2017-07-12: Hope for Change
- Log: Hope for Change
- Cast: Riesenlied, Myyah Hawwa
- Where: Lacour
- Date: 12th June 2017
- Summary: Disoriented from her own mindscape, Riesenlied receives help from Miang.
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied is seated on a wooden chair, in the midst of a bleak landscape. A buildup of frost and ice flakes are encrusted upon the legs of the chair, and a jewelled cross -- the same one Id exposed her to when she entered his mindscape -- flashes behind her.
You coward.
She lowers her head.
"I'm... a coward..."
A pair of hands, draped out of a loose tribal robe, slowly places themselves over Riesenlied's eyes. A young woman pulls herself over her head, with a quiet and knowing smile.
That's why you couldn't...
Riesenlied shakes her head slowly, but the hands grip her ever tighter.
"No, I... that isn't why..."
The hands over her eyes start to bleed, as they grip at her face viciously -- red, viscous blood trickles over her cheeks, and the Metal Demon gasps--
--and Riesenlied jitters just for a moment as she looks around, where a merchant is shouting at her. She'd clumsily walked across a merchant's wares on his wicker mat upon the floor, in her daze -- she looks around with a dazzled look as she holds her head. The winged woman has had a trying week, what with the assault on Old Petra ending in a rout that not only wounded Lord Siegfried, but consumed their village and left so many of their forces scattered and in need of recuperation...
...and when she spoke to Id -- it exposed demons that she'd kept buried in her as well.
"I'm-- I'm sorry," mumbles the horned woman as she pulls her eared hood back up with a nervous gasp and stumbles across towards the main streets. She isn't quite sure if she knows where she is... she has to go find Noeline and go back to the Lacour Grande before she gets further lost.
To someone in the know, she's rather evidently the 'Deceiver' -- the woman who made her announcement at the Adlehyde Fairgrounds... to uphold the Treaty of Iscariot, to prevent the abuses of ancient artifacts and Dragon Fossils... a curious statement from a Metal Demon.
<Pose Tracker> Myyah Hawwa has posed.
Riesenlied stumbles away from an angry merchant. For a moment, it appears as though she will get away with this crime of negligence: by the time the merchant is done salvaging his scattered goods, she can be off and away into the crowd.
And then there's a hand on her shoulder. It came from someone standing in her blind spot. Everyone has a blind spot or two, don't they?
"Excuse me," speaks a woman's voice. The hand on Riesenlied's shoulder is not rough, but it is insistent.
It belongs to a tall, elegant woman with striking purple hair and a smile that is quiet but kind. She is wearing a pale blue frock dress tailored and decorated with white ribbon, along with a traveling shawl in darker blue and square-heeled boots that are a decent compromise between sturdy and fashionable. A satchel bag hangs from one shoulder and she carries a folded-up parasol in her free hand.
"You seem disoriented. Do you need help?"
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied has one heck of a blind spot given her hood, quietly gasping as she turns around and kind of shrinks into herself. It's a far cry from the confident commander of the Ebony Wings from the Fairground -- there's a telltale distant fear slightly reflected upon her eyes.
"Ah--" she whispers, sounding as if she's out of breath. "... yes. I-- appear to be a bit lost, and this city is a bit... new to me, miss." She frowns softly and lowers her head. Yet, she hesitates.
"But-- no, you should not involve yourself with me... it would only bring misfortune upon you." There is a reticience borne out of concern, it seems.
<Pose Tracker> Myyah Hawwa has posed.
The woman's smile grows more faint but no less sincere.
"Fortunately, I can handle some misfortune from time to time. Main street, right?"
The woman steps past Riesenlied, her hand lingering long enough to gently guide the horned woman forward. She maintains a slow pace until Riesenlied shows that she's keeping up.
"This city is new to many people," she says. "It will be new to many more before the year is out. War will do that to a land."
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied hesitates just for a moment, but does follow the woman slowly with a nod. "I have a companion... dressed in black and red, who usually tends to me. And we are staying at an inn..." A pause, as she holds onto her head, seemingly working through another painful flash. "... the Lacour Grande, I believe..."
A pause, as she tilts her head as she murmurs, "... yes... following recent attacks, many have evacuated outwards, to Gounon, to Lacour..." There is a clear tinge of regret in her voice.
<Pose Tracker> Myyah Hawwa has posed.
"That will be the main street," the woman confirms on the subject of the Lacour Grande. She is silent when Riesenlied continues. Her face is difficult to read as long as she remains one step ahead of the other woman.
"People feel safer in cities," the woman says. "Even when they've proven just as vulnerable. Given the choice, most of us look for the largest gathering of our peers and hope that we will be helped."
The woman turns to look over her shoulder, back toward Riesenlied.
"I think there is something hopeful in knowing that, even if such knowledge is bought with blood."
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
"That is true of anyone, I feel... whether human, beastman or..." she trails off just for a moment, as the image of Old Petra and the beginnings of what the Tainted have started to create come back to her. It's almost overwhelming, just for a second -- then she presses on. "But... of blood? Do you speak of this city, miss...?"
There is a pause. "Ah... I am being rude." She pauses as she steadies her step and carries on. "My name is..." Just a moment's hesitation, then her desire to be honest wins out, "Riesenlied."
<Pose Tracker> Myyah Hawwa has posed.
If the purple-haired woman notices the hesitation, she makes no indication of it. As she returned her gaze forward, it is possible she did not. She only slows her pace long enough whenever Riesenlied hesitates--be it in step or in word.
"My name is Miang," she says. "And I do speak of this city, in a sense. People are here because they are scared, or because they have no where else to go. Violence was the cause of that."
A pause. A shift of subject.
"What about you?"
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied stares towards the open air for a moment, looking towards drifting clouds. "... I suppose I am here, too, because of such violence..." she places her hands together. "A great horror has been visited upon my brethren, and many of them were waylaid by it. Many will never open their eyes again, though they've only begun to experience life outside in Filgaia..." She tilts her head. "Yet I cannot say I am innocent in that matter myself."
She lowers her head further, drawing a slightly more difficult breath. "Miss Miang, then. Are you a... Drifter yourself? You appear experienced with various places..."
<Pose Tracker> Myyah Hawwa has posed.
"Lowercase drifter, not uppercase," says Miang.
"I am a historian. During my travels, I work to make sense of the past. I often work with the kind of people that you are imagining. The world can be a dangerous place sometimes."
Miang guides Riesenlied through a busy intersection, parting the crowds to take them down a side street that is less busy--though not deserted.
"I'm sorry about your breathren. I will spare you my curiosity."
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied places a hand to her elbow as she stops through the crowds, seemingly murmuring little phrases to gird herself through such busy crowds until they head towards a more quiet place. "... thank you. Where they go, I do not know, but... I will not forget them." She swallows, as she says, "The past is... a deep interest of mine as well. What happened in the past to besmirch those that have been wounded by it... it is all shrouded in secrecy, that so many of us fear without knowing the reason for said fear. That so many of my kin hate, while never questioning it."
She lowers her head. "... in that sense I... appreciate what you do. My companions are similarly vested in searching for answers."
<Pose Tracker> Myyah Hawwa has posed.
Miang makes an amused noise. She shifts her grip on her parasol as they pass a community bakery and the associated traffic at the front entrance.
"I don't imagine that your companions are the ones who hate," she says. "Do you hope to change hearts with what you find? A historian rarely has the luxury of proving a theory, but sometimes such happy chances come to pass."
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied pauses for a moment as she looks towards that bakery, to see those that offer to those that are in need. "... no... they largely share my views," she expresses. "And perhaps, I do. Not just with what we find, but... what with what life can offer, when you show them that there can be more to it than just fighting and killing..."
There's a faint sigh. "It is a shame, when one is born without choice or freedom. To never be allowed to meet their calling or potential..."
"To shed the messy and sad history of those that have come before us... to understand why things happened the way they did. I have more desire of that knowledge than any artifact of power."
<Pose Tracker> Myyah Hawwa has posed.
Miang brings the two of them to a T intersection. She stops at the end of their side street, waiting for a procession of a carriage and a press of bodies to go by. She looks over her shoulder to make sure that Riesenlied knows to stop also. She continues to look to give the other woman a thoughtful appraisal.
"Many more would agree with your choice of treasure than your choice of cause," she says. "To change history... to imbue it with power, or rob it of the same. Some would call that the nearest mere humans can get to absolute control. Politicians and nobles crave such a thing."
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied looks towards the street, stopping as Miang gestures for her to. She glances across to where that carriage follows, perhaps carrying some noble whose name she isn't aware of. She thinks of King Ardryn for a moment. "People... are often comfortable with being told what they wish to hear. And if history is to be manipulated to become convenient half truths, or even outright lies... then that would be a tragedy indeed."
She lowers her head. "... no matter what, I am born on this planet. Even if the world casts me aside, rejects me... I cannot help but have love for it. Where else could I go? To ignore the scars it has borne in favour of ultimately temporary means of power is... irresponsible. Reckless."
<Pose Tracker> Myyah Hawwa has posed.
"Irresponsibility is the constant companion of mortality," says Miang.
The carriage passes and the press of crowd with it. Miang steps out into the street, which is now empty of people in the immediate vicinity. No one is coming this way. Miang stops in the middle, right between the carriage tracks, and turns to look at it disappearing down the road. She is silent until Riesenlied joins her.
"Have you spoken to Ida since the attack?"
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied takes a short and clipped breath, as she steps towards the road -- blinking a few times as she looks towards the carriage, then to Miang's question with surprise. "O-oh... do you know Miss Everstead-Rey?" A pause, as she holds her chest closely. "... yes, I have. She is blessed with resilience, I must say... a strength that I wish were more common." She lowers her head. "I remember, when I first met her... I offered her a Dragon Fossil that might have been misused elsewhere, because I trusted that she would treat it with respect."
She still does not think that is a mistake.
<Pose Tracker> Myyah Hawwa has posed.
Miang keeps looking. This allows Riesenlied to have her moment of surprise in the peace of no one watching.
"Ida is worthy of such trust," she says. A moment passes in silence, during which Miang looks over to affix her peculiar purple-eyed gaze on Riesenlied.
"I believe in what she hopes to do. I hope that you feel the same way. Being caught between two worlds can feel like an imperative to live in neither, but believing that such a thing is possible can lead to irresponsibility just as dire as any other."
Miang turns away from the carriage. She begins walking down the road, passing Riesenlied as she goes.
"This road will cross the main street in this direction. From there, your destination is a few minute's walk after a left turn."
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied bites at her lip, before nodding as she proceeds to finish crossing the street, letting out a fatigued breath. "I do..." she lowers her head, closing her eyes when she steps onto the sidewalk. "I continually seek that new world... one where we can all flourish, instead of be trapped between two that will not welcome us..." She bows her head.
"Thank you, Miss Miang, for all your help." She starts towards that turn, before hesitating in turn. "... and I also thank you for listening to me, despite what I am." She feels she already knows. There's probably no need to maintain any deceptions... she was never good at it, and she dislikes doing so anyway. +vote: Tipheria Aredor has voted for you.
<Pose Tracker> Myyah Hawwa has posed.
Miang stops. She listens to the rest of Riesenlied's words. For the third time, it is impossible to read her face as she is turned away. Silence. And, judgment?
Miang reaches down to shift her grip on her parasol again. She opens it, holding it in front of her, and then turns to look over her shoulder.
"What do you mean, what you are?" she says. "All I saw was a lost woman. Now you're found."
Miang raises her parasol to block the sun. She prepares to continue on her way.
"Have a safe journey, Miss Riesenlied. Perhaps we'll meet again soon."
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied pauses, before bowing her head humbly. "... yes, let us meet again soon," she expresses in turn, quietly curious about this knowledgeable historian. She is rather fascinated by those with a wide breadth of knowledge, after all. She places such value in them, if she is to have any hope of guiding those that will listen to her away from hatred.
The young woman in her mindscape chuckles again. Her fringes are drawn long, and she lets go of those bloodied hands.
The blood isn't Riesenlied's. It comes from her own body, her robe smeared red. The horned woman looks to her, as a jewelled athame clatters to the ground.
You cannot change a thing. You do not have the courage to do so.
"Have a good day, Miss Miang..." she looks towards where she can see the Lacour Grande, draping her cloak a bit closer around herself as she proceeds.