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Post by Deleted on Sept 6, 2013 3:35:17 GMT
The crackling of the fire and the hissing of cooking food compliments the voices of the crickets and cicadas. It was the first night on the trail and an exciting one as well, but the day has passed and dusk swoops in where the sun once stood proud. They walked the explorer's path, friends for now, allies until betrayal. Pray that day never comes.
All things together in balance, as the world was meant to be. At least, for now.
Underneath his mask, Akiir's eyes shifted from fire to friend, back to fire. Even without his weapons equipped and his armor donned, Akiir was still a mystery. The mask still covers his face, and cloak still covers his body, five o'clock shadow and white skin bleeding through his clothes. He didn't hide who he was, his personality was never kept from the party, but his identity was worth more to him than all of the mithral in the world.
"So gentlemen, tell me a bit about yourselves. What brought you to Valencia, and what do you hope to accomplish before your God embraces you?" His voice raspy and thick. Muffled. Honest.
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Post by Malakim on Sept 6, 2013 15:20:05 GMT
Far back from the fire, Georic nervously sat, shying away from his compatriots whenever they drew too close. His face was a pockmarked ruin of scars and discoloration, having obviously suffered a horrific illness in the past, and he was thin and sickly to look at. During the day, he had spent nearly all his time far away from his companions, only returning to tell of obstacles and dangers ahead in a few words, before setting out again.
"Well, I was wandering the lands, seeing what The Lady wanted to show me, when she started to tell me of a small kingdom in this area that I should join. She's been wanting me to stop wandering her alone for quite some time now, so that I make friends other than her. That's why she helped us find that metal you said that they'd be so excited about" Georic said this in a rough, raspy voice, seeming to hurry through his words, almost mashing them together in his haste.
With a look on his face of near-surprise that he had talked so much, he ducked his head, wiping his hands along his trousers over and over again, seeming to calm a little with each pass, as though he was wiping away his concerns.
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Post by ezelli on Sept 6, 2013 17:31:46 GMT
His flimsier looking, lame leg stretched out before him while the other bent at the knee and touched his robed chest, Ezelli seemed as pre-occupied with thought as ever as the flames danced in his glassy eyes, his jaw twitching every so often, as if there were something within fighting hard to escape. He'd also kept to himself for much of the journey, even refusing help - as politely as might be possible for his kind - when offered it when the worst of the journeying commenced, mumbling in Draconic about some useless long nose when he was sure the tall ones couldn't hear. At least now, he made no effort to hide the pale, purple-pink scales coating his body - what was seen was seen once the worst of the day's hunt had gotten under way.
His eyes blinked once and his lengthy neck pivoted in Akiir's direction when he spoke, before the kobold relaxed enough to offer a response, keeping his voice barely above a whisper, as if he expected worse than a raccoon to accost them that night.
"Sirs... ah. Gentlemen. To serve, and to learn." every word was accented and deliberate, a foreigner trying his best to do a strange tongue justice. "Old master - No, lord. He was good, kind, and wise, but... stag-nate. Come-placent. Only so much to learn, living with him. Killing for him."
"Also... kobolds... there are not, how you say? Graceful hunters, or askers - always they are yelping, "'Zelli, heal my cuts. 'Zelli, I am thirsty, make me water.' Tall ones are... less loud, usually."
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Post by Deleted on Sept 6, 2013 17:56:38 GMT
"We can be much more louder at times. It's the loud ones that usually cause the most problems. The boisterous leaders that send thousands into battle, and only hundreds return. I know not of Kobold culture, but it seems fairly similar to humans."
Akiir slowly lifts his mask, revealing his shadowed jawline and lips, to take a bite of his dinner. Eyes and cheeks still masked.
"Seems like we both found ourselves in trying situations. You Zelli, among needy. And I among greedy. And our trail-blazer friend Georic among his thoughts, guided by his Goddess, and tried through solitude."
Another bite of food, hardtack. Meal of champions and peasants alike.
"The metal is important, but no more important than our lives and survival. Our king needs us alive more than he needs a pile of metal. No matter how rare it may be. Tell me, what thoughts do you have of Valencia? It's not a trick question, I'm not here to judge you."
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Post by Malakim on Sept 6, 2013 21:37:01 GMT
Georic flinches slightly when the knife man says his name. He curls slightly in on himself, muttering quietly under his breath before straightening slightly.
"The Lady likes it being there. She was jealous of the Old Man south of here having new friends, and she was so lonely for so long that she's happy to have children here again. She just hopes that they don't start asking too much like they did a long time ago. As long as they just take what they need, she thinks they'll do just fine for themselves, and she'll help them out as best she can. As for myself, I'm not....fond of being around so many people in one place. Bad things happen around that many people. But as long as the Lady likes it, I'll help it as best I can."
He nods, and goes back to slowly eating and mumbling to himself, with pauses between each, as though half a conversation is being heard.
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Post by ezelli on Sept 7, 2013 14:55:02 GMT
"Cities are new. Interesting. I lack time... prospective." All the same, Ezelli rapped his head with a fingertip, deep in thought on the subject.
"We are fed, funded, and paid, yes? And this payment... it is not unfair, too small, or too hard won? If yes, than... it seems fine. The food is... how you say? The taste needs... getting. Ack-choiring." He likely wasn't referring to the meat found on their first hand, as like his companions, the kobold tore into without hesitation.
"Curiosity... she is good. Keeps you smart. Aware of the world. When killing is done, do you use her for... less violent pursuits?" he shifted a little, or fidgetted more accurately, almost as if flinching at his own words, before adding, "... Because your questions. Unless this is tall one... ate-a-kit."
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Post by Deleted on Sept 7, 2013 15:46:17 GMT
"The only choice we have is to respect the land. How else will we survive if we don't? We take what we need and in return we replenish what was taken. Everything in balance. And I agree, bad things happen when a lot of people congregate. It's up to us to minimize that. All of us. All of the Kingdom. We lived in peace so far apart, we must continue to live in peace as we come together and grow."
Another bite of his hardtack. Gross. "We are very well fed, well paid, and well taken care of. Valencia is good to us; King Renen is good to us. We live comfortable lives."
Another pause as Akiir stops to think about Ezelli's last comment. "For some of us, the killing never stops. It is only this way out of necessity. There will always be uncontrolled powers in the world. And as long as they exist, someone has to exist to take them down. Some people prefer to live in the dungeon so that others can live in the towers. Should the violence ever stop I will have no more need for a mask, and the person I am will be no more."
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Post by Malakim on Sept 7, 2013 16:50:53 GMT
Georic slid slightly closer to the fire, his own meal having been quickly devoured, as if by a starving man, his hands twisting against each other, and he still looked away from the others, as though talking more to himself than to the others.
"Violence is always necessary for The Lady, for it is how she survives. When the deer and other animals that eat Her grass grow to great, they become docile and are killed in greater numbers by the wolves, being violently torn apart and eaten for their flesh, but this is not a bad thing, it is simply the way of The Lady, for otherwise they would eat all the grass, and then all would suffer, the deer and wolves both. The same goes for us. We may live with The Lady, and we will have food and such provided for us by Her. However, should we fall out of our balance with Her, and demand too much, She will send her wolves for us, in order to save all. It is violent. It is bloody. Above all though, it is necessary. When the wolves are beaten back without accomplishing their jobs, or is people do not take balance into account, all end up suffering, and most end up dead."
Georic sighs and runs a hand along his face, tracing the scars and pocks of one cheek with a shaky hand.
"As far as living in peace, this is a lie. Where there is life, there is conflict. This is not bad, or wrong, it simply is. All struggle against each other and themselves for the benefit of themselves and their families. Even within families they fight. The only time conflict ends, is when one loses completely, and ends up in the jaws of the winner. We are simply here to do our best to keep winning, and if you respect The Lady, or The Old Man, or whoever it is you travel upon, you will at least have a chance to stay alive a day more."
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Post by ezelli on Sept 8, 2013 19:02:20 GMT
"A moment. Two, maybe three a day. That is enough peace. Coin cannot come from peace. At least, not great coin." he gestured to the campsite and their kill. "This funding, this journey, it is all from killing, yes? Your mask, I think, it shall stay. For all time. But this is a good thing."
"Even this metal. The Myth ore. I do not think it would go well in potion, or much else but weapons. Armor, and perhaps... furn-ah-ture. Though, perhaps one should try, see where it could go...." drawing a small piece of parchment and an inkwell from within his robe, the kobold dipped a claw tip into the latter and furiously jotted down notes on the former, nodding to himself all the while.
"Alas. I will need fire. Much grander than camp one, to melt down magic metal. Could be... expensive, experiment."
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