Third Time a Charm

[Carly Jr'ana]

Early Summer, Era XI

Warm salt water. No one in their right mind would drink it, and yet Carly was sitting calmly in the Red Mullet Inn sipping from a small wooden mug, if anyone cared to look the mug contained the very substance that sent men mad. No one would drink it, but Carly was of the race of sea elves and she was starting to miss the ocean. Besides, she wasn't so much drinking it as splashing it on her gills every so often.

Today Carly wore the simplest of clothes, one of her shirt dresses. Her feet dangled over the edge of the stool she occupied coming nowhere close to touching the ground. Occasionally she'd give a little kick as if she were back in the waters of her home, didn't want to sink! Her unruly locks of gold were tied into a pony tale behind her head; she wanted to look professional today, and she didn't come close. Infront of her sat a sheet of folder parchment that said simply Hiring. The looks of other patrons slid off her like weed and she took the time to glare back at them or smile sweetly depending on who was looking.

Carly was going to the orc city and she needed some help. One day she'd be a force to be reckoned with, but like all blooming flowers she was rather delicate at the moment. Although she had been considering the vast ways in which she could destroy a competitors livelihood, every so often someone actually approached her table and asked what she was hiring for. Most often she looked them up and down and said simply
"Something you don't wan' a do mister."
Other times she told them she was looking to hire a personal guard because she was going to Ire and it was dangerous there, but please don't tell me not to go because I have to.

Word must have spread eventually because after the mid brightening meal people started filling into the inn with all sorts of wonderful looking weapons strapped to their belts or where ever else they could place them. Some of them were a little too nasty for Carly's likings, some were a little too nice. The owner of the inn musn't of minded because they started buying themselves drinks when they couldn't get the work, or they saw Carly and decided the job probably wouldn't be very exciting.

Other hopefuls were women, the type of person Carly was a little more likely to hire, but unless they were big, strong, and scary Carly simply said no. A lot of the time she found the potentials try to show off their swordmanship, or bowmanship, or sharp thing on a thingmanship. Half of those people tripped up on their own feet barely escaping tragically wounding themselves. Carly was beginning to wonder if people weren't just buying a sword and trying to get a job.

Time passed by in irregular intervals, sometimes it poured and other times it trickled. It almost stopped when the green skinned orc stepped through the door, and it was a female orc! Carly's heart pounded, maybe she had come for the job? Evidentally she had, although she didn't seem to be one for talking. Pointing at the opposite stool Carly tried to tell the orc to sit, it seemed she preferred to stand. She was getting a lot of looks from the locals, and non-locals; but she was giving all she got. Carly liked this orc.
"So you...uh... you want a job?"

[Carly Jr'ana]

The orc looked Carly up and down, as if appraising her. Perhaps for a meal? Carly, naturally, stared back. The orc was large, the orc was very large. Carly could tell, because Carly could feel the actual size of the orc in the room. Blue looked at green, and the orc must had agreed because she grunted and took the previously offered stool.
"Me want you job."
Carly raised an eyebrow, or tried to at least, in actual fact she raised both of them; which wouldn't have been particuarly noticed because she had no actual eye brows anyway. This was exactly what she wanted, and yet people were giving her funny looks, she'd have to skip town very soon if she hired the orc. They still weren't very welcome here in light of recent events.
"Well, can you speak orcish? Use a sword? Carry me over your shoulder and look menacing?"
Carly's eyebrows remained raised, the orc obviously taking this as a challenge started singing in what could only be called the worlds ugliest parody of a language. More alarming, judging by the look on the other hopeful faces, the orc drew perhaps the largest sword Carly had ever seen from a sheath on her back, exquistely wrapped in dirty cloth. Finding the sword a little less frightening then she should have, for Carly had stared sharks in the face and lived, the little elf pointed to to the door and yelled over the din in a pitch perhaps a little too high for even a dog to stand. The orc seemed to get the message, for she departed for the door with Carly quick on her heels, being sure to grab her little sign on the way.

The tavern door swung closed behind her, the orc was heading away. Realising now that perhaps she hadn't gotten the message Carly zipped after her, her light frame making quick work of the inbetween distance.
"No, wait! I meant, show me. Out here."
The orc hearing the youthful voice of reason, swung a 180 turn and looked downwards at her potential employer.
"It's a little dangerous to be using a sword in there. If you get my meaning."
Cocking her head at the men staring out from the windows of the Mullet, she made her point. A point that didn't make it. The orc's face was a mask of puzzlement.
"No sword in bar."
Oh! Now she got it. Use small words, that was it. Pointing at the sword now Carly used her other hand to point at one of the local trees.
"Show me."

[Carly Jr'ana]

Blue steel departed from its mud encrusted prison; soot, ash, grime, and animal waste made no presence upon the sword when the orc who wielded it was so filthy. The sea elf watched with a grim fascination as the she-orc stalked towards the tree with slow steady movements, she was an unexpected card in the deck of life, a card that didn't quite read orcish the way it should have. The orc, who Carly decided would be called Potential until she learned her actual name, held her sword firmly in both hands, it was a big sword; the biggest sword in all of Vers perhaps. Potential held her sword with all the vigour of an orc, but with all the professionalism of an Imperial guard, cold critisizing eyes evaluated the trees weak points as the stalking Potential grew closer.

In a suprisingly leap of speed Potential was suddenly upon the tree, the great claymore of a sword being wielded in a great curvature of a swing. Roots were rent from the tree in by far the best display of strength the little elf had experienced, but Potential was far from finished. Catching the flow of her first attack she spun on one heel came around for a second attack, this time drawing a deep gouge vertically up the trees trunk; the line ended at the join of one of the tree's branches, sending splinters flying in all directions. Potential side stepped the branch as it came thundering down Telathward, finding a new grip upon her sword the green skinned monolith took a step fowards and plunged the tip of the sword deep into the tree. The tree groaned in protest but Potential was still not done yet. Thrusting a kick at the tree she retrieved her sword and straffed about the tree delivering a second mighty line upon the tree and again plunging her sword deep within, the tip showed towards Carly. If this tree were a man he would be dead many times over, and yet it was not. Potential was intent on not just murdering this tree, but felling it in the msot sappy way possible. The trees life blood flowed from its wounds and collected upon the ground in great globby pools. So focussed on watching the pools of sap gather Carly did not notice potential deliver the finishing blow, a wonderful series of hacks that broke the tree from the ground and sent the trunk crashing into the green grass below.

Looking up Carly gave Potential a smile of amusement, it was obvious to her now quite a crowd at gathered and some of them didn't look to happy. Perhaps they were druids? Pah, an inferior art at best. Nodding to the orc Carly bid her to pick her up and take them a few streets over to a safer place. Potential, understanding the command, wiped her sword off the the grass besides the tree and resheathed it upon her back.

Soon Carly was held high up in the air upon a dirty green shoulder and being walked through side roads and backstreets. First things first, if Potential was going to be working for Carly Potential would be taking a bath. Or go swimming in a river, or the ocean, or something! It was lucky Carly was still a child, otherwise she would be too intimidated to tell the great orc she stunk.
"Okay, put me down. Let's discuss price and what I'd like you to do."

[Carly Jr'ana]

Large grubby paws gripped Carly rough about the waist and lowered her to the ground, touching down she felt a little more relieved. Walking on the ground was a foreign enough experience for this little sea elf, thank you very much. The two sets of dark eyes stared at each other, as if still gaging the others strengths and weaknesses. Carly found the orc strong, fast, and quite capable physically; a little on the stupid side however. The orc found Carly odd, odder than the human folk, but considerably better than them. Both these women were hunters; creatures that lived by scent and tooth, there were no qualms about raw meat here.

Potential gave nod of gruding acceptance, if she would work for anyone in this town the little sea elf couldn't be so bad. Elves were normally arrogant, hating, evil and stupid creatures, where Carly had shown none of these traits. Carly had let Potential prove herself before even considering her, Carly was smart for such a little one. Besides, maybe she wasn't an elf? She looked like one, but she was blue, and webbed... and she had lots of weird marks on her, some green blotches and some strange cuts that ran about her neck; and her eyes! Potential had never seen eyes so dark, they sent a shiver down her normally slumped spine, they made her stand a little straighter lest some dark magic leap from those depths and engulf her.

Carly gave an equal nod, words spilled from her mouth at an amazing rate, many of them Potential did not understand. At some point Carly began to realise there was a communications fault and started using very simple charismean sentences.
"You speak orcish for me. You protect me. You help me go to Orckon. You swing sword when I say. You called potential, you call me Boss."
The talking went on, and on, it droned in her head and drummed like the beat of war. Potentials head was starting to swarm with all the commands, when finally Carly said something that made quite definite sense.
"You get 15 crowns a cycle, I'll worry about food, water, clothing and that. Okay?"
The orc looked her up and down, deciding. She wasn't a hasty orc, she'd survived by patience. Occasionally the other orc just died by plain mistake.
Potential posed a question, suprisingly astute for one such as her. An orc.
"What can you do?"

[Carly Jr'ana]

Carly was taken aback, the orc wanted to know about her? Raising a delicate hand to her mouth she forced a slight cough to clear her throat, she was trying to consider the consequences if she told Potential about her training. But she was starting to respect this orc! It was so hard... besides, who would believe an orc anyway?
Puffing up her small chest and raising herself up on the very tips of her toes Carly made an attempt to seem more important than she normally looked, she tried to shift into her Ikomancer mode. At the moment however the ice mask would just not descend, rather she looked annoyed.

"I can make you drop your sword when you don't mean to!"
Potential made for her sword to check it was still there, probably not understanding at all. Rolling her eyes Carly sank down to the ground and attempted a simple explanation.
"I'm an Ikomancer, but don't tell no one! I can twist the winds of fate to do my bidding. I draw... magic signs, and things happen. I could make you lucky, or unlucky. You wouldn't always have to rely on being strong, your enemies might just... slip?"
Potential looked scepticle, Carly gave a small huff at the orc's disbelief. It was obvious she would have to give an example of her power, she would have to do something quickly as well lest the orc believe Carly to be crazy and simply wander off. Carly need Potential, she would make the most bestest of body guards.
"I'll prove it to you!"

Staring hard at the dirt whilst Potential looked on in that way disbelievers always do, Carly took a finger and began to trace a practised shape in the dirt.
First and last came the the shape of Bhun, it was silence. The sounds of this alley would cease, not only would there be silence in this alley, there would be tranquility! Serenity! And just a calm peace in general. It was Carly's first ever rune and it was by far her strongest, this shouldn't take long.
Giving Potential a look that simply stated watch this Carly closed her eyes and began her meditation. Her upper lip slid over and lower lip and gave off a slight popping noice, the sound of bhun. The minute hands of the clocks in Vers ticked slowly over as Carly repeated the intent of her sigil over through her unworldly chant, the single rune grew to more than a simple line, more than just a sigil. It had meaning, it was a command, it made the world listen! And by goiley did it listen.

Carly opened her eyes from her short stint in clara to find the alley dead quiet, not even the wisp of winds made a sound. The sun beat down heavily outside the alley and Vers went about it's business, but within a drowsy shade lay and Potential watched and marvelled. A hand swept the sigil from existance and Carly shot to her feet, blonde curls bobbing gleefully. Walking over to Potential she poked her in the leg, which was roughly Carly's head height and looked up.
"I could probably make you understand people better too. But if you're going to work for me, you're going to tell me your name, and you're going to take a bath."
Potential looked down at Carly, a newfound respect for the little elf chissled upon her face.
"Me dake all de badhs yu wand. Me wand yu do moore od dhem."

[Carly Jr'ana]

Rolling her eyes at the orcs remarks as much at her own embarrassment Carly poked Potential a second time, as if poking someone would yield answer.
"But what is your name?"
The orc, oblivious to the poking looked as if she was actually considering this question. A great green hand moved to scratch her chin as if deep in thought, Carly thought this motion was more akin to that of an old man and narrowed her eyes at the orcs peculiar mannerisms. Eventually the orc gave her name to Carly, but it was such a series of grunts Carly couldn't even attempt to say it, although she did. But Carly was a creature adept at squealing, squeaking, and clicking. Much as no land born creatures would be able to pronounce her actual name, she had no chance of producing the series of close grunts that signified Potential as an individual.
Delivering a final poke she gave the orc her new name a second and final name.
"Okay, me call you Potential, you call me Boss."

Taking the orc by one of her great paws the little elf lead her to the edge of the alley, where the little paradise she had created ended and the regular world resumed, and pointing to the furthest part of the city, where the gates stood she gave her instructions.
"Now that I've found a guard, you, I can move on to Narim. But I still have some business, so if you could wait for me at the city gates until I come for you. That'd be good. Okay?"
Again Potential seemed to think on her words, and Carly rolled her eyes a second time. This was almost like an embarrassing father! Which was perhaps a feeling Carly would be willing to encounter if the one inciting it was her actual father. Instead she pointed again at the gates.
"Go there, wait. Me pay you there."

This Potential seemed to understand, and nodding headed off with only one audible grunt.
"Yes Boss."
Carly thought she should be more firm with Potential, firm creatures needed a firm hand. But now that she was gone she felt a little nakeder in this airy world, and not the kind of naked she was used to. Shivering at the unnatural silence she hefted her backpack up on her shoulder and headed off to conduct the last of her business for now.

[Caerydd]

NPC verified for the journey to Orkcon.