[Flashback]How to Meet a Dagger(Open)

[Al'jaroth]

"You may abide by the laws of Zeltiva, but what of the Laws of Nature? You take from Caiyha, but you give nothing back. And you waste what she allows!" screamed the Jamoura, reading to swing his staff up again. But the young man in front of him stopped the action. Hearing the trapper, the Jamoura growled softly. "He's not my friend. He's impeding me in my work, is what he is doing," he replied, before turning to face the half circle of trappers behind him. More Res was called to his hand slowly.If I'm going to go down, I'm going to go down fighting, thought the Jamoura as he glared at the trappers.

[Rand]

Rand was alarmed, yet pleased when the guards stepped in. His body was tense and he yearned for either action or disarmament, less he get cramps. His mind compiled all that had been said, and as he slowly registered everything he heard the massive being behind him let out another thunderous yell. Rand's body ached, and he did not want to spill blood today, or have his own spilt in the process. Rand fingered his necklace quickly thinking yet again of his mother.... What would she do?

Rand moved quickly, he kept his blade down and turned his back to the trappers, they were not the ones he was concerned about.
Great being of nature, for you must be from your words, I pray that you heed the words of the guards. These men have done a great injustice, however, now is not the time. What can you do except get yourself thrown into prison. Nature will have its chance. But for today, i urge you to clear your mind and let them pass.....for now.

The words were strange a clear mind! from Rand?! It was hypocritical, Rand's mind always wandered yet here he was urging this giant ape to calm down and think clearly. Rand's eyes widened as water filled the apes hand, yet he stood his ground. Rand was not going to let this turn into a blood bath.

Please reconsider, I beg you calm down and these men will get their just punishment. Rand emplored one last time looking up into the apes eyes

[Hadrian]

Hadrian remained unfazed by the one man's gaze, and when he walked away, the young magecrafter let his eyes relax into a soft focus and disciplined his mind to get out of its own way until he could see the man's aura. This was not his forte, but he had made a habit of looking at anyone who caught his interest if he was able to, and then to attempt a visual representation later when he got home to his inks and quills and papers. When the man kept walking, he turned his attention back to the potential mêlée.

His own hand came up slightly, fingers curling in, as he attempted to draw for Res as the Jamoura did. He could already call the water; it was his element. But this was a new technique. Not looking down, he was aware of the marble-sized ball of Res hovering above his palm, rotating in the space between his fingers, and transmuting itself into water.

It was not meant for battle today, merely an exercise, so he let it fall to the ground. Glancing about, it appeared most onlookers were more engaged in the men with weapons and the angry ape, so he turned back and began the same rigmarole with his eyes and his mind to see what Jamoura colors were like.

[Hadrian]

It was only Hadrian's first term at the University, but the survey class in magic that he had taken had him all interested in things. Now he could make water out of Res, and occasionally see people's auras, though that was more often the sign of an upcoming migraine headache.

Since the guards seemed to have things mostly under control, he tailed the strange looking man around the fray and off to elsewhere, just curious.

[Al'jaroth]

Al'jaroth turned to look at the young man, his eyes narrowed. "No, they won't. Caiyah may not bless them, but they will not be punished,"he growled, before turning swiftly and bringing his staff up, in front of his face. As he did, water shot from his free hand, towards the nearest trapper. And, directly after that, the Jamoura was leaping at another trapper, kicking out at him.

[Liminal]

The first trapper was knocked over immediately, surprised. The second, however, was obviously well-trained in taking care of himself, and this would prove to be Al'jaroth's undoing.

He stepped to the side, and with one burly arm, reached out and grabbed the Jamoura's kicking leg. In one quick motion, he slammed Al'jaroth to the ground, then planting one foot on the Jamoura's chest.

"I ain't gonna listen to this no more," he growled. There was a dagger in his other hand, and before anyone could move, he plunged the blade into Al'jaroth's throat.

By some amazing stroke of luck, he missed the major arteries and veins; similarly, he didn't hit the spinal cord or sever the vertebrae. He did, however, score a direct hit on the Jamoura's larynx. There was a horrific splitting sound, and then the dagger was withdrawn.

"Quit yer yapping," he spat, and then turned away.

By this point, the guards were here, separating everyone, restoring some semblance of order. But the damage, for one person, was already done.

If Al'jaroth attempted to speak, he would find himself quite unable to do so. The trapper's blade had cut his vocal cords clean in two. It was not the sort of injury that would heal, and though in time the wound would close, the Jamoura's days of being able to make sounds were over.

OOCSorry! Somehow this one fell off my list; I apologize greatly for the delay.

[Alistair deGrey]

The sounds being thrown from the congregation of hostile misfits did little to bother Alistair deGrey. He continued walking around the group, enmeshing himself in thought. Most recently, he had enrolled in a class detailing the ancient tongue of Nader-canoch. As the student strolled restlessly across the field, he repeated phrases in his head. Roza. A rough voice shouldered its way past Alistair's mental wall, "I ain't.. Rozas. "Gonna listen to..." Rozat. "This no..." Rozatlas. "More."

Alistair stopped and wheeled about, glaring about for the continued interruptor. His eyes caught the man trip the simian and subsequently plunge his dagger into it. The student blinked, this was quite a bit overwhelming. Was it really necessary to kill the Jamoura? A blank looked overtook deGrey, but his face disdained it as much as he did the trapper, and his mouth screwed up in disgust.

Though his attention did not linger for too long on the conflcit before him, for Alistair deGrey had a shadow. Movement drew his eyes away from the vicious trapper to the man tracing Alistair's footsteps to the woods. He was tall, taller than Alistair. But he lacked the gauntness deGrey brought with him, and his hair was shorter. The student of engineering narrowed his eyes at the man, and his mouth untwisted itself to spit, "What, pray tell, might you be doing my good sir?" Alistair's anger was growing. This was supposed to be a reprieve, a time for the world to relinquish its cold grasp on him. But the array of fools dancing before him had taken his desires and unwittingly burned them. Why? Why in all damnation was it killed? "I do not know, so why do you not enlighten me?"

[Hadrian]

Hadrian blinked when the man turned on him, raising bare hands to show he meant no harm. In fact, he had meant to stop him and talk to him about the violence before them as bystanders were wont to do. He got the feeling the other man was also a scholar of sorts, and there was strength in numbers, perhaps. Not that they were in any danger, but another mind trained to analytics with which to converse about the world around them.

The problem was that he couldn't remember what opening line he had held in store, for the man had turned on him abruptly, and really, Hadrian was so new to Zeltiva, not in his element, unsure, unsafe.

"I, uh..." Great. Surprise had made him simple.

[Alistair deGrey]

Stupidity grappled with the imbecile before Alistair deGrey. He had no time for these antics, the day stretched on. Still, part of deGrey inserted that, if he did not dispose of this man here and now, he would persist as a nuisance. Just as well, the ignoramus had played no part in the Jamoura's fall. deGrey smothered his anger and vexation, reinserting a modicum of the calm logic that he tried to force at all times. Though it was like shuttering a fireplace, one could conceal the flames, but nothing stopped heat from flooding the room.

"One might suppose, that by presenting a query you are capable of answering, one might quicker be rid of you." deGrey tapped his foot, a stunning mimicry of the metronome created by his favored mechanism, the clock. One... Two... Three... "So what, pray tell, might you be doing stalking my shadow?"

Had Alistair deGrey been more conscientious of his anger, he would have maintained it, purposefully fueling the inferno until he drove the man off. However, now he was focusing on the impending conversation and the thing he would be holding it with. As he designed the foundation of his responses, the heat began to slip away and the fire weakened. It was difficult for Alistair to truly hold onto extreme anger or sadness, and this flash of bitter acid slid through his fingers much like any other.

"Come, I will not be delayed by your inability to speak." Alistair set off again, his legs indefatigable bones pistons. If the man did not follow, it would not cause deGrey any displeasure. Nor did Alistair care, assuming he followed, that his stalker would have to walk even further back to the city once dispatched. It was Alistair's day, he would reclaim it.

[Hadrian]

Every time Hadrian opened his mouth to speak, the man cut him off. When he unleashed his anger with rude words, Hadrian bristled, his own ire rising. Just because he was new in town, and new to the university didn't mean people could talk to him that way. He was unused to it. His whole life he had been the son of Trajan Aelius, and granted due respect. Beyond that, his tutors and now his professors lauded his quick wit and agile mind, predicting a great career for him in whichever field he chose to apply himself after the usual round of general education.

This time he followed the man just to be perverse, all the while practicing the trick of initiating mage sight that he had so recently learned. At the moment, it was mostly pretty colors -- red particularly -- and not a lot of information.

Sometimes he just wanted to get under someone's skin.