Arriving to Laus (Open)

[Sarah]

Sarah had been traveling the land of Elibe for a whole year now and decided it was best to take a short break from all the adventuring that she has had lately and was now riding with a group of people who had their own reasons for heading into the city in Laus. While she was riding into the city she remembered about the talks of monsters and other foul things that came from the lands of Ostia and Sarah was interested about learing of these monsters but for her, that would have to be another time as she needed to reach the city first and stock up on food and water she needed for her journey through Lycia. Sarah simply sighed as she looks up at the sky then back down to her book and staff.

"Well first things first, I need to get to the city and get me the supplies I need for my new journey and if I can, find someone I can stick around with, having someone to hangout with would be nice."

As Sarah was quietly talking to herself, she soon realized that she was about to arrive at her stop in the city, full of energy Sarah quickly got her staff and bag and off the carriage that she was riding and ran as fast as she could into the city, as this was her first time coming to this city, Sarah decided she wanted to walk around the city first before getting the supplies for her next trip.

"So this is Laus huh? Well I guess I can't waste too much time, I can take a tour of the city after I'm done with my business here."

[Wei]

"No, I am not from Bern", spoke Wei with annoyance as he spoke to one of the gate guards. This was not the first time someone had asked the young journemyan that question and he was now sure that it would not be the last. For some reason everyone and there grandmother thought that somebody carrying a two headed axe was from Bern, either that or his crimson hair. The axe he understood as he bought the brave weapon from a bern merchant. His hair not so much. Crimson hair was a staple of Lycia, but some how in the last few years it has been associated with both sacae and Bern. Probably the work of a few famous idiots.

"Very well you may enter", spoke the guard as he let Wei in. The young journeyman picked up his potato sack bag and walked into the gates. He had come back to Lycia in hopes of sharpening his skills as a warrior. In Sacae he had ran into a swordsmen who had taught him a valuable lesion. All saceans are dogs and need to be put down. Well not all saceans. The women were alright and a few of the old guys. However Wei held a strong grudge against the young men. One of those dirt bags had cut him up real good and the others simply sat back and watched. What kind of culture just let you dump a guy in a dual with no real way to get out of it. If he never returned to sacae again Wei would die with regret. He had a score to settle with that tinza whatever his name was. He would pay that guy back one day. That he swore on his new double headed axe.

"Alright I first need to find a place to sleep. Then a place to eat, and finally information about monsters in the area", spoke Wei to himself making a mental list of things to do. If he was ever going to get some pay back he was going to need to beef up. The only way to do that was thought sweat and blood. Fighting was the best course and monsters provided a guilt free target. Still thought Wei remembered all the stories he heard about them. They were not going to be easy prey. Wei was going to need to be careful. Maybe one zombie or a single dog.

[Giles Brand]

"Laus." Giles grumbled to himself. "After all the things I've done for this city, I should be celebrated as a hero upon my return." The great knight had once served the Marquess of Laus as a royal knight, before he was asked to step down. Needless to say, the man was still quite bitter about it. He wasn't happy to be here, but they say there is no place like home and a person can't choose where they are born. Now down to business, Giles was a bodyguard. A currently unemployed bodyguard. He needed to find someone who both needed and would be willing to pay for his services. Who didn't need protecting these days?

Giles had left his steed, Aurochs, tied up in the city stables while strolled around the city of his birth. The city streets brought back memories that made him nostalgic of his younger years. Giles exhaled a harsh breath through his bulbous nose. He wasn't here for an almost literal trip down memory lane. No, he was here to find a job. He continued to search the city streets when something in particular caught his eye. It was a carriage, if Giles knew anything about the world it was that wealthy people liked to travel by carriage. Then another thing caught his eye. A young lady carrying a staff exited the carriage. Healers and bodyguards go hand in hand. It was a great stroke of serendipity for the great knight.

Giles approached the blue haired lady and introduced himself. He would have to be careful not to scare her. "Good day young madam. My name is Giles Brand. If you don't mind me asking, what brings you into Laus?"

[Sarah]

Sarah started to read the notes she had wrote based on the stories of the monsters that had been sighted in Lycia until a she heard that someone was talking to her and turned around to find that a knight was asking her what she was doing here. While she wandered why some random knight just came up and talked to her, the idea headed her right on the head. Sarah putted away her book inside her bag and took a look at the knight to get a general look at the tall and old knight.

"Oh good day, my name is Sarah and I'm a just a traveling healer looking to uncover the secrets of the world, just like my father did, I'm just stopping by just to find some supplies for my next trip, well maybe if I can find the people for the job, but that's enough about me, what about you, what brings you here to this city? Are you looking for some type of job out here in the city or are you out here on duty as a guardsmen?"

Sarah looked at the knight, waiting for his reply while also thinking about her plans of how she would safely find these so-called 'monsters' from Ostia and learn about them. Sarah knew she would need to find a small but good enough group for her travels out in the countryside so she could be kept safe from the harms of the bandits and other unknown problems that could happen while out on her journey.

[Wei]

"Alright to the local tavern for a drink", declared Wei. The young man was indulging in his bad habit of talking to himself again. Not to long ago that bad habit got himself stuck in a dual. A dual that gave him a new scar on his back. Still Wei would be Wei. Lessons were learned at a slow pace and combat was a game. As the red headed journeyman stumped pass the gates he noticed a very strange site. A young beautiful Blue hair maiden, and trust me that hair color is rare these days, was speaking with a old crusty looking the knight. From Wei's point of view the man looked like a hungry wolf. The journeyman had no idea what the old guy wanted with her, but he was sure it was up to no good.

"Lets check that out then", spoke Wei to himself as he turned around to move toward there conversation. With a spring in his step Wei interjected himself into the conversation. "Hey old man", he shouted as he walked up to the knight from behind. "Don't you think you are a bit to old to be hitting on young girls." Skipping past the old knight Wei walked up to the maiden. "Sup, my name is Wei. I am a journeyman looking to strengthen my arm on the road. Now i am not sure how long you been on the road, but i should warn you that giving out your information so easily is not a good thing. Trust me, I have traveled all over Lycia and I have seen it all. Telling people you are from out of town is a quick way to get a knife in your back and your cut purse taken."

Success, thought Wei to himself. Not only had he cut the old guy out of the conversation for a moment, but he had successfully introduced himself. There was only one real reason Wei walked over here and it was not because he was worried about the maiden safety. She was just his type, thought she seemed a good bit older than he was. Probably five years or so. Still older women were harder to get and far the better prize. Besides the time of old men like sir beard behind him was over. It was a young guys time to try and woo the ladies.

[Giles Brand]

Giles listened to what the young healer had to say. Sure enough she was about to embark on a job. Perfect. Giles was certain this would be an easy way to secure a position as bodyguard. Sarah asked him why he was in town and he was inclined to answer. "Well, Miss Sarah, I was born in Laus. I am currently working as a bodygu-" Giles' sentence was cut short by a rude boy with red hair. The boy made quite the show of an entrance. The boy interrupted Giles called him old, accused him of flirting with the young girl and then proceeded to do just that himself. Perhaps if the boy was older, Giles would teach him a lesson. But he wasn't really interested in smacking a child around. The boy, who was apparently named Wei, would learn his lessons in his own time.

Giles couldn't help but allow a small chuckle arise to his lips.Perhaps this is why I hate Laus. He knelt down to speak to the red haired boy. "Young boy, are you lost? As I was informing this lady here, I am a bodyguard. Suit to protect you from all types of dangers while I escort you to where you need to go." Giles extended his arm to the boy. "Come now, we'll find mommy and daddy and you can leave the poor lady alone." Giles smiled at the boy. Condescending and petty as it was, it felt good to talk down to an uppity teenager every so often. Especially one so rude as to get in the way of his employment.

[Sarah]

Sarah was caught off-guard by the boy that called himself Wei's sudden arrive,then she could only think of one of two things, one: He was looking for work for whatever his reasons are or 2: He was looking to get a date with her. While Sarah laughed to herself a little about the second choice but before she could say anything the knight had began to push him away from the two of them. Before he could finish getting the young man away, she came to a conclusion and decided to speak up about her plan.

"Are you two looking to join my group or something, cause if so then I shall let you know that I play to travel all of Elibe, looking to uncover all the secrets of the world, while also trying to help anyone I found but if it's work you want then you're both accepted, unless any of you are against it. Just be ready though if you want to join me, as the road ahead is not safe for those who are not prepared."

After giving her small speech to the old knight and the young boy Sarah simply smiled at the fact that she could finally get the protection she need to finish her journey through Lycia and wouldn't have to worry about any of those bandits or monsters that roamed these lands. But she did have one small problem though that would be needed to be worked out if they did join her but first she would wait for both of their replies to her offer to join her on her journey.

[Wei]

"What was that", shouted Wei! The old man had gotten under his skin, which was not usually easy. Wei could not place it directly, but it was probably the part about being protected. Wei did not need protection. Not only that but the old dirt bag had treated him like a four year old. Who in the world did he think he was!

"Listen up you old crusty crab, I don't need no stinking bodygaurd and I ain't four! You might want to watch yourself oldy before you throw your back out. Shoot I am surprised that anybody would hire a old dog like yourself. By the end of the day they would probably need to escort you back home. You know with the dementia in all setting in."

Before Wei could continue the women spoke up. Apparently she thought that Wei was also looking for a job. That was not what Wei was doing, but he did not mind the offer. It could prove a good bit of training and give him some coin for the road. Not to mention he could spend some time with a pretty lady. It was a win win for him. Still he wondered how the old coot was going to take it. All jokes aside Wei understood that the man was probably the far better fighter. His armor told him enough about that. Full plate armor was expensive and only the most experience or rick could afford it.

"Sure I will take the job", spoke Wei grabbing hold of his Brave Axes handle. With his new weapon in hand Wei was sure he could take on anything. Well as long as they were not sacens with fast swords. Last time he got a slash so deep across his back he thought he was going to die. It was a good thing there was a healer near by.

[Giles Brand]

Well wasn't this Wei fellow just the greatest little ball of spunk he had ever laid eyes on. With everything that the boy had said Giles had gathered that he looked older than he was or the child didn't know when dementia typically set in. Aside from the boy's rudeness and attitude Sarah still offered them both jobs. Giles was taken aback. "Surely you meant to offer me a job. I can promise you, I will be all you need in terms of a bodyguard. This child will simply get in the way." Giles' eyes travelled to the boy's hilt. Why, thats a brave axe. Quite the weapon for a kid his age. I can't even remember the last time I saw one. I was certainly still in the service. What was that redhaired snotnosed child doing with a better weapon than Giles had? Perhaps the child was more than he seemed.

"You know what? I will accept these terms, I simply expect a significantly higher pay. Protecting both of you is more difficult than protecting one you see. Now then. With this squared away, I say we gather our supplies and make our way to our first destination. So where will it be, young miss?" Giles wanted to get on the road. He was never a fan of this place. Not to mention, the longer they stayed, the more likely they were to pick up more children posing as adventurers. One of them is more than enough. Hmph with any luck, he'll get bored and scamper off after the next flashy thing that catches his eye.

[Sarah]

Sarah was happy about the fact that she was able to form a small group of people that would protect her while she goes out to her journey to see and learn everything about the world. But as she told herself, there would be a few things that would need to be addressed about the money that she would pay them but one thing she did not expect was that if the great knight was going to join them was that he demanded to be paid more to protect both of them while they are out on their journey. Sarah was beginning to think that the man was only doing this to satisfy his need of gold or that he was simply a poor man that had no home. Sarah knew that finding someone as skilled as this knight would be too hard and Sarah didn't have the time to waste looking for someone else.

"Very well then Sir knight,I'll pay you the extra amount but know that I am not made of money so at one point we would need to come up with some kind of job to do so we can make money, you'll still get your extra pay of course."

After getting that off her mind, she decided on her next move on their journey was to get the supplies they need and get ready to head out to their next stop out in the land of Lycia.

"After we get everything we need for our next trip, we'll be heading out to the countryside of Ostia, as I wish to observe these so called monsters and undead that walk those lands but don't worry, I have no plans of battling them, unless any of you want to do that then well I'll be there to give you moral support and healing."

[Wei]

"Extra pay", spoke Wei almost shouting. "You greedy old fetcher. Your trying to bankrupt the poor girl. it seems my instincts were right about you. A wolf in sheep's clothing. I mean think about it. This old fart is asking for money for a job that does not even need to be done. I can look out for myself well enough. The fool here does not understand the value of knowledge and the gravity of the situation that plagues our once glorious nation. Don't worry about me miss. I will be fine. I just reserve the right to keep any loot I pick up along the way. I can gain my own coin."

Wei gave the old man a scowl and then began to think onto the supplies he needed. He had most of everything, but he was going to need to stock up on food and water. Lucky for them they were teaming up with a cleric. That meant that he did not need to buy extra healing items. As for there destination.

"Ostia", he spoke with a bit of trepidation. "I have been there before, well the out skirts. There was this shaman girl that wondered around there. If you plan to go out that way then plan to get into a fight. Monsters roam around that area in bands. There will be no avoiding it. If you don't go looking for them they will come looking for you. Death is so great around that area that life itself is a scent to follow."

Well this changes everything, thought Wei. He was going to need to bring his A game. He remembered what it was like the last time here was there. The scar on his right shoulder was from one of those walking corpses, thought that scar was hidden by his shirt. This girl was either carzy or adventurous. Either way Wei was sure they were going to be in for one wild ride.

[Giles Brand]

There was quite bit more rambling and complaining from Wei, things that Giles was already learning to tune out. He decided to focus on the lady's choice of destination. "Ostia?" He took a breath before continuing. " Are you certain? I can assure your safety, but I would just say that the sights there are not for the faint of heart. Perhaps you would like to go to some other place first." This was likely the only thing that the two males in the scenario could agree on, Ostia was dangerous. Apparently both would be hesitant to enter the city due to the undead and the corruption. The child, Wei had been there before, at least he might know how to get around the ruined city.

"Nonetheless, the choice is up to you. There is a risk involved, but I have pledged my service to you." Giles viewed the young healer with a serious countenance. This would not be a small undertaking. They would have to come prepared and if Giles was going to protect them, they were going to have to do as he said. Not to mention they would have to be able to trust each other. Giles would have to make that clear but he decided he would wait until they were absolutely certain they were going to the ruined city of Ostia. Giles had a thought. Perhaps this young girl is simply mad. Or maybe this is a set up. Hmm. I guess I will have to wait and see. I'll survive either way. Nothing can get past my armor.

[Sarah]

Sarah began to see that both the boy and the knight seemed alittle afraid of the ruined city of Ostia, as someone who had lived a life safe from the dangers of the outside world, she barely knew anything about Ostia aside from the stories that she heard while traveling the world and she decided that she didn't want to put them both through that kind of danger and she began to think of a different, more safe place the three of them could go to first before they would try to head to the lands of Ostia. Sarah closed her eyes for abit to focus on their new location to go to and decided on their new plan of action.

"Well since I know little about the land of Ostia and the great dangers you both say that are there and I couldn't forgive myself if I got you both killed, I have decided that we will be heading to the lands of Pherae instead, as long there is no problem with that then that is where will be heading to next, but first I need to rest from all this traveling that I've been doing, so let us go to the tavern and relax for abit."

After getting that problem taken care of, Sarah pulled out her notebook and started to write down her ideas and future plans for her next travels but while she was writing in her notebook she had remembered something that she needed to know.

"Um, can any of you show me around the city, I've never been here before so it would be good to know about this place before we leave."

[Wei]

Looks like she changed her mind, thought Wei to himself. He did not like the idea of just walking into Ostia, but he did not mind going to the area. It would be good training. Still a less death filled area was better. No point in trying to beef up if you are just going to get yourself killed. Still, if she wanted to fight monsters they could have went to Worde. the place was crawling with them, but there were enough people around to make the place livable. Wei however kept this to himself. She had decided there destination then that is where they would go. No reason to change there coarse so soon.

"Sorry, but you are out of luck on that one I am afraid", spoke Wei. This is my first time in this city as well. I have been around Lycia a lot, but I have not entered every major city. I am sure old crome dome can help you thought. Old people tend to been a lot of places. I am pretty sure he knows every body over the age of fifty and can give you a grand tour. Just don't go into any dark alleyways with him. You know what they say about old men. While you two are doing that I will go check out the market. I need some more dried meat and herbs. I am also going to need two more water skins. So I will bug out for a bit. Meet you all at that tavern at sun down", spoke Wei as he pointed toward a decent looking tavern. Normally Wei stayed at more low scale palces, but since he was meeting a pretty lady they would at least need a place that did not have cuthroats around ever corner.

[Giles Brand]

Giles raised an eye brow at the chrome dome comment. Perhaps if he was wearing is helmet, he would understand where Wei was coming from. But he still had a head full of hair. Perhaps the child is too short and cant see the top of my head. No matter, my employer has made a request to show her around the town. Giles didn't like sightseeing, especially in Laus, but he would have to concede. Giles did know everything about the city. The castle, the marketplace, the city gates, the residential areas, including the slums. Hell, Giles even knew about some of the secret passageways throughout the city, working as a royal knight taught a person such things. But he doubted he would have any need to show these routes to the young healer. It could be a security threat if the young axewielder were to see them."I would be happy to show you around the town Miss Sarah. What do you think you would like to see first?"

Giles led the way to he tavern that Sarah had indicated she would like to take a rest at. It was an alright place, nothing too special, but taverns were always volatile places. Danger could spout up at any moment. On the bright side this was a big city, not some coastal town or mountain bar where bandits liked to hang around. Giles was sure he would be able to take care of any danger that came bubbling to the surface here.