Snippet #1522388

Night, Jarvaise

Infirmary


After being forcefully shoved through a set of old wooden doors, Flin found himself standing at the front of a sterile room, with slick stone walls and a floor to match. Not much has changed in what, a thousand years-- hospitals would always be boring and stark.

“It is just a, um..!” Flin insisted, shaking a finger in the air while two larger guards made sure he was sat down on a bed without wasting too much of their time. He wanted to say it was nothing now, just a scratch. Foreign shiny tools that looked like dentist torture devices surrounded the area they stationed him around. An older woman from across the room made her way over to Flin, a wrinkled smile on her face as she sat down in a chair beside where Flin was sat down.

“Don’t fuss or they might just decide to strap you down while I check out your arm,” the woman insisted, winking in, what Flin took it as, a smug way of saying shut up so you can get out of here. Flin rolled his eyes at her in a futile attempt to rebel, eventually settling on staring at those around the room while he offered his elbow up to be examined. At the treatment station across from him was Leander who looked happily unpleasant as always. She didn’t seem to have the best luck doctor wise, the man helping her looking more than half the age younger than the woman tending to his wound. Knowing this era, age seemed to mean better qualified.

“OW!” Flin yelped as his eyes jerked back down to his arm, head trying to twist around as much as it could over his shoulder to get a better look at the back of his arm. The red scarf was off and the woman-doctor, or nurse, whatever she was- began applying some thick yellow ointment that stung like hell to the hollow entry wound bubbling with blood. He had to clench his left wrist to withstand further noise-making. “About done?” was all he could muster up in a coherent question as white bandages wrapped around his now oiled up arm tightly. Part of him really wondered what they just put on him, seeing as how their medicine was in a whole new ballpark compared to the prescription meds back home. For all he knew, it was some weird animal guts that they drained from a sheep or something.. the self-induced image of a lamb being carved into made Flin nauseous. The sound of Sebastian across the room vomiting didn’t help his cause, and he quickly jerked his arm away from the woman as he reached for the nearest bowl to throw up in. Behind him he could hear the two guards chuckling, and Flin eyed them for a second which caused both to harden their features and grow cold again. The older woman patted Flin’s back with ease and walked around to face him eye to eye.

“Here is something that will take care of the pain. It’s quite effective, the best in the Kingdom,” she boasted, proudly handing Flin a few brown seeds and a vile of milky fluid. Flin felt better after getting sick and gladly set the bowl down to accept the medieval remedies the doctor was handing over. Okay so he wasa being a hypocrite. He didn’t want them touching him but... giving him drugs, he gladly received. Pain relief is pain relief and if they had something that worked, by hell he would use it.. at least to get the high from it. Standing from the bed, he put the supplies in his pocket and joined Leander and Sebastian at the door who were standing next to Kali.

Kali led the three from the medical wing, up a flight of stairs, and into the northern tower that would house them for the night. She opened a large door to reveal behind it a long hallway of rooms. These rooms were makeshift and had no permanent wall or doors. Everything was open, that is how soldiers slept in barracks.

“Pick a bed, get to sleep. Morning comes quick, as soon as the first sound of birds begin their song. Be thankful for the few hours you have,” Kali commanded to everyone now in the room. They all had the same type of clueless acceptance to their faces. It wouldn’t be far off to assume they came from the same land, but then again, on her way to the castle she had heard them talking and each had a different accent from the next. It was fascinating in all the wrong ways. With a strict glare at each of them as they found a bed to claim, she turned towards the door and made her way back out into the stairwell. She locked the door, a precaution to prevent any of them from trying to escape during the night.

Flin could hear the door locking them in like caged animals in a zoo. The lights inside these barracks was all but scarce, with only a candle and a few tiny windows scattered about that could let in the moon. He sat restlessly on his bed for a while, the mattress below him an old one for sure which made a noise every time he turned over. This was his first along time since he’d woken up in this strange place. Maybe they would wake up back home in the morning. Flin rubbed his face, fingers then moving towards his hair to brush it out. The feeling of cool plastic made his eyes widen. The sunglasses... he thought to himself while he removed them from his head and folded them up in his hands. Why they made it to his place with him was still an unanswered question. He debated putting them on but opted not to because it would be too dark to see anything in this room anyway. Maybe if it was sunny in the morning he’d wear them. He shoved them in his pocket which reminded him of the pain reliever. Flin popped the 4 seeds into his mouth and used the milky liquid to swallow them down. It literally took fewer than 2 minutes before Flin found himself knocked out, drooling peacefully against the old mattress supporting him.

---

Kali took residence in a room the floor above the foreigners. Immediately once she was inside and the door was shut, she retrieved the scroll that the Captain had given her back in the streets when they were amongst the hooded figures. Carefully she unrolled the tattered paper, her dark eyes absorbing every line quickly and efficiently:


For the attention of Lieutenant Reshma only,

The situation in the East has proven to be more than just an inconvenience. My orders are to disrupt the course of action they plan to take and bring the entire uprising to a standstill. News has reached me that no fewer than two dozen small towns and villages have risen up and overthrown the Union soldiers occupying them. To add to the problem marches, protests and riots have broken out in the Eastern Capital. This means that we are almost in a state of war. The only advantage we have in such a situation is that we know they have a clear leader somewhere and they do not yet have the resources to keep him safe.

Your mission is to leave first thing in the morning, in civilian apparel so to avoid all detection. You MUST arrive on the Eastern coast before the soldiers I have sent and gather information leading to the location of this elusive leader of the rebellion. Then kill him. Make it obvious that it was not an accident.

You will have access to any and all military files and movements you so desire through an officer who will go by the name of 'Leech'. He will meet you beside pier 12 in the capital 5 days from now at dusk. You will ask him: 'How goes the fishing?' He will reply: 'We haven't got the bite we've been waiting for'.

You have one week. Good luck.

Captain Loger Kronis.



Kali rolled the scroll up once she was done reading her orders. Like always, it was a classified document meant only for her eyes. It also meant burning the evidence immediately. With a controlled stride over to the bedside table, she observed the candle and the matches. Lighting a match, Kali lit the candle. She then went on to hold the scroll above the candle, watching as it burned brightly into ashes once the ink and paper caught fire. Within seconds there was no record that the scroll ever existed. Every piece of information was retained in her mind, which was a talent it took her years to master completely. The note wasn’t enough information to settle the nerves she was beginning to feel take form in her stomach. Being an assassin didn’t make her worry-proof. There were questions that had answers, answers that she was determined beyond all else to find. The only thing that gave her a clear enough mind to fall asleep was the fact that within the week, all these unknown truths would be realized and the Rebellion would be squashed -- their leader dead by her hands.

-----

Morning, Jarvaise

Barracks


Flin was dead asleep as the Captain entered the room. The pain relief medicine that the doctor had given him in the infirmary had really worked its magic, the young man sleeping through the night like a little baby. His mouth was wide open as a muffled snore was released. The dropping off the large chest by the Captain only caused Flin to flinch in sleep, rolling over his other side that was facing the opposite way as the Captain. While he seemed sedated in his slumber, the Captain didn’t hesitate to continue speaking,

“Everyone up! This chest contains civilian clothes for all of you, take your pick and get changed...”

Kali had entered the door behind Captain Kronis and was standing in full uniform, straight and poised as any loyal Lieutenant would stand next to their leader. She watched as the chest opened, a bundle of civilian clothes mixes together. Her ears perked up slightly as Kronis turned to face her. “Lieutenant Reshma, your clothes were retrieved from your home during the night, they are upstairs. You change too then bring this rabble down to the armory. The updated details of your mission,” the Captain said, meanwhile handing her another scroll. It was slightly odd to get one so soon from the last, but by the looks of his eyes which were bloodshot, it was clear he didn’t sleep at all. Which meant he spent the night brooding over details and plans. She really worried about him and his health, cared about him. He was her Captain, he in all honest father figure, the only figure she had left in her life to look up since the loss of someone she dared not mention. No matter how many times she bantered about how important sleep was, they both knew it wasn’t so simple to drop everything. Still, he needed to rest eventually. The bags under his eyes would only get larger.

The Captain left the room with a literal bang, “And be quick about it!” his voice carried as the door slammed shut again. A click with the lock made it known that they were locked inside again, to wait to be released. It was this final slam of the door that jerked Flin up from his bed. His eyes were slightly groggy at first but quickly recovered to see the light in the room and everyone standing up. His hair was disheveled in a mess of purple and black, mouth dripping open for a lazy lawn. Kali was standing in the room with her arms crossed, and the rest seemed to be picking through clothes in a chest on the floor. With a grunt Flin rolled himself from the mattress and stretched his arms above his head casually, taking his dear time to wake up fully. He was the last to look in the chest for something new to put on.

“You guys better not have left me with anything ridiculous to wear,” he stated loudly, on purpose, glancing around at the men in the room and then back to the clothes before him. Luckily enough there was still a lot left to pick from. None of the articles had tags or sizes on them so he could only judge by holding up each item to see what would fit. In the end he settled on a pair of brown linen trousers that felt they were made out of cotton or something similar. The shirt was white and long sleeved, a v-cut dip around the chest area that he assumed was to act as a cooling mechanism. The rest he took: A brown leather belt, a a pair of leather sandals, and a green scarf that he tied around his forehead and knotted in a tie around the back of his head. All in all he felt pretty comfortable and had to admit he was glad to change out of his smelly clothes that still had the stench of pig stye. Once dressed he met the rest in the center. None hesitated in dressing.

Leander was the first voice he heard of the day.

“I don’t suppose we’re allowed to know what’s become of us?” was her question, and Flin seemed satisfied with it, crossing his arms and nodding at her words. He wanted to know, too. What was with the need for them to change clothes, or be locked in this tower?

---

Kali took the scroll and read it quickly while the group changed into their new clothing. Her facial expression appeared tense as she read, eyes rolling when it got to the part that she had to train them to defend themselves and keep them safe. It seemed a waste of time an effort while there was bigger issues in the East to worry about. Who cares if a group of outsiders is killed? Was it really their duty to babysit such? Of course, she wasn’t about to doubt the orders given to her, especially after her actions the day before that had caused the Captain to scold her. He had shown more emotion in that one moment than she could recall seeing in him in at least a few years...

Kali shook her head, pulling herself out of her thoughts as she crumbled the scroll up into her fist. Not only was finding and killing the Rebellion leader at the top of her to do list, there was no the question of getting the truth out of these people gathered before her. They didn’t look dangerous- in fact, they all seemed a bit helpless like lost dogs. Should it be amusing that they ring in so much puzzlement to the Union? With a huff of air, she was about to turn to the door before she heard a woman speak up.

“I don’t suppose we’re allowed to know what’s become of us?”

Kali rose an eyebrow, a smirk matching as she gazed at the woman harshly. They knew so little, and yet... they held answers to something. “Of course. I, as your leader, Lieutenant Reshma, will be taking you all Eastwards. The journey won’t be fun so don’t expect to be dining off sugared crickets or stew. To put it simply, you all came to Jarvaise at a bad time to visit. It isn’t safe here, from what you all have came to notice from last night. But the East isn’t either. The one thing I can promise you all is that your safety is recognized and I can provide the protection you all will need. No more questions,” Kali said, her words blunt and rushed. She left the group in the room as she unlocked the door with her key, then relocked while she exited. About 5 minutes later she returned to the barracks and opened the door, now dressed in civilian clothes that would easily pass for any traveling merchant. Her black hair was slicked back under her brown cloak that hung down her back and brushed her ankles. It was thick and made of durable leather, strong to withstand any tough climate. Everyone was dressed and ready to head out. One by one they went down the northern tower, through a series of halls, until they made their way out of the front of the castle doors.

As planned, there was a caravan loaded up with countless supplies. Tied to the back was a cow, followed by a horse for each of the foreigners to ride.

“Pick one,” Kali said, referring to the horses. Kali’s own horse stood faithfully at the front, patiently awaiting for his master’s comforting touch. He was the only creature that had the power to show Kali’s sensitive and loving side.

Flin, upon hearing the news that they had to pick a horse to ride, at first thought it was ridiculous. He’d never ridden on a horse in his life- besides a pony at a circus when he was a young child, and there were no pleasant memories attached to that day. After a few seconds of hesitation and the thought that if he didn’t have a horse, he would have to walk all the way to wherever they were going (which seemed far), he sufficed and gave in to the idea of the horse.. it couldn’t be that bad, right? The one that attracted him the most was a tall, black horse. He liked it just for the reason that under the right glare of the sun, the horse’s fur seemed to have a purple sheen to it, much like Flin’s own hair. Plus the black horse seemed more badass than the rest and so he wanted it. With a daring first couple strides, Flin found himself sticking one foot in the holster and swinging his right leg rather clumsily around to the other side. The ordeal took him but a couple minutes, which allowed him to finally get comfortable and steady with the reins. The rest of the time while he sat, he couldn’t help but smile at the rest struggling themselves to get a grips on to their rides. Leander in particular had him chuckling. He had the feeling she didn’t like the idea of getting up on one, to sat the least.



((Sadly, very sadly, I didn’t get Rowan’s part in, I will write it tomorrow!))