Kicking back in a chair and taking a small relaxing drink from his cup Ardin sat. He gripped the cup with both hands and sipped away at the steaming liquid letting it warm his throat. Now that's good tea. As he made the thought he wondered how he was going to pay for it. I dont exactly have a whole lot of money, perhaps I can work off my tab.

Earlier that day he had been worried about this place from the moment he stepped foot in it. This was not a typical place for someone of his nature, and to top it all off he was still a kid to them. Ardin never really thought of himself as a kid anymore though, after all he was more independent and mature than a lot of the adults he met since he left home. None of that mattered though since most of the people in the place could tell he was poor, his cloths weren't a beggar's, but they were far from decent. His face was smudged with dirt here and there. It was becoming more and more his skin tone than dirt, no matter how hard he wiped more came. Bottom line though was only someone wanting to cause violence for no other reason than to cause it would attack him. If that happened he was not helpless, he had his sword. Then again so did most of these people he was for sure of that. Still he wasn't really worried, it was mid day, the place only had a few people in it and they were probably usuals.

The payment however might be a problem, but he didn't have to thank about that now. All he would concentrate on at the moment was relaxing. He had traveled a lot the past week, almost constantly during the day and for at least two hours at night. He wasn't sure why he traveled so much lately it just seemed like the thing to do. Not like it was his destiny calling him, but he had the urge to keep walking, and felt bored stopping. Not anymore, he was glad he stopped and took it easy for a while. Pain was a understatement of how his legs and feet felt. They had been pounding since the third day of his travels. Ardin was glad however that water was not in short supply, there seemed to be a stream nearby every time he needed a drink. That kept him fit and sharp, ready for danger both physically and mentally. Yes now was his time to enjoy peaceful serenity, even if it was in a pub in a busy city.

His hands lowered an empty cup after many sips, laying it on the table in front of him. Slowly lowering his chair back onto all fours as not to fall backwards by mistake. He looked around at those in the pub again to see if there was anything that struck his interest. He saw nothing out of the ordinary, though he didn't know much about the usual happenings of this pub or any pub for that matter. This was the first time he had ever been in one, and technically most would say he was to young, but given the place he didn't think it would matter much. I don't think it will matter much.

Ardin kicked back his chair onto to legs again and gave a stretch, never losing his balance. He held himself in perfect position with his legs pressing up against the table. A large yawn echoed from his mouth and out into the chatting of the others. Aside from the urge to want to explore the city, there was only relaxation on Ardin's mind. Luckily for him relaxation was a much more pressing urge, and he planned to satisfy it till it was gone.

In front of him lay a long corridor, marble tiles covering the pathway. There were no windows or doors at the sides, only an ever distant light at the end. His footsteps echoed into the darkness of the path behind him. The weight of the world seems to be gone for now, a new kind of lightness overwhelming him. He was calm, cautious, and refreshed. It was a long time since such emotions entered his mind, the sensations almost disturbing. Suddenly the corridor warped itself, the marble tiles crumbling into dust as the floor gave way. Losing his balance he fell into what seemed like a pit, a pitch black void which engulfed the light. Feeling weightless he could only wait until his form landed on where he was headed.

Suddenly he opened his eyes. It was still a bit dark, the gloom barely giving any description as to where he was. There were shades of people everywhere, making use of their time in many different ways. As he raised his head the shades became clearer, the light becoming more luminous. His eyes flickered, adjusting to the new surroundings and feel of the place. He found himself at a tavern of sorts, judging from the cups and the look of the place. The bar patrons seemed unaware of his presence, adding more mystery to his situation. Looking around he seemed to be in a corner of the establishment, where the light was dim. Assuming it was what kept his presence unknown to the patrons, his next question would involve what placed him there.

Reaching back into his last known travel he recalled being on the road, leading away from the cities and into the villages. Tired of the culture of the city life, he led himself away towards the calmer slower pace of village life. Not meaning to settle down he made no plans of finding land or finding a means to stay. He remembered living off the wild, hunting for food and nourishment. Then he was here.

Trying to stand up, he lost his footing for a moment while getting the feel of his legs back. Still in a daze he moved along the sides of the room, trying to scope out anyone he might recognize, or anyone with a friendly enough face so that he could catch on where he is and what has happened. His gaze never fixed on a single individual, he continued to wander the room, trying not to attract attention to himself, though it was unlikely since he acted like some lost boy looking for his parents.

Ah, the Drital pub. Possibly Drake's favorite pub, and for a few simple reasons. one of which was the drinks: the ale tasted great here, and it must've been the bartender's specialty. Another reason was how often he got to fight somebody and not feel guilty. Though he didn't look it, Drake loved fighting more than a lot of other things, even if he didn't enjoy hurting people. He felt that it was the ultimate test of his powers, and flattening another bad guy was just another reason to enjoy.

He walked in, feeling as if he was one of the normals now, even if he never really talked to anybody. Despite his happy mind set, he still looked rather dark and foreboding. His face almost always showed his emotions, but today was different. He looked like his usual self, bored and angry. As he sat down at a table next to what looked like a child, his thoughts and lack of word checking got the better of him.

"What's a kid doing in here? And with a sword, no less?" He smiled a little, showing that his statement was more friendly than anything, but somehow he knew he would draw unwanted attention from the bastards in the back corner... and everywhere else in the pub.

Looking up blankly at the ceiling, he let his mind wander. At first he started counting the wood rings on the boards, but he lost interest in that quick. Almost as soon as he had stopped a man caught his gaze. The guy seemed to be having trouble walking at first, but this was solely Ardin's perception. He thought maybe he should help the man, he figured that was what a night should do. Before he could move to assist the man Ardin's thoughts made him hesitate. He might be embarrassed and not want me to draw attention to him. I will just leave him alone. He returned to his relaxed sit. Ardin felt bad for not helping him, and then he got an idea. "I know I will buy him a tea! I think he is already had enough ale to drink so tea should work fine."

Ardin gave a friendly wave at the man and motioned for him to join him. He hoped that the man was not drunk enough to think of it as some sort of threat. Then he shrugged that thought off, knowing that it was just his paranoia. Before he could see the man's reaction a voice interrupted his thoughts. "What's a kid doing in here? And with a sword, no less?" At first Ardin thought it was the bartender going to kick him out, but as he turned he realized his assumption was wrong. Another man whom he had seen, but more or less overlooked sat down at his table. The words might have been threatening, had the man not looked somewhat friendly.

"What? Where is a kid?" Ardin said jokingly. "Oh please don't tell, I am not that young and I have been one my own for a while. So I am not really a kid anymore." He extended his hand and said, "My name is Ardin, pleasure to meet you." Then he sat waiting for a reply and for the man to shake his hand. In addition he had not forgotten the other man whom he had spotted earlier.

Drake had, of course, noticed the stumbling man, or boy, or whatever he was. He hadn't even thought about it, really, paying more attention to the boy in front of him. He looked quite friendly, and Drake was glad his message had not been misinterpreted. He raised his hand to shake the boy's. Though Drake was only nineteen, his calloused, rough hands represented somebody who had been fighting for many, many years. Also, he usually referred to people as "kid."

The room was getting a little bit quieter. Friendly greetings, kids, and Drake were not good at hiding in the Drital Qu'ellar pub, and all three tended to draw bad attention. More eyes followed Drake and his acquaintance than normal, and Drake tended to notice these things. As his rough hand gripped the boy's loosely and shook it softly, he looked back without moving his head, his eyes checking out his left and most of his back side. He noticed only one person drawing a knife from under a table. A new low, he thought. It was usually at least three.

He paid it no attention and let the boy's hand go. Drake looked to the confused person and quietly motioned him over. No doubt they were all currently targets by the idiots in the bar. However, Drake sensed no malevolence in the air, just tension: no fights would break out any time soon.
"Hey... can you handle yourself? Just as a precaution... We don't seem to have friends here..."

Continuing his search for anything in the room, he noticed a man wave at him. Impulses obliged him to return the gesture, but as he raised his hand he realized that the man was unknown to him. He stood idle for a while, wondering what gesture he performed or if there was something in his garments which would attract a stranger's attention. Paranoia aside, he turned and moved towards the direction of the man, who was now shaking hands with another.

As he approached the two seemingly friendly faces in the tavern, his eyes cleared a bit more, the image of the tavern becoming a bit clear to him. The setting was familiar, as if he was here before. The faces may not be that common, but the cold stares and indifferent looks he received were all too familiar. It was as if the bar rejected people like him, and with no good reason at that. Though waddling a bit from the recent 'awakening' he could notice that the room was getting silent, that gazes were shifted from random places to the three of them.

He took a moment to see what the two friendly faces were wearing, and it seemed no different from his. Both wore clothing that seemed to be fit for travel, though different in style. If they had any weapons with them he could not tell from the distance, but if they were indeed travelers he assumed they had some blade somewhere. As he observed the two he was headed for his hands unconsciously tapped his sides, checking if he himself had any weapons of any kind. Experience told him that since he was knocked out his prone form would have been ransacked of every last coin and every bit of anything that could be sold on the streets. A small sign of defeat almost appeared in his face when he felt several sharp tips run by his fingers. They must be knives of sorts, but not the typical ones. At least he was armed, which comforted him somehow.

As he neared the two, one of the strangers spoke out. "Hey... can you handle yourself? Just as a precaution... We don't seem to have friends here..." The man perceived the question was directed at him, and replied in a similar manner. "I suppose I can, though I do not yet understand why." He meant to be as honest as he can, but with the recent lapse in memory, whatever this was that he was getting himself into, it would probably just make his recollection of past events a bit more complicated.

Drake couldn't help but notice the man now. He'd stumbled at first, then walked over shyly to them. He looked rather like a traveler, and Drake spotted some sort of objects that the man had tapped. From his slight wince, Drake guessed they were all sharp, and probably knives or stars of sorts. It made him think of a ninja from the stories he used to hear. He smiled at the man's answer, and stuck out his hand.
"Name's Drake. What's up?" He had not had a good conversation in a while, and was wondering what these two would have to talk about.

(OOC: Sorry for the short post...)

Ardin's face became puzzled. Drake had mentioned weapons and Ardin didn't really care for that kind of talk. He hadn't felt like fighting right now, and Drake's talk made him think they were about to be ambushed. He remained calm yet his muscles tensed slightly just in case he needed to use his sword.

"I can handle myself fine, why do you ask?" He said not missing a beat. Ardin managed a slight smile but stopped smiling after a few brief seconds. He sat upright and waited a response. All the while thinking of the first time he had held a sword. There he was back in the meadow and holding his father's sword, it was heavy and he only managed to get it a few inches off the ground before it hit the dirt's surface. After a dozen or so months (he had lost count) the sword had become somewhat familiar to him. Not like it was part of him but like he was in control of it. He practiced with one of the guards of his town for around seven months before he started training on his own. All in all he had started at ten and had become somewhat skilled by twelve. Though he obviously had started young, he still at seventeen had much to learn about combat.

His mind turned back to the scene the pub, and he waited for everyone's next action. From the two men before him to the bystanders at counter. Ardin was keeping an eye on all of them. His ears also tried to focus, just to make sure that what he couldn't see he could hear. I'm ready..

"Hey, snap out of it." Drake was waving a hand lightly in Ardin's face. He hadn't meant to scare the boy. (Drake thought him as a boy, even though he was only 2 years younger than Drake. He even thought of the other man as a boy, though he was obviously a little older than Drake.) He only meant to keep him on guard, but only a little. He smiled a friendly little smile again.
"It's alright. Nothing will happen, and if it does, I'll do the fighting. Promise." He held out his hand for a shake with Ardin, while looking friendly to the other man. He actually held out a second hand for the other man to shake at the same time, a greeting instead of a promise shake.
"Name's Drake, what about you? And why were you all screwed up a second ago?" He smiled that same friendly smile. A warm, comfortable glow emanating from him. It was nice to see this in such a terrible place, especially in the dark corners of Lomedor. Even some of the other pub members smiled at this friendly man.
(OOC: God, I can't seem to write anything long for some reason.)

Sanzen finally made his way to the two strangers, who seemed to have discussed something a moment ago. One man was waving his had in front of the other, with his other hand outstretched in Sanzen's direction. This he took as some form of greeting, and responded by raising his hand, and slightly waving. He did not know what the man intended by raising his hand, but if it was a friendly gesture as a measure of safety he simply waved back. His eyes expressed hope that this gesture would properly satisfy the man, and to some extent maybe ease up the tension a bit so a friendly and informative discussion could be initiated.

The man introduced himself as Drake, a name he has not heard of before. While waving his hand ever so slightly Sanzen replied in a low voice, "The name's Sanzen. I can't really say for sure what is going on here, apparently I just woke up on the corner over there, with my last memory being on the road. You guys know anything happening lately?" He had meant to only reply to Drake's question of his name, but with the friendly mood he was receiving he decided to take the leap and tell them all about his situation. It's not a good move when meeting strangers, as it can sometimes cause an awkward moment or maybe imply something he had not intended.

Answers replied to the questions, Sanzen took a moment to examine the area once more. The low hushed tones which surrounded them seemed to have died down a bit, their presence apparently becoming something which was out of place. Perhaps this establishment was not meant for strangers like them, or maybe their attire or manner of movement just attracted too much attention. Whatever the case a 'friend' seems to be a good idea at the moment. He turned once more towards the third man, the one Drake was waving towards. He then spoke in a normal tone, "Who might you be perhaps?"