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A Chance Encounter
Posted: Wed Jul 08, 2020 2:58 pm
by Althalos
☿
Thioras - 62nd Searing, 120th of Steel
Altogether, the events that had occurred on his trip to Loras had done a great deal to sap any enjoyment out of the elf before he had even arrived. The journey had felt perfectly inconsequential when he had merely been perusing the idea of travel from atop his cot at home, but the realities of taking the trip independent of any allies had proven to be far more treacherous than he had expected. There had been creatures on the pathway which he had needed to watch for and avoid, and at times the train itself had proven to simply be difficult to follow. While there were cobblestones there was also an undeniable portion of mud and muck.
He'd arrived in the town only a couple of hours past, and had promptly visited the local inn to guarantee that he would be able to fetch a nice room before they had sold out. He didn't have the coin to splurge on one of the fancier and larger rooms, and so he had settled for a room at the Dewdrop Inn which was hardly larger than closet space. Perhaps there was no reason to truly complain, however, because he didn't intend to spend a great deal of time within the confines of the rented space anyway. There were far more important matters to attend to -- after he had managed to clean away the grime and mud and find a place to stow his horse.
Two hours later and he had managed his chores, scraping away at whatever detritus had clung to his garments and flesh and managing to locate a nice stall for his trusty and loaned horse to rest. Perhaps, he considered, he ought to have inquired of its name when he had first taken out the contract for it. Then he would be able to differentiate it from another similar looking beast should the circumstance arise. He could always attempt to give it a new name, but that felt somewhat uncomfortable to him, like giving a hammer or a spoon its own designation.
Shrugging his shoulders and leaving the horse to its hay, Althalos began to walk the streets of Loras. He was dressed in his normal nobleman's coat, having found the garment to be utterly inseparable from his ideal first impressions, and he'd even taken to wearing the shattered signet upon his hand in grim imitation of a proper aristocrat. Primping had taken some time, but he had managed to brush his hair enough that it didn't stick out at all angles, and had even gone through the trouble of flaking the majority of mud off of his boots. A husk of a living man though he might've been, he did give off his own air of amicable pride.
The pale elf had maneuvered easily through the streets of Loras, managing to avoid stepping into the occasional puddle which had formed in the sidewalks, or too far into any alleyways -- he'd already been robbed twice this season, and there was frankly no reason to tempt fate by giving any brigands a third opportunity. In truth, he sincerely doubted that there was much crime at all in the idyllic little township, but he supposed there could be dark secrets concealed beneath the facade of cooperative kinship and friendly faces. They were remote enough, after all, and the small size of the town meant that there couldn't be nearly as much policing taking place as could be found in Alfsos. Perhaps in one of the homes would lie a blood cultist engaging in their ritualistic affairs, or perhaps the ruling family here had taken to utter debauchery and carnality.
Althalos shrugged with acceptance at his own ignorance of the place around him. He still nodded and smiled at anyone who passed him, offering the warm camaraderie that he often tried to demonstrate, and simply made a point not to pry too deeply into any individual's life. He would only be here for a couple of days, and he felt confident that he could avoid any massive trouble in that time span.
Finally, he reached his destination, rapping upon the open doorway of Erma's Herbal Remedies before slipping inside. The room wasn't quite as large as he had imagined, and yet, a glance around the place hadn't revealed the owner of the establishment. The door had been open -- was there a backroom? A cursory glance around revealed none, or at least, none obvious to his eyes. Though he'd intended to come to the store, he suddenly felt the uncanny sensation that he wasn't meant to be here at all.
Credit to Saej!
Re: A Chance Encounter
Posted: Tue Jul 14, 2020 7:38 pm
by Milana
There was an odd warmth in Milana's chest as she was pushed back in the direction of the Manor. Earlier that morning she had an interesting encounter with a woman named Saej. She was a kind girl, fragile yet strong in a way that the noble could not quite put her finger on. It had been... nice to talk with someone her own age. Someone who didn't want or need something from her, who she wasn't expected to posture in front of. Somehow Milana had not realized she was lacking such interactions in her life up until that point.
"You seem in good spirits." Sarah said from behind where she was pushing the wheelchair. Startled, Milana realized she had been smiling.
"It has been a good outing." she said in response, quickly masking her features. Behind her, Sarah laughed lightly, and despite herself, the noble blushed.
Honestly, she berated herself, am I some little girl who is pleased just to have met someone new? I don't even know her, and she certainly doesn't know me.
Slowly the warm feeling was beginning to fade. The memory of smoke and blood came like a crashing wave that drove out the little spark of happiness that had threatened to settle into Milana's heart. That's right, she wasn't the type that deserved those sorts of feelings. There were too many failures, and lives, on her conscience to allow even a fleeting moment of joy to pass. Closing her eyes Milana could see it again. The teeth and claws, the blood on the storeroom floor, the sounds of ghostly wales as the crimes of monsters were set alight by blue flames. The memories from that day were still fresh wounds that wouldn't heal, and would likely leave deep scars.
Milana looked down at her hands that rested in her lap. Her long, pale fingers clenched themselves into fists, balling up the fabric of her dress as she tried to push down the welling emotions. That was what she was working for, to never let such a thing happen to Loras or her people ever again. The town, thankfully, had recovered quickly from the events earlier in the season. Grimholdt had been quick to send aid, subsidizing the losses Loras suffered to their income at the loss of Westweald and providing extra forces to bolster the guards. The townspeople were still a bit in shock, but they were a hearty folk. It took a lot to shake a person from Loras, and they being sturdy people adapted quickly and continued on as if nothing were different. But still, things were different.
"Have we received word from Kamdin yet?" Milana asked as she raised her eyes to look forward once more.
"Not that I am aware my lady." Sarah said, her tone now somber, "Edwin sent another courier three days ago, but that will make the third one this season."
It was a problem. Kamdin was one of their primary sources of income, and westweald its largest trading company. To say they were insulted by the events in Loras was an understatement at best. Likely Milana would have to pull some strings, and potentially talk to... him.
The noble visibly shivered and wrapped her arms around herself at the thought, but shook her head. If it came to it, she would do what must be done. They were nearing the Manor, passing by Erma's shop on the right with Milana happened to look over. There she noticed a man, suspiciously enough, standing in the open doorway looking about. Frowning she waved a hand at Sarah to stop before calling out, "Excuse me, sir. Do you need something?"
Sarah turned Milana to face Erma's shop, though she made no motion to move them closer. With a pit in her stomach, Milana wishes she had thought to bring Strous with her today. Would Sarah be able to reach a guard in time if something were to happen here? Just in case Milana touched the rune on her chest with her mind, feeling a light tingle raise goosebumps on her flesh as magic flooded her body in preparation.
Re: A Chance Encounter
Posted: Wed Jul 15, 2020 9:38 am
by Althalos
☿
The shop seemed to have been stocked to at least a reasonable degree before its owner had made their exodus. Looking throughout the different items that were visible, he tried to determine which would be useful for his purposes, and which ones would only be useful in other less likely circumstances. The issue quickly became apparent when he recognized that he knew very little about any of the items present. While a number of plants and their chemical components had been named, and the words themselves were recognizable, he hadn't a clue what the meaning behind the names truly was, and thus was forced to simply wander.
He'd circled back around to the doorway, hoping that he didn't appear too much like a burglar making his way through the abandoned storefront. Perhaps outing himself in this way was what had allowed someone from Loras' street to notice him. He turned towards the sound, hoping to see an old and miserly woman coming towards him to assist in the purchases he wanted to conduct. His disappointment in her true nature was short-lived, because his corpse eyes immediately found themselves drawn to the peculiar vehicle in which she sat. Fascination at its inner-workings and its production overtook him more suddenly than had been expected, and curiosity drew him out of the store.
"Hello. I'm a traveler from Alfsos, I came to see Erma's." He explained, jutting a thumb back at the building over his shoulder so as to indicate the supposed structure in question. "It looks like it's empty, though. Lot of things on the shelves, but no one to sell them to me." He said, taking sudden notice of the second woman behind the one bound in the chair. They didn't seem to possess much familial similarities, and so he assumed that they were simply friends taking a stroll through the town when they had noticed his uncanny presence where he didn't seem to belong.
Althalos watched as the chair-bound woman brushed a hand across her chest, and became aware of -- something. He couldn't identify the feeling, but it was peculiar and familiar at the same time like he was looking at a hidden aspect through his deathly gaze. He blinked away the unnatural sights, and returned to the more easily understood realm of physical vision. "Would you happen to know when she might be back? I'm fine with waiting, but I don't want to accidentally spend the day here if she'll be gone for a few hours." A glance up at the sky, at the rolling clouds and the gradual decline of the greater luminary brought to mind another issue. "It'll be late before long too. I'm a painter. Don't think it'd be best for me to wander around after dark." He said, allowing his occupation to carry the normal assumptions -- that he was weak and defenseless, prey for anything roaming the shadows.
The Siltori chewed at the edge of his cheek for a moment, returning his gaze to the pair, considering his words carefully before he added, "That is a fantastic looking tool. Whoever created it must have been very wise." A brief point at the chair singled out the device for his compliment. "Are you both locals?" He interrogated after a pause, deciding it would be important to know just how much information he might be able to attain from the pair.
Credit to Saej!
Re: A Chance Encounter
Posted: Wed Jul 15, 2020 11:07 am
by Milana
When the man turned Milana got a good look at him. Her eyes swept up and down his frame, taking in his pale skin and fine clothing. His silver air gave Milana pause, though what truly made her stare was the man's eyes. Even as he spoke the look in those eyes was... not quite right. She could put her finger on what it was, but something about this well-dressed man elicited a slight shiver up the spine of the noble.
Behind her, Sarah shifted uncomfortably, leaning down to whisper in Milana's ear, "He's a strange one, my lady. I think we should leave him be..."
Frowning, Milana found she couldn't disagree with the assessment, but despite her misgivings, she waved to Sarah to remain as they were.
"Ms. Erma is away from the shop today. I believe she left a note on the door." this was said, but as she looked past Althalos the woman noted that there was, in fact, no note to be seen. That wasn't unusual. Erma was not the most organized person, and she did often forget little things such as this. The fact that the door was open, as well, wasn't much of a surprise. Loras had a reputation of safety and trust, and many of its citizens did leave their doors unlocked when they knew they would be back before long. Erma, however, seemed to simply forget that her shop held a plethora of herbs and potions that could be both valuable and harmful. It was, for this reason, Milana herself had requested a new padlock be fitted to the door for when the older woman stepped out. That, of course, meant nothing if the door was never locked in the first place.
"She is in the greenhouse today," Milana continued, relaxing ever so slightly in her seat, "I suspect she will not return until late this evening if past experience holds true." She paused for a few moments, chewing her lip before, with a sigh, she said, "We are heading in that direction now. You can accompany us if you wish."
A sharp intake of breath from Sarah was ignored as Milana motioned to the man to follow if he wished. If he did Milana would glance over at him as he approached, ignoring his last two questions to ask a question of her own, "What exactly does a painter need from an herbalist?"