Alexander and Jenos returned to the manor later that morning. Alexander made an excuse of late night job playing at a pub across town and went to bed. Jenos went down to the fighting ring to see if he could find anyone. He came across Daniel and Artrous sparing in the ring.
He watched them for a few minutes before speaking, "Isn't one of you suppose to be in bed?"
Out of breath Daniel leaned on his greatsword. "Pays to have friends in high places."
"What did you do Daniel?" Jenos's voice took an edge.
Sensing trouble Artrous spoke up, "Cardinal Owens stopped by this morning to see you. When he heard what had happened to Daniel he healed him."
Jenos let out the breath he didn't know he had been holding, "We just need to be careful. We aren't sure who we can completely trust right now." Then changing the subject, "Did he say what he wanted?"
"He needed to speak with you privately about something. You are to meet him for dinner tonight." Daniel hafted is practice sword up and onto it rack on the wall.
"Sir, something is going on and we want to know what it is." Artrous asked him.
"What is going on is the two of you are being made heads of your houses."
Both young men looked at him like had he lost his mind. Artrous found his voice first. "I beg your pardon sir, but you and my father are the stewards of our houses."
"No we are merely your Celestial guardians." Jenos sighed. "When Alexis died it was a sign that our time is over. You two are now stewards over the houses of Idanian and Osgree. You two are now in charge."
"This is not how we wanted it to be, father."
"Do you think going from farm boy to steward of her eminence, to celestial guardian was easy?"
Both men rolled their eyes, "No, sir."
"Then welcome to responsibility gentleman." He clapped them both on the shoulder as he started to walk away.
"One question," Artrous smirked, "Master Guardian, without Aunt Alexis who is in charge?"
"Public answers, you two, private answer… your aunt Tirai. Heaven help you if you cross her." He walked up the stairs only to run into Irina.
"Poppa! I was just coming to see you."
"What is it sweetheart?"
"We heard from the Dark Lady and Dark Angel"
"And this is good news how?"
"She tracked down some contacts for us. She has information for us, but it does have a price."
Jenos raised an eyebrow, "Which is?"
"She wants an invite to Cardinal Vladislav Oliver Rainier's party tomorrow."
"Why that a problem?"
"It's a security problem. A lot of well to do people will be there. What if she was to try something? She isn't exactly trust worthy."
"Then put extra guards, if you are worried about security I'll go. Alexander is performing for it. I'm sure she wouldn't try anything with me there."
"I want it on record that I don't like this." Irina grumbled.
"It is noted, now go get that information." He pointed to the door, "We will meet in an hour to discuss it."
Irina saluted and left. As she did Jenos mumbled, "I hope you know what you are doing Alexander."
The information Dark Angel and the Dark Lady gave Irina was the same thing that Alexander, Jenos and Alexis had discussed much earlier that morning.
"They think Kasey may be involved?" Artrous raised an eyebrow.
"It is possible." Alexander commented sleepily.
"What kind of grudge could she have against us?" Irina commented.
"Oh I don't know stopping her from marrying into one of the most politically powerful families in the country could be a reason." Alexander snapped.
"Alex!" Tiarai snapped. "You aren't helping."
"Sorry.."
Artrous and Daniel smirked.
"Though it does raise one issue, if she is involved." Irina commented.
"What kind of issue? Surely you're not still on that Dark Lady thing." Jenos stood off to the side, his arms crossed.
"If she try's anything she will have guards on her faster than she can spit; no, I was going to say Bishop Jean-Phippe Siebert, and guest were invited to tomorrow nights party, as were we all."
That evening, everyone was preparing for the party when someone knocked on the door to Jenos Idanian's bedroom. "Enter," he intoned as he fidgeted with a shirt under his mail armor.
"I came by to see how you are doing," Alexander said as he poked his head in.
"Fine, only wishing I was wearing full plate and not this chain mail." Jenos grumbled and flicked a finger at the metal loops hanging around his torso.
Alexander chuckled. "It will make the switch easier," he said as he inspected how his father looked.
"At least give me my greatsword." Jenos glared at him. "Using this thing is going to be like fighting with a toothpick." He indicated the finely crafted longsword at his side.
"Do you honestly think that you would get into the party carrying one? Also, don't you think it would look silly seeing me walking around with one?" Alexander crossed his arms and smirked. "Or are those tales Irina and Artie said about you and ANY weapon all lies?"
"Cheeky brat," Jenos growled. "First off, I'd love to see somebody in this kingdom tell me I can't carry a weapon somewhere. And no, I can handle a longsword quite well thank you. Who do you think taught your sister?"
"Mudge, actually." He smirked.
Jenos sighed and straightened his waistband. "Anymore tormenting of your poor old father?"
"No, but the others are waiting on us."
"Then let's head out." They started to walk out the door of the room when Alexander stopped.
"Dad, there was one thing." Alexander turned to face him.
"What is it, son?"
"Now that mother is 'dead', will you be taking Aunt Tirai as your consort?"
This stopped Jenos in his tracks. "Excuse me?"
"You and Aunt Tirai have always been close, dad. Closer than you and mum in some ways, if you ask me." The look on his face conveyed that he felt awkward bringing the subject out into the open.
"Now is not the time to ask that sort of thing, Alex," Jenos said as he started to push past his son.
"I'm sorry father, but if people ask I must be able to give them a convincing answer." Alexander looked down. "Plus, I need to hear it myself."
Jenos sighed and looked down at his son. "Your aunt will always be your aunt. She is a good friend and I care for her deeply... but nobody is replacing your mum. I love your mother dearly and you know why. As far as anyone outside this family is concerned... well, if they want to speculate about your aunt and I, or some other women, let them. Inside this home, your aunt will always be a part of our family, but no one can replace your mother. You of all people ought to know that."
"Thank you." Alexander looked back up at his father as if a weight had been lifted off his shoulders.
"Come on, the other's are waiting." Jenos indicated for them to leave.
"Now we get to see if I do take after you in the charms department."
Jenos chuckled and put his hand on his son's shoulder. "Goddess help the women at the celebration if you do, my boy."
Between dances Jenos got a goblet of wine for Tirai Osdarin. As he walked back to her he stopped by where Artrous and Irina stood. "Any sign of trouble?"
"So far none." Irina looked around the room of party goers, and entertainers.
"That's what is bothering me." Artrous mumbled.
"You are worried that nothing is going wrong?"
"I thought I would at least spot this, Dark Lady."
"If she wanted you to see her you would see her." Jenos smiled into his goblet, "Besides, what are you worried about her for. You don't honestly think she has something to do with this do you?"
"She is very suspicious." Irina commented as she scanned the room.
"Same thing could be said about you baby doll. For now, I'm going to take this wine to your Aunt, and then I'm going to enjoy some of the sights." He indicated a group of dancing girls near where Tirai was standing.
He walked up to her and gallantly offered her a drink.
"I seem to remember the last time you got me a drink was at the Fall festival back home."
"That was a lifetime ago, and we were much younger."
"And if I remember correctly Alexis was the one that 'accidently' dumped the water bucket from the McNair's barn on you and what's her name." Tirai smirked.
"Her name was Carol. She was so mortified that she refused to speak to me for 2 days. She swore it was Mudge who had done it. I think half of the pranks pulled on me where actually Alexis AND Mudge working together."
Tirai looked at him, "You miss her don't you."
Jenos took a drink from his goblet, "More every day." He looked out to the dancing girls nearby entertaining the guests.
Tirai saw where he was looking, "You will see her again; just have faith." She smiled, "If you will excuse me, Father Gibbs's wife Sarah has been after me all evening to get the latest gossip. I don't want to keep her waiting too long. Her imaginative speculation is quite potent if you don't take it quick. If you will excuse me. "She walked off to speak with a group of well to do women.
For a while Jenos watched the women dance until their music stopped for them to rest. Many of the dancer's admires came over to speak to them. Handing his goblet to a servant Jenos approached a veiled dancer. She already had three older men surrounding her.
"My dear come be our private dancer. I can pay you well you will want for nothing."
"Accept my invitation my dear, you will be a lady in my house."
"You need not wear such shabby things, come to my home and you will wear the finest of silks and jewels."
The girl tipped her head in confusion. She didn't understand what they were saying to her.
"Gentleman, please allow the lady to breath. She must finish this engagement before she can accept another." Jenos bowed to them slightly.
"Guardian Idanian, how good to see you sir. I am sorry about your loss. It was tragic what happened to your wife."
"It is a sign that no one is safe, even now, but come we must not speak of such sad things. I had come over to ask this fine lady if she would grant me a dance." He offered a gold coin to her. That she understood.
"I had forgotten what it is that performers truly fancy, the sight of gold." One of the men chuckled. "I assume you would like a private audience." They all left the area.
As promised she began to dance for him. Soon as they were out of ear shot Jenos spoke in Celestial.
"You do realize that you could be spotted. The family knows you pretty well."
"They know my music, not my dancing." Alexis danced seductively towards him.
"Irina and Artie were just looking for you." Jenos smiled, enjoying this. "You know you should have danced for me more often."
"It was my dancing that got us Alexander," She gave him a slight smile, and then became business, "They are looking for the wrong things. I have already seen the Bishop. His daughter should be around here somewhere."
Jenos smirked. "Good. Alexander's plan is really rather promising, if I do say so myself."
Alexis sighed. "I was afraid you were going to say that. What do you need from me?"
"Alexander has already taken care of his disguise. Remember when you made me look like your father? I need you to make me look like Alexander this time... and I need to be able to shed the visage in an instant."
"I'm not going to ask," Alexis responded, leading Jenos down a quiet hallway to work her magic. "Let's hope you know your son as well as you think you do."
A few moments later, Jenos came walking out a hallway, wearing a dashing set of formal clothes with a longsword at his side and appearing to anyone who noticed him to be his own son Alexander. He nodded at a dashing, broad-shouldered man leaning against a wall as he walked in. "Wow," Jenos exclaimed sarcastically. "I look good."
"Hey now," Alexander responded in the guise of his father. "From here, I clean up rather well myself."
Jenos chuckled. "That you do. That you do. Have you seen our friend?"
Alexander pointed towards a throng of dancing couples. "Other side of the room. And… 'Alex'? Don't lay on too much charm. You're still a little shy compared to your dad."
Jenos laughed. "Don't worry, 'Guardian Idanian'. I'll try not to embarrass the family name." With a chuckle, Jenos turned and headed towards the center of the room, laying on all his charm.
On the other side of the room, a well-dressed brunette stood with several girlfriends, socializing and scanning the area. Her eyes conveyed a sense of feigned interest, hiding her true motives for the evening. "How on earth am I going to get that little runt alone?" she wondered to herself, but began to smile as she noticed Alexander Idanian, youngest direct heir to the Idanian bloodline, walking through the crowd. She couldn't help but smile as the young man turned to check out every attractive woman he walked past. "Young hormones, thank you…" She turned away from the young man as he headed towards the bar, and waited a moment before making her move.
As Alexander nursed a small mug of ale, she cinched up her corset and sauntered his way, laying on just enough seduction to avoid getting caught. "If I'm lucky, I might not even have to use magic tonight."
"Now, what's a strapping young man like you doing here, away from the dance floor?" she asked him in a friendly tone.
Alexander looked over at her, checked her out briefly as he drank, and then feigned a slight frown. "I'm not in much of a dancing mood, I guess."
"Oh, come now!" she chided, smiling as she laid a hand on his arm. She couldn't help but noticed that he flinched slightly at her touch. Too easy. "This is a dance, handsome! Everyone's in the mood for dancing here."
Alexander looked down at his feet. "Easy for you to say."
She forced a look of concern. "What's wrong, sweetheart?"
Alexander looked up at her briefly, looking particularly forlorn, then looked back down at his feet. "You'll laugh."
Kasey leaned over and gave him a light peck on the cheek. "Maiden's honor, doll. Not a peep from me. What's wrong?"
He didn't bother to look up as he mumbled quietly, "I… I can't dance."
Here's your chance. Move in, girl… "Everyone can dance, darling. Come on, I'll show you." She grabbed his hand and moved to the dance floor, hoping youthful humility would do her work for her.
It did. "Around all these people? That's just what I need, to fall on my face here."
She smiled. "Let's find somewhere a bit more private, then."
In the main dance hall, Guardian 'Jenos Idanian' enjoyed every moment of his fame. While he was used to catching the occasional glace as Alexander, the son of a Guardian… masquerading as one of the legendary Guardians was something else entirely. Noblemen, soldiers, clergy and attractive young women alike couldn't keep their eyes off him, and the attention gave Alexander enough cockiness to almost pull off his father's swagger. As he noticed Kacey Sibert heading off down a hallway with his father, however, all thoughts of enjoying his newfound fame faded away. He excused himself from the group of people standing around him and followed.
As 'Jenos' left to follow his youngest son, three sets of eyes who had tried to not pay too much mind to the strange behavior of their youngest sibling and their father finally had enough. Tirai and Irina helped a still-aching Daniel as they followed their father at a distance.
Kasey led the young man down a hallway. She pretended to search for an empty room, though she already knew which one she was going to… and it was not empty. As she reached the door, she carefully opened it and poked her head in. "Looks like as good a place as any, sweetheart," she said to Alexander with a smile as she opened it and led him in.
Lingering in the shadows, two assassins watched the pair walk in, fairly certain they would not be spotted. They were, of course, also unaware that their prey had an eye for trouble borne from years of combat… and that evening, the desire to get into it.
Kasey gently slipped her hands behind Alexander, placing them behind his shoulder blades as she flicked her wrist slightly, loosening a dagger she had held there. "Just remember that it is your job to lead me, your lady, across the dance floor." She lent an air of seductiveness to her voice as his eyes continued to stray downward from her face. "Command me. Control me. Take me where you want me," she said to him breathily. As he looked back up at her and smiled, seemingly taken in, she prepared to make her move.
In the same instant, several events happened. Kasey flicked her wrist out to expose her dagger; the two assassins sprung forward from their hiding places to move in, just in case things got dicey; and Guardian Jenos Idanian burst into the room, rapier in hand, wide-eyed at the scene in front of him. In a panic, Kasey attempted to push Alexander away from the door and run past his father; the young man proved to be much heavier than she expected, however, and the effort simply pushed her towards the door faster than the Warblade standing near it could react to.
Still in the guise of Alexander, Jenos pulled his longsword and, focusing on a Warblade technique that he had only passed on to a handful, whipped his longsword behind him violently, removing the first assassin's head from his neck. "After her!" he yelled as he charged forward at the second. Shaking off his surprise, Alexander removed his disguise and sped down the hallway. Jenos quickly shoved the second assassin aside and darted out the door, heading the other direction.ow
Kasey took off at a run down yet another hallway. As she came to an intersection, she took a left and got half way down the hall when she saw Alexander step around the corner, long sword in hand. "It is no use running away, Sibert."
"I can just kill you. One spell from me and you are dead." She let loose a fireball, but as the fireball hit Alexander dove out of the way. When he peeked back around the corner, his robes and hair were badly singed. "You have too pretty a face to get scarred. Accept your death boy and you will leave a pretty corpse."
"I wouldn't say I'm ready for the grave just yet." Kasey felt a thin blade slide up along her neck.
"Using illusions against me, are you?" She cackled.
"Or I was…" One of the Alexander's said as he advanced.
"…an identical twin and no one ever knew."
"Twins… don't make me laugh."
"What are Daniel and Tirai, horse dung?" One of them smirked.
"So what shall we do with her?" He slid the blade of his rapier back and forth on her shoulder.
"The boy I danced with would never kill in cold blood," she intoned, trying to use her charms on them.
The 'Alexander ' holding the long sword, reached up and moved his hand back, as if lifting a cloak and his face melted into that of Jenos Idanian. Finally shed of his disguise, he moved to stand in front of Kasey Sibert, dropping his longsword and balling up a massive fist. "The husband of the woman you helped murder would." As Alexander stepped back, unable to respond, Jenos reached out with his other arm and picked Kasey up by the neck, his temper that had been barely contained for nearly a week coming out in full force as rage flowed into his voice. He pulled Kasey's face in front of his, their noses almost touching. "The father of the young man you tried to murder would."
Kasey gasped for breath. "You have… more precious… things to lose than your… wife…" she managed to blurt out. The anger in Jenos Idanian's eyes flashed hotter than ever and in spite of the lightheadedness starting to come over her, she tried to flinch back.
From the hallway, Artrous, Daniel and Irina stepped forward to stand near their little brother as he staggered awkwardly back away from his father. In the nearly three decades of their lives, the older children had never witnessed their Warblade father/ uncle in the heat of combat; the many times they had seen him in the training ring didn't hold a candle to the animal fury that was evident in his features. They couldn't even manage to find words as the second assassin, limping slightly, came from behind Jenos and moved towards him. In a flash, Jenos turned, using Kasey herself as his weapon as he threw her at the would-be assassin, sending both to the floor. He then reached for his sword, and then turned to the children. "Leave."
The tone of his voice chilled the four children to the bone. Unable to do anything but comply, they sluggishly backed around the corner and waited, trying not to focus on the sounds of sword on flesh as they turned to leave.