[Captain's Hall] Persona (Tabarnac Please)

[Ezra Folles]

♦ 45th Day of Winter, 510 AV ♦ Ezra stepped into the Captain's Hall, shivering from the day's chill. Far too long had he stood outside, trying to calm his innermost desires and thoughts. Lot of good that did. "Damn the Shinya and their meaningless techniques." Ezra thought to himself, curling his left arm around his body and rubbing his opposite shoulder. Ever since losing most of the function of his other appendage, he had taken to doing this rather than rubbing his hands together when he was chilled. Ezra didn't quite know how to handle being in this city. He hadn't exactly felt the need to hide his tendencies in Sunberth, or Zeltiva... his stay in those places were far to short to bother with creating some sort of persona for himself. In any case, he had grown accustomed to a lack of pleasantries and an expected level of harshness in his speech. Already he assumed he would do well to make himself as boring as possible. Far too many eyes had followed the robed man with the crippled arm and the fancy sword as he followed the given directions to this structure. As Ezra stood in thought, his right hand's fingers began to spasm and writhe uncontrollably within the sling that bound it to his torso. Ezra grunted in frustration, solidly gripping his lamed hand with his other. Far too long had he lived with this impediment, and there was little hope of ever gaining a decent amount of functionality back in that arm. The spasms worsened, consuming his entire arm as it struggled against it's bondage, and Ezra lost focus on his surroundings as he attempted to stifle his body's outburst. ---

[Tabarnac]

A fire crackled merrily in the large fireplace, burning wood rather than peat or dung like the more modest homes. But the Captain's Hall was a public place, and so a little extravagance was allowed. Many groups of citizens came to talk here, proto-guilds and the like, or even book groups from the Lyceum, where students and lovers of literature would take turns reading from precious books. A flame-haired sword of a woman stood near the fireplace concluding a conversation with a man who looked only to have made a quick pass at cleaning the grime off of himself. Perhaps he was one of the miners attempting to build the Road through the Unforgiving toward Sultros and the wateryy heart of the continent beyond that. With such a small population as Denval had, one recognized strangers. A flick of dark eyes in a fair face took in the newcomer, and then she was walking toward him, nominally to see the miner out. "Thank you, Captain," he said, and he nodded, friendly enough, to the Lhavite, but didn't stop long enough to introduce himself, but left Astrid herself standing before him. "Welcome to Denval, stranger. I am Captain Astrid. How may I help you?"

[Ezra Folles]

Ezra managed to calm his involuntary movements just as he was approached by a woman who burned with authority. Or maybe it was just the hair... difficult to tell. "Ah, Captain. My name is Ezra Folles." he said, offering a slight bow with his left hand graciously positioned in front of him as if in prayer. "I was once a traveler, but now I find that I am simply homeless. I was hoping to find some sort of work in the city... whatever work you can offer to a cripple, anyhow. I admit I have little skills, though I am an aspiring writer." Ezra spoke softly, reaching up and scratching the thin beard on his chin as he spoke the last line. Though he hadn't actually written a word in quite some time, he did intend to write a book of sorts while he was in this city. The contents of his text however, were not open for discussion with others. "I'm willing to do anything, really. You'd be surprised how little you actually need two arms, after all." Ezra smiled with as much charm as he could muster. "Well, actually... I do have one request. I met a slightly odd little man named Marius not a bell after landing here... if you would, ahh... please, nowhere near that man." Ezra said with a wry smile. It wasn't that he didn't like Marius, in fact he found him rather amusing. Someone who spoke and acted as he did would have been no doubt struck or jailed after twenty chimes in the presence of a Shinya Monk. In truth he didn't want to grow too close to anyone in the city. He wanted to remain a stranger as much as he could, and that meant not having a flamboyant nancy boy crying his name and shouting idiotic things every day on a jobsite. "Well, obviously... also, I have nowhere to live. Though I hear you have ample housing in this city, maam." Ezra said, once again bowing his head with the same prayer gesture. Mentally he sighed, tiring of his act. If he could have his way, he would have walked into this building and stated "I need work. I need a home.", gotten what he needed and left without further conversation. So many wasted words and so much wasted time in idle conversation, however necessary it was. ---

[Tabarnac]

"Welcome to Denval, Master Folles," she said, reiterating her greeting with his proper name. Her eyes were penetrating, but not cruel, and the faint smile that arced an undercut across the bottom of her face. "You can find ample work copying for scholars at the Lyceum, and even extra work for chaplains in the chapels if you prefer religious work. There may also be work here as well, though you are more likely to meet Master Mero here than in any place of learning or prayer." It seemed the caves beneath the earth were his shrines to Semele, and that was just fine for Astrid. Let the spelunker do his work for Denval where he felt happy and connected to the world. "As for housing, so long as you work, we can provide you with a season's lodging free of charge. After that, you will accrue a modest rent. Does any of this interest you?"

[Ezra Folles]

"Mmmm..." Ezra mumbled, thinking over what offers Astrid had given him. Working indoors and copying texts was far from a thrilling career, but it would give him time and perhaps more skill so that he may begin work on his own text. "I think copying texts, however mundane that may be, would be my preference Captain. As far as free lodging, well..." Ezra's lips curved into a smile as he spoke, "Who wouldn't be interested?" An odd thought struck Ezra, and he quickly moved to string out his part in the conversation a little further. "You say you have a chapel in the city, do you? Tell me, what gods does a resident of Denval pay tribute too?" Ezra wasn't exactly sure how far Zintila's worship had spread throughout Kalea, but with knowledge of Zintila came knowledge of Lhavit... and the Shinya. It would be best to know just how many of his habits and customs he would need to break as he settled into his life in Denval. ---

[Tabarnac]

"I will refer you to the registrar's office at the Lyceum, then. The scholars will be glad for another pen scratching toward their efforts. When you leave here, someone will show you to a cottage for your use, and I would suggest reporting to the Lyceum within three days. That should give you time to settle in and recover from your journey. "The Chapel is devoted to Aquiras and Viratas in the main, though there are many other chapels within the city either devoted to specific deities or the pantheon in general. The Chapterhouse of the Order of Radiance welcomes worshipers of Priskil, and was actually constructed with the help of a Priest of Zintila, and so many of her followers worship there as well. "Rhysol is looked down upon, but Sagallius is absolutely anathema. His followers, if discovered, are dealt with harshly."

[Ezra Folles]

Disheartening news. Any who would follow Zintila were highly likely to have traveled to Lhavit at least once. It would be highly... unfortunate if anyone were to recognize him as a former member of the Shinya. It was not obvious, but there were signs that those in the know might pick out. The mention of the other gods meant little to nothing to Ezra... but he had managed to fish out what information he could that was of value to him. "Well, i'll be sure to stop by and pay my respects. I am not an overly religious man in truth, but the Gods deserve their due every once in a while." He said, feigning a content smile. "I thank you for your warm welcome... I hope my stay in Denval is long and uneventful." Ezra had to resist the urge to bow slightly as he finished speaking. It was a habit that annoyed him greatly, but had been so pounded into his conversational routine over the years that he found it extremely difficult to break. In the stead of a bow, Ezra extended his left hand towards the Captain. A simple handshake seemed much more normal, he assumed. Unless the Captain had anything else to tell him or warn him of, he thought his business here was finished. ---

[Tabarnac]

XP Award! Ezra Notes: Let it be noted that Ezra is employed as a copyist or scribe by the Lyceum. Please make some progress on a thread that includes his work by the end of Winter in order to earn Winter wages. For Spring and beyond, I’d like to see three per season. They needn’t all be skill-builders, and you can utilize other PCs in these threads, but he needs to actively be doing it in order to receive income. He also has a home per the standard generation rules. He will not be charged rent until 45th Spring, 511 A.V. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions or concerns. Keep writing!