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Post by kajeayn on Jun 10, 2019 12:40:34 GMT -6
= J O E L =
"When troubles want to find me, I ain't hard to find.”
WC: 454 | Post 1The Bunker is quiet, this time of night.
Well, as quiet as it can be. There’s always others awake, always someone doing something, but in the darkest hours just before dawn, there’s more sleeping then up and about. He hasn’t been here long, but he’s discovered there isn’t much of a pattern to the daily life of the Vindicators, but if there is a rhythm to be found in something, he will find it. There’s dips and rises, swells and falls, and he’s learning the pattern like a new song, a new dance step. He’s aligning himself to it as best he can, preferring the more quiet moments to explore the Bunker, to train, to do some menial task until his mind numbs and he can find some sleep.
He likes the quiet, but he doesn’t avoid the other Vindicators. It’s simply… a lot, all at once. He’s used to a lonely manor with too many empty rooms, and now he must get used to a complete lack of privacy, grazing shoulders with near strangers who eye him suspiciously, not quite trusting this former Aodhian. He couldn’t blame them, not really, even if the wary distance stings.
He was almost completely alone in Valore, and that feeling has chased him here, even if the first layer has already cracked. There had been those who had vouched for him. It was a cheering thought, and he clung to it in his lonelier moments. The thought of them, and the thoughts of the slaves he’d managed to free back in Valore are what help him reach out, cautious though it may be, to the other Vindicators. He could be a friend to them, if they wanted.
He’s noticed the quiet blue roan mare. The brand gave her away as a freed slave, and he was fairly certain she was as new here as he was. He didn’t know if she was having the same issues he was having, but… it couldn’t hurt to reach out to her.
It’s quiet, and they seem to be mostly alone at this hour, as he settles down carefully near her on one of the empty palettes. Not too close, but near enough to offer companionship. It’s one of the extra communal rooms, wide open and used for training or for the countless busy work tasks that anyone can pick up at any time. He’s not very good at sewing, not yet, but everyone needs to pitch in to repair armor and cloth at some point or another. It occupies most of his mind, too, so he’s eager to learn the new skill.
“Hey,” His voice is low, eyes on his work as the needle glows a soft blue. “Wendy, right?”
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Post by flybynights on Jun 17, 2019 10:07:18 GMT -6
Wendy | WC: 399 | Post 1
On some nights, Wendy was able to sleep thoroughly, but on many nights, sleep was difficult for her. Such as this night. Her mind was buzzing with thoughts, so loud that she remained wide awake despite being simultaneously tired. On nights like these, she’d sometimes got up and wandered around, hoping this might help settle her brain, or at least wear her out enough to pass out…
She was still happy that she’d gotten to successfully escape from slavery, but now she was already starting to worry that becoming a vindicator might’ve been a bad idea. Why hadn’t she been prepared for the possibility of disagreement arising among the vindicators? Conflict of one sort or another could happen in any sort of group, after all… but she was still upset that this had happened so soon after she’d decided to join the vindicators… She was still very torn about which side to take. Both had some good-sounding points, but something that made her already lean at least a bit more toward Dinah’s side was how she’d heard someone behind Shale say they’d never find success again without Digend. Digend?! Wasn’t that the god of the bloodthirsty cultists?! What if that meant some vindicators might become more like those cultists? And did that someone standing behind Shale indicate that Shale possibly, might, believe those words too?
So Wendy feared that all these things could be signs that joining them might not have been as good of an idea as she’d first thought. Perhaps she would’ve been better off trying to survive alone, even if she still didn’t feel very confident about that…
She jumped slightly, startled, when she heard the low voice say her name. She turned to see a familiar face.
“Oh! Uh…” she took a moment to remember his name. “Joel? Well… thank you again for helping me escape… and others slaves too, of course…” She felt a twinge of guilt for temporarily forgetting his name, sure her head was spinning, but this still should’ve been something she should’ve remembered better… Or perhaps she was being too hard on herself… She then realized she was just standing, staring into blank space and being awkwardly silent for a long moment, so she switched her focus to quickly trying to think of something else to say.
“Um, so… any particular reason you’re awake now? I, uh… just couldn’t sleep, ehehe…”
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Post by kajeayn on Jun 21, 2019 19:52:19 GMT -6
Code:
= J O E L =
"When troubles want to find me, I ain't hard to find.”
WC: 319 | Post 3His ear twitched, a brief flare of surprised embarrassment flashing under his coat. He didn’t know if he was deserving of any thanks, but he knew to argue against it would just invite more trouble then it was worth, especially at this late hour. And besides, he was trying to make friends, wasn’t he? Rejecting their thanks seemed a poor hoof to start out on. So he inclined his head a fraction, even as his heart clenched at the simple acceptance.
“It was the least I could do,” He said honestly. The burden of his privileged upbringing, and his lack of doing anything to help for years pressed down on him uncomfortably, and he pushed it away for later with practiced ease.
“Couldn’t sleep either,” He admitted, his needle flashing in and out of a piece of leather, patching together a tear. He kept an eye on the task, frowning as his sewing came out a little crooked, but he’d found the vindicators rarely complained at ugly repairs, as long as they were strong.
He recognized the awkward beat, and barely resisted a smile. So many of the other soldiers were gruff, taciturn, or completely unapproachable. Life out here had hardened them, and he respected that, but Wendy’s brief flash of shyness was a breath of fresh air. A reminder she hadn’t been beaten like forged metal into something sharp and unyielding. It gave him a glimpse into her personality, and he wondered about it. So many freed slaves he’d seen were dull eyed and too far gone, or full of righteous anger and little else, but maybe there was some life left in Wendy yet.
He turned his head, tilting it invitingly to the nearest empty palette.
“If you don’t have anything else to do, I wouldn’t mind the company,” He said mildly, offering her a small smile. “I’m gonna be up a while, don’t know ‘bout you.”
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Post by flybynights on Jul 5, 2019 20:11:32 GMT -6
Wendy | WC: 303 | Post 3
Although Wendy still mostly stared across the room as she listened, she did occasionally glance at Joel occasionally, and fidgeted slightly, things that she typically did when talking to anyone. She all-too-often worried about how her anxious demeanour would seem to anyone, or if she might have done some other social misstep. That first ear twitch… at first she wondered if he might be uncomfortable… But then it looked and sounded like he might not be. That, or he was politely hiding uncomfortableness, but she tried to be optimistic, hoping that she might not be too socially awkward.
“Oh, well… I think I’d like company!” she said, smiling back; she’d been shy of everyone in general much of the time, and had ended up a bit lonely. Then she realized she might’ve had a little too much enthusiasm, so she added on, trying to tone herself down: “Um, I mean, I don’t mind either, ehehe…”
Her smile faded, and she was silent for a moment. It was a dilemma, to be so drawn to the idea of how nice social interaction could be, if it went well… but then ending up feeling like she was making a painful mess of things, and wanting to hide. But the more she hid, the lonelier she got. What would she do in a serious situation? Surely getting to know fellow vindicators and learning to interact well enough with them would help her be more useful at vital times… So, she couldn’t let herself shrink away too much, but she didn’t want to give too bad of an impression on too many fellow vindicators, either…
“Anyway…” she said finally, “What… do you think of that argument between Dinah, Shale and the others…? Do you have any idea of who you’ll side with? I… I don’t know yet…”
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Post by kajeayn on Jul 31, 2019 15:53:36 GMT -6
= J O E L =
"When troubles want to find me, I ain't hard to find.”
WC: 316 | Post #3He was quiet and still as she fidgeted and shifted uncomfortably, one ear on her to show he was paying attention, but his eyes stayed on his project to hopefully make her more comfortable. He listened as she corrected herself, her eager response noticeably toned down, and he wondered who had chastised her for being too excited for company.
He tipped his head with a thoughtful sound in the back of his throat, showing he'd heard and was thinking it over, giving the question the thought it deserved. He knew his own side, he'd known the moment the choice was presented, but he had barely spoken of it to anyone. It hung over him still, pressing painfully between his shoulder blades and unconsciously he braced under its weight.
“I think,” He said slowly. “That it was a long time coming, especially after I heard what happened to the slaves after the Crucible.” He spoke gently, a little leery of mentioning slaves and what had happened to them to her. His eyes tightened, throat bobbing as he swallowed hard. That night hadn't been good for him, either, but he had lost nothing in comparison to the countless slaves that had disappeared into the wild, swallowed whole by the darkness.
“What good is freeing anyone without support? We can't just burn down their home and let them deal with the consequences.” He said, and his shoulders lowered as he let out a long breath. “Shale and I have the same goals. We want family, a home.” He said quietly. His needle had stopped moving, staring past his project, eyes unfocused. His heart miles away.
“Maybe we can’t have that,” He said, barely audible. “But we can give it to others. And to do that, we need a plan. Security. And to not just keep running and hope we can just… outpace the bloodbath making its way towards Aodh.”
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Post by flybynights on Aug 21, 2019 20:28:52 GMT -6
Wendy | WC: 346 | Post: 4
After Joel had finished speaking, Wendy was silent for a moment. “The Crucible…” she murmured. “I’ve… heard of it…” she shuddered, wondering if there were even more horrors related to it than what she’d heard from fellow slaves and overheard from other Aodhians.
She was silent for a few more moments before she spoke again. “Anyway, um… well, I… can understand that… Why you want to follow Shale…”
And she fell silent again. It was true, she did understand that view. And now that she’d heard his view, she already started to feel bad about her suspicious about Shale, wondered if she might be wrong. Maybe Shale didn’t actually want to follow Digend, even though someone right behind him had said they needed Digend for success. And even if Shale really was, or would become, a Digend follower, maybe he wouldn’t become anything like a bloodthirsty cultist. But the chances that her fears might be correct still seemed as possible as her being wrong.
“I’d like innocent folks to be okay, too…” she said after her second pause. And she sighed wearily. It was so hard to decide what was best to do, and that, on top of general tiredness, was stressing her. She was almost tempted to try to say: but what if the plan took too long, and the bloodbath claimed all innocent lives in Aodh, including those who might’ve survived if they hadn’t been helped sooner? But she was scared of arguing, and besides, Joel and others who stood with Shale could have the right idea… If only she could see in the future, to tell what was best for her to do…
“I’m getting more tired, I need to try to sleep…” she said after yet a third pause. “I hope you can sleep sometime, too… Nice talking for a bit…” She managed a brief, slight smile, and slowly started to walk off, hoping this wasn’t too rude in some way. She wasn’t sure if she actually would manage to sleep, but she’d lie down, shut her eyes and then she’d see…
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