Around the Fire: Decisions

JP: Alexis, Gonyaul, Wolf, Islana

Gonyaul smiled, feeling honored by both their requests. Even though he was already friends with Alexis he still felt reserved about this.

He felt all his conversations in common tongue fell a bit short of what he was properly trying to say.

“I honored.” He signed those words and placed his hands to his heart while warmly smiling at them both.

“Need time for think. Light not on feet steps for this.”

Perhaps it is best he change the subject. It was rare people actually inquired about him. Normally they just considered him an anomaly and moved on. And he tended to ask and listen so frequently about others he strategically didn’t give them as many opportunities.

“Alexis, you think in what you do now? Or show you farming.” He smirked, reminding her that is what she had told him before this all came to be.

Islana had finished with the hide, washed her hands and headed back over to the group. She slowed her walk to see how Gonyaul responded to Alexis, thinking about asking him herself to also learn a little of his language. Based on the man's response however, she held off asking.

The young woman, instead, just took a seat and relaxed a little after the work she had just done.

“Well, first I want us to have an actual roof over our heads. After that… I’ll look for some mercenary work. Not a farmer at my core. But…”

She smiled at Gonyaul.

“… I’d like to show me farming anyway. Would be a damn shame not to do it.”

“I show you. Good to know how gift land and reap land gifts.” His words trailed off.

His expression became less optimistic looking then usual. The talk of farming had gotten him to remember something.

Alexis took note of the change of mood.

“What’s wrong?”

He was thinking about the bid from the Duke. Gonyaul had been procrastinating on giving it thought.

“Duke bid me go to Aquilos. Boss at farm says I should say yes. Not clear which way I must go?”

The mercenary’s expression darkened a bit. Aquilo would, without a doubt, be at the centre of the Duke‘s war efforts.

“I see. That is a big decision.”

She sighed.

“Selfishly speaking, I’d much prefer you stay with us. But I can’t deny the people up there could really use someone like you.”

She gave him a bittersweet smile.

“What can I say? You’ll have to let your heart decide. You always do, don’t you?”

He let her advice sink in.

“Orohc say, if not time to move than not move till time.”

He took a deep breath. “I take strength from now by worry about tomorrow. Know better.”

“You make hard decision recent. How did you know?”

The mercenary was silent for a few moments as she tried to find the right words.

“Like you, I had some time to think. To look back at what happened and what that meant for what is to come if I stay on the path I have been.”

She looked into the distance, where the keep would be.

“… being a soldier means following orders. And my guts told me that in the near future there were going to be more orders I am not willing to follow.”

Returning her gaze to Gonyaul, she continued.

“So all in all I don’t think that decision was quite as hard for me as yours is.”

He followed her gaze towards the keep. Then in the direction of Aquilos. Gonyaul then looked into the eyes of each person currently there with him.

He was a manifestation of kagim. His purpose was etched into every fiber of his being and made known through the tattooing hidden beneath his clothes. He always asked himself, -in every given moment, who or what could he be serving.- Now there were multiple needs, both important.

Gonyaul remembers the Orohc counsel on such matters. They made known the existence of a binary war between yes and no, fighting over choices inside the mind.

“I see.” He looked down to his hands.