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Post by Angmor on Dec 14, 2009 0:00:05 GMT -5
Large gatherings of people were wonderful things, for anyone who knew how to take advantage. When none of the people present knew anyone else, it was the simplest thing in the world for you to blend with them. If none of them knew you, it was far easier for the dimmer specimens of humanity to assume that any illicit activity you were engaging in as perfectly normal. And if almost everyone present was doing the exact same thing you were doing, well, than there was very little use in keeping up the pretense of secrecy. In short, people were so much more stupid in herds than they were individually. Taraak smiled inwardly at the thought.
For Taraak, the news of the summit came as rather a surprise. But then, that was so for most of the armed forces on both sides. When you were on the battelines yourself, looking each other in the face as you fought tooth and nail for whichever cause you were supporting, taking part in a war that had gone on for roughly a century, the news of a sudden peace was always a shock. Of course, Taraak thought to himself, it was probably a trick. All of the intel that had been gathered of the past weeks had indicated that the Empire was making every concession and being completely cooperative with the Varden's terms for the summit, but that only served to deepen his suspicion. If the Empire really wanted this to happen, they had to be planning some trap or other. Taraak was just glad he was here to help stop it when it was finally sprung. He drifted at the margins of the room with the practiced ease of someone used to doing it, affecting his patented blank face. A few of the minor nobles gave him a glance, but no one commented, probably assuming that he was just another merc hired by the Empire. No one ever seemed to assume that he was there on some perfectly peaceful errand, for some reason. Still, so long as he wasn’t really noticed. It helped, though, that Ramsey was making a spectacle of herself by trying to strangle her dragon.
With the sudden outburst of wrath from the new rider, the room immediately fell quiet. The elf that Taraak had just been talking to, Kyemen, had just gotten up to Ramsey before the outburst occurred. The look on the elf’s face told the tale. Taraak smiled. Smooth introduction, Straethir. [/Color] He thought sardonically to himself. He also found it ironic that Ramsey had probably just made herself the focal point of all the eyes in the room. She was certainly an… interesting addition to the Varden ranks. “By the gods, how did a dragon ever choose to hatch for her?” “Second-greatest mystery of our time, right behind how this summit ever actually got to happen.” Taraak’s first instinct was to whirl on the voices behind him, but he forcefully confined himself to a quick glance over his shoulder. The conversation came from two nobles a little behind him, whose attention was obviously not on him. He relaxed, but kept listening. “Did you see that hammer she tried to bring in?” “No, what about it?” “It was about the size of my son! It was huge. When she had it on her back, it looked like it was wielding her.” “Tells something about her disposition right there…” “You’re not wrong there. It seems there’s no problem she can’t handle either by hitting it or shouting obscenities at it. And with a dragon that scrawny… She’ll be impaled on the end of Murtagh’s sword within two months, mark my words.” Taraak decided he had heard enough. He moved on, wandering toward the other side of the room, leaving the two gossiping men to themselves. He knew that logically, they were probably right. But still, he found himself mentally hoping for Ramsey to prove them wrong. Yeah, that’s you, Taraak.[/Color] He chided himself. Always cheering for the underdog.[/Color] As he drifted past the gathering of Varden riders on the way toward the apparently rigid boundery line in the middle of the room, he noticed Straethir, an extremely comical expression of bemusement on his face, was nodding respectfully to the woman that seemed to have attached herself to his side. “Atra esterní ono thelduin, fricai.” He said to her, looking uncomfortable. While Taraak was not at all an expert in the Ancient Language, but he’d heard enough people speaking it to think he knew when people were fluent, and it sounded distinctly like Straethir was not. That answered a few questions about were exactly the Rider’s loyalty lay. As soon as the elf in the green dress had moved on, Straethir set his gaze on Ramsey’s back, with the look of a man psyching himself up to toss himself off a cliff. Interested, Taraak paused, to see what he would do. After a few seconds, the huge emerald dragon at Straethir’s shoulder gave him a shove with its snout, forcing its rider to approach Ramsey. This will be good…[/Color] “Look, I’d like to apologize.” Straethir started tentatively. “I’m sorry for...” A pause, a scramble for words that showed on his face. “…Insulting you. Could we possibly forget it happened and start over?” Just then, Kyemen looked up suddenly. Following his gaze, Taraak found the famous pair Murtagh and his enormous ruby dragon Thorn striding toward them, parting the sea of people before them. The spy noticed Kyemen’s arm jerk involuntarily, as if he had only just managed to suppress the instinct to draw a weapon. Taraak knew it was none of his business, but still, he quickened his pace a bit, not particularly wanting to be around when the spells and scales started flying. He shook his head slightly. Riders. Damn it, give me a bow and a dagger and point me at the enemy, but save me from getting involved with them.[/Color] As he neared the border, he realized that Ilar’s metaphor of a game of capture the flag was not far wrong. There was a visible line of open floor between the Varden and the Empire sides. Of course, in Taraak’s childhood, the game had been played with training blades and unsharpened arrows, so it didn’t particularly matter what side you were on so long as you were handier with a blade. It had only been after joining the Varden and taking part in a competition among an infantry battalion that he had learned the more standard rules of the game. Still, it was a good image to keep in mind for someone who wanted to keep the peace. On a sudden impulse, Taraak glanced around to make sure that no one was watching, then stepped quickly across the border, merging in right behind a man in an ornate red cloak. The man glanced at him, but said nothing. Taraak grinned, feeling the familiar excited tingle in his gut that came with being somewhere he shouldn’t be. Behind enemy lines once again. As he wandered among the imperial delegation, he almost wished that he could break this false peace right then and there. He could have put in a knife in any one of these people, and no one would have been able to stop him until it was all over. He hoped that this whole thing wasn’t an elaborate cover for another Spearshadow op, or Nasuada or any one of the Riders could be in big trouble. If he could get here, an imperial assassin could get to his leaders just as easily. As he walked, he found himself coming closer to the center of the Imperial delegation. Through the crowd he could pick out Ramakrishna’s brazenly displayed form, as well as Kamenwati and the shade. Taraak’s first instinct was to turn his back. He and Kamenwait had worked together in the op that had started the invasion of this very city, so the Varden mole might have been able to recognize him. But he stopped himself. After all, why keep up even the pretense? Instead, he forced himself to go forward, just to see how close he could get.[/size][/Blockquote]
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Post by renea on Dec 17, 2009 18:00:55 GMT -5
"Greetings. My name is Endorin, and I fled Ellesmera after my mother tried to force me to Silthrim." The beautiful ancient language came to the ears of Tasalae and Tasia, both who were standing there. Tasia crouched slightly, her black baggy pants covered her feet, which were bare and she wore a black clock like she normally did, which was made of black wolf fur. She smiled at the the child, could not help but smile at him. He was kind, he needed to come with them and since he did not have to stay here, he could chose and she doubted he wanted to be with elves who did wrong, like the elves of the empire. "I hid in a wagon filled with garlic which took me here and then a guard brought me here," Tasalae nodded, looking at the young boy.
"I must say, you are a smart young man, but I don't think your mother would be happy, however, this is your life," She looked at the young child before her, felt the eyes of many on her, but ignored them. She was a Varden Elf on the Imperial side and yet she felt no reason to be concerned.
"I don't know politics, but I'd rather be on the side that was fighting for the right thing," He tilted my head, narrowed my eyes slightly and looked past the child to the shade not far from him. She did not want the child here and Tasalae was more then willing to take him away from this side and to the right side. He could sit next to Nasuada and also to Tasalae. The Shade seemed to find interested in something other then the child.
“I’m sure Endorin will enjoy you ladies’ company,” I smiled at the shade and nodded silently,“If you’ll excuse me..." Tasia nodded her head, the nose of her snout moved in the corner of my eyes and then a hand gripped her shoulder.
“Leaving us so soon, Miss Serowë?” Tasalae looked at the woman, feeling as if she was shaming herself like she did. It was gross and stupid. Tasalae crossed her own arms, looking at the woman as she spoke to the shade. “Tut, tut. And where are we off to?” Tasalae glanced at the shade before she went back to looking at the woman, their own Doctor who seemed too... Shameful to be in such a profession, however, she did make those zombies, whom had been recently captured by them, but Tasalae said nothing.
“I was going to speak with Lady Aelyn, Doctor,” Tasalae allowed her eyes to look at the Empire Dragon and dragon rider. She did not care for them much, but she would show respect to them, they were still the dragon riders.
“Pity. But I suppose it was a mistake on my part for letting you watch over the little one. It’s often difficult for children to warm up to a Shade. Well, then, off you go.” I allowed my eyes to turn back to the 'Doctor' and then to the child. The Shade moved quickly, did not even glance back for a second. Tasia knew this was the woman who cursed the people and the elves and Tasalae had a feeling that she did not want to be here, or wished she had her own sword. Tasalae glanced at her with firm eyes, making her nod and looked behind them towards the Varden. Tasalae sure as hell saw no beauty in this woman sitting down, looking at them and Tasia just saw a sick woman before her. “Well, then, little Lord Endorin, allow me to introduce myself. I am Malandra Ramakrishna, Imperial scientist. But please, call me Malandra, there’s no need for you to resort to formality.” Tasalae knew her name now, it was the least pleasureable thing in the world. She held out her hand to Endorin and Tasalae did not blame him for not wanting to take it. “Shy, are we? Maybe Doctor Kamenwati will make you more comfortable.” Tasia growled silently to herself, but Tasalae heard it and glanced back at her. Tasia found the woman disgusting, going afyer a child at that. She was looking past them now. “Doctor Kamenwati? Yes, my darling, do come here. I have someone here that you might be interested in meeting…”
Tasalae knew that name and she did not feel like seeing the man. He worked for both the sides, but maybe he worked more for the Varden then anything... Even Tasaalae and Tasia were wondering about that. “Doctor Kamenwati, this is Endorin of Du Weldenvarden. Endorin, this is Remy Kamenwati, a scientist of the Twin Lamps.” They nodded to them as he said something to the child elf. “And these two have yet to introduce themselves. You’ve spent some time in Surda, Remy. Do you know them?” He denied and they said nothing. “Hmm. Well, then. I am Malandra Ramakrishna... You may have already heard of me. And your names are?” Tasalae looked at the two 'doctors' and gave a small smile.
"It is a pleasure to finally get to met the Famous Malandra Ramakrishna," Tasalae spoke to her, her voice was emotionless and her body was as relaxed as it could be in this place. "I am Tasalae of Ellesmere, a swordsmith and this is my sister, Tasia," Tasia nodded firmly, but said nothing. They were not sisters by blood, but after being together for so long, they choice to voice there own opinion of the idea. ---------- ---------- ---------- Nasuada had seen her eyes, they showed of anger, but she said nothing to her, only returned to her own chair. She looked up at the child after seeing her Kull got to work with the security and heard the voice of the young rider. “And ain’tcha a feckin’ ray o’ sunshine? Did I ask for yer bloody whiny-assed opinion, Miss Nasuada?” Nasuada was not one you wanted to insult, but for this day, she would ignore the voice of the annoying dragon rider and hope that Eragon would appear, even though she had a feeling her would not come. Something had happened, she was worried sick about the boy, the first dragon rider to help the Varden in MANY years.
She spotted the Queen of the elves coming through the door. Islanzadi had come and it made her happy. Tasalae and Tasia had spoken of this, but even they were unsure. She gave a nod and Nasuada returned it with ease before she looked over to the Elf Child and the two of her friend. "Hurry my friends, bring that child home." Nasuada had a felling that Islanzadi would not be happy about the child being here. ---------- ---------- ---------- Tasia glanced over her shoulder as she saw Islanzadi come in and quickly turned and whispered quickly in her ear. Tasalae responded with little interest, but looked at her Queen. She gave a quick nod and Tasia moved to her, walking with the grace that had nearly left her after her own transformation into this wolf like body. Tasia stood in front of Islanzadi, gave a greeting and bowed to the Queen. "My Queen, I have come to ask you what you would like use to do with the dear elf child that has come into our mist, for Tasalae is taking everything slowly, hoping not to upset anyone." Tasalae was smart, she knew better then to just snatch things away.
Thorn and his rider, Murtagh, had arrived and Tasalae looked at him quickly, nodded her respects and then looked back at the Elf Child. "Stop Elf Child!" She turned her head to guards coming and what seemed to be a man. The Elf child spoke and she stood at his side. "An Imperial Magician, whose name will not be mentioned, has accused you of knocking him out cold. Is this true?" Tasalae glanced at the child, who held a smile on her face. Tasalae smiled also and then glanced at the now angry man before she drew his sword and his friends did also. I stepped forward, Tasia had turned and her eyes were emotionless, however, she showed tension.
"Now gentlemen, I don't think this is nessecary, I believe that this is a peaceful meeting, not one meant for swords or problems," She looked at the child. "Endorin, I believe your Queen would like to see you?" It was more a question of it she would need to see him for anything he might of done in the past few days. The Queen knew of all the Elf Children, with one missing, it might cause some trouble.
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Kite
Junior Member
Now past the 1 year mark
Posts: 127
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Post by Kite on Dec 17, 2009 23:25:19 GMT -5
Daran
*A slightly annoyed look passes through Daran's face as he hears even more loud steps came down the hall.
More dragons and their damn Riders? God, gonna be a full house, people.... God DAMN it...
He turns to look at the door and waits for them to come through. He then sees Thorn and his Rider come through. Murtagh, Daran thinks, but he isn't too sure. From what he has heard, he is correct. The first of the Empire's glorious new rider corps... Not that they are that large in number. Daran doesn't really care much for the Empire, honestly, but he does indeed aspire to being a rider... Maybe one that can break free...
He discards that thought. Honestly, it is fairly stupid. The riders would stop him, if the "King" didn't force him to swear in the ancient language. That is not the point. He is sure that Ava can help him with that if it comes to pass.
He then moves on to wanting to greet Thorn. He may not be the best of friends with the dragon, but he doesn't see why they couldnt be at least friendly acquaintences.
Hopefully. That is, if he doesn't eat my face off, first...
As he slowly approaches Thorn, he makes sure his barriers are up enough that he could resist a probe, though not too high to prohibit communication from a dragon, or another delegate. He bows slightly to Thorn as he gets close and speaks to him.*
Hello, Thorn. How is life treatin' ya?
*He smiles a little at the dragon, but internally wonders how he will react. Hopefull, not too badly.*
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Ava
*Ava smiles at the Rider's slightly unpracticed, but correctly worded greeting. Obviously, the ancient language was not something spoken among the riders in conversation as much anymore. Shame, but they will learn when they get the chance, shes sure. They have to speak to everyone, and that will be easier if they learn the ancient language. She attempts to pat the Rider's shoulder gently and smiles at him. He looked a little uncomfortable from her perspective, and she didn't mean to put him like that. She speaks softly to him.*
I did not mean to put you on edge, friend. Just wanted to politely introduce myself. I am Ava Vorandeer. And you?
*She smiles once again at him, then turns her head and looks around the room quickly. She decides that her presence might annoy or offend or make the rider uncomfortable, so she looks for her next stop. She sees Remy standing with Malandra, Tasalae, Tasia, and the elf child, and he looks decidedly put out, uncomfortable. Seeing as Ava knows something about his double-play, he can understand why that might be the case. Perhaps the elves don't know about it? It is a distinct possibility. She turns back to the Rider and bows slightly*
It has been nice meeting you, Shur'tugal. I look forward to speaking to you more than introductions sometime, if you so wish, but I must move on now... Ciao.
*She walks gracefully over to the fivesome standing and talking to each other. She hears Tasalae finish her introduction of Tasia and herself, and she walks directly up to Remy, smiling.*
Why, hello Remy! How are you doing, dear?
*She smiles brilliantly at him, then nods to Malandra, Tasia, Tasalae, and the elf child, just meaning to acknowledge them. She has a desire to speak with the elf child, but she is honestly desiring to speak with Remy. He was interesting, to say the least. Too many milk-toast, boring elves these days. That should change, with the war coming on, but will probably not. They could certainly learn to be more like humans, but she wont say a thing about that to them. She winks up at Remy.*
Why don't we slip away from these boring, young elves, and the lewd scientist over there? I would love to speak with you.
*She winks up at him and expands her mind to his, gently brushing his defenses, then sending a message on a tight shaft to him.*
You look uncomfortable, my dear fallen rider. Would you like to get away from these fools, so they cant mess things up, for your dastardly plans that I'm sure are formulating?
*Her eyes seem to be mischeviously glittering up at him. She isn't sure there are any plans at all, but it would be a logical guess. She waits expectantly for a reply from him, standing especially gracefully, because it might help her ploy. So what if it doesn't, she is just enjoying herself.*
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Post by Ze Flying Wraithetti Monstress on Dec 19, 2009 19:44:52 GMT -5
Being fashionably late was enormous fun indeed.
The moment I came strutting into the Great Hall, I was met with absolutely no stares at all. But then again, I was hardly someone who stood out- today I’d taken the liberty of dressing in a fine pale tunic and breeches, covered by a large green silk overcoat. I didn’t stand out any more than the nobles who overpopulated this wanton gathering, and I was quite pleased because of it. My blonde hair had been groomed and oiled back, my clothes neatly ironed, so I hardly stood out, except maybe for the pointy ears. But nonetheless, I was nothing if you compared me to all the people in the room.
Firstly, I was far from being the only elf there. I spotted the Varden Riders, Kyemen and David, that happened to be two, Islanzadí, the pompous queen of Du Weldenvarden, who was currently being overcrowded at the Varden table by another person who I thought was an elf, but had changed its appearance to look like a bloody werewolf so I wasn’t too sure. At the Varden table was Remy Kamenwati, my fellow Tribunal assassin, who looked enormously uncomfortable for some reason, and was standing near an elf child. And finally, there was some gorgeous elf in a green dress, but she had changed her appearance as well- her face was round and her ears were small. To a non-elf, or at least to someone who didn’t know magic, she probably looked like a human.
Besides the elves, the number of non-humans that made up the assembly was vast, to say the least. There was one Shade that I recognized, Pele Serowë, who was currently chatting with Aelyn, an attractive Imperial Rider. Several Kull were spread along the Varden’s table. The rest were dragons. A total of five were attending, although I only saw four - Kaldr, who was growing up quite well, and Thorn, who was as huge and threatening as ever, on our side. On the Varden’s, I only saw Sierthra and Aviand. Looking closer, though, I spotted the fifth and final attending dragon- a tiny lizard-thing who I guessed was Ikehr. His Rider, Nemo Ramsey, a furious-looking dark-skinned redhead who was staring at his dragon like he wanted to maul him, was sitting at the Varden table. Despite the frown on his face, he was still handsome. David, Aviand, Sierthra, Kyemen, and the human-looking elf girl were all surrounding him. I blinked. Wasn’t the newest Rider supposed to be a woman?
Besides him, the only other recognizable humans of importance were several Surdan nobles and Nasuada, who looked as stunning as ever in a scaly golden dress. I would have to pay her a visit. But for now, my eyes passed over the Imperial delegation. The lovely Aelyn was still talking with Pele, and Murtagh, looking a little out of his element, seemed to be staring at every good-looking woman in the room with his mouth hanging open. His eyes kept back-tracking to Ramsey, though. He was on his way towards the crowd surrounding the elf child, one person of which, I was happy to notice, was Malandra Ramakrishna. Cruel women delighted me, especially if they were as lovely as she. Today, she sported nothing except a fine metallic mesh. How tempestuous of her. Then there were some scientists and nobles, most of whom I didn’t recognize.
It was a hard decision, deciding who I planned on meeting first. But eventually, I decided to head over to the Varden table. After all, I would have to go back to the Imperial sidle anyway when the negotiations began, and I wasn’t too keen on meeting those elves.
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In the following few minutes, a good thing happened and a bad thing happened.
The good thing was that Murtagh and Thorn finally showed up. Thorn looked wondrously terrifying, his ivory fangs glistening in the dim firelight and the orange flames casting dancing shadows on his crimson body. He looked ready to conquer the world, and was completely at odds with his mouth-wateringly gorgeous Rider, Murtagh, who was standing awkwardly at Thorn’s feet. After a few seconds, though, he started, and a dizzyingly bright smile lit up his face. He started to stride over to the Imperial table. During the walk, his eyes passed over every woman in the Hall, although mostly just three- Pele, who, interestingly, he was looking at rather affectionately; me, obviously, considering I was the best-looking person in the whole room by far; and, strangely enough, Nemo Ramsey. In fact, his gaze kept reverting to her specifically. I glanced at the boyish young woman at the Varden table, my lips curling into a sneer. Surely he didn’t find her better-looking than the sex goddess I happened to be? However, despite looking at her, he was slowly making his way towards me. Good.
The bad thing was that Islanzadí showed up. This somewhat spoiled my good mood. If she was here, she could very easily claim Endorin, and I wouldn’t be able to say anything about it. All elves technically belonged to her. Even if Endorin didn’t want to go, she could easily drag him out of here. I glanced at the child, who was watching Islanzadí with fear in his eyes.
“It is a pleasure to finally get to meet the famous Malandra Ramakrishna,” said the female elf suddenly, and I turned my gaze back on her. She was smiling, but her eyes and voice were cold. Tsk, tsk. Envy was a sin. “I am Tasalae of Ellesméra, a sword-smith, and this is my sister, Tasia.”
I wasn’t sure if they were actually sisters or not, since the wolf-woman lacked any remotely human physical feature to speak of. Still, to each his own, I supposed. Tasia seemed rather distracted by Islanzadí, and sure enough, she eventually ditched her sister to go and speak with the elf queen, most likely about the child. I pressed my lips together into a thin line, but was careful not to frown. I didn’t want wrinkles, after all. Instead, I turned back to Tasalae, intending to reply to her. Unfortunately, however, just then, three sweaty Imperial guards rudely approached, hands on the hilt of their swords. All three of their faces showed distinct signs of suspicion.
“Stop, elf child!” one shouted. “An Imperial magician, whose name will not be mentioned, has accused you of knocking him out cold. Is this true?”
I blinked. I hadn’t seen anyone passing out, and I considered myself to be a very observant person. After a quick sweep of the Imperial table with my eyes, though, I spotted a small man in robes that looked rather put out. Endorin just smiled knowingly and shrugged, and the three men all drew their swords.
The room itself seemed to hold its breath. The negotiation hadn’t even started yet and swords were out. I was furious. No, no, no! This would ruin all my plans! I was on my feet in an instant, trembling with rage. I heard Tasalae saying something, but my brain didn’t register the words. I approached the soldiers in two strides. Upon seeing how they gawked at my outfit, though, and the show of fear at the rage in my eyes, I inhaled deeply and forced my anger to dispel. I placed my hand on the leader’s shoulder, using the time it took to control my facial expression.
“Do you really think a simple child could knock out a fully trained magician… Captain?” I added, after noticing the crest on his tunic. “He may be an elf, but no child is capable of bypassing an Imperial’s powers. Don’t you agree?” “Er,” muttered the captain. Though every part of me wanted to scream bloody rage at the soldier for possibly ruining everything, it was important to keep my composure. And besides, all men thought two things of all women- one, that they were weak little creatures, and two, that they found them attractive. And so, I was careful not to seem too overbearing, and batted my eyes at him. “I guess not… b-but he needs to be watched!” “That’ll be taken care of, my dear.” I patted his armour. “Do put those swords away, or you’ll scare the child.”
As the soldiers bumbled off, sheathing their swords and being approached by the furious-looking mage, I quickly glanced behind me at the entire room. Now that infighting wasn’t likely to happen, most people had gone back to their business. I allowed myself a small sigh of relief and sank back into my chair, my eyes closed.
“Endorin, I believe your Queen would like to see you?”
I snapped my eyelids open and glared at Tasalae, who was hovering over Endorin again. Tasia still hadn’t returned; she was probably still speaking with the elf queen, so I saw no real reason for him to go anywhere.
“I believe that would be his choice, Svit-kona,” I said smoothly, placing a hand on Endorin’s shoulder. He seemed startled at the touch. “I understand forcing people into things isn’t your way.” I turned my gaze onto Endorin. “Now, what would you-” “Er… hello,” came a shy voice, and I looked up. Immediately, I was filled with resonant joy as my jade-green eyes met the grey ones of Murtagh. Instead of meeting my eyes, though, he was staring at my body. Naturally. “It’s nice to see you again, Doctor.” He stuck out his hand. “It’s been a while.” “It has indeed,” I took Murtagh’s hand, but instead of shaking it, I pulled him toward me for a friendly hug. He ended up half-falling into my lap while I wrapped my arms around him, and I smirked into his hair as I felt him melt into a boneless puddle in my arms. A disapproving snort from above made me glance up at Thorn, who was staring at me with narrowed eyes. “It’s lovely to see you again as well, Thorn,” I said kindly. I would have given him a pat on the muzzle or something, but the last person who did that ended up being eaten. I wasn’t interested in sharing his fate. Instead, I gently pushed Murtagh back onto his feet, who now had some kind of dreamy stare on his face, and turned him toward the two elves. “This is Tasalae, a Du Weldenvarden sword-smith, and this is Endorin. And that,” I motioned to Remy, who’d been standing stock-still and silent the entire time, “is Remy Kamenwati, a fellow scientist of mine.” “I don’t believe I’ve met either of you,” Remy said, genuinely kindly, but he most interestingly didn’t offer his hand. He just gave a shallow bow. He opened his mouth to say something else, but broke off entirely when a woman in green stepped up to him. “Why, hello, Remy! How are you doing, dear?” She turned to face the rest of us, her eyes glittering mischievously, and nodded in acknowledgement. She looked very human, but was a little too attractive for one. I frowned slightly, sensing the aura of magic. It was an elf. She’d just magically altered her features. Then she turned back to Remy, seemingly infatuated with him. “Why don't we slip away from these boring, young elves, and the lewd scientist over there? I would love to speak with you.
I smiled widely. It wasn’t a kind smile. Lewd, was it? However, before I could make a snappy response, Remy seemed to have noticed the fire in my eyes and quickly clapped a hand on Ava’s arm. He looked nervous.
“Absolutely, Miss Vorandeer. Excuse me, everyone…” He led her off, and she let him, leaving me, still smiling, with the elves and Thorn and Murtagh. Frankly, he could whisper sweet nothings to her all he wanted. It was interesting that he’d gotten so friendly with an elf, though. I turned back to Murtagh, since my interest was currently focussed on him. My eyes became much kinder when their gaze settled on his lovely face again.
“And what are your thoughts on the proceedings, my dear?” I asked.
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I really didn’t know what was keeping me from fainting on the spot. Maybe it was the thought that Malandra might do something to me while I was unconscious, but that made me feel even more nauseous. Islanzadí had arrived, much to my grief, and Tasia and Tasalae kept shooting me the occasional suspicious stares whenever Malandra wasn’t looking. Luckily, Tasia departed when she spotted Islanzadí, and Tasalae seemed to be focussed specifically on Malandra and Endorin. I really didn’t know why Malandra wanted me here. Maybe it was just for torture. I always thought it was only her husband who liked the emotional torment thing. I sank into a chair, feeling like barfing.
It gave me an especially horrifying start when the three soldiers who’d accosted Endorin suddenly drew their swords. Immediately, I picked a word from the ancient language and prepared to say it out loud. Knocking the soldiers out cold probably wasn’t the best thing to do, but hopefully it would stop infighting from breaking out. Luckily, though, Malandra was angry enough to take care of things herself. I relaxed somewhat, leaning back in my chair. At this point, I thought, things couldn’t possibly get any worse.
At least I thought that up until Murtagh and Thorn approached. Though I was more than comfortable around dragons, Thorn was almost as scary as Shruikan, and twice as likely to eat people for no apparent reason. Murtagh didn’t seem too dangerous, though, always seemingly more distant than angry. Like Aelyn and Kaldr, I avoided both of them in case they picked up on my gedwëy ignasia. I was quick to stand when I saw them, but both of them seemed distracted by Malandra, who was currently most informally cuddling Murtagh. When she released him, though, she began the introductions.
“This is Tasalae, a Du Weldenvarden sword-smith, and this is Endorin. And that,” she motioned to me, “is Remy Kamenwati, a fellow scientist of mine.” I immediately stepped up to the two of them and bowed. “I don’t believe I’ve met either of you.” I rose from the bow. “It’s-” “Why, hello, Remy!” I broke off, and turned, my face a mask of horror, as a familiar figure in green skipped up to me. She nodded briefly to the people around me, but then her attention was all over me again. “Why don't we slip away from these boring, young elves, and the lewd scientist over there? I would love to speak with you.”
The fury that lit up Malandra’s eyes from within was more than enough incentive for me to flee. I grabbed Ava’s arm, turning her away from the doctor.
“Absolutely, Miss Vorandeer. Excuse me, everyone…” I led Ava away from the assembled group, closer towards the wall, which was drenched in shadow since the firelight didn’t quite reach that far. At least now it couldn’t get any worse.
You look uncomfortable, my dear fallen Rider. Would you like to get away from these fools, so they can’t mess things up, for your dastardly plans that I’m sure you are formulating?
… ow. I really had to stop saying that to myself. Her probe easily reached into my mind, which I’d forgotten to shield with how nervous I was. I kind of tripped as I walked, and if it wasn’t for the safety of the wall I’d likely have fallen right over. I grabbed the cool stone of the wall, staring hard at the still-smiling Ava. And just how in hell had she found out about that? She was one of the least notable individuals of the Varden, and here she was walking around, a ticking time-bomb for my cover. I tried to think of any way she could have gotten the information. By me? Never, and Sthenno was the only other person in the world who knew about me. I’d definitely question her when I got home, if I even managed to get home. I opened and shut my mouth like a fish for some time, before immediately hardening the defences around my mind and shutting her out.
“How do you know about that?” I hissed, ignoring her first question. With things like this, it was probably better to speak telepathically, but I was scared of letting her into my mind again. “Tell me, and I’ll consider not lopping your head off the next time you go to sleep!”
---
“Well, Nemo, I do not wish to hold you back from speaking with any of your friends.”
The newest victim of my angry glare was Ava Vorandeer. She held out a pale hand to me, still smiling. I didn’t trust people who smiled too much. So, I simply glared at her until she got the picture and turned away, now setting her sights on Kyemen. I felt Ikehr shift on my boot, as well as his disapproval in my head. I stuck my tongue out at him.
On a happier note, I think everyone’s finally arrived, he said, ignoring my tongue. I glanced around the room just in time to see yet another gorgeous woman striding into the Great Hall. From the ears and her distinct resemblance to Arya, it was definitely Islanzadí. Then there were a couple more nobles, but no one else interesting. Soon the doors would be closed and the negotiations would get started. Oh, what a hullabaloo. I feel the need to point out the Kull, Ramsey. Eh? I glanced up, and noticed that several Kull had secured a position around myself and David and Kyemen. What in feckin’ hell do they want? Protection, Ramsey. I don’t bloody well need their protection! No, no, no, they’re here to protect people from you. A wise decision on Nasuada’s part, I believe. At this point, you’re likely to eat us, then kill us. Why, you- “Look, I’d like to apologize.” Confused, I glanced up at Straethir as he approached me, giving Ikehr enough time to jump off my boot and skitter down the table, far out of reach of my hands. The elf looked nervous, and rightfully so. “I’m sorry for... insulting you. Could we possibly forget it happened and start over?”
I tilted my head, glaring straight at the Rider’s face. He looked troubled, and his eyes showed apprehension, but he seemed to be speaking honestly. I stared at him for a few more seconds, but before I could wonder how to reply to that, he suddenly lost interest and stared at something behind me.
“Oy!” I barked. “Look-” Ooh, I spoke too soon. Now everyone’s here.
I turned around just in time to see Murtagh and Thorn entering the Hall. Murtagh looked absolutely terrified, while Thorn looked absolutely terrifying. After a few seconds, though, Murtagh suddenly pulled himself up, and he started to march towards the Imperial delegation, Thorn right at his heels. But while Thorn held his head high and stared firmly in the direction he was going, Murtagh’s eyes kept wandering. More than once, his eyes went to the Shade at the other end of the room, the scary naked lady, and, weirdly, me. In fact, it wasn’t long before I felt someone touch my mind. It was Murtagh. Though everyone on this side probably would have thrown themselves at my feet begging me not to let him in, I was curious. And it wasn’t an attack probe; it was more of an exploratory thing. I let him speak.
Hello, was all I got. What the hell?
Despite myself, I looked to Ikehr for his opinion, but he was staring at Thorn. I realized that he was contacting him, too, as I felt the echoes from Ikehr’s own mind of a, Greetings, Skulblaka. I am Thorn. What is your name, young one?
I wanted to tell you that I really like what you’re wearing. What? I stared at Murtagh, pressing my lips together. If he was mocking me- You don’t try to be someone you’re not, is what I mean. You don’t put on a dress and act like a sissy to impress others. I respect that.
This left me feeling indecisive, to be frank. By all rights, I should have marched over there and clubbed him to death with a chair. But he seemed awkward, shy, even, and the looks he kept giving me were very honest. I was blatantly confused. But still, it was nice to finally receive something about how I was dressed that wasn’t a complaint. Despite my suspicions, I guessed I could at least accept the damn compliment.
Thanks, I thought awkwardly. Then my confusion was replaced by suspicion again. And exactly what is Murtagh the Bloody Imperial Arseface doin’ in my ‘ead? I’d wager a bloody bet that it ain’t fer complimentin’!
---
Murtagh and Thorn fascinated me, in all honesty, almost as much as Galbatorix and Shruikan did. I could only wonder what it was like for them to be forced into servitude like that. It was rather close to what had been done to me and Ramsey, to be frank. Well, maybe forced wasn’t the right word, but Nasuada and the Elder Council had been rather adamant on me and her swearing the Oath. I watched them make their way across the room, and noticed Thorn’s eyes on me- and then I felt his presence. It was undoubtedly his- an endless chasm full of ancient memories that was strictly a dragon’s, and the raw fury and steely determination that had to belong to Thorn. And though it was a condemnable thing to do, I lessened the barriers around my mind a little.
Greetings, Skulblaka. I am Thorn. What is your name, young one? I am Ikehr. Even though I was mostly convinced that he was doing this out of simple curiosity, I kept the barriers up. I could feel Murtagh talking to Ramsey, as well, but I didn’t want to risk paying attention to their conversation. I must admit I was rather looking forward to meeting you, Thorn. A charming little gathering, is it not?
“Uh… Nemo?” The voice of the elf Rider, Kyemen, drew my attention, and I saw him staring curiously at Ramsey. She was still focussed on her telepathic link, but when he spoke she blinked and glanced up at him. “Oh… you.” She furrowed her brow, deep in thought, before finally mentally shrugging and sticking her hand out to him. “Hell, maybe yeh ain’t as dodgy as I thought. Th’ name’s Ramsey. Nemo Ramsey.” Hesitantly, he took her hand, and she clenched it in a vigorous shake. “Charmed an’ all that. Same ta you, Sierthra.” “Yours is a face meant for smiling, Mister Ramsey. A frown does not suit you.”
I blinked as a deep male voice, edged with an accent, came from somewhere above me. I glanced around as a blonde male elf, dressed in human finery, approached from the doorway. I hadn’t seen him enter. Probably some Imperial noble, from the way he carried himself and the clothes, but he was an elf, and a different elf. He wasn’t as tall as the others, more muscular, and his accent was completely foreign, although he spoke the common tongue well. Besides that, his left cheek was branded with a black serpent tattoo.
“Scuse me?” Nemo glared up at him. “And just who the feck are you?” “Name’s Cesar Insalata. Cez to my friends.” He bowed shallowly. “I was simply interested in meeting some of the more esteemed members of the Varden before the negotiations get underway. And you too, Mister, uh, Straethir, is it?”
Words;; 3947... JUST short of 4000. Muse;; Totally craptacular. Thoughts;; ITSUCKSITSUCKSITSUCKS I'm so, so sorry. >.< And for those too lazy to go and read his profile, Cesar has a heavy Spanish accent. XD
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zkjt
Novice
Posts: 47
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Post by zkjt on Dec 21, 2009 16:55:15 GMT -5
Endorin
Hmph. I was so sure I could handle those soldiers. But of course, Malandra had to intervene. I watched her stand up, her anger emanating from her in vast amounts. I allowed my face to remain expressionless until I watched Tasia leave. But where did she go? I allowed my gaze to search over the crowd and then I spotted her. I swallowed, and instantly I began to tremble. I watched without blinking as the Queen of the Elves, Islanzadi entered the room. She was stunning in a silver gown with black hair,put into ringlets around her head. Her eyes were bright green and I watched as they found me. A flicker of surprise crossed her face, but then she was lost in the crowd. I could only see Tasia's fur, and I knew that Islanzadi must be sitting somewhere on the Varden side. Great.
I felt a hand rest on my shoulder as Tasalae implied that I should go to my queen right away. I gazed at the hand. It was perfectly manicured, and the fingers long and elegant. Malandra looked angry. “I believe that would be his choice, Svit-kona,” I stopped a smile from coming to my lips. I would love to hold off on my meeting with the Queen for as long as possible. Just then someone interrupted Malandra. A man, well more a boy than anything was standing there gawking at Malandra's outfit in a..embarrassing way. I heard Malandra say the name of the boy and instantly my body went rigid. Murtagh? If I could hate anyone more than him..well I couldn't. If he hadn't sided with the Imperials the Varden could have had a chance. The odds would have been more in our favor of course, but I didn't despise Aelyn and Kaldr. Then I remembered what my mother told me. My father had been fighting when Thorn and Murtagh arrived. Thorn blew fire all over the troops. My father had been outside of the Elves's protections so my father was instantly incinerated. I stood up defiantly and glared at Murtagh my hatred coming off of me in waves. The air around me was becoming hot. I was letting out magic without really trying to. I felt my mouth open and a torrent of words in the ancient language came tumbling out. Curses, vile insults, terrible words all carrying immense power. When my rant was over I was breathless and sweaty. Malandra looked disgruntled and Murtagh, shocked. I sat down again and glanced up at Tasalae. "I think I'll visit her soon Tasalae, thank you," I said with unmeant iciness layered over my voice.
Now I'd done it. Insulted one of the riders of Alagesia. Now I was in for it. What would he do? Or worse what would Thorn do? I realized I hadn't said anything mean to him, but Thorn would probably no doubt stick up for him. But nevertheless, I didn't flinch but continued to gaze behind Malanadra at Nemo and Ikehr. Nemo was surrounded by people, but Ikehr looked as calm as ever. I inwardly sighed awaiting the inevitable reply from Malandra, Murtagh, and Thorn.
Islanzadi
I allowed my gaze to travel from one person of interest to the next. All five of the dragons and riders I acknowledged politely, when they turned my way. Pele Serowe, I gave no hint of..well anything. I ignored the momentary flicker of panic in her face and moved on. Nasuada I would have to talk to at some point. And of course Endorin. It was here I tutted silently. Did he have to run away? No. And nevertheless to the meeting between the Empire and the Varden! While I was looking his way, I saw Tasia come toward me. She was one of the few elves who changed their appearances into that of an animal. I returned her formal greeting and listened.
"Yes I know what you mean. That Malandra shouldn't be by him. The only thing she'll do is corrupt his mind. If you could please fetch him for me." Here I nodded slightly and watched her go. Nemo Ramsey was surrounded by people. She didn't look happy either. Her face was flushed and she was standing, breathing heavily. I suppressed a chuckle at how this small girl could radiate so much strength, and power.
By now I was starting to get bored. I had only come here for the negotiations. The only person I had talked to was Tasia. Maybe it was time for me to go to Pele Serowe, the Shade. What a surprise I'd give her. She probably would run anyways, the coward. I let my angry thoughts subside before trying to decide what to do next. It was obvious Endorin wasn't coming over. I stood up to retrieve him myself when he stood up and began to babble out words in the Ancient Language I never thought I would hear him say. But who was he-. Murtagh? Endorin dared say those thing to Murtagh? Son of Morzan? I stood and whispered to the guards behind me. They nodded and in a few seconds one of them said, "His defenses are up and he won't let anyone in.." I nodded here. I would have to trust that Tasia and Tasalae could get him to me. No one would dare challenge me here, in public. I allowed myself to sit down my sit down but I still felt uneasy. Thorn was known for a rash attitude and I doubted he would let insults like that just slip by. I sighed, hoping nothing big would happen. The least I wanted was a fellow elf starting something.
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Post by renea on Dec 21, 2009 18:35:47 GMT -5
“I believe that would be his choice, Svit-kona,” Tasalae allowed her eyes to look into the eyes of that stupid woman before her. Tasalae knew when it was time for a elf to go to the Queen and this was one of those times. Elves listened to the Queen, that was what they had always done and not listening to the Queen was asking for trouble. “I understand forcing people into things isn’t your way.” She saw her place a hand on his shoulder and she stepped behind the child, placing both of her hands on his shoulder when she removed her own. “Now, what would you-”
“Er… hello,” Tasalae looked at the owner of the voice, her eyes were narrow, already with annoyance and she looked into the face of the rider who was a traitor and a killer of many of her friends. He looked shy, but it did not matter, she saw the face of the docto change completely and she was happy. “It’s nice to see you again, Doctor.” He was looking all over the doctors body, which was disgusting in all sorts of ways. “It’s been a while.” He placed a hand out to shake the hand of that stupid doctor, but instead, he was pulled into a hug, nearly falling into a pile of nothing.
“It has indeed,” The boy needed to be sat down before he fell to the ground, it was a amusing sight and one that Tasalae would have loved to see happen, but it did not happen, which she cursed in her head about. She glanced at the terrifying dragon, bowed her greeting to the dragon and then looked up, her hands still on the child. “It’s lovely to see you again as well, Thorn,” She watched with little interest now, but kept a eye on the other side of the room, where Tasia was speaking with the Queen, their Queen. “This is Tasalae, a Du Weldenvarden sword-smith, and this is Endorin. And that,” Tasalae nodded a greeting and looked at him before glancing and Remy. “is Remy Kamenwati, a fellow scientist of mine.”
“I don’t believe I’ve met either of you,” As he was about to say something, Ava came up, wishing him to come away from the crowd and she did not say anything about Ava, just allowed it to play out... It was a very funny sight. She saw the smile on 'doctors' face, which was not very kind and then Remy ran away, with the young lady. She then went back to Murtagh. “And what are your thoughts on the proceedings, my dear?” Under her hands, which felt the child beneath her fingers go rigid and Tasalae did not like the feeling as he looked at the boy rider. His body was growing hot, sending forth magic through his skin. Then words in the ancient language came out and as he finished, Tasalae was shocked.
"I think I'll visit her soon Tasalae, thank you," She looked at him as he set down and looked up in time to see Tasia come over quickly, hearing the words and looked at Tasalae as she came to them. She looked at the child and then back at Tasalae before she spoke.
"I believe soon is now Endorin, the Queen wants you now or she will be sending over the guards or herself," Tasia said and she did not move. She bowed to the dragon, giving her respects to him and his rider before she waited for the child to move. Tasalae looked over at Nasuada whom had also stood up. This was already going pretty badly and Tasalae did not like it.
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.::Thorn::.
Novice
I Am Become Death, Destroyer Of Worlds
Posts: 50
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Post by .::Thorn::. on Dec 21, 2009 20:27:13 GMT -5
Thorn looked at Ikehr with his large red eyes. Though they weren't threatening toward the other dragon if anyone else were to have the same gaze used on them they would most likely not be able to hold it for more then a few seconds. "It is a pleasure to meet you Ikehr. Your Rider certainly is an interesting one isn't she?"He looked down on his Rider and at Malandra and was about to answer her question that she had asked him when Endorin. The elf child began his tirade against himself and Murtagh, That was enough insolence for twenty years let alone two minutes.
After the boy had finished and was standing facing Murtagh and himself with rage in his eyes. Thorn looked around the room for a few moments before he began walking toward the young boy. The Varden soldiers that approached him were not going to be able to do much with their long pikes. especially when Thorn was wearing his armor. Of course he meant no harm to the boy but he was going to let the child know that he would not tolerate such language toward his rider.
Once he reached the boy he lowered his head so that it was even with the elf's face. His deep crimson eyes glared deep into the young man's own eyes. Then he spoke in his deep voice, not just into the boy's mind, but he projected his words into the mind of all in the room. "You are brave. I will give you that, But words mean nothing to me. I would not fear for my life if I were to eat you here and now boy! But that would make me no better then what you people make me out to be. Know this child. I am no monster, But I am not afraid to do what I have to in order to keep my Rider and myself safe. But speak like that again and you will wish you hadn't. I will give you this warning only once. Do not test my patience boy!"
With that he growled menacingly at the young man and walked back over to his Riders side. Ignoring the angry shouts and whispered curses from the crowd to place his black armored self back onto the marble floor. He then returned his gaze to Malandra and spoke to her. "Forgive that little outburst of mine, It is good to see you as well Doctor"
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Post by Ashkii on Dec 24, 2009 23:18:18 GMT -5
After a while, the unsettling feeling in the pit of his stomach had started to fade away. This was just like the battlefield, the rider figured. Everyone was just using fake politeness and phony smiles. Their words were daggers that cut into the other person. It was just all metaphorical, was all. Though Murtagh didn’t have fancy words, he had learned how to use false courtesy; Galbatorix’s unending meetings had seen to that.
So, after sitting like a fool for a few minutes, and getting no quick response from Nemo, Murtagh decided he would approach Doctor Malandra Ramakrishna. He would have liked to catch up with Pele, but the rider saw that she was busy, and he wasn’t in the mood for getting shunned. He hoped that Malandra would have some interest in him, at least.
”Well, Thorn, time to socialize,” Murtagh murmured aloud, patting Thorn’s side. The dragon cast a worried glance over his companion but he said nothing, merely snorting as quietly as a dragon his size could. Murtagh took comfort in the fact that his friend was watching over him as he made his way over to Malandra.
The doctor was surrounded by important looking people, including the elf child. But his eyes were all for Malandra, and he took no time to study the others around her. As he neared, he saw that her body was even more magnificent up close. He swallowed heavily and tried to look away. But he was like a foolish mouse mesmerized by the eyes of a snake, and he just could not stop staring. Finally though - with the help of Thorn’s mental prodding - Murtagh focused enough to extend his hand and offer a greeting.
“Er…hello,” he murmured, standing near the doctor’s chair.
Once again, Murtagh was surprised with how charming and suave he could be. No wonder the women came flocking to his bed. The rider couldn’t help but smirk at his sarcastic thoughts. The notion seemed to amuse Thorn too, for Murtagh could feel his companion’s enjoyment in his mind. Trying to ignore the dragon, Murtagh forged ahead, aware of how pathetic he looked and sounded.
”It’s nice to see you again, Doctor. It’s been awhile.” The rider offered the doctor his hand, smiling with what he hoped was a charming grin. He hadn’t had much luck with Pele, but perhaps today was his day. Just as with the shade though, Murtagh’s natural instincts kept interfering. Like a magnet, his eyes were drawn to her exposed body, and he knew that Malandra saw it. It didn’t seem to bother her, which wasn’t surprising. Any woman who would wear what she had on couldn’t be self-conscious.
It was then that the doctor grabbed his hand. Instead of shaking it though, she began to hug him. Murtagh was so surprised that he offered no resistance. And even if he hadn’t been shocked, the rider doubted he would have fled from her embrace anyway. She was just as soft and womanly as she looked, and as he practically fell into the doctor’s lap, he was well aware that her breasts were pressed teasingly against his own chest.
Thorn didn’t find the moment as wonderful as he, it seemed. The beast’s snort was heard from above and the hug was ended - much too soon in Murtagh’s opinion. The rider grit his teeth as he turned to look at his dragon. Though it was said Malandra was crazy and had a horrible temper, any woman as beautiful as she that was willing to pay attention to him not just because he was a dragon rider was all right in his book. ”Thorn,”
[/i] he mentally growled, ”be nice.”[/i] Malandra wasn’t fazed by his friend though, and Murtagh breathed a sigh of relief. She acted as if she dealt with huge dragons every day of her life, and Murtagh couldn’t help but admire her. She was so graceful, so sure of herself. He would be surprised if he ever saw her make a mistake. And even if she did, she’d make it look like it was meant to happen. He was sure of that. As soon as the doctor was done dealing with Thorn, she swiveled him about to face the others that had been standing around her before he showed up. Tasalae, a sword-smith, and the child, Endorin. Murtagh tried to focus on their names instead of Malandra’s body and nodded, smiling at the pair in a friendly manner, although he barely even looked their way. He bowed to the two quickly, realizing he was being rude. He just couldn’t help it though. Not with such a beautiful woman standing beside him. The doctor then directed his attention to another scientist, and Murtagh cast his smile Remy’s way. Remy didn’t offer his hand, but bowed instead, and Murtagh, naïve as he was, found nothing strange with the gesture. Murtagh would have liked to talk with Remy – he was insanely nervous around the doctor and didn’t know what to say to her, and he doubted the two elves would be friendly enough to chat with him – but Remy was greeted by another woman, and quickly departed. The rider resisted the urge to call him back, and turned to smile shyly at Malandra and the others. ”And what are your thoughts on the proceedings, my dear?”He looked into Malandra’s eyes, finding that his mouth was totally dry. He took a deep breath and made a show of looking around at everyone. ”I don’t understand why I’m here, to be honest. Intelligent people like you can solve the problem just fine.” Murtagh smiled at her, hoping that she wouldn’t be offended by his compliments. He had found some women were, and it always baffled him. ”The riders were called just so each side could brag and seem strong. We’re not going to do anything but sit and cause arguments.”To tell the truth though, Murtagh wasn’t sure how smart the other riders were. He didn’t think himself very bright, but the others might be. Murtagh resisted the urge to groan at his potential insult. He hoped that his idiocy could pass off as cute to the doctor. Some women liked stupid guys, right? Before he could say anything else, or ask her a question in turn, Murtagh felt a presence in his mind. At first he was ready to attack the probing, but then he realized that it was Nemo, and he let the woman’s thoughts enter his head. He smiled, her presence calming. She too seemed not in her element at this meeting, and Murtagh felt that maybe they could be friends. …Or maybe friendly acquaintances. ’Thanks…’He felt his grin widen, glad that she had accepted his compliment. Maybe they could have a conversation! That would, for sure, keep the meeting from being boring. It might even help him with his anxiousness of talking with Malandra. The feeling didn’t last long though. ’And exactly what is Murtagh the Bloody Imperial Arseface doin’ in my ‘ead? I’d wager a bloody bet that it ain’t fer complimentin’!’His smile was quickly replaced by a look of worry. If she threw a fit before the meeting even started then he would for sure be to blame. And Murtagh could only wonder how Galbatorix would react. The fantasy of having a civil and interesting conversation with the other rider was obliterated as quickly as it had appeared. ”I assure you, I didn’t mean anything by it other than to compliment. I only wish that I could be myself. I wish I wasn’t afraid. I wish I was like you. It’s very…awkward for me to face the Varden again…. To be myself…no. That’s all.” He knew he was rambling, and he knew he sounded pathetic, but he was desperate for her to believe him. Before he could continue to ramble, Murtagh’s attention was diverted to Endorin. The child had suddenly stood and shouted terrible insults his way. The air was unexpectedly very hot, and Murtagh couldn’t help but add to the wards he had shielded himself with. It’s not like it would do much good – even Murtagh knew that elf children were terribly powerful – but he did it anyway. The child was speaking too quickly for Murtagh to catch everything he said, but what he heard made him cringe and step away. What had he done to make the kid so angry? Murtagh wasn’t mad, although some part of him said he should be. He was bewildered, to say the least. He opened his mouth to say something, but found no words. What was there to say? It was then that Thorn stepped in. If he hadn’t been so confused Murtagh might have had time to stop the dragon from continuing the scene. Thorn was civil though, probably realizing that what he said could cause a fight. Murtagh realized he had covered his face with his hands, but by the time Thorn had finished and had come over to stand by his side, he had removed them. He frowned up at his dragon, but there was no way to make Thorn feel bad. Besides, it wasn’t like he had attacked the child, right? Then, acting as if nothing had happened, Thorn addressed Malandra. ”You are, by far, the most embarrassing creature I’ve ever been forced to be with,”[/b] Murtagh told Thorn, and he could’ve sworn that the dragon’s lips curled up into a toothy smile. [/sup][/center]
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Kite
Junior Member
Now past the 1 year mark
Posts: 127
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Post by Kite on Dec 30, 2009 16:46:01 GMT -5
Daran
*Daran winces and steps back as he hears Thorn's speach to the the child and turns, walking back into the crowed towards his spot, leaning back against the wall. There was a flurry of activity going on that was hard to track for him, so he decided to tune it out, closing his eyes and letting it all fade to the background until the meeting actually starts.*
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Ava
*Ava nods as Remy takes her up on the offer to leave, noticing Malandra's expression. That was probably the reason he accepted, but Ava doesn't mind so much. Ava smirks at Malandra and sticks her tongue out just slightly at Malandra, enjoying the heck out of the situation. They reach the wall and his entire expression changes as she messages him in his mind. He locks her out for one, and seems to panic a bit more. She smiles softly at him, then he speaks. Hissing questions and theats at her is a little odd, but she shrugs and speaks softly to him.*
Vivec saw the mark, along with your strange arm... He did not know much, except the fact that your a scientist with the twin lamps, were part of the tribunal, and had the arm and the insignia... Interesting that your a double agent... However, I wont tell anyone of your past, at least what little I know of it. I find you intriguing, Remy. I want to help you out, in fact, with whatever plan you are formulating. Especially after our... altercation with Nasuada and her lackies. I think it would be a fun change of pace. What do you say, will you accept my aid?
*She smiles up at him, knowing that he will probably not accept. At least not yet. He may even cut off all contact, but Ava sorely hopes not. She tilts her head a little, waiting for his answer after speaking once more.*
My brother would aid us as well, I think. As well as others that I know. If you accept, of course.
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Post by Lady Nayeli on Dec 30, 2009 20:17:31 GMT -5
Okay, so maybe this was not the best place for the daughter of a Knight and the daughter of a royal family to travel to. Most of these people were not born into royalty, but I was. I was someone who was born into the richness of life, given everything I ever wanted, even though I did not want everything, I just wanted what I needed, but no, my father would not have his own daughter to be her own woman. Fancy dressed, beautiful jewelry, wonderful things, I hated! I dislike my father for such things, even thought I loved him for bring me into this life, that did not mean I had to like him. I was here and my father could get over that fact and I would be here to listen in on everything that these... People had to say.
People! Had, there were elves, dragons, kulls, and every bring in this room that I would be entering soon enough. I doubt I would get to have my voice in anything beyond a few hellos, but at least I could mentally laugh at everything that was being said between the two sides. It was funny that they were having a meeting and being at peace when they had been at war for more then enough time. I had talked about it for weeks, but it did not matter, they were meeting and I did not mind going. I was sure that I would see father or possible my brother, but it did not matter, I could not kill my brother and I doubt that the empire would be impressed by my father having a black eye from his daughter. The image was very nice though, a dead brother at my feet, his eyes looking at me with fear and cold death and my father's eyes black and blue from a nice punch to the face. It was a very nice and image and she loved the idea.
I walked from the wash room of the place I was staying, the castle that belong to Leona, or whatever her name was it. I pulled the cloth over my body, pulling the water from my tan skin, my ice blue eyes traveling around my room. My bare feet touching the floor as I made my way over to the bed I had been using. I grabbed my pants, pulling them up, allowing them the stretch to my body and then grabbing the tunic, which held long sleeves and was very tight on my skin. I grabbed the strap for my arm, but realized that I would need no need for a dagger, at least, that is what they told me. I placed my dagger up my sleeve instead, still strapping the holder to my arm, close to my shoulder. It showed that it was empty, but even I am not stupid. Assassins were trained for everything!
I pulled my belt on, my sword I would leave on my bed, but my belt gave me some kind of... Security? I guess I could call it that. People made me very nervous, I trusted my sword better then I did the people, of course most people trusted weapons better then the people they knew. Okay, I needed to move, people were waiting to start the meeting and soon enough it would be starting and I did not want to be late. I grabbed my last item, the cloak that my father had made. If it got cold, I wanted to be able to actually have something warm.
My feet moved me down the stairs, taking two at a time and jumping at the end before I rounded the corner. I saw a few soldier notice who I was and I stopped a young soldier from going anywhere. "Tell my father and you will receive the same treatment he will when I see him and that would be a few broken bones and possible a blood nose... You might be lucky if I kill you." I did not want to see my father, I had already seen him once with another woman other then my mother, I was pretty sure I would kill him quickly if I saw him. I entered the hall quickly after that, seeing many of dragons on both sides and then seeing many more empire then varden. I smiled, this would be fun. I looked and saw the handsome Murtagh and Thorn and then a few others around them. I did not feel like talk to anyone, honestly, I just wanted to sit down somewhere and wait for this thing to begin.
As I got to the empire side, it got crowded and my shoulder bumped into someone. "I'm sorry, this place is to small for so many people." I stated, looking at the person as I came to a stop. _____ _____ _____ _____ _____ I pulled my brown cloak over my body, concealing myself to all who looked around the large hall, filled with people, elves, dwarfs, and dragons, for the most part. My dark brown eyes did not move from looking out over the people around me. I had watched as things played out for most the day, watching as people entered and I had not even moved, standing as still as I normally did in this time. I had watched as each person just talk, mingled, and I was silent the whole time. The empire always made me a little... Cautious most the time. I had left the empire for a reason and being around them again without my sword was making me go crazy.
Nasuada had come, which was as nice as it could be, she was possible one of the most beautiful in this place, I had to admit, I had always like her for some reason. I could not help but watch her as she walked in, she was one of the most beautiful in all of Surda, I had not been able to do a thing without thinking about her when I was in her presence. I had to make myself not think about her for the time being and look out over the empire side, I could not help but take a look at some of the women, but not for very long, they were not nearly as beautiful as some of the Surda woman, including that Doctor... She had to be the most ugliest in the room, at least, in my honest opinion. I had to take another look around, just to see who was all her.
There was a slight bit of chaos on the empire side and as I watched I had to smile, it was rather funny watching as Tasalae and Tasia tried to do as they were told in order to keep the elf kingdom supports. If that elf child went to the empire, or was, taken to the empire, I was sure that the elves would start fighting to get the child back and forget about the Varden, but even I did not know, honestly, I was unsure if I cared what the child did. It was funny how the elf children were so much smarter then the normal child, I found it rather interesting, but I did not dwell on it long, for something caught my eye that I did not care to see.
I knew the woman as she entered the room, her black cloak which her father had had made for her so many years ago covered her body, but as she pushed the door a little, her dark black tunic, which was curving to her body with near perfection showed her beauty. I crossed my arms, pulling at my hood to cover my eyes more, I allowed on finger to touch the hidden dagger which I had hidden at the waist of my belt and moved my foot to check the one that was in my boot. My arms showed the muscles that covered my body and I looked at her... Lady Nayeli, my younger sister who was eighteen years old and hated my guts purely.
I did not fear for my life often, but she was good enough to kill me and I knew that she held the daggers in her sleeve. I looked over at her, she glanced at me before she ran into someone, but she could not see who I was. I adjusted my leg, propping it up on the stone. My brown pants covered my brown leather boots and my brown tunic was tucked into the pants and held by a belt, which normally held my sword, but my sword was not there. My mind was blocked and for good reasons, I did not want anyone finding out that I was Turin, the brother of Lady Nayeli and a traitor to a royal family of the empire and was trained by the empire themselves. _____ _____ _____ _____ _____ This meeting seemed to already be going down the drain, with that elf child coming into play, things were heading south. There was already tension between the two sides, even the guards did not like working side by side and I did not blame them. Many of the Varden Families had been killed by those empire scums, but it was not the time to be thinking about all this that had happened. Now was the time to work together and try and find some peace so that the Varden could build up. It was a rather sneaky thing, but new people were coming in everyday and they had to be trained. I knew better then to train them fast like normal, everything was on hold slightly, but people were still being trained back in Surda, just in case they were needed as soon as possible. I knew all about the empire, I had plenty of spies and I had a feeling that the empire had not stopped training, not for a moment.
I shook my head when I saw Tasia and Tasalae, two elves who had come in order to help me in the Elf Queen Orders. I had liked their reason for being here. They were leaving after this meeting, which was by far fine by me, they were needed by their own people and I had to focus more on the Varden then on girl talk, which we had seemed to catch ourselves in. I looked around for the Elf child, however, I could not find him and I was in need of waiting for this to start. I saw out of the corner of my eye someone else, I glanced and saw Turin, a great Warrior in the Varden Army, but he was nervous, he never hid his face.
I had heard of his past, it was not very pretty tale, his father had pushed him to take lesson, seemed to not love his mother at all and then he had left. He had told me many things, about his two sisters and how one was trying to kill him. It was rather bad, in my opinion and honestly I was happy not to have a sister or brother, honestly, I don't think I could handle them. He glanced over at me and I signaled him to come, but he shook his head, I gave him a confused look and then watched him turn his hidden eyes back to the empire. Something had caught his attention and now I wandered what.
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Post by Angmor on Jan 7, 2010 21:34:38 GMT -5
Taraak had made it clearly to the other side of the room, straight through the imperial delegation. Gods, this was all too easy. If he wanted to kill almost any one of these people, there would be very little stopping him. He would remember that. Maybe one day, when the hostilities inevitably started up again, he could get the Varden to arrange this kind of stunt. With some back up and a bit of planning, they could take out much of the imperial leadership in one large chunk. Of course, Taraak wouldn’t put money on his own survival of such an encounter, but if there was ever a mission worth dying to complete, it would be that. Of course, it was all theoretical. But with Dr Ramakrishna clearly presenting at least twelve places he could put a blade into for an instant kill not ten feet away, it was still very tempting.
Finding a convenient spot near the door that led to the assigned imperial quarters, falling into a relaxed position that Sergeant Baric had called a parade rest, his back straight, feet spread slightly, hands clasped behind his back. From here, he looked discreetly to his right, toward the colonnaded wall at the edge of the room. As he had suspected, this was where most of the imperial spooks had congregated. They were not particularly trying to hide. The dark clothing and earnest, calculating expressions of feigned disinterest gave them away. After doing this for so long, Taraak found them fairly easy to spot. Well, I supposed that's because they usually look like me. [/Color] It was then that realized he had rather seriously breached fieldcraft and had been looking directly at them. One of the imperial spies, a young man looking to be in his late teens, had his eyes locked right on him. He was probably right out of training camp, and he had obviously picked up on his presence. His eyes widened fractionally, and he turned and tapped the shoulder of the man next to him. This one looked far senior to the trainee, probably his superior. Taraak wondered if he should move off before his presence was questioned. If they were at all competent at their jobs, they would probably realize that he did not belong here… The man’s eyes met his, and Taraak could tell the look of instant recognition there. His first instinct was to make a dash for it, but he reminded himself that he was not technically in the middle of imperial territory. It was all neutral here, so it wasn’t as if he was breaking any laws by being here… It seemed the man went through the same train of thought, because his stance softened visibly. And, to Taraak’s utter astonishment, he bowed fractionally. Keeping the bewildered expression from his face, Taraak returned the gesture. His mouth twitching into a tiny smile, he turned away and resumed his position, watching over the crowd, like he hadn’t just found a Varden spy within ten feet of him. A brief moment of recognition, there and gone. Inwardly, Taraak shook his head. It was a crazy world. As he made to move off, something bumped him from behind, making him stumble forward. He recovered his balance quickly, hand reaching for the knife that he immediately realized was not in his sleeve anymore, the one he had hidden in his right boot… "I'm sorry,” Came a female voice from behind him. "I'm sorry, this place is too small for so many people." Taraak turned, relaxing slightly, but still very conscious of the position of his knife in case the imperial spook he had just seen had changed his mind and decided to try something funny. Probably just a shakedown, something that would not escalate to deadly force. But still, Taraak had not grown up in this profession by having that kind of attitude. Behind him, he found that he had been bumped into by a young, black haired woman, staring at him with the most intensely blue eyes he had ever seen. He subconsciously looked her up and down, evaluating her as a possible threat. The first thing he noted was her stance. While she did not have a sword with her, it was immediately apparent that she was used to carrying one. It was the way she leaned over to the right ever so slightly, compensating for the weight of a blade out of sheer habit. The second thing that he noticed was the empty knife sheath on her upper left arm, which would have held a much smaller blade in any other place. From the outline of the sheath, the dagger was small enough that she probably had it hidden on her person somewhere else. Of course, with her choice in clothing, there was not many places it could hide. Eschewing the more conventional use of a formal gown, she wore instead a set of clinging tunic and pants, so tight to her skin that he wondered how she got into them. He noted vaguely that it would probably be considered attractive by most men, but to this day he still didn’t really know what that meant. All that concerned him was that it would be almost impossible to conceal a weapon on her person, except in her boots, or perhaps her sleeves. And she had the look of a killer written all over her. He made his face take on a practiced look of bored ignorance, imperiously brushing himself off. “Yes,” He answered, his inspection taking only the barest of seconds. “I don’t think Lorana was expecting so large of a delegation.” He chuckled lightly. “Serves her right, the collaborating traitor. Are you here with the security force? Or are you here just to stand and look important while you watch the, uh, negotiations like the rest of these delegates.” With his ruse, he was betting that she hadn’t been briefed by the head spook yet, having just come in from the imperial quarters. He had the rare opportunity to try and learn what exactly the Empire had planned here, so long as he brazened his way through it and played his cards right. And if it failed, well, he would jump off that bridge when he came to it. . . . As Murtagh and his scarlet dragon ambled off toward the imperial table, Kyemen stood behind Ramsey with his arms crossed, trying unsuccessfully to relax his clenched jaw. He sighed inwardly. He had hoped that he was beyond this, but he wasn’t. He couldn’t help but remember that fateful morning on that fateful rooftop in Dras-Leona. The day where he had been snatched off the ground by the very pair that had stood not five feet in front of him. He had been dragged off to be interrogated by the king himself, wondering how anyone be so thoroughly enslaved that it would be completely impossible for them to obey. That had been the beginning of the startlingly short series of events that had led him to Sierthra, but he still could not get the images out of his head. Of course, it was hard to reconcile that powerful warrior with the groveling adolescent that had stood before him. He wondered what had changed since that day where they had last met, Murtagh’s confidence, or his own? Did the boy even remember that he had been the agent for changing Kyemen’s life? Considering he hadn’t even given a glance in his direction, it seemed doubtful. He sighed, trying to banish such thoughts. After all, here he was, among friends, and the Varden in the Empire were supposed to be at peace now. Might as well start acting like it. Glancing over his shoulder, he found Sierthra greeting the newly arrived Aviand in the traditional manner of the dragons, touching noses. While it was subtle, she noted Sierthra’s stiffness in the action. They were still only friends, then. Ever since Aviand had proclaimed his undying love for her, and she had not been able to return in kind, she had been careful to avoid the appearance of intimacy, so that she would not be seen to be leading the younger dragon along. At least that was one more thing that he would not have to worry about, at least for the moment. Turning, he found David standing just beside him, also watching Murtagh’s retreating back. Deciding it was easier, Kyemen opened his mind and reached out to his friend, knocking gently on his mental barriers. Kyemen hadn’t seen him for two weeks, not since he and Sierthra had been called to the Guarding Forest to investigate the infection, and he wanted to make sure nothing had happened in their absence. After so many drills in joint spellcasting with Oromis, David knew his mental signature about as well as anyone could, and opened his mind almost immediately. Greetings, friend. Anything interesting happen on this front while we were gone?[/Color] Before David could answer, Kyemen noticed that Ramsey’s face had taken on a sudden blank look, one that did not really suit her so-far pinched and angry face. Was someone getting inside her mind? Gods, she was still untrained, so she might not be able to fend off an attack just yet. He opened his mouth to say something, then hesitated. Did he dare? For all he knew, she was just thinking deeply, and if he disturbed her… No, if it was the last thing he did, he still had to check. “Uh… Nemo?” He said, casting himself into deep water. She blinked and seemed to wake up, eyes locking on him like those of a predator. “Oh… you.” She tilted her head and stared hard at him, making him regret disturbing her, and hoping that she would not graduate to trying to hit him with more than just words. Normally he would be confident against any one human, but with this one he wasn’t so sure… “Hell, maybe yeh ain’t as dodgy as I thought. Th’ name’s Ramsey. Nemo Ramsey.” Her expression changed suddenly, and she thrust her hand forward for the shaking. Hoping his bewilderment didn’t show, Kyemen took it. Elven bones did not break easily, but Ramsey made a very good go of it. Kyemen winced. “Charmed an’ all that.” She looked up. “Same ta you, Sierthra.” Sierthra bobbed her head, chuckling mentally. I think she likes you. Easy for you to say…[/Color] “Yours is a face meant for smiling, Mister Ramsey. A frown does not suit you.” Kyemen jumped slightly, looking for the source of the voice. A man stood to his right, having come in from one of the archways on the side of the room. Kyemen hadn’t heard his approach, which was surprising, until he noticed the pointed ears. Gods, he was getting sloppy. He was getting too used to working among slow, clumsy, noisy humans. The Empire had enough elves in its employ that such a habit could be dangerous. The man was fairly obviously from the Empire. Few others would dress in such distinctively human finery, preferring mostly dark colors. Not to mention the strange serpent tattoo on his face. Kyemen noticed no weapons, either, but he definitely had that look of someone accustomed to them. Definitely dangerous, but he could not tell exactly to whom. Nemo did not seem amused at his interruption. “Scuse me? And just who the feck are you?” “Name’s Cesar Insalata. Cez to my friends.” The elf replied coolly, bowing in a manner that did not appear in the least deferential. “I was simply interested in meeting some of the more esteemed members of the Varden before the negotiations get underway.” He turned to Kyemen suddenly, fixing him with his steely grey eyes. On seeing those eyes, Kyemen decided immediately that he disliked the man. He couldn’t tell exactly what it was, but those eyes reminded him too much of something… “And you too, Mister, uh, Straethir, is it?” He was asking, using his old house name that still sent a pang of sorrow through him, even after all these years. “Kyemen.” He responded, his tone neutral, showing none of the pain he still felt. “Just Kyemen. I lost the right to my house name a long time ago.” The elf frowned, his answer seeming to throw him off balance slightly. Good. Kyemen decided to hit while his opponent’s guard was down. “Did you come with the imperial delegation? You’ve already said your name, I know, but that tells me very little.”[/size][/blockquote]
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Post by Ze Flying Wraithetti Monstress on Jan 8, 2010 18:36:41 GMT -5
Murtagh was certainly a cutie.
Besides his looks, there was a certain vulnerability about him that was very attractive. He was quite obviously captivated by my beauty, which was to be expected, yes, but was still so entertaining. I always preferred the quieter, less aggressive sorts of men. Of course, by the time I was done with them, they were either raving mad or hardened into stone. Or dead, if they proved to be less than I’d expected. I certainly hoped I wouldn’t have to end up terminating Murtagh’s life. He was probably stronger than the quivering wreck my beauty had reduced him to, but I digressed.
“I don’t understand why I’m here, to be honest. Intelligent people like you can solve the problem just fine. The riders were called just so each side could brag and seem strong. We’re not going to do anything but sit and cause arguments.”
He gave me a shy smile. My own lips quirked up at the corners in genuine amusement. He wanted to please me. Simply adorable. Seducing him was going to be far easier than I originally thought. After all, nothing boosted one’s position like the approval of a Dragon Rider. Galbatorix would be the best choice, but he, unfortunately, was immune to my perfection. Some sort of mental magic or whatnot. Murtagh, fortunately, was not.
“Such modesty. I’m certain your intelligen-”
Before I could douse Murtagh with flattery- long ago, I’d realized that those with low self-esteem were the easiest charmed- Endorin stood, and quite rudely rained down a storm of accusations, profanity, and insults in the ancient language, some of which were entirely unknown to me. My eyes widened as his rage and hatred seemed to colour the air, making it uncomfortably hot. I grew nervous and angry. By the time Endorin had finished his tirade, I was grimacing, but I didn’t notice. Thorn’s lecture only served to make the tension even thicker. Apparently, I couldn’t have both my cakes and eat them too. Any chances I’d had of relaxing these two boys had gone down the toilet. I would have to let Endorin go. Despite my eagerness to study him, I had far better chances of succeeding at seducing Murtagh rather than him, and it looked like elf children were more powerful and dangerous than I’d expected. I would have to do a bit of reading up before I actually tried to contain one. As Tasia approached, announcing that Islanzadí wanted to see Endorin, my upper lip curled up into a snarl. Very well, then. The elves might have won this particular battle, but the war wasn’t over yet.
“Go,” I said curtly, releasing the child with a dismissive wave of my hand. Though I didn’t look directly at them, I saw the two elves lead Endorin away out of the corner of my eye, leaving me alone with Murtagh and Thorn. Alone. I relaxed.
“Now.” I schooled my face smooth. “I urge the two of you to take little offence to Lord Endorin’s… outburst. It was rude, yes, but he is a child, still untrained in the ways of the world, and few can be made to understand the agony of forced servitude.” Murtagh’s eyes widened, and I smiled radiantly and patted the seat on my right, the one Endorin had just vacated. Murtagh slid into it, gaping openly at me now. I allowed my face to soften, and my eyes to become sad and pitying. My smile faded as I brushed Murtagh’s dark locks of hair with my fingertips. “I understand it’s difficult. I regret what Galbatorix did to you both. I understand you feel angry. But be at peace.” I lay my hand on Murtagh’s cheek. “Not all of us are against you.”
The husky timbre of my voice, complete with my refined accent and sultry, nurturing tones entranced Murtagh. He looked about ready to fall off his chair. Even Thorn looked interested. I pressed onward, placing two fingers on Murtagh’s lips to shush the tirade of questions he was doubtlessly ready to blurt out.
“But this is hardly the time and place to speak of such things. I only wished to comfort you. However…” Now I leaned forward, my lips brushing tantalizingly against Murtagh’s left ear before flooding it with my voice once more, which now dropped to a low whisper. “If you desire, after the meeting we could… get to know each other a little better. Alone and undisturbed. What say you?”
Before I could pull some brilliant finishing touch to reel Murtagh in like squeezing or kissing him, I felt deep disapproval knocking at my mental barriers. Thorn. I immediately let him in, knowing exactly what was bothering him.
Thorn, I am aware that you are protective of your Rider. But I swear to you here and now, I shall not harm him while he is in my bedroom. And besides, intercourse improves both mental and physical reflexes, as well as increasing intelligence levels and reducing stress. And you cannot deny that Murtagh could use a little release, Great Dragon.
I smiled charmingly up at the glowering crimson eyes above me. Everything I’d said was true. And Murtagh was far too important to experiment on in my usual ways anyway. I couldn’t let him risk permanent injury, especially if I managed to get close to him. But something told me I would require Thorn’s leave before doing so- unless I wanted him crashing in, biting my head off, killing Murtagh, and otherwise disrupting our passion.
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I was confused, to put it mildly. Over a hundred years of hiding my identity and I slip up. And instead of some big, nationwide scandal promptly followed by Galbatorix cleaving my head off, one little elf girl becomes my most dangerous enemy. What are the odds? I was more scared than angry, but Ava just looked confused at my terror. She probably didn’t know that I’d been in cohorts with Big G. Maybe that was why she hadn’t publicly announced my shame yet. I was going to kill Sthenno.
“Vivec saw the mark, along with your strange arm… He did not know much, except the fact that you’re a scientist with the Twin Lamps, are part of the Tribunal, and had the arm and the ignasia… interesting that you’re a double agent. However, I won’t tell anyone of your past, at least what little I know of it. I find you intriguing, Remy. I want to help you out, in fact, with whatever plan you are formulating. Especially after our... altercation with Nasuada and her lackeys. I think it would be a fun change of pace. What do you say, will you accept my aid? My brother would aid us as well, I think. As well as others that I know. If you accept, of course.”
I blinked. So it hadn’t been Sthenno? Idiot, I should have realized Ava had seen what Vivec knew of me when she read his mind back in Aberon. I leaned sideways against the wall, rubbing the bridge of my nose and sighing. So it was my own stupidity after all. I glared hard at Ava, who was looking at me curiously. Sure, she said she wouldn’t tell anyone, but I hadn’t survived for over two hundred years by trusting everything at face value. She could bribe me, blackmail me, pretty much do anything she wanted with me. But she didn’t seem to understand how strongly I felt about keeping myself a secret, and what she’d said seemed genuine. But why?
Then it struck me. Gods, she wasn’t actually harbouring a crush on me, was she? I backed up, blinking rapidly. This was good. If she really liked me, she wouldn’t give me away… but gods, something had to be said about her taste in men!
“I, uh, I, uh…” I swallowed.
To look at it from a blatantly cold-hearted and analytical point of view, I could use this to my own advantage. She wouldn’t dare do something against me if she really wanted me. Emotionally, I wasn’t sure what I felt. Elves had never particularly liked me, and the only sexual interactions I’d had were with human women. I hadn’t engaged in any relationships in the past year or so, and I wasn’t willing to strike one up now. Maybe I could do that thing, where I showed the goods but didn’t let her have them, and make it some kind of a game, but I’d never been any good at that. Sex wasn’t really my forte.
But Remy, think about the logic. She wanted to help me. I hadn’t even given her a second glance back in Aberon and she was interested, maybe attracted to me. I realized I was sweating like a human. Swallowing, I tried to think of what it was that she liked about Remy Kamenwati. She wasn’t too fond of the Varden or Nasuada, like me, maybe that was it. If I kept her interest, she could be of use to me. I just wasn’t sure how, yet.
“What… what could you do?” I finally managed to say. Then I remembered something she’d said before. “And I’m not formulating anything. At least, not for here. Not for right now. Both Nasuada and Galbatorix want a good clean negotiation, no funny business, or at least that’s what I was told.” I was acting like a virgin, which irritated me, so I managed to calm and harden my shaking voice. “So I don’t need any help. Unless you were thinking of doing something spontaneous, I pray not?
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“Kyemen.” The elf’s voice was emotionless, not unkind but certainly not friendly either. “Just Kyemen. I lost the right to my house name a long time ago.”
How odd. I tilted my head, staring up at Kyemen. Most elves upheld their house names on silver platters. Cesar Insalata seemed to be thinking the exact same thing, because he frowned. But then, Kyemen seemed more human than elf- his face had been weathered and beaten so much that it had almost entirely lost its elven finesse, and his eyes were old and sad. He was nothing like the fair and insidiously happy elves I’d read about. But then, neither was Cesar, nor Islanzadí, or most of the other elves I’d seen here. According to Ramsey, they were all arrogant idiots. I had yet to gain a proper opinion.
Thorn’s voice was in my head again, so I briefly stopped paying attention. It is a pleasure to meet you, Ikehr. Your Rider certainly is an interesting one, isn’t she? I couldn’t suppress a chuckle. That she is. Your Rider seems awfully preoccupied with her. Murtagh, I’d noticed, kept shooting Ramsey forlorn glances from the Imperial table. In my opinion, humanoids were… well, hideous. Shapeless, baggy, wrinkled things, completely repulsive in the extreme. Until I got used to their looks, I wouldn’t have any clue about whom or what they considered attractive.
“Did you come with the Imperial delegation? You’ve already said your name, I know, but that tells me very little,” Kyemen was saying when I tuned in again. “I am part of your Empire, yes.” More than one suspicious glare was fixed on the strange elf. “But I do not… consider myself Imperial. You may have guessed, I am not from here, yes? I am merely here to mingle. Meet and greet, shall we say.”
Iberia! I remembered reading about that country. His accent and complexion seemed to fit. That explained a little, but I was still wary of Cesar. He was obviously rather proud of his fine clothing, but he didn’t seem used to wearing them. Somehow, it was easier to picture him covered in grit and dust, and maybe blood. He’d probably originated from a poorer region of his home country, and from his intense musculature and dangerously glinting steel-grey eyes, I seriously doubted he was just a paper-pusher for Galbatorix.
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I wasn’t having any fun here, which was to be expected. Besides Murtagh bumbling his way around his words in my head, Kyemen wanting to become bosom buddies with me, and now some Iberian arsehole accosting me, I was about ready to scream. And maybe I would. It would be amusing to see people’s reactions. However, at least now it was a little interesting to watch Cesar and Kyemen bandy words with each other. Kyemen obviously didn’t like this guy. And neither did I. Hoorah, something in common. We were practically best friends forever now! But before I could throw in a snide comment, the Imperial traitor at the other side of the room finally decided to reply to me.
I assure you, I didn’t mean anything by it other than to compliment. I only wish that I could be myself. I wish I wasn’t afraid. I wish I was like you. It’s very… awkward for me to face the Varden again… to be myself… no. That’s all.
What a weirdo. Still, he seemed truly, honestly upset, at least from his tone. And from the gazes he kept shooting me. I didn’t feel anything in particular about Murtagh’s betrayal- I didn’t blame him, frankly, for leaving the snivelling, annoying rebels. If it really was a bona fide compliment, then I supposed I could be nicer to him. He was applauding my confidence. I couldn’t help but preen a little. Oh, very well. After all, my life of piracy had been noticed- now people finally remembered the Dread Pirate Ramsey. And so, I had been christened as Back From the Dead Red. I had risen from a watery death, and it complimented my hair colour. I rather liked it. Murtagh was showing respect. And so, I decided to give him a little slack. But still, I kept my wits about me.
A’ight, yeh bodgy arseface. No need ta get whiny. Bloody ‘ell, ya wanna be like me? Buck up a little. I decided to soften my tone then. But, thank ya kindly. Nice ta be complimented for bein’ somethin’ other than a goddam Rider… “Señor Ramsey?” said Cesar in a sing-song voice. “Have your ears stopped working?” He’s been calling your name for almost a minute, said Ikehr matter-of-factly. “I’m a sheila!” I yelled, which startled even me. I was used to being mistaken for a boy. In fact, I even liked it. It was safer, I wasn’t weighed down with sexism, and it was always, always hilarious when people found out I was actually a woman. Cesar’s reaction was just as funny. His eyes bulged and his mouth twitched. I expected him to gasp out in shock, but then he suddenly smiled. “Well, that certainly explains a lot.” “Explains what?” I demanded hotly. “Your chest. Is awfully perky for a man. And yet my superiors told me you were one. But I suppose from a distance, that is what could be assumed. But I still stand by what I said. Your face is meant for smiling, Señorita Ramsey. It is an attractive one. Unconventionally and exotically so.”
I didn’t know what exactly pushed me to attack. Maybe it was the very unnecessary comment on Cesar’s part, which, I realized, was underlain with mirth- he was hiding a laugh, or maybe it was the fact that at that moment, Ikehr made a very noisy shrieking sound that was a dragon’s laughter. It shocked me. He laughed very rarely. And so, I rose from my seat and brought my fist back, aiming to knock the little loser’s nose right off. But just then, a hairy and painfully strong hand grabbed my arm, stopping my punch short. I glanced backwards, and was surprised to see a Kull holding me. Nasuada was standing beside him, head tilted to the side. Oh, goody. My life just kept getting better.
Words;; 2638. Shorty! Muse;; Good right up until the very end. Then it went FFFT. Thoughts;; All good except the ending, which wasn't ended well! Rawr!
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.::Thorn::.
Novice
I Am Become Death, Destroyer Of Worlds
Posts: 50
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Post by .::Thorn::. on Jan 9, 2010 15:54:26 GMT -5
Thorn watched as the young elf walked away and Murtagh took the seat that had been made vacant by his departure. But when Thorn looked again he now saw that his Rider was now sitting beside her, And that made him uncomfortable. Thorn had no personal quip with the woman. But he did not especially enjoy nor did he fully understand what his Rider and this woman were discussing. Malandra did not seem outwardly like a very malicious person, but Thorn had seen what was in her mind. He had seen through her thoughts what she had done in the past.
But then she contacted him and started speaking "Thorn, I am aware that you are protective of your Rider. But I swear to you here and now, I shall not harm him while he is in my bedroom. And besides, intercourse improves both mental and physical reflexes, as well as increasing intelligence levels and reducing stress. And you cannot deny that Murtagh could use a little release, Great Dragon." When she finshed she looked up into his eyes and smiled. Thorn's only reply was a slightly reasured grunt. "It is up to my rider, But if you harm him in any way. Well lets just say you won't like what happens." He growled at her angrily. He showed her his teeth for emphasis before returning to watching the other dragons, Ikher also contacted him. When the young dragon had finished speaking Thorn reached into the hatchlings mind and spoke. "Indeed, However he is more interested in Malandra I think" He spoke kindly to the young dragon. "Tell me little one, What is it like to be free? I have never known the taste of true freedom." He asked the little dragon.
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Post by Lady Nayeli on Jan 9, 2010 21:37:56 GMT -5
Great! I had to bump into someone, had to do that in front of the many royals of the empire, the only people I really wanted to try and impress if that is what you wanted to call it. I hated to embarrass myself, could careless about embarrassing others around here. I could embarrass others without even thinking about it, and here I was, trying to figure out who the hell I had bumped into. I was lucky that my knife was hidden on the edge of my right wrist, which was hidden behind my cloak and for a very good reason, my clothing was skin tight and once I got to my seat, it would be hidden, behind my back so others could not see it under my sleeve when I lifted my hand. I still felt the embarrassment that was coming with the normal stuff, I hated not being about to brush off the feeling, it was the worse thing in the world to me. I hated it!
The man whom I had bumped into seemed embarrassed and kind of scared, surprised by everything and reaching for someone. Assassin? No, he did not have the profile to be a assassin, at least, in her honest opinion. A assassin was much more smooth about everything, did not show fear, just caution and defiantly not surprised. If I had been surprised, it would already be whipped clean. No fear, surprise was on my face, but embarrassment wrote in my eyes, even though I always did my best to hid such a thing. I saw how he relaxed quickly, but still, he was too tense about everything. I leaned a bit to my right, where my blade was normally held, but I did not let it through my off balance, I was able to switch my normally lean to the left, making it look like I held it on one or the other hip, which, for a assassin, it could happen. They had to be able to do anything with a weapon.
My ice blue eyes looked at him, my black hair nearly tied still, it was nice to know that I looked good enough for the men. I had to roll my eyes at the thought, the point of men looking at women was beyond my mind, about like that Doctor. I saw her just out of the corner of my eye and nearly got sick at her outfit, if you wanted to call it that. "The sick woman, I don't know what the King sees in his doctor." I honestly saw the sickest and most disgusting person in the world... And who was that beside her... Murtagh! Oh, the handsome devil, I could not help but smile before my eyes went to the man before me. He himself was also good looking, I had to say that myself. His eyes kept traveling over my body, I almost thought about punishing him now, but I did not, it would not be nice to see my father because I got escorted out by his lovely guards.
“Yes,” I looked back at him, watching him now as I waited for him to speak again. I had a feeling he would. “I don’t think Lorana was expecting so large of a delegation.” I agreed completely, I had to say that the castle was far to small for the dragons, elves, kulls, humans, and anything else that might be lingering in the corners. “Serves her right, the collaborating traitor. Are you here with the security force? Or are you here just to stand and look important while you watch the, uh, negotiations like the rest of these delegates.” I glanced at him for just a moment and chuckled under my breath.
"Just to watch, my father told me I was not to come... He is one of the main knights for the King... I hate listening to him... He is a idiot," I said, looking around for a moment, seeing something over, not far from Nasuada a cloaked figure. Nasuada looked back at the figure, her head turned I could not see her say anything, but the figure shook his head and propped up his foot on the stone wall. I did not know who he was, but I hated people who hid their face.
_____ _____ _____ _____ _____
Nayeli was talking to someone, I knew the person, but I said nothing, just watched her as she spoke, how she studied me for just a brief moment and then went back to looking at the man. I did not like her being here, it put me in danger and I already knew my father was here, had passed him during the day on my way into this place and because I went to the Varden Guard, he could say nothing to me. I did not like the idea of being here, but I had come in order to see what was going on. I had been working on so many things that I had missed a lot, but I had made the many battles, has seen my sister on the battle field so many times. I was tired of running from her, but I knew her skill, she was better then people believed, that was for sure.
_____ _____ _____ _____ _____
I had looked over at Kyemen, he was a rather handsome dragon rider, but I was not into love and relationship, only friendships. He was a good rider and a wonderful man for the Varden. His dragon, was one of the most beautiful, though, Saphira was also very beautiful indeed. He looked very... Tense and even I did not like that once bit. It was Ramsey, the youngest of the riders and he was having to deal with the rebel. I did not like it either, she was too rebellious and she joined us because she was free here. Dragon Riders were meant to be the higher power, they held authority, so I could not control them, but if they did not join the Varden, they would be found and they would be forced. Ramsey was not meant to be forced, she was too much of a rebellious devil. But then again, he was looking towards the empire side also, towards the red dragon Thorn and his Rider... Murtagh.
I had once believed we had something special, I would go to him daily, spend hours talking with him about nothing, learning about him. It was too late though, he was working for the empire, even though it was... Forced. Murtagh was meant to be free, maybe if the king was killed, we could have a life together, but some how, I really doubted such a thing. He would never look at me again, because he had been trying to kill Eragon and he knew I was Eragon's friend and I loved Eragon, very much.
My eyes went back to Kyemen and saw his beautiful dragon, Sierthra, who seemed so graceful just standing there. Dragons were a very pretty beast, beautiful in the many words that could be given. I watched as she greeted Aviand and nodded to both of them, since I was already seating down, I did not stand, for I knew the debate would be starting soon enough. I watched for just a moment before I saw Kyemen look towards Ramsey, a sudden blank look on her face and I stood. She normally held a very pinched, uncaring, angry face... This was different. I did not like it, I was about to ask many spell caster to block her mind, but I looked at Kyemen. I trusted him to know what to do with the rider who had joined the same group he had. I watched, they were just close enough I could hear them. “Uh… Nemo?” I allowed my eyes to go to Ramsey and she came from her trans, looked at him like he was pray.
“Oh… you.” I stood and walked to the Kulls and then made my way slowly towards them, the Kull leader by my side. I did not want to know what was going to happen next, but it was my job to make sure there was peace between the riders and the people. “Hell, maybe yeh ain’t as dodgy as I thought. Th’ name’s Ramsey. Nemo Ramsey.” I watched as her expression changed, my own mind was running with reason why she had been blank and now... Her normally self. Kyemen took his hand in a handshake and I was him wince. If she was that strong to make a elf wince that showed strength. “Charmed an’ all that... Same ta you, Sierthra.” I glanced at Sierthra and saw her bob her head. I saw something flash before the rider and dragon, they were talking about something.
“Yours is a face meant for smiling, Mister Ramsey. A frown does not suit you.” I allowed my eyes to settled on another, a new face, I had yet to met. I did not know him, but he did not look like someone I would like. He was a blond elf? I had never seen such a thing, but by the looks he was with the empire and I did not like it very well and he also held a black serpent on his face.
“Scuse me?” I looked at Ramsey, I did not like where this was going to be leading. Ramsey was very... Hard to understand... In my honest opinion. “And just who the feck are you?” I looked back at the man, I was standing next to my Kull who was ready for anything.
“Name’s Cesar Insalata. Cez to my friends.” Cesar? I had never heard of him, not even his last name sparked a memory in my mind. “I was simply interested in meeting some of the more esteemed members of the Varden before the negotiations get underway. And you too, Mister, uh, Straethir, is it?” Kyemen was a elf and he had been spooked, it was something I did not like, I would have to make sure everything was okay. No elf, much less, a rider needed to be spooked by something like that. I saw the grey eyes that he held on Kyemen and saw the dislike. I agreed with him, I did not like this elf... Not one moment.
“Kyemen... Just Kyemen. I lost the right to my house name a long time ago.” I did not even know of that myself, but I did not ask any questions, just watched. “Did you come with the imperial delegation? You’ve already said your name, I know, but that tells me very little.” It told me little also, but I was still silent, everything was going nicely without my interruption.
“I am part of your Empire, yes.” I waited, placing my hands in front of me now, just watching as everything went pretty well. “But I do not… consider myself Imperial. You may have guessed, I am not from here, yes? I am merely here to mingle. Meet and greet, shall we say.” Mingle? Just what we need, a imperial mingling with out side, getting information that they did not need. Just the personality of the others would be useful enough if they did not know a certain individual.
Ramsey was being rather quiet, which I was fine with, I did not need her temper problems bring up a flare now, she could be as quiet as she wanted to for all I cared. She was too free spirited, I could only hope it went away when the dragon got older and she got wiser, she would need to calmness. Cesar, however, was ruining it now, as she repeated her name over and over. “Señor Ramsey?” I looked at him, was he that dumb that he believed her to be a man and not the woman that she was. “Have your ears stopped working?” I wanted to hit him myself, I was beginning to get a little tense, watching.
“I’m a sheila!” Her voice came out quickly and the yell was sharp. I did not care to hear the fighting, but I watched her for a moment, waiting. She looked startled, which confused me for a moment. I looked at Cesar and I could not help but mentally smile at him.
“Well, that certainly explains a lot.” I looked at her. This was going to be going down hill very fast and I was ready. I glanced at the Kull who was ready to stop a fight in case it broke out.
“Explains what?” I looked at him, waiting for his answer. He really needed something stuck in his mouth to keep him from talking. He was digging a very deep hole.
“Your chest. Is awfully perky for a man. And yet my superiors told me you were one. But I suppose from a distance, that is what could be assumed. But I still stand by what I said. Your face is meant for smiling, Señorita Ramsey. It is an attractive one. Unconventionally and exotically so.” I looked at her, she was not one who liked to be called attractive, she would rather be called ugly then that, but again, I waited, I was almost scared to know what was about to spill from the pot. Cesar was holding back a laugh, which was not good at all and Ikehr, her young dragon had let out a loud dragon like laugh and I had never heard the dragon laugh, of course, I did not know him very much.
I watched as she rose from her seat and pulled her hand back, aimed right at his face, I would have let her, but he was imperial and it would only cause a bad thing to happen. The Kull grabbed her arm, pulling her back and looking at her. He grabbed both her arms, making her stand there right in front of him and I stepped forward. "I hope that you two do not mind me stepping in, I believe this conversation is getting a little out of hand, if I may say so... Sir Cesar, I would be happy if you would... Return to the imperial side, unless you would like to speak to myself." She did not even looked at Ramsey, just looked at the blond elf, my golden brown eyes watching him.
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Kite
Junior Member
Now past the 1 year mark
Posts: 127
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Post by Kite on Jan 11, 2010 0:10:02 GMT -5
Daran
*Daran stirs and looks up again, looking around the room. His sister seems to be engaged in other activities, intent on the feminine looking Imperial Elf. He wonders why, briefly, and then decides to look into it later. He figures that she will tell him about it later on, and therefore does not worry on it. He shifts slightly in his spot, glad that he has the knife sheathed in the lower area of his back, under his shirt, skillfully arranged to not give much if any sign of being there from practice. He would feel strangely vulnerable without it.
He sees all sorts of important, accomplished people talking to each other, and then he notices one member of the congregation focusing with unnatural attention on another member of the group who was talking with another Imperial. He notes that they have similar traits, and puts it in the back of his mind that they are probably related. He then walks over to the man, and speaks softly to him.*
What did your sister do to attract so much of your attention, friend?
*He looks at Turin curiously, waiting for the response, and wonders what his response will be.
Probably to screw off, as I am butting in, but who cares. This is more entertaining than the so called importent people.
He focuses on specifically looking at him, fixatedly so that he doesnt think that Daran is asking anyone else than him, and awaits the response.*
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Ava
*Remy’s face was a study in the emotions of a humanoid, and Ava smiles inside at this. Anyone who needed a lesson on the true nature of the Elvish emotional response hidden deep below need only look to Remy. His reactions are fairly entertaining to her. She was quite fond of this tall former rider, and he was decidedly more interesting than the milk-toast, brutal, senseless elves back in Du Weldenvarden. He seemed so confused, and a little shocked before she had spoken of Vivec. Then he seemed to blink and gain the epiphany he needed to understand a little better. It makes her think though, who else knew of his history that he would suspect instantly? Something to ponder later perhaps.
Suddenly, he backs up and blinks rapidly, as if taking in yet another realization that shocked him to the core. It strikes her that her actions could possibly make him buy the cover that she has a crush or infatuation with him. This amuses her and makes her think a little. It could possibly get that far, but not yet. Not yet. However, her offer was completely genuine. His stammering makes her close her eyes and cover a giggle that threatened to burst forth. Somehow, she had though he would be slightly better at dealing with that sort of situation that he seems to be. If that is what he is thinking. She could have possibly just switched him around and put him off balance. This was more likely, although she thinks not, or at least would rather take it the other way for laughs.
She gets the feeling, through the time that he was thinking so intently, that she was probably fairly bland seeming. Boy, she had better fix that quick. That just wouldn’t do, though it would explain a lot. When he finally responds she smiles softly at him, repressing another giggle.*
Remy, I can do much. I am a skilled spellcaster and fighter, as well as being competent in most things martial. That much should be apparent, though it may not be so apparent until you witness all of said skills… or saw how much Nasuada is paying me. And do you think me silly enough to think that you, who has apparently hidden for so long, would do something here? Now? I think not. I mean your goals overall. I think that both of us would rather see Ramakrishna do something stupid and have her be finished off. I know your goal must be something to do that is anti-Imperial, as you obviously no longer have that dragon of yours, whatever your ties or grudges are with the Empire. The important thing is that you are against them now. I am very sorry about that, by the way. However, your disdain for Nasuada and her lackeys, like Tasia and Tasalae over there…
*She waves her hand off towards those two, then continues speaking*
… indicates to me that you do not necessarily agree with the Varden and all that is. That means, when push comes to shove, you have very few true allies. However, I would like to be one of those allies. Nasuada sickens me, she is becoming like the enemy, and no good will come of that. However I agree that Galbatorix is an excessively brutal ruler, though cunning and powerful.
*She leans her head towards Remy and finishes her thought*
I would even be willing to allow you into my public mind so that you can sense my honesty in this matter of becoming your ally and keeping your secret, as long as you try to go no further. This is not my worry. My question is, however, what are your plans and how may I help with them, if you will allow me to?
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