Of Kings and Killers

[Zieg dil' Tulfried]

((Open))

Zieg dil' Tulfried stood high atop the terrace of the Demon Army Headquarters in Vainta. The building was five stories high, and the terrace was actually the sixth story. The only building that stood taller was that of the Atron Castle, which stood nine stories tall. The castle was also much more majestic than that of the Headquarters, as it was not build to withstand a foreign force.

Still, on a quiet sleep cycle like this one, Zieg enjoyed the firm stability of the Headquarters. He looked out over the streets of the city, down the main broad avenue that led to the castle. To either side of the headquarters were the smaller streets that led to the eastern and western gates. All three areas of the city were quiet. The merchants had closed up shop, the industrial area was sealed until the next wake cycle, and the residential area was silent as well.

The peace was ideal for a warrior like Zieg, He was so often engrossed in military strategy or fighting an embittered enemt that he never had the chance to just relish the quiet as he could at that moment. He knew that it would simply not last.

The Demon Army Headquarters faced the Atron Castle, the two buildings seemingly locked in a neverending stare contest. It was widely known that the King and High General did not get along very well, and did everything within their individual powers to keep the other at bay.

Shouts of panic suddenly broke into the serene silence. Several men were running from the castle toward Zieg. He leaned forward looking at the men, figuring they had attempted to steal some of the king's gold and were now running from his royal guard. Zieg didn't mind, the royal guard was not under his command. However, upon closer inspection, he saw that they were some of his own men, wearing the dirt-red leather armor of the Demon Army.

"Ho, soldiers. What is the rush?" Zieg shouted from the roof. The men were startled by the sound of his voice and looked up. Their voices echoed back to him, very strained.

"Sir, King Atron has been murdered. The castle is in chaos, and it's only a matter of time until it spreads into the city."

[Ran]

“Whoa there girl, you shouldn’t go asking people about business partners, even if they’re crows.”

Sakura shook her tail, was this man going to be another dead end. How many merchants that she had to ask before she found one that traded with the Tengu? And when she found one he didn’t want to talk. “Please, They took something from me and I need to find it.”

The man’s face wasn’t stern, there was a feeling of sadness and that’s why Sakura stayed at it but still it was tough. “No bauble’s worth risking your life over. Now sweetie, I’m sure everything’s ok, what ever they stole you’re get a…”

“They took my sister!” Sakura was now soaking her face fur in tears, on the edge of giving up. Hell even her knees were shaken to collapse forcing the merchant to catch her.

“A sister eh, well that’s downright villainous, I wouldn’t by no girl from them tail or no and they didn’t offer me one.” The merchant just couldn’t not help the girl as he held her body, so frail with grief. “Tell you what, I heard those birds trade with Haidia on occasion and if you’re sure they sold her,” The vixen nodded meekly, “Then I’ll take you to the portal and you can see if they heard anything.” The merchant was extremely optimistic for a man of his class and many would consider him a fool but the fact that anyone who had the fox’s sister would not be quick to give her up and the demons were very unlikely to have the younger Kiko. Filled with ignorance the merchant took the young vixen on his boat and to the portal that laid on his trade route.

***

Of coarse not only did the merchant’s information not lead to Sakura’s sister, it led to disaster. Haidia was a hot place and no friend to the girl with a natural fur coat, and shaving it off was more abhorrent than the idea than suicide. And worse still she barely made it into the large city just a few miles from the portal before getting dragged off by a large man who was like a red ogre but he never had a horn and had two eyes instead of one.

“Let Go!” Sakura cried while trying to rake the thick skin with feeble claws. “I didn’t do anything.”

“You were skulking around like a thief.” The demon grunted as he ignored her struggling, the little girl barely tickled him.

“I was not, I was looking for someone.” Sakura gave up her struggles as the heat combined with stress was making her weak, all that was left was to pant and conserve strength for her chance to escape.

The demon stayed quiet and was glad the girl kept quiet during the trek through the city. It was partially the scope and look of the city that had Sakura quiet. The alien buildings seemed to have pierced the magma sky but they didn’t and all the people had such a variety to them. There were huge hulks like the one that was carrying her to little imps with minute wings and little spiked tails. The place was so strange and so large. Then the two reached the castle. The guards looked like evil machine men with no flesh underneath the spiked armor but their voices sounded natural except for the echo of the helmets. “What business do you have here?”

“I caught this strange girl skulking about.”

“Bring her in, the king’s been killed. She’s a suspect”

The demon holding Sakura gave the fox girl a smile that killed her hope. “Murder! I didn’t think someone who looked so harmless could do such a thing.”

The vixen felt sick to her stomach. “I didn’t kill anyone.”

“We’ll see.”

“I just got here!” Sakura protested renewing her struggles.

“Stop that!” Sakura’s captor grabbed he tail and held her upside down causing the girl to whimper. “For all we know you could be lying.”

[Zieg dil' Tulfried]

Zieg rushed down the six flights of stairs as quickly as he could, his cape snapping loudly behind him as he ran. When he finally reached the bottom floor, he rushed down the hallway toward the main entrance of the building. The three soldiers met him halfway and Zieg ushered them all into a side war room.

"What happened?" Zieg demanded of the soldiers. His anger was immense and he paced several times about the room in an attempt to calm down. Nothing seemed to appease his fury.

"We do not really know, sir," the first soldier replied. He was a captain, the leader of the trio. "Ran' Dilos and I were patrolling the streets when one of the king's royal guard ran down from the palace in a frenzy. We stopped him and forced him to tell us what happened and he told us the kind was dead." The captain paused to catch his breath and gather his thoughts.

"We ran into the castle and into the royal chambers. There, we found King Atron lying in a pool of his own blood, a slender blade sunk deep into his chest. A red ribbon was tied to the blade. We sealed the castle so no one could get in or out, then ran here."

"Good, take several men and begin a sweep of both the castle and the city. Lock both gates, and place the city in lockdown. Also, send someone to request that ag' Dinmos and ag' Tranta come to me immediately." The trio nodded, saluted, and rushed from the room. At the same moment, a lieutenant rushed into the room.

"Sir, we have captured a girl that was snooping around in the city. A hideous little thing, she's covered in fur. She claims innocence but she cannot explain her reason for being in the city. We never should have ended the restrictions on overworlders," he said angrily.

"Lieutenant, if I had wanted your opinion I would have asked for it. Take me to this girl." The lieutenant quickly took Zieg into one of the several interrogation rooms where the girl had been taken. She looked utterly terrified, and Zieg instantly felt sorry for her. He remembered the last time he jumped to conclusions, he was forced to put up with Raelyse Salidan.

"Miss, I'm terribly sorry for this inconvenience. A terrible tragedy has occured tonight, and it seems you have been drawn up into it. If you would please tell me why you are here in Haidia, I'm sure we can get this all cleared up and you can go."

[Talon]

Zachary "Talon" Talion had to get out of the city. He had done something he was beginning to regret. He leapt into another shadow, using a technique he called Shadowmelding, emerging from another shadow a few feet away in an alley. An armed platoon rushed by the alleyway, one glancing in, but he was already away, ducking into another shadow.

He ran, leaping from shadow to shadow, thinking back to just when he decided that assassinating a king would be a good idea. Talon had been in a bar in Haidia a few weeks back, after the heat in Corone had gotten to high, when a man had approached him. The man had stabbed a long slender blade into the table in front of him, a ribbon tied around the hilt. The Deimis had not been pleased with this affront to his solitude and had expressed. The man then dropped a large sack of gold coins in front of him, and he had quieted.

The man had a mark for Talon, a very important mark, and he was willing to pay a great deal of money for it. His target was King Theos kar' Atron, king of Haidia. Normally, Zachary did not get involved with royalty, the pursuit to difficult, as that night was proving. However, he seemed to remember pushing those doubts aside and accepting the large sum of money, the blade, and the assignment.

So here he was now, running from the Haidian Royal Guard, Demon Army, and just about every vigilante on the streets. Still, he knew if he could get to the gates, he could escape from the city and into a portal out of Haidia without any trouble.

He melded into another shadow and emerged atop a roof, pausing to catch his breath. The assassin pulled the black mask from his face, using it to blot his eyes and mouth. His longsword was sticking into his back, so he adjusted its position and checked that his dagger was still secure in his cloak. Shouts from the street below indicated to him that it was time to move on. He replaced his mask and leapt back into the shadows.

He continued this trend, jumping in and out of shadows to shake pursuit and made his way closer to the western gate. He decide that Alerar would be a great place to make a new home. However, when he arrived at the gate, he found a problem. The gate was barred close and the walls were several feet thick, to thick for his to meld through. Which meant he would have to stay in Vainta until whoever was in charge decided to reopen the gate.

Talon shook his head. This day just kept getting better and better.

[Ran]

Sakura felt sick with all the blood rushing to her head while swinging like a weak pendulum while being carried to a rather Spartan room with just enough things to hold one still. Of coarse her tail wasn’t made to hold her weight and hurt the whole time. Being held this way made her so afraid that she was speechless worried that she might do something to earn the demons wrath but thankfully she wasn’t going to hang by her tail for much longer. A thump that Sakura felt more than heard as head collided with the ground producing a throbbing bump that the fox could feel but was concealed by her fur.

“Don’t you move from that spot, or we’ll have to restrain you.” The fox girl’s captor ordered as he pointed at the heavy guard. “You, tell someone that I caught the intruder and possible assassin.”

The last word made Sakura’s face to lose the hint of pink that her fur would sometimes get when she blushed. No matter what the culture or species, murder was a horrible crime and often was met in kind with death of the killer. But the vixen was innocent yet she kept this pit in her belly, they might think she did it, heck the ones that caught her did.

Time slowed for Sakura as she slightly disobeyed the command and raised her self to a sitting position but not ready to stand up. The demons didn’t mind and Sakura sat there and couldn’t help fidgeting with her tail while nervously waiting.

Finally the demon guard returned with someone, someone important by the looks of things. He had great armor and a lovely cape, reminding the girl of a samurai. She thought her heart pop as the demon looked like he was probably going to be the judge of her fate. But when he spoke to the girl she felt a little at ease, the words were polite at least and it was better than how the other demons treated her. Also it gave her hope for a chance to prove her innocence.

Ok, ok. If I tell the truth he should let me go. Sakura tried to reassure herself as she tried to talk but found her voice lost while her tail wiggled. The second try worked a bit better as her words came out dripping with fear. “I was um, looking for my sister. ” The Kiko started as she looked around the other demons, wanting to hide. “The tengu took her and a merchant said that she might have been taken here. I really just want to find her, that’s all.” Sakura shifted and tried to stem a few fearful tears from dampening her muzzle fur. All she could hope was that they took her story for what it was, the truth.

[Rheawien]

((I hope it’s not too late to join. If it is, I’ll erase my post, no prob.))

“And to think I came here seeking for a moment of solace...” Rheawien thought bitterly, her light feet slowly backtracking from the a platoon of heavily armored guards that suddenly decided to make an issue out of her visit to the capitol of the demon underworld. Both of her blades were brandished, gleaming with the faint blood red hue of the general illumination in the cave, and by the expression on the half-elf’s face, they were bound to get a whole lot redder if this herd of overgrown testosterone made a move to take her out. Her piercing brown eyes were asserting the situation with perfection, following every move of the group like a cornered cougar, measuring every move of the clink-clanking pile of armored figures.

And all of this because of a simple piece of cloth. She arrived in Haidia only a day (Or was it two? Hard to tell without the sun) before, her only business to ease her mind from the bustle of the world above. She wasn’t particularly fond of the demon underworld. She was part Dram and Dram were known to jump into frozen lake in nothing but their skin and remain very alive afterwards. So this whole environment, with significantly elevated heat and the sense of claustrophobia was by no means what she imagined a perfect vacation spot. However, unlike up on the surface, down here she could walk into a tavern and not end up with at least half-a-dozen of fat merchants offering her a drink and the night of her life. A person could get lost in Haidia, lost in thoughts, lost in space and time, and she wanted to spend some time with her thoughts. Besides, there was something obscure about the Great Cave that calmed her sprits, something in the way the light painted the world there, in a certain melancholic shade of scarlet that reminded her of roses at full bloom. And unlike up above where this color would appear only at dusk, here it was a constant and the tranquility that it offered pleased the eyes that saw too many sunrises and sunsets already.

It was ironic that it was exactly that color that got her in this mess. Only minutes ago she was aimlessly wandering through Vainta, capturing a handful of inquisitive looks as she ambled in nothing but a pair of skintight leather pants and a skimpy tank top that revealed much of her bare pale stomach. She got used to these looks; she lived in the Sanctuary after all, and even though the “Bandit” was cast out of “Brotherhood” some time ago, they were still the same bunch of slimy drunks and knaves that would bed anything that resembled a woman. Down here the looks were more scarce, giving Rheawien to do some looking of her own. And she had to admit, she noticed a demon girl or three that seemed like they would be quite a... beast between the sheets.

However, her browsing came to an end very abruptly. In a matter of minutes the streets were gushing with activity, rumors of a murder of none other then the king of Haidia spread like a careless whisper and suddenly the looks of intrigue turned into looks of suspicion. Strangers are, after all, always the easiest scapegoats. Needless to say, a troupe of walking metal (probably guided by the people themselves) found its way to the half-elf and though they approached her with no obvious enmity in the beginning, as soon as they saw the blade that stood fastened around her waist, they started shouting orders. GIVE UP YOUR WEAPONS!, COME WITH US!, SURRENDER!, the whole nine yards. Apparently, for some reason beyond Rheawien, that small stripe of red cloth that hung loosely from the hilt of her longsword agitated the guards.

She tried to reason with them, tried to tell them that months ago she actually escorted the damn prince of their kingdom, but they only kept shouting their orders louder and louder, pressing forward and forcing the white-haired woman to backtrack, turning the push into a shove. An attempt to flee was soon thwarted by a soldier or three popping up in ever side alley she wanted to take. And that led her where she was now, in the courtyard of the Vainta royal palace, with a bunch of people thinking she killed their king. Not a good place to be.

“For the last time, you bunch of nitwits, I had nothing to do with the murder of your king. But if you keep pushing I will have something to do with the killing of some of his thick-headed minions!” she spoke in an angered voice, a proud voice of a woman whose fuse was getting shorter by the moment. Needless to say, the guards didn’t like the “compliments” she awarded them.

“We are under direct orders to bring in everybody who seems suspicious for interrogation!” one of the demons retorted in a controlled tone, his hand clenching the shaft of his halberd, clearly announcing she was not the only one with a sparked temper.

“I will NOT be apprehended like a common brigand!” she squeezed through he clenched teeth.

“Then you leave us no other choice.” and with that said the demons moved in simultaneously. They weren’t the best weapon wielders, but they worked well as a group and had the advantage of range. Rheawien managed to parry two blows with her blade and deliver a mid kick that sent one of the demons down on the ground and gasping for air, but after that the woman was simply overwhelmed. Still, she did her best to send out her share of blows, her katana drawing blood thrice in the crowd before they finally landed enough blows to bring her to her knees. Her only luck was that the guards did as they were told and kept their bloodlust at bay, delivering a blunt blow to the back of her head instead of a slash that would cleave her skull. With the myriad of demonic faces blurring in front of her eyes as she fell on the cold tiles of the courtyard, Rheawien’s conscious departed, leaving her at the mercy of her interrogators.

((Feel free to bunny Rhea to a prison or something.))

[Zieg dil' Tulfried]

Zieg listened with interest as the young girl fearfully told her tale. The demon knight relied a great deal on his judge of character, and thus far it had failed him just once. This girl did not have the courage to murder someone, she was nearly fainting just talking to him. He knelt down to help her to her feet.

"Alright, everything's going to be okay. Don't cry. I need to stay here for a little while. Things in the city are not in order as of right now, and I need to settle them. It will not be a pleasant place for overworlders for the next few days."

The High General turned to the lieutenant. "Bring this girl some food, drink and a blanket. She is innocent and should be treated well." The lietenant glared angrily at the girl.

"I have to serve an overworlder? I cannot believe this, she is one of the enemy!" Zieg grabbed the soldier by the arm and twisted it until he dropped to his knees.

"Insubordination! Defiance! Disputing the word of the High General is considered treason!" Zieg ripped the rank insignia from the lieutenant's armor. "You have two options. One, be stripped of you rank, removed of all valuables, and tossed into the Labyrinth to die. Or two, be stripped of your rank and forced to serve this girl as long as she sees fit. Your choice."

The former lieutenant was shocked by his superior's sudden anger. Zieg glared at him with his blood red eyes and his stare was unwavering. The man trembled under Zieg's grip and slowly nodded his head. "I... will serve her."

"Very good. If I hear one word that you have been disrespectful or have harmed her in any way, I will have your head!" Zieg looked around the room at the other soldiers who were staring at the event. He released the demon and waved them out. "I'm sure you all have things to do."

They quickly scurried from the room, but were quickly replaced by two others who were carrying what appeared to be an elf into the room. He took a deep breath and somehow found the courage to ask: "What now?"

"Sir, we found her in the city with a weapon with a red ribbon attached to the hilt. We tried to bring her in for questioning and she resisted. We took her down then brought her here to face you." Zieg nodded, waving them away.

"Now who do we have here?"

[Talon]

Talon's seemingly decent luck finally ran out. He was surrounded by a platoon of Demon Army soldiers in the middle of the main square, without a shadow in range. He had been crossing the courtyard in an attempt to make it to the residential area so he could find an abandoned house to hide in until the city settled down. They had come out of nowhere and surrounded him and now he stood, longsword in hand, ready to fight.

"Surrender and you will live. Resist and you may not." The leader of the platoon said. Surrender did not really seem like the thing to do, and dying was definately out of the equation. Fighting, however, was a definite possibility. Zachary stood at ready when the demons charged in. The first man swung his blade at the assassin's feet, attempting to knock him to the ground. With a quick leap, he managed to escape the blow and cut deep into the man's shoulder with his own weapon.

The other men swung quickly as their comrade went down, and Talon twisted to avoid the worst of the blows. Several sharp weapons cut deep into his flesh, ripping his tunic and causing him to bleed. He cursed aloud and blocked another attack with his weapon. He stabbed the longsword deep into another man's chest when he felt a stinging sensation slice into his arm. He grunted in pain and released his weapon, still imbedded the man's chest. A foot impacted with his head and he saw stars as he rolled to the ground. Several sword were pointed at his chest, and he was quickly pulled to his feet.

Two of the men held him as another pulled the mask from his face, revealing his emerald eyes and jet black hair. He was quickly searched and the demon's found his talon-shaped dagger for which he took his name. They also pulled his blade from the dead man's chest.

"We're taking you to see the High General. Dil' Tulfried will not be very happy when he learns you killed the king," one of the demon's said in his ear. Talion did not reply, but simply waited for his chance to escape. They marched him directly down the main avenue toward a large building which he knew to be the Demon Army Headquarters. A giant torch lamp lit a sidestreet and one of the large buildings nearby cast a long shadow which stretched across the main street. It was time to act.

He stopped abruptly, slamming back into a demon's chest, the same demon who held his dagger. Snatching his most prized possession from the large soldier, Talon avoid the hands of another soldier, concentrated, and sunk into the shadow and out of view of the soldiers.

[Ran]

It was strange to see such kindness from the demon general that was in charge of soldiers that wanted nothing to do with Sakura. He had dismissed the charges and even commanded one of the soldiers to help her out, who protested. How the general reacted made the vixen yelp seeing him practically jump on the lesser ranking demon and giving a choice of servitude to Sakura or death by very unpleasant means.

Sakura wanted to thank the demon general but it seemed he was busy with chasing away a flock of demons that watched the spectacle. It was another good thing that he was chasing away the group. Sakura wasn’t happy to be surrounded by heavily armed people that clearly wanted her gone in any form.

“Tell me what you want done and be done with it.” The whisper was in the vixen’s ear and the words held such venom that it might have scalded the girl’s fox ear.

“Well I am hungry, so food an drink sounds good.” Sakura asked, mimicking the first instruction of general that this demon protested with. But she simply wanted him gone and maybe some food would be good, she doubted that he would risk poisoning her.

A sigh came from Sakura when her servant had left, he had such a foul disposition against her she could almost smell it. And she also wanted to see what was going on with the two guards bringing in a woman with no fur but pointed ears. “Is she the killer?” Sakura accidentally whispered to herself as she tried to get a closer look without getting noticed.

[Rheawien]

When her consciousness returned, it was instantly interrupted by a dull pulsating pain at the back of her head. It was a peculiar warm kind of ache that made her feel like her skull was cracked open by a piece of rough asphalt and the blood was pouring into her hair to create the slimy thick mush that slowly oozed down her neck. As if that wasn’t enough, the left side of her face must’ve taken a punch in the restraining process as well because she could feel the steely taste of blood in her mouth. Her hand made a move to ascertain these injuries almost instinctively, but even as her muscles strained, bonds made out of rope held them pinned to the chair. With quite an effort Rheawien finally opened her eyes.

The room was rather messy and uncanny looking with twirling iron bars and three similar armored figures that... She shook her head minutely. It was a bad move for her head wound, but after the explosion of pain passed her vision started to come back to focus. The blurry messy room turned into a neat cell, the metal bars were perpendicular to the stone tiles below and the three demons before merged into a single figure.

“Oh great. Another bipedal ironclad.” she muttered ironically, her rosy lips curling into a bitter smirk as her tongue collected the blood from her mouth, counting the teeth in the process. When she was certain they were all present, she spewed what her tongue gathered, creating a burgundy splotch on a rather tidy floor. The figure before her was a juggernaut, as tall as a doorway and as bulky as three Rheawiens, wearing a full plate mail painted black and dark blue. Imposing in stature and constitution, the demon was even more impressing in his facial contours that seemed unmovable, stern and decisive. She respected that, despite the fact that he could just as well be her tormentor. At least she wouldn’t be beaten to a pulp by a wuss.

“So, is this where you bludgeon the confession out of me and make me sign it with my blood?” she asked in an assertive caustic tone, a slap to the face of the demon for certain. She didn’t care a whole lot. If she was going to be smacked around, at least she could fire a few bitter jabs at him. “Or is there somebody here who’s hearing actually isn’t impaired?”

“I’ll have you know that I’m a personal friend of none other then your prince. And I assure you that he will not be fond of you beating up his personal friends and accusing them for murder.” she added in a fearless tone, never breaking eye contact with the demon. He didn’t seem like the kind that was easily intimidated. In fact, he looked exactly like somebody who intimidation knew only when he saw it in the eyes of those who stood against him. But words were the only weapon that Rheawien currently had. “Now you better let me out of here before he strips you of your rank, sergeant, because I had nothing to do with...”

The guard that stood at her side used the back of his hand to slap her fiercely, making her head fly sideways and causing more blood to paint her pearly teeth. “Show respect, wench, when speaking to general Tulfried!” he growled at her. Rheawien’s tongue did the counting/collecting motion again as her head reset on the figure of general Tulfried. Her smirk was as cocky as before, if a bit more bloody.

“Oh, right. I’m terribly sorry about that... your highness.”

[Zieg dil' Tulfried]

Zieg hated the attitude the insolent woman gave to him, but he took it in stride, landing a vicious smile of his own. "Actually, it's High General Tulfried, leader of the Demon Army here in Haidia. No one tells me what to do, not even the king. Not that he could, though, because he died tonight. So when you say you know the prince, well you would now know the king. Not that you could know King Aidos kar' Atron..." Zieg's attention faded away from the woman to thoughts of the prince. The poor child would be in shambles at the moment, and anyone could take control of his young mind, especially a murderer.

The muscular demon strode from the room leaving the two woman alone with the guards. He mentally sent a message to Xeppa asking him to bring Kaza to his office. As he sent the message he saw his two generals, Zaketh and Johannan, running down the long hall toward him. The two men were utter opposites. Zaketh was a very large demon with a short fuse and a massive spiked club. Johannan was slender and much more strategic, though his scythe could cut through the strongest of foes.

"What happened?" Zaketh demanded to know. He and Johannan stood impatiently as Zieg described what had happened with great detail. Zaketh fumed angrily. "I knew those royal guards were worthless, how could they allow a murderer into the king's room like that. Fools is what they are!"

"Are there any suspects? I heard you had two overworlders in custody." Johannan crossed his arms. Zieg motioned them toward the door, walking through it behind them.

"The girl is innocent, and this woman claims to know Prince Aidos, but I find it very hard to believe that a grown woman would know a boy the age of Kaza. Her claims are flimsy at best." Zieg motioned to each one in turn.

"Actually, I recognize her." Zaketh motioned to the woman. "Her name is Rheawien. She did in fact escort Prince Aidos during the time since we spread so thin. She has proven herself as a valuable warrior and an asset to Haidia. I see no reason why she would murder the king."

Before Zieg could respond, a captain entered the room carrying a longsword and a mask. "Sir, we found the real assassin. He was wearing this mask and sword when we found him. However, I regret to inform you that he escaped, somehow sinking into the very shadows themselves. He also carried a dagger shaped like a talon of a dragon." Zieg took the blade and the mask from him.

"All right, continue the sweeps and go to the archives to try and determine who this assassin is. These ladies, the generals, and I will be going on a city wide man-hunt. Believe me that when we find him, he will not enjoy it." Zieg turned to the generals. "Please escort these ladies to the front door. I will meet you there. I have something to attend to first."

((Feel free to bunny the generals.))

[Ran]

The woman awoke and showed that she had a not very happy disposition, which was understandable considering that she was tied up and the demons were not the most pleasant. The woman seemed pretty close to human but there was something different about her but Sakura couldn’t place it. Though there was something about being tied up that just didn’t sit well with the fox as she swished her tail, not being noticed as the woman was speaking with the unusually kind high general.

Sakura didn’t pay much attention as they spoke since somehow she had a feeling that the woman wasn’t the killer and as soon as Zieg left the room, Sakura padded to the woman though the guards watched. One spoke, ”Don’t even think about doing anything. Just because you’re innocent and Zieg is treating you as a guest doesn’t mean…”

“Oh just let the furry girl untie the woman, if any of them try anything funny we can deal with them as they should be dealt with.” The other Demon reacted and smiled darkly while watching the fox fumble with the ropes, clawing and pulling and eventually getting them loose.

“Isn’t that better?” Sakura asked with a smile and wagging of her tail for doing what her heart felt was right. It wasn’t long before the girl yelped from the doors swinging open and two demons walked in and the Guards made sure to show a proper respect of the demons of higher rank.

“We will be taking these woman.” The smaller of the two Demons ordered his voice had no malice in it though Sakura retreated in hopes of not being seen. But it was too late and the demons eye caught Sakura and knew what she did. “Thanks for saving us the trouble of untying her.”

“Y, you’re welcome.” Sakura stammered before letting out a sigh of relief. She wasn’t going to get punished for untying the other woman, though the guards tried to hide a look of disappointment for they wanted to see the fuzzy surface girl get punished.

(sorry it's not much, hopefully I'll do better in later posts)

[Rheawien]

It was a moral victory for Rheawien, seeing the high general of Haidia wrong and little petty accused her right, and her cocky smile reflected the enjoyment. Zieg wasn’t around to see her gloating smile, but it didn’t matter. He knew he was wrong and that was enough for her mood to shift from severely cranky to a rather contempt one. And it was all thanks to a mission for a couple of months ago, a seemingly menial escort of the pompous prince that turned into a disaster after they ran into a maddened dragon. They killed the dragon, delivered the prince back to the palace all spic and spank and even got a reward for it. Having an acquaintance high up the ladder was just one of the rewards.

Despite her obvious innocence, nobody seemed too eager to untie the half-elf once general Tulfried was gone. It seemed all that gum-flapping she did didn’t really make her the most popular person in the palace. Luckily, one of the generals – Zaketh if the memory of the return party from months ago served her well – allowed this... creature to free her of her binds. She was a peculiar little thing, a half-breed that dipped into both ends of the gene pool equally, granting the girl lush fur all over her diminutive body. Rheawien actually found her appearance rather ridiculous. It reminded the woman of the tales her father used to tell her while she was still a child, about this cute cuddly creatures that appeared in fairytales when you snapped your fingers twice and whistled gently. The recollection drew a smirk on the bloodied lips of the white-haired woman.

“Yes, better.” she replied in a tone significantly softer then the one she used for Zieg and his minions. Her fingers rubbed over the rope marks on her pale wrists, then proceeded to examine the back of her head that was still throbbing, albeit a bit more gently now. There was no blood. Just the damned warm numbing feeling that diminished with time. Instead her hands untied the leather thong that held her ample hair, recollected the white hair threads and fixed them back in a defiant ponytail. “So they gave you the same treatment? Hit you in the face and call you a murderer?” she asked the furry lass loud enough for the guards and the general to hear it. None of them paid heed to her caustic words.

“We need to get moving, ladies. The High General commanded us to take you to the front gate.” the second general spoke, ushering the two out of the cells with his hand.

“My weapons. I want my weapons.” Rheawien spoke and again the bitter bitchy tone was back as he stood up, snapped her neck sideways and got close enough to the demon that the tall figure had to look down towards her. Her hands were at her hips, her face - once perhaps a beautiful face that reflected both the fairness of the elves and the mundane beauty of humans – was crumpled in an assertive frown.

“You will get them when the High General says that you can have them. Now, follow...” the general spoke again, turning away from her. Her hand caught him by the shoulder pauldron.

“I want my weapons.” she insisted. General Zaketh caught her hand by the wrist, removed it from his comrade and yanked it so that the woman nearly clashed against his armor.

“You ran your mouth long enough.” he nearly growled into her face. His eyes, the crimson rubies set in a face that saw centuries of experience, flashed vigorously. “You may be friend of our prince, but you are still a visitor in his house and you will abide by the rules we set.” Rheawien opened her mouth to utter a retort, but Zaketh cut her short. “Understood?”

He gave her no time for a reply. His king was murdered, the assassin was running free through Vainta and a foul-mouthed wench was not an issue he wanted to deal with right now. The two generals led the way down a long dimly lit corridor as the two guards stood behind the female duo, waiting for them to start walking. Rheawien allowed a snide smirk as she turned to the furry girl.

“Tough crowd, eh?” she spoke before she started sauntering after the generals in a proud gait. “So, tell me little one, who and what are you and what got you tangled into this conspiracy?”

[Zieg dil' Tulfried]

Sorry I haven't posted in a while. I've been busy, plus my computer has been giving me major problems lately.

Zieg rushed up the stairs to the room he shared with his son and partner. Kaza, wearing his familiar black tunic with silver trim was wrestling Xeppa, a small brown dog who had been Zieg's companion for years. The small child laughed joyfully as he pinned the mutt to the ground. He rolled out from under the platinum haired child before biting him playfully on the leg.

Grabbing the child under his armpits with his right arm, he scooped the child off of the ground and engulfed him in a giant bear hug. He then set him down on the large bed that was up against the wall. Xeppa jumped up beside the boy and they looked up at Zieg.

"There is big problems in Haidia at the moment. The king is dead and the city has been sealed shut. I need for both of you to do something for me. Kaza, I want you to get a platoon of men as an escort and go to the castle. Help Aidos grieve, Kaza. He just lost his father and he needs someone to be there with him, and to protect him." Kaza nodded with a stern look and jumped down from the bed and rushed out the door. "Xeppa, I want you to come with me to sniff out the assassin. You'd better go Magim, else you might get hurt."

Are you sure, Zieg? Xeppa asked telepathically to Zieg. Ever since they met, the two of them could communicate telepathically. The city is sure to already be in a panic. My appearance could spark mass chaos.

"It is a risk we will have to take. I need you out there with me, Xep. No assassin will make a mockery of the Demon Race, nor the Demon Army. We must go."

Xeppa leapt from the bed, and a dark, negative light erupted from his mouth. The light split into threads and spun all around his body, engulfing him in a giant cocoon. Leathery wings cracked through the shell moments before the entire cocoon shattered. Standing where a small dog was a minute earlier was a large Magim Beast with giant claws, long teeth, and an impatient disposition.

Zieg ran out of the room, Xeppa close behind. He sprinted down the same stairs he ran up before and traveled down the long hallway to the main entrance of the building to meet up with Zaketh, Johannan and the two ladies. When he finally arrived, he motioned them all out the door into the streets. Pulling the assassin's mask from his armor, he knelt in front of Xeppa, holding it out in front of him. He sniffed it and began sniffing around the area.

[Rheawien]

((Bunnying of Ran/Sakura is approved.))

The two generals set a rather ardent gait, leading the way through the narrow hallways that seemed terminally dimly lit. There was anger in their every step, intrepid desire to bring to justice the infidel whose action went against everything they lived and fought for. Rheawien reckoned that the origin of that anger probably stood in their chagrin. They were the king’s trustees, his councilors, his subordinates and as such they should have protected him from any and all enemies. It was a test of honor, the most important in their lives, and all of them failed utterly. Their ruler was slain in the middle of the most protected place in Vainta and they didn’t even know who the perpetrator was, not to mention his whereabouts.

That’s why, even though she felt the need to ask a handful of questions, the half-elf kept her big mouth shut and followed the demons through the stuffy maze. She knew that if she had a kingdom to call a home and it was attacked – for it was the kingdom that always suffered when the king was murdered – she would be fervent in her attempts to defend it. And seeing the similar mannerism in the demons around her made her respect the underground demon nation even more.

After a good number turns and gloomy intersections in the stony bowels of the royal palace, they finally got on the same spot where Rheawien was apprehended; at the main entrance. Her hand went to the bruise on the back of her head, rubbing it gently as her mind inadvertently rewound to her battle with the guards minutes earlier. “First they hit you, then they want you to help.” a bitter voice commented, inspired by the burning tingle of the sensitive spot in her hairline. Oftentimes nowadays that voice was enough for her to turn her back and walk away from situations such as this one. “The king is dead? The child is kidnapped? Something is killing the livestock? The cat is stuck on the tree? Hey, life was hard. You want somebody who cares, talk to the charity services.”

And she felt inclined to do the same today. But that damned respect that was slowly growing in her towards the demons, the unison in which they acted, zealous to bring to justice whoever did the dastardly deed, that was enough to make her stick around. Besides, there was something to be gained from all of this. If she aided in the apprehension of the assassin, she was certain that her name will be remembered by the generals and maybe even echo to young prince... king Aidos. And maybe next time she visited Haidia they wouldn’t bonk her over the head and drag her into the dungeon.

The High General Tulfried already waited for them at the entrance, dealing with what seemed like a trained magim beast. The huge winged creature sniffed on something, then most likely proceeded to find the similar scent in the vicinity.

“High General Tulfried.” the lighter of the two generals reported, bowing his head respectfully before he continued. “We brought the captives.”

“So, general, do you think I could get my weapons back now? Unlike you demon folk, I can’t rip a person with my bare hands.” Rheawien spoke, walking slowly up to the imposing demon in dark armor and spreading her lank arms as if to prove her point. Her smirk was on, was always on nowadays, cocky, dauntless, untouchable, as her hands sunk to her curvy hips. “And I suggest you let the little furball go. I doubt she has significant battle prowess and she could slow us down.”

General Zaketh walked to Zieg as well, seemingly oblivious to Rhea’s requests and words, his ancient-looking experienced eyes surveying the city of Vainta incisively. “So, do we have a plan, High General?”

((Zieg, Ran isn’t going to play her character anymore, so she gave us permission to bunny her out of the quest. So just make her leave or something.))

[Zieg dil' Tulfried]

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