A Slave To The Dream [Infilia Snowsong]

[Garland]

Patrols through the woods were always pleasant, a nice change of pace from the drab brown walls of Syliras.

But where Garland was walking, he didn't recognize anything. The trees just looked different, he had no idea where he came from or where he was going, or what he was even doing. He just knew there was something he had to do here somewhere.

A caravan had stopped in the middle of a clearing a few feet away from Garland's location. The squire waited and watched in the bushes, trying to see what they were doing. No legit caravan would go off road unless the road was being watched by bandits, but then how would they know about it?

"I keep telling you, just kill them, they're worth more dead than alive! One of the men in the caravan said, it looked like he was arguing with someone. The rest of the people started making camp, they seem to be putting up tents and started gathering some firewood.

Garland saw one coming towards him. He was ready to greet them, but he heard something else that made him stop. "Slaves are slaves, we have a paying customer and if you want a return customer than you better deliver the merchandise. These Vantha would pay off in the long run."

Slavers... Garland hid behind a tree. waiting for the slaver to get close to him before he would kill him quietly and hide the body. Fighting an entire bandit camp alone was just stupid, even for him.

[Infilia Snowsong]

Sometime Before Garland's Arrival

Infilia was quite sore, tired even. Her blade was strapped loosely around her waist, the forest wasn't a place for Vantha, and the Snowsong especially didn't feel safe wandering around in a forest either. There's so many possibilities whilst wandering around in a forest, lost no doubt. Anything could happen really. She smelled... smoke, and heard the sound of chains clanking against the ground.

As if, she knew what the sounds of chains clinking. She figured that someone was there, and someone would be able to help her, she wasn't sure if they were good or bad people. Though, they might have food. Infilia just fought off a lone bandit, he wanted her pack, and her flute, she wouldn't give it up, and she had leather armor, with the Markings of the Avanthalian Guard. She must protect the armor if nothing else, her life.

"Hey! You there! Stop!"A man's voice rumbled through the woods, and Infilias chest pounded, she could feel the besting of her heart racing speedy quick. She started running, and suddenly she fell flat on her back, her head hurts. She raised a hand to rub her fingers on it and discovered that she was bleeding. A man was standing above her, and he smiled. He looked oddly familiar, but peculiar at the same time. Who was he? Everything went black.

Infilia awoke with a start, her foot was chained to another beings' foot. She looked tired, and in pain, emotionally. "Pick, pickaxe up. Start working." She pleaded. Infilias head was pounding, but the bleeding had stopped.

"I keep telling you, just kill them, they're worth more dead than alive!"Infilia overheard one of the men speak, she listened to the woman, her eyes switched from color to color to. She's a Vantha as well. Infilias' were a mixture of silver and purple. She started going to work, hacking away at some stones with special minerals inside. Hoping that someone will come, eventually.

Garland's Arrival:

"Slaves are slaves, we have a paying customer and if you want a return customer than you better deliver the merchandise. These Vantha would pay off in the long run."Infilia growled, and her eyes shifted to a mad fiery orange. If someone were coming, he or she best help them out. Infilia is not planning on being a slave for long anyhow.

INFILIA SNOWSONG

[Garland]

Garland silently took out the bandit with his knife, covering the man's mouth and slitting his throat. He pulled the body down to the bushes and in a few chimes Garland was wearing the bandit's clothes, disguised as one of them, it should be easy getting to the slaves.

Garland gathered some firewood, hoping to blend in with the group of degenerates. A group of bandits walked pass Garland and gave a cautionary glance, Garland rubbed his head and ignored them as he made his way to the one guarding the slaves while they worked.

Garland didn't even think they were actually mining anything, they were just put to work by the bandits for their sick amusement. The guard gave a happy sigh and motioned for Garland to come over.

"Finally, I'm guessing you're my replacement. Here are the keys, as you know don't let them go under any circumstances unless it's the boss' orders."

Garland just nodded and the man nodded back and walked away, taking Garland's bundle of firewood. Garland just waited for him to be out of earshot. "What a petching idiot." Garland walked over to the chains, and whispered. "I'm not one of them, I'm going to unlock the chain, but pretend to keep swinging."

Garland looked around, trying to see if anyone was looking his way. He started unlocking the chains on their wrists.

[Infilia Snowsong]

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"Rainbow eyes, cast to the skies..."
Title
"Speech"
"Others"

Infilia's hands felt sore, her hold on the handle of the pick-axe was tight, and she could feel her skin, twisting as she swung at the stone beneath her, the metal clinking against the rocks. Eventually, she looked to her sides, and noticed a man and a woman beside her, they were watching another man, one who had a pair of keys. He seemed to be doing something with them, as he came down slowly, towards her. Infilia suddenly realized what was going on. He was freeing them, but he wanted Infilia to play it cool. Continue swinging at least, that's what he wanted her to do, right?

"I'm not one of them, I'm going to unlock the chain, but pretend to keep swinging."Infilia looked at the man, confused, her eyes swirled a faint purple, a mix of orange in them as well, symbolizing her hatred towards the men who had captured her just hours before. She wondered how long the other Vantha here have been captured. Though, would it make a difference, when they eventually get the chance to revolt against the petchers that had imprisoned them. It's not right. Where is Queen Morwen when you need her?

"Thank you," Infilia whispered, she continued to swing as Garland instructed. She could feel her muscles tightening, and she waited for the man who rescued her to give her orders- assuming that that's what the others are going to do?

Boxcode credit: Karin Ironyach.

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[Garland]

Garland watched as and blended in as much as he could. "Swing harder, Vantha scum!" He then followed with a whisper. "Sorry..."

He glanced around, trying to find other Vantha's that weren't with the group he was with. There was another cage in the middle of the camp, where children and elder were resting.

They looked like they tired themselves. These slavers didn't even take care of their merchandise. Most of the able-bodied Vantha were just mining the ground where he was guarding.

"Those Vantha in the cages... Can they fight?"

A male Vantha on Garland's left shook his head. "No, they're too old or too young to be of use, they just... killed the sick but kept the heads for the bounty, they put the heads in a separate cart, animals..."

"Right, here's the plan, I start a ruckas, get them to fight each other than all of you slip away, I'll clean up and set the rest of them free." Garland popped his neck and fingers. "Time to get loud."

Garland walked up to the cart and saw one of the guards there drunk and taking a nap by a crate, while another had his back turned to him.

Garland took a bottle of whatever he was drinking and threw it at the other guard. The other guard stumbled forward and angrily turned to see the sleeping guard. Garland pressed his back to the cart and waited for the magic to unfold.

"That does it!" The guard went over and clocked the sleeping guard across the face, waking him up.

The drunk guard rubbed his jaw and stood up, he threw his own punch and hit squarely on the sober man's face.

"Oy! We got a fight over here!" Garland yelled out to the whole camp, and he slipped away, back to the miners.

"Wait for them to all gather around."

[Infilia Snowsong]

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"Rainbow eyes, cast to the skies..."
A Slave to the Dreams
"Speech"
"Others"

Infilia listened closely as the man who was talking to the other imprisoned Vanthas about the ones in the cages. Infilia hadn't noticed the cages- she looked at them, and frowned. Interested in how the bandits had managed to capture a lot of them. Her eyes shifted into a hazy blue/violet hue as she didn't feel so secure at this place, if they were going to turn her in anyways.

The tall man offered a plan that seemed quite flawless, nonetheless, infilia had her doubts. She wasn't so sure how the man could pull it off. He set out towards a sleeping guard, and clocked him straight in the jaw. Infilia watched; and soon, there was a fight, and Infilia broke free of her chains. Rubbing her wrists uncomfortably. Infilia rushed the cages, helping the Vantha escape. The men seemed quite distracted.

"Run, gather weapons- run into the woods. Harder to track."]Infilia gestured them out of the cages, and the vantha that were able to fight some of them grabbed weapons, as the others heard the smaller and younger Vantha to safety. Iniflia found her Shamshir that she received from Alex some time ago. Her unconscious flashed into a memory of the swordsman who taught her how to wield a blade. Infilia rushed over to Garland.

"Okay, I help. We... fight?"She paused. "Kill even?"

Boxcode credit: Karin Ironyach.

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[Garland]

Garland had nothing on him but his sword, his shield was iconic to the knights and they would have spotted that a mile away. Everything was going fine, but then the fight had begun to escalate to a civil war between two sides of the group.

One was for killing the Vanthas and taking the bounty, the other is for selling them. Garland was caught in the middle of it. Garland gut-punched one of the bandits that was coming after him tripped him up, while he was down, Garland dropped down and kneed the back of the man's neck, snapping his spine.

Garland saw one of the Vanthas unlock the cage, she wasn't being stealthy and just opened the cage, but everyone seemed distracted.

"You can fight? Sure, but make sure the others are safe, we're not here to kill everything, just by time for the Vanthas to escape." Garland pulled out his sword, it seemed like everyone was doing so as well.

Garland grabbed someone who was distracted by one of the Vanthas and plunged his sword into his back, passing through his stomach and out the other side. "Take down as many as you can!" Garland took off his bandanna and mask and rushed into the thick of it.

[Infilia Snowsong]

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"Rainbow eyes, cast to the skies..."
Title
"Speech"
"Others"

"You can fight? Sure, but make sure the others are safe, we're not here to kill everything, just by time for the Vanthas to escape."

"I can do that." Infilia responded with a nod of her head as she adjusted her grip on her shamshir. *In dreams you can dream anything, so I'll be playing Infilia when's she's out of her skill level. Since it's only a dream. She thrusts her blade directly in the lower back of a drunken man that was thrashing out with his fists on another man.

"What the petch!?"The man screamed out, he quickly reacted by placing his hand on his wound to prevent the increased bloodflow and turned around, but fell on his knees as he faced Infilia. Infilias' eyes were a blazing orange- like fire even. The man dropped on his face and blood began to seep from his open pours. Infilia stepped back and avoided the blood pool. Another man looked at her, as he refrained from gazing at the dead man in front of him. He looked angry as well, but then, he looked past the Snowsong and realized that the other Vantha were escaping and that their were some fighting back to with their weapons back at hand.

Things turned quickly, and Infilia was caught in the middle of the battle. She focused her attention on a wicked young woman, who had dual blades. Short swords maybe. She swung her blades across, aiming low at Infilias' chest. She jumped back, and tripped over a foot of another bandit. The bandit raised his ax and swung, Infilia rolled over to her stomach, and pushed herself up, she swung her blade at the feet of the man with the ax and he fell back on his rear. Infilia dug the tip of the blade into the mans stomach.

The girl with the two blades came swinging at Infilia and Infilia had to retreat, she bumped into the man who had rescued her earlier. "Duck!"
She called out with urgency.

NoteGar, we can do a 2v1 with the woman with the two blades. You can start with the next initiative. If you want.

Boxcode credit: Karin Ironyach.

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[Garland]

Garland saw that the Vantha were fighting back, and it seemed the bandits were too busy fighting each other and the Vantha to notice the escaping children and elders.

Garland rushed in, parrying a blow from one of the slavers, making an opening, and with a well paced slash, severing the poor sod diagonally from the rest of his body. Garland then used the bottom half of the body and picked it up with relative ease.

Garland then threw the thing into a group of people fighting, and knocking them down to the ground. Garland followed the Vantha girl and supported her in what way he can, she seemed like she could handle herself quite well.

The Vantha girl fell down and almost got her self killed, she was lucky enough to dodge the blow and counter attack by stabbing the downed slaver's stomach.

Garland saw the twin bladed slaver and was about to deal a fatal blow to the Vantha, Garland rushed forward, block one of the swords with his own and grabbing the lady's hand before the blade reached the target.

Garland threw a headbutt, aiming for the bridge of the nose, and knocking the twin-sword wielding slaver. Garland was sure he broke her nose with that attack, he could feel the blood splattered on his forehead and he simply wiped it off.

"Fight me, Vajik." Garland motioned for her to attack, enticing her with his words, he grinned and waited for the assault.

noteFrom what I remember "Vajik" was an insult akin to being called a bitch. Correct me if I'm wrong

[Infilia Snowsong]

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"Rainbow eyes, cast to the skies..."
Title
"Speech"
"Others"

OOCI think that's about right.

Infilias' hands trembled, and she smiled rather ruefully, the Vantha wasn't so sure if she would be able to handle herself well during this scenario. She fought a few times prior to this day. The only thing that really freighened her was her not being able to save the rest of her kin. She noticed the tall and rather burly, and hurled a dead body towards a couple of men and forced them to tumble on the ground. One of them screamed out in pain; he was sitting and grabbed at his legs.

Infilia shrugged, and quickly made her way towards the other slavers who realized that the Vantha were escaping. "I'll chase down those other ones! Take out these few!"

Boxcode credit: Karin Ironyach.

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