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Post by bearpaw123 on May 9, 2020 1:08:20 GMT -5
(Alright lmao I just wanted to make sure I wasn’t like going right over it or something. Can you stick Brus’ last name as Adair?)
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Post by flamerune on May 9, 2020 1:42:05 GMT -5
(Alright lmao I just wanted to make sure I wasn’t like going right over it or something. Can you stick Brus’ last name as Adair?) Done! :3 |
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Post by flamerune on May 9, 2020 10:30:06 GMT -5
(( just start with your char on the way to the castle )
A rippling hum bubbled deep within the young man’s chest as he weaved easily through the waves of people. Occasionally, a cheerful apology or bright greeting left his lips, “Ah, yes. Hello there! Excuse me!” He chirped, ducking under the arm of a lumbering blacksmith.
Finally, the crowd broke and the grinning man dragged his vibrant blue gaze upwards to the sky, clasping his hands together. “Oh, it’s a beautiful day, isn’t it?” He hummed to no one in particular. And indeed, it was. The sun sat high above them and the sky was a bright shade of blue. A soft breeze ripples through the crowded streets, ruffling Merek’s hair slightly. The young thief’s heart pounded heavily in his chest, contradicting his wide grin and cheerful disposition. After all, the king had summoned a thief to the castle. That could only end poorly.
Still, the man skidded to a halt in front of the guards, handing them the letter sent to him. The next moment, he was in the castle, skittering nervously through the winding hallways, following a stern, armored man. “So, uh, how’s the kids?” He asked, earning a piercing glare from the guard and a brisk, “Quiet, thief.” A groan of annoyance rippled from the young man’s lips, and he shook his head, “No need to be so grouchy,” He griped, earning a sharp elbow in the gut.
For once, the thief wisely snapped his mouth shut with a huff of annoyance, cerulean eyes wide as he peered around the winding, beautifully decorated halls. So many of the paintings here would earn him food for months. However, he wasn’t foolish enough to steal from the castle. Shaking himself out of his wicked thoughts, Merek turned his attention forward. He was pulled to a halt in front of two heavy wooden doors, and he let out a whistle. “The throne rooms, eh? Wow.” Why the heck was he here?
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Post by Amber on May 9, 2020 12:03:50 GMT -5
Roselle was known as many things. A druid. A hermit. A witch. A healer. Now she could add aide to the king to that list. Of course it wasn't like she had a choice in the matter. Risk of death was as good a motivator as any. She had read over the cryptic letter multiple times, though couldn't understand why she was being summoned.
That had been a while ago when she first recieved the thing. It was not currently the object of her focus. That belonged to the city as she was reminded why she rarely ventured in. It was overcrowded, too loud, and there was an obnoxious sense of urgency with a constant stream of people. All the more frustratingly, she was constantly pulled by vendors to look at their goods or pushed by people browsing through the market. It didn't matter that she had a staff she could beat them with or a dragon who always seemed to be ready for a fight. They simply didn't seem to care.
Roselle weaved through the crowds of people, trying not to run into anyone. She fought off the temptation to hit them with her staff or snap at them, though it was growing increasingly diffcult. It never got to that point as the crowds were beginning to thin out. It wasn't surprising there would be less people around the castle, especially if criminals made up a good portion of them. Eventually, the castle gates came into view. Roselle fished the letter from a leather bag at her hip and presented it to the guards. With a respectful nod, they opened the gates and an armored figure began to lead her into the keep.
Roselle silently followed, keeping a mental note of the layout of the castle. It wasn't too complicated to remember. As they turned to a set of doors, the healer noticed two people ahead. One was clad in the armor of a guard and the other had plain clothing. The woman narrowed her eyes, curious about the brown-haird visitor.
"Here's another one," the guard mumbled. Another one? Roselle glanced at the man beside her. He was only an inch or two shorter than herself with blue eyes. He was also a human. She didn't recognize the man, but began to wonder what his purpose at the castle was.
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Post by bearpaw123 on May 9, 2020 13:26:29 GMT -5
Since the death of the queen, the castle had become relatively quiet. Her absence seemed noticeable in every corridor to anyone who frequented the structure. This emptiness seemed to weigh down on Brus, no matter what he did. The young man had been closer with his mother than his father. In a sense, the family was tied together by his mother. No two others were closer together than they were with the queen. Now, she was gone, and that tie had been severed. After her death, Brus felt more disconnected from his family than ever before. While he wasn’t typically an aggressive man, the Prince felt avenging his mother was the only way to fill the emptiness in his family. Unbeknownst to him, his father had a similar notion.
Brus had recently spent majority of his time in his bedroom. The only company he had was his lesser dragon, Flann, but even the red creature would run off and leave him alone. The Prince’s friends had stopped coming to visit, out of respect for his mourning. The young man, who had been laying on his bed lazily, glanced around for his small dragon friend. Eventually, he determined Flann had left once more. The dragon had become skilled in opening doors, and Brus never felt it was fair to lock him in his room with him. The Prince let out a small, annoyed huff and decided to go after Flann.
Brus’ hunt led him through the decorated halls of the castle. While they felt empty him, they were as active as normal with the help and guards. A few seemed surprised to see him. It had been a while since the Prince had left his room. The fiery haired man continued until he saw the red figure attempting to open a large door, despite a guard fixed right next to it. The guard, one who had been in the castle for some time, was familiar with Flann and his endeavors. Brus sighed and gave the guard a nod. He removed his lesser dragon from the door, just as the small creature had cracked the door open. The throne room door, Brus realized, glancing inside the cracked space.
The Prince opened the door a little wider, holding Flann close to him with the other hand. Inside, there were at least three figures. One was a guard he had seen before, but the other two, he was unsure of their business. Why was his father meeting with commoners, in times like this? Brus was going to find out. The freckled man walked through the Royal’s throne room door, heading two the wooden chairs as if he was supposed to be there. “The Prince.” One of the guards announced, sounding slightly confused by his appearance but not questioning it. Brus hesitated once he reached one of the chairs, his mother’s, then took a seat in it. He bent a little to release Flann, he scaled the chair, then turned to look at the strangers in front of him. What was his father up to?
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Post by Hawkeyes258 on May 9, 2020 22:06:13 GMT -5
Ser Ashton slowly makes his way towards the throne room. The death of the queen had been hard on everyone. Everyone had been handling her death in different ways. He preferred to grieve in silence and away from the prying eyes of the other knights. He didn't like to cry in front of others and wanted to be strong for everyone. The large halls seemed emptier than normal and his echoing footsteps sounded a little to loud. Seemed like the castle itself seemed hollow with heir queen.
He briefly sees the prince enter the throne room and blinks in surprise. He hadn't seen the young man in a while. Ashton nodded his head to his fellow guards and goes inside and glances at the others. Who were they and why were they here? Ashton straightens up his back and waits to see what the king wanted of him. He had his suspicions but kept this to himself. He gives a respectfully nod to the prince and eyes the other two curiously.
The two individuals didn't seem all that impressive. They must some knowledge that the king needed or something. Ashton turns away and looks forward as he waited the king to come forward.
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Post by Flame on May 9, 2020 23:37:35 GMT -5
(Sorry for being slow!)
Kiavana had arrived in the city several days in ad vance of the summons. She had only ever been to Arion as part of her work and wanted to spend some time actually seeing the city. Besides, she’d had to turn down a job offer for this to avoid death so she wanted to make the most of it. The city had turned out to be a bit of a bore for her but art and culture had never been a primary interest to her. Luckily the people were far more interesting and she had spent a great deal of time people-watching. She’d hoped to learn more about why she had been summoned but didn’t hear so much as a whisper or rumor regarding any special audiences with the king. It seemed most were preoccupied by the queen’s death.
She had also used her early arrival as an opportunity to get to know the city. The note from the king was so vague and she didn’t know what to expect. She wanted to be prepared for everything. On the day of the summons Kiavana left the inn she’d been staying in and made her way to the castle. Holding her skirts up to keep them from getting muddy before the audience with the king, she threaded her way through the bustling city. She turned many heads as she moved through the crowds dressed in her finest clothing. She wanted to impress the king, after all. Of course, it could easily have been her wings that drew most of the attention. Even tucked away behind her back the white-tipped feathers nearly brushed the ground.
Finally she reached castle gates where a pair of guards stood. After brushing the dust off her skirts and running her fingers through her hair she walked toward them letting he hips sway as she did. She flashed a charming smile and said, “Good morning, gentlemen, I have an audience with the king. If you would be so kind as to let me pass…”
One of the guards seemed too stunned to say anything, the other nodded and said “of course, m’lady, if you’ll just follow me.”
Kiavana followed the guard through the castle and eventually found herself being let into the throne room. There were three others there already plus a few more guards and a young man sitting on one of the thrones. He looked much too young to be the king. A prince perhaps.
As for the other three, she had no idea who they might be. It was possible they were other mages though she could usually tell when she ran into others with magical abilities. None of these people stood out to her immediately as being gifted with magic. The group as a whole seemed a bit out of place in the grand throne room. Kiavana couldn’t help thinking if the king didn’t arrive to address them soon that she was going to have to do something about the deafening silence in the room.
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Post by Amber on May 10, 2020 0:56:11 GMT -5
The guards exchanged a few words with each other before coming to some sort of agreement. One of the guards opened the door to the throne room while the other led the pair in. Roselle contiuned to keep quiet as they were brought inside, choosing instead to take in her surrondings. The room was rather large with a few tapestries hanging around the walls. Despite the craftsmanship of the cloth, the focal point was a pair of wooden thrones with intricate carvings detailed in the wood. Roselle couldn't make out the details so far away, but was impressed with the work.
Her attention was pulled away from the thrones as a red haired man entered. He was certainly not the king. He stood too tall and was far too young to be the man who had summoned her to the keep. He held a red lesser dragon in one hand that soon moved to the top of one thrones. The half-elf watched the man take a seat on the same one, a guard quietly greeting him. So he was the prince. She supposed it made sense, but didn't really have an opinion as she had never met anyone in the royal family. Marsh, her dragon who lazily curled himself around her neck, looked up for a moment at the new arrival. He soon set his head back down in disinterest, but she knew he would still be watching.
Everyone in the room was silent for a moment. She would get no answers with that. "Where is the king?" She inquired. Her voice seemed to echo through the grand room, which was interesting but ultimately unimportant. She didn't get threatened with death to arrive at a meet on time just so their host could show up late. Before she could get an answer, the doors opened behind her. She glanced back and watched as a new figure joined them. It was another woman with grand wings sprouted from her back. An Avian had joined them. Roselle frowned for a moment. What did the king want with her and who were the Human and Avian that now stood beside her? The half-elf glanced down at the bag on her hip. Maybe there was something that connected them all.
"Did you two recieve letters too? Letters that threatened you with death if you didn't arrive today?" It made sense. It would be too much of a coincidence for others to have arrived at the castle on the same day at the same time as she did. Roselle hoped she wouldn't have to wait long for answers, wanting to get to the bottom of the cryptic letter.
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Post by bearpaw123 on May 11, 2020 12:04:03 GMT -5
Brus watched the group begin to slowly pool into the throne room. He tried to hide his own confusion, which was probably as much, if not more as their’s. Who was this group of people, and why did his father have business with them? He scanned over the four in front of him, trying to determine what they may mean to his family. He only recognized one, the human knight. He’d seen him before, he couldn’t remember where. He also seemed the most reasonable person to have business in the throne room. The Prince returned the other man’s nod, trying not to leave his own eyes on the familiar figure for too long.
The others in the room confused Brus more than the knight. He had never seen any of them before, at least not that he remembered. It was possible that he had seen the other human before, the one who looked like The Commoner was in his job description. Still, he looked more like someone Brus would see in this setting than the other two. The Avian and Half Elf had a purpose that was not usual business, but he could not figure out what that was. Why were these individuals here?
For once, a room in the castle didn’t feel empty. This one felt full, it felt full of silence. The quiet seeped into every nook and cranny of the room. Between the silence and his own confusion, Brus felt like he could drown right there in his mother’s chair. He was thankful when the Half Elf finally spoke up. “My father will arrive soon.” He reassured, but had absolutely no idea if that was true. He wanted to seem like he knew what was going on. If they were in the throne room, they had business with the King, and that’s all he knew.
The next question to come from the Half Elf surprised Brus. His eyebrow raised, for a moment, before he forced it to straighten out. The last thing he needed was the strangers knowing he wasn’t meant to be here. It would be bad enough when his father came in, he’d have some explaining to do. Letters threatening them? That didn’t sound like his father... The Prince quickly looked up at Flann, who was still behind him on the seat, trying to hide any surprise that may have been available on his face. Surely his father hadn’t sent threatening letters to these people, and if he had, why?
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Post by flamerune on May 11, 2020 17:41:01 GMT -5
The doors of the room flung open and an old man slipped silently into the room, dark eyes scanning the room. The king watched as each of the men and women were gathered before him in his lavish throne room. The icy-eyed man’s gaze flickered across the room, studying each of his subjects with an intense curiosity.
His knight. Loyal, strong, and well trained. He would be tasked with leading the group, keeping them under control, and keeping them and others safe from harm. It was a difficult task, but he trusted him.
A thief, scrawny and talkative, silver-tongued and clever. For as well known as he was, he didn’t seem like much. However, the king knew better then to underestimate men like Merek.
The magician. She seemed powerful. The king had heard of her abilities long ago, but had only thought of using her now, when he needed her most.
And finally, an apothecary. A seemingly kind-hearted woman, apparently a sort of hermit, who was tasked with keeping this group of misfits from dying. Hopefully, she was up to the task.
He glanced towards his son, lips pursing, but he continued forward without addressing the boy. The king blew out a long sigh, slowly heaving himself from his throne and moving forward to study each of his subjects. “Hello,” he greeted softly, his voice gentle and calm. “You must be confused as to why you are here. Surely you have heard of the Queen’s assassination. I’ve called you here to help me,” he explained, looking at each of them in turn, “You are to work together and find her assassin, capture him, and bring him to me to receive justice for his actions,” he growled. “All of your previous crimes will be forgotten and you will gain enough money to last you for many years to come. This is simply an incentive. If you do not comply, you will be executed.”
And so the king went on, explaining that the “Shadow” had last been seen in the kingdom of Buyat, a kingdom across the continent. He went on to say that the group would receive supplies to keep them fed for 3 months. If they had not returned by then, they would have to provide their own provisions. Finally, he dipped his head to each of the newcomers, “I am counting on you, my dear friends. Please, do not let me down. If you have any questions, you may ask my guards.” With that, he gestured for them to leave, having no intents of speaking with them any further.
“Brus, you must have questions, come,” the old man looked towards his son, beckoning him and sweeping from the room, cloak rippling at his heels.
(*heavy panting* lemme do Merek next )
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Post by flamerune on May 11, 2020 17:51:46 GMT -5
This was way too much information to handle.
First, one by one, strangers filed into the throne room. Cornflower blue eyes drifted over each of the strangers, brow furrowed in confusion. "Oh, uh, hello!" He turned towards the strangers, offering them a bright smile. At his shoulder perched a purple lesser dragon. The beast looked over the strangers, a low growl rumbling deep in his small chest. A whip-like tail lashed back and forth, and fangs flashed.
Merek scowled, looking towards his scaly companion, "Ladon, chill out," He huffed, reaching over to pat the dragon on the head. Ladon growled again, latching onto the thief's hand, teeth sinking into his flesh. "Ow! Crap, you little-" Merek yelped, struggling to dislodge the dragon from his hand, cursing under his breath. "Ladon, let me go, fine, fine! I'll stop scolding you, jeez!"
Ladon unlatched his jaws from the thief's hand and gave a small chirp of victory, leaping up to perch on the pouting thief's head, smugness radiating off of the small beast in waves. "Yeah, yeah. You're a jerk." A tail collided with Merek's cheek, "Ow."
He opened his mouth to address the others once more, but it was quickly snapped shut as the guards announced the arrival of the king. Merek visibly paled, muscles tensing as the old man swept into the room. He was uncharacteristically quiet as the monarch explained things, and swallowed thickly.
And then, just like that, they were dismissed, and Merek's fight returned, "Wait, now hold on. What? You can't just drop a bombshell like that on us. Hey!" He moved towards the old man, but was held back by a guard. The thief looked towards the strangers with wide eyes, "What?"
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Post by flamerune on May 11, 2020 17:53:42 GMT -5
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Post by Flame on May 11, 2020 23:13:32 GMT -5
Kiavana had just finished examining the general splendor of the room when the young man on the throne spoke and assured them the king would be there soon and confirmed her guess that he was a prince. She acknowledged him with a nod and slight curtsey and then turned to the other woman who asked a question a few moments later. So it seemed the others had received a letter similar to hers.
She was about to respond when the King arrived so she turned back to the thrones and dropped into another curtsey. She was fairly familiar with how courts like this worked. Admittedly she hadn’t worked for very many kings but there were plenty of lords who fancied themselves more important than they really were and she found it best to be as respectful as possible until she knew what kind of person she was dealing with.
As the king spoke, she began to understand the secrecy and vague nature of the letter they’d received. Going after an assassin was not something you generally advertised. The idea intrigued her. Most people who hired her usually had relatively small, sometimes even menial tasks they needed her to complete. Tracking down an assassin was a much more effective use of her powers.
The part she wasn’t thrilled about was when the king said they’d have to be working together. She glanced down the row of people that stood with her in the throne room. Aside from the knight, none of the others looked like they would be able to help hunt down an assassin. Before she could protest or ask any questions, the king left and the four of them were left to sort through the information themselves. She crossed her arms, ruffled the feathers of her wings in annoyance, and then turned to the others.
“Well then,” she mused. “Seems like we’re going to be spending a significant amount of time together - assuming no one dies - so we might as well get to know each other.” She didn’t do much to hide her distaste of the situation. “My name is Kiavana Costhel. I’m a mage. And who might the rest of you be?”
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Post by Amber on May 12, 2020 0:33:16 GMT -5
Before anyone could answer her, a set of doors flew open. They were the same ones that the prince had entered through earlier. An older man appeared. Gray streaks peppered his hair and sunken eyes seemed to show his age. He looked tired. Despite his appearence, it was clear the man was the king. He carried himself with a facade of confidence, however it was clear something weighed him down. Of course, that as likely the death of his wife. The loss would still be fresh in the old king's mind. After a long sigh, the man finally addressed the group. He greeted them and explained rewards for completion of the mission.
Roselle frowned. Crimes? As far as she knew, she had never done anything illegal. Unless of course she had and didn't realize it, but that seemed unlikely. She glanced at the Avian and Human. Perhaps they had a criminal record. After a moment, he contiuned on to explain the assassination of the queen and spoke about the person behind it. They were simple known as the Shadow and there seemed to be little detail on the mysterious figure. The king finished explaining everything and then slowly got up. It was a lot to take in at once.
Before she could even ask any questions, everyone was dismissed and the king was off to speak with his son. Roselle stood for a moment, blinking and unsure of how to react. Drawing in a shaky breath, her body went ridged with anger as she tightly squeezed her staff. Roselle was speechless, silently watching the royals exit the room. The Human tried to go after them, more confused than angry at what just happened, but was stopped by the guards. The room went silent for a moment.
"He dumped all that information on us, and then leaves?!" Her voice carried through the room. From the side, she could see the guards shift uncomfortably, one even reaching for a weapon as if to expect her to do something. Roselle ignored them. If she wasn't a criminal before, she was thinking about becoming one now. The king owed them more of an explanation than that. For something so dangerous and risky, leaving them without a second thought was careless. "For people he considers 'dear friends' he sure left awfully fast. What was he thinking leaving us without an explanation? Is he a fool or just dense? Some king."
Once more the guards made their discomfort obvious. It wasn't surprising considering her comments about their king. Roselle sighed. Perhaps he wasn't always like that, perhaps he would've stuck around normally. Grief did strange things to people. The Avain's voice pulled her attention. She seemed to be handling the situation surprisingly well. The Half-Elf glanced at her for a moment. It was a good idea for them to get to know each other, especially if they were expected to work together for at least three months. Her anger was still intense, though she was able to ignore it to answer the woman, Kiavana.
"Roselle and I'm assuming I'm here to make sure no one dies."
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Post by Hawkeyes258 on May 12, 2020 8:44:43 GMT -5
When the king had come forward, Ashton has bowed his head then straightened up as he began talking. He listened intently and had glanced around at the others. This wouldn't be an easy task especially since Ashton wasn't sure how cooperative the other three people would be. However, Ashton wouldn't about to let his king down! He couldn't help but be a tad excited about the prospect of this quest.
When the king walked off to speak to his son, Ashton relaxed his shoulders and takes a breath. He felt honored to be chosen for this mission and hoped to make his king proud. He turned his body towards his companions to see confusion on their faces. He blinked wondering what they didn't understand. They were to find the queen's murderer and bring him back! Easier said then done He thought to himself.
He noticed that the others were introducing themselves and waited until it was his turn to speak. "My name is Ser Ashton Browne and seems I'll be leading this little quest of ours." He said his tone formal.
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Post by bearpaw123 on May 12, 2020 11:57:15 GMT -5
Brus watched his father walk in, an almost look in his eyes. He wanted answers, yes, but he knew intruding on a meeting was probably not the best means of getting them. For a brief moment he caught his father’s eye, but he quickly looked at the strangers in front of him. Silently, he hoped the King wouldn’t address him and tell him to leave. Thankfully, he didn’t.
Still, what the King said did not explain much. Sure, now Brus had an idea of why these four were here. He knew that the letters previously mentioned did have something to do with the four of them being here. He knew who had murdered his mother, which was not a fact that had been made known to him. He also knew at least one of them was a criminal. The young man had no idea why his father would trust a criminal, not with something this important.
Brus, who had not been looking at his father, heard the older man start to leave. He turned, looking rather surprised. That was it? That was all he had to say to them? “I do have questions..” He sounded uncertain, like he expected his father to turn and also answer questions from the four. No such luck. The Prince followed the King out of the throne room. Flann slipped off the back of the throne and moved quickly past him and out the door before him, then down the hall. Brus ignored him, knowing that was another problem for later, then looked at his father once the doors shut. “Father, what’s all of this about? Criminals avenging her? Shouldn’t it be knights, or- or me? Not three possible criminals and just one knight to keep them on the mission?” He didn’t mean to question the King, but his emotions were high.
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Post by Hawkeyes258 on May 17, 2020 15:19:44 GMT -5
(Light bump)
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Nov 21, 2024 15:09:07 GMT -5
Nov 21, 2024 15:09:07 GMT -5
