A Breath of Fresh Air [Dorian/Open]

[Vaida †]

It had been exactly what she needed, the calm atmosphere, lovely weather, and silence in all but the sounds of nature. These last months had been filled with stress and activity, the Heroes had known no peace since it all started with them fleeing and gathering in those woods. Esme had been antsy, wanting to be free of the confines of the forest and ruins, and Vaida didn't blame her. The young woman too wished for freedom. And, in this moment of peace, they were gathering it. Vaida had been sent off, scouting the surrounding area. Given her natural affinity for shadows and quiet, she made an excellent scout. Though an unconventional one, rather than perfect eyesight, Vaida was highly attuned to her ears. And in the shadows, her limited eyesight managed to catch movement precisely if not a perfect image. The tail end of her scouting though, she'd made her way to Lake Hylia and so entranced with the fresh air and quiet, Vaida took her time in relaxing by the shore of the lake. White hair had been swept back away from her face which was uptilted to catch the warm sunlight, and the layers of her normal black uniform had been shed down to the slim black pants and blouse she wore. Shoes, gloves, and swords lying nearby on the shore. Here, in the open air and the smell of fresh water, Vaida was at peace for once since the beginning of it all. But she was highly attuned to the air around her, prepared to spring should it change. So when the blindfolded young woman senses the presence of another in the vicinity, her hand slowly creeps towards her blade, head turning towards the source. "You, who are you?" she asks, though her sharp tone implies a demand. Tagged:@lorddorian Words: ### Notes: vacation, ruined...

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[Deleted]

Lake Hylia. A tranquil place, albeit a very foreign place. Dorian is not used to be this far away from home. At this rate, he thought, he might as well expand has operation, but that would take away the charm of it all. He prefers the smaller professional band where everybody knows eachother's names. The lake has a way of changing one's perception of the world, as Dorian suddenly realized he was no longer on edge, but rather, at relative - if uneasy - peace. It felt good to be able to let one's guard down, especially in times like these. As Dorian moved towards the water, he suddenly heard a voice in the distance. "You, who are you?" His almost trancelike state was immediately shut down as he returned to his primordial instincts.

He didn't know what to make of the voice, so he quickly drew out his longsword and actively looked out for the source of the voice. "Who I am is none of your concern! Not unless I can confirm your identity in relative safety!" He shouted. He carefully walked around the general area, waiting for a response. Concerned, he covered most of his body behind his shield while keeping an eye out for potential enemies. "If you must know, I am armed, probably dangerous and definitely on edge! So unless we can be friends and trot along happily, I recommend caution!"

[Vaida †]

Peace. That was all she had wanted. To enjoy the quiet and not have to worry about plans, plots, tyrants, lost royalty. But this realm and the Goddesses clearly believed that other plans were in the works for Vaida, and they all involved fighting for her life. From birth, she had not been blessed with ease, not with her mother's death, her blindness, and her capabilities for the shadows. She was made for the life she was living, such was her fate. But some days, when Vaida could lose herself in her mind for just a few moments, she imagined she wasn't. That she could live a life of peace and travel, of beautiful things. Quickly Vaida stood, she was not well armored and armed with just Luna, the white and charcoal blade sheathed and gripped in her right hand. She couldn't remove the silk blindfold from her face, the sunlight would only hinder her, and by the sound of the man approaching he was armed well. With a graceful set of movements, Vaida stepped around her discarded clothes and towards the voice, walking along the shore. She had not yet drawn Luna from its sheath, opting to wait until she knew for sure that this would end in a fight. "I am of the Sheikah. They call me Vaida. Now your name, in return." she called out, pale lips thinning into a line when she was done. As she walked, through the blindfold Vaida could make out the distinct figure of a man, he held his weapons aloft, clearly trained though she could not make out details of him. Perhaps if he saw her, blind as she was, even armed, he would lower them. Whether or not he attacked her thinking her less than capable of defending herself was his mistake. White hair fluttered around her face in the soft breeze that came off the lake, standing there in all black with a weapon of pure white in hand must've been a rather surreal sight. She wondered what the stranger made of her. She had announced herself as a Sheikah, by now the man must realize she was trained in combat, and Luna, along with Solar that sat on the shore some feet away, were not the weapons of amateurs.   She hated strangers, but an armed stranger she knew how to deal with when threatened. "I do not appreciate threats against my life, lay down your arms and I shall lay down mine. This is a place for peace." her voice, a soft lilting tone was calm, even as she spoke. As though the young woman were used to dealing with threats as calmly as possible. Tagged:@lorddorian Words: ### Notes: why can't we be friends~

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[Deleted]

Dorian could finally see a person in the distance, and decided to slowly move towards her in a non-threatening manner, wanting to examine the figure more closely before he made a decision. "I am going to come closer! I merely wish to inspect, I mean no harm!" As he came closer, he saw that she was blindfolded. Under normal circumstances, he would've been prone to instantly underestimate her, but he had heard of the Sheikah before, and he knew that they don't take 'good enough' for an answer, so he opted to remain on guard.



For a moment, there was only silence between Dorian and the woman. He remained in a perfect defensive pose, not showing signs of faltering, until finally, he decided to lay down his arms. "Very well. If you won't harm me, I won't harm you. A fair trade." In a moment's notice, all seriousness in Dorian's voice and expression disappeared, as he returned to his usual, sarcastic self. "Name's Dorian. Dorian Vincanton, Commander of the Iron Ravens and mercenary extraordinaire. Pleasure to meet you!" He made a quick, informal bow, and started to approach Vaida in a heavy, unbalanced and noisy manner, completely forgetting the peaceful trance he had momentarily found himself in earlier.

[ASH]

The stranger had announced he meant no harm as he approached her. In response, Vaida did not lift her blade up but she kept her grip on it firm, these times one could never be too careful. She had a duty to get back to soon, and there was very little that could stop her from returning to her princess' side. Death chiefly among them. Something about the weight and timing of the stranger's steps gave Vaida the thought that he was familiar with Sheikah, he moved heavily and with caution as he approached her, looked her over and determined what kind of threat she could be. Had it not been for her own truth and the weapon in hand she doubted this man would've second guessed approaching her unarmed at all, but she was at a disadvantage should they fight. She rather he'd be on edge around her until promises of peace were made. The man, Dorian Vincanton, agreed to the disarming. Vaida nodded and did as she said she would, laying Luna down on the ground above the water's edge. She stood again slowly, through the blindfold she didn't stop glancing at him. Satisfied that they both were keeping to their agreement, Vaida's stance relaxed. There was still a chance for the peace she longed for, even if it meant occupying it with a stranger. Everything about his tone spoke of confidence, a type of swagger. He was a mercenary, which explained the armor and weaponry. In response to his informal bow, Vaida gives a swift and polite curtsey, something she was taught to show through years with the royal family. She could be polite. "Glad to see we can find a peaceful arrangement, Commander Vincanton." she replies, being a bit more formal than necessary. She had heard an official title, she supposes her time with royalty and military personnel had done that to her. Though she'd always been far less formal around Esme. He moved closer to her, and even if Vaida hadn't been able to make out his moving form, she would've heard him. Far louder and heavier than Vaida herself when she moved. A man fit for direct battle and action, not a spy or hidden guard. "What brings a mercenary captain to the shores of Lake Hylia? It seems a far too peaceful place to find mercenary work." she says, finally reverting to a far more relaxed stance. Her weight resting on one foot, hip tilted out slight to keep her balance, and her arms folded loosely across her chest. Behind her blindfold and fringe of hair covering part of her face it would be difficult to make out the lifted eyebrow and amused glint in hidden violet eyes, except for the small smirk that tugged at her lips. Tagged:@lorddorian Words: ### Notes:

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[Deleted]

He stopped for a moment, looking all around him and gesturing towards every possible direction. "Sure, not a lot of work here. But I don't work every single day of the year. I give myself some freetime every now and then, and let my second-in-command be in charge of the group. That's been happening a lot lately." He smirked.

"You could almost say she's the leader of the bunch and not me. There's been a few mutinies here and there, but she keeps it under control. And I know she would never betray me." He was hulking towards Vaida once more. 

Looks can be deceiving. Although he would appear somewhat carefree and undisciplined, his guard was still up, and he kept about four meters between him and Vaida as he reached her. Enough for him to see threats coming. "But back to the question at hand, what would a mercenary do here? What would any person in the right state of mind do here? Relax, of course. I assume that's why you're here as well? Or is it some secret ninja mission thing, or whatever it is you folks do." He turned around for a second and took a deep breath from the fresh lake air and turned back, not willing to expose himself for too long. It also served to check the woman for any hidden hostility. "So, again, what are you doing here, friend?"

[Vaida †]

Vaida cracks a smile at the phrase 'secret ninja thing' and shakes her head. Though the idea was not quite off from the truth, she didn't quite want to share with a near stranger that she was the royal guard to the hidden royal family. There were many in this kingdom that would gladly have away with the siblings entirely. But there were Sheikah all over the isle that had plenty of jobs of every kind. "Yes, I do not so often have the free time to relax. I thought the lake would be quite the place, to enjoy the peace and quiet that this kingdom has so rarely offered recently," she replies, giving him another once over as he settles himself a short distance away from her. Close enough to be polite, far enough to have reaction time should she try something. He was bigger than her though, and casually Vaida keeps herself leaned back slightly, not quite noticeably but comfortably for her. "Ah, so your title is somewhat for show then? You play the face of the group, she is actually the muscle," she jokes, lips quirking up into a smile. Vaida glances briefly around the shore of the lake, back at her stuff lying in a simple pile. "Good to have people around you that you trust though, sometimes difficult in my line of work. Not those closest to me of course, but sometimes you come across those that only make your situation work."  Tagged:@lorddorian Words: ### Notes:

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[Deleted]

Greed • Wrath • Struggle • Regret

He smirked and logically deduced that she can't or won't harm him. She has no reason to, after all, unless he worked with the forces that would try to defy the Goddesses, that is. But he doesn't, and as such he relaxed his position a bit. "Well, it ain't like I don't do anything at all. When I'm present, I lead. But yeah, you're right, I'm more of a posterboy than anything else, really."

He chuckled a bit for himself. "In my defense though, using my 'title' has given me plenty of free drinks in my travels. Who wouldn't trade a bit of dignity for that?" He took some beverage out of his pockets and started drinking it. It seemed to be of alcoholic nature. "I make sure to always have some about." 

At last, the peaceful nature of the place descends upon Dorian once more. His profession might rely on conflict, but even he can take time to appreciate a moment of peace whenever possible. He doesn't spend much time travelling outside of Ordana. He knows the province like the deepest chambers of his pockets, but the outside world always seems new to him, and he takes time to appreciate it. He reached out to Vaida with his beverage. "Want some? Makes moments like these all the more worth it."

TAGS

✿ EDEL ✿

[Vaida †]

Vaida raises a hand up, "No, thank you." she tells him, lowering her arm with a soft smile and nodding in agreement. "I do believe that as much as I would enjoy a life of peace and beautiful scenery I would not appreciate it near as much as I do now if I had that life." With a slow gesture, Vaida motions to Dorian her original spot. She would much rather be sitting right now anyways, enjoying the fresh air. She picks up Luna, and returns the blade to its twin, along with the rest of her stuff before sitting herself in the soft grass and dirt at the water's edge. Here, the blue water mixes slowly with the landscape as it moves up, closer to where her bare feet are stretched out.  "Though it hardly matters to me, I don't quite get to see beautiful scenery as most do," she tells him, tugging at the piece of black silk wrapped firmly around her eyes. "So then, Commander. What do you do when you are not leading your merry band of mercenaries, or enjoying pleasant sceneries?" Tagged:@lorddorian Words: ### Notes: vacation, ruined...

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