Fiagai Clan (Medieval) IC

Started by mymistica, April 22, 2013, 12:44:50 AM

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mymistica

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Plot: Illyana is young woman in ancient Celtic Ireland. She was raised in a highly secretive Pagan clan (Fiagai Clan) that closed itself off from other communities. Her mother had great power in the clan and had raised Illyana with high hopes that she would someday take her place as High Priestess. However, civil war has broken out across the lands and despite the clan's desperate attempts remain outside of society, their hands have been forced. Enemy clans have begun intruding upon Fiagai territory, setting fire to their fields and massacring their livestock. The men of the clan are forced to enter battle while the women are commanded to flee until they receive word that it is safe to return. Illyana's world has been torn apart but instead of feeling sadness she feels great rage. These lands - so sacred to her family and her clan - have been desecrated by barbarians. She is torn apart from her mother when a vigilante group jumps them in the forest. The group is defeated but Illyana takes advantage of the situation to escape. She knows her mother feels the next High Priestess should hide and be protected but Illyana believes quite the contrary. She feels it is her duty to protect her clan, so she runs through the forest before her mother has a chance to realize she's truly missing. This land is dangerous place for a lone woman, let alone deep in the forest where deadly creatures dwell. Not far off are the great mountains, where rumors say dragons still slumber. Will Illyana find help on her journey, or will she find her fate?

In Character Begins (IC):

Illyana treaded carefully through the wild forest, planting each foot qith great delicacy. She knew one wrong move could set off an enemy trap or a deadly creature hidden in the overgrowth. Her soft copper hair blew gently in the slow, cool breeze as her emerald green eyes carefully scanned her surroundings. Her mind was racing in rhythm with her heart as she attempted to plan what to do now that she had escaped her mother...

Coyote

“Well this is just lovely” muttered Unferth to himself as he slowly limped through the outskirts of the forest. He had left his village with a week’s provisions, and they had already run dry. The forest held the promise of food to scavenge, but Unferth had no idea what dangers could lie within. He paused for a second to scan the underbrush with his sullen blue eyes hoping to make out anything that lay beyond, but the forest was too thick. “Well Unferth, you idiot, if you’re going to turn back, now would be the time” he said aloud. He thought about returning to the village where he was hated, they would be able to see him from far away awkwardly dragging his left leg behind him. They would see his distorted face and his awkwardly bent nose and they would laugh, and call him a failure, and start chanting “Scarecrow.” It would be better to die than endure that humiliation again.

Unferth patted the bow at his shoulder, reassuring him of its presence. As long as he had that he was sure he could endure what was ahead. Without looking back, he marched deeper into the forest, hoping he was ready for what the future might hold.
"Power resides where men believe it resides. No more and no less. A shadow on the wall. Yet shadows can kill. And ofttimes a very small man can cast a very large shadow"

-Lord Varys, The Spider

mymistica

After about an hour of traveling, Illyana halted in her tracks as she heard movement further in the forest. Steeping low, she crawled slowly through the dense underbrush to try to see what was causing such a ruckus. It wasn't long before she caught sight of the offender.
Slowly dragging himself through the brush and trees was a younger looking man. She could tell he'd been badly injured as he was dragging his leg behind him and his nose appeared to have badly broken. Seeing the bow upon his back, she decided to approach with caution.
She raised herself slowly with her hand placed careful beside her own quiver and the other by her bow (in case she may need to counter-attack) and stepped out of the brush into his view, slowly and carefully.
"You there - what is your name?"

Coyote

Unferth sighed as he dragged himself through the forest. Had he taken a moment to think, he would have realized that forests were not the environment for him; animals could hear him coming from a distance. How exactly was he going to hunt? He would have to rely on trapping and luck.

He heard the rustle of movement and grabbed his bow in preparation, but to his surprise, a young girl stepped out of the underbrush. Unferth’s mind immediately jumped to calculating the possibilities. She hardly seemed like some kind of bandit, but then why would a pretty young girl of her age be marching about in the forest alone? She was armed with a bow as well; if they did have to fight he was not sure who would get the first shot off. Still despite the improbability of her being there, Unferth’s instinct was that she was not a threat, something about her seemed sheltered, and she did not have the rough look of someone who had been stalking the forest for long. She probably was afraid of him, with his face and weapon he probably looked like a bandit to her.

The girl asked for his name, quite a curious thing to be asking. Cautiously, still ready to strike if necessary, Unferth spoke “My name is Unferth, and I am a passerby here, meaning no harm to anyone who means me none.  Now that I’ve shared my name would you care to share yours?”
"Power resides where men believe it resides. No more and no less. A shadow on the wall. Yet shadows can kill. And ofttimes a very small man can cast a very large shadow"

-Lord Varys, The Spider

mymistica

Illyana eyed him, still suspicious as to why an injured man such as himself would be traveling through a forest - let alone one as dangerous as this.
She decided she would not give him too much information - not yet, at least. Strangers must never be trusted if she is to survive this journey.
"You may call me Illi. I come from the Fiagai Clan. We were ambushed as we attempted to escape an attack of war and I was separated from my family. I hope, for your sake, that you speak the truth and mean no harm. I may be a woman but my skills with this bow far surpass any of the men in my Clan."
She carefully began moving closer, reaching her hand out to shake his. Her other hand carefully placed down by her belt, in case she need draw her dagger.

Coyote

Fiagai Clan, he had not heard of it, maybe a mention here or there but he certainly was not familiar with it. "Well Illi, I admire your bravery and caution." Unferth approached her slowly and carefully "I'll keep one hand near my dagger as well if it's all the same to you"
He extended his other hand and shook hers. Her hand was, as he expected, smooth and uncallused, definitely not someone who is used to wandering the woods. Unferth's eyes narrowed with a hint of suspicion, if she was separated from her family, it did not seem like she was making much of an effort to look for them. But he decided not to press the issue at the moment, if she had secrets he would let her keep them, as long as it had nothing to do with him.

"I don't mean any one harm believe me. You have nothing to fear from this little cripple here. I wasn't even judged fit to go off to war, so I left my village in humiliation. I stumbled into this forest like an idiot and need to make my way out. You're the first face I've seen around here."
"Power resides where men believe it resides. No more and no less. A shadow on the wall. Yet shadows can kill. And ofttimes a very small man can cast a very large shadow"

-Lord Varys, The Spider

mymistica

Illyana looked at the man and felt very sad. "I do not know your story but I do not believe you should be ashamed of yourself. Every villager matters - be they soldier or not."
She paused to take a moment to look around, more at ease with the man - though not entirely off-guard, either.
There was no clear sign of civilization in any direction. She knew that there was a small river somewhere to the east and that that would probably be their best bet at finding assistance. She knew in her heart that she could not leave this man alone to fend for himself in the forest. He may not be from her clan, but she firmly believed her duty was to protect all people - be they kin or not.
"Well, Unferth, I believe our best option is to continue traveling east to the FuilUisge BloodWater River. I'm certain there must be villages near it's waters."
Illyana paused again, remembering the stories her father once told her of the river.
It was named after a great massacre. A rogue enchanter had become addicted to bloodmagik and attempted to defy the Goddess by immortalizing himself. He rounded up hundreds of villagers and cut them down in the river. As their blood flowed through the water, he began to caste his spell. The Goddess was furious and as he raised the waters to surround and immortalize him, she froze the water in mid-air and drowned him in the very blood he had drawn from the innocent villagers. Though he was killed, many still claim the river was cursed and is yet filled with evil.
She shook her head. No, those were only tales to scare her and the others around the fire at night. Magik isn't real.
Again, Illyana looked back up at Unferth. "What do you say?"

Coyote

Unferth accepted the girls pity with a slight nod, it was better than the horror or disgust he usually evoked, and it was meant well. At least here was someone who said he mattered, she seemed a nice enough sort, a bit naïve to be travelling on her own.  And apparently, she had a better understanding of this area then he did, she had at least an idea of where they could find a village. He was suspicious of course, and embarrassed by the obvious pity she was showing him, but he was desperate. Besides, he could be doing her as much of a favor and she was him, she was travelling alone through dangerous parts, having an extra man who was good with a bow could save her life.

Bloodwater River though, he had heard the name before, something to scare children. He knew there were whispers of the last runaway from the village being murdered and chopped up, and that his remains had washed ashore on the banks of the river. But truly, they seemed like stories to scare small children.

“Well, you seem to know the area far better than I do, I’ll follow you if you will allow me. But I must ask, if you’ve been separated from your family shouldn’t you be trying to find them? They couldn’t have gone far without you. Not that I am complaining about having a guide, it just strikes me as odd.”
"Power resides where men believe it resides. No more and no less. A shadow on the wall. Yet shadows can kill. And ofttimes a very small man can cast a very large shadow"

-Lord Varys, The Spider

mymistica

Illyana tensed slightly but quickly recovered. "My family was on the run from a vandal army. Going back to find them could lead us straight into danger. I'm sure they continued on when they could not find me - they have small children with them and they know I am able to fend for myself. The children, however, can not. They must do what is best for them and I must honor that as well as look out for my own life. Running back into the site of an ambush is pure foolery."
Feeling she could trust Unferth - or could at least defend herself against him, were he to try anything - she slung her bow back over her shoulder and quickly scaled one of the larger trees of their surroundings. Looking out across what she could see of the forest, she caught a glimpse of the river in the far distance as the trees' top branches swayed in the breeze.
She gracefully slid back down the tree and turned back to Unferth.
"Alright, let's try to make it at least half way to the river before night falls. I don't want any stragglers from the purging armies around us strolling through and catching us. The farther we go, the safer we are. From the armies, at least."

Coyote

Unferth examined Illyana thoughtfully as she explained, rather logically, why she would not wish to follow her family’s trail. While it was true that protecting the small children would b etheir number one priority, something about her story was not adding up for him completely, as if he was only being told some of the truth. However her logic seemed sound  and he did not want to quibble at the moment. And is she did have something she wanted to keep private, that was her right anyway, they had just met after all. Illyana seemed to know how to handle herself out here in the woods, Unferth noted as he watched her quickly make her way up and down the tree. He was lucky to have run into an acquaintance who might help him get out of this mess.

“Well if you think we should press on in that direction it’s fine by me we should get moving now then. And don’t worry, you won’t have to slow yourself down too much on my account” He gestured to his leg “I was moving slowly because I didn’t know where I was going, if you lead the way I can move much faster, not as fast as you but I can keep up” 
He twitched and nervously rubbed his bow as she mentioned the soldiers “I think I saw a few stragglers from a distance on my way here. Scary, desperate men. Truth be told, as much as I wanted to join my father when he went off to war, I’m beginning to wonder what the point of all this is.”

With that, he started moving off in the direction Illyana had chosen.
"Power resides where men believe it resides. No more and no less. A shadow on the wall. Yet shadows can kill. And ofttimes a very small man can cast a very large shadow"

-Lord Varys, The Spider

mymistica

Illyana nodded at Unferth's comment. "I concur. I've never understood the point of war. If clans want something another clan has, I feel all they need do is act like mature folk and sort it out through words. It is ridiculous for anyone to claim any part of this land as their own. This Earth belongs to no one. If anything, it is we who belong to her. Someday, we must learn to live in harmony or I feel we shall drive humanity to our own end."
Illyana thought back to the destruction and murder she had beheld after many attacks and during the attack on her own clan. At the core, those on each side were no different than each other. It is the wanting that drives men to evil. if only man could learn to live in appreciation instead of want, perhaps the Earth may know peace.
Illyana shook her head as if to shake the images clear inside of it. She turned to Unferth and gave a small smile.
'So tell me a bit about yourself, Unferth. We'll be traveling together for a while - no sense in remaining total strangers. What did your family do for a living? Were you farmers? You have the farmer look." She giggled jokingly, trying to show him she really meant well.

Coyote

Unferth nodded thoughtfully considering Illyana’s comments. She certainly had a wisdom about her, even if it was tinged with a bit of naivite, she had a knowingness about the world others seemed to lack.  At least she understood how pointless this war had become.  She was not one of the zealots eagerly sharpening their weapons for a chance to whet them with blood.  “You are right; we are ripping each other apart over scraps of land. Truth be told I used to prize the power of my clan above all things. Yet everyone in my village treated me like a dog, and you from far away treat me with respect. That to me is merely proof that sometimes we should looks less to loyalty to the plan and more to loyalty to the people we can like and trust”

Unferth smiled a little at Illyana’s good natured joking. He was used to being made fun of harshly and this was the first time in a long while he could have a proper conversation without embarrassment. He was not used to be treated as a friend. “Actually my father was a blacksmith during peacetime, but he was truly a proud warrior, I was raised more with the expectation to bring glory to the plan. That was until I fell off my horse and, well you can see the result. My mother was a seamstress and I worked with her after that, people shamed me for doing women’s work but it was what I could do to contribute. What about you and your family? I beginning to suspect you are some kind of runaway princess like from the old stories” He smiled at her to show that he was joking. There was something noble about her though, and something he felt that she was not telling him.
"Power resides where men believe it resides. No more and no less. A shadow on the wall. Yet shadows can kill. And ofttimes a very small man can cast a very large shadow"

-Lord Varys, The Spider