Darren found himself irritated. He never spent so much time away from home and he was travelling knowing that his father was probably dead and he wasn't there when he breathed his last. He couldn't stand the thought that when he was going home, whenever that was, he would be ushered in as the new king before he could recover from the fact that it would be the first time in Adoss since his father passed. He was sure his sister was alright and she would behave for her own sake in the very least, but there would always be doubt in his mind about whether or not Lauren was truly safe with the enemy. It was too late to do anything about that though. He was also really beginning to get tired of Fraedia and though they ran into little trouble in terms of the bandits and slave traders, he just didn't feel comfortable in it.
Fraedia seemed to be a mess of a country. From the towns and villages that they passed, it seemed that poverty was rampant. Perhaps that was why the bandit and slave trader problem was so bad in the first place – people were just desperate and they were willing to do anything they had to. It was the first time he really saw such wide-spread poverty before. He been around Adoss before and while there was some disparity between the classes, people could still work for a living and didn't often resort to the things that Fraedians did. Part of that reason was because... damn it, it always went back to Igneous.
The people in charge of the temple always charged for Igneous' services at the door, so even if Igneous wanted to do a free reading, he couldn't offer one unless he was outside of the temple for whatever reason. When a noble paid for a reading, and why they would was beyond Darren, the gold they paid went back to the temple's duty to help those in need, such as those in poverty. Taxes paid by the middle to high class also helped with a poor to a small extent but since the temple proceeds did so well, only a small percentage of taxes actually went to the poor and most of it got spent elsewhere. He supposed what hurt the Fraedian people the most was the lack of care from their king, Eradus, and such attitudes spread to the nobility or at least that was the situation explained to him by his father.
In fact, Darren had no doubts that the nobility was mostly afraid of each other, especially the closer the nobles were to the king. The nobles had the soldiers at their disposal so that they could be protected from other nobles vying for their position but they could disguise it as protecting themselves from bandits.
They had to stop to let the horses rest but as they did so, they decided to take stock of what supplies they had. They were low on dried food. Their tents and bedrolls were still in good shape but Darren was definitely worried about the lack of food. At least Fraedia, being close to Vedia, did have some prominent rivers, so it wouldn't be hard to find more fresh water.
"I'm sorry," he mumbled when he saw just how low on dried food they were. "I shouldn't have rushed everybody back in Adoss."
"It's fine... I doubt your rushing was what caused this. I believe I was the one who said our supplies looked good," Fara muttered. "I didn't account for losing a day in the forest and barely moving."
"Yeah, the forests are thick here," Ajax said with a sigh. "It just looks like shelter for criminals. I know you wanted to avoid the border that Fraedia shares with The Barren but it looks like we're damned if we do and damned if we don't."
Darren did want to avoid the border because he didn't feel like they were equipped to deal with the Zahan army. He was aware that there was an attack in Dosia but if they were taken care of by the oracle's guardians and some citizens from what he heard, then Zahan obviously sent their weakest. However, it wasn't hard for Zahan to send their strongest by cutting through The Barren to get to any country on Haelin quickly. Heck, there was a good chance they were in The Barren already, for whatever reason, making it even more dangerous for him to be close to the border. However, he couldn't keep getting lost in the forest either.
"What we need is an expert," Darren mumbled. "Surely, if we hired one of these people from the villages, they could guide us through the forest. We can probably buy more food while we're at it."
"Do you think they would? Ajax made a good point when he said the forests look like shelter... I do think we need to buy more food though. It might stimulate their economy a bit," Fara offered.
"It would probably get stolen somehow but sure, let's go with that. Where was the last village we saw?" Darren mumbled.
"Probably half a day back," Ajax answered. "I don't think we have to go back though. We still have a couple of days left before we run out of food so surely, we will be able to find another village in that time frame if we avoid the forests."
"I guess that's the best we can do for now," Darren mumbled. He was really looking forward to getting to Vedia and getting out of the Fraedia once and for all. At least Vedia had a real military that was designed to protect their country and their people – even if the military was primarily made of their navy. Darren sighed and approached his horse, jumping up onto his back. "Let's go then. The horses should be good."
It was tempting to go through the next forest when they found it while looking for a village. It didn't seem to be like the large one they got lost in previously and there was an actual path going in. "Well, should we?" Darren asked as he approached the first on his horse. Ajax rode up beside him, his face apprehensive. "I say a path is a good sign."
"It's your choice," Fara muttered. "A path would make it trickier to get lost but I'm still worried that we haven't met any sort of trouble. We've been here long enough to have seen something by now."
"That's what I'm worried about too..." Ajax mumbled. "It might not take that much longer to go around."
Darren considered his options. Fara and Ajax were probably right but there was a certain charm to the forest. His last experience in the forest annoyed him but maybe this forest would be a welcome improvement. "I think we're going through!"
Ajax mumbled something that Darren couldn't hear but he earned a strange look from Fara. He wondered if he made the wrong choice but he didn't want to back down on decision like that. It wasn't a good thing for a prince to look like he couldn't make decisions when he was supposed to be in charge of a country. He guided his horse into the forest and his two companions followed him in.
The forest didn't look much different from the last one – it was pretty shady and it felt a little cooler when they weren't in the sun. It was actually kind of nice. However, things went wrong when the winding path grew narrow before abruptly disappearing into grass. There was a rustling in the trees but there wasn't much of a breeze, even out in the open, so it was a little out of place in a forest. He looked up and Darren was at first relieved to see a small squirrel in the tree. It looked at him for a moment before it dropped a nut of some sort onto his face but Darren was pretty damn sure that the squirrel just hated him and threw the darn thing at him.
"Damn squirrel," he mumbled as he rubbed his forehead. "It threw a nut at me!"
"I don't think it threw it at you," Fara muttered. "Maybe you just startled it."
"He startled me," Darren growled.
"Darren, look out!" Ajax shouted, jumping off his horse and drawing a weapon that he kept on his horse's side. Darren jumped too, just in time to dodge a hand axe that dug itself into the tree that was beside him. The squirrel might have hated him but he wasn't the only one.
"Thanks, Ajax," Darren mumbled as he recovered his wits. Bandits jumped from the trees, landing on the ground around them. He couldn't help but to wonder just how long they were being followed. Why didn't they notice them? Darren took out his lance and stabbed a bandit who tried to come from behind him, only to narrowly escape the large swing of an axe.
"Did you guys think you could parade around here with your shiny armour?" one of the bandits asked. Darren was surprised to see it was a woman and a rather slim one at that. She was heavily scarred, with dark hair that she pulled back into a pony tail and dark coloured eyes. Perhaps she was the leader of them all.
"So they decided to wait and regroup," Fara growled as buried her lance into a large man. She managed to tear it out just in time to strike down another bandit that threatened to kill her.
"All of us low-class outcasts need to stick together, especially when you guys look so rich," the woman from before said with a laugh. She was fast and that was probably why she survived for so long. Darren was fast too but he was unfamiliar with fighting on terrain that wasn't flat. The forest had tree roots, uneven slopes, and bushes to contend with, especially with no path, all while he had to focus on dodging and killing bandits before they killed him. The bandits they were against were no joke – they seemed to attack in pairs, except for who he guessed to be the leader, so that every attack they did followed up with each other. Even when one of them died, the other still pulled through for their attack.
They were also much better adjusted to the forest than any of them were. Not only were they hiding in the trees but they also kept themselves hidden amongst the trees on the ground because no matter how many they put down, another bandit always took the place of one who died. Darren bit his lips as the woman from before came up on him with another female at her side, this one looking a lot bigger than most women Darren knew. He barely dodged their attacks, and he also managed to dig his lance into the bigger woman's gut.
"Darren!" Fara shouted suddenly. Darren moved when she screamed but he still felt a deep, sharp pain in his shoulder. He hissed in pain as he was pushed to the ground from behind, making his weapon fell from his hands. "Hold on!"
Darren rolled out of the way and jumped to his feet, his shoulder making him grunt in pain again. He didn't have his lance but he swiped a lance from a dead bandit and brought it up just in time to block a blow meant for his head.
Fara and Ajax were both overwhelmed. It was clear that they were also in the same predicament he found himself in – the terrain was unfamiliar and the bandits were cunning. He didn't get much time to even come up with a plan because all his head could focus on was the fact that he needed to survive. He didn't see anymore reinforcements from the edge of the forest but that hardly meant much when there was so many of them still close.
On top of it all, the wound on his shoulder was growing more aggravated by the constant moving he had to do. He stepped back and hissed in pain as pain erupted from his ankle – he must have stepped down on it incorrectly. It wasn't the first time he did something to his ankle by doing something relatively simple and he doubted it was the last. The man grinned like he knew and sent the axe his way. Darren dove for the ground and grabbed his opponent's ankle, pulling him to the ground with him. He grabbed a lance and stabbed the man in the gut just as Fara ran over to him.
"We need to stay together," she mumbled as she protectively stood over him. With a nod, Darren held his breath and gritted his teeth as he forced himself to his feet and had to place some weight on it. By the time he was back on his feet, he was in the most pain he could ever recall, but Ajax made it to their position. He was covered in light cuts but his armour managed to take the brunt of their attacks, if all the scratches were of any indication.
"I see that the armour isn't for show." The leader was still alive and doing quite well. She motioned for the bandits to stop. There were still a lot left, probably at least twenty but he trusted that Ajax and Fara could handle it while he stayed off his bad ankle. "Who are you guys anyway? Mercenaries? Most can't afford armour like that."
"It doesn't mater," Darren mumbled. Damn, everything hurt.
"Ah well, I suppose it doesn't," she said, holding her hand up as if to motion for attack. Ajax tensed as he brought his weapon into position. Just before she could call an attack, a shadow jumped in front of them, a sword in hand. He was from covered head to toe in black armour, which was decorated with a gold trim. There was not one bit of flesh that could be seen and even the underarmour was barely visible. The armour itself was something that Darren never really saw before and he could only describe it as dragon-like. The pauldorns were oversized and he could still see his covered shoulders under the armour while his helmet seemed to have wings that were mostly flat but flared at the ends. The front also came to a point like a horn. At his side, he had two swords, one in a black and gold sheath .
"You guys are seriously under prepared for a battle in a Fraedian forest." Darren assumed that it was a male he was talking to because the voice was masculine and it was obvious even while being somewhat distorted by the helmet. "I expect nothing else from those wearing Adoss' colours. If you want to win, hire somebody from Fraedia. You'll do better."
"If you help us win, you're hired," Darren hissed. The quips about Adoss were highly unnecessary but he was in too much pain to really care about that at the moment. He was suffering from blood loss and what seemed to be a twisted ankle so his patriotism wasn't the highest priority.
"Pfft, easy," the man murmured, withdrawing a curved sabre from his hip. Darren could see a red line from the guard to the tip of the blade.
"You're welcomed to try," the leader growled, charging at armoured man with her sword. Despite all of his armour, he was even quicker. He caught the leader by the shoulder and pushed the sabre through her stomach, twisting it before pulling it out, then he used the moment of confusion caused by her death to take down the nearby bandits. Fara stayed by his side while Ajax joined in on the battle. The bandits weren't confused anymore but their morale was clearly damaged since the tide of the battles suddenly turned against them.
For a moment, Darren could sit and breathe. Fara took the opportunity to begin inspecting the wound he had on his shoulder. It didn't seem to take long for Ajax and their new ally to finish clearing what bandits remained to fight, as some threw their weapons down and fled. Neither one of them bothered to go after those who fled – it just wasn't worth their time. When it was all said and done, Fara was the first to speak.
"What did you mean when you said it was expected of us?" she demanded.
"Adoss knows nothing of battle," he stated simply like it was something everybody knew or should have known. If Darren could see his face, he imagined that he would be wearing a smug look. "Adoss entertains the idea of training and having a military but all it's just a waste of time and money. The soldiers they pump out aren't capable of defending anybody because they never needed to defend anybody. I head that Zahan attacked you guys first and if that's true, all I can say if that I'm not surprised. Adoss is easy picking."
"You know nothing of Adoss!" Fara growled.
"I saw all I needed to see here," he said, sounding rather amused. He turned his attention to Darren. "Now, you said you would hire me if we won. What sort of price are we speaking?"
"You name it," Darren muttered. He didn't have the energy to argue. "We're going to Vedia or maybe even Silcyia. We need to amass some numbers to help take back Adoss. I can't exactly pay you until Adoss is free again and I have access to the gold there."
"And you guys nearly fell here," he muttered sarcastically. "I'd say twenty thousand would be worth my time. I'm assuming it's all gold minted in Adoss."
"Of course," Darren muttered. Twenty thousand did sound a little expensive for one person but Darren could certainly see that the man could back his talk with real skill and Darren's contract needed to be better than any contracts he could be missing. He was asking for a lot of the man's time. "It's a deal then. What's your name?"
"You may call me Zahreen."
"I'm Fara, this is Ajax, and this is Prince Darren."
"Oh, you guys were probably trying to be serious then with this fight," he said with a chuckle. "You are supposed to be the best then. Oops on your part, Darren."
"Oh shut it, you!"
Zahreen stopped chuckling and then shook his head. "Don't act like there are nice people in Fraedia that will do the same work I can. They just don't exist. You're only mad because you know I'm right. You haven't even tried to argue against me, Fara! Your little princey there already hired me but I can also just walk away now and I have no doubt I'll stumble over your bodies in a week while doing another job. You need me but I don't really need you. Your choice."
"Fara, just try not to argue with him. I don't have any energy to listen to it!" Darren muttered. He was beginning to feel light headed. Fara huffed but she found the horses and she retrieved their supplies. He sat patiently as Fara and Ajax treated his wounds but he watched Zahreen the entire time. He was a strange man. He wasn't afraid to speak his negative opinions and he didn't seem to care if his words struck a nerve and they struck a nerve because Darren couldn't exactly argue with him. Zahreen probably knew it and it probably only entertained him further, giving him more fuel for his words. The more they talked, the more flaws Zahreen was able to find and weaponize.
Oh well. Darren couldn't afford to care about the personalities of the people he hired. Adoss needed skill and Zahreen certainly had it. He couldn't let Zahreen get to him and Fara shouldn't let him under her skin. Ajax was the one only who didn't give their new ally another chance to be a jerk and it was probably because Ajax must have known nothing good would come from it. He just let his axe do the talking and Zahreen a had yet to make a personal attack against him. In this regard, Ajax seemed almost older than he truly was.
Zahreen chuckled a little bit more before motioning for everybody to follow him. "Anyway, we should get getting. Bandits don't disappear at night and I would rather not lose an employer."
Darren merely nodded. He was ready to get out of the forest anyway.
While camping in a middle of a clearing, Darren noticed that Zahreen was gone. He couldn't see him on the edges of their camp, not that his ankle would let him really look further than yet, and he wasn't in any of the tents they set up which he ended up crawling to. It was weird for somebody they hired to be gone so soon and without a word at that.
He was pissed.
Sure, it wasn't like any coins had actually moved. Zahreen was paid yet so he was still allowed to leave because he was the one who had to trust Darren and not the other way around. However, for somebody who talked so much about the state of Adoss' military, he sure ended up disappearing like a coward in the end. It made his blood boil.
"Who hell does he think he is? I only tolerated his over-the-top criticism because I thought I was going to gain a skilled ally! Why the fuck did he go fuck off?" he mumbled as he settled into a spot by the fire that Ajax had made before it got too dark to make one. Ajax also found a roll of bandages and tossed it to Darren so he could further bind his bad ankle. Zaheen rushed them out of the forest since the clearings were apparently safer, so Darren never really had the chance to properly bind his ankle properly. It would at least prevent his ankle from getting worse.
"Darren, that sort of language is not becoming of a prince," Fara mumbled as she dug out their dried food for the evening. "But it's strange that he would leave. I wanted a chance to prove myself... prove that Adoss doesn't fool around with training."
"It's not like actual Fraedian soldiers can be so much better," Ajax mumbled with a shrug. "He keeps saying he's comparing us to bandits but it's more likely that he's comparing us to soldiers in Silycia and in that case, everybody is terrible."
"Those are rumoured to be the best in Haelin, no?" Fara asked. Darren nodded.
"From what I heard from my Father, Silycian training is legendary but not everybody gets so far because the desert can be so brutal. Apparently, the first test is getting to a trainer," Darren answered with a shrug.
"You can say that," Zahreen said, suddenly appearing behind Darren with his arms folded awkwardly in front of his chest because of all the armour. He tried not to jump – he didn't to appear any weaker in front of him. "You know that yet still have the lofty goal of possibly going there? I gave you the benefit of doubt too!"
"Where the heck did you go? I thought you ran away," Darren mumbled with a growl.
"There's nothing in Fraedia that scares me, so there is no point in running. I just had some matters to take care of alone."
It crossed Darren's mind that maybe Zahreen was really keen on keeping his armour on for some strange reason. Wasn't armour just for protection from sharp, metal objects during battle? What was the point in keeping it on all the time? What if it needed repair? And wasn't stepping away all the time super inconvenient? Just thinking about the fact that somebody's obsession went so far ended up annoying Darren. What was so damn important about it?
Maybe he was just horribly disfigured and was too ashamed of himself to see anybody without his armour on. That might explain his horrible attitude.
He must have had a look on his face because he Zahreen didn't take his eyes off of him, or at least the front of his helmet was pointed at him.
"But if you are serious about going there, then I have no problem taking you," Zahreen said suddenly as he withdrew one his blades, the curve sabre again, and turned it to Darren. "But only if you are serious... if you want to go because some stupid romanticized image, then I'll feed you to the scavengers there. I won't let you disgrace Silycia."
"What's your problem all of a sudden?" Darren growled, despite the sword. He knew that nothing would happen to him because he needed to be alive if gold was going to be moved around. Zahreen immediately put his sword back to his hip and turned away from him.
"Doing your best dog impression, I see," Zahreen said with a chuckle. "Do you always do that? You have a terrible attitude, acting all high and mighty when somebody dares say anything but praise for you. Don't you have bigger issues to focus on than somebody like me?"
"Zahreen, that's enough," Fara said in the calmest voice she could muster. Zahreen had her on edge it seemed. She had something to prove to him when she shouldn't even bother but she did because anyway because maybe, she ultimately had something to prove to herself. Zahreen shook her world, she wasn't as good as a soldier as she thought she was when the fighting environment was controlled and consistent. "And why do you insist on insulting us every chance you get?"
"Why not?"
Darren rolled his eyes. He was bothered by him too but he found himself a lot calmer than he was earlier, since it was clear that Zahreen wasn't leaving after all he said. When he was around, there was somebody to hold responsible for those words so he felt a strange calm with his return. However, he rubbed Darren the same way Igneous did, in that Darren had to admit that they weren't just running their mouths and were onto something but there was something in him that still had trouble accepting that. The oracle was much kinder than Zahreen was but he didn't like what either of them had to say. It was almost easier to accept Zahreen's words because his argument was at least logical but who knows where Igneous was pulling his ideas from?
He was just too stubborn, he supposed.
"So you were trained in Silcyia then," Ajax mumbled to himself, chewing on a piece of dried fruit. "I know the Fraedian army wouldn't train any better than the Adoss army, and you were obviously better than the presumably self-trained bandits. It appears that if there was one thing you do care about, it was the time spent in Silcyia."
"You could say that."
Darren really hated how he couldn't see the man's face.
"But even if you didn't want to take us, you would have to follow us either way, no?" Ajax asked, a ghost of a smirk playing on his lips. "Or is there a point where we just become too much trouble?"
"Heh, that won't happen."
"I think I'm going to rest now," Darren mumbled as he stood up and bit the inside of his cheeks to prevent himself from commenting on the pain that erupted from applying any weight to his bad ankle. He made it to his tent quickly and practically collapsed into his bedroll. He fell asleep almost immediately.
Asteria called for a meeting as soon as a messenger from Adoss arrived, saying that Demitri accomplished what he sent to do and was awaiting for further orders. The meeting was late at night but it seemed as though everybody she wanted to invite was awake anyway. She tried to invite Erin but she seemed so wrapped up in her studies that she didn't notice that Asteria had approached and when she saw how busy Erin was, she decided not to bother her. She needed whatever information Erin could gather and their time in The Barren was almost up, so she wanted Erin to dedicate whatever time she could to last minute researching. However, the rest of the generals showed up no problem.
She picked her generals on merit – they had something that would advance her cause, such as loyalty, leadership, tactics, or immense strength and power with their chosen weapons. Some of them were from noble birth, which certainly helped because those picked to be in the military used their military might to strength their family's noble status but there were others who she never heard of previously.
They met in the centre, where where the dip was. The first one to show up was Russell. He was one of the ones she never heard of until everybody began talking about him and he was hired shortly after all. He was a little over six feet tall, certainly not the tallest in the army but his very muscular frame made him seem taller somehow like his height was better measured with intimidation. Everything about him seemed intimidating one way or another – his short, wavy hair and his beard reminded her of the colour of blood, his tanned skin was marred with new and old scars everywhere including one over his left eye, and he wore animal skins, one of some sort of cat around his shoulders and one of a black wolf around his waist. His clothing otherwise consisted of red woollen pants with a leather belt, a black breast plate with pauldrons, and he had armour on his wrists, thighs, and his shins. He grinned at her with his sightly pointed teeth but his yellow eyes were the most noticeable thing about him in the dark night.
The next person to arrive was somebody by the name of Weinstrad, whose family lost most of their noble status when Asteria's father determined that his father was a traitor but since she was not her father and he was not his father, she didn't hold it against him. He was not highly thought of when it came to some of the older grumps in the military or in her council – which she only kept as a formality and she largely ignored what they had to say – but she admired his loyalty and his tactical mind above all else. He was as tall as Russell with dark hair that he kept slicked back, deep purple eyes, and he had a muscular build, which was still somewhat visible under his dark knight armour. He had two scars on his face, one on the right side of his lips and the other one his left cheek.
The last to arrive were two that always seemed to travel together. One was a white haired ursurine who only arrived with her human friend a few days ago as they were gathering materials elsewhere. The ursurine was a large woman, who was slightly taller than Russelll but she wasn't as bulky as Asteria expected from an ursurine. She kept her hair short with the front locks just touching her shoulders, her brown eyes were sharp, and she wore simple black clothing that just left the forearms bare. Finally, she wore the stone cuffs on her wrists and ankles. Asteria remembered her name being Daphne, her at least she was being called Daphne. Daphne wasn't a name that screamed ursurine.
Her friend looked to be the polar opposite. She had bright pink hair, tied up into two long pigtails and she carried a constant smirk on her face. She wore a pink shirt, black shorts, and long leather boots that went to her knees. Her name was Azalea, or in a similar case to Daphne, didn't reveal her given name. She always carried her bow on her.
"So what's going on?" Azalea asked curtly.
"King Jarid is dead, so I'll be going to Adoss and taking control of the troops there. I want the rest of you to go to Fraedia, but I don't want you guys to go without a plan," Asteria mumbled. "If you have any ideas, I'd like to hear them now."
"So I'm assuming you want the king of Fraedia dead as well?" Weinstrad asked, cracking a small but still disturbing smirk. He was one of the ones Asteria was a little concerned about – he heard quite a few rumours about him and none of them reflected well on the state of his sanity. If any of the rumours held up, he was very bloodthirsty but it wasn't the kind of thirst that could quenched by anybody's dead body. It was rumoured he had a thing for manakete victims.
"We should just run in and kill all of the nobles who entertain the idea of royalty. Fraedia is pretty fucked up, we can take them all easily," Russell said with a small chuckled. Weinstrad was not the only bloodthirsty one but Russell wasn't picky about who he had to kill. He seemed content so long as his axe found flesh.
"I like your style, Russell, but we could be a bit more orderly than that," Weinstrad mumbled. "I suppose if we don't kill those nobles though, then killing the first king wouldn't amount to much. Any of them could try to fill the vacancy."
"If we can get them all in one place, then I could handle it. I know quite a few poisons that are both tasteless and colourless," Azalea said with a smile.
Russell rolled his eyes. "Poison? You're overestimating the military. I can take them if the rest of you won't. Kill the royal family first and anyone else who bothers to show up will die with them – it should be fun. The rest of you can find the person Asteria wants so badly."
Asteria crossed her arms and seized Russell up again. "If you can do it, then by all means, impress me," she stated. Russell was all kinds of crazy and maybe she should reign in her army more, but Russell looked so confident. It was like he had cabin fever, so the best way for him to calm down even a little was to stretch his legs. Weinstrad gave her an odd look, like he was questioning her ability. She didn't blame him – she was obviously a little crazy herself to listen to Russell but it was for the good of her kingdom. With no other rulers, then she could redefine the borders that made up Zahan. She could take the fertile land Zahan needed and deserved from Adoss, who lived too comfortably for her liking.
"You're sure he can handle it? It's reckless to charge in there."
"Fraedia's messed up, Russell is right there and I think he knows that more than most of us. I'll leave the troops he's charge of with him – they've all got the same attitude anyway, so a good battle should keep them calm. Besides, you and Azalea are better for locating the runaway prince and the oracle anyway. They are more of a priority to me than the fall of the Fraedian king."
Weinstrad still looked like he had something to say but then he must have decided against it. Suddenly, he turned to Azalea. "I suppose we should talk privately then... and if you got slow acting poisons, I'd love to see them in action."
Azalea grinned back.
I have the occasional OC that takes a small trait from me - in this case, Darren shares my curse of crappy joints! I hurt my ankle a few times by just stepping down on it 'wrong' and I have no idea what the difference between a 'wrong' step and right step is.
Daphne and Azalea were kind of last minute additions when I realized I didn't have have enough enemy generals. Both of them are named after plants that have poisonous parts. Of course, Daphne is also a name in Greek mythology, so you can see the new additions of that on m profile if you're interested.
Weinstrad, Russell, Zahreen and Ajax are all submitted characters.