Road to the White Tower- Moonlit Stories

[redcoat]

Enjin migration

[opius]

TheRedCoat:
+Sae moved quietly around the camp in a patrol, her keen eyes looking over each person as she did to verify that they were, in fact, asleep. All but two were laying down, breathing deeply in and out as she watched over them.

The exceptions, of course, were Tali and Alain. Tali sat in the customary cross-legged style, his eyes half open in trance. He would wake soon- she had left the conversation she needed to have with Alain for the end of her shift. Everyone needed to be asleep, if she didn't want the whole camp to know her business.

Continuing her pace around the circle, she did not stop at the seat she had previously taken, and instead settled at a close range to Alain.

"I wanted to apologize for my over-reaction." It seemed as good an opening salvo as any.+

Ancelas:
Alain had set up his bedroll near a tree on the side of the road where they had pitched camp that evening, facing the fire. His coat was removed and folded up beneath his head like a pillow, his pack nearby. His book lay open on his chest, and at first glance, it seemed as though he had simply fallen asleep while reading. When Sae spoke, however, he did not so much as twitch, but merely blinked a few times and looked up at her, taking a moment to adjust his spectacles.

"Mm? For what?"

TheRedCoat:
+Sae leaned against the tree, scanning the horizon for any sort of disturbance before her icy eyes turned back to Alain.

"Waking you, to start with, but more seriously I over-reacted when I heard about this... expert. It is not the first time I behaved rashly when it came to matters of Ruin, and I have a feeling it won't be the last." She frowned deeply, seeming to debate something.

"It's all bound up in why I had to leave Kel Mar, why I found a place in the Gunslingers instead of with my own people. Just... a raw nerve, is all."+

Ancelas:
"I'm sure it is quite a story," Alain said diplomatically as he sat up, stretching. "It is fine, I took no offense. You are not the first to react as such to him, although I confess most tend to wait to meet him before displaying their discomfort. I suppose there is something about him that is off-putting, but I always found him to be quite good-natured. Somewhat dour for my tastes, but a good man nonetheless."

He leaned back against the tree and glanced at the fire, then off into the dark forest, and then back to Sae. "Most nerves are raw because they've been made that way," he observed. "It must have been quite a thing, whatever it was that drove you from your home." He smiled faintly - Sae had said she had left, not that she had been driven away, and he quickly continued. "It is uncommon for a Mareki to break ranks and join an organization such as the Gunslingers."

TheRedCoat:
+Sae wasn't built for secrets. Really, she just wasn't. The truth threatened to tumble out of her mouth at any minute, all day everyday- the itch not dissimilar to the burning coin of a mercenary's first paycheck.

And she was very tired of not telling anyone, knowing that it was a time bomb, that the reactions she anticipated from her comrades would only get more painful. She itched to tell someone, anyone. Alain seemed like as good a candidate as any. Frankly, while he might not react with the nonchalance that Jaeger had, he probably wouldn't panic like Alistair might.

"My former betrothed was a follower of Ruin... and from one of the better families of Kel Mar. When I found out, I ended him. Bloodily. Rashly. In the middle of the day on the steps of the Guildmaster's Hall." She leaned her head back, letting out a deep breath. "I was ruled justified, of course, but my family thought it best to send me away anyway. I keep thinking that if I had done something different, held off... played the spy, even, we might have had some warning on this invasion."+

Ancelas:
Alain furrowed his brow and leaned his head back against the tree, gaze turned toward the fire. He was quiet for a long moment as he digested this. "You discover a cult in Ilyria. Your master is slain in the Tribelands. Kyr falls and an army marches on Astorea. Three different events... three different countries. All connected to god long exiled..."

He reached up and removed his spectacles so he could massage his temples with his other hand. "I don't think you could have prevented this, Sae. The signs suggest that this invasion has been a long time coming. The fact that no one saw it... not even those charged with watching for it..."

He sighed heavily and glanced up at her. After a moment, he replaced his spectacles. "You and the others have stumbled into events far beyond the scope of a single person, or even a single party of adventurers." A thin smile touched his lips. "In Fort Bragh, I urged Alistair to enjoy his downtime rather than worry over all the things that needed to be done before leaving the fort. I believe he took this to mean I was criticizing his fussiness, when in truth I was trying to warn him that I do not think he or any of you will have time to enjoy the simpler things in life for very much longer."

TheRedCoat:
+It did give her some relief to hear that she couldn't have prevented this- it was a worry that had long plagued her. If she hadn't killed Elta, would he have opened the doors to Kel Mar and caused her family's deaths? If she hadn't killed him, would she have been able to turn him so they could have prior warning and meet them at the gates when the invasion happened?

She let the useless thoughts go as the conversation turned, lightly noting that Alain, in the darkness, looked even more familiar than she originally thought. That was a thought filed away- she was more or less sure that she had the answer to that particular riddle already.

"The thing about Alistair is that he is clever." She started, picking up the small bit of firewood she had been working on and starting to peel away long slivers with her dagger as she considered how to phrase what she said next.

"I am not clever. When I look at a question, I do not expect to quickly find an answer. I long ago accepted that answers do not pop into my head all of a sudden, as if I was struck by lightening."

"Alistair is clever. Questions are like rabbits- to be run to ground and hunted for sport. He expects that when he comes across a mystery, if he spends a few minutes with it he'll be able to solve it. Not being able to solve something is like having a bug bite between his shoulder blades, just out of reach. Thus, when faced with the conundrum of a mage who may or may not be a friend of his Master's, who may or may not be in this mysterious... painting-thing, who can handle himself in the woods when everyone just assumed he'd never left his tower... well. He's too distracted by the itch to take damn good advice." Sae didn't push or accuse, keeping her tone light and even.

"Things will get bad, and soon. He'll wish he had taken your advice in the long run."+

Ancelas:
Alain tilted his head slightly, a ghost of a smile touching the corner of his lips. "Perhaps. Perhaps it is foolish for me to give advice in the first place. There are some who would say so. I'd even agree with some of them."

He folded his arms across his chest and crossed his legs, pondering. "I used to be very much like him. Less earnest, more flighty, perhaps... but very much intrigued by the mysteries of the universe and dogged in my pursuit of answers. I learned far too late that some answers should not be pursued... that knowing the truth is not always a shield against the unknown, but a terrible burden."

Alain paused again, sweeping his gaze across the sleepers. "He is out of his depth, but he hides it well. Buries his fears behind his scholarship... uses his ingenuity as a shield and his faith as a weapon. Yes, he is a clever young man. But his life might have been easier if he were less so..."

TheRedCoat:
+Sae sat next to him, continuing to work on the little carving. Busy hands tended to keep her mind a little quieter.

"The problem with the search for truth, is that finding out the truth is over-rated always comes far too late, and no one just takes the lesson at face value. It's like everyone has to touch fire to figure out they don't want to get burned." She shook her head at that.

"I've got my burns, so I don't need to touch the fire, please and thank you. I've got a secret, so I understand why people keep them. But... speaking of advice that I probably shouldn't give- a little bit of truth might go a long way." She shrugged her shoulders, letting silence fill the air.

"He'll do alright. Like a brittle steel, he just needs tempering. Another couple months on the road and he'll be as jaded as I am." She joked, giving Alain a wink.+

Ancelas:
"A little longer and he'll be as cynical as I am," he mused, but the smile did not reach his eyes. "He would have been better staying at the Academy. But as I understand it, someone put a bug in his ear... to go out and experience the world firsthand." He sighed. "Gods damn good advice."

He shook his head slightly. "I wish I could say I was astonished at how you all found each other, but I suppose I shouldn't be. A scholar, a warrior, a seeker. A wellspring and a watcher. A lawbringer and a herald... and now, perhaps even a messenger. An odd group of diverse individuals, with oddly specific skillsets. Perhaps the gods are at work... but despite your friend's insistence, I don't believe Silvanus had anything to do with this. It does not suit his temperament."

TheRedCoat:
"Well, when you put it like that, it does have the feel of someone setting up the chess pieces on the board. I never had much patience to play well- but I can see the comparison. This... perhaps might be bigger than just one god playing with us." She shrugged her shoulders. "Times like these breed legends, and if we've been tapped for such a thing, all we can hope for is to do our part and try to come through the game as best we can."

She stood then, giving a jaunty three steps forward and one to the side- Sae was sure of her own part in this particular game. Looking over her shoulder though, she gave him a small smile.

"You know, you have very pretty eyes. It's a pity you hide them." And on that note she moved to continue her patrol.

Ancelas:
Rather than respond, Alain simply settled down once more, smiling faintly. As he settled, he mused aloud in a quiet voice she may or may not have heard.

"It is astonishing what one learns when one pauses and pays attention..."