Quest Reliving the Tales

[Weylin Kyrel]

Weylin was seriously confused by this woman. He never claimed to be the most socially perceptive, but it was impossible knowing what she wanted. Could be she just hated him but the thought of seeing a real giant was causing her curiosity to overpower her loathing. As for the man, if he wasn't using a bow then what was he shooting? There was no spear on him or throwing hatchets. Could he had a sling hidden in his clothes? That was probably it. Slings were pretty effective in skilled hands after all. He once watched one of the shepherd boys kill a bear with two stones using only a sling. It was impressive and something he could never pull off with arrows. If this person was that good then it made him feel a little better.

They began to walk down the road heading for the giants' camp and he expected what he usually would hear. He expected the low hush of the river as it flowed not far away. He expected the rustling of leaves and needles as the wind swept through trees. He expected to hear the calls and patter of animals as they went about in their hidden places. He expected the wilds. Instead he got humming and a song. It was one he had never heard before too. It was pleasant and she was good at it. Was this what it was like when city folk traveled?

Weylin paused for a moment. He glanced back at Rainie and said, "Pretty. Thank you for the song." With that he continued on fully expecting the usual wilds to return after that treat of a new experience. He didn't expect anything more than a 'you're welcome' then silence. He didn't really know what to expect though anymore after everything.

Weylin's mind drifted back towards what his two new companions could do. They didn't seem like hunters or sheriffs or guards to him. He would think they were merchants or owned a tavern, but she had already gotten upset at the idea of that. He honestly wasn't sure what they were. All he knew was they weren't married and.... Actually, he didn't know that for certain. He had assumed it when she said companion instead of husband but what if people from the city just didn't call each other that around strangers. They certainly were strange enough to him already so it could be possible. Maybe that was why she was upset earlier. It was because he didn't realize she was someone's wife.

It took him a moment but eventually Weylin glanced back at Faurosk and asked, "You two are married yes? And you are a merchant or own a tavern? As nice as your clothes are I'm not sure what else you could be." Alright. He had fixed it. Now she would forgive him for not noticing sooner and he was not being so awkward.

 

[Faurosk]

The wilderness always served as a strange sort of sanctuary throughout Faurosk's life. Having spent much of his time slumming in the outer Alliria, or reading by candlelight in what must have been the mustiest parts of the city's archives, the ever-changing air of the outside world served as a great reprieve to the foul play his lungs had suffered for far too long. The sights and sounds of the woods had always delighted him whenever his travels took him this far beyond the hold of city life.

While he had similarly come accustomed to these peaceful walks being accompanied by Rainie's singing over the past few weeks, he was still pleasantly surprised when her humming developed into a full blown song. His pace slowed to match a cut-time beat of the tempo at which she sang, and he couldn't help but take in the atmosphere that had been developed over such a short time. When her singing came to its end, he spoke a quiet compliment to no one in particular. "Lovely as always."

He maintained that same rhythmic trot as the group went on in silence. Letting his mind wander, he found himself reflecting on how his life had changed since he decided to leave the College. He had freedoms, now- More than he could count, and oftentimes more than he could ever use. He'd made a few friends since he'd left, too, chief among them being the lady he now found himself walking beside. Why, the joy he felt at the retrospect of it all nearly made him wish to break out into song, though he managed to keep this urge locked up deep, deep inside.

His pace faltered and stumbled, however, as he was asked a question from far out of left field.

"You two are married, yes?"

"Oh, ah... Well, y'see..." He trailed off from his attempted answer, gesticulating his hands uselessly into three different contortions, none of which elucidated the situation any more than the last. Instead, he decided to focus on the second, less awkward question.

"Oh, we're no merchants, no... Just travelers. Or, I am. I mean, ah, Rainie here has the charisma to own a tavern, but, yeah, no, just wanderers. Vagabonds... Me, though, I'm between jobs at the moment." He interlaced his fingers a few times, as if trying his hardest to symbolize the word 'synergy' with nothing but somatic gestures. "You know, frictional unemployment is pretty rough these days, and, well, when you go from place to place, ah... Well, you get it."

He seemed contented by the verbal dysentery he'd just presented as an answer, pursing his lips in an attempt to shut himself up.

 

[Rainie]

Rainie lagged behind for a moment, and deftly reached up to tie the feathered leather necklace around the base of her braided hair, at the nape of her neck. When she caught back up to Faurosk, her hood was up.

...It would be safest there.

She was becoming more and more content with their current situation as they walked. She was used to being around nature, of course, with how much she traveled, but obviously preferred the comfort of a soft bed to sleeping rough. Now, she took a moment and admired the nature around her. She really loved the sight of the mountains with their speckled white peaks. She wished she could paint, if only to capture how beautiful they were.

"You two are married, yes?"

Faurosk tripped over his own feet. Before she could help it, Rainie snorted most unattractively. She had a hand over her mouth in a flash, as she was biting hard on her lips to keep from smiling, and it wasn't working at all. She didn't say a word, only looked up at her poor wizard expectantly.

He couldn't get an answer out. No confirmation, no denial.

Perfect.

And then Faurosk started babbling. Rainie was vibrating with restrained laughter. The mage was muttering about vagabonds and frictional unemployment, whatever that meant, and Rainie was going to lose her mind. Her mind was racing with possibilities, eyes dancing with something mildly malicious.

"Well, you get it," Faurosk finally finished.

Rainie finally smiled, full of mischief, and looked up at poor Faurosk. "I'm not sure he got it. Maybe you could explain more..." She suggested. And then her eyes flashed and she looked positively evil. "Dear."

Before he could reply, she affected a dramatic air and said, quite in character, "You know, I've been meaning to ask you something." She looked tragically off into the middle distance. In a loud, tortured voice she cried, "Why don't you touch me anymore?! Am I so unattractive to you?" She gasped. "Is there someone else?!"

In the back of her head she wondered if Weylin's charm would protect her from fireballs.

 

[Weylin Kyrel]

Well Weylin was back to being utterly confused. Faurosk just kept on babbling about them not being merchants or tavern owners or anything of the likes then some words he didn't understand. The older man seemed to be trying to catch clouds. All Weylin knew was that if he didn't say yes then it was a no given the subject. He felt kind of bad about it now, and it didn't get any better when Rainie started to tease him. Poor guy. Maybe something should be done about it....

He just decided against it. The two were travel companions so surely this happened all the time. It was nothing unusual for them. Hopefully. Instead of focusing on that, he decided to pay attention to the two of them more closely. He needed a better idea of what his new companions were like. Faurosk clearly was as straight forward as Weylin himself. That was good. But there was still that mystery of what he was so good at. The sling idea was still the front runner as most likely. Judging from the way he spoke though there was a chance he might be a skald or something similar.

Rainie was turning into more of a creature of instinct. It seemed her whims were her guide and that wasn't such a bad thing. She did seem to have a cruel streak in her though based on the two's interaction. He could guess for the guy on what he might have been in the past, but placing her was still impossible. She could really be anything, but the reference to her charisma made him wonder if the tavern owner theory wasn't so off. If she wasn't an owner or the wife an owner then maybe she was the daughter of one and things just ended badly with her parents. Maybe they tried to marry her off to a violent man so she ran away. That wasn't unusual. It was just too hard to say. He did notice her hood was up though and he couldn't see the necklace on her. Was she hiding it?

Weylin was feeling a little playful himself listening to them. It had been awhile since he had honestly spent time around someone his own age. With a slight smirk he said, "You are definitely not unattractive. Maybe his interest is just not in women. Maybe it is in big, hairy lumberjacks. The Spine is full of them." And with that he just continued on. White just tagged along beside him with her ears on the two strangers but not in the very alert way it was before. It had been awhile since she had heard that tone in her human's voice after all.

 

[Faurosk]

Faurosk's head snapped over to look at Rainie as she started speaking, and his eyes pleaded with her. "Not now," they said, "This poor bastard doesn't know how crazy you are, yet."

One could almost see the hope that this would be a normal 'adventure' drain from his eyes as her "Dear" passed into his ear. Never before had a term of endearment been weaponized against the poor mage, and he had no idea how to react. His mouth hung open, and nothing more than a slight wheeze of air escaped his lungs before she cut him off with a tirade about lost love and adultery. He went red in the face at her mock accusations in spite of himself. "Travelling the world wouldn't be half so sweet if not in your company, my lo--"

His attempt at guilt tripping his companion, however, was cut off. Cut off by a joke poking fun at the mage's occasionally foppish nature.

Oftentimes, he found himself wondering... Wondering if he'd focused more on performing. Perhaps he'd be a great bard by this point, showered in wealth and riches and women. A pleasant fantasy, yes, but the opportunity felt like it was so far gone that the idea wasn't even worth thinking about. What if, like his mother before him, he'd gotten into the trades? Lived a modest yet successful life. Maybe he would have had a family. Met someone, settled down, had a couple kids. But it would seem that the ship had already left port without him.

So why was it that he'd decided to become a wizard?

It wasn't for the power, no. While it was nice to see the way brigands avoided him like the plague, fearful of what arcane might he could summon with a bare thought, it was never the power that had drawn him to the profession.

It certainly wasn't the money, either. What few grants the College had given him over the years quickly evaporated into further research as well as the development of his own repertoire of tricks and miracles.

So, one must ask again, why did he commit his life so wholeheartedly to the arcane?

Well, it was for moments like this, of course.

The mage casually reached back, putting up a great show of being distressed over the situation. One hand reached to the back of his neck, ruffling what locks fell far enough to be reached with ease. His other hand reached before halfway between himself and Rainie, gesticulating about to draw attention back to himself. "Quite funny, you two. Quite funny, indeed... But what do you call a little fly in a suit of platemail?"

A smirk dawned faintly across his features, and a light lilt of enchantment came out into his voice as he began casting a spell through verbal components alone.

"A gnat--" Already, the two targets of his twinned spell, Rainie and Weylin, might feel their facial muscles tense up ever so slightly in anticipation of the punchline.

"--in shining--" For some reason, everything just seemed so FUNNY all of a sudden! Knee-slappingly, laughter-inducingly humorous!

"--armor." As the last word left his throat, the spell was complete- Known to most arcane students as "Hideous Laughter", this particular incantation was quite the popular spell among apprentices. Oftentimes, it would be used to send someone into an uncontrollable laughing fit, knocking them prone as if they had just heard the single funniest quip ever invented by mankind.

 

[Rainie]

Faurosk's brown eyes opened wide, and his gaping mouth uttered a most alarming wheeze. Rainie tried desperately to keep it together, but her shoulders were shaking and her face was turning slightly red.

Scarlet faced, Faurosk tried to play along most admirably, but then an unexpected voice piped up beside her. "You are definitely not unattractive." It said. "Maybe his interest is just not in women. Maybe it is in big, hairy lumberjacks. The Spine is full of them."

Now it was Rainie's turn for her jaw to drop open, and she swung around to gape at Weylin. She sputtered, and lost herself to shocked laughter for a second. Turning new eyes on the hunter, she had to admit she was pleasantly surprised and absolutely delighted. Unable to contain her grin, she looked over at Faurosk, who look as if he were in the middle of a crisis.

She should have suspected he was up to something right away.

He began to tell a fairly stupid joke. Once he got to the punch line, she noticed the slightest shift in the cadence of his voice. She opened her mouth to begin telling him off, but only a chuckle escaped. Once he'd finished the spell, Rainie was laughing so loudly it was painful. Stumbling to the side, she blurrily saw Weylin in a similar state.

Face red, tears streaming down her face, Rainie uncurled her arms from where they were clutching her aching stomach. She launched herself at the mage with a roar of laughter. He went down, and she sat up, giggling madly as she pinned him in the snow with her weight on his chest.

"S-Stop! Haha!" she shrieked. "HA HA HA, STOP IT, HA HA!" She began calling him every bad word in the book - several books, in fact - in between hysterical chortles. She grabbed up handfuls of snow in shaking hands and smashed it into the mage's face. "KNOCK IT OFF!! HA HA HA HA HA HA!!!"

 

[Weylin Kyrel]

It was horrible of him, but Weylin couldn't help it. This was the first remotely pleasant time he had spent with others in some time. Sure there was the time he was spending with the giants but that was filled full of him concerned if he was going to be eaten or not every other moment. That and having the idea that a dragon was roaming freely through the skies of the Spine. Hunting was hard enough with the bears and cat and trolls. He didn't want to deal with a literal beast from legends swooping down to pick him up like a hawk grabbing a vole. No. This little bit of fun was the most enjoyment he had had in months.

Then it all was spoiled. The momentary escape from a near death experience fighting for his life leading to the lose of his family and every one he knew turned aimless wandering with barely enough food to get by before being captured and threatened with death, violence, and being eaten by giants was gone. Faurosk seemed to be taking it well enough and responded with some joke he didn't get. The sensation started first as the hairs on the back of his neck standing up and some instinctive feeling that told him he was in danger. It all turned too quickly for him to realize why though as the first bit of laughter began to burst forth from his throat.

Weylin just laughed. And laughed. And laughed. He couldn't stop it. His body was no longer under his control. The air in his lungs was all being used for the hideous cackling so his legs became weak and his vision blurred. He dropped to the ground with endless noise pouring out of him. What was this? What was going on?

White began to panic as her human dropped. She barked and growled nervously and licked his face. Nothing was working. She didn't know what had come over him or what to do. All she knew was something needed to be done to save him. So she bite his arm out of desperation. When she was little and did that he always scolded her. Maybe he would stop to do the same now.

The jolt of pain from the bite caused Weylin to unconsciously wince. And the laughing stopped. How? He just laid there needing to catch his breath. White continued to lick his face. Pets were weakly given to her face, causing his gloves to be licked next. Rainie words drifted over to him and he felt ire rise from deep within him. No it was something even more primal than that. It was his desire to survive. What had happened was completely foreign and unnatural. It could have cost him his life. It could have cost White her life.

With just enough of his breath returned, Weylin was back to his feet quickly. His time hunting left the motion of rising from a low position to immediate as second nature for him. His knife was drown as he rushed over to the pile of two people. He wanted to end the threat now. Too much had happened. He had already lost too much. That was what his instincts were telling him. It would be the fastest and easiest way.... But he fought against it. It wasn't who he was and it was only laughter. He would be fine in a few minutes if he rested.

Weylin managed to force his hand to rebelt the knife as he made it to them. A part of him still wanted to stab the man. He ignored it. The most important thing was to stop the laughter on the woman. If the bite was enough to break it on him then maybe a jolt of pain and surprise was all it took. He got his hand opened up flat and quickly went to smack Rainie hard. He had aimed for her back, but it was hard to say where he would end up hitting. He just prayed it worked.

 

[Faurosk]

The reaction Faurosk had expected from his quite simple trick was quite far from what he'd gotten. At first he felt terribly guilty over how Rainie was clutching at her stomach, but he felt the slightest bit less terrible once she had flung herself at him. The guilt continued to fade as she began to call him every terrible name he'd ever heard, and even some he hadn't. Just as he released the mental thread by which he held onto the spell did the first handful of snow plow into his face, coincidentally dropping the effect on Weylin just as White dug her teeth into him. Rainie would feel the effects begin to fade as well, though her recovery might be noticeably longer due to the fact that she didn't have a beast companion to bite her awake.

The mage waited patiently for his assault to stop- he had, after all, quite deserved it. It wasn't long after, though, that he heard the crunching of approaching footfalls on fresh snow. He looked around his cackling assailant to find the source of the sound, shaking the icy remains of what she'd smashed into his face from his vision only to see none other than Weylin bum-rushing up on the pile-of-giggles with a sizable hunting knife in hand.

There was a brief flash of some memory in Faurosk's mind, but he didn't stop to think about what exactly it was before shifting into action. He haphazardly threw Rainie off of his chest and into the snow below them, silently cursing himself for being rough as he rolled on top of her with his back to Weylin. He braced himself for what he assumed would be an incoming blade, making brief peace with the Celestial gods. His entire body tensed up in preparation, and he felt a sharp, immediate pain strike him right below his rib cage.

He realized dimly that it was not quite the 'Ah, my insides! Is that a knife stuck in me?! Am I going to die!?!' type of pain he'd been expecting, but it was in actuality quite similar to a slap on the back one might receive in congratulations for a job well done.

The mage pushed himself off of his traveling companion, resting on his knees at her side and glaring up at the would-be assailant.

"And what the hell was that about, then?!" Faurosk felt as though it had been years since he'd last shouted, and it was a pity to break such a streak.

He looked back down at Rainie for a moment, thinking that the shock of the cold must've knocked loose whatever effects of the spell still claimed some hold on her. After one last weary glance to Weylin to verify that his knife was in fact put away once more, he spoke in a quick, quiet whisper that was probably still loud enough to be overheard. "Terribly sorry about that, love, but I believe our new friend may have just tried to stab one of us."

 

[Rainie]

The spell lifted. Just as Rainie was catching her breath, it was knocked out of her in the next second. Blinking blearily, she looked up to see her friend's face, twisted up as if he were in pain. Or bracing for it.

She wasn't exactly sure what happened, but Faurosk pushed his bulk off of her after a moment and knelt beside her instead. To her shock, he roared, "And what the hell was that about, then?!" making her flinch. She'd never heard her friend so angry, and certainly never heard him raise his voice in anger. (Which was impressive, considering how much time he spent around her.)

Chest heaving, Rainie looked around with wide eyes for the cause of Faurosk's anger. She saw Weylin, standing nearby and looking quite pale. Unfortunately, that didn't explain much.

Her hood had fallen down during the chaos, of course, and the cold was seeping into her scalp. Rainie realized something with a jolt. She pulled herself up in an instant, hands flying to the back of her head. Noticing Faurosk was muttering something to her, she focused on him as she untied the leather band and brought it around to inspect it. Brushing some snow off the trinket, she inspected the feathers and found none of them bent or broken. And then, she blinked and tried to fathom a reason the hunter would attack one of them.

She looked at Faurosk and drawled, "Well, I can't honestly say the urge to stab you has never come up." She smiled fondly at him and used his shoulder as leverage to heave herself to her feet. She quickly adjusted her leather chest guard, which had become uncomfortable. She then offered her free hand to help him up.

Accusing eyes on Weylin, she stuffed the feathered necklace into the pocket of her cloak. If he'd really been attacking them, who would have been his target? She stepped in front of Faurosk, blocking him bodily, and casually scooping up the neglected Nota in the same movement. The pup licked her chin, and she buried her fingers in its fur.

Had Weylin been trying to use their distraction to take them both out? He believed both Faurosk and her to be wealthy, he'd said it himself. Perhaps the hunter truly did intend to rob them. Stomach sinking, Rainie began to think this may have been a very, very bad idea.

If Weylin had meant to take advantage of the opportunity, he'd picked a piss poor time to try it. He'd been just as incapacitated as she had been. She tried to think more charitable thoughts. Perhaps he was sensitive to magic; been attacked or on the wrong side of a spell in the past. She'd known people who were sensitive to certain things, and would sometimes react violently if triggered.

She weighed her options, Nota whining concernedly in her arms. Perhaps this was more risk than it was worth. Treasure and glory aside, she'd much rather walk away from this with her best friend beside her.

After a tense silence, Rainie cleared her throat and suggested with forced lightness, "How about you save some of that for the dragon, yeah?"

 

[Weylin Kyrel]

It wasn't Rainie that Weylin's hand ended up hitting but Faurosk. That worked for him. It could just be called revenge for whatever it was that he had done. He got yelled at and then the two got themselves adjusted. While they did that he just stood there only half listening. The adrenaline had worn off and he could feel his body start to shake. His hands were visibly unsteady and he was having a bit of trouble keeping his balance. He looked around them. A knee high rock was nearby so he carefully got himself to it and sat down. He needed a moment.

It wasn't very long before Weylin looked over at them and said in a drained sounding voice, "Sorry.... Not been myself since...." He had to stop. His eyes drifted down and his face was in his hands. Too many bad memories were rushing about. For months he had held it together so why now was it all back? He didn't know. He just needed it to stop. The dragon needed to be hunted before it wiped out a settlement. Before someone lost their entire family. Before things ended for them like it did for him....

Weylin just sat there trying to get a hold of himself. White walked up to him and whimpered. She pushed her head between his arms and tried to get his attention. At first he didn't move but eventually he gave up and gave in. A sigh left his lips before he moved his hands to start petting her.

Off in the distance Bergelmir words boomed. Weylin couldn't make them out, but recognized that it was his giant friend. What had he and Ragna gotten themselves into? He said in the same way as before, "That would be the giants." His eyes then drifted to see if the two were still there.

 

[Faurosk]

The mage reached over and grabbed his staff from where it had been discarded to after he was pounced on, gladly accepting the offered hand to hoist himself up onto his own two feet. Palming the top of the staff in his right hand and pressing the tip into the snow below, he carefully coasted his dominant left hand down the dogwood surface, dusting off what snow had coated it and recovering a small amount of arcane energy from the staff's numerous runes and engravings. He withdrew his grip from the magical focus, using his newly freed hands to dust off his shoulders. As the back of his right hand touched his left shoulder, a small gust of air conjured up to blow away what remained of the frosty dusting. A similar puff appeared when he repeated the motion on his other side, leaving him looking about as clean as he had before aside from how tousled about his robes and hair were.

He got a hold on his staff once more, uprooting it from where it stood in the snow just as Rainie interposed herself between him and Weylin. An eyebrow arched at her motion, though he had to admit that he felt slightly relieved at her protection. After all, it was a brave move for someone who admitted to wanting to stab him on more than one occasion.

Faurosk took a half step to his left, crossing his arms over his chest and trying to look as tough as he could manage to disincline the hunter from pulling his knife again. This machismo-ridden facade he put up, however, deflated almost immediately at the mention of 'The Dragon'. He glanced incredulously to his partner, mouth hanging open in a silent question that must have made him look like quite the fool. When Weylin didn't deny the existence of such a beast, his befuddlement only doubled. "Hold on, a dragon? Like, a faerie dragon? Or do you mean the man-eating, village-destroying, steel-scaled type of dragon?"

Although he sounded somewhat distressed at first, a lopsided grin slowly spread across his features. "... Because that would be absurd. Heroic, sure, but absurd. Even with these giants, off shouting in the woods... Well, maybe not quite so absurd with a few giants in tow..." He trailed off, clutching his chin in thought. He did have a spell specifically made to combat flying targets, after all, and he had been dying to use it.

 

[Rainie]

Rainie spun around to watch Faurosk's reaction to her finally spilling the beans about their mysterious quest. He was gaping at her so wide she thought he might catch flies. A slow smile spread across her face as she watched him gradually come around to the idea. She smirked as he started delving into the details and strategy. He had that thinking look on his face.

She nuzzled Nota's soft head before putting the little dog down. While Faurosk muttered about spells, she inched her way over to Weylin, who was still sat down on a rock with his dog leaning on him worriedly. Rainie could tell she was a good dog. Weylin was lucky to have her.

Unsure of what to say, Rainie chewed on her lip for a moment. The hunter did appear to be more shaken by previous events than either her or Faurosk. She didn't understand what he was feeling, or what he was thinking, but she wasn't sure if she needed to. But there was something she was curious about.

"Hey," she whispered. With deliberate movements, she crouched down in front of him, balancing on the balls of her feet. Searching his face, she asked, "Why are you doing this? Fighting a dragon, I mean. What's it got to do with you?"

 

[Weylin Kyrel]

While Faurosk was having his moment at the realization over what this all was really about (he didn't already know?) Weylin was busy steadying himself. For so long he had always assumed it was like focusing for a hunt. It was about letting your thoughts drift to the task as hand while you instinctively became one with your surroundings. Everything else just faded away. This, whatever it was, was not like that. There was no clearing his mind. Every time he tried a new horrible memory or thought would replace it. There was no becoming one with what was around him as everything was focused inward instead of out. He could not fade because he already had. This was something else entirely and he did not understand it.

White's begging for attention seemed to have worked though. It helped distract him enough to return from within. A slight smile crossed Weylin's lips as he ruffled up her face then made her go off to the side to be petted normally. The giants were not happy about something but they could handle themselves far better than he could ever hope to. He was sure that Ragna had already smashed it to bits while Bergelmir just watched in approval. Always how it went when she was hunting, or so it appeared to him. His internal scattering had slowly repieced him back together on the outside. He was feeling a bit more like Weylin again.

Faurosk kept rambling on to himself about something while Weylin had unknowingly turned his attention towards where his giant owner and her peer were camped out. Normally he would stay vigilante and alert, but that didn't seem to be happening right now as Rainie had snuck up on him. She had gotten herself crouched in front of him and then whispered. It made him flinch as he didn't expect it at all, but he turned his head to look fully at her. She asked her question and his mind sort of stopped yet leapt forward once more.

Why was he doing this?

There was many reasons Weylin could think of ranging from the giantess eating him if he didn't to he didn't think it was actually real to he had nothing else better to do. Some reasons were altruistic. Some reasons were selfish. All of them had validity to why he would do it, but none of them were actually why he was doing this. There was only one reason why and he knew it deep down.

After having a look of deep thought on his face, Weylin looked utterly serious and matter of fact without a hint of doubt as he whispered back, "Why? Because it needs to be done."

Weylin smiled to her slightly. His face became a mixture of melancholy, deep sorrow, and yet fondness as he pulled out a pair of matching copper rings with a leather strip looped through them hidden around his neck. One appeared to be the right size for a woman's hand and the other for a man's. He added in a whispered tone that matched his look, "And maybe if I can do this then later I can do what needs to be done to avenge my parents."

 

[Rainie]

That declaration was heavy with sadness. Rainie didn't really know what to do about sadness, because she never let herself feel it. She took in a deep breath and let it out through her nose. Frowning, she straightened up in one graceful movement and nodded once.

"It's good to have purpose. A goal you can reach. Just..." she winced, realizing she completely out of her depth. "Just focus on what you have to do. Then take it one step at a time." That wasn't right. That wasn't right at all. She tried to smile despite her internal agony. She wasn't drunk enough for this.

Oh, wait.

Slinging her bag over one shoulder so she could access the contents, she undid the clasp and rummaged around until her fingers encountered something long and wooden. Well, that too. She pulled the flute out and tucked it under her chin to free her hands, and then victoriously pulled out a shining metal flask.

Smiling contentedly, put her flute in her pocket and unscrewed the cap to the flask. She took a hearty swig of the strong spirits. Warmth spread through her chest and numbed her throat.

"Yeah, we've got this," she muttered to herself. It would be easy. Just a tough lizard. To Weylin she said firmly, "Everything will be fine. It'll all work out, you'll see." She held the flask up and offered, "Anyone want a drink?"

 

[Faurosk]

Lost in his own thoughts as to how exactly a group of rather squishy looking travelers and two giants could kill a dragon, the mage stood silently stroking his faintly stubbled chin for a good couple of seconds. It would be an uphill battle, to be sure, but most dragons he'd heard of in the stories of old were beasts more than capable of wiping an entire city off of the map if they arrived unannounced. They'd need to take this thing out if it really did exist, and they would need a killer strategy to pull it off. Faurosk wasn't called clever for nothing, though, and some small part of him knew that this could be a chance to prove his worth to himself.

He was drawn out of his thoughts by the sound of muted conversation, inciting him to remove his hand from his face and actually pay attention to his surroundings once more. With quiet steps did the mage approach, listening in from a short distance away. He cut in once Rainie turned to produce the flask from her haversack, taking one last step forward to truly enter the circle of conversation.

"My friend, it's a courageous choice to do something this dangerous for the sole sake of seeing it through. There's a story my father used to tell me..." Faurosk's eyes narrowed for just a moment, seeking to make eye contact with the previously distraught hunter. "Many years ago, there was a confederacy of people who fought together against the forces of ruin wherever evil had its grasp on the world. As it just so happens, many of these people had a similar reason to yourself for fighting as they did."

The mage took a knee by Weylin's rock, grasping his fist in his offhand to emphasize what nugget of wisdom he was trying to pass on. "Draw strength from your convictions, but don't let them blind you. Revenge is a fickle mistress, my friend..."

He planted a hand on his own knee, pushing himself back up into a standing position and rolling his shoulders back. "She will love you, but if given the chance, she will leave you naked and penniless, bleeding out in a oft forgotten ditch."

He turned his head back towards Rainie, donning a small smile in stark contrast to his previous rhetoric. "And now I think I could use a drink."

 

[Weylin Kyrel]

For some reason it felt odd to Weylin to have someone trying to cheer him up right now. It was even odder that it was coming from this young woman who previously was nothing but upset and mischief. After she had finished offering a drink to everyone, he reached out and took her hand in his own. A light squeeze was all he did before he let go.

It was even odder when Faurosk had made his way over and then offered up encouragement. He even placed his hand on his and gave him a similar gesture as Weylin had to Rainie. It seemed out of place compared to only a few minutes ago. Perhaps it was just him. Either way, he felt more like himself right now than he had in some time.

With a slight smirk, Weylin replied to Faurosk. "I did not know Rainie was like that. I better be careful before I end up naked in a ditch since I already gave her all of my pennies." He had forgotten she had declined them. "I know I'm not a hairy, burly lumberjack, but thank you for the interest in me. I'm afraid I don't feel the same way. I prefer females with curves."

Weylin just left it at that then turned his attention to Rainie. "No thanks on the drink. Prefer to keep my head straight while hunting. Plus it likely isn't strongest enough for my liking." He stood himself up. The shaking was gone but he could still feel lingering fatigue in his limbs. Hopefully that went away soon or the walk would be frustrating. "There is a tale here in the Spine that the old folk tell. It is about a great hunter who hunted and killed a dragon. We call it the Great Hunt. Let's get back to our own."

 

[Rainie]

Rainie sputtered in offense. “I don’t think you know me well enough to rightfully say that!” She declared haughtily, hands on her hips. The nerve! They were absolute strangers… Though, she supposed it was a bit funny. Grumbling, she crossed her arms and glared at the path ahead. “If everyone’s feeling amenable, let’s go meet your giants.”


Without waiting, she purposefully marched down the path. If the dragon didn’t do her in, these men certainly would.

Weylin Kyrel Ragna Bergelmir Vigil Faurosk

 

[Faurosk]

Faurosk stared at Weylin for a few moments while Rainie began to trot off. His expression read wholly deadpan, edging just slightly towards a smirk. "I was referring to the concept of vengeance, ignoramus, but I'll keep from advising you in the future. And, ah... I prefer gentlemen who are at least passably handsome. Sorry, babe- you're really not my type."

He turned to follow Rainie, catching up to her on long strides and readying himself to get back to questin'.

 

[Ragna]

"Hark"

Ragna frowned as her ears caught movement coming through the trees. The hill giant stooped to pick up her maul, hefting its reassuring weight. Her hand patted its head, getting ready for what was coming.

The sounds and speech sounded human, was Weylin talking to himself? No, she could make out more, three, maybe four individuals walking towards them. She waited until the voices were nearly upon them before she rose to her full height, the maul casually held in one hand.

"Halt" she ordered, her voice booming out as she glared down at the humans.

 

[Bergelmir]

Bergelmir stepped back as Ragna moved to address the humans coming near them. He kept the other towards his front as he made himself ready to deal with the new group. The runes still glowing as his half crouched stance still kept him almost hidden by trees. The crown of red hair visible to those coming near them.

 

[Faurosk]

The mage was never quite so perceptive as he wished to be. As such, it should come as no surprise that he was well and truly caught off guard by the sudden appearance of Ragna the giantess from around the lightly wooded bend in the road. She was hard to miss when she rose to her full height, though, even to the mage so caught up in thought and pleasant company.

He dropped his staff to his side at the giant's partially threatening order to cease the party's approach, hands reaching up beside his head with gloved fingers splayed as a sign of being unarmed. It took a moment, but recognition still dawned on his features in short time; after all, one never forgets their first encounter with giant-folk.

"I'm sorry, but you're-- You were at the razed village, weren't you?" He spoke- perhaps out of turn -to sate the building curiosity in the pit of his stomach. Who knows, perhaps it was just a lack of familiarity with her species that lead him to believe she may have been the same giant from that fateful day? "With the necromancer's ghouls, and the bastard of Molthal."

Faurosk glanced momentarily to Rainie at his side with a sly expression of, See, you're not the only one who knows people! ... Maybe! His dog, meanwhile, simply yipped excitedly from his co-owner's embrace, showing an irreverent lack of fear to the giant woman's presence.

Due to the mage's current distractions, he failed to see Bergelmir from where he crouched in the trees despite the peculiar shock of red hair and glowing runes. Distance obscured the giant's presence, after all, and Faurosk hardly noticed any difference from the frosty boi's presence and the foliage that encompassed him.

 

[Weylin Kyrel]

Weylin just ignored both of their comments as they continued on towards the giants. Okay so he smiled a bit at both of them. Rainie was all flustered and Faurosk seemed to have loosened up a bit. He had as well though. Despite the earlier issues it seemed things were beginning to smooth out. Like a creek flowing down the mountain. Eventually the rapids would calm.

When they got close to the meeting spot, the first thing that happened was Ragna raising to her full height and commanding them to halt. He didn't. Instead he just continued forward without any seeming fear of death. Already been through this a few times after all with them. White was a little cautious but didn't slow down either as she followed her human. How his new companions would respond to the sudden appearance of the giantess and Bergelmir sitting off to the side glowing was unknown to him. All of this had become kind of normal for him. That Spine adaptability had kicked in it seemed.

"Ignore her. She will only eat you if she can't find food or you really upset her." Weylin said as he approached the giantess. He stopped in front of her well within arm's reach. "These two would like to help with the hunt. Not sure why but the male can do strange things. Made us laugh somehow when we didn't want to. Could be useful. The female sings beautifully and is a very good shot with her bow. Definitely useful."

Weylin hoped that would be enough to make Ragna not ready to kill them on the spot. After giving it a moment so she could react he would look over at Berg and give him a nod in greeting. "The female is known as Rainie and the male is known as Faurosk."

Weylin then turned his attention to Rainie and said, "Do you believe me yet? Or do you still think my words were tricks?"

Vigil

 

[Rainie]

They weren't far from the giants at all. In fact, they were quite close. Rainie, who had snatched up Nota again, watched the massive female giant slowly rise to her feet. And she did, in fact, halt. She was quite sure Faurosk dropped his staff in the snow, though she did not turn to look.

No, she couldn't be expected to tear her eyes away from such a sight. The giantess was towering, ginger haired and she hefted what looked like a tree trunk as if it were a toothpick. Her heart was hammering in her chest. She'd never been so close to one...

Weylin strolled by as if it were nothing. Which, to him, she supposed it was. In fact, he advised them to ignore the giantess, and strolled right up to her. Rainie followed close behind, dying to get a closer look at the massive being. She listened as Weylin described her and Faurosk, and she sent a wry look at the mage. That was them, Sir Giggles and Lady Songbird. Very useful to have on your local dragon hunt.

Rainie darted a baffled glance at Faurosk when he asked the giantess if they'd met before, and she rolled her eyes skyward at his smug look. Maybe she ought to point out that Weylin thought that Faurosk could be useful, while she was definitely useful.

She spied the other giant when Weylin turned to nod at him. Rainie saw him, just as massive as the giantess, and noticed immediately the runes glowing in his skin. Her jaw dropped slightly at the sight.

"Do you believe me yet?" asked Weylin's voice. "Or do you still think my words were tricks?"

"Well...." she droned. "I don't see any dragons." She was smiling so wide it could have split her face. She called up to the giantess, "Hello! You're quite lovely!"

Weylin Kyrel Faurosk Ragna Bergelmir Vigil Vigil Vigil Vigil Vigil

 

[Ragna]

The humans seemed stunned at the appearance of the two giants. It was an understandable reaction but both managed to control their fear. They weren't gibbering messes or bolting back the way they'd came. She frowned at the man's question, his dog yipping at the sight of them.

She gave a grunt in response, narrowing her eyes as she tried to make out his features. "You see too much" she warned. Humans were ones for talking. She remembered many humans at that village but a lot of them just looked the same to her. He clearly remembered her. Her other glare was reserved for the runt they'd acquired, "You think a singer will charm a dragon?"

The singer endevoured to do just that to her. Ragna's frown was more out of bewilderment now than anger as the woman smiled up at her and called her lovely. "What?" she said, not quite sure she'd heard the squeaking voice right. She stepped to the side to allow the three humans past to the campsite.

 

[Bergelmir]

Bergelmir shifted his focus to the new group, the glaring runes diminished ad he found the new humans a bit humorous. He stood completely, thumbs hooking in behind the belt buckle as he came around the trees around him. He gave Ragna a nudge as he teased her.

"You have an admirer oh fair one." He jested as he looked over the group. "This is what you found to help then?" Bergelmir asked the human he knew.