Clash of Dispositions

"Calan vaer," Rose said, after a few moments. She had been lost in her thoughts. She held some leaf-wrapped package, and when she pulled the leaves back, all it contained was a few pieces of thin, brownish cakes (or perhaps wafers). When she broke a piece off, the inside appeared to be cream coloured. A full piece was only about the size of a graham cracker, and Rose only ate about half of one before tucking it away. She then pulled out another packet wrapped in leaves, and inside of it were dried wild growing fruits, berries mostly, and nuts. These Rose had personally gathered and stored away. She ate some, and then offered some to Brant, fulling expecting him to reject the offer, and probably yell at her again.

"These come from the Yertaurë forest, south of here by about two days journey, if you follow the Evenstar." She said, and set them on the table between them, so if Brant chose to eat some, he could. But Rose did not offer him her bread. It was another secret of the rangers, and not something shared lightly.

Then, while she waited for Brant to do what he would with her offer, she asked him, in a more serious tone, "Have you heard of the hidden city of Gwânen?"
 
He watches as the woman whose name was Rose took out a leaf-wrapped package. She carefully unwrapped it revealing pieces of thin brown cake. He watched as she took off a small piece exposing the creme-colored inside. Watching her eat the nice food made him jealous and more hungry. It was still small, only about the size of a graham cracker, but it was more food than he had. She finished half of it and re-wrapped it putting it away. She then took out another leaf-wrapped package that contained what looked like dried fruits and nuts. She grabbed a few and ate them then pushed the leaf closer to him. Surprised that she offered him some, he stared at the nuts and fruit before taking a piece and popping it into his mouth. It was flavorful and better than his stale food.

"These come from the Yertaurë forest, south of here by about two days journey, if you follow the Evenstar." she said as he took another nut from the leaf. He had never heard of the forest and really didn't care because he never ventured outside of his city.

He took another nut from the leaf when the woman's voice took a harsh, strict tone that caught him off guard. "Have you heard of the hidden city of Gwânen?" She asked as he put more food into his mouth. He thought for a moment because the name sounded familiar but he could not exactly place it. ¨I have heard of it but I don't know much about it. Why do you ask?¨” He felt bad for being unable to answer the question but he was also confused as to why she wanted to know about this city.
 
"Gwânen," Rose explained, "was a great city before The Fall, and defended. You could not enter or exit Gwânen save by the Queen's leave, a great sorceress she was, and fair to look upon. The story says she was instructed to build the city by the Lord of the Water, and so by the banks of the River Legin Randir, and south of lake from which the river issues forth, Gwânen was built, before the coming of Men, and the mountains hid it, just as they hide Oderfeld, now, but the hidden city could only be reached by traveling through the underground karst system, and it was gated, and shut off from all who sought to do evil. Most did not even know where it stood. It was delved so that the city rose tall above the mountains, but sprawled also beneath the ground, and at the heart of all of it was water. Gwânen directly translates to 'fair water,' in the common tongue."

Rose furrowed her brows, thinking of the fall of the fair city, but not wanting to drop an entire history lesson on Brant, said nothing of it, "Well, the queen, anyway, had a set of armor forged and enchanted, made of jade and turquoise. This, too, you may have heard of, for after the defeat, the armor was cast wide, and much of it has been destroyed, or used for evil. I come to Oderfeld, now, to seek the Shield of Gwânen, to return it to my council, and keep it safe."
 
After a pause, she started explaining to him. She explained everything about the city. The history of the city, how to get there, the past governments and rulers and the meaning behind the city’s name, and why she sought it out. All of it was super confusing and he honestly had no idea why she was telling him this information. Before a few seconds ago he had no idea this city existed, he had no idea where it was and had no idea why it was so important. It was confusing that she wanted to go to this city that might not exist and try to find armor forged and enchanted, made of jade and turquoise. Why would it be so important to retrieve and guard this armor if the city was already hard to get to and might not exist?

After she finished telling him everything he took a second to process it and took another nut off the leaf. He stared at her for a few moments before prompting a question to her. “Why do I need to know all this? And why are you telling a peasant like me valuable and potentially significant information?” he was genuinely confused on why she was telling him information. Did she want him to help? Why would she want some peasant boy she just met that can barely lift three bricks? Questions were taking over his thoughts, but he was too anxious to ask anything. He anxiously shifted in his seat trying to process everything and prepare for an answer.
 
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"You don't need t'know it," Rose replied, "although it is part of your history, just as it is part of mine, and the information is not particularly valuable, at least, I would not phrase it that way. The Hidden City is the the zenith of our history, it was the land of light, seeming as though it would withstand all shadows... and my quest is not an errand of secrecy. I will speak t'many about it, before the end. I cannot find it unless I know where to look."

She felt his anxieties radiate off of him, but had no comforts to provide. She was too busy coming up with a way to seek out the shield. Her plan, still, was to visit the Cathedral, and ask the Clerics if they knew of it. Rose knew they would not simply have it, and they would only send her elsewhere, but... She turned to her quiver, and quickly counted her arrows. Well, she thought, I'm prepared, regardless of what happens. She was always prepared, she had to be.

"Have you heard of the shield, Brant?" Rose asked, at last, "The last time any document recorded its location, it was in this city, or near to it. Even if you have not heard it as the shield of the Hidden City, have you, at any point, seen it, or heard someone speak of it, or describe it? All I have is a document from long ago mentioning this place."
 
He once again patiently listened to her explanation responding to his comments and questions. She explained how it wasn't as important as he thought and more it was just history everyone learned and knew. It amused him that she thought he went to school and learned history. He had to slave away in the field, so he didn't starve to death. He never had time for school, but he nodded and pretended like he cared.

She then continued her explanation and explained the city really did exist, and you could find it if you looked in the right places. She had no reason to explain it to him even if she told others. He was unimportant and if she did need help he would not be the right person to be talking to. But he again nodded as to be respectful and to show he was listening to the lady. He sat there and listened until she said his name and prompted him with a question that momentarily confused him.

"Have you heard of the shield, Brant?" She asked. ¨have you at any point seen it, or heard someone speak of it or describe it?¨She then explained she only had documents from long ago mentioning this city and nothing else. He stared for a few seconds scrambling his brain to see if he could think of anything but he hit a dead end. ¨I'm really sorry but I haven't heard anything of the shield.¨ he looked into his lap feeling bad for being unable to help.
 
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"Do you know of anyone who might know of it?" Rose asked, sitting up straight, now. She was no longer languidly explaining the lore and history of a long-forgotten place, she was working, and all her thought was bent on her quest, "You live here, and this is my first time within the bounds of this city, so you know more than I do of the workings of this place. Do you know of a loremaster in Oderfeld? Or a collector? Even an enchanter or a mage. I plan to ask others, so don't fret if you don't, but... It would be helpful. I'm going t'head t'the cathedral shortly, but I know well enough who tends to have the most knowledge of their city."

Rose, still looking at Brant, began gathering her things. The sun was rising, the soft red light in the inn was growing brighter, and on the street she could hear those who worked early taking to the streets. It was nearing time for her to set out, and start asking questions, but not until she learned all she could from Brant.
 
After he had finished, she started rapid-firing questions at him. "Do you know of anyone who might know of it?¨she asked while making her posture more stiff and straight. She asked if he knew a madge or an enchanter or a loremaster. He had no idea why she needed these people but he thought about it so he could help.

He only had a few seconds to think because he could sense the panic and desperation but something finally came to mind. ¨Rose, Calm down. You will make it to the cathedral but if you need a madge I can guide you to one.¨ He replied. He knew one close to the inn but it would be a small walk to get there.

He watched as she frantically started grabbing all her belongings and packing them up. The orange and red rays were shining into the room and the streets were starting to get busy with early risers. He wasn't sure if she wanted his help or just wanted directions so he stared out the window watching the street waiting for whatever was coming next.
 
"I am calm," She replied, hopping to her feet and slinging her bow over her shoulder, "but I am also working, and this is serious. Take me to this mage." She didn't really care how long Brant stuck with her, but this was her first lead, and if he could bring her to someone who may know where the object rested, she would keep him around until she met this secondary person.

He didn't know. Of course he didn't. This shield, if the legends were correct, absorbed all magic cast at it, and made the bearer impervious to all but the greatest blows. Used as it was, it was powerful, but safe... but should the shield be broken, should it fall into nefarious hands, all the magic stored within the metal, which was strong as steel, but light and shining, could be reworked, and do great harm. The helm of Gwânen had, in this way, fallen to ill-use. The helm had different powers, but had been taken by the wrong sort, and two centuries ago, to the south, the hillside burned, and pestillance raged, and still to this day, the badlands, which once had been the lush valley of Nifred was beset with monsters and vile creatures who would not be vanquished, and bred. Rose herself had, in that time, fought with the members of her orders, and the folk of that region, to defeat the dread wizard who sought dominion over Il-kaira. The helm had been enchanted so as to prevent disease, and to protect against flame. But all powers could be worked for good, or for evil, and the helm was considered less great than the shield.
 
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She snapped at him, replying, “I am calm” as she slung the bow over her shoulder with more aggression than he thought was necessary. “But I am also working, and this is serious. Take me to this mage.” She demanded as she continued to get ready. He had not liked her attitude before, but today she seemed to be in a more rushed and angry mood. But to avoid more anger and aggression directed at him, he said nothing.

He did not know why he got dragged into this. She probably only needed him for Mage. Then she was going to get rid of him. This entire mission sounded silly and he felt like Rose was being overdramatic with the importance. But he would go along with whatever she said and wanted until she no longer needed him. It just sounded like another magic item. Sure it might be important because it “absorbed all magic” and if it broke maybe all magic that was cast at it would break and come back? He did not know, but from what she was telling him, that’s what sounded like what would happen. But he knew some things, and he knew magic items were extremely hard to break. And he knew the shield happened to be hidden. So the chance of it being A) found and B) broken was slim, meaning the current situation was not quite a threat. But if Rose thought it was THAT important, he would just follow along with her. Maybe she would see they blew this whole thing out of proportion. But until then he was happy following her around. He somewhat enjoyed her presence
 
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Rose pulled the hood up over her cloak over her head and left the inn, indicating for Brant to follow her. Once they were outside, she stood to the left of the door, and asked, "Where are we headed?" She looked up at the sky. The wind blew in from the East, and carried with it the scents from far away lands. The distant cathedral cast shadows in the early light, and the city began to stir.

She hoped this stranger could keep up with her. The work wasn't particularly arduous, but when Rose had a focus, she did not slow down, especially not in times like these. She could tell Brant didn't understand the importance, which was typical of humans. If the event did not happen in their lifespan, it seemed as though it happened too long to affect them. The memory did not continue. Rose was far from an expert of the arcane, although she was a competent alchemist, but she knew the harm a powerful object could cause. She couldn't sit idle, even were she not sent her by order of those she served.

Now she only needed to know where to go.
 
She pulled her cloak over her head and walked out of the inn gesturing for Brant to follow her. As soon as he stepped outside the inn the woman demanded directions from him."Where are we headed?" she asked. He pointed North East across the street towards a dark rather nasty-looking alleyway. That's where his parents said it was before they died. He did not know the exact location of the mage but knew it was in the alleyway

He started walking in the direction of the alleyway hoping Rose would follow him willingly and not try to tell him what to do. He got closer and closer to the alley, and it got darker and darker making it harder to see. He started slowing down, partially waiting for Rose to catch up and partially not wanting to go any farther out of fear. He knew that places like this were dangerous. With vicious people. And the last thing he wanted was to die from something silly and unimportant.
 
The dark alley didn't seem to bother Rose. She wasn't naïve, and she could tell it was dangerous, but she was used to danger. She had hundreds of years of danger. But she could see Brant was, and she stood beside him, and put her hand on his shoulder, and said, "Courage, Brant, if something lurks in the shadow, I'll see it." She never hoped for a fight, and would enjoy if she never raised her bow, or her sword, against another person again in her life, but nonetheless, the weapons she bore were not only for show.

If she knew where they were headed, she would walk in front of him (if he would still follow her, if she did not need him), but she couldn't do so, or even offer to. Instead she walked beside him, and stood tall and sure, with all the grace of her people. On the cobblestone, only one set of footsteps could be heard, and it was not hers. She stepped too lightly to make a sound.
 
They stepped deeper into the alleyway and it got darker and worse smelling. He could feel his knees trembling. It was already hard enough for his bony legs to hold up his weight but having them shake almost made him topple over. He looked over at Rose and saw her standing tall and keeping her head up. He tried straightening his back, but he almost fell over. "Courage, Brant, if something lurks in the shadow, I'll see it." she said, trying to reassure him. It was nice for her to help but fear was still very much prevalent.

They ventured deeper passing more and more shading-looking stores. He was just about to tell Rose that he saw the store ahead and instead went dead silent. He heard footsteps that did not belong to Rose or him. He stopped and turned around. He was face to face with a burly man wearing dark green pants with black boots and rope tied around his waist. He also wore a green shirt with no sleeves and was the same color as the pants. He panicked and turned to run forwards, but he saw a more slender but still strong man in front of them. The people were surrounding them.

He was slender and weak, making him an easy target and the first thing they did was grab him. The guy wasted no time, and he lifted him off the ground by his shirt causing the seams in his shirt to rip. The man was screaming at him to give them everything and when he said nothing the guy punched him in the face. The pain rippled through his eye and he could feel it already becoming swollen. He dropped him causing more scrapes on his palm and knee. He stayed completely silent not wanting to become the main focus. He wanted to help Rose, but he was too weak. He silently prayed nothing happened to her.
 
As soon as she heard the footsteps, Rose had her hand on the hilt of her sword (only because it was less obvious than reaching for her bow), but before she could bid Brant to stand with her, he had already taken off running into danger. If only he hadn't attempted to flee, she may have been able to talk to them, and saved all of them some hurt. But that chance was lost, and so she released her sword and bent her bow.

The arrow sang when it was released, but hit nothing but the wall. It did, however, fly close enough to the thinner man's head that it nearly grazed his ear. As soon as it was released, she had another ready, "That was a warning shot," she said, "I did not have to miss." There were five men surrounding them, and only one of her--Brant, it would seem, would be useless--so the odds were not great... but, Rose thought, as she backed up against a building, so no one could come up behind her, they could be worse.

Rose shifted on her heels, switching who she was aiming at, daring them to come closer. She only fired a second shot, still purposely missing, when one of the men made a move like they were going to kick Brant.

"I will kill you if you touch him," She growled, "Neither of us have anything you would want."
 
He could feel the blood dripping down his face as he laid with his haggard face pressed against the concrete in too much pain to move. He knew his palms, legs, arms, and face became scraped when they threw him but there was too much pain and adrenaline going through him to feel anything. He wanted to die right then. The group of men that attacked him started surrounding him while drawing back their legs getting ready to kick him to a bloody pulp. He shakily put his arms over his head trying to reduce the damage to his head. He knew it wasn't going to help, but he wanted the bare minimum of protection. He sat there waiting for a strike letting the blood from his arms drip onto his head.

Just when they were about to strike, he heard the whistle of an arrow fly by. He waited a moment for something to happen when he heard a second arrow fly and nearly hit one of the men. She shouted something inaudible, and he heard her footsteps get closer. She spoke again and this time he could hear it loud and clear. "I will kill you if you touch him, Neither of us has anything you would want." she sneered. He felt safer than he had in minutes when she arrived.

He expected them to leave when she showed up but they stood their ground and still surrounded him. One of the guys drew his leg back and kicked him directly in the gut. He let out a mangled anguished scream. They were kicking nothing but bones and he thought he heard something snap. They kicked him one more time this time aiming for his face. They kicked him so hard his mouth started to spew out blood. All he could taste was metal, and he felt the warm liquid dripping down his face. As soon as they finished with him, he saw them start to charge Rose and in one last fruitless attempt he stuck out his leg trying to trip them. It did nothing but get his leg stepped on. They were completely useless. He sat on the ground making no noise and silently cried waiting for them to leave so he could crawl back to safety.
 
As soon as Brant was kicked, Rose loosed her arrow, and this time it found its mark. The attacker exhaled suddenly, and backed up, an arrow shaft sticking out of his chest. She then fired at the others, and every arrow hit. She did her best not to hit them in their lungs or heart, because ultimately, she didn't want to kill them, she preferred to only incapacitate, regardless of what she had said.

Their attackers, seeing the woman would actually harm them, forgot all about Brant and focused their attention on the one who was actually fighting back. The first man Rose had shot had stumbled backwards, and was sitting on the pavement trying to decide if he should pull the arrow out or leave it in, but of the other four: two both had been shot, but not as severely as the first, and the other two were uninjured. They were both taller than her, and one was daring enough to risk her arrows and throw his body weight against her, stepping on Brant in the process. Rose groaned, and dropped her bow as she collided with the wall, but as she recovered she drew her sword, and with a grunt and buried its blade to the hilt in his belly. The three remaining men, witnessing this, drew daggers from hidden places and came at her with them.

"I warned you," Rose growled, holding her reddened sword before her face to center herself, "You should have left when you could."

The fight, ultimately, did not last long, although it felt like ages. Eventually, four of the men sat, or lay, on the ground, wounded but still living, and the fifth fled for his life.

"Come on, Brant," Rose panted, gently pulling him to his feet, since his legs did not appear to be broken, "we should move from here. I don't think these men were simple muggers." She was bruised, and her arm and lip were bleeding, and she was definitely exhausted, but she waited for Brant to get his bearings, while she slung her bow over her shoulder and cleaned the blood from her sword before sheathing it. When they had gotten a distance away, she would check Brant's wounds, and her own, but for now she wanted to get away in case the fifth member came back with reinforcements, although... judging by the look on his face, she doubted he would. He was younger than the rest.
 
As he laid on the ground he heard another whistle of an arrow but this time he heard a thud as it hit someone. He was in too much pain to look up and see who it was, so he just continued listening. He also didn’t want the men to target him. Pain and uncomfortability were common things in his life so they never bothered him. But he had no idea why he trusted that woman. He should have known he would receive pain because she wouldn't help him. She should have let them kill him.

After he heard the thud of an arrow hitting someone footsteps walking backward followed suit. Then he heard someone slump to the ground. He wasn’t sure if he was dead or just seriously injured but nonetheless, he stayed quiet. He started lifting his head thinking the fight was over and when his head was about a millimeter off the ground he heard footsteps running towards Rose and he immediately dropped his head back down. The sound that followed after the running was a body hitting the nearest wall, and he knew that rose was now a target. He started slowly and quietly shifting to see what was happening. Just when he shifted enough to see but not enough for anyone to notice he saw Rose drive a sword from point to hilt into the man’s stomach. He let out a little barely audible scream and watched the man hit the ground with a loud thud as blood pooled around him.

"I warned you," He heard her spat as she held the sword with blood in front of her "You should have left when you could."

After that he heard the loud thumps of footsteps as the other three men ran for their lives. The fight only lasted a few minutes but it felt like hours. And out of the years of being homeless and starving these were the worst few minutes of his life.

After the footsteps fade away, new ones started walking towards him. "Come on, Brant," Rose panted as she carefully pulled him to his feet which caused a good amount of pain. "We should move from here. I don't think these men were simple muggers," she said. His legs were shaking and hurt from when the men stepped on him. He could also feel his eye getting more and more swollen and the bleeding from his mouth hadn’t stopped. Rose wasn’t looking too good either. Her arm and lip were bleeding pretty good too. She slung her bow over her shoulder and patiently waited for him to compose himself a little more before they continued their journey. He would possibly leave after he showed her the madge because if helping her meant this then he didn't want to help.
 
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Rose picked up one of the men's daggers and turned it over in her hand. The handle was twisted, and one side of the hilt pointed upwards, the other pointed down. The blade was chipped, and was engraved in a language which looked like a corruption of the elven speech, "definitely not simple muggers," she murmured to herself, and after checking to see if the men were unconscious, she knelt down and searched all of them, but they had nothing of interest. Rose frowned, and cut some fabric from the back of one of the men's shirt to wrap the dagger in before tucking it away.

"I would say take one, but these should not be used until I know more about them," Rose turned and looked at him for a few moments, and then handed him her water skin, "Drink some water," she said. His wounds looked bad, but she was hoping they were more ugly than anything. He was lucky they hadn't pulled out their actual weapons when fighting him--her arm was burning, and the missing fragment of the dagger's blade didn't bode well.

"Come on," She repeated, and continued her walk down the alleyway. Soon they would be able to take a rest, and fix themselves up, but she didn't feel comfortable doing it there. They needed to get somewhere more private, just in case. She did, however, pull out a vial full of rough, brown powder, and this too she passed back to Brant, "Take some of this," she commanded, "it's crushed willow bark, it's pain medicine."
 
He was bent over and his hands were resting on his knees as he tried focusing on something other than how much pain he was in. He watched as she grabbed one of the daggers from the unconscious man. The blade looked like it chipped and had a different language engraved on it. It was in a language he had never seen and had no idea how to read. She murmured something under her breath about how they weren’t normal robbers and knelt down to continue searching the unconscious men.

She searched them then carefully wrapped the dagger in a piece of cloth that she had cut off from her shirt and tucked it away. She explained why he couldn’t keep one as they were potentially dangerous. But he saw the dagger but felt unfazed about not being able to have one. He couldn't defend himself, so having it would be useless to him anyway. After a few more moments she pulled the water skin out of another pocket and offered him some water. He hastily grabbed the brown water skin and guzzled down more water than what was his fair share. He partially felt bad for drinking so much water, but he wanted to quench his thirst and get the bitter taste of blood out of his mouth.

When he finished drinking the water skin, he handed it back to her and she pulled out a vial full of brown powder. "Take some of this. It's crushed willow bark, it's pain medicine," she explained. He took it from her and hastily uncorked the vial and poured some into his hand and dumped the contents into his mouth. It tasted dry and like bark. He finished the contents in his hand and once again took his spot in front leading her to the mage once again. Just this time with a small limp and blood dripping down his face.
 
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