Arthis
The "Before" years
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Posts: 43
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Post by Arthis on Mar 22, 2010 21:17:44 GMT -6
So, a guard outside his room, for his protection of course. He trusted these Ilian's about as far as he could throw Riese, at least for now. He'd devised a plan, and hopefully by tomorrow they wouldn't even think of raising arms against him.
That was the idea anyway. As Sir Marle left, he simply watched the door shut behind her. As he heard her feet move down the hallway he went to work. Every drawer was opened, every curtain drawn and every piece of furniture looked behind. When he was satisfied there were no traps, murder slits, or anything else that might disturb his sleep, he removed his riding armor.
This also gave him time to dress his wound, which had soaked the area around the cut on his sleeve. As he finished tying off the bandage he lay down on the bed provided. He would not sleep well this night, but he should get some rest so that he could be ready to enact his plan tomorrow.
Just in case, his hand lay under the pillow. What was also under the pillow was the poker for the fireplace. An effective weapon in a pinch.
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Marle Daviau
General
The Lance of the North
One word of encouragement, One person believing in me, It's all I need to become stronger.
Posts: 436
Illia Fame: 2
Affinity: Ice
OoC Alias: Marle
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Post by Marle Daviau on Mar 22, 2010 21:53:19 GMT -6
As Marle rounded the corner, she stopped, and looked over her shoulder. A shiver ran over her spine, but not from the cold. That man frightened her. He was strong as far as she could see...but she was too, though she didn't look it. Her strength wasn't just in her arms, but in spirit, that had to count for something. Moving down the hall, she entered her rooms which were on the same level.
Once inside, she tossed off her gloves and boots, and crawled into her bed with a loud yawn. wrapping the blankets around her body, she became nice and toasty, her braziers having long extinguished. Breathing another yawn out, sleep took her almost as soon as her eyes closed.
OoC: Timeskip to the next morning seems appropriate.
IC: As morning came, before the light touched the buildings seen over the castle walls, there was a knock on her door. Waking groggily, she sat up to see a girl there just beginning t close the door. In her hands was the blue silk dress embroidered in golden vines around then hems of the dress. it was beautiful to look at, but Marle was more surprised at being woken up for that kind of thing.
Groaning sourly, she pushed out of bed, and began to fetch clean clothes from her dresser. Slipping them on, she didn't quite notice that after the girl propped her dress up on a wooden frame to better keep the dress, that she was still there, looking expectantly. Running an eye, the girl smiled and bowed once she was taken notice of.
"Good morning Lady Daviau, your armor is finished, it'll be in the armory's first store room for you."
Nodding with a smile, the girl took off as she began slipping on her plated boots once again, and both of her lances this time. May as well get them adjusted to her armor as soon as possible. Exiting the room, she went down the hall, and stopped, looking to the now two guards outside the room facing the door from the opposite wall. Perhaps he hadn't met up with the commander yet.
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Arthis
The "Before" years
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Posts: 43
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Post by Arthis on Mar 22, 2010 22:07:50 GMT -6
To spite his precautions, the night was uneventful for Arthis. When morning came, he was awoken by the sound of someone opening his door. Instinctively he snapped awake, rolled out of the bed, and tightened his grip on the fire poker. The servant lady shrieked and dropped what she had been carrying, which was nothing more then a tray of cleaning linens. Instantly one of the guards was in the room, but Arthis had quickly stashed the fire poker on realizing it was just the serving women.
"Has no one taught you to knock when entering a knight's room." He scowled. "Leave, so I may dress myself in peace." The soldier cocked an eyebrow, but seemed content with the idea that she had merely been surprised by his rapid movement.
Several moments later he was awake with his armor on, prepared to meet the Knight Captain. So without waiting any longer he opened the door and stepped out into the hallway. He looked about, quickly taking a scan of the corridor for anyone else in it.
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Marle Daviau
General
The Lance of the North
One word of encouragement, One person believing in me, It's all I need to become stronger.
Posts: 436
Illia Fame: 2
Affinity: Ice
OoC Alias: Marle
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Post by Marle Daviau on Mar 22, 2010 22:23:06 GMT -6
When the scream was heard, Marle instantly went down the hallway at full sprint. The two guards on duty had their swords out and ready to enter the room, when the woman was coming out on her own accord. Apparently, nothing happened more than a misunderstanding. Still, the woman was so frightened she had run past her. As she slowed to a walk, turning to see the woman go, she gave a small laugh and turned back at the sound of the door opening and closing. Arthis was awake now.
Sighing, she held the two lances close in each hand in the same style she had used the previous night. Grinning at him, she breathed aloud a sigh.
"Scaring women now, and you say our people are unkempt."
Smiling, she motioned him to follow, to which the soldiers which were on guard followed a few paces behind. She was going to see to it herself that no more trouble would come from him. Walking with two lances in hand was a little odd....but she had no sling to slide them into for the time being, and nor were they collapsible. As they went down the flight of circling stairs until they reached the ground floor, Marle stopped by the Armory which was on the way, and motioned for the guards to keep going.
"The Knight Commander is probably ready to see you, these two will show you to the proper room."
Opening the armory door, Marle gave Arthis a second, bland look, and closed the door.
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Arthis
The "Before" years
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Posts: 43
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Post by Arthis on Mar 22, 2010 22:44:29 GMT -6
So now she was chastising him?
"Opening a knight's chamber door without knocking in a foreign country is a very foolish maneuver, somehow I shouldn't have been surprised." He shot back at her, but none the less he followed her. As she lead the way to what he assumed was the Knight Commander's door, he couldn't help but notice that she was armed for combat it would seem. That was it, from now on he was going to carry his lance at all times. But then she told him that this was not the right place, instead these two soldiers would take him to the Commander.
"Well then, by your leave." He said, unable to remove the sarcasm from his voice.
And so another trip through the halls brought him to a large, ornate door. The soldiers checked him for weapons, and when convinced he had none opened the doors to the chamber. Arthis entered, head held high and met the Knight Commander in the eye.
"Knight Commander Bashere, I am Sir Arthis, Knight of Bern's Obsidian Wing Wyvern Squad, I have been instructed to report a situation of importance directly."
The Knight Commander looked over him for a moment. "Odd to send a Knight as a messenger...what could be so important."
To which Arthis made his response. "Ertuia, Sir. Our scouts place a large portion of the Inquisitional Army in the plains of Sacae, not far from either of our borders. We have reason to believe that they will not honor any pact of peace and will attack either of us when they see a moments weakness."
The Knight Commander kept his gaze. "We have known of this for some time, what importance does your visit pertain to us?"
Well, he thought he'd needed the follow on, so it was good he prepared it. "My Commander has sent me here to assist in learning the way Ilian's do battle, so I may pass on strategies and tactics to our own men. If we wish to stand against the Ertuian army, we would need to do so together as a cohesive group, not as two separate groups working together."
He paused here, as the Commander seemed to debate over his decision. Finally he waved his hand and spoke. "There is some truth to what you say. Your own Wyvern Knights fight in a very different way from out Pegasus Knights, though they both claim the skies. In this time of strife, I will heed the warnings of Bern. Your services are accepted, and I will assign you to a group of Ilian regulars to begin trainning, yours and theirs, immediately. You are dismissed."
"By your leave." He said for the second time that day, though this time there was no sarcasm as he left the audience chamber.
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Marle Daviau
General
The Lance of the North
One word of encouragement, One person believing in me, It's all I need to become stronger.
Posts: 436
Illia Fame: 2
Affinity: Ice
OoC Alias: Marle
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Post by Marle Daviau on Mar 24, 2010 13:37:00 GMT -6
Since she departed, the walk was mostly uneventful for her. Her eyes seemed tired, when she glanced around the stone-worked hallways and staircases. Now and then, men and women both went by with cleaning supplies, or clothes, sheets, the works. In a way, she felt sorry for them, but servants were always needed, and they were probably paid well, or well enough. For some reason,s he was constantly checking over her shoulder, grumbling now and again about the Bern knight, what an arrogant fellow.
Having lost conscious awareness, it surprised her when she was standing infront of one of the armories, where the smithies were. Blinking up at the door, she looked back to wonder how exactly she got here, not really remembering much of the trip down here. Sighing, she rubbed her eye, and pushed the door open, to be surprised by the sound of hammers wailing upon metal and anvil alike. The thick wooden door did a good job at keeping most of the sound out.
Making her way past a few buckets filled with swords and axes, and a few armor stands, she rounded a corner and opened another door, where a young man sat with a quill and paper, dabbing into his ink jar, and continually writing something. Approaching him, he didn't look up until Marle was about a foot away from his desk.
Peeking up, he gave a grin and then thumbed in the direction of a door to her left.
"The Daviau girl, right? Armor's in there...fine work, that, smaller than I'm used to making, but does the job right, it does."
"Ah...thanks sir."
Marle made a respectful bow, and moved into the room, closing the door behind her. Inside, there were a few sets of armor and weapons still, as well as ornamental work and silver masterpieces, but her armor stuck out like a sore thumb. The light blue polished near perfectly gave a good shine from the pale light that was inside the room, with the golden detailing in the shoulders chest boots and gloves seemed to add a sort of air about it. The other thing that gave away that it was her's, was the fact it was too small for a man.
Moving closer, she put the weapons down aside, and then prepped herself, and began putting on the heavy steel armor. The armor was heavier than what she expected, but it wasn't actually all that bad. it felt like a second skin, almost. Most knights had truly bulky armor, but hers was hardly overly so. The armor just clung to her form, and was a touch tight as it should be. Thankfully, she didn't look like one of those knights who seemed to look like iron kettles, instead, the armor was superb, graceful, and sturdy.
Flexing in the armor, it was surprisingly easy to move in, not truly hindered when she twisted, tucked, or moved around, the only hindrance was the weight, but Marle would get used to that as she did her recruits armor in time. Sliding the dragonspear into one of the harnesses on her back, Marle grabbed at her other lance, and began to move away, until she saw the helmet left, and quickly placed it upon her head, and lowered the visor, and grimaced, then began to exit the room.
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Arthis
The "Before" years
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Posts: 43
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Post by Arthis on Mar 24, 2010 14:17:43 GMT -6
Arthis wasn't totally sure what was expected of his as he left, and looked at the two soldiers with his usual icy gaze. They turned away, not making eye contact with him as he walked down the hall.
He wanted to find the stables, to make sure Riese was taken care of and not ripping some stable hands arm off. He theorized that the stables would be easiest to find from the outside, since they needed to be open to the outdoors. It was a bit of a walk through the castle, and he got more then a few odd stares. Until finally he reached the main hallway where he saw an armored knight coming out from a side room. He didn't recognize Marle with her helmet on, and so he went to walk right past her without a word.
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Marle Daviau
General
The Lance of the North
One word of encouragement, One person believing in me, It's all I need to become stronger.
Posts: 436
Illia Fame: 2
Affinity: Ice
OoC Alias: Marle
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Post by Marle Daviau on Mar 24, 2010 19:45:11 GMT -6
Marle turned and watched as Arthis walked right on by her, and rose a small eyebrow as she stood while he walked away a few more steps. Looking to the two men who followed him, she decided to slide in between them, giving them each a look of curiosity. For the moment, she remained quiet and played with her helmet a little bit, but eventually had it set so it was comfortably resting on her head, and no longer tugging at her hair.
Before Arthis came to a split in the hallway which lead to the left or right, Marle picked up her pace until she was just a little behind his left side, her lance making clicking noises as it touched the tiles. Not bothering to clear her throat, she had an idea on where he was heading to.
"Take the next left, and then a right at the second door, and you'll come to the stables we usually keep the Pegasus at. We cleared a few of the extra stalls for your Wyvern, so I've been told."
Tugging at the shield that seemed attached to her left arm. She held onto it, but the thing was as big as the shield she found in the wyvern's den back in the mountains bordering Ilia and Eturia...it was of different design though, an upside down triangle all the same, but still.
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Arthis
The "Before" years
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Posts: 43
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Post by Arthis on Mar 24, 2010 21:05:29 GMT -6
Arthis heard the voice behind him, but due to the muffling nature of the helmet did not recognize it's owner. He half turned at the armored soldier and arched an eyebrow. He supposed that his presence here would have been the talk of this backwoods command. Heh, didn't they have anything more to worry about.
Without a word of thanks he turned down the path he was indicated, and reached a set of wooden doors, this must be the stable. As he reached for the door he heard one thing he recognized...a Wyvern Cry...and this particular one he never liked to hear. It was the territorial cry. Without pausing he kicked open the doors, and saw exactly what he was expecting. The wyvern was standing tall, it's head running against the ceiling, clawing at a young stable boy who fell back on the ground in terror. Without pausing, Arthis grabbed a lance from the soldier next to him, ripping it from his hands and turning it about so the haft was pointed toward Riese.
"Riese!" He shouted at the Wyvern, jabbing it in the scales with the haft of the spear. He spoke no more then as he batted back the Wyvern's claws with the lance. The other soldier moved up to attack, and Arthis did speak. "Touch my mount and you're head'll be on this pike!" He shouted, focusing on the opponent before him.
Another moment into the tussle of steel and claw, and Arthis struck home, hitting the tall Wyvern on the bridge of it's nose. The wyvern stopped flapping it's wings, and settled down immediately. It seemed to have calmed down...for now.
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Marle Daviau
General
The Lance of the North
One word of encouragement, One person believing in me, It's all I need to become stronger.
Posts: 436
Illia Fame: 2
Affinity: Ice
OoC Alias: Marle
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Post by Marle Daviau on Mar 24, 2010 22:35:05 GMT -6
With the resounding cry of the wyvern, Marle took off after Arthis, and had exchanged her steel lance for the broader, more dangerous dragonspear. Biting her lip gently as she went in just behind Arthis a pace or two behind, she saw the stableboy who had tried his best to take care of a creature he was unfamiliar with. She too, would have been ready to attack, but seeing the Bernsman take authority, she relaxed, but didn't lower her guard.
However, she did take offense to the man, who was clearly defending the wyvern, at the threat of the soldier. Stepping between them, she looked upwards, once he was finished, and wore a look of determination. The boy was no long gone, and the soldiers stood back and away.
"Watch yourself carefully. It'd be hard to stick a head on a pike with one already through yours, outlander."
Flipping up her visor, she admired the beast that Arthis used as a mount, and smiled. it was big, but not so big as the one she had killed up in the mountains. Still, Riese was impressive.
"Impressive creature. You can sense the strength from him, the way he holds himself."
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Arthis
The "Before" years
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Posts: 43
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Post by Arthis on Mar 24, 2010 22:46:27 GMT -6
Riese was not used to so many visitors, and seemed slightly annoyed by the presence here. Arthis, on the other hand, seemed extraordinarily aggravated as he thrust the lance back at the soldier, vertically so it wouldn't be seen as an attack. He turned his gaze to Marle, and if he was surprised she was that knight, he did not show it.
"I don't know what bonds of loyalty you follow here, and since you clearly are not a mounted knight you could not understand. One who bares a weapon against my partner, will soon see a weapons bared against them. It is a trust, thicker then language or race." He reached out and laid his hand on the massive creatures snout, simply leaving it there. With his other hand he retrieved his lance from the saddle bag and placed it across his back.
He might as well drop the bombshell now, he had a good idea that it would be so. "It's respect, if you treat it like an animal, then it will treat you like food. You'd be wise to learn that, it might save your life in the future. At least as long as we remain here."
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Marle Daviau
General
The Lance of the North
One word of encouragement, One person believing in me, It's all I need to become stronger.
Posts: 436
Illia Fame: 2
Affinity: Ice
OoC Alias: Marle
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Post by Marle Daviau on Mar 24, 2010 23:16:24 GMT -6
Marle's look was rather flat and uncaring about the whole trust thing. The man was an odd one to spout about trust, when he clearly didn't hold it towards anyone. He considered Ilian's enemies, and rightly he should do so, but such arrogance could be seen as an insult, but thankfully, despite the look of it, Ilian's were a harder people.
Flashing a girlish smile, a flow of her shoulders displaced his words as uncared for, and slowly ran her gloved fingertips across her blue and green spear, the colours meshing oddly. Stretching her arms, she turned her back and motioned for the two men to leave. They didn't need to be here.
"You have an odd manner of making threats. Spit it out, will you, traipsing around your dislike for me, and the rest in this nation is bothersome. Old hatred dies slowly, or not at all, as I understand it."
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Arthis
The "Before" years
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Posts: 43
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Post by Arthis on Mar 24, 2010 23:29:02 GMT -6
So she had a little spark in her, hah excellent. There might actually be a real warrior among this lot after all. "It wasn't a threat, it was a warning. I am to be stationed here, and if your people don't adapt to dealing with an alpha Wyvern, there may be problems. Some idiot is going to treat it like a horse like that boy, and I might not be there to calm him down." He patted the wyverns side. "I don't want to deal with the repercussions of Riese biting some fools arm off for getting too close, so I'd appreciate it if you could 'lead by example' and at least try to understand that this is not some beast of burden. This is my ally, and I rely upon him, much as you rely upon your soldiers."
He moved over to scoop a bit of meat from a trough over to Riese, who snapped his jaws on it. Thank god they had food for Wyverns here and didn't try to feed him hay. "And my disdain for your people..." He said rounding on her.
"Is because it is thanks to your nation that Bern is now controlled by someone who understands nothing about the nation itself, and wasn't even born there." He growled with his eyes burning.
"How would you feel if Ertuia took over Ilia and placed a Pirate in charge of it all? I doubt you'd be here happily supporting your country."
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Marle Daviau
General
The Lance of the North
One word of encouragement, One person believing in me, It's all I need to become stronger.
Posts: 436
Illia Fame: 2
Affinity: Ice
OoC Alias: Marle
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Post by Marle Daviau on Mar 25, 2010 0:01:36 GMT -6
Marle nodded, now that he spoke some sense, instead of hinting at things. She couldn't truly condemn him for it, she did that much herself afterall, but it was more annoying that she was on the receiving end of it far too often as late. Looking over Riese for a moment, she took a step back, and nodded to the man from Berns, and gave him a sort of salute.
"No...I've already seen the damage a Wyvern can do with his teeth, had to kill one a fair bit larger than your Riese, in the end."
Sighing, she tossed her lance onto her back, up along side her steel lance, and strapped her shield to cover fully over them. Rubbing her head with one hand, and taking off the helmet with the other, she regarded the tall man, and nodded once more.
"I understand you quite clearly, and I'd do the same, I don't care much for the Sacaen that they've put there myself, all of what I hear on it anyways, Bern should have kept it's own royalty in charge, well, that's my view atleast."
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Arthis
The "Before" years
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Posts: 43
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Post by Arthis on Mar 25, 2010 8:41:33 GMT -6
Arthis allowed a slight grin to escape his lips for a moment, so she wasn't completely stupid. Well then maybe this wouldn't be so bad. He'd half expected the entire country to be worthless, but at least he'd found one knight actually worth something. A sharp wit, determined spirit, and similar views. He could have gotten worse company.
"Agreed." He said simply, in response to her final comments, before he looked back to Riese. "You know...we have met as Knights, but we have not yet met as soldiers. What do you say?" He moved next to Riese and drew out his lance.
"Think you can hold your own against a Wyvern Knight? Of course in a more...open area."
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