Ah, yes. This is the life, Eric thought to himself, as he stretched out upon the sandy expanse that was Neverscale Beach. Forest at his back and ocean at his front, the scents and sounds of the wildlife enveloped him until all his troubles went away. It was so nice to be completely and utterly alone for just this once. He'd spent his past days harassed by hordes of jobs and people, and hadn't seemed to get a moment's rest until now. After his last job, which had involved hunting down and killing a mysterious man-eating monster in Dheathain, he'd decided that was it, he'd had enough. By tooth or nail he was going to get a small break from the chains of society.
He found that break when, by chance, he came upon a monk in Radasanth raving about some sea monster terrorizing the shores of Scara Brae. However, the stories were so farfetched that they couldn't possibly be true. The monk, eyes wild and face pale with dread, jabbered about a multi-headed snake-like beast that crushed any that came near it's nest. It was said to be resting in the coves near Neverscale Beach, and that any who went near the water's edge were grabbed and taken deep underwater to be food for the fishes or, judging by the tales told, something else.
Eric figured that these stories were but old fishermen's tales, made to scare off naughty little children and/or competition from the best fishing spots, but he told the monk that if there were such a beast, he would slay it and make the shores safe for good. The monk had practically been tripping over himself in gratitude and offered to pay the swordsman for his services, but he refused; not out of a generous heart or anything, no, but because he knew there would be no beast.
And he had found none upon reaching the expanses of Neverscale Beach. However, he did find something else nearly as shocking; a great vacation spot. The sun hung high in the air, it's bright rays piercing the canopy of trees and warming the sand beneath his feet, and the warm summer breeze was like a lover's caress to Eric, who had been wandering amongst the chilly arms of cold for what seemed to be forever. Dropping his armor, cloak and weapons to the silken sand beneath him he'd jumped into the water like a little child once more, sighing aloud in pleasure at the coolness of the ocean.
He'd taken off his clothes and swam until he felt his limbs would fall off from exhaustion, and still no sea monster has shown up to swallow him whole. He laughed at the old monk's foolishness as he lay there under the sun, stretched out in the sand as if he were eight years younger. He didn't feel like moving. Even the warmth of the rocks against his back and on his sides was comforting, and another snicker escaped his lips as he remembered the fear in the monk's eyes. What a fool the man was, he thought to himself. Oh well; at least now he had the whole beach to himself.
Even as he thought this the wildlife seemed to mimic him. A crab slowly came out from its hiding place and scuttled cautiously over his bare legs, clicking its claws in the air as if asking for a dance partner. Seagulls began landing from their vulture-like circling in the air and hunted for their dinners on the land, hopping after the crabs with hunger driving their single-minded determination. Eric watched them with a smirk decorating his face. Ah yes, the cycle of life: There were the hunters and the hunted. If you weren't one, you were the other. It was a grim thought, but Eric took comfort in the fact that for the time being, he was the hunter here.
"Lord Anglekos?"
The deep voice interrupted Eric's thoughts and caused him to be startled so suddenly that Amalia, his long sword, was half way out of it's sheath before he realized someone was speaking. He'd grabbed the blade and rolled to his feet in one swift motion, ready to draw and slash, when he saw the cowled figure standing before him and recognized the symbol upon it's hood. It was a monk, and one from the Citadel at that. An Ai'Brone monk. What the hell was one of them doing way out here!?
That question must have been evident upon Eric's face, for it was answered by the cowled figure before him. The voice that emitted from the hood was masculine, so he guessed it was a man. "Put away your weapon, m'Lord. I come offering you a position."
"First off, I want to know how you found me." Eric growled at the monk, blue eyes narrowing as he tightened his grip upon the sword's hilt. He wasn't about to let his guard down just to be stabbed in the back. "Then we can talk business."
An uncomfortable silence grew then, in which that grip grew even tighter. He was about to draw his weapon when the monk finally spoke. "I am not allowed to speak of the forces upon which we wield."
"So you just show up all mysteriously and expect me to just accept it?" Eric snarled even louder, but he released his grip upon his sword. He knew what it was like to have to follow orders. "Nevermind. Just...what do you want?"
The air around the monk altered perceptibly, and the swordsman became aware of a slight aura of power and authority emanating from him. The monk was in his element, now. "You've proven your abilities to us in the past, and we are searching for a new Warrior for the Dajas Pagoda. Would you be interested in filling that position?"
As the monk had been speaking Eric had been getting dressed, and had just put his pants on when he paused. "The Dajas Pagoda?" He couldn't believe his ears. He hadn't even thought about that place, let alone gone near it. Why would the Ai'Brone monks be considering him for a position? "What would I have to do to get it?" He asked, his voice laced with suspicion. There was more to this than the monk was letting on, and he could tell by the way the robed man was fidgeting nervously from foot to foot.
"There is one other we are considering for this position..." As he answered the monk lifted an arm, and a tear in the fabric of reality opened right there in the air. Buttoning his pants, Eric looked with alarm as a shape began to step out of that hole. "...and the plan was to have the winner become the Warrior. Do you accept?"
Eric pretended to mule it over quickly, but in reality his mind was already made up. He'd been seeking a steady job ever since he'd come to Althanas, and here was a chance presenting itself right in front of him. He could work out the details later, but all doubts fled his mind as he drew forth his long sword Amalia and gripped it in two hands, the wind from the sea turning his hair into a wild, brown blur. "I do."
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