+-Recent Topics ezBlock

What to do when your Microsoft Edge browser history disappears or is not saved by ElliottleK
March 14, 2024, 04:30:02 pm

How to Repair Windows System Files and Boot from USB with Error Code 0xc0000225 and No Input Devices by ElliottleK
March 12, 2024, 03:01:56 pm

How to Remove a Trojan:Win32/Malgent and Protect Your Data from Hackers by ElliottleK
February 28, 2024, 10:22:25 pm

Sandisk Nintendo Switch MicroSD Card: A Compatible and Convenient Option for Laptop Users by ElliottleK
February 27, 2024, 07:19:52 pm

Avoid tolerate radiodense itchy, costs. by ekucazunp
January 15, 2024, 05:31:08 pm

Golden Cage to Freedom in Shadows? by Ciaran
January 12, 2024, 10:01:58 am

Static Shock RP Info by Ciaran
December 26, 2023, 04:55:56 pm

Here We Go Again! by Ciaran
December 26, 2023, 12:31:52 pm

MOW Generation 2 Staff List by Ciaran
December 26, 2023, 12:08:03 pm

~:[Creatures Welcome]:~ by Demonreach
October 06, 2021, 10:49:30 pm

+-Staff List

Mistress

Athena

 Webmaster

Raijuta

Administrator

Maru

Forum Director

Lacy

Ambassador

Sho

Moderators

Kullan

Nobue

  Technician

Adam

Author Topic: Your Betrayal  (Read 286 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Offline Cei

  • Crestfallen
  • Newbie
  • Posts: 48
  • Gender: Male
  • Soul of the Lost, Withdrawn from its Vessel.

  • Badges: (View All)
    Level 6 Seventh year Anniversary Sixth year Anniversary
Re: Your Betrayal
« Reply #19 on: December 13, 2015, 01:27:37 am »
The sun began to set on the large collesium like city of Towa. The walls looked rustic and vast, unending to the eyes as banner after banner of red was thrown over the sides. Producing the sign of the king and the royal Shimofuri, its crest was a white crown surrounded by a bloodied red. As Aiko made her way through the gates, the guards did well to look and stare as she attracted attention. Someone really want to come here of all places, when this very city fell not three weeks ago? Yet, she dared to come forth and seek the throne as if she didn't know that very action was a beckoning for a deathwish. As she made her way into the throne room, no one was there to greet her but a young man that sat in a royal red chair at the back of the room, centered. The man with eyes closed rested his head on his left fist, slouching in his chair in a light slumber. His attire was that of a common elite soldier in the ranks of the Shimofuri legion.

 On his person laid a worn leather attire, covering his front in a vest like fashion. The top few of their ranks wore white from torso to toe, with one sleeve missing to expose their left arm and the Shimofuri brand tattooed into their skin. Feeling the slightest feint inhale of air in her lungs, the young mans eyes opened into a mesmorizing glare. He looked fair in looks on par with Cei, yet didn't look like the type to use deception but rather lacked a restraint on his honesty. "Who goes there?" Lifting his head off his fist, his bones **** from a long day of idle work to find a middle in his chair. "You now face Shiro, royal son of his lordship Haburi, King of the unyielding flame. Speak your case with your soul on the scales, or be cast to an eternity of darkness in the void." As Aiko approached uncertain of the fate of her choice, she plead her appeal and chose her words wisely. "A man named Cei has approached our Kingd-" "Cei?" "Y-yes, my lord."

 Shiro stood up, full of vigor and unbridled nerve. With an outstreched arm, his fingers **** and snaked around the handle of a sword that leaned against the throne. Dragging the sword with its large dull green boxed like sheath, he swug it widely into the air, turning it and having it land with a thud on his shoulder while the chain that seemed to bond the sheathe to the hilt of the sword. "Say no more, simply expose the rat and I will personally drive my blade through his weak, pathetic heart." Giving her a quick glance of raw, pure, murderous intent, he set his sights at the door. With a single gesture of his hand, he signalled both his horse and his men. Taking a big leap, he found himself upon his horse to take point. From what seemed like men waiting in ambush, came the slow emergance of one thousand men, armed in red and valor. "Someone get this woman a horse, I have passion not patience."

With hands that pressed deep into his eyes, Cei remembered every last scream. He sat, feeling more alone than ever in a dark room with nothing but his ambition. His heart grew heavy, knowing that on that day he personally found and murdered every soldier of his to spare the other men from having to fight them. Each life he took made his body feel a bit slower than previously before. The dark skies of this grave day called for tears, yet Cei couldn't find a single one, yet only felt more pained that he couldn't bring himself to cry for his men. Feeling the soft hand of her majesty on his back, he felt a bit more calm under the shade of her umbrella. No, everything was completely fine, there was no sense in worrying. Those men filled their cause, and died happily to further the cause and provide for their families. Cei picked himself up to sit right in his chair, briefly widening his eyes as Eri's hand briefly touched his neck, bare skin. He knew in his mind that he was supposed to panic and dread the raw emotion that was to come, however felt nothing in his heart but overwhleming calm.

"What power is this.." he spoke to himself as he looked to Eri, only seeing a sympathetic look as she dismissed herself from the funeral. At that very moment, he felt all those mixed emotions return. Anger, pain, grief. He was buried in it, but shoved it down into the form of a balled fist and took the moment to walk away from the steadily growing pity party of people around him. "This is becoming pathetic, I'm done with this shallow gathering." Moving on, he took to the castle, locking himself in his room for the rest of the day. Noticing the newspaper on the floor, he tilted his head in brief stupidity. "Oh yes, I forgot I ordered that of Juxe yesterday. Must've not have heard the door knocking in the bath." Taking the paper, he gave it a good read onceover and eventually passed out in his bed forgetting to eat."
"Whoever appeals to the law is either a fool, or a coward. Whoever cannot take care of themselves without that law is both. For a wounded man shall say to his assailant. 'If I live, I will kill you. If I die, you are forgiven. Such is the rule, of honor."

Spoiler (hover to show)

Colette

  • Guest
Re: Your Betrayal
« Reply #18 on: December 12, 2015, 04:24:41 am »
The day that started felt miraculously morose; the hushed towns, darkened attire, even the slightly grayer than normal sky seemed to mourn for this very day. Getting ready was a tough venture for Eri. On top of how much she didn't want to leave the make-believe comfort of her room, she had to prepare herself mentally, physically, and emotionally. Being tired from the running, tired from the sadness, and tired from the mounds of contact she'd had yesterday, Eri just felt painfully exhausted...but today was not the day to be selfish like she'd been for the past few months. Today was the day she'd mourn and respect the men who'd died for their Kingdom.

With the help of two servants, Eri was wrapped tightly in the ceremonial garb she'd worn for only one funeral before. Bounds of white fabric were wrapped around her from head to toe, a single hood covering the expertly twisted piles of blue hair that draped across her shoulders in chest in small, blue curls; however the insides of the white fabric were red in color and as she felt the hood gently pulled over her head, Eri remembered her mother explaining to her the reasoning behind the color choice.

"Eri, come here and listen to me for just a moment." She was young and vibrant at this time, just 9 years in age and watching her beautiful mother wearing a dress identical to hers. The bright of the white contrasted against the red made Eri's heart pound with excitement and she pulled and pulled at her mother's waist, begging to wear the same clothes only to silence as her mother spoke and looked upon her in a soft, morose manner. "Do you know why your father and I wear these colors today?" Dumbly, Eri had shook her head and her mother gently twirled her hair while looking into the mirror, perfecting her appearance. "A good ally of ours has died and we must honor his spirit. In death, there is no longer the need for our kingdom colors. The white signifies the purity of death, the essence of a spirit released from the world. The red signifies the blood they'd spilled for their lands and their people. This way, we are able to honor them for all they've done." As she'd been speaking, Eri's mother had risen and in her hands was a simple umbrella. The handle was worn and wooden, the umbrella top's interior was white and when her mother opened it over her shoulder, the inside was a brilliant red. Once it was opened, Eri felt a strange...peacefulness fill her and her once excited hands simply relaxed against her mother's hip while she looked up to the face lost beneath the shadow of the hood. "Today we mourn, but we also respect and celebrate the memory of those who passed. Remember Eri, death should never be viewed harshly..." With a small pat of her head, her mother left and with her so did the peace and calm.

Here she was, years later, same outfit and same umbrella in her hands unopened. The servants seemed satisfied enough with their work and they offered her a polite bow; one of the females gently held a hand forward as if to usher Eri forward, "Majesty, I believe it is time. They're all gathered and waiting." With nostalgia and sadness hanging heavy in her heart, Eri departed with the two servants trailing behind her as she made her way to the funeral.

When she arrived, the whispers became more hushed and she felt painfully self conscious. Again and again, she recited her words in her head, not wishing to butcher a speech that was meant to be respectable and comforting...but she could just feel the anxiety wrenching in her chest and it showed plainly on her face. Her pace stuttered briefly and she stood in front of the huddled masses of the mourning, all seats filled with the men, family  and staff that had worked and suffered for the cause they'd fought for the day prior. Slowly, she raised the umbrella they'd used only for these ceremonies, passed down through the generations of her family, and opened the item with a soft clack before setting it along her left shoulder. With the opening, Eri felt a sudden calm rush over her as if all of her worries drifted away and strangely enough, this feeling seemed to spread to all around her as well. Mourning faces shifted into relaxed ones, the weight of their worries strangely lifting and leaving them unable to feel them at all, even if they'd tried. The lightness in her chest let her breathe a little easier, the sadness of the passing in front of her too, drifted away, leaving in its place simply respect as she opened her mouth and released the typical ceremonial passing speech.

"Yesterday, the Perit Kingdom ascertained a surprising victory. Such a thing would not have been possible if it weren't for the lives of the good men we lost; both ours, and Cei's men will not be forgotten as we usher them into the next life with our care, our respect, and our sadness for their passing. Instead of simply mourning this day, we should also...rejoice. Our fallen men have prepared for us a greater future, a steadier peace, a way to keep our home rightfully as it is; ours. So tonight, I ask of all here mourning, that we remember these men at their best; valiant and steadfast soldiers that gave up everything to protect us and with that, we too should do our best to make sure we live for not just our sake, but their own. May the Perit Kingdom prosper from their sacrifices. Let us now have a few words from our Kingdom's priests to make sure they travel safely and soundly into the next life." As she ended her words with a small bow of her head, Eri took her place beside Cei and strangely enough, she felt no desire to distrust him today. Cei, too, had undoubtedly lost men and it seemed to weigh on him just as much as it did everyone else.  The best she could do in the moments of silence that followed was to gently and rather forwardly lay a hand on his shoulder in a strange attempt to comfort someone that just earlier she hadn't even trusted her men with.

The following procession was heavy and long, but it didn't feel as such to Eri as she traced the small ridges lining the handle of the umbrella she held. The marks into the wood were undoubtedly purposeful, but they felt strangely placed and none seemed to quite match the other from what she felt...almost as if they were letters of some kind, but the desire to figure it out was nonexistent. Eri just felt...calm. Subdued. It was only at the end of the procession, as the bodies of those men who'd returned home were taken away to be disposed of in whichever way the families and closest friends of the fallen preferred, that Eri closed the ceremonial umbrella and with it her soft worries and woes began to come back.

Withdrawing rather quickly, her fingers visibly tightened around the handle and she stood up with the two servants who'd helped her prior assisting her to her feet. Nervous and jumpy as all the negativity she'd just earlier thought no longer existed rushed back, Eri politely began to excuse herself as she hurriedly requested to retreat back within the walls of her castle. It was rude to not meet her people with the same respect and formality she'd shown those present at the funeral today, but the idea of being around more people suddenly drained her of energy. "I'd like to go back to my room now." Her servants, visibly disappointed despite having already suspected such an action, quietly objecting her decision to themselves while beginning to escort her away.  Inside the safety of her room, locked behind the broad, closed doors that were a familiar sight to all in the castle, Eri found herself crying quietly beneath the messy sheets she bundled around herself. She hated funerals more than anything.

Meanwhile, the Touwa Kingdom was just in the distance for Aiko. Her body was weary, her mind even more so, but the determination for the safety of both Perit and Eri was keeping her wide awake. The only times Aiko had even stopped in the day was to allow her horse some rest, but she was ruthless in making it continue forward and the mare was becoming unruly in its treatment; slowing down, refusing certain directions, sometimes kicking up all together. It didn't take too long for her to pause again and when she'd dismounted, the horse just up and ran off!! There was no way she was catching a racing steed on foot and she felt such wrath build up inside of her...thankfully, no one was around to see her spit her fiery words into the quiet air while she kicked her way along the pathway. Adding a few extra hours into her journey, Aiko's legs were screaming in pain by the time she made it to the city gates and it was a wonder she was even still walking. Looking rather haggard, she verified her papers at the gate and despite the edged looks she'd received from the guards at seeing her papers from Perit, they still let her by after checking her for anything smuggling related.

The city of Towa was tense, as she'd imagine it'd be, but it was the word in a very different sense. As far as affairs with Towa had gone between them and the Perit, they weren't exactly prosperous, not as much as Perit had been at least. Yet now, the people seemed well off. Streets were clean and she didn't see a single beggar in sight, but the people seemed visibly subdued. No superfluous chatter, no children having mindless fun, as a matter of fact...there was virtually no chatter at all. These people seemed so tense, worried, scared even. "So this is the kind of land ruled by the Shimofuri..." Her words were carefully muttered under her breath and Aiko spent barely any time finding the castle. With its strangely empty and exposed doors, Aiko found herself drowning in the disgusting air of unease that permeated from this place...but she'd already made it this far.

Approaching the throne room was a bold move and from what she could tell, it seemed that the leader of this area didn't care for guards and typically that only led to two things; this person either stupidly thought they didn't need them, or KNEW they didn't and the Shimofuri didn't make it this far by being stupid. Following the pathway that could simply lead nowhere else but someplace as major as the throne room, Aiko stood at the entrance of the large, opened doors and squinted to look towards the throne, clearing her throat and speaking in the tone she always wished she could use back in her kingdom. Strong, certain, albeit a little bit tired from her journey that'd led her this far. "Are you the leader of the Towa now? I possess some information that I believe Lord Haburi would enjoy and since you're closest, I imagined that you'd be the one to come to with it."

Offline Cei

  • Crestfallen
  • Newbie
  • Posts: 48
  • Gender: Male
  • Soul of the Lost, Withdrawn from its Vessel.

  • Badges: (View All)
    Level 6 Seventh year Anniversary Sixth year Anniversary
Re: Your Betrayal
« Reply #17 on: December 12, 2015, 03:07:05 am »
At the sight of the citizens wrapping around Cei, rushing fast to applaud the courageous soldiers. Cei felt the heavy burden of his sword bare down and make his back ache from its sinking weight. The skies themselves didn't look quite grey and dim as he thought it'd look for the massive omen he brought upon this kingdom. Looking across the masses that gathered to tend the weak, Eri came forth to stand out among the others in the most peculiar way. Not like a roaring fire in the dark, but rather an ember surrounded by freshly lit candles. She spoke her words kindly, as if she knew the burdens of formality well. "Please do not bow your head to me, my Queen." Cei bowed his head just a bit lower to show respect for superiors. Having sight of Juxe, the tired lord gave a smaller greeting bow out of kindness to the new maid who was much smaller than some of the other maids. "I'll see you at a more appropriate time then, Eri." Holding up a hand to give a slight farewell as he turned his back to her and headed towards the castle while she went to observe her soldiers.

"So Juxe was it?" Cei calmly refound his usual composure, easing his body a bit now the Queen wasn't before him. "Yes sir." She replied. "What do you think my chances are of becoming goof friends with her majesty?" Together the two took to the long staircase that a small portion of his men had still been guarding. Each step a bit nastier than the last, as Cei felt like he might've twisted his ankle crushing someones nose bridge not too long ago. "Hmm... I think everyone kind of just assumed you already knew her Majesty. Most wouldn't be so bold as to barge into another's kingdom and get a laz-" Juxe gasped and held onto her mouth with widened eyes as she tried not to even look at Cei. "My apologies, my apologies. And get a... um, unmotivated queen to open her doors and take such a proactive decision." Cei gave her a half fake smile and stopped as they got to the top of the staircase, sliding his long fingers around the curvatures of the brass door handle. "I'm glad. That about answers my question for me. Now don't tell any of the other servants okay?" With a clean tug of the door, he held it open for pint sized maid. "You're already my favorite servant here. That's for sure."

 Juxe without much to say to both the kind words and holding the door for a servant, she fluttered inside with a simple 'Thank you master Cei, very much." Pulling the door around him to a close, he held up a finger and called. "Oh yes, Juxe. Please send a report of local town news and activities to my room." "Of course Sir." With the two going their seperate ways, Cei made his way down the hall with his dirtied hand on the wall, only occasionally leaving a smudge or a bit of dried blood in his wake. The pain of his sprained joints and aching bones that screeched when rubbed together like a grinding machine without the slightest bit of oil. "This is becoming cumbersome." Two guards stationed at his door eventually saw the aching body and rushed to his aide.  Taking Cei with his arm over their head and their hands at his side, they managed to successfully get him sitting in bed. "Please my lord, it isn't too much to ask for help." The young lord looked up with bitter apathetic eyes. "I don't need help, I need prayer. Get out of my sight and ask our dead brothers if they need help walking to their rooms you swine in knights armor..." Becoming slowly more and more snappy from the recent involuntary contact of skin and clash of auras from the two men, Cei grew impatient. The soldiers immediately evacuated the room and were last heard skittering down the hall.

Drenched in blood, sweat, and dirt Cei directed his body forward with a quiet loathing of motion itself. Catching the edge of the white cast iron tub, he began to draw a bath, throwing whatever soaps he could find about the shelves into the mix. Bubbling and steaming hot Cei grew weary and pained just knowing how much the initial temperature would sting him. Peeling layer after layer of clothing from his skin, he felt an optimistic release of negative repressed energy pop out of his bones. Sliding into the tub he twitched spastically as his eyes clenched shut and his teeth gritted from the heat. This very intensity of hot steam that mugged the air felt like the very flames of the wood that burned off the houses he consecrated this morning. In a baptism of mixing energies, Cei tried to find his own natural aura and separate it from the others. All he could smell and breathe was the faint lingering energies of deceased innocence. Some he knew were his own men he had sent to the refiners fire. "****, **** all of this... Ugh, I need... Ne.." Cei shed two tears as pure suppressed raw emotion over took his senses with his insides screaming like his very body was rejecting his flesh. "Breathe..." He found peace as he looked down at his prayer beads, feeling unburdened once more fresh and renewed.  Humming to himself, he allowed himself to soak as he settled down, able to think on the morrow with collected wits. "Well, good thing I wear nothing but grey and black anyways." Stepping out of the bath, he said farewell to the two spirits that lingered there and took to bed.


The dawn has arrived. Brewing in a saddened state, Cei awoke feeling worn more so spiritually than his sorry physical state. Gathering his grey and black trimmed attire, he took his time to make sure each bit of cloth was tucked and straightened perfectly for the occasion. For once, he took his comb and straightened his hair out a bit so it wasnt so stray and unruly. Giving out one final sigh, he faced the long walk down the empty hallways and abandoned staircases. The quiet town gathered for the large funeral of several good men. Hearing gentle conversation, Cei found a comfortable spot and took his seat. Leaning forward he held his old relic in his hands and prayed into his hands with closed eyes.
"Whoever appeals to the law is either a fool, or a coward. Whoever cannot take care of themselves without that law is both. For a wounded man shall say to his assailant. 'If I live, I will kill you. If I die, you are forgiven. Such is the rule, of honor."

Spoiler (hover to show)

Colette

  • Guest
Re: Your Betrayal
« Reply #16 on: December 11, 2015, 02:32:09 am »
The day felt monochrome for her. Enjoyment was absent and in its place was her usual anxiety coupled with the deep ringing silence that slithered its way across her castle. Eri and her staff were all collectively holding their breaths as they waited to hear back from the brigade that went out earlier into the battle she could only imagine as perilous. Pacing, winding, not leaving her room besides peeking out over the open balcony outside her room's inner doors, Eri was a ball of tension and worry that refused to take care of itself. No eating, no resting, no enjoyment...she just wanted to hear back from her men.

Meanwhile, there was something deadly brewing within the silence of the castle walls. Down in the linen room of the castle bowels, Aiko was elbow deep in the scorching water that washed away at a strangely clean, soggy white dress. Her hands mindlessly moved, masterful at their work she'd done so many times before and she thought on how tragic it was to have to bring out Eri's funeral clothes once again. There was no doubt in Aiko's mind that some of their force today would fall and, as her parents had before her, Eri would be attending a mass funeral to thank and mourn over the men who bled for their kingdom...but the last thought was spiteful in Aiko's mind. Their kingdom, their men...and a stranger whose intentions filled her with rage when she thought on their vagueness. Aiko didn't trust Cei in the slightest and it wasn't just because of the way he got under her skin. The man simply reminded her of a snake and Aiko just wouldn't idly stand by and let Eri get bitten... Pulling out the white cloth and expertly hanging them to dry, she dried her own hands on her white apron and rolled down her sleeves, pushing aside her red bangs as she prepared for a split decision she'd just made.

With her hair messily blowing in the wind on her balcony, Eri was within her black dress from the day prior and she looked over the empty horizon, only occasionally offering a small and hesitant wave when a few by-passers noticed their rare Queen. Her lamentations and plaguing worries were only interrupted by the soft knock on her door, of which she picked the ends of her dress up for to hastily run and open the heavy wooden surface. "Any news? Are they okay yet? What of the forces they attacked?-Oh, Aiko. Ah...I'm sorry." Looking down in disappointment, Aiko could only sigh lightly internally before reminding Eri that apologizing to a servant wasn't very royal of her. To which Eri casually reminded her in her typical innocent, ignorant manner that "we're friends."

"Eri, I have some...sad news." Watching her Queen's expression fall was rather pitiful...Eri wore her emotions on her sleeve. "Not that kind of news, your Majesty. It's about my mother, she's gotten ill...it's very poor timing, but she sent me the news." Holding out the yellowed paper to Eri, who took it sheepishly without even opening it, Eri quickly apologized once again. "Oh Aiko...I'm sorry to hear. I know it must be very hard for you-" Eri was only cut off as Aiko quietly sighed, laying a sympathetic hand on Eri's shoulder with a playful, but melancholy smile on her face. "You only look away from me when you're either not paying attention, or lying, and you aren't the lying type. Majesty, I'm very sorry to be so forward with you, especially in a time like this when you're wracked with worry...but, I need to see my mother." With her ever sheepish expression still looking away, this time in slight guilt over being found out, Eri just nodded understandingly before looking up to meet the jade gaze of her most trusted friend. "You should go and see her. I'd hate to deprive you of seeing your mother..."

Their goodbyes were short and curt, but heartfelt as Eri escorted Aiko towards the entrance of the castle where Aiko pulled her aside to talk to her just a small bit more, this time her expression showing worry. "Eri, I have no reason to ask you this...especially as a servant, but try not to make any decisions until I get back, okay? I don't care how much that snak-man, our guest, pushes you to. Just...try and hold it off, alright? He's not in any power here, remember that, through and through you are our Queen." A little taken aback by the sincerity in her final words, Eri could only breathlessly nod at her friend's strangely firm belief in her and she briefly questioned what she could have done to deserve such devotion.

Seeing Aiko off as the sun slowly neared the horizon, Eri felt a sudden pang of loneliness once the doors closed again, truly leaving her with just her worries crawling along her back. Thankfully, it couldn't have been but a few hours later that the first cheers could be heard from the city and almost too hastily, Eri begged and pressed her staff to open the doors of the castle to welcome home a party she could only describe as victorious. For the first time in a while Eri felt...relieved, even if Cei was the leader of the front, but just seeing her men so revitalized and not dead filled her with happiness. Almost losing her cool, she was very quick to make even a personal appearance from within the castle, taking her first steps outside of the castle in what could have been months. "You...made it back!" Holding the ends of her large dress in hand, looking rather un-queenly with her messed hair and slightly wrinkled clothes, Eri smiled brightly at the site of such life and celebration. "You were victorious? How were my men? Did...any fall?" She hated to ruin the festivity with such a question, but she had to know...Yet she gave a quick and dismissive shake of her head at the question. "I apologize, that's not the question I should be asking right now. You all just arrived, I'll see to it that you're all taken care of now." With a quick usher of her hand, the staff was quick to burst in to action, ushering off the men past the grabbing desperation of her townsfolk and leading them to the castle's barracks where they'd be taken care of. Food, drink, sleep, wash; for her men and Cei's she'd provide them with the utmost comfort to thank them for what they'd done.

Eri alone approached Cei, a little disconcerted by the dried flecks of blood that were perfectly visible on his clothing, skin, and sword's scabbard. The fact he went in to battle himself was...daunting, but it wasn't polite to stare and she was slowly becoming aware that whether or not she liked it, battle was going to confront her soon enough. "You lead them into battle and more importantly, you lead them back. I am...thankful." Not entirely lying, Eri didn't entirely tell the truth either, she still had her immense doubts about Cei, but he did at least uphold his word and her men mostly made it back from what she could see. "On behalf of my people and I, I thank you." Per formality, she snapped back into her position and stood straight, hands politely folded in her lap while she gently bowed her head in a humble gesture of thanks. Rising her head once more, she actually confronted his gaze this time with the feeling of ease and relief still riding high in her mind, allowing her to be more free and relaxed than usual. "If you have any injuries or requests, I'll see to it that you're taken care of here just as well as I'd be. Aiko could you-I mean...um.." Suddenly she clammed up at her social boo-boo, remembering she'd beckoned her friend goodbye just a few hours prior. "I mean, ah, Juxe, could you please escort Cei back to his quarters and attend to his wishes while I check with the soldiers?" A smaller maid than Aiko appeared, but she was friendly enough and she awaited for his orders while Eri fluttered about with the brisk and light sound of her heels along the ground as she both took on the task of greeting her still clamoring people while making her way to the barracks themselves to hear news of the forces. Juxe, the small maid, gave a small and formal bow to the rather attractive visitor and she smiled politely. "I'll be overseeing your care, Master Cei. Miss Aiko has left the city on a familial call, so please, do send all your requests to me."

The sad news that was given to Eri made her feel immense guilt, but the soldiers assured her it was nowhere near as bad as it could have been. They gave her assurance over and over again, praising Cei's leadership and she was slightly surprised by their words of respect. Her soldiers were completely enamored with his leadership! Eri simply nodded and offered her fake smile to the soldiers who had fought for their kingdom that day while she delivered the sad news of the funerals she would carry out for them. Despite the heaviness of the topics, the men still seemed invigorated and it was all thanks to the tastes of victory and even the sight of their Queen who'd come all on her own to congratulate them; the booze and the warm food certainly didn't hurt the situation either. While they'd continued their jovial celebration, Eri left with a slightly heavy heart and was escorted back to the castle where she found the stark white outfit on her bed, a single piece of parchment left on the finely pressed linens. "Miss Aiko had said to bring these to your quarters after she left." The last time she'd worn this garment was when she'd attended her parent's funerals. It was foolish of her to think that all of her men would make it out alive...Battles never ended with everyone alive and Eri was going to have to face that fact, one way or the other.

While the Kingdom celebrated a false victory, Aiko crumbled the dirty parchment in her hands miles away and threw the item with disgust. Her heels dug into the side of her horse's side that she'd rented and she tightened the white hood around her head, snapping the reigns with a crack as she commanded it westward towards the Towa kingdom that had fell months earlier to Haburi. Aiko hated lying to Eri, it always left a disgusting, lingering taste in her mouth, but she could only hope that Eri would forgive her for the sin she was about to commit. Cei just wasn't to be trusted in the slightest and she needed him as far away as possible from both her kingdom and her Queen...the only answer she could possibly think of was Haburi himself. Aiko would gladly sell Cei out if it meant securing safety for Eri and that thought alone made her force the horse into an even more gallant gallop, if she traveled at this pace, it would only take perhaps two days...three maybe to reach the kingdom where she'd find answers and solutions to the problems plaguing both Eri and the Perit Kingdom.

Offline Cei

  • Crestfallen
  • Newbie
  • Posts: 48
  • Gender: Male
  • Soul of the Lost, Withdrawn from its Vessel.

  • Badges: (View All)
    Level 6 Seventh year Anniversary Sixth year Anniversary
Re: Your Betrayal
« Reply #15 on: December 11, 2015, 12:57:17 am »
Get up you caniving creature. Cei's eyes slowly budged open, staring at the stony white ceiling of the guests quarters. His face looked exhausted and deprived of energy, or rather complete emotion. Yanking his arm up, he forced himself upright in bed, making the beads of the necklace that hung from his arm rattle like the bones of its former master did. Gripping the edges of the bed he shook off the rust from his senses and opened his sights out a bit more. With a long sigh Cei stood up, looking for his clothes on the other side of the room. However, the wooden pearls of the necklace werent triple wrapped around his forearms like they usually were and proceeded to roll off his fingertips. More awake than ever, he dashed down to a scramble on the floor trying to hook his arm back through the hoop.

 Feeling forcefully woke up from his dilema, Cei took a breath and placed his wrapped up arm along the bathtub to get himself back to his feet. The grave man didnt take the slightest bit of notice over the fact he touced the very cast iron tub his former soldiers had been cremeated in not too long ago. "Today, I..." He began the mundane process of hooking his formal attire ontop his shoulders, reciting back his plan for the day back and forth in his mind. "Take the battlefield... No survivors or witnesses... Return back to Kingdom victorious..." Cei straightened out his vest and fully extended the sleeves over his wrists. "Regardless if her Majesty still approves of me, I'll have the approval of the people. That's the key, got it. Opening the door with a fluent motion, Cei stepped outside his room to be greeted by two new guards.

"Good morning gentlemen." The men looked at the door a bit, before fully comprehending a question that had been on their mind and accepting it. "Good morning sir. Your horse is outside." "Very well." Continuing down the hall, Cei passed Aiko on the marbled floors. "Good day to you as well Aiko." He didn't make the slightest expression of joy or grief as he walked by her, not even actually looking at her either as if to deny her existence. The young man refused to deal with much of anything that could unfocus him from that task at hand. While he broke through the doors he immediately noticed a small divided gathering of citizens lined up with worried expressions. "Word spreads fast." Waltzing past the silent crowd, he stared down the main gate with a slowly growing fire in his eyes. Approaching his horse he gave it a light touch, comforting the riled horse into a calm statue.

 Reaching into the side saddle he pulled out a belt with a weird contraption strapped to the back of it. Firmly securing it around his hips, he refound his confidence and a meek smile. Untying the knot from the hilt, he drew his katana out from the straps of the saddle. Equipping a black hard rope from the spindle on his back to the handle of his sword, he jumped up with a locked leg onto his horse. Giving a light kick, his body was pulled by the force of the horse that propelled him ahead of the mixed banner army before him. "I know some of you don't trust me as I walked into your kingdom not twenty four hours ago, but hear me now. Follow my sword into battle, follow my rage into victory. Only then, will you seek the chance to bow to your beautiful Queen once more." Charging with the sound of eager shouts and calls for war, the men rallied behind the brilliant mind of a battle enthusiast. Riding for no more than half an hour, they almost immediately came in contact with the watchtowers of the nearby village that hoisted the red and white colors of the Shimofuri.

 The soldiers there looked more saddended than nervous for the ambush, drawing their swords hesistant for battle. Underneath the sound of thundering gallops and clanking armor, the sound of three thousand men total trampling quickly into the open village shot up dust and loud clamour. The clash of men on horseback bashing through an unprepared grouping of soldiers resounded a loud smack and spray of blood that instantaneously dirtied the ground and houses. Screams and unbareable sobbing became of this small town, defiling the air with its twisted crackling.  The continuous snapping of bodies and gutting sound was fighting in volume to contest what Cei was doing to the innocent. "None will live to tell of what happened today but me alone." Abandoning his horse quickly, he was cutting down the fleeing citizens as fast as they were panting their few last breaths.

 His sword, again and again found itself bursting through the chest of life after life, mudding their open mouthed face with the owners blood before retreating back through their spine to leave a clean cut. Smoke and fire rose in abundance as those who thought they could hide safely in their locked homes were trapped in an oven of infernal heat that rose fast in intensity. Not a single building was left unchecked, whether they screamed till their lungs filled with smoke and choked to death or they were roasted under spits of fire, nothing was left to chance. Cei confined himself in this moment, feeling the wind under his arms, rattling his prayer beads in every swing. He spoke a soft prayer for every life he took, yet showed no remorse as he cut off an ankle to keep a fast runner from getting away. "I take your life in the name of ambition. Find peace." Another thrust of his sword stomped the hard metal into the thick body of flesh. As the final few crashes of blade and bodies fought for survival, the last of the opposition fell to a spear thrusted through his throat. There were very few casualties for Cei's forces at seventy eight, and hardly anything lost from Eri's legion with only twelve men dead.

Gathered in the town church, Cei had about twenty citizens bound and gagged with all of them lined up bowed on their knees facing the front stage. The young but tired lord snapped his sword back into its case and let the dried blood rest on the black case. Taking the front podium before the trapped hostages, he assumed the role of pastor and spoke to his congregation of soldiers before him. "My brave, valiant men. You have done so very well today. On this day, you have bested your delieverers." Raising a hand, he motioned a youthful soldier that wore the Perit colors of blue and gold. He looked scared and guilty, probably having seen war for the first time, and being so thorough in it nonetheless as to kill the bystanders. "Step up and give me your name soldier." "I.. Uh... Galland! Galland Sire..."

"Very well, Galland." Stretching his body over the podium, he looked across the few survivors before singling one out. Walking over still a bit tired from the long battle, he ungagged one of the citizens. "Why did you take the colors of the Shimofuri? Was it not your intention to aide them in their conquest as a foothold?" The blindfolded man spat in gasping breath, still terrified for his life, but more proud than any of the others by far. "We seeked the King, yes... Haburi promised us both peace and provisions from your land... You sit there cozy in your kingdom, unaware of this famine or war around you... Too busy watching a dead Queen so closely to see if she's even breathing to see someone dying so **** close to you!" With a quick right cross the mans head was stuffed into the ground, still bent over in pain and sweat. Wrapping the gag right back over his mouth, Cei patted the mans back twice and stood back up fully upright.

 "Galland, was it?" He made his way back to his podium. "Listen up! These men have no remorse or initiative. They could've asked for help, they could've had our strength that you all saw here today. Instead, they went behind our backs and insult her Majesty." Pointing the finger, Cei looked with a disgusted grimmace. "Take his life Galland. Be the first to indulge in killing the so called innocent, and I will have you recommended and honored at our victory feast." Galland looked unsure still, but budged his feet slowly more and more towards the cowering mass. Shakily raising his sword, the others in the Perit forces bowed their hands and looked down at the debris covered ground. With a drop of the hilt, the gleaming blade took the commoners life. He let out a brief cry of agony before passing onto the next life. "Rejoice! You have truly surpassed your comrades. Embrace him brothers." Cei's men shouted and cheered, patting the man on the back and taking him back to his place with glee. Galland steadily grew more and more pleased with himself, accepting fully his deeds as just with a smile by the time he resumed his place in the army. "Fantastic! Now, who would like to be honored next?" One by one, a line formed from Eri's men joining in with joy and praise from the whole army as they slowly took the last womans life. "Know that on this day, though we have gained favor and victory. You have also gained my hard to earn respect and trust. I am proud to have been called your leader on this day." The soldiers slowly joined in unison, chanting the glorious name of Cei in coralled unison, each time louder than the last as they made their way out of the now silent church.

Returning home to the Kingdom, Cei looked with a smile on his dirtied face as he thought to himself in self silence on his horse. "That went better than expected, it was almost too smooth and easy to get this far. With now the support of her own troops, I will have bought myself a place at the dinner table and some authority in war. If you asked a common man how could you with only three hundred men take on King Haburi's forces, they'd have no clue in the slightest. However I am no common man. Look at this, I have virtually gained an entire Kingdom under my control for what cost? Nothing, but cheap lives. I was the one who sent her those letters of Haburi's coming forces, true. What she doesn't know is that Haburi was going westward, not here to the east. It could still be years before he even attempted this direction, but all it took was my most loyal men and a silver tongue. Disguising my own men, I had them force that village to align with the Shimofuri acting as Haburis soldiers the entire time. Then, after persuading them to take their colors, I made up the entire thing about  their attack on tomorrow. I simply knew that affording an assault on our front gates wasn't something Eri was comfortable with and got her own men to witness the battle. I only pray for that man I made an example of at the church, you played your role perfectly soldier. On your grave, I promise your family will be taken care of properly. Now to see Eri..." Cei looked up at the tall castle gates and stepped into the welcoming arms of hundreds of citizens cheering for their victorious return.
"Whoever appeals to the law is either a fool, or a coward. Whoever cannot take care of themselves without that law is both. For a wounded man shall say to his assailant. 'If I live, I will kill you. If I die, you are forgiven. Such is the rule, of honor."

Spoiler (hover to show)

Colette

  • Guest
Re: Your Betrayal
« Reply #14 on: December 09, 2015, 05:56:05 am »
Distrust, distrust, distrust; the simple way she felt about him. His aura made her skin crawl, her body unnerved, her gaze found its way lightly pacing from focus to focus, all while her insides filled with the slimy, cold snake of dread. Why did Eri suddenly feel as if she'd made a deal with the Devil himself? Perhaps it was in the unnatural attractiveness of his appearance that left her with no desire, only discomfort at such a pleasant face with such deeper intention within the eyes. It was like looking at a marble statue that felt...and plotted; more or less it could have just been that she knew all along that his flourishing and falsely comforting words were just that...needless flourish, honeyed words, a potpourri of disgusting language that simply masked the underlying intent. Eri had always been around people like that, though never personally.

Briefly, her mother and father graced her still mourning mind. The way she'd been silenced at her parent's sides and told to watch instead as they did their dealings for the Kingdom;  there were often seedy individuals and her parents had always dealt with them accordingly...so why hadn't she done the same? It left her feeling pathetic and hopeless...small and frightful, a little girl.

Her lament couldn't continue forever and it soon halted once his oppressive presence left the dining room, leaving behind the Queen, her sorrowful thoughts, and the smells of food uneaten. "What a waste..." Outside, a whole different story unfolded. Unlike her Queen, Aiko was everything but small and frightful. The only thing that stopped her from snapping back at this spiteful guest was the solidity of her standing; a slave attacking or talking back? There would be no such thing in these halls...not for her sake, but for her Majesty's. Yet her gaze was heated and seething as she watched him prattle away, looking as gleeful as a vindictive child who'd just gotten another in trouble. It took great strength on her part to hold her fiery tongue and her pace was vehemently irritated when she made her way back in to the dining room to both escort and clean.

There was no discussion between the two; Eri felt immense guilt over her snap decision and knowing of how poorly Aiko felt on the subject, while Aiko felt irritation over Cei having won and blatantly used both Queen and friend. Aiko spoke briskly to Eri as she accompanied her into her freshly clean room, "Sleep well, Majesty.," and was even more brisk to exit. There was just too much going on here beneath just the surface and all she wanted was to break apart that marble skin of Cei's and find the wriggling, slimy deceit beneath...

Eri had undressed herself and donned the thin white nightgown she'd worn earlier in the day, though clean this time. Its fluffy sleeves covered their way along her fingertips and the cool air within the castle nipped at her exposed knees and neck. Pale fingers slowly moved along the ties in her hair and she felt her scalp ring in relief as she undid the large pigtails, allowing the mounds of blue hair to fall down her back and onto the bed where she sat against the edge, worry pricking her mind. To think battle would find her so early..."Mother...Father, why didn't you prepare me better for this?..." Sighing quietly and pulling away the large and unnecessarily fluffy blankets, she curled within and tugged the coverings above her head, only singular strands of blue now seen as she tucked herself into a ball, hoping just briefly that maybe if she held to herself tightly enough, she might just disappear all together...but such was not how things worked in the world.

When her eyes next opened, sunlight peered faintly through her blankets and she felt the solid weight of dread and fear drop down her stomach. Today, her men fought and in the hand of someone she didn't trust in the slightest. Rising from the bed, her hair and clothes messy, she made her way to the door and wondered when they'd leave...should she make an appearance? Should she actually be at the battle itself? There were just too many questions and she had no knowledge on any of it...but one thing was at least certain, Eri felt that things today were going to be far too intense.

Offline Cei

  • Crestfallen
  • Newbie
  • Posts: 48
  • Gender: Male
  • Soul of the Lost, Withdrawn from its Vessel.

  • Badges: (View All)
    Level 6 Seventh year Anniversary Sixth year Anniversary
Re: Your Betrayal
« Reply #13 on: December 07, 2015, 11:20:23 pm »
Watching her Majesty's face make so many conflicted faces was partially amusing the the drowning table conversation. She looked so confused and frustrated in having to make one simple decision that any ordinary ruler would make instantaneously. The choice isn't hard, even to a keen intelligent eye it's too good of an offer to pass up, especially for a ruler that doesn't personally want to get their hands dirty. Taking a quick glance down at the half pile of of seeds, Cei picked up the table napkin, tapped his lips and placed it over the bowl to cover up the aftermath. "Understand that I don't request your men as if they were common trading pawns. I consider them more as a large government loan. I plan to soak my hands with the blood of my... No, our enemies as much as personally possible. Your men will be stationed behind my own in the battalion. Your men will be mostly there to intimidate, protect the rear, and pick off whatever my soldiers leave behind. However, above all these things, your men are there..." Cei's face almost **** a genuine smile for but a second. "There to observe what happens for your own report." The young lord rose up fully to his feet, excusing himself from his chair.

"I suppose that is a yes then. Now get some sleep my Queen, I'd imagine all the drama of today has made you tired." With eyes that continued to exert a heavy pressure onto her side of the room, he released his chained stare that was noticeable as he finally looked away. Taking hold of the door, he jerked the door open to reveal a hall full of servants that seemed a bit on edge. Cei tried to contain his excitement for the first of many battles to come on the morrow, feeling strong and poised in the moment. Taking loud slow steps, he passed by the worried looks that were tied down to the floor and his feet. As he made his way down the hall to his room, he stuttered in a right foot step to fully look at one of the maids. "Aiko, I believe she called you. Right?" She looked like she was about to raise her head and affirm the name, but Cei raised a hand to halt even a yes. "Looks like the big bad Cei won." Finally, the man with the oppressive aura gave a full honest smile. He grinned with a look of pure enjoyment that not even his own men have seen yet. The night grew dark, yet the moonlight shone brightly on his unnatural eyes.

In the world ruled by the extraordinary and the ambitious, none were quite as truly ambitious as Cei. The almighty hand of the disturbed was placed over his own mouth, trying to hide how blissful he felt. Though it seemed like he had no particular hobbies besides making plans and dramatic plays, there was something he instinctively loved doing more than anything. Something he thrived on, was his unquenchable thirst to make people want to start fights. His ability to get under peoples skin was on par with his skill in war or his strategic dominance. Whether he liked doing this because it was so tightly correlated with his actual unique talent in battle, or his power was born out of his love for starting dramatic scenes, most couldn't stand being around Cei.

Opening the door to his room, he finally was able to calm himself down just enough to regain his composure and put down his hand. "Ah, I almost lost my cool there. That would've been a lack luster performance if I had." Holding up the door, stood two knights in white dreaming beside the bath. Cei closed the door behind him with minimal creaking as he took off each separate article of clothing before him. With nothing left on but his skin and underwear, he sat criss cross hunched over with elbows to knees and hands collected together. "Alright." spoke Cei as his skin collectively obtained goosebumps from the chilly air of a cold night before war. "Tell me your story dear knights" the rolling clicking sound of his worn out prayer beads rolled down to his wrist and partially into his hand was muffled towards the end. "Tell me your story, spirits. Then move on from this world to the next." Raising the beads, he placed them up against his lips cozy in his bed behind a locked door. The moon burned bright that night, through the tasteless fog that barely dimmed its shine. The sound of a prayer was spoken, then there was silence.
"Whoever appeals to the law is either a fool, or a coward. Whoever cannot take care of themselves without that law is both. For a wounded man shall say to his assailant. 'If I live, I will kill you. If I die, you are forgiven. Such is the rule, of honor."

Spoiler (hover to show)

Colette

  • Guest
Re: Your Betrayal
« Reply #12 on: December 05, 2015, 12:58:54 am »
Eri couldn't help the slowly growing distaste she had for this Cei individual. The expressions he made were nothing but a formal mask and it put her off...as a person of honesty to the point of total ignorance, it didn't sit well with her; the irony being the face she'd always have to put on for her people during public addresses. The false innocence in his smile as he went on and talked about himself left a bad taste in her mouth and it made her appetite slowly wane, to Eri it felt as if he were bragging shamelessly to her and her mood was not one for that kind of dalliance at the moment...

Though his sudden honesty upon his intentions did surprise her. Of course, it had been a slight thought that he was here just trying to use her army, but she hadn't expected him to be so bold in its admittance. "So you do admit to it..." Her abandoned soup was growing cold and she sat back in her chair, holding her hands in her lap as she looked to mull over his words quite seriously. The idea of turning her men over to this...snake of a man made her uncomfortable beyond compare; she had no basis really for why she didn't trust him besides her gut feeling, even if his words were painfully true. Dealing with the inevitable clash on her own would certainly be impossible; for one, Eri held no military understanding like her father or advisers and for two, there was no way she'd be able to rally her people  and protect them all while protecting herself...Haburi was an unstoppable monster where battle was concerned, from what tales she'd heard anyways, and someone like her fighting against him...she'd probably wilt from just the look.

Still chewing over on the thoughts, she gently brought her right hand up and spoke to her servants quietly. "I'd appreciate it if you could allow our visitor and I some privacy." Aiko, holding her perch from one of the nearby walls immediately held back her tongue on wishing to stay. The idea of leaving the Queen alone with such a potentially dangerous man...but, she couldn't deny the request of a Queen. Her and all the other servants slowly shuffled out and in their wake left behind a single thud of the door while she eased back in to her chair with a soft and tired sigh. So much had already happened in this day for her...she was quickly growing exhausted. "You wish to use my men, my people, and my kingdom to exact your revenge on Lord Haburi, yes?" Her tone was a little childish and accusatory, but she quickly dialed it back as she tried to be more understanding at the remembrance of her mother's words when she'd once gotten in a fight with the neighboring kingdom's visiting son. Her mother had told her to "try a little harder to understand someone else's views" and through a slight bit more patience and a great deal more understanding, her and the smaller boy had come to an agreement and passed aside their childish fury. To try and compare that to this situation was childish in itself, but anything to help her make a better decision no matter how small it was...Eri would take it.

"I do not wish for my men to be treated unfairly. They are...good people, as you say, they put their lives on the line with the knowledge that they could die for them, but I won't have them sent out in order to be just...fodder." Gently her fingers wound and twisted at the napkin in her lap and she slowly looked up to meet the gaze of Cei, though the contact didn't last for long. He unnerved her, the look in his eyes... "If I were to allow you the use of my army, it would be with the understanding that I'd want them to be treated as you would your own men." Her ignorance was truly dangerous, for she was completely unaware of how he'd treated his own men from the moment she'd left his presence earlier...not like she'd ever find out at this point either. "But you are right...the news of his uprising grows everyday and everyday I get more letters, he'll get here soon enough and I'm not suited, or prepared, to battle him." It was cowardly of her to admit it, but a coward she was. "If he made it to the gates...I shudder to think of what would happen..."

Offline Cei

  • Crestfallen
  • Newbie
  • Posts: 48
  • Gender: Male
  • Soul of the Lost, Withdrawn from its Vessel.

  • Badges: (View All)
    Level 6 Seventh year Anniversary Sixth year Anniversary
Re: Your Betrayal
« Reply #11 on: December 02, 2015, 02:29:57 am »
Cei looked over at the servants that brought Eri's like fine personal couriers, wondering if that was really necessary with the sheer amount of food that was already present at the table. Surveying the field a bit, he seemed displeased by the selection until something caught his eye. Standing up from his chair, he lunged forward, putting the entire room on alert as he seemed to make a risky dash at Eri. With his pale skinny fingers, he hoisted up a good chunk of grapes still hanging from its tender vines. "Oh goodie." Cei returning down to his chair, began to take off the grapes one by one while sitting completely poised and upright in his chair. Tasting the plumb fruit, he mindfully took down each grape singled out at a time at an orderly pace.

"Well, my good Queen." He made sure not to have any food in his mouth while he spoke. "I am the former strategist of the Shimofuri family, royalty almost. Very close to the inner circle of his family, I've known their family growing up since as long as I could remember. The elders adored me because I was gifted in reading people and situations, quickly learning the art of war itself. Though the reason they really liked me more than the other strategists, was that Haburi couldn't kill me whenever he threw a temper tantrum or lost his wits and ended up annihilating both sides of the field in his rage." Cei tried to calmly discard the seeds in a dignified matter into a side cup, but found there wasn't really a polite way to get rid of seeds at a Queens dinner table. "Nonetheless, I honestly don't know why they decided to get rid of me. Whether it was personal preference for Haburi, the fact I was probably the only non-Shimofuri bloodline that could actually trade with him in battle, or his fear that I might one day manipulate him like I do so many others..."

Cei looked at Eri with an innocent smile. "Listen, I know you've already realised that I'm here to take advantage of you. However, I'm not taking advantage of you unfairly. It is in common cause I seek your assistance. I ask to lead your men so that you do not see these horrors of war five feet from your doorstep. If you do not take my aid, you will be forced in one days pass to deal with them yourself at your front gates with your people much closer to the danger than if we fought on the morrow. Simply put, you either deny me and my 200 men a fight miles from the castle, or fight the problem yourself with the guaranteed blood of your people in your dainty little hands. Either way, I will have my revenge on those betrayers." Cei regained his composure and relaxed a bit back in his seat. "Risking a hundred lives for then thousand seems pointless, especially when those one hundred live to die for those ten thousand every day."
« Last Edit: December 02, 2015, 02:33:15 am by Cei »
"Whoever appeals to the law is either a fool, or a coward. Whoever cannot take care of themselves without that law is both. For a wounded man shall say to his assailant. 'If I live, I will kill you. If I die, you are forgiven. Such is the rule, of honor."

Spoiler (hover to show)

Colette

  • Guest
Re: Your Betrayal
« Reply #10 on: November 30, 2015, 03:19:53 pm »
Sitting at the table were a series of chairs, but at each opposing end was a grand and posh chair that clearly were meant for the King and the Queen, but now they simply sat there with no sign of their prior owners there taking their place. Eri sat at one of the regular chairs nearest to the abandoned chair at the left end of the table and she picked at her food like an indecisive child. There were bites taken here and there, but nothing was devoured and she had been stirring her spoon through a bowl of white soup when Cei had arrived. Looking up from the spoon dripping with the creamy liquid, she placed barely a spoonful in her mouth when he took his seat and refilled the air with the uncomfortable aura she got from him.

Pulling the empty spoon from her lips, Eri's brow visibly furrowed as he spoke and the mention of being Haburi's former right hand made her immensely distrustful, as if she already wasn't. "Former?...What happened to make you former?" Again and again she stirred at the soup that was slowly growing cold and she never looked up from her peckish plate, only looking towards the servants that occasionally came by to fill her glass only to see it still practically full. As if chewing something over, Eri slowly looked up, but didn't entirely meet his gaze. "For someone like Lord Haburi to no longer have you as their right hand anymore, seems like something drastic must have happened. Even more so that you'd come to a kingdom like mine in an attempt to openly oppose them with my army..."

Offline Cei

  • Crestfallen
  • Newbie
  • Posts: 48
  • Gender: Male
  • Soul of the Lost, Withdrawn from its Vessel.

  • Badges: (View All)
    Level 6 Seventh year Anniversary Sixth year Anniversary
Re: Your Betrayal
« Reply #9 on: November 30, 2015, 03:28:04 am »
As Cei waited constantly for the dullest seconds of his life to pass, he almost began to grew impatient for once in his life. Vengeance, vengeance overflowing like a baptism of blood spewing out from the head of a six horned beast to cleanse and absolve Cei of all this mockery of a life hes lived so far. The only thing that stood in the way were these dull four seconds. He looked at her, scoughing in quelling dire that couldn't be sated from a mere insult yet rapidly in his head he thought of a million as his scattered brain always does. In his mind he thought silently the fiercest storm of words to vomit and explode from his parched lips like a fiery volcano of hatred that couldn't be stopped even by Gods hand himself.

"Just say no already you **** pawn." he thought to himself. "Better yet just leave the keys to your kingdom under the doormat and **** drown in your pathetic bubble baths. I hope y-" No she said. No she left like a silent bomb as she click clacked away like the perfect doll she was. "About **** time you said no, I've been waiting for you to say that since I woke up." He grumbled in hot distate before his guard started wailing in pain. "SIRE! Agh!" the guard threw himself away from Cei, tripping under his own feet while holding his shoulder. Cei snapped out of it. In his hand his fingers had become exposed, clutching a handful of scrap and flesh. "Oh, that would explain it." The other guard had already retreated from his lordships side to rejoin the others at the bottom of the steps, Cei didn't allow that to happen. Grabbing carefully with his other hand that still had a glove, he took the soldier by the collar and threw him inside his room while the halls were still empty from Eri's absence.

 Into the room they went, one bleeding out quickly, sitting with his back up in the tub as it filled with blood from his missing flesh. Cei looked down at the terrified soldier that he had thrown inside. "He's making too much noise and his armor is compromised, take care of him. "But Sire we don't have any med-" "I think you know very well that's not what I meant. And with cold eyes and a monstrous aura, he spilt his oppressive force in the shape of a death threat. The tired and scared guard pulled out his sword with a sharp yank, and held the blade above his head. Dropping a downward spike, the bleeding soldier was murdered still and silent in a tub filled with his own blood, ceasing from the screams. "T-There, now I had nothing to do with this!" Cei nodded his head, allowing the knight to share a small worried smile before being pushed back into the tub ontop of his fallen comrade with a knife wedged deep into his stomach. "Your contribution to the glory of my undertaking has been dully noted." and in a flash of instantaneous grey light behind closed doors, there was no trace of anything.

"Hm. I can't believe I allowed myself to engage in a conversation without my gloves on. I was careless to fall asleep." Cei then made his way down the halls back and forth in a steady pace, trying to remember the last time something like that happened. "It is certainly a curse." Cei whispered to himself. "To have such strong emotions while I'm in contact with someone. Perhaps I should treat myself to some tighter gloves that won't fall off in my sleep. The young lord walked away from the room cleaned of blood and flesh, but not of the memories of deeds that transpired there.  "I guess I should find a good seat at the table." Cei after wandering around a bit because the servants forgot to show their guest where the dining room was, finally found the longest table full of well crafted foods after trying a few doors. "Looks quite fine, your Majesty." Fixing up his color with an appropriate smile, he took his seat as  a servant pulled out a chair for him.
"Now my Lady, truly I am sorry." He spoke. "My name is Cei, former right hand man of Haburi Shimofuri himself."
"Whoever appeals to the law is either a fool, or a coward. Whoever cannot take care of themselves without that law is both. For a wounded man shall say to his assailant. 'If I live, I will kill you. If I die, you are forgiven. Such is the rule, of honor."

Spoiler (hover to show)

Colette

  • Guest
Re: Your Betrayal
« Reply #8 on: November 30, 2015, 02:42:45 am »
Eri could only describe the feeling this man gave her as discomfort. It was easy to say that Eri wasn't particularly good at anything; her schooling was moderate, her attitude left much to be desired, she wasn't strong nor fast...but the one thing she did possess was a surprisingly good intuition. Intuition like hers had caused her to become an incredibly anxious and nervous type over the years and she'd never understood why, just the way a lot of things made her feel tended to go hand in hand with making her feel scared. There was so much to fear in this world...

Looking into the man's deadened gaze despite not wanting to, she could only frown as warning bells went off in her head. This man...he reminded her of something. Thinking hard on it, it came to her quite suddenly; he was like those angel's that hung above her parent's mausoleum. Stony faces with premade expressions that were ironically expressionless; they didn't mourn her parents, they held no remorse or sadness, they just simply wore the expression because it fit...and this man seemed very similar to her. His 'sincerity' combined with that dangerously deceitful look in her eye...Eri wasn't comfortable being around him one bit.

At the end of his grand charade, silence met and the girl's never idle fingers continued to move as she seemed to mull over his words before speaking. "Mm...not to be rude to you, but...no." Her forces, as small as they may have become through her absence, were still her precious people. Even though Eri certainly hadn't shown it, her concern and care for the people she'd grown up with for years was definitely there and was constantly a factor in her ever-present worries; sending her men into battle so soon and in the hands of a man she just couldn't be comfortable around nonetheless seemed like a horrible idea. Clearing her throat again lightly, the red rose increasing the painfully bright glow of the palor on her neck, she looked to Aiko instead. "Aiko, I'm rather hungry...do you think we could have a meal?" Aiko seemed both surprised in a gleeful and horrified manner; seeing Eri turn down this man so quickly was rather funny...but the fact that she disregarded his offer on such a serious matter was horrendously frightening. Eri just couldn't decline going to war, that certainly wouldn't stop Haburi! Yet again, it was not Aiko's place to call out these assumptions and she simply cleared her throat as well into her ruby-red sleeve, nodding quietly in affirmation as she disappeared from Eri's side.

Being more awake, clean, and finally around the presence of people was a big shock to her and she could feel the constant presence of fear pulsing through her veins, but Eri had gained a slight shock when the strange man had made his request. She'd actually thought about her people's well-being for more than a few seconds, enough to even make a slight order on her part...that was something refreshing that she hadn't done in quite some time. With the thoughts of her people and her army on her mind, she seemed to awkwardly idle herself back into the threshold of the door as if about to leave, only stopping as she realized how rude it would seem. Turning her head over her shoulder, strands of slightly damp hair sticking to her cheek, her mouse-like gaze set back on him just slightly, the obvious apprehension there. "You haven't given me your name and you wish to lead my army, my people into possible death? I think that's a very...cruel way of handling my kingdom, my people are not pawns." Gathering the ends of her dress in her hands, she calmly began walking away despite that only being a false surface of her inner turmoil; could she really speak so carelessly and brashly like this to a visitor? Would her mother and father had done the same?

Again, Eri stopped, only on a second thought and she turned lightly on her heel once more. "Oh...Aiko will be cooking what I believe to be a big meal. Well...not her, but the chef. Perhaps you should come and eat with me? That way we could discuss this...maybe." And she was off with the quiet clicking of her heel against the marbled floors.

Offline Cei

  • Crestfallen
  • Newbie
  • Posts: 48
  • Gender: Male
  • Soul of the Lost, Withdrawn from its Vessel.

  • Badges: (View All)
    Level 6 Seventh year Anniversary Sixth year Anniversary
Re: Your Betrayal
« Reply #7 on: November 30, 2015, 02:16:17 am »
"Come on sport, be a man and drink your poison, okay?" Cei felt the darkness creeping from the edges of the wall that seemed to leak cobwebs. Nothing was very visible to the eyes that saw all different types of vivid auras and hues. Fog and heavy air rolled in, making  your eyes scream for help as they felt as if a stranger was constantly blowing cigarette smoke in your face. Cei closed his eyes, involuntarily unleashing coursing tears that had no cease down his face. His dry lips gasped with hot air, clinging with hard rock like lips around a dusty dirtied glass rim. This tasted **** awful. The brew had an acidity that was like drinking your own stomach acid with a smell that dominated the air with potent fumes that smelled similar to mulch.

Cei stumbled backwards, slipping one shoulder of his body inward to leave some extra fabric to grab on the end of his sleeve to furiously wipe at his limps that felt two levels off of the deepest pit of hell. "Hot! Hot! What was that!?" The curious stranger looked closer and closer at Cei, with a look of impending satisfaction. He smiled a crooked grin and held his hands out in suspenseful recognition of Ceis undertaking. "Don't tell me you didn't taste it..." "Taste what?! This tasted like the same **** garbage you've been feeding me for three ye-" Cei began to vehemently spit and choke out redish yellow saliva all over the unswept concrete  floors. "Was that **** Orange flavoring?!" "Oh good it worked!" After finally waiting all that time, the hooded stranger with long red hair snapped back to his station in the corner and resumed a heavy flurry of work with his chemicals.

"Did you just make me drink that **** just to see if it tasted like Oranges?!" The hooded one looked almost completely distracted by his work until he finally paused half a moment to speak. "By the way, remind me to have a chat with your father about your swearing problem. It's not right for a 13 year old to be talking like that." Cei lost his control, beginning to knock over everything that looked fragile and important, causing a loud symphony of loud breaking glass and the start of a small fire. The hooded one didn't do anything. The young teenager finally cried out in a violent rage, cocking his hand back ready to backhand what he was working on off the table. The hooded one stood up. His hand caught the kids wrist and held it still. "I know you're upset Cei, but what we do is right. Progress is progress no matter how small. Consider yourself a martyr, a savior, a god, no... Even more than that." The hooded one crouched down to his knees to face Cei eye to eye. "You are man."
 
 Reaching his hand over to a decaying corpse of a skeleton that was blatantly shoved under his desk, the man flipped Ceis hand over in a receiving fashion. "Take this." With his hands snaking around in the ribcage of the deceased pour soul, he yanked and ripped with a strong hand, collapsing bone for a sudden rattle. Now placing a long set of melancholy colored prayer beads in Ceis hand he lightly forced his hand to close around the necklace. "This man was a priest, a man who followed god before he died. Since I wrestled with his God's will we fought for his soul. I won, therefore I am his God now." He gave the fist a little extra squeeze. "Hold onto this till one day you can grow strong enough to kill me." "B-But why would I w-anna kill you?!" "Please one day kill me, so that I may die knowing man conquered God." Cei dropped to the floor on his knees, and the tall man named Onken hooped the necklace over his neck. "Now wake up before that fire makes it a short match."

Cei zipped his head upright with hazy eyes, trying to figure out what he was staring at. The figure looked to be like an Angel or something divine before him, draped in black and white. "God..?" His fingers eagerly worked at his eyes in quick succession as he stood up, trying to push the chair off to the side. "Oh yes..." He looked distraught over the simple mention of the word. "Haburi Shimofuri." The young lord fully made his way up to Eri, engaging in an eyelock that was locked in stony gaze, giving off a feeling in the room that no one else was even alive, yet alone existed in the room. "You've fallen into fates hands on this day your majesty. Lord Haburi is planning an attack on your very Kingdom a day from now from the village in the east." Cei tried his best to fully articulate to the fullest extent with his gloved hands. "I suggest we launch a preemptive attack tomorrow, the day before they strike to catch them off guard." With one final cross of his hands, he spoke with a different tone from his urgent voice with calming words instead. "Lady Eri. Leave your forces to me, surrender from that restraint and allow me to make your problems vanish."
"Whoever appeals to the law is either a fool, or a coward. Whoever cannot take care of themselves without that law is both. For a wounded man shall say to his assailant. 'If I live, I will kill you. If I die, you are forgiven. Such is the rule, of honor."

Spoiler (hover to show)

Colette

  • Guest
Re: Your Betrayal
« Reply #6 on: November 30, 2015, 12:59:32 am »
Beneath her confusion was an underlying happiness that the Queen was finally coming out from her room. It was hard enough to keep her crew's morale up, but the civilians as well when there were no orders, no verdicts, not even simple encouraging words being given to them by their one ruler? Aiko mentally chided herself as they made it to the visitor's designated room; ever since they were younger, she'd known that the once upon a time princess would have never been able to take on the birth-given role she was doomed to take. It wasn't exactly Eri's fault that she reacted the way she did, but regardless...this was her position now and it even frustrated Aiko with the way she'd treated the entire situation like one big tantrum and none of them held the right to stop her. "Yes, here's your room, I'm sure you'll be contacted as soon as she's available." Hasty and rather rude with her treatment of straight up ignoring anything the guest had done or presented, Aiko rushed out of the room and into the queen's personal bathroom to prepare her bath.

Hot water and a few mounds of bubbles, topped with the fragrance of lilac as she'd preferred her rather pompous baths, Aiko was standing at the doorway where she rapped her fingers on the hardwood. "Your bath is ready, Eri." For just a moment, Aiko worried as the silence dragged on between the touches of her knuckles on the door; had she changed her mind? Thankfully, the slow and almost cautious opening of the door signaled the end of her paranoia and Aiko couldn't help but beam as her rather raggedy queen appeared for the first time in forever. Eri stood at the threshold with worry creasing her features, her left arm holding to her right at her side as she slowly inched her way out in nothing but her nightgown. "Thanks..." Her departure was quick, as if she didn't want to be spotted by anyone else and even though it left Aiko a little injured with how distant she still seemed, it was a least...something. "Well...time to get her clothes then." The horrors that awaited Aiko on the other end of the door were simply too monumentous and she'd definitely need a few extra servants helping her clean up the mess the Queen had left behind. Sifting through junk and papers, she made her way to the closet where she was not surprised to find the queen's garments in pristine condition behind the wardrobe's doors.

Inside the bathroom, Eri had quickly submerged herself in the steaming water and sighed forlornly. Even the relief of feeling fresh water met by the sweet smell of lilacs wasn't enough to bring back her peace of mind. Submersing her head beneath the water, she tried vainly to recall what it felt like to feel relaxed. Just like her room, Eri didn't want to leave the bath no matter how many times she'd proceeded to wash her hair and her body; the grime left her skin and her hair turned back to its lustrous sheen with every wash, but it didn't feel like it was enough and eventually it just ended with her sitting, her skin sensitive from the harsh rubbing and her scalp aching slightly while strands of her teal hair came off between her fingers with each wash. It was childish, but she wanted to hide away even more now; her vulnerability was ever-growing and she just wasn't ready for it yet.

By the time the water had grown cold, she'd received a knock on the other end of the door and the voice of her worried friend called out. "Eri, I mean, your majesty...are you okay? I have your clothes ready and the visitor is still here awaiting counsel with you." Leaning back into the water, blowing bubbles into the hazy liquid, Eri took a moment before meekly calling back to her. "Yes...I mean, I'm okay. Yes. I'll..I'm done." Hearing the weakness and uncertainty even more vividly with this smaller door between them, Aiko sighed quietly and toyed nervously with the end of her apron. "Do you...need help? Anything at all, your majesty?" Met with an ever-growing silence, Aiko had almost turned to leave before Eri responded faintly. "No...thank you though." Leaving an air of uncertainty between them, Aiko departed and Eri left the tub, dripping water across the tiles that were cold against her bare feet. Drying off the water from her body, Eri caught glance of herself in the stand up mirror and frowning at the sight, she looked along her limbs that had gotten rather gaunt with her pitiful eating schedule; a meal...that would probably nice... Wrapping her hair up in her towel, she creaked open her bathroom door for just a moment to snag the clothes lying just outside and the sight of them brought a wave of sadness back over her.  A regal dress, pure black besides the white adornments about, along the tips of her biceps, the front where her petite chest lay, and the ends of her sleeves and dress hem were lined with fluffy, white feathers. Coupling the dress was a pair of long white stockings and black heels that still shone as if freshly polished; the final accessory making her chest ache as she remembered the vivid red, ceramic rose choker her mother had gifted her. The last time she'd even worn this outfit was when her parents were still alive...

It was around twenty minutes later when Aiko came back to the door, both worried and frustrated with Eri's hiding away in the restroom. "Majesty, you've got to-," before she could answer any further, the door opened and Eri stood there pinning her hair in the lengthy pigtails she had worn long ago, but her gaze still seemed far away and withdrawn while refusing to meet Aiko's. "Yes I'm..sorry. The strings were confusing, it's been a while..." Fumbling with her right side, Aiko sighed lightly and assertively, but gently moved Eri's hands away to do the job herself, she had always done so anyways. "Do you wish for me to tell the visitor you're ready now?" A light nod followed the question and Aiko finished redoing the shoddy work Eri had to her hair and the sight was pleasantly breathtaking. Having not seen her in so long, it was easy to forget that Eri was pitifully pretty in her own way; any woman with know-how to her looks could have taken advantage of such natural gifts. Yet Eri had always seemed too innocent and too breakable, even when she was happier there was an underlying sense of...ignorance to her appearance. Too helpless, too innocent, too pure, something that could be easily broken. Aiko pushed the thoughts from her head and clasped her hands together in front of her chest, sighing happily at the welcome sight of her queen finally back from the realm of self-pity she'd been living in. "You look lovely, my lady. I'll go inform the visitor."

When Aiko rapped on Cei's door, she was in a visibly more pleased mood and even greeted the man with a smile. "Our Queen is ready to see you now." It took a small bit of prodding from Aiko, but slowly Eri moved her way from the wall by the door and took her place at her servant's side, which was rather ironic. Looking as ever-presently uncertain as before, Eri tried hard to remember what she was supposed to do in these situations and found that she could only nervously dig her fingers into the front of her dress's skirt repeatedly. "Ah..um, welcome to my kingdom. It was..um, very un..unprecedented of me to have kept you waiting. You sent the notice about..." Her expression shifted into one of immense worry, the anxiety showing as she cleared her throat quietly. "About Lord Haburi's latest conquest?"

Offline Cei

  • Crestfallen
  • Newbie
  • Posts: 48
  • Gender: Male
  • Soul of the Lost, Withdrawn from its Vessel.

  • Badges: (View All)
    Level 6 Seventh year Anniversary Sixth year Anniversary
Re: Your Betrayal
« Reply #5 on: November 29, 2015, 10:54:28 pm »

Being escorted into the building, he nodded to the two guards that quickly followed behind him, assuring them of their safety as if the guards needed protection rather from their master than anything else. Draped in clothes of grey abysmal matter, he armed himself with his confidence and peered around the corridors. Suddenly from between the large sturdy doors of royal oak came the faintest fall of an erupting squeak. Cei looked on towards the shriek and found himself amused in his own expectations. "Ah, that wasn't the door creaking open, it was her voice." he said to himself in a hushed tone.

 Clearing his throat before a fitting figure for a queen, he straightened his attire out for but a quick moment and returned in a calming tone. "Yes, I am the one responsible for the letter. I thought a woman of your stature would reasonably accept the call for concern." In his eyes, he felt no sexual desires for the woman, nor did he think selfishly to want her for his own. Yet in contrast, he did find himself attracted to the woman. Whether it was by universal alignment or simply how he saw her as a means to an end, he did not know, neither could he distinguish the two apart. "Very well, I understand as royalty formalities are a guiding principle that can't easily be brushed under the rug, despite the situation." With a pathetically small bow and close of his eyes, Cei turned as the door began to close in front of him. The shutter of the door rang in his ears as he then faced his own guards that looked terrified that they had to accompany Cei, yet alone stand so close to royalty as well. "Y-Your orders my lord?" Cei darted a threatening look that permenately engraved a call to demise if they made him look bad.

There wasn't very much one could figure out from looking at Cei at first sight, though one thing was very apparent even to a nonbeliever in spiritualism. This confident man wasn't the Adonis of muscles or had apparent experience in murder. However, there was a daunting aura of tension that made even the most loyal of servants on paper become sickeningly ill and oppressed if he focused it towards someone. Not by fear did he lead his men, but by respect and common cause. "Let's follow the kind woman, gentlemen." Like puppets on strings, they turned in an acute 90 degree angle and lead the way, following the awestruck Aiko down the hallway. "You seem like you've seen a ghost, my lady."  he fished for a conversation whenever he could before muttering "My guards look like they've seen their own..." Holding his composure tall and impressionable, Cei walked through the very door Aiko had lead her through, with the guards staying in front of the doorway.

In a leisurely quick flick of his wrists, the rattling of very worn prayer beads fell down his right arm that gripped his chair. Pulling it out, he took a seat before Aiko, wondering if there was any more insight he could share her before looking half scared himself. He scrambled to take the beads and roll them back up his arm till the long sleeve shrouded the old relics once more. "I ... Go please. Her majesty Eri shouldn't be left waiting. Her time is much more valuable than my own. I'll make myself at home. Cei sighed a long breath of hot air as if he felt embarrassed for the first time in his life, drooping his head down onto his fists at a fixed level to rest his jaw. "What a disgrace." His mood was immediately crushed by what seemed like his own personal omen. Closing his eyes, he tried to remember the last time he allowed someone to see his most personal item.

"Master Onken, you truly were the man I admired the most. I'm so ashamed of what has come to be." With cold dried fingers, he slid his hand up his stealthed arm, gently touching the 32nd bead on the necklace. He knew it was the 32nd one because of the slight cross shaped dent that was left in the side from a previous fight. Cei continued to twirl it around his forearm constantly, as if each rotation around his arm drew him deeper in thought till he began to fall asleep; drifting into his own coil of oblivion.

"Whoever appeals to the law is either a fool, or a coward. Whoever cannot take care of themselves without that law is both. For a wounded man shall say to his assailant. 'If I live, I will kill you. If I die, you are forgiven. Such is the rule, of honor."

Spoiler (hover to show)

Colette

  • Guest
Re: Your Betrayal
« Reply #4 on: November 29, 2015, 03:48:12 pm »
"Excuse me, sir." The red-haired maid held an expression of distaste after having heard the cacophony outside. Aiko didn't like guys like him, he seemed far too confident in himself...and that kind of confidence was something that could prove deadly to her queen who held quite little of it. Aiko knew Eri was never a leader type and if she encountered someone who held themselves like this, it could spell disaster for their kingdom if she blindly listened to what this stranger had to say...Sadly, it was not Aiko's job as a maid to make these types of observations and worrying her queen with what could just be mild paranoia was just as distasteful as assuming. "The Queen isn't taking any visitors."  She was wiping her dirty hands on her worn white apron as she approached the newcomer whose very aura made her uncomfortable, but she remained stiffly polite with her back held straight and her quieting hands clasped together in front of her. "If you'd made an appointment of some sort, she would have seen you...eventually."

Behind the large doors she was living her current life, Eri could hear the faint mumbling of voices from outside and the hazy cries of her people; over what exactly, she didn't quite know. Wrapped up in the wrinkled sheet from her bed, wearing the cloth over her head and body, she curled up on the edge of her bed with her worried eyes examining the doors. The one voice she could hear clearly was a male's and he spoke of her 'knowing' why he was there. The only thing she 'knew' of lately was the letter she'd arrived not too earlier, so he was referring to that? As in he was the one who sent the letter? Oh, what did she know... Lamenting again on how awful she was at her job, Eri listened to the continuing rancorous crowds outside, her people she hadn't talked to in so long that she couldn't even remember the last interaction she'd had with them. It was...cruel of her, to say the least. Her people didn't ask to be in their position, just as much as she hadn't, but the cards had been dealt and she at least owed them enough to appear to them didn't she? All of these conflicting feelings were causing her to practically reel back with the ever-present realization that she couldn't just hide forever. Either her people would give up on her or her kingdom would be claimed eventually, and there would be nothing stopping either but a door with but one lock...

Needless to say, whether it was fear or hope that made her open the door, the lock firmly sounded out and interrupted whatever her trusted friend and maid had been about to say. The large wooden surface creaked open only slightly, allowing barely anything to be seen within the dark room just above besides the pale and thin hand that held onto the surface and a single eye squinting slightly at the light from the hallway that burned her retina. "You're the one who sent the letter..yes?" There was slight shuffling as she gathered the sheet tighter around herself while she spoke quietly and uncertainly. "Now isn't...really a good time. I'm not in shape to take counsel right now." As if becoming more aware of how dirty she really was seeing these two clean individuals in front of her, the small hand seemed to shrink further behind the door and she quietly gave her order to her maid. "Could you run a bath for me first, Aiko. And please see that our guest has some quarters...I'm not going to present myself like this." Directing her words to the man instead whose face she'd yet to even look at with her ever current downcast expression. "We can speak after I ready..I sense that time is currently of the essence but...it'd be very rude of me to meet you the way I am currently. Please follow her to your accommodations." With her heart pounding wildly in her chest at having spoken in such a long time directly to anyone, especially one being a stranger, her hand quickly disappeared and the door closed with a loud and solid thud, followed by the lock clicking after.

A bit awestruck by having seen so little of her queen, which was ironically the most she'd seen in quite a while, Aiko didn't feel her fighting attitude appear. Instead, as if dazed, she stuttered lightly while trying to take it all in. "I...uh well. Um. I suppose if you'll follow me...we'll get you to your room. I'd like to be very quick about it, I have a bath to run." And so she turned her back and made her way with a swift pace towards the living quarter's, a slight smile growing on her face. It was...nice, to say the least, to see that she wasn't just talking to a ghost anymore.

Offline Cei

  • Crestfallen
  • Newbie
  • Posts: 48
  • Gender: Male
  • Soul of the Lost, Withdrawn from its Vessel.

  • Badges: (View All)
    Level 6 Seventh year Anniversary Sixth year Anniversary
Re: Your Betrayal
« Reply #3 on: November 28, 2015, 03:28:54 am »
"My lord, I've made the preparations you have asked for. Your horse is ready." The elongated shadow of a greenhorn soldier covered and protected Cei's sensitive eyes from the sun that was starting to burn bright. Cei turned his head full towards the man with one hand draped over his brow to shade his sight. "Ah, I guess the time for thinking things through and planning has passed. Very well servant." Briefly closing his eyes he stood up with an arm stiffed against the grass, taking the time to correct his collar and straighten out his outfit. Down he gazed upon the what seemed like endless provisions and plans that were mapped out in fine ink, recalculating each seperate one to quadriple check each one several times again and again in his mind within a moments glance. "May I ask that you collect my work, properly roll up the papers carefully?" With a smirk and a hand firmly patted onto the soliders shoulder, he had a pleasant chuckle about the hypocritical statement he had made. "Because I clearly shouldn't be kept in charge of handling them."

Making his way up to his grey steed, he placed a foot and stepped up to his saddle. Now surveying the field before him, he looked over the distance at the Kingdom. Another one of his very limited army trotted on horseback up behind him. Cei looked down before the hill that seperated him from the target of his ambition. "They received the fake letter, correct?" "Yes my lord." His palms clenched onto the ropes of his saddle. "Very well, and our agents were able to succesfully make the nearby village in the east hoist the Shimofuri Family colors?" "Of course. The name of Haburi's family is power." Cei posed with a frown. "I wont lie." He kicked his feet inward and took off with the tremendous force of the horses gallop while his soldiers hurried up after him. "I'm not too fond of looking down hills with people behind me anymore..."

Charging down the hill, the young leader set his sights on the city with passion, the only emotion he seemed to outwardly show the past few months. The guards stationed at the front gates of the kingdom seemed to be on edge and distressed, because they looked like they were nervous from the sight of just a hundred men following Cei. A force not large enough to even take a small village. Cei yanking back on his ropes, commanded the massive stop of several horseback men, digging hoves that kicked up dirt with a loud stampede. "What brings you here?!" With a small hop off, he planted his feet evenly into the dirtied ground. Making his way straight for the two guards, he held up his hands and gave them a shrug. "We only request audience with your majesty." "As if she'd see you? She wont talk to anyone!" "I feel she'll have more than enough to say to me."

 Opening up the gates, the guards looked more than frustrated as they kept their heads down, stepping to the side. "Be our guest. Hearing anything for her majesty would be a miracle on its own." Cei nodding back at them with uninterested eyes passed them by with poise like that of a nobleman, leading the way for his few men that had just finished dismounting. Taking the center of the village square, Cei drew in a lot of attention with his troops as he climbed up halfway on the steps before being unable to take the whispers and clamour of the frightened much longer. "Hm. Allow me to introduce myself for all those who care enough about their Kingdom. Listen up! Let me keep this short and simple." Cei looked down on the gathering masses that became distracted from their stale lives. "I'll either be the envoy to your beginning." He slid his hands up in grand posture. "Or the envoy to your end."

Finally turning away to the ever growing noise of the public, he pushed onward up those wide steps, looking onward to the grand double doors that hid the infamously indecisive Queen. His men formed a wide 'U' shaped formation that blocked off anyone from the palace and Cei, occasionally having to push off and kick a rowdy citizen that felt offended by the young lords choice of words. "Guess I could've made that a bit less dramatic but..." Cei glared at the doorman, who backed off quickly in his formal attire. His thin fingers wrapped around the door handles and ripped the massive doors open that gave out a long deep creeking. "Who am I kidding? I love a good scandal." Standing before the large open marble floor, he took strength in his composure, waiting for some kind of response.

 He stood tall in his lordship attire. He wore his traditional fuedal lord clothes that were a slight faded grey, yet had a few unconventional changes to the wardrobe. His left sleeve was completely cut off, and bared what looked like a faded tattoo that was simply burned off on his shoulder. Gloves cloaked his hands, the right one black the other white. Something seemed to make a bit of clanky noise from behind him whenever he moved a bit too suddenly, but it was hard to see its hanging shadow when facing Cei. "Lady Eri. Are you there? I think you should have an idea why someone like me might be here."
"Whoever appeals to the law is either a fool, or a coward. Whoever cannot take care of themselves without that law is both. For a wounded man shall say to his assailant. 'If I live, I will kill you. If I die, you are forgiven. Such is the rule, of honor."

Spoiler (hover to show)

Colette

  • Guest
Re: Your Betrayal
« Reply #2 on: November 26, 2015, 07:05:14 pm »
"Milady, please, it's time to get up." A meek voice spoke, gradually growing in desperation as it chided from behind the large, intricate door they talked through. The small servant had just been delivered some...frightening news by courier and her queen wouldn't even answer her! Her light, repetitive knocks grew in frequency until she felt her knuckles ache slightly from the constant rapping and on the other side sat the frightened queen. "Milady, do please forgive me for being so forward but...you can't just hide in there!" The red-haired servant, and one of the queen's closest friends, Aiko, huffed in frustration as it seemed even she couldn't pull the queen from her room this evening. The staff had been worried and had confided in her, explaining that she hadn't been seen in days; the food they left would remain untouched when they came to pick the plates back up and the piles of important papers just kept building...truth be told, the queen's worry and distress was affecting the entire castle and if she didn't come out and deal with things soon, it'd also affect the people. Sighing loudly, Aiko bent down and slipped the notice she'd been given right under the door and departed with her last few words. "Eri, you can't avoid this one."

On the other end of the door, the newly crowned queen was biting her nails and pacing through her dark and depressive room she'd been hiding out in the past few days. The passing of her parents with the following coronation had left her no proper time to mourn and now she had the weight of an entire kingdom on her shoulders, it was already crushing her! Then, she'd been hearing words from her advisers and they'd tried to keep the news from her with their hushed tones and passive glances, but even she couldn't block out and disassociate from the massively growing problem at hand.

It had all started with a distant kingdom's fall ringing through the nearby lands. At first, it wasn't too much of a worry...many kingdoms fell and became conquered, it certainly wasn't unheard of, but then the next one fell. Then the next. Then the next. Etc, etc. It was quickly becoming something that was being talked about through fearful meetings lined with tension and anxiety; when would the next land be taken? Several kingdoms later, the name of the assailant quickly became spread and his infamy rose among the frightened people; King Haburi. Even someone as new to ruling as Eri could tell that he wasn't stopping any time soon and even though her kingdom was luckily far away...it would only be a matter of time before he came for hers next. How could she deal with something like this? Her parents, her training, nothing had prepared her for something like this!! Even her advisers were at a loss and constantly crossing swords over what to do; do they simply give in when the time comes, or fight?

Once she'd bit her cuticle and caused a small sting of pain to appear, Eri decided instead to bite at her lip as she approached the pale parchment on the ground. Holding the letter as if it threatened her life, she hesitantly opened it and was confronted with news she had already predicted; the Toru Kingdom had been conquered...between them and her own kingdom was around maybe 4 more, pathetically small lands. Haburi was like a relentless storm consuming and destroying, taking everything for himself and she was right in his oncoming path...how could she prepare for this?!

There were many decisions Eri was going to have to mull over now and they were slowly consuming her, putting her in a state of constant procrastination and anxiety that made her appetite wane into nothingness. It was only a matter of time before even the peaceful ignorance of her people would be broken and they'd come straight to her, the person who was supposed to be protecting them...

There was now a timer on her kingdom and her people that she couldn't put off any longer and Eri had no idea how to go about protecting the peace and prosperity that she'd been given. To her, she genuinely felt...hopeless.

Offline Cei

  • Crestfallen
  • Newbie
  • Posts: 48
  • Gender: Male
  • Soul of the Lost, Withdrawn from its Vessel.

  • Badges: (View All)
    Level 6 Seventh year Anniversary Sixth year Anniversary
Your Betrayal
« Reply #1 on: November 25, 2015, 03:24:11 am »
The snakes begin to crawl.
 It was about three months after the lunar eclipse Cei remembered gazing  up at the sky. Loud rockets perpetuating the constant noise that roared back at the large gathering of people. Despite the best efforts of the vibrant volumes of colors that begged for attention with flashes of gold and silver, the stars that night shined brighter than any fire. The docile man would remain silent, held in captivity by the beauty of those stars. SNAP. The clap of fingers in a bark of shifting skin caught Cei's attention. "Stop getting distracted, I need you on your best tonight." Looking to his right was the roar of a lion's mane, dangling from the shoulders of a man that glowed like a god. This man wore a clad of white and red, the nation's colors. Bearing the crest of the supreme house, Cei snapped out of it. The man in the lion's mane stood up fully, offering a hand to help him up. "Thanks." A moment's relapse of confusion caught Cei off guard as the man nearly pulled him up off the ground by himself. He released the bear like grip from his palms and motioned him to follow.

"In case you forgot, let me remind you why we're here." They began to trudge through the inclines of the various hills they were set up in. "The citizens of the town are distracted currently by the festival. At this time we wi-" Cei with prideful nature cut off his own king. "We will take out those who resist us by cover of night and sound. I know my lord, I made the plan, or did you forget who your leading strategist was?" The king remained silent with a face showing a strong emotion being contained through sheer iron will. The king had then let out a heavy sigh with bated breath. "Then you know how quickly we must move. I want you on point, your abilities are undeniably strong, perhaps even as strong as I am, but with a keen mind to back it." "No problem my lord, you could wipe out this entire resistance within the flap of a hummingbirds wings, yet your safety demands my resolve." The tongues of men were hushed in the amount of a hundred troops standing behind the young Cei. Every one of them ready to take out one of their own, for the glory of the king.

  At the top of the cliff, Cei stood with eyes beading down and homing in on the individual estate where the resistance was rumored to be plotting their revolution from the glorified ruler. He looked frantically, but couldn't find a shred of activity, nor was there any lights on in the house. Nothing to hear as the sound of distant fireworks rang in the background and the lash of the waves that punched the cliff behind the house. "This is odd... There's absolutely nothing here."Out of the corner of his eye, Cei found the quick drop of metal coming close to his temple. With a resounding quickening of his bones, he moved his arm up with all his speed and might to block the hand just short of what appeared to be a needle aimed for his neck. "What is the meaning of thi-" In a strike of a secondary needle to the other side, the fluid was injected into his bloodstream. Haburi, his king had silenced the cocky strategist. "You cut me off, I cut you off. Completely." Cei now dropping to his knees, held up now only by the strength of Haburi's clutch on his arm began coughing loud dry bursts of hot hair, feeling hazy. "You can't fight back for another half an hour with that drug in your system. Too bad you won't last another five." With a tight grip of his fist, the ruler laid fists, elbows, knees, and heels into Ceis body, crushing his flesh and crippling his spirit. Some of the soldiers looked in terror and vomited from the loud snapping of the defenseless man's bones while he cried out in screams, muffled by the fireworks that boasted its volume far away. In crimson blood and nightly bruise, Cei laid in the grass, choking on his tears as his voice grew sour.

Haburi in a final moment of disgust for the weak, spat on the lifeless ragdoll that was Ceis body, and kicked him with the force of his steel toed boot to his already broken side. The force carried him in a roll down the hill where the young man continued to get mouthfuls of rocks and dust in his eyes. His body was dropped off the edge and was consumed by the crashing waves. "Be gone, Cei. Rest well at the bottom of the sea."

Cei looked up at the sky so blue. Clear and bright, burning with a passionate sun that guided the youthful onward.  He took in the clean outdoor air, letting it fill him fully with the insight he needed. Down he looked, regaining himself from his daydream. "The field is set." Before him laid stacks upon stacks of paper that were scattered like a madman trying to find a cure. Through the grass, something peeked it head out between the papers, trying to find its way out. Cei stood up, brushing the dirt off his clothes while grinning just a bit. The thing beneath the papers began to dart out, rushing across the grass in a back and forth slither.
"And the Snakes begin to crawl..."
« Last Edit: November 25, 2015, 03:27:09 am by Cei »
"Whoever appeals to the law is either a fool, or a coward. Whoever cannot take care of themselves without that law is both. For a wounded man shall say to his assailant. 'If I live, I will kill you. If I die, you are forgiven. Such is the rule, of honor."

Spoiler (hover to show)

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter


 

+- Shoutbox

View Shout History

Affiliate Buttons!

  Rorupurei