Lana, in bird form, soared down towards the balcony of Thale Manor in Nyhem. It had been a long flight back and her wings were tired, but she knew she would not have a chance to rest yet. She didn’t think Duncan would particularly like waiting for the treaty, and intended to deliver it at once. When she touched down on the large balcony outside her room she wasted no time reversing the spell. Thankfully resuming one's original form was far easier than leaving it, and it took less than a minute to revert both herself and all the objects she was carrying. She let herself in (the balcony was high enough that the door was not kept locked) and bundled the various things onto her desk before ringing the servants bell. A young maid with dark hair - Mary, if Lana recalled correctly, quickly arrived, curtseying elegantly before addressing Lana, a hint of surprise accompanying the usual submissive tone of a servant speaking to their master. “Mistress Dionisa. You’ve returned already?” The girl clearly didn’t expect an answer, swiftly moving to the news she had to deliver. “Master Thale has an urgent matter he wishes to speak with you about.” Dominus Thale still ran an efficient house, even if he ran almost nothing beyond it. “Yes. Please have the carriage prepared at once, and tell Dominus I will see him presently.” Lana ordered. Much as she disliked that means of travel, she was tired of flying and did not want to carry the treaty through another shift. The maid left quickly to carry out her request, gently shutting the door behind her. It was only then that Lana took the objects she had received out of the bag they were in. She did not really know what to do with the dagger, and left it on her desk to remind her to decide a place for it later. The book would need a better means of protection in the future, but for now she decided to slot it into the already quite full bookshelf occupying a reasonable amount of one of her walls. It would be safe there, for a time, by virtue of appearing no different from its surroundings. It was at this moment Lana was thankful Drevala was not one to overly decorate things. The papers and the Treaty went with her - both carefully contained in a scroll case. She did not take the time to change clothes, rushing downstairs to Dominus’ study as soon as she had put the various objects in place. Usually when he had ‘urgent news’ it meant something to do with a mage found in or near the city. As such, she was curious to hear of it, at least in brief, before departing. “It's good to see you back safe Lanaya.” Dominus greeted her, standing and throwing out his arms to the side. She smiled, moved close to let him gently embrace her as she stood on her toes and planted a fleeting kiss on his cheek. She found the whole affair - typical of most of their meetings - endearing, as one might find a puppy’s eagerness endearing. “It's good to be back. Mary tells me you have urgent news?” Lana responded. “You must tell me of your travels. I have never been to Alenius.” Lana gave Dominus a look that said ‘politely get to the point now’ as he began to ramble. She had no time for his overly wordy nature at this moment. He quickly did just that. “Yes, news. A mage, Lady Urd Raudhfell, was recovered after a magical incident several days ago. She has decided to stay at the manor for the foreseeable future, while she attends to her business in the city. She says she intervened in an assassination attempt, and was able to capture one of the assailants, who is now thawing in our dungeon.” Lana pondered for a moment, then stated “Thank you, that is interesting news indeed.Unfortunately, I must meet with the King immediately to deliver urgent news.” Dominus nodded. “I understand.” He said, visibly deflating somewhat. Lana payed it no mind. She would spend some time with him later and he would forget all about this neglect. --- The Carriage ride to the palace was as dreary as carriage rides always were. Lana always found them far too bumpy and slow, and tended to scowl the entire trip. Her scowl only deepened whenever they had to stop for some obstruction on the roads. The only saving grace of it was that it gave her time to think of how to couch the delivery of the treaty to the King, who would no doubt be displeased at its result. Hardly a saving grace at all really. --- And thus, she found herself once again knocking at the door to the King's study late at night, butterflies in her stomach - though for entirely different reasons this time. "Who are you!" demanded a voice from behind Layana. Isabel had been making her way to her room to retire from the days ordeals. With her stood Ulf and four other Cawanor soldiers, hands already on their sheathed weapons. After what had happened to Aurelia she was making sure that she was guarded at all times, at least until she knew she was safe. The sight of a suspicious woman stood outside her brothers room was a troublesome sight, particularly after what had happened. "Magister Lanaya" Lana said as she turned on her heel. The woman addressing her had something of a resemblance to the king, and she seemed rather unhappy. Accompanied by not only several guards, but also a giant oaf of a mundane - larger than any Lana had seen before. She was clearly important. From this combination of factors, Lana guessed that this was Isabel De Reimer, the king's sister. With that in mind, she continued. "I am here to inform his Majesty of the results of the negotiations with House Blackwell. He will not want to wait for this information." She was as confident as ever, making no concessions despite the other woman's position on the Council. She expected the presence of the huge man was meant to scare people that interacted with Isabel, but no mundane frightened her, no matter how physically imposing. Isabel’s muscles relaxed as the woman introduced herself. Duncan had told her about Lanaya and her mission to Alenius, and she appeared to match his description. She signaled to Ulf with a wave of her hand as he begrudgingly took his hand off his weapon, clearly disappointed by Lanaya's relaxed demeanor; he was used to people cowering in fear at the sight of him. "My brother is currently...grieving" Isabel said as she looked towards the ground, clearly saddened by the pain her brother was currently in. Though she hadn't known Aurelia, she knew she had been close to Duncan and that her death had been hard on him "He recently lost a close friend, so unless this is of the utmost importance I suggest you return another day" Inwardly, Lana began to wonder which of the king’s many mundane friends had gotten themselves killed. It was a dangerous time they lived in, and it could be one of many, under a wide variety of circumstances. It was unfortunate, but as far as she was concerned, it was not worth waiting for. After all, even in the darkest moments, it was the responsibility of a king to govern his lands, and see to their security. This treaty concerned the later quite pointedly. "That is... unfortunate." She began, only a hint of empathy in her voice. "But despite this circumstance, the war wages on. This treaty will affect that most grave of matters significantly. There can be no delay in its presentation." "If that truly is the case then you will find my brother in the castle crypts. He will be saying his final farewells to his friend before she is buried beneath the grand temple. I suggest you don't anger him, the king has very little tolerance for incompetence right now" Isabel said spitefully as she continued down the hallway to her room, clearly angered by Lanaya's seeming disregard for her brother's feelings. "Thank you." Lana replied coolly. Isabel seemed to her to be a less pleasant mundane, and she did not wish to interact any more than necessary with the woman. The thought briefly occurred to her that she may have made an enemy here today, but it did not concern her overmuch. What threat could Isabel, who hid behind the fear generated by her brutish manservant, possibly be to her? She stepped passed the group of guards and headed towards the crypt. She was eager to be done with this so she could determine with certainty the next part of her plan. --- The crypts of the castle were as cold as the bodies they housed. The crypt was one long rounded hallway with the various kings and queens of old crammed to either side of in their stone coffins. The crypts were originally made as the last resting place for royalty of Formaroth. However as the years went by the crypts were not large enough to fit the growing number of deceased royals. As a result the monarchs of Formaroth were now buried in the grand temple tombs, the inevitable resting place that Aurelia Vyncetta would soon find herself in. On the far end of the crypt was a stone altar where the deceased Aurelia now lay. Though the priests and clerics had tried their best to hide her wounds Duncan could still see the various stab wounds that had been inflicted. The priests and Clerics had left their king to grieve in private leaving Duncan alone in the crypt. He still could not accept what had happened. After everything they had been through, after knowing each other for so long, after the confession they had made only a few days prior, that it ended like this. This had been the second time that Duncan had lost a woman he loved, but it was never the less just as painful. Lana strode confidently into the chill atmosphere of the crypts (a small part of her thankful she had kept her thick travel clothes on) casting only a brief glance at the body on the alter. The sight she saw didn't entirely register in her mind as she began to address the king. "Your grace." She stopped a moment and hastily bowed before continuing. "I bring vital new from the land of Aleni-" She stopped suddenly, looking towards the altar again as she realized who exactly it was. She staggered back, recoiling as if physically struck. It was Aurelia on the alter. Aurelia was dead. It was impossible. It had to be a dream - nay, a nightmare. She squeezed her eyes shut and wished to wake up... But when she opened them again, all she was greeted with was the sight of Aurelia's body once more. "H- How did this... Come to pass..." She managed to meekly stammer. All her prior confidence and bluster was gone, the color draining from her face as shock set in. Duncan hardly even acknowledged the entrance of Lanaya, he simply remained looking at Aurelia, his face unchanging. After a long silence Duncan finally decided to reply. "She was murdered" Duncan answered bluntly and without feeling. In times of hardship Duncan tried his best to empty himself of emotion so as to save himself from the pain. However he knew that he was only delaying the inevitable and before long he would have to face his grief head on. [i]Murdered.[/i] It was the only logical explanation, but hearing it stated aloud galvanized Lana's feeling from shock at the loss into anger. She clenched her fists, her whole body going tense. She wished nothing more than to summon fire and torch everything around her in a literal burning rage. Thankfully, spells of that nature required intentional summoning of the sort not susceptible to fits of emotion... “Who did this.” She half asked, half demanded, rage evident in her voice. She almost continued to speak, but held her tongue through sheer force of will - knowing that the words she wished to say would not do her cause any favors. The rage in Lanaya's voice brought Duncan back to his senses. The pain and anguish in her voice was identical to how he was currently feeling. "If I knew that then I wouldn't be here. I would be in the torture chamber tearing the fingernails off the bastard that did this" Duncan said as he turned furiously at Lanaya. He could no longer suppress his emotions, all the pain he had desperately tried to keep buried had at last resurfaced. And it had come in the form of anger. Inwardly, Lana was happy to see this outburst from the King. It was selfish, but it gave her satisfaction to see that she was not the only one suffering. He shared the same rage, brought up from the depths of despair. Lana's features were hard as she replied. Her voice was quiet, dangerous in tone. "Should you discover the scum that took Aurelia, a sister to me, a lover to you, from us... I would join you in that chamber. They deserve to know the pain that only a master of destruction and illusion can inflict." Duncan tried to calm himself, he couldn't risk showing Lanaya any more emotional weakness then he already had. He felt tears of both anger and sadness swell in his eyes and he turned away so that Lanaya couldn't see them. "Before we hunt down the people responsible, we need to know who we can trust" Duncan said as he tried to keep his voice steady "I fear whoever is responsible has more influence than previously suspected. It was likely someone within the very walls of this keep. Tell me, you say that Aurelia was a sister to you, someone that she trusted, someone that you would never harm"? Lana's eyes narrowed as Duncan spoke. He was accusing her of this heinous crime. Of course, it made sense when she thought about it. He was mundane. All mundanes feared mages. They couldn't help but be suspicious. With emotions running as high as they were, the part of her that wanted to react excessively almost won out, but the need to defend her political position and get vengeance for Aurelia was stronger. "I trust you are not accusing me of plotting to harm the only woman who was meaningful family to me?" She said, her voice fairly calm relative to before, but with equal amounts of anger and outrage still very much present. She took a moment to collect herself and suppress her feelings before continuing. Feelings still bubbled beneath the surface, but she needed control now. "And if my word and heartfelt feelings are not enough, I shall tell you why it would be political madness for me to plot against her. I encouraged her to further her relationship with you. Happiness aside, having such a kind and benevolent mage as queen of Formaroth would help to improve the people's opinions of mages to an extent I could never achieve alone. And the council position she no longer fulfills - assuming I wanted it, I could've acquired it far more easily with her recommendation. Now suspicion of wanting to climb the political ladder will fall upon me, the next most powerful and politically savvy mage in your employ. That would not help my chances in the slightest." She was silent then, awaiting his response. She could only hope he was not so paranoid that he would continue suspecting her despite all the evidence of her innocence. Duncan listened carefully to Lanaya's words. What she said was true, emotional attachment aside Lanaya didn't have any logical reason to kill Aurelia. Though Duncan suspected a great many people, Lanaya was not one of them. "I apologize, I didn't mean to accuse you, I simply need to know who I can trust" Duncan tried to sound sympathetic but his reply was empty and cold. He was emotionally drained; he no longer felt sadness or anger or fear, he simply felt tired. "In which case I will ask that you meet with me tomorrow evening, I will collect together everyone I know we can trust and discuss our next course of action. For now I wish to mourn alone" "I understand." Lana replied, true sympathy in her voice. She turned on her heel, treaty in hand, and exited the room, shutting the door gently behind her. As she did, the sound of a grown man sobbing came to her, muffled by the thick door, but unmistakable. Duncan truly had loved Aurelia. There was no doubt in Lana's mind now. It only worsened the tragedy. She wished to do the same, break down and cry, but she would not be seen to be so emotional in the corridors of the castle. She maintained a steely, cold control on the journey back to the Manor, cursing her decision to take the carriage. Every bump in the road, every delay, threatened to break the false calm and spill over into rage. When she arrived at the Manor once more she spoke only to instruct Mary to ensure the staff knew she was not to be disturbed. When she finally reached her room, she cast the treaty in its scroll case aside without thought or care as her fragile veneer of control dissipated at last. It had been only minutes since she had wished for nothing more than to unleash magical devastation on something, anything. But now the physical weariness of recent endeavors caught up with her. The despair of loss set in. She collapsed on her bed, tears streaming down her face, gentle sobs wracking her tired, grief stricken body, wishing for the night, and the torment, to end. [code]Collab with TheDuncanMorgan[/code]