Far North, (Saul)

[Armando Bardas]

Armando was not pleased that the response from Saul d'Innocent pretty much rejected the plans he had offered. The General wanted to make this work as quick and efficient as possible, and travelling all the way up to northwestern Tardar was a delay in the careful plans he had been working on. He already had not enjoyed the past week after dealing with that annoying assassin who didn't seem to be much of an assassin, but rather more of a delusional madwoman. Then again, it seemed he was here to meet with another person who was not all that right in the head. Well many heard of the notorious Saul d'Innocent, but few ever saw him. The man was almost a recluse, but he was a treacherous mage. The man was a treacherous mage that was rumoured to be very devious, and cantankerous.

Armando had picked up some mercenaries along the way, and rode with about forty men now. They rode in black, and travelled backwater roads less used. They were experienced men in such conditions, but this was not the worst weather Rodan had to offer. It was cool, some sharp winds at times, but not too much snowfall during the journey. The company made it to Eustace Vale with about five days of moving through Triton and Tardar. The hamlet was certainly quaint, having an old countryside feel to it. Yet it was so small, and far-removed from many of the larger cities and towns in Tetel'ac. Then again, these were the northern Caine Mountains, not like down south at Martieltton.

Armando led his band of mercenaries through the town, clearly feeling the eyes of the townspeople upon him and his group as they moved though Eustace Vale. This place was clearly not a happy or welcoming place, the General finding this silence oddly perturbing. He looked ahead to see Snowhill Castle looming in the distance, perched atop a hill in this valley. The abode of one Saul d'Innocent, a castle rumoured to be haunted with Saul's sorcery, and the souls of those unfortunate to perish in his custody. When they arrived at the gates some guards informed them that only Armando, and five of his men could enter the castle, while the rest could wait in a lodge adjacent to the courtyard built for accommodating guests.

Armando picked five of the men to join him, and entered. They were asked to remain in the lobby as the guard went through a second large door, and turned left. Well the man had to go get his master and inform him of the arrival of his guests. Armando looked at the five men and nodded. "Stay silent, be careful, and be on alert," he whispered to his men. They would have to remain vigilant, and just make sure to be careful. Armando was not afraid, but this was a man that seemed to have a reputation of being irrational, and perhaps crazy sometimes.

[Saul d'Innocent]

The first thing people needed to know about Saul d'Innocent was that he cared little about their wants and needs. The man was aloof and distant, used to the harsh lifestyle of a border lord on the frontiers of Tetel'ac. Saul did things according to his schedule, with exception to when he performed duties for the King. So it surprised him when he received a letter from some man he had never known, a man with the obviously fake name of Obsidian Black. Ha! Surely this man has no creativity. No half-wit was going to fool Saul d'Innocent and try to trick him, he was not going to some remote part of the Caine Mountains just for the promise of gold. The idea seemed half-baked, and almost like a trap. He decided it was best to meet with this mysterious man at his own castle than anywhere else, at least he had the comfort of dictating the outcome of this encounter from the comfort of home.

The Lord of Eustace Vale did not know when this mysterious man would be arriving, so he had been taking care of some local affairs since he returned here from the Capital. The King had went on some trip to attend the wedding of the Duke of Aknatar, that guy that was recently revealed to be Balaric de Jure. Saul questioned the sanity of King Roland going to well wish a noted kingslayer for his wedding. He would not be surprised if Roland didn't make it back to Huntingdon in one piece. That would cause a mess, and probably start a revolution again. At least, like usual, Saul d'Innocent would stay out of it and mind his own business up north. Eustace Vale was far away from many other things, so he often was out of the loop.

Saul was standing at the head of a long stone table in his great hall. He was just sitting down for lunch. Recently a criminal on the loose from Fallan had crossed the border, and he had the misfortune of running into Saul's sentries. Saul wrote to a Lord in the country across the border and informed him he would deal justice personally. The man had died a slow death by being boiled in heated water. Now the man's body lay on the table, fresh and just cooked for Lord d'Innocent. Grabbing a sharp cutting knife, and a strong fork Saul began cutting down into the flesh of the man and let the meat enter his mouth. He tasted it, chewed it, and then swallowed it. "He is a bit on the chewy side," Saul noted. He looked down and continued with his meal.

It was only fifteen minutes later when a guard entered the hall to inform Saul that Obsidian Black had arrived. The man arrived with nearly forty men with him, but the rules were he could only bring five in with him. He glared at the guard for a moment, the man clearly not taking a hint. "Well go fetch me my guests you knob head," he shouted out. Saul looked down at the cadaver before him, a fair portion of flesh now missing. The intestines and internal organs were showing behind some of the bones. The mage looked at the heart of this person, nodding his head in agreement to the fact it looked like this man had a strong, healthy heart. Too bad the man was a criminal, otherwise Saul would not have had to do his duty and seal this man's fate.

[Armando Bardas]

Armando stood silently looking around the entrance hall of the estate, a rather dark and tasteless room in his opinion. The man was quite lacking in the furnishing capacity of this estate, but then Saul was short a few screws in his head. He also noted the room was cold, and there was quite a draft. He wondered how the rest of the men were fairing. The only good thing here was that Lord d'Innocent was not having him and his men disarmed. It showed the man had some honour, or some balls. Cowards who feared for their lives could be spotted when they had those under their roof disarmed. Then again, the man was a notorious mage, so that likely was a deterrent to any who would attempt to do something foolish. Armando did not intend that, he just was here to seek a transaction with this particular individual.

He could hear the sound of steps approaching as the guard returned and waved for Armando and the five men accompanying him to follow. The General moved to the front, feeling it his duty as a leader to be the first man forward. Right behind him was the man carrying a small chest, and the other four walked with their arms at ease, but ready to act if things went sour. The guard lead the group before two large doors, and two servants opened them to reveal the great hall of this castle. There was one large rectangular table in the middle, and two smaller ones at the sides. The disturbing, old, balding man was seated at the table having a meal.

The guard stood aside and shouted, "General Obsidian Black, seeking audience with the Lord of Eustace Vale, Saul d'Innocent III." The voice echoed in the chamber, before the guard turned to face Lord d'Innocent. The man bowed, and then left the chamber, leaving Armando Bardas in the room with his five men. Only Saul sat at the end of the table, though Armando scanned the room to make sure he had not missed anyone. A servant came in through a side door bringing some bottles of wine, putting them on the table, before leaving. This would be great, just a personal meeting without the nosy ears and eyes of others watching.

Armando bowed graciously, his men doing the same. Turning back he muttered to his men to stay where they were. It was then he noticed one of them cringing, and their eyes going to the table. The General returned his gaze to Saul and didn't see anything to cringe over, even if the man did seem disturbing. Though it took only seconds later before he realised the big piece of meat on the table was the corpse of a man, apparently cooked. He almost felt heartburn in his throat as his mind tried to comprehend how a person could eat another human being. That was just sick, cannibalism was wrong. Armando killed others, but clearly Saul had gone too far. That being said, who would stop Saul? He was the Lord of Eustace Vale, and Armando was here to seek his assistance.

"Lord d'Innocent," Armando boomed as he stepped forward towards the seated Lord. He walked slowly, and did bow once more. "We are here to seek your services in some jobs that require work here in Rodan," he said, moving to the point. Hopefully the fact that the work needed would take place here in Aknatar would make this offer enticing. The real question would be seen if Saul would be open to this offer, or any of the contingencies worked up by Armando and his employer.

[Saul d'Innocent]

Saul was always intrigued by the anatomy of humans, so much packed into a space so small. The intestines were of particular interest, as they were so great in length as he pulled them out. He had been putting the coils on a platter when the doors to the hall opened again. The guard had returned with his guests. Nonchalantly the lord sat back in his chair and grabbed a large white napkin, trying to get most of the blood off his hands as possible. Obsidian Black. Well clearly the man was not who he said he was, but the formalities were to be done. The guard presented the guest, before leaving the room and shutting the doors.

Saul nodded in approval as the men bowed. They better bow, Saul was a lord and their better. This was his small little domain of authority, and he would exercise his authority as he pleased while here. He let his head curve as he studied this large, hulking fellow. The man was clearly of combat history, a veteran of war no doubt. He saw the man's eyes flicker to the feast upon the table. It was naturally disheartening for most humans to even contemplate cannibalism, but to see it with their own eyes was just all the more horrifying. With that Saul poked a piece of cut flesh and popped it in his mouth. "So succulent, I offer your men some food. They must be starving after such a long ride," he said, gesturing for them to take a seat and sit with him.

The men remained still, and only their leader moved forward. The man bowed, well at least he got the point across of being respectful. Nevertheless, such procedure was causing Saul to get bored. He reached for some water on the table, selectively avoiding the wine. The alcohol would be for his guests, a good lord needed to keep his wits in the presence of those not close to him. He let the man speak, and nodded. It was obvious they needed him for some reason, he maintained a very specific skill set that was not very common in Tetel'ac. He was gifted with the ability to use magic, with much experience in wielding it like an artist with his brush. The man before him was a veteran soldier as much as he was a veteran mage. "Come on soldier, what is it? Will you spill the beans already? I have a meeting with my chamber pot very soon, I need to take a serious shit. I don't have all day to blabber with you," he responded, rather irritated and cold. Lord d'Innocent waited for no one, he liked to get to the point of things quickly.

[Armando Bardas]

Armando could see the man was going to attempt to offer his generosity and eat, and perhaps if the man had a better taste in food Armando would accept the deal. Then again, this man was not to be trusted with his magic - a medium of deceit and devilry. The General did not need to turn around and see the looks of disbelief, and sickness upon their faces when Saul asked them to join him for a meal. The man was their host, but he was certainly not gracious. No properly minded person sitting as a host would feed his or her guests a fresh victim. Unlucky bugger, whomever it was that ended up as this man's meal. It would suck to be the person who has to die to satisfy the hunger of a madman.

"Thank you my lord, but we are not hungry," the General replied bluntly. He was not going to partake in this nonsense, or these games. His men clearly were just going to stay where they were. Armando took a seat down from Saul, and looked at him. He only scowled when the next words came out of the vulgar old man's mouth. He sat there, looking down at the body before looking up. The mercenary leader reached for a bottle of the red wine and filled the rather ordinary looking cup. Clearly this mage was not accustomed to the etiquette of wine consumption. He let the liquid flow into the glass and raised it to his nose. He noticed the smell of fruit, and drank from what he had poured. The only way he would find out if it were poisoned was by the passing of time from when he drank it. If it were poisoned, well Saul d'Innocent would not fare to well either. At least the liquid was wine, after he had tasted it, because knowing the man before him it could have been blood.

He only looked at the Lord, allowing some silence as if he thought. "I come n behalf of a member of the Black Court," he replied shortly, attempting to get straight to the point. "We are aware of your abilities with magic, and we need you to find ways to block the main mountain passages through Rodan," he answered, providing his main reason for why he was here. Armando signalled to the man with the chest who came forward. The man put it on the table between Armando and Saul. Armando pulled a key from a pocket and opened the chest, revealing a significant amount of gold. "We realised Eustace Vale has fallen on some hard times, and so in return of your services we would gladly compensate you with a significant payment," he added. It was always key to end a proposition with something one would desire greatly.

[Saul d'Innocent]

Good thing Saul could not read minds, otherwise he would be furious that the men felt the meal on the table was unlucky. It was a great honour to be consumed as a meal by someone such as Saul d'Innocent, the Lord of Eustace Vale. These were weak men if a cadaver so easily put them off. Men who lived by the sword should have come to get over a dead body. If these men were starving in the wild they would not think twice about consuming a man. Humans were savage beasts, if the wild could be unleashed. Otherwise civilisation made them tame, the threat of force was the tool of authority. The world turned always on some form of extortion.

"Have it your way," he spat out upon the man's rejection of his hospitality. They came here and refused the generosity of their host, Saul should have them all shown the door with a good boot up each of their asses. They were dealing with Saul d'Innocent, not some coward lord of Fexlund. He watched the man take his wine, and drink it. Of course the guest will take the good, expensive stuff. Maybe he should have poisoned it, but Saul was not going to be that duplicitous in a situation like this. He only waited, a frown growing because he was not getting the answer as to why they were here.

Though he didn't have to wait too long until the man seemed to finally give an answer. His eyes widened, and he paused before lifting his head to look at this Obsidian Black guy. No wonder the name was contrived. Saul clapped his hands together. "The Black Court you say?" He chuckled out loud before he started laughing in his seat, almost nearly going into a fit of laughter. "The Black Court? Give me a break!" The mage was surprised such an entity would even want his services considering he kept away from such politics. "And why does the Black Court wish for me to block the mountain passages, assuming that I am even capable of doing that?" He was going to continue laughing this off until a chest full of gold was laid before him. Well then, this made things more serious. That was surely a lot of gold, gold that could help him. But he didn't move for it, as he wanted to know why they would want the passages blocked. He wondered how they would take it when he informed him he didn't know how they expected him to block the passages. Did they want him to stand with a sign reading "STOP"?

[Armando Bardas]

Sometimes survival made some things necessary, but it was best to avoid the descent into the state of savage survival. It was always a last resort, and not something any sane person wished for. Armando had never had to experience that before, because if a leader prepared and planned in advance they could mitigate such circumstances from happening. He had to avoid from smiling when the disturbing Lord seemed to hiss a response when he rejected the offer of food. Clearly the man seemed to be upset over being rejected. A shame, if the man had some good roasted pork the men may have joined him to share food and drink.

The man's attitude though, he almost seemed to not care about the proposition being offered. He didn't seem to take the words of the Black Court seriously. Then again he wondered if perhaps this man were Regesvard, it would not be a far stretch as the man was a Rodani Lord. Armando's face got a little red, he was starting to get irritated himself with this flippant lord. "Yes, the Black Court. You should treat such a feared institution with a little more respect," he boomed in response standing up as he said that. He pushed his seat in to the table and remained standing. Armando was not going to sit and let this arrogant son of a bitch get too cheeky.

Though he supposed the question asked was legitimate. Clearly the gold caught the man's attention. So there was still some room to work out an arrangement when the payment for such services was shown in person. "I do not ask why, I only accept what I am told. That is what the Black Court wants, the mountain passages blocked," he replied, attempting to keep himself in check. Though he was worried that the man mentioned something questionable about whether he could do such a thing. Well the man was a mage, he had to know a few tricks. He was senior and experienced, so it only made sense. That being said, Armando didn't know much about mages other than they were not trustworthy. ”They told me you should be capable of it, you are a veteran mage,” he added, feeling confident that fact was reasonable to assume Saul as the man to do the job.

[Saul d'Innocent]

Saul was drinking some water when the man opposite lectured him on treating the Black Court with respect. That was the first mistake this military man made, assuming Saul gave a shit about the Black Court deserving respect. He held no respect for them or their nonsense. He only let himself nod as if in agreement. "You are right, I should be giving them more respect,," he replied, pushing his chair back. He saw Armando stand up and get defensive, was this going to be a battle of ego? Saul didn't back down, and he didn't intend to lose. He stood up in his seat and turned around. The mage stood up on the dais in the hall. "I stand here to pay my respects to the Black Court," he shouted. Saul then lifted his black robes and revealed his crotch, all old and naked. He then began to piss on the floor. "This is what I think of the Black Court, being showered in my piss is a luxury for them. You want to know what else I think of the Black Court?"

Saul moved over to avoid the puddle of piss he made. He looked at Armando and his men, a fierce anger in his eyes over being told to give the Black Widow's organisation respect. He was Saul d'Innocent, only few were deserving of his respect. "Each member of the Black Court can get in a merry fucking line and suck my cock! Yeah, you go tell them to line up and suck me dick! Does that sound like a plan?" Lord d'Innocent just didn't say it, he made crude gestures as he did so. "In fact, you tell the Black Widow to get right off her ass and be the first to eat my meat," he said, his voice thundering unnaturally loud in this hall. It was quite clear that Saul didn't think very highly of the Black Court. Then again he was of Rodan, and Roland deGrada was his liege lord. He let his robes fall again, covering his private parts that he had exposed in his rant of anger.

Saul once again looked at the gold on the table, and back at Armando. So the man assumed he was entirely driven by gold. Well it could not be denied he needed gold, but when he heard what the man had to say he didn't like these circumstances. Well clearly he was not going to get an answer why, but then there seemed to be some sense of it. The King sent his wife on a vacation recently, while the King went to Aknatar with his mistress. Blocking the main mountain passes would trap the King in Aknatar, unless he decided to venture a more dangerous passage, or go the long ways north and south around the mountains. But such a feat would not be easy, and there was too much ground to cover. How would they do it? Oh, they planned to use mages. What brilliant geniuses in this bunch.

"First, if you are right... His Majesty is in Aknatar. Impeding his mobility would be seen as treason, and you take me as a greedy enough fool to be a traitor?" Saul seemed even more upset now that he had pieced this together. He was not going to let himself be used as tool by this man, and the Black Court - if he even truly worked for them. On top of that, his speciality was fire, and this required a mage specialising in the element of earth. Not just any either, a very advanced user. "Second, you got the wrong mage. I use fire, quite ineffective for what you may be looking for? I imagine you want avalanches and rockslides... well you need to find an advanced Earth mage. You know what? Good luck trying to find one of those." The man might as well point out the flaw in the plan of this rather mentally lacking lot. He walked over to the table and raised his hand. With one swish, a blast of air knocked the chest of gold over, and the coins spilled out.

"Listen here Black, terrible fake name by the way, but you will be returning to your mistress with tail between legs," he ordered. "The gold will be mine for having to suffer with your idiocy," he added. Saul clapped his hands and requested his guards. The doors of the room opened, and a dozen armed guards entered, six on each side of the group. "I suggest you guys leave now without causing any trouble. You are lucky I don't arrest and execute the lot of you for treason immediately."

[Armando Bardas]

The behaviour by Lord d'Innocent was just outright vulgar, and disgusting. If the man had dared to do this anywhere else he would certainly be apprehended, arrested, and tortured. The Black Widow certainly wouldn't like these comments or gestures, but in all truth that woman was a red herring. He was not here working for her, but was rather doing other business. This scheme had been planned in detail to make sure the reasons for his operations appeared to be affiliated to the Black Court. It was a very believable red herring, and one he was getting quite fond of using. So many people cowered or shit themselves when the threat of the Black Court was used against them.

"Well if you are not foolish to be a traitor, you are foolish to support an incompetent King," he snapped back, clearly realising this was not going too well. Though the man was being condescending, he did shed light on a detail overlooked, magic users had different types of magic. Furthermore, they were not easy to come by, and the more accomplished mages were even more rare, like the one before them. It looked like the plan was a dud, and there was going to be no way to carry it out. Unless...

"You tell us off, but want the gold? You can't have it both ways," he responded. This man had no sense of honour, or integrity, he was shameless. He demanded the gold despite he did not offer anything in exchange for it. Armando was starting to wonder if anyone in these lands had any sense of business? "We will be take the gold back with us," he was saying before the loud clang of the doors opening echoed through the hall. Armando turned his head to watch the guards entered, and only looked at Saul. Now there was an obstacle in the way. "Very well, we will be on our way," he said, turning and winking at his men.

In a matter of moments the mercenaries rushed for the guards, drawing their weapons and engaging in a sword fight. Armando was able to take down one of the guards very quickly, with a second following after. Two more of the guards rushed him towards him. The four mercenaries formed a protective circle to take on the remaining eight guards. The general was able to distract more of those guards when he took down another one. He wondered where Saul seemed to get his men, as they were not that good. But perhaps it just was they were not of Armando's skill in battle.

[Saul d'Innocent]

He only nodded, it had been said Roland deGrada was an incompetent King. Did Saul disagree? No. Did Saul care? Nope. Saul liked terrible Kings, because he thrived in such environments. The waning days of King Lucian had been a boon for this devious scheming man. Another reason he supported Roland was because Saul was from Rodan, this was a border region of this dukedom, and the man had been his Duke for some time. Naturally, those long allies of a man who recently became King often did well under the new rule. "You are foolish to not see power," he spat in return.

Saul stepped back so it was on his dais, standing over his guests as the guards entered. "I can have things however I like, the gold is now mine," he said reassuringly. He watched as the guards seemed to cower the mercenary to do what Saul wanted them to do, get the fuck out. The mage grinned, he usually was good at getting what he wanted through employing fear. The fear of being outnumbered clearly deterred these mercenaries, or that is at least what he thought.

When the group broke up attacking his guards Saul's eyes widened in surprise. The man was bold to dare attack Saul d'Innocent in his house. Though in truth, they had not attacked him, just his guards. He watched the leader mow down some of his guards like a hot knife through butter. Damn! This was why he needed the gold, to afford better quality security in Eustace Vale. He couldn't use the rangers who patrolled the wild lands around, they were too valuable as patrols, hunters, and for keeping the peace, and so he hired guards to protect his castle and Eustace Vale. By the time his guards were dead, and Armando was standing with two his mercenaries, one of he five squirming on the ground, and the fifth mercenary totally dead.

Saul thought his men really sucked to fare like this against a smaller group. Raising his hand, he hurled a large blast of air towards Armando to push him back, before manoeuvring into a position to cast a large ball of fire towards one of the mercenaries. Unfortunately, the third tried to charge Saul d'Innocent. Immediately Saul drew his sword, and the metal burst into flames, countering the blow of the mercenary, keeping the sword at bay. Saul's other hand reached for the man's neck and as soon as he touched the flesh he watched as the skin turned searing red. The main started screaming in agony before falling down in pain. Taking advantage of his weakness, Saul brought his sword in a large swing to decapitate the man. He was not here to tolerate such brazen disrespect in his humble abode.