Thorns

Nyle brightened up significantly as Poppy sang her tune and introduced herself. She took the hand offered and eagerly shook it.



"Oooh!! That was a lovely song, how long have you had that lute??" Nyle got straight into what she was interested in. She was so impressed by the thing, she was sure the girl put so much love and care into her lute with how well she played. "I-I'm Nyle if you didn't hear," she said after her breaths of excitement faded.

Storm Fly Smiled As She Saw Everyone Joining Together "What A Bunch Of Nice If Not Weird People. Look At All These Brand New Friends We Have Knight I Can Tell This Is Going To Be A Great Adventure." She Looked Down To The Floor And Quietly Whispers "My First Every Friend And Look How Many They Are Knight. I'm So Nervous, How Do Normal People Act With Others. Mother Never Told Me Anything About This. And If What That Man ,Oh What Was His Name Again Knight Was It Anden? I Think He Said That, Is True Then We Are In Danger We Must Some How Protect Everyone Here Ok Knight? Ok" She Says With A Sigh And Looks Back Up At Everyone Chatting And Getting Along.   

Anden looked distracted for a moment, eyeing a section of the crawling horizon. After a few responses he suddenly snapped back to attention and picked up where the conversation had left off.

"I'm glad to have you here... all of you." he said, addressing the small crowd. "If we put all of our abilities together... we'll be stronger than any old legend for sure!" he concluded albeit in hyperbole.

   Delphi shifted her weight between her legs, finding the air to thicken with tension as the seconds ticked. So much of this was already new to her- triclops? Children fighting? Their chances of possibly diverting society's downfall appeared slim in her mind, and their pompous optimism had only served to test her temper. 
   Her eyes resisted the urge to roll under her mask. While certainly a few recruits did possess interesting talents... nonetheless it wasn't necessarily anything more "special" than what had been done before. Surely if that was the case- the thorns would have been culled long ago, but alas they proved to be a more formidable foe than initially estimated. However, because no one was "special" enough, they were now moths to the flame. Blinding oneself with the allure of praise and a haughty ego only brought them closer to the candle's wick if anything. Yet, Delphi clamped her jaw shut; it was not her decision in the end.
      ...Or at least, she tried to. While it definitely wasn't her idea to wander like a lamb being lead off a cliff, the shepherd's staff had already guided her way. If she was truly stuck here, and was apart of the team, then promoting a realistic sense of probability just might save a life. After all, there was always someone with their head up in the clouds as they charged into battle, blissfully unaware of the consequences that could follow. The convent stated simply for her to save them, not in any particular way of how to do it. While speaking out of term could be frowned upon normally, surely if done professionally and for the benefit of the group it would pose no problem? Her right foot meekly took a step forward, before breaking out in full stride towards the women.

   Delphi swallowed hard before raising her voice, "I- Poppy, was it? While I'm confident your abilities are finely tuned..." she coughed into her fist, "I implore you to consider the possibility of failure." She straightened her posture with her arms planted at her side, staring headfirst at the woman, "Many a time will a warrior thrust themself into danger, only to be met with a cruel fate. It is important to view the situation as level-headed so one does not overlook threats and find themselves in a predicament. I encourage you to do the same." Her voice remained flat throughout the lecture, bringing her point across with little regard to the morbid implication of her words.

Panna cleared his throat and stepped forward, alerting the crowd of his presence. "While I hate to damper the mood any further I must agree." He peered onto the group, taking in the younger appearances. Most of them had probably never face anything like this before, they had no scope of just how dangerous things truly were. Just how easily people died. Panna lifted what was left of his right arm for emphasis as he addressed his new companions; "I've been through a lot, I have. And I always did it on my own. But this... This ainte something I'll be able to survive all by myself. These thorns are bad news."

Leander seemed to have lost interest in everyone once more now that no one was pointing out how wonderfully tall he was. He fell to the floor with a crashing 'thud', crossing his legs and staring up absentmindedly at the sky. "I miss the mountain birds..." He whispered to no one, a wistful look in his eye. His head snapped down, however, at the mention of death on the battle field. Of possible 'failure'.


"No one is allowed to die," He interrupted, even though Poppy had already done her best to move the topic along. "No one is allowed to." His voice shook a little it as he put his hands into fists and held them firmly on his knees, trying to stare down anyone who opposed him. The mean look in his eyes only held for a moment before they appeared to get wet, and his strong fist went limp as he raised it to his eyes to wipe at them. "There is dirt in the air." He said hoarsely. His hand fell back down and his shoulder's slumped forward as he tried to distract himself by drawing in the soil, not making eye contact with anyone. "Silly dirt..." He mumbled to himself.

  One of the men from earlier approached, agreeing with her earlier statement only to be viciously lashed out upon by the peculiar floral woman. While at core she was basically agreeing with him, the woman met his words with a fervent animosity. It was an unsettling observation, being that the one with the afflicted limbs was so outwardly aggressive. Delphi turned her head away, finding her eyes to be focused upon a female figure. 

   The woman who introduced herself as "Nyle" met Delphi's suggestion with a swift rebuttal. Although her words strive for a possible midpoint, she couldn't help but assume her actions did not with the praise she showered on Poppy just moments ago. "Nyle, if I recall, were you not just offering words of vanity to the bard? The qualities of being pessimistic and realistic are different. However, thoughtless optimism can lead one astray if not careful and allow fate to whisk their soul prematurely. Claiming someone you just met-" as though unconsciously, her voice began to rise just ever so slightly, "-is naive." As her mouth slipped, her awareness snapped back into full throttle. She flinched upon the grim realization of her mistake. She pursed her lips as a silence overtook her for a few passing seconds, the thoughts in her mind stirring at a rapid pace. Normally she had meticulously monitored her script with scrupulously, but perhaps with the eyes of the convent gone she had felt just a tad bit more free. Yet the idea of apologizing was highly unappealing, and she had no desire to do so in the first place. With reluctance, she opened her mouth as to finish, "I rest my case."