private City of Outcasts

[Minath Khalsi 195]

@@Alex Kennedy,

 

"You were strong and lived or weak and died... Lok'tar ogar..." Syl said, and repeated the words of her people. Lok'tar ogar, Victory or death. They had began to take on more than one meaning to Syl. It was originally just a battle cry to her, now it was true. You either win everyday or lose and die. 

[Alex Kennedy 1,228]

@,

 

Raptor nodded. "Yes, you've told me of that phrase before. It's a sentiment not dissimilar to the way my people have always lived. We would look after our own, but only so long as they could do the same for us. It's not a matter of being cold and uncaring, but rather that everyone needs to find the strength to survive on their own. That's why I was so proud to see the way you hunted today."

[Minath Khalsi 195]

@@Alex Kennedy,
 
"I understand. If you're strong and useful you get to be a part of something, but if you're weak and useless you are treated as such. Ogg thok bash'a no falor talah. You will taste the chill of true death, in my language. Not only do you die in body, you die in other's minds."

[Alex Kennedy 1,228]

@,

 

Raptor nodded. "I suppose that is the sad reality of it. Of course, everyone always hopes it never comes to that. We try to help each other out as much as we can in that regard. But unfortunately, some just aren't cut out for the kind of life we live back home, and they end up dying a sad and lonely death." 

[Minath Khalsi 195]

@@Alex Kennedy,

 

Syl sighed.

 

"Fulo gi mog naz su maza. That is the way of life." Syl said. "The Windriders live similarly. You must be strong to undergo the poisoning. If you survive you prove yourself. If you fail, well, you die." She finished almost casually. This was common in Azeroth, even royalty had to undergo the poisoning.

[Alex Kennedy 1,228]

@,

 

Raptor sighed back. "I suppose it's for the best. Such things make our people strong, and assure that each of us is fully capable of being independent."

 

((I'm going to be gone for an hour, maybe a bit more. So don't be expecting another reply anytime soon, I guess.)) 

[Minath Khalsi 195]

@@Alex Kennedy,

 

((Raptor and Syl just agreed that killing off the weak is a good idea. Totally normal relationship there.))

 

"Do the griffons undergo something similar to the poisoning? I know the hippogriffs do, the young must survive for 40 days and 40 nights in the barrens." 

[Alex Kennedy 1,228]

Raptor nodded. "By the time they reach the age of sixteen, all the griffons in my village had to have passed a series of tests leading up to their final trial. Before they can take the trial, they must go on a hunt by themselves and bring back the body of an animal they killed. On one particularly gruesome occasion, somebody brought back the body of another griffon. After a heated debate amongst the villagers, he was executed, but was also credited with having technically passed the test. Nasty business, that. But anyway, the real test is the trial that comes later. The young griffin is taken to the bottom of the mountain, far beyond the limits of how far the young are allowed to stray from the village, and thus inevitably unfamiliar territory, and then they must choose how they wish to take the test. They must have either their wings, their forelegs, or their beak bound tight with rope far too strong to be cut by even the talons of a griffon, thus rendering that part of their body essentially unusable. The choice is given in an attempt to make the test fair for those with different strengths. The village then closes it's gates for a week. If the young griffon is alive and waiting outside gates when they're opened back up, they have passed."

 

((That was a lot longer than it probably needed to be. Sorry about that.))

Edited September 1, 2013 by Alex Kennedy

[Minath Khalsi 195]

@@Alex Kennedy,

 

Syl listened to the story.

 

"And how did yours go? What did you do?" Syl asked excitedly. Getting poisoned repeatedly had nothing on Raptor's coming-of-age tradition.

 

((No problemo. You should see what happens when Syl finally comes clean about being Sin'dorei. Do you smell wall of text?))

[Alex Kennedy 1,228]

@,

 

((I look forward to it.))

 

Raptor's face darkened a bit as he remembered one of the most difficult times in his life. "I had my beak bound. For seven days, all I ate was what few grubs I could find and manage to slip in past my bound-up beak. But as a matter of pride, I refused to use my wings, either. I had to climb back up the mountain on an empty stomach, only having a vague idea where I was going. Then, for the last two days, I simply sat outside the gates. I didn't eat anything, and I never for a moment strayed from my place right outside. I simply sat and stared at the gates, until they finally opened on the seventh day. I was twelve years old, the youngest to ever take the trial."

Edited September 1, 2013 by Alex Kennedy

[Pripyat Pony 2,608]

@@Alex Kennedy,

 

(Ooc: Forgot about me? *sadface*)

 

Diego sat with Scurry at the bar with their drinks. Eventually, more patrons entered. Diego hoped that there wouldn't be a fight this day, but that was probably a vain hope. Poverty, misery and stress made ponies angry, and these citizens were probably spoiling for a fight. At least if one happened, he could try and contain it with his magic.

[Minath Khalsi 195]

@@Alex Kennedy,

 

Syl's maw dropped.

 

"I...what...HOW?! I have a new level of respect for you, Mok'nathal. By why let pride get in the way of survival? Why not survive without your pride?" Syl asked. If she had the choice, she would abandon pride in favor of survival. But then again, she didn't have much pride to begin with.

[Alex Kennedy 1,228]

@,

 

Raptor wasn't really sure how to explain. "I guess... well, the me from back then would have told you that there was no since in living without pride. More than that, it was a challenge, and I never truly doubted that I would succeed. Not until it was already too late to back out, at least. I was young and foolish, and I wanted to prove just how good I was. I won't deny that it was stupid of me, and I'm lucky it worked out as well as it did."

@@Pripyat Pony,

 

Asteron gave a warning glare to a few of the rowdier patrons and turned back to the two at the counter. "You look rather troubled. Perhaps it's not my place to pry, but it's sort of what we barkeeps are famous for after all. Is there something wrong, friend?"

[Minath Khalsi 195]

@@Alex Kennedy,

 

Syl shook her head, still baffled.

 

"I was taught to have honor until it got in the way of survival. My own experiences have added to this belief. I would die if my maw was tied shut and refused to use my wings. Luck has never been in my favor." Syl said, and tried to imagine herself in the past Raptor's position. She just couldn't.

[Alex Kennedy 1,228]

@,

 

Raptor shook his head. "It certainly wasn't easy, but still, I think you're selling yourself short. You have a strong will and a sharp mind. I think you could do it if you had to. In the end, there really wasn't a whole lot too it beyond simply having the sheer will to live and push through. I know you have that; I've seen it in you, and it's one of your greatest strengths." 

[Minath Khalsi 195]

@@Alex Kennedy,

 

Syl blushed.

 

"The way that I was born, you have to have the will to survive or else you die. Everyday growing up for me was life or death. I id actually have multiple attempts on my life. Luckily I heard them coming." Syl said. Many creatures in Azeroth felt that she was a disgrace and their land would be better off without her.

[Alex Kennedy 1,228]

@,

 

 Raptor shrugged. "Where it came from doesn't matter. The point is that you have a kind of inner strength that few do. You're a born survivor, like me. And that's important, perhaps more so in a hellhole like this than anywhere else. The two of us, we'll keep on surviving, no matter what happens."

[Minath Khalsi 195]

@@Alex Kennedy,

 

Syl smiled.

 

"Right!" And held one digit up and clenched the others down, resembling something of a thumbs up. "Lok'tar ogar! Victory or death!" Syl said with a big floppy grin on her face. She tried to cheer Raptor up by seeming upbeat. And she truly was upbeat, when Raptor talked of survival it always made her happy for some reason.

[Alex Kennedy 1,228]

@,

 

Raptor chuckled softly. "Indeed. Lok'tar ogar. It's the truth of things around here, right enough. But at least we have each other, and you've really done a lot to help keep me going. Even if you don't realize it, you give me something to fight for beyond personal glory and my own survival. And I need that." He ruffled her mane. "So thanks, little one." 

[Pripyat Pony 2,608]

@@Alex Kennedy, Diego looked straight at Asteron. "Just the usual," he said. "The whole mess that this place is, basically. It's hard for a pony to keep going in a place like this, but I have no choice but to keep with it. I can't ever return to Equestria. So the next best thing would be for this place to be sorted out a bit more."

[Alex Kennedy 1,228]

@@Pripyat Pony,

 

Asteron nodded. "When I first settled down here, I never expected this place to become what it is. I never even really expected it to become much of a city at all. I was looking for piece and quiet away from the Equestrians, and it turned out that I wasn't the only one who wanted to get away from them. And now the place is crowded and miserable, and we have no money or any particularly valuable resources. I should have just stayed in Canterlot and toughed it out." 

[Minath Khalsi 195]

@@Alex Kennedy,
 
You have no idea what you saved me from, do you? How things would've worked out for me in Azeroth? What my birthright was? What I would've had to do for my people? I guess you could never know, Mok'nathal. It's a female's burden born into my family. Such is the weight of being Sin'dorei.
 
"No problem, Mok'nathal. Orhnut’yamb kyank’i mez vra. Blessing of life upon us."

[Alex Kennedy 1,228]

@,

 

Raptor smiled. "You have a good heart, Syl. Far better than mine, certainly. And that's just another reason that I know you're bound for greatness. I can't wait to see you become the amazing warrior that I know you'll grow up to be. I'm glad we finally started your hunting training today. I wouldn't want to waste your potential just sitting around the appartment getting fat and lazy."

[Minath Khalsi 195]

@@Alex Kennedy,

 

Syl smiled.

 

"I am not getting fat and lazy! It's not like I can leave, at least by myself. Everyone always was worried when I left the pal... house by myself. I learned that I'm not supposed to be somewhere where there's a lot of sound. It drove Everyone mad." Syl said, then chuckled remembering parts of her life in Azeroth.

Edited September 12, 2013 by Minath Kidemonas

[Pripyat Pony 2,608]

@@Alex Kennedy, "Maybe what we need is to go back there," Diego replied. "Not as an invasion, obviously; I don't see the Princesses liking that all that much. But as a delegation. Cuz, let's face it, they'll probably come here of their own accord sooner or later, I don't see them letting this place exist for much longer."