PM to join No Rest for the Needy (Brandon, Turrin)

[Khara]

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It was very very strange to hear orders coming from Brandon rather than Turrin. No doubt there would be consequences for the Chiet taking lead, or maybe not, he'd admitted to her before that he was having trouble adapting to the castes and how they stood; maybe it would be written off as a result of him being an outsider and there wouldn't be any sort of altercation. Not that she really had long to consider or worry about such a thing. If nothing else, they had a plan and it was a rather good sounding one as far as Khara could tell. The Kelvic was playing to their strengths, which against a single opponent might have been considered overkill if not for the fact theirs seemed oblivious to pain or injury.

Khara tried to keep her role in mind; create openings, knock it off balance, distract it, whatever she could do with arrows that would buy the two men more time to select and deliver precise attacks. She could do that, she'd done it before, after all. Waiting for her chance was nerve wracking but at least she didn't feel frozen in place as she quickly readied another arrow and drew back the bowstring. Her arm shook a bit with the effort of waiting, the draw on the bow a bit heavier than what she was used to. The scout watched as Brandon moved in and made his series of quick strikes, not exactly harming the creature but certainly gaining it's attention away from Turrin. Next it was the Endal's turn and with a swift and powerful slice with his talon sword he severed the creature's leg at the knee. Not exactly what Brandon had suggested, but certainly effective.

The creature toppled to the ground and Khara lowered her bow, the shot obviously not necessary - or so she thought. Only a vile ichor leaked from the severed stump of a leg rather than the expected flow of blood, but even the severance didn't seem to phase the creature aside from causing it to no longer be able to stand. It's movements weren't extraordinarily quick, but far more so than Khara believed was possible for anything in it's condition as it scrambled and flailed until it managed to more or less right itself. It half knelt on it's ruined leg, it's other trailing behind it as it seemed to become all the more aggressive. She doubted it had the capacity to be angry, more the natural instinct of a wounded creature to strike out violently. Not that she was entirely sure it possessed that ability, either.

Whatever it was attempting, as soon as it had continued moving Khara began to raise the bow again until she caught site from the corner of her eye of the Yasi that had run off at Brandon's request returning with what he had asked for. Fire! Yes, that would work well, or at least she hoped it would considering she had seen it decimate such an abomination before. There was only one problem with the plan, even standing still one of the Yasi had to practically cradle the delicate flame that clung to the candle's wick to prevent it from going out and the frightened look on the young Inarta's face was proving how difficult a task that was.

"Bring it here!" She called and thankfully they didn't question it. The careful nature with with the candle bearer approached left her with more than enough time to turn to one of the nearby stalls and unceremoniously puncture the fabric that decorated the kiosk with the arrowhead before ripping a strip free. The Yasi were at her side quickly enough and Khara glanced over to the creature just as it was almost upright once more.

She was running out of time if what she was going to try was going to work. There was little chance of success if the Yasi attempted to get the candle to Brandon, but fire could still be delivered all the same. Khara wound the strip of fabric around the back end of the arrowhead before motioning to the Yasi with the lamp oil. "Pour a bit on it, quickly!"

With shaking hands that seemed shared by all parties involved the youth opened the lamp oil and dumped a small portion of it over the arrowhead. "That's enough. Go, take the rest to the others, throw it to them if you have to; just don't drop it!"

The one Yasi hurried to fulfill his task, the other lingering awkwardly, hand still cupped around the flame of the candle. Khara once again readied the arrow, taking careful aim towards the corpse that was now fully attempting to strike out at Brandon and Turrin in retaliation. She glanced out of the corner of her eye at the nervous youth who couldn't seem to decide if he should join his caste-mate or stay with the scout. The Chiet didn't give him the option, her voice once more managing to capture some strange semblance of authority as she calmly directed him. "When I say, light the arrow. Not before, and don't let it go out before then, okay?"

Khara tried to steady her breathing and stop the continual barrage of thoughts that were questioning her sanity and reminding her that she would only have one chance with the shot. I can make it. This will work, she encouraged herself. Another deep breath was taken before Khara let out a sharp whistle, hopefully it would be enough to catch the attention of either of her cohorts and so they could be made aware of what needed to happen. If everything went according to what she was hoping the others would do, Brandon would douse the thing in the lamp oil, Turrin would further incapacitate it so it would stop squirming around so much, and she'd set it alight. She could only assume the Endal would finish it off afterwards, even if she wasn't entirely certain how one would go about doing such a thing aside from utterly destroying it.

She wasn't sure who to pray to for success, so her thoughts turned to those she always sought solace from; Caiyha for whom the unnatural creature was surely an affront to; and Syna whose light and warmth shined on her and would hopefully grant her the clear sight and accuracy needed to do what she had to. Khara could only wonder if the two others were making their own similar silent prayers.

"Nari" | "Common" | "Pavi"

[Brandon Blackwing]

It was really, really satisfying to see that Turrin’s sword cleaved through the flesh of the corpse as a knife through butter, severing its leg and causing it to fall. It had also been really satisfying to see the bat’s own attacks affecting the creature as well. There was no extraordinary strength or toughness, no greenish mist that reattached the severed limb, none of those things at all. It was just a corpse. A shambling corpse, but an ordinary corpse nonetheless. Mundane attacks worked, the thing did not stand a chance against the three of them. Though, victory wasn’t achieved until the battle was over, and thus far neither had been fulfilled.

The corpse still moved, flailing violently, until it somehow managed to place its body in some sort of half-kneel, walking on the stump without a care in the world. It had become rather aggressive though, even more than before. Seemed like they’d have to cut off just about every bit of limb it had, and even then… But an opponent hardly capable of moving was not hard to hit, and Brandon took action again, while Khara was busy with the yasi. Still bouncing lightly on the balls of his feet, the bat started to slowly draw closer to the abomination, planning on dismembering another of its limbs.

A hand reached into his pocket, fingers finding the hilt of his concealed dagger and he seemed to have conjured it up from thin air, sometime between two movements of his body. Approaching from the front seemed the safest way to fight this foe, especially so since its head stood backwards on its shoulders. The bat approached in zigzags, swiftly maneuvering and getting closer rather fast, dodging the wild flailing arm by weaving his body and head out of the way, lashing out with his blade at the same time, a wide swing, but it didn’t seem to help much despite it slicing through the flesh of the arm rather well. A wound, but due to the nature of the trio’s opponent it did not faze it, nor force it to cease using the limb.

Brandon snarled, back-stepping swiftly at the arm came back his way, the oddity having found out where to strike. Well, if the thief had stayed in one place, of course. Another swing at the arm, another bite of flesh cut away, and yet no results. Seems like he’d need Turrin to chop this thing up after all. “Turrin! It’s your cue! Turn it into mincemeat!” Brandon ordered, dodging the whipping arm and the stumbling body, spinning on a heel and smashing the flat of his foot into the abomination’s head, half-expecting the skin of the neck to tear and send the skull flying, but nothing of the sort happened.

Quickly then, he danced away, deciding to get away faster by using a back-flip, curling his body into a tight ball in mid-air, spinning once, then unfolding and landing lightly on his feet, out of the way for Turrin to do his job. With a bit of luck the endal could cleave the corpse in half… vertically was preferred. By coincidence, the yasi sent his way by Khara found their way to Brandon’s side, handing him the lamp oil and quickly fled to safer areas, probably going to rejoin their peers. With a small flourish, Brandon made his dagger disappear into his pocket, shaking the vial of lamp oil just a little bit, gauging the amount it held with his ears. A nod, and a glance towards Khara, spotting the yasi with the candle by her side. It seemed the scout was planning something, and Brandon grinned, realizing what exactly. He’d known from the beginning she had a good head on her shoulders.

Head snapping back to Turrin, the bat shouted a warning at the endal, taking aim at the undead creature, and then he waited a couple ticks for the half-Myrian to retreat. Lady Dira, we’ll erase this abomination, if fire works on this one, that is! I’d rather not have last time be repeated! Arm snapped forwards, wrist flicking the vial of oil away, speeding through the air and shattering when it hit the abomination, drops of oil raining down on it. I’m counting on you Khara!

[Turrin]

Turrin watched the scene around him unfold and noticed that Khara was getting a flame arrow ready with the yasi. The endal noticed Brandon produced a dagger out of nowhere and attacked one of the arms of the opponent with the small blade. To the endal's dismay, the dagger wasn't long enough or strong enough to cut through the rotting flesh and bone. The foreigner seemed outwardly frustrated at the lack of dagger's effectiveness. Turrin knew those strikes against a living opponent could have incapacitated them, but with a body that couldn't feel pain, the daggers were useless. Finally, Brandon delievered a devastating roundhouse to the head, but the corpse still kept it's head and was still shambling towards Blackwing. It was a disappointment for the endal because he hoped the outsider would have been the hero because the half breed remembered when he first came to Wind Reach. It was hard to get accepted by the Inarta unless you proved your worth to the city. When Brandon gave him the order to finish it, Turrin accepted it with a wide smile. Looking the walking corpse, Turrin said in common, “Consider it done, Blackwing!”

Turrin twirled the talon sword in his hand and charged the undead Dek. The endal knew that he needed to stop it's mobility, so he ran out in front of it, spun around on his heels, and swung his talon sword in a downward arc at the elbow of the arm that supported most of the corpse's weight. The sharp steel cleanly severed the arm, but the undead was still balancing on his remaining legs and arm. Turrin knew the creature wasn't moving now, so the endal walked to the other supporting arm and swung his sword in a downward arc towards the remaining arm and separated the limb from it's body. Kicking the arm from the body's torso, Turrin knew that the battle was over, but he didn't want to give the abomination a chance to hurt anyone else, so he needed to quarter the corpse to make sure. As the corpse started slowly push forward with it's last leg towards Khara and the children. The myrian walked behind the body, lifted his talon sword over his head, and brought down the curved sword on the hamstring of the corpse's remaining leg. The talon sword only went half way through the thick muscle, so he yanked the blade out of the hacked leg, lifted the sword over his shoulder again, and hacked off the remaining limb off with his second swing.

Turrin was used to death ever since he was little boy. His earliest memory was the funeral of his grandfather. He remembered watching his grandmother sever the head off his grandfather's corpse and displayed it to immediate family. The half-breed still remembered the smell of the smoke when they burned his body on the funeral pyre. It was pungent smell, but it still brought back the memories of a little boy bow fishing with his grandfather along the shores of the Zavkhan river. Walking around to the squirming torso, Turrin lifted his leg and brought down the heel of his boot on the back of corpse driving the body hard into the ground. Reaching down with his hand, Turrin took a handful off the corpse hair, lifted his talon sword, swung the curved blade down on the neck of the corpse, and severing the head from it's shoulders. The myrian walked away with the head in his hand, but the torso still seemed to be moving on it's own even though he just got done butchering it. It was horrifying sight to behold, but he knew Khara's fire should purify the evil from the remaining body.

Moving out of the way, so Khara could get a clear shot at the corpse. Turrin lifted the severed head and stared into it's dead eyes and said with a grim smile to the head, “Dira already took your soul home to her dining hall, but I promise you my friend that I will make sure your body rest in peace...” Holding the severed head by it's red hair, Turrin looked Brandon and said with a nod, “The head of the abomination should have a proper burial in the heart of the mountain. I think the Inarta soul taken by Dira would appreciate it...even though the soul's body was corrupted by foul magic...” Looking at the head, Turrin could still tell the head was corrupted by foul magic because the clouded eyes were still moving from side to side and the mouth was still opening and closing on it's own.

[Khara]

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There was no satisfaction to be found in watching Brandon's quick attacks, and even less in watching Turrin utterly dismember the thing. It was a joyless task, she supposed, the only feeling of fulfillment to be found in the knowledge that the creature couldn't hurt anyone anymore. But rather than revel in victory, Khara wished that it didn't have to be done at all. She wasn't sure who would unleash such a thing on the Courtyard of the Sky, but apparently they found amusement in something she could never fathom.

Death wasn't entirely new to her, even in a violent form, but she still flinched away from the sight of Turrin removing the undead drudge's head. The fire seemed almost pointless then and Khara had begun to lower the bow until she realized the limbless torso was still moving. While the need for distance may wasn't necessary, Khara certainly didn't want to get near the thing. Who knew what it could still be capable of! The twitching mass was sighted and Khara forced herself to take a few steadying breaths.

"Light it," she half whispered, the earnest need that had managed to grant her the confidence with which she ordered the Yasi earlier severely diminished by the pitiful - yet still terrifying - sight in front of her.

The blazing arrowhead obscured the target a bit, something Khara hadn't taken into account, but her aim had been steady before the flames danced in front of her eyes. One last breath was taken - a brief moment to wonder if there was something that could be applied to an arrowhead so it only caught flame once it had found its mark - and her fingers released the projectile as she slowly let the air escape from her lungs. She heard the remains of the abomination catch flame before she saw it, determination and the lesser sensation of urgency allowing her to properly follow through with the shot, though her vision was a bit marred from having the flame in front of her for a bit.

A few blinks were taken as she lowered her bow, willing the smudge of brightness to fade before she took in the scene around her: Only a few onlookers remained in close proximity, most others had taken up vantage points from distances they felt they could still safely flee from should things go completely awry. The Yasi seemed rather pleased with themselves, even going so far as to letting out a slight cheer as the corpse's torso caught fire. The market itself, or at least as much as Khara could see, was an entire mess of overturned carts and booths; more a result from the chaos that had ensued as people tried to escape than the actual creature who caused it all.

Khara unwound the strap of the quiver around her arm and slipped it over her shoulder, the bow in hand quickly following before she slowly approached where Turrin and Brandon were. The still eerily alert head in the Endal's hands was eyed warily and Khara had to fight the urge to recoil at the unnerving sight. She doubted they had any more answers than she did, but it didn't stop the question from being asked in a slightly mournful tone, "How did such a thing get here?"

"Nari" | "Common" | "Pavi"

[Brandon Blackwing]

The wheezing sound of an arrow cutting the air sang a duet with the roar of flames, and soon, the former vanished, the latter exploding in a bellowing sort of fiery laughter. Flames licked the remains of the corpse, devouring the separate parts that were still moving on their own with gusto. Slowly, the limbs and torso of the abomination had been reduced to ashes, the fire dying out, leaving not a trace of the monstrosity, except of course the ashes and the ravaged fruit stand it had attacked. Yasi cheered, proud of the role they played in the destruction of the corpse.

With a couple strides, Brandon reached Turrin’s location, the endal having claimed the head as a trophy of sorts, it seemed. Just like the rest of the corpse before it had been burned to ashes, the head still moved, its jaw opening and closing violently, restlessly. “I think it’s trying to bite you,” Brandon commented, “I do believe you’re right though, we should throw it in the lava.” His head nodded a couple times, though Brandon couldn’t care less about what the soul of the body did nor did not want. If it wanted anything at all, somehow the bat couldn’t quite picture a soul giving a damn about its body once Dira guided it away.

Khara joined the two men, bow slung over her shoulder, as well as the quiver. Brandon raised an eyebrow at her question, then pointed to his right. “Through the warrens, I imagine,” he spoke dryly, a bit of a smirk curling the corners of his mouth upwards. The corpse’s head rolled its eyes, though it had been doing that all this while, so it was not anything new. “Seriously though, I have no idea. I’d say we should interrogate it, but ehm...” He eyed the head a little skeptically. “I doubt it actually can speak. And even if it did, I’m not sure it can think straight with a rotting brain.”

If it could speak though, that would be rather … fascinating. And disturbing, very much so. People might want to study it, and that would be a bad idea. Destroying such a creature as soon and thoroughly as possible was a more sound plan. Though this thing had been rather harmless when compared to the one Brandon had encountered during his trip to Wind Reach, he still did not really lower his guard. You never knew what an undead head was capable of. Maybe it would start bouncing around and bite people in the butt or so, causing a huge panic. Or perhaps it would summon more of its kind, flooding the volcanic city and assaulting the whole population. No, that thing could not be trusted until it had been utterly destroyed and its ashes had been either scattered over all four corners of the world, or if they’d been buried in a ten feet deep pit, locked up in a lockless, lidless metal box.

“So, what do we do? Will there be other endal coming to see what the fuss was about? Maybe someone should stay here to explain everything while the other two go throw that head into the heart of the mountain.” Turrin obviously was the right choice to stay behind; with his status, there were very little people that would think his story to be anything but the truth. Even with the witnesses around, Bran and Khara would obviously be questioned for long bells, or so. Or not? Was that a too Lhavitian approach of the situation? Brandon still had very little experience with how these thing worked in Wind Reach. “Either way, we should wrap the head in some cloth or so, so we don’t startle people with it.” He paused for a brief moment. “Turrin, I think you should stay here to supervise the repairs and all that. And to reassure the people who have been attacked.”

For all Brandon cared the endal was even allowed to claim he was the one who stopped the creature, to call this victory his own. Sure, he would have been lying; it was actually the three of them who’d took it down, carrying out Brandon’s plan rather well. Not that there was a use in dwelling on such thoughts at all. “I do want a reward though,” the thief stated, thinking of the bow Khara had on her back, a bow she hadn't had with her before the chaos. If he were to aid the population of Wind Reach, Brandon found it only right he was rewarded for that. Nothing came for free; of course he’d help friends, but they’d owe him a favor. Someone who was not his friend though? They owed him money, or a reward of some sort. A bow would suffice; along with a quiver of arrows. What use was there in owning a bow without arrows?

[Turrin]

Turrin golden eyes watched the fire consumed the body when Khara'sn arrow struck the dismembered corpse. The endal believed fire was a good way to cleanse corruption from just about anything, so it was a fitting end to the abomination. When Khara walked over to the trio and asked her question, the myrian stared at the burning remains for a chance and simply answered, “That..thing wasn't Caiyha creation, so it must be either mortal magic...or the meddling of other darker forces. Regardless, it is....dea,...destr...errr harmless now.”

Looking at the severed head, the endal had no idea how anyone or anything could create such a abomination since he had no knowledge of undead or magical lore. When Brandon observed that the severed head was trying to bite him, Turrin gave the strange man said with a smirk. He wasn't sure if he should laugh or run in fear that the head was still trying to bite him even if it had already been detached from the body. When Brandon suggested what they should do next, Turrin knew that Brandon lack of knowledge of Wind Reach was starting to show. The half-breed knew from experience that the only way to get to the Tomb of the Fallen was by wind eagle. Also, the endal was sick of listening to the foreigners orders, so the half-breed said simply, “The only way to get to the Tomb of the Fallen by wind eagle. I will bury it.” Nodding to the burning body in the market square, Turrin continued, “Besides, you and Khara were the first ones to engage the abomination, so it would make sense for you two to tell your story for authorities. They will definitely want to hear the story from the very beginning.”

When Brandon Blackwing asked for a reward for his part in killing the undead Dek, Turrin immediately lost respect for the man. He understood that the foreigner put his life in danger for his fellow citizens, but he didn't humbly wait to be reward. The endal heard of mercenaries from the east getting payment for killing because they were contracted to do it, but Brandon wasn't under contract to destroy the undead in the market square. However, what really struck a nerve with the endal was that he expected a reward. To Turrin, it sounded like Brandon put a price tag on his services for saving the lives of defenseless civilians. The endal had to ask himself if Brandon would have just stood by and let the abomination cause chaos if there was no chance of being reward in the end. Turrin endal knew from being a outsider in Wind Reach if Brandon kept this selfish mind set. He would always be a outsider in the minds of most Inarta.

Turrin shook his head and said simply, “You should just be happy that you and Khara are alive and nobody was hurt, Brandon. Remember everyone will get paid at the end of the season. If you wanted reward for your services in combat, you should have traveled east and become a mercenary...”

[Khara]

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Her gaze flitted between the two men as they spoke and it wasn't long before it seemed that Turrin had had enough with following a Chiet's advice on the situation. Not that he was wrong, Khara had almost objected herself when Brandon had said the two of them should take the head. The only way she'd ever seen anyone get to the Tomb was by Wind Eagle, though Khara had imagined there must have been other paths, she doubted that the Endals alone were responsible for taking the city's waste there - it seemed a task entirely beneath them - but she had been wrong before on such matters.

Not that she was looking forward to having to answer for what happened. They certainly hadn't done anything wrong, quite the opposite really, but that never seemed to matter. All anyone would see was a pair of Chiet who had made a ruckus in the market. The worst, Khara imagined, was that the speed with which the trio had taken down the creature could be twisted. She doubted the blame would be put on herself, but Brandon? A newcomer? An outsider that no one really knew anything about? All it would take would be one voice of questioning, one stray out of place comment, and the Kelvic would no doubt find himself being interrogated on how he was responsible for the monstrosity. The fact he was seeking a reward for his efforts wouldn't help matters. Of course, it also could turn out entirely fine. Others had seen, after all, they might even consider Brandon a bit of a hero in a way now, he would certainly be remembered far more than the scout.

There also was the very real possibility that no one would ask anything at all. It took a lot to rattle the Inarta, and one Dek that refused to stay dead may not have been enough to really do more than start rumors and maybe cause merchants to arm themselves more heavily the next time.

"I will stay," Khara acceded to Turrin's instructions. A glance was given towards Brandon and she internally cursed her lack of nuance with the Common language. Her tone had sounded respectful enough towards the Endal, so that wasn't a worry, but it hardly got across the idea that she'd muddle through the cleanup and aftermath alone if necessary; an escape route offered to the Kelvic if he wanted it. Maybe it was for the best, it might look questionable if he just set off before Turrin left, after all.

One last look was given to the creature's head, another shudder ran down Khara's spine as she watched the way it mindlessly bit at the air. They had all been lucky it was only the one creature, if there had been more… She looked away as she shoved the thought from her mind.

"Better to be rid of it quickly," Khara half mumbled before looking back towards Turrin, careful as always to avoid making eye contact as she did with anyone of higher caste.

"Thank you," She began, but stumbled over the next bit. For your help sounded like it may have been insulting somehow, like it could imply that the Endal's assistance was unnecessary even if welcome. The alternate concept, that they would have been helpless without him, that he had saved them, would have been what a typical Endal would have wanted to hear; but Turrin wasn't exactly a typical Endal from what Khara could tell. "For coming and helping us," she finished cautiously - It still didn't sound right but it would have to do.

Khara let her eyes wander back over the crowd that were setting booths back in place and only the occasional curious glance was cast towards the moving face of the head in Turrin's hands. At least putting the market back to normal wasn't going to take long, most Inarta already were trying to move back towards a more festive atmosphere despite the incident. Maybe they wouldn't have to try and explain what happened to some random Endal, after all. The city did still need to be made aware of the undead drudge, however, but Khara wasn't one to try and make it sound like a situation everyone shouldn't panic about. They needed someone with more authority to address it, someone who could practically demand calm.

"Endal Turrin, do you think one of us should tell the Valintar what happened?" Khara asked, instantly feeling regret for speaking up before she could even finish; uncertainty and hesitation came rushing through, colouring her words despite the less familiar language.

"Nari" | "Common" | "Pavi"

[Brandon Blackwing]

Turrin’s words were not a snap, but neither were they gentle. The tone implied there was no discussion to be had about this, and it also put the bat back in his place. It was quite obvious the endal was fed up with listening to a chiet. He was one of the more sensible and nice endal, true, and also among the few that Brandon kind of liked –or could stand, that was maybe more accurate- but Turrin was still an endal. Accustomed to his position and to being obeyed, not being on the receiving end of orders. Brandon raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms; if there was just one way to the Tomb, than he was a bird.

“Khara and I , as well as everyone else here-” he made a broad gesture encompassing the entire market “- are alive because of me,” he countered. “If not for me, there would at least one person be dead by now, maybe more.” Unwavering, the bat stared into the endal’s eyes, as if to tell him to prove him wrong. Brandon was the one who’d acted first, Brandon had been the one to free the victims of the initial attack from the undead creature. Brandon was the one who’d come up with the plan to destroy it, all while Khara and an endal had been standing there frozen on the spot.

“What’s that you say? We all get paid by the end of the season?” He spoke in a mocking tone, his mouth expressing a snarl. “Ah, your right- oh wait! What day are we? Hmmm…” A finger tapped his chin to add an extra touch to the point he was trying to make. “Ah, market day! Why am I here? Oh, I know! BECAUSE IT’S MY PETCHING DAY OFF, SHYKEHEAD!” A slight raise in voice, but it immediately returned back to his normal volume. “Besides, my job description didn’t say anything about keeping the city safe. I am a teacher. I teach. You-” He prodded Turrin’s chest sharply with a finger, “- Are the endal here. You are supposed to be protecting the citizens, aren’t you? And you know what? You were late! And I had to step up and stop that thing from killing some random people.”

The glare he’d been sending Turrin grew in intensity for a tick as he blew out some air through his nose. “I have no intensions to become a mercenary, but nor am I a hero. There is no such thing as free services. Nothing is free; there always is a cost. Be it labor or money, you don’t get anything by doing nothing. And because of that, I want a reward. I doubt you know so let me tell you; I am broke. I can’t buy shyke with air. I need money. I want a reward. Does that get through that thick head of yours?” It was patronizing, and very much so, but Brandon couldn’t care less. “Like I said, I’m not hero-material. You might find I’m quite the opposite.” A sharkish grin.

There was a bit of silence then, and Khara meekly stated she’d stay to do whatever Turrin wanted her to do. “And I’m out of here,” the bat grumpily added, defying the endal’s orders for multiple reasons. The first being that he’d had it with following orders, the second that he had no desire to talk to more endal, and the third that he saw no reason to stick around anyway. “I doubt the endal will believe a lowly chiet took it down anyway,” Brandon spat, eyes flitting to Khara for a split-tick. “Not that I’d expect otherwise; you’re conceited egomaniacs who’re far better than anyone else after all!”Then he spat for real, launching a blob of saliva at the ground right in front of Turrin’s feet.

With that he turned around and started walking away, eyes ablaze with a quiet anger. Not even a thank you, he’d not even received a thank you. Gratitude, none. No reward, no thank you. All he’d gotten was a glance that could be translated as ‘severely disappointed’, and the unspoken notion he had to do what the endals said. Well petch that! Petch them! For all he cared Wind Reach as a whole could be swallowed up by the mountain. All except Dru. And maybe Khara, because for all her spineless obedience she was a clever girl. That with the flaming arrow had been good thinking, but Turrin’s actions? Keeping the head, wanting to throw it in the mountain’s heart? Foolish! He should have let it burn along with it! Like souls cared about their bodies once they were gone. Cremation was a fancy way of disposing of corpses enough, and way more efficient to deal with those foul undead. If it wouldn’t go against his believes, the bat would stand down next time one of them appeared, but since it did... He couldn’t keep those unliving, undying creatures roam around like they pleased.

Brandon wasn’t far enough away yet not to overhear the rest of the conversation between the endal and the chiet girl, and an annoyed snarl crept up his face. “Like we needed any help!” He yelled, though he refused to turn his head. “We would have been just fine by ourselves. I mean, it was you who destroyed that thing, wasn't it Khara?!” It wasn’t a question, it was a statement with the intention to spread rumors. Rumors of Khara the chiet girl who took down an undead dek, and of Turrin, the endal who was too late to prevent the ravage. A smirk; those yasi were still around; they would have heard, they would tell about their heroic participation in the battle, and now they knew Khara’s name. His grin turned wicked, and a quiet bout of laughter bubbled out, growing into a chuckle soon, keeping Brandon company while he walked away.

[Turrin]

Turrin was utterly shocked at the the temper tantrum a grown man put on for the whole market place because he didn't get his reward. Brandon started his argument insisting that it was Khara and him that destroyed the abomination. Turrin thought it was team effort, but Brandon insisted that it was him with Khara help that killed the beast. Yes, they both played a huge part in taking down the undead Dek. Brandon distracted it, Khara set the remains on fire after it was dismembered by him.The endal knew the foreigners conveniently decided to forget Turrin's large role in taking down the abomination, but if the human wants the victory than what does the endal care. He knew his role, and he didn't need credit to stroke his ego. He had better things to think about than to appease the whims of unruly idiot.

Turrin knew that the foreigners was damaging his own reputation by throwing a temper tantrum, so the endal just crossed his armed and took the verbal abuse with a smile on his face. In truth, all Brandon could do was just yell at him because he was in no position to do anything otherwise. Unless he wanted to be in serious trouble with the Valintar, and the myrian wasn't going be goated into a duel with the man either. He was a petching adult now and had no time for childish games the Inarta loved to play. Turrin decided to ignore him because in the end, he really didn't have time to deal with people who can't figure out how the world works.

Watching the foreigners stalk away, Turrin turned his attention to Khara and was about to say something, but she was already thanking him for his help against the beast. The endal shook his head and said with a smile, “As Brandon said earlier, I didn't contribute much to the fight, so you should be thanking him not me. I was just late to the party. Since Brandon is sulking somewhere, I will stay here and wait for the other endal to come. I will have you explain from the beginning, Khara. I will back you up.” Looking at the yasi, the endal said with a nod and smile, “Thank you for your help. Now you can tell your friends that you helped slay a great monster!"

Turrin knew that he didn't have many friends in Wind Reach, and it was nearly impossible to talk to the lower castes without them cowering or throwing a fit like Brandon. He didn't want to leave Khara with a sour taste in her mouth about him, so he said softly, “Your skill with a bow has improved, Khara. I am impressed. You seem like a much stronger woman than the last time we met at the Bent Arrow.” Turrin decided to give her a reward of sorts and said with a smile, “I know the Inarta love their bows, but you are a game scout, so you should learn to defend yourself in melee range. Brandon could definitely teach you unarmed combat. He is very skilled with his fists and feet, but if you want to learn a weapon, I could teach you the basics of using a talon sword? If not, I completely understand. I know I have a reputation with the other chiet...”

After the riots, Turrin reputation with the lower castes plummeted, so he reputation for being a man eater and savage. Didn't help his chances of making friends with either chiet or dek. Suddenly, Turrin heard Brandon yelling at him again! The endal just shook his head at him as he continued yelling nonsense at the endal. In truth, it was comical to be the center of all the chiets problems in life. All he did was tell him that he will get paid at the end of the season. The city has already provided him with clothing, food, shelter, and a job. What else did he want? Maybe Turrin should buy him a doll since he acting like a child right now. Regardless, if Turrin could have his way, he would be happy to go through life without having to deal with the Brandon Blackwing; however, fate was a cruel thing in Mizahar, so he doubt that he would be that lucky.

At the end of the Chiet's rant, Turrin listened to him and said firmly in fluent common, “You have been provided the necessary essentials to survive by the city, Brandon. Do you really think the city coddled me when I first arrived in Wind Reach? I was a foriegner just like you! I had to work my arse off the first two years of my life to shelter my sister and my mentally ill mother. I started with nothing as a chiet and worked myself from the bottom to get where I am right now. How long have you been here a season or two? What makes you better than the chiet who lived here all there life trying get a apprenticeship from a hunter or a avora tradesmen? You are at the bottom for right now, but if you put some honest effort into your work, you might be a avora someday. In truth, I might have rewarded you with something if you weren't so full of yourself! Now, I really don't want to waste my time on you right now...”

Turrin's golden eyes stared straight into the eyes of the Brandon and ordered, “Brandon Blackwing leave the market place and stop disturbing the public!”

[Khara]

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Of all the reactions that could have taken place, Brandon's outpouring of grievances was not one of them. Chiet simply didn't do that. Confrontation was something Khara avoided if possible, even if the angry words weren't directed at her, she was still disquieted by them. The accusations flung at the upper caste sounded all too like the rallying words that had set off the nightmare a little over a year ago. It was only in her nature to look away, eyes flitting uncomfortably downward but on the way she caught a few faces that seemed to have the same impression she did if their uneasy expressions were anything to go by.

The other feeling that seemed almost palpable was one of regret, though Khara was fairly certain she was the only one feeling it. It wasn't for anything that had been done - save for maybe giving cause for attention to be drawn to her - but more in an anticipatory way for what would come of all this. The outsider may have been leveling his frustrations at Turrin, but it was the Endals in general that he was speaking out against. Khara knew all too well what could come of testing the upper caste's patience and she had only managed to spark one of their ire by daring to try and become better, or maybe it had been only because the one time she had accepted the invitation to the Avora's archery range…

An uncomfortable glance was cast to Turrin as she continued to watch the exchange take place. While taken entirely out of context, something Brandon had said rang true; there was always a cost, and no doubt the Kelvic would eventually pay the price for his outrage. Khara only wished there was something she could say, some small act of bravery she could do that might spare the bat his inevitable fate that his anger was writing for him. But no, the monster was gone and so was her courage; it was almost funny how she could stare down and challenge something truly horrific but people still caused her to shrink away with little effort.

As Brandon first strode off Khara's thanks towards Turrin were met with words she didn't quite expect. It seemed the Endal definitely still managed to have the ability to surprise her, first with offering to back up her story, and then the truly shocking offer of teaching her how talon sword and suggesting she learn some unarmed combat from the Kelvic as well. An answer was already forming, though hesitant only from her belief she'd be nothing but a problematic student in such things, but her words were stopped before they ever left her lips as Brandon continued.

His proclamation startled her and she almost wanted to retort, to say something to try and put a stop to any rumors that could form that she was the one who had actually done anything worthy of note. Of all things she wanted from a life in Wind Reach, fame was not one of them. Fame was not something a Chiet should have and already some rumors of her in the past had caused nothing but trouble. The Chiet who thinks she's good enough to be an Avora, the thought mockingly taunted her in a voice not her own.

As Khara watched Brandon stride away once more she wanted nothing more than to collapse in on herself, curse herself for not saying anything to dissuade the statement. She'd been struck dumbfounded and Turrin's final words to the other Chiet were lost entirely to a flood of worries of what would come from what Brandon had said.

It was only as silence fell once more that Khara chanced a glance upwards towards Turrin once more. Her throat felt dry as she tried to respond to what he had said earlier. "Y-your reputation does not worry me so much. I-I would be honored if you would teach me."

Another glance was given towards where Brandon was slipping away into the crowd and she quickly made the mental note to ask him about what he taught the Yasi. Not that she had any idea who she would ever actually defend herself from in such a manner.

"Nari" | "Common" | "Pavi"