Starving Artist

[Gwydion Nefarine]

((errr, I guess you have a point))

Cambion turned to Sebastian and scowled. "That wasn't what I was talking about." He took one last look in the direction Jess had gone, then began walking to his tent. "Anyway, I suggest you get some sleep. We'll be traveling all day tomorrow, and I mean to not stop until we're there."

[anasa]

Jess grunted as she attempted, once again, to set up her tent. Random passerby offered her help, but she always refused it. If she couldn't do something as simple as this, then how could she hope to make herself useful to the caravan? The last thing she wanted was to be a burden on the two kind men who had saved her life, especially not Cambion.

She stepped back, grinning and sighing in satisfaction as up the completed tent went...only to be torn out of the ground by a strong gust of wind.

She let out a small cry and ran after the tent, catching it and returning it to her previous spot. This time, after digging the stakes into the frozen ground to the best of her puny arms' abilities, she jumped up and down on them, feeling like a warrioress at battle.

[Gwydion Nefarine]

Cambion watched her as he went to his tent. He was almost amused at her antics. He continued to his tent without an offer to help. As soon as he lay down, he fell asleep.

*****

Cambion stood in a crowd full of angry, shouting humans. There were hundreds. What were they all here for? He could not distinguish what they were saying. He looked to his left and gaped. Sebastian stood a few feet away, a gallows pole above him. His hands and feet were bound. His head was bowed, as though he were ready to accept his fate.

Cambion turned to his right, and almost exploded. There, bound in heavy chains, was his closest friend whom he had known since he was a child and had been one of the first members of the rebellion. She was a druidok named Eilonway. Her beautiful golden-blond hair was unkempt. She looked at him sadly with her ocean-blue eyes. Another set of gallows were above her.

Then, he realized that he too was completely bound with chains. He struggled to break free of them to rescue his friends, but he had somehow lost his abilities. He heard a faint voice struggling to shout above the din. "These three traitors are charged with treason and leading a rebellion against the Fabrith Empire, taking the lives of hundreds of soldiers. They are scheduled to be publicly executed this day."

Cambion then looked above him and, as he feared, a noose was waiting for him. The voice continued. "First will be the human traitor Sebastian Tora." A large, burly man fitted the noose around Sebastian's head and tightened it. Cambion watched as he heard a lever crank and a plank fell out from under Sebastian's feet. Cambion watched in horrified disbelief as his friend's face went pale, and then, he went limp.

"Next, is the female druidok." They probably didn't know her name and didn't care since she was a druidok. Cambion renewed his efforts on his chains, but to no avail. "No!!!!" he shouted at the top of his voice. A noose was also fitted around her neck. Cambion turned his head as he heard the lever creak and the plank fall.

He didn't even hear the voice as noose was fitted around his neck. He'd lost the will to live. He'd lost everything. The rebellion had failed. He had failed. Suddenly, the platform that he stood on was gone.

*****

Cambion woke up in a cold sweat. It was.... just a dream, he thought as panted rapidly. Just a dream.

[anasa]

Jess awoke, yawning and rubbing her eyes as she watched the sun rise pristinely over the horizon. Suddenly, she had an idea. Bolting from the malformed pile that was her tent, she began gathering supplies and carrying them to a large fireplace in the center of the camp.

"Right, Jess," she told herself, "Do it just like mama told you, except in ginormous quantities."

With that, she rolled up her sleeves and began preparing breakfast for the camp.

[Gwydion Nefarine]

Meanwhile, Cambion's attempts to go back to sleep had failed. He was wide awake, and dawn was near. He got up, donned his cloak and left his tent. He carefully avoided Jess, for he was in no mood to talk to humans. He walked a bit in the nearby forest. An owl was perched in a tree nearby. Cambion nodded in greetings. "Why are you still up, Dallben?"

The owl hopped from the branch of the tree and changed its shape as it hit the ground, turning into a man who looked about 85 years old. He noticed Cambion's troubled look. "What's troubling you Cambion? Can't get sleep?" Cambion frowned as he stared at the forest. "Bad dreams," he replied simply. Dallben's brow furrowed. "Ah, dreams are a type of magii in their own right. They affect our behavior and our mood. They can make us act ilogically. They can even give us advice or warnings. What was your dream, pray tell?"

Cambion told him of his nightmare. "What does it mean Dallben? Do you think it's a warning?" Dallben slowly shook his head. "I think it's best that you forget this dream. As hard as it may seem, I believe that is the best thing to do." Cambion looked at him, trying to interpret Dallben's expression. Suddenly, a dreadful thought occured to him. "My.... my father, or mother...... they had a dream such as this didn't they? ..... before they died?"

Dallben nodded. "One night, your father arose from his tent in the very same manner you did. He came to me and told me of his dream. Neither of us having much wisdom that comes with age, we agreed that the best thing to do was take precautions. Your father didn't take this dream as a normal nightmare. He was practically sure that it was a warning, telling him to protect his family better. Of course, instead of just two friends in his dream, he had his wife, and... and you. That' what haunted him the most."

Dallben cotinued. "Anyway, after that, he started leaving you and your mother back at camp with half his force, weakening his own force severely. One night, while he was out, a large horde of enemy soldiers attacked us. We didn't stand a chance. Meanwhile, your father had also lost his battle. Luckily, your mother had somehow sensed something, and told me to take you away, far away, from camp. We were away when the enemy forces attacked. I only found out about it later from a druidok that had escaped death and slavery. Your father and your mother, along with the other druidoks that had not been killed, were captured. I think you know what happened later."

Cambion stood, still staring into the forest, listened intently to the entire story. He had never heard all of it before. "So, as I have already said," remarked Dallben, "Forget about your dream." He turned back into an owl and flew off. His watch was over. Cambion did not know what to do. It was hard to him to ignore such a dream. He tried to shrug it off his mind, but wasn't very successful. He walked back to camp.

Upon arriving, he saw Jess busy at the fire. "What are you doing?" he asked. His worried expression still had not altogether gone away.

[anasa]

"Oh, good morning, Cambion!" she said, too busy to look up at him, "I'm making breakfast! Can you hand me that pot over there?" Still without looking up, she pointed to the pot in question.

[Willow]

ooc- Sorry, ubermuse death.

bic- Unlike his druidok friend, Sebastian's sleep had remained completely undisturbed. He stretched, his back feeling strangely numb, and sat up. Only when his hair had been combed out and braided, and his clothes draped over his lean body, did the human make an appearance. He'd spent half an hour watching Jessica fight with her tent, never bothering to offer his help, and now she was up making felt breakfast. He felt guitly. Sort of.

Sebastian flipped up the pot she was referring to and held it out, grinning in a tired yet amused sort of way at her. His eyes looked unusally pale that morning. "Morning."

[Jess]

"Morning!" Jess chimed, "Could one of you bring me those strips of bacon! Oh, and I'm terribly sorry, sir!" She looked up at Sebastian. "I'm afraid I didn't catch your name."

[Willow]

It hadn't really occurred to Sebastian that he hadn't ever introduced himself to her. Well. That was embarrassing. To bad it was to early in the morning for Sebastian to efficiently care. He stretched, glanced around to locate the bacon, realized Cambion was closer, and looked back at the lithe entertainer.

"T-Tora," he said through a yawn, arching his back until it popped; he must have slept on a rock. There was no way his cloak had managed to wad itself up in the small of his back. "Sorry. Sebastian Tora." His dark hair, even pulled back was still a mess. It looked like he hadn't brushed it at all.

"At your service. Unless C-Cambion can do it f-first," Sebastian added, muffling another yawn unsuccesfully.

[Gwydion Nefarine]

Cambion obliged, taking the strips of bacon and giving them to Jess. "Ah. I'm taken aback. Usually, no one gets up early enough around here to cook breakfast." He glanced at Sebastian. "Jess, I'm afraid Sebastian, a few other people in the caravan, and I are going to leave for a few days. While we're gone, one of my friends, Eilonway, will help you and get you anything you need. We'll be back soon, though."

[anasa]

"Why?" Jess said, stopping in her work momentarily, "Where are you going?"

[Gwydion Nefarine]

Cambion answered, unwaveringly, "We're going to Seadale. We've heard that there are some people there who might join us in the caravan," he lied. "As you can see, the caravan is thinning. There are not many of us left. A small caravan is easy prey for thieves. The larger we are, the less vulnerable." This was one of the many excuses he had prepared for situations such as this. "We're going to meet you and the rest of the caravan in Juada. We mean to travel light and fast, so we'll be back soon." He glanced around. "Where is Eilonway?" he asked himself aloud.

((is the caravan destination alright with yall? if not, I can change it))

[anasa]

"Elionway?" Jess said, resuming er work, "What does he look like? I might have seen him."

[Gwydion Nefarine]

"Well, she, actually," he said. "Ah, here she comes. He saw Eilonway's lithe form seemingly gliding towards them. Her blonde hair was neatly combed, as usual. She and Cambion had been good friends since they were both small children. Like him, she was a druidok and part of the rebellion. "Good morning, Eilonway," said Cambion. Eilonway replied, "Good morning, Cambion, Sebastian, and......" Cambion quickly introduced Jess. "Oh, yes. Eilonway, this is Jess. She's a new addition to the caravan. Jess, Eilonway." Eilonway, more genuinely kind to humans than Cambion, extended her hand to Jess. "Nice to meet you, Jess. I hope you'll like it here."

[anasa]

Jess graciously took her hand.
"I do already!" she exclaimed, grinning.