The Farewell Kiss
"Hoy."
Cyssan remained in place, standing on the wall.
"Hoy."
Was someone calling her? She couldn't tell. Looking out over Percyvania, she reflected that-
"Cyssan!"
And she spun around, seeing the ruler of this eternal kingdom. Lord Percy, Crow, warrior, and ruler of the realm of Percyvania. And by extension, a twat without a shred of originality in his head.
"Forgive me, my lord," she said, bowing her head slightly. "I did not hear you."
"Hmf," the warrior said, coming to stand on the wall as well. "You got wax in your ears?"
"Well, actually…" She put a finger in her right ear. Her large, pointy, elven ear. The finger went in, and a few seconds later, it came out. Covered in something yellow.
"Yes," she said, flicking it off the wall to the ground below. "Yes I do have wax in my ears. With ears these size, I tend to get a lot of it."
Percy frowned. She wanted to take that frown off his face. And remove his head from his shoulders while she was at it.
And that might come sooner or later. She was an assassin, and Lord Percy was her target. She could have poisoned him in his sleep, slit his throat, or done anything that would remove him from the face of Creation and got away with it.
"Well, no matter," the lord said. He looked out over the wall. "It does nothing to diminish your beauty."
Oh gods.
He was going there. He was really going there.
"When I fought against the Hunger…"
She let him prattle on, weighing her options. Percy was her target. He ruled his kingdom not as a tyrant, but as an incompetent, and that could generate as much misery as any iron fist.
"I often yearned for companionship…"
I bet you did.
"The Hunger, the enemy of all…"
Cyssan pretended to remain in rapt attention. The Hunger this, the Hunger that. She was sick of it. The gods, if they even existed, were useless, and not worth fighting for. The Hunger, while something that did exist, was confined to the inner realms, incapable of reaching the Eternal Kingdoms.
"But you, fair maiden," Percy said. "You understand, do you not?"
"Oh yes," she said, flicking a smile. "Very much."
And he looked at her. She knew it would come to this. Yes, he wanted to kiss her. And luckily she was prepared for such an eventuality.
She could shove him off the wall. Or knife him right now. But no, the poison that coated her lips was her best bet. It was nigh untraceable – true, physicians could determine that their lord had been poisoned, but they'd spend far more time looking for the source in food and beverages. Not from the lips of an elf.
Gods help me.
So he kissed her. She pretended to enjoy it. And detached her mind to lessons she had learnt as an assassin in the Riverlands. Of her masters.
Think of the worst tyrant in history. How many lives could have been saved – how many wars averted – by a sharp blade, at the moment of his birth?
Percy was not a tyrant. As he pulled back from their embrace, as he began to cough, she supposed he could give him that much. Neglect and tyranny produced the same results. But at least neglect was free of ill intent.
"Cyssan," he whispered. "I'm…I'm…"
Why did I say his birth? You know why. When I asked you to think of a tyrant, no woman crossed your mind. One life, for many. Quite the bargain, yes?
"Help…me…"
"My lord," she exclaimed, playing her role to the end. "Are you alright?"
I say to you: the Hunger is not your enemy. Your enemy walks among you, charming and handsome, with a tongue full of lies.
"I'm…choking…"
"Hold fast, my lord," she exclaimed. "I'll get help!"
So she ran. She'd get the physicians. She'd even stay around so that her departure wouldn't be linked with his death. All she could hope was that he didn't fall off the wall in order to make anyone think that was the cause of death.
And then she'd get something to drink.
A/N
This started out more as a joke oneshot, the idea that elves (or elf-like creatures) would get more ear wax due to the size of their ears. However, that by itself wasn't enough for a oneshot, so I instead just slid the punchline in and typed out the rest.
And because Crowfall looks like one of the most interesting MMO's I've seen in awhile. So like WildStar, even if I'm not playing it, I'm happy to drabble in its universe.