Forums » Fantasy Roleplay » A Time of War [Closed]

With her small head fully emerging from his cloak, hair frazzled, she looked up at him and blinked. "Me? Yes, fine, just... awfully wet. But..." She crawled her way out, skin completely dry. "... Not really anymore." Her clothes were still a bit wet, and wings heavy. But considering the circumstances, it hardly mattered. She was snug against a warm, blanketed body.

Something he said earlier concerned her though. "Wait... Time of war? What do you mean? Is there a war going on?" Having been in the forest several days, and truly only concerning herself with small towns at best, it was easy to see why she was detached.

Coren looked down at the fey in disbelief, but quickly tried to hide it. "Aye. There's been a war going on for some time between Xel and Munriek. It would seem Munriek had a late frost and has caused a famine. Came to Xel looking for land or a trade agreement. They made a deal, but not long after bands of mercenaries started invading towns and farms near their border. Taking their supplies and claiming their land." He explained to Aviere.

He spoke knowledgeably about the topic, as he guided Torch along the path and took a right at a fork in the road, having not passed another living soul since they took off this morning. "Of course, word quickly got back to Torem and the king declared war. Broke off the agreement. Ended all trade and banned travel between the kingdoms."

Aviere held close to Coren as she listened. She was visibly disappointed, able to see why the war happened, and how hardship called for desperate measures... A sad case.

It didn't take much to tell Coren wasn't part of the common soldiery. Armor aside, simply the way he spoke, the way he carried himself... And the give away of all give aways, his knowledge on the actual happenings of the war.

"So where do you play into all of this?" She asked, though she didn't expect an answer... And if she did, it very well might not be an honest one.

Coren thought about the questions for a moment, wondering how to answer. "I'm one of the king's men--been helping to defend the bridge near the border." He shrugged. "Enemy knows that if we lose the bridge we lose access to a majority of the towns that our between the Dem Na Tur River and Munriek. Those towns would be forced to turn to Munriek." He reiterated mostly common knowledge--or more accurately termed common rumors that went through the cities and towns. "It would seem Munriek seeks to make the river the new boundary with Xel." The two countries had been fighting over that area of land for eons, but Xel had maintained control of it through the pass couple of wars.

Aviere shrugged. "Well, what do the people who live there want to do? You'd think they should have some say in what kingdom they'd want to be ruled by." She asked, generally curious how all of this was happening. The affairs of larger folk were foreign to her. Sure, Fey had their own wars and interactions... but they were far more tribal, and often lived very separated from each other. It was a very different way of life than those with kingdoms with borders right against each other.

All the while she was nuzzling her head into his cloak, trying to find a cozy spot. They would be traveling the entire day, after all.

"I'm pretty sure the famine and our Xel's ban on trade with Munriek has won of the support of the commoners." Coren said after a moment. "I know that given the choice between dying in battle or dying due to famine, I would rather go out fighting for my survival and the trying to ensure my country has what it needs to live on for the next generation."

Coren looked down at the fey, adding, "But, that's just me."

Aviere leaned back against him, merely thinking on his words. It was a very different world where a person's life was most threatened by other people. It was difficult to grasp.

She turned herself so she was leaning against him on her side, letting her head rest on his abdomen. “You humans are very strange.” She muttered, mostly to herself. If Coren looked, it would be clear Aviere was curled up, eyes closed, as if she was resting. Though truly, with such a long ride ahead of them, that was exactly her intention.

As per usual whenever Aviere said something, Coren looked down to respond to her--it was clear that he liked to look at people when he talked to them. Upon seeing Aviere resting, he smiled and remained silent, as he guided Torch through the forest path.

As they hit the city, the sound of guards yelling greeted them. Coren's eyes widened as two foot soldiers approached him and asked him to identify himself. At last contact with Torem, there had been no mention of a ban on travelers within the city limits. This news frightened him. Something must of happened.

He recalled the messenger's orders from a week ago and suddenly realized that this was more than coming back into the city for a progress report. Coren had been called back here to defend the city, but from what he didn't know. He looked down at the one of the foot soldiers, realizing that his looks might prove to be a problem now, as he bore more of a resemblance to a Munriek native than a citizen of Xel--even if he was wearing the king's armor. Relief flooded over him when he saw a familiar face.

He tsked at Palmer. "Shouldn't you know your superior by now." He scolded playfully.

Palmer dismissed the criticism with a wave of his hand. "Who's the little one?" He gestured to Aviere.

"Don't worry about her." Coren glanced down at the fey. "She's with me."

Aviere slept soundly the entire trip, nuzzles into warm robes and comforted by the gentle pulse of Torch's footfalls. It took the shouting of the guard to wake her.

At the sight of the garrison questioning them, Aviere leaned further back against Coren, hiding all but her face with his cloak. At the soldier's questioning of her, her heart sank, her eyes went up to Coren with worry. But she was immediately uplifted by his comraderie to her. She let the cloak down, nodding in affirmation. A good feeling indeed.

Palmer continued to look at Aviere for a moment before stepping away from the pair.

Coren brought Torch to a trot as they started through town. The outskirts were a few farms before changing to dirt fields and larger, wood and stone buildings. There were a few men and women lounging around in leather armor sparing or cleaning their weapons.

Coren looked out at the city with a smile. "We are passing through some of the castle's fields and some of the barracks. We'll pass through the slums next before getting into the market." Coren explained some of the surroundings.

Aviere couldn't help but look from left to right, amazed at all the people and buildings around. She had only ever been to small towns, never an entire city. And what was more amazing was just how much city there was left to see. While he hands held fast to the security of Coren's cloak, her head poked out, constantly moving.

After Coren's words, though, her head turned to look upward, cloth held tight to her head in a makeshift hood. "A market? Are there traders in town?" She asked. She'd only ever seen travelling groups of traders. "And what's a slums?" If the culture shock wasn't obvious enough.

As they spoke, the expanses of green started to fade into wooden and stone structures that were used by the guard and military for housing and training purposes before moving into an area of dilapidated houses in tightly packed rows. Some where little more than rotting shacks or crumbling stone structures that served as reminder of some past glory that had faded from memory long ago.

As they had hit the city in the evening, some of the luckier servants and field-hands were mulling about the neighborhood attempting to take care of their own houses, yards, and families. Many of them bore ragged, stained clothes not much different than what Aviere had caught Coren in the night before. "Many of the poorest commoners and peasants live in these kinds of places." He explained. "They serve the nobles and landowners of the city for little to nothing." For the first time during their time together, he sounded disgusted and angry about something.

The tone was something Aviere easily caught onto, and decided not to ask why. Though classism certainly existed in Aviere's small world, certainly not to this degree. This... This was bad.

"Well, when they get older, they'll get to be taken care of, and new younger people will take their place and take care of them, right?" But as she spoke her words, it didn't take much to see there were still many age groups amongst these people. She already hid her head under Coren's cloak in shame, quickly seeing how silly her question was.

Coren remained silent, refusing to admit that many of them would indeed not have anyone to take care of them, if they retired. He'd spent his time among them. It is where he'd found his roots in Torem, but it hadn't taken long before Xel's military had taken notice of him.

He was strange for a peasant, as not many knew how to read and write, yet he'd strolled into town with his fighting gear, his writing material, and his books. With his Northern looks, he'd attracted much unwanted attention, but it seemed it had been a blessing in disguise while the two kingdoms were on good terms. His looks warranted a need to watch him, thus they noticed his skill and quickly recruited him into the military when a war broke out with the East--Na Tur Nom, a savage land filled with bands of highly skilled mercenaries.

"Many count their blessings that they are not among the peasants of this land. Xel and Torem are not exactly kind to the poor. They have little skill and are easily replaced in the eyes of the nobles and royalty." He explained, clearly frustrated with this fact.

Aviere looked saddened as Coren explained. "There's nothing wrong with these people though, right? I mean, they just live here, and not in nice houses, right?" She asked, trying to grasp the situation.

She crossed her arms and threw her head to the side. "Hmphf. We treat our people well. When they get old, they get to have people care for them. After all, they managed to make it to twenty or thirty years old without getting killed or eaten or horribly sick. Might as well learn a thing or two from them and treat them well... They've earned it." She retorted.
"And you people call us the uncivilized tricksy folk... Bah! Looks to me like you humans could learn a thing or two from cultures you don't understand," Aviere certainly meant no offense, though what she said she certainly felt. Fey did have a reputation for wiling larger folk out of their gold and goods. Warranted or not, the truth was most fey, such as Aviere, live in places where contact with any other sentient beings is nonexistent. Such a reputation Aviere only learned she had from dealing with humans living in or on the outskirts of forests after she left home.

"So... If there are rich and poor humans in big cities like these... Where do you play into this?" She asked. She couldn't help but be curious... He was sympathetic towards underprivileged peoples, but yet the armor she saw under his cloak was far too detailed to be that of a commoner.

"The only thing wrong with these people is that they were born without money." Coren sighed. "With the exception of a few, many born to these peasants will carry on the same roles that their parents did: farm hands, housekeepers, miners." He glanced at a little girl helping her mother wash clothes as they passed. "They don't get the opportunity to do much more. Very few have the time or resources to allow their children learn to read, write, or pursue an apprenticeship of some sort.

Coren listened to Aviere talk to about how the fey took care of the old for a moment. "Maybe they could learn something from the fey, but I doubt they'd be willing. Those that hold the power are content with their lives and see peasants and commoners as disposable. They would get no benefit from healing these individuals, so they do nothing. In fact, if anyone were to do something to try to change it, they would most likely wind up on the wrong end of a guillotine." He explained.

"As for me, I am a bit of an exception." He explained. "I'm not from here originally--came here looking for work as a sellsword a few years ago. I found decent enough work here and decided to buy a house. I lived among these commoners and peasants for awhile. Word got around about my services and I was recruited into the army when a war with the East broke out." He went on. "It didn't last long. Just long enough for me to earn a name for myself." As he spoke, they started to pass into the marketplace of Torem. Despite the ban on outsiders, there was still hundreds of people moving throughout the streets. "I was assigned to different jobs within the military."

He paused for a moment, wondering how to continue or wait to tell her, "Eventually, I was given a title and a piece of land for my actions after saving one of the king's daughters from some bandits after her caravan was ambushed. I don't really want for much when I am here." Not that Coren required much.

The King? No wonder Coren seemed to have a fair bit of status. Aviere sat still for a moment. Coren was starting to make more sense as a person.

"So does... Does the King... Ask you for things... Still? Do you live close to the castle? I mean, if there is a castle..." She wasn't sure how to ask. She knew she was making a lot of assumptions based on what she'd learned about humans. "Are... Are we going to see a castle? I've never seen one in person..."

Coren chuckled at Aviere's inquiry. "I can't say the king's ever asked me for anything." He explained. "That day I rescued the princess was just a matter of being in the right place at the right time. He awarded me the title and land regardless as a sign of his gratitude."

He glanced towards the tall steeples of the castle, wondering if he would have to go there for any reason. "As for the castle, I've only been once or twice myself. Both times were for these horrid balls they have. For one of them, I provided protection for the nobles, while the next time I was in attendance myself--I'd much rather be in the confines of my own home."

He glanced at Aviere at the mention of his home, for the first time realizing he wouldn't be able to enjoy the solitude and privacy it usually provided. He shrugged it off though--he spent months on the front line with pretty much no privacy. Not like there was much he could do about it, a fey staying anywhere else would raise questions of where she'd come from, and that was one question a person didn't want to be asked when there was a ban on foreign entities in Xel.

All of this was so new and exciting to her... a complete other culture, all in one place. Her head was turning here and there as the city began to look every little bit more prestigious.

Aviere's eyes went wide at the mention of the ball. So they were real... "A ball? People dressed up? And dancing? With music?" But his reaction simply made it clear she would be going to no such thing. She cleared her throat. "Yes, I assume they have those in castles, that makes sense." Still... she couldn't help but wonder. "... do... do you know if there's going to be a ball soon?" It didn't even matter if Coren would be there... Aviere would be happy to sneak in alone, if she had to.

As Coren moved into the more lavish parts of the city passed the marketplace and more houses, he guided Torch off the main street. He glanced at Aviere chuckling at the question, "I haven't been in the city for many months. I can't say if there is a ball happening at the castle. Times of war don't make for a time of celebration." He became more serious towards the end of his answer. "However, if there is to be one, it will be the talk of the town. You would know by the end of the day once the invitations go out." Most of the time, Coren declined his own invitation to the ball.

After a few more moments of travel, Torch started to became antsy. The house speeding up on its own accord upon heading off the road towards a stable behind an elegant manor surrounded by lines of weeping willows. It had a white porch that went around the entire house with a balcony coming off of one of the upstairs rooms. The house itself was made of stone which glistened in the evening sun.