Solo A New Chapter

[Karin]

6th Bell,
3rd Spring, 516 AV
The Gaping Maw/Sanity Centre

"We'll see you again, Karin!" Alyna clutched at her hand, from the narrow, cramped window of the caravan. Her mother was tear-striken, and even Jovern's face was taught with stress behind her.

Karin didn't know what to think. She too had her bag packed up with all her belongings, as little as they were. Her backpack was mainly filled with her change of clothes and her other nick-nacks, but it hardly amounted to much.

It was strange to think that her parents were going so far away. Sultros was such a distant place, so foreign and... it meant it was unlikely she would ever see them again, no matter what they said.

That knowledge filled the girl with a strange, burning feeling. Possibly it was guilt. Despite everything, despite her dislike and distrust and desire for freedom, it still hurt her to abandon the only family she knew. But, and she knew she wouldn't forget this, they were abandoning her too. So it went both ways.

"Ma... you're right." She found she couldn't say much more than that. The drivers of the caravan were looking anxious, horses snickered loudly and curious Alvads walked past, gazing without shame into the caravan to see who was leaving. A surprisingly small amount of people had understandably been shaken by Alvadas' nightmare of a season, and were leaving, much like Karin's parents.

The girl was not one of them, at least, not yet. "Remember, Ma... if you come back here, if you want to find me, I'm going to be on the Mischief, the boat, y'know?" Her mother nodded, and stroked her hand. Karin felt anxious, and watched as the last of the bags were placed onto the caravan.

"Jovern, say goodbye now. We're leaving, Karin, the caravan's..-"
"Hoy!" The driver shouted, his right hand urging the horses awake. Karin took a step back, and waved her hand, a gesture that felt lame as she watched her mother softly crying but smiling through the tears as she waved goodbye.

"Goodbye for now, my dear!"

Almost before the carts and horses of the caravan were gulped up by the Maw, Karin shouted back, "'Bye, mum!"

Then they were gone, following whatever path or road that they could find, to the citadel of Sultros, a place that Karin didn't know, not want to know either. For the first time, the girl was truly alone. She had no place to call home, no family, nowhere to belong.

[Karin]

She walked the streets of Alvadas, watching a butterfly lazily drift through the air before perching on a patch in the Weaving that looked exactly like a flower. There was beauty all around her, yet the girl ignored it all, simply wandering to fill the hole in her mind.

A bell passed, and she felt a thirst building. The pathways of Alvadas didn't draw her in, in fact they kept spitting her out again, dismissing her by constantly looping back to the same place: the entrance and exit of the Gaping Maw. Perhaps it was the roads she took, but she was suddenly sick of it.

With a sharp turn of her heel, she thought of the place she'd been avoiding for the past bell. Within chimes she had reached it, its cube shape both welcome for what it held, and unknown. Of course, it was the Cubacious Inn. She stood outside for a chime, observing.

It was a strange building, mostly yellow. She saw the windows, and a resident standing outside, smoking smoke rings from an elaborate silver pipe that twinkled in the sunlight. The girl frowned, slipping into the natural position of her face.

She fingered the mizas in her pocket, gold, silver and copper edged. The coins would buy her a room at the inn, as long as they had space. She was sure there would be, Alvadas was noticeably quieter than usual, recovering as it was from the horrors of Winter.

The girl stepped forwards slowly, and approached the door. She pushed it open with one hand, and braved herself to this new experience. She half expected there to be a large eagle residing there, since the last time she had visited had been with a man called Shadyn, and a boy called Phobius. That had been a lesson in awkwardness if she ever needed such a thing.

[Karin]

Posted at the Cubacious Inn with the receipt.

There wasn't an eagle, like she had imagined. Instead, the interior was normal, painted in pastel shades that felt out of place with Karin at that current point in time. She approached the desk where the proprietor was. The woman finished talking to someone who's back was turned to Karin, and she stepped forwards.

"Could I get a room please? Uh, for... four nights?" It was a surprisingly short time, now that she thought of it. However, the woman simply nodded and stated the price. Karin handed over 4 silver mizas and got given a key in return. "Your room is up those stairs and is the second on the right, enjoy your stay!"

Karin yanked her bag off her shoulders as soon as she reached the room. It was a small one with a sloped roof, painted in what she gingerly supposed was a pleasant summer sky blue. The bed was soft, about the same as hom--. No, it wasn't home anymore, that house was sold and gone. But the room she was in was okay, nonetheless.

She had the rest of the day to spend, though. She wasn't going to squander it here. It was all so new and it left her feeling out of place, like a fish out of water. She needed to get out. She slipped off her shoes to massage the balls of her feet before slipping them on again. Pocketing the key and a handful of coins, the girl walked down the stairs somehow feeling lighter.

[Karin]

It hadn't sunk in yet, just how alone and free she was now. With her parents gone, the girl still hadn't fully registered that she wouldn't be able to see them again. That their farewell had possibly been a farewell forever. She refused to think about it, which was the purpose of her wanderings before checking in the the Inn, and her present stroll.

Although, she had another purpose too. There was something that she'd been thinking about, ever since she'd emerged from the wearying, battle-scarred side of Alvadas, a season ago. Something which she wanted to do, something she needed to do, in fact.

Despite her array of skills, there was something that she was painfully weak at. When it came to protecting herself, she was lacking. She'd discovered that at her shame and horror. Of course, there had been no way of knowing that she'd need to be able to defend herself, but now that she was going on a voyage, taking her into the unknown, she needed to learn.

Or at least get a weapon she was comfortable with. She had a knife, but she wasn't comfortable with using it. To do anything with it, the girl would have to get close to the attacker. From experience, she knew that was a bad, bad thing. She simply wasn't strong enough, or brave enough to do that.

As the girl's footsteps drew her closer to the Bizarre, the girl thought it through a bit more, but didn't come to a conclusion. Truth be told, she didn't know many different weapon styles, and the thought of actually being able to wield a weapon felt a tad ridiculous to Karin.

[Karin]

The Bizarre's warm interior bustled with merchants today, and Karin had to step out of the way of a couple that argued over something that was obscured from her vision as soon as she stepped in. She had a place in mind though, the place she'd gone to get her dagger from before.

Maybe it wasn't around anymore. Karin searched all over the building, and almost gave up, until she saw the glint of a man waving a sword around. Aha! She walked closer, making sure it was the same place, before ducking her head through the tent flap of the stall.

Inside, the displays were a bit more organised. Outside the wares were arranged haphazardly on a table which almost seemed to buckle under the weight of all that metal. But inside, well... displayed neatly on the walls were various swords and other things that looked like clubs covered with metal spikes. She had no name for those things, but nor was she interested in them either.

She stood in the centre of the shop, and looked around carefully. Thankfully, the owner of the shop was nowhere to be seen at present, that meant she could look around without being disturbed.

Instantly dismissing the swords as too dangerous, she moved on to the only other thing she recognised. Clubs. But with a sigh, she realised that a simple club would do the trick for what she wanted, it was too short, too clunky. The girl regarded her hands, wondering what would suit her best. In all truthfulness, it would probably be better if she asked the shopkeeper, but she was too embarrassed to, too afraid that she'd get laughed at.

It was then that she saw something promising, propped up in the corner of the shop. She had no idea what it was, but it looked like a walking stick. It was simply a pole, made out of some dark wood. But it struck her as being remarkably useful. At keeping people at a distance. When it came to it, the girl wouldn't know any fancy techniques, but she could smack someone with a stick very easily.

[Karin]

At that moment, the man appeared through the door flap. "Oh! Didn't notice you there, you looking for anything in particular?" Karin looked around, and pointed at the staff. "I'm uh, can I try this one out?"

The man shook his head, "No, we don't allow customers to try things out, dangerous y'know. But you're looking at the quarterstaff? This one's a good one, I got it from a merchant importing stuff from Syliras, it's fine don't you think? Maybe a knight once held it!"

Karin wasn't interested in knights or cities far away. But the name, quarterstaff. She'd remember that one. "How much is it, please?" The man sensed an easy sale and smiled. "That'd be a good price for you, six gold mizas." She nodded, handing the money over.

He handed her the 'staff, and she took it somewhat reluctantly. She had no idea how to hold it, and so simply held it like one would hold a walking cane. She then walked out the shop, and out of the Bizarre, and headed to her favourite place: the beach.

It was quiet when she got there, most people not having the time to waste frivolously on going to the beach. The area around the Port was busy, especially around the Mischief, and she regarded it from a distance, marvelling at its shape and form that day.

Someone had left a charred shell of a firepit near to a low bank of sand, and Karin stared at it until she realised why it bothered her so much. The last time I spent on the beach was with Jay... She wished she knew where she could find him, so she could ask him if he would go with her. Truthfully, he was her only friend, and the only thing she would truly miss about Alvadas.

Brushing away her confused thoughts, the girl handled the staff in her hand. It was long, and surprisingly weighty, although probably not as heavy as a metal sword would be. She needed to figure out what she was supposed to actually do with it.

She gave it a swing, with her hand placed in the centre. And a few more, experimentally trying it out. It felt like it would work. Really, she needed to try it against something else, so the girl looked around, wondering what she could see. There, a tree! That'd do.

The tree in question was short and stumpy, bent over from wind and weathering. But it would do. She was almost afraid to damage the stick, but it seemed unusually hardened. Gripping it in both hands at one end, she slid it sideways through the air at the tree. Of course, it didn't make one joy of difference, but it felt like what she should do.

She continued like that, getting into the heat of it, until she accidentally moved her arm too hard, making her wince and rest the 'staff against the tree to give her shoulder a rub. It was quite satisfying to smash the tree. She could switch her brain off and think of nothing.

[Karin]

However, she was finished for the day. She wanted to eat, and be away from the beach, for what seemed like the first time in her life. She let out a short laugh at herself at the thought. But there was one thing she had to do first.

She walked forwards, holding the 'staff carefully in her right hand. Soon she was by the seashore, and she slipped her boots off, laying them down on the sand with her new staff. The waves were soft and hushed, and the beach was littered with broken shells, dark, dried seaweed and pebbles of all different kinds and sizes.

Carefully, the girl scanned the ground, walking a few paces until she found a pebble that was just right, smooth and dark grey, with the slightest flecks of white stone, that if she knew anything would identify itself as quartz. She felt it in her hand, yes, this is a good one. She then threw it with all her might into the white froth of the sea.

It was a ritual that she had been doing for a few years now. She knew it didn't mean anything, after all, the stone wasn't really hers to begin with. But it was her way of saying thank you. For the beach, the sea, the time she'd spent there. She smiled, feeling lighter.

Her worries that she tried to forget, that she would leave behind the only thing she'd ever known, the place where ultimately she'd been living a safe life... they all melted at that moment. All that mattered was the soothing waves and the grainy sand beneath her feet.

She waded into the water, feeling the hems of her trousers soaking up the salt. "This is only for today. I'll be coming back, Sea Father... Laviku. I'll give you a proper offering." She spoke the words out loud, feeling alone but brave. Karin didn't know about the tradition of giving an offering before a journey, or if she did, she didn't remember. However, to her, it just seemed right. So, as she pulled her boots back on and took up her quarterstaff again, she thought over what she could give to the Sea Father, and prayed silently that her future would turn out alright.

[Estrellir Konrath]

Karin Ironyach

Observation +4
Investigation +1
Weapon: Quarterstaff +1



Saying goodbye to family
Feeling: No place to belong
Revisiting the Cubacious Inn
The Bizarre: Weapons Tent
Weapons: Recognizing a Quarterstaff
A ritual offering to Laviku

Sore shoulder (healed after a good rest)
Quarterstaff (6 gm)
Room at Cubacious Inn for 4 days (4 gm)

Notes

A nice little thread with a little bit of everything and some character development! The investigation xp is for going to the right places and finding things there. PM me with any questions or concerns!