Claudia finished reading the set of parchments detailing everything she needed to know about the Shield Companions. At least what the Vinlun Templars and Duke Arnoult knew about the company. She had forgotten that these Shield Companions -at least their Mercenary Commanders and Mercenary Lord- were foreigners from the land of Calradia. A land she knew next to nothing about though she had a feeling that her husband might have read something about Calradia. She would ask him about it when she has the chance but she didn't know how long she would be staying at Calvet.
When dawn came, the guests of Duke Arnoult's feast promptly left. Leaving only the Dawn Templars and the traumatized Duke of Beaugendre's son as the Duke of Calvet's guests. Speaking of Armand, the boy had stopped screaming and crying and had remained quiet for the rest of the night. She sent a pair of Templars to guard the young nobleman inside his room though another pair were stationed outside to guard the guest chambers on the orders of Knight-Lieutenant Estelle who was in charge of the attending Vinlun Templars while Knight-Captain Isabelle left to inform the Shield Companions. The Vinlun Templars, however, were not there to guard the young nobleman if Baldur decided to end Armand's life. Estelle was confident that the Nord barely cared about the young nobleman. Instead, they were guarding the guest chambers in case Armand decides to pull another stunt like last night.
The Grand Maîtresse of the Dawn Templars rubbed her temple as she leaned back into her chair. It felt like everything was starting to fall apart around her. Banditry across the realm. Discordians getting bolder and entering her principality's borders without much resistance. Half of the nobility criticizing her reforms of knighting non-nobles into Dawn Templar Knights. Her father-in-law becoming more and more isolated and estranged as time went on. Now she had to deal with this whole fiasco too. Times like these she just wanted to lie in bed, hold her loving husband in her arms and just sleep.
Claudia shook her head and stood up. She picked up her sword and made her way out of the Duke of Calvet's study before making her way to the castle's dungeon. She wanted to see the Mercenary Lord of the Shield Companions and ask a number of questions regarding Calradia. Claudia wanted to know more about this land and what better way to do that than ask someone who had lived there.
The Grand Mistress arrived in the dungeons shortly and found the captive Mercenary Lord still sitting on the floor with his back against the wall. The bodies of the dead knights had been removed and the blood had been cleaned from the wall and floor. She noticed that an empty bowl with a spoon lay next to the cell's door. Not only that but it seems the Nord's clothes were clean and the blood stains from the night before were gone. No doubt the Duke of Calvet had the man's clothes cleaned.
Claudia froze when the Mercenary Lord's head suddenly snapped towards her direction and she found herself holding the steely blue gaze of Baldur. The Nord didn't move an inch and kept staring at the Grand Mistress who shook her head and cleared her throat.
"I have some questions for you, mercenary." Claudia went straight to the point.
"Hm."
"It involves Calradia."
Baldur grunted and stood up before leaning on the wall and crossing his arms.
"What do you want to know?"
"Who rules Calradia?"
"Tch. No one." The Nord answered "You have six people fighting to become Calradia's sole ruler or had. Harlaus the Usurper killed the King of the Rhodoks and his claimant. He also killed the King of the Nords and planted a puppet king for him to control. Never a day goes by without one kingdom fighting the other. By the time I left, many were afraid that the Swadians would come for them but I wouldn't be too surprised if they managed to push them back and reclaim lost territories. Calradia lives in a never-ending cycle of war."
"And you profit from it." Claudia cut in.
"What else is there? I don't care about politics or petty squabbles of royalty and nobility. The only thing I care about is the company and finding someone strong enough to pose a challenge or maybe even kill me."
"Why so eager to die?"
"Valhǫll."
Claudia narrowed her eyes at his answer. She didn't need to be a genius to know that he was referring to Valhalla. She had been among the few Eostians who witnessed Shield Prince Alister VII of Feoh lead a charge into the Discordians in an attempt to hold them off while the rest of the armies escaped back into Eostian lands. She knew for a fact everyone heard the Shield Prince and his warriors yell 'Valhalla' before sprinting towards the Discordians. Even the Jarls and Nordmænd that Alister ordered to retreat had to be held back by Jarl Eiríkr from joining the fight. She could never understand the Nordmænd's obsession with Valhalla.
Shaking her head, Claudia resumed her questioning of the Nord.
"Knight-Lieutenant Estelle mentioned that you are a Nord. The ancestral people of the Nordmænd. What can you tell me of your homeland?"
"A frozen hell. Nords don't have much in Norðurland aside from trees, frost and kings killing each other for resources and territory. At least the ones who stay in Nordland or Jumne. Many Nords sail down south and raid Calradia or find work as mercenaries."
"I take it you're part of the latter."
"Partially." Baldur shook his head "I didn't willingly go to Calradia to be a mercenary. I was chased out from my home by my uncle after he killed my father and took the throne of Frostrike. I joined and fought for the Vaegirs as a soldier. Became Captain of the Vaegir Guards before leaving to start the Skjaldfélagar with Oleg and some other Guards. We made a reputation for ourselves. Became King Esterich's personal guards. Fought for Isolla in her war against the Usurper to reclaim the throne and lost. Then we sailed west and found ourselves in Eostia. The rest is history."
"You mentioned your father and the throne of Frostrike. You are royalty?"
"Was."
Baldur remained silent after that and Claudia pondered on how to proceed with this.
"Does anyone else know?"
"Aside from my Mercenary Commanders, Isabelle and you? No one."
'Isabelle?'
The Vinlun Knight-Captain was the first to jump to Baldur's defense and she was the one to leave the castle to inform the Shield Companions about their leader's imprisonment. She'll have to question Isabelle in the future about her relationship with the Shield Companions and their leader.
"Grand Maîtresse."
Claudia looked over her shoulder as Knight-Lieutenant Estelle entered the dungeons.
"What is it?"
"Your husband is here. He said he wanted to speak to you about something urgent."
The Grand Mistress' eyes widened and she hurried past Estelle. Said Knight-Lieutenant quickly catching up to the Shield Princess of Ken. Leaving Baldur alone in his cell once more.
The Nord sighed before leaning back on the wall and stared at the ceiling in boredom.
'Great. Back to waiting. My favorite. I wonder what the others are doing now.'
(Line Break)
"Gods above, Baldur. Of all the things- "
Oleg cut himself off with a frustrated sigh while rubbing the bridge of his nose before placing the letter on the table and turned to face the Mercenary Commanders of the Shield Companions along with Knight-Captain Isabelle. Each of them cradled a drink in hand but none of them had even taken a small sip from their tankards. Their attention was focused solely on the situation their leader had gotten himself into. The letter stated that Baldur did not want them to take up arms to free him and simply to continue on with their daily lives as mercenaries. They didn't need the company to interfere and quite possibly paint a target on their backs. Something that would be detrimental to the company's growth and expansion.
The Vaegir knew that Baldur wrote the letter truthfully and not under threat. Not a lot can be held over the Nord's head or if anything even. Despite his orders, Oleg knew that the Shield Companions would not hesitate to take up arms and rescue their leader if Baldur was sentenced to death. Especially when -in their eyes- their leader had done nothing that would warrant such a sentence. It may just make them an enemy of the principality -possibly the entire Seven Shields Alliance itself- but that won't stop them.
Oleg groaned as he sat down on Baldur's chair. Taking temporary command of the company while the Nord was preoccupied with imprisonment as per Baldur's orders as stated on the letter. The Vaegir let out a long suffering sigh before looking at Isabelle.
"How long do you think this will take?"
"I'm not sure. Duke Beaugendre is sick. It's why Armand was in attendance of the feast in the first place. We'll have to wait until he's well enough to travel to Calvet. Hopefully, it won't be long."
"Is the boy gonna be a problem?"
Isabelle shook her head. After seeing the state Armand was in, she was confident the young nobleman couldn't pose much of a threat anymore. She almost pitied the poor fool. Almost.
"Lord Armand has locked himself in one of Château de Calvet's guest chambers before I left. Heard him screaming 'Monster' over and over again when I passed his door. I'm not sure whether or not I should be surprised that Baldur managed to scare Armand into insanity. Though I fear this might not help him win any favors from the Duke of Beaugendre. Armand maybe a prick -the Duke himself had said so once- but he is still Duke Corin's only heir."
"Can't he just make himself another heir?" Bhaltair cut in "I thought nobles always have a spare heir somewhere. Maybe even a bastard or two running around."
"Unfortunately, Duke Beaugendre is unable to produce another heir. During the war against the Discordians, he... uh... " Isabelle scratched her cheek "He got shot between the legs with a poisoned arrow. It, uh, it got all three of them and the poison prevented them from healing right."
Bhaltair cringed. Feeling a sudden pain in his own groin just by thinking about it. Still. He couldn't help but make fun of the situation.
"Oh fucking hell. Poor lad. Guess now we know why he has to settle for that little prick as his heir since his own prick can't make another, eh? Eh? Hehehe."
The Rhodok and the Khergit -who sat beside him- shared a laugh with A'isha shaking her head in amusement while Isolla shook her head in disgust.
"He could have a bastard or two somewhere. Born before the incident but I don't really know much about the Duke of Beaugendre." Isabelle continued "Maybe some merchants from his duchy might have some gossip about that. Who knows?"
Oleg nodded with a grunt before getting up from his seat to address the others.
"Back to the topic at hand. As per Baldur's orders, we continue to work as if he was never imprisoned. Keep the company going. Hold to your oaths. And don't fuck up. Dismissed."
Each of the Mercenary Commanders shared a look before rising from their respective seats and headed out the door. Leaving their drinks behind and untouched. Even Bhaltair didn't take a small sip.
Isabelle blinked and watched them go before scratching the back of her head. She expected this whole meeting would go a little longer and with some or almost all of the Shield Companions demanding that they rescue their leader.
"Still here?"
The Knight-Captain turned to Oleg who was still seated in the chair while looking at her.
"I could say the same to you. Why didn't you leave with the others?"
"I'm waiting for Erik and the Steelbreakers to return from their job. You may have noticed that the Steelbreakers are very devoted to Baldur. I need to be the one to tell them the news and his orders. Otherwise, they might just go berserk and cause problems for all of us."
Isabelle grunted. Knowing that the Steelbreakers were Berserkers, setting them off was a bad idea and hearing news of Baldur's imprisonment would no doubt set them off. But if Oleg were the one to explain the situation then they might back off and keep themselves tamed... for now. Even she had heard stories of Berserkers from Feohmænd traders. She wasn't sure which stories were true but she had seen for herself how brutal and feral the Steelbreakers can be.
"That's probably a good idea."
"Hm. What about you? What are you gonna do?"
"Head back to Château de Calvet I guess." The Knight-Captain answered with a shrug "The Grand Mistress is probably expecting me back by now. I should get going. It's best not to keep her waiting."
"I think that's for the best." Oleg nodded "Best of luck to you, Knight-Captain."
(Line Break)
To say the Steelbreakers were angered was an understatement. They were furious. No sooner had Oleg told them that Baldur had been imprisoned under the orders of the Shield Princess of Ken, Erik and his pack had been ready to rush to Calvet Castle and break Baldur out but the Vaegir Mercenary Commander managed to talk them out of it and calm down... for the moment. They were still furious but after Oleg made a convincing argument, they had to back off. Unfortunately, this left them with a lot of pent up anger and those around them were too weary to get close lest they feel the Steelbreakers' wrath. Still. They followed Baldur's orders and continued on with their mercenary work. Taking a job before setting out as soon as possible. They wanted to hit and kill something so they took a job involving killing a group of bandits that had started terrorizing a nearby town for a couple of weeks now.
The Steelbreakers left Félagborg shortly after taking a job and brought with them the Axe Companions. As Captain of the Steelbreakers, he was the most senior Shield Companion and so had overall command of the group for this job. None of the Axe Companions or their Captain complained and the group left to hunt for the bandits. It took them two days to find out where the bandits had been hiding and Erik found out that these bandits were a part of an old bandit tribe from his homeland. The Fyrstendømmet Feoh. These bandits called themselves the Enslaved Ravens.
The Enslaved Ravens had been a notorious thorn on the side of both the Seven Shields Alliance and the Kingdom of Discordia. As the name implies, these bandits enslaved those they fought with the help of blood magic to boost their ranks. Any who tried to escape were bound by the blood magic to return to the tribe one way or another. Nobody knew how to counter this aside from bringing the enslaved directly to the Goddess Incarnate herself. To his great amusement, this tribe of bandits were nearly wiped out in one night. Not by the Alliance or the Discordians but by a warband of Orcs. Their men and soldiers were slaughtered and the women were taken as breeding cows.
The Enslaved Ravens were now a shell of their former selves and had become nothing more than your run off the mill bandits. They lost their knowledge of blood magic after their leader and his heir were killed. The latter was taken out by one of his own slaves. Now here they were or at least a fragment of the once mighty tribe. Picking up scraps and preying on the weak. Unable to face soldiers and Knights unlike the old days. Leaving them to sell their captives to slave traders rather than force them into their ranks.
The Steelbreakers and the Axe Companions scouted the Enslaved Ravens' hideout which was an old abandoned wooden fort built centuries ago. The walls could be scaled and Erik planned on taking advantage of that but first they had to wait. The company waited until tomorrow just as a thick afternoon fog set in and the majority of the bandits decided to head out to raid the town and roads once more. Leaving their hideout with a small group of defenders and a large number of captive slaves.
Once they were sure that the bandits were out of sight and far from the hideout, Erik began his attack.
The Steelbreakers began digging their way underneath the hideout. You can imagine the panic the bandits felt when the ground in the middle of the fort suddenly collapsed and formed before howling Nordmænd started climbing out of it and began slaughtering them one-by-one in the most brutal of fashion. Comparable to an attack from a pack of wolves or a rampaging bear.
Shortly after clearing them a path, the Axe Companions emerged from the hole and set about looting the hideout for anything of value. Be it coin, weapons, armor or even food stuffs. Passing by the cages that contained the captive slaves. They, however, miscalculated the number of bandits that remained in the hideout. The Axe Companions were slowed down from their looting by bandits emerging from their tents or whatever area they were hiding in.
The Captain of the Axe Companions, Ragnhild Stríðshrafn, cursed as another bandit came at her and she cut him down with one savage swing of her bearded axe into his exposed neck. She was forced to leave her axe buried in the man as a large bandit -rivalling Oleg in height- swung his weapon down at her. Ragnhild narrowly avoided the zweihänder from splitting her head in two before bashing her round shield repeatedly into the large bandit's torso until his back was to the wall. She then took out her long seax and stabbed him in the side. Causing the man to scream in pain before dropping his zweihänder and grabbing her by the shoulders then throwing her a couple of feet away.
Ragnhild landed on the ground and rolled to a stop on her stomach but soon felt a sharp pain in her abdomen after the large bandit kicked her in the gut and onto her back. She felt the bandit wrap his hands around het throat and started to squeeze tighter and tighter.
"You fucking bitch! I'm gonna snap your fucki- "
Too distracted by his anger, the large bandit failed to notice Ragnhild reaching for her second seax. As soon as her fingers wrapped around the handle, she didn't waste any time in unsheathing the blade and stabbing the man right in the temple. The bandit was still for a moment before falling on top of the Axe Companion. With a bit of effort, Ragnhild managed to push the corpse off of her and took a moment to gather her bearings.
Rising on all fours, she looked around her and saw her fellow Axe Companions were still fighting off a large number of bandits while the Steelbreakers had let loose and were tearing apart their opponents. One of them was beating a bandit to death with their shield while two Steelbreakers took turns in swinging their weapons into a bandit's abdomen and chest respectively. Nothing out of the ordinary when it comes to Berserkers.
Shaking her head, Ragnhild stood up and went about retrieving her weapons.
Meanwhile, Erik howled as he released his grip on the bandit who had a large chunk of his throat ripped out. He then spun on his heel and threw his axe at a bandit that was running towards him. Burying the weapon in the bandit's chest. Erik suddenly broke into a sprint towards the bandit before jumping and kicking both his legs out into the bandit's chest with enough force to throw the man to the ground. His body bent in half on the ground.
Erik grabbed the handle of his bearded axe and ripped it out of the dead man's chest before gripping the weapon with both hands and started wildly hacking at another bandit who was using a shield to block his attacks. The Steelbreaker roared loudly and the ferocity of his attacks increased until the shield splintered in two and the bandit fell on one knee before meeting his end as Erik split the man's head in two.
The sound of hooves grabbed his attention and he turned around to see a bandit on horseback riding towards him. Trampling an Axe Companion who was unfortunate enough to be in his path.
Erik snarled at the bandit and gripped his bearded axe tightly before throwing the axe at the bandit rider. Watching in satisfaction as the axe sailed through the air before burying itself into the man's head and knocking him off his horse.
With a huff, the Steelbreaker Captain unsheathed his long seax and took up his shield. He'll get the axe back later once this is over.
"Oluf. Holger. Bjørnar." He called out.
The mentioned Steelbreakers finished off their opponents and made their way towards their Captain.
"Gather six corpses. Tie them by the ankles over the entrance." He ordered.
"But what about the fighting?" Bjørnar questioned.
"Just do it. We'll leave a few alive for you three."
The three nodded and left but Bjørnar grumbled along the way about being stuck with the 'leftovers' later. Erik shook his head before looking out at the fort. By now, the Nordmænd had taken out much of the bandits and many of the Axe Companions were piling up their loot on a cart. Only a few stragglers were left and they would taken care of in a few moments. The Steelbreaker Captain's eyes landed on the cages holding the captive slaves and grunted in annoyance.
Erik made his way over to the captive slaves and scoffed upon finding that they were locked inside of simple wooden cages. He proceeded to break open each of the cages and ignored the fearful and weary looks they sent him. Who wouldn't be afraid? After all. Blood still dripped down his mouth after he ripped off a bandit's throat with his teeth and it didn't help that they had witnessed the Steelbreakers go Berserk and ripped their enemies apart.
"I'm not going to eat you." He stated "We're just here for the bandits. You can leave or you can stay. Just don't get in our way."
Without another word, Erik walked away. Intent on finishing off the last of the bandits with the rest of the company. Once they're done here, the group wasn't going to leave just yet. They'll be waiting for the rest of the Enslaved Ravens to return from their raids and when they do, they'll be in for a surprise.
That night, the air was filled with the stench of death and the howling of wolves.
(Line Break)
Bhaltair threw the apple core over his shoulder and wiped his mouth before getting off the ground and picked up his crossbow. He and his Highlanders had set up camp for the night and were planning on leaving at first light. They have a long way to go before they reach the Principality of Ansur. Their current job involved escorting a merchant caravan from Vinlun, through the Merchant Republic of Rad then end their journey in the Principality of Ansur. It'll take a long time and Bhaltair would rather stay in Félagborg and wait for Baldur to be set free but the Nord would not like that if he did that. The Rhodok knew that their leader would demand why he wasted his time waiting around rather than doing something to benefit of the company. That's one way to get kicked out of the Shield Companions and Bhaltair loved the company. More than any other mercenary company he had joined before meeting Baldur.
The Rhodok heard a whistle to his left and looked to one of the caravans they were escorting and saw the twin daughters of one of the merchants beckoning him over. One of them even hiked up her skirt and gave him a good view of her womanhood. As much as he enjoyed the sight and wanting nothing more than to take both sisters then and there and show them how passionate he can be, Bhaltair shook his head at the two and turned away. Sometimes it was hard being a Shield Companion. Staying true to their oaths but he loved the company too much to break his oaths for a good fuck. Besides, there's always the girls back in Vinlun. Once he's done with this long-term job, they'd go straight back to Vinlun to complete the job then they can go and indulge themselves.
After all, you'll only get kicked out if you fuck while on the job. Once the job's done, you can do whatever the hell you like but only if you can still do your job as a Shield Companion the morning after. If he can hold himself back in Calradia then he can damn well hold himself back here too. Granted it was a little harder considering the 'clothes' worn by many beautiful and voluptuous women of Eostia was very enticing. Heh. He has seen whores back in Calradia who wore more modest clothing than Eostian women as well as those Dark Elves. Didn't stop him from being a sharpshooter though. The Dark Elves' lack of proper armor only made them an easier target for him.
Bhaltair took off his kettle helmet and pulled back the mail coif then wiped his sweat and ran a hand through his hair. Not a moment later, an arrow whizzed past his head and struck the tree next to him. He pulled his mail coif back on as well as his helmet and took cover behind the tree while loading a steel bolt into his crossbow.
"WE'RE UNDER ATTACK!!" He yelled.
The Highlanders dropped whatever they were doing and took up their weapons just as arrows and javelins started raining down on their campsite. Bhaltair yelled at the merchants to take cover though a few weren't fast enough and were struck down by the arrows. Thankfully, none of them were fatal and the Rhodok ordered his Highlanders to drag the wounded to safety while he peeked out the corner of the tree and searched for their attackers. Unfortunately, it was too dark and he can barely see anything past the campsite.
'Damnit.' He cursed inwardly.
His narrowed eyes spotted a figure dropping down from the trees and he quickly took aim before sending a steel bolt towards the figure. Despite the darkness, his accuracy was only slightly hampered. Rather than hit the figure's head, the bolt instead buried itself in the back of the figure's neck.
Moments later, another figure jumped down from the trees before running into the open. Revealing themselves to be humans. Bandits most likely.
Putting away his crossbow, Bhaltair took out his warhammer and listened for the bandit's rushing footsteps before swinging his weapon and impaling the bandit's throat with the spiked end of his warhammer. The Rhodok wrenched his weapon free and let the bandit crumple to the ground before looking out the campsite as the rest of the bandits revealed themselves and started attacking the caravan though a few remained in the trees to shoot arrows at them.
Bhaltair grunted and put away his warhammer in favor of his greatsword while also putting away his helmet and pulling back his hood. He dashed towards the first bandit he saw and sliced them in two with one swing of his blade. He turned to his left and smashed his forehead against his next opponent's own forehead with enough force to send the other man to the ground. Causing his own helmet to fly off. He either didn't notice or didn't care as he kicked the man's head hard enough to snap the bandit's neck.
A blow to the back forced Bhaltair to turn around and grabbed his attacker by the shirt before running them through with his blade. Two other bandits closed in on him and tried to restrain his arms but he didn't make it easy for them. He elbowed the one on his left to free his arm then punching the one on his right and breaking their nose in the process.
Staggering back, the bandit tripped and fell on his backside. He looked up only for the last thing he sees was the blade of Bhaltair's greatsword as it descended on him.
Bhaltair removed his bloody blade from the dead bandit and looked around him to see his Highlanders had decided use the tactics he drilled into them. Half of his Highlanders engaged the bandits in melee and kept them in place while the other half were searching for an elevated position to bolts down at the preoccupied bandits. Since there was no elevated position around, the Highlanders improvised and decided to climb up the top of the caravans and shoot from their. He watched in satisfaction as the bandits dwindled in numbers. It won't be long before-
"Help!"
Bhaltair's head snapped to the cry and saw a group of bandits dragging the twins away. Three of the bandits stopped and one of them slapped the sister who cried for help before throwing her to the ground. The other two held her arms while the one who slapped her placed himself between her legs and ripped open her skirt before pulling his pants down and positioning his cock close to her entrance.
Just as the man was about to shove his cock inside her, the tip of a steel bolt suddenly burst out of his throat. The bandit fell on top of the young woman who screamed as the man convulsed and choked on his own blood. This caused the other two to release their grip on the young woman and look up at the killer of their fellow bandit only for the one on the left have his head snap back when a steel bolt struck him directly in the eye. The one on the right got up and ran for the trees. Thinking he was safe when he was almost to the tree line only to stop and fall to the ground as a steel bolt hit him directly on the back of the head.
The Rhodok lowered his crossbow and loaded another bolt before aiming his weapon at the three other bandits that were dragging the other twin. His aim true, Bhaltair sent the steel bolt into the back of the head of the bandit holding up the woman's legs and he dropped dead. The suddenness of it caused the other two to let go of the twin's arms and dropping the woman to the ground. Bhaltair then ran towards them with a knife in one hand and a warhammer in the other.
Bhaltair roared as he swung his warhammer and struck the bandit on the left across the cheek. Sending the man stumbling to the ground. He then used the shaft of the warhammer to block the other bandit's sword and started rapidly stabbing the man in the abdomen before smashing his forehead against the man's own. With his opponent dead, the Rhodok spread his arms out and looked to the stars.
"BHALTAIR!!"
(Line Break)
The sound of incessant tapping can be heard as Knight-Captain Isabelle repeatedly tapped her fingers on the wooden table of the castle's dining hall and matched the rhythm of her foot tapping the floor.
Two days has passed since Baldur's imprisonment and there was still no word from the Duke of Beaugendre. It was making Isabelle anxious on top of the Grand Mistress who looked like she was on the verge of lashing out and no one knew why she was so. When Isabelle returned to Château de Calvet, she found the Grand Mistress was in a very foul mood. Estelle informed her that Grand Mistress Claudia's husband arrived and spoke to her about something urgent. Whatever it was had the Dawn Templars' leader fuming ever since and she kept tight-lipped about whatever was bothering her. Her husband had decided to stay and was keeping himself busy in the Duke of Calvet's study. Klaus only ever left the study to converse with Baldur who entertained the smaller man's questions and inquiries. Mostly about Calradia, it's inhabitants and politics. The kindly scholar never left the study much. Not even for meals.
Meanwhile, Grand Mistress Claudia could be found in the study with her husband when night falls but she spent most of her time overseeing the Templars that were staying which were the Templars she brought with her as well as the Templars that accompanied her mother. She made sure to drill them in the morning with training and spars in the afternoon. Then guard duty in the night. Even her mother joined in. Almost having her head chopped off back in the Siege of Besanvin had her mother take up a brutal training regime which Isabelle thought was a bad idea considering her mother's age though she didn't say it out loud.
Speaking of the Calvet Knight-Commander, her mother had been interrogating her about her 'relationship' with the barbarian. Something she and the Grand Mistress had cornered her at different times when she returned from Vinlun though the Grand Mistress focused more on her relationship and dealings with the company overall. Her mother asked questions specifically about Baldur. The first set of questions were normal but then it started turning awkward before becoming just plain ridiculous and embarrassing. Times like these she wondered if age was finally getting to her mother. She wasn't even that old. At least on the outside. Her mother looked like she was just hitting forty when she was actually hitting fifty one in a couple of months.
Isabelle groaned. Seriously. Why the hell would her mother even ask her about the size of Baldur's cock or whether or not if he was good in bed as he was in the battlefield? Why on earth would she even ask that in the first place?
The Knight-Captain's eyes narrowed as a memory earlier this year popped into her mind. Her mother had drank a little too much wine and started rambling in her drunken state. One of her ramblings was about how she had been denied the pleasures of the flesh for years because of her duty as a Knight-Commander as well as something about finding the right man. Her mother then went on and on about how her partner should be able to appease her sexual appetite and fuck her so hard and rough that she wouldn't be able to think straight for a day.
It was at that point that Isabelle finally reached her mother's room and decided to just throw her mother in the bed before leaving the room as fast as her legs could manage. She really didn't want to think about her mother and her sex life. She succeeded for the most part... until now that is.
Isabelle could feel herself shiver in disgust as images of her mother sleeping with the Nord assaulted her mind before smashing her forehead into the table and let out a groan.
"Uh. Are you alright, Knight-Captain?"
Recognizing the voice as belonging to her second, Isabelle didn't bother to move her head or even look up at her lieutenant to answer.
"No." She replied. Her voice slightly muffled but still understandable "No, I'm not."
"...Wanna talk about it? "
"No. Just- Just no."
Estelle raised a brow at her captain before shaking her head and leaving the dining hall. She headed down the corridor leading to the keep's entrance with the intent of heading for the courtyard where the other Dawn Templars were sparring. She was still getting used to fighting with only one eye. Losing half of her vision left her quite disoriented for the first couple of weeks but she had grown used to it. Fighting, on the other hand, was a different story.
The Knight-Lieutenant eventually arrived in the courtyard and was surprised to see the Grand Maîtresse herself in the makeshift ring. Her eyes landed on the Grand Mistress' opponents and winced upon seeing how beat up they are. She felt sorry for them knowing that they were probably too afraid to back out from the fight if Grand Mistress Claudia was the one to pick them for a spar.
"KNIGHT-LIEUTENANT ESTELLE."
Estelle straightened as Claudia set her sights on the younger woman.
"In the ring. Now."
"As you wish, Grand Mistress."
The Knight-Lieutenant barely managed to keep her voice from quivering before making her way towards the ring. Ignoring the sympathetic looks sent her way by her fellow Dawn Templars.
'Maybe it wouldn't be so bad. Yeah. Yeah. I can do this!'
As soon as Estelle entered the ring and faced the Grand Mistress of the Dawn Templars whose eyes were still burning with rage, all her confidence jumped out the window and the Knight-Lieutenant started panicking on the inside.
'Nevermind. I can't do this. I'm going to die.'
Despite her thoughts, Estelle willed her hands to stop shaking. She grabbed the handle of her weapon and unsheathed her longsword from it's scabbard before gripping the handle with both hands. She dropped into a fighting stance and prepared herself to face the Grand Mistress of their Order. Feeling sweat drip freely down the side of her head.
Meanwhile, Claudia already had her weapon ready and dropped into a fighting stance as well. Despite fighting five Dawn Templars in quick succession, Claudia was barely winded. What Klaus had told her of what Grave said was unacceptable. She knew their relationship was strained but she didn't think her father-in-law -her mentor- would go so far as to insult and disown his only son. She would have called Klaus out for lying but she knew he was no liar and the look in his eyes after he told her what happened was the last straw.
'How? How could you do this? Why would you do this, Grave?' She thought.
Still feeling her rage burn deep inside her, Claudia nodded to one of her Dawn Templars who nodded back and raised her hand in the air before bringing it down.
"BEGIN!"
Claudia let out a battle cry and sprinted towards Estelle who wisely got out of the way as the Grand Mistress leaped into the air and brought her longsword down on the Knight-Lieutenant. The blade smashed into the ground and left cracks on the earth much to the shock of those in attendance.
While Claudia's thoughts fueled her anger and her strength, Estelle stared wide-eyed at what happened and could only think of one thing at the moment.
'MERCIFUL GODDESS. I'M GOING TO FUCKING DIE!!'
"Grand Maîtresse!"
"WHAT?!"
Claudia saw her Dawn Templars looking at her with fear and realized her outburst before quickly recovering. Clearing her throat and fixing her hair before turning to the Dawn Templar that called out to her.
"Well. What is it?"
Said Dawn Templar shook her head and pointed down at the castle's entrance.
"A carriage is arriving, Grand Mistress. They carry the banner of House Beaugendre. It's Duke Corin, Grand Mistress!"
As soon as she said that, a horn was sounded to announce the arrival of the Duke of Beaugendre as the carriage carrying the man arrived through the gates before stopping in front of the castle's keep.
Claudia's eyes widened and quickly sheathed her blade before exiting the ring. She hadn't expected the Duke to arrive this early. As far as she knew, he was still bedridden and too sick to leave the bed. Let alone travel all the way to Calvet. This was very unexpected.
As soon as the Grand Mistress left the ring, Estelle dropped to her knees and looked at the cracks on the earth left by the Grand Mistress' weapon. Shaking her head, Estelle proceeded to thank the Goddess that she was still alive. She had fought and defeated bandits, Beastmen, Dark Elves and Orcs yet facing the Dark Queen almost made her piss herself in fear and blackout.
Back to Claudia, the Grand Mistress of the Dawn Templars stood outside the carriage as said carriage's door opened and two servants carried the Duke of Beaugendre out in a stretcher made of wicker and emblazoned with finery. Despite his sickly appearance, Claudia could see the anger displayed on the Duke of Beaugendre's features.
"Forgive me for my tone, Your Highness. But where is my fool of a son?"
"He's inside one of the guest chambers, Duke Corin. I have guards stationed outside his door at all times."
"Good. The boy won't cause much trouble then. H- "
Duke Corin was cut off by a coughing fit before cursing himself once it ended and looke back at the Grand Mistress.
"Forgive me, Your Highness."
"It's alright, Duke Corin. But I must ask. Should you not have stayed in bed until you are ready to travel?"
"I'm fine, Your Highness. Besides, I've had just about enough of that boy's foolishness. I came not only at the request of Arnoult but to also clear this misunderstanding and speak to the boy about his actions."
Claudia nodded and stepped out of the way "I'm sure you would like to get this over with but I implore you to rest for the moment."
Duke Corin moved to protest but was stopped by another coughing fit and relented with a sigh.
"Very well, Your Highness."
The Grand Mistress watched the Duke's servants carry him inside the keep. Two Templars opened the keep's doors and allowed the sickly man and his servants entrance to the keep. Claudia moved to follow but stopped when she felt someone watching her. Her eyes looked around the courtyard and found nothing out of the ordinary before landing on a pair of black ravens perched on a tree branch. For some reason, the two ravens kept their gaze on her. Neither making sound nor moving apart from their heads which followed her every move.
Deciding to ignore them, Claudia continued on to the keep. It was only after she stepped foot inside the keep did the two flew away. Oddly enough, nobody else seemed to notice the two ravens' presence.
AN: This took fucking forever. Then again it's my fault for going back to Warband. I say to myself I'll finish the chapter but then I open up the pc and play modded Warband instead and wasted the entire day there. At least this is out of the way.