Closed Means to an End

[Claudia Blackwood]

53th of Spring , 515 AV

Today, was yet another sunny day in Syliras, the fortress city of peace. The sun shone through the white fluffy clouds in the gorgeous blue sky, it’s ever-reaching rays like outstretched arms embracing the entire region with its warm embrace of sunshine. Claudia woke up to the sun shining in her face, the sunlight streaming in through her windows in the room. Getting up groggily, she slowly stumbled towards a wash-basin filled with water, for a quick morning wash-up. She clumsily got dressed, and slowly got her hair back up in the usually ponytail it was usually in.

Today was an especially special day for her. After an extended period of thinking, she had concluded that the life of a squire was not for her. The irony was there, and it was strong. She had been fascinated by the knights since young, and had spent most of her free time training to be one. And now that she was finally a squire, after months and months of preparation, she didn't want to be one any longer.

It was like, this whole time she had been training to be one had felt to be like a sham of sorts. It wasn't what she had expected it to be. She saw only the glamour and glory of being one, but not the actual real workings of being one, the hard training and discipline and regimentation that went to being one. The life of regimentation was not for her. She wanted to have freedom in her actions, to be able to do as she pleased. While she may have the morals that went towards being one of the order, her personality and lifestyle didn't really suit to be one part of the Syliran Order.

Perhaps, the life of a mercenary suited her better. Her love, Holland was one. Her dearest father was once one as well. And they both seemed to love what they did. He had only stopped, because he wanted to provide a stable and safe life for his family, and she was sure if he had none of this, he would still be out there, adventuring and fighting as a mercenary. Either way, she should inform her family about her choice, namely her father. She would have to make a trip down to the Iron Works, where her father worked in one of the forges located there.

Claudia shut the door as she left her room at the Herald's Arms. She was fully dressed in the same worn white blouse she always wore, and her equally worn brown breeches. They were slightly tight, but she still found them to be comfortable enough. The Iron Works was located outside of the Stormhold Citadel in Winthrop Alley, a place she was rather familiar with.

She had walked to-and-fro the district countless times, and could even make her way around, blindfolded. The Iron Works, the home of the largest forge in all of Mizahar, as far as she had ever known. The gargantuan forge boasts a capacity for ten different forges going on at once, all manned by fifty highly-skilled metalworkers. Her father was just another one of the fifty, chugging away the forges, producing whatever the city needed. Despite one might think, the forges produced more than just weapons and armour, churning out whatever agricultural tools and household items that city had need of.

She could feel the familiar heat and blazing orange glow as she began to approach the forge. Some of the smiths there waved to her as they saw her. She was a recognised figure at the forge, spending many years there, helping out her father with the permission of the owner, Ros Vizerian. Spotting her father among the crowd, she walked over to him, giving him a quick wave. He stopped hammering on the anvil, looking up to her with a mild sense of surprise. "Claudia dear, what are you doing here? How's life as a squire treating you?" "Father, I have to speak with you about that." He gave her a look of warmth and support as his features softened. "Give me fifteen chimes, I'll be due for my break-time then." She nodded and went over, sitting on one of the benches outside of the forge. Fifteen chimes later, the two of them were sitting side by side, on the very same bench, having a heart to heart chat, father-to-daughter.

"A squire life isn't what I expected it to be. I've had a lot of problems adjusting to the life there. It's not me. All these rules and regimentation don't suit me. I'm more of a carefree, spontaneous person. And with that said, I've decided to leave the order, and quit being a squire." Her father, Marcus looked at her with his warm brown eyes of his as he swallowed her into a bear hug. "My dearest daughter, you know that I have always supported you in whatever you wanted. I am no different now. If that is truly what you want, go for it. If that makes you happy, I'll be happy too." Her mouth began to quiver, and her eyes started to tear, as gave him another hug, grateful for his unwavering support.

[Claudia Blackwood]

Boosted in morale by her father's continued support, Claudia was a lot happier than she was before. She was now armed with her dearest father support, and that meant the world to her. She didn't know what she would do if her father was against the change. She would be so lost, and would have to decide between the one of them. Thankfully, it was not this day. Marcus placed a beefy hand on her shoulders, encouraging her. "You'll be fine. You always do great. We can't afford to look back in life, only forward." With that said, he gave her a strong and determined gaze, one she was really familiar with. He used to give that a lot whenever she was going through difficult periods in her childhood.

With that done, he left to return to work, his break time just about over. Claudia sat on the bench for a couple of chimes more, before heading out, leaving the forge and Winthrop Alley behind. The forge would keep on churning out the metal goods the city required, but she had to make the decision official.

It was time to head to the Squire Dormitories. She had arranged a meeting with her patron there with one of the chaperones of the dormitories. It would be a good time to break the news to the both of them. Claudia hoped that they would be understanding, and would support her decision in leaving with a good heart and in good faith. She quickened her pace, moving quickly towards the Bittern District, passing by many of the lowly-maintained residential apartments, on towards the second level of the district.

This was the only district other than the Dyres District to have a second tier to it. It was used to house the Squire Dormitories, where the massive amount of squires who lived within the city walls resided. Reaching the second tier, she could see the familiar building up ahead. Squires and their patrons walked in and out of the doors, either escorting their squires back, or picking them up for a round of training elsewhere in the city.

Stepping through the entrance doors, she walked into the reception area. Her patron, Ser Sebastian was lounging on the chairs, one of the few furniture in the room. The chaperone that greeted her when she first arrived, Rachel Pernis was there as well. She walked up to Ser Bastian, looking at him with steely determination in her eyes. He looked back at her quizzically, confusion clearly in his eyes. "What's the matter lass? You look off..." The determination in her eyes turned into one of guilt. "Yeah..about that..I need to speak to you." "All right." he said, motioning for her to follow as he walked off into a corner of the room. Sitting on one of the benches lining the walls, he said "So, what's going on?"

Claudia looked up to him, and answered "I've made the decision to quit squirehood and leave the order. Being the squire wasn't what I thought it'll be. It's not your fault, and it has absolutely got nothing to do with you being my patron. In fact, I couldn't have asked for a better patron. You're everything I could have asked for in a mentor, you're friendly, charming, encouraging and most of all, we get all so well at the get-go." Ser Bastian said nothing, just nodding his head, encouraging her to go on. "I may have the morals to become a knight, but this kind of lifestyle doesn't fit me at all one bit. I'll never make it to be a knight. I hated training with that petching heavy plate armour anyway."

He gave a chuckle at her last sentence, before composing himself once more. "You know, I didn't had an easy time either during my squireship. I had a horrible mentor, who was mean to me in the worst of ways, and he tried every piece of shyke to get me to quit the order. But I wasn't about to let him have his satisfaction of getting me to leave, so I soldiered on, gritting my teeth, and I bided my time. Eventually, I did my time, got my quest and became a knight. He had his retribution though, disappearing on a mission, never to return again. I was but a simple boy, when I first joined, a mere apprentice to a carpenter was all I ever knew." Looking into her eyes, he went on "If you've made up your mind, I won't try to change it. If that's what you really want." She looked into his eyes, placing a palm on his "Yes Ser, that is indeed what I want. I have thought long and hard on this, and I am certain I would have no regrets leaving this behind."

"Very well, lass, very well. I wish you luck in whatever you choose to venture into next." "I will be looking to become a mercenary. My boyfriend is one, and so was my father. I know pretty well what the life is like, and I know that is what I want."