Post by Lordess Nerevar on Jun 5, 2009 2:19:36 GMT -5
[Anyone can feel free to join in. Anything you wanna do, say, whatev's.]
At the edge of the road that snaked over the hills between Cheydinhal and the Imperial City, Ariana sat stationary on her large mount. From a distance, all that could be seen was the dark figure of her horse beneath the her own shining figure. The early evening sun lit up her Imperial chain armor brilliantly, making her seem like a much more noble character than she really was. The thought almost amused her. She'd been christened this virtue every now and then by her superiors, but what did it really mean? What was "noble" anyway? Did they even know? Ariana had always felt she'd live her life solely for her own benefit, even if serving the Empire for the majority of it. It was her Empire, so who was she really benefiting at the end of the day?
Here, her thoughts stopped. Ariana almost let a rare smile crack through her hard face. She became philosophic at the most random of times. She was on duty, which certainly wasn't the time to be thinking about the definition of noble. Besides, who was she really? She was not a thinker. She was a fighter. Her job was simply to ensure safety on the roads between Chorrol and Cheydinhal. She couldn't help but spend her time thinking while out on these lonely roads. All she had was herself and her horse, and they'd send her straight to the temple for healing if she was caught talking to him. Ariana gave the horse a solid pat on his neck. She didn't see much use in the gesture, as the horse probably could care less about any affections from her.
Her grey eyes glanced upwards once again, focusing on what she'd been looking at before, the reason why she was stopped at all. In the distance lay the grand Imperial City. It shone like a white jewel upon its sandy isle. The waters surrounding it sparkled like a sea of sapphire. It looked beautiful from afar. Ariana couldn't bring herself to see the city that way however. The White Gold Tower that held its head so high over Cyrodiil was like a looming reminder of the tragedies of her past. Ariana was certain the Aldmer did not erect this beautiful edifice to house corruption. Ariana felt, too, that Alessia had not this intention when she began the great Empire of Cyrodiil with her own two hands.
No matter what the state the rulers of the Empire were in, Ariana would always remain uninvolved. As a Legionnaire, her duty was to the Empire itself, not to the Emperor. Sure, an Emperor could declare war and make orders to send men, but if the Legion itself did not agree, it wouldn't happen because, after all, what war could there be with no soldiers? Of course, there existed a conflict of morals in Ariana's mind. She was to protect the Empire and the people of the Empire as well. However, her father's murderers were some of those people. Refusing to assist them, should such a situation ever arise, would result in immediate discharge from the Imperial Legion and even perhaps criminal charges of treason to the Empire with subsequent prison sentencing. The thought haunted Ariana's mind, and the turmoil within her churned with the magnitude and depth of an ocean storm.
A rustling to her left caught her immediate attention. A pair of wolves were walking by. She'd been so still and quiet atop her horse that the wolves didn't seem to notice her at all. Ariana watched them pass by. Without so much as a creak from the leather of her saddle, she had her crossbow poised and ready to attack. She noticed that the second wolf seemed fairly small; it was a young one. It'd certainly make for a nice, meaty dinner. Something within her wouldn't allow her to slay the beasts however. Ariana decided, instead, to send her bolt into a nearby tree branch, causing it to jump and sway erratically. Fresh apples thudded to the ground beneath the tree.
Ariana dismounted swiftly to retrieve her fruit. First, she bent the tree's branch downwards and tugged at her bolt, hoping to get it back. With a small grunt, she gave it all her strength with a forceful pull. The branch escaped from her grasp with the bolt still nestled firmly in its bark. She looked over each shoulder, hoping no one had witnessed her display of womanly strength. Ariana heaved an annoyed sigh and decided to simply forget about it. She bent down and scooped up a number of fallen apples. The apples were placed into one of her saddle bags.
She kept out two of them and gave one to her horse. The Imperial Legion horse trainer would beat her with a cinch if he knew she was hand feeding her horse with its bridle still on no less. The horse munched on the sweet fruit contentedly. Ariana stroked his long face as she bit into her apple. She knew she needed to be heading down the road. She had to get to Chorrol at her arrival date in three days--no sooner, no later. However, she decided to let herself remain where she was just for a few more minutes. It was a beautiful day, the scenery was lovely, and she wanted to spend time enjoying her small dinner, even if only for a short while.
At the edge of the road that snaked over the hills between Cheydinhal and the Imperial City, Ariana sat stationary on her large mount. From a distance, all that could be seen was the dark figure of her horse beneath the her own shining figure. The early evening sun lit up her Imperial chain armor brilliantly, making her seem like a much more noble character than she really was. The thought almost amused her. She'd been christened this virtue every now and then by her superiors, but what did it really mean? What was "noble" anyway? Did they even know? Ariana had always felt she'd live her life solely for her own benefit, even if serving the Empire for the majority of it. It was her Empire, so who was she really benefiting at the end of the day?
Here, her thoughts stopped. Ariana almost let a rare smile crack through her hard face. She became philosophic at the most random of times. She was on duty, which certainly wasn't the time to be thinking about the definition of noble. Besides, who was she really? She was not a thinker. She was a fighter. Her job was simply to ensure safety on the roads between Chorrol and Cheydinhal. She couldn't help but spend her time thinking while out on these lonely roads. All she had was herself and her horse, and they'd send her straight to the temple for healing if she was caught talking to him. Ariana gave the horse a solid pat on his neck. She didn't see much use in the gesture, as the horse probably could care less about any affections from her.
Her grey eyes glanced upwards once again, focusing on what she'd been looking at before, the reason why she was stopped at all. In the distance lay the grand Imperial City. It shone like a white jewel upon its sandy isle. The waters surrounding it sparkled like a sea of sapphire. It looked beautiful from afar. Ariana couldn't bring herself to see the city that way however. The White Gold Tower that held its head so high over Cyrodiil was like a looming reminder of the tragedies of her past. Ariana was certain the Aldmer did not erect this beautiful edifice to house corruption. Ariana felt, too, that Alessia had not this intention when she began the great Empire of Cyrodiil with her own two hands.
No matter what the state the rulers of the Empire were in, Ariana would always remain uninvolved. As a Legionnaire, her duty was to the Empire itself, not to the Emperor. Sure, an Emperor could declare war and make orders to send men, but if the Legion itself did not agree, it wouldn't happen because, after all, what war could there be with no soldiers? Of course, there existed a conflict of morals in Ariana's mind. She was to protect the Empire and the people of the Empire as well. However, her father's murderers were some of those people. Refusing to assist them, should such a situation ever arise, would result in immediate discharge from the Imperial Legion and even perhaps criminal charges of treason to the Empire with subsequent prison sentencing. The thought haunted Ariana's mind, and the turmoil within her churned with the magnitude and depth of an ocean storm.
A rustling to her left caught her immediate attention. A pair of wolves were walking by. She'd been so still and quiet atop her horse that the wolves didn't seem to notice her at all. Ariana watched them pass by. Without so much as a creak from the leather of her saddle, she had her crossbow poised and ready to attack. She noticed that the second wolf seemed fairly small; it was a young one. It'd certainly make for a nice, meaty dinner. Something within her wouldn't allow her to slay the beasts however. Ariana decided, instead, to send her bolt into a nearby tree branch, causing it to jump and sway erratically. Fresh apples thudded to the ground beneath the tree.
Ariana dismounted swiftly to retrieve her fruit. First, she bent the tree's branch downwards and tugged at her bolt, hoping to get it back. With a small grunt, she gave it all her strength with a forceful pull. The branch escaped from her grasp with the bolt still nestled firmly in its bark. She looked over each shoulder, hoping no one had witnessed her display of womanly strength. Ariana heaved an annoyed sigh and decided to simply forget about it. She bent down and scooped up a number of fallen apples. The apples were placed into one of her saddle bags.
She kept out two of them and gave one to her horse. The Imperial Legion horse trainer would beat her with a cinch if he knew she was hand feeding her horse with its bridle still on no less. The horse munched on the sweet fruit contentedly. Ariana stroked his long face as she bit into her apple. She knew she needed to be heading down the road. She had to get to Chorrol at her arrival date in three days--no sooner, no later. However, she decided to let herself remain where she was just for a few more minutes. It was a beautiful day, the scenery was lovely, and she wanted to spend time enjoying her small dinner, even if only for a short while.
