Ellena
Ellena ran up the stairs, giggling wildly as she heard the heavy footsteps behind her. As fast as she could and with her heart thu… moremping wildly, she continued to rush down the vast hallway, her long, plaited braids flying in the wind, her laughter sounding through the building. She glanced to her left, seeing an open door and without hesitation, she ran through it and into the storage room behind.
“Where are you?”, a deep voice growled and Ellena had to chuckle, as she looked around for a place to hide. She spotted a closet, one of several in the room, but one whose doors stood slightly open, revealing that it was largely empty, save for two old brooms. Just as the footsteps came closer, she jumped inside, making far too much noise in the process.
She saw the large silhouette walking into the room and couldn't contain a wide grin, though she at least managed to suppress her giggle. “Where is my little girl?”, the voice of the s… [view original content]
Ellena
Ellena ran up the stairs, giggling wildly as she heard the heavy footsteps behind her. As fast as she could and with her heart thu… moremping wildly, she continued to rush down the vast hallway, her long, plaited braids flying in the wind, her laughter sounding through the building. She glanced to her left, seeing an open door and without hesitation, she ran through it and into the storage room behind.
“Where are you?”, a deep voice growled and Ellena had to chuckle, as she looked around for a place to hide. She spotted a closet, one of several in the room, but one whose doors stood slightly open, revealing that it was largely empty, save for two old brooms. Just as the footsteps came closer, she jumped inside, making far too much noise in the process.
She saw the large silhouette walking into the room and couldn't contain a wide grin, though she at least managed to suppress her giggle. “Where is my little girl?”, the voice of the s… [view original content]
Ellena
Ellena ran up the stairs, giggling wildly as she heard the heavy footsteps behind her. As fast as she could and with her heart thu… moremping wildly, she continued to rush down the vast hallway, her long, plaited braids flying in the wind, her laughter sounding through the building. She glanced to her left, seeing an open door and without hesitation, she ran through it and into the storage room behind.
“Where are you?”, a deep voice growled and Ellena had to chuckle, as she looked around for a place to hide. She spotted a closet, one of several in the room, but one whose doors stood slightly open, revealing that it was largely empty, save for two old brooms. Just as the footsteps came closer, she jumped inside, making far too much noise in the process.
She saw the large silhouette walking into the room and couldn't contain a wide grin, though she at least managed to suppress her giggle. “Where is my little girl?”, the voice of the s… [view original content]
Ellena
Ellena ran up the stairs, giggling wildly as she heard the heavy footsteps behind her. As fast as she could and with her heart thu… moremping wildly, she continued to rush down the vast hallway, her long, plaited braids flying in the wind, her laughter sounding through the building. She glanced to her left, seeing an open door and without hesitation, she ran through it and into the storage room behind.
“Where are you?”, a deep voice growled and Ellena had to chuckle, as she looked around for a place to hide. She spotted a closet, one of several in the room, but one whose doors stood slightly open, revealing that it was largely empty, save for two old brooms. Just as the footsteps came closer, she jumped inside, making far too much noise in the process.
She saw the large silhouette walking into the room and couldn't contain a wide grin, though she at least managed to suppress her giggle. “Where is my little girl?”, the voice of the s… [view original content]
Ellena
Ellena ran up the stairs, giggling wildly as she heard the heavy footsteps behind her. As fast as she could and with her heart thu… moremping wildly, she continued to rush down the vast hallway, her long, plaited braids flying in the wind, her laughter sounding through the building. She glanced to her left, seeing an open door and without hesitation, she ran through it and into the storage room behind.
“Where are you?”, a deep voice growled and Ellena had to chuckle, as she looked around for a place to hide. She spotted a closet, one of several in the room, but one whose doors stood slightly open, revealing that it was largely empty, save for two old brooms. Just as the footsteps came closer, she jumped inside, making far too much noise in the process.
She saw the large silhouette walking into the room and couldn't contain a wide grin, though she at least managed to suppress her giggle. “Where is my little girl?”, the voice of the s… [view original content]
Ellena
Ellena ran up the stairs, giggling wildly as she heard the heavy footsteps behind her. As fast as she could and with her heart thu… moremping wildly, she continued to rush down the vast hallway, her long, plaited braids flying in the wind, her laughter sounding through the building. She glanced to her left, seeing an open door and without hesitation, she ran through it and into the storage room behind.
“Where are you?”, a deep voice growled and Ellena had to chuckle, as she looked around for a place to hide. She spotted a closet, one of several in the room, but one whose doors stood slightly open, revealing that it was largely empty, save for two old brooms. Just as the footsteps came closer, she jumped inside, making far too much noise in the process.
She saw the large silhouette walking into the room and couldn't contain a wide grin, though she at least managed to suppress her giggle. “Where is my little girl?”, the voice of the s… [view original content]
Ellena
Ellena ran up the stairs, giggling wildly as she heard the heavy footsteps behind her. As fast as she could and with her heart thu… moremping wildly, she continued to rush down the vast hallway, her long, plaited braids flying in the wind, her laughter sounding through the building. She glanced to her left, seeing an open door and without hesitation, she ran through it and into the storage room behind.
“Where are you?”, a deep voice growled and Ellena had to chuckle, as she looked around for a place to hide. She spotted a closet, one of several in the room, but one whose doors stood slightly open, revealing that it was largely empty, save for two old brooms. Just as the footsteps came closer, she jumped inside, making far too much noise in the process.
She saw the large silhouette walking into the room and couldn't contain a wide grin, though she at least managed to suppress her giggle. “Where is my little girl?”, the voice of the s… [view original content]
Ellena
Ellena ran up the stairs, giggling wildly as she heard the heavy footsteps behind her. As fast as she could and with her heart thu… moremping wildly, she continued to rush down the vast hallway, her long, plaited braids flying in the wind, her laughter sounding through the building. She glanced to her left, seeing an open door and without hesitation, she ran through it and into the storage room behind.
“Where are you?”, a deep voice growled and Ellena had to chuckle, as she looked around for a place to hide. She spotted a closet, one of several in the room, but one whose doors stood slightly open, revealing that it was largely empty, save for two old brooms. Just as the footsteps came closer, she jumped inside, making far too much noise in the process.
She saw the large silhouette walking into the room and couldn't contain a wide grin, though she at least managed to suppress her giggle. “Where is my little girl?”, the voice of the s… [view original content]
Ellena
Ellena ran up the stairs, giggling wildly as she heard the heavy footsteps behind her. As fast as she could and with her heart thu… moremping wildly, she continued to rush down the vast hallway, her long, plaited braids flying in the wind, her laughter sounding through the building. She glanced to her left, seeing an open door and without hesitation, she ran through it and into the storage room behind.
“Where are you?”, a deep voice growled and Ellena had to chuckle, as she looked around for a place to hide. She spotted a closet, one of several in the room, but one whose doors stood slightly open, revealing that it was largely empty, save for two old brooms. Just as the footsteps came closer, she jumped inside, making far too much noise in the process.
She saw the large silhouette walking into the room and couldn't contain a wide grin, though she at least managed to suppress her giggle. “Where is my little girl?”, the voice of the s… [view original content]
Ellena
Ellena ran up the stairs, giggling wildly as she heard the heavy footsteps behind her. As fast as she could and with her heart thu… moremping wildly, she continued to rush down the vast hallway, her long, plaited braids flying in the wind, her laughter sounding through the building. She glanced to her left, seeing an open door and without hesitation, she ran through it and into the storage room behind.
“Where are you?”, a deep voice growled and Ellena had to chuckle, as she looked around for a place to hide. She spotted a closet, one of several in the room, but one whose doors stood slightly open, revealing that it was largely empty, save for two old brooms. Just as the footsteps came closer, she jumped inside, making far too much noise in the process.
She saw the large silhouette walking into the room and couldn't contain a wide grin, though she at least managed to suppress her giggle. “Where is my little girl?”, the voice of the s… [view original content]
I'm closing the voting now to prevent a tie from happening, because I am sure I'm going to finish the next part today. I would have probably chosen similar in Ellena's case. I mean, what's the worst that can happen? Hehehe >:D As for Sadie's choice, that one is a bit harder in my opinion, though from a writer's perspective I prefer this option as it gives me more opportunity to develop Blane and Leo. Time will tell if this was the right choice for Sadie. She's going to have one of the longer storylines in this chapter, so her next part isn't too far away.
The next part is going to feature PoV's from Richard and John. Both are set roughly one day after their Chapter 6 storylines. The last time we saw Richard, he met up with a group of farmers led by Roman, his neighbour and rival. They made a plan to hunt down the mysterious beast that torments the farms around the village. For this, Roman has hired the monster hunter Vaasrand of Lys, who agreed to help for a price. However, Roman also deliberately withheld information from him, in an attempt to reduce the cost of his service, something Richard disagreed with. Against Roman's wishes, he told Vaasrand these things Roman tried to hide from him, some of which could be potentially critical information. Meanwhile, John dealt with the Targaryen knight Daghan Oxus in the last chapter, who has some sort of agenda in Raylansfair. He also had to deal with a sellsword they captured during the Second Son attack in Chapter 5. One of John's men, I'lian, managed to get her to talk and she revealed that her name is Lenrianda and that she is not a member of the Second Sons, but still possesses valuable information she is willing to share, if John helps her first by locating her friend somewhere in the forest. Finally, John also had to deal with Aylard, who was enraged after Samantha told him the full truth about the circumstances behind Lunett's death (which perhaps wasn't the best choice) and an argument between them ended with John being knocked out and Janae trying, and failing, to kill Aylard in retaliation.
The Voting is closed!
Ellena is going to ask Wulvren to free her
Sadie is going to talk to Blane and Leo
I'm closing the voting now… more to prevent a tie from happening, because I am sure I'm going to finish the next part today. I would have probably chosen similar in Ellena's case. I mean, what's the worst that can happen? Hehehe >:D As for Sadie's choice, that one is a bit harder in my opinion, though from a writer's perspective I prefer this option as it gives me more opportunity to develop Blane and Leo. Time will tell if this was the right choice for Sadie. She's going to have one of the longer storylines in this chapter, so her next part isn't too far away.
The next part is going to feature PoV's from Richard and John. Both are set roughly one day after their Chapter 6 storylines. The last time we saw Richard, he met up with a group of farmers led by Roman, his neighbour and rival. They made a plan to hunt down the mysterious … [view original content]
It was early dawn, when Richard met with the others at Roman's farm. The past night, he hadn't found any sleep, for he was worried. Worried about Jenna, all alone in the castle. They already tried to kill her once and would have succeeded if it wouldn't have been for him. Worried about Alan, who despite everything that happened was still his brother. And Richard was worried about himself and about the task he was going to do today. Even with Vaasrand around, he was nervous.
The hunter was leaning against the wall of Roman's house, arms crossed and a look of indifference on his face as he watched the farmers and their makeshift weaponry in front of the farm. He raised an eyebrow as he spotted Richard's sword, but remained silent. Surely, looking at the swords on his back he wasn't impressed, though Richard hoped that his choice of a weapon was at least surprising.
The rest of the farmers had armed themselves in a more predictable way. Roman was carrying a large axe, made to fell timber, as well as a long knife that was dangling on his belt. He looked grim, determined and the glare he sent Richard was one of great displeasure. Understandable, considering that Richard's decision had cost him a lot of money. In the end though, it probably was for the better. Vaasrand had to know the truth. The
Hal Recton held a spear, still one of the more impressive weapons and one that his sister undoubtedly got for him. Even with his limited knowledge on weaponry, Richard knew that the young man was holding it wrong, as wrong as someone could hold a spear at least and out of all the farmers, Hal looked the most out of place for a hunt. He was a good farmer, Richard knew that much, but he wasn't made for shedding blood.
Then there was Edefilec Magabaz. When Richard arrived, he was talking to Than, presenting the youngest member of their group a long knife, which he had recently sharpened. Unlike Hal or Than, Ed looked ready to fight, perhaps even a bit eager, though without the viciousness Roman displayed. Than meanwhile was leaning on his pitchfork, a weapon that was a choice as obvious as it was out of place. He was the first farmer to look at Richard and even though he showed it less than Hal, he still was nervous.
Finally, there was a man whom Richard hadn't met the day before, but one he was expecting here nonetheless. He was a handsome man and quite young, in Hal's age, with very short, brown hair and a beard that barely covered his cheeks. Out of all the farmers, he wore the poorest clothing, befitting considering that he was the only one among them who wasn't owning a farm. Well, aside from Vaasrand of course. Richard was quite sure that Vaasrand wasn't the type to own a farm, or to settle down in general.
“So, we're complete now?”, the hunter asked. “Or are there any more farmers that want to get killed?” Roman shook his head. “We're complete”, he growled and sent a cold glare into Richard's direction. “I take it you remember Axell Snow, my farmhand?”
Richard gave the young man a nod, as he approached him, to give him a warm handshake. “Good to have you with us”, he greeted him and Axell smirked. “Good to be here”, he answered. Unlike Roman, Richard knew Axell as a pleasant person, someone who was open for a chat even when his employer and Richard were barely talking to each other.
“Very well then”, Vaasrand sighed, his voice showing no emotion. “I hope you all know just how dangerous this might be. I'm not even entirely sure what we're up against. Might still be a shadowcat, but that is unlikely after what you told me”
“Yeah. It's a good thing Richard told you...”, Hal started to say, though Roman's angry glare caused him to stop. Vaasrand shook his head. “Indeed it is”, he confirmed. “Could be anything. A large shadowcat. A direwolf, though I never saw a wild one south of the Neck. A mountain lion from the Rock”
He started to walk and this was the sign for the farmers to follow him. Axell bravely took position only slightly behind the hunter, while Richard walked next to Roman and Ed in the middle, with Than and Hal brought up the rear. “I'm prepared for whatever we're going to face”, Vaasrand explained and glanced at Than's pitchfork. “Still doesn't mean you're going to survive this. I'm here to kill a wild beast, not to deal with a group of farmers with a death wish”
“And still we're going to accompany you”, Roman growled, to which Vaasrand nodded in agreement. “I'm not going to stop you”, he mumbled, without even looking at him. They were approaching the forest, still lying in a gloomy twilight at this early hour. As far as Richard was able to see, there were only trees. The forest made up a majority of House Raylan's lands, at least those that weren't used for farming or for the city itself.
“Ser Hunter, where have you learned your craft?”, Axell asked with genuine curiosity as they followed the makeshift trail that led from Roman's farm to the forest. Vaasrand did not answer at first and just as Richard was sure that he'd ignore the question, he cleared his throat. “Asshai”, he answered. Axell looked over his shoulder and raised an eyebrow. “Not Lys?”, he asked and the hunter shook his head. “No”, he answered. “Asshai”
Richard noticed that Roman was glaring at him in a truly uncomfortable way. He knew his neighbour was angry. More than that, only a quick reaction from Hal and Ed had prevented him from actually attacking Richard yesterday, when he decided to reveal everything he knew about the attacks.
“Is anything the matter, Roman?”, Richard asked in an annoyed tone and the farmer gave him a nod. “You can say so, Richard”, he hissed. “You know I'm done for even when we find that beast” He lowered his voice. “The white-haired fucker took more money than this beast ever could”
Despite the fact that his voice was barely audible to Richard, who walked right next to him, Vaasrand briefly shot him a cold glare out of his strange, yellow eyes. “He didn't take your life”, Ed remarked. “And the beast killed your mother. Is money really that important in such a case?”
“Fuck yeah it is”, Roman growled again. “I had a plan, Richard. Killing the beast without being ruined financially. Of course, the mighty Richard Harking had to fuck it all up” Now, Richard narrowed his eyes. “And I'd do it again, Roman”, he confirmed. “I'm the last person to waste money. But lying to the guy that is supposed to save us all? Roman, that's not saving money, that's reckless”
“Reckless?”, Roman asked loudly, before controlling his voice again. “Reckless? Get down from your high horse, Harking. Of course you wouldn't know, with your precious daughter earning good money in the castle, but not all of us are that lucky. Worst case, I may have to fire Axell once all of this is over” He shook his head. “He's a good man and deserves better than that, but what should I do if I can't pay him?”, he asked. “Besides, have you looked at that hunter guy? I'm sure there's nothing he can't kill”
“There's plenty I can't kill”, Vaasrand interjected, even though Roman had still spoken in relative silence. “Especially without being prepared for it. There are beasts in this world whom I won't even dare to face with all the preparation in this world and trust me, you don't want to meet these”
“What for example?”, Axell asked, again with curiosity, though the hunter shook his head. “That's a story I don't like to tell”, he answered. “I made the experience that people won't believe it anyways. But any beast can be dangerous without preparation, especially one that destroys whole barns and hunts horses”
“And humans”, Ed mumbled and Vaasrand gave him a nod. “And humans”, he confirmed flatly. Roman sighed and shook his head. “At the very least, you should have given some money as well, Harking”, he growled. “No, you're here with your fine sword and somehow you think that's going to be enough. Making the rest of us pay for your safety, that's not how it works”
“You're going anywhere with this, Roman?”, Richard asked, feeling slightly angry and annoyed at his neighbour. Roman had no idea what he went through. The death of Erna... Roman never even had a wife. His sons, Arving, Dylar, Dramin... not a day passed in which Richard wasn't worried for them, so far away from home, all the way down in the dornish marches. And Jenna... Roman had no children and no idea what he was talking about. He had only himself to care for. Richard though, he had to keep his family save.
Before Roman was able to answer anything, Ed grabbed him by the upper arm. “Roman, calm down”, he said sternly, but the farmer ignored him. “This is not over, Harking”, Roman said. “Once we're done here, once this beast is dead, then we're going to talk about all this again” Richard gave him a nod. “If that's what you want”, he muttered. “More importantly, if that's what's necessary to shut you up”
Ignoring Roman's vicious glare, he looked around. He was nervous enough already, he couldn't take much of Roman's usual talk right now. He had to look for someone else to talk to, or at the very least to walk next to, to get away from his neighbour.
Behind him, Hal and Than walked, talking to each other. Both were good men, from what Richard knew, friendly and polite. Perhaps exactly the people he needed to have a conversation to right now. In front of him, Axell was walking next to Vaasrand of Lys. While Axell was pleasant company, far more than his employer, the monster hunter was an enigma to Richard and certainly not talkative. Still, he would be better company than Roman for sure.
[Talk to Hal and Than][Talk to Axell and Vaasrand]
John
The first thing John felt when he regained his consciousness was pain. His head still hurt and his vision was blurry as he slowly opened his eye. He sluggishly attempted to raise his head, though immediately fell back, coughing.
“John!”, he heard a familiar voice and Janae rushed to his side. “You damn oaf, stay down!” He smirked at her, or at the very least he tried to, until he had to cough again. “Water”, he mumbled and she gave him a nod, before disappearing from his sight again.
Moments later, she returned with a small cup. She tried to gently give it to him, but he grabbed it from her hands, impatiently and thirsty, spilling half of the liquid before it even reached his mouth. Still, it was enough for the terrible, dry feeling in his throat to disappear. He sighed in relief. “How long have I been gone?”, he asked.
“A few hours”, Janae answered. “The whole night to be precise” He sighed again, this time out of annoyance. “You shouldn't have let me sleep that long, woman”, he groaned, as he tried to sit up. He failed and sank back to the bed. Janae shook her head. “You weren't sleeping”, she corrected him. “You feel down a set of stairs, you hit your head quite heavily and that bastard of an innkeeper punched you in the face. You can be lucky you're back already”
Innkeeper... And then John remembered what happened. Immediately, he tried to sit up again and with Janae's help, he succeeded, finally fully seeing his surroundings. He was in his room in the tavern and it was dark outside. Janae was sitting on a chair in front of him, but aside from her, the room was empty. She was looking tired, with dark circles underneath her eyes.
“What happened with Aylard?”, he asked and a frown appeared on Janae's face. “He went off. Jaro tried to follow him, but the bastard can be fast when he's angry. He's not back yet”, she explained and John gulped. “Do you think he can be dangerous to Lucas”, he asked and this time, Janae shook her head. “Up against two knights? He's probably getting himself killed”, she answered. “Good fucking riddance if you ask me”
Another memory. Samantha, lying on the ground after Aylard hit her. John clenched his teeth. “Sammy...?”, he mumbled and Janae's frown got stronger. “She's a bit shaken, but alive. Aylard's punch itself barely hurt her, but whatever she has seen in Oldtown...”, she explained. “I don't think I ever saw her that serious before. I wasn't even sure she could ever be serious at all”
John sighed. “Where is she?”, he asked. “Not here”, Janae answered. “You remember your sellsword? The Second Son girl, Len... something” John gave her a nod. “Lenrianda”, he answered and Janae shrugged. “While you were out, I talked to her as well. She wants us to help her friend, to find her in the forest and I agreed. Figured you'd do the same”
“So you sent Sammy with her?”, John deduced and Janae gave him a nod. “Together with Jaro and I'lian. Lenrianda is with them as well and if this is a trap, she's going to die first”, she told him. “And I sent that Sasha girl with them. She seems to have a good influence on Sammy. Or maybe it's the other way 'round, I can't really tell. But they're friends. Can't hurt to keep them close to each other” She smirked. “Tem wanted to go as well”
“Sure he wanted to”, John chuckled. “He always had a thing for Sammy. I'm not sure if he ever grasped the concept” Janae shook her head, her frown fading as he chuckled. “I kept him here of course. Not only for his wounds, but if this is truly a trap, then we can't afford to loose all our men”, she answered.
He nodded in agreement. “And Daghan?”, he asked, his voice getting stronger with each passing moment. The hint of a smile on Janae's face was gone the moment he mentioned the Targaryen knight. “I talked to him”, she answered. “I still don't like him, but we reached common ground. An understanding, if you want to call it that way. An agreement perhaps” She glanced to the door. “He's downstairs, together with Tem and Hara”
“Then I'd like to talk to him, about your agreement”, John decided. Janae rose from her chair. “I'll get him”, she offered, but he shook his head. “I'll go”, he growled. “I've been sleeping long enough” Janae sighed and walked towards the door. She turned around and watched him slowly standing up. Though his legs were a bit shaky, he managed to do surprisingly well, at least in his own opinion.
The real problem came when he tried to walk. More stumbling than walking, he had to back against the chair to remain standing. Janae raised an eyebrow and John shook his head. “I can do that”, he claimed. His actions proved his words to be a lie, as he stumbled again, on shaky, weak legs, nearly falling against Janae. With one arm next to her head, he leant against the wall, while a small smile formed on her face. “Do you need help, my bear?”, she asked and begrudgingly, he nodded.
With an arm around Janae, John staggered out of the room and into the corridor. Her mocking smirk went on his nerves, though he was thankful for her help. With each step, his strength came back, though the dizzy feeling in his head remained and he relied on Janae to bring him safely to the taproom.
His trust was well founded. Though his weight was putting a considerably amount of stress on her, he knew he could rely on her, as they climbed down the stairs. John's left arm was draped around her, his right one clinging to the handrail, as he carefully took one step after the other. “There you go, John”, Janae said, not without softness, as they had reached the taproom below.
At this early hour, few people were actually drinking. The red-haired barmaid, Daisy, was still present, though the fat innkeeper and her daughter had long since gone to sleep. It didn't take John very long to spot Daghan Oxus. The knight was sitting on a bench, with his back leaning against a wall. Next to him, Temari was sitting on a chair. His sister was sitting at the other end of the table. All three of them were looking tired, almost as tired as Janae.
Behara was the first to see him. Her face lit up with joy, overshadowing a worried streak. Temari followed her eyes and managed a smile at least, while Daghan simply gave him a small nod. John quickly separated from Janae. “I can do it, I can do it now”, he assured her hastily, before he smiled at her. “Thank you, my maiden fair”
Then, he approached the table, only to sink down on a free chair next to Temari. He received a pat on the back and Behara grabbed her brother's ale, only to put it in front of John. He smiled tired, but genuine. “You know exactly what I need, Hara”, he sighed.
“Glad to see you're alive again, John”, Temari greeted him and shivered under Janae's glare. John did not answer. Instead, he took a deep gulp from the ale. It wasn't exactly cold, actually it was almost warm and watery, but it was good enough.
“So, Daghan...”, he said, as soon as he finished the ale. “You and Janae talked?” The knight gave him another nod. “We did”, he answered with a deep, firm voice. “Took us hours until we worked something out. You have some good people around you, you know that?”
“Of course he does”, Behara stated with a sweet smile and John grinned at her. “And what kind of agreement have you reached?”, he asked. “Neutrality, for now”, Daghan answered. “And your help if things go bad for me or my friend. My liege lord is a very powerful man and his favour will benefit you in the war to come”
“There's a war coming? Whom do you plan to fight against?”, John asked and the dizziness was gone in an instant. Daghan gave him a grim nod. “One war to end them all”, he proclaimed. “It's us against the rest. Fire and Blood against Storm and Sand, Falcon, Lion and Wolf, against green hands and the black blood”
John and Temari exchanged a glance and the sellsword's hands were clenched to fists. “You're no stranger to war, aren't you?”, Daghan asked. John shook his head. “Never been fond of it”, he answered and the knight sighed. “You don't know what you're missing”, he answered with a grin. “Shame though. We could use a man like you”
“Never said I'm not fighting”, John corrected him. “I'm a sellsword. Your war is my business. It just seems there's an awful lot of sides to choose from” Daghan gave him a nod and his grin faded. “There's only one side that will win”, he spoke. “I like you, John. I like Temari and Behara. Even Janae, though she could crack a smile more often. Because of that, I want you on my side and not on any of the others. No matter how much they promise you, they will lose and you will lose more. I don't want that”
“So, you mean to hire us?”, John asked, but before Daghan was able to answer, the door to the tavern got opened. At this early hour, it was something that drew attention. Three people walked in. Two of them were guards, a man and a woman. John remembered both of them faintly, the curly-haired Federico and Captain Nora, with her light-brown hair. Between them walked Aylard Kawl.
“John...”, Behara mumbled, as the former innkeeper walked into the taproom. His face was bruised, not badly though, and he was missing his warhammer. With a short, sorrowful glance at John's group, he rushed through it and up the stairs, leaving Nora and Federico behind. The captain of the guard pressed her lips together. “You take care of him from here on”, she ordered. Federico saluted and Nora walked out of the room. The young guardsman gave John a quick nod, before he walked after Aylard.
“So, he's still alive”, Temari muttered. “Can't say I'm happy about it” John shook his head and glanced at Daghan. “You were saying?”, John asked and the knight gave him a surprisingly understanding nod. “Nothing that can't wait. Your issue with that Aylard guy, if you want to talk to him now, then I will wait”, he offered and glanced at the barmaid. “I got myself a room here. This place starts to grow on me, though the ale is still shitty. I can wait for you to be ready” John sighed. Was he really ready to face Aylard now? Perhaps he could, perhaps he should. Or perhaps he should give him more time.
Richard
It was early dawn, when Richard met with the others at Roman's farm. The past night, he hadn't found any sleep, for he was worrie… mored. Worried about Jenna, all alone in the castle. They already tried to kill her once and would have succeeded if it wouldn't have been for him. Worried about Alan, who despite everything that happened was still his brother. And Richard was worried about himself and about the task he was going to do today. Even with Vaasrand around, he was nervous.
The hunter was leaning against the wall of Roman's house, arms crossed and a look of indifference on his face as he watched the farmers and their makeshift weaponry in front of the farm. He raised an eyebrow as he spotted Richard's sword, but remained silent. Surely, looking at the swords on his back he wasn't impressed, though Richard hoped that his choice of a weapon was at least surprising.
The rest of the farmers had armed themselves in a more predicta… [view original content]
Richard
It was early dawn, when Richard met with the others at Roman's farm. The past night, he hadn't found any sleep, for he was worrie… mored. Worried about Jenna, all alone in the castle. They already tried to kill her once and would have succeeded if it wouldn't have been for him. Worried about Alan, who despite everything that happened was still his brother. And Richard was worried about himself and about the task he was going to do today. Even with Vaasrand around, he was nervous.
The hunter was leaning against the wall of Roman's house, arms crossed and a look of indifference on his face as he watched the farmers and their makeshift weaponry in front of the farm. He raised an eyebrow as he spotted Richard's sword, but remained silent. Surely, looking at the swords on his back he wasn't impressed, though Richard hoped that his choice of a weapon was at least surprising.
The rest of the farmers had armed themselves in a more predicta… [view original content]
Richard
It was early dawn, when Richard met with the others at Roman's farm. The past night, he hadn't found any sleep, for he was worrie… mored. Worried about Jenna, all alone in the castle. They already tried to kill her once and would have succeeded if it wouldn't have been for him. Worried about Alan, who despite everything that happened was still his brother. And Richard was worried about himself and about the task he was going to do today. Even with Vaasrand around, he was nervous.
The hunter was leaning against the wall of Roman's house, arms crossed and a look of indifference on his face as he watched the farmers and their makeshift weaponry in front of the farm. He raised an eyebrow as he spotted Richard's sword, but remained silent. Surely, looking at the swords on his back he wasn't impressed, though Richard hoped that his choice of a weapon was at least surprising.
The rest of the farmers had armed themselves in a more predicta… [view original content]
Richard
It was early dawn, when Richard met with the others at Roman's farm. The past night, he hadn't found any sleep, for he was worrie… mored. Worried about Jenna, all alone in the castle. They already tried to kill her once and would have succeeded if it wouldn't have been for him. Worried about Alan, who despite everything that happened was still his brother. And Richard was worried about himself and about the task he was going to do today. Even with Vaasrand around, he was nervous.
The hunter was leaning against the wall of Roman's house, arms crossed and a look of indifference on his face as he watched the farmers and their makeshift weaponry in front of the farm. He raised an eyebrow as he spotted Richard's sword, but remained silent. Surely, looking at the swords on his back he wasn't impressed, though Richard hoped that his choice of a weapon was at least surprising.
The rest of the farmers had armed themselves in a more predicta… [view original content]
Richard
It was early dawn, when Richard met with the others at Roman's farm. The past night, he hadn't found any sleep, for he was worrie… mored. Worried about Jenna, all alone in the castle. They already tried to kill her once and would have succeeded if it wouldn't have been for him. Worried about Alan, who despite everything that happened was still his brother. And Richard was worried about himself and about the task he was going to do today. Even with Vaasrand around, he was nervous.
The hunter was leaning against the wall of Roman's house, arms crossed and a look of indifference on his face as he watched the farmers and their makeshift weaponry in front of the farm. He raised an eyebrow as he spotted Richard's sword, but remained silent. Surely, looking at the swords on his back he wasn't impressed, though Richard hoped that his choice of a weapon was at least surprising.
The rest of the farmers had armed themselves in a more predicta… [view original content]
Richard
It was early dawn, when Richard met with the others at Roman's farm. The past night, he hadn't found any sleep, for he was worrie… mored. Worried about Jenna, all alone in the castle. They already tried to kill her once and would have succeeded if it wouldn't have been for him. Worried about Alan, who despite everything that happened was still his brother. And Richard was worried about himself and about the task he was going to do today. Even with Vaasrand around, he was nervous.
The hunter was leaning against the wall of Roman's house, arms crossed and a look of indifference on his face as he watched the farmers and their makeshift weaponry in front of the farm. He raised an eyebrow as he spotted Richard's sword, but remained silent. Surely, looking at the swords on his back he wasn't impressed, though Richard hoped that his choice of a weapon was at least surprising.
The rest of the farmers had armed themselves in a more predicta… [view original content]
Richard
It was early dawn, when Richard met with the others at Roman's farm. The past night, he hadn't found any sleep, for he was worrie… mored. Worried about Jenna, all alone in the castle. They already tried to kill her once and would have succeeded if it wouldn't have been for him. Worried about Alan, who despite everything that happened was still his brother. And Richard was worried about himself and about the task he was going to do today. Even with Vaasrand around, he was nervous.
The hunter was leaning against the wall of Roman's house, arms crossed and a look of indifference on his face as he watched the farmers and their makeshift weaponry in front of the farm. He raised an eyebrow as he spotted Richard's sword, but remained silent. Surely, looking at the swords on his back he wasn't impressed, though Richard hoped that his choice of a weapon was at least surprising.
The rest of the farmers had armed themselves in a more predicta… [view original content]
Richard
It was early dawn, when Richard met with the others at Roman's farm. The past night, he hadn't found any sleep, for he was worrie… mored. Worried about Jenna, all alone in the castle. They already tried to kill her once and would have succeeded if it wouldn't have been for him. Worried about Alan, who despite everything that happened was still his brother. And Richard was worried about himself and about the task he was going to do today. Even with Vaasrand around, he was nervous.
The hunter was leaning against the wall of Roman's house, arms crossed and a look of indifference on his face as he watched the farmers and their makeshift weaponry in front of the farm. He raised an eyebrow as he spotted Richard's sword, but remained silent. Surely, looking at the swords on his back he wasn't impressed, though Richard hoped that his choice of a weapon was at least surprising.
The rest of the farmers had armed themselves in a more predicta… [view original content]
Richard
It was early dawn, when Richard met with the others at Roman's farm. The past night, he hadn't found any sleep, for he was worrie… mored. Worried about Jenna, all alone in the castle. They already tried to kill her once and would have succeeded if it wouldn't have been for him. Worried about Alan, who despite everything that happened was still his brother. And Richard was worried about himself and about the task he was going to do today. Even with Vaasrand around, he was nervous.
The hunter was leaning against the wall of Roman's house, arms crossed and a look of indifference on his face as he watched the farmers and their makeshift weaponry in front of the farm. He raised an eyebrow as he spotted Richard's sword, but remained silent. Surely, looking at the swords on his back he wasn't impressed, though Richard hoped that his choice of a weapon was at least surprising.
The rest of the farmers had armed themselves in a more predicta… [view original content]
Richard
It was early dawn, when Richard met with the others at Roman's farm. The past night, he hadn't found any sleep, for he was worrie… mored. Worried about Jenna, all alone in the castle. They already tried to kill her once and would have succeeded if it wouldn't have been for him. Worried about Alan, who despite everything that happened was still his brother. And Richard was worried about himself and about the task he was going to do today. Even with Vaasrand around, he was nervous.
The hunter was leaning against the wall of Roman's house, arms crossed and a look of indifference on his face as he watched the farmers and their makeshift weaponry in front of the farm. He raised an eyebrow as he spotted Richard's sword, but remained silent. Surely, looking at the swords on his back he wasn't impressed, though Richard hoped that his choice of a weapon was at least surprising.
The rest of the farmers had armed themselves in a more predicta… [view original content]
[Talk to Hal and Than] Seems like more insightful option, we will probably learn about Vaasrand either way, only poor Axell seems left out.
[Stay in the taproom] I don't think it's a good idea to talk to a guy that was just escorted by the city guard, after quite heavy experience. Besides, I'm really interested to hear what Daghan is going to propose.
Richard
It was early dawn, when Richard met with the others at Roman's farm. The past night, he hadn't found any sleep, for he was worrie… mored. Worried about Jenna, all alone in the castle. They already tried to kill her once and would have succeeded if it wouldn't have been for him. Worried about Alan, who despite everything that happened was still his brother. And Richard was worried about himself and about the task he was going to do today. Even with Vaasrand around, he was nervous.
The hunter was leaning against the wall of Roman's house, arms crossed and a look of indifference on his face as he watched the farmers and their makeshift weaponry in front of the farm. He raised an eyebrow as he spotted Richard's sword, but remained silent. Surely, looking at the swords on his back he wasn't impressed, though Richard hoped that his choice of a weapon was at least surprising.
The rest of the farmers had armed themselves in a more predicta… [view original content]
Richard
It was early dawn, when Richard met with the others at Roman's farm. The past night, he hadn't found any sleep, for he was worrie… mored. Worried about Jenna, all alone in the castle. They already tried to kill her once and would have succeeded if it wouldn't have been for him. Worried about Alan, who despite everything that happened was still his brother. And Richard was worried about himself and about the task he was going to do today. Even with Vaasrand around, he was nervous.
The hunter was leaning against the wall of Roman's house, arms crossed and a look of indifference on his face as he watched the farmers and their makeshift weaponry in front of the farm. He raised an eyebrow as he spotted Richard's sword, but remained silent. Surely, looking at the swords on his back he wasn't impressed, though Richard hoped that his choice of a weapon was at least surprising.
The rest of the farmers had armed themselves in a more predicta… [view original content]
Richard
It was early dawn, when Richard met with the others at Roman's farm. The past night, he hadn't found any sleep, for he was worrie… mored. Worried about Jenna, all alone in the castle. They already tried to kill her once and would have succeeded if it wouldn't have been for him. Worried about Alan, who despite everything that happened was still his brother. And Richard was worried about himself and about the task he was going to do today. Even with Vaasrand around, he was nervous.
The hunter was leaning against the wall of Roman's house, arms crossed and a look of indifference on his face as he watched the farmers and their makeshift weaponry in front of the farm. He raised an eyebrow as he spotted Richard's sword, but remained silent. Surely, looking at the swords on his back he wasn't impressed, though Richard hoped that his choice of a weapon was at least surprising.
The rest of the farmers had armed themselves in a more predicta… [view original content]
Richard
It was early dawn, when Richard met with the others at Roman's farm. The past night, he hadn't found any sleep, for he was worrie… mored. Worried about Jenna, all alone in the castle. They already tried to kill her once and would have succeeded if it wouldn't have been for him. Worried about Alan, who despite everything that happened was still his brother. And Richard was worried about himself and about the task he was going to do today. Even with Vaasrand around, he was nervous.
The hunter was leaning against the wall of Roman's house, arms crossed and a look of indifference on his face as he watched the farmers and their makeshift weaponry in front of the farm. He raised an eyebrow as he spotted Richard's sword, but remained silent. Surely, looking at the swords on his back he wasn't impressed, though Richard hoped that his choice of a weapon was at least surprising.
The rest of the farmers had armed themselves in a more predicta… [view original content]
Richard
It was early dawn, when Richard met with the others at Roman's farm. The past night, he hadn't found any sleep, for he was worrie… mored. Worried about Jenna, all alone in the castle. They already tried to kill her once and would have succeeded if it wouldn't have been for him. Worried about Alan, who despite everything that happened was still his brother. And Richard was worried about himself and about the task he was going to do today. Even with Vaasrand around, he was nervous.
The hunter was leaning against the wall of Roman's house, arms crossed and a look of indifference on his face as he watched the farmers and their makeshift weaponry in front of the farm. He raised an eyebrow as he spotted Richard's sword, but remained silent. Surely, looking at the swords on his back he wasn't impressed, though Richard hoped that his choice of a weapon was at least surprising.
The rest of the farmers had armed themselves in a more predicta… [view original content]
Richard
It was early dawn, when Richard met with the others at Roman's farm. The past night, he hadn't found any sleep, for he was worrie… mored. Worried about Jenna, all alone in the castle. They already tried to kill her once and would have succeeded if it wouldn't have been for him. Worried about Alan, who despite everything that happened was still his brother. And Richard was worried about himself and about the task he was going to do today. Even with Vaasrand around, he was nervous.
The hunter was leaning against the wall of Roman's house, arms crossed and a look of indifference on his face as he watched the farmers and their makeshift weaponry in front of the farm. He raised an eyebrow as he spotted Richard's sword, but remained silent. Surely, looking at the swords on his back he wasn't impressed, though Richard hoped that his choice of a weapon was at least surprising.
The rest of the farmers had armed themselves in a more predicta… [view original content]
Richard
It was early dawn, when Richard met with the others at Roman's farm. The past night, he hadn't found any sleep, for he was worrie… mored. Worried about Jenna, all alone in the castle. They already tried to kill her once and would have succeeded if it wouldn't have been for him. Worried about Alan, who despite everything that happened was still his brother. And Richard was worried about himself and about the task he was going to do today. Even with Vaasrand around, he was nervous.
The hunter was leaning against the wall of Roman's house, arms crossed and a look of indifference on his face as he watched the farmers and their makeshift weaponry in front of the farm. He raised an eyebrow as he spotted Richard's sword, but remained silent. Surely, looking at the swords on his back he wasn't impressed, though Richard hoped that his choice of a weapon was at least surprising.
The rest of the farmers had armed themselves in a more predicta… [view original content]
Richard
It was early dawn, when Richard met with the others at Roman's farm. The past night, he hadn't found any sleep, for he was worrie… mored. Worried about Jenna, all alone in the castle. They already tried to kill her once and would have succeeded if it wouldn't have been for him. Worried about Alan, who despite everything that happened was still his brother. And Richard was worried about himself and about the task he was going to do today. Even with Vaasrand around, he was nervous.
The hunter was leaning against the wall of Roman's house, arms crossed and a look of indifference on his face as he watched the farmers and their makeshift weaponry in front of the farm. He raised an eyebrow as he spotted Richard's sword, but remained silent. Surely, looking at the swords on his back he wasn't impressed, though Richard hoped that his choice of a weapon was at least surprising.
The rest of the farmers had armed themselves in a more predicta… [view original content]
Richard
It was early dawn, when Richard met with the others at Roman's farm. The past night, he hadn't found any sleep, for he was worrie… mored. Worried about Jenna, all alone in the castle. They already tried to kill her once and would have succeeded if it wouldn't have been for him. Worried about Alan, who despite everything that happened was still his brother. And Richard was worried about himself and about the task he was going to do today. Even with Vaasrand around, he was nervous.
The hunter was leaning against the wall of Roman's house, arms crossed and a look of indifference on his face as he watched the farmers and their makeshift weaponry in front of the farm. He raised an eyebrow as he spotted Richard's sword, but remained silent. Surely, looking at the swords on his back he wasn't impressed, though Richard hoped that his choice of a weapon was at least surprising.
The rest of the farmers had armed themselves in a more predicta… [view original content]
I am unsurprised by the first choice. While I would have liked the chance to develop Hal and Than a bit more, Axell and Vaasrand were the more likely choice. Both are interesting characters as well, so I'm not unhappy about it. The second choice... man, you're not making it easy for me to develop Federico. He's been around for months and he never did anything so far. Perhaps I should just kill him off by now XD That said, I can understand why you chose this and as a reader I might have decided similar. Daghan's proposal is going to be interesting for sure and it can't necessarily be a bad thing to give Aylard more time to grieve before confronting him. With a bit of luck, there'll be another chance to talk to him.
The next part is hopefully going to be out today. I was a bit busy over the weekend, so I still have a lot of writing to do, but I plan to finish it today. It is going to be a Jaron part, set one day after the events of the chapter finale. I won't say much about it, as I think the chapter finale should still be present enough. Stay tuned, the part will be out either late today, or early tomorrow
“Careful”, Harpy exclaimed, as she rushed to Taria's side, in the attempt to help her up. The young woman rolled her eyes, reddened from crying, and she managed to show a small smirk. “You don't have to wet-nurse me”, she mumbled and grimaced as she put a bit too much weight onto her damaged shoulder. “It's not like I'm going to give birth any second” She glanced down onto her flat belly. “Or at any time during the next months”, she added and her smirk faded. “I just wish Ayden could be here”
“We're finding him”, Harpy reassured her. “If he managed to get away, we're going to find him” Taria shook her head and closed her eyes. “If”, she said. “He promised to marry me, you know. Promised me that our child wouldn't be a bastard” Jaron glanced up and at her. She caught his glance and her expression grew sorrowful. “I'm sorry”, she quickly said. “It's just...”
“I know”, Jaron answered empathetically. “Ayden is a fighter. He had three men after him, but what are three men compared to him?” This made her smile again, if only for a second. “They are nothing”, she answered and her smile was gone as quick as it came. “Still, why haven't we heard of him?”
“There are many things we haven't heard about in the last few hours”, Harpy remarked. “What this monster did to Himani, what he learned from him...” She paused and put a hand onto her ribs. A worried expression appeared on Jaron's face. “Are you feeling alright?”, he asked and she gave him a forced nod. “Just a little bit tired”, she admitted.
Jaron glanced at the door of their new hideout. It was one of the lesser known in the city and one of the few Himani did not know about, one of the few Harpy still deemed safe. “Then sleep”, he offered. She shook her head. “Not now”, she muttered. “Not until he's safe”
“Harpy...”, Jaron whispered softly and she clenched her fists. “Not until he's safe”, she repeated and stared at the bundle that lay on the table. He wasn't sure why she had taken the Burned Man's hand with her, wrapped in several layers of clothing, but just looking at it caused a fire to appear in her eyes.
When someone knocked on the door, she tensed up, enough to send a grimace to flash across her face. “Come in”, she whispered, barely audible, but loud enough to cause her to cough in pain. The door opened, just as Jaron had reached for his sword. A young, thin-faced girl stood behind it, one of the Burned Man's spies, one of the few that had survived the massacre of the past hours, when reports of more and more of the Burned Man's associated being killed reached their ears.
“M'lady?”, she asked, as she noticed Harpy shivering, leaning against the wall. “I'm fine”, she lied, even though she failed to hide her pain. “Whom have you found?” The girl walked into the room. “Everyone who is not dead”, she answered meekly and Jaron saw the men behind her. About half a dozen, all of them armed, wearing chainmail or light leather, with grim expressions on their faces.
Similarly, Harpy's expression turned more grim than ever as she watched them. “So few...”, she mumbled, before she regained her composure. She walked around Taria, momentarily comforting her by putting a hand onto her unwounded shoulder, before she stepped next to Jaron. He rose from his chair to offer it to her, though she remained standing. “So few...”, she repeated and looked at the girl.
“Alrik?”, she asked and the girl shook her head. “He died fighting. They put his head on a pike”, she answered. “Barras?”, Harpy asked next and again, the girl shook her head. “He left the city”, she answered again and Harpy sighed. “Daenos?”, she asked and this time, the girl clenched her tiny fists. “He joined Butterfly when the massacre started”, she answered and Harpy sighed.
“I suppose we have to suffice, mylady”, one of the younger men answered. He had a plain face, with a long nose and a rough, mouse brown beard on his jaw. The look in his brown eyes was cautious and he glanced at the bundle on the table. He was wearing a sturdy leather armour, paired with a short, grey cloak.
“Erik Inchfield”, Harpy greeted him with a reluctant nod. “I wasn't expecting you to show up” The man showed his teeth, as his mouth formed a fake smile. “Were you thinking I'd run away, my tail between my legs?”, he asked. “I am not a coward, mylady”
“The Burned Man called”, another man growled. He was a burly man, older than most sellswords Jaron had seen, his hair, his strong sideburns and his thick moustache already showing a greying white colour, though his dark eyes were attentive and almost youthful. An handaxe was dangling on his belt. “Now we followed his call, but he's not here”
Harpy gave him a nod. “The Burned Man never called for you”, she admitted and Jaron saw the men tensing up. “I did, in his name” One of the men, a bronze-skinned giant of a man whose black hair was tied into a long braid, narrowed his eyes. “Where is Burned Man?”, he asked in broken common tongue, with a thick eastern accent. “We no take order from little girl”
Harpy's smile cut like a knife. “You will take orders from me”, she answered. “You did so before, remember?” The Dothraki shook his head. “We take order from Burned Man. You only pass order from him to us”, he stated. The white-haired man gave him a nod. “What Rollo means to say is, after what happened we want to talk to the Burned Man himself”, he explained. “Half of the organization killed in a single day. Their heads on pikes in front of the Hightower. Some say Mullendore is behind it. Some say it was Butterfly or the Tom. Some say Mullendore died yesterday, either killed by you or by the Tom, while others are not so sure” He leant forwards. “In times like these, we need to speak to the Burned Man himself. We need to know that he has things under control again”
Jaron and Harpy exchanged a look, before she answered. “He hasn't”, she admitted and a displeased murmur went through the men. “I called upon you to restore order, to put us back in control” With these words, she approached the table the men had gathered around. She glanced at the bundle and with a sigh, she started to unwrap it. The white-haired man's eyes widened as the charred, severed hand of the Burned Man got visible.
“This is what they did to him!”, Harpy hissed angrily. Her hand moved down to her ribs, though she stopped herself, hovering above them for a second, before she regained her composure. “They took him alive and they brought him to the Hightower, where they keep him. Maron Mullendore is Butterfly”
This remark sent the men into loud talking. The Dothraki cursed loudly in his native tongue, the white-haired man and Inchfield exchanged a concerned look and the older man gave the younger one a small nod, just enough for Jaron to tense up.
“How can we know you tell us the truth?”, a lean and bald man with a sharp nose asked. Harpy glanced at the hand. “Do you think I would lie to you about this?”, she asked and her voice cracked. “I know it is a bit much to swallow, but I need you to focus. The Burned Man needs our help and he will reward those who stay loyal to him and loyal to me in these dark times”
The bald man shook his head. “Loyalty, mylady?”, he asked. “We're sellswords. We had a deal with the Burned Man, not you. Now he's gone and, well, we don't even know if he's still alive” Harpy narrowed her eyes, as the white-haired man cleared his throat. “I agree with Groleo. Knowing Butterfly, the Burned Man's survival is questionable”, he said and the men nodded in agreement. “But...” he leant forwards and stared at Harpy. “We are sellswords. None of us is going to turn you down if you can pay our price”
“Again? The Burned Man already paid you”, Harpy asked and he gave her a nod. “Dire times, mylady”, he answered. Now, she pressed her lips together and glanced at the hand. “The Burned Man will pay you again”, she declared. “His money is out of my reach for now, but save him and he will reward you generously” She stopped and looked at the men. “You all took his money for years. He has always been good to you. Doesn't that mean anything?”
“No gold?”, Rollo the Dothraki asked and Harpy shook her head. “I don't have it now, but there will be gold after you helped us”, she explained. A displeased expression flashed across Rollo's face, as he rose from the chair he was sitting on. “No gold, no working for little girl”, he explained. “I no risking my life for dead man”
“I'm out as well”, the bald man said. “I'm sorry mylady, but going against Mullendore is suicide, especially if we get no payment upfront” He gave her a nod of his head. “I wish you the best of luck, whatever you do. You should leave this city as well. Leave the dead behind while you still can” One by one, the sellswords voiced their agreement and followed him and Rollo out of the room, until only Erik Inchfield and the white-haired sellsword remained.
“Jaqoreo Kotos and Erik Inchfield”, Harpy greeted them with the hint of a pleased smile. “Are you two willing to work for me?” Jaqoreo and Erik exchanged a glance and the white-haired man shook his head. “Not quite, mylady. See, you just told us you can't pay us”, he answered. “This means, we certainly won't work for you, not upfront. Gorys, he deserved this sort of trust, but you? Sorry, mylady, but that's not how it works. Instead, we had to ask us one question...” He rose from his chair and Harpy took a step away from the table, next to Jaron, who put a hand onto the hilt of his sword. Jaqoreo smirked. “What are you going to do now, Harpy?”
She pressed her lips together. “I will free him”, she hissed. “With or without you” Jaqoreo shook his head. “You will try it. You will fail and die”, he deduced. “See, one of the reasons I worked for the Burned Man was the promise of steady payment. Now that he is dead...”
Harpy cut him off. “He is not dead!”, she barked angrily and Jaqoreo's smirk grew colder. “Now that he is dead”, he repeated. “This payment is gone. This means, I will leave the city, return to Norvos once more. I will need a bag of gold to fund this journey” His hand moved to the hilt of his small axe. “Try to save the Burned Man and Mullendore will kill you. See, why shouldn't I profit from this?”, he explained and Jaron drew his sword. “I'm sure, if you're so eager to die, then we can help” He exchanged a glance and a nod with Erik, who rose from his chair as well, a long dagger in his hand. “One bag of gold for each of us. If we deliver you to Butterfly, it'll throw him off our trails. We'll leave this city not as hunted, but as rich men”
Cautiously, he stepped around the table, while Jaron moved between him and Harpy, who in turn moved in front of Taria. “You are a very old sellsword Jaqoreo”, Harpy hissed and he gave her a nod. “You can work with me, or you can leave. But turn against me and you won't get any older. I have no intentions of sparing my enemies”
“Enemies, mylady?”, Jaqoreo asked as he slowly approached Jaron. “I'm not your enemy. This is nothing personal” He looked at Jaron and smirked. “Get out of the way, knight. I killed a hundred men better than you”
Instead of answering, Jaron raised his sword in a defensive stance, as Jaqoreo took a swing at him with his axe. Steel clashed against steel and while Jaron staggered backwards due to the force of the hit, the old sellsword raised his axe again. A second strike came, as fast as it was strong and Jaron grunted as he parried the strike. He tried to launch a low counterattack, but Jaqoreo moved his axe downwards, directly onto his blade, trapping it between them. His smirk grew wider and raised an eyebrow as he pulled out a small dagger.
Before he was able to push it into Jaron's head, Erik Inchfield approached him from behind. Without hesitating and with surgical precision, he nonchalantly cut the old sellswords throat. Jaqoreo gurgled, his eyes widened, as the dagger fell out of his hands. Slowly, he sank to the ground, though Erik grabbed him by the shoulder and cleaned his bloodied dagger with his tunic, before he let go of him.
For a moment, Jaron kept his sword raised, but Erik simply lay his dagger onto the table. Without even looking at the dead body of the old sellsword, he approached his chair again and sat down, crossing his arms, before glancing at Harpy, who was still standing between Jaron and Taria. She was breathing heavily, not only out of pain, but out of anxiety as well. Her dark eyes shot a worried glanced into Jaron's direction and he gave her a smile. “I'm fine”, he assured her and she sighed in relief.
“Now...”, Erik said, glancing at the severed hand of the Burned Man. “I figure my price just went up” Harpy gulped, glancing at Jaqoreo's dead body. “I... thank you for your help”, she said. He chuckled. “I don't want your gratitude, mylady. Kotos was an old fool for turning his back on me, but he was right with one thing”, he stated. “We are sellswords. It's all about how much you're willing to pay”
Harpy clenched her fists. “I still don't have anything to repay you”, she explained and he shook his head. “Not yet. Kotos, Rollo and the other fools, they were quick to dismiss the chance you offered. One way or the other, the Burned Man's empire is destroyed. With a bit of luck, you can save the man, but your remaining days in Oldtown are numbered either way”, he answered with a grin and she sighed. “You will leave the city. I doubt you can take all your belongings with you. This means, there will be a lot of gold left for me”
“So you are willing to work for me?”, she asked and he gave her a nod. “However, I think my price has just gone up”, he stated. “In many ways, I am not unhappy that Rollo, Groleo and the others just decided to leave. I'm not even unhappy that Kotos decided to end his long life on your floor, because it strengthens my position. I doubt I am the last sellsword in this city willing to work for you, but I am the only one you have right now. This means, I am valuable for your plan”
“You are”, Harpy admitted. “On our own, Jaron and I won't be able to save the Burned Man, so yes, we need your help. Name your price” Erik's grin widened, though it failed to show any hint of joy. “I don't care for the two bags of gold Kotos mentioned, not when you have more to offer. I want five times that sum, and an additional bag for saving your life right now”
“Eleven bags of gold?”, Jaron exclaimed. “Harpy, that is...” She cut him off. “Accepted”, she said. “Take eleven, or a hundred if you want to, I don't care. All I want is the Burned Man, alive. Then, I want to leave this city, with him and with Jaron” She looked away from Erik and towards Jaron and momentarily, a serene smile formed on her face as they looked at each other.
“Works for me”, Erik answered and glanced at his dagger on the table. “There is just one more thing we need to talk about. The way you move, the way you speak, I'd say you are wounded. Blunt force to the ribs, with a mace or a hammer. Perhaps they aren't broken, but they hurt like hell, don't they?” Harpy gave him a reluctant nod and he sighed. “Then the knight”, he continued and looked at Jaron. “You are Ser Bastard, aren't you?”
“Jaron”, Jaron introduced himself and Erik smirked, this time not without joy. “Ser Jaron the Bastard then”, he stated. “Your arm, the left one In the fight you barely used it. Your longsword would have given you an advantage over Kotos' axe if you would have grabbed it with both hands and you don't look like the kind of person who doesn't know it. Is it broken?”
“It was”, Jaron corrected him and as if he wanted to prove it, he opened and closed his left hand. The pain that crawled through his entire forearm wasn't too bad and he managed to uphold a calm facade. Erik gave him a nod. “Whatever it is, it still affects you” Finally, he glanced past them, towards Taria, who immediately shook her head.
“Oh, I'm not coming with you”, she stated. “I'm not even part of your organization. I'm Ayden Blackwell's girlfiend” Now, Erik raised an eyebrow. “Blackwell brought his girlfriend into a fight? Is he bloody stupid? That is a knife wound I see there, isn't it?”
“Blackwell had no idea what would happen”, Harpy answered on Taria's behalf. “None of us had an idea” Erik gave her a nod. “That is true without a doubt, mylady", he agreed. "Now, back to my question. You have me and your wounded knight. You're wounded yourself and you still plan to enter the Hightower, just with us?”
“Not just with us”, Harpy corrected him and now Jaron looked up. During the past hours, even when he had found a few moments of sleep, she had remained awake, giving orders to the few children she was still able to gather, the few that survived. Though even when he asked, she remained vague about the full extent of her plans. “Tell me, have you been at the Hightower?”
Erik gave her a nod. “Had to see it with my own eyes. Their heads...”, he mumbled. Harpy gave him a grim nod, any trace of joy and calmness was gone on her face. Instead, she only showed cold anger. “Exactly”, she answered. “The heads of those we lost tonight, put on pikes for everyone to see”
This gained Taria's attention. She tensed up, only to let out a pained wail as she put a hand onto her shoulder. “And... Ayden?”, she asked. Erik shook his head. “I haven't looked at all of them. There are dozens of heads. Children. Grown men and women. All united just by the fact that they worked for the Burned Man”, he answered. “I saw Martin though. And Himani. Keira...”
“Keira”, Harpy stated. “You know whom she is working for?” This time, Erik gave her a nod. “Hishi, the Ambiguous Lover, the Gardener of the Pleasure Garden”, he answered. “You mean to say...?”
“I arranged a meeting with her”, Harpy answered and Erik raised an eyebrow. “Hishi is a woman?”, he asked and Harpy shrugged. “I'm almost sure she is”, she answered. “It does not matter though. What matters is that Hishi lost one of her girls. What matters is that Hishi is one of the few powers in this city that have remained neutral so far”
“And you think Hishi is willing to help us?”, Erik asked. Harpy gave him a nod. “I already arranged a meeting with her, in a few hours”, she revealed. “In a house in the northern parts of the city. I was hoping to have men like Rollo or Jaqoreo Kotos with me as my backup, but you should suffice”
Erik chuckled. “Indeed I will, mylady, and I'll be better than Rollo and Kotos combined”, he answered. “Give me a longsword and I'll cut down every fucker that gets in my way. Though, from what I've heard about Hishi, he... she is quite secretive. What's the catch here? She just agreed to meet you like this?” Harpy shook her head. “She wants us to come unarmed”, she answered. For a moment, Erik stared at her. Then, he chuckled, briefly. “It's a trap”, he immediately stated.
“Why should it?”, Harpy answered. “Keira is dead, thanks to Butterfly. Cutting off her head and putting it on a pike was a stupid move, one that is guaranteed to anger Hishi. Why should she betray us to the man that took one of her girls?”
Erik shrugged. “I don't know. I just know that it has written trap all over it”, he growled. Harpy glanced at his dagger. “As a matter of fact, I intend to honour Hishi's terms, as a sign of my good will. I don't want to anger her”, she answered. “Trust me, I don't like this, but we need Hishi's help”
“And what if it is a trap? You wont have time to regret it”, Erik argued. “I hate being unarmed, especially when Hishi's men will likely be armed to the teeth” He glanced at Jaron, raising his eyebrows in curiosity. “What do you think, Ser Bastard? You want to go to this meeting without a weapon?” Jaron glanced at Harpy, who watched him with equal curiosity, patiently awaiting his answer.
[Go to the meeting unarmed][Argue to take a weapon with you]
Jaron
“Careful”, Harpy exclaimed, as she rushed to Taria's side, in the attempt to help her up. The young woman rolled her eyes, reddened… more from crying, and she managed to show a small smirk. “You don't have to wet-nurse me”, she mumbled and grimaced as she put a bit too much weight onto her damaged shoulder. “It's not like I'm going to give birth any second” She glanced down onto her flat belly. “Or at any time during the next months”, she added and her smirk faded. “I just wish Ayden could be here”
“We're finding him”, Harpy reassured her. “If he managed to get away, we're going to find him” Taria shook her head and closed her eyes. “If”, she said. “He promised to marry me, you know. Promised me that our child wouldn't be a bastard” Jaron glanced up and at her. She caught his glance and her expression grew sorrowful. “I'm sorry”, she quickly said. “It's just...”
“I know”, Jaron answered empathetically. “Ayden is a fighter. He had thr… [view original content]
Jaron
“Careful”, Harpy exclaimed, as she rushed to Taria's side, in the attempt to help her up. The young woman rolled her eyes, reddened… more from crying, and she managed to show a small smirk. “You don't have to wet-nurse me”, she mumbled and grimaced as she put a bit too much weight onto her damaged shoulder. “It's not like I'm going to give birth any second” She glanced down onto her flat belly. “Or at any time during the next months”, she added and her smirk faded. “I just wish Ayden could be here”
“We're finding him”, Harpy reassured her. “If he managed to get away, we're going to find him” Taria shook her head and closed her eyes. “If”, she said. “He promised to marry me, you know. Promised me that our child wouldn't be a bastard” Jaron glanced up and at her. She caught his glance and her expression grew sorrowful. “I'm sorry”, she quickly said. “It's just...”
“I know”, Jaron answered empathetically. “Ayden is a fighter. He had thr… [view original content]
Comments
(Ask him to free you)
(Talk to Blane and Leo)
[Ask him to free you] Might as well try.
[Excuse yourself and go outside] Away from this false Leonard.
[Ask him for water]
[Talk to Blane and Leo]
[Ask him to free you]
[Excuse yourself and go outside]
[Ask him for water]
[Talk to Blane and Leo]
[Ask him to free you] It's what Ellena really wants so I see no point in pretending otherwise.
[Excuse yourself and go outside] This is the plan, it may seem suspicious but who knows when we'll get another chance.
[Ask him to free you] I'm worried Marak or Noelle might glance over but it's worth a shot.
[Excuse yourself and go outside] Dan said he has a way with words so might as well carry out the mission so Sadie find a way to enter the backroom.
[Ask him to free you] Worth a try, aye? Even if Wulvren decides not to free her I doubt she blames her for asking it.
[Talk to Blane and Leo] No time to panic.
[Ask him for water]
[Talk to Blane and Leo]
[Ask him for water]
[Excuse yourself and go outside]
[Ask him to free you]
[Talk to Blane and Leo]
[Ask him for water]
[Excuse yourself and go outside] Hopefully It's not suspicious. I just don't want to lose the opportunity.
The Voting is closed!
Ellena is going to ask Wulvren to free her
Sadie is going to talk to Blane and Leo
I'm closing the voting now to prevent a tie from happening, because I am sure I'm going to finish the next part today. I would have probably chosen similar in Ellena's case. I mean, what's the worst that can happen? Hehehe >:D As for Sadie's choice, that one is a bit harder in my opinion, though from a writer's perspective I prefer this option as it gives me more opportunity to develop Blane and Leo. Time will tell if this was the right choice for Sadie. She's going to have one of the longer storylines in this chapter, so her next part isn't too far away.
The next part is going to feature PoV's from Richard and John. Both are set roughly one day after their Chapter 6 storylines. The last time we saw Richard, he met up with a group of farmers led by Roman, his neighbour and rival. They made a plan to hunt down the mysterious beast that torments the farms around the village. For this, Roman has hired the monster hunter Vaasrand of Lys, who agreed to help for a price. However, Roman also deliberately withheld information from him, in an attempt to reduce the cost of his service, something Richard disagreed with. Against Roman's wishes, he told Vaasrand these things Roman tried to hide from him, some of which could be potentially critical information. Meanwhile, John dealt with the Targaryen knight Daghan Oxus in the last chapter, who has some sort of agenda in Raylansfair. He also had to deal with a sellsword they captured during the Second Son attack in Chapter 5. One of John's men, I'lian, managed to get her to talk and she revealed that her name is Lenrianda and that she is not a member of the Second Sons, but still possesses valuable information she is willing to share, if John helps her first by locating her friend somewhere in the forest. Finally, John also had to deal with Aylard, who was enraged after Samantha told him the full truth about the circumstances behind Lunett's death (which perhaps wasn't the best choice) and an argument between them ended with John being knocked out and Janae trying, and failing, to kill Aylard in retaliation.
Yay a Richard part.
Richard
It was early dawn, when Richard met with the others at Roman's farm. The past night, he hadn't found any sleep, for he was worried. Worried about Jenna, all alone in the castle. They already tried to kill her once and would have succeeded if it wouldn't have been for him. Worried about Alan, who despite everything that happened was still his brother. And Richard was worried about himself and about the task he was going to do today. Even with Vaasrand around, he was nervous.
The hunter was leaning against the wall of Roman's house, arms crossed and a look of indifference on his face as he watched the farmers and their makeshift weaponry in front of the farm. He raised an eyebrow as he spotted Richard's sword, but remained silent. Surely, looking at the swords on his back he wasn't impressed, though Richard hoped that his choice of a weapon was at least surprising.
The rest of the farmers had armed themselves in a more predictable way. Roman was carrying a large axe, made to fell timber, as well as a long knife that was dangling on his belt. He looked grim, determined and the glare he sent Richard was one of great displeasure. Understandable, considering that Richard's decision had cost him a lot of money. In the end though, it probably was for the better. Vaasrand had to know the truth. The
Hal Recton held a spear, still one of the more impressive weapons and one that his sister undoubtedly got for him. Even with his limited knowledge on weaponry, Richard knew that the young man was holding it wrong, as wrong as someone could hold a spear at least and out of all the farmers, Hal looked the most out of place for a hunt. He was a good farmer, Richard knew that much, but he wasn't made for shedding blood.
Then there was Edefilec Magabaz. When Richard arrived, he was talking to Than, presenting the youngest member of their group a long knife, which he had recently sharpened. Unlike Hal or Than, Ed looked ready to fight, perhaps even a bit eager, though without the viciousness Roman displayed. Than meanwhile was leaning on his pitchfork, a weapon that was a choice as obvious as it was out of place. He was the first farmer to look at Richard and even though he showed it less than Hal, he still was nervous.
Finally, there was a man whom Richard hadn't met the day before, but one he was expecting here nonetheless. He was a handsome man and quite young, in Hal's age, with very short, brown hair and a beard that barely covered his cheeks. Out of all the farmers, he wore the poorest clothing, befitting considering that he was the only one among them who wasn't owning a farm. Well, aside from Vaasrand of course. Richard was quite sure that Vaasrand wasn't the type to own a farm, or to settle down in general.
“So, we're complete now?”, the hunter asked. “Or are there any more farmers that want to get killed?” Roman shook his head. “We're complete”, he growled and sent a cold glare into Richard's direction. “I take it you remember Axell Snow, my farmhand?”
Richard gave the young man a nod, as he approached him, to give him a warm handshake. “Good to have you with us”, he greeted him and Axell smirked. “Good to be here”, he answered. Unlike Roman, Richard knew Axell as a pleasant person, someone who was open for a chat even when his employer and Richard were barely talking to each other.
“Very well then”, Vaasrand sighed, his voice showing no emotion. “I hope you all know just how dangerous this might be. I'm not even entirely sure what we're up against. Might still be a shadowcat, but that is unlikely after what you told me”
“Yeah. It's a good thing Richard told you...”, Hal started to say, though Roman's angry glare caused him to stop. Vaasrand shook his head. “Indeed it is”, he confirmed. “Could be anything. A large shadowcat. A direwolf, though I never saw a wild one south of the Neck. A mountain lion from the Rock”
He started to walk and this was the sign for the farmers to follow him. Axell bravely took position only slightly behind the hunter, while Richard walked next to Roman and Ed in the middle, with Than and Hal brought up the rear. “I'm prepared for whatever we're going to face”, Vaasrand explained and glanced at Than's pitchfork. “Still doesn't mean you're going to survive this. I'm here to kill a wild beast, not to deal with a group of farmers with a death wish”
“And still we're going to accompany you”, Roman growled, to which Vaasrand nodded in agreement. “I'm not going to stop you”, he mumbled, without even looking at him. They were approaching the forest, still lying in a gloomy twilight at this early hour. As far as Richard was able to see, there were only trees. The forest made up a majority of House Raylan's lands, at least those that weren't used for farming or for the city itself.
“Ser Hunter, where have you learned your craft?”, Axell asked with genuine curiosity as they followed the makeshift trail that led from Roman's farm to the forest. Vaasrand did not answer at first and just as Richard was sure that he'd ignore the question, he cleared his throat. “Asshai”, he answered. Axell looked over his shoulder and raised an eyebrow. “Not Lys?”, he asked and the hunter shook his head. “No”, he answered. “Asshai”
Richard noticed that Roman was glaring at him in a truly uncomfortable way. He knew his neighbour was angry. More than that, only a quick reaction from Hal and Ed had prevented him from actually attacking Richard yesterday, when he decided to reveal everything he knew about the attacks.
“Is anything the matter, Roman?”, Richard asked in an annoyed tone and the farmer gave him a nod. “You can say so, Richard”, he hissed. “You know I'm done for even when we find that beast” He lowered his voice. “The white-haired fucker took more money than this beast ever could”
Despite the fact that his voice was barely audible to Richard, who walked right next to him, Vaasrand briefly shot him a cold glare out of his strange, yellow eyes. “He didn't take your life”, Ed remarked. “And the beast killed your mother. Is money really that important in such a case?”
“Fuck yeah it is”, Roman growled again. “I had a plan, Richard. Killing the beast without being ruined financially. Of course, the mighty Richard Harking had to fuck it all up” Now, Richard narrowed his eyes. “And I'd do it again, Roman”, he confirmed. “I'm the last person to waste money. But lying to the guy that is supposed to save us all? Roman, that's not saving money, that's reckless”
“Reckless?”, Roman asked loudly, before controlling his voice again. “Reckless? Get down from your high horse, Harking. Of course you wouldn't know, with your precious daughter earning good money in the castle, but not all of us are that lucky. Worst case, I may have to fire Axell once all of this is over” He shook his head. “He's a good man and deserves better than that, but what should I do if I can't pay him?”, he asked. “Besides, have you looked at that hunter guy? I'm sure there's nothing he can't kill”
“There's plenty I can't kill”, Vaasrand interjected, even though Roman had still spoken in relative silence. “Especially without being prepared for it. There are beasts in this world whom I won't even dare to face with all the preparation in this world and trust me, you don't want to meet these”
“What for example?”, Axell asked, again with curiosity, though the hunter shook his head. “That's a story I don't like to tell”, he answered. “I made the experience that people won't believe it anyways. But any beast can be dangerous without preparation, especially one that destroys whole barns and hunts horses”
“And humans”, Ed mumbled and Vaasrand gave him a nod. “And humans”, he confirmed flatly. Roman sighed and shook his head. “At the very least, you should have given some money as well, Harking”, he growled. “No, you're here with your fine sword and somehow you think that's going to be enough. Making the rest of us pay for your safety, that's not how it works”
“You're going anywhere with this, Roman?”, Richard asked, feeling slightly angry and annoyed at his neighbour. Roman had no idea what he went through. The death of Erna... Roman never even had a wife. His sons, Arving, Dylar, Dramin... not a day passed in which Richard wasn't worried for them, so far away from home, all the way down in the dornish marches. And Jenna... Roman had no children and no idea what he was talking about. He had only himself to care for. Richard though, he had to keep his family save.
Before Roman was able to answer anything, Ed grabbed him by the upper arm. “Roman, calm down”, he said sternly, but the farmer ignored him. “This is not over, Harking”, Roman said. “Once we're done here, once this beast is dead, then we're going to talk about all this again” Richard gave him a nod. “If that's what you want”, he muttered. “More importantly, if that's what's necessary to shut you up”
Ignoring Roman's vicious glare, he looked around. He was nervous enough already, he couldn't take much of Roman's usual talk right now. He had to look for someone else to talk to, or at the very least to walk next to, to get away from his neighbour.
Behind him, Hal and Than walked, talking to each other. Both were good men, from what Richard knew, friendly and polite. Perhaps exactly the people he needed to have a conversation to right now. In front of him, Axell was walking next to Vaasrand of Lys. While Axell was pleasant company, far more than his employer, the monster hunter was an enigma to Richard and certainly not talkative. Still, he would be better company than Roman for sure.
[Talk to Hal and Than] [Talk to Axell and Vaasrand]
John
The first thing John felt when he regained his consciousness was pain. His head still hurt and his vision was blurry as he slowly opened his eye. He sluggishly attempted to raise his head, though immediately fell back, coughing.
“John!”, he heard a familiar voice and Janae rushed to his side. “You damn oaf, stay down!” He smirked at her, or at the very least he tried to, until he had to cough again. “Water”, he mumbled and she gave him a nod, before disappearing from his sight again.
Moments later, she returned with a small cup. She tried to gently give it to him, but he grabbed it from her hands, impatiently and thirsty, spilling half of the liquid before it even reached his mouth. Still, it was enough for the terrible, dry feeling in his throat to disappear. He sighed in relief. “How long have I been gone?”, he asked.
“A few hours”, Janae answered. “The whole night to be precise” He sighed again, this time out of annoyance. “You shouldn't have let me sleep that long, woman”, he groaned, as he tried to sit up. He failed and sank back to the bed. Janae shook her head. “You weren't sleeping”, she corrected him. “You feel down a set of stairs, you hit your head quite heavily and that bastard of an innkeeper punched you in the face. You can be lucky you're back already”
Innkeeper... And then John remembered what happened. Immediately, he tried to sit up again and with Janae's help, he succeeded, finally fully seeing his surroundings. He was in his room in the tavern and it was dark outside. Janae was sitting on a chair in front of him, but aside from her, the room was empty. She was looking tired, with dark circles underneath her eyes.
“What happened with Aylard?”, he asked and a frown appeared on Janae's face. “He went off. Jaro tried to follow him, but the bastard can be fast when he's angry. He's not back yet”, she explained and John gulped. “Do you think he can be dangerous to Lucas”, he asked and this time, Janae shook her head. “Up against two knights? He's probably getting himself killed”, she answered. “Good fucking riddance if you ask me”
Another memory. Samantha, lying on the ground after Aylard hit her. John clenched his teeth. “Sammy...?”, he mumbled and Janae's frown got stronger. “She's a bit shaken, but alive. Aylard's punch itself barely hurt her, but whatever she has seen in Oldtown...”, she explained. “I don't think I ever saw her that serious before. I wasn't even sure she could ever be serious at all”
John sighed. “Where is she?”, he asked. “Not here”, Janae answered. “You remember your sellsword? The Second Son girl, Len... something” John gave her a nod. “Lenrianda”, he answered and Janae shrugged. “While you were out, I talked to her as well. She wants us to help her friend, to find her in the forest and I agreed. Figured you'd do the same”
“So you sent Sammy with her?”, John deduced and Janae gave him a nod. “Together with Jaro and I'lian. Lenrianda is with them as well and if this is a trap, she's going to die first”, she told him. “And I sent that Sasha girl with them. She seems to have a good influence on Sammy. Or maybe it's the other way 'round, I can't really tell. But they're friends. Can't hurt to keep them close to each other” She smirked. “Tem wanted to go as well”
“Sure he wanted to”, John chuckled. “He always had a thing for Sammy. I'm not sure if he ever grasped the concept” Janae shook her head, her frown fading as he chuckled. “I kept him here of course. Not only for his wounds, but if this is truly a trap, then we can't afford to loose all our men”, she answered.
He nodded in agreement. “And Daghan?”, he asked, his voice getting stronger with each passing moment. The hint of a smile on Janae's face was gone the moment he mentioned the Targaryen knight. “I talked to him”, she answered. “I still don't like him, but we reached common ground. An understanding, if you want to call it that way. An agreement perhaps” She glanced to the door. “He's downstairs, together with Tem and Hara”
“Then I'd like to talk to him, about your agreement”, John decided. Janae rose from her chair. “I'll get him”, she offered, but he shook his head. “I'll go”, he growled. “I've been sleeping long enough” Janae sighed and walked towards the door. She turned around and watched him slowly standing up. Though his legs were a bit shaky, he managed to do surprisingly well, at least in his own opinion.
The real problem came when he tried to walk. More stumbling than walking, he had to back against the chair to remain standing. Janae raised an eyebrow and John shook his head. “I can do that”, he claimed. His actions proved his words to be a lie, as he stumbled again, on shaky, weak legs, nearly falling against Janae. With one arm next to her head, he leant against the wall, while a small smile formed on her face. “Do you need help, my bear?”, she asked and begrudgingly, he nodded.
With an arm around Janae, John staggered out of the room and into the corridor. Her mocking smirk went on his nerves, though he was thankful for her help. With each step, his strength came back, though the dizzy feeling in his head remained and he relied on Janae to bring him safely to the taproom.
His trust was well founded. Though his weight was putting a considerably amount of stress on her, he knew he could rely on her, as they climbed down the stairs. John's left arm was draped around her, his right one clinging to the handrail, as he carefully took one step after the other. “There you go, John”, Janae said, not without softness, as they had reached the taproom below.
At this early hour, few people were actually drinking. The red-haired barmaid, Daisy, was still present, though the fat innkeeper and her daughter had long since gone to sleep. It didn't take John very long to spot Daghan Oxus. The knight was sitting on a bench, with his back leaning against a wall. Next to him, Temari was sitting on a chair. His sister was sitting at the other end of the table. All three of them were looking tired, almost as tired as Janae.
Behara was the first to see him. Her face lit up with joy, overshadowing a worried streak. Temari followed her eyes and managed a smile at least, while Daghan simply gave him a small nod. John quickly separated from Janae. “I can do it, I can do it now”, he assured her hastily, before he smiled at her. “Thank you, my maiden fair”
Then, he approached the table, only to sink down on a free chair next to Temari. He received a pat on the back and Behara grabbed her brother's ale, only to put it in front of John. He smiled tired, but genuine. “You know exactly what I need, Hara”, he sighed.
“Glad to see you're alive again, John”, Temari greeted him and shivered under Janae's glare. John did not answer. Instead, he took a deep gulp from the ale. It wasn't exactly cold, actually it was almost warm and watery, but it was good enough.
“So, Daghan...”, he said, as soon as he finished the ale. “You and Janae talked?” The knight gave him another nod. “We did”, he answered with a deep, firm voice. “Took us hours until we worked something out. You have some good people around you, you know that?”
“Of course he does”, Behara stated with a sweet smile and John grinned at her. “And what kind of agreement have you reached?”, he asked. “Neutrality, for now”, Daghan answered. “And your help if things go bad for me or my friend. My liege lord is a very powerful man and his favour will benefit you in the war to come”
“There's a war coming? Whom do you plan to fight against?”, John asked and the dizziness was gone in an instant. Daghan gave him a grim nod. “One war to end them all”, he proclaimed. “It's us against the rest. Fire and Blood against Storm and Sand, Falcon, Lion and Wolf, against green hands and the black blood”
John and Temari exchanged a glance and the sellsword's hands were clenched to fists. “You're no stranger to war, aren't you?”, Daghan asked. John shook his head. “Never been fond of it”, he answered and the knight sighed. “You don't know what you're missing”, he answered with a grin. “Shame though. We could use a man like you”
“Never said I'm not fighting”, John corrected him. “I'm a sellsword. Your war is my business. It just seems there's an awful lot of sides to choose from” Daghan gave him a nod and his grin faded. “There's only one side that will win”, he spoke. “I like you, John. I like Temari and Behara. Even Janae, though she could crack a smile more often. Because of that, I want you on my side and not on any of the others. No matter how much they promise you, they will lose and you will lose more. I don't want that”
“So, you mean to hire us?”, John asked, but before Daghan was able to answer, the door to the tavern got opened. At this early hour, it was something that drew attention. Three people walked in. Two of them were guards, a man and a woman. John remembered both of them faintly, the curly-haired Federico and Captain Nora, with her light-brown hair. Between them walked Aylard Kawl.
“John...”, Behara mumbled, as the former innkeeper walked into the taproom. His face was bruised, not badly though, and he was missing his warhammer. With a short, sorrowful glance at John's group, he rushed through it and up the stairs, leaving Nora and Federico behind. The captain of the guard pressed her lips together. “You take care of him from here on”, she ordered. Federico saluted and Nora walked out of the room. The young guardsman gave John a quick nod, before he walked after Aylard.
“So, he's still alive”, Temari muttered. “Can't say I'm happy about it” John shook his head and glanced at Daghan. “You were saying?”, John asked and the knight gave him a surprisingly understanding nod. “Nothing that can't wait. Your issue with that Aylard guy, if you want to talk to him now, then I will wait”, he offered and glanced at the barmaid. “I got myself a room here. This place starts to grow on me, though the ale is still shitty. I can wait for you to be ready” John sighed. Was he really ready to face Aylard now? Perhaps he could, perhaps he should. Or perhaps he should give him more time.
[Talk to Aylard] [Stay in the taproom]
Nice to see Axell!
[Talk to Axell and Vaasrand] I want to learn more abot this monster hunter and my own character.
[Talk to Aylard] I would like to check in on Aylard a bit.
(Talk to Axell and Vaasrand)
(Stay in the taproom)
[Talk to Axell and Vaasrand]
[Talk to Aylard] Couldn't hurt, eh? The again, I've said that before.
[Talk to Axell and Vaasrand] This side of the conversation seems more interesting.
[Stay in the taproom] let's give him some time...
[Talk to Axell and Vaasrand] They just seem more interesting
[Stay in the taproom] I think we should give Aylard some time to be alone. Also, I'm interested in Daghan's offer.
[Talk to Axell and Vaasrand]
[Stay in the taproom] Aylard is fine. John is fine. Everything is good, everything is fine.
[Talk to Axell and Vaasrand]
[Stay in the taproom]
[Talk to Axell and Vaasrand]
[Stay in the taproom]
[Talk to Axell and Vaasrand]
[Stay in the taproom]
[Talk to Axell and Vaasrand]
[Stay in the taproom]
[Talk to Hal and Than] Seems like more insightful option, we will probably learn about Vaasrand either way, only poor Axell seems left out.
[Stay in the taproom] I don't think it's a good idea to talk to a guy that was just escorted by the city guard, after quite heavy experience. Besides, I'm really interested to hear what Daghan is going to propose.
[Talk to Hal and Than]
[Talk to Aylard] The longer you delay the harder it'll be. Best to just get it over with.
[Talk to Axell and Vaasrand]
[Talk to Aylard]
[Talk to Axell and Vaasrand]
[Talk to Aylard]
[talk to hal and than]
[stay in the taproom]
[Talk to Axell and Vaasrand]
[Stay in the taproom]
[Talk to Hal and Than] [Talk to Aylard]
[Talk to Axell and Vaasrand]
[Stay in the taproom]
[Talk to Axell and Vaasrand] He seems like the more interesting choice
[Talk to Aylard]
Wuhu! Came from my holidays in time to make a choice here! Daghan and John! WEEE! _
[Talk to Axell and Vaasrand] I dont know but this seems cooler
[Stay in the taproom] Want to hear more from him X)
The Voting is closed!
Richard is going to talk to Axell and Vaasrand
John is going to stay in the taproom
I am unsurprised by the first choice. While I would have liked the chance to develop Hal and Than a bit more, Axell and Vaasrand were the more likely choice. Both are interesting characters as well, so I'm not unhappy about it. The second choice... man, you're not making it easy for me to develop Federico. He's been around for months and he never did anything so far. Perhaps I should just kill him off by now XD That said, I can understand why you chose this and as a reader I might have decided similar. Daghan's proposal is going to be interesting for sure and it can't necessarily be a bad thing to give Aylard more time to grieve before confronting him. With a bit of luck, there'll be another chance to talk to him.
The next part is hopefully going to be out today. I was a bit busy over the weekend, so I still have a lot of writing to do, but I plan to finish it today. It is going to be a Jaron part, set one day after the events of the chapter finale. I won't say much about it, as I think the chapter finale should still be present enough. Stay tuned, the part will be out either late today, or early tomorrow
Jaron
“Careful”, Harpy exclaimed, as she rushed to Taria's side, in the attempt to help her up. The young woman rolled her eyes, reddened from crying, and she managed to show a small smirk. “You don't have to wet-nurse me”, she mumbled and grimaced as she put a bit too much weight onto her damaged shoulder. “It's not like I'm going to give birth any second” She glanced down onto her flat belly. “Or at any time during the next months”, she added and her smirk faded. “I just wish Ayden could be here”
“We're finding him”, Harpy reassured her. “If he managed to get away, we're going to find him” Taria shook her head and closed her eyes. “If”, she said. “He promised to marry me, you know. Promised me that our child wouldn't be a bastard” Jaron glanced up and at her. She caught his glance and her expression grew sorrowful. “I'm sorry”, she quickly said. “It's just...”
“I know”, Jaron answered empathetically. “Ayden is a fighter. He had three men after him, but what are three men compared to him?” This made her smile again, if only for a second. “They are nothing”, she answered and her smile was gone as quick as it came. “Still, why haven't we heard of him?”
“There are many things we haven't heard about in the last few hours”, Harpy remarked. “What this monster did to Himani, what he learned from him...” She paused and put a hand onto her ribs. A worried expression appeared on Jaron's face. “Are you feeling alright?”, he asked and she gave him a forced nod. “Just a little bit tired”, she admitted.
Jaron glanced at the door of their new hideout. It was one of the lesser known in the city and one of the few Himani did not know about, one of the few Harpy still deemed safe. “Then sleep”, he offered. She shook her head. “Not now”, she muttered. “Not until he's safe”
“Harpy...”, Jaron whispered softly and she clenched her fists. “Not until he's safe”, she repeated and stared at the bundle that lay on the table. He wasn't sure why she had taken the Burned Man's hand with her, wrapped in several layers of clothing, but just looking at it caused a fire to appear in her eyes.
When someone knocked on the door, she tensed up, enough to send a grimace to flash across her face. “Come in”, she whispered, barely audible, but loud enough to cause her to cough in pain. The door opened, just as Jaron had reached for his sword. A young, thin-faced girl stood behind it, one of the Burned Man's spies, one of the few that had survived the massacre of the past hours, when reports of more and more of the Burned Man's associated being killed reached their ears.
“M'lady?”, she asked, as she noticed Harpy shivering, leaning against the wall. “I'm fine”, she lied, even though she failed to hide her pain. “Whom have you found?” The girl walked into the room. “Everyone who is not dead”, she answered meekly and Jaron saw the men behind her. About half a dozen, all of them armed, wearing chainmail or light leather, with grim expressions on their faces.
Similarly, Harpy's expression turned more grim than ever as she watched them. “So few...”, she mumbled, before she regained her composure. She walked around Taria, momentarily comforting her by putting a hand onto her unwounded shoulder, before she stepped next to Jaron. He rose from his chair to offer it to her, though she remained standing. “So few...”, she repeated and looked at the girl.
“Alrik?”, she asked and the girl shook her head. “He died fighting. They put his head on a pike”, she answered. “Barras?”, Harpy asked next and again, the girl shook her head. “He left the city”, she answered again and Harpy sighed. “Daenos?”, she asked and this time, the girl clenched her tiny fists. “He joined Butterfly when the massacre started”, she answered and Harpy sighed.
“I suppose we have to suffice, mylady”, one of the younger men answered. He had a plain face, with a long nose and a rough, mouse brown beard on his jaw. The look in his brown eyes was cautious and he glanced at the bundle on the table. He was wearing a sturdy leather armour, paired with a short, grey cloak.
“Erik Inchfield”, Harpy greeted him with a reluctant nod. “I wasn't expecting you to show up” The man showed his teeth, as his mouth formed a fake smile. “Were you thinking I'd run away, my tail between my legs?”, he asked. “I am not a coward, mylady”
“The Burned Man called”, another man growled. He was a burly man, older than most sellswords Jaron had seen, his hair, his strong sideburns and his thick moustache already showing a greying white colour, though his dark eyes were attentive and almost youthful. An handaxe was dangling on his belt. “Now we followed his call, but he's not here”
Harpy gave him a nod. “The Burned Man never called for you”, she admitted and Jaron saw the men tensing up. “I did, in his name” One of the men, a bronze-skinned giant of a man whose black hair was tied into a long braid, narrowed his eyes. “Where is Burned Man?”, he asked in broken common tongue, with a thick eastern accent. “We no take order from little girl”
Harpy's smile cut like a knife. “You will take orders from me”, she answered. “You did so before, remember?” The Dothraki shook his head. “We take order from Burned Man. You only pass order from him to us”, he stated. The white-haired man gave him a nod. “What Rollo means to say is, after what happened we want to talk to the Burned Man himself”, he explained. “Half of the organization killed in a single day. Their heads on pikes in front of the Hightower. Some say Mullendore is behind it. Some say it was Butterfly or the Tom. Some say Mullendore died yesterday, either killed by you or by the Tom, while others are not so sure” He leant forwards. “In times like these, we need to speak to the Burned Man himself. We need to know that he has things under control again”
Jaron and Harpy exchanged a look, before she answered. “He hasn't”, she admitted and a displeased murmur went through the men. “I called upon you to restore order, to put us back in control” With these words, she approached the table the men had gathered around. She glanced at the bundle and with a sigh, she started to unwrap it. The white-haired man's eyes widened as the charred, severed hand of the Burned Man got visible.
“This is what they did to him!”, Harpy hissed angrily. Her hand moved down to her ribs, though she stopped herself, hovering above them for a second, before she regained her composure. “They took him alive and they brought him to the Hightower, where they keep him. Maron Mullendore is Butterfly”
This remark sent the men into loud talking. The Dothraki cursed loudly in his native tongue, the white-haired man and Inchfield exchanged a concerned look and the older man gave the younger one a small nod, just enough for Jaron to tense up.
“How can we know you tell us the truth?”, a lean and bald man with a sharp nose asked. Harpy glanced at the hand. “Do you think I would lie to you about this?”, she asked and her voice cracked. “I know it is a bit much to swallow, but I need you to focus. The Burned Man needs our help and he will reward those who stay loyal to him and loyal to me in these dark times”
The bald man shook his head. “Loyalty, mylady?”, he asked. “We're sellswords. We had a deal with the Burned Man, not you. Now he's gone and, well, we don't even know if he's still alive” Harpy narrowed her eyes, as the white-haired man cleared his throat. “I agree with Groleo. Knowing Butterfly, the Burned Man's survival is questionable”, he said and the men nodded in agreement. “But...” he leant forwards and stared at Harpy. “We are sellswords. None of us is going to turn you down if you can pay our price”
“Again? The Burned Man already paid you”, Harpy asked and he gave her a nod. “Dire times, mylady”, he answered. Now, she pressed her lips together and glanced at the hand. “The Burned Man will pay you again”, she declared. “His money is out of my reach for now, but save him and he will reward you generously” She stopped and looked at the men. “You all took his money for years. He has always been good to you. Doesn't that mean anything?”
“No gold?”, Rollo the Dothraki asked and Harpy shook her head. “I don't have it now, but there will be gold after you helped us”, she explained. A displeased expression flashed across Rollo's face, as he rose from the chair he was sitting on. “No gold, no working for little girl”, he explained. “I no risking my life for dead man”
“I'm out as well”, the bald man said. “I'm sorry mylady, but going against Mullendore is suicide, especially if we get no payment upfront” He gave her a nod of his head. “I wish you the best of luck, whatever you do. You should leave this city as well. Leave the dead behind while you still can” One by one, the sellswords voiced their agreement and followed him and Rollo out of the room, until only Erik Inchfield and the white-haired sellsword remained.
“Jaqoreo Kotos and Erik Inchfield”, Harpy greeted them with the hint of a pleased smile. “Are you two willing to work for me?” Jaqoreo and Erik exchanged a glance and the white-haired man shook his head. “Not quite, mylady. See, you just told us you can't pay us”, he answered. “This means, we certainly won't work for you, not upfront. Gorys, he deserved this sort of trust, but you? Sorry, mylady, but that's not how it works. Instead, we had to ask us one question...” He rose from his chair and Harpy took a step away from the table, next to Jaron, who put a hand onto the hilt of his sword. Jaqoreo smirked. “What are you going to do now, Harpy?”
She pressed her lips together. “I will free him”, she hissed. “With or without you” Jaqoreo shook his head. “You will try it. You will fail and die”, he deduced. “See, one of the reasons I worked for the Burned Man was the promise of steady payment. Now that he is dead...”
Harpy cut him off. “He is not dead!”, she barked angrily and Jaqoreo's smirk grew colder. “Now that he is dead”, he repeated. “This payment is gone. This means, I will leave the city, return to Norvos once more. I will need a bag of gold to fund this journey” His hand moved to the hilt of his small axe. “Try to save the Burned Man and Mullendore will kill you. See, why shouldn't I profit from this?”, he explained and Jaron drew his sword. “I'm sure, if you're so eager to die, then we can help” He exchanged a glance and a nod with Erik, who rose from his chair as well, a long dagger in his hand. “One bag of gold for each of us. If we deliver you to Butterfly, it'll throw him off our trails. We'll leave this city not as hunted, but as rich men”
Cautiously, he stepped around the table, while Jaron moved between him and Harpy, who in turn moved in front of Taria. “You are a very old sellsword Jaqoreo”, Harpy hissed and he gave her a nod. “You can work with me, or you can leave. But turn against me and you won't get any older. I have no intentions of sparing my enemies”
“Enemies, mylady?”, Jaqoreo asked as he slowly approached Jaron. “I'm not your enemy. This is nothing personal” He looked at Jaron and smirked. “Get out of the way, knight. I killed a hundred men better than you”
Instead of answering, Jaron raised his sword in a defensive stance, as Jaqoreo took a swing at him with his axe. Steel clashed against steel and while Jaron staggered backwards due to the force of the hit, the old sellsword raised his axe again. A second strike came, as fast as it was strong and Jaron grunted as he parried the strike. He tried to launch a low counterattack, but Jaqoreo moved his axe downwards, directly onto his blade, trapping it between them. His smirk grew wider and raised an eyebrow as he pulled out a small dagger.
Before he was able to push it into Jaron's head, Erik Inchfield approached him from behind. Without hesitating and with surgical precision, he nonchalantly cut the old sellswords throat. Jaqoreo gurgled, his eyes widened, as the dagger fell out of his hands. Slowly, he sank to the ground, though Erik grabbed him by the shoulder and cleaned his bloodied dagger with his tunic, before he let go of him.
For a moment, Jaron kept his sword raised, but Erik simply lay his dagger onto the table. Without even looking at the dead body of the old sellsword, he approached his chair again and sat down, crossing his arms, before glancing at Harpy, who was still standing between Jaron and Taria. She was breathing heavily, not only out of pain, but out of anxiety as well. Her dark eyes shot a worried glanced into Jaron's direction and he gave her a smile. “I'm fine”, he assured her and she sighed in relief.
“Now...”, Erik said, glancing at the severed hand of the Burned Man. “I figure my price just went up” Harpy gulped, glancing at Jaqoreo's dead body. “I... thank you for your help”, she said. He chuckled. “I don't want your gratitude, mylady. Kotos was an old fool for turning his back on me, but he was right with one thing”, he stated. “We are sellswords. It's all about how much you're willing to pay”
Harpy clenched her fists. “I still don't have anything to repay you”, she explained and he shook his head. “Not yet. Kotos, Rollo and the other fools, they were quick to dismiss the chance you offered. One way or the other, the Burned Man's empire is destroyed. With a bit of luck, you can save the man, but your remaining days in Oldtown are numbered either way”, he answered with a grin and she sighed. “You will leave the city. I doubt you can take all your belongings with you. This means, there will be a lot of gold left for me”
“So you are willing to work for me?”, she asked and he gave her a nod. “However, I think my price has just gone up”, he stated. “In many ways, I am not unhappy that Rollo, Groleo and the others just decided to leave. I'm not even unhappy that Kotos decided to end his long life on your floor, because it strengthens my position. I doubt I am the last sellsword in this city willing to work for you, but I am the only one you have right now. This means, I am valuable for your plan”
“You are”, Harpy admitted. “On our own, Jaron and I won't be able to save the Burned Man, so yes, we need your help. Name your price” Erik's grin widened, though it failed to show any hint of joy. “I don't care for the two bags of gold Kotos mentioned, not when you have more to offer. I want five times that sum, and an additional bag for saving your life right now”
“Eleven bags of gold?”, Jaron exclaimed. “Harpy, that is...” She cut him off. “Accepted”, she said. “Take eleven, or a hundred if you want to, I don't care. All I want is the Burned Man, alive. Then, I want to leave this city, with him and with Jaron” She looked away from Erik and towards Jaron and momentarily, a serene smile formed on her face as they looked at each other.
“Works for me”, Erik answered and glanced at his dagger on the table. “There is just one more thing we need to talk about. The way you move, the way you speak, I'd say you are wounded. Blunt force to the ribs, with a mace or a hammer. Perhaps they aren't broken, but they hurt like hell, don't they?” Harpy gave him a reluctant nod and he sighed. “Then the knight”, he continued and looked at Jaron. “You are Ser Bastard, aren't you?”
“Jaron”, Jaron introduced himself and Erik smirked, this time not without joy. “Ser Jaron the Bastard then”, he stated. “Your arm, the left one In the fight you barely used it. Your longsword would have given you an advantage over Kotos' axe if you would have grabbed it with both hands and you don't look like the kind of person who doesn't know it. Is it broken?”
“It was”, Jaron corrected him and as if he wanted to prove it, he opened and closed his left hand. The pain that crawled through his entire forearm wasn't too bad and he managed to uphold a calm facade. Erik gave him a nod. “Whatever it is, it still affects you” Finally, he glanced past them, towards Taria, who immediately shook her head.
“Oh, I'm not coming with you”, she stated. “I'm not even part of your organization. I'm Ayden Blackwell's girlfiend” Now, Erik raised an eyebrow. “Blackwell brought his girlfriend into a fight? Is he bloody stupid? That is a knife wound I see there, isn't it?”
“Blackwell had no idea what would happen”, Harpy answered on Taria's behalf. “None of us had an idea” Erik gave her a nod. “That is true without a doubt, mylady", he agreed. "Now, back to my question. You have me and your wounded knight. You're wounded yourself and you still plan to enter the Hightower, just with us?”
“Not just with us”, Harpy corrected him and now Jaron looked up. During the past hours, even when he had found a few moments of sleep, she had remained awake, giving orders to the few children she was still able to gather, the few that survived. Though even when he asked, she remained vague about the full extent of her plans. “Tell me, have you been at the Hightower?”
Erik gave her a nod. “Had to see it with my own eyes. Their heads...”, he mumbled. Harpy gave him a grim nod, any trace of joy and calmness was gone on her face. Instead, she only showed cold anger. “Exactly”, she answered. “The heads of those we lost tonight, put on pikes for everyone to see”
This gained Taria's attention. She tensed up, only to let out a pained wail as she put a hand onto her shoulder. “And... Ayden?”, she asked. Erik shook his head. “I haven't looked at all of them. There are dozens of heads. Children. Grown men and women. All united just by the fact that they worked for the Burned Man”, he answered. “I saw Martin though. And Himani. Keira...”
“Keira”, Harpy stated. “You know whom she is working for?” This time, Erik gave her a nod. “Hishi, the Ambiguous Lover, the Gardener of the Pleasure Garden”, he answered. “You mean to say...?”
“I arranged a meeting with her”, Harpy answered and Erik raised an eyebrow. “Hishi is a woman?”, he asked and Harpy shrugged. “I'm almost sure she is”, she answered. “It does not matter though. What matters is that Hishi lost one of her girls. What matters is that Hishi is one of the few powers in this city that have remained neutral so far”
“And you think Hishi is willing to help us?”, Erik asked. Harpy gave him a nod. “I already arranged a meeting with her, in a few hours”, she revealed. “In a house in the northern parts of the city. I was hoping to have men like Rollo or Jaqoreo Kotos with me as my backup, but you should suffice”
Erik chuckled. “Indeed I will, mylady, and I'll be better than Rollo and Kotos combined”, he answered. “Give me a longsword and I'll cut down every fucker that gets in my way. Though, from what I've heard about Hishi, he... she is quite secretive. What's the catch here? She just agreed to meet you like this?” Harpy shook her head. “She wants us to come unarmed”, she answered. For a moment, Erik stared at her. Then, he chuckled, briefly. “It's a trap”, he immediately stated.
“Why should it?”, Harpy answered. “Keira is dead, thanks to Butterfly. Cutting off her head and putting it on a pike was a stupid move, one that is guaranteed to anger Hishi. Why should she betray us to the man that took one of her girls?”
Erik shrugged. “I don't know. I just know that it has written trap all over it”, he growled. Harpy glanced at his dagger. “As a matter of fact, I intend to honour Hishi's terms, as a sign of my good will. I don't want to anger her”, she answered. “Trust me, I don't like this, but we need Hishi's help”
“And what if it is a trap? You wont have time to regret it”, Erik argued. “I hate being unarmed, especially when Hishi's men will likely be armed to the teeth” He glanced at Jaron, raising his eyebrows in curiosity. “What do you think, Ser Bastard? You want to go to this meeting without a weapon?” Jaron glanced at Harpy, who watched him with equal curiosity, patiently awaiting his answer.
[Go to the meeting unarmed] [Argue to take a weapon with you]
[Go to the meeting unarmed]
[Go to the meeting unarmed]
Aaarh, this is a tough one... But showing good intensions might be the edge to secure this alliance!
[Argue to take a weapon with you] Yes violence, need to go stabby.