[Red Diamond Tavern] A Taste of Pain

by **Danyella** on March 20th, 2011, 3:15 pm

Danyella's eyes amethyst eyes take in the whole scene. The fingerpoke into the friendly Darren's chest, the flying chair courtesy of the impulsive but good hearted Darren, even the scheming of the bratty Cara. Her eyes flared a deadly crimson but she stifled it for a moment. She walked over to the bartender and got two mugs of brew. She took the first and threw it into the large blue man's face. "You two take care of him, I need to teach someone how to be a true Vantha."

She sidled over to the table that Cara now sat on, her eyes a seething red river of rage. She knew the woman played with fire and was probably stronger than her, but her Dah always told her the Vantha take care of their own. Besides one didn't become a good smith without getting used to be burned. She stared the snotty woman in the face. Nearly everyone in Avanthal knew of her story. Tragic yes, gives you the right to not care for your own people, not so much. "You aren't a real Vantha, why don't you leave town with your sob story and save us all the bother?" At this she dumped the contents of the drink atop the woman's head. She then grabbed the edge of the table and flipped, depositing anything and anyone still on it. Danyella took a novice hand to hand stance, still wearing her semi fire proof gloves, apron, and breeches. They were tough enough to last under the coal heated fires of the forge. She held her fists up awkwardly, "Ready to learn some manners?"

by **Azeran** on March 20th, 2011, 3:52 pm

OOCI'm almost afraid to do this post because I think Stitch is gonna kick my ass. :smirk:

Koarhal grinned as Berus was stepping backwards. He was completely stunned by the Akalak's reaction. Good. Perhaps Berus would think twice before before insulting the Dark brother ever again. Koarhal had no intention of learning Vani, at least not in that moment. When he spoke, his language stayed native, Tukant all the way. "Wise for a child. My name is Koarhal, I suggest you never try my patience again. You might..." Koarhal cocked his gaze to the side, it was a familiar word, simple, one he could recognize despite being in Common. His eyes fell on the hooded figure, someone he had overlooked up until now, now that Stitch had spoken out. Koarhal stared a moment, he couldn't see much about his man, but he was still short, another human, probably Vantha that realized Azeran and Koarhal knew no Vani and hoped he understood Common. Did he just command Koarhal to stop? Then the man continued speaking, hearing only a little of what he had to say however. A door, a lady, the rest was lost. He shrugs, couldn't give two shykes about whatever he was trying to say.

"What are you doing? Koarhal!" Azeran had awaken again, and now that he saw what was going on in Koarhal's mind, he knew he shouldn't have left Koarhal in charge. He though this problem was taken care of, but apparently not. "You need to stop this Koarhal, you'll get us killed before we can even get back home." There was obviously something strange when looking at Koarhal, it seemed like he would have gone blind, or perhaps forgot what he was doing, that is rather than paying his full attention to his lighter brother. He chuckled aloud, though it was aimed at Azeran. Perhaps Stitch, if even he, would be able to recognize the sudden struggle between the souls, everyone else. Who knows what they saw. Koarhal spoke aloud in his Tukant once more.

"You are a fool brother. I have made these frozen lands my home. Here I can be free without the fears of exile or death. Here I have found one I desire more than your precious Konti. You, not even you truly understand me Azeran. Do not bother me now." Koarhal peered up again, towards Stitch, and apparently another man there. It was a strange maneuver, Koarhal didn't even know how he managed it, but he kicked the chair out of the air and it soared directly for Koarhal! There was a grin, a vicious, hungry, provoked grin that spread across his face as he large blue hands reached out and snatched the chair out of the air, he then spun, hurling the chair, not back at Darren, but towards the fear-stricken Berus. He had a feeling Berus was the cause of this. With the chair thrown at Berus, Koarhal didn't bother to watch the hit or miss, he ignore the fight igniting between the women, and most of all, he ignored Darren's foolish attempt to pass off blame on the blind man at his side. Koarhal started to storm over towards Darren, not dodging chair or tables, but in his massive natural strength just pushed them out of his way, with hands or quick kicks, as he moved in a walk, but a quick one. Each step was the size of a full grown Akalak's after all. He made distance easily.

If Darren, Berus, or Stitch, didn't do anything before Koarhal stampeded over to Darren, he would be pummeled into the wooden floors until his consciousness faded. Koarhal was itching for some fun.

by **Berus** on March 20th, 2011, 7:25 pm

Berus was cursing under his breath and casting about for a suitable weapon to take down this massive beast of a man when he noticed that everything just started to explode all around him. Stitch, who had apparently been hiding in a generally unpopular part of the room, had spoken out on his behalf and Darren had even thrown a chair at him! This warmed his heart a bit, but it was chilled instantly as he recognized Cara near the two. However, Danyella stalked over toward the hateful witch with rather angry expression stamped on her face and mirror the Akalak’s earlier tactic of dumping her drink over the woman’s head!

I picked a bad day to come to the bar, Berus thought sadly as he scraped some alcohol out of his hair with his hands. His eyes then widened suddenly as the Akalak reached down and heaved a chair not at Darren, but at him! The chair flew through the air with awing speed, having been propelled by all the muscles possessed by a seven foot giant. He reacted instinctively and attempted to jump to the side but only got halfway there as it smashed hard into the right half of his tiny five foot four frame. Berus was flipped through the air as his right side exploded in pain and a chair leg actually snapped over his head!

Berus fell down hard on the floor with a crash in a tangle of body and chair parts. He blacked out for a second and was actually relieved as he considered the prospect of passing out and missing the bar fight that was about to explode all around them. Unfortunately enough, the pain in his head and his right side would not abate and allow him to sink into glorious darkness. He felt as if his head had been pierced by a sharp blade and that his side had been beaten with a massive, ruthless hammer.

He pushed the broken chair off of him and rolled over onto his hands and knees. He looked forward and, seeing that there was no pair of huge, blue legs, crawled forward to a table and used it to lever himself up, shakily, to his feet. He took inventory of his body and possessions for a moment, seeing that he was bruised by his lyre was luckily intact, before taking a visual sweep of the bar. His eyes first settled on a fuming bartender standing behind the counter and a crowd of retreating drunks who were not interested at all in joining in the fight. Then he saw the Akalak, crashing through chairs and tables as he furiously moved to pummel Darren into the ground. Cara and Danyella looked as if they were about to engage in a mighty fistfight as Stitch and Darren prepared themselves for the Akalak’s onslaught.

Berus, sensing that he might be a little help to Darren and Stitch if he snuck around behind the Akalak and struck him with something hard. Using a chair held a bit of vicious appeal to him as he sought his revenge. Shakily, he let go of the table and started off towards the Akalak…

Then his legs gave way and he was back on the ground.

by **Stitch** on March 20th, 2011, 8:44 pm

Both Darren and Cara came to greet Stitch. Darren got a smile and a nod, as Stitch was familiar and friendly with the man. Cara was the only one to get barely any reaction from Stitch, besides that of a shiver when she dug her nails into him. She might notice that he was rather muscled, when she did. It was tight and banded muscle, not particularly strong... but more defined than a normal being. Before she could really give it a second thought, Stitch was up, sparing a few quick words to answer her question. "Taken part? In a brawl? A small and timid man like this one?"

And like that, the man was up, stepping into the Chaos.

"Sorry, milord." Stitch was the only one to offer an apology to the fuming bartender, sweeping back his hood so the man would at least be able to see the embarrassed expression on his face. Out of all of them, Stitch was the one who perhaps had the most concern for the wellbeing of the bar. "This one will try and cover any damages done. This one apologizes for everything getting out of hand. Does this happen often? This one apologizes if it does." Stitch already knew the answer. Even though this was Avanthal, home of the warmest people on Mizahar... this was a bar. Fights always broke out at a bar. Perhaps that is why the Icewatch didn't have anyone posted here. They knew that fights would break out, no matter what they tried to do.

The barkeep couldn't help but smile, though. Who could resist, at the sight of the blushing man who was spitting out as many apologies as he could, paying no mind to the chaos breaking out around him?

But was the man blind?

White bandages were wrapped around his head, covering damaged eyes that would never see again. Uncut locks of black hair fell in front of the bandages, giving him a slight shaggy appearance, even if his face looked incredibly soft and young. He would be handsome, if not for the intrusive bandages. He had something of a child-like innocence about him, too.

When Berus took the hit, Stitch moved, darting to the man's side. While tables and chairs were being shoved to the side with the pure might of the advancing Akalak, Stitch moved through them as if a swimmer in an ocean, avoiding the wooden obstacles with pure grace and speed. His cloak whipped up around him as he did, but it seemed to hinder him little. He managed to reach the bard's side as he tried to take a step away from his supporting table. The blind man would catch the bard as he crumpled, supporting him instantly, keeping him held up. A kind smile would be given, and Stitch would whisper a few encouraging words. "That was a very valiant fight, milord. Given your opponent was the mighty chair, you held up quite well. Sad that you don't have any snowballs on your person."

With a light chuckle, Stitch glanced up. His eyes returned once more to the Akalak, checking to see if he was still planning on engaging Darren, or if the moving Stitch had caught his attention. He was once again quite intrigued by the man's Aura. For a brief second, the two seperate Auras clashed and struggled for power, the submissive one suddenly trying to rise to power. The dominant Aura simply beat it back down though, using a strong mixture of rage and confidence. Stitch was confused. It wasn't like possession. They were willingly sharing a body, although control over said body seemed to be fought over. In a case of possession, it was a constant war, and one could easily tell which Aura was the outside force.

Then another thing caught his attention. Trying to figure out if he should speak up again, Stitch finally shouted out, aiming his words at Dany. "Milady! Spread your hands out a little more! Hunch your shoulders up to guard your chin! And spread your feet! You will have to move quickly!"

Gods, he was giving advice. Not that he thought it mattered. Dany's opponent wasn't a physical fighter. By no means.

by **Cara** on March 20th, 2011, 9:40 pm

Cara growled as she lifted her right hand to her cheek and wiped away the beer Dany has poured on her. She flicked the golden liquor away. "You are going to regret that!" she hissed, just as Dany flipped the table, spilling Stitch's water everywhere. It settled into the floor soon enough, just like Cara landed on her feet. The girl's fists were raised at her. "Do you honestly think it wise to play with fire?" Cara asked, her voice icy. Her eyes were sparkling menacingly as she stepped away from the table. She would need a little more room if she wanted to use her magic to her advantage. Cara had not taken her eyes off the Vantha yet, and was never going to. The girl was hers to destroy. She was concentrating deeply on her djed, and soon enough, an orb of translucent light blue res had appeared over her right hand. "If anything, Vantha, you are the one who needs to be taught manners," Cara hissed. As soon as the words were spoken, she ignited the outside of the orb. A warm, golden-yellow and bright orange flame erupted from the edges, swirling around the orb of res angrily. It seemed to spit a thin trickle of dark grey smoke, much as the fire at the front of the room was. The fire Cara had created seemed to be reflected in the younger Vantha's eyes.

"Are you afraid?" Cara asked as she took a half a step closer to her opponent. "Because there is still some time to run. If you make it quick," Cara taunted just before she drew her right hand back. If the Vantha waited just another instant, she would be burned. Cara knew it, and perhaps her newfound prey did too. Silently, Cara lifted her hand, and then tossed it. The fireball erupted from Cara's hand, and was headed straight towards Dany, of course she just had to miss and hit another patron instead. His clothes caught on fire instantly, and the poor man was forced to roll around on the floor frantically to get it out. Cara cackled. Guess that means this is going to be all the more fun.

by **Darren** on March 22nd, 2011, 1:46 am

Darren took a look at Dany and Cara and immediately wanted to get inbetween the two. If he saw sweet loving Dany get hurt he would feel immediately bad unable to protect his admirable companion, he moved to hold back Cara as he started over. He stopped as he saw Cara throw a fireball at the nearby man, hmph with me she really can't control her magic as well compared to other people. Her emotions are...bothered and somewhat angry when I'm involved, I'll have to let someone else show her some humility he thought. He started circulating his flux around his body, trying to almost overcharge himself while he was in thought. He nodded as he turned to Danyella "Dany! Catch!" he said, throwing three of his knifes underhand at her while throwing the final one offhandedly at the blue man. He focused on the flux flowing through his body as he rushed the blue man he grinning His gauntlets hampered him from his normal gestures to counter moves, that means I only have one option left he thought. His feet paused for a mere moment right before he stepped in with so much speed and force that the wooden planks that were supporting him, cracked under the force he put into his step in. His knife aimed at the blue man's head as he was right under it throwing out a right palm swipe from his side his side. "I'm gonna finish this fast!" he growled right before he sent out his attack.

by **Danyella** on March 24th, 2011, 5:51 pm

She did as the strange man said, she widened her hands, hunched her shoulders, and spread her feet. She then saw Cara throw a fireball at random customer. This further enraged Danyella, no Vantha should treat others like that, what would Morwen say?Danyella didn't fear the fire the woman through about with relative ease. She dealt with hotter and larger fire every day. She closed the gap on the woman and stared crimson daggers into her own uncaring eyes.

She clenched her fists hard, knowing that by attacking a fellow Vantha she was disgracing Morwen in the process. She saw the violence exploding around her so she circled around so that Cara was between her and the rest of the ruckus. Then she threw a wild punch at Cara's face, hoping to do some damage before the woman burned the place down. She was ready to dive away from a fireball but would wait if a physical blow would come. Cara after all looked frail and weak physically.

by **Azeran** on March 27th, 2011, 6:02 am

Azeran and Koarhal was accustomed to combat, he was a damn Akalak, born, bred, and raised to kill, to fight, to destroy. Seeing something like a knife hurled in a bar wasn't a surprise, shock, or disheartening event. Azeran grabbed a nearby chair and lifted it, using it to accept the knife, rather than his face. Koarhal was pissed now. He hadn't been been in Avanthal long, and already the locals were trying to kill him. It wasn't even a typical running-out-of-town. This was a knife, and gauntlets, in a simple bar fight. A brawl was respectable, fist to fist, head to head, but pulling weapons on a unarmed man, despite his enormous size or foreign sky-colored skin, was just shameful. Koarhal wanted to kill this tiny man now. He had about a foot and a half reach advantage, he assumed it wouldn't be too difficult to do this. "You are going to regret that cowardice, child. If you live through this when I'm finished with you, I challenge you to a true fight for your life. There you can use whatever you wish, as I will too." Since he didn't have his axes with him at that moment, the chair would have to make due.

And with the chair still above his head, Koarhal continued to storm towards Darren and swung the furniture like it was a lethal weapon of some kind. Straight down towards little Darren's head, in attempt of course to bash him to the ground, knock him unconscious, and therefore display his dominance over him. With the velocity of the makeshift weapon, it wouldn't be a surprise if the blow would knock Darren out cold, assuming of course he took the shot to his head like it was aimed. Otherwise, it would simply miss and, in all probability, splinter on the floor where Darren was standing. That was better than across his head.

by **Stitch** on March 27th, 2011, 5:16 pm

So much fighting. It was everywhere. Bright Auras of violence blazed to fill up the tavern, which had now emptied out. It was only the combantants who remained, along with the poor barkeep, who had just resigned himself to leaning against the wall as a spectator. It looked as if they were going to destroy his bar, and he wasn't going to be the one to attempt to stop them. Nor was he going to attempt to go through them. That would be absolute suicide.

Stitch noticed it. He could see so well. He could see the sorrow in the barkeep's Aura. He was just resigning himself to the bar fight, realizing the Icewatch would only be responding within the next few moments. That wasn't enough time at all. He had a blue giant throwing furniture around, a bulky man getting into a fistfight with the monster... and then a witch, hurling around fire. Magic never meant anything good, but he didn't bother bowing his head and cowering. It didn't matter anymore. He was just going to watch, and pray that they didn't break too much. He just hoped they would pay for the damages after they were done. The Icewatch would likely make them do so. Hopefully it would be enough to cover everything they were about to do.

The blind man swallowed hard, realizing that he had to do something here. Since none of the Icewatch had yet made it to the scene, it was just going to spiral deeper and deeper into chaos. But he, as a trainer of the Icewatch... shouldn't he try and speak up in their behalf, to buy them some time until they got here to break everything up? Reacting before Berus could, Stitch gently lowered the man to the floor, giving him a quick smile and a pat on the cheek. "Sit tight, milord. You are in no condition to be standing. Catch your breath." After those soft words, Stitch stood tall, flexing his muscles. He was small compared to the others in the room, and that gave him pause... but this was something he had to do. He had to control it. He had to keep them under control. It had almost become a quest in and of itself! Save the tavern!

"Milords, milady... this one thinks you should stop..." The words were quiet and gentle, and did little to stop what was happening. Dany and the Witch still circled, while the Akalak and the Vantha started their little brawl. A chair was used as a weapon, and Stitch winced, not wanting to see how that would turn out. He raised a hand and gave it a little wave, trying to catch someone's attention. That didn't work either. They kept going.

Now Stitch was getting frustrated. They were like children.

"Please stop?" Still, nothing. They probably couldn't even hear him. Stitch gritted his teeth, and finally steeled himself, deciding to firmly step into the fight. It was the only option left.

A blue flash briefly lit the room as Stitch used the Flux, surging Djed to his head, powering his Auristics to their maximum potential. The room lit in a variety of colors, each and every Aura displayed, showing a variety of statistics. Current moods, where their attention was aimed at, what it was aimed at, what magic they held, how strong they were... all these little things were revealed to him, all in the blink of an eye. They weren't intricant details, he would have to focus a little more for that. But... he could see just enough. The people in the room would see it, if they glanced over to him. Blue orbs blazing dimly under the white wrapped around his head, though they were only lit for a brief moment.

Stitch raised an arm, and called upon the Flux once again, flooding Djed to the muscles in his arm. The skin actually flexed there, and right before everyone's eyes, the muscle would tighten and bulge. He was somehow growing more defined, in the split second heat of the moment.

The hand came down, and smashed into the surface of the table Berus had formerly been using for support. With a loud snapping sound, the table buckled, and broke right in half, falling in on itself. The noise would hopefully draw all nearby attention, and if now, then hopefully the following firm, loud words would.

"I said to stop it. Now."

Oddly enough, they would all feel his gaze on them. Somehow, he saw them. It might be a mystery to some... but others would get it. Cara would know, for sure. Auristics. Really good Auristics.

by **Cara** on March 27th, 2011, 6:17 pm

Cara watched as the man she had hit fell to the floor, and began rolling around frantically, trying to put the fire out. He was clutching his head and howling in pain as the orange flame curled beneath his body, flattening beneath it like dough beneath a rolling pin, only to escape out of the edges a moment later. "You witch!" he kept screaming as his eyes shut, and a trickle of dark grey smoke floated out and around the sides of his burning body. Cara smiled wickedly. It was a weak smile, and her eyes only seemed to glimmer from time to time. Well his fat arse shouldn't have gotten in the way.

As Dany's fist inched closer and closer to her, Cara quickly side-stepped. She wasn't about to let the girl hit her simply because the sight of a burning man was distracting her. It took another few minutes for the man to put the fire out completely, but by that time, his clothes were largely ruined- lined with black, several fibers having been melted away. He scrambled to his feet and pointed at Cara, "next time I see you, you'll have to pay for this!" before he turned abruptly on his heels and ran out of the bar. Cara smirked. It'd be fun to see him so much as try.

Cara followed his departure with her eyes, before she turned back to Dany. But even so, the girl didn't really see her. Cara could sense someone's eyes on her. Someone other than the puny Vanthan girl before her. Cara looked left and right around the bar for a moment, until she noticed an eerie glow coming from beneath Stitch's bandages. The glow took the shape of two almond-shaped eyes, and looked to be a pale blue from where Cara was standing. What the? Is he the one who is watching? Both intrigued and startled, the girl pushed past Dany, their right shoulders brushed lightly against each other as Cara pushed past, and headed for where Stitch was standing. Perhaps Dany was following her, but Cara didn't care, she could easily finish the girl off as soon as she had figured out what was going on. Verified her mounting suspicions.

When Cara reached Stitch, she lifted her left hand, and pressed it into his left shoulder. Her finger's curled into his skin; her nails tickled his flesh, as she leaned in and began to whisper in his ear. "So tell me, whoever you are, can you see without your magic? Or are the bandages merely for show?" Cara wasn't sure exactly what form of magic the man was using, but she knew that there was more than likely no other explanation for how his eyes seemed to glow. She had a few guesses though: perhaps it was a lesser form of morphing, which would make him appear like his eyes could glow. Or rather, give him a set of eyes that glowed. It could be flux, but then again, why he would use flux on his eyes remained a mystery to her. Or perhaps it was auristics, perhaps that could allow someone to see color? Cause others to sense that they were being watched? Or then again, her magic use could have caused her to hallucinate and imagine all of this, in which case, the man was likely to kill her now. Or at least try to do so.

"What exactly are you hiding?" Cara whispered as she concentrated on her djed again. She could feel an intense heat coursing through each portion of her body as another translucent light blue orb appeared over her right palm. She filled the center with a mixture of fire and water, but left the outer shell untouched. It was Cara's glorified mist bomb, when thrown it would fly through the air, only to burst on impact, releasing a mist. The color would vary depending on which of the elements seemed to be winning at the time. It was generally only used when the girl was trying to escape, but in this case, perhaps she could use it to distract everyone so the fool could get his point across. As much as she wanted to fight, she wasn't in a mood to pay for damages, and using her magic in such close quarters with so many other people around only increased the risk of her hitting the wrong person again. She didn't want that right now; now she only wanted to see Dany cowering beneath her; begging for Cara's mercy.

"So wizard," Cara added, as she dug her nails a little deeper. "If you can truly see, or sense, whatever it is you do, then you should know the magic this orb contains." The girl raised her right hand slightly, so that her hand was hovering beside the man's right shoulder. "Do you think we should release it and move outside, or are you enjoying this? Each minute in which they attempt to destroy each other?" Cara laughed. "I know I sure am, but... if you were giving Dany advice, then perhaps you do not feel the same way." Cara waited, if the man said the word, she would hurl her res orb into the battle, and help Stitch stop the fighting, at least for a time. She didn't mind everything moving outside. She was sure the bartender wouldn't mind either.

OOCHockay, so I did my best to stick to the lore, and everything Stitch said. If I misinterpreted just tell me please, and I can edit. Also, Stitch, if you don't want my pc's nails digging into your shoulder or anything, please do tell.