Realm Wars (CLOSED)

[HeadlessKoko]

Shini and Kami were interrupted from their thoughts by the announcement. they both thought as they looked at each other. They were at the western edge. Albeit, hopefully a bit farther than where Ferron will hold his speech, hopefully.

"We should just stay here," Kami suggested first.
"I'd rather not be the center of attention, and you're a bit too big to be in the front, aren't you?" Shini retorted.
Kami shrugged, "If I lie down, people can see over me. Besides, don't you want to be up in the front when he talks?"
Shini confidently said, "No. Once again, I'd rather not attract attention."
Kami had to agree, "Okay, okay. Being in the front will attract attention, I guess," he also didn't want to be the focus of attentiong, "But they'll probably be more focused on Ferron."
Shini hadn't thought about that, "That may be true, but we should still head to the back so as not to annoy anyone."

Kami agreed and stood up, but the crowd had already started reaching them and, soon after, they found it hard to move without pushing anyone aside. While a couple people tried their best to steer clear of the dragon, most only glanced warily at him before pushing ahead. They were still in the front by the time it became so crowded that they couldn't even move an inch.

"Kami, can you take off from here?" Shini asked, she hoped that the sky was dark enough so no one could see.
"No, not enough room," Kami responded, he didn't even bother about the light, "I think we're stuck here, he couldn't help but sound a bit happy about that."
Shini grumbled, "Great."

Kami proceeded to try and make a bit more room, enough so he could lie down and not block the view of others. A couple people grumbled but most moved for fear of angering him. Shini contemplated saying sorry for them on behalf of Kami, but decided against it. She was in a slightly bad mood and she didn't know if these people would react negatively against her apology.

When Kami had made enough room to lie down comfortably, he offered, "Shini, sit on my back. You probably can't see over the heads of the others." Shini was about to decline until Kami said, "I know you're smaller than others so sit. No excuse can change that."

Shini sighed and climbed up on Kami's back, but instead of sitting on him, she decided to hang from his side, her legs dangling. It was plenty high enough and she wouldn't irritate the others by blocking the view too much.

Kami snorted, that was enough for him. He put his tail underneath Shini's legs so she wouldn't have to dangle from his back with only her arms. Shini accepted the support. She knew she was light enough to not tire out Kami too much, and his tail was more stronger than those of other types of dragons even though it was just as slender. Plus, he would probably have insisted on it.

As they waited for Ferron to speak, Shini got a good look at the people that had come. There were numerous races represented. Shini continued listing them off in her head. She was amazed at the diversity of the gathering.

"Wow," she whispered under breath.
"Heh," Kami snickered quietly, "You just noticed that now?" raising his head to scan the crowd with Shini.
Shini nodded in silence.

The two of them waited for Ferron to speak.  

[cutullus]

As he was wrapping the last of his parcels, Glacon heard a a call out on the street. He placed his carefully wrapped packets and parcels in his sack and counted out the coins that he owed the shopkeeper. "Not many left," he ruefully reflected.

Leaving the store, Glacon allowed himself to be swept up in the tide of people that was heading towards the sunset and the western edge of town. Not a bad backdrop for an important speech. As the crowd grew thicker Glacon found himself shoulder to shoulder with a dark elf and an Ursine. Standing in front of him was another borean, and he could see representatives of many other races besides.

"This should be interesting," he thought to himself. "If this Ferron has single-handedly convinced a group of beings this large to drop old rivalries and convene at this location, we certainly are living in interesting times."

"I bet the Queen would be interested to know about all this," he thought.  

[Tonash Drahow]

The sun had begun to set as it lined the horizon in a multitude of orange, pink and red. Ferron and his second rose to a small platform erected in honor of their presence.

The large Katar stood tall, his staff supporting him as he stood before everyone who had gathered there.

"Greetings my friends, my allies, my countrymen and my kin. Greetings, good Boreans, Elves and all the others who have come to hear the plea of Starfall. For eons, all this land has ever known is war and strife. It is a time-honored tradition that we take vengeance upon those who do us harm, thus causing more harm, at which point, they perform the same honor-bound duty to repay the deed.

I say to you, how can there ever be a lasting peace when the victims are also the perpetrators? We cannot allow this spiral of hatred and death to continue, lest it be the death of us all. There are those who would choose this solution, who would elect to destroy each other for eternity, because their hatred runs so deep. We cannot allow these voices to overtake our senses. We must band together and build a new order. One that is based on good will and where we might discuss our differences through talks of diplomacy and not war.

Do not think, however that Starfall is weak by desiring peace. We know the price of peace comes at the highest cost of all: blood. We will not subjugate those who oppose us, however we will not allow ourselves to go unheard. There will be many battles ahead, do not doubt that. There will be many people who seek to destroy this threat to change their stagnant reality. It is regrettable that we must face some of our peoples as enemies on the fields of war, but if they refuse to at least attempt a new way of life, then there is no way to avoid conflict.

I dream of a world where we all stand on equal grounds, where we look to one another as brothers and sisters of the land. I dream of a world where we do not judge one another by the features we were given at birth, but the actions and choices of our lives. My friends, will you stand with me and help me to realize this dream?"

A deafening roar of approval and cheers arose as Ferron finished his speech.

Starfall was born.  

[HeadlessKoko]

Kami roared his approval as the speech ended. However, even his roar could barely be heard through the crowd. Shini didn't stop him, it wasn't like she didn't enjoy the speech either, but she couldn't help but remain silent despite agreeing with what Ferron had said.

"See," Kami turned to face Shini with a toothy grin, "I told you that it'll be like this."
Shini nodded quietly in agreement, but she was still thinking. "Yes," she replied quitely so only Kami would hear, "However, words are not actions and, in the end, actions are what matter, not words." She had learned from a young age to not trust those around her. It was through the very same situations that she had come join Ferron's cause, that she had come to find a place where she wouldn't be despised because of being smaller than the other drakes. It wasn't that she was oddly proportioned either, she was just scrawny. "Furthermore," she continued just as quietly, "how do we know that peace will really bring about those changes? For all we know, it might simply be a peace caused by separating each race and letting them live by themselves. Even if it was a peace that brought all races together, how do we know that they'll be just as accepting as those who are considered to be freaks of even their own race?"
Kami nodded, he understood why Shini had these doubts, and could say nothing against it. "Well," he brought his head really close to his Keeper's, staring at her with one blood-red eye, the same color as Shini's, "we won't know until we try, right?" he encouraged, he smiled in an effort to cheer Shini up.
Shini saw Kami's efforts and smiled weakly to make him happy. Besides, what he said was true, the two of them had deserted the drakes to come here. They were hunted now, and the only option left was to either leave Starfall as well or become a part of Starfall. "Yeah, we should," Shini said at last, jumping off from Kami's tail and back onto solid ground. She leaned against Kami and waited for the crowd to diperse.

All around the keeper and dragon, the crowd slowly started to disperse after Ferron had left. This time around, they weren't rushed and made sure to avoid the pair, who were waiting for the rest of the crowd to go farther away.  

[Zulma san]

Tiagara stared at the Katar. She admired his size and fur, she appreciated the depth and strength of his voice.

The dark elf nodded here and there, agreeing with the speech.

...a lasting peace...

Her eyes locked on Ferron's staff.
She had had a staff herself for years. It enabled her to focus her energy and control better her summoning creatures. However she had lost it a year before the death of her mentor. Despite her seeming lightheaded, Tiagara was not stupid and she was convinced that one of the Boreans had stolen it from her.
The second reason for which she had left the northern camp after the death of her mentor was that he had mentioned a staff. That unique staff would grant stronger control and enable the bearer to summon bigger creatures.
Tiagara was hoping to gather information and eventually come into possession of that staff.
As per its name 'The Staff of Blood', that staff required a heavy toll for its use.

...the highest cost of all: blood.

Ferron's words echoed the woman's thoughts. His staff was not the staff she was looking for. But maybe that man had useful knowledge in his possession.

Tiagara roared with the others. It was contagious and it would always be time to think about the implications later. She waited though before moving, looking at the Katar, as part of the crowd left the square singing and laughing in the direction of the inns and taverns of the town.

The speech was nice and all, but nothing concrete had been said. Ideas and dreams, certainly, she was waiting for substance and reality to it.

Tiagara waited. She did not know exactly what she was waiting for. A sign probably.  

[Valentine Valtieri]

Shadowtooth practically laughed. "Now we're getting somewhere!" He shouted. He then could only wonder how long such 'peace' would last. He tightened his spear's strap and looked up. The sky was full of color. He looked at his armor. Shiny, clean, perfect.

He looked around at the people staring at him. He ignored them and continued looking around. He played with the spear for a while then re-checked his medical supplies. Still just enough. He thought. His mind wandered back to his home. It wasn't aas easy as he thought, he didn't completely break away.  

[cutullus]

Glacon mulled over the words of the speech in his mind as he walked slowly down the street. This kind of rhetoric was unusual amongst Boreans, and was somewhat unfamiliar to him. So many hardships had faced the Borean race that at times it seemed like every hand was turned against them. And try telling the survivors of a newly-razed village that they shouldn't hate the Drakes for what they had done. And how was Ferron planning to stop that cycle? The Queen's court would laugh in the face of anyone who suggested they should stop retaliating against the Dragonsbloods.

His feet had brought him back to Kurtic's hay barn, and Glacon realized that he would much rather spend an evening sleeping on sweet-smelling hay than in one of the rodent-infested common houses further towards the town center. Perhaps tomorrow would bring some more information about how Ferron planned to support his fine words with action.  

[HeadlessKoko]

Most of the crowd was gone, but there were a few who had stayed behind. Either to think or hear more or whatever it was they needed. Amongst them, Kami and Shini made out the dark elf and drake from before.

"We should greet them," Kami suggested.
Shini answered immediately, "No."
Kami pressed, "Why."
"Let's just watch the sunset," Shini said simply.
Kami gave up and watched the western sky with Shini, he could tell that his keeper was thinking deeply about something. He'd have to ask later what it was that she was musing about.