Fantasy The Ebony Guard: Champions of Namira

[Harbinger]

Alisha walked back to the campfire and sat down next to varick. " Hey guys, sorry I was gone for a few minutes, had to change and wash up. Well I see that we have a guest with us." Alisha jokingly showed her fangs to the bandit but he was still scared of her and he hada horrified look on him. "Don't worry, I'm just having some fun with him. So did I miss any interesting tales of heroism and chivalry.

 

[Dreesirk]

Norven was surprised to see the masked figure de-mask himself, until he figured that it would only make sense that the figure would have to remove his mask at some point. Sari's frustration with not being able to see the face behind the mask was amusing, and Norven blew some air out of his nose in amusement.


A new figure joined beside the formerly masked one. Norven had to squint slightly to determine that it was the vampire girl, who he wasn't even aware had gone off. She bared her fangs, causing the color from the tied-up bandit's face to drain and a vain attempt at side-squirming away. Norven laughed at the play, and pulled the bandit back to his original position. "So did I miss any interesting tales of heroism and chivalry?" The vampire girl asked, after she was finished taunting the captive.


"None yet," Norven replied, "Though I have plenty, if anyone would like to hear them. We could use a tale or two to wind down. But first, I must ask," Norven indicated the de-masked figure and the vampire girl, "What do you go by? We'll all be traveling together for quite a while, and it'd be nice to get to know each other." Almost as an afterthought, he added "My name's Norven, by the way." He smiled at the two, waiting for the answers.

 

[Chao5Th3ory]

Varick looked over towards Norven, revealing the bottom half of his face, "The name's Varick", he replied before returning his attention towards the fire, contemplating what his next course of action should be.


After a few moments of this he then began to unsheathe both of his daggers before setting them on the ground and reached into his left pocket revealing a small white cloth, then picked up one of his blades and began to rub it with the cloth roughly trying to get the blood off of the blade from the previous battles.

 

[Thewarsword]

Abelard touched the back of his new his new friend. "Remember the sweet nothings I whispered to you earlier? The vampires would hunt you, drain you, and rip you flesh from flesh. Maybe, for 5 minutes before you died, if the vampires get to you before I do, you will be a lucky man. Don't think the code will save you law breaker. I have the right to defend my peoples, and your peoples declared war on us first. We have shown you mercy, and my code does not prevent me from striking a harmless opponent. Now, if you're good I may give a piece of my food."


Abelard smiled at Alisha. "thank you for taming our new pet" Giving the captive another pat.


Looking around the greater group, and his gaze lingering on Sarvi for a mere moment longer, the shadow monk said " As a child I prayed for a family, i got the monastery, but it is a brutal place for brutal people. Perhaps I will return one day to keep myself sharp, but I came out here to soften my cold heart. Perhaps my star is a figurative one, but a shooting star none-the-less." He made his little fireball illusion in his hands, he had float it above his head, then it would circle him, perhaps go and harass the captive, or dance above the monk's head again.


Staring up at the stars, and playing with his toy, the monk whispered " I will always be with you".

 

[Harbinger]

"Nice to meet you Norven, my name is Alisha or ash as some people call me ash. I've been loke this for ten months now, it is a life changing experience. I have a few stories but probaly nothing as epic like Norven or Varick." She took out a locket that was very important to her. She had the look of love on her face. She put the locket away as fast as she took it out though as not to worry the rest ofnthe group.

 

[maxacec]

Castien's eyes were narrow as he frowned at the thoughts racing through his mind. Norven's invitation for dinner felt distant as his mind was elsewhere. But his stomach forced him to join them. For the first time since they met, he could see everyone sitting together. It didn't feel like they have yet bonded but its a start. He couldn't help but pity the last remaining bandit. Afterall, he knew there's no limit to what people could be forced to do due to circumstance. He himself had survived by stealing food for most of his childhood life. While waiting for the food to cook, he took out his dagger and a thin cylindrical piece of wood. He started carving into it. The wood had plenty of intricate engravings and he was adding more to it. It was his way of keeping hmself occupied. He stayed quiet, still unsure of how he should react to the eventful night.

 

[Chao5Th3ory]

Varick began to chuckle softly at Alisha's last statement,"I can assure you my story is not as 'epic' as you might think". But then he paused and lowered his slightly as if thinking of what to say next until finally breaking his own silence, "Although.....perhaps i will share my story with you all one day, but not right now as i feel this is not the right time for something like this to be told".

 

[Lain.Laurent]

Sarvi frowned a little at Varick, what secrets was he hiding then, but she ignored it for now and joined in the pleasantries that were being exchanged around the camp fire. "I have to be honest I have no stories to tell, as far as I am concerned this is my greatest adventure, maybe one day I will share this story one day but first I will have to make it, I am sure Norven will have a few tales to tell"


With that she got to her feet and went to look for some bowls within the cart, she quickly returned and started to ladle the stew in to bowls, she passed one to Norven, Abelard, Castien, Varick, herself and rather nervously held one out to Alisha "Do you ever eat human food now?"


While retrieving the bowls she had also brought a large loaf of bread and started to slice it up passing everyone a slice each.

 

[Thewarsword]

"Well Varick, regardless of how much you trust me with your story, you trusted me with your life earlier today. Without your keen ears I could've been just as easily dead, or had you not been there to fend some of those 5. It seems silly to me, that you would place your hopes and dreams, and your life in the hands of this group but not share your story. Although, some things I won't talk about either


Sarvi, perhaps your journey was more mundane then my own, but no less exciting in it's own right. If you need proof then understand this, The most pleasant parts of my training were smashing my forearms and shins into trees until they were numb clubs of hardened bone, yet you are here leading our group are you not? Without you we would probably be bickering amongst each other, and be at each others throats. The irony is, those bandit's can't kill us, but we sure can threaten each other? Perhaps you are not as seasoned, or "epic" as Norven or Varick, but perhaps you are more important in your own way."


The monk began to feel that warm feeling again. He quickly started eating and not talking so much. He looked forward to much needed sleep, if he could find it.

 

[Lain.Laurent]

Sarvi was turning a deeper and deeper red the longer Abelard continued to talk about her and had reached the conclusion he was just exaggerating, after all she was pretty much the klutz of the group though with a bit of luck. Once Abelards speech reached it's end she chuckled highly embarrassed "I guess in a family situation I would be the younger daughter and mother wrapped in to one..."


She quickly tucked in to her soup glancing at Varick, he didn't seem to be the kind to accept praise like that and was wondering upon how he would react to Abelards positive outlook on the pair of them. She stabbed at a piece of the rabbit and placed it in her mouth, it wasn't the best thing she had eaten by far but it was by no means the worst and she turned to Castien rather curiously "Hey, how are you finding it?"

 

[Harbinger]

" No I do not Sarvi but thanks for the offer. I have something that you guys might like, though and anybody can drink it." She polietly walked by sarvi but stopped and whispered in her ear "I know you are hiding a thing of ale, don't worry I didn't bring anything that will top that." Alisha rushed to her horse and grabbed a satchel that had various teas and coffees. "You guys might like these, catch it sarvi, I might throw it to hard. It is full of rare and common teas and coffees. Since we are going to be on this journey for a while, why not give something I rarely drink anymore. Becareful though, espically you sarvi. Then sometimes make humans sick. If you chose a wrong oe' I'll let you know. "She ealks back to wait while the group searches through the satchel.

 

[Effervescent]

Valdemire emerged from the woods refreshed and cleaned, his damp clothes laid heavily over one arm. One by one he hung each piece of his armor over a limb of a tree to dry. He listened to the group converse around the fire in a basic attempt to get to know each other. It was a strange social desire, though the vampire felt it was not necessary.


The campfire crackled accompanied by the night's symphony. This was a time Valdemire appreciated the most and felt more should enjoy. Without word, he volunteered himself to keep watch for the night while the others took part in their social frivolities. His watch began with a slow walk around the perimeter just inside the line of trees. He kept a careful sense to anything out of the ordinary and tried his best to keep his own footfalls to a quiet minimum. So far there was no threat to be seen.

 

[Thewarsword]

"Tonight another tattoo will form on my body according to tradition of monks. A expression of my spirit and expansion of my power, I know that you all help to cause it thank you. "


He didn't feel warm this time. He was enjoying a cup of tea fro Alisha, he thanked her, and had finished dinner. With tea and food gone he went to stand up and ended up falling on his bedroll fast asleep. He hasn't even stood all the way when his body gave out. A light snore could be heard from the monk.


He was in a light sleep, and he heard rustling. He heard Varick's comments, and his intention to keep guard. He fell fast asleep again, trusting his well trained gut to alert him to dangers.

 

[Chao5Th3ory]

"Not sharing my story has nothing to do with trust Abelard. I just simply have done things in my past that i am not proud of and still haunt me to this day, even in my dreams which is why i am not one for sleep. But as i said perhaps one day it will come to the point where i will". After these words he grabbed both of his blade and sheathing them, although there were still small specks of dried blood on them, but it would have to do for now.


He then placed his cloth back into his left pocket and then stood slowly, the fire just briefly revealing his entire face, and began walking to a tree that was nearby the wagon and leaned against it, with his arms crossed. "I will also keep watch for the night, a little more help never hurts".

 

[Lain.Laurent]

Sarvi stared at the sleeping Abelard with a rather bemused expression at his rather eccentric announcement before falling asleep and it wasn't too long before she too curled up upon her bed, the day had been an extremely busy one. They had the ceremony in the middle of Windell in front of half the town that announced they were only one task away before being truly knighted the next generation of Ebony Guards. They met their fellow comrades and traveled for the majority of the day. Upon the blood red sky of the setting sun their vague bonds with each other were solidified as they fought to play their part in helping there fellow comrades and spent their night eating, talking and celebrating their first in a long of victories they hoped will come.


Sarvi blinked, sunlight was highlighting the edges of the bushes that surrounded the camp. The cooking pot sat in a pile of ash, obviously the fire had burned itself out some part during the night. Abelard, Noven, Castien and Varick all appeared to be asleep while Alisha and Valdemire was nowhere to be seen, obviously the two vamps must of concealed themselves somewhere to look over the camp without being detected. She sat up giving the sleeping bodies a smirk, well if they are all sleeping no one will peek on me while I wash she thought to herself.


The stream nearby was loud in the silence, not to mention the early morning crickets in the field, Sarvi rose silently from her bed and treading very carefully disappeared off to the nearby stream to wash herself.

 

[Harbinger]

ALisha was walking along the edge of the camp and had saw the rest of the group sleeping except Sarvi who had woken up and walked off discretly to do something. She walked over to her horse and grabbed a pack of a special tea just for her, it was one of the rarest teas in the land. SHe started a small fire near the group but not close enough to wake them from the heat of the fire. when the kettle was boiling over the fire she took out her locket and openeed it up and just stared at it for as long as she could remeber. She started to tear up after staring at the locket of her and her lover, but then the pot started to hiss so she took it off and made her cup of tea. She let the fire run out by itself and went to her bedroll and continued to stare at the locket again with the feeling of lose in her eyes until the rest of the gfroup woke up.

 

[Lain.Laurent]

Sarvi soon returned from her wash, she hadn't had much time to dry herself and her clothes were sticking to her body much to her annoyance. Her long ginger hair was pretty much everywhere with long strands hanging down with short tufty bits standing up, in all honesty she had the appearance of a cat that looked like it had been put in a bucket of water.


Noticing Alisha tearing up Sarvi pretended to ignore her, allowing her a moment of privacy. It seemed the rest of the males, human ones anyway, were still sleeping to which Sarvi gave a loud snort at the four sleeping bodies sprawled around Alisha's kettle. Noticing Varick still sleeping on the far right a wickedly cheerful grin spread across her face. (OOC: If you have never seen the Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland, ya looking at an excellent copy right now)


Tip toeing carefully around the sleeping bodies towards Varick, she slowly crouched down hoping her knees wouldn't click to alert him, though admittedly if her knees didn't her silent giggles surely would. Reaching out a hand she very slowly, very carefully started to nudge his hood back.

 

[Chao5Th3ory]

The feeling of his hood brushing against his hair was enough to alert him as he instinctively grabbed one of his blades with his right hand and grabbed the currently unknown figure's collar with his left, then pulling back with his left hand and pressed his blade against the figure until he finally looked up and noticed who it was. "Sarvi?.....what are you doing?" he asked, immediately placing his blade back in it's sheath and letting go of her. "You know if you were curious you could have just asked" he said as he began standing up looking at her.

 

[Lain.Laurent]

The moment she got grabbed by the collar and the blade pressed to her she quickly closed her eyes and screamed attempting to lash out with her fists however he wasn't even within range, he was just too tall and his arms too long for her. However she became still and silent, opening an eye wearily looking up at him when Varick mentioned her name and released her.


Well there was no getting out of this now, she was caught red handed and her signature deep red blush of embarrassment had pretty much taken hold making her face clash dramatically with the already drowned cat hair style. She suddenly tried to seem much more preoccupied in her horrendous hair, attempting to make the fringe flat while in truth was actually trying to hide her own face.


"I was only a little curious" She mumbled not even daring to look up at him.

 

[Chao5Th3ory]

Varick sighed softly as he reached for his hood with both of his hands and throwing it back, finally revealing himself. His hair was short and black, parted to the left and slightly messy. His eyes were deep blue with a hint of grey, almost making them look like ice.


He also had a long diagonal scar along his right eye. He had a fairly average nose with a slight curve in the middle. His entire jawline was covered in slight hair stubble. His neck was a bit small for his size and he had another somewhat long scar running along the left side of his neck.


"Well.....here you go, i might as well keep it down now since i still need to clean my mask".

 

[maxacec]

Cas opened his eyes, realizing that he was still sitting with his wooden carving in one hand and his dagger was on the ground nearby. He shook his head and lightly tapped his cheeks. It was morning and he wasn't going to let what happened the day before bring him down. It was a new day and he decided that it deserved a new outlook. He yawned as he stared blankly at the light smoke and the burnt pile of wood in front of him, taking some time to gain his strength and when he did, he stood up.


He looked around and all his drowsy eyes could see were sleeping bodies. Someone was sitting by a smaller fire that was set up a little ways away, something smelled good from her direction. He smiled as continued scanning the campsite until his eyes stopped on two figures who seem to be having a romantic time together. He smiled again before what he saw registered. He turned back, alarmed. Wiping his face in hopes of wiping away the drowsiness, he looked again. This time, more details registered as he saw Sarvi with a dagger pressed to her. 'Ah, that makes more sense.', he thought as he decided to let the two sort things out.


He tucked his wooden carving into his pouch before making way towards the small creek to get himself cleaned. While walking, he managed to get a glimpse of Varick and thought to himself, 'So thats how he looked like.'

 

[Thewarsword]

Abelard flew out of his bedroll after hearing his leader scream. He knew immediately it was Sarvi, and he was seriously worried. After moments of taking in the situation he realized she was being dork, and he was glad Varick didn't kill her. Had someone ambushed him he may not guarantee their survival until it was too late.


"Damn it Sarvi, why did you go and do that? Are you ok?"


"Varick, your face means nothing to me, you're my friend regardless of how you maintain your identity."


He wanted to make sure she understood his disapproval of her actions, without making her feel he disapproved of her herself . He mastered the skill when he mentored younger monks.


Before she replied, he wasn't worried really, if she had been hurt she wouldn't be crimson.


He began to take off his moccasins, his cloak, his scarf, even his pants. Then he slid off all of his bracers and was left in his sparring shorts. They were black shorts that went from waist to his knees. He packed up his bedroll, and his cloths inside his cloak. He put the bedroll into his saddle bag.


Looking from head to toe, you saw disorganized hair showing a man who didn't care. He had deep grey eyes that never seen to lose their depth. He had a average face, but it was angular then most. His broad shoulder matched his toned body, and forearms and his shins looked like they had a perfect line of jutting muscle, and it looked slightly gnarled.


His left arm had a tiger going from the deltoids down to his wrist, and on the other side a crane stretching the same distance. A european looking dragon tattoo'd on the chest. It had frightening green eyes, and it shared similar facial features to Abelard. The dragon had a open jaw and it was a very angry dragon.


However one tattoo stuck out, on his right calf appeared a large spider, and a bunch of baby spiders were connected with webs. The spider was quite intricate, but the he noticed that their was a spider for every member of this party so far. It was weird, and he knew his spirit etched this onto him from inspiration of his comrades. After a few moments he carried his cloths to stream to wash them. He also washed himself, and when he finished he played his miniature flute.


He finally put all his cloths, gear, bracers etc back on, and continued to play the flute.

 

[maxacec]

Cas's eyes widened at the sound of the flute. He looked up as he was still playing around in the stream. "You play the flute too?", he asked from where he was. He got out of the stream and headed towards Abelard.


His lean darkened body stood a few steps from the monk. Intricate linings covered his body though what they were or their origins were a mystery even to himself. He was born with them. He headed over towards his pouch and took out his wooden carving. "I've been making one too...", he said, trying to sound friendly, knowing that he didn't do much bonding the night before. "What song is that?", he asked as he sat down nearby.

 

[Lain.Laurent]

Sarvi blinked rather uncontrollably up at Varick, if that was what he looked like why hide it with a mask?! The scars admittedly peaked her interest but she thought she had pushed her limits with Varick for one day. Maybe next night she would poke them, she let out a silent giggle to herself before instantly stopping, what was the damn matter with her.


She wanted nothing more than to escape the evil ice darts that were Varick's eyes and was about to strike a conversation with Castien but found she was too late. He was already talking to Abelard, Valdemire still seemed nowhere around, she was stunned at how much of a heavy sleeper Norven was and Alisha looked like she was in her own little world by the kettle.


She cleared her throat sitting next to Varick trying to catch his attention, when that failed she poked him "So... you want to dance?"

 

[Thewarsword]

Abelard finished his song, and his prayer/mediation. He looked at Castien and his eyes glowed, he was very pleased the elf was talking to him. He noticed they had a lot in common with their attitudes towards family, and judging by the orphans that followed him they both had a knack for mentorship and love.


Abelard lowered his voice trying to keep his story a secret, but he didn't realize that the entire camp could hear his story. It was a whisper as loud as his normal talking.


"I will tell you what my music means if you tell me about yourself once I am done. We often gather around the monk who has gained or gaining a new tattoo, and not all monks have a spirit that burns tattoos into your skin mind you. But it is a lot of light and heat for the spirit to burn and color the tattoo, and each one gives you a new ability or magic, some monks do not need to eat ever again after getting a certain tattoo, some of us can gain a element, and some of us have a array of unique abilities. Last night I got a new one, and this song is celebrating the success I have, and mourning the death of who I was yesterday. This new tattoo will change who i am regardless of what I want, and thus I am a new man"


Abelard stood next to Castien, so tell me about your music and traditions and such. i am greatly pleased to make your friendship my elf friend.