Kroashent: Azelma an Diuid

A pair of toughs moved in from the main plaza as some unseen signal,  blocking off the only exit to the narrow alleyway as the remainder of  the gang circled the girl in the doorway, their knives and clubs drawn.   The girl was not an imposing figure, delicate floral patterns  embroidered on the front of her simple black dress, the even more  diaphanous lace coiffe atop her head doing little to add to any physical  threat she may have imposed.  The thieves, for their part, were 5 in  number, ranging from wiry to bulky in frame, but all muscled from lives  of physical labour.  They grinned and feinted lunges, none of which  seemed to phase Antoinette, who calmly placed the large burlap sack  against the door jamb.

"All right, girly" the leader said with a sneer "We seen your coin.  Hand over the purse and we'll let you leave alive."

Antoinette rose, careful not to tip over the bag and turned to face the leader, her eyes flashing with excited defiance.
"These  coins belong to my mistress, so you shall not be getting any of them."  She responded, glancing at the sack.  "Unless you happen to have a  bushel of Landreger leeks for sale.  I still need those."
"Do we look like vegetable merchants?" The leader lunged, his feint again ignored.
"No."  Antoinette admitted "Vegetable merchants bathe before market days.  You  lot should know better than to harass young maidens in alleyways.  For  shame." Antoinette reproached the leader as if addressing a younger  child, seemingly oblivious to him being a good head taller than her.  "Still, fair is fair.  If you turn around now, I will let you leave  without further need for violence."
"Perhaps you ain't figured this out, girly.  This is a robbery.  If yer lucky, it will just be a robbery."
"I find that hard to believe.  I have you surrounded."
"All that rich food has rotted your brain." the leader scoffed.  "There's five of us, one of you."
"I  fight with the strength of 6 men!" The girl shot back "The passion of a  knight guides my blow to strike true.  My code of chivalry requires  that I be fair to my opponents, even those who deserve no such mercies.   At present, I don't see this ending well for you."
This elicited a laugh from the thieves.
"And,  though it pains me to use such leverage, I am not alone." she admitted  "Perhaps you have had dealings with the Formorians of Tevenn Du, the  smoking island in the icy sea of Mor Marv, veritable giants who can rend  a man's bones with their bare hands, as if they were small twigs.   Their great fangs and tusks can rip into flesh and bone.  Even here, in  the city of Alan, the skill and strength of the Formorian is well  known.  Never will you find a more skilled and bloodthirsty warrior of  such great strength."
Antoinette gesticulated with each description, waving her arms with growing excitement.
"Behind  this door is the greatest Formorian warrior you will encounter.  The  great Azelma, born of the Fires of Taranis himself, a traveler not from  the fields and rivers of Normandi, but the smoking island itself.  I  have seen her kill without mercy, grinding her enemies like bugs beneath  a pestle to use their blood in her foul concoctions!  I have seen her  lift a horse over her heads and throw it 3 metres as a casual toss.   While I can take on all of you at once, she doesn't like people  attacking me with weapons, so I will not be able to stop her from  joining the fray.  I give you one last chance to turn and walk away."
The  thieves laughed, the leader turning his head to spit "You ain't got  nothing girly.  This is going to be fun, smacking some...."
The door  opened once more and a hulking figure stood in the doorway, their mass  blocking the entryway.  Their head was above the frame and they began to  duck underneath, revealing a giant green figure with tusk-like teeth.   Even crouched, Azelma stood high above Antoinette, the small girl and  short doorway making the Formorian seem impossibly large, the dark  shadows of the alleyway making her features seem feral and hungry.  The  thieves turn and ran, vanishing down the alley in a stumbling panic.
Antoinette watched them go and turned, beaming to Azelma.
"The  merchant thinks we can get the leeks at his friend's stall in Place du  Vin." Azelma said, checking her list. "But I'd like to get some  Samarobriva Bleu while we're here.  What was that all about?"
"Some local ruffians." Antoinette replied "I scared them off though."
"Oh  good.  I don't know what I would do if someone started a fight." Azelma  admitted "Good thing you were here.  I would have just run away.  I'm  no good at fighting."
"That's why Lady Enora authorized me as your bodyguard." Antoinette said proudly.
"Thank Brigid for that." Azelma sighed "I also need a new mortar and pestle"
"To grind your enemies like bugs for your foul concoctions!" Antoinette added
"Well,  I wouldn't call the bugs my enemies." Azelma's green skin seemed to  blanche "No, bugs are just ingredients.  And I'm sorry you didn't like  the medicine.  It wasn't made for taste.  If you want, I can make  something tastier tonight."

"We should have Far!  We can get some Akitanian Cognac when we get the leeks...  and some candied prunes... and fresh eggs..."

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Azelma  an Diuid is a Formorian, a race of oceangoing giants from the far  North, renowned for their great strength and bravery, but an often  contentious relationship with the other peoples of Avlez.  Exiled from  her home of Tevenn Du, Azelma arrived in the company of Enora de Chinon,  serving as the quartermaster and healer of the Windship Radiant Dawn, a  member of Enora de Chinon's inner circle.  Despite her massive size and  imposing frame, she is actually quite gentle, preferring to spend her  time in her kitchen or apothecary workshop rather than the battlefield.   Her quiet and reserved nature is a stark contrast to the bombastically  energetic Antoinette, Enora's lady-in-waiting/squire, who has eagerly  claimed the position of Azelma's best friend

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Learn more about the World of Kroashent here: https://www.worldanvil.com/w/alvez-kroashent

Learn more about Azelma here: https://www.worldanvil.com/w/alvez-kroashent/a/azelma-an-diuid-person?preview=true

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