Subject: Bloody Travels and Crowded Bars 268 views

[Shiv]

To the sound of metal dragging across the floorboards Bloodgaze enters her room, a tidal wave of weariness washing over her as she allows her mind to rest. Damn she was tired. Dipping an unmailed hand into the water she gave a small grunt of dissatisfaction. Too cold. She needed something hotter to relax her muscles that at the moment had more knots than the rigging of a longboat. Rising she slowly yanked the rope several times before turning to the armor stand and beginning to undress, tossing pieces of armor that lacked immediate places of storage onto the bed.

[Racer Xonclar]

((Eh...no need to rush it, plus I want to cast things in a different light))

After a few moments, you hear light-footed steps on the other side of the door right before a single knock. A few seconds later, she opens the door and steps just in the doorframe. She's a young girl, late teenage years at the most, wearing a simple, drab white and grey dress over her skinny frame. Her brunette hair is pulled back into a messy ponytail and her face shares slight similarities to the barmaid you spoke with downstairs.

"Yes, ma'am?" she says in an almost timid voice.

[Shiv]

"Need some new water", Bloodgaze says curtly, not giving the girl more than a glance as she is busily undoing a strap on her shoulder pad, teeth biting in to the leather while her fingers work the clasp.
"I neef aboufh tfoo pitfferfh of watfher", she continues between clinched teeth. "Ftheaming hoth". The metal pin comes undone and the shoulder pad sags halfway down the arm, Bloodgaze spitting out the strap and turning to the chambermaid. "If there is any bread and some milk that you can pilfer from the kitchen I'd be willing to throw in a few extra silvers. I'm too tired to go into those noisy rooms for food.", she adds, giving the girl an appraising look.

[Racer Xonclar]

The girl nods gently at the request, then glances at the tub, nodding again with obviously more understanding. She steps over and gently touches the surface of the water with her finger and then eyes the water level. Shifting her lips in thought for just a moment, she reaches behind the washtub and pulls out a pitcher, filling it from the tub. Without another word, she makes the for the door, glancing back to you briefly to make sure you're not in the nude as she swings the door open. After a gentle shut of the door, all that's heard is the same soft steps walking away.

[Shiv]

Shrugging off the breastplate and then quickly ridding herself of the greaves and sabatons, followed by taking a small whiff of her sweat-encrusted clothes beneath, Bloodgaze gave a small grimace and dumped the rest of her attire on the floor next to the tub, making a mental note to clean them afterward. She stretched slowly, feeling tendons elongate and shrink back in blessed relaxation, muscles flexing and slacking with more than a few dull aches surfacing from places where the armor had been pressuring her over the last few days. She enjoyed it. There was a zen-like calm to the feel of her body moving, and the light draft caressing her naked skin. She'd never admit it to anyone, but these slow and calm moments were possibly her favorite ones. Running her hand through her tangled hair she took a purposeful step towards the tub, a content sigh escaping from her lips, but just as her foot reached out towards the sweet caress of the water she stopped, leg suspended in mid air.

"Milk and bread", she said to herself.

Turning around and surveying her options Bloodgaze settled for taking the empty, flat topped footlocker and hoisting it over to the side of the tub, creating a makeshift table, ready to accept whatever the chambermaid returned with. Quickly stalking over to her backpack, Bloodgaze snagged a few slivers from a pouch and placed them on the chest. Nodding in satisfaction at her handywork she then continued her slow slide into the wet embrace of her bath, savoring the sensation of the water slowly enveloping her. Slipping her legs over side of the tub, Bloodgaze made space for her torso, submerging her body and resting her head against the wooden edge of the barrel. With one final heavy breath she let go, her muscles, eyes and concentration collapsing along with her exhaling lungs. For a short moment of oblivion, in the sanctity of her room, Bloodgaze became Tara again.

[Racer Xonclar]

((LOL...it's what I get for trying to be a bit suspenseful while a character did something a little strange. she actually hasn't warmed the water yet I'll work with it though))

Just a few short moments after the girl left, she brought back three pitchers full of hot water, held in one hand like a dwarven barmaid carrying three tankards. Dumping the contents into the tub, she touched the water again and gave herself a short, subtle nod of satisfaction. Slipping out the door, once again checking to see you only down to your sweat-crusted clothes, the girl quietly walks away in what seems a different direction this time.

A few minutes later, the footsteps return with a single knock on the door. She quietly slips into the room carrying a plate of bread, each piece looking to be thick slices from a large loaf of bread, and a glass of cooled cow's milk. From the temperature, the milk was probably from an underground storage room beneath the inn.

Despite what one might expect, the girl doesn't seem to react at all to walking in on you while in the tub. See simply keeps her eyes low to the ground as she usually does when walking and quietly goes about her business. She starts to move towards the bed until she catches glimpse of the improvised table. Stepping over, she quietly sets the plate and glass down and quietly, very quietly, picks up the left silvers. Giving you a short, subtle nod if eye contact happens to be made, she turns and quietly starts to leave the room, not a word said as she takes care not to open the door any farther than she has to to leave.

[Shiv]

"Bloodgaze! Enough!", the words cut through the red daze like a knife, reaching Taras ears but not quite getting into her brain. Bloodgaze shrugged mentally and drove another knee into the groin of the boy. This one would probably give birth to clots of blood for the next three years, the tiny -still thinking- part of her brain noted laconically. "Bloodgaze, in the name of the shadeworm, stop!", Sven continued his verbal barrage. She managed to catch a glimpse of momement at the edge of her vision before a big mailed fist materialized out of nowhere and embedded itself into her left cheek. Letting go of the boy and spinning with the momentum, Bloodgaze gracefully pivoted on her left fot, spun 180 degrees and came to face her attacker, her lips drawn back in half a snarl, half a vicious grin. Sven stood there, he was pointing that pesky wand at her again, if she acted fast she'd beat him this time. With a scream of rage her naked toes dug into the ground as she launched herself at him. "Paralyze", he said in clean, calm, tones.

"What the hell are you doing?" he continued a short second later after making sure that his commander, frothing at the mouth and eyes intent, was now transfixed in a semi lunge, frozen like a taxidermied dog. "This is the third recruit today. You will not -and you shall not- trounce the newcomers just for looking at you funny. What was it this time? Did he mistake you for a serving wench? I doubt it since you're in the arena, dressed like that", Sven made a sweeping gesture to Taras attire, a white linen tunic and trousers, reinforced with leather and stained with mud. Wrestlers clothes. "Or did he somehow imply that you should be wearing a skirt? Banes black hand Bloodgaze, you get a grip on your demon this instance, or by the Yew-mother I'm going to carve you up and see if I can find it inside of you." Sven was psyching himself up, she could hear it. He was growing angrier with every word, while she felt her own rage drain away, now that she didn't have an outlet for it. It was hard to keep up steam when you couldn't do anything with it. Behind her she could hear the muffled moans and the heavy sounds of the boy being dragged off by the other blodletters. Why had she attacked him anyway? She couldn't quite remember the reason, but she was pretty sure it was a good one. I mean to make himself deserve four knees to the groin it must've been something pretty harsh. Tara idly reflected over the strange fact that she could not remember the reason for fighting, but that every move and every nuance of the fight itself was crystal clear, the thought amused her. "I'm serious now Bloodgaze. Don't get violent with the newcomers. Do you think everyone who comes here knows that you're the one? That word magically spreads as soon as they sign up about you? They. Don't. Know. And you don't -like last night- kick someone in the teeth just for suggesting you'd join him in bed. Blood and fire Tara. Half the men here still think I'm the real Bloodgaze."

That kicked it though. He called her Tara, he made her a woman in front of everyone. The bastard, the fucking bastard. Now he deserved to die..."

With a gasp she awoke. Her head had sunk into the tub as she relaxed too much and with curses and sputtering Tara tried to clear out her nose and throat. She muttered under her breath, damn that man. She'd trusted him. As her coughing fit slowly abated she took in her surroundings, realizing that the water had turnined quite chilly, and that there were now several slices of bread and milk by her tub. Blodgaze gripped them and eagerly wolfed them down, chugging the milk in big, heavy gulps that sent rivulets of white snaking down the sides of her troat and shoulders. Damn that Sven. With a spalsh she got out of her bath, leaving a large puddle to gather where she stood, not that she really cared. Bending over and picking up her dirty clothes from the floor she threw them into the water. It was cleaner then they so it should be enough. With a sigh she knelt down by the tub. If only the past came off as easy.

[Racer Xonclar]

The sun shines directly against the closed curtains, lighting the room with indirect light. Stirring...slowly...from your sleep, it seems you slept till nearly midday. The room is unchanged since whenever you passed out after cleaning your clothes.

You hear a few footsteps walking around outside your room and it sounds like the rest of the world already woke up and is downstairs.

((See public thread ))