Andonyia [CLOSED]

YOU HAVE UNTIL FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 28TH 2012 TO GET YOUR POSTS UP BEFORE I TIME SKIP YOUR ARSES

Oh rude. =3=	5.6%	[ 1 ]
...	11.1%	[ 2 ]
ALL HAIL THE ALMIGHTY QUEEN NEY GODDESS CHERRY	33.3%	[ 6 ]
no.	16.7%	[ 3 ]
I leik cake.	33.3%	[ 6 ]
Total Votes:			[ 18 ]

[Asyndeton Narrative]

x
x

xxxxxxxThe first time she woke it was because of the pain. The first thing she was conscious of aside from the pain was a scream. A burning in her throat told her it had been her own. Her eyes had flew open to find out where she was... only to realize she couldn't properly see anything. Moments later there was a sort of... shadowy thing that moved across her nearly useless vision, and she felt hands gently clasping down on her arms and legs. Presumably to keep her in place. She tried to shake them free... though she found her lower body just didn't respond. Her arms pushed at restraints, while her legs just stayed completely still. Her toes didn't even twitch or something. Her arms stilled, as she tried to concentrate on making her legs move. Which just caused more pain. She was screaming again, and she knew words were forming in her screams, but she wouldn't be able to recall what was said later. There was something held to her lips, and she was forced to drink a cold liquid. The pain was numbed, and slowly her world went dark again.

xxxxxxxWhen she came to again, there was very little pain. It was still there though. A light throbbing in her lower back and behind her eyes. Even so, she decided to open her eyes, looking about very carefully. She couldn't see properly still, but things were a bit more clear. it was like.... how she normally saw things out of her left eye. It was enough to slowly pick out shapes. She didn't really know where she was, but eventually she was able to discern there was someone sitting beside her bed. Mostly because she heard them breath, and she could sort of see a blotch of color. The princess closed her eyes again, finding the pain had grown slightly. She kept her breathing steady, and concentrated on feeling out the world around her. Of course, there wasn't a whole lot she could feel. Which really wasn't much. But there was a familiarity near her that really could only belong to one person. "You're back..." the words came out weakly.

xxxxxxxShe turned her head slightly towards him, and opened her eyes again briefly. There were many questions she wanted to ask him, but she really didn't have the strength. That, and she was a bit more concerned with her growing hunger. How long hat id been since she had something to eat? Seeing as she didn't know what time it was, she really had no way to say. All she knew was it was a good four hours before they had been attacked. "Cryus..... I'm hungry." again her voice was weak... and she really didn't want to speak more than she had to... but there was probably more talking she'd have to do. There was a pain in her back, and she figured that whatever was causing it was also the reason why her lower body wouldn't respond to her commands. And it didn't feel quite...normal. It wasn't quite a physical pain. And she wasn't really hit by that many physical attacks. Minor scrapes and bruises. So it was probably magic related. Perhaps she could figure out what it was if she tried and moved a little more.

xxxxxxIt seemed like it was worth a shot to her. So she slowly tried to coax her body into motion. Libyanna wasn't sure how long it took until she started to make headway in the task. Her toes wiggled. That was good. She kept trying, and managed to shift her ankle slightly. She kept working at, and finally managed to turn her body a little. It was.... a curious feeling. And painful. Like there was something embedded in her back. Something spherical. but she knew that wasn't true. She tried to shift more... only to cry out in pain. Okay. So moving was a bad idea... but at least she was certain that it was magic. So how? Maybe... some of the magic that she'd tried to stop with those last few shields?



▂▃▅▆ ░▒▓ █ Location::Rutrum castle █ With::Cyrus █ Curently::[testing her limits █ Feeling::pained, hungery

[OkamiBxtch]

Ｍｏｎｔｈ ;
January | February | March | April | May | June | July | August | September | October | November | December

Ｄａｙ ;
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31

Ｗｅｅｋｄａｙ ;
Sunday | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday

Ｔｉｍｅ ;
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12
AM | PM

Ｗｅａｔｈｅｒ ;

Winter | Spring | Summer | Autumn

Rainy | Cloudy | Sunny | Foggy | Clear | Snowy | Stormy | Hailing | Windy

Warm | Cool | Cold | Freezing | Hot | Humid

It's 2:13 PM in Rutrum and it's looking to be a very lovely day. The Diamonds have been in the Spades hospitality for roughly two weeks which is longer than expected. A recent blizzard had delayed their departure from the mechanical city. But luckily the Spades were happy to have them. Well the King and Queen were at least because this provided more time for the Princes to get to know their future wives. The children know of their parents plans to marry them off to each other now. The Kings and Queens felt they were obligated to explain on of the reasons why the Diamonds were attacked. So the past week the children have been getting to know each, or that is what their parents would like to think. Some of them might have actually made an effort in getting to know each other while some maybe have been avoiding their future spouse.

The Fustibus, for the past two weeks, have been recruiting more operatives from Rutrum after General Marquette's recent attack. They have received information of the projected date the Diamonds will be leaving (within the next two days) and are currently planning an ambush. Their goal to kidnap as many Princesses as they can. Bonus points if they kill a few. Triple Bonus points if they kill the King.


The Paring Goes As Followed
▪Princess of Light ❥ Prince of Fire
▪Princess of Fire ❥ Prince of Evil
▪Princess of Water ❥ Prince of Wind
▪Princess of Earth ❥ Prince of Darkness
▪Princess of Air ❥ Prince of Earth
▪Princess of Spirit ❥ Prince of Water

[Dark Overlord Windycakes]

↘forp e a c e ↘➾➾➾↺
Zayne ➾ Argus ➾ Spades
↘↘P R I N C E O F W A T E R xxxxxxxxxxxxx

↺ s a y g o o d b y e ➾ ➾ ➾

↘↘What thehell is going on here.




((ooc: ))


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The energy transfusion Zayne has received from Cyrus’s paladins had gotten him up and moving sooner than he had imagined. In fact, all it took was a good night’s rest and the prince felt none of the aftereffects of his gross overuse of his magic. Over the past couple of days, Zayne thought long and hard about Cyrus’s words. If Kael was truly as powerful as the knight had claimed, then Zayne needed to be able to cast more than a few of his stronger spells if he were to have any sort of effectiveness in this war against this mystery organization that both kingdoms still know very little about. To that end, the young prince sent for a very special blade from the royal armory. A couple of years back, Zayne went on an expedition to the frozen tundra of the North. There, they found an old ruin built around a sword. Prince Zayne stepped up to the altar and claimed it for himself. Until just recently, he’d had it by his side at all times. It was a special blade that augmented his control over water and ice.

However, the entire time he carried the blade, he felt it had far more potential than what it offered him presently. So he retired the blade, searching for any art that might unseal the powers that lie dormant within it. He discovered that by using a glyph of unsealing created from the same element that the blade controlled, he could weaken the barriers protecting the sword’s true nature. So he did just that. All it would take now was a few drops of his blood on the blade to attune the powers to him. Zayne decided to save that last step for when he truly needed it. Unsealing powerful magic typically had very unpredictable effects and he didn’t want to risk suspending his home in a block of ice or anything equally devastating. So he replaced the blade he currently wielded with this ancient artifact.

Two days before, Princess Ophelia had come to him, wishing to be taught how to fight. He was against it at first, but she wore him down with her stubborn badgering. He told her that she would learn as he had: through constant and rigorous practice. She was informed that it wouldn’t be a pleasant experience and that she would have to work harder at this than she ever had in her life. She nonchalantly agreed, which didn’t give Zayne much hope. Nevertheless, he made good on his promise and ordered the training grounds be cleared for their first lesson. Zayne would first teach her defensive maneuvers. After all, if you can’t keep yourself alive, how do you expect to defeat your opponent? The princess finally made her appearance at noon, against Zayne’s request for her to be there right after breakfast. Although he was a bit annoyed, he helped her choose a sword that was weighted and balanced properly for her. After that, they went through forms together, stopping whenever Zayne needed to correct an error. Once she had the steps down well enough to perform them without having to follow Zayne, the next phase of her training began.

Zayne’s brought his blade down sharply, barely parried by the princess’s own blade. The force caused Ophelia to drop her sword and shake her arm. ”Pick it up, princess. I’m not softening my blows for you. I warned you this would be difficult. Now pick up your sword.” With a characteristic grumble and a lash of insults at Zayne, she did just that. ”You need to be ready for anything. I’ll have to admit that your reflexes are good, but that will only get you so far. Adjust your grip, widen your stance. You need to soften the blow, then repel it. Stopping it outright and you’ll wind up like you were just now. Unarmed and an easy target.” Zayne lashed out again, his sword parried. He struck three more times before backing off. ”That’s it. But don’t just resort to blocking my attacks. You have legs for a reason. Dodging requires a lot less exertion and is oftentimes the better tactical decision. Attacks from the sides and from behind are a lot more difficult to evade or block. Use that to your advantage.” He advanced again, but danced off to the side as soon as he was within range, bringing the tip of his sword up to her neck. ”And that is why we move around. Keep your eyes on your opponent at all times. If they move left, you move left.”

Zayne moved his sword away from her, stepping back to his original position. He tossed his sword to his right hand and spun it sharply. ”Now, I want you to attack me. And remember, hacking and slashing aimlessly will only work if you’re fighting an incompetent swordsman. I am not such an individual. If you try that here, you’re going to get hurt.” The prince brought his sword up to a defensive stance and met Ophelia’s gaze. ”Now attack.”





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Location – Spades Palace, Training Grounds
Company – Princess Ophelia
Mood – Contemplative

[Asyndeton Narrative]

x
x

xxxxxxxTwo weeks of the same room was positively frustrating. Made worse by the fact that she could barely manage to walk across the room once before she was exhausted, and her legs just gave up. If she tried to force it, a few more steps was all that was needed before the pain in her back returned with a vengeance. And the real icing on the cake was that damned physician. He was completely useless in her honest opinion. He came everyday (sometimes twice a day) and poked and prodded at her back, but he still had no idea what was wrong. He'd just forbid the use of magic around her, and give her some nasty tasting pain numbing concoction that she usually refused to go near. In fact, the only time she drank it was when it was practically forced down her throat by a concerned Cyrus.

xxxxxxxAnd then there was the matter of Cyrus himself. The first week had been really hard for her, for multiple reasons. For those first few days she had trouble even feeding herself (her arms would get tired mid way through a meal and just not listen properly), let alone the daunting task of walking to the bathroom when she needed to go. It was frustrating to have so many things in the room she could indulge herself in to pass the time, and not be able to get to them without being carried. Carried literally five measly steps away from the bed! And then, of course, there was the fact that she'd been quite angry with him. He'd been gone for too long in her opinion. But she only ever voiced her anger to him once. It wasn't like she didn't understand why he had left (She'd interrogated her father when he'd visited and had Cyrus live the third day she'd been bedridden), but she had felt he could have come back sooner.

xxxxxxxThe conversation had occurred a week ago. While she was stubbornly refusing to be carried those five or so steps to the chair she wanted to sit in to continue reading the book she'd been brought that morning. She'd been swatting his helping hands away, and as such exhausted herself sooner. When he'd scooped her up to return to her bed she found herself swatting at him with all the strength she could still muster, and then screaming about how he hadn't been there when she needed it, so she didn't want his help now. And just like that her anger was out, and she couldn't seem to stop it. She threw such a fit that even when she'd evidentially over exerted herself, she kept going until she found herself being held down by the man she was attempting to cause some sort of harm. She hoarsely demanded he get off her, flailing her legs in an attempt to kick him. Of course, this only resulted in burning agony, which made her completely forget her anger. It was bad enough that her guard had to drug her, but just before she'd lost herself to the drug induce slumber, she caught (or so she thinks) an brief unguarded moment of hurt on Cyrus's face.

xxxxxxxWhen she came too, she didn't speak of the incident. She wanted to on a few occasions, but decided to keep her mouth shut until she was sure she wouldn't yell. She also insisted on walking as far as she could before she let Cyrus carry her about. Today was no different. She'd slowly walked herself to the bathroom to relieve herself, and was now slowly walking to her next destination, knowing she probably wouldn't make it there. She wanted to sit by the window, and the chair was about as far away as it could get in the room. Not to mention she'd have to walk around the bed, and skirt a table with two chairs to get to the window seat. When she was passing by the door to the room, it opened to admit her currently most hated person. Immediately the Princesses eyes narrowed, and she glared at the physician. "Now Princess, You know you shouldn't be over exerting yourself." The man looked at her disapprovingly, then waved at Cyrus to carry her back to the bed. Apparently he didn't think the guard deserved a verbal command. Which was something that just made her dislike the man more. "And lay on your stomach, I'd like to check your back again."

xxxxxxx"No!," She bit the word out bitterly, stepping away from both the physician and her guard. "You've been poking at my back for two weeks! If you were going to find anything you would have found it by now! I refuse to let you prod at me anymore! Just leave your foul tasting remedy, and get the ******** out!" She half yelled it, half spoke it because yelling was tiring. The princess was left breathing heavily, with her legs trembling slightly, but she remained standing where she was, fists clenched at her side. The Doctor took a step towards her, speaking to her in a clearly patronizing way. "Now now, princess, you mustn't over exert yourself. Be a good girl and -" She stepped back further away from him, hissing angrily. "NO! Get out, damn it! Just get out.". The physician pursed his lips, now openly glaring at his difficult patient. He turned to Cryus, his gaze even more disapproving than it had been before. "Clearly we need to have some time to calm down. Notify me when she's.... sensible." And with that he roughly put down the concition he'd brought with him, and left the room..

xxxxxxx Liby glared after the man, taking a few hurried steps toward the door so she could shout after him. "I don't want you to come back you b*****d!" Then she grabbed the door and flung it roughly shut her whole body was trembling at this point, and her breathing was uneven from the exertion. Cryus was already at her side, and knowing her legs were just about to give, she grabbed his arm to keep herself upright. "I want to sit by the window," she said weakly. She liked to be able to see the outside world at least... since actually going outside was completely out of the question.



▂▃▅▆ ░▒▓ █ Location::Rutrum castle █ With::Cyrus █ Curently::scaring off her doctor █ Feeling::furstrated, weak

[Klarp Glornharm]

Sol Clubs:
Guard, Traitor? Magician

Sol had, unfortunately, restricted herself to the castle for those two weeks. No visits to the city, no drinking and dancing a night away and waking up with a promise never to drink again. Instead, she'd dutifully stuck by Shiloh, to make sure she recovered from the injury, healed well enough that she just needed time to regain energy, and to be sure of her safety. The guard still couldn't help feeling that both injuries had been her fault, straying from the woman's side too long had always had consequences. For herself, there had been no visiting Libyanna, the oddness with her eyes and seeing command webs enough for the magician to include her presence as excluded as long as magic was forbidden.

Still, for those two weeks, the green-haired woman had managed to keep Shiloh's profile rather low. No mischief against a royal house, no nobles demanding her head, or at least a punishment. Nothing for her to spend an excessive amount of time cleaning up while Shiloh got herself into worse trouble. And at last, the guard had decided she'd had enough. It was mostly in secret that she'd placed a rune on Shiloh, leaving an unseen mark, one that would take magic to view, while the princess was asleep. It would tell her of any changes in the youth's conditions, and give her a chance to relax while other soldiers dealt with things. And those soldiers were the same three that Libyanna had sent during the ambush of corpse puppets to keep her alive. Those three, Sol would trust.

As a result, the green-haired woman was still bound to the castle, in case of a problem, but was able to find something to do other than follow her around. The break was nice, and had begun with a short match between herself and a guard, some time before Prince Zayne and Princess Ophelia had taken the space for themselves, she and another had woken themselves up with a short hand-to-hand lesson. And now, with the day passing further along, Sol was finding herself bored. Oh, the castle was fine and all, but without at least something to do, it was a dull place that she found harder and harder to sit still in. Even walking the halls was doing nothing, servants being passed with a nod or a wave when they did something similar, guards, a few nobles, moving as they wished.

And again, there was the practice grounds. The feline-murdering curiosity drew her inside, to see Ophelia and Zayne crossing blades, the male saying something or another about it. Temptation was there to try her hand against one or both, but she silenced the thoughts as they came, knowing a lesson when she saw it. With a sigh, Sol would slip away from them, and go back to her hall-wandering, searching for something to do. Maybe, if she needed, someone to try a short sparring match with. A soldier with nothing to fight. Ha! I guess even I can't see myself as anything but a soldier now, can I?

[Unexpected Chaos]

LOCATION┋ xx EAVESDROPPING ON┋ xx

The past weeks had been longer than expected, that Dashiell felt throughout the entire kingdom. As known, the Diamonds had kept their stay for quite some days now-- much more expected than what the Spade Prince had figured-- but of course, that had reason. Marriages. What a bloody, traditional idea that it seemed every empire would adopt to try and keep their power secure by crossing blood with others. It was simple, in some points, but Dashiell found it frustrating. A single marriage seemed fine with him, let alone six, and there were other countries to be tying young heirs together. But the problem was at stake for the kingdoms estates, as his parents put it nicely, therefore a strong marriage of all heirs should be able to smash the two kingdoms together once again. Of course he didn't like the idea, and therefore had decided that morning that instead of wandering around the castle as if he didn't know his own home, Dash would take a visit into town to clear his mind.

It was getting colder, and the effects of winter were starting to show the farther downtown Dashiell bothered. The houses of the lower class were suffering from the piles of snow they had gotten the past weeks, some roofs looking as they would snap with a breeze. The Prince grimaced, like usual he had taken a moment to dress as a commoner to avoid any stupid questions or looks from the townspeople. He did it simply because Dashiell liked to blend in with people; to see the true colors when nobody was looking. Now, the prince watched a few children run through the snowy streets laughing as an elder followed behind with ungraceful words. A rare smile tickled his lips, watching childish behavior was actually entertaining for the boy; but it did not last long.

"Prince Dashiell.." his guard murmured who was also forced to disguise himself to avoid suspicion, both their heads practically covered in cloaks. He shot a glance at the guard, annoyed at him using his name in public but did not bother to comment on so. "We should head back, I've been given strict orders that you are to stay in the castle while the Diamonds are here; we should return before our absence is noticed." The other mans eyes laid straight ahead during the statement, in which Dash's had returned to a little boy sitting down the street by himself. Impatiently sighing, the prince nodded in agreement, but instead of turning back up the streets, he only proceeded to the lonely boy whose pants were big enough to be wrapped around his bare feet. Without hesitation, Dash peeled off his own shoes and socks and dropped them rudely on the boy who flinched. When the child looked up with a sudden anger, Dashiell simply rolled his sleeve up to show his birthmark on his elbow; it was literally the second princes signature. The young boys eyes grew, catching on fast. "Do not take off those shoes nor socks until you can see green grass again or else," Dash demanded while pointing at the items he had torn off from his own feet. Fumbling, the child already started to unravel his pants to put on the shoes, in which his toes were a sore reddening shade, already chilled from the air. Dashiell pretended not to notice, and instead, he turned back to his guard while letting his sleeve fall back over. "Now lets go."

>> little time skip <<

When they had arrived back to the castle, as predicted it seemed nobody had noticed the princes earlier disappearance, and Dashiell easily shed the commoner clothing in which trading for his regulars. Then, the boy had disappeared to the dinning room to eat late lunch alone while he sketched out ideas of how to fix the peasant collapsing houses without much expense to have his parents toss the idea away. However, his book quickly shut as a figured slipped through the dinning room, attempting to silently make it into the kitchen. Dash knew the man, he could practically smell him from the strong aroma of medicine that seemed to haunt him.

"Doctor," Dashiell stopped him without the need of raising his eyes. "Take a chair, wont you?" It sounded like a question, but the venom with his voice showed it was no offer but clearly a demand. The aging physician slowly grabbed a chair opposed to the prince as he sat down quietly; for a minute there was complete silence appose to the clock. Then, the prince shot a glance up at the familiar man, annoyance and anger clearly across his face. "Don't just sit there, tell me what you know I'm going to ask," the prince hissed referring to the eldest of the Diamond heirs, Princess Libyanna. Of all the injuries that had came from the carriage ambush, that girls had been by far the worse, and it was starting to really bother people. Not that Dashiell ever showed any care for the blonde until that one question there, even the physician was caught off guard to be bothered by him.

"She's not cooperating and being completely childish, there is no hope of recovery at this moment," the doctor said stiffly, his mouth forming a thin line of disapproval, in which Dash mirrored. "Then why don't you make her recover.." the prince all but growled, the knife in his hand now clenched because he was growing quite annoyed at his doctor. He never shared good times with the man, and now he was beginning to hate him all over again. Let alone, Libyanna seemed a strong girl, at least one who could hold her own. It shouldn't be taking so long for a royal physician to heal her.. at least to the point in which the princess could leave her own room. "It doesn't work that way," the doctor snapped, the annoyance he held back seeping through his voice. "I can't just fix the problem when she refuses to allow me to address it, if anything she's just making the problem wor--"

He was cut off as the knife slammed into the wooden table and Dashiell advanced to his feet. "Why are you dragging this out!?" Dash shot at the man, leaning forward towards him as if he was deaf and could not hear. "Stop acting like there is only one method to helping her; you know what I can do, you know that it would help her. Why don't you just give me the allowance to go take the magic out?" It was infuriating to Dash that the doctor had not asked of him in the past days, and the prince was finished with waiting. Now the physician lifted on his own feet, knowing the prince since he was a little child made him one of the few who were unfazed by his yelling. "Your help could reverse it, it could make her problem even worse--" he begun but again was cut off in sentence. "I wouldn't let that happen." "--I know you don't want it to happen, however, taking big sources at once could create a shock--" "I'd be careful, I'm not an idiot." "--No, no you're just too.. naive in this field, it doesn't work that way--"

That phrase blew it for Dashiell. Furious with the old mans refusal, Dash grabbed his plate and threw it straight at him, in which the physician had to duck beneath the table to avoid the glasses. "You know nothing, you damned old man!" While the shout echoed throughout the hall, Dashiell excused himself from the room as he annoyingly headed his way up the grand staircases and towards the hallway of the princesses rooms. The boy had to stop himself halfway down the hallway to force a minute and let himself cool down. The last thing anybody needed was an angry prince, especially when he just wanted to help, as foreign as that policy was.

After a minute, when his mind finally cleared to at least a calming pace, Dashiell continued until he reached the door connected to the eldest princesses room; raising his hand for a rapid knock. Honestly, he didn't care that the physician forbid it or not, Dash was going to try and help the poor girl out of at least some of her pain, if she even allowed the idea. "Libyanna," he did not bother for using class titles like "prince" or "princess" when speaking in private. "It's Dashiell, may I enter?" Hopefully, he was interrupting a slumber or resting.

Exogent Remedy

oh my god i could not shut up; you don't have to read the stuff before the time skip, that was just to start off the new day "mood" i suppose & it doesn't affect anything really LOL

[Dark Overlord Windycakes]

↘forduty ↘➾➾➾↺
Cyrus ➾Vexel ➾ Marquette
↘↘L I G H T S W O R Nxxxxxxxxxxxxx

↺ s a y g o o d b y e ➾ ➾ ➾

↘↘My comrades…. What? Who could have done this?




((ooc: ))


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The knight scowled with annoyance as his charge kicked and screamed in response to the royal physician’s work. Part of him wanted to bind her with magic so the doctor could do his job. But, of course, he knew that wouldn’t be the best idea. According to the doctor, any contact with magic would worsen her condition. After a few more moments of fuss, the doctor gave up asking the guard to call on him when she calmed down. Cyrus gave a small nod and stepped to the side, allowing the doctor to exit. Libyanna was, in a word, annoying; a characteristic she didn’t usually show. She refused to listen to the doctor’s suggestions, fought whenever he came to check on her, and did everything she possibly could to avoid resting. Perhaps it was partially because Cyrus himself back him in these things and she refused to listen to anything Cyrus had to say since he’d returned.

Now she wanted to sit by the window. Suppressing a groan, Cyrus led her to the chair by the window and helped her sit. His emotions were quickly spiraling out of control. Before long, his rage had gone past any point of control. He stepped back, and with a roar of anger, put his fist through the stone wall. With a grunt, he pulled his arm from the masonry and shook off the dust. ”You’ve never asked much of me Libyanna. And you know that I would do anything for you. But I will not watch you destroy yourself. You’re acting like this because you’re mad at me. Anything I try to get you to do to recover, you do the opposite. I ask you to sleep, you want to look out the window. I ask you not to exert yourself and you’re intent upon doing whatever will strain your body more. What can I do to put an end to this madness?”

It was a rhetorical question. In his twenty years of service, he’d never once lost control of his emotions. He imagined that he was quite the frightening visage right now. ”I’m sorry I wasn’t there to protect you. But I…” The knight ground his teeth together, clenching his fists together so tightly that blood dripped off his knuckles and onto the floor. ”I thought you might have more faith in my decision. Obviously I was wrong.” The full effects of the pain and regret he felt over his decision were washing over him and he had to just ride it out. Right now, the best place for him to be was as far away from Libyanna as possible. She wasn’t in any danger, but looking at her like this was making Cyrus think about tracking down his brother and ripping him limb from limb before all the preparations had been made. ”Marcus. Guard the princess until I get back. I’m going for a walk.” One of his paladins stepped in and took his spot on the opposite end of the room. ”You know what to do if you need me. Maybe if you suggest that she take her medicine, she’ll actually do it. She’d probably refuse an antidote from me if she was dying of poison right now. I’ll be back when I have the patience to play along with her silly little game.” He cut his eyes over to Libyanna and narrowed his gaze. His words probably hurt her deeply, but in his anger, all he cared about was the pain she’d inflicted during his first few days back. Without another word, he flung open the door and slammed it behind him.

Cyrus wasn’t really certain how long he’d been wandering, but it was early afternoon before he returned to Libyanna’s quarters. His rage had subsided, but he was still rather annoyed by the whole situation. The knight kicked himself for having lost his temper like that but wasn’t intent on apologizing. He sighed when he saw Prince Dashiell at Libyanna’s door. ”And just what do you think you’re doing? The princess is sick and I’d appreciate it if you’d let her rest. So what business do you have with her?” Cyrus was in no mood to deal with any of the Spades today. Prince Dashiell had better have a very good reason for being there or Cyrus couldn’t be held accountable for his actions.

[xSkully]

S H I L O H • D I A M O N D
T H E • E A R T H • P R I N C E S S
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Groans slipped from the pile of blankets as the princess buried herself deeper and deeper into the sheets. Despite the fact it was already past noon, Shiloh was still eager to try and sleep. Since Sol was practically and owl stalking her ever move, Shiloh took advantage of her prisoner time by trying to catch up on sleep. Poor sister Liby has been stuck in bed for who knows how long, all Shiloh got to see was the people who poked in to check up on her. Accepting the fact that sleep was no longer an opinion, the princess squirmed out of her sheets and stripped down.

She picked out a casual plain dark forest green dress, and tied her hair half up with a matching ribbon. Before heading out, she gently clasped on her necklace given to her from her last ''boyfriend'', but was banned from seeing him due to her always running a muck in the middle of the night. It was not ''lady-like'' for her to sneak out to go visit him in the middle of night. Growling slightly, she headed out of her bed-room making sure to peek down both halls incase Sol was on the prowl. Shiloh's head throbbed as she quickly hurried down halls, stairways, and out through the back door she found earlier.

Once outside, Shiloh yanked off her bandage around her head, which she thought was no longer necessary, and dropped it into the cold snow beneath her. The princess plopped down onto a bench and shuffled she snow between her feet. Her grassy eyes shifted to the tree she fell out of previously, and was reminded what her sister Ophelia said.

"You know most people wouldn't be climbing tree with a head injury. You really must be stupid... first you get kidnapped... because you don't use your god given abilities to defend yourself and then you get hurt even more then you already are because you don't use your abilities to... Oh I don't know break your fall?!I don't understand why you get showered with love and affect for your stupidity while I get noth- you know what never mind, there's no point in talking to you."

Shiloh growled as her teeth closed tightly together. She kicked snow about revealing a small patch of grass. Her eyes locked onto it as hands tightened around the bench. Focusing as hard as she could, she laid back once her head hurt too much for her to bare. Eyes glanced down to see a small yellow flower sprout from the ground. A small grin sprouted on her face as Shiloh leaned forward and began to study it. Shiloh never used her powers, because all she felt she could do was make flowers grow. Making more space for the flower with her shoe, Shiloh arose and headed back inside towards the kitchen in search of some tasty sort of bread.

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[Asyndeton Narrative]

▂▃▅▆ ░▒▓ █ Location::Rutrum █ With::bandits and attacked family No one █ Curently::heading on instinct towards training grounds to let off steam █ Feeling::deeply disturbed, guilty, disconnected.


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xxxxxKalais woke with a start sometime before the sun rose. He was heavily panting, eyes wide and glazed over. It wasn't fear... no , it was the look of someone who had just witnessed something they found extremely disturbing. The prince groaned, covering his eyes with the back of his hand. The feeling of the dream he'd just woken from was exactly like back then, and it caused the memory to surface from whatever dark crevice of his mind he had banished it to. Shrill screams, bitter laughter, the sounds of blades clashing, the feeling of cutting into flesh, the warm blood spurting onto his face, hands and clothes. It was exhilarating, until he noticed his opponents were no longer breathing. That was disappointing, but he had shrugged off the feeling when he told himself these men had deserved their fate. But then his eyes would find two much smaller bodies, and suddenly the blood covering his frame felt as if it was trying to crush him. He couldn't breathe, and he couldn't even turn away.

xxxxxThe prince yelled out in a mix of denial and frustration, as practically flew out of his bed. It had not been him who killed the children! It couldn't have been him.... he'd been trying to protect them. The sound that he made now was clearly one of dismay, as the prince leaned over his desk, frame shaking slightly. "It wasn't my fault," he muttered to himself, but the words were far from convincing even to him. With another angry shout, he violently pushed objects off his desk, causing a few delicate trinkets to shatter when they hit the floor, not that he seemed to care. Kalais had already turned on his heel and moved too his walking in closet. He practically roughly pulled clothes down from where they hung, and then tore his sleeping pants from his frame. ********, he'd actually torn them slightly. Cursing, he yanked the fresh clothes over his body haphazardly, before he went to retrieve his sword. With it in hand, he made his way toward the door. It wasn't until he was storming down the hall that he fumbled with fastening the blade to his hip.


Xx- Time Skip -xX


xxxxxThe prince had wandered the city, desperately looking for a fight to pick. He really needed some sort of a distraction, but he found none. There were precious few people out at this time, and those who were certainly wouldn't prove much of a challenge. So he'd kept wandering down, away from the castle, on a narrow road that eventually left the city altogether. Though Kalais wasn't keeping track of time, it was probably mid morning when he passed the city limits. He continued on aimlessly for about an hour. It might be better just to head back at this point. The castle day would be in full swing, and if he didn't find someone to fight on the way back, he'd drag some guards to the training grounds. With a heavy sigh, Kal started to turn back.

xxxxxA shrill scream froze him mid step. Without really thinking he'd swung back around and was loping down the road towards the sound. There was another scream, this one pained, and cut of abruptly. As he rounded a bend in the road, he was met with the sight of a girl, about seven, with a sword driven through her throat. As the body fell, he noticed the body of a male merchant he vaguely recognized. His hair was the same shade as the girl, marking him as her probable father. Kal's eyes narrowed, as his hand tightly gripped the hilt of his weapon. A pregnant woman, who was probably the wife of the dead merchant, who was trying to shield a boy (probably around twelve) from the grasping hands of a... bandit? The small family was surrounded by a group of rather cruel looking men, all of them wearing obnoxious yellow... tattered vest cape things that must have been a crime against something.

xxxxx"This is your last chance!" one of the bandit fellows was threatening, succeeding in yanking the boy away from his mother. "Tell us where our merchandise is or the boy dies!" Another bandit moved to grab the pregnant woman as she tried to tackle the bandit who had taken the boy. Carefully Kal drew his sword, scowling at the slight sound it made... though it seemed it was not heard. "I don't know anything!" the women screamed. "Please, I beg you! I really don't know anything!" One of the men spat in her face, as the one holding the boy pressed a knife against the child's throat. Just hard enough to draw blood. "Not buying it lady." He pulled the knife back, turning it in his hand to position it instead in front of the boys heart. "Stop! But the man was already making the motion to stab is blade into the child's chest.

xxxxxThe rest was kind of a blur to the Prince. He'd rushed forward, knocking the knife aside before it could touch the boy, and then running his sword through the bandit's gut, as he hooked his arm around the child to pull him away. With the child still held awkwardly to his side, he had time to cut down one more bandit before they really realized what was going on. Two of the remaining five came at him. He'd hissed, thrown the boy roughly out of the way, and turned to the fight. He cut down a third, but failed to avoid the next blow, and received a glancing blow to his left arm. The prince cleanly separated the man's body from his arms after that, before running his next opponent through.

xxxxxAnd then the two remaining men took the pregnant woman as a hostage against him. There was apparently an attempt to convince him to leave, by promising they wouldn't kill the woman. He clearly heard none of it. His eyes were dark with blood lust, and all he saw were more people to cut up. He rushed the men, catching one off guard, and succeeding in disarming him, before letting his blade bite into the mans flesh slowly. A manic grin was on his face by this point, even as he roughly kicked this man away from him to turn to the last one. Only to be snapped back to his senses (slightly) by the dismayed shout of the boy.... and a sword that had just been driven through the woman's shoulder, dangerously close to her heart. "You dirty ********] Kalais hissed, dispatching the last man.



Xx- Time Skip -xX


xxxxxIt was lucky that another group of travelers passed by soon after the fight. He commandeered one of their carriages, and sat with the now laboring woman, trying to stem the bleeding. Unfortunately, by the time they reached a clinic, she was already to far gone. The babe was saved (a girl), but the mother was lost. He'd forced out an apology to the boy for not being able to save his parents, and then essentially fled. Covered head to to in dried blood, an arm still bleeding slightly, the Prince made his way quickly back to the castle. His eyes were unfocused, and he relied on memory alone to get him home. His bloody sword was still held in his right hand as he walked. Around him people were whispering, but he heard none of it. Somehow he made it back to the castle without once being stopped, and he started, purely on instinct, to head towards the training grounds.

[Klarp Glornharm]

Her Highness, Rea Vent Diamonds
Princess of Air

Two weeks of peace in a city so strongly built on the idea of war that she could almost feel the call of it in her bones if she sat alone. And if she walked the halls, it felt like there was a reminder every now and again that she wasn't home. Anger. Hatred. Jealousy. And above all, a feeling of waiting. Like those of the castle were expecting a fight to happen, or perhaps were hoping for it. Not everyone gave off that feeling, but the building made the young woman feel uncomfortable. Or maybe it wasn't the building? Maybe it was the people themselves that gave off the feeling, the country? And the castle was just an embodiment, a place for those to build up. Ridiculous. And yet, Rea didn't completely dismiss the idea in her two weeks there. But she did find herself laughing when she was alone, at the irony. Peaceful days in a country built on the idea of war... How odd.

Her time was spent mostly alone, as usual, in her rooms reading, or practicing with the air. Nothing that would cause suspicion or push anything. Still, she took her walks, greeting the people of Rutrum, now those that were of her potential new home. She wasn't sure if it was Aurarias or Rutrum that her husband and she would be moving two, but the princess knew it was best to prepare anyway. Still, she made no effort to meet the man, and only really saw him on her walks, memory from that night when she'd laughed at him the only thing Rea had to know him. But that was fine, she had no love, nor anyone she'd have taken as a lover. Her duty was who she was. To the people.

And now, the princess took her walk, looking calmly at the servants and nobles, working to shut the feelings that whispered to her mind out. Scratches at the door, they felt like. Threatening to infect her, influence her. And then her eyes went to him, almost as if by instinct. Dried blood covered the man, one or two patches where it had peeled showing his skin. Hair, clothes. And his blade, carried with such purpose. A feeling of unrest. A rejection of something... Guilt. Anger. So much flowing around him, some old, some new, all of it strong, strong as the stench that came as she grew close. They were walking towards each other, and the look in his eyes said he wouldn't see her. She wasn't a fighter. There was someone behind him, green hair on her head, giving a curious look.

She was restless too. Perhaps that the feeling was so strong influenced her, Rea couldn't quite tell, but as she passed, the princess gripped Kalais's arm and pulled, eyes going up to him as she stopped, expecting him to as she planted her feet. There was the beginnings of a glare in her eye, something she'd been taught in youth. By her mother? Or the maids? It didn't matter. Without it fully being a glare, it was simply demanding of his attention. Her lips moved, low voice slipping free, carrying in it a tone of annoyance, influenced in part by those around.

"You will come with me Kalais. I will not marry a man who's so incompetent he can't even wipe his face." Low, and yet she was sure those around had heard. The princess didn't wait, though. This wasn't about what was proper, not as he might think. As they all might. She could feel the burden on his shoulders as if it was breaking hers. And if they were to be wed? She would help to carry it sooner or later. Sooner was better. Her legs were moving, carrying her, pulling on him to drag him as best she could, not that he couldn't overpower her if he really wanted. Nearby was supposedly that more public sort of bath. Going there would be fine for now.

[ALittleSomethingOdd]

Fustibus General: Nuala Elise Abaddon
Status Report: Wandering around the City
Emotion: Bored
Thoughts: I hated to enjoy that fight. It was a disservice to the dead… But what if…?

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Nuala pulled a knit shawl closer to herself. She was bored with this city. Nothing new had happened since the battle and as much as she hated to admit it, it was a glorious one. She finally had an opponent for which to show her full poweress. An opponent that, no matter how many times she killed it, would rise again with an even more determination. She sighed, and leaned against a lamppost.
“If only it had a soul.” She muttered. The zombies Kael created were fun to battle, but without a soul, she felt they were incomplete. Those with a soul always had a special light that would fade away during death, and that ‘fading’ was always an experience worth seeing. That light triggered a reflex that protected the body at any cost, keeping the soul trapped within. And it was her job as a general and executioner to release that soul, to let it fly free. However, there were those that were unwilling to die. More often than not, some souls would came back to haunt her no matter how she tried to appease and honor them. It was then that she would realize that she killed for the sake of killing, and no amount of prayer could alter that. But that was the path she chose and she did not regret it. Even if she had to bear the burden of blessing the unwilling, she would gladly watch the souls depart. It was her duty as a soldier after all.
But those monsters he created, though they did put up a good fight, had not will to live due to the absence of a soul. Not only that, but Nuala was certain the souls would come back to haunt Kael, rather than her. They shouldn’t haunt her at least. She blessed them with rest, while Kael disturbed it. She did those disgusting things a service. However…
And there it was. The stray thought that seemed always turned into the most brilliant idea of the time.
Nuala smiled softly at the thought and continued through the streets, humming to herself. It was a tune she had learned as child when her father was still alive. It was the one memory that remained unfragmented after the years of fighting. Perhaps it was because it was made for her.
She laughed at the idea and pressed a button on her earpiece.
“Connect me with General Kael.” She blankly said. “Tell him it’s of utmost importance that I meet with him here.”
“Right away.” Her subordinate said and busily went about making preparations. Nuala grinned to herself and made sure that no one was around. She was in the most pleasant of moods at the moment. She wanted to enjoy it for as long as she could before her rival arrived.
“I pray to the souls of dead, that I shall pass in peace. No quarrel I have with thee this eve. No quarrels I have any longer. For I will soon be amongst your rank, making the wall ever stronger.”

[OkamiBxtch]

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Ophelia sat on her bed as she laced up the boots one of the female guards had allowed her to borrow along with the rest of the ensemble the princess was wearing. She had no comfortable clothing to train in and to be honest she probably would have look ridiculous waving around a sword in a ball gown. When she was finished with her boots, she slide off the bed and made her way out of the room to get some breakfast. It was around 10 in the morning, a bit early for the princess to be awake but it was doable. Ophelia was feel rather good besides the grogginess of having just awoken from sleep. She managed to go a week without an attack on her body which she was grateful for after last weeks little fiasco(s). She frown as she began to think about what their parents had discussed with the children. 'Of course the old man would have no problems selling off his daughters. All for the good of the country my a**..." Ophelia thought bitterly has she made various turns down hallways to get to the dining hall.

As Ophelia made her way into her dining hall she bumped into Prince Zayne who promptly told her to come to the training ground right after breakfast. Like that was happening. She'd come when she was fully awake and fed. The servants began to clear but quickly stop as soon as Ophelia sat down to eat after getting the specific breakfast items she wanted to eat. It was awkward having all those servants waiting and watching her as she ate. And it got even more awkward when Shiloh walked into the dining hall. The 19 year picked up an apple and a piece of bread before brushing past her younger sister obviously not wanting to be near her sister at that moment.

Ophelia spent the next hour back in her room napping after she finished her small breakfast. She figured that Zayne could just wait and it wouldn't be that big of a deal. He could just find something to occupy his time while the 19 year old slept. When Ophelia awoken she was feeling much better and more willing to listen to the young prince do what he did best; talk. She took her sweet time getting to the training ground obviously in no hurry. She arrived at noon and she could clearly see in his face that he was slightly annoyed by her tardiness. Ophelia just gave him a bright smile as he took her to find the right sword for her to use.

The duo started their training by going through some forms. Ophelia was a bit confused at first but she caught on quickly enough. Once she got most of the moves down the proceed to the next part of the training. Immediately. Zayne brought his sword down upon her own which she tried to block but failed miserably. Her sword fell to the ground with a loud 'clang' and thier was a stingy sensation going up and down her arm. ”Pick it up, princess. I’m not softening my blows for you. I warned you this would be difficult. Now pick up your sword.” Ophelia grumbled a string of curses that were a long the lines of 'b*****d' 'prissy b***h' and her favorite 's**t head'. ”You need to be ready for anything. I’ll have to admit that your reflexes are good, but that will only get you so far. Adjust your grip, widen your stance. You need to soften the blow, then repel it. Stopping it outright and you’ll wind up like you were just now. Unarmed and an easy target.” Zayne spoke as she picked up her sword from the ground. Before she knew it the prince of water was attacking her once again only this time she managed to successfully block his hits. They went on with the training as Zayne was explaining how she should keep moving, which is something she knew. It was commonsense really. ”Now, I want you to attack me. And remember, hacking and slashing aimlessly will only work if you’re fighting an incompetent swordsman. I am not such an individual. If you try that here, you’re going to get hurt.” Ophelia took her stance as she began to figure out how she a novice could successfully attack a trained swordsman. ”Now attack.” Ophelia stood her ground a few moments as she went over in her mind just what she wanted to do and if it would count as cheating in this moment. The 19 year old tightened her grip on the sword before launching into an attack. As she came closer to the younger prince she blew a small stream of fire to his left causing him to move right. While he was pre occupied with evading her fire she attacked bringing the steel sword above her head and striking down. Of course Zayne blocked it but she figured it was a good enough effort. "How was that" She said with a sly smile.




THE PYROMANIAC PRINCESS

[Asyndeton Narrative]

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xxxxxxxLibyanna let out a sigh of relief when she at last found herself in the chair. Her eyes moved to gaze out the window as she let her frame relaxed. She watched the outside world absently, as her thoughts began to wander. The princess soon found herself reflecting on what had just occurred. Admittedly she had probably overreacted a bit. Yes, the doctor was very unlikely to find anything new about her paralysis at this point.... but she should have been much more courteous in her dismissal of him. She was going stir crazy though, and every time someone got mad at her for doing something other than sleeping, she felt the need to scream. which she usually suppressed, but it was clearly having a negative effect on her temper. It wasn't like she was asking to go on some arduous journey though! Hell, she hadn't even asked to leave her room... save for one occasion that hadn't ended well at all. And it only took her once to learn that it was a very bad idea.

xxxxxxShe just wanted to be able to do things to past the time.... and nothing strenuous. Read something, talk to someone, look out the window, or maybe even play a game of chess. She was absolutely sick of laying in bed when she wasn't tired, and either pretending to sleep (in order to please someone who was visiting her), or staring at the ceiling with nothing to pass the time but her thoughts. The princess let out another , this one heavy with frustration. She supposed Cyrus, still believing she was angry with him, wasn't going to help her situation much. She really did need to have a proper talk with him to clear the air... but that was kind of hard to accomplish when it seemed every time she spoke more than a few sentences someone was accusing her of overexerting herself. Which was ridiculous. She was weak physically, yes, but there was nothing wrong with her voice.

xxxxxxShe was startled from her thoughts when she heard an angry exclamation from her guard, and the sound of an extremely hard blow. Her head snapped about, eyes widening when they took in the scene. He'd shoved his fist through the wall, the stone cracking around it, bits crumbling and falling to the floor. She inhaled sharply, frame tensing again. His words seemed to go in one ear and out the other at the moment, as the princess was simply too shocked by the violent display. Slowly her mind was able to comprehend what he was saying... but Cyrus was already on his way out the door. She stared at the door for a few good long minutes, mind running over his words. And then she felt hurt and anger bubbling up in her, and she was glaring at the damaged wall. He thought she was acting difficult because she was angry with him. That she was doing the opposite of what he asked to spite him. And he was ******** wrong! The stupid a** hadn't even stopped to think the way she was acting had a cause other than himself, did he? She wasn't purposely trying to be difficult! Really, she wasn't. She was just so frustrated. Did he honestly believe what he had said? Yes, she had been upset.... but she wasn't holding a grudge. Not anymore! She would probably always be upset that he hadn't been there... but that didn't mean she didn't understand why. And the guard even went so far as to say she was playing some sort of game.

xxxxxxHot tears game to her eyes, but she stubbornly refused to let them fall. Even if this Marcus person was someone Cyrus trusted to protect her, she would not show such weakness to him. It was bad enough that she couldn't so much as stand on her own at the moment, so she sure as hell couldn't let her emotions get the better of her. So she closed her eyes, and took a few calming breaths, ruthlessly reigning in her emotions until her face was a blank mask. Then she turned her face back towards the window and simply gazed blankly out of it. She kept her thoughts under careful control, choosing to wonder about the whereabouts of her Lady-in-waiting who'd left about an hour ago. She should be returning any time now.

xxxxxxSaid Lady-in-waiting was in fact standing just down the hall from the Princess's room, lips pursed as she looked after the departure of the aggravated guard. She rolled her eyes, privately thinking it was a miracle this hadn't happened sooner after her Lady's injury. The air had been charged these last two weeks, and it had really only been a matter of time until someone snapped. She turned to the two servant girls behind her, mouthing 'not a word' to them, before proceeding towards the room. She entered silently, nodding to the guard, and then proceeded to the chair her lady was beside, while signaling the two servants over to the bathroom. "A bath, My lady? I think it will help.... ease your tension." she chose her words carefully, and spoke softly, not wanting to inadvertently aggravate the princess. Libyanna's eyes turned from the window to the brown haired elf. She smiled slightly, nodding her head. "That sounds like a lovely idea, Ilwen." The elf returned her smile happily, and helped her out of the chair and across the room. As they passed by Marcus, Ilwen nodded to him again, before the two women disappeared into the bathroom.


Xx- Time Skip -xX


xxxxxxLibyanna lay resting now, laying on her stomach, with her head turned to one side, and her hair sprawled out on the other. Ilwen was relieved to find the princess about ready to fall asleep when her bath was done, and it really hadn't taken much convincing to get her to lie down for a nap. The only hitch she hit was just when she'd gotten the princess in bed. Libyanna had asked about food, and very nearly got up to demand food be brought to her... untill Ilwen assured her that she would sent for food after the princess had slept for two hours, and wake her when it arrived so she wouldn't be eating something cold. Grumbling, the princess had settled completely under the covers, and was asleep in moments. Ilwen sighed in releif, and then moved to settle herself in a nearby chair, picking up one of the books Libyanna had already read. But barely ten minutes had passed when there was a knock at the door, and a voice drifted through it.

xxxxxxDashiel? One of the Spades princes. Ilwen looked to the princess hurriedly, checking to see if she was still asleep. She sighed in relief to find the young woman hadn't stirred even slightly. Then the Lady-in-waiting set her jaw firmly, and got to her feet. She'd just managed to get the girl in bed, and she sure as hell wasn't going to let anyone wake her. She stood quietly and made her way quickly across the room. Before she could reach for the door handle though, she heard another voice. This one she had no trouble identifying, as she'd worked with the man for fifteen years now. Cryus didn't seem to be happy that the prince was there. And she wasn't happy that he hadn't thought to lower his voice further. Behind her she heard Libyanna moan in her sleep, and she turned her gaze back to the woman. Her face had contorted in pain, but she didn't seem to be showing signs of waking. Ilwen was about to turn back around and grab the bottle of medicine up from the small table, when the princess's frame relaxed again. So the elf turned back to the door, and pulled it open just enough to slip out, and close it softly behind her. Then she turned gold eyes on the two men, glaring at them both.

xxxxxxx"Prince Dashiel, Sir Cyrus.... please keep your voices down. I just managed to get the princess to sleep not ten minutes ago, and if the two of you wake her I swear I'll have your reproduction organs removed and fed to the hunting hounds." She fixed them both with a heavy glare, before turning her attention solely to the prince. "Whatever business you may have with my lady will have to wait.... though if it has anything to do with her health I suggest you speak with a physician And Queen Dianah first." She was smiling now, and bowed to the prince. "Good afternoon prince Dashiel." She stepped around the two men, and then turned back to Cryus."Cyrus.... the princess will want to speak with you on a serious matter later.... I do not suggest shrugging it off in favor of asking her to rest... she was.... quite troubled over the matter when I spoke to her, and it really should be resolved as soon as possible." She licked her lips as she looked back to the door of the room. "Keep an eye on her though... she seemed pained for a few moments, but it passed quickly. I hope it was nothing but...." She shook her head with a sigh. "I go to see speak to the kitchen about preparing her a meal for later. I'll bring it in two hours... unless you believe she should sleep longer. Send word if something happens." She bowed to the two men, and then turned and was on her way.



▂▃▅▆ ░▒▓ █ Location::Rutrum castle █ With::Marcus. Ilwen, Cyrus and Dash just outside █ Curently::sleeping █ Feeling::tired, pained

[Asyndeton Narrative]

▂▃▅▆ ░▒▓ █ Location::Rutrum castle █ With::Rea █ Curently::fighting back blood lust, obsessing over incident █ Feeling::tired, restless, pent up, pained, guilty, disconnected


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xxxxxWhen he felt someone grip his injured left arm, he immediately tense. His frame whirled, half raising his blade to strike down whoever had the audacity to grab the injured limb.... and then had to catch himself before making the blow. His green eyes were looking down at his fiancé, not some soldier as he'd been expecting. His lips pulled back to show his teeth in a snarl, but he didn't pull the arm from her grasp. His breathing became momentarily labored, as he fought down his blood lust. He absolutely could not lose to it in front of the princess. The fact that she was seeing him smeared in blood was bad enough. To act violently towards her would be unforgivable. Damned parents, getting him engaged without even telling him first. With his breathing evening out again, he was about to pull himself away from the princess and excuse himself to 'get cleaned up' while he really intended to find someone to fight.


"You will come with me Kalais. I will not marry a man who's so incompetent he can't even wipe his face."


xxxxxHis eyes widened just slightly. Incompetent was he? He had half a mind to strike her for the comment... but of course he couldn't. Clamping his jaw firmly shut, he bit back the death threat that had jumped almost immediately to his lips. He couldn't be threatening her either. It would definitely reflect poorly on Rutrum. But he couldn't say nothing. not when they were being watched. "Forgive me Princess," he half bit out.... but that wouldn't do either. It couldn't sound that forced. "I've just returned and haven't had a chance to get cleaned up yet," that was better, it didn't sound as forced. He pulled a smile on over his blank expression. One that was not for her, but to convince everyone else that he was genuinely apologizing to his fiancé. She was, of course, already pulling him along at this point. And it hurt, as well as caused his arm to start bleeding a new. He just grit his teeth and followed along for awhile... and then decided there was no point in being dragged behind her. he slowed, with the intent of pulling his arm from her, only for her to pull on it harder than she had. Kalais's body tensed again, and he hissed in pain. "Princess, please..... my arm is injured." he bit out, immediately pulling the arm back when her grip loosened.

xxxxxThey continued on towards the bath, him walking more beside her now than being dragged behind her. His sword was still held loosely in his right hand as he walked, and his eyes began to glaze over again. His mind had left the here and now, involuntarily returning to earlier events. In particular, how he'd allowed himself to be caught up in the blood lust at a crucial moment, and the life of a mother had been lost as a direct result. The sequence played slowly in his head. He hadn't even noticed they had reached their destination. In fact, he'd honestly forgotten the fact he was not alone. With a groan, his fingers slackened around his sword, and it fell from his grip. as the tip his the floor, he raised his right hand to cover his right eye, fingers tangling in his bloody hair. He tried telling himself that there was no way he could have saved the woman. his only options had been to keep fighting, or allow the bandits to do what they wished with her.

[Klarp Glornharm]

Her Highness, Rea Vent Diamonds
Princess of Air

As seemed to be a part of who he was, the prince began giving her hollow words that she couldn't find any truth to. That much felt way too obvious, what with the lack of sincerity. But she didn't fight it, those eyes didn't really look at her when he smiled, or when he spoke. And through the fuzziness of being wrapped in his emotions, Rea found it difficult to notice that he was in pain. As a result, when he stopped, she considered it him just trying to get away, to do whatever it was he was planning before. And then she noticed the bleeding arm, the sharpness of the pain... And let go. "Gods... I'm sorry, I didn't see it, and you said nothing." She said, showing him a sincere apology, and bowing her head for a brief moment. And then they were back to the trip to scrub him down...

Which only made things worse. The pocket in her head she'd stuffed what was him into was now buzzing and dancing, adding little bits, becoming stronger, and it felt like the burden he'd been carrying was twice as heavy as what she'd thought. But the princess kept her face smoothed, and waited until they had gotten to the bath. There, she looked at him, the way he stopped, showing something, for once, that matched the pocket of emotions. A rag was found, and dipped in water, and Rea moved to Kalais, this time more cautiously. She'd felt his snap before, and didn't much want to be cut down. Gently, the rag would be applied to his face, and slowly begin to wipe.

"If you really need it, I don't mind wiping your face." She whispered, trying to find the words to help the man find some stability. Even if that stability was only found in anger, it would be more than he had now. "And your wound Will need to be cleaned properly, once the rest of the blood is gone." A light touch with one hand, not on it, but near it, moving to investigate to find where it started, where it ended. How bad it was. "I apologize for my rudeness Prince Kalais, and again for gripping that spot. But I can tell you carry something heavy, and I don't want to air that in front of those who might use it." Slowly, his face had been washed of the blood. By now, it was almost gone.

"But that heavy burden is not yours to bear alone any longer. Not so long as we are to be wed. Your weakness is mine, your strength mine. And so mine is yours as well. If you hold a heavy rock, waiting to slip free from your grasp, my own hands are always waiting to help carry it. That is what the union means." With the face cleaned, she found a place to dip it, and get the blood out. She had no more words for the man, nothing inspiring. And she didn't expect him to suddenly trust her. But it was her word she was giving, and she would stand true to it, even if the first step was proving it.

"May I assume that you can clean the rest of your body Kalais? Because we are not wed quite yet."