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Lord of Azure Flame Chapter 25: The Road to Jerdon


Phoenix
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The Duke

He was back at last, to his home, Munktan. The weather could have been better, though it certainly fitted his mood. The last time he saw the now snow-laden territory, it had been at a different time, under a different ruler. Back then, the world still had a light. Happiness had been plentiful, trust could be found, and life had been just. But that was then, when tyrants we still unknown to the country. Now, there was no joy, no trust, and no justice. The light had been extinguished, and all that was left was to freeze, in the dark.

"We should go towards the manse, milady," Derek said, as he snapped back to reality for a moment. Far ahead, three cavaliers could be seen in the distance, riding towards the group. "Though, we may have to deal with those countrymen beforehand."

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Alf had walked nearby the Jerdonians ever since they left the inn. For the most part, there was silence from everyone on the road, but Charlotte and Derek began to talk a few hours after.

He had overheard the conversation. They were now in Munktan, Dani and Derek's home. He realized that Derek might be a little happy but also sad to be coming back. He remembered hearing that their father was killed in Jerdon and to come back now when Septimus still was in control of the country...for all he knew, the Septimus troops might've taken the house for themselves.

Why does there have to be so much war? It's all so pointless... he thought sadly to himself before looking up and seeing some cavaliers headed towards them.

Edited by Roro
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Beau was somewhat offended by the nomad's implication, but didn't think about it too much. There were more important things to think on for now. "... Let's continue," he stated simply. In accordence with the quiet command, Raemond prompted Lantos to continue walking. They would stop sometime in the night just as they had the night prior. It was still light enough to continue moving, for the moment.

OoC: TS for Beau's party will happen sometime on wednesday, most likely.

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"A sound plan," Charlotte agreed. "Let's greet these cavaliers before doing anything else, it will be good to have a grasp of the situation before moving forward."

She rode up to the cavaliers and greeted them. <Hello, we are part of the envoy of the Duke of this region. Who may we speak to regarding his return?> she asked them in Jerdonian.

Edited by -Cynthia-
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The Cav Welcoming Committee

"<The Duke's return? Don't make me laugh, girl,>" one of the cavaliers snarled, glaring at Charlotte when she said that. "<He's already here, and six feet under. Get lost.>"

"<Duke Munktan died over a year ago, along with his son,>" the second of the three explained, more politely. "<There hasn't been a Duke since.>"

"<... Then who am I, Roger?>," Derek replied in his native tongue, riding up to the Princess and the three cavaliers. Jean, the first cavalier, and Roger, the second cavalier, both blanched at the sight of the paladin.

"<W-Wha->"

"<Reports of his death were greatly exaggerated,>" the third cavalryman interrupted, unfazed at Derek's apparent survival. "<Good to see you, Lord Derek.>"

"<Likewise, Brian,>" the returning duke said, while the shocked Jerdonians continued to stare, wide-eyed. "<Jean, Roger, get a hold of yourself. I'm not some kind of monstrosity.>"

"<Y-Yes, sir!>" the two cavaliers said, straightening up into a military salute.

"<We are to head to the manse, Brian. Perhaps you could escort us there?>"

"<Certainly sir. Though, I have a few questions,>" the sensible Jerdonian said.

"<Ask away.>"

"<Where is Lady Danielle, sir?"

"<Riding along with one of my companions. She is unharmed physically, but her mind has been altered.>"

"<... I see... As for Sir E->"

"<Don't mention that name,>" Derek said sternly, cutting off his countryman's question mid-sentence. "<He is dead to me, and the country itself. Forget about him.>"

"<... Yes, sir,>" came the whisper of a reply. "<Let us be off, then.>"

A crack of his reins, and Brian's horse turned, retracing its' initial route out to the dozens of travelers. Jean and Roger quickly followed suit, as silent as their comrade.

"Follow the cavaliers," Derek shouted back to the Crimson Wielders, "We will reach shelter in a short while." Then he, too, began to ride Ann towards his manse, his home.

Edited by Snike
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After arriving at Munktan Manor, Charlotte decided to just leave her things on her horse. She figured a servant or Fargo or someone would get them for her. Charlotte decided to approach Roger, the cavalier who was significantly more polite than Jean.

<Sir Roger, if I may ask, what has become of Princess Charlotte? King Frederick and Queen Lucille's daughter, sole rightful heir to the throne of Jerdon?> she asked the cavalier, attempting to keep her face impassive for the time being.

Tristan leaned over to Alex and whispered in her ear. "You're the Duchess of Rielle, right? Is there anything about Jerdonian customs that I should know about? Don't want to embarrass myself and all," he said rather sheepishly.

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Luc Altair

Fortune presented itself as a trio of cavaliers from Jerdon approached. Princess Charlotte and Derek were quick to make themselves known, and quickly--and with a shout from Derek--the group was following the three leading horsemen.

The Count from Directus was used to such large establishments, so he didn't take any time to awe Duke Derek's home. Instead he simply tended to Thunder before setting out for more important business. He had so many things to attend to, and finally the privacy needed for them.

CHASE! witty title imply within

There was another mansion. Granted he couldn't complain after that inn, actually he shouldn't be complaining about that either since he didn't get drunk and make a fool of himself. But back to his first point, they really stayed in a lot of mansions. And cheap run-down places. Was this going to be what always happened? Slingshoting from palace to the ground to a leaky-roof house? Why couldn't things be bloody consistent. Why was he even complaining in the first place! Ugh, it had to be this frozen wet miserable pile of excrement. The mounted archer sneezed and hugged his body. Yeah, definitely the weather. All the more reason to not complain and get inside!

The Fargo

Damn weather.

Edited by Script
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Midori frowned at the sky. Why couldn't the weather be nice? The wind blew a leaf into her face, as if to mock her. She brushed it aside.

Up ahead, the entourage seemed to talk amongst themselves. She couldn't make heads or tails of what anyone was saying, so she went back to staring at the sky.

(Nothing's familiar. I guess I'll stick around, for now)

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The Princess's Lament

"<... During the fighting at the capital, once the King and Queen realized that their resistance would ultimately prove futile, they sent the Princess away, with a company of knights,>" Roger said, his voice pained as he dismounted his horse. "<These knights, unfortunately, were ambushed as they made their escape. They fought valiantly, and defeated the attackers, but alas, a stray arrow found what the Princess's suitors could not: her heart. She died despite our best efforts, and all hope of restoring the monarchy was ended. She lies alongside her parents, where misery can no longer do her harm. So, there truly is no 'rightful heir' to the throne anymore, miss... It truly is tragic.>"

The Duke

"<... I need that room cleared, as soon as possible>," Derek said to a servant, as he dismounted and stabled Ann

"<Yes, Lord Derek,>" she said, curtsying before heading off to the mansion itself.

"<Thank you,>" the man said, as the servant left. "<Hopefully that will be done, before any of my guests accidentally wander in. Now, Brian, you were saying about the other nobles?>"

"<Jace only replaced the five or six of them who did not have a heir, all with supporters, of course>," Brian replied, stroking his beard thoughtfully. "<The other deceased lords and ladies were replaced by their sons and daughters. You would only need to convince one or two of them, to obtain enough might to overthrow the Brute's forces... > Is that the Comet?," the cavalier asked, slipping into Common as he caught sight of Alex's armor.

"Excellent. And yes, that is General Alexandra, also known as Duchess Rielle."

"..." There were no words to be found to describe the man's shock, just a stunned look.

"<It's a long story,>" the Duke said, as he clapped a hand on Brian's shoulder and walked inside.

The Duchess

"I would not worry about it too much here, milord," Alex said, stretching now that the travel was over for the time being. "Just be polite to whoever you may encounter, and avoid speaking Jerdonese if you cannot speak it fluently, Prince. As for the nobles, well, they've daggers in their smiles, for the most part. In other words, treat them like nobles from Septimus."

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Charlotte

"Well, 'tis a sad tale, but there is a silver lining of sorts," Charlotte replied. "For the princess still lives...and I am she! Good people of Jerdon, your rightful ruler has returned!" she said, her voice raising so that it filled the nearby area.

Tristan

"Oh, so they'll probably be rather annoying stuffed shirts I won't care for very much? Thanks for the warning," he said to Alex, half-joking though a bit glum.

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Madness

Almost every Jerdonian in the hall froze as they heard Charlotte's declaration, and looked towards the 'princess'. Most of them simply shook their heads and carried on with their business, but Jean stopped what he was doing, and drew a sword.

"... Miss, while I do admit you resemble our departed princess, the body of the princess was identified by no less than a dozen lords. She is at peace, Goddess bless her poor soul," Roger said, his tone colder than the weather outside. "Please refrain from claiming you are her, for her sake, and yours."

Alex

"Perhaps some tact would be helpful," the Comet said, half-smiling at the caricature Tristan presented. "However, it will only last until we contact the Loyalist forces, so a good impression would be desirable. I would presume some of the Loyalists escaped up here, so I doubt you will have to deal with the nobles for long."

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Charlotte

"I will not refrain from stating my true identity," Charlotte said, feeling a bit worried. This was not the glorious homecoming she had envisioned. "Rumors of my death were undoubtedly spread by Jace the Brute, to support his unlawful and blasphemous coup of the Jerdonian royal family. I am Charlotte Eveline Lanvaldear, sole daughter of the late King Frederic and Queen Lucille. My companions as well as Duke Munktan can attest to the veracity of my claims," she said, making a sweeping hand gesture towards the nearby group members.

Tristan

"You're probably right about that. Wonder if they'll have as tough a time believing I'm the prince as Charlotte seems to be having?" Tristan said to Alex. Sometimes I hardly believe I'm the prince myself really...

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Oh no, not again, Kelas had thought as a group of unfamiliar riders approached, but before she was sure enough to arm herself, it became clear that the riders were there to greet, not to attack. She let them herd her along with the rest of the group to the manor, which apparently belonged to one of Charlotte's retainers. As soon as direction was given she gladly dismounted and led Amari and Francis off to the stables.

The stables could hardly be called warm, but they were significantly warmer than the outside, and more importantly, dry. She groomed both of the horses thoroughly, borrowing blankets to put on them when they were reasonably cool and dry. She'd have to buy Amari a bigger saddle blanket if they continued north, she realized; while the other horses had fluffy winter coats coming in already, Amari was more used to mild winters, and was likely to have trouble in the cold. She made sure the horses were fed, muttered a few words of thanks into Amari's ear for her help on the journey, and tried to find the exit to the main building.

She must have taken a wrong turn, because the doorway she went through brought her into the wyvern aeries. Mumbling a curse, she looked about listlessly for someone to direct her back towards the main house. She wasn't sure what she was going to do here, but a warm change of clothes seemed like a good idea to start with.

--------------------------------------------------

Arrin had taken about three steps into the manor when the cat realized it was in a warm place, jumped down from his shoulder, and set off in search of adventure. With a quiet exclamation of dismay, Arrin set off after it. Within a few turns through the halls he was thoroughly lost.

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Arriving at the Munktan manse, Aiya set off towards the aeries after the greeting by several Jerdonian cavaliers. She was sure that Ulfhrahn being loose would not be appreciated by the workers of the manse, or any soldiers nearby.

"Sorry Ulfy, you'll have to stay in here while we're in Munktan... but you caught a big one on the way here, right? You should be alright." Aiya said apologetically to Ulfhrahn, rubbing his snout affectionately as she set him in his place, noting the individual assigned to tend to the wyverns staring with a mix of awe, fear, and apprehension at the bull.

"Behave yourself, okay?" She finished, giving a quick hug to the large wyvern, before detaching herself from him, and moving towards the exit. On the way, she noticed Kelas, who appeared rather lost and confused. Aiya bit her lip at the sight of the nomad, not sure what to do.

'She looked so out of it earlier... should I talk to her? What if... she and Isotov had a fight because of what I said to her... I mean, she went to talk to him after and then he left...'

Worrying herself over it, Aiya shook her head to clear it.

'Either way, she looks lost... I guess I'll only... see how she feels if I talk to her.'

"Oh, hello Kelas." Aiya called out, approaching the nomadic woman.

"You look down... are you okay?"

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Kelas had been looking the other way, and was a bit startled by Aiya. "Hm? I'm fine, just frozen and soaked and a bit lost," she replied. "You have any idea how to get to the main house from here?" She wasn't sure if Aiya had gotten better directions than her or not beforehand, but it was worth a try.

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Beau's small company managed to travel at a good pace and eventually, Elyisima's border was in sight. A light, mid-day drizzle was falling, but Beau's focuss was wholely on the border: the start of a forested marshland and the start of Bellmire Provence. Reluctance filled the young lord. Did he really want to see what awaited him? Would he be greeted by his father's guardsmen and taken to Duke Bellmire to be imprisoned in their estate once more? Would all that had been familliar remain or be proven to have been burnt away? However, just as he had the urge to flee back to Jerdon, something was pulling him back home. The desire to ensure his place as duke? The worry over his home and family? Simple curiosity? It could have been any or all of those reasons, but it didn't matter. Beau would press on until he learned the truth, then decide what to do from there.

Raemond's words brought him out of his thoughts, "Excuse me, miss, but what are you doing out here alone?" Beau looked up to see a woman in a long, brown coat with purple hair tied back into a bun. She looked somewhat like Raechel, but was too young to be her. Besides that, this woman didn't have a horse or a staff, but did carry a sword. The young teenager was perplexed and curious. What was someone doing so close to the border all alone in a small drizzle?

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Rain. Of course it's raining. Grabbing her coat, Tiria put it on as she walked. She had been wandering through Septimus for a while now, and had been plagued with bad weather the whole time. It hadn't been easy either. Ever since she'd been left by her last group of companions, she'd had to protect herself against groups of scavengers left over from the invasion. As much as she liked fighting, it was nice to have some others to help. Too eager for battle. Hah. They were just weak. I'm better off without them. Eventually I would have gotten myself killed trying to save one of them. Looking around, she realized that she was near the border. Well, guess I better turn around now. Avoiding going home is the best choice for all involved. As she was getting ready to head away from the border, she noticed a small group that she had missed before. Shoot! How did they get so close without me noticing? I'm losing my touch. One of them called out to her asking what she was doing. Sheesh, acting like I can't take care of myself. Walking over towards them, she replied “Well, I'm surviving. What are you doing in this country? You don't belong in this forsaken land.”

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"Forsaken?" Beau echoed from his place on Lantos' back. "We meant no offence," Raemond replied to the woman. Beau ignored Raemond's attempt to draw attention away from him, though, and persisted, "It is somewhat barren here, but this is quite close to the Septimus-Elyisima border. Which land are you calling forsaken? Or do you mean the border's length?" He didn't quite sound offended. It was something closer to inquisitive.

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"Have you seen this land? Villages burnt, people killed... That invasion destroyed so much of this land." How can they not understand? This land has been destroyed! "I am quite used to taking care of myself, that is all. As for Elyisima... I prefer to avoid *that* land as well." She realized that she had probably said too much, and started to walk past their group.

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Luc Altair

The group was disseminating as they were right to do so when encountering a place of rest. Though not nearly as fast as Luc desired, especially the people he needed to see in private. So while he waited, he watched and listened. Derek was conversing with his cavaliers in a tongue Luc reasoned was Jerdon, before they broke into Command at mention of General... Alex, and her title of Duchess Rielle. No doubt it was a surprise, but would not be nearly as much as Princess Charlotte announcing herself, clear enough for any man and spy nearby to hear. But it needed to be said and its consequences turned poor. One of those from before--Luc recognized, even drew his weapon! What madness pervaded in this? Another of that trio claimed she had passed, the same as those lowly guards on that lowly town. No doubt such a place as that would be so poorly informed, but this here was Derek's land! What impudence they had! How dare they--no--Luc shook his head, that wasn't the important thing here. He shook his head again as he looked back at Charlotte, who tried to plead her case, citing Derek, and attempting to bring in the rest of the group as evidence. Should he be the first? The only? Should he simply wait upon Derek to dismiss the whole farce out of hand and save himself the trouble and bad impressions? Or intervene, and most assuredly aggravate the retainers.

The Fargo

Ahhh, why did everyplace they go always end up with weapons drawn? He glanced at Captain, who was showing uncharacteristic displeasure on his face, before looking back at the fine unfolding mess ahead of him.

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"Why is that?" Beau asked, curious, "Were you treated unfairly there? ... You're quite close to Bellmire Provence, you know."

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Stopping and looking at him, Tiria sighed. "Look, I was born in Elyisima. And... things are just easier if I stay away. " Looking away again, she muttered under her breath, "Not that I'd be welcome if I did try and return home anyways."

Edited by scorri
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"That certainly is a steep assumption. After all, you do not even know who you are talking to," Beau replied, holding up his hand to display his signet, "I am Beau Adalgiso Bellmire, son of Duke Bellmire and heir to Bellmire Estate. I can help you reestablish yourself in our homeland. In fact, I notice you have a sword. What say you to accompanying me and my retinue? The heir to a duke shouldn't be travelling with so small a company."

Raemond was somewhat surprised at how Beau was speaking. (He's acting a bit like Raechel, helping her out like this... It's still different from what I've seen so far from him... I wonder why he's doing this...)

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Tiria looked at him in surprise. He thinks I mean I can't enter the country, not just return to my family's home... Should I explain? No, no need to. But a duke? Well, heir, but still. Why should he take an interest in me? However, these days are dangerous. It might be good for me to join up with someone... Tiria sighed. "Very well sir. Although I do not enjoy returning to this country, I would be honored to join your group." She walked back to the group, glancing at the other man as she did. Hmm. He appears surprised. Perhaps this is not the usual behavior for the duke's heir. I wonder...

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"Yeah, I know how to get to the main house from here." Aiya replied, wondering why Kelas had not really answered her. Perhaps her predicament was on her mind, Aiya figured she would have better luck along the way. Moving towards the exit of the aerie and motioning for Kelas to follow her, Aiya began to speak again.

"So, Kelas. You've looked pretty downtrodden for the last little while... are you alright?"

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