PM to join Swords and Boards (Dalavesta)

[Letixia Raigner]

Winter 85, 513 Letixia awoke bright and early, as usual, while the sun was coming up. She cleaned herself up, relieved herself and dressed. She made her way to the dining hall for some breakfast. She sat down next to a couple of her suite mates with a plate of eggs and a hunk of bread. She didn't talk much in the mornings, but then she heard murmurs and saw heads turning. Several Knights walked in, one of which was her Patron, Ser Ranqor. The stopped in the center of the hall, and one of them, one she didn't recognize, stepped forward and announced, "When you all are done with your meals, please make your way to the Antinous Training Grounds. We are running a special training exercise today. You are to gather in groups of four, none of which are allowed to be your suite mates. This is an exercise in teamwork. You have two bells to be at the Grounds with your team. Those who arrive without a complete team will be assigned members. Enjoy your breakfast, and fight hard tonight. We will be watching." Leti smiled, this would be fun. She looked around her small table, and seeing only suite mates, decided to go ahead and find some people. She excused herself, and stood up, and saw others that had the same idea. She moved to the other side of the hall and sat down at a table with a few unfamiliar faces, smiling. She decided to take charge, "I'm making a team, and I want to win this exercise. I need three strong swords and shields. Who wants in?" A few faces looked up, some looked away. But one guy responded, "I'll join you. My name is Regdar, and while I don't use a sword, I want to win too." Leti eyed him over, he was much taller and larger than herself. He looked quite strong, and she liked his enthusiasm. "Welcome to the team Regdar, I'm Letixia. Let's see if we can't find anyone else." She continued looking around the table and room for anyone else that struck her fancy, all the while, chomping at her eggs and bread.

[Dalavesta Stalinsa]

Dalavesta Stalinsa

A Slap Up Breakfast

The fare was simple, squires needing sustenance over taste and the Order providing the former in ample supply but the latter only to those of a dulled palette. Fortunately for Dalavesta she had grown to enjoy the sensations of the, for want of a better word, lower house foods. Or commoner’s fare perhaps one could class it as. She didn’t think like that, not purposefully. It was difficult not to pick up a few perspectives when one was born into a First Family of Syliras. Her wooden trencher was layered with slices of cooked meats – beef and pork mostly, a block of mild hard cheese and a few slices of crust bed smeared with a coating of salted butter. She smiled as she stuffed them alternately into her mouth.

No time for consideration, no time for worrying on how you look. Just shovel it in, chew and swallow. Repeat. You never know when you will be pulled away. You eat fast and as hearty as you can too as your next meal may not be the same day she ran through the instructions in her mind, words imparted to her from various sources over the years, from her guardians to her training partners.

As she chewed noisily upon her last slither of cheese she watched the Knights enter and listened to their proclamation intently, her chewing ceasing as they spoke out of respect for their rank – they were to be admired, not drowned out with slurping. They left as quickly as they came, their words rippling through the crowd of squires present as conversation bloomed in a score of mouths. Dalavesta sat silently, watching her peers as she finished her food, licking her fingers free of the much relished grease And leaning back to see what the others would do.

Teams…teams not from your bunk mates. Obviously a trust building exercise and yet…they are not usually so lenient. No, this will be harder than it looks. Best to pick a good team then! she reasoned to herself as her gaze scanned and found one fot he more proactive pairings – a man and a woman.

The woman stood out, her energy seeming to be almost infectious as she seemed to have little time in enlisting her decently burly compatriot. Strength and speed already, now they need solidity. She can be solid when required, it was practically by only trait of use that she could see – she was dogged, followed orders and never gave in unless forced to. She pushed herself up from her seat and paced over to them before sitting next to the woman of the auburn hair. A fool had already forgotten a portion of their breakfast and left it upon the plate at the table.

“More for me then. Shame on them for wasting it,” she stuffed some of the boiled oats from the bowl into her mouth and glanced at the other woman, “Dalavesta. I’ll join you if you want. Should be a hard day knowing the Order” she said after swallowing, toying with the rest of what little was left.

“Found a fourth yet?” she asked, receiving a small shake of the head. She nodded back glumly, “well…there will always be another willing to enlist. And if not we can conscript no?” she tucked into the last spoonful of oats and looked at them both.

[Letixia Raigner]

"No need for that. I'm your fourth." It was a quiet voice that came from behind the newly forming group. Leti looked over her shoulder and saw a small stature man there. He looked a bit younger than them and was surprisingly pale for a squire. She hadn't recognized him, and was curious, for something about him piqued her interest, but she couldn't say what. She turned to him and stuck out a hand that was gently grasped by his own. "Welcome to the group. My name is..." The boy held up his hand, "I heard, you're Letixia, he's Regdar, and she's Dalevesta. I'm Storgk. You'd be amazed at what you learn when you just sit back and listen and watch. I like our group, very well rounded." Leti smiled briefly at him, "Let's all gear up and meet at the entrance to the training grounds at say... half past the seventh bell. Sound good?" Regdar nodded and Storgk smirked and disappeared as silently as he'd appeared. Maybe that's what sparked her curiosity, sometimes it seemed as if he didn't exist, why he would go unnoticed. Maybe he just had one of those faces. Leti made her way back to her suite and put on her full set of armor, grabbed her kite shield and longsword and quickly made her way to the training grounds. She thought she was the first to arrive until Storgk stepped out of a poorly lit corner that she hadn't noticed him in. He was adorned in much less armor than her, similar to what the more mobile companies would wear. Perhaps his patron was in such a company and was training him in both sets of armor. She also noticed that when he moved he made next to no noise, a skill she wished she had. He had a slim rapier at his hip and a buckler on his arm, clearly an individual more suited for speed than anything. Regdar showed up shortly afterward a battleaxe hanging from his belt and a tower shield in hand. While many other squires were still arriving, the knights were putting leftover squires into groups with one another. When it appeared that most groups were formed, the knights told everyone to be quiet. "Now, one patron will lead you into the training grounds and leave you in a specific area. While leading you to your starting spot they will tell you if you are part of Company One, Two, or Three. Some groups, though not all, will be handed a badge with one of the three numbers on it. Other badges will be dispersed and hidden within the training grounds. Your four member team can leave the training grounds if you have one of each badge. The Company with the most successful teams will be declared the victors of this training. We will be watching this, and if you do not succeed by the twentieth bell tonight, then your team has failed. Prepare yourselves in skill, mind, body, and honor." A patron knight that Leti didn't recognized came over to their group, "Are you all ready to begin?"

[Dalavesta Stalinsa]

Dalavesta Stalinsa

With their fourth found there was little to do but agree a time and place to meet and then go their separate ways until then to prepare as best as they could. It was a short meeting all things considered, brief but willed with promises to be fulfilled and bonds to be forged. It was the way Dalavesta liked it and a faint smile was upon her lips as she returned to her quarters for her belongings. It took her a while to buckle and then re-buckle her armour, giving each piece a little polish and greasing the leathers as best she could in the time she possessed. A good set of armour it was, dented and harrowed by use under its previous owners but still serviceable. The dents served as a reminder of what it was to become a knight and she didn’t begrudge them.

I hope to leave a few of my own even before I’m done she reflected as she pulled her broad sword from its place by her bed and strapped it to her left hip, drawing the blade smoothly and quickly to test its positioning – she found it acceptable.

She grabbed her kite shield and hefted it in her hands, adjusting the leather straps and gripping the metal handle. She thrust out her arm as if to smash the edge into an imaginary enemy and then ducked behind it as if to cover herself. It was a ritual she performed every time she equipped herself – superstitious perhaps but she liked to be careful. She grinned and was satisfied, her equipment wouldn’t fail her this day and, for now, that was enough. She nodded to herself and began to make her way towards the appointed meeting place. She fancied that she was leaving it a bit late sadly but that was the price of being prepared.

“Better late and fully armed than early and without a weapon” she told herself as she clanked through the stone hallways towards the Antonius Training Grounds.

She kept her pace quick and the weight of the armour, despite being accustomed to it, brought a light sheen of sweat to her brow and her hair began to rat tail as she approached the already assembled trio that made up the rest of her group. She was only just in time to hear the explanation that was being given and it caused her to frown – it seemed to easy and as such would be nothing of the sort.

“I reckon that means they’ll give one to two of the teams and hide the other in the grounds. It will force combat between us and also teamwork. They don’t lie but remember how the truth can be easily misleading” she whispered to them as they were approached by a patron she was not familiar with. She was a Knight and that was all she knew.

“Ready Sera? Are we to be given one of the numbers Sera?” she inquired respectfully.

“Yes squire Stalinsa, just one. The others you must find for yourself” came the return, with a smile that told the four of them everything they needed to know. The number three upon a scrap of linen was given to Letixia – it seemed fitting seeing as she was the apportioned leader of the group, the one whom had formed them together.

“Alright, let’s get this done then. You got the wrap, that makes you the leader. Hope you’re up to it” she smiled at the woman, she would do anything to make sure another woman shone. The Order was always underestimating the fairer sex.

[Letixia Raigner]

"Thank you Sera." Leti took the scrap of cloth, looked around her to see if anyone was watching. She checked the many other groups, all of whom appeared to be receiving their team numbers. There looked to be about twelve groups total, making it four groups per company. So out there, somewhere, there were three groups that were tentative allies, and eight that were certainly enemies. And they didn't know which was which. Leti walked a bit out of sight, just around a corner. There she knelt down and hid the cloth within her boot. She had no pack or available pockets, and couldn't spend all of her time holding it. She was the group's leader, meaning the responsibility of success or failure fell on her shoulders. She smiled at Dalavesta, "We'll definitely get through this and make the Order and Sylir proud." She turned to the Knight, "We're ready Sera." The Knight nodded, smiling, and turned toward the soon to be battleground. Leti took lead for their group following immediately behind, Regdar almost naturally followed close behind, while Storgk seemed to hover, as if waiting to go last. She followed the Knight into the training ground, watching as the other groups entered as well. The Knight led them for a good, long while, in a roughly south easterly direction. The further she led them, the more difficult Leti realized this would end up being. Eventually the Knight came to a stop, at the extreme south east corner of the training grounds. Their group would have to literally cover the entire expanse again, just to get out, let alone obtaining the other two badges. "This is where you'll start, you'll hear a horn sound when you're to begin. You have until the twentieth bell to complete your task. We will be watching, so maintain your honor squires. This may be a competition, but you still represent the Order." She then turned and left them, without even a chance for them to say goodbye. Leti turned to the group, "We should pick a strong formation for traveling. I'd recommend a short arrow formation. Regdar will take lead, with myself and Dalavesta behind and off to the sides of him. Storgk will be a small distance directly behind Regdar to watch our rear. This will allow us two wings to support the head or rear immediately if attacked, and supply a wide field of vision. Any objections?" Immediately following Leti's suggestion, a horn blew, triggering the start of the competition.