Celestial Saga

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-The forest of Murkwood. A generous plot of wilderness that has remained free of the ravages of conflict, save for the odd adventuring party seeking unknown finds. The nights are calm, filled with the ambience of crickets and other such nocturnal creatures. amongst the highest reaches of the treeline, a sifting shadow makes a deliberate path forward, towards the kingdom of country of Garid, neighbor and subordinate ally to Elmwood

Eletha- ” My destination is close.”

————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————— ★ 1 month prior ★

A new morning shines down upon the countryside of Garid, a slow bloom to the day’s new batch of work for farmhands The sound of tools being worked, and farm animals roused for their tasks can be heard in the far distance, from the confines of the castle that oversees all of Garid’s land, Castle Dinton

-Within the wide room, two men stand on opposing sides

-As both hold pensive stances, both inch towards the other, until almost simultaneously they bound towards each other with weapons clashing. the spear bounces off of the blonde-haired knight’s shield, which he answers in kind with a slice at shoulder level.

– “Enough”

-The men halt, returning to neutral stances

– ” The assessment has concluded.”

“Both of you, present yourselves. Speak clearly to those gathered before you.”

-The two prepare a salute, Within the room stands several other men.

Yosef- “State your names, if you would.”

– “Elric Truman”

-“Dian Cromford”

Yosef-

” Truman…”

“That surname belongs to house of one of our key lords.”

” And as for you, you are actually a knight of Elmwood who was sent to apply for candidacy to our royal guard?”

Dian- ” Yes, my lord.”

“As per our knight exchange policy between kingdoms, I would like to contribute in an appropriate manner.”

” I’m aware that the knight your kingdom exchanged was a member of the royal guard. I would aim to meet his same measure.”

Yosef- ” You speak of Anric.”

“I see. Your intentions are noble.”

Erland- ” I like the look of him. He also seems well trained in polearms.”

Henric- ” It takes more than intention.”

“Anyone can say they want to be something. Few actually match such words.”

Dian- “…

Rorick— ” Always a sober tongue in the room… “

Jonathan—

“Regardless of the actual capability of the two men before us, there is no debate that of all the candidates that applied, they are the best.”

-the sound of armor and boots can be heard entering the room

Jonathan- ” Owen, Oswald.”

“You will each take one of these men on as an apprentice.”

“Prepare them for duty of a royal guardsman”

Owen-

“So these are to be new additions”

Oswald-

” Sup!! Oswald Hilburn, your new senior and commanding officer.”

Owen-

” “Commanding officer” is a bit much.”

Oswald-

” Aw come on why are you trying to ruin this for me?”

Owen-

” Regardless, we will be overseeing your initiation from here”

“Please follow.”

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-As the group traverse the courtyard,

Owen- ” Do you both have any further questions?”

Dian- ” You covered the basics, that’s more than enough.”

Elric— ” So our primary job is to protect the noble line.”

Oswald— ” Not just them, but every branch too!!”

Dian— “Every branch..?”

Owen- ” He’s referring to not just the King and his siblings, but their blood relations within the court.”

Elric- ” And what numbers are we talking about exactly?” “The succesorship line already consists of Valmonts, which is composed of the eldest and current king, Jonathan Valmont .”

“After him would be his younger brother Rorick Valmont, and with the two youngest being Cleo and Sarra Valmont, “

“That’s already a total of 4 people to oversee protection of.”

Owen- ” You are correct.”

“In addition to them, there is Henric Lannister, Yosef Sinclair, Fia Montague, Edgar Blackwood, and Tyler D’Arcy“

Dian- ” A total of 9 in all.”

Elric- ” And we’re to ensure the safety of all of them???”

Owen- ” I know it seems tremendous, but, there is additional help we work with, since there areother royal guard members.”

-The pair reach a clearing in the courtyard’s garden, seeing someone standing amongst the grove.

Owen—

“Princess Sarra”

-(Dragon Guardian- Minatomachi Bacchus)

Sarra- ” Ah, Owen, Oswald. “

Oswald- ” What were you doing out here lil miss?”

Owen- ” Mind your manner.”

Sarra— ” You know I don’t mind.”

“I was just observing the progress of some roses our florist installed from prior weeks.”

Elric-

” I’ve only seen glimpses of her before. So this is the sole princess of Garid.”

Dian-

“She seems to be a standard noble beauty.”

Sarra- ” Who are these two men?”

Owen-

” Fresh additions to the royal guard. We finished giving them an introductory to most of general duties.”

Sarra-

” It’s a pleasure to meet you both.”

-Elric and Dian bow their heads

Sarra-

“Please, there’s no need to be so formal!”

Elric- ” She says that, but..”

!!!!

Dian-

!!!

-The two men are slapped on the back by a boisterous Oswald

Oswald- ” You heard the lady!!! Ease up, its fine!”

Henric- ” It’s not fine.”

Oswald-

Owen—

” Lord Henric. It’s rare to see you within the garden.”

Henric-

” I’m here to speak with the princess. “

“All of you are dismissed for the next hour.”

Oswald—

” What??? Are you trying to make us leave or something?”

Henric-

” Matters above your station don’t require your presence. Just do what you’re told.”

Oswald-

” I don’t like the way you said that you- Hey, lemme go, I’m gonna [muffled]!?”

-Owen pulls Oswald away, a hand over his mouth

Owen— “We’ll go do some check ins with the other knights. Elric, Dian, you can both turn in for the day.”

Dian— ” Henric Lannister…He has the eyes of a wolf.”

-The knights depart, leaving Sarra and Henric alone within the garden.

Henric—

“Is fraternizing with them all you do in your spare time?”

Sarra-

“..I don’t think there’s anything necessarily wrong with becoming closer to one’s guardsmen, especially considering all the work and sacrifices they’ve made to make it to such a level”

Henric—

” You really are a child.”

Sarra—

” What’s troubling you cousin? You are not normally so harsh.”

— Henric stares towards the patch of roses near Sarra

Henric-

” Marching orders have been given.”

” Jonathan will be leading an assault with Edgar and Rorick.” “Lancaster threatens to encroach both our kingdom and the land of Elmwood.”

Sarra-

“But, what do you mean? We live far from their conflict.”

Henric—

“You are correct.”

“The kingdom of Garid, while not in direct conflict with Lancaster, does serve as an ally of Elmwood, as such we are entrusted with ensuring that no flank is given against their borders.”

“It is in this, that we find ourselves deploying.”

Henric—

“Lancaster has started to employ various dragonborn mercenary clans to act as their agents. “

Sarra—

” The dragonborn? I thought they would be far less agreeable with a nation such as Lancaster”

Henric— ” I’m of the same mind.”

” They’ve rallied many of their number, and have already mounted a beachhead through the occupation of Vertbank ”

” While not a large town, it is the settlement closest to Fort Perlington“

Henric— ” There is another reason as to why I’m sharing this with you. The king has commanded that you take a small compliment of men to the neighboring town of Eastfair, and to secure Fort Carsley“

Sarra- ” He wants me to deploy with soldiers?”

Henric—

” It’s more of a preemptive measure.”

“While there’s no indication of an occupying force, we want to make sure that the enemy doesn’t flee to neighboring area once we’ve mobilized.”

” I will be leading a force of my own to secure another town on the opposing side of Vertbank.”

Henric-

“We will all be taking to our assigned task by dawn tomorrow.”

Sarra-

“I..I see.” “I will make preparations then.”

-Sarra finds her space encroached by Henric. His dour face finally having turned from the garden to her, gazing down at the princess. A forlorn emotion rings behind the eyes, beckoning the mouth to elucidate further.

Sarra-

” Uh, Henric..?”

Henric— “… “

“Just watch yourself out there.”

-Sarra purses her lips. She matches Henric face in kind with scrunched features

Sarra- ” I feel like I’m relatively capable… Besides, during our sword lessons I actually beat you a few times even.”

— Henric turns away, beginning to leave the garden

Henric—

“…Whatever.”

“I’m going to go prepare. You should do the same”

Sarra—

” He’s always been so odd, and yet…”

“I know it’s just his way of showing he cares.”

” ..I’ll be careful, Henric.”

-It would be later that afternoon, that the forces of Garid were officially given marching orders against the looming proxy forces. As such, the beginning of great turmoil The beginning of great pain.

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To Be Continued |||||||||| The princess embarks!!!

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