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Post by Tali Morgul on Jul 4, 2013 10:50:22 GMT -5
Not many were afraid avoided her anymore when she walked through the trading port in the Bay of Lethunnsa, they had seen the lion that accompanied her several times now that they were no longer made wide berth around her. Tau, a rare white lion, walked proudly at her side – never in front, never behind, always placed perfectly by her side in a display that he was hers, as much as she was his to protect. Talisa, a foreign girl from the desert sands far across the sea loved her new home of the wide open ocean, but coming to the ports of Lethunnsa or Seang meant there was always something new to see or smell. There was never a dull moment for her.
Plenty of the people knew about Talisa too... but their information varied and often let to somewhat amusing rumours. One of her favourite ones was that Captain Lyall Wolfson had bought himself a pleasure slave to keep him company on his ship, which was utterly hilarious because Talisa had never been a slave, but she was married to Lyall. Indeed, her Captain was her Husband... an unusual arrangement originally, but it was a normal thing to her now. Though, she had to chuckle at the pleasure slave... it was amusing since Lyall's mother had once been of the same classification, but now she was a free woman.
Talisa paused for a moment at one of the vendor stalls that lined the street closest to the docks, venturing closer to inspect an item of interest. She lifted the blue crystal to her eye level to judge it's clarity with a now expert eye. “Ahhh, our finest sapphire”, the man that ran the stall commented with a grin. “Amazing quality is it not?”
Talisa smirked. “I'm inclined to agree...” she responded. “With not”.
The vendor paled slight. “W-w-what do you mean madam?” he asked, stammering over the question.
“It's fake”.
“Oh....no no no no... it's not. It's real”, he insisted quickly, but he'd already shot himself in the foot with the speed of it. It was as much an admission as the truth could have been. Talisa set the blue crystal down, which was nothing more than coloured glass, and turned to leave.
“If you like it, I'll trade it to you!” the vendor called out, desperate for a sale.
The pirate looked over her shoulder, raising an eyebrow. What could this simpering trader possibly trade the fake crystal for? She turned back to face him, crossing her arms and pursing her lips, waiting to hear what idea was lurking within the mind of this vendor as a potential cost.
“Your lion”, he said, pointing at Tau. Talisa looked at her white lion before running a hand through his mane lightly.
“My lion is worth more than your piece of glass”, she counted, insulted by the fact that he would attempt such a suggestion. The nerve... a rare white lion or a fake sapphire? The idea of it was insulted and hysterical.
“It's a freak! How can that thing be valuable?!” the vendor declared loudly. Talisa narrowed her eyes into a hard glare while the lion growled at the insult that had been directed at it. The man drew a blade... only to halt when two men walked up behind Talisa, half drawing their own blades – Talisa's guards. The vendor sheathed their blade quickly before picking up the false gem and offering it to Talisa. “Take it, as a gift”.
Talisa did take the gem, simply because it was ocean blue, and then she walked away, without looking back, and her lion remaining at her side. There was no way in seven hells that Talisa would part with Tau. He had been a gift to her when she had been born, raised beside her. Her guards however, were a mixed blessing. On one hand they were annoying because people instantly backed off from causing anymore trouble for Talisa, one the other... for the same reason. And they never uttered a word to her. Talisa rolled her eyes at the reason behind both their presence and their silence: Lyall. The Captain had been unable to accompany her off the ship that day and in his place had sent two of the crew of the “Sanaii” to go with her instead.
“So what now gents?” she asked her silent guardians, lion included. “Shall we start a fight? Save girl from being raped? Beg, borrow and steal?” Talisa sighed, asking was pointless... she'd never get an answer from any of her companions. She would pay ten gold coins just for a bit of excitement!
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Post by Seregon on Jul 10, 2013 17:56:05 GMT -5
Insects. This was the word which came to mind to Seregon as he traversed the cobblestone streets of this Muireachan port city tonight. All around him it seemed that beggars, prostitutes, merchants, charlatans, and drunkards swarmed around him on every corner - each seemingly wanting something from him that they did not deserve. Their dullard minds were seemingly lost to simple prospects of commerce and vice something far beneath the immortal First Vampire.
However despite these errant thoughts of annoyance, Seregon maintained a relaxed demeanor as he strolled about the Bay of Lethunnsa. These "pests" in his mind were obviously ignorant of who he was and just too simply far down the pecking order to warrant a response. Yet it would be pointless to consider these miserable people as ready-to-slay blood-bags for every perceived "offense". If he dared to engage in such evil whims, Seregon doubted there would be very little of this city left. Certainly such a grand public slaughter would be unproductive for winning any new converts to his cause.
Moreover, Seregon was not beyond understanding these people either. Most of them had to worry about making ends meet or suppressing their troubles with sex, money, and alcohol. They were victims of circumstance; not choice. Mortal life was cruelly short and one had to make the most of it before succumbing to the cruelties of age, death, and disease. Millenia ago the Princes of Darkness took his place among humans as a demi-god champion who pitied their weaknesses and shortcomings. In his mind, it was his love for them and his human mother that drove him to rebel against the "cruel" gods and an unjust cosmic order.
However despite such deep contemplations, the Prince of Darkness had a far more simple reason for visiting the Bay of Lethunnsa tonight. The idyllic port city was graced with his presence because he was seeking to understand how far civilization had come along in this kingdom since his last visit. A lot had changed in Speirling during Seregon' many centuries of slumber. New fashions, new customs, and new sciences now graced his senses at every turn. The impressive Eachanarchian inspired architecture also reminded him of his once-adopted homeland.
Though Seregon's bout of wide-eyed curiosity was tell-tale to anyone watching him, his current appearance made him blend in with the mortal herd well enough. He was wise to have shape-shifted before entering the Bay instead of wearing his usual armors and undead visage. Instead his manner of dress was now modeled after some various sailors that he spotted earlier in the evening. He was now clad in a black cotton jacket, matching pants, a halfway unbuttoned maroon silk shirt, worn black leather boots, and a golden sash which held his sheathed short-sword firmly into place. His grooming likewise complemented the look with a neatly pulled-back long brown ponytail and a wispy goatee. The Prince of Darkness also paid careful attention to removing his undead features from sight; most notably by making his pale skin vanish into a more healthy looking bronze. All in all, Seregon was sporting the look of a charming and handsome swashbuckler.
After several minutes of walking through the city's bustling marketplace and rebuffing many propositions, Seregon's advance was finally halted when his eyes caught glimpse of one particular merchant stall. It was that of an arms dealer who sold weapons of the like which Seregon had never seen. The vendor was quick to display these strange weapons and educate Seregon for an impromptu sales-pitch. They were called firearms and were for the most part a scientific invention of the distant kingdom of Gaothaidh. This somewhat piqued the interest of Seregon the more he learned about them. Certainly their mechanics of using "black powder" meant they packed a bigger wallop in combat than a sword or bow. Unfortunately their stated range and accuracy was also far less than what the Prince of Darkness could have hoped for. Still, Seregon had recounted seeing earlier a few pistols at the waist-sides of some very-well to pirates.
Yet before Seregon could ask any questions of his own just the merchant ended his informative lecture, the vampire demi-god's auditory senses were jolted by the sound of a lion's roar race through the market. Nearly everyone around Seregon was startled or started taking cover from the disruptive act; but the Prince of Darkness remained thoroughly at ease. Such predatory beasts did not threaten him; for he considered them more like kin. Instead Seregon then calmly turned around to visually pinpoint the predatory beast's location for curiosity's sake. Immediately his eyes became affixed to another vendor's stall across the street. There he saw the creature in the company of a group of pirates who having a boisterous dispute with an unscrupulous jeweler.
At this point Seregon did not know what to make of what he saw. The majestic lion was seemingly tame and white; more of a pet than some wild creature or zoo animal. The group's female leader was also an exotic beauty in her own right that made Seregon change focus. Most notably her distinct features were not native to Speirling by far. Instead she physically reminded Seregon of a far off land across the oceans that he had once visited during one of his famed Thirteen Trials. Obviously much had changed in this world ever since. Meanwhile as he analyzed this foreign woman's characteristics, the ongoing dispute seemingly resolved itself peacefully to the pirates' favor. Thereafter Seregon's voyeurism was quickly met with the leader's evident charisma and sense of adventure when she asked her companions on what they would do next. Such a spirit was far more admirable than those of the base "insects" which Seregon was previously accustomed to here.
Despite his curiosities however, Seregon had no intention of walking up to such a group of ragtag swashbucklers and attempting to ingratiate himself. Despite his manner of dress and brief observations, he knew very little about the pirate lifestyle in the modern day. Furthermore such overt effort in interpersonal relations ran contrary to his usual styles of manipulation and empirical observation. He was more accustomed to people coming to him, not the other way around. Using magical influence in public was certainly out of the question. It was unlikely that his usual seductive charms would be of effect against such a commanding woman who already had a posse of pirates to back her up as third wheels. The size of her group also led Seregon believe that she was more likely than already accounted for. In any event, all this did not seem worth the bother for just meeting a spirited albeit beautiful foreigner. With that said Seregon promptly ended his minutes long bout of gawking like a tourist and resumed his previous dealings with the arms-merchant.
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Post by Tali Morgul on Jul 11, 2013 2:09:49 GMT -5
The Demi-God turned Vampire was right in assuming that Talisa was already spoken for, she would not have silent guards with her otherwise. In fact, she would still be in the deserts of Harenam Maris if she was still unmarried, but the fact remained that was happily married to her Captain. An arranged marriage initially, it had turned out brilliant because the pair had formed a genuine relationship out of the arrangement – though she hadn't exactly been bought either as some arranged marriages tended to be like. No, Talisa had been married off for her safety. Safety from her callous step-brother, Edrik. However, despite her obvious foreign appearance and striking features that marked her as 'desert creature', Talisa was a feared pirate in her own right. The very fact that people actually stepped out of her way was clear of how famed she was through the waters of Muireach. The foreign First Mate of Captain Lyall Wolfson, both of them werewolves that attacked merchant ships – but remarkably left innocent folk unharmed.
The sentiments of the trader earlier were not uncommon regarding Tau either. Yes, he was white... he was a rare creature, but he was prized amongst her desert folk. The sandy coloured lions that were so common were valuable in their own rights, of course, but a white lion was rare and beautiful, prized amongst her people. Her mother's own marriage had been accompanied by a white lioness and her cubs, only one of which was white – and that white cub was now the impressive male at her side. Tau. He was large and imposing, his mane glistening whenever the light touched it, and his eyes were pale blue, each as precious as himself. At least, that was the way Talisa saw her fearsome companion.
“Good day milady”, one of the more favouring vendors of the market wharf called out to her with a wave and a smile. Talisa smiled in return, venturing over to the woman who had called her. Granted that many people were afraid, or at the very least, wary of the pirate and her lion, some were not and even welcomed her presence.
“Wylla”, Talisa greeted the woman. “What have you got for me today?”
Wylla grinned with a laugh, commenting that the pirate would like 'this'. 'This' turned out to be a barrel of wine from Teumnach: the Fae kingdom. Last Talisa had heard the Fae folk rarely made anything with an alcoholic content, so the statement was puzzling to her, but it smelled sweet, and fruity. Curious about it, Talisa purchased it without hesitation, handing over a few coppers and a silver coin to Wylla. Wylla wasn't exactly a friend, but she was a sympathiser towards the pirates and often sold them things or bought items from them when other traders would not. Wylla was a smart and business savvy woman, Pirates were good money.
One of her silent guards stepped forward to take the cask, preventing from Talisa from doing so. Not only were they there to protect her, but they often performed the role of heavy lifting for whatever items she may had purchased. Wylla even had a few letters for Talisa and Lyall from her kindred across the sea, which Talisa took gratefully and tucked them into her belt. She was not dressed like any other pirate wench that could be found, most of the pirate woman wore dresses or disguised themselves as men, Talisa had her own style. Long black boots with a heel adorned each of her legs, which Lyall had often referred to as 'shit kicker boots', while a blouse of white wrapped around her torso, covered with a dark navy vest. A bright blue sash was tied around her waist, acting as a belt, complete with two Sai's hooked through the fabric. Talisa was the only known pirate that fought with Sai's. And of course the trademark hate adorned her head, even with a blue feather tucked into it: she had a thing for anything blue.
Moving away from Wylla and her stall, Talisa's guards noticed a newcomer to the port starring at Talisa far longer than was appreciated in their regard. Even the lion, Tau, did not appreciate his attentions, all three of them stepping forward ahead of her to keep the stranger separate from the stranger. Talisa and her crew were frequent visitors to Lethunnsa Port and Port Seang, they knew many of the faces that belonged here.... this one certainly wasn't a common one.
“Something interest you, savvy?” WHAT? One of her silent protectors had actually uttered something? Now which one was he? Talisa knew these two were brothers, but she could never remember which one was which... and they weren't even twins. Talisa watched patiently, neither concerned nor insulted by the three males guarding her standing in front of her. While she could protect herself much of the time, Talisa was tolerant of them for her Captain's sake.
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