Retainer Ad-Venture Contest (EU) - Entry Thread

[Zanarkander]

Nald stepped in the shallow waters of Bloodshore. He froze as he felt something scrape on his feet, as the water was reaching for his waist. Once again he recalled the conversation he had with his sister.
“You should just ask him, and you would be a Gladiator in no time. You know Zanar, he would only be glad to help you fulfill your dream.”
But he couldn’t help his pride, he wouldn’t ask such a thing. It all hailed from some years ago, when they were leaving their adoptive family to go to Ul’dah, were Nald was planning to become a recruit at the Gladiator’s Guild. They were attacked by some bandits and a newborn adventurer came to their rescue with nothing more than a thaumaturge stick in hand. Surprisingly enough he scared the bandits off, but they managed to take with them all of the two lalafells belongings. The kind adventurer, Zanar, offered them some Gil to help them reach their destination. He would have refused, but a glance at her exhausted sister convinced him to set his pride aside.
Once in Ul’dah he couldn’t afford to follow his dream, and to provide for her sister he became a Retainer. Great was his surprise when he became assigned to that very Zanar that saved them in the desert! He finally had the chance to repay his debt.
“Tell me, milord, what can I do for you?”
“You know you can call me Zanar, right? We’re friends.”
“Shut up and let me do my job. What do you want?”
He needed fish. Of course, Zanar couldn’t know that Nald was frightened by fishes, seaweed and water in general, and of course Nald wouldn’t let him know. He wanted to please his friend and execute his duty.
Though two full years had passed and he had become quite a fisher, he still couldn’t feel comfortable when his feet were submerged in water.
“I wanted to become a Gladiator. But life made me a fisher. And sure as the Seven Hells, I’m gonna be the bloody best at it. For my friend. For my sister.” he thought, while walking away with the three big Gigant Clams he had caught that night.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Character: Zanar Kander
World: Sargatanas
Item: Scarf of Wondrous Wit

[Pepean_Gogoan]

Character name: Pepean Gogoan
World: Lich
Prize: Scarf of Wondrous Wit

I could not have asked for a better start to the day. The sun was bright, the birds were singing, my tea was just the right temperature, and I had just purchased the latest novel by Jajara Totora. I thought nothing could go wrong. Just as I opened the front cover the sound of my master’s summoning bell rang out. I often question if he times his summonings in such a manner. Being bound by my retainer duties, I was forced to answer the call.

Once I arrived I noticed that Master Pepean had that twinkle in his eye which usually meant he had a task planned for me that would involve venturing out into The Black Shroud. One must wonder why master is not willing to go out and perform this task himself, but far be it for me to question my employer. Sure enough, he wanted me to set out on a field exploration, with naught but a rusty sword to protect myself with. Come to think of it, why did master, a veteran White Mage, have this old sword he had me equip? Then again, with tales being told around Eorzea of my master challenging Primals to dance competitions, I believe he lost his sanity many moons ago.

Thus I made my way into the Shroud. Upon leaving Gridania’s walls I noticed a group of strange white, floating, fluffy creatures with big red balls above their heads. I had heard tales of such creatures before, Moogles I believe they are called, but never did I imagine such things actually existed. Curious as to what activities these creatures partook in, I carefully followed them. After following them a while, we ended up in a small clearing. It was there that I saw him. A crown atop his head, and wielding a mighty blade, there was no doubt this was Good King Moggle Mog XII, another being I thought only a myth. There was no doubt this was a Primal summoning. “I must warn master!” I thought. But I need proof of my claims. So, with a deep gulp, I mustered up all the courage I could find, and dashed towards the beast, sword in hand. With one swift strike, I cut off one of the beast’s whiskers, and dashed back towards Gridania as fast as I could.

When I reunited with master, I presented him with the whisker and prepared to warn him about the oncoming Primal threat.
“A whisker?!” he responded before I could speak, “Are you even trying when you’re out there?!”
To say I was shocked and offended would be an understatement.
“Very sorry Master Pepean,” I sarcastically replied, “I shall make a better effort next time.”
With that, my master discarded the whisker, a part of a Primal no doubt worth a small fortune, into the lake. All my bravery in the face of certain doom was for nothing. I do honestly question why I continue in this line of work at times.

[ruskie]

Character: Asny Rak'nys
World: Cerberus
Choice: Bluebird earrings

Karra sighs as she once again finds herself with a venture token in her hand. "How clumsy she was when we were kids, now she's the hero and I'm the one running around helping her out with various things" she scans the list given to her. "Hmm yak milk and cockatrice thigh, could be worse" she murmurs to herself and heads towards the nearest yak.

As she collects the milk she reflects back on how they used to train together and hunt together. Then that incident happened. She still wakes up in a cold sweat sometimes from it. She places the milk on the cart to be taken away and heads towards the Hinterlands - looking around to see if she finds anything else along the way while day dreaming how nice it would be to be the hero.

As she travels the Forelands she spots Okina in the distance and waves to her. The lalafel waves back and they keep going their separate ways both on their own tasks. She reaches the Hinterlands and sets off towards Idyllshire. She avoids the various gobo patrols. "Sigh, since that damn thing came out of the lake they've been everywhere" she mutters to herself as she walks up to Idyllshire and heads towards the Ruling Quarter.

She nears the cockatrices and pauses, crouching low and drawing her bow while listening for any signs of movement around her. Nothing heard, she takes aim at a lone cockatrice and releases the arrow. It flies true and downs it in one shot. She approaches cautiously drawing her knife. She cuts off the thighs and as she is about to sneak away hears a sound behind her. She turns around arrow drawn but the cockatrice lounges and hits her. She feels the petrifaction taking hold in her shoulder where she got hit.

She quickly gets up and starts running away hoping to clear the area before she gets petrified. She manages to get behind a rock just as the petrifaction sets in and she is unable to move.

As she de petrifies she sees Okina standing in front of her saying "The cockatrices again?" and Karra nods and in her usual flippant manner throws out a "Thank you".

They set off back to Gridania. On the way back she's thinking that really it's not that bad being a retainer - even if it is for your friend. She generally gets me some nice gear and sometimes she even gets me gear just for me not hand-me-downs. And I do enjoy the hunting trips though that one time when I got too close to the Garleans - that brought back some bad memories - she shudders as she nears the bell just as Asny steps up to it. She waves to her and points at the cart, Asny looks, nods and steps to her and gives her a hug. "Thanks for all the help my friend."