[Mountain Clans, Before March] From ice to iron [Closed]

[Loreia]

Meeting the night before to rest, the units of Lyras, Dulver, Coldbrook, Drakeson, Marsten, Longshore, blacks, Reachmen lead by Roxton, and sellswords have quickly set up camp, packing up in the morning to prepare to march on command alongside each other to the battlefield.

Pale morning rays flood the senses of the campaign leaders at an angle, dimmed by the canvas of the war tent. The shadows provide no relief from the cold light, though the occupants of the tent encased in livery and armor feel little discomfort. Garrett Snow postures and deliberates over battlefield conditions and composes strategics - the older commanders refuse to budge in their seniority, put off by the bastard eager to prove his competence, but both defer to the preference and ultimate decision of the Lord of House Marsten. Loreia has little input beyond a nod or to speak toward affirming a statement, but she notices a familiar look in Yoren's eye during their reunion amidst the meeting of those with a mind for strategy.

At the meeting's conclusion on Lord Benedict's authority, they each file out of the tent, the less experienced taking the silent hint to exit ahead of the others. Outside, the tents of each party span just over one hundred rods, spread apart from each other by at least four yards under a bright, cloudless sky, hastily erected early in the evening. Yoren asks to borrow Garrett's guardian for a few minutes to catch up, to which Jorah agrees, allowing Loreia a moment to speak alone with the hopeful beneficiary of the seat of Landhold.

"
Morning, Yoren,"
Loreia starts first, offering a hand to shake. "
Sleep well?"

[Yoren longshore]

Yoren takes her hand with a smile. The months he has been at home has been good on him. He has gained a few pounds and lost his old garments for a well crafted plate armor: "
Very well, thank you, although I fear that some of the insects has grown a little too fond of me, they will certainly miss my presence."


He nods to Loreia before asking: "
How about you, are you happy being back to civilisation?"


Yoren nods slightly towards the war maps: "
Although I am uncertain if this here is more civil than what we did in the north. As a matter of fact, these tribes have a lot in common with the wildlings, especially culturally."
He gives a small smile before taking a few steps to the right to get two field chairs, which he puts facing each other, giving Loreia the opportunity to sit and rest.

[Loreia]

She plops down in her seat, barely restrained in her dignity as she does, minorly stretching in place. She raises an eyebrow at the comparison before answering the question. "
The voyage on the Ibb ships felt longer than it really were. I miss my charges, but my reunion with Daveth at Grenward got cut short."


"
You're sayin' wildlings an' clans're similar? How do you mean?"


OOC: I'm beginning to wonder how much our characters would really know about the clans or why they choose to live in exile or rebel. Maybe Yoren is more informed between the two of us. For the record, Badger is at my tent, and thus not present.

[Yoren longshore]

OOC
Yoren is well informed, and knowing of the first men is quite standard info.

Yoren seats himself on the other chair, the chair creaking under the weight of his fullplate.
"
The clans and wildlings both are of the first men, and they both got robbed of their lands by the andals. They both once ruled their lands, but then the Andals threw them away from civilisation to rot. They are both angry at their treatment, and angry due to this. Understand that they are people just like us, they have their own reasons. Treat them well and they will reciprocate."


Yoren shrugs: "
we traveled hard, but it was worth it, if not for our material gain, then at least for the people we saved. And I still remember that boar you brought down! That was an impressive feat of strength."

[Loreia]

Not quite, the Vale clans are of a different stripe. http://awoiaf.westeros.org/index.php/Va ... ns#Culture

Yoren shrugs: "
we traveled hard, but it was worth it, if not for our material gain, then at least for the people we saved."

"
Uh huh,"
she grunts unimpressed.

"
And I still remember that boar you brought down! That was an impressive feat of strength."

"
Gran did most of the work, if you ask me,"
she responds matter-of-fact, deflecting praise. "
My takin' part in the Hunt at Riverrun proves that. I couldn't catch a hare if it ran between me feet."


"
Were most of the free folk you let come south to your lands ready to follow through an' bend the knee?"
she rejoins.

[Yoren longshore]

"
Come on! You have changed these people's lives for the better, surely that is more important than the gold you got from the journey?"
Yoren asks.

"
They are mixing well with the locals, give it a few years and there will hardly be any difference."
Yoren bends closer and starts speaking more quietly. "
Our... big friends are having more of a struggle, but I've given them a separate log camp where they are left more or less undisturbed. We are currently sending in people twice a week to trade and give them food. The younger are starting to trust us."

Shrugging he continues;
"
Things take time, but after a time they will too be ready to live alongside us."


"
What do you think of this campaign? Will it work long term, or will the clansmen simply return in a few decades? Will we be able to beat them once and for all?"

[Loreia]

"
Come on! You have changed these people's lives for the better, surely that is more important than the gold you got from the journey?"
Yoren asks.

"
You mean my house's reward,"
she answers taciturnly. When they met the evening prior, Garrett had thanked Yoren on behalf of Lord Coldbrook for the perceived payment to the Coldbrooks for their involvement in the expedition north of the Wall.

"
It was mine to do with as I wished, but it's best for us both if you change your mind about who earned it."

"
What do you think of this campaign? Will it work long term, or will the clansmen simply return in a few decades? Will we be able to beat them once and for all?"

"
The clans are alone an' surrounded, the very rocks they perch on are domain of the Seven Kingdoms. The warriors of the Vale allied with Stark bannermen, Reachmen - and Ironborn - will be too much for them to bear."


She continues with a confident grin, "
We've got the numbers and experienced troops, and I believe in our leaders. We've got a chance to cut off their mountain retreat if we move quickly, and if we manage that, we can put an end to their raiding for good."
The weight her voice carries suggests the singular idea she has of what sort of end.

[Yoren longshore]

"
Of course, it was yours to do with as you wished. You earned it right as flames. But are you not happy about the people you saved too? The children that will no longer have to fear raids, the men who will no longer wonder if they will live the day? Is this not something to rejoice over?"
Yoren looks over at her: "
Hopefully you are right, hopefully this will change things for the better..."

Changing subject quickly he asks: "
Where's Badger? I'd like to think he grew fond of me, but I haven't seen him all day..."

[Loreia]

"
Of course, it was yours to do with as you wished. You earned it right as flames. But are you not happy about the people you saved too? The children that will no longer have to fear raids, the men who will no longer wonder if they will live the day? Is this not something to rejoice over?"

She sighs, answering, "
Of course,"
leaning back in her chair, crossing her arms and continuing with dry whimsy, "
I'm sure the tribes' tongues'll be waggin' about it for months, an' they'll be tricklin' in over the years to come, praisin' the Red God and swearin' fealty to the royals an' the lords of the lands they flock to."

Yoren looks over at her: "
Hopefully you are right, hopefully this will change things for the better..."

Changing subject quickly he asks: "
Where's Badger? I'd like to think he grew fond of me, but I haven't seen him all day..."

"
I chose not to bring him to the war tent, he's still waiting at our camp. Sometimes he can be a distraction."

[Yoren longshore]

"
There will be some bad people coming, but just as you cannot judge us all for Harren the Black, you cannot judge all wildlings."
Yoren gives a brief smile: "
I've met my share of guards in my life, but if I'd cut them all under the same comb, I would not talk to you now."

"
Badger is a distraction, but a most welcome one. I'll readily admit that my focus would not be on this campaign if Badger was here."

Yoren sits back: "
Would you like to trade secrets? You mystify me, you seem dissoluted, but you are still fiercely loyal to your house and keep a well disciplined well treated dog."

[Loreia]

OOC: the sarcasm was meant to convey perceived futility or smallness in Yoren's success.

She deigns not to reply, her eyes closing and her brow lifting slightly - a modest dip in her composure. Having lost mental respite in trade for a moment of physical repose, this talk felt almost as taxing as the times she argued with Rheya. Just let him "
win"
and we can move on, she thought.

Yoren sits back: "
Would you like to trade secrets? You mystify me, you seem dissolute, but you are still fiercely loyal to your house and keep a well disciplined well treated dog."

"
I am not dissolute,"
she puffs. She lets that statement stand alone, moving on to address the inquiry. "
The people behind the Coldbrook banner are respectable. Lord Tomas is a good master, if distant with those who serve him, but I'm very close with his sons."


Her face softens as she speaks of her loyalty. "
I faltered once before, when I left my first home. I felt tired, I didn't want to deal with the struggle anymore, but, I regret it. I should've stayed. Without my family though, home just didn't feel like home."
She pauses briefly. "
I wouldn't call it a secret, just private, but you've earned it."

[Yoren longshore]

"
When I was just a boy I left my home. Your home was taken from you, but I just walked away from mine. That would be the real failure."

Shrugging slightly he continues: "
I've had many homes through my life, but I don't think I have ever been as strong as you are in the defence of it. I've burned down my home and simply left to find another one, it's impressive how you can stay in one place like you've done."
Yoren smiles at the bigger woman before leaning a little further backwards, the chair creaking again under the weight.

[Loreia]

"
If I can do anything to defend my people an' my house, I won't sit idle. Surely I'm no different from your uncle in that way."


She tries to find the words to explain what her home means to her. "
It's just...permanent. Maybe those homes meant nothing to you because you still had the one in Westeros, with people to return to."


"
Why'd you leave your people? Was there anything more to it than goin' to new places?"

[Yoren longshore]

"
It's true, I've had homes, but never permanent homes, I always knew I'd move on, knew I'd leave it behind."


"
A decade ago I thought I had it all figured out... I won, I ravaged and I returned victorious... My life was like that in all ways... I chased women, I was the son of the lord, I was charming, I was leading ships of my own, I led the ideal ironborn life, and women loved it."
Shaking his head he continues: "
I won them I ravaged them and i returned to my friends victorious. My father did not like it. My duty was to serve the smallfolk, not steal away with their daughter for a week before leaving the daughter crying. To him I was obnoxious, disobedient and lacking in discipline. I lived for myself with no though to consequenses. We argued, we fought and with him on the ground I told him that I was leaving. He was too proud to ask me to stay, and I was too proud to skulk back, so i left..."


Yoren smiles: "
although I suspect that deep within I've always though of that as my real home. How old wete you when you... left the bear island?"

[Loreia]

She holds her tongue, refraining from picking apart his account of his own early life, wary of bringing on another argument.

She raises an eyebrow at the question. "
Seventeen... Old enough to make my own decisions,"
she shrugs. "
Or at least that was the case at the time, once my mother died. That was hard."


"
Where'd you go after you left the Ironborn?"

[Yoren longshore]

"
Lys, easy work, good wine, and the most beautiful women there is. They're a heartless bunch, they'll love you for a while, but when the money's gone, so is the love. I wear my fullplate now, but truly, after surviving lyseni courtesans these clansmen are nothing to be scared of... Here I have people watching my back."


Carefully probing, Yoren asks: "
how did she die? Was it peaceful or did she leave... violently?"

[Loreia]

"
So, you owed them for their services and couldn't pay. What happened then?"

Carefully probing, Yoren asks: "
how did she die? Was it peaceful or did she leave... violently?"

She replies calmly, "
A few days before troops from the mainland came to help repel the Ironborn raid in winter, she was speared through the gut. Healers couldn't do anything."
Murmuring, she adds, "
When is it ever peaceful?"

[Yoren longshore]

Yoren smiles: "
there are certain crossbows to wield one handed."
He puts the palms of his hand a foot apart: "
smaller than this end to end. They serve as an easily concealed weapon. They kill their targets alright. But I got lucky, as it bounced off my ribs so I..."
Taking a long pause Yoren breathes shallowly before ending lamely: "
I left Lys the same day, and didn't set foot there for a long time."

Yoren shakes his head as he hears of Loreias mother. Attempting to soothe Loreia he tells her: "
Even violent deaths are sometimes peaceful, the dying often finds peace on their deathbed. In Lys..."


Yoren stops: "
Sometimes the dying worry, but they worry for who's left behind. Some go out kicking, others peacefully. Regardless, we all cross over, but the memories are left, what they achieved is left, you are left, but soon you'll join them anew, and the only regret you should have is those you leave behind. But they too will come."


Yoren gives a bleak smile: "
When you remember someone, they cannot truly be gone."

[Loreia]

She perches stoically in her seat in reaction to his salving words. How much of that is sermon? "
It was years ago, Yoren. I wasn't bein' dismal, but I appreciate it."


"
S'pose my house counts as my new family, in a way. Haven't thought about what I'd do if the house fell. What about you, have you ever lost someone close?"


[url=Empathy vs Yoren - offseason 1, from ice to iron][/url]: 4d6k3 14

[Yoren longshore]

Yoren seems to tell the truth, though it seems that he is omitting certain things.
"
My mom died relatively peaceful. My brother died with a blade in his hands and so've most of my close friends. They went down to blades, with blades in their hands, that's something else entirely, they knew the risks and someone just got the better of them, the way it should be. The worst I've..."

Yoren pauses for a moment before continuing: "
Many have died, but they died proper, the way we should all die. I cannot imagine how strong you'd have to be to see your mother go out like that..."

Yoren pauses to fetch a jug which he pours into two glasses: "
To the ones that has faced life's only certainty."

[Loreia]

"
We still have long a day ahead of us, priest. Ah well, one cup'll be enough."
Loreia raises her cup with him. The heady violet aroma fills her nose as she drinks, mingling with the tang at the tail end of an otherwise luscious fermented berry flavor. Her expression returns from hiding behind her cup, grim as she runs her fingers through her hair.

"
I can imagine. She was a formidable woman, in battle and at home. They called her Storm Hammer. After she held my hand for the last time, what followed were the longest nights of my life. I started imaginin' the foes I killed were fathers, or married, or sons. It kept me going until help arrived, an' then I left."

[Yoren longshore]

Yoren winks: "
To get through today, we'll need to dull our senses and compassion as best as we can. Leave your compassion for your children, or you won't have any... Neither children nor compassion. The final test will make sure to strip you off compassion, and children is hard to get from beyond..."
Yoren has turned quite gloom in the turns of the conversation.
"
The gut's a bad way to go, I think that after that she'd be happy for your support. What was her name?"
He asks. "
Names may hold great power, especially combined with remembrance."

[Loreia]

"
I don't know about that,"
she skepticizes, tipping her cup again. "
Her name was Maya, but names're just names. Or does the Lord of Light say different?"
she prods. "
Why'd you become a believer?"

[Yoren longshore]

"
Names are just names, but when cherishing memories, I at least like to think if their names too, it makes me remember them more clearly. I've been a believer for years, but I didn't know what I believed. In Essos there were dozens, if not hundreds, that lives to see the world. Vagabonds without homes, our family each other. Mereen, Port of ibben and tall trees town, they all came to look alike, completely different, but still alike. I was a stranger in all their towns. My fellow vagabonds fell one by one. Some fell ill and died, others died from weapons, some of them simply settled down. Regardless, I was left alone. There came new ones, yes, but they were all inexperienced. I couldn't be their friends, only their mentor. I was among the last of a dying breed."

Yoren thinks for a moment before continuing: "
I had always thought a lot about what we cannot see, and in Braavos I spent many days just wandering around. However, I found that even though many religions told truths, they seemed slightly off. First when I met Bomilkar, my mentor, did all the pieces fit. I followed him for years while he gradually convinced me, until one day I figured I'd need to return to Westeros, as my family would need me."

Gesturing at himself he ends: "
and here I am. How did you keep to the old gods, after all you've been through? Has your faith never faltered?"

[Loreia]

OOC: nice touch with the house words.

The many truths sounds like a turning wheel, spinning completely around only to show the same spokes. Her attention wanes as he prolongs his answer, but drifts back when he fails to mention where his comrades in arms went, or what happened to them. Did his group eventually die, or did he come back to Westeros with the lot of his foreign recruits in tow?

When he returns the prodding about her own faith, her eyes lower in reflection. "
The Old Gods are a fickle bunch,"
she begins slowly. "
Sometimes they like us, sometimes we lose favor, and I've hated them for it at times. I've always felt that they don't care, as long as my faith is sincere and I don't break any rules, or oaths. But, we often find them wanting in mercy or direction, an' after I left Bear Island, I became interested in other gods. So, I s'pose I've doubted, in a way. The Faith Militant did smear the Seven's image, but a brown brother would visit Grenward from time to time - still does - an' read to me from the sacred text. His teachings left me with a more favorable impression, an' between the Seven an' the Old Gods, I feel there is a balance."


"
I've been much less disturbed by the castle's hauntings since then,"
she adds with a wistful smile. "
The curse used to creep me out."

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