Post by Markas Virnala on Oct 3, 2019 10:08:32 GMT
His legs ache. Which is funny, given how much Paw had him running and swimming before, he thought he’d be used to it by now. But then, that was never down a mountainside or through Giant territory. Running from an angry group of giants was somehow more tiring…. They had gotten away with no casualties though which was the important thing, excluding the beating that Sunday had taken obviously. There was clearly more to all this than was apparent to Markas and he had a lot of questions floating around in his head, but with Sunday still being very literally bloodied, this wasn’t the time. Or so he thought until Sunday gathered them altogether to explain what had happened, why the giants were all so hellbent on getting her.
The nine of them had run for a long time before finally feeling they were safe enough to slow down and make their way at a more reasonable pace, feeling the wind pick up as they travelled North towards Jarvinal, to the very visible relief of the errant guard with them. With tensions finally relaxing, feeling safer in K’ul Goran territory, they had decided to bed down and rest for the night. It was while Markas was getting ready to set up his part of the camp for the night and check up on Hoop that Sunday approached him and asked to speak for a moment...
"Oh... Sure thing"
He puts down his gear he was getting ready to unpack, careful not to put it down where the strong winds will catch it and heads off to one side with Sunday. Once they are out of ear shot he turns to her
"So how are you feeling? You took the brunt of everything back there....."
Sunday - still looking battered, her wounds yet to fully heal - laughs bitterly. "How am I feeling? That should be my question to you; my apology to you. I’m sorry for hurting you; my intention was to burn away those creatures quickly and then restore you to full health. I did not foresee the...complications..."
He shifts a little uncomfortably for a second and idly rubs the scar on his neck, not being used to having someone be so apologetic to him "No, I'm fine... It did surprise me but I'm still standing" - He gives Sunday a bright smile to reassure her that he is actually fine - "And from what I've heard from Baine, I didn't imagine you would intend to leave me like that..."
The smile then breaks into a wide toothy grin, maybe a little bit cocky but still exuding a somewhat innocent and friendly feel
"Besides, I was actually going to ask you to do it again...."
Sunday smiles thinly, weakly. "A glutton for punishment? I can see why Baine likes you. I was going to offer you a life debt in exchange for saying my skin today - but if you'd like me to repay you for that by roasting you again...."
He laughs - "No! I mean, I was kinda hoping for a more practical purpose! I've been caught out a few times now and came off the worse for it...." - He indicates the burn on his neck - "I was hoping we could... spar? If that's the right word for it.... I mean, I was hoping you could help me train a little, see if I can't start getting out of the way of things like this in the future.... I'd be much more inclined to trust trying this out with you... rather than goading another Dragon to attacking me just for practice.... and..." - the smile fades a little - "You shouldn't offer me a life debt... You were there to help us just as much as we were there with you. I'd much rather call you a friend."
“You want to be my friend? You must really have a thirst for danger… Markas, I will be honest with you: helping you and the others wasn’t my primary reason for being there. I care little for this war and Daring’s participation in it. Our ‘Council’ seems to be involving itself and its citizens merely for profit and trade. No, I came along because I heard the land was sick. I am still unsure as to whether I can help it…” She trails off, before shaking away a thought and continuing. “But, as you’ve seen, fighting is what I am good at; so I can help you to train if you wish.” She looks down at the wounds on her body, bone and tissue still showing through in places, and grimaces. “Although maybe I’m not the right person to teach you how to avoid damage. My pledge still stands, however. If you ever need my help, send word to me however you can and use my true name, [REDACTED]- and I will come if I am able."
Markas stays silent for a few seconds before answering
"....Ok Sunday.... I will remember that... but I would still much prefer calling on you as a friend than a debt... and of course, If I can help you in some way too, I would be more than willing to come. Danger seems to be normal for most of us now anyway and you seem to care about things on a very personal level, which I guess in this case it was...." - He looks troubled for a moment as he thinks - "I can't speak for the past.... but you are a good person Sunday. I can tell.... You've been rubbing off on Baine as well. I'm not convinced he would have considered whether the ones we were tasked with taking out where innocent or not at all before now, but this time it was the first thing he asked. And like you said earlier, I'd really rather not have to hurt someone if we can avoid it... I already for guilty for how some of our previous excursions have gone."
Sunday nods. "It can be easy to lose sight of who you are in the middle of panic and chaos. We all do it. Don't beat yourself up about it. Maybe our training will help with that, too; for me, also - as I fear what little balance I had managed to build in my life has been torn away these last two days." She smiles, then, brighter than she has since they arrived in K'ul Goran; like the sun breaking through receding storm clouds. She offers her hand to Markas. "Friends, then?"
Markas nods along with Sunday as she talks, then breaks back into his trademark toothy grin again
"Friends!" - as he takes her hand in a firm grasp for a second, before letting go. He pulls out a slightly battered and stained journal and begins flicking through the pages...
"So.... I don't suppose this whole thing with.... Cyric?... is really over. is it? Is this something to do with them?"
He shows a drawing of the symbol he saw in the fight, a skull embossed on a purple-and-gold sunburst.
"I saw it when we were fighting those giants but it was like a flash in the air then it was gone..... I've never seen anything like it before...."
Sunday shudders as Markas holds the pages open in front of her. A shadow passes over her vision and she closes her eyes for a long moment. When she opens them again, they are like two tranquil pools of gold-and-forest green. She grimaces and nods. "That's His mark. I wore it on my skin for the better part of a year. I do not know for certain if it is over, but it seems we have driven Him back for now. He seemed not to enjoy the exchange between us and His avatars, and offered grudging respect in His parting remarks."
Seeing Sunday's reaction, Markas closes the book quickly.
"I'm sorry... I just wasn’t sure if it was.... " - he looks a little sheepish
Sunday waves away the half-elf's apology with obvious effort, fatigue still etched deeply into the lines of her face. "No harm done. It’s good to be certain.” Her physical appearance shifts into a perfect replica of Varis’ and she slams her clenched fist into her chest. “‘The true warrior is clad in the impenetrable Armour of Knowledge and wields an unstoppable Sword of Truth’” She barks, in a near-perfect imitation of Varis’ commanding voice, before returning to her true form. “Or some such nonsense."
He smirks but is relieved he hasn't caused her any upset, "Yeah. Well, at least I should be keeping an eye out for.... but, you should really rest now.... I'm not even sure how you’re still standing... we can chat more another time when all this isn’t so.... fresh"
He smiles as he looks back to Sunday, aware of how rough she must be feeling. He has a lot of questions still about Cyric, Corellon and eLk for that matter, but there will be time for all that later. The pair walk slowly back to the camp before splitting off to go about setting up for the night again. He unpacks his gear and rolls out his bed roll in the tent he’s been given to protect them from the wind before taking Hoop out of his pack.
“Oh! It’s Windy again! Why are you so burnt? And what did the Purple lady want? You know, it’s not fun being rocked around so much in here, what have you been doing!?”
“Yeah, sorry about that, we kinda had to run most of the way back after Baine blew up the workshop…. I’ll stop by Milo when we get back to Daring Heights, see if we can fit you out with something a bit stable to travel in.”
“Oooo New stuff! But what did she want? She was looking at me funny earlier…”
Markas looks around to see Sunday talking to Traavor, a little way from camp.
“I think she feels bad for how things played out and wants to make amends…. But it’s ok. I told her she doesn’t need to but she seems a determined sort of person, I imagine she will still feel responsible … But I think she may have just not seen anything like you before Hoop. Most people are curious about you”
“Hmm, well of course they are! I am mysterious after all! But can we get out of the wind already? It’s too noisy!”
“Sure thing” he says with an affectionate smile, as the wind continues to buffet him still, making the slightly burned skin on his face sting a little. As he climbs into his bedroll, he considers just how much more agile he will need to be to avoid being burned again when he is training with Sunday.... This is going to hurt.
The nine of them had run for a long time before finally feeling they were safe enough to slow down and make their way at a more reasonable pace, feeling the wind pick up as they travelled North towards Jarvinal, to the very visible relief of the errant guard with them. With tensions finally relaxing, feeling safer in K’ul Goran territory, they had decided to bed down and rest for the night. It was while Markas was getting ready to set up his part of the camp for the night and check up on Hoop that Sunday approached him and asked to speak for a moment...
"Oh... Sure thing"
He puts down his gear he was getting ready to unpack, careful not to put it down where the strong winds will catch it and heads off to one side with Sunday. Once they are out of ear shot he turns to her
"So how are you feeling? You took the brunt of everything back there....."
Sunday - still looking battered, her wounds yet to fully heal - laughs bitterly. "How am I feeling? That should be my question to you; my apology to you. I’m sorry for hurting you; my intention was to burn away those creatures quickly and then restore you to full health. I did not foresee the...complications..."
He shifts a little uncomfortably for a second and idly rubs the scar on his neck, not being used to having someone be so apologetic to him "No, I'm fine... It did surprise me but I'm still standing" - He gives Sunday a bright smile to reassure her that he is actually fine - "And from what I've heard from Baine, I didn't imagine you would intend to leave me like that..."
The smile then breaks into a wide toothy grin, maybe a little bit cocky but still exuding a somewhat innocent and friendly feel
"Besides, I was actually going to ask you to do it again...."
Sunday smiles thinly, weakly. "A glutton for punishment? I can see why Baine likes you. I was going to offer you a life debt in exchange for saying my skin today - but if you'd like me to repay you for that by roasting you again...."
He laughs - "No! I mean, I was kinda hoping for a more practical purpose! I've been caught out a few times now and came off the worse for it...." - He indicates the burn on his neck - "I was hoping we could... spar? If that's the right word for it.... I mean, I was hoping you could help me train a little, see if I can't start getting out of the way of things like this in the future.... I'd be much more inclined to trust trying this out with you... rather than goading another Dragon to attacking me just for practice.... and..." - the smile fades a little - "You shouldn't offer me a life debt... You were there to help us just as much as we were there with you. I'd much rather call you a friend."
“You want to be my friend? You must really have a thirst for danger… Markas, I will be honest with you: helping you and the others wasn’t my primary reason for being there. I care little for this war and Daring’s participation in it. Our ‘Council’ seems to be involving itself and its citizens merely for profit and trade. No, I came along because I heard the land was sick. I am still unsure as to whether I can help it…” She trails off, before shaking away a thought and continuing. “But, as you’ve seen, fighting is what I am good at; so I can help you to train if you wish.” She looks down at the wounds on her body, bone and tissue still showing through in places, and grimaces. “Although maybe I’m not the right person to teach you how to avoid damage. My pledge still stands, however. If you ever need my help, send word to me however you can and use my true name, [REDACTED]- and I will come if I am able."
Markas stays silent for a few seconds before answering
"....Ok Sunday.... I will remember that... but I would still much prefer calling on you as a friend than a debt... and of course, If I can help you in some way too, I would be more than willing to come. Danger seems to be normal for most of us now anyway and you seem to care about things on a very personal level, which I guess in this case it was...." - He looks troubled for a moment as he thinks - "I can't speak for the past.... but you are a good person Sunday. I can tell.... You've been rubbing off on Baine as well. I'm not convinced he would have considered whether the ones we were tasked with taking out where innocent or not at all before now, but this time it was the first thing he asked. And like you said earlier, I'd really rather not have to hurt someone if we can avoid it... I already for guilty for how some of our previous excursions have gone."
Sunday nods. "It can be easy to lose sight of who you are in the middle of panic and chaos. We all do it. Don't beat yourself up about it. Maybe our training will help with that, too; for me, also - as I fear what little balance I had managed to build in my life has been torn away these last two days." She smiles, then, brighter than she has since they arrived in K'ul Goran; like the sun breaking through receding storm clouds. She offers her hand to Markas. "Friends, then?"
Markas nods along with Sunday as she talks, then breaks back into his trademark toothy grin again
"Friends!" - as he takes her hand in a firm grasp for a second, before letting go. He pulls out a slightly battered and stained journal and begins flicking through the pages...
"So.... I don't suppose this whole thing with.... Cyric?... is really over. is it? Is this something to do with them?"
He shows a drawing of the symbol he saw in the fight, a skull embossed on a purple-and-gold sunburst.
"I saw it when we were fighting those giants but it was like a flash in the air then it was gone..... I've never seen anything like it before...."
Sunday shudders as Markas holds the pages open in front of her. A shadow passes over her vision and she closes her eyes for a long moment. When she opens them again, they are like two tranquil pools of gold-and-forest green. She grimaces and nods. "That's His mark. I wore it on my skin for the better part of a year. I do not know for certain if it is over, but it seems we have driven Him back for now. He seemed not to enjoy the exchange between us and His avatars, and offered grudging respect in His parting remarks."
Seeing Sunday's reaction, Markas closes the book quickly.
"I'm sorry... I just wasn’t sure if it was.... " - he looks a little sheepish
Sunday waves away the half-elf's apology with obvious effort, fatigue still etched deeply into the lines of her face. "No harm done. It’s good to be certain.” Her physical appearance shifts into a perfect replica of Varis’ and she slams her clenched fist into her chest. “‘The true warrior is clad in the impenetrable Armour of Knowledge and wields an unstoppable Sword of Truth’” She barks, in a near-perfect imitation of Varis’ commanding voice, before returning to her true form. “Or some such nonsense."
He smirks but is relieved he hasn't caused her any upset, "Yeah. Well, at least I should be keeping an eye out for.... but, you should really rest now.... I'm not even sure how you’re still standing... we can chat more another time when all this isn’t so.... fresh"
He smiles as he looks back to Sunday, aware of how rough she must be feeling. He has a lot of questions still about Cyric, Corellon and eLk for that matter, but there will be time for all that later. The pair walk slowly back to the camp before splitting off to go about setting up for the night again. He unpacks his gear and rolls out his bed roll in the tent he’s been given to protect them from the wind before taking Hoop out of his pack.
“Oh! It’s Windy again! Why are you so burnt? And what did the Purple lady want? You know, it’s not fun being rocked around so much in here, what have you been doing!?”
“Yeah, sorry about that, we kinda had to run most of the way back after Baine blew up the workshop…. I’ll stop by Milo when we get back to Daring Heights, see if we can fit you out with something a bit stable to travel in.”
“Oooo New stuff! But what did she want? She was looking at me funny earlier…”
Markas looks around to see Sunday talking to Traavor, a little way from camp.
“I think she feels bad for how things played out and wants to make amends…. But it’s ok. I told her she doesn’t need to but she seems a determined sort of person, I imagine she will still feel responsible … But I think she may have just not seen anything like you before Hoop. Most people are curious about you”
“Hmm, well of course they are! I am mysterious after all! But can we get out of the wind already? It’s too noisy!”
“Sure thing” he says with an affectionate smile, as the wind continues to buffet him still, making the slightly burned skin on his face sting a little. As he climbs into his bedroll, he considers just how much more agile he will need to be to avoid being burned again when he is training with Sunday.... This is going to hurt.
