Taking Lives

MKRetunz-11/14/2016

The mercenary silently stared at the small river running alongside the village they were staying in, the battle in the capital still fresh in his mind. He had it nowhere near as bad as some of his allies. Most of them have had to flee the battlefield out of danger of death, luckily some of the people on their side were more experienced, clad in heavy armor or knew how to not die horribly. A good thing in such a war, the rest however would need some assistance with that. The jaded mercenary thought on how to solve that... For starters he could train them to fight better against an Ethysian combat style, he was still familiar with the military fighting style of when he was part of the military and it didn't seem to have changed a lot since then. Perhaps some general fighting lessons could also work. Get some of the more experienced members of the group to teach those less capable some tricks. For now however, he was a bit stuck as to how exactly put this in motion and could be seen simply staring into the water.(edited)

Deallocate-11/14/2016

Shanoa made her way down to the riverbank, a basin of bloody cloth bandages in her arms. The herbalist wore her usual short black dress, although her ever-present hat was missing from her head. She seemed to be in relatively good physical condition even after the battle, although the dark marks under her eyes and her expression spoke of fatigue. The young woman noticed Tarsien by the bank, and did her best to flash him her trademark playful smile. "Hey there, handso-" she said, but her voice caught before she finished the expression. This is no time for idle pleasantries! she chided herself. Leave the poor man alone. He's obviously deep in thought. "Sorry. Never mind me." Falling silent, she took up residence slightly further down the river, where she began to wash off the first of the many bloody rags.(edited)

MKRetunz-11/14/2016

Tarsien looked up, he didn't quite catch the first part of the woman's sentance but her bloodied rags were most certainly noticable. Despite the request to mot mind her the mercenary still spoke up "I presume you didn't fare well in the previous battle." He did recall the woman in the charge down the gate, he didn't recall her past that however. "And if we were to randomly come across Ethysia scouts it would be well for you to be rested." Fatigue was a silent killer after all if your army was too tired to move, they were easy pickings.

Deallocate-11/14/2016

Shanoa shrugged. "Not particularly, no. It could have been worse, though. I suppose I should be thankful I'm the one swapping out bandages on the wounded, rather than being tended to myself." She was overcome by shame as she thought back to when she fled early in the battle at the first sign of danger. Shanoa considered bringing it up, but decided against it. I don't need yet another person's scorn. she thought to herself. Shanoa nodded at his advice. "Under normal conditions, I'd hold firm to a full night's sleep. After all, performing magic with a weary mind has led to many an untimely death." After assuring a strip of cloth was clean, she put it away separate from the other bandages, and started on another. "But due to the high number of injuries we sustained the last battle, those skilled in the medical arts like myself are needed on duty constantly. Rest is something we simply can't afford." The herbalist looked up from her work, a weary smile on her face. "And anyhow, I can count on a strong man like you to protect me should danger arise, right?"

MKRetunz-11/14/2016

"Flirting won't do you any good." Tarsien commented "Wether you are fatigued or awake I would fight the best I could either way." He looked at her direction, so she was a mage, not exactly a style of combat he was well versed in but there were likely more mages around here. There were still quite a lot of rags, they had been hurt bad but that was expected from a force that had overtaken the capital, everything considered they were lucky to not have any deaths and only mere wounds. "I'd rather have everyone protect themselves, but with unarmed healers and the wounded that is currently not an option. So yes. Should danger arise I would protect those unable to fight themselves."

Deallocate-11/14/2016

She quirked a brow. "Oho. Are you saying you're immune to flirting? Good. I enjoy a challenge." Shanoa grimaced as her current rag resisted having all the blood washed from it. "Well, I'm glad that something makes you protect the helpless, whether it be chivalry or your job description. That's more than enough for me." She held out a hand in his direction for him to shake. "I'm Shanoa, by the way. Resident herbalist of our dear company. On rare occasions, I can even serve as a mage." After taking note of the decent amount of blood on her hand, she drew it back and washed it off before returning it to its original position.

MKRetunz-11/14/2016

"Tarsien, sellsword and a pair of trained eyes." He said, shaking her hand and ignoring the flirting comment. "And I believe it is more of a combination of the two, while I'm not exactly the typical knight in shining armor I will not sit idly by while innocents suffer, sometime getting paid for doing so is nice." He adds noting the increasing amount of red in the stream. Then he noted the bit of red on his hand, a quick dip in the stream fixed that easily.

Deallocate-11/14/2016

"Oh, sorry about that." she said idly as he washed his hand free of blood. "I tell you, blood is the most annoying thing. Seeps into your clothes, dries in your hair, and gets everywhere. It's a pain to look nice on the battlefield." she remarked as she scrubbed away at the fabric. "Humans are just so... so leaky." Shanoa looked over at Tarsien. "You've got it more rough than me, though. I fight from afar. You need to get up close and personal with your opponents in battle. Can't be pleasant."

MKRetunz-11/14/2016

"Don't worry about it. I'm used to it to say the least." Tarsien calmly said "And it most certainly isn't, but it is what it is and I've come to accept that. It is a thing I have adapted my fighting style around. To finish my enemy as swiftly as possible. It may sound cruel but dragging it out longer then it is needed only causes harm to both sides." The jaded mercenary notes. "A small downside is the extra blood. Cleaning armor is a nightmare in and of itself."

Deallocate-11/14/2016

"That too. Blood can rust metal and dull blades. A devilish substance. After I die, I'm going to have a word with the gods about their design choices." she joked. Shanoa nodded. "I do the same in battle. Finishing off an opponent quickly. Although in my case, it's not personal choice so much as an inability to control my magic." She looked troubled. "I wish I could just incapacitate my foes. I know this is a war and all but... it just feels wrong no matter how you twist it. Doubly so since I'm primarily a healer. To snuff out the lives of those who get in my way... it's a necessity, but not a pleasant one."

MKRetunz-11/14/2016

"Good, if you felt any other way you wouldn't be human." Tarsien said, his tone comforting. "Taking the life of another is not a task one should enjoy, sadly a neccesary task in this day and age." he sighed "Take comfort in the fact that you are helping people now, but don't forget what is required of you." He calmly added. "If you wish to control your magic better perhaps you should consult one of the mages travelling with us. I'm sure they can give useful advise."

Deallocate-11/14/2016

Shanoa glanced down at her empty palm. "I actually have. As it so happens, two of my closest friends in the company are also magic-user like myself. And they've helped me to exert a bit of control on my powers." A small flame blossomed in her hand, where it danced merrily a few inches from the surface of her skin. "Unfortunately, there are other problems at hand... problems that they can't so easily help me fix." As she continued to concentrate, the flame grew larger and brighter. Suddenly, Shanoa felt the runes on her back grow hot, and the flame exploded in a brilliant burst. The herbalist spat out a very nasty curse which appeared to have no applications in magic as her sleeve caught on fire. She immediately shoved the burning piece of fabric under the water and let out a sigh of relief. "As you can see, conjuring anything larger than the smallest of flames is disastrous. Useful when I'm on the battlefield and need something gone quickly. Otherwise... not so much."

MKRetunz-11/14/2016

"That is quite troublesome. If we were with my old company I'd ask a good friend of mine to look into this as I have no knowledge of magic myself besides what I've seen him and others cast." The mercenary calmly said. "I have to admit, things like that are why I prefer my sword over magic. You know exactly what a sword can do, what it can't do. It isn't sporadic like magic, anyways I am trailing off. Do these friends have any clue as to what causes these... Disastrous effects?"

Deallocate-11/14/2016

Shanoa chewed at her lower lip. "Well, thanks anyway. It's not that big of a problem, really. After this war ends, I doubt I'll use magic all that much. Like you say, I prefer more... mundane sciences over magic. There are too many factors that are hard to control with the magical arts. I'll take my herbs over magic any day!" she exclaimed cheerfully. "My friends know about my... condition. But they're the only ones. Believe me, you wouldn't want to know. It's not very fun." She seemed lost in thought momentarily, before jumping onto a new course of conversation. "I've actually been training with a sword." she said, her chore momentarily forgotten. "One day, very soon, I won't need my magic to be a use to you guys. I can run around with the best of you, using my blade to hurt people... uh, in very non-lethal spots. Not to mention swords are sooo much more romantic than tomes. You can't push the lover-who-betrayed-you to the ground and make them beg for mercy with a tome, ya know? The best you can hope for is to threaten them from afar. And that is not-" She seemed to suddenly realize who she was talking to, and her face colored. "Uhh, yeah. Forget what I said, okay?"

MKRetunz-11/14/2016

"I'll promise not to share either with anyone else, how does that sound?" He says. "If you want some training with a sword I'd be happy to help, I've learned a few styles over the years. So if you want to learn it I might just know how to." He adds. "Anyway, I'll leave you to the rags and the lovers quarrel. I'm going to see if I can help with anything around here." The mercenary prepares to leave.

Deallocate-11/14/2016

Shanoa grinned. "Sorry, but I'm afraid I'm simply not comfortable telling you. You're really close, though. You pull off the whole 'impassive and trustworthy older man' thing really well." She put a finger to her chin in thought. "Maybe if you had flirted more..." She smirked to show she wasn't serious. "I might take you up on your offer to train me, though. I can use all the help I can get. Who knows? It might even get me to trust you." "And as for what you could help with around here..." she glanced down meaningfully at her large bin of dirty rags and then back at him. "I have absolutely no idea who you could help. But I wish you the best of luck."

November 15, 2016

Mappy-11/15/2016

-This is over iirc-