Vex
Lord Paramount
what is this
Posts - 938
Likes - 241
Joined - May 2016
|
Post by Vex on Jan 10, 2017 16:17:44 GMT
Half a smile formed on her lips, though it disappeared shortly. It was almost as if Blackwood thought he and the Bloodraven held a monopoly on weirwood bows.
"It's no Valyrian steel," she replied. "Anyone that has a tree can make one."
"I will leave any sort of judgement regarding my worthiness to the Gods. What were your prerequisites?" she asked.
|
|
The Gambler
Administrator
Alea Iacta Est
Posts - 1,984
Likes - 612
Joined - December 2015
|
Post by The Gambler on Jan 11, 2017 17:46:12 GMT
"Ah, but there is a catch there," Blackwood countered, motioning to the blood-smeared weirwood. "Most with a tree, at least those who revere it, would not be blasphemous enough to cut its branches. Whereas a house with a dead weirwood, poisoned by enemies of the Old Gods, might be more inclined to turn desecration into instruments of destruction." Apparently Lord Seth thought he had a monopoly on weirwood bows because he, in fact, did.
"Do you know how difficult it is to craft a weirwood bow? One has to sense the knots before he begins to carve the wood, see the bow in the pale wood, as much a test of will and patience as it is craftsmanship," he explained, with a hint of pride. "And that was just the last hurdle for an archer that wished to join the Raven's Teeth. The tests of marksmanship, skill, scouting, and survival that preceded it were no less grueling."
|
|
Vex
Lord Paramount
what is this
Posts - 938
Likes - 241
Joined - May 2016
|
Post by Vex on Jan 11, 2017 23:10:31 GMT
"A living tree is sustainable. A dead tree rots. But I see your point," said Dacey, even if she doubted the bloodthirsty Old Gods would have minded giving up the occasional branch to see their devout followers suceed in battle. Not that she would have dared cut one off herself, out of superstition.
"I'm not giving it away," she said in response of his explanation, and gave half a shrug for good measure.
|
|
The Gambler
Administrator
Alea Iacta Est
Posts - 1,984
Likes - 612
Joined - December 2015
|
Post by The Gambler on Jan 11, 2017 23:58:53 GMT
"And I am not telling you to," Blackwood assured her, though she caught the ghost of a smirk cross his features in the dim light. "Unkindness is serving you far better than it could Brynden at this point."
|
|
Vex
Lord Paramount
what is this
Posts - 938
Likes - 241
Joined - May 2016
|
Post by Vex on Jan 12, 2017 22:08:10 GMT
"I was wondering whether it had a name," she said. "Fitting. And that was my thinking as well."
She glanced back at the heart tree. "I suppose you came here to pray," she said, stepping further away from it to let Blackwood have his turn.
|
|
The Gambler
Administrator
Alea Iacta Est
Posts - 1,984
Likes - 612
Joined - December 2015
|
Post by The Gambler on Jan 12, 2017 22:26:02 GMT
"We'll just see if you're getting better use out of it than those who earned his," he added, in the air of a challenge. "There will be former Raven's Teeth competing in archery. Do try not to embarrass yourself wielding our former commander's bow."
"I just came to see the grounds on which we will be competing," he informed Dacey. "I asked Brynden once what the purpose was for praying before our dead tree, if the Gods could see through dead eyes. He believed the Gods can see everywhere; through the ravens, crows, bats, and wolves. I do not need a tree for them to hear me pray." He motioned to a massive raven perched on a nearby branch, its beady black eyes glinting in the moonlight.
|
|
Vex
Lord Paramount
what is this
Posts - 938
Likes - 241
Joined - May 2016
|
Post by Vex on Jan 12, 2017 22:39:30 GMT
Dacey followed his gaze to the raven, yet another ridiculously obese specimen. After a moment, she tore her eyes off this feathery descendant of Lord Butterwell, and nodded to Blackwood, appreciating him sharing his views.
"If memory serves, I killed a dozen of your Raven's Teeth," she said evenly, without so much as a shred of pride evident in her voice, and started back towards the castle. "It's they who need to impress me."
|
|
The Gambler
Administrator
Alea Iacta Est
Posts - 1,984
Likes - 612
Joined - December 2015
|
Post by The Gambler on Jan 12, 2017 22:54:52 GMT
"And if memory serves, each of ours that died took a score of knights with him," he countered, apparently one of the few men who could discuss the war frankly without ire. In fact, he seem delighted to converse with someone that was on the other side, free of the bitterness of defeat. "What is the action of an individual before the grand panoply of war?"
"So," he said after a beat, moving to inspect the angry visage of the tree and the cooling blood smeared upon it. "What did they show you?"
|
|
Vex
Lord Paramount
what is this
Posts - 938
Likes - 241
Joined - May 2016
|
Post by Vex on Jan 12, 2017 23:09:23 GMT
At his (likely rhetorical) question, Dacey stopped in her tracks and thought a moment. "A show of skill," she replied over her shoulder, and turned around, finding that they'd essentially swapped their positions in respect to the tree. "The rest is just numbers."
She paused a while. "The past," she said. "Blood begets blood."
|
|
The Gambler
Administrator
Alea Iacta Est
Posts - 1,984
Likes - 612
Joined - December 2015
|
Post by The Gambler on Jan 13, 2017 20:53:47 GMT
"Just numbers," he echoed, seeming amused by her somewhat pragmatic view, as he turned back from the tree to study her in the dim moonlight once more.
"Better than the future," Seth remarked off-handed. "For that you should be grateful.It is always a terrible shame to see youth and beauty undone by madness."
|
|
Vex
Lord Paramount
what is this
Posts - 938
Likes - 241
Joined - May 2016
|
Post by Vex on Jan 13, 2017 23:10:54 GMT
She thought for a moment before replying. "Is that what drove Lothston mad? Visions of a dark future?" she asked, assuming Blackwood would have a fair amount of insider knowledge on her.
|
|
The Gambler
Administrator
Alea Iacta Est
Posts - 1,984
Likes - 612
Joined - December 2015
|
Post by The Gambler on Jan 13, 2017 23:46:48 GMT
"The future certainly drove Danelle mad, but not in the way you think. She lost her mind in her waking hours, not her dreams," Seth replied thoughtful after a beat. "Sometimes hope is more a curse than a blessing, like a lifeboat with a leak."
|
|
Vex
Lord Paramount
what is this
Posts - 938
Likes - 241
Joined - May 2016
|
Post by Vex on Jan 15, 2017 12:10:20 GMT
"Can't rely on hope," Dacey agreed. "In my experience, you make your own luck. Or.. the Gods do," she said, looking briefly to the tree before turning back to Blackwood. "Do you take your visions for the truth?" she asked.
|
|
The Gambler
Administrator
Alea Iacta Est
Posts - 1,984
Likes - 612
Joined - December 2015
|
Post by The Gambler on Jan 17, 2017 8:16:49 GMT
He simply nodded at her statement, not finding any fault with it but having nothing to add either.
"One man's truth is another's lies. One man sees a ghost and the other just a breeze," he replied, knowing far too well that green dreams often came from a first person perspective, which was hardly infallible. "I take the visions as the reality as the Gods wish me to see it. Does whether it is true or not really matter if it is their will?"
|
|
Vex
Lord Paramount
what is this
Posts - 938
Likes - 241
Joined - May 2016
|
Post by Vex on Jan 17, 2017 14:31:10 GMT
Dacey thought about his question. "I suppose not," she said, now feeling a tad guilty she'd ever doubted the Gods and their visions in the first place, even if it had mostly been due to no one else believeing her. "When I asked the Gods for their guidance, I didn't expect them to deliver it to me that fast," she added, and nodded evenly. "Thank you."
|
|