One For The Road (Fyrra, Open)

[Sej]

Having completed the basic road training he would most likely need to do any sort of traveling, Soren made his way to The Tipsy Darkling. The plan was to put a meal in his belly and possibly secure a bed for the night. Also a drink to steady his nerves couldn't hurt. After all, the young man was about to spend nearly every cent he had to prepare for the journey before him. He'd already inquired towards the cost of rations, knowing himself incapable of feeding himself through hunting and foraging along the road, and learned that it would basically empty his purse just getting halfway to the destination he had in mind.

Looking to bolster his magical abilities beyond the simple basics he'd already learned and build the foundations a battle mage might require, he'd stumbled upon stories of Korasus. There, they were supposedly offering tutelage to fledgling members of the Alliance. Soren immediately knew this was where he needed to go. Unfortunately, Korasus was about as far from Innorsford as a place could get.

A ball of nerves sat heavily in the young noble's stomach even as he slid into a spot at the bar. The landless Sej was effectively penniless, little better than a commonder if it weren't for his blood, and about to gamble everything he had left on a journey that, ultimately, he had no means for a return trip from. He'd need to find work in cities along the route to finance the trip and run like hell if any trouble cropped up on the road.

"Call of the 'Mander, please," Soren requested and, after a brief pause, ordered something stronger than water to wash it down. Meals like this would bankrupt him in time and soon the young man would long for when he had the coin to throw down on such luxuries, but for now he needed something to give him the courage to set his feet on the road and keep him moving towards the dream that woke him every morning.

Staring downcast into the mug of dark liquid he was served, young Soren mumbled his destination a few times as though invoking the name of the place would suddenly throw wide some arcane gate leading directly to the settlement. One last time, that youthful face set determinedly beneath a shock of dark curls, before he took a swig from his drink.

"Korasus."

---

Purchased:

Call of the 'Mander

Darthak Dark Stout

[Fyrra Na'Limndra]

"Korasus?"

A voice with a lilt says near him. She was a small woman. A female half-drokagr. But she appeared to be full blooded, what with her blue skin. Her hair was a shade of blue as well, but her eyes were a deep red. She sits down at his table, uninvited. Her smile is bright and her teeth clean. She looked at the boy for a moment before decided she was going to help him whether he wanted it or not.

"I am from Korasus. Are you going there?"

[Sej]

Soren jumped a little in his seat, nearly choking on his ale. The youth turned his wide green eyes on the stranger who'd snuck up on him. No, that was an unfair accusation. It wasn't polite to launch an accusation of sneaking just because one happened to not be paying attention to their surroundings when approached, Soren admonished himself. The facts, then. She'd taken a seat at his table, uninvited. She appeared to be Drokagr, which would fit with her claim to hail from Korasus. And she was quite possibly the most colorful individual Soren had seen recently, perhaps in the entirety of the rather limited scope of his experience.

"Y-yes," He sputtered, recovering from his surprise. Being friendly was no cost. This was a social establishment, after all.

"Well, erm, that's to say I'm trying. I've not quite gotten a handle on the logistics of such a journey. But I absolutely must go, you see. As one having clearly made the journey before, might you be possessed of any advice on how to ease the financial burden? Rations are terribly expensive right now and I'm no hunter."

[Fyrra Na'Limndra]

"Indeed?"

Fyrra was intrigued. He must go? Why must he go across the near breadth of the entire country, through wild lands, to her homeland? There was a financial burden to going to Korasus. For all he knew, the prices in Korasus were similar to here. Which was simply untrue. Korasus was a much more expensive place than anywhere in Cruinthe. She smiled and nodded at him as he talked. Her head rested in her hands, and her elbows on the table. When he was done she spoke.

"I see. Rations are pretty bad too, I mean flavor-wise. Dried dragonfruit has lost much of its vigor. The succulence of the fruit itself is something to be experienced at every chance. Why do you need to go to Korasus? Because I could stand to go home for a bit before the next campaign begins. I'd rather know who I am traveling with, and for why they are traveling."

[Sej]

"That sounds reasonable," Soren agreed, nodding his head. One should know their traveling companion, especially in these times when it was easy to run afoul of bandits or some other mishap along the journey. Trust, at least to the degree that one did not take being stabbed in one's sleep, was paramount.

"I need to go there to get stronger. I'm a mage, a fledgling really, and I've recently thrown my lot in with the Alliance. If I'm to be of use and live through this war, I've got to get better. I don't have a teacher or money for expensive lessons but word reached my ears about training being offered in Korasus so I believe that is the best course for me right now."

Tilting his head slightly to the side, giving Fyrra a puzzled look, the young man asked her "What about you? I understand why you want to got to Korasus, but why travel with me? We're strangers."

[Fyrra Na'Limndra]

"Ah! I forgot to introduce myself! I am Fyrra Na'Limndra. Kalimbra. I am from Korasus. What is your name?"

Fyrra appeared shocked at herself once he mentioned that they were strangers. Of course they were! For now at least! She was looking to rectify that immediately. Once she got his name, or a name, she would speak more. Her voice leveling off into a serious tone. She became dour looking, almost cross.

"You see... I am without my bodyguard. Former bodyguard I might say. We had a falling out you see. She did not believe I was doing the right thing. I believe I am doing the right thing. So I am alone again. And traveling the breadth of the country is easier when you have help. Especially since I am... admittedly not much of a fighter. I can not rough and tumble with monsters in the up close and personal space, if you understand my drift."

She appeared almost ashamed near that last part. Sure, she had other means of taking care of her foes. But she was basically useless in close quarters, and she acknowledged that.

[Sej]

"Soren Emile Jacques. I'm from here, now, I guess."

The young man shrugged apologetically. He didn't consider Innorsford his home but there was nowhere else, so far. Soren was a little self conscious about giving his full name. Not because he was worried that it would be recognized and he would be ridiculed for his poverty, they'd never been as notable as that, but because he didn't really feel worthy of it. Despite the oaths he'd sworn and the moments spent staring dashingly off at the horizon, Soren had yet to do little for his cause.

Talking to others had never been a particular gift of his. Fyrra had told him some things about herself and her situation. Soren decided they needed to be acknowledged, perhaps through an expression of sentiment, before he moved on to something of mutual interest.

"I am sorry to hear about your bodyguard. Losing such a trusted companion has to be hard. I'm not much in the monster slaying department, personally, but I certainly agree on the merits of traveling with another. Were you planning to leave soon or is there some unfinished business you've yet to attend to in Innorsford?"

[Fyrra Na'Limndra]

"I can leave any time really. If we are traveling together, we should stock up on some supplies before we go."

Fyrra waves over the barmaid.

"Can I get some dragonfruit?"

"Yes, be right back."

"Thank you."

She then looks towards Soren and smiles at him.

"I am craving it now that we've talked about it."

She waits for a moment and a small plate of the fruits is brought out. They are ripe and appear to be freshly picked. She takes one and takes a bite out of it. It sounds as delicious as it tastes, the crunching and soft sounds.

"Go ahead, have one."

Fyrra was an easy going sort it seemed, at least here in the tavern. She did not relish the chance to be moving out into the wild suddenly, but she did want to go to Korasus. One can not do both at the same time. At least not as a Kalimbra without guards of her own.

[Sej]

Soren exhaled the breath he hadn't realized that he'd been holding. Knowing there would be no long wait was a major relief to the young man. Perhaps it was his youth, but an impatience to get on with his journey burned within him. Logically, he knew that a little extra training would do little to change who he was and prepare him for the life he'd signed up for. But Soren couldn't help but feel that each step he took was bringing him closer to some more tangible goal.

"Supplies. Right. Would be awfully shortsighted of me to starve on the road before we even made it to Morith, let alone Korasus."

Reflexively, he clutched at his purse, suppressing a wince at the idea of parting with what little coin he possessed over something as trivial as feeding himself. Ha. Perhaps he shouldn't trivialize his own health so, but it certainly felt unimportant when taking in the grander aspects of his goals. A new House would need funds, vast funds for the one of his imagining. How did commonfolk make money? Through trades like smithing and masonry, of course, but Soren couldn't do any of that. Begging and servitude were certainly beneath him. He'd have to figure something out.

"Thank you," He said, accepting the offered fruit. It was good, if different from what he'd chosen himself. "If the rations are even a tenth like this, weeks of eating nothing else might not be so grim an outlook after all."

Though his thoughts were always straying to his journey, Soren had been watching Fyrra. She didn't strike him as a particularly dishonest or cruel person. Of course, his sheltered life didn't make him an expert judge of character. But Soren felt, fingers crossed, that she could be trusted to not cut his throat on the road, at least.

"There's only the one place, really, to buy rations, yes? I'd like to tend to that soon. I honestly want to be on the road as early as is reasonable. Might we go to the store today and venture from Innorsford before the week's end?"

[Fyrra Na'Limndra]

"Of course! Shopping is one of the things I am very good at. Let us go."

With that Fyrra got up from the table and looked around. She spotted the exit and started to head towards it. Her jewelry jangled as she walked at that determined clip she had. She opened the door, which appeared to be something she wasn't quite used to, and went outside. The Quartermaster and Headquarters was nearby, just a little ways down the road. She remembered when The Tipsy Darkling was headquarters. Things had changed in the few months since those battles before winter.

Then it hit her. It was going to be cold. Winter was right around the corner. It would take them quite a bit of time to get to Korasus. Perhaps there was a faster way?

Nothing came to mind.

"If we can make it to Morith before winter starts, we should be fine. I don't want to be caught on the open road in this. I will freeze to death, despite my desires and fashion."

[Sej]

Whatever he'd been expecting, Soren had most definitely not been expecting Fyrra to spring into action quite like that. Wolfing down the remainder of his food in a decidedly less than noble fashion, the young man nearly tripped as he got up and hurried after the woman. He winced at the pain in his knee, that minor injury he'd received goofing off aggravated by the sudden shift from sitting to walking. But the young man managed to catch up.

"I hadn't even considered winter," Soren admitted. He owned no clothes other than the ones on his back and the prospect of wintering with no guarantee of warm clothing or even a shelter like the old manor house was rather daunting. He had much to learn, still. A journey on his own may have ended in disaster any number of ways, apparently.

"Surely winter isn't so close that we couldn't make the journey in time? And, if necessary, we could cut through the wilds. The highways are safest, of course, but a more direct route might be worth the added danger if it ensured we would not be caught unprepared for a freeze."

For the first time, Soren took note of the outfit Fyrra was wearing. The young man did not normally take note of such things, only recognizing when one's clothing identified the wearer as a person of authority or one's class. Being ignorant of Drokagr culture, he decided it best to reserve judgment. But it certainly wasn't a garment he would want to weather a winter storm in.

"Pardon my ignorance," He began, curiosity getting the better of him as they walked. "But what, exactly, is a Kalimdra? Some sort of title?"

[Fyrra Na'Limndra]

"Korasus is clear on the other side of the country, so it is over three hundred miles I think. I can only walk about twenty before my legs are too tired, so it will depend on how we go about getting there. We might be able to get horses. That would expedite our travel."

She said, almost to the quartermaster. Kable's trade caravan was something else in the early days of the war. Always where you needed it to be. Always available to make a sale. Now they were contracted with the alliance and exclusively sold to them. Kable was even called the Quartermaster.

Fyrra approached the tent.

"Ah... A Kalimbra is an artist of the body. Like living statues, dancers, musicians, and the like. Our place in society is one of reverence."

She enters the tent and starts looking at the various wares.