Raptra

The Job af the Assassin and Life of the Prince

Relief washed over Eliezer as they moved away from the crowd. Not that it was apparent. He very rarely strayed far from his usual demeanor, if ever. It was something that had been subconsciously trained since he was young. When they had found some privacy, he only listened to Raven as she began to further open up about her past. He then watched her give some of what she had to the two children who had approached them. At that moment, her small act of generosity meant so much more than the charity he and his family had shown to the commoners. The royal family may have been rich in material wealth, but these villagers, they were rich at heart. This had Eliezer questioning the perception he had all these years. Were they simply different, or was there truly something he was lacking?

He finally spoke again, deciding to share his thoughts and perhaps, lift the spirits of his lady. "You see, I show kindness to my people merely because I have been taught that it is right, and that I would gain their favor by doing so. You do the same for those in need, but because you know what it is like to be in their place. It is not what has happened to us that makes us who we are, but the choices that we make. In spite of all the hardship and rejection you have faced, you have chosen to persevere, and to still care for others. That is what makes you somebody amazing in my eyes. Do you understand now?"

Eliezer then continued, this time attempting to open up himself. "I regret being unable to empathize with your pain, my lady. I had servants catering to my every need as I was growing up, the very king and queen of Dainia guiding me into becoming a person, and my brother as my closest confidant. It was only with Prince Mathazar's aid that I am able to see you today. I cannot imagine what I would do without him. When the time shall come for me to inherit the throne of Dainia, I owe it to all of them to do my very best for the kingdom."

Her mention of the ball caused him to wonder how she had been able to be present at such an event. According to her, it had been because of a certain 'master', whom he assumed to be the adoptive parent of Raven and a few others, that she could attend the ball as a guest. As far as he knew, every guest at the ball had been invited by the royal family, and the fact that he had not even found her familiar the night before made it all rather peculiar. He would guess from her skills that she was newly hired as a royal spy for the kingdom, but he would not know for sure until he had asked.

"Pardon the change in subject, my lady, but I am curious to know your affiliation to my family."

Defenders of Cinix (A fun crossover) [Accepting]

Alright peeps, I'm gonna have to time this right. @eemmtt Could we have some Skaven clashing with the heroes when they arrive at the CBD? I'll give the villain side some time to respond before that and just move the HQ group along soon.

@FalkiThomas Wish I could have Rex continue his nanite conversation with Zack though, probably at a later time XD. You're right, it's starting to get hilarious.

The Job af the Assassin and Life of the Prince

Eliezer was taken aback by Raven's explanation about her family. "You are an... orphan, I see. My sincerest apologies, my lady."

He recalled her mentioning her mother the night before, which meant that she had known and had a relationship with her mother, and perhaps even her father. For an orphan to have lost a parent they had already formed a bond with must have been much more devastating than for them to have never known their parents at all. He could hardly imagine what it had been like for her, and apart from his apology, he did not know how else to respond to such information. Thankfully, the topic of their conversation quickly switched to something else - a village festival, of sorts. Eliezer wondered why his family was never notified of this yearly event. The village folk probably thought it too trivial for the royal family to concern themselves with. However, he wished they had been, for he constantly looked for ways to make a good impression on the commoners.

"Do extend an invitation to the palace the next year," he requested. "My brother and I would be interested in attending an event that holds such significance for you and your people."

That was when a friend of Raven's called them over. Eliezer instinctively adjusted the hat on his head, hoping for his disguise to remain effective as they approached the young man at the booth. While they spoke, the prince made it a point not to say too much apart from the occasional word, should his manner of speech give him away. From Raven's conversation with her friend, he was disturbed to learn that the orphans of Dainia were so badly off that they had to resort to theft. He had to have his family do more for these children. As for Raven, she had been through so much in her life. It must have been painful enough to have been orphaned, yet even after that, she had to survive and learn how to form relationships with others on her own.

He desired to know what exactly happened to her parents, though, to ask her to recall something so tragic when she was currently so happy would be rather inconsiderate and insensitive. Regardless, his admiration for her only grew immensely. It was her resilience which he thought truly amazing, and he found himself intrigued by the story of her life as they went around to meet with more of her acquaintances. However, he could see that she was completely comfortable and at home in the village with the simple folk. How well would she adjust to palace life and handle queenly responsibilities?

He was snapped out of his thoughts when Raven began to pull him out onto a makeshift dance floor where others were moving freely to the music. He was initially hit with anxiety, for he had never been thrown into such disorder and confusion in his life. Taking a deep breath, he remembered that this day was for his lady, and shifted all his focus on her to block out the chaos that surrounded them. He had plenty of time to think later, for he could go back to being the Crown Prince of Dainia after the Sun had set. What currently mattered was the woman in his arms.

"I see that you crave yet another dance. Did I fail to satisfy you the night before?"

He had meant for that comment to be humorous, and internally cringed at himself when it came out like a serious question. It was no wonder why he hardly made an attempt at humor. Not that he received such attempts of others well either. His lack of ability to comprehend humor was something his brother probably knew all too well. As they subconsciously moved to the rhythm of the song, he reached up, delicately brushing the stray strands of hair away from Raven's face so that he could gaze into her eyes.

"I truly am grateful that you have decided to reveal your way of life to me, my lady. You absolutely are the strongest person I have ever met. Not simply because of your skills in battle, but because of who you are at heart."

Defenders of Cinix (A fun crossover) [Accepting]

(Cinix Business District - Sewer) @eemmtt @Metatrooper

The yellow-eyed hooded figure reappeared to find Skitterback in his rather undignified state. A sigh escaped from its lips, before a portal opened in the area and poured out a group of arthropodal creatures.

"Ah, I see you've made it," it began, addressing Abathur. Don't mind this fellow over here, his coherence shall return in due time. Welcome to Cinix. Once you go above ground, you'll find this a lovely place. How would you like to run it, together? I'll give you some time to think about my offer."

It then moved over to inspect the half-finished gateway. "Interesting, but will this technology work across dimensions? I think not. Perhaps this might help."

The figure pulled out a larger version of Abathur and Skitterback's emblems and left it by the gateway, before turning back to Abathur and pointing to the one he was carrying. "If you wish to contact me again, there's always that."

With that, the hooded individual vanished into the shadows.

The Job af the Assassin and Life of the Prince

“Hmpf to get officially seen its always Eliezer this Eliezer that and why cant I be more like him.”

@Fairy Tale Dreamer

I love this part, made me laugh :D

Also, I happened to have the time to respond daily this past week, but that most likely won't be the case from next week onwards and my responses will be less frequent, so do take your time with your own replies. Still enjoying this story though!

The Job af the Assassin and Life of the Prince

It was all starting to seem like a big mistake. Little did Eliezer know what a mess he was getting himself into when he had offered to accommodate the young woman he had only just met the night before. He should have known not to make such a terrible decision, how was he to run an entire kingdom when he was guilty of such incompetence? In light of the attempted assassination that had taken place during the ball, the king and queen had ordered a drastic increase in palace security and restricted the movements of their sons. Eliezer would have liked to comply with the orders, but a promise was a promise, and a prince should never go back on his word either. It was not until the night before that he had started to doubt what truly was right, and it was not a good feeling.

Not long after the servant came to alert him of Raven’s arrival, Mathazar, who was in on the ploy, turned up at his door as well, looking rather concerned. “I cannot help but to find myself accountable, should any harm come to you, Eliezer.”

“Do not feel such a way, for you could not stop me even if you desired to. You should not be held responsible for my actions,” the elder replied, before turning to the servant. “And neither should you.”

At the servant’s nod, the brothers swiftly made their way down the hallway, with Mathazar informing Eliezer about the current situation. “I have set up a distraction to lure the guards at the gate away. They are currently elsewhere, meaning you should be able to pass through without issue. Father and Mother will be attending to their duties until night. This is not like you at all, imagine the hysteria, should they find out that their precious golden boy has gone out to the village with his mysterious dame at such a time!”

Despite the younger’s attempt at lightening the mood, his older brother only addressed him in seriousness as they stopped at the gate. “Unless I do not return by nightfall, they must not know. Do you understand?”

Mathazar nodded. “You have my word, brother.”

A light smile then graced the elder’s lips – a rarity, considering his usual stoic expression. “I simply cannot thank you enough, Mathazar.”

“It is my pleasure to be of assistance to you,” Mathazar responded before quickly pulling his twin into a hug to hide the smirk on his face, the smirk from the expectation that Eliezer was not going to return that night. He then let go of him. “Now go!”

He watched his brother leave through the gate before making his way back into the palace, leaving Raven to finish the job.

The trip to the village area was longer than Eliezer had remembered. He had graced the folk there with his presence several times before and brought them gifts on behalf of the royal family. It was how he had earn their favor. However, he never knew what it was like to live as one of them, and as he and Raven travelled past the simple cottages, he pulled the hat over his eyes, acknowledging that the disguise would also be of use should there be more assassins lurking about the village.

Why would she choose to spend her time with him here? Remembering that she had claimed to be from this area, Eliezer decided that it was time to press her for more information. “Considering how we had only first spoken the night before, Lady Om- Raven, surely you aren’t already planning on bringing me home to meet your family?”

Guild of Dishonor

Heyo! How's it going peeps?

The Defiance Project

Bumpity-bump! How's everyone?

Hidden In The Forest (Closed)

Bump, is this still alive?

The Job af the Assassin and Life of the Prince

Eliezer had expected that his time with Raven would have been the highest point of the evening, which told of how unprepared he was for the sudden alarming shout and the sword which was swung in his direction. He immediately flinched back and prepared for the impact, though, all that happened next was the sound of metal clashing. He opened his eyes to see the very lady who had been on his mind standing between him and his attacker, and when she proceeded to battle the man who had been the first to draw his blade along with two others, Eliezer could only stare in bewilderment at the scene playing out in front of him as his mind simply went blank after attempting to make sense of it all.

He was only in such a state for a few moments, however, for he was soon able to snap back to the current situation. Nothing else mattered at this time, for a scrimmage was taking place right in the ballroom of the palace, and questions could be asked later. After assessing the circumstances, his hand instinctively flew up to the grip of the rapier at his waist, but another hand then clamped down onto his own, preventing him from drawing the sword from its sheath. He glanced up to see that it belonged to his brother.

"Stay out of this, Eliezer, it is your life they are looking to take. Do not put yourself in harm's way, Dainia needs its Crown Prince alive."

Eliezer stared at Mathazar for a moment and then nodded, letting his hand fall to his side. Observing Raven's skills as she took on the three assassins, he now knew that she had been hiding much more than he had suspected. To say that he only grew more curious about her would be an understatement, for if he were to question her he would not even know where to start. The guards outside were alerted by the noise, and arrived to apprehend the assassins just as Raven had defeated them. She then addressed him rather casually after the battle, providing him with a brief explanation and telling him a little more about herself before stepping away 'for a drink'.

She claimed to be from the village... Was that why he found her different from the others? If that even was the reason, he would have never guessed it. Eliezer knew that village women were a practical and reliable lot, but Raven's capabilities were not something one saw everyday, even in the village. While Mathazar left to oversee the issue of the assassins, or so he had claimed, most of the terrified noble guests were promptly escorted out of the palace into their carriages, which also left soon after. As for Eliezer, he found himself gazing at Raven past the few remaining guests as she sipped from her glass in the corner across the room.

The possibility of her being a guard disguised as a fine lady hired by his parents crossed his mind, but it did not make sense after more thought. Why would she then be trying so hard to keep his attention if she had only been hired to look after his safety? Whoever she was, she seemed to want the same as any other woman who had attended tonight, though for what purpose, he still could not tell. Regardless, she had just saved his life, and he decided that he at least owed her a chance. It would also be an opportunity to find out more about her. After making that choice, he made his way to the other side of the room where she was.

"Lady Omrea, allow me to repay you for what you have done for me this evening." He then paused, moving a step closer and taking her hand into his. "I wish to see you again, my lady."