I don't own anything except for my OC, Julianna Fyre and any of my original ideas that are incorporated into the story.
Author's Note: This is the corniest chapter title I have ever done and I'm terribly proud of it.
xxx
Iberu's mouth formed a nearly invisible line, but he hesitantly nodded and swallowed back his words. He truly wanted nothing but the highest admiration for his glorious leader, and that had to be earned with unquestionable loyalty.
...
Archon Iberu had mostly kept his mouth shut after nearly getting his head bitten off by his most esteemed and respectable undead ruler. He was both acutely aware and even frustrated with himself that he had stepped over a line too far, and so currently he sought to make amends by instead retreating back to their previous conversation of future and upcoming politics. It felt as though he had just been dealt a detrimental blow of two steps backwards from earning more potential iron-fisted responsibilities for his rising career in the Awakened forces. And he needed to prove his worth if he was going to earn those perks back.
"I don't mean to stray from our current conversation King Joko, but may I ask of Julianna's whereabouts?" Wurmmarshal Osa Ekolo asked once the verbal debate seemed to have died out for the time being. She moved over to where Grand Vizier Utumishi was still seated, grabbing the book out of his hands before walking over and picking up the other two at the table near her own rightfully appointed chair.
"I was reading that!" the adviser called out, looking quite puzzled when the pages of text suddenly disappeared from his peripheral vision. His blue eyes widened in surprise, and he looked up to see the tall female Awakened was already walking back to where she had been previously standing nearby.
"An incredible likely story my dear Utumishi", she answered back with dark sarcasm laced in her voice. Her opaque-looking eyes didn't even move towards his general direction as they instead were looking at the titles in her hand. "I haven't seen you turn a single page in that book during the entire time since you've been back in the throne room. But besides that, I didn't bring these all the way back from Istan for you anyway."
Palawa Joko ignored his now pouting adviser and still-peeved looking officer as his attention was briefly grabbed by the person mentioned. He waved a dismissive tar-stained hand and shook his head. "She's likely hiding somewhere on the perimeters and keeping out of sight. The tart manages to stay quite busy throughout the day, as she should be."
Almost as if on cue, Julianna appeared near the archway of the room, her hooded head cautiously peeking around the bone column. She had just been nearby finishing up wrapping an Awakened's arm with some tar-stained bandages when she overheard her name being used by one of her more favored Marshals from within the room. The woman's relationships with all three marshals varied on different levels throughout the time she had come to know them, but the closest of the three had been Ekolo without much contest from the others.
As if having some sixth sense, the sharp-eyed lich nearly caught sight of her immediately. "Oh! Just the person we were talking about", he said while clapping his ring covered hands together, his voice changing to a much more jovial one compared to the more dreadful and intimidating one from before. It didn't matter the situation, he would always jump on an opportunity to bother his favorite source of entertainment. "Did you just happen to come about for a visit because your ears happened to be burning?"
The undead ruler watched with immediate satisfaction as he could easily pick out the red stain stretched across the healer's freckled face even from their furthered distance.
"Doylak spit... no!" she nearly yelled back to the irritating person as her presence to the group was made aware.
"Ah, there you are healer. Come here will you? I've brought you some more texts from The Astralarium that I think you would like", Ekolo said, ignoring her superior and brooding peers while holding the books up for the woman to see. The others immediately ignored the duo once they were verbally notified of a book-centered conversation, and they instead returned to the previous conversation about the Amnoon business once again.
Julianna clicked her tongue, heading across the room while trying to pull the hood of her robe down in front of her face to hide the obvious lie of her reddened face that was betraying her. Unfortunately for her, it seemed the intimidating undead ruler had become extraordinarily good at knowing exactly how to push all of her buttons. The hairs on the back of her neck rose when she could feel the familiar pair of sunken-in eyes for watching her for the entire trip she made towards the middle of the room. As with her very first experience of walking into the room, she stepped about it like there were live landmines so as to not step upon any of the abandoned shattered remnants of bones littering the floor.
"I found some text you might find beneficial, though I certainly take no interest in this kind of material", the Marshal continued once the other woman had stopped just before her. She held out the text for her to take. Ever since learning that the wayward healer had taken an interest in books since her initial arrival at the Bone Palace, Ekolo had taken it under her own responsibility to bring new literature back whenever an opportunity could present itself. In some sort of sense she almost mothered her because of her own caring instinct, and in return she had grown fond of their little book discussions.
Julianna's eyes immediately brightened with wonder when the books were held out to her, and her hands dropped from her hood while her mouth made a curious-looking 'o' shape. She excitedly reached out and grabbed the book, quickly reading over the title which read 'Guide to the Healing Arts'.
Back in the other group just a few feet away, the three continued with their own conversation though one curious undead king occasionally snuck glances to see what was going on between the two females.
"Utumishi is going along with you on this trip to the Crystal Oasis as well then?" Iberu asked, ignoring the spectacle of the book club discussion happening just to the left of him. There were far more pressing and important matters he knew that needed to be discussed. "I would assume so, considering he usually takes charge if you aren't here."
"Indeed he will be", Joko answered simply while inspecting his hand and picking out pieces of sand lodged in the crevices of his jewelry with pointed fingers. "He's a valuable source when it comes to the discussion of politics and other civil matters. His guidance during this trip will be indubitably helpful."
"And the healer?" Iberu asked with a nod of his head towards her direction, a visible sneer on his face. His initial impression of her had been quite low already, but his first interaction with the person had only dwindled that acquaintanceship to a near-irredeemable state.
"She will also be coming along", the lich answered without much looking to the person across from him. His attention was now entirely directed to preening his attire while listening to the conversation. "Simply put, I'd be terribly bored just going with him."
The adviser huffed, crossing his arms across his chest in a show of displeasure for the obvious jab.
"What if your forces require mending?" the Archon instead asked with a kneaded brow.
"They'll be well-enough off on their own without her at least for a few days", Joko answered, dismissively waving the hand he had just been working on. "Besides, we have other Awakened stationed here as well that can do some increments of healing magic. Unfortunately it'll be lacking in the effectiveness department, but it's not like I have a sizable army waging a war against my front door."
Utumishi finally chimed into the conversation once again, leaving Iberu to skulk out of the room to find some other poor soul to bully. "My King, I don't mean to question your irrefutable greatness with this grand scheme of a plan, but certainly you can't expect to waltz into the city of Amnoon without causing foreseeable issues?" he asked, looking his ruler up and down to the cadaver-like appearance he had. "Myself and the lout will be able to walk the streets no problem, however your face is quite recognizable throughout the lands of Elona."
"Details my balding, little cabbage", the undead ruler replied as he spoke with both his hands as though entertaining a theatrical ensemble. "Although I don't much care for it, Mesmer magic has quite a few advantages we can benefit from. More-so when it comes to the illusion side of hidden appearances to fool the wandering eye."
The adviser nodded slowly while pulling on the end of his dark goatee in thought, gesturing for his king to continue. He had been pulled along on enough questionable adventures to have lasted a lifetime by now, and yet his superior was still finding new ways to broaden that scope.
"On our way there we'll be making a short detour to The Necropolis to speak with High Judge Ejele" the lich explained. "He'll be able to cast an illusion that can hide my physical appearance so I won't be so easily recognized among the common folk. I'll be able to freely waltz around the city and obtain the valuable information that I am looking for without bias."
Utumishi stopped pulling on his face hair and exhaled loudly through his nose, but he nodded once more in understanding. While he wouldn't outwardly admit it, he was looking forward to traveling to the harbor-faring city because it meant he could pick up some expensive imported goods for himself. He made note to look for some expensive incense and fine-smelling soaps that he could selfishly hoard away in his room.
Joko looked back to see his healer still excitedly conversing to his Wurmmarshal about the book she had recently received. Even though she was just a few feet away and he wasn't listening to a single word she was saying, he observed her mouth running about a million miles a minute about something that he himself wouldn't be bothered to care about. Upon looking at the impassive face Ekolo was wearing, it seemed that not even his most patient and understanding Marshal looked like she was comprehending much of anything that came from the freckled womanʼs mouth.
Wurmmarshal Osa Ekolo remained standing there, her bangle covered arms crossed over her chest while obviously attempting to stay engaged with whatever rabble was spouting from the other woman's mouth. Although she appreciated the excitement coming from her peer, the female Awakened also didn't want to appear rude for acting too entirely bored with the dialogue since she didn't currently understand much of the medical world Julianna was going on about. The last she had been able to comprehend was some such thing about a healing ankh.
"Tart, we're departing north for important business in Amnoon and you're coming along in case Utumishi becomes deathly ill or some other such tragedy befalls him" Joko interrupted towards the pair with a loud voice. He watched on idly as the command immediately broke her concentration midway through whatever one-sided topic she was heatedly discussing.
Grand Vizier Utumishi stalked out of the throne room soon after, knowing there was still preparation that needed to be done in order for their trip to make headway anytime soon. He was still daydreaming about what new scented soaps he was going to be looking for during his departure of the macabre-looking fortress.
Julianna turned to watch the person who had interrupted her and was now closely regarding her with a mischievous glance, as the woman nearly forgot he was still in the room with her. Her head turned to the side quizzically as she knew from experience that it was never a good thing when he was wearing a wicked face like that.
"Ekolo had briefly mentioned it during our discussion. But what about my duties here?" she asked, concern showing in her face as she didn't want to so promptly leave untreated patients she had already started working on this morning. There were a couple of Awakened she had just tried a new healing salve on, and she wanted to be able to see by the end of the day if it was actually effective.
The Wurmmarshal answered with a bow before the two could add their weight. "It will be taken care of promptly, rest assured My Most Elegant Highness", she explained. She watched as her King moved to stand just next to the much shorter woman across from her. It was nearly comical with the height difference of the two, as the healer barely came up the middle of the undead ruler's chest.
His leathery hand moved to pat the top of Julianna's platinum bouncy curls in a reassuring manner. "See? Everything will be taken care of most urgently, my wayward doctor. Your dull day-to-day job can see a bit of a break because you'll be getting to hang out with the likes of me. Even more so than you usually do."
The healer filled her cheeks with hot air, holding on tightly to the books still-resting in her bandaged arms, wishing the limbs were free so she could swat away the opposing hand with a well placed smite spell. Just as she was debating dropping the literature a second-time over and following through with her idea, the lich stopped with his petting and promptly turned to leave the room with haste. A cacophony of noise followed after him with the sounds of brittle bones breaking under his feet and the clatter of ornaments from his costume making noise while he moved.
"Let's go. I will not permit those fools in Amnoon to exist any longer without the influence of my own magnificent name", he boasted aloud with a wide outstretch of his tar-stained arms. "But before that, I do need to retrieve some important assets in my office before we venture off."
Julianna watched his retreating back just a few moments more than she should have, and she stubbornly remained rooted to the spot in front of the appointed chairs before deciding it was in her best interest to follow along on the journey down into Bitumen Reserve again. She decided quickly enough through the suggestion that there were probably some personal items of her own that she would be needing to pack and bring along as well.
Joko waited until she was walking up alongside him before continuing with their discussion again. "You know, I think you nearly scared my poor Wurmmarshal with that trifle book talk of yours. And that's coming from an Awakened who willingly spends her time around territorial wurms that could swallow you whole the second you even glance their way."
"Well, that's because I was really excited about one of the books she brought back for me", Julianna explained, her mouth scrunching to the side as she held the object in front of her and looked over the title again. She picked at some random spot that had adhered to the front cover through age and wear. "To be completely honest, I havenʼt seen a title like this since I was living back in Lionʼs Arch."
"Is it a book on how to make you less susceptible to looking like a strawberry at every passing moment?" he asked as an obvious tease, looking down and to the side to watch her reaction.
"No!" she snapped back in a near-squeak. Her head snapped up from the book to quickly look away as her face betrayed her and did exactly what she was just accused of. Words tumbled out of her mouth without much thought of consequence behind them. "Itʼs a book on how to make you smell less bad."
"Oh-ho, but I must digress. Just last night after that wine escapade, you were telling me that you don't really mind it", he retaliated without hesitation while he poked the person's rib cage next to him for further prodding. He was hardly surprised when the action was rewarded with her lightly smacking his outstretched limb with the book she had in her hand.
"Imp gall... I did not!" Julianna replied back quickly while thinking back to the exact string of words she had used. For once, the manipulative lich hadn't actually been lying or twisting her words around. It seemed the liquid courage had inevitably brought that tidbit up a little too confidently in the night prior.
"Such an easily irritable tart you are", Joko chuckled as he continued watching the miffed looking person next to him while they made headway around the fortress. Waiting for the second her guard was down again, he swiped the book of the assaulting womanʼs hand and quickly swapped it to his other in order to keep it out of her reach by holding it up above his head. His own towering height had many advantages, but especially so when it came to torment those that were much shorter than him.
"What? Oh come on, curse you to the Underworld and back, grumpy bag of bones! Give me that book back!" she demanded, the brief stun of having her item pick-pocketed with ease quickly wearing off. She jumped up and tried to grab it back out from his grip, but she was most unsuccessful when he moved his other arm to keep her at bay. A huff of annoyance left her mouth when she realized the impossible task she was faced with.
"Iʼm only curious because you were so enticed by the thing when Wurmmarshal Ekolo brought it to you", he explained with an innocent sounding tone, turning the book back and forth to look at the spine and the cover with imitated interest. "Honestly, the only thing you should get that enthusiastic over, is if it has any relation to me."
Juliannaʼs face nearly deadpanned from the sheer narcissism rolling off the lich King and his abrasive comment. "Very funny...", she mumbled, rolling her eyes so far backwards they may have threatened to stick like there permanently. She continued trying to unsuccessfully reach for her book, though at this point she would have had to get a running jump and more so.
The dark blue eyes of the lich completely ignored the person next to him now and he quickly read the title of the text with obvious disinterest on his weathered face while they continued to walk once more. He read over that it was some medical related nonsense that he could hardly care about, but he knew it obviously held some semblance of importance to the healer given how she had been previously prattling on about it. He clicked his tongue with discontent, deciding to stretch the truth a bit with what he was looking at.
"Oh? I have to say Iʼm quite surprised you would indulge in such literature" he began, stringing together a carefully woven lie. "Aromatics For the Indulgently Curious: Among Other Useful Salves. I was unaware you suddenly had an interest in this, little one. Such pluck, as I have to say that Iʼm quite flattered."
The healer felt her freckled face nearly explode in a blossom of red coloring. She knew it was an obvious lie, but that didn't mean the suggestive comment still had a very real undertone to it. "Clever... but you know, you really are awful because we both know that is definitely not what it says. Now give it back!"
"Thatʼs certainly not how one asks nicely for things", he replied with a smug smile as he continued keeping the book out of reach. He finally stopped walking, pausing in the journey. There was no possible way she could have gotten the piece of literature unless she managed to knock him down, which was highly unlikely. And although he was aware she had a couple of smite knockdown spells, he would never let her finish off the incarnation before she even finished casting it.
"Please give me my book back", she answered while crossing her arms across her chest. Her hands remained hidden underneath them, her fingers balling into fists at her sides while nails dug into her palms from sheer frustration at this debacle. Situations like this were just further evidence of how insufferable the Scourge of Elona could truly be.
Joko waited, the lecherous smile never leaving his face as he addressed the very irritated-looking person in front of him. Getting his favorite toy this obviously annoyed, especially towards him, was a goal he never grew tired of.
Because it was all too easy of a goal to achieve.
Julianna remained stuck to the spot after his lack of response, sighing loudly through her nose as she knew he was going to drag this out for as long as he possibly could. She was incredibly well aware of exactly what he was doing, and although she would have stubbornly tried to wait it out, her patience was lacking this time around.
"How about this then? Pretty please, with a scoop of prickly pear sorbet on top?" she grumbled, sounding incredibly unenthusiastic for having to jump through these verbal hoops just to get her borrowed book back.
The lich hummed aloud and tapped a finger to his chin, as though judging the answer he was given. "A little more panache would be appreciated. But Iʼm sure you can make it up another way."
"You mean by not throwing a smite spell at your face right now?" she retorted, the words rolling out of her mouth before she could give them much thought. Joking aside, she was aware she was still talking to a being that had proven time and time again to be incredibly unpredictable. And there was a side that she occasionally saw which still enticed fear to rise up from her suppressed emotions she tried to keep down.
"Preferably something else. Though I do appreciate the direction of things moving on the sweeter side of things, as you already suggested", Joko said, holding out the book for the woman to take now.
"Am I allowed to ask for some time to think it over before I make a decision on it?", she answered, grabbing the book a little too quickly as she hugged it towards her chest. She frowned, the red coloring of her face still not entirely disappearing while watching to see if he would try and take it from her again, but she relaxed when she could see it was no longer on his agenda.
"My dear, you canʼt give that answer for everything" he replied, shaking his head at the response before walking off once more towards the direction of their current destination.
"Maybe, but I always come through with an answer, don't I?" she said with a raised brow, looking down to her right palm for a brief moment to see a dark line of a mark staining her skin. The line moved from the tip of her middle finger and down her palm before disappearing to her wrist which was wrapped in bandages.
