(I know, I know, this is my old 'life of Alder' thread renamed and an extra post stuck on the end with the actual building in it... so sue me for misrepresentation or something))
Dusk is just starting to fall over Widu as Alder stands facing the empty prison of the town. That quiet, unremarkable, black haired youth that's always around but nobody really pays much attention to. His pale skin is once again stained brown with dirt, and his hair still falls ruggedly down to his neck. His green eyes narrow in concentration for a second, as an expression of some sort plays across his face as he regards the unguarded unused area, but it is gone before it really forms. He just stands there, motionless in front of the slightly dreary atmosphere of the prison, before with a slight snort of derision, he turns away, pulling his cloak up above his head.
"What the hell do I do now?" he mutters, the light glinting off of the coin that he fiddles with, before he stares back at the empty prison. "Actually, I think that they made my decision for me."
After that, he just stands there, as the sky moves through darker and darker shades of blue, the coin in his hand still flickers in the light.
A strange sight to be sure from Alder, the boy who nobody really ever gave a second glance to, and who always seemed to come and go as he pleased.
[ORP] Splinters and Sparks, the home and shop of Alder
Moderator: Community Team
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Silence
[ORP] Splinters and Sparks, the home and shop of Alder
Last edited by Silence on Tue Jul 28, 2015 5:24 pm, edited 7 times in total.
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Silence
Re: ORP: The unremarkable youth
It was raining...
Alder hated the rain. The damn thing left him cold and shivering, his clothes heavier than normal, and it had always been... Painful to him. He'd probably never figure out why, but it was probably something to do with that whole "running water bannishes evil" thing. Not that he was evil, but very few people would believe that. He gritted his teeth now, almost snarling at the pain, but it was bearable this time. It wasn't torrential yet. None the less, he still worked his way towards the nearest bit of cover, staggering once as he did so. The cover was an overhanging lip of a building, barely enough to squeeze under, but enough for now.
He didn't really care who the building belonged to, or what it was for, just the wind direction, incase he had to move. As the rain soaked through the layer of dirt surrounding his skin, he bared his teeth and hissed again. It looked like he wasn't going anywhere for a while, not while the rain still came down. Alder looked about him and half smirked. Typical. Trying to get a few things done, and the weather had to have other ideas. He took a coin from his pocket, not caring that the wet surface seared his flesh. He'd be here for awhile, so he needed something to pass the time. The coin would suffice.
He leaned on the wall and considered a few things. He had nothing else to do. The people of this town... Why had they always shunned him? Well firstly it had been for his parents. Pickpockets, beggars and con artists. Then it had been for his heritage. How that had gotten out, he had no idea. But that wasn't what he considered. He really considered why changelings were shunned. The answer... They were said to steal and eat babies, replacing them with their own young. They were said to be vile, evil and manipulative. He couldn't make any conclusions either way with regard to his kin. He'd never met them. But he could truthfully say that the people of widu were good people. They just saw him as no different to a yvyrm. That was why... They couldn't be blamed for being misdirected, and he wouldn't blame them for it, but he was not evil. Youken was not evil. Alder was the name of his human alias, and was not even inherently evil, but neither was youken, and he reminded himself of that as he stoo, sheltered from the rain. Despite what it seemed to have decided, he was not evil.
A few metres away, a tiny beetle curled its legs up under it as it drowned. It hadn't been evil either, but the rain had still brought "justice" upon it. The livegiving rain, the water, the salvation of everything in secfenia, was far from good and far from correct in its judgement. It was just a force of nature, like any other, but it still seemed to speak for the people here, bringing its judgement down on the pests of the world whilst it gave life to everything else. The insect, the arachnid, the miriapod and the changeling.
Alder hated the rain. The damn thing left him cold and shivering, his clothes heavier than normal, and it had always been... Painful to him. He'd probably never figure out why, but it was probably something to do with that whole "running water bannishes evil" thing. Not that he was evil, but very few people would believe that. He gritted his teeth now, almost snarling at the pain, but it was bearable this time. It wasn't torrential yet. None the less, he still worked his way towards the nearest bit of cover, staggering once as he did so. The cover was an overhanging lip of a building, barely enough to squeeze under, but enough for now.
He didn't really care who the building belonged to, or what it was for, just the wind direction, incase he had to move. As the rain soaked through the layer of dirt surrounding his skin, he bared his teeth and hissed again. It looked like he wasn't going anywhere for a while, not while the rain still came down. Alder looked about him and half smirked. Typical. Trying to get a few things done, and the weather had to have other ideas. He took a coin from his pocket, not caring that the wet surface seared his flesh. He'd be here for awhile, so he needed something to pass the time. The coin would suffice.
He leaned on the wall and considered a few things. He had nothing else to do. The people of this town... Why had they always shunned him? Well firstly it had been for his parents. Pickpockets, beggars and con artists. Then it had been for his heritage. How that had gotten out, he had no idea. But that wasn't what he considered. He really considered why changelings were shunned. The answer... They were said to steal and eat babies, replacing them with their own young. They were said to be vile, evil and manipulative. He couldn't make any conclusions either way with regard to his kin. He'd never met them. But he could truthfully say that the people of widu were good people. They just saw him as no different to a yvyrm. That was why... They couldn't be blamed for being misdirected, and he wouldn't blame them for it, but he was not evil. Youken was not evil. Alder was the name of his human alias, and was not even inherently evil, but neither was youken, and he reminded himself of that as he stoo, sheltered from the rain. Despite what it seemed to have decided, he was not evil.
A few metres away, a tiny beetle curled its legs up under it as it drowned. It hadn't been evil either, but the rain had still brought "justice" upon it. The livegiving rain, the water, the salvation of everything in secfenia, was far from good and far from correct in its judgement. It was just a force of nature, like any other, but it still seemed to speak for the people here, bringing its judgement down on the pests of the world whilst it gave life to everything else. The insect, the arachnid, the miriapod and the changeling.
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Rnushka
Re: ORP: The unremarkable youth
A crow stared at the boy who was standing flat against the wall of the building.
Rnushka's first thought was that this was impossible, but then again, they all had to be born somewhere. No, it was improbable, but not impossible. It certainly complicated matters though, and the crow changeling had more than enough to worry about. If it had been the troubles of any other thing, then he wouldn't have cared, but this was a changeling, this was his kin, his family. This was a creature like himself who was not like the scum that had pushed him from Paz.
The crow ruffled its feathers and looked at the sky. It too was under an overhanging building, although the rain didn't hurt it, it would be troublesome for Rnushka if it got too wet later, and having wet feathers made it difficult to fly.
The evidence here wasn't conclusive, but his instincts were rarely wrong, and the boy was definitely making an overly large effort to stay dry. The crow sniffed the air, and Rnuksha growled at the world, daring it to throw something else at him. Very well, he'd accept the new challenge, if only to spite this rotten world, just to prove that he could.
Rnuksha glanced at the sky again, balancing perfectly on four wooden mugs, previously filled with ale, two for each foot, one balanced on the next. The extra height disguised the fact that his current form was two feet shorter than normal, and that his clothes were currently far too big. The crow had only been supposed to go and find a potential getaway route that used as little ground exposed to the rain as possible. He was new here after all, and so did not have a perfect map of the area implanted into his memory yet. Now he just let the crow sit there. No point in getting senselessly wet.
This whole thing was going to get complicated, but he was a changeling, and they have a nasty habit of surviving and getting what they want done... no matter what the cost, or what the odds against them are.
Rnushka's first thought was that this was impossible, but then again, they all had to be born somewhere. No, it was improbable, but not impossible. It certainly complicated matters though, and the crow changeling had more than enough to worry about. If it had been the troubles of any other thing, then he wouldn't have cared, but this was a changeling, this was his kin, his family. This was a creature like himself who was not like the scum that had pushed him from Paz.
The crow ruffled its feathers and looked at the sky. It too was under an overhanging building, although the rain didn't hurt it, it would be troublesome for Rnushka if it got too wet later, and having wet feathers made it difficult to fly.
The evidence here wasn't conclusive, but his instincts were rarely wrong, and the boy was definitely making an overly large effort to stay dry. The crow sniffed the air, and Rnuksha growled at the world, daring it to throw something else at him. Very well, he'd accept the new challenge, if only to spite this rotten world, just to prove that he could.
Rnuksha glanced at the sky again, balancing perfectly on four wooden mugs, previously filled with ale, two for each foot, one balanced on the next. The extra height disguised the fact that his current form was two feet shorter than normal, and that his clothes were currently far too big. The crow had only been supposed to go and find a potential getaway route that used as little ground exposed to the rain as possible. He was new here after all, and so did not have a perfect map of the area implanted into his memory yet. Now he just let the crow sit there. No point in getting senselessly wet.
This whole thing was going to get complicated, but he was a changeling, and they have a nasty habit of surviving and getting what they want done... no matter what the cost, or what the odds against them are.
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Silence
Re: [IRP] The unremarkable youth
Alder stared at his shadow, currently slumped against the wall, it did not look very impressed at the small alley that he called home. “We need to talk” he had muttered, but since then the two of them really hadn’t communicated much.
Finally breaching the silence, Alder muttered, “Sorry, I’m still getting used to this... this is where I... well, the best word is ‘live’, but that really doesn’t sum it up. Just making sure you know if you hadn’t already figured it out.”
The shadow glanced around the alley once more and crossed its arms even tighter against itself. It slumped back slightly against a wall opposite Youken and stared at him blankly, it stared at the pile of rugs on the floor which was where Youken slept usually when not using the witcher’s house. It’s discontent was evident in its every motion.
“Alright, it’s not much. There is somewhere else we can stay, but there’s a really strange woman there, and she puts me off. I’m really not certain if she should see you. She’s...” he trailed off. The shadow wasn’t looking at him anymore, but was getting to its feet. It looked expectantly at Alder, although the boy wasn’t quite sure how to respond.
“Erm... what do you want me to do?”
The shadow shook its head sadly and sunk back to the floor.
“You know, if people see you doing something different to me, it could cause problems.”
The shadow nodded once, and slowly assumed the posture of Youken.
“You sure you can do this?”
The shadow shook its head slowly, but rolled its hand once as if to say “go on...”
Youken was a bit puzzled for a moment as to what the shadow could possibly mean, and then finally his mind kicked in past the shock at his current situation, and his logic reasserted itself.
“Oh I see...” he muttered before taking a few steps. This would require some practise, for both of them...
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“So can you actually talk or are you just mute?”
The shadow did not respond with anything more than a nod. Youken took a moment to figure out what had just been said before smiling thinly.
“Alright, I’m going to assume mute...” the shadow slumped slightly more against the wall but otherwise didn’t respond. “I take it that you can... ah, the shadow man already answered that... and it’s obvious you can.”
The shadow raised its arms in an exaggerated shrug, its head tilted sarcastically to the side.
“I guess I deserved that,” muttered the boy.
The shadow lowered its arms slowly and slumped even further down the wall, it looked a bit like a drunken man by now.
“By the way, if you don’t mind, I’d like to try something.”
The shadow cocked its head to the side and stared blankly at the boy, with a slight movement of its head, it motioned for him to go on.
The boy glanced around the alley, making absolutely certain that nobody was around before changing form. Not a large change in form, just making himself a little taller and a little more muscular. The shadow sat suddenly bolt upright in shock and stared, transfixed at the boy, even as it too found itself changing form, mimicking what he was doing. Youken grinned. So it still worked.
“Just had to check,” he muttered as his skin once again took on the look of a thousand pearly black scuttling beetles, all clambering over each other. “It would have been rather awkward if you hadn’t changed.” The beetles finally each made up their minds where they wanted to be, and Youken’s colour returned to him, with a speed that made the shadow do a double take. Hadn’t that boy just been a mass of beetles a second ago?
“What you just saw stays between us, understand? I’m a changeling, but that means that if anybody knew, we’d have a problem.” The shadow slowly slumped back down to its former area, slowly shaking its head in a state somewhere between shock and deep contemplation. Alder’s eyes went wide at it did though.
“No... you don’t understand, you can’t let anybody know about this!” The shadow glanced suddenly up at Youken, and gave a slightly reassuring nod to him.
“Huh? You... I misunderstood something didn’t I?”
The shadow gave a nod, its head still tilted to the side so the nod looked more like a lop sided man starting to fall asleep.
“Alright... so this stays between us right.”
The shadow repeated its gesture.
“Are you falling asleep?”
The shadow nodded again.
For a second, Youken looked worried, did that mean that this shadow was going to give him away? That he had only nodded because he was falling asleep. Then he noticed the look that the thing was giving him, and if it had been a real creature, he would have been sorely tempted to strangle it. The shadow placed a hand behind its neck with an amused inclination of its head. Youken could picture that its face currently was in a slightly mischievous smile.
“Ha ha, very funny. Ever considered that a life or death situation is...”
The shadow’s chest rose and fell evenly and its mouth lolled slightly open, as its body went limp. Alder’s shadow was asleep. For two seconds, Youken stared at it incredulously. After another second though, he sighed and walked back over to his rags and began to sort out those that were dirty from those that were clean. It didn’t really matter to him, but it was something to keep him busy. He didn’t really feel like disturbing his shadow. After all, if he had to live with it for the rest of his life, it would be best to stay on good terms with it.
Behind his back, his shadow ‘woke up’ and stared in an amused fashion at Alder’s back. Not having a facial expression meant that it was so much easier to feign a state of being, and he was beginning to like this partner, even if he would need to understand just who was in charge in this relationship. Youken’s shadow grinned, but of course, nobody could have seen the grin even if they had been looking at the shadow.
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“We need to learn sign language.”
The shadow tilted its head, a sign that Youken had come to read as curiosity or else amused disagreement.
“Because we need some way to communicate beyond this.”
The shadow stared blankly at Youken.
“Yes I know that you can understand me just fine, but I can’t understand you, and it wouldn’t be fair for me to ask you to do something without myself putting some effort in. Plus, how will I understand you if I don’t know the language?”
The shadow’s shoulders sagged, and its head straightened, a gesture that Youken hadn’t seen his shadow make before.
“Excuse me?”
The shadow deflated like a balloon, a few seconds later it looked up at Alder’s chest with a bored posture.
“Alright, so can you read?”
The shadow stood right up on a nearby wall and placed its hands on its hips, leaning towards Youken in two dimensions slightly angrily. Youken retreated back from the creature, but unfortunately for him, it was attached to his feet, so that didn’t work too well. With a gulp he offered a book on sign language that he had procured from the university to his shadow.
“Y-You’ll need me to turn the pages right?”
The shadow sat slowly down and looked at the book with a bored posture before slowly leaning forward. It twirled a finger in the air and Youken obediently opened the first page. What he hadn’t told his shadow was that he was almost illiterate, but he was pretty quick witted. There were pictures and annotations, and so he didn’t actually have to read through the whole book to get the gist. The shadow on the other hand must have been one of the quickest readers Youken had ever heard of. He could barely look at the pictures and make some mental notes before the shadow was motioning for the next page. Still, by the next day, the two of them were speaking semi fluent sign language. That wasn’t good enough for the standards of either of them, and so the next day they reread the book between intervals of Youken working on Reaver’s house, working in the town, training and of course, spending time in the tavern.
Finally breaching the silence, Alder muttered, “Sorry, I’m still getting used to this... this is where I... well, the best word is ‘live’, but that really doesn’t sum it up. Just making sure you know if you hadn’t already figured it out.”
The shadow glanced around the alley once more and crossed its arms even tighter against itself. It slumped back slightly against a wall opposite Youken and stared at him blankly, it stared at the pile of rugs on the floor which was where Youken slept usually when not using the witcher’s house. It’s discontent was evident in its every motion.
“Alright, it’s not much. There is somewhere else we can stay, but there’s a really strange woman there, and she puts me off. I’m really not certain if she should see you. She’s...” he trailed off. The shadow wasn’t looking at him anymore, but was getting to its feet. It looked expectantly at Alder, although the boy wasn’t quite sure how to respond.
“Erm... what do you want me to do?”
The shadow shook its head sadly and sunk back to the floor.
“You know, if people see you doing something different to me, it could cause problems.”
The shadow nodded once, and slowly assumed the posture of Youken.
“You sure you can do this?”
The shadow shook its head slowly, but rolled its hand once as if to say “go on...”
Youken was a bit puzzled for a moment as to what the shadow could possibly mean, and then finally his mind kicked in past the shock at his current situation, and his logic reasserted itself.
“Oh I see...” he muttered before taking a few steps. This would require some practise, for both of them...
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“So can you actually talk or are you just mute?”
The shadow did not respond with anything more than a nod. Youken took a moment to figure out what had just been said before smiling thinly.
“Alright, I’m going to assume mute...” the shadow slumped slightly more against the wall but otherwise didn’t respond. “I take it that you can... ah, the shadow man already answered that... and it’s obvious you can.”
The shadow raised its arms in an exaggerated shrug, its head tilted sarcastically to the side.
“I guess I deserved that,” muttered the boy.
The shadow lowered its arms slowly and slumped even further down the wall, it looked a bit like a drunken man by now.
“By the way, if you don’t mind, I’d like to try something.”
The shadow cocked its head to the side and stared blankly at the boy, with a slight movement of its head, it motioned for him to go on.
The boy glanced around the alley, making absolutely certain that nobody was around before changing form. Not a large change in form, just making himself a little taller and a little more muscular. The shadow sat suddenly bolt upright in shock and stared, transfixed at the boy, even as it too found itself changing form, mimicking what he was doing. Youken grinned. So it still worked.
“Just had to check,” he muttered as his skin once again took on the look of a thousand pearly black scuttling beetles, all clambering over each other. “It would have been rather awkward if you hadn’t changed.” The beetles finally each made up their minds where they wanted to be, and Youken’s colour returned to him, with a speed that made the shadow do a double take. Hadn’t that boy just been a mass of beetles a second ago?
“What you just saw stays between us, understand? I’m a changeling, but that means that if anybody knew, we’d have a problem.” The shadow slowly slumped back down to its former area, slowly shaking its head in a state somewhere between shock and deep contemplation. Alder’s eyes went wide at it did though.
“No... you don’t understand, you can’t let anybody know about this!” The shadow glanced suddenly up at Youken, and gave a slightly reassuring nod to him.
“Huh? You... I misunderstood something didn’t I?”
The shadow gave a nod, its head still tilted to the side so the nod looked more like a lop sided man starting to fall asleep.
“Alright... so this stays between us right.”
The shadow repeated its gesture.
“Are you falling asleep?”
The shadow nodded again.
For a second, Youken looked worried, did that mean that this shadow was going to give him away? That he had only nodded because he was falling asleep. Then he noticed the look that the thing was giving him, and if it had been a real creature, he would have been sorely tempted to strangle it. The shadow placed a hand behind its neck with an amused inclination of its head. Youken could picture that its face currently was in a slightly mischievous smile.
“Ha ha, very funny. Ever considered that a life or death situation is...”
The shadow’s chest rose and fell evenly and its mouth lolled slightly open, as its body went limp. Alder’s shadow was asleep. For two seconds, Youken stared at it incredulously. After another second though, he sighed and walked back over to his rags and began to sort out those that were dirty from those that were clean. It didn’t really matter to him, but it was something to keep him busy. He didn’t really feel like disturbing his shadow. After all, if he had to live with it for the rest of his life, it would be best to stay on good terms with it.
Behind his back, his shadow ‘woke up’ and stared in an amused fashion at Alder’s back. Not having a facial expression meant that it was so much easier to feign a state of being, and he was beginning to like this partner, even if he would need to understand just who was in charge in this relationship. Youken’s shadow grinned, but of course, nobody could have seen the grin even if they had been looking at the shadow.
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“We need to learn sign language.”
The shadow tilted its head, a sign that Youken had come to read as curiosity or else amused disagreement.
“Because we need some way to communicate beyond this.”
The shadow stared blankly at Youken.
“Yes I know that you can understand me just fine, but I can’t understand you, and it wouldn’t be fair for me to ask you to do something without myself putting some effort in. Plus, how will I understand you if I don’t know the language?”
The shadow’s shoulders sagged, and its head straightened, a gesture that Youken hadn’t seen his shadow make before.
“Excuse me?”
The shadow deflated like a balloon, a few seconds later it looked up at Alder’s chest with a bored posture.
“Alright, so can you read?”
The shadow stood right up on a nearby wall and placed its hands on its hips, leaning towards Youken in two dimensions slightly angrily. Youken retreated back from the creature, but unfortunately for him, it was attached to his feet, so that didn’t work too well. With a gulp he offered a book on sign language that he had procured from the university to his shadow.
“Y-You’ll need me to turn the pages right?”
The shadow sat slowly down and looked at the book with a bored posture before slowly leaning forward. It twirled a finger in the air and Youken obediently opened the first page. What he hadn’t told his shadow was that he was almost illiterate, but he was pretty quick witted. There were pictures and annotations, and so he didn’t actually have to read through the whole book to get the gist. The shadow on the other hand must have been one of the quickest readers Youken had ever heard of. He could barely look at the pictures and make some mental notes before the shadow was motioning for the next page. Still, by the next day, the two of them were speaking semi fluent sign language. That wasn’t good enough for the standards of either of them, and so the next day they reread the book between intervals of Youken working on Reaver’s house, working in the town, training and of course, spending time in the tavern.
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Silence
Re: [IRP] The unremarkable youth
Youken had not meant to end up sharing his home with one person, let alone two.
Somehow though, he had ended up with two people that were both in need of a home and both of which he needed to keep satisfied. Rnushka had instantly seen the problem when his eyes had fallen upon the small alley that Youken called home.
“I... do not believe that this arangement will work out that well for either of us...” he had said, and with that, turned on his heel and walked out of the alley, a few days later, Youken saw him again, after he had purchased a small, almost derelict house near the outskirts of town that nobody else would buy just because of the state of it. It suited the older changeling’s needs perfectly, and barely made a dent in the money that he had looted from the hunters.
After that, days passed, neither really interupting the usual lifestyle of the other. So Youken was left with his original problems. Namely, an assassin that he couldn’t get rid of, a shadow that was equally difficult to get rid of, another assasin who seemed to insist upon making his life even more complicated, and the fact that he had to keep training and living, even through all this.
It should be mentioned at this point that a few guards about the city had noticed the markings on the walls of the more run down areas of Widu. Few had thought anything of the faint scratches though. After all, such markings are common within the outskirts of a town. Those that had thought anything of them had never made any sense of them and had quickly dismissed them as unimportant. To Youken, they were anything but unimportant. He walked alongside one of them as he remembered making that exact mark, his hand traced it along the wall as he walked along, mimicking the steps he had taken a while ago.
The mark, as all of them did, resembled a long scratch with occasional inclines and declines in the distance it was from the ground, and with some small circles followed by a break in the line every thirty or so of these. Youken’s hand traced the line as he walked. He had found quite a while ago that by replicating what he saw and felt exactly, he could cause himself to remember what he had been thinking, and since he couldn’t write in a way that would let him think at the same time, he had developed this method of remembering his more important thoughts. This particular line had been himself remembering his reasons for staying in this world and not moving on and becoming something else when he had the chance. It was different than the others in that it documented his remembering a thought process rather than a direct translation of the thought process, but he still liked to come down to this line now and then and remind himself why Alder still existed.
With a tired sigh, he took a butcher’s knife from his belt (really more of a string than a belt, but it did what he needed) and went to find a line that he had started a little while ago. It documented all of his thoughts about his current problems, and it was no different than any of the others in how it looked. Inclines, to him meaning a development in his train of thought, declines, meaning he had thought of something that would be a problem with that train of thought, and the circles that meant that he had finished thinking about that particular thought, usually since it had become a useless subject or because it was just plain stupid.
There were a lot of circles in this line.
His hand traced his line as he remembered what he had been thinking of to the merest distraction. Every so often, he found himself getting excited as he thought that maybe one of these thoughts would work before his hand came to a decline and he groaned as he remembered the problem he had found with it. There was even one moment when he grinned as he remembered his just plain weird idea about utilising the chicken soup from the gypsy caravan. That idea actually had a few inclines before he had come to his senses and written it off instantly.
Coming to the end of his stream of thoughts, he moved the dagger from the palm of his hand into a firmer grip and slowed his pace, took a single step past the circle and placed the tip of the knife into the wall. A low grating sound arose from the wall as he walked on. To others, it might have seemed irritating, but Youken barely noticed it. After adding three more thoughts to the wall, he came to one that he liked and began to develop it a bit further. It was a variation of one from earlier, but had a few small changes to it. A few of the plans were good and would probably work, but he wasn’t going to settle for probably. It took the boy another two hours before he found himself back on the same train of thought, and so he left that line just hanging and walked off. Perhaps another time he could come up with the perfect plan, but something the witcher had said was still causing him trouble. “There is always a risk in this sort of work,” with a scowl, he went to find Rnushka. The older changeling was most likely gorging himself on sugar at a tavern, but Youken’s plan was as good as it was ever going to get. The rest... would have to be improvised.
Somehow though, he had ended up with two people that were both in need of a home and both of which he needed to keep satisfied. Rnushka had instantly seen the problem when his eyes had fallen upon the small alley that Youken called home.
“I... do not believe that this arangement will work out that well for either of us...” he had said, and with that, turned on his heel and walked out of the alley, a few days later, Youken saw him again, after he had purchased a small, almost derelict house near the outskirts of town that nobody else would buy just because of the state of it. It suited the older changeling’s needs perfectly, and barely made a dent in the money that he had looted from the hunters.
After that, days passed, neither really interupting the usual lifestyle of the other. So Youken was left with his original problems. Namely, an assassin that he couldn’t get rid of, a shadow that was equally difficult to get rid of, another assasin who seemed to insist upon making his life even more complicated, and the fact that he had to keep training and living, even through all this.
It should be mentioned at this point that a few guards about the city had noticed the markings on the walls of the more run down areas of Widu. Few had thought anything of the faint scratches though. After all, such markings are common within the outskirts of a town. Those that had thought anything of them had never made any sense of them and had quickly dismissed them as unimportant. To Youken, they were anything but unimportant. He walked alongside one of them as he remembered making that exact mark, his hand traced it along the wall as he walked along, mimicking the steps he had taken a while ago.
The mark, as all of them did, resembled a long scratch with occasional inclines and declines in the distance it was from the ground, and with some small circles followed by a break in the line every thirty or so of these. Youken’s hand traced the line as he walked. He had found quite a while ago that by replicating what he saw and felt exactly, he could cause himself to remember what he had been thinking, and since he couldn’t write in a way that would let him think at the same time, he had developed this method of remembering his more important thoughts. This particular line had been himself remembering his reasons for staying in this world and not moving on and becoming something else when he had the chance. It was different than the others in that it documented his remembering a thought process rather than a direct translation of the thought process, but he still liked to come down to this line now and then and remind himself why Alder still existed.
With a tired sigh, he took a butcher’s knife from his belt (really more of a string than a belt, but it did what he needed) and went to find a line that he had started a little while ago. It documented all of his thoughts about his current problems, and it was no different than any of the others in how it looked. Inclines, to him meaning a development in his train of thought, declines, meaning he had thought of something that would be a problem with that train of thought, and the circles that meant that he had finished thinking about that particular thought, usually since it had become a useless subject or because it was just plain stupid.
There were a lot of circles in this line.
His hand traced his line as he remembered what he had been thinking of to the merest distraction. Every so often, he found himself getting excited as he thought that maybe one of these thoughts would work before his hand came to a decline and he groaned as he remembered the problem he had found with it. There was even one moment when he grinned as he remembered his just plain weird idea about utilising the chicken soup from the gypsy caravan. That idea actually had a few inclines before he had come to his senses and written it off instantly.
Coming to the end of his stream of thoughts, he moved the dagger from the palm of his hand into a firmer grip and slowed his pace, took a single step past the circle and placed the tip of the knife into the wall. A low grating sound arose from the wall as he walked on. To others, it might have seemed irritating, but Youken barely noticed it. After adding three more thoughts to the wall, he came to one that he liked and began to develop it a bit further. It was a variation of one from earlier, but had a few small changes to it. A few of the plans were good and would probably work, but he wasn’t going to settle for probably. It took the boy another two hours before he found himself back on the same train of thought, and so he left that line just hanging and walked off. Perhaps another time he could come up with the perfect plan, but something the witcher had said was still causing him trouble. “There is always a risk in this sort of work,” with a scowl, he went to find Rnushka. The older changeling was most likely gorging himself on sugar at a tavern, but Youken’s plan was as good as it was ever going to get. The rest... would have to be improvised.
-
Silence
Re: [ORP] The life of Alder
"A steward eh?"
"Yeah Alder, yer proper rich now like. Yeh gone and got yerself a field and..."
"I got given the field... but I'm not rich like, just... buying stuff."
"Yer changing kid. Yeh might still live on the streets with us urchins, but yer becomin more like those up top. Hell, yeh even hire out yer field teh us... Not saying that we're all friends now like... I ain't forgetting what they say yeh are."
Alder sighed. "I ain't no changeling... Why does everybody think that? It makes life real difficult."
"Whatever kid... look, it ain't bad what yer doing. It might be nice teh have somebody like one of us up 'mongst the important guys. Not much yeh can do, but they gave yeh a field... that's more'n most of us get. Yeh must have somethin different."
Alder started to get impatient with the dirty man. Yes, he had seen him around before. He was a street urchin, like the boy. Alder did know his name, nor did he want to. "That ain't new is it? I ain't ever fitted in have I? Yeh gonna get to the point or are yeh just here teh see how the freak acts teh yer questions like?"
"Look, all the important guys have a steward. Yeh have fields... a steward can help yeh run em. Whatever, why am I trying teh help you anyway?"
"Dunno... but, thanks like... I'll look into it."
---------------------
"So tell me again why I should hire you like..."
"Well sir, I am willing to work hard, make sure your fields are well worked, and then don't need that much pay... somebody like you clearly doesn't have the means to pay me in the regions of fifty freznics like these others are asking, so... shall we say fourty?"
"Alright... fourty if yer as good as yeh say yeh are... That's more than enough teh buy bread for the time... why only so little?"
The man's demeanour changed slightly. "Well sir, I have always thought that if you save and spend wisely, you can get by on much less. I don't need to have some money to go gambling and-"
"I see... so you don't need all of the luxuries that stewards usually get like... If I can pay yeh less, I can throw in some lessons on wood working."
"Well sir... times are hard see. I don't have the time to learn wood working, and I need the money more than I need the skills."
"Thanks for yer time mate... I now got what I need teh look for in a steward like. Yeh could probably talk a donkey inteh workin like a horse, but next time, don't try teh fool me... fourty is more than the others look for... but yeh trying teh get that much anyway. Maybe yeh need the money like, but that pouch on yer shirt under yer arm says otherwise like... from the size of it, it got a good three hundred in it."
Alder almost stopped. He had nothing against the man and didn't need him as an enemy. Still, he wanted the man to know that he had picked the wrong person to try to scam. The boy lowered his voice
"But I seen yer kind before. I turn me back on yeh for two minutes, and sure, you'll be loyal and stay, but I'll start getting real clumsy won't I? Things'll go missing, but never around yeh. Around you, things'll be perfect so I don't suspect yeh... Yeh don't get a pouch that big from fourty a week... and I know that others don't go gambling or drinking all the time, so why mention it? Why get so protective over it?"
The boy held up his own arm, showing a similar pouch.
"Next time, pick on somebody that doesn't know all the tricks, and try not giving everything away in how yer face looks."
The man looked shocked, and started running his hands over his face as if expecting to find the word 'liar' chiselled upon it. Alder had moved on. He now knew what to look for. That man had struck him as the sort that knew all the tricks. Now he just had to find somebody that didn't give any of the signs that he had whilst still looking like they would work hard. A few looked like they could talk the hind legs off a donkey, but were like the first. Others looked like they were honest, but... had a vacant expression, like there was no thought going on in their head. They could be just as bad to trust with his possessions as the dishonest kind. There were also a few that were gambling and drinking or just laying against a wall. If they didn't want to be hired, they wouldn't work. There were a few that looked perfect... if they weren't eying his coin so greedily. Finally, he noticed a man regarding him curiously near the back of the mass of people. As Alder locked eyes with him, he hastily looked away. Intrigued, the boy walked up to the man. He was wearing a timid, quite discontented expression. Alder instantly saw this as a sign that the man had been through some hard times... which meant that this was his last chance. If he mucked this up, that was it, he probably wouldn't get another chance. But also, he'd have nothing to lose. It was a delicate balance, but it might just work.
"Look up..." the boy deposited fourteen freznics into the man's hand.
"Lucky day... yer hired. What yeh make of the rest of the week is up teh you. Won't ask yer name, won't remember it... Sorry, just how I work, can't ever remember em. I have a veggie and wheat fields.
"Of course sir, I'll-" the man caught sight of who he had been hired by... a kid... not just a kid, but that kid, the one who they said was a changeling.
"Take that bag, or leave it... yer choice."
"I..." Lamar looked from the boy to the bag and back. Maybe it was all just rumour and superstition. Either way, he didn't have much of a choice. He needed the money. "I'll take it... what do you need doing... sir?"
"Not much... but we can talk about that later. Do you want a drink?"
"Sir, I need the money more than-"
"Just had teh make sure. Come on then, let's see what we can get going. Means I won't have teh keep runnin everything myself now I guess. Yeh got a house or do I have teh share my alley?"
"I... you have nowhere to live?"
"Nope. Do you?"
"No sir. I sold my home to pay for a month's bread."
"Alright... Yeh know how teh live on the streets or not? I don't need yeh dying on me while I ain't looking."
"I have only been living like this for a month... sir." The boy's cheerful tone was starting to become irritating. How could he have money and choose to live like this? The fact that somebody would do that was actually infuriating to Lamar. People who were on the streets should have an excuse to be there. It was the last place you went when you had nothing left. That was the way things were. Why did this boy have to go challenge that?
"Right... well, here's fourty more teh start yeh off. Rent a place or sumfin."
Another bag was deposited into Lamar's hands, and the man stared at it without quite realising what he was being given. This bag contained a way off of the streets. Why would the boy care about him enough to... no, that didn't matter. The boy didn't matter. What did matter was the money, the salvation that he was offering. Suddenly, life for Lamar held new hope.
"Yeah Alder, yer proper rich now like. Yeh gone and got yerself a field and..."
"I got given the field... but I'm not rich like, just... buying stuff."
"Yer changing kid. Yeh might still live on the streets with us urchins, but yer becomin more like those up top. Hell, yeh even hire out yer field teh us... Not saying that we're all friends now like... I ain't forgetting what they say yeh are."
Alder sighed. "I ain't no changeling... Why does everybody think that? It makes life real difficult."
"Whatever kid... look, it ain't bad what yer doing. It might be nice teh have somebody like one of us up 'mongst the important guys. Not much yeh can do, but they gave yeh a field... that's more'n most of us get. Yeh must have somethin different."
Alder started to get impatient with the dirty man. Yes, he had seen him around before. He was a street urchin, like the boy. Alder did know his name, nor did he want to. "That ain't new is it? I ain't ever fitted in have I? Yeh gonna get to the point or are yeh just here teh see how the freak acts teh yer questions like?"
"Look, all the important guys have a steward. Yeh have fields... a steward can help yeh run em. Whatever, why am I trying teh help you anyway?"
"Dunno... but, thanks like... I'll look into it."
---------------------
"So tell me again why I should hire you like..."
"Well sir, I am willing to work hard, make sure your fields are well worked, and then don't need that much pay... somebody like you clearly doesn't have the means to pay me in the regions of fifty freznics like these others are asking, so... shall we say fourty?"
"Alright... fourty if yer as good as yeh say yeh are... That's more than enough teh buy bread for the time... why only so little?"
The man's demeanour changed slightly. "Well sir, I have always thought that if you save and spend wisely, you can get by on much less. I don't need to have some money to go gambling and-"
"I see... so you don't need all of the luxuries that stewards usually get like... If I can pay yeh less, I can throw in some lessons on wood working."
"Well sir... times are hard see. I don't have the time to learn wood working, and I need the money more than I need the skills."
"Thanks for yer time mate... I now got what I need teh look for in a steward like. Yeh could probably talk a donkey inteh workin like a horse, but next time, don't try teh fool me... fourty is more than the others look for... but yeh trying teh get that much anyway. Maybe yeh need the money like, but that pouch on yer shirt under yer arm says otherwise like... from the size of it, it got a good three hundred in it."
Alder almost stopped. He had nothing against the man and didn't need him as an enemy. Still, he wanted the man to know that he had picked the wrong person to try to scam. The boy lowered his voice
"But I seen yer kind before. I turn me back on yeh for two minutes, and sure, you'll be loyal and stay, but I'll start getting real clumsy won't I? Things'll go missing, but never around yeh. Around you, things'll be perfect so I don't suspect yeh... Yeh don't get a pouch that big from fourty a week... and I know that others don't go gambling or drinking all the time, so why mention it? Why get so protective over it?"
The boy held up his own arm, showing a similar pouch.
"Next time, pick on somebody that doesn't know all the tricks, and try not giving everything away in how yer face looks."
The man looked shocked, and started running his hands over his face as if expecting to find the word 'liar' chiselled upon it. Alder had moved on. He now knew what to look for. That man had struck him as the sort that knew all the tricks. Now he just had to find somebody that didn't give any of the signs that he had whilst still looking like they would work hard. A few looked like they could talk the hind legs off a donkey, but were like the first. Others looked like they were honest, but... had a vacant expression, like there was no thought going on in their head. They could be just as bad to trust with his possessions as the dishonest kind. There were also a few that were gambling and drinking or just laying against a wall. If they didn't want to be hired, they wouldn't work. There were a few that looked perfect... if they weren't eying his coin so greedily. Finally, he noticed a man regarding him curiously near the back of the mass of people. As Alder locked eyes with him, he hastily looked away. Intrigued, the boy walked up to the man. He was wearing a timid, quite discontented expression. Alder instantly saw this as a sign that the man had been through some hard times... which meant that this was his last chance. If he mucked this up, that was it, he probably wouldn't get another chance. But also, he'd have nothing to lose. It was a delicate balance, but it might just work.
"Look up..." the boy deposited fourteen freznics into the man's hand.
"Lucky day... yer hired. What yeh make of the rest of the week is up teh you. Won't ask yer name, won't remember it... Sorry, just how I work, can't ever remember em. I have a veggie and wheat fields.
"Of course sir, I'll-" the man caught sight of who he had been hired by... a kid... not just a kid, but that kid, the one who they said was a changeling.
"Take that bag, or leave it... yer choice."
"I..." Lamar looked from the boy to the bag and back. Maybe it was all just rumour and superstition. Either way, he didn't have much of a choice. He needed the money. "I'll take it... what do you need doing... sir?"
"Not much... but we can talk about that later. Do you want a drink?"
"Sir, I need the money more than-"
"Just had teh make sure. Come on then, let's see what we can get going. Means I won't have teh keep runnin everything myself now I guess. Yeh got a house or do I have teh share my alley?"
"I... you have nowhere to live?"
"Nope. Do you?"
"No sir. I sold my home to pay for a month's bread."
"Alright... Yeh know how teh live on the streets or not? I don't need yeh dying on me while I ain't looking."
"I have only been living like this for a month... sir." The boy's cheerful tone was starting to become irritating. How could he have money and choose to live like this? The fact that somebody would do that was actually infuriating to Lamar. People who were on the streets should have an excuse to be there. It was the last place you went when you had nothing left. That was the way things were. Why did this boy have to go challenge that?
"Right... well, here's fourty more teh start yeh off. Rent a place or sumfin."
Another bag was deposited into Lamar's hands, and the man stared at it without quite realising what he was being given. This bag contained a way off of the streets. Why would the boy care about him enough to... no, that didn't matter. The boy didn't matter. What did matter was the money, the salvation that he was offering. Suddenly, life for Lamar held new hope.
-
Silence
Re: [ORP] The life of Alder
((In light of the recent reset, I decided to rp it... since I like rping things, and this was too good of an opportunity to miss))
"Sir, wake up... you have a good few potatoes to deal with from your storage and a worker to pay... sir."
"What?... I dealt with that yesterday... what the hell are you on about?"
"Sir... are you feeling alright? A bad dream maybe?"
"What are you on about Lamar... you should be in the wheat field today right? What are you waking me up for?"
Alder squinted through the haze of tiredness that was around his vision as his steward Lamar pulled him awake. Had the man gone insane or something?
"I thought I told you a week or so ago not to wake me up like this... honestly, I should take it from your pay or something... whatever, I need teh go teach that stuff on how teh win friends..." Alder started to push himself to his feet
"Sir, the university is currently hosting jobs for juggling fruits and the consistency of pi... the latter of which, nobody studied."
"What? What are you on about? Has somebody thrown me out of the place while I wasn't looking like?"
"No sir... nothing like that... those were the jobs that you authorised yesterday... you intended to study juggling fruits."
"If this is some kind of weird joke-" Alder started, but he was hastily cut off by Lamar, who leaned forward a little too far to be just enquiring. A look of concern creased his face.
"Sir-"
"Stop it with that sir thing... I thought yeh stopped that around the time I punished yeh for waking me up and stealing!"
"What? How did you know about- I mean err..."
"Damn it, start making some sense... this is getting on my nerves!"
"Are you sure you are feeling alright?"
"Yes, I'm feeling fine... now why are you acting like it was still-" something clicked in the boy's mind. "What date is it?"
"It is the fourth today... I think... why?2
"Fourth... that's like... fifty five... no, fourty three days since I hired yeh..."
Alder practically pushed Lamar aside and grabbed the box he kept in the corner of his alley to keep things in... six hundred and fifty three freznics... he started to grin, before another thought crossed his mind. Somehow, he was going to have to organise university lessons again... no problem, it wasn't like he needed to be taught all the stuff again, so he could personally help to set the record straight and then he could actually be ahead of where he was last time when he got to that point in the-... strange. He could remember being in the lessons, but for some reason, he couldn't remember any of what was said. For that matter, why had he suddenly woken up a few days ago... what in the world was going on? Alder hefted a sword that he produced from beneath the rags that he called a bed, and groaned as he realised that it didn't feel natural as it once had. He muttered a string of curses, and then placed it back where he had taken it from.
"Are you sure you are alright si- I mean, Alder."
"Yeah... Just need somebody to tell me what the hell is going on... and you ain't gonna be able teh..."
Had all of the past few days been nothing but a dream? And what in the world was he going to do about it?
"Sir, wake up... you have a good few potatoes to deal with from your storage and a worker to pay... sir."
"What?... I dealt with that yesterday... what the hell are you on about?"
"Sir... are you feeling alright? A bad dream maybe?"
"What are you on about Lamar... you should be in the wheat field today right? What are you waking me up for?"
Alder squinted through the haze of tiredness that was around his vision as his steward Lamar pulled him awake. Had the man gone insane or something?
"I thought I told you a week or so ago not to wake me up like this... honestly, I should take it from your pay or something... whatever, I need teh go teach that stuff on how teh win friends..." Alder started to push himself to his feet
"Sir, the university is currently hosting jobs for juggling fruits and the consistency of pi... the latter of which, nobody studied."
"What? What are you on about? Has somebody thrown me out of the place while I wasn't looking like?"
"No sir... nothing like that... those were the jobs that you authorised yesterday... you intended to study juggling fruits."
"If this is some kind of weird joke-" Alder started, but he was hastily cut off by Lamar, who leaned forward a little too far to be just enquiring. A look of concern creased his face.
"Sir-"
"Stop it with that sir thing... I thought yeh stopped that around the time I punished yeh for waking me up and stealing!"
"What? How did you know about- I mean err..."
"Damn it, start making some sense... this is getting on my nerves!"
"Are you sure you are feeling alright?"
"Yes, I'm feeling fine... now why are you acting like it was still-" something clicked in the boy's mind. "What date is it?"
"It is the fourth today... I think... why?2
"Fourth... that's like... fifty five... no, fourty three days since I hired yeh..."
Alder practically pushed Lamar aside and grabbed the box he kept in the corner of his alley to keep things in... six hundred and fifty three freznics... he started to grin, before another thought crossed his mind. Somehow, he was going to have to organise university lessons again... no problem, it wasn't like he needed to be taught all the stuff again, so he could personally help to set the record straight and then he could actually be ahead of where he was last time when he got to that point in the-... strange. He could remember being in the lessons, but for some reason, he couldn't remember any of what was said. For that matter, why had he suddenly woken up a few days ago... what in the world was going on? Alder hefted a sword that he produced from beneath the rags that he called a bed, and groaned as he realised that it didn't feel natural as it once had. He muttered a string of curses, and then placed it back where he had taken it from.
"Are you sure you are alright si- I mean, Alder."
"Yeah... Just need somebody to tell me what the hell is going on... and you ain't gonna be able teh..."
Had all of the past few days been nothing but a dream? And what in the world was he going to do about it?
-
Silence
Re: [ORP] The life of Alder (Alder's home)
Alder finished carving an extensive set of images onto a wooden board that he had hung on one side of his alley. The board had a picture of many different items, all in sets of seven or a multiple of seven and with arrows between them. There was also the emblem of Widu and Cork with arrows between them.
A phoenix... a real phoenix. This might be the best opportunity he would ever get. He didn't know exactly what had happened originally with Novajen, but he did know that it had been killed by something akin to a phoenix. This could be the best opportunity he would get to get a weapon against her. That and... having a pet sounded like a nice idea.
The boy was getting a bit lonely, living as a street urchin all this time, and a sentient necklace and shadow didn't really make the best company.
A phoenix... a real phoenix. This might be the best opportunity he would ever get. He didn't know exactly what had happened originally with Novajen, but he did know that it had been killed by something akin to a phoenix. This could be the best opportunity he would get to get a weapon against her. That and... having a pet sounded like a nice idea.
The boy was getting a bit lonely, living as a street urchin all this time, and a sentient necklace and shadow didn't really make the best company.
-
Silence
Re: [ORP] The life of Alder (Alder's home)
Life was becoming interesting for the boy.
Since a day or two ago, he had started evading that shadow guy's men as well as his usual things. What really was weird was that they no longer worried him. What with Jenova, some impending doom from dark mages, the nagging suspicions that the order of the all seeing eye might still be after him, well... there was little that could really scare him anymore. They weren't a direct threat, so Alder had turned them into a game.
Notice a person that he had never seen in Widu before, turn around and head down a back alley. A man followed him for a little too long, Alder would make a sudden left and lose him in a crowd. Occasionally, he would wave to the people who were observing him from the rooftops, and then kick out the support from the abandoned building they were standing on and run while they were picking themselves out of the dust. A street urchin looked at him the wrong way, Alder would nod back, then politely tell them that if they wanted him to stay on their good side, they would tell the assassin nothing.
Ultimately, it was all too easy. His regular day was barely even hampered. He would head to the university, tap a woman who was making herself too obvious on the shoulder and start giving her tips on how to make yourself anonymous with more ease. He would turn into an obscure network of alleyways to lose any other pursuers, then come out near the university, head to his desk and put in a days work whilst hammering together crates in his office.
He would then leave through the backdoor, make a run for the nearest alley, walk back to the university once he was confident that he was not being followed (he knew from experience that the last place a person looks for a missing person is the place that they lost them, for example, a man who had escaped from jail could hide in his own cell more efficiently than he could hide anywhere else in the prison).
Maybe if the shadow guy himself had been following him, Alder would have had to work, but this was all too easy. His parents had pushed him as a five year old more than these so called 'assassins' were doing so. Anything they learned about him, unless they were being really really really clever and actually getting around him in his own home, which was unlikely, was learnt because he didn't mind them knowing. Yes, a man in the street might say that there were rumours about him being a changeling, but if asked to validate them, he would almost certainly stutter and say "well... er... he just didn't seem to come from anywhere and didn't err... erm... well, it's just what people say."
Anything else that people would say about him, he didn't mind being public. Yes, he was Kiene's rector. Yes, he was also a street urchin that people rarely took notice of. Yes, people said that he knew Widu's streets like he knew how to manipulate a coin. Yes, he was apprenticed to the witcher Reaver_Silverstone, who had not been seen for quite some time. Could that really tell the assassin anything but the fact that trying to eliminate him in his home town was a bad idea and to wait for him to go travelling if need be would make things easier?
The assassin could send as many people as he liked to watch the boy, but they would have better luck asking around than observing him. In the streets of his own home, Alder could be bested by only a very small number when playing hide and seek. After all, he had spent all his life roaming them, learning anything they could do for him, the best places to be alone, to find food and so on. A few other street urchins, a few of the people who were still around after helping to build the place, a few people who held office and a few very skilled thieves, assassins and people from the underworld from beyond Widu would be able to beat Alder here, and as far as he could tell, these people didn't cut it.
Alder threw another crate into his safe place while nobody was watching and wondered when he had become so cocky. A year ago, he would have started babbling at the mere idea of being followed by assassins. He was still a coward, and he still hated danger. He still wasn't happy about them following him around really. However, he had now been given a new sense of perspective. Compared to his other problems, these people were nothing so long as they only wanted to watch. He could deal with them for now. With the other things, maybe not so much.
Since a day or two ago, he had started evading that shadow guy's men as well as his usual things. What really was weird was that they no longer worried him. What with Jenova, some impending doom from dark mages, the nagging suspicions that the order of the all seeing eye might still be after him, well... there was little that could really scare him anymore. They weren't a direct threat, so Alder had turned them into a game.
Notice a person that he had never seen in Widu before, turn around and head down a back alley. A man followed him for a little too long, Alder would make a sudden left and lose him in a crowd. Occasionally, he would wave to the people who were observing him from the rooftops, and then kick out the support from the abandoned building they were standing on and run while they were picking themselves out of the dust. A street urchin looked at him the wrong way, Alder would nod back, then politely tell them that if they wanted him to stay on their good side, they would tell the assassin nothing.
Ultimately, it was all too easy. His regular day was barely even hampered. He would head to the university, tap a woman who was making herself too obvious on the shoulder and start giving her tips on how to make yourself anonymous with more ease. He would turn into an obscure network of alleyways to lose any other pursuers, then come out near the university, head to his desk and put in a days work whilst hammering together crates in his office.
He would then leave through the backdoor, make a run for the nearest alley, walk back to the university once he was confident that he was not being followed (he knew from experience that the last place a person looks for a missing person is the place that they lost them, for example, a man who had escaped from jail could hide in his own cell more efficiently than he could hide anywhere else in the prison).
Maybe if the shadow guy himself had been following him, Alder would have had to work, but this was all too easy. His parents had pushed him as a five year old more than these so called 'assassins' were doing so. Anything they learned about him, unless they were being really really really clever and actually getting around him in his own home, which was unlikely, was learnt because he didn't mind them knowing. Yes, a man in the street might say that there were rumours about him being a changeling, but if asked to validate them, he would almost certainly stutter and say "well... er... he just didn't seem to come from anywhere and didn't err... erm... well, it's just what people say."
Anything else that people would say about him, he didn't mind being public. Yes, he was Kiene's rector. Yes, he was also a street urchin that people rarely took notice of. Yes, people said that he knew Widu's streets like he knew how to manipulate a coin. Yes, he was apprenticed to the witcher Reaver_Silverstone, who had not been seen for quite some time. Could that really tell the assassin anything but the fact that trying to eliminate him in his home town was a bad idea and to wait for him to go travelling if need be would make things easier?
The assassin could send as many people as he liked to watch the boy, but they would have better luck asking around than observing him. In the streets of his own home, Alder could be bested by only a very small number when playing hide and seek. After all, he had spent all his life roaming them, learning anything they could do for him, the best places to be alone, to find food and so on. A few other street urchins, a few of the people who were still around after helping to build the place, a few people who held office and a few very skilled thieves, assassins and people from the underworld from beyond Widu would be able to beat Alder here, and as far as he could tell, these people didn't cut it.
Alder threw another crate into his safe place while nobody was watching and wondered when he had become so cocky. A year ago, he would have started babbling at the mere idea of being followed by assassins. He was still a coward, and he still hated danger. He still wasn't happy about them following him around really. However, he had now been given a new sense of perspective. Compared to his other problems, these people were nothing so long as they only wanted to watch. He could deal with them for now. With the other things, maybe not so much.
-
Silence
Re: [ORP] The life of Alder (Alder's home)
Damn them... damn them all.
There was so much wrong with this place it wasn't even funny. Two of the assassins were watching Alder from a nearby rooftop. Alder saw them alright, but there was nothing he could do about it.
Corruption was rising again, council members weren't talking, and the people of the town were becoming more and more silent... not to mention that he seemed to be the only person actually trying to sort out the difficult parts of this phoenix event... still, it was his home. It had been worth trying to keep working. He, the mayor and a few other scattered council members had been trying to keep the place running, but this... this was where he drew the line.
Alder attempted to stop blood from flowing to his infected wound by keeping pressure on it. With his other hand he crafted a few crates just because he hated wasting time.
At first he had believed that this was just negligence that nobody was working in the temple. The fairy was off in some far away land fishing, the overseer didn't even live in Widu and the rest were in that sort of coma that people went into when this world became too much for them.
There was nobody at the temple to accept his request to heal him... and a recent letter from his sparring partner had confirmed that there never would be. The two of them, both infected from a recent duel which had been supposed to see who was really stronger (a close fight that Alder had barely emerged victorious from) were now unable to get help from the temple... and to make matters worse, this was apparently orchestrated... some sort of test with them as guinea pigs.
Well that could all go to hell for all he cared. What he knew was that this wound was sapping away his strength and might soon start to become permanently crippling or even life threatening. Their job was to ensure that people could be healed and that their alignments were kept constant and that masses were provided. They were not supposed to conduct sick experiments with people's lives at stake... especially when getting stronger was all that Alder had really cared about for the past year (well, besides staying alive and making sure that his debts were paid off).
If it weren't for that elf weaver, he'd have left Widu for good then and there without any notice. He wouldn't have even resigned, he'd have just let them struggle around what to do about him leaving. However, the elf had agreed to make bandages. With those, maybe, just maybe, Alder could limit the damage so that it wouldn't ruin everything.
There was so much wrong with this place it wasn't even funny. Two of the assassins were watching Alder from a nearby rooftop. Alder saw them alright, but there was nothing he could do about it.
Corruption was rising again, council members weren't talking, and the people of the town were becoming more and more silent... not to mention that he seemed to be the only person actually trying to sort out the difficult parts of this phoenix event... still, it was his home. It had been worth trying to keep working. He, the mayor and a few other scattered council members had been trying to keep the place running, but this... this was where he drew the line.
Alder attempted to stop blood from flowing to his infected wound by keeping pressure on it. With his other hand he crafted a few crates just because he hated wasting time.
At first he had believed that this was just negligence that nobody was working in the temple. The fairy was off in some far away land fishing, the overseer didn't even live in Widu and the rest were in that sort of coma that people went into when this world became too much for them.
There was nobody at the temple to accept his request to heal him... and a recent letter from his sparring partner had confirmed that there never would be. The two of them, both infected from a recent duel which had been supposed to see who was really stronger (a close fight that Alder had barely emerged victorious from) were now unable to get help from the temple... and to make matters worse, this was apparently orchestrated... some sort of test with them as guinea pigs.
Well that could all go to hell for all he cared. What he knew was that this wound was sapping away his strength and might soon start to become permanently crippling or even life threatening. Their job was to ensure that people could be healed and that their alignments were kept constant and that masses were provided. They were not supposed to conduct sick experiments with people's lives at stake... especially when getting stronger was all that Alder had really cared about for the past year (well, besides staying alive and making sure that his debts were paid off).
If it weren't for that elf weaver, he'd have left Widu for good then and there without any notice. He wouldn't have even resigned, he'd have just let them struggle around what to do about him leaving. However, the elf had agreed to make bandages. With those, maybe, just maybe, Alder could limit the damage so that it wouldn't ruin everything.