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Post by Armitage Apolithymius on Aug 23, 2014 12:40:13 GMT -6
((Just a small topic for some character building. Networking.))
Armitage trudge through the wind and the rain, raising her hand infront of her face to shield from the rain. She had just come from Armagh. Looking to make a bit of coin as a tradeswoman, she had traveled to Armagh to get some goods. Although leaving without much of note, she did get a few things that may just be seen as "exotic" enough on the inland to net her some gold! Though the traveling conditions were quite poor, she thought she would be lucky enough to get away from the storm. When in Armagh she had seen it on the horizon. Thinking back though, Armitage started to wonder if she got turned around somewhere and was accidentally heading deeper into the Eburacum mountains.
”Tch. Just my luck today.”
She couldn’t help but sigh as her boots sunk deeper into the mud. Traveling in your full armor was usually a matter of both safety and convenience, but in this weather it certainly made for an arduous journey. As the way she traveled started to incline, she realized she was definitely traveling up the mountain. At this point though it was starting to turn into a search for shelter; the weather was coming down in heaps. Rain weighed heavy on her armor and thunder cracked in the distance. Armitage tightened the fur hood she had on her under-armor around her face.
”Drop the bags sweetheart…” A gravelly voice poked from behind Armitage.
You’ve got to be absolutely kidding me Armitage thought as she assumed she was getting raided. In this weather! She turned around to find a group of 3 bandits behind her. Why do they always come in threes? She thanked her luck as they all had swords and she, for the moment at least, had the high ground. What a rotten situation to be in; normally Armitage welcomed a good tussle with some bandits but at the moment she was purely miserable. Like a wet cat in a tub. She dropped her travel bags to the dirt. If a fight was going to happen, rolling around with her spoils won’t do her any good.
”Oh wow, thanks guys. I was just thinking they were getting a bit heavy.” She openly joked, letting a smile crack her lips. ”How about we hold off on the macho stuff for a moment. You see this rain? I need a place to dry off. You guys happen to have a shack or cave somewhere nearby?”
”Oh I got something for you alright” One of the bandits oh so cleverly mused before starting to approach Armitage. She couldn’t help but roll her eyes. If this encounter got any more generic she was going to vomit. Armitage slid a hand back and wrested it on her spear, prepared to draw. Suddenly, a thunder crack! With a quick kick of her boot, Armitage launched a chunk of mud toward the middle bandit, whom for convenience sake we’ll call Chug. As the mud and debris caught Chug in the face, he lost his footing a stumbled backward a bit down the mountain. Like a whip, Armitage lashed out her lance toward the bandit on her left, causing the other bandit to assume a defensive position; Bumblenut and Horsetickler, respectively.
Bumblenut caught the tip of Armitage’s spear with his sword clumsily, causing it to fall out of his hands. She quickly brought a follow up strike down toward his skull, effectively doming him. Armitage again thanked the bandits for approaching her from lower ground. Repositioning, she brought the shaft of spear to bear on the side of Horsetickler’s head. With the rain and thunder as distractions, Armitage was able to connect solidly and send him face first into the dirt. Carrying her momentum, Armitage leapt off of Horsetickler’s head and tried to catch Chug before he regained his composure. Unfortunately for Armitage, she underestimated Chug’s response time. The last bandit was able to block Armitage’s attack with ease. Not only that but caught her momentum out of the air and gave her a heavy toss down the mountain. Had her armor not been so heavy and her with so much momentum, she would have stuck in the mud but instead quickly bounced to her feet.
”Damn…”
”Behind you sweet cheeks!”
Armitage was not able to rotate in time to block properly. There was a fourth bandit. As Armitage rotated and raised her weapon, it was swiftly toss from her hands. An axe user! The fourth bandit was able to knock Armitage’s spear away with shear force alone; the shaft of a lance not meant to block that heavy of a blow. Armitage grit her teeth as a sword struck her in the left shoulder. The bandit in front of her, Shuffles, smiled grimly. Armitage turned and met gaze with Chug. Her left arm handing a bit low—he hadn’t done a whole lot of damage because of her armor but she could feel the alkaline acids burning through it. It may be broken but adrenaline was keeping her moving at the moment. As Armitage turned she caught another sword strike in the waist.
With a roar of anger, Armitage tackled Chug into the mud, knocking his sword from his hand. Hitting the ground, Armitage took a dagger from his waistband and brought it to bear into his chest. Nearly feeling the life bleed out of Chug, Armitage quickly rotated back to Shuffles. He had already moved into Armitage’s space. If she had her spear, no way could she raise it in time for an attack, Luckily, she didn’t have her spear. Thrusting upward with Chug’s knife, she caught Shuffles right under his left breast. She must have missed his heart as he was still moving. As he began to raise his axe in his left arm to strike, Armitage gave the knife a hard twist and push. Shuffles screamed in pain, dropping his axe. Almost like a reflex attack, Shuffles pulled the knife from his belt and brought it down into Armitage’s left shoulder. Yea…definitely broken. With a final roar and push, Armitage dove forward forcing the knife deeper into Shuffles’ chest. Rolling off of his motionless body, Armitage strained to stand. Fingering her wounds, she made a quick mental check of the damage done.
”Shoulder wound is deep but mostly cartilage. No arteries. Hip wound is shallow but wide. Hit mostly bone…. ”
Armitage limped to her lance and pulled it from the mud, given it a halfhearted shake before returning it leather sheath on her back. Normally Armitage wounds would be nothing to be majorly concerned about. She wasn’t bleeding out terribly quickly. Although now that the adrenaline was leaving her body she began feeling mighty light headed. She panicked a bit; although always the soldier, you never get completely used to mortal danger. She retraced her steps in her head, trying to quickly figure out where she was in relation to the nearest town or barracks. The rain still wasn’t letting up and was making her body heavier. She could tell she was losing consciousness. She struggled feebly to moved forward, trying to get somewhere before passing out.
”Help…Someone…”
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Post by Deleted on Aug 23, 2014 15:54:19 GMT -6
"Damn this accursed weather!" Lucius sat in a small cave watching the rain. He'd managed to start a fire before all the tinder was soaked through. He got lucky in that way and was warming himself by the fire. He tore into a chunk of bread and pulled out a map. "There ought to be something here." Perhaps this wasn't the cave. Or if it was it had caved in long ago.
He was on a business trip. He had a delivery to pick up from Bonnie and her crew. The first since he'd teamed up with Orys. After explaining the situation she had agreed to continue helping and would offer her ship in a naval fleet should they grow that strong. So long as she was an admiral.
It went well and he had his cargo of lumber and other such things. But then came the weather. It came fast and out of no where. A flash flood saw to it his horse and cart were gone. A minor set back but a major annoyance.
As he brooded on the matter he suddenly heard a cry for help from, well somewhere. The heavy rain and winds made in hard to discern. He could stay here and pretend he'd never heard a voice but. Ah to hell with it. He rose grabbing hold of his axe.
The weight made his side scream in pain. He dropped it and held his left side. "That bastard did a real number, grgh." He left the axe and walked out into the storm. "HEY!!! If you can hear me I have shelter!!!"
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Post by Armitage Apolithymius on Aug 23, 2014 19:19:29 GMT -6
Armitage's vision blurred a bit as a voice up the mountain a bit caught her attention. She could tell it came from a man. Looking around slowly she saw the pinch of a fire in a cave, illuminating the man's silhouette. Finally. Armitage breathed deep, relishing the first break she has gotten today. Actually, breathing deep was a lie; after a bit of a shallow breath, a sharp pain ran up her entire left side, almost making her cough out any of the air she actually DID get. The coughing hurt too. Using her spear as a walking tool, she began to hobble toward the cave. As she neared she contemplated the chance of this being the rest of the bandits who saw the fight and were luring her in for a trap. Honestly, at this point, she would be fine with that as long as she wasn't getting rained on anymore.
"Come on Armi. They don't call you 'The Enduring' for nothing
Armitage muttered lowly to herself as she continued to trudge through the mud and muck. She counted her blessings that she hadn't fallen over yet. The weight of her armor and the weakness of her arms would make for a hell of a time standing again. Armitage mused the idea of drowning in two inches of mud. No. No that fate just would not do. As her legs got a bit weaker she groaned herself toward the cave. She was closer now and absentmindedly went to wave her free arm. Her left one. Letting out a hard grunt and a bit of a scream as her body reminded her why she hadn't been using that arm up to this point. She had planned to yell for the man's attention but if he was close enough to hear her, that would have done.
By now Armitage could feel the blood welling up in her armor. Looking down she could see the rain running it over her armor and down her torso and leg. Once she was in eye sight of the man she'd look like a helluva bloody mess. If the man helped her closer to the cave that was fine with her, but from a bit of an inspection, she wasn't sure if he was capable to. Sure he was a big guy but he seemed to be nursing his own side. And he looked even older than her! Armitage let a smile escape the corner of her mouth; it was about time she hadn't run into someone as green as the Sacaen grass. Hopefully he had more knowledge of field dressing then her.
"Nice place you got here..." Her voice was harsh. Clearly pained. "Hope you don't mind if I crash for a moment...Sorry about the blood."
Upon entering the cave, Armitage would unhinge her breast plate and drop it to the dirt, letting her lance hit the ground as she did this. Her tasset followed the breast plate, letting her breath a bit easier. Armitage stood for a moment in her undercoat; normally her undercoat was a bright red but there were very clear red spots on her left shoulder and hip. She tried to say something else but her legs finally began to buckle. Letting her knees slow her fall, Armitage, if let to fall, would fall right into the dirt next to the fire. Although light on the consciousness, she enjoyed the warmth of the flames. She thought she could feel herself drying already and took happiness in the small pleasures.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 23, 2014 20:45:28 GMT -6
Lucius caught her before she hit the ground a sharp pain searing in his side. "Don't worry, I've got you." His voice was gentle, rough and harsh but gentle. The woman he found was surprisingly light without her armor. Despite her tremendous height and muscles she couldn't have weighed over 160 pounds. Did she eat well?
Lucius laid her down so that he could tend to her wounds. With a cynic's chuckle he began to speak. "I've seen worse. All the same you're lucky I'm hurt too. Otherwise You'd be receiving no bandages." He removed her bloodied coat to observe her wounds better and get closer to the actual wounds. "You got roughed up. Looks to be a dagger mostly."
He needed to remove her top but he didn't know what she wore beneath or how the woman would react. Fighting and killing, even patching himself up was easy but formalities were always a teeth grinding ordeal to him. With a gruff sigh he asked, "Mam, do you mind if I remove your top? I need to clean and bandage your wounds properly. If you do mind then I'll just wait until you've passed out from blood loss." He was forward and blunt but his intentions were pure.
To the outside world he was a kind and polite man, but to his inner demons they knew better. All the darkness within him. Just mention betrayal or manaketes and he would trigger into a dark place. He readied bandages as he awaited her answer.
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Post by Armitage Apolithymius on Aug 23, 2014 22:43:24 GMT -6
If there was one thing Armitage didn't have it was an aversion to getting undressed in front of being. Being in the militia could do that for you. There were plenty of times she was reminded, even without asking, that they weren't going to build a whole new barracks just for the girl to change in. Even though her eyes seemed to loll in her head a bit, she could hear the words the man was saying. She gave a halfhearted nod and reach a hand up to undo a couple buttons of her undercoat before losing her strength
She found herself with a strange lack of fear. Perhaps it was the blood loss or perhaps she truly did not care. From what she could tell of the man from her half closed eyes he looked quite rough; she still hadn't dismissed the idea that he was just the leader of the bandits lying in wake. He definitely looked the part! At the least he seemed partially interested in fixing her up so for that she was thankful. She opened her mouth to speak but seemed to forget what she was going to say. Maybe she was going to thank him for his kindness. Perhaps she was going to make a bad pun about careful fingers and his lack of all ten. Whichever, the thought left her mind before it was fully formed.
Her undergarments, for those that cared about those things, were mostly made of animal fur and skin. This presented a two part pleasure for Armitage; animal skin and fur was soft, easy to find, and easy to mend and wear. Living as a traveler she didn't always have time to get proper clothing. The other pleasure was that Armitage delighted in feeling like a bit of a warrior barbarian under her knightly armor. Perhaps a bit of a throwback to her earlier days and the idea that, if she would have picked up a blade about 6 years sooner than she did, she may have become a bandit. She always considered her morals to be a little grey.
Although she didn't have the strength to speak coherently, she lifted and hand and placed it on Lucius'. Her eyes opened a bit more and she met his. It was a kind of unspoken gratitude. A thank you. Not only that, but a show of trust. Although he looked gruff she could tell by his eyes he tried to be kind. And by his actions that he was going to be in this moment. His earlier comment about being lucky came back into her mind and she smiled a bit lazily. Definitions of what luck is in a particular moment could be a bit fickle. Armitage was happy to be lucky, regardless of whose definition it was under.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 23, 2014 23:32:52 GMT -6
Lucius saw in her eyes an odd look. She told him everything she wanted to say with it. It was almost startling. He hadn't seen a look like hers in a decade. He stopped his hands short of wrapping her arm as her hands touched his. They were not soft. They were rough and calloused but gentle, but maybe that was the weakness of dying doing that. Lucius took her hands and laid them on the ground. "Save all your energy you can."
Lucius poured whisky from a flask onto the wounds as he cleaned them. He knew it hurt but it was the best he could do to clean them. When it came time to wrapping the wounds in bandages however he would prove to be far less gentle. It was crude and rough some bandages were wrapped too tightly and others a bit too loosely. But he did the job all the same.
"You must sleep now, you can eat later," he ordered. She was likely unconscious now anyway but he felt it appropriate for the moment. "Guess you need it more," Lucius took his own coat off and laid it over the woman. Setting her clothes out to dry. His work finished he leaned back against the cave wall throwing a chunk of wood into the flames. He produced a pipe and his earlier map. A cave in indeed.
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Post by Armitage Apolithymius on Aug 24, 2014 1:57:14 GMT -6
As the man put the whiskey onto her wounds she winced. She knew it was necessary but it was hard not to be a bit shocked by the pain. She almost wished he had offered her some but she was in no position to make requests. As far as the wounds being dressed, she couldn't complain; Armitage had spent time in all manner of field hospital in her time and this man was far from the worst dressing she had received. She heard the man speak a bit as she finally drifted out of consciousness completely. It had been a long day. In retrospect she had spent a lot of the day walking, a good chunk of it fighting off attacks from either the wilderness or man, and the latter half of it arguing with crooked merchants. To be honest, she was now having a hard time remembering why she didn't spend the night in Armagh. Probably some old proverb about idle hands or other such nonsense.
Armitage's dreams were sporadic, broken. As her brain cataloged left over details of the last few days, she remembered all of her fights and struggles. The dreams she had, although appearing in quick bursts, were mostly pleasant. Time spent in a hot tub. Running through a field of wheat and picking wildflowers. Riding on a wyvern over the beautiful landscape of Laus. This was actually a dream that had a habit of recurring. She always loved wyverns. There was a sort of unattainable beauty about them. The dream started taking a turn though; she saw Laus burning. Her mind reeled with some of the memories that plagued her still. Comrades dying, familiar faces caught in fires, homes burning. It was a nightmare she could never shake as she couldn't help but feel partly responsible. No matter how hard she tried she couldn't not blame herself. Either for being too far away or not coming back sooner.
((Bit of a time skip? Sleep skip, hehe.))
She awoke with a start, letting out a sharp yelp and sitting up quickly. The yelp almost turned into a yell as her left side reminded her why she was asleep in a mysterious cave. As laid back down slowly, nursing her side, as she let her memories filter back in to her mind of the more recent events, she tried to let go the memories of Laus. Her eyes traced the cavern walls. Armitage snuggled into the coat that covered her. She knew it wasn't hers but it was comfortable at the moment. As was the heat from the fire. Her eyes continued along the cave wall until they caught the shape of the man from earlier. Well, he hadn't killed her in her sleep for her armor and any miscellaneous trinkets she had, so that's a plus. She tried to judge his intentions as a bit before speaking. Though his appearance was rough he didn't seemed to carry himself violently. She didn't have any broken ribs from the bandaging so he was at least as gentle as that.
"...Thank you. Hope I didn't interrupt anything. How long have I been asleep?" Armitage tried to joke a bit weakly. "My name is Armitage, by the way. What's yours?"
She let her voice carry over the cave. Was it still raining? She wasn't sure and didn't feel like taking the energy to look. Even though she could feel the heat from the fire, her limbs were still a bit cold. Most likely from the blood loss. Her mind momentarily drifted to the goods she left out in the rain. Assuming more bandits hand't come and looted her wares, she probably could salvage a bit of a profit from this trip and make it more than just a waste of time. She looked at her left shoulder and tried to gauge how back it was through the bandage. There was a bit of blood soaked through the bandage and even the thought of moving her arm hurt, so she stopped thinking about it. It had been awhile since she felt this vulnerable in front of another person. But, an even longer time since she let someone take advantage of her, so she didn't let the thought linger.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 24, 2014 22:17:21 GMT -6
Lucius was nodding off. He didn't sleep the entire night. He had self discipline, that much was certain. He watched her the whole night and changed her bandages roughly twice. When she spoke he jumped awake again out of his hazyness. "Ah, you still join the living." That was good.
"Hmm, Armitage, that is a unique name. Or at least one I have not heard before. But that does not truly matter. I am Lucius," He stood and tossed the last chunk of wood into the flames. "Luckily the storm has subsided. We can go if you feel up to it. I have friends with a ship in a town near here. It is likely they have yet to take to sea due to the storm." Lucius intended to get more supplies from them if possible and this woman would need a healers touch if she was to recover properly.
"I hope you have a fondness for scars. It is unlikely we will find a strong enough healer to avoid that." He grinned at her. "Oh yeah, you were out the whole damned night. I didn't get any rest." It was a joking tone but it sounded more like a complaint.
Lucius grabbed his axe and heaved it over his shoulder before looking it up and down. Nah she already has a spear. That will be a much better walking stick. He sighed. Why did he take care of her? He hadn't helped anyone without cause in a decade. Regardless he did and now she was his responsibility. "Oh, yes, you're welcome."
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Post by Armitage Apolithymius on Aug 24, 2014 22:45:57 GMT -6
"Lucius eh? It's a pleasure."
She was glad Lucius thought her name was unique. If there was something Armitage loved, it was being special. Although she supposed everyone loved that to some degree, she was never one to shy away from some limelight. She forced her weight upward and into a sitting position. The coat that was placed on her the night before slid onto the cave floor, revealing her form. Sitting up, she could now see the dim sunlight poking in through the cave and could here the faint "drip drip" of post-storm morning dew. That was definitely an experience she would not relive given the choice. She laughed opened as he mentioned scars.
"Scars? I'm sure you've noticed I already have them in spades. Seems like that's something we got in common, you and I. I just haven't lost anything that makes me looked like a grizzled bandit!"
Armitage quipped back at Lucius. She stood as she spoke and did a half turn as if to show off. Lean, sinewy, muscled, but not without her fair share of scars. There was an interesting story for about half of them. The other half were from when she was young, reckless, and a little too headstrong for her breeches. They didn't make her shy; as a matter of fact she was proud of each one. She was happy though that she had yet to get her face mangled. Not that she particularly cared for beauty, but she knew she had her mother's face almost to a tee. If she were to lose that she would be heartbroken.
She moved slowly over to her armor and hefted it back up and onto her body. Despite her injuries it was still the easiest way to carry it. She left the buckled over her left shoulder loose as to not agitated her injury more. Her left arm rested inside of her breastplate. With a huff she looked her armor over; new scratches and dings. Plus a few scuffs from when she tossed it off. There was a flair of agitation in her eyes as she scolded herself for being so careless. Having lost the matching set of her family armor, this was all that she had left and sometimes just could not believe how poorly she treated it.
Her attention was caught by the man's motion as he lifted his axe. Yep. Totally has to be a bandit leader. She laughed outwardly a bit as she made the association in her mind. She looked at Lucius with a very inquisitive look as she laughed, surely seeming a bit strange. Perhaps he had the visage of a leader of some sort in her mind. Or maybe she just thought that no one would get that beat up without something to show for it. Although normally not one to judge, she just couldn't shake the idea of "Bandit Captain Lucius." She laughed a bit more as she spoke.
"So what brought you out these parts? Surely you weren't lying in wait, hoping to save a damsel in distress." She joked some more, seeming surprisingly upbeat considering the previous night.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 24, 2014 23:07:29 GMT -6
As the coat slipped away revealing the woman's body Lucius turned his head away. It wasn't as though he was unused to the sight of a woman's body but he had a sense of decency. The woman however seemed completely unashamed. That level of confidence in herself was a good thing but it struck Lucius as something that made her extremely dangerous as well.
Lucius was used to comments about his look but they still irked him a bit. "I'll have you know I got these protecting a village over the course of several months. Or rather the eye and finger portion. I don't remember most of these anymore frankly." He chuckled deeply. Lucius thought a moment on the woman's condition and felt a need to offer his wisdom. "You are clearly a strong woman, well beyond many men without a doubt but... do not forget that you are also beautiful and neglect the fact you are a woman." That was certain to come across in an unintended way.
He grumbled under his breath trying to find better words. "I mean, gurumph, never mind." What he was looking for was trying to tell her not to waste her life away being a warrior. Let herself also be a lover, a mother, or anything more fulfilling. He knew what was at the end of this kind of road. Nothing but ache and sadness. He made that mistake and it cost him everything.
He heard her getting dressed and upon getting herself rearmed he turned back to her. "I was on a business trip. I run an arms trade. Or I did. Now I am stocking up for the time being." What was so funny? He gave her a mildly discontented look. Although it wasn't much different than his usual expression. "My horse and cart however were lost due to a sudden flash flood." Thanks to finding this cave he was able to avoid the dangers of the storm. Just as well it offered a chance to look over his maps. "I also found that this cave use to be much deeper and held stores of treasure, but due to a cave in and likely previous looting no one will be seeing a lick of it."
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Post by Armitage Apolithymius on Aug 25, 2014 0:34:49 GMT -6
Armitage's attitude softened a bit at the mention of defending a village. She pictured her own struggle in Laus and felt a bit of connection with Lucius in that. She felt the urge to say something, to apologize perhaps. Let him in on what she went through as well. Her mind went through a bit of an internal battle as she thought of what to say next. Normally her thoughts flowed smoothly but the idea of someone really being able to understand some of the things she went through in her life. It poked at something inside of her. She wasn't sure exactly what or where but it threw her off her emotional guard.
Then the next words came from Lucius' mouth. Armitage's head tilted to one side as the words came at her. Normally she would shrug something off like that almost as if it was an insult. Those were the kind of lines she had heard as poor men's even poorer attempts at flirting. But under their present circumstances she truly did not think that to be his intention. For some reason, this time, hearing the words seemed to strike a chord in her. She wondered if his previous comment taking her off her guard set this one up for the emotional impact it ended up having. She never pictured herself a homemaker. In her earlier life she very much enjoyed the company of men. And still dabbled in the company of others from time to time. She didn't know what to say. For a brief moment, Armitage considered breaking the emotional tension in the air with a fight. But she quickly realized how juvenile that would be. What she wouldn't give to lose about 15 years now though.
"I..." Her words got stuck in her throat. She was almost happy when Lucius brushed the topic off though. His words stuck in her mind, but she was happy to not address them head on. Physical and emotional trauma, so close together, do not a happy Armitage make. "Arms trade sounds mighty interesting. I've dabbled in some mercantile arts myself. I won't waste time wondering the irony of it, but I lost my goods to the rain too! Her mind drifted to her pack. She had gone down not very far from here and pondering tracking it down. "Actually...I think I can see my pack from here. I wonder if anything survived the night..."
Her thoughts trailed off as did she, toward her pack of goods. She didn't mean to walk away from Lucius so rudely; she meant to say she'd be happy to accompany him to his friends at the port. Maybe even just a bit till he could resupply and maybe she stopped being so stubborn and splurged for a horse. Her subconscious was exercising a bit more control over her than it normally did; her mind wanted to get away from that conversation. She did not want to address her "matron stage" nor did she want to consider that if she kept this lifestyle up she may miss the chance to live that altogether or, maybe worse, die before the realization really hit her. Her mind was aswirl with frivolous thoughts she wasn't used to. A bit more frustration welled up inside her as she tried to exercise more control over her mind.
"Oh Lucius!" Her words came out almost like she forget then remembered him. Or like her thinking mind broke through her subconscious. "I'd love to call on some of that chivalry you showed me last night and ask that you let me accompany you to wherever it is you're on your way to." She turned back toward Lucius, but still kept walking backward, toward where she thought her pack was. She figured she still had enough feminine wiles to keep Lucius' attention, even if he made her very aware of her age. "I'd just like to see if any of my things survived the storm before we'd head out!" She mused as she continued walking.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 25, 2014 1:00:37 GMT -6
The woman moved towards her pack as if in a trance. No, he could tell better than that, he struck a cord. He felt it was a good thing for her regardless of what she'd do next. Lucius watched her hobbling down the hill. Even if she makes it to her things she'd have one hell of a time picking it up he thought. He began to follow after her.
"I doubt much if anything in your pack is good anymore. Perhaps maybe something in jars but that would be about it." He had already caught up to her but he stayed a fair ten feet away.
"I'd love to call on some of that chivalry you showed me last night and ask that you let me accompany you to wherever it is you're on your way to," the woman declared.
"Chivalry is for knights. From me it is only an act of kindness." He came across gruff and rude. He never could have been a knight, fighting for faceless lords doing their dirty work without knowing why, and yet he'd have to adore them and stay in country or risk being a deserter. Sure much of it matched the life he had led but at least he could travel freely and make his own decisions.
With a huff Lucius could take no more and outpaced the woman. "You are too injured to force yourself to climb uphill more than you already have to." He stooped down and grabbed her pack. Deciding not to open it he held it out to her. "Here!"
He looked her up and down again taking for the first time a good look at her. Her armor was well kept but the scars of battle could not be masked. Due to an experienced eye he could tell despite it's simple design it was very well crafted. "That is a fine suit you wear. I see it has also served you well."
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Post by Armitage Apolithymius on Aug 25, 2014 2:04:31 GMT -6
As Lucius tried to dissuade Armitage from going to her pack she largely ignored him. She knew it was probably all worthless; it was a matter of principle at this point. She had traveled so far and had put blood and sweat into this venture. No way was she heading back toward Lycia empty handed. She continued to hobble up the hill. She was moving quite well despite her condition. Armitage had forgone using her lance as a crutch. For one, a lance was a lance--not something to hold up the weak and lame. She wanted to push through, persevere, and not admit it was as difficult to walk as it truly was. The didn't call her Armitage The Enduring because she was a really pushy salesperson.
Lucius seemed to dislike being associated with knights. She laughed lightly again. Totally a bandit king. As Lucius pushed passed her to retrieve her things, she felt flattered. Sure, he was brash, impatient and perhaps a bit rude seeming, but honestly no different than any other man in that regard. Armitage has had no shortage of experiences with the weird way men show signs of what you'd consider "caring" or "sympathy." They huffed, evaded eye contact, and did everything short of outright saying 'N-not like I c-cared anyway!" Armitage truly tried to avoid making sweeping generalizations about people, especially a whole gender (ESPECIALLY if you consider the experience she has had with this), but she'd consider most men as tsundere as they came. If she even knew the meaning of the word.
"Thank you Lucius."
She said sweetly, sincerely. A twinge of manipulation in her voice, peppered with pieces of honest sentiment. Armitage herself refrained from looking in the pack also. She had convinced herself it was all tarnished, broken, or washed away completely, but she'd save herself the truth for later. When she could pout and toss the bag across the room without looking ridiculous. She slung the pack up and around her right arm. She could tell it was lighter than last night. You would think that would upset here but right now she was happy for the small reprieve. The less to carry the better. She smiled at Lucius. He really was starting to seem like a big softy. She had met other bandit leaders that were soft for a pair of sweet, bright eyes. Something about Lucius was different than those other bandits though; there was an aftertaste of regret in his kindness. Either from not using it often enough or not using it when it was most needed. It was like watching an athlete use the muscles they used in their heyday, but haven't made work of in years.
"This is the grand armor of the great family Apolithymius! My great grandmother used this armor and it has been in my family since long before her and will continue to be used by my heirs..." A whirlwind of emotions fluttered inside Armitage. First a swelling of pride as Lucius pointed out her armor and she gushed of its lineage. Then that sore chord in the pit of her spine was plucked as the word heir slipped off of her tongue. She almost slipped into a somber mood. It was the first time the thought of her armor brought small twinges of uncertainty with it. She always took the heirloom armor as a sign of where her family should be. But even her grandmother stopped fighting at some point she supposed...In that moment of uncertainty she remembered the male set of heirloom armor that matched her own. A second chord played in unison of the first, both strumming a song of regret deep inside of her.
"I just hope I can find the rest of it..."
Armitage spoke low. Honestly, she hadn't even realized she had spoken out loud. She always tried her best not to bring those old emotions backs up. She always kept an eye out for the armor but had yet to actively set out in search of it. Doing that would mean coming to terms with, and admitting that she had lost it in the first place. You could say Armitage was still in that 'denial' stage of loss. Which always perplexed her; she easily dealt with and moved passed the loss of her parents. Why was this so hard to confront for her?
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Aug 28, 2014 16:29:16 GMT -6
Lucius smirked as the woman's pride swelled inside. It was like watching a small child brag about their favorite toy. It was humorous in a way but also, touching? But the woman wanted the matching set back. It seemed a strong motivator for her journeying. Lucius had a serious question to ask her.
"What would you do to get this armor? What would you give up or sacrifice? Who would you sacrifice for this goal?" Lucius was asking this woman but in truth it was his own heart condemning himself as well. This woman was a bit of trouble.
He poked his eye scratching it. First that damnable Orys and now her. These people he's been meeting have gotten his resolve shaken so easily. He sighed.
Oooc- really sorry for the long wait.
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Post by Armitage Apolithymius on Aug 28, 2014 20:14:12 GMT -6
((No worries! Apologies if I was hard to respond to.))
"I would give up anything!" Armitage answered quickly. "It just means the world to me. It is truly the only family I have left."
Her answer was true, honest. And in that moment, Armitage decided this whole thing was getting a bit too heavy for her. She had no plans of revealing how much that armor meant to her, especially to someone she was meeting for the first time. This whole day and the night before it went by all too quickly. She shook her head, shaking the puzzle pieces of the actions that led her to this moment back into place in her mind. Shifting the back on her mind, Armitage looked at Lucius a bit awkwardly.
"Thank you for taking care of me last night. I'm not used to needing that, but it was nice. You know, now that I'm back on my feet, I should be able to make it back to Armagh on my own. You've helped me enough already"
It was almost like Armitage suddenly realized what a burden she had been to a complete stranger. He had shown to be mildly annoyed by some of her actions, perhaps she had worn out her welcome. So, she decided to give him an out. She knew she didn't need an escort to the nearest town, assuming she could be given an idea of what direction to go. Armitage wasn't one to be easily offended; if he left she would not be hurt.
"I definitely owe you a favor though. Be sure to let me know if you ever need someone who knows their way around a lance."
Armitage's voice kind of trailed off as she spoke. She wasn't sure what to do next. Was he leaving, should she leave? Who says goodbye first? What if they say goodbye and then both start walking the same direction?! That is always truly the worst. Armitage shuffled her feet again as she awaited some sort of response from Lucius.
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