Sword and Sovereignty {IC} {M} {MidKnight & Hannelorian}

[MidKnight]

She looked at the knife that was thrown near her then turned her attention at Alienor. "Nice throw." She said as she placed the town on the handle. She listened to Alienor and smiled, "About time." She said as she walked over to the table and grabbed the cup of mead. "I wanted to see your angry side and from the looks of it, this is a glimpse of frustration and annoyance." She sat on the table and takes a drink. "So you wanna know who I am?"

"I was born in a Warrior Clan in my village. The families have considered the first born child to be taken in as Warriors." She sighs. "Not your average barbaric warrior with a huge axe and wearing bear skin, Warriors from my clan were trained to be Elite Soldiers. We were also the Guards for our Lord but we do not heed their Officers commands. Our orders come from the Daimyo. Once we are fully trained and filled with knowledge, we begin our path to a Warrior's Death."

She sighs as she takes in another drink, the warm liquid helped with her tale.

"It means we stay as Elite Guards until we met our fates or the day we die. There has been no elder Warrior though if there is, they are either released from their duties due to their age or from their serious injuries. When the time for war comes, we answer the call and fight off Invaders. At that point, we learn lots of ways to kill a man. Where to stab, slice, maim. Their armor gave them a chance but after learning their weakness, it became very easy."

She reached for the chicken and a bread with cheese, making a small sandwich and takes a bite and drinks her mead once more.

"The men we served with were nothing but recruits or volunteers for the army, a job that pays to kill people...my clan does it for free."

She finished drinking her mead and her meal. She relaxes into the chair and sighs softly. "So to answer your question...that's who I am." She smiled. "A Sword....that has no problem killing people...unless they threaten to kill me first." She looked out the window and sees the group of bandits leaving the tavern, they must have had their fill of drinks and food.

[Hannelorian]

Alienor stood away from the windows, careful to be sure to remain unseen. "Was that so had?" The Princess asked in a softer, less angry tone. It seemed that at least having an answer did something to ease the anger and frustration that had been bursting at the seams. "An elite warrior. Well. That explains a lot." Alienor sighed heavily and moved then to sit upon the bed that been designated as hers. She pulled her legs slowly up and onto the soft structure.

"So then... are just waiting for the war to come to the land of your Masters... your Lord and Daimyo?" Alienor did not ask in a condescending or sarcastic way as she may have previously. Instead her voice remained soft, calm, genuinely curious. "To be called up into action? Why do you wander the face of the earth in solitude? It seems... so lonely." Alienor allowed herself to fall back on to the bed.

"I suppose some people prefer to be alone..." Alienor propped herself up upon her elbows and looked out over the room to her companion. "I can't say what you must think of me. Of my life. Perhaps there is judgment there. You wouldn't be wrong. No one needs to pity a Princess." She could have laughed, but she didn't, the thought was sad but full of unyielding irony. "You might just be more honorable than I have given you credit for. Might." That was arguably the closest thing to a compliment Alienor had to provide at this moment.

Her eyes fell upon her drink and slowly she roused herself to take it back into her hands and consume the remainder of it. It was a rather sweet embrace. Perhaps something of a relief after a long day, though the bath had done her some good. "It's better when we tell the truth, at least to one another for as long as we're on this journey together."

[MidKnight]

'All I have left...is my honor.' She thought to herself as she kept her eyes on Alienor while she was speaking. She wanted to answer the question she asked, was there another war for her to come? To be called upon back into action? She was hesitant to answer because there was none to be said, for her to hear anyways. The real answer lies within herself and only hers.

"Please have another round!" The young lord said as he raised his cup, drinking a large amount like the others. Rei and her fellow soldiers smiled and laughed as they drank for their mugs, enjoying the night's event. Music continued to play in the background and more soldiers entered the Tavern. Rei noticed the soldiers were the regular soldiers from the army and sat on the other side of the Tavern. The young lord noticed this as well.

"Is something wrong?" He asked, looking at the others.

Rei spoke as she wiped her chin. "They are regular soldiers for your father's army...they don't drink with us because of our statues, we are different."

"I thought being soldiers were the same?" He asked.

"No, they are paid to be in the army, we were born in a clan and bred for war." She answered as she paid the serving girl for another mug. "When war calls, we answer the call."

The others chuckled and laughed, drinking and eating their fill, one Elite Guard raises his mug, "To the War!" then suddenly and mostly the Elite Guards raised their mugs, "War!!!" and cheered in joy.

"You all shut up?!" One of the soldiers on the other side yelled.

"What's that?" One Elite Guard stood up from his seat, Kazu, he was bigger in size and taller than others. "You telling us what to do pup?" Another Guard tried to grab his arm, dissuading him from causing a scene but instead, Kazu pulled his arm away.

"I said you all shut up?! You think you're better than us?!" The soldier gets up from his seat as well.

Rei looked at the young lord, "My Lord, best you take a seat over here, you don't wanna get tangled in this mess, Kazu has a history of making things...messy." She smiled as she watched the action and drinking her mead.

Kazu and the soldiers started arguing which caused the other regular soldiers to stand up, the Elite Guards watched as Kazu was facing at least five regular soldiers on his own. The regular soldier attempted to punch Kazu in the face, whom dodged the punched and gave one of his own to his stomach along with a knee strike after. Then he strikes two more in the face before they tried to act on their own accord. Another tackled Kazu's waist but it was pointless as he was picked up and throw across the room like a rag doll.

The soldier lands on another Elite Guards table, causing their drinks and food to splash on their faces and uniform. The Guards grew angry and started fighting the regular soldiers. Soon the entire tavern was in a full fighting brawl. Rei was laughing as she watched the fight happen, grabbing the young Lord and pulling him away. "Time to go My Lord." She said.

Rei sighs softly and gets up, she walked over to Alienor and reached for her hand. "Here." She said as she placed the necklace she bought from the vendor. "Put the diamond in this for an emergency only." She showed her how to open the necklace, revealing the small compartment. "It's easy to tell the truth, but what can lie also helps in a long run." She said before walking over to her bed, "Please, get some rest...we have a long ride tomorrow and we have supplies to gather first, horses to buy and maybe some fresh clothes as well." She looked at the number of gems she had, "We can still get a quite amount of the rest of these, I'll visit the Jewelry Shop first thing in the morning." She laid on the bed with her hands behind her head, thinking of a quick way to get to the Celestial Empire.

[Hannelorian]

The Princess sighed softly and crawled into the bed that had been designated as her own. It was a pleasant change from the hard ground of the night before. The events of the days had finally caught up to her, and she found herself swiftly caught in the world of her dreams. But dreams were seldom the relief they could have been, or had been promised. It was filled with nightmares of the dead, of the cruelty she had witnessed, of the murder, the tremendous grief that accompanied the loss of her own people.

--

The Royal Palace in Drepei, the Dream City, Capitol of the Meridian Kingdom, affectionately known by the citizens as Palais des Montagnes, or Palace of the Mountains given it was built directly into the great and mighty cliffs of Etretat. The Palace stood as a testament to the ingenuity of the people of Meridian towering above the vast city beneath it. The enormous falls of Kjaerag and Mizen doting either side were breathtaking and a popular attraction to those visiting the city. Within those ancient and storied walls sat the Royal family, the beating heart of the Kingdom, a dynasty had ruled over her people for nearly eight hundred years. Those same walls were gilded with portraits of Kings and Queens, Princes and Princess, assorted other family members spanning those long generations. It was just as much a museum to the history of the great nation as it was a home and the center of courtly life.

The war with the Celestine Empire dragged on into it's fifth and most deadly year yet. For those who lived within the confines of the capital, one could hardly tell war was being waged at all. So protected were it's citizens. Though not all were immune from the heavy ramifications. The King and his advisers sat behind closed doors. Though for a moment that particular day they had briefly opened and Crown Prince Martinus had emerged quietly only to be confronted near immediately by the visage of his younger sister.

"You've been in there for over a day." Alienor, the eldest daughter stated rather short in her tone. "We are fighting a war sister." Martinus responded with a shrug of his shoulders, he paced before his sister, stretching his legs. "A war that isn't going well if you barely step foot outside father's study." She retorted and folded her arms. Staring at the great and heavy oak doors, Alienor approached them.

"You can't go in there." Martinus stated, almost commanding in his own way. A true Prince of Meridian he was turning out to be.

"Can't I?" Alienor turned back to face Martinus and only offered a wink before pulling the doors opened and slipping her way inside. Before her were her father and his most trusted generals. They stood around a large wooden table which was covered in maps, figurines representing assorted units and legions. All eyes turned their attention to the Princess. There were harried looks, angry looks, questioning looks.

"To what do I owe the pleasure?" King Eldric asked as she stared directly into his daughter's eyes, almost like he were boring into her very soul.

"I want to know how the war is going." Alienor stated rather plainly, but matter of fact. "It is not the business of young women to concern themselves with such." Her father replied, a reply which Alienor would have none of. "Are these not my people too? Are they not sacrifice their lives for me just as much as they are for you? For their countrymen?" Alienor asked as she approached the table, laying her fingertips down upon it's surface, eyes gazing over the various reports and materials. It was all grim from what little she could see.

"Do I not deserve to know? Simply because you feel my constitution is weak? I can assure it is anything but. I am a daughter of Meridian. An Archambeaux so you will tell me." Alienor demanded, and it was this very fire that his father loved and nurtured. A fire which he longed to resent but as of this moment, this was his daughter, and his daughter was demanding the truth. The truth she had every right to know. "Alright." Eldric lamented. "Let's read her in." Over the next few hours Alienor became fully aware of every initiative, the issues, the casualties on both sides. The war was taking it's toll on everyone and there was no end in sight. A sad reality. One which informed Alienor's decision to simply go along with the arranged marriage, if it meant an end to the death, wasn't that something?

--

Alienor hardly slept that night. But that was nothing new to her. She hadn't slept well since she was finally made to understand the harsh realities of her world, of war, of the death literally surrounding her. Alienor had a tremendous responsibility, she was quite literally the vessel for peace.

[MidKnight]

Rei was awake and away from her bed. She was looking at a mirror, staring at her own reflection as she was braiding her long hair. She made a neatly tightly braided ponytail and dressed in her new clothes. She quietly walked out of the room and gently locks the door. While making her way to the main bar area, she noticed the bartender she met last night was cleaning the tables.

"G'mornin! Breakfast will be served shortly, do you prefer to dine in here or your room?" He asked while placing a chair down.

"In the room please, but my friend is asleep and the room is locked."

The bartender chuckled. "No worries, I have a specialist myself for occasions like that." He looked at a young girl who was carrying a tray of empty plates and cups. It was odd, Rei noticed everyone in the bar last night except her. Though she admit, she was tiny and impossible to see in such a large crowd.

"Your daughter?" Rei asked curiously as she watched the young girl.

The bartender gives a slight discomfort look on his face. "Orphan." He said while giving a heavy sigh. "Damn war took her father, then her mother couldn't bare losing her love so she followed his footsteps shortly. We found her in the woods a mile out, thought she left on her own accord but...we never thought of something like that." He placed the rag over his shoulder while resting his hands in his pocket. "So I took her in and gave her a job, she's earning her keep and I'll be damn sure she'll be in good health." The bartender smiled as she noticed the young girl walking over to Rei with a cup in her hands. "Would you like something to drink?" She asked holding the cup up.

Rei took the cup and gives a taste and smiled. "Orange juice." She said softly, she looked at the young girl and smiled once more before giving the girl a silver coin she had kept hidden.

She started her business with the jewelry shop, it took her a while to find the shop but the owner appeared a bit eccentric and weird. She managed to sell most of the gemstones for a hefty amount of coin. Then made her way to the stable where she had a hard time bargaining with the horse master but eventually made a deal and settled with a chestnut colored horse and an albino horse. She made her way back to the tavern until she saw a group of bandits standing in the square area of the town. She looked around to see a large number of men armed to the teeth.

"Tell us what you know old man...who walked through here in the past few days?" A tall man wearing a armored helmet, chest plate and greaves, he had shoulder armor and braces covering his forearms, shin and knees were covered too except his feet. It looked like the armor he stole from wasn't his exact fit.

"Please!" The old man beg, most of the witness were townsfolk and only watched in horror as their leader was being beaten. "I don't know who you are talking about!" She could hear his fists pounding into the old man's body.

"A young woman with shiny brown hair, walking with another person. We know they came through here, I can feel it." The bandit leader looked disgruntled.

Rei felt her hand on her sword, bracing the handle and gives it a tight grip. She lets go of the horses reins and walked out to the open. There she slowly unsheathed her sword and walked up to a bandit who was rummaging through a vendors groceries. "Where's the meat?" He demanded.

Rei was close and suddenly the bandits' head was flying in the air. There was a sudden scream as the bandit fell to the ground. It caught the attention of the bandits as they watched the man die in a horrible way.

"I-I-I-I recognized that sword!!!!" Another bandit said as he had fear take over his body. "It's him!!!" He pointed.

Rei looked up to the leader as she gives a quick swift move, removing the blood from her sword as she sheathed it slowly.

The leader laughed, "Him?!" He questioned, "That's a woman you idiot!!! Kill her!!!"