Inheritances: Consquence - Action Thread

Rain.

A fitting accompaniment; the Finds believed that it was the tears of their goddess Gallobcháir as she wept for her lost husband, the god of the earth, stolen from her by her jealous sister in the dawn-times.

Now it mourned someone else; the death of a king. His majesty; King Alonso Santoyi III; King of Arul, protector of her borders, beloved of his people. And, left bereft of an heir.

His majesty had died without naming a successor. And now, his only child, his son, whom long ago was disowned, a separation born of argument the two could not reconcile, returns to claim his inheritance, duty weighing on his shoulders like a shawl.

He will return to find a kingdom in peril; bankrupt, the treasury empty, her generals either long dead of old age or impotent, her army greener than the finest salads to be found in the elfenlands, the crops dying and decaying in the field, the people; poorer than the royalty. The nobles nearly driven to all out revolt.

And that is nothing more than the beginning; for on the horizon, approaching, and still days away, comes an armada; the ships of a rival; Contyr has sent her navies to seize this backwater kingdom for the glory of their usurper-king.

And in all his wildest nightmares, the young princeling, seen as little more than a bastard and usurper himself, could never have imagined that he would have at his side, but 5 people watching his back; a half-mad traveler, made more than a bit eccentric by his wanderings. A displaced Hersir from the north, far from home for reasons that others find puzzling. A Contyrrian man, perhaps a spy; perhaps not. A strange woman, who refuses to allow her face to be seen, and an aging blacksmith, given more to whoring and drinking than battle, of late.

And yet; he'll likely need all of them before he is through.
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The lead teamster slapped the reins of the cart hard, driving the horse through the rain. It was coming down hard now. Sitting in the very back of the caravan was a coffin; a solid, heavy, black affair of fine marble, bearing the image of an old man clutching a sword to his breast carved masterfully into the lid. Beside it stood a strange man; Witch-born, any good, god-fearing man would have called him; his eyes did not match, and a baroque "B" had been branded into his forehead many years ago by some unknown instrument. Beside him sat a tall, muscular man, whom many would call nondescript, though, he bore a clearly Findish look about him.

Across from them both sat a skinny dark-haired man, wearing what he was sure were his best clothes, though, to those around him, they were shabby and unkempt traveling clothes at best.

In the cart separating the first from the last, the two sat a young woman, a cloak and cowl pulled over her face, a strange device situated on her arm. Beside her sat a young man, bearing the same look of that who lay in the coffin behind them, a despondent look upon his face as they traveled through the decaying wasteland outside. They heard the lead teamster shout;

"We'll be arriving at the keep in a half an hour!"
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Ok Gentlemen, this is your opportunity to get familiar with one another. Ven, Rodrigo, and John, you're all sitting in the back together, keeping vigil over his majesty's coffin. Feel free to chat among yourselves. Llan and Aaron, you two are seated next to eachother in the second cart. If you two want to talk, feel free.

If at any point, someone wants to do something unexpected, send me a PM and we'll see what we can do, if you would like to try and talk to the lead teamster over the rain, go ahead and send me a PM. Just remember, all of the carts are covered, and connected by pins, only the lead teamster is leading the horses, and by extension, the carts.

After being woken up from my unproductive meditating by the lead teamster's shout, I stare at the masked person sitting beside me, looks like it's a young warrior. He hasn't removed his cloak for the whole ride.
I finally decide to ask him:

"Why are you sitting here?"

Watching the rain fall over the landscape, lost deep in thought yet fully alert to the outside world, I notice the young prince Aaron arouse from his meditation and turn to me to ask a question.

"I am sitting here to protect you, my lord. You are the true heir to the Kingdom of Arul and thus you have my loyalty, just as your father King Alonso did."

I look at his mask for a few moments, trying to get my head around what his words mean. I decide to say:

"So it is really happening; did the...did my father die in peace?"

I look at the prince, and notice the cloud of worry that dwells deep within his eyes. I respond solemnly to his question.

"Ye...yes, my lord. The king was tended to very well by his physicians and passed on to the next world while he slept."

I then, in an attempt to lighten the prince's mood a little and focus his attention on other topics, proceed to ask him about his journeys.

"You have been away from the castle for quite some time, Prince Aaron. If I may ask, where have your travels taken you?"

I sit still and silently, but anyone looking closely would see my eyes constantly scanning the world outside, body tense to spring in to action at any moment.

I become agitated with the lingering silence. The big man beside me looks like someone who would respond in grunts, but I decide to try and engage him anyway.

"So...what are you thinking about?"

I do not move.
"Checking for danger. There are many that would want the new king dead before he reaches the throne."

"Did you know him well?" I ask, gesturing to the coffin we share this cart with.

"We have never met. I am here to safeguard the succession. This realms future is important for mine."

"Oh"

I cast my gaze around the cart, noting the sleeping man across from me. He looks like he could snap me in two if I so much as touched him. The sound of the wheels rolling against the path below becomes too much to bear so I try to engage with the tall man once again.

"I'm Rodrigo, and I guess you could call me friends with Aaron, the heir. Can you protect him? He means a lot to me."

"Yes. I will perform my assigned task to the best of my abilities."

"You don't talk much do you? Did Aaron hire you? Is that man there with you?"

"I was sent by my liege. The reasons are not for you to know"

"Sorry for asking." I say with a roll of the eyes.

"What's your name?"

"Ven"

My thoughts wander off to picture my sleeping father and his last moments, when my new escort asks me about my long absence from the castle. I nod, for I was indeed gone for a long time:

"Oh, I have seen many places. Every time a bit farther out. I spend a long time in Sarvo, visited Morem, spend even some time among the Elves. A few days ago I was even on my way to the West. I always wanted to visit the Shiir and their land. Sadly, this will have to wait."

I pause to think about how I, as the king, will even be able to do that; can I even say things like that now?
How am I supposed to act?
Should I sit straight?
Where to put my hands?

"Can you keep my diplomatic missteps a secret?",

I ask in the hope that I have not done too much harm yet.

I respond to the prince's question with a nod while saying to him.

"You do not need to worry, my lord. Your secrets are safe with me."

"Thank you."

With a sigh I decide to get to know him better if I am to have him by my side often.

"So how long have you been in the king's service?"

I look down into the straw that covers the bed of the wagon, remembering how long it has been that I served the previous king.

"I have...had been in the service of King Alonso for a few years now. It was a few months before you left when I became what I am. I owe him everything."

I look back up and out onto the landscape being drenched in rain, appearing as though I am lost in a memory.

I see that he seems lost in his memories, so I leave him be. But suddenly I remember:

"Excuse me, but I think I remember you being around my father a lot, but that seems to be very bleary;"

and I ask carefully,

"have you always been wearing this mask?"

I turn back to look at Prince Aaron, and reach up to touch the mask tenderly while I answer his question.

"Yes, my lord. I have always worn this mask."

I nod acknowledgingly.

A few more minutes pass.

I hear nothing but the carts, horses and the rain. The men from the other cart, that could be heard earlier, seem to have gone silent again.

Feeling a cold breeze that seems to have gotten caught in the cart, I notice that I want to ask the phantom next to me:

"Since I don't know your face, may I then ask for your name? Or at least: by what name would you have me call you?"

Caught off-guard from the question, I scramble out my response in a fluster.

"Oh...er...I did not realize I never informed you of my name, Prince Aaron. My apologies. My name is Llan Faan."

While stating my name, I cross my right arm over my chest and bow. I then glance over to the wagon behind us and ask:

"Who are these men who travel with you, my lord? I do not recognize them."

In spite of the circumstances I try to smile:

"Hello, Llan Faan. It is nice to meet you."

and nod my head in a greeting manner.

Looking to the side where the cart with the other men and the coffin is:

"One of them is Rogrido Orlandi. He is a friend of mine. I will introduce you to him once we arrive, because from the sound of things it appears they might be asleep or do not want to talk right now; and we will reach the keep soon."

I think for a moment and find it important to mention,

"Oh and don't worry about Rodrigo once you see him from a closer distance, he is a very good person and has a way with people."

Then I ponder for a bit, but decide to say:

"About the others I am not so sure. For a moment one voice sounded familiar but I cannot say for sure. But as I said, we will see them soon."

I try loosing up a bit, then straighten my back and neck again and twist the small wood-shards on my left armband,

"...we will reach the keep soon."