Take Me Away
folder
Original - Misc › -Slash - Male/Male
Rating:
Adult ++
Chapters:
25
Views:
5,625
Reviews:
22
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0
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Category:
Original - Misc › -Slash - Male/Male
Rating:
Adult ++
Chapters:
25
Views:
5,625
Reviews:
22
Recommended:
0
Currently Reading:
0
Disclaimer:
This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance of characters to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. The Author holds exclusive rights to this work. Unauthorized duplication is prohibited.
Chapter 02 - Brawl
Chapter summary: A night out in Kadessa has unexpected results for Shandaar…
Author’s Notes: After homework (and BEFORE more homework -_-) I’m updating this. Introducing some more characters in this chapter, and that’s not going to be the final set I think (don’t have all my characters planned...). Thanks again to kingsmut for the review! Sorry if I’m a bit slow on the updates, but yeah… homework kills, especially that they’re texts. Last time it happened I lost inspiration for about 6 months… okay I gotta stop whining now. I’m going to try to build their relationship, but to me, they’re an established couple already so it’s a bit harder. And now… read my minions! Read! ^_^
Take Me Away
Chapter 02 – Brawl
“Kieran… wake up…”
The adventurer rolled in the bed, flicking his tongue in his sleep. After being sexually active again, it was normal he needed a rest, and figured out Shandaar could have used it as well. So what was he doing awake? The thing was that the prince was male, of course, but the voice was female. Weird enough to wake him up. He blinks a few times and sits in the bed, looking around for another figure.
A young woman, of no more than 5’3” tall, stood beside him. She had long pink hair in ponytails, and was wearing a black and pink leather outfit, as far as he knew. She probably hadn’t had changed her clothes before coming here.
“What ya doing here, Raya?”
“Dagmar wanted to see where the hell you were. Apparently you didn’t warn him on your whereabouts, so he told me to find you. And I thought about this place at first ‘cause of Shandaar. And I was right!”
Kieran cringed at the voice, judging it too loud for his tastes. “Raya, there are other people around… plus Shandaar is still asleep. Lower your voice please…” As he says this, the silver-haired man in his arms stirred, obviously awake. And there went the perfect morning…
“What’s going on?” Shandaar asked, rubbing the sleep of his eyes. “Oh, hello Raya. What are you doing here?”
The girl repeated the reason a second time, smiling widely. “Dagmar sent me to check on your boyfriend! See? You’re not the only one to worry about him, my prince!” Once she was done, she yawned and stretched, releasing a happy sigh. “Ah… I’m sleepy now. I’m going back at the in. Toodles!”
“Wait! I’m tagging along” the older man said as he got up, putting his underwear already. “Don’t want Dagmar to worry too much. Not that he’s gonna kill me, but he’s not always pretty when mad, and we both know it.”
“In this case, I’ll be joining too. It’s been such a long time I haven’t seen him.” Shadaar got up as well, picking up his clothes and putting them on hastily. He couldn’t wait to get out once more. Always being accompanied by Ethan had its good sides, but also bad sides, like the lack of privacy, or time spent with Kieran. Something he had been dealing with for as long as he could remember, still he left like being a bad boy and sneak out of the castle.
Once the two male completely dressed, Raya giggled. She found them so cute together! It would almost be a crime to tear them apart. “Come on guys!” They eventually followed her to the window, smiling at her energy. Even thought she often got on Kieran’s nerves – and sometimes Shandaar’s – they had no choice but to be cheerful as well. She was basically contagious. With another giggle, she was the first to jump off the balcony, landing perfectly on her legs, without any bruise, or noise for that matter. The black-haired adventurer was quite used to it, but landed with a thud before taking a few steps back, letting enough room for his royal lover to jump. Not the kind to be afraid as well, he jumped, rolling as he landed in order to avoid any injuries.
Now that they were out of the castle, so to speak, they’d have to get through the guards… or maybe not. But that implied taking a detour, if they really didn’t want to get caught. The consequences wouldn’t be extremely bad, but that would definitely not set the example. Neither was the idea of sneaking outside.
“Shall we try to get passed the guards?”
“I suggest I go first! I can sneak everywhere! I’ll go and scout, and come back after! Got it?”
Seeing the enthusiasm that Raya had for her “mission”, the men agreed on letting her go ahead of them, hoping she wouldn’t get caught, although the chances were rather low. Most of the time, she knew what she was doing.
“Doesn’t it feel weird? Like she’s going to attack the kingdom?” Kieran asked, turning to the youth beside him, semi-serious. “And she’s just a pipsqueak. Pipsqueak! That’s gonna be her new nickname! What ya think about it?”
Shandaar laughed and took the other male’s hand into his, dragging him forward. They would follow Raya from afar, crossing their fingers that someone wouldn’t hide around. At this time of the night, most of the guards were asleep, even on their spot. This didn’t mean that they couldn’t be woken up. Guess it’d depend of the actual rotation… So as they strolled through the moonlight-lit garden, the two guys tried not to get too close to each other, and act more as casual friends, in case something would happen. It didn’t last long. About five minutes after, the couple were holding each other by the waist, emitting groans of happiness. Until they saw a figure coming toward them.
Raya was apparently done with her scouting round. “There’s no guards… you’re oh-so-well protected for a prince. Come on! This leaves for open attacks!”
“It’s not something to worry too much about these times” the prince replied, going back to his lover’s arms.
“Well if I were you, I’d request a personal bodyguard that’d follow you 24 hours a day!” She stopped in her tracks, her head tilted to the left, as if she was thinking. “Oh wait. You have one. Ethan” she resumed with a slight disgusting tone. She didn’t like him very much, and now understood why he didn’t need one after all. “He’s always around you…”
“Plus it seems like he’s jealous when we’re together. Think he knows?”
“I would not be surprised of that, Sometimes he just looks at me with this… look. Mostly when I’m wondering where you are… maybe he thinks I don’t ask of his whereabouts when he’s not by my side. I would call it jealousy indeed.” The prince gave a sweet look at Kieran, who simply give him a squeeze of the shoulders.
-
Out of the castle property, finally. As Raya had said, there wasn’t any guard around, so their exit had been very easy. After having walked down the road for a good fifteen minutes, they had reached the town. Between the castle and the city, there wasn’t anything but trees, flowers, grass… Normally there would be a few caravans and carriages along the road, but it was a quiet night, anyways outside town. Maybe the city itself was crowded. Shandaar hoped it was the case, since more people meant that he would be harder to recognize.
The trio calmly made their way to the bar where Dagmar was waiting for them. It might have been 3 in the morning; establishments that sold alcohol were rarely closed before 5 or 6 in the morning. Their first time at that place had been a few years ago, when Shandaar had turned “legal”. They hadn’t a strict age control, but they had taken no chance. In 3 years, the place hadn’t changed. The grey rock walls where lit by torches along the wall, bearing shields, swords, and other ornaments, as he could see through the window. Most of the regulars were men in their late thirties, up to their fifties, and had military training. Their nights were gambled, carded and fought away. Among them sat a few women who either sought for a good time with the winner (maybe stealing their newly earned money) or just being “a part of the boys” as some would say.
After a short while, it was the girl who opened the door, humming cheerfully as she leaded them guys to the table where a tall, strawberry blonde man sat. “Tall” was an understatement. Massive would have been the right word. The buck of beer he had in his hand seemed like a mere glass to him, sign he was not at his first one. His long, thick beard hid his mouth, and his curly hair dropped below his shoulders.
“Hey guys! Kinda knew you were at the castle, kid.” The giant drank half of the mug and put it back on the table, turning to Shandaar. “And how hast thou been, my prince?”
“Oh quit the olde English, Dagmar. I have been rather fine however. I certainly hope it has been the same for you.”
The man laughed out loud and took a deep breath. Even royalty had a sense of humor. Sweet. “So who was talking about dropping the higher class English, eh? Not me for sure. Oh and you guys take a seat while you’re at it. I’m gonna pay y’all something to drink! BARMAN! Bring drinks for my friends!”
The silver-haired youth raised his hand in order to say something, but before he could, he had a buck of beer in front of him. Raya eyed her with interest. It wasn’t the beer of her choice, but well, it was beer. Same for Kieran, who started to gulp down his at the moment he received it.
“So why did you bring me here for?”
“Shandaar, come on. Even princes have to go out some days. Plus it’s even better when you have friends for it right?”
“Kieran’s right. Being in that huge castle by yourself if not good for your sanity!”
It didn’t even take a second for Dagmar to reply. “Well, being with YOU isn’t good for anyone’s sanity.” Upon seeing the girl frown, apparently having gotten the insult, he laughs again, slamming his hand on the table. Of course the thief was a valuable asset to the team, he couldn’t deny it, but her happy-go-lucky ways tended to be bothersome, in his opinion. “One day, ya gonna be the end of me, cutie.”
This time she blushed and looked away shyly, drinking more of her beverage. “So that’s how you shut me up, with compliments… I like that. You’re smart! But if you think you’re gonna get away with this, you’re wrong, mister!”
Shandaar shook his head and chuckled, happy to be reunited with his friends again. Nothing had changed there either. Dagmar was still annoying to Raya, and vice-versa, as his lover would be either a mediator between the two, or pushing them against each other by adding smart-ass comments here and then. He finally decided to have a sip of the golden, bubbly liquid before him, exhaling after. That would be a sweet... morning indeed. “When are you leaving back?”
“Maybe in a few weeks. We’re taking a break. Kieran wanted to see you and his parents, plus me and Raya are gonna sell some stuff we found in order to buy better weapons. Usually it’s peaceful, but who knows when it could change, hmmm?” The giant received nods of approval by his team mates and finished his buck of beer, not wasting time to order another. “Plus… it seems that some of the resistance factions have found something… but it’s safer not to talk about it here.”
“Something”? That didn’t mean good to Shandaar. If it had something to do with the sects and factions, it meant they had fallen on some secret info they shouldn’t have gotten their hands on.
“To top that, we think they have contacts within the Renken kingdom…”
“Oh that’s it. Keep the bad news coming…” Kieran muttered, his eyes set on Dagmar’s massive frame. It meant nothing good at all. “Look, let’s just change topics… too many people here.”
“I pick the topic!” Raya rose on her seat, only to duck right after to evade a random thrown object coming from a few tables behind them. ”I think there’s a brawl coming…” She took the chance to drink some more and climbed back on her seat to watch what was going on.
The guy who had thrown the plate had messy red-hair, but didn’t look like a hobo for that matter. A middle-class man, apparently, judging from his clothes, which where a white shirt and brown pants. “Oh come on! I swear I wasn’t cheating!”
“Then how do you explain the card in your hand, Kordell?” The women around the redhead backed off, losing interest in the hottie. Or maybe they wanted to see who would survive the fight….
“Hehehe… I have no idea!” That answer wasn’t the one the other men wanted to hear. Two of them rose from their seat with death glares and jumped on Kordell; one of them was wielding a knife, the other was bare-handed. One of the cheater’s teammates joined in the bunch as well. Yet another brawl was starting; Raya had seen it right.
Running away when you have two ex-soldier guys on your ass was hard; imagine being encircled by them in a bar. They all bore angry faces, a sign they wouldn’t let go of him until all the money, and maybe MORE, was given back to them. All the men in the building turned to the scene. Some were cheering for Kordell, while most apparently wanted to murder him as well, and took the other guys’ side.
Then it started. They threw themselves on the redhead, who tried fighting back in a drunken manor, without avail. He was being pushed against other players, who also joined in, annoyed at the man’s ways. Punches and kicks could be seen flying, and plates, knives and forks were becoming temporary weapons. “Come on, come on! Keep ‘em coming! I’m ‘onna kill ya all!” This threat only brought the other men to add more strength to their blows, and Kordell now had a hard time keeping up with the fight.
A random guy took a chair and bashed it on the cheater’s head, who stumbled a few steps forward, and was brought outside the bar against his will. Silence fell inside. Everybody was waiting for a scream or a gun shot. But nothing happened.
At Dagmar’s table, Shandaar stood up, staring at the scene. There was blood on the floor where the guy had been dragged. Head trauma, most likely. Raya had a more surprised look on her face, her golden eyes opened wide. Kieran was more or less disturbed, and the giant was simply disgruntled, as if he felt little pity for the man.
A few minutes after the ordeal, once maids had cleaned the floor of the blood and porcelain pieces, put the table back in order, threw away some remaining fight seekers and calmed some slightly injured commoners, the building got back to its previous peaceful state. The silver-haired heir sat back on his chair with a sigh. He had seen violence, for he was sometimes responsible of it, but the thoughts of commoners fighting others for reasons of money, women, beer, or cards – which were probably mixed earlier – was somewhat hard to understand. However, he was starting to like this life a bit more…
“Maybe we should get outta here after all” Dagmar suggested, emptying his new beer. “Whaddaya say?”
“Might not be a good idea, especially if Shandaar wants to be back before dawn.” Still distracted, the prince didn’t reply anything before Kieran elbowed him slightly. “Hmmm? Don’t want the guards to catch you, right?”
“Oh, yeah, you’re right. Not done with my beer though… I’ll go after.”
“As you wish!” The girl had forgotten about everything and was back at sipping her beverage. “Shouldn’t we all go back with him after that? It’d make you lose some calories from all that beer, Dagmar!” she said with a snicker, patting the rather big shoulder beside her.
Shandaar hugged himself slightly, feeling a bit weird, and not because of the alcohol running in his system. No, it was something else… about whatever the rebels had found. It could have been his shoe size, but they could have also gotten defence plans, or any info that could help them in times of war. That was a bit more dangerous. To avoid more questions, and perhaps stress, he finished his mug, as the blonde man got up to pay the drinks. “I’ll pay my own. It’s not the money that doesn’t let me do so…”
“Nah. Told you it was a treat, now be a good little boy and sit back down.” That’s the only thing he needed to be told and he obeyed, feeling bad about the situation. “Consider this as an early birthday gift.”
This got another chuckle out of him, and he got back up again, walking to the door. Soon, he was joined by Kieran, and Raya, who picked up a few things from the tables. A few gold coins that had been left on the tables, probably tips, a bronze bracelet and a pair of glasses. When she tried them on, she insisted to go see herself in the bathroom’s mirror, and ended up in tables instead. The woman gave up and walked back to them with a slight pout. “They won’t fit me that’s for sure. Now come on! Let’s go back!”
The party left, closing the door behind. Another night that wouldn’t be forgotten. Kieran, as usual, held his boyfriend close to him, while the younger member of the gang simply skipped around, and the tall man acted more of a bodyguard, ready to jump at anyone that would dare touch his friends.
Five minutes passed before Shandaar spoke , trying not to sound extremely concerned, hiding his fear. “Now that we’re alone… what do you think they found out? Is it something that could threaten the whole kingdom? In this case, I better talk to Mother about-“
“Not yet, lad. It could be a false alarm; after all, it’s just a rumour. But it has something to do with a secret weapon established by Kadessa. I have no idea what it could be though… think you have an idea?”
The silver-haired man stopped abruptly. It wouldn’t make sense to any of them. Even Kieran had no idea, and for some reason, maybe it was better this way. Only a handful of people knew what it was… how could that info get out?! There had to be spy somewhere, or a traitor in the kingdom. No. That COULDN’T be possible. Double agents were usually spotted right away by the customs, or by the ministers.
“Something wrong?”
“No, it’s fine. I’m wondering about it as well… however, if I ask, it’s going to be rather suspicious. But if the issue is been talked about in the next week, I will keep you informed.” The issue had been solved amongst the party… but for how long? “Now let’s focus on something else. Shouldn’t there be shooting stars these days?”
-
“Shouldn’t there be shooting stars these days?”
So that’s where they were… and they had the prince with them. But he couldn’t attack them. They were too many, and he would be overpowered. Maybe Shandaar Kandi himself would prove to be quite a pain in the ass if fought against alone. After all, he was the son of an extraordinary swordsman.
Despite all the hits he had received, Kordell Boldin still stood on his feet, dagger in hand, ready to attack in case he’d be spot. Running would be wiser, but that would hurt his pride. He wiped the blood of his mouth – the liquid kept dripping – but that didn’t bother him either. “If the fuckers in the bar hadn’t all ganged up on me, I’d have known more. Assholes. They’re gonna get me killed one day. That teaches me well for teaming with incompetents… can’t even do a good diversion.”
With a groan, he turned back at his prey. A new element that he hadn’t seen came to his eyes… what was that? The prince and the adventurer were holding hands? “Well well well… I know someone who’s going to be happy to know this.”
~TBC~
Author’s Notes: After homework (and BEFORE more homework -_-) I’m updating this. Introducing some more characters in this chapter, and that’s not going to be the final set I think (don’t have all my characters planned...). Thanks again to kingsmut for the review! Sorry if I’m a bit slow on the updates, but yeah… homework kills, especially that they’re texts. Last time it happened I lost inspiration for about 6 months… okay I gotta stop whining now. I’m going to try to build their relationship, but to me, they’re an established couple already so it’s a bit harder. And now… read my minions! Read! ^_^
Chapter 02 – Brawl
“Kieran… wake up…”
The adventurer rolled in the bed, flicking his tongue in his sleep. After being sexually active again, it was normal he needed a rest, and figured out Shandaar could have used it as well. So what was he doing awake? The thing was that the prince was male, of course, but the voice was female. Weird enough to wake him up. He blinks a few times and sits in the bed, looking around for another figure.
A young woman, of no more than 5’3” tall, stood beside him. She had long pink hair in ponytails, and was wearing a black and pink leather outfit, as far as he knew. She probably hadn’t had changed her clothes before coming here.
“What ya doing here, Raya?”
“Dagmar wanted to see where the hell you were. Apparently you didn’t warn him on your whereabouts, so he told me to find you. And I thought about this place at first ‘cause of Shandaar. And I was right!”
Kieran cringed at the voice, judging it too loud for his tastes. “Raya, there are other people around… plus Shandaar is still asleep. Lower your voice please…” As he says this, the silver-haired man in his arms stirred, obviously awake. And there went the perfect morning…
“What’s going on?” Shandaar asked, rubbing the sleep of his eyes. “Oh, hello Raya. What are you doing here?”
The girl repeated the reason a second time, smiling widely. “Dagmar sent me to check on your boyfriend! See? You’re not the only one to worry about him, my prince!” Once she was done, she yawned and stretched, releasing a happy sigh. “Ah… I’m sleepy now. I’m going back at the in. Toodles!”
“Wait! I’m tagging along” the older man said as he got up, putting his underwear already. “Don’t want Dagmar to worry too much. Not that he’s gonna kill me, but he’s not always pretty when mad, and we both know it.”
“In this case, I’ll be joining too. It’s been such a long time I haven’t seen him.” Shadaar got up as well, picking up his clothes and putting them on hastily. He couldn’t wait to get out once more. Always being accompanied by Ethan had its good sides, but also bad sides, like the lack of privacy, or time spent with Kieran. Something he had been dealing with for as long as he could remember, still he left like being a bad boy and sneak out of the castle.
Once the two male completely dressed, Raya giggled. She found them so cute together! It would almost be a crime to tear them apart. “Come on guys!” They eventually followed her to the window, smiling at her energy. Even thought she often got on Kieran’s nerves – and sometimes Shandaar’s – they had no choice but to be cheerful as well. She was basically contagious. With another giggle, she was the first to jump off the balcony, landing perfectly on her legs, without any bruise, or noise for that matter. The black-haired adventurer was quite used to it, but landed with a thud before taking a few steps back, letting enough room for his royal lover to jump. Not the kind to be afraid as well, he jumped, rolling as he landed in order to avoid any injuries.
Now that they were out of the castle, so to speak, they’d have to get through the guards… or maybe not. But that implied taking a detour, if they really didn’t want to get caught. The consequences wouldn’t be extremely bad, but that would definitely not set the example. Neither was the idea of sneaking outside.
“Shall we try to get passed the guards?”
“I suggest I go first! I can sneak everywhere! I’ll go and scout, and come back after! Got it?”
Seeing the enthusiasm that Raya had for her “mission”, the men agreed on letting her go ahead of them, hoping she wouldn’t get caught, although the chances were rather low. Most of the time, she knew what she was doing.
“Doesn’t it feel weird? Like she’s going to attack the kingdom?” Kieran asked, turning to the youth beside him, semi-serious. “And she’s just a pipsqueak. Pipsqueak! That’s gonna be her new nickname! What ya think about it?”
Shandaar laughed and took the other male’s hand into his, dragging him forward. They would follow Raya from afar, crossing their fingers that someone wouldn’t hide around. At this time of the night, most of the guards were asleep, even on their spot. This didn’t mean that they couldn’t be woken up. Guess it’d depend of the actual rotation… So as they strolled through the moonlight-lit garden, the two guys tried not to get too close to each other, and act more as casual friends, in case something would happen. It didn’t last long. About five minutes after, the couple were holding each other by the waist, emitting groans of happiness. Until they saw a figure coming toward them.
Raya was apparently done with her scouting round. “There’s no guards… you’re oh-so-well protected for a prince. Come on! This leaves for open attacks!”
“It’s not something to worry too much about these times” the prince replied, going back to his lover’s arms.
“Well if I were you, I’d request a personal bodyguard that’d follow you 24 hours a day!” She stopped in her tracks, her head tilted to the left, as if she was thinking. “Oh wait. You have one. Ethan” she resumed with a slight disgusting tone. She didn’t like him very much, and now understood why he didn’t need one after all. “He’s always around you…”
“Plus it seems like he’s jealous when we’re together. Think he knows?”
“I would not be surprised of that, Sometimes he just looks at me with this… look. Mostly when I’m wondering where you are… maybe he thinks I don’t ask of his whereabouts when he’s not by my side. I would call it jealousy indeed.” The prince gave a sweet look at Kieran, who simply give him a squeeze of the shoulders.
-
Out of the castle property, finally. As Raya had said, there wasn’t any guard around, so their exit had been very easy. After having walked down the road for a good fifteen minutes, they had reached the town. Between the castle and the city, there wasn’t anything but trees, flowers, grass… Normally there would be a few caravans and carriages along the road, but it was a quiet night, anyways outside town. Maybe the city itself was crowded. Shandaar hoped it was the case, since more people meant that he would be harder to recognize.
The trio calmly made their way to the bar where Dagmar was waiting for them. It might have been 3 in the morning; establishments that sold alcohol were rarely closed before 5 or 6 in the morning. Their first time at that place had been a few years ago, when Shandaar had turned “legal”. They hadn’t a strict age control, but they had taken no chance. In 3 years, the place hadn’t changed. The grey rock walls where lit by torches along the wall, bearing shields, swords, and other ornaments, as he could see through the window. Most of the regulars were men in their late thirties, up to their fifties, and had military training. Their nights were gambled, carded and fought away. Among them sat a few women who either sought for a good time with the winner (maybe stealing their newly earned money) or just being “a part of the boys” as some would say.
After a short while, it was the girl who opened the door, humming cheerfully as she leaded them guys to the table where a tall, strawberry blonde man sat. “Tall” was an understatement. Massive would have been the right word. The buck of beer he had in his hand seemed like a mere glass to him, sign he was not at his first one. His long, thick beard hid his mouth, and his curly hair dropped below his shoulders.
“Hey guys! Kinda knew you were at the castle, kid.” The giant drank half of the mug and put it back on the table, turning to Shandaar. “And how hast thou been, my prince?”
“Oh quit the olde English, Dagmar. I have been rather fine however. I certainly hope it has been the same for you.”
The man laughed out loud and took a deep breath. Even royalty had a sense of humor. Sweet. “So who was talking about dropping the higher class English, eh? Not me for sure. Oh and you guys take a seat while you’re at it. I’m gonna pay y’all something to drink! BARMAN! Bring drinks for my friends!”
The silver-haired youth raised his hand in order to say something, but before he could, he had a buck of beer in front of him. Raya eyed her with interest. It wasn’t the beer of her choice, but well, it was beer. Same for Kieran, who started to gulp down his at the moment he received it.
“So why did you bring me here for?”
“Shandaar, come on. Even princes have to go out some days. Plus it’s even better when you have friends for it right?”
“Kieran’s right. Being in that huge castle by yourself if not good for your sanity!”
It didn’t even take a second for Dagmar to reply. “Well, being with YOU isn’t good for anyone’s sanity.” Upon seeing the girl frown, apparently having gotten the insult, he laughs again, slamming his hand on the table. Of course the thief was a valuable asset to the team, he couldn’t deny it, but her happy-go-lucky ways tended to be bothersome, in his opinion. “One day, ya gonna be the end of me, cutie.”
This time she blushed and looked away shyly, drinking more of her beverage. “So that’s how you shut me up, with compliments… I like that. You’re smart! But if you think you’re gonna get away with this, you’re wrong, mister!”
Shandaar shook his head and chuckled, happy to be reunited with his friends again. Nothing had changed there either. Dagmar was still annoying to Raya, and vice-versa, as his lover would be either a mediator between the two, or pushing them against each other by adding smart-ass comments here and then. He finally decided to have a sip of the golden, bubbly liquid before him, exhaling after. That would be a sweet... morning indeed. “When are you leaving back?”
“Maybe in a few weeks. We’re taking a break. Kieran wanted to see you and his parents, plus me and Raya are gonna sell some stuff we found in order to buy better weapons. Usually it’s peaceful, but who knows when it could change, hmmm?” The giant received nods of approval by his team mates and finished his buck of beer, not wasting time to order another. “Plus… it seems that some of the resistance factions have found something… but it’s safer not to talk about it here.”
“Something”? That didn’t mean good to Shandaar. If it had something to do with the sects and factions, it meant they had fallen on some secret info they shouldn’t have gotten their hands on.
“To top that, we think they have contacts within the Renken kingdom…”
“Oh that’s it. Keep the bad news coming…” Kieran muttered, his eyes set on Dagmar’s massive frame. It meant nothing good at all. “Look, let’s just change topics… too many people here.”
“I pick the topic!” Raya rose on her seat, only to duck right after to evade a random thrown object coming from a few tables behind them. ”I think there’s a brawl coming…” She took the chance to drink some more and climbed back on her seat to watch what was going on.
The guy who had thrown the plate had messy red-hair, but didn’t look like a hobo for that matter. A middle-class man, apparently, judging from his clothes, which where a white shirt and brown pants. “Oh come on! I swear I wasn’t cheating!”
“Then how do you explain the card in your hand, Kordell?” The women around the redhead backed off, losing interest in the hottie. Or maybe they wanted to see who would survive the fight….
“Hehehe… I have no idea!” That answer wasn’t the one the other men wanted to hear. Two of them rose from their seat with death glares and jumped on Kordell; one of them was wielding a knife, the other was bare-handed. One of the cheater’s teammates joined in the bunch as well. Yet another brawl was starting; Raya had seen it right.
Running away when you have two ex-soldier guys on your ass was hard; imagine being encircled by them in a bar. They all bore angry faces, a sign they wouldn’t let go of him until all the money, and maybe MORE, was given back to them. All the men in the building turned to the scene. Some were cheering for Kordell, while most apparently wanted to murder him as well, and took the other guys’ side.
Then it started. They threw themselves on the redhead, who tried fighting back in a drunken manor, without avail. He was being pushed against other players, who also joined in, annoyed at the man’s ways. Punches and kicks could be seen flying, and plates, knives and forks were becoming temporary weapons. “Come on, come on! Keep ‘em coming! I’m ‘onna kill ya all!” This threat only brought the other men to add more strength to their blows, and Kordell now had a hard time keeping up with the fight.
A random guy took a chair and bashed it on the cheater’s head, who stumbled a few steps forward, and was brought outside the bar against his will. Silence fell inside. Everybody was waiting for a scream or a gun shot. But nothing happened.
At Dagmar’s table, Shandaar stood up, staring at the scene. There was blood on the floor where the guy had been dragged. Head trauma, most likely. Raya had a more surprised look on her face, her golden eyes opened wide. Kieran was more or less disturbed, and the giant was simply disgruntled, as if he felt little pity for the man.
A few minutes after the ordeal, once maids had cleaned the floor of the blood and porcelain pieces, put the table back in order, threw away some remaining fight seekers and calmed some slightly injured commoners, the building got back to its previous peaceful state. The silver-haired heir sat back on his chair with a sigh. He had seen violence, for he was sometimes responsible of it, but the thoughts of commoners fighting others for reasons of money, women, beer, or cards – which were probably mixed earlier – was somewhat hard to understand. However, he was starting to like this life a bit more…
“Maybe we should get outta here after all” Dagmar suggested, emptying his new beer. “Whaddaya say?”
“Might not be a good idea, especially if Shandaar wants to be back before dawn.” Still distracted, the prince didn’t reply anything before Kieran elbowed him slightly. “Hmmm? Don’t want the guards to catch you, right?”
“Oh, yeah, you’re right. Not done with my beer though… I’ll go after.”
“As you wish!” The girl had forgotten about everything and was back at sipping her beverage. “Shouldn’t we all go back with him after that? It’d make you lose some calories from all that beer, Dagmar!” she said with a snicker, patting the rather big shoulder beside her.
Shandaar hugged himself slightly, feeling a bit weird, and not because of the alcohol running in his system. No, it was something else… about whatever the rebels had found. It could have been his shoe size, but they could have also gotten defence plans, or any info that could help them in times of war. That was a bit more dangerous. To avoid more questions, and perhaps stress, he finished his mug, as the blonde man got up to pay the drinks. “I’ll pay my own. It’s not the money that doesn’t let me do so…”
“Nah. Told you it was a treat, now be a good little boy and sit back down.” That’s the only thing he needed to be told and he obeyed, feeling bad about the situation. “Consider this as an early birthday gift.”
This got another chuckle out of him, and he got back up again, walking to the door. Soon, he was joined by Kieran, and Raya, who picked up a few things from the tables. A few gold coins that had been left on the tables, probably tips, a bronze bracelet and a pair of glasses. When she tried them on, she insisted to go see herself in the bathroom’s mirror, and ended up in tables instead. The woman gave up and walked back to them with a slight pout. “They won’t fit me that’s for sure. Now come on! Let’s go back!”
The party left, closing the door behind. Another night that wouldn’t be forgotten. Kieran, as usual, held his boyfriend close to him, while the younger member of the gang simply skipped around, and the tall man acted more of a bodyguard, ready to jump at anyone that would dare touch his friends.
Five minutes passed before Shandaar spoke , trying not to sound extremely concerned, hiding his fear. “Now that we’re alone… what do you think they found out? Is it something that could threaten the whole kingdom? In this case, I better talk to Mother about-“
“Not yet, lad. It could be a false alarm; after all, it’s just a rumour. But it has something to do with a secret weapon established by Kadessa. I have no idea what it could be though… think you have an idea?”
The silver-haired man stopped abruptly. It wouldn’t make sense to any of them. Even Kieran had no idea, and for some reason, maybe it was better this way. Only a handful of people knew what it was… how could that info get out?! There had to be spy somewhere, or a traitor in the kingdom. No. That COULDN’T be possible. Double agents were usually spotted right away by the customs, or by the ministers.
“Something wrong?”
“No, it’s fine. I’m wondering about it as well… however, if I ask, it’s going to be rather suspicious. But if the issue is been talked about in the next week, I will keep you informed.” The issue had been solved amongst the party… but for how long? “Now let’s focus on something else. Shouldn’t there be shooting stars these days?”
-
“Shouldn’t there be shooting stars these days?”
So that’s where they were… and they had the prince with them. But he couldn’t attack them. They were too many, and he would be overpowered. Maybe Shandaar Kandi himself would prove to be quite a pain in the ass if fought against alone. After all, he was the son of an extraordinary swordsman.
Despite all the hits he had received, Kordell Boldin still stood on his feet, dagger in hand, ready to attack in case he’d be spot. Running would be wiser, but that would hurt his pride. He wiped the blood of his mouth – the liquid kept dripping – but that didn’t bother him either. “If the fuckers in the bar hadn’t all ganged up on me, I’d have known more. Assholes. They’re gonna get me killed one day. That teaches me well for teaming with incompetents… can’t even do a good diversion.”
With a groan, he turned back at his prey. A new element that he hadn’t seen came to his eyes… what was that? The prince and the adventurer were holding hands? “Well well well… I know someone who’s going to be happy to know this.”
~TBC~