Silence Sei
12-15-13, 12:51 AM
The forest of Concordia was filled with trees losing their leaves. A gentle wind pushed forth through the former greenery, causing a chill towards anyone who had encountered it. Winter had come to Corone, the first winter since Sei Orlouge had taken over the country in the name of the people. All around, people had begun going to their storage houses for the supplies they had saved up for the season. The way things used to be, Imperial Rule would dictate that the lower villages pay a higher tax than the larger cities, and the people would barely survive from winter to winter.
The regime of the Ixian Knights had changed all that.
Sei had personally overseen the lower tax rates take effect on the villages. His presence was more often than not met with smiles and praises. Occasionally, an imperial loyalist would make some passive aggressive remark, or swear that the Empire would soon strike back at the Ixian Knights in retaliation. The Mystic did not have the heart to tell those loyalists that he had seen to the death of two of the three viceroys. Whatever power remained for the Empire was dwindled almost to nothingness.
With every town he had come across, the Mystic had also heard the rumors of bandits lurking among the wilting trees. Though there was no basis to the whispers, Sei knew that fear alone was enough to motivate people into foolish mistakes. Sending in a division of his army would have easily quelled any doubts in the villagers mind, but it would have also caused the people to call on the Ixian Knights as constant bodyguards any time some misfortune befell them.
Sei knew what he needed to do. A local hero would show the commoners that even their kind were able to step up and defend themselves against bandits. Even if Sei needed to help, the fact that a seemingly average Joe taking out a group of would-be thieves would provide the motivation he needed to allow the townships to remain self-sufficient. In order to find his man, Sei had entered a local smithy, hoping he would hear something from the merchant that would lead him into finding the best man for the job.
“Excuse me,” the voice entered the smithy’s head from everywhere and nowhere at once, “I am looking for an able body to help me in a certain endeavor. Know of anyone?”
The regime of the Ixian Knights had changed all that.
Sei had personally overseen the lower tax rates take effect on the villages. His presence was more often than not met with smiles and praises. Occasionally, an imperial loyalist would make some passive aggressive remark, or swear that the Empire would soon strike back at the Ixian Knights in retaliation. The Mystic did not have the heart to tell those loyalists that he had seen to the death of two of the three viceroys. Whatever power remained for the Empire was dwindled almost to nothingness.
With every town he had come across, the Mystic had also heard the rumors of bandits lurking among the wilting trees. Though there was no basis to the whispers, Sei knew that fear alone was enough to motivate people into foolish mistakes. Sending in a division of his army would have easily quelled any doubts in the villagers mind, but it would have also caused the people to call on the Ixian Knights as constant bodyguards any time some misfortune befell them.
Sei knew what he needed to do. A local hero would show the commoners that even their kind were able to step up and defend themselves against bandits. Even if Sei needed to help, the fact that a seemingly average Joe taking out a group of would-be thieves would provide the motivation he needed to allow the townships to remain self-sufficient. In order to find his man, Sei had entered a local smithy, hoping he would hear something from the merchant that would lead him into finding the best man for the job.
“Excuse me,” the voice entered the smithy’s head from everywhere and nowhere at once, “I am looking for an able body to help me in a certain endeavor. Know of anyone?”