Private Tales Something Amiss

[Saul Talith]

Saul nodded, taking a breath as he steeled himself for the reaction of his men.

Without another word he moved forward, touching the wound in his side for a moment before he motioned for him to follow along behind him. The steps were short, and he took care not to slip on any of the roots that permeated the forest floor. It took them ten minutes, but eventually the fires of the camp came into sight.

"Alright, hang back." He told Kaska quietly, frowning for a moment before he quickly added. "Actually you may want to do so for a little while, at least pretend you ran off with them or something."

He smiled. This wasn't too dissimilar from a prank he and the others used to play on each other at the public bath houses in Alliria. At the very least Leane would appreciate this.

Not that the other Templars would really understand.

 

[Kaska]

She nodded back, more serious now as stress leeched back into the edges of her demeanor. "Good luck," she breathed, dipping into her damp tunic with a shiver.

It was only after he turned and broke the firelight that she realized she didn't know if he'd be coming back. ... And why would he, right?

She gnawed on her lip, her wet hair plastered to her as the first eyes turned and gaped at Saul.

Notably, many stood up in an instant, swords drawn and eyes on the treeline. He was injured.

Leana stepped forward, expression fierce and demanding. "Saul?"

 

[Saul Talith]

"I sparred with her." Saul's voice was even, matter of fact. "She cut me, I went to wash it off, she stole my clothes."

Leane was standing at the head of everyone, a hand on her sword hilt, her expression carved from stone. The others glanced at one another, staring, then slowly looking towards the woman at their front. For a few seconds Saul thought that she was about to order a death squad, but then slowly a smile cracked on the woman's face.

A second later she was practically on the floor laughing.

The wound on his side was obviously not deadly, in fact it had already been treated, and the fact that Saul didn't seem distressed at all seemed to lighten the situation even more. The others lowered their swords, a flow of laughter breaking through the camp.

"Yeah yeah." Saul said as he offered the group a rude gesture.

 

[Kaska]

Kaska relaxed back into the moss, jamming on the pants and sitting there watching the playful laughter inside the warm firelight.

An ache formed in her chest, her tear ducts pinching the longer she watched. Leane, as the woman was called, seemed to find no end of mirth to Saul's predicament. Jokes and gestures and gentle elbows were Saul's reality as he stood surrounded by his people.

Kaska swallowed hard and forced away the emotions. Without waiting further, she stood and turned to leave for her clearing, not looking back.

 

[Saul Talith]

Saul shook his head at the others. "Go and find her."

The Commander needed to make this look right at least. He couldn't very well just walk away from this situation acting like he hadn't been slighted in the least.

"Get my clothes." He kicked Leane's boot as he walked by the woman. "That's an order."

Leane snickered, then did a mock salute and stalked off in the direction that Saul had come from.

Meanwhile the Commander headed towards his pack, strutting through the camp with little to no modesty.

 

[Kaska]

As it was, she might of left too early. Because while Saul had told her to hang back, he hadn't specified to hide out. From her own clearing. So that was where she went, throwing down the med kit and kicking at the dying fire in a small wave of anger.

She made a noise of frustration, tugging at her hair before flopping down and falling silent. She set about the meager task of setting back up her med kit, the fire growing dimmer and dimmer until she was forced to coax life back into it for light.

 

[Saul Talith]

Leane was a soldier, the best of them.

Not the best fighter, no, that title was bestowed to Ana, but Leane was the best soldier. With sword and shield she could best nearly anyone, she followed orders, and had a sharp mind for tactics that rivaled even Saul's. She had no gifts in anti-magic, but had taken down more undead than most other Templar.

Few were as devoted to her save for Edwin. "His clothes."

Her voice was softer than most would expect from such a hard woman, though there was an edge to it that couldn't be denied.

"What did you do with them?" There was no threat to the way she stood or spoke, though an air around her told of the fact that she was more than ready to fight at any moment. Still, there was a smile on her face, and a light of amusement in her eyes.

 

[Kaska]

Kaska gasped, wielding around in shock, Lia's heavy sword in hand. She gaped up at Leane, instantly wondering how such a woman could move so quietly with that gear in hand. She nearly asked, but the woman's words reminded her of the situation. And of how her hair was braided back, clearly exposing her neck.

A hand flickered up without thought, as if to hide it. She wasn't braced for this, much like Saul with his pain. Being braced would have just made it better. As it stood, a blush was tearing through her cheeks, weakening her story.

"I-" She rasped, then cleared out her throat. "I don't have it. Tossed it in the river," she lied. The cards they had played were still there, scattered and spread out, half covered in dirt from their fevered activities ontop of them.

"He's cheats," she reasoned, the hand dropping from her throat and her chin raising in stubborn pride.

 

[Saul Talith]

For a few seconds Leane remained quietly, not saying anything. It was too dark to see Kaska blush, the light from the fire making her appear red anyway. Lips thinned for a moment, though they quirked at the edge into a tight smile. "He's terrible."

Leane commented dryly.

"He has to cheat." The woman was of course, no fool, none of them were. It did not take a genius to put the situation together. The long absence, the lack of clothes, the slight torn nature of Kaska's own garments. Leane knew, and she understood.

"I suppose he got what he deserved." She clicked her tongue. "Though you'll have him upset for quite a while."

 

[Kaska]

Kaska snorted, shaking her head and snapping the completed med kit closed. "Don't worry, I'll stay away from him from now on," she reassured. She yanked her braid from the tie and let it unravel and fall around her, the soft waves wet against her collarbone.

"It's not my fault your commander can't wield a sword," she grumbled. She leaned forward and started gathering the cards, making great pains to clean them up and unbend any danged corners.

 

[Saul Talith]

"He's better at the other thing." Leane commented dryly, and truthfully.

Among the ten of them she had always been the best with a blade, save for...she frowned slightly at his memory, though her head shook slightly to dispel those darker thoughts.

"Boys like flashy things." She explained. "The sword, when properly wielded, isn't flashy."

Leane watched the other woman in silence, gaze like a hawk as she observed the woman that Saul had bedded.

Forest floored?

 

[Kaska]

A laugh caught in her throat, expelling through her nose. A devlish grin grew on Kaska's face, unable to be controlled or smushed out.

"That's one way to put it," she acknowledged, still amused. She eyed Leana back for a long moment ... then sat back, leaving the cards.

"You know we fucked," she stated bluntly, right to the point. There was a tiredness to the statement, a sense of dread.

 

[Saul Talith]

She inclined her head. "Of course."

Leane had never been much of a liar. She was blunt, direct, had never seen much use for beating around the bush. What was the point of doing so? It just ended with everyone arguing anyway.

"I know that boy better than he knows himself." She mused. "Him and Edwin."

Leane shook her head. "But he's his own man. Grown enough to make his decisions."

She leaned on her sword slightly.

 

[Kaska]

The last of the mirth melted out of her expression, Kaska watching the woman warily. Of course they would know each other so well, this must be one of the family he mentioned. In fact, it seemed like they all were.

She took a steadying breath in, ignoring every instinct she hand to even touch the pommel of her sword. "But you have an opinion on it," she noted, going back to plucking up the cards.

 

[Saul Talith]

"No." Leane said simply. She was a soldier. Opinions were not hers to have, at least not about this, not about little flings in the woods.

"You're both grown." She glanced briefly back towards the direction of the camp. "Old enough not to go prancing through a field of flowers abandoning all duty."

She chortled slightly. "He certainly wouldn't."

A pause hung in the air.

"But a warning." Leane's voice suddenly seemed much less amused. "He is not one to be wrapped around a finger."

 

[Kaska]

Kaska blinked, glancing up with a disbelieving look. "I don't want anything from him. It was a in the moment thing, that's it," she informed Leane firmly.

"Hell, I didn't even steal his clothing, he dropped them in river and the current took them away. He's Templar, I'm ranger. We fucked. End of story. " She resumed picking up the cards, her lips pressed in a firm line but the rest of her remaining nonchalant.

"I don't want anything from anyone."

 

[Saul Talith]

Leane let out a tsk, almost as if she were disappointed in the words. She was a Soldier, but she was still a woman. The ways of the world were not unfamiliar to her, and though Valerie and Myrelle were the true damsels of their little group, Leane certainly wasn't as...inexperienced as Ana.

"Pity." She mused for a second.

"If you did." Leane began, her words a bit softer again, not as cutting. "You might make some friends from all this."

She shrugged.

Templar, Ranger, that didn't matter much to most of them. Sure there was friendly competition, jokes, but none in their little group had any real prejudice. She was pretty sure in fact that Ana had once dug into the same well as Saul. A fact that amused her to an endless degree.

 

[Kaska]

A knot abruptly formed in Kaska's throat, hard and biting. She didn't say anything, she didn't have to. She knew where that comment came from. Leane was was more blunt than even her, a fact that would impress her if she wasn't busy fighting back a wave of emotions.

It was easier when everyone just ignored her, you know? Incidents like these? Never happened. Still, she couldn't bring herself to be hostile. She couldn't fess up to how those words effected her. But Leane knew, she knew she did.

The bitch.

 

[Saul Talith]

Leane didn't say anything more, she didn't need to.

In this little exchange she had 'won', if there was anything to win in the first place. She had always been blunt and to the point with everyone, including Saul and the others. It bugged her when people around her beat around the bush, why not just say what you meant?

Left things far easier.

The woman stared for a moment longer, watching Kaska. After a few moments she cocked her head, and then slowly began to turn around and walk away.

She'd made her point.

 

[Kaska]

"Wait." Came her voice, just as it seemed Leane had stepped too deep into the tree line. Kaska wrapped her palm around her pommel, her face stone. "Are you better at a sword than him? " A wordless gesture gave her request. She still needed to train more. She still didn't feel ready.

 

[Saul Talith]

She stopped for a second, pausing and glancing back at Kaska.

For a moment she considered the other woman, almost as if sizing her up. Her lips glanced over the blade that she held, then swiveled back up towards her.

She took in a breath, cursing Saul beneath her breath before she turned and grabbed the hilt of her sword. It was a holy weapon, forged before the schism and inherited when she'd defeated the blademaster who'd trained her and the others. "Much."

Leane said as she drew the blade.

 

[Kaska]

Come morning Kaska returned, her spare tunic on and body clean. Still, in the crisp morning light, the developed bruises shone clear as day across her flesh. Her tunic hid what marks were on her body, but no amount of hair left down over her shoulder could hide the pleasure that had been taken around her neck.

Well, pleasure to her. To the ranger she traveled with, it looked like she was nearly murdered. He jumped to her side with a soft curse, the fresh thing realizing he had failed her by not checking in, especially after Sauls return, how had he not-

A firm hand on his chest silenced him as Kaska pushed by him, leaving him a touched stunned, a hand still left dangling on his pommel. At his next words, she insistently shook her head, ending the conversation.


She walked with chin held high through the bodies of men, no shame to her cheeks as she boarded the boat and took up her old spot on the edge. Ever cold and stiff, her thoughts now occupied on what today would bring.

 

[Saul Talith]

No one really reacted to Kaska, mostly because they were all too focused on themselves.

They all knew what would be happening today, what they faced at the other end of this boat journey; The lich. Death was always a possibility for a Templar, in fact it was all but guaranteed most of the time. Yet they were still human, they wanted to live and they wanted to make it through the next day as much as anyone else. It was a fact that they all wore on their faces.

Even Saul.

By the time Kaska boarded the ship and took up her place on the boat Saul and the others had all but packed up the camp. A few of the fires were still going, but as everyone prepared go leave those too were quickly quenched and quieted.

It was time for the last leg of the journey.

Then it would be time to fight.

 

[Kaska]

It was a little... shocking to go unnoticed. Perhaps she built up situations in her head more than they needed to be? Perhaps no one paid half as much thought to her as she presumed.

Or perhaps they were all just preparing to possibly die. A feat they went through on many previous occasions. Perhaps more than even the average Ranger, she acknowledged begrudgingly.

Dangerous work like this was usually not amongst a Ranger's tasks. Keeping peace. Stopping thieves. Protection for the wealthy ... yes. But bracing against the supernatural? She watched on with a new nugget of respect, the ship gilding smoothly away.

I'm coming, Lia. Hang in there.

 

[Saul Talith]

Saul was putting on his armor when Leane approached him, her hand coming up to tighten one of the straps of his platemail.

"Hate wearing this while on the river." The Commander grunted quietly, lips thinning for a second as Leane patted him on the back and gave him another piece of the platemail. Wearing heavy armor was dangerous on water, especially fast moving water.

Yet he didn't want to take the chance of being attacked and not having the armor that would save him.

According to Kaska the Lich wouldn't know they were coming, but with things like this it was best not to take any chances if you didn't have tog. Specifically with Liches. Bastards always knew something you didn't.

"You'll survive."
​

Leane assured him quietly as he strapped another piece of plate over his chest, tying it into place before he turned around. The boat was speeding along, taking them up river quickly. They would be there soon.