For once, a reasonable question emerged from the stern woman's mouth.
"They both withdrew their weapons at little more than a visual prompt. Thus they had no intention, and possibly lacked the capability, of beginning or continuing discourse that may have lead to a non-violent resolution," the Xaela said steadfastly. "Their conversation upon approaching our location made their objective clear--to obtain an item indicative of dragonkind. Therefore, it was reasonable to make the conclusion that they would not overlook my not being Dravanian in favour of completing their objective."
"With these factors, I judged that the situation contained a foregone conclusion wherein they would enact violence upon my person for the purpose of obtaining the item they desired. This was incompatible with my own directive. Therefore, I engaged them in combat and removed them as a threat to myself and my companion." From the corner of his eye, Kasrjin saw Edda glance somewhat nervously at the stern woman. While giving his answer, the Au Ra had been steadily emptying the jugs of hot water into the wooden tub. By the time he had finished giving his explanation, the jugs lay empty and the tub had been filled with steaming liquid. Kasrjin rather promptly stepped into the tub, testing the water first before placing his torso within. The Xaela was far too tall for the vessel--his lengthy limbs stuck out rather awkwardly--but the tub contained enough depth for the soothing warmth of the water to cover most of his torso and lower body.
He sighed his first sigh of contentment since arriving on the continent.
"So you never told them that you were not dragonkin." The stern woman narrowed her eyes. "I approached with my weapon drawn. I first thought you Dravanian. And yet both of us draw breath still without bloodshed. Your conclusion could have been a mistake." Her gaze seemed to flick awkwardly about Kasrjin's form before relaxing somewhat when he sunk into the tub.
"My conclusion was the most optimal solution given the circumstances and my capacity as a warrior," Kasrjin asserted. "In addition, it would have been your false assumption, not my response, that would have begun conflict as the assumptions of those two did. The lack of knowledge is dangerous. To take action based on incomplete knowledge is a much greater threat." Kasrjin said those words without the slightest hint of irony.
"Part of my assumption still holds. You did kill the two men I was sent to seek out." The stern woman's retorts were coming quicker.
"The fault lies with me," Edda interjected. "Had I been awake, no doubt the two could have been reasoned with."
The stern woman was about to continue but then paused as Edda spoke. "But you will not be his guide throughout..." she turned to the second female, but froze upon fully acknowledging Kasrjin's response. A deep scowl emerged on her face as she glared at him as he relaxed rather nonchalantly in the bathtub.
"I could say you did the same. You did not truly know their nature, you made your assumptions based on what you heard, and how they reacted. Sometimes that is all we are given, what we see, what we believe, and we have to act upon them. And sometimes, our actions turn out to be grievous mistakes."
Kasrjin frowned. "Had they not approached with their weapons withdrawn and voiced their intentions to inflict harm, conflict would have been unnecessary." He spoke no more after that, adjusting himself in the tub.
The Midlander crossed his arms, leaning against the wall. He said nothing as he prodded his upper incisor again with his tongue.
"You may have other similar encounters here in Coerthas and Ishgard. They look upon anything that could be remotely dragonkin with a great deal of suspicion. What will you do if another draws their weapon, mistaking you for Dravanian?", asked the stern woman.
Another sigh escaped from the Xaela's lips, this one bordering exasperation. "Should they instigate combat, then I will respond in the manner most efficient in regards to defending myself and those with me." Shimmering emerald eyes glanced at the stern woman almost disdainfully. "I will attempt discourse first, though I lack confidence in the ability of Westerners to comprehend proper communication." The dry remark was accompanied with a slosh as he adjusted his position in the tub again.
The Midlander sucked on his teeth. "He don' sound all that convincing."
The stern woman returned a hard glare. "Have you considered that your thinking and ours, could be vastly different? It is not comprehension that fails here. It is actual communication. You assumed much from what you observed. And yet you fault me for doing the same. And to you, none of your perceptions hold any error. You walk on foreign soil. To assume that things are how you perceive they should be, is erroneous."
Oh, how wonderful it would be to have Tsanai at his side right now. She would at least spare him the ignominy of explaining something so terribly simple.
"I am fully aware of our differences," Kasrjin responded in an acerbic tone. "I am foreign. I do not understand, and may forever lack the capacity to understand the incredible inefficiencies of your society. In the situation with the two, I made no assumptions. The actions of the two clearly indicated intent to do harm. There was no lack of information. I acted upon the presence of evidence and made a reasonable conclusion from their actions and statements alone: they would engage in battle with me. I responded."
Talking so much was beginning to make him almost physically ill. This conversation was possibly the most words he'd ever spoken within a single time span, and it being about something so...banal...was not helping.
"You made no attempt to allow them to stop if they just had been shown that they were mistaken! Perhaps they would have..." The stern woman stopped.
Was this truly how the western continent operated? Kasrjin's thoughts were a jumbled mess, ranging from indignation to confusion to bewilderment and back again. There was a clear threat that was both visible and audible. Their actions reflected their intentions to do harm, and their intentions obviously fueled their actions. What did the westerners expect him to do? Had he not had his weapon out, and had the two not blathered instead of completing their objective, he would be dead, and he would not be holding this conversation.
Even with the soothing water of the bath, the Xaela found himself with a headache.
Let his task be done quickly.
"They both withdrew their weapons at little more than a visual prompt. Thus they had no intention, and possibly lacked the capability, of beginning or continuing discourse that may have lead to a non-violent resolution," the Xaela said steadfastly. "Their conversation upon approaching our location made their objective clear--to obtain an item indicative of dragonkind. Therefore, it was reasonable to make the conclusion that they would not overlook my not being Dravanian in favour of completing their objective."
"With these factors, I judged that the situation contained a foregone conclusion wherein they would enact violence upon my person for the purpose of obtaining the item they desired. This was incompatible with my own directive. Therefore, I engaged them in combat and removed them as a threat to myself and my companion." From the corner of his eye, Kasrjin saw Edda glance somewhat nervously at the stern woman. While giving his answer, the Au Ra had been steadily emptying the jugs of hot water into the wooden tub. By the time he had finished giving his explanation, the jugs lay empty and the tub had been filled with steaming liquid. Kasrjin rather promptly stepped into the tub, testing the water first before placing his torso within. The Xaela was far too tall for the vessel--his lengthy limbs stuck out rather awkwardly--but the tub contained enough depth for the soothing warmth of the water to cover most of his torso and lower body.
He sighed his first sigh of contentment since arriving on the continent.
"So you never told them that you were not dragonkin." The stern woman narrowed her eyes. "I approached with my weapon drawn. I first thought you Dravanian. And yet both of us draw breath still without bloodshed. Your conclusion could have been a mistake." Her gaze seemed to flick awkwardly about Kasrjin's form before relaxing somewhat when he sunk into the tub.
"My conclusion was the most optimal solution given the circumstances and my capacity as a warrior," Kasrjin asserted. "In addition, it would have been your false assumption, not my response, that would have begun conflict as the assumptions of those two did. The lack of knowledge is dangerous. To take action based on incomplete knowledge is a much greater threat." Kasrjin said those words without the slightest hint of irony.
"Part of my assumption still holds. You did kill the two men I was sent to seek out." The stern woman's retorts were coming quicker.
"The fault lies with me," Edda interjected. "Had I been awake, no doubt the two could have been reasoned with."
The stern woman was about to continue but then paused as Edda spoke. "But you will not be his guide throughout..." she turned to the second female, but froze upon fully acknowledging Kasrjin's response. A deep scowl emerged on her face as she glared at him as he relaxed rather nonchalantly in the bathtub.
"I could say you did the same. You did not truly know their nature, you made your assumptions based on what you heard, and how they reacted. Sometimes that is all we are given, what we see, what we believe, and we have to act upon them. And sometimes, our actions turn out to be grievous mistakes."
Kasrjin frowned. "Had they not approached with their weapons withdrawn and voiced their intentions to inflict harm, conflict would have been unnecessary." He spoke no more after that, adjusting himself in the tub.
The Midlander crossed his arms, leaning against the wall. He said nothing as he prodded his upper incisor again with his tongue.
"You may have other similar encounters here in Coerthas and Ishgard. They look upon anything that could be remotely dragonkin with a great deal of suspicion. What will you do if another draws their weapon, mistaking you for Dravanian?", asked the stern woman.
Another sigh escaped from the Xaela's lips, this one bordering exasperation. "Should they instigate combat, then I will respond in the manner most efficient in regards to defending myself and those with me." Shimmering emerald eyes glanced at the stern woman almost disdainfully. "I will attempt discourse first, though I lack confidence in the ability of Westerners to comprehend proper communication." The dry remark was accompanied with a slosh as he adjusted his position in the tub again.
The Midlander sucked on his teeth. "He don' sound all that convincing."
The stern woman returned a hard glare. "Have you considered that your thinking and ours, could be vastly different? It is not comprehension that fails here. It is actual communication. You assumed much from what you observed. And yet you fault me for doing the same. And to you, none of your perceptions hold any error. You walk on foreign soil. To assume that things are how you perceive they should be, is erroneous."
Oh, how wonderful it would be to have Tsanai at his side right now. She would at least spare him the ignominy of explaining something so terribly simple.
"I am fully aware of our differences," Kasrjin responded in an acerbic tone. "I am foreign. I do not understand, and may forever lack the capacity to understand the incredible inefficiencies of your society. In the situation with the two, I made no assumptions. The actions of the two clearly indicated intent to do harm. There was no lack of information. I acted upon the presence of evidence and made a reasonable conclusion from their actions and statements alone: they would engage in battle with me. I responded."
Talking so much was beginning to make him almost physically ill. This conversation was possibly the most words he'd ever spoken within a single time span, and it being about something so...banal...was not helping.
"You made no attempt to allow them to stop if they just had been shown that they were mistaken! Perhaps they would have..." The stern woman stopped.
Was this truly how the western continent operated? Kasrjin's thoughts were a jumbled mess, ranging from indignation to confusion to bewilderment and back again. There was a clear threat that was both visible and audible. Their actions reflected their intentions to do harm, and their intentions obviously fueled their actions. What did the westerners expect him to do? Had he not had his weapon out, and had the two not blathered instead of completing their objective, he would be dead, and he would not be holding this conversation.
Even with the soothing water of the bath, the Xaela found himself with a headache.
Let his task be done quickly.
