The loud clap of foot against cold stone filled the hall of the keep as the steward walked towards his lady, Keren Chaikin. His proud horns stretched out a foot above his head, and his deep caramel skin had an almost shine to it form the morning light. The steward bowed when he reached the table, and opened the old tome he had tucked under his arm and reached for his quill before reading off about the lady's holdings.

Income: 33g (Gold), 26s (Silver) at 84% tax

Total Gold: 1033g 26s

Building being built/time remaining: N/A

Standing Army: ???

Food Storage: You have 151 sacks of flour in your food storage (I took 20% of your food intake.)

Land: You have 45 small farms dotted around the plains of your land. Most of your land is unexplored.

Population: Inside village: 115 Outside village: 227

Villager Opinion: Your villagers like you despite the high tax because you are one of them! This is a... safe haven for Ke'rata and the only one in all of Bretonnia. They have no where else to go that would be free of persecution, so they are stuck with you good or ill, but for now, they see it as good.

Neighbors Opinion: You are a low-born playing at being a knight, and your.. kind is not fit to be treading on noble Bretonnia, in fact, your lucky that your kind is fit to be alive at all. You are a mockery of everything a knight should be.

Courts Opinion: They do not know, or truly care about you. You are some unknown knight that has not truly done something worthy of note, but you can be assured that due to your... background, you would find few supporters in the court.

General Populace Opinion: Not very well known, so there really isn't an opinion. Some people know of a village of horned demons led by a demon succubus who seduced the Duke, but few people truly know about you.

Events: None this turn.

Finished reading, the steward tapped the quill against his chin, "My lady... we have much gold with which to build, but for the life of me, I cannot find information on the soldiers, my lady. Do you know? It would help greatly." He said preparing to write it down in his great tome. He was hoping for numbers, and what equipment they had, but he doubted it would be anything luxurious. "Is there anything you wish to see done?" He asked.


(Same as Keren's really. I will give everyone special little intro stories for every turn later, but as for now it would just get repetitive.)




Income: 22g 05s at 50% tax

Total Gold: 1022g 05s

Buildings being built/time: N/A

Standing Army: ??? (Inform me please)

Food Storage: You have 175 sacks of flour in your storage.

Land: You have 35 farms, and most of your land is unexplored.

Population: 187 inside village, 146 outside

Villager Opinion: Your people love you. You have one of the longest taxes in the entire kingdom. Your people eat well and are generally happy. Your people do not care that they know nothing about you as long as they are being well fed, and their children are growing fat, who cares?

Neighbors Opinion: The other knights see you as a dirty-no-named knight who mingles with the people a little to closely. They would not be remiss if you vanished as their own people are growing envious of yours.

Courts Opinion: You are an unimportant knight who has done nothing of note.

General Populace Opinion: Just as with the court, in the grand scheme of all of the land of Bretonnia, you are just another knight.

Event: None this turn.




Income: 34g 70s 62c (Copper) at 75%

Total Gold: 1034g 70s 62c

Buildings being built/time left: N/A

Standing Army: ???

Food Storage: You purchased 150 sacks of flour

Land: Your land is too mountainous and forest covered for farms, and it is also mostly unexplored.

Population: 283 villagers... no one goes outside the village unless to hunt or work at the lumbermill.

Villager Opinion: They like you.. sure work in a mine is never good at it really is just a cave that they have to go in and swing pickaxes around all day and many people have died from cave-ins and of exhaustion, but it pays well. Your lower tax allows them to eat far better then they did before your nobles arrival, so overall, there is a positive disposition towards you.

Neighbors Opinion: Your an overgrown ox of a man, whose mother was most likely visited by some savage, dirty Norse invader.

Courts Opinion: They do not know or care about you. Its not you, personally, just that you do not have the power or reputation to be of note.

General Populace Opinion: Same as the courts really, who cares about a no-name knight.

Event: None this turn




Income: 41g 36s 25c at 92%

Total Gold: 1041g 36s 25c

Building being built/time left: N/A

Standing Army: ???

Food Storage: 68 sacks of flour in storage

Land: You have 17 farms, and most of your land is unexplored.

Population: 197 people inside your village, 83 people outside

Villager Opinion: Quite simply, you are milking your fathers reputation. The villagers still hold out hope that you will be like your father, or even half the man your father was, but their children go to sleep hungry, so dreams and hopes can only last so long.

Neighbors Opinion: You are still a low-born wretch at the end of the day. Your father was a traitor, and his blood runs through your veins. You are a mockery of a knight, you are nothing more then a common brigand bullying good people of bretonnia from their money (Which should be going to their pockets.)

Courts Opinion: No one really remembers the small rebellion your father lead that the king crushed merely because he was hungry for a little piece of glory.

General Populace Opinion: Once again, you are just another small time knight in the vast kingdom of Bretonnia.

Event: None this turn




Income: 36g 50s 25c at 90%

Total Gold: 1036g 50s 25c

Buildings being built/Time left: N/A

Standing Army: ???, You have 50 mercenaries in the guild, and they refuse to pay taxes if you want them to act as a village guard. They will still demand pay if you want them to fight in a battle.

Food Storage: You purchased 150 sacks of flour

Land: Despite your land being cold and not good for plant growth, some people still try, you have 12 small farms. Your land is mostly unexplored.

Population: 232 villagers, 63 people living outside.

Villager Opinion: You an average knight. You treat them like people which is a plus, but your tax rate is the standard high tax rate that is shared throughout the kingdom. They do not like you or hate you, you are simply their lord.

Neighbors Opinion: You are a son of a low-born mercenaries (Mercenaries are looked down upon by knights), but you do what you are asked of, so they view you as useful, but not someone they will generally invite over for dinner.

Courts Opinion: Don't really know or care about you. Just another no name knight as long as you pay your tax, there will be no problems.

General Populace Opinion: Same as the Courts... save for the tax part, they could care less if you paid your tax.

Event: You had an Event!!! A Knight Errant by the name of Sir Bran Cadret has stopped by in your castle. He offers his services to you for one month. He is a young knight of only 15 years, but comes from a well-respected family and has been training since he was seven years old in the ways of war. He is brash and impatient hoping for glory to prove his families honor, but remember, there is still baby fat on his cheeks. He rides a dark-gray warhorse called Storm, he carries a lance, a longsword, and a shield. He has heavy chainmail armor (Thick chainmail with metal plates here and there.).

Bjorn Steelheart

Income: 33g 48s 8c

Total Gold: 1033g 48s 8c

Buildings being built/time left: N/A

Standing Army: 20 veteran Norse warriors wearing chain-mail and leathers (I assume, correct me if I am wrong with your post)

Food Storage: 139 sacks of flour (20% of your intake)

Land: You have 41 small farms, and your land is most unexplored.

Population: 132 people living inside your village, 205 people living outside the village

Villagers opinion: Their lord is one of them, a loud-mouthed, uneducated, drunkered who seems to have a flair for wenching. Your tax is.. well, its not terrible, but it is you that they like. They see you favorably.

Neighbors opinion: Once again, you are a low-born and uneducated barbarian. You are not worthy of the title Knight, and you are an embarrassment to Bretonnia.

Courts opinion: Surprise!... well, no it isn't. They do not care about you. You do not have the power to make them take notice.

General Populace opinion: Your just another knight to them in a tiny piece of land. Your name never passes their lips.

Event: Nothing

Rickard Drakon

Income: 40g 94s

Total Gold: 1040g 94s

Buildings being built/time left: N/A

Standing Army: 40 Men-At-Arms with Chain-mail, short spear, shield, and sword.

Food Storage: 102 sacks of flour

Land: You have 32 farms and your land is mostly unexplored.

Population: 121 villagers, 213 people outside of village

Villagers opinion: Well, what can be said? He is just another knight. He doesn't tax as hard, but he is not a 'man of the people'. They don't love him, but they don't hate him either. In fact, I would say they lean more towards like then dislike due to the lower tax.

Neighbors opinion: Your from an esteemed family and have a basic understanding of etiquette. While they will not probably jump in front of an arrow for you, the local knights like you well enough... or should I say, like your fathers influence then you.

Courts opinion: In the Dukes court, your fathers name is known, but yours is not so known. You came to court once or twice, but its not worth remembering. You are just the youngest son of a wealthy Knight, just a small time knight. Not many care.

General Populace opinion: Well... yea. The peasants of Bretonnia do not speak of your name with reverence, in fact, they do not speak of it at all. You are unknown across the great expanse of Bretonnia.

Event: Nothing

The sun rose lazily over Steelheart keep, bathing it and the surrounding village in a ruddy glow as somewhere on the outskirts of town, a cock crowed in greeting of the new day...

Bjorn Steelheart however, was already awake, leaping from his large, fur covered bed, the Barbarian turned Knight tugged on his worn leather breeches, large fur boots and attached his broad Norse belt, hung with its animal pelts, around his broad waist before striding from the bed-chamber, leaving his chest bare.

The two women dozing in his bed murmured and shifted in their sleep as the door slammed behind their Lord.

The Steelheart strode down the corridor as all around him, the castle began to wake, pushing open a large set of double doors, Bjorn stepped into his main hall.

Twenty Norsemen clad in Chainmail and leather clapped fists to their chests by way of salute as they stood gathered in the hall, Bjorn greeted each with a nod and grin as he passed, before approaching the Steward.

Currently, the Castle Steward was the only Bretonian in the room, having a better head for number and letters than his Norse neighbours.

Bjorn grinned wickedly and clapped the man heartily on the back, causing him to drop his quills and parchment.

"C'mon then!"

The Steelheart boomed, slumping down in his carven wooden chair, overhung with the mighty antlers of a great stag he had once bought down on a hunt with a neighbouring Lord.

The Steward gave his report, Bjorn listened.

"Aye, all seems tae be runnin' smoothly... But not enough power tae be noticed, hmmm? Well that'll change in time, The Bretonian's will learn a respect fer the Norse yet!"

A loud cheer went up from the gathered Warriors.

Bjorn returned his attention to the Steward,

"Keep her on course, although I would have ye send some people out intae the surrounding country-side, see what the lay of the land is nearby, anything worth farming, mining, cultivating, ye know, that sort o' thing!"

"We have farms nearby but lets see if we can't get a Mill up an' built, give the wheat an' grain farmers somewhere definite tae process their crop an' look intae the amount of livestock we have too, may consider an abattoir in the near future."

Bjorn raised his voice,

"Stormcrow?!"

"Aye Lord!"

Bjorn's Chief Housecarl stepped forward, Greataxe and Roundsheild slung across his back,

"Continue yer training of the Villagers in the ways of combat, let it be known that anyman, Norse or Bretonian who takes up arms and earns the name 'Warrior' will be afforded extra respect and honour in the eyes of his peers, his Lord an' the Gods... We are a Warrior culture at heart, remember, let us not go soft in this land!"

Stormcrow nodded, before turning and striding from the Hall.

Bjorn nodded too,

"Right that seems tae be enough fer now, if anyone needs me, I'll be out in the trainin' yard!"

The Warriors nodded and departed, as did The Steward, getting to his feet, Bjorn strolled more slowly from the Main Hall and down through the castle towards its Courtyard...

Keren propped her legs up on the table in thought. She brushed some of her hair out of the way and sighed. "Aderfos, can you train a few more of our kind in the healing magics? I have a feeling we might need to prepare for invaders and that sort..." Zohar nodded and leaned on the table, looking at his sister.

"If they're anything like the anthro'pous we fought when we were only younglings, then we will have no problems, sister dearest. But you are the knight." Keren laughed and looked at the steward, who seemed to look a bit fidgety.

"Do tell us what's on your mind, epo'ptis..." she said and the steward nodded.

"Of course, kyri'a mou. I was thinking that we train a small squad of hunters under you, much like the I'skios of old legends." That had Keren thinking. "Also, if we train enough of our older younglings to control their horns, then they may be your guard. We will need an army, kyri'a mou... These anthro'pous are cocky and greedy..."

"I understand... Aderfos, get Mite'ra and help her to training the men and women. Send the most agile of them to my stables and the stronger ones to Pate'ras in the blacksmith. He'll train them to be good guardsmen. Epo'ptis. I need you to gather as much intel on our neighbors as possible. It may not be a war but it's best to be prepared. Also, I wish for a messenger to try to find us an ally in one of the other keeps... Staying isolated is not good." The two men nodded and left the female knight to her thoughts. Her friend and companion, Flog'eros, trotted over from his spot on the cool stone floor and rested his large head on her shoulder. He snorted, making her stand and pat his neck. "Come, we have much to do." She led him back to the large water stables beside the keep. A couple of greenhorns were waiting already, antsy to get their hands on some bows.

"Kyri'a mou, we've been waiting." They bowed and Keren raised her hand.

"Here, in this stable, I am Archigos I'skios." They nodded and she smiled, a slight grin on her face. Flog'eros trotted back to his stall and sat in the cool water. "Until our toxovoli'a veli̱nekes are complete, we will use the wooden fence. Everyone grab a to'xo and let's begin." The men nodded and did as they were told. Keren's grin got bigger. They would do just fine as I'skios.

"Ahh...the problem is your technique. Use the spear as such." Damien demonstrated the proper use of the spear. The new recruits were still very new to the use of actual weapons. None of them were ready for battle any time soon, so he was glad that the bandits had settled down after the raid on an encampment two months ago. At least the loot was enough to supply some more militia with "decent" weapons. "That's it for me, Renald will teach you all how to do it now" he told the recruits.

The village was bustling as usual, hustling to and from the mine. The blacksmith was repairing his armor since the last raid but he had heard it was finally done. The blacksmith had been working hard on that large piece of armor. He reached the forge to see the blacksmith with his armor smiling like an ass. "Got err' fix up. Tink ya'l like it." He proudly stated, showing his lord the armor. "It's suitable enough. Thank you and your welcome to come to any future feast as of the agreement" Damien left the grinning blacksmith but was happy himself to have his armor back.

Alexander had been sitting at the tax books for over an hour, flipping his writing utensil around splattering ink here and there. His daughter has been urging him for weeks to lower the tax rate, she was all ways one with the people. She figured that everyone already hated him so why not make it so the people loved him. Finally he stopped flipping the pen and flipped the page exposing a fresh piece of paper. He began to write the new tax rate, he decided that money couldn't by him much in this country, but the people's love could. He ground his teeth and finally wrote the letter to the tax collector it was short and sweet, "Tax will be lowered to 80%." He knew the tax collector would raise hell because of this.

Soon after he signed his name his daughter jumped in through the open window and saw the new tax rate. She gave Alexander a quick hug and said, "Thanks daddy." Alexander frowned and said, "You'd better start signing up people to the militia like you promised you would, now get to bed." She nodded then ran off. Tomorrow he figured he'd start having some exploration parties go around his land and see if there was anything worth wild other than the mines.

Important Events
Tax rate lowered to 80%
Scouting parties set for the next turn
Training for a small militia set

Rickard Drakon awoke in a large feather bed and swung his legs over the side, shivering as his feet touched the cold, stone floor. He padded over to his wardrobe and picked out a fresh Crimson doublet, pulled on a pair of Black velvet trousers, and slipped into his new leather boots.

His boots clicked softly against the stone floor as he strode though the waking keep and into his solar where he knew his steward, Herbert was waiting for him, on time as always.

"Ho there, Herbert!" Rickard greeted his friend with a smile and a clap on the shoulder, "What have you got for me?!"

"Well, my Lord, here is the treasury report, and the report on the food stores that you requested. What do you think?" Herbert showed his lord the ledger reports.

"Ah! Good, this is excellent for being just a brand new lord don't you think?"

"Yes, my lord"

"Yes, well, I suppose we should start doing something with all of this money, eh? Well, first order of business, I want you to send out a few riders to survey the countryside, get a feel for the lay of the land. Next i believe we should get some watchtowers built. I want them to form a circle around the village, I also want each one to be about a league away from the village, and about a league apart from each other. That way we have proper warning should any lord want to encroach on my lands. Oh, and don't be afraid to skimp on the materials a little bit. I want the to be solid, but these aren't meant to be permanent." Rickard looked at the small roster of his household guard. "By the way, have Richard begin a recruitment drive will you? Tell him to offer a salary of five silvers for every month of service. That, and any man who chooses to may receive room and board in the guard barracks. What do you think of that for a first day of lordship?" Rickard looked up from his writing, "My father may not have given me much to work with, but make no mistake, we sit on some of the most fertile land in the duchy, and I aim to turn this into the finest castle in my father's county. This is our chance to shine Herbert, let's make it count!" After a few moments of silence he added, "Is that all Herbert?"

"Yes, my lord. That is all I have for today." Herbert punctuated his sentence with a satisfying slap from his ledger, and a smile.

"Well, if that's it then, I am going to breakfast. I'll leave the specifics to you on how my orders are carried out. I will be either at breakfast, in my chambers, in the training yard, or in my library should you need me Herbert.

"Yes, my lord. Have a wonderful day."

"And you as well, Herbert."

"Keep your shield up!" The sergeant called to the new bloods. "You are going to get skewed by the first Anthro'pous you meet, and I guarantee you he won't let his shield drop."

The recruit nodded his head vigorously, his horns seeming to leave a trail from the speed. "Good boy, now do it again." And the two collided as sticks met shield, the low crack filling the plains, but the sergeant brought down the stick hard on the recruits head, a crack and a cry of pain followed.

"What did I tell you boy? Keep that bloody shield up!" He called to the boy nudging him with the stick, "On your feet, your embarrassing yourself." The boy struggled to his feet, his eyes still filled with tears as his head wrung with pain, "Alright boy, get yourself over to the apothecaries, and next time keep your damnable shields up!"

Income: 19g 28s 38c at 84% tax

Total Gold: 1052g 54s 38c

Building being built/time remaining:

toxovoli'a veli̱nekes - A very simple archery range. It is merely 8 moveable straw targets that can be set 50, 100, or 150 paces. It has a wooden fence at the end that is 6 feet high to help protect anyone walking by from stray arrows. There are 15 people working on it, and it should be completed next turn. If you want to make it longer, or add new buildings to it such as a bowyer and fletcher just tell the foreman.

Standing Army:
10 I'skios in training armed with bows and no armor, being paid 8 silver each until training is complete. Basic training will take roughly 2 weeks. You purchased 150 arrows from a traveling merchant. 50 practice arrows and 100 arrows for field use as well as 20 spare bow strings, and 5 short bows to be stored. (You don't really need to worry about the numbers. Its more for me.)

26 guardsmen in training armed with... and no armor, being paid 8 silver each. Speed of training depends on the weaponry being used. (Spears are easier to use, while something like a sword, halberd, or glaive will take some training.)

Food Storage: You have 234 sacks of flour in your food storage

Land: You have 45 small farms dotted around the plains of your land. Most of your land is unexplored

Population: Inside village: 115 Outside village: 227

Villager Opinion: This is their only settlement in this entire kingdom, maybe one of the few in the world, they wouldn't leave even if they were starving. They like you well enough, taxes aren't dreadful.

Neighbors Opinion: Well... A neighbor likes you, but his neighbors don't like him, so you are still where you started, a low-born peasant pretending to be a knight. A sub-human demon.

Courts Opinion: who is this Keren?

General Populace Opinion: Who?

Events: You got a good event!!!

A messenger hobbles into the keep hall favoring his left leg. Every time he places weight on it his face contorts in pain, the traces of bruises can be seen on his body, and a old bandage stained red with blood is wrapped around his bicep, "Kyri'a mou, I have a letter from a knight who... was most unusual, but wishes to create an alliance."

Dear Keren Chaikin,

I am Sir Godric Bedwyr, now while many of the fellow knights here would never be seen caught dead talking to you or your people, I am not one of those sorts. I once met your mother, a rather handsome woman if I say so myself, a shame she was already married as she would have made a worthy lady of Birthkeep. In fact, if your father is not still with us in this world, I would be very interested, but I digress, I am willing to give my word of support on the battlefield in exchange for your peoples medical expertise free of charge.

If you are ever near Birthkeep, be sure to visit as I have a son who is roughly your age, and be sure to bring your dear mother along. Give your mother my best as I can still picture her beauty when I close my eyes, be sure not to mention that to my old hag of a wife.

Sincerely,
Sir Godric Bedwyr.

Keren let her brother tend to the messenger before they sat back down to read the letter. The man was interesting, though both siblings were glad that their father was training her men at the moment. If Ke'rata were anything to their mates, it was protective.

"Well, Zohar, what should we do?" She asked, flopping the letter on the table. Zohar had his own Neroippos, Pag'eros or Icy in there with him. Zohar ran a hand through the kelp in her mane and nodded.

"He will be good for us... He can send troops while we train our own. And he has a son." Zohar reasoned with his sister. Keren raised a delicate eyebrow at her brother and tapped Flog'eros' nose when he reached for the letter.

"I wish to marry a strong, handsome man, not someone who's father decided to sent us troops. If he wants my hand in marry, he will follow tradition. It's the last we have of our people." She said, leaning back and allowing Flog'eros to eat the letter after she wrote the name down in her swirling script.

"Of course, I never said otherwise."

"Don't get cocky with me, Zohie." she said, smiling as she wrote a return letter thanking him. Zohar only stood and left the room, laughing.



The epo'ptis kept his eyes glued to the pile of papers in his hands as he approached Keren, "Kyri'a mou, I managed to scrounge up some information on the nearby Knights through a scout and talk with the merchants, there are four knights that own the land around us." He said placing the first paper down on the table, "Sir Godric Bedwyr, a knight of... well, he does not have a great reputation. They say he is nearing his 50th year, and enjoys the girls at the wash (Girls who do the laundry for him), He has a sizable estate and, from what I hear, he has a fairly large force. His wife is called the "Shrew of Birthkeep" A nickname, supposedly, the Knight himself gave her. He has two sons, his youngest who is known as a boy-lover was all but disowned, and forced to take up the Questing Vow. He has not been seen in some time. His oldest son is Luther Bedwyr, he is called the 'scholar knight' by his people and seems generally well liked, but he does not speak." He said pausing, "I admit, I was confused by that thinking he was a man of silence, but it seems, he is dumb. Born that way from what I heard."

He rifled to the next paper, "Sir Alain Bors, it is said he is rather handsome, but from what the merchant told me, he is a rather... cruel man. Not so cruel to his people or others, but it is said women leave his chambers with bruises. He is a knight of the court who spends most of his time, as the merchant says. "On 'is knees with his lips puckered firmly against the Baron's arse." I was not able to get much information on his land, but I assume he does not have many men, probably relying on his connections to protect him."

"Sir Artus Caliburn, not much is known about this knight, Kyri'a mou, it seems he almost never leaves his castle and when he does his eyes are bloodshot from lack of sleep. It's said he lost his wife and daughter in a raid by beastmen and since then he has never been the man he once was. They say a man in black clothing comes to visit the castle once in awhile, but due to the knights absence the land has fallen into.. well, it is not doing very good. The village is run by bandits and ruffians, there are beastmen running rampant through his lands killing the farmers. It is not a good situation there."

"Sir Claron Flollo, this knight seems rather normal. He taxes his people heavily and is known to through his own small balls for his friend. He is married to a rather handsome women, with a 'bosom that could smother a boar." or so the merchant said. His village is downtrodden, and his people are starving, but he has many Men-At-Arms to protect his investment and keep his guest safe."

The steward placed the papers on the table and awaited her response.

Keren sighed. "Thank you. Find some way to ask Caliburn if he needs outside assistance. Keep me posted on Bors and Follos... I suppose Bedwyr in an ally now... Prepare to send someone over there and tell him to start building a road between the two keeps. My men grew up in plains lands but a road would be safer." Zohar nodded.

"I agree wholeheartedly. Though we should help Caliburn anyways. Even if he says he doesn't need our help, our troops need a practice run and that seems to be a good place to start. And if he pays us afterwards is his own agenda." Zohar explained, sitting on the large desk that his sister poured over now.

"If you say so brother. And this Luther, he's dumb you say? If this Bedwyr really wants our magic, we might as well teach his son to speak. Also, try to track down the disowned one, if you can. He seems to have something our people need. Besides, our kind isn't as opposed to "boy-lovers" as these fickle humans are." she told the other Ke'ratan, not looking up from her letter to the Duke, asking when his next ball was.




"'Ey Roric. Heard ya and the miss last night." The thin man said before swinging his pickaxe once more into the stone wall, the dim light from a nearby lantern showed the soft yellow streaks in the wall as the crack of metal meeting stone filled the thin cave where other men worked in various stats of undress as swinging a pickaxe all day inside a small cave filled with other warm bodies was not very... cool nor refreshing. The smell alone made people want to gag.

Roric stopped his work, even going as far as to lean on his pickaxe, "Heard that did ya? Impressed I bet?"

The skinny man gave a shrug, "Well impressed by how short it all was." He said with snicker. "That's not funny you little weasel." Roric said balling up his fist.

"Of course it is you big oaf." The skinny man said holding his pickaxe in his tight clenched hands ready to swing it and knock the big man down, "I knew that big size was hidin' somtin."

"I warned ya!" Roric roared jumping at the skinny man. A few other miners stopped working and watched as the skinny man swung his pickax only to get a punch to the face for his efforts. "Fight!" Someone shouted down the way, and hell broke loose.

Income: 30g 31s 88c at 75%

Total Gold: 1065g 02s 50c

Buildings being built/time left: N/A

Standing Army:
25 Men-At-Arms: Spears, chain-mail, and shields (Inform me if this is wrong.) being payed 10 silver.
23 recruits being paid 8 silver until training is done, armed with spears, shields, and no armor, expected to finish basic training in 2 weeks. (They will know how to jab, point the spear in the right direction, and hopefully know how to use their shields)

Food Storage: You purchased 150 sacks of flour again, and you know have 211 sacks of flour in storage.

Land: Your land is too mountainous and forest covered for farms, and your land is still mostly unexplored.

Population: 283 villagers... no one goes outside the village unless to hunt or work at the lumbermill.

Villager Opinion: You have low tax and are a man of the people. Mining life is never easy, but it pays well, and having a boss like you is always a benefit.

Neighbors Opinion: Dirty low-born man who is going to get infected by the peasant filth, if he hasn't already, you have land that you do not deserve.

Courts Opinion: Yea that one guy... No, just kidding. Get out there and slay some dragons.

General Populace Opinion: "Well... maybe if there was a few dead dragons laying around..." (Jking.. don't really fight one yet...)

Event: None this turn




"I told you!" The old woman shouted at her young son-in-law who was trying to enjoy a 'nice' meal of gruel, "I told you he would be a nice man like his father before him! No one could have a daughter that sweet and be a bad man!"

The son gave out a tired sigh, placing the wood spoon into the bowl with a splat, "Sure mother. Ya mean like the bone break'n taxes he had? We 'ere sharing one measly bowl of gruel!"

The old lady snapped her fingers in anger, "Lads father died! He needed time to find out who he was." The son rolled his eyes, "Yea', I've eard this a thousan' times, n'ver would'a married your daughter if I knew who'd I would get stuck with."

Income: 37g 25s at 80%

Total Gold: 1077g 61s 25c

Building being built/time left: N/A

Standing Army:
20 men training with... no armor. Being paid 8 silver until training is complete, estimation till completion: ?? Depends on weapons.

Food Storage: 83 sacks of flour in storage

Land: You have 17 farms, and most of your land is being explored, check bellow for reports.

Population: 197 people inside your village, 83 people outside

Villager Opinion: The villagers are ecstatic! For the first time in a long time you have renewed their hope in you! Some already whisper that they were right in that you would be a great man like your father, and in time, may even surpass him.

Neighbors Opinion: Just a low-born man playing at knight. Loosening your grip on your peasants only confirms your weakness. Word of your daughter has been spread around the knights and a few have even shown interest... a women who knows how to hold a sword and has a good head on her.. word is she is not bad on the eyes either.

Courts Opinion: Well, your not really know. I am sure you are a good guy, but just not famous enough.

General Populace: Need more deeds before you will awe the people of bretonnia.

Event: None this turn

There is a letter sitting on the desk in your study from the scouts.

My Lord,

Our search is under way, near the base of the cliff, we have found a few caves, but we did not enter. The men refused under some superstitious nonsense saying there mothers aunt child was taken away into these caves, we have however, spotted a strange outcropping of trees we will be investigating.

- Scouting party Leader Lyons Rev

My Lord,

Ain't much to tell ya, we found some tracks of some nasty creatures, and we have seen a rather solid hill we are going to take a look at see if there might be something of use. I decided to ignore the tracks for now and focus on the hill, Boris nearly fell into a hole awhile back, stupid clout, his foot went right through the earth. Seems something might be down there, probably tunnels of some sort, but we don't have the man power to check it out. Probably just little buggers not even worth an axe blow, but Id rather have the earth under my boots then over my head.

- Krogar

Income: 1g 10s 1c (Price of mill was deducted) at 85%

Total Gold: 1036g 18s 9c

Buildings being built/time left:
Mill: Your standard mill with a nice windmill at the top which helps give boost to the large grinder inside that turns wheat into something a little more edible. 4 turns until completion with 20 people working on it being paid 8 silver each.

Standing Army:
20 veteran Norse warriors wearing chain-mail and leathers being paid 10 silver
36 recruits being trained with... and no armor. 8 silver until training is finished.

Food Storage: 198 sacks of flour

Land: You have 41 small farms, in all your land you have 52 head of cattle, 13 work horses, 1 warhorse, and a few donkeys, and your land is being explored.

Population: 132 people living inside your village, 205 people living outside the village

Villagers opinion: You are a man after your peoples hearts... well, the men in the village. The wenching, the drinking, and the power your man radiates get their blood boiling. The women see you in mixed views: Some see you as powerful and enticing, others see you as a dirty, foul-mouthed ruffian.

Neighbors opinion: You are still a fool and a dirty barbarian. No one would cry if you turned up dead. Or did not turn up at all.

Courts opinion: Surprise!... well, no it isn't. They do not care about you. You do not have the power to make them take notice. (Ima leave this, I still find it funny.)

General Populace opinion: There are some benefits to being a nobody, no one takes the time to judge your every actions.

Event: Good Event Alert!!!

Lyra pulled on her horses reign as she her blue eyes searched the small village and keep in the distance for any signs. This was merely the next stop for her on her journey, but she had heard stories in the last keep... Of a loud barbarian who devoured young virgins, but there were just stories, they had to be. This was Bretonnia the land of brave knights, not the land of dirty men.

She was a damsel of the Lady, and she would not quiver like a little girl! Still.. doubts prickled her mind, and she glanced at her two protectors for reassurance. The young Errant Knight Alis Hebron, he was... cute in his fashion. He was always talking about how he would be the greatest knight in the kingdom and someday be a great dragon slayer. He had short cut brown hair, and bright green eyes, but he had probably never seen true combat, but he was sweet.. much sweeter then her other companion.

He only called himself Sir Hector, and nothing else. She should be grateful to have a Grail Knight protecting her, but he was so cold as if this all meant nothing to him. He had long dark hair that was graying at the temples and his face had so many scars on them.. Lyra had offered to heal them numerous times, but every time he said no, a scar was a lesson that should not be forgotten. He only took that dark silver helm off when they went to bed.. it was an interesting helmet, had a dragon at the top that appeared ready to fly off and claw someone or something to death, and she could never explain it, but she felt so safe with the knight, perhaps because he was also touched by the Lady?

Digging her heels into her horse she took off towards the village, her long blond hair flying behind her, but no matter how she try, she could not stop her quivering heart.

My Lord Drakon,

We have found... something. It resembles a large lizard with very large teeth. It has.. fur, M'lord, I am not quite sure what it is, I have never seen anything like it. It is not showing hostility towards us, so I sent one of the boys back with it following him to the castle, so you can see. I told him to keep his sword drawn encase it were to attack the villagers.

I am sure you can probably see it by now, but I still feel the need to write it down should something happen. We have found nothing of note yet, just more plains. We are going to follow the river for a few days before turning off.

- Roger Courne

Income: 4g 33s 75c at 80%

Total Gold: 1045g 27s 75c

Buildings being built/time left:
7 watchtowers being built by 28 people (4 on each) being paid 8 silver a piece, they will be done in four turns. They are very simple watchtowers with a tall, four point base that are tree logs dug into the ground and nailed to the small floor that the watchmen will stand upon. There will be a small railing so a drunken guard does not fall off, but no roof to speak of. There are a few 2 by 6's crossing the four logs giving it extra support.

Standing Army:
40 Men-At-Arms with Chain-mail, short spear, shield, and sword being paid 10 silver.
18 recruits armed with... and unarmored, they are being paid only 5 silver but are being housed in the barracks.

Food Storage: 173 sacks of flour

Land: You have 32 farms and your land it is being explored by three riders as you gave all the free horses (besides your warhorse) to them to use.

Population: 121 villagers, 213 people outside of village

Villagers opinion: Well, they could do worse, and probably couldn't do better. You are a fair man, and your taxes aren't starving them, so life is not bad. It is a peaceful time, and its nice to see that you are taking their safety into your concerns (Or so they assume.)

Neighbors opinion: You come from a high family, but they are doubtful you will have your fathers honor. They consider you to be just a boy hiding behind the legs of your powerful father. A daddies boy who will never grow out of his fathers shadow like a true Knight of Bretonnia would.

Courts opinion: Your fathers name is known in Lyonesse, but yours is not.

General Populace opinion: No... your father has never done anything truly noble or great that has marked him in hush spoken tavern legends, neither have you, so they don't know or care about you... yet.

Event: You got a Good Event... Kinda!

The scout resisted the urge to look back at the thing following him, or look at the growing crowd that was making sure to stay back. They whispered in hush voices pointing at the strange creature, the over-grown lizard with huge teeth and fur, but even crowded as it was, the creature showed no signs of anger or hostility.

The Scout pushed open the door, and bowed, "Mi'lord.. I um... brought the scout report, and..." His voice died off, "Something else.."




Income: 37g 32s 55c at 90%

Total Gold: 1074g 05s 80c

Buildings being built/Time left: N/A

Standing Army: ???,
You have 50 mercenaries in the guild, and they refuse to pay taxes if you want them to act as a village guard. They will still demand pay if you want them to fight in a battle.
Food Storage: You purchased 150 sacks of flour, you now have 219

Land: Despite your land being cold and not good for plant growth, some people still try, you have 12 small farms. Your land is mostly unexplored.

Population: 232 villagers, 63 people living outside

Villager Opinion: You an average knight. You treat them like people which is a plus, but your tax rate is the standard high tax rate that is shared throughout the kingdom. They do not like you or hate you, you are simply their lord.

Neighbors Opinion: You are a son of a low-born mercenaries (Mercenaries are looked down upon by knights), but you do what you are asked of, so they view you as useful, but not someone they will generally invite over for dinner.

Courts Opinion: Don't really know or care about you. Just another no name knight as long as you pay your tax, there will be no problems.

General Populace Opinion: Same as the Courts... save for the tax part, they could care less if you paid your tax.

Event: The Knight Errant is still at your keep.

Lady Fiora Benedict,

My lord, the King, wishes for me to thank you for the... business you took care of with that jealous husband. Nasty business if that had gotten out, but you are as efficient as always. He gives you his best.

Sincerely,
The Royal Steward.

Charles Renington

Income: 40g 43s 25c at 90%

Total Gold: 1040g 43s 25c

Building being built/time left: N/A

Standing Army:
25 Men-at-Arms with spears, chain-mail, and shields (Feel free to change these guys weapons, since they are your starting unit, their weapons are up to you really.) at 10 silver a piece

Food Storage: 158 sacks of flour in storage

Land: You have 44 small farms and your land is mostly unexplored

Population: 128 villagers, 221 people living outside.


Villager Opinion: You are the Witch for a reason... Your father was a great man, but his daughter was an apple that fell far from the tree. They do not hate you, your tax is high, and you seem to be made of ice... so you intimidate them a little. You give off an 'unapproachable' vibe.

Neighbors Opinion: Your father was an embarrassment to the knights, but you, you are not. You have proven your worth to the King, himself, and so are a valued knight. They like you... and those who don't would never cross you directly as they fear your connections.

Courts Opinion: Some in the court do know your name! You are the kings lackey, but with that title comes a certain amount of power. Many of the Kings Court will not cross you, at least, not cross you when you are acting out the Kings will. The Lyonesse's Duke Court, however, does not hold you in the same high regard.

General Populace: Some people know your name as the White Witch. They might not know of you personally, but they do know of the white haired, red-eyed witch who is does the kings bidding, they're whispera that perhaps you are a demon who is corrupting their King, but those are thrown out as this is the king. The man blessed by the Lady above all others, no demon could match the Ladies power.

Event: None this turn

Alexander considered himself a good swordsmen, maybe even one of the best. But, his daughter was something else, she moved with the ferocity of a dragon. Yet, she had the precision of an eagle snatching a fish from water. He had been watching her train the men for quite a while, they were sparring at the moment and she was taking on ten of the men at once. They couldn't even touch her. Less than a minute passed and only one man was left standing. The man's name was Kylar Blint or something like that and he was almost holding his own, Alexander laughed a bit at that, holding his own really just meant that he had a hard chin, he was still getting the crap beat out of him. Then suddenly the man threw a left straight and actually Hit Luxa, that was the final straw, Luxa hipped tossed the man onto his back, mounted him in full then hit him twice each time a larger cut opening on his face. Luxa was about to go for a third hit when Alexander yelled, "That's quite enough Luxa, he's probably the only one worth a damn here don't kill him!" She stopped striking him and helped him up. She then went on teaching the men that weren't on the ground wreathing back and forth in pain.

Alexander, got up and headed to his favorite blacksmith. The only one that made weapons, the other two made jewelry out of the silver. Luxa and Alexander were both obsessed with this older country that fought in a very mechanical way.(I am talking about the Romans, but I have no Idea what I should call them.) They required certain kinds of weapons. Alexander gave the list to the blacksmith with detailed instructions on how to make each weapon. The order read like this x20 Pugios daggers, x20 Gladius short swords, x20 Chain mail, x20 javelins, x20 Scutum shields The blacksmith looked very exited because he knew it was a big pay day. The blacksmith said ecstaticly, "Oh sir, you wont be disappointed. I'll get to work right away!"

Luxa was very exited to finally be able to teach these men how to fight as a team. She also had a small dream of training women in the town as Alexander's personal guard. She wanted them to be in gleaming armor with long great swords. That girl could dream that is for sure.

Important events
Militia arms ordered for next turn
Militia second in command introduced

Damien has inside the keep playing a game of chess with Renald. "Check" Renald said. Then a guard walked in the door as Damien silently cursed that at his last move. "Sir, there was a fight that had occurred in the mine and has been broken up. The two that had been fighting have been taken to the courtyard." The guard reported as they still continued the game. Damien turned to Renald then to the chessboard for one final move. "Checkmate. Next time Renald, be more careful how you use that queen of yours." He said leaving Renald to pick up the pieces.

Walking down the steps Damien saw the two miners out in the field. There was a fellow the size of a toothpick and the other tall too. He finally reached there end of the courtyard. He walked up two feet to the between them and looked down on both. "So what is the meaning of this interruption?" He asked in an annoyed tone. "There are strict codes of conduct and yet here you are before me. Tell me now, what were you two fighting over and how were you fighting?"

The skinny man, Avanc spat blood on the ground, his face already starting to turn purple as the swelling started. Roric had gotten in more then a few good punches, and Avanc could feel a tooth loose, but at least Roric had not gotten away freely. Roric was sporting a deep gash in his arm where Avanc had opened up his arm with the pickaxe, an much to Avanc's satisfaction, Roric had spat out a tooth when they were being dragged off. Well, Avanc was not going to say anything, obviously they fought, what kind of question was how?

Roric on the other hand was quick to blame the other man, "That whelp insulted me manhood! He swung at me with a pickaxe. Cut me deep." Avanc snorted, personally reviewing all the insults in his mind such as how his wife was cockholding him, how he was only a man on the upper half, and how he punched like a woman. It did not matter, they would get punished, so Avanc was going to keep his bloody pride in front of this posh noble who ate well every night and did not have to swing a pickaxe every day for hours just to make another man rich.

Keren finished her letter and looked at her brother. "Are you sure? I can go myself, Zoie..." she muttered, handing the finished parchment to the robed Ke'rata. He nodded and smiled at his sister.

"I'll be quite alright, you focus on our people, I will focus outside." he said, cryptically, making his sister glare at him before she shoved him out the keep door. He turned and bowed to his sister. "Anachoro'un tache'os" He stood and hugged his sister.

"Epistre'pste asfali'" She replied as Zohar mounted his horse and rode off. "Niv, Noy." she called, still watching her brother, two of her I'skios appeared, bowing in a crouch. "Go. Protect him with your life. That is an order." she pointed to Zohar's retreating form and they followed quickly.

"Kyri'a mou, we should visit our forges for the guardsmen. Also, a fletcher's apprentice will be needed, Tikva is aging..." her newest assistant, Hila told her. She nodded and the two entered the burning blacksmith. Of all the magics that the Ke'rata knew, their way with metal and other materials of earth was astounding. The weapsonsmith looked up and bowed.

"Kyri'a mou! What can I do for you?" he asked, making Keren laugh.

"The guardsmen need the standard equipment, you know how it is... Also, your daughter is needed by the fletcher. She is aging faster and faster..." The smith nodded and pulled out the metals they had. Keren ran her fingers over it before pointing to a dark red bar.

"Red steel? Are you sure? We have much of it but for sure weapons..." She smiled and nodded. "Of course, kyri'a mou..." She turned and entered the next smithy and ordered the armorsmith to craft the much needed armor, made from Ironwood before she entered the training grounds. The sounds of working and fighting mingled as sweat made the place reek.

"Sergeant!" she barked, making the man in question stand tall. "Calm down, I'm just here to tell you that everything needed for these greenhorns is being made as we speak. How are they coming along?" The sergeant snorted and turned back to the fighting.

"They're getting better, kyri'a mou. We'll have you a glorious army in no time..."

"Shall I help out then? What better way to learn more about your leader than train with them?" Both laughed and the sergeant barked him over to explain why their reigning knight was here.

"Right!"

Bjorn Steelheart leant forward upon the polished wood of the round table and, pushing back his chair, got to his feet,

"let's get this straight!"

All around the table, his fifteen Norsemen (Minus the five currently out scouting) sat listening in a respectful silence as just behind their lords chair, the Steward hovered, his ledger and latest reports clutched to his chest.

"Ye 'ave been comrades fer years, and now we have settled, I don't want us goin' soft, The Bretonnians know me as 'Lord' or 'Sir' but we remember the old ways, I am Jarl... Stormcrow!"

"Yes Jarl!"

"Ye are now my Thane, my right-hand and shield brother, ye have always been such but, Bretonnia loves its titles, so I'm makin' this official."

Stormcrow clapped a fist to his chest in salute and sat down.

"The rest of ye, including Krogar an' his boys, when they get back, are now tae call yerselves my Huscarls, the elite force amongst Norse Warriors!"

A cheer went up round the table, as tankards were thumped down upon the wood and oaths were shouted to the Jarl.

"Steward!"

"Yes My lo... Jarl?"

The skinny Bretonian man stepped forward, ledger in hand.

"Don't be shy lad, sit, serving wench, pour the man a mead!"

Once seated and supplied with a large, frothing tankard of the honeyed liquor served by an alluring Norse serving girl, who swept away with a wicked grin, leaving the Steward blushing.

"Ha... We'll make a Norseman out o' ye yet!"

Bjorn boomed,

"Now, lets hear the report!"

The Steward gave it, Bjorn listened.

"Hmmmm...."

The Steelheart rumbled at length, stroking his beard with one large hand,

"We 'ave a few bakers in the village, selling their wares at the market place, make it clear that farmers are welcome an' encouraged tae sell them produce from the mill in order to aid their craft and bolster the quality of their wares, this means more trade from both parties an' more food in peoples bellies."

"We also have an impressive number of cattle farmers an' heard's, it would seem, begin construction of the abattoir, give the peasants somewhere to bring their fattened livestock an' the freedom to store and sell their meat to the local butchers... I will, however, take a 50% tithe of all the Cattle hides, which shall go to the local tanner, who is tae work with the Blacksmith in producing armour fer our troops."

Bjorn leaned back comfortably in his chair and rested his boots up on the table.

"Stormcrow, I want ye tae continue training the recruits an' make them into Warriors, as I 'ave seen ye done with many a snot nosed sprog in the past.
Steward, I want to know how many of the new Militia are Norse and how many Bretonnian, the Norsemen are to train with axe and blade while the Bretonnian's are to specialise in the art of bow and spear.
Of course, some may have a preference or natural skill with a certain Weapon, Stormcrow I leave that up to yer discretion."

Stormcrow nodded,

"Aye Jarl."

"Right!"
Bjorn glanced at the Steward once more.
"Well, drink yer mead lad!"

The Steward blinked suddenly, then nervously reached for the tankard and took a hesitant sip...
Suddenly his face changed from cautious to keen and he took another, much larger gulp.

The gathered Huscarls laughed and cheered, before drinking deep of their own tankards.

"Good, eh?"
Bjorn grinned,
"Freya, the red haired Norse Landlady of our Village Tavern used tae be renowned throughout the Tribes fer her mead, even when we used to sail out on raids, we never left port without a barrel of the stuff."

The Steelheart nodded to the Steward once more,

"Freya is tae be given a small tithe of coin to see her bee-hives expanded, her distillery equipment improved and to hire any helpers she needs to start producing this stuff on a much larger scale, we will then begin exportin' it, it's time the world knew just how damn good Norse mead really is!"

There came another, slightly more rowdy and slurred cheer from the gathered Huscarls.

"Steward, make the arrangements, I will be setting a 50% tax on all exports but Mead sold in the tavern will remain at it's current rate... That should keep Freya happy an' besides... Can't charge my own people more fer their drink!"

There was laughter from around the table as Bjorn looked to the Steward once more.

"Any word from Krogar?"

The Steelheart listened intently as his Steward read out the Huscarls report, Bjorn frowned.

"A solid Hill...? Well Krogar is an experienced Warrior an' I trust his judgement, but put out an announcement that anyone in that area is to watch their footing until we can get these tunnels properly explored and shored up.
Send Krogar's Eagle back to him with my reply, tell him he is doin' well, to keep on course and inform him and his men that they now bear the Honoured Norse title of Huscarl... And there's a flagon of mead waiting fer em when they get back... So they better come back alive!"

There was more laughter from the gathered Warriors, Bjorn grinned.

"Anything else, Steward?"

"Yes My Lo... Jarl... Krogar also mentions these tracks of 'Nasty creatures..."

"What?! Let me see that!"

Bjorn snatched Krogan's report from the table and read it... Then he slammed the parchment back down on the table and grinned, savagely.

"This calls fer a Hunt!"
He boomed,
"BRING ME MY HAMMER!!"

=========================================================

An hour later saw Bjorn and ten of his Hurscarls riding out of the castle gates, fully armed, armoured and mounted.

The townsfolk lined the streets as they passed, the Bretonnian's waving and cheering, the Norsemen and remaining Huscarl's banging their axe heads against their shields by way of salute.

The Jarl cut an imposing sight mounted upon his mighty war charger, decked out in his heavy plate mail, trimmed and wrapped with the snow white pelts of an arctic Bear and Wolf the Steelheart had slain himself back in the frozen wastes of Norsca.
In addition to the huge, steel Warhammer slung across his back, Bjorn also carried a pair of broad headed hand axes thrust into his belt, in short the Norseman looked every inch the Barbaric Conqueror.

Behind him, his ten Huscarl's rode, mounted on their sturdy Norse Steppe horses, sure footed steeds bred and raised upon the icy slopes of their homeland.

The Steward and Stormcrow, able to keep up on foot during the slow parade through the streets, followed their Jarl as far as the edge of town

"Steward, continue with my orders while I am gone, Stormcrow, you are in Command here until I get back... We look tae find these Creatures Krogan spoke of in his report, hunt them down and bring back some trophies while we're at it... A Jarl has tae be seen tae protect his people an besides... It's been too bloody long since we had a good scrap... The Court thinks us weak, we shall prove 'em Wrong!!"

He growled, pounding a large, gauntleted fist against the pommel of his saddle.

Stormcrow nodded,
"Aye Jarl, I wont let ye down... But next time, I ask the honour of leading the hunting party!"

Bjorn grinned,
"Aye of course old friend, See ye in a few days!"

As The Steelheart and him Warriors rode forth, they sighted up ahead a trio of riders coming down the dirt road towards them, it appeared to consist of one slip of a girl and two heavily armed Knights.

Bjorn raised a hand, halting his riders.

"The hell are they?"

He demanded, bluntly, standing on tip toe, the Steward endeavoured to whisper to the Jarl that the girl was most likely a Maiden of the Lady, flanked by her two Knight protectors.

"Ah... A Sorcerer an' two extra blades? Well if they want room an' board they can bloody well work fer it."

"Hail!"
Bjorn called as the riders approached,
"I am Jarl Steelheart an' ye are on my land, yer welcome tae stay but ye will be expected to contribute yer sword-arms and magic tae the keeping of this land while ye are here."

The Barbarian turned Knight spurred his charger forward and looked the trio up and down,

"We 'ave reports of savage beasts roaming my lands, Orcs, Skaven maybe even Beastmen, it matters not, I intend to hunt them down an' place their heads on spikes above my keep, we could use the extra blades an' even magic, so fall in, I'm afraid yer baths an' beds will have tae wait, there's fightin' tae be done!
Prove yerselves Warrior tae me an' we'll talk more upon our return."

And so the Wild Hunt rode out, The Jarl, his Hurscarls, two Knights and the Sorceress cut an imposing sight as they galloped through the countryside, past lonely homes, hamlets and farmsteads in search of the tracks of which Krogan had spoke... And the creatures that made them...

The skinny man held silent, respectable enough, though the tall one just spout out words. Not much for no squealing. Damien thought to himself. The tall one mentioned something about an insulted manhood. Thinking about this, he came up with two possible punishments. One could benefit himself greatly.

"You have two choices here. First is I will give you the option I give my soldiers when they are punished for unauthorized fights. You fight me. If you win then you will gain a weeks earnings. Second is you two will come with me on a hunt. With this you will carry game, prepare meals, gut the game, and if it comes to it kill it yourself if I am busy with other things. Which will it be?" Damien finished. Most likely they would chose the hunt for even the two of them against him would not hope to win. There physical strengths seemed poor and they didn't look as if they had much experience.

A crowd had started to gather brought on by the sight of the soldiers, the knight, and the two bruised men. Such spectacles were rare, and it was out in the open thanks to the lack of walls, so they would enjoy the show. The crowd consisted mainly women and children as most of the men were at work in the mines, but here and there stood a man. Either he was unemployed, worked in a shop, or was doing some other errand.

Neither of the men had ever hunted in their lives, but the option was obvious for both men.. although they chose different options. Roric, while big was not near the height of the over-sized noble, so he wrung his hands together to give himself a sense of security and familiarity in the unfamiliar setting, "I-I'll do the hunting one." He mumbled his face showing a nice shade of red. The embarrassment of having backed down in front of so many women and children, and he did not doubt his wife was watching. It was not everyday a man through his courage out the window in option of the less threatening decision, but he could not shut out the small voice in his head. The one that took away his courage. He could very well die! What if the fight was with weapons!? Roric had no idea how to use them.

Avanc lifted his chin in defiance. There was no way in hell he was going to just sit down and wet himself like a bloody coward. He would not give these people the satisfaction of seeing him kneel. He was not weak. He had his pride, he was not worthless, and he would not die a nobody in some backwater mine! "I will fight you." Avanc said. Sure, he probably would not win against the ogre, but he would be damned if he was just going to go down without a fight. You only lost if you didn't try, "So how is this going to be done?" Avanc asked, far better spoken then his companion.

Damien grinned at the outcome of the answers. So the tall one is a coward. Though the skinny one is courageous. How ironic. He thought to himself. He thought of what would be fair for this man. "It's going to be a plain old bare knuckle fist fight. No weapons. No armors. The rules are simple. No groin shots and when your opponent gives that's the end of it. Got it?" He knew the man knew those were honorable terms being that his entire personality was based on pride. That was a good thing too, having a bit of pride that is.

He nodded at some of the guards who formed a loose circle around them to act as a ring for them. The crowd would still be able to see plenty fine. "Renald will give us a signal shout of when to begin." Damien said. He liked this skinny man, maybe more than he should. After all this was still a punishment that the man would certainly feel in the mourning. He would make sure not to leave to bad of damage. Renald then shouted the signal for the fight to begin. Damien would let the man make the first move. Though after the skinny one made that move the knight would follow up with a fast jab in the face with his left fist.

Avanc was a little disappointed. With fist had his small chance got smaller, but with a sword he was fairly sure he could have won, but no use lamenting on his fortune. He would have to be quick and strike even quicker. The knight had size on him, but Avanc had the speed, he was already anticipating his own moves. He would rush in, dodge the first attack and then follow through with a right straight and a left uppercut to make use of his smaller size. He needed to get in close to cut off the knights power. The man, Renald, gave the shout to begin, and Avanc rushed forward bringing up his arms to help cover his body.

When he got close, a left jab shot out, it was fast, but he had seen faster, he nimbly ducked under and came up, he tossed away his plan as he understood in a true fight there was only instinct. Thinking cost you precious moments, so threw a left uppercut meaning to cross right under the mans arm and get him square in the jaw using his own and the knights momentum to his advantage.

That blow had taken him back. Damien didn't expect to get hit like that and was seeing stars for a few seconds, but the fight wasn't over yet. To be able to dodge his first jab took both skill and speed. No doubt this man actually did have more experience in bare knuckle fighting than he thought, but Damien knew he was still better. Damien shot back yet another left jab but this time it was a faker. The real shot was a right punch the aimed true to the nose.

Avanc felt the adrenaline fill his body as the blow landed. It proved one thing to him: He could indeed win this. The knight was reeling, and there was no way that Avanc was going to let him rest, but a left jab shot out, which Avanc moved to dodge surprised that the big man was able to recover so fast, but in his haste, he had jumped to early. The left jab pulled back, a feint, and before Avanc could move once more, a right straight cut him square in the nose. Bone and flesh met cartilage... and cartilage lost. He heard and felt the cracking in his nose as blood exploded from his nostrils, and the tears filled his eyes.

In fact, it took a few seconds for Avanc to realize he was on his back looking up at the sky, the blood was running down his face in a small steady stream, and he was fairly certain his nose was broken. Part of him wanted to stay down, his chance at victory was gone. Avanc slowly sat up and then rolled over to push himself back up to standing on his feet. He was not going to just lay there and lose. He slowly brought up his fist, but his legs were shaking too bad... he couldn't move them. Avanc took in a deep breath, and then spat out the blood that had been sucked in with the air. "Come on." Avanc spat. He only had one shot left, he had to try and throw a counter, but he wasn't sure how much power it would have behind it with the damage to his legs.

Damien looked at the man with pity now. It was sad that the man didn't know when to give up. One more punch like the one that he just threw could really hurt the man. Instead of laying down another punch he instead grabbed the man's arm casually, twisting it behind but not so much as to hurt the arm, and pushed the man back down to the ground. "The fight has been lossed. You can surely see that and you've proved your point. You won't back down tto anyone as long as you still breath, but this fight is over." He said as he nodded at Renald who came walking up to the ring with a pouch of silver.

"Don't you dare look down upon me!" Avanc snarled pushing himself up to his feet. There was nothing more disrespectful then not fighting another warrior to the end. Nothing shamed another man more then to do something like that acting as if he was an ant not worth stepping on, apparently, this knight had probably never fought in a duel with another, but the gull and arrogance was astounding. Knights of Bretonnia were supposed to be men of honor, warriors of both skill and renown; a true knight of bretonnia would never disrespect another man (assuming they weren't a peasant thus not worthy of the title of 'man') like this, but this man just dishonored him in such a fashion before half of the people in the village.

Avanc spat on the courtyard, "Keep your silver. I don't want silver from a such a man."

"If you think the silver is just a gift your wrong. It's for your new job as a man-in-arms, if you accept that is. You cretainly have shown that you are a man with fire in his soul and I could use that. Though we'll have to knock some of that pride out of you, I think you would fit in just fine. It's your call. You could either work in that mine for rest of your life or you can become a soldier who makes every bandit he faces tremble in fear. So what will it be?" Damien finished with the question of truth. He had a fifty fifty chance here of getting a good soldier. If this man refused there was always the possibility of getting the taller miner to join, but the skinny one was preferrable.

Avanc was not planning on staying in this village any longer then he had to, scrounge up a few coins then slip out in the night... but the chance at being a soldier again was tempting. Even if it was for a Knight who dishonored his opponents in such a manner, "Alright." Avanc said, rolling his jaw a little to help get rid of the iron taste of his blood, but sadly, moving his jaw caused him to wince as it moved his broken nose sending a sharp stab of pain to the back of his head, "A pride is all a man has." Avanc said, "and it would feel good to hold a sword in my hand again. I accept your offer."

He held his hand out for the gold, "But... My Lord." He said, it sounded a little distasteful, but he would grow used to it, "Next time, fight will full force from beginning to end. Crushing a man may hurt his pride, but nothing hurts more then when an opponent looks down upon them. It is a much crueler thing you did then if you had merely struck me down. A few broken bones are one thing, a broken pride destroys a man." He may not want the lecture, but he got it anyway. "I am Avanc Valgeir, 38 winters old. Ex-Empire Swordsman of Ostermark."

((And story end :P That's a wrap people, you can finish it up as you like.))

The light shined in through the window into Fiora's eyes. She sat up out of bed and looked around the room and spotted the letter sitting on her desk then recalled that it was from the royal steward thanking her for helping "Running errands for the king has its up side and down sides, and I don't even get a thank you in person, what a crude person but its a new day I guess I have slept in long enough." Fiora mumbled as she started to get out of bed. She got up and walked over to desk and looked over the letter once more.

Lady Fiora Benedict,

My lord, the King, wishes for me to thank you for the... business you took care of with that jealous husband. Nasty business if that had gotten out, but you are as efficient as always. He gives you his best.

Sincerely,
The Royal Steward.

Charles Renington

Fiora sighed then picked up a book on military tactics then placed it on top of the letter. She then proceeded to get changed and head outside to check the status on the men at arms. On her way over to the barracks she spotted Arawn Drast the captain of the men at arm entering the barracks, most of the men where running through practice drills. She walked over and observed the men run through there drills, then she heard a voice call over to her. "Hello there my sweet daughter how is the village running today." Her father said to her with a smile on his face like always. "Its going fine father, and please no more asking about me going to visit the children mother already told me in the halls but I am just to busy." She said still watching the men trying not to make eye contact. "As I thought, it is your village now so I will let you run it, I must be going now say hello to Arawn for me dear." He said with a sigh hoping she would be a knight of the people still. Fiora looked off into the distance think about how other villages are doing, if they are running smoothly or having problems, Fiora tended to think about things like that often. Then she collected her thoughts and started to move towards the Inn where she had business at. Before she got to far away she looked back at Arawn wondering if he got the notice on what type of outfitting of weapons the men should be using. But she shrugged it off and continued on her way.

Event Changes:
For the 25 men at arms there weapon will be:
-10 with bows, daggers and chain mail
-15 will short spear, sword, shield and chain mail