Korruk
Visitor
Name: Korruk Logar Race: Orc Class/Level: Paladin 2 XP: 480 Maximum HP: 21 Alignment: Lawful Good
Posts: 98 
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Post by Korruk on May 2, 2022 19:56:03 GMT
The gruff rumbles were distant, as if deafened by some sort of barrier. At first there was nothing else to hold the attention in the pitch black void before the warm and wet air could be felt again, the sharp rays of the sun returning, and if not risen in time, the bitterly shocking scent of smelling salts invading the body in an effort to rouse the momentarily lost Cleric. If any luck it would return them to the realm of the living, in the white walled courtyard with blue tiled roof to match the doors and pillars. It was where the Eladrin had last been before they had all but let the flurry of the knight unload upon them, much to the shock of the retinue that casually watched. The plan had been some competitive sparring, though Lavender's mood seemed to have turned following the righteous blow Dhakin had taken and been crumpled by - but a flesh wound in reality - now bandaged and taken care of by the former combat instructor of the Orgthengarrian legions who now manned the mortar and pestle to blend the noxious but rousing concoction of salts.
“By the Gods proper and not, Lavender I thought you had the presence of mind to roll out of the way rather than have your head flattened. Could have been some real damage done.”Korruk tsk’d at the fact their foe had not moved, now crouched over the guest he had brought to the villa, ensuring he hadn’t turned curiosity and hospitality into homicide. “Think you can stand, or can you still hear Cyrus’ family bickering in the back of your skull?”
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Post by Lavandul on May 3, 2022 5:45:59 GMT
As the elf inhaled sharply, their eyes rolled, coughing on reflex as time stuttered and they couldn't sort the orc from other countless green faces that tried to take their head. "Oh, Korruk," they chuckled, punch drunk with bloody teeth and still not quite focusing on the other.
The Fun One.
The mask had dented and cut into their cheek from the force, but it did its job keeping their chipped grin in tact and not shearing another layer of fat and nerve damage. It had been peeled off and discarded by Ghaza to check if the skull was cracked, after the behemoth of a noble unexpectedly took a full-forced swing when the other seemed to be managing just fine. At the prompt to stand, Lavandul heard their father more than anything in the present, and immediately swallowed bile and iron as they dug an elbow into the dirt with a disgusting tolerance for punishment. The image of the cleric shimmered into an ephemeral afterimage, completing their stand near the door as they tumbled into the frame to keep from falling again, along with a ring of spiking ice that coiled like ivy.
"M'gonna...clean..." they didn't finish muttering out an excuse, lapsing to natural silence as they followed their determined tunnel vision to the bathroom.
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Korruk
Visitor
Name: Korruk Logar Race: Orc Class/Level: Paladin 2 XP: 480 Maximum HP: 21 Alignment: Lawful Good
Posts: 98
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Post by Korruk on May 4, 2022 5:13:20 GMT
“You must be made of something special - maybe not bricks like Kor, but something tough.”
Ghaza’s voice was gruff as he finally stood up as the elf found themselves back with them, complimenting their toughness, just as they rose and found themselves disappearing which left both of the works confused for a moment as they gathered what had just happened.
“By the Gods, you don’t have to run off like that - we are more than capable of helping you across the yard.”
Korruk shook his head as he rose up and made the long strides across the courtyard to reach the elf. As Lav stumbled through the door and inside of the villa they would nearly flatten Dhakin (again), with a bandage around his head from where his temple had split on the ground following the punishing blow from the Elf during his attempt at sparring
“Woah! Are you okay?”
Stepping forward his foot crunched some of the frost that had crept to the interior, which caused a small recoil and lean back from the surprise
“You better be ready because I’m not finished!”
It seemed the youth was unable to read their guests' wobbliness.
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Post by Lavandul on May 4, 2022 6:22:04 GMT
Unaware of the culture clash, the bright green of Lavander's unmasked eyes flicked up at a second orc suddenly in their bubble, flashing an ugly frown that married surprise and Winter's affect. Their wits caught up with them before instinct as Dhakin tried to challenge them, able to sort bravado from danger and finally putting a name to the face as the seconds ticked by.
"Go fight Korruk," they deflected, white hand catching the kid's cheek to channel starlight. The split stitched itself, and they were already moving forward and past as the spell was still working its way through the bruised flesh and lanced the swelling.
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Korruk
Visitor
Name: Korruk Logar Race: Orc Class/Level: Paladin 2 XP: 480 Maximum HP: 21 Alignment: Lawful Good
Posts: 98
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Post by Korruk on May 5, 2022 4:53:22 GMT
Dhakin flinched, half expecting to be smacked for his forward statement, but instead he felt the cold touch was enough to almost turn his breath to frost as a shiver ran down his spine. The feeling of frost creeping into the gash in his temple even blew the bandage stung for a moment creating a confusing tingle. But as the pinch of cold subsided, so did the dizziness bringing the Squires' clarity back to the forefront.
“What…Did you..I ah…”
Dhakin seemed lost for words at the moment, the gesture was foreign - more than just the complement of his bravery for taking the blow, or promise there would be more in with a tone of malicious excitement. The only thing that they could muster was to take the clerics shoulder in a clumsy attempt to prop them up.
“N-no, you look like you need to sit. There is a seat by the window - do you have to wear a plate everywhere? I’m sure not everyone hates you like they hate us.”
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Post by Lavandul on May 5, 2022 6:40:21 GMT
Dhakin flinching tugged at something deep, and the cleric started to turn blue as snow twisted around them. A sound halfway between a surprised grunt and startled yelp escaped their throat as the orc grabbed them and started nudging toward the window. They understood that the other was likely used to people of similar size and weight, and so their metallic footing slid along the ice in a loud scrape.
"Dhakin Shar, settle down. It looks worse than what it is. Korruk wasn't going to kill me," they said flatly, shakily lifting one of the orc's fingers to start to pry. The question was so innocuous that they responded without much thought, like every other bout of small talk. "My armour? It's what I own. More would be a pain to manage with travel. I'm going to get the mud off of it now."
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Korruk
Visitor
Name: Korruk Logar Race: Orc Class/Level: Paladin 2 XP: 480 Maximum HP: 21 Alignment: Lawful Good
Posts: 98
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Post by Korruk on May 6, 2022 3:11:11 GMT
The young squire looked a little embarrassed as he hmph's at the insinuation that he is being over zealous, but he didn't just let his hand be ripped away showing that he was resolute in his determination to ge them a seat, which he would continue to tug the scrapping foot towards despite the noise of the armor.
"You should have something that isn't armor, its just more comfortable. Plus you know you can't do proper maintenance on it if you have nothing else - I can talk to Tordora if there is something in the house that may fit you and I can help get the plate taken care of tonight."
Dhakin was wrapping the conversation around, attempting to show the Elf that he wanted to repay their gift with some sort of service, quickly falling back onto the skill set that his role as a squire gave him.
"And…Thank you, the headache is gone. I'm sorry I didn't parry - blocking was never going to work, your footwork said you were committed when you swung but I thought I could handle it."
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Post by Lavandul on May 6, 2022 5:55:25 GMT
The eladrin swallowed the surging season, eyes brimming as their face pinched. "Please. A minute- If you want to help...you can...get the clothes."
They needed space to reset before having people fuss over them, but Dhakin also didn't have the tools to understand what he was stepping on.
"...Duck next time. Sustained damage to you brain will make you stupid."
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Korruk
Visitor
Name: Korruk Logar Race: Orc Class/Level: Paladin 2 XP: 480 Maximum HP: 21 Alignment: Lawful Good
Posts: 98
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Post by Korruk on May 6, 2022 6:17:34 GMT
The Squire nodded, wearing his most serious face as he was given the mission to go and collect something for the Elf to wear while their armor was repaired. He was quick to hop up once he helped the cleric settle by the window and would jaunt towards one of the doors heading deeper into the villa.\
"Yes, right away! I'll get my repair kit too."
He stopped only with the second statment, looking back with determintion in his eyes as he was given the advice to dodge it.
"Duck, got it!"
In the same moment that Dhakin was gone the entrance to the courtyard opened up and the Knight entered, squeezing through the door frame.
"Was that Dhakin I saw helping you? Good to see his pride wasn't too wounded to show some chivalry. Hope that blow wasn't too vicious, did I miss the queue to stop? I could have sworn your guard had been up just a moment before."
Korruk approached the window nook, sitting at the opposite end.
"Did you need a hymn of restoration? A great way to restore your stamina post sparring. I learned from a young age not everyone likes to contemplate their lessons in pain."
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Post by Lavandul on May 6, 2022 6:52:31 GMT
The breastplate clanged to the floor just as Korruk popped into the ring of their tunnel vision. Lavender straightened slower than they would have liked, leaning their head back against the wall to look up at the much larger species. They had a dazed, almost doe-eyed look to them as they parsed about half of what he was chattering. They brushed the cowl off and leaned a little further down to try and slow the vertigo before they got sick, shimmering hair getting stuck between some of the short, black-thorned boughs that ringed their scalp.
Korruk knew Lavender was unnaturally pale, but the blue tint high lighting the network of knotted flesh across their features was new. It might have been cracks on a frozen lake for the way their skin had an underlying reflective quality. Actually, he hadn't seen the entirety of their face aside from a slightly askew mask when they were eating.
"I'm out of practice," they offered, more focused on the ritual of pouring the ash from the reliquary around their neck. It drifted into the ether in a weightless ribbon before vanishing. "I've had worse. I have been stopped from using the bath room." Half remembering their task in the confused scramble, the gauntlets slowly joined the cuirass on the floor. They were clearly used to handling the armour by themselves, but it was still a slow process even with one's head on straight.
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Korruk
Visitor
Name: Korruk Logar Race: Orc Class/Level: Paladin 2 XP: 480 Maximum HP: 21 Alignment: Lawful Good
Posts: 98
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Post by Korruk on May 6, 2022 15:37:37 GMT
"Well we'll have to make sure you stay in practice. The world is only getting more dangeorus. One day its brigands by the harbor, the next its jumping ghouls, or monsters from the sea. I was taught the day that I believe I have mastered my weapon is the day that it will fail me."
The knight had shed the training plate he wore, leaving him more mobile as he leaned on the opposite wall, the elfs thoughts seeming to bounce.
"What is Vynne to you? Is this just a pit stop on a grander journey, or is it really where you were just pulled out of a bog while you wandered. I honest to the Gods thought that was a joke but I am starting to think this is more instinct at work here."
Korrul kept the tone jovial enough to not come off as interrogating as he asked his questions. There was an underlying intrigue, wanting to decipher what was being chased. As a person forced from his home for purposes of growth, the idea of aimlessness seemed so foreign and wrong - meaning it was an opprotunity to question and learn.
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Post by Lavandul on May 6, 2022 18:50:11 GMT
Lavender swallowed the snot, blood, and grit that was gathering in their throat, blinking hard as they caught themselves starting to slide to the right. Their brow knit together as they frowned in concentration, with a surprisingly animated face that was normally covered with a metal plate. They tried to cross their legs and failed when the armour got in the way.
"...Uh..." they blinked again, searching for a word. "Vynne. I've been here several times before over the centuries? ...Someone at the monastic order always knows me from at least a couple of generations ago." The cleric rocked to build enough momentum to stand again, satisfied they could continue their original path and that Korruk wasn't going to push them down like his squire. It wasn't the steadiest maneuver, and they caught their breath, "Hah- I went with a couple of knights to investigate the mire. They're dead, it seems, or still lost. The rest recovered me a couple of weeks later." They offered a wobbly grin as they returned to walking, their vision starting to pepper with black pits as their mind tried to wander back.
"There's some holes."
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Korruk
Visitor
Name: Korruk Logar Race: Orc Class/Level: Paladin 2 XP: 480 Maximum HP: 21 Alignment: Lawful Good
Posts: 98
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Post by Korruk on May 6, 2022 19:38:47 GMT
It was something to watch the elf interact with the world around them. There was some motions natural, some seemingly forgotten as the connections were made remade as to what the intent was. They were different than anyone Korrul had known.
"I forget that the steps of life differ for other bloodlines. History must move at a totally different pace."
Unlike Dhakin Korruk made no move to aid the elf, they had not wanted the blessing nor had they asked for help and in this case this was enough to signal that they wished to things on their own and he would not deny them that liberty.
"How old are you actually? Or is it a blur? How far back in the world do you recall?"
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Post by Lavandul on May 6, 2022 20:12:32 GMT
"Elven kind live to around two centuries," they offered, fumbling their way down the hall, assuming the orc would just follow them or pick up the conversation later.
"I couldn't give you a straight answer. I'm...probably...over four, now. I remember just the same as anyone else — the day to day is unimportant," they gestured vaguely, "Just novel moments that left an impression. Some friends I may misremember as another, if the time was brief or uneventful." It sounded a bit disrespectful to admit out loud, but it was the reality of their lifespan.
Still frazzled, the elf casually closed the door behind them out of habit, though spoke somewhat distant through the door. They almost toppled getting the boots off, sitting on the floor for a moment.
"...I'd sometimes cycle back to refresh myself."
Orgthengaar introduced indoor plumbing to the elite, at least. Being alone in a closed dark space was already a massive relief as their vision flickered and illuminated the shadows.
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Korruk
Visitor
Name: Korruk Logar Race: Orc Class/Level: Paladin 2 XP: 480 Maximum HP: 21 Alignment: Lawful Good
Posts: 98
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Post by Korruk on May 7, 2022 18:57:09 GMT
“So you were around before the revolt, even around when the Empire was at height before the beams began to rot. I always wondered, was it so bad when the Empire ruled? If you ask the historian of Vynne the answer is always rooted in deep oppression, and vicious retaliation against their culture. If you ask the scholars of the Empire its always the high strung subjects who didn’t realize who had given them everything and were acting like callous rebellious children. I doubt neither is fully true as they seem fairly kind to their own interests - surprising no one.”
The knight did eventually stand, and follow the cleric casually as Lav wandered through the villa that they had been offered board in, not rude enough to just burst through the closed door and instead coming to lean beside it.
“Between you and I, it is a weight, knowing that outside of your own corner of the world you are the boogey man, and the one who is blamed. For all accounts the villain. Not that the Empire was known for its gentle hand in its methods of unification but paying the price for this golden path as someone who is really no one - it can keep someone up at night.”
The Knight was musing, maybe even unloading without being specific about his feelings, seeking to confirm or deny his anxieties about the Empire's history and his current perception as a result.
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Post by Lavandul on May 7, 2022 21:02:48 GMT
Korruk's earnest chatter allowed for the other to start unbuckling the rest of the plate. They had to take small breaks, holding their head to wait for things to stop drunkenly spiraling. A small whine escaped their teeth, and they forced themselves halfway up to start running some water.
"Um..." they breathed, shuffling back to the time that was important to the orc, "Like with most...history...a narrative makes so many factors easier to understand. Rising ambition sways enough nobility to see the independence they've earned, and those losing power react violently to maintain their station. Tensions were ignited with these indignities. It inspired more retaliation instead of quelling. Some took advantage, others just wanted peace, others wanted to be treated as equals as the landed gentry."
Lavandul wetted a cloth and started cleaning. "Enough people wanted change, and enough didn't. Those already content are often reluctant to invite that chaos and uncertainty. You take pride in creating your own honour rather than resting on laurels, so maybe you can understand when one is not satisfied with their lot in life?"
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Korruk
Visitor
Name: Korruk Logar Race: Orc Class/Level: Paladin 2 XP: 480 Maximum HP: 21 Alignment: Lawful Good
Posts: 98
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Post by Korruk on May 8, 2022 7:14:09 GMT
Everything made sense, what the elf said. Perhaps too much sense, maybe not enough. Maybe deep down he really did want reality to be skewed, in a way that he could hold actual disdain for the foolish Nobility of Vynne for the travesty they committed. But that wasn’t the case. It was much of the same ingredients that turned the wheels of history.
“Do you think it is better this way?”
A simple question, but a weighty one with a level of uncertainty in the voice of the very wordy and confident knight. The impression was being laid out that he wasn’t a fool when it came to reality but certainly wore optimism and hope more than many chose too.
“Maybe that is why some people keep fighting and pushing, because if they stop they have to remember.”
There was optimism in his voice, whether it was in praise of the notion of the never ending battle or he was trying to convince himself that was something else.
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Post by Lavandul on May 8, 2022 8:09:17 GMT
That was a loaded question. The orc sounded sad enough that they sighed from cleaning themselves and opened the door to look at him.
"Korruk," they began, messaging their bleeding temple — the scabbing rubbed off, "Different ways work for different people. Some would say Orgthengaar is too violent, when one can argue draconian practice is better suited for your species. I think if your society was a problem everywhere, the Empire would have failed."
They bit their lip, trying to roll the Common into sense while their brain was coming out of their ears. "Remember what?"
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Korruk
Visitor
Name: Korruk Logar Race: Orc Class/Level: Paladin 2 XP: 480 Maximum HP: 21 Alignment: Lawful Good
Posts: 98
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Post by Korruk on May 8, 2022 8:34:25 GMT
"Remember anything. Remember everything. That is the thing that makes legends and trying to chase them so cathartic. The heroes in these stories - they are victims of circumstance and through their own personal progress the world progresses around them. No time to worry about the politics or opinions of those around them. No time to worry about the past or what their life was like growing up. There was only the present and the future. No worries, only momentum."
There was something dreamy about the way the Knight mused, suggesting that there was something he wouldn't want to confront whatever the scale may be. He seemed to romanticise a life without restraint from bureaucracy and expectations. For someone who was so sure of everything maybe he didn't have everything figured out.
"Maybe, just maybe if I become a hero like the days of old - it won't matter what people wanted from me but instead they'll just speak what I did."
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Post by Lavandul on May 8, 2022 18:27:12 GMT
Lavandul leaned their head on the opposite frame as they offered a woozy grin. The younger orc's idealism was touching in its earnestness, and the odd circumstances of Korruk suddenly feeling now was the time to voice his feelings told them that he had been sitting on this for a while. Having an Outsider in his house had its perks, it seems.
Once he stopped waxing poetic and got back to being personal, Lavandul sobered up, trying to stand properly to look at the other.
"...Did something happen?"
The tone was softer. They had broached the topic before in the market, but the way Korruk was adamant that his situation was all for the greater good told the eladrin to let him drive that particular subject.
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