• PM To Join • A Strange Duo (Leeson)

[Varlum]

69th of Ymiden, 718

With a small sigh, the man looked around the tavern, his head slouched down to avoid hitting the ceiling. Evianna, while acting as his bodyguard for a while, had felt sick so spent the night at their tavern. It wasn't as if Varlum didn't like the woman, but sharing a room with her had been hard. Both were still strangers, despite Varlum owing his life to her. Either way, though, she was helpful to him - and kind too. It wasn't often Varlum met someone so ready to protect his life, even if he didn't know why.
"Something strong, some kinda whiskey. Don't care what" he muttered under his breath, looking to the barmaid with an almost disgruntled look. A lot of that came with how he was born and the size he was born with, but the Ithecal had been taken from his home, attacked multiple times and then told that he had to come to Rharne for whatever reason it was, that he was to train there until he was 'ready'. It was insanity, and if he hadn't been living it then he wouldn't believe it.

"You know, most people come here for a good time, not to sit and look miserable" the woman spoke behind the bar, a small grin on her face. If she could brighten the mans mood it might mean more for business, and could avoid some conflict. While Rharne was generally a peaceful place, it wasn't uncommon for fights to break out in this tavern. Usually the woman would watch them, but a man of that size would be more than a small brawl, when his fist was the size of someones head with claws on the end.
As Varlum glanced up to the woman his tail was wrapped up around the stool to avoid tripping anyone over. "Strange, most people go out drinking where I come from because they're miserable" he joked to the woman, a small smirk spreading across his face. She leaned over the bar to put his drink down before resting her elbows on it. "Well, sounds like where you come from could do with a bit of a party. Though if it's a par-"

Quickly she found herself interrupted, as a man with a friend behind him leaned on the bar beside Varlum, one on either side. Her face showed that she knew trouble was on the horizon, having seen these men before. One was fairly good with punches, quick but light blows. The other wasn't much of a fighter, but he stood around for the show. Both came looking for the biggest man they could find to beat down, thinking it gave them some kind of credit. Of course, this Ithecal was the biggest man they could find in the place.
"We'll both have whatever he's having, the Ithecal pays" the leader spoke with a smug grin on his face, standing at about five feet and seven inches. His friend was just a couple of inches shorted, and both were fairly slim men, not much muscle to them but not much fat either. Varlum let his gaze glance down to the men and then to the barmaid. "Change that order. These two want your fruitiest wine. I'll take another whiskey" his voice snarled.

"Fuck you, asshole!" the man turned to Varlum, attempting to push the Ithecal, the bar going quiet.

[Leeson Andaris]

"Hey. Hey! HEY!" Leeson yelled, rushing into the tavern that he had frequented in trials past, when The Pits were his primary source of income. Well, in all fairness, Leeson had few other sources of income, if any, so The Pits were still his 'primary source', so to speak, but that doesn't much matter.

The moment Leeson heard "Fuck you, asshole" from outside, he knew what was happening. Leeson may not be the brightest in any given situation, he may not be the most adept at inference, but he had been in Rharne long enough to know what constituted fighting words.

It wasn't necessarily that Leeson actively condemned fighting. That would be hypocritical. What he did condemn, however, was a lack of consideration or any form of manners. As well as that, collateral damage, public disturbance, and, especially in the Dust Quarter, the potential for structural damage to the building.

"I don't know who you are buddy but you can't ju- Holy shit." Leeson yelled as he opened the door to the tavern and saw the walking mountain of prehistoric muscle that took up, on a loose estimate, half of the available space in Rharne. Leeson had previously used the word 'behemoth' to describe things like any man who stood above six foot two. Leeson silently deleted that word from his vocabulary, knowing he likely would not, in good conscious, use it to describe anything ever again. As well as this, he wasn't sure if it was armor, or perhaps a really serious skin condition, but he was so incredibly grateful that he could not see the face of the man who stood above most single-story buildings. He couldn't be positive, it could absolutely be a normal, pleasant face with normal, pleasant features, but he somehow doubted that possibility.

It was difficult, but as soon as Leeson tore his eyes away from the absolute unit before him, peering past him, he saw two familiar faces. He had never gotten acquainted with them, frankly because they're, for lack of a better word, assholes, but he knew them to be the type to get hammered once every three or so days and go looking for any fight they could.

Now, ambition is a virtue. But these dumbasses were going to meet their gods that night if Leeson couldn't somehow deescalate the situation.

"Okay. Okay, okay." Leeson said, running between the two parties. "Guys. I don't know you well, but I know you well enough to know you're sensible gentlement," Leeson lied. "Maybe you can't see what exactly I'm seeing, but the ceiling doesn't have a chance beating this guy in a fight. I don't know how much it would cost to mend a broken hand, but you might want to think about that before slamming your fists against the fifth wall this tavern has just acquired, yeah? Maybe it's a much better idea to go find some nice gent who's only, I don't know, maybe one foot taller than you, instead of someone who's four feet taller than you."

[Varlum]

As the smaller of the two humans tried to push the man, Varlum glanced down at them, his foot slightly adjusting to prevent himself from being moved. A small snarl left his mouth as he glanced to the two, before an unfamiliar voice entered. Okay. Okay. Okay. If Varlum had been in Ivorian, this would have probably been a dangerous situation. But unless these two men had something very hidden up their sleeve they were walking in to a situation they weren't likely to escape from.
Taking a second to breathe as the kid spoke, Varlum finished his whiskey, taking it down in one quick go. As he lightly put the glass down, he stood up as best he could, hunched over due to the size of the ceiling. As he rose from his seat he let himself snarl, his eyes looking down on all three men with a cold and hardened look in them, the scar now clear to all of them as he stared on.

"I'll make something clear for you two gentlemen" he spoke, his tail slowly unraveling from the chair from the chair and moving across the room, taking up space in the walkway and bar as he did so. "Where I come from, we handle issues like this simply. Outside, starting with both parties and ending with just one left standing. I left that place for a reason, didn't like how it was done. But you come at me or this kid, and I might just make an exception."
Despite what the Ithecal said, however, the two weren't phased. They were either drunk enough or stupid enough to believe they stood a chance, or one of them had something they were hiding. Either of the three were possible, but neither mattered. Varlum hadn't died yet, despite countless mercenaries and hunters being sent after him. All he could think, in the moment the man stepped forward, was how Evianna would react to this tale.

"Well then, lizard boy. Why don't we take this to the pits" he spoke, smirking. "We challenge you to a duel."

[Leeson Andaris]

"Alright, firstly, I believe there are some very poor decision making skills being exhibited here," Leeson said, struggling to keep up with the two salmon intent on killing the Kraken. "As well as that, I resent being referred to as a kid."

The walk was quiet, and far more civil than Leeson would have expected it to be. There was, however, a nearly tangible sense of exhilaration from the two inebriated walking corpses. The mound of dinosaur flesh, however, was quiet. Confident, Leeson figured. He would be too if he had the ability to rip bricks apart.

Everything was quiet. The two fools with targets painted on their necks giggled and chuckled to one another quietly, and the nine foot nightmare formed into flesh was dead silent. The only sound that could be heard as the four of them made their way to The Pits was Leeson, begging them to calm down.

It didn't work.

And, despite Leeson's best efforts, they arrived at The Pits.

Upon entry, the smaller of the two dead bodies turned to the monster who threatened to collapse the building with one accidental swish of his tail to a load-baring beam. "Are you ready to feel some pain?" He said, flexing his arms. It was at this moment Leeson knew that no amount of diplomacy could save them.

It was at this time that Leeson raised an eyebrow in disbelief, and finally glanced at the face of the man who was about to kill two people in lawful combat.

On his first impression, Leeson avoided looking at his face, holding out hope that the front of his head would feature a normal, typical, person face. Leeson was wrong. In the back of his mind, Leeson knew that if it looks like a fucked up duck, and it walks like a fucked up duck, then it's probably a fucked up duck. And this guy was one fucked up duck.

"Well are you?" The other, slightly larger dead body reiterated.

Leeson sighed, raised both his hands up as if to exclaim 'hey, I tried', and backed away from the situation entirely.

He wasn't going to help clean up after, either.

[Varlum]

As Varlum walked, he gave one small glance to Leeson. It hadn't been long ago that the boy had come into the bar and tried to break up his fight, and it might have been the first time in Varlum's life someone had cared enough to do so. Where he came from it was expected of him to fight if challenged, and Varlum had been fighting for his life since his Uncle had sent him away to Ivorian.
"Don't waste your time" he glanced down to Leeson as they arrived at the pits, not a look of fear in his eyes. It would take more than two men to make the Ithecal scared. He glanced between the two when they asked if he was ready to feel some pain, keeping his face cold and blank. His scarred face showed that he didn't want this, but if this was what it would take for these men to learn their place - so be it. "If you want to walk away, now's your chance."

Of course, the two had no intention of walking away. They had a pride issue, hence why they wanted to fight the biggest person they could find in the bar. In their delusional heads, the jackpot had walked in when Varlum had. If they weren't careful, however, they would soon lose what few brain cells they had - and the head holding it all in place. He was a warrior, a mage and a blacksmith of the Ivorian army. Whether he was conscripted or not, that was not a position he took lightly. Any who stood against him would suffer for it, and these men were no exception.
As he walked into the arena his head went to Evianna and their journey here. She had made a weapon out of an axe, the two had fought off bandits and creatures and the woman had asked Varlum a question that had him thinking. "What is it you want, Varlum?" He'd spent a lot of time thinking about it, and there were many options. Leading an army, creating weapons of immense power, becoming a powerful warrior. All of them were on the list. But powerful warriors started somewhere. Varlum was going to start with two men in an arena.

"I gave you a chance" he snarled before the two men made their lunge. It was a short fight, one with surprisingly little casualties. The bigger man had tried to hold his jaw shut when Varlum lunged down for him, evidently thinking he was similar to a standard alligator. When Varlum had opened his mouth with relative ease, however, he was unpleasantly surprised. The other tried to grab at his back. With a turn and all the power he had, Varlum took him down with a tail swing. From then on the fight ended fairly quickly - leaving Varlum left standing.

[Leeson Andaris]

There was literally nothing to be said.

Leeson wasn't even surprised, really. If he were to be surprised, he'd be surprised that one of them hadn't exploded.

"Yep." He said, surveying the fighting pits. "Looks about right."

Leeson sucked in air through his teeth, struggling for words.

"Did I tell you I wasn't going to clean this up? Or did I just think it really hard?" He asked, somewhat pointlessly, to the walking fortress. "Cause I'm not cleaning this up."

In all honesty, the two men were honestly probably better off like this than getting knocked unconscious by their unhealthy drinking habits. Say what you will about a punch to the face, it's less deadly than alcohol poisoning.

Well. Most punches.

This guy looked like he could pack a wallop worth at least three similarly sized fucked up ducks.

Leeson clapped. He could feel the awkward in the air, unsure of what precisely to do now. Some part of him hoped for something weird or inexplicable, like the building setting on fire or a robbery or something. Anything that would allow something to happen, so that Leeson wasn't standing in front of Trebuchet-Fist here without anything to say.

"I think... I think I'm gonna maybe... Go." Leeson said, giving up trying to liven the situation and walking towards the exit.

It was a solid plan.

Until it wasn't.

"Horus? Horus where are you? Peggy's asking for you at home, and we can't find your brother Alex anywhere. I- Oh, pardon me, sir," the man said, entering The Pits, pushing Leeson aside politely before thinking better of it and turning to face him. "Oh, actually, have you seen my two sons? One's a bit taller than the other, they travel together, usually come around this area. They're good men, really. The shorter one, Horus, he has a wife named Peggy, and their newborn son has been having some breathing problems. Horus is the only one who can calm him down."

Leeson made a facial expression that could only be described as guilt mixed with fear.

"Oh, maybe a description might help. Horus is shorter, like I said, he's bald, a bit grizzled. Alex is taller, bit calmer, not as smart but, if I'm being honest," he laughed, "neither of them are particularly bright. Especially when they've been drinking. But you'd notice him right away. Deeper voice, brown hair, chinstrap beard, far more handsome, kind of a hunk really, have you seen them?"

Leeson nodded, his fearguilt plain on his face.

"Oh that's wonderful! Horus' son really needs him right now. Where are they?"

Leeson pointed to the fighting pits.

The old man, apparently not noticing the sea of muscle and scales, ran to the edge of the pits.

"My boys!" He exclaimed in anguish, turning on his heels. "You did this. I know it was you."

"Wh- No! No it wasn't, I promise, I literally do't have the capabilit-"

"His son needed him and now my grandbaby's gonna die! And it's because of you!"

"I-"

"You just killed a baby! You just killed a baby boy!" He exclaimed, quiet tears running down his cheeks. "I'm getting the authorities!"

[Varlum]

Varlum walked out of the arena with a small glance back. A few men and women were looking to the boys, which meant it was safer that he didn't get involved. Chances were he wasn't popular, though he would rather be the one helping them than the one that had left them weak. They had to learn, though, and he knew it. While he wanted to help everyone he could there were some people that needed some pain to be helped. It would teach them that they had limits and that anyone with the right skill set could surpass it.
"Neither am I. I prefer not to look at the people I've fought" he muttered and turned his eyes to Leeson. It was hard to read Varlum at the best of times, so the man probably didn't have a chance of it, but if he was looking close enough he would see the regret in his eyes. Most of his emotion was masked by the scars on his face and the line of work he was in. Emotion was beaten out of him, it wasn't supposed to be shown as often as he would have liked. It wasn't that he didn't feel it, no man on earth that he had met was capable of that, but he hid it well. Many men on earth were capable of that.

When Leeson said he was going to go, Varlum gave a small nod. It was what he had expected. While Varlum was grateful for everything the man had done, trying to stop the fight, it didn't matter much. Few men appreciated alligator jaws on top of nine feet of pure, raw muscle and scales. Some even went as far as to run at times. It was a natural fear, especially for those that had yet to see an Ithecal, or had reason to fear them - which many people did.
Yet in came a man that changed it all. Varlum stayed silent for a moment as Leeson talked to the stranger, who was evidently the father of the two. When the thought hit Varlum, he didn't look phased. Instead, he waited patiently. He had known that those men had families, he knew it with every man he had fought, dead or alive. At least one person out there cared if they were hurt, there was always at least one. Varlum learned that the hard way. Even he had someone, despite being locked in his smith as often as he could be. His own soldiers disliking him because he didn't match formation.

As the man spoke of killing a baby, he knew it was time to step in. "That boy didn't fight your sons, I did" he spoke to the man, calm and collected. His eyes then fell to Leeson. "We're helping that child. Call for a medic then follow us." he spoke before turning to the older man."Sir, show me the child. No harm will come to any of you, and if you would rather I stay a distance away then I will. But I have experience with younger children, I might be able to help."
The old man was hesitant as he cried, but nodded. "If that boy dies I'll have you thrown in to a cell to rot" he said through a cold and sharp tone, tears streaming before he started to run. Varlum nodded to Leeson before running off with the father of the two. The child and mother weren't far from the two as they arrived. However, the mother looked shocked at the sight of an Ithecal. In her arms was a crying, almost suffocating child, and Varlum froze.

Carefully he walked forward, letting go of the thought in his mind. Nobody knew, and nobody could know. It was slow walk, with his hands raised to show he meant no harm as the old man watched on intently. Varlum didn't notice it, but he held a dagger in his hand in case the Ithecal attacked. But Varlum didn't, he had no intention of it. "Hello boy" the Ithecal tried to whisper, though it was still audible to all around.
To the woman's surprise the boy looked to Varlum - his crying slowing down. As Varlum came closer the child seemed less afraid than everyone else around, not seeing a monster but seeing a fascination. The boy was far too young to understand what made Varlum scarier than any other human, and was far too social to care either way. Yet what surprised the woman was his ability to calm the child down, in a way that helped the breathing problem and only her lover had done before.

As the young child returned his normal breathing, a small smile broke on to Varlum's face as he reached out his scaled hand - and the young boy took it. A tiny hand wrapped around his giant finger, and the child giggled an innocent tone, the old man looking on in wonder. He knew his sons reputation for fighting, and he hated that they did it. While it didn't mean he forgave the Ithecal for hurting his sons, he was willing to let go of that for now, as his eyes glanced from Varlum to Leeson in silence - before another giggle broke it.

[Leeson Andaris]

As Leeson ran into the home to follow both his newly acquired companion and the situation's conclusion, he hadn't the foggiest idea how the situation would resolve.

When he had started the night, he hadn't any expectations, this much is true. He had silently expected the evening to go somewhere along the lines of Man Almost Gets in Fight, and either end up Man Gets in Fight or Man Does not Get in Fight. However the man ended up being a building-sized beast. And that beast fought two men. In a controlled situation, politely and calmly. Then a baby nearly dies. The building-sized beast ends up... Well.

Much to Leeson's astonishment, the beast ends up soothing the child.

Maybe the baby has a predisposition to big, odd men and the smell of alcohol.

Who knows.

Leeson, standing next to the child's grandfather at the doorway, watched in amazement the scene that played out before him.

"Wow," Leeson said, quietly.

He felt a hand be placed on his shoulder. The man leaned over and, quietly, as to not disrupt the scene playing out before them, he told Leeson, through eyes teared up with relief and joy, "I still hate you,"

Leeson looked over, removed the hand from his shoulder, and carefully moved forward, kneeling down next to the beast with a baby.

"My name's Lee." He said, careful not to disturb the scene. "It's nice to meet you."

[Varlum]

Cries of relief came from all the members of the family, though some still had no idea that the man in front of them was the force behind injuring their children. Right now all they cared about, however, was that their child was safe. Whatever it was about the Ithecal that calmed the child down, it worked miracles. Slowly, Varlum raised his scaled hand carefully to brush the child's cheek, losing all of the world around him to the sight of such an innocent being in front of him, holding on to his hand. A life saved.
But that one life had risked another two. Varlum hadn't wanted it, not at all. But he had to prove the point. It had been his wellbeing or theirs, and they had been the one to try and use him. They had come looking for trouble. But something in him burned with anger. Not at the men or women around him, nor the child, nor Leeson - not even the men that had fought him. But at himself. There could have been other ways, there were many other ways. Yet he mercilessly struck them down, with no regard to their wellbeing. All for what?

Without hesitation, the man took a step away from the child and reached into his pocket, pulling out a coin purse. As he did the young hand reached for Leeson and rested on his nose, giggling again. "Gold will never make up for the harm of your children, husband or other relation you may have to the two men that I fought. But if it helps your family in some way, I have twenty that I can spare. As an apology" he said with a quieter voice, the usual rough tone fading slightly as the regret was clear in his tone. Innocents were never who he wanted to hurt, even if those innocents were stupid drunks.
Slowly he took out the twenty gold and offered it to the father of the boys, grandfather of the child. As the Ithecal looked back to the boy, he saw the hand reach out to him, his emotions burning away at him. On one hand, he may have just saved the life of a young boy, someone that would grow up to be a brave and important man to many people. But on the other? That child's father and uncle were bleeding on the floor.

"If there's anything I can do...just tell me before I go."

[Leeson Andaris]

"No? Okay." Leeson said, a little disappointed Varlum didn't reciprocate his introduction.

The moment was still beautiful though.

Just, yknow, a little less beautiful now.

The woman was quiet, the grandfather was quiet, all in silent astonishment of this recent turn of events. Where previously only the child's father had a chance of saving that child's life, a monster, a stranger, and the man who assaulted this child's father had just come in to soothe the child.

The most wholesome kind of cucking.

The miraculous kind.

Then, quietly, soothingly, the mother of this child, recently brought back to the world of the living, responded to Varlum. "Yeah," she said. "I'll take that money." She smiled wide. "Thanks for kicking the shit out of my husband and then touching my baby."

Leeson stood shocked. He leaned to Varlum.

"You should be really glad that what you did worked cause I don't think you could take her in a fight." He said.

A moment passed, quietly.

"Alright, um.. Good work. Really, really good work. I'm gonna... Be outside." Leeson said, stepping outside, hoping to catch Varlum before the evening ended.