Legend of Ransera

Posted: **Sat Sep 25, 2021 6:03 pm**

2 Ash 121

Zaichaer, East End, The Knob, Bottomless Keg Bar

Throwing a punch at Anton had been the worst decision this man had made all night, and he realized his error only when Vanessa crashed into him and sent him down to the floor of the dingy bar. Dust and grime kicked up a cloud around him, and the barkeep of the Bottomless Keg was yelling fiercely at the two. Vanessa heard none of it, instead in a dire frenzy that kept her in a battle trance.

She followed him down to the ground, knees on either side of her chest. He tried to bring his hands up to defend his face, but Vanessa swung hard with a left hook that made the man cry out. He twisted underneath her, and she swung again with a savage right hook. No technique, just anger. She caught his jaw, and a sickening crack made clear she'd struck the sweet spot.

“Come on, you were so brave when you tried to hit someone when his back was turned! Where's the passion now, you pissdrinking whoreson?” Vanessa bellowed, spittle flying from her lips.

The man yowled wordlessly, and now grabbed Vanessa by her waist, trying to heave her off of him. She grabbed his collar, hefted his head off of the ground, and then slammed him back down, scattering his mind enough that he couldn't follow through on his attempt. She was cocking back another swing, but suddenly an arm crossed over her neck and tightened to dangerous levels. So focused on her immediate foe, Vanessa had neglected to keep tabs on the rest of the bar patrons that had now erupted into a frenzy. She inhaled shallowly as breathing became difficult, and she brought her hand up to his elbow. Raking downwards with her nails, Vanessa drew ribbons of crimson down his arm

The man howled feverishly, but his grip tightened in response. Vanessa wrenched her head down so that his vice grip was across her jaw instead of her neck. This hurt far more, pain already straining her vision and making her groan dully. The tradeoff meant Vanessa could breathe. Better yet, it meant Vanessa could bite.

She snapped her jaw down on the inside of his forearm like a bear trap, not an ounce of restraint as she tore skin and took a chunk out of him. Her mouth filled with blood and it dripped down her chin and smeared over her face. He screamed and tried to pull away, free arm yanking at her hair to try and dislodge her, but only making the wound worse. After a moment, Vanessa let him go and spit out her mouthful of blood down onto the man below. The second assailant stumbled back, clutching his arm and staring at it in disbelief. In this moment of disbelief, another patron of the bar caught him with an elbow that sent him crumbling.

Anton. Where was Anton?

The thought suddenly smashed into her when she had a moment to breathe. She looked over to the bar stool he had been occupying just a few moments before when she'd intercepted the blow meant for him, but he wasn't there. She tried to call out for him, but her voice was drowned out in the carnage. Every patron that remained in the bar was part of the brawl now, with the more squeamish having fled the bar and gone to notify the authorities. Normally this was precisely the sort of madness Vanessa lived for, but that was before she was hired for the express purpose of protecting a blind man from harm.

Bottles broke, tables were overturned, and throughout the bar people traded insults between blows. The two 'teams' such as they were, comprised of those that feared Vanessa enough to come to her defense, and those that despised her enough to take the risk.

Well, three teams if Anton was included as his own, but that hardly seemed fair.

Vanessa pushed herself to her feet, and again looked for her charge. Her hand dropped to her sword, though she did not yet draw it. She was ready to turn this brawl deadly to protect him if that was what it took. She shoved her way past two brawling patrons, sending them both into a table that toppled to the ground, and approached the bar.

The blind bastard couldn't have gotten far.

Posted: **Thu Oct 14, 2021 7:32 pm**

Anton had been skeptical of visiting a bar in the Knob to celebrate his 'conquest', but knew that Vanessa was unlikely to take no for an answer. He should have however known far better than to agree to visit one of her favorites, the dreadfully predictable of course occurring as soon as they walked into the doors. It seemed as if the bar's patrons were divided into two camps: those Vanessa had beaten and didn't want to experience such again, and those who Vanessa had beaten and wanted revenge on her for it. The tension was palpable even to the sheltered and the blind, which was quite lucky as he was both.

Still, things had seemed peaceful enough as they had sat down at the bar. Truthfully, he had no idea why a punch was thrown at him, and wasn't even fully aware of it until the bar had exploded into chaos. Perhaps it was because he entered with Vanessa. Or maybe he had committed some offense against the honor of the institution by having originally ordered water before his bodyguard had suggested he simply take the weakest bar on tap instead of taking such a risk. For all he knew, it might have just been because he looked weak to the man. It didn't matter in the end, the why lost in a swirl of chaos.

Though Vanessa had done her immediate job quite well, taking the blow intended for her charge and viciously punishing the man for his affront, that did not mean things were going well for Anton. Violence was not something he had ever been introduced to save for in the most controlled and limited of circumstances. A comfortable observer lounging in a garden chair on most such occasions, the closest he had ever gotten was awkwardly aiming a caster shell at a distant target. With the first crack of pounded flesh and yells, he swiftly realized two things. He had no idea what to do, and he was terrified.

It was as if he had relinquished control of his body to some external force as raw instinct took over, the coddled noble's fight or flight instinct resolving itself firmly in the direction of flight. He coldly observed himself leap away from his barstool as he let aether flood his body, arcane senses deemed required by the primitive part of his mind currently doing its best to ensure his survival. Semblance typically overwhelmed him for a few moments after he used it, the rush of feeling knocking him off balance - mentally, on a good day, physically on a bad one - as he grappled with the impossibilities his brain was forced to process.

But not today. The soaring strings and pounding drums and blaring horns of men at violence were muted and fuzzy, as if heard through a closed door, enabling immediate clarity for both thought and action. Anton of course had no way of knowing who was friendly and not, and made no attempt to actually stand and fight, instead making a frantic run for.... somewhere. Not here, at very least. Most ignored him, or even got out of his way, either too engaged with their own brawls to care about him or on Vanessa's side and disinclined to harm him.

One particularly bold human missing an eye from a prior encounter with the ex-pirate, not that Anton could notice that, elected to have some manner of revenge against her however. Turning his attention to the fleeing brat, he made to grab the lordling and. Well, he hadn't particularly gotten to what he was going to go to do after that just yet. Expecting him to be an easy target, the would-be assailant placed himself in front of Anton and made to crush him in a bear hug, expecting no particular struggle.

Without a conscious thought beyond an absentminded "oh", Anton simply continued running as fast as his body could bear him, lowering his head down as he did. He got the better of the collision, having hit his attempted snatcher square in his stomach, leaving him heaving in pain and retching upon the floor. Adrenaline did its work upon him as his blood pounded in his ears, blocking out the pain as his Semblance-sight began to smear, the music of the brawl growing discordant as he kept running. Unfortunately for Anton, in his current state he gone about as far from the entrance as was possible without entering a backroom, the terrified lordling having cornered himself.

Snatching the brilliant sonorous tone of a knife still wet from its forgotten meal from a table, he positioned himself with his back to the wall. Chest heaving and mouth hanging slack as he took in heavy, uneven breaths, he thought of nothing. To those who bothered to pay attention to him, he at first seemed nothing more than a terrified youth in over his head and hoping to escape the bar brawl intact. Unless they looked at him closely at least, and noticed that his eyes were locked forward in an unblinking gaze.

Posted: **Thu Nov 11, 2021 4:31 pm**

It always starts with a yell a scream and a clatter. The patrol had been an uneventful one until he'd rounded the corner and watched a drunk man crash through a window and into a trough. If it hadn't been for the wanton destruction of property he would've though the stunt comical. As it was Myles groaned inwardly then snarled to the two other men with him “On Me, Weapons up.” Stomping towards the scene Myles dragged the drunk out of the trough with an iron clad hand dispassionately watching the man splutter as sobriety in the face of the Law looked down upon him. Dragging the man behind him into the establishment behind him he tossed him onto the floor of the bar he'd just been thrown out of, inadvertently tripping another pair of brawling alcoholics. Halfway drawing his sword Myles Slammed the Pommel into his round shield three times with a resounding “Clang clang CLANG” Myles winced fearing he'd bruised his knuckles with the last wrap against his shield but rose his voice regardless.

“ORDER!,” Many of the patrons were cowed immediately by the presence of three men in armor emblazoned with symbols of the defense core made their presence known. He could order any of them whipped here and now and the army would only fine him a copper for a wrongful whipping if one could even be proved. Jonah came to stand to his right his spear raised with the blunt end proffered to brain anybody who wasn't willing to listen.

Looking to the bartender over what sound remained he locked eyes and shouted “Who started this donnybrook?!?” Stomping into the bar he let his heavy boots fall loudly as he walked towards the bar and passed a drunk who eyed defiantly. As the man failed to make way for him he grabbed the hilt of his sword again and unsheathed it hilt first into the mans gut sending him sprawling as the pommel slammed into his gut doubling him over, just in time for his nose to connect with the knee Myles had spiked upwards. He'd should've known by the plumage on Myles Helm to make way so he felt no pity as he watched the man clutch a now likely broken nose as he fell to the floor with a muffled cry. “I Won't ask again, Who started this!?” Slamming a gauntlet on the bar he eyed the bartender debating pulling them over the counter if they didn't immediately cooperate. He was in no joking mood with what recent events had already damaged the social order.

Posted: **Thu Nov 11, 2021 6:50 pm**

Vanessa heard the clanging of steel on steel behind her, but had not bothered to turn around. The ringing bash of the shield was far enough away that she did not register it a threat, and the single barked order went unheard. Vanessa's mind focused solely on retrieving Anton, and finally she spotted him once the crowd had begun to thin.

As Vanessa bounded over to retrieve her ward, others in the bar begun to shout their accusations of guilt, each one overlapping another. "Was Quill that did it! Saw her myself!" One man shouted, jabbing a gnarled finger towards Vanessa. One of the brigands that had joined the fight on Vanessa's side was quick to retort. "No it weren't. Saw ol' Sawtooth Sal take a shot at her lad." the older man said, spitting in the direction of the first. "Only 'cause that boy were whispering about him under his breath!" Someone else said, and soon the remaining crowd were already arguing over what had actually transpired. Many blamed Vanessa, and it was difficult for her to look innocent with blood dripping from her mouth and the way she was now kicking the one eyed man that was just now beginning to recover from Anton's unexpected assault.

"It's me, It's me." Vanessa said wardingly, palms out while she approached Anton. Even still, she did not do so slowly, but was merely giving him warning enough that he did not try to gore her. The reasoning for that became clear when she lunged forward grabbed for his collar with one hand and his waist with the other. As she did, she spun around to face the same direction as him, bringing Anton up to her side. She held him now how pirates always held high value targets. She held Anton like a hostage.

Now facing towards the trio of soldiers, Vanessa's very soul sheared. The sight of them did not cause her blood to run as ice through her veins, and instead stoked her fervor with desperation. The fuel that burned changed too. Anger and revenge gave way to survival, giving her eyes an unruly and untamed glint while she assessed her situation. Three men in armor, and Vanessa armed only with a sword suited for cutting. She had beaten worse odds, but not often, and was not willing to gamble Anton's safety on it.

Staring at the three soldiers, Vanessa faced a reality she had not glimpsed since being pressed into service by House Michaelis years ago to the day.

That she might be at the end of the line.

"It were Quill, sir! Swear it." The bartender said, and it was the truth, as he saw it. She had not thrown the first punch, but her presence always had a way of inciting problems. Given the opportunity, he was glad to be rid of her. "Any insult, she responds with violence. Look at her!"

"Lying snake!" Vanessa shouted back, droplets of blood misting from her lips. She dropped her hand to her sword but stopped just short of drawing it, an act that made the barkeeper grin wryly until he thought the guards might have caught him. Vanessa looked for an easy exit, but too many people blocked the paths out the back, and three armed men ready to run her through if she tried the front door. "Look, I was just getting my friend, and I was going to leave. Just as I'd like to do now, if you don't mind makin' this easy."

Posted: **Sun Nov 14, 2021 2:39 pm**

The frightened grip around the knife's hilt tightened at the sound of metal clanging against metal, for Anton's sight did not show him three men dressed in the armor of the city. No, Semblance announced three blaring horns entering the chaos strewn bar, men with the will and ability to commit yet more violence. Were he in a rational state of mind, he might have been able to reason that these were surely the guards after they shouted for order, but in his mind there was only the promise of danger and the need to escape it.

So intense was his focus upon the swirling sounds of the auras in the room that he paid no heed to the conversation occurring around him, remaining backed into his corner with his makeshift weapon clutched in his hands. And then she approached him, her familiar song cutting through the chaos like a knife through butter. His eyes focused in recognition of Vanessa, and for a moment the frightened lordling was frozen in surprise. She only needed a moment, the woman grabbing a hold of her charge and swinging him around as he tried to return to the present. The knife clattered to the ground as he released its grip upon it, Anton trusting in his bodyguard to get him out of the current situation. That was her job after all.

Slowly, the immediate need of fight or flight faded away, and with it Anton's heart ceased its racing. Vibrancy and detail returned to the visions granted to him by Semblance as urgency was replaced by a far different need. The sketch of the guards was filled in by the disciplined drums of uniformed men, and the lilt of Zaichaer herself undergirded them. Unlike most of his class and station, the unregistered mage had understandably mixed feelings about the city's police force, even if they were technically in the uniform of his father's service. The current situation was far more complicated however, for it was not as if he could announce to the entire bar that he was in fact Lord Anton Michaelis. That would ruin Vanessa's entire plan to show him the town after all, nor was he keen on having his family discover just what he had gotten himself up to in his free time.

First however, he had to see to his own survival, and Anton blinded himself once more. None of the men seemed to be Reconciliators or had any way to detect him, but you never knew if someone had an aura glass on hand. Or if a Watcher would take an interest in such commotion as they went about their own inscrutable business. With his breath finally recovered and the moment of terror now passed, the slumming scion did his best to sound as shaken and scared as possible. Which was not particularly difficult on this day. "She spoke true, sir. I don't know what I did to insult the man but I think it best if we leave before I make someone else mad."

While he wasn't exactly happy to take the blame for the brawl, it seemed to be the best way to get them out of the current mess as quickly as possible without too many questions being asked. The last thing he needed was a drawn out interrogation or worse, either of them actually getting arrested. And he knew Vanessa. If they attempted to take him into custody, he doubted that even his word would stop her from trying to cut the man down, which would create far, far more problems. Silently, he hoped that she wouldn't find provocation in any action the guards took.

Posted: **Wed Mar 02, 2022 2:48 pm**

Watching the drama unfold Myles arched an eyebrow at the woman who seemed to be at the center of all the commotion, in all the hubbub she’d managed to grab the softest looking potential hostage in the room before arguing her defense. In most situations he would’ve believed the barkeeps accusation, he in fact did until the would be hostage spoke out in defense of their captor. The two were about as alike as frost and fire but the familiarity they shared was hard to miss when the lad seemed do at ease to be in his hotheaded companions arms.

Sighing Myles mulled over his options, he didn’t fancy arresting everyone involved and questioning everyone, nobody seemed to be wounded enough for a complaint to be filed by anyone but the barkeep. With all that in mind he still had to maintain the noble visage of his station and make sure all witnesses were certain they’d seen justice done. “I’ve heard enough!” He barked over the now several voices now each speaking their own version of events. Looking to the barkeep Myles spoke. “Nothing but broken glass and egos to account for, if there is in fact any property damage you may file a complaint with the defense corps resupply and repossession office.” Still speaking coldly with all the authority he could muster, Myles imperiously ignored the men that were still bleeding as they were in no risk of dying and he felt little need to address the minor wounds of brawlers. looking back to the wild woman and the soft fellow she clung to he spoke again, more polite but still tense. “If you would be so kind as to vacate the premises I’d like to get statements from you two at the station.” Pointing to the recruit with him “stay here take anyone else’s statement if they want to give it, report to me immediately after, Jonah on me” Watching his men salute Myles nodded curtly before stepping to the door enjoying the relative silence and his heavy metal steps that broke it.

Stopping at the door he looked back at the pair and gestured to the door hoping they would take the hint and leave willingly. Jonah stood to his left his spear at ease but never too far from preparation for a fight. He wasn’t sure he trusted the situation to be as simple as a bar fight do to the uncommon actors in play. He was most willing to lend his ear to the rare participant of a bar fight that least looked to belong in one.

Posted: **Sat Mar 19, 2022 2:43 pm**

All while the soldier spoke, Vanessa searched for an opening. If she had been alone, she would have had little problem making a break for it. The Knob was large, and its people generally unhelpful to those in positions of authority. But saddled as she was with a trouble averse blind man, such opportunities were in painfully low supply. There was a small solace in the fact that this soldier, curiously, had not taken so quickly to the barkeep's story. It was not enough to make Vanessa trust him, nothing could have done that in so short a time, but it did at least illuminate for her a way to getting Anton back home safely.

There was an electric tension in the air while Vanessa's hard eyes glares at Myles. More eyes were on her than him now, and more than a few of the brawlers did their best to maintain distance from her even if that meant dragging themselves across the floor. They well knew how boundless her violence could be, and how little tolerance she had for the law in any of its many incarnations. Perhaps that was why they seemed so surprised when she took her measure of Myles, and then looking over to Anton before finally saying "Fine."

She didn't like her chances, and in fact has always told her crew to never let the law take you to a secondary location. If you're caught, you run or you fight. And if it had only been Vanessa at the bar that night, she almost certainly would have abided that old code. But she was not so keen to leave Anton to the wolves. He was also, admittedly, a bit of an ace tucked up her sleeve. While she had hoped to get him through the night without letting on to anyone that he was a noble, she supposed that if someone was to find out, there were worse people than a couple military goons. This couldn't have been the first time they had heard of some noble causing a bit of trouble among the lower class.

Still keeping a hold on Anton, Vanessa stepped outside of the bar and out onto the cool streets. She caught a look at herself in the reflection of the bar's window. Gods, she looked like hell. In an effort to save a bit of face, she wiped her face with her sleeve, though that did still manage to smear the blood more than outright remove it.

Posted: **Fri Jul 22, 2022 9:01 pm**

Anton was not Vanessa, and nothing made that clearer than their reactions to Myles' asking them to follow him. Utterly lacking the pirate's instinct to evade the law at all costs, let alone to be taken into one of their blockhouses. For the young lord, such a trip sounded perfect. At last he could be out of the ruined barroom and taken somewhere he wouldn't need worry about a knife in his back. The fact that it was merely the watch and not the Order that had come was a salve for his paranoia, the lordling confident in being able to use his sight without any of the State's mages as part of the officer's posse.

Still, he wasn't stupid. He let as little of this relief show upon his face as possible, and remained quiet. It helped that he liked being quiet, but still, it would not do to raise any further suspicion within the bar about who he was. No one in Vanessa's crew would ever be happy about getting cuffed by the law. At least, not while she was scourge of the skies. The fact that those days were long over was perhaps best kept as a secret for the moment, for her reputation - and therefore his safety on their extracurricular excursions - if nothing else.

Demurely walking outside in the pirate captain's wake, he maintained his facade for about as long as it took for the door of the tavern to slam shut behind them. As soon as they were in the clear, the lordling visibly deflated, wiping away sweat from his forehead as he searched for Myles among the mass of soldiers.

"My thanks, sir," Anton said diffidently, falling into his typical modes of speech as the adrenaline faded and routine took over. The voice of a cultured lord clashed violently with the rough clothing he wore, and the even rougher company he kept, but it was not unknown for sons of the nobility to mingle with the commonfolk and receive such welcomes. "And my apologies. It should have never come to requiring your assistance."

Posted: **Sun Dec 18, 2022 4:58 pm**

R E W A R D S

Name: Myles
XP: 10 XP
Requested Lore: 8 Lores

Name: Anton
XP: 10 XP
Requested Lore: 8 Lores

Name: Vanessa
XP: 10 XP
Requested Lore: 8 Lores

Note(s): Closed and reviewed per request. Enjoy your rewards!

Legend of Ransera

Off The Leash [Anton, Myles]

Off The Leash [Anton, Myles]

Re: Off The Leash [Anton, Myles]

Re: Off The Leash [Anton, Myles]

Re: Off The Leash [Anton, Myles]

Re: Off The Leash [Anton, Myles]

Re: Off The Leash [Anton, Myles]

Re: Off The Leash [Anton, Myles]

Re: Off The Leash [Anton, Myles]

Re: Off The Leash [Anton, Myles]