Day 2: WednesdayIn
Fendmoore a homeless girl, curled up underneath a bench, woke up to the rising sun. Her parent's had died when she was a baby and since then her uncle had been taking care of her. A tall fellow, very well-to-do, who always treated Aurora like a princess. However, he was far too ambitious for his own good. In fact, George Serna, the uncle, had noticed a change in the world just before the King died. It was suddenly darker to him, and at the realization of this change, he formulated a plan. He'd heard rumors of an island where ancient stones were said to hold powers of insight and even foresight. If he had this knowledge he could return to the mainland with new information and spread the word, adding fame to his wealth. So the day the King died, George just so happened to set out on his journey. He would travel to Fendmoore and buy a boat, then set sail on his own in search for these stones. Oh he loved his niece, and it broke his heart to leave her behind, but at the same time, the past 6 years of his life were ruined by having to babysit for this child instead of living life in its prime. He was now an older man than he was 6 years ago and if he waiting any longer, he might never find his purpose in life.
After abandoning the child and setting sail, George Serna was confronted by a horrible storm on the sea. His boat wrecked, and he drowned. Karma seemed to have been watching his every move.
Aurora shivered, then stood up and began walking around Fendmoore, unnoticed by the local populace, but at least today she woke a little less hungry.
In
Unificus, the Royal Guard would continue parading through the streets, shouting word of the census taking place tomorrow. Everyone was to be in their homes from the hours of 8 a.m. tomorrow, to 8 a.m. the next day. Prince Wensil had a large number of men at his disposal in reinforcing Unificus and making the city safe for its loyal citizens. Over the next days, more and more Royal Guardsmen would patrol the streets and man the towers around the city.
Scott Hemming woke that day at his usual time--before the sun rose, and poured his tea. He thought of his visitor last night and of what the day would have in store for him. It had been a while since the old man had gone out in public, so he ruffled through his clothes for something clean, and dressed after he sponge bathed some of the stench off of him. He opened the door as the sun was shedding the first light of the day on the city.
Crossroads looked like the after picture of a great arena. Outside one inn, in particular, 4 bodies were being dragged away by a clean-up crew. More members of the clean-up crew were scrubbing at and mopping up the blood stains on the ground. The citizens of Crossroads didn't even pay attention to the mess, but travelers passing by could help but stare.
A woman dressed in a dark emerald robe and traveling from the west part of town laughed as she passed by, but then abruptly stopped, after realizing what just escaped her mouth.
Lord Zenith woke in his palace in
Shisra, and after dressing and eating, he walked to his throne room. The aesthetics of success always amused Zenith. He really had no desire for all the fancies that power brought, but he realized they were necessary to maintain a proper image. Zenith threw the doors open with his mind and then was pleasantly surprised. There in front of him was a man, a man who was definitely out of place and escorted by Ryan Scott, Zenith's head guard.
"Is this who I believe it is?"
Ryan Scott quickly answered, "We've been searching night and day for him, yesterday we finally found him cooped up in a dirty old shack outside of town."
Zenith eyeballed the lad with no expression on his face. "Very well, he needn't be here, however. I have no use for him unless he really is capable of what I heard. Take him with the others to the Arena."
Ryan stood upright, "Yes sir." He took Vael by the arm and led him to the Arena. The Arena was huge, and inside it was more of a heavily guarded marketplace than anything else. "Here you will be allowed to outfit yourself for your fight. It seems Zenith wants to see your power in action, so you'll be pitted against some random bloke in the Arena. Feel free to look around, choose a weapon, some armor if you'd like. Just make sure you're ready for the fight, it will be at midday."
Captain Orion was eager to process his new Lieutenant into the Army of the Republic. The day prior, Orion told Pyrrhus to gather what belongings he needed and show up at the Castle Armory in the morning. Pyrrhus would be positioned directly under a veteran officer, Captain Nerub, and would have the unique opportunity of being a part of the 1st infantry battalion under Prince Capsol's banner. This battalion would be the first to step foot outside of Castle Terna since the King died and it's soldiers were eager to experience the excitement of war.
Deep in the Castle, the Order of Paladins made council with Prince Capsol. The prince sat at the head of a large table, with cloaked figures lining the rest of the table. Each paladin was tall and dark, a contrast to their holy ways.
The prince spoke loudly and fast. "
Why has this council been summoned?"
One of the paladins stood and spoke, "Prince Capsol, we believe you blinded by rage towards your brother and are acting too hastily with the draft and advancement of your military." Any other man would be a fool to speak such words to the prince, however, these ancient paladins held great prestige in the kingdom and the prince was lucky to have them on his side.
Prince Capsol took a deep breath, "I realize your meticulous ways of planning and plotting, gentlemen. However, time is
NOT a luxury I currently have at my disposal. My brother, is currently refortifying what should be
my city, and I will not stand idly by while
now is the best chance to strike!"
"
Young Capsol," another, older paladin projected from the end of the table, "if you send an assault against Unificus now, you will surely fail."
The prince was clearly flustered, "Old paladins, instead of questioning my methods, where is your support? Why don't you aid my 1st battalion of soldiers and send some of your paladins to fight along side them? Or do you not truly support me in the first place?"
The Order of Paladins remained quiet for a moment, then whispered among itself. One paladin stood up. "We will send paladins with you, m'lord, despite our reluctance to support such rash actions."
With that, Prince Capsol stood and exited the room abruptly.
Rumor of the DaySoldier #1: I talked with a goblin once.
Soldier #2:
What? That's nonsense, everyone knows goblins are unintelligent creatures, capable only of mindlessly destroying anything made by man!
Soldier #1: No, I swear it! The goblin even made me dinner and I sat down with its family!
Soldier #2: You have been in this army way too long! *hysterical laughter*
Soldier #1: *joins in with more laughter*
-Unificus will have a census in 1 day
-The 1st Battalion of Prince Capsol's army will deploy along with a platoon of paladins, supporting the movement, 0600 tomorrow
-The Arena in Shishra will have its premier fight today, between Mark Vix (a legendary adventurer) and young Firemaster, Vael
-A shadow fell over Crossroads