Chapter IX Beauty of the storm
3rd Era, 845, 26th of Last Nightingale
Sepheran Empire
Province of Skyhail, Sepheran Capital of Sephera, Royal Palace
Elisabeth Cantillon
Cassandra was in the middle of a giggle fit and managed to still hush Elisabeth as a trio of courtier ladies passed on by in the hallway. Elisabeth managed to muffle herself from giggling long enough for the three to pass by with only minor glances thrown her way.
“I haven’t seen you smiling for days now,” Cassandra noted carefully.
Elisabeth didn’t look at her.
“I’ve had a lot on my mind,” she murmured.
“Thinking about your father?” Cassandra asked. “I’m sure he’ll come back soon.”
Yeah, with an army and another man I’ve never met, she thought. “Don’t worry. I’m okay.”
Her childhood friend still worried though. Elisabeth could tell on her facial expression.
“Maybe you could invite Duke Tiberius?”
Elisabeth shivered at the idea. He was amazing and so charming, but she didn’t get to decide who she’d marry. She was dead certain that it would be someone from House Vale. Her father trusted Vale more than the Darbonne and she just had to go along with whatever he decided.
She was brought out of her thought by Cassandra.
“Oh, look!”
She blinked and looked out the window.
“What? What is it?”
“The snow is melting,” her friend said happily.
When she saw she was right Elisabeth smiled. It was a perfect time for it too. With only four days left on Nightingale. Than the month of Lost Souls stepped in, the first month of spring.
She noticed that the sun was going down over the city roofs. But her excitement dropped when she saw the Court Mage and Spymaster walking towards her, whispering amongst each other. Her body tensed and she looked out the window to avoid exchanging looks with them. She didn’t know if Cassandra noticed it but she didn’t say anything about it.
She didn’t like mages. Not since magic had killed her mother when she was little.
Cassandra put a hand on her shoulder suddenly.
“They passed.” So she had noticed and even know what it was about. “The Court Mage would never hurt you.”
Elisabeth snorted and glared at her friend.
“Haven’t you learned anything since we came here? Everyone is plotting and scheming against each other and everybody’s lying about something, all got dark secrets to use like knifes against each other. Everyone on the Council advising the King has a dark side.”
Cassandra looked down at her feet.
“Yes milady. Forgive me.”
Without a word Elisabeth started walking and Cassandra followed a few steps behind. The rest of the walk to the dining hall for her evening meal was silent. Neither Elisabeth nor her servant uttered a single word.
They made their way through the painted hallways and carved out pillars in the walls. She didn’t admire the graceful infrastructure or gorgeous tapestry though. She barely looked at anyone whilst her anger were yet to settle.
In the dining hall she sat with a group of young ladies that pretended to be her best friends. She saw Tiberius halfway across the table. He was enjoying the company of Lord Colton and Lord Praetor Augustus. Elisabeth kept her mood in check and played nice with the ladies hoping to gain her favor. She chitchatted with the ladies and drank a glass of wine to make it through the rest of the dinner. She had two fried eggs, bred with butter, a dish of salad on the side, potatoes with a piece of deer meat with sliced up unions and spiced tomatoes.
The ladies talked about handsome lords, some interfamily squabbles they had heard gossip about and the King. They claimed they were sad for her because he had insulted her so gravely by his absence. But she could barely stand their fake sympathy and when they giggled at her intentionally pathetic joke.
For the fraction of a second she wondered where Cassandra was, but decided that if she was a good servant she’d be waiting behind her, like she was supposed to.
3rd Era, 845, 26th of Last Nightingale
Kingdom of Al-Rhuidean
Lands of Baron Balin Cantillon, Town of Sal-Morag, estate
Balin Cantillon
He was sitting in the small garden belonging to his estate. He remembered back to five years ago when he came to the holy lands and the heat was horrible. But he had gotten used to it now though. He smiled as a thought of his wife entered his mine. Evelin. She hated the heat and complained profoundly about it. Young as foolish as he was, he bought into it because she was pregnant.
By Nightingale he missed her so much. He could use a bottle of wine now for sure.
He closed his eyes hard and swallowed, his head leaning back against the palm tree. The cup in his hand dropped to the grass, the water left pouring out.
Some time had passed when he heard footsteps in the grass. Tiny little footsteps.
Balin opened his eyes and turned his head left to see Laila. Her rag shoes wobbled over with a jug of water in her hands. He looked down at his cup and picked it up. He should not have been surprised that she had been nearby to notice.
“Lord?”
He raised it for her to fill with water.
She gently poured the water in the jug into his cup. A smile on her face as usual.
“Thank you, Laila.”
She smiled even wider and a proud expression overtook her face. When she finished pouring she put the jug down and saluted as hard as she could.
Balin smirked and she giggled.
He took a small cloth out of his tunic pocket and wiped his forehead. He drank from the cup and found the water medium cold and glanced at Laila. Although he had preferred wine, he smiled.
“Thank you.”
“Lord.”
She added a nod and strutted back the way she had come. She didn’t go too far he imagined. After he emptied the cup he got up and strolled back inside. He he thought Laila was sitting in the corner on a fancy carved wooden chair, the jug firmly standing at her feet. She got up and followed him.
“You don’t need to drag the jug around,” he told her.
She thought for a moment, then put it and down and kept following him. He made way a few floors up to his study. There was a bookshelves that reached the ceiling on the right side when you entered. It was filled with books of different sizes and colors. Two paintings hung on opposite sides of each other and the dark wooden walls had been painted in wonderful patterns of colors. The center of the floor was covered by a large red and gold carpet. Behind the desk, a tapestry covered the wall.
When he sat down he saw that Laila had stopped at the table where his sword laid. It was stuck in its dark brown sheathe. Her mouth shaped a perfect O as she awed over the longsword. Then she looked at him with wide and awestruck eyes.
“O-Oathkeeper.” She pointed at the sword.
From behind his desk Balin nodded.
“Yes. That is Oathkeeper.”
She clapped her hands excitedly.
He looked down at the now empty cup of water. He thought about something stronger and after a moment gave in to the desire.
“Fetch me a bottle of wine.”
Laila was quickly gone from the room and ran to the cook to get a bottle from the wine cellar. She was gone for seven minutes, and during that time Balin worked on a letter to a fellow Baron and drafted a decree to the townsfolk here in Sal-Morag. When she returned she ran up and gave him the bottle. He snapped it from her hands and opened it and drank straight from the bottle. There was a sour hint and a good amount of bitterness to the taste. It made it obvious to him that it was a bottle of elven vintage she had brought. He had forced half the bottles content down his throat when he heard heavy footsteps.
“Baron, forgive the intrusion,” the Warg Steward apologized.
Balin put the bottle down and glanced at Laila before speaking.
“Yes?”
“A raven just arrived from Al Rhuidean, Baron.” He revealed a scroll in his clawed hand.
Balin frowned and leaned forward, half standing up.
“From who?”
“The king, sire. It says that King Godfrey IV command you to take your Templars and ride to meet him at the first meeting of the Twin Rivers,” the Steward read. “You must be there on the 1st of Lost Soul.”
He lowered the letter and Balin was silent for a moment longer.
“Does it say…why he requires me? Is there a threat to the kingdom?”
“It does not say, sire.”
“Well then. Assemble the Templars. Inform Quinn that I will ride, 200 strong immediately. Bring along three of our Naegi healers. If I have five days I must leave immediately. We should be able to reach Akram Castle before nightfall and rest there.”
He flinched when he heard a thud. To his amusement Laila had pulled his sheathed sword off the table and dragged it over.
He took it in his left hand and marched out of his study with both the girl and old wolfman in tow. The bottle was still in his hand and he took a sip two more times before he reached the armory. Then he put the almost empty bottle down. Laila instantly took in his her little arms. When Balin came out again he wore his Templar armor with the Great Helm under his arm. His squire had done a good and quick job of it. The Longsword Oathkeeper was attached to his armored waist. The Steward was gone. Off to give out his commands probably. Yet Laila was still there.
When he dawned the proud armor of a Templar he put away his emotions and feelings of loss of his family, he forced himself to not drink a drop of wine and ale when wearing the armor of a Templar. He couldn’t take the risk of losing himself when he donned it. When he led his men he was the man they expected him to be.
At the stables he saw a Warg boy standing with his horse ready. The Templars was gathering and Captain Quinn informed him that the rest was on their way from the barracks. Balin noted that the three healers he requested was there. One of them was Jaleesa. The Naegi healer he had with him last time he protected pilgrims. Most of the Order’s healers was Naegi actually, because of their natural ability with magic many converted Naegi was offered to join the Order.
She wore the Templar Healers armor, slightly different from the Templar Knight armor. both had slick and shining steel plated armor and boots but the Healers had no Great Helm and wore Leather gloves. Both had the robes over the steel armor, with red and white divided down the middle and a blue star in the center. But the Healers had a long white cloak and a hood that came instead of the helmet. As Healers they weren’t expected to fight as the Knights were. Still they could defend themselves and kill most enemies, but their main purpose was healing the wounded.706Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkck8VkXNyn
