Her captain, for whatever reason, had seen fit to stay here in town for awhile longer. The problem was, that the longer they stayed, the smaller the coffers became. Most of the crew, by now, had taken on with other ships and taken to the seas again. Her captain's ship was now left with nothing more than a skeleton crew. It was a steady crew that had chosen to stay on with the captain, and a crew she knew well. She had chosen to stay, and was glad for the chance to get her "land legs" back. Either way, she was paid (as it were) for being part of the crew. However, as cabin "boy", her pay was more or less inconsequential.
Her latest errand, direct from the captain, was to buy some fresh vegetables - some of which were difficult to store while out at sea. He wanted something fresh made for him, and since his personal coffers allowed it, he would indulge. Her own coffers were little; most being spent on some place else to sleep.
Avoiding the ship had allowed her more freedom in her choice of dress. As she entered the square, filled with vendors of all kinds, she was dressed in a skirt layered with bright reds, greens, blues and yellows. The blouse she wore was a soft cream color, and not too bright. Her hair was left long, wrapped in a green scarf. Her features were a little more feminine than usual. It was a wonderful talent to have - the ability to manipulate one's body to take a chosen form. And it was a talent that she kept strictly to herself.
Slippered feet deftly wove a path over the cobblestone of the market, carefully avoiding being trampled by the crowd around her. She inhaled the rich scents of foods being sold and smiled. The shouts of the vendors was music to her ears. Her gaze swept over the market place, drinking in the people with delight. She could spend all day here today.
Before picking up the requested items for her captain, she planned on earning a little money herself. Hidden within those layers of fabric making up her skirt were two pouches. One contained some coins - for one must eat, after all. The other contained a special deck of cards. In her hand was a sign - painted with a crystal ball, a crescent moon and a few stars to keep it company. Under the picture, for those who could read, was printed in neat letters: "Fortunes told".
She did not immediately set up her little space. She wandered through the market, looking at various things and getting a 'feel' for the place. A short time later, she found a nice spot to set up her sign. It was an area near some vendors, but that allowed for a grassy place to sit. It would give her plenty of notice if she placed her sign just right. She stood there, sign in hand, chewing her lip in thought as she contemplated just the right place to put her sign.

(Could I jump in? Hopefully this is open. So sorry if it isn't)

Amzela stooped past many people, searching for one to find. She failed to find one in particular for the mass of people made her confused. Finally she gave up and fell into pattern with the surrounding citizens. She did not travel very far when she tried again, this time succeeding. Munching on a batch of sweetcakes, she strolled on to find a quite little alley where she could rest. Pasting some venders, she noticed a woman struggling with a sign. Ripped apart from wanting to run but wanting to help, she hesitated to make a decision. Her curiosity got the better of her and she walked over to the woman. "Could I help you?"

(Mind if I come in as well? You can kick me out if you want. And dont feel bad about it if you do.)

Lurik had been walking in circles for hours. This is why he hated big towns. The stares people gave him were enough. The buildings were just added annoyments. They all looked the same to him. "Gah! Damn this city! Why is it so big!" He said in his orcish tounge. This only brought him more stares. "Just keep walkin. Stop staring at the Uruk-hai like hes a freak" He said in a growl.

He keeps walking a bit. Eventually, he smells a bakers cart. He walks tword the scent of baking bread. He hadnt had any fresh food for awhile and was sick of dried meat. He walks up to the cart and asks for a loaf. The baker shakes a little while he gets it. He gives it to him, and Luruk pays.

He starts to eat the bread when he sees a person with a sign. He was never good at reading human and struggled with this. "Fortune...teller..." He reads it a few times to make sure he read it correctly. "Fortune teller...Whats that?" He had never heard of that. He was never at a big town like this and any small town he went through didnt have much.

He decides he might as well ask. He walks up to the woman with the sign. "Ecuse me..." He says in his most cival tounge he can muster "...what exactly IS a fortune teller?" He was sure this would earn him more stares from everyone around him.

Amzela filpped around, startled. When she saw Luruk, she shoke her head to keep herself awake and replied, "A fortune teller is one that tells you your fortune." Amzela herself didn't realy know what else a fortune teller was. It wasn't common to see a Uruk-hai these days but it wasn't rare to find a rouge like her around these parts. She showed no fright, for she saw Uruk-hais around another part of Lomedor. They were really nice if they didn't get angry or irritated...or that's what she thought. Maybe this one is also stupid enough for me to pickpocket but in case... She touched her sword and got ready to make a dash into the crowd any moment.

He nodded as if understanding. "(To Brynne) So you tell futures?" He asked to make sure he wasnt wrong. He hated to sound dumb about anything and feed the fire of a steriotypical Uruk-Hai. Then he noticed Amzela touch her sword.

Luruk shook his head and put his hand on his bow. He wasnt far away, but he was far enough. He couldnt miss at this range. "Dont even think about it. Human." He didnt want to fight...well, he did. He always wanted to fight, just not here. He growled slightly to scare her a bit. He prayed he wouldnt have to back that up.

This was too much. Her distant but still there wolf blood took over her instincts. She growled back and paced a little. Everything seemed to turn red in her vision. She lashed out her sword and was about to attack the Uruk-hai. STOP! She thought. She instantly dropped the sword and fell to her knees. "I'm sorry," she panted. She knew all eyes were on her. She wished she could just disappeared right there. She quickly got up, looked around and smiled softly. "Uhhh...." she said, looking at Bynne.

Luruk bends over and picks up her sword. "Here..." He says and he hands it to her. "You've got to be careful who you draw a sword on. Most Uruks would have tryed to kill you without even thinking about it." He smiles, and odd thing to see any Uruk-hai do.

That's interesting! she thought as she took her sword from the Uruk-hai. She grew more confused when the Uruk-hai smiled. Rubbing her neck, she asked "So. What's your name?" She looked around some more to see if anybody else was staring at her. If anybody thinks I'm in love with him, I'm going to die. She suddenly remebered what the Uruk-hai said. "Oh, and it's half-human."

He bows slightly "Luruk Blackarrow, at your service." He said. When she said half human that confused him. "Your half human?..." He was usually pretty good at guessing the race of any creature. He had to be, considering he had to know what type of animal to hunt for a bounty. "What is your other half?" He said with a confused look on his face.

"Hello Luruk. I'm Amzela."
"Yes, I'm half human. Half human half elf with a tinge of wolf blood, as you may have noticed." She growled again, snorted and curved her long fingers into claws. She looked at him up and down. "What class are you?" Hopefully, he's not a rouge like me. she thought as she wondered again if she could pickpocket him. Her other side said no for she was too slow and the Uruk-hai would have her cut into ribbons in seconds. "So, uh, where do you come from?"

OOC: Just to tell you. Dont ask what class anyone is. Its like going up to a random person now and asking it. Think of it as more of a...job or...skill...

[Half elf with a little wolf blood...strange for anyone to be.] Hes a little cofused at first when she asks his class. Then he remembers somone else asking that. "O, I am an Archer...or scout if you prefer. As to where I am from...Whats the human name..." He hadnt said the name in common for awhile. "Ummm...Near...Estolad. I grew up there...where are you from?"

OOC: Sorry. Still learning how to 'ask' stuff.

Amzela blinked and shook her head. What did I just ask him? She looked at him, enviously, for she wanted to know how to notch an arrow.
"Estolad? Where is that?" she asked. She never had been outside of Lomedor before, though she was willing to do so.
"I'm from here, trying to pickpocket..." she stopped abruptly. What did she just say? "Anyway, I never been out of the city before. What is it like out there?

[Never left the city?...strange...]. "The world's so vast, its hard to say." He took a deep breath. "Its what humans call 'beutiful'. There are so many things to see. Estolad, for example, is on a gaint plain. When the wind goes across the grass, it makes it look like the sea." His eyes dropped a bit. "But to be honest, Ive berley seen the desert to the north or the mountians to the west. Ive wanted to explore them, but. Even for a Uruk-Hai, being alone in those places is misrable."

Amzela looked at him. "A desert? A mountain? What is that?" She had seemed to heard of those things before. A giddy feeling took her as she could imagine what it would be like to cross such things. And Estolad. She heard many things about it, a gigantic grassland that covered about the Market place and half of the pubs. She could just imagine what it would be like to not have to be pressured by her friends to take someone's food so they could eat themselves. "Could I join you? We could go to see those places!" She said suddenly.

He coughs on a bit of bread that he had taken a bite of. "*Cough!* You serious?" He laughed a little. "You've never heard of a mountian or desert?" He shook his head in amazment. "And you acually want to travel with an Uruk-Hai?" Either this girl was brave or foolish, he couldnt decide. [A thief around wouldnt be a bad thing...maybe.] He thought. "You sure?"

"Yes I am serious. I have never heard of such things. What are they?" She looked at him with a smile. "You haven't met many people that have never made it out side the city gates, have you?" When she heard his next question, she looked at him in disbelief. "Yes, I am sure. I would travel with anything, even a horse fly, to get out of this city. It's been driving me nuts but my friends would always trap me before I could get a mile out of here. And trust me, I wouldn't ask you if you were some kind of fool. I'm a thief." She looked at the tent. "Come on. Let's talk about this in the ally way over there." She pointed to a musty looking crevice between the buildings. "We won't be over heard." She turned away to start walking but turned back. "Oh, I won't steel from you while we are traveling. I think you are trustworthy to me enough to not steel from you." She jerked around again and started walking.

Luruk follows her. He laughs mentally [She would follow a horse fly? She must be despret.] He smiles physically. "Friends? If they wouldnt let you out of the city, Id hate to see your enemies."

When they arrive, he looks at her. "You asked about the mountians and the desert. Well to be honest, Ive never gone too far into either. The mountians..." He starts. "Well...imagine a rock." He looks around and grabs a rock, about the size of his fist. "Now..." He grabs a pebble. "Now then. This *points to the rock* is the mountian. And this *to the pebble* is a hill. Now, imagine if the rock was more than twice the size." He says. "Thats about how big a small mountain is." He paused to see her reation. "Still want to go?"

"A big rock?" she asked. She, then, realized that a mountain was what she saw in a canvas painting. It was a big, purple rock that shot up to the clouds. She remembered the lumpy green things that surrounded the mountain. So that is the hills! she thought. She looked at him and imagined how it would tower over their heads as they made their way together. “Yes, I still want to go.” She was very excited. "And what about the desert?"

Luruk smiled at her enthusiasm. "The desert...one word to describe it that everyone should know, is it is HOT. I dont just mean summer hot. No, it is really really hot. And dry! When I looked at it the first time, I couldnt see any water! And its only sand, for miles upon miles! I decided not to go. The beasts there are especially nasty boogers! Theres Antlions thatll eat you in one bite. Snakes, jackles. O yeah, and Cactuars. Those are the things to watch out for. They look just like all the other catus, but they are alive and they can shoot thier spikes!" He shivers. "And the sand worms..." He stops the story right there.

"If Id want to go anywhere, itd be the mountians." He said, out of breath because of the stories.

"Hmmmm. I think that the mountains are nice. How about that?” Amzela was beginning to like this Luruk. He was nice, much nicer than other Uruk-hai. And she wanted to go traveling. “Okay! Would you like to travel together? And what is a sand worm?” She never heard of it but she pictured a worm covered with sand. "Is a mountain hot?"

He laughs at her questions, not to be mean. But, she did ask alot. "Ill agree to travel with you. But, we have a long way." He smiles kindly "And you'll have plenty of time to ask as many questions as you can think of." He looks around a bit.

"Now, then. In one week, Ill meet you at the city gates. You grab anything that you want to keep. You wont be back here for a long time. Ill get together as much food as I can. Bring a bag." He adjusts his bow on his shoulder and walks off "see you in one week."

(Ill make a thread in the Salquedor Grasslands asap)

Amzela waved as the Uruk-hai went off. Boy that was exciting! she thought. And I get to go to where ever he lives! Smiling, she jumped onto a ledge and decened off to her group. When she got to a cornored off section hidden in a lybrith of alleyways, she called "Sharku! Tell Sargreysa that I'm going off to somewhere and I won't be able to come back her in a while!" She heard a muffle reply of "Yesss ma'm." Amzela shuddered and went back to the market where she gathered her belongings and started to head out.

(Sorry guys, I thought this thread was dead!! Its an open thread - so no problem with either of you joining!)

She propped the sign as the woman approached. Brynne greeted her with a smile and a shake of the head at the offer for assistance. Her hands smoothed over her skirt, shifting the brightly colored material. She appeared very much like a gypsy. From the small pouch, she drew forth a deck of cards. Her fingers played over them lovingly for a long moment.
She was about to usher the woman over to a quieter area when the Orc approached. She blinked, rather surprised to find such a creature within the city walls.
"Fortune telling is telling of a possible future." she explained, for both of them. The woman had been partially correct. "The future though is never set in stone, and could change for better or worse at any time."
She leaned back and watched as the two challenged each other. She wasn't much inclined to interfere - though she hasn't backed down from a fight, she generally saw no reason to place herself in one if not necessary. She sighed as weapons were drawn and slid a half step forward, stretching her arms out to either one. She was almost between them but had plenty of space to get herself quicky and, preferably, safely out of the way.
"Now, now...there is no need for drawing weapons here..." she drawls out gently, looking from one to the other. "It is after all, a nice day - and you have the bounty of a good fortune!" She flashed a brilliant grin as she stepped back, glad that tensions have eased. She didn't care whether the two worked it out between them or if she'd played a hand. As the two began to talk, she slipped back a little more to allow them space. She had little interest in idle chit chat; though she was sure to keep an ear out of interesting tidbits that may be useful. Her hands idly shuffled the deck, fingers caressing the thick paper in a reverant manner.

Amzela came out off that dark alley. When she noticed the woman, she shook her head. "Sorry, I forgot about you there. Now." She smiled. "The fortune?" She smiled widly, thinking about how and what would happen when she joined Luruk. She took a seat near the girl. "Oh yes." Amzela dumped some coins on the table.

The pair gone, she turned her attention to completing the set up of her area. She spread a large blanket over the grass. When Amzela approached her again, she was on her hands and knees, smoothing out the material as best she coud. She turned and smiled at the woman, nodding her head.
"A good idea before your trip..." she said, overhearing the agreement the two made. She settled on the blanket and gestured to Amzela to join her. "Please, sit."
She shuffled the cards in her hand as she spoke, "Just concentrate on what you'd like to know. Its best if you have something a little more broad than a yes or no question." She smiled at the girl before dipping her head. She concentrated on Amzela's imagine in her mind, not asking the lady what her question might be. It was enough that she concentrate on it.
When she was done shuffling, she carefully laid out the cards. One was placed down, another crossed over it. A card was placed to either side and to the top, the rest laid in a pattern below the cross. She laid them out in a particular order, significant really only to herself. Only ten of the cards were laid out for viewing, the rest were kept in her hands. She studied the bright images intently for long moments.
"This bodes well for you, overall." She said, smiling to the woman again. "But, there is no specifics on the future. There are some pieces that aren't quite in place yet, so the cards are not revealing possibilities." She set the rest of the deck aside, keeping it close to her.
"This is only my interpretation of things. You know yourself better than I would. If something speaks to you, please don't hesitate to add input. The advice and insight offered will be more meaningful to you if you can add personal meaning to it.."
She rocked back a little, peering at Amzela as if awaiting her go ahead to complete the reading.

(if you want to know the specific cards showing, just let me know and I can give them to you)

Amzela, all confused, shook her head. She opened her eyes and blinked. "Could you read me the full content?" she asked. Hmmm... Could one of them be the horrid Sargraysa? Or could it be that handsome Luruk? Or could it be Starshielt? She filpped the thought over and over again in her head.