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Post by Leandros Aurthurian on Mar 27, 2023 21:47:22 GMT -5
For a moment, Leandros is caught between encouraging Astrid to leave and letting her stay here in this moment. It was tough and there was little he could do for her, but it was also a moment that was going to come sooner or later. Unfortunately it came far too soon for her. Shaa's voice brings him out of those thoughts as he looks between the two.
Right now, he can at least help by lifting a bit of the weight from Astrid and not just stand around quiet and sheepish, "If I may step in....I did not know Vikram well...I seem to have caught him at the end of his journey....a few weeks ago he outsmarted me in a Zeinavian market, slipped through my hands with clever words and sharp wit....I met him here a day or so ago and he seemed....confused, distracted, there was clearly something bothering him. I imagine it was whatever had tried to overtake him....I cornered him here, Astrid arrived before it put up some sort of barrier....The rest explains itself." Leandros straightens up his shoulders and looks squarely over to Shaa for the next part. "It is obvious enough that I was the one to kill him...at his request. We really tried everything we could to find a way to maybe separate the two, but time was not on our side. Vikram knew....he knew this would be the last chance he had to die as Vikram."
He lets out a breath and looks to Astrid, "I don't expect these words to mean much or to be any sort of balm to you right now, but you should have some pride in your efforts here. You have done everything you can for a friend, you did not fail him nor are you the reason for his death. I wish I knew the both of you better so that I could offer something more prescient to say, but....I also know how little words can do in these moments."
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Post by Lady Astrid Stormstone on Mar 31, 2023 18:13:58 GMT -5
Leandros’ calm and somber energy brings some amount of calm and quiet to the situation. He explains things, and Astrid, through her choked sobs, gets to hear how Vikram was losing the last of his grip on himself. The first cracks of the veneer were her fault.
“I-It was,” Astrid stammers. “It’s me. It’s all my fault… I-In The Pits... I-I... He... ” Words tumble from her lips like a waterfall of pain into a sea of regret and sadness, but none of them form a coherent thought. Shaa isn’t angry at her; he doesn’t believe her. How is she supposed to explain this? How does she explain that the floodgates holding back the magic of the entity Alcalde shattered because Vikram saved her in The Pits? The two of them represented the Fighter’s Guild that day. They were victorious together against a terrifying opponent who sought to kill them both and only failed because of Vikram. Astrid is here today because Vikram saved her.
And she repaid him by killing him.
When Leandros addresses her, Astrid struggles to meet his eyes. How can he tell her to be proud of what she’s done? What choice did she have? Who could be proud to kill a friend? What kind of friend does that? What kind of guildmate? Who is she to keep a place in the guild after what she’s done? No words make it past the knot in her throat.
Leandros is only trying to help…
Astrid’s eyes drift down to see Vikram’s bloodied, broken body, and another wave of sadness makes her knees weak. She can’t go back to the guild. She can barely face Shaa here in front of her. Light streaming through the broken walls of the temple catches the silvered blade of Vikram’s scimitar on the floor near his body, and the tiny half-dwarf finds herself staring at it with consideration.
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Post by Shaa Rhunn on Apr 1, 2023 0:48:02 GMT -5
It was a lot to take in. No matter where he looked , he could see the tragedy in the place. It was palpable. In the floor, the stone, the dirt, the faces. Shaa took a deep breath and picked up a handful of debris from the ground. He looked at it for a moment as he allowed pieces of detritus sift back through his meaty fingers, falling haphazardly to the cakey blood puddles below.
There were still a lot of questions but, in the end, they really didn’t matter. Vikram was dead and there was nothing that could change that now. The only thing that mattered now was the living and he would be damned if he didn’t keep them that way. Looking over to Leandros, he smiled a bit. That sounds about right. When you are dealing with what he had to deal with, dying on your own terms is probably the best you can hope for. I’m sure he appreciated it.
Turning back to the mopey sack that was Astrid, Shaa gave her a look that was part understanding and part determination. Astrid. Look at me. We have work to do. Shaa picks up the gleaming scimitar and hands it over to Astrid. Take it. I’ll get our friend. The sooner we get out of here, the better. If we get some distance, maybe we can get some….perspective. Or just get out of there before the real cops showed up. Whatever. Shaa picked up the body and hauled it over his shoulder. Follow me.
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Post by Leandros Aurthurian on Apr 3, 2023 22:34:33 GMT -5
As they turn to leave, Leandros turns to head down the stone steps of the temple. Immediately the guards start to close in around the stairs and seemingly choke off any exit point any of them will have.
"I am Leandros Aurthurian of House Aurthurian, a noble of this city and a knight of Capitol Landing, I'm claiming privilege over this situation and ordering you to stand aside and let these three pass."
While so far he had been mostly soft-spoken during the fight, that authoritative and heavy voice he spoke to Alcade returned. It was enough of a shock to cause the guards to take a hesitant half-step back. A scared look was shared between the group before they hesitantly started to part.
Spears and shields were still out, but that was more out of muscle memory and not knowing what else to do in the situation. The three are allowed to leave as the guards close behind them. Questions immediately began to rise out of the crowd.
From the sounds of them, if Shaa hated paperwork then he could only imagine the horror of bureaucracy awaiting Leandros in the aftermath of this all.
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Post by Lady Astrid Stormstone on Apr 4, 2023 19:47:48 GMT -5
Through tearful eyes, Astrid looks at Shaa, finally meeting his bovine eyes. Sorrow, determination, and perseverance swirl amongst each other within the blue irises. Shaa’s been through a lot too, hasn’t he? Astrid quickly wipes her nose. Even if she can’t stop the tears, he’s right. The guards here aren’t too fond of either of them.
When Shaa shoves Vikram’s scimitar in her hands, she looks down at it with pain in her eyes. There’s work to do. Her fingers curl around the grip, and she gives a little, exhausted nod. “O-Okay…” Astrid’s voice comes out, barely above a whisper. Shaa collects Vikram’s body, a broken mess of flesh and bone, and slings it over his shoulder. They can’t walk through the city like this..!
“W-Wait, it–” She can’t find her words, so she just grabs a tattered banner that fell to the floor and gives it to Shaa to cover Vikram’s body rather than parade it around. It’s partially to help her too.
With that, she weakly collects her hammers and steps hesitantly after Shaa as he exits the temple. Leandros’ commanding voice nearly shocks her out of her fear for the guards. They all step back, and the girl gives Leandros a tearful nod of thanks as he helps them out of the destruction. She hopes they’ll meet again, so she can thank him properly when she’s less of a blubbering mess.
Sticking close at the back of Shaa’s hooves, Astrid follows the minotaur through Sol City, trying to avoid main streets and curious glances. Remembering she’s covered in blood, Astrid pulls her hood up and her cloak around her. One of Vikram’s broken hands covered in jeweled rings catches her eye, and tears spring forth again. What a disaster. This is a disaster. Just hold it in. You can cry about it later. There’s work to do.
It takes some time for her to finally find her words again. “Sh-Shaa… I… I dunno if I can g-go back…” Not back to the guild. She can’t face the other members. What would they think of her? She and Vikram got in together, maybe it’s fitting that she leave…
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Post by Shaa Rhunn on Apr 5, 2023 10:23:07 GMT -5
As the two cleared the city, Shaa laid Vikram’s body in some soft grass. On their way, he had managed to get a message out to some of the other local guild members who would be there shortly with a cart and plan to take Vikram the rest of the way. Staying busy had helped him put off dealing with the fact that he might just lose two members today. Membership in the guild was purely voluntary of course. It’s a hard life for anyone and the prospect of a brutal death certainly was not everyone’s retirement plan. In the end, all he could do is offer his own personal perspective on things.
Did I ever tell you why I joined the fighters guild? Shaa looked over at Astrid. He couldn’t tell if she was listening or not but he was a talker so he thought he would give it a shot anyway. When I was a baby, my parents were murdered and I was sold as fodder to the Nomad tribes of Kings Valley. A fighting Minotaur to supplement their raiding parties without risking actual tribe members. When the tribe that bought me was wiped out, I was only about 10 years old but a seasoned warrior by then. The tribe that won had no interest in a monster for a pet so they let me go. I wandered the plains alone for years, learning Terramancy, fighting, surviving. Years later I lead a group of Centaurs to the Nomads Stone and they kind of adopted me. It’s how I learned to read, write, about history, philosophy. It’s how I got these. He points to the runes carved into his horns. The symbols gave off a soft blue magical glow.
Anywho. One of the Centaurs in my new tribe was called Mephrat. He was one of the oldest members of the fighters guild but had retired mostly intact. He used to tell me tales of adventure and far off places. What intrigued me the most was the fighters guild fought with purpose! I had always fought to stay alive or because I was forced to. The idea that fighting could have a larger purpose was actually a very foreign concept to me. Most Minotaur fight because..it’s Monday…or they don’t like your face… or they are itchy or any other number of stupid reasons. But a Minotaur who fought with a goal? To help people who actually needed help? So weird! But, for some reason, I liked it. Maybe it’s the orphan me but I liked the idea of fighting people who …needed a beating. He chuckled a bit to himself.
It would be naive of to think that everyone in the guild had such lofty ideals. I know for a fact that some people join just to learn to become better fighters. We have had more than one mercenary come out of those halls. But, at the end of the day, you have to decide why you are staying or going. We all have way to much blood on our hands to judge anyone for killing anybody, even a fellow guild member. Heck, I cut off Xalmanns arm not that long ago. Talk about awkward! Anyway, I can’t make the decision for you. But, just know, no matter what you decide, you will always have a place with us. Shaa rolls his eyes a bit and snorts. Maybe an uncomfortable, smelly bloody place….but a place none the less. And…always at least one hairy and hungry friend. He smiles sadly a bit as he sees some of the guildees approaching in the distance with a wooden cart.
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Post by Lady Astrid Stormstone on Apr 30, 2023 0:31:32 GMT -5
Luckily, the destruction of the temple draws a lot more attention than the minotaur and girl ducking through alleys. It takes everything Astrid has to avoid looking up. While they move, she focuses on following Shaa, keeping up with his much wider stride, and focusing her eyes on his cloven feet. Each clop against the cobbles feels hollow to her, but she knows that each step is heavy with the burden of responsibility.
The possibility of a brutal death has always been something on the horizon, never quite peeking over the line but looming in the way the sunrise threatens the world with a new day. Perhaps clouds would be the shield or the armor that protects against its mighty light, but eventually, storms pass and the sun finds its way through. Just like the sun, death is an eventuality.
When they reach the fields outside the city and the day draws to a close, the grassy sea feels empty. While the ocean breeze draws through the blades, uncaring of the tragedy laid out upon a bed of soft green, Shaa tells his story. His words are wise to the hurt of the world. He is a survivor who carried on through everything. Like her, the kindness or mercy of others led him down a path to help people. His willingness to fight for the people who can’t fight for themselves is admirable. Astrid always liked that about Shaa. Not everyone who fights is like that, though. Not everyone in the Fighter’s Guild is like that.
As hard as Astrid has always tried to fight to do the right thing, today she fought because she saw no other option. She fought her hardest, and at the end of it all, they won, but… This is no victory. There is no revelry, no joy, no peace. She recalls the time she and Shaa worked a job for the guild together, and how finishing that job only made it feel like a chore, and Shaa said that sometimes people have to do dirty work to do good things. Maybe today was like that, but… maybe she isn’t ready for those kinds of things.
Astrid has friends in the guild, people she cares about that she likes to work with. People she admires are in the guild, and maybe Shaa is right. They would probably understand if she explained the situation. They wouldn’t hold grudges. But she doesn’t know how to face the reality of what’s happened. She’s never been to a funeral, never had someone she cares about die. The worst thing she can think of doesn’t compare to this at all. Vikram is gone, dead by her hand. The two of them joined the guild together, and being there without him… It wouldn’t feel right.
Tears start to well up in her eyes again just thinking about it, and they fall when Shaa says that she always has a place and a friend there. Her lip quivers, but she can’t meet his eyes. Instead, Astrid just steps forward, pressing her head against Shaa’s belly, and she hugs him tight for a moment.
“Th-Thanks, Shaa,” she chokes out. “I-I’m sorry. I… Maybe I just…” Sobs rack Astrid’s shoulders. Maybe she what? Maybe she needs time? Space? Help? She doesn’t know what she needs, but a hug feels right, so that’s what she takes.
After a few moments, the cart arrives and Astrid does her best to collect herself, sitting alone in the grass a good distance away while Shaa explains what needs to happen immediately before loading Vikram up. But Astrid can’t let this be goodbye. She can’t sit idly while someone else goes away, so just before the cart leaves, she goes over to the cart and stares at the blanket covering Vikram’s corpse.
“...I want ta see him off,” she offers as the only explanation. Lightly, Astrid touches her hand to Vikram’s head, closing her eyes and making a silent promise not to let his memory die with him. Then, the cart ambles away, and Astrid watches, gripping the silver scimitar in her hand tight as the moon casts its somber light across the field, leaving her as only a shadow in the grass.
There’s work to do.
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