Private Tales Legacy of the Damned

[Afanas]

Akiza Sonshal
Tarzyn inclined his head and bowed out, his pallid, almost corpse-like skin glistening faintly with a sickly hue, and his milky eyes glinting with malicious amusement. He sauntered over to Afanas and with a slow, deliberate motion, he reached up—his long, bony fingers curling around the shoulder of the much taller man before him.

The height difference made the gesture almost surreal, like a goblin claiming dominion over a giant. Afanas tensed slightly, but said nothing. There was a chill in the air, not from the temperature, but from the unnatural aura that seemed to seep from the smaller figure’s very pores.

Tarzyn turned his back to Akiza and Jürgen. Afanas, for whatever reason, followed suit, shuffling towards the crowd, his steps matching Tarzyn's.

Tarzyn leaned in closer, lips curling into a grin that didn't quite reach his eyes, and a rasping chuckle ensued—low and slow, like the grinding of tombstones.

"Tell me, young one… is it true that your sire seeks to hew a kingdom from the savage heart of that forsaken wild—Malakath, was it? A most curious folly, if so..."

Afanas stared down at the half-bald vampire.

"That is indeed true, but I do not see what that has to do with this bargain of yours."

"Patience, child, patience... These withered lands weary me so. It is my fervent wish to quit this blighted continent and find solace where the air is less foul with time’s rot. Should you find it in your tender heart to whisper my name favorably to your noble father—ah, that venerable man—then I shall grant you full liberty with the faerie woman. Do with her as you will... I care not, so long as my passage is secured."

Afanas grunted, then sneered derisively.

"Exceedingly generous of you. To offer your cherished possession in exchange for mere words... Were I a shade more mistrustful, I'd suspect some darker intent behind such magnanimity."

 

[Akiza Sonshal]

"What incredible timing," Akiza mused, ever so gently inserting herself into the exchange between Afanas and Tarzyn.

And to the latter more specifically: "You just happening to be here at the right time."

And then back over to Afanas: "Must be your lucky day."

Now Akiza didn't fully know the subtleties lurking beneath this burgeoning deal between the two men. Afanas's father seeking to establish his own kingdom in Malakath seemed quite grand. How Tarzyn knew Afanas's father? Anyone's guess. Guardedness defined Afanas's stance towards him, that much was for sure.

But the thing which struck Akiza the most was, as she said, the timing. Tarzyn apparently knew Afanas would be here.

Luck probably didn't have anything to do with it.

Afanas

 

[Afanas]

Akiza Sonshal

Tarzyn’s sneer slithered across his face like a shadow slipping across stone.

“Luck?” he rasped, voice low and textured like dry parchment. “I haven’t relied on that fickle thing since your great-grandmother’s bones were still soft.”

He took a step forward, the candlelight glinting faintly off his unnaturally pale features, sharp and drawn long with age and something not quite living. “No, girl. I knew the boy would be here because I listen. I watch. There are eyes stitched into birdsong and ears carved into the bark of dead trees-my eyes, my ears." His lip curled, revealing the faint glint of upper fangs.

Tarzyn's eyes narrowed, all glossy and milk white, mottled, too corpse-like for comfort. Promptly, he twisted his time-wearied head to gaze at Akiza.

​

"And who are you to make such implications, anyway? His woman?"

 

[Akiza Sonshal]

To her ears which still could recall the customs and sayings of her homeland, "his woman" sounded like a discordant note in a symphony, harsh and grating. But, as before, she played into it.

"Yes," she said, and flatly so, as though it were no stunning observation. And then she shrugged and added coolly, "I'm just nosy."

Which was true. To a certain extent. Alright, to a rather large extent. All of this between Afanas and Tarzyn, this matter of Fae hostages and Malakath and ambitious kingdoms truly was none of her business. Having done with her actual business here Akiza could take her leave of Reikhurst at any time. Ah, but that nosiness.

There was still some of that subtle dread of Tarzyn she and many of the other vampires in the King's hall felt. But for better or for worse Akiza felt secure enough in her company and in her locale to be something of a nuisance to Tarzyn.

Afanas

 

[Afanas]

Akiza Sonshal

Afanas shot her a puzzled glower, but decided against chastising her. Akiza had her reasons for being nosey, that much he was sure of, but her curiosity didn't phase him. No harm, no foul in it.

"We are but passing shadows in each other's tale, no deeper bond than courtesy allows. Yet know this—should you presume to treat her as chattel or churl, I will answer in kind, and my blade hungers for justice no less than souls."

Afanas's fingers twitched, a reflex honed by countless encounters where a moment's hesitation could mean the difference between life and death. His hand hovered near his weapon, not in overt threat, but in readiness—a silent acknowledgment of the potential for violence that simmered beneath the surface.

In response, the corners of Tarzyn's mouth pulled downwards, revealing jagged teeth that glinted ominously against his withered gums.

"Trammel your butcher's impulse, boy. Steel shall not sing within the shadow of King Jürgen’s hall. And you, pale girl… I veil nothing from your gaze, nor from any curious eyes. Yet tell me… what draws you to pry? Do you too seek passage across the black waters?"