Our Little Friends

[Jasmine]

((Closed))

Mid-morning light slipped under the thick curtains hanging over a window that gave a magnificent view of the mountains in the distance. Thick, lush, dark blue carpeting covered the floor of the large room from wall to wall. Finely crafted chairs and tables were set in their places so as to be both convenient and pleasing to the eye. The only thing that marred the beauty and splendor of the room was the clothing scattered across the floor or over the back of a chair.

In the center of the room stood a very large bed. Four posts rose gracefully from the floor toward the ceiling. Vines and flowers wound around the posts, carved so well they looked as if the slightest breeze would make them move. At the top of posts, supporting bars connected each post so that there was a rectangle above the bed, however this was hidden by blue silk curtains hanging from them. Currently, the curtains were held back at each corner with silver cording. The covers of the bed were just as fine and expensive as the rest of the decor, but were somewhat rumpled.

In the center of the bed, two bodies lay entwined in each others’ arms. The female had long, luxurious hair black as ebony. It spread out around her head as she lay on her side facing in toward the male, her head resting on his chest. The male had long hair as well, though his was silver and not nearly as long as the female’s, coming only to his neck. Both were quite naked as evidenced by the clothes strewn throughout the room. The cover that came up under the woman’s arms, covering her to her breasts, still revealed that the man’s muscles were well-toned and looked quite strong. Both also slept peacefully, dreaming of the previous passion-filled night.

Outside as the sun rose higher, a small songbird perched on the windowsill and began to sing his heart out, greeting the new day. For a few minutes, his melodious song fell on deaf ears, but then the woman finally began to stir and slowly opened her eyes. She looked around her briefly, then smiled as she remembered where she was and who she was with. Snuggling closer to her lover for a moment, she kissed him tenderly, then softly slipped out of the bed. She quickly donned a diaphanous robe of blue silk, and moved toward the window. The sudden movement of the curtains opening frightened the songbird away, but she didn’t notice. She was too enamored of the scenery stretching before her.

Great plains stretched away for a few miles, then became mountains that rose up majestically, reaching for the sky. The wind that blew across the plains made the tall grass look like ocean waves. High above the plains, she could see two eagles soaring. Below her she could hear the sounds of the fortress she now called home getting on with the day. She and her lover had slept late, but then again, they had not actually fallen asleep until the wee hours of the morning. Turning from the window, she smiled lovingly at the still sleeping form of her love. She slipped her robe off and laid it back on the chair she had picked it up from, then crawled back into bed. Snuggling close to him again, she pulled the blankets up and over her breasts, then poked him softly in the ribs.

“Wake up love, it’s mid-morning already!”

[Raelyse]

It wasn't often that Raelyse awoke happy. He was a perfectionist and had standards higher than the mountains where he made his home. Still, this morning as his eyelids slowly crept open, they finally released his pupils to a beautiful sight, one that he could not help but smile at. He gazed up, inevitably pulling the sheets closer to his body to combat the sudden cold. It was only then that he remembered what had happened last night, it was only then that he realized just how much clothing he was wearing - none at all. Raelyse's smile widened as those thoughts faded from himself to his companion, his lover... and rarely, he smiled at something beautiful that was not himself.

Few men would be able to resist, of course. For before his blue pupils, in all of her splendid glory, wrapped in nothing but the sheets in which she had occupied last night was Jasmine. She may not be a statuesque beauty, but Raelyse found that the more times they made love, the more times he became familiar with all of her curves, the more times he allowed her into his chambers, the more times he woke up next to her... the more he realized that he might love this woman.

"That's a thought," he said, his smile widening to one of his customary smirks. Only after Jasmine looked at him curiously did he realize that he had spoken out loud. he turned his attention fully to her, his smirk melting into something more sincere, more loving.

"You woke me up again?" Raelyse teased, stifling laughter. He moved further out from the sheets, enduring the draft that had come in through the newly opened window. He raised his head, looking her in the eye once more. "You know how much I hate that."

The prince moved further forward, smiling a beautiful smile at his lover. "But I'm sure you know how much I love to make love to you first thing in the morning."

Raelyse briefly let his eyes drop to the sheets wrapped around her body. In a swift motion, he pulled it completely down, revealing her naked body. Before she could protest, the prince propped his body up and threw it on top of her, instantly grabbing her lips with his, thrusting his tongue into her mouth and kissing her passionately.

"I love you," he said when not tongue-tied.

It was going to be a good day.

[Jasmine]

Jasmine laughed lightly, "Maybe next timmmmmmm..."

The sentence died on her lips as Raelyse's lips and tongue claimed her mouth. Her eyes shut slowly as her arms slipped around his shoulders. She gazed up at him as he broke away.

"I love you too, Raelyse."

Leaning forward, she reclaimed his lips for her own. The fact that a good portion of the morning had already been spent in sleep was completely forgotten as she allowed herself to be immersed completely in loving and being loved in return by Raelyse. No thoughts entered the mind of the former princess as she relished each kiss and caress. Her arms wound around him as she caressed up and down his back, her breathing getting heavier with each passing minute.

"Ohh, Raelyse..." she moaned as softly pulled her lips away from his, only to nibble at his throat. She writhed in pleasure beneath his weight. She still didn't quite understand why his kisses had such strong effects on her will power, but at the moment, she didn't truly care either. All that mattered to the young woman was that she was in the arms of her beloved.


~*~*~*~

Some time later, the two still lay in bed, though this now they were both very much awake. Sweat glistened on Jasmine's brow, but she didn't notice.

"We really should get up now, you know. We've spent the whole morning in bed and while I'm not opposed to staying with you all day long, I wouldn't want to keep you from whatever tasks you need to get done today."

[Raelyse]

Calling Raelyse's bed warm would have been like calling a desert unbearable to live in. For as the prince of Myrusia finally shrugged the sheets off his body and rose to present his naked form to his lover, he could barely keep the heat from his torso. His face was flushed red and he was panting slightly, though the smile across his handsome face showed that he was far from frustrated from his fatigue. Running a hand through his silver hair and sweeping it from his face, the prince slowly fumbled his way towards his bathroom, closer to Jasmine's side of the bed. He saw no reason to hide his leg impediment from this woman, for she did not judge him. Or for some reason, he did not seem to care if she did. Whatever it was, it was much easier for the prince of Myrusia to limp than to straighten and send pain throughout his disabled leg.

He leaned down, wincing at the pain but smiling through it when he saw the look on Jasmine's pretty face. He placed a gentle kiss on her cheek, before turning for his bathroom, his right hand pressed against the wall for balance. He turned back towards her, a sincere and charming smile stretched across his face from ear to ear.

"The things I want to do today all involve you, my love. Why don't you go back to your room and find that someone has placed the most beautiful dress I've ever found on your bed along with enough jewelry and perfume for the rest of Alerar," the prince paused at that, smiling to himself as he turned and took another step into his bathroom. He shouted through the door as he closed it gently behind him. "Go get dressed and meet me at the exit gates in two hours!"

Raelyse didn't need to open his ears to hear her leave, he knew that she was. He knew of her feelings towards him, he knew of how devoted she was. As he splashed water onto his handsome face, he could not help but smirk.

"Today is a good day," he whispered, smiling at the handsome face that stared back at him in the mirror.

[Jasmine]

Jasmine watched as he slowly got out of the large bed. The sheets were far more rumpled now than they had been when she first awoke this morning, but she neither noticed nor cared. Her eyes held a dreamy gleam to them as he kissed her cheek and departed. She had been intending to stay beneath the warm covers for a little while longer, but with the thought of having only two hours, she hurried out of bed and slipped a thicker bathrobe on over her body. The sheer robe she had donned earlier would not do for traversing the hall between Raelyse’s rooms and her own.

It was not a truly great distance to her rooms and though they were not anywhere near as large as Raelye’s, they were still quite spacious. She had a small sitting room with a large, unlit fireplace, a luxurious bathroom with a deep tub, and bedroom area that was divided from the rest of the suite by a beaded curtain. She also had a small balcony that overlooked the mountains, though the view was not quite as spectacular as the view from Raelyse’s large balcony.

The decor was simple, but elegant, all in shades of red and gold. None of her furniture was gilded, instead it was beautifully carved. She’d not had the time to have the colors changed, but when she did, she planned to use a great deal of blue and silver, her favorite colors. As she entered the bathroom, she shrugged out of the robe and draped it over a chair, then almost squealed in delight as she found that a serving girl had already gotten the tub filled with water that still steamed slightly. Since taking up residence in Erebus, Jasmine had made it a daily ritual to have a nice, long, hot bath and to wash her wealth of hair. She sighed deeply as she let her body sink into the hot water.

An hour later, she rose from the tub and quickly dried off. After wrapping her hair in the large fluffy towel, she went into the bedroom to see this “most beautiful dress” Raelyse had mentioned. Her eyes widened in surprise as she got her first look at it. It was knee-length and made of the finest blue silk she had ever seen. She slipped it on quickly and marveled at how well the dress fit. The neckline scooped a bit lower than she normally would have worn, but she wanted to humor her love.

Beside the bed, a matching set containing a necklace, earrings and bracelet sat beside a small, glass vial of perfume. The first to go on was the perfume which reminded her of roses in full bloom. The silvery chain of the necklace was not quite as long as the one she used for her lockets. Thus, the small heart-shaped sapphire pendant rested about an inch or so above her lockets. The matching bracelet went on easily, but she looked at the earrings a little dubiously. She hadn’t worn earrings in a few years and wasn’t sure if she could still wear them. She picked them up and held them in front of her.

“Well, I guess it won’t hurt to try...”

Feeling for the tiny hole in her earlobe, she gently pushed the earring against it. Much to her surprise, it went through easily. Smiling happily, she quickly put the other one in the other ear. They were quite light; she could hardly feel that they were there at all. She walked quickly over to her vanity table to get a good look at her new jewelry and her lips parted once again in a bright smile.

The second hour soon passed as the former princess primped for an afternoon with her prince. Hurrying through the fortress, she arrived at the gates just at the end of the two hours he’d allotted before they met again. She looked around for him, curious as to what he had up his sleeve.

[Raelyse]

Despite the high standards that Raelyse forced everyone else to adhere to in his presence, the prince of Myrusia rarely preened himself for others. If he did it, he would do it to appease his extreme narcissism. This time though, the look he gave the mirror could barely be described as a glance, before he threw on the clothes he had worn the night before when he had met Jasmine as well as a black jacket over that. He grabbed his sword cane, leaving the ornately decorated rapier in his sword rack before he left his quarters, somewhat in a hurry. His hair had fallen somewhat into place, though even the most absent minded of his servants could have told that the prince had not spent the time. It did not bear the usual perfection that it always did, it did not possess the same flair. For the first time, the hair on his head seemed more gray than silver and the life in it seemed to be lost. His clothes only extended that stereotype. The critical prince nearly always spent every waking moment ironing out even the smallest creases in his shirt, but this time a few large ones appeared that went unchecked. Normally, it would be like letting orcs roam through Erebus but for some reason, the Grander seemed different today.

A glance away from the clothes and the grooming that apparently made the man was all that it took to shatter any doubts that his servants might have had about him. He still carried himself with all the grace, poise and posture that commanded respect and that ever present smirk across his handsome face still remained. They still kept out of his way, whispering in each other's ears, never daring to risk speaking of him while he was in earshot. For even if his clothes were no longer impeccable, they knew that there was a high chance that with his swagger would also come his temper. And that was much worse.

The prince strode purposefully into the Operations sector of his base, away from the Residential and approached the room cum office of his unofficial confidante, Clement Whitestorm.

"Hello, troll," the prince said sarcastically, greeting his underling and hinting at his half troll heritage.

"Morning, your highness," Clement snidely responded, rising from his chair to greet the prince with one of his perpetual smiles. Raelyse may have been a strong figure of a man, six feet tall and muscular but the half-troll's seven foot lanky frame dwarfed the prince.

"Did you sort it out?" Raelyse said, annoyed at the ever-chirpy nature and that annoying smile. His frustration quickly rose in the Clement's presence.

A nod in response was all the prince needed before he turned and moved for the exits, heading for the carriage that waited outside Erebus' gates for him.

If his servants were noticing his posture once again, it was obvious that after leaving Clement, Raelyse walked with swagger that easily outshone the way he was moving before.

He was confident of this day.

[Zerith]

((Just as side note and for some clarity. This thread takes place after "Espionage and Caviar".))

Sometimes it seemed like there wasn’t any way to get a break from work. Once Zerith had successfully completed one assignment, another one suddenly sprung up and needed his attention. Perhaps that was just the way things were meant to be, sudden and surprising. In Lady Jasmine’s case, another surprise was in store for her. The poor woman, one would think that after the last assignment she completed she would finally get a break. Unfortunately, she wouldn’t receive one that morning.

Instead of being blessed by finding her lover at the front gates, the princess was greeted by a half-troll. It wasn’t much of a surprise to some, the Grander was probably running off to take care of some other ‘business’ while leaving the Morian behind. Yet in the case of the former princess, she had yet to lift the veil from her face and see the truth. Something that definitely helped one individual.

In the Grander’s defense, not all of his business was pleasurable. Managing the GO and Erebus while trying to deal with other issues was a daunting task. So it wasn’t exactly his fault he had to hop in a carriage and leave in a hurry. Yet that didn’t change the fact that Jasmine was left standing at the gates of Erebus. Luckily Clement was there waiting for her and held the answers she was probably looking for.

“I’m sorry Miss Jasmine,” the Grander’s underling said as he greeted her. “But it seems like some business suddenly came up that demanded the Grander’s immediate attention. So unfortunately, it appears that he will not be able to accompany with what he has planned for you to do.”

“However,” Clement added as he spoke in a way as if to convince the princess to cheer up. “We have managed to find someone to take his place. Although he hasn’t arrived yet, once he gets here you two will probably leave Erebus as soon as possible. In the meantime I’m going to explain what the Grander planned for the both of you to do.”

“You see, you are travel with a small group and pay a visit to the dwarves of Kachuk if I’m correct. The Grander really desires for Erebus to succeed, and he believes that forging a good relationship with the dwarves would help greatly. Once this other person arrives, you two will move along with these plans and begin the trip to the dwarves. The group you’re traveling with is to help you in case something happens, which shows just how important this task is to the Grander. Your companion is already aware of the details regarding the task. So like I said, once he arrives you should probably leave as soon as possible.”

Just as Clement was finishing, a black stallion rode through the gates of Erebus and came to a sudden halt. The beast breathed heavily and was obviously exhausted, a clear sign of the hard ride both the warhorse and rider endured to get to the fortress. Dismounting, the rider stopped to brush the hair out of his face before approaching the half-troll. In the man’s hand, a very familiar red halberd was held tightly.

Smiling widely, Zerith breathed heavily as he spoke. “Sorry I’m a little late Clement, I climbed on Exarion and rode here as fast as I could once I got the orders…”

[Jasmine]

Jasmine stared at Clement in disbelief. Sudden business? He had promised this day would be for her! She didn’t even notice yet that her friend, Zerith, had arrived. Anger and disappointment filled her, but mostly disappointment, at first. She stared a moment more then shook her head violently.

“No.”

She waited for Clement’s response, but when he only looked at her blankly she began again.

“No. I will not do this mission for him. He said this day was supposed to be for me. He said nothing about it having anything to do about his precious Order. Find someone else.”

Turning on her heel, she strode away, not giving him a chance to react. She walked quickly, wanting to get away from everyone before her disappointment with Raelyse’s disappearance could get the better of her. She could already feel tears forming in her eyes and she had no intention of letting anyone see them, especially Clement.

In a short time, she found herself back in front of the double doors to her own rooms. She leaned against the door frame, resting there a moment before yanking open one side and going in. Once inside, she slammed the door shut, then leaned back against it and sank slowly to the floor, holding her head in her hands against her knees.

[Zerith]

“I take it Raelyse promised her some quality time between the two of them?” Zerith asked.

As the two of them watched Jasmine storm off, the half-troll sighed deeply. “Yes, as a matter of fact he did.”

“Why am I not surprised?”

“It’s not like it matters,” Clement answered. “What the Grander does is his business and none of the women he spends time with knows anything about his activities.”

“Yeah, all except her.”

“What the hell is that supposed to mea-“ The words suddenly stopped as Clement realized what the halberdier meant. “You bastard! You promised me you wouldn’t tell anyone. The fact that she knows could get us both in trouble.”

“Like I give a damn!” Zerith shot back. “She doesn’t deserve to be treated like a ‘flavor of the day’ or something like that. Besides, why would he care about one woman that got away?”

“Believe me, I think he would care.” Clement replied. “When it comes to women, his mindset is fairly straightforward, ‘They’re all mine’.”

“Whatever, I’m going to be a proper gentleman and try to calm her down and convince her to accept the mission anyways. However, if she decides to leave him someday, I’m going to support her decision.” Zerith said before he left Clement to follow Jasmine.

“You’re not listening to me,” Clement said as he shook his head. “In his eyes, she is his.”

“Well for what it’s worth…” Zerith called back. “…I saw her first.”

Running after Jasmine, Zerith turned the last corner just in time to see her slam the door to her chambers. “Poor thing,” the warder thought. “She’s probably going to crawl into her bed and cry.” The halberdier took his time walking the rest of the way to the doors that marked Jasmine’s room. With each step he listened carefully to see if he was right.

When he finally reached the double doors, he froze. Was it a good idea to knock? Or would he be better to just sit back and wait for Jasmine come back out before trying to console her? Sighing heavily, Zerith turned around and pressed his back against the doors. Eventually, he sank to the floor and gently laid his halberd infront of him. Running a hand through his curly, dark hair, the warder cleared his thought before he spoke. It probably wasn’t the best words to say at that current moment, but they came out anyways.

“I really don’t want to have to say this, but I told you so. Do you believe me now? Why don’t we just sit down together and talk about this, okay? Remember, I’m your warder, your knight in shining armor. I’m also the guy in the green mask that danced with you at that masquerade. You know I’ll listen and be there for you. Even if it means sitting out here until you decide to come out.”

[Jasmine]

At the voice of her warder, Jasmine tried to stifle her tears and wiped her face. She didn’t want to hear anything about what he’d told her at the ball. She had almost left the ball when he told her that Raelyse was cheating, but she’d remembered her duty then and pressed on. She’d almost forgotten he’d even said anything.

Slowly, she got to her feet and opened the door, allowing him to come in. She didn’t say anything just yet, instead she walked softly toward her sitting room and the comfortable chairs and couches it offered. The fireplace across from the largest couch was unlit, but Jasmine didn't care. It wasn't cold enough to need a fire anyway. Her feet trudged slowly across the deep red carpet as she struggled to get a hold of her emotions.

As she stopped in the center, the lovely dress Raelyse had given her swirled about her knees for a brief moment. Her shoulders shook as she tried to keep the tide of tears back, but in a moment she whirled around to face Zerith, unshed tears brimming anew in her eyes.

“He promised, Zerith! He promised!”

She cried, looking to her warder for comfort.

[Zerith]

“I know he promised,” The halberdier replied softly. His voice was gentle, as if he was trying to cushion the fragile state the princess was in. “He promised you the entire day, just the two of you together for an entire day.”

If a man’s word was his bond, then just how strong really was the bond Raelyse had with Jasmine? This couldn’t have been the first time something suddenly happened that caused the two of them to part ways. It definitely wasn’t the first time the Grander broke a promise to the princess either. So how weak was the bond the two of them shared? Or how strong was the bond between the warder and mage? Up until that moment, Zerith had done his best to keep his promises to Jasmine. He even stood up and helped her brother defend his kingdom. So to the halberdier it wasn’t hard to figure out which one of the two relationships was going to break first. The thing he wondered was if Jasmine knew or not.

“I realize I may be stepping out of line to some. But would you be willing to accept my promise?” He asked as he approached her. Gently placing his hands on her shoulders, he looked straight into her eyes as he spoke. “I’ll give you not one, but three days. Together we’ll do the task that’s asked of us, and for the entire assignment I promise that you’ll be the centre of my attention and my primary concern. Whatever that’s asked of us will come afterwards. So for three days all my plans and decisions will involve you. If the mission is a success or failure doesn’t matter, all that will matter to me is that you’re satisfied. Do we have a deal?”

“Three days,” Zerith thought. “Just give me three days alone with you and by the time they’re over you’ll be with the man that deserves you and will treat you right. Me.”

[Jasmine]

Jasmine looked up at him sadly, then blinked and put her head against his chest, letting her tears fall down her face unhindered. Her shoulders shook slightly as she felt his arms wrap around her. It was not that long ago that they’d been on another assignment together in Radasanth. They had danced and each time, when she could forget about Raelyse, she had been very happy in Zerith’s arms. Before that, it had been Zerith who stood by her side when enemies attacked Moriah; Raelyse had vanished.

“It’s not fair!” she mumbled against him then turned her head so she could speak clearly, but did not move away, “Why in the name of all things holy should I go on a mission he never mentioned to me? Especially right after breaking a promise. I do not want to go. I have no reason to go.”

She was silent a moment, thinking. Three days away from Erebus, away from the possibility of confronting Raelyse about yet another broken promise. Three days away from all the knowing glances. Everyone always seemed to know when Raelyse had broken another promise to spend time with her, but no one would ever tell her where he’d gone or what he was doing that was suddenly so important. She sniffled a little, then looked up at him once more.

“However, so long as you do all the talking to accomplish this stupid task, I’ll go along. I want nothing to do with this precious mission of his, that’s so important, but that he can’t handle himself. If you will give me that, then we have a deal.”

[Zerith]

Jasmine was beginning to act like a child in some ways. She was beginning to get the ‘he did this to me, so I’m going to do it back to him,’ attitude. Sure, it probably worked in some cases, but they were rare. If Zerith was to make a guess, he would put his gold on the likelihood that Jasmine’s mentality would only makes things worse. While she probably didn’t want to admit it right now, she was still a member of the GO. And as long as she was a member, this assignment was their responsibility.

Zerith rolled his eyes, “What reason should you have to go on the mission? What bloody reason do you have for staying with Raelyse and put up with being treated like shit!?” he snapped. The straw that would break the camel's back was placed. His patience had run out.

“Seriously, what unseen quality does he have that makes you want to stay with him? He just lied to you, and is probably laying the foundation for his next ‘conquest’ as we speak. But instead of asking yourself why the hell you’re still with him, you’re trying to find a reason for going on a mission with your warder. Why won’t you just leave him? I’m sure you will find another guy that will love you unconditionally, and although he probably won't be as wealthy or as powerful as Raelyseis , at least he'll surpass the prince in faithfulness and honesty.”

Turning away from Jasmine, Zerith headed to the door. “As long as we are members of the GO, this mission is our responsibility. But just as you asked, I’ll do all the talking to accomplish the stupid task. Though if you don’t want to do any other stupid tasks in the future then I suggest you leave the GO. Just realize that if you do that, you’ll be leaving your dear prince too," He said. The words 'dear prince' coming out sarcasticly.

Opening the door, Zerith turned around to face the former princess, “Snowdrop will be ready for you at the gates. I’ll be waiting for you there with her and Exarion. Just do me a favour and ask yourself why you should stay with the Grander, alright? Better yet, ask yourself if there are any other men you can think of that will treat you better than he does, and why you’re not with them instead if Raelyse.”

With that said, Zerith closed the door behind him, picked up the polearm he left on the floor and headed down to the main gates to rejoin Clement. As he climbed back on his horse, his eyes looked to the half-troll, “She’ll do the mission. Though just between us, don’t be surprised if this is her last.”

[Jasmine]

Jasmine looked up at her friend, her face stricken. This was not what she wanted to hear him say and it cut her to the bone. She almost sat down under the onslaught of questions, but was determined not to let even Zerith see how badly she was hurting. She didn’t try to counter anything he said; too shocked that he would say it to form the words. Watching the door after he left, she wrapped her arms around herself and whispered very softly, “But I love him.”

She thought for a minute about staying there in her rooms. There was one thing about her stay in Erebus that she’d not told anyone. She was not a member of her prince’s precious Grander’s Order. She only stayed there to be near Raelyse. Given that information, she was under no obligations to accept this idiotic mission.

Three days away from everyone and their looks…

The thought repeated itself through her mind over and over again until at last she sighed resignedly. Hurriedly, she changed into her normal travel attire of a dark blue, knee-length dress with a silver hem at the knee. It had no sleeves and scooped a little low at the neck to display a small amount of cleavage and display her silver lockets. On her feet went black, knee-high boots; a dagger hilt showed in the top of each. A silver-worked sword belt and sword in its plain sheath encircled her waist. The sword hilt itself was plain black leather, with a small amount of silver embroidery to denote the sword of a noble. She braided her hair in a single braid as quickly as she could and then, at last, she was ready.

As she entered the courtyard, she held her head high. Across the stones she could see Zerith waiting and Clement beside him. Her horse, Snowdrop, who had just recently been shipped to her, stood on Zerith’s other side. The horse nickered to her mistress as Jasmine came close, asking for her nose to be rubbed. Jasmine of course, obliged her pure white mare briefly, then swung easily up into the saddle.

“Are we going?”

[Zerith]

“So what exactly did you say to her?” Clement asked after Zerith climbed on his horse.

The halberdier shrugged and took his polearm from a soldier that held it for him so he could climb onto Exarion. “Nothing really important, basically ‘I told you so’. I said I’d do all the talking and I promised her three day away from here. I figured it would take at least that much time just to get there.”

“…And?”

“And I told her the truth.” Zerith said as he glared at Clement. “I told her she shouldn’t keep allowing herself to be treated the way Raelyse treats her. That and I told her it’s about time she started considering if she should be with another man, one that will treat her right.”

“Like you, right?” Clement responded.

“What?”

“I’m not blind Zerith, you’re in love with her.” The half-troll answered. “I bet the truth is that it’s not the fact she’s isn’t with you that really pisses you off. It’s the fact that she probably spends a considerable amount of time in bed with the Grander that really gets your blood boiling.”

“Whatever,” Zerith groaned as he fought the urge to kick Clement in the face and instead chose to change the subject, “Back to the mission. Is it just Jasmine and I going? Or will we have some sort of escort?”

“I’m afraid you’re on your own, halberdier. The escorts I mentioned to Jasmine that would’ve gone with you left with the Grander. I wouldn’t be too concerned though, you two should be able to take care of yourselves.”

Just then Jasmine appeared and Zerith was thankful that she took her time getting ready. He wouldn’t have wanted her to overhear the conversation the two men had about her just moments earlier. Especially the last things Clement said. Though as much and Zerith was pleased to see her. He couldn’t help bit feel a small bit of anger at the fact that she hadn’t left the prince yet.

While the former princess climbed onto her horse, Clement handed Zerith a map that Raelyse himself made and some last minute information regarding the assignment. It wasn’t anything important, just names of people to know and a outline of what the GO intended to accomplish by the end of this. It wasn’t long until Jasmine was ready to go and expressed it. “Are we going?” her gentle voice called out to him.

“Yes, unless you want your precious Raelyse to kiss you goodbye and wish you a safe trip. Oh wait, I forgot. He doesn’t love you enough to stay around long enough to do that.” He said, almost spitting as he mentioned the Grander’s name. He glared at Clement once more, “If all goes well, I'm aimming for us to be back in five to six days, do you think he’ll even be here to greet her?”

With that said Zerith kicked Exarion’s sides and rode out of Erebus. Jasmine wouldn’t have a problem with catching up, the black stallion wasn’t even galloping. He just needed to get away from Erebus and allow Jasmine to have a word with Clement if she chose too. Hopefully she would and get some answers.

[Jasmine]

Jasmine glared at Zerith’s receding back. How could he continue to be so hurtful? Why did he have to remind her that Raelyse had once again suddenly changed his mind about something and left her behind?

“He loves you, you know.”

“Hmm?”

“You heard me,” Clement spoke quietly. “He loves you and he doesn’t like seeing you put up with the way the Grander treats you.”

“Well, that’s just too bad. I love Raelyse, despite his actions. You only see the mean things he does. He’s much different when he’s away from the pressures of being Grander.”

With that, Jas tapped her heels into Snowdrop’s sides and the horse sprang into to an easy ground-eating lope. Within a few minutes she could see Zerith again, but made no effort to catch up completely. She wanted to be alone for awhile and would catch up when it was time to set up camp.


Hours later…

Jasmine pulled back on the reigns as Snowdrop drew abreast of Exarion. She avoided looking at her warder directly, still unsure what to make of what Clement had told her. The sun was already set, with only a few rays lighting up the western horizon. It would be full dark soon. Already a few stars were starting to sparkle in the sky.

“We should make camp before it gets too dark.”

A small surge of relief flooded through her as Zerith also drew in his reigns and they found a place to set up their camp. It was in a small hollow, slightly protected from the nighttime winds. While Zerith collected firewood and started a fire, Jasmine set out their meal for the night. A little bit of beef to be roasted over the fire and some vegetables that could also be roasted made their small meal. While it cooked, Jasmine glanced out of the corner of her eye at Zerith, then back to the fire.

“You know I love him, don’t you, Zerith?” she asked quietly, not meeting his eyes. “I know he doesn’t always show it very well, but he’s not really all that bad.”

Zerith snorted and turned the spit with the meat, potatoes and carrots on it over, “How many times does this make it, Jasmine? How many promises is it now that he’s made and then broken before the day is even half over?”

“You don’t understand. I love him. I can deal with a few broken promises. Yes, it’s upsetting, but it’s not something I can’t put up with," she answered, keeping her gaze on the cooking food so as not to meet Zerith's eyes.

“What about everything else I’ve told you? Or don’t you remember that you’re nothing but a ‘flavor of the day’ to him? Why do you let him do this to you when there are other people out there that would treat you so much better?”

“Like you?" she asked, almost accusingly as she finally looked up. "Clement told me before I left to catch up with you. I love Raelyse, Zerith, and nothing you say can change that.”

She pulled her eyes away from his at that and stared at the flames dancing in their cookfire. She didn’t want to talk about this anymore, it was becoming too painful, but she could not ignore Zerith's protests.

“He doesn’t love you! All he cares about is getting you into his bed!”

“That’s not true! You don’t know him like I do!” she shouted at him as she stood to her feet. “Maybe you should’ve come to that ball my brother had last year or so. Remember? The one just before those ships came to attack Moriah? That’s where I met and fell in love with Raelyse. Maybe if you’d have come, it would’ve been you. But you didn’t come and Raelyse did. I love him, and that’s all there is to it. Good night!”

Turning on her heel she stalked a little bit away from the fire to where she’d laid out her blankets. Wrapping herself up in them, she turned so her back was to the fire, trying not to let herself start crying again.

[Zerith]

The night was cool and with an almost cloudless sky. As the fire burned brightly, the moon and the countless stars above shone brightly as well. It really was a lovely night, one a number of people would stop to admire. Some believed that good things happened in night like these, a special moment that esd remembered for a long time. That night something would finally happen between Jasmine and Zerith, something that had probably been a long time coming. The drama between the mage and her warder that had grown over almost a year finally reached it’s climax. Now the two of them were engaged in a heated argument.

Zerith wouldn’t let this argument die as suddenly and as easily as Jasmine seemed to want it to. Instead he stormed over to where she hid herself in her blankets and pulled her up to her feet. “I would’ve gladly gone to that ball with you if I was invited! Yet a certain princess failed to give me the honor of being her guest to the event!” He shouted. “I know Raelyse better than you think Jasmine. You're not the only one that’s had the pleasure of meeting him before joining the GO.”

"What you fail to realize Jasmine..." He continued. "Is that we passed the point of no return the moment our lips met and we shared our first kiss. Ever since then I've found myself thinking of you all the time. I know I don't just want you, I need you Jasmine.

“Let go of me Zerith!” Jasmine shouted. Her warder quickly listened and released his grip on her arm. “You’re just not listening to me, I love him.”

“Yeah, well you sure have a funny way of showing it,” Zerith countered. “I kissed you at that masquerade party we went to and if I remember, there was no doubt that you kissed me back! My mask was even off when that happened! Admit it, at that ball you clearly fell in love with me as well.”

“I was also clearly not thinking straight that night either!" Jasmine shot back. "I don’t know what was in my drink, but you didn’t seem to mind.”

"Maybe I didn't mind because I thought you were finally coming to your senses, though now I see still he still has you fooled!," He shouted. "God damnit Jasmine, your needs should be the important thing to attend to! When Moriah was attacked I didn’t just run off to tend to my own personal business, I waited to make sure you were okay. When Hamasha fell, I didn’t just run off and leave you to deal with Moriah’s new problem. I stayed and fought my own blood to keep your home and family safe!", As Zerith went on, listing the things he had done for her, he counted them off on his fingers. "Now I didn’t do those things simply because they were the ‘right’ things to do. I did them because I placed your needs above my own because I loved you then just as I love you now!. Raelyse only loves himself!”

“Just, just go away!” the former princess said trying to fight back tears. “You’re as good at it as anyone else. Raelyse is always leaving and you left that night in Radasanth. We might not even be having this argument if you had stayed. Like I said earlier, I don’t know what was in my drink, but it very well might have cleared my mind of Raelyse enough to leave him. You didn’t stay though, you left me just like Raelyse does! So just g-go away and leave m-m-me alone!” Stifling her tears, she turned on her heel and starting walking away with her arms folded across her chest.

Zerith glared angrily a Jasmine, shocked that she just had the nerve to say he was just like Raelyse. His sapphire eyes turned cold for a moment, almost as if they could pierce Jasmine like cold daggers. Going after the princess, the warder grabbed onto her shoulder and spun her around so that she was facing him again. With his free hand, he pointed a single finger at Jasmine and spoke slow and firm. "Don't ever say I'm like Raelyse! Unlike him, I treat you with respect. I've risked my life for your safety, and that night I couldn't bring myself to take advantage of you. I left, I'm not denying that. But I left before I climbed into your bed with you, not afterwards. Now that I think about it though, do you know what I should have done? I should have done this."

The moment the last word left his lips, Zerith quickly closed the remaining distance between them and kissed her. His arms left her shoulders and placed themselves on either side of her head. There was no doubt he was stepping out of line, kissing a woman that was already in a relationship with another man. Not to mention that man was also the halberdier's guild superior. However, Zerith didn't really care anymore. As far as he was concerned, he would be done with the Grander's Order the moment this mission was finished. Yet before he could leave the organization, he wanted to be able to take Jasmine with him. For the first time, Zerith felt like it was finally was able to express his feelings for her. Offering everything he had and everything he was in the kiss, he prayed that she would somehow feel the difference.

[Jasmine]

Still very angry with him and the words he'd said, her first reaction was to try to pull away from him. However, he was stronger than she and held her. As he kissed her, she couldn't help but feel the truth of his feelings just as she had that night at the Baroness' ball in Radasanth. Then, she'd been inclined to return his kiss because of a potion that had been slipped into her drink. This time, as she felt the difference between his kiss and Raelyse's kisses, she slowly began returning it. She looped her arms up around his neck as she finally accepted what he'd been telling her all along.

A minute or so later, she slowly pulled away, but didn't move from being in his arms. His kiss, so different from Raelyse's numerous lust-filled ones had worked wonders on her temper. She was much calmer now than she had been a few minutes ago, "You know, it really wasn't my fault you didn’t come to the ball. You're the one who said he'd rather stay at my estate."

As much as he didn't want to admit it, she did have a point. "I know, but can you blame me. I had just become your warder then, so the whole concept of going to a ball hosted by your brother was a little intimidating. Honestly, I regret not doing it now."

She giggled lightly, and leaned her head against his chest. "Perhaps we should go back for the next ball he has. He always writes to me well enough in advance that I can go if I want. Oh and you're still doing all the talking on this mission of yours."

"I know I'm still doing all the talking, I promised you I would," he answered. Puzzled slightly by the other words she said, he couldn't help but ask, "What about Raelyse? Wouldn't you rather go with him to the next one?"

"You missed out on the last one, and I don't care anymore what Raelyse does or does not do. You were right when you said I fell in love with you at that ball in Radasanth, I just didn't want to admit it," she said quietly, gazing up at his handsome face. "There's also a reason why I don't want to do any of the talking other than being pissed off with the Grander. I am not a member of his precious Order. I was only here at Erebus because Raelyse is here.” She paused for a moment, then smiled up at him, “Let's go sit by the fire, it's getting chilly..."

"All right, let's go sit by the fire then," he replied. As he followed her, he continued, "If you’re not a member of his Order yet, you will be. It's only a matter of time until that happens. Then he'll send you away on assignments every chance he'll get."

"That's where you're wrong," she smiled smugly as she took a seat, "I've no plans to join it at all. This makes only the second mission I've ever gone on for him and I'm only here because you talked me into it. Otherwise, I would still be in my rooms at Erebus. As for the mission in Radasanth, I had asked if there was something I could do to help, and he said I could go to Radasanth for him, so I did.”

"There, that's it," Zerith responded. "He'll use your willingness to do things for him at the drop of a hat. He sends you off to do favors while he slips between the sheets with some other random girl. Why lower yourself to being treated like that?"

She scowled, "Why did you have to bring that up again? I don't want to talk about it."

"Can you just do me a favor please?" he asked as he took a seat next to her. "Picture your life five or ten years from now okay? Can you see yourself still living in the cold, stone walls of Erebus? Just waiting for a glimpse of Raelyse while he manages his order, leaves and sends you off on favors and not to mention takes various other women to his bed?"

She looked at him confusedly for a moment, then decided to humor him. If what she'd been told was true, it wasn't a very pleasant future. She sighed heavily, "No, I would get tired of it long before ten or even five years had passed and stop reminding me about the other women.”

"Okay, okay, sorry. Now, close your eyes."

She raised an eyebrow at him, then did as she was bidden, wondering what he was up to now.

"All right, the same five or ten years from now, it's spring and you're in Moriah again, on your estate. Your brother Eric and his family are over for lunch. You all decided to have a meal outside. Eric sits next to his wife, while you sit beside me. Not far off is their child playing, possibly with one of our own. Does that sound any better?"

She was silent for a moment, letting all his words sink in before she opened her eyes and gazed into his, "Much better..."

He smiled softly, "See? That's the kind of life I want for us." He stopped for a moment and brushed her cheek, "One where we leave the order together and start a life of our own... together," the last words barely escaped his mouth before he kissed her again, this time much more gently than earlier.

Softly, she returned his kiss, one hand moving to cup his cheek. Eyes closed, she lost track of the next few moments until she felt Zerith pull away slowly and reluctantly. She opened her eyes and gazed up at him once again as he spoke softly.

"So what do you say? Are you willing to leave the order with me and take a chance of our own?"

Jasmine shifted so she could lean against him and pulled his arms around herself. It always felt nice having someone’s arms wrapped around her small frame. "I think that sounds like a good plan. We still have to stop back by Erebus after this so I can pick up a few things..."

The night wore on as the two talked quietly until the fire eventually burned down to coals. The stars that had previously shone on a quarrel, now shone on a young couple, arms wrapped around each other as they slept by the remains of their fire.


~*~*~*~

Early morning sun warmed Jasmine’s face and she opened her eyes slowly. At first she wondered where she was, then all at once she remembered everything that had happened over the course of yesterday and last night. Slowly, so as not to wake him just yet, she turned her head a bit to watch Zerith as a light breeze stirred his brown locks of hair. Smiling softly to herself, she snuggled a little closer to him and dozed lightly She was rather comfortable lying there in his arms and did not want to get up so soon.

[Zerith]

To say that Zerith was happy was an understatement, he was overjoyed. After a year or so of developing feelings for her, discovering she was with someone and being treated poorly. Enduring heartbreak and countless flashes of anger, not to mention the times he questioned why he just couldn’t accept the possibility that she would never feel the same way he did for her. It all ended the way Zerith hoped for. Jasmine, the woman that held his heart, finally accepted the truth and was leaving the Grander. Even better though was the fact that she was going to be with her warder.

What Zerith thought would take three days, he accomplished in one. Jasmine was his, and he belonged to her. So to Zerith, everything was perfect and wonderful. The argument the two of them had earlier was heated and at times it felt like they were at each other’s throats. Though now as she leaned against him and he held her by the fire. One thing was clear.

It was all worth it.

***

The day that promised to be beautiful certainly lived up to it’s word. This in turn meant that the plans for the day didn’t have to be cancelled. Instead it made them even better. What would have been a simple meal and get together, now turned into a picnic. As the two couples sat on the blanket outdoors in the shade, one man turned his head to look at the other and smiled. “So Zerith,” he said before taking a bite out of an apple. “I take it that life here hasn’t hasn’t been too hectic for you?”

The halberdier laughed, “I can’t say it has,” he replied. “Although it isn’t as exciting as travelling around Althanas. I’m quite happy to just settle here and enjoy life, even if I’m a member of the military.”

“You mean that halberd of yours isn’t hanging up on display somewhere?”

“At least not yet, Eric,” Zerith answered. “Besides, other than the Hasmasha incident. I don’t think they really has been a need for the military. As far as I’m concerned, I think we made a good choice when we decided to settle down here in Moriah.”

“Good,” this time Jasmine's voice that was heard. “I think we deserve to have a life like that.”

“I couldn’t agree more,” her warder replied. After turning his gaze to the children playing in the distance he smiled…

“We earned this.”

***

The following morning seemed to greet Zerith with the same promise the one in his dream had. Like Jasmine, he too wondered where he was when he woke up. The feeling of the sleeping form of Jasmine in his arms was a pleasant reminder of the events the night before. Although he did do a quick check to see if their clothes were still on, which thankfully they were. Quietly and slowly so he didn’t wake his princess, he wiggled out of her arms placed a quick kiss on her cheek before climbing to his feet.

Given that fact that yesterday had been quite a stressful one for both of them, The halberdier figured it would be nice for the two of them to start today on a good note. So with that in mind, what better way to do that than treat the other to a pleasant morning? While Jasmine dozed, Zerith went about getting things ready for the day. He fed their horses, packed up their belongings while stopping to drape one of the princess’ blankets over her. Then after the typical tasks were done, he began to set up breakfast. From his saddlebags he retrieved some bread he had purchased shortly before he had arrived at Erebus the day before, along with a pair of apples. He knew it wasn’t much to offer, but he decided he would offer them anyways. At the very least, it would be something to satisfy their stomaches.

After laying the meal down on a separate blanket, He quietly knelt down beside the sleeping princess and rubbed her arm gently. Bringing his lips to her ear, he whispered, "It's time to wake up love. We have to eat breakfast and get ready for another day."

[Jasmine]

Jasmine barely stirred as she felt the warmth that was Zerith move away. A few moments later when he draped the blanket over her, she took an edge and snuggled down into it with a small smile on her face. She opened her eyes slowly at the sound of Zerith’s voice and the feel of his hand on her arm. Smiling softly, she turned and looked up at him.

“Mmmm, good morning. What’s for breakfast anyway?”

“Apples and bread, not much, but it’s something.”

Jasmine sat up and stretched, letting the blanket fall away as she did. She looked around and saw that everything was ready. Zerith had apparently been quite busy while she slept. All that remained was for the blanket at her waist and the blanket the food was on to be packed away. As she stood, she picked up the blanket and began folding it.

“Something is better than nothing. I see you’ve been quite busy. Why didn’t you wake me? I could’ve helped, you know.”

“Yes, but you needed a little more sleep. Besides, it wasn’t like there was that much to do. Come and eat.”

Jasmine rolled her eyes slightly and put the blanket in her saddlebags before sitting down to eat. In a short time, breakfast was done and halberdier and princess were mounted on their way once again. As they rode, they talked quietly on a variety of topics, but avoided the one topic of Raelyse. Jasmine was enjoying the day and neither wanted to ruin it by talking of things that were so painful.

Hours later, the sun shone brightly in a perfectly clear blue sky. Birds swooped through the skies on occasion, singing about the joys of being alive and of the wonders of flying. On the ground, a black stallion ambled along, beside him a white mare also walked. The mare was currently riderless, while the stallion had a double load. On his back, he carried not only Zerith, but also Jasmine.

“Mmm, I do love you, Zerith,” she mumbled as she held tightly to him. She sat sideways in his lap, with her ankles crossed and her arms wrapped tightly around his waist. Looking up to his handsome face, she closed her eyes as their lips met once again. She’d lost track of how many times they’d kissed since she moved to ride with him. After discovering that it was immensely difficult to ride separate horses and kiss at the same time, Jasmine had simply moved to sit in Zerith's lap. Exarion was a much stronger horse than Snowdrop and could handle two riders much easier than the mare could have.

Arms wrapped around each other, they soon lost themselves in a world comprised solely of themselves as Exarion and Snowdrop plodded along in the direction they were facing. Unknown to the young couple, several pairs of eyes watched them, hidden from view both because the couple was too busy to look around them and because the watchers knew their land very well.

[Zerith]

Up until now Zerith didn’t understand why some people stressed the importance of love. People like his mother, who always told him it was one of the greatest things in existence, even more than life or death. They were always those he would see locked in an embrace with someone else, and would make him sick to his stomach. He would see them, oblivious to everyone around them, and then the halberdier would use every ounce of his will to force himself not to make a scene by punching one of them.

Yet now with the current change in his relationship with Jasmine, He thought he was beginning to understand. Though while doing that, he probably was unaware that he too was behaving just like all those other couples did in the past. The two of them behaved like they were a pair of teenagers who were infatuated with each other. If another traveller went by, he would probably be disgusted at the sight before he eyes. The princess and the halberdier, sitting in the same saddle and quite possibly tongue tied.

But they were now in the L’Renor Harlilen, the secluded plain people rarely travelled. Far off in the distance, the northern mountain range marked the line between Alerar and Salvar. More importantly, it marked where the dwarves of Kachuk resided. The task the two were on revolved around that clan of dwarves, so those mountains marked their destination. Although neither Zerith or Jasmine were aware of it. They were much, much closer to some of those dwarves than they thought.

It happened so suddenly that even if Zerith wasn’t occupied, there wasn’t any way he could have seen it coming. Ten dwarves suddenly rose from the ground, out from underneath covers and trapdoors that were coloured to match the land. The surprise shocked Exarion so much that he reared onto his hind legs, knocking both the halberdier and the former princess off its back.

“Oi! Get em!” the dwarves shouted. Each one wielded an axe or mace, though the sizes varied as much as the dwarves did. The weapons themselves looked like they were put to a lot of use; some even had some incredible design to them. Each dwarf also had their beard braided and beaded differently, though they failed to be as intimidating as their weapons were. The ones that uncovered themselves infront of the horses quickly grabbed the reigns of both Exarion and Snowdrop. The ones that appeared behind and on either side of the two travellers were closing in on the two travellers.

Zerith hurried to his feet, and quickly picked up his halberd that had been thrown off the horse the same time he did. Once he felt the smooth shaft of Amenzanil, he immediately scanned the area around him. “Jasmine?” he called out, knowing she couldn’t have landed far from where he did. “Jasmine!”

“Oi! Shuddup laddie!” one dwarf shouted as he charged the halberdier. In his two, filthy hands was a giant battleaxe he held high over his head. “Ther be more important thins rite now! Lik me!” He yelled as he brought the axe down fiercely.

“Clang!” the sound of blades clashing rang clearly as the halberdier knocked the axe away with the blade of his halberd. “I don’t have time for this, dwarf,” he said as he looked down at the little man. “You need to stop this. I’m not your enemy!”

Suddenly that promise Zerith thought the day made to him was broken. Even though it had started out great.

[Jasmine]

To say that Jasmine was surprised to find herself suddenly on the ground would be an understatement. However, at the sight of several weapon-carrying dwarves rushing toward her, she leapt to her feet, drawing her sword in almost the same movement. She heard Zerith calling out her name, but did not have time to answer him. As she raised her sword into a defensive position, two of the dwarves closed around her.

"Och, come on now, lassie. Put that big knife up before ya hurt yaself."

Jasmine only glared openly at them, furious at having her nice afternoon with Zerith ruined. She didn't want to hurt any of them since they were supposed to be on a mission of peace, but right that moment she was more interested in keeping her own skin whole. Thinking to catch her off guard, the one that had not spoken darted in on her left, swinging a large, nail-studded mace at her feet. Moving almost at the same time as his partner, the burly speaker swung his axe at her slim figure as well.

Jasmine jumped backward over the mace, bringing her own blade into action. The clash of her sword and the axe meeting added to the din already echoing across the plains. Fighting two people was not normally a difficult task for Jasmine. She just didn't prefer it. As soon as one attack was met, she whirled around to meet another and then the process repeated. Her two attackers were very skilled in the use of their weapons and Jasmine was starting to get tired.

"Please! We are not your enemies! Stop and listen!"

"Yer intrudin' is what yer doing! Oi, a couple of ya get behind the lass. She do think she can do some damage with that big knife o' hers."

A few of his fellows chuckled as they were joined by two others, leaving the rest to deal either with Zerith or with the horses, both of which whinnied and neighed, trying to get away. Jasmine moved quickly, spinning on her heels, jumping and parrying for all she was worth. She never got hit, but then she also never got a hit in herself.

"Zerith! We have to get them to stop! There's too many of them for just us two!"

[Zerith]

“Think yur smooth, dun’t ya pretty boi?” A third dwarf said laughing as he and a partner joined the fray. Three on one was hardly a fair match. Though if it was just the three dwarves against him and if he was lucky, then maybe it would be possible for him to squeeze out a victory. However, fighting ten dwarves was out of the question, and to make matters worse he couldn’t help but feel a little more pressure knowing that Jasmine was also fighting. He knew she carried a sword with her, he’d seen it numerous times. What he never saw though was if she could even wield it or not.

“Just shut up and listen to me!” the halberdier shouted as he swung his polearm at all three of his attackers. “I don’t want to fight you. I just want to talk to your leader.”

One of the three chuckled, “And jus why wud we lissen to yu? The way I see it, yu lik to let yur weapon du all the talking.”

“Yeah…” Zerith was about to respond until he was cut off by another attack by the dwarf with the axe. Stepping to his right, he pushed the dwarf behind him, “Well it wouldn’t be using my halberd if you didn’t start attacking us first!”

“He lies!” a fourth one shouted as he came at Zerith from the man’s left. “Les just kill em! I wanna hand his halbread on m’wall.”

“No!, that pretty thing is mine, I’m keepin it!” another said as he attacked as well. “Yu ken have the lass’. Hell, yu ken even hang er hed on yur wall!”

“Like hell you will!” Zerith yelled as he fended of the two of them. The first one was knocked back as the shaft of Amenzanil struck him in the side of the head. The other, who held a pair of hand axes managed to lock weapons with the warder. “If you even touch her I’ll break all your fingers and both your arms.” He threatened.

“Oi, a couple of ya get behind the lass. She do think she can do some damage with that big knife o' hers.” A dwarf said in the distance, making Zerith realize that Jasmine was up on her feet and fighting as well.

“I don’t think you’re understanding what I’m saying!” the warder yelled as he spun around to see two dwarves about to sneak up on the former princess. In a instant, Zerith’s right hand reach behind him and retrieve his dagger, which he threw and one of the two. “She’s hands off!”

Suddenly a cry of pain filled the air as the dagger sank into the back of dwarf’s left shoulder. Both turned around immediately and the other one looked to his friend before glaring at Zerith, “Yu’ll regret doin that boi.”

“Just great, six on one n-“ Zerith through before he felt something slice into his left side. Yelling in pain he spun around and swung wilding, catching the dwarf that held a bloody hand axe across the throat. The poor soul clutched onto his neck as he fell to the ground, gasping for his final breaths until he was still.

“It took me a year to get her to love me…” the halberdier mumbled. “And now that she does, there’s no way your can convince me to let go.” The words were firm, as if they were being written in stone. As he stared at the dwarves around him the warder clutched onto Amenzanil tightly and something that never happened before occurred. Unknown to Zerith, one of the runes on the shaft of Amenzanil began to glow a fiery red color. Between the two hands that wielded the massive weapon, a symbol seemed to come to life.

“I’m not dying today!” Zerith roared. Suddenly, the red shaft of Amenzanil burst into flames. Yet it didn’t seem to harm its wielder the slightest bit. From behind the fire the rune still glowed brightly, yet appeared untouchable from the flames that shielded it. The blade came to life a well, crackling with electricity as sparks leaped and arced across the metal. The dwarves were speechless, stunned by what just happened before their eyes.

The one death had been purely accidental and although Zerith glared at the dwarves angrily, he still didn’t want to harm them. However, since they weren't giving Zerith any other option but to fight back, he twirled the fiery weapon in his hands, charged the closest dwarf to him and went on the offensive.

He’d make them see things his way. He had grown tired of trying to talk his way out of it, so he’d try forcing his opinion. They'd see things his way, they just didn't know it yet.

[Jasmine]

Jasmine fought on, desperately trying to make her way to Zerith's side. If the two could fight side-by-side, or even better, back-to-back, she was sure that they would have better chances of defeating these dwarves and then making them see reason. However, that was proving to be more and more difficult. Each time her sword came in contact with another mace or large battleaxe, she could feel the reverberations through her entire body. She knew, grimly, that she would not be able to hold out much longer. True, she was faster in some respects, but the dwarves had more endurance and strength with their heavier weapons.

The dwarves seemed to realize the same thing that Jasmine had, and moved closer. Aside from continuous insults meant to make her angry beyond thought for what she was doing, they also began working more and more like a very efficient, well-oiled machine. When one swung low, another swung his weapon high, keeping Jasmine moving just as fast as she possibly could.

Dammit all! I can't last like this! Why won't they listen to us!?

All at once, out of the corner of her eye she saw something new and interesting. Zerith's halberd was aflame! She had not known it possessed any magical properties. She made a mental note to ask Zerith about it sometime when they were not in the middle of a battle for possibly their very lives. Right now, she was just happy that it gave him an extra edge. Hopefully, it would be enough to turn the battle in their favor.

The second she spared to see what was happening with Zerith cost Jasmine greatly. One dwarf swung his long handled mace at her knees, sweeping her off her feet. She fell to the ground with a shout of surprise and a dull a thud. In the twinkling of an eye, the dwarves pounced on her, quickly stripping her of her weapons. One drew a long, cruel-looking knife and jerked her to her knees, holding the knife to her throat.

"DROP YER WEAPON LADDIE! OR SHE DIES NOW!'

Jasmine could do nothing but kneel helplessly, very aware of the knife pressed against her skin so tightly that it was just shy of drawing blood. Her chest heaved as she fought to regain her breath and control the fear that shone in her sapphire eyes. The other dwarves stood near by; one held her sword and two daggers. Apparently, he had been selected to hold the weapons until it was decided what to do with them.

[Zerith]

Although the new power that suddenly awoke within Amenzanil was a great help, it wasn’t enough to turn the tide in the halberdier’s favor. What helped even more was the fact that Zerith had given up trying to convince the dwarves to stop attacking him and instead decided to fight back. He fought wildly, swinging his halberd in large arcs to keep the dwarves at bay and away from him. Although they could tell he was wounded and bleeding, each one of them was a still a little hesitant about trying to get in close and overwhelm him. They had already lost one comrade, they didn’t want to bring two bodies back home.

“Come on!” Zerith challenged as he swung at a dwarf who jumped back as far as he could. “You wanted to start a fight, so finish it!”

Two of his little friends decided to try and take the opportunity to close in on his left side. But the moment Zerith turned to face them, they stopped and pulled back. It didn’t help them at all though as the halberdier charged them. One was lucky enough not to be the target of Zerith’s attention and managed to back away from the human with relative ease. The other wasn’t so fortunate and raised his giant axe to defend himself. It did him little good as the halberdier knocked it aside with the shaft of his polearm and immediately took the advantage and kicked the dwarf to the ground. By the time he could register that he needed to climb to his feet, Zerith’s right foot pinned him down and he was staring at the spear point of Amenzanil that still cracked with electricity.

Just as he thought he had the upper hand, a dwarf on his right yelled to him. “DROP YER WEAPON LADDIE! OR SHE DIES NOW!”

Turning his head to see what the dwarf meant by his words, the halberdier’s eyes widened in surprise at the sight before his eyes. The dwarf that made the demand held a vicious, dirty knife at Jasmine’s throat while another one beside him held all of her weapons. The princess was kneeling helplessly and completely at the mercy of the dwarf that suddenly held her life in his hands. She breathed heavily as her heart probably felt like it would burst. She stared at Zerith, giving him the same terrified look the dwarf underneath his foot was. She looked like she was about to cry and suddenly her warder was forced to make a decision, one in which the wrong choice would end her life.

Up until then, Zerith wasn’t one who would simply give up in a fight. In fact if he still had his dagger there was a good chance he would have thrown it at the dwarf that held the knife to Jasmine’s throat. Yet he already used that tactic during this fight, so that option was out of the question. When it came down what was possible for him to do, he had three choices. He could try to bargain, offering the life of the dwarf beneath his boot for Jasmine’s, or he could surrender in exchange for her life. The third one wasn’t really and option considering it involved the continuation of the fight and the death of the former princess. And that was something he knew he couldn’t allow to happen.

His eyes drifted from the woman he loved, down to the dwarf that was at his mercy and then to the corpse of the other he killed accidentally. Despite the fact that he knew it was a dwarf, in Zerith's mind the man’s body was suddenly replaced with Jasmine’s. The same position, the same pool of blood beneath her cold body. The most frightening image before Zerith’s eyes was that dead, empty stare Jasmine’s corpse held. Fixed directly upon him.

“No…I won’t let her end up like that. I can’t”

His face turned back to face the dwarves and Jasmine, the saddened expression of defeat clearly shown on his face. He knew the truth, there really was no decision to make. There were no choices, no possibilities. There was no way he could win this battle and still hold onto the one he treasured. Only one door existed, one possibility. So with no other option, the halberdier would have to go down the only route he saw.

His boot lifted off the dwarf and he even helped the short fellow to his feet. Then slowly, Zerith held out the flaming weapon in his hands and let go. The flames died immediately along with the electricity as it landed on the ground with an audible “thud.” His left hand instinctively went to touch the wound he had suffered and when he saw it reappear covered in his blood, he realized that he was making a wise choice. His right hand drew Flaming Rogue and soon the beautifully crafted sword joined the halberd at his feet. As he sighed deeply, the halberdier felt the dwarf he had helped up kick the back of his knee, forcing the man to his kneels just as the princess was.

“There, I surrender. Just promise me she doesn’t get hur-“ The sentence was cut short as the dwarf behind him slammed the handle of his giant axe into the back of Zerith’s head. Before everything went black though, he did manage to take one last look as Jasmine and mouth two words.

“I’m sorry.”

[Jasmine]

“Zerith!”

As soon as the dwarf holding her finally sheathed his knife and let her go, Jasmine rushed to Zerith’s side and knelt beside him. Anxiously, she checked him over for signs of any injuries other than the lump he would have on his head. In almost no time, her fingers found the slice in his side. Wiping her bloodied fingers on the grass, she started trying to turn him over onto his good side, but found that he was much too heavy for her.

Muttering to herself, she looked around to see if any of the dwarves might be willing to help her. She was surprised to find that a handful were working to create a bier for their fallen comrade, one was tending his comrade with the knife in his shoulder, one still held the horses’ reigns, and the rest were standing around; patiently waiting for the order to move on. Swallowing nervously, Jasmine took a deep breath and spoke up, trying to keep her voice suitably humble.

“Please, he’s hurt and I can’t move him by myself. I need help, please.”

Two of the dwarves that were just standing looked across to the one directing the building of the bier as if for permission. When he nodded, the two went over to Jasmine. Between the two burly dwarves and Jasmine, they managed to get Zerith’s shirt and armor off, and lay him on his good side. While one went to fetch needle and thread, the other helped hold Zerith’s body still so Jasmine could clean the wound. It wasn’t terribly deep or long, but it would still need stitching. Taking needle and thread, she murmured a thank you and got to work making several small stitches in Zerith’s side.

Good thing you’re out cold, otherwise you’d probably holler like a baby, she thought fondly as she worked. When she was done, she looked at her work for a moment then nodded in a satisfied manner. Not only would the wound heal quickly and nicely, there would also barely be a scar. The two dwarves helped her wrap a bandage around Zerith’s middle, and by then the rest of the group was ready to get moving.

Jasmine paused briefly as she passed the bier with it’s burden. The dwarf had been laid with his arms fixed so that he was holding his hand axes crossed diagonally across his chest. The weapons had been carefully cleaned and gleamed in the bright sunshine. After a moment though, she moved on and stood quietly by while eight of the dwarves worked to lay Zerith across Exarion’s saddle. Once Zerith was in place, Jasmine swung herself up behind him to be sure he wouldn’t fall off. The dwarf that had held the reigns of both horses during the short scuffle still held them and now led the horses.

The small procession was silent as it crossed the remaining plains. Jasmine was surprised to realize how close she and Zerith had been before being ambushed. Guess that’s what we get for paying too much attention to ourselves and not enough attention to our surroundings... As they came within sight of Kachuk, Jasmine could not suppress a small gasp of surprised awe. The great city of Kachuk was something she had heard stories of, but had never seen herself. The city was carved right into the mountains themselves!

She could see great spires reaching for the sky in some places and great arches of stone. A great wall, its ends carved directly into mountains themselves, stretched the whole width of the city. One large gate sat in the middle. Its timbers made of whole trees, bound together with iron bands forged in Kachuk’s mines. The sight sent shivers up Jasmine’s spine. This was a fortress of a city. No sane army commander would try to attack Kachuk. His armies would dash themselves to pieces against that wall. She stared in open wonder as the procession went through the city, the dead dwarf at the head of it.

In a short time, they arrived at a large palace. This one was by far the largest and most elaborate. While the pallbearers took the dead dwarf inside, the one leading the horses took them around to a stable where Jasmine was ordered curtly to dismount. Several other dwarves followed them and once she had done that, a dwarf flanked each side of her. Jasmine rolled her eyes, irritated that they did not realize she was not about to try to run away and leave Zerith behind. With more dwarves to help this time, they got Zerith off Exarion with much greater ease than they had in putting him on the horse back in the fields. Orders were given in dwarven, and the two flanking Jasmine pushed at her sharply to get her moving.

They went through several halls until they came to stairs. Down, down, down, and still down, the stairs never seemed to end to Jasmine. At last though, they came to the bottom of the long, curving stairwell. At the bottom was a long hall, lined on either side with cells. Jasmine flinched at the sounds of voices crying out for freedom until finally the dwarves made her stop in front of one empty cell. They pushed her into this one, and unceremoniously dropped Zerith into it with her. They left quickly, slamming the iron-bar door shut behind them and, of course, locking it.

Jasmine waited until they left, then, with a little difficulty, rolled Zerith over onto his back. They had not returned his shirt, but it was ruined anyway as far as Jasmine was concerned. It had a cut in it and was covered in blood. Worried now about what would happen to them, she cradled Zerith’s head in her lap and smoothed his hair out of his face.

“You better wake up soon, Zerith. I don’t like it down here.”

[Zerith]

For Zerith, the time between being knocked out and regaining consciousness was instantaneous. It was like he didn’t dream at all, instead all he saw was black for a second and then the world came back to him. Even after this ordeal would be over, he would never know just how long he was unconscious. From his perspective he simply just closed his eyes for a moment and found himself in an entire different place then that one he recalled. It was as if he was magically transported. Either way, it didn’t change the fact that didn’t like where he woke up.

Even before his eyes opened, he was in pain. His side hurt, but that was only a jolt of pain up his side if he moved the wrong way or too suddenly. The throbbing in the back of his head was constant and made the halberdier feel like if he moved to suddenly he would lose his balance and fall to the ground. It was a dull pain and he swore he could feel it pulsate like a steady heartbeat. Although he was in pain, he would soon see one good thing when he opened his eyes. Jasmine was still alive and well.

As his head rested in the former princess’ lap, he stirred and groaned. His blue eyes opened slowly, and soon as his eyes came into focus, he was greeted with the sight of his concerned princess. ”What…happened?” was the first sentence that came out of his mouth. Then he realized that behind Jasmine’s face was a stone ceiling, not the blue sky he expected.

“Where are we?” the second question came as he slowly sat up and held onto his forehead. His eyes scanned his surroundings, noting the iron bars and depressing atmosphere. All the walls were stone as well, along with the floor. It took a few more moments before realized there was a man sitting in the cell across the room from them and another in the cell beside him. That’s when the truth finally struck him in the face, “We’re in a prison.”

Suddenly he began to shiver, “Why is it so cold?” he said as he wrapped his arms around himself and found another surprise. Hands that expected to feel the familiar fabric of his shirt instead touched his bare chest that dipped and curved with perfect muscles. “Why the hell am I topless!?” He demanded as he stared at his bare torse in shock and disbelief.

Slowly, he strained to climb to his feet. It took quite a bit of effort and he swayed from side to side as soon as he stood up, yet he managed to keep his balance. Slowly, he walked over to the iron-barred door and grabbed hold of the cold metal. They were trapped, shoved in a cage with no idea if they’ll ever step outside of it. The day had been perfect, flawless. But in such a short time it felt like it all went to hell.

Turning around, Zerith’s blue eyes looked to the princess as he leaned against the cold bars for support. “Are you alright Jasmine? Are you hurt?” he asked.

He’d try finding a way out of their predicament soon enough. Together they’d both try. At that current moment though, he was more concerned about Jasmine. Once he was sure she was fine and reassured her they would only be here temporarily. Then he would see if he could find out why they were attacked and throw in here in the first place.

Then after that he’d find a way out of this mess.

[Jasmine]

Jasmine tried to hold him down only for a moment before resignedly letting Zerith get to his feet. She did not think that he should be up at all just yet, but she doubted he would listen if she said as much. She watched him silently, waiting for the barrage of questions to stop. She rather liked what she saw and grinned impudently at the question about his shirt.

"We took it off so I could sew up the cut in your side. It was a very neat cut, so it wasn't too messy. However, you did bleed a good bit, so with all the blood and the hole in it, I let them throw the shirt out. I wasn't going to try to fix something fit for the rag heap."

She rose smoothly to her feet and walked over to him, wrapping her arms around him. She rather liked the way he looked and how smooth his skin felt without shirt on.

"We are in Kachuk. After you surrendered, one of the dwarves hit you in the back of the head with his axe handle. You have a pretty darn good-sized lump back there. I'm surprised you can stand. Which, by the way, you should not be doing. I am quite safe. The dwarves haven't given me any trouble at all."

She giggled and looked up at Zerith's face.

"You should have seen them trying to move you around. It took all eight of them to put you across Exarion's back and they must have gotten at least ten to drag you down here. I don't know how deep we are, just that we're in the mountain itself. The palace is carved right into the mountain itself! Our horses are in the stable, but I'm not sure where that is in relation to where we are. It would seem that until someone comes, all we can do is sit and wait. So won't you please at least sit down?"

[Zerith]

“We’re in Kachuk?” the halberdier repeated. It definitely didn’t look like the Kachuk he expected to see. Then again he didn’t expect to see this part of Kachuk either. Still, every time he heard of this place he pictured a series of mining tunnels running throughout the mountain range. What the princess descried, a palace carved into the mountains. It just sounded a little strange.

Although he did enjoy receiving a hug from the princess, she did make a good point when she told him repeatedly that he should remain sitting. The throbbing pain in his head was still there, a reminder that dwarves were stronger than they appeared. So he did exactly as he was asked and sat back down on the floor, leaning back against the iron bars that were behind him.

“I guess you’re right. All we really can do is sit here and wai-“

“Aha! So these are our new guests.” A rough voice called out from down the hall. The loud, thunderous footsteps grew louder as the halberdier turned his head sideways to see what the commotion was. A taller, much older dwarf soon appeared that carried the longest beard Zerith had ever seen. Not only was the size of it impressive, but the amount of work put into it almost made Jasmine’s hair look like a joke. It was a braided, with various beads strung in a marvellous pattern and by the look of it, it was very well cared for. The dwarf himself looked a lot like the ones the halberdier encountered earlier, except this one looked much older. His voice was strong and firm, like the voice of a leader. He wore a suit of half plate armor that appeared to be in excellent condition as well. He also wore a large pearl necklace that hung from around his neck. Although he was bald, he was still quite intimidating. But past the entire tough exterior were two deep brown eyes of a wise leader.

“I would hardly call us ‘guests’,” Zerith responded. “As we’re definitely not being treated like some.”

“Well I’m sorry to hear you’re not enjoying yourself,” the dwarf answered. “I am Nalim Kachuk, Patriarch of the Kachuk clan.”

“Excellent, so you’re the one that should be able to answer my question. Why the hell are we locked up here.”

“Isn’t that obvious?” Nalim answered. “You attacked some of my brothers. Not to mention Dorgal told me you killed Eldrick.”

“Well perhaps your friends should have mentioned that they attacked us first,” Zerith snapped back.

“For good reason!” the patriarch shouted. “We were informed that two outsiders matching your descriptions were coming. The man told me you two were a couple of thieves hoping to get your hands on some of our weapons so you could sell them for profit!”

The news shocked Zerith so much that he was speechless. Somebody told the dwarves that they were thieves and coming to steal from them? As far as the halberdier knew, nobody knew about the assignment. “What are you talking about?”

“Are you deaf boy? I said we knew you were coming. Someone told us all about you two thieves,” Nalim replied as he crossed his bulky arms across his chest.

“I’m afraid you’ve been tricked Nalim,” the halberdier replied. “My companion and I aren’t thieves. Although I’m locked in here, I don’t have any intention on stealing anything from Kachuk. I never did in the first place.”

“You can’t seriously expect me to believe that,” was the patriarch’s answer. “If what you say is really true. Then why would that man lie to me?”

There he was again, the mystery man. The stranger that suddenly appeared and was the reason why Zerith and Jasmine were being treated like criminals. “Well just who exactly is this man you’re talking about? Does he have a name?” the halberder asked. At first, he didn’t really expect to receive and answer to the last question. But when he would receive one, he would be in for a big surprise. Though when he would sit and think about it later. Zerith would feel like kicking himself for not seeing it coming.

“Yes, he did tell me his name. Let me just see if I can remember it,” Nalim said before stopping to think about it. His eyes widened as his grinned the moment he recalled the name, “Oh yeah, I remember. He said his name was ‘Grander Raelyse Salidan’ or something like that. He might have called himself a prince as well, all I remember was that he had a fancy name and that he used a cane…”

[Jasmine]

She was quite relieved to hear Zerith agree to sit down. The last thing they needed was for him to get too dizzy and pass out. She doubted highly that she would be able to catch him if he did. For now, though, she was content to have him sit beside her to wait. They did not have long to wait and she almost winced at the tone Zerith took with the Patriarch. This was not starting out well.

Her jaw dropped in disbelief at the words of the Patriarch. She had not been expecting to be labeled a thief, but could understand such a misunderstanding. There were probably many people that thought to sneak into Kachuk and steal the marvelous weapons the dwarves produced in their forges. More than that though, what truly shocked her was who the dwarf claimed had spoken to him about them.

“That can’t be right, Patriarch. Raelyse sent us here himself. We were supposed to talk to you about allying yourselves with the Grander’s Order. We are here on a mission of peace, not thievery. I don’t know why he would lie to you, but why would we travel all the way to Kachuk to steal weaponry? I have no need of selling stolen goods, besides the fact that I can’t stand thievery myself. Please, let us out of here. Let us all talk in more comfortable surroundings. We are not your enemy.”

The whole, small speech was given in a respectful, if a little shocked, tone. She knew that dwarves were picky about such things as their pride, and she had no intention of sounding boastful or self-righteous to the Patriarch. He held the power of life and death over them, and they were at a distinct disadvantage being in the dungeon. She almost held her breath as she waited for what the Patriarch of Kachuk would have to say now.

[Zerith]

If there was one thing Zerith always seemed to screw up at. It was saying the wrong thing or using the wrong tone in front of the wrong person. The only reason he wasn’t stopping to think about what the proper words to say were was because his head was still hurting. The combination of having that constant pain and being accused of being a thief just made Zerith miserable. Thankfully Jasmine took the initiative and explained that Raelyse the man who sent them. If she hadn’t stepped in, Zerith probably would have said something he would regret.

Nalim still seemed to have a little trouble understanding the truth. The puzzled look in his face as he scratched his bald head was priceless. “So let me get this straight,” He said as he looked at both the warder and the princess. “That man sent you two here to talk about forming some sort of alliance? And you two didn’t come here to steal from us?”

“Of course not.” Zerith replied. “We wouldn’t dream of stealing from your clan. The weapons you and your brethren make are known throughout all of Althanas for their superior quality. Anyone that even thought about stealing from you would be crazy.”

The Patriarch smiled at the halberdier, “Well, I’m glad to see you have a head on your shoulders. However the question of why your Grander would tell us you were thieves still puzzles me.”

“Well the way I see it is this,” The halberdier answered as he slowly climbed to his feet and turned around to face the leader of Kachuk. “He told you that story so you would capture us. That way, there was no way we couldn’t meet face to face like this. By telling you we were thieves, he reassured himself that the two of use would eventually meet you.”

“And the little fight between you two and my brothers?”

“A complete misunderstanding,” Zerith answered. “Everything happened so fast that we were busy fighting instead of trying to resolve the issue like we are now.”

“I see, and what about the fact that you killed one dwarf and tried to take on six at once?”

The question left Zerith speechless. “It was…an accident,” were the only words that came out of his mouth. He knew perfectly why he tried to take on six dwarves at once, it was because he chose too. Shortly before the fight started the halberdier heard the princess say she loved him for the first time, and part of him didn’t want to lose her. So when the dwarves suddenly ambushed them, he decided to try and get the attention of as many of them as he could. That way, Jasmine would be able to take care of herself and not be overwhelmed. However now as Nalim asked him why he tried to take on six at once, he couldn’t bring himself to point to the woman behind and say he did it for her. The Patriarch wouldn’t believe that, Zerith just knew it.

“Guards!” Nalim called out and was shortly answered with the appearance of two more dwarves. “The woman wishes to speak to me in a more comfortable atmosphere, So I want her escorted to the sitting room. As for the man…” His voice trailed off as his gaze settled on the halberder. “He’s to remain in the cell until I decide an appropriate punishment for him. Though execution could still be a slight possibility.”

“Very well,” Zerith thought as the guards opened the iron door. As the two lead Jasmine out, Zerith retreated to the back of the cell and took a seat against the wall. There wasn’t a point to fight it anymore, hearing the possibility of being executed suddenly felt like someone just delivered a heavy blow to his stomach. Sad, sapphire eyes watched Jasmine leave, knowing that there was a possibility he would never see her again.

If she looked back, she would see he gave up fighting his emotions and for the first time shed tears. Not just because he was probably going to die, but because he would lose her for good.

[Jasmine]

Jasmine glanced back at Zerith with a worried expression. She didn’t know a single thing of what Raelyse was willing to offer the dwarves in return for allying themselves with the Grander’s Order. She felt her heart grow heavy as she saw the tears trickling down his face. She mouthed the words, “I love you” as the guards led her around the corner and back up the seemingly endless staircase.

Eventually, after passing through several halls, they came to a medium-sized sitting room. Jasmine took a seat on a couch, while the Patriarch took a seat in the large armchair across from her. The room was decorated most conservatively in hues of red and gold. Intricate pieces of stone work stood in niches in the walls. The fireplace was the grandest and most beautiful piece of masonry Jasmine had ever seen. Apparently, mining and weapon-smithing were not the only skills the Kachuk dwarves had. He signaled for drinks to be brought then looked directly at Jasmine. She almost wilted under that steady gaze, knowing that he held Zerith’s life by a string. Then she steeled her nerves and sat up straight.

“Let’s cut right to the chase, shall we, Patriarch?” He nodded and she continued, “what your men probably neglected to tell you in their report is that they surprised Zerith and myself. We were not being a threat to anyone when they attacked.” She paused for a moment, but when he didn’t answer her, she continued on once again, “I understand that the loss of one of your warrior’s is not something any ruler likes to deal with. I was a ruler once, but I chose to step down away from that world and I know the pain of having to inform family and friends what happened to their friend, husband, father, brother, whatever the case may be. Please, understand that had your men listened to what we were trying to say, no one would have gotten hurt. The death of your warrior was purely an accident. Zerith would not have killed him if it could have been avoided. He is not a cold-blooded killer. Please, release him.”

The Patriarch was silent for several long moments. He had not spoken a word during Jasmine’s speech, letting her say all that she wished before he spoke himself. She seemed an intelligent young woman, for a human anyway. He poured two cups of wine as he spoke and handed one to Jasmine.

“You claim that you come to Kachuk on a mission of peace, to form an alliance, yet you spoke not one word of that just now. Why is this?”

Jasmine sipped politely at her wine, then nodded her head, “Your forgiveness, Patriarch, but I was not briefed on what the terms of alliance were to be. That is Zerith’s part in all this. I merely came along to keep him company.”

Patriarch Nalim fell silent once again, sipping lightly at his wine. This was indeed an interesting situation. They claimed not to be thieves and he was beginning to believe that, but he could not ignore the fact that one of his men had been killed.

“Patriarch?” Jasmine asked timidly, somewhat afraid at interrupting her host’s thoughts, “earlier you asked Zerith why he took on six at one time. He didn’t answer you, but I know why. Would you like to know? He did it for me, to try to keep me safe. By him taking on six warriors, that left three for me to face and one to keep the horses from running away. He loves me, and if I hadn’t have been in danger, if your men had not surprised us, and if your men had stopped to question us first, your warrior would still live. I don’t know what else I can say to convince you to give Zerith his life, only that I love him and he loves me and that your warrior’s death was truly an accident. The least you could do is listen to what he has to say himself before you pass judgement.”

She fell silent then and sipped half-heartedly at her wine. She wasn’t terribly thirsty. Worry over Zerith was making it hard to worry about such trivial things like thirst or hunger. In a moment though she looked up with a grateful look on her face as the Patriarch called for the guards to fetch Zerith and bring him here. It seemed that the Patriarch was going to listen to what Zerith had to say before doing anything else and for that much, Jasmine was exceedingly glad if for no other reason than it prolonged the possibility of Zerith being killed.

[Zerith]

Just when he thought he his life would end up the way he wanted, it screwed him over. With the realization of the possibility that his life was hanging by a single thread, all of Zerith’s hopes and dreams died. Execution was hanging over his head, Jasmine was gone and all that was left of the halberdier was a cold, depressed and broken man. He never thought he’d feel this alone at the end of his life. Perhaps death was better than being forgotten and thrown aside.

“Hey buddy,” the man in the cell next to him called out to him. “Are you going to eat that?”

Sapphire eyes stared blankly at the tray of food the guards brought him just minutes earlier. “What’s the point?” he mumbled as he picked up the tray. “I’m just a dead man,” he said as his hands gripped onto the edges tightly. Suddenly the halberdier threw the tray of food against the wall of his cell with all the strength he could muster. “Nothing but a useless body as good as dead…”

“Aw, come on now Zerith. You can’t give up just yet. I need you.” A familiar voice called from behind him.

“Jasmine!” Zerith exclaimed as he spun around quickly. Sure enough, It really was her. She stood on the other side of the bars while a guard appeared to be opening the door to his cell. “I thought I’d never see you again.” He said as he walked up to the bars between them.

“I know, I was so worried about you,” she answered. “The Patriarch wants to talk to you. I think he decided we’re not thieves and wants to discuss that alliance with the GO. I told him you’re the one that knows what the terms the GO is ready to offer. I also brought you a shirt for you to wear in the meantime.”

“Terms?”

“Yes, terms.” She replied. "You know, the conditions of the alliance? What the GO has to offer Kachuk?

Shrugging, Zerith looked confused. “What the hell are you talking about? I don't remember being told anything about the terms the GO would offer.”

“You’re joking right?” Jasmine said, the expression on her face changing from happy to worried in an instant. “Clement must have told you the terms Raelyse was going to offer. What are we going to do now?”

“We’ll do what Nalim is expecting us to do,” Zerith replied as the door to his cell opened. He quickly stepped out of his tiny prison and took the shirt from the princess. As he put it one he continued, “I’ll offer them terms. Since the GO didn’t tell me what they were willing to offer. They will just have to offer whatever the hell I say they will.”

“Alright, but be careful Zerith. A lot is riding on getting you and Nalim to come to an agreement.”

“I know,” Zerith answered as they began to head to the sitting room. “Including my life.”

***

“Alright then halberdier,” The patriarch said as he poured some more wine into a goblet and offered it to Zerith. “I trust that your companion mentioned why you’re joining us?”

“Yes she did sir, and please call me Zerith,” The warder replied as he took a drink of wine from his seat beside Jasmine. “I’m here to offer you terms in order to hopeful forge an alliance between Kachuk and the Grander’s Order.”

Smiling, Nalim nodded, “Correct. Though first I want to hear what you have to see about the incident you had with some of my men. Your friend here told me why you tried to take on six.”

“Oh she did, did she?” Zerith answered as turned his head to look at Jasmine.

“Yes, though I have to admit it still sounds like a ridiculously stupid thing to do. Incredibly stupid, but brave as well. You tried to take six dwarves on at once in order to protect her and in the process you not only suffered an injury, but you also killed a dwarf.”

“If you’re trying to ask me if I regret my actions, my only regret is that a death could have been avoided,” the halberdier said bluntly. “If I was forced to relive that fight again, I would still try to take on six dwarves at once. The only thing I would do differently would be to not fight back until I was absolutely forced to. Also, I would try to do everything I could not to deal any major harm to your men.”

“I see,” Nalim replied. “She means a lot to you, doesn’t she?”

“More than I ever thought she would.”

“You see? That is the kind of attitude I like to see. A man willing to offer his life for someone else, I can’t think of a sacrifice greater than that. Now what are you and the Grander’s Order willing to offer for our support?”

“Well Patriarch, the GO is willing to offer you numerous things. For starters, If something were to ever happen to Kachuk, I’m positive that the GO would be more willing to help you in any way they could think of. If you need run out of resources here, the GO would be more than happy not only to help you find a new way for your clan to make a living. But we’ll even share our own earnings with you until you re-establish yourselves. As proof of that, the GO is prepared to give you fifteen hundred gold as a gift the moment I return with a signed document. Should something try to take over Kachuk, or should your clan ever be under siege. I will personally see to it that at least one division of the GO’s army is sent to aid you. Also as a peace offering, I am prepared to give you three hundred gold of from my earnings at this very moment. Lastly should you have any concerns about Raelyse or the GO, I will personally see to it that voice is heard and your needs are met.”

“So let me get this straight,” Nalim said. “You’re willing to give me three hundred of your gold right now? Why?”

“Because this bond between Kachuk and the Grander’s Order is important to me. I want to see this alliance form so badly that I am willing to give you what I can as an offering to you.”

“Understood, but what is it that the GO wants in return?”

“Your support,” Zerith replied immediately before taking another drink of wine. “Should the GO ever need your help, we would appreciate it if the mighty dwarves of Kachuk helped us in whatever way they could. A small donation of weapons made by your brothers would be greatly appreciated and in return the GO would help your business expand incredibly. I wouldn’t expect you to do something for us that the GO wouldn’t do for your. What we want is for your clan to ally with us, to become our friends.”

“Friends, is that right?” The Patriarch said as he took a drink of wine and sat in quiet contemplation for a few moments. While he thought about the offer, Zerith turned to look at Jasmine briefly to ask if he did an okay job and if she thought this would work, who in return gave him a thumbs up. Eventually Nalim stood up from his chair and stepped up to the halberdier. A wide smile crossed his lips as he held his right arm out. “I think Kachuk will be more than happy to have a friendship with the GO. With the willingness you showed to make this alliance work and the courage you had to try and protect your friend, I would be crazy not to ally Kachuk with men like that. Friends?”

Zerith jumped to his feet, beaming. “Friends,” he replied as he took Nalim’s hand and shook it firmly.

“Excellent. I’m hoping this bond between the GO and Kachuk will make both parties happy,” Nalim replied as he turned around and picked up his drink. “Seeing as how we’re friends now, you’re more than welcome to spend a few days here before your departure. I’ll tell the guards to give you back your things and you won’t have to worry about a punishment Zerith. From what I hear, you seemed to have punished yourself hard enough while I was talking to your companion. Don't be too hard on yourself, I’m sure it was just an accident.”

“Actually sir,” Zerith answered. “If we stay here for a day or so, I would like to meet the family of the dwarf I killed. I wish to send my condolences and tell them how sorry I am for their loss.”

“I’m sure we can sort out a time for you to do that. However I have some business to attend to right now. So if you would please excuse me.” With that said, Nalim departed and left the two in the sitting room.

Turning to look at Jasmine, Zerith was still smiling widely. He didn’t think he could have done it, but he and Nalim came to an agreement. Not only that, but the Patriarch decided to spare his life. With the mission being a success and the news that he would live to see another day, Zerith was ecstatic. Laughing loudly, he quickly grabbed Jasmine by the waist and spun her around only to stop shortly after and kiss her. “We did it!” he exclaimed, “I thought I wasn’t going to make it for awhile. But we managed to make it through it, didn’t we?”

Just like that, everything was perfect and wonderful again.

[Jasmine]

Throughout the deliberations between Zerith and Patriarch Nalim, Jasmine sat quietly beside Zerith. This was Zerith’s time to shine and she was not going to interrupt him and possibly ruin whatever chances he had of accomplishing the mission. Once they were done though, she breathed a sigh of relief. Now, they could go back to Erebus, get the rest of her belongings and leave.

She laughed as his exuberance rubbed off on her and returned his kiss. “Yes, we did, but you should be careful. I don’t want you reopening that wound. It’s not had time to heal properly just yet and I don’t want all that careful stitching I did to be ruined.”

“That will not be necessary, young lady.”

Jasmine turned at the voice of a female dwarf entering the room. She wore long robes of green and carried a leather satchel. Her hair was long, white and kept in a thick braid much like Jasmine’s own. Her face was old and somewhat weather beaten, but was still gentle and kind-looking.

“My name is Quilyassa Stoneheart. I have been sent to tend the young man’s wound. Take off your shirt, boy, and let me have a look.”

Puzzled by the woman’s sudden appearance, Jasmine helped Zerith pull the shirt off, then stood to one side while the healer looked carefully at the wound in Zerith’s side. It was no longer bleeding and the stitches were quite small and tidy. The old woman nodded in approval then gave instructions to put his shirt back on.

“Whomever stitched him up did a nice job. It will heal nicely with barely a scar. Now, onto other business. The two of you share a special link. It is a magic link, unseen by the natural eye, correct?”

Jasmine glanced at Zerith, then nodded, “Yes, it’s called a bond.”

“Whatever, it is not very strong. I can barely tell that it’s even there. What you have accomplished here will be highly fortuitous for the dwarves of Kachuk, I have foreseen it. In order to repay you for this great service, I give you a gift. It is not a tangible gift and it will never go away. I am going to strengthen your bond, as you called it. Stand facing one another and hold each other’s hands. You must be in contact with each other for this to work. Good, good,” she said as the two did as she instructed, “now close your eyes and keep them closed until I tell you to open them.

Jasmine raised an eyebrow as she faced Zerith, then did as she was bidden. Once she was sure that both sets of blue eyes were completely closed, the old woman began speaking in her native language. The enchantment seemed to take forever, but then, all of a sudden, Jasmine felt a tingling sensation all over her body and seemingly in her head as well. As suddenly as the sensation began, it stopped and she heard the instruction to open her eyes.

“I don’t feel any different, Healer.”

“Of course not, but the bond you two share is doubled now. You should be able to sense where each other is, in a general direction at least. You should also be able to feel each other’s pains, both physical and emotional, but not to the same extent as the other. This bond is not a common one and I have only used it a few times. Usually for young couples who want to know how each other is faring all the time. Be warned, the further away you are from each other, the dimmer the bond will be. I can’t tell you the limits, because it changes for everyone. You will have to explore the limits yourselves. Now, I have other things I must tend to, good day to you both.”

Jasmine watched in silence as the old dwarven woman left the room, then turned to Zerith. Now that the healer mentioned it, her side was aching, in the same spot that Zerith’s wound was in. In her mind, she could feel how happy and confused Zerith was. It was almost like having a small portion of her mind that was Zerith. She giggled softly then and wrapped her arms around his waist.

“Well, this is certainly an interesting turn of events, love, but I’m getting rather bored of this room. Shall we go out and take a look around?”

[Zerith]

Although Zerith didn’t want to have to listen to Jasmine’s words when she told him he needed to be careful, he knew she was probably right. He wouldn’t tell her, but his side did still hurt a bit. So although he wanted to dance and celebrate their accomplishment, he stopped and released Jasmine instead. “Oh, come on. I’m sure the stitching will hold-.”

Before he could finish the sentence, a female voice announced that they weren’t alone anymore. Turning his head to see who the voice belong to, he saw an elderly dwarf woman. Her robes were so worn and faded that the halberdier almost wanted to ask if the robes were older than he was. He probably would have done so if she didn’t state what her purpose for coming to them was. Assuming that Nalim was the one that sent her to them, Zerith believed she knew what she what she was doing, and that she needed to be treated with respect.

In the end, he needed Jasmine’s help to remove his shirt due to the pain that shot up his side if he tried to lift his arm past a certain point. After handing the shirt to Jasmine, the dwarf was quick to make Zerith lean to his side and stretch in order to see the so called ‘extent’ of the injury. While Quilyassa looked at the wound, she was unaware of the winces that came from the halberdier. It hurt to stretch, so much that he was afraid the wound would open again and cause more problems for him. Thankfully, the torture didn’t last long before Quilyassa felt satisfied. Though the pain still lingered, the news that it the injury would heal properly brought a smile to Zerith’s face. Before he could put the shirt back on however, he was surprised find out that Quilyassa wasn’t done with them quite yet.

“What the hell are you talking about? I don’t see how doing this is going to accomplish anything,” he said as he took hold of Jasmine’s hands and faced her. The raised brow he received from Jasmine made it clear to him that even the former princess wasn’t too sure of this. “Whatever, I guess I have nothing to lose by doing this.”

While the couple had their eyes shut tightly, the words of the dwarves’ native tongue was the only thing that broke the awkward silence. Zerith didn’t quite believe anything was going to happen, it was only his curiosity that kept him from releasing Jasmine’s hand and calling this little ‘ritual’ ridiculous. It’s a good thing he didn’t voice his opinion, otherwise he would have had to eat them. For some unknown reason, the halberdier swore he could feel a tingling sensation start in his hands and spread throughout the rest of his body. It was like a smooth yet unstoppable wave of current was flowing throughout every part of his body. Then it came into his head too, where it felt like a flower blooming. Unable to compare it to anything else, Zerith stood silent and in amazement as he tried to describe everything else he felt. Yet just as he had the words on the tip of his tongue, the sensations vanished in an instant, Leaving a puzzled and confused Zerith to open his eyes the moment Quilyassa told him to.

“So let me get this straight, I can sense where Jasmine is from now on and know when she’s in pain?” he asked. Unfortunately he wouldn’t get an answer as Quilyassa seemed to leave in a hurry as soon as she finished her explanation of the new bond the halberdier and princess had. Jasmine seemed satisfied, her laugh quickly brought a smile to the halberdier’s face.

“I don’t know if interesting is how I would describe it, but I’m not quite sure how to describe what I’m feeling in my head at the moment. Taking a look around is a good is idea, it’ll let us get some fresh air. But can I ask you something before we head out of here?”

“Of course, love. What is it?” Jasmine replied.

“Can I have my shirt back? And I’d like to know where my armor and Amenzanil are.”

[Jasmine]

Jasmine giggled and held his shirt behind her back, “Why? I rather like what I see.”

Zerith rolled his eyes and reached around behind her for the shirt, “Because I’m cold and I don’t want to go outside without it.” He was silent for a moment as he pulled the shirt on over his head, then continued, “Now, where are my armor and Amenzanil?”

“I don’t know. I didn’t see where they put it. I guess we’ll have to ask Nalim later. You’ll be fine for a little while. Let’s go see what Kachuk is like. I’ve never had the opportunity to be here before and I don’t intend to spend it inside all the time.”

~*~*~*~

Over the next three days, Jasmine and Zerith wandered wherever they were permitted throughout Kachuk. Among their explorations, they also visited the family of the dwarf Zerith had killed and made their peace with the dwarf’s widow and children. Jasmine was never more relieved to leave a home than when they left the dwarven lady and children. Though it seemed that the lady understood that things like this happen when your husband is a soldier, Jasmine did not think it made it any easier to see your husband’s killer and be asked forgiveness, instead of paying for a crime.

Aside from that afternoon, Jasmine and Zerith spent three days solely in each other’s company. They were shown some of the wonders of Kachuk and even hiked a few local trails, one of which led to a beautiful waterfall. They danced under the stars and spent a lot of time just talking and sitting wrapped in each other’s arms. By the time they were getting ready to leave, Jasmine was surprised to find that she had not thought of Raelyse at all since the night she and Zerith had first set out.

Leaving Kachuk was much simpler than getting in. The couple was provided with food, water, and, of course, their weaponry and armor. They took their time returning to Erebus, neither really wanting to go back. However, Jasmine insisted that she needed to return to fetch some things. The last night before they would arrive in Erebus, Jasmine sat up late, wrapped in her blankets and watching Zerith sleep. Though she was tired, she stayed up thinking and sorting out her emotions before they finally crossed the last miles between them and Erebus.

He’s so handsome when he’s asleep and not worrying about anything. He’s kind and thoughtful, caring, too.
But you love Raelyse.
Do I, really? He doesn’t seem to really love me, no matter what he says. If he really loved me, then he wouldn’t go around behind my back.
You don’t know that for certain. All you’ve heard is what Zerith has told you that someone else told him.
Zerith is my warder, he wouldn’t lie about something like this. He means it when he says he loves me.
How can you tell?

The other voice of her thoughts was silent a moment as she thought, then she sighed happily.

It’s in his kiss. I can feel the difference between Zerith’s love and Raelyse’s lust. And that’s all it is with Raelyse, lust...and I don’t love him. I can’t. Zerith has always loved me. It’s why he told me Raelyse was cheating when we were in Radasanth and why he walked away when I was so obviously not myself. He could’ve taken full advantage of whatever it was that made me be like that, but he didn’t, because he really does love me...and I love him all the more for it.

Happy now that she’d properly sorted her emotions and thoughts out, Jasmine settled down and went on to sleep. She was quite content in the realization that she had finally found the man her heart had been searching for. She just wished she’d have realized it sooner.

[Zerith]

Upon waking up after an uneventful night, Zerith’s initial reaction was to roll over onto a his left side and try to fall back to sleep. It wasn’t that he wasn’t a morning person, but rather it was because he didn’t want to go through with what was planned that day. He had been dreading this day ever since he had left Kachuk. Even though the morning was no different than any other, he desperately wanted to just fall back asleep and just skip an entire day. For today was the day he would have to return to Erebus.

Why the hell couldn’t Jasmine just send for the belongings that were in that damn fortress? It wasn’t like she couldn’t live without them. Though the more he thought about it, Zerith did need to let Clement know the assignment was a success. So perhaps he really did have to go into Erebus for a small amount of time. Get in, get everthing out of the way and get out. It didn’t sound so bad when he looked at it that way. Hell, if they were fast enough they might just be able to get out of there without running into Raelyse, who was the major reason why the halberdier didn’t want to go back to Erebus.

Though despite all of his fears of how the Grander would react when he learned that his princess was leaving him for her warder, Zerith reluctantly followed Jasmine back to Erebus. Even at the fortress towered above him, the sapphire eyes of the warder stared down at the ground as if he was contemplating if he could dig a hole and hide in it. “Get in, get everything done and get out,” he told himself. All the while as his hearted pounded in his chest and his fingers shook with nervousness.

Erebus hadn’t changed a bit since the two left all those days ago. Servants still went about with their tasks, soldiers of the 25th division continued with their training program, and a couple of stable hands came to take Snowdrop and Exarion off the hand of their owners. In the distance, Clement stepped out of the main entrance of the central building alongside what appeared to be a mere foot soldier. The soldier must have went off and reported that the princess and warder returned, as Clement headed straight for them. Zerith immediately turned to Jasmine as spoke quickly, “Go get everything ready while I deal with Clement. I’ll come to help as soon as I’m done.” Nodding in reply, Jasmine went off to start packing just before the half-troll reached the halberdier.

“It’s good to see you and Jasmine made it back safely,” Clement said with a wide grin. “How did things go in Kachuk?”

“Well it looks like Raelyse will get what he hoped for. They agreed, but they have some demands of their own.”

“Oh? Like what?”

“Payment, I gave 300 gold out of my pocket to show you meant business. So I think they’re expecting more to show you’re at least as serious as I am. Should they ever be attacked, At least one division is to come to aid their defence. As for all the other details, I’ve written them all down for Raelyse. With the stunt he pulled, it wasn’t easy to get on their good side. So for this alliance to work, the Grander will need to put alot of work into it.” Zerith replied as he handed a rolled up piece of parchment to Clement.

“Well this should at least make him happy, you did good Zerith. Anything else?”

“Yeah, there’s one more thing.”

“Well, what is it?”

Taking a deep breath, Zerith spoke slowly. “I’m done Clement, I’m done with the GO. Now that this assignment is over I’m going to gather my things and leave Erebus.”

“Well I’m sorry to see you go-“

“And Jasmine is coming with me,” Zerith added, interrupting the half-troll.

“What!?” Clement shouted, surprised and confused.

Shrugging, Zerith answered. “She’s done as well, Clement. She’s done with Raelyse and his lies. So she has decided to leave with me.”

“You know just as well as I do that it isn’t going to be that simple Zerith! When Raelyse finds out she’s leaving, you can bet your ass he’s not going to just let her get up and go.”

“Yeah, well you know what? The bastard should have seen it coming when he started going around behind her back!” Zerith yelled. “Once she is done packing, we’re leaving and there is nothing Raelyse can do about it! Good luck with the GO Clement, I’m going to help her get her things together so we can get the hell out of here and not look back.” After those final words left his lips, Zerith left Clement to help Jasmine pack so they would leave Raelyse and everything else behind them.

[Jasmine]

((bunnying of Raelyse in this and the next post is done with the permission of the owner via MSN conversation))

Jasmine hurried through the halls of Erebus to her suite. She found it exactly as she had left it. The bed was perfectly made, each piece of furniture sat in its precise location, waiting for her to take a seat. It was perfectly silent. Her feet made no noise on the thick carpet.

Going over to her closet, she opened it and gazed upon the many dresses there that Raelyse had given her. They were all of fine linen or silk in a variety of colors. Shaking her head she pulled out only the twin of the dress she wore now and placed it on her bed for packing. While the dresses were very nice and would have enjoyed taking them all, they would only serve to remind her of Raelyse. Besides, she was going out on the road again and wanted to travel light. That meant taking only the bare necessities.

Next, she took a seat at her vanity table. The image reflected back at her in the mirror surprised her. She had not realized how tired she was looking lately. The tiniest bit of shading was under her eyes and they did not seem to sparkle quite as much as they used to.

Must be from all the worrying and stressing about Raelyse.

Sighing softly to herself, she began to go through the jewelry in the drawers of the table. Raelyse had been very generous in his bids to keep her affection focused solely on him. She could probably make a fortune off selling the many necklaces and earrings he’d given her. Frowning, she put every last earring and necklace away and closed the drawers.

“What’s wrong? Don’t you like them?”

At the familiar voice, Jasmine whirled around. She had not heard Raelyse slip behind her, neither had she seen him in the mirror. She cursed inwardly at his presence. She’d been hoping to get in, get packed and get out without having to see him.

“Raelyse! W-what are you doing here? I thought you had business to attend to.”

“I did and now I’m done. Aren’t you happy to see me?” he asked as he came closer, a small smile on his lips.

Jasmine was at a loss for words. She didn’t want to lie, but she wasn’t sure if she was ready to confront him about his other women. She had wanted to avoid doing that. She fidgeted with her hands and stepped away from him toward her balcony.

Raelyse saw her hesitation and followed her, stretching a hand out to grasp hers. When she pulled away he frowned.

“What’s wrong, Jasmine?”

“What’s wrong? You, that’s what’s wrong. When I last saw you, you promised me that the whole day was to be centered around me. I thought, that for just one day, maybe, just maybe, I would actually get to spend time with you other than the bed. But of course, I thought wrong. Why would you want to spend time with any woman other than in bed with her?”

“Jasmine, I–“

“No! I will not listen to your excuses this time! Your little stunt with the dwarves nearly got Zerith and me killed! It was only fast talking on both our parts that got us away from Kachuk alive.”

Raelyse scowled. This was not going how he’d planned for it to go. There was still one more thing he could try, something that always worked when she was angry with him. Smiling apologetically, he quickly stepped forward, and wrapped his arms around her waist.

“I love you,” he said softly, then kissed her gently on the lips.

Jasmine was furious. Squirming she tried to get free from Raelyse’s grasp.

“Liar! Let go of me! Let go right now!”



((Spoils: Mage/Warder bond: The bond that was created between Jasmine and Zerith in the PG "The Chosen" (pre-crash) has been strengthened by Quilyassa. They can now sense each other's presence up to 5 miles. Within that 5 miles, they can tell about where each other is, general health, and general emotional health. If one is injured, the other will feel 1/4 of the pain felt by the other in the same place. (ie: when the bond was initially strengthened, Jasmine could feel on her own body, the slice in Zerith's side, though it did not hurt her nearly as much as it hurt Zerith). Also, if one or the other is under great emotional or physical stress (ie: torture) the bond may become unclear for the one being stressed, but it will still be clear to the other. (for example, if Jasmine is captured and tortured, Jasmine may not be able to sense that Zerith is coming as fast as he can, but Zerith will be able to know that she's being tortured and will still be able to sense what direction she's in so long as she's still in the 5 mile radius. I think that covers what we want to do...if something doesn't make sense, please let me know! Tis a very important thing! thanks!))

[Zerith]

Something wasn’t right, Jasmine had always melted in the Myrusian’s arms when he held her close and kissed her. She had always lost the will to remain angry at her silver-haired lover. Yet now as he kissed her, her mind didn’t wander off to drift in the clouds. Her body didn’t give in to be swept off its feet, stripped of its clothing and placed to enjoy the comfort of a bed. Instead she resisted and tried to push her away. It was then it became apparent to the prince that Jasmine had developed a backbone sometime during her trip.

As the former princess tried to squirm out of her former lover’s arms, the door to her suite opened for a third time. “Alright Jasmine, have you packed every-“ Zerith said as he entered and until he froze in place when he saw the Grander trying to hold onto the furious woman. Frowning in disgust, the halberdier’s right hand tightened its grip around his polearm. “What the hell is going on?”

“Zerith!” Jasmine pleaded before she finally managed to escape Raelyse’s arms and immediately ran across the room to her warder. “I was in the middle of packing when Raelyse sudden entered.”

“Packing?” the prince said in disbelief before he glared at the former princess. “Just where the hell do you think you’re going?”

“Away from you,” Zerith answered as he stepped forward so he stood in between of the two former lovers. He couldn’t believe he was actually standing up against the Grander. Though despite he had hoped they wouldn’t run into him, now he had no other option but to help Jasmine stand her ground. “She knows, Raelyse. I told her the other women you see behind her back and she’s decided to leave you.”

A smirk formed on the prince’s face, “Oh really? And just what proof do you have to make such a ridiculous claim such as that?”

“I don’t need to show your sorry ass proof,” the halberdier replied coldly. “the stunt you pulled on us was enough proof to help to convince Jasmine tjay sje already made the right decision to leave you. She’s even found somebody else already. Somebody doesn’t use her to satisfy his 'cravings'.”

“Fine,” Raelyse replied as he scowled at the warder and the former princess. With Jasmine out of the way, he could find another woman in less than a week if he wanted. At least now he wouldn’t have to spend his precious time creating excuses for her. “He can have her for all I care. She’s not worth wasting my time anymore. Whoever the guy is, make sure he knows she’s nothing but a slut and a rather disappiointing lay. It was like sleeping with a sack of beans in my opinion.”

The last sentence had barely left the prince’s lips before Zerith charged forward and slammed his left fist into the Grander’s face with as much strength as he could muster. “Nobody ever talks to Jasmine like that, you bastard!” he roared. The warder didn’t even waste a second, he dropped his halberd immediately, kicked Raelyse’s cane out of his hand as the prince laid flat on his back on the carpet. While the Myrusian’s hands instinctively went to cover his face, Zerith pinned the Grander down and was delivering blow after blow to the Raelyse. “I’ll fucking kill you! You hear me? I’ll fucking kill you!!” He shouted.

“Zerith!,” Jasmine shouted through tears. “Please get off him, Zerith! You're scaring me! Can’t we just go? I don’t want to be here anymore.”

With his face red with anger and his right fist held back as if about to deliver another punch while his left hand held Raelyse by the collar, Zerith stopped. “Fine,” he said as he breathed heavily, “Just take whatever you have so far and let’s go then. As for you,” he said as he stared Raelyse in the eye. “A handicap really does have a bad effect a man’s performance, if you know what I mean. You should have seen this coming.” With those final words said, Zerith climbed up off the Grander, picked up his halberd and follow Jasmine out the door as she carried the few things she decided to take with them. Leaving the Grander to climbed to his feet, compose himself and deal with the headache he had been given.


***


Much later, the warder and former princess were on their respective horses. Behind them, Erebus stood in the distance as if it was some sort of monument of the past the couple was leaving behind. Turning to look at Jasmine, the halberdier’s lips formed a genuine smile as he recalled the dream he had during that first night they slept after they left Erebus on their assignment. One could always hope for a future like that someday. I nice, promising one.

((SPOILS))

(The Flames of Hel’toro – Although Zerith has no idea how it happened, he managed to trigger one of Amenzanil’s abilities. Once a day at will, Zerith can make the Hel’toro rune engulf the shaft of the halberd in flames. The effect only lasts a short time (roughly 3 posts) or until the halberd is either dropped or released and hits the ground. At its current strength, Amenzanil can only inflict moderate burns.)

(Mage/Warder bond: The bond that was originally created between Jasmine and Zerith in the PG "The Chosen" (pre-crash) has been strengthened by Quilyassa. They can now sense each other's presence up to 5 miles. Within that 5 miles, they can tell about where each other is, general health, and general emotional health. If one is injured, the other will feel 1/4 of the pain felt by the other in the same place. (ie: when the bond was initially strengthened, Jasmine could feel on her own body, the slice in Zerith's side, though it did not hurt her nearly as much as it hurt Zerith). Also, if one or the other is under great emotional or physical stress (ie: torture) the bond may become unclear for the one being stressed, but it will still be clear to the other. (for example, if Jasmine is captured and tortured, Jasmine may not be able to sense that Zerith is coming as fast as he can, but Zerith will be able to know that she's being tortured and will still be able to sense what direction she's in so long as she's still in the 5 mile radius.)


(Zerith loses 300g after giving it as a peace offering to the dwarves.)

[Witchblade]

I apologize beforehand if some of my sentences come off a little oddly, because I clearly lost track of how many glasses of wine I had in the course of reading and judging this. Perhaps I should not be judging this while slightly intoxicated, but oh well. I know the numbers are right, I just might be making outrageous grammar and spelling mistakes in my judgement. If Matt has any questions he knows where I live and my phone number.

Storyline

Continuity: - 7 Having read a lot of your previous work, I can easily see how this is fitting in with the storyline between Jasmine and Zerith. And even besides that, you guys actually including little tidbits of information about things that had haven’t between the two of them beforehand. It was just enough to give the reader enough information not to be confused but also intrigue them so they want to read the previous adventures. Plus, this was a very pivotal quest for Zerith and Jasmine in which THEY’VE FINALLY GOTTEN TOGETHER! I’ve been waiting for this since Caviar and Espionage, or whatever it was called.

This was an overall good and enjoyable quest. I liked the storyline and the twists and turns that it took both the characters on. The emotional scene with Zerith and Jasmine in the prison was particularly enjoyable, albeit sappy, but still enjoyable. I look forward to hearing about what the two of them do next in their great adventures together.

Setting: - 6 The setting came and went in spurts, which for the most part was fine. Every time the characters entered a new area you gave a description about it, I just wish there had been a little more atmosphere added to it. You’ve got the general ‘this goes here and that goes there’ down, now I’d like to see you give a feel to it. When you’re in that dungeon, I want to feel dingy, cold and dirty. I want to smell the stale air rank with urine and other bodily fluids. Oh, and though describing things it nice, devoting an entire paragraph to the way a canopy bed looks is a little too much. Readers just don’t have that kind of patience.

Pacing: - 6 The pacing wasn’t bad. I found that it took the dwarf, Nalim, too little time to believe the two of you that you weren’t thieves. After all, it’s not like you had any proof besides your word that you weren’t indeed thieves coming to steal from them. That and getting Jasmine to admit that she loved Zerith and would leave Realyse seemed a bit too easy. They fought, they kissed, she decided she liked Zerith more and that was that. And the ending seemed a little rushed. The climax of beating the crap out of Realyse was good—and who doesn’t love seeing Realyse get his face squashed a few times—but it still felt rushed. Kind of like you just wanted to get it over and done with it and be rid of this quest, which I can understand since it took nearly a year to complete. It often happens where quests start off strong in the beginning and fizzle out in the end. You need to try and keep that motivation going.

Character

Dialogue: - 7 I love reading Jasmine and Zerith fight. I don’t know what it is about the two of them fighting, but I just love reading it. It comes off as a genuine fight between a couple, perhaps that’s why. ‘I don’t even like jelly, I get hives just looking at jelly…’ But there are a few problems with it. Because on Althanas we are used to reading in a play-by-post setting instead of the standard book setting you guys took on in this, things did get a bit confusing. I would try using body language as tags instead of just Zerith said, Jasmine yelled, Zerith questioned. Have Jasmine throw something at Zerith when she gets mad at him and have him in turn need to duck before he can yell at her. It’s funny and it’s better than constantly tagging everything with said and yelled.

Action: - 6 The action was good; shame there wasn’t more sex! Just joking. I thought that all the actions taken on by the characters were believable, though Zerith did tend to forget about his head injury rather quickly and his side injury when he picked up Jasmine and started twirling her around. This also ties into how I mentioned Nalim agreeing to hear them out so easily, plus believe them. I thought their dialogue was less than convincing to my ears and I wasn’t the one needing to be convinced. I also thought that even though Zerith got the drop on him, Realyse would at least fight back to recover some of his wounded pride.

Persona: - 6 Zerith and Jasmine’s personalities come off very well and very strong. Unfortunately the NPC’s do not do the same and even Realyse kind of fell flat a few times here as well. He seemed so sure he was falling in love with Jasmine in the beginning of the quest and then for no reason he sends word to the dwarves that Zerith and Jasmine are on their way to steal the weapons from them. It never was completely explained why he would do such a thing. It’s not exactly a smart move when one is thinking to form an allegiance and could easily get people killed. Jasmine did at times come off rather childish and air headed. I almost expected her to start stomping her foot and demanding that she wanted it.

Writing Style

Mechanics: - 4 All right, both of you have a habit of mixing up words, forgetting letters and generally making simple and easy to fix spelling and grammar mistakes. Matt, you also have a habit of putting the wrong tenses on words upon occasion. Re-reading your posts should solve this problem! I get the feeling that some things you two aren’t doing that, especially when I read something like ‘tjat sje’. I understand what you meant, but still, even spell check on MS Word would catch something like that. That’s a basic thing to do and really show me that at times you did lose interest in this and stopped caring.

Techniques: - 5 Both of you have developed techniques for writing with your characters, but I didn’t really notice the use of many advantage writing techniques. There was some obvious foreshadowing here and there but that was about it.

Clarity: - 6 Except for some of the character clarity issues I already listed above, everything was clear with the writing. If you work on those mechanical issues though, the reader won’t have to decipher certain sentences.

Wild Card: - 6 It was an overall good quest. The emotions were high and I definitely enjoyed reading it and felt a good connection with the characters, especially in the prison cell with Zerith. I would have liked a more intense situation there, but it still worked out fine in the end.

Total: 65!

Reward:

Jasmine receives 2,100 experience and 300 GP!
Zerith receives 1,800 experience!
Realyse receives 600 experience and 100 GP!

Zerith’s experience is slightly reduced due to the spoil that he requested and he would have receives 300 GP as well, but since he lost 300 GO, we’ll just keep it as is. Both spoils are granted and further require approval from an RoG mod… wait a minute, that’s me! :p

[Witchblade]

EXP and GP added!

Zerith and Jasmine welcome to the next level. ^^