Knights of Darkness

[SqueezeBabe]

Synopsis

 

A story about four (or more) Knights who are the bad guys and set in a steam-punk universe.

 

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[SqueezeBabe]

A few years ago

 

Ben shifted uncomfortably in his seat, and tugged at his collar with a finger. It was too hot to be outside waiting for the Academy to finish making their announcements. It was the last day of the year, and the last day for him, as today was the day he supposedly graduated. If I pass he thought gloomily. His best friend Neil nudged him and winked, mouthing at him "Top Honours". Ben made a face at him, as if he would get top honours, there were people who had worked much harder than him, whilst he may have consistently gotten the highest marks and won all the tournaments, getting Top Honours was based on much more than academic achievement and excelling in combat, you had to uphold the Knights Code of Honour, be chivalrous and all that, which Ben found hard because he didn't particularly like girls and always felt uncomfortable around them. He tried his best though, as in everything in the Academy, he tried his best.

 

"And now we come to announce who received Top Honours..." the headmaster coughed, building suspense just a little. He looked out at all the eager faces and settled on Ben's face. Ben as usual looked gloomy. The boy needs to have more faith in himself he thought The whole Academy knows he's getting this, except for him. The headmaster cleared his throat once more. "Benjamin Montgomery Frost!"

 

 

A few years later

 

Ben sat astride his horse, his blue armour glinting in the sun. He was on his way to the Knights Conclave. The gathering where the King announced which Knights were doing what duties. Ben had been lucky so far, he had his modest castle, and somewhat more than modest land holding which he ran efficiently and fairly. There had been an influx of people onto his lands, refugees from other lands, escaping the tyranny of their own Knights. Ben sighed. Bad knights? It shouldn't be possible but there were those that had a penchant for cruelty and then there were others that just didn't know how to run a castle and let it fall into ruin.

 

Ben was lucky, and unlucky in some respects. His holdings had been passed to him by his father, who then had died in a freak hunting accident, and his mother had passed away not soon after, of a broken heart, they said. He was more than capable of the smooth running of his castle, but at times it seemed a bit sad and empty. He had no siblings, and at 20, he didn't feel the need to rush out and find himself a wife. He told himself that he was too busy for such things. Not that this deterred the mothers of all the surrounding holdings from parading their daughters in front of him.

 

Sure he was good looking, with blonde hair and eyes the colour of sapphires, and tall, broad and well-muscled (you needed to be if you were carrying 50 pounds of armour all the time), but he didn't understand the fascination that the girls had with him, or the women for that matter. Women were such delicate things, and he was so terrified of breaking something, so he just found it best to stay away from them.

 

The Conclave wasn't far, and Ben soon reached the castle, letting the stable boy take his mount and made his way to the Great Hall. The Hall was already filling up, and he was one of the last to arrive. As he took his seat, he eyed of a group of Knights opposite him whom he'd never seen before, but before he could get a proper look in the King arrived and the Conclave began.

 

--------------

 

Ben wearily exited the Great Hall. Why me? he thought bitterly. The King had thought it "fit" to grant him more lands to go with his additional title. Benjamin Montgomery Frost, the Frost Knight, was now peacekeeper of the realm. Ben was going to be busier than ever.

[Lady.Taser]

Carmine Lledowan had a few things he hated, and a few things he loved. Firstly he hated his name, though he did enjoy torturing and disposing of those he called him Carly. He was born holding a blood clot in one hand, not an omen of good luck and the woman had murmured the words under her breath and to his great dismay his mother liked the sound of it. Given to him not by his parents but by the midwife attending his birth. According to the midwifes daughter who was a maid at his parents property the word described a shade of red... and one incredibly annoyed Knight.

 

Said knight was now sat angrily in the entrance way to his parents home, he didn't like coming back here, but they kept sending him marriage propositions from 'single women'. He had repeatedly sent messengers informing them he did not need a women, now or ever as he found them such a bore and so very fragile. They would never survive what was in store if they were anywhere near his side. He was expecting some story such as the messenger never arrived... the problem is his parents were not clever, and the messengers always returned to his own property saying the message had been delivered.

 

He stormed across the entrance way and swung the doors open, his frame barely filling the space between the hinges, he wasn't small or skinny the doors were just very large, he always wondered what his parents were compensating for, probably their lack of ability to seem powerful without things like big doors. The doors banged open loudly, the noise echoing around the room, turning to face into the building and then proceeded to yell.

 

"I AM GOING NOW. I HAVE BLOODY CONCLAVE TO GET TO!! NO I AM NOT INTERESTED IN ANY WOMEN YOU SEND MY WAY" He couldn't see his parents but he knew they could hear him, so he gathered his breathe to yell extra loudly for the last part. "I DO NOT LIKE WOMEN, AND THE NEXT TIME YOU SEND ME A MARRIAGE PROPOSAL I WILL KILL THE MESSENGER!" Leaving the threat hanging in the air he turned and marched down the stairs, mounting his stallion and galloping off.

 

Now Carmine also had a few things he was addicted to, one of these being tangled up in the limbs of his nights lovers when he woke up. He was addicted to the sex, and would often have 3 or 4 people sharing his bed with him, and there was almost never no one sharing the bed with him. Memories from the night before flooded back and he sighed, both visiting his parents and the conclave had meant he had to leave early and there was no time for another round that morning. He was only going to the conclave to gather some information, after all, Carmine grinned, they couldn't proceed with the plan if they didn't know who to attack.

 

-----

 

Many hours later he left the conclave, a smile on his face and his deep blue eyes shining with anticipation. Not only was he now free to go home and indulge himself and feel the strong fingers of his lover running through his long chestnut hair. He was excited by their opponent, Frost had just been given more land by the king, not taken from carmine's own of course. His family was old and had always held land, two separate bits of land actually, which worked as there only ever seemed to be two generations of rulers in his family. The king couldn't take his land under any circumstances except treason, so his taxing of his people meant he didn't risk losing land, and those fleeing just made it harder on those remaining. He quickly made it to a pub that was just outside the castle and also their meeting place. Carmine had asked that they attend the conclave separately, no need to draw too much attention to themselves, it was too early for that. Ordering a drink at the bar he settled down into a seat in the corner of the room and watched the door.

[Veil]

{before}

 

Yasuhiro walked to the main hall. He bowed lightly to his father whom spoke gently.

"Yasuhiro, In threey ears you will become very strong, and at that time I will ship you over seas to train in a castle, Train hard my son and prove your worth"

 

With swift movements Yasuhiro dropped to his knee and bowed gently to his father as he trained hard till the 3 years hit where he was sent across seas to train again, he payed close attention during his travels to this kingdom.

 

Yasuhiro trained in the art of the more modern sword fighting though he made it his own he trained fully and practiced hard as he Learned under his female teacher named Michelle. Yasuhiro kept his obvious secret of his preference for the same sex, though he is a virgin.

 

-----------------------------------------------------

{5 Years later}

 

Bending over the long Light purple hair, that was pulled back into a delicate ponytail, slipped over the edge of his shoulder and his lips closed tightly together as he looked to the side, His dark eyes shifted to the side as he stood up straight his hands moving towards a sword that rested on his hip.

 

As quickly as it begun, He was taken by a surprise; he had a fake sword to his neck and another poking his lower back. The voice behind him spoke softly into his ear, the female’s voice whispered into his ear. ”You’re slow Yasuhiro Ichigawa. Those were kill shots.” As he sighed lifting his hands up in a show of surrender the swords were dropped and he turned around to face his captor.

 

Yasuhiro quickly grabbed her wrist and spun her pinning the woman to the wall as he spoke softly. ”Next time you want to train be weary of the opponent you pick, He could kill you” Yasuhiro released the women and stepped back with a smile. ”That was cleaver though. Here to wish me well on my journey?”

 

The woman nodded and he smiled patting her head he waved lightly and headed to his next destination to conclave. His Body was masculine and easily seen through the light armor he wore he walked to conclave.

[Noctis]

The wide double doors slowly closed behind him with a soft click. The soft voices of his parents were barely audible from within the large room where they sat at the large table surrounded by several others they had invited to the meeting. It went well in his opinion. Plans were made and set into action for his family's kingdom. Ah, yes... The thrill of what was about to come coursed through his veins and curled his pale lips into a wicked grin. He was born into a family where nothing was more important than power and making their mark. Everything was theirs. Land was power and they had a lot of it. Such a corrupted and cruel family who plagued the people with fear. But nothing was able to stop them.

 

Nothing at all.

 

Leaning against the door for a second, we raised his gloved hand to run his fingers through the thick mass of black hair that swept across his face; hiding shadowy gray eyes that glinted with excitement. He was still wearing his glistening black armor that complimented his pale skin tone and body structure. He was well build with just the right amount of muscles from years of training as the Black Knight. Skilled with the sword, he was a pure demon on the battlefield. Shedding blood was nothing to him. No remorse, no regret ever held him back from what he desired. He was the Black Knight. The silent shadow that loomed over his enemies with a onyx black blade that matched his armor and fitted him well. It was his treasured possession given to him by his father. A deadly sword passed down from the noble line had a bloody history.

Shifting his body away from the door, he let a soft chuckle escape his lips. He was called in from training his men that morning to discuss a very important topic. Recently, his parents had set their eyes on a particular kingdom. Nothing new at all. But as always, he was summoned to start an invasion and plan it out carefully to cover all angles to insure their victory. He was ready for another game to be won. Another piece of the puzzle to fit in the big picture he and his family painted for themselves. As he walked steadily toward his room with the black armor lightly clinking as he moved, a thought ran across his mind. 'Ah' he thought as his hand pressed against his door. He knew where to go to get information and another like minded person who shared the same twisted darkness. With that final thought, he pushed the door open and slipped inside; locking it behind him with a click.

 

 

It had been several hours after his little visit at the Conclave. It was a perfect opportunity suggested by Carmine who insisted they go to the Conclave separately to insure no attention was drawn to themselves. It worked of course and as soon as it was over, he waited a few hours before meeting up with Carmine.

Once the pounding of Aztec's hooves came to a halt, he slipped off the black stallion's back and ran his fingers through his beloved stallion's silky mane as he gave him a swift pat on the neck before he handed the reigns off to the young squire boy who followed him into town on a small brown pony. The boy quickly grabbed the reigns and placed a hand on the horse's neck. Seeming unimpressed, Aztec snorted and gazed after his owner with glittering black eyes before lowering his head and stepping forward to knock his heavily muscled body against the boy who stumbled and grabbed on harder to the reigns to regain his balance.

 

“Ow... mind your manners... “ the boy muttered, fumbling with his own horse's reigns as he led them both over to a small patch of grass.

 

It was late into the afternoon. The weather was nice with a slight breeze brushing through Cedric's hair; sweeping strands across his eyes as he pushed the door to the pub open. He still had on his light armor he wore earlier that day with his treasured sword at his side. The pub was not busy tonight so it was easy to spot the person he came to meet sitting in the corner with a drink. Closing the distance between them, he slid into the seat across from him and linked his own fingers together on the table as he leaned in; his voice low with a hint of amusement. “Tsk. Shame. Drinking before I arrive. Have you no manners?”

[SqueezeBabe]

Ben was in his private library, thumbing through history books. One long leg crossed over the other as he settled into the large armchair. He slowly turned a page, reading through the family notes. The book was an old book, passed down. It contained all the legends and "stories" of each of the families of Knighthood, a Knight family tree of sorts. Who had married whom, killed, "absorbed" took-over he mentally corrected himself. It contained the Family crest and colours of each Knight. He was "researching" - being the protector of the realm, he was preparing himself for the inevitable backlash from certain Houses.

 

A few Houses had caught his eye, and he wrote them down, Those were the ones that he might have to be wary of. Sure there were border disputes and the like, but very few Houses actively attempted to take over other Houses. Ben sighed, surely the world was a big enough place that everyone could just... get along. He rubbed his face, mentally chiding himself for such naive notions. There was a knock on the door.

 

"Enter" he called softly, and smiled as his Steward entered. The little man cleared his throat. "Sir, will you be taking your dinner in here?" Ben blinked. Dinner? Was it that late already? The Steward gave a small smile, he'd known Ben since he was a small child, and it was very much like him to lose track of the time when he'd picked up book. "Uh, Here is fine Reggie" The Steward winced slightly. "Reginald!" Ben quickly corrected himself. Ben might have called him "Reggie" as a small child, but he still needed to get in the habit of addressing the Steward properly. Reginald smiled kindly. "It's fine Sir, a mere slip of the tongue and a reminder of more carefree days."

 

Ben rubbed his face again, "Uh, yes, dinner in here will be fine.." he waved at a stack of papers, "Can you please take care of them for me? They're just the new titles and requests and whanot. The scroll on top is the official acceptance of the Peacekeeper, that will have to be delivered to all the other Houses for their seal. That way no one can claim that they didn't know.." The acceptance scroll would have to go to each individual House, another reason why Ben was in here reading up on their families, he needed to be on his guard for those that would be... difficult.

[Lady.Taser]

Carmine grinned wordlessly, the expression slowly covering his face before he drank the rest of his pint quickly before signalling to the bar keep for two more pints of the same. It wasn't busy, but the bar keep was nervous around him and not that long ago had tried to avoid serving him. This only caused Carmine to make extra sure it was his attention he got and not one of the bar maids. He still didn't speak until the bar keep brought two mugs of drink, almost overflowing to the table. Sliding one over to sit in front of Cedric.

 

"well you say no manners.." his grin widened and he waved his hand around the room casually, "but honestly you are lucky i didn't get so bored i felt the need to entertain myself with one of these less than appetizing men." He started on his own drink and looked over at his.. friend? He wasn't exactly sure how to classify Cedric, neither of them were the type to have friends, but he had known the man for a while, a long while and every time he saw him, especially with such meager competition he wanted to drag the man to bed, but then he wanted to do that with every good looking man he met. Slowly Carmine ran his tongue along his lower lip before speaking again. "You should remember not to keep an addict waiting too long, or they may disappear for their fix."

 

He leaned back against the chair with his drink in his hand, occasionally sipping it and listening to the noise from the pub around him. No one was paying them any mind, still he had a private room booked for the more... sensitive information topics, just to avoid any prying ears, so for now he started on the more mundane topis, the kind of conversation you would expect two knights to be talking about after a conclave.

 

"Frost." A wicked smile hinting at plans and lust graced his face as he spoke the name. "what do you think of the king's appointment of Frost? For one... i at least will sign the acceptance scroll with little arguments, keep any attention on those houses that do choose to argue it."

[Veil]

Going to rather large castle Yasuhiro pulled out a scroll his father and told him to show to the first castle he got to if he needed a night to get where ever he was headed. though being foreign to this world he looked to the side and knocked on the door. "I beg your pardon may i stay in your castle and a map of where I am."

 

Yasuhiro lightly stood at the gate. "I would please like to have an audience with your king" Yasuhiro heard the gate open as a man approached him lightly pointing to the inner area as his outfit was clearly not from this side. He pulled out the scroll and was instructed not to give it to anyone but the king of conclave and was told that he would serve in the war.

 

Yasuhiro waked slowly behind the gaurds whom surrounded him. The purple hair strands moved behind him as he walked past many folks as they stared yasuhiro bowed gracefully to them as he was lead to the castle. "May i ask for an audience with your king please for a placement and perhaps a known time in this war"

[Noctis]

As the drink was slid in front of him, Cedric ignored the contents of the cup sloshing over the rim and onto the table; pooling around the cup. He picked it up and pressed it to his lips to take a large gulp of the cold beverage. It washed down his throat and quenched the thirst he had from the long ride here to this little pub to meet his friend. Placing the now half empty cup down, he licked his pale lips and glanced up at Carmine with dark eyes.

 

“You and your hobby,” he grinned, raising an eyebrow up. “Keeping an addict waiting, aye? I'm pretty sure you would not pass up a chance for a nice conversation with someone such as myself. Now would you?” With that being said, he leaned back in his seat. He knew exactly how Carmine worked. Hell, he has known him for years, and he was in fact, pretty quick to catch up on people's behaviors and the little things they seem to do, which they might not even be aware of themselves.

 

As the name left Carmine's lips, his own gray eyes locked on Carmine's and with a grin, he nodded slightly; black hair falling across his face.

 

“Aye. Frost. Has he captured your fancy?” he chuckled quietly but his face hardened and the light laughter came to a sudden stop as he leaned forward; those smokey gray eyes glittering dangerously in the dimly lit pub as Carmine mentioned signing the Scroll of Acceptance.

 

“You're signing it?” he flashed him an annoyed look before continuing. “I refuse to. Simply because I can. That paper is more than likely only good for firewood in my family's home. Granted, I be under close eye, but then again, my blade is quite eager for a little action on the battlefield. What do you think?”

[SqueezeBabe]

Reginald knocked on the door to the library once more. "Master Frost, it seems that we have a visitor." Ben glanced up from the tome he was leafing through. "At this late hour?" he asked with a puzzled expression. "Were we expecting anyone?" Reginald shook his head and waited for Ben to get up and follow him out. "I'll receive whomever it is in the drawing room," Ben said, hurrying past the steward, he would at least need to change into something slightly more authoritative than his plain brown tunic, otherwise Reggie would never forgive him for not making a "proper impression".

 

Ben quickly ran into the study and inspected the blue tunic that was already there. His steward at least understood that Ben didn't like to go about wearing finery all the time, so prepared clothes in each of the receiving rooms so that he could get changed without having to run back to his bedroom. Ben didn't care about what he looked like, but he did care if he was tardy. He quickly got changed and sat down behind his desk a few moments before there was a knock on the door. "Master Frost?" Ben cleared his throat. "Enter." he said as authoritatively as possible.

[Lady.Taser]

He grinned manically, "my Hobby keeps me and good looking men well entertained for a while." Carmine leaned forward on the dirty table in front of him and looked up at Cedric, " Though i would never miss a conversation with you, so interesting. Though rejecting my offers of joining me with my hobby, such a shame." He laughed lightly as Cedric sat back in his chair, watching the grin on the man's face from his words.

 

"Frost has this... Naive aura about him." Carmines eyes started to glint mischievously, "it makes me want to dirty him, pull him down and destroy all that he knows." pausing he stood up and wandered around the table to the same side as Cedric. "That and i never miss a chance to add the name of another gorgeous victim to my list."

 

He leaned his weight against the chair that Cedric was sat on, facing away from the man he was speaking to and eyeing the room around them while lowering his voice. "I sign it because i can, because the false sense of security will be one of the things that ruins Frost. Imagine him setting up to fight on the field, then half of his army is suddenly an enemy, the massacre would be glorious to watch." He turned again leaning over Cedric's shoulder instead.

 

"Though i guess that will take some of the fun away from fight, and i don't think even the fireplace has done enough wrong to deserve that piece of paper."

[Veil]

Walking in slowly Yasuhiro bowed low, The purple strands slide over his shoulder as he turned to close the doors and looked back. "I thank you for seeing me my name is Yasuhiro, I come from across the ocean and i seek refuge in your castle, I am also curious as to how much time there is before this war gets bad"The purple hair'd boy looks up and spoke fast. "That would lovely Your Grace"

 

The room looked lovely and clean, The person before him looked much like a kind therefor he used the term 'your grace' for the appearance of the man in front of him. Yasuhiro approached the man holding out a scroll. "This has my name as well as my intended destination the rest of this information is yours to share if you so choose, Your Grace"

[Noctis]

Raising an eyebrow at Carmine as he leaned in close, he breathed out a soft laugh and shook his head. “I'm aware of that. Thus why I told you to meet me here without fears of you wandering off after your next prey and skipping.” With that being said, he raised his glass to his lips and took a rather large gulp.

 

Placing it back on the table, he stared up at Carmine with narrowed eyes as he leaned against his chair. The mention of the scroll had really annoyed him but it didn't take long at all for a grin to curl his lips once Carmine mentioned the betrayal of Frost's army. The man would never suspect the underlying intentions of the men he thought so high of and trusted and this is exactly why he chose to be the cause of Frost's attention kept away from the demise he had right under his very nose.

 

“Take the fun away from the fight? Not at all, my dear friend. For the fun will be the sight of Frost crumbling down along with his kingdom into a cloud of red dust. Now that will be the most glorious sight of all. My family will reign over this country.” A small laugh escaped through pale lips as his fingers curled themselves around the handle of his cup. “I'll be the distraction.”

 

 

[Pardon the lame post. It was mostly for dialogue.]

[SqueezeBabe]

Ben gave a small laugh, "War? There is no "war" at this stage, well, not within the realm at any rate. You might have misunderstood, my job is to uphold the peace within the realm, to stop the factions from causing a war." He gave the purple-haired youth a smile. "At the moment it is late, so I'd invite you stay the night. My steward will prepare a room for you stay in and I'll have the kitchen bring you something to eat. I'm sure you must be tired and hungry from your travels..."

 

Ben would need some time alone to go through the scrolls that Yasuhiro had given him. He was perplexed that the youth had even suggested the possibility of a war. Just what did the foreign factions know that he didn't? And for that matter, what on earth were foreigners getting involved for anyway? The whole thing just seemed a tad bit suspicious to Benjamin.

[Lady.Taser]

Carmine laughed loudly, momentarily drawing the attention of other occupants of the pub. While a man sleeping with another man wasn't an uncommon occurrence, it was not well thought of and most peasants such as those filling the pub tending to avoid anything to do with it, so the image of Carmine leaning against the back of Cedric's chair rang alarm bells and many quickly averted their gaze.

 

"While you distract, however you plan to do that, i can... make niceties with Frost. The advantages to parents who abide by the rules..." he smirked as he continued "is that no one suspects the children. Also it would raise to many questions if all of a sudden a member of the Lledowan family line refused to help. Those ancestors of mine have been loyal supporters of the king for a long time now, i have only held the land for a year since grandfather.... died..." Carmine paused, they both knew the death wasn't natural, despite what the death certificate said. "So while they will have noticed me being cruel they won't realise everything."

 

Carmine motioned to a passing bar maid to get him another drink and sat back down opposite while the barmaid brought them to the table. He waved her away quickly, despite her less than obvious attempts to flirt with them both. "what is it you plan to do as a distraction?" He took a gulp from his drink, planning to drink quite a bit more yet for the night, afterall he had friends who lived nearby who would always love a midnight intrusion, so he didn't have to travel home tonight, and could avoid the god awful accommodation at the pub.

[Veil]

"I see, and I understand, You may do with the scroll as you please, I will retire to the room of your choosing then" Yasuhiro Bowed and then rose straight up his lips tightened as the purple length Hung down Low and slipped off his shoulder. Though Yasuhiro was glade to have something other then terrible travel food. "I thank you for your hospitality" the door behind Yasuhiro Opened, a man walked in and Yasuhiro followed behind him. The castle walls looked tall and yet had a warm home feeling to them. though it was elaborate and large it looked simply gorgeous and even had misguiding turns that ended up in a dead end.

 

Yasuhiro was led to a large room with two doors. The man leading Yasuhiro opened the door for him. He walked in looking around, Again the room looked much like meeting hall Yasuhiro was brought into, But there was a bed instead of a table, There was a mirror and it looked extravagant and beautiful. Yasuhiro looked back to see the Doors were closed and the steward was gone. The purple hair'd man set down his bags and began to undress enough to sleep in. Peeling off the cape and laying it over a chair and lightly taking off his weapons to lay on the bed.

 

There was a knock on the door. "Sir I have brought Food, May I enter the room sir" Yasuhiro turned and opened the door Turning the knob on one of the doors and stood to the side lightly letting the man in, He sniffed the air and with a gently this is heaven sigh he smiled. "Thank you so much, Should i call for you when I finish?" the man shook his head and spoke softly "I will grab it in a hour, Please enjoy your meal". Yasuhiro smiled and let him out as he looked at the food and let down his hair as he sat down and began to eat.

[Noctis]

Once Carmine's laughter rang out in the pub, Cedric's eyes flickered over to all gazes they had caught the interest of. With all the gazes quickly diverted to what they were doing, he turned his own dark gaze down at his drink. Raising it to his lips for another large gulp, and placed it down with a short sigh as the beverage cooled his senses. Drumming his slender fingers on the wooden table, he shot Carmine a look seeing as he was still behind him.

 

“Sit down,” he said, motioning to Carmine's now abandoned chair. Of course Carmine enjoys being all up close with other men but Cedric was not all that interested and only had thoughts of his plan running through his mind. His lust for battle was strong and it was not satisfied until crimson blood stained his sword.

 

“You ask what my plan is,” his voice lowered so Carmine had to lean in close to catch the whispered words the Black Knight spoke. Once the barmaid was waved away, he continued. “My plan is simple of course, my friend. I will not sign the pathetic piece of paper he sent to me. That'll become a warning for them of course to keep their eyes on me and my family. Watching my every move and perhaps try to talk about it. Or... gather their allies for an upcoming battle. Quite simple, is it not? Either way they react would still be in my favour,” he smirked wickedly as his eyes stared into Carmine. “I'm not someone to simply toy with like a harmless animal. If Frost actually looks at my family history, he'll see this.” With that, he sat back; the smirk still on his lips as he raised his mug to Carmine in a mock toast before drinking. “That shall be the distraction I have planned. And more.”

[SqueezeBabe]

Once alone, Ben ran a hand through his hair and let out a troubled sigh. It worried him that foreign lands seemed to know more about the political situation than what he did, or at least assumed that certain things were in motion. Of course there would be a war if he couldn't get all factions to agree with his appointment as protector, and quite frankly, war would mean that there would be nothing left to protect. He chewed his lip, worried that he'd failed his role before he'd even had a chance to begin getting it in order.

 

He read through the scoll that Yasuhiro had given him. The contents seemed rather generic, basically instructing that Yasuhiro was there to be used by whomever had the job of protecting the realm in whatever manner was required. I guess it's a bit like fostering he thought to himself. He was fostered himself; the practice of sending young nobles to live with other noble houses to learn different skills and how to get along with others. Growing up on your own meant that you lacked the appropriate social skills required to lead, and fostering allowed the young men to learn such skills. Though, he's a bit old to be fostered... what am I going to do with him?

 

Ben yawned, getting up from his chair, and got changed back into his normal clothes. His steward wasn't back yet, so he took the scrolls and headed back into the library. He would need to do some more research on the major families it seemed. He hoped that he'd be able to get the signing underway on the morrow. It was going to be a long few weeks of travelling...

[Lady.Taser]

Carmine grinned across the table. "It is such a good thing i do not desire the throne, only just want the chaos of the war. Being your enemy is not something i would enjoy Cedric." The grin reduced to a smirk as he took another gulp and looked around the room. It had started to empty and the bar keep was calling last orders. They had been talking for a while, well talking and flirting on Carmine's part, a sentiment that unfortunately but unsurprisingly wasn't returned. It was almost a game to him now and one he enjoyed.

 

"One thing though. I an unsure of how efficient Frost's spy network is, and though now is too early a time for him to be watching houses as the scrolls are being sent out tomorrow, in a week or two you will be watched. Passing information will be difficult at best and impossible at worst." Carmine's face was now serious, no evidence of the earlier flirting or laughter as he gazed directly into Cedric's grey eyes. "I will try to become his aide, the closer i am the more i know. Once i know the strength of his spy network i will inform you accordingly, likely through my own. I may also drop communications."

 

All tables near them were now empty so he spoke quietly, the bar keep had been well paid to keep his mouth shut about anything he or his staff might overhear. It was amazing what the promises of death threats could keep at bay. "I also need a scapegoat. If his network is weak enough then he will likely notice things have been compromised and search out the spy. This is when i will drop communications. What you need to do is gain other allies and get them to at least be near to Frost and communicate with them.." carmine paused before slightly rewording his sentence. "Get your aides to communicate with them constantly so that if Frost needs to uncover a spy we have someone expendable. Do not let them know anything about me. In fact i do not want any of the expendable men to trust me. Say whatever you need to so that they feel i am well and truly on Frost's side."

 

He paused and took another sip of his drink letting what he had said so far sit between them. While they had known each other for a time communication was on and off anyway, especially in a time of peace such as this. "Oh and one last thing, communications must be directly though us. No one on either end can know we are communicating other than us and our head spys. In fact this can help us greatly. I shall use my spy network to ... help Frost." the edge of his lip curled up as the words dripped in sarcasm. "when my best spy goes to, well spy he will leave my messages in what ever place you say is suitable. When you send someone to spy on me any messages can be left under the dragon claw sculpture in my rooms. And so that neither of our messages can be traced by our seals i had these made." Pulling out two rings he placed them on the table. Both had different, but intricate designs on them and Carmine passed one of the over to Cedric.

 

(So somehow i managed to have a him talk.... a lot. sorry if its crap guys >.

[Veil]

Upon the finishing of his meal Yasuhiro nodded gently and awaited for the knock on the door to tell him that the tray was being taken Though Yasuhiro had no concerns he did not fret much over the small details being given about the foods and rest areas, Mostly the play he would rest in for a night seemed amazing and large. Yasuhiro get up and walked to the bed and gently laid his palm onto the sheets that adorned them. "Simple amazing they are so plush and they lay so perfect on the bed."

 

Yasuhiro sighed gently and turned to face the knock on the door. "Sir I am here for your tray, May i enter" Yasuhiro walked to the door holding the tray so he could retire to his bed much faster. Hiro had opened the door and smiled. "Here you are. I thank you for the meal, It was simply grand" The man that stood opposite of Yasuhiro took the tray and left after a quick bow Yasuhiro watched the man walk away. He shook his head shutting the door and retired to his bed staring up into the ceiling as if to hope that it would calm Yasuhiro down.