The Youngest Mentor [Ronan]

[Sama'el Sunsinger]

1st Fall, 511 A.V. "I know she's barely pregnant," Sama'el explained as he groomed Dohaina within an inch of her life, "but it's early yet and I don't want her working too hard and..." He laughed. "I'm being overly protective and she'll probably get fatter than she needs to, but she's special as a sister and I don't want anything bad to happen. Once she's foaled successfully, I'll be a bit more relaxed about it in the future. But I don't know her bloodline, whether her dam had trouble foaling or anything really. I told you she came to me out of the teeth of a storm, didn't I? She's a miracle, but... I don't know certain details about her that are important. I'm so foolish." He laughed again. "I'm only going to Riverfall for a few days and I'm worried about leaving her. I know she'll be fine. I just want something to go right for a change, you know?" Ronan knew many of the pieces to this puzzle by now. He knew about how Sam had loved and lost Dymphna to an established Ankal. He knew how he had begun to court Athe only to have that fall apart as well. Menali was his current candidate, but now he was trigger-shy. Then his ancestor, the Ethaefal-by-day Caelum, had left for parts unknown after healing Sama'el of his sun-fever. He had thought he would have a pavilion by now, but while he was making steady and true progress, there were losses, setbacks, and realities that he had to struggle through to reach his goals. The young she-goat he had recently purchased for milk batted her head against his calf and he laughed down at her. At least he could still laugh, frequently and without reservation. "I think she thinks she's a horse."

[Ronan]

Ronan smiled at Sama'el's horse talk. It was clear he loved his animal. He could hardly begrudge him that emotion anyway - he had a soft spot in his heart for Tairell. "It goes without saying... considering everything you told me," Ronan began, "for a man so young - you've had a lot to contend with." He began to think of his own life, his own history. And it spiralled further - until he questioned just what he had achieved. Sama'el was a youthful prodigy, with a small degree of power over reimancy, and a position in the Watch. This man had made such a mark in so few years. Yet my footprints have been blown away in the wind, losing one step every time I walk... He liked Sama'el a lot, and knew that he had found a good friend in this man, but he couldn't help the envy. It seethed below, and every time he thought he had left it behind, it resurfaced with its awful, grisly face.

[Sama'el Sunsinger]

They smiled at each other, but Sam began to get the feeling that Ronan might not have been happy exactly. His smile faded a bit, not from lack of good humor, but growing concern. Already the matter of the 'assassins' had been settled, and there was a growing respect and friendship between them, but Sam still didn't know Ronan all that well, and so he couldn't hazard a probing guess as to the root of his troubles, but his words said enough. "I'm not that young," he insisted, knowing many young men his own age who were married with children. It was the Drykas way. Life must continue before life was snuffed out by the dangers of Cyphrus, and Dira could come dance a soul to Lhex's will on the morrow as easily as fifty years later. But he smiled again with renewed fervor. "You did well," he said, seeking to raise Ronan's spirits, "bringing word of those people to me."

[Ronan]

Ronan was heartened by Sama'el's words. One small achievement. One small step. But he wanted to go further - he wanted to change directions at this crossroad, and truly make a mark. He looked back at the Watcher and decided to come right out with it. Whether the man would take him seriously, or burst into laughter, was another matter entirely. "I want to join the Watch." There. He'd said it. And now the future was in fate's grasping hands.

[Sama'el Sunsinger]

The pronouncement took Sama'el a bit by surprise, but a slow grin spread over his face. He nodded as if such a decision would be the most natural in the world, but he recalled seeing Ronan in action, and while the man was brave, his skills were not yet on a par with what the Sayaph required. "We'll have to work on your weapons skills and your riding," he said. "The Watch are the best of the best, but once you're ready, I'd be happy to recommend you." OOC NoteI'm not sure how Lariat is going to handle the Watch, but Sabazios had some skill requirements similar to those for the Syliran Knights. I'll ask Lariat what's up with that and we can train Ronan toward whatever he needs to be.

[Ronan]

"I've never been more sure of anything," he said softly, "I'll do whatever it takes. I'm not naive enough to think myself ready yet, but it's a goal to aim for isn't it?" Sama'el gave him a smile, as if pleased by Ronan's decision. He wondered if the man had had an inkling of his desire to join the Watch. "I want a purpose Sama'el," Ronan began, "I can't just keep drifting through life. I made the decision to let go of the past, and to do that I need something in the future to grip onto - to pull me forward."

[Sama'el Sunsinger]

"Well, you'll certainly have a purpose with us," he said, still smiling. "The Sea is wide and full of dangers, and we protect Endrykas from the terrors of the night and the perils of the day." But that poetic version didn't quite jive with his youthful grin. Sama'el was a bit of an aberration among the horseclans, having spent so long absent from Cyphrus. He was one of the best riders in known history and only eighteen years old, a doughty enough fighter, and quickly learning the mysteries of the Sapphire Clan. "Well," he said, pulling his scimitar free of its scabbard, "shall we see where you are so we can see how far you have to go?" He grinned.

[Ronan]

Ronan wasn't sure about Sama'el's smile. He seemed a little full of himself - genuinely wanting to help Ronan, yet visibly confident of his own abilities too. He uneasily procured his dagger and faced up to the slender Watcher. He wanted Sama'el to take him seriously - he wanted to show him his dire conviction. Trying to make an impactive first mark, he began to shift his feet slightly apart, and tensed his arms, assuming a familiar fighting position. He had learned a little of the art of battle from his late brother, though those skills had never been used against another Drykas, only fodder in the Cyphrus wilds. Gradually, he became a little more comfortable. He would not let his friend's confidence oppress his vigour. He could show him the resolve of his spirit! "Are you ready to dance...?" OOCSorry this has taken me sooo long to post - buried under an avalanche of Uni work and deadlines. Apologies!

[Sama'el Sunsinger]

"Aw," he said, lowering the point of his scimitar. "That just wouldn't be fair." He sheathed his blade, loosed the scabbard and set it aside, instead pulling out his long hunting knife, which was basically a dagger. "I'm not as good with this, so this will be good practice for me too." If Sama'el seemed confident, it was only because his brothers and sisters of the Watch were helping him develop that necessary confidence in his skills and judgment. He was an adult now, and the time for awkwardness was passing. In truth, he still doubted himself in many ways, but he knew he could ride, he knew he could fight, and he knew that he could walk the Web and find things. After a while, a growing list of accomplishments made him feel more like a man, more and more ready to become an Ankal, his heart's desire. His grandfather, an Ankal himself, had once told him: "Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, beautiful, talented and wonderufl? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of the gods. Your playing small does not serve the world. There's nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We were born to make manifest the glory of the gods that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others." But that was an old thing. Now there was steel between them. He took up a defensive stance because here he was not as confident as he was with a scimitar, where his starting stance would be more neutral between defensive and offensive. "Teach me what you know, dance partner," he dared with a wink and a smile. He was going to get himself cut today.

[Ronan]

Sama'el beckoned him to come, as Ronan's hand tightened around the dagger, ringing sweat from his flesh. Why was he suddenly nervous? Why did it feel like the whole world was judging him? He watched his opponent carefully, squaring up to him, analysing his defensive posture. Sama'el had seemed cocky with his scimitar in hand, but perhaps he was a little less confident with the dagger. It was the only weapon Ronan knew how to use. So he leapt forward, spring boarding off his feet, and bringing the dagger round in a short arc towards Sama'el.