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Post by Grand Duchy of Voruta on Sept 30, 2018 19:39:26 GMT -8
It was truly the beginning of the fall rain season, turning the unpaved roads into quagmires, and the paved roads little better. As Grey passed through the streets, he would witness people and animals struggling against wagons stuck nearly to their hubs in the mud, bawling out and cursing with their efforts to make them budge. People were desperately unloading off the top to try and lighten the loads so they would not keep getting stuck, though it usually proved in vain.
The Green Rooster was bustling on this early autumn morning, especially since the cool eastern winds were promising even more rain after the near flood that filled the streets earlier. Retainers rubbed elbows with dwarven blacksmiths who exchanged words, some more heated than others, at peasants who dared presume to share a table with them.
Grey was almost immediately assaulted by a serving wench carrying a bottle of schnapps for a distant table, nearly tripping over him. "Atsiprašau pone," she quietly muttered before she went back to her task. As she made it to the table, she was bundled into the arms of a particularly beefy and bald gentlemen, though that term may have been applied to broadly to him. He liberated her of the bottle of schnapps and took a deep swig as he sat her on his knee, and passed the bottle to the other men who shared the table with him.
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Grey
Established
Warrior
Roleplay posts: 32
Age: Unknown
Physical Description: A man of average height and size, essentially insignificant compared to those around him. He has grey hair, a trait which has lent him his nickname, and dark brown eyes.
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Clothes and Equipment: Grey travels light. He typically wears fur garments, trousers, boots, and a cloak. He primarily wields a hunting bow, and as such carries a quiver of arrows. In melee he resorts to using a hatchet and dagger. Finally, he carries a precious red gemstone.
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Registered: Jul 8, 2018 5:28:59 GMT -8
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Post by Grey on Oct 3, 2018 12:35:38 GMT -8
It was fortunate that Grey wore a set of traveling boots; even if they were just as worn and weary as their wearer, they held up and kept the mud at bay. When he was able, or sometimes when it was necessary, he loaned a bit of his strength to the Vorutans and helped them nudge their wagons out of the ruts.
Ultimately he came upon The Green Rooster. A sigh of relief escaped his lips, barely audible to all but himself. Passing through the doors he scanned his surroundings and bartered for a place to sit - that is, until a wench bumped into him. "Easy, now," he said instinctively, using his hands to balance her so she did not fall over. He could not understand what she had said, but took it as an apology, offering a nod and grin in response.
While his stomach did growl for warm meat, and his throat itched for a good drink, he kept his focus on the wench for the moment - waiting to see just how the beefy gentleman and his entourage treated her.
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Post by Grand Duchy of Voruta on Oct 4, 2018 20:45:37 GMT -8
If Grey was waiting for more civilized behavior, he would have to wait for much long. The mustachioed fiend seemed to be quite liberal with the use of his hands, and a resounding slap echoed from his cheek when the wench attempted to restore some dignity. This seemed to cause the opposite of the desired effect, causing the burly man to continue with his mischief with a wicked laugh.
Walking over from the bar, another serving wench had noticed the stranger enter, and sensed the possibility of an altercation. He softly attempted to guide him over to the bar, muttering in the harsh Vorutan language, "Dažnai tai yra atvejis. Jums nereikia mokėti jokio proto. Ką galiu padėti tau?"
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Grey
Established
Warrior
Roleplay posts: 32
Age: Unknown
Physical Description: A man of average height and size, essentially insignificant compared to those around him. He has grey hair, a trait which has lent him his nickname, and dark brown eyes.
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Clothes and Equipment: Grey travels light. He typically wears fur garments, trousers, boots, and a cloak. He primarily wields a hunting bow, and as such carries a quiver of arrows. In melee he resorts to using a hatchet and dagger. Finally, he carries a precious red gemstone.
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Registered: Jul 8, 2018 5:28:59 GMT -8
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Post by Grey on Oct 6, 2018 5:53:26 GMT -8
Once again, Grey failed to comprehend just what exactly the native-speakers of Voruta were saying. Perhaps it was a warning - that he should not come into conflict with this fiendish fellow across the way. He did not protest at the moment, and gave in to the wench who pulled him on over to the bar.
"Apologies," he would say calmly as he took a seat. "I am new. Looking for rest," he said, quite laconically. He pulled some coins from his pocket to imply he was willing to pay for a drink and even a meal.
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Post by Grand Duchy of Voruta on Oct 6, 2018 9:41:36 GMT -8
"Ah, not from here, eh?" she switched to the Common language quite effortlessly, through the harsh Vorutan accent remained. "Well, we have ale, beer, schnapps, and vodka to drink, and we have perpetual stew to eat. And if you're looking for rest, there's board above the stables."
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Grey
Established
Warrior
Roleplay posts: 32
Age: Unknown
Physical Description: A man of average height and size, essentially insignificant compared to those around him. He has grey hair, a trait which has lent him his nickname, and dark brown eyes.
=====
Clothes and Equipment: Grey travels light. He typically wears fur garments, trousers, boots, and a cloak. He primarily wields a hunting bow, and as such carries a quiver of arrows. In melee he resorts to using a hatchet and dagger. Finally, he carries a precious red gemstone.
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Registered: Jul 8, 2018 5:28:59 GMT -8
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Post by Grey on Oct 6, 2018 9:57:57 GMT -8
Grey rubbed his beard as he thought about what he wanted. Ale, beer, and vodka was all too common - but schnapps? He had heard it mentioned once or twice, but never tried it himself. "Schnapps," he told the wench. "With stew." He picked the appropriate amount of coins out of his hand and slid them towards where the lady was. As she began to prepare his drink and meal he slowly turned in his seat. He was attempting to appear as casual as a foreign adventurer could be, while glancing towards the fellow he had saw earlier, all in an attempt to see how he was treating his 'lady friend'...
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Post by Grand Duchy of Voruta on Oct 6, 2018 10:46:47 GMT -8
The rather burly man had finally relinquished his grasp on the serving wench, though that was only for her to go get more schnapps for him and his friends. He was actually staring at Grey himself, analyzing the man from head to foot, and seeming to approve of what he saw. He waved the server who was helping Grey over to his table, and plied her palm with several copper coins, muttering something to her in Vorutan.
The wench nodded, though the color seemed to fade from her face. She went back to getting Grey's order, and returned within moments with a tankard filled to nearly the brim with a peppermint smelling alcohol. She set it down next to Grey, not quite meeting his eyes as she set the bowl of stew down as well. She placed Grey's coins back on the table, and muttered, "Your meal has been paid for already," before she shuffled away.
The beefy man raised his own tankard in salute to Grey, and drained it in a single great gulp, gesturing for Grey to do the same.
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Grey
Established
Warrior
Roleplay posts: 32
Age: Unknown
Physical Description: A man of average height and size, essentially insignificant compared to those around him. He has grey hair, a trait which has lent him his nickname, and dark brown eyes.
=====
Clothes and Equipment: Grey travels light. He typically wears fur garments, trousers, boots, and a cloak. He primarily wields a hunting bow, and as such carries a quiver of arrows. In melee he resorts to using a hatchet and dagger. Finally, he carries a precious red gemstone.
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Registered: Jul 8, 2018 5:28:59 GMT -8
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Post by Grey on Oct 6, 2018 11:06:37 GMT -8
Grey was met with unexpectedness. He raised his tankard of schnapps, taking a small sip afterwards to gauge the flavor, all while looking towards the burly man. He grinned and nodded in a friendly gesture, thanking the fellow for the generous action. Turning back around and looking at the wench, he sit his tankard down and pushed the coins back towards her. "Keep it," he told the lady; perhaps she needed it more than him, he thought.
The foreign traveler took his spoon and stirred the stew around. "Who is he?" he asked, beginning to eat. He was planning on getting up and speaking to the man himself once he was finished with the stew, but a learning a little about the fellow would certainly work to his benefit later.
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Post by Grand Duchy of Voruta on Oct 6, 2018 11:14:49 GMT -8
She clearly balked at the coins she was offered, and left them on the table, instead turning to look at the muscular man who had risen from his chair and started to approach Grey at his table. He was clearly at least six feet tall, and easily much taller than that. Her voice was barely audible as she muttered, "Perhaps he'll tell you himself."
"Another glass of schnapps, and leave the bottle," came the rumble of thunder from the burly man's throat, as he sat himself near silently in the chair next to Grey. The wench hopped to do his bidding, and the man chuckled another round of thunder that seemed like it could crack stone as he explained, "I'm no one of importance for now, simply a man looking out for my fellow travelers-ah!" he exclaimed as the wench returned with the bottle wrapped in wicker.
He filled up his own glass again, and declared, "In Voruta, it is tradition to drain your first glass with your drinking companion. So let's keep to the tradition!" he then turned his tankard to his lips, and again drained it in a single gulp.
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Grey
Established
Warrior
Roleplay posts: 32
Age: Unknown
Physical Description: A man of average height and size, essentially insignificant compared to those around him. He has grey hair, a trait which has lent him his nickname, and dark brown eyes.
=====
Clothes and Equipment: Grey travels light. He typically wears fur garments, trousers, boots, and a cloak. He primarily wields a hunting bow, and as such carries a quiver of arrows. In melee he resorts to using a hatchet and dagger. Finally, he carries a precious red gemstone.
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Registered: Jul 8, 2018 5:28:59 GMT -8
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Post by Grey on Oct 6, 2018 11:21:49 GMT -8
Grey continued to eat the stew casually while the man spoke, as if he wasn't even acknowledging the presence of the thundering brute. Finally, as the man brought his tankard up to his lips and gulped it down, Grey took his time to pick up his own and sip from it - not even comparable to the masculine approach the burly individual had. "Tradition," he returned. "New flavor for me."
Sitting the tankard back down and returning to eat his stew and eye the coins, the foreign traveler would say "Grey. You are?"
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Post by Grand Duchy of Voruta on Oct 6, 2018 11:50:28 GMT -8
The man appeared quite offended when Grey did not join fully in the drink, his face growing red not from the copious amount of schnapps in his bloodstream, but from anger at being slighted. But, with visible effort, the storm cleared from the man's face, and a rather menacing smile took its place.
He filled his cup once more, and declared with not even a hint of a drunken lisp on his voice, "My name Ladislav. To your health!" he said as he took another drink from the tankard, though he didn't drain it this time. With the amount of alcohol this man had drunken, one would think he would be quite intoxicated by this point, but Ladislav could not even feel the beginnings of a buzz.
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Grey
Established
Warrior
Roleplay posts: 32
Age: Unknown
Physical Description: A man of average height and size, essentially insignificant compared to those around him. He has grey hair, a trait which has lent him his nickname, and dark brown eyes.
=====
Clothes and Equipment: Grey travels light. He typically wears fur garments, trousers, boots, and a cloak. He primarily wields a hunting bow, and as such carries a quiver of arrows. In melee he resorts to using a hatchet and dagger. Finally, he carries a precious red gemstone.
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Registered: Jul 8, 2018 5:28:59 GMT -8
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Post by Grey on Oct 6, 2018 12:31:51 GMT -8
"Ladislav," Grey chirped, in a somewhat more lively manner than he had been speaking. He put his spoon in the bowl, pushed the tankard forward to make room for his elbow, and then pivoted to look directly at the man. "I'm new. Looking for work. Am a hunter by trade, but can fight too."
Turning his attention back to the coins that the wench had not picked up, Grey scraped them into his hand and put them into his pocket. "Need more money for something," he stated, seeming to imply he was looking for work - and would take whatever Ladislav would offer him.
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Post by Grand Duchy of Voruta on Oct 6, 2018 13:48:54 GMT -8
Ladislav laughed heartily at Grey's announcement, slapping the man strongly on the back, "And I'm looking for workers! In fact, you saved me quite a bit of hassle at that. If you see a coin at the bottom of your mug, ignore that. You say you're a hunter, yah? You afraid of hunting more than animals?" He reached into his richly decorated shirt, and pulled up a folded and wrinkled piece of parchment. He opened it up to show to Grey, explaining through the foreign symbols, "There's been some skirmishes with Feral Orcs with the new settlements on the fringes of the Eastern Woods. They're paying good money to clear them out. You want in?"
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Grey
Established
Warrior
Roleplay posts: 32
Age: Unknown
Physical Description: A man of average height and size, essentially insignificant compared to those around him. He has grey hair, a trait which has lent him his nickname, and dark brown eyes.
=====
Clothes and Equipment: Grey travels light. He typically wears fur garments, trousers, boots, and a cloak. He primarily wields a hunting bow, and as such carries a quiver of arrows. In melee he resorts to using a hatchet and dagger. Finally, he carries a precious red gemstone.
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Registered: Jul 8, 2018 5:28:59 GMT -8
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Post by Grey on Oct 6, 2018 14:03:57 GMT -8
Grey listened to the man's proposal with keen interest, even if he displayed almost no emotions. He was accurate enough with the bow, mostly against idle targets - but he had managed to snag quite a few kills on moving critters as well. "Aye," he replied, "I'll help."
Grey would serve as an excellent scout for Ladislav and his men with Iseult's help, and he could support them from afar with his bow in a fight. But realistically, Grey was more a fighter - a warrior - than he was a huntsman, and the thick clash of battle was where he shined. He could still feel the weight of a sheath and blade on his back, even though it was absent; the phantom pain of a swordsman.
In an out-of-the-way move that few would notice, Grey rubbed his hand across his pocket and confirmed the red gemstone was still within. "When do we leave?"
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Post by Grand Duchy of Voruta on Oct 6, 2018 14:13:55 GMT -8
Ladislav didn't pay any heed to Grey rubbing his breast, all men in his line of work respected that certain secrets needed to be kept to oneself. Instead, he reassured Grey, "We leave on the morrow, so tonight you eat and rest on my coin. Do you have a horse, or do we need to make arrangements for that as well? And do you need equipment as well?"
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Grey
Established
Warrior
Roleplay posts: 32
Age: Unknown
Physical Description: A man of average height and size, essentially insignificant compared to those around him. He has grey hair, a trait which has lent him his nickname, and dark brown eyes.
=====
Clothes and Equipment: Grey travels light. He typically wears fur garments, trousers, boots, and a cloak. He primarily wields a hunting bow, and as such carries a quiver of arrows. In melee he resorts to using a hatchet and dagger. Finally, he carries a precious red gemstone.
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Registered: Jul 8, 2018 5:28:59 GMT -8
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Post by Grey on Oct 6, 2018 14:27:09 GMT -8
For a moment the words "a sword" nearly escaped the foreigner's lips. "Have arrows, bow, knife, hatchet; suitable armor," he replied. It was no more an arsenal of weapons than an unshaped stick was a cane - but something about Grey's voice resounded with confidence and experience. A hunter's tools for the Hunter's prey.
"But no horse," he continued, "will need one." If he earned enough, he might even pay Ladislav a share of his profit to keep the steed.
Ladislav was a generous man - offering food and drink to a stranger, offering a job to a stranger, even offering boarding, a steed, and equipment to a stranger. Perhaps he had misjudged this fellow when he first came through the door. Or maybe not. Whatever the case, he was an ally for now, and so he was loyal for now.
"I'll rest on your coins now," he told the man, grinning, "long day; long journey." Grey took one final spoonful of the stew, and then sipped some more schnapps before standing up. "Thank you... Ladislav. Will see you in the morning." Provided he was not stopped by the Vorutan, Grey would find a place to shut his eyes above the stables.
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Post by Grand Duchy of Voruta on Oct 6, 2018 14:39:58 GMT -8
Ladislav did not object to the stranger leaving, in fact he appreciated that fact when Grey went to find lodging, because finished off Grey's cup of schnapps and fished out a single Isran gold coin from the dredges. If Grey hadn't been willing to join the expedition, he had other methods to get the rather promising adventurer on the frontier. He stood up from the table as he wiped the last of the alcohol with his shirt, and shouted orders at his men still lounging at their table.
They quickly jumped to, and ran out the door, going to find a place to buy last minute horseflesh for a journey into the hinterlands. Ladislav exited the tavern as well, needing to find someplace to relieve himself from the immense amount of alcohol he had consumed in one sitting.
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Grey
Established
Warrior
Roleplay posts: 32
Age: Unknown
Physical Description: A man of average height and size, essentially insignificant compared to those around him. He has grey hair, a trait which has lent him his nickname, and dark brown eyes.
=====
Clothes and Equipment: Grey travels light. He typically wears fur garments, trousers, boots, and a cloak. He primarily wields a hunting bow, and as such carries a quiver of arrows. In melee he resorts to using a hatchet and dagger. Finally, he carries a precious red gemstone.
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Registered: Jul 8, 2018 5:28:59 GMT -8
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Post by Grey on Oct 7, 2018 2:06:01 GMT -8
Grey had woken early. The night was never kind to him, as dreams and visions of his past life returned to haunt him as he slumbered. Still, a little sleep was better than no sleep. The warrior rubbed the sleep from his eyes and felt about his person, ensuring none of his items had been stolen in the night. His greatest possession, the red gemstone, was still tucked safely in his pocket.
Now to find Ladislav, he thought to himself. He exited the boarding above the stable and headed back around The Green Rooster, where he hoped he might find his 'employer' and his retinue of like-minded adventurers. It was time to deal with these Feral Orcs...
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Post by Grand Duchy of Voruta on Oct 7, 2018 10:29:21 GMT -8
It was rather easy to find Ladislav and his company of some twenty odd men, as they were saddled and mounted right outside the door of the Green Rooster. They were in their full armored kit of buff coats and steel cuirasses, wearing chichak helmet with red plumes streaming from the top. They were all armed with lances, with various sidearms hanging from their pommels.
Ladislav was leading a blank paint horse, appearing nimble enough for where they had to go. He guided his horse over to Grey, offering him the reins of the gelding. "We leave now," he ordered, letting Grey know that it was time for work.
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Grey
Established
Warrior
Roleplay posts: 32
Age: Unknown
Physical Description: A man of average height and size, essentially insignificant compared to those around him. He has grey hair, a trait which has lent him his nickname, and dark brown eyes.
=====
Clothes and Equipment: Grey travels light. He typically wears fur garments, trousers, boots, and a cloak. He primarily wields a hunting bow, and as such carries a quiver of arrows. In melee he resorts to using a hatchet and dagger. Finally, he carries a precious red gemstone.
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Registered: Jul 8, 2018 5:28:59 GMT -8
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Post by Grey on Oct 7, 2018 10:55:07 GMT -8
In the day prior, Grey had displayed a near-lack of expression. But upon seeing Ladislav and his men adorned in the manner of war, he was somewhat visibly impressed. Not that he was feeling uneasy about this assignment - but seeing them in such fine armament made him more confident in the success of the job.
"Ladislav," he would greet his employer. He took the reins of the steed and, like a natural, mounted the beast without much trouble. "You lead, I'll follow," he replied to Ladislav's order. As they began to head out, Grey made a clicking noise with his lips and up above a falcon began to hover above the group.
Once they were out of the town limits and away from the ears of the commoners he would ask "what do you know of these Feral Orcs, Ladislav?"
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