Choices and Consequences

Character: Aikuen, Kentar, Fira, Orph/Will

Location: Eastern Shore

Eastern Shore

Its early morning now upon the shores. Kentar spent the whole night away and done up in his old shiny and rubberish like uniform jacket. And still as breakfast time nears, the stoat has not returned yet.

Aikuen is poking life back into the fire that he made last night. Fira, and Will are still asleep under the tent. The fire is brought back, and the otter places what's left of the fish, from last night, over it. He hums quietly as he reheats the food.

After a moment a hooded figure slowly comes down the beach. Its slowly making its way to Aikuen, being very quiet, and very smooth as it moves.

Aikuen pokes the fish with his claw, and he see a figure moving toward him. He reaches for his sword, and stands up. He tries to identify the figure, but cant so he yells, "Don't get any closer! State you business, then leave!"

The figure wanders closer and closer, not stopping until he's right next to Aikuen. Right across is more like it. The figure just sits down at the fire and stares at it for a moment, still covered by the robes.

Aikuen just stares as the figure, becoming wide eyed at the audacity of this beast. He points the sword at the figure, and says again but more quietly, "What gives you the right to be by our fire... Why shouldn't i run you through, right now..."

The beast slowly draws a saber and knocks the blade away. "Do not challenge me matey. Last time, I seem to recall you knocking me out" The darkish voice says.

Aikuen ready's the blade when the beast, moved it away. Then his voice and what he said hits him like rock. He tilts his head, and sits down. He laughs a little, "Kentar... Don't do that... scared me silly..."

The beast doesn't move or speak. "I am not Kentar...I am...his brother" he pauses before laughing. "Yeah, no. I'm not fooling you matey" Kentar, laughs, pulling down the hood and smiling, though leaving the heavy cloak on, sheathing the saber. "Like it? Tis me old...Capin's cloak" he smirks a bit. "Found me ole stuff right where buried it"

Aikuen smiles, "Couldn't even tell it was you matey..." He pokes a bit of the fish with a skewer and hands it Kentar, "Im guessing your late night excursion went well..."

Kentar shrug some and grins. "Well that was the point, mate" he nods before declining. "No thanks, I'm fine for the moment" he then nods. "Aside from the part where I was followed, yes" he says.

Aikuen shrugs when the fish is declined, so he begins too eat it instead. Through a mouthful of fish he says, "Youf ver follod?"

Kentar cant help but to laugh. The stoat nods. "Yeah for a little bit" he says. "I lost them though. So, that was good" the stoat yawns. "I found out what happened to me old village though"

Aikuen says, "Eh?... and what happened to it... Thought you said your brother was rebuilding it or something?" and takes another bite.

Kentar sighs. "My brother was not in charge as I thought. They've gone back to their old ways, sad to say...Its a good idea if we avoid heading for the village. Might end up as a slave, you and Fira" he hrms.

Aikuen looks up to Kentar and watches him for a second. Then looks Back to Fira, and tosses the hunk of fish away, "Suddenly im not hungry anymore..." He sighs and looks back to the Stoat.

Kentar frowns some and sighs. "Sorry. Didn't mean to ruin your apatite matey" he says with a yawn. "Anyways, if we do pass there, I'm sure you could pose as my and Will's slaves for a few hours just to get supplies and such if we need them. How are we doing with them anywho?" he asks.

Aikuen drags the pack toward him, and opens it. Digging through, he names of the supplies, "I have a week wort of rations left... One bottle of Damson wine... one full, and three empty canteens... Two medical kits... my potion... that's it... may not have too resupply until we head back."

Kentar nods. "Then we're good" he nods, taking off his cloak, showing a nice silver cuirass with a sword emblem engraved in it, as well as a new saber on his belt, and a blowing horn of some kind. "So. Where are we planning to go next?"

Aikuen stares at him for a second. Then he comes back to reality, "er.. eh... What? oh!... um... Will was planing to take us to a ship wreck of some kind, i think... that's the main destination of this trip..." he goes back to staring at the cuirass.

The otter should be able to see himself clear as day in it, the stoat grinning. "Jealous?" he laughs. "Was the old armor code to have one of them, a saber, and the horn incase one is in trouble. I figured would be a good thing to have again"

Aikuen shakes his head, "Not really... just impressed. You cant get me too wear one of those things... its too hot to be wearing something like that." He shrugs, then says, "Saber is good to have, but i don't want slaver to come if you blow that horn."

Kentar chuckles. "The horn is for emergency only. If we get split up and am in trouble. Just give a blow, You'll be heard, thats for sure" he points to his pack that he laid aside when he sat down. "One for everyone if they want one" he says.

Aikuen shakes his head and laughs "Thanks, but no thanks. My whistle is louder then those horns, and my lips comes with my face... so i don't have to carry it around with me. But im sure Fira and William, will want one. Fira, especially." He looks to her and smiles.

Kentar laughs and nods. "I'm sure she'd hear it too, mile away...quite loud those things" he says. "But yeah" he pokes over the pack. 'When they wake up, go ahead and give them one" he smiles some, scratching at the new eye patch over his eye, it blending in with his fur so well, its almost invisible. "So. Rose's cream stuff worked wonders for me right eye. Left eye is as dead as anything" he frowns before grinning. "Looks good though...make me more...vermin captain like" he laughs.

Aikuen tilts his head, "Your other eye is dead?" He becomes alarmed and scoots over to him. He asks, reaching out for the eye patch, "Do you mind if i take a look?"

Kentar blinks a few times. "Well. Not...dead...but it's blind as anything" he says, taking the eye patch off himself quickly before Aikuen can touch it.

Aikuen looks at it and is correct, Its solid white. He nods slowly, "Yep... your totally blind in that eye... Good thing its not infected or anything... i don't don't want to dig out your eye." He scoots back over then says, "Im the only beast in our party... who is somewhat complete..." He laughs at that thought.

Kentar nods slowly and chuckles. "Aye...You are" he chuckles before sliding the eye patch over his eye again. "Hey. At least I don't have to turn my head to look at anything...eye is still there, still moves. So.." he shifts his eye but not his head. "Heheh. Guess that gives me an advantage over Will, eh?" he grins.

Aikuen laughs and nods. "Aye matey, I guess so" he says as he stands, looking over to the water. "I'm going to go for a swim" he says before heading for the water, making sure there's nothing that will get ruined in the water on him.

Kentar nods and yawns, heading for a nice spot before lying down and drifting to sleep.

Orph is standing before the enemy holding a stick, a stick used to shape clay when it's on a potter's wheel to be exact. "What's going on?!" he asks aloud, but none of the others answer him. In fact they act as if he wasn't even there. He watched Aikuen and Kentar fight a group of shadowy figures while Fira lays very still on the sand. The rat was confused, where was his sword? The scenery changed and he was in the Abbey's kitchen yard watching a familiar looking mother hedgehog talk with some rat working the kiln. The little dibbun beside her wanted to 'play with the wheel too' and the rat at the kiln helped the little one onto the stool and stood behind her guiding her paws over the clay. Will watched all this confused, was that hedge-wife really Miz Martha? When the dibbun's project was done the grown rat took it from the wheel put it in the kiln to bake. As the rat turned Will got a good look at his face, it was like looking into a mirror

... a mirror that adds five or so seasons to your image but a mirror none the less.

"That's me!" he exclaimed in surprise, though again the dream figures did not acknowledge him in any way. He looked over his other self again and was relived the other rat was not wearing a habit but trousers and a shirt under an large clay splattered apron. "Guess I didn't copy Benar exactly." Will chuckled to himself. The dream made some sense in a way, there had been too much killing lately and he didn't /need/ to be a part of that. He could /choose/ to do something else.

"So," Will says to no one in particular, "this means I should hang up my sword and get back to the Abbey I suppose." A paw is laid on his shoulder by a beast standing behind him. The touch causes the rating to turn around, stick held out like a sword to face ... a mouse in amour. "Well, you could look at it like that," the mouse says. The rat looks from the mouse to his stick and back again and lowers the stick. "Or it could mean you shouldn't raise your sword unjustly." The rat nods as he naturally quivers before the intimidating beast. The mouse smiles warmly, "I'm not going to hurt you, William." "... I know but .... well you're a lot more friendly looking on your tapestry." he murmurers not sure what to say to the mouse. The mouse chuckles, "You aren't the first to say that," then his tone turns serious, "You need to go back."

Orph wakes from his dream not sure if the mouse was really Martin or just a dream version of him. Either way the ratling decides the mouse was right but he didn't say /when/ to go back.

The stars fill the sky, as the second night on the shore begins for the party. The tent has been pitched, dinner has be divided, and the fire now dying to just glowing embers. As the rest of the group sleeps, Aikuen went down to the tide line, and just sits out of reach of the heaving water, thinking to himself.

Kentar wasn't sleeping. In fact he too was thinking, but this was finished soon when he slowly crept up behind Aikuen. "Hey...You okay?" he asks, putting his paw on the otter's shoulder.

Aikuen is startled as the stoat put his arm on his shoulder, but he gives a weak smile to Kentar, "Oh, hey matey..." He picks of a handful of sand, and lets it sift through his claws. He shrugs, "I was just... thinking..."

Kentar slowly sits down next to the otter and nods. "Aye...about what, if I may ask?" he asks, looking to the sea, then back to his friend.

Aikuen says, "Oh... many things... Mainly having to do with... Fira..." He sighs, then hms before continuing, "And... what she may not like.. of me... like my past..." He pulls out his short sword and plunges it into the ground point first, "I was given that as soon as I was able to wield it... But its been nothing but trouble since then..." He taps the hilt and it falls to the ground.

Kentar nods slowly and chuckles a bit. "Ah..Fira...Yes" he nods some, the stoat sighing a bit as Aikuen goes on, watching the sword fall. "I...uh. May not be the best idea for me to say, because I'm scared your going to kill me but uh..." he pauses. "I sort of told her you like her" he chuckles a bit, moving away so he's not hit.

Aikuen looks to the stoat, with a look a hatred and confusion all rolled into one. He says quickly and somewhat loudly, "What?! When?!" He makes no move to hurt Kentar... yet...

Kentar thinks. "I don't really remember when...but I think it was before I was hit over the head with the shovel" He shrugs.

Aikuen begins to tap his claws together, something he does when he is cheesed off! He eyes the Stoat, "That long ago eh?... hmm... and she didn't seem any different lately..." The tapping slows as he has become slightly curious, "And what did she say?"

Kentar watches and chuckles. "I'm sorry, but if I didn't tell her, you never would have, y'ole lump" he laughs. "Well...she actually didn't say anything. She was...shocked"

Aikuen stop tapping his claws and places a somewhat heavy paw on Kentars shoulder, "I haven't done this sort of thing in seasons! Give a beast a chance!" He shrugs a bit, "Don't know if I should like the fact she is shocked... or maybe she isn't... or because she is surprised... hmm."

Kentar laughs. "I've only ever done it once. So...At least you still have the advantage over me, so...Look, she knows now, why don't you say something to her?" he asks. "You can't rely on me for everything you know" he grins.

Aikuen nods, "I guess so, though... I'm sorta nervous... I really like her... and what if... She doesn't like me..." He rubs a claw through the sand.

Kentar pats the otter's shoulder, chuckling softly. "Aikuen...what's not to like?" he asks. "I mean really. If I was an ottermaid, I'd kill to have you," he chuckles. "Don't worry. I'm sure she likes you"

Aikuen thinks that what the stoat said, was a little weird, "Er... Thanks... Hopefully she does... But she has seen what I have done..." He sighs, "I'll tell her when she wakes up..."

Kentar chuckles. "Look. What you've done, isn't who you are...just be yourself, and if she doesn't like you well..." he shrugs.

Aikuen grunts, "Thats what I'm afraid of..." He hms, then picks up his sword, sheathing it again.

Kentar pats the otter again and shrugs. "Don't worry...I'm sure she'll like you" he chuckles, looking out to sea then. "At least you have someone to like" he smirks

Aikuen looks to the stoat and smiles, "What? Is there not someone other that you are interested in?" He shoves playfully, "You said you have done this once before..."

Kentar sighs and just looks to the sea. "I lost 'er" he says. "On the sea about three seasons ago" he sighs. "The ship I was on was attacked, destroyed...sank...there were a few survivors who made it back to our village. She went to the bottom of the sea with the ship" he sighs, closing his eye and falling quiet.

Aikuen gives a small hug to the Stoat, "Sorry to hear that mate... But at least you had someone for awhile... no greater feeling in the world, then to hold the one you love..." He looks off into the ocean.

Kentar nods. "And you miss it every day when you can never do it again" he sighs, hugging back some. "I almost threw myself into the sea when I saw the ship vanish with her onboard..." he slowly shakes his head.

Aikuen nods, "I understand... I felt the same way, when my... mate... died... That was many seasons ago... the only thing that kept me sane was me daughter...till she went..." He hums a bit, before standing up and walking a bit into the water.

Kentar nods slowly. "I'm sorry about her as well" The stoat says, looking to the sky, then to the otter. "Heh. I never had a kid of me own...we were going to. But...the child died with her" he sighs. "Never bothered looking for another after her. Don't want to lose her all over again"

Aikuen is wading in the sea, and he looks back to the stoat, "Well it happened to you only recently... I was 8 when I had her... I'm almost... Err... much older now then I was then... just give it time... Time heals all wounds eventually..." He dips his paw in the sea, and pulls out a pink shell of some sort.

Kentar shrugs and sighs. "I won't look for another. Never will. I refuse to go though what I went though the first time"

Aikuen has collected a small collection of shells, as he walks back to Kentar and sits down, "It must have been deep then... And I am truly sorry for that... But..." He was going to say something else, but decided against it. He takes out his dagger, and begins to engrave something on one of the shells.

Kentar tilts his head at the otter and thinks. "But...but what? Come on, finish the sentence"

Aikuen puts down the shell and looks to the stoat, "Well, I think its best to get over it... I'd rather live scared, and with someone I love... then to be sad the rest of my life. Its just a chance you have to take..." He blows off the shavings from the shell. and picks up another one, and begins to engrave in it.

Kentar hrms and sighs, nodding slowly, the stoat thinking, chuckling. "Well. Maybe...I will look. Would be nice to have someone again..." he shrugs, sighing. "Wonder if Fira is free..." he pauses then grins and laughs. "Just joking"

Aikuen shoves Kentar again, "You better be joking, but im glad that you are looking in too it..." He Looks to Fira back at the tent, "It would be nice..."

Kentar chuckles and grins. "I am kidding. I like Fira yes, but not in that way" He chuckles. "Besides, if I took her, who would you have?" he laughs before yawning and standing. I'm going to turn in for the night. C'ya round otter"

Aikuen gives a small salute, "Night Stoat, see yah in the morning..." He smiles some, and goes back to the engraving.

Aikuen has completed the A on the last shell and places the four shells in order. He smiles at his work, and picks up the first one. Taking out a rag from his pocket, he begins to polish it to an even sheen. As he works he begins to sing in a low voice, 'I'm a river driver... and I'm far away from home'

Orph hadn't been able to get back to sleep after waking from his dream and had wandered about the shore a little before returning to camp. The rat walked up to Aikuen and sat down beside him, a wet lump of yellow clay in his paws. "Hi," he greets the otter quietly so as not to startle him too much with his sudden appearance.

Aikuen is surprised again, didn't expect to see another beast until morning. He smiles and places the second shell on the ground, "Oh hello mate... Couldn't sleep?" He points to the yellow clay

Orph nods, "Yeah. You might say that. How long ya think we'll stay here before heading off and when we /do/ head off are we going back to th Abbey directly or are we going just wherever in the general direction of th Abbey til we get back again?"

Aikuen looks confused at the Rattling, "Er... what? We are going back to the abbey already... what about that... ship... thing... that we were headed too?" He scratches his head.

Orph smiles, "I don't mean /now/. I mean when we're /ready/ to go back are we just going straight back or explorin along th way?"

Aikuen tilts his head, "Oh ok, I'd guess go back directly... don't want anymore trouble then needed" He shrugs and begins to polish the third shell. He looks back to Will, "Er... Why?"

Orph shrugs, "Just wonderin ... heard there was a city a little north of the other end of the Broadstream River is all. I'd thought of goin there once. I'd heard they had an orphanage up there and /at th time/ I figured I'd go up there if th Abbey threw me out. I don't need t go there now, but just thought might be interesting to see what's over there."

Aikuen scratches his head for a minute, then says, "Sure, you're leading us to wherever... I'm just like an escort... and of course I love going to new places!" He places the third shell on the ground, and begins to polish the forth and last one.

Orph chews his lip some, "We don't /have/ to go there. It was just an idea is all. It might be nice t' visit Sister Sunrose and the others that are over there though," he says not sure how the otter will take the not so subtle hint.

Aikuen says with some confusion, "Sister Sunrose? Isn't she in... That... Ruinedgate place... Wait a minute..." He eyes Will, "You mean Ruinedgate? Why?... er... just Why?

Orph shrinks down a little, "I don't know. It's somewhere new and it can't be that bad if there an Abbey sorta there. We don't /have/ to go there at all I just .... It was just an idea ... guess not a very good one, huh?"

Aikuen shurgs, "Yes the priory is there... I think... But look at me!" He points to his person, "I don't know if they take kindly to not abbey woodlanders..." He places the fourth shell back into place, and hmms, "I'd rather not go there... I'm tired... And I don't think I could handle if Fira was captured... or killed" He hmms again.

Orph's ears droop farther, "Ok." He's quiet for a long time. He tries to shape the dying clay in his paws but after a short time tosses it aside not able to do anything with it the way it is. "...... I .... I heard you an Kentar talking. You like Fira a lot. She's nice." He chews on his lower lip some, "She doesn't like it when you an Kentar kill beasts .... doubt she likes it when I do the same either but she's seen it more from you an Kentar lately. Kentar shouldn't 'ave been bothern' her an just let you tell her you liked her whenever you wanted to instead ..."

Aikuen nods some, "Aye I know, another reason I don't want to go to Ruinedgate. Seeing... Rose... go... Also seeing Fira... when me an Kentar talking about killing the orderbeast... It killed me on the inside... I can't do this anymore" He sighs, "I don't mind that Kentar told her... Got the ball rolling I guess..."

Orph nods some, "I guess .... She wasn't very happy when he told her. He was being annoying about it. Fira an I were just about to go up stairs to see what'd happened to you, cause you were up there a long time and we were down stairs then, and then Kentar starts talking to her and we didn't get t go up stairs an look around or anything and then you came down with Rose and everything ...." The ratling is quiet again for a little bit before turning to look at the otter, "Who's goin to tell Sister Mary an Jullian about Rose when we get back?"

Aikuen places the dagger tip on top of the first shell, and carefully pops a hole into it. He looks back to Will, "I'll tell them... Unless you want too... but I lost her... it was my fault that she... I should tell them..."

Orph nods, "They'd wrote an told her t leave all th time .... so it's not all your fault. Rose was very stubborn they said, even John an Anna said so."

Aikuen shrugs, "I guess so... but they still should be told...I'll tell them..." He grunts and, pops the second shell. Then shakes his head.

Orph lays back onto the sand, "Don't be too surprised if they don't act very sad about it .... Mary an Rose didn't like each other very much from what I've heard an Rose didn't like Jullian very much, but /that/ I can understand."

Aikuen says, "Well I guess that makes the job a little easier" He shrugs and pops the third shell. He laughs, "Why not Jullian... he seems like a stand up kind of beast."

Orph shrugs, "Well Mary left not too long after I first got there. Rose talked about 'the drifter that stole her daughter away' a lot back then. I guess he wasn't always boring like he is now."

Aikuen laughs a the thought, "Haha... Dusty ole Jullian... a Drifter... That's funny... " He pops the final shell, and collects them in his paws, "Course I've seen stranger things!" He laughs quietly a bit more, before standing up and walking into the sea.

Orph says, "I guess. You gonna talk t' Fira in th morning?"

Aikuen is washing the shells in the water, he smiles, "Aye I am, and I'm not going with empty paws!" He laughs a bit, and comes back. He shows the shells in his paws. Four polished pink-red shells, each one has a different word on it spelling out F-I-R-A. "I plan to make a necklace for her... Though shes already got one... hmmm" He stares at the shells

Orph looks over the shells, "I'm sure she'll like it. Everyone likes presents even if they don't say they do."

Aikuen smiles, "I hope so mate!" He pockets the shells and sits back down and laughs, "This trip has been something huh..." He feels like he has said this before, on another trip they had.

Orph grimaces, "that's for sure. It's nice /here/ but it'll be good t get back home."

Orph says, "This use to be home but it's not anymore."

Aikuen bobs his head, like it's iffy, "Yah but it wasn't the same home as before right? The whole cult thing going on there..."

Orph shrugs, "I wouldn't know. I wasn't there all the time. I was here then moved to a family and then back and another family then back again and so on and so on like I told you already. I remember Anna, she was nice .... she'd lost her memory before Rose found her and had been in a fire. That's why her face was half gone but she was a good beast .... like Flicky I guess. Anna an Bloodthorn and me and Brutus we were the only 'vermin' there. Then it was the three of us then two of us I guess but I remember two of us as much as just me after a while and then ..." he shrugs, "But you know all that stuff already."

Aikuen nods, "Aye I do know." He unpockets a piece of cloth, and starts to string the shells together, "Are you glad to be out of there?..." This is a weird question, but its night, and this otter is getting tired.

Will thinks the question over some, "I talked with him a while and yes, I think things will be better now. I won't feel the need to go back there again." He stares out over the ocean half singing to himself, "Two brothers, who came from th sea, through our dreams, walked th fear of the warrior of th place called Redwall ...." He stops and looks to the otter, "We should head back soon. He didn't say when to go back but I don't want him mad at me. You wouldn't know it to look at him when you're in th Great Hall but he's scary up close."

Aikuen scratches his head, "What are you talking about mate?"

Orph smiles "Nothin, just a dream I had."

Aikuen is confused, "Eh? What dream? I'm not understanding... about what your saying mate..."

Orph says, "I had a dream an woke up and couldn't get back to sleep after that's all. It wasn't a bad dream really just odd in places and well he was scary but it makes sense that he would be in person. He wasn't mean or anything just ... well I don't know just, I don't know but it matches the stories I've heard and makes sense that, as a rat, I'd be scared of him some even though he said he wasn't gonna hurt me ... well no he didn't say it. Not in words but I heard it like he had anyway. It was a dream and dreams are like that I suppose, sometimes."

Aikuen rubs his scalp raw, sort of. He shrugs if off, "Okay.. if you don't want to tell me that's fine... I'll guess it eventually" He laughs, and places the finish necklace around him, and it looks really silly, "So... How do I look?"

Orph sighs, "It's not that I don't want to tell you it's just that it was a very weird dream. And you look stupid but Fira should look better in it, one would hope. ..... I'm going to try and get some sleep .... and in the next few days we should start heading back to the Abbey ..... wouldn't want Martin mad at me for not doing what he said when I was going to do it anyway .... sort of ..... maybe ..... eventually .........." he mutters to himself as he wanders off to curl up in his burrow for the rest of the night.

Aikuen looks back at the Rattling, "Wait... Martin!... He came too you?" But his question fall on deaf ears. He shrugs, pulls off the necklace. He smiles at it, and looks at the ocean, waiting for daybreak.