[@WeepingLiberty]

[center][b][color=00746b][h2]Arden[/h2][/color][/b]
Chapter 1.1
Chores and duties [/center]
[hr]([i]Arrival at the fortress[/i])[hr]

A lone wolf cried out in the far distance and as Arden's heart settled he faintly marvelled at the view below him. From high above the trees he could see the great stretching expanse that was the forest as it wrapped around the mountain.
It seemed even more alive than usual and Arden wasn't sure if this was because the coming of winter or simply his new viewpoint, but it was quite awe inspiring either way. Much scurrying and rustling indicated unknown happenings below him as he flew high above it all. 

Had he manage to find some semblance of comfortability or security in the unkind claws of Sunni as they soared through the clear sky he might have almost even enjoyed the trip. But the bat seemed determined to give him a near heart attack, continually adjusting his grip along the way.

Arden spied an old dilapidated ruined fortress growing nearer and nearer. His racing heart sinks with dread. Either he would take to the impossible task of spending countless hours labouring away to fruitlessly tidy this ruined place to Miria's liking, or even worse, it was already owned and he was merely called to be paraded around before others. 

Arden knew better than to tempt or test his mistress in the presence or company of others. It was one thing to push the boundaries in the privy of her own home where her violence and punishment was instant, but to do so around others was inviting a new level of excruciating fears. At a front the consequences may seem less severe, with Miria finding some level of restraint but then the true cost would come later. 
The longer Miria had to linger upon the act and dream up a fitting punishment, the worse it would be.


A loud screech from Sunni shook Arden from dark memories, signalling their arrival over the old fortress. 
[b][color=00746b]Oh no, no no no![/color][/b] Arden stammers in slight panic noticing the seemingly small hole in the roof way down below. But there was nothing he could do.
He closes his eyes as the bat creature near dives straight down. With the ground hastily rushing up to meet them the bat halts itself in the near last moments by spreading its wings and almost catapulting Arden into the floor with the momentum. 

...Damn he hated that creature...

Surprisingly Arden found himself barely injured from the descent. He lay sprawled out on the floor before Sunni like a gift. He had barely gathered his senses or looked around before he felt a familiar wrath upon him. 
Words echoed in his still faintly ringing ears, slightly drowned out by the heavy beating of his heart. But he quickly made sense of them, he had to.

[b][color=00746b]Yes mistress.[/color][/b] he replies flatly, near instinctively, never bringing his face up to look anyone in the eye. Still gathering himself on the ground, he composes himself and quickly closes the distance between where he landed and his master and her familiar stood. Kneeling before them he spoke, near grovelling, with the voice of a broken man dying inside. 

[b][color=00746b]Sunni I am truly sorry for any difficulties I imposed on your task of bringing me here, I thank you for doing your duty and bringing me to my mistress. I hope I have not hurt or upset you in anyway.[/color][/b]
He says the speech with his voice barely wavering, giving little sign of the internal struggle within. The battle to not grind his teeth or pronounce the words in heavy sarcasm. He quells the ever growing urge to just rise and yell curses in her face. 
He hated that bat sooo much!
He overcomes these dangerous urges the same way he always did, by focusing on the cool smooth feeling of that small near indestructible blood filled glass vile that hung around his neck. He remembers why he endures what he endures. Nothing is for free after all, not even life.

[b][color=00746b]What will you have of me now mistress?[/color][/b]