Sonico_fate

Sinsio giggles to himself before taking a swig from his flask. "This is either going to be really good or really bad. Don't stir the pot, don't stir the pot..." He chants like a mantra to himself as he makes a mess of his closet, looking for anything to wear that isn't blood-stained or reek of alcohol.

The shattering of an unopened wine bottle rang through The Drunken Bokolo. Red wine pooled across the tavern floor like blood. The barkeep's eyes remained fixated on the ground, refusing to look up at Sinsio. Sinsio stared at the shattered glass at his feet, his mind clouded heavily with emotion. "I'm so sorry…" the bartender whispered, almost to themself. Sinsio leaned down and picked up a piece of shattered glass and stared at it for a while before turning away and ambling out of the tavern like a zombie, glass crunching beneath his boots as he exited the bar. He walked out beyond the walls of Elysium and into the forest. Sunlight warmed his face as the remnants of the morning rain dripped onto his head. Sinsio sat on his knees in a clearing surrounded by tall trees. Birdsong and rustling leaves hummed quietly like a dirge. Two small shrines sat to his left, wrapped in foliage from the years. Each shrine had an item laid before them: the first one, an Aurum dagger for the Outrider Matilda. The second, Sinsio's first blade, forged by Former Head Ranger Absolon. Tears fell down his face silently as he began to construct the next shrine by stacking stones. When the work was done, Sinsio withdrew a piece of broken glass from his pocket. He laid the glass before the shrine, a label facing him that read "The Hermit's Ire Cabernet". "You have no idea what I went through to get this one right," said Sinsio out loud in a gentle voice. "First too sweet then too dry… but I got it. I finally got it. I almost gave up, moved on to the next greatest creation, but I knew you'd like the taste. You always liked my wine, but this one…" he chuckles before tears catch in the back of his throat and he chokes on his words. Sinsio regains his breath before continuing. "...It's some of my best work. I just wish you got to try some before you left. You would've liked it." Grass uproots between Sinsio's fingers as he clutches the ground, his knuckles turning white. Sobs wrack him as he stares at the newest grave in the forest through blurred vision. The forest is silent, the only sound his heartbeat pounding in his head like like drum. He lays down in the grass as his body weakens, falling asleep by the shrine. Hours pass before Sinsio wakes up. Birdsong and rustling leaves humming quietly like a dirge. His eyes opened slowly, the melting colors of the afternoon sun piercing through the canopy of the trees above. Leaves fall in slow motion, circling to the ground in their dance with gravity. "Sleep well, Outrider."

“...Dig the Cloaked graves Yay, fore' they fall Dig the Cloaked graves Graves long, wide, and deep And if Goliaths Sayeth their peace The ashes of men Earn their release…” Sinsio sings to himself as he lazily glides through the forest, sipping generously from his flask. Countless times he has sung the hymn of the Rangers, Helm of Elys, in honor of comrades fallen. This was the hardest death since Matilda’s. He choked at the thought. So many sisters and brothers lost to war, monsters, politics... Absolon was the finest Ranger this world has ever known. He was the epitome of everything a Ranger was, could be, and ever will be. He was brave and tenacious, stalwart and dangerous. He was kind and loyal to his friends and the greatest nightmare to his foes. He was the best of Elysium and did everything in his power to build and protect the city and everyone in its walls. Not only was he the best the world had to offer, he was Sinsio’s first and oldest friend in Almaris. Sinsio finished the song as he stumbled on, drunker than normal, his eyes red and glossy as he felt more lonely in this world than he had since his migration to Almaris. He slumped back against a tree and hugged his knees as tears silently rolled down his cheeks. Sinsio's favorite memories flooded his mind. Sparring sessions, rowdy nights at the tavern full of drinking games and singing and laughter, Absolon with his family, the hundreds of times Absolon called him a blueberry, fighting alongside him as they yelled insults and compliments to each other in the midst of battles unnecessarily just because it was fun to play with danger. He allowed a small smile to cross his face at these thoughts. Sinsio sighed thinking of the hardships Absolon had endured in his long life. He was sad to never see his friend again, but happy that he could finally rest. A little jealous even. Absolon truly earned the sleep of the dead, the rest a Ranger only earns in the afterlife. "Sleep easy, you one-eyed bastard," he said with a sad smile as he poured out his drink to soak into the ground. He wiped away the tears and rose, climbing up onto a rock haphazardly and looked out across the forest. He took in a deep breath and screamed "YAK YAK YAK!" He chuckled to himself. "You're probably laughing now, you big idiot. I'm going to miss you. Until we meet again when the sun sets for me, my old friend."

Sinsio bites into an apple as he watches crates being loaded at the dock, a small smile on his face. "I hope this reaches them safely. What fortune to be prosperous enough to help out a friend."

Sinsio chuckles as he reads the missive as he walks through the streets of Elysium. He takes a breath of fresh, Elysian air before addressing the bastard monkey Jeff on his shoulder. "Good riddance to the bastards, those prices were ridiculous." Jeff nods in agreement, not understanding a single word that he said, because he's a monkey. Sinsio looks over at the nearby stall where reasonably priced armor and weapons are sold. "I know a much better place to purchase such things."

Atop the Ranger Keep, a dark elf dangles his legs off the edge, pipe smoke curling about him, humming 'The Helm of Elys' to himself. Sinsio Solros takes a pull from his flask as he reads the missive, crumpling it up and throwing it in the fire of the forge behind him. Just once, just once I'd like to have one meal Norland hasn't shat in. Is that too much to ask?" he whines to the bastard monkey hanging from the rafters above. Jeff chitters, pretending he can understand the violet-eyed Ker. Sinsio feeds Jeff a berry before continuing. "We've been wiping their asses and fighting their battles since day 1, carrying out their vanity projects and infantile demands even as they put us down over and over. But they treat Elysium just as they treat women: like naive mutts who bark out of turn. They've always tried to control what they fear, and we're the ones with fangs." He chuckles grimly. "Imagine that." Sinsio's chuckle evolves into genuine lighthearted laughter. He shrugs and hits the tobacco pipe. "Well, tis only poetic justice, really. They cut off their own hands, burn their own bridges, then wonder why they lost. Who would stand beside them? Well, I'll tell you who, Jeff: Elysium." Jeff observes a booger he just picked from his nose, oblivious to the monologue, because, well, he's a monkey. Sinsio's face darkens. "We've stood beside the bastards for decades, despite their ill treatment of us. We went to war for them blindly, we bled for Norland, we died for Norland! My brothers and sisters in the Rangers laid down their lives for the bastards, and this is our reward: stripped of our titles, our ranks, thrown out like a dog in the streets...." Sinsio closes his eyes and lays his head in in his hand, his knuckles growing white as he chokes back the tears and stifles his anger, the faces of the Rangers lost to Norland's pathetic leadership burned into his head. Jeff hops down from the rafters and pats Sinsio's back with his tiny monkey paw, unsure of what ails his friend so, but sure that he's probably being a ninny-muffin, whatever it is. Sinsio takes a deep breath and locks away the memories, returning to his calm disposition. He smiles sadly at Jeff and takes another drink, deep in thought for many moments before before continuing. "They feared our growth in the beginning and tried to put us down. That didn't work, so they tried to put us on a leash, but you cannot chain a Ranger. A futile attempt, of course, so now they try to butter us up with false promises behind the guise of a smug smile." Jeff sits beside Sinsio, nodding wisely and stroking his chin as a philosopher would, understanding absolutely nothing. "Now, after treating us like rebellious stepchildren for decades despite our loyalty, they think it's cute to welcome us with open arms as though they've always been so friendly, as though they've always respected us, as though they haven't let us down and put us down, so long as we wear their drab garb and say their vows and die for them, swearing our lives to their petty kingdom for their petty squabbles, all in the name of the illusion to be in control." He throws up his arms in exasperation. "For god's sake, we've already been enforcing their laws and fighting their wars for over 30 years! What a disgusting lie, what a sad gesture." Jeff hops away to go cause chaos, bored of the rant. The tired Mali'Ker sighs, the weight of the years apparent even upon his youthful face. He takes another pull from the flask. "Yeah, they tried to ice us, but they've forgotten: we too were birthed in the cold."

Sinsio cleans MRA blood from his blade by the river. He sighs and takes a sip of Astasel Cinnamon whiskey from his flask. "I grow tired of this war, but it feels good to enact justice for once." He smiles to himself as he looks to the silhouette of the tree where the dead men hang. "Perhaps they will think twice before mutilating our peaceful citizens."

Sinsio would read over the missive by the light of the forge atop the Ranger's Keep over a bottle of ale. Smoke from his pipe swirled about him, a smoldering coal turning to flame inside him. "Blood begets blood begets blood," he recited like an old mantra. A small grin played across his face, a cold anger brewing. "Iron from Ice."