[Bazaar]Making New Friends[Ivan, and company]

[Thunder]

oocIf anyone else planning to join Ivan's party wishes to meet up on the date of this thread, be my guest.

Day 1 of Winter of 510 AV

Thunder walked around the bazaar, getting stares from the market-goers still determined to shop during the Winter. It's frosty teeth had not yet settled around Syliras, but sooner or later, Winter would take a large bite. Jumping over someones foot, he looked around, searching for a particular stall.

A man came up to him, intent on speaking. "Looking for clay, little man? I know a guy - he has quality earth. Only the finest."

"Although that sounds tempting, I'm not looking for food right now." He replied, hefting the small cotton sack he carried as proof of his statement. Gears whirring in Thunders head, he quickly adds something before the man can turn. "I am, however, looking for a food stall - Ah, sorry, human food."

"Real food? Suit yer'self, there's one right there." The man pointed somewhere to the left, and the little Pycon man thanked him and continued dodging feet and recieving curses. Doing a roll to avoid getting stepped on (which was actually quite difficult while carrying the sack), he found himself glancing up at a large stall.

Shifting the bag to his left hand, he swings it over his shoulder and jumps up, catching his right hand in a crack in the wood. His feet were scrambing for a foothold, and his left one found it. Quickly letting go and reaching up, he grabs onto another handhold, and pushes his right foot up into that prior handhold. Repeating this, he gets about three feet up before he drops to the ground. Lading on his back, the bag out at his side, he thanks Harameus that none of his clay fell out. He shake his shoulders, getting the dirt off his back, and begins to try again, when a strong hand grabs him from behind. Unwinding the Py-string from his hand alread, he grabs the end of it and weilds it, ready to slip out of his jailers grip and do battle. However, when he is set down atop the stall, he realizes that the hand was not intent on violence, but the man behind the hand was simply trying to help. Rewinding his weapon, Thunder bows.

"Many thanks, friend." I could have done it myself...

"No problem, little man. Looking for something?" Evidently, this was the man who ran this food stall, which carried kabobs of assorted meat. It looked rather gruesome to Thunder, but most people ate this sort of thing... Thank Harameus I don't need to...

"Looking for someone, actually. I am trying to get out of the city, and travel, you know? And I thought a food stall would be the best place to meet someone like that. I hope you don't mind."

"No problem at all. Actually, I think you may attract customers for me." With a hearty chuckle, he grabs one of the sticks roasting over a small grill and gives it to a man, who in turn gives him 5 copper Miza. The man took a bite out of it and stared at the Pycon before nodding at the vendor and walking off.

"Stay as long as you want." Said the stall owner, chuckling once more.

[Ivan]

Ivan was starving. He was not just hungry, but literally starving. He’d not eaten all day. It was finally time to break down and buy some food. The market of syrlias, a monstrosity of a construction in it’s own right, held more items then Ivan had ever seen in one place, including the forges of Izurdin’s temple. The smells of leather and metal, of animals and people both unwashed, invaded his senses. There was one smell above all that he’d been questing for, and that he’d found.

Meat. The sent of cooked meat was in the air. It filled Ivan with renewed strength, as he moved through the people towards the stall. He saw the one that held his prize, and it was easy to get to. The crowd that sorounded him parted easily, moving away from his short form. The muscles of his silver veined arms bludge, the weight of his bare shield and hammer making him look more imposing then he normally would. The knights eyed him more then the others did, but he was not threatening anyone.

As he got to the stall, he saw the delicious meats skewered upon a stick. As he looked at them and let his hammer make it’s way to the ground, it standing on the head so that the handle was up for easy reach, he moved his hand to his coin purse.

“ How much for the meat on a stick, vender? I am very hungry...”

The man had barely looked at him as he told Ivan of the price. Ivan, in turn, placed ten copper mizas on the desk like area that was close to the merchant that was not uised to hold food, and helped himself to the two most well endowed sticks, and noticed something moving. It was about the size of his hammer’s head, and of similar color to the wood. A little clay man, it seemed.

Ivan had never even heard of such a thing. He had grown up fascinated by stones and minerals, as most Isur are naturally. He wondered what devilish magic had made the very things of the ground move on their own. He took a bite of animal fleash from the stick, as he was still very hungry, and swallowed it with barely a chew. He moved slightly to the side, sliding his hammer along with his booted foot, to alow other hungry souls to appease their appetites.

[Thunder]

A strongly-built man approached, asking the price of the food. As far as Thunder could tell, he was short for a human (Though he was no proper judge of height). His red spiky hair seemed to blaze in the early Winter sun. He stared at the little Pycon man, with an emotion that Thunder couldn't quite pick out. It was a cross between fascination and... Was that fear? Fear of the unknown, perhaps, but surely he could not be afraid of little ol' me, He thought. Smiling, he moves to the side of the stall the man had moved to.

"Hello up there," He called up to the man. "I couldn't help but notice your stares. That's ok, I'm not upset." As if the man could possibly be worried if I were.. "Haven't you ever seen a Pycon before? You seem like a fellow who gets around." With this subtle hint, Thunder tried to open up a line of discussion that would result in his finding out if he had just met a traveller or simply a denizen of the city.

[Ivan]

Ivan almost dropped his meal. The little clay man had spoken to him! Finishing what was in his mouth, he made a sound to clear his thought. It had said it was not angered by his stare, which was good, he supposed, but not too important. It called itself a Pycon... it sounded as though it was not the only one of it’s kind, which interested Ivan even more.

“ Aye, I travel. I am new to this city, though i’ll soon be departing. Theres nothing for me here, no work that needs doin’. The knights do all the killin’ and theres no work for a black smith. what of you, little fellow? What brings you to this giant construction?” Seeming to remember his manners (because the creature was interesting), he tore a bit of meat off the stick and held it out to the little thing. “ You hungry?”

[Thunder]

The look of surprise when the man heard Thunders' voice was priceless.

"Aye, I travel. I am new to this city, though I’ll soon be departing..." Thunder sighed internally, glad the first person he spoke to was a traveler. A blacksmith by trade, apparently, and... What was that about killing? Was he an assassin? Mercenary? Either way, it offered new experiences to the little man, which was exactly what he was searching for. Not to mention he was new to the city. And he was leaving soon, which was perfect.

Grinning widely, Thunder shakes his head. "I don't like the taste of meat." He said jokingly, playing on the travelers ignorance. "I lived here all my life, but I'm actually looking to travel as well. People call me little man, though really my name is Thunder." He jokingly holds his hand out, wiggling the individual fingers a bit (Perhaps he was showing off his coordination a bit) before straightening it into a handshake. Of course he didn't actually expect the handshake to be reciprocated. That would be ridiculous. Wouldn't it?

[Ivan]

Ivan retraced his hand, and devoured the meat. He tore into the animal flesh, ripping it from the stick. Chewing as he heard the little Thunder speak, he raised his right arm. The arm had a small shield on it, bit he reached out with one finger to shake the little man’s hand. Once again, Ivan hasteily swallowed his food. He was not devouring his meal so fast due to the conversation, really... The time he’d eaten before this had been the day before this one.

“ You want to travel, little one? What are your skills then? I am always looking for a new comrade in my adventures...” Though Ivan had great doubt that the wee being would be of any help at all, he was sure this would be fun. It was not every day you met a man made of clay...

[Thunder]

“You want to travel, little one? What are your skills then? I am always looking for a new comrade in my adventures...” Thunder grinned again. Today was turning out quite well, indeed.

"If I may say so myself, I am amateur at acrobatics and I know my way around a Py-string." Sensing there would be confusion as to the naming of his weapon of choice, Thunder unwound his Py-string from his wrist and held it in a short length, displaying the gleaming piece of spiderweb silk to the larger man who had rudely forgotten to mention his name. He overlooked this, however, and explained the nature of his weapon.

"The Py-string is basically a string of spiderweb silk, that can be used to cut through skin. It's actually very useful, though it doesn't appear to be much. It's a very good garrote." Thunder prided himself on the knowledge of that word. Garrote. He thought it was a nice word. "Oh, and I also fancy I can slither my way out of many things." He kept himself from saying that those many things would have to be unbelievably weak or loose.

[Ivan]

Ivan liked the little fellow. He was full of fire, all right. And with that little cuttin’ string, he’d be a perfect little killer to join his gang. Not that they’d do much killing, but one never knew. He was going to look for some sort of ranged combatant for his group, but with this guy... He was about the size of the small hammer he throws to fell a deer.

“ You seem to be quite the adventurer in your own right. I am waiting on a few other comrades to get to get here, and then we’ll move on as a group to find work from those who can pay. If you want to join us, know that there is not much honor in our work... i am a hired weapon, after all. You may call me Ivan.”

[Thunder]

Finally, the man comes out with his name. Ivan. Thunder liked the name. He thought it was a good name for a person of such stature. Another bit of information happened to be gleamed from Ivan's last statement as well. A hired weapon. That no doubt was another word for mercenary. He stored away the euphemism for future use.

"Truth be told, I don't care much about honor or chivalry. Being a mercenary is fine with me, as long as we travel a lot. I yearn for adventure, y'see? A byproduct of Harameus's grace and spirit. When he made us, he put a bit too much of his brother's adventurous tendencies. Ah well, we're all the better for it."

"Do you mind?" He said, not waiting for a response. He jumped up on his sleeve, the cloth sack over his shoulder, and grabbed on the the sleeve of his shirt, scuttling up. Perching on Ivan's shoulder, he sits in the groove of the bone, quite comfortable. "Where to?"

[Ivan]

Ivan burst out into a fit of laughter. The wee creature had actually hopped onto him. He dropped the two now empty sticks as he finished his meal, making sure there was no grease on his fingers or beard. Satisfied that he was clean, he grabbed his mighty great hammer and swung it up so that it crashed down upon his unoccupied shoulder. The force slightly shook him, but he paid that no mind. He’d taken worse.

“ I suppose that i’ve nothing to do, really. The rest of my people are not here yet. Some of us will meet here, and we’ll likely meet others when we travel to a place called Sunberth. It is a place for criminals, i hear. We’ll likely find work there... or people who are wanted here. The knights pay much for criminals.”

Ivan’s voice took on a slightly darker tone at that, but soon became light as normal. The thought of testing his might against others, and even getting paid for it... rather appealed to him. He’d only have to be careful. It was hard not to kill the things he hit.

“ We have the day, little friend. Do you need anything, while we are at the market?” The little man could not carry much, but he would not have to. Ivan enjoyed to test his strength, and would insist on carrying more then any other in his company. He would also take this stance in leadership. He was strongest, and there fore he would lead. Thats the way he saw it, anyway. His mind was, some times, as dense as the arm upon which his shield now hung.