Ravens of Eternity

109 Blade Culture

Although Eva and Miko certainly enjoyed the views from above, they were drawn by the Drogar themselves, and wanted to see them up close. They were technically prisoners, but were treating the whole thing like they were simply on a tour.

And in a way, they were.

“Thanks for letting us take a look down here,” said Eva.

Their gondola hovered down towards the ground, in an open-space parking field. Other gondolas and hover vehicles were lined up in it as well, inside of appropriately-sized spots.

“Don’t expect most Drogar to talk to you,” said Doleth. “Half don’t even have translation nanites installed.”

“Are Drogar an insular society?” asked Eva.

“If you mean that we don’t intermingle, then yes. Humans are the same, from what I understand.”

A transparent section of the dome slid open a few moments after they landed, and a small ramp extended out from just under it. The four walked down to the street and stretched their legs a little. Eva and Miko’s EyeCasts zoomed around them and captured their surroundings hungrily.

Hundreds of Drogar filled the streets surrounding them, all of them doing their own thing. Some appeared to be enjoying the sights, others the food, the shopping. Some walked lazily while others walked with a higher tempo.

.....

Every single one of them had a range of scale colors all across the spectrum, though the majority were greens and browns. Like what they had seen with the guards, they all had different bone structures and bodily curves. There was a great degree of differences in facial spines and tail length as well, ranging from none to short to long.

They found that the female Drogar tended to be taller and slimmer than the males, and had little to no spines in comparison. The males tended to be shorter, stockier, and have longer spines. Gender didn’t seem to matter in terms of tail length.

For the most part, they wore plain and subdued robes with moderate accoutrements and accessories. They found that the most common style seemed to be a granite-colored roughly-woven robe with clean, simple stitching. Hung around their necks and waists were natural cords of leather and string with bits of stone or metal attached.

Some, possibly wealthier Drogar, had more ornate accessories attached to the cords – polished stones or metals. A few of them also had flashier robes made of finer, more colorful cloth.

Eva reasoned that they were likely formal wear, and imagined they were Drogar businessmen doing some shady lunch deal. She chuckled when she pictured one of them polishing their spines in front of a mirror while practicing some big boardroom speech.

One other thing that they had noticed about the Drogar was that every single one of them wore a curved dagger on their belts. Even children.

A few even wore full-sized swords rather than daggers. Certainly the two Justicars did, but theirs were oddly straight. The ones the other Drogar wielded held the same curvature as the regular daggers everyone else wore.

Miko pointed one out to Eva.

“This one reminds me of samurai,” she said. “It is reminiscent of the kimono and katana they used to wear.”

“Yeah they definitely have that feudal vibe,” Eva replied. “And look at their daggers. Every single one looks different. Check out the design on that sheath over there!”

The Justicars were filled with pride as the two discussed Drogar weapons. Their blades were as much a part of them as their own scales.

“Our beltknives are a direct reflection of who we are,” said Severas. “They’re typically our own design, so they come from a place that’s more or less unique. Or at least, that’s how it should be. We’re given a simple one while we’re children, and choose new designs as we grow older.”

Eva was surprised that every Drogar owned custom-made knives. For any species to unilaterally own the same sort of object was a bit odd to her. Humans had no such equivalent, though perhaps pocket knives came closest. Almost every culture touted their own historic and iconic designs.

“So why’re you two wearing daggers and swords?” she asked. “Everyone else seems to only wear one.”

“These longblades are the Justicar’s weapon of choice, alongside our sidearms,” replied Severas. “While I can’t show those to you since I can only draw them for, erm, official use only – I can show you my personal beltknife.”

She smoothly drew out her knife and flipped it in her hand so that its handle stuck out towards Eva. Her movements were graceful and natural, and it was clear that she had practice using it all her life. Or at least, for a very long time.

Eva took the weapon in her hand and brought it up for closer inspection. And though it was meant for a larger hand to hold, it still felt incredibly comfortable. Not only was the handle contoured, but it was wrapped with a fabric cord that conformed slightly to her grip.

Unlike human blade designs, this didn’t have a large or prominent blade guard. Instead the handle tapered outwards and ended in a completely flat plane where it met the blade. The only guard that existed was perhaps a centimeter wide on all sides.

This was definitely a weapon that required great skill to use defensively.

The blade itself was a single-edged blade with a wicked curve, which was somewhere between a katana and a scimitar. The length was roughly 40 centimeters, but incredibly thin – perhaps only half a centimeter at its thickest. Although it was 5 centimeters wide at the guard, it tapered down to a point as it reached the tip.

And the edge was razor-sharp. Eva didn’t have the courage to test it. She was sure it would cut her if she looked at it wrong. Etched on the blade itself was a beautiful pattern of strong waves one after another.

“I’ve never been a knife kinda person,” cood Eva, “but this thing’s gorgeous.”

She carefully shifted the superbly-balanced knife so that its handle faced Severas, and offered it back. The Justicar took it back with equal care, but swiftly and smoothly sheathed it in its scabbard.

“It’s my third custom,” Severas replied. “It marks the moment I was inducted as a Justicar over a decade ago. Every new design has real meaning for some of us.”

“Can I watch one being made somewhere? Or are they not allowed to show it? Trade secrets and whatnot?”

“There are thousands across this city who would love to show off. I’ll take you to one that’s close by – he’s actually been making my fifth custom.”

Eva turned to Miko.

“What do you think? You okay with checking out the knife shop? Neither of us are real big into those.”

“I find it interesting,” she replied. “And it will be good for the channel. However, I am more curious about the cuisine.”

“Wanna check out the food stalls now?”

“We can go after.”

The four of them then made their way towards Severas’ beltknife artisan. The senior Justicar herself was in the lead, followed by Eva and Miko, who stood next to each other. Justicar Doleth took up the rear.

It was a rather intimidating sight, and as they went the Drogar around them did their best to veer out of the way. A number didn’t even want to make eye contact. Some went so far as to go down completely separate streets. A few cursed at all four of them, but moved on quickly the moment either of the Justicars looked in their direction.

“The Drogar must really hate humans, huh?” asked Eva.

“Hate’s too strong a word for that,” said Doleth. “Most haven’t ever seen a human, much less care for your existence that much.”

“Well, that one called me a sun-bleached ape rather angrily, so I’m assuming the whole hate thing.”

Doleth chuckled lightly.

“Fair enough. Some definitely hate you, but it’s usually out of complete ignorance.”

“In my experience,” said Eva, “the ignorant can still be dangerous, too.”

“I had noticed that some of their curses are aimed in your direction,” said Miko.

“We Justicars experience all kinds, yeah,” said Doleth. “We mean all sorts to different people. Some love us, some revere us, some fear, or envy, or hate us.”

“In a way,” added Severas, “seeing two humans with two Justicars are prompting severe reactions from some. As you’ve noticed. I’m sure the more we’re out here, the more we’ll experience it.”

“You think someone would be brave enough to attack us?” asked Eva.

“Only deranged Drogar would attack a Justicar,” Severas replied. “Suicidal ones attack two. Still, don’t let your guard down. Some might think you’re weak and try to slash at you.”

“We allowed to defend ourselves, at least?”

“Unfortunately, as prisoners, you don’t have the rights to use lethal force,” answered Doleth. “Only exception would be if you got into a duel. Lethal force is inviolable in those events.”

“I get it now. So all the blades – they’re for duels too! What happens to the loser, usually? I imagine cut up all to hell by the end.”

“Pretty much. Both participants get slashed to pieces, to be honest. Whoever dies first loses.”

Eva then looked over at Miko, and wondered if anyone would try to challenge her. She wasn’t a hand-to-hand combatant by any stretch of the imagination, and would probably lose any sort of duel.

That didn’t mean she was helpless, of course.

“Think you’d be able to handle getting challenged in a duel?” she asked Miko.

Miko thought about it for a moment. She was certain she could evade any given Drogar’s attacks. Stopping them was a completely different matter. Then she turned towards Doleth with a quizzical face.

“Are there restrictions in these duels?” she asked. “Perhaps what combatants can or cannot use?”

Doleth shook her head solemnly.

“Not many,” she answered. “Whatever you have on you at the time of the duel is acceptable. What isn’t acceptable is collateral damage or third-party casualties.”

“And the environment? Can elements of it be used as well? For example, if an opponent was pushed off a ledge, or something heavy is pushed onto them.”

“So long as you don’t cause unacceptable loss of life or worth, everything’s fair game.”

“I think I get it,” said Eva. “Basically, keep your murder spree contained to one person at a time. And don’t do things like topple buildings on your opponents.”

Both Justicars chuckled at Eva’s joke while Miko looked at the area surrounding them. In particular, she paid attention to whatever networked or electronic devices were around. Cameras, sentinel automatons, street lamps, and so on.

As long as she had something like these she could use, she was certain she could deal with anyone who came after her. She nudged Eva to get her attention.

“Duels should be no problem for me,” she said. “Although I may end up breaking other laws while doing so.”