The Devil, The Son, and the Fool (M)

[Blink]

It took everything Paisley had to not let her jaw drop to the ground at Alyssa's casual answer to her question. With eyes still wide she accepted the water skin and took a swig before handing it back off. She was speechless at the very thought of what was just proposed. Of course Paisley had heard of the Red Legion, but never in a million years did she think she would be a part of them.

Continuing to listen Paisley tried her best to take mental note of everything being said. Respect Legionnaires... check. Listen to Roland.... she must be joking. Don't do anything stupid... can't promise that either.
"I think I can handle that"

Paisley then began digging back into her plate, tearing at the meat with her hands before plopping more into her mouth. In no time at all she had eaten the venison on her plate and was now moving on towards the beans. Paisley had never been a picky eater, in fact she hardly ever said no to food, especially the free kind.

"I would like to think I am useful" her body language more relaxed than before. Clearly she was in no danger here. If they meant to poison her she was sure it would be a worthy death. And if the thought of her shooting their commander didn't cause for immediate slaughter she figured that by now nothing would come of that.

"It seems the two of us share the same passion for marksmanship" her eyes then trailed towards Alyssa's own bow. "I know I may have just hit Roland in the shoulder, but in my defense I have never killed a person before. Honestly, I had no idea it would be so nervewracking." Ripping off a piece of her own bread Paisley continued "I'm kind of glad I missed, I found humor in him complaining about the pain."

Instinctively Paisley raised one of her own hands to her neck, which was still tender from Roland's hand having been wrapped around it. She was sure it would bruise by tomorrow, if it hadn't already started to. She knew she deserved it, she knew that if it had been anyone else she would probably already be dead in the dirt somewhere... she knew Roland spared her life on this day.

Snapping herself away from her own thoughts Paisley smiled at Alyssa, happy to have someone nice like her to tell her these things. Her eyes then glanced around towards the other men sitting around the fire, each of them at least twice her size in muscle alone. She wondered if any of them started out like her. Quickly she averted her eyes back to Alyssa.

[Lion]

Oh there was nothing concrete that would prevent Paisley from breaking any of these rules. But following them really was so that it was easier on everyone else. If everyone was looking out for one another, watching each other's backs and knowing they were all in this together, one patrol, one platoon, one Red Legion, then their chances were survival increased by a hundred fold.  There were no guarantees of course, but it was one less chance taken.

It was good that Paisley already seemed eager to establish that she was useful even though she had failed in killing their general. But her marksmanship was something they could easily fix, make her sharper, better than she already was. Alyssa was no witness to her own skills, but even she knew better than to simply take her word for it.

"Don't worry," Alyssa said, nodding to her comment on marksmanship. "We'll teach you how to shoot right, get a man right between the eyes. We always need good scouts. Good fighters too. You're too skinny. You couldn't outrun Roland. That's how he caught me too."  She laughed though at that last remark, because it was a joke. Although a poor one. But Alyssa wasn't known for being funny. "Actually, I found Roland. I used to hunt in the hills of Folkvar. I got a stag right in the neck and dragged the thing into one of his camps one night and threw it at his feet. I had been following his men for some time."

Alyssa finished her food and set her plate down in the wash pile as the soldiers spoke amongst themselves.

"So where are you from, Paisley? That is what you called out and said your name was right?"  Alyssa wasn't an eavesdropper but she couldn't help her good hearing.

[Blink]

Paisley was about to interupt Alyssa as she commented how they would teach her to shoot right. However, when she mentioned how she herself was caught by Roland she did her best to try and compare their stories. So Roland wasn't as hardened as she initially thought he was. There must have been reason behind his actions, and to have this many men following him he must have been doing it right.

"I am from here..." Paisley straightened her stature a bit, as if to make herself seem taller to better represent Connloath. "My childhood home used to be not that far from here, but since the war rolled through here my parents relocated." Just as many others had Paisley's life was affected by the war. When she was younger she so badly wanted to be a soldier for her home, but being a girl she wasn't allowed to join the military. " And yes you got it right, my name is Paisley."

Finishing what was left of the food on her plate Paisley then stood up and set her plate down on top of where Alyssa had put hers. She then took her place back on the stump she was provided with. "So you fed me as Roland instructed... what's next?" In truth Paisley was itching to show all of these men and Alyssa what she was really capable of. She felt her form was perfect with her bow, having spent countless hours working on it throughout her childhood. Really the only thing hindering her performance was the anxiety of killing someone.

[Lion]

Parents relocated? Was that a fancy way of saying they were dead? Captured? Ran away and left her behind? For now, Alyssa wouldn't pry. There was no use in getting to know someone that might not even stick around long enough to survive. She didn't want to be presumptuous but if anything Alyssa was a realist and she held no illusions.

"Next...hmm, good question. Now you're fed. Are you hurt? We have healers. They get the job done, they're good enough for this camp anyway. If you're ready, we shoot. Before we take you in, we have to make sure you're useful. Then you will talk to Roland again. He looked like you made him bleed an awful lot," she said quickly, standing, and dusting herself off again.

Unhooking the bow from her shoulder, she carefully wandered over toward the far side of camp and took an arrow, notching it and pulling the string back. She was slow about it, taking her time and breathing low and slow, aiming for a pair of painted dummies about thirty feet in front of them. There were circles on their arms, shoulders, bellies and heads, pointing to vulnerable spots.

She released the arrow and the fired the shot right into the chest of the first dummy beside her. "You never killed anyone before? And thought your first target should be Roland Harker?"

[Blink]

Shaking her head from side to side Paisley assured Alyssa she was in no way injured. Other than the slight pain in her neck, which she felt was nothing serious enough to call attention to. Paisley couldn't help but snicker at Alyssa's comment of making Roland bleed an awful lot. Even though now she was happy she had not killed him, at least she could that even though she missed the shot was not completely useless.

Standing just after Alyssa did Paisley followed her to the far side of the camp where the painted dummies could be seen in the distance. Standing back and watching she observed the woman's form, her technique, and was mildly impressed by it. Following the arrow with her sharp eyes she saw it strike true to the chest of the dummy and lifted her hands to offer a soft clap.

Her eyes then searched around for arrows to use, as hers were probably still laying in the mud where she had tripped earlier during the pursuit. Thankfully she managed to find some and took a handfull, placing them into her own quiver without thought. "I will replace them" she countered looking at Alyssa. The last thing she wanted was to be accused of stealing someones equipment.

Taking her own stance just beside where Alyssa stood Paisley pulled her bow from over her shoulders, grasping at the wood with her fingertips and the bowstring with her other hand. "My first thought was to get enough money to get the hell out of here." The tone of her voice telling how frustrated she was with the entire situation as reached back and pulled an arrow from the quiver.

"Can't really leave Connloath without the funds ya' know." After that Paisley fell silent, her focus now solely on the dummy in the distance as she notched the arrow in and pulled the bowstring back. She wasn't quite sure but when she held her bow in her hands the entire world seemed to slow down. Everything except her target just a non important slow motion object in the background. With each passing second she could feel each heartbeat from her chest, each strain of the bowstring as it was pulled tighter and tighter.

And then there were her eyes, locked onto the target and nothing else. She could account for the wind blowing past, however slight it was it could make or break the shot, just another thing moving in slow motion around her. Inhaling slowly she relaxed her shoulders and then with one swift motion she released the bowstring, the arrow shooting out and beyond towards the target she knew it would hit. Quickly, she reached back and pulled out another arrow. Just as before but quicker she latched it in and pulled the bowstring back took in a breath and then released again.

Each arrow hit the target within seconds of the other, both striking the dummy in the unmarked eyes center and true. She did not smile when she lowered her bow at her side, but instead stared at the target with the most serious expression. Shooting her bow was more than a passion, it was the essence of her life. It made her feel alive and like she had purpose. "Useful enough?" she asked jolting her gaze towards Alyssa, her tone flat and expression serious.

[Lion]

Theft was putting it rather harshly. Those arrows belonged to the Legion, although they looked as if they were any other arrows. Nothing could afford to be wasted, and everything that needed to be shared was shared amongst all the people here in camp. From food to water and shelter. It was basic sense, although Alyssa said nothing of this and simply watched Paisley work her magic.

In truth, the hunter had no expectations. But she kept her eyes steady and watched her take aim. And fire true and without hesitation.  When she turned back to her, Alyssa gave a deep respectful nod that seemed more akin to a bow of deference, although that would have been a serious stretch.

"It's a start certainly," Alyssa commented, and didn't smile. "Dead in the eyes. Where you probably meant to hit Roland."  Alyssa stalked across and retrieved the arrows from the straw dummies. and inspected them as if to find some flaw in them that made them fly so true. Nope. nothing.  And she was glad for it. "Okay, recruit, you can shoot straw. And you probably can shoot animal flesh just fine. Now can you shoot a body?"

She posed the question in all seriousness and handed the arrows back to her. "You said you were already dead before? And that you need money to leave. You can't leave if you're Red Legion, but when this war's over, maybe then. Until then you will have to learn to kill if you want to see through it to the end. Don't let anyone take your life from you. In truth, it's all you really have."

Alyssa stood back and nodded to a few other Legionnaires as they paused their own training and stalked across camp. Within a few minutes they pulled a cloth draped sack across the ground, the brown cloth soaked in blood, and hefted it up to tie to the front of the dummy. The body was already dead and out of deference the face would remain covered as would most of it.

"The enemy is in front of you. He's not noticed you, but if he does he will rush you and kill you faster than you can fire. So you ready your arrow.  But how do you kill him?" Alyssa asked. It was not a question of the precise method that Paisley would use, although it certainly seemed that way. She wanted to know if Paisley, in the end, to have the guts...to choose her own guts over someone else's to keep from spilling onto the ground.

[Blink]

Paisley watched Alyssa carefully as she walked up and inspected her shot before pulling the arrows from the target and examined them. She couldn't help but smirk a bit, proud of herself at what she had just done. Her smirk though quickly faded at Alyssa's next words. "Shoot a body?" And then with a small gesture a few Legionnaires pulled a bloody sack across the range and strung it up.

Her eyes then darted to Alyssa as she began to speak again as if the dead body in the sack were a real person, one that would kill her if he had the chance. Paisley didn't even raise her bow, but instead shifted her weight with a concerned look. "You have got to be kidding me right? What is the point in me shooting it?" Paisley then gestured towards the bloody sack. Despite how much she wanted to prove herself here she could not visualize what she was being asked.

After a few more minutes of hesitation though Paisley did eventually raise her bow and take aim. Notching the arrow in she quickly released it and watched as it flew forwards and hit the right corner of the sack, the same thing being what happened when she shot Roland. Agitated she pulled out another arrow from her quiver and took aim again, repeating the same steps as before only to hit just below the first arrow, nowhere near the center.

She knew she was failing miserably this time, just not able to hit where she wanted. "I don't understand" she mumbled as she withdrew yet another arrow and took aim. This time though she did not release the arrow, but instead lowered the bow to the ground, pointing the arrow at the earth in front of her before slowly letting it go. "This is pointless!"

[Lion]

Alyssa blinked at her carelessness. And shook her head at the way all the arrows were going. Oh no, this wouldn't do at all. And perhaps this wasn't the best way to go about it. For her though, being able to even sink a weapon into flesh was among the hardest parts for recruits, especially young recruits.

"Stop," she said simply and pulled the arrow from the ground. She stalked over to Paisley and handed the arrow back to her. "It's not pointless. Violence can make young recruits sick, seeing an arrow bury itself into a body. We have to know that you can take the sight, the action, and not buckle over. Or worse lose yourself in the act. Concentrate, take in a deep breath and focus."

"Try again. Aim for the heart."

[Blink]

Flinching slightly as Alyssa pulled the arrow from the ground Paisley did her best to listen. "It's just a bloody sack" she repeated over and over again as she lifted her bow once more, notching a new arrow in and taking in a deep breath.

Alyssa's words played once more in her mind "Concentrate, take a deep breath, and focus.... focus." And so that is what Paisley did. She looked at the sack as not a body, but just another target she was shooting at. With slow and deep breaths the world around her began to slow down and the target in site was just that... a target.

Nothing else existed anymore. Not Alyssa or the other Legionnaires watching... nothing. Pulling back her bowstring Paisley could feel her heart beating in her chest accompanied by the straining sounds of her bowstring as she took aim. And then just as she had before with the straw dummy Paisley released her fingers, letting the arrow fly towards the chest of the sack.

This time she knew it was going to hit, he could feel it in every muscle in her body. However, Paisley did not lower her bow until she was sure it had hit, and only then did she slowly lower her weapon. She stood in silence as she stared at the bloody sack, her arrow now sticking out where the chest should have been. "There..."

Paisley then turned her attention back to Alyssa with only one question in mind. "What's next?"

[Lion]

Yes. It was just a bloody sack. It was just a dead body that was soon going to be burned or buried with the rest of them. And while it might not have phased Alyssa much at all, it could just as easily have phased someone else. And that was the point wasn't it? To shake her out from the rest.

She nodded in relief and even gave Paisley a smile. "Next. Next we go and see Roland. And tell him what I think. Or we can have you run some drills. Do you have a preference? Skinny thing like you seems to be good at running yes?  Hm, maybe another day. We go see Roland now."

She shifted past Paisley, walking in the direction of the healer's tent where Roland was getting his shoulder patched up. "You can sink an arrow into meat. I have to say, I didn't think you had it in you."

[Blink]

To see Roland or run drills? Paisley seriously had to debate which would be better only to have Alyssa come to a conclusion for her. "Roland it is then" she sighed as she slung her bow over her shoulder in its rightful place before following Alyssa through the camp once more.

As they walked she listened to Alyssa talk about how she managed to shoot the body in a bag, something she herself was still processing in her mind. "Of course I can." Paisley trying to sound more confident than she really was about it.

She could never quite figure out why shooting a person was so hard for her. Honestly both times it had presented itself she thought all the way up until the moment she had to do it that she could. Then again Paisley wasn't one to ask for help, even though it would have been wise to ask Alyssa how to get over the real deal when she had the chance.

As they walked Paisley sighed again, realizing it would be in her best interest to bring it up. "So.... how do you do it? How do you kill someone without hesitating?"

[Lion]

It was a fair question. And Alyssa shrugged in response. Truthfully, she had no eloquent answer for her, if that was what she was expecting. And the fact that it had come naturally to her, perhaps might have disturbed the runt beside her.

So Alyssa could only think of the most obvious response, and glanced at Paisly with honest eyes. "Practice," she said, parting the tent of the healer and entering.

Roland sat up from the cot, sipping a container of whiskey and leaning back a little against a roll of blankets at his bare back. Of course his shirt would have to be repaired and cleaned. No thanks to her. But it was nice to know at least something good might come from his pain. For that was only temporary.

"She's good, Lord Commander," Alyssa said, saluting to Roland, and he returned the same gesture to her. "But we'll make her better. But she's got interesting stuff to tell you. Maybe you'd like to talk between the two of you."

It was a suggestion that Alyssa took easily and stepped out of her own volition. It was then that Roland carefully removed a stool his foot was resting on and nudged it toward her. "Have a seat, bean. If you please. Whiskey?"

[Blink]

Paisley only glared at Alyssa and her short response. For once in her life Paisley was actually asking for advice, only to be given the most basic answer known to mankind...'practice'. With a heavy sigh the two entered the tent where Roland supposedly had been nursing his 'fleshwound' and sure enough there he was lounging about on a cot living the high life as he drank what she presumed to be whiskey.

Not able to hide the discontent with being talked about like she wasn't even there, or the fact that Roland had just referred to her as a bean, Paisley let out an agitated sigh. Still she took a seat on the stool he offered her, crossing one leg over the other before doing the same with her arms across her chest. "No" her tone flat as she denied the offer of whiskey.

"Before you even have a chance to ask I ate..." Why Roland was so concerned with feeding her still puzzled the small girl. Of course she would never deny a free meal and she was hungry... but still. For that to be the first thing someone thought after being shot... there was definitely a deeper meaning there.

Moving on from that Paisley eyed his now bandaged shoulder and felt what she thought to be a pang of remorse for it. "I-I am so.." Paisley was practically choking on the the apology she was trying to blurt out. "... sorry."

[Lion]

Roland shifted himself upward, looking more professionally and he dropped the container of whiskey on the edge of a table beside him. There a short candle burned to bring light to the dimness of the tent. "Hey. Don't worry about it. We all have bad days," he chuckled. "I almost broke your neck, you almost killed me. We're even."

He smiled at her and peeked at the wound, now sewn up. It just needed time. That's all that remained.

"So, what do you think so far? Of our set up here? What do you make of it? Just an honest opinion will do. No professional eloquence required," Roland asked levelly, and kept his gaze steady. She said she ate...but so far there was no proof.

[Blink]

He was laughing.... seriously!? Paisleys eyes went wide at how the man she thought so far to only be an ass found something so humorous now. Her hand then went to her neck where it was still tender to touch. He was right.. he could have killed her if he wanted to.

So at first she may have seen offended by his reaction to her apology her features quickly softened, only now realizing that Roland had saved her life in more ways than one today.

Scooting up on the stool a bit she straightened her posture as she tried to think of a way to sum up her experience so far with the camp. "Well for one the food is good." She had already told him she ate, but felt the need to inform him that it was also of good quality. "I also think that everyone seems to have one cause in mind.. and one person they would follow to death's door."

Her eyes narrowed on Roland, insinuating that he was who she was talking about. "I have only heard of The Red Legion through rumor, and of course the adviser who sent me to kill you." Paisley was entering uncomfortable territory as she placed her hands in her lap, clutching her fists at the thought of what the war had done to her home.

"I don't remember if I told you or not but I am from Connloath. Actually my home used to be only about an hours walk from here." Paisley's expression fell almost as serious as it was when she was firing her bow. "I left home because I knew there was no place for me here. When I came back my village was gone... my parents nowhere in sight. I don't know what happened to them but I can only hope they have found solace elsewhere."

"If joining you means bringing MY country back to how it should be I will follow you to deaths door... just like your soldiers."

[Lion]

Now, that was an admission Roland had not been expecting. He blinked at her, remaining quiet until she was finished and he tilted his head at her. Lost her whole village. Just like that. He heard stories like that before, both honest ones and fictional of people that had lost everything they had during the war, since it's inception.

"I'm sorry for your loss," he said, and raised a hand to her. "You're not the only one here just like that. A lot that came to join were exactly the same. Just wanted to live their lives, then the war came through and burned everything. Then whatever they had left, they packed up and joined. It was better than sitting around waiting to rot."

He nodded to her. "I respect your answer. But know that I would never ask you to give your life for something you don't believe in. You're young and have many years ahead of you. I simply felt it better to give you an opportunity rather than simply squander it by killing you. That and...your killshot could use some improvement."  Roland grinned at her.

"But furthermore, you were paid to kill me. The adviser gave you instruction as to my location, and to end my life. Now, do you know if this adviser acted alone, or was under the instruction of the Duke of Falkenrath?  Because I think I just found another way you can be very useful."

[Blink]

Whether or not Roland ever asked her to give her life Paisley didn't care. She was willing to do whatever it took to get her country back to the people who were truly affected by the war. She would not be just another statistic... she was determined to make a difference.

The serious moment though quickly faded as Roland made a jab at her killshot, causing Paisley to slip back into her usual demeanor.

"My killshot is perfectly fine. Maybe if I didn't have such a barbaric target I wouldn't have missed." She already knew this was something they would probably never agree on.

Roland's next words though caused a sinister smile to cross Paisley's lips.

"I am unaware of whether or not the actual Duke of Falkenrath took part in my hiring. However, I do know he has not been kind to his people. I believe that if his adviser paid me to kill you, it was only because the Duke had expressed some form of distaste towards you and your cause. If not then he is foolish to have such an angsty person of power next to him."

[Lion]

"Ahh, well, that distaste probably has something to do with the fact that my army is so close to his borders and he has no real way of keeping us out, seeing as he exhausted all resources of participating further into the war," he sighed.

"And furthermore, it might be good to know where you planned to meet this adviser, you know when you report to him the nature of your success. How else would you have gotten paid?"

[Blink]

Nodding at Roland's question Paisley continued. "I was supposed to meet him in a weeks time from when he gave me the task." Recounting the days it took her to find the camp, and then actually have a chance to have a shot at Roland Paisley added up how many days were left.

"Two days... at a tavern at the edge of his south border." Paisley then averted her eyes, not really sure how Roland would react to the next bit.

"I am also uh.. supposed to bring your head as proof." Thinking back on it now Paisley could see how foolish she was to take on such a job. She couldn't even imagine having to not only drag Roland's large body to safety, but to also cut off his head.

Quite literally Paisley face palmed right there, shoving her hand into her face as she groaned in complete and utter dissatisfaction with her actions. "Why in Ansgar's name was I so stupid to think I could do it!?" She wasn't asking Roland specifically, but instead just dragging her own self through the mud as she realized just how impulsively she had acted.

[Lion]

"Two days? That long huh? I'd say that was a very generous estimation," he said, curious and watching her tally up the number of days she had left was kind of hilarious. String Bean. It was remarkably fitting, but calling her that repeatedly might must make her finish the job she'd been intent on from the beginning.

And that wouldn't end well for her.

"I imagine you'd be well paid for taking my head then," Roland nodded. "Okay, then. Hey, now! Relax. It'll work out. I promise. I always keep my promises."  He got up and corked the whiskey container and set it back into the drawer and with it that, shuffled around some things.  He pulled out a small pin, a cloak pin to be exact with an arrow as the closing pin and he tossed it in hand before standing up and handing it to her.

"Here. You're Red Legion now. That means you have brothers and sisters at your back, willing to fight for you and with you. You'll have a head to bring that adviser. This was just the opening I was looking for. Two days is plenty of time for me and a patrol, maybe two, to follow you. We'll escort you to the tavern and you'll meet with the adviser and get your pay. He'll likely kill you. His kind always do. Get some runt to do your dirty work, make sure they're buried somewhere in a shallow grave after."