King Rampossa woke up feeling absolutely terrible, it felt worse than when he woke up after being shot by a crossbow bolt in his younger days. He struggled to raise himself but he found someone was resting on his hand. He looked down to see his daughter Renner sleeping by his bedside. She looked haggard, her hair was a mess, her clothes were crumpled and there were dark circles under her eyes. He remembered losing his temper in the throne room, then a sharp pain in his chest then… nothing. He must have been healed by the priests, judging by his fatigue now it must have been serious. He looked to the corner of the room and he saw Climb standing guard but… he was asleep. He was probably the only person king Rampossa had ever seen that could fall asleep standing up in full plate armor. Idly Rampossa mused that if he had 100 000 soldiers like Climb he could conquer the world. He looked back down to his left and withdrew his hand from Renner's grip and he began to gently stroke her head. He hated what he was about to do, he was going to name her heir but… he knew what that would mean. Her life was going to be much harder from now on, he planned to make an official proclamation today. After last night's events he was not prepared to roll the dice again and die without naming an heir. As he stroked her hair Renner began to stir...
"Father you are awake." Renner said happily
"Yes, what happened yesterday?" Rampossa asked
"Oh well… you fainted after shouting at Marquis Buollop, you were coughing blood and had trouble breathing…" Renner said softly
"Well seeing as I am here alive I should give my compliments to the head physician and the priests." Rampossa said
At that moment there was a knock at the door and Climb jumped awake armor rattling.
"Uh ummm, *sniff*, Oh no.. I"m sorry your grace I…" Climb stuttered face beet red from embarrassment
"It's fine Climb. Help me see who's at the door." Rampossa said kindly
"He's a good soldier." Rampossa said to Renner as Climb exited the room
"Yes he is very serious about his duties." Renner said with a sigh
"How is he normally I've never seen him when he's not on duty." Rampossa said
"He is… always on duty… he says he doesn't like breaks… all he does is eat, sleep, guard and train." Renner said
"A most dutiful young man." Rampossa said
"Abit too dutiful… he seems serious all the time but he can be quite… sweet." Renner said
"Sweet?" Rampossa said left eyebrows arched a small smile on his face
"Father it's not like that…" Renner said flushing scarlet
"Hahaha whatever you say dear." Rampossa said with mirth in his voice
"Your grace it's the head physician and the head priest from the water temple." Climb said opening the door
"Send them in." Rampossa said
"Your grace, my lady." the head physician greeted as he entered the room
"It appears I have you to thank for saving me yesterday." Rampossa said
"It wasn't the physicians or the priest who save you yesterday. It was Maeve dono the little blond girl." Renner said
"Yes she used some strange methods, some would even call them barbaric…" the priest said
"But it worked." Renner said in a clipped tone
"Yes it did my lady but a simple healing spell would have sufficed." said the priest
"She did cast a healing spell at the end, I believe she had her reasons for what she did. I propose we consult her and see what she has to say" Renner said
"Princess Renner I don't understand why you put such trust in a child you met yesterday, we are the foremost practitioners in our field." the head physician said
"Yes you are… and for three years I watched my father slowly die under the care of those foremost in their field." Renner said
"My lady we merely practice what the gods teach us in the sacred texts, they teach us all there is to know about healing. Anything not within the sacred texts are not worth knowing." the priest said
"Well I think learning how to better save lives is a worthy endeavour, even if the knowledge is not within the sacred texts." Renner said calmly
"Are you questioning the gods?" the priest asked coldly
"No I am trying to save my father, trying to save your king." Renner shot back
"I would like to hear what the Maeve dono has to say and I also still need to thank her for saving my life." Rampossa said trying to diffuse the tension that was building
At those words the stare down that was happening between Renner and the priest started to cool. They both turned to Rampossa and bowed.
"Now then Climb please request that Maeve dono join us here." Rampossa said
Renner watched as Climb opened the door and in strode Maeve and Momon. Both of them appeared to be dressed differently. Maeve had shed her overcoat and now wore what appeared to be a well tailored black garb reminiscent of some of the formal attire of the Argland Council State. It had its differences of course, it was much better made and also had multiple insignias and it also had metal chains hanging off the front of the shirt and connecting to the back. Momon was dressed similarly wearing an extremely similar apparel but with less decorations. Now with his helmet off he saw that there was quite the resemblance between the two siblings although Momon had raven black hair and eyes the colour of coal as compared to Maeve's blonde hair and heterochromic eyes.
As they entered Renner noticed that the priest was giving the siblings dirty looks as if their very presence was an insult. Inwardly Renner sighed, these priests with their fanatical beliefs often find themselves damning the very people they swore to protect.
"Good morning your grace, lords and ladies." Maeve greeted with a bow
"I am feeling better, although still a bit weak. I believe I have you to thank for saving my life." Rampossa said
"It was nothing your grace, you were very lucky last night. A few seconds more and you might have sustained brain damage." Maeve said grimly
"Which is exactly why we should have used a healing spell from the start." said the priest
"If you had just used a healing spell the king would have still died." Maeve said cooly
"What nonsense are you spouting, healing magic is the work of the gods surely in can stem the bleeding of some internal injuries." the priest scoffed
"Well yes it would stop the bleeding but what were you going to do about the blood?" Maeve asked
"Blood?" the priest asked
"Yes the blood the king was choking on, I don't recall a healing spell being a good solution to choking on something." Maeve said
"The gods…" the priest began
"Ok ok enough, if you have to resort to religious rhetoric it's obvious you have no idea what's going on." Maeve said wearily
"So what did happen Maeve dono." Renner asked ignoring the priest
"That's what I would like to find out too, if you don't mind, I would like to examine you to understand what ails you." Maeve said calmly
"Your majesty I really don't…" the priest began
"Enough, I will allow the examination, take this chance to observe good priest you may learn something." Rampossa said as the priests expression darkened
"Thank you your grace. Now then Asclepius, give me a scan on the torso." Maeve said as the blue sphere rematerialised and began to hover over the king's chest.
"Detecting Varicose Veins in the Oesophagus, signs of bacterial infection in the lungs, lungs are weakened, potential Pneumothorax risk. Recommend broad spectrum antibiotics." the sphere said.
"Ok… give me vitals." Maeve said
"Blood pressure is nominal, systolic pressure at 100 dystolic pressure at 70, Heart rate is high at 180 bpm." the sphere said
"Hmm… high heart rate but normal blood pressure. We need a blood test. Your grace I require a small vial of your blood to do some tests." Maeve said
"The king is already weakened how much of these barbaric…" the priest interjected
"Enough, one vial should be fine." Rampossa said cutting him off
The sphere then drew a small vial of blood from the king's arm before absorbing it into the centre of the swirling arcane circles.
"Warning, Leukopenia detected, Thrombocytopenia detected, Hypercholesterolemia detected, high levels of toxins detected. Immunodeficiency probable, Hemophilia probable, Cardiac complications probable" the sphere said
"Hmm this is worse than I thought… is it the liver? Give me scan on the liver." Maeve said
"Warning malignant tumors detected, analysing… probable cause mana radiation. Liver damage at 23%. Scanning for signs of Metastatic Cancer… negative, cancer has not metastasized. Recommending treatment based on the available resources… non found" the sphere said
"Well shit…" Maeve said with a sigh
"What does it mean?" Rampossa said calmly
"It means you have an infection in the lungs that we can treat easily, the problem is that your liver is failing. Which means your ability to fight off diseases and your blood to clot is failing as well. In addition you have high cholesterol which is affecting your heart and a high level of toxins in your blood which may lead to blood poisoning. Overall it's very bad... your dying your grace." Maeve said grimly
"Well I was already aware of the fact that I am dying but I would like to know what caused this." Rampossa said calmly
"For that I need to ask you this did you indulge in alcohol consistently in the past?" Maeve asked
"Yes I did." Rampossa replied
"Until you were drunk or?" Maeve asked
"Yes until I was quite intoxicated but I always took a healing potion afterwards to reduce the health effects." Rampossa replied
"Who told you to use the healing potion?" Maeve asked brows furrowed
"The previous head physician." Rampossa replied
"What treatments were you undergoing before I arrived?" Maeve asked
"I was having trouble sleeping because of the cough, so the current head physician recommended I drink a cup of fortified wine and a health potion every night." Rampossa replied
At those words Maeve buried her head in her hands. After awhile she looked up at the king then looked at the head physician.
"You have no idea what you're doing, do you?" Maeve asked exasperated
"How dare you I am the head physician, I have been serving the royal family for many years as did my master before me." the head physician said outraged
"Well your "treatments" have actually been slowly killing the king." Maeve replied
"What… your majesty I would never… this charlton comes in claiming things she knows nothing about…" the head physician blustered
"I can explain why. If you don't believe me I can cure his majesty's cough right now as proof" Maeve said
"Very well.." Rampossa said
"Asclepius, Broad Spectrum Antibiotics and Dialysis Retros please" Maeve said
The sphere hovered over to the king and injected a glowing blue liquid into his arm. Immediately the king's veins started to glow, it held its glow for a few moments before fading. At a simple glance the king's pallor had improved significantly, his pale face has returned to normal. He took a deep breath and exhaled. The king looked to the cane on his right resting by the bedside table and swung his legs over the bed. Then he stood up…
"Ahhh I haven't felt this good in years. I forgot how nice it is to take a deep breath." Rampossa said
"Father… " Renner said tears of joy appearing in her eyes
"Your majesty I have cured your illness in your lungs and cleared some of the toxins in your blood but this by no means permanent. You will fall ill again due to your weakened body and the toxins will build up again." Maeve said
"I see… thank you Maeve dono, truly. Well I no longer see any reason to doubt your skills." Rampossa said
"Your words honour me your majesty but in addition I hope I can change your treatments, the previous treatment were worsening your condition." Maeve said
"Please do, your advice would be greatly appreciated." Rampossa said
"Well the first thing I must emphasis is that you are not under any circumstances to touch a single drop of alcohol again. If you consume any more alcohol it will damage your liver further. Once your liver starts to shut down it's all over, you won't last more than a week if that happens." Maeve said
"But fathers was given a healing potion after he consumed his wine, why is that a problem." Renner asked
"Good question, I don't blame any of you not knowing this. All magic leave this thing known as mana radiation behind. Mana radiation is the leftover mana from the spell cast, in small amounts it does nothing. However there is one thing about it... if it accumulates in large amounts in a person's body it will start to cause problems. In simple terms every part of your body the flesh knows what it's supposed to do, the skin grows and sheds, the eyes let you see, your lungs help you breath, but if the flesh comes into contact with too much mana radiation it may… forget what it's supposed to do. It becomes parasitic and takes energy from the body without performing its function, it becomes cancerous. You have been taking healing potions after you consumed alcohol, the alcohol damages your liver and all the mana from the potion flows…" Maeve said
"To father's liver… father's liver has been drowning in mana… " Renner said softly
"Exactly. The cancer will spread, once it becomes what I call Metastasized, it will spread slowly at first but faster as it grows. Until it overwhelms the king's body." Maeve said grimly
"What happens then…" Renner said
"It's hard to say, I won't know exactly until I see the spread ... but if I had to make a guess, the liver will fail first which will damage the other organs which lead will lead to the other organs failing. Then well… the king will die. I can… make some alchemical potions to help ease your pain, I will teach some the alchemists here to make them." Maeve said
"Thank you Maeve dono, you have done me a great personal service. You will always be a friend to the Re-Estise Kingdom." Rampossa replied
"But father perhaps there is something we can do." Renner said
"No child, I am dying. I have known that for a long time, besides I am getting old, all men must die whether they are kings or slaves, nobles or beggars." Rampossa said with a gentle smile
"You are brave your grace not many can meet their deaths with a smile on their face." Maeve said
"I have had quite a while to come to terms with my mortality." Rampossa said with a chuckle
"Indeed your grace, those who run from death… " Maeve said
"Stood still in life…" Renner said softly
Maeve looked at Renner as she finished the quote, it was one of the lines in the gospel of Blue Planet. It spoke of the natural cycle of life, how all good things must end and the old must die to make way for the new.
"No truer words have ever been said." Rampossa said
"Your majesty I am sure the gods will welcome you into their embrace." the priest said
"No I will not be welcome in the kingdom of heaven." Rampossa said
"Your majesty? I don't.." the priest said
"Too many lives have been lost because of my mistakes, the blood of my citizens stain my hands to the bone." Rampossa said sadly
"You are too hard on yourself father." Renner said as she took Rampossa's hand
"No I have made too many mistakes in this life and now in my eleventh hour I can't even begin to try and fix them. Renner my daughter, you always were the kindest and strongest among my children, I name you my heir. You will rule this kingdom, I will abdicate the throne." Rampossa said
"Father… I… I am not ready… I am not your equal… " Renner stammered eyes wide
"No you're not my equal now and you will not be my equal... you will be better…" Rampossa said gently as he cupped Renner's cheek
"Father I…" Renner began
"Shush now child… what I would have given to be as wise as you when I was your age…" Rampossa said
"Your majesty we shouldn't this matter be discussed?" the priest began
"No I have spent the past 5 years contemplating this matter, I have come to my decision. Good priest, head physician gather the court I have a royal announcement to make." Rampossa said
As the priest and the head physician hurried out. The king turned to look at his daughter and the two siblings. How much is going to change in the coming weeks, it all started with these two mysterious siblings. Maeve was like a herald for something, something greater, her knowledge, her martial skill, her arcane power… As he gazed into her mismatched eyes he didn't see the gaze of a young girl. In it he saw the look of something ancient, she looks at everything as if she has seen it all before. He turned to look at Momon and felt the same thing, there was a monstrous intellect behind those eyes. They were almost otherworldly…
"Your majesty, I know it's not my place to question you. However is this wise? This announcement is going to have major consequences for better or for worse. This situation may spiral out of control quite rapidly." Maeve said
"Fear not Maeve dono, this is the best time for this. I am stronger than I have been in years, I must do this now while I still have the strength. The Re-Estise kingdom is about to enter a golden age under the golden queen. Come Renner make yourself look your best, this your moment." Rampossa said eyes wide with happiness with the visions of the prosperous future he saw
"Yes father, come Climb we must make ourselves presentable." Renner said as she grabbed Climb's hand and rushed out of the room
"Maeve dono, Momon dono it would please me greatly if you attended as well." Rampossa said a warm smile on his face
"It would be my honour your majesty." Maeve said with a gentle smile
"Excellent! Now I must go and prepare." Rampossa said as he turned and prepared to leave the room
As Rampossa left the room mind still preoccupied with the glorious future he saw he didn't notice the smile disappear of the face of Maeve as she looked at the back of the king leave with eyes that seemed to suggest she had seen all of this before…
At the throne room Barbro stood among his allied nobles as they looked to the empty throne waiting for the king to make an appearance. He was surprised to say the least that he would be making an appearance before the court so soon after collapsing yesterday. Then he saw the king enter the throne room, he looked stronger and he was walking unassisted. He looked to the gathered the Physicians, Priests and Alchemists, he wondered did all of them come up with something that healed his father.
"All kneel before his majesty King Rampossa III, sovereign of the Kingdom of Re-Estize." the honour guard captain announced
"My loyal subjects, thank you for attending this impromptu gathers of the lords. I have an announcement to make, today I will announce the heir that will succeed me and I will also be announcing the date of the coronation of the new monarch." Rampossa announced
There was a flood of small conversation among the nobles at this announcement. Barbro looked to his right to see his sister and brother standing next to their allies in court. He noticed the pair of dark warriors standing among them. His sister always had a penchant for helping the pitiful and downtrodden. The first incident was when he dragged that starving dog in when she was 10, that dog now served as her personal bodyguard. He didn't think much of it at first, as he was the first son he always felt he would inherit the throne but slowly strange initiatives started to be enacted. Commoners started rising in station, then the power of a group of nobles started to rise as the commoners started to provide enough power to tip the scales of balance. There had always been two factions, the royal faction that backed the king who controlled most of the commerce and food and the nobles faction that controlled the military. This mutual reliant relationship has always held the balance in the kingdom. However once the martial houses came to be the crown's military power starting soaring by leaps and bounds and soon the nobles factions was eclipsed by the royal faction. He soon realised that the royal faction was backing his sister for the position of heir, so he threw his lot in with the nobles faction however his power seemed to slowly slip out of his hand like sand leaking from an hourglass. Now that heir was to be decided and he had a very bad feeling…
"Lords and Ladies, Good priests, wise physicians and alchemists, today I King Rampossa III declare the third princess Renner Theiere Chardelon Ryle Vaiself as my heir. She will reign as the 6th monarch of the Re-Estize Kingdom." his father declared
At those words Barbro saw only red, he grit his teeth as he gazed hatefully at his sister. His birthright, his rightful throne was stolen from right under him. All his life he was waiting for the throne, he trained rigorously to try and prove he was a strong king, a warrior king. He knew his younger brother was useless, Prince Zanac the stout short ugly prince. His intelligence was decent but he had no strength, he was a cowering fool. Then there as Renner, she was as beautiful as she was intelligent, but he never felt a threat from here until it became apparent who the royal faction was backing. After all she was a woman, women do not wear crowns, the ladies serve at the discretion of their lords, that was how it should be. As he looked up at his sister walk up the steps towards the throne, he felt his throne move out of his reach. He reached for the sword on his waist, how badly he wanted to cut down his father and his bitch of a sister. Then he felt a gaze directed towards him, he turned to see the girl with the glowing yellow eye looking at him. He remembered how easily he disarmed Marquis Buollop and how she snapped his sword like twig. Then he felt a hand on his shoulder.
Pandora looked and saw Marquis Buollop whisper something into the Prince's ear, the prince appeared to calm down but still gazed hatefully at the princess.
"Brother we may have a problem." Maeve said
"Yes I think so too." Pandora replied
"The coronation will take place one week from today." the king announced
As thunderous applause rang throughout the hall, Maeve wore a fake smile on her face as she joined in. As Punito Moe said there is always a price for change, the greater the change the higher the price.
Three days later
Lakyus walked into the palace followed by her sisters, they were the adamantite adventurer team Blue Rose. The only adamantite team based in the capital, they were invited to the coronation on the basis that Lakyus was a noble. The other reason was also that Lakyus was a long time friend of Princess Renner. They had grown up together both beautiful blonde haired aristocrats that they were. As she walked into the palace she was greeted by Climb the personal bodyguard of Princess Renner.
"How are you doing cherry boy." greeted Gagaran
"I am doing well lady Gagaran." replied Climb
"Still stiff as always I see. You need a woman cherry boy it would make you… less cherry." Gagaran laughed
"Gagaran stop teasing him." Laykus said with a sigh
"As you wish devilish leader." Garan said with a laugh
"Princess Renner is expecting you but she is currently observing a training bout with Momon sama and the two primus of the martial houses." Climb replied
"They going one on one or?" Gagaran asked
"I believe Gazef sama and Brian sama are fighting against Momon sama." Climb said
"Two on one, now that is something I have to see." Gagaran said with a smile
"You said he was called Momon? Is he a follower of the old gods," Lakyus asked
"Yes he is, both him and his sister are followers of the old gods." Climb replied
"I see, well we should probably settle in first but… I doubt Gagaran here would like missing the duel so why not you take us there first." Lakyus said
"Wise as always devilish leader." Gagaran said
As Laykus entered the training area she saw Renner chatting with a blonde haired little girl. This little girl however was dressed strangely she could see knives strapped to her overcoat and small crossbow mounted on her wrist. This was no ordinary child after all most children don't walk around carrying knives. She looked to see this warrior wearing a full plate of adamantite armor swinging a pair of greatswords as easily as one would swing sticks. Gazef and Brain were being pressured… hard... Laykus looked on as the Gazef and Brain prepared to unleash their best attacks together, she knew this was their trump card. If this didn't work Lakyus knew they were done, they were too exhausted. In contrast the dark warrior was breathing evenly no signs of exhaustion at all. The two of them unleashed their greatest attack, Gazef used his secret technique, Sixfold Slash of Light, it was six simultaneous downward slashes. This was combined with Brain's best strike the Whistling Wind an extremely precise horizontal slash. Lakyus knows this created a deadly killzone as the victim would be dealing with both vertical and horizontal attacks. Instead she saw the warrior neatly parry their attacks with his greatsword without moving a single step. The only thing that moved were his blades, not a single step back was taken.
"Should we stop for now, you seem exhausted." Momon said
"Yes perhaps that would be best." Gazef said as he and Brain sheathed their weapons
"Thank you for the bout Momon dono, you give humble warriors such us something to aspire to." Gazef said with a bow
"Well I hope it was as helpful as you thought." Momon said as he took off his helmet and gave them a bow
Brain and Gazef both bowed back and began walking to the edge of the arena.
"What is with this guy…" Brain panted
"I told you he was strong." Gazef said
"Well when you said strong, I thought you meant a tough but winnable fight and not fighting a mountain." Brain said
"There is always another mountain." Gazef replied
"Don't say that what could be worse than this guy?" Brain said
"His sister." Gazef said
"You mean the little blonde girl with the glowing eye? I still don't believe your report by the way, cutting apart the strongest angle in a single slash is abit too fanciful. I mean this guy's good but he's not that good." Brain replied
"He's holding back. Also it was his sister that defeated the angel." Gazef replied
"Of course he's holding back this is a bout, not a fight to the death." Brain said
"No he slower, much slower." Gazef said
"Slower? How is that slow, he parried our best attacks like it was nothing." Brain said brows furrowed
"Tell me Brian could you defeat a dozen angels in an instant." Gazef asked
"No of course not." Brain replied
"Well I saw Momon dono carve through dozens of angels in an instant, the angels fell like chaff before the wind, it happened so quickly I couldn't follow his movements at all." Gazef said
Brain didn't have a reply for that he simply looked away as they continued to walk back towards the princess and that strange little girl.
"He's strong." Evileye said
"Back of shorty this beef cake's mine." Gagaran said as she looked at the dark haired warrior walk towards them
Lakyus looked on and felt he was handsome in a exotic kind of way. He was huge towering over even Gagaran, and his armor was full adamantite plate. That would cause as much a nation's annual budget, you could buy a kingdom with that armor. That's not even counting his great swords which also seemed to be made of adamantite. They were massive blades Lakyus knew she couldn't wield a single one of them let alone one in each hand.
"Lakyus! How great to see you thank you for coming!." Remmer said as she embraced Lakyus
"Always a pleasure Renner, or should I say my queen." Lakyus said with a smile
"I'm not queen yet." Renner said with a giggle
"What's a few days? You'll be queen by the end of next week." Lakyus said
"Haha no no, there is still much to do. How about we retire to the guest rooms for some tea for now? I am sure we have much to talk about." Renner said
"Well that is quite something Maeve dono, you are a most impressive warrior. I'm not sure if my sisters and I could have triumphed over a Dominion Authority." Lakyus said impressed
"You mentioned you casted Holy Smite?" Thats a seventh tier spell, that should not be possible for humans." Evileye said
"Well the world is large, there are always exceptions, I just happen to be one of them." Maeve replied calmly
"Where do you come from? I would love to visit the nation that could produce such formidable warriors." Lakyus said
"It is… very far away, well beyond the reach of anyone here." Maeve replied
"I see." Lakyus said clearly feeling her unwillingness to talk about it
"Well since we can't go might as well make do with what we have. Momon dono would you be willing to go a round or two in the ring?" Gagaran said
"Certainly, I am sure we can learn much from each other." Momon replied politely
"Strong and humble. A rare combination." Lakyus said
Petra was a maid serving in the palace she was standing outside the door of the guest room holding a tray with tea and biscuits. She knocked on the door and was bid to enter. She approached the table and saw the members of Blue Rose and the two siblings who have become the talk of the court, collectively the people in this room held more power than some armies. She walked over to the table but she noticed Maeve dono's golden eye flash for a moment as she approached. Inwardly she felt the tendrils of fear crawl up her spine but her face betrayed nothing, of that she was sure. She calmly laid the teapot and cups around the table, Princess Renner always liked to pour her own tea it was one of her little quirks. As she moved around the table she felt that golden eye follow her around the table like a hawk circling its prey. Finally as the last cup was placed on the table she watched to see Maeve dono reach out and take the pot of tea from Princess Renner's hand before pouring a cup for herself. She silently bowed and began walking closer to the door. The door was just a few paces away… a few more steps and she would be gone, never to return to this room. Each step felt like an eternity as she still felt that golden eye follow her, the gaze was like spear pointed at her back.
"By the gods please don't let her know…" Petra thought desperately to herself
"Maeve dono?" Renner asked
The table has gone quiet as they followed her gaze to the maid who was walking towards the door. Petra's hand reached out and clasped the door knob…
"Stop." Maeve said
Petra froze, immediately she felt the blood drain from her face.
"No no no, keep it together." Petra thought to herself as she turned to face the table
"Yes Maeve dono? Is there anything else I can help you with?" Petra said sweetly
"Yes there is actually, you see I would like you to take those two vials out of your pocket." Maeve said coldly
"Maeve dono? I don't…" Petra began trying desperately to keep her voice from wavering
"The hidden pocket on the left seam of your dress, the one woven so whatever that's stored inside won't be obvious to some one looking." Maeve said
Petra felt her blood turn to ice as she gazed at the golden eye that was fixed to her. She saw the eyes of Blue Rose narrow as they shifted slightly. Leaning forward ever so slightly so that they could leap out of their chairs at a moments notice.
"Your hearts beating pretty fast, your sweating and pale I wonder why… Take it out and give it to me before I take it from you." Maeve said coldly
Petra reached into the secret pocket and pulled out the vials as rivulets of tears ran down her cheek. Maeve stood up and walked over to her and took the vials from her. She opened up one and gave it a sniff before capping it back.
"Now on to my next question why is there poison in my tea." Maeve said as she tossed one of the vials at Tia.
Tia caught the vial before opening it and giving it a sniff. Immediately her eyes narrowed and the sound of steel being drawn was heard.
"Essence of Nightshade." Tia growled
"Yes a very common substance, found in minute amounts among common vegetables. However if concentrated a drop in milk can help with sleep, two drops will induce an unfeeling sleep perfect for treating grievous wounds. Drink ten drops and you will fall into a sleep that you will never wake. Fatal to most people but seeing as we are all warriors we have a hardier constitution so this poison won't work on the people here except for... " Maeve said
"Me… " Renner whispered now very pale as she slowly stood up
At those words the warriors in the room stood up chairs clattering to the floor, to her right she saw Climb draw his sword. The twins drew their hidden weapons, Lakyus and Gagaran did not bring their weapons but the cracking sound from Gagaran's clenched fist was more than enough to betray her intentions.
"Please…" Petra whimpered
"I am going to ask you this, why were there two vials instead of one?" Maeve said
"Please… they'll kill me…" Petra sobbed
"I am going to kill you if you don't answer me, but… I have a suspicion. You want to kill Princess Renner because the nobles faction don't want her on the throne. However just removing her won't be enough you need to remove someone else as well…" Maeve said
"No… both vials are empty… " Renner said as she leaned on the table for support tears forming in her eyes
"Yes Princess Renner they are. So I suggest you answer my next question before I start peeling off your finger nails. Did you serve the king his tea yet?" Maeve asked as Renner sank into the floor weeping
Yes…
Author's notes:
Ok now that the shit has hit the fan, expect things to get very chaotic very quickly. Of course the politics of succession are rarely neat and tidy. History has often shown the passing of the crown is a bloody affair.
So once again leave a review whether you liked it or hated it and see you in the next chapter. :D