Lucius
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Duke of Hess
Posts: 55
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Post by Lucius on Oct 9, 2007 13:05:03 GMT -5
Lucius coughed - he had suffered from the vicious disease for a year now, and according to the healers they could not cure him of it, but only ease his pain - as he walked down the narrow corridor down to the throne room. It had been eight years since he first claimed the throne as his birth-right, and ever since he had been acknowledged as the Duke of Hess by all but one - his own cousin, who he had exiled from his Duchy, who had claimed him to be incapable of ruling Hess due to his young age. As he had exiled his cousin, many of those lesser nobles who had been ready to support his claims had decided to 'visit' their distant relatives, and only lately some of those lesser nobles had started to move back to Hess.
As he entered the throne room, he looked around himself. There weren't too many in the hall, as it was only noon - most of them were still recovering from the last night's celebrations of the Midsummer's Eve, which was one of the biggest celebrations in Hess where the pagan traditions still lived, and only few had found their way down to the hall to greet their Duke - most of them being those who had only recently returned to Hess and tried to struggle their way back to the good graces of their Duke.
Irritated, Lucius nodded to some of them as they greeted him heartily as he was limping towards the throne - an old wound he had received on a battlefield in the early age of 20 in one of the numerous skirmishes against the northern barbarians that had proved to be a constant nuisance for him and his people - and finally, letting out a depe sigh, sat down on the throne, deep in his thoughts.
Suddenly the great doors of the throne room opened, and a herald that he did not recognize came in, standing on the top of the stairway before the gates of the hall. "My liege, Duke of Hess, the Knight-Marshal of Hess, Lucius von Hess, I present to you..."
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Post by Greowulf on Oct 9, 2007 19:54:37 GMT -5
"I present to you the Steward of Manzanare, Greowulf."
Greowulf stepped past his herald and made his way toward the throne. He was happy to be away from his own throne, at the moment. With all the trouble of the rebels rebelling, it was a good feeling to just be away. But he knew that this trip would turn toward the topic of the rebel's at one time or another, it was to be expected.
Greowulf stepped toward Lucius with one hand on his side. With a slight inclination of his head, he smiled to the Duke. "Looks great" he said looking around the throne room. Greowulf then moved to one of the chairs beside the throne, but did not sit down. "Im sure you have heard the news of the rebels, and the surge of defiance against me?" he said to Lucius without looking at him.
If Greowulf could deal peacefully with the rebel's he would. But he knew that they wanted the blood of the Steward, they wanted his head. He knew what they wanted in his place, and if only he could give them one. No one has come forth claiming to be King, and that is what Greowulf did not understand. "Why do the rebels rebel, when there is no King to replace him?".
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Lucius
Administrator
Duke of Hess
Posts: 55
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Post by Lucius on Oct 9, 2007 20:03:42 GMT -5
Lucius bowed deep, then fixing his eyes on his ruler's, saying, "The rebels... yes, of course, I have heard of them, but only little of those news reach these northern lands. What I have heard is, however, that they claim to be Old Blood - believers of the Old Gods. I suppose that you do not find it surprising that people of Hess, as majority of my people still believe in the Northern Gods, feel somewhat sympathy towards these rebels." He shook his head, clearly irritated, then said, "The old beliefs are hard to get rid of, my lord. Such is the case at least here, as the people of Hess are surprisingly stubborn when it comes to beliefs about supernatural things."
He looked around himself. "I am sorry for this... lack of luxuries. The news about you leaving your castle never reached my ears, my lord, nor did the news about you arriving through the passes of our Mountains." He walked down the stairs of the dais on which his throne stood, smiling at the Steward as the violent cough once more incised his lungs, then saying, "The meal will be ready soon enough, my lord. If you allow me, I would accompany you and show you to the rooms?"
He inclined with his hand and two of the servants ran out of the hall to make appropriate rooms ready for the Steward.
"How many are there with you?"
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Post by Greowulf on Oct 9, 2007 20:41:19 GMT -5
Greowulf listened as Lucius spoke. He was very wise and chose his words wisely. Greowulf nodded when Lucius said that his people can feel symapthy toward the rebels. Greowulf too may feel sympathy, if it was'nt he who is the target of their blades. Greowulf knew that he chose correctly, when chosing Hess to find answers in.
Greowulf raised his hands. "Do not fret, I need not luxuries. And yes, I wished to keep my trek quiet. I did not want the rebels to follow me here, to have them here would be a great disturbance to you...trust me" he said solemly. Greowulf then nodded as Lucius hacked up awful badly and offered to show him to the rooms.
"One Steward, one herald, and ten guards" said Greowulf with a small smile to the Duke. As he put his hands behind his back and let Lucius led him about.
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Lucius
Administrator
Duke of Hess
Posts: 55
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Post by Lucius on Oct 9, 2007 20:58:25 GMT -5
"One Steward, one herald, and ten guards"
"I will see that they are given quarters later", Lucius said as he led Steward through the corridors. "I assume that you have some pressing matter to bring you as far north as Hess? We don't have too many visitors coming here, not even in the summer." He smiled. "I have some experience in dealing with rebels - as you might know, the northern areas of Hess are more often than I would wish them to be under attack of the northern tribes of barbarians who live beyond the Black Mountains. They have passages of which we don't know of through the Black Mountains, and their attacks come as a surprise more often than not." He sighed. "And we all", he said, touching his right, injured leg with his right hand, "have paid a dear price of their attacks."
He looked around himself. "From what I have heard, though these are only rumors that have been carried to my ears by some of the nobility who have recently", he said with disgust in his voice, "returned from the south back to Hess, the rebels have dug deep into the forest called Drakkius Forest and are launching their skirmish attacks toward your troops from there. From what I have heard, they have also launched some attacks against the civilian population, though this might be only attacks of the bandits who pretend to be of the Old Blood, as the rebels, or so I have heard, call themselves. I assume that my information is right?"
His mind was now racing. "You could, of course, try to siege the forest itself, but that would be a costly operation and most likely also futile - the openings between the lines of your army's ranks would be too numerous, and the rebels would only be able to run through them and perhaps find a new haven from somewhere." He was silent for a moment. "My lord, we have one advantage - we know where they are. We must decide how we use this information." Again a silence followed.
"I would say that the best choice in the current situation would be that you would send some of your agents into villages near the forest, my lord. It is most likely that some of the Old Blood still reside in these villages. You might try two solutions."
He looked at Steward. "The first one - and the more obvious - would be that you try to buy information about the rebel camp from them and then arrange an assault against the rebels. The other..." He suddenly fell silent, unsure.
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Post by Greowulf on Oct 10, 2007 16:48:28 GMT -5
Greowulf nodded to the Duke. "Yes...the Rebels of the Old Blood have claimed Drakkius as their own...and I cannot do anything" he said quietly. Greowulf then nodded again, he could indeed siege the forest and try to take them head on. But the only problem was, is that he did not know how many there are, he did not exactly who is a rebel. Any of his citizens could be a rebel, and he was none the wiser.
"I have come to the conclusion that I cannot trust many, not even in my own home" he said to the Duke. "I could send out agents, who very well could be double agents. I send them out to find information, and in turn they are giving information of me to the enemy." He said clearing his throat.
"I do plan an assault against the rebels, but how I do not know." he said looking into the Duke's eyes. "What I must know first, is where the allegiance of each Duchy lies..." he said rather quietly. He kept eye contact with the Duke, although it was hard for him. It was not easy to ask someone to whom he had trusted for so long, if they are betraying him.
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Lucius
Administrator
Duke of Hess
Posts: 55
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Post by Lucius on Oct 10, 2007 17:13:29 GMT -5
As they finally reached the Quarters that Lucius always kept open for the possibility that a visitor of some high position, such as the Steward himself as was the case this time, Lucius opened the door for Duke and let him inside. "I thought it would be best for us to discuss about this matter alone", he said. He waved his arm and a servant brought two golden cups with a bottle of fine wine, and as the servant left Lucius opened the bottle and poured wine to the both cups - taking a sip of his own cup, to show Steward that there was no fear of poison. He smiled as he sat down on a couch, opposite to the one on which the Steward himself had sat down on.
"My allegiance lies with my people, and the Kingdom of Manzanare. My father - as his father before him had taught him - taught me that the rulers are not as much privileged as they are responsible for the welfare of their own people. That is how I live. I guide my people to the direction that is best for them, and for now it is the unity of the Kingdom and a solid and good ruler on the throne. That is, you. As much as I'd like to see a true heir on the throne", he said, "and by this I mean no offense to you, I still feel that the reckless and savageous attacks by the Old Blood rebels show only impatience and youth of the one who claims to be the true heir to your throne, my liege."
He drew a deep sigh. "As you have said yourself, it is impossible for you to know who is a friend and who is a foe." He kept a small pause between his words, then said, "This is why I advice you to do the following." He looked around himself. "You should, if you allow me to advice you, support the superstitious words of the clergy of the True Faith. As you know, the True Faith has little patience for other religions, including the Old Blood faith - and this is the greatest weapon you have in your hands."
He smiled. "The farmers and villagers are often superstitious folk and know only little - which is usually what the clergy have told them. Support the clergy in this matter. Give speeches about the True Faith, pray among the people in the Cathedral of Manzanare, and people will heed the words of the priests even more carefully. And when the time is right..." He smiled.
"Let's just say that some poisoned water and grain for herds of cows, sheeps and such animals in some villages should do the dirty work for you to turn the hatred of the public against the Old Blood, and the sympathies to you as you agree to pay at least the half of the money that the farmers need to rebuild their herds from the royal chest. Along with the terror caused by the brigands - whom you, of course, declare to be part of the Old Blood movement - and their attacks this should make the people of Manzanare worship you. The war is won even before you know it."
He smiled. "And at this point, when the harvest is ready to be sowed, you offer a general amnesty to those of the Old Blood families that know something about the rebel movement and the important members of the Old Blood movement." He emptied his cup from wine and poured it half full. "That is", he said, "at least what I would do, my lord."
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Post by Greowulf on Oct 10, 2007 17:31:58 GMT -5
Greowulf sat silently, with his eyes on his wine. Lucius was indeed a smart man, and his logic was deep. Greowulf liked the idea of winning the battle against the rebels through the people, instead of in battle. Although Greowulf was prepared to engage in combat with the rebels, he would do whatever necessary to stop confrontation.
Greowulf then looked up to the Duke. "An easy victory" he said with a chuckle. "I think that the odds of religion playing a large part in this war very likely, but to decide the entire outcome? Im doubtful" he said with a sip of his drink. "If only the religious leaders of the True Faith bore weapons, I would have an unbeatable army" he said with a smile.
"Pardon my curiosity good Duke, but I have a question about your Father" Greowulf said to Lucius with a small smirk. "He taught you how to rule, and you adopted his way." he added with a nod. "But did you adopt his way of religion? You talk of the True Faith and the Old Blood, but you talk none of the Hathian Faith...of which do you follow...good Duke?"he asked, as he took another sip of wine.
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Lucius
Administrator
Duke of Hess
Posts: 55
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Post by Lucius on Oct 10, 2007 17:41:15 GMT -5
"I do not consider myself belonging to any religion, my lord Steward", Lucius replied at last, his words being interrupted by the violent cough. He shook his head. "My father taught about the ways of the Hathian religion, as did my mother teach me about the True Faith. I would consider myself being out of any religion, if you don't mind me saying so. I have never believed in anything greater than this world, this one moment that we have here, in our hands." He took a deep breath, trying to keep himself from coughing. "It may have something to do with my condition. Oh, I have prayed", he said, with a bitter voice, "I have sacrificed for both the True Faith and the Hathian religion, but I am beyond the help of the gods."
He looked into Stewards eyes, saying, "The True Faith clergy say that I must 'repel my sins' if I wish to be cured by their gods, and to sacrifice more. The Hathians say that the disease is something that should make me stronger, instead of making me weak." He shook his head. "I have long since lost my faith in any religion. Instead I use what medical knowledge those who call themselves healers might have for my condition. Some of them have been more succesful than others. The most recent one... it takes a toll of me, but it keeps the pain away." He took a deep breath, shrugging. "This is the pain I must carry, I suppose, for the end of my life."
He rose from the couch, emptying once more his cup of its wine. "If you allow me, I will leave now to see that your men are taken care of and given suitable quarters, and after that we meet at the dinner, which is due to half an hour. There we may continue with our discussion. Also, I need this excuse to take the medication the healers have obliged me to take once every four hours." He bowed deep, with amused smile on his lips. "No doubt the cooks of my castle are cursing my name aloud at this moment, as they had no idea about your arrival and are, I am sure, trying to make a dinner that would be suitable for one of your position."
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Post by Greowulf on Oct 10, 2007 18:47:35 GMT -5
Greowulf inclined his head when Lucius spoke of his disease. He knew the Duke had a terrible, life threatening sickness in his veins. The way Greowulf would deal with it, would be to pray and repel his sins, as was the way of his religion. He might take to medicine, but not too heavily, as it might looked bad upon by the people.
"Perhaps repeling your sins is not a bad idea...it may work you know" he said with a smile. Greowulf was no religious crazy ruler. He was a ruler with a religious background. Although he prayed before every battle, and prayed when he was ill or his family ill. But the one prayer that was not answered, was the prayer to protect his father. That went unanswered.
Greowulf too stood up, and clapped the Duke on his shoulder. "Do not fret over food for me, give me a spear and throw me into the woods...I will return with a glorious dinner" he said with a laugh. Greowulf then sat back down and filled his wine again. "I look forward to the dinner none the less...we have much to discuss" he said taking a sip.
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Lucius
Administrator
Duke of Hess
Posts: 55
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Post by Lucius on Oct 10, 2007 18:59:39 GMT -5
Lucius smiled, coughing again, then said, "I wouldn't fret about the dinner, my lord, but my cooks are rather... devoted to their work. And they bother about the honor and fame of this castle more than I do, I must say", he said, smiling. "Now, should you need anything - warm water for bathing, for example - there is a servant waiting at the corridor all times. Don't worry - even if I would tell them to go away they still would somehow slip there in case you might want something to be fetched." As he coughed again, he wiped his lips with a handkerchief, looking at it. There was blood. He shook his head, sighing. "Now, If you excuse me, I must take my leave." With a bow he walked to the door, and after closing it, he saw a young boy who was one of the more recent additions to the staff of the palace.
"See that everything Steward needs is taken care of. And send the word to castle's -" Violent cough interrupted his words, and he had to bend over and take hold of the wall of the corridor. Finally he straightened up, he said, "Send the word to my chancellor. Tell him to take care of the needs that Steward's staff may have." Boy nodded and ran away, and Lucius wiped his lips once more. He shook his head - the cough was becoming worse. Sighing, he turned around and walked through the hall, to his own rooms.
There, in the air of the room, floated a sweet scent that was from the medicine he had to use. Near the fireplace stood a man in white capes, in his hands a cup with a warm, vapouring liquid. Lucius took the cup from the man's hands, drinking the bitter-tasting liquid with a grimace. "Go", he said. "My chancellor will give you the payment required." He looked at the man, his face darkening. "The liquid's effects aren't the same it used to be. You better get it work", he said, throwing the cup to the floor with sudden rage, "or I will cut your head off myself, old man!"
The man, startled by his reaction, said nothing and almost ran to the door and left. Lucius shook his head. He would be back. He would be back or he would be dead.
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Post by Greowulf on Oct 11, 2007 21:43:08 GMT -5
Greowulf nodded to the Duke as he left. The Steward then sat back down, and filled his glass. He downed it and filled it five more times, each time his hand becoming steadily more shaky. After a while, he had ten drinks in him and he began to mumble and laugh to himself. This is what he did in the last few days, to rid his thoughts of the rebels.
Greowulf then became impatient, and stood up and crossed the room. He stuck his head out of the door and looked to the servant. "Oi! Whur's tha duke, eh?" he said to him with a giggle. The boy quickly shurgged his shoulders then mumbled something about going to find him. The boy quickly moved away down the hall.
Greowulf then laughed to himself, and went back into the room. He looked into the glass of wine to find it empty. "All gone..."he said to himself as he sat down. He then layed himself out on the table, and watched the door. He wanted to see the Duke of Hess.
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Lucius
Administrator
Duke of Hess
Posts: 55
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Post by Lucius on Oct 11, 2007 21:53:17 GMT -5
Lucius walked through the narrow corridor - the boy who had picked up had come with haste, for some reason - and he opened the door, finding the Steward sitting at the couch. There was a hazy look in his eyes and Lucius knew that he was drunk - not that he minded it, he had become more and more self-destructive and habitous with his own drinking since the pain had begun - and he smiled slightly, walking to the table and pouring some wine for himself, as well as to the Steward, before sitting down at the opposite couch.
"The dinner will be soon ready and the table should be ready for us. I am sorry that we had to wait this long, my liege, but the cooks complained to me that they needed at least half an hour more to make a decent enough meal that would suit Your Highness' position", he said with a broad smile. He took a deep breath. "My liege, I must inform you that there is a slight matter that we should discuss... eventually", he said. "I suspect that you might know about the dispute about the borders we have with Bretagne", he said, "as about the rights for the tolls. As you might know, the right to collect the tolls has been that of Hess ever since Hess joined the Kingdom, but now Duke Duratan seems to have something else in mind."
He sighed. "I have never been patient man, my liege. I admit that. Neither have I ever considered Duke Duratan as my enemy, but it seems that he might have the interest of his people in mind and has seen his opportunity to press us in this matter since my father's untimely death - I fear that he is among those who think it unwise for one such young as I to rule. And I doubt that this dispute has something to do with my cousin, who disputed years ago about the inheritance of the throne of Hess." He sighed. "Your father made the decision to my advantage, but my cousin has received haven from the court of Bretagne."
He smiled. "I am sorry, my liege. This is not the time nor place to discuss about such pressing matters."
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Post by Greowulf on Oct 12, 2007 6:13:13 GMT -5
Greowulf stretched out and smiled when Lucius said the food was coming. Greowulf did love food, whether it was a roasted ham or fried frog, it all tasted good to him. His cooks in Manzanare knew his tastes, and wherever he went, he enjoyed his meals. And also, he ejoyed his drink, sometimes a little too much.
"Hmmm" said Greowulf thinking about the toll dispute. He had his hand on his chin, and it kinda looked like he was pondering some great theory. "What do you propose?" he suddenly asked the Duke. He always had a few plans for everything, but he knew that others had good plans aswell.
Greowulf rocked back and forth for a bit, waiting for the Dukes response. And he then put his hand up when Lucius said it was not the time to discuss the matter. "Baah!" retorted Greowulf with another smile, as he continued to rock back and forth, with the occasional burp.
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Lucius
Administrator
Duke of Hess
Posts: 55
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Post by Lucius on Oct 12, 2007 10:18:26 GMT -5
Lucius rose, inclining towards door. "Shall we leave for the dining hall?" he asked. He walked to the door, opening it, closing it behind himself. "My liege", he said, finally, "I suggest that you bring Duke Duratan of Bretagne to the same negotiation table with me. The feud that we have had for the past eight years has grown tiring and my people are restless. It may be that I do not have the necessary forces to hold my people back, as they have expressed deep... hatred might be too strong as a word, but perhaps anger would be suitable enough... towards Bretagne. I have heard of mobs gathering near the border of Bretagne, throwing stones and such against the border patrols of Bretagne, and I fear that the attack will be inevidable if the situation continues as it has."
He sighed, shaking his head, as they walked down the steep and narrow stairway. "My liege, there are two possible solutions. Either we may come to solution in a negotiation table, peacefully... or we have a riot in our hands. The traditions of the Warrior Caste live deep in the blood of my people, and many still carry weapons as an old habit. There is no way for me to tell where they break through and whether my men would even defend the borders from them - they are their own people, after all, and not even my soldiers are immune to the influence that those of their families may have on them. I assure you, my liege, that the situation is grave and must be dealt with - and fast."
As they arrived at the doors of the dining hall, Lucius finally shrugged. "This is all in your hands, Steward - my hands are tied. I am bound to serve my people, and only after that the interests of the Kingdom. That is the holy law of my people and should one break them, it would result in coup, I am sure of that." Without saying anything more, he opened the doors for the Steward.
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