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A knock could be heard upon the door to Menna's quarters, echoing through the guest room of the palace where she would sleep until the proper time. Swaying open gently with little creaking, the wooden door opened up to reveal who had come to meet with her during the supposed time of rest.

"Menna... I would like you to meet my father King Lucheston." Oban's voice appeared through muffled tones. His features along with a large portion of his torso were covered with bandages, so much so that he could wear nothing but pants else he would unravel them. It appeared as if the man had been prematurely mummified by one of the elfish kingdoms. Clearly he must have given great effort to escape the medical assistance and make his way to meet the young lady. Though he had not a single cut upon his body, the lord had been battered and crushed in numerous manners. Stepping aside, removing his broad form from the view, another man made his way into the chamber. As gloriously as he had appeared before hand the ruler of Garnoff made an impression as if it were the first time one had seen him. Though it was becoming late in the day the king showed no signs of fatigue, stress, or worry, and even managed to seem a glow with optimism. Finally as the Silver King stepped into the room, Skyron Sorrian removed himself from the halls and joined the rest of his family.

"May I have a word with you young lady?" He asked, his voice both comforting and humble.

The Silver King kept her eyes within his gaze as he nodded gently.

"Oban has informed me of your father's ignorance if you don't mind me putting it in such a manner. Though before your party arrived I have only just heard of the predicament, rather than the supposed solution you've discovered." Signalling to his sons to take a seat with a sway of his palm, the king of Garnoff settled into a nearby chair who's craft seemed suiting for royalty. "I believe this is a rather unfortunate turn of events. As you know I am a man of honor, and as the king of this city I cannot simply lie to my people. I must maintain that honor lest my people follow me further and become dishonorable themselves...." Lucheston stopped for a moment, allowing the message to sink in. Leaning onto his knees with his arms, the head of the city began to speak once more.

"But, as with a foolish child... sometimes a little white lie is what one requires to get something accomplished." A smirk arose upon the king's features as he spoke the words. "We will move forward with the ruse, and I will offer my full assistance." He confirmed, allowing the tension of the room to be at ease... or at least for the majority of the occupants. Skyron seemed to be holding back features of shock at the King's words. Ignoring this however, Lucheston Sorrian continued. "You and Skyron will be wed by my maid servant Ms. Elle, with whom I'm sure you are familiar. She is no priest, thus the marriage will be forfeit. Upon the hour which the sun sets, you and Oban will be wed. I cannot assure you it will be as glamorous but it will be far more meaningful with a true priest standing at the altar." Lucheston finished his description of the planned order, though he did not inform them of his plans for maintaining the ruse after the union. For now he let the others focus upon the marriage, the most tricky portion of their activities.

"Is this suiting for you my lady?" The King asked at last, doing something which few kings in their lifetime had by asking the preference of another.

Oban nodded as Menna told of his words to the king himself, and Lucheston seemed to sit up straighter than before, if it were possible, as she spoke of the people of Garnoff. Unfortunately the features upon the Silver lord's face were unmoving, unresponsive, as if he knew the answer to her question long before she had uttered her words. Taking a short look out to the city through Menna's window, gazing past the layered curtains, a few moments passed as Lucheston found the proper manner to explain the situation.

"I'm sorry my lady, but though the people may lie for me, they may not lie for Oban. Many have only ever seen my son, and have yet to hear their heir's voice. It is understandable by this that the people favor Skyron. To get what they desire, the people may turn against Oban to place their choice of royalty upon the throne as they had when this land was ruled by a warlord, and he was replaced with myself." The king shook his head, his gaze falling as he seemed to become disappointed with his own citizens. and their foolery. "No, only the soldiers shall accompany us to the wedding, along with the servants of our grand house hold. They have earned their right to be welcome to the ceremony with their services, and have also acknowledged the truth of Oban's leadership."

Skyron began to scratch his arm, though in truth there was no itch to be had upon it. It also may have been peculiar for those who witnessed the motion, as they would have noticed the arm guard rendering the action useless. The room though cozy seemed overwhelmingly so to him, and disturbed the prince further. As Menna spoke of the elemental however, his attention was captured, distracting him for the moment from that which ales him.

"No it was not my son who brought the matter to me first for he does not ask often for praise truthfully I have yet to here him ask at all. Rather it was the Silver Knights which both your efforts saved who came to present me with the news." Even one who had never met the king could tell now that he was filled with tremendous pride. Slaying an elemental of earth was a thing of legends, often only read by scroll or perhaps an old rotting book who's pages fell apart at the touch. Only Oban and Gallion had lived to slay an elemental and remained alive to this day, the heroes of the past having long since perished. "Your efforts were bold indeed, and that bravery will serve you well as queen of Garnoff." Lucheston smiled stating clearly that his mind was made up, certain that where he sat was indeed across from his daughter in law to be. "You carried the beast's attention to yourself, performing dangerous and exhausting amounts of transformations to gather it's gaze. This allowed for many of my men to flee to safety, and you performed this act even after witnessing the creature swallowing men who must have held years of experience beyond your own upon the field of battle." Even speaking of this young woman who had not yet become a citizen of Garnoff, the Silver king glowed with every utterance of her courage. "And Oban, riding the monstrosity like a wild stallion, cleaving it's arm away, striking it's embedded emerald head, and even delivering the final mortal blow. Word of his skill and heroics have spread across the lands already, and I heard the praise of a squire singing of an arm breaching the crest of the hill just as we walked this way. They are calling him the Titan of Garnoff" Lucheston was truly impressed, though even he knew that he must have been speaking excessively upon the subject. Many had been lifted in spirits as he was told of how his son dove into the depths of the creature to save the fallen lady, but there were other matters at hand to deal with.

Menna spoke then of the possible plot, something which surprised no man in the room, clearly as none seemed to flinch in shock. It was as if a maid had spoken of a naughty child to the parents. The only difference remained a significant amount of intellect, and an empire carved from the land with steal. Scratching at his thin yet well groomed beard, the king began to speak once more.

"You are very brave, taking sides with your assumed foe even with the possibility that you could have been executed as our enemy in war." The statement was grim, but held great truth, and Lucheston was not yet finished there. "To inform me of this gives you my greatest of trust, to betray your own for the sake of those you have perhaps come to believe serve the better of morality. To not only risk such a fate that could befall you, but to do so for the sake of others....I believe we shall get along quite well young queen of Garnoff." He finished, laying a hand upon her shoulder as a sign of trust and fully acknowledging her future rule. "This news however is still not surprising to me however. I knew from the moment that the proposition was made that Doko had intended to make Garnoff his own. Why else would a conquering tyrant come to our door and ask for a peaceful alliance. He fears our great numbers and the power of our holy ground." The king completed his end of the conversation. Though he was curious as to whether or not the young woman would hold any remaining question.

"If we are finished here, I believe that the majority of us are tired from journey...and that the remainder are tired from dealing with the exhausted. Yawning...quite contagious really." Lucheston smiled.

Menna did her best not to look at Oban as Lucheston spoke about the people's opinion of him. She knew it herself, had seen it with his own mother, but she never guessed it was so widely spread. Why had he never spoken to the people? "But the soldiers support him." That she'd known from the first time she'd heard the prince interacting with the Silver Knights.

Menna did notice Skyron's movements. He was Lucheston's son and Oban's brother. And perhaps that should have made any thought of betrayal the furthest thing from her mind. But she knew how easily one could betray family when power was at stake. But she didn't know how badly Skyron wanted the power.

She was surprised that Oban had said nothing to his father about the entire situation. Not that he looked for praise from anyone, but he was very open and truthful. She nodded vaguely, but didn't respond to anything Lucheston said. It was shocking how easily Lucheston talked about her being the queen of Garnoff. Oban couldn't have been much more comfortable as the king continued, expunging on the tales people were telling of him. Perhaps it would be enough to raise the people's view of him if they knew he was one of the only ones to slay an elemental and survive.

Menna didn't expect much in the way of response, but she was pleasantly surprised that the king could keep his calm. She could only imagine her own father's anger and ire at the news of someone trying to undermine him. "I suppose my father would see me as an enemy of war." She mused quietly. She didn't dwell long on what her father would do to her if he discovered the plot. "He was also hoping to find a weak leader." She continued. "So in that, I believe we find the upper hand." She nodded when he spoke of being tired. "I think a rest is in order." She said with a small smile. She stood, feeling the urge to yawn herself. "After all, we have a long day of plotting tomorrow."

Menna was ladylike enough to give a curtsy before Lucheston left. Oban stayed longer. She thought he was going to say something, but only bowed and left. She stared at the door for a long moment before turning and changing into her nightgown. Her ladies-in-waiting had stayed back at Dokoro. Had she insisted on them coming, they probably would have. But she wasn't specifically attached to any of them. She was hoping to find someone more suitable to fill the position.

As if on cue, there was a knock on the door. "Your Highness?" A timid voice came through. Menna opened the door to reveal a nervous looking Elle. "Someone mentioned that you had no one to wait on you." Menna guessed she was told by that "someone" that she needed to be the one to to do the waiting. "Oh, it's alright." She assured the shy girl. But she didn't walk away. Menna bit her lip thoughtfully. "Well, I suppose I could use some help with my hair." Elle gave a small grateful smile and slipped inside. She easily grabbed a brush as Menna sat in the chair. As she brushed, Menna decided to broach the subject.

"How do you feel about the princes?" Elle's hand paused for a long moment. "Nothing will be voices past these walls." After another long pause the brush continued moving. "Skyron is the handsome one to be sure. But he isn't...terribly brave. I hear the way the knights talk about him." Menna listened intently. It wasn't anything she didn't already know. But it was nice to know that someone else knew it as well. "Oban...I was surprised to see him named heir. He is not as well liked in general. But the soldiers like him well enough." Menna spoke up as she fell silent. "And how do you feel about him?" The brushing continued in silence. "I do not know much about him. He's quiet, but brave. He'll make a good enough king, I suppose." It was exactly what Menna wanted to hear. She turned around in the seat, smiling. "I have a proposition for you."

Elle was surprised to hear about the entire situation, but when Menna asked her to come along, she agreed easily enough. "Thank you." Menna said with a relieved grin. "It would be sad to be a bride without a maid of honor." And Oban would already have the Silver Knights there to support him. Afterwards Elle left and Menna climbed in bed. She felt better about the entire situation and fell asleep shortly after.

The broad wooden door to the guest chambers began to open wide, swinging in a slow but steady arch as it revealed a guest into the chambers of the young bride to be. Standing before the hallway was a small woman, a maid who had yet to perform her duties that day and who seemed to be taking care of them in the late hours of night. She was slender, yet short, with flowing blonde hair. Her form seemed frail and weak, though they carried loads appearing twice her size for the laundry of the castle many days a week. Her duties were often taken care of swiftly and without complaint, yet for now they had gone without attention...and perhaps would continue to do so.

The maid did not gasp upon spying the intruder, did not call for help when witnessing the present man, but rather simply scowled. Dropping the basket which carried dusting supplies and the sort, the lady simply took a few steps forward before speaking.

"You have your eyes on the wrong prize my friend." A voice far too deep and masculine approached the intruder from the servant. "You see, I have often come to give mid-night lessons to my student..." The voice continued sounding cold and calm as it echoed throughout the quarters. The frail frame of the woman began to shift and alter, expanding in both height and width as the muscle mass of the body appeared to increase drastically. A few crackling of bones adjusting to the new volume of the new anatomy. "And this night is the first of which the young pup has been without a master... to call herself an ally of mediocre skills at the least." The maid gown tore away, dark clothing began to reveal itself, as it seemed ribs from this woman fell away to hanging cloth, skin appearing to take form of cloth as the being's form continued to change.

"Good thief, murderer, whatever low class crime you so chose with high class skill to come this far, you are interrupting that meeting." Rokan Tartanius stood glaring at the intruder, the image of intimidation in the form of the north western hemisphere's most deadly of assassins. "It is impolite to interrupt." He spat.

Menna heard a "thud" sound, but in her grogginess she didn't pay any attention to it. She was tired and in desperate need of energy for the next day. But then the door opened and she was forced to sit up. She was surprised to find not one, but two people in her room. A shadowy looking man and a small maid that... wasn't a maid. Her heart starting beating faster as Rokan took shape in her room. Again? Her father hadn't ordered this. He was here for his own reasons. And she wasn't sure what those were.

Both men were busy staring each other down to pay much attention to her. She frowned at Rokan's "mediocre talent" comment, but she said nothing. The other man left as suddenly as he appeared, leaving behind a chilling comment. Someone was trying to kill Oban? Her first thought was Skyron. If Oban died he would be king by default. She pushed the thought away. There was time for that later.

"I'm not in the mood for another lesson." She said quietly. She'd never sassed back or even tried to stand up to him before. But things were getting too confusing for her to continue on blindly. "I know my father didn't send you last time. He was surprised to find I even knew how to change into Skyron." As connected as he was, he had to know what had happened that day. He probably assumed she was being reckless. "You're planning something and I want no part of it."