The sun gently eclipsed in the sky as the call of the night hearkened the luminescent star to it's resting place. Blue light reflecting off of the castle walls, the capital of Esper looked dreary in the afternoon light. The tension lingering in the air was unmistakable as Lyall walked up the lonely stairs leading up to the castle. It had seemed that the ambitious young elf was the only one in the entire kingdom of Esper to either be brave or stupid enough to answer the royal decree that came from the King himself. There was almost an ethereal whisper that carelessly bounced in the winds that blew throughout the lands. But to Lyall, the day was a bright day indeed. His King had finally acknowledged his need for someone like Lyall and he was more than happy to respond to the King's summons. 

Jumping through the castle steps two at a time, Lyall's small frame bounced lithely upwards. He eventually made it to the top of the steps and stopped briefly to admire the gargantuan architecture of the castle. It seemed a castle fit for the Gods, not any mortal king. Elven or not. With a tightening sensation in his chest from anticipation, he approached the guards that guarded the doors of the castle. Unfazed by their quizzical looks, many of the guards knew Lyall only as the broom man that swept the castle after hours, he strode with an air of omnipotence. The question was not if the guards were going to let him into the castle, it was what they would do to stop him. 

He had not come this far to have his Fate thrown eskew by a guardsman. Thankfully for our young esquire however, after he explained that he was answering the summons of the King for a worthy knight to escort the young princess through the Carpathian mountains, the guards gave very little resistance other than a few sniggers at the young man's expense. Striding through the halls with the swagger of a conqueror, Lyall felt as if he had already won half of the battle by being granted entrance into the Sovereign's halls. 

The hallway was adorned with countless portraits of past Kings and Queens of old and the pillars that held up the building seemed to have a history of their own carved into them. Lyall would of been happy enough to just marvel at the intricate designs and murals on the walls for hours by himself but he had come on a mission. That mission was far greater than any portrait hanging in a castle, Lyall had already fantastical designs and murals painted in his head of himself being depicted in the murals after this mission. 

Entering the grand hall where the fates of entire nations were decided, it was then that Lyall entered the presence of the King. Feeling his breath swept up from his lungs, he walked in the most solemn manner possible as he approached the King's throne. He could feel his knees shaking in the presence of the monarch and it seemed as if his own body was determined to strangle him. 

It was then that he saw her. Dressed in a simple purple dress, the young Princess of Esper sat beside her father. She was absolutely the most breathtaking creature the young esquire had ever laid eyes on. It seemed that the only one missing in the room was the Queen herself. Determined to continue on his mission, he forced each leg to move in front of each other until he was approximately twenty feet away from the King. It was then that he perceived the King's sour mood lingering in the air. Taking a knee after doing a most gracious bow, he put his hand over his knee as he bowed his head once again as a deference of respect.

"Your Highness, I have heard your summons and I come as your most humble servant to escort your daughter through any dangers that may occur on this journey. I pledge my life to this journey, and if you are to agree to let me be your servant, I promise to bring your daughter and the cure for our beloved Queen's ailing health back. I swear this on my honor," he said with the calmest yet confident voice he could muster. Despite his small size, he was determined not to squeak like a mouse in quite possibly the most important minute of his life.