[center][h2][i][color=#5057f0]Illuria Nariul[/color][/i][/h2][/center]

The sloppy staccato of heels against cobblestone rang out as a lone, underdressed vixen meandered her way toward a large estate that a few patrons in the last bar had pointed out. Illuria Nariul, clearly drunk out of her mind, had every intention of beseeching the master of said estate: the Lady of House Valens. The last few days in this god forsaken town had proven fruitless, her search for someone to accept her into their ranks as a gladiator ending in nothing but failure. None of the previous prospects had a given her a clear reason why, though she presumed they were much too afraid of her past history and the potential destruction her magic could wreak. Or her alcoholism. She liked to assume the former though. 

This time, it would be different. It had to be if she was going to make any money or have any chance of redeeming her House. Even in her intoxicated state, she had everything lined up to woo Lady Valens, even if it meant getting down and dirty. There was absolutely no way she’d be denied! After all, she was an accomplished mage, a charismatic force of nature, and a noblewoman who had every right to belong in the arenas. On the off chance they didn’t accept her… Illuria wasn’t sure what she was going to do. This was her last hope of getting into the arenas, and she’d spent the last of her coffers earlier to prematurely celebrate her induction into House Valens’ ranks with an ample amount of wine. Maybe there was some money to be made off selling her belongings. Or worse, she could resort to selling her body. The drunk woman shuddered at the thought. No, no! No pessimism today! Glory awaited her!

As Illuria clumsily continued her march, plenty of stares went her way. Old women whispered [i]whore[/i] under their breath at first sight of the elaborate dress that revealed too much of Lady Nariul’s bust. Young men ogled her for the same reason, some even harassing her with vile words that she paid no heed to. None of these people bothered her more than the robed religious folks that thought she needed a helping hand from the glorious Guardian, who approached her with arms wide open. “Come with us. We will help you find glory in the Guardian’s light.” they said. Religion was one of the first things Illuria abandoned when her brother showed his colors. The Guardian did not protect her. The whole idea was just a silly lie that the people of Venatria told themselves to make themselves feel safe at night. 
 
Wordlessly, the raven-haired woman pushed past the zealots, toward the rustic horizon. There were a thousand words she wanted to say, but there was very little point in bandying anything with religious nutcases. They could live in their own cess for all she cared. 

[hr]
Deep blue eyes glanced at the towering walls that guarded House Valens’ manor. They seemed to go on forever, as if the family had hired giants to construct them. [color=#5057f0]“Wooow! I love this wall! Its sooooooo biggg!”[/color] Illuria exclaimed, a dazed grin on her face. To any sober eyes, this wall wasn’t anything out of the ordinary. The drunk mage apparently saw a completely different picture though. Without warning, she walked toward the stoney defense and attempted to give it a huge embrace. The guards next to the gate gave each other confused glances, unsure who this strange person was.

“Um… Miss. What are you doing?” One of them approached her hesitantly.

At the sound of his voice, Illuria slowly turned around to see the guardsman. Her thin lips curled into an awkward grin, her teeth stained a dull purple from the wine earlier. [color=#5057f0]”Oh! I am here to meet the Hady of Vouse Lalens! I will fight for her!”[/color]

The guard blinked a few times as he attempted to register what she was saying. There was no way this girl could be possibly thinking about entering the arenas, right? “Um, miss, I think you should try to go back home. You’re just drunk and delusional right now.”

Without warning, the grin on Illuria’s face disappeared and a hand flew out to strike the man’s cheek. [color=#5057f0]“How dare youU! I am Lady Illuria of House Nariul! I won’t not be denied!”[/color] she shouted, causing quite the commotion. 

The poor guard, even more confused now, glanced back at his partner, who was laughing up a storm. “Just let her in. Let the Lady decide. It’ll be funny either way.” the amused man spoke. Shrugging, the assaulted guard began to lead Illuria through the gates and to the training grounds. [color=#5057f0]“That ish what I thought!”[/color] Illuria commented, following behind with her nose in the air.  

The first thing that caught the noblewoman’s eye was not the other strange figures waiting for their turn, but the free wine that had been laid out. [color=#5057f0]“[i]Wine?![/i] Oh, this is just [i]soooo[/i] grand! Wine, wine, wine, it is the besht!”[/color] Illuria called out loudly in a sing-song manner, stumbling toward her most favorite beverage with surprising speed. The woman didn’t take just a glass. No, she grabbed the entire bottle and began downing it all, paying no heed to the fact that she was already plastered beyond what anyone could call “business professional”.

Just like that, the alcohol vanished. Illuria sat herself on the ground, feeling a bit nauseous and dizzy now. Her vision spotted the other figures waiting around, eyes widening at what appeared to be a hundred giants in the training grounds. Not just giants, but a few other… [i]things[/i]. [color=#5057f0]“Woah, so the giants did build the wall! I never knew we had giants in Valen-Valen… Valthia. Why didn’t the Emperor tell me?!”[/color] she cried as if she knew the Emperor personally, which wasn’t exactly untrue considering her past position in the capital city. 

After sitting there for what felt like forever (a minute in reality), Illuria comically attempted to pick herself off the ground, only to wobble uncontrollably before falling onto her back. The sky above rotated round and round, an enchanting sight to be sure. However, she had no business with sky, not that she knew of anyway. [color=#5057f0]“I, Lady of tha Narniuls, demand my uh… time with Hady Howlin’s! I have been kept waitintoolong…!”[/color] the nobleman slurred out, still unable to pick herself up off the ground. 

So far, so good.