1x1 DragonDream & TrashCentral

[DragonDream]

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Astronmia has suffered much for as long as Man, Elf, and Dwarfkind have walked the land. The most notable tragedy of all was the Great Demon war that left the western half of the land uninhabitable to all but the vile and evil that spawn there. Though many years have passed since then, humans still feel the brunt of the suffering for their hand in bringing the evil to the surface. Astronmia has recovered, though, and most cities have found ways to flourish and work together. All but those who live close to the border of the Dead Wastes would say that times have never been so good. Unity between the races, safe trade routes, and peace with empires across the sea has built up confidence within Astonmia. Perhaps that confidence is unwarranted, though...
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[DragonDream]

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◆Name: Leon Beldamere
◆Gender: Male
◆Race: Elf
◆Origin: Perim
◆Age: 26 Years
◆Height: 6'3"
◆Hair: Shoulder Length Copper
◆Eyes: Green
◆Other: Scar Over Lip
◆Profession: Mage
◆Artifact: Sun's Tear
◆+ Traits Smart, Witty,
Well Read
◆- Traits Inexperienced,
Whiny, Cynical, Cold
◆Likes: The Sea, Warmth, Reading
◆Dislikes: Most things, the dark

◆Life: Perim was the perfect place for a young Leon to grow up. The middle of two siblings, an older sister and younger brother, Leon had an easy childhood. Like his sister, Leon decided that he wanted to be a mage and was sent to Lavindrum when he was old enough to begin his studies. It was not an easy road, though, and he soon began falling behind the other's in his level. Disheartened, he longed to return to Perim. His family encouraged him to stay where he pushed through, nearing the end of his training. Upon a visit home, however, he decided not to return, fearing that he would inevitably be sent to Dragon's Bounty to warden over the dragons there. Becoming a citywide nuisance, Leon's family began trying everything to set him back on the right track.

◆Personality: Where Leon was once a warm and enthusiastic student, friend, and sibling, he became cold and reserved out of nowhere. Gaining a multitude of attitude problems, he was no longer as easy to be around. Negativity follows him around, and the only time he is tolerable is when he is partying. With no real friends, no motivation, and drive to do much more that sulk, Leon is a burden to be around. He has rare moments, though. The once thriving student still enjoys history and reading, though it is hard to tell that he genuinely cares for anything. He has little experience outside Perim and the mage's school, though.

[Trash Central]

Name: Admina "Ina" Thovir
Gender: Female
Race: Dwarf
Age: 28 Years
Height: 4'5"
Hair: Long, Tangled Red
Eyes: Blue
Other: Short beard, scars across face
Origin: Dhrem
Profession: Messenger
Artifact: Unknown
+ Traits:Optimistic, Good Story-Teller
- Traits: Reckless, Poor social skills
Likes: Gossip, Drinks, Stories
Dislikes: Giant spiders, Sunlight

General Life

Ina grew up as an only child in the city of Dhrem. Raised by merchant parents in a merchant guild, Ina was no stranger to traveling across the land and seeing the dangers it offered. Ina thrived when she traveled, eager to see all that Astronmia had to offer. Her parents' guild stuck mainly to the most populated cities of Astronmia, until they decided they wanted more. When Ina was a teenager the guild hired sell-swords and dared a trip through the dead wastes to try and secure an artifact to sell. Few returned from the expedition, and none will tell of what they saw. Nobody knows if they succeeded in their goal or were forced to turn back before they made it. After Ina returned from the expedition, she left her parents' guild to become a messenger, no longer eager to see the wonders of Astronmia. Instead, she moved from Dhrem to the city of Trohnma, where she has remained for the past 15 years. Ina travels only to deliver messages and spends her freetime in the local hotspots of Trohnma.

Personality

Being raised in a merchant guild, Ina has always been poorly versed in the way of manners and proper social skills outside of bribes and manipulation. Because of this, she rarely knows when she should and should not speak her mind, often getting into minor tussles with those on the surface. Underground, however, Ina has amassed plenty of friends and acquaintances from all walks of life, drawing them in with her optimism, colorful tales of the surface, and the latest gossip.

[DragonDream]

Leon Beldamere

Early mornings were far from being Leon's strong suit. Staring down at the emptied contents of his bag made the day's events start to feel more real. A week ago his father had approached him and told him that he would be sent off with a dwarven Courier to make sure a parcel was delivered to Dhrem, the Dwarven capital. Any attempt to argue was shut down immediately, and often by his father following with saying he would pay someone to drag him to Dhrem if he had to. Logically there was no real reason he had to go at all, and he was fully aware that his father was simply trying to get him to do something. Something other than make a fool out of the entire Beldamere family.

It was hard to stomach, but he knew that he had crossed a few lines too many recently. One being the most impressive party ever thrown at an elven dignitary's house while he was away. Not only had he been threatened with jailtime, it had also come to blows between his father and the man because Leon had also managed to break one of the most priceless items in the house, a family heirloom of some sort that was irreplaceable. In his mind, the atrocious vase should have been broken long ago, but that didn't make the argument any better.

On the bed lay his leather bag, and one by one he began packing his things into it. Some money, spare clothes, his signet ring, mage badge, and artifact. Being an elf, he wasn't fully required to finish school to practice magic, but the pin was still needed for legal purposes. Really it was just so the humans weren't so hurt about all the requirements they had to go through to do any magic whatsoever. His artifact, though, was something that did require the badge. While it wasn't a dangerous artifact in any capacity, it was a very powerful one according to the registry. To him, it was a glorified nightlight and a gift from his father when he left for school. He figured it would come in handy underground.

Leon had never been into the dwarven tunnels before. The thought of going underground wasn't the most comforting thing to him. He was assured that it would be a short trip that took no longer than a week tops, though. Being babysat by a dwarf was another of his worries. Trying to avoid making himself sick overthinking he put the rest of his things in his bag and shouldered it before heading out of his room. Giving halfhearted and bitter goodbyes to his mother, he followed his father outside and into their carriage. The entire ride was far quieter than he thought it would be. That was enough to set him on edge. He almost wished his father would yell, disown him, show any emotion at all. Instead it was stony silence. By the time they arrived at the courier's office and tunnel entrance he thought he was going to chew his way out of the carriage and make a run for it.

Leaving the carriage they stood on the side of the road. His father's brow was creased as he looked him over, then in a soft tone he said, "Please be careful and behave yourself, Leon. I know you've been having a hard time, but enough is enough. It's time to start acting like a man. I'm hoping that getting away for a while will do you some good. Give you some perspective. When you get back I am hoping to have a job for you. Its not ideal, but you haven't exactly been a model citizen and I've had to argue, beg, and bribe to find you anything. So please try."

The sincerity of his tone left Leon at a loss. "Okay," was all he could manage. It was far too early to argue, and he figured he wouldn't have to worry about it by the time he got back anyways. Most of his behaviors were eventually overlooked and forgotten.

"I love you Leon," his father said, kissing his forehead and pulling him into an embrace. "I'll see you soon." With the final goodbye, his father handed him the parcel and returned to the carriage and was heading back down the streets to home. Glancing at the large building in front of him Leon sighed, then went inside in search of his babysitter.

[Trash Central]

Ina Thovir

Ina had been told early that she was going to be given a "special job" this week. The prospect had excited her- more money, and certainly juicier gossip, would mean her next day off would be at least twice as fun as usual. She had spent long nights awake thinking of all the possibilities for this job and what she could possibly be delivering this time. When she got to the courier's office early that morning and told her "special job" was to bring along an elf she almost fell over from the excitement. Escorting an elf through Dwarven tunnels would surely catch a lot of attention and bring along with it gossip. This was far better than any of the potential messages she had dreamed up.

The delivery was another short one, just a quick drop and run to Dhrem and back, she was told. Her superiors told her the hardest part would be not losing the elf. Ina figured that shouldn't be too hard at all. He would be taller than most everyone else underground, so it's not like she could lose him in a crowd! After beign given the resr of the details for the job, Ina was dismissed and told to wait at the entrance for the elf to arrive.

Ina hadn't been waiting long before a carriage arrived and two elves stepped out. She watched as they said their goodbyes and one was handed a package and the other got back into the carriage and left. Ina supposed the remaining elf was the one she was escorting to Dhrem. As he entered the office Ina approached him and stuck up her hand towards him. "Hello there! Don't suppose you're the elf I'm taking to Dhrem are you? I was told I had a special job to do this week but I didn't think it would escorting an elf! My name's Admina Thovir, but you can call me Ina."

[DragonDream]

Leon Beldamere

The inside of the courier's office was a little underwhelming, but there was little time to really take it in. Immediately approached by a dwarf he took a second to process everything she came at him with so quickly. Swallowing a grimace he realized her hand was extended upwards. He gave it a light and polite shake, not wanting to immediately offend the person he would have to make the journey with. He would have plenty of time to do that later, as he was sure he would at some point. Already her eagerness was nauseating.

"Leon Beldamere," he said, introducing himself, "and yes, I am the elf you are escorting." He was noticeably less enthused, but did his best to give a reassuring smile. Even that sentiment was painful. "I'm ready to set out as soon as you are," he said, slipping his parcel into his bag before securing it again. Mentally he was no where near being ready. It was hard not to walk back out the door. Running or no, one last look at the sky would be nice before traversing a dark tunnel. He felt his chest constrict at the thought. "Preferably before I lose my nerve."

[Trash Central]

Ina Thovir

"Pleasure to meet you, Leon. I'm sure this trip will be over and done before you even realize the sky is gone! The glowworms do a wonderful job of making the tunnels look like the night sky, you know. Besides, I'll keep you enough company you won't need those burning rays of the sky!" As Ina talked she turned and began walking, waving a hand over her shoulder for Leon to follow her into the tunnel entrance. As they approached and left earshot of those nearby, Ina looked up at Leon and beckoned him down to her level. "Mind if I ask what you're delivering? I like to know, that way I can guess how much trouble to expect along the way. Those ruffians can smell out treasure almost as good as a dragon!"

Ina was only half honest with Leon about why she wanted to know what he was delivering. In truth, the package itself was no more a target on their backs than the elf himself was. Elves weren't known to travel the dwarven tunnels because they, much like many humans, preferred the upper roads, and only ever resort to using the tunnels in absolute emergencies. This elf didn't really seem to be in any rush brought on by emergency so Ina really just wanted to know what was so special about the package for the elf to be coming along. Did the senders not trust the dwarves to get the job done? Did they really have to send an elf along with the package to ensure it was delivered?

[DragonDream]

Leon Beldamere

He'd hoped his demeanor would have been enough to show that conversation wasn't exactly welcomed, but the Dwarf seemed insistent on chewing his ears off before they even got to the tunnels. When she stopped and motioned for him to lean down he could tell just how poorly his trip was about to go. Indulging her, he leaned down to hear what she had to say, surprised to know that she was being nosy. He didn't know much about the dwarven tunnels, but he knew enough to know they were generally safe, albeit troublesome for the taller races to go through.

He had no idea what his father had given him. As far as he knew it was just a blank piece of paper in the parcel. It was just an excuse to make him leave, and a poor one at that. Looking around and feigning caution he whispered, "I was told it was very private information that is going to a nobleman in Dhrem. I was tasked with making sure it gets there safely. If it doesn't get delivered, I am not welcomed back. That's how important this is." Leaning up he straightened himself and said "But you seem like you know the way and I doubt we will have any real troubles, right?" It wasn't the nicest thing to do, but it was amusing to him knowing that it was probably nothing at all. Mere forced exercise the two of them would share. At least she was getting paid for it.

[Trash Central]

Ina Thovir

Ina wasn't sure how much of the elf's story was true. She realized now that the chance of him revealing whatever he was carrying were slim to none. When she took just a second longer to think about the situation it occurred to her that they were probably sending the elf along for the purpose of making sure nobody else saw what was in the package but the sender and receiver, and not because they thought the dwarves wouldn't deliver it. She still didn't believe the information in it was anything to do with an emergency, so the package was probably some noble gossip and potential blackmailing. She was really hoping for the latter.

With those thoughts, Ina hurried further ahead into the cave, ready to start her job. She was also determined to find a way to figure out what the package was before this trip was over, and there was no better start to that than learning more about her temporary companion. "So, Leon, I'd rather not travel the tunnels with a complete stranger at my side! Why don't you tell me about yourself? I can start! I've been at this job for 15 years now. When I was 18 I had enough of living in Dhrem part of the year and traveling around on the upper roads the rest of it, so I decided to take on a job that meant I could stay underground, all year round. I haven't regretted that decision yet! What about you, what's your story? Surely you did something grand to get picked to deliver such an important message! I'm sure not any elf would be allowed to carry such a burden, if it not being delivered means you can't go back home."

[DragonDream]

Leon Beldamere

Leon was beginning to wonder if his father had inquired about the most obnoxious courier there was. Following beside her he listened as she went on about herself. He couldn't imagine anyone wanting to stay underground all the time for any reason. He couldn't help but muse that it was lack of sunlight that led her to be so chatty. Maybe by the end of it he wouldn't be able to shut up either and would grow pale and twitchy. The thought made the corners of his mouth curve upwards. Ina asking about him, though, did quite the opposite.

"Oh, I assure you I am not that interesting. This is the first time I've left Perim in ages. I grew up on the coast, then managed to slip my way into a job I thought would be sedentary. Unfortunately I was misinformed, I suppose. And I doubt I would be shut out of the city, but I would certainly be fired and shunned if I didn't do what I set out to. I've found that important people don't like being embarrassed. You secretary fails to deliver a letter, now that is pitiful and would reflect badly on me, mostly." That was no lie. He had offended enough people to have all of Perim hate him for one thing or another. Leon got around.