Lieutenant of The Immortal Army
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Post by Niera Venrali on Oct 7, 2017 23:01:16 GMT
"Yes sir," the commander's quip was taken with all seriousness as Niera took a moment to quietly consider her frustration with his actions. She had no current desire for promotion, neither had she stated directly to the commander any of her desires and wondered if he pretended to know them. For a while they were quiet, the world was just work as it should have been. Niera had been silenced for her mistake and didn't even consider for a second that the commander might have said such words in jest.
When they were done the commander offered his water to her and she shook her head "Thank you sir, I am well provisioned." Probably one of the most anally retentive of his platoon when it came to being prepared and rationing her supplies, the lieutenant considered it likely she had more water anyway. Regaining her more professional composure, Niera took this moment to fasten the tie on the back of her hair and reclaimed the torch into the grasp of her metallic gauntlet while waiting to receive further orders. Now was the moment when they decided whether or not she would retain her suit of armour or if she should leave it behind. So far she had dishonoured her superior by telling him off for her recklessness and had been gently let off for her disobedience. Maybe her having to forgo the only thing that gave her comfort was the gods way of telling her to prove herself.
"You orders sir?" the lieutenant requested at last, eager to maintain the distance between them.
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Commander of the Immortal Army
Bisexual, Prefers Women.
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Authored by Rhys.
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Post by Connor Lachesis on Oct 8, 2017 1:21:39 GMT
His tone had grown frigid, even more than she was serious. That was an impressive feat, considering her tightly controlled demeanor. Considering quickly, he tried to guess where it might’ve come from. And then, at once, it seemed to make sense. Drawing his water back, her took a quick swig before replacing it in his pack. His tone came a little more firmly, less casual. It wasn’t the voice of putting down a boundary, nor an apology, but rather a clarification. “Lieutenant. I was… teasing. I didn’t mean to offend.” There he was; not exactly apologizing, but certainly trying to assuage the tension.
Connor lowered himself, hands moving to double make sure that there were no loose fastenings on his pack. It was from his knelt position that he glanced up to regard her, noting the glint of her armor in the torch light. “Keep the armor on for now. We’ll go down the right tunnel now until we find… something.” A way out, smugglers, more of the corpses? He didn’t well care, as long as he made some semblance of progress. Casting her a side-long glance, he paused, another thought coming to mind. “Unless you would prefer to leave the armor?”
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Lieutenant of The Immortal Army
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Single.
Immortal
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Post by Niera Venrali on Oct 8, 2017 1:39:45 GMT
Careful not to reveal too much of her feelings to the commander in regards to the subject, Niera gave a short nod in reply to show her understanding of the situation; neither confirming or denying her offence. She wasn't an individual to linger over such things for long periods of time, whether his intentions had been clear to her or not. Instead, her mind was focused solely on practicality for survival's sake.
"It depends what you wish to achieve sir. Losing my armour risks only my life in the face of any dangers we might face, but it also draws them too us," she pointed out with candid rationality "it is no secret you and I do not share love for each other's styles. I'm offering to forgo mine." Niera briefly shifted her attention back toward the wall to draw a sign of danger just in case anyone came travelling down here in future. In truth, she didn't really want to leave her armour at all; it acted as her comfort zone when times were rough and allowed her to feel as if she could face anything. Travelling without it would have been a challenge for her, but not one she wasn't willing to face given the danger of their situation.
"So what will it be commander?" the warrior asked, wandering to the opening where the cavern forked to the right and turned to him, proud with the torch flickering in the reflection of her determined blue eyes "Quickness and Stealth or Steadiness and Safety?"
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Commander of the Immortal Army
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Post by Connor Lachesis on Oct 8, 2017 2:00:22 GMT
She didn’t acknowledge his correction, only nodded. His lips pressed together slightly, though he didn’t press further.
Her assessment of the situation was not incorrect. He also knew, too, that the air wouldn’t persist in the restricted space. They couldn’t linger with torches forever. That meant that time was indeed a factor. They didn’t know yet of any paths to the surface, though he certainly expected there to be some. Connor knew, too, as she said, that their preferences drastically differed in combat. He wouldn’t have used a shield ever, given the choice. And he hated the burden of heavy plate armor. He preferred to act with speed and stealth, to eliminate a threat as quickly as possible. True, he could endure, to also assume his place in a wall of shields – but it wasn’t as natural.
His look of consideration faded as his voice came forward. “I’d keep the gauntlets, and your greaves. Your chest plate.” Protect the most vital parts. Leave the limbs with protection from wayward hands, or the teeth of any ghouls. The thought was clear. “We need to get out of this place as efficiently as we can. Fair, Lieutenant?”
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Lieutenant of The Immortal Army
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Post by Niera Venrali on Oct 8, 2017 2:31:42 GMT
Finally issued an answer the lieutenant backed to one of the nearby walls and started to unbuckle the straps of her armour, wordlessly discarding the bits she didn't need to the floor. Fairness of an order was not in her place to question, if she were taking the suggestion of someone below her then maybe she would have answered the question, alas that was not the case. An order was an order, that was how this worked even beneath the ground in the ensuing chaos.
"Yes sir," the words fell thoughtlessly from her lips, to at least acknowledge that he had spoken and she had listened to the words that he had said. One by one the quick grace of her fingertips unstrapped the pieces of metal that fell from her body, shed like the scales of a snake removing its hardened skin. She took a deep breath. She could suddenly feel the cold of the jagged earth pressed beneath the skins of her legs and feet, and the dust gathering between her toes. Everything suddenly felt more real than it had before. Never in her life had she been forced to go barefooted in such dangerous terrain, but - there was first for everything. "I'm ready commander," she muttered, grabbing a dagger from her pack to replace her beloved shield.
Dressed now as probably the oddest, most dirty looking picture that anyone would ever see her as she tried her best to ignore her attire (or there lack of,) and carried on down the path. Where her footsteps had been loud and clunky, they barely made a sound as she shifted along the walls of the opposite tunnel to find another long stretch of rocks that carried on for what looked like over a mile until it curved around. Not used to being without footwear she bit her lip in frustration with the sharp occasionally jagged rocks beneath her feet and quickly jumped from one rock to another in search of a smoother surface. Very clearly outside of her comfort zone, her speed began to pick up. Niera wanted out, and fast.
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Commander of the Immortal Army
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Post by Connor Lachesis on Oct 8, 2017 2:47:00 GMT
He didn’t watch her with too much attention, allowing her a semblance of privacy as she quickly set to removing the armor which weighted her down. True to her character, she remained curt and professional when she finally finished the task. He cast her a side-long glance. If it became an issue, he’d offer her the spare pair of socks he kept in his pack. In the mean time, he nodded, gesturing toward the tunnel with the torch before they plunged, once again, into the narrow space of darkness.
Despite the hindrance that came with her careful steps, they were able to make better time, much quieter. They’d gone on for what had seemed like a fair while, before the direction of the tunnel finally seemed to veer slightly. Further, they pressed. After another short while, they finally made what seemed like some progress. The span of the tunnel widened, the roof pressing upward. Too, the air seemed a little easier to inhale. Less stale.
Abruptly, he spied it: a single beam of light shining down into the cavern. But the light shown from farther above, higher than either of them may have reached even if they’d used one another for to boost toward it. Clearly, the hole in the roof was more for ventilation than anything useful. Or, even had it been, some type of ladder would’ve extended from above. Connor tilted his head up, regarding the light with a small glare as he took momentary pleasure in the easier air at the least. “Well, shit.”
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Lieutenant of The Immortal Army
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Single.
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Post by Niera Venrali on Oct 8, 2017 4:31:41 GMT
Rock to rock, to another god damn rock Niera carried on jumping across until she finally caught up with the commander. Light beckoned from a small crack in the earth above, illuminating his features. Stood at the entrance of this opening, a small smile returned to her. Adorned in dark leathers that matched his eyes, and brown hair soft in the small beam of sunlight that cracked through the surface she marvelled at the way it outlined the strong, bold outline of his features. If it were any other man the woman might have considered herself lucky to be down there with him.
"You look like shit commander," she said, stepping into the light. Pain still stung beneath her bare feet but for now, in this moment of simple hope she raised her chin into the air, closed her eyes and took in a slow, deep breath. A soft calm returning to the light of her features, as if she had just been enlightened from the comforting depths of a meditation. Everything that was on her mind settled into an ease, and her stiff muscles were released of their tension.
Everything was going to be okay, the world was one their side and they'd figure out a way to get through it. Armour or none, with the commander she was safe and he was safe with her. Her eyes fluttered open and she looked at him again, he was just an old boy and she was just an old girl in the middle of a tunnel, making it up as they went along. "Here," the woman took a handkerchief from her pack, doused it in water and lightly dabbed the cloth over his forehead "at least wipe the dirt from your eyes." They couldn't do anything about what they couldn't achieve, so she'd rather have focused on what they could and this chance to breathe was likely to be a fleeting luxury that she wanted to take advantage of.
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Commander of the Immortal Army
Bisexual, Prefers Women.
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Authored by Rhys.
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Post by Connor Lachesis on Oct 8, 2017 23:49:59 GMT
Connor’s glare shifted into more of a squint the longer his eyes lingered on the beam. It was Niera’s unceremonious quip that pulled his attention back down to them. Clearly unoffended, and perhaps a little pleased that she’d been so forward, a broad, entertained grin flicked across his features. “How unfortunate. I might’ve tried cleaning up, had I known you’d be so offended.” Pushing as much amusement into his voice as possible, he was trying to make it clearer this time to her that it was a jest. He preferred that side to her, rather than the pervasive quiet of discontent.
And then, with a small splash, she was moving forward and using a handkerchief on his forehead. The Commander was unbothered by the gesture itself, at least, until he glimpsed the pallor of her exposed skin in the light. He stepped back a half-step reflexively, gloved hand coming up to gently pluck the thing from her grasp. “Thank you Lieutenant..” The formality, more than his physical retreat, would drive her back. He didn’t want to chance any skin to skin contact with her, knowing full well the potential repercussions, and not knowing how long they might be trapped. He shook the rag between his fingers, before setting to wiping down his face well-enough. “We should keep moving soon.” He murmured, between dabs. Seeming satisfied, he folded the thing between his fingers, holding onto it for a moment.
And that was when something caught his eyes; just a faint glint in the shadows. Had he been a human and not an Immortal, he might not have sighted it. Shifting his grip on his torch, he edged forward to peer at the periphery of the small cavern, where several broken crates lay, shards of broken glass and straw strewn about. Kneeling, over-turning some of it with his fingers, his head tilted. The broken pieces were thin, transparent, resembling closer the glassware of an alchemist or mage than any container used to smuggle liquor.
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Lieutenant of The Immortal Army
Hetrosexual.
Single.
Immortal
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Post by Niera Venrali on Oct 9, 2017 6:26:32 GMT
Laughter caught the back of her throat and she coughed, covering her mouth with her gauntlet "I'd rather look at a pretty face," she returned, a tad taken back by the sudden motion of his caution around her until it occurred to her that she was what could easily be considered close to half naked and possibly a little too close for comfort given the situation.
"Sorry sir," seriousness returned to her tone and a hint of red filled her cheeks as she too backed off, turning away from him. Her eyes scanned the dark, the commander was right. Who knew what might have picked up their scent in this forsaken hell hole. In seconds Connor was on the move again, dodging through the shadows. She followed him. He'd found a strange collection of broken glass scattered across the floors, vials of a sort where someone had brewed a concoction. Niera lowered the torchlight to the ground so she could bypass the small shards of glass on the floor, afraid one might stick into her foot. And although she tried her best to weave around them, a small shard dug itself into her skin "Shit," the lieutenant cursed, biting her tongue as she slowly made her way to what looked like an empty desk with a few papers scattered across it.
Hauling her weight onto the surface, the warrior lifted her foot and slowly withdrew the glass. She was lucky it hadn't hit any of her veins. Gods forbid if there was something that could smell the scent of blood down here. "Why do I always get really bad luck when it comes to you?" she asked, setting her pack to the side to remove a small flask of whiskey to disinfect the small wound before wrapping a bandage around the surface of her foot. Niera could have kicked herself "I knew stealth was a bad idea."
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Commander of the Immortal Army
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Post by Connor Lachesis on Oct 9, 2017 21:04:58 GMT
He’d offered a small, bemused smile with the small peal of laughter that had sounded from her. It was good to see her strict demeanor relaxing slightly, even if it had taken being trapped more than six-feet-under for it to happen. The look had faded quickly when he’d drawn the rag from her grasp. Her retreat, too, punctuated the disappearance of the relaxed air. Well. It would seem they both had some reservations, albeit for incredibly different motivations.
Having moved over to examine the glass, she’d followed him. He was occupied turning over one of the pieces in his fingers, trying to consider what it might’ve been, when he heard the small hiss of a curse. Turning his head, he rose, more glass crunching under the soles of his boots as he approached her. She seemed occupied, treating the small injury. Without words, tossing the piece he held aside, he then dove into his pack. It took only a few seconds for him to produce two pairs of thick, woolen socks, which he promptly placed down beside her on the table. “I think the bad luck came from you not having socks. How you got by with that armor, I have no clue. I’d put on both pairs, and hopefully they’ll pad the worst of it on that injury.“ Then again, it would also be a benefit if they got out… soon.
Glancing back over to the glass that faintly glinted in the torchlight, he frowned. Turning back to Niera, waiting for her to either comply or not, his eyes just caught sight of the papers on the desk. Reaching around her, seemingly unbothered by proximity, he collected one. The language was not something he recognized, though… It clearly seemed to be an inventory ledger, dusty as it was.
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Lieutenant of The Immortal Army
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Single.
Immortal
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Post by Niera Venrali on Oct 9, 2017 22:28:22 GMT
Niera watched commander pull socks from his back and blinked, the warrior had originally discarded her own socks for the sake of their haste. Given that they weren't particularly good for grip and with the haste the commander wanted, she'd likely have tripped and smacked her face on a rock. There was one other issues with this plan "Commander. Forgive me, but your feet are huge," she commented, casually taking up the sock to study. He'd never gone so far out of his way for her, had something changed?
Shaking her head, the soldier adorned the socks, slightly disgruntled by doing so. Without half her armour, a pair of socks and nothing to hide behind the woman had never felt more humiliated for the way she looked in her life as she did right now. "Sir I request you don't address me like some kind of fool," the lieutenant voiced, furrowing her brow "you asked me for haste and I complied to that request the best I knew how, in doing so discarding my socks." Simple, factual and cold the lieutenant couldn't understand why she found it so hard to remove her feelings from this situation. Her gaze fell on the commander for a moment as she considered the possibility that just maybe she actually liked the man as a person, and wasn't sure how to convey that without putting pressure on herself. In another time she might have warmly welcomed the cute exchanges, the small quips of words that meant little more in their meaning than to be a joke. In the end though, the joke was on her. For so long now she had isolated herself, staying even her own men at an arm's distance.
Distracting herself away from those thoughts, Niera turned her head to the papers that lay on the desk beside her. With the more seconds that passed in silence, the quicker the warrior settled back into her usual calm candour. Shifting her body on the thick wood Niera reached out to one of the drawers hidden below the surface, only to find it was locked. Finally an outlet to smash her frustration onto too. With a swing of her morning star, the warrior dug the mace into the side of the wood to break the draw down. Swing after swing, the wood slowly caving in. If subtlety didn't work, brute force did. Ripping away the broken planks of wood and discarding them to floor beside her, Niera rummaged through the desk to find another small collection of papers, a key and some kind of vial with a strange oozing black liquid. "What do you think these a for?"
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Commander of the Immortal Army
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Post by Connor Lachesis on Oct 14, 2017 6:18:13 GMT
His brows rose at her quip about his feet. “I think huge is an over-statement. Yours are just small, Lieutenant.” Connor returned, briefly glancing over as she seemed to regard the sock that was definitely overly large for her own foot. He diverted his eyes then, intrigued to study their surroundings.
Again, though, she followed up with a rigid comment. While his face was turned away as he gazed at the mess of the cave, his brows drew slightly together. What was it she was described as by many? Tight-laced? He himself supposed he came off as a hard-ass to many of his men. He wasn’t inclined to overly friendly things with any of them, preferring to keep a quiet, aloof demeanor punctuated with well-articulated thought, and the occasional coarse witticism. His actions spoke on his behalf, or so he tried to let them. It was easier that way, to avoid kindlings of friendship or comradery which could become detrimental to his interest of staying in Imfala Kingdom in his present role for a time.
His shoulders shifted almost imperceptibly as he exhaled a breath, before he cast her a glance. Connor had never liked apologies, never cared for the words. It was pointless when the intention did not match the statement. In that moment, though, his next words held the fleeting tone of an apology, even if he didn’t quite speak the words of one. “You wouldn’t well be my second if I thought you were a fool, Lieutenant. Whether you chose to use them or not isn’t my concern; I provided them out of concern for your fitness. That was all.”
Back to business. It was his turn to show the same restrained professionalism. Plucking up the paper from the desk, his eyes skimmed the foreign text. A moment later, Connor shook the paper in his hand, brushing it off absently with the back of his opposite one,
An unceremonious crack sounded, splinters flying, as she abruptly began smashing her way into the other drawers of the desk.
Taking a half-step back, still holding the paper, the Commander was watching when she found the vial, the key, and the paper. Extending a hand to that he might take the vial for further scrutiny, his lips tightened a moment. “I can’t read the ledger to know for certain what they were transporting, but that looks a lot like something a magic user might like. A mage maybe, or one of our people." Quiet for a moment. ’"Certainly they locked the desk up because they didn’t want any of that seen. We can keep them.. I question why though, with it being difficult to get here, unless they aren’t… organized. ” Had one person orchestrated the corpses? Anything was possible right then, regardless of how he felt about it.
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Lieutenant of The Immortal Army
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Single.
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Post by Niera Venrali on Oct 14, 2017 8:50:31 GMT
Niera knew the sound of a covered apology when she heard it, and while she knew in her deepest of hearts the commander did not in fact consider her a fool; there was a part of her that feared closing the distance. " Sorry commander," the words fell as smoothly from her lips as water fell from the grand heights of a waterfall "If there was anyone I should get to know it's you, but not here... I don't often feel fear but I'm afraid and we don't have a lot of time." Whether he would be open to even accepting her under his command, as a friend, as a comrade after all this the immortal warrior was uncertain. A long time ago she had been like this before, working for a unit. One she'd loved and learned to cherish as her own, men and women she'd opened up to and for a long time they were considered one of the most active, successful units the military had - until they died. A lone survivor of a task that was considered one of the more difficult to complete, her unit had dispersed with confidence and where they thought they were to be met by a task that was suited to a handful of men actually required a lot more. Outnumbered and eaten alive, the warrior had watched her comrades taken away from her one by one at the hands of a goblin horde. Regan, a man who had risked everything just to drag her away from the nest of the enemy. She had done her best to heal him, and he died in her arms. Niera wordlessly passed the commander, Connor the vial and scanned her eyes along the ceiling. They had all died, alone and cold in a cavern like this one with nobody to hold or tell them everything was going to be okay. "I can’t read the ledger to know for certain what they were transporting, but that looks a lot like something a magic user might like. A mage maybe, or one of our people" The commander spoke and she watched him, giving space for silence to linger. Upon her return Niera had been offered another promotion after she'd sought revenge on the goblins, using the creatures own bombs to blow their caves into the dirt. She had nothing left. What had she to lose other than her dignity? "Certainly they locked the desk up because they didn’t want any of that seen. We can keep them.. I question why though, with it being difficult to get here, unless they aren’t… organized." Back to business. A sigh of relief passed over the Lieutenant that dried her tearing eyes, at least for now she preferred it this way. "If I could chance a guess. They're few in number or working on their own," Niera wandered carefully around the glass to look into some of the narrow slits in the cave to see if there was anything else hiding there. Steel against stone the soft scrape of her armour washed over the dirt in search for signs of a trap or an opening in the wall. " Operations involved with what we just saw are very rarely legal." Niera knelt to floor to search for any sign of footsteps other than their own, scanning for any signs of rock different to its surroundings. Brushing away the settled dust, piece by piece she found evidence of footprints lead through to a dead end at the southern side of the wall " Here." Connor Lachesis
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Commander of the Immortal Army
Bisexual, Prefers Women.
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Immortal
Authored by Rhys.
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Post by Connor Lachesis on Nov 5, 2017 23:55:14 GMT
Connor tilted the vial in his gloved fingers, scrutinizing the liquid inside as it rolled inside the confines of the glass container. It seemed thick; it moved with a heavy viscosity, unlike water or blood. It almost reminded him of the thick syrup some royals had on breads back at court at dinner parties. His eyes diverted to the ledger, unaware of the internal conflict his Lieutenant had navigated before she passed him the vial.
The language was not the common tongue, nor was it readily apparent as to what it might’ve been. His fingers deftly collected the sheets, folding them around the vial before he slid the little collection into a sheltered pouch of his pack. The last thing the Commander desired was for the vial and whatever ill contains it contained to spill all over his things. Someone better-versed with magics, perhaps a herbalist or someone of the sort, would be able to evaluate it once they were out. Until then, he’d treat it as if it were a poison.
His attention was drawn with the soft sound of her voice echoing in the cavern. She’d migrated to the far wall, surveying actively even as he’d been considering their discoveries. Connor had to bite back a quip about her making him feel lazy as he settled his pack back in it’s proper place on his form. Several quick strides closed the distance between them, his head tilting as he glanced down toward the markings on the floor, and the wall looming as a boundary. “That assessment seems fair. Even more so if they went to the effort of carving a door out of this place.” Extending his hands, seeking to feel out seams for himself, his lips pressed together.
Nothing was immediately apparent. Had it been sealed with magic? That was certainly possible, an easy spell for anyone granted an ability to manipulate earth. He pressed his weight against the stone, but it didn’t move. No flex, no give. His eyes surveyed the surface as he took a step back, before he set to gliding his hands over the stone. It was after he’d felt high and low, that he finally discovered a small, notched impression in the stone. “The key.” Would it fit? He stepped back to allow Niera the space, absently allowing his hand to fall over his blade in anticipation.
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Lieutenant of The Immortal Army
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Single.
Immortal
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Post by Niera Venrali on Nov 6, 2017 2:25:38 GMT
Dust sifted down from the dry rocks as the earth beneath them shook with a small tremor, shaking the very foundations of the earth they walked. Armed with a quick mind and calm countenance, the lieutenant quickly took the key between her gloved fingers and inserted it into the lock. The door did not open. Almost immediately retracting the key from the slot, Niera for the first time didn't pay much heed to the commander as she returned to the table and studied it once again, nothing was there. Steadied against what remained of the splintered furniture, her sharp blue eyes flickered across the walls; ignoring the shaking as she searched the place more thoroughly. There was no hint of another crack in the wall, only a pile of rocks stacked up to what looked once to be another cave that had been completely covered by rockfall.
"I wonder," Niera went over to the pile, narrowly avoiding the pieces of glass beneath the overly sized socks tied around her ankles and knelt down at the base of it. One by one she started to remove the smaller rocks with her gauntleted fingers. If she were a criminal in an underground organisation in a lab full of rocks and doors the most inconspicuous place to hide something would be right under their noses. Going onto all fours the normally more elegant, refined and proud soldier in that moment looked less of a lady and more like a slave digging into the dirt if not for the armour and feint gleam of rich mithril that had been hidden beneath the long padding of her breastplate.
Finally she found something. Hidden beneath layers of rock was a rag that held some smaller items; a box, a silver dagger engraved in another archaic language and some dried herbs of a sort that she recognised had often been used to induce creatures into a catatonic state. "Commander, there's more." Her hands reached further in, scrounging about just in case anything had fell, and it had. Another key was hidden within, one of a slightly more elegant make and greater size. "Try this," the lieutenant's palm lifted to offer the commander the key. Maybe too tired, too wary or too ashamed to speak Niera remained expressionless, as if in these trying moments she was little more than a building piece that's design was to do nothing more than the job that had been set out for it.
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