Kulani stands just over five and a half feet tall. She has light olive skin, doe-brown eyes and dark brown hair that is long and straight. She keeps her hair in braids to keep it out of her way. When she does have her hair out of braids (which is very rare) it is wild with the crimps from the braids, the varying length of not being cut for a very long time, and thickness. Her features are soft and almost child-like although it is plain to see that she is nearly 20 years old. She isn't one to wear paint on her face or wear dresses so she wouldn't consider herself appealing to the opposite sex, but she is not without her own charm.
She wears her armour as a baker would an apron. She walks in it as if it were second skin. It's as if she feels no encumbrance at all. In truth she has worn it for so long she feels more comfortable in armour then she does in most of her other clothing. It would be safe to say Kulani has not worn a dress since she was a very small child. Kulani is rarely seen without her sword slung over her back. When she wields it, it is like another arm. It moves just as naturally and always ends up just where she intends to put it.
Kulani knows how to care for and wield her weapon and against a practice dummy she wins every time, but in practical application is very new to the world of combat.
"I'm sorry, Kulani. I promised your father."
Kulani's face flushes with anger. Peering up with her soft brown eyes through dark lashes, she clinches her fists behind her. She had only left a day ago. How could word have reached Dress from her father this quickly? If she were Richard, or Bernard, or Frank, or Stefan, or Julius, or Samuele, or even whiney snot-faced Frederick she would have been met with position and asignment.
The office of Reichart Dress, the Watch Captain for the Fifth Ward, was
littered with weapons, scraps of armor, and countless sheets of
parchment. The man himself was a rugged older man, not as old as
Kulani's father, but every bit as battle hardened. The creases of his
face were lined with years seen facing everything the fair city of
Gervasa can dish out. He had faced it all and survived. Today he faced
something much more deadly: a sixteen year old girl who wouldn't take
"no" for an answer.
Stepping closer to the desk, Kulani unsheathes her sword, and with the skill and familiarity of a life-long relationship whirls it around until the tip of the blade rests mere inches from Dress's right ear. "I'm not a little girl and you can't tell me to go home and play with my dollies." Dropping her sword, and almost childishly she continues: "And I'm no mere woman to have tea parties and gossip like a clucking hen. I have practiced for the guard since I could walk. My father is retired and I am an adult!"
"I gave your father my word that you wouldn't be accepted into the
Municipal Guard. Don't look at me like that," he says, shuffling papers
on his desk and trying not to meet her eyes.
"I'm sure your dad is just looking out for you, Kulani. He wants you to
settle down and have a family. I'd like to hire you, I really would, but
I owe Al. It's nothing personal.
Kulani resheathes her sword, and crosses her arms defensively over her chest. She exhales deeply and rolls her eyes. "I'll work for half-pay and-and you can give me the worst neighborhoods! Just give me a chance!"
I'll tell you what I can do, though,"
he says, standing up and walking over to a shelf stacked with scrolls.
He pulls a sheet of parchment and hands it to Kulani.
Kulani looks at Dress with the closest thing to excitement she can muster. Sure, its not the city guard but if she does well enough with this job maybe she can convince Dress to hire her later. This could be the oppurtunity she needs.
"I know this guy: he handles security for a hotel. He's usually looking
for some help, the pay is good, and you get to stay there as part of the
deal. I'll put in a word for you."
Reichart is interrupted by a knock at the door to his office. A
short-haired woman in a Municipal Guard breastplate is holding a sheaf
of papers, and wears the expression of someone who knows they bear bad
news. Reichart frowns ruefully and shakes his head, meeting Kulani's
gaze apologetically.
Kulani eyes the woman with a look of jealousy written plainly on her face. Even a glorified secretary has the honor of a Guard uniform. She clenches her fists, wrinkling the parchment she had momentarily forgotten.
"Hell, kid. I wish I could do more, I really do. If there's anything
else you need, anything at all, my door is always open. But for now, you
gotta go. If this is what I think it is, you don't want to be anywhere
nearby. Tell your father I said hi, the next time you seem him."
With that, Reichart hustles Kulani out of his office.
Out on the street, she gets a chance to read the parchment Reichart gave
her.
Trustworthy Help Wanted
Fair Pay, Room & Board
Theatre of the Fallen King
Ask for Bark One-Hand
Kulani finds herself standing outside the captain's office staring through the shuffling of officers and watchmen. She came to the city with fierce resolve to become one of the city guard just like her father, and the fact that he had forbidden it not only enraged her, it broke her heart. She idolised her father. As a child she had spent every moment possible on his lap, playing with the shiney buttons and tassels on his uniform shirt and asking him over and over about the exciting tales of being in the city watch. Smiting brigands, defending the innocent, bringing forth justice on the unrighteous. At night after he had tucked her in before he went to work the graveyard, she would lie awake for hours trying to imagine what great things he would be doing while she slept. Kulani had been the youngest of 8, all brothers. She badgered them constantly to spar with her with the wooden practice swords given them by their father. All of them tried to get out of it with the exception of one, her middle brother Stefan. He loved to spar with her and later when he joined the academy for the guard, he would come home every day and teach her what he had learned. He knew his father wanted her to eventually become a lady, settle down and get married, but he figured having a little sister who could defend herself would do no harm. Kulani admired Stefan alomost as much as her father. When she was 15 he joined the Guard and a year later was killed on duty while breaking up a riot. Kulani took his personal sword and armour and her father didn't have the heart to take them back from her. She spent nearly every hour since then practicing for her turn in the Guard.
When a passing officer bumps Kulani, she is startled from her reverie and blinks a few times for she thought for a moment the guard who bumped into her was Stefan. The memory of her dead brother almost brought tears to her eyes. She uncrumpled the parchment and read the advertisement once more. Perhaps this was her calling for now. She would do the best job she could! She knew all she needed to know from her father and brother and whatever she didn't know she was determined to learn. Suddenly an idea struck her. After a gently knock on Dress's door Kulani throws it open and nearly flies inside....
(OOC: Kulani wants to ask about some side jobs working on the weapons for the guard. Just minor repairs and maintenance. She hopes this will keep her foot in the door with Dress. She has forgotten completely about the stack of parchment and bad news and whatever business she doesn't want to be around for)
Maggie/Kulani
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