Homecoming (Solo)

[Marcus Braeden]

3rd of Spring 511 AV

Going into the Wildlands unarmed Marcus thought what a fantastic idea... Marcus had managed to slip away from the damn encampment the night before. He was decorated with cuts and bruises some of which had faded where as others were fresh. Why the hell did I did I leave the city...especially the day before my damned meeting with Loren! he shouted in his head. Well theres a career opportunity that is pretty dead now...hell, what has it been? Almost and entire season that I've been gone!? Yeah that opportunity is probably shot...

Marcus didn't have much recollection of what had happened for the past season. All he could remember was being jumped and knocked out before getting a glimpse of his attackers and waking up with a bag over his head. Anything else between then and now was merely bits and pieces that he could put together...most of which involved being beaten, bruised, burned, and other nasty things. Marcus finally decided to make a run for it the previous night...and somehow it worked, despite being bound and blindfolded. The blindfold slid off after a few minutes of running, and after he was sure he wasn't being followed, he managed to break out of his binding with using the point of sharp rock. He spent the night resting against the trunk of a large oak tree, bruised and broken.

The suns rays filtered through the trees of the Bronze Wood as Marcus walked through the forest. He hoped to find the Kabrin Road, for it ould surely lead him back to Syliras. Every few steps Marcus would trip or stumble a bit, a constant reminder of the torment he had just been through. Who had taken me? Bandits? Hell if I know I was practically blindfolded the entire time. Suddenly a feeling of sadness overtook Marcus, his dreams were crushed. The Syliran Knights, or Syliras for that matter, had not a clue whether he was alive. Would he even be recognized? Are the people he knew still even there anymore? A lot can happen in a season. Marcus did have one thing to be thankful for however, that he had left his belongings back in the city. He was kidnapped, but not robbed, not that the former is preferable to the latter.

[Marcus Braeden]

Voices suddenly filled the air around Marcus, meshed with the sounds of carts rolling against the earth. Marcus had found the Kabrin Road. Caravans and carts were scattered up and down the road as they continued their journey toward Syliras, or Taldera. Marcus didn't which way went where so he decided to ask someone. He approached the nearest person, a man who sat upon a cart that was pulled by a single horse. In the back of the cart there were several crates that were filled with fabrics. The man was most likely a merchant making his way toward Syliras.

"Excuse me sir, but can you point me in the direction of Syliras?" Marcus kindly asked.

The man looked down at him, "My god boy! You look like you've just returned from war!"

"It's a long story sir, if you could just point me toward Syl-"

"Everyone on the road is heading toward Syliras, it's still too early in the season to be heading too far up north. Hop on the back, you don't look like you will make it too far, and you can tell me that story of yours."

Marcus smiled and hopped on. Marcus told the man his story of being kidnapped and whatever he could put together from his fragmented memories. The man simply listened to Marcus' tale of his "adventure." By that afternoon the walls of Syliras were in sight, far off in the distance. There were still a few hours to kill until they would arrive at the gates of the city. It was a bittersweet feeling, seeing the city again, becoming a knight was far out of his reach, he would probably simply return back to his work at the Ironworks. Marcus became lost in thought and then finally fell asleep.

[Marcus Braeden]

Marcus suddenly awoke roughly two hours later. Marcus looked forward and saw that the walls of Syliras had dipped beneath the tree line as the cart descended in elevation. Marcus looked at his surroundings as the cart advanced toward the city. The sun was higher in the sky now. The trees, while still quite barren, had begun to grow back leaves. There was a slight breeze and birds chirped all around the Kabrin Road. Marcus also noticed that most of the other travelers were out of sight due to them speeding up or the cart speeding ahead of them. But it was an unnerving sort of calm, as if something wasn't quite right. Then it all happened before Marcus could even blink.

An arrow was launched from the left flank of the cart, from somewhere in the trees. Whoever launched the arrow had at least some skill as the arrow was perfectly times with a breeze rolling in the direction toward the cart. This breeze guided the arrow straight into the mans neck, he was dead before he even hit the ground. Blood splattered across the wooden cart as well as few drops hitting Marcus' shirt. The horse panicked at the sudden death of its master, and went straight into a gallop. Marcus quickly took cover behind the crates next to him. More arrows were launched from the trees they stuck themselves into the side of the cart. Were these the same people who had kidnapped Marcus? He didn't know but he also didn't care to find out.

Marcus decided that he needed to get the horse under control...somehow. He had never controlled a horse before but his options were pretty limited at this point. The arrows had stopped raining from down from the trees so Marcus emerged from his cover. Marcus tried to stand up and keep his balance as much as he could, stumbling a little bit. He sat down where the man had been sitting and noticed that the reigns were missing. He searched desperately for them but there were none to be found. With out even thinking Marcus stood up and jumped from the cart to the horse. He grabbed onto the sides of the horse with both arms as his legs dragged against the dirt. Finally Marcus managed to hoist himself onto the horse, which did have a saddle to Marcus' delight. Without reigns Marcus tried the only other thing that might logically slow down a horse, by pulling its mane. The first few tries were unsuccessful and he almost lost his balance doing so. But Marcus' tenacity eventually payed off and the horse came to a halt. Marcus decided he could try to ride the horse into town and kicked his heel into the horse, which did not yield the desired outcome. The horse immediately bucked Marcus off and ran off with the cart still attached into the forest. Marcus sighed and looked up, noticing a flag fluttering in the wind above the tree line. Syliras was easily within walking distance now.

[Marcus Braeden]

The walls of Syliras were finally within Marcus' sight. Marcus however did not stop to take it in, rather he kept on marching forward toward the entrance gate. He began to reflect on the what happened over the course of the past season. He traced his memories from the day when he had left the city all the way to what happened all but ten minutes ago. He also questioned the reasons for the ambush on the road. Were the assailants the same people who had taken Marcus in the first place, and were they trying to drag Marcus back into the forest? Were they simply after the cart and its goods? Marcus did not know the answers to the questions floating around in his mind. But he did know one thing, and it was that he was living in a dangerous world. Sure, inside the walls of the cities and fortresses that dot the map may be safe, but outside, it was a wild and chaotic world.

Marcus approached the gate where two guards stood watch. Marcus intended to walk right past. He didn't want to have to retell his tale again. He figured they could make their own assumptions of why he looked like he had been through Hell and back. But, of course, they stopped him to ask a few questions. Ahhh here we go, time to be interrogated... he thought.

"Hold it!" the guard said, seemingly ignoring the cuts and bruises that decorated Marcus' body. "What's your business in Syliras?"

"I live here..." Marcus mumbled.

"Speak up, didn't catch that"

"I said I lived here" He said, slightly aggravated.

"You gotta name?"

"Marcus Braeden" He muttered.

"Braeden? Hmmmm Braeden. Yeah it sounds familiar, go on in?."

Marcus walked forward into the city, shoving through the crowd. He was home.

[Marcus Braeden]

Syliras had not changed much since Marcus was taken, not that he expected it to. It was still the same massive city that he left it as. A few Syliran Knights patrolled the streets but Marcus tried not to gaze upon them too much. Merchants and travelers constantly trickled through the entrance, meshing with the crowds walking the streets. Marcus kept on moving, not stopping for anything. He didn't want to take in any sights or anything, he just wanted to go home. The crowd moved against him, as they were most likely heading toward the market, the opposite direction of where Marcus needed to go. People constantly bumped him and shoved him aside, which really did not help his attitude considering his recent plight. Eventually, after battling the crowd, Marcus arrived at his dwelling. He simply walked in, kicked off his boots, and fell into his bed.

Once again the past events began to haunt him. Of course he was not the only captive in the forest. There were others but he had been the one to escape. He began to feel guilt for not even trying to help the others. He simply ran for it, completely ignoring the existence of anyone else besides himself. Marcus also needed to figure out what he was going to do. Was he going to tell the Syliran Knights? Would he just try to pretend the whole thing never happened? He also had a thought in the back of his mind that they were still maybe after him. And if that was the case, he would need to learn how to fight, but first, he needed sleep.

[Templar]

Marcus: Running: 2 – Escape Artist: 2 – Riding (Horse): 1 Lore: Helpful Strangers – Trading stories for Transport – How Not to Ride a Horse – Being a Free Man Again – Returning To Syliras Additional notes: I almost decided to give you a –1 in horse riding for that spectacular failure But I really liked this thread, felt almost sad it ended so quickly. Welcome back!