he suspected something had upset her. “It’s okay, we’ll be home soon, okay? And if you want, you can think about all this later, but I... agree with Solstice. No rush. None at all, alright, dearest?”
He was creeped out by this stranger, to be honest. Dhaunmyr was rarely scared off by anyone, and he felt like he had a fairly good ability to judge people, but it just... he didn’t want to read the situation wrongly, especially since he knew he was a little sparked by some kind of protective... jealousy. Well, not jealousy, Dhaunmyr had Kara. But the thought that someone else came in and demanded such... dominating things from her — he hated that. How could this man just assume she would consent? He couldn’t imagine asking, otherwise. Not so loudly and suddenly, and definitely not in front of Dhaunmyr.
“Are you okay, sweetie?”
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Post by moralhazard on May 19, 2019 20:55:38 GMT
Kara stared at Igostrom. A strong fighter? Yes. She was; Kara knew that, and she was grateful for the strength that Helm had given her. Not grateful enough to take it for granted, of course; she worked hard on a daily basis to stay strong, and to grow even stronger. Perhaps it was better to say the strength that Helm had let her achieve.
A wise commander? Those words, when they registered, were met with a faint shake of Kara’s head. No, not that. It was the meanest luck that they had survived the attack of the orcs, luck and their own strength. A wiser commander would have – if Kara had known, she would have done it. But to call her a wise commander was… and a great person? Kara couldn’t imagine applying such words to herself. She wasn’t anything special; she was just – trying. All she could do was try, and it was all she did. It was enough for her, too, but – a great person?
And before she could process that, Igostrom kept going. He said he knew about her past – that she had lost everything. Kara flinched, visibly, pulling back away from his words as hard as she’d pulled back from his hands. Her jaw clenched. She had been staring at him, searching, trying to figure out what he was talking about – why her? – but she couldn’t – couldn’t do it any more. If she ever wanted to talk? If she talked – if she let it out – she would burst apart at the seams, all her insides would come loose and she would never be able to put herself back together again. Kara knew that, as well as she knew anything.
And how transparent was she, that he could see such things in her so easily? Kara’s hands were tight fists against her legs; her nails were cut close to her fingers, but what nail there was dug hard into her palms. She couldn’t stop, couldn’t make herself loose her hands; her gaze was fully fixed on the table and she was shaking, faintly, with the intensity of the emotions churning inside her. She hated feeling this way in public; she hated everything about this moment. It made her feel small and weak and powerless.
Solstice was asking Igostrom to wait, to give Kara time. Kara could just barely see Dhaunmyr putting himself between her and the centaur, as if he could defend her. Kara squeezed her eyes shut, not wanting to see her friend’s familiar, graceful hands. She could hear him anyway, asking gently if she was okay.
What was wrong with her? Kara’s jaw was clenched so hard that aches ran up both sides of her head, throbbing in her temples. Igostrom was a strong warrior. She wouldn’t have minded riding him into battle again. But to be his commander? Kara couldn’t – she couldn’t –
She was afraid. It lanced through her like a blow, and Kara shuddered with her whole body. She was afraid. If she said yes – if she agreed to guide Igostrom – if she got him killed. Her mistakes had cost so many lives already. Kara knew she had always tried her best, but her best wasn’t always good enough, hadn’t ever been good enough, not really, not to save – there was nothing she could have done, but that didn’t make her failures any easier to swallow.
But Kara had never let fear rule her. She wouldn’t start now.
Kara’s eyes opened first, and she took a long, deep breath. Her hands unclenched, slowly. Her nails, short as they were, had cut four bloody crescents into each palm, and she kept them tucked under the table and out of sight, knowing it would upset Dhaunmyr.
“It’s all right,” Kara said, quietly. Her voice was hoarse and strained, almost as bad as it had been the last time Igostrom had seen her, after the battle against the orcs. She took a long, deep breath, another one, settling slowly, and looked up, at Dhaunmyr first, then Solstice. “Let me,” Kara shook her head, wanting them to step aside.
She turned her gaze back to Igostrom, looking at him across the table. There was no redness or moisture about her eyes, no sign of tears. Once a decision was made, it was always easier. “I’m not a commander,” Kara said, slowly, choosing her words as carefully and deliberately as ever. She took another breath, careful and slow and even. She couldn’t respond to anything Igostrom had said about her past; she couldn’t. Not now, and maybe not ever.
“And no one but you can give you your purpose,” Kara rose, slowly; one small hand pressed against the table, leaving bloody streaks in its wake. Sitting, Igostrom had a good deal of height on her still; with him sitting and Kara standing, she could look him properly in the eyes. She did so now. “But if you want me to lead you into battle against the orcs," Kara swallowed, taking another breath to control her trembling. "I will." She promised.
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Citrine
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6 Wild Blooded Sorcerer+ 1 Celestial Warlock
Posts: 328
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Post by Citrine on May 19, 2019 23:30:25 GMT
T he two men she and Amelia had been playing cards with, bored out of their minds, grabbed their drinks and tried to slight of hand nab some of the coins while the two women were preoccupied - only for an orange mage hand to pick up dinner dagger that'd been used earlier and brandish it point down center of the man's hand. Citrine didn't even look, "Be on ye way then lads." She cooed as the knife bobbed with the mage hand. Slipping his hand back the two retreated to a further table, not giving much whit about what was going on with the centaur. Citrine though? She was still engrossed in the events unfolding. At some point Igostrom lowered his voice and she lost what was being said. "Damn et ull." She muttered with a scowl, conflicting Amelia's slow grin and an extension of her hand. It seemed the darker skinned human had one the bet. But then? Kara spoke up again, steady and strong, and ultimately? Accepted the proposal of being a rider. Absently, in between her celebratory whistle that echoed through the pub, she wondered if it was like the relationship of the dragonkin and their riders in Spurnhorn. "Double 'o nothin', Lass, ye owe me 40 gold dragons." It seemed that despite the uncomfortableness brought on by the centaur's words, actions, or some combination of the two wasn't enough to dissway the shorter human. Swiveling back in her seat to forward face the firebird picked up her drink and began collecting the cards on the table though still keeping an ear towards the more lively group at the bar front.
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