Arcaea/Dining Hall Late 08-09/Brawling for Beginners
To say that Goffrey was surprised would be an understatement. He wondered if the women before would ever run out of ways to amaze him, and he some how doubted it.
But, even as he thought those thoughts, he knew they weren't getting out of this bar so easily. One look at the fat one and the lanky one confirmed that they were just drunk enough to do something insanely stupid. Nevertheless he nodded his acknowledgment and fallowed Harmony as she lead them towards the door.
He was just pass the Lanky drunk when a sudden flash of metal caught his eye. Acting on instinct alone he caught the flabby wrist of the fat one scant centimeters before a knife would have been plunged into his kidney. The lanky one was on him almost an instant after that, acting to support his partner. An instant later it was over and both of the drunks were on the floor in different states of unconsciousness.
As the louts fell the rest of the partons rose, eager to avenge the fallen. Acting swiftly Goffrey drew his sword and held it aloft keeping the rest of the bar at bay with a hard look and the promise of a kick death courtesy of his sword. Interposed between the bar and Harmony Goffrey signaled for her to keep going. Tense minutes passed as they edged closer to the door, but finally they made it within arms reach of the door. Goffrey let out a sigh of relief he did not he had been holding in.
When suddenly the largest hand he had ever seen clamped down on his sword arm like an iron shackle. "No weapons allowed in the bar," said the man-thing attached to said hand, as he increased the pressure of his grip to the point where Goffrey was sure his bones were grinding against each other. Goffrey watched as his sword fell out of his nerveless fingers biting back the pain in his arms with a concentrated effort.
Suddenly Goffrey found that his feet were no longer connected to the floor, as the bouncer of the establishment plucked Goffrey from the ground like a man would a child and flung him half way across the bar and onto an empty table.
Crashing onto the table and rolling onto the ground Goffrey pulled himself to his feet and stared at the bouncer, who was dangerously close to Harmony.
'Oh like hell,' thought Goffrey.
"Hey, ass hole," Goffrey yelled at the giant getting its attention. As he turned towards Goffrey he noticed the chair flying towards him too late and fell back as it broke against his face. Bellowing his rage, the man-thing charged across the bar, intent on killing Goffrey.
Seeing his plan worked, perhaps alittle to well, Goffrey flipped the table he had landed on up onto its side, hoping it would slow the bouncer down enough for him to come up with a plan. Such thoughts were dashed, as a giant fist punched its way through the table and collided into Goffrey's chest, sending him reeling back colliding into the counter. Goffrey stood for a few seconds before slowly sliding to a sitting position on the ground, the taste of his own blood becoming predominate in his mouth.
As the bouncer approached his prey with a triumphant gleam in his eyes, Goffrey grabbed two nearby bar stools and slammed them into the thing's face at the same time, breaking them into pieces on impact. On his feet again Goffrey launched himself at the dazed bouncer plowing into his stomach and forcing the air from his lungs. Not stopping there, Goffrey laid into him further with a devastating right hook to the face, fallowed by an equally forceful left jad to the kidney.
In a desperate bid to finish the fight before the bouncer brought his superior size to bare, Goffery turned his stunned foe around and grabbed him firmly around the mid section with both hands. His stance set, Goffrey leaned back and heaved with all his might, sending the gaint up and over the counter until he crashed into the wall behind it and collapsed to the ground like a rag doll.
Weary from the damaged he sustained, the blood dripping down his mouth a testament to that, and the effort of actually picking up a human of that size, Goffrey turned towards the now very angry, but just as scared, crowd and let a wiry grim spread across his face.
"I don't suppose anyone..." said Goffrey, before he was cut off by the sound so many feet make when charging forward at the same time, not to mention the angry yelling.
Goffrey Massey Baron of Sasat
Whatever Arlian was about to say vanished as he jumped up at the roar on the other side of the wall. His face grew taut.
"We'd better get over there. Are you any use in a brawl?"
He started running out, hoping that Tagelied would answer "yes" although he knew the odds were low...And then the screams began, and he couldn't have heard Tagelied even if he'd been listening.
The door was hanging off the hinges, although that wasn't saying much given the shoddy construction. The interior was quite a mess. It looked like two Arcaea nobles versus a whole bar full of angry Sartanian peasants. A quick glance at the name made Arlian glare full bore at the Arcaeans. They couldn't possibly be that stupid...
Arlian waded into the brawl. He wasn't a soldier. But sometimes you needed to keep the men from starting a fight while working on repairs. And sometimes you needed to finish a fight before it got out of hand. Arlian sighed as he shattered a knee. And sometimes...Another peasant screamed out as his right foot suddenly turned to mush under Arlian's steel-toed and hob-nailed boots. He needed the extra grip for standing on half-completed structures to direct the work, but they served as a reasonable bar-room weapon.
This wasn't going to be pretty, and he swore as a knife slashed his arm, before his boot made the man start singing at a higher pitch. Probably permanently, judging from the blood...
Sir Arlian Bedwyr (Noble)
If there was one thing that Jocasta loved, it was watching a fight. She heard it ran in the family. But something else ran in the family. The dislike of people who try to stab people in the gut. Also, when people tried to throw people out of bars when they were only trying to protect themselves. She sighed, finished her ale, and stood up. She had a feeling that she'd never be allowed to come back to this tavern again. But it would be worth it to help out some people. plus, she had gotten bored since the last battle. She wanted to punch someone. So that's what she was gonna do.
Lady Jocasta Hart (Dame of Saex)
Tag stood with a little less than Arlian's alacrity. "I don't really understand why we have to get-- fiiiiiine. I used to be a soldier, and I'm a lot better at it than I at -- come on, slow down." He winced at the first scream from next door, and took a moment to put on his hat and pull a long knife from a sheath on the side of his leg. Then he scurried out the door and into Sartan's Den.
"By the Aenil, what's been -- Lord Goffrey!" What was his liege doing in here? Furthermore, what was his liege doing in here, getting the stuffing beat out of him? Stupid, stupid, but he was duty-bound to come to his aid, so... Tag flipped his knife around his hand and dove in.
"No one here seems very good at fighting," Tag mused aloud, punching an assailant in the face with the hilt of his knife, once more in the gut, and then kicked him heavily onto his back. The next one got a good, long cut along his belly, and Tag look the opportunity to relieve him of his own knife and wield it in his opposite hand. But, what was this?
A sword! It lay near Goffrey, so Tag assumed that, naturally, it was his. Ducking his head behind his arms, he bull-rushed through the mess, trying to keep low to avoid the brunt of the multiple impacts as he crossed the room. Theeeereee we go.
"Lord Goffrey, as your knight I am honor-bound to defend you at all costs to myself therefore I am taking custody of your weapon in order to better defend you, here is a knife I hope you can use it in your current state everything will be fine goodbye!" Tag dropped his knives and swept up the blade in one hand, spinning it a beautiful flourish, happy to feel the heavy weight in his arms again.
Stepping in front of Goffrey, Tag put two fingers into his lips and whistled shrilly, gaining the attention of maybe... ten people or so, right next to him. "All of you, I'd like you to please put down your weapons and line up in an orderl -- hoolly Aenil that's a big hammer you've got there." True to his word, it was a very big hammer. Sadly, he never got a chance to use it, because a small sword poked through his chest at that moment. Tag yanked it back out and cleared his throat.
"Once again, line up in an orderly--" another peasant slain "fashion in the rear, I expect you to drop all weapons and articles of clothing upon fear of death." Another two were killed before the other seven seemed to get the message and dropped their knives, paddles, chairs, and trousers before lining up sullenly, facing the wall at back.
Now he had a little room to operate in. Tag whistled again, this time calling Arlian's name. "Arlian! What should we do?"
Tagelied Hayes (Knight of Sasat)
They had almost made it to the door; Goffrey had to take out a few peasants along the way, but other than that, everything was going smoothly…until the insanely large, insanely ugly lout of a…man…grabbed Goffrey and stopped him cold. He dropped his sword and went flying across the room before Harmony could blink. The lout was turning and moving in her direction when Goffrey tossed an insult and a chair from the other side of the room. The lout headed toward him then with deadly intent.
Damnation! Harmony looked at her…new friend…and saw that he was nothing but a liability now. She whipped the knife from his neck and whacked him hard against the temple with the butt of her blade. She got the spot just right and he went down like a tree. She crouched down and slashed at her pretty new dress…she needed more room to move. Her knives were sharp and the excess fabric was quickly shed.
She scuttled across the floor to where Goffrey’s sword lay forgotten. Harmony felt much better with the length of steel in her hand and rose to her feet, sheathing one of her knives back in her boot, but keeping the other handy. She was moving to aid Goffrey where he seemed to have dealt with the lout, but had other difficulties on his hands…mostly the entire bar, when a lump of a man rushed through the broken door and started kicking his way through the throng. He didn’t look like much, but he had style. A young knight ran in after him and started fighting his way towards Goffrey. She grinned and followed them in…backing the men off with thrusts of her sword. As she passed one of the few tables still upright, a young woman rose to her feet and started swinging. Harmony hadn’t had this much fun in ages…she never let anyone break up her bar.
The young knight seemed to be cowing some of the brawlers into submission, and the lumpy fellow was kicking at a few more. Goffrey was back on his feet. The other girl had knocked in the teeth of someone and was looking around for another target. Harmony laughed outloud as she slashed her way closer to Goffrey.
“This was a bit more entertaining than I expected, sir,” she called to him as she slammed her elbow into someone’s face.
Lady Harmony Kindon (Dame of Nocaneb)
Arlian clenched his teeth. All these men dead, because a pair of nitwits walked into the wrong bar and were stupid enough to get a fight started...
"ALRIGHT! You seven! You stand the hell there until the damn soldiers arrive. You'll be carted off to work in the labour camps until you die, but that's a damn sight better than dying now."
The men nodded sullenly, knowing this was a generous offer, given the circumstances.
Arlian wheeled to point at the two he'd spotted in the fight at first.
"And you idiots had better explain to me why in the name of all the gods you were stupid enough to walk into a bar named after the god of the realm you just took this region from, when the populace hates your gods-be-damned guts!"
Arlian was shaking with rage. Ordinarily, he looked like nothing much. His face was generously described as like a potato. But when enraged at the pointless deaths caused by a couple of carousing morons...There were very few things which roused Arlian from his normal detachment, but needless killing was one of them.
Sir Arlian Bedwyr (Noble)
Tag grinned a little at the cowed brawlers lined up at the wall, giving his sword a little whirl as he walked by. The fight was just about dead now, though a few tried to get up from the floor. A quick whap with the flat of his blade settled those few recalcitrants. Their heads made a satisfying -whunk!- when he hit them.
Wait a minute.
Whunk?
That's not the sound steel was supposed to make when it hit bone. There shouldn't have been a sound, actually. What was this whunk business? Tag sat in one of the unwrecked chairs and studied his weapon a little closer, pulling one of the lamps out of its holder and lifting it nearby to get a better look.
Oh Aenil.
It was a stick.
Tag looked at the surface of the bar, noticing that it had been rather fragmented in the fight into a number of rather pointed pieces, and that the remaining visible surface was painted a kind of dull silver. He had picked this up near the bar, and... there was a knot in the wood which he had mistaken for a crossguard, and... oh Aenil.
It was a stick.
The fact that he had just killed three men with a large stick aside, Tag flushed a deep red and dropped his hat in front of his face. The stick was unceremoniously hidden under a fallen body.
It was a stick.
Tagelied Hayes (Knight of Sasat)
Goffrey shook with the left over adrenaline from the fight. It seemed to have gone by much faster then he would have suspected, but after he did a head count he realized that he was no longer alone in said fight.
Turning to address the dangerously red man before him, Goffrey grinned sheepishly at the man while scratching the back of his head, the yelling being something he grew up with thanks to his drill Sargent of a father.
"I don't know uh......mister, crap just tends to happen when I enter bars," he said nonchalantly, "if it makes you feel any better we probably just rooted out a fair chunk of the Sartanian supporters within the region."
Goffrey Massey Baron of Sasat
Harmony eyed the enraged man and felt her own temper began to rise. He may have style, but she didn’t care to be yelled at.
“Look you,” she walked towards him, not caring that her legs were bare from the thighs down to the top of her boots, “I just got to this gods-be-damned place yesterday. I don’t even know the name of the gods of this country much less its enemies,” she stood before him now with her hands on her hips, chin up, and eyes blazing, “I came into this “Den” for some good ale and some food…and why in blazes am I explaining myself to you, anyway?” She started to walk away, shaking with anger and afraid that she was going to punch him.
She turned back towards him, “And don’t you ever call me stupid!”
Lady Harmony Kindon (Dame of Nocaneb)
Arlian became perfectly still. At least the man had enough sense to look sheepish. This...woman...
"So, your defense is that you are ignorant. Ah, yes...Because of course, it's very acceptable for several men to pay with their lives because you were ignorant. My apologies, milady. Where I come from, we do a little thing called research that is obviously a foreign concept to you. By all means, I was of course in error to attribute to stupidity that which can be adequately explained by lack of forethought."
Arlian bowed low, obviously mocking her.
Sir Arlian Bedwyr (Noble)
Goffrey did not know what happened next, suddenly he found himself standing before Arlian looking madder then he had that entire night, and before he knew it his fist went flying out connecting firmly with Arlian's jaw sending him to the floor.
Standing over him, all of the rage caught up to him, but this time he restrained himself from further actions. "Listen, I don't know who you are, but at this point I really don't give a ****," said Goffrey with an edge in his voice sharp enough to cut the skin,"You...do...NOT....talk to a lady like that, there is NO excuse for that, and if I EVER see you disrespect someone like that again, I'll do far worse then a simple tap I promise you."
With that he turned towards Harmony and motioned for her to fallow him as he exited the bar.
Goffrey Massey Baron of Sasat
Tag stuffed a sleeve into his mouth and bit down to keep from saying anything. It looked like he was the only one keeping a level head, so it might be up to him to break things up should they get nasty.
His stick sword, though hidden, was still within reach.
Tagelied Hayes (Knight of Sasat)
Hot rage whipped through Harmony. She whirled on the man…whose name she still did not even know, only to see Goffrey knock him to the ground. Damnation! If hitting was to be done, she wanted to be the one doing it. Why did bloody men always think they needed to do your hitting for you? When he motioned for her to follow him, she raised an eyebrow at him before turning her back and stomping towards the angry fellow.
She stood before him, “Ignorant am I? I’ll have you know you wretched puling fool, you whining mammet that I know seventy-two plays by heart in their entirety; I know more ballads and songs and stories than you can dream of in your tiny little mind. I have performed before Kings and Dukes and peasants and never missed a cue or dropped a line, you fusty nut with no kernel! I have fought monsters and undead and daimons and come through with my skin intact and gold in my pocket. I can dance and sing and fight and run a profitable tavern. I am anything but ignorant! But you yeasty fool, I never learned much reading, so it’s damned difficult to do a lot of research. So, a pox o' your throat, you bawling, blasphemous, incharitable dog!”
Harmony wanted to kick him so badly, but she contented herself with picking up a chair and throwing it at the wall.
“I hate bloody superior men!!”
(OOC Note: All italics are Shakespearean Quotes.)
Lady Harmony Kindon (Dame of Nocaneb)
Arlian sat for a moment, slightly dazed, before working his way back to his feet. He cast a cold glare at the man.
"I will thank you to keep out of our discussion."
He then turned to the woman, near-frothing from what he could see.
"Indeed. Because I care oh-so-much how many plays you know. Your knowledge of such things might, in other setting, be enjoyable and intriguing. But claiming that a head full of otherwise useful information absolves you from doing any sort of basic checking on what might save your life is nonsense. You spoke of taverns. Let's say you open a tavern. Would you check to see what the local religion involved? I think you would. Because you know as well as I do how important such things are. And as a literary woman, I'd guess you could make the connection between Sartan and Sartania even without that. But instead, you wandered into a place that openly defied the Arcaean conquerers with its very name. One might guess that they'd be willing to fight. As a tavern owner, do you think the name of the place someone goes to might have some meaning in this case? Yes, I thought so. You see, even just with the knowledge you have, you damn well out to have known better."
Arlian looked at the pair in disdain, and began walking off.
"Good day."
Sir Arlian Bedwyr (Noble)
Goffrey stood in abject shock at what he had just done. In a scant few seconds he had taken a crap situation it made it so much worse then it needed to be. Not only had he struck a fellow noble, he had managed to deeply enrage the very person he had stuck him for.
'Damn it, just once I'd like to enter a bar and not having everything go to hell on me,' thought Goffrey morbidly.
As Arlian left he turned back Harmony, still visibly fuming over what he had the gall to call her.
'And how I had reacted to it,' added Goffrey.
He didn't know what to say, he had never apologized for hitting someone before, mostly because the person he had hit had been trying to kill him and no one had blamed him for it. So Goffrey said the only thing he could think of.
"I'm sorry," he said eyes downcast, the shame clearly embedding it self deep within his voice,"it.....wasn't my place to.....intervene on your behalf......you can handle yourself and I should know better, giving the current state of the bar, I just......I couldn't.....stand to hear him talk to you like that, its just not how I was raised."
Goffrey Massey Baron of Sasat
Tag breathed a small sigh of relief - it looked like the storm was just about past. He quickly tossed the stick to the floor and nudged it under someone else with his foot.
"Good day," he said with a nod and a tip of the hat to both of them, before making his quick exit behind Arlian.
Tagelied Hayes (Knight of Sasat)
Harmony looked at the now repentant Goffrey and hissed. What idiot apologized to a woman while she was in the middle of an angry rage? She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, held it, released it, took another….ten repetitions…clearing her mind…releasing her emotions and summoning up the ones that she needed for this part.
She opened her eyes and smiled at Goffrey, “There’s no harm done, sir. If you would fetch my cloak for me, please…I believe it may be lying on the floor underneath some furniture. It’s undoubtedly filthy, but I can hardly walk down the street like this,” she indicated her bare legs.
“It would be lovely if you would escort me to my lodgings. My…father…has likely returned by now, and I would hear his news…and put on some more suitable clothing.”
She waited while he went to dig through the wreckage for her cloak, trying to keep a firm grip on her emotions. When performing, one did not feel anything but what the role demanded. One did not show anything but that for which the part called. She recited poetry in her head and kept a smile fixed sweetly on her face. Harmony Sangster…Kindon, dammit…did not let anyone see her cry.
Lady Harmony Kindon (Dame of Nocaneb)
Arlian headed for the palace. He needed to meet with Jenred, and get patched up. He sighed. Then, he needed to go offer his services to Duchess Edara...After getting changed.
First things first. He needed to get bandaged. This slash was bleeding fairly heavily. A mention of his family was enough to get the brother of the Royal Ambassador quick services from a healer. Then, back to his temporary room to change into something not covered in blood and muck.
Now, to find Jenred...
Sir Arlian Bedwyr (Noble)
Goffrey walked down the road, it was dusk and the sun was rising. He felt decisively worse off after the whole ordeal then had at its outset. Regret wracked him, and he new that nothing but a large dose of time would fix it.
As Goffrey meandered around the streets, he eventually found his way to his unit's barracks. Eugen was there grinning like an ass. He asked some question about how his night went, but at that point Goffrey really didn't care. Breezing by his bewildered captain, Goffrey found his quarters and collapsed on his bed. His thoughts turned to Harmony and he resolved himself to see her again tomorrow, or today rather after some sleep, he needed some way to make up what he had done to her.
He thoughts wondered about that subject, drifting aimlessly, until finally he gave into his battered form and fell into a restless sleep.
Goffrey Massey Baron of Sasat
