Welcome to Gaia! ::

"Maybe tonight, we'll fly so far away
We'll be lost before the dawn..."


--------~*~--------


A beaten, clear cut and sparsely illuminated path, winding and narrow cuts through the outskirts of Durem, a town that - from an outside perspective - comes across as sophisticated and a collection of the 'well groomed', it reveals a wholly different side to those who reside within it's walls.

Tucked away, the little building sits close to the wooded city limits shrouding it in a cozy, rustic atmosphere. Your ending destination, the modestly sized wooden establishment in the midst, is almost deceiving to the eye from afar.

As the distance between you and the structure lessens, it becomes much more visible across the dimly lit path; discernible now is the material from which it was crafted - a sort of wood - giving it an aged and weathered appearance. The faintest scent of pine drifts through and lingers about in the warm, comfortable atmosphere surrounding it. Looking closer it’s clear what purpose the building serves, being a place of business. A tavern for travelers, an Inn for those who wish to seek shelter for a night or for as long as they intended to stay...to glance upon the oversized entryway your eyes will fall upon a weathered sign, its faded lettering reading:

'Before the Dawn Tavern & Inn'

On entering you might find a warm, welcoming air about the surprisingly spacious tavern, its hardwood floor littered with numerous tables and a patron occupying nearly every one of them, many of which are either accompanied or alone and keeping to themselves. There are card games, casual discussions, and drinks all around and back against the far wall it is easy to hear the crackling of the fire burning strong, often with a few bodies stationed near it to keep warm from the chilly winds of Durem's harsh winters.

Stationed to your right upon entering is the bar; numerous stools are placed by the counter top, containing a surprising lack of patrons, most of whom that choose to sit there remain quiet and apathetic of those entering, as well as those that mingle about them.

Yet all the while there is but a sliver of tension in the air. Violence and fighting is not barred, but destruction of the tavern establishment are very strongly discouraged. Any who feel the need to fight just be courteous and clean up your own mess. Out back the land stretched for miles, forming a vast, vacant clearing. Any who wish to duel without worry of wrecking the place is welcome to make use of it.

Overall, it seems a decent place for a traveler, wanderer or the like to stop in along a ways; perhaps for something to warm the bones, a good night’s sleep or just seeking shelter from the elements.

To stay is but your choice alone.





Some pretty basic rules/notes to remember

arrow It's a bar, there's booze, fights happen but if you really need to take a swing at someone, try not to wreck the place.

arrow Loser in said fight pays for damages. Srs.

arrow NPC's run the place while I'm not around to serve.

arrow Don't act like a total goon and you're basically free to do what you want here.

It was the first word that came to mind upon analyzing the establishment before him – a rather non-descript tavern resting on the outskirts of Durem. That wasn’t to say it was ugly, and indeed, for someone that might have possessed an attitude less inclined towards cynicism, it could have been considered quaint. It was a cross gabled structure, similar to Tudor-styled houses; the cross section of the place extended a few dozen meters out more than normal, suggesting that it contained a sizeable amount of living quarters. Slate tiles lined the roof with symmetry almost too perfect to be accomplished by the hands of even the most skilled of roofers – a feature that didn’t go unnoticed by the figure, though it was one that he didn’t afford much heed to at the time. The building smelled strongly of cedar, though that might have been brought on by the plume of smoke rising from one of the chimneys that poked through the dull, grey roof. There was almost no traffic coming to and fro from the inn, and while this could be attributed partly to the fact they were up just before the crack of dawn, there was no denying the simple truth that this place – this Before the Dawn tavern – was just one of countless; a drop in the proverbial bucket, if you will, of establishments that littered the towns and cities the world over in unnecessary abandon.




The man’s concentrated faded away from the sign before him and silently began to stride forward, his footfalls crunching sand and gravel from a road that faded away from cobblestone and asphalt some distance away. The movement would almost assuredly bring much relief to the shivering, barely lucid feminine figure following behind him, as while the cold and lack of sleep did not addle him, it did hinder the girl. The man didn’t need her at the moment, but he also didn’t want her to get stricken with sickness in her weakened state, so waiting out in the early morning dim was not the smartest of ideas. Though, as he made his way up to the front door – taking in everything around him as much as possible – his unhurried pace began to slacken until he came to a halt before the inviting threshold before him. This time, it was no observation that made him stop; no, it was the tingle, the nag, of something at the back of his mind – the unease of familiarity that suddenly began to wash over him. His brows knotted dubiously over the feeling. Déjà vu was something that most would pass off as an odd sensation to take no mind, and others yet might consider it as them recalling something they did in a past life; the man knew entirely different what this was for him. He could have passed it off as a simple fluctuation of Aethyric currents, as that was likely the case, but ignoring such signs was something he cast away long ago. Paranoia was something that served him better than carelessness, regardless. It wasn’t a terribly bad sensation – he almost knew for a fact it wasn’t one of them – but it was something he simply couldn’t ignore. His mulling was eventually broken by the continued fusses from the girl following him, which elicited a grunt of annoyance and the decision to continue onward. If anything, if there were a chance of it being anything more than a simple anomaly, then it might be best that he confront it directly rather than slipping away and giving it time to do…anything, really. Indeed, paranoia was something the man embraced wholeheartedly. Finally, he gripped the handle and pushed his way in.

To anyone that might have been present in the tavern’s commons, they would see a tall, dark and gaunt figure pass into the structure. The man wore a coat, or a robe, or something inbetwixt the two; it was made of ragged, torn leather, worn down from black to a dulled, dark grey. It was single-breasted, buttoned up from the waist to the nape of the neck, with golden buttons missing haphazardly along the path. The coat rode up and ended with a hood, which partially obscured the man's features - only bits of sickly-white hair and a mouth too used to frowns. A shame, since with what could be seen, it could be said that the man could have been somewhat handsome.

While mostly wearing darkened colours, the figure was not entirely stricken with drabness. Woven upon his coat's shoulders and sleeves were archaic patterns, formed of a bright gold fabric and complimented with a background layer of subtle blues. Such eldritch symbols were complimented with a slightly rusted belt buckle with a jagged, eight-pointed star painted upon it in dull red, which was strangely painful and nauseating to look at for an extended period of time. The figure's underclothings were simple linen tunic and trousers, coloured of a blue similar to those found upon the coat.

Upon further inspection, it appeared that the man stood around six foot three in height and weighed significantly less than he should have at such a height - around one hundred and sixty. The overall frame suggested of emaciation, where he had once been in a healthy, athletic condition and experienced some sort of significant trauma, which led him to such a haggard state. Despite the man's unkempt appearance, he did not smell bad - in fact, the scent of odd incenses wafted around his frame as he strode further into the tavern, the tails of his coat whorling behind him as if they possessed their own life. Clutched in his left hand was a large briefcase made of a red, leathery material, which elicited all sorts of odd chinks and rustles every time he took a step.

As with the outside, the man took in all the details around him with his…unusual sight, though with much more scrutiny than before. The scant few patrons were almost glared at by the man under his hood, as if he were expecting them to leap from their chairs with knives in hand. He still couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling that crawled through his mind and tightened his gut, and the fact that everything seemed normal about this establishment put him off even more. There had to be something wrong with this – the feeling wouldn’t have lasted nearly this long otherwise. Yet, if there had been any otherworldly tampering, he’d have picked it up by now. The cloaked man gritted his teeth together and made his way up to the front desk, which was currently not stationed by any staff. Fortunately, there was a brass desk bell on top, which he rang twice with his free time. Hopefully there might be more of a chance at deciphering this conundrum if he were to get a good look at the establishment’s owner, he figured. Turning around to his female companion, he glanced down at her momentarily before turning his gaze to the nearby hearth and nodded towards it.

“Go and stay over there.” His voice was soft but dry, as if deliberately trying to be patient. It was a simple command and one he figured she would obey without issue, as it would give her access to the fire burning within it and allow her to finally warm up.

Turning back around then, Damnatus then stood in silent anticipation. The initial use of this tavern was the least of his motivation at the moment – there were more pressing concerns and he wanted them answered as soon as possible.

Well -

There went her original plan of rooting around for a book to bring downstairs. Instead of bringing herself something to occupy her mind back down to the counter, Rai got caught up in actually reading once she did finally unearth the last novel she had been poking through, slowly albeit but she had.
It was one of those things, when you had way too much free time, reading tended to be one of the last things you want to do and for some stranger reasons, only find the desire and inspiration to bury your nose in a good story when you don’t have all the time in the world.

To be honest, she did feel a little detached from the thing at first as she flipped through it.

How the heck long had she put it down for?

It felt like she hadn’t read it in months. Which – was probably true. In any case, once she started perusing across some of the pages, she was hooked and found herself lost to the text, and her attention swallowed whole.

Eventually she had broken her focus and put an ear to the open door, to listen for the door but never seemed to hear anything or anyone entering. There was virtually no harm in hanging out upstairs until someone did come, that’s what the little bell was –

*Ting Ting*

Ah. Speaking of.

The woman groaned, audibly but no one was around to hear her complaint and she pulled herself off the sinfully comfortable sofa and stood up. Before even thinking of going down there, she knew she probably looked like a wonderful mess of wrinkled clothing and disheveled hair so a quick stop in the bathroom would have to suffice and whoever was waiting could wait a moment more.
Surprisingly, her appearance wasn’t terribly mussed and she was decent enough to head on down and greet her guests.

She snatched the book on her way out the door - still wanting to continue reading it of course - and trotted down the stairs somewhat hurriedly.

"Coming! I'm coming! Sorry."

Rai called out to her so far unseen guests right before she rounded the corner, nearly sliding on the hardwood flooring - which would have ended badly mind you - and scrambled over to the counter in a rather humorous if even cute display of clumsiness.

Cute to some that is.

The woman tucked her dark hair behind her ears and planted herself behind the bar where she belonged. Looking up now, finally, she smiled as brightly and pleasantly as she could.

"Good morning. How can I help you?"

Uh-oh.

Between his tone and movements, looming over her with all intent to emphasize that what he had told her was to be heeded, he was to be obeyed and it wouldn’t be in her best interests to cross him right now. Rasilyn shrunk under his hidden gaze, not even needing to see all of his face to know how he was looking at her and the expression of insistence and urgency all while restraining himself from scolding her.

He simply wanted her to be off on her way and get out of his hair.

The girl averted her eyes and turned away in her submission to him. ”Yes sir.” came her small voice.

If he had to tell her twice, it was naturally a good idea to do as she was told before he was given a reason to be far harsher. He never physically scolded her but she truly didn’t enjoy being reprimanded and tried to avoid pushing him much further unless she strongly felt the need to defend her choice. This time she had only been curious and didn’t desire an answer that badly. Rasilyn did as instructed and scurried off towards the crackling hearth, very quickly forgetting about getting in trouble in favor of enjoying the fire. Her little smile returned and chased away the frown from a moment earlier. Her sudden mood swings and acceptance of things that would paralyze any normal child with a lasting fear were all just more cues to suggest how truly troubled her mind actually was.

Clearly.

Feeling a little better, Rasilyn took to studying the common room of the tavern and let her eyes explore the immediate surroundings. If they were actually going to stay here, at least it was a nice place. She started into a quiet hum, content now to undo the buttons on her coat and let the heat reach her a little further. It seemed she had completely forgotten all about making a fuss and just watched the few other patrons quietly, waiting patiently.

-THUD-

She ignored it; the sound of the case hitting the ground wasn’t unusual.

But-

”Eee!” She squeaked -

the flames from the fireplace as they flickered, changed and roared briefly before dying and practically becoming nothing again – was.

Startled, Rasilyn stumbled backwards and onto the floor. With an equal amount of urgency she turned around to find what had caused the sudden disturbance and her eyes landed first on the woman behind the counter – to the empty space where her Master was previously standing and then finally to the door as it creaked to a noisy close suggesting that someone had just passed through.

Oh dear.

The Seer scrambled to her feet with intent to skitter off after him, not really certain what had just transpired. Although, before disappearing out the door, Rasilyn took one last glance backwards over her shoulder to spy the dark haired woman who obviously worked here. Something made her look back and she very quickly regretted it. Her eyes caught something, brief and it did not linger but it was strange enough to garner her attention, to make her stop and stare and desperately search for the same glimpse of it. Following the sighting came the unfortunately familiar feelings of paranoia, panic, the room felt far smaller than it truly was and it was closing in on her. From each corner of her vision things lingered, moved, flickered past and seemed to be everywhere.

Rasilyn’s face expressed her rapidly growing distress and the girl started taking very cautious steps backwards closer and closer to the door.

Voices.
Whispers.
Everything strange and unexplainable.
It was happening again.

It was coming. Eyes growing wider, their size comparable to quarters, Rasilyn turned face and scrambled for the door as she had attempted to previously before it all started. A body entered, leaving it wide for her convenience and the girl bustled right past, paying no mind to her undone coat and the cold air as it hit her face upon exiting.

By this point, Damnatus was a good several strides or more ahead up the road and she had to nearly sprint in order to catch him.

”Wait! WAIT!” She shouted just as she closed the distance with a reach for his arm…

" What the hell?"

Such a flashy exit was always abit of a shock and likely to elicit cries of 'witch' or 'magic', forcing the townspeople to gather together their pitchforks and their torches and storm the castle. But this wasn't a castle, although it was Gaia, a land of magic, mystery and chaos that no other world could match. Even the relatively isolated accepted that their world was suffused with the stuff of dreams and nightmares, and thus the hulk of a man who stepped into the building was unsuprised at the sudden woosh of flames and the multicolored light they flung into the corners of the room.

He stood far taller than any man should, easily capping ten feet, his body thickly muscled so that he filled the doorway completely. He bent forward slightly to keep from scraping the top of his head on the ceiling, storm grey eyes focused on the fireplace with a keen interest.

" Does that happen often?" The giant asked, glancing 'round towards the proprietors, arching a massive black eyebrow. In one hand he held a large duffle bag, probably large enough to hold his own clothes and nothing more. He himself was dressed in a stained white undershirt and baggy black pants held up by suspenders. Engineers boots clumped on the hard floor, obviously made for him special seeing as how no shoemaker could ever forsee an entire race of such individuals.

Even before the answer came to him, if it ever did, Titan would begin to walk further forward, the door shutting hard behind him. His free hand pushed tables and chairs out of his way with ease, making a nice clear path to a corner table. Why a corner table? Because in every fantasy novel he'd ever read, which wasn't many, the hero had met destiny in the dark and shadowy corners of some Inn. While He wasn't nearly so concieted as to think that he was that sort of hero, he did need money, and the pay off for acting heroic always seemed to be epic in quantities.

((Not a problem, Always good to start something new I think 3nodding ))

Her stare was warranted and he didn't even feel her eyes on him he was so used to it. " Coffee sounds perfect, black as it do'ya." Titan replied, turning his head back towards her and standing next to his table. His hands settled on his hips, now that he had nowhere to put them. It only made him larger, if possible, taking up more space than was necessary. The closer Rai got to him the dirtier he looked, dirt crusted under his fingernails, oddly colored spots on his white undershirt that might have been food at some point. Even his pants bore the stains of oil and various mechinical fluids across the thighs and knees.

" Also....do ya have stronger chairs?" Titan asked, looking down at the 2 chairs that surrounded his chosen table and gently tapping the nearest with his steel capped boot. " A'm not sure it can hold my weight." He spoke almost with an accent, each word guttural in nature but still wholely common Gaian. Accompanying his words was his smell, which would probably hit her as she got within touching range, the sewage stench of a man who hasn't washed in many days.