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"[THREAD TITLE]" is a BOTGD 2 thread written on [IRL DATE].
== Summary ==
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Liam Arnason: It was starting to get dark on Haligan when Fraener made his tired touchdown on the outskirts of the village, and while Liam wasn’t entirely stoked to be back among the rebels, he couldn’t deny the safety he felt seeing the stacks of smoke drifting from the island and the beginnings of strong, warm torchlight to fight off the freezing sea wind. He grimaced as he dismounted and leaned over to stretch out his muscles once again, trying to remember where William was staying. “Looks like we made it,” he grunted.
Verdandi: Verdandi hums in acknowledgement, taking a moment to stretch out her arms. “Were you expecting it to be this busy?” she asks, tilting her head to the side.
Liam: He blinked, looking around at the surprising number of people milling about the island. There seemed to be a lot of preparation going on, a lot of defenses being set up. “Not gonna lie…definitely not. This Rhenco shit must be serious.”
Verdandi/William: “You know, I’d already realized that,” Verdandi mutters. To be honest, she’s rather overwhelmed by the sheer amount of people, leaving her staring around with wide eyes.
“Well, if it isn’t my favorite cousin,” a voice booms from the torchlit village. The speaker becomes obvious as he walks closer, a wide grin on his face. Despite the troubles around, William Verdile seems to be in high spirits–or at least, that’s what he’s trying to project to the others.
Liam: Liam made a neutral grunt, his eyes still tracking the unusual activity in the village. “What’s up with all this, then?” He cut straight across the small talk William was trying to invoke.
Verdandi/William: The smile drops off William’s face. “Rhenco. What else?” Some of his agitation boils over, and his ears flatten against his head. “I thought all of Odin’s soldiers were dead, they were just supposed to be stories our parents told us. They weren’t supposed to be real anymore.”
Verdandi shuffles her weight from foot to foot, shoving down the urge to apologize for the part she played in it all.
Liam: “Nala told me.” He glanced over at Verdandi and pointed to her without uncrossing his arms. “Uh. Verdandi. She and I were around when shit hit the fan with him. Sorta glad we beat him to Haligan.”
Verdandi/William: “Pleased to meet you, despite the circumstances,” William says, holding a hand out to shake Verdandi’s.
“Y-yeah,” she says, shaking his hand with a weak smile. She darts a glance between Liam and William. They’ve found him… what now?
Liam: “Um…” Liam sighed loudly while running a paw through his messy hair. “I think I’m gonna stick with the Warden, for a bit, but since she’s guarding Haligan, I guess I should ask if we need to pull some weight around here before zombie fuckface shows up.”
Verdandi/William: “We could always use more help setting up the defenses,” William says. “Seriously though, Liam,” he starts, walking over and resting his hands on Liam’s arms, “it’s good to see you.”
“I’d be happy to help,” Verdandi pipes up.
“Good, good.”
Liam: “Yeah, whatever,” he mumbled, shaking William’s hands off and starting to walk past him into Haligan. “Listen, I’m not great at manpower, though. What do you have as far as eyes on the perimeter?”
Verdandi/William: Letting out an irritated huff, William falls into step beside Liam. Verdandi joins them on Liam’s other side. “Not enough,” he admits. “That might work out better, actually.”
Liam: “Might be a spot I can fill.” He looked to his other side, meeting Verdandi’s gaze. “You in? You’re an okay shot with that thing, I guess.”
Verdandi/William: Verdandi draws herself up to her full height. “I am more than okay, and you know it,” she grumbles. “But yes, I’ll help wherever I can.” This is my fault, the least I can do is fix it.
“Great,” William says fervently. “Normally I’d take you to see the Chief, but we really don’t have that much time. You can just head to the guard house and see where the worst gaps in our defenses are.”
Liam: He gave a half-apologetic, half-sarcastic laugh. “Got it. Sorry. Guard house it is.” He hesitated as they walked through the village, seeing several familiar faces rushing about. “William, have you seen Kendra? Is she here?”
Verdandi/William: “No, I haven’t,” William says. “Nobody’s heard from your family in a while.” Quieter, he adds, “Or mine.”
Liam: “Nah, that’s typical.” But he still looked disappointed. “I was just wondering, with all the rebels coming here, maybe word of that reached her.”
Verdandi/William: “It might have, but your house is pretty far from here. Word takes a while to travel.” Giving Liam a sympathetic clap on the shoulder, William sighs. “C’mon, let’s go to the guard house.”
Verdandi offers them both a small smile, but otherwise remains quiet.
Liam: Liam pushed his hands into the pockets of his trousers as they walked, trying to keep his head low–a half-hearted feat, as he was a little taller than average, and especially since he dwarfed William. His ears twitched slightly as a flight of dragons soared overhead, heading south. “I don’t know if I’m a fan of all this,” he admitted. “It feels like war.”
Verdandi/William: “It is,” William says, face grim. “We’re set to inherit our parents’ war, thanks to this undead bastard.”
“Surely it won’t come to that?” Verdandi whispers.
“It just might.”
Liam: “Shit’s gonna get ugly,” Liam muttered. They came up to the guard house and Liam paused outside its doors, surveying Haligan again. “Hey, by the way, can you not like…parade around the fact that I’m here? I just…don’t wanna deal with it right now.”
Verdandi/William: “Me, parade things around? I would never,” William says, giving an exaggerated sniff. “Yeah. I won’t.” He pauses, thinking. “If you two need a place to stay, you’re welcome at my house. It’s a bit small, but, well,” he sweeps a hand up and down his body in a self-deprecating gesture, “it’s not like I need a lot of space.”
“Thank you,” Verdandi says quietly.
Liam: “Ehh, that sounds alright, I guess.” It sounded much better than he let on. He was awful sore, and ready for a hard night’s sleep. He looked to Verdandi and gestured with his head towards the guard house. “Let’s get our assignments, and then crash?”
Verdandi/William: “That–” Verdandi yawns “–sounds good to me.” 
William chuckles. “I’ll wait out here, so I can show you the way.”
Liam: Liam paced to the door and put a paw on it, looking back at Verdandi. “Also, I mean…I know I asked, but you don’t have to take up battle stations yet if you’re not ready.” Normally he would have said it with a bit of venom, but the way he said it, he was much softer in his delivery. “We did just get here.”
Verdandi/William: “No,” Verdandi insists. “I want to help. This mess is partially my fault. And I’m going to fix it.”
William’s gaze flits between the two of them before he shrugs a shoulder. “I’ll wait out here for you both.”
Category:Events
Category:BOTGD 2
Category:Liam Arnason
Category:Verdandi Østergård
Category:William Verdile
Category:Act I