Completed Some Things, (Eridanus)

[Kreig Messer]

512th AV,38th of fall, 10th bell 28th chime. The morning was a bit cold in Kreig's opinion, everyday felt cold since his little sin.... You'd think the bloody fool would do something about it, get over it or something. He walked through the busy streets of the Castle Commons, hearing the bloody rumor's about this Smiling Jack. More died they say, at a farmstead, ten in all 'Bloody efficient that was' At the brawlers side was the longsword he knew little how to use, it was more decoration than weapon in his hand, despite the time spent attempting to refine his skill with it, it was too little time and not much effort on his part. He did not know what to do this day and if it were the same as the days before it, it would be something he would spend on whatever caught his eye at the moment. The dreams did not subside, in fact, they seemed to be increasing in volume each passing night. Despite it being near noon, the streets felt somewhat empty even if there were people out and about 'Probably scared out their wits due the rumors' Indeed, and some of these rumors were quite outlandish. One had the killer rumored to be a Vigilante, consumed by bloodlust and fallen to the levels to those he or she had sworn to kill. Another had it that it was simply some rich madman with too many time on his hands and many more along those lines, few were consistent with one another. He wondered briefly if he should go after this lunatic, but he had no skill in tracking such individuals, nor the subtleties 'He'd find me out before I even get the chance. Probably kill me before I knew what was what' And so he was stuck wandering the streets, his mind frequently wandering back to what he had done and keeping his eye out for something that was within his skill set..... or anything else that would prove helpful.

[Eridanus]

Sunberth. The city of anarchy and crime. It repelled Eridanus to enter the city, but he needed a change of environment from the usual rolling trees that was the wilderness where their camp was situated. It would take a while for the higher-ups to organize and negotiate their entrance to Sahova, and so the time in between was generally free time for them.

Treat this as a sort of RnR.

A grimy kid ran straight past the vantha, followed by a panting yelling sucker who most likely got pick-pocketed and figured it out too late.

Yeah right.

The scholar was not looking at anything in particular, merely taking a stroll and opting to take the path with the least amount of sweat, dirty bodies walking by. His eyes were at the sky, unfocused, as he thought about what they would face in Sahova, when a silhouette quickly filled his vision.

"Oh! Sorry," He apologized, as he knocked into a towering man accidentally, raising his hands up. Taking a detour around the giant, he continued walking, looking at interest at the stalls around.

As he neared the corner of the area, close to the walls, he felt a rough force push him into one of the alleys, and soon the light was blocked out with the same towering figure blocking the entrance.

"Watch where you're going, damn vagik," The stranger growled, behind him flanked by two smaller-sized lads and a simpering, minimally-clothed wench further behind.

"Look, I don't want any trouble-" The vantha began, raising his hands to look at non-threatening as possible. Until a large fist swung by, forcing him to duck and causing the meaty fist to slam painfully into the wall behind his head.

The giant's eyes widened in surprise, as if to say, How dare you dodge my punch! Without stopping, his other hand reached from inside his belt, pulling out a dagger that paled in comparison to his size. With his huge back covering the scene and Eridanus, no one could look into the alley and know what was happening.

The distance was too short, and Eridanus could not manoeuvre in time to avoid the dagger as it plunged into his torso.

Or at least, it would have, if not for the shimmering astral construct that was wrapped around his skin protectively. The dagger bounced away, and the giant's eyes widened a second time, his lips trembling as he prepared to shout something.

The scholar already knew what was going to happen, and in that time span he had already looked into his soul mentally. Taking a deep breath to slow his beating heart that always pounded with the love of combat, he attempted to negate his adrenaline rush by calmly trying to access the various djed nodes throughout his body.

In his mind's eye, he grasped several djed threads flowing from his torso, and while his mind worked to provide the guidance that would lead these djed strands, his body wound up to attack. All these happened in the span of a second as he prepared his attack.

As his lower torso wound up to provide the spring-like momentum, he had directed the djed strands to his legs to enhance muscle firmness and to draw stability from the ground. As the completed the winding up, his torso was next to experience the torque, and he brought the djed strands up accordingly, fortifying his chest and shoulder muscles.

The force of the swing flowed into his arms as he slammed his fingers forward without curling them into a fist, as if wanting to shake hands. The physical momentum of the swing rushed into his arms, and he summoned the djed strands accordingly, augmenting his biceps, triceps and wrist for the final strike.

With an explosive slam, his hand cut into the giant's shoulder like he was scooping into water, his fingers emerging from the other side of the man's back briefly. Lightning fast, he withdrew his strike, the shield around his hands shimmering briefly as it absorbed the impact of the blow and repelled the various biological material.

The vantha's hands should be bloody, but it was clean as if he had never touched the man before, and the giant's eyes teared with pain as he gaped for a second or two, stunned by the unfolding events. The words were choked in his throat as he struggled to speak, but opting to make a moan of pain.

Pushing the djed strands further out into his individual fingers, Eridanus reached out agani and grasped the giant's neck in a supernaturally powerful chokehold. His eyes flashed into crimson as he smirked uncontrollably. Adrenaline fueled his strength, and Ennervism responded accordingly, doubling his physical strength.

The giant choked as his two minions scrambled for their scimitars, unsure of what to do next.

[Kreig Messer]

Kreig was quite amazed at the sight before him, as he took to walking the streets he saw a Vantha. Not quite common in Sunberth and Kreig was certain they would avoid it like the plague..... At least that is what Kreig assumes of the dark haired Vantha. In truth Kreig knew very little of the hardy snow-dewellers. He knew them only as spinners of tales and very peculiar eyes. The reason he was surprised began when he saw the Vantha being pushed into an alley but a rather large man he had accidentally bumped into. Feeling in a charitable mood and knowing his conscious won't ease up on him if he simply ignored the incident. Making his way towards the alley, which took him a minute or so. His eyes grew in shock as he saw the scene unfold, the giant of a man was at the mercy of the Vantha, who looked as blood thirsty as the Myrian race, had his hands around his neck with a surprisingly powerful grip. The two thugs who accompanied the giant were baffled, terrified, but that did not deter them from attempting to draw their scimitars. Kreig, not one to pass up an opportunity, tapped his finger on the shoulders of the first thug, who hesitated a second before turning, only to have met an armored fist to the face "He shouldn't have turned, your friend" He commented to the other thug, who was startled as he heard a thud and saw his friend unconscious on the ground. He quickly spun, swinging his curved blade but it was blocked by the back of Kreig's right gauntlet, Kreig himself proceeding to throw his lift fist into the thugs stomach and forcing the thug to drop his weapon, finally ending it by throwing a powerful right to his face "I must admit, I never grow tired of punching faces" He commented aloud as he then turned his gaze back to the Vantha and the giant and began to notice something..... He noted the blood dripping from the giant's shoulder, but the Vantha had no weapon drawn. Near them was a dagger but it had no blood on it 'How did he do that? Did he stab him with his hands or something?' It was ridiculous but not impossible, however the Vantha had no blood on his hands. Kreig simply dismissed as the giant having a previous wound that simply opened up, after all it made sense in Kreig's head. Not like magic was involved or anything after all, what mage would be crazy enough to be in Sunberth? Surely this dark haired, vibrant-eyed and lanky looking Vantha could not be one?

[Eridanus]

There was a commotion behind him, but Eridanus could not be bothered to worry about other things yet. He had to get rid of this thug before he could scream anything else and alert anyone to his status.

Kill the-

Anger clouded his vision, and he wondered what the huge man would look like as he slowly roasted to death. Myri would have approved.

Discipline over emotions is strength.

The scholar shook his head furiously. As the sweat from his forehead slicked off like a puppy shaking its furry body, the negative emotions flicked off as well, calming down the vantha somewhat.

Lord Wysar, thanks for watching over me.

Although he did not touch it, he could feel the burning hot presence of Evantia behind the nape of his neck, always reminding him of his duty to pursue the ideals of the God of Conviction.

Without realizing, he fingers had been clenching at the man's throat while he was in his inner turmoil for that few seconds, causing the Sunberthian's face to turn blue as he choked and gasped for air. It was a paradoxical sight to see a brawny giant at the mercy of a much smaller and much lankier person who looked more at home clutching a mandolin.

"Nighty night, buddy," The vantha whispered, the ferocious look on his face softened as he took reign over his emotions. Accordingly, the blood-red crimson in his eyes shifted gently to the bluish-green color of Laviku's waves, symmetrical to the calm that was settling into his body.

Eridanus turned suddenly, keeping the djed strands at his fingers. Instead, he pulled the remaining djed strands from his torso, bringing them all the way down to his legs to stabilize his movement as he turned his lower torso around. His body shifted partially sideways, such that his lower torso faced completely to the back, while his upper torso faced the wall to the side, with his fingers still grasping the man's throat at the front of the alley.

As his upper torso moved, he kept some of the djed strands at his thighs and ankles, but moved the rest up to his hip as his body tried to create the momentum he needed. When his upper torso was in position, he began to bring his choking arm towards him, dragging along the suffocating giant as he did so. It was like manipulating a puppet, in the way that he had his mental hands full keeping track of the various djed threads that he was manipulating separately.

As he threw the giant over himself and further back into the alley, he brought more djed strands to his arms to facilitate the throw, gradually edging them to specific muscle groups along the throw to better cushion his attempt. It allowed for greater strength to be processed due to the efficiency of the manipulation.

At least in theory anyway.

In reality, it did not go as well as he would have wanted it to, but that was often the case when it came to theory versus reality. Shrugging it off in his mind, he finished by grasping the djed strands in his ankles, thighs, fingers, various parts among his arm, and various parts among his torso that he had distributed earlier, and impacted them along the side of his body and the muscle groups in his upper arm as he gave that final heave.

The result was him flashily throwing the thug over him and slamming him painfully into the alley further back. The wind was knocked out of the giant instantly, he twitched for a while before ceasing movement.

As the scholar brought the flux paths within his body back to control, he reached to the thug, putting his finger to the nose. Nodding to himself when he felt breathing, he dusted his hands, finishing the last of returning the flux paths to their original, optimal positions.

"Eh?"

The other two lackeys were out cold, and instead there was a man around his own height, with short dirty blonde hair. However, the thing that stood out the most was the prominent metal gauntlets that he wore, and judging from the caved-in marks on the unconscious lackeys' face, he could only assume that it was caused by this Samaritarian.

The simpering wench was of course, nowhere to be found.

"Thanks for the help," Eridanus stated in his clear, sing-song baritone, bowing his head briefly. "We should leave this place quickly, for there was one among this company who left."

Looking around the alley, he reached around, grabbing the dagger and scimitars as he did so. While they may have forfeited their right to their possessions, there was no time to slowly search their unconscious bodies. The weapons, on the other hand, were already on full view and were easy to appropriate.

"No point letting dangerous equipment lie about unattended, eh? Children may get hurt," The scholar announced cheerfully, sheathing the dagger into his belt and fitting the two scimitars somewhat awkwardly into his belt at the two sides of his body.

"If you don't mind, good sir, I must be on my way," He finished, changing his direction to head towards the armory. Antar had introduced him to that place when they had to sell off loot they captured from a tiring bandit raid, and as he was not intending to keep these inferior weapons, he might as well get some gold for his trouble.

[Kreig Messer]

To say Kreig was impressed by what he just saw was a sever understatement, it had raised within him question after question with all of them being along the lines ‘How the hell did frail looking man like that throw a giant of a man with such power?’ Kreig was not a blind man to see the improbability of such a thing, the Vantha threw his assailant as if he was just a child’s straw doll. ‘It….simply makes no sense’ Kreig thought and in his dumbfounded state, could not properly respond to the Vantha, who had promptly suggested that they best scatter and jokingly stated that children could get hurt playing with the thugs’ dangerous toys…… then he left the flabbergasted Kreig, who, when his mouth finally caught up to his mind shouted“HOW DID YOU DO THAT? THAT CAN’T BE POSSIBLE AND….. where did you…. Go?” He spun around, thinking the man had suddenly evaporated into thin air, but the then he recalled the weapons belonging to the thugs ‘I don’t think he would keep them all… plus they all looked rather worn and chipped’ and with his great powers of detuction, the brawler deduced he would sell them off. With that in mind, Kreig gathered that the most obvious place to sell weaponry was well…. A weapons store, the Knights Armory were he just Loves to spend time at, mainly for repairing his gauntlet or refitting it. With a groan he left the Alley before any more unsavory characters make their appearance, it wasn’t far off and after a few minutes he could see the back of the Vantha….. His mother should have taught him not to follow strangers, especially if there was something odd about them. But nonetheless as the man entered, so too did Kreig a moment or two later.

[Eridanus]

Kreig's intuition was correct, for by the time he reached the Armory he would find the same vantha deep in argument with one of the shopkeepers.

"That's what I'm saying, it replenishes your supply without you having to work for them!" Eridanus wrung his hands in an exasperated tone.

"That kind of quality is questionable, it will disrupt our reputation-"

"Your reputation of creating magnificent, high quality weapons of Isurian Steel, blessed with Izurdin's Favor? Don't kid me, merchant."

"Do not insult our-"

"Listen. I understand that you have your discerning customers out for quality. But let's face the reality, you also have your typical gangs and low-life scum looking for cheap weapons, there is no way that they can afford the quality of craftsmanship that you put in."

The smith's expression softened at the scholar's sneaky attempt at placating him.

"What I'm trying to say, smith, is that I'm helping you to capture this market share more effectively. I'm sure that as a craftsman you don't want to keep replicating mundane, low level products. You want to go for something great, something that you can truly call your magnum opus. I am a fellow craftsman as well - of some sort - I understand this."

"Your point...?"

"Right, my point. By accepting these goods, you are essentially reducing your workload with regards to these low-life customers, and you can focus your time on better quality creations! Consider this, everyone only have a limited amount of time. If you spend this time making high quality goods, you're happy, but you'll have to turn away these low-life customers because of lack of supply. If you spend your time massing repetitive, mundane creations, you may be able to satisfy these customers, but you lose out in terms of job satisfaction and the potential high-value customer that wanders by."

Taking a deep breath to let that sink in, Eridanus leaned forward, pushing his stolen weapons on the desk further towards the smith to emphasize his punchline.

"If you take my weapons - at a fraction of their cost - you get to get the best of both worlds, and at no extra cost to yourself. I'll sell it to you at cost price. If you just do a little polishing, and with a little from that persuasive mouth of yours I'm sure you can mark it up slightly as a better quality good than it is. Those low-lives are uneducated and inexperienced, they'll see it as a steal, and it will be win-win for both of us.For a no-risk opportunity that presents benefits of not only that additional mark-up easy profit AND to pursue your preferred task, it is surely a steal."

Before the smith could open his mouth, Eridanus quickly added, "There are other gangs out there that will surely prefer to buy from me, since I provide the kind of equipment that suits their budget. However - as a fellow craftsman to another - I understand your pain of working in such an environment. Treat this as a favor amongst fellows, what do you say?"

A moment of hesitation flitted across the shopkeeper's face as he struggled with the speech. Eridanus' speech was smoothly delivered, and while it did not make perfect logical sense, it made sufficient sense to motivate the man. After all, that was the point of speeches, to make use of the limited memory of mortals to the fullest. It was not like it was written on a scroll and open to long-drawn scholarly interpretation and analysis.

Soon, it was evident that the speech did its part in persuading the man, especially the part about craftsman for it endeared the scholar somewhat to him - a borrowing of ethos, if you will, and he finally acquiesced to the vantha's demand.

Ledger Gains :

Dagger, 1x : 2gm
Scimitar, 2x: 15gm*2=30gm
Total: 2+30=32gm

Whistling to himself as he pocketed the amount into his pouch, the scholar bid the smith farewell as he exited the shop, bumping into his savior whom he had met only earlier.

"Oh, it's you again," Eridanus exclaimed, oblivious that the man had actually intended to find him. If Kreig had stalked him, he probably would have noticed due to his exceptional observational abilities, but instead the brawler had guessed his location and so made his way independently, therefore the vantha was unaware of his motives.

"Small world isn't it?" He continued cheerfully, patting the man on his shoulders in a friendly manner as he passed him by. Of course, there was no way he knew that Kreig intended to find him, and he assumed that the brawler might just be in the mood for shopping.

[Kreig Messer]

'Found you' Kreig thought as he witnessed him haggle with the store clerk, quite well in fact since it seemed he earned a pleasant price for them. But that was not the reason he was here, He grabbed the Vantha's shoulder as he passed Kreig and asked "How did you do that? How did a frail looking gent like you threw a man twice your size that far" It was a maddening question for Kreig, as stated before it didn’t make sense to him. “Kreig, stop harassing the gent…. Why are you here anyway? Coming to refit that worthless pieces of metal you call gauntlets” Remarked the clerk. Kreig suddenly turned to meet the clerks gaze “Oh Come on…. I’ve been coming here for years, you should treat your customers with more respect!” “Please, You hardly buy anything and make us fix that gauntlet of yours, which I wouldn’t even have ‘em melted down and forge it into a cheap trinket” “Oh come on, they saved my life countless times” “ More like luck, and since you are a fool I’d say it’s a special kind of luck” “Why the hell I’m I talking to you anyway? I have no business with you!” “ Ain’t that a shocker?” “Why must we go through this every time?” “ I don’t like you ” “Oh yes…that’s why” Kreig sighed as he returned his gaze to the Vantha “I’m sorry for bothering you sir, but I must know how you threw that gent” Kreig said, then brought his gauntleted fists together “I beg that you humor a brawler’s curiosity”

[Eridanus]

"Gent?" Eridanus chuckled. "He is hardly a gent, my friend. Do not mistake thuggish behavior for civility.

From the conversation that man was having with the clerk, it seemed that it was not such a coincidence after all. Stopping to consider the man with an intrigued look, the scholar wondered aloud, "Did you follow me here just to ask this?"

He stopped just outside the Armory, turning to face the man to give him the proper respect his savior deserved. Although he felt inclined to tell the truth, doing so in Sunberth was suicide. This man was a true-bred Sunberthian, there would be reckoning should he even reveal a tiny glimpse of his abilities or his origins. Magic nor authority were not tolerated in this magic-hating city.

"Some strength, some luck, some positioning, and some experience all come together to create a wonderful effect, my good-hearted stranger," The vantha finally replied, a wry grin on his face as his eyes changed to a light yellow color as he regarded the Sunberthian.

So the man fancied himself a brawler? His behavior itself was contradicting, for brawlers often did not admit to their ways, nor do they act in such a civilized and gentlemanly manner. This man's charisma was more similar to that of an above average, educated folk in a better city like Syliras. What was he doing here?

"Out of curiosity, may I know what my savior's name is? If you do not mind, are you born and bred here in Sunberth? Your manner of speech suggests otherwise."

[Kreig Messer]

"Admittedly so" Kreig said with a slight grin, with something unusual being witnessed he simply couldn't help it. The Vantha was friendly enough, that much Kreig was obviously certain enough.... and an outsider "Curiosity may have killed the cat, but I gather the cat fancied risks as I do" as he stepped out of the shop alongside the Vantha, he raised an eyebrow at the explanation "So you're telling me; a man of your rather frail looking appearance, forgiving for saying so, was able to throw a man across an alley and at a wall, simply because he experienced and lucky?" Kreig sighed, in some respect he still had some doubt but it could also have been the fact he was easily impressed "I suppose thats what they meant but not judging a book by its cover" Though he never did truly read a book as often as he should, would do this idiot a ton of good. He then give a gentl smile to the an and slightly raised his right in an open palm "Ah yes, forgive me, I disturbed you without even revealing who I am. My name Kreig Messer and yes, I am a Sunberthian. I simply have better manners I suppose. I owe that bit to my mother, but I also enjoy the amusing looks on peoples' faces whenever they hear someone speaking to them in a polite tone within this city, quite a bit of fun" He chuckled, it was one of the few fun other than fighting that he had in this scum pit of a city. "And, if I may be so bold, I assume you aren't of Sunberth as well..... at least not a resident, still you seem familiar with our anarchistic peace of 'paradise' " The last word spoken sarcastically, even if Kreig love the city he knew it was far from being a paradise for other.

[Eridanus]

The two of them walked with no direction in mind, with Eridanus merely wandering aimlessly. He did not come here with a specific destination in mind anyway, it was for the change of environment. This brawler seemed amiable enough, unlike most of the criminal scum in the city, and his companionship did not trouble the vantha to want to shake him off. Instead, he just ambled by leisurely, speaking with the man in a conversational tone.

"It is a pleasure to meet you, Mister Messer. I am known as Eridanus, although Eri is fine as well; I have no allusions as to things like formality when it comes to names - not in such informal situations," The scholar replied, grasping the man's hand in a brief handshake.

Turning his gaze forward as he walked, he continued, "It may not be my place to say this, but it seems that your mother has raised you reasonably well for you to be imbibed with the rare courtesy that this place sorely lacks. Indeed, I am not of this city, though I was here one year ago. If you have heard about the mists and ghosts, I was in the midst of all that anarchy struggling for my life. You can say that between that and fighting slavers and bandits ambushing me at every corner, you must forgive me when I say that your home city has not given me much good memories to consider."

Glancing briefly at the blonde man, Eridanus asked, "Were you around during that time as well last year? I left in Winter after, so the happenings in this city are unknown to me. Perhaps you could keep me up to date as to the dynamics of this city... what's Robern and gang up to anything new these days?"