Xeon
Soldier
Posts: 9
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Post by Xeon on Aug 14, 2013 11:33:58 GMT -6
Xeon awoke within the Azure companies barracks, his gear bag packed and all that was left was to make his cot. Rising slowly as the morning light shone through the rest house window and illuminated all of the sleeping mercs to Xeon's now ex-merc troupe. With a soft yawn and a drink of water Xeon was out of bed. Making his cot and then placing his armor and his rucksack on he grabbed his spear and headed out the door with a smile and air of confidence. Now was his time to make his name! And in Badon! His home town of all places!
Walking down the busy streets and past plenty of gambling dens and cat houses, Xeon stopped at the ports and began his first job, defending a mercantile company while they were in town. He knew he wouldn't have been the only merc they hired but at least it was a chance to potentially get a future client. Arriving at the port with due haste he sat and waited for his clients ship to come in and for the mercs, if any, to show up as well.
Leaning against a rum pallet he waited and took the time to sharpen his spear while thinking to himself ,"Oh what a glorious day! Today I will prove myself and I will be starting down my path to glory!", a soft sweet smile began gracing his lips.
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Torman
Fighter
Mankind will have nothing if men lose faith in one another.
Posts: 53
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Post by Torman on Aug 14, 2013 14:08:01 GMT -6
Torman glanced down at the ad in his hand. Ports in Badon was the location and it seemed he had finally arrived. The merchants had asked for as many people as possible. When he found the job ad, most people didn't even give it a second glance. Torman was confused by this. Pirates are a really big problem and a person could make some good coin from protecting ships. He liked helping people already, but generosity is hard to come by in troubled times and even just times in general and Torman had to eat. He shrugged and continued walking towards the directed port. Torman looked around. It seemed that the ship hasn't arrived yet.
I must be really early Torman thought. He figured he'd sit and wait for the ship to arrive when he noticed another person on the docks. A blonde haired man wearing red armor and sharpening a spear. Could be another merc signing up for this job. Torman went over to the man.
"Good morning," he said when he arrived to the man's sitting spot, "Are you be here for a job offered by some merchants to protect their ship? If so, then I guess we're crew mates for a while."
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Xeon
Soldier
Posts: 9
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Post by Xeon on Aug 14, 2013 18:02:33 GMT -6
Xeon stirred as a man with an ax and smirked as he stood up straight and spoke, "Ahh, yes I am here to defend this merchants for a small while, its my first job on my own technically. I just left my last merc troupe. What about you?", smiling courtly Xeon continued to stand as he looked his new companion directly in the eye like is expected when talking.
In his mind he was mentally taking apart the man, searching for weak points, character flaws, all of course without being noticeable. It was just how Xeon's mind worked. To which as they stood there a large merchant ship had entered teh harbor.
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Torman
Fighter
Mankind will have nothing if men lose faith in one another.
Posts: 53
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Post by Torman on Aug 14, 2013 18:58:42 GMT -6
"Me? I have been going my own way with no particular destination, doing whatever work comes my way," Torman said as he studied the soldier in front of him. He carried himself well and was quite an optimistic one.
"It must have been hard leaving your troupe suddenly. How long were you in it," Torman asked as a man yelled loudly to his left. Torman turned his head towards the noise. The merchant ship had arrived. He could hear the merchants running around making sure their inventory was still there. He swore that merchants can be the fastest people alive when they're determined. He looked back at the soldier in front of him.
"It seems our ride is here," Torman said. He slid his axe into his belt and held out his right hand, "My name is Torman and if I'd be so inclined to have yours?"
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Xeon
Soldier
Posts: 9
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Post by Xeon on Aug 15, 2013 14:52:29 GMT -6
"It must have been hard leaving your troupe suddenly. How long were you in it,", the words flowed from Xeon's companions lips as they left a bittersweet sound in Xeon's ears.
"Well my contract was up with Badon's local merc troupe the Azure company so it wasn't so hard. I served with them for a couple years now though.", smiling he was soon having to split his attention as the large merchant ship that must have been an only slightly smaller ark, docked with the main pier of the port. Its slight bump against the dock was still enough to slightly shake Xeon's form his armor partially rattling. The sailors, merchants, travelers and more then likely stow away's were gathering their things and forming a massive sea of people upon the Merchant vessel Argon's main deck. The sheer conglomerate of peoples unified feeling of unease and anxiety was so palpable in the very air that even Xeon began to feel nervous.
And then his compatriot made it slightly worse as he spoke, "It seems our ride is here.", as he said. The man then slid his axe into his belt and held out his right hand as he spoke, "My name is Torman and if I'd be so inclined to have yours?", and there it was, the one question that always brought unease to the boy. Answering with shakiness as he firmly shook Tormans hand even though unease was clearly seen on his visage, Xeon spoke, "Eh... well my name is Xeon.. De'Archel Pleased to meet you Torman.", and there it was, now all chances of friendship were most likely ruined as the man was allowed to know Xeon wasn't just a merc but a noble and one of the many lords of Badon at that, not that Xeon actually cared as it wasn't his choice to be born a Archel. Everyone seemed to hate that as it was always a question of why he was taking up an available job.
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Post by Tiv Sparrow on Aug 15, 2013 18:08:49 GMT -6
Tiv rubbed his tired eyes as he made his way to the peer. "No one bothered to wake me..." He grumbled, "Well whatever, there's no point in complaining about." As he made his way to the peer he saw the other two and the boat. He decided to approach the two. "Are you two here for protecting the caravan too?" He asked, "I'm Tiv Sparrow, a mercenary who took up up this job. Might I know who my allies?"
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Torman
Fighter
Mankind will have nothing if men lose faith in one another.
Posts: 53
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Post by Torman on Aug 15, 2013 19:14:48 GMT -6
Torman sensed the nervousness of the young soldier in from of him. The soft rattling of his armor and the look in his eyes were dead giveaways to his state of mind.
Poor guy Torman thought as the racket of the Argon sounded in the back. He listened as the soldier described his time with the Azure company. When the boy finished, Torman began thinking about the ship to his left. He had never been on a boat before and hadn't even thought he was going to get on one ever. But work was work. He only hopped these merchants wouldn't be stuck up. They tend to do that, really only caring about their merchandise. Again, troubled times have led to everyone scrambling for every last coin. Torman sighed. Whatever happened to common decency? His attention was drawn back to the soldier, who had finally gripped his extended hand. Torman listened when the boy finally said his name, albeit with some hesitation. Xeon De'Archel. Huh, why did that sound familiar? Torman thought. He tried to think. Where had he heard that name. Wait, Torman's brain went, wait, wait, wait. De'Archel. Badon. This bit was no ordinary merc, but a lord! He smiled at the boy.
"Well, well, well," Torman said, "What an interesting turn of events. What brings the young lord from his castle?"
Torman meant this last line as a joke, knowing full well this boy was quite capable. What struck him as odd was the use of a lance and not a sword.
"Please do not be offended. I judge a man by his merits and actions, not his background," he told Xeon, "But other people don't. Let us keep this between us."
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Post by Valcrist on Aug 15, 2013 20:19:01 GMT -6
Starting over from zero wasn't nearly as hard as Valcrist thought it would be. Then again he had practice, after the first few times you begin to learn the little ins and outs of hitting rock bottom. He actually had some gold though so it wasn't really rock bottom, more like rock lower-middle. Or maybe not even on the rock at all, like somewhere next to the rock. Ground bottom? In the grass? While Valcrist was frantically mulling over the semantics of a turn of phrase, his ship came in.
You see, Valcrist had turned over a new leaf. Or reclaimed an old leaf that he had abandoned for his prior new leaf. His fun in Bern made Bern a very uncomfortable place to be in, and he wasn't particularly in a rush to revisit it. He took the first route out of that place that he could get his hands on. A caravan which was currently visiting Lycia, a land he hadn't been in quite some time. He gave idle thought to the memories he made here, wondering how the situation was different from how he left. Was sir Waltz still leading his expedition for Rayl? Was that mage's school was still standing, had Lycia had been united, if Kelvin was still stalking around here, all of these little question perked up in his mind. Maybe he should visit Kelvin's mother and father, it's been quite some time. Of course this was rather short lived as all the bustle distracted him from being distracted. Everyone was being so darn active and chatty and cheerful, it made it hard to brood. He found his self smiling despite his self as he went about his own business. That trip wasn't all too long, but it was quite fruitful, Valcrist found himself with quite the backpack strung over his shoulder. Large and heavy, making it look like he was about to tip over with a stiff breeze. It was heavy, but it wasn't too bad and it definitely helped him get that exercise he's been craving. Inside that pack was huge amount of junk, and things, a little bit of stuff as well. From his smithing hammer to an assortment of metals he might want to use and what was rather affordable at the time and some weapons he forged on the trip over along with things like a map food water and all kinds of other miscellaneous objects. Untitled was currently located on his hips across his back at an angle while the backpack took it's usual spot. With every step the pack jingled and jangled, you could hear him coming from all the way in Ostia.
He took several jingling steps around the dock, the clanging of metal filled his ears as his head darted around with a silly grin. Waddling off a bit confused, but none the worse for wear. He saw a group of fellows gathered about, chatting away fully armored and whatnot. He heard about this, they were... uh... mercenaries right? Wow, Valcrist has never hired mercenaries before, not that he particularly hired these he just pitched in with the rest of the group. Were they the cutthroat type? You know, eager to shift loyalties at the drop of a few coin? Were they like the ones he watched in Bern's arena? Or a few greenhorns?
"Are you the mercenaries?" He smiled as he came waddling up, looking at them. A spear, an axe, and a sword. All three were men, but none of them looked particularly old or weathered unlike his expectations had assumed they would be. "I'm Valcrist, a Blacksmith. I'm counting on all of you to make sure the trip is a safe one."
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Xeon
Soldier
Posts: 9
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Post by Xeon on Aug 16, 2013 11:50:15 GMT -6
"Well, well, well," Torman said, "What an interesting turn of events. What brings the young lord from his castle?", as Xeons companion then added on after a short friendly laugh, "Please do not be offended. I judge a man by his merits and actions, not his background", and he added, "But other people don't. Let us keep this between us."
Xeon smirked gently as he relaxed partially, answering with a lighter tone, "My father was a warrior, so was his father and his fathers father. We are only nobility because of our skill in battle. I took that to heart and decided I would be noble by being a Mercenary for hire to villages plagued by bandits, you know? Helping the less fortunate... Well as it turns out being a mercenary is not entirely noble work. But thank you for keeping it between us. I can see you will be a great friend Torman.".
And then another man joined the duo and introduced himself as Tiv sparrow, whilst asking for their names. Grabbing his spear and placing his pack back on he answered with kindness, "I am Xeon and this here is Torman. Pleasure to meet you Sparrow.", as he watched one of the merchant caravan that had hired them approach and announce himself, "Are you the mercenaries?", The man smiled as he came waddling up, looking at them, "I'm Valcrist, a Blacksmith. I'm counting on all of you to make sure the trip is a safe one.".
Xeon decided to speak for his companions as he sounded a bit more commanding and in charge then the other two, "I am Xeon sir, the ax-man here is Torman and the swordsman is Tiv Sparrow. Its nice to meet you Valcrist. I can promise you that three of us here... Have taken your contract and until the job is done as Mercenaries of Badon, or at least on my behalf, I will defend you and ensure your success with my life if need be. Do you agree, Torman, Sparrow?", if only the man who had hired them and his fellow merchants had seen the nervousness that Xeon had held only moments prior before it was washed away and replaced with a commanders visage to at least attempt to appear professional and of merit.
From what Xeon had known was that three merchants, two of which owned that big ass ship, were the ones who had hired them, It seems the blacksmith and peddler Valcrist was one of them, while the other two were the twin brothers, Varen Gisgan and Heygus Gisgan, to young, ambitious and well off inheritors of the Gisgan merchant fleet. Gods would they be screwed if anything bad happened under Xeon's groups watch. Oh how Xeon's fatehr would never let him live it down.
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Post by Tiv Sparrow on Aug 16, 2013 16:07:50 GMT -6
Tiv glanced at Xeon then looked at Valcrist. Who died and made him boss? He wondered as he nodded, if he was going to do this mission, he'd need as much help as he could get. This was his first time on a boat as well. "By the way Xeon," He said a few momments, "You can call me Tiv. I know we haven't know each other for too long. Anyways, Mr. Valcrist, might I ponder what is in your bag?"
From there he towards the edge of the peer and stared into the water, So we've got to protect a blacksmith, and two other richmen on the boat. He thought then walked back to the group, "Sorry about that. I've never really seen an ocean before."
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Torman
Fighter
Mankind will have nothing if men lose faith in one another.
Posts: 53
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Post by Torman on Aug 16, 2013 20:52:40 GMT -6
When Torman learned of Xeon's family's cause for nobility, he smiled ever brighter.
"Indeed noble. They deserve the title they wear," Torman replied,"And I too, Xeon, believe we will be great friends."
Torman heard a man asking a question from behind him. He turned and faced a young swordsman. Tiv Sparrow was his name, the sword user said. Xeon introduced the both of them and Torman nodded.
"Pleased to meet you, Mr. Sparrow," Torman said, crossing his arms. He examined his and the others weapons. He smiled with the knowledge, "It appears we have got ourselves prepared for many a foe. One axe, one spear and one sword."
A second man approached, struggling under the weight of his pack. He remained cheery, though, and introduced himself as Valcrist the Blacksmith. He was one of the three employers, the other remaining on the boat. Before Torman had evened opened his mouth, Xeon introduced the three of them. Torman made no attempt to stop him, noting the boy's nervousness sliding away and being replaced by the very commanding voice of a seasoned merc. Torman smiled, knowing if he was the leader, their group would be in good hands.
"A pleasure to meet you Mr. Valcrist. You seem to be struggling under your pack a little. Would you care for some help? I would gladly hold it for you," Torman offered. He listened as Sparrow told Xeon to call him by his first name.
If the man wishes Torman thought as he watched Tiv walk to the edge of the peer and tell them it's his first time seeing it.
"Aye, it is a sight to behold," Torman called over to him.
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Post by Valcrist on Aug 17, 2013 6:37:01 GMT -6
Well now, at least they were all affable. There was three, Xeon, Torman, and Tiv. Xeon was the one with the lance, he look around Valcrist's age maybe a bit younger. That was the first time he's thought that in a while, wow Valcrist was starting to get old. The other two looked to be about Valcrist's age as well. Apparently this world's population is 60% people under the age 25. Xeon had a serious look in his eyes, and hair unexplainable by gravity. Color coordinated in a kind of black and white ensemble, with a somewhat jarring gold and red trenchcoat. Though far be it for Valcrist to judge another's fashion choice, he was still wearing that silly scarf. Next was Tiv, who was kind of... unremarkable looking. It was hard to put an actual word together with him, he was very unassuming. Though he did have that scar and eye combo, so it was easy to pick him apart from others, maybe Valcrist was simply being judgmental. Finally there was Torman who looked the eldest of the three with a strong face covered in bristly stubble, a sort of manly man which was to be expected from his choice of the axe. Valcrist has never met an unmanly axeman, even the women who wielded axes were manly.
"No don't worry, my pack is just fine. I walked several miles with it now, though it will be nice to take it off once we get on board. As for what's in it, it might be an easier question to ask what's not in it." He said with a smirk. "Though mostly it's my wares, nothing too fancy but if any of you are in need of a good weapon come right on over. I also do commissions and ceremonial pieces, armor too if you are content to wait a while and don't mind me getting your measurements." Suddenly he realized what he was doing and chuckled. "Whoops, sorry, didn't mean to try to hawk my wares at you. Natural reflex I suppose."
The merchant brothers who owned the ship were kind enough to let Valcrist join their duo, which made him feel like he was intruding at first, but the tensions have since eased and he was friendly with the two. They lacked a blacksmith, and Valcrist was definitely one of those. The other two dealt in other things, foods, spices, medicines, he thought he had even seen some magical tomes the other day. They recognized Valcrist's work, well more accurately his blacksmith's mark, which was the same as his mother's who was undoubtedly famous in her own circle. There were many blacksmiths in this world, many good and many bad, many probably better than her on a mechanical level, but there was no blacksmith better on the artistic one. One had to just look at the wind sword he kept sheathed on his hips for proof of that. Valcrist, meanwhile, was a good blacksmith in his own way. By no means a master, but capable and artistic.
"Three mercenaries, hrm, that wasn't quite as many as I was expecting to be honest with you. But it's definitely enough to get the job done. One for each of us I suppose." He laughed again. "Oh well, more gold for you all right? If you're ready then, I'll see you on the boat. I'm not sure how long those brothers are planning to stay docked, so I'd hurry if I were you. Sometimes they tend to be impatient."
He straightened his back a bit and heaved the pack up. It jerking up a bit as he grabbed the straps to keep it slightly higher on his back, so it wasn't just pressing into the same spot all day. Walking onto the ship, the metals inside his pack jauntily clinging and clanging like they were singing a small song.
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Xeon
Soldier
Posts: 9
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Post by Xeon on Aug 17, 2013 7:29:26 GMT -6
Sparrow decided to tell him to call him by his first name Tiv to which Xeon gave a kind smile to Tiv and replied with machismo, "Okay then Tiv, I will be counting on our combined strength guys!".
As Valcrist prompted them to go and board the ship or in Val there's case, re board, Xeon nodded to his two compatriots and continued onward, choosing to speak, "I would have liked to see a couple more myself Valcrist. Perhaps a healer or maybe a mounted and ranged or flying guy, but I have no doubt that the three of us will be sufficient and probably leagues more capable then we or our age suggests.", with a smile to their employer Xeon matched pace with him as he continued onward and then the most peculiar request left his lips, "Make armor hmm? Do you think perhaps with time you could craft me a piece? Well... a lightweight and more flexible version of knight armor akin to what a lot of the soldiers wear but more protective?", to be perfectly honest Xeon hadn't wondered about armor really considering he wore a leather trench coat, chest protector, vest, pants, gloves and boots. He always just assumed he wore enough protection to keep him mobile and he would just use his spear to keep distance.
Eyeing Valcrist's sword he spoke up, "Can you fight Valcrist? Most merchants don't carry weapons on their person... It seems we are fortunate to have an employer who is capable at more then talking, my friends.".
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Post by Valcrist on Aug 20, 2013 11:51:24 GMT -6
Valcrist walked up the gangplank and was content to finally sit down and let his pack off, but he was stopped by Xeon first. Oh he's still talking to me. Oh, uh, that's fine I guess. He thought he broke off the conversation, but whatever. He sat down anyways, working on unstrapping the heavy pack. "Oh, uh, yeah. Mages and stuff. I haven't had the pleasure to meet many magically inclined people on my travel, there was this guy in Ilia but he was really kind of eh, grating I suppose. Took his self too seriously. Though one of my friends is a shaman, she gave me this scarf." He mused lightly on the subject, pulling on the long orange muffler around his neck that stretched down and hit the raised wood he sat on, the leftover length spilling over the ledge. Calling Izzy a friend felt weird, they talked once or twice what felt like a year ago, but still it was fond memories so it was fine. "Anyways yeah, I'm sure things will be fine. We aren't expecting a lot of trouble. Though now that I think about it, that more or less ensures we'll come across some... Still we aren't traveling any dangerous seas, so if we run into pirates they'll probably be relatively weak. Trying to prey on ships going the 'safe route' without many guards. Nothing you guys can't handle."
He asked something about armor, it made Valcrist chuckle. "The thing you're describing? Hrm, I'm not sure. If something like that was easy, or cost effective, to make then all knights would simply wear that instead of their massive suits of iron. Just being lighter and more flexible would be a simple things, but more protective at well? Sounds like I'd have to use some specific material and use specific techniques that would be rather expensive to produce. In the thousands of gold range. Unless I misunderstood you, and you simply want a type of armor between the colossal plate mail of knights and the more conventional separated plates that soldiers wear on vital areas. That would be easier now that I think about it, still armor's not cheap. Commissions moreso. I'd have to get your measurements and narrow down exactly what it is you want before I could give you a price range." He held his chin and looked the man up and down, trying to guess his measurements. He wasn't particularly buff, in fact he was on the thinner side of things. Probably even thinner than Valcrist, which surprised him a little bit. "Hrm." He mumbled. "Yeah I could do it I think, the more I think about the more plausible it becomes. Perhaps I was quick to jump to conclusion, we can discuss it more later."
"As for my personal abilities..." He began, trailing off and looking wistful. He didn't want to say that he was more than familiar with fighting, for many reasons really. Instead he grinned and laughed. "It doesn't much matter in the end. If I was planning on fighting, then there'd be no point to hire you all, right? If you do your job, you'll never have to find out if I can use this blade or not. All you're going to get from me is talking." The last time he fought, things went... ugh. Not well at the least. He didn't want to fight and possibly expose himself as the Lost Swordsman, despite being all the way in Lycia where it doesn't quite matter. He prefered living quietly, in a sort of strange solitude. Every time he fought, well, everything just went awful. It's probably bad luck, but he's really starting to feel cursed. From dragons to terrorist attacks to deserting the army to gigantic bandit raids, nothing good ever came out of it. "I hope you enjoy the sounds of my voice" He finished with a smirk.
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Torman
Fighter
Mankind will have nothing if men lose faith in one another.
Posts: 53
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Post by Torman on Aug 20, 2013 15:27:30 GMT -6
Torman didn't hear a reply from Tiv, who seemed lost in thought. He stared at the swordsman a little longer before walking up the gangplank. When he reached the top, he saw Valcrist and Xeon talking. He walked closer to the pair and listened it their conversation. They were discussing who would have been good allies. Torman walked over the rest of the way and sat down. He stretched out.
"Xeon," Torman said, smiling, "you need to have faith in our little group. We'll be fine."
The conversation between the pair continued on to armor. Torman listened as they talked of materials and measurements, boring stuff. Torman wasn't interested in armor. It slowed you down and he needed all the speed he could get, although he wouldn't mind getting some bracers for his arms so he could swing faster and harder with some momentum. The conversation carried over to Valcrist participating in the fighting. Torman listened more closely, hearing that Valcrist wouldn't be doing anything. Acceptable as he was paying them.
"Just be sure to keep us armed," Torman told the merchant, "It may be easy, but we would still like to leave relatively unscathed. I would prefer not to have arrows sticking out of me."
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