Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 21, 2013 16:25:26 GMT -5
Rushing through the remaining part of the halls brought a rush of adrenaline to Lara. She didn't have time to glance at things now. Focusing on the task at hand she easily fell into a sprint. Following Bartimaeus was easy enough, as he led them through the rest of the prison. Once outside of it, they just had to get out of the barracks. Thankfully they managed to get away without any disturbance. Finally they managed to break out of the barracks where then split up behind different pillars.
"Woo we made it!" Lara thought as she gave herself a moment to catch her breath. It seemed that no one was the wiser either! "Only a matter of time before they discover we've left. Best not stay here for long." Heading into the crowd it only took a short time before the three of them managed to rejoin up.
Bartimaeus and Rekka both seemed alright. As the three met, Lara nodded to Rekka and glanced at Bartimaeus to hear the answer to her question. "Prince Orion? I'd imagine the palace most likely. That would be the best place to start. We should go now though. It won't be long before they discover we've escaped. They'll be sending people to look for us then."
Lara crossed her arms. Just how were they going to get into the palace. "I don't assume you know a way to get us into the palace?"
Bartimaeus gave both Rekka and Lara a smile. "Oh getting in will be easy. We're going to go straight through the front gates. It'll be getting out that might be a slight problem. Like I said... When I left this place I did not leave under the best conditions with his majesty."
Now that they had a moment, Lara was ready to ask Bartimaeus just what exactly those conditions were. "And just what were those conditions Bartimaeus? How exactly do you know so much about the prisons and even the palace. Heck how do you even know the Prince and the King?!"
Bartimaeus glanced left and right, as if he was peering to see if someone was listening in. "Let's at least get moving while I answer that." Bartimaeus started off north down the main road. "I sort of ran away four years ago when I got into a disagreement with the King. I know so much about this place because I spent oh... I'd say it was five years here during said time I had been hired as the Master Tutor for the royal family."
|
|
|
Post by Sprow on Apr 21, 2013 21:26:14 GMT -5
Rekka returned the nod in Lara's direction to indicate her acknowledgement of her. She really didn't mean to shock the others back in that cell. It was just that she had gotten so angry the fire within seemed to get fueled by her anger and reacted. It had managed to get them to escape but Rekka wondered just what else she could do with her fire. It seemed like she still had yet to figure out how to control it. She had come close to harming her friends now that she thought about it. If she hadn't turned towards the cell's bars when she did, she would have probably unintentionally burned the other two in her fit. Mentally, Rekka reminded herself to find a means of controlling the flames by testing herself when not around anyone else or anything flammable.
Patiently, she waited for the bard to answer her question. When he answered her, she heard Bartimaeus mention the prince's name. Prince Orion would be in the palace. Now that she looked around at their surroundings more clearly, she realized they weren't in some sort of castle. At least, not that she was aware of. Well, at least now they were outside of that prison. The sooner they reached the palace the sooner they could try to get help for Infusca and hopefully get her out. She didn't know what else they could do except try busting down doors and fight their way through. A thing that wouldn't be a very wise decision considering there were far more people here than there was them.
'I really need to learn anger management...' Rekka thought to herself. She could have gotten them killed earlier just because of her thought process of busting doors and things down to get to Infusca thinking it would be a breeze. As if it were even possible for them to just waltz right in and save Infusca. What a foolish thought indeed! Still, it wasn't like she could think clearly then. She had been far too angry at the time to think straight to know that. Now that she was calmer, she realized her error if she had managed to go on alone. Thankfully, that didn't happen and they were all still here but their chances weren't all that much better off. They had to try though. Rekka wouldn't be able to live with herself if they didn't try to help Infusca.
Lara asked Bartimaeus if he knew how to get them into the palace. Rekka couldn't help but raise an eyebrow as she saw that smile on the bard's face. He wasn't about to pull another banker thing again, was he? Rekka certainly hoped not. What he said about getting inside would be easy made Rekka tilt her head in confusion. How was getting inside easier than getting back out if one were to take the main route in? Then, he went on to say just why. People would most likely know him, namely the royal family or king.
Before Rekka could question Bartimaeus about what terms he had left on exactly, Lara had already beaten her to the chase by asking him. In fact, she had asked the questions that Rekka was wondering too. Looking over slowly to the bard, she watched him glance around before telling them to get moving before he answered that. Nodding, Rekka followed Lara and Bartimaeus down the main road. As they went, the bard jumped into an explanation. The bard had run away four years ago after having been hired by the royal family as a master tutor. He had served five years during that time before running away over a disagreement. Rekka looked over at Lara then wondering what sort of disagreement there had been and if they should be more careful.
Quickening her step, Rekka came to walk on Bartimaeus's left to better speak with him. "That explains your knowledge about nearly everything," Rekka stated. "So...about that disagreement...should we be really careful entering the castle or just careful?" she asked with a hint of humor in her voice despite what they would be walking into. Hopefully, things would be alright but she didn't think so. Things never seemed to go right for them.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 22, 2013 20:07:29 GMT -5
Should they be careful indeed! That was an excellent question. Just what were they walking into here? Lara wanted to know just that from the bard. As they followed the main road it curved and brought the castle into sight. The enchanted castle stood tall with towering spires and surrounded by an inner gate. The closer they walked to the castle the less amount of people there were. Those who were going to the castle had a very specific reason for being there.
Bartimaeus placed his hands into his pocket as he walked. "Oh we must be extremely careful. If one of the king catches us before the prince does we will be in a load of more trouble then."
Lara this time frowned. "Alright bard! Out with it! What was this disagreement? Why'd you leave?"
"Bah!" Bartimaeus said quickening his steps slightly so that they neither Lara nor Rekka could read his face as he spoke. "Kings are over dramatic that's why! It wasn't bad. The king catches ya sleepin with the queen and all of a sudden it's, 'OFF WITH HIS HEAD!'" Bartimaeus spun about walking backwards to look at the very shocked expression on Lara's face.
"You slept with the queen..." Lara's eyes scowled in annoyance. That was so typical of the bard. "And you don't think it's that bad. And were going to stroll right through the palace." Lara didn't think that Bartimaeus was stupid but she was beginning to second guess.
Bartimaeus gave her one of those sly smiles again. "I didn't say anything about strolling through the palace. I just said we'd walk right in." He came to a stop as they stood before the open gates that led to the gardens that surrounded the palace.
|
|
|
Post by Sprow on Apr 22, 2013 21:14:07 GMT -5
Rekka's eyebrows rose considerably when Bartimaeus answered her question. She had been trying to be somewhat funny but it looked like their situation was serious. Although, Bartimaeus didn't seem too bothered as he simply put his hands in his pockets and continued walking right up to the castle. The closer they got to it, the less people there was in sight. When he had informed them that they needed to be extremely careful, Rekka looked over at him as he went on to state if they ran into the king before they bumped into Orion then they would be in for a lot of trouble.
"Well, thanks for the heads up..." Rekka stated. She was about to ask what it was that he had done to make the king hate him so much when Lara demanded it out of him finally. Rekka looked over at Lara and then back to the bard. "Not to pry but I wonder the same." Bartimaeus, in response, had quickened his steps slightly so that neither she nor Lara could read his face as he answered their question. What the answer was is not something Rekka had expected at all. She had thought the disagreement was on political matters or something but no. It was because the bard had a little too much fun with the queen. Rekka was so shocked, she had been momentarily rendered speechless as her jaw dropped.
Lara had been the one to recover enough to speak to Bartimaeus about his "disagreement" with the king. How he didn't think that being caught with the queen in such a manner wasn't really that bad of a thing. It was honestly mind blowing. If the king spotted them, then because they were with him, they were going to undoubtedly have their heads removed. 'Well, isn't this just peachy?' Rekka thought, shaking her head in her disbelief at what she had heard. Of all the crazy things to have a disagreement over with someone it had been that!
"So why would the prince not mind speaking to you then if you've done such a thing with his mother? My word, Bartimaeus! Of all the crazy things!" She wasn't scolding the bard, just reacting to her surprise at the things he had said about his relation with the king. They were going to walk right in the castle. Who was to say Bartimaeus wouldn't be recognized on the spot over something like that? Rekka gave a sigh. Oh well, not like they could do anything at this point considering their situation. They had to get Infusca out and in order to do that they had to play with fire. Ironically, not Rekka's fire.
Bartimaeus came to a stop as they came before the gates that seemed to lead into the gardens before the palace. The gates were open, permitting entry. "Well, guess it's now or never then." Rekka glanced over at Bartimaeus. He certainly was a bold one. It was difficult to believe someone of his age would make such decisions in life. Still, no one was perfect but Bartimaeus seemed to just have that sort of life where he had a habit of shocking people with the things he did. "So how do you propose we do this? Just simply walking in?"
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 23, 2013 16:48:07 GMT -5
Lara noted that Bartimaeus glanced behind him slight to Rekka as he answered her question. "The gardens surrounding the inner palace are open to the general public, but have a high guard presence. The plan's simple. We head from the gardens to the servant's entrance on the side. I just hope the Prince hasn't moved from his old rooms. That might complicate things. Were bound to get some questions, but you two just stand there and look menacing. I'll do the talking once were inside."
Frowning, Lara didn't like the sound of that. Last time they let Bartimaeus do all the talking they ended up in jail. "I don't like this plan. There's too much opportunity for things to go wrong." Lara commented.
Bartimaeus led them right into the gardens. As he said there were some regular daily people in the gardens. However there were many more guards simply standing by at various spots. The garden was split into two sections both divided by a brick road that led straight to the front palace doors. On one side Lara spotted a pathway that led through a flower garden. She could hear the rushing waters of fountains and the soft chirping sound of birds. On the other side were a variety of hedges, bushes, trees, and benches along side a small path. Two paved pathways split from the brick road through either the flower garden or the "bush garden" as it was called by the locals.
"Well I don't suppose you have a better plan?" Bartimaeus asked the two of them. Sadly Lara did not. She wished she had a better one, but she didn't. So she remained silent. "This way guys." He led them towards the "bush gardens" where the path would take them right to the servants entrance on the side of the castle. Hopefully no guards would stop them along the way. Bartimaeus didn't expect any real danger until they approached the servant's entrance.
|
|
|
Post by Sprow on Apr 23, 2013 17:41:44 GMT -5
Rekka noticed how the bard effectively avoided her question about the prince. She rose an eyebrow at him but chose to not argue. The bard was at least helping out. It was best to not argue and make their situation worse by bickering rather than focusing on the matter at hand. Quietly, she listened as Bartimaeus told them that the gardens were open to the public but with a high guard presence. Well, that was obvious. There should be guards around the place to ensure security. According to the bard, they were going to head into the servant's entrance on the side somewhere. Hopefully, the prince's quarters weren't moved or their situation would get a bit more complicated. It wasn't long before Bartimaeus told them that they might get questions and their job was to just look menacing while he did the talking. Rekka rose an eyebrow noticeably at Bartimeus but he didn't seem to take notice. Last time he had done the talking they had ended up captured in the first place.
Lara was on the same mindset as Rekka for she had mentioned how se didn't like this plan and that there had been too much opportunity for things to go wrong. The bard simply lead their way into the gardens. Regular people walked past paying them no mind. In various spots, Rekka noticed immediately, were guards. Knowing there were so many in the vicinity made Rekka nervous but in order to help Infusca, it wasn't like she could turn back now. No, there was no turning back. Rekka wouldn't be able to live with herself if she left Infusca to her fate after helping them.
It was clear that the gardens were split into two divisions by a brick road. This road had led the way right up to the front gates of the palace. There was a pathway on one side leading through what looked like a flower garden. It was easy to hear the sound of running water somewhere and the many chirping of various birds. t was a really beautiful place. It was hard to take it in just once as Rekka glanced around with curiosity. As they reached a point, Bartimaeus finally spoke in response to what Lara had said bringing Rekka's attention back onto the other two.
The question he had asked was clearly directed at the two of them. Rekka didn't have any other ideas judging by Lara's silence, neither did she. "I don't have anything..." Rekka answered him. Without saying anything further, Bartimaeus urged them towards some kind of garden that only he recognized out of their trio. Along the way, Rekka kept her silence very aware that neither of them had their weapons save for possibly Lara whom could summon her axe out of nowhere. No one seemed to want to stop them until they came upon the servant's entrance. Standing there were two guards on either side and they were headed right for the guards standing there.
'Here we go!' Rekka thought to herself.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 23, 2013 21:17:00 GMT -5
Lara held her breath as the guards and servants entrance came into view. "If some higher power is out there... Please keep us alive through this bard's crazy schemes." Bartimaeus walked with his head cast slightly downward. The two guards on either side to the entrance watched them as they grew nearer and nearer.
They said nothing, simply watching them as they came right up to the door. Was it possible they were going to get in without even a word from the guards? Lara sure hoped so! Wouldn't that be a relief?! Just before they were about to enter the threshold of the side door to the palace one of the guards raised his hand in the doorway. "Halt please. Where are your badges? All servants are supposed to have their badges being shown at all times."
"So much for getting through without a snag!" Lara thought to herself.
Bartimaeus gave the gaurds a look of surprise. "Oh right! Well you see there's a problem with that..." The bard began before suddenly turning on the bard nearest to him and slamming his fist right into the poor man's face. As the guard let out a grunt in surprise and pain, the bard followed up his punch with a elbow in the face of the other guard. The sound of cartilage breaking from the attack made Lara wince. Being an experienced soldier Lara knew exactly what that mean: a broken nose!
The bard didn't stop there. The other guard, who was getting up and reaching for a sword in his holster was slammed in the ears by two vicious chops from Bartimaeus. The bard finished the guard off with a quick strike to the man's forehead. Lara had never seen such an attack before. Seeing the guard fall back and seemingly out cold made her eyes wide in wonder. That was of course after the shock of seeing the bard suddenly attack the two guards!
The guard with the broken nose was on his knees with his hand trying to stop a considerable amount of blood from continuing to flow from his nostrils. He kept muttering "my nose" over and over. Bartimaeus aimed a vicious kick to the side of his head that put him straight to sleep. With both guards knocked out Bartimaeus straightened and turned to the two of them.
"Best not wait girls. Can't say for sure that no one heard us. Better to get a going wouldn't you say." Bartimaeus headed right through the door.
|
|
|
Post by Sprow on Apr 23, 2013 21:32:29 GMT -5
Rekka prayed for a slight chance that they would be able to get past the guards. Unfortunately, just before they could cross the threshold when they got close enough, a guard had extended his hand to block their way and ordered them to halt. Bartimaeus had kept his gaze downward to try and conceal his identity from the two guards all the while. Now that they were stopped, the guard that had made them stop asked them where their badges were and that servants wore their badges visibly at all times. It looked like they weren't about to make it into the palace considering this snag. Bartimaeus started to speak while Rekka wondered how they could possibly have such rotten luck. What the bard did next though was surprising. Instead of talking his way out, Bartimaeus chose to attack one of the nearest guards in the face.
If Rekka hadn't been shocked before, she was now! It all happened so fast that by the time Rekka realized what had happened, the two guards were already knocked unconscious lying on the ground. Blinking down at their crumpled forms, she just barely heard Bartimaeus speaking to them now. Bringing her attention back onto the bard, she watched him enter the servant's entrance after telling them it was best to not linger here.
"That was...I don't even!" Rekka stated before following the bard into the palace via the servant's entrance way. As soon as they got inside, there was a set of corridors. The one they were in currently seemed to be out of the way and looked somewhat smaller than one would expect compared to a main entrance way for a castle. Even still, it was a nice castle. She had never set foot in the castle back in Cornelia so this was the first real one that was kept in good shape that she had seen. Infusca's was nice but her castle was not as well kept in certain areas. Rekka couldn't help but gape.
"Wow!" she stated before looking over at Lara and Bartimaeus as they walked through corridors. Were they going to knock out servants or something? She wasn't sure. All she knew was that Bartimaeus seemed to know what he was doing. She just hoped to god that attack up front hadn't been heard or discovered or they would be in for more trouble than before. 'I'm starting to think that Lara's words about the bard being the death of us might just be true!' she thought uncertainly.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 24, 2013 18:19:18 GMT -5
Lara was eager to leave the "scene of the crime" so to speak. She followed after Rekka and into the castle. Unlike Rekka, Lara had visited a castle before back on Cornelia. It was interesting though to see the differences between the castle back home and the one she currently stood in. There were the obvious differences, different floors, set ups, and even colored walls. But there were also the similarities. For example the feeling Lara felt when she entered the castle. It was one of safety. These walls were probably built to defend against any enemy at the time the castle had been built. It reminded her of home.
There wasn't time to think about it though. Bartimaeus wasn't going to wait for her to remiss about home. She followed him and Rekka through the servants halls. The first time they passed a servant, Lara held her breath. There was no reason though too. They walked right past the servant without incident. The servant glanced at them for a moment, but quickly walked past.
Interaction with other servants followed pretty much the same way. The halls they walked ran past several different hallways that they could take. Occasionally Bartimaeus would pause for a moment before either continuing on or leading them down the new path. Lara listened to him talk to himself as he made his decisions.
"Now is it this way or that way... No it's got to be this way because that way I think leads too... Yeah." It pretty much ran just like that and it left Lara with worry. What if the bard forgot where to go?
Finally though he came into a very large hallway. And in front of them on the right side was a large double sided door. "Ha ha! I knew we'd find it!" Bartimaeus said. Lara would have been relieved if there wasn't the fact that they still had to talk to this prince. What if he refused to help them? Bartimaeus had slept with his mother after all. "I hope you know what you're doing, Bartimaeus." She said.
Bartimaeus just rolled his eyes. "Just let me do the talking." He then walked up to the door and without even a knock or pause to introduce himself, he opened it.
|
|
|
Post by Sprow on Apr 24, 2013 20:14:21 GMT -5
As they walked through the servant halls, Rekka noticed the actual servants of the castle. As they walked, Rekk wondered if anyone would stop them and question them. She did her best to not seem obvious by not looking for too long at a passing servant to see if they were looking at them. Where servants did look at them with curiosity, they carried about their business without saying a single word to them. Their work was either too important for them to care right now or they did suspect something and didn't want to start any waves. That or they didn't even know and assumed they were just visitors.
While they walked, Rekka tried to not appear to be nervous as they went. Ahead of them, leading the way, she could hear Bartimaeus talking to himself. The things he was saying made her a bit nervous as they passed certain pathways. Had he gotten them lost? Rekka glanced over at Lara before carrying on after the bard. They walked in silence, resuming their trek through the palace before coming to a halt in a very large looking hallway. It was here where Bartimaeus let them know that this was the place for them to be in. They had found the right hallway apparently. On the right side were two large double sided doors.
Standing there, Rekka heard Lara speak to Bartimaeus. Silently, she agreed with what Lara had said. She, too, hoped that Bartimaeus knew what he was doing. She didn't want a repeat of their capture upon first entering this kingdom. Hearing Bartimaeus after he rolled his eyes, Rekka wasn't sure about letting the bard do the talking. Before Rekka or Lara could react, Bartimaeus walked right up to the doors and opened them. He walked right in without knocking or even giving any indication he was even there, Rekka could only wonder how this encounter was going to go. No one could appreciate being barged in on.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 25, 2013 14:30:17 GMT -5
Lara glanced over at Rekka blinking in slight disbelief of the bard's behavior. Had he really just barged in like that? Shaking her head, Lara indicated they should head in as well.
Inside a very spacious living room awaited them. Lara had never been inside a member of the royal family's rooms before back in Cornelia. Unlike Bartimaeus she did not have the kind of connections with members of the royal family of her home world. Before going in she had expected to see a nice probably spacious room with expensive items. She didn't expect to see what was probably the equivalent to a condo.
The living room that they stepped into was bigger than any sort of room Lara had ever owned. Couches, paintings, even an unlit fire place, were spaced around the room. She couldn't help but look around in wonder. "Wow has this place changed." Bartimaeus commented. He too seemed to be caught up in the temporary wonder.
"I thought I told you servants to knock before entering from now on..." A voice said from the right. Coming out of an attached hallway was a young man Lara had never seen before. He stood at about five feet nine with semi long black curly hair. Dressed in expensive robes painted dark blue and pine green, emerald green eyes looked over them.
"Was this the prince?" Lara asked herself quietly.
Bartimaeus stepped forward. "Well I'll be. Is that you Prince Julian?" He asked.
Lara just wondered who the heck Prince Julian was? Lara thought that he had said they were looking for a Prince Orion.
The Prince looked to Bartimaeus and squinted. "Do... I know you?" He asked.
Bartimaeus let out a small chuckle. "Well I would hope so. I know my appearance has changed, but I'd think you'd recognize the voice of your tutor"
Lara watched the Prince's eyes go wide. "Master Bartimaeus?!" To her surprise the Prince ran right over to Bartimaeus and wrapped him into a hug. It reminded Lara of the way a child might greet their parent after a long period had passed. It brought a smile to her face.
Bartimaeus was letting out a chuckle as Prince Julian practically hugged him to death. "You've grown boy!"
Prince Julian was letting out a laugh of his own this time. "And you look completely different! What are you doing here? Father doesn't know your here does he? Master Bartimaeus if he find out he'll have your head! We got to get you out of here! Has anyone seen you?" Prince Julian's words were coming out quickly, a sign of his concern.
Bartimaeus patted the teen on the back. "Slow down boy... Though guess I can't call you boy anymore can I? You're a young man now."
Smiling at the compliment, the entire scene reminded Lara of a father and his son. Having no father growing up Lara often wondered if she'd ever have conversations like this with him if she had. "Master what are you doing here?"
Bartimaeus glanced over to Rekka and Lara for the first time since their appearance had been discovered. "First let me introduce my friends."
Lara stepped forward and bowed. "My name is Lara your highness. I'm a Division Commander of the World of Cornelia." Waiting for Rekka to introduce herself, once she did so Bartimaeus went on.
"And the reason were here is because were in a bit of trouble." Bartimaeus then went ahead and began the story of how they had first met and everything that had occurred since.
|
|
|
Post by Sprow on Apr 25, 2013 23:29:26 GMT -5
Rekka felt reluctant about entering the quarters of the prince after Bartimaeus had barged in like he did. Just what lay inside anyway? She really hoped it wasn't set up like a bedroom the moment they stepped in. Knowing the bard, he could have easily walked in on someone changing which would not be a good thing for them all to be caught doing on accident just because the bard didn't knock first. As she met Lara's gaze, she saw her signal to head in after Bartimaeus. Well, no point in standing out here in the halls looking stupid. Watching Lara lead the way inside, Rekka soon followed.
What met her eye wasn't something she had expected. She had never been in a castle before, let alone in a room of luxury made specifically for a member of the royal family that owned it. The room they had stepped into looked like a rather elaborate living area. No one would think this was an actual person's living quarters. Here, Rekka could have mistaken the spaced out area to be the actual study or what not and not a prince's living quarters. Well, they were royalty and by the looks of it, pampered to oblivion. Royalty seemed rather lucky compared to the commoners that had to work hard to earn and keep the things they had in life.
As they looked around, Rekka heard Bartimaeus mentioning how the place had changed. It was a wonder, this room, that was for sure. Rekka even had quite a time taking it all in with just her one eye. Then, another voice was heard but not one she recognized. Raising a brow, Rekka turned her head to look toward the source of the voice she heard. Coming their way was what appeared to be a young man with somewhat long, curly black hair dressed in obviously expensive clothes. Was this Prince Orion? Just as she had been wondering this, Bartimaeus called out to the young man only to reveal that this wasn't Prince Orion but Prince Julian. Rekka blinked in confusion. Did the bard forget names and meant Julian?
Prince Julian looked over at Bartimaeus, asking if he knew him. Rekka wondered if maybe the bard had been wrong in coming here. After a bit of an explanation from Bartimaeus, revealing who he was to this prince, things seemed to clear up at the mention of the word "tutor". When the prince realized who the bard was, he ran over to him and pulled him into a hug like a child would their parent. It reminded her of the times she had with her own father. The memories were bittersweet and she tried hard to not linger on them but considering how the prince and Bartimaeus were acting it was hard to not think of her own father. If only things hadn't happened the way they did. If she hadn't gotten attacked, losing her eye, her father would not have put his own life at risk and die protecting her. One day, she hoped to find the bastard responsible for the loss of her eye and her father's death.
Rekka had been so lost in thought that she really hadn't heard the two conversing before her and Lara. She was getting good with her father's sword. Would it be enough though? Would she even get her sword back? It was her father's and the only memento she had of him. Rekka didn't realize that the sword itself was more than just that. All she knew was that she sorely missed it and would like it back. The sound of Lara's voice pulled her out of her thoughts then. Blinking, she looked back over at Bartimaeus and Prince Julian having just heard Lara introducing herself. Considering the sudden silence Rekka realized that it was her cue to introduce herself. After a second of hesitation, Rekka had remained where she was and bowed from where she stood. It was awkward since she wasn't accustomed to greeting someone that was of royalty compared to the salutes she gave those of higher rank in Cornelia. Before joining the army of Cornelia, Rekka had been a normal person until now. So, her manners were not as well trained as someone that had been in a kingdom much longer than she but hopefully the bow was enough before she introduced herself.
"I am Rekka Garnette, a new soldier under the service to the kingdom of Cornelia. I am under Lara's command." She didn't say anymore since she wasn't exactly sure what to say other than that. It was obvious by her name combination though that she hailed from two different world origins. Her father came from some sort of kingdom as a soldier and her mother came from the Land of Dragons. Her mother and father wanted their daughter to keep a piece of each of her heritage and thus, named her "Rekka" meaning fire in one of the tongues that came from her mother's world and "Garnette" as her father's last name.
Once they had introduced themselves, Bartimaeus went into telling Prince Julian that the reason they were here was because they had run into a bit of trouble. "A bit" was putting it lightly. No sooner had Bartimaeus said this and he went into the long story of how they had all met and then of the events leading up to this point. She wondered if this prince would be of any help considering this world's laws. Could they possibly save Infusca? As they wasted time here explaining, Rekka had to wonder just how much time they had left before Infusca was killed if she hadn't been already.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 27, 2013 18:24:48 GMT -5
It was easy to think of other things as Bartimaeus went into the story of what had happened between them. Still Lara found herself listening to the story regardless. Specifically she found the parts that Bartimaeus had not been with them interesting. Apparently the young bard had followed their group after the parting before the mountain pass. He had decided to stay downwind, doing his best to dodge Ty's scent.
As he got to the part of the deaths of her friends Lara found herself looking away. It was hard to listen to that again. "If only I had listened! Justin and Ty... I'm sorry." They had died because of her mistakes. And she had the nerve to call herself the leader of this troop!
Glancing away and into the distance, Bartimaeus's story continued past the battle with the goblins. Lara's mind though was locked on that battle. She played the events over again in her mind. "If only I had been more powerful. Maybe I'd have been able to help them in time." Lara definitely needed to get stronger. That's what Ty and Justin would have wanted.
"They'd have told me to keep focused. To do my best." Lara told herself. They had a friend who needed there help. They hadn't known Infusca long, but the woman deserved better than the treatment she was being given.
"And that's why we came here. I must admit I expected to run into your brother. Last I heard from a traveling merchant you were studying at the Land of Dragons." Bartimaeus's words brought Lara back to the conversation.
Prince Julian had his arms crossed as he listened to the story. Watching him now, Lara spotted a hard expression on the young man in thought. "Things have changed Master... Father... He's not the same."
Bartimaeus rolled his eyes. "Bah! I aint afraid of that old man." He said.
Prince Julian shook his head. "No you don't understand. Orion's been banished. His name's been written out of the family. I've been named heir."
Lara had never seen the bard so surprised as he was by the Prince's words. "He's been what?!" Bartimaeus retreated. Lara didn't know much about this family, but from the sounds of things there wasn't too much hope.
Prince Julian nodded. "Ya... If he steps on this world the word has been released to kill him."
Bartimaeus. "He's mad! Your father must be mad! What did Orion do? What about your mother? There is no way she would allow your father to banish him."
Sighing Prince Julian crossed his arms. "Orion was the one who threw away his name. He denounced his title and his family tie. And he killed Max."
For a second time Bartimaeus's eyes went wide and his mouth hung open. "I can't believe it..." Was all the bard managed to say.
Lara cleared her throat. "Whose Max?" She asked.
Prince Julian turned to her. "Max was our care giver growing up. Father could care less that Max died. He was mother's friend, not father's. But when he heard that Orion disowned his title... He won't even meet with me Master. How am I supposed to learn to be an heir when he won't even meet or look at me. He's called me back here and I've spent my time doing nothing but walking the castle grounds and sitting in this room! I can't help you guys. If father won't even look at me how am I supposed to even begin to try and convince him of not killing a necromancer?"
Wasn't there something they could do? Lara felt like they were running out of luck. She wasn't going to abandon another friend. But going back into that jail was suicide. Placing her hands in her pockets, Lara sighed aloud. She was frustrated! Feeling the crumpled paper in her right pocket, Lara tightened her fist around it to vent some of her frustration.
Pulling out the paper, Lara was going to toss it in an open trash basket on the floor when she realized that it was a letter. "Oh shiz!" She suddenly exclaimed! That was the letter for the leader in Elfenhiem! And she had just crumpled it up!
Quickly moving, Lara began to straighten it out the best she could. It was not in a sealed envelope or anything, it had just been folded. It had never left her pocket this entire time until now. Lara had no clue as to what was on it, but she knew that it was important. Straightening it, Lara relaxed a bit when she realized it was still readable.
"Well since it's open..." She figured she mine as well read it. As she began to read the words on the page her mouth slowly began to turn into a frown. Lara didn't realize that Bartimaeus and Prince Julian had both gone silent to stare at just what Lara was doing.
As her frown creased and her face slowly began to grow pale white her expression turned from dislike to what Bartimaeus would have only called fear. "Oh hell no!" Lara said suddenly. Her hands were actually shaking as she held the paper."Oh hell to the fu**ing no!"
Why hadn't she realized it in the first place?! What other reason would they possibly have to send her to Elfenhiem?!
"What is it Captain? What's wrong?" Lara didn't know who asked the question, but she suddenly hid the paper behind her back. She couldn't let them see! They wouldn't understand!
Lara could see that all eyes were on her. She took a step back as Bartimaeus stepped forward. "Lara you can trust us." Bartimaeus said.
She took another step back defensively. She couldn't trust them! Not with this! "Lara... You should tell them." The voice behind her made her jump and turn about! It was Alvi! Alvi knew what was on the paper!
Tears began swelling up in her eyes. "No! I can't! They'll throw me out! Just like you did!" Lara said accusingly.
Alvi stepped towards her. "It's time Lara. This is why I'm still here. You cannot continue hiding from yourself."
Lara felt like she was being surrounded. She looked at Prince Julian, Alvi, Bartimaeus, and even Rekka. It didn't matter what kind of face they had. On everyone she saw only the disgust that they would have once they read this letter. It wasn't real of course but in her mind it was.
"GO AWAY!" Lara screamed as she dropped to her knees. She rolled into a ball, a common position she'd go into when she was young when she felt cornered. It caused Bartimaeus and Prince Julian to take a step back.
Alvi though did not. He crossed the remaining distance. "I'm sorry. I've never apologized for the way I use to tease you back then. These are your friends. Think of what Justin and Ty would want you to do. That letter is what you need. It's your solution. It's time to stop hiding Lara. There isn't much time. They know you're gone. They have soldiers in the streets looking for you. And word of a necromancer's execution is beginning to spread. There going to burn her alive! Stop thinking about just yourself! Get up! Stop fighting who you are!"
The spirit pulled back his small hand and curled it into a fist. It flew forward and for one moment the spirit's fist became physically real in this plane of existence. It connected with Lara's face and brought her head up. Alvi seemed quite shocked that he had just done that himself and Lara was too.
Alvi squatted down to her level and linked eyes with her. "Stop being a pretender. Who are you?"
With her eyes locked with Alvi's, Lara knew she couldn't hide any longer. "I..." She began. "I'm..."
Frustrated Alvi shouted, "Who are you?!"
"Amber, ok! My name is Amber!"
Relieved Alvi smiled. "Yes your name is Amber. But what does that letter say that you are?"
Even though she knew she'd regret it she said, "That I am the illegitimate daughter of Emperor Lakari. That I have witnessed that he is alive and that my memories can verify that. That he must meet with my king at once. That they must decide if they should warn the other worlds."
Alvi sighed. "See not so hard." Amber though did not think so. Currently her back was to Rekka, Bartimaeus, and Prince Julian. She had no idea what they were thinking or what their expressions might say.
|
|
|
Post by Sprow on Apr 28, 2013 1:49:35 GMT -5
Rekka, upon hearing their journey mentioned to the prince, inwardly recoiled at the memory of the others. She certainly hadn't forgotten the way that they had died. It hadn't been expected that they would lose them like that. What their mission had been about, Rekka didn't know. All she knew was that Lara had chosen her to accompany her despite her inexperience as a soldier of Cornelia. Rekka still never really understood why Lara had picked her. Still, Rekka and Lara were still here, were they not? That had to have accounted for something! Even if their three friends couldn't have been with them, Rekka knew that they were doing them justice by living. They would want them to keep living and would want them to accomplish the mission.
Everything had to be put on halt though. Infusca needed saving and Rekka felt, despite not knowing them long enough, that the others would have felt the same if they were still here. She had no idea what inner turmoil that Lara was going through but as she glanced over at her, Rekka figured it had to have been hard on her. After all, Lara knew Ty and Joshua for a long time. It was never easy losing someone you knew for so long that you came to care about. Now that she thought of it, Lara, Bartimaeus and Infusca were still pretty much strangers to her. There were still many things she didn't know about any of them. It was a bit awkward thinking like this but at least they all seemed to cooperate.
Rekka looked over at the bard when he had finished the tale on how they got to this point. Bartimaeus had expected to run into Julian's brother instead since Julian was suppose to be studying at the Land of Dragons. Just as Bartimaeus had finished mentioning this, Rekka could see the change of expression on the prince's face then. It seemed as though something were amiss, probably bad news. At least, she assumed so. Rekka wasn't a mind reader but usually when she saw such expressions it meant something negative took place to an extent.
Julian stated that things had changed. According to the prince, the king wasn't the same. Rekka furrowed a brow as she looked at the prince, listening to what he was saying. The bard simply brushed it off about the king stating how he wasn't afraid of him. Julian just shook his head at that before dropping the real kicker on Bartimaeus. Prince Orion had apparently been banished with his name written out of the family and Julian, in his place, had been named heir. The news had been so shocking that Bartimaeus had retreated several steps. It didn't sound too good at all. What could this mean for them and Infusca?
As Rekka turned her gaze back onto the prince, she heard him state that if Orion were to set foot here in this world, the order had been given to kill him. Not sure what the other prince could have done, Rekka couldn't help but raise an eyebrow in amazement. How could anyone go about giving such an order against their own family? Rekka couldn't even begin to imagine it herself regardless of what a family member had done. Even if the family member were deserving of it, Rekka didn't think she could ever find the guts to make such an order directed against family like that. Still, she was a commoner so she never really understood what it was like to be in a place of authority. Sure, she took care of her mother for a good portion of the time her father had died and she had lost her eye but that wasn't really considered a position of authority. Not in her point of view anyway.
Silently, Rekka bore witness to the conversation between Julian and Bartimaeus as the bard seemed to go into denial about it all calling the king mad. It didn't take long before the bard brought up the topic about Julian's and Orion's mother. How she couldn't possibly allow her husband to banish Orion in the way that he did. It wasn't long before Julian went into detail about how Orion had wound up banished like he had been.
It was definitely eyebrow raising to hear someone going as far as denouncing their family ties, tossing away their title and even killing someone over it. Thinking about it, Rekka had to wonder just what could have possibly pushed someone off the edge enough to go through such methods. 'Great, this doesn't sound good and not only that, how does it stand for us with Infusca?' Rekka thought to herself, waiting for the conversation to continue or subside.
Bartimaeus was still in denial and hearing that Orion had murdered whomever this "Max" was seemed to have really bowled him over. Lara, politely, cleared her throat and asked whom Max was. Max had apparently been their care giver when they were children, no wonder Bartimaeus had been shocked to hear such a thing. On top of it all, the king refused to acknowledge Julian as his heir even though he had requested that Julian return home. It really sounded like quite the soap opera, this royal family. Rekka, of course, was smart enough to keep it to herself. Whomever the father was, he sounded harsh and cruel. Trying to reason with the king wouldn't be in their best bets. No doubt, he'd want them all killed. What Julian how could he help them with the necromancer when his father didn't even acknowledge him.
"Greeeat!" Rekka grumbled. "Just greeeat!" Now what were they suppose to do? Bust down the door after all and pray they get out alive? Before she could really seethe and probably get flared up again, Lara had managed to distract her and the others enough to prevent that from happening. Blinking in confusion, Rekka looked over at Lara and watched her as she did her best to flatten what appeared to be some sort of letter as if it were of great importance. Had that letter been the one containing information about their mission? It looked like Lara had made to read it as if she didn't know what the letter's contents had contained. Lara's reaction to what she was reading though was rather alarming. Rekka couldn't help but look back over at her with concern as she reacted to what she had read, her face pale and horrified.
As Bartimaeus asked Lara what was wrong, Rekka figured it had to have been him in the confusion since he was the one that usually called Lara Captain all the time, she watched as Lara hid the piece of paper behind her back as if she were hiding a terrible sin from them. Just what caused Lara to act this way? As Bartimaeus made to approach Lara, Rekka could see the same look on Lara's face. She had the same look like Infusca had when they were surrounded by armed men. Any closer and Rekka feared that Lara would start fighting like the cornered animal that she appeared to be feeling as.
Then, Alvi had arrived by speaking up, startling Lara even more. It would be a real wonder if Lara didn't freak out more and start attacking everyone when she did. What Alvi said seemed to have great effect on Lara for she sounded like she was despairing. They'd throw her out? Was she saying that they would? What for? Rekka just stood there, completely taken off guard with all the drama. This might not be the last time that she would find herself doing this as she stood there. It wasn't easy comprehending what was happening since it was going on all so fast. Rekka had wanted to help Lara but she didn't seem to want any of them to get near her. The only one that could hope to approach Lara was Alvi since he couldn't be physically harmed like the others could. Rekka couldn't help but feel greatly confused as Alvi went on to tell Lara that he was here to keep her from hiding away from herself.
Before anyone could react, Lara had screamed at them to go away before crumpling up into a ball. Rekka was too shocked right now to even move. Unlike Bartimaeus and Julian, Rekka had remained in place only because it shocked her so much. Just what had gotten over Lara? What could possibly make her fear them knowing anything about her?
Alvi closed the distance between himself and Lara. According to him, soldiers were out looking for them and Infusca was going to be executed. Infusca was going to be burned alive if they didn't do something soon. Alvi, all the while, did his best to convince Lara that now was the time to stop hiding herself. The spirit had suddenly punched Lara just after that as if he were trying to knock some sense into her. Rekka couldn't help but just look on with surprise as the spirit told Lara that now was the time to stop pretending and then asked Lara who she was.
Lara began to react but it was feeble. It was clear by Alvi's shouting next that the spirit was frustrated with her. As if the spirit's shouts had finally startled the truth out of her, Lara told them that her name was Amber. Rekka couldn't help but feel more puzzled. Was them knowing her real name really all that bad? It couldn't have been just that. Sure enough, Alvi asked Lara what had been written on the letter that said who Lara er...Amber really was.
Then, the entire truth had come out. Lara was actually Amber, an elf or half elf and was the daughter of Emperor Lakari. The fact she was Emperor Lakari's daughter had certainly surprised Rekka. Not in a way where she thought negatively of Lara...Amber but it was a shocker to know of someone's origin. How did that make Lara...Amber feel? Enough to make the girl actually toss away who she was and wear a mask every day of her life. That had to be stressful. Rekka couldn't say she knew how it felt but it was definitely tough. Also, it was obvious that Amber had been mistreated in the past for her to be so frightened of them learning the truth about her.
It took Rekka a good bit to get over the shock of what Amber had revealed to them all. Still, they had all witnessed Lara's no, Amber's character. Up until now, Amber had been nothing but kind. In fact, Rekka had believed that the two of them had achieved a level of some kind of friendship even if they were still somewhat strangers to one another. Although, it seemed like everyone just had their secrets. Where Rekka had just the one, it had been wheedled out of her fast. Now, she didn't have much secrets to her except the fact she didn't know herself when it came to that affinity with fire.
"...Lara? Amber I mean..." Rekka trailed off. Her voice was gentle despite her shock earlier. She walked over to where Amber was and sat down on the floor near her but enough to give Amber her space so that she wasn't too imposing. "Is that why you were so scared of us finding out who you were?" Rekka shook her head at that. "We know what kind of person you are, Lar-Amber. If you think that we'd think you're him...you're wrong. Just because you're related to someone doesn't mean you're them. Remember what Infusca had said about her not being like her mother? Well, you, too are not like your parent, like your father. You're you, you're one out of the many and are different than your father. Just because he's your flesh and blood does not make you him. Each and every one of us is different. There is no two that are exactly alike." Rekka looked long at Amber wondering if any of her words had been consolation enough. Maybe she needed a sign that her words were genuine? Slowly, Rekka reached out a hand for her to take.
"So what do you say? I might not see as well as someone with both eyes but I can definitely see what person you really are and what I see is someone that I can trust and can call a friend. I can't say I know exactly how you feel but I can understand some of it...how others turned away from you. My eye loss had branded me a weirdo where I came from. People either pitied me or stared,unwilling to get to know me because of the lack of an eye. So how about it, Amber?" She smiled then at Amber as if to try and reassure her that everything was going to be okay. It hadn't been easy talking about her eye but she felt this could help Amber in seeing that there was someone else that at least understood some of her pain if only on a milder level. "Friends?" Rekka sort of understood Amber's problem at a much smaller scale. Where she wasn't branded a villain because of her blood, Rekka had been outcast in the past because of the fact she didn't look right due to the loss of her eye. People either always pitied Rekka or looked at her as if she were weird. Some people even stared to a point where it wasn't hard to notice.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 29, 2013 16:21:03 GMT -5
Hearing her name being called, Amber was reluctant to turn to address it. She wanted to go back to being Lara. Amber was nothing but a loser. No one wanted her. Lara was strong. Lara was a born leader. Amber was none of that. She was that girl back in Elfenhiem. She was still stuck in that village. It didn't matter how strong Amber was or how hard she worked. She was still the daughter of a villain.
Still... Amber knew she had to turn and face the people she had really started to know in these last few months. Standing she slowly turned to face the music. Amber expected fear from her friends. Bartimaeus would want nothing to do with her now. And Rekka! Surely Rekka would think of her as nothing more than a villain.
Then her friends surprised her. Rekka began speaking, and everything that she said was what Amber could have only hoped for. Hearing her speak filled her with a strange feeling. How could Rekka truly believe that she was not her father? She knew next to nothing about Amber or the trials. Yet she seemed positive and determined in what she said.
Seeing Rekka stretch out a hand for her to take, Amber found herself taking it. The gesture of friendship brought tears to her eyes. She did not deserve this. Amber wasn't good enough for true friends like Rekka. Hearing her continue Amber listened as Rekka tried to assure her that she was someone she trusted. Did Rekka really understand how she felt? She was so scared. When Rekka asked if they were friends, Amber was reluctant to answer.
"What if... What if I become a monster? I have his blood in my veins... What if I hurt you? Wouldn't you be better off without me?" That was honestly how she felt. She wanted to be Rekka's friend. But she couldn't live with herself if she hurt her.
Coming up from behind the two, Bartimaeus scooted down behind the two and placed one arm around each of them in a hug. "We won't let you become a monster. That's what friends do don't they? Friends protect their friends from doing stupid things." Bartimaeus pulled both Rekka and Amber closer to him in a hug.
"Besides!" He said. "Why in the world would I let a simple fact like that prevent me from being your friend Amber? I got two beautiful luscious women to keep me warm! I'm a lucky man!"
The comment surprised Amber and slightly made her want to gag, but it brought a smile to her face. "Eww! Get off of me!" Amber said thrusting Bartimaeus's arm off her.
Prince Julian was all smiles as well. "I see you haven't changed at all Master." He said as he came around. He didn't speak on anything that was said, but he didn't seem bothered by Amber's reveal.
Alvi had patiently waited as this all occurred, but after everyone had their say and had gotten back into a standing position he reminded them of their urgency. "Ok so what are we going to do? There going to burn Infusca at sunset, which is in like an hour."
Crossing his arms, Prince Julian seemed lost in thought for a moment. "If I present that letter to my father, he'd be forced to hold off the execution at the least. He wouldn't risk a public death as they have planned with the chance that someone might interfere. There will be loads of trouble if word gets out that the Emperor is still alive."
"What should we do then?" Amber still wasn't keen on the idea of having her memories examined by someone. But she would if it meant a chance of saving Infusca. Amber waited to see if anyone had any ideas.
|
|
|
Post by Sprow on Apr 29, 2013 18:32:43 GMT -5
Rekka wondered if Amber, whom had really been Lara all this time, would believe anything that Rekka had said to her. Having been around Amber the entire time, Rekka deemed that she was a good person inside. There hadn't been anything that Rekka could think of that made her think otherwise. Sure,Amber had made some mistakes but they all did. No one was perfect, after all. Now that she had remembered that, she felt more sorry for having exploded in the cell before coming all the way here. Bartimaeus had obviously been trying and unfortunately they got caught. Still, there was time to make things right if they could just come up with a plan of sorts.
As she had offered her hand to Amber as a sign of friendship Rekka could see tears forming in her eyes. Clearly, she hadn't expected anyone to offer her friendship. She had probably believed they would turn on her and leave her. Rekka didn't think that Amber was a bad person. Knowing that Amber's father was the Emperor responsible for the destruction of the worlds had been shocking but not enough to make her hate Amber. Amber wasn't anything like her father. Not voluntarily anyway. Rekka would not blame her for the things her own father had done.
Rekka gave Amber a reassuring smile as she took Rekka's hand. It was a sign that she had gotten through to her to a degree. As she had asked her if they were friends, Rekka could see a bit of hesitancy in Amber. Then, she asked them what if she became a monster. She thought having his blood in her veins would make her hurt them. Amber believed that she would be a danger to them.
Before Rekka could answer Amber's question, Bartimaeus had suddenly come over and wrapped an arm about each of them, pulling them in closer to him in a hug. The bard or whatever he really was believed pretty much the same as Rekka. That Amber was a good person and they were friends. Of course, his next choice of words made Rekka look over at him with her one good eye and glowered at him.
"Keep hugging me like that and saying things like that and I'll make sure you're cooked well done!" Rekka growled as she squirmed out of Bartimaeus's arm. No doubt, she was referring to using her flame abilities on him if he kept it up. As she broke free of the bard's embrace, whom was probably amused by the girls' responses, Prince Julian came around for the others to see him as he spoke to Bartimaeus. Rekka wasn't sure what to make of that comment but she chose to not ask. She didn't have time really since Alvi had grounded them all back to the point of why they were all here.
As Alvi did so, the prince went into thought claiming that if the letter were shown that it would at least postpone the execution. Rekka wondered what to do from there if that happened as Prince Julian had predicted. As Amber asked what they should do, Rekka shrugged. She wasn't sure but if they tried fire again, she could just walk through the flames and try to get Infusca out that way but that was very risky. Infusca, unlike Rekka, wasn't flame resistant. At least, not by Rekka's reckoning.
"If worse comes to worse, I can walk through the flames and get her out that way. Try to absorb the flames to stop them but that's a risk I don't want to try just yet unless we have to. I still don't know how limited I am..." Rekka trailed off. "Maybe sneak her out? That wouldn't be easy though since the king would likely have her guarded even if the execution were postponed...not only that but if he saw Amber, her being of Emperor Lakari's blood, wouldn't he try to hurt her too?"
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on May 1, 2013 10:27:30 GMT -5
Amber listened to Rekka's response to their predicament. She had a good point. With her fire abilities she was unharmed by fire. The only thing that worried Amber was that they would be exposing themselves as criminals. If they did catch them trying to get Infusca out of the predicament after the letter was shown to the king, they would most certainly think that they were up to something.
"They moved her from the prison already." Alvi informed them all. "She's already on her way to where ever the execution is going to be. They were talking about taking her in some wagon or something."
Prince Julian, who had been silent, pitched in. "The execution will be at Hangman's Square near the castle. How much time do we have spirit?"
Alvi could only shrug. He didn't know how things worked in this world. Bartimaeus spoke up. "I don't think we have time to sneak her out of anywhere. I think were going to have to have two teams on this one. Prince Julian take that letter to your father. We'll have to go to Hangman's Square. Rekka you might have to jump into that fire and try and put it out somehow. Lara...er... Amber and I will have to do what we can to stop the execution from happening."
It didn't bother Amber that people were still getting used to calling her by that name. Heck she was even getting used to it. "I think it's a good idea to have two plans working at the same time. That way if one fails we at least have another. But will you really be alright with jumping into that fire?" She asked Rekka.
------------------------
A portal ripped open into the Forbidden Mountain and out of it stepped two familiar figures. One was dressed in the dark gray cloak of the Empire with the familiar outline of a red hawk in flight painted onto the back. The other was a very different type of person... If you could even call him a person. The relationship between Ivan and Lakari had not seen much improvement since Lakari's force recruitment of the man.
Still Lakari had a purpose for wanting Ivan. "Why should we fight each other?" He asked Ivan. "Why should we fight when we can have much more success in our organizations endeavors if we became allies? Our goals are not that different... I know your dark god wishes for the destruction of all worlds."
Lakari turned to Ivan. He was vaguely aware of the heartless beginning to surround the two of them. They continued to grow and gather around them, but they did not attack just yet. "I understand that you cannot speak for the entirety of your organization. But you do have soldiers and you do have followers. Bow to me. Make me the head in your place. Give me the power that your dark god has given you. And I will do what you have not been able too. I will begin the destruction of worlds once more."
---------------------------
Inspector Crudont sat within the wagon starring at the prisoner as it made its way through the back streets. The woman's mouth had been gagged, blindfolded, and her arms and legs chained together. Beyond this she was in the nude. Once she was tied to the stake the blindfold would be removed, but the gag would not. The reason for this was to prevent the woman from using any sort of magic. Necromancers had the tendency to cast a death curse as they were killed. Gagging her would prevent that.
Crudont was the only other person besides Infusca in the cart. Cavalry soldiers rode along side the cart as their procession continued. The Inspector's eyes though were not on them. They were for only this necromancer. She had been tortured. As was evident from the various purple bruises, beat up body, and whip marks scattered around various areas of her body.
Glancing at her, the Inspector could feel a slight ache of the various burns across his body. They were a reminder of the seriousness of this situation. They also reminded him of his anger. He would enjoy watching this necrophiliac burn!
As the wagon rolled to a stop, the Inspector smiled. They were here. Even from behind the large platform the Inspector could hear the chatter of the gathered crowd. It was not everyday that a necromancer was burnt to the stake. Rising the Inspector spoke to the necromancer. "Today your evil deeds end." With that he left the wagon. Two soldiers piled in after and dragged Infusca out.
|
|
|
Post by Sprow on May 1, 2013 21:04:27 GMT -5
Rekka stood there as Alvi informed them that already they had begun to move Infusca toward where the execution was to take place. If what Alvi had said were true then that meant they had very little time on their hands. Then, Prince Julian spoke up about the execution taking place in Hangman's Square. This location was somewhere near the castle in this world. When Julian asked Alvi how much time they had Rekka wasn't surprised to see the elf child spirit shrug his shoulders. It was Bartimaeus's turn to speak.
According to the bard, they didn't have much time which had been obvious from the beginning, they needed to have two teams tackle the situation at once. Rekka couldn't agree anymore on the subject. Julian was to take the letter to his father, Amber and Bartimaeus were going to try to stop the execution from happening and it was Rekka's job to try and put the flames out or something. Rekka wondered how she was going to do it. Usually, on the spur of the moment her powers tended to kick in and even reacted to her emotions. Could she really do it?
It wasn't long before Amber spoke up, drawing Rekka's attention to her as she did so. She believed two plans happening at once was a good idea. One, like she said could hopefully achieve what the other plan could not if it had failed. When Amber had asked her about the fire, Rekka turned to Amber and thought for a moment. It was back to that time where they had fought the strange Heartless. The time where she had been hit by the fire and didn't feel any pain at all from it. It had surprised her then as much as it had surprised the others around her.
In thought, Rekka bit her own lip for a moment as she seemed to reassure herself mentally that her feeling nothing with fire meant she wouldn't feel anything. Taking her mind back to the present, Rekka gave a slow but confident nod. "I'm sure...I've been hit by a fire ball and felt nothing. I didn't even feel it when I had become engulfed with fire in my anger earlier. No, I'm very sure I can jump into the fire. I just wonder if I can make the flames go away somehow or at least keep them from reaching Infusca."
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on May 2, 2013 9:20:56 GMT -5
Listening to Rekka's concern, Amber could understand her hesitation. Even though she might be unharmed by the fire that did not mean that Rekka was. "Just do your best. That's all we can do. Even if you can't get her out unscathed it's better then leaving her there to burn. Bartimaeus and I will try and stop the executioners or whoever tries to stop us."
Both Bartimaeus and Prince Julian nodded in understanding. This wasn't a perfect plan. Heck it had such potential for not working that in the back of Amber's mind she wondered if it was even worth it. 'Infusca helped us... We have to help her." She told herself.
Prince Julian walked over to Amber and stretched out his hand. "The letter?" He asked. Reluctantly, Amber handed it over. She was still afraid of what might come out of showing that letter to the king. There wasn't time to keep thinking about it though. "Good luck you three. I will do my best to go try and stop my father."
"Good luck boy." Bartimaeus told Prince Julian. He patted the young man on the shoulder. Amber gave him a smile of her own. Nodding to the three of them, Prince Julian exited. "Let's get going then. We best hurry." Bartimaeus said to them.
----------------
Lakari turned to Ivan. Normally what he had suggested would not be possible to do. But in reality it was possible. Just wasn't possible on this exact plane of existence. As he waited to hear what Ivan's response would be the surrounding heartless continued to grow around them. This did not bother Lakari. He knew that the heartless were waiting for something or someone.
Waiting for Ivan's answer, his attention was pulled away when the heartless in front of him pulled away to form a pathway among the hundreds of heartless that had gathered. Glancing over to that pathway, Lakari watched an elderly woman wrapped in darkness stroll down. The first thing Lakari noticed was that the elderly woman had a very human looking body. Such a thing is not unheard of among heartless, but only a strong will could form a heartless that had enough sense to have a body let alone a mind. The second thing he noticed was that he knew the elderly woman.
Anicula strolled through the heartless to stand at the front of the lines. Her yellow heartless eyes locked on Lakari and Ivan. There was nothing but menace and ill will in those eyes. The necromancer that Lakari had known as Anicula was long gone. This mad heartless had only one will and purpose, to devour hearts.
"Before you answer that question... I believe our hosts are not to happy with our breaking into their home."
((OOC: I didn't know if it was alright for me to control Ivan or not so I left it open for you to sort of pitch in and control him.))
|
|
|
Post by Sprow on May 3, 2013 0:26:11 GMT -5
(OOC: I actually forgot to respond as Ivan xD I meant to but my darn sister had rushed me and I wound up forgetting to reply as him for you xDDD)
Rekka hoped that she could manage something. Trying was better than sitting around and doing nothing. Hearing Amber's words of encouragement to do her best, Rekka gave a nod. Usually, when things depended on her, Rekka tended to falter. Infusca's safety would hopefully be enough to push her into doing things too. She was just afraid of accidentally adding fuel to the flames if her emotions got the better of her. This was her way to test that theory and to see if she could do more with fire than she could before. If they survived, one thing was certain, she'd need to train with it better including her sword skills.
"You're right, I'll do what I can. Good luck to you guys!"
Silently, Rekka watched as the prince approached Amber requesting the letter. Amber gave it to him. As she did so, Rekka wondered if anything would come of the letter being shown to the authorities here. Just what consequences would they have to face? What of the kingdom of Cornelia? Oh well, it couldn't be helped. They were trying to save a friend from harm so they had to try whatever they could to stop that execution.
Prince Julian wished them all luck, Bartimaeus wishing him luck as well, before hurrying off. Rekka hoped that he would be of some help and also hoped they didn't just get the prince into a serious amount of trouble on their behalf. Now that it was down to just the four of them again, Bartimaeus urged them on. With that, the three of them headed out in a hurry. All three of them destined for Hangman's Square.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ivan had remained silent only because he was inspecting what world they had come to. Not only that but he could sense the amount of darkness here that seemed almost stifling. Already, he could detect the presence of the Heartless. Beings that hadn't come from the Dark God he had been created from nor his brother, the Light God. Heartless were a phenomenon that neither could comprehend since it was an unexpected result in the creation process of normal beings in all worlds. He was unafraid of them. Due to what Lakari had done to him, Ivan's mental state was much darker and less sane.
As he heard Lakari's words, Ivan gave a chuckle when the elf suggested that they work together and that he should be made head of them. The elf was demanding to be given the power Ivan and the others were bestowed. One problem with that, they were the power the Dark God gave them and that was their very lives. They were all created for one sole purpose. Ivan and the other three heads were meant to counter the legendary Four. Only just moments ago Ivan had been very certain he had run into at least one of them. All along, it had been that boy he raised to be his killing machine and errand boy. As for the other, Ivan couldn't be sure. The kanji letter had changed to something else and it confused him. Never before had he seen such a thing happen so he wasn't even sure if the other boy that nearly killed him was a true part of the Four or not.
Before he could answer, the Heartless swarm had grown considerably and then, a path opened up amidst the many Heartless. Hearing the elf's words, Ivan looked toward what appeared to be a Heartless maintaining a human-like figure. It looked female.
"Well, they're just going to have to deal with it."
|
|