RP:Random Encounter

From HollowWiki

Extravagant Water Garden

Kang stares into the pool contemplating what needs doing, what he's done, and what he'll never get back. Occasionally, a smattering of dust falls from his skin with no evidence of where it came from. Sparks flicker around his head, or is it a single spark repeating it's blink of 'I'm here! I'm here!'. The secrets this preklek holds might never be uttered again, nor will there ever be another preklek quite like Kang. The first Hollowborn preklek, and the last of the old race


Reginae finds herself staring at something or someone she’s never seen in the garden before. At first, it caught her as strange that anything or anyone would be here…but then it dawned on her that efforts –were- being made to bring life back to this place. One day, it should be bustling with activities and she’ll be forced to surrender the solitude for the greater good. Instead of shifting, as she normally might when meeting a stranger, she slides up as close as she can without startling the newcomer and observes from the open for a long, silent chunk of time. “Who are you?” she asks instead of demanding. Royal birth right didn’t have a stake in her dialect.


Kang peers over at she who had spoken. "I am a rootless wanderer, seeking to make a home for himself." He sees no reason to lie, or to tell anything more than the literal truth. He'd seen the strange abilities of those here, and had used it to his advantage. "Someone told me this could be a place to find allies. I doubted it, but allowed that it was worth trying. She's dead now. Looks like I was right." He grins wryly. Savage murder is the recourse of barbarians. It is to be expected. "Her own fault. Trusting the untrustworthy. Survival of the fittest. Evolution in action. I merely wanted to see if there was anything salvageable here."


Reginae regards Kang with a skeptical nod. They had at similar mind set. “Normally, I would advise that allies are hard to find anywhere now, but it looks like Aramoth made his statement through your ally well ahead of time. She may have been right. Nagas uphold the same idea; Survival of the fittest. If you are looking for strong kin, this may be the only place left that hasn’t completely rotted away.” If her blood could chill, it might have at his direct tone. That wasn’t how humans played politics. They had too many flowery words and polite dance routines, shielding themselves in perfumed guises. The naga was intrigued. “Why are you looking for a home? Do you seek kinship? Solitude? Rest?” Kang gestures at the palace. "No matter how powerful, everyone needs a place to rest. Everyone needs a place to call theirs." He clasps his hands in front of himself to consider the rest of her words. "I'm not looking for kin or allies. If I need something, I make a deal. No binding alliance beyond that. I doubt either side trusts the other enough for more, or even that much. Trust isn't earned or given, it's something I don't rely on. I honor my word, and if the other side does not. . ." He locks eyes with the naga woman. "Consequences follow. I never said I was looking for a home. I said I would -make- a home. I will forge my way, with fire and steel." The spark hovering around his head brightens, as if responding to his words.


Reginae nods, “Aye, you did.” The spark catches her attention, but is it her place to demand information from the stranger who just happens to be sitting in the garden? “If you need something while you’re here, we can strike a deal without binding or alliance. There is little more than peace and ruins for Alithrya to offer presently. That and promises of the things we strive for. Do you hold a title, rootless wanderer?” Kang said, "Krekai Dedicate, Chekari Initiate, Seliei Hopeful. . ..most just call me Kang." He considers her offer. "I know no peace, I've had enough of ruins. I need nothing." Reginae does not recognize the dialect. “Reginae,” she offers to the air between them while he contemplates in silence. This made her smile. “You say you need nothing, but you are seeking a home. Homes bring peace, which you claim not to know. Take your rest in these ruins. Why here, I really don’t know of a safer place now. The naga are mostly forgotten. Too old to be remembered.” The length of her tail coils below her torso, giving her the appearance of being seated. “You’re a curious sort…Kang. Very calculated. What kind of home will you create?”


Kang peers at the ruins once more. "There're a lot of hiding places up there. I wouldn't be able to rest knowing I'd be so exposed." He glances at the serpentine coils, but doesn't really worry too much. "My home will be forward-thinking. Not safe at all. I want to restore my people to the glory we once were. Failing that, a hard reset. Scrap everyone and start from scratch. If a few must die to save the rest, so be it. If they all must die, I'm willing to make that sacrifice, even if they aren't."


Reginae follows his line of sight upward. “A noble goal. If it came down to it, I would have to object to being killed. Survival instinct and all.” The comment is casually made, there was no battle brewing between them now. But there might be one day. The naga would keep that in mind. “Who are your people? I’ve never met one like you, but that doesn’t mean much. “


Kang lifts his staff and taps a quick rhythm aong it's side. It immediately shifts into a greatsword. "I am preklek, we are warriors, engineers. Two of our forces were eliminated by this dimension. They deserved their loss. They forgot to THINK." He angrily points at his head. "Fighting stupid causes death. Death causes extinction. I need to excise this disease. We are proud, strong. If they haven't stopped me, yet, it means they can't, because they are weak failures. One warrior should not be able to defeat an army of equal warriors. Therefore they are not my equal. They are not preklek."


Reginae watches the staff shift with a sudden understanding. The traveler didn’t just wield riddles, but weapons as well. “Why else would training be so necessary? Who is trying to stop you?” Had she heard of the Preklek? They must not be from this realm…not with the mention of dimensions? That was a concept she’d have to wrap her mind around. It resembled some of Vuryal’s time shifting abilities…and it truthfully made her unease. “You are not working with the Parasite, are you?” Her question was honest; without fear and calculated.


Kang lifts his staff and taps a quick rhythm aong it's side. It immediately shifts into a greatsword. "I am preklek, we are warriors, engineers. Two of our forces were eliminated by this dimension. They deserved their loss. They forgot to THINK." He angrily points at his head. "Fighting stupid causes death. Death causes extinction. I need to excise this disease. We are proud, strong. If they haven't stopped me, yet, it means they can't, because they are weak failures. One warrior should not be able to defeat an army of equal warriors. Therefore they are not my equal. They are not preklek."


Reginae watches the staff shift with a sudden understanding. The traveler didn’t just wield riddles, but weapons as well. “Why else would training be so necessary? Who is trying to stop you?” Had she heard of the Preklek? They must not be from this realm…not with the mention of dimensions? That was a concept she’d have to wrap her mind around. It resembled some of Vuryal’s time shifting abilities…and it truthfully made her unease. “You are not working with the Parasite, are you?” Her question was honest; without fear and calculated.


Kang said, "Training is necessary because the entire world would try to stop me in some form or another." The spark grows to a full-on crown of fire. Kang eyes it with wry humor. "Well, most of it, at least. There are a few who choose me over their biological brethren. But, since I trust nearly none, I ally with no one for long, especially parasites


Reginae was clearly relieved to hear that. "What is that, flame? Does it choose you?"


Kang chuckles a little. "It's kind of funny." He gives off a sharp, shrill whistle and the flame drops to the ground and grows into a giant flaming tiger. "It followed me when I left a particular portal that leads to a land of chaos. Despite calling itself chaos, there is a certain logic to it." He uses the large broadsword to stroke the tiger. It purrs loudly. "Sentient flames. It's a curious realm I've been born into, there is so much that makes so little sense."


Reginae watched the transformation with a certain warmth. It was a light weight companion, capable of changing form. Her curiosity got the best of her. "It's wonderful. I've never seen anything like either of you."


Kang shrugs. "They're all over in the chaos lands. This one saw something he liked, and wandered off. We all go after what we want. Some more than others."


Reginae regarded his words with a pause. " I don't think you'll have a hard time accomplishing your goal." Her lids closed but she still saw the bright creature and it's master beyond. " Come here again, if you've a mind to. Your calculated mindset is rare. I would value your advice. I'm attempting something much the same. My people are gone, scattered. I am charging myself with the mission to rebuild until You "...until someone feels the need to take my place, if they can. Until then, I'm the champion chosen because I'm all that's left."


Kang nods and begins to leave. "I may come back to speak with you, but words can only get us so far. Action is needed. For now, let us part in peace. The battle is for another day. Farewell, snake-woman." Reginae casts a fanged grin to the garden as the stranger moves to make his leave. "Until then, Kang. May we never meet in battle." It was the Naga equivalent of a take care of yourself farewell. As he moves to leave, she too turns to go back within the palace walls to ponder the random encounter.