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 Posted: Thu Aug 16, 2007 9:46 am
Two large carriages arrived to escort Freya and any whom she wished to take with her to the Goblin King's court. They were very large and spacious, obviously ment for more than just the Queen and her associates. Driving the carraiges were very nice looking golbins in decent attire. They were very poliete and helped wherever they could in getting the party going.
The carriages past large mountains, fields filled with grain, and pleasent forest glades. Soon the forest broke to the sea shore and the carriages raced along its edge towards a point where some rocks formed a natural peir of sorts. There, the carriages stopped and the goblins started rushing about. One walked over to the window and bowed to the warrioress.
"My Lady, I apologize for the halt but we must pick up another of King Jareth's guests. We were told to meet him here at this natural peir. Again, I apologize for the wait."
He went back to his duties of arrange the carriages in a way so that it would be easy to load any luggage and allow for the company from the sea to be greeted.
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Posted: Thu Aug 16, 2007 11:17 am
Freya raised an eyebrow but did not object. The Goblin king surely had his reasons. If they were not satisfactory she could always gut him later. She nodded to one of her Valkyries Who passed her a cloth with which she began to polish her battle axe.
"Jareth better have a good reason for this delay. Ah well I guess we aren't in any particular hurry"
She sat back in her seat. She always felt somehow more relaxed when she was holding some sort of weapon. There was something calming about a gleamingly sharp edge. The axe was a sort of artifact of the imperial throne. It had been passed down through generations of emperors and empresses. She kept it lethally sharp at all times. It was a very functional artifact.
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Posted: Thu Aug 16, 2007 11:32 am
As Freya polished her ax, the goblins got very excited as something large rose from the sea and made its way towards the pier. It was a large carriage made of a monsterous clam. It was decorated in all mannor of shells, coral, and gems of the ocean. At its helm was a merman with short white hair, his large powerful arms were steering the two strange steeds that pulled the clam carriage. The steeds looked like horses only they had fish tails and their manes were made of fins. One was dark blue, almost like a sapphire; while the other was a lovely shade of seaweed green.
Four other strange horses were on both sides of the carriage, rode by very strong looking warriors in armor and helms. Their weapons consisted of tridants, spears, and barbed nets. The horses were almost like wild creatures as they sped along the water, their neighs sounded more like whale calls but more violent and brash.
The carriage pulled up to the pier and the giant clam opened to reveal a rather young looking merman. His long tourquoise hair fell around him save for the end which was braided. Strange markings decorated his face and arms while his tail was a deep blue. He didn't wear much, as being in the water didn't allow for such heavy things as clothes. He was mostly wearing jewelry. Sitting next to him was another merman, though decidely older than the other. He had black hair and a white tail. As the two moved to get onto the pier, their tails slowly morphed into a pair of legs. And they weren't naked either, a waist wrap that hung to their knees formed with them. Their hands and toes were still webbed by they could walk around on dry land easily enough.
The elder merman turned to the younger with a look of concern, his voice deep and gutteral. "Are you sure about this sire? We could always send our apologizes to the Goblin King and go back home."
The young merman smiled gently at his cousin and nodded, his own voice speaking very softly and slightly infeminate. "Yes Gabriel, I think this will be good for our people. Now lets not keep the carriage waiting too long."
The group strode to the waiting carriages. Two of the guards would be joining the Emporer as well as his cousin the court mage. The goblins helped the young man and his cousin into one carriage while the guards rode the other one. The one whom had spoken to Freya eariler bowed to them both.
"Empress Freya, this is Emporer Manakel from the kingdom of Atlantis and his court mage Gabriel. Lord Manakel, this is Empress Freya, the ruler of Valhalla, and her loyal guard of Valkyries."
Wit the introductions out of the way, the carriages were off on their journey to the goblin kingdom.
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Posted: Thu Aug 16, 2007 12:27 pm
Freya looked the young ruler up and down. His escort had the appearance of fierce warriors but the king himself, although by no means weedy, did not look like a fighter. She wondered how so many kingdoms had come to be ruled by such unwarlike monarchs. She respected intellect but found it hard to work out how anyone could reach the throne by brains alone.
She was somewhat shocked when his tail appeared from the carriage and gradually morphed into a pair of legs. Her low helmet hid a certain amount of her shock but she could not conceal it entirely. She hoped she did not appear to be gawping but she had not come across any creatures such as this before. She considered her own skin, it was pale, well adapted to the cold clime of her country. But it did not allow her to swim well, she tended to wrinkle up.
Freya nodded to the young king
"Greetings emperor Manakel, lord Gabriel. I take it that you too are bound for the court of the Goblin King?"
She handed the cloth to her handmaiden and returned her axe to it's sheath. She didn't want to intimidate a fellow monarch. Well not without good reason anyway. She shifted up slightly as they entered the carriage, her armour clanked gently.
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Posted: Thu Aug 16, 2007 12:36 pm
The young monarch smiled gently at the woman and bowed as well as he could in the carriage. He seemed both a ruler and a child all at once as he reguarded the strange woman. It was rare for him to see female air breathers, mostly he had seen the male ones upon their ships. "Greetings Empress Freya. Yes, King Jareth came to my kingdom in search of a woman then invited me to join him in his kingdom for a time. Did he appear to you in the same mannor? Oh wait...my manners. Gabriel."
He turned to the black and white man next to him who nodded and took out a small box and handed it to his king. Manakel gentely held out the box for the Empress to take. "It is a custom to give a gift when meeting another monarch, I only hope you will like it. As I assume you are of the warrior class, I believe you might like this."
Inside the box was a shark tooth necklace. The shark teeth came from the fierce great white shark and gleamed meancingly in the light of the carriage.
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Posted: Fri Aug 17, 2007 8:53 am
Freya accepted the box and lifted the lid curiously. She had not received a gift in some time that could be fitted into a small box. If truth be told she had not received a gift that could not be used in butchering a small army. She lifted her helmet slightly the better to see the gift. It was a necklace but unlike those either worn by her people, who favoured bronze and gold, or by the people of other courts she had known whose ladies chose to make themselves appear more. It was made from teeth, no doubt, judging by their sharp points, taken from some great beast of the sea. The Atlantean had truly put some thought into his gift and she flashed a grateful grin at him.
"A noble and generous gift. Let it not be said that the empress of Valhalla is any less generous."
She too had come prepared. Although not knowing who she might meet upon arrival at the Goblin court she had surmised that gifts to other nobles would be deemed appropriate.
She gestured to one of her Valkyries who produced a box. Inside was a small dagger. The blade was of well polished steel and the hilt was horn inlaid with gold in swirling patterns that seemed almost to move.
"A gift I hope of equal worth. As you have no doubt gathered from our attire we are a warlike people. In my country a weapon is an indication of rank. Spears and axes are common but there are few of my people with the skill for making such blades as are required for swords and knives. Thus this is a gift to mark you out as a great leader."
She had some doubts as to how the young king would react to this gift for she knew that not all countries relished the battle as did her people. It could be that by presenting a weapon to this seemingly gentle young man she would somehow offend him.
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Posted: Fri Aug 17, 2007 9:45 am
"I am glad you like it my lady. I was unsure of many gifts as we do not interact with the air breathers all that much. The beast who's teeth are upon that necklace is one of the most feirce animals of our kingdom, the great white shark. Gabriel, show it to her as so few have seen it and lived."
The older merman smirked at his Emperor's eagerness to display the wonders of their kingdom. The mage formed a ball of magic in his hands and slow expanded it to seem like a mirror. In the mirror of magic the great sea beast could be seen swiming about and attacking a seal. Once all were done looking at the beast he closed the seeing mirror and settled back down. When the woman offered him a gift in return he was greatly surprised and delighted. The young merman took the gift with great joy, he loved presents no matter what they were. He examined the blade carefully, as blades were not as common in his land either. His face was full of wonder and happiness. The presentation of a weapon was not uncommon, he gave many himself to some of his most trusted guards.
"Ah, a very lovely gift Empress Freya. Like you blades are not common in my land as they do little underwater. The spear and trident are the most common weapons. Gold is known to my people, but this steel has long been forgotten in my land. It does tarnish so underwater and we have no real forge to create it. I will see that Gabriel puts a magic coat upon it so it will retain its luster when I return home."
He gave the dagger to Gabriel whom stored it away with their things. The young man looked at the other woman rather curiously until his mage reminded him it was rude to stare. He blushed, or at least what a merman could do to blush.
"I apologize my Lady, it is just so amazing to see so many female air breathers. Tell me, what is your kingdom like? We might as well learn of each other as we ride."
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Posted: Fri Aug 17, 2007 3:03 pm
Freya cocked her head. The young ruler had not had much contact then with land dwellers. Of course until this meeting she had barely even been aware that there were creatures dwelling below the sea.
She nodded
"It is always wise to know as much about one's neighbours as one can."
She took a moment to consider
"My people, for the most part, warriors. Naturally it is necessary that some should become farmers, smiths, and other such functional occupations but the warriors path is considered the most noble. In my country it is the strongest who earn the greatest respect, although a keen mind is also required to become a leader, I would not want you to mistake us for being a nation of savage brutes."
She smiled a little smile
"Our children are trained in the arts of warfare from the moment they can speak. They are taught fighting skills as well as tactics. Those that excel go on to train as warriors, those with lesser aptitude are trained for other tasks. It is a just system, no matter what your situation at birth you will be given the same opportunities as others."
"In times, now fortunately past, when we were constantly at war to protect our homes and territories we were renowned for our skills in battle. In these more enlightened days my warriors are for hire as mercenaries and spend their days in training and competition. The name we earned as a savage and warlike nation is enough to keep those who would seek to dominate us at bay. That is not to say that should the need arise we could not easily repel invaders."
The smile shifted to a slightly dangerous grin then quickly returned to the sombre expression the empress customarily wore.
"I suppose that is all there is to say about my people although it barely does them justice. Pray speak about your own people. I long to learn about a kingdom that does not breathe the air and resides under water."
She leaned back slightly in her seat and placed her hands in her lap.
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Posted: Fri Aug 17, 2007 10:55 pm
Mana listened to the woman in awe. While she spoke of their fierceness he could tell it was merely for defence and protection. He did not see the senseless violence spoken of in the old stories. This woman seemed very proud of her people, not the violence. When she asked of his land, he smiled with a bit of a sad look.
"We did not always dwell beneath the sea. Once our kingdom was the gem of intelligence, peace, and innovation. But, from the stories that have been past down, our neighbors did not like our advances. They were jealous and hungered to take what we had created for themselves. Constant attacks, no mercy given to even the children, and finally being driven into our greatest fortress lead to our sinking. My ancestor sacrificed his life, thus enabling his children to use his raw magical essence to sink our land and people to the deepest of oceans and change our bodies to those of the fish. For his sacrifice, his children were crowned the rulers and his line has continued down through the ages. Each child destined to be emporer is gifted with magical abilities that set them apart from the others of the family. I am the newest emperor, and the youngest in many ages."
He seemed a little nervous about this, and with good reason. His kind could live up to 200 years old. He was only 19, a boy king in the eyes of his people. He would not be considered an adult until he was at least 40. This had been hotly debated, many wished to appoint a temporary ruler until such time as Mana achieved adulthood. But Mana would not let another rule in the place of his family. He would continue his father's line and be the greatest ruler of Atlantis that he could be. He put on a happy face and continued his description.
"In time we began to rebuild. It took some trial and error before we were able to conquer the way to build homes, collect food, and become a kingdom again. While we do have warriors, we call them guardians and keepers. For that is their job, to guard our city and to keep it safe from the dark hearts of those who would harm us. We have great herds of fish that we keep for meat. Large fields of seaweed we harvest for our grain needs. On small unknown islands that could not be of use to air breathers, we use the shoals to cultivate clams, muscles, and other mollesks for meat, their shells, and their pearls. And of course, you saw our beautiful steeds, the hippocampusi. Children are trained in schools and their heads filled with our great knowledge. They can read, write, and create beautiful stories or poems. Our homes are made of coral and bone. My castle itself is one of the largest structures and the oldest as it is said to be the original fortress that was sunk with Atlantis so many years ago."
He smiled brightly at the woman, hoping she enjoyed his description.
"I suppose that is all of my land. It would be a great honor for you to visit us one day. I dare say Azrael would love to meet with you. He is the Cheif Guardian of Atlantis, one of our strongest defenders. He was the one who killed the shark for your necklace."
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