An unusual meeting in Duskvol

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Ixidor92

Ixidor92

Dungeon master
Original poster
LURKER MEMBER
FOLKLORE MEMBER
Posting Speed
  1. 1-3 posts per week
Writing Levels
  1. Intermediate
  2. Adept
Preferred Character Gender
  1. Male
Genres
Fantasy, Sci-fi, Adventure, Slice-of-life
(Note: this is a backstory RP detailing the initial meeting and story of two characters from a tabletop RPG. The setting is the standard world of Duskvol from the "Blades in the dark" system)

Laudius sighed into his beer, seated at a small 2-man booth. His leather apron from the day's work had been set to the side, leaving him in only a pair of well-worn trousers and a simple white undershirt. His work buddy had already left, talking about how his wife would kill him if he showed up later and drunker than he already was. The young man looked into his drink, and a pair of dead eyes looked back at him. He had been working this job since he was... 16? 17? He couldn't even remember how many years he had been maintaining that damn barrier anymore. He didn't have a family, not a real one anyway, leaving him to simply work, drink, and sleep. Come morning, he would wake up, head to the lightning barrier, make sure everything was working properly, come get a drink, then go home and sleep.
"Might as well finish up now and head home. No point in delaying..."
Laudius directed the statement at no one in particular, but even he was slightly surprised at how dead he sounded. Was there even any point? He'd been used, abused, and killed by this city just like every citizen who didn't have the fortune to be born into an estate and riches.
 
Cyrene watched a few of Baz's men carry his drunken self out of the bar and shook her head. She had "come out" like other Academy girls had at 16. He had taken a shine to her and things seemed well enough for a while. It helped her family to be with this guy. A few of her friends from the Academy surrounded her, all gossiping about the latest goings on. But Cyrene was not really in a caring mood. At the bar, she ordered another glass of wine and began sipping it.

Tonight was supposed to be about celebrating her 18th birthday. She was supposedly an adult now. She had chosen a sleek, silk purple gown with a high thigh slit. Even in the Academy, everyone had known that to be her signature piece in her clothing. Her jewelry were gifts from family. Her diamond necklace had been a gift from Grandpapa. She probably did not want to know how he had gotten it. The diamond studs had been a small gift from her father. There was no ring on her finger; no man technically had any claim on her. Baz would argue that however.

Cyrene happened to spot a face whose eyes were dull and dead. Something drew her to them, as if she wanted to see them alive. Gesturing Geralt, an Academy friend of hers over, she discreetly motioned towards him. "Who is that guy in the corner? He looks lonely."
"Probably one of the cogs in the machine. Lightning barrier worker I'd say by his clothes." Geralt raised an eyebrow. "...what, you like the looks of him?"
"He looks lonely." Cyrene's eyes twinkled with fun. "I think he should come join us."
Geralt raised both eyebrows this time. "...okay. If you're sure....I'll try to talk to the guy, see if he might want to come have a drink."
"Thanks, Gerry." Cyrene smiled brightly. "You're the best." As Geralt started his way over, Cyrene looked over at the band. She was a regular and they all knew her. "I feel like dancing boys. Maybe a solo salsa that others could join in as they got in the mood?"
"Sure thing, Foxy." The band leader, Michael, had always called her that. He struck up a tango with the band and the floor cleared a bit for a moment. Many were regulars and knew what was about to happen. Cyrene shed her normal cloak and stepped out onto the dance floor, beginning a solo salsa as everyone gathered around her. She made sure to keep an eye on the corner to see what progress would be made by Geralt.
 
Laudius threw back the rest of his beer before standing up and gathering his apron. There wasn't much point in just sitting around, and he could at least welcome the merciful dark of sleep for a few hours before the next day of drudgery. He couldn't remember the last time he had had a dream of any sort, whether it was pleasant or a nightmare. He threw down his change on the table, but stopped as a man dressed finer than himself approached. Odd, seeing as a fair portion of the bar seemed to be gathering around the dance floor for the upbeat music.
"The hell d'you want?"
Laudius's voice was curt and to the point, though not particularly intimidating. He sounded more like he was just tired than actually angry.
 
"...there's a lady over there that would love to buy you a drink apparently." Geralt could tell the guy did hard labor and was probably tired. He was still very unsure as to why Cyrene would want to talk to such a person. Geralt adjusted his Academy uniform unconsciously before continuing to speak. "I'm sure the lady would understand if you are too tired from work. But the lady in question..." Geralt gestured towards the dance floor. "Is right over there, the one dancing in the middle of the circle."
 
"That lady in question seems to be preoccupied."
Laudius considered just leaving anyway. Then again, it was free drinks, and the woman in question was rather striking. Maybe it would help him forget the drudgery of the world for just a little longer. He walked up to the bar, and took a stool.
"Let her know I'll be sitting at the bar when she is free."
There were far too many intellectuals and higher-class on the dance floor right now for Laudius to feel comfortable... at least until he had consumed a fair bit more alcohol
 
Cyrene saw the movement and mischief entered her eyes. She spun and salsaed through the crowd over to the bar. "That guy coming up to the bar, tell him this is from me." It was the best brew of the house, a strong whiskey. Anyone that could handle that stuff could handle her. She passed the aforementioned man, sending a wink as she returned to the center of the floor to finish out her dance.
Geralt's eyes were like saucers. The only thing he could think of right now was that Baz was going to be furious in the morning when he found out. Then again, it could be argued that the two weren't truly together. They had been this on and off again thing for so long that he wasn't sure when they were actually together.
 
"Young lady said this was for you."
The barkeeper spoke in a gruff voice before passing down a thick glass of... what the hell was that? It was not something Laudius was familiar with. It was definitely expensive. Probably some fancy-ass drink academics put down when they--
Laudius's thought process was interrupted when he actually took a swig of the thing. It burned a path down his throat, and he felt like he had been punched in the chest. Continuing to drink this was a bad idea... Yet he kept drinking it anyway. Only a couple of muffled coughs betrayed his body's discontent with the beverage. Was that girl trying to get something out of him? It wasn't like he had anything worth stealing, or intel worth giving up. He was a regular joe, for better and for worse.
 
Cyrene's eyes sparkled as the dance came to an end. The guy was drinking it despite the fact that it was obvious he was not used to drinking something this strong. Stubborn. She liked that. She passed through the crowd, winking at the band as she went, and came up to the bar. "Give me a Duskvol Moonbeam, please." This was not her typical wine drink; however, it was her birthday. A margarita would not be amiss.
As she turned to the guy, there was a slight smirk on her face that turned to thoughtfulness as she examined him closer. Hands that obviously had known hard work. An exhaustion that seemed overwhelming. A man who knew about hard work and seemed unafraid to do it. That was what she had seen earlier and that was why she had taken note of him earlier. Attractive qualities were what she was seeing here. Plus, the guy probably would be pretty cute if he wasn't half dead from exhaustion and dirt.
"So, how do you like Silver Swan Whiskey?" She finally addressed him with a flirtatious smile on her face.
 
"It tastes like it's punching me in the face, and I'll wake up in the morning thinking this was a mistake... I would probably drink it every night if I could afford to do so."
Now that she wasn't surrounded by over a dozen individuals, Laudius could finally get a good look at the young lady. The dress she was wearing did not leave much to the imagination as far as her form was concerned, something which she seemed acutely aware of as she leaned into the bar. If he hadn't already been jaded by reality, Laudius might have even thought she was starting to flirt with him--like that would ever happen.
"So what drives a girl from the academy to by a drink for a man she's never seen or heard of?"
 
"I wanted to see life in those eyes of yours." Cyrene leaned in a bit, peering deep into his green eyes. They were darker than her own emerald eyes. "You look like someone who lives each day the same and never gets a change. I wanted to show you life can change in many interesting ways when you least expect it." She smiled and chuckled. "And maybe a lady would like a dance as well."
 
"You are half correct and half grossly misinformed. Every day of my life is pretty much the same, that is true. But buying a different drink for a man one night isn't going to change his life--not in this damnable city."
Laudius stood up, or at least tried to. It was more of a stumble as he forced himself up from the stool. He had already had a few beers before throwing whatever that shit was down, it wasn't exactly surprising.
"Thanks for the drink, but I doubt I'm in any kind of state to dance right now. Besides you could probably find someone much more suited to yourself."
 
"...you are in no shape to walk on your own." Her eyes immediately softened. Cyrene looked over her shoulder at Geralt. "I'm going to go do something since this is kinda my fault..." Her attention snapped back to him. "I wanted to dance with you; I guess I'll just have to wait for another night. For now, let's get you back home." Cyrene grabbed a bag from behind the counter and held out an arm. "Come on."
 
"S'not the first time I'll have stumbled home. Just means I'll need to be careful on the way back."
Laudius picked up his apron and started to walk out of the bar, holding himself up using the bar in question. His short steps and hunched posture suggested that he had done this a couple of times. Though stumbling into the door frame was unintended.
"Maybe I could use the help for a few blocks. 'should get me home."
 
Cyrene chuckled as she pulled her cloak around her and grabbed onto him. "Come on." She pulled the apron out of his hand and slowly began to guide him outside. "I'm Cyrene, by the way. We didn't really introduce ourselves earlier." She sent him a gentle smile. "Now, who are you, my drunken companion?"
 
"Laudius."
The man started to stumble home, working his way the few blocks it was to his abode. Such as it was. It was honestly little more than a single room with a side kitchen, a bed, and a barely functioning bathroom.
"So by what means does an academic find herself escorting a lowly drunk back to his home?"
 
"Just a girl curious about the person in front of her." Cyrene laughed. "Besides, isn't it customary to escort someone drunk home when you've been out drinking on your birthday?" She shook her head. He probably thought she had no idea where she was going around these parts. He had no idea what type of person she really was.
 
"I don't know where you come from lady, but that isn't exactly customary from my experience."
Laudius continued to stumble forward a few more blocks before stopping in front of his door. It was off an alleyway, little more than a dinky stone hut tucked away from the street.
"I don't know why you'd be curious about me--there is literally nothing interesting to find. A pretty young lady like yourself could find someone more interesting with little effort."
The man fumbled around in his pocket for a bit before unlocking his door
"Thank you for the drink--I should go and sleep it off."
 
"A lady buys you a drink, walks you home, then you want her to immediately leave?" A teasing pout covered her face. "You, sir, have no manners." She winked and struck a provocative pose. "I get to decide if there's something interesting about you or not. I'm generally a very good judge of character. I think you just haven't found your potential yet." Cyrene looked down at the apron in her hands. "You work at the lightning barrier right?"
 
"So... you look at me from across the bar, buy me a drink, walk me home with barely more than 10 minutes of conversation, and you think you already know enough to start lecturing me?"
Laudius shook his head, trying to clear away the booze fog
"Sorry, that was rude and unneeded tonight."
The man opened the door and walked inside, kicking the muck from the cobblestone road off his shoes
"Besides, what did you think was going to happen? I don't really have much to offer in the way of hospitality. And you shouldn't stay on the streets to long around here. Not really a good part of town."
Laudius fully expected this to be the end of their interaction. He normally wouldn't even talk this much about it, but he wasn't exactly thinking clearly. Not that the figure of the girl was doing anything to help his addled brain think.
 
"....well, if you're a little too addled for tonight..." Cyrene thought for a moment. "...I'm going to write this down." She got a piece of paper that was laying on a table inside the door and a pen. "This side is a set of directions to the Dupont Restaurant." Cyrene flipped the paper over then. "This side is a pass to give to whomever is at the bar so that they come get me. I think you'll need this some time soon." She then looked back up at him. "Which section of the lightning barrier do you work in?"
 
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