No games, eh? Fine. That was perfectly fine. Korbin flicked the blood from his finger and straightened up, hands coming out of the pockets as he started to tick items off like it was a shopping list.
"My problem is, Kiada, that I have watched my family die before my eyes, one after another for the past ten years. Mom disappeared and never came back, dad rotted before our eyes in an illness no magic could cure, my brother was mauled to death by an ursur right outside the Citadel and I burned his body without knowing if my sister would be following the next day. Turns out she made it, at least for another three years or so, but now she is gone too and there is nothing left."
His tone was quiet, almost conversational, but there was a vicious bite to the words, like teath meant to gnash and cut. They did too; Korbin hurt himself with every word, and only the rage boiling within him kept the voice from wavering as he spoke of his loved ones.
"My life has been turned upside down by outsiders and their meddling. I've been cursed, attacked, forced to kill a man and every step of the way there have been strangers flinging themselves at me, trying to interfere in my life when all I want is to be left alone."
That's all he ever wanted. Peace and quiet and time to himself, to sort his own life out.
"But none of you ever listen when I say no. You barge into my life, take one look at me, judge me based on one interaction and decide that I'm something that I'm not, and then you have the fucking gall to be disappointed when it turns out I'm not living up to your damned expectations!"
Loren, Chulane, Amon, Kiada, Noah's whatsername girlfriend, they were all doing it.
"You're all the same, you outlanders. Meddling, disrespectful and naive, who judge without trying to see, and demand trust and favor when you've earned nothing. You think that just because you're here you're somehow entitled to be treated like you belong, but you don't. You're a disruption in the natural order of the world, a plague from The Voice, and you will bring this world to ruin just as surely as she will.
"And if that's not enough of a problem, then I don't know what the fuck is."
Finally run out of words, Korbin was left out of breath, chest heaving. His lips twitched around bared teeth, something wild and furious snapping and snarling within him, longing to break out but unable to.
"My problem is, Kiada, that I have watched my family die before my eyes, one after another for the past ten years. Mom disappeared and never came back, dad rotted before our eyes in an illness no magic could cure, my brother was mauled to death by an ursur right outside the Citadel and I burned his body without knowing if my sister would be following the next day. Turns out she made it, at least for another three years or so, but now she is gone too and there is nothing left."
His tone was quiet, almost conversational, but there was a vicious bite to the words, like teath meant to gnash and cut. They did too; Korbin hurt himself with every word, and only the rage boiling within him kept the voice from wavering as he spoke of his loved ones.
"My life has been turned upside down by outsiders and their meddling. I've been cursed, attacked, forced to kill a man and every step of the way there have been strangers flinging themselves at me, trying to interfere in my life when all I want is to be left alone."
That's all he ever wanted. Peace and quiet and time to himself, to sort his own life out.
"But none of you ever listen when I say no. You barge into my life, take one look at me, judge me based on one interaction and decide that I'm something that I'm not, and then you have the fucking gall to be disappointed when it turns out I'm not living up to your damned expectations!"
Loren, Chulane, Amon, Kiada, Noah's whatsername girlfriend, they were all doing it.
"You're all the same, you outlanders. Meddling, disrespectful and naive, who judge without trying to see, and demand trust and favor when you've earned nothing. You think that just because you're here you're somehow entitled to be treated like you belong, but you don't. You're a disruption in the natural order of the world, a plague from The Voice, and you will bring this world to ruin just as surely as she will.
"And if that's not enough of a problem, then I don't know what the fuck is."
Finally run out of words, Korbin was left out of breath, chest heaving. His lips twitched around bared teeth, something wild and furious snapping and snarling within him, longing to break out but unable to.
In loving memory of when I gave a shit
KORBIN
HALE
HALE
