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| The Shadows | ||||
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| 07:13:57 May 19th 10 - King Ernest Deallus The Wise: -Prologue-
The Grand Palace of Cidel was an imposing and beautiful structure. The construction was ordered by Emperor Gaius the Magnificent in 279 AF, and the construction was completed in 294 AF. It was built of white stone, and the fountains seemed to be made of solid gold (but to an observant individual they would be made of stone coated in gold). Fourteen Emperors had called the Grand Palace home, including the current Emperor: Furinus II.
Furinus was a man of average height, but his personality made him seem much taller. His commanding voice and personality made him respected amongst his soldiers, and his skill at propaganda and command of the Cidellian Temple made him loved by his people. His domestic policies were fair and impartial, and his skill at oration was above-average for an Emperor. All in all, he was a good emperor, and would be looked upon favorably by historiansin the future.
The throne room was empty except for two people (and the Altorian Guard, whom were trusted and loyal). Chairs had been brought in by the Altorian Guard, and the Emperor was seated on one. His guest had chosen to stand, and was dressed in a faded gray hooded cloak to protect his identity from the watchful guards.
"They are sworn to secrecy. You don't have to wear a hood in here," said Furinus.
"It is a habit that I have grown accustomed to in my own lands. You can never be too careful in these dark times. If someone recognized me, it could mean the end to all hope of returning the true king to the throne," replied the man as he lowered his hood. It was strange to him that he was wearing faded and torn clothes while he stood before a well-dressed emperor of wealthy, powerful, and large empire. The emperor gave a smile, the kind that was forced.
"It is fine to wear your worn attire before me," said the emperor as he seemingly read his thoughts, "I do not judge a man by his clothes. I judge a man by his actions."
"Then I hope that you will help us in our hour of need. King Ardus is not a man who is right to rule. He taxes the people heavily, his supporting lords oppress the people, and their guards are brutish in their service. I also believe I heard that he cut off trade with your empire as an act of defiance, which is hurting our kingdom more than you believe," said Geoffrey Tarimbar. While most people would not recognize his name, he had once been a duke in the service of King Charley Deallus II. When the king had died during a campaign against the Hondulian Empire, everything fell apart. Lords rushed to take power while the majority of the military was out of the kingdom and then hunted down anyone who would oppose them. Geoffrey, seeing the danger, hid himself as he returned to the kingdom, which was renamed from Tasidian to Ardesia.
"I would consider giving you aid if you only told me what your plan was. I am not a man to put faith into something blindly," said Furinus bluntly.
"There is a young man that has been under my guidance for his entire life. When I was returning from the wartorn lands of Hondul, I was escorting Queen Yevanna and the newborn Crown Prince Ernest. Sadly, as we were just nearing the borders of Tasidian, she was struck down by a deadly fever. If news of Prince Ernest was revealed to the rebellious lords, they would surely have butchered him and myself. So I did the best thing that I could...I hid myself within the kingdom borders and lived in poverty just outside cities to avoid being identified. While raising the young prince, I have not told him of his parents or that he is the true heir to the throne of Tasidian. His twenty-third birthday is only days away and I plan on revealing the truth to him that I have kept secret for these many years. Myself and others that I have gathered to my cause plan on overthrowing the king and his supporting lords and placing Prince Ernest on the throne where he belongs," explained Tarimbar.
Furinus sat back for a moment, analyzing the words. He stroked his beard twice, and then leaned forward.
"I see that you have a plan, but I have not yet seen any action. I cannot support such a plan until I see that you have a chance of success. I have only just met you recently, and have not heard your plan until now. A lot of money is required for a revolution, Tarimbar," said Furinus.
"But if we had your financial support, it would make success that much more likely. Could you not reconsider?" pleaded the elderly man.
"I apologise, but the answer is no. If I am to fund you and your rebels, I require a sign of success. I will not give my money to a man I just met, and I think any of my ancestors, short of my extremely generous grandfather, would have made the exact same decision in my place," explained Furinus.
"Then I must leave and head back to my homeland. I have much to plan and prepare myself for. I hope to hear from you again soon," said Tarimbar as he bowed politely.
"It was a pleasure making your acquaintance," said Furinus, "I will eagerly await news of your exploits."
Tarimbar then left the emperor's presence as he headed back to Tasidian. It was several days journey, but he had made many long trips in his lifetime and this was just another one of them. Rain poured down on him during the entire trip but it did little to lower his morale. Finally, he arrived near the small town of Aldbar. He destination was not inside of the town but just outside of it. There was a small lodge that had been once abandoned but now was inhabited by a number of outcasts. There were thieves, rogues, and a single mercenary, but most were simply poor people who had nowhere else to go. Geoffrey had spent much supporting these people by doing what he felt was right: stealing from the lords that oppressed them. As he arrived at the lodge, he first bumped into a young man who had been sitting at the door cutting knotches into a stick.
"Hey! Watch where your goin` or I'll stick ya!" threatened the man who was no more than a boy at best.
"That is no way to greet your mentor is it Hector?" replied Tarimbar.
"Oh? Is that you pappy? Couldn't recognize you through all of those wrinkles and gray hairs. My apologies then," joked Hector Munson, an orphan that Geoffrey took pity on and helped raise. The boy still ended up becoming quite a good pickpocket, but Tarimbar managed to convince Hector to only pickpocket the guards or rich supporters of the king. He never explained to the boy why, but Hector was not complaining as he still stole a good deal of silver and gold. The man moved into the lodge past Hector and saw Ernest, whom he more commonly called Ernie, sitting in a chair toying with a small object.
"Ah, Tari, nice to see you back from your trip. Where exactly did you go?" asked Ernie. The young man was wearing some tattered clothing, but those clothes were merely used to hide the cheap chainmail underneath. He had raven black hair that drifted down to his eyes and an athletic build that showed he must get quite a bit of exercise. There was nothing very extraordinary about the young man except his eyes. They were a fiery orange which always gave Geoffrey a small shock when he looked right at them. He swore that the eyes looked like the flames from a bright fire.
"I was just seeing if there were any visiting lords in the area worth visiting to see if they needed anything taken off their hands. What is that you have there?" asked Tarimbar as he moved closer to Ernie.
"Hector got me this thing for my birthday. Said he bought it off a rich person but I will bet you a pound of gold that he stole it. Looks like it is some kind of toy. I may end up selling it and see if I can buy something useful," replied Ernie.
"That's right, it is your birthday..." mused the older man.
"Don't tell me you forgot. Some mentor you would be if you couldn't remember," groaned the young man.
"Oh no, I have quite the gift for you. I will need to talk to you in private in a little bit. Where is Aurelius at anyways? Didn't I tell him to guard this place until I got back?" asked Tarimbar.
"I am right here, sir," said Aurelius as he approached wearing his scalemail, his hand resting on the hilt of his longsword.
"Well, at least someone was doing something productive around here. The place is dirty and broken down still. I guess I am glad you all didn't burn it down," sighed Geoffrey.
"I would have, but I lacked fuel and motivation," laughed Aurelius, "Though I say that I could have if you'd have asked!"
"Well, I guess it is about time to give Ernie his present...guess today is going to be educational for everyone. Come over here ya birthday boy," said Tarimbar as he waved for Ernie to head over. A small group of people who were interested gathered around their mentor as he sat in a small wooden chair.
"Ernie, I know that you have asked many times about my past and your parents and I have ignored or changed the subject on you. I guess it is about time to answer those questions. I guess I will tell you who I am. Exactly twenty-three years ago, I was Duke Geoffrey Tarimbar of the Kingdom of Tasidian. I served the king at the time, Charley II the Fierce. The kingdom was at war and I had been the escort to Queen Yevanna, who had wanted to see her husband one last time before he went into battle. After he departed for battle, I was to escort her back to the capital. While we were just entering the borders of the kingdom, the queen became very ill and died from a fever. Also, while Charley II was outside of the kingdom, several lords rose up and claimed power. Lord Ardus, Lord Halston, Lord Montigue, and Lord Gracen all assumed control and killed off several other lords by using assassins and ambushes. Anyone sympathetic to the Deallus family was imprisoned or executed. Since I fit in that category, I did what I had to do...I hid. A duke like myself was hiding in the places that I once avoided," said Tarimbar. There was silence for almost a minute before Ernie got the courage to ask a question.
"So...if you are really a duke, then do you know who my parents were? You told me that you have been taking care of me since I was barely a year old, so I assume that you knew them?" asked Ernie. Geoffrey Tarimbar took a long breath and let it out slowly.
"When I said that I was escorting Queen Yevanna, I did not mention that she also had a newborn son," said Tarimbar. Ernie's eyes widened and then the duke continued.
"When she died of her illness, I took him into my care. Ernie...that boy was you. Your father was King Charley II and your mother was Queen Yevanna. You were the crown prince of the Kingdom of Tasidian. Unfortunately, Lord Ardus has claimed the throne in your place and renamed the kingdom after himself. He did not know that Charley II had a son, and I plan on keeping it that way...at least until you regain the throne," said Tarimbar. There was a long and awkward silence that followed.
"So you are trying to tell me that I should be king?" asked Ernie.
"Exactly. I have been working for many years trying to gather together support for you to take the throne. Many trusted friends of mine also took to hiding and I have been in contact with them. The only obstacle to your return is King Ardus and the three lords supporting him. If we can remove the military power of those lords, then we would have a chance of eliminating them," said Tarimbar.
"Removing their military strength cannot be as simple as you are making it sound," replied Ernie.
"In the Cidellian Empire, payroll convoys are typically well-guarded and the soldiers are patriotic and loyal to the emperor. In Ardesia, it seems that they get about as much protection as they can scrape together for the payrolls. The soldiers seem loyal to coin, not their lieges. If we can cut off their pay, I'm sure desertion would follow," suggested Aurelius.
"That, my young prince, is how we will make it very simple. I believe that will be our first step in my plan. We will steal some of the pay shipments to one of the lords and see what the result is. Most likely, it will cause an uproar. I will not expect immediate desertion, which means we will probably have to take a couple shipments. We will have to be smart and very careful. Thank you Aurelius for that information," said Tarimbar.
Aurelius nodded and turned to look at the Prince, expecting a comment or reply.
"Well, assuming that cutting off the pay for the soldiers causes them to desert as Aurelius said, what will happen to the lord when his protection is gone?" asked Ernie.
"Why...we kill him of course. We cannot afford to leave these lords alive as they will most likely come back to haunt us in the future. Also...they killed many good friends of mine...I will not forgive them so easily for their crimes," said Geoffrey.
"I think...I need to let this all sink in. It is quite a bit to accept right now," said Ernie as he sat down and rubbed his face with his hands.
"Oh, I can imagine...it is something I dreaded telling you for over twenty years. I expected you to think I was crazy and ignore it completely," said Tarimbar.
"So, we are going to kill the king as well?" asked Ernie.
"Cutting the head off a beast is one sure-as-hell way to kill it," commented Aurelius.
"I know, but getting close to the king will not be an easy effort for anyone. It would require some good planning of course," replied Ernie.
"Now that I think about it...the king's birthday is two weeks away. I am sure that he will be throwing a huge celebration for it...Wait, Aurelius, do you know if the Cidellian Empire is sending a representative?" asked Tarimbar.
"They should be. They have been trying to re-open trade with Ardesia since Ardus took over twenty-three years ago, and I doubt they'd miss a chance to ask him on his birthday," said Aurelius.
"Then I may have a plan...we will not go after the lords just yet...we are going to kill the king...and I know just the way," grinned Tarimbar.
"What is the plan then? Have Aurelius poison him? You want someone who couldn't whisper, let alone kill someone quietly, kill the king?"
"I once killed a man by cutting his backbone. Not a scream, not even a cry..." muttered Aurelius, "I can do it if you need me to."
"Now now, behave you two. Aurelius is not going to be the person doing the killing, but he will be a vital part of this operation. If Aurelius manages to get into the party with the Cidellian representative, he can help me slip into the king's castle. Once inside, I will find a way to poison his drink. You can thank one of my dear friends for this poison. He said it guarentees a slow and painful death. No way of avoiding it with medicine," said Tarimbar.
"I have a folding knife that I can smuggle into the party, just in case. Don't ask where I'll hide it," said Aurelius.
"Alright, if you and Aurelius have your parts in this, what am I supposed to be doing?" asked Ernie.
"Well, I think having a swift escape planned would be best. We would need our horses outside of the castle since I believe things will get hectic after the king croaks," said Tarimbar.
"Sounds exciting..." said Ernie.
"Well, the king has a lot of payback from myself and friends. This is my last wish in life is to watch that worm die. I can pass you off as my squire or something so you can be inside with my horse. Don't worry, we will get this assassination completed," said Tarimbar with a grin that Ernie and Aurelius had never seen on his face before. Geoffrey Tarimbar was finally going to begin his spree of revenge.
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<<<<<<<<****THE SHADOWS****>>>>>>>> ~~~~~~~~-----------------------------~~~~~~~~ ~Cooperatively written by Emperor Gaius Septimus Cidellus and King Charley Deallus~ | ||||
| 17:53:23 May 19th 10 - King Ernest Deallus The Wise: Comments? | ||||
| 18:56:07 May 19th 10 - Sir Karzun Demonsul: Oh hey a Charley and Septim story. | ||||
| 19:49:15 May 19th 10 - King Ernest Deallus The Wise: Yeah, if you were around way back *Glares* you may remember the old The Shadows story that I had with Erunion and Septim as characters. Well, this is the same story...except that the original one was poorly written(in my opinion) and the storyline of that time really didn't make sense in the overall picture. Now, with the Deallus timeline needing to be more stable and less vague, I am going to redo my world with Septim as the Cidellian advisor(to make sure I don't fck up his empire of course) and wingman(Since Tasidian and Cidel have been very helpful to each other through their histories). The Shadows(original) was the first real story that I wrote on this forum as an RPer. It was inspired from a combination of Thief and Assassins Creed, but now it will be redone with some fresh thinking and increased writing ability(I hope!). Enjoy :) Comments are always welcome. | ||||
| 20:56:11 May 19th 10 - Mr. Erunion Telcontar: Looks really, really good so far. I'm liking it! | ||||
| 22:24:01 May 19th 10 - Sir Karzun Demonsul: Kay, I read it. It's pretty impressive. Can't wait for the first full chapter. | ||||
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