Reboot: Veiled Chaos

Sera walked the winding main road from the town square and down towards the city outskirts. She passed along a street where blacksmith's fires burned day and night. She had friends along the Iron Road, and so the blacksmiths and apprentices greeted the Red Sister with a smile and a wave, instead of the fearful looks of the other peasants. The blacksmiths passed their hammers and still glowing metal to their apprentices while they gathered around the knight. They each offered their newest, finest weapon for Sera to try. It was always a sight to see the Knight Protector expertly wield any bladed weapon. Her inspections also led to Sagna's weapons being of a higher quality than other kingdoms.

Sera accepted an ax with a long handle from one of the blacksmiths. It was a heavy thing wrought from a solid piece of steel, with a flame hardened wood shaft. The blacksmiths had previously set up a series of training dummies meant to test their wares on, and after a while of Sera coming down on patrol, they had set up one just for her. The knight approached the straw dummy, gave the ax a few tentative swings, pulled back her arm, and easily lopped off the dummy's head with one blow.

The blacksmiths cheered, but Sera only smiled back. She handed the ax back, saying that it was of good make, but the balance is off. Instead of cowering in fear at having done something wrong, the blacksmith began to discuss what methods he could use to fix the balance. Sera suggested a longer handle, and the blacksmith agreed.

After visiting the Iron Road, Sera walked on towards the plains. Fields of wheat and vegetables were nestled in the fertile ground at the base of Mount Volknar, and were lower than the city's main gates. Everything depended on the volcano. The crops had their fertile ground, the royal blacksmiths' forges were inside the volcano, and the queen's magic was dependent on its heat.

Sera did not go down to the farms; instead, she looked out at them from the castle gates. It was a good day. The wind blew through her short fiery red hair, lending a cool breeze across her skin. She felt a tug at the coin purse that hung at her waist. She swiftly drew one of her swords and swung it behind her. A thief who dared try to steal from an unguarded Red Sister fell back in anguish, holding his stump of a hand. Sera dispatched the rest of him with a disparaging look and another blow.

Darkmin wondered if this was the path she walked everyday? Following her certainly did learn him a number of things. The fine quality of the Sagnian blacksmiths and their immense love for the princess, as well as more evidence of her immense skill with weapons, dare he say divine perhaps? Walking up, and looking perhaps a little rougher than before the gray traveler approached the princess. "Aye, certainly a lot of rascals in this town, good day Mi'lady." Darkmin said with another bow. With a small weary smile he looked out over the homes and livelihoods of the peasants and sighed wistfully, "I thought ... perhaps that from up here I might be able to see ... you know if anyone came out of those woods." Pulling his good down he let the wind play with his brown hair. "Has it been a good day for you Mi'lady?"

"Ah, good sir." Sera said in greeting, nodding slightly to him. She gazed out over the fields, watching the wheat sway gently in the wind. "It has been a good day. So far." she shrugged, and nudged the body of the thief slightly off to the side so he wouldnt be in the middle of the road. "Although, none of your countrymen have made it through as of yet. Perhaps they decided to travel the other way? Sagna has quite the reputation." she said with a sigh.

"My apologies sir, but I never caught your name..." Sera trailed off, looking curiously at the traveler.

Darkmin looked over to Sera, worn and tired he tried to smile. "My name is Aldric Von Claus," Pulling from his mind the name of a House he had once plagued, infiltrated and rotted from within. "I'm a member of the noble, but admitably minor, and now likely defunct Von Claus household." a small pained laugh escaped his mouth, "I'm sorry Mi'lady but this situation still feels so surreal to me."

"Von Claus?" Sera repeated. "I seem to recall that name. Yes, Gentri nobility. My condolences again, good sir. But what exactly has happened to your homeland? A messenger ran to my sister, and she declined to share the details with me."

Darkmin looked over to Sera, "Your sister? Ah ... I see, well my apologizes if my familiar manner of speaking has been offensive." letting the 'realization' that he was speaking to a Red Sister slip he continued, "Well firstly thank you for recognizing my family even in passing, it is a flattery to the pride." With the pleasantries aside his face turned grim and serious with the topic at had. " As for my homeland, a great tragedy has befallen. Under a curse the people say, the King has died in battle and his death has caused a civil war which none of the Great Houses emerged victorious from, many barons have turned rogue declaring their own states and rallying their holdings and their levies." Nearly spitting his contempt out of his throat Darkmin paused, becoming quiet as if the world might listen in to the secrets he was to reveal. "Yet all this is naught, for there's rumors, of a mysterious third party rampaging through the lands slaying all in their path, knight and peasant alike. It is said that this party is responsible for the King's death ad why he had rallied his troops in the first place."

"A third party...How mysterious." Sera remarked. She was about to ask more questions, when she suddenly turned her head to the side as if hearing something. She frowned, and sighed. "My apologies again, Aldric. I must be off. I will relay your information to the queen, and hopefully we can amass a force to search the woods for any of your countrymen. Good day to you, sir." With a slight bow, Sera turned and rushed up the path, going back towards the castle. On her way back, she was greeted by a pack of her hounds who ran with her.

Darkmin smiled as the Princess ran off, "How mysterious indeed." he looked once again longingly over the city, as the fires of Gentri burned into his head he could see them burning again here in Sagna. What a glorious sight it would be. With that menacing thought Darkmin began to walk into the town, tomorrow he would continue once more. Fading into the city he began to wonder, what sort of person might Sera find attractive? Perhaps he needed to speak of a Sagnian noble.

Situated closer to the castle were the noble houses of Sagna. In the days of the king before Haedria's rule, there had been more nobility, and they had more influence over the royal court. A number of young noble males tried to ask the queen for her or her sister's hand in marriage. Haedria, repulsed by their arrogance and presumption that she or Sera would stoop to their level, either had them executed on the spot, or duel with Sera. All fell by the blade either way. With less heirs to succeed the title, the nobility began to die out.

The nobility that remained new better than to ask the Red Sisters for anything at this point, and concentrated instead on their own businesses and leisure. Young men and women wiled away their days at a well polished tavern cut from the rock of the mountain.

Approaching the sound of laughing, drinking, and what might be the sound of gambling, Darkmin approached the stone cut Tavern. A Relatively well-lite establishment for what was essentially a large cave. Better yet were the guests, a crowd of well-dressed seemingly well off patrons. Deducing these as the Sagnian nobility Darkmin praised himself for his intelligence gathering earlier. Tharn the Light-fingered certainly came through after tipped off that the Princess was patrolling. All that remained was to get the information he needed that only the nobility possessed, about the Royals.

Confidence was a necessity when dealing with the nobility, strolling in casually and confidently told the world you knew where you were going and you belonged. Although his perhaps worse for wear attire could use some work. Already he could tell he was drawing eyes, though he wasn't sure whether it was because he had been made out to be the Gentri Refuge. Regardless, he had to press on. "Ah what a pleasure it is to be amoungst such fine noble company once again, dear sirs I hope that my most recent run of misfortune wouldn't bar a man of Gentri from sitting amoungst you would it?" a sly smile spread across his face, "After all I feel my luck is turning around, having made it out of that mess and having met with the ever charming Princess Sera, Really now I envy you lot right now. Princess Morgana was a beauty sure but she was already betrothed."

"You've met the princess?" said one of the young men in disbelief. "And your head is still firmly upon your shoulders! Barkeep, a round on me for this lucky man!"

The barkeep slid over a tankard of beer to Aldric, as the young man and his friends good naturally clapped him on the back.
"Terribly sorry to hear of your loss. But if you've made it this far, and with the eye of the red knight on you, you're fortune can only turn for the better from here." said one of them, whipping his cloak off his shoulders. "A man of your stature should be better dressed than this. Here! Take my cloak." He draped a fine red cloak over Aldric's shoulders. It was rather thin, better used for fashion than traveling.

"Yes, Princess Sera is not betrothed, but she never will be." piped up another man, sitting sullenly at the bar. "The queen wants no man to ever touch her sister. And besides, the two fancy a woman's touch instead."

Drinking deeply of the ale Darkmin laughed loudly. "Really? You are all too kind, thank you very much." Eying a particular noble he looked with a tad of disbelief on his face, " Truly a woman's touch? how odd? do they not know the disaster successions can be should the worst happen?" Looking around quickly raising his arms and speaking aloud, "Not that I wish any ill upon Sagna, but rather I have experienced the ills of a succession crisis and seen such first hand and worry about a repeat tragedy!" Quietly returning to his ale he looked back and murmured, "So you're sure they practice such preferences eh? What sort of women do they fancy? Eachother? I mean I have had heard rumours whilst wandering town today, but you know how peasants can be so ill informed."

"Hah, the queen cares not for succession. If she had it her way, Sagna dies with the Red Sisters." the man said again, and the people in the tavern began to grow fearful and restless. This was talking ill of the queen. A few of the nobles moved to keep their distance from the man at the bar.

He was undeterred. "They seek each other's touch, yes. You could see the lust in their eyes..." he made a disgusted face. "It shouldnt be. Sister laying with sister? Woman upon woman? This isnt the way things should be. It's an abomination. And the queen hoards the most beautiful of slaves as well. Woman from distant lands, beautiful in face and body, long legs and luscious curves..." the man's face was wistful, almost heartbroken.

"Be careful of what you speak of, Tagill." a voice said from the entrance to the tavern. The other patrons shrank back in fear for certain. A large hound with a beige coat charged through the tavern, leaping at the man's throat. Tagill fell to the floor, screaming and trying to fight off the hound, but he was soon silenced.

Sera whistled once, and the hound returned to her, wagging its stumpy tail and licking its bloodied chops. "The Red Sisters hear everything in this kingdom. It would be wise to hold your tongue." she said, glancing around at the assembled nobles. She left, hound following at her heels, and disappeared up the road to the castle.

An eerie smile spread on the face of Darkmin, quickly a hand moved to cover it, pretending to perhaps be aghast, pulling his hood up so his eyes could not betray him Darkmin made haste to vanish from the Tavern practically a ghost. Adrenaline, pure and simple, the fire had awoken in Darkmin's veins the information he needed, the bloodshed inches from his face it was all going so well. He had to vent his excitement somehow, anyhow! Slowly he began to make his way to the outskirts, a walk then a jog, a run, and soon a sprint. The night had begun to fall and the crowds were no longer in effect, even the guards seemed to be sleeping or unwilling to move from their posts. Soon the darkness swirled around Darkmin as he breached the outer limits of the city. Feeling his power surging forth his excitement reaching bursting point a great beast of Darkness ripped free and a great and mighty howl echoed throughout the night. "I Bring Doom!" it seemed to cry out in a frenzied excitement. Quickly the beast leapt into the forest, golden eyes leering at Sagna, 'How glorious, how wonderful this will be a fun land indeed!' pacing quietly in the forest save for his own earthly shakes the great wolf suddenly slammed its head against a tree, "Calm! Calm, I must .. be calm." the great beast began to pant slower and slower. the adrenaline finally cooling. "I have planning to do." He smiled a toothed grin, the excitement still smoldering in his voice.

Queen Haedria looked up from her papers suddenly. There it was again, that sound. It was the same sound as what woke her the night before. She listened for a minutes, straining to hear if there was more. There was only the soft cracking of fire in the hearth and upon candles at her desk. She had been in her study the entire day, drafting plans. She planned to do something about Gentri. Perhaps claim it by force, as she was wont to do. A knock on the door sounded. "Come in." she said.

The door swung open and Sera strolled inside, hand on her sword hilt.
"Have you taken care of Tagill?" the queen asked, turning her attention back to her papers.
"Of course, sister. My blades are yours, and I am nothing if not swift." was the reply. Sera's beige hound sat by the princess's feet.
"Come no sister, no need to be so rigid." Haedria said, smiling.
"There is not much else to do, sister." Sera replied, looking quite uninterested indeed. "I'm simply...bored."
"Well, that won't do. What of the slave girls that Hamilcar sent us?"
"I'm not in the mood right now...Perhaps I'll visit Kerza and feed the hounds." Sera nodded to Haedria, and turned on her heel and left.

The howl echoed far and wide, drifting ever so precariously into the ears of an old, scarred, albino wolf. the howl sent a jolt through its entire body as it bolted upright and yipped loudly, turning the attention of nearly 40 other wolves toward him. Blood-mawed beasts stopped their eating and turned. A matron gently put her weight on a small human pup and licked it quiet. A grand black wolf walked steadily and confidently towards the white wolf and raised its head in question. The White wolf turned to him and began to bark throwing its head in the direction it had heard the howl, and immediately began to howl to the moon. The pack felt a jolt of excitement spread, the grand wolf barked to several of the Blood-maws who shot up and ran to inform the other packs of the news. The night in Gentri became filled with howls.

Sera entered the kennels within the castle, and was greeted with the strong stench of dog. The undertaker, Kerza, stood at a wooden table. He brought his cleaver down in a rhythmic fashion, hacking apart the day's freshly executed bodies. He tossed the meat into a waiting bucket after separating it from the bones. The larger bones he tossed to the hounds to chew on, while the smaller ones he discarded. "Ah, Sera! Welcome princess, I didnt see you arrive." Kerza said, waving to the knight with a thin, bloodied hand.

Sera smiled back, and called a few of the dogs to her. The hounds leapt at her, pinning her down and peppering her face with sloppy, wet kisses. She laughed, and tried to push herself up. "Kerza, it's good to see you. The hounds are well?"

"They are, as you can well see." Kerza replied, smiling back. It was always nice to see Sera with her hounds. It was as if the burden of being the princess and a knight were lifted, and she was simply a girl with her dogs. "The pups have been fed, and theyre about old enough to begin training."

"Tomorrow then, they start training." Sera said, still giggling as the hounds nudged at her with their large fuzzy heads. Towards the back of the room, a tall, blonde woman quietly patted and tended to the youngest of the hound puppies. She waved to Sera, who waved back before being swept up again by a wave of fur. The woman stifled a laugh, and returned to work.

Darkmin skulked through the dark woods maw dripping with fresh blood as behind him lay the carcasses of some local deer. Approaching a large watering hole he hunched forward to quench his thirst. "This would make a useful mirror," he determined aloud. Once more the darkness around him swirled as he became human like once more. Upon a rock he did sit overlooking the pond. "Bronze skin, and beautiful, luscious in body desirable in every way, I require absolute perfection." Slowly Darkmin set to work, carving and sculpting the perfect appearance. Long chestnut brown hair draped around his back as his skin tanned to bronze. Bones snapped popped and twisted into place as legs formed, "Too long." Darkmin muttered grumbling critiquing every possible flaw that could exist, the legs took hours to get right, and then once he made the body they didn't look right once more. So the night passed a swirling darkness twisting and reforming, the sounds of bones crunching and grinding against yet more bone and flesh, frustrated grunts and hisses grumbles and grows filled the hair as form after form was rejected, yet coming closer. "Too light, too skeletal" He rasped contorting himself more. It could have been morning for all he knew the darkness of the woods was so dense, yet his beastly eyes allowed him sight still. "I will have nothing but the best for the princess." He chuckled to himself, "Oh and this voice must change as well." He sighed.

Sera skulked back to Haedria's bed chambers, after a bath in the near boiling waters of the Red Sister's private bath. She slipped into the room wearing only a light robe, and found her sister already in bed, reading a book by candle light.

"Sister, you're still awake?" Sera asked, approaching.
"It's hard to sleep when you're not here." Haedria replied with a light smile.
"How do you ever get anything done without me?"

The princess laughed, and shed her robe. Her skin was tanned, compared to the queen's pale, and marred with scars from battle and training. She was well muscled from fighting, yet was lean enough to have a feminine silhouette. She climbed into Haedria's bed and got under the covers, leaning against her sister's shoulder. "What are you reading?" she asked, but saw that the pages of the book were blank. The book was written in text that only mages could see. She frowned. "A spell tome, isnt it?"
"Yes. I've still much to learn." Haedria answered, and put the book away. She kissed Sera's forehead, and with a wave of her hand, extinguished the flames that lit the room.

"Straight to bed, sister?" Sera asked, an amused smile on her lips.
"Unfortunately. We have a lot to discuss in the morning."

As the night dragged on an eerie darkness seeped from the forest, as Darkmin twisted endlessly critiquing and scrutinizing each minor flaw in his design. Animals of a more flighty nature deemed the darkness a threat and fled deeper into the woods while those of a more stern attitude gave the darkness only a wary eye and a bit of space. Though the local wolves found themselves drawn to it, it smelt familiar, like kith and kin. Slowly but cautiously approaching, the wolves of Sagna drew closer to the pond and into the swirling darkness. Upon a great rock sat a figure, a human matron in eerie confidence as she peered into the water, she stunk of blood and something else. Turning her head towards the wolves, she smiled at their presence and sent jolts through their fur. "Ah, I was beginning to wonder if Sagna even had wolves." she cooed softly. She was met with yips and barks of confirmation, and question. "Who am I? Well that's a good question, this form is Elyisia noblewoman of Gentri poor and befallen of tragedy. However, this form." She smiled as the Darkness oce again twisted away revealing the Great Wolf before them sending them cowering to the floor with awe, "This form is that of Darkmin." The wolves prostrated themselves before their clear better and began to bark and yip pathetically their obedience, for the wolves of Sagna had long been pray to the Hounds of the Castle and the hunters of the forest, with such superior predators they were fated to be scavengers and their best stolen away to the city. Darkmin snarled at such a pathetic display, Wolves of Gentri they were not, but they would need to be fixed. "Stay a while, feast upon my scraps littered here and there. Observe whilst I practice slipping into Elysia's skin, and I shall make you great." The wolves nervously got to their feat bowing their heads to such generosity and began to nip at the carcasses of deer and boar. While Darkmin slipped between the Human Matron and the Great One, practicing his ability to keep her form consistent and unconsciously easy to slip into.

The queen woke ahead of her sister again. There were no windows in the queen's bedchamber, yet Haedria knew it was just before dawn. She was uneasy again this morning, but didnt know why. She got dressed in a long, red silk gown. Something simple, as Haedria didnt feel like holding court today. She sat in front of the vanity, brushing her dark red hair. She smiled at the sight. Red, like blood.

Behind her, Sera stirred. The knight grunted and rolled over, pulling the covers over her head. Haedria stifled a laugh.

Darkmin smiled, having spent the entire night going in and out of Elysia's form he just about had it memorized. Although there were a few minor imperfections here and there it would be nothing that he couldn't work out. Now what to do about these poor wolves before him? They had bowed before him and pledged themselves to the Shapeless Wolf, a cute title for certain and he had heard their plight in this land, destiend to forever be middling predators. That wouldn't do at all, their pathetic groveling moved him, he felt compassion for these wolves. Approaching the runt that claimed itself Alpha he whispered dark plans into its ear, "Go to the edge of the forest, follow the smell of fire and blood. meet with the wolves of that land and tell the the Great Dark One has sent you and wishes for them to rally to his cause. Bring with you a few of your scouts." The Wolf trembled as the weight of the task fell upon his shoulders, yipping to a few of his fellows he gathered a small band of 6 and began to travel following the scent of destruction as ordered. "As for the rest of you," Darkmin chuckled ominously, "Let us get you something to eat."

Haedria left to barricade herself in the study once again, but decided to walk a bit through the castle. It was certainly an old structure, having been hewn from the rock centuries ago by her ancestors. Half of the castle jutted out of the cliffside, with stark vertical drops past the towers and walls. The other half was deep in the mountain. And far below the castle itself were winding passageways and tunnels towards the mountain's glowing core. The royal blacksmiths scarcely left the searing heat of the tunnels once the queen put them to task. Sera's arms and armor were forged there, along with those of the elite castle guards.

As she walked, the queen came upon the central courtyard. It was a beautiful garden, with white birch trees and rare flowers from around the world. She smiled at the sight, still lit by weak moonlight, and proceeded to her study.

A small band of hunters had entered Darkmin's woods, and while the transfer of ownership was recent, and unknown it still could not be forgiven. Darkmin had directed the wolves to keep their distance, and only run interference against the hunter's attempts. "The traps!" A hunter cried out and ran towards a tall stern looking man, "The Traps!" "Speak clear ya git! Tell me what about the traps?" The head Hunter called out. "They've all been broken into sir, bait gone, animal carcasses left picked useless! Wolf prints everywhere." the babbling hunter wheezed. "Blasted wolves, it'll be a blessing when we've wiped their lot out, but they've never been so clever before as to work themselves into our traps without trapping themselves!" It was true, before the wolves had tried and failed to leech off the human's efforts of hunting and trapping, only to find themselves victims themselves. The forest had also been eerily quiet that night, and the hunters were getting nervous, a superstitious lot they were, and the great noises from the forest the night prior had spooked them. "Alright lads, we're to continue hunting, deeper into the forest we'll go, surely there will be animals there. Worst case we'll fish the stream further on!" and Darkmin smiled as they hunters wandered deeper into his woods.

A knock sounded on the door to Haedria's study.

Headria let the messenger in, and the man hastily placed a letter upon the queen's desk, then retreated as if his pants had caught fire. With an amused smile on her lips, the queen opened the letter and began to read. It was a note from the Captain of the Guard. He spoke of the peasants in the city growing restless, from fear and superstition. He spoke of a menacing howl that had been heard two nights in a row now arising from the forest. Clouds of dark birds would take flight and block out the sky with their number as they flew, screeching and panicked, over Sagna. The Captain expressed that, as the only mage in the kingdom, the queen might find this of interest.

The queen tossed the letter back to her desk. She leaned back in her chair, brows furrowed deep in thought. The howl must have been what she heard the past couple nights. That strange sound was what woke her, despite being so far inside the mountain to hear it. Perhaps it was magical in nature. A demon, maybe. Or a great beast from legend. She would have to investigate it herself.

Haedria sighed as another messenger came in, bearing a letter with the seal of a foreign kingdom. Yet another dignitary has come to Sagna, requesting an audience. She didnt feel like having court today, but duty calls.