exsiliumlogs | [closed]

Entry tags:

[closed]

Date & Time: 04/10 at like flippin 1AM
Location: bar!! closer to the outskirts of the city
Characters: Bariyan e Kodhi (

stonefaith), Thassarian (

obliterating)
Summary: 2 UNDEAD GUYS WALK INTO A BAR BARIYAN IS INTRIGUED BY DEATH KNIGHTS HELLO
Warnings: N/A

[ FOR ONCE Bariyan is having an entirely pleasant night out drinking. He's not being overly aggressive, he's not picking fights with people, he's just sitting at the bar and quietly working his way through his drink. He doesn't remember how much he's had to drink. But he doesn't feel totally out of it, so it can't have been that much.

And he's not really expecting to see or hear anything interesting tonight. He's very content to spend the next few hours totally silent and alone. He needs some downtime. ]

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only

[He had very little to do at night. Invariably, he became bored, and left his small home quietly.

The city was vast, and strange, but he took small comfort in things where he could. He had his pack with him, but wasn't dressed in his heavy armor tonight. If the air was warm, he couldn't really tell, and he was wearing a plain linen shirt with no sleeves, and plain leather pants. He had purchased clothing here, shortly after his arrival, though some of it was very strange. He wasn't entirely certain what to make of it.

He stepped into the bar, casting a glance about, and seated himself at the bar. A small gesture to the barkeep, and he nodded.]

Whiskey, with ice.

[His voice was cold as ever, echoing somewhat as it left him.

He cast a glance to the man next to him, furrowing his brows a little. He couldn't sense a heartbeat in him, not the way he could almost feel the pulse of the living, how something sick in him wanted to stop the beating he could almost feel in his ears.

He took a drink as the glass was placed in front of him. The other man wasn't breathing, either.

Huh.]

[ Bariyan doesn't take any notice of the new arrival until he speaks, and even then he doesn't even glance over -- he just frowns, vaguely. That resonance sounds familiar. But the term 'death knight' only comes to him once he's halfway through his drink.

He blinks, turns, and then -- instinctively -- leans away slightly. Koltira aside, there's only been one other death knight to leave any sort of impression upon Bariyan, and it hadn't been a good impression.

But a cursory inspection shows that is very clearly not Arthas.

Bariyan cocks his head to the side, slowly. ]

...Death knight?

[And how would he know about that? He takes a drink, and turns to look at Bariyan.

He didn't recognize him, and he didn't look like any Knight he knew- there were other things off, his eyes, for instance.]

Yes.

[He nods.]

I'm Thassarian, of Lordaeron.

Azeroth, yes?

[ With conversation imminent, Bariyan turns in his seat to face Thassarian, propping his elbow up against the bar counter. He looks the other man over -- no doubt about it. He's got all the trappings of a death knight, or at least all the ones that Bariyan's familiar with.

Oh, right, he should probably give his name too. ]

Bariyan. Of... [ He makes a vague gesture with his free hand. ] Not here, anyway.

[A nod.]

Good to meet you, Bariyan.

[He smiles slightly, though it doesn't reach his eyes. Still, it's a good imitation of the gesture.]

I take it you know a Death Knight?

Yes, I've met a few. Only here-- I'm not from Azeroth.

[ Bariyan stalls here, for a bit. He's not sure what to do -- he'd been accepting of Koltira and civil to Arthas when he first met them, but he hadn't known any better then. He does now. So he's unsure about how wary he should be of Thassarian.

Cautiously: ]

I know a... Koltira Deathweaver?

[This time he does smile, and there's a cold chuckle. It's as close to actual mirth as his voice can manage.]

You know my brother, then!

[He takes a drink and turns toward him, nodding.]

I hope he hasn't made much trouble for you. Though, if you're talking to me and know what I am, I imagine not. He's a good man.

[ Bariyan is thankfully still sober enough to recognize that 'brother' is not being used literally, here, though it does give him pause for a second. Then he relaxes, and smiles in return. ]

No. He's been no trouble at all. I'm glad to call him a friend.

You've known him for a while, then?

I'm glad.

[And he means it. He had noticed a change in Koltira, and it was heartening to know that he had people here who would call him a friend, and be thankful for it.

He nods.]

Since...

[He stops and frowns. He's not certain how well the details of their meeting will go over with someone else- certainly, he felt that Koltira had forgiven him, but he wasn't certain how Bariyan would feel about it.

He hated lying or glossing over the truth, but it was what it was.]

...we both served under the same master, unfortunately. I've known him for his unlife.

[And a day.]

And then... broke free, yes? [ Look Bariyan's just excited that he sort of knows this story too, okay. He shifts in his seat, settling his hands over his glass. ]

Have you seen him already? Koltira, I mean.

We did. We were shown mercy, though we didn't deserve it. I'm forever grateful for that.

[It was the truth. What small faith he had was because of the events of Light's Hope. Fordring should have killed them all, but, instead, the Light broke the Lich King's hold on them.

It gave them a chance to atone.]

I have. I was going to see him later, actually. After dawn.

[He furrows his brows a little. Bariyan was pleasant enough company, though he was curious...]

I've noticed you don't have a heartbeat.

[ Good. Good to know that Koltira's finally got someone else here that he can call a friend -- someone else from his home. Bariyan hopes that'll do Koltira some good.

Thassarian's observation takes him a little by surprise, though. ]

Oh. [ Bariyan looks down at himself, as if he'd completely forgotten his current state of existence. ] Yes. I'm undead as well. Not a death knight, obviously.

[He nods, and takes a drink. That was a good enough answer for him. If Bariyan wanted to talk more, he would, but he wasn't the type to pry. When it mattered, he could hound after someone, but that was different. Bariyan was undead, and that's not something anyone really want to talk about.

But if he wanted, Thassarian would gladly lend an ear.]

I'd have known you, if you were.

[He finishes his drink and gestures to the barkeep for a refill.]

Have you been here a while, Bariyan? I've just arrived recently.

Hm... yes. [ Bariyan stares blankly as the barkeep refills Thassarian's drink, counting the months off in his head. ] More than a year, now. And I've come to quite like it here.

What do you think so far?

So far?

[He takes a drink.]

I'm not too fond of the idea of being brought here against my choosing. I don't know this war, and I don't even know if we're fighting for the right side. But war is what I know. I'd rather fight than someone unprepared, someone who might die fighting of something they had no choice against.

[Prince Anduin, for example. Who he pledged his blade to in the hopes that he could protect him.]

Still, nothing is completely one way or the other. There's opportunity here, for some, like me. We've done...horrific things. We don't have that hanging over our heads as much, here. At home, we can atone all we want, but it's hard for people to forget...nor would I ever expect them to.

[Forgiveness was offered, sometimes, and mercy more than that. But once he recalled what he had done, once he was free, he would never forget. He could barely expect that of anyone else.]

I have hope that there's good in this place, even though I know there's bad. It's about all that keeps me moving, some days. The Light granted us mercy, granted us freedom. I'm not going to waste that. I'll protect those close to me.

[He smirks and takes a drink.]

To hear me talk about it, you might think I'm a praying man.

[ Bariyan sits back, crosses his arms, and listens intently as Thassarian talks. Damn. The man's obviously spent a lot of time thinking this through, which is rather impressive. The first month or so that Bariyan spent in Exsilium was mostly spent wandering around in bewilderment -- and drinking, and subsequently getting his arm chopped off. The corner of his mouth quirks at that memory, but it fades quickly. His attention returns to the other man. ]

I thought the same of Koltira. But he tells me that your Light isn't so much a religion as a... fact. [ Bariyan still doesn't quite get that -- every religious man he's met has acted the same way about their beliefs, really -- but he had long since shed his desire to argue about such things. So he shrugs. ] But I understand the idea of taking opportunities well enough.

[ He reaches for his own drink, and absently adds: ] Especially when taken for atonement.

It's something I believe in. It's fact to me.

[Not everyone might believe in it. Hell, even some other Death Knights might not. He doesn't know how Koltira feels, even. But it was his faith, and that was good enough. It kept him going.]

We do what we can. There are some things I can never expect to be forgotten.

[Nor forgiven. He couldn't even forgive himself, if he was honest.]

But I don't plan on hiding who I am. I'm not that type of man. But it's nice to arrive in a city for the first time and not have them spit on you, I'll tell you that.

[He drinks. Arriving back in Stormwind was almost ages ago, and yet, he could remember it very clearly still.]

It's a new start, in some ways, but I can't change who I am or what I've done. Nor would I know how to.

[He shrugs slightly.]

[ Bariyan nods, listening carefully. ]

I don't think anyone here will expect you to.

You're lucky, I think. For having come now instead of earlier. Most of the transports know what to expect of you death knights now-- and prejudices against the undead aren't common in the first place. [ Really, the only case that Bariyan remembers (that might not have been born out of a personal feud) was Ashraf, and that was mild. He'd come around fairly quickly.

Bariyan sighs and leans back in his seat, looking briefly around the rest of the bar. ]

I hope you have an easier time of it here. This place lends itself well to new starts.

I suppose I have Koltira to thank for that?

[He smiles slightly, taking a drink. He was a follower, not a leader- he had been told this before, had seen it with his own eyes. And. again, he followed, trying to keep up with his brother as much as he could.

Though he had pledged his sword to Anduin, there were a few that he would follow above that. Koltira was one of them.

He nodded softly.]

I'm afraid I didn't have much left back in my world...I was just biding time.

Though...I wonder if I'll find much more of a home here. It seems our kind are far outnumbered by the living...and precious as they are, I know I don't belong in their world.

It would be nice to think so, and I will do what I can for them, to protect them. If I can keep one person from death, then it's a start.

Yes, you would. [ Koltira had paved the path for acceptance. Though it hasn't been an easy path. Bariyan would know, having almost unwittingly become one of Koltira's many obstacles along the way.

He shrugs at the rest of what Thassarian has to say. ]

I'm not sure that our sort will find much of a home anywhere. There's many people from many places here and very few of them seem to consider the undead a common, acceptable occurrence... even if they don't mind us.

[ Bariyan pauses to frown, catching on something a little late. He looks at Thassarian with a raised eyebrow. ]

You treasure the living?

Perhaps it's different for you.

[He hesitates.]

I've killed enough that I understand how fragile life is.

My methods might not exactly be looked upon favorably, and I understand that well enough. But I do what I can, with the tools I am given. And yes, even I still fight those dark urges to kill.

[Every moment he was near someone who was alive, was like trying to keep a mad dog on a leash.]

I will always be more at home among the dead. That is my place, now. But that does not mean I can't protect the living. Life was something that was stolen from me, and others.

[He can still remember driving his sword through Koltira's chest. How simple it was, how easy flesh and sinew and bone gave in to his blade.]

[ Frown. Maybe Bariyan's taking Thassarian noble words a little too literally here, but.... ]

Do you not kill, then?

When I must.

[He's not one to lie, really.]

I prefer to make sure my killings are useful. I'm not a monster, anymore.

[But he falls silent. He's hoping to go on a mission soon. Something, anything.]

Back home, I can occupy myself. There are still undead. It might not be perfect, but it's a means to an end.

Ah. [ Bariyan had figured as much. He understands Thassarian and Koltira's plight, and he doesn't judge them for it, but--

No, he's definitely not drunk enough to think too hard on that sort of thing. And he's most certainly not going to argue morality with someone that he just met.

He crosses his ankles and looks up at the ceiling. ]

So killing other undead-- does that help you, with the pain? Or is it just a way to pass the time?

It takes the edge off.

[It's not the same, but it's enough to keep it away, to keep him from snapping.]

We do what we have to. My kind...we'll never be able to escape what we were made for. But we can make that useful, focus it toward something.

Right.

[ Bariyan had been asking out of more than just curiosity. He's offered himself to Koltira before, on two occasions. But knowing what he is, and knowing the peculiarities of his own body, he's never been sure how much it helped.

It takes the edge off. Good enough. ]

That's a hard life, friend. [ Bariyan straightens up, leans over the counter, catches the bartender's eye. ] Next round on me, then.

[It is a hard life, that he can agree with, but he tries to make do. Much as he lives in his own mind, and for as much as he might brood about the past, he does try and make do with what he has.

He smiles a bit, and nods at Bariyan.]

That's very kind of you. Thank you.

[He finishes off his drink.]

If you ever need anything, and you think I can be of help, let me know. I'm afraid I don't have much of use right now but my blade, but the offer remains.

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only

[closed]

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

oops bariyan you've got the hugzombie's attention

awww ye he wants zombie hugs

ZOMBIE HUGS FOR ALL THE NON-BREATHERS

no subject

no subject

no subject

yes undead bros yes good

cuUUUTte

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject