#kyroh

It's the hottest day of the year when the tavern keeper bests Kyroh.

Humiliation burns as sweat drips into his eyes under the heavy fabric of his hood, standing in front of Lucen as he berates the girl. She's standing there with a straight back, refusing to fold under his leader's glare, eyes glinting with steely satisfaction. Her dog is panting at her side, the massive beast's gaze trained on Lucen even as it's tongue lolls out of it's mouth lazily, something intelligent in the beast's eyes as it waits for it's master's commands.

And then— Lucen turns on him.

It's not that Kyroh has never felt Lucen's wrath before. The entirety of the Fellowship lives in fear to some extent, careful to curb themselves back lest they earn the ire of their illustrious leader. But even Klayn's failure hadn't resulted in this sort of rage, this loss of control. Maybe it's because Klayn was simply an apprentice, or perhaps due to it being the Fellowship's first loss against the tavern keeper.

Either way, Kyroh doesn't dare flee, and doesn't dare fight back. This is his punishment for losing, for letting the Fellowship look foolish in the face of some pathetic country bumpkin.

She's the last thing he sees before he loses consciousness. Standing there, eyes wide with horror as she watches Lucen beat him into the ground.

Her eyes are gold, Kyroh thinks, and then everything goes dark.