The Princess's Hand

Ian was shocked when the guy woke up pretty earlier than usual. But then this guy did the exact opposite that ian expected him to do. He picked him up the neck, cutting off his oxygen supply. 'This guys is a loony tone.' he thought desperatly to himself. At that moment Ian ironicaly remembered that this would be his second time close to death, or would be his death if he didn't do something. Ian tried to pry his hands off, but the man was too strong. 'He was fu***** injured but still strong!' He yelled at himself mentally. Just as he was about to lose consciousiness, out the cornner of his eye he saw Eve come up towards the bridge. "Eve" he managed, but it was nothing more than a whisper.


The innkeeper winked at her as they left, she cringed at it. As Eve and Travlor was making their way to the bridge, Eve had a feeling someone was watching them. She looked up on the roofs of buliding, in dark parts of the place, behind trees, but nothing. She shrugged off the feeling and focused back on the path. That's when she noticed that two people were on the bridge. One was like a giant, even when they were a bit far away from the bridge, the other looked like a normal sized man. She squinted her eyes to see what they were doing on an abandoned bridge. She almost let out a gasp when the bigger figure was chokng the smaller one, he was hold him in the air by the neck. That's also when she saw who the small figure was. "Ian." she whispered to herself before taking off towards the bridge, leaving Travlor behind and confused. Eve was a fast runner, so it took her no time to get to the bridge. When she got to the bridge Eve realised the man was very big, so she couldn't pry him off Ian with weapons. 'Fuc*...' she thought mentally
 
"Alright, a little bit to the right.... little more... little more..."


K'tano was directing a couple of teenagers as they were working to put up a sign he had made up for this place. The sign, that he was trying to have straightened up as it hung over the front door, read “Auro’Nian Embassy”. He was standing across the street as he directed it‘s proper placement.





The old three story building had been a printing press. That was before the Queen had it closed down. Apparently, they news paper had a tendency to speak it’s mind a little too often for her taste. It was with some level of appropriateness that now this building would serving as the head quarters in Azador for the young republic.





In fact, he had been surprised at how easily the building had been to acquire. K’tano figured that acquiring permission from the city’s permit agency wouldn’t be too hard of the area the structure was in. The administrator had seemed overly joyed for an obviously wealthy man to be taking the eyesight off his hand, stating in a smart-ass remark about “putting the schwine to work”.





The Kredo District, also known as the Forgotten District, was a run down area of town was filled with jobless and orphans. It reminded him of many of the small villages he had encountered during his travels. In the North, if your region didn’t happened to be fortunate enough to have some resource near it, then your area usually went on to be forgotten. More often than not, those villages would go on with little contact from the outside world for several generations, trying to be as self-sufficient as possible.





K’tano remembered one such village during his campaign to unite the northern territories. Upon first glance, he had thought the village would be filled with many prospective recruits. But once he entered it, he found that there were many more empty huts than full ones.





He learned that the village was started up near a very fertile hunting ground next to a large river many generations ago. Unfortunately, the village was down stream from one of the dwarves largest mines. Wastes from the mining had poisoned the stream and forced the herds that had once roamed the area to move away. The image of starving children had stuck with him for many years after he had left the area.





Once the Republic had been formed, he had managed to work out a deal where the Elves created a magical means of purifying the production of the raw ore. The now purified river thrived once more, and the once skeleton village began to grow again as the herds once again returned. An agreement was then struck where the tribe would provide the mine with food at a discount for a regular shipment of the ore the mine processed. This intern allowed the village to grow even further, becoming one of the largest settlements in the area and providing and excellent market for the mine.





“There was always a solution to every problem, you just need to turn over a few stones to find it,” K’tano’s surrogate father had once told him. And now, he was faced with a equally destitute area as that small village. But with a little work, he knew he could turn this district into one of the most prosperous and beautiful in the city. And it all started with this embassy.





And the people of the district seemed to notice it as well. When he had asked for workers to help in establishing the new embassy, the line of people that were looking for work seemed to stretch all the way to the castle. Back home, they were dealing with a similar problem with the onslaught of refugees from Azador trying to escape the Queen‘s wrath. That was just one of the many problems that had to be addressed when he met with the Queen.





And that was not a meeting he had been looking forward to. As of yet, Azador hadn’t yet made any diplomatic overtures towards Auro’Nia. There were some talks within the Council that they may be preparing to wage war against the fledgling republic. It would be ideal for them to do so before it had solidified it’s hold over the region. That was one of the reasons that Desdanya had insisted to come; there was a great need for an intelligence network inside Azador to assess the threat that the country may pose.





But for the moment his attention was far from the world of international politics. Instead, he drew his attention back to the work on the embassy. He had organized the people that had come into two separate groups. The first, was a couple of dozen workers that were busy cleaning up the embassy getting it in working order. One building at time, he thought to himself, as he looked on with pride at the building coming together quite nicely.





Unfortunately, not all the people that wanted to help could be employed cleaning up the embassy. Not wanting for them to leave without hope, he picked out a young woman who would function as his secretary. A table with some paper and ink had been set up just outside the embassy. She had been formerly employed at the printing press, and had hit hard times after it had closed. A person of her intelligence and abilities shouldn’t be working in the factories, he had thought to himself.





She happily set down at the table in front of the embassy entrance and took down the names and skills of all the people who came up looking for work. K’tano was amazed at all the artist sans that were among the crowd. He could just hear Eleanor, an elfish member of the council, telling him to immediately setup an Institute of Art near the embassy.





K’tano was saddened though to see that in the crowd as also no short supply of kids, both orphans and with their parents. He was reminded of the starving children in that near abandoned village he discovered years ago. Back then, the army was also running low on food and had very little in the way to offer them. But there was something he did offer those children…





Hitting upon an idea, K’tano motioned for a group of men that had brought their children with him to follow. He rushed over to the covered cart that was now resting up against the embassy. Siro’s ears perked up as the group of men approached. and looked up at them. His ears popped up and his tail began to wag as K’tano approached. K’tano tossed a piece of jerky down to his guard then turned his attention back to the cart. Inside, was a small treasure that had been meant as a tribute to the Queen. He had long since decided to put it’s content to better uses.





Getting out a few gems and handing them over to the men, K’tano told them to bring him as much as milk, spices and fruits that they could find. He told them that he had a surprise that he wanted to offer to their kids. The men eagerly went off in the direction of the market and arrived back a short order with several carts full of fruit, milk, and spices.





K’tano motioned for the men to back away as he stood up before the barrels of milk. The crowd had stopped moving and was watching their benefactor with great interest now. After popping off a couple of barrel’s lids, he brought his hands up and held them above the barrels. A steady stream of ice began to fall into them, turning the milk into a thicker and much cooler substance. He then went over and hand picked out some of the fruits and spices and added them to the barrels.





The barrels began to rock back and forth as the slushy concoction was mixed together. He reached in with one of his fingers and scooped out the mixture onto his finger. After placing the finger in his mouth, and nodding in satisfaction, he motioned for one of the kids of the men who had got the ingredients to approach him.





A small girl carried a simple metal cup and stood before K‘tano. There was no doubt that a short time before, she had used this cup to beg for people in the market for a few pences to feed herself. He looked down into the cup and noticed that it was empty, and frowned. K’tano took the cup from her and scooped it up full of cream and gave it back to her. She hesitantly leaned in with her small nose and sniffed at the strange sight. Slowly, she took a sip from the cup as the crowd seemed to hold their breathe.





Suddenly the girl burst out with laughter and rushed back to her dad. She smiled up at him for the first time that her father could remember. The man, who had nothing to give his little girl, looked back at K’tano and with tears in his eyes, mouthed a simple “Thank you.”





K‘tano nodded to the men and then turned his attention back to the crowd. “Alright kids! Bring up your cups and bowls to me if you want some Sweet Cream!” Quickly the kids rushed over, smiling and laughing as they formed a line in front of the man as they eagerly awaited their own serving of sweet cream.
 
A few of Takashi's crows noticed the commotion in the Kredo District. Apparently the old printery was being refurbished and re-purposed. The labour force for it seemed to consist of the poor masses who lived in the district. This was a first for him as he had never seen anyone show any interest in that area. It intrigued him however as it meant that if someone were to fix up the area then when he took over the kingdom for his clan then there would be less work for him. Still, whoever was doing this obviously had money. Could the person doing this be that competitor who came late whom Takashi had heard about? Either way, he felt a need to investigate.


The crows flocked to the castle roof, meeting there before unifying once more. The black mass the crows formed moulded until it took Takashi's shape before finally taking on his form. He cast another charge of his combination invisibility and silence spell to disguise his presence. He did have to sneak back through the castle after all. After making his way through the castle and down to ground level, he immediately made for the Kredo District to see what was going on up close.


Along the way there, he had noticed a large man holding someone by the neck, choking them. He stopped, thinking that investigating the Kredo District could wait, before walking closer. Upon closer inspection, the one being choked was that boy who had quit during the gift portion of the competition. Whatever was going on was likely none of his business but if this person had done nothing wrong and was simply being attacked by this large man then assisting him could bring Takashi a bit of prestige with the citizens. Public appeal would come in handy should everything go according to plan and even if it didn't then it would still be useful. Then again, he had to make sure he displayed the bare minimum of his skills so as not to tip anyone off as to his capabilities outside of politics.


Takashi stepped closer to Jarek and Ian. "Excuse me sir but has this young man done anything deserving of this treatment? If not then would you be so kind as to release him?" Takashi prepared himself for the event that things got violent, ready to sidestep or duck should the man try to hit him. He scanned over the man's body, making mental notes of areas he would target should a fight begin or the man refuse to release Ian if the boy had indeed done nothing wrong.
 
Liselle nodded at the question. She needed to begin to see how things were. Being in the dungeon gave her no access to what was occuring outside beyond what a few guards told her. She needed to know herself what was going on before she could begin her plan to take down the Queen. The best was to do this was to find a place that would be helping with the festivities and the like for the competition and joining it to help. She would do whatever she had to to get inside that castle.


"We need to find a place, a tavern or a shop, something that is providing items or food or whatever to the castle. The best place right now might be something that is providing something soon." She turned to Amaya. "Do you know what event is next?"
 
As K'tano's impromptu festivities were going on in the Central Part of the Kredo District, Desdanya was making his way to the rendezvouz at the bridge. He had followed the two people he had sent the message to at a reasonable distance. They were all going to meet up at the same location; Desdanya saw no reason to risk compromise himself by needlessly following to close.


As he was following them, Desdanya sensed that he wasn‘t the only one following the pair of warriors. Somewhere close, he could sense, was a person with of great darkness in both ability and in soul. Desdanya chose not to attempt to actively scan the area to pinpoint this dark user. Partly due to the fact that it didn’t seem like, for the moment, this presence a hostile intent.


The other reason, was that while doing an active scan, he risked being compromised. His master at the monastery had compared the difference between passive and actively to him at an early age. “The difference,” he had said, “was between walking by and hearing a conversation, and actually stopping close to listen in.” Desdanya didn‘t doubt the abilities of this man, and didn’t doubt that in the attempt to pinpoint the dark user, he would in fact reveal both his location and the knowledge that he was being tracked.





Instead of pursuing the matter any further, he filed away those mental impressions he had of this mysterious individual. Thought patterns were as unique as a person‘s hair or eye color, and he would use them at some point to identify the man. If he was ever in close proximity and speaking to this person, he would recognize him instantly. And there no doubt in Desdanya’s mind that this subject had something to do with the bounty. Whether he was the one who put up the bounty, or simply someone trying to enact it, was something Desdanya couldn’t determine at this time.





As Desdanya turned the corner to come within eyesight of the meeting place, he saw the commotion that was occurring at the bridge. Never being one to rush head long into a conflict without knowing what was going on, he instead ducked into an alleyway. Using his unrivaled skills in stealth, he leaned up an up the shadow covered while and listened in to the convesation, keeping out of eyeshot of the small group of people who had gathered at his meeting place.


What was obvious through the momentary glance was that that one of the men was badly injured and required assistance. Desdanya reached out telepathically for K’tano, signaling him to come to the man’s assistance.


Meanwhile, a large line of children had formed in front of K'tano, eagerly awaiting their portion of sweet cream. He had just began to notice that more of the kids that came, hadn't done so with parents in the line of people looking for work. It didn't matter to him though, as he wasn't doing this to win curry with their parents.


He was just leaning down to dip out some cream for small boy when he heard Desdanya in his mind. Reacting quickly, he motioned to a couple of men to come with him with a makeshift stretcher that was a sheet tied up to two poles. The children quickly let out their disappointment at the loss of their sweet cream. One of the women though stepped and volunteered to continue serving from the barrels of the already made concoction. After thanking woman, K’tano rushed off with the stretcher bearers to the bridge.


K'tano arrived in short order the location that Desdanya had summoned him to. He had just arrived and took note of the eastern man’s attempt to calm down the brute of a man that was holding up the other. As he stepped closer to the two, he nodded appreciatively to the eastern looking man for his assistance.





He turned his attention back to the pair locked in their death struggle. K’tano quickly made note of the vile with what looked like traces of a healing agent within in. "Sir, I need you to put that man down. You’re obviously in need of care, and from the looks of that vial in the man who you are choking, he has tried help you. And from the look of some of your scars, he has quite possibly saved your life,” he spoke with a firm and even tone.





With a wave of his hand, K'tano motioned for the pair of stretcher bearers to come forth and stand to his side. “These people will take you back to my home, where I can finish what this man has already done and that is to help you.” This last part he emphasized, wanting to calm the beast and make it clear that he meant no harm to him. "I've come to take you to get further medical help, but you need to put that man down first." K'tano turned and nodded to the man of eastern origin, “And I would most appreciate your help with this matter as well.”
 
Takashi turned his head oh so slightly in K'Tano's direction so as to avoid doing anything to set off the man who had clearly lost his mind for the moment. He whispered to K'Tano out of the corner of his mouth just loudly enough so as to be heard "Signal those men to catch him when he falls. Don't worry, he won't suffer any injury beyond temporary loss of muscle control." He took a deep breath before he dashed towards and around the man. As he made his way around him, Takashi struck the man's pressure points on his arms and legs in swift succession to prevent retaliation and with surgical precision. Anyone who was watching could see that Takashi knew the human body exceptionally well and how to disable his opponents with ease.


Once finished, Takashi slowed down and came to a halt after a few seconds. He released the breath he had taken and stood there, letting his arms fall to his sides. He had not broken a single bead of sweat despite his exertion. He was feeling a bit tired but he wished not to show it. Most would feel tired from the exertion of circling the man and striking so many pressure points with the speed Takashi had done so with still so it was normal. However, doing so without breaking a sweat was not unless one had gone through a great degree of physical training.


Takashi hoped that this display of skill did not betray too much about him. Xzia diplomats were taught to strike pressure points for self defense and how to concoct poisons and potions so that should be enough to keep suspicion of him being more than a simple diplomat off of him. He did, however, have a feeling that there were those who already knew about his diplomat status as only being a cover. "His muscles are just forced into a state of relaxation. He won't be able to move for ten or so minutes but he will be fine afterwards."
 
Jarek didn't have much time to react, no, not at all. One second, he'd found himself choking a man to death upon awaking from his day-light dreaming, then the next a man, from the north by the looks of it, made his appearance, spouting words he did not even have a split moment to interpret before another man struck at him. Now of course, with Jarek's abilities to pary even the strongest punches and the quickest jabs, he'd have avoided such a hinderance having his muscles just refuse his orders of movement. He'd meant to throw the smaller man he'd held in his grip at the snow white haired man while grabbing at the black robed one... How had so many appeared in just a matter of a few minutes?


Jarek felt the lock and release of his muscles upon the touch of the other man in the robes, striking in precise movement and accuracy that he'd almost suspected a knight from his own home kingdom. But he knew better... The kingdom was still recovering from the massive massacre, courtesy of him, that occured not a few hours ago. Mab's forced dwindled to only a few hundred of their thousand league soldiers, because of his attacks that none were expecting till a bit later on the night. But Jarek wasn't one to wait, of course. He'd set out during the high sun, picking and chosing his targets before killing them off one by one. He still remembered the thick liquid that was their blood, trickling through his fingers. The sickening pleasure he felt just watching it flow...


But his strength that night seemed to be nonexistent now. But one can only expect such a thing, seeing as a whole night of fights didn't come out without any injuries. By the time he'd left Mab, he was sure the wounds upon his calves, thighs, stomach, chest and face would drain him of his blood before he'd made it through Atra's Kingdom's gates. Jarek supposed he was still unrecovered from the shock of having escaped the ordeal alive... he might as well have been mad to even attempt such a thing.


Jarek's eyes slid over the other few before him, though only stopping when grey optics landed upon one female. He'd already felt himself slipping away, slumber gripping at his body as if to yank him down, but he held her gaze. 'Eve,' the small man had uttered when she'd arrived. A name so foreign yet strangely familiar. Jarek fell back.


Pain was something foreign to him, but what he felt in his head was agony. Pounding like horses' hooves upon the back of his skull, his headache had been clawing within his brain like a rabid creature gone feral. And had been unrelenting ever since he'd exited the murder scene of his past friends and family. And he suspected it would continue even through the sleep that would find him once again when he hit the floor...


Of course, the impact never came.


Zeira had just managed to get to Jarek in time to catch him mid-fall, dress and apron torn from the running she'd done just to get to this very location. Of course, she'd left the princess behind in her mad dash towards the soon-to-be guard, but she could still feel the almost silent foot falls of the said female as she followed behind. And as the male's weight settled upon her, she grunted, hoisting him up by his arms, her own looped about his.


The maid, noticing that Jarek had already slipped out of consciousness, turned her glare towards the males and females of the competition. First to Eve, then Ian, then to Takashi and K'tano. She'd felt the threat ever since Jarek had entered the kingdom, stepping into one of her black sparrows' sights through the gates. She knew of his instability, she knew of his explosive temper, as she'd already seen some of it in Mab when she'd sent her sparrow to watch over this particular male during his trip back to this kingdom. She'd seen it all...


But still, she would've expected more of these men than to just moronically step towards a dangerous man. At least be armed, or stand at a distance.


Zeira had only managed to hiss out a single word as the princess crashed through the brush, her evening gown torn and dirtied from the hem up. The smaller teen seemed to freeze at the sight of K'tano, though recovered second later, only to have a look of horror cross her face at the fallen man. Zeira barely had enough time to react before the princess was kneeling, fumbling with her dress to tear off a piece of the fabric from the hem, as to tie over Jarek's muscled arms, as his wound upon the digit had reopened.


Zeira's jaw tightened as she stepped back from the princess, head bowed as she knew her warning was unheard. It was far too late already. Lierah had already witnessed the scene. And the maid could nothing but watch as the childish princess hardened to almost another woman before her eyes. The sweet venom of Atra's features seemed to materialize onto her features, though did not hold the cat-like smile the queen held almost every minute of the day. Lierah was simply cold, emerald eyes losing their shine as she looped Jarek's arm over her neck, straining her legs to lift the man three times as big as she was.


Lierah didn't quite know what she was feeling at the moment. Whether it was appropriate for the situation, or not, she didn't quite care. Her main focuse was to have Jarek be taken to the palace, whether by her own hand or by Zeira's. Either way, she was not about to stop to exchange words of good bye to the other's she still had not even gotten a name from.


His weight was bearing down upon her side and she felt herself struggling, not being a girl of strength had always been the flaw Lierah disliked the most. She did not like the idea of being weak, so of course she kept her displeasure to herself. Until the weight somewhat lifted, and turning her head slightly, she could see the familiar blonde mop of hair that belonged to no one else other than Zeira. She almost smiled, though noticed her maid was not looking towards her, but ahead. Zeira's own green eyes were distant, lost in thought, not being aware of Lierah's need for comfort... For once.


Zeira spared a glance towards the group the two were leaving behind, as if to tell them not to follow, her thoughts still swimming about the word she'd muttered towards them when she heard the princess nearing. "Hide," she said... Did she mean to save them? To assist them? So that the princess would not lose what trust she had for them? Zeira frowned as she turned back towards the bridge they hobbled over, eyes fixated upon the ground,perplexed at the thought. Surely, she mean for K'tano and Eve, for she'd favored them over Ian and Takashi. But it didn't seem to her that her warning was for anyone in particular. Perhaps she was helping them... An action she cannot forgive herself for making.
 
A look of amazement crossed K’tano’s face as he watched Takashi move with great deftness. He had preferred to handle the situation with diplomacy. But for every moment that K’tano spent trying to talk the brute down, was also another moment that Ian was gasping for air. His patience for negotiations couldn’t last much longer; he would have had to of acted soon to save the man’s life. However, he doubted that he would of acted with such non-violent proficiency.


K’tano had just began to move towards the men, when out of no where the handmaiden he had encountered with the princess, caught the new disabled brute. He rushed forward and caught Ian before he could slam onto the ground. While slowy lowering Ian down, he looked upwards and caught the princess’s gaze.





The sight of his beloved looking on in such horror, made his already pale face go pure white. All he could do was stutter as he tried to think of something to say to explain away the situation. Alas, there was nothing he could do to dissuade her shock. Thus he just let them go as they carried off the injured man into the forest.





For the moment, there was the pressing need to focus on the man below him. He reached up and felt gently along his neck and realized that the damage was far worse then he first thought. It appeared some of the small bones in his neck were fractured. Acting quickly to prevent further damage, he motioned over to a young woman to come over and hold the man’s head still. She walked over quickly, knelt down onto her knees and held the man’s head steady.





K’tano reached down and pulled around his leather bound water pouch, and popped off the cork. The water contained within was a specially enchanted water that came from the Everlasting Fountain within the Frozen Citadel. On it’s own, it had amazing healing properties. In one born with and trained with the ability to manipulate water in it’s many forms, the healing properties were enhanced to cure almost any ailment or injury. He poured a small amount of the water over his hands and they soon began to put off radiant, white glow.





“If you can hear me, I need you try an inhale for me…”





As K’tano was saying this, he was maneuvering his hands into position; cupping one carefully around his neck while the other pressed down on his sternum. He felt the man take in the breathe, unsure if it was voluntary or involuntary. Through the hand nestled gently around the man’s neck, K’tano could feel the moisture of the air passing through his throat. As he closed his eyes, he could see the individual bones as they obstructed the air ways and began to meld them back into place.





Once the neck was taken care of, K’tano’s attention turned towards speeding his recovery. The beast had held Ian up in the air for quite some time, and Ian’s body was screaming for oxygen. “Alright, that was good,” K‘tano said in a reassure manner. “Now I need you to do it one more time…”





Once again, he waited for the man to begin to take a breathe. This time, his whole chest was washed in a brilliance whine as K’tano pressed his palm against the man’s sternum. Air seemed to move through his palm; Ian’s chest heaved up into the air as it filled his lungs.





K’tano did this a few times until the man seemed to be getting under a normal breathing pattern. He turned his attention towards Eve and nodded to signal that Ian would be alright. The woman who had so skillfully take up the role of nurse, cradled Ian’s head in her lap as he slowly began to resume consciousness.





There was still the matter of the man that had been so quickly hurried away. From the short opportunity he had to see the man, he appeared to be in very bad shape. K’tano doubted that the man would make it through the night without serious medical care. Arriving at an idea, he took out a piece of paper and a sharpened piece of charcoal and began to write a note:





Pardon the one carrying this. I, K’tano, sent this person out to find you with these instructions. I am unaware of what your relationship is with the man you carried off, but he is badly injured and that is my concern. To that end, I have sent with the bearer of this message a pouch of water.


It has been infused with a part of my energy that allows it to heal very severe wounds. Pour a small amount of the water over the affected areas and then massage around the wounds to allow the water to soak in. After a short time, the he should be able to move around on his own power again. To get the full affect, he will need a full nights rest.


If you should need me, for whatever reason, you know how to get a hold of me. And I would also prefer that the Princess not know that I sent the water or the note to you. I do not wish for this to be miscontrued as an attempt by me to exploit the condition of this man for my benefit. Thusly, I believe it best that my name is not mentioned, and that I win the Princess' heart through fair and honest means.





Take care of my beloved, and be careful yourself,


K’tano Icerider.





With the letter in hand, he turned and found a young man who he had seen during his short stay at the castle. K’tano asked the boy what his role was in the castle, to which he said that he was a simple servant boy. This was fortunate, as the handmaiden should recognize him on sight and thus lessen any tensions that may arise.


So that there would be no doubt, K’tano told the boy that when he encountered the small party, to immediately ask for their forgiveness and then hand the handmaiden the note and the pouch and then return to him with all speed. This last part was said in a firm tone, and left no doubt in the boy’s mind of K‘tano‘s seriousness.





K’tano watched the boy rush off across the bridge in the direction the two women had taken the battered man, and hoped him the best. He had thought to take it himself, but the look the handmaiden had given him a chill that he still hadn’t quite shaken. And while K’tano wouldn’t follow, Desdanya did follow from a great distance, only revealing himself should another come and try to intercept the boy on his given task. Desdanya masked the boy from any who would try and approach him, literally hiding him in plain sight by blocking the image the boy from the mind. At the same time, should some dark presence try to approach him, he was in a position to immeditely intercept said entity and confront them.





With the situation now under control, he walked over to Takashi and bowed respectfully to him. “I doubt that I would have been able to handle him with such skill and tact. The name is K’tano Icerider, Archon of Auro’Nia. And to whom do I thank for this assistance?”
 
Takashi was surprised when the princess and her handmaiden came to the aid of this man who almost killed Ian. It perplexed him and he now wondered what connection they had to him. He worried that his disabling of the man might have been misconstrued as an attempt on the man's life. If only they knew that he had just saved a live and for once, not tried to take one. This could hurt his chances with the princess. Someone had to explain the situation to her but it seemed that person should not be any of those present now. Maybe he could send a passerby who had simply seen what had occurred and whom the princess might actually listen to.


When K'Tano walked up to Takashi, he cast his current thoughts aside. He would deal with that problem later. Takashi bowed respectfully to K'Tano. He remembered this man from the sight one of his crows had caught. This man was behind the feeding that was going on in the Kredo District and the refurbishing of the old printery. "I am Takashi Karasu, grandson of the emperor of Xzia. Thank you for the compliments. The way you healed the boy was quite an interesting method. It resembled the way the Nomads Guild in the southern desert uses a liquid called nymph's tears to heal wounds." He stopped for a moment, looking briefly in the direction the princess and her handmaiden had gone. "I fear our attempt at saving this boy's life have been misconstrued as an attempt on the life of that man. Whoever he is, he is apparently a friend of the princess and her handmaiden."


Takashi turned his gaze briefly to the east. He felt that he had disappointed his clan in letting this happen. If assisting in saving Ian's life caused the person he was sent to win over to dislike him then he wished he had never tried to help. Still, the display of violence exhibited by the man whom the princess and her handmaiden had carried away could be used as an excuse for Takashi to requisition for a bodyguard and he would be undoubtedly granted one both due to his status and for the reason that it would allow him to continue his mission would having to fight. Having someone else fight for him was just what he needed to ensure he kept his talents as an assassin hidden as long as necessary.


Meanwhile at the tracker camp, Amaya walked to Malyss' tent, gesturing to Liselle that she would be back soon. She stepped inside and spent a few minutes talking to Malyss. When she returned, she held a sheet of paper which Malyss had written down the details on. She held up the paper and read through it quickly before saying "The next event is the ball."
 
Travlor thought he heard a commotion and people were muttering and talking about something in the Kredo District. The elf knew that he was messaged to go there but he did not think it was safe anymore. He sighed deeply wondering if this might be a common thing. He had heard tales of the last competition which had fights in the streets and the like but he did not think it would start so soon. Were some just really amadent about reaching their goal?


Travlor decided to head back to the inn. At least there, for now, nothing was happening. Or nothing bad. He felt safer there anyways than where the commotion was occurring. He turned on his feet and headed back. He was going to be sure to ask about it though later. If some of this competition wanted to cause trouble he wanted to know who. He would stay away from them for sure. Or try and eliminate them early. The next competition after the ball he had heard was something to do with fighting.


So of course accidents happened.


----


Kiel frowned as he felt something wrong happening. He looked at Louis and smiled a little.


"I am sorry. We must continue this discussion later. I fear I have important things to take care of." Kiel left the suitor behind not caring what he did next as long as he did not follow him. Kiel exited the castle and made his way towards where he felt it. He saw his sister, her maid and her bodyguard who seemed to be in no shape. He pointed at a random person walking by.


"You. Take this gentleman to the cause and he sure he gets medical attention." He turned to his sister. Something seemed off about her but he would deal with that later.


"My dear sister I do not know what brings you out of the castle but I fear you must return to it." He glared at Zeira but did not say anything. "Take my sister with you would you please. I need to talk to her maid and this group as well. It appears I will have to tell them how things will be done from here on out."


Kiel was angry although there was no sign to show it. His aura was calm and so was his face. But he was enraged. Who did these suitors think they were causing trouble in the streets on the first day.


"Now." The man nodded and moved over to Zeira and Lierah, looking at them then to Kiel.


"Can I?"
 
It happened so fast that Eve wasn't able to regestier it. When the taller man looked up at her before he fell, flashes of gruesome stuff ran through her head. She knew right away her sensing power was at work.


Blood and screams from the innocents....


Dead bodies piled high up like a tower...


Death surrounded me with it's disgusting smell...


Massive massarce lead by my hands....


The bood of innocents on my hands....


Screams and pleadings from childern and women fill my ears...


Even though it's disturbing, the pleasure of killing them fills me...


Very vived images race through her mind. Yes she had seen stuff like this from other people, but it wasn't so, intense like before. Eve felt as if she was the one who killed, and took pleasure in doing it. The thing that confused Eve the most was that she never used her sensing, the moment the man looked at her the disgusting visions appeared. As soon as Eve was brought back into reality she stumbled back a few feet, dazed. The intensity was so strong that it felt like someone was stompping on her head. She held a hand to her head as she crouched over trying to regain her composure, her breathing was ragged. When she finally stood straight back up her eyes still glowed blue, it was visible even with the hood on. Eve also noticed that another man was healing Ian. He nodded to her, indicating Ian was ok. She was reilef flow through her as she approached Ian, leaning down to him. "Are you ok?" Her voice was filled with concern for her friend.All he did was nod, she helped him up, her mind was still pounding viciously. Her blue eyes started to fad away, but not before she walked over to the man that helped Ian. "Thank you for helpping my friend, I was in..." she stopped a moment to think of what to say. "let's say a daze and was unable to heal him myself." her voice was hoarse, not only because she needed to disguise it, but because the air was still kicked out of her. She noticed with a glance around that Travlor wasn't there, must have ran back to the inn.


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


Ian felt relief when air was able to enter him again. He thought it was Eve healing him, but it wasn't He could tell by the way the man was healing him, he wondered where Eve was. He had seen her coming to his side and yelling his name. The darkness around him began to swarm him, but before it could the strange grey haired man healed him, but he wasn't sure with what. As he started to get oxygen back into his lunges Eve crouched next to him, she asked if he was alright and nodded, not having the energy to speak. He did however realized her eyes where glowing blue, he hadn't seen that in years. Then another thought came to him.'What did she use her maigc for...?' Then remembered about the loony guy that was trying to kill him when he saved his life. He looked around to see he wasn't there. That only made Ian scratch hi head in confusion.
 
Lierah's smile was forced, strained and lacking the warmth that had always been present whenever neither of her small family members were about, and she was quite aware of the servant's slight awkward approach he took towards the larger guard. The small man, Motar as she remembered him, strained against Jarek's weight as he'd slid off the princess's side and onto his own. And though the princess, being that she is, offered a hand to help, the servant merely smiled his best and shook his head.


The princess was reluctant to leave, passing glances over her shoulder in concern for her maid, though she knew she cannot overpower her brother's command. The handmaiden offered Lierah a smile, though, as if to signal that she will be alright. After all, her trained hands will be her defense should there be a new event that would lead up to something else new for her to handle. she still had matters to discuss with a certain person. Her grip tightened upon the carefully folded note, traces of familiar magic still clinging to its yellowed corners, though fading as the boy finally seemed to become visible to everybody else. Though, still unnoticed, for the poor lad was quite tiny. There was no mistaking the cast's signature. It was so damn familiar that it hurt, reopening scars she thought she buried long ago.


Des...


Zeira had to fight back to soft whimpers from deep within only to face his Majesty with a hardened face and a straight back. And though it was clear that he didn't notice her yet, she was in no obligation to have him notice either. She allowed herself to dip into a mandatory curtsy, muttering a greeting to Kiel with voice cold and utterly stoney, only as if to add fuel to the fire of anger that flared within him. she honestly did not care for his growing rage, in fact, she felt the knack to make it grow, only for her great dislike for him. And so great was this dislike that she'd almost allowed a wry smile to cross her lips. But as she rose once again, her face was still void.


Lierah's concern grew as the group disappeared from her sights over the bridge, her eyes no longer seeing the dots that were her maid, her brother, the girl, her friend, the raven-man and... The Prince. She had almost bit her lip to the point of drawing blood as she assessed her guard's wounds, kneeling with head bowed and eyes upon the clooth her hands were fumbling with. She didn't even allow herself one glance at him, at all, as if she'd fall over in utter sadness at the scene he'd been caught in.


All of her thoughts were upon the two men when she and Zeira had splashed about in the water, which would explain the dampness of her tresses that didn't seem to dry as fast as her maid's had done so. Louis and the Prince... No name crossed her mind. Since no one bothered to actually state their name upon presentation, but of course, she should've paid close attention when her mother had been off gathering information from whatever sources she had of the competitors. But of course, she had no desire to be around her mother more than the time she'd spent with her own brother. Her discomfort within the palace only increases when she is in their presence.


Lierah almost jumped at the sudden caw from up above. One so loud that it stirred a light groan from Jarek, whose transporter seemed a bit fearful, almost easing his head away from the guard as if he would go rabid and attempt to eat off his face. The poor servant seemed utterly terrified of the large man upon his shoulder, stumbling as his feet dragged behind him. Lierah felt great pity for Motar, asking again if he required assistance. Though only this time, he did not shake his head. Lierah was rewarded with a speech, something along the lines of 'proper servant,' 'princess's grace,' and so on. At some point, she'd just decided to tune the male out. And in the process, tuning the dying caws of the crow.


The raven no longer struggled in its grasp, coils tightening even though the bird no longer breathed, as if it were alive in the first place. Though, she figured the breathing was an added measure as only to add to the effect that this shadow magic was real. But of course, there was more darkness put into the serpent that now wrapped about it, its mouth wide as it began to devour the cast that held together the image. The snake, though busy with its new meal, watched the princess in her grace as she entered palace grounds once again, eyes as beady and pitch black at its own scales. No one was allowed to watch the princess but her, this man, Takashi was of no exception.
 
Once the Princess was gone Kiel had turned his attention to Zeira. He was becoming more frustrated than angry but still.


"Zeira do you know what had just happened? If not I will ask one of the others. Either way I will know the situation."


----


Liselle nodded. A ball. A ball would have food. She could find a way to become one of the servers there. She just needed to find someone to take her in this late. The neko was sure she could find something. At least she hoped that she could.


"Shall we go now?" She was itching to get started. Liselle could not stay here. She needed to begin her revenge.
 
Zeira considered telling the Prince all that she knew, which was remarkably a large amount of information, some she had no desire to share with Kiel at all. She never had the habit of reporting anything to the male before, she only figured that today was no different. Of course, Zeira had been lying ever since she'd begun to train as an assassin back in Mab. Perfecting it upon her targets and further using it to keep hidden her identity and evade questions of her past. And she did so with such expertise and smoothness that not one person, even those more familiar with liars and cheats than Kiel, can tell of her deception.


All but one person.


Zeira all but shook her head, for the second time to rid her thoughts of his name as she refused her eyes the freedom to drift towards her former partner. And upon realizing that she'd done this, her heart almost froze, even if her face still remained neutral. Though, it seemed as if the motion seemed to be directed at Kiel's question at the time, Zeira allowed herself to relax, not bothering to correct her mistake.


"I have not a clue, M'lord."
 
K’tano, as a sign of respect, immediately bowed at hearing that he was the grandson of the Emperor of Xzia. “I thank you for your kind words, and it was a technique that was also taught to me by nomads in a desert of sorts.”





His attention then turned from Takashi and look out into the forest across the bridge which the group had went. “I would not be concerned if I was you, it’s the first impression that is the most memorable. And when we meet up with her again at the ball, I am confident that is what she will remember. And if not, we will simply have to remind her of it.”





Finally, K’tano felt like he was at home. He had grown so accustomed to the role of a diplomat that it became second nature to him. All that he said was Takashi was genuine, holding no ill will towards this man who had chosen to solve a delicate situation with non-violence. And thus is why he admired the man at this moment, appreciating the similar ways the two seemed to resolve intense moments. Eve looked over and thanked K’tano for his help, and he simply nodding in acknowledgement of the thanks.





This was the first time he had been in discussions with his competitors since his arrival to the city. He didn’t feel threatened by in any of the competitors and he wasn’t quite sure how to deal with them on this level. Whether the combination of Eve/Ian won, they would need protection from the Queen’s inevitable wrath. At least if Takashi won, K’tano knew that Leirah would be safe within the borders of Xzia. Whether she would be happy was another matter entirely. These were matters that K’tano wished not to dwell on, and instead focus on the here and now.





It was just then that K’tano struck up a brilliant idea as he glanced back over to Takashi with a brilliant smile. “Takashi, I was planning on holding a feast for the people in the district to commemorate the opening this evening of the first embassy outside of Auro’Nia. I would be honored if the grandson of the great emperor of Xzia would attend as the guest of honor. It will be a good show to the people, that our interest in them will not cease, no matter who wins this competition.”





K’tano did not add, that he would use the event to make some informal connections with the Xzia. The council had “allowed” K’tano to go on his quest of love, partially because they hoped to work out some trade agreements with other nations. What better way to get such a process going over some food, wine and music.





He then turned and smiled back at Ian and Eve as they were gathering themselves. “And I would also be honored for such noble souls to attend this event as well. This place has seen much in the way of hardships, and the sight of man who, at great risk of his own life, sought to help a wounded man. It’s a great metaphor you see? In a way, the people here in this district are like you Ian; they are also starting to reach out now to help others and themselves in the district. The queen will probably see this strengthening district as a threat and try to break the will of the district, whether through force or taxes. I think that your story would inspire the people here to do even more to help others, and persevere should the crackdowns come.”





As K’tano was busy pouring honey into the ears of his guests, Des was reacquainting himself with an old friend. Although he had remained out of eye shot, the empathic bond allowed her to immediately picked up on. It was one of the great downsides to getting close to someone… you never could quite hide from them. From even great this great distance, Des could feel the pain that was just coming up. For the briefest of moments, she could sense a desire within to help her, like he had done many times before.





But quickly that thought was rushed away and instead a steely determination replaced it. He did want to speak with her though, not wanting to simply walk off from her. However, Des didn’t want to approach her with the other person around. Instead he allowed for another brief moment a simple emotion to bleed over to her that couldn’t be mistaken; a longing to see her once more. She would know how to find him, for as long as she focused on him, she could find him. He awaited next to a waterfall he had found, leaning against a tree and awaited her approach.
 
Eve leaned back a bit on her heals as the man talked, he was as formal as It got, and talked a bit. Her head still pounded from the visions, she made a mental note to confront that guy and find out what happened. As he finished inviting them to some kind of event Eve shaked her head lightly, her hood still hiding her face. "Neither of us are of noble status. He is nothing more than a farmer and I'm just a bodyguard for hire. I'm sorry but we are declining you invitation." Her voice was stern,serious, and horase all combined together. Eve didn't need to turn back to Ian to know he agreed with her. Ian nodded his head in agreement to what she had said, after what just happened all he wanted to do was go home and rest. Both of them would like to stay clear of anything formal ,and with diplomats. They're nothing but trouble, Eve thinks it's their job to cause trouble.


She walked over to Ian and whispered something, Ian nodded, before they both turned to the white haired man. Saying couragiously Ian spoke to the man. "I was not risking my life, nor was I reaching out to anybody. It's a common curtsy to help a wounded man, at least where I was raised it was." Eve nodded to him. She became a crutch for Ian as they made their way to his farm, which wasn't very far from the bridge. They both wanted to get away from the scene.


Ian still spoke in a whisper, even though they were out of ear-shot from them. "What happened to you? Your eyes glowed blue?" He turned his head towards Eve, while she kept her eyes forward. Ian knew that Eve hated her metal power and hadn't used it in years, not since they both worked as bounty hunters. Eve shaked her head. "I don't know... but whatever it was hurts like hell." she laughed a bit at the end. Ian was a bit worried about that, but shaked the feeling off.
 
(I'm really wishing now that I had Takashi introduce himself to Lierah. I assumed that since he had been a diplomat in the kingdom for years that the royal family might be somewhat acquainted with him.)


Returning from his thoughts, Takashi ran the thought of attending through his mind. It would most liekly look odd if he attended and ate nothing. It was a matter of safety as he had survived numerous attempts at being poisoned through simply eating only food prepared by people he had an exceptional trust for. This however, meant that getting food he was assured was safe for consumption so far away from Xzia was extremely difficult. He managed it however. "I would be happy to attend. Though I have a concern. More attempts than I can count have been made to poison me and while I do not believe you would attempt it, I believe someone who would want me dead might sneak poison inside. Would it perhaps appear strange if I did not eat anything while there?"


He took a moment to run a few thoughts through his head before continuing. He wanted to ensure that all the details would be sorted out. This was a good opportunity for him to make himself look good but the poor in the Kredo District somewhat reminded him of Xzia. At least it reminded him of the stories he had been told. It was said that before the first emperor had united the various warring factions by defeating the various warlords, Xzia was a divided land full of misery and poverty. The warlords heavily taxed their subjects in order to fuel their greed and the ever-increasing demand for supplies such as weapons and armour for the soldiers.


"The poor in this city...they remind me of the stories of Xzia's past misery. One hundred and one years ago, Xzia was a divided nation knowing only conflict and misery. Is there any way I could assist you in your endeavour to help these people? If it comes to it and the Queen tries to break the will of the people of the district then I could offer them refuge behind Xzia's walls until it is safe for them to return. That is if they wish to return. They would be welcome to stay should they please."


Takashi turned his attention to Ian and his friend. The boy's selflessness was admirable though it was foolish of him, in Takashi's opinion, for him to have not had his guard up when around a stranger. To him, this was especially so considering that the man Ian had helped was very well capable of killing the boy. Takashi shook his head slightly to clear his head as he realized where his mind was going. He was a killer, he told himself mentally. He was a tool to further the goals of the clan and nothing was to come before his mission. He was beginning to wonder about himself. He reminded himself that he had to remain deceptive, cold, calculating, cunning and manipulative. He had to remember that the feelings of outsiders meant nothing and were never to mean anything to him.


He began to think on how to go about furthering the progress of his mission. K'Tano could be helpful in figuring out how to go about making the Princess' opinion of him improve. He turned his attention to K'Tano. It seemed K'Tano bore him no ill will. He kept his voice slightly hushed so as to only be heard by K'Tano. "The first impression I made on her has been forgotten I believe. When I came here, I met the members of the royal family but it seems she has either forgotten about me or never paid me any mind just as the Queen does not bother with knowing the names of those in her kingdom lest they be extremely important in some way. When I presented myself as a suitor earlier this day, I complimented her before presenting my gift but I did not say my name as I had not expected that she would have forgotten it. She still has not opened it so I assume she has no interest in me whatsoever. I feel as though I have already failed the competition."


Takashi felt something odd as one of his scout crows had been eaten by the snake. He could not help but wonder what could have done such a thing after those crows more often than not had the ability to kill fully grown humans with ease. Whoever or whatever was behind it was obviously quite powerful in its own right. Though the crow's death served a purpose still as its memories of what it had seen came to Takashi. It had been eaten by a snake somehow but the strange thing was how did this snake manage to sneak up on the crow? It was obvious to him that this was no normal snake but he was still clueless as to its origin and what purpose it served. He had to be cautious where he sent his scouts now to avoid them being eaten.


Meanwhile at the camp, Amaya nodded in response to Liselle's question. She said "Go and I shall follow." She folded the paper repeatedly before placing it in her pocket, making sure it was tucked in so the edges would not show.
 
Kiel sighed at Zeira's answer and waved a dismissive hand at her.


"If you cannot help me then go. I am sure my sister will have need of you."


Then, without caring if she went or stayed, he began to walk over to the group that was still there. He saw that it was formed of most of the suitors. The only ones not there were Louis, himself and the elf. He had left Louis at the castle so that made sense but the elf not being here was curious. He made a note to find out where he was when whatever happened.


"So nice to see everyone getting together. Though an injuried man had come this way with my sister and one of her maids which makes me wonder. What happened here?"


----


Liselle began to make her way out of the woods. She got more and more excited as she headed towards the city but she also felt anxious. She turned to look at Amaya who would be her guard. She was curious about that. If she still had ears they would be twitching and the absent of them was weird.


"Why does Takashi want me to have a guard. Is it for my safety or does he just want me safe to ensure that he had help in his plan." Liselle then shook her head. "Never mind I do not wish to know. If the man wants to help me or have me help him it does not matter. I care only about one thing and if he can help me reach that goal I do not care for his reasons."


Liselle reached the edge of the woods and looked around. She had managed to come up near a small district and reasonably poor as well (not near where the others are). She looked around and then walked into the street joining the crowd of people. They were all talking about things but the competition and the suitors were on almost everyone's lips. She listened to them as she walked taking in as much as she could. She would need the information. Anything about the castle and the people inside were of value to her.


As she was not paying as much attention as she should she knocked into someone. Both let out oomphs and Liselle frowned. Travlor looked up from where he had landed to see a pretty girl in front of him. She was still standing. She looked down at him and he shook his head standing.


"Sorry," she said, rushing past Travlor. The elf was confused but he nodded in her direction.


"It's okay, I guess..."


Liselle eventually headed over to a shop. It sold meat. She took a deep breath and entered ready to begin her plan.
 
Takashi turned his attention to Prince Kiel. He gave a bow of respect, wondering what exactly the Prince wanted of the group. That question was answered when he heard the Prince ask about the situation involving Jarek. "Greetings your Highness. I could tell you of the events which had transpired here just now. The man you mentioned had walked into the city bleeding profusely from multiple wounds, his blood staining the streets. He had collapsed somewhere near where we are currently standing. The blood stains should still be here to mark the spot. A competitor or should I say former competitor, had helped this man by giving him a dose of a healing agent, saving the man's life. The man's saviour was a stable boy, the one who had quit the competition earlier. The man had grabbed this boy and lifted him into the air by his neck, choking him in the process. It seemed he had lost his mind as he attacked the very same one who had saved his life."


He gestured to K'Tano and himself before continuing. "The two of us had saved the boy from this man. I disabled him and K'Tano here healed the boy afterwards. The rest, I believe you may either already know or can find out from either the Princess or her handmaiden. Though due to such dangerous characters being allowed to enter the city and being allowed to threaten the lives of others, I hope you do not mind that I will be bringing in a warrior from Xzia, Asajiro the Spear Master, to serve as my bodyguard. These are dangerous times after all what with bounties being placed on competitors and the guards letting any old raving lunatic inside the city."


Meanwhile, Amaya followed Liselle as was part of her duty. She kept a watchful eye out for any potential threats while maintaining the appearance of just being another person passing through. It was clear however from how she dressed that she knew how to fight.
 
Zeira need not focus to find the male, nor was she very pleased to have been called. And she wasn't about to make this much easier either. The handmaiden merely brushed off the request, pivoting upon her heel and towards the direction the princess had gone with Jarek, following the almost invisible tracks left behind in the dirt, eyes of emerald simply downcast. Zeira felt the painful throbbing within her chest, one she sought to quell, maybe with the princess once she got home. Though, she knew that this will not happen soon enough. She has matters to attend to, ones that even the queen may not know of.


The handmaiden was quick to disappear into the alleys of the markets, eyes darting about as she mapped her possible escapes, should the palace guards spot her in the shadows. Of course, she has no doubt in her mind that the said men can see her through the cape of blackness she'd draped over her body. A cast not many are familiar with, since it also did vanish the sounds in which result in her movement. Further rendering the surrounding people helpless, should she chose to be rid of them. Which wasn't her top priority at the moment.


Zeira weaved through the crowds, careful not to make contact, allowing the cloak of shadows to expands and contract in the light only as to adjust, keeping herself from even the sharpest of eyes' views. Zeira suddenly became very aware of the daggers strapped to her thighs, hidden just enough by the folds of her rag-dress. Aware of the cold blade. The rough hilt made for grip. The tightness in which she'd bound it to her legs.Up to this point, she'd forgotten their existence, as if she was never an assassin to begin with. The number one rule in which she'd swore to follow was never to forget the existence of your blades. And she'd done just that.


Zeira scowled.




~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

​



Lierah was upon the floor once again, eyes scanning over the tiny, carefully printed text of her newest book, back against the bed her guard now occupied. She sat with one of her many blankets wrapped tightly about her shoulders, a strange chill settling within the room, despite the wide arch of her window left open by Motar, who's left to do other jobs in which she'd never really paid much attention to. He'd insisted to assist her in tending the male's wounds, but of course, she'd sent him off after he'd called her back in upon finishing changing Jarek into a simple shirt and tunic. Only then did she allow herself to check over his wounds, most of which reopened as Motar carried the man up the stairs. She'd teared at the damage the man had taken, only a glance at his armor and she'd already felt sick.


Of course, the whole ordeal had passed by now and the princess had already settled herself down after dressing his wounds. Jarek had been asleep the whole entire time... Or, she at least thought he had been asleep. But of course, the guard had watched the event as it played out, eyeing her when she was not looking every time she fumbled with the gauze and squeaked whenever she'd drop something. Though, she guard never allowed so much as a groan to pass his lips when she handled him with less gentleness than he'd required. But at least she'd gotten the job done.


He now looks over her shoulder, eyes reading the small words he could barely see at this distance, though it was just close enough. He'd guessed that the happenings in which now played upon the pages were one of the princess's favorite parts, of course he could tell by the way she'd lean over the book as if she were peering into something secret. A knight, taking the princess's hand and offering her escape from the confines of her tower. How utterly ironic that he would find himself here. A former knight with a troubled princess, who is utterly delighted at the thought of just reading about a situation in which someone like him-- rather someone like he'd been, rescuing someone like her. He felt his chest clench.


Lierah, he'd only seen when he'd requested a job in the palace. The queen wasn't as reluctant to accept as the princess's brother, though the princess seemed to have been in her own little world and vaguely uttered a 'yes.' He was sure she had remembered him since then. Though, from her display, there was no mistaking it. The princess remembered him.


"You know... Don't you, M'lady?"


The guard watched as Lierah jolted, eyes snapping towards him as her head whipped about, locks of ebony flying wildly about. The princess looked quite startled, whether it be by the sudden sound of his voice, of being caught reading for she'd immediately tucked the book into the folds of her blanket. A bit shaken, the female tucked behind her ear a stray strand of black as she managed a slight smile, confusion evident upon her childish features. The guard, sensing that the girl was not catching up, continued.


"I attacked him, M'lady... That man..." Jarek fought to keep a slight noise of displeasure as he saw the delicate curves of her features sharpen, making her look ever closer to her own mother. "I'd hurt him..."


"Only in your defense.​" Lierah stood, placing the book onto a nearby table as she allowed the blanket to slip off her shoulders, leaving her with the thin nightgown she'd changed into just in the other room. She walked over, bare feet padding onto the cold stone floor. Jarek fell silent at her response, though the tip of his tongue held argument. He watched as the princess leaned to reach for his arm, wincing as she moved it about, as if to test the stitches she'd managed to lace into his skin despite her trembling hands. She'd done quite a nice job, as well. The wounds will properly close in a week or two, he'd guessed as he pushed himself upwards to sit. Lierah backed away, leaving him the large space of her bed, as well as to allow herself distance from this man.


Jarek noted the shift in the atmosphere, as if another layer of frost seemed to settle upon the already chilled air. He disliked it, for the feeling only brought forth the unmistakable guilt that seemed to burn holes into his heart, leaving the wounds to heal before causing pain all over it. For his actions were unforgivable... Not that he had expected it to be anyways. This seemed to go unnoticed, though, as the princess glided back towards her table, her eyes upon the gifts laid out by the other servants, who must've gone into her chambers to drop off the objects. All of which she was very uncomfortable seeing at the moment. One of which she refused to set her eyes upon, for the sight of it would make her sick with guilt for leaving him behind with no explanation of her behavior.


Lierah still did not quite know exactly why she'd reacted the way she had. All she was able to explain was that the horror was, simply put, triggered by the obscured image of the knight in her head upon the sight of Jarek. His body mangled and still bloody, though his wounds were all but bleeding. The stains of crimson upon the tree he'd leaned against and the soil he sat upon, and the bruised neck of a man she'd never seen before. The sight of which she was too sickened to see, even if she held knowledge that the others would heal him. As if the ordeal was her fault, she stared at her palms, which were trembling as she washed his blood off at the waters of the spring.


Blood...


She had only to shut her eyes to see the splashes of red, the screams, the pain... All of which was something she'd never encountered before. All of which... She'd seen upon meeting his eyes, and though her usual reaction would've been to scream out of pain and fear, the child within her seemed to retreat, forced back by whatever strong side she had for she reacted with only a light shrug of her shoulders. Which, of course Jarek noted. He allowed his eyes to linger upon her face, as if trying to find an answer that was not present, but instead he stood. Of course the princess was at his side in a matter of seconds, only to be waved off. The man, who just minutes ago seemed to look incapable of a decent smile, grinned at the princess. A motion she found strangely unnatural as he muttered a word of thanks before he exited.


Lierah watched the man leave, a small breath escaping her lips as she once again drifted towards her table, eyes now, without her consent, falling upon the brightness of the clear, tinted blue, rose that sat upon the mahogany wood, which to her surprise had not melted yet. Then to the other, equally eye-catching blue rose that sat just beside it. She crinkled her nose, her hands closing around the thornless stems. And after what seemed like forever of staring at their beauty, she sat down, just before her mirror and took the ebony locks of hair that stretched down to her thighs into her hands. Tonight, she will wear blue.




~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

​



Zeira had barely the time to draw her blades as she was yanked to the side, but even that was enough to endanger whatever attacker dared to touch her. Her daggers were upon his neck, forming a scissor-like crisscross of silver as she slammed the male into the nearest wall, though only to draw in a gasp.


Zeira hadn't expected him to be around, especially not here. Though her momentary disorientation seemed to be a signal for him to slap away the blades from her hands. She let him. The man, a former prisoner of Atra's that she'd freed ages ago, eased upon seeing the master assassin weaponless. He'd barely stood taller than her, only with a height of 5"9 while Zeira stood at 5"6 and a body that seemed to be build more for lifting than running. But the man was surprisingly fast.


From what Zeira could remember, she'd given him his freedom about two years ago, he was 19 at the time. Which makes him about 21, or turning twenty one in the near future. Not that she cared much for age, though it is always best to keep known information about. Gabe, as she knew him by, muttered incoherencies under his breath, something along the lines of "dangerous" and "little girl," words he knew Zeira would punch him for should she have heard. But he leaned close anyways, as to pass along the info he's promised to gather for her.


"Mab's defense was weakened..." He confirmed. "There's definitely truth behind what your sparrows have seen."


"Do you know what drove him to do it?"


Gabe shook his head, eyes of coal looking back towards the end of the alleys, as if to expect one of the palace guards to just suddenly appear. He was getting increasingly nervous, she noted, as they stand outside his new hiding place. Of course he was, he's still in the process of recovering from Atra's heinous torture methods, as he was spying for another person of political power. In truth, Zeira envied him for such skill in spying and hiding. If she were as good as he was, she wouldn't quite need to use casts as often as she does, even if it is only for precaution. But poor Gabe has been terrified out of using his skill for money, and she wasn't about to amplify his fear. Instead, she handed to him the few loaves of bread she could smuggle out of the stores.


Gabe had his own family, which unfortunately had been struggling for food for the past few weeks. Even just these can sustain them for just a little bit. And upon receiving this, the male did the one thing she expect naught of him. He pulled her into his arms in a large hug, in which she was a bit too disgruntled to return. Not that she was ever used to this kind of contact before. But sure enough, the former spy let go, and before she'd even the time to register, he had gone, leaving her to her thoughts and the silence that seemed to fall at his leaving.
 
K‘tano wasn‘t so much offended as he was wounded at the thought that someone may poison the ambassador at his function. During his travels in the North, this reputation for fairness had won him many friends and confidants. While he wasn‘t so naïve to think that such things didn‘t happened, K‘tano had kept all his diplomatic interactions as open as possible. “Not at all friend. I am curious as to why, since you so are concerned, you do not have your own food taster.”





He looked over at disappointment at Eve and Ian as they wandered off, so quickly turning down his invitation. It was almost taken as a personal slight, but K’tano reasoned that the man simply needed time to recover from the ordeal. K’tano allowed the pair to go off without a fuss, allowing them time to recover from the ordeal.





Instead, he returned his attention to Takashi as he told a story that sounded very similar to his own. “It would seem that our two peoples have much in common Takashi. I just recently finished a campaign of Unification in the north. You must understand that life in the tundra can be very harsh. The people were isolated from one another due to terrible conditions. More often than not, those people turned against each other as they felt more and more alone. They would fight over the few fertile farmlands and hunting grounds, just to survive.”





K’tano’s thoughts began to return to his homeland. Much had been accomplished in such a short time, but much more still needed to be accomplished. There was the matter of a insurgent faction that had yet to be eradicated. He had tried to negotiate with them, but they were entrenched in archaic believes and would attack convoys that passed just outside their borders as they became more and more isolated.





Eventually, K’tano lead his army into the region to confront the tribe. But as the army approached, the enemy tribe were no where to be found and had abandoned the area to the villages that still remained. For the past three years they had hunted down the insurgents and had killed many of them. K’tano knew that there were still many out there though, as was witnessed by the raids that would happened infrequently along the roads in that part of the country.





“Any wisdom that your people learned from going through such trying times would be greatly appreciated Takashi. If you have any texts that discuss the events of the time, I would love to read them. As to helping the poor here, I think that you joining them in this time of celebration would be enough, a sign that these people do not stand alone, but instead have the support of Xzia in their struggle.” K’tano added to the man as he looked off to the North in the direction of his homeland.





Once he began to speak of the princess, K’tano’s attention quickly returned to him. K’tano listened to the man as he spoke with honesty and humility about not making the first impression. He sought to reassure the man, saying, “Oh, you are not the only one to of forgotten to say his name to the lovely princess.”





As K’tano let out a soft chuckle, he began to think. K’tano loved Princess Leirah deeply, and would do anything to assure her happiness. He was not so arrogant to believe that he was the only one that could provide the princess with the joy she so desperately needed. That being said, his heart’s soul desire was to the have the princess at his side when he arrived home.





K’tano looked back at the man, and decided to offer him his wisdom to help Takashi, knowing that should he win, that he could offer the protection of Xzia’s walls to her. “I have a friend that serves as a… specialist of sorts. He focuses in on a target, learns everything he can about that target, and then looks for the perfect moment to strike. And while that is a good approach to assassination, it’s not the way to win a women’s heart.”





Bringing his fingers up to wrap around his chin, he continued. “It’s not so much the destination, but the journey. Things of this world are fleeting, things of the heart are forever. I suggest you find some sort of, romantic or artistic way to express your love to the young lady. And feelings for her doesn‘t stir your soul to art, then think Xzia or perhaps someone you do care for back home, as you are creating.”





Just as he had finished talking, the Prince Kiel approached. K’tano respectfully bowed to the Prince and allowed Takashi to explain what all had transpired here. As Takashi finished giving a concise report, and then giving his request to be allowed a guard, K’tano than chose to speak up. “It will take sometime though for someone to arrive from Xzia though wouldn’t it? Perhaps the Prince could offer one as a sign of good faith, or I could have one here from Auro’Nia in half the time.”





While K’tano was in his element, Des was not. He had hoped that she would come to him but knew that wasn’t the case. Seeing Zeira after all this time wasn’t something he was relishing. And while it was true that part of him was doing this for K’tano, the truth of the matter was that he missed her.





Thus, he followed her as she entered the city. Des did his best to hide himself from her, but he knew this was of no use to her. He cursed the fact that he had to be as close as he did to her to be able to follow, hating the idea of feeling vulnerable and allowing his emotions to cloud his better judgment.





As he followed her, Des sensed that she was relaxed and at ease. Keira had always kept her head on a swivel, even being wound too tight at times for Des. Suddenly, he felt her tense up and a feeling of danger struck him. He rushed through the throngs of people, shoving them to the side as he approached her position. With his back slammed up along the wall, he walked over and listened in on the conversation, expecting to find Zeira in danger.





To his surprise though, she was the one that had a man by the throat. Des decided to wait and lean up against the wall that was just off from the alleyway. He did in such a stealthy manner, that the pair never knew of his location. With a quirk of his eyebrow, he watched as the man snuck out of the alleyway with his loaf of bread and walked off.





It was only now that he turned and stepped into the alleyway and leaned up against one of it’s walls and looked down at her as she looked down at the ground. “So, not only are you being caught off guard without your blades, your now paying off people with bread. You seem to be getting rusty without me around, Zeira.” His expressions were firm, but he couldn’t hide the sense of relief he felt that it wasn’t her in danger.
 
The night was falling and the area was quite, her sparrows, she'd noted, have not a peep to show her since the appearance of the new guard. Though, she kept them up and about anyways, even in the night sky. Despite birds' inactivity about in the night, her sparrows were dark in feathers, of course they would not be seen, especially in the darkness of the trees. But a deep noise startled her, not one that would be heard in the coming of night. A voice, though she reacted even before the words registered in her mind.


Zeira didn't waste time picking up her blade, a motion in which she was so very familiar with. Which was the point of her new hilts, as to give her a better grip of the weapon, seeing as many have a knack at attempting to render her weaponless. And considering that those two daggers were all she had of her regular arsenal, she was quite at a disadvantage. Though, she didn't quite have enough time to stop herself from throwing the dagger out of habit, seeing as she disliked when people snuck up on her, which was an action she had grown quite unused to in Desdanya's absence. And the dagger sailed, before her hands could grasp its rough hilt once more. She felt her heart drop.


Of course, her attempt wasn't exactly useless, for as her fingers brushed the hilt, it had altered the trajectory, which had been originally been tipped towards his jugular, a practiced throw in which no doubt was something Desdanya, even with the years of being an assassin, always barely had the speed to block. And with her unexpected movement, his reaction would be far too slow to avoid a hit. Even so, the slight touch, and maybe an added movement was still enough to avoid a fatal hit.


The blade embedded itself into his right shoulder.
 
Kiel listened to what Takashi had said and what K'tano had said as well. Then he began to laugh. It was a mean laugh and he knew that the men would take offense to it. But Kiel did not care. He was already their enemy, wasn't he? No one cared for the Prince, the dark Queen's loyal pet. What did it matter that he would upset the suitors. He was strong enough to protect himself as well even if they did not think it.


"Are you so weak that you need a guard? Maybe you should drop out now if you cannot handle mere common folk. I do not agree with what happened here," he said becoming more serious. "Both you being attacked and you harming the man but what is done is done. I will be sure to up the defenses though if you feel unsafe here. But I will allow no guards. You do not want people thinking bad things do you? Who knows what tale might be spread if one of the suitors suddenly has one? They might think you are afraid of being attacked and no one wants to have that now do we? You are safe here, what happened being an anomality. I am sorry for it and if you need any care please don't hesitant to ask.


"I do hope you can forgive us for it though. We would be ungrateful hosts to allow the Princess's suitors to be harmed outside the competition." Kiel shrugged then. He was unhappy that they all seemed to form together as well but he did not voice that.
 
Takashi thought for a moment about K'Tano's question regarding the food taster. He wanted to ensure he satisfactorily answered him so his reasons would be clear. "I do not have a food taster as I have during my entire life, prepared my own food. While being the grandson of the Emperor of Xzia does allow me many luxuries, I have never made use of the majority of them. I try to be as self-sufficient as possible. It is not a good habit, in my opinion, to depend on others all the time for if you do, what happens when you are alone?"


"As for the texts, I only have one in my possession. I could bring it with me when I attend your function. Lastly, with reference to my bodyguard, that should not take too long. I specifically chose Asajiro because he is, to my knowledge, on his way back to Xzia right now. He was on a mission to deal with a group of dragon worshippers trying to disrupt the peace between Xzia and Noz Dingard which took him to the west of this kingdom. If I can get the message to him quickly enough, he could get here by tomorrow morning."


When he heard the Prince's comment, Takashi hid his offence at his combat skills being called into question. He let it go however as he would have his chance soon enough. "I would prefer not to get my hands dirty when it can be avoided but since bodyguards are not allowed, I will not send for one."
 
"I said nothing about getting your hands dirty. It would be preferred if you do not engage in fights outside of the competition in fact. Also did not say they were not allowed. I just made suggestions as to why I would not get one. You are still free to do as you like. I cannot stop you in that regard." Kiel was going to be sure to keep an eye on both Takashi and K'tano, more so Takashi. Something felt...off about him. Kiel laughed at himself. He was the most off here so who was he to judge? Still he was going to be sure to watch out for the man.


"I will put up more guards or at least ask the Queen about it if you are still concerned though." He looked around. 'Where is the elf? Everyone else looks like they are here. Why isn't he? Not wanting to get into fights maybe?"


----


Liselle entered the place and smiled to herself. It was a pretty active looking place and she could tell that they might need help. After discussing it with the owner she was given a job. The neko was ecstatic. Things were going well but they were also getting started. She needed to be sure that she was ready for whatever may happen.
 
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