Location The Southern Trading Post (City Entrance)

[Lunae]

45th of Winter 509AV

Lunae’s world was ripped to pieces from beneath her feet. The black sky ripping into shreds dropping the Ethaefal from the grace of Leth to the mortal world below. It was the dead of night, a full moon glistening in the sky as she shot down to the frozen lake below. The safe haven nearby was unknowingly going to have another visitor real shortly.

Why have you forsaken me?

The ice shatter around Lunae dropping her frail body deep into the frigid waters, the initial shock of being ousted from above still not sinking in entirely. It was the frigid waters around her that shocked her into waking. A struggling gasp as she swam quickly upward, as clumsily as she could muster with her body freezing as it is.

Managing to get her way out of the frozen ice her body shivered in the winter night as she crawled her way to solid ground carefully across the frozen Lake Ravok. Reaching land she stood and looked at her surroundings. Starkly lit as it was all she could see was the crowd of people going towards the gate leading into the city. With blue lips and no clothing at all the black-horned Ethaefal looked skyward cursing Leth before she trudged her way into the gateway into the safe haven.

The guards were checking everyone and she had nothing. They stopped Lunae at the gate and demand she steps aside.

“She is with me.” The elderly man behind her spoke, placing a hand on her shoulder. Lunae cringed internally and kept still, the guards nodded her through with the man. She was inside; the man smiled kindly and walked off.

Lunae was once again alone. Freezing, naked, and alone, what a great way to start a new life.

[Gaul Swift-Axe]

66th day of Winter How long had Gaul been standing here, waiting for the green light from the guards? The man was leaning against the walls, arms crossed, as he watched two guards study his great-axe that rested on the table in front of them. They probably wouldn't find anything; maybe not even blood stains. Gaul never really used it, as he spent more time building than fighting. Plus he really didn't do much fighting earlier that season when his tribe was attacked. No, slaughtered would be a better way to describe it. Killed, and whoever lived, wished they were dead. Odds are they were used as whores to the men of whoever took them. It still pained Gaul to think about it, because his family was among those. His wife would be mounted by any warrior wanting to be pleased, and she would have no say against it. Odds are his oldest, his son, would die before he would ever perform the trial of manhood. And his daughter, only seven, would probably face the same fate as her mother. It was not what he wanted for them, but he couldn't help them now. His tribe was lost, and only he was able to rebuild it. Finally, after about a bell of waiting on Gaul's part, a guard lifted his giant axe up, and carried it over to the man. The guard probably wouldn't know why Gaul needed such a weapon; the barbarian didn't wear his armor, opting for his travel clothes, which were well worn. He didn't plan on getting in any fights yet, so no need for armor. The fights will come when he got into Ravok, not before. The man, his voice muffled by his helm, handed Gaul his axe back. "It seems that you have earned our permission to cross over to the city of Ravok. Don't stir up any trouble because you won't live long. Rhysol is watching you." Gaul grabbed his axe, strapping it onto his back as the man spoke. He didn't care about any Rhysol, and he wasn't here for trouble. He wished to make enough money to rebuild his tribe, and then he would be gone. Gaul's brown eyes passed over the guard, looking past him to the doors he would pass through. "No trouble from me, sir, unless trouble finds me first." And with that, Gaul stepped past, and headed outside to where the ferry were docked. It took hardly any time to board a ferry, and it set off shortly afterwards. While the ferry cut through the lake, Gaul watched from the railing. He was ignored for the most part, unless a group pointed out his giant axe. And trouble did not find the tribesman, allowing him to exit to boat without incident. Across the gangplank he went without wait, and he found himself on the dock. The rebuilding process was about to begin. He needed to find work and a home. A long road was ahead to rebuild his tribe, and this was the beginning. Gaul set off.

[Martin]

89th day of Winter, AV 212

"There's the tower!" The caravan guard said enthusiastically. "We made it!" Martin could not have been more happy to hear those words. To say the journey over to Ravok was dreadful would have been an understatement. For starters, while Spring was near, it was still incredibly cold on their journey. There were nights where the wind would howl and rip right through Martin's skin, chilling him to the point of near-death on a couple of occasions. There were also several attacks from both the local wildlife and bandits on the road. Given his lack of combat skills, Martin was forced to hide whenever they were attacked and sit and watch as men died around him. Of the 35 men who set off from Zeltiva to Ravok, only 12 remained.

But of course, that was all then and this is now. Now, Martin had finally reached the city. Now, Martin had started his journey. Now, Martin new life had begun. Zeltiva had been great but he couldn't possibly stay there forever. He needed to go out in to the world and experience everything the world had to offer. They say that the journey beats the destination but to Martin, Ravok was part of his journey. This was his home now, and he wanted to experience it.

Once they reached the small village at the base, Martin bade farewell to the surviving members of the caravan and head out into the city. He got on the ferry towards the main city and to the docks, excited at the prospects of starting anew in this strange new city.

[Genesis]

Winter 92 AV 211

Genesis had traveled for days, the city of Ravok calling to her through her mark. She knew not why she was going, only that she had to. It was one of those feelings. Her feet were sore inside her leather boots, and all of her possessions were stuffed into her bag. She didn't have much, she never had, but today it seemed particularly light. She knew a lot about Ravok, her dying mother had always told her tales about the floating city. Although she didn't know about her mother's early life, she had the feeling that Natara had grown up here.

Her journey had been rough, avoiding other travelers had been ever harder. She knew not to let anyone see her on the way here, and not because her divination told her to. She was young, only 17, and although she could defend herself decently, there were many men who would jump at the opportunity to take advantage of a pretty girl like herself. She had already fallen prey to such things, and would never allow herself to again.

At the gates, Genesis approached on of the gate's guards and made sure she came off as strong and decided. "My name is Genesis Valia, sir. I come to Ravok in search of a new home, a beautiful one floating on water." She was wearing all the clothing she owned, a dark green v-neck dress, a leather vest, her robe and her cloak. "I have food and a little silver dagger." She presented the tiny weapon, sealing it back in her back at the guard's nod.

[Cairo Silvertongue]

Summer 1 AV 212 Early Morning


Finally Cairo was within sight of the gates. It was starting to get dark and the walk from the ferry had taken twice as long as he had thought it would, as he was used to traveling with his stead, Dalka. As he neared he noticed the two guards at the gate, stern faced and armed. They stopped him as he attempted to pass them, asking for his names, what he was carrying and where he was from.
"My name is Cairo Silvertongue and i am from Cyphrus." He said, loudly and clearly. "I carry the clothes on my back, food, flint and steel and other basics in my bag and the sword on my hip." the guards simply glared at him from beneath their dark hoods before finally nodding and allowing him to pass them. He was thankful to be inside the safety of the city, these were unfamiliar lands and he wasn’t familiar with any of the animals that flourished here. From what he had heard the city wasn’t much better, full of thieves and murderers. But who knew, they could be simple rumors…

[Eselle]

Spring 1, 512 prior to the 12th bell The tower, again. Every day, no matter the question the tower; for two straights weeks. Something is amiss. Every day the card had appeared Eselle had hurried her pace a little more; rushing her gilding, Samson. This morning she had prayed with every ounce of sincerity that she might reach the city today. The cards would only warn her so far ahead, for every minute she spent in the wilds Eselle was that much closer to this transition the tower promised. The tower could simply mean chaos. she chided herself; it would only make sense for the tower to appear so close the city where the lord of chaos reigned. Her nerves weren’t abated though, especially not when the literal tower had come into sight. In the end it seemed her nerves were for naught, she made it across the lake with Samson safely stabled at the trading post and her suvai returned. It was a nearly futile hope that those guards hadn’t recognized her weaponry, but they also hadn’t stopped her. It made sense, knowing what the Konti did of the city; why capture her now? Once she was in, she was more or less trapped. I must seem mad… The seeress couldn’t even be certain she wasn’t, rushinginto Ravok. But, the tower; it could be nothing or it could mean death alone in the Wildlands. Perhaps if it had not appeared alongside the hierophant this very morning she might have waited longer outside the city and found a safer route in. But the hierophant was a reminder of faith and what was known, so she trusted in her understanding and stepped off the ferry and into the Docks. Her furred hood pulled tight over her head to hide the glimmering golden scales on her cheeks and forehead, she had to hide for as long as she could. If she was discovered and taken for a slave there was no telling if her real purpose could be accomplished.

[Sam Oakfield]

30th Day of Spring, 512AV A feeling of joy overcame Sam's entire body. There it was, the beautiful southern trading post. Most people say it was nothing more than a couple of tents and a tower, but for some reason, Sam loved it. It was probably the atmosphere of the people; everyone was busily rushing around on their way into the city. Looking up at the sky, Sam noted that the city was in for quite a storm. Dark clouds were rolling in, nothing like Sam had ever seen before. He chuckled. After all, the city was famous for it's seemingly divine protection from the elements of nature. As long as Sam had made his way into the city by the time that the storm came round, he would be just fine. Making his way past multiple tents, Sam's sights were focused on one thing; The tower. After all it was necessary for everyone to go through the tower before entering the village, it was either that, or death. Making his way up the crooked stone path, Sam soon reached the wooden doors of the structure. With some effort, he pulled one of them open and enter. The inside wasn't quite as impressive. The room was nothing more than a couple of desks with a flight of stairs leading to the top of the tower. Exactly six guards were standing on duty, ready to spring into action if anything happened to go down. Before Sam could even mutter a word, a guard was already in front of him, a bit too close for comfort. The guard spoke quietly but clearly, his tone was somewhat cold. He asked for Sam's name, reason for entering Ravok, and also demanded any weapons to be given in. "Relax pal, my name is Sam, and I live in this beautiful city you call Ravok. I don't have any weapons on me, so why don't you back off a little?" Sam spoke with a tone that signified annoyance. He was never good at being nice to people, he didn't see the need or purpose of doing such a thing. The guard was all in his face, so he told him to back off, simple. Once the guard decided that Sam wasn't an actual threat, he was happy to let him proceed to the other side of the tower. Awesome. Pushing through the double wooden doors on the other side of the tower, Sam exited to the actual trading post. A similar stone path led him down the hill and into the village-like settlement. There were more tents here, as well as a bazaar and some places to drink. The atmosphere was still the same busy-bee rushing around as it was on the other side of the tower. Gradually, the stone path faded out and made way for a simple mud path. Sam made his way through the trading post, admiring all sorts of goods that were up for sale. However, Sam didn't really have the freedom to spend any money today, he was saving up. It was only a few minutes before he reached the docks. There were all sorts of small and medium sized ships docked, all waiting to leave for Ravok. Sam was familiar with this place. He made his way down one of the wooden piers and entered a ferry that was just about to leave. He would be at Ravok before he knew it.

[Vienne]

Spring 15, 512 AV OOCI hope this works for an entrance post, as Vienne already lives in the city and wouldn't actually be asking permission to enter. If not I will edit. It went without saying, Vienne was in a foul mood. To look at her, however, one would see only the usual carefully controlled mask of intensity with which she usually fulfilled all of her day to day duties, great or small, important or trivial. This day was like all others, in terms of her commitment to her work, despite the churning in her stomach. Not fifteen minutes earlier, she had practically driven two fingers up the nose of another apprentice that had made some barely audible, yet meant to be heard, remark behind her back. Instead, she had kept her rage under wraps, and now as they disembarked from the small boat that had brought them to the South Post docks, she executed the move that she had so carefully planned. As the other young woman stepped up to put her foot on the ladder to the dock, Vienne shifted her weight subtly. She had waited to be last to disembark with the small cadre of apprentices, and there was only the coxswain still seated in the stern, ready to take the ones being relieved back to the island city. The movement was enough. With the girl split between boat gunwale and ladder rung, her foot went out from under her and into the still cold Spring water she went. Perhaps one of the denizens of the lake would have morphed in the storm and rise up and swallow her whole, Vienne thought grimily. But doubting that her luck would go so far, she made as if to grab for her comrade in arms, and instead, as she yanked at the girl, she managed to slam her face into the side of the boat. Well, it was an honest mistake. She was only trying to keep her from drowning, right? Then, unfortunately, her grip slipped and the girl continued down into the water, dazed slightly from the blow. There seemed to be some sort of problem hefting her out, and by the time the sailor had come to assist, the one who had fallen had undoubtedly aspirated a fair amount of water. One or two faces peered over the edge of the dock, and Vienne shrugged. “She fell. She’ll be alright.” So saying, she grabbed the ladder and scrambled nimbly up. “The coxswain will get her up here. We better hurry, or we’ll have to report in late.” Without a backward glance to see what the outcome would be, she stalked away, nowhere near content, but at least one small bit mollified.

Eke could see the giant Trade tower he had heard about on the horizon, it wouldn't be long before he arrived at Ravok, He hoped it would be the city he envisioned, lots of people, running waters, cheerful faces. It had been so long since he had been on land, But finally this was it, Ravok. After the boat docked and the small plank was let down, Eke stepped off, and started walking towards the Tower, patting his pockets and belt to make sure all of his things were in order and that he hadn't forgotten anything. Hey Kid, the guards at the Trade Post are assholes, be careful, alright?yelled one of the shipmates he had been travelling with, as he was taking cargo off the ship. Eke just smiled and started running towards the Trade Tower. He came to the two big Wooden doors and was just about to knock with the bottom of his fist when a small window opened on the door, revealing a guard, holding a small board with a parchment attached. The guard asked quickly and precisely Eke's name and whatnot, Eke put his hands behind his head and sighed. "I haven't got any weapons, and my name's Eke Lasurien, And im here to try to live! and work!

[Izra]

3rd of Spring, 512 About time, Izra thought as she crested a final hill and sighted the small cluster of buildings and market stalls flanked by a large dock. Most of it did not impress her--She'd lived in Syliras, after all--though the tower in the center drew her curiosity. Before she could walk forward, she noticed another oddity. There was a city sitting in the middle of the lake. A city! Who ever heard of people living on water? The very thought made her shudder, though the unique sight simply made her more eager to get to the tower and figure out what this strange place was. There was only one thing stopping her. The crowd. It wafted to her faintly even this far away. The sickening smell of sweaty humans was easily matched by the delectable scents of freshly-baked goods and meat. In and of itself, it would not be that bad, but what it represented was more than a little disturbing for Izra. All those people... In order to get to the tower that so interested her, she would need to press through the thick crowd. Even as a cat, she had always found bumping up against people to be something she disliked. She assumed doing such as a much larger human would be even more unpleasant. Nothing for it but to go, I guess, She sighed to herself as she shifted her backpack into a more comfortable position. Clothing was bad enough, but why did she have to wear this heavy thing on her back? Close to an hour later, a very flustered Izra was approached at the tower's entrance by a man in chainmail armor with a rather sharp sword at his hip. "What is your business here?" He asks abruptly, looming over her in a rather intimidating way. Taken aback by the odd man's behavior, Izra simply looks at him in surprise. Why would he care what I'm doing here? It's just a tower... Her surprise fading, she adopts a look of wariness, ready to run at the first sudden move the man makes. "I said for you to tell me your business, girl!" He barked in his low voice, "Now!" He took a step forward, one that was almost enough to send Izra running away as fast as she could, though her curiosity was far too great by now for her to be driven off so easily. "I just came here to visit..." She replied slowly, not sure exactly what the man wanted her to say. What if he hit her? Would he be angry if she gave him the wrong answer?