Chronicle

Part I, Chapter I

Spy and Assassin

He was born into a somewhat poor but loving family. Though they didn't have much, his parents always made sure he had enough to eat. Because he was the only child out of five that survived the harsh living conditions, his parents believed him to be a gift of God, and so they called him Matthew. They fed him on bread and water, being too poor to feed him any meat at all. Occasionally he would be fed a potato or a melon, and these rare treats would always bring him much joy.

Matthew grew to be an average height. He was never very strong, and his arms were incredibly thin, making it a small miracle that he could lift even a sword. It was clear that Matthew would never be a general or a knight. But as if compensating for his lack of muscular strength, Matthew was incredibly swift and agile. He would always come in first when he and his friends ran. He could dodge rocks thrown from but three feet away.

Of course, it came as no surprise when Matthew was rejected to be a knight when he applied in Ostia. He begged and begged the marquess not to send him away empty-handed, that his parents needed him to bring money so that they could buy food, but the marquess, as softhearted as he was, could not allow such a fragile young boy to join the ranks of his knights, for if they went to war, the boy would surely perish, and what, then, would he say to the boy's parents?

It was at this time that Uther, the marquess' first born, saw Matthew's swiftness and speed, and said unto his father, "Father, he is swift and quick of foot. He may not make a powerful knight, but he may make a fine spy."

The marquess was still unconvinced. A spy's work was even more dangerous than a knight's. He did not believe such a boy would be so able. But as is, Ostia had few spies to keep tabs on its neighboring countries. In this, he saw an opportunity. He named Matthew to be their spy, and made Uther his lord, as part of Uther's training to be the successor of the marquess of Ostia. By this time, Matthew was already 17.

It was here that he met Leila. He and Leila did not get along well when they first met. They were polar opposites and argued about anything and everything. Unfortunately, they were also assigned to be partners on Matthew's first mission. Leila had told Matthew over and over not to get in her way or she would leave him behind, and Matthew would always grunt or mumble something incoherent in response.

There was much unrest in Laus at the time, and so Matthew and Leila were assigned to see what the root of the unrest was. They were to take the guise of newlyweds, as Uther had said, "A pair of newlyweds is sure to attract less suspicion than a pair of travelers." This didn't sit well with Leila, but her complaints fell on deaf ears. Matthew and Leila eventually learned that much of the cause of the unrest was due to an organization called the Black Fang. Once a band of chivalrous and beloved knights, they had suddenly become an evil, black hearted operation. It took Leila and Matthew a year to get near the Black Fang, and in this time they started becoming quite close; they almost became actual newlyweds.

With their information on the Black Fang, Leila and Matthew returned to Ostia to the marquess, who was already dying of a fatal disease. By now the marquess had handed much of Ostia's power to Uther, who seemed to be perfectly healthy, but was actually suffering from the same disease as his father. Hector, the marquess' younger son, was away honing his skills as usual. He left much of the year to train himself in the art of fighting so that he could help his brother when he ascended to the position of Ostia's marquess.

Uther was disturbed by the information Matthew and Leila brought back. He was quick to formulate a plan: Leila was to infiltrate the Black Fang to see just how corrupted they were and if they were beyond saving. Matthew was assigned to smaller tasks of the moment, which did not please Matthew at all. Still, he was to obey his lord's command, and so he carried out his orders without question.

It wasn't long before another conflict began brewing in Lycia: the marquess of Caelin, who according to Ostia's spies had been slowly poisoned by his brother, suddenly discovered that he had a granddaughter named Lyndis. To his brother, Lundgren, this news was ill received, and he plotted to kill the heir to the Caelin throne. Matthew was assigned to investigate this particular incident. It was during this time that the previous marquess, Uther and Hector's father, died. Uther's illness also took a turn for the worst, but he put on a strong face, so that nobody knew of his body's fatal disease.

Leila's reports began to become more and more grave. Uther could not sit by and watch such atrocities be commited.

The wheels of fate began to turn, and they would catch Matthew within their grasp.

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