Cen
Cavalier
Cowards die many deaths, the valiant taste of death but once.
Posts: 196
Profession: Bodyguard
Affinity: Light
OoC Alias: Selibas
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Post by Cen on Aug 10, 2014 21:08:08 GMT -6
Cen rushed toward the pub. Just before he walked in, he slowed and pretended to be using his lance as a sort of walking stick, a walking stick a few inches taller than he was. He sat down at a small table in the corner, with less light shining onto its surface. After leaning his lance against the wall he waved at a man taking food to another table, and told him he needed a drink, immediately. The man eyed him suspiciously, but rushed off to get him a drink. Cen stared at the wall, looking at one very specific notch in the wood. He quickly remembered the hat he'd purchased in Pherae and placed it low on his head, hiding his eyes. The man brought him a mug of some brown liquor, and Cen quickly drank half of it. He almost spit, so much at once burned his throat, heart, and stomach as it passed through him. It tasted better than any mead he'd ever had, but he'd had wine he preferred. However, he wasn't drinking it for pleasure, or to forget some great pain. A moment after he sat the mug back on the table, two burly men burst into the tavern. They looked about for a few moments, and not seeing the man they'd been chasing, the smaller of them said, "You!" He pointed a meaty finger at the man who'd just given Cen the drink. "Has anyone just come in here?"
The man's eyes darted over to where Cen sat in the corner. Cen slid his hand over the table so that his fingertips brushed the shaft of his lance. The man looked back to the intruders and, gulping, shook his head. The two men growled something between themselves, and began to stalk out. Cen had his back to them, but he still heard one of them knock a chair to the ground. Cen assumed that was the larger man, he was much stupider, and probably didn't find it very far fetched that a chair would be harboring the man they chased. Cen took a much smaller drink. As the server walked to a table close by, clearly shaken, Cen called him over once more. The server had the eyes of a lamb who'd just seen a predator. Cen placed three coins in the mans hands, then took another drink. The man walked away, still shaken, but maybe he wouldn't hate Cen as much. Cen had to hope at least. Cen stood, and slid the lance into the holder he had strapped on his back. He place another two coins on the table, and walked out of the pub.
He walked into a busy street, it was late in the evening the sky taking on an orange cover. Cen decided to walk the way he'd been coming from. He would need to find a secluded area to change clothes soon. The men in the pub hadn't gotten a good look at him while they were chasing him, so he'd been safe to keep his clothes on around them. Some of the others searching for him had definitely seen his clothes, and his face, but he could only change one. As little as he wanted to be hunted by the authority of Pherae, he was willing to change in the street if he had to. Of course if it wouldn't draw a crowd, that would be the best option, instead Cen darted into a narrow alleyway. He quickly began changing into a cotton jerkin and wool trousers.
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Cen
Cavalier
Cowards die many deaths, the valiant taste of death but once.
Posts: 196
Profession: Bodyguard
Affinity: Light
OoC Alias: Selibas
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Post by Cen on Aug 21, 2014 21:35:59 GMT -6
Cen felt a cold wind hit his skin as he removed his shirt. He quickly put on a green cloak, then stepped back out into the street with the hood up. To anyone not paying attention to the height of your average pedestrian, it looked like one man had vanished and another had entered the street in his place, as if to prove the law of conservation of matter. What was the law of conservation of matter? There could be no way of knowing. Cen peered over his shoulder, and didn't see anyone resembling the brigands he had after him.
The squire slowed his pace. No need to draw suspicion just by walking. A woman bumped into him. She apologized severely, and Cen assured her it was fine. She stared into his eyes for a moment. Cen had a brief realization, then hurried away. He thought he recognized that woman, the wife of Edgar the Grim, the Desert Fox, a man who wanted his head. He slowly broke into a light jog.
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Cen
Cavalier
Cowards die many deaths, the valiant taste of death but once.
Posts: 196
Profession: Bodyguard
Affinity: Light
OoC Alias: Selibas
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Post by Cen on Sept 12, 2014 19:58:35 GMT -6
Cen was suddenly tackled from the side by a massive man with a red braid in his thick hair. This was the Sacaen they had hired. The man was a tracker, as he told it, but Cen doubted he was doing much of the tracking himself. He was following the men of the desert fox, and had probably been given a signal by the boss's wife. Cen rolled furiously, throwing the man off his side for a moment. He jammed an elbow into the mans ribs, then gave him a quick jab in the nose. The man howled momentarily in pain, and the tall far boy jolted to his feet, running in the opposite direction of the wife. He had literally just changed clothes. Now his cover as a giant hooded man with a lance was blown, who'd have thought? The squire darted into an alleyway in an attempt to get off the main road in the city.
Immediately after turning the corner, Cen took a fist to his chin, jamming his bottom teeth into the one's that lined his top row. Cen wavered for a moment, and felt a man kick the side of his leg, just below the knee. The tall boy buckled, and found himself leaning against a woman a few inches shorter than him. He heard so e onlooker yell something, and in the hazed pain felt his attacker hesitate. Cen reared back his head and rammed it into the woman's forehead. As the two fell, Cen thought the world had slipped out from under him. Groggily, he stood and tumbled toward the other end of the alley. Then a man in a cloak appeared to block his path. "I know who chases you, I'm no friend to the Fox, follow me." the man took off at a sprint across a slightly smaller street than the last.
Hearing a commotion behind him, Cen groaned and sent himself through the street after the man. As the came to pass through a line of houses, the man darted into the shadows of a wall, and for a moment seemed to disappear. As Cen looked at the spot overcast in shadow quizzically, a hand appeared from the darkness and pulled him in. It was the man before, who brought Cen through a door in the side of a the building. The man listened at the door as a trio of footsteps ran past the hiding spot. The room was cramped, and dimly lit by a small candle. In the faint light, Cen now saw the man had blue hair matching his blue shirt, and a large red cloak. The man turned to him with a great smile across his face, "Now we're safe for a bit!" Out of the frying pan into the maniac.
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Cen
Cavalier
Cowards die many deaths, the valiant taste of death but once.
Posts: 196
Profession: Bodyguard
Affinity: Light
OoC Alias: Selibas
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Post by Cen on Dec 31, 2014 23:53:24 GMT -6
"We should tell him who we are. Yes we really should. No quite honestly that is a horrible idea. Oh really and why is that? There's no reason for a Knight to know the identity of a common thief!Well now he know's your a thief! That's true but he couldn't possibly identify you. He's seen your face. Oh, you're right I guess you'll just have to kill him. I won't kill him! What? You heard me. You always get us into these situations do you want to get arrested? Of course not, but I'm not killing someone. Yes, we shouldn't kill him. Stay out of this you!"/ Cen stared at the cloaked stranger as he talked to himself. Cen would have been shaking with fear, if it wasn't for the fact that he thought he could drop the man in a few seconds. Cen knew that height mattered little if your long range had no weight behind it, but the man in front of him was gaunt, and Cen was willing to bet he had at least a foot on him.
The man turned to him and his face brightened. "Sorry sometimes I forget that other people don't like it when you have an inner dialogue right in front of them. Also, sorry that one of the other mes thinks we should kill you, that's very rude of him. So, why is the Fox Chasing you?" Cen sctratched his neck, "Oh, I might have, um, he has this daughter, and-" "Oh, say no more friend. I understand, well this old bank makes a hell of a hiding place. They'll probably search around this block for about twenty minutes. Then you should be able to leave." Cen nodded and let out a slow, "Riiight."
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Cen
Cavalier
Cowards die many deaths, the valiant taste of death but once.
Posts: 196
Profession: Bodyguard
Affinity: Light
OoC Alias: Selibas
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Post by Cen on Mar 15, 2015 10:25:49 GMT -6
After about an hour of Cen staring at an insane blue haired thief speak to himself, Cen gathered the courage to ask how he could get out. The man made an overzealous gesture with his cloak, revealing that behind it was the door they'd entered from, as if Cen didn't know. "What if they're still looking, is there some other way out?" The man shook his head furiously, "Oh, no no no no no, the only other way would be to go through the front of the bank you see, and then you would go through the front door and people would notice that this old building had an entrance. Where does that go, they might say. Soon people are coming in, and then I have no way of hiding from anyone, and so you see, this is the only exit and entrance."
Cen closed the door quickly after he'd passed the maniac, no reason to let him be behind him for too long. He broke into a light jog and ran back toward the tavern. It was time to get out of town. When he got out onto the main street, he slowed to a walk, and kept his head down. His eyes darted about, looking for anything that would work as an exit strategy. He spied at the edge of the town a covered wagon, a merchant most like. He hurried over to it, and spoke to the woman he assumed to be in charge. "Hello, where is your wagon headed?" The woman eyed him suspiciously, "Cornwell, then Santaruz, why?" Cen's eyes grew, "I seek passage into Cornwell. How much would it cost for me to ride with your wagon?" The woman didn't hesitate, "Forty marks." Cen lost all color from his face. That was almost all the money he had. It would take him much longer to buy his knighthood. Still, better to live in poverty then die in slightly more comfortable poverty. "Forty it is."
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Cen
Cavalier
Cowards die many deaths, the valiant taste of death but once.
Posts: 196
Profession: Bodyguard
Affinity: Light
OoC Alias: Selibas
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Post by Cen on Mar 19, 2015 21:44:37 GMT -6
Three days after getting on the trade wagon, Cen had reached Cornwell. After a brief night in an inn Cen made the trek to his childhood home. Honestly, he didn't stay in the inn because he was tired, or it looked particularly comfortable. He stayed because he was terrified of what he was about to have to do. Fleeing from a man who had eyes everywhere made every shadow inviting, but none made Cen feel as shameful as his mother's shadow. His father's too, but that wasn't the way the expression went. Cen walked the dirt road, his head held straight ahead, as a feigned symbol of pride. His clothes were dirty and in tatters, his armor was completely without luster, tucked tightly in his pack, and his boots were covered in mud. They were going to laugh at the sight of him.
Cen turned right at the familiar fork in the road, and spied it, the old barn, the house, and several fields, full of horses. Cen drew closer to the house, and saw his father, sharpening hammering away at some piece he couldn't recognize. The man looked up, and their eyes connected. "Marcia, get out here!" "What is it?" "Just get out here!" "I'm cooking Cedidale." "Marcia, your son is home!" Cen's father came out of the chair he sat in on the porch, and started to lightly jog toward his son. Suddenly Cen realized how long he had been away, as he saw the age on his father's face. When his mother appeared seconds later, she showed the passage of time in the lines on her skin.
"Hi..." Cen's voice was weak. He had left to become a knight, and returned in a worse state than he'd left.
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Cen
Cavalier
Cowards die many deaths, the valiant taste of death but once.
Posts: 196
Profession: Bodyguard
Affinity: Light
OoC Alias: Selibas
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Post by Cen on Mar 22, 2015 10:59:50 GMT -6
Cedidale son of Cedidale wrapped his son up in a very tight hug. He was a half head shorter than his incredibly tall son, but he almost crushed Cen's ribs. "How ya doin' son? Ya look good, ya look a lil' thicker. Though I can't say the same 'bout your clothes." By the time his father let him go, Cen's mother rammed into him, wrapping him in a hug just like her husband, and with the same bombardment of word. "By Elimine's laght boy, look at ya! Where's the little boi ah sent off to Laus? Ya look like a grown man. Have you beyin sleeping in the dirt? When she let him go Cen's father grabbed his hand and started to lead him toward the house.
"How's Laus? Ah've heard it was beautiful." "Weren't you supposed to be with some knight, what was his name? Fellanoi?" "No chance you got it is there?" "Your brother Cedidale became a hedge knight a few months ago. He sent us a letter about it, he's very proud." By this time, they'd reached the house, Cen's mother opened the door. They dragged him to the kitchen and plopped him down in the chair he'd sat in as a child. His father sat down next to him as his mother returned to cooking.
"Well, come on then, you didn't get it did ya'?" Cen looked down at the table, "No dad, ah didn't" Cen's mother spoke without turning from the ham she was making, "Oh Cen, it's ahlright, your brothers've both been out their for years. It'll come to you." Cedidale's face became serious, "Or maybe it won't. Maybe you should stay here, work on the farm."
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Cen
Cavalier
Cowards die many deaths, the valiant taste of death but once.
Posts: 196
Profession: Bodyguard
Affinity: Light
OoC Alias: Selibas
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Post by Cen on Apr 1, 2015 20:15:54 GMT -6
Cen's mother set a plate of biscuits down on the table. "No." In the way that only a father could, Cedidale's face became hard, "What was that son? "I'm going to be a knight dad." His dad tore a piece of biscuit, he sighed, "Son, look, ya aint smart like yer brother Cedidale, or strong like Cebron, ya aint dumb and ya aint weak, yer just not good at the stuff that makes ya a good knight. You're a hard worker Cen, ya got a good heart. Let your brothers go out and chase that pipe dream. If ah had gone and done it, you kids might not be here, and we might not have the farm, but I guess you'd be ashamed to raise horses." Cen shook his head as his mother set down a plate of ham.
"There's no shame in raisin' horses. It's just, dad... I feel like I'm meant to be a knight. I'm the member of our family who does it. I add our crest to the lists of Lycian Knights again. I'm sure every son of Cedidale has thought the same thing, but I'm the one who can do it dad. I aint- I'm not as smart as Cedidale, or as strong as Cebron, but I have one thing that'd make me a good knight." His dad crossed his arms, "What's that?" Cen looked down at the table for a moment, just as his mother set down a large bowl of eggs. "I don't know dad, I care about people. I don't run away if there's someone in danger, I run towards it. Everything we always wished knights would be when I was a kid, anytime we heard about some far off war or battle, I've got it. I'm brave, and I'm kind. I'm gentle with the innocent. Dad, I'm a good man."
His father nodded as he took a large bite of ham. "Ah suppose buying knighthood's not what yer wantin'?" Cen shook his head, "No dad, I want to win it. Dad, I want a horse."
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Cen
Cavalier
Cowards die many deaths, the valiant taste of death but once.
Posts: 196
Profession: Bodyguard
Affinity: Light
OoC Alias: Selibas
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Post by Cen on Apr 5, 2015 21:02:50 GMT -6
"You want a horse? Son yer a squire." "I know, but dad, I-" Cen's mother set down a plate of toast and a few jars of jam. "Squires don't rahde horses Cen." Cen felt exasperated, they refused to listen. "Dad, mom, I know that it's just if ah-I have a-" "Now look son, ah can't tell you not to pursue yer way, but if ya do it, ah want ya to do it right. A squire doesn't rahde a horse, it's disrespectful. Son, yer the first person in a long time to be a son or daughter of Cedidale that got a chance to be a squire, ah don't want you draggin' that through the dirt." Cen dunked a piece of toast into a jar of blackberry jam, then shoved it into his mouth as one bite. Cen's mother smoothed her skirt as she sat down, "Cen, honey, we just think yer so lucky, and don't want ya to waste this. If ya go back to Laus, we're sure ya can become a knight, butcha gotta do it the right way. Ya understand?"
Cen opened his mouth to speak, "Besides son, the horses are expensive, and fewer people are buyin' em than usual, Cornwell bein' neutral in ev'ry dang war in Elibe means nobody needs an Elimine damned warhorse. I cain't just give ya one."[/font][/font] Cen opened his mouth again, "You probably cain't even become a knight without servin' under a knight, and I guess that fella ya were gonna serve under must've got lost from ya huh Cen?" Cen looked his father straight in the eye, then his mother. They both seemed to halt what they were going to say. He spoke, "The man who I served under died in Bern, since then I've helped people all over Elibe. Now I want to help people better, I'm still young, and there's time for me to become a knight like ya-you said ma. If I have a horse, I'd be better at helpin' people, simple as that. Now, I'm getting a horse somewhere, and if you all don't want me gettin' one of ours, I'll just have to ride one from some other farm." His father started ate him for a second. "Alright son, let's finish eatin' then we can get ya' a horse. I won't have ya die 'cause yer horse can't tell right from left"
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Cen
Cavalier
Cowards die many deaths, the valiant taste of death but once.
Posts: 196
Profession: Bodyguard
Affinity: Light
OoC Alias: Selibas
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Post by Cen on Apr 6, 2015 13:05:48 GMT -6
Cen threw himself through the meal as fast as he could, shoving ham into his mouth with a plateful of eggs at the same time. It had been a long time since he had eaten a good farm meal, and his stomach had long since acclimated to eating the way normal people seemed to eat, much smaller portions and much different shorter meals. However, Cen quickly got himself back to being a farm boy from simply eating, he ate more in five minutes than he might have eaten in one day out on the road. His mother brought out a few pieces of cake after he had eaten what he thought was his fill, but he was able to scarf it down with no issue. He threw back a glass of milk in one gulp. If his father had asked him, he was sure that he could go out and work for hours before feeling tired or hungry again.
When they had finished, his father leaned back in his chair and put his hands folded on his stomach. "So son, where ya been gettin' to?" Cen helped his mother clear all the plates and other dishes off the table, "I've been to Bern, Sacae, and Ilia. Mountains, grass, and snowflakes." is mother flashed him a smile, "You meet any girls there?" Cen looked down at the floor and blushed, "A few." There were a few girl he'd protected, one girl whose husband he'd killed, one girl who'd thrown a shirt in his face, and then the girl. "There was one girl in Sacae who seemed pretty special, but we got separated." His father shot up from the table and took his arm, "Well, come on son, no use wastin' time about the past."
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Cen
Cavalier
Cowards die many deaths, the valiant taste of death but once.
Posts: 196
Profession: Bodyguard
Affinity: Light
OoC Alias: Selibas
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Post by Cen on Apr 7, 2015 9:36:31 GMT -6
Cen walked with his father to the pasture with his hands in his pockets. He was like a child sitting on his hands to hide his excited nature, truthfully, he wanted to run ahead of his father and take a look at all the horses. HIs father spoke with a lackadaisical tone, "There're about twelve of 'em that have been working with knights or squires to be warhorses. Three of 'em are way to small for a boy like you, so I think we'll just have to focus on the biiger ones." Cen nodded through a fiendish smile. Big small, he didn't care, he just wanted a horse.
They reached the pasture and Cen couldn't contain any further excitement, he leapt over the fence just before his father had it open. "Alright dad! Where are they? Where do we start?" HIs father laughed, "Alright son, just calm down,"[/color] he let out a high whistle, and a group of horses ran up to him. He put his hand on the side of a great big black horse. "This is Marshall, he's my favorite personally, he's real strong, but doesn't ever try to overpower a rider." His father shooed away a few of the other horses, Cen had to guess they weren't horses bred for battle.
He brought forward another, "This is Marzipan, your sister named her if you remember, she's a bit slower than some of the other horses, but she's real smart, real level headed." Cen ran his hand along the mare's neck. She didn't really seem to respond to his touch at all. Cen looked about, therer were only the two horses his father had shown him and two others now. His father seemingly took note of Cen's look and let out a series of slightly different whistles. From all corners of the pasture came mini heds of horses, but only one caught his eye. It was a horse all by itself, one about a hand shorter than Marshall, with pinto coloring. It ran with a high stride and attitude unlike any of the other horses Cen saw. [/font]
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Cen
Cavalier
Cowards die many deaths, the valiant taste of death but once.
Posts: 196
Profession: Bodyguard
Affinity: Light
OoC Alias: Selibas
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Post by Cen on Apr 7, 2015 12:54:59 GMT -6
Cen didn't listen as his father described a few of the other horses. They were all fine, good horses, but his eyes had been caught by the powerful horse that trotted towards him. Cedidale son of Cedidale turned his head to see what caught his son's attention so heavily, and spoke, "Him? You don't want him son. The Marquis wanted a Stallion, but none of the Knights could ride him, he's got a bit of an attitude on him. Now here is Leviathan, he's dim, really dim, but-" The Pinto horse however pulled up to the group of horses and threw it's head back, stomping three times with its front right hoof. He was big, one of the biggest horses there, and not just in height, he had a power to him. Cen slowly reached out and touched the horses snout. It let out a great huff, and threw its head back.
Cen took another step towards it, his father speaking, "Cen now be careful, you aint worked with horses in a while." "I'll be fine dad." Cen placed his left hand on the side of the beast's nose, and stroked his right hand through its thick white mane. "He looks a lot more Sacaen than any of these others." From behind him he heard his father say, "Aye, just like you." Cen hummed a little tune to the horse in front of him, it had a white mane, which was uncommon even for horses of its color.
"I sold his younger brother to this young Sacaen kid a few years back. He was a little too small to do anything with, and a stallion like this 'un. They didn't look much alike, but they had the same nature. Do you want me to go get a pair of reins for you to try 'im? Cen shook his head, "No, that would just make him mad." His dad coughed, "What do you mean ta do then son?" Cen took a few steps away from the great big horse, and then to the side. He got a running start, and hopped onto the great thing, wrapping his arms tightly around its neck, and pressing his knees against the things sides. The great horse reared and took off, sprinting around the pasture for two whole minutes, then bucking, attempting to shake the boy off his back. He ran around again, before giving up. Cen lifted his arms, and the horse slowly walked toward Cedidale, whinnying in a somehow annoyed tone.
Cedidale laughed, "Well, didn't expect that did he?" His father fetched him some reins, and after a few days of the two getting better acquainted, his father had finished a saddle for the beast that also fit Cen. When Cen left his childhood home for the second time, he rode off on his new horse: Thunder.
End Thread.
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