A New Dawn

[Oddood198]

Arren thought for a few moments, weighing the possibilities. On the one hand, he really didn't trust these two strange people they had just met, and he really didn't want to be taking directions from one and travelling with another. Even so, on the other hand, they did have to get some distance from the mountain before the Grand Sage came looking for them, and that aside, Arren really didn't want to get lost in this forest.
Finally, Arren spoke and made the decision, "All right, fine, we'll follow your directions and head to the town." He looked around at everyone, "Right, if you're coming with us, hurry up, and if not, then... Well, I couldn't care less what you do." With that, Arren turned west, the direction that forest-girl had specified, and began walking.

[Wolfsong]

Reveka watched as Arren started walking off and hurried after him. She grabbed his hand, looking at him. Now that they were actually leaving, she felt...strange. Scared, she guessed. Leaving the one place you'd lived your whole life in was certainly a...moving experience. But none of the others seemed so worried. She wondered why she felt this way.
Ethinine quietly slapped his forehead, then said Ruby and Talos, "I'm sorry for his rudeness. He's...always been like that. He's nicer once you get to know him." He glanced back at the quickly vanishing figures, then asked while he began walking backwards after them, "Um, I never caught your names..."

Jadis watched as they all began wandering off their own merry ways. Interesting batch of people, this. Slowly, he began crawling back, away from them. He felt peckish; apparantly that bread earlier hadn't been enough. "Just don't growl until I'm away please," he silently begged his stomach.

[Koneko-chan]

Callysta gave an apologetic smile in Ruby and Talos' direction and agreed with Etho "Yeah. Well then.. Echoing my dear friend here, what are your names? That is; if you don't mind our asking. I'm Callysta." She glanced at Arren and Reveka, then Etho "Suppose we should catch up?"

[syphon]

Talos following behind said "callysta huh? thats a nice name, and ah yes i apologize for being rude im talos blight. And what are your names?" Said talos looking at the others ahead.

[Wolfsong]

"I'm Ethinine, but you can call me Etho, its easier. Those are Arren and Reveka. They're twins," Etho explained as he hurried after them. "Hey guys, wait up!"

Jadis was quiet a long moment, then shoved from the tree and started the long walk back towards the city. From what they had said, they were headed to the little village just south from the woods. An interesting group, that. He looked up at the huge mountain towering next to him. The capital of the kingdom was built on and against these rocks, and was sturdier than any. Its major defenses were part of the reason it hadn't yet fallen. When the darkness attacked, the soldiers held at the walls until the Archsage could realize another beacon of light, which would chase the darkness away for a period of time.
He began thinking about the Band, as they called themselves. A mercenary group sworn in service to the Light, created and led by Nigal, one of the greatest men of his time. Jadis had studied under Nigal specifically, and had stayed with him since. Even joined the Band, when Nigal was finally willing to let him. And now he fought to avenge his people, lost under the Darkness.
The city was just ahead. He hurried along, still lost in thought.

[ClaecElric4God]

OOC: It's awful, I know. Thanks again, Wolf. You're so unbelievably patient.

Name: Shaddoc Wise
Age: 18
Appearance: Average height (5'8''); short, black hair; dark brown eyes; average build, well-muscled but agile. Wears a long-sleeved black shirt, with a bracer on his right arm for archery; loose dark brown trousers and boots; has a dull gray cloak that he either wears or carries over his shoulder. He uses a yew longbow, and sheathes a large dagger in his belt for close range combat.
Personality: Quiet and reserved, but not in a shy way. He enjoys the company of others, but gives the impression that he'd rather be alone, in that he doesn't make light conversation or attempt to act social. Consequently, most people don't enjoy being around him, and he's usually seen alone. When he is alone, he's very pensive, usually sitting around and looking thoughtful. In the company of others, he'll randomly spout words of wisdom for no apparent reason. When fighting or in a tense situation, however, he transforms into a very straightforward and uptight person, and can get touchy or edgy, snapping at people and getting caught up in the action.
Other: Although he is skilled at fighting with his dagger, his preferred weapon is the bow, and if possible he'll climb a tree to take his target by surprise or gain the advantage. He is sympathetic to the Light cause, but doesn't usually get involved in their battles.

[Oddood198]

OOC:

...with a bracer on his right arm for archery...

You actually gave your archer a bracer... Do you know how few people think of that? I'm touched.



Arren looked down at Reveka and smiled. In reality, he was also feeling anxious, apprehensive, but he was just better at not showing it. He patted his sister's head, "Don't worry, we'll be just fine." He said, "When we get to town, you'll get to do anything you want to." I just hope I can afford it... He didn't say the last part except for in his heart, he really did want to let Reveka enjoy herself, he just hoped she wouldn't have to be told 'no' to something because of their low funds. He turned back and, to the others, yelled, "We're not going to wait for you, if you're coming, then hurry up!"

[ClaecElric4God]

Shaddoc sighed as he trudged through the forest. This was all good and well, but why had Nigal asked him to do it?
Well, he thought. Considering Jadis'...outgoing personality...I'm probably the only one he could get to do it.
To be perfectly honest, Shaddoc wasn't too excited about the ceremony, either. He wasn't overly fond of the king, and it just seemed rather pointless. But he respected and admired Nigal, and was more than a little pleased he'd been called on for the job. Although he wasn't necessarily a member of the Band, he didn't mind helping them out once in a while, and it was always nice to be on Nigal's good side. Besides, a little exercise never hurt anyone. However, how he was supposed to pull it off was another matter entirely.
As these thoughts wandered across his mind, he saw a flicker of black in the trees ahead, and made out a figure meandering through the woods. Shaddoc sighed, then stretched his arms above his head. How to go about doing this...

[syphon]

OOC-nice job claec, glad you were able to fit in

"Ethinine,arren and reveka....Great names i think i got it memorized. Alright i can't wait to get to this town!" Talos said in excitement. After some time of walking talos felt something "Huh........." With a great sense of his surroundings he felt a presence agian. But didnt bother to say anything yet as he wasnt sure if it was just him. Also he didnt want to cause a scare to the group yet until he knew for sure. For now talos figured he would just keep walking along behind them for safety.

[Koneko-chan]

Callysta glanced at Talos "You okay, Talos?" She asked, pale face enveloping in concern. She sighed and caught up with Etho, "So, guys, what do you think town will be like? It was pretty exciting before we even got anywhere." Said Callysta admiring the flowers as she walk, trying to break the silence. She turned her head toward Talos "Talos is a great name too! Suits you nicely." She grinned widely, then looked back toward the flowers, admiring everything.

[ClaecElric4God]

Shaddoc quietly shadowed Jadis. He was surprised that he'd managed to avoid detection thus far. Although Shaddoc was usually extremely adept at stealth, Jadis was one of the hardest people to hide from. He always seemed to hear the smallest sounds. Shaddoc shrugged. Maybe he was lost in thought or something. Which would also make carrying out his duty that much easier. He watched Jadis progress, still thinking out a plan. There was the straightforward "overpower and drag back" method. But Shaddoc wasn't entirely sure he could pull that off, and it seemed like way too much work. He thought of trying to reason with Jadis, but discarded the idea as soon as it came to him. The only thing he had left was trickery. He reached into the pocket of his cloak and pulled out a vial. He tossed it in the air and watched the sunlight glint off of it as it landed back in his hand.
That should do the trick...
Shaddoc delved in his pocket again, until he found a small roll and a canister of water. He poured a few drops from the vial into the water, then replaced it in his pocket.
Here goes, he thought, jogging to catch up with Jadis. "Hey, Jadis! Wait up!"

[Wolfsong]

OOC- great going Claec. Lets get this party started!

Jadis sensed a presence around, but tried to pretend he didn't notice. Best way to surprise a shadow was to let it think it was about to surprise you. Cautiously, he glanced around through the corner of his eye.
Oh, Shaddoc. Well, that didn't change anything. If he wanted to talk, then he'd talk. Jadis wasn't going to push, he wasn't in the mood for it.
Then, five minutes later, it occured to him that Shaddoc was following him. That was even stranger. Shaddoc, if he wanted your attention, would have spoken up. Unless he wanted Jadis to acknowledge him? Then, suddenly, he spoke.
"Hey, Jadis! Wait up!"
He stopped, then slowly turned to face Shaddoc. "Hey," was all he said.

[syphon]

"Yes, im ok i just was thinking." Talos was a dissapointed as he realized he was wrong. Although he was relieved as well, for if he did say anything about it he would have embarressed himself. Why he thought someone was following him he didnt know....perhaps being a wanted criminal made him a little paranoid.

[Oddood198]

Arren walked quietly, still holding Reveka's hand, as the others chatted away behind them. he didn't understand what was so wrong about walking in peace and quiet for just a moment. He looked down at Reveka, squeezing her hand, "How do you like it so far? The outside, I mean." He asked.

[ClaecElric4God]

Shaddoc slowed as he caught up to Jadis. He seemed to be in a fouler mood than usual.
"I heard about your succes. Good work."
Silence followed, and Shaddoc started walking toward town, indicating that he wanted Jadis to follow.
"So what is it about the ceremony that you insist on not going?"

[Wolfsong]

Reveka slipped out her paper and pencil and wrote, "It is certainly different. All the green is amazing." After a quiet moment, she added, "Talos has goodness in his eyes. I do believe he's of the Light." she looked up at Arren to see his reaction.

Jadis cocked an eyebrow when Shaddoc started walking toward town, and clearly he expected Jadis to follow. And he was talking. Small talk. Instantly, he was on his guard.
"You have to ask?" he returned. "A bunch of simpering nobles, the useless king, and a lot of attention I don't need, all together at one time. Knowing this, you have to ask why I don't want to go?"

[Oddood198]

Arren looked at what his sister had written, then sighed. "You may be right... but you know, I've never been such a good judge of character as you are." He said, "Besides, this is a strange place, and I want to be careful. I don't want someone to do us harm because we were too trusting." He paused, thinking. "But, if it's what you want, I could try and warm up to him a little."

[ClaecElric4God]

"Alright, alright," Shaddoc defended. "I get your point. But you'd probably save yourself trouble by just going."
There was an awkward pause, and Shaddoc realized he was being too obvious. Even now, all this chatting was almost too much for him to handle. He didn't know what to say, and there shouldn't be any awkward pauses. It shouldn't have been Shaddoc trying to get Jadis to say something. And clearly he wasn't feeling conversational about the ceremony. They walked a few more paces, getting closer to the road, before Shaddoc shoved his hand in his pocket and pulled out the roll and water.
"Hungry?"

[Wolfsong]

Reveka smiled and nodded. "I understand," she wrote. "I'm still sure we can trust him. But I'll try to trust you too."

Jadis looked at the roll, noted the closeness of the town, and noted the riders coming toward them from it. He squinted, and saw the group break into two separate groups, and both rode into the forest. One guy he'd definitely recognized, Nigal. What bothered him was that he was dressed formally...to the point he'd even combed his normally wind-blown hair. Now Shaddoc was offering him food. He noted a small vial in the opening Shaddoc'd made when reaching for the stuff.
Click-click-click.
Oh c-r-u-d!!!
Without further ado, he broke away and rushed into the forest, trying to get out before the Band closed the circle. "Nigal, I swear, if you're doing what I think you're doing, I'm going to kill you," he hissed through clenched teeth.

[Oddood198]

Arren smiled, then patted Reveka's head -which seemed to be a favored show of affection- and said, "Thanks, I appreciate it." After that, he decided to walk quietly for a while, taking in the scenery, enjoying the peace, and he was sure Reveka wouldn't mind doing the same.

[ClaecElric4God]

Shaddoc sighed. So it was the "overpower and drag back" method, eh? Not exactly his cup of tea, but it would have to do. He couldn't help but be a bit agitated that Nigal and his men had burst into view so suddenly, or at all for that matter. Didn't they trust him to get his job done? Ah, well...
Jadis'll never forgive me for this, he thought sullenly. With that thought, he quickly ran after Jadis, only a few steps behind him. A few different ideas ran through his head, but he couldn't think of anything short of throwing his dagger at Jadis, which he was about ready to do merely out of frustration. Realizing that he needed to stop Jadis quickly if he was going to catch him at all, Shaddoc did the only thing he knew to do. When he gauged that he was close enough, he threw himself at Jadis, tackling him from behind and sending them both rolling. There was a short struggle, but Shaddoc's offense had given him the upper hand, and he managed to pin Jadis facedown, holding Jadis' arms behind him and planting a knee in his back. As Nigal and his men came crashing through the woods, Shaddoc leaned down and whispered in Jadis' ear:
"Sorry about this."

[Wolfsong]

OOC- what, you didn't even give Jadis a chance? Cruel Claec, cruel.

In response, Jadis began shouting the vilest curses he could come up with, at first for Shaddoc and then Nigal when the guy himself rode up. Nigal was grinning, clearly enjoying the sight of Shaddoc and Jadis.
"My apologies for messing you up," he said to Shaddoc. "You remember Mattemeo? The boy decided he wanted to go find Jadis, so he snuck out. He's not in the city, so I had everyone go comb the country for him. Apparently we came out a little too early. Sorry about that." Then he turned back to Jadis, who had returned to simply scowling at the ground. "I'm sorry to you, too, but some of us have your best interests at heart, like survival. If you get on a king's, any king's, bad side, you're bound for trouble. So lets just go about this quietly and with dignity, okay?"
"You already killed that, cap," Jadis said, jerking his head at Shaddoc and his uncomfortable position. If anything, Nigal grinned wider.
"Well then, let's try for something more. Unless you want us to drag you into town by the heels, making this as embarrasing as possible?"
Jadis shouted something truly nasty at him. Nigal cocked his head slightly, clearly trying his hardest not to laugh. "I love you too," was his reply. Jadis settled into sullen silence, as one of the Band members pulled him onto his horse.
"Wanna lift back?" Nigal asked Shaddoc, offering a hand.

After spending some time walking, Ethinine saw the small village ahead. "There it is!" he said excitedly. He was looking forward to seeing what this place was like.

[Koneko-chan]

Callysta's mouth was agape, with eyes staring in awe. I mean to someone who had seen the outside, this would be nothing, but Callysta was so ecstatic when her eyes landed on the small village. "W-wow! I mean.. Just wow!" You could hear the pure glee in her voice. Callysta's eyes studied the village with great detail.

OOC: Is the village sort of busy looking or is it quiet? XD Just curious.

[Oddood198]

OOC: It's not in flames or anything, right? No dark horde taking it? Just checking.


Arren looked ahead, seeing the village laid out before them. Even a few minutes ago, he could see smoke rising from chimneys. That, he thought, looking at the community, is probably a lot of people. More than we've seen, anyway. Then, with a gust of wind, he smelled something... unpleasant. And wouldn't you know it, they have livestock. He added sourly. He looked down at Reveka, curious as to how she was reacting.

[Wolfsong]

OOC- it looks busy, peeps.

Reveka was staring about, eyes wide in amazement. There were people moving around, going about their daily lives. To her, they looked like they were doing a lot of strange things. Then she noticed something else, which filled her with delight. "They have sheep!" she thought, quickly running over to one grazing nearby. It bleated in surprise as she came running to it, but didn't run. It just stared at her. She stroked it. "Its so soft..." she marveled.

[Ally-Ann]

OOC: Oh... my. Computer malware keeps me away from the internet for a couple days and look how far behind I get. Lol. I'll just keep Ruby back in the forest and have her catch up somehow... maybe...

IC:


Leaning against the tree, she watched as the strangers left. After they disappeared into the woods, Ruby sighed. I wonder how they got so lost...? You don't just get to this clearing by accident. Ruby stood completely, meandering through the thick grass of the clearing. She pondered whether or not she should follow those people; she felt strangely drawn to them, her curiosity piqued.

Without giving anymore thought, Ruby dashed through the grass and back into the thick woods in pursuit of at least following the group, a few leaves falling off the branches that she ran through. She ran with great speed, jumping over a few logs and sliding down small slopes. I can't believe I'mm doing this... Ruby thought in slight annoyance with herself as her feet crunched the dead leaves and twigs on the ground. She tripped over a large rock once, effectively twisting her ankle slightly and scratching her face, but she immediately got up again and continued to bolt through the forest. She reached the fields after 5 minutes of running, and once her feet hit grass again, she stopped, her breathing heavy as brushed dirt of her skin and picked a few leaves and twigs out of her hair. "Well, that was interesting..." She mumbled as she shaded her eyes from the sudden sunlight, looking west where the town was. "Old town, here I come."

[Koneko-chan]

OOC: XD Totally nailed what I was thinking, Odd.

Callysta smiled at Reveka and strolled over to her "You like it here so far? Amazing, isn't it?" Callstya asked, still staring at the bustling village, and everyone in it.

[Oddood198]

Arren made a face that looked almost as if his eyes were being pumped full of air to increase in size, That thing's gonna bite her hand off!! He thought, hurrying to catch up to Reveka. He didn't catch her before she got to she sheep and started petting it, but, fortunately, it seemed to be in good temper and let her stroke it's wool. Arren sat down in the grass, trying to not look like he'd just almost had a heart attack. This place... This is a crazy place. He thought. Just then a sheep trundled up beside him and started nudging him, irritated, he shoved back, and the sheep seemed to take this as a challenge, as it promptly body-slammed Arren and knocked him over.

[syphon]

Talos was happy to be able to visit a town himself its been a while. He then stood examining the situation "you guys definitley havent been outside of wherever it was that you lived. But im happy you guys got to go outside, you have been missing out. Petting and Battling sheep is just the beginning!" Said talos laughing with joy. "Well all this laughing and enjoyment of watching you guys is making me hungry, what about you?"

[ClaecElric4God]

OOC: Hehe, sorry about that. I just figured if I waited too long he'd get away.

Shaddoc simply nodded his head when Nigal rode up. He didn't respond to NIgal's apology. There was nothing to forgive; it had been a simple coincidence, and in the end everything had worked out, though a bit less in Jadis' favor. Shaddoc sympathetically watched as Jadis was unceremoniously hefted onto the horse. He was torn between feeling guilty for getting Jadis into this mess, and being amused at seeing him uncomfortable. Jadis was always in control of every situation, and it was a rare treat to see him so utterly helpless. Still, after that outburst at being overpowered and forced out of his comfort zone, Jadis could potentially hold a grudge against Shaddoc for a long time. Shaddoc didn't suppose he could get him to understand that, like Nigal said, it was for his own good, and Shaddoc was only carrying out a duty he'd been given.
Oh, well, he thought. I'll try to talk to him after the ceremony. And if he won't listen, I'll just think of some way to make it up to him.
Shaddoc was jerked out of his thoughts by Nigal's question.
"Wanna lift back?"
Shaddoc considered turning him down, but decided someone should tag along to make sure Jadis didn't kill the Band member he was riding with...
"If it's no inconvenience," he replied shortly, grasping Nigal's outstretched arm.