{"id":1713,"date":"2014-07-15T20:54:12","date_gmt":"2014-07-15T10:54:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.olympusrpg.org\/?p=1713"},"modified":"2014-07-15T20:54:12","modified_gmt":"2014-07-15T10:54:12","slug":"remembrance-part-ii","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.olympusrpg.org\/?p=1713","title":{"rendered":"Remembrance – Part II"},"content":{"rendered":"

So much for the element of surprise.\"bloody_dagger\"<\/em><\/p>\n

Merasi\u00ebl ducked around one of the compound guards, tumbling past his sword to seek the cover of a nearby column. She paused once there, remaining just out of view of the templar and his bowman. The horrible events from outside the manor a few minutes ago had been a painful reminder that the shadows, not the open battlefields, were her home. It was easy to forget this when fighting beside Rainald and Gabriel. The pair simply waded into the fray, comfortable in the knowledge of their own skill, or at least, the skill of Mendel to get them back on their feet should things go badly. She didn\u2019t remain where she was for long; her target would soon reload his crossbow and she needed to remove him from play before another feathered bolt struck down another of her companions.<\/p>\n

A quick sprint to the safety of another column left her within attacking distance and still out of view. She slipped from the shadows and stepped behind the bowman, placed her blade on his jugular and sliced neatly across. While the cut was not deep enough to kill, her distraction proved a success; no more bolts would fire from his crossbow this night.<\/p>\n

As the battle raged on, she noticed out of the corner of her eye that Gabriel had forced the Templar to retreat to a position that was close, leaving his unarmored head within her reach. It would be so easy<\/em>, she thought, but dare I risk turning my back to my other enemy?<\/em> When a brief vision of her unconscious form lying on the floor bleeding out passed before her eyes, she buried the thought deep within and turned away from the injured crossbowman. Two steps found her on the Templar\u2019s back, bracing one foot on his hip, her opposite knee in the small of his back and grasping his shoulder with her left hand. Blade met bone with a sickening crunch as she buried Angrist to the hilt in the back of his skull.<\/p>\n

As the Templar fell to the ground, Angrist slid out easily, and words floated to her ears through the red haze of battle.<\/p>\n

\u201cMarry me.\u201d<\/p>\n

It took a moment for them to register, and she simply stared at the man in white that now faced her, blood and brain matter decorating the stone floor beside her feet. Is he\u2026serious? Did he really just ask me to marry him in the middle of an enemy compound after I opened a hole in someone\u2019s skull?<\/em> Sounds of the continuing battle going on around her threatened to capture her attention, and she masked her confusion within a scowl and curt answer before turning away.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gabriel\u2019s grin in response to her rejection did little to ease her mind.<\/p>\n

\n

\u201cLady Misthal, you enchant me. Thank you.\u201d\"beckinsdale2\"<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Merasi\u00ebl smiled as Edward lifted one of her hands to his lips, brushing her knuckles with a kiss. \u201cWhatever for?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cFor coming to my rescue, of course! All of the insufferable noblemen, their wives, their,\u201d Edward grimaced, \u201cdaughters. This feast is supposed to be a joyous occasion\u2026celebrating my glorious return from Megalos. But I must confess, I did not feel like celebrating. Not until I met you.\u201d He paused for a moment, staring at Merasi\u00ebl\u2019s reflection in the rippling water of the fountain beside them. \u201cStay with me.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cLord Edward?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cStay. Please. Call it the magic of the Elves, call it an impulsive boyish fantasy, but you truly have placed a spell on me. We\u2019ll have a room prepared, and before you answer, I must tell you that will not take \u2018no\u2019 for an answer.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Merasi\u00ebl lifted a hand, gently caressing his jawline, \u201cSo sudden\u2026\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cI will beg if I must.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cYes. I will stay with you.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Edward\u2019s enthusiastic grin in response to her affirmation did little to ease her mind.<\/em><\/p>\n

\n

Hyrnan, August 2013 ce, Estate of Lord Bonet<\/p>\n

Two months.<\/p>\n

Two long, painful, boring months of idleness had been spent playing the part of the \u201cLady Misthal from the Great Forest\u201d and Merasi\u00ebl\u2019s already miniscule amount of patience was nearly gone. For his part, Lord Tereus had been correct in his belief that insinuating herself into the comings and goings of the household would be easy. Lord Edward had been sent away to court at a young age, and while he was there he developed quite a fascination for elves. Merasi\u00ebl had but to appear at the feast celebrating his return that evening with her ears on display and the young Lord had been hers. She had been welcomed into the household that night, and subsequently his arms within the week. From there, gathering information about Edward\u2019s father had proved to be more difficult than she expected. Edward was\u2026persistent with his attentions and she had very little time alone. If Edward himself had known anything of his father\u2019s dealings, he kept silent on the matter. She had gathered what information she could and waited for further instructions.<\/p>\n

She occasionally received word from Tereus, usually in the form of cleverly coded messages hidden within deliveries. Merasi\u00ebl had responded to each; delivering what information she had learned since the last contact on the comings and goings of the elder Lord Bonet as well as some of his allies, but Tereus was still not satisfied. Lord Bonet kept his darkest secrets close.<\/p>\n

Until the day that the elder Lord announced a visit to the Megalan capital. And, Merasi\u00ebl was happy to hear, the younger Lord Edward would be joining him.<\/p>\n

\u201cLady Misthal, Lord Bonet has summoned you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Merasi\u00ebl thanked the servant and adjusted her dress, expecting to once again spend the morning listening to Edward tell tales of court and recite horrible Megalan poetry. To her surprise, when she arrived at Edward\u2019s suite, it was the Elder Lord Bonet waiting for her, and not Edward.<\/p>\n

\u201cLord Bonet, this is a surprise. I hadn\u2019t\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEnough,\u201d he cut her off mid-sentence. \u201cI know what you are up to.\u201d<\/p>\n

Merasi\u00ebl swallowed. He couldn\u2019t know,<\/em> she thought. I\u2019ve been too careful. Too conservative.<\/em> \u201cI don\u2019t understand, milord.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe speaks of you near constantly to me, telling me the most fantastic tales. A strange, beautiful, wandering elf, from a destroyed homeland far to the west. One who happens to appear in my home the very day my son returns and bewitches him. He announced his intentions at breakfast this morning to propose to you.\u201d His voice hardened, the lines on his face deepening along with his scowl. \u201cI had heard news that elves had near taken over Harkwood and were insinuating themselves into noble bloodlines there, but I hadn\u2019t expected their reach to go this far.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMilord, I swear to you, I had\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cENOUGH!\u201d he bellowed. \u201cNot here. Not in my home. And not in my city. Your\u2026kind is responsible for that abominable Blackwood. And I will not have your kind ruining Hyrnan as well!\u201d He pointed a finger in her direction. \u201cNow, I leave on a ship bound for Megalos on the morrow. Edward will be going with me and when we return, he will have a proper wife. I want you gone from my household within the week. Do you understand?\u201d<\/p>\n

Merasi\u00ebl buried her smirk of satisfaction behind a deep curtsey and forced her voice to be as trite as she could possibly manage. \u201cYes, Lord Bonet.\u201d The door slammed after her as she was escorted from the room, but she barely heard it. Her mind was already a-whirl with plans.<\/p>\n

\n

Edward hadn\u2019t been allowed to speak to her of course. As the litter creaked its way down the drive early the next morning, Merasi\u00ebl risked one brief glance out the window, but thankfully the morning fog prevented any view of the occupants. She half expected him to come running back to the manor like a madman, professing his love, but as the morning drew on, the road remained silent and Merasi\u00ebl remained alone. The staff, under instruction from Lord Bonet, had abandoned her and she was forced to make do for herself for the day, dressing herself and getting her own food from the kitchen. She preferred it, as she did not like their constant attentiveness and it left her with plenty of time to think. She knew that the elder Lord Bonet kept at least one guard outside his personal offices at all times. But Merasi\u00ebl had her own way of getting places, and she had long since found her way to the roof.<\/p>\n

As day turned to night, the house grew gradually more still as the last of the staff finished their chores and retired. With Lord Bonet away, some tried to stay up a bit later than usual, and voices and laughter drifted up from the windows of the servants\u2019 quarters long after the rest of the household had gone to sleep. Nonetheless, there was still work to be done the next day and one by one, they all quietened down. When Merasi\u00ebl was sure the only ones awake would be the guard, she crept to the window and opened it. She had abandoned her dress this night, donning a pair of dark trousers and shirt she had stolen from the laundry when no one was looking. They were a bit baggy, and she had secured them as best she could with her belt. She slid her sheathed dagger on the belt almost as an afterthought. If all went well, violence would not be necessary. Pity<\/em>.<\/p>\n

The two months she had spent learning her way around the manor paid off. She scrambled to the roof, dislodging only a leaf or two of ivy in the process. She held her breath as one leaf drifted close to one of the guards, but he either did not notice, or chose to ignore it. Once on the roof, she paused to catch her breath. She was weakened after two months of living a life of idleness, and every muscle in her arms was complaining about the exertion. She gritted her teeth and pushed through the pain and grasped hold of the ivy on the opposite side of the house, this time to descend to the windows of Lord Bonet\u2019s third floor study.<\/p>\n

The window was unlocked. Merasi\u00ebl frowned as the hairs on the back of her neck prickled. This isn\u2019t right<\/em>, she thought. As worried as he is about his secrecy, this window should be locked<\/em>. Taking extra care to be quiet, she ignored the voice in her head telling her to leave and stepped into the dark room. Enough starlight filtered in from the windows that she could make out the locations of the furniture, and she she crept to the desk, and began her search. While she could see, the darkness caused her some difficulty in actually making out the details of what she was looking at, but she dared not light a candle.<\/p>\n

Wait<\/em>, she thought, squinting in the low light. Here it is.<\/em> She tilted the paper so that the starlight aided her vision. Yes. Every single one of them is named. What do these numbers mean out to the side?<\/em> She was so intent upon her study that she missed the sound of footfall approaching in the hall. The only warning she had was the shuffle of booted feet as the guard came to attention and the click of the lock turning.<\/p>\n

To be concluded in part III…<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

So much for the element of surprise. Merasi\u00ebl ducked around one of the compound guards, tumbling past his sword to seek the cover of a nearby column. She paused once there, remaining just out of view of the templar and his bowman. The horrible events from outside the manor a few minutes ago had been […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,20],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1713","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-banestorm","category-bs_pcs"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.olympusrpg.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1713","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.olympusrpg.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.olympusrpg.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.olympusrpg.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.olympusrpg.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1713"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/blog.olympusrpg.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1713\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1721,"href":"https:\/\/blog.olympusrpg.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1713\/revisions\/1721"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.olympusrpg.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1713"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.olympusrpg.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1713"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.olympusrpg.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1713"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}