1
"Lina! Hurry up will you! We're gonna be late!" Pavo yells from the door.
"Yea, Yea!" she yells back as she opens the door. A blonde 15-year-old girl steps out of the room. She wasn't what you would call perfect but she was stunning. With her long blonde hair flowing down her back, neatly braided to perfection, and her side braids drawn together in the back, she was easily mistaken for an elf. Her silver silk body suit covering most of her body, with the exception of her legs, made her seem slim and toned. Her shawl of the finest dwarven satin trailing down past her calves, gave the impression of height.
The silver and gold bracelets that dangled on her wrist made the slightest clinking when she walked. The belt, which lightly rested on her hips, carried two dagger hilts and two kitana sheaths. Her bow gently lay on her back, seeming as if it was a part of her. And those eyes that were an iridescent violet-ice topped with silver gleam set her off from everyone else.
Pavo looks her up and down and shakes his head. "Silly girls," he remarks.
"Hold your horses boy! A girl needs time to make herself presentable. Especially if the elders are going to be watching," she exclaims as they walk down the hall.
"There won't be any horses if we don't hurry up!" Pavo replies.
"Ok, last one there's a stink old dragon!" she says to him laughing as she bolts foreword grabbing her pack from the doorway.
"Oh no you don't!" Pavo exclaims as he grabs his pack and runs after her. She looks back to him and smiles as she jumps onto a branch of a tree and starts to run from tree branch to tree branch. He laughs and yells up, "Cocky little girl, aren't you?"
She smiles and bows slightly to him as she runs. Just as she does so she misses a branch and falls out of the tree. She flips slightly in mid air and lands on her feet and glares up to Pavo who is quite a ways ahead of her.
He sticks his tongue out to her as he laughs, running into a branch. He falls to the ground just as she comes up on him. "Looks like you're down little boy…get to cocky didya now?" Lina says smiling down to him.
He glares as he quickly grabs her leg and pulls slightly dragging her feet from under her as she falls into a pile of dragon dung.
"Oh this is nice!" she exclaims as she looks back at Pavo who is already up. He grins to her and starts to run foreword as she grabs his legs and pulls him into the dung as well.
She grins and stands up and looks down at him, "Ha! Looks like you're the old stinky dragon!" she laughs slightly and bolts off.
He pounds his fist into the ground as he stands up and runs towards to encampment, grunting and grumbling. She looks back to him and smiles.
Just as she turns her head back around she trips over a rope and falls into a horse. The horse rears up its hind legs and kicks a man into a tent, collapsing it.
Pavo walks up to her and shakes his head. "Smooth move sis," he says as she growls to him.
"LINA ELECTRA RENE MARISU! Look at what you've done!" a man says walking up to her his clothes and hair all messed up and scraggly. She looks to him and smiles innocently.
She quickly stands up and looks to him and bows her head. "I'm sorry M'lord Maralius. It was an accident!" she says her head still down.
He glares to her. "Your late for training, your covered in dragon remains, you run into a horse who then kicks M'Lord Janeilo into my tent, you destroy me tent, AND you forgot your anklet!" he says to her, his voice loud and tempered," what do you have to say for yourself? Hmm?"
"W..well I … uh…"she starts as Pavo walks up.
"She was chasing me after me m'lord" Pavo says looking down.
"and why is that?" Maralius replies.
"I…I had taken her necklace as a joke. Then I tripped her and she fell into dragon dung on our way here. She then pulled me into it and then when we arrived her I was taunting her from behind and her foot caught that rope there and she fell into the horse. And well…that's how it happened M'lord. Please don't punish her. It wasn't her fault," he finishes bowing slightly.
"Is this true Lina?" Maralius asks her.
She looks to Pavo then nods, "yes it is M'lord."
Maralius nods and looks over to Pavo. "Due to your rude and immature actions, you now are required to do 2 months of hard core training without logged hours, instead of the regular week," he says looking sternly to Pavo.
Pavo looks down and nods. The elder glares at the two and walks away shaking his head. "Thank you Pavo," Lina says to Pavo, "but, why did you stand up for me and take the heat? Did you think I wasn't good enough to take the punishment or something?"
"Hey listen, you are good enough. For a human, you are amazing. Did you see how you ran from branch to branch? How you brought me down into that dung single handedly? Compared to most humans, you're a goddess," he says looking at her with a soft smile, placing his hands on her shoulders. She nods and he walks off towards the main tent.
"Yea, but not good enough for you," she says and looks down. She leans against a pole gently. The pole starts to give as she stands up and reaches to catch the pole, and fails. A the pole falls down and lands next to Maralius. He looks at the pole then at her. She cowers slightly and runs off out of sight.
"I'm never good enough, sure, yea, to 'other' standards I'm good, great even, but I want to be as good as everyone else. I want to be able to make a bullseye on the target while riding through razor sharp rocks on a pissed off stallion. I want to be able to stop being a cluts and ruining everything just as life starts to get good. 'oh it's only human to do that, hunny, everyone does it' yea everyone, as long as you're a human. Well guess what! I don't want to be human. I want that perfect shape, that perfect hair, that perfect aim, that all around perfection." She looks down and sighs.
"What do I have to do to prove I'm worthy enough to do that quest and become a real rogue? What if I can never prove myself?" she says to herself, "I mean I have the brains, and the skills, and the heart. Just it's not all perfect. Why can't I just be normal?" she slams her hand down onto a rock as she walks past it.
"I know how to prove myself!" she grins slightly, "I can talk to the elders and persuade them that I'm good enough for the quest. I'll show them hat I have the wits as well as the skill to complete the quest. I mean what do I have to loose?" She smiles slightly as she looks down.
"And what do you think your doing Lina?" Pavo asks walking up behind her.
"Oh nothing just making my way to lessons, why?"
"Well, you better turn around and go home. For your information lessons are cancelled due to the instructor being kicked into an elders tent," he says looking at her.
"You go on ahead Pavo, I'll be home later."
"Ok, if you say so," Pavo says walking off.
She sighs and walks to the lake and sits there thinking. Hours pass by as she sits there deep in thought. She then hears someone or something approaching from behind her. She gently lays a hand on her dagger hilt clenching the dagger tightly.
Finally the thing comes in reach of her arm as she draws her dagger and brings it to the things Achilles tendon. Just then she feels an arrow head being pressed against her neck. She raises her head and looks the thing in the face. She blushes and nods as she looks into the eyes of the elder, Azequilae.
"Hello M'lady," she says, "if you are indeed M'lady Azequilae."
"And if I am not?"
"Then my blade shall swiftly slide across your tendon, slicing it in half while my eyes watch you flop around like a fish out of water," Lina replies with a solemn look upon her face.
"You are wise to think that I am not Azequilae, or very foolish," the woman says looking down onto the girl.
"Well, I think I know the difference between saying 'I am not myself' and 'I am not Azequilae'. That was one mistake I caught quickly. Then I looked at your attire and realized that M'lady Azequilae would never wear a green tunic with red shoes. Thirdly, when Lady Azequilae walks she doesn't make noise. You did. Would you care for me to go on, or do you think that I know that you are not Azequilae?" Lina says looking up to the woman.
"You are quite right my child," the woman says as she transforms into a much younger woman. About 24 in human eyes. It was Lady Julianna, the elder of all the elders.
"My Lady Julianna!" Lina exclaims as she bows her head slightly not taking her eyes off of her. "How do I know its you though M'lady? You deceived me once…you could do it again," she says looking at her inquisitively.
"The same way you knew I wasn't Azequilae," the woman says, "all those traits you listed off you know only I do…so…'tis that not enough proof?"
"Indeed you are Lady Julianna," she says smiling slightly, withdrawing her dagger and sheathing it.
Lady Julianna sheaths her arrow and sits next to her. "What is on your mind child? I know something is troubling you, you are glowing with disappointment," she says looking to Lina.
"M'lady, do you ever think I could go on a quest? A quest like the other RIT's do."
"RIT's?" Julianna asks.
"Oh, I'm sorry M'lady. Rogues In Training," Lina replies.
"Oh, why do you ask my dear?"
"Well…I don't know. It just seams like I don't amount to anything. I'm not good enough to be a rogue, let alone an elvish rogue. I want to be able to walk into a tavern and when someone asks where I'm from or who I'm with I can say, 'The Fire Blade Clan' and actually mean that I am a rogue of the Fire Blade Clan. Not just a trainee or a maiden. I want to rescue people. Find my past. Prove myself that I am more than a mere human who always screws up," Lina says looking down.
Julianna laughs slightly and looks to Lina. "My dear, you are amazing and you do amount to a lot. And I understand what you mean to want to be able to go places and actually want to be someone. Apart of something great. I know that you want to prove yourself and get some answers. I was just like that when I was your age. You just not ready though. I don't think you could face the world outside these walls. It's not all bread and honey you know. It's a tough world out there."
"Yes, I know, but Lady Julianna I think I could do it…I really think I could. If you would just give me a chance. A quest. If I fail then you can bring me home. Anything. Just as long as I can at least have a chance to prove that I can be something. Please M'lady Julianna."
Julianna looks down and thinks then nods. "All right, I'll let you go on a quest, BUT you have to return if you fail. Understand?" she says looking sternly at her.
Lina's face lights up as she jumps up and hugs her tightly. "I know I can do this! Thank you SO much. You won't regret it…I promise!" she says as she stands up and trips over her on feet and falls into the lake, splashing Julianna.
She pops her head out of the water and grins as she looks to Julianna and ducks. Julianna glares at her then smiles and stands up. "Go wash up and meet me at my tent at dusk. I'll have your quest by then."
"Thank you again M'lady! Thank You SO much!" Lina say smiling.
Julianna nods and walks off towards her tent as Lina jumps out and starts to walk home to tell her guardians.
About half way to her house she hears a sound in the bushes and stops and places a hand on her hilt as she looks around. Suddenly a hand wraps around her so she can't draw her weapon and a mask ties around her eyes and mouth. She starts to kick, but gets hit along side the head with a heavy object, as she is dragged off into the bushes.