Edrick
The Great Hall of Burmstone Keep barely deserved the name. It was small, dark and stuffy, the air filled with smoke from the fire … morethat was burning in the hearth. A single, small window was located at the other end of the door, through which the Shivering Sea was visible. On a positive note, it was pleasantly warm, hot even, a stark contrast to the cold northern autumn wind that was raging on the outside.
Led by Norren, the old master-at-arms, Edrick, Dante and his squire Darreth entered the room. The smoky air immediately sent tears into Edrick's eyes, while Darreth slightly coughed. Dante was able to keep his composure a bit better, though Edrick saw that he had to blink as well.
“Ser Edrick of the Wolfswood has arrived, mylord”, Norren introduced them. “He is accompanied by Ser Dante Karstark and his squire Darreth” He stepped aside, to allow Edrick, Dante and Darreth to walk past him.
Barroth Boleyn was sitting close to … [view original content]
[Change the topic] If Philip went after Wofius he wouldn't make it either way. Wofius would refuse to go down without a fight and if Philip succeeded, he would be branded a murderer.
Edrick
The Great Hall of Burmstone Keep barely deserved the name. It was small, dark and stuffy, the air filled with smoke from the fire … morethat was burning in the hearth. A single, small window was located at the other end of the door, through which the Shivering Sea was visible. On a positive note, it was pleasantly warm, hot even, a stark contrast to the cold northern autumn wind that was raging on the outside.
Led by Norren, the old master-at-arms, Edrick, Dante and his squire Darreth entered the room. The smoky air immediately sent tears into Edrick's eyes, while Darreth slightly coughed. Dante was able to keep his composure a bit better, though Edrick saw that he had to blink as well.
“Ser Edrick of the Wolfswood has arrived, mylord”, Norren introduced them. “He is accompanied by Ser Dante Karstark and his squire Darreth” He stepped aside, to allow Edrick, Dante and Darreth to walk past him.
Barroth Boleyn was sitting close to … [view original content]
I'm sorry for everyone who had no time to vote yet, though as I said before, I will try my very best to put out two more parts until I go on vacation. The outcome is pretty obvious, I don't think more votes are going to change it and I don't think this was much of a surprise. However, a rather interesting scene would have resulted out of urging Philip to kill Wolfius. You'll see in the alternative choices at the end of this chapter. One consequence I can reveal is, Philip won't appear in Arthur's next part, even though he will have another appearance soon.
The next part is most likely going to be out today, which should allow me to put out another part either on Monday or the very early Tuesday, depending on my own progress and, of course, the voting. This next part is going to be a part with PoV's from Arthur and Samantha. The last time we saw Arthur, he had been guarding Mathea during her visit to Wolfius, whose wounds she treated. Aside from one small moment, Wolfius stayed mostly docile, though Arthur still has an understandably bad feeling being around him. His father arrived, asking for a moment of his time to discuss something important. Arthur however decided to stay with Mathea until she had finished to treat Wolfius, to make sure that nothing bad happens. Meanwhile, Samantha's last part had been a long time ago, though she also appeared in Lucas' last part. After she and Sasha arrived in Raylansfair together with the knights, they made their way to the tavern, where Samantha hopes to find John and fears to find Aylard. As you know, she imposed the horrible task on herself to inform Aylard of his daughters death. Even though Sasha stays at her side, she is still nervous and the next part will show if this nervousness is justified.
This time, I have a pretty unusual shout-out for you. Usually, I only give shout-outs for stories that have just started. This time however, I give a shout-out to one of the oldest ongoing stories in the forum. This story is set in the world of The Walking Dead, it is named The Fallen World and it is written by @TheKingOfWalkers. Starting in late June of 2014, the story is going to turn 2 years old soon. However, there seems to be a gradual decline in readership and nowadays, there are only three more or less active readers, one of which is myself. The thing is, this story is really good and does deserve more readers for sure, so I hope that this little shout-out might be able to draw some new attention towards it. If you are interested in reading it, give it a try by following this link
How are they any better than Wolfius if they reduce themselves to breaking into prisons to murder people?
I understand where you're coming from. However, the main difference is that they would do it out of self defence, while Wolfius kills people simply because he enjoys it. Neither Lyria nor Philip would actually enjoy the act of killing Wolfius and would only do it because they see it as absolutely necessary to protect themselves from him.
I'm loving Dante and Darreth so much! I'm particularly enjoying Darreth's blunt nature. Exactly how I imagined him.
Darreth has been especially fun to write in this part and I'm glad you like him and Dante Now that they and their mission are properly established, I can start to give them a larger role in future Edrick parts, so I hope I continue to write them correctly.
[Change topic] How are they any better than Wolfius if they reduce themselves to breaking into prisons to murder people?
I'm loving Dante and Darreth so much! I'm particularly enjoying Darreth's blunt nature. Exactly how I imagined him.
I can't bring myself to see it as self-defence. It'd be breaking into a prison and actively trying to kill someone. It's not the same as defending yourself.
How are they any better than Wolfius if they reduce themselves to breaking into prisons to murder people?
I understand where you're … morecoming from. However, the main difference is that they would do it out of self defence, while Wolfius kills people simply because he enjoys it. Neither Lyria nor Philip would actually enjoy the act of killing Wolfius and would only do it because they see it as absolutely necessary to protect themselves from him.
I'm loving Dante and Darreth so much! I'm particularly enjoying Darreth's blunt nature. Exactly how I imagined him.
Darreth has been especially fun to write in this part and I'm glad you like him and Dante Now that they and their mission are properly established, I can start to give them a larger role in future Edrick parts, so I hope I continue to write them correctly.
Haha, don't know if you guys watch Daredevil but this conversation just makes me think about Daredevil arguing with Punisher about what's the right way to deal with criminals :D
I can't bring myself to see it as self-defence. It'd be breaking into a prison and actively trying to kill someone. It's not the same as defending yourself.
Wolfius caught his stare, a wicked smile forming on the murderer's face. This was enough for Arthur to make up his mind. “I'll stay”, he decided and looked at his father. “If it's okay, I'm going to talk to you later” Hackor hesitated for a moment, before he gave him a nod. “Very well”, he said shortly. “I'll be at my office”
“Oh, Guardsman Nathamer”, Wolfius said in a mocking tone, even though his voice was still weak. “You don't trust me to behave, do you? My friend, you have a problem with your attitude and it looks like your father is very, very disappointed in you” His mockery would have enraged Arthur, if it weren't for the fact that the beast was wounded and chained. Right now, his words couldn't hurt anyone.
Wolfius himself however could be hurt, he was more vulnerable than ever. He opened his mouth to speak again, but instead of words, only a groan of pain came out of it, as Mathea tightly wrapped a fresh set of bandages around his leg.
“Sorry”, she said with deceptive sweetness. “The bandage has to be that tight, or else it can't protect your wound properly” She wrapped the clean bandage once more around his leg and Wolfius cringed in pain. H looked down onto his leg. He slightly moved it and a relieved expression flashed across his face. “It's better already”, he said. His smile was pained and half-forced, but it was still a smile. “It appears I have to thank you”
“I haven't done it for your gratitude”, Mathea answered. “I did it because it was the right thing and because the commander, a good and just man, asked me to do it. Now that I'm done, I won't do anything else for you. We're finished”
This remark caused both, Wolfius and Arthur to look at her in surprise. Arthur had expected her to need a few more hours at least. Wolfius in turn wasn't exactly looking any better than before. His pain wasn't as obvious than before and he had stopped sweating. The look on his face was genuinely baffled though.
“But... it still fucking hurts...”, he mumbled. “You're here to do help me, so do it, you damn harlot!” Mathea gave him a nod, while she started to put her stuff into the bag that was lying in front of her. “I did all I had to do to prolong your life. I cleaned your wound and prevented an infection. I gave you a fresh set of bandages”, she informed him. “But the pain? I'm a healer, not a mage. To cure your pain, I'd need days, perhaps weeks”
Her voice gained sharpness, as she narrowed her eyes and moved closer towards Wolfius. Arthur put a hand around his mace as he saw the murderer clenching his fists. “But you don't have weeks, do you?”, she hissed. “I saved your life, but you will still hang tomorrow. They won't let you live longer than necessary”
Wolfius clenched his teeth and Mathea raised from the ground. “I wish you a good night, Wolfius Woodbark”, she spoke. “May it be your last” As she walked out of the cell, Wolfius attempted to follow her, but his chains prevented him from doing so. “You... you can't leave me like that!”, he yelled and Mathea stopped.
“I did what I could”, she answered calmly. She had his back turned on him and Arthur saw her expression. On the surface, it was calm, but there was something in her eyes that resembled anger, a sort of anger she adamantly refused to give in to. “Anything else would take more time than you still have. I care for the living”, she explained. “As a matter of fact, I have three living people at my house, two of which you brought there. Your wound won't kill you, but don't expect me to ease your pain” Without another word, she left the room and Wolfius sunk back to the ground. He barely reacted as Arthur closed the cell again.
Mathea was leaning against a wall next to the stairs that led up to the main room of the headquarters. She was slightly shivering and barely glanced at Arthur as he closed the door to the dungeon behind him. “This man...”, she mumbled.
“I know what you mean”, Arthur answered. “He's bringing out the worst in us” This time, Mathea shook her head. “I did what I could for him”, she answered. “But I'm not going to ignore the fact that he nearly killed Lyria and Rosalie. So I told him the truth. I saved his life, because I'm not going to let him die like an animal, but still... you will hang him tomorrow, will you?”
Arthur hesitated to answer. Wolfius' death sentence hadn't been signed yet, even though everyone was well aware of the fact that it was only a formality by now. Still, it was a formality his father was insisting on. Thinking about it, there weren't many formalities he wasn't insisting on. Then, he gave Mathea a nod.
“Usually I wouldn't approve of such a method and as much as I hate this man, I won't be there to watch him hang”, she answered. “But... I saw something in his eyes and I realized that you can't cage him forever. Keep him locked up and he's going to find a way. Currently, his wound prevents him from doing anything, but now that I treated it... in a few weeks he should be able to walk without any problem again” She paused for a moment and looked Arthur deeply in the eyes. “Just make sure that he won't hurt anyone ever again”
“Perhaps it would have been better to leave him to die”, Arthur brought up. Decisively, Mathea shook her head. “That would have been easier, not better”, she corrected him. “Your father, he's a lawful man, isn't he?”
This time, Arthur didn't have to hesitate before nodding. “This is good”, Mathea answered. “Then he's going to give him a trial, as fair as possible. Public, with witnesses and a chance for him to defend himself” She noticed the confusion on his eyes as they walked through the main hall and a grim look formed on her face. “In the end, this is what's going to bring him down, the very same thing he mocks with his actions”, she explained and this time, a smile formed on her face as she opened the door that led outside. “I shall go now, to wash his blood of my hands and to get back to my patients. Give your father my regards”
With these words, she was gone, leaving Arthur alone in the main room. It was remarkably empty by now, considering that it was already late in the evening. The guards on night shift were already on patrol, leaving only Arthur and Hackor in the building. And Wolfius.
Arthur approached the door that led to his father's office. He hesitated a moment, before he knocked. From the inside, he heard an impatient sigh. “Come on, Arthur”, the commander growled and Arthur hastily opened the door. Hackor sat behind his desk, not wearing his green armour for once. It hung behind him on the wall, always ready to be used if necessary. His spear leant next to it, always sharpened. The commander sternly glared at him out of his green eyes, his arms folded.
“You wanted to talk to me?”, Arthur asked and Hackor gave him a nod. He pointed at his desk and Arthur spotted a letter lying on top of it. He did not recognize the sigil on it, which depicted a strange creature, looking like a mixture between a man and a fish.
“A letter from Waylar Manderly, lord of White Harbour”, Hackor explained and Arthur gave him a confused look. White Harbour was in the North. Why should they send a letter? Before he could ask, Hackor already explained further.
“I have made a peculiar discovery during my investigation of the warehouse debacle”, he explained. “Something which prompted me to contact White Harbour. Today, I received an answer” He leant forwards and at Arthur. “During the fire, three warehouses burnt down, including the one we've been ambushed in. This warehouse belonged to a Braavosi, a certain Ellyrio Terys” The name immediately caused Arthur to freeze.
“Do you think he is involved?”, Arthur asked and Hackor shook his head. “I know Ellyrio. He has been here a few times, to inspect his property. He's not a killer and not the type of man to help a killer. I wrote a letter to his estate in Braavos, but it should take at least another month until it even reaches him”, he answered. “But more surprising is the fact that the rest of the warehouses in the entire street, including the two that burned down, belong to one person”
“To whom?”, Arthur asked. Hackor pointed at the letter. “Her name is Helenys Bellward and she used to be House Manderly's treasurer for decades, a position she recently had to step down from. She's now pursuing a career as a merchant”, he revealed. “Lord Manderly hasn't specified anything, but he mentioned some 'vile and unfounded rumours' that led to his 'trusted advisor and friend' stepping down to avoid causing harm to House Manderly”
Arthur raised an eyebrow, still not sure what Hackor was going to explain. “Here comes the thing. What little I know about her screams that she'd be capable of supporting these assassins. All of these warehouses have been acquired recently and so far, they are empty”, he continued. “What kind of deal is she planning to make that would require that many storage space?”
Finally, Arthur started to understand. “You think she tried to cover the activities of the assassins”, he deduced and a rare, proud nod from Hackor followed. “I think it is a possibility at least. It's not much, it might be nothing, but it is our only lead so far”, he specified. “The most interesting thing is that Lord Manderly informed me that she is currently travelling to Raylansfair and should be expected here over the next few days”
“It's still not a strong lead”, Arthur said with concern. Hackor sighed, before he nodded in agreement. “But it is something. At least it is an odd coincidence”, he growled. “Now to your role in all of this. You will be her personal guard. You will stay close to her. Protect her, but also watch her. You will inform me of everything strange”
“And if I don't find anything?”, Arthur answered. Hackor shrugged. “Then my suspicions remain unfounded. Wouldn't be the first time that happens”, he answered. Suddenly, a rare, genuine smile flashed across his face. “There is one more thing I almost forgot to tell you. This one just came in” He reached down, underneath his table, and revealed a sheet of paper, which he handed Arthur.
“Freshly signed by Lord Tyrell in the name of King Gardener”, he explained. “We're going to hang him!”, Arthur exclaimed, more joyful than necessary. Relief filled him. “Tomorrow in the afternoon”, Hackor specified. “I won't waste any more time with this rat that tries to be a wolf” His usual, stern mood returned in an instant. “That said, this is only the beginning. We'll clean this city of their filth. We'll retake it. Tomorrow it'll be Wolfius, next will be these sons of bitches behind the warehouse attack”, he growled and narrowed his emerald green eyes. “This is far from over”
No choices for this part
Samantha
With a heavily beating heart, Samantha entered the taproom. It wasn't as crowded as she expected. In fact, it wasn't crowded at all. A couple of adamant drunkards were scattered across the room, solemnly sipping their ale. And John. Her heart nearly skipped a beat when she saw him. Seeing him was odd, even though it had only been a few weeks since she left him. Seeing him was a relief for her, though at the same time it only added to her nervousness, because it meant that Aylard was close as well.
Sasha put a hand onto her shoulder and briefly smiled at her in a reassuring way. This moment of comfort was enough for her to gather the courage to approach John. He was talking to a man she had never seen before. He was tall, even taller than John, with pale skin and a bald head. Two scars were visible on it and even though he was unarmed, Samantha recognized the careful movement of a skilled warrior.
John noticed her after she had crossed half of the room. He immediately stopped talking and a huge, goofy grin formed on his face. “Sammy!”, he yelled, loud enough to draw attention towards him. He approached her, spreading his arms and pulled her into a tight hug. He even lifted her up in the air, while he let out joyful laughter. His sound of happiness was enough to drive daggers through her heart. She dreaded what was about to follow.
“And who's your friend here?”, he asked, looking at Sasha. “Could ask you the same thing”, Samantha answered and glanced at the bald man. In turn, this man raised from his chair, only to take a surprisingly elegant and courtly bow in front of her. “Ser Daghan Oxus”, he said, warmer and softer than she expected. “I am a knight, currently working with your friend”
“Most likely at least, eh?”, John chuckled. “Daghan, this is Samantha Ducard. Deadliest girl you'll ever meet, aside from my Janae of course” The compliment caused Samantha to smile, even though she didn't feel like smiling at all. “This is Sasha”, she introduced her friend. “She saved my life in Oldtown”
“And I still haven't been paid”, Sasha interjected, a remark which caused John to smirk. “I can already tell I'm going to like you”, he stated, before he gave her a warm handshake. It was only then that he realized someone was missing. “But... where are Lucas and the girl?”, he asked.
Samantha sighed and she had no doubt that John recognized this gesture. “Lucas and his friend, this Leonard, they are fine”, she revealed. “Alive at least. They are on their way to the castle, to talk with the lord” She and Sasha exchanged a glance. It was her friend who answered. “Lunett is dead”, Sasha said bluntly.
John took it better than expected. He lost control over his facial expression, revealing pure shock. He staggered backwards and even though Daghan prepared to support him, he remained standing. He did not even shiver, although his fists were tightly clenched. “How?”, he asked.
“She was tortured to death”, Sasha continued to explain. Even though Samantha was thankful for her help, she would have preferred a less direct approach. John averted his gaze, staring at the floor in pure shock. “By the Gods...”, he mumbled and looked back at Samantha. “Aylard...”
“I volunteered to tell him”, she revealed and John shook his head. “Don't”, he warned her. “Aylard, he's... fuck, he's not a bad man, but his temper. Sammy, he's going to kill you!” She shook her head. “He won't”, she tried to assure him. She was prepared to defend herself in the worst case, even though she hoped it wouldn't come that far.
“Sammy...”, John tried to warn her again. She stepped past him. “This is something I have to do, John”, she said calmly. The look in her eyes was enough to convince him. He lowered his head and sighed. “Fine, but... please don't get killed”, he mumbled. “He's upstairs. Fourth door to the left”
The knight, Daghan, caught her attention by growling. It took her a moment to realize that he just cleared his throat. “If you need any backup...”, he offered politely, but she shook her head. “I got Sasha”, she answered. Daghan gave her a nod, while Sasha gave her a smile that was meant to be optimistic. Then, they walked past the two men, leaving them in the taproom as they made their way up the stairs.
Samantha sighed. There was no easy way to say this, so she did it as bluntly as Sasha would have. “When we're in there, I want you to leave the talking to me”, she whispered. Sasha raised an eyebrow and gave her a curious look. “What do you mean?”, she asked. “You want to do this by yourself?” Samantha gave her a nod. “Sammy, you don't have to torment yourself with this. Leave it to me”
Again Samantha shook her head. “I know I don't have to do this. But it is better that way, for me as well”, she answered. Even though she almost did not notice it, she suddenly looked at her friend in surprise. “You just called me Sammy”, she remarked. Sasha widely opened her eyes, before she decisively shook her head. “No, I didn't”, she lied. “You got that all wrong. I said...”
Before she could continue, the door they were approaching was opened. Out walked Aylard Kawl. He was still as she remembered him. Tall, a broad-shouldered former soldier with greying hair and a bushy beard. The only similarity with his daughter were the eyes... she closed hers as the memories started to overwhelm her.
“Samantha!”, Aylard exclaimed as he rushed through the hallway, towards her. He did not notice her distraught expression, at least not immediately. Instead, a joyful, relieved smile was on his face as he pulled her into a fatherly hug, a gesture she did not reciprocate. He quickly separated from her and looked her in the eyes. His smile faded and she had to do her best to hide her tears. For once, she did not force herself to smile. “Where is my daughter?”, he asked. “Samantha?”
Samantha gave Sasha a warning glare, which caused the other woman to close her mouth again. “Aylard, can we talk inside?”, she asked, looking towards the room. She noticed something changing on Aylard's face. In an instant, he looked at least a decade older. Pure disbelief was in his eyes. “Where is my daughter?”, he asked again. He broke free from her grip as she softly attempted to put a hand onto his shoulder. “No...”, he exclaimed in a voice that contained pure, unbearable agony.
“Please, let us talk inside”, she said softly. Without any protest, Aylard turned around and wordlessly dragged himself into his room. Samantha and Sasha followed. It was a small room, almost too small for the four people who lived there. Samantha saw the old woman, Gunel, sitting on a table, next to her the young, blonde former barmaid Kyette. Aylard's son Sawyer, his only remaining child, was innocently playing on the ground. Vivid memories of the seven graves behind Aylard's burnt down tavern flashed through her mind, the graves of his wife and six of his children.
Gunel was the first to recognize her and to correctly interpret her expression. Her stare went blank in an instant and she visibly had to hold back her tears. Kyette needed a moment longer, but she utterly failed at not crying. “Sawyer”, Samantha said softly and the boy looked up. A look into his innocent green eyes sent shivers down her spine, but she forced herself to smile at him. “This is my friend Sasha. She's going to take you outside. She's really nice”, she said and glared at Sasha. “She's really nice”
Sawyer jumped up and smiled at Sasha. “Okay!”, he just said and rushed towards her. Sasha tensed up as he grabbed her hand. “Are you going to play with me?”, he asked. “Why is your skin so brown?” Sasha clenched her teeth and stared daggers at Samantha, but she played her part well enough to smile at Sawyer, surprisingly friendly. “Come on, little one. I'm going to tell you everything outside”, she said softly and lifted him up on her arm, before she left the room and closed the door.
Finally, Gunel failed at holding back her tears. She sank to the ground, where she started to sob pathetically. Aylard stood in the middle of the room, not saying a word at first. “Aylard...”, Samantha started, though she was unsure what she should say next. She was sorry? Well, she was sorry, but that would mean nothing to him.
“How?”, he simply growled. She sighed, having feared the exact question. “Tell me, how did my daughter die?” In his eyes, she saw sorrow beyond despair. She saw rage beyond anything she ever saw before. Aylard was not in a murderous mood, he was way beyond that. But what was she supposed to tell him? That his daughter had been murdered, mutilated and blinded by a man who was nothing short of a demon?
“You don't want to know...”, she started to say, but he jumped forwards and grabbed her by the shoulder, harshly. “Aylard...”, Kyette hissed tearfully. “I want to know... everything”, he growled. “Tell me, how did she die? Who killed her?” She knew he didn't want to know. She knew he would regret learning it. At the same time, she knew it was his right to know.
I haven't watched Daredevil so far, though I've heard it is a seriously amazing series. Not that big of a fan of the Daredevil comics, though the Punisher has always been one of my favourite Marvel characters ever. Perhaps I should finally consider watching it
Haha, don't know if you guys watch Daredevil but this conversation just makes me think about Daredevil arguing with Punisher about what's the right way to deal with criminals :D
Arthur
Wolfius caught his stare, a wicked smile forming on the murderer's face. This was enough for Arthur to make up his mind. “I'll sta… morey”, he decided and looked at his father. “If it's okay, I'm going to talk to you later” Hackor hesitated for a moment, before he gave him a nod. “Very well”, he said shortly. “I'll be at my office”
“Oh, Guardsman Nathamer”, Wolfius said in a mocking tone, even though his voice was still weak. “You don't trust me to behave, do you? My friend, you have a problem with your attitude and it looks like your father is very, very disappointed in you” His mockery would have enraged Arthur, if it weren't for the fact that the beast was wounded and chained. Right now, his words couldn't hurt anyone.
Wolfius himself however could be hurt, he was more vulnerable than ever. He opened his mouth to speak again, but instead of words, only a groan of pain came out of it, as Mathea tightly wrapped a fresh set of banda… [view original content]
Haha, don't know if you guys watch Daredevil but this conversation just makes me think about Daredevil arguing with Punisher about what's the right way to deal with criminals :D
Arthur
Wolfius caught his stare, a wicked smile forming on the murderer's face. This was enough for Arthur to make up his mind. “I'll sta… morey”, he decided and looked at his father. “If it's okay, I'm going to talk to you later” Hackor hesitated for a moment, before he gave him a nod. “Very well”, he said shortly. “I'll be at my office”
“Oh, Guardsman Nathamer”, Wolfius said in a mocking tone, even though his voice was still weak. “You don't trust me to behave, do you? My friend, you have a problem with your attitude and it looks like your father is very, very disappointed in you” His mockery would have enraged Arthur, if it weren't for the fact that the beast was wounded and chained. Right now, his words couldn't hurt anyone.
Wolfius himself however could be hurt, he was more vulnerable than ever. He opened his mouth to speak again, but instead of words, only a groan of pain came out of it, as Mathea tightly wrapped a fresh set of banda… [view original content]
Arthur
Wolfius caught his stare, a wicked smile forming on the murderer's face. This was enough for Arthur to make up his mind. “I'll sta… morey”, he decided and looked at his father. “If it's okay, I'm going to talk to you later” Hackor hesitated for a moment, before he gave him a nod. “Very well”, he said shortly. “I'll be at my office”
“Oh, Guardsman Nathamer”, Wolfius said in a mocking tone, even though his voice was still weak. “You don't trust me to behave, do you? My friend, you have a problem with your attitude and it looks like your father is very, very disappointed in you” His mockery would have enraged Arthur, if it weren't for the fact that the beast was wounded and chained. Right now, his words couldn't hurt anyone.
Wolfius himself however could be hurt, he was more vulnerable than ever. He opened his mouth to speak again, but instead of words, only a groan of pain came out of it, as Mathea tightly wrapped a fresh set of banda… [view original content]
[Tell him the full truth] To be honest I will have like more the other choice (since Aylard has enough tragedies on his shoulder and told him that the daughter was tortured to death is not be honest but be cruel) but,since Sasha was kind enough to waste that chance (since she already tell at John that Lunett was tortured),I'm forced,to avoid more dangerous situations, to do this choice.
PS:But.hey!Let's talk about the good side of this part! After the sad moment that will reach his climax during the next Samantha PoV the girl will finally be reunite with the other mercenaries (after only 2/3 long chapters!)!Plus Arthur obtain a mission to make his PoV more exciting and,more important,if we are lucky we will have an execution GoT style!XD (with the little difference that the hanged man will be someone that deserve it)
Arthur
Wolfius caught his stare, a wicked smile forming on the murderer's face. This was enough for Arthur to make up his mind. “I'll sta… morey”, he decided and looked at his father. “If it's okay, I'm going to talk to you later” Hackor hesitated for a moment, before he gave him a nod. “Very well”, he said shortly. “I'll be at my office”
“Oh, Guardsman Nathamer”, Wolfius said in a mocking tone, even though his voice was still weak. “You don't trust me to behave, do you? My friend, you have a problem with your attitude and it looks like your father is very, very disappointed in you” His mockery would have enraged Arthur, if it weren't for the fact that the beast was wounded and chained. Right now, his words couldn't hurt anyone.
Wolfius himself however could be hurt, he was more vulnerable than ever. He opened his mouth to speak again, but instead of words, only a groan of pain came out of it, as Mathea tightly wrapped a fresh set of banda… [view original content]
I haven't watched Daredevil so far, though I've heard it is a seriously amazing series. Not that big of a fan of the Daredevil comics, thoug… moreh the Punisher has always been one of my favourite Marvel characters ever. Perhaps I should finally consider watching it
[Tell him the full truth] He'll just spend his whole life wondering otherwise. "Was it an accident? Mugging? Rape? Murder?" the wondering will drive him mad.
Arthur
Wolfius caught his stare, a wicked smile forming on the murderer's face. This was enough for Arthur to make up his mind. “I'll sta… morey”, he decided and looked at his father. “If it's okay, I'm going to talk to you later” Hackor hesitated for a moment, before he gave him a nod. “Very well”, he said shortly. “I'll be at my office”
“Oh, Guardsman Nathamer”, Wolfius said in a mocking tone, even though his voice was still weak. “You don't trust me to behave, do you? My friend, you have a problem with your attitude and it looks like your father is very, very disappointed in you” His mockery would have enraged Arthur, if it weren't for the fact that the beast was wounded and chained. Right now, his words couldn't hurt anyone.
Wolfius himself however could be hurt, he was more vulnerable than ever. He opened his mouth to speak again, but instead of words, only a groan of pain came out of it, as Mathea tightly wrapped a fresh set of banda… [view original content]
Arthur
Wolfius caught his stare, a wicked smile forming on the murderer's face. This was enough for Arthur to make up his mind. “I'll sta… morey”, he decided and looked at his father. “If it's okay, I'm going to talk to you later” Hackor hesitated for a moment, before he gave him a nod. “Very well”, he said shortly. “I'll be at my office”
“Oh, Guardsman Nathamer”, Wolfius said in a mocking tone, even though his voice was still weak. “You don't trust me to behave, do you? My friend, you have a problem with your attitude and it looks like your father is very, very disappointed in you” His mockery would have enraged Arthur, if it weren't for the fact that the beast was wounded and chained. Right now, his words couldn't hurt anyone.
Wolfius himself however could be hurt, he was more vulnerable than ever. He opened his mouth to speak again, but instead of words, only a groan of pain came out of it, as Mathea tightly wrapped a fresh set of banda… [view original content]
The whole thing with Wolfius is kind of worrying. I'm positive that his 'son' Kreep will try something to save his father. I'm going to take my time analyzing every Arthur part from here on out.
[Tell him the full truth] While I do hate having to tell Alyard something terrible about his daughter, and there is almost no way to tell what he may do, but I believe he should get out there and seek vengeance against Mullendore.
Arthur
Wolfius caught his stare, a wicked smile forming on the murderer's face. This was enough for Arthur to make up his mind. “I'll sta… morey”, he decided and looked at his father. “If it's okay, I'm going to talk to you later” Hackor hesitated for a moment, before he gave him a nod. “Very well”, he said shortly. “I'll be at my office”
“Oh, Guardsman Nathamer”, Wolfius said in a mocking tone, even though his voice was still weak. “You don't trust me to behave, do you? My friend, you have a problem with your attitude and it looks like your father is very, very disappointed in you” His mockery would have enraged Arthur, if it weren't for the fact that the beast was wounded and chained. Right now, his words couldn't hurt anyone.
Wolfius himself however could be hurt, he was more vulnerable than ever. He opened his mouth to speak again, but instead of words, only a groan of pain came out of it, as Mathea tightly wrapped a fresh set of banda… [view original content]
[Tell him the full truth] I'll admit I was pretty close to choosing the other decision, but like some people already said: he needs to at least know who his daughter's killer is.
Arthur
Wolfius caught his stare, a wicked smile forming on the murderer's face. This was enough for Arthur to make up his mind. “I'll sta… morey”, he decided and looked at his father. “If it's okay, I'm going to talk to you later” Hackor hesitated for a moment, before he gave him a nod. “Very well”, he said shortly. “I'll be at my office”
“Oh, Guardsman Nathamer”, Wolfius said in a mocking tone, even though his voice was still weak. “You don't trust me to behave, do you? My friend, you have a problem with your attitude and it looks like your father is very, very disappointed in you” His mockery would have enraged Arthur, if it weren't for the fact that the beast was wounded and chained. Right now, his words couldn't hurt anyone.
Wolfius himself however could be hurt, he was more vulnerable than ever. He opened his mouth to speak again, but instead of words, only a groan of pain came out of it, as Mathea tightly wrapped a fresh set of banda… [view original content]
What would happen if Arthur would go to his father instead of staying?
Not much would have changed. As this part showed, Mathea was already almost finished with giving first aid to Wolfius. If Arthur would have left, she would have finished her work off-screen, before leaving. Wolfius would have been calm and wouldn't have tried to harm her. Arthur's talk with Hackor would have also been longer, as I would have had more room to write it. In the long run, the consequences are probably going to be small. In the short run, this outcome gave Mathea and Wolfius a larger role in this part (otherwise they would have only had a brief appearance at the beginning of it), while the other option would have focussed on Hackor and would have put more emphasis on the complicated relationship between him and Arthur.
[Tell him the full truth] he deserve to know.... and go to kill Mullendore with his own bare hands.
What would happen if Arthur would go to his father instead of staying?
Arthur
Wolfius caught his stare, a wicked smile forming on the murderer's face. This was enough for Arthur to make up his mind. “I'll sta… morey”, he decided and looked at his father. “If it's okay, I'm going to talk to you later” Hackor hesitated for a moment, before he gave him a nod. “Very well”, he said shortly. “I'll be at my office”
“Oh, Guardsman Nathamer”, Wolfius said in a mocking tone, even though his voice was still weak. “You don't trust me to behave, do you? My friend, you have a problem with your attitude and it looks like your father is very, very disappointed in you” His mockery would have enraged Arthur, if it weren't for the fact that the beast was wounded and chained. Right now, his words couldn't hurt anyone.
Wolfius himself however could be hurt, he was more vulnerable than ever. He opened his mouth to speak again, but instead of words, only a groan of pain came out of it, as Mathea tightly wrapped a fresh set of banda… [view original content]
Arthur
Wolfius caught his stare, a wicked smile forming on the murderer's face. This was enough for Arthur to make up his mind. “I'll sta… morey”, he decided and looked at his father. “If it's okay, I'm going to talk to you later” Hackor hesitated for a moment, before he gave him a nod. “Very well”, he said shortly. “I'll be at my office”
“Oh, Guardsman Nathamer”, Wolfius said in a mocking tone, even though his voice was still weak. “You don't trust me to behave, do you? My friend, you have a problem with your attitude and it looks like your father is very, very disappointed in you” His mockery would have enraged Arthur, if it weren't for the fact that the beast was wounded and chained. Right now, his words couldn't hurt anyone.
Wolfius himself however could be hurt, he was more vulnerable than ever. He opened his mouth to speak again, but instead of words, only a groan of pain came out of it, as Mathea tightly wrapped a fresh set of banda… [view original content]
This is one of the few choices where I wouldn't have known what to choose. Personally, I'd probably lean a little bit more in favour of sparing him the gruesome details, though the reason behind telling him the full truth is making sense to me as well. That said, Samantha is going to tell him everything now, including the reason behind his daughter's death. Sure, she's not going to put it as blunt as Sasha would have, but it's nonetheless going to be hard for Aylard. There's going to be a hopefully very intense scene coming out of this in one of the final parts of this chapter, which I genuinely can't wait to write down. Speaking about, we're reaching the end of the chapter quickly. A couple of parts are left and most PoV's will get at least one more part, but generally, we're reaching the endgame of Act 2.
The next part is going to be out either today, or very early tomorrow, which is also the reason why I close the voting right now. As I told you a few days ago, I'm going on a vacation tomorrow. I'll be back on Monday and with a bit of luck, I will already manage to release another part by then. As always, I also hope to be able to check the forum occasionally. For now, I promised you another part before I leave and another part you shall get. Even though his last part hasn't been that long ago, the next part is going to be another Jaron part, mostly because I feel like the ending of it is a good point to put the story on hold for a week. It's one of the parts I have been looking forward to write for a while, so hopefully you'll enjoy reading it. The last time we saw Jaron was during the masquerade, after Ayden and Jarek went outside to confront a couple of Alley Cats. First, he was introduced to Ayden's pregnant girlfriend Taria and the High Septon, before he met up with Harpy and Mullendore. Ultimately, he was even compelled to dance. During this dance, Harpy noticed a number of Cats, who were closing in on Mullendore, the High Septon and Lord Hightower. They even managed to outright attack Mullendore, who apparently had to fight for his life. Left with the choice to directly protect one of them, Jaron chose to rush towards the High Septon and Taria, which is where the next part is going to start.
With these words, I shall resume my writing. In case I won't be able to get into contact with you over the next week, I would also like to wish you happy Easter in advance.
A majority of the guests hadn't noticed anything, despite the fact that half a dozen masked killers were walking among them. However, slowly the guests started to realize that they were in horrible danger. Panic spread slowly, but it spread. And in the midst of it, Jaron and Harpy.
They shared a look, before he glanced at Mullendore. The commander was already struggling with an opponent, locked in a deadly dance and in need of help and unlike Lord Hightower, he had no one to protect him. At the same time, the High Septon needed help. Taria needed help. Harpy understood him. Without saying a word, she turned towards Mullendore, while he turned towards the High Septon. Then, they started to run.
Jaron arrived first. Taria immediately realized what was happening and even before the High Septon was noticing Jaron, she had already pushed him away from her, while simultaneously jumping backwards. This did not only save her own life, it saved his life as well, as the assassin's knife cut where they had been standing just seconds ago, hitting only thin air. In turn, Jaron's closed fist hit him right in the face, which was enough to send him to the ground.
Surprised gasps from the crowd around him showed that they had finally understood what was going on. The High Septon shrieked in terror, as he looked at the knife and then at the masked man, who was slowly standing up.
Behind him, another surprised wave of screams was audible and then another one. While his opponent regained composure, Jaron allowed himself to glance around. Instinctively, he looked for Harpy and found her just reaching the commander, who was already gaining the upper hand in his struggle. Her arrival caught the Cat by surprise, especially as she threw a nasty punch at his ribs, which finally allowed Mullendore to grab his opponent by the throat, to lift him up into the air and to finally slam him down onto the ground. He went down as well, kneeling onto the man's chest, before he started to throw vicious punches at him.
Meanwhile, Arryk had obviously realized what was happening. The knight drew his sword and went closer, to protect his lord, but he focussed his gaze on Mullendore and Jaron, ignoring the attackers behind him until it was almost too late. The first knife failed to go through his armour, but stunned him enough for a second attack to pierce his shoulder. He swirled around, his sword slashing through one opponent's unprotected abdomen, effectively eviscerating him.
“Bastard”, the man Jaron had just sent to the ground hissed as he jumped to his feet. “You heard about me?”, Jaron asked with a cold smirk, as he raised both hands, clenching his fists to prepare for a fight. It would have been over in an instant if he would have had a sword. Now, he expected a hard fight.
The Cat took a strike at him, but Jaron jumped back, bumping into one hapless nobleman that did not manage to get out of his way in time. The knife narrowly missed his chest, but the Cat did not allow him the chance to retaliate. Instead, he attacked again immediately, not even bothering with defending himself against an unarmed opponent. Jaron rushed backwards. Then, as the blade just passed him, he jumped forwards and with his right hand he grabbed his opponent's arm and slammed his left shoulder into him.
Both men fell to the ground, Jaron on top, trapping the arm that held the knife underneath his body and preventing the Cat from striking. However, he in turn was unable to correctly move his wounded arm, which quickly put him at a disadvantage. His opponent realized this weakness and simply put a hand onto his left forearm, squeezing it tightly. The resulting pain was enough for Jaron to be pushed to the ground. Now, the Cat was jumping on top of him. He rose his knife, ignoring a weak punch Jaron tried to throw at him.
Before he could embed the weapon into Jaron's chest, the eyes underneath the mask widened. The knife fell out of his weak hands, as he sank to the ground next to Jaron, blood flowing out of a wound in his neck. Behind him stood Taria, holding a bloody knife with both of her hands. She was shivering in a state of pure shock, as she looked at the weapon, unable to even drop it.
Jaron stared at her for a moment, breathing in relief, as he slowly raised from the ground in order to comfort her. As he did so, his glance fell upon Lord Hightower and his bodyguard and he knew this was far from over. Instead of pulling Taria into a consoling hug, his eyes looked down, in the hectic attempt to find his dead attacker's knife.
Arryk was still fighting. Leaving himself vulnerable for another attack, he jumped in the way of a third attacker who attempted to get past him. His sword found the masked man's ribs, piercing deeply into them, but the last of his attackers managed to stab him again, this time in the back. Grunting in pain, the knight went to the ground, even though his armour was enough to save his life.
The Alley Cat did not bother with killing him. Instead, he just stepped past him and towards Lord Hightower. The old lord stood straight, despite his age. Instead of running away, he grabbed a small knife to defend himself, even though it was clear that he would be no match for a trained killer. Jaron rushed towards him, but he knew that he wouldn't reach him in time.
Things looked dire for the lord, until all of a sudden, Jarek stepped out of the crowd, very close to him. He was out of breath, his clothes stained with blood and he was clutching a longsword, equally bloody.
The masked attacker was only momentarily baffled by his unexpected opponent, before he took the offensive. He barely managed to reach Jarek, when the inferior range of his knife caused his undoing. The sellsword hit him first, severing his right arm at the elbow, before driving his blade further down his belly.
By now, the music had stopped, the guests were in a serious panic. People were running to the nearest exits, revealing even more Ally Cats between them. Jaron counted half a dozen of them. Now that their cover was blown, they were no match for the guards who started to swarm the room. Still, they fought back, trying to sell their lives dearly.
Someone approached him and just as Jaron was preparing to defend himself, he noticed that it was just Ayden, who was holding a greatsword in his hand. With a thankful nod, he stepped past him, to pull his girlfriend into a hug. Taria, finally letting go of the knife, sank into his arms and started to sob desperately.
“Jaron!”, someone called. Amid the chaos, amid the bloodshed, stood Harpy. Seeing her was enough for him to calm down, as they both rushed towards each other. She jumped into his hug and for a moment, everything around him did no longer matter, as she put her head onto his chest.
Then, Jaron's glance fell upon Mullendore. The commander was still kneeling on top of the man that tried to kill him, sending punch after punch at the bloody ruin that once was a head, his movements indicating that he was in a state of deep, primal rage.. The cat mask had been shattered into pieces, most of which were deeply embedded into what was left of the man's face.
“Over here!”, Jaron heard a voice and as he looked around, he saw Keira. She was waving at him, pointing at a door somewhere behind her. Two dead guards lay in front of it, but Jaron caught a glimpse of the man that just passed through it, out into the garden. He recognized the mask, white and golden and he knew there was no way he'd let this son of a bitch escape.
Harpy saw it as well, as she immediately separated from him. She gave him a determined nod, as both rushed towards Keira. Martin caught up to them as well. Somewhere in the chaos, he had been able to gain two short swords-
“Too many”, Harpy said, as Jarek caught up to them as well. “Martin, you stay. Make sure no one gets hurt” The sellsword gave her a smirk. “I'm on it”, he promised, although a worried streak appeared on his face as he spotted Keira, who prepared to go with them as well. Wordlessly, but accompanied by a look that reminded Jaron of the way he himself looked at Harpy, he handed her one of his swords.
Jaron, Harpy, Keira and Jarek stepped out of the door, leaving the chaos behind them, as they reached the tranquil garden. A wooden terrace was built where they stood, a small set of stairs leading down into the darkness. Small trees stood there, still full with leaves despite the ongoing autumn, allowing not even the pale moonlight to illuminate the path between them.
Without saying a word, the small group made their way through the garden. Jarek was walking in front of them, Jaron in the back. Both men were looking around gingerly, to make sure that the Tom wasn't trying to ambush them.
All of a sudden, a black shadow jumped from behind a tree, right between them, probably with the intent of killing either Harpy or Keira. Jaron tried to block the man's dagger before it could reach either of the women, while Jarek turned around in an instant, his longsword slicing across the attacker's upper left leg.
With a groan of pain, the Tom went to the ground. Instead of killing him immediately, Jaron reacted by kicking the man's dagger out of reach. Before the masked man could try to reach for it, Jarek had grabbed him by the neck and tightly put his sword at his throat.
“Hold it”, Harpy ordered. “I got some questions first” Jaron gave her an uneasy look as he remembered the warehouse. It appeared she had learned from it and he knew that she was a lot less emotional when it came to the Tom. But the anger in her eyes was as real as it was understandable.
The masked man let out something that resembled a wheezing laugh, as he wasn't able to do anything more with Jarek's sword pressed at his throat. “The Tom, I presume?”, she asked. “Just someone who wears his mask”, the man answered. Unlike the Tom's voice, which was deep and purring and melodic, this one was high-pitched and wheezing.
“Then tell me where he is”, Harpy demanded. The blue eyes behind the mask sparkled with amusement. “Not here”, the man answered. “Do you honestly think he would put himself into such danger?”
A look of confusion flashed across Harpy's face. “Where is he?”, she asked again. The cat continued to chuckle softly. “I won't tell you anything, whore”, he spat. “No matter what you're going to do, you won't get a single answer”
“May I?”, Jarek asked and Harpy shook her head. “If you tell me what I want to know, we'll take you as a prisoner”, she offered. “You will live, unharmed” The Alley Cat attempted to shake his head, but the sword stopped him. “Keep your empty promises”, he growled. “I knew the risk and I played my part. All will be well”
Before he was able to continue, a visibly annoyed Jarek moved his hand and cleanly cut the man's throat. His body went limp and he fell to the ground while he bled out. Harpy, Keira and Jaron threw alarmed glares at the sellsword. “The hell?”, Harpy exclaimed.
Jarek raised an eyebrow, a look of cold boredom on his face. “What?”, he asked, as Harpy clenched her fists. “He knew something”, she hissed and Jarek shook his head. “Maybe”, he admitted. “But I know men like him. He wouldn't have told you a damn thing. He knew who we are and we couldn't have left him alive either way, so I saved us a lot of time” Now, he narrowed his eyes as well. “Besides, I don't think you are in a position to criticize me for killing our prisoner”
Harpy opened her mouth in protest, but closed it immediately, the hint of shame appearing on her face, as she simply turned towards the door. “Let's... just go”, she mumbled. “Out of this blasted mansion” Before she left, she reached down to pick up the dead Alley Cat's dagger. She momentarily looked at it, before she hid it in her sleeve.
“Works for me”, Jarek answered and glanced at Keira, who had a look of uncomfortable shock on her face. “You up to earn some money tonight, after we're done here?” Now, she looked at him and narrowed her eyes. “Excuse me?”, she said, before she turned away from him.
In silence, they made their way back out of the garden. Harpy's mood had noticeably cooled down after Jarek brought up the warehouse and Jaron knew how much the memories tormented her. A sting of guilt flashed through him, as he once again realized that he could have stopped her, should have stopped her. He wondered what could have been, how things would have turned.
The hall was mostly empty as they returned. About half a dozen Alley Cats lay dead on the ground, surrounded by guards. A few guests were still staying, though most of them immediately left the room as the heavily armed Jarek entered the room. Lord Vyrwel was nowhere to be seen and Jaron could only imagine how much stress this evening was putting him through.
Martin rushed towards them, to pull Keira into a hug. They started to talk in a low tone and aside from Martin's soothing, warm words, Jaron wasn't able to understand what they were talking about. While Harpy, followed by Jarek, walked towards Mullendore, who was talking with a man who obviously belonged to the city guard, Jaron saw that Ayden was walking towards him. He had an arm around Taria and a rare smile on his face.
“I... Taria told me you saved her life...”, he started to say, before he, visibly overwhelmed with gratitude, grabbed Jaron's arm, giving him a warm handshake. Before Jaron was able to answer, Mullendore's surprised voice cut him off.
“Wait, wait, wait...”, the commander said. He wasn't talking loudly, but in a large otherwise eerily silent hall, his words travelled far. “This little shit said what? You're telling me, she... The whole fucking evening?”
Then, he spotted Harpy and a wide, triumphant grin formed on his face. “Mylady!”, he yelled at the top of his lungs, as he rushed towards her. Jaron gave Ayden a sign and both men approached the commander.
Before Harpy was able to react, Mullendore had pulled her into a tight hug. “Gods, you are unbelievable!”, he laughed joyfully, as he planted a kiss on each of her cheeks, which caused her to blush brightly. “Un-fucking-believable! The whole goddamn evening!” His smile faded. “You tried to save my life”
“I only did my duty”, Harpy answered humbly, but Mullendore shook his head. He grabbed her hand and his smile faded. “I don't think so”, he growled. “You did a lot more than that” Just as Jaron started to worry, the commander's smile returned. “You're unbelievable!”
Harpy coughed in embarrassment, before she managed to pull her hand out of his grip. “I... commander, I would like to leave”, she revealed. Again, Mullendore's smile faded temporarily, before returning brighter than ever. “I'm sure you want to”, he answered and put an arm around her, as both approached the door that led to the street. “It's only understandable after tonight. You're returning to Nightsong then?” Harpy gave him a nod. “Immediately”, she answered. “Don't get me wrong, I'm sure this city has its good sides, but still...”
“Yeah, it's a pile of shit”, Mullendore answered as they stepped through the door. Jaron and the rest followed and Jaron noticed that each of them were still holding onto their weapons. No one made any attempts of forcing them to leave them. “Though, during moments like this, I always remember something my father used to say”, he explained. “No matter how dark the night seems to be, keep your faith and all will be well”
As he said these words, Jaron noticed a change of expression on Harpy's face. It was more than subtle, but nonetheless worrying. “A wonderful piece of advice”, she answered and Mullendore shook his head. “It was a worthless advice from a worthless man”, he chuckled coldly. “But in some situation, it fits”
“All will be well”, Harpy mumbled and Mullendore gave her a nod. “We understand each other?”, he asked. “Of course”, she answered. “Goodnight commander” He took a bow. “Until we meet again, Lady Caron”
And with this, he left them on the outside. Harpy turned away immediately and walked down the street at a steady pace, without looking at Jaron. He noticed that something was wrong. “Harpy?”, he asked. “Continue walking”, she warned him through clenched teeth, in a voice that was barely audible. “And whatever you do, don't turn around”
“Harpy, what...?”, Jaron started to say in confusion, but she cut him off, by saying something so simple, yet world-shattering. “He's Butterfly”, she mumbled.
“What?”, Martin, who was walking on the other side of her, exclaimed. He had an arm around Keira, but quickly removed it, as he stopped walking. “What have you just said?” Harpy still looked at the street, though an alarmed look had appeared on her face by now. “Continue walking”, she hissed. “Don't turn around. He's Butterfly, or he's working for him”
“You... you mean... how can you...?”, Martin stuttered. Harpy shook her head. “All will be well”, she mumbled in despair. “Butterfly... the one I thought to be Butterfly, he said the same thing. And the Alley Cat in the garden” She was talking slightly louder by now and Ayden and Jarek heard it as well. “But most importantly, there was something else about him... I think he dropped his mask in front of me just now. He... he somehow knows who I am, who we are, and he wanted me to know”
A numbing feeling of panic started to grow inside of Jaron, as he turned around to the mansion. No one was following them, but he still felt watched. “And... if this is true, how can you remain so calm?”
Finally, Harpy turned towards him. Her dark eyes were widely opened in fear and filled with tears. Her fists were clenched and she was shivering uncontrollably. “Tell me, Jaron”, she whispered in a tearful voice. “Do I look calm to you?” And Jaron realized that she was serious. This was not some sort of sick joke. She was actually serious and she fully believed what she just said.
Jarek remained silent, but Ayden spoke up. “Then what are we waiting for?”, he said in the tone of someone who refused to loose his cool even in a situation like this. “If what you just said is true, or even partially just, then we need to get the hell out of this city”
Harpy gave him a nod, but as Ayden continued to walk down the main street, she called him out. “Not this way”, she hissed. “He expects us to go this way” She glanced down a side street. “We go the shortest possible route. A shortcut to the mansion, we grab the Burned Man and then we run like hell”
“A shortcut, huh?”, Martin said and shook his head. “The only shortcut I know leads directly through Tanner's Alley. Solver territory. And I don't intend to die tonight” He looked into the other direction. “If you're right, then they are going to follow us. We need to do something they don't expect. We take a long route, try to loose them in the northern part of the city”
“That takes too long”, Ayden intervened. “And fuck, we need to stay together. I say, you're freaking out right now and not able to make such a decision. We should stay on the main street” He pulled Taria closer towards him. “Getting her into danger was not part of the plan!” Jarek smugly chuckled. “You're getting soft, Blackwell”, he grinned. “I'm with Harpy here. Going through Solver territory might be our only chance to be at the headquarters before they catch up to us”
“Well, I'm with Martin”, Keira said demonstratively. Taria looked at Ayden, before she put her head back onto his chest. “And I'm with Ayden”, she answered. “Always” Now, Harpy looked at Jaron, pleadingly, tearfully. He knew she was close to a panic and this frightened him. Seeing her like this... and what she just said, it was impossible! “Your choice?”, she asked. “Which way would you take back to the headquarters?”
[Stick to the Main Street][Take a shortcut][Take the longer way]
Jaron
A majority of the guests hadn't noticed anything, despite the fact that half a dozen masked killers were walking among them. Howeve… morer, slowly the guests started to realize that they were in horrible danger. Panic spread slowly, but it spread. And in the midst of it, Jaron and Harpy.
They shared a look, before he glanced at Mullendore. The commander was already struggling with an opponent, locked in a deadly dance and in need of help and unlike Lord Hightower, he had no one to protect him. At the same time, the High Septon needed help. Taria needed help. Harpy understood him. Without saying a word, she turned towards Mullendore, while he turned towards the High Septon. Then, they started to run.
Jaron arrived first. Taria immediately realized what was happening and even before the High Septon was noticing Jaron, she had already pushed him away from her, while simultaneously jumping backwards. This did not only save her own life, … [view original content]
Jaron
A majority of the guests hadn't noticed anything, despite the fact that half a dozen masked killers were walking among them. Howeve… morer, slowly the guests started to realize that they were in horrible danger. Panic spread slowly, but it spread. And in the midst of it, Jaron and Harpy.
They shared a look, before he glanced at Mullendore. The commander was already struggling with an opponent, locked in a deadly dance and in need of help and unlike Lord Hightower, he had no one to protect him. At the same time, the High Septon needed help. Taria needed help. Harpy understood him. Without saying a word, she turned towards Mullendore, while he turned towards the High Septon. Then, they started to run.
Jaron arrived first. Taria immediately realized what was happening and even before the High Septon was noticing Jaron, she had already pushed him away from her, while simultaneously jumping backwards. This did not only save her own life, … [view original content]
Jaron
A majority of the guests hadn't noticed anything, despite the fact that half a dozen masked killers were walking among them. Howeve… morer, slowly the guests started to realize that they were in horrible danger. Panic spread slowly, but it spread. And in the midst of it, Jaron and Harpy.
They shared a look, before he glanced at Mullendore. The commander was already struggling with an opponent, locked in a deadly dance and in need of help and unlike Lord Hightower, he had no one to protect him. At the same time, the High Septon needed help. Taria needed help. Harpy understood him. Without saying a word, she turned towards Mullendore, while he turned towards the High Septon. Then, they started to run.
Jaron arrived first. Taria immediately realized what was happening and even before the High Septon was noticing Jaron, she had already pushed him away from her, while simultaneously jumping backwards. This did not only save her own life, … [view original content]
Jaron
A majority of the guests hadn't noticed anything, despite the fact that half a dozen masked killers were walking among them. Howeve… morer, slowly the guests started to realize that they were in horrible danger. Panic spread slowly, but it spread. And in the midst of it, Jaron and Harpy.
They shared a look, before he glanced at Mullendore. The commander was already struggling with an opponent, locked in a deadly dance and in need of help and unlike Lord Hightower, he had no one to protect him. At the same time, the High Septon needed help. Taria needed help. Harpy understood him. Without saying a word, she turned towards Mullendore, while he turned towards the High Septon. Then, they started to run.
Jaron arrived first. Taria immediately realized what was happening and even before the High Septon was noticing Jaron, she had already pushed him away from her, while simultaneously jumping backwards. This did not only save her own life, … [view original content]
Jaron
A majority of the guests hadn't noticed anything, despite the fact that half a dozen masked killers were walking among them. Howeve… morer, slowly the guests started to realize that they were in horrible danger. Panic spread slowly, but it spread. And in the midst of it, Jaron and Harpy.
They shared a look, before he glanced at Mullendore. The commander was already struggling with an opponent, locked in a deadly dance and in need of help and unlike Lord Hightower, he had no one to protect him. At the same time, the High Septon needed help. Taria needed help. Harpy understood him. Without saying a word, she turned towards Mullendore, while he turned towards the High Septon. Then, they started to run.
Jaron arrived first. Taria immediately realized what was happening and even before the High Septon was noticing Jaron, she had already pushed him away from her, while simultaneously jumping backwards. This did not only save her own life, … [view original content]
Jaron
A majority of the guests hadn't noticed anything, despite the fact that half a dozen masked killers were walking among them. Howeve… morer, slowly the guests started to realize that they were in horrible danger. Panic spread slowly, but it spread. And in the midst of it, Jaron and Harpy.
They shared a look, before he glanced at Mullendore. The commander was already struggling with an opponent, locked in a deadly dance and in need of help and unlike Lord Hightower, he had no one to protect him. At the same time, the High Septon needed help. Taria needed help. Harpy understood him. Without saying a word, she turned towards Mullendore, while he turned towards the High Septon. Then, they started to run.
Jaron arrived first. Taria immediately realized what was happening and even before the High Septon was noticing Jaron, she had already pushed him away from her, while simultaneously jumping backwards. This did not only save her own life, … [view original content]
[Take a shortcut] Damn, it's so hard... Each of them feels like a dangerous option, but I guess it's better to get out of there as quickly as possible. And it's good to agree with Harpy ofc
Jaron
A majority of the guests hadn't noticed anything, despite the fact that half a dozen masked killers were walking among them. Howeve… morer, slowly the guests started to realize that they were in horrible danger. Panic spread slowly, but it spread. And in the midst of it, Jaron and Harpy.
They shared a look, before he glanced at Mullendore. The commander was already struggling with an opponent, locked in a deadly dance and in need of help and unlike Lord Hightower, he had no one to protect him. At the same time, the High Septon needed help. Taria needed help. Harpy understood him. Without saying a word, she turned towards Mullendore, while he turned towards the High Septon. Then, they started to run.
Jaron arrived first. Taria immediately realized what was happening and even before the High Septon was noticing Jaron, she had already pushed him away from her, while simultaneously jumping backwards. This did not only save her own life, … [view original content]
Jaron
A majority of the guests hadn't noticed anything, despite the fact that half a dozen masked killers were walking among them. Howeve… morer, slowly the guests started to realize that they were in horrible danger. Panic spread slowly, but it spread. And in the midst of it, Jaron and Harpy.
They shared a look, before he glanced at Mullendore. The commander was already struggling with an opponent, locked in a deadly dance and in need of help and unlike Lord Hightower, he had no one to protect him. At the same time, the High Septon needed help. Taria needed help. Harpy understood him. Without saying a word, she turned towards Mullendore, while he turned towards the High Septon. Then, they started to run.
Jaron arrived first. Taria immediately realized what was happening and even before the High Septon was noticing Jaron, she had already pushed him away from her, while simultaneously jumping backwards. This did not only save her own life, … [view original content]
[Stick to the Main Street] Now the best decision will be to take the shortcut, the long way it's seems too paranoiac... however the fastest way isn't necessarily a good way, mainly agree with Harpy heck ya I totally agreed with her but I'm curious what happen if we stick to the street, surely he may think we won't be that foolish... intrigue choice indeed, look forward to see how it will turn out.
Jaron
A majority of the guests hadn't noticed anything, despite the fact that half a dozen masked killers were walking among them. Howeve… morer, slowly the guests started to realize that they were in horrible danger. Panic spread slowly, but it spread. And in the midst of it, Jaron and Harpy.
They shared a look, before he glanced at Mullendore. The commander was already struggling with an opponent, locked in a deadly dance and in need of help and unlike Lord Hightower, he had no one to protect him. At the same time, the High Septon needed help. Taria needed help. Harpy understood him. Without saying a word, she turned towards Mullendore, while he turned towards the High Septon. Then, they started to run.
Jaron arrived first. Taria immediately realized what was happening and even before the High Septon was noticing Jaron, she had already pushed him away from her, while simultaneously jumping backwards. This did not only save her own life, … [view original content]
Jaron
A majority of the guests hadn't noticed anything, despite the fact that half a dozen masked killers were walking among them. Howeve… morer, slowly the guests started to realize that they were in horrible danger. Panic spread slowly, but it spread. And in the midst of it, Jaron and Harpy.
They shared a look, before he glanced at Mullendore. The commander was already struggling with an opponent, locked in a deadly dance and in need of help and unlike Lord Hightower, he had no one to protect him. At the same time, the High Septon needed help. Taria needed help. Harpy understood him. Without saying a word, she turned towards Mullendore, while he turned towards the High Septon. Then, they started to run.
Jaron arrived first. Taria immediately realized what was happening and even before the High Septon was noticing Jaron, she had already pushed him away from her, while simultaneously jumping backwards. This did not only save her own life, … [view original content]
Awesome Jaron Pov!And I,even if it's weird, still have the sensation that we have not yet reach the climax of his PoV!
About the choice I will not do it (even if one of the three choices is obviously a bad one and that was hinted during the last part of a certain character)
Jaron
A majority of the guests hadn't noticed anything, despite the fact that half a dozen masked killers were walking among them. Howeve… morer, slowly the guests started to realize that they were in horrible danger. Panic spread slowly, but it spread. And in the midst of it, Jaron and Harpy.
They shared a look, before he glanced at Mullendore. The commander was already struggling with an opponent, locked in a deadly dance and in need of help and unlike Lord Hightower, he had no one to protect him. At the same time, the High Septon needed help. Taria needed help. Harpy understood him. Without saying a word, she turned towards Mullendore, while he turned towards the High Septon. Then, they started to run.
Jaron arrived first. Taria immediately realized what was happening and even before the High Septon was noticing Jaron, she had already pushed him away from her, while simultaneously jumping backwards. This did not only save her own life, … [view original content]
Jaron
A majority of the guests hadn't noticed anything, despite the fact that half a dozen masked killers were walking among them. Howeve… morer, slowly the guests started to realize that they were in horrible danger. Panic spread slowly, but it spread. And in the midst of it, Jaron and Harpy.
They shared a look, before he glanced at Mullendore. The commander was already struggling with an opponent, locked in a deadly dance and in need of help and unlike Lord Hightower, he had no one to protect him. At the same time, the High Septon needed help. Taria needed help. Harpy understood him. Without saying a word, she turned towards Mullendore, while he turned towards the High Septon. Then, they started to run.
Jaron arrived first. Taria immediately realized what was happening and even before the High Septon was noticing Jaron, she had already pushed him away from her, while simultaneously jumping backwards. This did not only save her own life, … [view original content]
Jaron
A majority of the guests hadn't noticed anything, despite the fact that half a dozen masked killers were walking among them. Howeve… morer, slowly the guests started to realize that they were in horrible danger. Panic spread slowly, but it spread. And in the midst of it, Jaron and Harpy.
They shared a look, before he glanced at Mullendore. The commander was already struggling with an opponent, locked in a deadly dance and in need of help and unlike Lord Hightower, he had no one to protect him. At the same time, the High Septon needed help. Taria needed help. Harpy understood him. Without saying a word, she turned towards Mullendore, while he turned towards the High Septon. Then, they started to run.
Jaron arrived first. Taria immediately realized what was happening and even before the High Septon was noticing Jaron, she had already pushed him away from her, while simultaneously jumping backwards. This did not only save her own life, … [view original content]
Jaron
A majority of the guests hadn't noticed anything, despite the fact that half a dozen masked killers were walking among them. Howeve… morer, slowly the guests started to realize that they were in horrible danger. Panic spread slowly, but it spread. And in the midst of it, Jaron and Harpy.
They shared a look, before he glanced at Mullendore. The commander was already struggling with an opponent, locked in a deadly dance and in need of help and unlike Lord Hightower, he had no one to protect him. At the same time, the High Septon needed help. Taria needed help. Harpy understood him. Without saying a word, she turned towards Mullendore, while he turned towards the High Septon. Then, they started to run.
Jaron arrived first. Taria immediately realized what was happening and even before the High Septon was noticing Jaron, she had already pushed him away from her, while simultaneously jumping backwards. This did not only save her own life, … [view original content]
Jaron is going to take the shortcut back to the Burned Man's headquarters
Ah, I have missed this. My vacation was nice though, very relaxing, but it also feels good to be home again. As for this part, it was fun to write, especially since I know the things to come. Consequences, eh? Good news are, there is going to be another Jaron part in this chapter. Bad news are, I'm looking forward for it. But first, let me write about all the other characters whom we haven't seen in a while. Garthon, Raenna, Drent, Marak, they are all going to have some stuff left to do in this chapter.
Talking about Garthon, he is going to be the sole PoV of the next part. Unfortunately, I haven't managed to finish this part while I was away. The reason behind this wasn't a lack of time, but rather the result of me forgetting the charger of my laptop at home. I managed to write roughly two pages before the battery died, so three and a half are still left. However, I am excited to finally write again and very positive that I'll manage to finish the next part either today or tomorrow. Another positive thing is that I managed to plan the remaining parts of this chapter in greater detail and I should be able to push them out quickly.
The last time we saw Garthon, he accepted an offer Harren Hoare made him. He agreed to openly submit to the King, in order to prevent becoming a martyr in the eyes of the Riverlords. In exchange, Harren allowed him to stay alive. Torvin proudly refused this offer, but Garthon chose a more pragmatic approach. However, Harren also left him with a permanent reminder of their failed rebellion, by brutally cutting his cheek, in a way that mirrored the wound he himself suffered during the Chapter 5 finale. Naturally, his first impulse was to go to the Maester, to prevent an infection. However, he was left with a choice what to do afterwards. Kyra Greyjoy invited him to her room, while Harrick Hoare offered to give him advice in how to deal with Harren, the Riverlords and the lords of the Iron Islands, whom Garthon has to talk to soon. While Kyra hasn't specified what she intends to do in her room, Garthon has a rather lively imagination and he decided to decline Harrick's offer to get a chance to meet up with Kyra after he dealt with the Maester. The next part will do a little timeskip of two hours, in which the long-suffering Maester of Harrenhal stitches Garthon's cheek back together, since I figured that this wouldn't be very interesting to read about, and will instead start in front of the door to Kyra's chamber.
Comments
[Urge Philip to kill Wolfius] Fook the consequenses!
Great parts again!
[Change the topic] If Philip went after Wofius he wouldn't make it either way. Wofius would refuse to go down without a fight and if Philip succeeded, he would be branded a murderer.
The Voting is closed!
Lyria is going to change the topic
I'm sorry for everyone who had no time to vote yet, though as I said before, I will try my very best to put out two more parts until I go on vacation. The outcome is pretty obvious, I don't think more votes are going to change it and I don't think this was much of a surprise. However, a rather interesting scene would have resulted out of urging Philip to kill Wolfius. You'll see in the alternative choices at the end of this chapter. One consequence I can reveal is, Philip won't appear in Arthur's next part, even though he will have another appearance soon.
The next part is most likely going to be out today, which should allow me to put out another part either on Monday or the very early Tuesday, depending on my own progress and, of course, the voting. This next part is going to be a part with PoV's from Arthur and Samantha. The last time we saw Arthur, he had been guarding Mathea during her visit to Wolfius, whose wounds she treated. Aside from one small moment, Wolfius stayed mostly docile, though Arthur still has an understandably bad feeling being around him. His father arrived, asking for a moment of his time to discuss something important. Arthur however decided to stay with Mathea until she had finished to treat Wolfius, to make sure that nothing bad happens. Meanwhile, Samantha's last part had been a long time ago, though she also appeared in Lucas' last part. After she and Sasha arrived in Raylansfair together with the knights, they made their way to the tavern, where Samantha hopes to find John and fears to find Aylard. As you know, she imposed the horrible task on herself to inform Aylard of his daughters death. Even though Sasha stays at her side, she is still nervous and the next part will show if this nervousness is justified.
This time, I have a pretty unusual shout-out for you. Usually, I only give shout-outs for stories that have just started. This time however, I give a shout-out to one of the oldest ongoing stories in the forum. This story is set in the world of The Walking Dead, it is named The Fallen World and it is written by @TheKingOfWalkers. Starting in late June of 2014, the story is going to turn 2 years old soon. However, there seems to be a gradual decline in readership and nowadays, there are only three more or less active readers, one of which is myself. The thing is, this story is really good and does deserve more readers for sure, so I hope that this little shout-out might be able to draw some new attention towards it. If you are interested in reading it, give it a try by following this link
I understand where you're coming from. However, the main difference is that they would do it out of self defence, while Wolfius kills people simply because he enjoys it. Neither Lyria nor Philip would actually enjoy the act of killing Wolfius and would only do it because they see it as absolutely necessary to protect themselves from him.
Darreth has been especially fun to write in this part and I'm glad you like him and Dante
Now that they and their mission are properly established, I can start to give them a larger role in future Edrick parts, so I hope I continue to write them correctly.
I can't bring myself to see it as self-defence. It'd be breaking into a prison and actively trying to kill someone. It's not the same as defending yourself.
Haha, don't know if you guys watch Daredevil but this conversation just makes me think about Daredevil arguing with Punisher about what's the right way to deal with criminals
:D
Arthur
Wolfius caught his stare, a wicked smile forming on the murderer's face. This was enough for Arthur to make up his mind. “I'll stay”, he decided and looked at his father. “If it's okay, I'm going to talk to you later” Hackor hesitated for a moment, before he gave him a nod. “Very well”, he said shortly. “I'll be at my office”
“Oh, Guardsman Nathamer”, Wolfius said in a mocking tone, even though his voice was still weak. “You don't trust me to behave, do you? My friend, you have a problem with your attitude and it looks like your father is very, very disappointed in you” His mockery would have enraged Arthur, if it weren't for the fact that the beast was wounded and chained. Right now, his words couldn't hurt anyone.
Wolfius himself however could be hurt, he was more vulnerable than ever. He opened his mouth to speak again, but instead of words, only a groan of pain came out of it, as Mathea tightly wrapped a fresh set of bandages around his leg.
“Sorry”, she said with deceptive sweetness. “The bandage has to be that tight, or else it can't protect your wound properly” She wrapped the clean bandage once more around his leg and Wolfius cringed in pain. H looked down onto his leg. He slightly moved it and a relieved expression flashed across his face. “It's better already”, he said. His smile was pained and half-forced, but it was still a smile. “It appears I have to thank you”
“I haven't done it for your gratitude”, Mathea answered. “I did it because it was the right thing and because the commander, a good and just man, asked me to do it. Now that I'm done, I won't do anything else for you. We're finished”
This remark caused both, Wolfius and Arthur to look at her in surprise. Arthur had expected her to need a few more hours at least. Wolfius in turn wasn't exactly looking any better than before. His pain wasn't as obvious than before and he had stopped sweating. The look on his face was genuinely baffled though.
“But... it still fucking hurts...”, he mumbled. “You're here to do help me, so do it, you damn harlot!” Mathea gave him a nod, while she started to put her stuff into the bag that was lying in front of her. “I did all I had to do to prolong your life. I cleaned your wound and prevented an infection. I gave you a fresh set of bandages”, she informed him. “But the pain? I'm a healer, not a mage. To cure your pain, I'd need days, perhaps weeks”
Her voice gained sharpness, as she narrowed her eyes and moved closer towards Wolfius. Arthur put a hand around his mace as he saw the murderer clenching his fists. “But you don't have weeks, do you?”, she hissed. “I saved your life, but you will still hang tomorrow. They won't let you live longer than necessary”
Wolfius clenched his teeth and Mathea raised from the ground. “I wish you a good night, Wolfius Woodbark”, she spoke. “May it be your last” As she walked out of the cell, Wolfius attempted to follow her, but his chains prevented him from doing so. “You... you can't leave me like that!”, he yelled and Mathea stopped.
“I did what I could”, she answered calmly. She had his back turned on him and Arthur saw her expression. On the surface, it was calm, but there was something in her eyes that resembled anger, a sort of anger she adamantly refused to give in to. “Anything else would take more time than you still have. I care for the living”, she explained. “As a matter of fact, I have three living people at my house, two of which you brought there. Your wound won't kill you, but don't expect me to ease your pain” Without another word, she left the room and Wolfius sunk back to the ground. He barely reacted as Arthur closed the cell again.
Mathea was leaning against a wall next to the stairs that led up to the main room of the headquarters. She was slightly shivering and barely glanced at Arthur as he closed the door to the dungeon behind him. “This man...”, she mumbled.
“I know what you mean”, Arthur answered. “He's bringing out the worst in us” This time, Mathea shook her head. “I did what I could for him”, she answered. “But I'm not going to ignore the fact that he nearly killed Lyria and Rosalie. So I told him the truth. I saved his life, because I'm not going to let him die like an animal, but still... you will hang him tomorrow, will you?”
Arthur hesitated to answer. Wolfius' death sentence hadn't been signed yet, even though everyone was well aware of the fact that it was only a formality by now. Still, it was a formality his father was insisting on. Thinking about it, there weren't many formalities he wasn't insisting on. Then, he gave Mathea a nod.
“Usually I wouldn't approve of such a method and as much as I hate this man, I won't be there to watch him hang”, she answered. “But... I saw something in his eyes and I realized that you can't cage him forever. Keep him locked up and he's going to find a way. Currently, his wound prevents him from doing anything, but now that I treated it... in a few weeks he should be able to walk without any problem again” She paused for a moment and looked Arthur deeply in the eyes. “Just make sure that he won't hurt anyone ever again”
“Perhaps it would have been better to leave him to die”, Arthur brought up. Decisively, Mathea shook her head. “That would have been easier, not better”, she corrected him. “Your father, he's a lawful man, isn't he?”
This time, Arthur didn't have to hesitate before nodding. “This is good”, Mathea answered. “Then he's going to give him a trial, as fair as possible. Public, with witnesses and a chance for him to defend himself” She noticed the confusion on his eyes as they walked through the main hall and a grim look formed on her face. “In the end, this is what's going to bring him down, the very same thing he mocks with his actions”, she explained and this time, a smile formed on her face as she opened the door that led outside. “I shall go now, to wash his blood of my hands and to get back to my patients. Give your father my regards”
With these words, she was gone, leaving Arthur alone in the main room. It was remarkably empty by now, considering that it was already late in the evening. The guards on night shift were already on patrol, leaving only Arthur and Hackor in the building. And Wolfius.
Arthur approached the door that led to his father's office. He hesitated a moment, before he knocked. From the inside, he heard an impatient sigh. “Come on, Arthur”, the commander growled and Arthur hastily opened the door. Hackor sat behind his desk, not wearing his green armour for once. It hung behind him on the wall, always ready to be used if necessary. His spear leant next to it, always sharpened. The commander sternly glared at him out of his green eyes, his arms folded.
“You wanted to talk to me?”, Arthur asked and Hackor gave him a nod. He pointed at his desk and Arthur spotted a letter lying on top of it. He did not recognize the sigil on it, which depicted a strange creature, looking like a mixture between a man and a fish.
“A letter from Waylar Manderly, lord of White Harbour”, Hackor explained and Arthur gave him a confused look. White Harbour was in the North. Why should they send a letter? Before he could ask, Hackor already explained further.
“I have made a peculiar discovery during my investigation of the warehouse debacle”, he explained. “Something which prompted me to contact White Harbour. Today, I received an answer” He leant forwards and at Arthur. “During the fire, three warehouses burnt down, including the one we've been ambushed in. This warehouse belonged to a Braavosi, a certain Ellyrio Terys” The name immediately caused Arthur to freeze.
“Do you think he is involved?”, Arthur asked and Hackor shook his head. “I know Ellyrio. He has been here a few times, to inspect his property. He's not a killer and not the type of man to help a killer. I wrote a letter to his estate in Braavos, but it should take at least another month until it even reaches him”, he answered. “But more surprising is the fact that the rest of the warehouses in the entire street, including the two that burned down, belong to one person”
“To whom?”, Arthur asked. Hackor pointed at the letter. “Her name is Helenys Bellward and she used to be House Manderly's treasurer for decades, a position she recently had to step down from. She's now pursuing a career as a merchant”, he revealed. “Lord Manderly hasn't specified anything, but he mentioned some 'vile and unfounded rumours' that led to his 'trusted advisor and friend' stepping down to avoid causing harm to House Manderly”
Arthur raised an eyebrow, still not sure what Hackor was going to explain. “Here comes the thing. What little I know about her screams that she'd be capable of supporting these assassins. All of these warehouses have been acquired recently and so far, they are empty”, he continued. “What kind of deal is she planning to make that would require that many storage space?”
Finally, Arthur started to understand. “You think she tried to cover the activities of the assassins”, he deduced and a rare, proud nod from Hackor followed. “I think it is a possibility at least. It's not much, it might be nothing, but it is our only lead so far”, he specified. “The most interesting thing is that Lord Manderly informed me that she is currently travelling to Raylansfair and should be expected here over the next few days”
“It's still not a strong lead”, Arthur said with concern. Hackor sighed, before he nodded in agreement. “But it is something. At least it is an odd coincidence”, he growled. “Now to your role in all of this. You will be her personal guard. You will stay close to her. Protect her, but also watch her. You will inform me of everything strange”
“And if I don't find anything?”, Arthur answered. Hackor shrugged. “Then my suspicions remain unfounded. Wouldn't be the first time that happens”, he answered. Suddenly, a rare, genuine smile flashed across his face. “There is one more thing I almost forgot to tell you. This one just came in” He reached down, underneath his table, and revealed a sheet of paper, which he handed Arthur.
“Freshly signed by Lord Tyrell in the name of King Gardener”, he explained. “We're going to hang him!”, Arthur exclaimed, more joyful than necessary. Relief filled him. “Tomorrow in the afternoon”, Hackor specified. “I won't waste any more time with this rat that tries to be a wolf” His usual, stern mood returned in an instant. “That said, this is only the beginning. We'll clean this city of their filth. We'll retake it. Tomorrow it'll be Wolfius, next will be these sons of bitches behind the warehouse attack”, he growled and narrowed his emerald green eyes. “This is far from over”
No choices for this part
Samantha
With a heavily beating heart, Samantha entered the taproom. It wasn't as crowded as she expected. In fact, it wasn't crowded at all. A couple of adamant drunkards were scattered across the room, solemnly sipping their ale. And John. Her heart nearly skipped a beat when she saw him. Seeing him was odd, even though it had only been a few weeks since she left him. Seeing him was a relief for her, though at the same time it only added to her nervousness, because it meant that Aylard was close as well.
Sasha put a hand onto her shoulder and briefly smiled at her in a reassuring way. This moment of comfort was enough for her to gather the courage to approach John. He was talking to a man she had never seen before. He was tall, even taller than John, with pale skin and a bald head. Two scars were visible on it and even though he was unarmed, Samantha recognized the careful movement of a skilled warrior.
John noticed her after she had crossed half of the room. He immediately stopped talking and a huge, goofy grin formed on his face. “Sammy!”, he yelled, loud enough to draw attention towards him. He approached her, spreading his arms and pulled her into a tight hug. He even lifted her up in the air, while he let out joyful laughter. His sound of happiness was enough to drive daggers through her heart. She dreaded what was about to follow.
“And who's your friend here?”, he asked, looking at Sasha. “Could ask you the same thing”, Samantha answered and glanced at the bald man. In turn, this man raised from his chair, only to take a surprisingly elegant and courtly bow in front of her. “Ser Daghan Oxus”, he said, warmer and softer than she expected. “I am a knight, currently working with your friend”
“Most likely at least, eh?”, John chuckled. “Daghan, this is Samantha Ducard. Deadliest girl you'll ever meet, aside from my Janae of course” The compliment caused Samantha to smile, even though she didn't feel like smiling at all. “This is Sasha”, she introduced her friend. “She saved my life in Oldtown”
“And I still haven't been paid”, Sasha interjected, a remark which caused John to smirk. “I can already tell I'm going to like you”, he stated, before he gave her a warm handshake. It was only then that he realized someone was missing. “But... where are Lucas and the girl?”, he asked.
Samantha sighed and she had no doubt that John recognized this gesture. “Lucas and his friend, this Leonard, they are fine”, she revealed. “Alive at least. They are on their way to the castle, to talk with the lord” She and Sasha exchanged a glance. It was her friend who answered. “Lunett is dead”, Sasha said bluntly.
John took it better than expected. He lost control over his facial expression, revealing pure shock. He staggered backwards and even though Daghan prepared to support him, he remained standing. He did not even shiver, although his fists were tightly clenched. “How?”, he asked.
“She was tortured to death”, Sasha continued to explain. Even though Samantha was thankful for her help, she would have preferred a less direct approach. John averted his gaze, staring at the floor in pure shock. “By the Gods...”, he mumbled and looked back at Samantha. “Aylard...”
“I volunteered to tell him”, she revealed and John shook his head. “Don't”, he warned her. “Aylard, he's... fuck, he's not a bad man, but his temper. Sammy, he's going to kill you!” She shook her head. “He won't”, she tried to assure him. She was prepared to defend herself in the worst case, even though she hoped it wouldn't come that far.
“Sammy...”, John tried to warn her again. She stepped past him. “This is something I have to do, John”, she said calmly. The look in her eyes was enough to convince him. He lowered his head and sighed. “Fine, but... please don't get killed”, he mumbled. “He's upstairs. Fourth door to the left”
The knight, Daghan, caught her attention by growling. It took her a moment to realize that he just cleared his throat. “If you need any backup...”, he offered politely, but she shook her head. “I got Sasha”, she answered. Daghan gave her a nod, while Sasha gave her a smile that was meant to be optimistic. Then, they walked past the two men, leaving them in the taproom as they made their way up the stairs.
Samantha sighed. There was no easy way to say this, so she did it as bluntly as Sasha would have. “When we're in there, I want you to leave the talking to me”, she whispered. Sasha raised an eyebrow and gave her a curious look. “What do you mean?”, she asked. “You want to do this by yourself?” Samantha gave her a nod. “Sammy, you don't have to torment yourself with this. Leave it to me”
Again Samantha shook her head. “I know I don't have to do this. But it is better that way, for me as well”, she answered. Even though she almost did not notice it, she suddenly looked at her friend in surprise. “You just called me Sammy”, she remarked. Sasha widely opened her eyes, before she decisively shook her head. “No, I didn't”, she lied. “You got that all wrong. I said...”
Before she could continue, the door they were approaching was opened. Out walked Aylard Kawl. He was still as she remembered him. Tall, a broad-shouldered former soldier with greying hair and a bushy beard. The only similarity with his daughter were the eyes... she closed hers as the memories started to overwhelm her.
“Samantha!”, Aylard exclaimed as he rushed through the hallway, towards her. He did not notice her distraught expression, at least not immediately. Instead, a joyful, relieved smile was on his face as he pulled her into a fatherly hug, a gesture she did not reciprocate. He quickly separated from her and looked her in the eyes. His smile faded and she had to do her best to hide her tears. For once, she did not force herself to smile. “Where is my daughter?”, he asked. “Samantha?”
Samantha gave Sasha a warning glare, which caused the other woman to close her mouth again. “Aylard, can we talk inside?”, she asked, looking towards the room. She noticed something changing on Aylard's face. In an instant, he looked at least a decade older. Pure disbelief was in his eyes. “Where is my daughter?”, he asked again. He broke free from her grip as she softly attempted to put a hand onto his shoulder. “No...”, he exclaimed in a voice that contained pure, unbearable agony.
“Please, let us talk inside”, she said softly. Without any protest, Aylard turned around and wordlessly dragged himself into his room. Samantha and Sasha followed. It was a small room, almost too small for the four people who lived there. Samantha saw the old woman, Gunel, sitting on a table, next to her the young, blonde former barmaid Kyette. Aylard's son Sawyer, his only remaining child, was innocently playing on the ground. Vivid memories of the seven graves behind Aylard's burnt down tavern flashed through her mind, the graves of his wife and six of his children.
Gunel was the first to recognize her and to correctly interpret her expression. Her stare went blank in an instant and she visibly had to hold back her tears. Kyette needed a moment longer, but she utterly failed at not crying. “Sawyer”, Samantha said softly and the boy looked up. A look into his innocent green eyes sent shivers down her spine, but she forced herself to smile at him. “This is my friend Sasha. She's going to take you outside. She's really nice”, she said and glared at Sasha. “She's really nice”
Sawyer jumped up and smiled at Sasha. “Okay!”, he just said and rushed towards her. Sasha tensed up as he grabbed her hand. “Are you going to play with me?”, he asked. “Why is your skin so brown?” Sasha clenched her teeth and stared daggers at Samantha, but she played her part well enough to smile at Sawyer, surprisingly friendly. “Come on, little one. I'm going to tell you everything outside”, she said softly and lifted him up on her arm, before she left the room and closed the door.
Finally, Gunel failed at holding back her tears. She sank to the ground, where she started to sob pathetically. Aylard stood in the middle of the room, not saying a word at first. “Aylard...”, Samantha started, though she was unsure what she should say next. She was sorry? Well, she was sorry, but that would mean nothing to him.
“How?”, he simply growled. She sighed, having feared the exact question. “Tell me, how did my daughter die?” In his eyes, she saw sorrow beyond despair. She saw rage beyond anything she ever saw before. Aylard was not in a murderous mood, he was way beyond that. But what was she supposed to tell him? That his daughter had been murdered, mutilated and blinded by a man who was nothing short of a demon?
“You don't want to know...”, she started to say, but he jumped forwards and grabbed her by the shoulder, harshly. “Aylard...”, Kyette hissed tearfully. “I want to know... everything”, he growled. “Tell me, how did she die? Who killed her?” She knew he didn't want to know. She knew he would regret learning it. At the same time, she knew it was his right to know.
[Tell him the full truth] [Spare him the details]
I haven't watched Daredevil so far, though I've heard it is a seriously amazing series. Not that big of a fan of the Daredevil comics, though the Punisher has always been one of my favourite Marvel characters ever. Perhaps I should finally consider watching it
[Tell him the full truth]
Haven't seen season 2 yet but I loved season 1 so I'm pretty excited to see it. I saw the trailer and I'm really pumped to see the punisher.
[Tell him the full truth] he deserve to know.... and go to kill Mullendore with his own bare hands.
What would happen if Arthur would go to his father instead of staying?
[Tell him the full truth]
[Tell him the full truth] To be honest I will have like more the other choice (since Aylard has enough tragedies on his shoulder and told him that the daughter was tortured to death is not be honest but be cruel) but,since Sasha was kind enough to waste that chance (since she already tell at John that Lunett was tortured),I'm forced,to avoid more dangerous situations, to do this choice.
PS:But.hey!Let's talk about the good side of this part! After the sad moment that will reach his climax during the next Samantha PoV the girl will finally be reunite with the other mercenaries (after only 2/3 long chapters!)!Plus Arthur obtain a mission to make his PoV more exciting and,more important,if we are lucky we will have an execution GoT style!XD (with the little difference that the hanged man will be someone that deserve it)
Yes, I highly recommend Daredevil, it's quality tv!
[Tell him the full truth] He'll just spend his whole life wondering otherwise. "Was it an accident? Mugging? Rape? Murder?" the wondering will drive him mad.
Most likely the other option will win, but...
[Spare him the details] I just think there is no need to go to the details here, just as Samantha thought, he will regret learning it.
The whole thing with Wolfius is kind of worrying. I'm positive that his 'son' Kreep will try something to save his father. I'm going to take my time analyzing every Arthur part from here on out.
[Tell him the full truth] While I do hate having to tell Alyard something terrible about his daughter, and there is almost no way to tell what he may do, but I believe he should get out there and seek vengeance against Mullendore.
[Tell him the full truth] I'll admit I was pretty close to choosing the other decision, but like some people already said: he needs to at least know who his daughter's killer is.
Not much would have changed. As this part showed, Mathea was already almost finished with giving first aid to Wolfius. If Arthur would have left, she would have finished her work off-screen, before leaving. Wolfius would have been calm and wouldn't have tried to harm her. Arthur's talk with Hackor would have also been longer, as I would have had more room to write it. In the long run, the consequences are probably going to be small. In the short run, this outcome gave Mathea and Wolfius a larger role in this part (otherwise they would have only had a brief appearance at the beginning of it), while the other option would have focussed on Hackor and would have put more emphasis on the complicated relationship between him and Arthur.
[Spare him the details] eh, might as well.
[Tell him the full truth]
[Tell him the full truth]
The Voting is closed!
Samantha is going to tell Aylard the full truth
This is one of the few choices where I wouldn't have known what to choose. Personally, I'd probably lean a little bit more in favour of sparing him the gruesome details, though the reason behind telling him the full truth is making sense to me as well. That said, Samantha is going to tell him everything now, including the reason behind his daughter's death. Sure, she's not going to put it as blunt as Sasha would have, but it's nonetheless going to be hard for Aylard. There's going to be a hopefully very intense scene coming out of this in one of the final parts of this chapter, which I genuinely can't wait to write down. Speaking about, we're reaching the end of the chapter quickly. A couple of parts are left and most PoV's will get at least one more part, but generally, we're reaching the endgame of Act 2.
The next part is going to be out either today, or very early tomorrow, which is also the reason why I close the voting right now. As I told you a few days ago, I'm going on a vacation tomorrow. I'll be back on Monday and with a bit of luck, I will already manage to release another part by then. As always, I also hope to be able to check the forum occasionally. For now, I promised you another part before I leave and another part you shall get. Even though his last part hasn't been that long ago, the next part is going to be another Jaron part, mostly because I feel like the ending of it is a good point to put the story on hold for a week. It's one of the parts I have been looking forward to write for a while, so hopefully you'll enjoy reading it. The last time we saw Jaron was during the masquerade, after Ayden and Jarek went outside to confront a couple of Alley Cats. First, he was introduced to Ayden's pregnant girlfriend Taria and the High Septon, before he met up with Harpy and Mullendore. Ultimately, he was even compelled to dance. During this dance, Harpy noticed a number of Cats, who were closing in on Mullendore, the High Septon and Lord Hightower. They even managed to outright attack Mullendore, who apparently had to fight for his life. Left with the choice to directly protect one of them, Jaron chose to rush towards the High Septon and Taria, which is where the next part is going to start.
With these words, I shall resume my writing. In case I won't be able to get into contact with you over the next week, I would also like to wish you happy Easter in advance.
Jaron
A majority of the guests hadn't noticed anything, despite the fact that half a dozen masked killers were walking among them. However, slowly the guests started to realize that they were in horrible danger. Panic spread slowly, but it spread. And in the midst of it, Jaron and Harpy.
They shared a look, before he glanced at Mullendore. The commander was already struggling with an opponent, locked in a deadly dance and in need of help and unlike Lord Hightower, he had no one to protect him. At the same time, the High Septon needed help. Taria needed help. Harpy understood him. Without saying a word, she turned towards Mullendore, while he turned towards the High Septon. Then, they started to run.
Jaron arrived first. Taria immediately realized what was happening and even before the High Septon was noticing Jaron, she had already pushed him away from her, while simultaneously jumping backwards. This did not only save her own life, it saved his life as well, as the assassin's knife cut where they had been standing just seconds ago, hitting only thin air. In turn, Jaron's closed fist hit him right in the face, which was enough to send him to the ground.
Surprised gasps from the crowd around him showed that they had finally understood what was going on. The High Septon shrieked in terror, as he looked at the knife and then at the masked man, who was slowly standing up.
Behind him, another surprised wave of screams was audible and then another one. While his opponent regained composure, Jaron allowed himself to glance around. Instinctively, he looked for Harpy and found her just reaching the commander, who was already gaining the upper hand in his struggle. Her arrival caught the Cat by surprise, especially as she threw a nasty punch at his ribs, which finally allowed Mullendore to grab his opponent by the throat, to lift him up into the air and to finally slam him down onto the ground. He went down as well, kneeling onto the man's chest, before he started to throw vicious punches at him.
Meanwhile, Arryk had obviously realized what was happening. The knight drew his sword and went closer, to protect his lord, but he focussed his gaze on Mullendore and Jaron, ignoring the attackers behind him until it was almost too late. The first knife failed to go through his armour, but stunned him enough for a second attack to pierce his shoulder. He swirled around, his sword slashing through one opponent's unprotected abdomen, effectively eviscerating him.
“Bastard”, the man Jaron had just sent to the ground hissed as he jumped to his feet. “You heard about me?”, Jaron asked with a cold smirk, as he raised both hands, clenching his fists to prepare for a fight. It would have been over in an instant if he would have had a sword. Now, he expected a hard fight.
The Cat took a strike at him, but Jaron jumped back, bumping into one hapless nobleman that did not manage to get out of his way in time. The knife narrowly missed his chest, but the Cat did not allow him the chance to retaliate. Instead, he attacked again immediately, not even bothering with defending himself against an unarmed opponent. Jaron rushed backwards. Then, as the blade just passed him, he jumped forwards and with his right hand he grabbed his opponent's arm and slammed his left shoulder into him.
Both men fell to the ground, Jaron on top, trapping the arm that held the knife underneath his body and preventing the Cat from striking. However, he in turn was unable to correctly move his wounded arm, which quickly put him at a disadvantage. His opponent realized this weakness and simply put a hand onto his left forearm, squeezing it tightly. The resulting pain was enough for Jaron to be pushed to the ground. Now, the Cat was jumping on top of him. He rose his knife, ignoring a weak punch Jaron tried to throw at him.
Before he could embed the weapon into Jaron's chest, the eyes underneath the mask widened. The knife fell out of his weak hands, as he sank to the ground next to Jaron, blood flowing out of a wound in his neck. Behind him stood Taria, holding a bloody knife with both of her hands. She was shivering in a state of pure shock, as she looked at the weapon, unable to even drop it.
Jaron stared at her for a moment, breathing in relief, as he slowly raised from the ground in order to comfort her. As he did so, his glance fell upon Lord Hightower and his bodyguard and he knew this was far from over. Instead of pulling Taria into a consoling hug, his eyes looked down, in the hectic attempt to find his dead attacker's knife.
Arryk was still fighting. Leaving himself vulnerable for another attack, he jumped in the way of a third attacker who attempted to get past him. His sword found the masked man's ribs, piercing deeply into them, but the last of his attackers managed to stab him again, this time in the back. Grunting in pain, the knight went to the ground, even though his armour was enough to save his life.
The Alley Cat did not bother with killing him. Instead, he just stepped past him and towards Lord Hightower. The old lord stood straight, despite his age. Instead of running away, he grabbed a small knife to defend himself, even though it was clear that he would be no match for a trained killer. Jaron rushed towards him, but he knew that he wouldn't reach him in time.
Things looked dire for the lord, until all of a sudden, Jarek stepped out of the crowd, very close to him. He was out of breath, his clothes stained with blood and he was clutching a longsword, equally bloody.
The masked attacker was only momentarily baffled by his unexpected opponent, before he took the offensive. He barely managed to reach Jarek, when the inferior range of his knife caused his undoing. The sellsword hit him first, severing his right arm at the elbow, before driving his blade further down his belly.
By now, the music had stopped, the guests were in a serious panic. People were running to the nearest exits, revealing even more Ally Cats between them. Jaron counted half a dozen of them. Now that their cover was blown, they were no match for the guards who started to swarm the room. Still, they fought back, trying to sell their lives dearly.
Someone approached him and just as Jaron was preparing to defend himself, he noticed that it was just Ayden, who was holding a greatsword in his hand. With a thankful nod, he stepped past him, to pull his girlfriend into a hug. Taria, finally letting go of the knife, sank into his arms and started to sob desperately.
“Jaron!”, someone called. Amid the chaos, amid the bloodshed, stood Harpy. Seeing her was enough for him to calm down, as they both rushed towards each other. She jumped into his hug and for a moment, everything around him did no longer matter, as she put her head onto his chest.
Then, Jaron's glance fell upon Mullendore. The commander was still kneeling on top of the man that tried to kill him, sending punch after punch at the bloody ruin that once was a head, his movements indicating that he was in a state of deep, primal rage.. The cat mask had been shattered into pieces, most of which were deeply embedded into what was left of the man's face.
“Over here!”, Jaron heard a voice and as he looked around, he saw Keira. She was waving at him, pointing at a door somewhere behind her. Two dead guards lay in front of it, but Jaron caught a glimpse of the man that just passed through it, out into the garden. He recognized the mask, white and golden and he knew there was no way he'd let this son of a bitch escape.
Harpy saw it as well, as she immediately separated from him. She gave him a determined nod, as both rushed towards Keira. Martin caught up to them as well. Somewhere in the chaos, he had been able to gain two short swords-
“Too many”, Harpy said, as Jarek caught up to them as well. “Martin, you stay. Make sure no one gets hurt” The sellsword gave her a smirk. “I'm on it”, he promised, although a worried streak appeared on his face as he spotted Keira, who prepared to go with them as well. Wordlessly, but accompanied by a look that reminded Jaron of the way he himself looked at Harpy, he handed her one of his swords.
Jaron, Harpy, Keira and Jarek stepped out of the door, leaving the chaos behind them, as they reached the tranquil garden. A wooden terrace was built where they stood, a small set of stairs leading down into the darkness. Small trees stood there, still full with leaves despite the ongoing autumn, allowing not even the pale moonlight to illuminate the path between them.
Without saying a word, the small group made their way through the garden. Jarek was walking in front of them, Jaron in the back. Both men were looking around gingerly, to make sure that the Tom wasn't trying to ambush them.
All of a sudden, a black shadow jumped from behind a tree, right between them, probably with the intent of killing either Harpy or Keira. Jaron tried to block the man's dagger before it could reach either of the women, while Jarek turned around in an instant, his longsword slicing across the attacker's upper left leg.
With a groan of pain, the Tom went to the ground. Instead of killing him immediately, Jaron reacted by kicking the man's dagger out of reach. Before the masked man could try to reach for it, Jarek had grabbed him by the neck and tightly put his sword at his throat.
“Hold it”, Harpy ordered. “I got some questions first” Jaron gave her an uneasy look as he remembered the warehouse. It appeared she had learned from it and he knew that she was a lot less emotional when it came to the Tom. But the anger in her eyes was as real as it was understandable.
The masked man let out something that resembled a wheezing laugh, as he wasn't able to do anything more with Jarek's sword pressed at his throat. “The Tom, I presume?”, she asked. “Just someone who wears his mask”, the man answered. Unlike the Tom's voice, which was deep and purring and melodic, this one was high-pitched and wheezing.
“Then tell me where he is”, Harpy demanded. The blue eyes behind the mask sparkled with amusement. “Not here”, the man answered. “Do you honestly think he would put himself into such danger?”
A look of confusion flashed across Harpy's face. “Where is he?”, she asked again. The cat continued to chuckle softly. “I won't tell you anything, whore”, he spat. “No matter what you're going to do, you won't get a single answer”
“May I?”, Jarek asked and Harpy shook her head. “If you tell me what I want to know, we'll take you as a prisoner”, she offered. “You will live, unharmed” The Alley Cat attempted to shake his head, but the sword stopped him. “Keep your empty promises”, he growled. “I knew the risk and I played my part. All will be well”
Before he was able to continue, a visibly annoyed Jarek moved his hand and cleanly cut the man's throat. His body went limp and he fell to the ground while he bled out. Harpy, Keira and Jaron threw alarmed glares at the sellsword. “The hell?”, Harpy exclaimed.
Jarek raised an eyebrow, a look of cold boredom on his face. “What?”, he asked, as Harpy clenched her fists. “He knew something”, she hissed and Jarek shook his head. “Maybe”, he admitted. “But I know men like him. He wouldn't have told you a damn thing. He knew who we are and we couldn't have left him alive either way, so I saved us a lot of time” Now, he narrowed his eyes as well. “Besides, I don't think you are in a position to criticize me for killing our prisoner”
Harpy opened her mouth in protest, but closed it immediately, the hint of shame appearing on her face, as she simply turned towards the door. “Let's... just go”, she mumbled. “Out of this blasted mansion” Before she left, she reached down to pick up the dead Alley Cat's dagger. She momentarily looked at it, before she hid it in her sleeve.
“Works for me”, Jarek answered and glanced at Keira, who had a look of uncomfortable shock on her face. “You up to earn some money tonight, after we're done here?” Now, she looked at him and narrowed her eyes. “Excuse me?”, she said, before she turned away from him.
In silence, they made their way back out of the garden. Harpy's mood had noticeably cooled down after Jarek brought up the warehouse and Jaron knew how much the memories tormented her. A sting of guilt flashed through him, as he once again realized that he could have stopped her, should have stopped her. He wondered what could have been, how things would have turned.
The hall was mostly empty as they returned. About half a dozen Alley Cats lay dead on the ground, surrounded by guards. A few guests were still staying, though most of them immediately left the room as the heavily armed Jarek entered the room. Lord Vyrwel was nowhere to be seen and Jaron could only imagine how much stress this evening was putting him through.
Martin rushed towards them, to pull Keira into a hug. They started to talk in a low tone and aside from Martin's soothing, warm words, Jaron wasn't able to understand what they were talking about. While Harpy, followed by Jarek, walked towards Mullendore, who was talking with a man who obviously belonged to the city guard, Jaron saw that Ayden was walking towards him. He had an arm around Taria and a rare smile on his face.
“I... Taria told me you saved her life...”, he started to say, before he, visibly overwhelmed with gratitude, grabbed Jaron's arm, giving him a warm handshake. Before Jaron was able to answer, Mullendore's surprised voice cut him off.
“Wait, wait, wait...”, the commander said. He wasn't talking loudly, but in a large otherwise eerily silent hall, his words travelled far. “This little shit said what? You're telling me, she... The whole fucking evening?”
Then, he spotted Harpy and a wide, triumphant grin formed on his face. “Mylady!”, he yelled at the top of his lungs, as he rushed towards her. Jaron gave Ayden a sign and both men approached the commander.
Before Harpy was able to react, Mullendore had pulled her into a tight hug. “Gods, you are unbelievable!”, he laughed joyfully, as he planted a kiss on each of her cheeks, which caused her to blush brightly. “Un-fucking-believable! The whole goddamn evening!” His smile faded. “You tried to save my life”
“I only did my duty”, Harpy answered humbly, but Mullendore shook his head. He grabbed her hand and his smile faded. “I don't think so”, he growled. “You did a lot more than that” Just as Jaron started to worry, the commander's smile returned. “You're unbelievable!”
Harpy coughed in embarrassment, before she managed to pull her hand out of his grip. “I... commander, I would like to leave”, she revealed. Again, Mullendore's smile faded temporarily, before returning brighter than ever. “I'm sure you want to”, he answered and put an arm around her, as both approached the door that led to the street. “It's only understandable after tonight. You're returning to Nightsong then?” Harpy gave him a nod. “Immediately”, she answered. “Don't get me wrong, I'm sure this city has its good sides, but still...”
“Yeah, it's a pile of shit”, Mullendore answered as they stepped through the door. Jaron and the rest followed and Jaron noticed that each of them were still holding onto their weapons. No one made any attempts of forcing them to leave them. “Though, during moments like this, I always remember something my father used to say”, he explained. “No matter how dark the night seems to be, keep your faith and all will be well”
As he said these words, Jaron noticed a change of expression on Harpy's face. It was more than subtle, but nonetheless worrying. “A wonderful piece of advice”, she answered and Mullendore shook his head. “It was a worthless advice from a worthless man”, he chuckled coldly. “But in some situation, it fits”
“All will be well”, Harpy mumbled and Mullendore gave her a nod. “We understand each other?”, he asked. “Of course”, she answered. “Goodnight commander” He took a bow. “Until we meet again, Lady Caron”
And with this, he left them on the outside. Harpy turned away immediately and walked down the street at a steady pace, without looking at Jaron. He noticed that something was wrong. “Harpy?”, he asked. “Continue walking”, she warned him through clenched teeth, in a voice that was barely audible. “And whatever you do, don't turn around”
“Harpy, what...?”, Jaron started to say in confusion, but she cut him off, by saying something so simple, yet world-shattering. “He's Butterfly”, she mumbled.
“What?”, Martin, who was walking on the other side of her, exclaimed. He had an arm around Keira, but quickly removed it, as he stopped walking. “What have you just said?” Harpy still looked at the street, though an alarmed look had appeared on her face by now. “Continue walking”, she hissed. “Don't turn around. He's Butterfly, or he's working for him”
“You... you mean... how can you...?”, Martin stuttered. Harpy shook her head. “All will be well”, she mumbled in despair. “Butterfly... the one I thought to be Butterfly, he said the same thing. And the Alley Cat in the garden” She was talking slightly louder by now and Ayden and Jarek heard it as well. “But most importantly, there was something else about him... I think he dropped his mask in front of me just now. He... he somehow knows who I am, who we are, and he wanted me to know”
A numbing feeling of panic started to grow inside of Jaron, as he turned around to the mansion. No one was following them, but he still felt watched. “And... if this is true, how can you remain so calm?”
Finally, Harpy turned towards him. Her dark eyes were widely opened in fear and filled with tears. Her fists were clenched and she was shivering uncontrollably. “Tell me, Jaron”, she whispered in a tearful voice. “Do I look calm to you?” And Jaron realized that she was serious. This was not some sort of sick joke. She was actually serious and she fully believed what she just said.
Jarek remained silent, but Ayden spoke up. “Then what are we waiting for?”, he said in the tone of someone who refused to loose his cool even in a situation like this. “If what you just said is true, or even partially just, then we need to get the hell out of this city”
Harpy gave him a nod, but as Ayden continued to walk down the main street, she called him out. “Not this way”, she hissed. “He expects us to go this way” She glanced down a side street. “We go the shortest possible route. A shortcut to the mansion, we grab the Burned Man and then we run like hell”
“A shortcut, huh?”, Martin said and shook his head. “The only shortcut I know leads directly through Tanner's Alley. Solver territory. And I don't intend to die tonight” He looked into the other direction. “If you're right, then they are going to follow us. We need to do something they don't expect. We take a long route, try to loose them in the northern part of the city”
“That takes too long”, Ayden intervened. “And fuck, we need to stay together. I say, you're freaking out right now and not able to make such a decision. We should stay on the main street” He pulled Taria closer towards him. “Getting her into danger was not part of the plan!” Jarek smugly chuckled. “You're getting soft, Blackwell”, he grinned. “I'm with Harpy here. Going through Solver territory might be our only chance to be at the headquarters before they catch up to us”
“Well, I'm with Martin”, Keira said demonstratively. Taria looked at Ayden, before she put her head back onto his chest. “And I'm with Ayden”, she answered. “Always” Now, Harpy looked at Jaron, pleadingly, tearfully. He knew she was close to a panic and this frightened him. Seeing her like this... and what she just said, it was impossible! “Your choice?”, she asked. “Which way would you take back to the headquarters?”
[Stick to the Main Street] [Take a shortcut] [Take the longer way]
[Take a shortcut] Let's just get out.
Mullendore seems so normal without knowing he's Butterfly. Glad someone figured it out though.
[Take a shortcut] We need to get the fuck out of here!
[Take the longer way]
[Take the longer way] I don't know. :P
[Take a shortcut]
[Take a shortcut] Let's stick with Harpy on this one - she needs to be backed up, especially now.
[Take a shortcut] Damn, it's so hard... Each of them feels like a dangerous option, but I guess it's better to get out of there as quickly as possible. And it's good to agree with Harpy ofc
(Take the shortcut)
[Stick to the Main Street] Now the best decision will be to take the shortcut, the long way it's seems too paranoiac... however the fastest way isn't necessarily a good way, mainly agree with Harpy heck ya I totally agreed with her but I'm curious what happen if we stick to the street, surely he may think we won't be that foolish... intrigue choice indeed, look forward to see how it will turn out.
No i mist Johns story chapter
!
[Take a shortcut]
Awesome Jaron Pov!And I,even if it's weird, still have the sensation that we have not yet reach the climax of his PoV!
About the choice I will not do it (even if one of the three choices is obviously a bad one and that was hinted during the last part of a certain character)
[Stick to the Main Street]
[Take a shortcut]
[Take a shortcut]
Which means, the voting is closed!
Jaron is going to take the shortcut back to the Burned Man's headquarters
Ah, I have missed this. My vacation was nice though, very relaxing, but it also feels good to be home again. As for this part, it was fun to write, especially since I know the things to come. Consequences, eh? Good news are, there is going to be another Jaron part in this chapter. Bad news are, I'm looking forward for it. But first, let me write about all the other characters whom we haven't seen in a while. Garthon, Raenna, Drent, Marak, they are all going to have some stuff left to do in this chapter.
Talking about Garthon, he is going to be the sole PoV of the next part. Unfortunately, I haven't managed to finish this part while I was away. The reason behind this wasn't a lack of time, but rather the result of me forgetting the charger of my laptop at home. I managed to write roughly two pages before the battery died, so three and a half are still left. However, I am excited to finally write again and very positive that I'll manage to finish the next part either today or tomorrow. Another positive thing is that I managed to plan the remaining parts of this chapter in greater detail and I should be able to push them out quickly.
The last time we saw Garthon, he accepted an offer Harren Hoare made him. He agreed to openly submit to the King, in order to prevent becoming a martyr in the eyes of the Riverlords. In exchange, Harren allowed him to stay alive. Torvin proudly refused this offer, but Garthon chose a more pragmatic approach. However, Harren also left him with a permanent reminder of their failed rebellion, by brutally cutting his cheek, in a way that mirrored the wound he himself suffered during the Chapter 5 finale. Naturally, his first impulse was to go to the Maester, to prevent an infection. However, he was left with a choice what to do afterwards. Kyra Greyjoy invited him to her room, while Harrick Hoare offered to give him advice in how to deal with Harren, the Riverlords and the lords of the Iron Islands, whom Garthon has to talk to soon. While Kyra hasn't specified what she intends to do in her room, Garthon has a rather lively imagination and he decided to decline Harrick's offer to get a chance to meet up with Kyra after he dealt with the Maester. The next part will do a little timeskip of two hours, in which the long-suffering Maester of Harrenhal stitches Garthon's cheek back together, since I figured that this wouldn't be very interesting to read about, and will instead start in front of the door to Kyra's chamber.