Their Crying Kingdoms ([Melappy X Vivian])

[Wryneck]

Their Crying Kingdoms

---

"In a world full of injustice, you must find your own sense of justice."

~William DuMont

---

​

It has been decades since the war that spanned a generation between the Qadian and Gale kingdoms began. No one even knows why they fight anymore. The Qadian Kingdom claims justice. The Gale Kingdom claims defense. No one knows which is fighting for a truly just cause.

All anyone knows is that they want the fighting to stop — for the pointless war to finally come to an end. The rulers of each kingdom will hear no pleas in their battle for dominance.

And thus, the war carries on...

---

"HIYAH!"

FWOOSH!

A pristine sword made of silver cut through air before looping back around, the excess speed of the swing causing the wielder to twirl and fall down. "Curses..." the nimble-bodied squire mumbled. For all of his dexterity, handling a sword was still something he had trouble with. 'If only knights wielded bows and slung arrows instead of swinging around these oversized pieces of metal...'

This was a typical training day for Benjamin. He'd come out into the forest by his lonesome and practice sword swinging, only to become bothered with the whole art of swordfighting and complain about it. The training went on, though. He knew that no amount of complaining about what he had to master to become a fully fledged knight would help him.

Becoming a knight was the first step towards discovering his own sense of justice. He wasn't sure how he'd know when he'd found it, but the search continued. Surely it would make itself clear when the time was right.

His swings stopped. Over towards his left, he could hear a passing caravan. 'Maybe they've some food for sale...' Stomach growling, he mounted his horse and rode towards the caravan.

"Easy, Penelope..." he whispered to the horse. He'd stopped just as bandits decided to ambush the caravan. They rushed through, mercilessly killing the traveling merchants. No level of hesitation was shown.

This was his chance — his chance to finally discover his own justice.

"Thieves! Killers! Stop!" Out from the brush he dashed, horse hidden and sword drawn. The bandits stopped their pillaging to eye the wannabe hero over before breaking out in laughter.

"Really, boy? You think you can take us all on with your sword?" Whoever spoke must've been the leader of the group. "Don't you even know who I am?" The burly male pulled a short sword from a side holster. "The name Wolfe ring any bells?"

It did. Benjamin knew Wolfe as the leader of a notorious ring of bandits that called themselves the Wolfe Pack. They were well known throughout Asran, mostly for their speedy mobility and ruthlessness. But he couldn't back down. It would be unbehooving of a soon-to-be knight of Qadia.

"I know who you are, and I know what you do. I still order you to stop."

Wolfe's amusement changed to a grimace. "And who might you be to order us to do anything?" The bandit king quickly approached him, but abruptly stopped a foot away. "That sword..." he whispered, low enough to be inaudible to Benjamin. "Didn't know he had a son. Ha! Maybe we'll fetch a little coin for this one, boys!"

His lackies cheered on behind him. What Wolfe meant, Benjamin had no idea. Better their attention be on him than on the surviving members of the caravan.

 

[Vivian]

[spoili]Athena took a deep breath, the constant ticking and clicking of the clock were driving her mad, the repetitive motion of braiding her hair was making her fingers ache. The young princess was mumbling to herself while her eyes glared at the dagger that rested on her nightstand. This is how all the heroines in the story go. She reassured herself. Frankly, she wasn't doing a magnificent job of it. They go through some dramatic change in appearance! Escape the hands of evil, go on an epic tale! Athena let out a pained whine when she braided her hair for the final time and picked up the dagger.

"In the glory of Gale, and in the Queen's good name." It didn't happen in one clean slice like every story she heard or read implied. It took several, cuts, her hair came out a bit uneven, and the braid she tried to maintain was a bit too sloppy. She let out a sputtered sigh and tied the other end of the hair with a red ribbon and tossed it to the nightstand where the dagger was. Instantly she hooked her nail on the zipper of her dress and when she fell to her knees pulled down while using her other hand to reach for a box of clothing that was tucked safely beneath her bed.

The clacking of armor on the other side of the door told her her time was running out, that the next guard would be here to keep watch and check on her. The girl threw the dress she was wearing aside and almost frantically began to slip on the different one. This one was dull in color, simpler, the dress of a lowly servant girl. Once she pulled the bonnet over her head, she felt her heart stop for just a moment.

I'm actually doing this. Holy crap, I'm actually doing this!

There was a knock on her door with a voice that followed shortly after. "Princess Athena?"

The princess' lowly servant girl cleared her throat "Pardon me, sir! The Princess had requested I start a bath for her; I ask that you not enter her room, so's to keep her dignity." She set the dress out carefully on the bed along with the lock of hair.

"Oh, of course."

Athena had to stop herself from suppressing the proud smile that crawled onto her lips. She sounded nothing like Princess Athena. Once she stepped out of her prison, she was the nameless girl without even copper to her name. She gathered a bundle of random clothing and the dagger from the nightstand and hurried out the door, offering the guardsman a curt nod and curtsey before hurrying off. The entire time being careful while keeping her face hidden.

Now came tricky part. The actual escape.

She broke out into a sprint and threw the clothing aside and tucked the dagger into the hidden pocket of her apron. It wasn't until another guard had stopped her did she begin to talk in a breathless panic. "The princess!" She managed to breathe, her earlier sprint making her words sound urgent. A princess never really had to work on cardio you know.

But the mention of their soft-hearted princess was enough to raise the alarm, bring panic, fear. Without a second word, the man ran back to alert others and shouted commands at the man at the door. She was winded, of course in their panic they wouldn't know what to look for, they've never even seen her face. All they had was her hair, and now, they very literally have her hair.


She grabbed the dress and began to run once again; it only took an hour for full chaos to break out. A witch hunt for the rascal of a girl. Athena could care less about the demands they were shouting, all that mattered was getting into that wagon that would lead into town. [/spoili]




She let out a small groan when the sunlight attacked her eyes, her hands lazily finding a way to shield her face from the unforgiving light. "Alexander, heaven forbid you to open those blinds an inch wider..." A sudden shout, scream, and crack is what brought her out of her daze. Instantly she shot up from her kind of not so comfy spot.

Right. I'm a fugitive, a runaway. In the real world, there is no Alexander to open the currents, and certainly the freedom to wake up and sleep whenever you want. This is my adventure!

Another scream made her flinch.

And one that is certainly off to a rocky start.

"Thieves! Killers! Stop!" The voice of what sounded to be a self-proclaimed hero stole her attention before she could panic. A line of not so princessy words ran through her head, and she scrambled for something to use as a weapon, and to her dismay, it was something as complicated as a bow and arrow.

Athena grumbled and hurried out from the safety of the caravan, soon to be met with the stifled sobs of merchants that didn't reach the end of the sword. Let's hope to keep it that way.

With a sharp intake of air, Athena scurried off into the safety of the bushes. She wanted to help, but not only did she not know how to handle a bow and arrow, but she also didn't have much experence in fighting.

 

[Wryneck]

Benjamin branded himself for combat, though he knew he stood little to no chance against even one of the bandits that surrounded him. Maybe rushing out like a wannabe hero wasn't such a good idea after all.

Scanning his adversaries, Benjamin allowed his focus to rest on the leader of the group — Wolfe. He knew he couldn't possibly hope to beat all of them in a head on battle, but if he could defeat their leader, maybe that would be enough.

"Care for a one on one then?" he asked, making desperation with foolhardy arrogance. "If you're as strong as they say, one silly squire should be no trouble for you."

Wolfe eyed him. Taking the whole prize was his goal, but if the boy wanted to squirm a bit before the inevitable, why not allow himself to be entertained? A smirk crossed his lips.

"Well, a'right then, but I'm sure you know what challenging me entails. I won't go easy, and death is very real out here, beyond your precious castle walls." The male twirled his blade to showcase his handiness with a sword and slowly approached Benjamin, getting into an offensive stance.

"I trust you lot not to interfere. Finish with the caravan." The gang gave a resounding "aye" and went about their business. I could only hope all the caravan members had been able to escape. All those that survived the initial onslaught anyway...

"While not the best, I'm not the shabbiest either. I'm a run for one's money at the least." He was exaggerating his own abilities, but he had to make himself seem bigger than he was. Wolfe might fight more cautiously and less offensively that way.

Controlling his motions, Benjamin brandished his sword. He'd have to move slowly if he wanted to avoid slipping on his own feet again.

'Just wait for him to make the first move, and react accordingly.' That's what he told himself, and was the advice his grandfather always gave him for going up against adversaries one knew to be stronger than the self. That was easier said than done.

Siezing the moment, Wolfe went for an attack. A quick swing towards Ben's right side was deflected, but the bandit quickly spun around for a strike to the left. The earlier deflection put Benjamin too off balance to deflect the second.

Instead, he ducked, dropping his sword to avoid it hindering his weight. Rolling to the right, he picked up his sword and went for an upward strike. Wolfe jumped backwards with plenty of time and went for a lunge. Benjamin threw himself to the right and into the ground to avoid a follow up attack aimed at his side.

Wolfe stopped his onslaught and laughed. "Ha! Boy, you won't get anywhere tossing yourself around like a fish out of water! Stand tall and proud! Fight like a man."

'Like a man. Tall and proud.' Benjamin scoffed. "You're no man, and you certainly have nothing to be proud of." The squire in training stood and readied his sword again. "It takes more than good swordsmanship to make a man. If that's all you have, you're lower than even the weakest squire."

The bandit leader was visibly perturbed now. Benjamin hit him in the spot.

"Nobility means little when you're dead, boy!" Another lunge. Benjamin dodged it and see a chance. He knew the followup was coming, so if only he could somehow prevent it and counter...

 

[Vivian]

Admirable was the first word she would use to describe him if she knew for certain he would survive this. Smart would be the last, but regardless of his level of intelligence, his show of teeth was enough to distract the band of crooks long enough for remaining survivors to get away, or at least have a long enough head start.

Rule one of blue blood heritage, you can't save everyone. You can't please everyone, try and save the majority over the minority.

She wrinkled her nose at the lesson, but stopping these people now would surely pay off in the long run. If I'm still alive, that is. She continued her evaluation, the best spot to shoot an arrow when you never shot one before, the best spot to run to when you've made a fool of yourself and have men after your life, the best place to die.

Awkwardly Athena took an arrow from the quiver and put it on the arrow rest, adjusting the thing to look kind of right. Once she pulled back the bow string. The girl was quick to realize it wasn't as graceful or effortless as the guards made it seem. She was about to let out a frustrated groan, but the clash of steel reminded her she still had the element of surprise on them, even if the surprise was less than favorable.

She pulled back the bowstring once more, taking a deeper breath the further she pulled it back. She assumed once she couldn't pull it back anymore that this is when you fire it.

The second she let go the wire hit her right forearm and the arrow went flying. If only it hadn't fired off at a diagonal angle, just barely missing the man's foot. This time she couldn't help but yelp at the sudden pain. The wannabe adventurer didn't expect that, that much was clear.

 

[Wryneck]

As if some miracle performed by the gods, a arrow pierced the ground right by Wolfe's foot, snapping his focus. While it would've been nicer if it'd actually hit him, it was all Benjamin needed to land an attack against the bandit. With a quick upward slash that sent Benjamin falling backwards, he managed to injure the bandit king. Had he not worn armor and thought to instinctively jump backwards, the attack would've been instantaneously fatal. As it were though, his wound would still cause him to bleed out if untreated.

His lackies were busy searching for the bowman now. Benjamin could only hope they would be okay.

"Tsk. So someone decided to come back and help, only to turn tail a second later..." Wolfe muttered, holding his chest. "We're falling back...everyone..." The bandits were hesitant at first, but a pained bark from their leader got them moving.

"As for you..." He mumbled, pointing his blade towards Benjamin. "I'll remember that face. You won't get so lucky next time."

While part of him was tempted to end Wolfe right then, something held him back. He shook off thoughts of impending guilt. 'Is that the justice you meant?'

Soon, the bandits were gone with the caravan wagons, and Benjamin was what he presumed to be alone. Except for one thing.

"Do you want to come out? The bandits are gone now, and I want to thank you for helping me out back there. I certainly would've died." His eyes scanned his surroundings, certain his unexpected aide was nearby. Somewhere.

 

[Vivian]

Athena was beaming once the swordsman made use of her blunder, almost forgetting the men who were trying to find her. She crouched lower and took out a small dagger she kept in her boot. She was small enough to hide undetected in the bushes, and her more earthy colored clothing helped conceal the fact she was there.

I'm close enough to their knees. She reassured herself as they came closer to her hiding spot. Just one stab and you run. Running was her best ability at the moment. Athena brought the dagger higher once they were close enough for her to make out their features. God and luck were on her side when the leader barked at them to retreat.

"Do you want to come out? The bandits are gone now, and I want to thank you for helping me out back there. I certainly would've died."

Not really. Is what she would have liked to say, but she wasn't strong enough to survive on her own, and while the wannabe hero wasn't as skilled as she had hoped it was better than traveling alone. Especially after the fact she lost her group and was robbed of everything aside from a bow that she barely knew how to use. His praise had fed her royal ego, and hesitantly she stood up from her hiding spot, using the tree as a support for her now jelly legs.

"Greetings," She managed to say with a sheepish smile. Once she had given her hello the adrenaline had officially worn off, and her forearm began to sting.