[Vers] Time To Hit The Dusty Trail (Aegis, Eyvind)

[Aegis Labyrinthine]

18th of Cryxatum

It had been a long walk south from Aelyria Prime into the unknown territory of Sherian... well unknown to Aegis. It was time for the jet black minotaur to leave the capital of the Prime province and seek out something new. Perhaps one day he would return, but for now he was off to Taralon. Why? Not even Aegis knew for sure. He had taken one look at a map and decided it was close enough to walk, but far enough away to experience something new.

The scenery was nice to look upon while he traveled. The Khardran mountains reminded him of when he had defeated the two adult gryphons single and bare handedly. It would be a while before he ventured into that rocky terrain again, but he enjoyed his stay there... minus almost being torn to shreds by the large talons of the beasts that dwell inside the caves. A little south of the Prime/Sherian border was the Optian Greenwoods. Aegis had never been here before, but it was a thick wood filled with lush greens and foliage. He tried to stay out of the woods as much as possible because it would be easy for one to get lost.

Just after the Optian Greenwoods was the small town of Vers. Finally a place where he could get a good nights rest. Sleeping along the mountain base in the thick of the woods was not the most relaxing, but it gave him enough energy to continue his journey.

Upon entering Vers, the black minotaur looked around for an Inn so he could take a load off. Ale and sleep were just what he needed.

OOC: Sorry about the crumby post, Eyvind! I have to rush off and take care of some last minute shopping...

[Eyvind Redbeard]

Aegis entered a small and warm Inn with a small counter and small chairs and tables spread around the common room. The light originated by the candles spread around the room made it seem a calm place, exactly what a tired traveller like the Minotaur needed. A old man cleaning a mug glass with a white cloth behind the counter greeted Aegis with a smile and quickly got the Minotaur a tankard of warm ale.

"Serale, I am Thirco, owner of this Inn, I suppose you would like to spend the Darkening here, am I wrong? Unfortunately all our rooms are full but we have beds to place here in the common room. Those two gentlemen over there will spend the Darkening here in the common room as well."

He smiled and pointed to two men sitting in a table on the other side of the common room.

"Maybe you would like to meet them, they are strange but quite polite."

He said and turned to clean some more glasses.

[Aegis Labyrinthine]

Aegis was more than happy to receive his mug of ale, and was sure it would not be his last one. "Thank you! I pay after I finish drinking." He replied to the Innkeeper as he raised the frothy mug to his face and slurped up some of the foam. It was so refreshing as the liquid rushed down his throat. It had been a while since he last had the opportunity to enjoy a nice mug of ale.

After being told about the bedding situation, Aegis nodded his head agreeably. Anything was better than sleeping on a hard rocky ground. Besides, the common room was rather cozy... and not far from the ale. The beast then turned to his soon to be roommates, who were sitting at a table across the common room. Aegis figured the could be drinking buddies for the night as well. "Send over ale for them too!" The black minotaur requested of the bartender as he got up and made his way over the the two men and gave a heart wave. "Serale! My name is Aegis. I am sleeping out here too. Can I sit and drink, my friends?" A smile stretched behind his silver hoop.

OOC: Im going to start putting my spoken text in red, just so you know

[Eyvind Redbeard]

The man smiled and turned to clean some more glasses. It had been a long Brightening and all he wanted was to finish cleaning the common room and get some sleep to wake up early in the morning and prepare a breakfast to his guests. The man was woke up from these dreams by Aegis request.

"Hrr...yes, of course. In a moment."

And he started filling two tankards with fresh ale. The men who were sitting in the corner had a battered look in their faces. Their clothes were spartan, tigh black leather pants with long mounting boots reaching their knees. Their torsos were covered with sleeveless leather jackets with some leather strips with silver skulls on the points falling from their shoulders. Their hair was strange, with all their hair shaved from their eyebrows down and a long ponytail falling over their back. The men were silently sitting and drinking on te corner of the common room. On their back each one carried a long black wooden case with some five feet in lenght, each with a detailed hilt showing up on the top and bottom.

When Aegis waved they turned their heads to the Minotaur. Their eyes were light blue and full of life and intelligence. After Aegis' greeting they remained silent for a moment. Then they smiled and raised their glasses to him. The men, twins as he now could see gave him space to sit and even pulled a chair to him from another table.

"Serale, Aegis! We are Argarsis and Boranius. Of course you can!"

Said Argarsis. The bartender showed up with the mugs and placed them over the table. The twins looked to them slightly confused and he said.

"With compliments from him."

The man smiled as he spoke and walked away.

"Oh...I am terribly sorry, Aegis. But we are not allowed to drink alcohol, at least when we are on a mission."

Boranius said. Argarsis shook his head and spoke before his brother could continue.

"Aegis you seem to have walked a long way before you arrived in here. Where do you come from?"

He smiled to the Minotaur.

[Aegis Labyrinthine]

The large beast slid the empty chair away from the table and took a seat, as he was invited to do so. He carefully loosened his dwarven steel gauntlets and placed them at his side so he would be more relaxed as he chatted with his new friends. "I am pleased to meet you both!" He boomed, raising a mug to his face to enjoy the sweet brew inside.

When the monks told Aegis they would not drink on a mission, it sparked a few questions... Who in their right mind didn't want free ale... and what kind of mission would two guys like them be on?

Aegis grabbed the two mugs from across the table and pulled them closer to him like a black hole sucking planets in. He bared his teeth and proposed a generous offer. "I drink your ale for you then! Heh heh!

"I come walking from Aelyria Prime. I been there a while and need to come somewhere else, so I am going to Taralon." Aegis replied to Argarsis' question in between large gulps of ale. "I not sure what I will do there, but I like to keep learning about military tactics or something new. What bring you here to this small place?" Aegis went on to ask, forgetting about the statement Boranius had made about a mission.

[Eyvind Redbeard]

The twins smiled and visibly relaxed too. Seeing an armored Minotaur with bladed gauntlets isn't exactly something one wouldn't be concern about.

"Be my guest."

Boranius said with a smile.

"To Taralon? We are heading there too and coming from Prime's Province too, although we come from the mountains. We intend on joining the new Provincial Army and help defending Sheria from the Orcish Horde. The call to arms has began and they'll need every able man they can find to defeat the Horde. If there is a good place to learning about military tactics that place is Taralon, my friend."

Argarsis said while Boranius nodded.

"We hope to help them with our skill and experience. Living a life in the mountains is harsh but it teaches us how to fight the greenskins."

Argarsis smiled to Boranius comment. After all his brother wasn't so wind headed as he thought. He had his moments.

"Maybe you could travel with us to Taralon and even join the Provincial Army. I've heard they will be trained by the Legions' best troops. And they should, time is running out, the Orcs won't sit still, they grow eager as time passes and it has been a while since the fall of Narim."

[Aegis Labyrinthine]

Aegis' ears twitched back and forth between the twins as they spoke. His face was mostly buried in his mug, but their emphasis on the provincial armies need for men intrigued the horned beast. "The greenskins... I hate the greenskins! I will come with you to fight them! I can use my tactics to fight too!" Aegis exclaimed as he slammed his mug down, ready to leave in an instant... but perhaps a good nights rest would be the best thing for now.

The pale white eyes of the minotaur eyed up the twins wondering how good they really were at fighting. Just by spotting them, one would not have guessed they were soldiers but from the amount of time the minotaur had spent on the main land, away form Minatos, he had seen small men who had the courage of war god. "You two fight?" He asked bluntly, not implying that he thought they couldn't fight, but he just wanted to know if and how they fought.

[Eyvind Redbeard]

The twins backed away when Aegis slammed his mug on the table. They didn't think the Minotaur would react so eagerly. It was good to have someone accompaning them in the journey and having one more soldier in their side in the coming war. Argarsis was the first to relax.

"Calm down, my good friend!"

He said with a joking voice.

"It is good to know you want to help us fighting this threat and we are glad you have some knowledge in how to do it."

He said with a smile.

"I am sure you will be given a good use by whoever is in charge there."

Boranius continued his brother's speech.

"And yes, we fight."

He said while pointing to the detailed hilt showing up over his right shoulder. If Aegis would look carefully he'd recognize it as a sword's hilt.

"We have trained since our youth in the use of the sword, two actually."

Argarsis turned and showed Aegis the detailed wooden case with the hilts coming out, one over his right shoulder and the other pointing down to his left.

"These are our swords, twins as we are."

The wiser twin said with a smile.

"So it seems we have a new companion to our journey. I think we should get some sleep now so we can wake up early tomorrow and continue south to Taralon to join the Provincial Army."

His brother nodded and stood up waving to the Inn's owner. The man disappeared to return carrying a bed with the help of an employee. The two disappeared again to get yet another bed and a third time bringing a larger and stronger bed to hold Aegis weight. After removing the chairs from the common room and pushing the tables to the walls to give more space in the center of the room their sleeping places were ready.

"Time to get some sleep."

Boranius said while taking his boots off.

[Aegis Labyrinthine]

Aegis shot a smile to the twins to assure them he was stable... he just thought back to his fight with the ogres. Orcs, ogres... was there really a difference? The minotaur was pretty sure they spawned from the same cesspool. "I'm sorry. I'm not mad, I just wouldn't mind putting their heads on spikes." The beast continued as he swallowed another swig of ale.

The swords were a surprise to the large creature of Jorel. The twins looked as if they would be more of the hand to hand style fighters, but is was nice to that they could wield a fine instrument of death, should the time come on their way to Taralon.

"I will come with you and put my tactics to use. Let us sleep then!" Aegis confirmed as he grabbed the two mugs of ale that had not been touched yet and started to chug them. Brew ran down his chin and chest as he swallowed as much he could. The beast smacked his lips together and was eager to get some sleep so they could be off. The sooner the arrived in Taralon, the sooner he could lend a hand against the green swine.

[Eyvind Redbeard]

The Darkening was quiet with only the sound of the wind hitting the windows being heard. The twins couldn't be heard breathing so silent they were. Before falling asleep Aegis had seen them praying and meditating until they reached a state of relaxation of their entire body. In the morning they all wake up soon, being Aegis the last one to do so. Boranius shook his bed a little to wake him.

"Get up my horny friend, the road calls us and we don't have the whole Brightening. If we march well we will arrive in Taralon by Darkening fall eight Brightenings from now. We don't have a minute to lose."

After eating a quick breakfast of sausages and eggs the three departed Vers and returned to the road. The morning breeze greeted them and they could listen to some birds in the tree nearby. They met few people on the road being Legionnaire patrols what they saw the most. They remained away from the woods and stopped near the Black River's bridge before midday of the nineth and last Brightening of march to eat something. Argarsis handed the Minotaur some salted meat and a skin of water. On the other side of the bridge they could see some men gathering.

"Who are those, brother?"

Boranius asked innocently.

"It seems like a group of peasants listening to some Legionnaires. Maybe it is a group of men heading to join the Provincial Army."

Argarsis replied with his hand in a palm protecting his eyes from the Suns' light.

"That is good, we should follow with them."

"And that is exactly what we will do. Let's go, they seem to be moving."

Quickly the group packed their sparce belongings and walked across the bridge following the men behind the Legionnaires. From time to time one of the peasants looked back to the impressive Minotaur but aside of that nothing was said or done. No one dared to ask them who they were and why they were following them. Silence accompanied them all until they arrived to Taralon's area. The silence was broken by the voice of a mounted scout.

"I thought you were lost, Gorta."

"Not really, Carok. We were delayed a bit but managed to do it without problems. We even got a Minotaur following us. I'll take them to Daekin Redbeard so he can insert them in their training sessions. Where is he?"

"Down there over, with his nose in some maps as usual. The man can't stop working for a second can he?"

"No, he can't. He works for us all...I'll meet you in the barracks later Carok."

"Sure."

The mounted scout continued his patrol around what Aegis could now see as a huge training ground. Men were seen practicing with a variety of weapons, both close combat and ranged. They followed Gorta to where Carok had said their superior was checking the maps. The tent was white and simple, with a table and two chairs inside. There was a tall and armored man standing and leaning towards the maps that covered the table. His face showed how focused he was in the task at hand. From time to time he wrote something in a notepad, then he made some lines on the map with a truce.

Gorta waited for a moment outside the tent after telling the group to form in two lines in front the tent. They were ten in total, with Aegis and the twins standing in the front row, with one Legionnaire in each side of the group. Then the Legionnaire coughed calling his superior's attention.

"Yes?"

Said the Officer without taking his eyes from the map so focused he was.

"Another group of recruits, Sir."

"Oh...yes..."

The Daekin stood to his seven feet in height and walked out of the tent, saluting and being saluted by the soldier who'd lead the group there.

"You've arrived late, Senior Legionnaire. The other recruits arrived this morning."

The man said without yet looking to the group gathered in front of the tent.

"Sir..."

"No need for apologize! I know who you are, you're Senior Legionnaire Gorta of the Nineth Centuri of the Second Daos. You were there of the men I sent to Redhollow. It was the hardest mission of them all due to the distance and the dangerous mountain trails."

"You know my name? Sir."

"I know the name of all my men."

The Senior Legionnaire bowed his head to the Officer and pointed the group.

"Thank you, Sir. Here is the group."

The Daekin turned to them and his long red hair swinged as he did so. The Vagaran's sharp blue eyes evaluating them and stopping in Aegis. A smile appeared in the man's face as he approached the Minotaur and offered his hand to a handshake.

"Good eyes see you, Master Labyrinthine. It has been a long time since I showed you the way to a forge in a distant city so you could buy your gauntlets. But it seems you've got something new!"

Eyvind said in a happy voice.

"It is good to have you here. Welcome to Sheria!"

Aegis and his companions had arrived. It was here the end of their journey from Prime Province. Some of them had met new people, others had refound old friends.

[Aegis Labyrinthine]

The suns beat down hard on the trio as they walked, and Aegis' dwarven steel didn't help. It acted almost like an oven, but he toughed it out and pressed forward. He mentally vowed to learn to ride a horse... or some kind of mount in the near future, but for now he kept pace with his new companions as they followed the peasants heading the same direction.

They came to a huge training ground with men running back and forth training in various exercises. It looked to be the central area for the army Aegis was going to join. He had never imagined himself to ever come to such a place offering his services, but something brought the minotaur to this place and for a reason...

The three men followed the man named Gorta to a white tent where Gorta's superior was said to be. Aegis could not help but wonder who could be in charge of such a large force? He would have to be a pretty remarkable man. A tall human with red hair and blue eyes exited the tent and walked toward the group of people, speaking with Gorta.

The pale eyes of the minotaur narrowed in on the Daekin, stretching a smile across his face. He new who this man was, but it seemed like a lifetime since he last saw him. "Good eyes see you, Master Labyrinthine. It has been a long time since I showed you the way to a forge in a distant city so you could buy your gauntlets. But it seems you've got something new!" Daekin Redbeard said extending his hand to the minotaur. Aegis was more than willing to return the handshake and greeted his old friend back. "Eyvind Redbeard, I am honoured to meet with you again! It has been a while since I first met you... alot has happened since then!" He raised a dwarven steel gauntlet and flashed the attached 20 inch blade.

The beast turned to his new friends and introduced them. "This is Boranius and this is Argarsis. I met them in an Inn and they told me they will fight, so I want to fight too!"

[Eyvind Redbeard]

Smiling to the Minotaur, Eyvind motioned the Legionnaire, Gorta, to take the remaining recruits to their new quarters. As if the hundreds of white tents could be considered proper quarters. At least they would have regular meals and would learn how to fight instead of dieing uselessly. This was the way an Officer had to see potential recruits in time of crisis.

After a quick examination of the men who had accompanied Aegis, Eyvind came to the conclusion they knew at least how to old a sword. And seeing they had two, in a double wooden sheath on their back they certainly knew how to use two at the same time.

"Yes, a lot happened since we last met. It is good to know that you are joining us Aegis, the same goes for you. Argarsis and Boranius. May Aslan be with us all when the time comes."

The twins closed their eyes and looked to the ground saying a little prayer.

"It is a pleasure to meet you, Sir."

Argarsis once the pray was over.

"We've come from a get length to join this army you are in charged of so we can help Sheria getting rid of the Orc filth."

The young man said with passion. It seemed that if no one would stop him the young Argarsis, the calmest of the two twins would grab his swords and attack the Orcs in their very stronghold of Ire. Such passion was to be praised. Raising his gloved hand Eyvind continued his speech.

"Calm down, young one. I praise your dedication to their end but attacking without planning and preparation will only lead to a complete defeat. I myself don't know what the high ranks wants to do, so I will do my task. Prepare this Provincial Army for whatever it may face. If you can see they are but a rabble, most without proper motivation. And my main problem is the lack of skilled men to take up the position of Officers. Some of the woodsmen give good sergeants, but they aren't refined enough to learn how to set unit in place and how to lead men in battle in an orderly manner."

He finish saying with a somewhat tired voice and expression in his face.

[Aegis Labyrinthine]

Aegis' ears twitched when Eyvind mentioned he was looking for someone to organize units in battle. This was what he had just trained for. Of course, his skill was low and had not been used in the field of battle, but he did posess the knowledge to make an educated recommendation for how to use the units in their terrian. "I know how to use strategy in battle... but I have not used it in battle. If you give me a chnace, I can lend my learning to the army." The jet black beast mentioned to his Daekin friend.

He felt nervous making the suggestion, but from the way Eyvind mentioned it, any amount of organization would help. If Aegis could learn of the terrain and what troops he would have to work with, as well as have suggestions from the other strategists, then he was sure things could get done on an offensive and defensive front.