Writing Prompts Archive/2/Khojin Dortharl

*Khojin stepped off the gangplank into the Limosan Docks, her bright red officers coat clearing a path through the sailors, merchants and pirates. The bustling market, full of light and smell and noise from a dozen cultures, parted before her, as the crowd respected the uniform of the Maelstrom, and the large, wicked warrior axe at her side.*

*Not Khojin herself, of course. There were few Au Ra, and even fewer Xaela, in this part of the world, and unfamiliarity bred both curiosity and distrust. It was only as she passed through the adventurers guild did the piercing stares wane. She was far from the most exotic thing in that ramshackle establishment, and most adventurers had seen far stranger sights than a forigenborn axewoman in a military uniform.*

*Arriving at Maelstrom command, she made her report. It had been a short voyage, escorting a merchant sloop through Sahargin controlled waters to deliver relief supplies to a remote settlement. Thankfully, the fishmen had kept their distance, wary of the red sails. Ever since the Warrior of Light had vanquished their god, they’d been quiet. Some said they were frightened, others said they were merely waiting to strike.*

*A quiet trip, but not an insignificant one. It was her first duty after her unexpected promotion. She might only be a Sergeant 3rd class, with no soldiers under her command, but she had been with the Maelstrom half as long as some of the privates she served alongside.*

*It wasn’t unheard of, though. Her warrior training with Curious Gorge ensured that she had the physical skill required to be an officer of the Maelstrom, and many warriors were fast tracked into officer ranks. Now she just had to prove her leadership.*

*And that’s what scared her. She’d always been alone, not through choice, but circumstance. Savage and feral, where the words Broken Mountain used to describe her, when she first washed up on the shores of La Nosca. Now she was expected to lead, to take responsibility, to inspire—skills she had never practiced, never used.*

*Skills she was supposed to have developed on this trip. But with no danger, the only thing she’d had to do was stand at attention, and keep out of the Bosun’s way.*

*The Maelstrom might be former pirates, but even they valued discipline and the chain of command. But whatever strength of unity they found from that, Khojin only found a stifling cage.*

*She felt herself grow hot under her overcoat. It wasn’t just the physical weight, but what it meant. She was a soldier, a cog in a great wheel that kept civilization turning.*

*Dismissed, she went out to look out over the bay. Wasn’t this what she wanted? To have a purpose beyond mere survival? To leave behind her half-remembered past and forge a new future?  To serve, to protect, ‘till sea swallows all?*

*Music, and laughter, broke her thoughts. A party of adventurers, high with success from their last mission, had arrived, and begun to celebrate. One pulled out a flute, and began to play, lighthearted and free.*

*Free.*

*Something stirred within Khojin, a desire she had never felt before. Her path was clear, unobscured. The Maelstrom’s purpose was just, but it wasn’t her purpose. She, who had been chained and caged like a beast, couldn’t be tied down to one place, to one people.*

*Four days later, Khojin’s name was added to the Maelstrom’s list of deserters.*