Thread: Summoners journey (Malin, and Driven to Drift)

And so was the time of year when this tale begins the Luca Blitzball Tournament of Champions. A fresh faction of summoners had already set out on their journey to defeat Sin and bring about the Calm, and the crowds were abuzz with all sorts of gossip and stories of these new summoners and their guardians. Who would accomplish the wondrous feat of defeating the horrid, monstrous creature that was Sin? Who would succeed in bringing about the Calm and for how long would that Calm last? There was not one creature present who had not let those questions pass through their lips or maws that day and the day was not yet half-way over. Of course, there were a select few who deemed the summoners foolish and idiotic for making the dangerous trek to Zanarkand when the end brought about nothing but more sorrow. There was a particular culture, however, that typically didnt care about that aspect of it and did gossip more than most people would. The minstrels of Spira were a people of unusual tradition. As a group that made their living with the tales they weaved through song and dance, they were very open and outgoing when surrounded by the general public while still secretive amongst themselves. After all, the rarer and more fantastic the song, the more money madeso why, in Yevons name, would they spread their secrets to each other? It was that logic that could also explain, at least in part, the reasons for their solitary travel. There was a hierarchy amongst these peoples who were by far the most diverse group on Spira. The elder minstrels were able to call shots within the community that could make or break certain individuals. They were also considered the greatest and wisest, aware of the talent each of their people possessed as the group, though diverse, was small enough to do so. They also, however, provided insight and advice to those younger, up-and-coming talents in hopes of giving them their chance to shine. They held firm that the greatest songs were written from the minstrels own life experiences, and although the tales of Summoners and their Guardians often sold well, they were common. And once a minstrel found his or her own song to sing, they were golden. However, sometimes finding that song was a tad more difficult than one would think Such was the dilemma of one of few said people on that sunny, mid-morning in Luca. Ilaria was among the younger ranks of these people at the tender age of twenty-two, she was well-known throughout the Elders of the minstrel community as a woman of great talent, but no inspiration. All of the Elders spoke of her quite fondly despite it all and were very aware that she was a threat to the other minstrels of her generation. However, the vast majority of her peers considered her to be a joke. Coming from a family of Bevellian Yevonites, she had a modest childhood that resulted in her parents being sorely irate at her sudden lifestyle decision at fifteen. They had high hopes for her to continue to spread their Yevonite preachings and minstrels were certainly not high on the social ladder of strict Yevonites seeing as most of them openly voiced their distaste to most of Yevons teachings. When she suddenly ran off without a word, they were incredibly perturbed and made the decision quite quickly to disown her entirely. With her somewhat questionable background, the younger minstrels felt she would never produce something worthy of an audiences attention. Of course, being the stubborn and rather brash young woman that she was, she was desperate to prove them entirely wrong. Needless to say, it was not the blitzball that brought Ilaria to Luca, nor was it the typical gossip of the masses regarding those in higher positions. Not at all she had traversed to the blitzball tournament in hopes of finding some information regarding a particular summoner whom she hoped would be of some assistance to her. Her summoner and guardian duo of choice happened to be a pair most people overlooked completely for the same reason they possessed so much of her interest they were an odd team. The summoner Braska and his guardian, Auron, were a highly unusual case. The guardian was a dishonored warrior monk while his summoner an expelled Yevonite priest who had married an Al Bhed woman. She had only heard rumors, but anticipated retrieving information from the sources, themselves. The young woman had formulated the somewhat ill-conceived plan of becoming a guardian to the summoner. After all, if the greatest and most popular songs came from the lives of summoners and guardians, what better way to find inspiration than to become a Guardian yourself? She was no helpless fool, of course as a solitary traveling minstrel subject to fiend and Sin Spawn attack, she definitely had the means to defend herself and others. Now all she had to do was find them. The minstrel was seated comfortably upon a bar stool in one of the variety of crowded bars found in Luca. Subtle? Well, that was what she was aiming for at that point. Had she been in higher spirits and interested in performing, she would have been anything but. The end of the ponytail of her layered auburn hair slid past her shoulder blades as she tilted her head in thought and brushed her bangs just out of the peripheral vision of her left eye. Ilaria had been on a mission since her arrival in Luca, asking any being she could for information regarding the Summoner Braska and his guardian and their arrival time and place. There was absolutely no need to question whether or not they would be arriving no summoner in their right mind would miss this event unless they were simply too far off to make it in time. Luckily for Ilaria, three rather rambunctious people stumbled into the bar having attempted to enter through the door at the same time. As she sipped at a glass of cool water, she propped her chin in the palm of her right hand and habitually brushed the strands of her bangs back behind her ear as she did so. Despite her nonchalant appearance, her ears were piqued in their direction as they loudly discussed those who had arrived at the docks. A small smile tweaked the corners of her lips upward and a mischievous light flickered through her blue eyes when she heard the words she had awaited all morning Braska and his guardian just got in at Dock Three! Man, I still cant believe those guysre even trying! She waited for a few more moments to listen for any other vital information before casually rising from her seat with a sweet smile towards the bar tender. She adjusted the belt holding her khaki shorts and matching daggers low on her hips and swiftly strolled out into the open, the heel of her boots making no noticeable noise upon the solid ground as she maneuvered through the crowd while the dock she was aiming for came into sight. Her feet carried her to a slow halt as she stood at the very start of the dock before she consciously rolled her shoulders back and her hands slipped casually into the pockets of her cropped black leather jacket in line with her revealed belly button below her white tank top. She hadn't quite thought out how she would approach the two men, particularly when she realized just how intimidating and perhaps surly the guardian seemed. Then again, as if imposing forces had ever stopped her before... A bright grin lit up her expression as she finally continued her approach towards the men. Lord Braska! she called, raising one hand in a wave, the unattended part of her jacket flapping lightly in the breeze. How great it is to finally see you both here! I hope your trip was pleasant, she continued, her tone as friendly and welcoming as her smile. It wasn't as if she were lying, after all. She let her feet shuffle to a halt with several steps still between them and she let both of her hands fold behind her back, still smiling.