Pluvia Dies

[Faust]

((Translation for title))
Rainy Day

It was a rainy day like any other for Faust, but he had awoken with a goal. He was going to make himself known. But first he had to make something to keep the profit coming. He worked with his father, forging the basic shape of the weaponry he was to sell. His father on the other hand, hammered the blades into their true forms. After they had met quota for the day, they were to sharpen them, this was the job they shared.

At about midday they were finished with forging and sharpening. This was indeed early, but it was befitting as Faust was one to start work early before the rush of growing economy in a metropolis. This was the City of Archum for you. With such an amount of time left over in the day, Faust took this opportunity to suit up in his armor.

He always felt uncomfortable when leaving his father alone to tend the shop, so he took security measures. He had stacked up three crossbows on a shelf, seemingly held standing by small blocks of wood under the release triggers. The stocks were actually held up by two fastened pieces of wood, which if untightened would cause each crossbow to slip onto the blocks of wood under the triggers. The crossbows were facing to wards the opening flaps of the hut -like market stall. The pieces of wood were fastened by a screw with a hard wood lever on the end. The lever itself, if turned was what would cause the wood to split and the trap to be set off.

Faust went into the back corner and began suiting himself up, simply plating the armor pieces over his current clothes. He strapped the plates together for each part of his body. His sword was strapped to his back, held on by only three leather loops, bound by one metal button. When he was finished he waved farewell to his father and reminded him of the security system if anything went awry. He had nothing to worry about though, his father was an ex- soldier and was taught in the way of the sword as well.

He strode off into the grey tinted city and began his search for a promising Ordernary. There were plenty to find in the city, but he wanted someone distinguishable. This was his first step and he wanted it to run smoothly. He knew where the Ordernary residential district was, this was a concentrated area where most Ordernaries lived. So he headed in a that way direction in hopes of attracting enough attention to himself.

[Local Enforcement]

The City of Archum, mainly known to be the home of the King, it was also its immense population that made this city one of the hardest to live in. With the castle positioned in the middle, citizen houses were built around it. It was a concentrated area of houses, which suddenly stopped and a big empty territory surrounded it. The majority of the population lived glued to the castle, but there were also houses spread outside the city, usually owned by high ranks.

More population meant more Ordernaries, more Regionaries, and in the case of the City of Archum, Governaries and the famous 30. More pressure and more control. Most seen were Ordernaries, a much detested group of men, the ones constantly reminding the people of the limitations of the lower class workers. They were chosen for their strength and cold attitude. One could not be Ordernary if his heart showed weakness, even if he did crush the earth in half with his hand.

In a smaller number were the Regionaries, a group slightly stronger. With power came responsibility, and these men were responsible for a region, instead of a city or village like the Ordernary. They were called when one of the lower ranks was in trouble, demanded reports, reporting then back to the Governaries residing in Archum.

Costa was doing exactly that: reporting to the Governaries. When walking around a town or city, his higher rank was not confused, given that all ranks had different color badges. Costa was grateful for this, because he loved making an impact. He had the ability to empty streets before reaching them, his presence being reason for warning. The truth was that he was not just strong, but also very harsh. It wasn’t enough for the common citizens to fear him, he also scared most Ordernaries.

He loved finally reaching the city, it meant a week of no travelling spent in his favourite place.

He was leaving the house with another fellow Regionary, both up for some fun. Two Regionaries walking through the city was the equivalent of an army of 10 Ordernaries walking by. Costa and James were best friends, both happening to reach the rank at the same time, but were only together when both got to Archum. When they were however, they were known to cause some disturbance among the citizens. They had been warned for it, but they had too much confidence in their importance to ever consider the chance of losing their jobs.

The Ordernaries lived well, but when passing by their street, the difference between the two ranks was obvious. Some Regionaries even got to sleep at the castle, privilege both James and Costa hadn’t gained. Many Ordernaries did not apply to be Ordernary, meaning they were only in that rank because they were not strong enough to make it to Regionary; this was a big excuse for the two stuck ups to mess with them. It was when they encountered some of them that the disturbance commenced.

“So idiots, having an exciting day today? Need some help maybe? Surely you can’t handle the little insects, or you wouldn’t all need to stay in groups.”

Costa’s words reached the ears of the four Ordernaries walking by, making them slow their pace and eventually stop.

“No sir, but thank you for offering.”

The smart-ass response annoyed Costa, he hadn’t expected such a reaction. None the less, a grin formed, a little confrontation was always welcome, or there’d be no challenge.

The streets were unusually busy, Costa wouldn’t think anything but Ordernaries walked by, since the low class workers commonly avoided the ‘enemy’. But the eventual rare case could happen.

[Faust]

Unlike any other day in Archum, the streets were completely busy. Faust had to metaphorically swim upstream to arrive at his destination. Bumps and shoves were exchanged between the large masses of people, occasionally ending with harsh words. Luckily for Faust, he met no drunkards or lepers in his path.

This lacking of normal people made it obvious that something was going on. Faust paid no heed either way, he was on a search and he was bound to his goals.

Fortunately in this case, there was something going on. Faust had made it out of the crowd and by now the only ones walking the streets were ordernaries and the such. Nearby after the mob had passed by there were several enforcement figures. He stood and stared at the two imposing figures rather than the obviously low ranked ordernaries.

He had hoped that his staring for the several moments that he did would attract attention to himself, but such an action took time and he was a bit impatient as of now. With such he approached, even with the full knowledge that it was none of his business. All the same, it would be interesting and could improve his renown in regards to the King.

That, or it would deplete it to no return.

He kept his hand pumping, ready to unbuckle his sword at any moment. Chances were, he would be told to shove off, but to gain the King's favor, he knew he would need to be relentless and have no remorse. This was the part he played and it suited him quite well.

"Is there something I can assist with?"

[Local Enforcement]

Costa was about to get back at the insolent Ordernary, when he was interrupted. He turned to the man that could only have been lost to direct any words to him.

When his eyes met the figure, another grin formed.

“It must be annoy-the-regionary day and no one told me about it.” Costa stood with arms crossed, observing the man. He didn’t seem so much younger than him, he was armored up and ready for a fight. Was he there to prove something?

Costa only then took in the man’s words previously left ignored, since his first reaction would be towards the actual presence of the man and the fact he had interrupted his conversation.

So he had actually offered help of some sort.

“That is actually not a bad idea. Since you seem to be ready for it, why don’t you help me out here and teach this guy a lesson?”

Costa’s smile was still very present as he stepped aside to show him his adversary, this of course, if he’d decide to accept his offer.

Without warning, not that Nature ever really did need to warn anyone for its actions, it started raining heavily. Costa looked up into the sky and sighed. Maybe it really hadn’t been such a good day for a walk.

(OOC: Check your messages for further instructions regarding a possible next step. Thank you.)

[Faust]

“That is actually not a bad idea. Since you seem to be ready for it, why don’t you help me out here and teach this guy a lesson?”

Faust looked the higher ranking officer straight in the eyes, then looked towards his potential opponent and twisted his arm behind himself to unbuckle his sword. When the button unsnapped the sword fell to the ground and leaned forward, putting the handle right in Faust's hand.

He was holding it backwards, this would increase blocking capabilities if the Ordernary were to sense the threat and strike. But this adversary stood unimpressed, he obviously didn't think that Faust posed a threat.

It wouldn't convince even Faust if he saw himself do that, but that was of no matter. Faust was readied to block the first stroke of his opponent. They were in a locked stare into each others eyes.

"Prepare yourself. You are disposable..."

The words originating from his mouth inspired fear, not because of what they meant, but the tone he spoke in. The Ordernary targeted jumped abit and drew his sword quickly, readying his shield. Faust on the recieving end of this continued to glare, awaiting a strike from his opponent.

The Ordernary stared as well, confused as to why Faust was just standing there. He began to tease and play around with him and eventually stopped, seeing that no one was amused. He suddenly put on a serious face and struck at Faust brutally with no finesse.

Faust was quick to block with his sword still backwards, but instead of blocking it he pushed it it down towards the ground. He then twisted on his toes ending up with one foot in front of the soldier and the rest of his body behind. From this position he brought his sword back to a ready and pushed the Ordernary's opposite shoulder forward. This caused little resistance due to immense pain.

As planned, the Ordernary's foot was caught on Faust's and the pushing from the sword caused him to topple over, flat on his stomach. The blow that Faust inflicted was not lethal in any way, it was a warning strike. The sword hit the shoulder blade causing little bleeding and a lot of pain.

Surely the Ordernary, would be used to pains close to this magnitude, but he was now at Faust's mercy and he was questioning what to do now. Faust stood applying only the slightest bit of pressure to keep his opponent on the ground.

"Am I to slay him or is he at your mercy?"

He posed a simple question, the Officer did not ask for the Ordernary to be slain. Neither did Faust have any desire to slay a man, he was no butcher. He was willing to become one, but it was not an aspiration of his.

[Local Enforcement]

Costa watched as the man accepted his proposal and drew his sword. The Ordernary tried to keep his cool but it was obvious for Costa that he was feeling a little threatened, while there wasn’t much expression on the other man’s face, it was hard to read him.

Costa knew nothing about the strength of both those men, but surely was curious. The man’s words amused Costa, it was very much like himself when he confronted an enemy: Cold and direct.

"Am I to slay him or is he at your mercy?"

Costa was disappointed at how fast the man had completed the task, but was at the same time very pleased at how well he did.

“You may let him go. It’ll be sentence enough to have lost against a civilian. His life as an Ordernary is pretty much over now.”

Killing an Ordernary as demand of a Regionary would not be well seen by the King, and Costa wouldn’t want to risk it. As for the new discovery, Costa wondered about his intentions in joining them in the first place. He did well in impressing Costa, if that had even been his goal, the next thing would be to ask what he wanted.

[Faust]

“You may let him go. It’ll be sentence enough to have lost against a civilian. His life as an Ordernary is pretty much over now.”

Faust nodded at the officer that had initiated this conflict. He then removed his sword from the unfortunate Ordernary's shoulder. He didn't want to help the guy up because well, that'd be too honorable for this sad excuse.

The Ordernary lay there for a few moments, not wanting to get stabbed again. It was a simple reaction for a simple human, but Faust was not simple in any way. He was probably trained before that Ordernary was even though of.

The two shared one more mutual glare before Faust twitched his sword in the ground. The Ordernary jumped and walked off urging his party to follow. The followers were also scared by Faust's meddling, luckily for them they had no reason to be struck down. They were young and in their prime, Faust was in no authority to take away their lives for no reason.

Faust picked up his sword once all of the Ordernaries were gone and attached it to his back once again. The button was snapped and Faust's hands were free once again. This only left Faust and the two Regionaries to discuss the short conflict.

"I've been looking for someone like you. I wish to increase my renown in regards to the King... Let myself be known... I am Faust Smith."

[Local Enforcement]

As the Ordernaries split off, Costa got to understand the man’s intentions, together with his name: Faust Smith.

As Regionary, Costa also had to look out for strong men willing to work for the King. He wouldn’t usually be the one confronted with proposals, that was something for the Ordernaries. A Regionary had the task of testing the abilities of the ones first discovered at the local village or city. But this case was different. Costa had asked for a demonstration and was pretty pleased with the outcome. This Faust was at least at the level of Regionary, which meant he’d eventually be noticed anyway. Regionaries rarely ever recommended anyone, since most of the strongest men had already been discovered two years ago, but the rare case did happen.

“Your name will be addressed to the council, together with your file, and my recommendation. If you have no prior incidents that compromise your loyalty to the King, you have nothing to worry about. Since you are in the right city, you will be visited at your home within the week. If anything is missing in your files, this will be the time they’ll question you about it. In case nothing is missing, you will probably be given instructions right away.”

Costa would be responsible for an eventual bad recommendation, since no further testing to the man’s abilities will be held. Only in case of extreme doubt of the Regionary in charge; this wasn’t the case.

“Also, I will recommend you as Regionary, the highest rank I can attribute as of now. I can guarantee that no specific post for you will be taken in accord, so be prepared to leave everything behind. Is this a problem for you?”

Costa didn’t expect any issues with this; after all, the man had to have had some knowledge of how things worked before confronting them.

[Faust]

“Also, I will recommend you as Regionary, the highest rank I can attribute as of now. I can guarantee that no specific post for you will be taken in accord, so be prepared to leave everything behind. Is this a problem for you?”

Faust shook his head to the Regionary, he understood fully what was going to happen. He couldn't help, but smile, this was near his dream. This wasn't the full realization of his dream though. He wanted to ascend the ranks.

He wanted to work for the King, not under him. Surely his renown would increase fast enough to achieve his goals. His previous training as a soldier would surely increase his applicability.

"I am prepared to move on when it is required of me and I am honoured to have this recommendation from you."

He had told his family what he was doing and they understood. His entire family had an extreme sense of honour when it came to this topic. His father was once a soldier, but that was before Grothier had taken control of the kingdom.

His father was oblivious to what the King had been doing, be it terrorizing or conquering. The rest of his family was cut off from the honour system, they were simple workers, too old to advance among the low class citizens. Their passion was in smithing and the forge was on the family crest.

Far into his family tree their was an Order of Knights called the Golden Saints. Faust had only been told stories as a child by his father. The Golden Saints were a secret order that had always worn gilded masks and armour. This was perhaps what drove Faust to his goals after he had advanced in his military training. Now to have accomplished his primary task was a complete honour amongst his family.

"Is there anything else you would ask of me?"

[Local Enforcement]

It seemed the man was prepared, of course, Costa expected no less.

“No, you are dismissed. Expect our visitation in a few days. As I will probably still be in town, they will ask me to deliver you your first mission.”

Costa had only once before given out a recommendation, and it was for Ordernary, but he knew very well how the council worked. He knew what kind of people would be accepted and what kind of people wouldn’t, that was something a Regionary had to know to be a good recruiter. One wouldn’t think so, but the most important wasn’t a man’s strength. One would have to show loyalty to be able to ever work for the King. Every incident was put into file and every known aspect of a person was documented, so that there was no room for mistake about who the council hired.

Costa could see an ambition in the man’s eyes frequently seen in Regionaries. Costa never really wanted more than that, wasn’t really up for more responsibility then the one he already had, even though he often admired the 30 Mind&Bodyguards.

If the man did want to be more than a Regionary, he’d have a big road ahead. The council didn’t even consider attributing jobs of a higher rank. The best option Faust would have in making it big would be mastering Regionary and be summoned to see the King in person.

But for now, he’d just have to stick with what was offered, and Costa could say: it was pretty good.

[Faust]

“No, you are dismissed. Expect our visitation in a few days. As I will probably still be in town, they will ask me to deliver you your first mission.”

Faust was happy to say the least, he had reached, but one of his goals. He inclined his head to the Regionary, turned around and began another route home. He didn't want to go through the traffic that he had seen previously.

Either way, he had met with a large crowd, why they were all out in the rain just standing about was a question for another time. Faust was tired of walking around and it was just about dinner time.

He eventually pushed his way through the crowd and met his home stall. He was unwelcomed to find that crossbow bolts had been strewn around the stall. The crossbow trap that had been set was also dismantled and in ruin. More importantly Faust's father was gone, without a noticeable trace.

Faust could do nothing, but stare at his ransacked home and after staring for a few moments he found several clues behind the stall counter. There were blood stains in the dirt and they were fresh. Obviously one could only deduce that this happened during his outing, but not too long ago.

His father had put up a fight and failed to protect himself efficiently. Faust could do nothing, but stand in shock, this was his fault, but who could plan so perfectly as to know what Faust was doing that day? Perhaps it was a coincidence. The only thing running through Faust's head was that it was his fault.

That night he did not eat or shed a tear, his moment of silence had been shared with only himself. He lay upon his bedroll looking to the sky, his chosen "room" was on top of the stall, if it was a clear night. The stars would be the only light keeping him warm tonight...

((Closed))