redsworn ♪ i'm free, i'm free!

[chosenfake]

Who: Luke and people in the red flight.
What: Luke is back and he feels kind of dumb. He also made... some mediocre food.
Where: Ruby Sanctum
When: Post-kidnapping/rescue! It's a little backdated. So what.
Warnings: None.


[A. Post-kidnapping!]

[When Luke trudges back into the sanctum after being kidnapped, he looks exhausted. He's covered in dirt and he looks about as disheveled as one would expect. But he's okay, and he's in one piece, so that's what matters. He gets some odd looks from the dragons about, maybe because he was dumb enough to get himself kidnapped, haha...

He hasn't slept for several days, if the haunted look in his eyes is any indication.]

[B. Sometime after that, before/during/after Qilby's plot, idc.]

[After sleeping for about eighteen hours straight, Luke finally wakes up. He'd kill for a meal that wasn't stereotypical elven fare. After an hour or two, he returns with a couple of wild quail-like things. They smell pretty good on the fire, and the gently pan-fried chicken is soon finished.

He made some rice to go with it, but it's really dry. Like, really dry. Don't even look at the salad, he managed to accidentally dump a cup of vinaigrette on it and it's no good.

Whether he cares right now is debatable.]

Comments

[telaari]

[She holds a hand up, as if to stop him from saying more.]

It is fine. It fills the void, and that's what matters most. [Although it is a bit annoying to have gritty bits of rice stuck to her teeth. Details.]

[Instead, she'll try to put that out of mind and focus on him.]

How are you feeling, tiredness aside? This entire week must have been trying.

[chosenfake]

[He'll do better next time.]

Yeah, it was. But... I feel like I understand the Light a little. Even though I couldn't sleep, I felt like-- like I was okay, as long as I could feel it.

[He looks at his hands, though with far less trepidation than he showed in the cage.]

With my old powers, I always knew I could lose control at any moment and hurt someone. [He closes his hands into fists and looks up at Vastania.] The Light is different. When I focused enough, I could almost feel it guiding me. Keeping me calm.

[telaari]

[A smile slowly spreads across her face, wholehearted and proud. It's been a long time since she last saw a student of the Light come to terms with it, and never this quickly; though that may be because he doesn't have a hundred years to master all the arts that a Vindicator must. What's more, he's learned this under her guidance.]

[Luke is going to be okay.]

Before long, you will learn to channel it like Maridian and I do. But whether you wish to become like a Blood Knight or a Vindicator is up to you.

[chosenfake]

[He is human, or at least something resembling it. All the courage and hardiness his race displayed has been condensed, seeing as he has a shorter life than his kin.

He recognizes that smile on her face. It's not something he's used to seeing from anyone. He pinkens somewhat and glances away, feeling sheepish for some reason.]

I hope so...

I've seen Oracle Knights and White Knights, but what's a blood knight?

[telaari]

In our time, those who use both the Light and the sword are called "paladins". Because different peoples have different histories with the Light, their paladins organize themselves differently.

[She gets up and retrieves her shield, holding it so that he can see the holy sigil emblazoned on it. She gestures toward it, tracing the sweeping lines that form the Icon of Argus.]

I am a Vindicator, but I am also of the Aldor and not the Auchenai. I am also subordinate to the Hand of Argus. Humans and Dwarves have their Knights of the Silver Hand. Blood Knights are the paladin order of the Blood Elves, and the Tauren have Sunwalkers.

Because I am Aldor, I can only teach you the ways of the Aldori Vindicators. Maridian is a Blood Knight Master, so he knows their ways. Neither one of us is a Sunwalker or a Knight of the Silver Hand, so I do not think we can teach you their ways.

[chosenfake]

[Luke nods, trying to understand as well as he can... but that's a whole lot of garble he doesn't really understand. What's a tauren? What's a dwarf...? Even the concept of elves is barely familiar to him; he met one or two in Exsilium, but it was exposure to the night elves that solidified his impression of them. Aldor? Auchenai? What's the difference?

He has a lot of questions, but he doesn't want to bother her with ten thousand questions, either.

He thinks on this for a moment.]

Even if you teach me everything you know about the Aldor, I'm never going to be a real vindicator-- not like you. It's like you said, everyone's history with the Light is different. It'd be the same with Mar and his order. It wouldn't be right to pretend to be something I'm not. [He should know that better than anyone.]

If it's possible, I'd like to learn everything I can about these powers I was given... and then I'll make my own decisions about what it means.

People like me, people in this position, we're different than the others who came before. Maybe we need a new order, too.

[telaari]

[She slowly sets down the shield with a sigh. He's not wrong, but she can't help feeling disappointed that he says that he can never be Aldori. Maybe if the Naaru had a presence on this Azeroth, she could show him the glory bestowed upon all Light-loving beings by her peoples' benefactors.]

[But it will be a long time before the Naaru touch Azeroth, so she has no grounds to argue.]

I understand. Just know that which Maridian and I can teach you is rooted in our own traditions and faiths, and that those are not necessarily... compatible with each other.

[chosenfake]

I don't mind learning both ways. I mean, if I had to choose, I'd definitely go with you...

[He doesn't seem to think anything's wrong with that, but there's still something careless about the way he talks sometimes. He really doesn't know how to speak to a lady.]

Or... is there something wrong with Mar's way of doing things?

[telaari]

[Is there someting wrong with it? Oh, only that his people kidnapped a Naaru and drained it unto the point of exhaustion. The Prophet compelled them to forgive the Sin'dorei, Light knows, but to drive such a perfect being to enter its Shadow phase...]

There is... history between the my people and the Blood Elves. Some good, some not. I am certain that the Blood Knights are quite capable and even virtuous, but learning from both of us means that you must understand that history.

[chosenfake]

[His mouth forms a little line. Well, if there's not-so-good history there, then he has all the more reason not to choose a side. Though, due to his bias, he might end up being more like a vindicator anyway.]

Can you tell me more about their history? Er, your history? I really don't know anything...

[telaari]

[She touches her index fingers together, though whether it's out of nervousness or sheer inability to keep her hands still is up for debate.]

That... is not so easy. I am not well-read on Quel'thalas' history, and it would take at least a century to learn all there is to know about my people. It took me a hundred and twenty years to complete my courses, I think? Or was it a hundred and fifty...?

[She shakes her head. Getting off-topic here.]

I can at least tell you about the Naaru, I suppose.

[chosenfake]

[That figure sure puts things into perspective.]

A hundred—?!

[Trying to recover from his shock, he lowers his voice a bit.]

Just... how old are you, anyway?

[telaari]

I gave up counting after the first few decades. At least two hundred years, but less than five.

[His shock is pretty much par for the course, so she tries to keep her voice level. No need to excite him further.]

Of course, compared to Vala, I'm just a youngster.

[chosenfake]

[He glances surreptitiously in the direction he last saw the other spacegoat, and then he looks back at Vastania. He certainly has new appreciation for her.]

That's incredible...

[He scritches the back of his head.]

Anyway, what's a Naaru?

[telaari]

[She barely manages to suppress a giggle. Later, when she reflects on it, it might sadden her that he won't live to be her age, but for now his reaction is just too silly.]

You know the story of how my people refused the Legion, yes? The Naaru are the ones who gave us the strength to reject Sargeras.

[chosenfake]

You hinted at it a couple times.

[This is confusing but interesting at the same time. All these new terms he's learning...]

Are the Naaru and the Light the same thing?

[telaari]

[She tilts her head to one side, pursing her lips in thought.]

Yes, and no. The Naaru are creatures of pure Light. It is a crude comparison, but they are to the Light what elementals are to the Elements. But they are so much more than any elemental.

While Sargeras gave the Defiler and the Deceiver their powers, the Prophet, Light shine upon Him always, prayed for guidance at the sacred Ata'mal Crystal. It was then that the Naaru K'ure came to Him in a vision, and promised him that if He gathered up His followers on the longest day of the year, they would all be saved. So it was, and so it still is. The Naaru have been our friends ever since.

[chosenfake]

Wow... That's an amazing story. So you had a prophet who saved your people, too.

[He thinks a bit, then comes up with more questions.]

An elemental? Is that like an-- [He pauses, trying to find the phrase. It feels awkward in his mouth, like talking around pebbles.] -- aggregate sentience? On my world, if you get enough of one element together, the fonons end up forming a consciousness. I've only seen it once.

[telaari]

[Mercifully, his question stops her from lauding Velen any further.]

I don't know this word, "fonon". Nor do I know much about the Elements. You would have to ask Vala about them.

[She pauses for a moment awkwardly, as if she cut him off too quickly.]

But the Naaru... they have been around since the beginning of the universe, long before the Elements came into being. I do not think they are much like these fonon-creatures you speak of.