Down Into The Depths (IC)

[DellaDivina]

The hustle and bustle of the busy inn was a welcome change from traveling through the cold mountain passes. There were torches burning, and people laughing. A minstrel was playing a merry tune at the front of the room, and a few of the drunker souls in the room were dancing to it. All in all, it was like any inn in any little town or village. This one just happened to be in the capital of Yeslin.

Mara watched the swing of a barmaid's hips, as she worked the crowds, winking at some and batting hands away from others. The barmaid was an ample hipped and bosomed woman with a passable face and a great smile. Mara frowned at her own line of though. Surely such liaisons would go much as they had in other inns, with either a proposal to stay longer, or some angling for some coin in exchange. Neither her freedom nor her coin were things she wished to part with.

http://i979.photobucket.com/albums/ae274/Romana1969/06_zps9a0d8327.jpg
(The barmaid)

Mara herself was slender as a reed, with just enough curves to prove her gender. Her long back hair was pulled into a thick braid at her back and her tanned oval face wore a tired, but tolerable expression. She wasn't much for the signing, or drinking, or even the dancing, but the warm room and warmth of companionship were enough for her. She took another bite of her mutton stew, noting that it was actually quite good.

Her outfit stood out in the crowded room, as it was a patchwork of the hides of animals she had killed herself, over the years. It covered her from toe to neck in tanned hides, with a wolves' fur coat over the back of her chair. Beside her rested a short, recurve bow.

http://i979.photobucket.com/albums/ae274/Romana1969/1d7be71721b280246a0abe00318dd575_zpsb61e61c8.jpg
(Mara)


OOC

 

[MausAss]

Ravin was in a splendid mood, they were finally back in the capital and this night he would be able to sleep in a warm bed and if could only convince the cute red headed barmaid to join him the night would be perfect. His good look and noble background was usually enough to pique their interest, but this one was more interested in serving him food and drinks than listening to him talk.

He looked over at Mara: She was a strange one, but cute and good with the bow. He had joined her band of adventurer over a year ago after meeting them in an inn. It had begun with him trying to talk his way inside her strange looking pants, but somehow it had ended with them just talking. Ravin had acted an impulse and joined them the same night and so far he was enjoying this life far more than the one he had lived in the castle. Mara had a very different background from his, but he had learned to like and even respect her.

Being the youngest of six brothers meant he was far from inheriting his father’s title. It also meant he had far more freedom. He doubted his father would’ve been willing to let any of his brother join a band of adventurers, but he had seemed almost relieved when Ravin had told him. Not that he would’ve been able to stop him.

He finally gave up his tries with the cute red head and made his way back to Mara. The night was still young and he intended to do more singing and dancing before the night was over all things Mara showed little interest in. Ravin smiled at her and asked if she wanted to dance, not expecting her to say yes. He was in a good mood and whenever there was music he always made sure to ask her at least once if she wanted to dance hoping that she some night would finally accept his invitation.

He was a good dancer, even after a few drinks. Probably because he had been forced to learn how to dance from a young age, but dancing at an inn was very different from the more formal affairs held by the noblemen or the king. He was too unimportant to have actually met the king, but he had been at some of the balls the king had hosted. Lavishly affairs and even he could see that the king was spending more than he could afford. He worried about the kingdom sometimes, but as the sixth son of a lowly count he seriously doubted that he could change anything about the course of the entire kingdom. Some day someone would want the king to pay up his debt and that day his sword skill and battle experience would be worth its weight in gold.

 

[DellaDivina]

Mara peered at Ravin's ever hopeful face, and knew exactly what was coming next. It was his almost weekly offer to dance, which she inevitable turned down. He did not know her reasons, because she had never shared them with him. The first was Ravin himself. He was from a noble family and raised to be one of the ruling elite. Sure, he wasn't first in line to his father's title, but he was close enough for her comfort. From such closeness had come massacres.

She did not dislike him in particular, but city dwellers and nobles in general. They were a sad lot, who could not track game, nor skin a deer. Even outsiders who could move in the forest well, and hunt, often did not know the proper rituals to appease the animals' spirits, unless they were elves. He possessed all of the best, and worst traits of an urban nobleman. He was loyal, brave and true, but also headstrong and possibly a bit vain.

The second point was the sticker though. She did not dance, for pleasure. Dance was not a game, like the nobles and even commoners practiced. It was always a ritual, of one sort of another. It might be a mating ritual, or one to thank the departed spirit of the deer, or one to mourn the dead so that they might watch and be comforted. To dance was to connect with the world beyond the physical. It was, almost, more intimate than love making. He did not know what he asked, each time he asked her to dance, though she realized it did not mean these things to him.

"Ravin?" She asked questioningly, as she stared up at him.

 

[MausAss]

”One of these days Mara, one the days you will agree to dance with me,” Ravin said before raising his voice further. He didn’t mind being the centre of attention, especially after he had a few drinks.

“And it will be marvelous, the bells will chime and people will look at us, but we will only have eyes for each other as we twirl around to the music,” He said loud enough for most of the room to hear before finishing by whispering “One of these days Mara.”

He looked around the room after finishing his little speech and saw that most people had their eyes on him and Mara including the pretty red head, who quickly averted her look when she saw him watching. Ravin thought that maybe he could get her to join his bed after all, it had clearly been a look of interest, but it had to wait for now.

Instead he sat down next to Mara. He knew she probably didn’t appreciate his theatrical little performance, but he enjoyed teasing her every once in a while. She was always so secretive and he knew little of her past. She wasn’t like any other woman he had met, she was strong willed and independent and a better hunter than any man he had ever met. Mara was very different from any other woman he had met before her and he had been curious about her ever since he first saw her. That’s why he had stayed and talked to her the first night they met even after she made it clear that she wasn’t interested in sharing his bed for the night.

“So where are the others?”

 

[AlysaNewport]

http://i1286.photobucket.com/albums/a611/alysa_Newport/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zps31b37c46.jpg

Small ripples strewed across the water puddle as it fallen victim to the light hoof of the riders mount. The sound of light chain fell into harmony with the morning’s chirps of the wildernesses bird life. The brisk morning’s breeze silhouetted the average frame of the rider forcing her to pull the cloak tighter around her body. Her body shivered until the warmth came from back to her limbs. Her bluish grey orbs watched the horizon with intense glare that it almost gave her an unwanted headache. Shaking her head and breaking her gaze she let out a sigh, not one of despair but one of loath to have to be on this path. A path of constant alertness, but it was a price one paid traveling alone in this realm.

Her thought was broken from the rumblings of her stomach, as it has been a day’s travel since she last fed another constant ache of freedom without a means of income. Her ability to hunt this land seemed set against her for her arrow missed it’s mark numerous of times and her feet was not fast enough nor silently enough to move on her attended target. She cursed herself for not learning the bow as she has with her sword. Its tapping upon her side only brought a slight shaking to her head.

She resumed her watch upon the horizon, keeping an intent eye glare for she has many times fallen to the trap of ambush and even though she was getting better, she still lost more than she had won. A streak that someday would be her undoing but one day she hoped that it would not be necessary to keep such watch up. This brought a chuckle to her lungs for she knew this state of alertness would always be her haunting. She would never know true peace. Her mind drifted upon that thought and wondered how the farmers and commoners took such ease in life? Another bewildering question that would haunt her as well, another sigh escapes over her pale petals of her mouth.

Her eyes squint in the morning sunlight as a tip of a structures chimney loom just over the small hill that lay before her. The type of structure was unknown to her but any structure indicated life and possibly a means of her earning a meal. She spouted her mount forward wanting to reach this spark of hope. Her eyes grew in awe as the structure came to view as she reached the top of the hill for now before her was a city, a welcomed sight to her indeed. She spurred her mount forward at a quicker rate, her thoughts all lost except finding something to calm the hunger that spiked as well with just the thought of food.

The door to the first inn she came upon fell to her grip as she pushed the door open. Her dark brown hair swirled over her shoulder at the force she pushed it to the side. Her gaze fell quickly upon the patrons but came to rest upon the keeper that was behind the long bartering table. Quickly she moved to come to rest before him. Her eyes glued to his chubby cheeks and raised brow. Her words were blunt, uncontrolled and unused before tone. “I do wish to ask thee if ye have work that may need to be done to pay for a meal this eve,” her voice harsh with the riding dust of the night and the hunger bellowing from below.

The keepers eye brow rose a bit more at her grumble. “I do not have work that needs to be done!” he matched her tone as if she had brought the wraith of hell with her. His hand shying slid down beneath to his trusted but unused dagger’s hilt. Normally, the town militia would be present but with the situation most militia were now used to secure the mines. “I suggest you try elsewhere maiden of war!” His eyes befell to the symbol of the first order upon her sword hilt.

Her head lowered not offering any conflict. Her mind swirled searching for something that would get her a meal. “Is there anything that you see upon me that would pay for this meal?” she asked looking back up at the heavyset keeper. She eyes traveled up and down her body with an eager smile. “Well, let’s see what you have. Why don’t you turn around for me and allow me to see your wares?” he boasted out so all could watch him undress this woman with his eyes.

Alysa nodded and stood up knowing what the man wanted, what all men wanted. She took a deep breath and slowly turned showing her wares to him. The man’s voice broke her turning as he cleared his throat. “I can’t see all you have with that armor and cloak on,” he boasted to her once more.

She closed her eyes for a moment and then proceeded to remove her cloak. Her expression was blank and pale as if she was about to sink to the floor with weakness…

 

[JudeRodney]

Money. It was the thing that made the world work. You wanted something? Money would get it. You wanted to see the world? Money would get you there. It seemed that if people had more money, the world would be better off. Maybe that was why the king was such a hard ass with his money. Or was it? After 12 years as a conscripted scout, the powers that be threw coppers in Caelen Buchanan's direction and "thanked" him for his service. Maybe "hard ass" was too loose of a term. If the rest of the army got paid like this, Yeslin was in trouble.

Over his service to his king he saw so many places from a distance, he wondered what it would be like to be there, or even beyond. Of course in order to do that, he needed money. That was what led him to the capital. The king wanted his family's tomb/crypt/whatever cleared out and promised money to do so. Hopefully this time he would not be such a hard ass about it.

He had been to the capital before, and was disappointed by the way it looked every time. He felt the center of power was supposed to be more impressive than the other towns and villages. This place was just like any other. At least the tavern there had good ale. He also remembered a bar wench there that was spirited in bed. So much more was his disappointment when he found someone else waiting on the table. Was the last time he came here that long ago? Still, it was a good time to scout out the place. If there was to be competition (or assistance) for the bounty, they would be here.

He first noticed the young guy with a silver spoon in his mouth talking to a clearly exotic foreign woman as if they knew each other. There would be competition if there ever was any. They both had the look of one who knew how handle themselves in a fight. Well at least she looked as if she actually experienced a fight. Him, he was not so sure about.

Then he heard old Griswold arguing with a woman over what else? Money. As things went on, he knew the barman wanted certain "services" from her. Now Caelen had his share of women in his bed, but he was a lover, not predator as many of his comrades in the army were.

He felt annoyed that someone needed help, but resigned himself to doing so. Reaching into his cloak, he produced a pair of freshly skinned rabbits and dropped them on the counter between the two. "Here. I think this should mare cover a meal and a room for myself," he told Griswold. "And get some soup for her already!"

With that, Caelen turned around before the owner could say anything back to and found and empty table by a wall and rested his gear (long bow, quiver, various hunting tools including a knife) there before removing his cloak and sitting down to wait for his food.

 

[AlysaNewport]

Alysa’s eyes looked up at the opening sounds of the door of the inn giving way to a tall handsome man whom held a look of travel upon himself. He carried himself well, not a commoner whom allowed his posture to go to the wayside nor that of a farmer with over scorched skin but one of weathered skin, and a posture showing girth and strength. Her blue-grey orbs fell over his posture noting the now viewable weapons as he approached toward them. His gaze not falling to her but someone past her, more than likely, to the barman behind her, which was enjoying her slow removal of her cloak. Her eyes followed the man until he pasted her and even then, she slightly tilted her head to get a mere few more moments of stare time upon him. She looked for any signs that might give her his purpose but that as well he hid very well, he did not carry the persona of a slaver nor one of their hunters but then again the slavers were resourceful and might have expanded in their inquiry of personnel.

She pulled her gaze back away from the man and resumed to peel the cloak away from her body reveled the tattered, needing of repair chainmail that hung loosely about her frame. Showing either significant weight loss or she was not fitted for the armor by a skillful blacksmith. She dropped the cloak upon the back of one of the chairs next to her. She swallowed hard the lump that was forming in her throat, as she wanted to hurl the building liquid in her stomach. Her weathered hand moved downward to the weighted hem of the mail and began to lift when she heard the words of a man ordering the barkeep to get her a bowl of soup. She slightly turned her body to look upon the direction the voice came from and to her surprise or a moment of relief swept over her, for now the tide of repayment went from a slob to that of a handsome man.

She watched the man pass her once more paying no heed to her as he drifted back through the berth of scattered chairs and unaligned tables. Finding a spot in the back next to the wall, her eyes narrowed as she watched the man unload his weapons making his body free from the burdening weight. She stood eyes fanning over the types and quality of weapons, a smile formed over her lips as she assessed that the weapons were of a better quality that the slavers would furnish to even their most experienced hunters but there was still that inquiry of personnel that they could have surmised too. “Damn it.” she hissed under her breath not being able to pin point this man from his actions. Her eyes narrowed more looking at the exposed skin trying to find any marking of body that could help her place him.

A bowl of soup that was angrily pitted into her midsection by the angered barkeep disrupted her interrogative stare of the man. “Your tab for a meal has been paid.” He growled as he walked away from her. She nodded out of habit instead of respect to the slob. Her gaze fell to the bowl as the smell drifted up to her nostrils. She inhaled the smell as if it alone would fill her stomach. The soup was not your cheap broth slop with a few silvers of meat and vegetables but was abundant with both, even the broth was heavy and brown. Then to her praise, the bar maiden gave a heavy slice of bread to her. “He forgot this.” she replied as she walked away from her. A smile crossed her face for the thought of her stomach being full this night.

She reached down and took a hold of her cloak before moving in the direction of the man she now owed. Her eyes scanning every inch of him and the area surrounding the table before reaching her desired distance from the man, her mind instantly looked for advantage points for combat if the man brought this about. She looked at the commoners whom have been watching the events unfold but returned to their business upon her glare at them. She took a deep breath just moments before coming up to his table. “Greetings, I believe I owe you thanks for the meal this evening or is there a debt that must be paid?” Her voice carrying a soft tone, she stood a few feet from the table not wanting to disturb the man’s zone of comfort of an approaching stranger.

 

[DellaDivina]

Della leaned sideways against Ravin. "I do believe it is just you and I tonight. Rorin said something about seeing a man about a sheep, whatever that meant and Roth was last seen headed up stairs with a local whore." The fact was the the twins were often unreliable sources for the party, because they were self centered and weak willed. Anything in a pretty skirt, or with a bottle of wine, tempted them.

Rorin and Roth were both dwarfs and stood about four feet tall and almost as wide. They were, as it seemed, cut from the same granite at their home kingdom. Both wore their long beards in braids and preferred the traditional dwarven twin axes in battle. Where they differed was with their predilections. Roth had standards, but Rorin would bed anything which moved, be it man, woman or other.

She noticed the warrior woman's humiliation while she was talking, and almost got up to help, but before she could a rather handsome man stepped in to help. Ignoring them after that, she moved a bit to snuggle against Ravin's broad chest. It was a good thing he wasn't still wearing his full armor, because it would have been an uncomfortable position.

"I have been meaning to talk with you about the brothers. They have been becoming more and more unreliable, ever since we rousted that liche in Anchorhead and had to run for our lives. I'm not sure that he did not hit them with some sort of mystical mojo, which might explain their behavior of the last few months."

She looked up at Ravin, glad to have a least one friend she trusted in. It didn't hurt that he was handsome, for a city boy. The four of them had been together almost a year now, taking contracts guarding merchant trains and ridding local villages of their resident monsters. They had meet on just such an occasion, all draw to the same village, with talk of an actual dragon. The dragon had turned out to be an over-sized fire drake, but they had worked together to capture it and sell it to a local zoo. In the process, some money had been made and team formed.

As much as she hated to break up the team, she couldn't help but feel that the brothers, Rorin especially, might actually cause more danger than he was worth, at times. She wanted to hear Ravin's opinions, before making a decision as to whether to separate from the brothers, or not.

 

[MausAss]

He was glad when Mara told him that the dwarves were missing. They had always cared more about gold than loyalty or honor and lately he had started to sense something dark in them. Ravin’s thoughts were suddenly cut short as the door to the inn was forcefully opened and woman entered. She was a warrior, but she was exhausted and had an aura of desperation around her.

He was about to get up and help her when he noticed the sigil on her sword hilt which caused him to immediately change his mind. For all he cared she could starve to death, he wasn’t going to help someone who was nothing more than a glorified murderer. It didn’t surprise him when she dropped the cloak, her kind had no respect for anything including their own bodies. They were prepared to do anything to get the job done and the job was usually to murder someone. The worst thing was that they called themselves knights: Knights of the first order. To Ravin they were no more a knight than any common whore or thief was and he had even less respect for them. They had no sense of honor.

He could see that Mara wanted to help, but luckily a man stepped in saved the woman. Suddenly he felt Mara snuggle up against him and he started to feel more relaxed again and he quickly forget about the woman as his good mood started to return. He knew that Mara had seen more evil than he had, but he still wanted to protect her from it. He knows she want him to treat her as an equal, but sometimes he when he look at her he only saw a young woman who needs him to protect her. This was a moment like that; she looked so pure an innocent curled up against his chest. He knew she was more than competent to take care of herself, in many ways she was more capable than he was.

Mara mentioned the brothers again, giving voice to his own concerns about them. He still remembered the look on the farm girl that morning one week ago. She had refused to say a word about what happened, but he hadn’t been able to shake the feeling that they had done something to her. He had left her a gold coin, even if they he hadn’t done anything she still needed it more than he did. Ravin hadn’t mentioned a word about his suspicions to either Mara or the brothers. He had no proof, but the feeling had only grown stronger since that day. Ravin had slept with one eye open each time they had the watch ever since, which was part of the reason he felt so relieved they were back in the capital.

“I don’t trust them anymore. I think they did something to the daughter at the farm we slept at last week. I don’t know what they did, but she wasn’t herself the morning. I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if they did anything to you,” Ravin said as he stroked her hair.

He wouldn’t let anyone do anything harmful to her, not if he could stop it. He know he had been too overprotective of Mara in the beginning, partly driving her crazy in the process before he had learned that she was more than capable of taking care of herself. She was more capable than he was in many ways, but there were still things he could protect her from. Maybe he still was a bit too overprotective, but it was a big part of who he was.

 

[JudeRodney]

This is that part that annoyed Caelen the most - the part where the one he helped felt obliged to him. Still, she was easy on the eyes... and a swordsman at that. She was even from the First Order. Well at least she was. Maybe he could use her help down in those crypts.

"Just sit down and eat your soup," he finally said to her.

For awhile he just ate his meal in silence. He may have looked oblivious to his surroundings, but he was all too aware of the nobleman and his foreign girl watching him and his eating companion's every word. There was no doubt about it; they were being scouted.

After taking a swig of ale he decided to finally break the ice with the woman in front of him. "So what's a knight of the First Order doing flat broke in this hellhole?" asked quietly.

 

[DellaDivina]

"I think you may be right. Poor child." Her words were spoken without much emotion. She had seen a lot of suffering in her travels, and was not at all surprised to learn that there could be more. "Do you think that we should tell them were are splitting up, or simply move on without them. How do you think that they will take it?" She wasn't worried about her ability, and Ravin's, to handle the brothers, but she knew that when they went into berserk rages, they could be a danger to friend as well as foe.

----------------------

Meanwhile, in the palace, King Rupert was listening to the complaint between two shepherds, both contending over a lamb, when the royal chamberlain burst into the throne room. The throne room was filled with petitioners, all waiting their turn, and King Rupert immediately help up his pudgy hand and stopped the shepherds in mid sentence. "Sorry boys, but business of the realm calls. Kindly shut up for a moment." His voice was a roaring base, quite in character with his thick beard and round, grave face.

As the lean chamberlain approached the throne, bowing, she had a worried look on her aging face. "Your majesty." She lowered her head and bowed slightly.

"Oh do get on with it Gwendolyn. Tell me I am needed elsewhere!" He whispered the last bit at her.

She raised her head. "No you majesty, but goblins have broken out of the west wing of the royal catacombs again and had to be pushed back. The royal guards are quite strained as it is, seeing as you sent most of their numbers to add in guarding the mines." Her voice held a tone of admonishment. "What is your will, oh king, in this matter?"

He grunted, shook his head. "Damn it woman. I don't like your solution, but I see no choice. Send the captain of the guard around the local taverns, to try to find some adventuring types. I hate hiring mercenaries, but we can't let these bloody goblins get away with this!"

 

[Elvenoff1]

My apology..

 

[AlysaNewport]

"Just sit down and eat your soup."​

Alysa stood for a moment while those words echoed within her ears. A slight raise of her brow proceeded to arc over her eye in a somewhat of an impressed notion. Here was a man whom was intelligent enough to understand that she came to him in a position of debt and the only thing he wanted was her to sit and eat her soup. Her blue-grey orb continued to survey the man in a hastened manner, since his proximity to her was closer than before, searching for anything that would identify whom this man was, but as before, she found nothing, in which in itself captivated her even more. With a slight approving nod she slowly sank into the chair closet to the wall so that the view of the common room was unblocked.

She took one last glance about the room noting the two adventuring types now showing a stich of affection for one another, but what caught her eye was the eye that kept an eye on her, not one of desire, but one of a burning hatred, one that she herself would cast upon a member of the slavers. This fact interested her as well, just as the man now eating his food before her. Her eye fell back to the man his meal before her. Her training from the order and the forced ways of the slavers showed as she waited for the man to finish his meal before she lifted her spoon and began to eat. The food sliding down her throat was being savored while her eyes lifted to meet with those of the man's before her. She could feel every inch the food traveled til it reached its destination which instantly her stomach felt better as it had something to work on, her reaction to the feeling was the momentary closing of her eyes.*

A few bites into her soup the man breaks his silence and speaks to her. She lifted her eyes to him once more. Her words held back for a moment as she calculated on how he knew she was a knight but then subsided as the image of her swords pommel answered that question. she glared at the man for a moment longer before speaking in a normal tone. "I don't believe I caught your name kind sir?" her blue-grey orbs locking upon him. While her mind buzzed with questions starting with does he not know what happened within the order. She pondered this for a moment than assumed that maybe the remaining knights kept the inner conflict a secret which meant the order still stands! She grips the spoon harder within her hand as the anger burned deep within her. She allowed her question to stand indicating that she wasn't going to answer that question. Her intuition telling her that it just might be best that ones in this area believe that she was still in the order. A forced smile came to her face as she added to her question, "I'm known as The Bitch." she gave the orders nickname they gave her.

 

[MausAss]

”I think we owe it to them to tell. They know as well as we do that we have to split up at some point,” Ravin said feeling a bit melancholic, he didn’t mind splitting up from the dwarves but he wondered what it would feel like to split off from Mara. She was his best friend know and he trusted her more than he trusted anyone.

“Sir Ravin of Mistelgard!”

Ravin suddenly heard his name being shouted and looked up to see a courier walking up to them.

“I got an important letter for you Sir Ravin, it’s from Lord Usgar of Mistelgard,” the courier said and handed him a letter with his father sigil on it. Ravin wanted to ask how the courier had found him, but he was already on his way out. An adventure nobleman wasn’t the most common sight and if you added the fact that he travelled with two dwarves and a foreign woman it probably made him stand out even more. He wondered what his father wanted as he broke the sigil to the letter.

---------------------------------

Dear son,

You have done well son and proved me wrong. When you decided to leave the castle to go adventuring I thought it would be a waste of your time and that you would get bored of it quickly and come back. To your credit you haven’t, but now your family needs you. During one of your mission, you managed to catch the attention of Lady Mirana, daughter of Duke Jarold of Westcastle. She claims to have fallen in love with you and have convinced her father to let her marry you.

This is far beyond any marriage we could’ve hoped to arrange for you and it lies in our family’s interest to secure the friendship of such a powerful ally. It also lies in your interest as the Duke has promised to consider granting you a landed title after the wedding in an effort to give you a more suitable position as the husband of a Duke’s daughter. Lady Mirana’s will be sixteen in four months and the Duke wants to wait to announce the engagement and the planning of the wedding until then. For once your good look has brought something good with it and we expect you to be back in time for the engagement. These will be your last months as an adventurer.

Lord Usgar of Mistelgard

----------------------------

Ravin put down the letter not knowing what to think. He remembered how they had cleaned out an infested cellar, but he didn't remember if he had even talked to the daughter or not. With five older brothers he had always thought he was too unimportant to have an arranged marriage. He had learned to enjoy the freedom of being on the roads and he looked over at Mara trying to hold back the tears in his eyes. She had become his best friend during their year together and he didn’t want to know what it would be like to leave her behind.

“My father have arranged for me to get married,” Ravin said and threw the letter at Mara.

Ravin didn’t know what to say. He wasn't sure what he really felt for Mara and even less how to express it. All he knew was that he didn’t want to leave her side. He had gotten so accustomed to seeing her every day, to talk to her and fight by her side. It hadn't even entered his mind that it all could end.

“I guess we will never have that dance after all,” Ravin said and got up and quickly started to make his way back to his room. He didn’t want anyone, especially not Mara to see the tears that were starting to well up.

He couldn’t refuse doing what his father told him to do, no matter what his heart wanted him to do. He was a knight and he had taken an oath to uphold the honor of his family and it demanded of him to return. Even if he actually did love Mara, it still wasn't enough for him to break his oath.

 

[DellaDivina]

Mara caught him as he started toward his room, and pulled him into her embrace. She wasn't sure what she would do if he actually started to cry, but she was almost crying for him, despite his stoic, yet tragic expression. She held him for a few long moments, and their bodies melded together, before she spoke. "Come Ravin, I will take that dance, now, if you please."

She lead him back over to the musician and whispered into his ear. The bard nodded, though he looked doubtful. He switched his song, in mid-flight, moving expertly into a stately song about the seasons moving past. It was a well know ballad through many kingdoms of the continent.

Mara unlaced her buckskin shirt, down the front and cast it aside, leaving her only in her breaches and a leather halter top. The firelight flickered over her tanned skin, as she started to move to the music, dancing an ancient dance of change, birth, life, death and rebirth, to a not so ancient tune. Her hips swayed to the music, moving back and forth and her arms made complex patterns, telling the tale.

She reached out for Ravin. "Come my friend and join the dance, for now we have a reason to dance, where as before we did not." It was not like the dances she did before battle, nor the dance for the dead she performed after battle. It was more fluid and changing, ever playing with the beat of the music, ever moving.

------------------------------

The captain of the guard, one Perus, was laying in the arms of his lover when there was a knock on his door. He looked over a Merick, one of the King's counselors, and sighed. "It seems we are not longer alone. They exchanged a quick, but tender kiss, before Merick pulled the covers up over their waist's. "Enter," called out Perus.

As the door opened, light from the torches in the hallway spilled into his dark bed chamber, illuminating a muscular frame, covered in battle scars, and a bluntly handsome visage. His lover was slender and lovely, with pale skin and long black hair. He still held Perus, but it was looser know, knowing that one of them was likely wanted for service.

"Captain, spoke up the nervous soldier in the doorway, the king has ordered you to go ahead with the operation. We are to begin immediately." The poor lad looked like he was afraid to be the bearer of bad tidings, but Perus did not feel inclined to still his fears. The fact was that he was annoyed to be interrupted.

"Ready my horse and be quick about it lad." As the door closed and the soldier ran off, he turned toward Merick. "Duty calls lover." Merick sighed and kissed his forehead. "Go play hero. I will wait for your return, but I can't promise I will be awake. There's a counsel meeting in the morning."

 

[JudeRodney]

The Bitch... right... Was she trying to impress him? Intimidate him? He was neither. Just more annoyed. The woman had gone from a starving damsel in distress to the stereotypical knight her order had been. Caelen had seen her colleagues in on the battlefield, before. They had no respect for their enemies and even less for allies. They would simply charge into the thickest fighting, delightfully hacking down or trampling any who got in their way. They were a blight on the kingdom. A blight that would better gone, sooner if not later.

Now the big question was how she got into this mess. "Okay, Dame Bitch," he replied matter-of-factly, deciding to shut her little game down. "My name is Caelen. The man who didn't almost take his clothes off because he was so damn hungry." With that, he went back to his roasted chicken leg and ale. Maybe now she'll be a little more polite, he thought to himself.

 

[AlysaNewport]

"My name is Caelen. The man who didn't almost take his clothes off because he was so damn hungry."​

The burning waves of rage swept up from the pit of her stomach to the hand that now gripped the pommel of her sword, her breathing heavy as if she had just ran a league while her eyes narrowed. She bit her lower lip, a control method that she used to quench all emotions except those of combat. Her grip steady upon the cold pommel of her sword awaiting the command to pull it free, but that command never came.

He knows! Her mind reeled back as she relaxed her tensed body. Her hand falling away from the pommel to it's original position upon her thigh. She leaned back in her chair scanning him thoroughly with her trained eye. He knows her mind repeated the statement within. He was testing her, for he knew that if she was still with the order, her sword would be drawn and the point at his throat. He was good for his test reveled her true status, she was alone.

Her eyes dropped back to the bowl before her. She sat in silence while her mind pondered over words that would answer his question and keep intact what dignity she had left, which wasn't much. She bit her tongue, another method that she used to calm herself so that she would speak with thought. Her eyes drifted upwards from her bowl to him.

A deep breath filtered across her parting lips before she spoke, "My name is Alysa." she looked away briefly before continuing, "I do not wish to counter the effects of your test on the grounds that it is obvious that you know." she looked back at him with a softer glare. "I am no longer with them for I have killed the hand that claimed me." her whisper floated across the table. "The Order turned in on itself and as a result, I now walk free." Her hand moved across the table seizing up his drink. She brought the heavy mug to her lips and allowed the cool nectar to quench her throat. She returned the mug to its place where he had it.

She looked to him with a soften look upon her face. "My arrow does not have the skill as my sword as you know I was trained to fight up close and personal. I killed the hand that was to train me with the bow." Her gaze watched him consume the chicken leg as if she wasn't even there. She lowered her head waiting for his next insult.

 

[MausAss]

He didn’t know why she had agreed to dance with him, but he was grateful. The bard was playing a well known melody, but the dance was one he had never experienced before. It was chaotic, yet beautiful and full of emotions. It took him a while to realize there were patterns to her movement and their movements become more synchronized and he started to feel the dance. He forgot about the past, the future and all his worries as he could only focus on the present. It was like their minds were starting to share the same thoughts and it felt unlike anything he had ever felt before. Their bodies moved perfectly to music and it felt like nothing existed beyond the two of them dancing together as one. The dance brought him comfort and it also made him realize just how much Mara meant to him.

The song ended and they were back in the world. He now understood why Mara had declined all those time before. It was so much more than just a dance. It was like their spirits had connected, lending their strength to one another while their bodies moved to the music. He felt physically as well as emotionally drained, but as Ravin looked into Mara's big brown eyes he felt closer to her than he ever had before. He felt happy and he promised himself to make the most of the time they had left together.

His strength started to return, but the dance had made him feel something that was deeper and stronger than just friendship for Mara. He wondered if it was something he had felt all along or if it was just an aftereffect of the dance. There was only one way to find out what he truly felt, to find out if he really loved her. The feelings, whether they came from the dance or not were simply too strong and Ravin could no longer hold back. He put his hand on the back of Mara’s head as he leaned in to kiss her. His lips were only inches away from hers when the door to the inn opened with a loud bang, bringing them both back to reality.

 

[DellaDivina]

As they danced, Mara felt a deep connection with Ravin they had not experienced before. She had experienced such connections between herself and others before. It was a part of the ritual, meant to unit the tribe. It was why she had not danced with him before, even though he was a dear friend. She also realized that he loved her, for it was apparent as he danced. She wasn't sure how she felt. Her feeling were confused, but she knew that when he got ready to kiss her, she was ready to be kissed.

The door flew open and a man in uniform interrupted what would have been her first kiss, by a man anyway, in quite some time. The man was tall and muscular and wearing a green tunic emblazoned by the royal white stag. From the symbols on his tunic, she guessed that he was the Captain of the Royal Guard. Why he was crashing into the inn she did not know. It took effort for her hand not to go for her bow.

"Are they here for you?" She asked Ravin. He was followed by two guards, also in green tunics. They all wore swords, though the two guards with him also carried pole-arms.

"Good evening folk. Sorry about the drama, but the wind caught the door. Now that I have your attention though, I have something to be said. I am the captain of the king's guards and I am here on official business. I am in the market for men or women skilled in arms, for a quick and easy task for the crown. It should only take you half the evening and then you can return to your revelries, with gold in your pockets. What say you?"

Mara was taken aback. She did not see what task requiring skills in arms could be all that easy and did not trust the nobility, present company excepted, farther than she could throw them. Still, the prospect of a bit of gold was a draw. The dwarfs had used up most of their resources recently and they would need a job sooner than later, if they wished to continue to eat.

She looked over at Ravin and then held up her hand.

 

[JudeRodney]

It did not take a hunter's training to tell that Caelen had hit a nerve with her, and for a bit, she looked like she was ready to fight. Just as he was about to start regretting his decision to try and shut her down, he saw her start to suppress her rage. He may have looked calm on the outside, but on the inside he breathed a huge sigh of relief. He was in no position to fight a knight up close.

"My name is Alysa. I do not wish to counter the effects of your test on the grounds that it is obvious that you know. I am no longer with them for I have killed the hand that claimed me. The Order turned in on itself and as a result, I now walk free."

That last sentence caught his attention. The Order had what? Turned on itself? Well at least
they were slaughtering each other and not their king's soldiers. He let her go on about her skills and how she killed her trainer. He considered how to reply to her when the door to the tavern flew open.

"Good evening folk. Sorry about the drama, but the wind caught the door. Now that I have your attention though, I have something to be said. I am the captain of the king's guards and I am here on official business. I am in the market for men or women skilled in arms, for a quick and easy task for the crown. It should only take you half the evening and then you can return to your revelries, with gold in your pockets. What say you?"

The word "gold" resonated in his ears as if the gods spoke, themselves. Not copper, not silver, but gold. Doing whatever the job was meant personal and financial freedom for a long time to come. For him not to stand and raise his hand would have been a foolish act.

Quickly rising he quietly spoke to Alysa, saying "You might want to get in on this. I'm not feeding you again."

 

[MausAss]

Ravin didn’t know if he was mad or relieved when he saw the royal guard enter the inn. It wouldn’t have been fair to kiss her, neither to her or the woman he was about to be engaged to. He had been caught up in the moment and he was going to make sure it didn’t happen again. He wanted to bury whatever it was he felt for her deep inside him and lock it away.

“Are they here for you?” Mara asked and looked at him, but he just shook his head not knowing either what the guards wanted.

“…What you say?” the captain said ending his speech.

Ravin wondered what kind of mission the king wanted them to do, but the whole thing made him a bit uneasy. The king usually didn’t spend money on anything other than pleasures and just enough on the army to keep it from falling apart. Still they needed the gold and if was only going to take an evening it couldn’t be that bad. He doubted the king was going to send them on a suicide mission. It took one look at Mara to realize that she had come to the same conclusion. It still stung in his heart looking at her, but at least this way he could hold back.

“Let’s grab our stuff,” Ravin said, before he saw the dangerous woman and the man who helped her looking interested at the captain. He made lightly touched Mara’s shoulder to make her aware of them.

“She cannot be trusted. Let’s hope she doesn’t join this mission, but if she does I want you to stay away from her, okay? Her kind brings nothing but misery.”

He had learned not to order Mara around, but this time he wanted to make sure she knew just how dangerous the woman was. He felt a sting in his heart when he thought what could happen to Mara. He knew Mara could look after herself, but he wasn’t sure how well she would fare against a knight of the first order.

“If Roth is awake I’ll tell him we’re leaving and if he’s not we’ll leave without him.”

He gave the man and the woman one last glare, before moving up the stairs to check on the dwarf.

 

[DellaDivina]

Mara wasn't sure what it was about the woman that caused her companion to have enmity towards her, but she trusted him. The other woman was beautiful, if that was the word one could use to describe such a warrior. Surely they should assumed the best, before they had a chance to meet her. Still, Ravin must have his reasons. Maybe he knew more about the simple on her sword hilt than she did.

She nodded as Ravin told her he was going to check on Roth. She supposed that as long as they were still officially a team, they needed to keep the brothers in the loop. "Hurry back." Damn it, she thought. That kiss would have been... interesting.

She moved to stand in front of the guard captain, after gathering up her discarded jacket and bow. He looked up and down, but somehow it didn't seem to be in a predatory way. "My friend is going up to check on our compatriot, but he's in too."

The guard captain nodded. "I haven't met him before, but I would recognize that chin anywhere. Served with his uncle during the war. Good man and a good leader." There was something left unsaid, such as what a noble was doing selling his services, when the family should be supporting him. The guard captain did not bring it up, so Mara chose to ignore this point.

The room was slowly returning to normal. The locals were ignoring the guard captain now, and the minstrel was playing a merry tune again. The sore faced barkeep was throwing drinks around the bar and making snarky comments at the serving wench.

 

[AlysaNewport]

The Whim​

An arch brow rose over Alysa's eye as she watched the man continue to eat his chicken leg as if she was some phantom sitting in front of him that he himself didn't believed existed, this in itself was an insult, but one that she would let go for now, for there was a place and time for everything. Her gaze didn't leave the man as he continued to consume his supper. Each bite he made remaindered her of the fat bastard that bought her from the market scorning her with each filthy bite he took as well. His body guards licking their lips as they undressed her in their minds. The conclusion of that night brought a smile to her face as the images and screams were recalled from her memory.This memory trip came to an end as the noise of the tavern came to an eventful end. The howling wind rushing in from the ungripped handle of the inn's door.

In from the sun fallen dusk, three armored men stepped in to inn, her hand was upon her hilt before she even thought about it. Her instinct turned her to her side with her legs slightly bent readied to repel her into a combat stance. Her eyes instantly evaluating the equipment they possessed, where their hands were located and what weapon they aimed their hand to draw in a moment of conflict. She noticed the standard kingdom training of one using a pike for range, the other a heavy mace to bash heavy armor. The captain garbed in more of a varitity showing experience of a greater nature. War! Her brow focused on him for he was the threat. Or was he! Her eyes looked back to the coule, both showing the same sign as the captain, but more intense, prepared.

Upon the Captain's words, looking back at them, her framed lightened up, her hand moving away fron her weapon, but remaind close enough that she would have it drawn and on top of the plkeman before he could even lift up the heavy pike. She remained looking at them til her dead to reality friend stood up and spoke to her.

You might want to get in on this. I'm not feeding you again.​

His words sarcastic but motivational, and to the point for she needed the gold for she never wants to be debted to anyone anymore. She stood and looked at the couple noting their interest, she was more willing to do this on behalf of the male for they she looks at him waiting for him to decide before she does. He was not the money but because he was trained to answer the Kings call as once with the Order til that king left them to die by pulling back the regular army and allowing the Orders five hundred knights to become surrounded.

Looking back at the Captain she stands. " I shall answer the call of the King! " Her stance, one form the older knights of the first Order. her glare turning to the Sarcastic one!

 

[MausAss]

Roth was passed out drunk in his bed when Ravin arrived. In this state Roth would be impossible to wake up, so Ravin grabbed a paper and wrote down that they had left for a mission. They would probably be done with the mission before he woke up anyway, but it was still the right thing to do.

Part of the reason he had been so willing to leave and grab their equipment was to get away from Mara and his feelings for her, but it didn’t seem to work. Part of him still regretted that they hadn’t kissed, even though he knew it would only lead to heartbreak. Either for both of them or just him. Still a part of him knew that he would regret if he didn’t take the chance. The problem was that another part of him would regret it if he did kiss her too.

They travelled lightly, having too much baggage in the wilds was not a good idea. Ravin hadn’t worn a plate mail since before he left home, opting to use the lighter ring mail instead. He got one of the stable boys to help him carry the little baggage they had. He made sure his sword was sharp, even though he knew it was. Ravin checked up on it every day to make sure it was in the right condition. They both took good care of their equipment and everything seemed to be in order for them to leave. They were prepared for more than a few days of battle and this was supposed to only last an evening, so there shouldn’t be any problems.

Ravin returned back inside the inn and found Mara ready to go. He wished they could go to one of the kings balls instead and dance again and then… No he wasn’t supposed to think like that. It would be better for both of them, if didn't think like that.

“Everything is prepared for us to leave. It shouldn’t be any problems and if we’re lucky we can be back here tonight with our pockets full of fresh gold,” Ravin said to Mara, still having a bad feeling about the mission.

It wasn’t the first time he had a bad feeling and most of the times it didn’t mean anything, so he didn’t say anything about to Mara. It probably didn’t mean anything anyway; still it was bit strange that the king’s men couldn’t take of this problem on their own. The biggest problem was right in front of him though, he didn’t know how he was going to stand being this close to her without doing anything. He gave her a short smile to show that everything was okay, but in reality he had a hard time just looking at her. Ravin had to concentrate really hard not to stare at her too much and he wondered why he hadn’t noticed just how beautiful she was until now.

“So any last words before we leave?”

 

[DellaDivina]

Mara shook her head and donned her shirt and coat. It was to cold out not to bundle up. The guards stepped aside to allow the captain to exit the inn, and followed after as the four volunteers proceeded out of the inn.

The weather outside had grown worse, as the wind picked up, bringing in blown snow from the mountains above. It cast a light dusting over the streets of the capital. The streets went up and up, and round about, moving up the sides of a mountain in steps. It seemed that the city itself had been carved into the side of the mountain, or built up upon it. The doors were mostly shuttered tight, as were the windows. Smoke rose from rounded chimneys, as folk huddled around their coal burning stoves.

Mara felt the strain in her lungs at moving through the cold air, in such a high altitude. The captain set a punishing pace as they moved along. She looked back one or twice at Ravin, as if assuring herself that he was still there. The others she paid little heed too.

It took almost half an hour of climbing to reach the palace. It was an imposing monolith, with spires rising up to almost touch the clouds. The city itself was defended by walls, but the palace was simply a stone block with a large door.

As the door slowly lifted, to allow them entry, they saw that it lead to a long corridor which was lined with arrow slits. Mara felt distinctly uneasy passing between the slits, even if they had been invited. When they finally reached an enormous cavern like covered courtyard, she felt a bit better.

The courtyard had a ceiling which reached up at least five stories and she could swear she saw bats moving up along the ceiling. It branched off into six smaller doors and one enormous door reachable only by a steep flight of stairs. The captain lead them to the flight of stairs and they started their climb. Mara swore her legs would never be the same again. She could feel the burn deep into the muscles of her legs, despite the shape she was in.