Private Tales The Sound of Steel

[Riley]

“You’re up early..” he arched a brow observantly, and his gaze narrowed briefly at the marks on her chin. “Did you fall out of bed?”

Riley poured some coffee into a mug and grabbed a pot of it, bringing it over to the table Arwyl and Kaius sat at. She plopped into a seat next to the prince, across from Arwyl and set the pot down between them all. Hazels looked into the black liquid, hands cradling the mug like it was a lifeline.

"I tripped," she grunted, the lie coming easily enough. Was it really a lie? She had tripped even if someone else had caused her to do so. She brought the mug up to her lips and took a long, slow sip, eyes finally lifting to the mossy greens of Kaius. To Arwyl's.

"Weapons grade-plum," she breathed, really seeing Kaius' face up close. Those dark circles under his eyes. "You look like one of the nine levels of hell." Gaze flickered to Arwyl and his russet hair. She found herself on guard as Arwyl spoke, sure she'd get that glint of suspicion in his eyes. Some sort of blame.

"Oh yeah...what'd she say? Is there a way to split up their lines?"

 

[Kaius]

"Of course you were.." he added a little more bluntly after Riley's tone of curiosity. And there he was thinking the two had been getting to know one another, of course Arwyl's choice of topic would be Anirians. He shook his head with a huff. His obvious pride had been a brief affair..

He reached for the coffee to refill the mug that he'd tipped over and poured it to the brim with a grumble of gratitude to Riley.. "Tripped?..." His brow furrowed as he looked at her in scrutiny over his coffee, but they quickly rose at her insult? He choked a little and cleared his throat "Weapons grade pl--" he blinked, both confusion and amusement on his face as he looked to Arwyl as though he might be able to translate. He took it that it was some Anirian insult, but laughed under his breath as she went on to make him feel even better..

"Thanks lass. Really, from the heart." his hand pressed to his chest and he nodded to her, his grin slowly dissolving. "If it's concern you intend to show then it's not necessary. I only have myself to blame." he snorted and took another long drink of coffee.

 

[Arwyl Minras]

Arwyl rolled his eyes at the interplay between the two. He had to steel himself to actually motivate himself to drill the group first thing in the morning. He had to pick his battles against his own laziness.

"We're not planning anything as such. Not yet," he confirmed. He wasn't sure if Kaius was going to approve or not.

"The Anirian forces that helped will probably break off and head back. It might be that some of the groups could be ambushed..."

 

[Riley]

Riley hid her relief when Kaius scrutinized her no further. There was no good that came from it. She didn’t want to be a cause of a godamned political incident. And she didn’t want the elves here to resent her further if one of their own actually got into trouble for what he’d done. And she wasn’t a snitch. She could take what they gave her.

Probably deserved it.

Another long sip of the coffee.

“Maybe we could,” fingers lightly drummed on the table. “We got weapons from the raid the Other day.” They were better stocked now. SHE was better stocked now. Hazels flickered to Kaius just once. When he was studying his drink.

She wasn’t looking forward to drills this morning. She’d never been good at taking orders. And a part of her wondered if she could get away with opting out. Then again, that might hurt her more in the end. She wanted to prove that she could belong here. More than just fighting with them yesterday.

 

[Kaius]

Kaius was most certainly not going to approve. His furrowed brow deepened as Riley pitched in. He was tired, that much was obvious, and he felt a little like a battered shield being dragged into battle after battle that in reality, they would never win. They'd keep chipping away, and Vel Anir would keep growing and growing. They were nothing but pests to them, more elves to be exterminated, and Kaius was simply waiting for the day that he never made it out alive.

He finished his coffee and slammed the mug down so loud that the sound of it echoed around the hall. "I should leave you both to your battle plans. I'll wake the men. We'll be waiting for your instruction, Your Highness." he said bitterly as he stood and turned to leave..

 

[Arwyl Minras]

"Oh don't be a dick Kaius," Arwyl groaned. "Just say what you want to actually say instead of threatening the crockery?"

"Jasper Vance is leading those Anirian foot knights and you know the things he has done to our kin. If there was a chance...and I'm just saying it's a chance...to ambush him and his I'd take it."

 

[Riley]

Riley’s brows rose at the exchange. Eyes shifted above the rim of her coffee between them each. Her frown grew at the name.

Jasper.

He’d been a few years ahead of her at the academy. She couldn’t remember much. Only that he’d been cruel, often taking his anger out on those younger. Luckily, he’d never focused his attentions on her.

She set her mug carefully down.

“If I’m remembering right, he’s a lower level Dreadlord. Can wield fire.”

He wasn’t the strongest or the most consistent at it. But he was strong enough to survive his graduation.

 

[Kaius]

"There's little point in saying what I want to say, after all these years of trying it's clear that you won't lis-" he'd been answering over him when he mentioned Vance, and he stopped, his gaze instantly falling to the floor and he rubbed at the back of his neck with a huff, knowing there would be no talking him out of it.

"As I said. We'll be awaiting your instruction." he growled, and left the two to it.

Some of the others were already awake, but he whistled and ignored the grumbling of those who were too hungover to budge. “Come on, up. You can get your revenge on the grounds..” he smirked. He’d wouldn’t have blamed them for being pissed off at him thanks to Arwyl’s disciplinary measures, but it had been necessary.

He whipped Riz’s arse with a towel on his patrol down the aisle between the beds and grinned tiredly as he yelped and swore at him.

“I’ll expect you all lined up on the training grounds in five minutes. Ten laps per every minute you’re late!” He called before he made his own way to the grounds to wait.

 

[Sylmara]

Sylmara stepped through the city alone once more.

She held herself tall, and the way she walked made others avoid her. A few maidens bowed their heads, most soldiers did the same, but a few simply tried to stay as far away from her as possible. It was not that they did not like her, just that she had a penchant for...trouble.

Not the usual sort that one feared from a Royal. She did not carouse nor offer executions, but she was known to be strict, knowing that her way was the best, and that any argument otherwise would be rebuked swiftly.

That was why Filven had eventually agreed with her.

Even if it had nearly taken a beating.

Her fingers tightened slightly, long nails digging into her palm as she turned on her heel and stepped into hall leading directly towards the training grounds. Ahead he could already hear people milling about, voices echoing.

 

[Arwyl Minras]

“If I’m remembering right, he’s a lower level Dreadlord. Can wield fire.”

"He doesn't need to be a great magician. Wields a six foot sword like it was a feather, wearing the finest plate armor made outside of Cortos."

That was before the fifty other foot Knights with polearns and swords were counted. Arrows were next to useless against them. They could pepper a column like that with arrows for hours and barely slow them down.

"I need to go drill the men."

---

"I do listen," Arwyl muttered. He was standing with Kaius and watching the group pawing through the spoils. He'd made them go and fetch all the armour and carry it out here. They could take what they wanted, but would have to wear it for drills.

"I don't always do what you want, but I always listen."

 

[Riley]

Riley hung back and let Arwyl's band get what they wanted first. When the dust had settled and they began to disperse into clumps and disorganized lines in the training yard, Riley moved to the dwindled pile. Picking through the pieces, she found a small hatchet with a strap that slung across her back. The remaining armor was too big.

She missed her Anirian leathers. They'd been flexible enough to not sacrifice movement and strong enough to take the worst damage from an arrow. Not as strong as regular armor but enough to provide a good amount of protection.

Riley also chose a bow that needed to be re-strung and a quiver with two remaining arrows inside. She'd have to fix them later. Arwyl hadn't asked for her to join but she chose to. The only human.

Out of the corner of her eye, she caught that elf from the river sneering at her. It looked like they were getting a small audience. She ignored them and kept her attention on Arwyl and Kaius.

 

[Kaius]

"Is that right?..." Kaius muttered in a tone that suggested disbelief, his arms folded across his chest as he watched the men start to line up. "You never do what I want, Arwyl. If you did you'd have your kingdom rebuilt and a throne to sit on." he shrugged and rolled his shoulders, a small smirk on his lips as he watched Riley fall in line.

"Well. You've got this one on your own, Your Highness." he nudged at the prince and stepped forward to join the ranks, stepping in beside Riley and turning back to face Arwyl and await instruction. It was normally Kaius who did the yelling and the training, and his lips twisted in amusement and curiosity to see how the young Prince handle it on his own.

"Don't take any shit..." he muttered down at Riley. Should any of them try to push her around, she had to stand up for herself. If not, they'd answer to him, but he knew she could handle herself.

He spotted the Princess in his peripheral vision and offered her a dip of his chin before giving a wink wink back to Arwyl.

 

[Sylmara]

Sylmara moved with the same liquid grace as always, stepping into the training ring and ignoring all those around her as though she and her intended conversational partner were all that existed. She stepped towards Arwyl, speaking as she reached him.

"Good morning, Prince." She said with a soft smile.

The odd green tint to her eyes seemed to be darker this morning, the jewels within her ears holding a little more color. The reason for it could have been anything, but someone with a gift of magics would likely be able to tell the signs.

She had been using her abilities.

There was a slight hint of weariness clinging to her for that reason, a tiredness having set into her bones. "I hope you had a pleasant night of rest."

 

[Arwyl Minras]

Drill for the band didn't involve marching up and down in a parade formation. They would have made quite a small and pointless column. Instead they skirmished. Up and down the available space they had. Groups of five forwards, firing twice and then the group behind passed them.

They leapfrogged all the way up the space they had, then all the way in reverse. They practised a charge as a group and then split off into pairs for sparring. It would cycled round several times until they could barely lift a sword or draw a bow.

"Good morning Princess," he replied in turn, deciding not to comment on her night routine.

"Oi! The old man is still going so you can too!" he shouted at one of the flagging elves.

 

[Kaius]

Kaius showed no signs of stopping, but he'd have been lying if he said he wasn't tired. The lack of sleep certainly wasn't helping matters. His voice rose above the others, words of correction and encouragement as they fought their miniature war. He was perhaps, a little too hard on some of them, but as he clashed with Riz in a spar, the pair grinned and circled one another.

Riz wasn't as slow as his appearance might suggest, he was almost as fast on his feet as the elves were and at least three times as strong as most. Kaius had the upper hand until Arwyl yelled about the 'old man', and he was unable to resist the urge to look over at the elf with a scowl. Riz took advantage of the distraction and slammed the butt of his axe into his ribs and Kaius fell to his knee and held his arm defensively against the searing pain.

"Fuck, sorry Kai.." the orc grunted in panic and held out an apologetic hand to help him up. Kaius' eyes squeezed shut and he took a short moment to drag in a breath past the pain. He hit the hand away, Arwyl's words still fresh on his mind and he got up to thrust his own axe into Riz's stomach. The orc roared, and there were no more apologies. If the little shit was using him as a fucking example then fine, he'd fight until he couldn't stand, until none of them could fucking stand. It was clear that a nerve had been hit in a way that only Arwyl could hit them, and Kaius attacked with an onslaught of blow after blow until Riz fell and he moved onto the next until the elves started pairing up against him.

He ignored the 'Fuck sake Kaius' and the 'just stop already'. He was black and blue, his nose and brow burst open and his shirt soaked with sweat and blood. But fuck this little bastard, he'd fucking die to prove a point.

 

[Riley]

"Don't take any shit..."

"I'll only take the shit I can handle," she growled back to him, axe hilt already in her hand. She'd managed to find a circular shield and held it up with her other. She'd need some protection with nor armor on. Otherwise, she'd practice using her magic to shield herself.

Sweat plastered her dark hair to her olive skin as they ran, parried, and fought across that training ground. It reminded her of the Academy. A little rough around the edges. Less punishments for losing. But it got her blood flowing. She felt that familiar ache in her muscles.

She knocked one of the women in Arwyl's band down. Went onto one of the men. He broke her shield in half and landed some good slashes against her with a sword. If she hadn't had her magic up, he would've sliced through clothing and skin. It went like that for awhile, she took plenty of good hits to the ground.

Fuk she was going to be goddamned sore. THANK THE STARS FOR THAT BATHOUSE.

She paused, noticing that most of the elves had stopped themselves and were staring...muttering. At her.

No, not at her, right behind her.

Riley half-turned, fingers aching to keep that grip on her axe. Hazels widened at the elf before her. At Kaius. She'd never seen him like that. And she realized she hadn't known him for long. But still. This seemed wrong. Off.

A frown deepened on her lips.

Something twisted in her chest. Lips pressed thin as she stepped into his path. Face-to-face. Unafraid.

"Kaius. Stop."

Grip shifted on her axe hilt.

"Or fight me."

A breath. She hoped it worked. She'd rather him not die or have to heal his arse again. But she recognized that stubborn look in his eyes. She knew it all too well. He didn't even see what he was doing.

 

[Sylmara]

Sylmara watched the display put on by Kaius in silence.

Their kind was blessed with many gifts that other species were not. Long life, agility and strength, a natural acclamation to nature and the magics it provided. It was what set them a part, at least by her own estimation. A fact that was proven as Kaius began to beat his way through Arwyl's other men.

Some of Saen's finest watched the bout, their expressions completely blank as Kaius worked his way through pairs of elves even as he became bloodied and blue.

She did not move.

This was not, she decided, any of her business. One of her own stood as if to intervene, but Sylmara raised a hand and waved to him. The man looked at her, and then slowly sat himself back down as he followed the will of his mistress.

Perhaps they really have forgotten. She glanced over to Arwyl for a moment, wondering if the Falwood had brought him so low as well.

 

[Arwyl Minras]

"I'll be right back," Arwyl said politely to Sylmara.

He stepped between several elves who were hunched over. Hands on their knees they were drawing in air and trying to recuperate.

"Training sword," he said, holding out his hand. Some used their full weapons for sparring, a few had wooden blades. It was one of these that Arwyl wanted. There was no sparring with spirit glass. Whilst it could be shattered, it was so sharp that it would always cut to the bone. The light wooden sword was the closest balance he could find.

"Or fight me."

The slightest shake of his head in Riley's direction. Then he waved at the Fhearlard and Gilestri to step aside. Arwyl stepped into Kaius' path and dropped his weight.

"Might as well direct there where it's intended," he said softly. He held out his empty, left hand towards Kaius and drew the wooden blade up and over his head.

"Come on then."

 

[Kaius]

His weapon was raised, about to come crashing down as Riley stepped into his path and he only just managed to stop himself, his chest heaving with rage and exertion. He dragged his forearm across his bloodied brow and turned away from her irritably, lowering his weapon without a word until Arwyl challenged him. Kaius spat at his words and his fingers tightened on his axe as it rose again, his jaw clenching as he glared at the elf.

He held his arms out by his sides to gesture toward the exhausted elves around him.. "What? This is what you wanted, was it not? A grand fucking army strong enough to take on Vel Anir?" Kaius laughed with bloodied teeth and spit on the ground. "Because I assure you, boy, if they can't best an 'old man' they sure as shit can't best that army." he pointed his sword at him.

"Get your head, out of your fucking arse, and see sense." he growled between each panted breath and threw the axe and blade both at the prince's feet.. "Your Highness." he added out of respect's sake and dipped his chin before turning his back on him to leave.

 

[Arwyl Minras]

"Thought so," Arwyl whispered petulantly under his breath.

He did not do so quite quietly enough.

 

[Kaius]

Kaius stopped and clenched his jaw so hard he thought his teeth might break.. Thought so? Everything he'd just said to the petulant little bastard and that was his response, as though he were walking away to cower in fear?

"Thought so?..." he repeated as he turned to face him again with a look of incredulity. He reached to grab Gilestri's practice sword as he strode toward the prince with purpose, rushing the last few steps as he brought the weapon to his left shoulder and aimed a swing at the crook of his neck.

"THOUGHT SO?!"

 

[Arwyl Minras]

Arwyl placed his left hand against the middle of his practise blade and blocked the strike full on.

He was painfully aware that this was a mistake. Kaius had taught him almost everything he could do with a blade, but he certainly hadn't taught Arwyl everything that he knew himself.

He hadn't seen Kaius this angry before. He had no idea if it would actually blow out if he danced out of reach for as long as he could.

That one impact rang out, pain lancing from his wrist to shoulder. Arwyl stapled back, swiping low to cover his retreat or crack Kaius' shins.

 

[Kaius]

His eyes narrowed in a slight wince as Arwyl took the brunt of his swing and he let out a huff as his head shook. His front foot lifted as he swiped low at his shins, attempting to stamp down on the wooden blade and pull it from the prince's grip as his he aimed his pommel at his jaw.

 

[Riley]

Riley sheathed her ax. She was covered in a sheen of slick sweat from the drill. Heartrate still thudded in her veins. Arwyl's men and women had gathered in a tight-wide circle around the pair. Riley stood watching with the rest of them.

Some were too in shock to peel their eyes away. Most were making bets on who would win. Others were muttering and shaking their heads as if this was nothing new.

Riley just shook her head and huffed beneath her breath.

"Men."

Eventually, she'd elbow and shoulder her way out of the pack to go take advantage of that bath-house before it got bombarded with all the others.

 

[Arwyl Minras]

Arwyl narrowly avoided the wooden pomel shattering his cheekbone. He darted away a little more quickly than he should have. Arwyl had intended to move back out of the way, ready to strike again. Instead he had reset the fight.

"Come on then!" he shouted out. Every lesson and hard morning. Every nudge to keep his life from falling off the rails. This time Kaius was coming at him with no holds barred.

Wooden swords clattered over and over. At the back of his mind he started to worry that they would break.

He was quicker than Kaius, recovering from each parry rapidly. Each time he tried to counter, however, Kaius was already there. Reading ahead, Kaius was employing economy of movement to stay in the fight, to wear Arwyl down.

The boy's impatience was his own undoing. Knowing he had to turn the tables quickly he was drawn in by an apparent opening. One Kaius had left there deliberately. He made a sound of surprise as Kaius turned his blade outwards. He hissed in pain as the wooden blade struck his wrist. Arwyl dropped his sword.

He made very little noise as the next one struck his temple. He didn't hear the blow. Arwyl heard a high pitched whine and found himself looking up at the canopy of trees from his back.