Fantasy The Princess And The General (PC and Dragonlord318)

[PrincessCrystal]

A princess from two worlds, one hidden, just a distant memory from her youth, and one right before her eyes. Which should she let define her? Which should she fight the hardest for?

The young healer heard the sounds of feet running past her tree house and looked out to see what had scared everyone so. When she heard Soldiers coming into her village her eyes landed on the human with an Elven warrior in his arms.

Crystal, The Healer of the village, stepped from her doorway, her shimmering gown flowing like water in a waterfall. She rushed down her stairs to meet the human. "What happened?" She asked, her voice betraying that she feared nothing. She showed the way into her home and pointed to the bed. "Lay him here and then leave." She directed as she moved to gather what she would need to heal her warrior.

The healer mixed her potions and lotions not paying attention to whether or not the human left. Grabbing her roll of bandages she sat on the stool beside the bed, her basket of things at her feet. She looked around, not seeing anyone, she moved her supplies out of her way, closed her eyes, and lay her hands upon the warrior. The bleeding stopped at the touch of her hands, a glow coming from them as they moved over the shirtless form. Crystal started at his head and slowly moved her hands down his body.

The labored breathing of the man before her, slowed to that of sleep, hers becoming labored as she worked. She kept her eyes closed as the glow of her hands slowly worked their way over and around the warrior. If the human stranger had stayed, she did not notice and he would see the physical damage become nothing. As though it had never happened.

Taking the better part of two hours, Crystal worked diligently to heal the man with the power within her body. When finished, the warrior looked as though he had never been in a fight. She stood and moved away from the bed, her movements betraying her state.

She stumbled slightly as she moved to place some of the potions she had mixed up in various places on her shelves. One of the bottles fell from her hands and shattered when it hit the floor. "Damn, that was stupid." Crystal said as she set the other on the counter. She moved to reach for the broom but never made it before collapsing to the floor, her eyes closing as darkness over took her.

Dragonlord318

 

[Dragonlord318]

Darian Warring was tired. He was tired of the battle...of the killing...of the lies...of the corruption and the conspiracy...just tired of everything. With a battalion of his men at his back - the only group that was bold enough to disregard their king's orders and follow their general - and the remnants of the elven force before him, they helped the injured elves back to their city. He himself was carrying a young man with a grievous wound...one from his own blade.

He had, essentially, defected from his own army when he realized the truth. The elves that had attacked their exploratory chapter were not of the same stock as the elves they had been engaged in battle with...the same elves they were now helping. Dozens had died on both sides, but once the truth came to light, Darian stopped the fighting as best as he could and sent word via scrying spell to his king.

His words were summarily dismissed and he was ordered to eradicate the elven threat. He ended the scry-com and did the exact opposite, even to the point of fighting the other battalions to keep the western elves safe. An explosion had gone off somewhere in the battlefield, and he took that opportunity in the midst of the confusion to retreat with as many of the wounded as possible. Now he was here.

He did as the healer asked, waiting outside as she worked on the injured warrior. He stood outside the treehouse calmly for hours, trying to steel his nerves and forget, temporarily, what judgement awaited him once he returned to his homeland. Could he return? Would he be executed? Outcast? Be made a servant? These and other tempestuous thoughts plagued his already stressed mind.

He was pulled from his musings as he heard glass shatter and looked inside, only to see the elven healer wobbling. He rushed inside and caught her just as she fell. "Whoa, there," he said softly, "let's get you some rest." He looked around and the only bed was taken by the recovering elf. He scanned the room again and saw there was a large, fur-covered armchair nearby, most likely used for studying.

He repurposed it, setting the beautiful woman in it, her small frame more than light enough for his enhanced strength to handle. Once he was satisfied that she was in as comfortable of a position as he could manage and breathing steadily, he nodded once. He then looked at her patient, who wasn't bleeding anymore and his breathing had steadied as well. He breathed a sigh of relief, then left the tent to rejoin his men.

 

[PrincessCrystal]

When Crystal had sufficiently recovered from using her powers, she slowly woke and looked around her. How had she gotten to her chair? The last thing she remembered was dropping one of the medical bottles then passing out. She looked out the window and saw that part of the human army had made camp just outside of her towns borders. Had she only dreamed about everything? No, the warrior still lay on her bed, just waking from his healing. Had it been that long already?

Crystal stood, weakly, and watched the warrior as he awoke, fully recovered from the battle. He saw her standing there and smiled as he stood and ran to join his fellow warriors. All of her village, knew her as a great healer. No one knew quite how she did it for she had kept it a great secret and had never let anyone watch as she used her magic.

The healer exited her tree house and watched as the warrior smiled up at her and waved in greeting to her. She rested one hand on the banister, the other went to her side.

Dragonlord318

 

[Dragonlord318]

It was evening when Darian returned to the village. His armor had been discarded in his tent and now he sported a simple white tunic and slacks with explorer's boots and riding gloves. His 6' 200lb frame was at par with most male elves' height - though bulkier - and he was nearly head and shoulders above most of the women, making him stand out easily.

As he walked, he saw the young man he had brought in running down the stairs from the healer's house, shouting in joy as he rejoined his fellows. As he watched the young man wave up at the healer, Darian looked and saw her in the twilight. Was it his imagination, or did she have an ethereal glow about her? Just as soon as he saw it, though, it was gone.

Before he could think on it anymore or consider what to do next, a shout rang out. He saw a small contingent of armed, uniformed elves double-timing in his direction, the crowd parting for them as they jogged. He waited patiently for them to approach, the thought of the beautiful woman on the treehouse balcony pushed from his mind.

He took a slow breath as the guards stopped in front of him and one spoke out. "General, you have been summoned to the high court. You are to come with us."

Now began the politics.

PrincessCrystal

 

[PrincessCrystal]

Crystal turned when she saw some of the men approaching the human and heard that he had been summoned. She quickly gathered some of her important things including healing herbs and ointments then descended the stairs. She saw that the human was wearing normal garb and not that of a warrior and wondered at that as she was approached by the same men. "Aye, I know." She replied as a horse was brought to her side. She ordered that the others pack only the essentials and that they would be leaving within an hour for the Elven encampment. All of them, as she refused to leave any of her people behind.

The best way for a Princess to earn the respect of her people, was to protect them to the best of her ability. If that meant forcing her people to leave for the King's encampment, so they could be protected by her fathers men, then so be it. No one would dare to refuse her orders.

The healer watched as the elven people packed up their things and gathered at the edge of town. She shifted on her horse as her eyes drifted to the human to see how he was handling his own men.

 

[Dragonlord318]

Thankfully, the elite guard of the western Elven kingdom allowed him time to prepare and get his people together. The march was going to be several miles, a fact that didn't disturb the elven camp, but apparently the guard unit expected it to be a problem for David and his men, if the chatter around the camp said anything. Every elf was packing their things and taking down their tents to march, which surprised Darian. They weren't leaving anyone to guard the camp at all?

Well, if they wouldn't he would. He took about an hour to give orders and explain the situation to his lieutenants, then grabbed a contingent of warriors. 20 to be exact. They mounted up on Direhounds and moved to join the caravan of elves. His mount ambled up the shallow hill to the elven camp and as he crested the hill, he could see that where there once were camps and impromptu shacks, it was now empty. The treehouse that held the healer now looked like any simple tree, which surprised him. Elven magic was powerful, it seemed.

At his back, his army marched. Not taking down their tents, they simply carried them and once they came to the flat forested area the elves used to rest, they set them down and immediately set out to make fortifications, using the wood in the forest and rocks nearby to supplement their own defenses. Despite the elves' best efforts, there was bound to be a trace of their presence there once they left, and Darian wanted to dissuade any curious or malicious party from tracking their movements. He had made a mistake before in not protecting these elves.

He would not make it again.

Once his small group reached the caravan, the guard unit that had approached him looked at him oddly, shocked at seeing the huge canines. the Army of the Red Dawn kept their secrets well, even from elves. The leader looked at him oddly. "You're not bringing everyone?" he asked. Darian shook his head. "My army will hold this ground for a week. Once we know no-one will follow, they will join us."

"But how will they know where to go? Our main camp is heavily warded."

Darian simply smiled. "Many magic users have forgotten the ancient art of simple tracking code. They will find the trail."

The leader looked unsure for a second, then nodded, then called for the caravan to move out. Darian did not miss the gaze held on him, and he looked in the direction of the healer, meeting her eyes and nodding once, then refocused on the trail ahead. He tried not to let her dangerous beauty distract him.

PrincessCrystal