Be Still my Wicked Heart

[Azuloth]

Floras 24th, 200ATD

Two people entered the palace at Helkorth together to see the new Princess Superior. The boy, Vilkan, of the Republic of Cruinthe, and his bodyguard a cloak and robed figure that stood behind him and to the left by one pace. They approached the throne, where upon it sat Avaline, the Princess Superior and leader of the Royal Justean Guard. There were dozens of her dignitaries, court members, and Ritgrs in the room. It was a very public meeting.

"Greetings, Avaline ver'Justea."

"Greetings, Vilkan. This is what the path of war gets, a throne, power, and order. Have you seen my city?"

"I have."

"You have what?"

"Seen your city."

"Your Grace."

"Oh, no. Don't call me that. I'm no King."

"Insolent little whelp!"

"Please cousin, reign in your lapdogs."

"You're very clever, but do you really think your path of diplomacy will get you anywhere but six feet under? Do yourself a favor cousin. Join me and we'll rule this country as family. Like we are meant to."

"I can't do that. Did you really have to use those bloodthirsty skaldi? Did you really have to kill all those people in this city? I've seen it. What you want me to see is that no one is starving, and that things are finally being rebuilt. What you fail to see is all the bodies. Those were people too."

"How naive. They may have been people, but they were leading others down a path of death. We just put them in their graves first."

"Your path of war will destroy everyone."

"Your path of diplomacy will do nothing but allow Julgrava to enslave us all. I will not abide by that or your pacifism. Killing you here would only make you a martyr and I would have one more enemy to deal with. No, I'll just make you see how ineffectual your choice is. Leave now, before I change my mind."

"I'm sorry you can't see it my way. Good bye."

Vilkan left the palace with his bodyguard behind him. The tensions had passed and he returned to the inn that he had been staying at, The Drunk Skeleton. There his able bodyguard served him a beer and patted him on the back.

"I knew she wasn't going to go for the diplomacy route. But the violence... was it really necessary?"

"Sometimes it is. I know I'd gladly kill to protect you, and I'd gladly lay my life down to save you. I believe in you that much."

"I hope it never comes to that."

Vilkan drank his beer and went upstairs to pack for the road, his bodyguard helped him and they left the city two hours later, heading north on the road for Morith.

[Azuloth]

Meanwhile back at the palace.

The palace throne room had cleared entirely. The Princess Superior sat in her quarters with a cloaked man.

"Make it look like an accident. On the road, like bandits did it."

"It will be done, my liege."

The cloaked figure left the large state room quickly and quietly. The room was filled with rich furniture from a past age. Well cared for and glossy. One table was clearly over a hundred years old, maybe more. Some of the things in the room were clearly from the age of chaos. Just left there and ignored.

With the wind, the figure was gone.

---

That night on the road.

Both Vilkan and his body guard slept soundly in their camp, several feet from the highway in a circle of stones that had been part of the road since it was built ages ago. Their fire had almost gone out entirely. The body guard's eyes snapped open. There was someone moving towards them. The bodyguard rolled onto their feet drawing their weapon. The sword hilt was shiny and thin, and the blade was long, thin, and crackling with energy.

The person they faced was masked, wearing green and steel. Clearly dressed as a bandit-lord.

"Stay back, fiend."

"I want all of the gold, or I'll kill you both."


-"The Rogue"

"Over my dead body."

"Gladly!"

"What's going on!?"

The two fought, while Vilkan woke up and sat upright in his sleeping roll watching their blades clash. Two steel daggers ringing off of the crackling sword. Sparks flew off the weapons and heartbeats passed. The rogue scored a hit near the shoulder, and the body guard's shroud fell off.



They fought a brief moment more, then blood slaked the ground. The rogue had a cut across his chest, and he could see that his time was numbered. The longer the fight would go on the more likely it was that he would fail his mission. He raised his wrist and fired a small arrow from a tiny crossbow. The arrow hit Vilkan in the chest, the bodyguard cut the Rogue's hand from his arm, and the rogue fled. Leaving a trail of blood back to the city.

[Azuloth]

As the rogue fled the bodyguard turned to help Vilkan.

"My lord! Are you alright?!"

"Ah.. he got me... I can't believe I just said he got me. How bad is it... shit. I'm going to die aren't I?"

She ripped his shirt open and checked his chest. The arrow was high and the wound was shallow.

"It appears that you'll be fine. I'm glad his aim was off."

"You did get him good, maybe if we double back we'll find his body and some clues?"

"No... we must keep going. When he reports of his failure there will be more assassins."

"Assassin? Oh I see... of course. She wants me dead because I could gain supporters away from her. Supporters she desperately needs to win her war with the crown."

"Yes. The false crown. Let's get you patched up, then we'll get off the road and head for Innorsford."

---

The body guard applied a basic field dressing and left the arrow in. She prayed that it was not poisoned. They went on their way to northwest for several days. His condition did not worsen. They made it to Innorsford almost a month after the incident. In the meantime Vilkan had healed, the arrow removed, and their hearts steeled.

Avaline's supporters had scoured the road from Helkorth to Morith looking for him. Many travelers were killed in illegal searches and vaguely disguised robberies.