Trust [Gar/ Aeos Support A]

[Gar]

I don’t trust him. Gar grunted at his glowing weapon’s voice. He placed a hand on the metal armband that symbolized their bond. You don’t know him like I do. Ropes held an unconscious Aeos tied to a thick tree trunk. Gar warmed his body by a campfire. The pirate himself was skeptical after finding his Nabatan friend unconscious in a crater of destruction. We can’t even be certain that he isn’t corrupted. Gar had to agree with Junzentaru on that point. After all, the last words Aeos said to him were that he should keep away. He claimed to be dangerous! There won’t be an easier time to eradicate this threat. Gar shook his head and stood.

“We should at least give him a chance.” He approached Aeos and squatted down, placing his forearms on his knees. The pirate titled his head as he examined the nomad. Perhaps he could find something in Aeos’ motionlessness. There was nothing. No indication one way or the other on how Gar should act. Should he release his friend? Or would the world be better off if he just finished the man off here and now?

The pirate grunted again as he straightened his body out. He took a few steps away and kicked the log he was once sitting on. He exhaled through his nostrils, the air was hot enough to turn white in the cool, mountainous, Lycian air. He watched the white air fade in front of his face. I’m not certain about the guy’s past. I never have been. But as far as I’m concerned he’s done right by me and I intend to do right by him.

You’re allowing your emotions to cloud your judgement. Your friend here is a potential threat. One that could wipe out entire towns on a whim. If you did not know him personally you would have no hesitation in eradicating a threat of that caliber. Gar was forced into agreement once again. He looked at Aeos’ face once more.

But I do know him.

[Aeos]

The young dragon mind was lost in a sea of darkness unsure of where to go or what to do. He could hear voices, but they were muddled. As if someone tried to talk to him from underwater. He was lost in that unknown darkness of unconsciousness for hours. And then he felt something. Something that bound his limbs and prevented him from moving. The voice of his stone was the first distinct voice to speak to him. Hey. Someone from outside the darkness was touching his face. Slowly, sensations started to come back to him. He felt cold. That wasn't a good sign. He must have died somehow. No, that wasn't true. He could feel the beating of his heart. It was an ever increasing series of lub and dubs. At leas he hoped that was his heart. And not some cruel thing of the afterlife coming for his soul. Easy. Take it easy. Breathe.. relax. What do you smell?

There was steady breathing through his nose. He could smell trees, wood, and smoke. He didn't smell the corpses of the dead. He could smell a human. A familiar human and metal. Oh, so he died and took Gar with him. We aren't dead dummy. Just keep breathing. Now open our eyes. The body found opening eyes something incredibly difficult to do. His whole body felt numb and weak. As if he spent the day swimming out at sea with no rest. He wanted to sleep more. His stone knew best and eventually the body did as it was told. It was difficult to bring himself out of the darkness and into the light. His eyelids fought the notion of moving. They were droopy and heavy. He forced then to open slightly. The light of a nearby campfire greeted his blurred vision. He closed his eyes and opened them again. A little wider this time. He could make out the whitish bark of a dead tree. Again his eyes open and shut. This time they opened all the way. His eyes were pink from exhaustion. He blinked a bit to chase away the blurs of vision and the world became clear. The forest?

He noticed the figure in front of him. He tried to say his name but his throat refused to make syllables. Gar's name came out like some sort of raspy groan. Sore and dry from the air blasts he did. Although he presently had no memory of said air blasts.

"Wh-hat.. ha-happened?" He managed to choke out in a horse voice.

[Gar]

Gar heard how dry and hoarse Aeos' voice was. In response he grabbed a water skin and held it up to the man's lips. Once he felt that Aeos was ready to drink, he inverted the skin and allowed water to run into his captive's mouth. He pulled the water skin away and began to explain the situation to Aeos. "I would like to know the same thing. We were in the middle of a desecrated village when you began to claim you were dangerous and told me to stay away. By the time I found you again, you were in the center of a crater. It was as if you withstood an explosion or something." Gar sighed at the sight of keeping his friend tied up. He didn't feel good about keeping his friend captive, especially due to recent events in the pirate's life. Junzentaru picked up on Gar's sympathy and wasn't particularly happy about it.

Don't tell me you're considering releasing him. Not only did you pass on our best chance to end this threat, you are thinking of making our position worse? I understand that he's your friend, but we need to be smart about this, assuming you're capable of that. Gar drew the winged axe and shoved it into the dirt. He didn't appreciate the jab, but Junzentaru got the point across. For now, Gar was going to see how far he could get by playing the nice guy. If he wasn't satisfied he would begin a more serious interrogation.

"Look, I'm relieved that you're okay, but you have to talk to me. To start with, why did you say you were dangerous? How so?" Gar had many questions to ask the mysterious Nabatan man, and he thought it was past time to have some of them answered.

[Aeos]

Gar grabbed his water canteen and held it up for him to drink. He drank what he could of the water, though a majority of it dribbled down his chin, and fell to the floor. The water was cool and refreshing. He was dehydrated. The fighting and the transformation took a toll on his body in more ways then one. He was going to need several days of sleep and food before he was fully recovered.

"Thank you." His voice seemed to sound a bit better. But, his throat was still red and sore. The water was a temporary relief. He let out a deep sigh. A spray of misty frosty breath exhaled out of his mouth. He looked at Gar. The pirate explained that he had found Aeos in the center of a crater. The dragon man then turned to look down at the floor. His face had an expression of somberness to it. He closed his eyes and imagined the village. Yes. He remembered now. The horde of undead. The fighting. The transformation. He remembered that he couldn't fly. He glanced at Gar again then at the axe. The holy glowing axe. He had a sneaking suspicion that the axe had a few choice words for him.

"I.. see. So.. you found me.. in the crater." He frowned lightly.

"...Before.. I can explain.. anything. I have to know.. a few things. Was anyone hurt? Are you ok?" His sore voice and expression showed that he had some concern. What did you see? The dragon silently wondered. His stone spoke to him in his mind. We must tread lightly. I do not think we have enough energy to transform again and escape. There is enough in us.. to cut the ropes. After that.. you will have to run.

[Gar]

It was clear that Aeos was uncomfortable, so Gar didn't want to push too hard for information. That said, he didnt enjoy having his question dodged. Gar relented and answered Aeos to the best of his ability. "I'm fine. And as far as I know no one got hurt." Gar hadn't seen the carriage driver or the archer woman since their first encounter in the village, he briefly scanned the rubble of the town while he was exiting, but he saw no signs of life. Well, no signs of natural life. Gar looked upon Aeos' face which was being lit from both sides. One side by the campfire and on the other side by the pulsating light of his axe.

Although he could not hear Junzentaru directly, Gar could almost feel what the weapon would want to say. He's stalling. He's looking for a way out. Do not give him one. It was borderline annoying to have the weapon's voice cloud his thoughts even when they weren't in contact. The pirate sighed and asked his questions again in a somewhat stricter tone.

" You were dangerous. How so?" Something made the Nabatan a threat, a very powerful one. Gar wasn't going to stop until he knew what did that.But what if he doesn't answer me? Aside from a few empty threats there wouldn't be much Gar could do about finding the truth. He looked briefly toward the weapon he had embedded in the ground. Gar reassured himself that it wouldn't come to that. Aeos just had to explain his side of the events that took place.

[Aeos]

“Oh thank the heavens.” He muttered in a hurried and relieved breath. Aeos was relieved to hear that he hadn’t hurt anyone. That his dragon form hadn’t caused the death or injury of any humans.

“I am glad you are ok.” He took a few breaths. He needed to regain his composure. Gar had put his axe down. Aeos glanced at it once more. He was nervous about it. The light it gave off felt cold. Which was strange for light. He knew light to be something that was warm. Like the sun’s rays or a campfire. But, this one was cold and felt devoid of something. Something that made light.. Feel like light. It was strange. He knew that in this state he wouldn’t survive a hit from it. He turned to look at Gar once more. He needed to trust him. To trust that he wouldn’t plow the axe through his skull. Trust that Gar wouldn’t become the hero of men and kill a dragon like humans did in fables.

“Yes. I am dangerous. Well.. I was.” He stopped and looked at the floor. There was a feeling deep in his gut. Like he had been punched in the stomach by some sort of invisible hand.

“How? That.. requires a more lengthy explanation.” The voice of his stone was silent. He could feel what little power he had left coursing through him. It was preparing him for the escape, if the need arose.

“Gar.” He bit his lower lip.

“What will explain.. Is.. not an easy subject. I’ve.. spent my life trying to hide it from people. The few times people found out.. People.. Became afraid. They.. try to kill me.” He remembered being chased out of a village once as a child. Because, he half shifted his hand to peel a fruit in a place he thought he was alone in. He was chased out of town for that one. His parents were right behind him.

“I don’t.. want anyone to die.” The sudden thought of being forced to kill Gar, sent a shiver down his spine. He didn’t want to do it. But if things got truly desperate he might not have a choice. Gar knew too much about him. He could spread his name among other humans. He shimmied his shoulders a bit. The ropes were wrapped around him tightly. He could barely move. He couldn’t even stand.

“I am a sitting duck. I have no choice but to trust you and I pray you still trust me.” He chest felt tight. As if he was ready to cry or scream or both.

"Gar you've become wise to the world in your travels. You've seen things that were once myth. Monsters, spirits, taguel. Things that seem to have a home only in the imaginations of men. What.. if I told you.. I am one of those things? A thing of myth... Something.. not human."

[Gar]

Gar began pacing back and forth while Aeos spoke. He was attempting to make sense of the things he was being told. He was trying to reconcile what he knew to be true about Aeos with these new developments.He has to be messing with me. The pirate shook his head, this clearly wasn't a time to be fooling around. “You’re claiming to be a monster? Well, what are you saying? That you’re a myth, not real?” Gar’s mind returned to their adventures in Vinland with the Taguel and the monster wolves. Then he thought of the spirit tomb in Nabata. They were both dangerous adventures but the duo was able to work together to survive. They had built up an amount of comradery, but that was with Aeos, not with this possibly corrupted version.

Gar had stopped pacing and he placed his hand on the hilt of his weapon. There is nothing left to discuss. Our assumptions have been confirmed. I apologize for this but we have to kill him. Gar shook his head. “It’s not that simple, June.” Gar hardly noticed he responded aloud as opposed to in thought. Either way he returned his attention to Aeos. You’re overcomplicating it. Your friendship is being a detriment to… The pirate removed his hand from Junzentaru, cutting off their comunication. He considered his options. He still didn’t have all the information.

“Something not human huh? What exactly are you?” What he did next depended heavily on this answer. He wanted to believe Aeos wasn’t a threat, that he could still be trusted. Perhaps he could be saved from what he had become, maybe a bishop or a cleric could cure him. Or maybe that wasn’t the case and he would have to kill his friend. But Gar was getting ahead of himself.

[Aeos]

“I never said I was a monster. The fact you instantly assumed I was.. that kinda hurts.” He frowned. He was hurt not physically but emotionally.

“Never said I wasn't real either. It's just that my kind are thought to be myth. Creatures from an era long forgotten. I'm as real as you are. Flesh. Blood. Bone. Gar nothing has changed about me. I'm still Aeos. Your Friend.” He sighed softly.

I've just been forced to hide certain details about myself for safety reasons. What happened in the village.. I was afraid. Frustrated! I panicked! I just wanted those damned skeletons dead! They were everywhere! And.. I-I went full power.. and.. overdid it.” He looked like he was on the verge of tears.

“You are pacing. That means that you're uncomfortable about this. I'm sorry, so sorry.” He gritted his teeth. Gar's outburst to this "June" told him that the axe was talking to him. Aeos knew a thing or two about spirits. He knew how chatty they could be.

“Is thy axe.. calling me something bad? He tried to focus on the spirits of the wind. Slowly, they helped to revive a small portion of his energy. It wasn't much but it helped to ease his exhaustion. Aeos couldn't hear the spirit of Gar's axe. He only assumed through Gar's frustration that the axe was saying something wrong.

"You haven't even heard what I am yet and you are already making assumptions. Rude!” He gave the holy axe a glare. Aeos tried to shimmy his way up the tree so as to give him kicking room. He failed and ended up falling back on his butt. His feet were just out of reach of the axe. He managed to move his hand up closer to the ropes in his shimmy though. He could cut through them with a clawed hand and be free.

“Ooh! Thou be an over inflated wood hatchet! You are lucky I cannot reach!” He yelled at it. Great I'm sounding like myself.. and we were doing so well to kick the habit too. He took several deep breaths. He needed to be calm.

“Gar. Do ye remember our conversation at the docks? Of the Scouring.. remember how.. upset I got..” He paused, Aeos was still upset. We have enough for a thirty percent change. More than enough to flee now.. Aeos shook his head. If you can stall us for another ten minutes.. we could transform and fly away. Won't get too far though but we could fly up the mountain and gain some much needed distance.

"It might seem like utter madness.. Gar. I'm a dragon. Not one from the Scouring mind you. I was born way-way after that." He stopped talking for a moment. Just to give Gar some time to process what he just said.

[Gar]

All at once, it dawned on him. Gar felt a wash of feelings consume him. He had been a fool so many times and for so many reasons. Too many to count. Just thinking back to the things he had said about dragons and myths, it pained him. He was full of regret. But it made sense now. Aeos’ strength when he pushed him out of the spirit tomb. How he survived the collapse. The reaction at the docks. Even his ability to fight so vigorously while unarmed.

Gar placed a hand over his face, covering his eyes. Here he was, interrogating the man who was his best friend in the world. He was legitimately considering fighting him to the death. It wasn’t right. He fought the frog in his throat and managed to speak. “Aeos, I… I don’t know what to say. I’ve been a terrible friend.” Gar moved around to the back side of the tree and untied the knot that held the ropes taught. He moved and picked the axe out of the ground. He placed it into the sash on his waist. Gar expected to be lectured by the weapon, but nothing came. The divine axe that prided itself on enlightenment was speechless. Its glow diminished and fell silent as if it was giving the pirate time to process. This was appreciated, Gar knew he would be able to speak to with Junzentaru another time.

Gar looked at Aeos. He wouldn’t be surprised if the Nabatan wished to knock him out and take off. Gar wouldn’t even retaliate. He was clearly in the wrong. “Look, I’m sorry. This is my fault, it shouldn’t have come to this.” He immediately understood why Aeos needed to keep this fact a secret. A living dragon. Slavers and traders could make a fortune. The thought sent a chill down Gar’s spine. He had once been a slave and he would not want that to happen to his worst enemy, let alone Aeos. Not to mention the would be Durban’s of the world. Another chilling thought. The time of The Scouring had long passed and the pirate certainly wasn’t a hero.

Gar ran his thumb against the metal armband that Aeos had once given him. That's right, Aeos’ parents made this. I guess they would also have to be… Dragons. the word sounded funny in his thoughts. It was as if it's meaning had been legitimized. Dragons. Real dragons. Living dragons.  Gar didn’t know what Aeos was thinking at this point, but he wanted to make one thing quite clear. “For what it’s worth, your secret is safe with me.”

[Aeos]

Aeos was expecting Gar to reach for his axe and cleave his head right off his shoulders. He was also expecting the common reaction of disbelief. He braced himself for the worst of the two options. His hand had changed into a claw. Ready to cut the rope. Ready to move. Ready to escape. He was not going to die here. But, Gar didn’t attack him. Instead he seemed to feel regret at his actions. The sailor went as far as to call himself a terrible friend. Aeos mentally agreed. Friends wouldn’t interrogate friends like this. But, he’d forgive Gar. Aeos understood how he must have felt. He understood the need for answers for things that cannot be explained. The Nabatan man had not expected the holy axe to dim and grow dark. Perhaps it was feeling regret or maybe shame? Aeos couldn’t tell.

Gar released Aeos from his fibrous prison. Aeos’ butt slumped to the ground at the sudden release of rope. He had not realized how tight they were and how much they had supported his weight. His hitting of the ground sent a wave of feeling up his spine. Mostly pain and an odd sense of numbness. Aeos gradually lifted himself back up. He gripped the tree and eventually shimmied himself upwards until he could stand. His legs were a little numb too. They felt as if they were being assaulted by pins and needles. He leaned on the tree until his legs decided to rejoin the rest of his body. He didn't realize the numbness during his outburst against June.

“Gar. Thank You.” His gratitude was sincere. His voice was somewhat marred by his own sadness and relief.

“Truly. Thank you. To know that you. will keep my secret safe. That... means the world to me. It means the world to my folks. To our hopes and dreams of peaceful coexistence with humanity.” He smiled weakly. He then leaned forward and managed to stand on his own two legs. He lifted his arms up and flailed a bit to keep his balance. His body was still weakened from before. Eventually, he forced himself to take a step.

“Ooh.. Jelly legs.. come on..” He muttered to himself. He took another step. His goal was to get closer to the campfire. Towards the warmth.

“I.. do not blame you. To be honest.. I would have done the same if I was in thy position. Unless I knew you to be another dragon.. Then I’d be shocked.. then probably excited.” He was feeling better. As he approached the fire he noticed his bag. Oscar’s shiny bald head was gently flickering in the camp light. He went and grabbed it.

“Nice to see my belongings survived the journey. Poor Oscar probably had no idea what happened either.” He went ahead and gave the shiny metal man an affectionate rub on the head. The idol was the closest thing he had to a toy. Something he cherished like a child does a doll or favorite book. From his bag he pulled out a small blue flask.

He pulled the cork out and took a sip of it’s contents. The liquid in it was nothing more then a few mouthfuls. He drank one mouthful and then re-corked the flask and put it back. The apothecary called the liquid in the flask an elixir. And supposedly it could cure whatever ailed you. Aeos mixed in some fruit nectar prior in order to help improve the taste, and to make the contents last a bit longer. He let out a sigh from his mouth. A white and blue speckled mist manifested itself as he breathed out. The elixir was needed. He could feel the soreness in his body dull a bit. The fruit nectar helped to replenish his energy.

“You.. probably have some more questions for me. Well.. Where shall we start?”

[Gar]

Aeos didn’t strike Gar, nor did he flee. He simply thanked him and moved closer to the fire. The Nabatan made a remark about Gar possibly being a dragon as well which he had to reluctantly smirk at. Aeos proceeded to reach in to his bag. He pulled out a figurine of a knight. Gar recognized it immediately. Oscar. I hope he didn’t see all that. The sight sent another wave of regret crashing upon him. The newly revealed dragon drank from an elixir, Gar could tell from the color of the liquid. Typically, elixirs were potent enough to fully recover any wounds but Gar figured he would help as well. It was the least he could do after, all this.

Gar placed a palm on Aeos’ shoulder. He closed his eyes and focused an amount of spiritual energy into his arm and passed it toward Aeos. The energy drained from his body leaving him in a bit of a dazed state. Luckily the elixir accounted for most of the damage that Aeos sustained. For that reason, Gar’s energy wasn’t entirely drained. His body had gotten more accustomed to using the Sacrifice skill. That said, Gar was still somewhat fatigued by the act. He took a seat by the fire.

Of course Gar had questions. Who wouldn’t after learning they were friends with a dragon. But Gar had to be careful, he didn’t want to offend like he had at the docks. He also didn’t want to push too hard like he had mere moment before. “So you’re like a young dragon who hasn’t grown wings or scales yet?” As soon as the words came from his mouth he realized how stupid that question was. Dragons don’t have wings. They fly by kicking the air. Or was that wyverns? It was Pegasi. Gar had learned this once from a sage, but that was a long time ago and Gar isn’t one for correctly retaining such information.

This feeling was strange. Gar was remorseful for how he acted but he was relieved. Aeos was only a dragon, not some corrupted dark magic that he would have to find a way to exorcise. Nope. Just a dragon, so now things could return to normal. Well as normal as it got for the two adventurers. Why is it, whenever I’m around Aeos, a new myth comes to life? Monster wolves, shapeshifters, spirits, zombies, dragons. That’s some track record.

[Aeos]

“Young.. be a matter of perspective my good man. I'm about five hundred years old.. give or take fifty years. To humans, I'm a walking fossil. To other dragons.. I'm in that awkward teenage phase.” He grabbed Gar’s hand and put it on his chin.

“See not even old enough for stubble.” He joked and gently pulled Gar’s hand away. To be honest He wasn't even sure if dragons could grow beards. He handed him the rest of the elixir. He knew Gar had done something to himself to feel fatigued.

“Actually, it might be awkward early adult.. I don't really know. Supposedly, my kin reach maturity at a thousand... I think. But, that too be a matter of perspective. Each dragon is unique when it comes to physiology.. growth.. it's kinda like humans. No human be the same to the other. No human grows up exactly the same as the other. Even twins living together can have differences and variations.” He put Oscar back in his sack.

“My parents told me stories oft Pre-Scouring Dragons who were millennials but still looked like children." He shrugged.

“The world was a whole lot different then. Maybe dragons were a bit different too? Who knows? The war and ending winter wiped out what knowledge we had.” Aeos set his bag back down. And then he sat back down next to Gar. His body protested. It had spent gods knows how many hours knocked unconscious and tied to the tree. He was still sore all over. The elixir would help to mitigate that in time. He did his best to make himself comfortable. He stared into the fire for a bit. He lifted his hands up towards it and let his fingers warm up. The warmth would crawl up his hands, through his arms, and gently warm the rest of his body.

“Dragons have the ability to change between human and dragon form. We also have a middle form called half shift.” He showed Gar his hand. He concentrated his power into it and it morphed into a clawed form. One that had three fingers, sharp talons, and lots of golden-ish colored scales. The scales shimmered a a brilliant flash of orange the light of the fire.

“A full change.. takes a lot of energy. I only.. full shift in emergencies. I can't be walking around Elibe with wings and scales.. for obvious reasons. So we've adapted.. ways to partially shift our bodies to help with the day to day things. Go on give it a feel.” He held up his hand to Gar.

“I promise I won't claw you.”

[Gar]

Gar was learning quite a lot. Dragons existed in multiple states. Full dragon, half dragon and full human. Hmm, In that case, how could I tell if any regular looking person was secretly a dragon? At least the Taguel had ears and fur that gave them away. Aeos was still too young to grow facial hair, for that Gar laughed. The ability to grow a beard was always a sign of manliness at sea. That said, Aeos was about 477 years older than Gar. Oddly enough, that should make him around the same age as June. 

Before he knew it a scaly hand extended itself in his direction. Gar was hesitant but the hand was still connected to his friend. It’s still him. Nothings different. Gar reached out his hand and gripped the clawed hand. It was a firm grasp. His fingers wrapped the claws of Aeos’ hand. It was an interesting sensation to say the least.

Gar smiled and withdrew his hand. The heavier emotions had managed to subside for now. Junzentaru took the chance to speak. Inform him that I apologize. I was unaware of what he was. It was our fault. Gar tilted his head toward the axe that had begun glowing once more. It was dim, barely noticeable in the light of the campfire. Care to explain? June continued. Weapons like me rid this world of his kind and for that, I am sorry. But you must understand my, our, position. I have a duty to protect this world from danger and corruption. We are just, righteous and… Gar placed his hand on the head of his axe. That’s enough for now.

“June wants to apologize, Darn thing just wanted to keep me safe. Hahar.” Junzentaru responded quickly. I didn’t say that. 
Yeah but I knew what you meant. And I don’t really want to bring up the scouring right now. And I still have a ways to go before I get back on his good side.

Fair enough, but in the future please refrain from paraphrasing.Gar looked at Aeos to see how he responded to his weapon's apology.

[Aeos]

Aeos managed to make Gar laugh. He left out a lightly relieved breath. Despite everything that happened part of his was still worried that he had lost Gar's trust for ever. Humans were strange creatures who had the ability to lie, cheat, and deceive. He shook his head softly. No. He knew Gar wasn't like that. His whole journey away from home had shown him not all humans were bad. Not that he had much problem with them to begin with. His parents were very cautious with his upbringing. But, Gar was still Gar. Just like Euphemious was still Gregory. And Bee was still Bee.

Aeos undid the magic that made his hand into a claw. The scales slowly smoothed out and became skin. And his fingers slowly shrank back into a standard human size. The three fingers of the claw morphed back into regular fingers. Aeos separated his fingers and moved them individually once again. And we are back to normal. The claw was more normal. The other half of him argued. He raised his hand to his face and rubbed his closed eyes. He was silently rolling his eyes at the thoughts of his stone. This was not the time for a debate for what felt right between them. Right now it should just be happy that they are both alive. Gar made a comment about June. Aeos had almost forgotten about the axe entirely. His emotions were swept up else where.

"Oh? Your axe.. well so long as it has learned a lesson on not instantly assuming the worst in people.. I forgive it. I'm.. glad it's not in my skull.. or in any other part oft my body cavity. And I understand.. wanting to protect people you care about. Hang on a where did you even get that thing anyway?"

[Gar]

Gar smiled and tapped his palm against the flat of his axe. “Ahh. June here. It’s somewhat of a long story but June rescued me from a dark time in my life.” Quite literally as it was. Gar had been enslaved as a mine worker in the western isles. Hose mine shafts weren’t particularly well lit, but Gar still remembered them vividly. Gar’s mood took on a more somber tone. “It’s been a while since we last saw each other Aeos…” Gar turned his head toward the fire as he considered how he should reveal his recent trials.

“I was on a ship. We got attacked by dark mages that could drop black magic from the sky. Remember that ballista on Emil’s ship. It was like that but there had to be dozens of them.” Gar shook his head and gritted his teeth thinking back to how powerless he was there. “We got obliterated. The deck splintered beneath my feet and I jumped ship. I’m not sure how long I was in the drink for. Some amount of days.” Gar turned his head from the fire to the sky. Chapped lips, thirsty, disoriented. He didn’t enjoy thinking back, but it was somewhat therapeutic to speak about it.

“Anyway, I got saved. Or so I thought. I was picked up by slavers and got sold to a man with a bullring in his nose.” Gar shifted and lifted his shift revealing the branded skin that declared he was the property of another. Gar furrowed his brow and Junzentaru illuminated intensely. He lowered the shirt and made a claim. “I will kill that man. Three months, I was working in the mines, beaten, starved, taunted and all I could do was count the days. That is until I found Junzentaru in a collapsed mineshaft.” Gar took a breath before he continued on to the resolution of his story.

“Aye with Junzentaru here, we led an uprising of sorts. I escaped and well, I guess I’ve been travelling around the continent on foot since then.” Gar wasn’t proud of that. If someone read into that they would see that Gar was avoiding the sea that he loved so much. Gar laughed a bit. “That’s the story Hahar. Sorry if I bored you.” He had omitted some of the people he had met but the gist of the story remained intact.