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scarlett arbuckle Vice Captain
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 Posted: Mon Jan 17, 2022 4:48 pm
(1/10)
If someone was to ask you who the actual Lord of the Sargsyan family was, then Amon was the one to hold that title. While not of age, he had been presented the year before as a potential bachelor to the ladies of Zena, and as such he was afforded the title that would have belonged to his father before him. ... But in practice? In practice, the head of their family was, and for Amon had always been, his grandfather Geir.
Amon had his place at any serious discussion that involved their family... new land agreements, important trade meetings, balls and parties that high society was expected to attend, but even now he was only rarely afforded the opportunity to lead the talks, or even speak unless his grandfather deigned it so.
... But he wasn't a fool. He wasn't some puppet, he swore to himself at every opportunity, he actually knew what they discussed. There'd been plenty of occasions where a foolish upstart of a lord or merchant would get ahead of himself, propose some fool deal, or try and presume to advise Geir on how to proceed on a deal, and with a sharp glance Amon would be invited to put the clod in their place - and at that, he rarely failed.
But he'd grown tired of being his grandfather's attack dog. So today... he staged a rebellion.
A courier had come in during one of his lessons saying someone had been arrested on their lands, and while he should have held it and passed it on to grandfather ... he didn't. He kept it, and after his lessons was over he donned his best cloak and took himself to the place where they were keeping them. It was, technically, a jail - but knowing that people of their sort wouldn't tolerate deplorable conditions, it was more of a locked meeting room in one of the economic centers of the city, with a heavy solid wood door, and guards posted outside of it.
They let him through, as they weren't Sargsyan hires but city officials, and likely didn't know the details of the family's political situation. That was fine, it worked out for him just fine.
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Posted: Wed Jan 26, 2022 5:57 pm
You there, girl! You're trespassing on Sargsyan land!
If Yngvara had been savvier like her father or older brother then perhaps she could have talked her way out of the arrest. She'd been part of a larger hunting party who had scouted new territory near the capital. When they'd gotten closer to their targets the group had split up which proved problematic for the teenager. As far as she was aware the land belonged to those strong enough to hunt it, but Zenan society claimed otherwise.
The situation had gone from a problem to an arrest the moment Yngvara's sermal sprang out and attacked one of the patrolmen...Thankfully Stjerne had managed to escape before they killed her.
She'd expected a locked cell or a dungeon of some sort, manacles even, but then they'd put here here...The most her captors had managed to do was to detain her weapons. Or rather, the ones they could see. Yngvara had busied herself by 'casually' pacing the room, looking for anything she could use as a weapon if need be, when the doors opened. The young hybrid's silver eyes turned to...the boy?
On impulse Yngvara let out a sharp chortle. "Spirits, what are you supposed to do? You're just a boy."
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scarlett arbuckle Vice Captain
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Posted: Wed Jan 26, 2022 6:12 pm
(2/10) Perhaps when he was younger Amon would have bristled at the insult and rushed to prove that he was a man worth dealing with. But time (and harsh lessons) had taught him the error of that approach, and instead of balking he took a leisurely glance around the room before settling his eyes on the girl.
Which... was probably what finally gave him pause. It was a hybrid - with long, normal ears, but skin dark as night, and hair even darker.
She was young though... older than him, of course, but not the grizzled, scarred poacher he'd thought he'd be meeting.
"I, madam, am here to try to determine why you were poaching on Sargsyan land. Although, if you're too busy to entertain my company, I could always simply recommend you straight to a prison?" He smiled insincerely, holding his hands loosely infront of his torso, fingertips tapping lazily together as if considering his options.
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Posted: Sun Jan 30, 2022 10:54 am
Madam. She heard the term in passing when speaking to older women or even when hunters wanted to tease one another with 'southern' words. "Your definition of poaching requires some work." She paced the room languidly, reaching out to run her fingers over first a shelf then a desk. "The mammu I was tracking is part of a herd that comes down this time every year from the north mountain. They migrate down the Vikarnes river and dip past Zidel, but surely since this is your land you would know that."
When she stopped Yngvara was as close as she wanted to be to the strange, young man and pinned him with a look. He was a snake; same as everyone else in power here. The only ones she trusted with a modicum of clout were her Uncle and even then Ergon had a way of burrowing under her skin.
"The creatures I hunt belong to Zena not you."
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scarlett arbuckle Vice Captain
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Posted: Sun Jan 30, 2022 12:36 pm
(3/10) Ah. Amon had dealt with enough mountain people to know that they held little respect for the government here, nor the rights and laws that it upheld. His grandfather would simply have sneered and waved a hand for her to be fined and, failing payment, arrested properly. But - there was an ulterior motive for Amon's visit, and finding a way to sneak it into the conversation was his main concern here.
"Unfortunately, the right to hunt isn't an acceptable defense in Zenan law, nor is claiming ignorance." Amon responded, smoothly, arcing a brow at her. "Despite your vehement disagreements, the council saw fit to give to land to the Sargsyan family for safekeeping. If you wanted to hunt these mammu, then you should have done so before they crossed into this territory, and that is not even accounting siccing your familiar upon those sent to apprehend you. You really aren't in a strong position at the moment."
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Posted: Sun Jan 30, 2022 3:03 pm
If she were her mother then Yngvara would have taken down any man who tried to haul her in and slipped away back to the mountain. Unfortunately, Yngvara wasn't nearly as strong, but she was more skilled in social graces. Albeit barely, but there was enough there for the teen to understand the trouble she was in. The land her own tribe had been given once belong to a councilwoman so this...could be tricky.
He didn't need to know how nervous it all made her, though; better he think her aloof and arrogant.
"Stjerne was acting in defense. She believed my life to be in danger and did as she's been taught." If the patrolmen hadn't been brandishing his weapon in such a threatening manner then Yngvara wouldn't have drawn her own and then the sermal wouldn't have taken a chunk of his thigh.
"What do you want from me? You've made it clear my position could be much worse."
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scarlett arbuckle Vice Captain
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Posted: Sun Jan 30, 2022 3:37 pm
(4/1) Amon wasn't impressed by how blunt she was. Most negotiations had a bit more of a dance to them, as both parties showed their advantages and tried to seek out weaknesses in the other. His grandfather would see her rush to get to a conclusion as admission of weakness, that she realized she had no leg to stand on and was conceding that he was in a stronger position.
As such, he straightened up in his stance, raising a hand to primp and push a single stray lock of his hair back into place. "Yes. Well. As you were arrested before you poached... and if it's true that your familiar acted in self defense, then I can have your charges dropped. ...If." He paused here, making it clear he would continue, gold eyes sweeping over her face.
"If you escort me to Matori. The family has been looking for a missing person for quite some time, and the window to follow is short."
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Posted: Sun Jan 30, 2022 4:02 pm
"Matori?! Are you mad?"
She couldn't help it; the proposition was so ludicrous that she could barely contain herself! Who would ever-?! The teen nearly chocked on her surprise, and that just as quickly turned into a laugh. "You must be truly desperate if you're asking me to help track down someone from the grand Sargsyan house. How is it that your own men haven't been able to find them? Why not ask someone more experienced?"
There were nearly as many hunters in Zena as there were snowflakes so why ask her? And after nearly putting her in prison, too? She didn't like the idea of owing that sort of favor to a family like that, one with so much influence that they could bend the councils ear, but she also didn't have a lot of options....
The whole thing just didn't make much sense.
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scarlett arbuckle Vice Captain
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Posted: Sun Feb 06, 2022 2:49 pm
(5/10) Blast. Had he showed his hand too early? He didn't like how easily she narrowed it down to desperation, and though he resented that he'd allowed her to get the impression his entire household was so foolish, he wasn't about to correct her. If he made it clear he was... standing against the family on this, then she'd have no problem refusing him entirely and demanding his grandfather instead.
It was foolish, to risk his tenuous position for this, but... he truly was desperate.
"I want a tracker, not a mercenary. And this is a delicate matter - I would rather be on hand to oversee the venture than leave it to someone with no personal stake in the resolution." It was complete and utter bull, but his grandfather had told him that poise and confidence could hold a situation together when nothing else could.
"And if Matori is simply too far, then I'd like to hear your counter offer. It is, after all, only your freedom at stake here." And this was paired with a flash of his eyes and a smirk that was probably as oily as this entire blackmail situation.
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Posted: Wed Feb 16, 2022 4:54 pm
The thought of going that far south made her sick. Her father had traveled many times over his lifetime, but mother never left Zena. She'd often thought about going with him during the winter and yet there had just been this innate...fear. It was just such a foreign thing that somehow along the way the idea of going anywhere that didn't require six layers of clothing was more terrifying than being impaled by a mammu's tusk.
At least then it had been a choice. Having her options taken away from her always had a habit of making Yngvara bristle and she couldn't help curling her lip while she looked at the slimey, pampered little rich boy.
"...if I go with you, there will conditions." What other choice did she have? In all honesty Yngvara had no idea how far away Matori was or how long it would take to go there. So much of valuable harvest time would be wasted tracking down someone who might not even be alive anymore, but if she didn't go then her family might get wrapped into this too.
"That's non-negotiable."
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scarlett arbuckle Vice Captain
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Posted: Sat Feb 19, 2022 3:44 pm
(6/10) If he was younger, Amon would have perked up at her agreement. But he managed to keep himself settled, nodding his head in what felt like a shallow imitation of his grandfather's poised, graceful manner. He felt like the foolish boy she clearly thought he was - if his family found out what he was planning he would likely be locked up until he was old enough to marry, or worse if other families found out about his wayward antics. But it was a risk he was willing to take, if it was true that his father was truly still alive.
"Very well. What are these conditions?"
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Posted: Sun Feb 20, 2022 12:45 pm
Yes, well, what are your conditions then?
She hadn't honestly thought he would be amendable to them so now that Yngvara had some level of power in this 'dynamic' she didn't' know what to do with it. Thankfully she was a fast thinker and even if he ideas weren't the most solid Yngvara was prepared to stick by them.
"There are two." She stated plainly. "The first is a document marked with your family's seal as proof of my exoneration. I can't trust your word, but your kind will honor that." There wasn't anyone in the cities that Yngvara would ever come to trust so she knew if she didn't have this now that he may very well turn his back on her later. Not to say she wouldn't stab him for it, but that came with it's own consequences.
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scarlett arbuckle Vice Captain
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Posted: Sun Feb 20, 2022 1:19 pm
(7/10) Two? Amon couldn't hide sour look that flashed over his face then, but he didn't interject. The paperwork would be easy enough to get - the trouble was the seal. He wouldn't be able to get away with putting the terms of this exchange in the document, but actually marking it would be risky. He could, grudgingly, respect her for recognizing the risk.
He wanted to hesitate, but considering he was presenting himself as a legitimate figure here he shouldn't have any issues carrying out the request. "Hmph. My heart aches at your lack of faith. But yes, yes, I'm sure that can be done easily." He agreed, faking an air of nonchalance.
If that was her first request, he dreaded her next one.
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Posted: Sun Feb 20, 2022 1:51 pm
Her clan may have been ignorant to the intricacies of the outside world, but Yngvara's father was not. He knew enough of the ways of man to warn his daughter, albeit in much less detail than she probably needed, and her Uncle's shrewd nature had carried forth. She was nervous, a little scared even, but determined. This was...it was going to work out as best she could get it and that was that!
Smarmy little p***k-
"My second is that I have time to prepare. A few days, at least; I need to tell my family that I'm leaving. Or, would you rather have the entirety of the Ild'vann descending upon your house?" A teenage girl branching off on her own for a while was hardly cause for concern, but one that hadn't reported back to her family for weeks? That was kidnapping and one that her parents wouldn't take very kindly too.
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scarlett arbuckle Vice Captain
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Posted: Sun Feb 20, 2022 2:08 pm
(8/10) Oh. Well. That... was convenient. Normally, it made sense that he would demand her service immediately, but - considering the more illicit part of his involvement here, it worked out. It gave him time to figure out how to get the document prepared.
As for her - he was impressed by her quick thinking, and felt reassured that, desperate though he was, he'd lucked into someone who wasn't useless. That did, though, make her something of a threat.
... And it gave him time to research just what clan he'd gotten on the wrong side of - the Ild'vann... ? Was that a family he should know?
"Fine. I will grant your release on the terms we've discussed, but within the week I expect to see you back."
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