Dead Before Bowed

by **Arlana** on March 9th, 2014, 10:42 am

Tapping her fingers restlessly against the tabletop, Arlana straightened in her seat, her eyes following the man cautiously. The rest of the group seemed as tensed as she was, clearly not expecting what the man was proposing - well, except for Noven, it would seem.

The words he had said was true, of course. Arlana was one of the many thieves in Sunberth and getting rich certainly wouldn't hurt in this city that runs on greed. Still, the brotherhood he proposed would mean a certain alliance, a relationship with these people she couldn't trust. So far, the thief had kept her secret by staying away from people. If they are to work together, her magic was at risk. She had no idea how these people would react to it.

But you need to find Arlain, and you need help if you want to make some progress. Lips pressed tightly together, Arlana considered the truth of the thought. It had been years since their separation and she had just found her place in they city. Going against slavers around here alone was not the best of ideas and maybe this brotherhood could offer her some sort of security.

She wasn't sure if she could decide. "How do you propose we do this, really? I get the sticking together part, but I do not even know most of the people here. How can I tell that this is really going to work? That I will actually get some benefits?"

by **Senghor Vilhjalmr** on March 9th, 2014, 1:05 pm

His lean body caused the aged seat onto which he sat to groan when he moved, when the contour of his tall figure seemed to loom over all those who sat around him him, before him an individual figure he'd come to know over a span of few days, seasons and others even years...

He felt the edges of his rarely smiling lips to curve seductively, turning his eyes toward Arlana when she asked the question, when she asked on what'd she would benefit from it, their brethrenhood to one another.

He waited for a few ticks before sighing and letting his conflicted eyes fall on her, "Well, we work, together by first gathering materials... Noven, Elea, Kingston and I have been working over the seasons to gather as much help and materials to rebuild..." he said unsure of what they'd think, but that he continued falling back on the matter of benefits.

"An as for benefits, personally I cannot offer you anything besides willing to go to hell and back if anything were to happen to anyone of you..." he said as he broke his own meditated silence.

"Not so long ago when we found our Kelvic friend over there we killed and looted a couple of petchin' dogs... Sunberth's finest if I may say" he said with an eased tone when his finger pointed towards Serta, the only Kelvic in their group.

"I may also say that the bastards did indeed get us a little coin too amongst other things..." he slipped in before shifting his attention towards Garret, "I've known this walking grouch for no more than a couple of days, but he's fought by my side and I'm willing to go to work with him any day of the season..." he praised lowly before turning to his best friend Noven, his brother...

"An this cursed bastard over here, I'd die any day for him because I know he'd do the same for me... An Eleazar, never in my life have I ever seen such a runner who'd go a thousand laps around an idiot and still have time to rob the idiot's old lady" he said as he measured up everybody in that room, he'd go on and tell her about Kingston, about everyone in that very cottage that'd willed themselves to work with him and he'd done the same...

"You want to know what you'll benefit?" he asked darkly before speaking again, "Well, if riches don't get your tongue a bit wet than you'll benefit from having people who'd still be willing too fight for you if you done the same for them, even if you done something and fucked up." he said coldly, his eyes turning towards his new 'friends'.

Senghor knew that each one of them there wasn't easily going to warm up to one another, to suddenly hug and love one another and call themselves family, No... He knew that if he fed their greed, their lust for coin and leisure than maybe, maybe they'd truly become brethren, in time if he needed them or they, him nobody would hesitate to take up arms and take heads...

It was a long shot, it was an improbable thing but maybe if Lhex, if time willed it than they're individual traits would become those a comrade would call upon...

by **Eleazar Victor Syroin** on March 9th, 2014, 1:48 pm

Having got the attention of everyone in the room, Seng continued on his speech. Strong voice preaching on about achieving their dreams together, about unity and success. As his voice continued to dominate the noise level in the room. The teen to considered the proposal. It was more likely that they would be aiding Senghor fulfil his dream rather than their own, but did that really matter?

A group of brothers fighting together to get by just a little bit easier than before. A clan, a family. Now that was something that could appeal to the orphan. Having not had a real family in years, despite Eleanor's attempts, the gaping hole in his life begging to be filled with people in this shyke city that he could at least vaguely trust. His 'sister' disagreed.

'Dis is Bullshyke! You jist want us ta aid in ya getting ya stupid house back, you filthy blood whore!'

Oh dear. Taking his bottom lip tentatively between his teeth, Eleazar slapped a hand over the girl's mouth, retaining his attention to Seng, ingnoring the hysterical eleven year old girl squirmed in his lap fighting against his hand. It was a shame, she had been behaving so well too. At the very least he could now heard what was being said. Most of those present approved of the idea, the only one uncertain being a beauteous brunette sat next to Noven.

Seng was quick to supply her with an answer, commenting on all those present's strengths. He still cut off short of telling the lady about rebuild his house. But she would no doubt fine out eventually. All in all the plot a foot was greatly intriguing, Grinning like the cat that got the cream the dark haired teen jokingly faked embarrassment.

“Well, Ay Never. Not often Ay get a complimented. Oh and as ya probably figured, Ya can count mi in, Seng. Ay could use a few less people out ta wring mi neck.”

by **Garret Sawyer** on March 10th, 2014, 8:56 am

Garret raised a quizzical eyebrow as Senghor drifted off into silence "You done with ya speech?" He asked rhetorically before shaking his head. What does this moron think is gonna happen? He wondered That we will all become best friends? That we will be united by our struggles? By the gods this man spews out more shit than my horse, and at least my horse does something useful. Garret didn't like any of this one bit, he had worked with other mercenaries before; men tougher than the people in this room, men that Garret could trust to have his back but that had never worked out in the end so why should this group be any different to him?

Garret leant back on the rough as he pulled out a pouch of weed and a pipe from his pockets and began packed the dried weed into the chamber of the pipe, thinking over his decision. Gold was gold and he wasn't one to shy away from the shiny metal one bit. He sighed slightly as he lit his pipe from the candle that stood along on the middle of the tabling, wincing as the hot wax ran over his rough fingers. "I wouldn't count on any less people strangling you" He muttered looking up at the skinny boy at the table as he took a long satisfying breath from his pipe "What's to stop any of us killing each other? I doubt we're gonna get along with no problems" He pointed out to him as two great plume of smoke erupted from his nostrils, filling the room with smell of the vile, acrid smoke which strangely didn't make this shithole of a home seem any worse.

"Anyway, are we going to do this thing or not? Or is your plan to talk the whole of Sunberth to death?"

by **Noven** on March 13th, 2014, 7:35 pm

"Oh, we'll have problems," Nov agreed with the old, pipe-spoking, mercenarial grouch. "But, I think what Seng is trying to say is, in the name of greed--and maybe just a wee, wee bit of fondness for one another--we won't kill each other over them."

The cook leaned back in his chair again and ran a finger over a nick on the table. "There's a reason why, now that it's been claimed that Robern's dead, so many more bodies litter the streets." He looked up and around at those gathered. They were a strange mix of rough and smooth and cunning and crude, and they were some of the city's finest nonetheless. "And why so many of those bodies are inked with symbols of extinct gangs."

A glint of grim conviction flashed in his otherwise calm gaze. "Only the clever survive. We all know this. Not the strongest, not the bravest, not the richest. The smartest."

"One wrong move, one wrong word," he continued, no longer concerned with the nicked table, "and you could find yourself mistaken for competition and lying in a pool of your own blood in the back end of some cold, filthy alley."

Nov rose from his chair to stand by his friend. "If you won't do it for greed or company, not a problem. Do it for yourself. For all that is sane and practical in these dark times. The gangs of Sunberth wage war on one another out there, but we will be different. We band together not just for power or riches, but survival as a whole. And not only will we survive, we'll do it with style."

The cook folded his arms as he finished with his last words on the subject. "While those dickheads are out there murdering each other and acting the primitive scum that they are, we will be here. Plotting, building, strengthening, and most importantly of all, surviving. "

Then he placed a hand on Seng's shoulder, rust colored eyes facing the motley crew with the spark of a challenge. "Join, if you dare to rise from the ashes of war in the coming days as the true victors of Sunberth."

by **Arlana** on March 15th, 2014, 2:43 pm

She took the time to lay her eyes on each individual. Familiar faces, those she had met by chance. Steeling her nerves, she looked at each of them in the eye, wondering if which would kill her first if they knew the girl they were recruiting was a mage. The older man who almost killed her in the alleys? Maybe even Noven? Still, her eyebrow rose in interest as the man gestured at the woman, introducing her as a Kelvic. She had heard little of the race, but she knew that they could change into animal form - much like what her magic could do.

Despite her indecision, Arlana knew she had to turn whatever this was to an advantage. If they offered her protection in exchange for favors . . . that should be helpful, right? But what if it got her killed? Before she could find Arlain? She doubted she could back down from the promise easily.

After Noven finished, the young woman took a deep breath. In a rush, the words tumbled out. "Fine, but I made no prmoises that I will stick around. I will simply . . . see how things go." That was the best she could offer them for now. She would need some time to think. All her life, she had fended for herself and life had been decent. Nowhere good, but decent, livable. Deciding if she was willing to risk for something better than that might take some time. Unfortunately, it seemed like the others would love to push things forward.

by **Senghor Vilhjalmr** on April 1st, 2014, 7:57 pm

Senghor turned and looked at his friend Noven, never had he seen his best friend speak in such a manner, it was something that he needed to do more often.

Indeed it worked because Arlana, although unsure, agreed to become a part of his brethrenhood, their brethrenhood. "I'm glad that you've all made up your minds," the dark skinned warrior said as he looked amongst his new comrades with a rare smile.

Seng walked over and loomed over his table with clenched fists and hardened features. "Alone, we were eating at the scrapes of this great city but Together, we will take it of everything that it has and rival even the very gods themselves"

"For far to long have we been slaves to Sunberth, today my friends we've Broken those Shackles that have bound us for so long" the young man said with a great pride roaming in the very words that came from his mouth.

'Broken... Shackles...' he thought with a pause in his final speech, the name had a little ring to it. It reminded him of the game that was common in Sunberth and in some form it seemed to embody everyone in the room, they were all in some form and manner once a slave and now that they had comrades the very shackles that bound them to poverty, weakness and truly nothing were broken.

A chuckle seemed to leave his lips for a moment before he turned back to his newfound comrades, "From today onwards boys and girls, we're brethren, comrades... Whether one of us fucks up or fucks someone over we're at their side with blade and shield waiting to cut down whoever tries something"

"Eleazar this doesn't mean you can go around robbing people and expecting us to save your ass each time, we don't want a repeat of that episode that happened all those years ago, got it?..." Senghor said darkly as he turned to his friend, he knew that Elea was prone to getting into trouble but this time they'd have to put a leash on it.

"We fight for one another, We die for one another... We're no longer just men and women from today onwards, We Are The Broken Shackles!" he said vehemently standing by that name.

"Now ladies and gentlemen, the Pig's Foot is waiting... Let's go get drunk and have a fuckin' great time tonight." he said as he turned and paused once again, "Because from today forth, we've a lot of work to do..."

by **Zandelia** on May 15th, 2014, 3:49 pm

Senghor :

Noven :

Garret :

Arlana :

Serta :

Eleazar :

Notes :

Any problems with my grade? Please me at any time. Keep Writing!

Closed Dead Before Bowed