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Post by starrea on Feb 11, 2020 0:17:04 GMT
Kiona was passed the point of being talked down. In fact, the more she paced, the more angry and paranoid she became. Everything was just too fucking hard. It may have been childish, but the pure injustice of everything that had culminated in the last week was threatening to break her. She couldn’t sleep, and even when she did, her sleep was plagued with paranoid nightmares. She hadn’t been eating enough and she could already tell she had lost weight. She couldn’t be entirely sure, but she thought that more hair than usual fell out when she combed through her hair this morning.
“Stay the fuck away from me. I need to think.” She snapped at no one in particular. Even though she heard Trys’s plan, she wasn’t sure she believed it. Even if she did, that meant that Ike would just continue to pursue her after she left. It would leave her in the exact same position she was in now - homeless and on the run.
Her pacing was almost rapid as she tried to exert her nervous energy. Her hands nervously fidgeted. She hadn’t even realized that she had said the f-word - an offense her mother would have beaten her for. That thought brought a twinge of guilt but she reminded herself that she was alive. She was doing this because she was alive and she was going to stay alive.
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Post by Val on Feb 11, 2020 5:09:20 GMT
Ike simply grunted in response to Trys' plan for him. If she were smart, she'd have killed him already. Not that he was going to suggest that. He would not return home until his mission was complete, which meant he'd just have to do what he did best: track Kiona down once again.
His eyes were locked on Kiona as she nervously paced, still feeling threatened and unable to defend himself. But as the girl spiraled, he was beginning to see an opportunity present itself. He looked to Trys, "I accept your conditions. In return for my eventual release, I shall protect you from the Lycan, if given the opportunity to do so," he added pointedly, his fists flexing once more against his restraints. It was best to make a truce with her and to at least shake up the trusts that were forming among the group. If Kiona became hysterical, it only served to help him.
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Post by Elvander on Feb 11, 2020 5:24:50 GMT
As Kiona became agitated, Aloy rose, pacing, suddenly on high alert with the tension. Trys sighed, looking at Ike as he spoke. "Maybe let's all just try not to get on each other's nerves right now. Ike, would you like some food?" she offered, watching Kiona from the corner of her eye. She understood the girl was traumatized, and why she wouldn't necessarily trust her. So she would give the girl space.
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Post by starrea on Feb 11, 2020 15:30:07 GMT
Kiona continued to pace, continued to think, but she couldn’t get anywhere. Her thoughts were fueled by her spiraling anxiety and were moving through her mind too quickly for her to latch onto anything helpful. All she could focus on was how she was trapped in a cabin with one person who wanted her dead and another who would potentially help him.
She hadn’t been looking at either Trys or Ike but her head snapped in their direction when they formed their truce. Even though Trys hadn’t accepted, it was all the proof Kiona needed in her paranoid state. She lunged for the counter, swiping a small knife from the same area she had found her other knife that was still stashed away. She held it so tightly that her knuckles turned white.
Kiona backed up, her eyes wild as they nervously flicked between Ike and Trys.
“Jus drein jus daun.” Kiona hadn’t even realized she had said it until the words were out. Grovakha had an official language, Trigedaleng, but most of the country remained uneducated, so in most cases, being able to speak the language was a sign of nobility reserved for socialites and royalty. She doubted Ike spoke the language but he might be familiar with the phrase. It was a common one, one the Grovakha Empire has centered it’s way of life around.
Blood must have blood.
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Post by Val on Feb 12, 2020 2:40:17 GMT
Ike was about to accept Trys' offering of food like a good little prisoner when Kiona officially snapped. He stared at the knife she had acquired and narrowed his eyes, assessing his options if she made the stupid mistake of attacking him. He shifted his legs and, although he couldn't stand up, he knew he could subdue her once more before she could land any kind of serious blow.
When she spoke, his mind reeled and registered the threat. No, he couldn't speak in the royal tongue, or so much as read for that matter. But those words held weight in their culture. "I didn't kill your fucking family," he growled in response. It was the truth, not that it would make much of a difference in her eyes. He was a hunter, dispatched for the sole mission of finding a retrieving a target. The soldiers that had stormed her castle were a different breed. For all intents and purposes, he was innocent. For now.
He wanted to say more, but physically bit his tongue, reminding himself that Trys would surely quell the situation. Let her have her breakdown.
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Post by Elvander on Feb 12, 2020 23:03:17 GMT
Ike was smart to remain docile considering his life was being threatened. She didn't know what the words meant, but clearly, it was a threat. Aloy snarled and put herself between Kiona and Trys, her tail lashing. Trys exhaled, staring at Kiona with disappointment. "No one will be killing anyone in this house, do you hear me?" She snapped. "If I have to worry about you putting a knife in his back, you can get tied up too. Is that what you want?" Trys was a kind woman. But she wasn't a push-over, and she wasn't going to stand for this. Her patience and her hospitality were wearing thin.
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Post by starrea on Feb 13, 2020 0:57:24 GMT
Kiona saw that she was very quickly losing control of the situation but she felt powerless to stop it. Her anxiety and paranoia were at an all time high and she felt the walls closing in on her. She raised the knife as Trys snapped at her, stepping back defensively. She was starting to feel more and more cornered and the thought of braving the storm was looking more and more appealing than staying here.
Even though Kiona was a princess, she was a princess of a warrior nation. While she had never been in a real fight for her life, she had spent most of her life training with the best warriors Grovakha had to offer. Her confidence was wavering but with Ike tied up, she was sure she could manage Trys and the cat. The woman was bigger than her but she could have the element of surprise. If Ike remained tied, then he would be easy to take care of. Maybe she wouldn’t even have to kill him. She could drag him outside and let another Nature finish him.
The tension in the room was palpable, and the silence only made it more noticeable. Her heart slammed against her chest as she tried to decide what to do. It was hard to make a decision when the effect could determine life or death.
“I’m not going to kill him.” She finally said, and even though it didn’t sound true and probably didn’t look true - since she was holding a knife and acting slightly erratic - but she did mean it. She hadn’t taken a life and the idea of it made her stomach turn. She wouldn’t kill him by her own hand unless she was forced to.
The snow was still going strong outside. If only Ike had been a little slower, Mother Nature would have covered her tracks and she would have been free.
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Post by Val on Feb 14, 2020 22:15:03 GMT
Ike watched Kiona unblinkingly, practically begging her to make a move at this point. He could tell by the way she was scanning each threat in the room that she was considering attacking them all at once. He couldn't help it when a short, snort of a laugh escaped him. This girl really though she was about to take on a puma, the do-gooder, him, and even his dog with a measly little knife. He had to hand it to her; her delusional sense of self-confidence was impressive.
"The knife in your hand says otherwise," he pointed out, glancing at Trys with the hopes that she'd reached the end of her patience by now.
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Post by Elvander on Feb 17, 2020 18:34:45 GMT
Every muscle in Trys' body was taught as the silence stretched out and Kiona decided what she would do. Unlike Kiona, Trys had taken lives before, and she knew how to fight. The princess wouldn't take her down if she tried, but Trys prayed she hadn't been wrong in her assessment of Kiona. She was a good person, and she proved it when she promised. She wanted to believe she was telling the truth, and so she did. Trys relaxed, exhaling a breath.
"I'm sorry, for getting upset, Kiki. I believe you. If the knife makes you feel safer, please keep it, but I'm trusting that you won't use it." Trys rubbed her temples, glancing at Ike. "Leave her be. Now, do you want food?" she repeated her earlier question.
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Post by starrea on Feb 18, 2020 17:06:58 GMT
Somewhere in the back of Kiona’a mind, she recognized that Ike was goading her on but even that realization didn’t stop it from working. Paranoia and fear were strong motivators and even though Ike was obviously an ass, it didn’t make him any less of a threat. And even though Trys’s words slightly defused the situation, she was still at least partially convinced that there was some sort of alliance between her and Ike.
Kiona remained rooted where she was standing, eyes warily flicking between Ike and Trys before resting on Ike. She didn’t relax her grip on the small knife. It was too small to be useful in a fight, but any knife was better than no knife at all. It just meant she had to be more precise with where she stuck it.
“What would it take for you to stop hunting me?” She suddenly asked. Her expectations were low, though, with coming to some sort of rational agreement between them. Even if he did want something, she was exiled from her own empire and had nothing but the clothes on her back. She had nothing to give.
“What about a game? One if where I win, you leave me be. And you win, I’ll go back to Grovakha with you.” She hadn’t really fleshed out the idea before she suggested it because she knew she couldn’t afford to lose. And if she did, she already knew she wouldn’t go back with him quietly. Even if she won, there was a chance he wouldn’t stop hunting her. But there was a chance he would - Grovakha people were people of their word. Their culture shamed those who went back on something they promised. But they were also a people who survived, and that’s why Kiona was willing to whatever it took to outlast and outrun Ike.
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Post by Val on Feb 21, 2020 1:03:22 GMT
Ike studied Trys as she apologized to the girl, feeling as though he was the only sane one in the cabin. He couldn't even begin to understand the blind trust she had in the princess. It had to be pity, plain and simple. Unfortunately for Kiona, he did not have pity.
"Yes," he responded flatly in response to the offering of food, leaning his head back against the wall with a thump. He had closed his eyes, annoyed by Kiona's prying eyes, but they snapped open when she spoke again. What would it take for him to stop the hunt? Perhaps death would stop him. That was about it. Bringing her back was his sole duty. She had no leverage over him, nothing she could possibly bribe him with. All he wanted was the honor in completing his mission.
He rolled his eyes toward the ceiling at the suggestion of a game, a deep chuckle escaping him. He could only imagine what kind of game she had in mind. Hair braiding? Speed reading? Chess? He couldn't imagine what other things she could possibly beat him at. Not that it mattered. Even if he played along, he didn't trust her to come back willingly upon defeat. Just like he wouldn't be able to give up his mission in the end. "How 'bout an arm wrestle?" he mused, arms flexing against his restraints at the idea.
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Post by Elvander on Mar 2, 2020 22:08:52 GMT
Trys remained silent as she prepared a little plate of the breakfast she'd set out for Ike, and a bowl of the cold stew for Hound. She put the plate on Ike's lap. He hands were bound in front of him, not behind his back, which would make the task of consuming the food a little easier. As a game was mentioned, she decided to stay out of it. Fine, if that was how they wanted to settle it. Trys retreated to the couch and curled up, scratching Aloy's ears.
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Post by starrea on Mar 3, 2020 2:08:23 GMT
Kiona felt her cheeks heat up as he laughed at her request, feeling stupid for even offering. “I’m not foolish enough to challenge you to something I know you will win. And if you think it’s so stupid, then we don’t have to do it. If you want to stay tied up on the floor, it makes no difference to me. I’ll be gone, one way or another.”
Her grip didn’t relax on the knife. She couldn’t relax, not even if she tried. Even though Trys was quiet, her gaze flicked to her every few seconds. The only thing keeping her standing at this point was paranoia and anger.
“How can you call yourself a warrior of Grovakha when you remain tied on the floor? I am disappointed that you are the best they sent after me.” She taunted, the desire to hurt him - no matter how little - overshadowing her better judgement, “Yu are kwelen.” She wasn’t sure if he understood her insult, but his inability to understand it would only serve as another subtle jab - she was smarter than him and she wanted him to know it.
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Post by Val on Mar 3, 2020 4:41:35 GMT
Ike grunted his appreciation for the food and began to eat with his awkwardly bound hands, tearing into the food with a clear lack of manners as Kiona whined at him over his reaction. He considered ignoring her again, but once again couldn't resist reacting to the taunt.
He slowed his chewing to stare across the room at her. Her foreign words fell on deaf ears, but he could tell that her goal was to belittle him. He couldn't wait to get his hands on the pretentious little bitch. "Hunter," he corrected her, voice low and menacing, "Not a warrior. A hunter," he repeated pointedly. And he would hunt her like the animal she was.
Glancing briefly at Trys and her cat, he reminded himself to hold his temper and continued eating, "If you can think of a fair game between us, I will play," he offered decidedly.
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Post by Elvander on Mar 6, 2020 19:10:51 GMT
Trys watched the interaction, wishing she had met Ike under different circumstances. He seemed like a man bound by principles, even if they were a bit extreme. She wondered if they could have been friends had they encountered each other in better times. Trys' gaze flickered to Kiona, "If you can come up with a challenge, I can be the judge to ensure things are done fairly. Ike is a hunter- tracking and outdoor survival are in his wheelhouse. I would advise you not to choose something like that." Trys was just making a guess, but she supposed that Kiona wasn't the sort to know her way around the wilderness, even if she had survived several days on her own. She could tell the girl was strung out. She needed to bathe, she needed food, she needed more sleep. But she wouldn't allow herself to, and so Trys didn't push her.
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