A Beautiful Lie (Ethan Ironhorse)

by **Septimus** on July 9th, 2013, 5:30 am

Summer 30th, 513AV

A walk was all it took to reach where she was aiming to get. She had made it successfully and she had most definitely been watching her back. Actually, she was still watching her back. She could never and would never let her guard down. No matter how comfortable she grew, there would always be a spot of wariness in her mind. It wasn't a matter of if, it was a simply fact of 'when'. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow.

As she completed her trek, she removed her practice dummy off of her back and settled with the clearing she had semi-familiarized herself with as of late. She picked up the dummy and shoved it into the ground with full force to make sure she would have a sturdy target to be slamming her sword and shield up against. Its head was missing and she had yet to replace it, still. However, she didn't exactly need a head to work on cutting the torso.

Septimus unsheathed her broadsword and took her shield off of her back, tossing the rope that held it all together towards the side so it would be out of her way and nothing to worry about. Her cerulean eyes scanned everywhere, trying to pick out any unusual movement and her sensitive ears scanned where they could to try and pick out any abnormal patterns from the norm that surrounded her as usual. Her nostrils attempted to pick up any scents that a normal human may otherwise miss. When she detected none after about five minutes, she resumed her activities.

Cobalt hued irises were shielded behind eyelids as she closed them quickly, took a deep breath, then opened them again and began stretching her limbs to provide her with enough flexibility to move enough to the point she wouldn't pull anything that shouldn't be particularly pulled. She then proceeded to slink down to the ground, set her weapons aside, and begin to do push ups to stretch out her arm muscles and even create the microtears needed to promote the growth of strength.

After about thirty repetitive motions of pushing her body continuously up and down, she then began to do lunges. She stretched her legs for about five minutes doing this, then stood up and shook her arms. She picked up her weapons and then cleared her mind so that only the sound of her breathing was what she could hear. Then, she allowed everything to flood right back to her and she slid into her Triangle Stance.

Her feet were appropriately placed with her weapons angled and facing their appropriate ways. Then, she mentally counted to three and bashed the training dummy with her shield, performing her screening maneuver only to come from below and strike with her broadsword, swiping to cut. The end result was a deep gash in the base, far deeper than any of her previous cuts and on the dummy, it showed.

She would continue to do this repetitive motion until she had it down without even having to basically think. Septimus then proceeded to take her shield, ram into the dummy, pull back, and then cut right at its chest. This left another mark running perpendicular across the dummy's torso. The cut was deep and left that sense of confidence in herself that she always had after a successful hit. She quickly pulled back, then rammed the dummy in the side with her shield. She practiced her screening maneuver again but this time, she came from the top as well.

Be unpredictable. They can't defend against the unknown.

Snap!

A snap stopped it all. All progress was halted and Septimus instantly put her shield and sword in a defensive manner. Her sapphire eyes narrowed, her muscles tensed, and her footing was precisely where it should have been. A different but very... very vague scent was plaguing her nostrils. It was not that of a deer.

"You there! Septimus, Squire of the Syliran Knights, and who might you be?"

"Talk"

by **Ethan Ironhorse** on July 9th, 2013, 1:36 pm

Ethan had started the day seeing the sun crest the horizon, while eating a small piece of fruit with a wedge of cheese. The sun painted the horizon with a warm red turning pink. Ethan finished eating the wedge allowing the wax outer layer to fall off to the wayside of the street. Farmers who lived in Syliras were moving out the gate to work in the fields, while Ethan had the day to try and gather herbs for a smoothing and protective salve. The night before Ethan had been reading his philtering book about a common salve for hoof rot in sheep. It seemed that a few common herbs and some oil extracts could be combine to heal the rot. Though the same disease might not effect horses, but Ethan wanted to see if the numbing and smoothing properties would work on a horse’s hoof to help heal it after a shoeing.

Ethan hunted the edge of the forest undergrowth for the part of the earlier morning. Ethan had success at finding Marigold’s, taking out a knife and cutting the stems close to the ground Ethan began binding them into a bundle with twine and placing them in his backpack. He had chosen to wear his work boots and a dark brown pair of pants as he wiped off the green and yellow pulp left from his cuttings. Ethan was unsure of just how much he needed, so he began cutting stem after stem till he felt like he had three or four pounds worth in his back pack. Ethan kept moving for the rest for the rest of the day looking for comfrey. Ethan was in luck this morning as not three or four hours wandering the edge of the forest did he see a large specimen off in the woods. The herb had grown up to his thighs, near an oak tree. Ethan took out his knife in his bare hands and began to cut the stalks of the plant. The sticky leaves began to make Ethan’s hand itch as he took down several stalks. Wiping off the sticky residue on his pants, Ethan brought out his waterskin and poured water over his hands. Red bumps had started to appear on his wrist and back of his hand. Ethan realized that he was going to need a pair of gloves if he continued at herb gathering. Thankfully, he pulled out a hand cloth he kept to clean up after working. Wrapping on of left hand in it he began to cut with his right, doing his best to keep away from the sticky hairs that came out of the herb.

After finally cutting the whole of the plant, Ethan wrapped up the stalks in twine after talking off his shirt to cover them and placed the bundle in his backpack. He would be bare chested heading back into town, but that wasn’t an uncommon sight for the hot summer day. The stalks were so long that they came out the back of the pack’s opening, and Ethan spent the next few moments washing his hands. The cool water smooth the itching for a moment, as Ethan gritted his teeth. He wasn’t going to itch the rash from the leaves. The Philtering book had shown the bud and bloom of the plant it hadn’t worn him of its natural defense. Ethan placed back the cap on his water skin with his teeth, and began moving back from the forest.

As Ethan was allowing the water to dray off his hands he began to hear a dull thump of a sound. Standing still thoughts of land monsters or a bear began to race through his mine. What were you thinking coming out to the forest alone? Do you know how far you are away from the gates? His heart began to race and he stood still for a moment fear gripping him as he heard the dull thumping noises. He waited for a growl or the quick thumping sound to come closer. When the sound did not come closer, Ethan let out a breathe in relief and picked up his backpack. While he was putting on the pack, curiosity got the better of Ethan, If it’s not a land monster, what kind of animal is it? Ethan began to make his way slowly toward the sound. It was like a game, how close could he get to the animal before he was noticed. He felt like a huntsmen stalking his prey.

I am like the wind, he thought as he drew closer to the edge of the forest. Movement caught his eye, and as he took his next step it was on a dry branch that snapped in two.

Snap!

By the Gods how stupid could I be! Ethan felt the fool, he hadn’t really been able to see anything through the undergrowth leaves. Then he heard, something else that surprised him.

"You there! Septimus, Squire of the Syliran Knights, and who might you be?"

A squire! By the Gods, he was a fool. “Sorry didn’t mean to intrude. The name is Ethan Ironhorse, and I just collecting herbs.” Ethan pushed branches and leaves out of his way as he stepped into the clearing. Coming out into the clearing he saw a very tall woman with a sword and shield. Ethan put up his hands in a gesture to show he wasn’t holding a weapon. The red rash had started to lessen on his hands and now appeared only on the bumps themselves. He felt foolish without his white shirt, and grime cover dark brown pants. His leather belt kept his knife and the muck cover boots were at least hidden by the grass. “Please Lady Squire, I meant no offense.” Ethan slouched almost as if he was going to be beaten, his eyes and face went to the ground knowing that eye contact often spoke of familiarity.

by **Septimus** on July 11th, 2013, 3:52 pm

OOCApologies on the wait!

Septimus put her weapons down once the man made an appearance, and them proceeded to sheath her broadsword and held her shield down at her waist. However, anything funny and the weapons were quickly within arm's reach and would quickly be withdrawn. The two weapons were much like an extended part of her arm when fighting with them and with practice, she would expect to become even more skilled.

"You're quite fine, Mister Ironhorse. If anything apologies for my actions." The man appeared to slouch to an interesting amount, which turned Septimus' driving curiosity into a churning wheel. He appeared somewhat submissive but then again, appearances could be easily misleading. He could be hiding something while his words said otherwise. Either way, Septimus' guard was up no matter how minimal it was in amount.

His eyes then went to the ground and Septimus took a large sigh and rolled her shoulders. "So what kind of herbs are you talking about here, Ethan? Specific use you're hunting for?" Septimus' eyes wandered from his face to his hands and she cocked her head to the side a bit. He appeared to have small reddish dots on them; he wasn't kidding.

"Perhaps I might could help? I happen to know a little about plants in the Wildlands so perhaps some of that knowledge may carry here?" By a little knowledge, she meant all the edible and poisonous plants of the wildlands. She had little to no knowledge of any of their medicinal purposes, however. She needed to learn that sometime around. More studying for her in the research department.

The last time she had researched anything was a small bit on her own race; the Kelvics. A big pile of information had been sorted out into small piles in a short time. With those small piles, she had gained several pieces of information that had been key to her training; much like the problem with her focusing. She was still attempting to whip that into shape and was succeeding gradually.

"Talk"

by **Ethan Ironhorse** on July 12th, 2013, 1:36 pm

OOCDon't worry about it. I needed a day off yesterday, and truth be told we are her to have fun. So if it takes a while to write, or your busy I am the last person to think about. In fact I am just trying to have fun and not take myself serious. I am not writing the next American Great Novel. So I am doing a proof read and hitting send, and having ten times the amount of fun instead of worrying about context, grammar, and should I collect my thoughts better. Now if I can just figure out a better font to show Bold during my threads.

As Ethan saw the squire lower her weapons, his eyes darted to them. There was still the feeling of running for one’s life, after all she would one day become a knight. Her impression or judgement was the only thing needed to pass life and death sentence. Still, the knights weren’t usually insane to just start killing left and right, but appearances could often be wrong and first appearances doubly so. Slowly, he removed the backpack and undid the straps.

“Well I was looking for two common herbs really. Comfrey,” Ethan took the shirt wrapped bundle out of his pack, “was described to me as having small purple blooms, in which the tight bulb head resembled a bell. The leaf is a long spear grown without rugged edges. However, what I didn’t know was that the hair-like fiber’s on the stem and sticky residue causes some type of rash.” Unwrapping the bundle carefully, Ethan displayed the plant for Septimus.

“As for its use? Well the book I read stated that the plant matter needed to be distilled, filtered and treated twice prior to its use. Once treated some of the compounds in the plant draw heat from a wound, and must be place in a salve and not in a potion. The book even said that prepared with other herbs that it aids in the healing of broken bones.” Ethan was proud of his find and the weight of his haul was impressive, at least for him.

Ethan pulled out the second plant, simple Marigolds found by the side of the road, or growing wild. Ethan had tied each bunch in twine and the weight of the Comfrey had begun to squash the flowers. Ethan realized that stopping and rearrange his pack would help keep the vital juices of the flower from leaking in his back pack. “Marigolds, and no I wasn’t picking them to give to a lady. The flowers when boiled and distilled, draw water and infection from a wound. It is my hope that combining the two ingredient with the standard Linseed Oil and aggregates that I come up with a decent salve to fix crack hoofs that have resulted in infection.”

“I having been saving up to try and buy all the parts for a philtering kit, but working as a farrier I am having a tough time. I know that the knights offer to set up shop for anyone, but we already have Philter’s and trying to compete with my limited knowledge would be useless.” Ethan stood there for a moment wondering what Septimus thought of the would be Philterer. “You see, I am a good Farrier, I can shoe a horse without too much trouble, and often take the jobs to travel out to the outposts and check the warhorse’s feet when the regular blacksmith can’t keep up. However, the weight of the barding, plate from the knight and hard riding that the Knights do can lead to hoofs cracking, in most cases the crack can be taken care of, but I have seen of few that cracked all the way to the ankle and the horse is near lame from it.”

“Anyway, the Knights have so much of this salve and hoof glue around that it often spoils. I just thought that if I could sale a dose or two, I could start saving for the future.” Ethan looked away from the squire as if the comment embarrassed him more. Often times, the men and women of Syliras didn’t think about the future that was to be trusted to the knights. Dreams, even simple ones were often thrown away in the constant demand to just live. He felt the fool giving her information, but Ethan ventured a quick glance back at her and realized through the sweat and padding, she was a very pretty lady. Shaking off the thought he went back to looking at the small bundles of his herbs. To him, it meant possibly a new piece of meat in the stew, and a few silver mizas for the next book.

by **Septimus** on July 17th, 2013, 10:05 pm

He pulled out the Comfrey and Septimus almost instantly recognized it. Her family would dry it and give it to their horses that lived in the back so they wouldn't always have to put up with the usual; a treat if you will. It was supposedly bitter, sometimes sweet. Septimus had never eaten it personally, considering she had had a lot of things in the Wildlands. Just the occasional shrub that she had been instructed was edible and as always, the tons of grasses.

"That's exactly what Comfrey is. We would sometimes dry it and feed it to our horses." Septimus' sapphire orbs flickered from the purple infused plant to the man once again before her. Comfrey was indeed a plant she was acquainted with. He explained its uses and her eyes widened, taking in the information for further use. If it could be treated as such and would draw heat from an injury and heal a broken bone then Septimus might would find this interesting.

A memory flashed in her head of whom it was exactly that these herbs reminded her of. Blonde hair and Kelvic flashed in her mind but it was as though she just couldn't put her finger on exactly whom it was. Somewhere from Riverfall.

Her suspicion was beginning to be dwindle about the reasons and causes to his whereabouts. It was apparent he was simply collecting these plants for a simple cracked hoof. It was actually quite a brilliant idea and sparked Septimus' interest.

He pulled out the marigolds and Septimus gave a curt nod and looked around, only to then return her gaze to the yellow flowers. No, I wasn't picking them to give to a lady. A chuckle escaped her lips and a slight trace of a smile remained on her face as her attention went half way to her surroundings and halfway to the seemingly kind man. Once again, another medical thing could be solved from a marigold as long as it was boiled and distilled and could draw infection from an injury.

"You seem very dedicated to your work, Mister Ironhorse. I know horses aren't cheap and perhaps even saving one from being useless would save time and expenses in the long run. If this proves not to spoil, is effective, and is quick, I'd say it might could definitely be something to be of use to the Knighthood."

"Talk"

by **Ethan Ironhorse** on July 26th, 2013, 10:22 pm

“Why, thank you, Mistress Septimus. However, I am afraid just like the normal salves mine too will spoil. From the little knowledge I have, it comes from the oil that is required to create the salve. Something about the air makes the oil became rancid. Since I will be using linseed oil to help suspend the plants healing properties, I need to protect the doses from spoilage. Thankfully, my reading material described that after making the paste it can be put in a pot and candle wax poured over the lid. The wax will create a hard coating sealing the pot from the air.”

Ethan had focused on the plants, he placed the marigold in with the comfrey and wrapped them in his shirt. The bundle was heavier, but this was it wouldn’t crush all the necessary properties of the plants. “As for expenses of the Knighthood…” Ethan shrugged, “Philter’s just like any Baker or Butcher make enough for their customers so that it won’t go to waste. A good baker knows how much bread to make each day based on how much he sales the previous day. Sure there are times when a lot people want bread or someone has a party, but then the baker just makes a few more during the day and adjusts a small amount. No working as a farrier in the Windmount Stables showed me that for the most part the dose’s are sold in small containers and are used quickly enough so that an apprentice or two would have to make a batch once every couple of months.”

Ethan opened his pack and softly allowed the herbs to settle in the pack. Buckling up the pack so that the herbs wouldn’t be overly exposed Ethan smiled, and then scratch the back of his hands and inner forearms. With a sigh of relief, Ethan looked back at Septimus with a sly grin, “By the Gods and Goddesses that feels better! Besides you know why I feel I can sale my wares before the Philter? Unlike the Baker, who waits for the customer to come in his shop for a loaf, I use the salve in my work, I know that by the time I create the salve the stables will need another batch, and if the order for batch doesn’t go to the philter for another fifteen days, he wouldn’t be worried about the loss of mizas, as its only delayed.”

Though the scratching had made the rash bright red, it had eased some of his discomfort and he took the moment to wash his hands and forearms from his waterskin. The water briefly went over hands and forearms the coolness soothe the burning and Ethan felt the relief. Now he needed to wait to see if the stickiness of the Comfrey had washed off and the rash would go away in short order. Ethan now realized that he had exhausted his knowledge and was left looking at a good looking squire that probably could beat him silly.

Ethan looked at Septimus and wondered why such a beautiful woman would want to pick up arms and kill. Most woman that Ethan had come across were in part beautiful mystery and part insanity. Older woman with children seemed confident of the place they had chosen for themselves. The ones, that were pretty and often made men do things for them, found that basic power enough to satisfy their hunger. Yet even Ethan had to admit when his sister fought a rival for a boy’s affection they were vicious. The emotion damage they caused by the twist of a word was scary. Yet physical violence wasn’t their first choice. He realized that by staring like a cow struck about the nose wasn’t getting anywhere. “Ummm…” He look behind her to see a practice mannequin, “So tough opponent? Or has he spoke the honorable words of defeated opponent, and you have set your sights on another?”

by **Ethan Ironhorse** on September 24th, 2013, 1:28 am

Ethan and Squire Septimus talked for a little while longer, before Ethan went back home. He arrived in his apartment and began hanging herbs up to dry. Each bundle of herbs was tied with simple yarn and placed hanging from the support of the ceiling. It would take a week to dry and during that time, Ethan would have to clean up the falling herbs, but they could be persevered and then infused in linseed oil for horses, and as such Ethan’s day ended.

by **Perplexity** on October 13th, 2013, 4:00 pm

Riddled with Rewards!

Septimus

Observation	+2 XP
Acrobatics	+1 XP
Shield	+1 XP
Intimidation	+1 XP
Bodybuilding	+1 XP
Weapon: Broadsword	+1 XP
Herbalism	+1 XP

Lores :

Ethan

Observation	+1 XP
Herbalism	+1 XP
Botany	+2 XP
Socialization	+1 XP

Lores :

Notes :

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