Hark walked through the dim lit halls of the Durum grand hall as he made his way towards the throne room where Lord Barnard  would be awaiting him. He was more than a little annoyed at the short notice he received from Lord Bernard . Hark was in the middle of a short break from his constant assasination mission he and his men were given to try and put down anyone who was sympathetic towards the kings sister, Maren. 

As Hark turned the last corner he came face to face with 12 of the Lords crown guards who were waiting to escort him into the throne room. He let out a snort of annoyance, even though he was unarmed and the Frostbourn stronghold has been one of Bernard’s got to mercenary groups for over a decade he still showed distrust. [color=0054a6]”Halt!”[/color], a commanding voice came from the crowd as a figure stepped out. His marking of gold on his armor signified him as the commander of the small troop and Hark stopped as the man walked up to him to do one final inspection for weapons or anything that could harm the king. 

After the commander of the guard was finished patting down Hark and was satisfied there were no weapons he stepped back out in front of him. [color=0054a6]”One last thing”[/color], the guard started, [color=003471]”You will remove that mask before you speak with the Lord.”[/color]. Hark took a few steps back and clenched his fists, of all the stupid things they wanted him to remove his mask. [color=a36209]”You can take my weapons but You’ll have to kill me before this mask comes off my face.”[/color] Hark too a step back to brace himself if they tried to forcefully remove his mask. It was a sacred tradition that the grandmaster of the Frostbourn don’t remove their mask outside of the stronghold. The mask was a symbole of authority and respect that gets handed down to each new grandmaster to wear until he is killed or become too old to fight. He watched watiently as the guards exchanged glances before the commander spoke, [color=0054a6]”Very well you may enter without the removal of your mask.”[/color]

The commander nodded towards the two guards manning the door and they turned around and pushed the two massive doors that opened up onto a grand room that held the throne. As Hark entered he was flanked by the troop but before they could get more than a few steps into the room a demanding voice came from the figure laying on the throne, [color=ed1c24]”Leave is Comander Riker this is a private meeting.”[/color] Hark looked over to his left where Riker stood and he looked as if he were about to argue but he knew better and kept his mouth closed and did a small bow and led his men out of the room. 

Hark and Bernard waited in silence until the guards cleared the throne room and closed the door before Hark asked [color=a36209]”So my lord, what was I summoned so urgently for?”[/color] Bernard didn’t respond right away instead getting up and walking over to one of the giant stained glass windows and ran his fingers along the crown that was depicted on the glass. 

[color=ed1c24]”As you know I had a spy in the mercenary camp that was to send constant updates of anything changed in the camp.”[/color] Bernard said, [color=ed1c24]”we received our last letter from the raven that reported that those bastard orcs attacked from their flanks and all hell broke loose and they had to start the siege prematurely. The chances of the siege being a success at this point seam slim to none. I want you to gather your best warriors, rangers, and trackers and go to the fire-fens and track down and bring Maren to me alive if she is not already dead so I can present her to King Mago as a show of my loyalty and strength. You may go now but remember if she is still alive you are to ensure nothing is to happen to her until she is brought to me and I can present her to Mago[/color]

Hark just have a small nod to Lord Bernard and headed out of the throne room to collect up his weapons before heading out to find his men who were scattered among the many whore houses and pubs Durum was home to. [color=a36209][i]Jeez the men aren’t going to be thrilled about this[/i][/color] Hark thought to himself as he sheathed his many blades and prepared to gather his troop.