#the knight of la moku ~ errant knight

[bluemooncove]

@hoeadventuredx liked for a starter

"Lady bard, I have heard your song! It's wowed me! The angel of music itself has blessed you with talent far beyond the crowds that you play for. Why could it be that you have not gone to a higher station?"

There was absolutely no warning. Meteor had simply finished a performance and suddenly Errant Knight was here. They gently took her hand in their own and pressed a kiss to it. A moment of chivalry from an era of virtue that had never actually existed. Never existed beyond the fantasy of their own head of course.

They had simply passed by the tavern when the sound of music drew them in. So prone to fixation they came to be certain that this was a future talent waiting to shine. A diamond in the rough! Surely tavern music was too low a station for a prima donna.

"Could it be, perhaps, that you lack the proper exploits to record to song? Yes, that must be it! Then I shall be your muse! You absolutely must accompany me! For I shall achieve deeds worthy of legend and you shall forever immortalize yourself through the creation of a beautiful saga. Immortalize yourself and me too!"

They were quite enthusiastic for what that was worth.

[bluemooncove]

Fighter Select @ Errant Knight except actually on the right blog this time :>

Fighting Game Meme

Intro: "Halt knave for you face the romantic Errant Knight! I would offer you my name but guild policy demands otherwise."

Doing attack combos: "Step, jab, step, jab, step step, pause, jab jab jab!!!!!!!!!!"

Counterattack: "RIPOSTE"

Guard/shield: "Parry!"

Taunt: "You dodge even worse than a windmill."

Takes low hit: "Is that all you've got?"

Takes heavy hit: "One must cut flesh to reach bone."

Super/special attacks: "Fool style: cactus dance!"

Finishing move: "This is it! My ultimate attack! Mustang Blitz!!!!"

Victory: "It seems you are bested! Yield now and flee with your dignity intact."

Perfect victory: "Let it be that you never forget the day that you faced Lady Alons- ah! I mean Errant Knight!"

Defeat: "Are my knees ... not to me?" [Collapses]

Draw: "I've met my match have I? Well then! To tavern, drinks are upon my name!"

[bluemooncove]

That evening, as the moon neared it's highest point, those guild members who had overseen the hopefuls trials convened. The sparring matches had concluded hours ago, but time was taken to allow for any scheduled demonstrations of skill. Now that the day was at its end, it was time for the final decisions. An outside may have expected this to be an organized and simple affair. Lets take a quick glance and see how that holds up.

"Alright everyone. You've all had time to think so, as the Meister overseeing this ceremony, I call us to convene over guild acceptance."

"Oh we are? I do believe you already accepted someone without consulting any of us."

"It was extenuating circumstances and Seeker had proven herself well enough by that point."

"I would have but it's the principle of the matter!"

"I am a Meister, I have the ability to do so on my own."

"Those who use the power they're granted often find themselves without it before too long. Of course a peasant girl wouldn't have the experience to understand that."

"Thank you for your wisdom Necromancer. I understand you are quite experienced in losing power. Let us stop delaying with snide commentary and actually evaluated. Miss Secretary. the sign up sheets."

"Ah, yes, well. About that. There was some ... errr, errors that I failed to catch when the hopefuls were filling them out. You'll see here."

"So there is. Well, that's an issue we can work around. Unless anyone has something important they feel the need to say, we can just run down the list."

"Oh yes! Since Meister Quartermaster forced her candidate through, I demand she support my candidate. That Spruce girl."

"It's not the place of the most junior member of this council to make demands of me ... but I intended to support her anyways."

"I do too! Plus her friend Sassafras, you better have my back on this Phantom!"

"I've been searching for a good cryomancer for this guild for years, I demand Winter Witch be accepted!"

"That Pathfinder guy too. I did his skill demonstration, he's good and these days we don't tend to get that many men within our ranks. This will help to rectify that."

"Oh yeah, I'd been noticing that! Where are all the men anyways?"

"Isn't it obvious? Calling our business Beauty & Beast scares 'em off. Not that many men get described as beautiful or want it either. So they run off to the other guilds."

"Many kingdoms strongly favor male warriors. If they are quite skilled they can accept promotion, acclaim, and title. There's no point to joining an adventurer guild."

"Maybe the ones who normally make recruitment decisions prefer women."

"Guild Master Beauty scares them off!"

"Among many species females are more mobile while males stay in their own territory. As a guild such as ours sees travel all over the world is stands to reason that women would be the predominant members."

"Ladies, and Errant Knight, we are getting far too off track now. Please, lets just go down the list one at a time and share our opinions. Also please let everyone speak their share, Merchant hasn't had the chance to even say anything yet."

This went on for several hours.

[bluemooncove]

"What an absolutely wonderful shopping trip this has been. I think this has been a great opportunity to mend bridges between rival parties."

"I agree with my partner. You've got quite the fashion ta-"

The group of four stop and stare up at the guildhall as they breach the tree line.

"So everything's on fire, huh?"

"And it seems to be magically storming."

"And a bunch of strange figures are charging the meisters."

The four of them exchange glances as the answer dawns upon them.

"THE SECOND GUILD WARS HAVE BEGUN"

[bluemooncove]

♪I wanna be in the cavalry when they send me off to war♪

♪I want a good steed under me when like my forefathers before♪

♪And I want a good mount when the bugel sounds and I hear the cannons roar♪

♪I wanna be in the cavalry if I must go off to war♪

♪I wanna be in the cavalry ~ but I won't ride home no more♪

"I continue to be targeted, this must be against me."

[bluemooncove]

The hand on their own causes a faint blush to bloom on their face. They'd started to get self-conscious as they realized just how much they'd blabbered on but it seemed the other didn't mind. As their eyes met with Meteor's Errant Knight began to smile.

"Yeah, an adventure together is far better than traveling alone. You know, I've caught a contract to go scout out the woods nearby. Something about redcaps making trouble for travelers in the area. I'm mostly just good with dueling myself but with your sweet personality and bardic skills, maybe you could help us find a better solution to the whole process?"

When they began to fawn over Meteor this hadn't even been a thought in their mind but now it seemed a great use for her talent. The boss of the guild always talked about conflict resolution, so did Alchemist. Maybe this would be their opportunity to finally put those ideas into practice.

"Mm, I understand. Y'know, where I'm from, it's hard to see the stars out, even at night. I never got a good look at them until I left home and came to Meikai..."

Meteor is starting to become much less put off by just how much and how fast Errant Knight is talking. Heh, kind of reminds her of herself when she gets excited or nervous, blabbering on and on.

"But yeah. Having a bit of an adventure together? That sounds like a good time." As she says this, Meteor goes ahead and takes the others' hand in her own, having seen their hesitance and taking it as a go-ahead. "It's great to have a companion for that sorta thing, y'know? So I'm looking forward to it."

[bluemooncove]

Down under? What a strange strange phrase that Errant was not at all familiar with. What exactly could it mean? Well if you look at a map north is normally up so that would make south down. She must be from the south!

"Oh I see! Some of my good friends are from down under too! I will have to ask them if they are aware of these Eye-doll things, given your performance skills perhaps some of them have heard of you Meteor. It is a fitting and beautiful name. Something that flies quickly and shines as if it were a star. A beautiful bright star! I've always liked stars myself. Except for the moon..."

One may think they were joking but the serious expression on Errant Knight's face made something clear. They were totally unaware that the moon was not a star.

"And what you've described is a beautiful sentiment, yes! Art can touch the minds and hearts of all who see or hear it. You say it's indirect but I feel that you cut yourself too short fair madam! What you hope to do is just as my own hopes. To be the inspiration that leads so many others to glory."

They reach out to take Meteor's hand but then stop themself. As excited as they were, Errant Knight knew it was impolite to get too touchy. Regardless of how exciting it felt to identify another as a kindred spirit.

"Surely we must journey together some time, should we not? The two of us together could be a legendary team! The kind that people like you write songs about for eternity and the kind that people like me strive to become!"

Did they just reveal something they're not supposed to... as they said they're not supposed to reveal it? Seemed entirely unintentional, too... Well, this 'Errant Knight' might just be a somewhat ditzy sort. It's a bit endearing, really.

"Ah, I am from pretty far off, actually... The name isn't something to speak excessively in polite company, but some people might call it a land down under."

After all, while Meteor isn't ashamed of her origins, you never know when bringing it up might cause a stir, depending on who it's with. Best keep it subtle for now.

"Ahaha, don't worry, idols aren't are exactly a widely known concept yet, so I don't blame you for not knowing. Still, you seem to be a very admirable knight... I'd perhaps even say we have something in common in that regard."

"It's maybe more indirect, but an effective artistic performance can elicit all sorts of reactions, right? It can be soothing, energizing, moving, motivating... The possibilities are basically endless. You could say in my own career path, it'd be nice if I could also support others-- in more of an emotional sort of way. Can't undervalue a good state of mind, right?"

Sure, she also just finds joy in the act of performing music itself, but... if she wasn't trying to elicit a response from anyone, she might as well have just stayed at home playing by herself, no?

[bluemooncove]

"My dearest lady Meteor, Errant Knight is my guild name. That which I use for all guild business. It is a requirement we operate under such pseudonyms so I'm afraid even a beauty such as you may never have the opportunity to learn I am called Alonsa. Though I must admit Meteor sounds just as much like a title! I don't believe I've ever known another with such a name. Tell me dear lady, where are you from?"

As they continued to ramble on Errant Knight completely glossed over the fact that they'd said their name. In fact, it seemed they were totally unaware of having done so. The truth of the matter was that half of what Alonsa said exited their mouth without any thought at all. Perhaps one could say that sense was not needed in the world of courtly romantics. If one were a fool at least!

"An eye-doll? You say that you wish to be that? I am afraid the word is unfamiliar, ma'am, but I can say that you are a doll in my eyes. Yes, I, Errant Knight, the knight of La Moku, shall do that which in my power to lead you to this goal. For it is the duty of a knight to always be reaching towards dreams. Not just their own but the beautiful dreams of those around them!"

Well, it seemed that Meteor was going to be stuck with this one in a while. Though now that they've had a chance to actually speak with the singer that caught their attention, the knight seemed to be calming down a bit. They were growing a bit less restless and their voice had calmed to a more acceptable level.

"Beauty & Beast..."

Sounds somewhat familiar... a guild, Meteor thinks? Although it's surely one from outside of Hjaimair. She's not too knowledgeable about the various guilds that are about, admittedly.

...Hmm. Yes, this one is an oddball. She can't say she's sure why what she said struck a nerve, but it seems to have.

"I see, I see. A hero, is it? I agree that an achievement worthy of that title would certainly be worth committing to song..." Even if that may not necessarily be her own specialty. Perhaps the Errant Knight simply assumed her to not know of any such heroics to put to her music, but really, her lyrical direction just doesn't lean that way, more speaking to a sense of self-freedom...

Ah, well. Doesn't mean she's not curious, and it's not as if those things can't overlap.

"Anyhow. Errant Knight, you said? ...Have to say, that sounds more like a title than a name. Either way, pleasure to make your acquaintance. They call me Meteor, and I... well, I came to the area to make music. Be an idol." Simple dreams. "I don't think I'm quite out of inspiration yet, but you can never have too much, right?"

[bluemooncove]

"My name? Why, thank you fair madame for granting me the honor of giving it to you! For I am ..."

She gives a long pause for dramatic effect. A pause that is longer than really would have been necessary.

"Errant Knight of Beauty & Beast! The fool hidalgo! Among the most dashing of knights to not have any legends written about them! Perfect for an up and coming sculptor of legends if I do say so myself."

Now the second question gave the knight pause. They slumped back from it, almost as if a little frightened. Who would have thought an innocent question could sting so much?

"What is it I hope to achieve? Oh, uh, I hope to achieve becoming a hero! It really is as simple as that at the heart of it."

"...Excuse me?"

Yes, well, that was... quite the sentiment that this stranger just voiced to her. Certainly, she's gained fans with her performances in town, but to be so vocal and... forward. Not just with compliments, but with questions as well.

It takes her a moment to catch up, suffice to say. Her performances are often rather tiring, after all, with how perfectionistic she tends to be about them despite... well, as the other said, simply being done at a tavern.

Not that she especially minds playing at the venues that she does.

"Muse... Ah, I think I see. I appreciate the enthusiasm, but try slowing down for a second, won't you? You haven't even introduced yourself yet."

"Just what name is it that you're suggesting I immortalize my own with, hmm? And what is it you're looking to achieve?"