Ada's Arrival

Tiko

Draconic Administrator/Mentor
Administrator
Mentor
Nexus GM
The sun had only just begun to near the horizon as the cool evening air settled across the plains of Kaldor, and the fresh layering of snow from the day prior served to reflect the light and add a clear visibility to the evening. It was likely the last snowfall of the year and served as a reminder of the cold winter months that they were fast leaving behind.

The caravan had swelled to a respectable size as it traveled westward from Stonehaven City to the small outlying town of Korvesa. It had boasted nearly twenty wagons, carts, and carriages at its departure, and it had picked up a good dozen more along the way as it passed through neighboring cities and towns on its way to the Western Frontier of Kaldor. It was a popular time of year for merchants, settlers, and adventurers to make their way to the border towns of Kaldor so that they could arrive as the winter months where just beginning to give way to spring. For families looking to start a life out there, it meant they had the whole of the new year to prepare for the following winter.

Accompanying the traveling wagons where riders armed to the teeth. Swords-for-hire. They ranged greatly in race and garb, but they all shared in their purpose of protecting the caravan in its journey across the open plains.

Several families and settlers had already parted ways at previous towns, but fifteen or so wagons remained on as they trundled ever close to their destination.



Korvesa was a once large town situated along the banks of the Iyesgarth river, but much of it remained unclaimed from the hundreds of years of abandonment that had left its mark upon it. Much of the western reaches of town lay in ruins with crumbled buildings long since overtaken by heavy brush and unchecked trees.

The central heart of the town, and much of the east side were well underway in their reconstruction efforts. New houses and buildings had been erected upon the foundations of old, and brush and overgrowth had been cleared from the streets and pathways. Dirt roadways had been restored for use and the place offered the promise of a fresh start for those willing to make it out there.

Plots of lands were being sold to arriving families for minimal cost that made the location appealing to settlers looking to put city life behind them.

The town held a strong appeal to travelers as well. Mercenaries were never short of work to find, and there was always some work to be found around the town to aid in the reconstruction efforts. It was also a good place to drop one's bags for the night, or a few days to resupply before moving on.



As the caravan edged closer to the town of Korvesa an element of excitement filled air. As wagons rumbled their way across the large stone bridge spanning the Iyesgarth river, children had already taken to disembarking wagons to run ahead. Parents were filled with a wash of relief, and escorting mercenaries could relax their guard as the caravan left behind the wilds of Kaldor in favor of the burgeoning town. Tradesmen too could let out a sigh of relief as their goods made it safely to their destination.

For many it was the promise of new beginnings, and for others it was simply a stop before moving on. Others still were on the run from secrets left behind, and looking to the obscurity of Korvesa to escape from past mistakes. Whatever one's reasons were for arriving in Korvesa, it offered the promise of warm beds, hot meals, and respite to them all.
 
Last edited:
Adatia was one of the first in the caravan to rush out of his 'tent' as he'd decided to call the covered wagon he slept in all night. The 'tent' had been all women besides him, something he couldn't get over for most of the trip they'd taken together. He didn't mind being surrounded by the various maidens and mothers, but it bothered him how readily they called him 'one of them'. Being at his destination, however, her raised a fist up in the air, clutching the other to his chest, and jumped for joy. "Finally, sweet freedom!"

"Ada," Someone called out. It was one of the women from the tent. "You left your knapsack on the wagon, and it was open. I hope you don't mind, but I put away your belongings that seemed to have fallen out." The lady held out the bag for the young... elf? Honestly, she couldn't tell quite what Adatia was. He was so small, and his ears were just the right sharpness- if he'd had darker skin, she'd be sure he was one of those despicable dw'in elves. On the other hand, his skin had a pallor like a human's suntan, and his glorious green eyes and orange hair seemed to scream human altogether. "You know, I never asked since I'd rather it didn't matter, but... What are you anyway?"

The elfish young man took his knapsack and put it on over his shoulders before putting his fist against his hips. "I'm a boy seeking to become a man, and to do that, I'm travelling in search of my true self, just as my father requires of me."

The woman laughed a bit after he said he was a boy, but then ruffled his hair. "You're a good boy, so I'm sure you'll be a great man. Just make sure to stay out of trouble- you can get rowdy from time to time, but don't overdo it."

"You sound like my father- or how my mother would sound, in my imagination." He waved to the woman and to the caravan itself, before quickly wandering the town in search of an inn.

---

It didn't take long for Adatia to find an inn to stay in. He had to jump to see over the reception desk, but that was the least of his worries. He'd spent most of the past hour avoiding salesmen, many trying to get him to buy albeit cheap land or special knickknacks. With a deep sigh, he'd entered the room and waited on line patiently. But, now that it was his turn, he was realizing the true difficulty of a world meant for bigger people.

"Excuse me! I'd... like... a room... for... the night!" He jumped after almost every word to be kept in the innkeeper's sight. He stood patiently once he was done talking, however, smiling a girlishly sweet smile that just didn't do his masculine pride any justice.
 
The reception desk was more of a bar counter, and the line didn't seem to be getting any shorter as Adatia no doubt realized was less of a line and more of a row of people chatting and exchanging drinks and money at the counter. His initial hopping seemed to go unnoticed as he tried to get the tenders attention, and the rest of the room seemed to largely be paying him no mind either.

The place had a rough look about it, but a homely one as well. Much like the rest of town. Hardwood beams and oaken furniture gave a strong rustic feel to it, but the worn edges of the tables, and the fireplace crackling against the far wall gave it a warmer touch. Warner for most perhaps...

Unfortunately Adatia was not most. There was little room for warmth towards dark elves, especially out here on the outskirts of civilization where they where known to frequent more often. That would soon become apparent as one of the tavern patrons took note of the elf hopping up and down next to him trying to get the bar tenders attention.

"Looks like your rat problem is getting worse," he muttered to the tender before picking up his drink and moving off to join a group playing a game of dice at a nearby table.

The bartender meanwhile shifted his gaze down towards Adatia and his expression quickly soured.

"As if one of you wasn't bad enough for business," he growled. "We're out of rooms," the bar tender muttered before glancing at the coins.

There was money enough there to easily rent a room for a few nights.

"You can sleep out back with the horses," he grumbled as he swept the coins away from the edge of the counter and into his other hand. "And don't be bothering any of our customers," he added. "Now go on, I have work to do."

Nearby the exchange wasn't going entirely unnoticed though. A pair of sharp eyes was watching the exchange intently.

"Hey, lass," a man called out. "You, at the counter. Come on over here won't you?"

The barkeep immediately rolled his eyes and walked away.

The voice belonged to a sight that was very foreign to Adatia. A dark elf was seated at a table, his skin as black as obsidian and his hair a startling and very stark white. He had a suave roguish look about him and an amused smile upon his chiseled and angular elven features. At his back was an elven woman, her pale skin and vibrant red locks of hair a curious contrast to the dark elf. She had an amused smile upon her face as she leaned in close to whisper to the dark elf.

There was a glint of surprise in his eyes as he raised one brow curiously. "What do you mean not a lass? Of course she -" he started before the woman's low laughter filled his ear. "How do you know anyways," he scowled.

"I'm a woman," she purred. "We know these things," she added with a wink to Adatia.
 
Adatia had never experienced the harshness given to dark elves. In his mind, the arrogance was because he was a halfling- there were a lot of people against matrimony or reproduction between species still. He remembered the horror stories his father told him when he and his mother decided to marry. It was why they lived so far from civilization, and instead lived in a small town. It was safer there, because they rarely had to see people.

As the man at the counter scoffed and sputtered that Adatia could use the stable for the night, his eyes grew and glistened. He'd seen horses travel through town when doing errands, but never had he seen them up close! He was quick to accept the offer. "It's still a roof over my head," He told himself. "It'd be better not to shake things up in here, even if the owner is a jerk."e two

It was then that he was called by a peculiar couple calling him over. Before he could complain upon his arrival to their space, the woman of the pair had recognized him as male, and was telling her husband it was normal for women to notice it.

"I don't see how women specifically know I'm a guy," He mentioned. "Most of the women in the caravan either didn't realize it or didn't care. I was always in the tent for the women and kids."

He found it hard to find a comfortable place to sit in this area, as the only open chair he found was a tad bit high for him to climb up. He used all his strength to pull himself upon it, glad to be more at eye level towards the two elves. "Why did you call for me, anyway?"
 
The male elf gave an amused tilt of his head as he took in the kid that sat before him.

"A passing whim perhaps," he answered. "Or curiosity. I couldn't help but notice you getting ripped off over there," he said with a nod of his head towards the bar counter. "You see, there's one thing around these parts that is more despised than a dark elf. And that's a half-breed like you. Why? Simply put you're despised by human and dark elf alike. Not dark elf enough for the elves, not human enough for the humans. So I can't help but wonder how one such as yourself can come to be in a place like this, and yet... seem for all intents and purposes oblivious to the way of the world."

"Castala, love?" he asked as he shuffled the deck of cards at hand. "Could you bring us some drinks?"

The deck seemed to dance between the dark elf's nimble fingers as his practiced hands began laying cards out on the table.

"Ghosts and Crowns, do you play?" he asked Adatia.
 
The young man had a quizzical expression. He had no reason to feel angry, yet he did- because no one in his backwater town thought to inform him when he was leaving on his self-discovery journey about this factor. He was especially irked that his father hadn't prepared him- sure, he'd said something about the outside world being cruel, but he didn't say there was a reason.

"I'm from a town rather far from here," He began to explain. "In my town, there were a lot of halflings, and of course their parents. I thought we all lived together for our personal comfort, but I didn't know it was more for our survival. And even in this town, full of people like me, my father didn't really let me do all that much. He had me busy helping run the family store, taking inventory and helping people find what they needed."

He watched as Castalia left them to get some drinks- what kind of drinks, only time would tell. He had little time to think about it as the man showed off his shuffling skills and began to lay out the cards. Adatia put a finger to his chin- he was never good at card games, so he hadn't memorized the names, even if he remembered the rules. "I think I've played it back home with my dad before... But can you give me a refresher to be safe?" A soft giggle left his lips from intimidation at how the elf would respond.

In the back of his mind, he couldn't help but wonder... If he wasn't elf enough for the elves, why was this one being so nice?
 
"And your family just left you to wander off without a clue what you where wandering off too?" the dark elf asked.

He was admittedly genuinely flabbergasted at the sheer ignorance of the kid that sat before him, and some part of him almost felt something akin to pity for him. Pity was something he didn't carry in any sort of abundance though, but even in his somewhat skewed view of the world he actually saw his intentions as something of a benevolent lesson to the kid. He fully intended to fleece the kid for everything he was worth, and he would be doing the kid a favor in doing so. If this Ada didn't wise up to the way of the world he would just wind up dead or worse. An empty wallet was a small price to pay to learn a healthy dose of distrust.

He was quick and efficient in his recounting of the rules of the game as Castala returned placing drinks upon the table. Wine from the look of it.

She lingered longer than necessary at Ada's back, leaning in close to whisper something softly to him.

"Don't let Kerson give you a hard time," she purred with a wink. "He's about as jaded as any who spent a few hundred years in Tai'emroth."

Tai'emroth. One of the last bastions of civilization during the time of the fall. Even isolated as Ada was, it was likely he was at least vaguely familiar with the history of Tai'emroth. A city of mixed races that held out against the Void for generations, side-by-side. Regardless of race or creed. Or at least that's how the history books tell it. The reality was a little more grey than that.
 
"It was my mother's last request of my father before she passed away giving birth to me," Adatia responded. "Apparently it's some sort of 'rite of passage'. I was raised very sheltered, so they wanted me to go out in the world and learn about the things they hid me from. They want me to be independent and find my own path... Whatever that means. I would've been find just staying home helping the shop the rest of my life if I had to." The boy shrugged his short shoulders, before taking a keen interest in the rules of the game he was about to play.

When Castala returned with their liquids, Adatia paled at the sight of the wine. It looked more like blood to him, as he'd never had alcohol before, besides one beer once with his father as a younger lad. His father had been quite drunk that day, however, and wasn't really aware Adatia was really his son and not a figment of his imagination. When he felt the woman's words fall on his ears, he turned a very light shade of pink, likely because he felt her breath on his neck from her being so close to his neck.

"So, shall we begin?" Adatia asked. He was intrigued to hear the man had lived in Tai'emroth, a place he thought was a mere fantasy his father made up for his bedtime stories as a child. He wanted to ask questions, but now wasn't the time for that in his head. They were about to play a game- a game that involved betting. He'd have to work hard to make sure not to lose all he had to this Kerson fellow.
 
"Jumping right in?" Kerson asked. "I like that," he added.

The dark-elf was aiming to play Adatia along, baiting him with a few small wins early on to bolster his confidence, and with Castala to keep a steady supply of wine - and prying eyes at Adatia's cards - Kerson could quickly turn the tables on the young half-elf. The trick was just enough wine to lower the kid's inhibitions enough to act on his bolstered confidence and early wins, while lack the self-control to know when to call it quits after a big loss or to realize how badly he was actually doing.

He gave a simple gesture of his hand, indicating Adatia could begin.

"I can't say that I have ever heard about that rite of passage," Kerson said. "Sounds to me more like they just wanted to get rid of you," he remarked. "The only reason I can fathom someone sending a half-breed like yourself out blindly into the world is to get it killed without getting their own hands dirty," he added with the slightest of frowns. "A mystery perhaps for another day?" he added with a lighter tone. "We have wine, cards, and fine company. All the makings of a pleasant evening free of such grim thoughts."
 
Back
Top