[The Docks] A Cast of the Dice (solo)

[Faylon Kwanda]

70th of Winter, 511AV Mid Day [The Docks were always readily accepting of help, especially in the winter when the Bonesnapper was in full force and there was an eagerness to finish all the jobs that needed doing sooner rather than later, so it was no issue for Faylon to integrate himself amongst the workers here. Under the guise of Bronn, which Faylon had called himself amongst the public ever since taking the warehouse from its now deceased owners, he had been able to make several small acquaintances with the sailors that frequented the docks. The majority of them were workers that he readily lent a hand to as a labourer but some of the now familiar faces to her were crew members for various ships as well; no one with much pull but plenty of sources when it came to reliable information and rumours.] [Work was abundant today. Arriving early in the morning Faylon had been put to task helping to unload crates from a barge. Alongside other men he worked by lifting these wooden containers off the deck of the boat they were loaded onto and down onto the docks where other labourers stood ready to move them to their next destination. Likely a warehouse somewhere on the docks. Then it was back up the gang plank onto the ship where the next crate was retrieved and brought down onto the docks. It wasn’t back breaking work but by the end of the day your muscles were sore and you’d usually worked up a sweat. Treating this as a workout in itself Faylon didn’t seem to mind hard work though and he was always a welcome sight when offering assistance.] [It was when carrying a crate with one man he had met several times by the name of Larson that he was asked...”Dice game after the next few crates. We need to break anyways.” Nodding readily he would reply...”Sounds good but we’ll need a third. You can’t play dice with only two men if you want a good game.”...Larson seemed to agree because he was soon responding again...”Don’t worry. I might know a man.”...and then the two men were busy lugging crates again from one place to another. Learning early on that the best way to lift was always with the legs and not the back Faylon had made a point to follow this advice as he’d seen many men missing the next day after working on the docks, this was primarily one more reason he could get work so readily.] [Lugging there crates down off the deck of the boat they’d been working on so that others could take them elsewhere Faylon and Larson would part ways, Faylon going to the agreed upon location where they often relaxed and Larson going off to find the third man he had promised, they’d meet later on off a short pier off the docks. Pleasantly surprised when he saw another man he knew Faylon would offer a smile and say...”Verne. You play dice too.”...the man was an older sailor who seemed gruff around the edges but readily laughed at the comment...”Aye Lad. I’ve been throwing dice since you were at your mothers tit.”...and Faylon didn’t doubt the mans word seeing as how Verne likely had at least thirty years on him.] [Now that they were all together the men threw down a few mizas so that the game could begin. Verne lit a pipe to smoke and Larson removed a flask of whiskey from his pocket that he took a swig from; Faylon watched both men with eyes that were downcast but observant to went on around them not wanting to miss anything. Larson would finally take two dice from his back pocket breaches as well and reveal them to the others, they were just common cheap dice made out of carved wood but they would roll well enough, no one here was a serious enough gambler to ever spend the coin on a set that were carved of bone or, gods forbid, ivory. This was just a sailor’s game.] [Everyone saw the mizas in the pot as they all crouched down in what looked like a triangular arrangement. Passing looks amongst one another they needed to decide who would go first next which Verne suggested they do by...”I’m thinking of a number between one and seven.”...and Faylon replied by saying...”It’s one isn’t it?”...then chimed in Larson...”It’s always one. Verne everyone knows that.”...before Verne shrugged with a bit of a sour expression...”Aye. Aye. Well Bronn, Larson. Why don’t you two bastards think of something then?” Both of them just looked at one another before saying almost in unison...”Verne goes first.”...the old sailor was cursing under his breath at the both of them good then.]

[Faylon Kwanda]

[Verne took the dice in his palm first and shook them rigorously before casting them out across the docks between the three men. All eyes were on the dice as they clattered across the surface of the docks waiting to see what they would come up as. Curses not seven which meant the roll was no good and the dice went to Larson next. Faylon had the privilege of going last but this was also due to the fact he was the least experienced of the three in this area. Around and around the dice went several times with Faylon and Verne breaking even and Larson being up by several rolls do to simple luck. Crouched down all three men would look between one another in what became a battle of wills too as the slightest miscalculation or faulty roll could mean disaster for someone.] [Success! Larson was cursing...”Petch!”...as the dice came up poorly for him and just like that both Faylon and Verne were back in the game. The Dice went to Faylon next who was busy rolling them and throwing with what seemed like reckless abandon since he really didn’t have a technique like the other men. Luck favoured him sometimes and other times not so much. This time the dice came up badly for Faylon on his second roll after a moderately good first throw and he was left shaking his head...”Damn you Ovek!”...he’d be heard saying before Verne corrected him... ”Careful Lad. You may need a bit of Oveks luck some day.”...causing Faylon to nod even though he didn’t share the sailors view on the Gods by any means.] [Next roll for Verne wasn’t extremely different than all the other times and Faylon couldn’t help himself by saying...”You know Ovek must owe you one then Verne. He certainly doesn’t have any pity today.”...the older sailor could only grumble and reply...”Aye well next time I’ll be the luckiest one here!”...next time indeed. They’d have to see about that. They all continued rolling the dice but this had become just as much a social meeting of the minds as anything else. All the men had their own conversations going on with one another and though it might look chaotic to an observer they managed quite well and didn’t have much trouble understanding between the three of them.] [Somehow the topics changed focus though. “The Winter Ball is happening soon. Either of you going?”...it was Larson who’d brought up the subject which Faylon couldn’t hide much of his ignorance about while Verne rolled his eyes once and replied...”Are you kidding? Rub shoulders with those snooty professors and their students. Not likely. Besides I’ll be out at sea when it happens. Laviku willing.”...though Faylon expressed a bit of interest when he went on to ask...”Winter Ball? I’m not sure I know about it.”...neither of the men with him seemed to mind his apparent ignorance though. Larson, shifting his attention somewhat from the game to Faylon, would educate him...”The University holds a Winter Ball every year. It’s open to everyone but sailors get strange looks. You know I don’t half mind it though and might go for a few bells.”...while Verne had a completely different view and made his opinion known...”You would Larson. Those Professors are ingrates. I went to a Winter Ball years back. They kicked me out for trying to bed down with one of the students.”...Faylon and Larson couldn’t help themselves; they laughed at their friends misfortune and didn’t have to wonder any more about his dislike of the event.] [Glancing back to the game then as the dice were rolled again Faylon would have said...”Well I don’t think there’s any harm in taking a look.”...and to each their own as one old motto went seeing as how Larson had nothing against the event but Verne seemed dead set again it and the University. This was just one more example of the divide in Zeltivan society though and Faylon couldn’t help but think back to how he had witnessed similar things years ago. Anyways they were all playing dice so why not get back to that and soon the focus was shifting back to the game, especially since the days work wasn’t completely done yet.] [Thinking over what he had just heard Faylon made a mental note to remember this Winter Ball though as it would be worth attending. Nothing wrong with at least looking into these events so that you knew more about the current affairs of the city...]

[Faylon Kwanda]

[With everyone’s focus going back to the game of dice time went quickly and it wasn’t long before Larson was poised for the win again. Verne had thrown in an extra few miza to stay in the game but Faylon was reluctant. Larson definitely knew how to shoot dice and was a competent gambler but Faylon understood that a lot of what was happening had to do with luck as well and that any given moment the scales could tip in either his favour or Verne’s. Neither himself nor the older sailor seemed especially confident that it would at that point though and Verne was just too stubborn to accept that he wasn’t likely to walk away from this richer than he had arrived.] [Almost suddenly Verne, looking directly at Larson, would have called him out and said...”Alright we don’t have all day. All in.”...it was a bold move that brought a satisfied grin to the features of Larson as he responded...”All in.”...and nodded his head in agreement. Watching the two men Faylon could see that he was all but forgotten as the game for both Larson and Verne relied on the next cast of the dice which he would not play a part in. Staring one another down, complete with the flaring of nostrils, was quite intense and the silence that washed amongst the three players seemed to surround the area too as everything went still for them. Larson started rolling the dice slowly before picking up speed, twisting his wrist, and then tossing the dice down.] [They came up seven. A guaranteed win. Verne groaned loudly and pounded his fist into the docks before saying...”Shyke. These dice hate me!”...but there were no hard feelings between anyways as Larson offered the sailor a firm handshake in condolences. “Maybe next time Verne.”...was heard which would receive a quick...”You bet your ass next time.”...before the sailor stood and said...”Bronn. I’ll see you then as well.”...taking Faylon by the hand when it was offered and shaking while he replied...”Of course Verne. I’ll be looking forward to it.”...then Verne was rising back onto his feet and stalking back out onto the docks where he would begin working again. Life of a sailor and all that, they needed to make ready for the sea again.] [Now that it was just Faylon and Larson the two men would take places across from one another so that they could begin to roll the dice between themselves. What followed was a short but intense series of rolls. Larson won but Faylon almost came back from defeat with several good rolls. None of what he threw down was quite good enough though and when Larson asked if he wanted to buy in for another set of rolls he would politely reply...”I know when to stop Larson. You have me by the balls this game.”...which caused his opponent to smile widely revealing that he was missing a few teeth near the back. Probably knocked out in a bar brawl.] [Eyes shifted as Larson collected the small bit of mizas he had one and retrieved his dice before Faylon would tilt his head and ask...”What do you think of the University Larson?”...for a moment Larson didn’t seem to know what to say but eventually he would shrug his shoulders and reply with...”It’s not a bad place. The University is at least half of what makes Zeltiva what it is but those scholars think they’re something more than they are. There would be no Zeltiva without the Docks but the city would still be here if the University weren’t around.”...which would be a point of contention with anyone from the University Faylon was sure though he only nodded his head to what he’d been told. Anything Larson told Faylon would be jaded by a sailors view and he knew this which is why he only put half stock in what he’d been told.] [It was after he’d considered everything that Faylon would eventually admit to his companion...”We have a Lord of Council but everyone here knows that the University and the Sailors Guild run Zeltiva.”...then there was a pause before he went on...”I wonder if anyone will ever be able to represent both sides equally.”...it was something Larson would have to admit he had never given much thought on but before the conversation got much deeper he would also say...”Get that old spyglass of yours. I want to show you something.”...and the both of them were on their feet and moving towards another pier of the docks.]

[Faylon Kwanda]

[Walking across the docks towards another small pier that was extremely nondescript Larson would lead Faylon to a stack of crates that would conceal the both of them reasonably well before pointing out across the docks and telling him...”Pull out that Spyglass of yours and point it over there. You’ll know the building when you see it.”...and Faylon, reaching down to his belt and into a leather pouch, would remove the spyglass as he had been bade by his associate. On first inspection Faylon didn’t think he was looking at much of anything seeing as how Larson had pointed him in the direction of the docks which they were already on and looking through the spyglass, which he raised, Faylon still wasn’t sure exactly what he was looking at. It took him a moment but then he recognized it.] [Looking through the spyglass Faylon had seen one of the four main Zeltivan piers, he and Larson were now on one of the smaller twenty and had managed to find a berth in the larger ships so that they’d be able to see well, he was looking directly at a wooden building set roughly five hundred feet back from the water. At first Faylon had wondered why this building was so important but then it started to come to him and he spoke aloud...”That’s the office of the Dock Master, Veraline Kendrick.”...he’d have said and though Faylon had never personally met her he knew of her; it was impossible to be doing anything on the docks and not know who the Dock Master was unless you were daft after all. Larson would nod his head then and reveal why he had shown him this building...”The woman who runs that building controls the Docks. She’s a member of the Sailors Guild to be sure but she must have ties to the University as well.”...it was just a thought that Larson had wanted to put in Faylons head. After all the Docks brought in things for the University as well so they had business there. Interesting if you really gave a care to think about it.] [With spyglass still raised to his eye Faylon watched. Observing that section of the docks from a distance. Maybe he was hoping to get a look at Kendrick who he may have seen once years ago. What he knew of her was fairly basic, that she was a women in fifties likely and that she had been the Dock Master for quite some time, without actually being acquainted with her there wasn’t much else that anyone could know besides maybe what they’d heard. Eventually Faylon would have seen enough and lowering the spyglass he’d replace it on his belt while nodding to Larson and telling him...”If you controlled the docks I suppose that you’d command a lot of respect in the Guild as well as with the University.”...what could Larson do besides nod his head to confirm that these were his suspicions as well. Very little else was said on the subject then and the men started back from the pier towards whence they had come so that they could make it back to the work on the docks.] [On the way another mystery had come to the attention of Faylon too, he hadn’t looked into it much beyond basic rumours years ago but now he felt a sudden curiosity, it had everything to do with Kennabelle Wright and her manor. Just an inkling he suddenly had that he’d keep to himself but might decide to investigate further on later.] [Neither men had said much on the way back from the small pier. Faylon had noticed Larson moving a few paces ahead of him. Glancing at the water just off the pier, cold and deathly uninviting due to the winter season, he’d seen the opportunity for something else as well. Not violence, Faylon couldn’t risk any action in broad daylight and he was fond of Larson to be honest, but rather one in which he could destroy evidence linking him to any past crimes. Digging into his pocket Faylon removed the key he’d taken from Smee, the man he’d killed some time ago, and looking at it he made ready to toss it into the water relieved at the idea that he might finally be rid of it. Honestly he had no idea why he’d kept it this long to begin with.] [Weight the key in the palm of his hand Faylon had stopped on the pier and raising it then he’d hurl it into the water, watching as it sailed away from him and plopped into the icy cold depths before disappearing, before looking eyes front again. It didn’t seem as though Larson had noticed anything at all. Moving swiftly Faylon would make ground with him so that the two of them could make it back to where they’d been working together.]

[Faylon Kwanda]

[Footsteps carried both men back to where they’d been shortly. Well they thought it was shortly anyways but both of them had been gone just a tad longer than they should have been. Arriving back on the dock with crates piling up both Faylon and Larson realized they still had a lot of work to do but not before they got an earful from the man running the operation. Likely someone who owned the cargo or at least had a stake in it. The moment that Faylon and Larson were recognized the both of them were directed to a large man with a scar across his forehead and a frown written all across his face meant for them.] [Approaching the man Larson would have turned to Faylon and said...”Let me handle this.”...though the moment they came within range the man waiting for them, Duvos was his name, had knocked Larson on his ass with a heavy blow to the jaw. All this caught Faylon quite by surprise. Duvos himself looked between both men and said...”Petching Loafers. You’re both late back to your posts and I won’t stand for it. You think you can just come and go!?”...Larson didn’t have much time to answer him before Duvos spat once to the side causing Faylon to frown openly. “What you don’t like what I have to say pretty boy? Well don’t worry you’re next.”...making it clear he was talking to Faylon Duvos had begun to march forward expecting to knock him down the same as he had Larson but Faylon already had other ideas in mind.] [Duvos was a mammoth of a man, broad shouldered and stocky not to mention extremely well muscled, but that hadn’t deterred Faylon who stood waiting for him. Adjusting his stance Faylon would present a right side profile with his left foot moving backwards to the seven o’clock position ad drawing the majority of his left side away from Duvos. When Duvos reached Faylon the man would send a giant fist towards him which was easily avoided. Light on his feet Faylon displayed fine footwork by leaning away from the punch and shuffling backwards before saying...”Look. We were a little late it’s no issue.”...but Duvos didn’t accept that; he wanted to show everyone that he was a harsh taskmaster.] [Bobbing and weaving while continuing to offer his right side as Duvos came in again Faylon would lean backwards, bob his head left to right, and avoid the brawlers strikes using his boxing expertise to the best of his ability. Letting his weight shift from foot to foot Faylon actually waited til Duvos threw a heavy blow and ducked underneath it before slipping behind him as the man went careening past before bouncing on his feet again then. Thus far Faylon hadn’t pressed the attack at all and all this was doing was making Duvos madder but Faylon would offer one more time...”Last chance friend.”...before waiting to see which decision Duvos would make. Unsurprisingly the man chose to rush in again hoping to rush Faylon before he could react.] [This time when Duvos came in Faylon would meet him by placing his right foot inside of Duvos left and then stepping into the man as he threw a punch from this right. The Punch went over Faylon’s shoulder and he brought his left side forward at the same time. Using his left arm as he shift that side ahead Faylon would bring it higher and curling it inwards to deliver a crushing elbow to Duvos nose, cracking it hard and breaking it, with a spray of blood heralding the result. The elbow was an illegal move used in sanctioned boxing matches but this was hardly one of those and Faylon wanted quick results. Hitting hard and first was paramount. Duvos fell backwards onto the docks clutching his nose which bled profusely.] [Once Duvos was down Faylon stood over him, his fist cocked and ready to deliver another blow if necessary, and said...”We don’t want any trouble. Lets just forget about this and we’ll finish out the day.”...then he’d wait to see what kind of response he’d receive. Duvos just stayed there on the docks clutching his nose before eventually conceding when he saw that Faylon would be harder to handle than he took him for, answering...”Fine. Finish the day.”...which caused Faylon to nod once before backing off. Even moving away Faylon never took his eyes off Duvos though, he wouldn’t give the man the opportunity to attack him from behind.] [When Faylon had made it back over to Larson he’d offer the man his forearm, which he took, before pulling him back up onto his feet and nodding his head once. The silent exchange between the two men one of recognition and appreciation before they went back to work. Together they’d empty the last of the cargo off the ship before calling it a day. All this would be forgotten soon. As for the Winter Ball; Faylon had kept thinking about that. The Dice were cast again.]

[Paragon]

Faylon : Faylon Skill XP Reward Observation +2 Boxing +2 Body Building +1 Lore: Dicing, A Winter Ball Invitation Other: N/A Great solo, you didn't get gambling XP because it's not an official skill. I've given it to you as a lore instead. - if you have ANY questions or concerns about this grading, don't hesitate to PM me.