[center][h1][color=B22222]Vulpea - The king’s keep[/color][/h1][/center] [center][img] https://i.imgur.com/jORqeGJ.png[/img][/center] Clunk, clunk, clunk. King Aidar Fir of Vulpinia noticed the ticking of his walking cane as it hit the pure white marble floor of the grand hall he had found himself into. For a moment the elderly Vulpin wondered how he had come here. The last thing he remembered was sitting on his throne in Vulpea, the capital city of the Vulpin kingdom listening to the quarrels of the various clans. Yet now he found himself in a hall of such grandeur that his own keep could easily fit beneath the high ceiling. As the Vulpin king looked around he recognized the place. King Aidar had been here before. His hand touched the imposing doors which gave entrance to the grand hall. He could feel the expertly crafted images of great battles beneath his hand. It felt so real and yet the king knew that this experience could not be in the mortal realm. The old king made his way to the far side, passing the neatly set tables. The rows of silverware accompanied the porcelain plates and crystal glasses as if the grand hall was prepared to host a feast. And yet the place was deserted, cold and empty except for the Vulpin with his cane. King Aidar recognized the place. I was decorated in a way that reminded him of an event 30 years ago. The coronation of King Amon-Mar IV. King of Arkron, supreme lord of the realm. The old Vulpin found himself at the foot of the stairs. Twenty five steps up in the air sat the golden throne of the king of Arkron. Always towering above his guests so that the supreme lord of the realm would always look down on whomever stood in front of him. Slowly the aging king raised his head and to gaze at the throne. Beams of light coming from the many windows illuminated the royal seat and its reflections nearly blinded King Aidar but it was impossible to miss. No one was sitting at the throne. As the old king lifted his feet to take the first step he could feel a hand on his shoulder and heard a voice in the distance. [color=B22222]“My liege. Snap out of it. A message from Arkron has arrived!”[/color] King Aidar of Vulpinia blinked his eyes. No longer was he surrounded by the pristine white marble of the Arkronian palace but he found himself once more sitting on his own wooden throne with his legs under a blanket. In front of him stood the young sovereign of clan Palebrush. Moments ago she had been complaining about the Ephans hunting and settling into her clan’s mountain territory and now she was staring in frustration at her king as Cael Drumain, the king's prime servant tried to wake him up from what most would describe as a moment of total lethargy. He had sat on his throne, awake yet not aware. As if his body was in his throne room and his spirit somewhere else. King Aidar knew what had happened. The shamans would call it a spirit walk. A sort of out of body experience beyond time and space. Where the one spirit would let the spirit walker experience something that was, is, would be or could be. A sort of vision from maybe the past, present, future, a possible future or something totally different. Never was it truly clear about what the king was seeing, nor what it meant. Everything was up for interpretation and yet a spirit walk occasionally influenced his decision making. It took the old Vulpin a moment to regain his composure and quickly waved the young sovereign off. Today was no longer a day to be concerned with such trivial matters. Spirit walks cannot be controlled, they just happen. And when they happen, it was always for a reason. Before opening the message, king Aidar commanded his hall to be silent. [color=b22222]“Get a keg of ale. Tonight we honor the passing of king Amon-Ra IV, supreme ruler of the realm. May his spirit be guided on his journey back to the one”[/color] Cael Drumain took the liberty to open the message that the Arkronians had sent. With just a glance he knew that the old dog on the throne was right. The prime servant could only guess what the king had seen. The old man never really shared the stories but it was clearly enough to know that the current ruler in Arkronia had left the mortal realm. The interesting part of the letter was the fact that the ceremony would take place in just 5 weeks. That’s incredibly short for Arkronian standards. The government in Arkronia seemed to be in a hurry to get the crown prince on the throne. [color=b22222]“My liege. I shall summon the clan sovereigns and make the necessary arrangements for our travel to the inauguration of crown prince Rakon-Da.”[/color] The old king just stared in the distance as he over thought his latest experience. Could it be more than just a sign of a change in monarchy? Why was the throne empty? Should he not have seen the Arkronian crown prince sitting on the throne? The truth about spirit walks was that they often raised more questions than provided answers. But the old Vulpin monarch was sure of one thing. Mycoria was standing at the crossroads of destiny once more. However the old king did not get much time to think. Raelin Loinsigh Palebrush, sovereign of clan Palebrush wasn’t ready yet to leave the subject of the Ephan’s. It was here people who suffered the incursions and it was her responsibility as leader of the clan to safeguard her clansmen. [color=b22222]“My liege, we are not done yet! Something must be done about Ephan’s roaming into Vulpin territory. They hunt our game, gather our food and leave less for us Vulpin. My people in the border region went hungry this winter because of the Ephans. I cannot tolerate that and have instructed my hunters and warriors to kill any Ephan we spot in our territory. I request to accompany you on your journey to the Arkronian capital so that I can tell those stupid sentinals to stay the fuck away from my lands!”[/color] King Aidar just smiled. He had known Raelin since her birth. Her father was a close friend and supporter of the king during his days as Sovereign of clan Palebrush. It came to Aidar as no surprise that she rose to lead her clan and not one of her 7 brothers. Raelin still was as stubborn, dedicated and straight to the point as back in the day that she was just a kid. She always knew what she wanted and worked extremely hard to get it. Far harder than any of her brothers ever did. The border situation between Vulpinia and the Dominion was complicated. Ever since the humans settled in the northern region they had pushed westward. Eventually coming across the Vulpin in the mountains. Many Vulpin claimed that they had always lived on every mountain but the truth was that the region always had been sparsely populated. What complicated the matter was the fact that both the Vulpin and the Ephans heavily relied on hunting in the region. Every animal that one side shot meant that the other had less to eat during winter. Switching sides during the last rebellion did little to improve the situation. The Arkronians promised to force the Ephans out of the mountains but only took temporary measures to ensure that the Ephans would stay away. Over time the Arkronians simply lost interest in the region and the situation returned to what it was. However the fact that the Vulpin switched sides during the third rebellion worsened the relation between the kingdom of Vulpinia and the Dominion of Epha. A good chunk of the Ephan army was led into the ambush by the Vulpin and many beast knights lost their life. That was something that is not easily forgotten and even harder to forgive. The old Vulpin king knew that Raelin lacked the diplomatic tact to come to terms with the Ephans. Her stubbornness and furious passion for her people would prevent her from reaching a compromise. Yet, it was something she had to learn as many considered Raelin one of the primary candidates to become the next Vulpin monarch. [color=B22222]“Raelin, you are aware that telling the Sentinals to stay the fuck out wouldn’t do much good. If you want to talk with the Ephans, you need to do it with clarity about what you wish to achieve and what is within the realm of possibilities. Luckily you have about 5 weeks to think about that.”[/color] [color=b22222]“My liege, there is one more subject we need to discuss.”[/color] Intervered Cael, the prime servant. He knew that if a coronation ceremony would take place in Arkronia, all vassals would be invited and some would travel by land and thus through the territory of the Vulpin. One of the delegations that would travel by land are the Ephans. [color=b22222]“All Vassals will be invited and all are expected to send a delegation. That means that the Ephans will travel to the Arkronian capital as well. They will travel by land and need to pass through our territory.”[/color] Spoke the prime servant. [color=b22222]“We can always deny them access and force them to travel to Cor and take a ship”[/color] Said the sovereign of Clan Palebrush. It was a little joke as she knew that not granting access for such an occasion would not do well with the Arkronians. The king sighed. He knew from all the nations in the world the Vulpin disliked the Ephan’s the most. It wasn’t out of the question that some Vulpin would display their disdain for the Ephans in a manner that would complicate things even more. A situation king Aidar would like to avoid. [color=B22222]“Cael, arrange an escort for the Ephans and send them a message that we will grant their delegation passage through our territory. Make sure to select some trustworthy men for the escort.”[/color] Cael nodded as he walked down to a table containing scrolls, ink and feathers for writing. [hider=A message to the high sentinel of the dominion of Epha] To our most beloved neighbor, Word has reached us that King Amon-Mar has passed away. The coronation of his son is in 5 weeks. We are well aware that all states have received an invitation to this important event. As such, the delegation of the Dominion of Epha will be granted passage through the kingdom of Vulpinia. Vulpin warriors will escort your delegation through our lands. Yours sincerely, Aidar Fir Shadowfax King of the nine Vulpin clans [/hider]