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[color=cadetblue]Time:[/color] Afternoon
[color=cadetblue]Location:[/color] Coast north of Roshmi City
[color=cadetblue]Interactions:[/color]  Malachi[@princess], Belle[@Potter], Myra[@13org] O’ner [@Eviledd1984][/center]

Valok only nodded as the woman thanked him for the food. He supposed her comment on it being satisfying was simply an attempt to be kind as he knew no one who found the cheap protein bars to be satisfying. But food was food and they traveled well and were dirt cheap. Based on the clothing of the others, with the exception of the white furred Myra, he took them all to at least be wealthy enough to not be accustomed to peasant food. Luxuries like real meat and food made for taste were not wasted on those raised to be disposable, it was for those with coin. He wondered what they did to earn amas, the where and why of their travels. They were all mostly silent as they walked, secretive even as the male elf and woman exchanged not words but gestures and expressions to communicate something. He watched them closely, less interested in what they were up to and more taking in how they interacted. Valok had never been around light elves in any sort of amicable setting, it was new, a more interesting thing to focus on than to wonder the reason for their secrecy. 

The other man, possibly some sort of demihuman creature, had become quieter, more lost in thought. Valok saw him frequently watching the demon Myra as she moved with the unencumbered freedom of something wild. These four were not one cohesive unit but two pairs traveling together, they did not explicitly interact together but the overall lack of tension was noticeable to him. None of them seemed primed for attack or ready to defend against one from the group, watching more for outside danger than from within. In his experience dark elves were never like this, at least not in the army, they would never treat something so unknown as anything but an immediate enemy. He did his best to emulate this state of calm around strangers, focusing on studying them over trying to determine weakness, even as his training told him the latter was more beneficial. 

Eventually they came to an area of sand and brush where waves of the ocean crashed against the shore and the air smelled of brine. The beach here was soft and calming, even the harsh sun of midday looked welcoming when reflected back in the blue ocean, the colors blending in a way he had not seen in the north. He paused for a moment, allowing himself the opportunity to take in the view, appreciating the way the ocean looked without the distraction of voices yelling to keep moving. He was both distracted and more relaxed than he should be when the light elf asked his question. Malachi’s stern tone snapped him back to attention, his posture stiffened and his eyes focused entirely on the other elf. His immediate answer in the company of his own kind would have been to shout his allegiance to the king, a reflex drilled into him and one that would’ve naturally slipped out had the other elf not continued to speak. 

But that was not a true answer, nothing he’d done since he had deserted the army had been in service or allegiance to the king. He wanted to serve the king again, desperately, but in a way that felt right and not in a way that felt only cruel. That life had been easy, there were less questions, more certainty, but it now felt like something that he had lost or given up. While he found himself curious about the goals promised by the rebel fairy he did not know enough to offer his allegiance to Risa either. The other elf offered no clue as to what answer, if any, was the correct one, and Valok doubted that the wrong answer would be free of any danger. 

[color=cadetblue]”I don’t know.”[/color] He stated simply, offered what was the most honest answer, though he knew it was far from a satisfactory one. Valok thought for a moment more; deception would gain him nothing and even if he could think of one, he doubted he could lie with any sort of conviction enough to convince the elf anyhow. 

[color=cadetblue]”I know what I was told my answer should be; that I exist only to serve The Great King Aklenroth. But that path would lead me to become something I don’t want to be, something twisted and cruel. Instead I seek a different path but I don’t know what that looks like yet. Nor do I know where my allegiances will lie should I find it.”[/color] He added, expanding on his answer honestly. He left out any mention of the rebel message he had heard in Roshmi, feeling it was a subject too dangerous to mention casually.