RP:Who Wants To Live Forever?
Summary: After discovering the true extent of her abilities, Kanna finds herself walking, walking, walking, until she reaches a curious stone keep in the middle of Venturil. She meets the keep's guardian, Ihrakah, and the two share a cathartic conversation on the woes of being undead.
There's no chance for us
It's all decided for us
This world has only one
Sweet moment set aside for us
Vigilanti Semper
Nestled deep within the heart of the frontier lands, this stone keep has been built within the dusty western canyon which snakes across the Venturil region on their way toward the sea. A river runs through the canyon, passing parallel to Vigilanti Semper. To take advantage of this precious water source and link to the outside world, a humble dock has been constructed for the passing of fisher boats and the stationing of the Catalian vessel Maighdean Mhara. At the higher levels as well as on the roof of the twelve-meter keep, elaborate stained glass windows have been erected with distinctive chevron carvings around the arches. The paintings on the windows depict a diverse -- if rough -- cartographic representation of Lithrydel from shore to shore; even Rynvale can be spotted at the eastern edges of the picture. As a result of this illustration, peering down upon Vigilanti Semper from high above the canyon may give ne’er-do-wells the mistaken implication that destroying the Warrior’s Guild would be as simple as tossing boulders off of ledges and waiting to hear the shattering of scores of glass and the distant screams of those gathered inside. Should the keep’s alleged design weakness be tested, however, foes will soon discover that a powerful magical barrier covers the stained glass in full, capable of withstanding enough of a barrage to alert the guild to an assault -- at which time, the handful of mercurial archers stationed within the forest overlooking the canyon will rush out in force.
Inside Vigilanti Semper, the stone maintains a pleasant enough temperature for these arid environs, and blue rugs slashed with silver cover the halls from end to end. The keep is far from huge, its guild’s display of strength only successful up to its modest upper limits, so resources have been spent wisely; there are four principle wings within Semper, each filled to brimming with its own importance. The command wing is in the northwest; Lionel and other high-ranking officers can frequently be found here planning operations and hosting internal meetings as well as foreign dignitary. To the southeast there is the residency wing, where most of the guild’s members -- from raw recruits to seasoned soldiers -- rest and recover. The botany wing lies in the southwest corner. The on-site physician, Tico, works tirelessly here to ensure the health of the men and women willing to risk life and limb to preserve the delicate peace for the world around them. Additionally, a garden and miniscule farming plots can be found outside the wing. Lastly, there is the cafeteria wing, where the pair of stout dwarven cooks hired by the guild, Black Bear and Old Rimby, busily prepare hearty meals and passable combat rations.
The canyons were no place for a ghoul. Mortals were far and few between in the stretch between Venturil and Craughmoyle, and Chartsend was a few days away by carriage alone. Still, Kanna walked forward. At her side, an incandescently furred wolf marched with her, loyal as any soldier could be. The knowledge of what had really been happening when she consumed mortals was too overwhelming for her to be able to stay in Vailkrin. Her, the leader of an undead army? That sounded like something out of an old mythos. Without the need to sleep or rest, the woman had walked for hours on end. Finally, her companion gives a whine to get her attention and lifts his paws, revealing the cracked soft pads. “Oh, lover boy…” She coos worriedly, dropping her bag and examining his wounds. “I’m so sorry… Okay, let’s find a safe place.” Despite her current state’s infamy for eating whatever it could get its hands on, her love for the creature had not wavered in the slightest. A bit aways, just around the bend of a rocky outcropping stands the stone keep in all its glory. The area did not seem uninhabited; inside the building were faint shadows of candlelight and fireplaces, shadows dancing across them as its occupants went about their evening. Cornflower eyes drift to the gates as she draws nearer. Perhaps she would not enter the keep, but surely a peek inside the windows would sate her curiosity.
Ihrakah stands before the gates of the Vigilanti Semper, alone and unmoving in his vigil. Despite his recently garnered fame in leading the charge that broke the siege upon the keep, Ihrakah has rejected the company of his fellow guardsmen, preferring to take long lonely shifts of watch than to trudge the long halls of the keep, a sleepless march for a tireless giant. Though his solitude was broken on occasion by messengers, scouts, coming and leaving from the keep as they ferried commands to and from the troops in the field, they were met with iron-clad indifference. As the long hours of the evening draw on and night burgeons on the horizon, Ihrakah stands square-shouldered, only two pinpricks of blue balefire burning behind his visor giving away the life within the colossal suit of armour that guards the gate, barnacle-crusted anchor planted firmly in the dirt before it. As the shadows grow longer, Ihrakah finds his vigil broken by the arrival of an unknown individual. A woman, by all appearances, with a wolf companion. Ihrakah stares down the approaching woman with a cool impassionate gaze, preferring to observe and determine her intentions before committing to any words or action.
Kanna rests her eyes on the figure for but a moment, at first considering him to be a statue of some sort. The wolf by her side takes note of the figure and raises its hackles, reaching forward and grabbing the hem of her skirt with his teeth. Golden eyes remain fixed on the suit of armor, a low growl rumbling from his throat in either a warning to him or the woman. The paranoia is met with a confused look from the ghoul. "What's wrong, Amante? I'll only be a second!" The cloth is snatched from his maw, and the woman moves forward without the beast at her side. Instead, it hangs its head, looking from her to Ihrakah and back. Even without words, it is apparent that the wolf is concerned for her safety. The bard steps closer to the gates, her eyes transfixed on the windows the whole time. Now she stands directly in front of the anchor planted before her, using him as a cover to look through. After a few moments, the woman says softly. "It must be nice having somewhere to come home to, even if it's in the middle of nowhere. Though, why do they have a statue blocking the gates?" Kanna looks up to the visor of the helm and freezes when her eyes catch with the two pinpricks of light looking directly down at her. Up close, and with her human disguise shed, it is clear she is some form of undead, whether a vampire or not. "I'm so sorry." She steps back, clasping her hands in front of her and giving a bow of her head. "I... just wanted to look."
Ihrakah's blue glowing eyes blink slowly as he studies Kanna, silently judging her appearance as he considers his next words. Eventually, with a creaking squeal of tortured metal, the statue shifts, seemingly springing to slow, laborious life. Both gauntleted hands grasp the haft of the anchor, levering it out of the dirt and up into a ponderous arc, up and over, to crunch solidly onto the giant's steel-plate pauldron, which coughs out a dusty cloud of rust with the impact. "Spies only look, and yet they can bring an army to its knees." Ihrakah gazes down at Kanna, the deep frame of his visor keeping any facial features cowled in deep shadow as he studies this intruder. "Who are you, and what is your purpose in this region?" Ihrakah's voice resonates in his chest with an abyssal growl, like a grumbling of things that the deep throws up into the light. The edifice of scorch-marked, seaweed-strung steel squares itself before Kanna, awaiting her answer with a monolithic brooding presence.
Kanna steps back, her eyes widening. "A spy? No!" Further away, the wolf stands straight in response to the movement of the anchor, raising his hackles and growling as he moves to Kanna's side. Embers appear at the edges of his mouth in preparation of an attack should the creature attack. "No!" The songstress puts her hands around his neck to keep him from advancing on the giant. "Amante, -down-!" Clearly upset with her choice to not fight him, Amante obeys the command, giving the woman room to raise her hands in front of her frame in a universal show of surrender. "My name is Kanna. I am a traveler. Nothing more. I know not what this place is. We have been walking since midday from Vailkrin. I wanted to think upon some news I had received, and somehow I ended up walking the entire day. I'm still not used to being able to walk so much without my body telling me to stop. I would walk back now, but I wanted to find a place to stop first." Kanna looks away from the threatening figure to her pet. "This is Amante. He follows me where I go, and I inconsiderately allowed him to walk with me this whole time without considering that he still needs to rest." Looking back up, she says in a quieter voice, "I wanted to find some outcropping to give shelter from the night winds while he rests up to walk back, and instead we found this place. Is there anything I can do to show I am not a spy?" A naive question from a still naive ghoul.
Ihrakah studies Amanda with an unconcerned passiveness as the wolf bridles. However, the embers that begin leaking from his muzzle do generate intrigue in the rusted leviathan, if not a tinge of concern. When Kanna manages to talk her companion down from conflict, the giant turns his attention back to her, listening to her introduce herself without so much as a nod in reaction until she mentions how she accidentally walked an entire day on account of it slipping her mind. This elicits a curiosity in the giant, and he tilts his iron-clad head aside, examining this traveller with a greater scrutiny. When Kanna explains her motivation in seeking respite from the elements while Amante recuperates, the giant takes a few moments to ponder over his response. "You intrigue me, Ka-na," - the giant pronounces the woman's name with a curious harshness, enunciating the first syllable of her name as a hard cough - "it is not often that one crosses the wasteland merely on account of being lost in thought. I would be curious to understand the mind of one who would do so." Ihrakah lifts his anchor from his shoulder and, taking it in both hands, places it on the ground, laying the length of the steel down between himself and Kanna. "If you would be inclined to sit and talk, I believe I can fulfill my duty in determining you are of no risk to the fortress, and you may rest awhile in doing so." Ihrakah gestures towards the anchor, the flat paddle where the haft meets the blade being large enough to serve as a simple seat, at least better than sitting in dirt.
Kanna relaxes when the leviathan offers for her to speak with him and watches with curiosity as the anchor is lowered to the ground. “Thank you for your generosity.” She returns the offer with a dulcet smile. “Since you are wary of me, I will not ask you for your name if you do not wish to give it.” To her companion, she gives three pats, and the wolf gives a grunt of satisfaction as it finally rolls onto its side to clean the pebbles from his paws. The woman tucks her skirt beneath her knees before taking a seat. She seems to think for a great while, the silence only punctuated by the muffled sounds coming from inside the keep. “I would not have walked for nearly so long had I still been human. I have been a monster for nearly a year, but I still have most of my memories from my time as a human. As such, I still think and act like one, except for the biggest caveat in this new physiology. I am being asked to take on a terrible responsibility. Logically, there is no reason for me to refuse the offer.” Kanna looks up at the frost giant. “If you were offered the chance to become mortal again, would you take it? No matter how gruesome the requirement was?”
Ihrakah waits for Kanna to seat herself, standing to attention, before taking a glance down and reconsidering his decision, given the sheer distance between their heights, conversation may become difficult. With a groaning squeal of metal on metal, Ihrakah bends his knee, planting one steel greave in the dirt, then a second, sinking down onto his knees with the grace of a drawer of spilled silverware. Ihrakah looks lost for what to do with his hands, folding them awkwardly in his lap after much deliberation. Clearly, this giant is one unused to idle posture, more well suited to the rigid stance of vigil instead. "I see little risk in sharing my name. My name was first granted to me in the Uyeer tongue, but for the sake of ease, in Common tongue, I am Ihrakah." Ihrakah dips his head to punctuate the introduction in place of a bow. When Kanna poses her question, Ihrakah thinks in silence. As the owls begin calling the start of their evening hunt, the giant breaks his quiet with a pensive rumble. "I would. But I believe that that answer comes from a place quite different to where you stand at the moment, so I must explain" Lifting his hand and splaying his fingers against his breastplate in indication, Ihrakah's balefire eyes study Kanna's face to judge her reaction as he elaborates. "I too, am what some would call a monster. I was denied death on account of a foolish oath taken in a moment of vanity, and I have spent two decades fighting in other's wars in the hopes of fulfilling my oath and earning my death. So, to answer your question, yes, I would, and have been paying that gruesome price, seemingly to no avail." Ihrakah watches Kanna, before turning his head away, in an action that speaks of shame. "To be a monster is not what you are, it is what you do. And to that end, I am a monster in every regard."
Kanna watches as the giant kneels to be able to hear her. As the first creak of metal hits the ground, she is met with the distinct smell of the ocean, of seaweed baking in the sun for far too long. For just a moment, her eyes seem to glaze over as a memory resurfaces of wandering to the beach after a storm while her hand is held by someone else, and her curiosity questioning the person leading her why there were so many fish sleeping on the warm sands. Had there been a time where she lived in such a place? The memory passes, and her eyes fix on him again as he speaks. She was sure she had heard that name whispered before, in taverns she had played in where taverns frequented, but she cannot be sure. As he tells her his story of being denied death, her brows slowly sink down in empathy. “I do not believe an oath made in good faith is what would make you a monster. You keep these people safe, correct? Surely, that is not the action a monster takes” A sad smile graces her face. “I suppose it is my turn. I am a performer by trade, a vocalist and a strings player. One night, a man praised my performance and offered me a rare variant of a frost-fire rose. It is unknown to most, but the rose was the exact same one given to me by someone I was becoming attached to, that I had to walk away from because I was afraid of what that attachment meant. The thorn of the rose pricked my finger, and a curse befell me that stopped my heart and turned me into this.” She smiles, though the action does not reach her eyes. “It sounds like something from a fairy tale. If being a monster is what I do, then I am afraid that I very much will be one whether I accept the proposal or continue as I am now.”
Ihrakah sighs, a long drawn out hiss as a cloud of mist plumes from the slots of his faceplate. "If only my oath had been made in good faith, perhaps then we might not be talking in this moment. But that oath was made by a foolish man who thought nothing of consequence and only of the fame and fortune it would bring him. It's no surprise Aramoth thought fit to punish me for that fool's crime. The world was better off with him dead." With a creak, the giant turns and looks over his shoulder at the stone keep rising up out of the gloom behind him. The walls, repaired after the damage of the recent siege, loom out of the darkness, filling the giant's vision. "It's a purpose." Ihrakah answers lamely, as if unsure what else to say. "It's a purpose and something to spare me from my thoughts. Sleep abandoned me, so I have need to fill the hours somehow. Lionel suggested the watch, so here I am. There's little more to it." Ihrakah turns back, hunching his colossal shoulders as Kanna continues. "If I may be so blunt, Ka-na, you don't strike me as a monster. Your condition was not of your own causing, and you show remorse, reluctance. Very human traits." The edifice of steel jerks slightly as a barking cough racks the giant, followed by another. After as few seconds, it becomes apparent that these are not coughs, but laughter. "Ironic, coming from me, but nonetheless "
Kanna leans forward slightly, raising an eyebrow and quirking her lip upward in a teasing manner. “Ah, but you also did not say ‘no’ to his request, did you?” Satisfied with the retort, she draws back. “From my readings, Aramoth is a bloodthirsty god, but not an unreasonable one. If death is what you wish for, perhaps you should pray to Vakmatharas.”A pause, and then she waves her hand in front of her face as if clearing the air. “Sorry, that was a terrible thing to joke about, please don’t do that.” She seems to want to ignore the points raised by the undead man, but she answers regardless. “That’s the problem. At first, I felt remorse. The men I killed may have had families, people to return to. They were horrible lechers, but they were still people. Now that I know that I am more powerful in this form than I ever could have been as a human, part of me is thrilled. Would the world be better off without mortals to begin with? Are all the races destined to repeat the same senseless wars until the planet breathes its last?” A dark expression covers her face, then she shakes it away. “But if I were to become human again, I would never have to think such terrible things! But then, how many lives is my transformation going to be worth?” At his laughing, she can’t help but give a small laugh as well. “I suppose you are about to tell me that this is also a human way of thinking. Allow me to be so bold as to tell you that a monster also doesn’t go around giving advice to strangers.” At this, she wags a greyed finger at him. Her expression fades, and she looks up at the night sky. "What was the purpose of undeath in the first place, I wonder? Whom did it benefit?"
Ihrakah snorts lightly. "No, I suppose I didn't. You have a point." The giant folds his hands together in his lap, a strangely delicate pose for such a hulking metal colossus. "Much as the suggestion bears promise, if Aramoth saw fit to chain me to this half-life, then I suspect Vakmatharas would have little sway. Though the thought of being the subject of a divine argument amuses me." Ihrakah snorts at the concept, he has no illusions of his own grandure, he is likely no more than a footnote in the codex of Aramoth's deeds. A foolish ant who felt himself too big for his hive. "All life experiences conflict. It's the most primordial of laws. The one saving grace of mortals is their natural limit. No war lasts forever, no tyrant rules eternal. All things end in their time. Death is the great limiter that regulates this world. If anything, the world would be better off without immortals. Like me. And, though I mean no offense, like you." Ihrakah leans forward, and the blue glowing points behind his visor grow, to an azure intensity. "I believe that immortality is the worst curse that can be foisted upon an individual. Everything in this world tends towards decay, and while many lament the loss of loved ones as the hardest cost of immortality, I have found it to be loss of purpose that terrifies me to my core." The cold blue glow bathes Kanna's face, as the giant hold her gaze. "Ka-na, pay the cost, and shun this unlife. If there is any advice I can impart, it is that. Lack of purpose drove me to kill in the name of causes I had no stake in for two decades. My name is thrown around among the Uyeer like one would a cursed blade. I became a tool to be turned against the living, because I had no purpose to steer me otherwise." Ihrakah's blazing eyes dim, and he sits back with a rasp of rusted steel. "I left the abyssal depths because I wanted to find my death. Because I know that everything ends, while I do not. There is no purpose that can weather time like I do, so I would rather die than become like I was. Don't follow my path, if you have any means of avoiding it."
Kanna shakes her head. “I agree. There should not be immortals among the mortals. Even the dragons must return to the earth one day.” As if Lauria herself had heard this, a gust kicks up, knocking pebbles down into the canyon below where the pair sat safe from the wind. Silvery hair flutters around her head, though she does not flinch when a lock of curls bumps into her face as she watches the leviathan’s movements. The woman had never had purpose to begin with. “There was a time where I thought I understood what my purpose might be, but the memory of it escapes me now, as if this curse is willing me to forget. But if twenty years has led you to that conclusion, then I know it is the conclusion I will have reached if I do not heed it.” Her expression hardens somewhat with determination. “I still do not know my beneficiary well enough to know what would happen if I was to refuse her offer, but I am not willing to find out. I will make use of these powers only as much as needed until I can go back.” Her eyes finally leave his to look over to her pet, who now blows a soft fire from his maw onto his paws. The leathery hooves do not burn, but rather react well to the fire, the cracks softening until they disappear. “After all, there’s someone I still need to meet, but I can’t do so while I look like this. Thank you for your wisdom, Ihrakah.” The ghoul smiles back up at him before looking down at the barnacle encrusted anchor below him. Along part of the metal lies strands of seaweed, nearly dried up from the harsh air. “Curious.” She stands from her seat and turns, reaching down and rests a hand on the vegetation. The plant shudders beneath her touch and inflates before peeling away the dead skin to reveal bright blossoms of various blooms of sea plants and other flowers native to different parts of Lithrydel, growing around the anchor until all but the handle is covered in blooms. “A gift for your time. It's not much, but flowers are always soothing to look at when sleep evades you.”
Ihrakah nods in agreement with Kanna's resolution, and he dips his head when she thanks him. "I wish you the best in your efforts. You are a kind soul, that much is clear to me, I would not wish immortality to bring that kindness to fade." With a groaning rasp, Ihrakah slowly climbs to his feet again. When Kanna reaches down to the seaweed encrusting the anchor, Ihrakah tilts his head curiously, then his eyes blink with surprise when flowers begin blooming beneath the woman's touch, wreathing his anchor in colour and life. When she steps away, Ihrakah reaches down and gingerly lifts the anchor, trying his best not to disturb the delicate flowers as he does so. "This is a more touching gift than you could imagine Ka-na. Thank you." Ihrakah ponders for a moment, then crouches on one knee. Balancing the anchor across his leg, he gingerly plucks one bloom from the wreath; a blue cornflower. Placing it in his palm, he holds his hand out towards Kanna. "I cannot say when our paths may cross again, but I would like if we could talk again someday. Perhaps when summer comes." Ihrakah's deep growling bass seems uncharacteristically gentle, even soft, as he offers Kanna the flower.
Kanna smiles widely and takes the cornflower, pleased that the gift was well received. "Thank you, Ihrakah. May Aramoth grant you a painless death. Come on, lover boy." She calls to her wolf, who stands and bounds to her. The cornflower is affixed to just behind her ear, where it should stay safe. With a bow of the head, the ghoul and the wolf disappear back into the canyon.