barrayarmods: (Default)
For Barrayar mods ([personal profile] barrayarmods) wrote in [community profile] forbarrayar2016-12-19 09:43 pm

[ january i log: barrayar ]

Who: Everyone
What: Arrival on Barrayar and what follows
When: January 2nd - January 17th
Where: Barrayaran guerrilla camp
Warnings: None (at the moment)


welcome to barrayar.
It's the dark of night when you come to in the foothills. Snow on the ground, chill winter wind whistling. A steep mountain range towers just ahead, its peaks illuminated by the light of two moons. Whatever you last remember, it isn't how you got here, and you feel oddly jetlagged, slightly queasy.

And you're not alone. There are nine other people close by, all looking equally lost and confused. But before any of you have a chance to figure out what's going on, the soldiers arrive.

They're dressed in weather-worn green uniforms, bearing swords and bows, and they surround you immediately, poised to attack. But they quickly realize you're not their enemy, the ones they call Cetagandans. They're just as confused as you are, but rather than hanging around to puzzle it out, they start shepherding you toward their camp in the mountains while it's still dark. There's a war on, they say, and you unlucky bastards have just been dropped right smack in the middle of it.

the guerrilla camp
It's a few hours' hike through the mountains to get to their hidden camp, set up in a clearing framed by dense, hard forestry and backed against a rock face. Daylight is finally dawning when you make it there. You and your fellow sudden arrivals are ushered to an empty tent on the far end of the camp, just big enough to fit all ten of you. You can't help but notice they've posted guards all around it. You aren't under arrest – they just don't know what else to do with you.

You are able to glean, from hearsay and what the soldiers are willing to share with you, that you are on a planet called Barrayar, and this is their home, and ten years ago they were attacked without warning by the Cetagandan Empire. They've been holed up in the mountains fighting against their invaders ever since, outgunned and outmanned, but scoring little victories where they can. They don't tell you much more than that. Some dialect of Russian seems to be one of the predominant languages of the camp, but for the most part they all speak English too, if with an accent. They're gruff and wary, and if you look a little less – or more – than human, they'll eye you with suspicion, maybe even make obscure hex signs at you that seem intended to ward off evil or disease. But they aren't hostile to you, not unless you start something with them.

the outsiders' tent
It's not in the greatest shape, but if you look around the camp, the rest aren't much better off. It's cramped, but you've at least been provided with bedrolls and heavy wool blankets to ward off the frozen chill, and if you're in need of clothing, they'll provide it, although it probably hasn't been washed in…a while. The soldiers bring you food at mealtimes -- not very good food, mostly tough meat and groats, and they keep you your own campfire, just to keep you warm. They've also hastily dug you your own latrine area at the edge of the perimeter, just behind the treeline. No private bathroom stalls in this outfit, unfortunately. The entire camp seems tense and wary, and the soldiers are alert, but they don't talk much. You could try sneaking past them, but you probably won't get far.

Well, at least you've got each other for company: the outsiders on Barrayar.
vorbratta: (is it a condition)

[personal profile] vorbratta 2017-01-07 04:18 am (UTC)(link)
Sonia huffs out a breath through her nose, looking frustrated, and buries her hands in her hair. "Like what? What is there for me to do? They'll hardly let me do anything. And I don't want to be some -- lady warrior," she says, receding a little bit. She tangles her fingers together in her lap, staring at the grass peeking through the snow at her feet.

"I don't think -- " She stops, bites the inside of her cheek. "I couldn't do that anyway."
dendarii: (solpadeine111)

[personal profile] dendarii 2017-01-07 01:28 pm (UTC)(link)
"I don't think that ought to hold you back," say Miles, thinking hard. He'll respect her proclaimed intent not to want to be a warrior, but... "There are other things. You could be a tactician. You could organize supplies. Gather information."
vorbratta: (you are the attraction)

[personal profile] vorbratta 2017-01-08 01:43 am (UTC)(link)
Sonia lets out a dry laugh at you could be a tactician, shaking her head. "If you think Count Piotr would let me anywhere near his war tent -- pfff." She waves that thought off, not looking much consoled.

"And I don't get to leave camp without an escort. I just...always seem to be getting under someone's feet, or in the way. And..." She gestures helplessly, grasping at air. "You know how Barrayarans are. Everything is about men. The only thing that'll make me less of a child in their eyes is getting married. And that's not happening."
Edited 2017-01-08 01:43 (UTC)
dendarii: (eidetics 160)

[personal profile] dendarii 2017-01-08 01:47 am (UTC)(link)
He can't really deny that. His own mother hadn't gotten a damned modicum of respect until she'd dumped a severed head in the middle of the war table. Even his own father had underestimated her.

"Prove them wrong," he says fiercely. "We'll have enough opportunities to do so in this kind of situation."
vorbratta: (why do you pick me right back up)

[personal profile] vorbratta 2017-01-08 01:52 am (UTC)(link)
Sonia looks heartened by that some, but some part of her still seems reluctant, tentative. She opens her mouth, seems to think the better of it, and then purses her lips, shaking her head. "Maybe," is all she says with a half-shrug. She amends for it with a small smile. "You will, I'm certain of it. I'll make sure of it."
dendarii: (TW_S1_E2_0501)

[personal profile] dendarii 2017-01-08 01:54 am (UTC)(link)
Miles is stubborn on this one. Mostly because it's his issue too. "No, we both will. I'll help you."
vorbratta: (i better keep my two legs running)

[personal profile] vorbratta 2017-01-08 02:20 am (UTC)(link)
There's something about Miles that almost reminds her of Count Piotr, except he's worlds more pleasant. And funny. And right now, extremely, almost terrifyingly confident in her. Sonia's breath escapes her, somewhere between a laugh and a sigh. "How? You don't want that liability."
dendarii: (frakkingcylon 005)

[personal profile] dendarii 2017-01-08 02:33 am (UTC)(link)
Strange. It's almost as though they could be related, eh? Must be the Vorkosigan District look. Certainly Miles has the same fire in his eyes that General Vorkosigan sometimes gets.

"Liability? You? You're no such thing."
vorbratta: (okay okay dolore)

[personal profile] vorbratta 2017-01-08 02:37 am (UTC)(link)
Sonia scoffs, cheeks puffed. "Be serious, Miles. Who do you think is the biggest liability in this camp? And even if not to them, surely to you."
dendarii: (solpadeine30)

[personal profile] dendarii 2017-01-08 02:48 am (UTC)(link)
He's serious, dammit. And he's not letting up. "You aren't. You're protecting me now, aren't you?"
vorbratta: (you are the gazer)

[personal profile] vorbratta 2017-01-08 03:37 am (UTC)(link)
"Yes," Sonia says, frowning, and draws her wool coat around her shoulders more tightly. The man is relentless. He just...has a way about him. She bites her lip. "But that's not -- it isn't at any risk to me.