as written by Script and Knosis
The streets of the capitol were packed at this time of day of people coming and going about their daily lives. It was a normal day. Well, for the most part.
Tugark walked through the streets, scratching sheepishly at his snout as he passed. People gave him a wide wake, a mixture of reactions reached the faces of the crowd. Many was fear, others were shock or disbelief or awe.
The beast wasn't exactly the 'blend in' type. Standing at nearly 9 feet tall, he stood double most people here. And although he was humanoid, white fur, white mane, a tail and huge wings didn't help matters either. "Rei natuk mare.." He muttered under his breath, his voice deep and harsh as if on the verge of a growl.
"Hail, stranger."
A voice cut through the low murmuring of passers-by around Tugark, as a figure broke from the flow of people who had been giving him such a wide berth. The speaker was a young man with blue-black hair dressed in a white jacket, with his midriff exposed to display swirling tattoos. A three-pronged spear was strapped to his back.
Naotora's expression was more quizzical than anything else. He wasn't smiling, but there was nothing threatening about his manner as he approached and offered a slight bow. Looking closely, a slightly unusual gleam to his blue eyes was noticeable, but apart from that and his stand-out attire, he seemed to be a normal human. "Greetings. My name is Naotora, I'm a member of a nearby guild. Are you newly arrived in the city? I'm assuming by your appearance that you aren't from around here."
The Avand tilted his head at the stranger, bending down with his hands on his legs to meet the man eye to eye. He muttered something unintelligible to himself, as if trying to remember something forgotten. His blue hues narrowed at the man, studying him from head to toe, and then to his weapon.
Still, he tipped his head, touching his snout in an greeting after a moment. When next he spoke, his words sounded short of gruff growls, but he was at least mostly understandable.
"Well met, friend Naotora. I am Tugark of the Mountains." He said formally, scratching behind one of his long ears. "I have only just arrived, but I fear my presence is making the people here uncomfortable." He stated sheepishly, his deep baritone voice nearly echoing above the other people just by the very nature of how big he was. "Perhaps you can help me?" He asked slowly, a look in his eyes that nearly resembled a puppy begging for a treat.
"Good to meet you, Tugark. I fear there's not much I can do about you intimidating the populace, but don't worry too much. There are plenty of unusual beings here, so as much as they'll murmur and stare, most of the people of Tianshi won't be too bothered by you as long as you're not causing trouble." Nao replied. Indeed, now that the people recognised that the strange creature was engaging in conversation with someone, most people were paying him less mind. "And if someone does get spooked enough to call the police on you, just mention my name. I'm quite well known here, so they'll be able to get hold of me." he added. There didn't seem to be any boasting to his words, just statement of fact.
"Have you come here for the Festival of Spirits, then?" he asked. The streets of the city all bore a wide array of hanging decorations - banners, lanterns and ornaments galore hung between buildings and street lights.
Tugark looked up at the decorations, as if seeing them for the first time. In all honesty, he had been too busy trying to not step on people and look as meek as possible to have noticed them. "I wish I could say I was. I hadn't realized there was a festival.." He murmured, continuing to scratch at the back of his ear. It seemed to be a nervous tick of his.
"I am searching.. for something lost to me." He said, lowering his voice as much as he could muster. "I have information saying it could be in this area.. So I plan to stay awhile and search for it." He answered honestly, though he seemed troubled about going further into detail.
Naotora raised an inquisitive eyebrow. "Something lost, you say?" he asked, "May I inquire as to the nature of your search? Perhaps I might be of assistance. If it's an item of value, I'm afraid to say it's likely in someone's pocket by now. The big city isn't known for its charity."
He paused, folding his arms. "But I get the sense you're not just looking for some trinket, are you?"
Tugark shuffled his huge paw-like feet uncomfortably and scratched at his snout. "I have not sensed it has changed hands yet.. Otherwise, my concern would be as as you say.." He murmured. The Avand then narrowed his eyes at Naotora. "It is something I -need- to find." He stressed the word.
"And help would be much appreciated, but I will not discuss it further here.." He said, slowly standing back to his full height. "Is there a place we might go?"
Naotora nodded, "There is - I can take you back to my Guild Hall. Depending on the nature of the help you need, it'll likely not come free." he said, before tilting his head thoughtfully and then finally cracking a smile, "But I'm not exactly hard off at the moment, so you never know."
He gestured for Tugark to follow him and set off down the street towards the docks. "I work with Golden Phoenix. We're a Guild of Heroes, to use the traditional term. People of all sorts use the guild as a platform for their work - from crafters, to musicians, to warriors like me. We're one of the best around, if I do say so myself."
Tugark nodded but hesitated at the mention of money. He had some, but nothing from this land. Still, he followed Naotora, walking slowly to not out-pace the man.
"I do not have coin to pay for anything here.." He said sheepishly. It had honestly been the last thing on his mind. "Would I be able to find work within your guild then..?" He frowned deeply.
"Oh, absolutely. By the look of you, I'd say you'd do just fine if you were looking to work." Naotora nodded, "There's no shortage of need for strong warriors. The ministry does what it can to keep the naga and the brigands from posing any danger to people, but they can't be everywhere. Not to mention the supposed rise of evil spirit attacks lately, though I've yet to see one myself."
He shook his head, "It's a bad time for such things to be happening, if it's true. The festival of spirits is supposed to be about celebrating harmony between man and spirit. If the spirits are growing angry and attacking, it can't mean anything good."
The pair emerged onto the dockside after a few minutes of walking, and were greeted by a view of hundreds of ships, small and large, moored at the edge of the city that touched the waves. People bustled about busily, and foreigners made up almost half of the crowds - meaning Tugark was drawing much less attention. Nao pointed across the docks at a large building visible a few minutes walk away, with the bright golden insignia of a phoenix displayed on its front. It was an impressive looking building, three storeys tall and brightly coloured. "That's the guild." he explained.
"Hrrmmm.." The deep throaty rumble seemed to vibrate the air. "Attacks by spirits are never a good thing.." He agreed. Tugark had to be much more careful with less people paying attention to him. It was more likely he would bump into someone, or worse, step on a tot.
"And especially with so many foreigners coming to your city for this festival.." He nodded slightly. "Would there be a reason why their attacks have suddenly increased?"
He turned to look to where Nao had pointed. His gaze soften slightly at the phoenix insignia, a lump forming in his throat. Emotion stirred on the Avand's face but eventually he nodded. "Impressive." He said quietly. A gruff sound escaped his throat, sounding like a cat hacking almost as he cleared his throat. He continued to move on.
The streets of the capitol were packed at this time of day of people coming and going about their daily lives. It was a normal day. Well, for the most part.
Tugark walked through the streets, scratching sheepishly at his snout as he passed. People gave him a wide wake, a mixture of reactions reached the faces of the crowd. Many was fear, others were shock or disbelief or awe.
The beast wasn't exactly the 'blend in' type. Standing at nearly 9 feet tall, he stood double most people here. And although he was humanoid, white fur, white mane, a tail and huge wings didn't help matters either. "Rei natuk mare.." He muttered under his breath, his voice deep and harsh as if on the verge of a growl.
"Hail, stranger."
A voice cut through the low murmuring of passers-by around Tugark, as a figure broke from the flow of people who had been giving him such a wide berth. The speaker was a young man with blue-black hair dressed in a white jacket, with his midriff exposed to display swirling tattoos. A three-pronged spear was strapped to his back.
Naotora's expression was more quizzical than anything else. He wasn't smiling, but there was nothing threatening about his manner as he approached and offered a slight bow. Looking closely, a slightly unusual gleam to his blue eyes was noticeable, but apart from that and his stand-out attire, he seemed to be a normal human. "Greetings. My name is Naotora, I'm a member of a nearby guild. Are you newly arrived in the city? I'm assuming by your appearance that you aren't from around here."
The Avand tilted his head at the stranger, bending down with his hands on his legs to meet the man eye to eye. He muttered something unintelligible to himself, as if trying to remember something forgotten. His blue hues narrowed at the man, studying him from head to toe, and then to his weapon.
Still, he tipped his head, touching his snout in an greeting after a moment. When next he spoke, his words sounded short of gruff growls, but he was at least mostly understandable.
"Well met, friend Naotora. I am Tugark of the Mountains." He said formally, scratching behind one of his long ears. "I have only just arrived, but I fear my presence is making the people here uncomfortable." He stated sheepishly, his deep baritone voice nearly echoing above the other people just by the very nature of how big he was. "Perhaps you can help me?" He asked slowly, a look in his eyes that nearly resembled a puppy begging for a treat.
"Good to meet you, Tugark. I fear there's not much I can do about you intimidating the populace, but don't worry too much. There are plenty of unusual beings here, so as much as they'll murmur and stare, most of the people of Tianshi won't be too bothered by you as long as you're not causing trouble." Nao replied. Indeed, now that the people recognised that the strange creature was engaging in conversation with someone, most people were paying him less mind. "And if someone does get spooked enough to call the police on you, just mention my name. I'm quite well known here, so they'll be able to get hold of me." he added. There didn't seem to be any boasting to his words, just statement of fact.
"Have you come here for the Festival of Spirits, then?" he asked. The streets of the city all bore a wide array of hanging decorations - banners, lanterns and ornaments galore hung between buildings and street lights.
Tugark looked up at the decorations, as if seeing them for the first time. In all honesty, he had been too busy trying to not step on people and look as meek as possible to have noticed them. "I wish I could say I was. I hadn't realized there was a festival.." He murmured, continuing to scratch at the back of his ear. It seemed to be a nervous tick of his.
"I am searching.. for something lost to me." He said, lowering his voice as much as he could muster. "I have information saying it could be in this area.. So I plan to stay awhile and search for it." He answered honestly, though he seemed troubled about going further into detail.
Naotora raised an inquisitive eyebrow. "Something lost, you say?" he asked, "May I inquire as to the nature of your search? Perhaps I might be of assistance. If it's an item of value, I'm afraid to say it's likely in someone's pocket by now. The big city isn't known for its charity."
He paused, folding his arms. "But I get the sense you're not just looking for some trinket, are you?"
Tugark shuffled his huge paw-like feet uncomfortably and scratched at his snout. "I have not sensed it has changed hands yet.. Otherwise, my concern would be as as you say.." He murmured. The Avand then narrowed his eyes at Naotora. "It is something I -need- to find." He stressed the word.
"And help would be much appreciated, but I will not discuss it further here.." He said, slowly standing back to his full height. "Is there a place we might go?"
Naotora nodded, "There is - I can take you back to my Guild Hall. Depending on the nature of the help you need, it'll likely not come free." he said, before tilting his head thoughtfully and then finally cracking a smile, "But I'm not exactly hard off at the moment, so you never know."
He gestured for Tugark to follow him and set off down the street towards the docks. "I work with Golden Phoenix. We're a Guild of Heroes, to use the traditional term. People of all sorts use the guild as a platform for their work - from crafters, to musicians, to warriors like me. We're one of the best around, if I do say so myself."
Tugark nodded but hesitated at the mention of money. He had some, but nothing from this land. Still, he followed Naotora, walking slowly to not out-pace the man.
"I do not have coin to pay for anything here.." He said sheepishly. It had honestly been the last thing on his mind. "Would I be able to find work within your guild then..?" He frowned deeply.
"Oh, absolutely. By the look of you, I'd say you'd do just fine if you were looking to work." Naotora nodded, "There's no shortage of need for strong warriors. The ministry does what it can to keep the naga and the brigands from posing any danger to people, but they can't be everywhere. Not to mention the supposed rise of evil spirit attacks lately, though I've yet to see one myself."
He shook his head, "It's a bad time for such things to be happening, if it's true. The festival of spirits is supposed to be about celebrating harmony between man and spirit. If the spirits are growing angry and attacking, it can't mean anything good."
The pair emerged onto the dockside after a few minutes of walking, and were greeted by a view of hundreds of ships, small and large, moored at the edge of the city that touched the waves. People bustled about busily, and foreigners made up almost half of the crowds - meaning Tugark was drawing much less attention. Nao pointed across the docks at a large building visible a few minutes walk away, with the bright golden insignia of a phoenix displayed on its front. It was an impressive looking building, three storeys tall and brightly coloured. "That's the guild." he explained.
"Hrrmmm.." The deep throaty rumble seemed to vibrate the air. "Attacks by spirits are never a good thing.." He agreed. Tugark had to be much more careful with less people paying attention to him. It was more likely he would bump into someone, or worse, step on a tot.
"And especially with so many foreigners coming to your city for this festival.." He nodded slightly. "Would there be a reason why their attacks have suddenly increased?"
He turned to look to where Nao had pointed. His gaze soften slightly at the phoenix insignia, a lump forming in his throat. Emotion stirred on the Avand's face but eventually he nodded. "Impressive." He said quietly. A gruff sound escaped his throat, sounding like a cat hacking almost as he cleared his throat. He continued to move on.
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