Main Menu
Search
Wiki Search
|
News » Gaining of Larruth: 30A
Chapter Thirty - Part 1
Sylvia emerged from her tent and was heading to the campfire when she was stopped by her brother saying, "Even out here in the middle of nowhere?"
They really had not traveled that far. The forest was thick to the northwest of their last town, and even after a couple of days they could not claim that many miles. Oggelly predicted a coming storm, so all decided to go ahead and set up camp. Time to relax without the presence of a crowd of admirers was appreciated by all.
Larruth was cooking a combination of rabbit and owl. Sylvia was going to spend time with him after spending a lot of time on herself. She felt no reason to be the one stinking while secluded to a tent during a rain. The lady had thus taken time to bathe, wash and style her hair, then put on some cosmetics. She really had not intended to do so much, but was finding the process to be part of her natural routine.
Oggelly went for an insult. "How do I know that you are in there?"
Things start to come to a head as the elven king makes his move.
Chapter Thirty - Part 1
Sylvia emerged from her tent and was heading to the campfire when she was stopped by her brother saying, "Even out here in the middle of nowhere?"
They really had not traveled that far. The forest was thick to the northwest of their last town, and even after a couple of days they could not claim that many miles. Oggelly predicted a coming storm, so all decided to go ahead and set up camp. Time to relax without the presence of a crowd of admirers was appreciated by all.
Larruth was cooking a combination of rabbit and owl. Sylvia was going to spend time with him after spending a lot of time on herself. She felt no reason to be the one stinking while secluded to a tent during a rain. The lady had thus taken time to bathe, wash and style her hair, then put on some cosmetics. She really had not intended to do so much, but was finding the process to be part of her natural routine.
Oggelly went for an insult. "How do I know that you are in there?"
No, he would not get to her using that tactic. She had definitely been a lady long enough to be comfortable with certain feminine traits. Sylvia also did not go around complaining to Clark or Oliver that she could no longer identify them just because they looked and acted different. Her brother should by now be used to her present form, and she returned her comment in a very ladylike voice.
"You don't. It is part of the mystery."
The minstrel decided to use the same attack, but different direction. "How will Larruth know?"
You know, she was the more experienced of the two. "He will get to look." She paused, but he did as well so she was able to add, "And touch."
A look of disgust showed on his face as he said, "Are you really going to go through with it?"
"Why haven't you gone through with it? You travel the night spots. Worse, you are the entertainment on top of being a hero. Do not tell me that you could not pick up some sweet young thing."
His countenance showed some discomfort as he answered, "I am not in the mood to get married."
Oh, no, little brother, because you started it. "I did not mention marriage. Just because you spend time with a lady does not mean the relationship has to be permanent. You could just meet up with us as we leave town. It certainly won't be the first one you left."
"That is not the person I have become."
He spoke softly, but Sylvia was ready to squash him like a bug. "At least you had a choice. The lipstick, perfume, and hair comes with the body." She moved in close for the major thrust. "If you don't appreciate it, you are not half the man you think that you are."
"All right, Steve. I will back off."
The problem is you will come back, so you are going down now. "Hell, Oggelly, you keep a keg of beer on the wagon. Offer me a mug and talk about something besides my looks. Instead of running off to the bars, find a sporting event and drag me along. Damn it, brother, there are things that you could do."
If Larruth had moved, the two probably would have gone quiet in an instant. Feladin managed a normal meander around the camp to get close enough to discern the discussion however. He felt a need to respond.
"You know, I have not seen any coliseums."
Sylvia would admit that her old profession was not a sport, but she did enjoy the real thing and had researched the topic here. "The fights are normally in some private arena, and being a lady I am out of the loop. I can get people to discuss the local team sports, but I have to initiate the conversation. The games generally use the same field that the military trains upon. A form of soccer and polo are common. I have also heard about baseball. Alfred mentioned that his group enjoyed playing football, although that does not mean that it is a sport normally played on this world. I have not heard about basketball or golf, but I would assume that they are present."
Feladin mentioned to the minstrel, "We should start asking about such."
Oggelly was still feeling his wounded emotions. "I hope that Larruth enjoys them. She probably won't go without him."
That was cruel brother, but with Feladin present I can change tactics. "One, I will. Two, you might as well get used to the lad. The decision will be his, and if he elects to stay with me then he will be a permanent member of our group."
"I don't remember spouses being a member of our group."
Keep putting them up, brother, and I will knock them down. "He will be a lot better spouse than your ladies or mine. He will certainly be a better husband than you."
Oggelly glanced at the priest, who said, "You never met my wife. She would have been with me."
The minstrel walked away to console himself, but the priest felt a need to stay with Sylvia. "You are going to have to tell Larruth."
The lady dropped her aggressive attitude. "I know, Feladin. I just do not feel a rush. I am getting more comfortable in my role, but not enough to put it up to scrutiny. I want Larruth to still see a woman when he learns the truth."
"May I put a spin on that statement? You want to be able to see yourself as a woman, even when you have to think of yourself as a man."
"Honestly, Feladin, I do not know if that will ever happen. It could, because Sylvia has a long life ahead of her, but right now almost all of my memories are of my past life. I will completely agree that Larruth needs to be told, just not right now, okay?"
The priest was not one to argue needlessly. "I understand the depth of your situation. Even though Larruth was born an elf, I do not expect him to wait a few decades for you to make up your mind."
"Larruth is getting bolder around me. I expect to have to tell him before winter."
Dureillorshin heard reports not long after the first set of nobles arrived at his castle for the Life Day celebration. Those from the western realms tended to arrive early. The distances to some realms were great enough that there were many memories of difficulties that previously slowed them down. There was also the problem of the Dark Days that fell before the holiday, so those a distance away left in plenty of time to arrive before upsetting any superstitions. Most nobles were historically ungracious to the witches, but the encounters this year were plain rude. One maid said something that started the witches complaining to the monarch.
The king realized that he had no one that he could turn to for aid in this matter. The witches would help of course, but any overt action on their part would only infuriate the opposition. Certain nobles could probably be depended upon, but Dureillorshin did not want to obligate them. It would be better to simply wait for them to speak for themselves, then reward them later for the aid. His family did not support the witches. The advisors preferred to speak wisdom directed by She-Who-Sings-in-Trees.
There was no official response to the reports. Those who brought stories were listened to, but Dureillorshin was not going to betray his intentions before he had fully determined the strategy of the opposition. He had learned from his father how to manipulate the forces that could disturb his authority, and was pleased for a chance to test his skills.
The nobles made their plans as covertly as possible. The maid was reprimanded for her overt statement, but the noble lady that had authority over the servant was mature enough not to allow the event to dissuade her from further action. Private socials were held where no witch could intrude and plans continued to be advanced.
As more high nobles arrived for the coming holiday, covert activities started becoming the daily agenda. The normal festivities during the Dark Days went almost completely unattended as the nobles held their private functions, the witches held theirs, and the king made his personal plans. There were a number of guests from distant lands in the royal castle, of which most did not feel comfortable being the only ones present at certain events. Queen Lefremillion tried to be a gracious hostess, but could not be everywhere. The quiet hallways were not completely pleasant to her, although she could only pray that the silence would prove to be for the better.
The Dark Days finally passed, and the calendar finally proceeded to the next day. All the high nobles gathered for their yearly meeting with the king. Problems that were troubling a realm were offered to the group in hopes that others could provide solutions. The king discussed with his immediate vassals the conflicts that he was having in working the forest as a whole.
Dureillorshin kept waiting for one of his more extroverted nobles to floor the topic of the witches, but that never happened. The monarch expected the eruption of the topic when Salloriate mentioned his continued indecisiveness in choosing a successor, especially when he stated the positive news that he was hearing of his great nephew. The responses from the other nobles stated that they had also heard wonderful things about the lad with a few even mentioning the lady that he was traveling with. None made any statement concerning the declared goal of the lady however. The king was determined not to lose his authority by forcing the topic, so the items on the agenda slowly became checked off.
A mention of his standing order to send any message concerning the missing orange shirts had to be said by Dureillorshin. There was no reply to that. Correction, there was a response. Duke Igglityll dismissed the statement with a wave of his hand. The mind of the king connected that action to the complete lack of response from the others, and was certain that the gauntlet had been tossed.
A lecture on the importance of the witches had been prepared. Dureillorshin had memorized it after writing it. He considered his phrasing to have excellently brought together history, a sense of racial pride, and just the proper dose of propaganda. He launched into the speech with all the gusto that he could muster. He kept at the oration simply because he enjoyed listening to his voice echo from the distant walls of the main banquet hall.
There was no response to his discourse. The congregation did their best to look attentive during the oration, but they made no display of false approval at its conclusion. They simply continued to look to the monarch waiting for further words.
Dureillorshin smiled with a belief that he had won. The only reason that he could perceive for none of the group to challenge his statements was that they could not. The nobles certainly looked to She-Who-Sings-in-Trees for guidance over the Dark Days, and obviously none had come that would challenge his words. The king felt smug in his personal belief of his management of the event.
A few of the high nobles had been waiting for some extreme statement from the monarch concerning their refusal to voice their support of his words. The goddess had admitted that such an occasion would have allowed them another chance to restore her authority. She-Who-Sings-in-Trees had however stated that their decades of tolerance had reduced their effectiveness as champions in the cause. She had also asked for answers to some basic problems that the witches presently solved. None of the high nobles could answer those questions, so they silently held their tongues at this major gathering.
Another stood in an alcove and saw the events from another perspective. He witnessed the silence and understood the failure of the king to force some certification of his words. Aynaglitian felt that he had not done enough in attacking a certain ship. There was a nagging feeling that he should have looked for an elf lady aboard the vessel and removed her from his list of potential threats.
In the next installment an important decision is reached.
Posted by TerishD on Sunday, November 06, 2005 (14:30:34) (654 reads)
[ Administration ]
|
|
Related Links
Article Rating
Average Score: 0
Votes: 0
Please take a second and vote for this article:
Options
Last Posts
Last 10 Forum Messages
Total Hits
We have received 22708081page views since April 2003
|
Search
Chat_Room
News
