• Graded • Practical Experience

Old IC threads, abandoned or otherwise can be located within.
User avatar
Kirei Qe'Azour
Posts: 340
Joined: Sun Aug 27, 2017 1:00 am
Race: Mortal Born
Profession: Chef
Renown: 134
Character Sheet
Character Wiki
Plot Notes
Personal Journal
Templates
Letters
Point Bank Thread
Wealth Tier: Tier 9

Contribution

Milestones

RP Medals

Miscellaneous

Events

Practical Experience

Image
-

123rd Vhalar, 710


Life seemed to finally be falling into a routine for Kirei. It wasn't one that she liked; she hated being a slave, and everything that went along with it. But a routine was...safe. Predictable. It was a far cry from life on the streets. Back in Lowtown, she never knew where she was going to sleep from one trial to the next. Nor did she know when...or even if she would get her next meal. If nothing else, Kirei knew that she had a better chance of survival as a slave than she had as a street kid in Lowtown. Whether she actually wanted to survive as someone's slave...well, that was debatable.

There were a few similarities between life in Athart, and life back in Lowtown. The merciless, often sadistic "masters" had replaced the roving street gangs as a constant source of fear and pain in her life. The latter might not have been as cruel as the winged demons could be, and they had gone after her and her friend because they were weaker than the gangs were, so they were seen as fair game in the fight for survival on the streets. But while the Avriel "masters" were often more cruel than the street gangs had been, and did not have the justification of trying to survive themselves to explain their cruelty...they were at least predictable. Kirei was starting to learn what they expected of her, and what would earn her one of their harsher "punishments" as opposed to a sharp cuff as a reprimand. Slowly but surely, she was starting to learn how to avoid the worst of their anger. It helped that she had a better grasp of Dehasin now, and was able to understand more of what her "masters" were saying.

Another thing that seemed to be quickly becoming a routine was the classes that all of the slaves had to attend. Some of them were being given fighting classes in the arena. Most of these slaves were men, and all of them were strong, muscular looking types. They were the ones who were likely to be sold as bodyguards. Or worse, Kirei had learned that some of the "fighter types" would be sold to arenas as fighters. They would spend the rest of what would likely be a short life fighting just for the right to survive, and the entertainment of their masters. Just the thought of that was horrifying to Kirei. And while she would always remember the trials when knowing how to fight would have saved her a lot of trouble, Kirei was very happy that it was obvious that she was completely unsuitable to be a "fighter type."

Of course, there was one type of slave that horrified Kirei even more than the thought of arena slaves did. The prettiest of the slaves, both male, and female alike were given lessons on how to...please their masters. In bed. Just the thought of being forced into...that made her feel sick. Kirei was no innocent by far. She had been well aware of the threat that street gangs, drunks, and the like could be for the older girls out on the streets. It had been something that had kept her awake out of dread more than once. In a few more arcs, she might have been faced with that fate herself. Kirei thought that she would rather die than be used in that way. If she had to be a slave, Kirei hoped that she would become either a household slave, or a labor slave. Fortunately, judging by the classes they were putting her in, it seemed as though the winged demons thought she was best suited to be a household slave.

The classes themselves were something that Kirei had very mixed feelings about. She was learning practical things such as cooking, gardening, how to tend a farm, and care for a child, or an elderly person. She was even learning basic medicine. Things that she would definitely find useful if she even managed to get free and had to make her own way. Kirei even found herself enjoying the lessons somewhat. But she hated the fact that she was being forced to take the lessons. And the constant presence of fear turned what might have been a fun experience into a nightmare.
word count: 731
User avatar
Kirei Qe'Azour
Posts: 340
Joined: Sun Aug 27, 2017 1:00 am
Race: Mortal Born
Profession: Chef
Renown: 134
Character Sheet
Character Wiki
Plot Notes
Personal Journal
Templates
Letters
Point Bank Thread
Wealth Tier: Tier 9

Contribution

Milestones

RP Medals

Miscellaneous

Events

Practical Experience

Image
-

Kirei yawned. Then she winced, and looked around nervously to see if any of the winged demons had seen her weakness. One of the "masters" scowled at her in a clear warning. But he must have been in a good mood, because he didn't punish her, or even scold her for her lapse.

She had been here nearly a full season, but despite having gotten used to the routine, she couldn't seem to get used to the sheer amount of work she faced each trial. From well before first light, til long after the sun had set, she was constantly on the go. If she wasn't working, she was being punished for some imagined fault. If she wasn't doing either of those, she was in one of the many lessons she had to attend. And if she had a spare trill or two, she was trying to learn more Dehasin, or Lorien; anything that might make her life a little easier. All of this was done on very little sleep, and even less food. As scrawny as she had been when she'd arrived in Athart, she was even more so now. And she was tired all the time. She simply didn't have enough energy to keep up the pace that was demanded of her. But failure to keep up wasn't an option either.

A sharp order had Kirei scurrying to obey even before she consciously understood what had been said. She, and several other slaves headed towards the kitchen for another lesson. As she took her place in the group, she noticed that her friend had joined her. The other girl gave her an encouraging smile, and Kirei offered her a grateful smile in return. Then it was time to pay attention to what was being taught.

"You worthless creatures seem to have managed to learn what I've tried to teach you in the past, so I just might not be wasting my time here. If you continue to learn as you have been, I might even give you the chance to practice what you've learned this trial."

Kirei's eyes widened. This was new. In previous lessons, the winged demon in charge of teaching them had simply lectured at them, expecting them to learn everything he said the first time he told them. At times, he had ranted at them if he thought they weren't learning well enough, or quickly enough to please him. But questions weren't allowed. And they certainly hadn't been allowed to practice any of the things they had learned. Kirei was exhausted. It was hard for her to focus enough to translate the winged demon's words into something she could understand. But she vowed to herself that she would learn everything that she could in this class. Partly for the ever present need to avoid punishment for failure, of course. That was always a consideration. But she really wanted the chance to practice what she would be learning. How else could she be certain that she really knew how to do something if she wasn't able to try it herself?

"Before you can learn too much about cooking food, you first need to know how to prepare the ingredients to be cooked. One of the processes involved in this is cutting the ingredients properly for the dish you are attempting to make. So, for this reason, this lesson will be about the various cutting techniques you will need to know."

The winged demon held a sharp looking knife up for them to see.

"This is a knife. There are many different kinds of knives used to prepare ingredients, but you will learn more about that later. This lesson is going to be about the various methods of cutting fruits and vegetables. Some of them can be used to cut meat as well in some cases."

Kirei might have taken offense at the idea that she wouldn't know what a knife was if she wasn't so tired. Her friend nudged her urgently, drawing her attention back to the lesson. Kirei silently berated herself for allowing her concentration to slip even for a moment. That was a quick way to earn punishment, and Kirei had enough trouble avoiding that without actually doing anything to earn it.

"There are five main cutting techniques that we will be focusing on today; chopping, slicing, dicing, julienne, and chiffonade. If you don't know at least this much, you will fail at pleasing your masters with your attempts at cooking. The first technique we will discuss is chopping. Hopefully most of you either know what it is already, or have at least heard of it. If you've spent any amount of time in the kitchens here you have done it even if you didn't know what it was that you were doing. But as worthless as you slaves are, with my luck, this is all new to you. So pay attention!"

Kirei jumped as the winged demon suddenly raised his voice, but at least she had been paying attention. One of the other girls had not been, and she had to be dragged out of the kitchen after she'd been beaten into unconsciousness.

"There are two different ways you can chop a vegetable. Those methods are the rough chop, and mincing. The rough chop is the most basic vegetable cut. It produces pieces that are roughly the size of a large dice, which is between 3/4 of an inch, and an inch. Chopping ingredients does not give you the same precision as dicing them will, however. This method is often used when preparing kabobs and stir fries. The other method of chopping is called mincing. When it comes right down to it, mincing something is the same as using a very fine chopping technique. Ingredients that are minced will resemble a coarse paste. Minced vegetables dissolve quickly, and are perfect for cooking broths and sauces."

Kirei longed for a journal, and a pen so she could take notes. Slaves weren't allowed to own anything, so she knew better than to ask for such things. But taking notes would really come in handy in times like this when there was so much information she had to commit to memory. As exhausted as she was, she felt as though she was on information overload. It was very difficult to concentrate. Yet she'd be in a world of pain if she didn't.

"Dicing vegetables produces a uniform cube that varies in size depending on which method is used. A small dice produces cubes that are approximately 1/4 of an inch. There are three different methods of dicing something. The method you use will be determined by the size piece you need the ingredients to be. When you dice something, you slice it first vertically into strips. Then you slice it horizontally into the desired sized cubes. The first dicing method is the large dice, which will give you cubes that are about 3/4 of an inch. A medium dice will produce 1/2 inch cubes, and a small dice will produce cubes that are approximately 1/4 of an inch."

So there isn't that much difference between dicing something, and chopping it if you use a large dice cut? No...that's not quite true. A large dice cut will give you cubes where chopping a vegetable probably gives you pieces of different shapes. And using a rough chop may give you pieces that are bigger than ones produced by a large dice cut. I think I have that straight...I hope I do, anyway...

"When you slice a vegetable, the end result is a flat, round piece. The thickness of the piece can vary depending on what is required by the recipe. This method is one of the easier ones to learn because it doesn't require as many steps as dicing does, and the exact size of the piece isn't often that important. Raw vegetables prepared this way are often used in salads, or on a platter. Some recipes call for sliced vegetables as well. And slicing vegetables makes it easier to stack or layer them on top of each other if it is necessary to do so."

"Are you understanding everything well enough?" came a whispered, hesitant voice.

Kirei gave a tiny nod, thankful to her nameless friend.

"For the most part, yes. But what does "slicing" mean?" she whispered back.

That simple question started a brief, hushed explanation of what the names for all of the cutting techniques were in Dehasin. Kirei thanked her friend quietly, then went back to listening to the lesson.

"The julienne cutting method is also known as the matchstick cut because it gives you a uniform strip of vegetable when done correctly. There are two types of julienne cut; the normal julienne cut, and the brunoise cut. A normal julienne cut will produce pieces that are approximately 1/8 inch by 1/8 inch by 2 inches. But it can also be cut even finer to produces pieces that measure 1/16 inch by 1/16 inch by 2 inches. A brunoise cut is a julienne cut cubed. When done correctly, it will give you pieces measuring either 1/8 inch or 1/16 inch depending on the size of the original julienne cut. Coleslaw, spring rolls, and wraps are all good examples of dishes that require this cutting method. Basically anything that requires the vegetables to be thin, and elongated will require this cut. The brunoise, however is a substitute for when a recipe calls for pieces that are smaller than simple dicing can produce."

The winged demon glared at one of the slaves who didn't seem to be paying attention. Kirei hid a wince. That could have been her a few bits before when she'd needed her friend to translate some of the words for her. Kirei vowed to get a better handle on Dehasin quickly. After the slave in question had been punished, the winged demon went back to his lesson.

"Finally, we have the chiffonade cut. It is used mostly to create a garnish for a dish out of leafy green vegetables or herbs, or to slice them finely enough that they can be stirred into a recipe. When using this technique, you will stack several leaves that are roughly the same size into a neat pile. The stack is then rolled from stem to tip. Then the rolled leaves are slices lengthwise several times to create ribbons."

Kirei carefully recited what she'd been told silently in her head several times. She knew that when the lecture was finished, they would be tested on the information they had just learned, and she was determined to be ready for it.
word count: 1818
User avatar
Kirei Qe'Azour
Posts: 340
Joined: Sun Aug 27, 2017 1:00 am
Race: Mortal Born
Profession: Chef
Renown: 134
Character Sheet
Character Wiki
Plot Notes
Personal Journal
Templates
Letters
Point Bank Thread
Wealth Tier: Tier 9

Contribution

Milestones

RP Medals

Miscellaneous

Events

Practical Experience

Image
-

Kirei eyed the winged demon uneasily. Judging by the way he was watching them, the lecture was clearly over. Normally this was the point in the lecture that he would begin to quiz them on what they had learned. Instead, he was just...watching them. That was unexpected; Kirei hated the unexpected. The unexpected was often dangerous. She had known that even when she was a little kid on the streets of Lowtown. And it was even more true now. Surprises led to mistakes being made, and mistakes were to be avoided at all costs. The winged demons had no tolerance for mistakes here. Mistakes could get you killed. The other slaves were growing anxious, too. A wary silence hung over the room as everyone waited to see what would happen next.

A question was snapped out into the silence, and the winged demon pointed at the hapless slave he wanted to hear the answer from. Kirei listened tensely as the slave in question squeaked out a nervous answer. It was right, and the winged demon pointed over towards a group of tables that had been set up in the corner of the dining area. The girl scurried over to the tables quickly. One by one, each slave was asked a single question. Correct answers earned them a place at one of the tables. Those who answered incorrectly were beaten into unconsciousness, and tossed into a heap in the corner.

When it came time for her own question, the winged demon asked her which cutting method she would use to prepare the ingredients for a stew. They hadn't learned how to make a stew yet, but there were clues buried in the information they had been given. Besides...stew was a common dish. Cheap fare that she had managed to get more than once while living on the streets. It was also a common meal here, too. As she thought about the stews she'd eaten in the past, she realized that there was only one answer.

It didn't matter if the pieces of meat and vegetables were the same size or not in a stew, so the more precise methods of cutting things were dismissed immediately. Stew was a hearty meal. There were no leafy green vegetables in it, so that ruled out the chiffonade cut. And there were chunks of meat and vegetables in a stew, not neat round, flat pieces. So slicing them wasn't the right answer either.

"I would chop them, using a rough chop rather than mincing them." she said simply.

Like others before her, Kirei was directed over to the group of tables in the other room. Once everyone had passed or failed their quiz, the winged demon joined them.

"This will be the real test to see how well you've been paying attention. Each one of you has a knife, a cutting board, and a selection of ingredients in front of you. When I call out a cutting technique, you will do it. I am not looking for speed here. That will only come with practice. What I do expect, however, is that you will do it correctly. Should you succeed, there may be hope of you pleasing your masters in the future. But should you fail..."

The winged demon glanced back towards the kitchen where those who had failed to answer their questions correctly were still unconscious.

"You will be joining the rest of the worthless trash."

Kirei tensed, in determination. She would not fail. She couldn't afford to. Each cutting technique was called out at random. Chopping and slicing came easiest to her. Dicing was harder because she had to try and guess the right sizes for each version of the cut, but she still managed to do it well enough that she only earned a scowl from the winged demon rather than a real punishment. She managed well enough with the chiffonade because she remembered how to do it. But it was hard to keep the leaves rolled up while cutting them, so it was slow going, and the end result was a far cry from the "ribbons" the "master" had spoken of. But once again, her efforts earned her a scowl rather than a punishment because she had at least demonstrated that she knew what she was supposed to do.

It was the julienne cut that got her into trouble. She managed the "long, thin" part well enough. But Kirei had no idea what an eighth of an inch, or a sixteenth of an inch looked like. And her attempts at guessing must have been way off because the winged demon cuffed her sharply enough that her head exploded with pain, and her ears rang when he noticed what she had done. Still, it could have been worse; she hadn't been beaten unconscious. That told her that she had done something right, at least. It was still small comfort as she nursed her aching head, though. When the lesson was declared over, and they were dismissed, Kirei made her way to the room she shared with the other slaves, and collapsed into bed. She was asleep as soon as her head hit the thin mattress.
word count: 872
User avatar
Qit'ria
Approved Character
Posts: 812
Joined: Mon Sep 18, 2017 1:58 am
Race: Undead (Ghost)
Profession: Huntsman
Renown: 344
Character Sheet
Plot Notes
Personal Journal
Templates
Point Bank Thread
Wealth Tier: Tier 5

Contribution

Milestones

RP Medals

Miscellaneous

Practical Experience

Your Thread Review is Here!
Kirei QeAzour
Pre Review Checklist
Requirement ✓ or X Comment
Approved Character --
Updated Thread List for Previous Season --
Updated Skill Point Ledger (Raw, Adjusted, Thread Earned) ✓ ✓ ✓ --
Updated Devotional Tables X As a marked individual, please include a devotion table for tracking.
Updated Purse (Seasonal Expense, Wage, Thread deductions) X X ✓ Please work to fill in your previous wages and expenses
Updated Fame Ledger & Table for threads ✓ ✓ --
Thread Being Reviewed Linked In CS --

Review
Requirement Fulfillment Comment+
Solo or Collab Solo +6 Skill Knowledges Base
How many posts? 3 +0 Skill Knowledges
How many requested? 6 --
Are all posts greater than 250 words? 720, 1785, 863
Is the thread greater than 1500 words? 3368
Knowledges appropriate? --
Loot appropriate? --
Fame appropriate? --
Devotion appropriate? N/A --
Injuries appropriate? --

I love the level of detail you bring to this story, the dedication to the skill and craft. Well done :D Below is your well deserved loot. If you have any questions, please PM me. Also please add the provided stamp to your review request found here and please update your CS with all of this information.


Code: Select all

    [center][img]/gallery/image.php?album_id=39&image_id=7932[/img][/center] 
Loot
Reward Amount Comment
Skill Points +10 --
Magic Points available? N/A --
Devotion N/A --
Fame N/A --
Injuries A headache, and ringing ears that will last for a couple of trials caused by a sharp blow to the head. --
Knowledges
Skill Knowledge:
  1. Cooking: Cutting Techniques - Chopping
  2. Cooking: Cutting Techniques - Dicing
  3. Cooking: Cutting Techniques - Slicing
  4. Cooking: Cutting Techniques - Julienne
  5. Cooking: Cutting Techniques - Chiffonade
  6. Endurance: exhaustion makes concentration more difficult


Non-Skill Knowledge:
  1. Kirei: likes routines because they feel safe and predictable
  2. Kirei: hates the unexpected
  3. Dehasin: terms for cutting techniques
  4. Slaves: different types of slaves; pleasure, labor, arena/fighters, household
  5. Mistakes can get you killed.
word count: 305
Post Reply Request an XP Review Claim Wealth Thread

Return to “IC Archives”