Fable - Ask No Trouble

[Ivan Skender]

- "So, capturing and dragging a relentless undead through an unfamiliar, unforgiving terrain?" - He asked rhetorically. - "Easy work." -

He stretched lazily.

- "The thing is," - He said as he glanced down the narrow gorge they were taking shelter in, as if though he expected the zombie to burst out of the rising darkness at any moment. - "if that was necromancy, I have never seen it applied like this." - He ran his hand through his hair, a pensive look on his face. - "Usually the necromancer stands within a certain distance of the undead he raises." -

Provided, he wasn't an expert in necromancy. As Ollie had correctly reasoned, necromancy was not all that common in Vel Anir, which meant that the blonde's experience with it was rather minimal but, from what he'd seen, whoever pulled the strings of the undead tended to stay relatively close to its risen soldiers, to hold their binding steady. Back in Ostgoth, however...

- "I don't know about you, but I haven't seen anyone anywhere near the zombie." - He glanced again down the valley. - "Which leads me to think that either someone back in Vel Anir imbued your living bodyguard with a charm powerful enough to take effect half-way across the world, or," - Another glance down the road.

- "the zombie's not the only one we need to worry about." -​

 

[Olvir]

Ollie didn't know a lot about magic, in fact he knew next to nothing about magic. That was why they were on this damned quest in the first place; to find out about his magic sword.

This added complication was not something he wanted, or particularly needed. Regardless of why they were here, the trouble they were dealing with was magical, and of the two of them Ivan was the expert. Unlike other Noble's, Ollie wasn't fool enough not to listen to the experts when he had them around to listen to.

”Either way.” The young noble contended. ”Shitty for us.”

They were in the dark with less than half of what they needed to know. The only bit of information they did have connected back to his family, which in it of itself did not help them much. Not out here. They needed to know more, whether it was just one assailant, two, or even twenty.

A frown touched his features, and then he pursed his lips. ”I'm going to have to be bait.”

Ollie declared. Realizing that whoever was behind all of this, even if it likely was his cousin, would be after him.

”We double time it to Tyr.” He declared. ”Then we try to draw them in.”

In the city they would have options. Taverns to disappear into, Inns to move around to, crowds they could use for cover. Trying to start a fight out here would be the death of them both. He was sure of it.

 

[Ivan Skender]

He furrowed his brow.

- "You want to fight them in close quarters?" - He asked. To draw their assailants to Tyr seemed a misguided proposition to him. - "In Tyr, it would be easy for them to move around unseen. To stab you before you even see it coming." -

There were many ways to move around in a city while concealed... even if one just happened to be an undead zombie with a slit throat. Amongst the crowds, an assailant could carry swords, blades, arrows, whatever; no one would bat an eye until it was too late to stop.

- "Out here, at least we can see them coming from a distance." - He continued. - "You'll have a fair warning... if you keep your eyes peeled. In the city, even if you're always on high alert, there's always the chance of something hiding behind a corner, or beneath a stand." -

He stretched again, this time falling on his back over his sleeping mat.

- "But let's do as you prefer." - He said, as he stifled a yawn. - "Because, you're lucky to have the best bodyguard in existence." -

Plus, if they drew their assassins to Tyr - whoever they may be - then they wouldn't have to... well... carry them to Tyr, which sounded like a fantastical proposition.​

 

[Olvir]

”But we're also not exposed, out in the open, with both the weather and enemy breathing down our backs. We might be able to see them coming, but they can find us just as easily.” Ollie batted back, though he would openly admit Ivan had a point. The city had its own dangers, but at the very least it offered it's protections too. Out here their trail could be followed, in Tyr they could play cat and mouse.

Granted, neither of them knew the place well, but he highly doubted that their foe knew it any better.

Still, it was a city, and a city meant people. He and Ivan could blend in among the crowd and make their play. Truth was, both options had their advantages and disadvantages, but Ollie knew cities better. He was a noble, and most of his education, even In fighting and warfare had been shaped around a metropolis rather than a field.

Mostly because no one had ever expected him to lead any armies, including himself.

Ollie took a breath, shifting as he leaned his sword against his shoulder as Ivan acquiesced. A small smile plucked at his lips, glad that he wouldn't have to argue any more. If Ivan had pressed, he might have agreed. When he'd started this journey by telling Ivan they would be equals, he had meant it. Despite this new complication.

”Yeah, yeah.” He said, then chuckled. ”Seems like the greatest bodyguard in the world is a bit sleepy though, eh?”

The noble jested with a laugh. ”I'll take first watch. Get some rest.”

Ivan had saved his life.

 

[Ivan Skender]

- "Me, sleepy? Don't be ridiculous now." - He said as he stretched on top of his mat. - "I still have the senses of a hawk, and the perception of a--" - He had to stifle another yawn at the end of that sentence.

- "But I'll take the second watch, yes." - He conceded.

He lay on his back for a few moments. Above, he could see the clear night skies of Sheketh, with its million stars shining brightly against the dark backdrop of the space beyond. They looked so vivid and bright, when compared to Vel Anir, with many clustering together in ranges of silver light, dyeing those stretches of empty sky between them in a purple hue.

Slowly, as he gazed at the sight above him, he drifted off to sleep.​

 

[Olvir]

Ollie smiled, shifting his sword and leaning against the cave wall as he settled down for the evening.

Luckily, their pursuer did not show up during the night, and it was a few hours later that he woke Ivan for his turn. After the night, they set off at an extraordinary pace, their trek thrown into overdrive as they made their way to Tyr.

Though it still took them several days journey through the mountain, the two Anirians made good time. Exhaustion would cloud the both of them, but less than a week after the attack at the spa the landscape around them began to change once more. As they left the mountains the snows began to disappear, and the ground turned to volcanic stone and ash.

It was not long after that the great rivers of flame into view, and near the dusk of their final day, Tyr itself pulled up on the horion.

"Oh thank fuck." Olvir declared, his face covered in a thin layer of soot, his clothes soiled from the dirt of their journey.

Ahead of them the black city loomed, it's great fields of wheat and other crops set out between rivers of magma. In the distance he could make out flickers of other travelers, merchants and the like traveling just as they were. "Lets get down there and find a tavern."

Then they could draw up a plan.

 

[Ivan Skender]

The mention of a tavern woke him up from the utter rapturing the city of Tyr had ensconced him in. It was one thing to hear of it, but quite another to witness it first-hand. The slow flowing magma, the black stone, and the tilled fields all around seemed to come together in a sort of brutal harmony; that of a people which had utterly mastered its environment. It all seemed natural and unnatural at the same time.

He felt as though there was something else at work here beyond the breath-taking scenery.

- "Let's go then." - He patted Ollie in the shoulder. - "Kress knows you need a bath." -

He started to walk once again, a light fog of ash clouding those last stretches of land that still separated them from their objective.

- "Do you think we'll find answers here?" - He asked. - "For your assassin or your blade." -​

 

[Olvir]

As they began to make their way down the long winding road towards the city Olvir shrugged in answer to Ivan's question. "I think with two problems we have a better shot at solving at least one."

It was a joke, of course, but it was also true in a way.

For Ollie, this trip to Tyr had been about finding out the secrets of his sword, but it had also been meant to take him away from Vel Anir for a little while. Things back home were always busy, complicated, and a month on a trek like was as much about relaxing as it was about actually finding out a solution.

Of course, now there wouldn't be much relaxing. "Either way, I figure it's a good shot. There's a smith here we'll see first thing tomorrow morning. Names Othric."

One could almost call the man world famous, though only to those who knew swords well.

"If anyone here knows something about this." Ollie said tapping his blade. "It'll be him."

Ollie finished, only to hear a ringing in his ears. No he won't.

The sword said, speaking for the first time in days. A roll of Olvir's eyes was his only response, though he had no idea if the blade could perceive such a thing.


Before long, Ollie and Ivan passed through the city gates. The great doors flanked by two massive Death Watch Ogre's dressed in black and green laminate armor. Their blades almost as big as Olvir himself, their eyes following the steady stream of travelers with a watchful caution. "Kress."

Ollie breathed as they stepped into the city proper. "Imagine dueling one of them."

He mused.

 

[Ivan Skender]

"Imagine dueling one of them."​

- "Easy." - He said, glancing up-and-down at the statuesque ogres that stood by the great gate. He'd meant it too. As he well knew, getting into a duel with a guard was easy enough. Winning said duel? Well, that would be slightly more difficult. Even for someone with his outstanding prowess.

- "Okay, so Othric tomorrow." - He echoed Ollie. - "But for today, after we find some good accommodation, I think some shopping's in order, no?" - He flashed a smile at his friend. - "I still got plenty of that Academy gold to splurge, and Kress knows that I've been needing a new suit of armour." -

His smile then turned perceptibly mischievous.

- "Of course that, if you prefer to stay indoors, I'm sure we can find some charitable ladies to share in our woes." - Kress also knew how he needed to get laid after this sojourn in Sheketh. Weiroon had been of absolutely no help in that front.​

 

[Olvir]

"Happily engaged." Ollie reminded Ivan with two quick words, not really all that interested in going carousing.

Armor though? Now that was something that he could get behind. Tyr was well known for their method of making blades, but they didn't exactly slack in the department of armor if those Ogre's were anything to go by. They just had to find the right place to buy.

"We'll get you some armor instead of tail." He told Ivan, flashing him a grin. "Maybe a decent set of clothes too."

Though his own were a matted mess, he hardly thought that Ivan had any sort of formal wear. Not anything to call his own anyway. The Academy wasn't exactly free and open with the uniforms their Initiate's wore, but his father had always said that every man should own a suit. The man hadn't been right about a lot of things, but Ollie was fairly sure that one hit the mark.

With a nudge, he motioned towards what appeared to be a large open market square. A bridge extending out in front of them that lead directly towards in. "Come on, I think I see something."

Ollie told Ivan, heading towards a shop decorated with the sign of goblins hand holding a needle and thread.

 

[Ivan Skender]

"We'll get you some armor instead of tail."​

- "Yeah, yeah." - He said with an eye roll, at his cockblocking friend. - "Engagements are fickle, getting laid is forever." - He added slyly.

- "Clothes?" - He enquired. Interesting. Though Ivan did not, in fact, have much in the way of formal attire, when he had set out from Vel Anir, he hardly thought he'd end up going on a clothing shopping spree in Tyr. - "Sure?" - He replied, though fully unsure about whether he actually meant the word.

He followed Ollie towards the tailor, stopping on the street, just outside the signal. He glanced up at it. Having been raised in Vel Anir his whole life, Ivan was still fully imbued with that good old-fashioned Anirian prejudice against other races. Walking into a shop that seemed to be owned by the famously shady goblins seemed like a great way to get scammed.

- "Are you sure about this?" -​

 

[Olvir]

Olvir moved through the entrance of the shop, picking up one of the arms of a suit which was hanging on a rack. "Absolutely."

The young Noble said as he drew his fingers along the seam within the clothes. The smile on his face widening as he felt the stitching.

"This is high quality." He told Ivan as they stepped inside, the smell of incense lingering in the air. On the walls hung different styles of clothes, everything from adventuring gear to more of the well made suits. Olvir let out a quiet whistle. "You can always tell from the stitching."

A noble education ensured Ollie knew such things.

The quality of ones clothes was often reflective of the quality of the man, or so many in the uppercrust of society believed. "No where i-"

Before Ollie could finish, an older, almost ancient looking Goblin stepped out from behind a low counter. His fingers were ancient, and yet flickered with dexterity over what Ollie assumed was a pair of trousers currently being hemmed in. "Good evening, Ser's."

The Goblin said in perfect common. "May I help you?"

 

[Ivan Skender]

With a sigh, he followed Ollie inside. He still wasn't all that sure about this. The seemingly non-human ownership of the store aside, there was something odd - and not in the good way - about him going shopping for a suit. Armour and swords? Tons of fun to try out and compare. A set of suits for some boring gala or fancy dinner in Vel Anir? Well, he didn't actually know. It was not as if anyone had ever taken him shopping for such a thing before, but somehow, he doubted it would be as fun.

As they entered the store, he resigned to follow Ollie around, a blank expression on his face as his friend commented on the seeming high quality of the fabric. He harboured his suspicions.

Never trust non-humans.

That was when their "host" arrived.

He raised his brow at the sight of the goblin. Truly a wonder they hadn't been scammed or robbed yet. Indeed, he'd been half-expecting that half-a-dozen of the crooked bastards would jump at them with knifes the second they had entered into the store.

- "My friend here believes I need a suit." - He said dryly. - "If you could, mayhap, find me something that doesn't make me look like his grandfather," - He continued, pointing with his chin to Ollie. - "I think I'd like to try it." - ​

 

[Olvir]

The goblin did not seem at all bothered by the curt way in which Ivan spoke to him. "Ah, yes, something modern."

He said as he began to quickly move over towards Ivan, glancing at Olvir for just a brief moment.

The noble son noted that the Goblin never commented on either of their state. There was no word about how they dressed, no guessing at who they were or how much money they had. This man was a person of business. He did not assume anything about his customers, simply did the work that he was asked to do.

If ever there was a mark of quality this was it. Wealth did not sing or scream, it walked in silence. This man knew that, and read the two of them like a book.

"Neither of you are Tyrian." The goblin observed. "Perhaps you can tell me the style you are most after?"

The tailor asked, glancing up at Ivan. "Allirian."

Olvir answered before Ivan could. Knowing that his less...noble friend, might not know what was in style at the moment.

As much as Vel Anir liked to think that it set the trend, it was not true in the least. Those in fashion chose the Allirian cut, and within a few months time their decisions bled out to the rest of the world. It was not his homeland who set the standard, Olvir knew that.

"Something thin, close to the chest." The Noble dictated. "We'll need a quick turn around."

He contended, pulling a purse free from his cloak. "Is that alright?"

Without a single word the Goblin seemed to gauge the coin Olvir had flashed, and with a smile as he tok another step towards Ivan responded; "Oh yes. More than fine, Sir."

 

[Ivan Skender]

- "Allirian?" - He questioned. Well, he couldn't complain too much about that one, he supposed. He could guess that if Ollie had asked for an Anirian cut instead, the poor Goblin would've tried to slap a piece of armour on him.

- "Fine." - He said, walking in front of a mirror. - "Measure away." -

A few moments were all it took for the goblin to clad him head-to-toe in an elegantly-fitted black suit. The material felt nice, certainly better than with any other garment he'd had throughout his years at the Academy, and the stitching felt... fine? okay? Did even matter anyways? Or had Ollie just tried to pompously one-up him before?

Anyways, for all it's quality, the suit's cut had one glaring flaw:

- "Now I just look like his grandfather." - He said dryly. Too lose. How were the girls supposed to see his muscles and well-toned physique underneath these airbags?​

 

[Olvir]

"That's what tailoring is for." Ollie said, getting up on the podium so that the Goblin could give him the same treatment as Ivan.

"Trust me." The Noble said. "It's just part of the process, in the end, the Ladies will flock to you."

In his experience, a well tailored suit was almost better than being undressed.

Within short order, the Goblin had his measurements. A suit was then quickly thrown over him and within minutes of that the tailor began to quickly tuck, shift, and move the material. Using small pins to take everything in place and mark where it would need to be sown.

By the end, the two lads almost could have mistaken themselves for pin cushions. Yet true to what Ollie had said, the look of both suits was impeccably slim. Clinging and extenuating lines of muscles and form. As they looked in the mirrors ahead of them, Ollie only gave Ivan a smirk.

"Tomorrow morning, I should think." The Goblin said with a pleased smile. "If you are satisfied, of course."

The man continued, looking up at Ollie and Ivan.

 

[Ivan Skender]

- "Mhmm," - He replied, doing his utmost to seem unconvinced. Truth was though, that he did look good on the suit. The tailored cut, the elegant design, and even the sombre colours all came together to create this dignified, yet very much stylish, look. When he gazed at himself in the mirror, he felt very much like Lord Skender. A feeling he couldn't say he'd felt very often before.

Heh, not bad for a goblin.

- "Very satisfied," - He told the salesman. - "We'll be back tomorrow morning for the suits then." - He continued, as he dressed out of his blazer. After that, it wasn't long until he was back in his travelling clothes, and only a few moments later, he was walking out of the store.

- "Well, now that we probably shelled enough to feed the Anirian army for a year," - He told Ollie smugly on his way out the door. - "where to next?" - ​

 

[Olvir]

Ollie chuckled as the two Anirians stepped back out of to the street. "I'd say let's find a place to rest our weary heads."

The Noble said, already peering around the market square for something that might resemble a hotel or tavern. He'd brought enough gold with him to buy a House if they needed, but the option seemed ostentatious beyond belief. Besides, he'd prefer to be someplace where others frequented. For all they knew he was still being hunted, and disappearing into a throng of people was still the best option in Ollie's mind.

"Maybe some place with one of those Ogres." Ollie joked as he began to set off. Moving through the crowd and stopping every now and again as he asked a question of a vendor. Eventually his small interrogations narrowed down their destination.

Tyr was not short of Taverns it seemed, and luckily for the two of them it was not short of luxury either. The famed black city was a frequent host to merchants of all different runs, many of them almost as wealthy as the Minor Houses back home, and it seemed that folk in the east craved luxury just as much as those in the west. In the end, Ivan and Ollie were pointed to one hotel in particular; The Red Makara.

A huge and imposing building made of black stone, surrounded by a fence of steel, and yet upon its ground sprung a garden unlike any Ollie had ever seen before. Strange twisting trees and oddly colorful vines decorated their path as they made their way towards the hotels doors, a few other guests sitting on benches or enjoying afternoon teas. "I think this'll do."

Ollie mused as they stepped inside, the two boys quickly finding their way to the front desk. Renting one of the suites, and not soon after finding themselves sitting inside their new accomodations, five floors up from the ground with a view of Tyr's main harbor. The rivers of red magma casting a pale light on the black city even as the sun began to fall.

"We'll head to the Smith tomorrow." Ollie said as he leaned back into the plush fabric of the sofa. "Then, maybe, we try to get some answers for our other problem..."

He continued, though more to himself than Ivan.

 

[Ivan Skender]

"Maybe some place with one of those Ogres."​

- "Oh ye of little faith..." - He quipped back in spotless High Anirian. Though he couldn't precise the context, this was a verse he remembered hearing from a preacher of Vel Stratholm. - "Why do you doubt your devoted protector so?" - He continued, sounding rather melodramatic, before his features settled into a playful smile.

Nonetheless, he tagged along with Ollie until they found the Red Makara.

That the place was exotic to his Anirian eyes was not surprising, though the fact that the lodge had caught his attention for long enough to make him pay attention to bloody architecture was much more so. As they strolled inside, he couldn't help but wonder at the place; the dark blacks and reds, the alien garbs of the guests, and even twisted vines gave the Makara a surreal atmosphere, almost as though he was walking into a dream.

- "I still don't quite know how we'll find a single assailant in this huge city." - He would tell Ollie in their new room as he stood by the balcony, his gaze fixed on the slow-flowing magma rivers below, the whole palette of reds, oranges and yellows from both the lava and the sunset painting a brutal, yet peaceful picture for the young initiate.

- "But we can try." -

He turned his back to the window, and walked back inside.

- "And in the meantime, what shall we do?" -

Olvir ​

 

[Olvir]

Ollie lounged on one of the deep sofas in their new suite. His head tipped back over the back of the plush cushioning the sword leaning besides him. As Ivan stepped back from the balcony, the young noble took in a deep breath, considering the weight of the day still ahead of him. ”If my cousin wants me dead, the assailant will find me.”

He said softly, though Ivan was right.

They couldn't just sit around and do nothing. There was too much at stake, and too much they didn't know.

”This shit used to happen all the time, you know.” The noble mused out loud, more talking to himself than to Ivan. He had no idea about how much the Initiate knew of the noble culture before the rebellion. How dark it had been beneath the surface of gold and gild. ”Assassination attempts and the like, it usually came from other houses though.”

The Noble said, shaking his head. ”Guess things really haven't changed that much.”

Teeth sunk into his lower lip, his thoughts drawing to the problem at hand. Tyr was a place of intrigue and mystery in its own sort of way, that much Olvir knew. The place has a history as rich as Vel Anir, and it also had its own magical traditions.

A frown pulled at the young nobles lips as the thought entered his mind. His eyes flickering open as he turned his head to look towards Ivan. ”Maybe we can engage in some noble diplomacy.”

He mused.

”It couldn't hurt to make some friends.” Particularly ones with money and power.