Fable - Ask Among Strangers

[Eldrin]

An eyebrow slowly perked. "Pretty, but not smart I see."

The Elf shook his head, as if disappointed by the fact. There was no sense of irony about him, no telling if he was mocking her just to be cruel or if he was just trying to provoke some sort of reaction from her. The air that clung to him spoke of deliberate intent.

A man who planned and plotted, not threw around comments at random.

"You've been kidnapped." He said, though there was a quirk of a smile at the edge of his lip to suggest another jab. "Taken."

The Elf reached out and drew his index beneath her jaw. "As my Prisoner."

A fact he seemed rather pleased of.

 

[Rosaline]

She glared at the man and yanked her head back from his touch. His condescending remark made her grit her teeth, but she bit back a scathing retort. If he was the one in control, she needed to find a way into his good graces. If there was such a thing with him.

"Is there where I'm supposed to beg you to return me to my husband?" She responded instead.

Rosaline leaned back again the side of the cart with a quiet sigh. She stared up at the covering for a few moments, mouth quirked to the side in thought.

If he wanted to use her against Aguilar, she wasn't sure what to tell them. It was no secret to her that her husband held her in nothing but disdain. He used her for his own ends, whatever they may be, but there was no affection between them.

The thought made her heart ache.

Her mind drifted to Nil, conjuring the knight's face and his kind smile. She wasn't alone though, there was happiness to be found in Maricielo.

"What do you want from him?" She finally asked with a sigh, returning her gaze to the Elf.

 

[Eldrin]

The Elf chuckled with genuine amusement, a smile crossing his face as he shook his head. The expression seemed natural on him, as if he was made for it, as if he should have been happy. "I doubt you could lie that well."

He mused.

It was almost as if he knew. Knew that Aguilar did not like her, that her life was a hell on it's own in a strange sort of way. The way that he looked at her made it seem as though he knew quite a bit, those strange blue eyes almost piercing.

"I want what is ours." Eldrin said. "What Aguilar took, and slaughtered thousands for."

A grimace flickered over his features. "I want him to hurt. To ache. To feel the ruin that he's brought to so many others."

He would do that through her.

 

[Rosaline]

Rosaline felt a chill take hold of her gut as the man spoke, explaining the gravity of her situation without actually telling her.

He was not going to be kind, and it was likely that he planned to hurt her.

Instead of pleading for the man to let her go, Rosaline gave a quiet and dejected sigh. She was frightened, terrified even, but exhaustion pulled at her -- not just physical, but emotional and mental exhaustion.

She felt drained and hollow.

Would she ever be more than a means to an end for the men in her life? Or was she only a tool to everyone who crossed her path.

"Perhaps you should have taken his hunting dogs... Or his stallion. He'd likely be more concerned if that were the case." She finally retorted with a crooked attempt at a smile.

 

[Eldrin]

A quiet 'tsk' escaped his lips.

"Yes, he is rather the monster isn't he?" Eldrin said with a shake of his head, drawing in a breath as if almost rueful about the situation. He gave her a knowing look, gaze flickering over her form for a moment before they drew back to her eyes.

"I suspected it would be as much." The Elf told her. "But..."

Slowly he reached out, grasping her hair. There was a surprising amount of gentleness to his touch. Not yanking her forward, not hurting her, but grasping her enough to pull her towards himself. "You are still his Queen, my dear, and that means something in these lands."

To the people. The other Crowns.

Her life was more than hers. It belonged to the nation. Aguilar knew that, he knew what it meant.

"But I can make you a promise now." A sinister smile touched his lips. "You'll enjoy your time with me."

 

[Rosaline]

She didn't like the way he was smiling at her. The promise he made sounded far more foreboding than the actual words themselves.

Still, with his hand gently grasping her hair, Rosaline didn't dare try to move. He wasn't hurting her, but she was afraid that his grasp could turn violent in an instant.

She'd seen Aguilar snap for less.

It took the lost queen a few moments to gather the courage to speak again. "Whatever he did... I'm sorry." She whispered, the fear causing her voice to tremble.

 

[Eldrin]

"It's no fault of your own." Eldrin was not so delusional as his cousins down in the south. He did not think that every human was evil, that each and every one of them deserved some form of death.

He knew that there was good among them. Knew that a good many of them would be glad to live among his own people. Some of them had even been ruled by him.

That knowledge changed nothing though. "But I appreciate the sentiment."

The smile on his face never changed, but an odd sort of pulse ran through his eyes. A shift that seemed to rush in a wave through the strange blue. As though something had swam to it.

His fingers drew her a bit closer, his lips just an inch from hers.

"Relax." Eldrin said softly, a strange sickly sweet smell filled her nostrils as he spoke. "It will all be okay."

 

[Eldrin]

It took some time before they reached their destination.

They were in a deep forest, the trees larger and taller than they had been in the grove where Rosaline and Nil had gone for their picnic. As the cart came to a stop Eldrin pulled a knife from his pocket, Rosaline seeing the blade that had been held to her side for the first time.

It was an ornate thing, beautiful, with a stark green gem set into the back of the hilt that seemed to shine with light even when not touched by the sun.

The Elf reached over and gently cut the bonds around her ankles. "Step off the cart, please."

Eldrin said with a gesture of his hand.

When she stepped off the back Rosaline would see the smallest clearing around them, tucked away within it was a village, or at least the beginnings of one. Three buildings, none larger than two or three rooms. A dozen or so Elves milled about them, most glancing over to the cart and offering a wave.

Men, women, and even a few children seemed to smile as they saw Rosaline's Captor, offering smiling faces and warm greetings.

 

[Rosaline]

She glanced anxiously around at the villagers, pursing her lips slightly. The woman didn't speak as they greeted her kidnapper so warmly.

Instead, she stood silently and did her best to fade into the background. All she wanted was to be invisible like a proper Fae.

When she looked around the clearing, she was hoping to find Bone-Face standing in some shadow... But she never found him. Her heart sank, realizing how truly alone she was.

The sound of Nil screaming her name filled her thoughts and her frown deepened. Was he okay? He must have been injured... And there was no doubt that he blamed himself for what happened.

Rosaline caught a glimpse of a familiar figure... It was the woman who had cut in back at the festival. She was smiling and laughing as she greeted her family.

Anger smoldered deep in Rosaline's chest. These people had set out with the intention of kidnapping her, and they were delighted to have succeeded.

To them, just like the King they so hated, Rosaline was nothing more than a tool. She wondered if they even aware of the similarities.

 

[Eldrin]

They might not have known, but Eldrin did.

He was not a crusader for justice. He was not a man that believed all were equal or deserved to be treated the same. He was a man out for his people, or what little was left of them. He knew what he wanted, what he needed to do to get it.

There was no fighting that. No stopping that. Not if Aguilar was the ruler of his Kingdom. Not if he was the one deciding upon these things. "That way."

He told Rosaline softly, pointing towards one of the buildings.

A few of the children began to make their way towards Rosaline and Eldrin. A few were staring at her, wide eyes filled with shock and surprised as they observed the first human they had ever seen.

Eldrin waved them off, his hand quirking as he shooed them away.

"Later, later." He called to them in an unfamiliar tongue, leading Rosaline towards the smallest of the buildings that sat within the grove.

 

[Rosaline]

Rosaline followed along behind Eldrin as he guided her towards the building. She didn't know where he was taking her, but she didn't particularly care. It would be away from the villagers and give her a moment to be alone, she hoped.

The woman glanced briefly to the children that scampered around. They were cute, but she could hardly appreciate them in her current state.

She quirked her mouth to the side and then looked down at the rope still tied around her wrists. It seemed ridiculous, it wasn't as if she was a fighter or skilled with a weapon. What was she going to do? Knit her way to freedom?

Still... There were plenty of Fae flitting about through the trees and flowers in the grove. Perhaps she could convince one of them to assist her...

 

[Eldrin]

The building was surprisingly well put together, though it was easy enough to tell that it was old. Most of the wood seemed warped and shifted in color, and the doorway itself was half peeling with pain.

Eldrin lead Rosaline forward, pulling open the front door and motioning for her to step inside. One of the other Elves posted himself outside the Porch, watching as Eldrin slipped into the Cabin behind Rosaline. The inside was much as the outside, pleasant, but not garish.

"It must be terribly frustrating." The Elf said finally, glancing over towards Rosaline.

He beckoned her to take a seat on a large sofa in the corner of the room. "To be treated as a pawn."

Though that of course didn't mean he would do any different. A fact that they were likely both aware of.

 

[Rosaline]

The Queen turned her glower towards Eldrin for a moment, not even trying to hide her annoyance with his statement. It felt as though he was mocking her far more than he already had.

Was it not enough that he'd already stolen her? Did he have to humiliate her on top of it?

She didn't bother to argue with him, or point out the obvious. Rosaline would do as he said, but that didn't mean she had to speak with the man.

Why was he putting in the effort to talk with her? There had to be some angle he was working, something he stood to gain from it.

She turned away from him and took a deep breath.

An idea crept into her mind as she looked around the building. She wanted to escape and runaway from the elves... So why not do the same with Aguilar?

She paused and furrowed her brow, the mere concept catching her off guard. Could she survive on her own? Where would she go? Either way... She suspected it was the only way she'd be able to live at all. If the Elves didn't kill her, it would only be a matter of time before Aguilar did.

She had the bruises and scars to prove it.




In Maricielo, the kingdom was in an uproar in search for their missing Queen. Bands of knights rode endlessly across the countryside, scouring the earth to find her.

Aguilar's rage boiled over. His temper grew shorter and on more than one occasion, he violently lashed out at the servants. One of Rosaline's handmaid's had her arm broken in the midst of one of the King's tirades. His harsh outbursts were never directed at nobles or his Knights, but he was uncharacteristically cruel.

The King had called Nil and Captain Miguel to the War Room. He stood fuming over the table with his fingertips braced against the wood.

"I want the two of you to rally the troops. This has been a open declaration of war within our own borders. If that is what the damned knife-ears want, then we will give it to them. The Queen is dead."

He raised his gaze to meet Nil's. "You will take my soldiers to that godsforsaken place and raze it to the ground. Even if you find the whore, she's dead. Do I make myself clear?"

 

[Eldrin]

Eldrin sat himself down when Rosaline did not, clearly not at all bothered by her turning her back to him. "There is little doubt that he will send his men."

Though whether it would be for Rosaline, or for Himself was difficult to tell. If he had to guess, Eldrin would have said more for him. The man was known for his rage, known for using people. Those around him were tools.

Nothing more.

"Perhaps he himself will come." He mused. "That would solve more than a few problems for us both, I think."'

Eldrin leaned back, stroking his chin and revealing those strange marks on his hand. Marks that looked very similar to those upon Nil.


The Young Knight did not look well.

His eyes were sunken and red, his skin was pale, and there was a strange blackness that ran through his veins. The poison that the elves had used ran it's course, and he had very nearly died. By the time the others had found him he'd been convulsing and fading.

It had only been the runes on his flesh that had saved him, the markings placed there by his hated father. His life would have been forfeit without them. A fact that stung him somehow. "Yes, Your Majesty."

Nil said, though inside his heart wrenched and twisted.

He already knew that he could not hurt Rosaline, already knew that he could not allow the others to hurt her either. He would have to convince Miguel...somehow. Perhaps they could save her, change Aguilar's mind.

Something.

 

[Rosaline]

Rosaline turned towards the elf with her brow furrowed slightly. It was obvious that he had every intention of starting a conflict, if not an all out war with Maricielo. People would die, human and elf alike.

And he was using her to accomplish that goal.

It made her sick.

But it also made her angry.



King Aguilar brusquely dismissed the two men once he'd given his orders. "Gather the men and I will ride out with you. We ride for war at dawn."

Miguel bowed once to the King and then turned to leave. Once the two knights were on the other side of the heavy oak door, a concerned expression settled over the older man's face.

"This will not be pretty. I'm sorry lad." He spoke softly to Nil, offering him the best condolences he could manage.

 

[Eldrin]

"Would you like to know why I'm doing this?" Eldrin asked, his gaze flickering out the window. For a brief moment he watched those who were going about their day outside, those strange blue eyes wavering for a moment.

He breathed.

"Fifteen years ago, when Aguilar was first coming to power I was his father's Captain of the Guard." Eldrin frowned. "He was a good man, a better man than Aguilar. Not ambitious, but dedicated to his people. All of his people. You see, it wasn't always that we were confined to the forest, to tiny villages and scraps."

Eldrin paused for a moment, then continued. "It wasn't utopia, we didn't live in harmony, but there was equality. Man and Elf."

He frowned, shaking his head. "It began when the old man was on his death bed. Aguilar began to push us out of the Government."

"Positions were reassigned, loyal men were accused of being traitors." Lips thinned. "We were painted as foes from within, and as he pushed more and more, my people were marked as traitors."

Eldrin glanced down at his hands. "When the Old King died, Aguilar took his chance. We were forced out. Homes taken, businesses destroyed. Lives snuffed out if anyone dared to resist."

He did not tell her this story to get sympathy, Eldrin knew that she would offer none of it. Yet he was not a monster. A villain perhaps. A man who would cut the throat of a woman if it meant he could get what he wanted, but he had his reasons.

They all had their reasons.


Nil bowed, then quickly followed after Miguel. His stomach was churning, lips thin. He didn't know what to do, what to say. "No."

The young Knight said, his fingers wringing against one another.

"No it won't." Could he trust Miguel with something like this? The man had been Captain of the Guard for years, decades even. Would he even turn against Aguilar in such a way? Or where his loyalties too firm.

He didn't know.

He didn't know what to do. Nil felt sick to his stomach, knowing only what he could not do.

 

[Rosaline]

Slowly, Rosaline turned to face Eldrin. She'd suspected something along the lines of what he'd told her. There was nothing she could say to change things.

She wasn't even from Maricielo.

He was probably going to kill her, simply because of who she was forced to marry. Why even bother fighting, if you just become the monster you hate in the process?

A frown touched her features and she shook her head. "A lot more elves are going to die because of you." She said solemnly, barely a whisper.


Miguel could see the pain on Nil's face and he reached out to clasp the man on the shoulder. "If you'd rather not go, I understand. You're still recovering, after all."

He paused a moment, shaking his head.

"I hate carrying out orders like this. But there's nothing we can do now. Try to get some rest. We've a long ride ahead of us tomorrow."

 

[Eldrin]

A small, rueful smile touched his face. "Most already face that fate."

His lips thinned as he looked at her, then back out the window.

"Aguilar will never stop." The King's ambitions did not know the boundaries most men would. "I'm sure you already know that."

There was no doubt in his mind that Rosaline had experienced the King's manners first hand. He was a man who would do as he pleased, and what he pleased was often cruel. Lips thinned for a few moments, then he added.

"Someone like that can only be stopped with equal force." And that was what he would provide.


"It doesn't seem right." Nil said softly, almost so quiet that Miguel would have to strain to actually hear the Young Knight.

He did not want to appear to question the King, did not want to make the other man think that he would be disloyal. Yet it would have been a lie to say he didn't had doubts. No. It would have been a lie to say he didn't intend disobedience.

Nil wouldn't let Rosaline die.

Not tomorrow, not today. He would not let the King take her life nor his fellow Knights. Even if he had to...lips thinned. "We will do what we must."

Nil said with a nod.

 

[Rosaline]

She shook her head, unsure of what to say. Aguilar was the kind of man who did precisely what he wanted, no matter the cost. He wanted Telrio, so he took her. If he wanted the elves dead, there was little doubt in her mind that he would not have stalled that goal for long.

Eldrin was picking the fight on his own terms, instead of waiting for the inevitable outcome.

Rosaline took a small breath and straightened her shoulders. "Let me go, then. You already started the war just by taking me. You don't need me anymore, and I certainly don't want to risk being taken back to the King."


Miguel nodded in agreement with a sad smile on his lips. He couldn't disobey the King, not when he had a family to protect. Nil, on the other hand...

"I heard Pips has been getting out of his stall at night, lately. Perhaps you should check on him? Damned horse is crazy enough he could run all the way to the coast in a single night."

 

[Eldrin]

For a few seconds Eldrin looked at her, his eyes focusing on hers.

A breath filled his lungs. Was he a monster? Was he a man? Was he something in between? Eldrin didn't care about Rosaline, he didn't care about her fate. He didn't care about what she did or who she really was. To him she was just a means to and end.

Lips thinned as he slowly leaned back. "Okay."

He said simply, though quickly added not to lift her hopes.

"Once I know he's coming. I'll let you go." It was perhaps not what she was hoping for, not what she wished, but it was the only thing he could offer. It would give her a head start. "I swear on it."


Nil looked at Miguel, practically stared at him.

He was no fool. He could read between the lines, understand what was happening. A small smile touched his lips. Miguel truly was a good man. He knew...he knew somehow. Nil wasn't sure if he should be impressed or scared, but he looked back at the man.

"Aye. He has been. I should go to check." Miguel would cover with Aguilar, would tell the King he had been sent to scout or some story.

He could read it in the Captain's eyes.

Nil quickly took a few steps back, snapping off a salute. "I'll...I'll see you later on the march, Captain."

The young Knight turned, stepping away before facing Miguel and adding. "Thank you, Captain."

 

[Rosaline]

In truth, Rosaline was rather surprised to hear Eldrin agree to her request at all. She'd expected him to keep her as some sort of back up plan. Nevertheless, she gave a small nod in appreciation.

He wasn't giving her much, but it was something.

If he followed through with it, that was.

"Thank you." She murmured quietly, but she didn't say more than that.

 

[Eldrin]

Eldrin nodded.

He meant what he said, whether she believed it or not. The Elf had never really wanted to harm her. If he'd needed to he would have, but it hadn't been a part of the plan. Things were above her, she was a pawn in the game.

Just a pawn.

Both for him and for Aguilar it seemed. Beyond that it didn't matter what happened to her. If she could live through this? Then perhaps some of his soul would be redeemed.

Even if it was only a tiny sliver.

The Elf took a breath, completely unaware that miles away a young Knight was mounting his horse, pulling himself up upon the loyal mount and swearing an oath.

An oath to save his Queen. The woman he'd fallen for.

 

[Rosaline]

Quietly, Rosaline moved to take a seat at last, resting her bound hands in her lap. She interlaced her fingers, chewing the corner of her mouth for a few moments.

"Perhaps... I should thank you, in a way." She murmured eventually.

"I've never been happy with the King. He's cruel and... impatient. But I never even could consider leaving before now."

She turned her gaze towards the window, watching as the last of the twilight faded away. Something tickled at the back of her mind, an intuition perhaps.

Nil would come for her. She was sure of it.

 

[Eldrin]

Eldrin chuckled. "Thanking me is the last thing you should do."

He was self aware enough to tell her that. Head shook for a moment, lips thinning as he considered what to say for a moment before he answered.

"If I don't succeed in killing Aguilar, your fate will be the same as mine." Eldrin knew the man, knew his quality. There was no question of that fact. "And if I do succeed..."

He looked at her. "They'll still try to use you as a pawn."

If he succeeded things would change quickly. Aguilar had sparked the movement that saw the banishment of Eldrin's people, but he was not the only problem. Things would take time to change, and there was no doubt someone close to the King would try to use Rosaline to gain the crown.

"You'd be best off leaving Cortos." He told her. "Finding your own way."

 

[Rosaline]

She tilted her head a little to the side with a furrowed brow. "Couldn't you follow your own advice? Lead your people to some where... Better than here."

Truthfully, she wasn't opposed to the idea of leaving, but where exactly was she supposed to go on her own? How long would it take before a group of brigands caught her and killed her on the road?

Her weight shifted in the chair and she shook her head.

"We'll each have to make our own way, whatever the future brings. For what it's worth... I hope you succeed."