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Stranger in an even stranger land [Draco!]

Started by Wycliff, November 25, 2017, 01:15:11 PM

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Wycliff

A young man stumbled through the forest, adrift and utterly lost. He was positive that the soldier from that Uthlyn town said Reahj was this way! Yet here he was, a week later, on the verge of starving, without a building in sight. Dad's stories made it sound like such a big city, how could I miss it? A grumbling noise sounded from his gut, a common occurrence the past few days. If it were possible to transmute gold into organic matter, Jace would have made himself a very expensive steak in a heartbeat.

The forest was so expansive, a huge change in path from Ithica City back in his world. What was worse, this new world didn't even have enough innate magic in the air to make a decent meal, go figure. Another groan from his stomach affirmed his despair. At the rate he was going, he'd die of starvation before he'd even found Reahj, let alone his father.

Jace's robe caught on brush as he squeezed through the thicket, his vision starting to fade. Damn it, stomach... He collapsed forward, the intricate white silk freeing itself from the force, dragging along a few leaves and twigs. The ground below him was somewhat paved, like a road, a fact he didn't have much time to ponder as he passed out from exhaustion.


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Draconian

Standard escort was always really really boring.

Sure there was a civil war going on, but they'd hardly gone to the front and everywhere else was relatively danger free except for a bandit or two. Or three. Apollonia frowned at the memory of the bandit's they'd found. A bunch of brothers. All slaughtered like the dogs they were. Luckily, that had been on the way back and they'd bathed since then.

Last stretch of the journey - thank God - and she could use a long sleep, a good meal and a hot bath. A purse of her lips and she walked second lead, eyes on the land around them. The sight of a body caught her attention and she shuffled off and to the side. Apollonia frowned at it, standing over the body for a moment before she nudged him with her foot.

Then crouched down, sighing loudly and turning the body over, fingers moving for a pulse before she waved her comrades to stop. Mage? Who was this clown? Who just passes out. Apollonia sat on the ground, pulling the young man half onto her lap, holding his head with an arm and finally opened her water skin, pouring water over his mouth and hoping the reflex to swallow kicked in cause if it didn't... Whoops? "C'mon kid, you look too fancy to be out here," She spoke softly, "Didja get robbed? Mugged and left for dead?" She eyed him up and down, "You don't look beat up. Wakey wakey!"

Wycliff

Jace had many fond memories of his childhood, the fun and laughter that came with being raised by two loving parents. Specifically, he was having a dream about their trip to the coast twelve years back, and a splash fight he'd had with his Father. Always one to make fun into a lesson, Aven had used magic to form the water into tendrils like his signature shadows. It took a few weeks, of course, but Jace slowly learned how to mimic water magic, and as usual, it was a blast. A tinge of sadness accompanied the dream, as Jace realized he wasn't awake; everyone missed Aven after he left, that was why he'd traveled here in the first place.

Suddenly, in the dream, Aven pulled a sneaky move, unlike him: one of the water tendrils tripped Jace, and as he went to intake air, he found only water. He quickly swallowed, panicked, and the vision of the beach shattered, his eyes shooting open. Jace coughed, small droplets of water spraying from his throat onto his robe. Dreaming about water... ask and you shall receive, he chuckled inwardly. Wait...

Jace glanced up, his golden eyes meeting the purple gaze of his rescuer, a woman with solid, red-brown hair. Why was she above him? The thought jarred his sense of gravity, and looking around, he realized that she was cradling him. A reddish tinge graced his cheeks, and he sat up quickly, clearing his windpipes with a few extra coughs for good measure. "Where...? Why...? Um, who are you, Miss?" He was flustered, that was certain, but he quickly realized that she'd probably saved his life with that water. The lessons in etiquette his family had taught him kicked in, and he turned and got on his knees before she could answer. "Um, sorry for my rudeness. Thank you for saving me, Miss." He bowed his head in gratitude. That was what you were supposed to do, right? He was at least seventy percent sure.


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Draconian

Apollonia frowned when he jerked up and away blinking for a moment and pursing her lips before she righted herself, dusting off her pants and watching him while he spoke.

"You're welcome," She said simply, tilting her head and looking around. Trying to assess the situation. Had he been mugged? Mostly just seemed grateful to be... Here? Saved? Saved from what? "Apollonia," she stated simply to his earlier question, he seemed dazed enough to not be able to process much more information than that. Still, he was seated all the way down there.

Pushing her hair from her face, she crouched, resting her elbows on her knees and balancing carefully on the balls of her feet. "What are you doing out here on the ground? Did you get mugged?"

Wycliff

Apollonia... a very sophisticated name. Before he could respond to her question, however, a long, arduous rumble echoed from his stomach, as if to mock him. He glanced up, clearly embarrassed. "Not exactly... I'm just a bit hungry, is all." Another, louder grumble affirmed the statement. A small chuckle escaped his throat. "Apollonia... nice to meet ya', I'm Jace. You don't have any extra food, do you?"

To anyone who'd just met him, Jace was a mess. His sense of fashion was noble at the very least, and his manners were common at best, not to mention the perpetual sorry state of his golden locks. In fact, even those who got to know him never really saw a change in those aspects, a trait he inherited from his father: Jace was an open book, for better or for worse.

Unfortunately, his twin sister got all the insight, leaving him with a boundless curiosity and no real skill to pursue it besides bashing his face against the unknown. Currently, his curiosity was toward Apollonia. She'd helped him tremendously, and he intended to return the favor somehow, but he didn't know how. Money, maybe? No, not unless she requested it. Mom had always taught him that paying favors with money was business for scoundrels and vagabonds, a phrase she usually followed with a sharp look at Dad. A smile ran across his face at the memory, just as he made eye contact to hear Apollonia's response.


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Draconian

Food?

Starved then.

Apollonia stood up and moved to the beast of burden, going through a bag and frowning at the contents. They were close enough to Reajh to spare a few bits of rations. It wasn't anything amazing but it'd tide the man over. Maybe. Hopefully? Did she really hope for that?  Apollonia closed her eyes briefly, taking the slightly stale bread and dried jerky and dug out a fresh apple from her own personal bag.

Also grabbed an apple for herself, she was feeling peckish.

The rest of the troupe had moved on then after she waved them off, frowning at the young man before her. "Jace," She finally said, holding out the hand full of food-goodies, "What are you doing out here all alone? Traveling with nothing? I hope you realize how stupid that was."

Wycliff

Jace's mouth watered at the sight of the food, accepting the handful and beginning to chow down. He spoke periodically between eating, making sure to swallow before speaking. "It wasn't the smartest thing I've ever done, you got me there." He took a crisp bite of the apple, not allowing a single drop of juice to escape. "I've been trying to get to Reahj, to find my father. He left home years ago, without warning, and I want to know why."

He finished off the food quickly, and smiled widely. "Thank you so much for helping me, Apollonia. I'd like to repay the favor somehow: if there's ever anything I can do, just let me know." He thought for a moment. "Well, if you can find me, I suppose. Where are you headed?"


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