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Post by GMS Freeman on Aug 29, 2019 12:21:33 GMT
[Meet Semsi]
[Head to the Tavern immediately]
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Post by LiquidChicagoTed on Sept 14, 2019 0:18:49 GMT
[Refuse to meet Semsi] I have a feeling this encounter is of the unwanted sexual kind, and I think it's best to avoid it. Dude's shady. [Head to the tavern immediately] I'm not in the mood for stake-outs, let's just get in there and go to town on this joker. But he's only got one eye, so he shouldn't be able to do this? Although I guess someone's eyes could widen even if they couldn't see (might have to look it up, it would be cool to know)? Hmm. So Ryder knows Jaron and Samuel are coming after him. I wonder if Abbas knows too. Either way, I can sense the confrontation brewing. Glad to see more of Beopin. Such an interesting little moment. I like Kovaggo. Smart guy. I knew this would happen at some point! There's so many one-eyed characters in the story (and the absolute majority was submitted that way, I gotta add), but people emoting with their eyes is such a common thing to do, I knew there would come the time where I'd just write that sentence without realizing it shouldn't be in the plural XD At least, Abbas fears someone is coming after him, though he is probably more concerned about John than Jaron (whom he has always underestimated) and Samuel (whom he knows and fears, but without knowing about just how deep the grudge between the brothers is). He has done that little trick with the boat a while back, where his friend took it to Volantis to throw off anyone following them, while he continues by land, so he at least prepares for the possibility that someone is coming after him. Glad you enjoyed them! Even out of hundreds of characters, they manage to easily stand out and I think they are not without risks either while fitting the tone of the story, but the reactions have been quite positive, so I am very happy to see that such more light-hearted characters can find their place in the story as well.
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Post by LiquidChicagoTed on Sept 14, 2019 0:29:15 GMT
The Voting is closed!
Janae is going to meet Semsi
John is going to head to the tavern immediately First of all, I am sorry for two weeks of silence! There is a bit of an issue, though nothing that will keep me occupied forever, I promise you that. Thing is, I got into a car accident about one and a half weeks ago. Nothing too spectacular, I stopped at a red traffic light and the guy behind me didn't. Only minor damage to my car, since he wasn't going very fast, thankfully, and the guy was genuinely apologetic and did his best to fix the damage asap. The car at least is fixed already, looking as good as new and there's no hard feelings from my side. Problem is, I also twisted my left wrist. It's not broken, but it hurts and the doctor told me to take it easy for a few weeks, up to a month. So, I am mostly writing with one hand, since I tend to move my wrists a lot while writing and as you can expect, this is slowing me down. Since I neither want to take an actual break, nor want to risk my wrist getting worse, this is the best solution, I hope. I have the next part almost done, but it took me the better part of this week to get there and at least for the next few parts, I am sorry to announce that this is about as fast as I can write right now. So, I have finished an Alys PoV, but I have more room as well and I want to include one for Ellena as well, both of whom we haven't seen in a while. Alys was at Merman's Rest, where she, together with Carvin and Captain Warmond Manderly, tried to uncover who was behind the attempt on her life. Warmond is pretty certain that Sargasso Saan is responsible for this, so he came up with a plan to take him out. For this, Alys was supposed to stall him, while one of Warmond's men got into position to take him out. However, Sargasso managed to glance behind Alys' ruse, forcing her to reveal her true identity to him. He in return surprised her by claiming that he had nothing to do with this attack on her life. Instead, he deduced that Warmond Manderly himself was behind it, likely acting on Aeron Blacksails' order, only that he went against them to win Alys trust for his own goals instead of killing her as the pirate king ordered. Though Alys had her doubts about him, she eventually agreed to support him in exchange for his protection. Meanwhile, Ellena witnessed the arrival of Gregor Harlaw and his pirates at Dragonstone, where the Ironborn intended to get into Aegon's service. Previously, Noelle had asked her to keep an eye on Gregor, as she does not trust his intentions and Ellena, despite her intense dislike of the red priestess, agreed to help, for Rhaenys' sake. She got into a talk with Gregor's lieutenants, Serysha Nahatis and Wimp, trying to get some details out of them, but expectedly, they both saw through her ruse pretty easily, with Serysha outright deducing that she is spying for someone. As such, they told her nothing of value, before retreating to the rooms she assigned to them. By chance, Ellena ran into Asher Velaryon not long after and she decided to ask him for help.
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Post by InGenNateKenny on Sept 14, 2019 16:41:47 GMT
The Voting is closed!
Janae is going to meet Semsi
John is going to head to the tavern immediately First of all, I am sorry for two weeks of silence! There is a bit of an issue, though nothing that will keep me occupied forever, I promise you that. Thing is, I got into a car accident about one and a half weeks ago. Nothing too spectacular, I stopped at a red traffic light and the guy behind me didn't. Only minor damage to my car, since he wasn't going very fast, thankfully, and the guy was genuinely apologetic and did his best to fix the damage asap. The car at least is fixed already, looking as good as new and there's no hard feelings from my side. Problem is, I also twisted my left wrist. It's not broken, but it hurts and the doctor told me to take it easy for a few weeks, up to a month. So, I am mostly writing with one hand, since I tend to move my wrists a lot while writing and as you can expect, this is slowing me down. Since I neither want to take an actual break, nor want to risk my wrist getting worse, this is the best solution, I hope. I have the next part almost done, but it took me the better part of this week to get there and at least for the next few parts, I am sorry to announce that this is about as fast as I can write right now. So, I have finished an Alys PoV, but I have more room as well and I want to include one for Ellena as well, both of whom we haven't seen in a while. Alys was at Merman's Rest, where she, together with Carvin and Captain Warmond Manderly, tried to uncover who was behind the attempt on her life. Warmond is pretty certain that Sargasso Saan is responsible for this, so he came up with a plan to take him out. For this, Alys was supposed to stall him, while one of Warmond's men got into position to take him out. However, Sargasso managed to glance behind Alys' ruse, forcing her to reveal her true identity to him. He in return surprised her by claiming that he had nothing to do with this attack on her life. Instead, he deduced that Warmond Manderly himself was behind it, likely acting on Aeron Blacksails' order, only that he went against them to win Alys trust for his own goals instead of killing her as the pirate king ordered. Though Alys had her doubts about him, she eventually agreed to support him in exchange for his protection. Meanwhile, Ellena witnessed the arrival of Gregor Harlaw and his pirates at Dragonstone, where the Ironborn intended to get into Aegon's service. Previously, Noelle had asked her to keep an eye on Gregor, as she does not trust his intentions and Ellena, despite her intense dislike of the red priestess, agreed to help, for Rhaenys' sake. She got into a talk with Gregor's lieutenants, Serysha Nahatis and Wimp, trying to get some details out of them, but expectedly, they both saw through her ruse pretty easily, with Serysha outright deducing that she is spying for someone. As such, they told her nothing of value, before retreating to the rooms she assigned to them. By chance, Ellena ran into Asher Velaryon not long after and she decided to ask him for help. Glad to hear from you again! I was wondering if something in real life came up, glad it wasn't too serious, all things considered. Still, having a broken wrist must absolutely stink, not just writing, but for well, everything. But hey, up a month, and you're already a week and a half! Worse is certainly behind you. If it were more serious I'd suggest text-to-speech for writing, but that probably is unnecessary!
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Post by LiquidChicagoTed on Sept 26, 2019 17:43:03 GMT
The Voting is closed!
Janae is going to meet Semsi
John is going to head to the tavern immediately First of all, I am sorry for two weeks of silence! There is a bit of an issue, though nothing that will keep me occupied forever, I promise you that. Thing is, I got into a car accident about one and a half weeks ago. Nothing too spectacular, I stopped at a red traffic light and the guy behind me didn't. Only minor damage to my car, since he wasn't going very fast, thankfully, and the guy was genuinely apologetic and did his best to fix the damage asap. The car at least is fixed already, looking as good as new and there's no hard feelings from my side. Problem is, I also twisted my left wrist. It's not broken, but it hurts and the doctor told me to take it easy for a few weeks, up to a month. So, I am mostly writing with one hand, since I tend to move my wrists a lot while writing and as you can expect, this is slowing me down. Since I neither want to take an actual break, nor want to risk my wrist getting worse, this is the best solution, I hope. I have the next part almost done, but it took me the better part of this week to get there and at least for the next few parts, I am sorry to announce that this is about as fast as I can write right now. So, I have finished an Alys PoV, but I have more room as well and I want to include one for Ellena as well, both of whom we haven't seen in a while. Alys was at Merman's Rest, where she, together with Carvin and Captain Warmond Manderly, tried to uncover who was behind the attempt on her life. Warmond is pretty certain that Sargasso Saan is responsible for this, so he came up with a plan to take him out. For this, Alys was supposed to stall him, while one of Warmond's men got into position to take him out. However, Sargasso managed to glance behind Alys' ruse, forcing her to reveal her true identity to him. He in return surprised her by claiming that he had nothing to do with this attack on her life. Instead, he deduced that Warmond Manderly himself was behind it, likely acting on Aeron Blacksails' order, only that he went against them to win Alys trust for his own goals instead of killing her as the pirate king ordered. Though Alys had her doubts about him, she eventually agreed to support him in exchange for his protection. Meanwhile, Ellena witnessed the arrival of Gregor Harlaw and his pirates at Dragonstone, where the Ironborn intended to get into Aegon's service. Previously, Noelle had asked her to keep an eye on Gregor, as she does not trust his intentions and Ellena, despite her intense dislike of the red priestess, agreed to help, for Rhaenys' sake. She got into a talk with Gregor's lieutenants, Serysha Nahatis and Wimp, trying to get some details out of them, but expectedly, they both saw through her ruse pretty easily, with Serysha outright deducing that she is spying for someone. As such, they told her nothing of value, before retreating to the rooms she assigned to them. By chance, Ellena ran into Asher Velaryon not long after and she decided to ask him for help. Glad to hear from you again! I was wondering if something in real life came up, glad it wasn't too serious, all things considered. Still, having a broken wrist must absolutely stink, not just writing, but for well, everything. But hey, up a month, and you're already a week and a half! Worse is certainly behind you. If it were more serious I'd suggest text-to-speech for writing, but that probably is unnecessary! Thankfully it is not broken, I got confirmation earlier this week. Still hurts and I am supposed to refrain from using it as much as possible. That being said, I feel like I finally found a way to write properly without putting too much pressure onto my hand. While this part took me painfully long, you can expect new parts to meet my usual schedule, at least that's what I aim for. We'll see if it works, but I am excited I can finally write without taking too long once again
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Post by LiquidChicagoTed on Sept 26, 2019 17:43:41 GMT
Alys If she wasn't sure what to do before, her resolve almost broke as she saw Sargasso's cold smile the moment she shook his hand. “I'll... help you...”, she whispered in a weak tone and the pirate gave her a chilling look of triumph. “You made the right choice, Lady Boleyn”, he claimed, but Alys was not convinced. “Warmond will regret the day he tried to cross either of us” She gulped. What Sargasso said, it made sense, but she simply knew he was using her for his own goals. At best, he had no plans for her. At worst, she was just choosing one threat over the other. But if he spoke truly, concerning Warmond... whose side would Carvin choose? And with Edward gone for the foreseeable future, whom could she still trust? Certainly not Sargasso, but perhaps he was at least not her enemy. “How... how can you help me?”, she asked in a hesitant voice and Sargasso shook his head. “This question again”, he mumbled. “I will not just help you, but we will help each other” He narrowed his eyes. “I am not a charitable man”, he clarified. “But I pay my debts, be they favour or grudge” Slowly, he raised an eyebrow. “Do you understand?” Alys was quick to nod. “Y... yes, yes of course!”, she stated. “How can we help each other then?” Sargasso chuckled. “First of all, you and I will leave this room”, he stated. “Do I assume correctly that Warmond's men are on their way? To kill me would be foolish, but I'd prefer not to be at Manderly's mercy either way. He planned this and he is no lackwit” He gave her a thin smile, but it didn't strike her as particularly dishonest. “The only thing he didn't expect is you believing my words”, he stated. “Perhaps you are not as naïve as we all thought” “We... all?”, Alys hissed and Sargasso gave her a nonchalant nod, before he reached beneath his desk. She gasped, as he pulled out a thin sword and he grinned at her discomfort. “For my own protection”, he clarified. “I would not kill you with my own sword, be assured of it” Tying an equally thin sheath to his belt, he walked past Alys. “But yes, all of us consider you naive”, he admitted. “Is it so surprising though? A girl of your age, running away from home and ending up in the company of Edward Anturion... even before knowing your identity, I knew your idea was bloody stupid” She narrowed her eyes. “You don't say...”, she muttered, as she followed Sargasso out of the room. The captain gave her a polite smile. “What was your reason, though?”, he then asked, his voice showing a hint of curiosity. “What could make a girl of your standing leave the safety of her noble home to embark on such a journey?” Alys clenched her fists. “What's it to you?”, she hissed, before she let out a sigh. “My father wanted to marry me off to a Karstark” Sargasso let out a loud laugh. “Are they truly so horrible, the Karstarks?”, he asked, though it was clear he wasn't expecting an answer. “An understandable motive, but that doesn't make it any less stupid” He noticed her anger and his smile narrowed. “A thousand years ago, they would have written songs to your bravery”, he stated. “It makes for a nice tale. At least it's foolish enough to be one” They were walking through the dimly lit hallway of Blacksails' palace now and just as they had turned around a corner, Alys heard glass breaking from somewhere behind her, a muffled sound, but its source was obvious. “I see we have left my room just in time”, Sargasso spoke calmly. “You have my thanks, Lady Boleyn” Alarmed at the name he used, Alys glanced around, but safe for one guard, a lean Summer Islander, there was no one in the hallway. “Don't...”, she hissed and Sargasso raised an eyebrow. “Ah, of course, your... secret”, he chuckled. “Worry not, I have no interest in revealing it. You can trust me” To this, Alys raised an eyebrow. “Can I now?”, she asked. Her tone caused Sargasso to laugh brightly and as they turned to another hallway, he briefly stopped to knock at one of the doors before continuing. “You certainly are fearless”, he spoke. “I can see why Edward keeps you around, beyond whatever ulterior motive he has” He narrowed his eyes. “And trust me, he always has. That man is a snake”, he warned her, before he glanced to the side. Alys followed his gaze and tensed up, as she spotted two figures walking around the corner. “Ah, Warmond!”, Sargasso exclaimed, as he spread his arms. Warmond Manderly narrowed his eyes and behind him, Carvin slowly raised his crossbow, though he lowered it the moment Alys shook her head. “Are you surprised to see me here?”, Sargasso asked and, though visibly baffled, Warmond managed to shake his head. “I should have known you would weasel your way out of this”, he spoke, before he glanced at Alys. “What has he done to you, girl?” For a second, Alys thought she could sense empathy within his voice, something that would have weakened her resolve. But she had been around liars for too long. Edward had taught her something, after all. As such, she gulped as she noticed the icy tone hidden within Warmond's voice. “He didn't do anything to me”, she clarified. “We just spoke...” Warmond raised an eyebrow and Sargasso chuckled. “You really thought the girl wouldn't listen to me”, he realized. “How foolish, even for you” He placed an arm around Alys' shoulder and she tensed up beneath his touch. “She's not as dim as we thought”, he stated and she wasn't sure if she should take this as a compliment. “Is it true?”, Alys hissed, as she glared at Warmond. “That this is all part of your plan? You were in on this, weren't you?” Warmond hesitated for a moment, before he gave her a quick nod. “The king gave me an order”, he replied. “But I did not follow through. I saved your life, after all” Before Alys could reply, Sargasso interjected. “Ah, but for what end? First, you'd use her to dispose of me, I suppose”, he brought up. “But then? You had plans for the girl, admit it” Warmond narrowed his eyes. “I saved her life!”, he growled, before he looked at Alys. “I saved your life! No matter what Sargasso told you, he lied... You know he is a liar!” Sargasso raised an eyebrow. “Getting nervous, Warmond?”, he spoke and Alys could see how Manderly's face dropped as he noticed that she didn't believe him. He was hiding something and this seemed a sure way to reveal it. “I was going to bring you home”, he finally admitted, before he let out a deep sigh. “Yes, I figured it out even before you told me. A small wonder no one else did” With this, he narrowed his eyes, while Carvin behind him nervously glanced at his own hands, still holding the crossbow. The sellsword slowly shook his head. “But I had your best intentions”, Warmond then claimed. “The king wanted me to kill you, but the moment he gave the order, I knew there was a better way for both of us” This time, Sargasso's ever-present smile actually faded entirely, replaced by a look of cold anger. “So you decided to get rid of me”, he hissed. “Not a bad plan. Giving Aeron a way to get rid of me without losing face, blaming me for the attempt on Lady Alys' life... I underestimated you, Warmond, well and truly did” Though he spoke these words with an icy tone, a smirk slowly returned to his face. “But you underestimated me just as well” “And now?”, Warmond asked, as he looked at Alys. “I lied to you, yes, but I was trying to keep you safe. I am on your side in this!” Sargasso raised an eyebrow. “Oh, please...”, he cut the other captain off. “You couldn't care less for the girl. She's been your pawn all along!” He raised an eyebrow as he looked at Alys, who thoroughly ignored him and glared at Warmond instead. “This man, the one you sent on Blacksails' order...”, she growled. “He nearly killed me before you intervened. Had he caught me before getting to the house, he would have...” She gulped, before she turned to Sargasso Saan. “Let's go”, she spoke in a firm tone and the captain gave her a slight nod. “My pleasure, Lady Alys”, he replied. It was in this moment that Warmond drew his sword, almost too fast for Alys' eyes to follow. “You're not going anywhere, Saan”, he spoke firmly. Next to him, Carvin's eyes widened, though he took a step away from both, still uncertain whom to point his crossbow at. “Get away from him, Alys...”, he warned her. “This is about to get ugly” He glanced over his shoulder. “We need to get out of this port” “I can protect you”, Warmond claimed. “Just stand aside and let me kill this man. I am not your enemy, I swear” Carvin narrowed his eyes. “I'm done believing any of you”, he muttered. “Alys, come on, we're leaving” He gave her an urgent look and for a second, she was going to just follow him. However, her anger won over any voice of reason and as such, she remained right where she stood, glaring at Warmond. He could claim to be on her side for all he wanted, but he still lied to her. His man could have murdered her with such ease, the thought was still nauseating. Throughout all this, Saan was remarkably calm for a man who was threatened at swordpoint. He merely raised an eyebrow. However, Alys noticed him clenching one fist and glancing to his side, in her direction, but right through her. “Then I can't promise your safety”, Warmond sighed, but before he could make his move, a creaking sound came from the hallway to their left, where Alys and Saan had just passed through. As she looked to the side, she noticed Captain Melvan Tiren leaning against the door Saan had just knocked at a minute earlier. He was half dressed, his open coat revealing his notable belly and his hat missing, showing his lack of hair. “You just knocked at my fucking door, Saan?”, he growled, seemingly oblivious to the scene that unfolded in front of him. “I'm in the middle of something, if you don't mind” Saan triumphantly glanced at Warmond, before fully focussing at Melvan. “Ah, I am sure she can wait”, he spoke, before he raised an eyebrow. “They? Ah, I'll buy you another when this is over!” He shrugged. “In any way, my friend, just in time”, he continued, before waiting for Melvan's reaction. “You need to get ready right now. The king is waiting for us” Melvan narrowed his eyes as he just now looked at Warmond, who had lowered his sword again. “Is he now?”, he snarled, to which Sargasso gave him a nod. This caused the captain to sigh. “Alright, alright, but if this is one of your tricks again...”, he began to mumble, before he turned back to his room, leaving the door open. From in there, Alys could hear him whispering something and the voice of a woman replied in a language she couldn't understand. “You were saying, Warmond...?”, Saan asked and as Alys looked back at the captain, she saw his expression, pure and simple shock. “You...”, he stuttered, as his eyes widened. Saan chuckled. “Seems like a witness to me. You're going to kill Aeron's best friend?”, he replied. “Now, come on. Take this like a man. Seven, wouldn't that be a change? I'm sure the king will be merciful” Instead of replying anything, Warmond spun around. Pushing Carvin out of the way, he darted down the hallway, in an attempt to make his escape. The sellsword staggered briefly, but he caught himself and out of reflex, he pointed the crossbow after the pirate, though he hesitated to shoot. “What are you waiting for, lackwit?”, Saan barked. “Shoot him before he gets away!” Carvin glanced over his shoulder, his glare actually causing Saan to gulp. “I'm not taking orders from you”, he simply stated, before he looked at Alys. Barely notable, he shook his head. “Not our enemy”, he mouthed. “Not our fight” Alys however looked past him, right at Warmond, who was about to reach the end of the long hallway and she knew, his fate was in her hands. [Order Carvin to shoot Warmond] [Allow him to get away]
Ellena It was already after sunset when Asher finally arrived at their meeting spot, behind the courtyard stables. She had been waiting for him for the better part of the last hour at least and she frowned as she spotted him, approaching her with a confident smile, albeit his walk was just a little bit shaky, as he staggered towards her. “You're late”, she hissed as soon as he came around the corner, though he ignored her narrowed eyes and the frown on her face. “Eh, sorry to keep you waiting”, he spoke, with a wide, cheerful smile on his face. “I ran into a bit of a problem, but good work always takes some time, you know” He grinned and Ellena raised an eyebrow, as she smelled something particular within his breath. “Have you been drinking?”, she growled at him and Asher wisely took a step back, as he raised his hands. “Nah, uh... no”, he claimed, giving her a wide smile. “I mean, just a little bit. I had one drink. That hardly counts!” Ellena rolled her eyes. “You're thirteen years old”, she protested and he shook his head. “Almost fourteen!”, he corrected her. “I say that's old enough to drink. My cousin got married at that age” “You were not supposed to drink!”, Ellena spoke harshly. “I've been waiting forever!” Asher gave her a grin, though he staggered slightly as he tried to lean against the wall behind him. “Hey, it's not as if I kept you waiting on purpose, princess”, he replied. “I got friendly with some of Harlaw's men, they offered me a mug of ale and here I am, wiser than before” “Really now?”, Ellena asked, though she bit down onto her lower lip. “In that case... sorry for snapping at you. What did you find?” Asher blinked, before he thought about the question. “I met with that strange man from Harlaw's crew, the one they call Wimp”, he explained. “I think he's a bit slow, but he seemed like the honest type. After a while, we really had a connection” This time, Ellena had to suppress a smirk. “Yeah, I can see why”, she said in a dry tone. “What did Wimp tell you then? I don't think he trusted me, but that might have been the woman with him” Asher gave her a nod. “Serysha, aye”, he confirmed. “I think she's more bark than bite. Still scary though, I don't think she wants to be here” He placed his arms behind his head and took another deep breath. “Wimp though, he thawed up quickly”, Asher continued. “He's been with Gregor from the very beginning, even before they sailed with the Stepstone pirates. Anyone knows what he's up to, it's Wimp” He paused for a moment and Ellena raised an eyebrow. “Yeah?”, she asked impatiently. “What did you find out?” Before he replied, Asher sighed. “A lot about past exploits. Wimp spoke of daring raids and fierce battles... Honestly, I think he's idolizing his captain a bit too much, but all things considered, he... well...” For a moment, the boy looked almost ashamed. “He said nothing about Gregor's plans here on Dragonstone”, he stated. “Nothing concerning, at least. Seems like Gregor is a smart man. Wimp makes him sound like a genius, but he at least understands that times are going to change. In a few years, the king will reach the Stepstones and Wimp claims that Gregor simply wants to be on the winning side by then” “Nothing but an opportunist, huh?”, Ellena remarked, unable to hide her disappointment. Though she hated the idea of helping Noelle, she couldn't deny that her warning had something... exciting about it. A dangerous pirate, possibly connected to a mysterious enemy... perhaps Ellena simply wanted it to be true, as she had to admit to herself. Asher sighed, before he gave her a nod. “That's how it sounded, coming from him”, he stated. “And I doubt he lied to me. He...” “Didn't seem very smart, yes”, a new voice sounded from the darkness behind him and Asher gasped, as Ellena only barely suppressed a scream. She staggered back as a short, skinny figure came into sight. She recognized the plain, visibly tired, yet still brightly smiling face. “It's me, Wimp”, Wimp spoke. “I'm from Gregor's crew... Gregor Harlaw, you remember?” It took Ellena a moment to regain her composure at his sudden, unexpected arrival. He moved in complete silence and she took a step away from him, mustering him from head to toe with wide eyes. How much had he listened to? By the Gods, halfwit or not, if he had heard every single thing they had spoken about... “Oh, hey Asher!”, Wimp exclaimed loudly, as he patted the boy onto the back. “Didn't see you standing there. How are you...?” He cut himself off, as his smile grew thinner. Slowly, he looked from Ellena to Asher, then back to Ellena. “I really hope I'm not interrupting anything”, he spoke in a slow, careful tone. “I mean, I don't want that. You kids are pretty young, but then again, you should have seen all the crazy things me and Gregor have been up to back in your age” It took Ellena a moment to realize what he was hinting at and through the darkness, she felt Asher blushing slightly, as the boy suddenly discovered how interesting his own feet were. She felt heat rising up in her cheeks, as she decidedly shook her head. “Ugh, no!”, she exclaimed. “No, you are not interrupting anything, creep!” Wimp's smile returned. “It's Wimp”, he corrected her. “And we have met before, you remember?” He shot her a wide, almost cheerful grin, as he leant against the stable right next to Asher. “So, you kids are spying on Gregor, yes?”, he then exclaimed and Ellena exchanged an alarmed look with Asher. The boy clenched his fists, while Wimp thoroughly ignored him, focussing solely on Ellena. “How do you...?”, Ellena began, but Wimp cut her off immediately. “Oh, please”, he said, as he rolled his eyes. “You're not even half as sneaky as you think you are” He chuckled, before he gave her a wink. “It's been Serysha, of course. She knew something was off about you right away, so when this kid came, getting all chummy, she knew something was off” With this, he gave Asher a wink. “I've followed you here”, he revealed. “Hope you don't mind, you're a decent lad, a bit skinny for sure, but you'd make a good pirate in a few years, if you ever get tired of being a servant” Asher narrowed his eyes. “I'm a squire”, he clarified, which caused Wimp to chuckle. “Yeah, but, come on man, we both know that's basically the same”, he claimed. “You clean up after the high lords, cook and wash for them, you clean their stools” He shrugged. “Just saying, you're a good lad and I'm sure Gregor would hate seeing you waste away in some castle” “And yet he has come to serve the king and his knights”, Ellena hissed, to which Wimp shook his head. “Just the king and his queens”, he stated. “Certainly no Ser Daghan or Ser Orys or what's their name and certainly no Lord Velaryon” He chuckled. “The things we pulled off with Ol'Goatbeard, I could tell you stories for ages” His smile faded quickly, as he straightened his back. “But that's not why I'm here today”, he said, before he looked around. “Tonight”, he then corrected himself. “Serysha sent me with one very important question and I'd hate to disappoint her” As such, he gave Ellena a wink, though within his glance, she spotted something else. His whole behaviour, it reminded her of Terroma, not so much his words or personality, but the intention behind it. Terroma seemed a sweet old man, hiding all his cunning, all the danger he posed behind this mask. And similarly, she saw a glimpse of cunning within Wimp's eyes, though she almost didn't notice, that's how distracting his erratic behaviour was. “Who sent you to spy on the captain?”, Wimp then asked. “Serysha says it's pretty obvious, so I'm going to believe her. Someone sent you, eh? Someone here who doesn't trust Gregor. Maybe even someone who puts his stay here at risk. That's all very important to him, you must know, so me and Sery, we would like for him to succeed” Ellena gulped. “And you think I just tell you?”, she asked. A moment passed, in which Wimp just stared at her. Then he gave her a nod. “Yes”, he simply replied. “I mean, you can trust me. I'm not your enemy, I'm just Wimp” He slightly raised an eyebrow and as his smile faded, he didn't look all that much like a fool anymore. “Was it the queen?”, he asked straightforwardly. “The scary one, I mean, not the gentle flower. Whatsherface... you know, I call her Blonde Serysha, but I do that just to annoy Sery” “Visenya”, Ellena hissed and Wimp gave her a nod. “Yeah, that's the one”, he agreed. “Or was it the goat? Velaryon, I mean, Lord Velaryon” His grin returned. “He's got reason to hate the cap, I mean”, he stated ominously. “Anyways, if you could tell me who sent you, that'd be great. Would really make things a lot easier for me” He blinked twice, before smiling at Ellena, who in return merely glared at him. “And why should I?”, she asked, before she pulled herself together. “I mean, even if you are right, which you're definitely not” Wimp gave her a wink. “Yeah, I'm probably not right”, he agreed. “Still, please tell me. In return...” He paused and looked up, lost in thoughts. “Ah, yes!”, he then exclaimed. “If you tell me, I will tell you a secret” He leant forward and placed a hand on her shoulder. “I will tell you why Gregor is here in Dragonstone. That is what you wanted to know, right?” “You would just... tell me?”, Ellena asked, her voice oozing disbelief. Wimp gave her a nonchalant nod. “Of course, of course!”, he claimed. “It's not that much of a secret, you're just a kid and sooner or later, someone is bound to find out. If it gets whomever sent you off the captain's throat, then that's a small price to pay” Ellena bit down onto her lower lip. Noelle had sent her and if her suspicion was right, then Gregor was a highly dangerous man. That being said, if the priestess was wrong, then she had nothing to fear from the pirate. Of course, she could always lie and hope for Wimp's honesty in return, which she admittedly doubted... [Tell Wimp who sent you] [Lie to him] [Refuse to tell him anything]
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Post by WildlingKing on Sept 27, 2019 12:34:30 GMT
[Allow him to get away] Nah, like Carvin said, not their fight. If Sargasso wants Warmond dead he can do it himself.
[Lie to him] Now, this may be a bit risky, given that Ellena probably isn't the best liar around and Wimp is no idiot. That said, I don't think Ellena needs to show her hand yet. They are in Targaryen court and Ellena is spying on Gregor to protect the Targs - frankly I think she has the advantage here. Wimp has little to no leverage to make Ellena tell the truth, nothing to blackmail or threaten her with.
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Post by drdestroyer18 on Sept 27, 2019 12:47:50 GMT
[Allow him to get away] [Tell Wimp who sent you]
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Post by TheAPlegends on Sept 27, 2019 12:55:49 GMT
[Allow him to get away] Not our fight, Alys just needs to get out of here.
[Tell Wimp who sent you] I don't like Noelle, and neither does Ellena, so who cares if she gets in danger because of this.
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Post by edinosaur22 on Sept 27, 2019 18:46:27 GMT
[Allow him to get away]
[Lie to him]
I don't know why I didn't vote in previous chapters, but I'm back now.
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Post by InGenNateKenny on Sept 28, 2019 16:29:41 GMT
[Order Carvin to shoot Warmond] Can't pass up an opportunity to try and kill someone.
[Tell Wimp who sent you] Here me out here - reverse psychology. If we tell him it was Noelle, then he won't believe us. Plus, screw Noelle. That is one mean lady.
The thought of Asher thinking he became best buds with a drunken pirate sounds highly amusing. Also, I don't think Gregor is bad...he doesn't seem like the kind of person to be a servant of the Great Other.
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Post by diversegnu on Sept 30, 2019 0:57:59 GMT
[Order Carvin to shoot Warmond] We want to be in Sargasso's good graces, since we've lost our chance to escape. [Lie to him] Let's not sell out Noelle, that woman has enough shit to deal with as is.
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Post by GMS Freeman on Sept 30, 2019 8:08:10 GMT
[Allow him to get away]
[Tell Wimp who sent you]
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Louk
New Member
Posts: 43
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Post by Louk on Oct 2, 2019 14:28:47 GMT
[Allow him to get away]
[Tell Wimp who sent you]
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Post by LiquidChicagoTed on Oct 15, 2019 23:16:44 GMT
[Allow him to get away][Lie to him]I don't know why I didn't vote in previous chapters, but I'm back now. Ah, welcome back! To be fair, I had this long break as well, with only one part being written in the last month, so you didn't really miss much. That should change now though, so expect the coming parts to be released quicker again.
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Post by LiquidChicagoTed on Oct 15, 2019 23:48:43 GMT
[Order Carvin to shoot Warmond] Can't pass up an opportunity to try and kill someone. [Tell Wimp who sent you] Here me out here - reverse psychology. If we tell him it was Noelle, then he won't believe us. Plus, screw Noelle. That is one mean lady. The thought of Asher thinking he became best buds with a drunken pirate sounds highly amusing. Also, I don't think Gregor is bad...he doesn't seem like the kind of person to be a servant of the Great Other. Hehe, the moment I read Wimp's submission, I knew I needed him and Asher to interact ^^ It wouldn't have worked that well with Gregor or Serysha, so I am glad you enjoyed it! As for Gregor and the Great Other, that is certainly something to consider. He gave one possible reason for coming to Dragonstone when he talked to the pirate council two chapters ago (seducing the queen, to be precise), he naturally gave a different reason to Aegon and Noelle believes he is lying, which is making her very suspicious of him. That being said, there is no proof for her suspicion either and it might be just a baseless assumption from a woman who is not even nearly as infallible as she believed herself to be. It might not be anytime soon, but the truth will be revealed, concerning Gregor's reason for coming to Dragonstone and concerning the identity of the Great Other servant Noelle is looking for.
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Post by LiquidChicagoTed on Oct 16, 2019 0:10:53 GMT
The Voting is closed!
Alys is going to allow Warmond to get away
Ellena is going to tell Wimp who sent her
Hmmm, both very interesting choices and truth be told, I thought you would lean slightly to the other options in both cases ^^ But this will lead to some interesting consequences and I really look forward to tell you about the alternatives at the end of this chapter. The next part will be out tomorrow. I have finished a PoV for Jenna, but I wish to finish one for Kersea as well. Both PoV's are fairly long, so the part as a whole will be notably longer than a standard-length part, though I nonetheless hope to have it finished by tomorrow. Last time we saw Jenna, she tried to distract Petyr Vyrwel, so that Saerya could set her plan into motion to smuggle Ser Kasyn Luck out of Raylansfair, so that he could deliver his report to the king. Her attempt at distracting him included her blaming Alan for her father's death and implying that he lied to Petyr about his own involvement in the events that led to Kersea and Leonard escaping. However, Petyr realized she was lying to him. Thankfully, he drew the wrong conclusion and thought Jenna would lie about Alan's involvement. Still impressed at how stone-faced she tried to and nearly succeded at lying to him, he offered her a yet-to-be-specified position at his court, which Jenna, after a lot of consideration, accepted. Meanwhile, Kersea and Leonard met with an old friend of Alysanne, the merchant Vitihho, who has previously made shady deals with both sides in the Oldtown gang war. He eventually gave in, agreeing to help them during their stay in the city if they would retrieve something important to him, a small pendant, which was stolen by the petty thief Roach, whom Ellena previously encountered in Book 1. As a secondary goal, Vitihho asked them to beat Roach up, to teach him a lesson. Though Leonard disapproved of this, Kersea agreed to Vitihho's second demand just as well.
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Post by LiquidChicagoTed on Oct 23, 2019 1:11:26 GMT
Apologies for keeping you waiting once more, I hope you nonetheless enjoy this one. This time, I actually have rare good news. After honestly struggling for the last few weeks, trying to get back into writing properly after my accident forced me to take a break, I got hit with a bit too much inspiration and I actually wrote another PoV altogether alongside this part, which is almost finished by now. Originally, I even planned to release them all at once, because I am happy with all three of them. Since I already have almost twice the length of a normal part with the announced PoV's for Jenna and Kersea, I didn't want to keep you waiting for even longer, but the next part is almost ready as well. What this means is, I'll post it immediately after giving you enough time to vote on this one (likely a couple days), after I finish the next Dark Eye part.
Jenna
She knew it was a terrible idea. She knew it when she shook Petyr's outstretched hand, she knew it when he excused himself to speak to the monster that had murdered her father, she knew it when she hurried back to Saerya's quarters. By the gods, what had she done? But at the same time, it was simply too tempting. A chance to work with Petyr, with Lord Vyrwel, not to help him, of course, she would never do that, but to learn about his plans. There was an opportunity within this. Saerya would hate it though. As such, her heart was beating wildly as she raised the hand to knock. “Saerya...?”, she whispered after a moment, as no one opened the door. “Is... is everything alright?” She took a deep breath, before placing her hand on the doorknob. Careful not to make too much noise, she opened the door and as she had feared, Saerya's quarters behind were empty. “Your friend left a bit earlier”, a raspy voice sounded from behind her, way too close for her not to get startled. Jenna only managed to suppress a gasp, as she spun around. There in the darkness of the hallway stood a figure and it took her a moment to make out any features. Finally, she made out a tall and heavy-set man. His skin had a light olive tan to it, with reddened cheeks and eyes of a piercing blue colour. He had wild, grey hair, a long, unkempt beard and beneath it, she spotted a thin, wry smile. It was the chain around his neck that clued her in on his position and from there, it wasn't too hard to guess whom he was, or at least whom he was working for. “You're a maester”, she stated, as she recognized the links. Maester Eaton had worn one of these and the new Maester, Eddard, he had one as well. And as far as she knew, only Lord Selwyn had brought his maesters, both of them, with him. “My name is Lucifer”, the man introduced himself. “Maester to Lord Donnel of House Selwyn. It is a pleasure to meet you” Jenna raised an eyebrow. “Is it?”, she asked and his smile grew thinner. “As I said, your friend left a bit earlier”, he continued. “She caught my attention, that woman. The way she has been bossing him around, that man. I know her kind, but I never expected a man like Maron Mullendore would keep her around” “Her... kind?”, Jenna asked and Lucifer chuckled. “The one that's trouble”, he growled. “Always sticking her nose where it doesn't belong. She dressed him up well, but naturally she couldn't hide the Gardener knight from a man of my intellect. So... I've seen you two together. You must know her well” Jenna gulped, as the stare that came from his slightly bloodshot eyes had something unnerving in how precise and focussed it was. “What if I do?”, she asked. “I don't see how this is any of your business” Lucifer narrowed his eyes and just for a moment, his mouth twitched. “My girl, you may have noticed there was a terrible attempt on Lord Petyr's life. The cowards from the Rock tried to kill him and some even got away. Lord Selwyn is concerned what this means for his safety and for his children”, he explained. “And just as we begin to answer this question, the Gardener knight disappears. The way he left the castle leaves me to assume it didn't happen with Lord Petyr's blessing” This last assumption was spot on and Maester Lucifer chuckled as he noticed Jenna's surprise. His smile grew a bit wider and for a second, it seemed genuine. If not for the eerily focussed look in his eyes, taking in every single detail of her, he would almost seem grandfatherly in this moment. “You don't have to be afraid of me, my girl”, he claimed, but neither his raspy voice, nor his wild beard helped his point. “All I wish is to serve Lord Selwyn and well, right now I believe this situation will be of interest to my lord” “I don't think there's any danger to him here”, Jenna claimed, to which Lucifer raised an eyebrow. “You should not lie to a man like me”, he told her and it seemed like actual advice instead of the warning it could have been. “I couldn't help but notice the shadows within this lovely little city. Seems like everyone's got a secret, most particularly the man in charge” “Ser Maron doesn't have any...”, Jenna began, a clear attempt at lying, before she interrupted herself. “Lord Petyr doesn't have any secrets”, she stuttered and Lucifer shook his head. “You can't even fool yourself, girl”, he disagreed. “I would very much like to know what your friend and the Gardener knight have been up to” Before she could respond, he interrupted her. “And no, I don't believe you know nothing about them. You've been glued together every time I saw you” “And how often did you see me?”, Jenna asked, to which Lucifer smirked. “Oh, here and there”, he told her. “Always in the background. Always watching. A good servant girl shouldn't watch. Clued me in that you're more than you seem to be. Your reaction just confirmed it” He gave her a wink, which decidedly didn't help with making her trust him any more. “But take it easy, I am not your enemy. All I want is to find out more about that woman. She seems to be in charge of your little... what is it... partnership? Alliance? Honestly, at times it seems like you're cowering to her like a bitch would cover to her master” Jenna's eyes widened and Lucifer was quick to intervene. “I mean a female dog”, he clarified. “That woman, what is she to you?” He stared at her with this sharp, piercing glare of his until she sighed. “A friend”, she told him. “We work together” Lucifer flashed her a grin. “And?”, he asked, but this time, she wouldn't reply. She had told him too much already, but in moments like this, she found it hard to keep her composure. Saerya would have remained quiet, or she would have lied to him with ease. And her father, he would have... She paused and took a deep breath. In moments like this, she knew she wasn't like either of them. Lucifer sighed. “You're protecting your friend, I get that”, he began to speak. “I am loyal to my friends just as well, it's a fine quality to have. My lord first and foremost, I owe him a lot. I don't really care for the Vyrwel or his Mullendore ally. As such, I can assure you, any secret you tell me will remain between the two of us solely, unless it poses a direct threat to Lord Donnel's life” He leant closer, reaching for her upper arm and Jenna took a step away from him to stay out of his reach. Lucifer hesitated, before he took a deep breath. “See, I can be generous”, he claimed. “You may not believe it, coming from a mere Maester and all, but I have been born into nobility and I will reward you richly. What is it you desire?” He narrowed his eyes and seemed to look right through her for a second. “Revenge, isn't it?”, he deduced and Jenna gulped. “Yes, I see so much anger within your eyes, so much hatred. You want someone dead” Her eyes widened, but she did not reply. “Yes, yes, I wonder what puts so much hatred into such a young girl's heart”, Lucifer continued. “Work with me, tell me all you know about this... Saerya and I will grant you vengeance in time” “All of which I can surely take your word for”, Jenna finally replied and though her voice sounded meek at first, she quickly regained her confidence, as she gave him the same thin, cold smirk he was giving her right now. This actually caused the maester to chuckle and it sounded genuine to her, almost grandfatherly. “Oh, I think lying is a great sin”, he claimed. “It's indecent and I never do it” “It's also indecent to spy on a girl”, another voice growled from beyond the corner and a second later, the Selwyn knight, Dunaver Flowers, appeared. Jenna sighed in relief, as this meant at least someone else with her and not just this unsettling man. “But you wouldn't know a thing about decent behaviour, right, Lucifer?” The maester raised an eyebrow. “I mean, at least I am not a bastard”, he replied and for a second, the two men just glared at each other. Then, Lucifer broke into a wide smirk, even letting out a friendly chuckle and Dunaver did the same, though it didn't reach their eyes in either case. “I see you're up to something again, Lucifer”, the knight spoke and though his tone wasn't exactly friendly, it was notably more relaxed than last time she had seen him, in the presence of Vali. “Aren't we always up to something, you and I?”, Lucifer asked. “All for the good of House Selwyn, of course” Dunaver gave him a nod. “Of course”, he spoke swiftly. “Though not with this girl. She's with me, so don't even think about dragging her into one of your little schemes” He stopped right next to Jenna, who calmed down in the presence of the knight. Maybe Vali didn't like him, but Dunaver hadn't given her a bad first impression during their previous meeting. A harsh, but reasonable man. Perhaps a few months ago, she would have seen him like she used to see Ser Ilhan. “So be it...”, Lucifer was quick to agree and Jenna clearly saw that he was not in the mood for an argument with the knight. “But girl... think of my offer and meet me if you wish to reconsider” He smiled, an expression devoid of any joy, before he turned away. “Another time, Dunaver”, he spoke. “Good talk” With this, he began to walk down the hallway, leaving Jenna and the knight behind. “I hope he wasn't bothering you”, Dunaver stated and Jenna shook her head. “We just had a talk”, she claimed. The knight glanced over his shoulder. “Don't act brave, girl, when we both know you're anything but”, he stated. “Don't get dragged into Lucifer's schemes. He is a dangerous man” Jenna narrowed her eyes. “I've dealt with worse”, she stated truthfully. “At least he didn't try to murder me” Dunaver raised an eyebrow. “Saltmouth mentioned you've been through some shit”, he growled. “But don't underestimate that man. He's a dornishman and worse than that, he's an Uller by birth” This name meant nothing to her and after a few moments of silence, Dunaver seemed to catch up to this. “It's a dornish house and one with a very dark reputation on top. Of course, they are all liars and poison-makers, but Lucifer and his Uller kin make the Blackmont's and Manwoody's of that land look like freaking saints” “Then why keep him around?”, Jenna asked and Dunaver sighed. “He is loyal to House Selwyn”, he revealed. “Say what you want about him, but his loyalty is beyond question. I can respect that, if little else about the man” He shook his head. “It doesn't mean he is not dangerous. He looks down upon those who are different from him. Women, bastards, foreigners. It's why I don't like him and why you should never trust him” “As I said, I've dealt with worse”, Jenna repeated. “I am sure of it” She sighed. “But don't worry, I won't get dragged into his schemes... feels like I'm in too many of these already”, she mumbled. “And... thank you” Dunaver offered his arm to her and she accepted as they walked down the hallway. If it wouldn't be for his harsh, utterly serious expression, he actually would come across as gallant in this moment. “If Lucifer has caught up to you, it's getting dangerous here”, Dunaver stated. “Your spy friend, she seems to have taken the hint. Saltmouth told me she left the castle” This actually caused Jenna to pause. “Saerya left?”, she asked and Dunaver gave her a nod. “Normally, I wouldn't give a rat's ass about Vali's information, but the brat is taking this strangely serious. I won't get it out of him, but he's got a personal stake in the matter”, he explained. “So, yes, Vali claims she left the castle, possibly the city” “It's the Gardener knight”, Jenna revealed. With Dunaver's allegiance to the king, he was the only man within this castle she could talk so freely about such matters. “He fears his life is in danger” Dunaver narrowed his eyes. “Hearing things like that, I would usually advice Lord Donnel to leave the city at once”, he admitted. “Alas, for once his maesters both agree on something. Gylbert and Lucifer want him to hear Mullendore out” “He should leave”, Jenna admitted. “At least he should send his family away. His daughters shouldn't be around Mullendore” Dunaver raised an eyebrow. “If my lord gets his will, at least Vanesha will spend a lot of time around that man”, he revealed. “He hasn't made the offer yet, but if the talks go well, he wants to form a closer alliance with House Vyrwel. A marriage between his eldest daughter and Lord Petyr would make for a binding alliance” “Petyr and Vanesha Selwyn?”, Jenna asked and she bit down onto her lower lip. She had seen her only once, but Lord Donnel's daughter was beautiful, no doubt. But the new Lady of Raylansfair? She wasn't sure the woman had it in her. “It's why I need hard evidence if I am to convince Lord Donnel to leave this city”, Dunaver stated. “If your suspicion is correct, then Lady Vanesha mustn't be offered to this man. I grew up with the Selwyn children. If Dustran is my brother in arms, then Vanesha is like a sister to me. The last thing I want is to put her in harm's way” “I'm working on it”, Jenna promised. “But if Saerya left the city, then this won't make things easier...” She blinked, as she let her mind wander. Did Saerya leave to protect the Gardener knight? Or was it all a misunderstanding... Perhaps she decided the situation was too dangerous. Dunaver raised an eyebrow. “You don't need the Targaryen spy either way”, he growled. “She is an ally in name only. Us Reachmen have to stick together instead of relying on dragons to save us. Make no mistake, when the Dragonlord turns his gaze to our fertile plains, she'll stab you in the chest if it means helping her king” “Did Vali tell you that?”, she growled and Dunaver shook his head. “I know spies. Saltmouth would do the same if you weren't from the Reach. Perhaps you can see why I don't like him” She frowned. “I do...”, she whispered and the knight chuckled dryly. “It'll change”, he claimed. “But things are getting out of hand right now. Maybe Vali can help you, if his erratic behaviour doesn't cause more harm than good. All I can offer is protection” Jenna raised an eyebrow. “Protection?”, she asked and Dunaver gave her a nod. “I can try and look out for you as much as possible”, he offered. “Until you can give me the evidence I need to shatter this budding alliance between my lord and these snakes. You spoke of dangerous men in your past” He glanced to the side of her face and she avoided his gaze, knowing he was looking at the scar she carried from her encounter with Wolfius. It had faded over the months, but a fine line of it would remind her of the beast for the rest of her life. “I'm sure that would have gone differently with someone like me around” “Perhaps”, Jenna admitted, though she didn't want to hope that Dunaver could have killed someone as unspeakably dangerous as Wolfius Woodbark. “But you'd be a hindrance as well. How do you expect me to spy on the lord with a walking suit of armour behind me at all times?” Dunaver raised an eyebrow, though he couldn't suppress a chuckle. “I wouldn't be behind you at all times”, he stated. “I'd just look out for you more. Meeting you today was a coincidence. Next time Lucifer gets too close, or any of these fiends, maybe I'll be around by choice. Your choice, to be precise. If you think my protection is too much of a risk, then just say it and I'll back off” He narrowed his eyes. “But if I am supposed to help you in any way here in Raylansfair, then I expect results”, he reminded her. “Talking and then not delivering, that is Vali's specialty and I hope you're better” [Accept Dunaver's protection] [Reject Dunaver's protection]
Kersea “Did I ever mention I hate sewers?”, Leonard muttered, as he stopped right behind Kersea, at the bottom of the narrow staircase that led down into the darkness. He was carrying a torch with him, illuminating stained walls, a long drain filled with mud-stained water, lined by a similarly dirty path to both sides. And the stench was truly horrifying. Excrements, blood, rot and decay, all the filth the largest city in Westeros could produce, it landed here and it added to an already disgusting scenery. She had a strong stomach, else Kersea would have thrown up at this. “We shouldn't have come here. Oldtown is bad enough as it is”, the knight added. A few weeks ago, Kersea would have been annoyed by his complaint, but truth be told, during their journey she had started to see at least where the knight was coming from. She didn't have to agree to understand his point. “Would you rather face this city without aid?”, she asked in return as she took the first step into the darkness and Leonard sighed. “Last time I've been here, I thought I knew this city”, he admitted. “Now though... I don't know if we can find an ally here” He glanced around. “Certainly not in this shithole”, he added. “This Vitihho... I don't trust him. Shady guy, with too many secrets” “You have your secrets just as well”, Kersea replied and he gave her a nod. “But you can't compare them”, he claimed. “Vitihho, he's a scoundrel, an opportunist and quite likely a murderer” Kersea shook her head. “No, not just quite likely. I'm certain he is a murderer”, she replied. “He used to work with Alysanne and she spoke of him fondly” “Didn't she speak fondly of you just as well?”, Leonard asked and Kersea avoided his gaze, as she remembered her friend. That look within Alysanne's eyes, not despicable, but pitiful. The hint of a genuine smile whenever she talked to her. And the moment she died... Kersea knew, no matter how much time would pass, she would never get this thought out of her mind ever again. “Yeah she did...”, she mumbled and Leonard seemed to notice the look on her face. Immediately, his expression softened up a bit. “I just don't trust him, that's all”, he spoke. “But... frankly, I can't claim to be right all the time. Learned that the hard way lately” He raised an eyebrow. “What about you? You trust him?” Kersea thought about this for a moment, before she gave him a nod. “I think he has honour”, she explained, noticing the slight look of disbelief within Leonard's eyes. “Not in a knightly way. But you know the saying, there's honour among thieves? That type, I think he'll genuinely help us if we find his brooch” “And beat up that poor sod who stole it”, Leonard added in a low snarl. “I'm not okay with that, alright? Didn't become a knight by beating up petty thieves and I don't plan to start now” Kersea raised an eyebrow. “I gave Vitihho my word”, she replied and the knight sighed. “And I disapprove”, he stated firmly. “But I am not here to get in your way. If that's what it takes to win the help of this man, then so be it. Just don't expect me to help you” “What would you rather do then?”, Kersea asked. “Most other people would just kill him, so in a way, it's damn nice of Vitihho to just rough him up a bit. Would you rather bring him to the city guard, like a good knight is supposed to do?” In the dim light of the torch, she felt Leonard's glare more than she saw it. “Normally I would at least consider it”, he stated. “But not in this city. Between Vitihho, Mullendore's former goons and that petty thief, the latter sounds like the lesser evil” Half-heartedly, Kersea gave him a nod. “At least we don't have to kill him”, she mumbled and Leonard shook his head. “I won't allow that”, he stated firmly. “If they try to kill us first, if they are in league with Butterfly and his goons, then they are fair game. But I won't just kill some small-time thief who has to live in the sewers like a rat. And neither should you” Leonard was right and she hated that. He was a knight after all, moments like these proved it. Sure, he could be an asshole, but when it truly mattered, he was the type of man who did the right thing. Around Clayton, it had been easy to consider herself as better, as the decent one compared to him. But now, with Leonard around, convincing herself of this had become harder and harder. Compared to him, was she truly that much better than Clayton? “I gave him my word”, she mumbled. In return, Vitihho had given them directions. For a city its size, the Oldtown sewers, while spacious, had a remarkably simple layout. It wasn't like the maze of streets above at all. Instead, it consisted of finely arranged hallways that connected the major streets with each other, the ones where people could afford access to the sewer. A handful of smaller entrances, such as the one they had taken, were built in for convenience, but all in all, the poor rarely had the luxury to put their waste below ground. That being said, it was still, naturally, a dark, reeking and rat-infested place. Thinking of the rodents made Kersea's skin crawl and hearing them was even worse. They were all over the place, possibly outnumbering the humans who lived above them by far. They lived in complete darkness and her only relief was that they feared the unfamiliar light even more than she feared them. She wondered what could force a man to live down here? What could have caused this Roach to live among the rats? “It should be somewhere arou...”, Leonard began, but Kersea spun around, pushing a finger against his lips. She had heard it for a while now, within the shadows. A noise that didn't come from the rats, nor from the dropping water. Footsteps, naked footsteps on the dirty ground. “Uh...”, Leonard said and Kersea quickly took a step away from him. In the light of the torches, she shook her head and though she was certain he hadn't heard the noise, Leonard was smart enough to understand what she meant. Silently, they continued and in the distance, she still heard the footsteps. Not an animal, but a human being. Not particularly large, but quiet. Not quiet enough for her. She had no doubt that the one following them could see in the darkness quite well, likely better than they could, or else she would have told Leonard to drop the torch. But right now, this was the only advantage she had over their pursuer. He knew where they were, but had no idea that she could hear him just as easily. “I don't think he's here”, Leonard finally spoke up and she gave him an alarmed glance. Unmoved by her reaction, the knight continued. “Perhaps we should just turn around. If he doesn't want to barter, then let's turn around. I heard there's worse in this sewers than this Roach guy. I think I still know the way out, but we should leave now...” With this, he turned around and Kersea gasped as she saw the creature standing right behind the knight. She had heard the footsteps, but had no idea how close he truly was. No... not a creature. At second glance, she realized that this was actually a man. Shorter than her, as well as thinner, his frame reminded her more of a hunchbacked child. His face was clearly that of an adult man, however, with almost oversized eyes, bulging out of their sockets. He was heavily balding, with only a few strands of greasy, blonde hair remaining and as he opened his mouth, not to speak, but to breath through, he revealed a handful of crooked, yellow teeth. “You seek Roach, yes?”, the... man asked. “How can Roach help you? You want to barter? Roach has many things to sell” He stared at Kersea with wide eyes, though as he tried to walk closer, Leonard stopped him. “Yeah, we've been looking for you”, he stated, grabbing the thief by the collar of his shirt with ease, before he glanced over his shoulder. “Thanks for warning me”, he spoke towards Kersea. “I knew once he found us, it shouldn't be hard to lure him out of his hiding place” She raised an eyebrow. “A trick?”, she asked and Roach's eyes widened even more. “I am impressed, Constantine” He shook his head, as he pulled Roach closer. The man didn't even struggle, though Kersea noticed his breath going more rapidly, while his expression seemed more confused than alarmed. “We've been looking for you, yes”, he said. “A friend of ours sent you. Said you'd run away if he'd come. Scary guy, an older fellow, not from around here. Name's Vitihho, does that ring a bell?” Briefly, Kersea actually spotted fear flashing over Roach's face. “Roach doesn't know Vitihho! Roach isn't Roach, you have the wrong guy!”, he exclaimed and he grabbed Leonard's hand, which the knight had still clenched around his collar. “Please, let him go!” Fear quickly turned into anger and in a shockingly fast time, his expression grew truly malevolent as he realized that Leonard wouldn't let him go. He began to throw weak punches at the knight, but with his short arms, he didn't even reach Leonard's upper body. Kersea took a step forwards as she realized what he was going to do, but Roach was faster and before Leonard could react, the thief had grabbed his hand, bringing his nasty teeth down upon him and biting into his flesh. Leonard actually screamed, more out of confusion and surprise than actual pain, though as he let go of Roach, she noticed the man's remaining teeth were stained with blood. Out of reflex, Leonard let go of the torch as well and she jumped to catch it, knowing she was too far away to get even a chance to reach Roach. Tough she landed on the revoltingly dirty ground, she managed to grab the torch before it fell down there as well. Darkness was the worst that could have happened to them right now. Faster than she would have deemed possible, he spun around to dash away, but this time, Leonard was there. He jumped after him, wrapping his arms around Roach before the thief had a chance to dart off. In one swift move, he pulled Roach towards him, before pushing him against the nearest wall. “Agh, fuck!”, he roared, pressing the thief against the wall with one hand while inspecting the wound. In the light of the torch, Kersea could see the small bite marks, where Roach's few teeth had actually entered the flesh. “Seven, you nasty bugger!”, Leonard exclaimed. “You actually bit me” He slammed Roach against the wall again, so hard that Kersea was actually afraid he'd accidentally kill the thief. “You still claim you don't know Vitihho?”, she asked and Roach stared at her with wide, fearful eyes. “Roach lied!”, he admitted. “Please, do not hurt him! Roach doesn't want trouble with Vitihho and his friends!” Leonard glared down at his injured hand before he looked at Kersea. “I changed my mind”, he spoke. “That creep... I think he can use a few punches. But that's your task” He still held onto the thief, until Kersea got between them. Pushing Roach to the ground, she shot him a sharp glare. “We're not here to barter”, she stated. “Give us the brooch you stole from Vitihho and I might go easy on you” The thief gulped, before he moved his hand into the nameless depths of his pockets. “Brooch...”, he mumbled and his eyes darted around, without focussing onto her at all. “Roach... brooch... Vitihho's brooch” Glancing around, possibly looking for a way out, he finally focussed onto her again. “Yes, brooch!”, he stated. “Roach has it right here!” He pulled something from his pocket and Kersea noticed a silvery glance. “He did not sell it! Please, Roach wanted to give it back, but it is so pretty!” He smiled a hopeful smile and if she hadn't seen the anger within his glare as he had bitten Leonard, she would have almost taken pity on him. “Take it”, she spoke towards Leonard and the knight already reached for the brooch. Yanking it from Roach's unwilling hands, he shot the man another glare. “We were also told to send you a message”, Kersea revealed and as strange as he was, Roach surely wasn't a dimwit, for he understood at once. His eyes widened even further, as he frantically shook his head. “Ah, Ah, no, please, do not hurt Roach!”, he exclaimed. Before actually doing what she promised, Kersea looked over her shoulder, at Leonard. The knight was leaning against the wall and he quietly took the torch back as she handed it over to him. “Do what you have to do”, he spoke. “This little shit can take it. Just don't kill him” He glared down upon Roach, who, now that he was forced onto the ground again, quickly glared back. Though his anger was intense, he still didn't seem particularly threatening. She almost had pity on him. Then again, the city guard would hang him or take a hand and most other people Vitihho could have sent would have done worse. “You heard him”, Kersea spoke, as she looked down upon Roach. “Take this as a warning. Steal from a man like Vitihho ever again and you're done for” Roach opened his mouth to speak and though she felt no pleasure in doing so, she used this moment to bring her fist down upon Roach's face. “In fact, don't steal from anyone”, she barked, as she punched him once again. This time, Roach actually squealed in terror, though she was certain she hadn't hurt him too seriously. No broken bones or anything, she didn't want to actually cripple him. Roach screamed up, a high-pitched shriek as his thin arms flailed around aimlessly. By chance, he managed to slap Kersea across the face and though it wasn't a hard hit by any means, his sharp claws nonetheless left a painful mark and briefly, she lessened the grip around his collar, simply out of reflex. The thief used this opportunity to break free and on all fours, he attempted to crawl away. “Not so fast!”, Kersea roared in a brief moment of anger, as she reached out for the fleeing thief. She managed to grab him by the ankle and as fiendishly fast as he was even on all fours, his lack of any notable strength left him unable to break free, as Kersea even managed to pull him closer again. By now, she was closer to the stained stone of the sewer than she was comfortable with and not without disgust did she notice that Roach was actively pressing himself against the mud and grime. His wide eyes darted into her direction and widened again. “NO!”, he screamed, followed by a helpless gurgle. “No, please!” He tried to dig his hands into the ground, seeking for anything to grab onto in order to break free. “Let Roach go! Let him go, no more!” He looked at her again and screamed in terror. “Roach is sorry! He will not do it again, please! Please, let him go! Don't hurt him again!” [Punch him again] [Let him go]
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Post by drdestroyer18 on Oct 23, 2019 11:36:52 GMT
[Accept Dunaver's protection] [Let him go]
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Post by WildlingKing on Oct 23, 2019 15:50:21 GMT
[Accept Dunaver's protection] Jenna certainly has got herself tangled in quite a web of intrigue. Making promises and alliances with too many people could be dangerous, but when it comes to Dunaver the help he offers seems pretty straightforward and could end up saving Jenna's life if/when she gets in trouble.
[Let him go] Eh, if it's a lesson he is willing to learn at all he has learned it by now, one or two more punches would do nothing but further sour his opinion on Kersea.
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Post by GMS Freeman on Oct 24, 2019 3:46:01 GMT
[Accept Dunaver's protection] [Let him go]
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Post by diversegnu on Oct 24, 2019 10:46:44 GMT
[Accept Dunaver's protection] It might come in handy.
[Punch him again]
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Post by TheAPlegends on Oct 24, 2019 12:20:45 GMT
[Accept Dunaver's protection]
[Let him go]
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Post by InGenNateKenny on Oct 24, 2019 22:13:19 GMT
[Reject Dunaver's protection] I'll go against the crowd and vote this - because perhaps this whole thing is a sting operation, and there really is no danger to Jenna. I don't fully trust Dunaver.
[Let him go] We roughed up a few times, punched him already. I think Roach has got the message. Honestly, the little dude might have a heart attack if we punch him again. I'm starting to get the feeling that agreeing to beat him was not the best idea. For a second, I thought the description was of that thing, the Fang. On another note, I forgot that Roach was really small. No wonder Ellena could handle me.
So glad to be reading a new part! Lucifer was creepy, in several ways. I am anxious to see what you have in store. Saerya, oh dear.
Interesting fact: a long time ago (19th? century), there was a whole apparatus for cleaning sewers in London. They would bucket the, errr, waste, and bring it farms as fertilizer, while illegal sewer hunters and children would use their knowledge of the tides to look for valuables like iron, false teeth, etc. One problem was that the build-up of methane would lead to sewers sometimes exploding, destroying houses and killing people (gas lamps from workers and hunters caused this). Sometimes, people would suffocate because of the smell. Rather nasty.
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Post by LiquidChicagoTed on Nov 8, 2019 2:50:32 GMT
[Reject Dunaver's protection] I'll go against the crowd and vote this - because perhaps this whole thing is a sting operation, and there really is no danger to Jenna. I don't fully trust Dunaver.
[Let him go] We roughed up a few times, punched him already. I think Roach has got the message. Honestly, the little dude might have a heart attack if we punch him again. I'm starting to get the feeling that agreeing to beat him was not the best idea. For a second, I thought the description was of that thing, the Fang. On another note, I forgot that Roach was really small. No wonder Ellena could handle me. So glad to be reading a new part! Lucifer was creepy, in several ways. I am anxious to see what you have in store. Saerya, oh dear. Interesting fact: a long time ago (19th? century), there was a whole apparatus for cleaning sewers in London. They would bucket the, errr, waste, and bring it farms as fertilizer, while illegal sewer hunters and children would use their knowledge of the tides to look for valuables like iron, false teeth, etc. One problem was that the build-up of methane would lead to sewers sometimes exploding, destroying houses and killing people (gas lamps from workers and hunters caused this). Sometimes, people would suffocate because of the smell. Rather nasty. It's true, Roach is scrawny, really not a physical threat in any way. His only advantage is that he is fast, but Kersea could probably kill him with her punches and she is definitely not a physically strong person. With someone such as him, beating him up might indeed not be the best choice, but you will see later on how this will affect the things to come. Ah, creepy was what I was going for. Creepy, certainly shady, possibly a bit ambiguous, but definitely not the type of person Jenna would like to be around. Unfortunately, this was not the last time we've seen Lucifer, so I can safely say, I got more things in store for him Huh, that's interesting! I haven't found much of a precedent for sewers in Westeros, but since they definitely existed in the middle ages and Westerosi society as a whole has a comparable level of technical advancement, I figured that a city as large as Oldtown would definitely have sewers. Possibly no explosions, but this sewer hunter business definitely sounds like something the poorer citizens of Oldtown would do. I'll make note of that for future reference.
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Post by LiquidChicagoTed on Nov 8, 2019 3:12:51 GMT
The Voting is closed! Jenna is going to accept Dunaver's protection Kersea is going to let Roach go Both of those were pretty important choices that will continue to affect future choices. In both cases, dare I say, this seems like a sensible option, with Jenna getting a hopefully trustworthy ally in Raylansfair (especially since Saerya's current whereabouts are unknown), while Kersea might just avoid killing an unarmed man who definitely doesn't deserve death for his crime. But we'll see, there might be good and bad coming from this. The next part will be out right now. I needed a bit longer again, as the next Dark Eye region guide took a fair bit away from my attention, but I didn't encounter any issues while writing. It seems I have yet to regain my speed, but at least I don't have a motivation problem anymore. On the topic of that, I have to admit that the events of the last months did indeed affect me, quite understandably I hope, and I am sorry it affected my writing. Not the quality, I hope, certainly not the passion I have for telling this story, but the actual motivation to write down what I want to tell. That has gotten a lot better in recent weeks, so I hope I get my speed in order again. I know the FoT readership is not as big as it once was and I can't help but feel my schedule slips have at least played into that, but I want you to know that I well and truly appreciate all of you for still being around (as well as those who may not be always active, but come in from time to time, you are just as awesome!). And even if it might seem that I am not as deep into all of this as I used to be, let me assure you, I am here to stay. Feels like I should have saved that talk for the fifth anniversay post next month, but I'll think of something else until then Anyways, the next part! It's going to be an extra-long Ysilla part, picking up on her storyline again. Last time we saw her, she and Jenelyne were searching for Jen's brother Allar, who had gone missing while scouting the Red Mountains at night. He previously stormed off, seemingly unhappy by Ysilla and Jen getting closer to each other. When they found him, he revealed that this is actually not true, he is quite supportive of them, but he stayed away for so long because he was trying to mislead a patrol of Reach soldiers who were following him. With help from Ysilla and Jen, he lured them into a trap and killed them, but not before one of the soldiers managed to alert his nearby companions. A chase ensued, but ultimately, the trio was cornered by the Reachmen. The leader of the Reachmen revealed himself to be none other than the often mentioned Yoreen Flowers, bastard son of a certain Ser Maron Mullendore. A little recap of background info on Yoreen: Reports on him are super conflicting. In Chapter 2, Belandra Allyrion told Ysilla about Yoreen's raid on Yronwood, where he personally raped Lord Yronwood's granddaughter Saerya. Contrasting the image of a monstrous raider and rapist is a report going all the way back to Chapter 4 of Book 1, where the Storm King received word that Yoreen, who leads the Reach defences at the dornish border, is heavily punishing his soldiers if they mistreat the dornish locals. Ysilla herself is not sure what to make of him yet, but he it at least intimidating enough for her to easily tell him where to find their camp and Theodan. The next part will show Yoreen and his crew (most notably among them an Essosi sellsword who call himself 'The Iron Viper') approaching Theodan's camp.
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Post by LiquidChicagoTed on Nov 8, 2019 3:26:08 GMT
Ysilla “Up there...”, she mumbled, as she pointed at the distant light of the campfire. Barely able to look at it, she averted her eyes and blinked. “Don't hurt him, please”, she added as she looked at Yoreen Flowers, who was crouched down next to her. Behind him were two dozen of his men on foot, as well as the chained Jenelyne and Allar. She herself hadn't been bound, perhaps because the Reachman knew she wouldn't run and leave her friends behind. “That depends on him”, Yoreen replied in a whisper. “If he surrenders, you have my word that I won't cut him down where he stands. That's the best you'll get from me” Ysilla gulped. “Let me speak to him”, she urged the Reachmen, to which Yoreen raised an eyebrow. “You plan something, Dornish?”, he growled, to which she shook her head. “I just want to talk to him”, she urged him. “To prevent bloodshed. He is my brother, please” Yoreen chuckled dryly and from his throat, it sounded downright vile. “And why exactly should I give a damn about your brother?”, he asked. “I have a dozen I know of and I couldn't care less about any of them. So, don't tell me a family sob story, that won't work for me” She clenched her fists. “He is a good fighter”, she then claimed. “Better than any of yours. The best one I know. If he decides to fight, he'll take down two or three of your men before you get him. Please, if not for his sake, then for the sake of your men, give me the chance to talk him down. I led you here, didn't I?” “A good fighter, you say?”, the voice of the Iron Viper sounded from behind her. “Commander, I am intrigued. If he is truly as good as the girl claims, it would be a disgrace to simply throw your men at him until he goes down. There's no honour in that” Yoreen chuckled again. “You're the strangest sellsword I know, Viper”, he replied. “I should be the one rambling about honour, not some lowlife from Essos. What do you suggest then?” “Give the girl her chance”, the Iron Viper urged him. “If she succeeds, well, four captured Dornish are better than three. Makes it more likely one of them is going to talk” In the light of the moon, she saw Yoreen raising an eyebrow, though he seemed to agree. “And if she fails...?”, he asked, as the Viper crawled closer. “Then I wish to fight against him”, he stated. “I have yet to meet a good swordsman from Dorne and I yearn for the challenge” “Yeah, that's more like you”, Yoreen growled and he was quiet for a moment. Then, he nodded and Ysilla wasn't sure if she should be concerned or relieved. “Alright, granted”, he spoke. “What good is a master swordsman if I don't ever put him to use?” Then, he glanced at Ysilla. “Lure him back here, make sure he won't suspect a thing, then I'll order my men to restrain him”, he added. “You have one chance. Fuck this up and you're at fault for your brother's death” Ysilla barely managed to nod, as she looked at the Iron Viper. Physically, he wasn't the most impressive man she had ever seen, being more on the wiry side. Then again, neither was Theodan and he was a fine warrior. The Iron Viper seemed confident enough and she had the impression that it wasn't just hubris. And even if he would fail... she doubted Yoreen would let the death of his prized companion go unanswered. No, convincing her stubborn arse of a brother was the only way. With shaking hands, she rose from the ground. “One chance...”, she mumbled, as she staggered past Yoreen and his soldiers. As fast as she could, she made her way up the hill and towards the camp. And while she ran, she tried to come up with a lie to tell him. Anyone else, she knew she could have fooled. But Theodan? Her brother knew her well, perhaps a bit too well for this. “Theodan?”, she gasped, as she spotted the campfire. Her brother was sitting there, trying to feed the fire. He had wrapped a blanket around him against the cold and now that she stopped a moment to think about it, Ysilla noticed she was freezing just as well. At night, the air here in the Red Mountains was chilling and the only thing that stopped her from actually shivering was the adrenaline coursing through her body. Hearing the concern in her voice, her brother jumped up at once. “Ysilla!”, he exclaimed as he rushed towards her. He stopped after a few steps, once he noticed the look on her face. “What is going on?”, he asked, immediately reaching for his sword and Ysilla's heart skipped a beat. “It's... it's Allar”, she exclaimed. “We found him a few miles to the west. He fell down a hole and it's bad. I think his leg might be broken” Theodan narrowed his eyes, but before he could reply, she cut him off. “Jen stayed with him, but we can't get him back without your help”, she stated. “Quick, we have to hurry” Theodan gave her a nod. “Fuck's sake, that is the last thing we need right now”, he complained. “We shouldn't linger in these lands, it's dangerous enough already. Any of the Reachmen find us, we're as good as dead” He moved past her, a hand on his sword and she wrapped an arm around him, as if to calm him down. “They won't, if we hurry”, she whispered and Theodan raised an eyebrow. “How far is it?”, he spoke, to which she shrugged. “Not far”, she stuttered. “Come on, we have to hurry” She was going to separate from him, but Theodan grabbed her forearm. “What...?”, she began to say, before she noticed the look in his eyes. “You just told me it's miles from here”, he spoke and he smirked sadly at her shocked expression. “You have always been a good liar, sister mine. But you just can't lie to me” Her eyes widened, as she took a step away from him. “I... I don't know what you mean”, she gasped. “Please, just... just come with me. We get Allar and it'll be alright...” Theodan gently shook his head. “Someone made you do this, aye?”, he mumbled and for once, Ysilla couldn't tell what he was thinking. Was he angry? Hurt? “Brother, please...”, she hissed. “Come with me. Don't... don't...!” He didn't let her continue. In a heartbeat, he had drawn his sword and taken a step towards the hill behind which Yoreen and his men were hiding. “You can come out now!”, he roared. “Forcing my sister to trick me... Did you think that would work?” He grabbed the sword with both hands now, just as Ysilla spotted movement atop the hill. The massive figure of Yoreen Flowers was the first to appear. The knight had his arms crossed as he stood there, glaring down at Ysilla and Theodan. Behind him, she saw the more nimble figure of the Iron Viper, followed by Theon Toyne, who was the only one among the three who had his sword drawn. “The girl betrayed us, Yoreen”, the Stormlander growled. “Kill them both and be done with it. There's no sense chasing after desert rats” Yoreen indeed placed a hand on his sword, which caused Theodan to subtly shift position, placing himself between Ysilla and the Reachmen. He pointed his weapon at the knight and didn't flinch, not even as Yoreen's remaining men appeared behind their leader. Among them, and it hurt seeing them like this, were Jen and Allar, who wore heavy iron collars around their necks, chained together, with that vile woman, Roseandre, holding the other end of their chains. “Don't let hate blind you, my friend”, Yoreen disagreed. “She just failed, simple as that. Now she's gotta live with the consequences” He shrugged. “Girl, I tried to do it your way”, he claimed. “Now... Viper, you can do with him as you like” The Iron Viper placed a hand on his sword, as he took a step forwards, towards Theodan, who was fully focussing on him by now. “Run...”, Theodan hissed and she was ashamed to admit that for a second, she was willing to go through with it. But she pulled herself together even before Yoreen raised a closed fist. She couldn't, she wouldn't abandon him and Jen and Allar. Then, the commander spoke and his words took what little doubt she still had. “If the girl runs, shoot them both”, he barked and behind him, half a dozen men raised their bows. “And what if I win?”, Theodan spoke, as he and the Iron Viper glared at each other. His opponent chuckled. “Ah, I like your attitude”, he replied. “A fair warning... you won't” Still, he glanced over his shoulder, while pointing the blade at Theodan. “He's mine, Commander. Now matter how this is going to look for me, I don't want you to interfere”, he warned the soldiers behind him. “That goes doubly to you, Toyne” It was dead silent around him and as such, Ysilla heard Theon Toyne's sigh. “Get yourself killed then, you Essosi bastard”, he growled, though he lowered his sword, now leaning on the hilt. “Seven have mercy, I'd love to see that!” In the dim light of the campfire and the torches behind him, the Iron Viper grinned. Then, he gave Theodan a nod. “After you, Dornishman”, he spoke. Theodan did not hesitate. She had seen him fight before, but never like that, never with such intent. He was taking this as serious as he had to and she knew right away, he would kill this man. And then...? They had taken her spear and they outnumbered them twelve to one. There was no way they could get out of this. That's why she had surrendered. At least that would give her the chance to get out of here. She flinched as the blades crashed against each other. Both were slightly curved, their blades a bit thicker than what was common to a Westerosi longsword. Theodan's sword had been with her family for generations, but for a second, she had to wonder where the Iron Viper had found such a similar weapon. Her brother was putting all his strength into the strike, pressing his blade against the IronViper's, but the man did not push against it. Instead, he allowed himself to fall back, avoiding Theodan's weakened strike entirely. Ysilla clenched her fists, as Theodan attacked again. He did not fight like any Westerosi knight she had seen, preferring fast, wide strikes the way someone from Essos would. Then again, so did the Iron Viper, who parried each of Theodan's strikes skillfully. They were like dancers, as their blades met again and again, each time clashing against each other, then separating, waiting for another opportunity to strike. If it wouldn't be her brother fighting for his life, she would be almost enchanted by this duel. Another strike from Theodan, another block from the Iron Viper. The Essosi did not even try to attack. Instead, he allowed Theodan to attack and holding her breath, Ysilla watched her brother doing just that. Another strike, then another, then yet another, each coming fast and hard. A weaker opponent would have been dead by now, as Theodan knew exactly what he was doing. It seemed, unfortunately, that so did the Iron Viper. He parried another hit without flinching, then dodging the next strike, before jumping back, entirely out of reach. The two opponents circled around each other and though Theodan looked grim and serious, so unlike the calm, yes, even gentle man she had come to know, the Iron Viper was grinning. “You're pretty good”, he complimented her brother. “Now, let's see how you're going to deal with that...” This time, he actually attacked. For the first time since starting their duel, he took the lead and she realized that all this time, he had been holding back. His sword cut through the cold air, stopping only an inch away from Theodan's face, not because he stopped, but because her brother had parried the strike at the last moment. She saw the shock on Theodan's face, but he recovered quickly. As the Iron Viper attacked again, her brother was ready. He parried the next strike a bit better and instead of parrying the third, he dodged it by taking a step to the side. The Iron Viper's sword hit nothing but thin air and with her heart beating furiously inside her chest, Ysilla saw her brother going in for the kill. His sword would have decapitated his opponent, if not for the Iron Viper to jump down, dodging the blade entirely, though it still almost grazed him. As the Iron Viper spun around, the expression on his face had changed. Gone was the slightly smug smirk. Instead, his eyes were wide, filled with excitement and anticipation. Wordlessly, he attacked again, faster than before. Each strike made Ysilla flinch and each time, Theodan parried just barely. A lesser man would have been dead by now, but Theodan, for all his bravado, was a knight of House Allyrion. If anyone could go against this beast from Essos, it was her brother. Theodan's attacks were swift and precise, but with each attack that was parried, his frustration grew notably. She knew that patience wasn't his strength and were it anything but a duel to the death, he likely would have given up in frustration by now. Though it didn't show in his attacks, she could feel his anger, his frustration at an opponent who was his equal at the very least. The Iron Viper meanwhile was clearly enjoying all of this, not with mad zeal, but with genuine pleasure. Her heart nearly skipped a beat as when she realized what this meant. Theodan was the best fighter she knew, a swordsman without equal. It had always been the one thing even their father had never been shy to praise. But the Iron Viper's confidence, it wasn't misplaced. Even now, after having seen Theodan fight, it hadn't faltered. Without any doubt, her brother couldn't win this fight. And indeed, as the Iron Viper attacked again, Theodan raised his blade just a little bit too late to block the entire force of the strike. Though he tried to step to the side, he failed to avoid the blade entirely. The Iron Viper jumped forwards, slicing into Theodan's upper arm, deep enough to draw blood. He did not pursue his opponent and immediately took a step back, grabbing his sword with both hands as he watched Theodan. Her brother did not scream, even though the wound was certainly deep. That being said, his pained expression said enough, though he managed to give her a sharp glare as she tried to charge at them. “Don't!”, he roared, as the archers raised their weapons. It was more his warning than their bows that caused Ysilla to stop. But she understood at once. If he was to have any chance at winning this duel, she couldn't risk distracting him, even if it tore her apart seeing him like this. With blood running down his left arm, Theodan staggered back, away from his fearsome opponent. The Iron Viper wasn't injured at all, though he began to breathe a bit heavier. Perhaps he couldn't do this for much longer either. When he attacked again, Theodan was ready. The Iron Viper did a high strike in a clear attempt to split Theodan's head in half. Her brother raised his sword to block, but instead of stopping the attack entirely, he merely deflected it and it travelled farther down, missing him by a few inches, as he charged forwards. Though the Iron Viper reacted quickly, he wasn't fast enough this time and the hilt of Theodan's sword slammed into his face. It threw him off balance and Ysilla's eyes widened, as for a moment she allowed herself a sliver of hope. The Iron Viper staggered back, holding the sword with one hand, while the other inspected the damage done to his face. It wasn't much, but a few drops of fresh blood stained his fingers. The sight caused him to chuckle in disbelief. Theodan allowed his opponent not a moment of respite. He took a wide swing with his sword, holding it solely with his right arm and as expected, the Iron Viper dodged the attack. What he failed to do, however, was to dodge the second swing, which Theodan took with his closed left fist. Her brother groaned in pain as he hit his target and yet more blood poured down from the gash at his upper arm. The punch had the intended effect and the Iron Viper stumbled back. Behind him, Theon Toyne calmly raised his sword, only for Yoreen himself to hold him back. But if Theodan would end up killing the Iron Viper tonight, would the Reachman still do the same? Toyne was a knight in heavy armour. While Theodan and the Iron Viper were evenly matched, there was no way her brother had any chance against the Stormlander. Another strike from Theodan, this time mimicking the one he deflected earlier. The Iron Viper pushed against it with his sword and Theodan used this opportunity to kick his opponent against the shin, further throwing him off balance. Though the Iron Viper managed to parry the next strike, he finally staggered to the ground, quickly pushing himself away from Theodan to at least get some distance between them. Her brother pursued his opponent, ready to finish the fight. By now, the Iron Viper had gotten back onto one knee, but he was still at a disadvantage against Theodan, who was towering over him. Holding his blade with one hand, he parried the next attack, while his other hand wandered over the ground, seemingly looking for something. Theodan didn't notice, but Ysilla realized what his opponent was up to. “Watch out!”, she yelled, but it was too late. In this moment, the Iron Viper threw a fistful of sand and small stones right into Theodan's face. Failing to protect his eyes, Theodan was caught off guard and blinded, if just for a moment. It was all the Iron Viper needed. With fiendish speed, he jumped up, holding his sword with one hand, while grabbing Theodan's sword arm with the other. Ysilla let out a gasp of terror, as the Iron Viper threw a punch right at Theodan's throat, not with the blade, but with the heavy hilt. He let go of Theodan and her brother stumbled back, his eyes wide, as he gasped for air. Before he could recover, the Iron Viper punched him again and this time, Theodan sank to his knees. His sword fell from his hand, as he clutched his throat while coughing and gasping. The Iron Viper looked at his opponent for a moment, before he smirked. Ysilla knew, she had to do something. It didn't matter if they would kill her, if only she would save her brother's life. As such, she charged at the Iron Viper, just as the sellsword delivered a heavy kick to her brother's head. Theodan sank to the ground and she had eyes only for him. She barely even realized that the archers were pointing their arrows right at her and through the sound of blood pumping through her veins, she heard Jenelyne scream her name. Fast, almost too fast for her to react, the Iron Viper raised his sword, as he gave her a cold glare. “Easy now”, he said and she stopped as the tip almost dug into her flesh. “It would be a shame, slicing through such a fair throat” She gulped and stopped immediately, as he placed a boot on Theodan, who was lying on the ground by now. Her brother was still conscious, but only barely regaining his breath. The sight of her with a sword pointed to her throat was enough for him to remain completely motionless, however. “Don't you dare touch her!”, he growled. The Iron Viper chuckled. “It was a decent fight. Good even”, he complimented his opponent. “Now, don't ruin that impression. Just stay down” He was going to say something else, but Ysilla saw him narrowing his eyes as Yoreen cut him off with loud clapping. “A splendid fight, Viper!”, he complimented his sellsword. “Now, if anyone is still wondering why I keep that mad bastard from...” He paused. “Where exactly do you come from again, Viper?”, he then asked. “A small patch of land west of Volantis”, the Iron Viper replied. “Quite few days to the west, to be precise” He gave Ysilla a wink, as Yoreen continued. “Yeah, from there”, he spoke up again. “Now, if anyone is still wondering why I keep him around, that's the reason. He's the best damn swordsman I have ever seen” He gave the Essosi a nod. “That calls for a reward. Tell me what you want and it shall be granted to you” “Two things”, the Iron Viper spoke at once. “Well, three, to be precise. First, I want his sword” Ysilla narrowed her eyes and Theodan outright protested. “Don't you dare, that's...”, he began, but the Iron Viper cut him off by putting a foot onto his face, muffling any further sound. “It's finely crafted. Likely stolen, but still, a splendid weapon. Consider it my pay for this month” “Granted”, Yoreen agreed. “Now, what else do you want?” The Iron Viper looked at Ysilla and he gave her a sly sink. “Spare this one and her brother. Take them prisoner, interrogate them for all I care, but don't cut them down just now, even though they didn't follow your orders” Yoreen raised an eyebrow, clearly just as surprised as Ysilla by his request. “How generous of you, sellsword”, he growled. “Any particular reason?” The Iron Viper shrugged. “It was a good fight. Dare I say, the best I had in months”, he replied. “That man fought admirably” He knelt down, still keeping one knee on Theodan's chest, as he gave him a genuine grin. “I hope for a rematch before this is over”, he whispered, so quiet that only Theodan and Ysilla were able to hear him. She still looked at the Essosi in utter confusion, surprised that he would even consider sparing their lives. Theodan's expression, however, quickly turned to rage, as the sellsword picked up his sword. “That is mine!”, he hissed and the Iron Viper shrugged, as he carefully inspected his new trophy. “It was”, he mumbled. “And my, is it a fine sword. How exactly did a dornish spy get his hands on such a weapon?” He raised an eyebrow and his grin widened, before he shrugged. “Ah, whatever”, he stated. “You're welcome to win it back if you beat me next time” Already, several of Yoreen's men were approaching them, as the commander nodded. “So be it!”, he proclaimed. “Take them, chain them together with the others. We'll bring them back to camp!” The Iron Viper, seemingly satisfied with this, turned away from Ysilla and Theodan, holding the latter's sword in his right and his own in his left hand, before resting both on his shoulders. Theodan sighed, as two men yanked him back to his feet. His eyes were reddened, not from crying, but from the sand and dirt the Iron Viper had thrown into them. His frustration, however, was very real and she felt it with the glare he had for the man who bested him, for his captors and even for her. “Are you alright?”, she whispered and he merely sighed. “Do I look alright?”, he hissed and his voice was oozing disappointment. “I had to do it... They would have killed you had I not led them to our camp”, she whispered and Theodan shook his head. “I know...”, he admitted. “Just... don't talk. Not right now” He narrowed his eyes, as he looked at the Reach knight. Yoreen was approaching them, with Theon Toyne walking by his side. Behind him, the Iron Viper was just now passing Roseandre, who was dragging Jen and Allar with her. The woman had a smirk on her face as the Iron Viper stopped next to her and briefly, she placed a hand on his chest, whispering something Ysilla was unable to hear. “A dornish spy who holds his own against my master swordsman...”, Yoreen growled, as he mustered Theodan from head to toe. Her brother was not a tall man, whereas the Reachman seemed almost inhumanely tall in the darkness. He had to be around seven feet tall, looking down on her, on Theodan and on every single one of his men. “This night holds many surprises” “What are you going to do with us?”, Ysilla asked, as Theodan avoided to even look at the man. Yoreen shrugged. “I haven't decided yet”, he admitted. “You're going to live, for now. You're probably going to survive the night, if you behave. Everything beyond that depends on how useful you will be to me. Just keep in mind that every crime needs proper punishment” “We haven't done anything wrong”, Theodan hissed, still avoiding the Reachman's fearsome glare. Yoreen raised an eyebrow and the chuckle that came from his throat was cold and cutting. “You tried to cross the border, my border, like thieves in the dark of the night. Four heavily armed strangers and you mean to tell me there's nothing wrong?”, he growled and as he continued, he came a little bit closer, inch by inch, until Ysilla could feel his hot breath. “You killed some of my men. They've been good men and now I get to send ravens to their lords. If their families are lucky, their lords will care enough to inform them about what happened. If not, they will spend the rest of their lives awake at night, thinking of their loved ones, of my men, and never knowing what happened. A widow who has to live with a broken heart for the rest of her live. Children who grow up without their father, parents who will never learn the fate of their only child. You tell me there's nothing wrong with that?” He almost shouted these last few words and Ysilla gulped. “We had to defend ourselves...”, she began and Yoreen narrowed his eyes. “Self defence...”, he mumbled and for a second, it seemed as if he was about to hit her. She braced herself for the impact, but he never even made an attempt to strike, despite trembling in anger. “If that is the truth, I will take it into account when deciding on your fate”, he pressed through his teeth. “But I don't believe you, Dornish. Your kind has murder in their veins” In this moment, Roseandre arrived, still dragging Jen and Allar with her. Tears were streaming down Jen's face, while Allar seemed almost as disgruntled as Theodan. That being said, he was holding himself together quite well, all things considered. “Are you okay?”, Jen asked as she tried to get closer to Theodan, whose expression softened as he saw the concern on her face. “I'm alright”, he stated and Jen briefly looked at Ysilla, her face full of concern. “You got lucky, Dornishman”, Roseandre hissed. “In a serious fight, Viper would tear you apart” While she spoke, Allar subtly leant in to Ysilla. “Don't tell him anything...”, he whispered, so quiet that she only understood him because she watched him carefully. He didn't have to explain himself. No matter what, she couldn't tell Yoreen about their mission. If the Reach would get their hands on the man they were looking for, Dorne would stand against the dragon's wrath without protection. Her family, her brother, all who ever meant something to her, left to the flames. And that was even more fearsome than Yoreen Flowers and his soldiers. “No mumbling!”, Roseandre barked, as she yanked Allar back, dragging Jen with her as a side effect. Ysilla reached out for her, managing to grab Jen's hand and the other woman squeezed it briefly, before being pulled out of reach. “Do we really need four prisoners, Commander?”, Roseandre asked and Yoreen gave her a glare. “No”, he confirmed. “But there is no need to kill them just yet. Their fate depends on how soon they talk” With this, he turned to Ysilla and she took a deep breath as he mustered her with his unsettling, almost corpse-like eyes. “And you will talk, girl”, he growled. “You told me where to find your brother, proves you're not entirely witless. You know what is good for you” She clenched her fists, mostly to stop her hands from shaking, but Yoreen still noticed how afraid she was of him. He smirked at the sight. “And you are terrified”, he remarked. “You should be. I'll treat you well as long as you cooperate, but make no mistake. If you ever cause more trouble than you're worth, I'll gut you where you stand” He came a bit closer and she had to suppress the urge to flinch. “I just ask for you to cooperate with me. Tell me who you are, why you are here, where you plan on going next, then I'll decide what to do with you. If you're lucky, you'll serve a year or two on one of our farms or in a mine before we send you back to Dorne. Resist and it'll end worse” “What...”, Ysilla began, before she had to cut herself off, so that he wouldn't hear her voice breaking. “What do you want me to do now?” Yoreen grinned at her. “I want you to work with me. To answer all of my questions to the best of your ability. Will you do that for me?” Behind him, Allar subtly shook his head and Ysilla bit down onto her lower lip, knowing the knight wanted to hear an answer from her. [Promise to cooperate] [Remain silent]
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Post by drdestroyer18 on Nov 8, 2019 13:03:59 GMT
[Remain silent]
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Post by InGenNateKenny on Nov 8, 2019 18:33:10 GMT
[Promise to cooperate] Promise, and then lie. That seems like the moral course of action.
I listened to one of those background noises on YouTube for this part. I've been doing that more and more lately, both to cover up real-life background noise and engross myself into the story. It called itself "A Dark and Windy Night You Must Weather." I must say, it really enhances the reading.
Oof. Dairon will never be forgotten! Also, I think this implies a perhaps strained relationship between Mullendore and Yoreen. Or not.
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Post by WildlingKing on Nov 8, 2019 19:10:24 GMT
[Promise to cooperate] Ysilla really isn't in a position here to act stubborn. Besides, a promise to her captor probably isn't something she'll feel bad breaking later.
I really enjoyed the duel between Iron Viper and Theodan, it did a good job of showing both of them as very capable fighters. The Iron Viper has in general been a very entertaining character to read so far, good job!
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