It was a month after the meeting when the two kings finally sealed the deal with a wedding. Nelson, of course, attended, but he had spent most of the time trying to find any clues about who might have close ties with Sethis and was out for revenge.
A few of the women turned their sights on him, but he politely turned them down, claiming he would not be ready to seek a wife until after he had finished building his mansion and settled into this new rank. It gave him time to mingle with as many groups as he could since the King was now officially off-limits for marriage.
Being the King’s surrogate was not as glamorous as the young noblewomen hoped, and with it clear he had chosen Vaughan not just out of duty but love. They soon gave up the thought of being his mistress. Only those with no actual rank and nothing to lose still chased that dream.
With the women who had turned their ventures to other potential rank improvements, Nelson no longer considered them
Darkness filled the countryside as the clouds obscured the moon and stars above. A lone, shadowy figure walked down the path towards an old rusty gate. Pausing for a moment, they looked at the land ahead of them. Slowly, they lowered their hood and let out a low humming sound before raising the lantern to a sign that read: Whitefield Farm. The person's pale skin could be seen as the lantern’s light shone down on it. He was a young man with golden-flecked brown eyes that almost seemed to twinkle and dance as the fire from within his lantern reflected within them, making them appear almost supernatural. With a shake of his head, the man’s nose twitched at the smell from ahead of him. It was a mixture of marsh and muck, not a combination that was easy on the nose. The land before him rested on the edge of the Lost Travellers Marsh, a place that could be dangerous for anyone traversing the place to reach the other side. There was only one other way around the marsh, and that was by boat.
A week, two, three… then a month had all come and gone without so much as a peep from any would-be debt collectors. Nelson had all but given up hope that someone would finally ease his boredom. Esta had been standoffish the whole time. Not that Nelson found her to be unfriendly, or unkind, but she kept to herself and avoided talking with him unless it was necessary. He figured the death of her mother and stepfather had caused her emotional distress that he could only somewhat understand.His ‘mother’, who, he had learned, was not his actual mother, was sick enough that he had allowed himself to work as a bandit and a slaver for his father. Those were the lengths he had gone to save her. Now her life was in the throne’s hands. Anyone else would have been glad of the King’s aid, but Nelson was wary.He considered his options many times over. There was no way his mother was in any state to be moved and those caring for her were the best chance of recovery she had, but working for the Crow
The nearest town to Whitefield farm was a couple of hours’ walk to the Forest town of Lightmist Village. Nelson absolutely hated coming here, but he had little choice in the matter. It was the only town close enough for him to buy supplies to feed his pigs, and without his pigs, he couldn’t make ends meet. Inleet had agreed to come with him in order to act as his servant, but the truth was to scout around for any information.The reason Nelson hated coming here, however, almost overpowered his wish to survive, and she was wheeling towards him with the foulest of looks plastered all over her face. Nelson braced himself for having to deal with her again.Lynnette…Her brown hair was cut shorter than he remembered it being. He guessed she had finally had enough of it being in her way all the time, but that was all that had changed about her. The only nice thing he could say was that the mobility chair the Rattus had invented really wa
The tavern was bustling with the town folks, leaving Nelson and Atraas almost feeling at home in the busy place. It was quiet when one compared it to the capital city where the King lived, but that was to be expected. Another thing he had expected was upon his arrival; the whole tavern went silent. No one trusted Nelson, and for good reason. It hadn’t been that long ago that he had been here trying to enslave them all. None of them had known it was his father’s suggestion, however.It didn’t matter. They soon returned to their drinks but were now conscious of the noble in their presence.“Perhaps you should have stayed home, M’lord,” Atraas mocked his old friend, though kept his tone to one of politeness.Nelson shot his friend a small look and then said, “and miss out on a drink? We all know I’ll be the life of the party in about an hour.”Atraas snickered, nodding his head before he set out to mingle
With the pig’s trough filled, Nelson knew he could sneak out a lot easier than he might have without. It was still not a foolproof way of getting out of the farm without them alerting his exit, but they were quieter than they could have been.Moving swiftly so that he could reach the town in less than the two hours it would take to get there, Nelson kept himself hidden under his cloak’s hood. As soon as he reached the town, he wasted no time sneaking into the rattus’ room.He took a quick glance within to make sure the man was either not there or asleep. A vague body shape in the bed told him which one it was. He nodded and snuck in quietly and checked the draws and bags within the room. All Nelson found were a few scrolls and notes about locating and figuring out more about him as a noble. Nothing really to suggest that the rattus was involved in anything, especially not slavery.However, what he found sug
“So, what you are saying is that I have to look after the farm, on my own, while you go…” Esta paused, looking Nelson up and down with a critical gaze. “Where did you say you were going?” She asked, almost sneering at him, but was trying to not be so blatant with what she was doing.Nelson knew she wouldn’t be happy that he was taking the only two farm hands with him, but he needed their personal skills if he was going to cross the marsh and get into Sethis’ mansion without getting caught. Even so, he had to tell her he would not be back for at least a month or more.“I know this is sudden, but it is an important visit that I need to make,” Nelson offered his hands up in defence of his sudden plan. “I can hire someone else so you aren’t stuck alone here if you need someone?” He then asked.Esta peered at him with contempt. “Oh! So we have enough coins for that, do we?” Esta ques
The ripples zoomed towards him with such speed that Nelson didn’t have time to think twice about what he was doing. He held up the bag and called at the top of his voice, “if you want them back you can have them! I want nothing to do with stealing your children!”Atraas and Inleet stared at him from their positions, ready to help fight if required, but trusted Nelson’s instincts to know how to handle the situation.“Can they even understand the common tongue?” Atraas asked, curious as he watched the water suddenly rise along with the head of the serpentine.Although snake-like in appearance, they also had humanoid features for their bodies. Bulky arms ended in claw-like hands. A very thin line of greenish-brown hair lined the top of the serpentine’s head. It continued to rise out of the water, using its muscular snake-like body to hold itself up tall. It easily stood taller than even the gnarly tree.Atraas and In
As the sun began to set on Falanthyst Castle, King Fenryn sat bored on the throne, listening to his nobles arguing over this and that. None of it was important enough to hold his attention for long, but he attempted to at least pretend like he had been listening. If he showed any signs that he wasn’t taking this matter seriously, he would get a scolding by a certain Knight Captain.That was when he started to giggle. It always meant trouble would be in store for the Captain when the King chuckled during the meetings of his local Lords and Ladies. He was sure they thought poorly of him because he was young in both age and heart. Of course, his court would never say so out loud, but they felt he could never be a true King because of how young he was. They often took advantage of the King’s youth, but that was why he had his faithful Knight Captain.Vaughan Cadfael was a stern man and one that everyone knew that if he was around, they could say or whisper very