Cerdic opened his mouth to answer but was interrupted by a series of loud and hasty knocks on the sitting room's door. The guards, hidden from view until now, rushed forward and took up positions around the group, hands ready on the pommels of their swords.
"Enter!" King Greymane barked.
The door flew open immediately and a very rumpled and harried looking boy rushed forward only to stop dead at the sight of the armed guards. He visibly gulped and, shaking, glanced at Genn for help.
The king frowned at the boy's state and waved off the guards. "What is your business here boy?"
Still shaking, the messenger boy thrust out a folded and slightly crinkled sheet of parchment at the king. "I… I've got….. news from the… the wall, Sire! It… it is very urgent..! Lieutenant Walden… sent me…. I am the….. the fastest runner."
Frowning, the king gestured for one of the nearest guards to take it, to which the messenger gratefully relinquished it and focused on regaining his breath.
"Avery, get the boy some cool water," Genn ordered, taking the sheet and quickly reading it.
His face remained the same, though a steely glint had entered his grey eyes as he finished the letter and folded it back up. He glanced at the siblings, still standing politely off to the side, and gave them an apologetic grimace.
"I'm afraid," he began, tucking the note away in his belt, "that I cannot let you three leave without an armed escort."
"What? Why?" Jeanne blurted before Cerdic could ask the very same questions, "What happened your Majesty?"
King Greymane's face remained unmovable as he started issuing orders. "I need four guards escorting Baron Delroy's family back to their home. See it done, Avery.
Liam, you will both escort this boy back to the barracks and give Lieutenant Walden the order to lock down the city. You will help direct the citizens to him for an evacuation starting in the Merchant Square."
King Greymane turned back to the siblings and barked, "I need Liam to get to the Barracks as quick as possible. He may ride with you?"
Cerdic, being the 'head' of the family, quickly nodded his consent. That was all King Greymane needed, turning back to his remaining guards with a speed that surprised them. They never got to hear what the king ordered as four heavily armored guards bustled in, making quite the racket. Prince Liam greeted them and escorted the group out the doors, heading for the exit. The Delroy carriage was sitting innocently in front of the building when they strode out into the courtyard, the group quickly clambered in. Liam stayed outside a moment to inform the driver their destination and before they knew it they were off.
Jeanne surveyed the inhabitants of the carriage with a mixture of grim amusement and seriousness. On her side was the messenger boy and, out of necessity, Ammon. Cerdic and the Prince made up the other side, both being of a bulkier build than the other three. The ride was as silent as it was before, save for the click clack of the horses' hooves, but this silence weighed on them like a stifling blanket; as if something was holding its breath, waiting for something to happen.
Jeanne suppressed a shiver as she looked out at the dimly lit streets. On a whim she glanced up at the rooftops and stilled when she caught a flash of movement in the darkness. Ammon noticed the change in her attention almost immediately and started scanning the darkened streets himself.
Before they know it the carriage comes to a halt. Prince Liam gave a quick glance out the window before one of the guards opened the door. He gave a look to the messenger and the boy silently hopped out and waited for the Prince to join him.
"Prince Liam," Jeanne started before Liam could shut the carriage again, "What do we need to do?"
The blond prince sighed and glanced up at the dark rooftops before answering, "Send your servants home and tell them to prepare for an evacuation of the city. You three do the same."
He gave a long stare at the elegantly dressed woman in front of him before nodding sharply. Prince Liam then shut the door and sent the carriage on its way. For once in her memory Cerdic did not say anything about the prince's actions, instead reaching out and covered Jeanne's hand with his own, squeezing it lightly. She gave him a small smile at his attempted reassurance, turning her hand to squeeze back. The three sat, tense with anticipation for what was coming and Jeanne mentally ran through a list of supplies she would need.
"My satchel is a must; it has all my small necessities. My staff and dagger is another must. I need to change into my training clothes when we get home. Food and drink, obviously. I don't think we need any—"
"What are those?" Ammon asked, jolting Jeanne out of her thoughts. He leaned closer to the glass and squinted at the darkness.
"What are you talking about?" Cerdic asked and Jeanne copied her twin, staring up at the black rooftops and the sky beyond them.
She tensed as she too saw movements from the darkness. She tried to follow one of them but lost it as quickly as she found it.
"Whatever they are," she said slowly, never taking her eyes off the roofs, "They are damned good climbers."
A tense silence fell on them as all three siblings scanned the rooftops, each somber in face of the knowledge of their unknown invader is already here. They all jumped as the carriage jolted to a halt. The driver seemed to be as unnerved as they were when he opened the door for them, scrambling to get back onto his seat as soon as Ammon shut the door behind them. They glanced at the carriage pulling away before hurrying up the pathway and into the townhouse.
Jeanne hurried past Cerdic as he called together his servants to relay Liam's order and into her rooms on the second landing. The first thing she did upon entering was make a beeline to the heavily framed windows and closing the shutters before locking them, sliding an iron poker through the handles for good measure. She spun and snatched her packs from the neatly made bed, flipping the top flap open to expose its contents.
Jeanne grabbed the set of neatly folded clothes sitting on top and set them on the bed, stepping back and roughly snatching the jeweled pins and ribbons from her hair. She shook out her waist length hair and focused on trying to undo the stiff ties trapping her inside the dress.
"Bloody laces!" She growled, abandoning her task after a few tense seconds and plunging her hand back into her pack.
She smirked as she pulled out a worn dagger and flicked the sheath off it. The woman made short work of the ties that bound her and shoved her way out of the dress. She pulled her light chemise off after a moment and grabbed the uppermost garment off the rumpled pile on her bed.
After pulling on her training clothes she turned to the dagger and sheathed it once again, pulling it onto the strip of cloth she used as a belt. Jeanne then plunged her hand into another section of her pack and pulled out a long length of wood along with its belt.
"I'll never understand how this thing fits in there," she muttered to herself, strapping the belt on and sliding her staff into place on her back, adjusting it for easy drawing, "Bloody bag must be enchanted or something."
Mentally shrugging, Jeanne pulled her pack to her and did a quick stock of her supplies.
"I'll have to get some food and drink from the kitchens," she thought, attaching it to her 'belt', "Other than that I'll be okay."
BOOM!
Jeanne jumped and twisted around to find the source of the sound.
BOOM!
She saw the shutter shake at the force of the impact. Fighting down her initial panic, she glared at the shutter for a moment, silently daring the would-be intruder to break through. Jeanne heard nothing but frantic scrabbles against the shingles as the invader moved farther to her left.
Huffing, she turned and hastily exited her room, shutting the heavy oak door behind her before a sound made her stop dead in her tracks.
CRASH!
"Shite!" she swore, taking off down the hall as she heard something large shuffling around in the room next to hers.
Jeanne heard the door slam open behind her and she took the risk of glancing behind her. A large dark creature was hunkered down on the floor, swinging its great lupine head around to focus on her. Angry yellow eyes met hers and the creature emitted a loud snarl before starting after her.
Without thinking, she plunged into the stream of magic flowing just under her consciousness and threw a hand behind her. A bright white light engulfed the creature and the sound of its pained yelps reached her a second before the stench of singed fur did.
Jeanne didn't have time to revel in her success as she turned the corner and bolted down the steps, almost colliding headfirst into Ammon rushing to her aid.
"GO!" she yelled, shoving him towards the door as she spun at the sound of claws scrabbling towards them.
Jeanne slid into a casting stance and readied another spell, shooting it off as soon as the creature bound into sight. The green energy ball hit him in the head and flung him back down the hall. An audible crack was heard as he hit the wall and she waited for him get back up. Nothing came.
Breathing shakily, she straightened a moment before she felt two sets of hands pull her towards the door.
"Are you out of your bleeding mind Joan?!" Cerdic yelled as he dragged her down the entranceway, "You could've been killed!"
"What the hell was I supposed to do?!" she snarled back, yanking her arm out of his grasp, "Let it maul me?! I was defending myself!"
Cerdic spun on his heel and stalked towards her, frightful scowl on his face.
"That is what we are here for! You should've let us deal with it!"
"Oh for fucks sake!" Jeanne flung her arms up in exasperation. "I am NOT a child! You'd rather have me be killed being a defenseless child rather than acknowledging I am a grown woman perfectly capable of her own defense!"
"Now's not the time for fighting!" Ammon growled, coming between the two before blows could be landed, "We've got to get to safety! Then you two can rip each other's throats out!"
With an angered huff, Jeanne pushed past the two and stalked towards the door. She heard sounds of shouts and fighting a moment before she yanked the door open. She stopped short and gaped at the sight of the city guards in full combat with more of the mysterious creatures that invaded her home.
"What the hell is going on?!" Cerdic yelped, pushing past her and taking a defensive stance, drawing his broadsword.
"No idea," Ammon replied, then pointed towards a figure on a horse across the square, shining guards fighting around him, "But the Prince is here."
Without another word, the siblings dashed towards the Prince, intent on getting answers.
"Prince Liam!" Cerdic shouted as they got near, "What in the blazes is going on?!"
The prince turned in his saddle when he heard him, a look or pure relief on his handsome face.
"Worgen!" He shouted back, tugging on the horse's reigns as the guards around him engaged another invader, "Father warned me that Archmage Arugal's creations had overrun the Headlands! I need you three to kill as many as you can! I also need you to help the other civilians evacuate to the Military District!"
The prince was cut off as another worgen dropped out of nowhere and leapt over his guards at him. Before Jeanne could get a cast off a small knife flew out from behind her and struck the worgen's throat. Jeanne hit the beast a split second after the knife landed, burning as it slumped backwards, already dead.
Liam reigned his horse away from the stinking corpse and gave them a shaky smile of gratitude. "I owe you two my life. Lady Jeanne, evacuate the remaining citizens and kill anything that comes after you. Lord Ammon, assist Miss. Armstead with gathering our remaining supplies. Baron Cerdic, I need you here defending the citizens."
With a nod of understanding, Jeanne gave her brothers a glancing touch of support before scrambling to fulfill her orders. She nearly tripped on the step of the first house before knocking loudly on the door. She had to practically jump back as the door slammed open a second after she knocked, a battered man carrying a small child stumbling out.
"Help me, please!" he begged over the wailing of the child and looking back at the house fearfully as menacing growls were heard from inside.
"Go to the Military District!" Jeanne yelled, taking a casting stance, "The King is there evacuating people!"
She paid him no mind as he bolted down a street, instead concentrating on killing the beast that crashed into her field of view.
"Feel my wrath, beast," she thought, launching into her first cast and following it up with her lunar flames, "You'll not touch my people!"
She made quick work of the worgen, giving it a brief look over before moving on to the next door. The next few houses she evacuated went along the same lines; knocking, telling the panicked citizens the only information she knew, and often dealing with an enraged worgen. Taking a shaky breath, she glanced down at her latest kill and examined him for anything of interest, kneeling to retrieve a few meager coins from his smoldering trousers and pocketing them.
A snarl behind her was the only warning she got before getting bowled over, landing shoulder first onto the hard cobblestones. Reacting instinctively, she fired off a burst of white arcane energy and rolled onto her feet as soon as she felt the worgen flinch back. Her dagger was in her hand before she knew it though she was now too far away to use it correctly.
The worgen snarled and stretched to its full height, dwarfing the woman with its intimidating bulk. For the first time since getting attacked in her own home she felt a prang of fear settle itself in her heart. The worgen charged her, frightfully agile despite his size, not giving the woman enough time to prepare a cast. She attempted to anyway, throwing her arm out moment too late.
Strong jaws clamped down on her left forearm a split second before her cast landed. Both howled in pain and the worgen jerked back, freeing her arm from his crushing grip.
"Oh no you don't!" she snarled, trying to ignore the sharp burning pain and struck out blindly, completely forgetting about the dagger clenched in her hand.
The dagger sliced cleanly through fur and flesh like a hot knife through butter. The worgen coughed and gagged as he staggered away from the woman, dropping a few yards away from her.
Jeanne let out a shaky breath and lowered her gaze to the dagger, noting the streaming blood dripping from the silver length. She grimly wiped the blade clean on her trousers and sheathed it before turning her attentions on her wounded arm.
"Son-of-a-flea-bitten-mongrel," she hissed, carefully peeling the bloody fabric of her shirt back, "Bastard had one hell of a bite."
Closing her eyes, she called upon the magic in her and focused it on healing her arm. Her right hand glowed a soft green as it took effect and she waved her fingers over the wound. The magic was just enough to staunch the bleeding and faded almost as quickly as it came. She huffed as she inspected the bloody puncture wounds, gently prodding it to see if any blood was still oozing from it.
"I never was the best healer," she mused, using her dagger to cut a strip of cloth from the bottom of her tunic, "At least it's not bleeding anymore."
