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 Posted: Fri Dec 25, 2015 6:05 am
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"Nah, you don't know me,
Lightning above and a fire below me,
You cannot catch me,
Cannot hold me,
You cannot stop,
Much less control me,
When it rains,
It pours,
When the floodgates open brace your shores,
That pressure don't care when it breaks your doors,
Say it's all you can take,
Better take some more."
- Excerpt from: A Light that Never Comes by Linkin Park |
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Posted: Fri Dec 25, 2015 6:10 am
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Posted: Fri Dec 25, 2015 6:21 am
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 Before he was Ser Regulus he was just Caelan, a young stallion happily living a reckless life in a kingdom across the sea. He would wander from place to place, get into stupid pointless fights and enjoy spending time with ladies. Until she came into his life. Belladonna O'Quinn. A mare so unique and beautiful that she stopped most stallions in their tracks, but it was her attitude that caught him. As beautiful as she was she had a mouth on her! She could make a sailor blush with her colorful speech.
He pursued her with a passion and after many rebuffs she finally gave him a chance. In truth it was pity on her behalf. She was of noble blood, and he was a street urchin, she was the fourth daughter to the Laird Connor O'Quinn, and he was an orphan. She could have had anyone she chose but boredly she took a chance on young Caelan and was not dissapointed. Okay well she was until some dumb drunk picked a fight with him and he beat the guy senseless. She fell for him hard and fast after that and they spent many wonderful months together. When she came to him one night with the news she was with child he was elated, her father however was not and beat Caelan senseless and warned him away from his daughter saying next time he'd kill him.
Caelan didn't care. He had every intention of living his life with Belladonna and wouldn't let her father come between them.
So one fateful night he snuck into the castle and together they stole away into the night, but tragedy wasn't far off. Her father discovered her missing hours later and set the wolves on him. Literally an entire pack of highly trained wolves to hunt him down.
In their haste to get away, the misty night hampering their progress they didn't see the cliff or the sea below. She fell and despite the distant excited howling of the wolves he could hear her scream cut off and the clear snap of bone and the splash of the body hitting the water.
Then the wolves were upon him ripping and tearing. A whistle broke through the sounds of the savage animals and the wolves obediently backed off. The Laird himself had joined the hunt and when he saw the broken bloody stallion he had him drug back to the castle and savagely interrogated. The things done to Caelan were vicious and only just shy of illegal.
The Laird refused to believe that his daughter would leave with him and despite him telling the Laird what happened he didn't believe it until Belladonna's body washed ashore.
In his grief Connor O'Quinn sentenced Caelan to death by the wolves. He was to be released into the Highlands and hunted until run down and torn apart.
The tricky young stallion threw them off his trail during the hunt and escaped into the lowlands where he boarded a two legged vessel and sailed to another bordering Kingdom.
There he took up the mantle of castle guard, using the false name of Duncan Regulus, for the King Drevon Valmont. He was assigned to guard the second heir of the kingdom, Prince Farren Valmont, with his life.
Shortly after his appointment a rival kingdom attacked and he demonstrated his cunning and ruthlessness by taking on an entire squad while his charge and the Queen Vivian Valmont escaped.
After the battle was won he was given the title of Ser Regulus "The Scythe". His old life was just a memory now but Regulus still held Belladonna close to his broken heart. Often he would drink from a bottle of bourbon he bought with the assistance of a servant familiar to pour it.
One day the news came that the primary heir Prince Bastian Valmont was missing. An extensive search was launched but nothing turned up for many weeks. The entire kingdom worried for his safety but none more so than Regulus's charge Prince Farren. Farren and Bastian were very close and he was terrified for his brother though most would think him ambitious for the position his brother left behind.
Farren hated the rumors that he did it and the quiet artistic stallion suffered from terrible nightmares from the ordeal. Finally a clue was turned up. The city guard had raided a skinwalkers lair and found Prince Bastian's torn cloak and a half gnawed severed leg that bore markings similar to the Prince's coat.
It was ruled he died 'naturally' and Prince Farren was named primary heir. Farren fretted over his new role and finally with Regulus's advice decided to abdicate his role to the third heir Prince Carwin Valmont.
All seemed well as Regulus had his regular bourbon before bed but after drinking the burning liquid he felt woozy. Something was wrong and he knew it. He'd built quite a tolerance to the stuff and it never affected him like this.
He blacked out and when he awoke it was to a sharp kick and a poke from a weapon.
To his left was the rest of the guard, to his right was Prince Farren's death clouded eyes. He jumped up away from the body hyper aware of the sticky feeling that covered him. He looked at himself and saw, though he'd already smelled the copper tang, that he was coated in blood.
Farren's gaping throat was where the blood had spurted from. His face, chest, and front legs were soaked in it. Shivering violently he asked in a croak voice what happened.
He was arrested and charged with the crime of killing the Crown Prince. Stupidly they never took his coin pouch from him and half of his savings went to bribing guards to let him go, the other half to a ship captain who once again saved his tail.
He sailed to the Kawanii lands and halfway there he found the note stashed carefully in his armor.
All it said was, "Thanks for taking the fall."
Angrily he threw it away and stripped his heavier armor pieces until only some leather straps were left.
Finally he landed in the Kawanii lands and has started plying his trade as a hired sword. Mercenary these people called it.
He took jobs here and there but nothing ever made him stay long after each job was completed. He didn't care for anything, food had no taste, life was dull and depressing. At least it was until he met Michiko...
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Posted: Fri Dec 25, 2015 6:28 am
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Posted: Fri Dec 25, 2015 6:32 am
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Posted: Fri Dec 25, 2015 6:36 am
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Posted: Fri Dec 25, 2015 6:37 am
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Posted: Fri Dec 25, 2015 6:39 am
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Posted: Fri Dec 25, 2015 6:40 am
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Posted: Fri Dec 25, 2015 6:49 am
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Posted: Fri Dec 25, 2015 6:50 am
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Posted: Fri Dec 25, 2015 6:51 am
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