#support: hapi

This territory has been experiencing heightened monster activity, especially after the recent attack. The Alliance greatly appreciates any assistance you can offer to make the area safer and protect the citizens. Your enemies aren’t too much different from what you’re used to, but a few have a more… ghostly aura about them. On an open field, you see a massive paladin on a monster of a horse, both clad in golden armor, patrolling the area. You won’t catch up with him on foot, but perhaps with a horse… [Grants Riding + 1]

starter for @ashen-curse

Kurth was not much of a fighter, but for the greater good, sometimes he figured that it was necessary. Of course, that didn’t mean that he was going to like it. He hated fighting, it was one of the things in this world that he despised more than anything. He sighed softly, so far everything had been fine, enemies were practically fodder to him and his more talented companion. Luckily, they did not seem to bleed as readily as they would have from a weapon as they did from magic. Frankly, it was huge relief for him, though he was not completely safe. He felt dizzy even looking at what blood they did spill, sickening to the point where he had to avert his eyes just to stay upright on his horse. He petted the creature gently, grateful that it seemed to be obeying his orders for the most part. He glanced across the field, startled by the seemingly sudden appearance of a golden clad warrior atop a horse armored in a similar manner. Ah, so this is the kind of thing they were dealing with here. He turned to his companion, pointing the paladin out to the young beorc girl.

"so, got any plans on paying off all your debts?" as always, patrol is too boring without something—anything for her to talk about. "or are you just gonna take them to the grave? every time you get your hands on some gold, it just goes right down the drain."

“yikes. really killing it out there, b. and by ‘killing it’, i mean my appetite.” but she's got to hand it to him. rule of threes and all that, any guy should be reevaluating himself before the fourth rejection, but balthus just keeps going no matter how many times he strikes out. it's no wonder the gambling dens love him more than the maidens do.

where he's crouched on the ground from despair (or shame? nah, he's got none) or otherwise, she prods him with her knee. nothing short of steel-forged discipline has been keeping her from letting out a sigh at his sad little stunts, but who knows how long that'll last. “even i'm bound to slip up if i have to keep watching this. come on patrol with me if you haven't got anything better to do.”

99% of gamblers quit before they hit it big. Hasn't she ever heard of that completely true not-at-all false statement? If he strikes out now, then all of his efforts before would've been for nothin'; and he's nothing if not hard-headed. A couple dozen failures.... lift your head up, King, your crown is falling.

Yet, she still approached Niles, stopping a few feet before him. "I gotta thank you, though. For helping me gets those clothes."

Roll 1D20 = 1, HP +1

She placed one hand on Niles' arm, allowing the weak healing magic to flow through and patch up some wounds. Some.

He looks well enough to stay up, plus she had to store up energy in case things went south. It would do no good to use up everything now and then not even be able to cast a simple Miasma in battle from exhaustion.

"Just be more careful."

It doesn’t get him feeling right as rain, but it’s still something—and that’s more than Niles is used to receiving. (It’s as Azura surmised: you’ve not made any friends, have you? Well, what of enemies?

Ha! What of enemies, indeed…)

“Oh, nothing too exciting. Lost a hand, gained a hand… nothing I wouldn’t have been able to supplement with my tongue.” Other than what matters. The bow remains strapped to his back; it’ll hurt for a while to fire it, he’s sure, but at least he still can, thanks to Maria’s benevolence. (It’ll get her killed one day, though. Maybe here. Maybe from someone like him.)

“I don’t think helping you get a coat is worth any thanks,” he continues, “but I appreciate your healing regardless…” Hm. He’d have to give her a little nickname too, wouldn’t he? If they’re to repay each other for everything, it’d only be fair. “…Pinkie.”

Anyway, she needed to find clothes for this dang desert they were going to in a few days. Temperatures didn't bother her, but she wasn't stupid. Deserts where a whole 'nother problem, one she never went through, and she was pretty sure this uniform couldn't handle it well.

She spotted a guy that seemed a little different from the rest of the students. Messy hair, an eyepatch. The way he held himself reminded her of Yuri.

"Hey, eyepatch." Well, it felt better to try to talk to him than to fish for one of these nobles' attention. He did look like he was of her and the Wolves' kin, even if he was a regular student of the Academy. "We're on the same team. Going to Sreng or something."

"Do you know where to find clothes that fit that place? They said it was cold and I'm not a fan of the idea of getting hypothermia."

...Yeah. If Sreng is as cold as they say, with a winter that's managed to linger longer than normal, then she's definitely going to freeze well before they reach their destination—wherever the hell that might end up being.

"If you're worried about the cold, I can think of some other things we could do to help warm you up," Niles replies, filthy grin and all. But they're heading out into the unknown, looking for gods knows what, and if all the teary concern he's seen shared throughout the school thus far has any merit, then it isn't going to be an easy task at all. Loath as he is to admit it, this is likely going to be another case where he has to play nice with everyone involved.

(...at least, until there comes a moment where a sacrifice needs to be made. Niles is certain that everyone here has a reason to return safely, whether it's a loved one, a family member, or even their aspirations alone. He also doesn't care. If push comes to shove, Niles is shoving—because this life isn't his to live anymore, and it'll only be by Leo's hand that he'll die.)

It begins with a child.

He’s 7, maybe 8—a scrawny little thing that easily moves between the individuals milling about in the marketplace, easily missed to all but the most discerning eye. To Niles, that little boy is the only one he can see.

He’s fidgeting nervously, caught between a fruit stall and a bakery. The bread would be the better option, but it’s a harder reach; the fruit is easier, but it wouldn’t fill him for long. He bites his lip. He digs his heel into the dirt. He takes a step, having decided on the bread, and—

“Hm.”

—is stopped by a hand on taking his own, pressing a coin into his palm.

“You should’ve gone for the fruit,” Niles says, releasing the boy’s hand. “But—”

The boy shoves past him, holding the coin tightly to his chest. Niles considers giving chase, but the boy slips through the crowd with a familiar sort of ease. Nothing too difficult to follow, but he feels the hair on the back of his neck rise, every honed sense warning him that he wasn’t simply being noticed; he was being watched.

The culprit is… a girl. A woman, actually, with clothes that looked entirely like it belonged at the Officer’s Academy, except it’s entirely the wrong color—and he’s sure that he hasn’t seen her around. Ever.

starter for @wildflowerofabyss

Gaius’ night was... eventful. Kind of. He didn’t want to think much on it, so he walked, and walked, and walked... 

The beach was wide and seemingly unending. Almost limitless. He wouldn’t put it pass the creator of this world. The music and cheer that he left behind were no more, his steps taking him to someplace more quiet. He’s not alone, however. There were plenty of them stuck here, he’s bound to come across another soul. His companion came in the form of a young woman, eyes stuck on the sky, as if entranced. It only took him a second to glance up to know why.

The black canvas in the heavens was filled with bright stars. If he could reach up and take them, he would. They were gorgeous.

This, he thinks, made for a good distraction. And so he slowly made his way towards the one that gave him the idea, stopping a few feet to her left.

“Got room for one more?” Weird. He felt a sense of de ja vu, but he can’t remember to who he said it to. A flash of light pink and dark browns... and then nothing, his memory fuzzy. Then again, it was a common line. It was probably nothing.