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Post by Kaelan Avallochson on Jul 3, 2014 0:45:55 GMT
Kaelan was sitting out on the deck. He could feel the railing he was leaning against digging into his back but he paid it no mind. The green-haired Tiro had come out here for a change of scenery as he practiced his magic but that had been a mistake. The ranges were positioned perfectly to his right so that he could see them out of the corner of his eye and, of course, the archers had grabbed his attention. So here he was watching and critiquing them instead of working on his magic like he was supposed to be doing. To be frank, Kaelan was jealous of them. He wanted to feel the worn smoothness of his bow that situated itself perfectly in his hand. He wanted to feel the familiarity of the string between his fingers and the practiced ease of pulling it back. He wanted to hear the satisfactory woosh and thunk as the arrow sped from the string and hit the target perfectly. How he wanted, but he knew better. The young man hadn’t touched his bow since he shoved it and his equipment into a corner of his room to remain out of sight after he had gotten it back from his second and far worse run in with The Shuck. Kaelan missed shooting but how he loathed the sight of his bow. Not only was it water damaged from that night it was also a major sore spot for him, a constant reminder that he’d never be able to pick up it again. He watched the archers for a few minutes more before he tore his gaze away and looked down at his hand. Without much thought the shadows around him thickened and balled up in his hand. He formed them into different shapes, hardened them, made edges sharp as glass, made it thick yet able to flow like some sort of black lava. After a few minutes of this Kaelan took a breath and released the shadows. There was one thing he had to admit: since losing his left arm he had gotten a whole lot better with using his magic. Everything else had degenerated though. Stop. Just stop Kaelan, enough with pitying yourself. You’re still alive and you’ll learn to manage. It’ll just take practice and time. Kaelan sighed and rubbed his forehead before he let himself watch the archers again. There was a man on the far side of the range who was rather focused. His stance could be a bit better, but he was shooting well and that was all that really mattered. The man withdrew an arrow from his quiver and nocked it before he pulled back the string. “Too high,” Kaelan said to himself. “He’s aiming to high.” Sure enough the arrow hit high on the target not with the grouping of the other arrows. It took Kaelan a moment to realize he had said that out loud and he hoped that no one had really heard him. Tags: Open Inspiration: The fact that I want to write. Notes: Nope
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Post by Shepherd Lawlesson on Jul 13, 2014 1:56:35 GMT
Shepherd was bored. Really bored. He was tired of the calm wind and no danger in sight. He wished for something to do, anything. He knew it was sort of selfish of him wishing that on a perfectly fine day. He scolded himself for thinking such things. I should be lucky nothing's trying to kill anyone. He thought, sighing to himself. After all, the more peaceful the journey, the more rest he got and the less paperwork he had to do about some random encounter he would have to have taken care of.
Still, the thought didn't help his restlessness and he decided to get rid of said restlessness by walking around on deck. It was a rather pretty day with a fine blue sky, wind blowing nicely, and not a dangerous creature in sight. As usual, different members of the Drakonrhedi were training in their various strengths. He always loved watching them use the weapons they were familiar with and try to master them. Shepherd also found amusement when things didn't go their way or when they did, watching the sometimes silly or ridiculous reactions they pulled off.
Of course if they asked him for his help he would, but he knew they wouldn't. His appearance didn't exactly scream 'I'm a very helpful, kind, and gentle person!' if you catch my meaning. He did, however, look like he could kill you if you so much as glanced at him the wrong way. Still, it wasn't as though he cared for their oh so important opinions. The higher ups knew he would get whatever job they threw at him done and that's all he could really care about anyways.
As he was walking towards the area where the archers train, he spied what looked like a young Tiro watching the archers longingly. He blinked twice after noticing that the poor lad was missing an arm. Shepherd had heard a story about a young Tiro having a rather nasty encounter with one of the most notorious murderers this world over but he didn't expect the Tiro to be so...so young! A horrible thing to happen to one so young. Especially looking at the way he's watching the archers. He thought, feeling bad for the young man. He was just about to walk past the lad when he heard him speak.
“Too high. He’s aiming to high.”
Shepherd stopped short and looked at where the Tiro was looking. Sure enough, the archer's arrow didn't fly as true as one would hope and missed the target. Shepherd looked at the Tiro curiously.
"How could you tell that?" He asked suddenly, wanting to know. He wasn't much of an archer himself so he didn't know much about the subject. His shotgun didn't take him much aim since he was usually in close combat situations and it was, of course, an entirely different weapon.
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Post by Kaelan Avallochson on Jul 13, 2014 2:33:16 GMT
A man came just into view and then stopped suddenly looking towards the range. "How could you tell that?" he asked. Ah crap. Someone did overhear me. Kaelan examined the man. He was tall, had brown hair, was rather intimidating and had a scar that ran over his left eye. Definitely a man that had seen quite a number of fights, and a man who knew how to look out for himself if he was still alive. Not necessarily a man though one would want to approach for a friendly conversation and probably not one you’d want to go up against in a battle. Not an archer though by his question. Perhaps a man who preferred close distance fighting? He couldn’t see a sword strapped to his hip though, and wasn’t too sure but how else could he have gotten the scars he could see? The man did seem harsh, but there was only one way to really find out and that was by talking to him. Kaelan cocked his head before he looked back at the archer and shrugged. “Well, he was aiming too high.” The answer was as simple as that, but the man probably wanted Kaelan to explain further about how he knew. He was an archer, had a trained eye, stuff like that, but he didn’t really want to say that. “He was holding his bow higher than he should have been. All he had to do was lower it and he’d have hit the target next to his other shots.” Really Kaelan was just repeating himself, adding more words to make it sound different. But the core was just the same. He was aiming too high.
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Post by Shepherd Lawlesson on Jul 13, 2014 3:20:16 GMT
“Well, he was aiming too high. He was holding his bow higher than he should have been. All he had to do was lower it and he’d have hit the target next to his other shots.”
Shepherd felt his lips quirk up in a smirk at how simple the answer was.
"That simple, huh? That's probably why I'm stationed on the front lines. Can't aim for shit with bows." He said, leaning against the railing.
He looked back at the archers, watching them trying to aim and maybe succeed at it. He appreciated a good sniper in a group fight, having one save his stupid ass while he was trying to get himself killed, apparently. He wondered if this young Tiro had wanted to become one. If that was the case, the kid has the absolute worst luck that he had ever seen. And possibly the greenest hair he had seen as well. Then again, he's never met someone with green hair. In those aspects the lad seemed interesting.
"I'm Shepherd. Shepherd Lawlesson." He said, offering his name to the green guy.
Shepherd thought that he might as well have a conversation with him if nothing but to give him something to do. Besides, as stated before, he did find the kid interesting. He did glance subtly at the place where the Tiro's arm should've been and decided not to mention anything about the missing appendage. Besides, he, himself, has some stories that he didn't like to recall even with closer friends. Some things just shouldn't been said. Shepherd might be blunt but he knew some manners, despite what some people say.
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Post by Kaelan Avallochson on Jul 13, 2014 21:45:00 GMT
The man smirked at Kaelan’s reply. Yeah, it was that simple. Oh? Always on the front lines? Can’t aim? If there had been any doubt before that the man had been a long-distance fighter, it was completely gone. So, a close distance fighter, perhaps skilled in magic, definitely hand-to-hand. Kaelan couldn’t see any knives or things of the like on his person, but maybe they were hidden by his coat. That was a good possibility. The look over Kaelan had given him had lasted only a moment before he looked back at the archers, but soon his attention was back on the man. "I'm Shepherd. Shepherd Lawlesson,” the man introduced himself as. Lawlesson? Now there’s an interesting name. “Kaelan Avallochson,” the Tiro replied. After all, it was only polite to give one’s name after the other person had introduced themselves. So here he was, trying to be polite. Now was it nice to have met the man? They’d only exchanged names and a few other words so saying it was nice to meet him would have been a lie on Kaelan’s part. Kaelan didn’t know just quite yet, and he honestly didn’t care. The man, Shepherd, probably didn’t care either by the looks of him. Tags: Shepherd LawlessonInspiration: Nopenopenope Notes: Yeesh this is short. Next one will be longer I promise!
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Post by Shepherd Lawlesson on Jul 13, 2014 22:36:02 GMT
“Kaelan Avallochson.”
Hearing the name gave Shepherd something to call the kid something other than 'Tiro' or 'lad'. Kaelan seemed to only give his name to be polite and not exactly for something of interest. And why should he be? Shepherd didn't seem like a guy who lived on conversation. After waiting a few seconds, maybe even a minute, he realized the conversation was dying pretty quickly. I guess this is what I get for wishing for a fight. He thought absently.
How to get a good conversation going is the question he was currently faced with. Obviously he didn't want to mention the obvious things like the Tiro's hair or missing arm. And, let's face it, Shepherd isn't good at chatting with strangers. He usually ends up in a rather violent fist fight or something else along those lines. So what else was there to talk about? Shepherd certainly didn't see anything to speak about. He could ramble but that had a tenancy to end really badly or in a monologue.
"So," He started a little slowly. "What else can you tell me about archery?"
He might as well ask Kaelan about something he was obviously interested in. It was, in all honesty, the only thing he could think to ask about. Besides, he was a little curious about how much he knew about the subject at hand. The only thing Shepherd knew for certain was that archers were a great thing to have backing the fronters in a fight.
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Post by Kaelan Avallochson on Jul 13, 2014 23:09:23 GMT
The deepening silence between them did not go unnoticed by Kaelan. Obviously both of them were bad at conversation making. Well, looks like he found something common between them. After a minute, perhaps two or three, Kaelan wasn’t really counting, the man spoke asking the Tiro to tell him about archery. Kaelan looked over at Shepherd and raised a brow at him for a brief moment. Here was a man who didn’t ask him first about either his odd-colored hair or his missing arm. Hm… He gave a small sniff and shrugged. ”It’s not like hand-to-hand or close combat, which you seem to be fond of. It’s precise, a lot of hard work, a lot of repetition. But I suppose every fighting style had those last two things. It takes a lot of concentration, patience, time, dedication to your weapon and the action of taking care of it. Much cleaner than bashing things’ skulls in. Personally, it’s a whole lot more fun and a good way to relax. Or rather, it was...” Kaelan looked down to the ground and frowned to himself. He let out a silent sigh and turned his attention back to practicing his magic. The shadows about him came to life for a brief moment: changing shapes, chasing each around him, hardening, then dissipating, going back to their natural shapes before he had brought them together. He looked back up at Shepherd. What were his stories? He had to have quite a number of them, and some for his scars too. Kaelan paused for a moment before he asked, “Shepherd? What’s it like? Constantly fighting the behemoths?”
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Post by Shepherd Lawlesson on Jul 13, 2014 23:49:36 GMT
”It’s not like hand-to-hand or close combat, which you seem to be fond of. It’s precise, a lot of hard work, a lot of repetition. But I suppose every fighting style had those last two things. It takes a lot of concentration, patience, time, dedication to your weapon and the action of taking care of it. Much cleaner than bashing things’ skulls in. Personally, it’s a whole lot more fun and a good way to relax. Or rather, it was...”
Listening to the young man talk confirmed Shepherd's suspicions. He held a sort of fondness in his explanation but there was also sadness he could detect. Shepherd was impressed that he was strong enough to continue on after that happened to the lad. Ya gotta admire him in that aspect. He thought. He noticed that Kaelan was practicing with his magic. From the looks of it, the shadow kind. It was interesting to see the shadows move and form solidify.
“Shepherd? What’s it like? Constantly fighting the behemoths?”
The question brought his attention back to the Tiro. He pondered how to answer him for a moment before doing so.
"Honestly? At first, it was pretty scary." He said, looking over towards the sky. "My dad was killed by one and I don't exactly like being in near death situations. It's also really tough and exhausting, trying to help your teammates while not getting slaughtered in the process. But when I think of how much safer others will be, it's worth it. But that's just my way of seeing it."
He knew he didn't even try to sugar coat it and he knew he was never going to. It's always better to state the truth anyway. And besides, he was honest about the answer.
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Post by Kaelan Avallochson on Jul 14, 2014 0:31:17 GMT
Kaelan thought about the answer for a moment. The man, Shepherd, was definitely blunt. A part of him liked that, just saying it as it was, no fluff or lying involved. It was also nice to hear that the man had been scared, to know that even this battle-hardened could still feel fear. It was only human after all to be so in tuned with one’s emotions even if one didn’t or tried not to show it. Kaelan’s mind began to wander as the man mentioned helping his teammates. Did he lose anyone? Any friends? He thought about Gethin. The poor Tiro hadn’t deserved to die like he had. In a way, Kaelan blamed himself. He could have moved faster to protect him, but he didn’t. He had asked Gethin to go out into the city that night. He had been Dainn’s main target, it didn’t take long to figure that one out, and to the man, Gethin had been a nuisance, nothing more than annoying kid he wanted to shut up. And shut up, he made Gethin do, by a gash in his neck. Kaelan shut down his thoughts and managed to tune back in to what Shepherd was saying. “-how much safer others will be, it's worth it. But that's just my way of seeing it." He did agree with that. That was the reason Kaelan had joined the Drakonrhedi. He wanted to save people. But you didn’t save Gethin, A nagging voice told him in the back of his mind. Go away, he told it, just shut up. It took him a moment to realize it had been a moment since Shepherd had stopped talking. Whoops. Kaelan looked up at him. “What do you do when you can’t help them, your teammates? What do you do when you can’t save them?” This time it Kaelan’s turn to be blunt and straightforward with the man.
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Post by Shepherd Lawlesson on Jul 14, 2014 1:53:39 GMT
“What do you do when you can’t help them, your teammates? What do you do when you can’t save them?”
Shepherd frowned, looking back at Kaelan. He had to think about that one for a moment. He had been through some losses here and there, particularly with behemoths, and he wondered what loss brought that question on. He had trouble putting feelings into words so he was usually blunt about it. So, to hell with eloquence!
"Well, that is the one thing tougher than fighting behemoths." He started out, thinking. "When I'm useless and aren't fast enough or strong enough to save someone, at first...I deny it. I get mad at myself and think that I should've done something more, anything! It's hard at first, the letting go. But...it does get easier. Believe me." He stopped for a moment, looking at Kaelan with a small reassuring smile. "You may still feel guilty and whoever died can't come back but...we can move forward. And do them a favor by remembering."
Those last words were the words his father had spoken to him once after Shepherd had inquired the same thing to his dad. The experienced hunter faced danger on a regular basis and had to cope with being the one who survived every encounter up to the point of his death.
"Death is inevitable. Even if you stop it once, it'll just happen again at a latter point in life." He had said. "The only thing we can do is live until we die."
"I asked the same thing when I was young. I asked my father and that was basically what he told me. Life is the opposite of death. A yin and yang thing. We can't prevent it, only delay it." He added, looking towards the archers. They were getting better and missing less often. They would have battles and sometimes loose things they never thought they would loose, maybe even their own lives. But that was how things went and no one could stop that.
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Post by Kaelan Avallochson on Jul 14, 2014 23:17:01 GMT
Shepherd looked back at him and frowned, causing Kaelan to lift his chin and level his gaze. If the man was about to tell him off, then so be it, he’d not apologize for the questions. Shepherd’s expression turned thoughtful though and Kaelan realized he’d been wrong and inwardly shrugged. His tilted his head as Shepherd spoke. It sounded like they reacted the same way: getting mad and blaming themselves for what happened; thinking that they could have done something more. But he also said that it got easier, letting it go. Shepherd gave him a small smile which seemed somewhat odd on the man’s scarred face, but it fit for some reason too. The man continued talking after a moment. “ Do them a favor by remembering,” huh? Kaelan looked down at the ground before his eyes strayed back up to the archers. He’d not forget, that was basically impossible. After all, that night was seared into his mind for the rest of his life. Kaelan knew that Shepherd didn’t mean watching the person’s death over and over in one’s mind, but rather remember the good times with them. Remember the jokes and time spent with them. He’d remember those times too, but forgetting the last time he saw Gethin lying motionless on the ground was not going to go away that easily. "I asked the same thing when I was young.” Kaelan looked back over to Shepherd. “I asked my father and that was basically what he told me. Life is the opposite of death. A yin and yang thing. We can't prevent it, only delay it." That was true. Death did eventually come for everyone in the end. It didn’t always choose the most convenient time either. It came whenever it wanted. Kaelan was still watching Shepherd as the man looked at the archers. He seemed softer than Kaelan had first thought. Blunt, yes, but not emotionless and not uncaring either. How many people were turned away just by this man’s looks? They’d never know that they could possibly have a good conversation with him. A shame, but maybe the man preferred it that way.
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Post by Shepherd Lawlesson on Jul 15, 2014 1:31:06 GMT
Shepherd wondered why he was being so...informational? Talkative? Philosophical? Well, whatever it was, he didn't know why he felt like being so. He also wondered why Kaelan asked him so bluntly and, quiet frankly, out of nowhere. He figured it had something to do with the incident. He had heard that a different Tiro was killed during it. Perhaps they were friends? That was the most likely scenario and why the question was brought up. Shepherd certainly looked like a fellow who knew a thing or two about harsh situations.
I hope he heard what he wanted to hear. No, needed to hear. He thought, glancing at him for a second. In the silence that followed, he relaxed a little. Maybe calm days are good...sometimes. He thought absently. His mom always told him that he didn't relax enough and who could blame her? He sure as hell didn't and never thought about relaxing in any situation, only about what he should do next.
"Ya don't really talk much, do you?" He said, smirking a little towards the guy. He wondered what the Tiro was studying now that he had an obvious handicap. Maybe Shepherd could help him get over that weakness. No doubt he thought of it as a weakness. Then again, the Tiro's mentor must be working on that aspect but it could never hurt to ask.
"Want me to show ya some defensive combat?" He asked, holding his expectation for a 'no'. But there still was the 'yes' to think of.
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Post by Kaelan Avallochson on Jul 15, 2014 2:02:47 GMT
Kaelan caught Shepherd’s glance and arched a brow at him. What? "Ya don't really talk much, do you?" the man asked after a moment, this time smirking at him. Kaelan lowered his brows for a moment before he shrugged nonchalantly in response. “Nope. Never really been much of a talker. I’d have pegged you the same if not for that rather long explanation.” Though, one Kaelan had needed to hear. The guilt, the denial, and the regret of not doing more would eventually fade. That was good, of course, but it would take time and for now he;d have to deal with it. "Want me to show ya some defensive combat?” The question brought Kaelan out of his thoughts and it took a moment for the realization of what the man had said to sink in. Wait… what? Teach him some defense combat? Well that wasn’t a question one heard every day. Kaelan would have been more prepared if Shepherd had asked him about what had happened and how he lost his arm. Defensive combat training? Sure why not. He’d need someone to teach him sometime soon to get what little skills he had left back up to par and then go beyond. And now was better than later. Much better. Kaelan stood, keeping his eyes on the man, before he replied, “Sure.” His lips pursed in curiosity and he asked a moment later, “Why did you ask?” Please say that it wasn’t along the lines of pity. Kaelan had enough of that to last more than a life time, and if the man said something along those lines, Kaelan would just up and leave. No questions asked. That would be that and he'd then hope that he'd never see the man again. Tags: Shepherd LawlessonInspiration: none obviously Notes: This is short. I have no excuses.
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Post by Shepherd Lawlesson on Jul 15, 2014 19:34:50 GMT
“Nope. Never really been much of a talker. I’d have pegged you the same if not for that rather long explanation.” “I usually am, if I didn’t have to carry the conversation.” Shepherd replied, not really annoyed and a little teasing. He was rather rusty in the conversation department, considering he wasn’t the one to approach people and people didn’t want to approach him either. He was fine with it since he didn’t care for talking to random people but it was okay to do it sometimes. If he was in the mood and didn’t consider it a waste of time.
“Sure. Why did you ask?”
It took a second to let it sink in that Kaelan agreed to him teaching him some defense. Shepherd knew that he had to actually think here. He figured that the lad didn’t want him to say it was for pity, which it wasn’t. He just wanted to help show the kid how to turn a weakness into a great strength.
“I didn't ask this ‘cause I pity you, I asked because I respect you, kid.” He started out, telling the truth and being blunt again.
“To have something like that happen to you and deciding to move on takes a lot of strength. I know something about turning a weakness around on itself, if you hadn’t noticed I don’t exactly have both of my eyes.” Usually he hated drawing any more attention to his eye than it already did. He didn’t like to bring up why he became half blind in the first place. It was a very touchy subject and if someone asks he does get harshly defensive about it. However, it seemed appropriate to bring it up in this situation. He could only hope Kaelan didn’t ask about it.
“Anyway, regardless of everything else, everyone needs defense lessons. Well, in my opinion.” Shepherd paused for a moment then shook his head slightly. “Damn, I really do need to shut up.”
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Post by Kaelan Avallochson on Jul 16, 2014 1:28:52 GMT
Wait… I did just hear what I thought I did… right? Respect me? He respects me? The concept was odd to Kaelan. This man, the battle-hardened warrior who could be doing better things with his time than talking to a Tiro, respected him. How many other people actually respected him? Kaelan didn’t know, but he could guess that it wasn’t many. “-deciding to move on takes a lot of strength. I know something about turning a weakness around on itself, if you hadn’t noticed I don’t exactly have both of my eyes.” Ah, yes, Kaelan had noticed. The scar over the man’s left eye was the main giver-away. What was it like being half blind? Did one actually notice the ever present darkness where their vision used to be, or was it just… nothing? Kaelan wondered how the man lost his eyes, but he knew better than to ask. It was probably a rather touchy subject, just like Kaelan’s arm was to him. The curiosity still remained though. Eh, that was true. Better to be prepared than to not be. Besides, for other people, an extra defense lesson would hurt anything. For Kaelan it would do loads of good. He really needed a defense lesson. “Damn, I really do need to shut up.” Kaelan smiled before he gave a small laugh at the man’s comment. ”Yeah, you really do. Gotta keep that reputation up, right? His smile turned lopsided. “I must say, though, that talking to you isn’t that bad.” Kaelan took a breath, closing his eyes for a moment. He then opened them and let out the breath. ”So are we just going to stand here and talk, or are you going to teach me?”
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