Masquerade Part 2: Army of Darkness

[Bluedoom]

Woken up by daylight, Ferdinand checked his room to see if any item of his was stolen. It wouldn't be surprising if those poor harpies still tried to mug him, this place wasn't exactly the nicest to travelers. Then it hit him as he remembered last night's sorrow- losing 500 gold over gambling. Even if a foolish harpy had barged in, they'd find nothing valuable to steal. Hmph, I need to get that money back. I am going to win some cash from the arena again, and...think about gambling that cash sometime later. But first...there is something I need to retrieve.

Immediately, Ferdinand set foot to Burke's Forge, where he had given is Iron Axe. Quickly entering the place, he asked, " The Forge, is it ready? I'm thinking of using it in the arena!"

[Sandalphon]

Vesta woke with an agonising groan, cursing all of creation with a single breath. Her head felt as though an insect had crawled into her nostril while she was asleep and decided to start a band with a bunch of it's friends by banging on the various lobes of her brain.

Yesterday, she surmised, must've been pretty insane. She racked her head, trying to piece together how she got into this lovely room (that had luxuries like those window-blanket things and pillows). Eventually, everything came back to her with incredible lucidity, and she remembered that she took on a job with a bunch of whackos out in the deadly frozen tundra because some snake-lady had vaguely stirred her inebriated loins.

She swore and promised that if she survived this enterprise she would never drink again... and this time, as opposed to the last twenty or so times this promise had been made she would keep it. Mum's honour (though admittedly, her mum was a dishonourable murderous pervert as well so this phrase meant very little upon further deliberation).

Vesta dragged her aching carcass out of the soft realm of bed land and made her way into stinging-light-in-your-eyes land as she remembered that she had an axe to pick up at the smithy. Hopefully she would be able to make the money she lost at the gambling parlour back as well.

"Oh well. Mama did tell me I needed to make more friends that weren't wanted by the cops. I can't guarantee that these scoundrels won't be any better company than what I'm used to but at least they should be good fer a laugh or two..." She muttered to herself, trying to make the best out of a tight situation.

[algae]

"Er, sorry, Sonia," she said, making her way to the back. "Alright, where do I start? And please tell me if I'm getting in your way." A week as a mercenary and I'm already looking for other jobs. Still, it was worth it if it meant making their stay a bit less destructive. How hard could it be?

[eclipse]

What the--my parents had more faith in me than that! Rather than question Cedric's orders, let alone his parenting skills, she sighed. "Very well, sir. I'm supposed to have this Angus guy introduce me to everyone, right?"

[Nanami Touko]

Breakfast Tiiiiiime

"Steak it is~ I wouldn't mind tearing into a piece of meat, right now, honestly." She took his hand as he'd taken hers, and they left the arena. Now, it was just a matter of remembering exactly where it was... "I had been here before, twice, though... Well, only one time was of note. The other, let's not talk about it," she said, with a melancholic smile. "As for the first time, we stopped here to restock, way back when I was a teenager. I got to spend a week in Felson's upper rung with anything I wanted being given to me... I, uh... Well, I managed a pretty big kill on the mission before we'd stopped, so Gerrod wanted to treat me, haha." She turned a little red, as they turned some corners. "So, I know plenty of food shops here, in the big city."

Questions Answered

Vriska smirked at Maja as they descended the stairs. "As long as you find something rainbow to rock. You just don't look that good in monotones. Though, I suppose that's a bit of an offhanded compliment." She kept her smirk until she saw that Valha had placed herself next to Lanos. Birds, and their wings... Well, she was bold enough to do something like this. She walked over, and sat on his lap, if Valha was going to be like that.

Taryn was about to answer when Vriska did this, and was cut off by the act, once again feeling a bit awkward. "Er..."

"No, go ahead. It's fine. There was just no space next to him because of someone, and I didn't want to be away from him~"

"I see... W-Well, uhm," Taryn began, trying to get past the seating position. It was obvious that it bothered her, somewhat, but she'd just have to work past that... "I am Taryn," she started, turning to Maja, who seemed to have joined the conversation. "I am Lanos' mother. And, for you, my son... It's... Well, I went back to gather our things once I'd told you to wait for me. Of course, Cedric had already figured out that we were trying to escape, so I didn't make it back out... I'm so sorry. It was a few weeks before I could convince him to let us look for you, after that. We, well... Things are bad now, but they were worse then, so if the nobles found out, Cedric might have lost his place on the council."

She sighed. "We couldn't send large parties to look for you. We could only send one or two guards at a time, and none of them ever reported anything back. I suppose that would've been because of you, Valha, taking care of him. You do not know how thankful I am for you doing that... We thought you were dead, Lanos. We didn't know that you'd even left the city, that any of this... I'd pretty much given up on living. If your friend, that archer, hadn't said your name when he did... Well, I, I probably would've died of a broken heart." She started to tear up at her own story, wiping them away from her eyes. "You don't have any siblings, no... It was a wonder that, with Cedric's mixed bloodline, we managed to even have a child... You're a bit of a miracle."

Vriska listened intently to all of this on her seat of Lanos. It felt important to know about him! She did have one, burning question though... It could wait a moment, but she was dying to ask it.

Accompany

"Yes, that is so. Make sure nothing happens to my son... I am trusting you, Meredith. There may just be a promotion in your future, if things go well." He smirked, and turned his attention back to Angus. "That would be fine, yes? I will be paying Meredith personally, so your boss does not need to worry about payment, for her."

Pick Up

Burke held out the axe he'd been given by Ferdinand, the blade looking sharper than ever before. "Nae problem. Yer axe is all forged up. Should slice through armor easier'n ever before. Hope it was worth the wait. Also, uh... Rest of the payment?" He'd held the axe out, but he wasn't about to let go until he was paid.

Assistance

Sara smiled for the first time in a few days. "Alright, Sonia. Can you cook? We've got a small group down here, and they're probably going to want to eat something before they go about their business. I've got some slices of ham in cold storage, and a few eggs, if you think you can handle frying all that up. Need to clean the cutlery and the dishes for serving. Is that alright? You don't need to, if you'd rather just wait for food, yourself." Sara realized she was asking a guest to help with things, and if Sonia didn't want to cook, she would, begrudgingly, do it all herself...

[Vestige]

There's that name, Gerrod. She spoke fondly of him--bit of a shame he'd passed away. More of a shame that his passing had happened the way it did. He recounted the brief story about it Ingverd had told some two months past. "A 'big kill', and you got a week off, with 'anything you wanted being given to you'? Well Hel then, I sure hope I can get a big kill soon, so my boss gives me a week off and treats me anything I want being given to me," he had a starry-eyed look on his face. "Er, just kidding," he quickly added afterwards. If this was Caldwell he was speaking to, he'd have gotten an earful about "trying to slack off". Or something to that effect. "Makin as a teenager, huh? So what was that, like, maybe two or three years ago? You can't be past twenty-one. Maaaaaybe twenty-two but that's probably a stretch," he said, grinning. "But seriously, I'm kinda interested in this big kill of yours. I didn't start seriously working until I was, oh, twenty I wanna say? Kinda hard to imagine doing what I do now, back then..."

[Oersted]

"Yeah, but that didn't stop me from feeling smaller than you," Lanos admitted with a nervous laugh. It was true though, up until recently he'd felt smaller than Valha with her outgoing personality and his timidness. It had made looking down to talk to her feel really awkward for the longest time.

Lanos tensed as Vriska sat on his lap. He wondered if this was what it felt like to be fought over... even if Vriska was the only one fighting as far as he was aware. He decided to ignore it and focus on his mother's explanation. "I thought something like that happened..." he mumbled to himself. The fact that they had sent people looking for him made him feel really happy. As his mom said, it was dangerous for his father but they'd still risked it for him. He would have smiled had his mother not started to tear up. He really did mean the world to her and part of him was starting to want to stay in Felson with her. His mother saying he was a "miracle" broke that train of thought. Would he even be able to have children? Sure, he was way too young, in his eyes, to be thinking about something like that but it was still worrying. "Thanks for answering my questions, they've helped me a lot. Is there anything you wanted to ask me?" He figured there was plenty she wanted to ask him, he just hoped she'd leave relationships out of it.

[charlie_]

Angus nodded. "Okay, I'll tell the boss all of that." he nodded. "And uh, you don't need me to introduce you to everyone." he said, turning to Meredith. "They don't bite, really. It's not that I mind or anything, but I dunno if you want to get dragged around with me all day." The last part had come hastily, in order to ensure the half elf wasn't offended. She did seem kind of shy, so...

[riariadne]

Valha had been fine with Vriska's boasting before, but the personal space invasion went too far for her tastes. "Excuse you," she hissed quietly, before stopping to think for a moment. "Miss Taryn, I'm sure you just missed it, but... I had a question, too. How different is life up in the noble quarter? Is it like what they say, all cushy 'n luxurious?" She surprised herself a bit, catching almost a sense of wistfulness in her tone.

[eclipse]

Uh-huh, promotion, assuming that I survive this mess. No wonder his son ran off! "Uh, can you introduce me to this Makin guy, at least? I'd like to know who to answer to, if I'm going with your group," Meredith half-whimpered.

[MRDRHAWK]

As luck would have it, Kendeall had decided to venture out of the inn for a little while and saw Angus and a woman he didn't know talking outside. At the mention of Makin, Kendeall realized she may have been looking to join the group, or something to that effect. Maybe.

"The guy you're looking for is actually a woman, and she took off a while ago." Kendeall answered the woman's apparent query, as he leaned against a nearby wall. "Whatcha need to talk to her about? Trying to join our merry little band of mercs?"

It then occurred to Kendeall that he hadn't actually introduced himself to the woman. Shit. "I'm Kendeall Soderberg, and this guy here is Angus. Though we'be both been around the group for a while now, neither of us is really that big of a help in... well, not fighting, I guess." The axeman shook off his self-depreciation and laughed a bit, hoping that he wasn't being too... forthcoming, or something like that.

Edited November 8, 2014 by Polydeuces

[Nanami Touko]

Big Kill

"I didn't exactly get a week off. We were just in Felson for a week, and I got treated during that time. I still had to help out with resupplying, and I had to keep my weapons in shape. None of that changed. So don't go thinking I'll cut you some slack for doing super well. If someone gets a break, we all do. What's fair is fair." She smiled, but looked serious. Did he half to breach her age, though? She suddenly felt really old, even if it was nice that he thought she was that young. "Ahhh... Uhm. Not exactly..." She twirled a lock of her hair, while they went along. "I'm... T-Twenty nine..." She'd suddenly dropped the topic of what she'd killed, feeling embarrassed about being that old. Raith couldn't be a day past twenty three. It wasn't exactly a problem, but it still felt awkward.

A Few Things...

Taryn pondered for a moment on what she could ask. While she did that, Vriska smirked at Valha. If she'd moved to give her some space, she would've gladly gotten off of Lanos' lap, but if she wanted to play that game, they'd play... Of course, this was Vriska assuming things. Valha could've just as easily sat there for no reason other than wanting to sit near her friend. I'll have to ask her about this later... I don't mind doing things like this, but I'll just end up annoying everyone, again. Can't have that happen... She sighed, and Taryn finally spoke up.

"Living with Cedric is luxury, Valha. I'm allowed to visit the entire manse, as long as he doesn't have guests over. He has plenty of things to do. A lounge, an entire library, gaming room of sorts, with all types of boards to play on. It's lovely... Well..." Her expression soured lightly, though she still smiled. "There have been plenty of days that I'd wished to be able to leave, and wander on my own. I hope something can change, soon..." It seemed to be a bit of a tough subject, but there wasn't anything Taryn could do about it, exactly.

But Vriska had heard enough, and couldn't resist asking her question anymore. "Why do you love Cedric?" she brazenly asked, staring straight at Taryn. "He stole you off the streets, it took him barely any time to get you pregnant, he never lets you out of the house, you even tried to escape once; I don't get it." Vriska was surprised that no one else had asked that.

Taryn was a bit shocked at all the personal questions, but she'd answer them. "Uhm... Give me a moment, and I'll do what I can to answer that..." She looked a bit hurt, and stared down to collect her words.

Vriska felt a little bad for how hurt Taryn looked, but this was a serious question! It just didn't add up to her. Even if she'd been living in poverty, to start loving her kidnapper like that? Vriska felt it was odd. Maybe it was different for Taryn, but...

That's a Wrap

Cedric smiled as Meredith started speaking to this Angus, not about to interject. She needed to grow a backbone somewhere! Perhaps a mercenary group would do just that for her. Someone else had come over and informed her that Makin was no longer around, which was a bit disappointing, but not much could be done about it. He seemed confused about Meredith's coming along, though. "Meredith is one of my guards, sir, and she shall be accompanying you. I assume you to be in the company of Angus and Makin, if you are familiar enough with her to call her your boss. Also, yes, Meredith, Makin is a woman. A naga, in fact. I hope you're not afraid of snakes." It would be terribly unfortunate if she was.

With that handled, Cedric started to walk back to the inn, snapping for the other guard to follow him. "I wish to speak to my son. I'll be heading back to the manse with Taryn once that's finished. I wish you all the best of luck with your adventures."

[Vestige]

Tch, of course, even though I said I was kidding, she still busts out the lecture. It was a heavily truncated version of what Caldwell would have told him though, so at least he had that much going for him. Once I find that passage into Griberge, I'll never have to work another day again. An early retirement would be absolutely fantastic. Sadly, he was pulled out of his brief daydreaming when Makin mentioned her true age. Seriously? She's twenty-nine? He had suspected Makin as being older than him, but twenty-nine? It wasn't that much older than him, but it still came as a bit of a shock. It didn't make much of a difference to him though. "Twenty-nine, huh? Well, I'd rather you were five years older than me, than five years younger," he shrugged, adding, "I suppose you could say I've got a bit of a thing for women that are older than me so..." he grinned.

[Oersted]

As Lanos waited for his mother to ask him a question he listened to her talk about her everyday life. It sounded like the life he'd always dreamed of while he was in the slums except for being cooped up inside all day with no one else but Cedric to talk to. Maybe he could make his father realize he was treating his mother like a bird in a cage, a very nice cage sure, but still a cage. How long had it been since his mother had soared through the skies or even talked to another harpy before today? Maybe he could do something for his mother even if he wasn't going to stay in Felson...

Vriska's question caught him off guard. How could she ask something like that? Of course, he'd been wondering it too but the fact that his parents loved each other had been good enough for him. Besides, with his current feelings he wasn't really qualified to question other peoples' love...

[riariadne]

"I see. It sounds... different," Valha responded, deep in thought. I guess not all of 'em are bad, even amongst nobles... Vriska's question snapped her out of her daydreaming. "Well, a noble's home seems like a significant improvements over the streets any day. You went down there, right? There's worse than what you saw, I guarantee it. Bein' takin' away without a say isn't great, but... if I was offered a nice home when I was little 'n scared 'n alone, I would've at least thought about it. Maybe not now since I've got friends 'n somethin' I can do to keep livin', but... still."

[Nanami Touko]

Food

Makin playfully punched his arm and turned an adorable shade of red. "Geez, you pervert." She decided to laugh it off, and not pay it any mind. If he was telling the truth, no problems for her. If he was lying, he cared enough to try and make her feel better. Either way, she came up winning, and that's what mattered. She sighed. "Alright, the place should be-- Aha!" Turning another corner, a small, colorful restaurant could be seen, with tables set up outside, and umbrellas, to keep out the sun. Makin, though pale enough already, would appreciate the break from the rays. It was warm enough in Felson, with all the bodies running around. Breakfast should be something you relaxed over. "Come on, let's take a seat. We seat ourselves here, so don't worry about it. Then the bring you over some toast, you ask for what you want-- it's really nice!" She glided over to a chair, and sat as much on it as she could, coiling her tail around the rest of it to keep steady.

Explanation

Vriska looked at Valha without much of an expression. "I realize that, that's not the part that's got me. Any harpy living down there would jump at the chance for a better life, even if it meant getting kidnapped into it. It's the, falling in love with your kidnapper, over the span of a year, getting pregnant, having their child, and then suddenly trying to leave. That's what I don't get. Your race has only been here for twenty years, Valha. Lanos is nineteen. It's just--"

"Twenty three..." Taryn suddenly interrupted with.

"What?" Vriska was caught off guard.

"Twenty three. I've been here for twenty three years. Our entire race migrated because of the wyverns two decades ago, yes, but I've been here for a bit longer... And Cedric's had me since." She straightened up, finally able to answer. "I'm not sure of whether it was his taking a liking to me, or simply wanting a pet. It was far too long ago for me to care, at this point, but... Well, yes, back then I was horrified. I had been taken away from my livings, as bleak as they had been, and I had been thrust into this new home, forced to speak with someone I didn't know. Anyone would find it terrifying, it wouldn't matter who they were..."

But then her features softened into a small smile. "I was surprised at how much he seemed to care, though... He'd never push anything, or force me to do anything. The only rules were to stay in the house, and stay in the room with visitors present, as I said. The latter didn't happen very often. I had anything, and if I ever wanted to chat, ask questions, or simple be near him, I was allowed. Of course, I asked him directly, after some time, 'why did you bring me here?' And... He just stopped and looked at me, and said... 'I have never, in my life, been encapsulated, entirely, by someone's beauty'." She laughed a bit, and her smile grew.

"I don't care if you find it silly, or like some novel, but when he said that I wasn't sure how to feel. This man who had taken me from my home had given me everything, and never asked for anything in return... I didn't feel like I owed him, of course-- that would be silly. But I couldn't help myself from starting to love him back. After a few years, I sat down, and I spoke with him about it. We'd gotten used to talking, at that time, so perhaps he thought it was just another conversation, but... We discussed it, seriously. How we'd come to meet. And I'll always remember that he said, right away, that I need not feel the need to stay. He even offered to find me a place to live in the upper rung if I refused to live with him, hah. I couldn't believe his kindness..." She smiled at Lanos.

"And later that year, well, you happened. I stayed, despite everything. As for why I tried to leave, I..." She sighed. "I love Cedric, I do. But I love you more, Lanos. And the thought of you being unable to live your life outside those walls frightened me. You were a baby, after all. You had to, to be given the chance to see the world, and live what it had to offer. I had a few connections from the people who worked at his manse, and I thought that, perhaps I could get you out to Ward, and have you raised there. I knew that Felson would be too harsh a place to let you try to grow up in. That fell through, as you well know." She bit her lip, but shook her head. "No matter. That's my story. And it seems that life has a weird way of working itself out, doesn't it? You're surrounded by friends, you've grown up big and strong, and you've got two lovely women all over you." She laughed a bit more at that last sentence, wiping the newly starting tears away from her eyes. "I'm just so happy that this has all ended up right..."

Putting Taryn's last comment aside, Vriska was quite shocked that she'd gotten such a concise answer. It even answered her question. Of course, she could press for something further, but... Well, this felt like it was how Taryn really felt. She didn't ask about the twenty three years thing, though. It felt mundane, in the face of everything else.

[Vestige]

It felt like they'd been walking for forever, and he was soon wondering if it was too late to change his mind about that ride. Lucky for him, salvation came soon enough. She led him to a welcome looking establishment, and bade him to take a seat. "Well, don't mind if I do then," he said, pulling up the chair opposite to Makin. Watching Makin fumble around on the chair brought a bit of a smile to his face. "That looks a little, uh, not comfortable? I don't have a tail, so maybe I'm wrong about this, but wouldn't it be easier for you to just not use the chair?"

[algae]

Sonia smiled, "I should be able to handle that." Truth be told, she was a bit rusty, as was to be expected after being away from kitchens as well-stocked as this one for years. And after both misjudging the temperature of the pan (and lightly burning three fingers) and cutting into another while trying to slice the ham (thankfully not enough to ruin the meal), she had what she hoped was enough for everyone. Not perfect by any measure; perhaps even a bit simple, but far from bad. "It's done!"

[MRDRHAWK]

Kendeall nodded as the man who he hadn't actually noticed was out there to begin with - he figured he was probably getting old or something - spoke up about the new girl... Meredith, was it? "Yeah, I'm around these guys a lot... well, sort of. And don't worry about Meredith, she'll be fine with the boss. She doesn't bite, I swear." Kendeall replied to Cedric, though he wasn't 100% sure about that. Maybe if she fought while drunk, she'd bite.

Cracking his neck as Cedric went back into the inn, Kendeall pushed himself off the wall and turned to Angus. "Hey, Mangus. I'm going to try and punch some dudes for cash again. Wanna come watch? Better than listening to emotional family reunions all day."

[riariadne]

Valha listened closely, smiling throughout the story. "Aww... that's really sweet," she told the older harpy, rubbing her head against Lanos's shoulder. "He's got a lot of friends here, yeah? Used to be a sweet little kid, but I'd trust him with my life now, 'n there's not a lot of people I can say about that." She thought for a moment. "Though... I didn't know anyone had come down earlier. It's one of my first memories, comin' down from the mountains, 'n it's really vague... how'd you manage to come here before then?"

Edited November 9, 2014 by Reinfleche

[Oersted]

Lanos listened intently as his mother told her story. It brought him back to 15 years ago, when he still asked innocent questions and his mother still told him stories before bed. The memories and story brought a smile to his face, though it eventually turned into an awkward smile when Tayrn mentioned having two women all over him. "Does it really really look that way? Hah..." And then, as if answering his question, Valha decided to rub her head against his shoulder. He hesitated for a moment before wrapping his arm around her. Yes, it definitely looks that way you idiot, he decided. Had Vriska not been on his lap and instead next to him he probably would've wrapped his other arm around her.

Edited November 9, 2014 by Oersted

[Refa]

Quincy woke up with a hell of a hangover. Everything that took place after departing the arena was a blur. There was something about the boss somehow getting drunk, the girl who beat Marius from earlier asking him what his name was (he didn't remember answering), and a lot of vague images. Oh well, if he couldn't remember it, it probably wasn't important; at least that's what he told himself as he got off of the bed and left his room. He went to the counter of the inn, where Sara was dutifully cleaning dishes. "Interesting night yesterday, eh? So what's up with the councilman visiting the inn? I didn't know our employer would be making a house visit."

Edited December 27, 2014 by Refa

[charlie_]

"Yeah, I'll introduce you to her, no problem. She's fine, really, just... don't get her drunk." he replied to their newest recruit, recalling the events of last night as Kendeall came over. "Mangus? Really?" he laughed. "Well, I'll come along, but I need to get my things first and then go and find the boss for Meredith. Cedric wanted her to go with us for the job, so she needs to meet with the boss. Do you care about waiting that much before you go?" he asked. He'd feel kind of bad for leaving Meredith on her own, trying to find the Naga in such a big city. He supposed that she knew it better than he did, but still.

[eclipse]

"Who's that?" Meredith asked bluntly, pointing to Kendeall. "Is he a part of your group?"

[charlie_]

"Yeah, he is." Angus confirmed, half wondering why she didn't ask him herself. "Just assume that anyone who looks like a mercenary is with us for now. We have a pretty wide range of people in the group, so..."

Edited November 9, 2014 by SB.