Alderic Von Messerli
The Black King
"“Yet let me kiss my lord before I die, / And let me die with kissing of my lord.” - Christopher Marlowe
Alderic struggled to his feet, looking pleased with himself when he saw the blood dripping from Lithe's shoulder. But he also found that he couldn't catch his breath. Lithe's blade had broken through his armour, leaving a deep gash across his chest. He was tired and breathing heavily, and honestly, beginning to regret his choice of heavy armour. He paused to take off anything that could be easily removed, mostly his helmet and gloves, hoping that Lithe wasn't devious enough to try and stab him while he wasn't paying attention. His silvery hair stuck to his forehead and he raised a hand to brush it away.
Of course, he shouldn't put anything past the man who had pretended to be a king while murdering the queen.
"Don't say such things about Belgarian," Alderic panted harshly.
"He wasn't using me, and he wasn't keeping anything from me. He left because, pretty little fool that he is, Bell thought that if he were gone, I could meet someone new and move on with my life. As though I would ever betray him like that."
The black king smiled, lifting his blade again, though it seemed heavier to him. Perhaps the exhaustion and blood loss were getting to him?
"Do you hate him so much perhaps because you were one of the ones my Bell put aside when he realized you weren't good enough? Let's finish this, Sir Lithe."
Alderic went on the attack again, aiming almost exclusively at Lithe's head. If he managed to land a blow, he wanted it to be one that ended their little match. He didn't have much fight left in him.
"Know that even if you kill me, Lithe, the war doesn't end here. I have an heir. The black kingdom will survive. And one day my ghost will come back looking for your head."
It didn't hurt that he had a necromancer in his pocket either. Alderic knew that if he died, the first division would be forced to withdraw. The second and third divisions, most likely unaware that he had fallen, would continue to fight. He was only one cog in their great war machine.
((OOC: Sometimes I do wonder how Bell and Alderic met.))