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Shattered Honour Chapter Six


Parrhesia
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The source of the voices are two men, clearly Othidian by their thick, husky accents, dark hair and broad shoulders. They're drinking fine wine on even finer chairs in front of a campfire. One man is dressed in simple cloth attire, suited to one who tramps around in the outback frequently. He looks about fifty, with a scratchy salt-and-pepper beard and short, badly-cut hair. His eyes are brown, and he has a cunning look to him. The other wears the hand-me-down plate and mail of a captain, and has a tabard diplomatically slung over the back of his chair. His back is to you, and as such it is his colleague that notices Irene's presence. "Ah, Aldous, I see we have friends!"

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"Got space for one more, lads?"

"Sure thing, mate," says their leader, and they shuffle aside to let you past.

Triple 20, 20, 20. 100.

"So what brought you to this desolate place, eh? I'll be warnin' you, it's not exactly a sellsword's dream, now that the Othidians are falling back. Believe you me, they were desperate for men in the siege. We came over from Caril just before they set up, slipped through their lines, y'know? Very handsomely paid for it, but now the danger's over." The tall, grizzled leader, two-handed sword slung over his back, throws a 140, plucks the darts from the board and hands them to you.

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"Greetings. What are a couple of Othidians like you doing in these parts?" Irene walked over to the fire. "Seems to me like most of your fellow countrymen are somewhere else trying to kill the kinds of people you're living with."

Jack, hearing Irene talking, gestured to Jordan and started to head over that way.

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You see Aldous' face; weather-beaten, tanned. Three scars, all clearly earnt in battle and one very recent. Hazel eyes, steady eye contact. Short-cut hair, curled, umber. Hasn't shaved in about three days. There's a long dirk at his belt, and a heavy steel morningstar leaning on the fireplace wall, clearly his.

"We're recently from Bahar," he says, blowing a smoke-ring from his pipe. "The King called the legion back, but we don't want to return before our tour of duty, right? Wouldn't be honourable; the Baharese have kept their end of the deal, and they treat our warriors with respect. Anyway, me and Kurtis here have come at the behest of our General, Cayla Baudette. We're accompanying Mahiir; a show of faith, innit?"

Kurtis leans back in his chair. "So what are you here for? We heard we were bunking with Randel's personal taskforce; are you with them?"

Edited by Furetchen
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"I see. It is nice to hear that there are still men with honour in the midst of this war. I am glad to have met both of you. As for me... I am currently with the group that is apparently being called Randel's taskforce. We are here for now, though I doubt we'll be here for long. He implied as much at least." As she finished her sentence, Jack arrived. "Ah, this is Captain Jack, our group's current leader. Jack, these men are from the Othidian legion in Bahar. They have been sent with Mahiir." Jack nodded and extended a hand. "Jack, pleased to meet you. And... who is Mahiir?"

Edited by scorri
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Ugh, these things always bring trouble, no matter what. Despite mental complaints, he walked his way over with Jack, not wanting left out of the loop. "Yes, who is this Mahiir? He sounds... exotic."

Edited by seph1212
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Kurtis takes a draw from his flask. "The son of a Caliph; sort of a priest-king, I suppose you'd call him. An avaricious son-of-a-bitch, pretty much just waiting for his father to die; he's eighty-four, as of last month. Still, a good soldier. He seeks to increase his reputation by reinforcing the Tascaran forces against the Othidians. Pity he only brought seven hundred fighting men and an entourage of fifty, though..."

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Irene frowned slightly, but then shrugged. "Seven hundred men is seven hundred more than we had before he arrived. Any help is welcome in this fight." Turning to Jack, she continued, "Perhaps you should try and find the rest of the men and let them know where we'll be staying. Also let Tordel know of his promotion." Jack nodded. "Aye, I'd been thinking I should try and find him. I'll try the inn first." He heads out to the inn. Irene turns back to the men and grins at them. "So, do either of you like to play cards?"

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After their little shopping trip, Airik and Susan had been hanging out at the tavern. A few people they recognized had come by, two of the group members getting into a fist fight, but the leaders hadn't come back from Randel's yet. Well, they hadn't until Jack walked in anyway.

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"So, do either of you like to play cards?"

"Only with the terminally unlucky," says Aldous blandly. "Like Kurtis here, ain't that right, Kurtis?"

The apothecary ignores that remark.

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A patterned knocking is heard from the entryway door, followed by the entrance of Cole, standing confident having returned ahead of schedule from the forge. Clenched in his hands was a freshly sharpened cutlas, one fit for a warrior legionnaire of high status. It was a menial task, but a handful of Maxim from that of the King's legion was nothing to ignore. All greatness must start from the bottom, and a strong network with many allies held together with a foundation of trust and respect is deed in itself. That, and of course some coin to make the day's bread last more than a bite couldn't hurt either.

He approaches Aldous, and gently lays the blade on the table.

I'm sorry to interrupt, Aldous. I've your cutlas right here. When I mentioned that it was for the Alduos of the King's Legion, Homming took right care of it. He said this be his thanks, and that since he owed you, this was on him. Oh, and he requested that you not wait so long until next time. I'm sure you know what he means. I certainly don't.

Cole shakes the hand of Aldous, and exchanges the blade for a small pouch of maxim. He waves towards everyone in conversation before having a seat at a nearby table, facing his back to the crowd, and taking a drink from a beaten flask. However, as time passes, his curious ear catches word of an older-than-time warrior and his more than notable brigade. Cole leans back from his seat, coyly eavesdropping in on the conversation meters behind him, and considers the purpose of this band. He had no idea who it was that he'd been tending to.

"This could be it. A life beyond mere handymannery and simple hunting. I wonder if they require an extra hand."

Cole stands from his bench, swallows his pride and his ale, walks over towards the intimidating woman and slams his hand on the wooden polished edge of the table.

"The name's Cole. Deal me in, I have a good feeling and my word. Time to see if I can get anything more with just that. I got a couple of questions for ya too, but let us see where this takes us."

Edited by Elieson
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Tordel took aim with his darts. He knew that the 2 next to the 0 was a good one. He took his shots, landing on the triple twenty once, along with two regular twenties. Not being able to count, he just assumed that his shots had been good.

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"Anyway," says Aldous, looking as bored as he sounds, "I suppose you'll be wanting to sleep soon enough. We... for the sake of formality, have to stay awake. We're officially meeting Randel and the Dracian diplomats as soon as they arrive, which shall happen in..." Aldous sighs. "About another five hours. More brandy, Kurtis?"

The long road is starting to take a toll on you... you could probably prod yourself awake all that time, but it'd be uncomfortable and you weren't invited to the proceedings anyway.

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Irene grinned at the newcomer. "Hmm, I wouldn't mind playing some cards with you. Said your name is Cole, eh? Well, why don't we get a hand or two in before I head to bed. 10 crowns a hand? Also the name's Irene, nice to meet you."

Jack walks into the bar and spies Tordel playing darts. Walking up to him, he extends a hand, "Congratulations on your promotion Sergeant. Assuming you want to accept that is. Either way, we should collect the men and show them where we're staying tonight."

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"10 per? Eh I suppose I can afford a few rounds. Pleasure to meet you as well, dear. Cole's the name, by the by. You do the honours, if ya don't mind." Cole sits across from Irene, glaring at everything except her eyes. One thing he learned as a youth is that not maintaining eye contact during a game makes you less predictable. He notices some fine equipment, and worn footwear, carrying evidence of battle.

"So, you get around a bit more than the ordinary woman, eh? Something tells me you are a bit hardened over the others." Cole tosses his crowns into the center of the table and awaits his deal.

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Cole checks his pockets and finds them surprisingly light.

"Eh, perhaps I should pay Lady Luck a visit in the morrow. A man knows when he's beat. I've nothing left to bet but a few crown and my bow arm, not like that's worth anything in a trade. What say we call it an eve and find a place to stay. I've made some friends at the Inn, and they'll be sure to put us up. At least I hope they do. I'd prefer a bed to a bail tonight anyway."

Cole steps up from the table, shrugging and feeling less of a man than he was when he sat down, but walked towards the door and waved Irene to join him in his walk anyway.

"C'mon, the least I can ask is that you at least join me for company until we get there. Besides, I wanted to ask you about this Taskforce of yours. Is this Captain Jack taking in new recruits? I've been working the streets for meager coin for too long, and would sure enjoy having a duty to call me own instead of taking on handed down errands for a pitied living."

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