You New Around Here?(Till)

[Karc]

Timestamp: Noon, 12th Day of Spring, 511 AV Karc lounged on the chair in the back of the Silver Silver, his legs propped on the table, his arse planted on a chair, his eyes roaming the room looking for something to do. He had a mug in his hand that was long past empty and his eagle Aero sat on his feet, his eyes also roaming the room.The Silver silver was quite full, though every one seemed to be keeping to themselves. Karc unsheathed his kukri(putting the mug on the table), and glanced over it, he pulled out the whetstone that he had bought that day, and started to run it along its edge.

OOCIts pretty small and blah sorry.
-2 cm-Whetstone

[Till]

He came in late that day. Till did a quick glance around the Sliver, hoping to catch some regular company. He had been working on them for a while now, and they seemed to be warming to him so far. But they hadn't come in yet, or weren't. It was an awful shame, he thought. He took in the Sliver, examining old and new company. Most seemed at least vaguely familiar to Till, but there were a few newcomers. Till dismissed them all one by one, until his eyes came across a Drykas with an eagle, looking very bored. Curiosity, Till knew, was a dangerous thing. But it was also the heart of progress, and he could hardly see why the man could hurt him . . . and, no lie, he was intrigued. Till had never left Ravok, and often heard stories of the Sea of Grass and the Drykas men there who took many wives, and their great horses. More than that though, he was concerned. Till had nothing but apathy for the people of Ravok and the worshipers of Rhy'sol, but he had a soft spot for foreigners and heretics. If this man had not registered with the city, it would be so easy for him to be caged and taken away to the Slave Market. He pulled back a seat across the Drykas and sat without introduction. "Afternoon," he said, folding his hands on top of one another in front of him and smiling.

[Karc]

Karc started as the man pulled a chair up on his table."Oh. Yes, Afternoon." He removed his feet from the table, his eyes sweeping over the man trying to seize him up. He didn't seem to mean him any harm, but appearances can be deceiving. Aero flapped his wings and landed on the table peering curiously at the newcomer. "Err, do I know you? If so I am sorry, but I can't remember. If not then, who do I have the pleasure of meeting?" He sheathed his kuri, leaning forward across the table, one hand coming to pat Aero.

[Till]

"I don't think we have," Till said pleasantly, and then "it's not often we get someone so far traveled in Ravok." He shrugged, dismissing his own assertion as unimportant. His eyes wandered from Karc and found their way around the room while he thought. "That's why I'm here, actually. You don't look familiar." He raised his hands in apology. "I've been wrong before, of course. But I don't think I am now." His voice fell lower; not a whisper, not even close, but soft enough to not be overheard in the din of the tavern. "I hope you've gotten everything sorted out wit the CEB." There was worry in his eyes, and he did not have to fake it. "Foreigners don't generally fare too well here."

[Karc]

The man replied cheerly "I don't think we have, it's not often we get someone so far traveled in Ravok." He then shrugged, his eyes wandered wandered across the room. "Oh, is that so. Well a pleasure to meet you, my name is Karc, and this is Aero." He stroked the eagle. He glanced up as the man started to speak again. "That's why I'm here, actually. You don't look familiar." He raised his hands in apology. "I've been wrong before, of course. But I don't think I am now." Karc farrowed his brow slightly at that, a look of slight confusion on his face. "Erm, well I'v been here for about a week, and have come into the Silver Silver, each day this week." The man's voice then became very quite almost a whisper, Karc had to lean in just slightly to make out the words, his brow still furrowed and the confusion showing. "I hope you've gotten everything sorted out wit the CEB." There was worry in his eyes. Karc started to reply slowly "Yes...", but the man continued. "Foreigners don't generally fare too well here." Karc leaned back slightly. "Erm, well I have gotten a job, and have a place to stay...What do you mean?" His face lightened slightly, "There not going to string me up for being a foreigner are they?" A nervous smile on his face.

[Till]

"Have you?" He said, truly surprised. "We must have come in at different times then. I doubt that I would forget your face." Or your eagle. Karc seemed off-balance; a good place to keep him, Till thought, before he decided to get offended at the way he'd swept in on the Drykas' table. "My name is Till." He listened to Karc, his expression deathly somber. "It's good that you have a job already," he said. "The fact that you have someone in the city that needs you may help some." "There is a chance that you know this already," Till began. "But full citizens of Ravok," he tapped a finger to his chest. "Are protected by the Ebonstryfe. Others . . . " He gave Karc a meaningful look. "Not so much. We live at the heart of the slave trade, here. Enslaving a citizen is illegal. Enslaving a non-citizen is not." He shut his eyes. "I could not tell you how many times I'd seen some poor Kelvic or Akalak assaulted in the streets by men with nets." He opened them again, and his gaze lingered on Karc's arm. "With those tattoos of yours, and that eagle, people are going to know you're not from here. If they're desperate enough . . ." He let Karc find the answer himself. "Not enough people are warned," Till said, suddenly very tired.

[Karc]

Karc's eyes narrowed as the man talked, once he was finished Karc simply sat there thinking. Enslavement. That was a close call. If this man hadn't told me about this...I dare not think about it. "Well, firstly I thank you for warning me. Secondly, its nice to meet you Till." He leaned back sighing. A slight smile danced over his lips. "Ravok is one dangerous town." His eyes straying to the rafters of the roof. He finally leaned forward, his eyes taking in all of Till, he seemed to be deciding weather to trust Till or not. Shrugging, he said "Till, would you by chance know how, or where I could become a citizen?"

[Till]

Till hesitated. If there was going to be trouble, it would be here. He picked his next words carefully, "in order to become a citizen of Ravok you need to register with the Black Sun." "I've been a part of it since before I can remember," he told Karc. "So I don't know the specifics of it. You might need to go to the Temple of the Black Sun," Till said. "Or maybe the Vitrax. I'm not altogether sure what the requirements are, but I can pretty much guarantee that they will ask you to dedicate yourself to Rhy'sol." His last word was a whisper. The importance of the God could not be overstated in Ravok. His eyes watched every corner, his presence suffused the land. Till did not love Rhy'sol as many of the inhabitants did; he feared him. Felt the taste of death and destruction hovering over his head and trembled. Till's face was made pale by the mere mention of 'his' God's name. He gathered himself again. "That," he said "should help to safeguard you."

[Karc]

As soon as Rhysol was mentioned, Karc stiffened and his eyes narrowed. Rhy'sol. He would have to lie. There is no way he would dedicate himself to that...monster. He glanced over Till. "Hey, Till because you seem to know this place well, would mind showing a foreigner around? We could also stop to get my citizenship." He really did need someone to show him around, but this was also to show him the more about the man in front of him, and of course to get his citizenship.

[Till]

Till had not been expecting that. Karc had been taking everything in stride; trusting Till at his word. Perhaps . . . perhaps not smart, considering. Had he been the wrong sort of man, then he would have led Karc into an alley full of friends with clubs and nets. Still it seemed counterproductive to tell the man 'you must not trust so easily' when Till himself was a stranger. He was not sure what he had been expecting, but Karc's wish to apply for citizenship left a bittersweet taste in Till's mouth. Karc would be safe no doubt, but Till could not help but wonder if acquiring immunity could be so simple for a stranger. It might be that he was sticking his neck out too far for this strange Drykas. He looked over Karc and Aero with a critical eye; the warning was made. His work was done. Any further research that Karc did - and Till did not doubt that he would want to check - would validate what Till had told him. And yet none of the others that he worked on in the early nights was there right then, and though he was no saint, he was sick of all the unwary wandering into the city's traps. Till sighed. "We'll want to hire a ravosala," he said. "You pay the cost for that I'll show you the places that matter on the way."