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Alicia P.O.V. "Chambers of the chief healer of the royal hospital of Feoh"
"Is there anything more you can tell us?"
The Royal healer looked up from his work, his wrikled face twisted in curiosity.
"He's dead your grace. I don't know what else I can tell you."
Alicia bit back a sharp retort. Patience, I must have patience. "Well, perhaps you could start by telling us how he died?"
The look of puzzlement became one of slight exasperation, "He fell a great height, your grace. His skull and back are broken in several places," the old man, who had held his position since the time of Alicia's grandfather pointed at what was left of the recently deceased man's head that was now nothing more than a ruin of blood, bone and dark hair, "The cause of death would seem to be obvious."
Alicia sighed to herself, trying to rein in her temper as best as she could. Since her arrival back in Feoh Alicia had felt bombarded with near endless problems within the city. Due to her father's recent illness, as well as Alicia's own responsibilities overseeing their armies in Ken, the responsibility of ruling over Feoh as well as its surrounding territories has rested solely on the shoulder of the king's council as well as the prime minister, Lord Beasly.
Their abilities seemed to be lacking as it were, as problems that had gone either unnoticed or unaddressed for weeks if not months were allowed to fester to the point of nearly crippling the city.
Due to the increased number of the cities inhabitants since the war started, the city guard was stretched to its absolute limits, many of them working several shifts in a row without rest in order to make up for their lack of manpower. The cities defenses were woefully underfunded, with entire sections of walls left wide open to attack.
Beasly claims the royal coffers are empty from the relief efforts for the number of refugees entering the city, yet he still sees fit to parade around the council chambers in his finest silks and jewels.
She pushed the problems of the outside world out of her mind for now, for how many problems the city faced, and because of the men put in charge of it there were many, they wouldn't mean anything if there truly were those who wished to destroy it from the inside.
The man in front of her, laying on a slab, as cold and unmoving as any corpse she had ever seen was only the latest link in the chain she had unearthed. The young man, Gerald Dayne, was a scout in the 12th brigade stationed near the northern front, and one of only three men who had been tasked with delivering the false messages from the front lines to Feoh and Ken regarding enemy troop movement.
And now the last of those same three men to be found dead within as many days.
The soft sounding of metal armor along with the padding of approaching feet came from the corner of the room. "I'm sure Princess Alicia is grateful for your…penetrating…insight Sir," Vera uttered softly, "But I believe we would be grateful for more information. Anything you could tell us could prove invaluable."
Alicia nodded gratefully to Vera, her right-hand woman. Her headache was becoming worse. Much worse. And if the day was going to continue as such, there would be no relief in sight.
The man sniffed and he stepped away from the examination table. He turned his back on the two of them and plunged his hands into a bowl of water, washing the blood and brains from the limbs.
"The fall is definitely the reason for the boy's demise," the old healer offered as he spoke over his shoulder. "There is no other injury to the body. No stab wounds or the like." The heavyset man stopped cleaning his hands and paused to dry them on a cloth set next to the bowl. As he wiped his hands he turned towards them, "Indeed, aside from the injuries caused by the fall there are no signs of violence on the body whatsoever."
At last, we're getting somewhere. "So, he did fall?"
The old man smiled, showing a rather lackluster amount of teeth. He scratched at an itch that seemed to be plaguing his nose. "Oh, he definitely fell your grace. Regrettably, I can't say what happened before he took his unfortunate plunge. I can tell you there are no lacerations or abrasions on the body save those that can be explained away by the fall itself."
Alicia glanced towards the body on the table, "So there was no struggle, it is unlikely that foul play was involved?
The healer eyed her shrewdly, "The boy was more than a little drunk at the time of the fall. Nor was he a particularly big or strong man. I doubt he could have put up a struggle, even if he had wanted to."
The non-answer caught Alicia by surprise. Despite the man's terse way of conversation, he seemed quite hesitant to refer to this death as accidental. The princess knight, however, nodded gloomily. Despite the oddity of the situation, she still held no proof of foul play. And while the concept of a conspiracy within her city had gained more and more validity with her by the day, even she had to admit there was no indisputable evidence to support it.
The man in front of her, fell to his death after a night of drinking – no witnesses
Another man burned to death when his home caught fire in the middle of the night as he slept- no witnesses
The last had his skull smashed in from a loose piece of stone falling from the city wall- no witnesses
All happening within a day of one another, all ruled accidental, and all having no witnesses to the actual event as it took place. Alicia had to agree with Vera's earlier sentiments, "Something smelled rotten in the state of Feoh, indeed."
"Have the body turned over to the church for burial," Alicia ordered as she turned away from the corpse.
"As your grace commands," The man said, examining her in much the same manner as he had the young scout's body mere moments before, "It will be done within the hour." He rang a bell for some servants to carry out the body. As the corpse was taken away, the old man addressed her once again, "If that is all your grace, may I be excused? The prime minister has asked me to oversee the injuries of members of his personal house guard."
Alicia paused for a moment. How on earth did members of Lord Beasly's private guard become injured to the point where they need the royal doctor to oversee them personally?
While many of the cities Nobel families volunteered to supplement the dwindling numbers of the city guards with their own men, Beasley was not among them. Quite the opposite in fact, as he had used the vast fortune at his disposal to increase the number of men under his employ. Now he seemed to have more protection surrounding himself then the king himself, which was quite odd Alicia thought, for the man never seemed to leave his palatial estate for anything less than a council meeting or by order of the king himself.
"Nothing too serious I hope," Alicia said, her tone even despite the questions whirling in her head.
"A few broken bones and some internal bleedings, nothing life threatening I'm sure." The old man said, packing several instruments into a large medical bag, "It seems a drunken brawl had broken out the previous night, things like this seem to happen when alcohol and men are together."
Alicia nodded in affirmation, but thoughts seemed to linger. Perhaps she was simply being paranoid over the recent events, she had been working hard these past few days trying to fix the many problems of the city let alone her unofficial investigation, her lack of rest may be affecting her judgment. But then again, there is no such thing as coincidence in war. Or so her father said
She thanked the healer for his service and then walked from his chambers. Vera walked silently with her, Her pace brisk and her face an unreadable mask. But Alicia had known the woman long enough to know what was on her mind.
"Well, this certainly doesn't look suspicious at all." The veteran knight said, sarcasm dripping off every word she spoke. Vera could be as blunt as a war hammer when she needed to be, which did not ingratiate herself with many in the ruling factions of the city.
"We have no evidence to assume treachery," Alicia said, not quick believing her own words.
"You don't need evidence to see something smells like a rat."
Alicia couldn't disagree with her friend. The situation in the capital was going from bad to worse and this latest development was only going to add to the veritable plague of problems. It was made worse by the fact that, as of yet, she had no plan to resolve the numerous issues that dogged her.
Maia POV "Severals miles east of Ken"
The spring night was hot and humid, enough so to make Maia dread what was to come when the summer months finally arrived.
Calypso, one of her most senior commanders and trusted friend, offered her another sip of her wine skin to quench her thirst, but Maia declined having already drunk her fill of wine for one night. She seemed to be alone in that fact, as those of her mercenary company not currently selected for guard duty have decided to celebrate their return to Ken by drinking whatever excess wine and ale they had left from their travels.
They were less than half a day away from the gates of the imperial city, and instead of traveling through the night, the members of the Erinye company opted to spend their last night on the road drinking, eating, and resting. Which suited Maia just fine. Marching throughout the night, was not something she particularly enjoyed doing on the best of days, but doing so all the while babysitting a horde of imprisoned violent man-children? No thank you.
Maia felt a chill crawl up her spine when she thought of the men only a dozen or so yards away from her, men who she once had called both comrades and even friends at one point in time.
Seems like yesterday I marched side by side with some of these men into battle.
Her mind wandered to her days in the kuroinu, where her only in concern in life was the thrill of battle and the feel of coin in her pocket. Back when she held allegiance to no one except her brothers in arms...and Vault...
"Keep the party going ladies," Maia said abruptly, standing up and walking away from the fire pit, "Nature calls, I'll be back soon."
The humid air made sitting by the fire unbearable, and her train of thought made being around so many people uncomfortable so she decided to try and tire herself out with a walk along the campsite but for not the first time she felt her mind wander back to the issue at hand.
Her terrible love life.
Like many women in her line of work, she was not averse to taking the company of a member of the opposite sex to her bed for the night. When one wasn't sure if they were going to live another 50 years or die the next day from a well-placed sword strike, they tended to try and experience as much of life as they could as quickly as they could.
But no matter what nameless man she took to her bed, there was always one man who until recently held her heart.
Vault
She felt the need to shower at the admission, but it was true. For years she had held a special place in her heart for her former commander and secretly hoped that one day that they would be more than comrades. But like so many things in her life, it was not yet to be.
When news of Vaults betrayal reached her ears, she couldn't believe it. The man who she looked up to, the man who saved her life from certain death, the man who she would have followed to the gates of hell and back, how could he be the monster these stories portrayed him to be?
She had never been so wrong.
As the war went on, and the death toll increased, and as more and more innocent people's lives were forever altered and ruined by Vault selfishness and cruelty, the more Maia realized that Vault wasn't as bad as the monsters he once fought. He was worse.
You think you know a guy then BOOM! It turns out he's a psychotic rapist...figures
Maia figured she had learned her lesson about trusting men to act like decent human beings and not like animals in heat at the sight of an attractive woman when once again she let her loins make a decision before consulting her head.
Not like anyone would blame me though.
Steve Rogers, was a man unlike any she had met before. The rumors surrounding him interested her, just because of how outlandish they were. Even though she put little stock in those rumors she had to admit the more and more she saw of him, the more and more she liked about him.
and she was sure the feeling was mutual.
Maia was a woman of many qualities- one of finest blades in the country, personal friend to the Goddess reborn, Princess knight of the seven-shield alliance, - but foolish was never something she described herself as being. She could tell he looked at her, despite how polite he acted around her. Anyone with working eyes could tell the man was not immune to her considerable charm.
But he wasn't falling over himself, which she had come to expect when dealing with men.A man who could think with the head on his shoulders and not the one tucked in those well-fitted pants of his was a big plus in her book. The fact that he wore such "Well Fitted" pants was also a "BIG" plus in her book, and in the book of every member of her traveling party if the drunken gossip she heard was any indication.
But...
Maia sighed to herself, knowing full well she was doing the same thing she once did with Vault. She hardly knew Rogers, only speaking with him a handfull of times over the course of the past few days. And here she was already thinking the man could walk on water just because he was nice to her and didn't treat her like a piece of meat.
Goddess, am I pathetic...
The sounds of the jeering and laughter of the camp died down the more she walked until finally, Maia found herself near the outskirts of their camp. Three large metal cages filled with the unwashed masses meet her vision as patrols of guards kept watch on their occupants.
She walked along the metal cages, ignoring the mass of criminals leering at her body as she moved, evidently making her appreciate the gentlemanly ways of Sir Rogers more and more by the second.
Like waving a piece of mutton in front of a kennel of dogs.
She stopped in front of the largest of the cages, nodding towards the lone guard standing between her and the cages lone occupant. The woman nodded back and stepped away from her station, giving Maia and her "old friend" the most privacy the man had had these past few days.
The man in front of her was different from his comrades, someone who deserved "special treatment" in regards to his imprisonment. Maia had the desire to speak to the man when she should have been with her own mercenaries drinking and joking the spring night away.
"All, hail, the Mercenary Queen!" Hicks called out, resting against the pole he was chained to inside the large metal cage. It was bigger than most houses many peasants could afford, and as imposing as a she-bear in heat, with thick metal bars forged from the thickest castle-forged steel she could get her hands on. Maia didn't want to allow Hicks a chance to get anywhere near the bars of his cage and attempt to snatch something that could help him escape. The man was dangerous, but more importantly, he was desperate, even without a sword in his hand, he could prove a danger to anyone who would get between him and his freedom.
Which was why she had at least three guards keep watch on him at all times of the day, armed with bows and arrows, ready to end the man should they have an inkling he was trying to escape. Even now Maia could feel the eyes of the best markswomen in her company follow her as she walked closer and closer to the steel cage that contained her former friend.
"That really is a stupid title you do know that right?" The man laughed to himself as she came closer, already amused with himself, "I mean are you the Queen of all the mercenaries? Do I have to obey you? Or is this all some sad way of trying to get Vault to pay attention to you?"
He looked straight at her, the same smug look on his face he wore whenever he thought himself clever, which now that Maia thought about was much to many times for a man like him.
"To be fair, it is better than your nickname," Maia countered, standing near the door to the cage." What was it we used to call you on the front lines again?"
The easy smirk and light tone in his voice vanished in an instant, so quickly it would have given Maia whiplash if she hadn't been used to the man's sudden mood swings. His teeth were bared in a growl and his eyes, once filled with contempt and belittlement, now held a dangerous glint in them. Maia held a ponderous look on her face, pretending to put effort into trying to remember her old comrade's childhood nickname, the same nickname that followed him all the way up to his first years in the Kuroinu.
"Don't you fucking dare..." Hicks growled, his voice once filled with mirth only a moment prior had morphed into something else entirely. His brow frowned, and his eyes set firm and hard, he looked more akin to an animal ready to tear its prey to pieces than a man she had known for half of her life.
Maia scoffed. Hicks had always been so sensitive when it came to how others viewed him. He wore his reputation as an easy-going rouge like it was armor, protecting his ego from any who hoped to harm him. But Maia knew better, she knew just how fragile and insecure Hicks really was and she knew just how to get under his skin in ways no one else in the world knew.
"I almost have it, it's on the tip of my tongue..." Her inquisitive look froze for a moment before morphing into a cat-like smirk." That's right now I remember, we used to call you.."
"YOU SAY THOSE WORDS AND I"LL MAKE YOU REGRET IT, YOU DUMB WHORE!" Hicks reacted just the way Maia expected he would, blindly and angrily. So blind in his anger he didn't seem to notice the sound of the groaning of bowstrings by those prepared to lose a barrage of arrows at his prone figure.
Wouldn't be the first time, he got bit in the ass for saying something stupid to the wrong person
"My, oh my", her voice sounding scandalous as she covered her mouth in mock shock at the outburst." You've certainly expanded your vocabulary since Sir Rogers left us."
Hicks flinched.
The hard look on his face faltered for a moment before crumbling into a mask of dejection. Pure, and utter humiliation.
It had become a bit of a joke between members of her party since they had met the man who had haunted Maia thoughts these past few nights. Whenever a prisoner acted out, whenever they made threats against their person or made crude remarks towards them, all that was needed to silence them was to mention the shield-wielding warrior.
From as loud as a battlefield to as quiet as a cemetery in a blink of an eye.
Hicks was no exception. The very mention of the blonde-haired Adonis was enough to wipe the smirk off his face and send a shiver up his spine in a way that reminded Maia of child worried about monsters under their beds.
"Now why did you have to go and say something like that," Hicks said, recovering slightly, "We were having such a good time without you bringing up another man."
"And here I thought you'd be used to having women think about other men when they're with you," Maia said with an even tone.
"You certainly talk big when you have me chained like a common criminal, you wouldn't be this lippy if I had a blade in my hand."
"Let's find out, shall we?" She said, as she entered the cage and cut the distance between the two of them. She knelt down and pulled out a knife, savoring the flash of fear in hick's eyes before she cut the rope around Hicks' hands, leaving only the heavy iron bindings covering his limbs attaching him to the middle of the cage.
"Here I am, a woman getting lippy with you," She tossed a key towards his feet, just close enough for him to reach. "Let's see what you're going to do about it."
Despite himself, Hicks didn't move, just staring at the small piece of metal like it was about to grow legs and walk away any second.
"...You have someone waiting out there to shoot me the second I make a move don't you." Hicks said, eyeing his former comrade with his recently returned smirk, before kicking the key away. "Sorry to disappoint you, your majesty, but I don't plan to die from an arrow to the gut because of a botched escape."
Maia sighed to herself, disappointed but not surprised. Hicks had always seemed to find ways to get out of fights he knew he couldn't win. Talking his way out of problems through sheer will and excessive posturing was a defining feature of the man's life at this point.
"Guess I can't get the wool over your eyes huh," Maia said, her tone brisk as she walked around him, silently taunting him while she did.
"You never could," Hicks said, not even bothering to follow her movements as she walked behind him. "I could always read you like a book."
Maia stopped her pacing and stared down at the Kuroinu lieutenant, her face a mask of annoyance and displeasure at her former friend's words.
"You don't believe me, do you? "he almost laughed, his original swagger and cockiness back in his tone as he leaned forward as much as he could. "I'm surprised you think that. You and I are very much alike, you just don't want to admit it."
Maia could feel bile rise in her throat but managed to school her features with some effort.
Hicks smiled but she could tell he wasn't pleased with her reaction. He wanted her to snap at him in anger, he always used to get a kick out of getting her flustered and emotional. Despite everything she could say about him, in some ways he was still the same piece of shit he always was.
Maia schooled her features, allowing the insult to wash over her like a light spring rain. Her less then vocal reaction doing more to annoy Hicks then any quick witted responce she could have made. He'd failed to get a rise out of Maia and get her rattled like he did back when they were children, and once again fell back on what he was truly best at doing. Being a complete ass to those be couldn't outright bring harm to.
"Maybe you're right" He started, his voice returning to the light joking tone he usually held," You are way too naive about how the world works to be like me. Besides, say what you will about me, but at least I have the courtesy not to follow someone around like a lost puppy in hopes that they would give me a pity fuck."
Maia fought the urge to smirk. She should have seen it coming, it was such an easy thing for a man like hicks to say about her. And if Hicks had used that same insult before this war had started it would have cut her deep. Her feelings for Vault were an open secret it seemed during her time under his command, even she could admit that much.
But that was a long time ago, and despite the hero worship she once held for the man, he had shown himself to be the monster he truly was. And despite what she may have felt for the man, the things he had done and the things done in his name were too much for her to forgive.
"Sorry to break it to you, Hicks," She said with a wide smile on her face. "But that's all in the past. Its right next to the respect I used to have for you and the obsession with unicorns I had when I was six."
"Keep telling yourself that Maia," Hicks said, trying desperately to get the last word in before Maia walked away. "Maybe if you ask nicely Vault will make you one of his personal whores when this is all over."
Maia chuckled, a sound which confused Hicks more than any single statement could. she took back the key to the iron bindings and pocketed it before walking out of the cage and locking the door once, making a mental note to tell the guards when they redo the man's bindings to make them tighter.
He looks too comfortable for my tastes.
"You know, maybe if you ask nicely, the queen will let you survive long enough to see the end of this war," Maia spoke, the sound of the metal lock echoing across the dark night. " And when you see Vault on all fours, begging for mercy for his crimes, you'll know the full weight of all the stupid shit you've ever done in your life before I snuff it out myself."
She turned on her heels and walked away, Hicks unable to get a word out as she walked away. Maia smiled to herself, content with knowing she was one of the few people alive to ever leave Hicks completely speechless.
Steve P.O.V. "Royal gardens"
Steve couldn't quite wipe the smile off his face as the young girl in front of him continued to speak to great length about one of the many breeds of exotic flowers that filled one of the castles many gardens.
"and this is called a blue Iris." The brightly colored girl spoke, her voice as soft and energetic as the calls of a songbird. " It was my aunt's favorite flower! my uncle filled the entire garden with these flowers all in bloom when he asked for her hand in marriage. Isn't it romantic Sir Rogers?"
Steve laughed slightly at the girl's enthusiasm. She had guided him throughout the grounds for the better part of the past hour, and she showed no signs of slowing down, as there didn't seem to be enough hours in the day for the girl to properly explain the ins and outs of each and every piece of foliage she could find.
And she seemed so shy the first time we met.
"Like something out of a fairy tale," Steve said, as continued to allow the much smaller girl to drag him around the outside garden. So here he found himself, a super soldier, who had waged war against monsters and gods, being manhandled by a young princess half his size. Natasha was right, he was too nice for his own good.
Like she had any room to talk. He'd seen the literal room of Christmas presents Clint's kids got from their "Auntie Nat"
But Prim was a sweet girl, so Steve didn't mind that much; she was the type of person Steve always imagined his younger sister could have been if she had not died from a fever so young.
She had been shy the first time they met, using her protective older cousin as a protective barrier between her and him, a position Alicia had taken with much enthusiasm. But like so many before her, her curiosity seemed to get the best of her shyness, and she approached him one day and politely ask him to join her for tea.
Steve was never a fan of tea, much more of a black coffee type of guy, much to the utter disgust of Natasha and Wanda and their iced caramel lattes, but he also wasn't the type of person who would deny such a request, and gracefully excepted her invitation.
This must have pleased the young princess immensely, for she had taken it upon herself to join Steve nearly every day since then in one way or another.
Whether it be afternoon tea alongside Prima and several of her handmaidens, to escorting her on a visit towards one of the cities many churches, to even just following him around the library as he searched through the countless tomes in hopes of finding just how he got here and how he may be able to get back to earth, she always seemed to find herself in his presence eventually.
"Where's the tesseract when you really need it?"
Prim was a kind soul, who when not organizing food drives for the number of refugees in the city or visiting one of the many healing camps throughout the city, had taken it upon herself to educate him "when interacting with a young lady". He could hear Tony's voice in the back of his head, choking on uncontrollable fits of laughter
They continued to walk along the many flowers and statues that littered the garden, the sound of their footsteps and the songs of birds the only things interrupting the pink haired princesses attempts to share her considerable knowledge to him.
That was until his sense of hearing told him they were being followed.
The sound of faint footsteps echoed all around him, the slight clinking of armor followed in-between each footstep. Steve paused misstep, the sudden stop of his frame was enough to almost cause the smaller woman guiding him to almost fall over by the suddenness.
Four figures, all of them familiar to the two stepped into view. The look in their eyes telling Steve Exactly why they were there and what they were planning to do. Miranda, with her deep brown curls fingered a battle axe, Rebecca, a tall woman with the strangest shade of blue hair Steve had ever seen unsheathed a long sword, Ariel, the only one of the four women who wore a helmet twirled a dagger in her left hand while the forth, a woman by the name of cheryl, with long black hair reaching down to her hips raised a rapier to her face.
Steve smiled to himself at the sight, only four of them? And here he had thought they had learned their lesson after all this time.
"Don't tell me. Are we doing this a again?" His voice seemed to sap a good portion of the four women's outer strength. They didn't look as confident as they did when they first appeared. Ariel almost dropping her dagger to the ground and looking much younger than her 21 years would imply. Rebecca, despite herself, took a step back, only to regain her composure a second later.
"But we were just going to go see the mountain lilies." Prim spoke, her voice reminding Steve of Tony whenever Pepper wouldn't let him doing something particularly dumb, which was a tone he used quite often now that Steve thought about it. Steve shot her an apologetic look, which he thanked was enough to wipe the disappointed look off her face.
"Not to worry princess." The woman in the lead, Cheryl, spoke to the young pink haired woman. "This won't take too long."
"Well, that certainly doesn't sound..." Steve said before Ariel cut him off, thrusting her thin blade forward in hopes of penetrating the blue armor of Steves' chest. It would have worked too... if it was against a normal person. But to Steve, it seemed the swordswoman was running towards him in quick drying cement. He met her before she could take her second step, his large hand gripping the woman's wrist and pulling her towards him, throwing her into a nearby flower bush.
"...ominous." Steve finished.
Miranda only took a moment to shack her head at Ariel's lackluster performance, before she prepared to swing her battle ax towards Steve. But before she could so much as twitch a muscle, she found herself on her back staring up at the concerned face of Prim, her head ringing from the lightning fast hip toss Steve had performed on her.
"It was a good effort Lady Miranda, but perhaps you could try a faster weapon next time?" Prim said, looking down at the lady knights face, all while Steve lightly hit the grip of Ariel's own sword against the back of her head, knocking her down once again when she tried to rejoin the fight.
Another thud hit the ground as Rebecca's body landed right next to Miranda, her long sword disarmed from her hands and indented into the ground like it was its sheath. "By the goddess" Rebecca moaned, rubbing her head slightly on the ground, her hazel eyes widening slightly as Steve continued to hold Chyels arms against her back as she struggled in vain to break free." I really thought that was going to work!"
Steve chuckled to himself as Chyels jerks and spasms quickly died down, and she gave up the impossible fight of breaking Steve's iron like grip.
"What a bloody waste of time." Miranda huffed as she dragged herself to her still shaky feet. Using Rebecca's ground sheathed long sword to keep her body upright.
"You four lasted longer than the last group," Steve said, lifting Rebecca up off the ground as easily as a parent does to a child," That's got to mean something."
But before the conversation could move further, the man and women found themselves interrupted by the introduction of two newcomers into the garden.
"What is the meaning of this?" Alicia said, her voice reminding Steve of the drill instructor he had during basic training, glaring daggers at him and her subordinates. The knights, who seemed to have the decency to look embarrassed and apologetic didn't meet Alicia's stare, clearly finding the cobblestone ground far more interesting than facing the brunt of the princess knight of Iris's anger.
Funny, because I think we all know who's really getting the brunt of that...
"You." Alicia said, striding towards Steve like a woman on a mission," What is the meaning of this blatant assault on knights of Feoh!"
Steve looked around him, finding the faces of every one of the women seemed to be on him, waiting to see what he would do about the verbal assault on his character.
Don't want to disappoint them, do I?
"This?" He said pointing towards the still bruised and limping soldiers behind him," Just a little training in team building. I might have taken things a bit far."
The woman accompanying Alicia remained stoic, but her eyes shone barley contained merriment at the sight. While little prima was not so lucky, as the corners of her lips curled upwards, only to fake a light cough to cover the sound of laughter. Alicia's stern look only seemed to intensify but softened at the sound of Prima's light giggle. She seemed to be in control of herself by the time she spoke again, but Steve could still tell something was bothering her, and it wasn't just him.
"I don't appreciate you assaulting my knights," Alicia said, cutting off the distance between her and Steve with a few long strides "You are a guest here Rogers, and I expect you to treat my hospitality with the respect it deserves."
"It's not his fault, " the woman Rebecca said, nursing her bruised side and her bruised ego." It was just a friendly spar, milady."
"Yes," Chyel said, holding up the still woozy figure of Ariel against her shoulder. "We just wanted to see if the stories about him were true!"
A light moan of discomfort was the only answer Ariel gave, but the tone of the sounds made it clear she agreed with her comrades.
Alicia sighed, rubbing her temples to try and sooth whatever headache was threatening to overtake her. Before again she looked towards her cousin. The two were close, immensely close, Steve started to realize, reminding him of how he and Bucky acted around each other when they were younger. Prima slight smile seemed to convince Alicia as the subject was soon dropped.
"Returned to your duties," she barked, towards the four, still limping, knights. "And if I catch you attempting such foolishness again, it will be latrine duty for the entire castle for a month."
The four women saluted, before quickly vanishing out of the princess's sight, hoping to escape her wrath. Alicia turned her glare to Prim, who, Steve was happy to say did not falter from facing the older woman's stern look.
With the number of bodies effectively cut in half, the princess knight turned to the two of them once again. Prim, bless her heart stood up as tall as she could and held her cousins gaze for much longer then even she thought she could.
"Vera," the blonde said directed towards her companion, "I think it's time for Prim to report to her tutors for her afternoon lessons."
"But Alicia...," the small pinkette said, her small voice breaking slightly from the volume.
"Prim..." Alicia said, her once stern voice getting softer the more she looked at the young pink haired girl in front of her, before she steeled herself once more," You cannot waste the entire day wandering around the garden, your studies are important."
Whatever protest Prima was going to give died in her throat when Steve looked towards her. Steve knew Alicia wasn't his biggest fan, and that Prima was just trying to protect him from her cousin's wrath, but even Steve could see the validity of Alicia's words.
"It's okay Prim, you can go on to your studies." Steve said looking between her and Alicia." Your cousin and I have some things we need to talk about."
"But Sir Steven..."
"Don't give me that look," Steve said, seeing the utter disappointment on the pink haired girls face. "I'll tell you what, if you promise to go to your tutors, I'll take you out riding outside the city gates tomorrow."
"Do you promise!" She said, her face instantly brightening at the prospect of riding one of her prized horses once more. Alicia had made it clear that Prima would not be allowed to travel beyond the city gates without "proper supervision", and that meant being accompanied her Alicia herself. But with the workload placed on her shoulders since the war started, Alicia was far too busy, which meant Prim had little time to practice one of her favorite past times.
Steve looked towards Alicia, seeing her hesitant nod in agreement, it wouldn't do him any good to go over Alicia's head in regards to a member of her own family. But thankfully it seemed Alicia's love for Prima overrode her dislike of him.
"Cross my heart and hope to die," Steve said, running his index finger across his chest just as he used to do as a child. It seemed he said the magic words, as Prima obeyed her cousins request without further complaint, curtsying before departing with Vera following shortly after, a small smile plastered on her face as she walked.
Leaving Steve alone with the Princess Knight of Isis herself.
The two of them were silent for a moment, almost sizing one another up, and waiting for the other to speak first. Steve decided the silence was awkward enough without him helping, so he swallowed his pride and broke the silence.
"I'm guessing its bad news," Steve said. Alicia stiffened slightly but quickly relaxed. But Steve could read the tension in the young woman as easy as a penny novel.
She had spent the past few days going through whatever line of inquiry she could find in regards to potential traitors in the city, and from the displeased look on her face, Steve could see she didn't like what she had found.
She had kept many of her findings close to her chest, not trusting people with whatever evidence she found or even her suspicions of something wrong. The fact that she was coming to him, meant one thing.
The young knight turned towards him, her eyes serious but overflowing with an emotion Steve couldn't put his finger on.
"We have much to discuss."
Thanks for all the good wishes from the reviewers, its does my cold black loveless heart good knowing people are taking enjoyment out of this, if i were honest with myself, a "C+" at best piece of literature.
To answer some questions possed by some reviewers. No, none of the other Avengers will appear in this story. What I might do is make a side story or a one shot where other avengers show up in other hentais (Thor in angel blade, spiderman in Bible Black, etc...)but thats about it. that doesn't mean other Marvel charcters won'y appear later on, but they won't effect the story.
In regards to pairings, i'm alittle hesitant in making this a harem Fic. They can be fun and all to read, and lets be honest, a dude who looks like Chris Evans with super human abiliities, can have as many women as he wants. I don't think Steve is the type of guy to openly flirt and romance multiple women at once, but maybe i'll change my mind later as the story progresses.
Also, to the dude sending me PM's about how bad of a writer I am, you're not telling me anything i didn't know already. But hey, you do you.
Please Review. Please Favorite.