Post by Soleil on Nov 6, 2008 11:41:03 GMT -5
There were times when Zane was all thought and no action. Those times were more often then one knew of and suspected but that was his nature, he planned. However, there were other times when he simply forgot to process information; in those moments, it was like the neurons stopped firing and passing along the signal through his vast working of synapses. His thoughts were empty and he was full of actions alone - peripheral nerves just took control. This was one of those times.
The first indicator of trouble was the fact that Zane had to sneak something into the castle. Oh, the queen knew what was going on because she had been the one to make the request. But she didn't want anyone to know and it seemed the best way to keep her cover was to avoid any quirky stars and questions he didn't know the answer to. The Wonder Boy thought it best to bring his devices in under the guise of a tapestry, rolled up in their neat little blanket and carried in under his arm. It worked. He found the queen and the two entered the spaciously empty ball room. She knew what he was up to and she didn't even recognize the disguise. He had to roll out the thick gaudy rug to expose it's wrapped presents... two practice wooden swords.
The second indicator was the fact that she was so eager to learn. He made her stand in a still position for dozens of minutes strung together, until her muscles cried out in despair. He learned in that string of moments that she was willing to endure anything. This should have been the sounding alarm to danger but it wasn't. Perhaps Zane was too excited to heed the signs. He was teaching someone, not just anyone either. She, Aurora, was his adopted sister. The two had met under informal circumstances and Zane found it mighty difficult to revert back to proper words and smiles. The two just had this instant connection... like brother and sister with out the blood line.
She was eager to learn and Zane was willing to teach. He taught her how to spot the differences in sword designs and what type of advantage and disadvantage each had. Form came next as it was the only place he knew to start. He was a perfectionist at heart and would move her leg for her if it was even just a hair out of place. He knew the task was dull, boring, and any other word that could describe it. Yet, indicator 3, she ate it up. She would smile up to him under those dark strands of hair that would fall in front of her face and simply listen to his advice. She was the perfect student, even though his lecture sucked. He blamed it on the material.
Days came and passed and with each of them he showed up. She had stashed the practice swords away from public speculation. It wasn't until the 3rd day that he allowed her to even use the smuggled teaching devices. He knew that form was key and that her body needed to know the movements with out the aide of her brain. In a fight there was no time to think, even less at the battle field. But she wasn't stupid enough to want to fight in the war.. or was she. He didn't linger on the thought, again ignoring any alarms that signaled because his brain was just stuck there on autopilot
By the end of the week she was sparing him. He had showed her many offensive and defensive moves, all of which utilized physics. To him each fight was all about physics, what lever needed to be used to get the most torque. She was smaller and his strength was much greater but he was trying to teach her to take advantage of the opponent's strength, to make him do all the work. She was a quick learner and Zane was grateful for her patients. Most fighters wanted to get in and see the blood, but fighting wasn't strictly about that. Zane knew this better than most and he was grateful that his first pupil, ever, under stood this too.
"Your small and your best attack is a good defense. You can disarm a man by simply using his own force." There was that physics word, force. It was how he thought about things, vectors and forces. Too bad he didn't have the great wisdom of modern physicists to back him up. "Today we will go over unarmed defensive moves. These are very important because if someone breaks our ranks and comes in you will most likely be unarmed. In hand to hand you will have the greatest advantage because I can teach you to throw him." He wasn't sexiest, but a foe was always male in speech. It seemed more natural and anyone was welcome to correct him on this.
Zane moved around her as he spoke. In this space, here and now, she was simply Aurora to him. There would be times where he would have to address her with formalities but in the close personal space he used her old name. It sounded more fitting of a queen anyway. "I have never seen anyone use these techniques before. I met the man who taught me on a Dutch embargo about 5 years ago. The ship I was on had teamed up with these Dutch men for an entire year of trade; the Dutch are some funny peoples. Anyway, there was a man they had on ship who had taught me how to disarm any man of any strength." His voice paused as he cleared his throat. Yes, this is an Asian style of fighting technique that the Japanese posses. To give a short history lesson, the Dutch were some of the first to make port on the small isolated island of Japan. Some Japanese left on their boats and some of their men stayed in harbor until world war 2. This was before Japan had closed their ports to export and import of all types... Apparently they didn't like religion.
He showed her the counter movements to an attack, so as to throw a man from his balance and onto his back. At first there was no weight being thrown around, simply a display of proper form. Who ever thought that Zane would be such a stickler? Then the next day he would allow her to try and throw him. "You know this might be easier if you had a servant come in that you trusted? I could throw him and you could watch..." She might have asked him to help and she might have been willing but he was not about to throw her onto the ground. He was a gentleman after all.
Alexandria was ever so grateful for what Zane was doing for her. Though she was surprised he hadn't picked up on the truth of why she really wanted to be trained to fight. Either he was clueless, or she was doing a great job at hiding it. But every moment she spent training with Zane, guilt would rise within her and she just wanted to blurt it out. But her tongue remained bitten. She was certain that if anyone found out, she'd have people locking her up in the castle and more guards to watch over her and make sure she would not do anything foolish...Which was exactly what this was. She was being foolish, but she also did not want to stand by watching her people fight for her while she sat safely behind castle walls. It just did not feel right to her. This was her own doing. The whole war, it was her fault. Though others tried convincing her it wasn't, Alexandria knew better. If she had just agree to marry the suitor they had for her, instead of running away; perhaps the man would have brought on a war anyway, but it would have bought them some more time, perhaps. Or maybe she could have done something to prevent it. Maybe if she had just left behind that secret.. Then maybe they would not still be after them. This was all on her shoulders now. So she felt this war was hers to fight, as well.
She felt she was taking advantage of Zane and she hated that. But who else could she have trusted to keep her secret? Everyone else, especially Thais and Orin, if they had found out, would lock her in her room, themselves.
Alexandria was an excellent student. She listened to every word Zane told her, she caught on quickly with every direction he gave her. She memorized everything after the first time she was told it. She did seem rather eager with every new thing Zane taught her, and she was certain that would give her away, but still it did not.
As Zane explained the ability to lift and throw someone heavier than herself, she smirked slightly and thought to herself. He requested to have her get someone to come in and help them with a little demonstration. She pondered the idea for a moment and then walked away from Zane, moving towards the door of the ballroom. She carefully and quietly opened it, peeking her head out of the room, searching for a man servant that would be walking by. Lucky for them, a servant man was walking by. A cook, at that.
"Jacob... Could you come in here for a few moments, if you are not busy?"
"For the queen, anything." He bowed and Alexandria held the door open for him. After he entered, he glanced around, eyes curiously falling upon Zane. She shut the door, letting it click closed silently and Alexandria would explain the situation. "My lord... Zane here is teaching me how to better defend myself, should the enemy get into the castle and try to harm me. It would be better that I be able to defend myself, yes?"
The man nodded and moved closer towards Zane. "So, Zane here... Needs someone to help him demonstrate something to me." She would not explain what, incase the man would decide to back down after he was told. The man nodded in agreement and stood in front of Zane, silently preparing himself for whatever was coming to him. The man was a big heftier than Zane was, so Alexandria had chosen the right man to demonstrate Zane's point.
She stood off to the side a bit and watched very closely, awaiting to see and study as closely as she could as Zane would take down the man. A grin never faded from her lips. She was finding this somewhat amusing, but was worried about what the poor cook would say after he was down on the floor.
The man coughed and let out a loud laugh after Zane would show Alexandria what it was he was trying to show. He just laid there on the floor laughing until he caught his wind again. "Would the two of you like something to eat?" He stood back up and brushed himself off.
"That would be lovely. Thank you...And thank you for helping us out with the demonstration." She grinned softly and offered him a nod. The man bowed again and made his way out the door again, leaving the unofficially adopted siblings alone again. Alexandria laughed and looked to Zane. "Very impressive, I must say..." She moved around him, studying him closely before she let out a long sigh. "I have a confession, Zane. But you need to promise me you are not going to flip out on me. But I just can't keep this secret anymore... Not to you, since you are being so nice in helping me with all this...You should at least know the truth..." She quietly moved away from him and sat down in a chair off to the side. Her elbows rested down onto her knees and she placed her face into her hands, sighing again and thinking of her words very carefully. Her head was lifted again and she stared up at Zane with a serious expression. Her words were spoken so silent, so that only the two of them would be able to hear them.
"I wanted you to teach me to fight... Not only to defend myself... But also to be able to fight in the war, disguised, of course. I need you to help me dress and act and fight like a man..." She looked to him with hopeful eyes, but the expression on her face would clearly read that she was expecting him to go off on her, call her crazy and decide their training lessons were over and he would not do anything further to help in risking her life and a greater chance of Avalendor losing the only heir to the throne.
The unsuspecting volunteer had a very bewildered look upon his face as he entered but he tried to cover it up because he obviously would have done anything for the queen. Zane smiled though to him and reassured him with a nod. "Alright Aurora, stand right here and watch my hands closely. Now sir, please come at me as if you are going to punch me." Again he had to give a reasurring nod, allowing the man to come near striking him. The cook's movements were a bit chopy but he wanted to impress the queen so he did as he was told. As his arm came up to Zane and his weight shifted forward on his front foot, Zane brushed off the incoming arm and with his other hand he gave the forward momentum a boost and the man was flipped right onto his back. Zane had not expected the soft rumble of laughter from the cook but it was much better than having him upset.
"Yes, thank you."
Once the man left, Zane was excited to start showing her how to do the flip but she seemed to have something else in mind. She sat him down and hesitently started telling him what he already knew was coming. He hadn't known she was going to say it conciously but as soon as she made him vow not to get upset he knew what she was going to say. As she started to reveal the surprise he folded his arms over his chest bracingly and simply nodded as she spoke. Once she had finished he let the silence take the moment and the pause streached out between them. He needed to think about what she wanted before he spoke; it had to be well thought out.
"You are going to do this even if I don't support you, aren't you? If you are going to do this we better start training you with the lance because you are not to leave my sight. If I'm the only one who knows your out there you will have to fight along myside."
Zane stood up from his half seated lean and a hand came to rub the stubble on his clefted chin. Hmm... she was about the same size. "I think we should get Terra to fit for a second set of calvary armor and it would probably fit you just fine." His fingers stroked the mental foreman area in thought. What else would they have to do? "We can stuff your helmet with horse hair to help your disguise. But what horse will you ride? Your's will surely be recognized..."
Alexandria sat there, silently waiting for Zane to flip out on her and start tying her up to lock her away in her room, like so many others might have done. But instead, he assumed that Alexandria already had her mind made up, whether he would support her or not. And she had already decided that. She nodded in response. She grinned and quickly stood up as he agreed to letting her do this and helping her out. She threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly. "Thank you, Zane. I really appreciate it..." She smiled and nodded in agreement. "Well, that just gives me a chance to watch your back too and make sure your safe. That's the real reason why you want me fighting along side you. To defend you, huh?" She grinned and let out a quiet laugh, letting go of him. She took several steps back away from him and thought quietly as his swarm of questions came at her.
She'd nod carefully to each one. Yes, she would need some armor to fit her. Alexandria cleared her throat. "Could you talk to her and try and get me some armor? Without so much blowing my cover? Is this woman trust worthy? If she somehow finds out, would she keep this secret?"
A small sigh escaped her and she sank back down into the chair she had been sitting in moments before. She scratched the side of her head in thought and as soon as Zane mentioned her horse, her eyebrows lowered and she shook her head. "No... I cannot not fight with Obsidion...I don't trust any other horse. My white mare horse isn't fit for riding in war. Obsidion was a war horse. He knows how to carry me and would know how to carry me through the war... I'm not riding another horse." She shook her head again and thought. "...He's a black stallion horse... We could throw armor over him to cover his nose and face... and chest..And legs. Cover up any spots that would make him look familiar. He could go unnoticed. He's not that unique looking. Just a black horse..." She was trying to convince Zane, as if he had the ultimate say in what horse she would ride and she was desperate to be able to ride her own horse. She really did not want to learn to trust and ride on a different horse.
[ I am sorry for the length of this post. You can skip all the way down to where the dashes are if you want to get to the less boring stuff.]
It was planned to disguise the horse as best they could and they talked about the steps that would be needed to prepare her to be his ultimate defender. After all, he wanted the best protection to watch his back out there on that battle field. That night Zane had thought about the situation and came up with a lesson that would probably be the hardest for her to learn. It would both serve as a deterrent and as the most important lesson that a solider, facing a war, could learn.
The next day Zane arrived at the castle like planned but instead made a request to go for a horse ride. The two escaped the walls of the castle without her normal entourage and saddled their horses to depart. The ride to his preset destination was not a very long one from the stables. He took her to a spot he felt was secluded from the normal flow of traffic; a spot where they were tucked away behind large sun bleached rocks and the soft lapping of the water would server to drown out the hum of their voices as they discussed what no man wanted to think about. Business was achieved once the horses were properly tied up and secured in a single position.
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Zane, a normally shorter than average fellow, stood in front of the queen with his most business like facade. He had thought long and hard about how he wanted his words to come out and like most people, he had practiced in the privacy of his room. But, as things were, the words were now lost to him and came out as a poor replica to the words he had rehearsed.
"I must apologize if what I am about to say offends you. But I feel that I must say it despite the social and possibly personal taboo of things." The words were formal and dry as they tumbled from his mouth. Once out he paused to re-gather himself and attempt to start. "The hardest task about fighting is not the actual form, or strokes, or skill with the weapon. While that is all important, it does not matter once you are out there fighting along side your friends and family. Even the most skilled fighters have frozen up cold when real combat presents itself. There is this moment of realization, when the opponent's sword is fallen and his hopes are crushed. You are inches away from the pupils of his eyes and in them you can see his defeated soul. Both of you are the molded from the same stone but at opposite sides and after the dance of hell you both have waltzed, are now faced to face with your other half." What he said possibly made no sense to her at all and his eyes surveyed her own to see if sparks of understanding had ignited or if a dull void of boredom had inched across her mind. It didn't matter, he had yet to reach his point and that alone was the climax and the eye opener.
"These are not just soldiers who are heartless and lonely, these men that will depart the ships will be like our own. They will be fathers, brothers, sons and daughters that have come to support the lie that is their government. They do not know any better or worse and if they are hard they have only become that way from past struggles. There is this moment before that fatal blow, where time stops and you can imagine the life that those pair of eyes held. Armatures hesitate here and their moral system shakes as they wrestle with their first kill and their second kill and their third."
Perhaps it was imagination but the sun seemed to dart behind him in fear of his words and a shadow grew across his normally pleasant features. The said shadow darkened his eyes and made the warm strong lines of his face grow darker and more edgy. He almost looked stone cold in his pause. "There is nothing wrong with a person who pauses. In fact that is natural and normal and means that they have a pure heart. But this pause can kill a person and does kill them, either by their opponent's recovered sword or by the killing blow they have finally decided to give. You can never recover your innocence, you can only lose more of it."
The stark cold face that was before her was obviously speaking from honest experience. She might have been able to see just how many pieces had been torn away from him as he spoke so plainly to his queen. The tucked bow of his head was not of reverence but of mild shame or sadness at his own life's actions. He didn't regret them in the least because that was who he was. But she didn't have to be like that, she could stay away from the tragic honesty of the war if she wanted. Zane knew that she might not have had the most innocent past but he also saw in her an innocent fire of hope and he believed it was that fire that sparked her people to movement. He moved from his position, shifting the heavy weight of his body and moved to go and capture up an innocent looking sack that had been neatly hidden behind a stone. It was obvious that something was captured in that sack as the sides of the sack rippled from something's struggle.
The chicken, finally free from the browning thick potato sack, fluttered it's wings in a stretch. It's neck was held by one of Zane's mighty hands and the other hand pulled out his short dagger that was tucked with in his double looping belt. It was now pretty obvious what her next lesson was.
"I will let this chicken go and you will have to kill it. If you are sure this is what you want... then kill this innocent bird."
Alexandria watched Zane closely. Listening to his every word. She stood there quietly, sapphire-colored eyes remaining focused on his face as he spoke, giving her the little lesson about war and trying to prepare her for what she has seen. There was so much that so many people knew little about her... But she knew it was typical for everyone to assume she held such an innocence. She was mostly quiet and very spirited. She nearly always smiled, unless something was seriously eating away at her and she just could not bring herself to do just that. She hung on his every word, understanding what he was trying to get at, and what he was trying to prepare her for. There was a small pang of guilt that resided within her. Mainly because she felt closer now to Zane than she did with Orin... her own and true adoptive brother, whom she had known and been through life with since she could remember. She felt like she could trust Zane, strangely, even with the small amount of time she had known him in. It had been the same way with Thais, too. Only this was even different from that. She was not attracted to Zane, but instead found him more as a best friend. A close companion she could count on for anything. With his little lesson, Alexandria felt somewhat compelled to tell him what exactly she had been through, though she wasn't sure he'd want to hear of it. It had been hard enough for her to tell Thais, though she knew she had to. Since he would be her husband, he had the right to know everything about her. Alexandria carefully wrapped her arms around her torso, watching Zane still. She wasn't exactly sure why he thought she would be offended by him trying to prepare her for what she would be faced with. She actually appreciated it. And it opened her eyes a bit further. A slow nod was given to him, and her lips had even parted to speak, but Zane moved away, reaching for the moving sack. Eyebrow rose and furrowed slightly as she watched him with curiosity. When he freed the chicken from the sack, and held it out to her by its neck, she stared at the poor chicken, trying so hard to free itself from its doom. Alexandria stared at the animal as Zane spoke his words. She knew very well what he was trying to do, now. He was either trying to prove to her that she wasn't ready to fight in a war if she couldn't kill a chicken, because in the war, she'd have to deal with dying men all around her, and have to deal with killing to defend herself. Or well... That was the only reason she could think of for Zane giving her this little lesson. Perhaps, he had hoped that in this little task, he could show her the reality of war and that she shouldn't be doing what she wants to do now. That it would be best for her to stay in the castle and watch everything from the sidelines. It was his last words... "then kill this innocent bird..." that made her decide he was trying to put the guilt on her, attempting to make her feel bad enough so that she wouldn't, or couldn't do it. And then he could lay into her about how she wouldn't be able to survive. Alexandria let out a long sigh from her nose and closed her eyes for a moment. Her arms fell down from her chest and to her sides and she stood there, just thinking quietly to herself. She had seen far worser things than the death of a chicken...and she knew this. Though Alexandria had never killed anyone before, and never really wanted to... She knew she'd need to deal with it if she wanted to help defend her kingdom and its people. She slowly opened her eyes and moved forward, towards Zane, taking the dagger from him. She stepped back and quietly prepared herself. It was only a chicken... Zane's little lesson was right and she knew it. If she couldn't kill a chicken... She would not be able to survive a war with people being killed, and she would never be able to get over the fact that she'd kill a person if or most definately did. It was seriously just a chicken.. She ate chicken for dinner. It wasn't a big deal. But this was different. The chicken that she ate was already dead and cooked... And hardly looked like it was once a living creature. But now, here was a struggling creature, fighting for its life.. And he was asking her to take it from it. Alexandria took another deep breath and shook her head. "Give me a minute..." She closed her eyes and just thought back to her past. She thought about Saelis. How she had been forced to watch them assassinate men she once knew that had defended the old Kingdom of Avalendor. She saw the head of William at her feet. The man had done nothing but defend and protect her and Avalendor, and had even confided in her and told her of his royal line of blood, in hopes of being able to persuade the council that she could find her own marriage and escape the arranged marriages they were throwing at her. She knew she could have grown to love the man and he would have made a good king. And instead, for all the greatness he had done, he had lost his life for her. And she was forced to watch it. Forced to stare down at his head as it rested by her feet. Her grip tightened around the hilt of that dagger she held and she shook her head again, opening her eyes. "Alright. I'm ready. Let him go." She'd watch the bird, not Zane, as she waited for him to release the creature. Once he did, Alexandria moved quickly, not even trying to let her mind wander to the creature, but rather the things she needed to think about... The reasons why she wanted to fight for Avalendor. She tackled the chicken fown, catching it, and quickly, the dagger was sliced along its neck, ripping its head off of its body before she stabbed the dagger into back, causing the body to fall dead. She slowly stood up, the bloody dagger still in hand, and she looked at him. She wore no smile, but rather a look that said 'didn't think I could do it, did you?...' But she wouldn't look back down at the bloody mess she had caused. Instead, her eyes focused on Zane in a cold manner that perhaps he or anyone would have never expected to see. It was quite obvious then, just in the look in her eyes, that Alexandria had been through far worser things than anyone could ever imagine. And no one, besides Thais now, knew the truth of it all. She wasn't as innocent as she looked. She cleared her throat and threw the dagger down to the ground before she'd move closer to Zane and turn her back to him. She pulled her hair away from her back and over one of her shoulders, revealing the top of her back to him. "Unbutton the first few buttons of my dress... Go ahead and do it..." She would stand there, unmoving as she simply waited for him to do what she told him to. Already, even without unbuttoning the back of her dress, he might be able to see the faint markings upon the upper part of her back. But if he had followed her directions and undid the buttons, he would be able to see a horrible sight upon her back. There were hardly any spots upon it that did not have a scar. Whip lashings, stabs, gashes that looked as if they had been very deep. Her back was like a road map... carrying all of the scars of the horrid life Alexandria had been forced to live for five years of her life.
The lesson hit it's mark, right on the bulls-eye. Zane watched her compose herself before finally delivering the sharpened blade of his dagger into the innocent fleeing chicken. He felt a pride swell up in himself, pride of himself and of her ability to overcome the task. Zane had doubted himself, not sure that the task would be lame or if it would be of value to the future fighter. The chicken laid in a crumpled pile and his eyes studied it for a long time before finally lifting to see just how it effected her. He saw those icy blues crystallize in a harden gaze and she moved to stand in front of him. Her voice was even and she gave an order that made Zane take a few steps back. The long wrinkles in his forehead scrunched as his eyebrows lifted questioningly. He said nothing not really knowing what she was getting at. But finally his fingers did move and the top two buttons were freed from their holders and the dress's back slid apart slightly to reveal the marled flesh that was normally hidden from the world. His eyes had seen enough and those fingers pushed the buttons back through the slits. He let those big arms sag back to his sides in a sad return. He had never known the stories and he wasn't sure he was ready to hear just how each of those marks landed upon her back. He said nothing.
Zane lowered his upper half down and fingers picked up the dagger by it's handle. Blood still clung to it's blade in an effort to remind him of what he just made her do. A square of cloth was removed from his pant pocket and used to wipe the fresh blood form the dagger which was safely returned to its home. A good 5 minutes had dragged by and finally Zane chose to speck. "I will show you how to disarm a man from his sword and I shall show you how to fight atop your horse. Soon we will practice with the lance." His voice was soft in the sense that it could hardly be heard above the gentle rocking of the water below but his voice was hard and business like. He wasn't mad at her and eventually the two would be able to return to their natural banter of things, but for now this was serious stuff and her road ahead would be a difficult one. He would clean the mess up later, they had other things to cover and the sands in the hour glass were running out. Soon the hoards of ships would be upon them and he still had the lance to introduce her to.
Phim had resigned herself that she would not be one to sleep much for a long while. A loooong while. Thus, she finished her few things to a point where she could properly stop. Zane had come and gone and now she would simply stack swords, daggers and a few axes in her handy dandy wheel barrel. Murph was up and ready to go where ever she was, as long as it was out of the heat.
She had taken about five minutes to freshen up, wash most of the sweat, stink, and grime off, to change into the plain humble homespun of deep green. Making sure the full sleeves on the underdress's blouse were fastened about her wrists, the ties that kept the over homespun taunt at her sides were fastened properly, and lastly, her heavy locks were braided and then covered by a saffron headscarf.
A breath was taken as she looked at her mess of a...smithy-shop-home, taking care of the fire, pushing it far back into the hearth to keep one going, but keep everything safe. Seraphim would finally reach one of her crates and pull the loose lid off and to the side. Pushing through straw, she'd let strong hands pull out pieces of armor, much like the set Terra had received. Eying them carefully, they were roughly formed, thick in areas, ragged in others. They were far from finished, but not so far they could not be made quickly if she had no more interruptions.
Lips pursed and she'd simply move the items into a heavy weight fabric sack and then tie it off, placing it on top of the wheel barrel. Final preparation for her outing was her smithy belt, the thick leather was slung low over slender hips, giving that lean, long figure the appearance of more curves then there were.
With the world before her feet, she'd give a look to Murphy and gripped the handles of her wheel barrel and push off. It would not take too long for her to reach the castle, Murph bounding and nudging her along the way.
Fighting was like dancing, in both the partners had to move gratefully with respect to each other. Just knowing how to move properly with a sword did not win battles. One had to know how to move in response to another's actions, to anticipate what was coming next. Zane attempted to teach Aurora everything he knew and then some. She learned form when fighting with a sword and then with a lance and then on horse with a lance. He showed her how to carry her shield and even simulated how heavy it would be once she had armor about her. She was sent on a quick crash course and that course was nearing it's final lessons. Days were spent with Zane drawing line formations, drills that the calvary division were running and she would have to know.
" I want you to stay with in 10 feet of me at all times. I need some close personal protection." He gave a Cheshire grin and then departed his joke by continuing on. "If you lose sight of me I don't want you to come looking for me. It'll be distracting and you must keep a watchful eye always on your surroundings."
Finally he had ventured to the blacksmith and put in the order for her armor. It would be plain and inconspicuous. It was just too bad that he had to let the smithy in on who it was for. He left the shop and returned to the castle. That was where the blacksmith was going to meet them, she had been so animate about the proper measurements that he couldn't get around it. He found the queen and told her the bad news.
"I had to tell her. I didn't say that you were planning on fighting but just in the event that you had to defend the castle. I'm really sorry. I could not get around it and you need the armor. I hope you do not mind." He gave her his best I'm sorry look which melted into a 'do you hate me now?' look.
The two had waited for Seraphim to arrive later that day. Zane wanted to be there to make sure the armor design would also work on the horseback fighting style of the calvary.
Alexandria sat quietly, staring at Zane as he confessed that he spilled their secret to Seraphim. After he finished explaining, she just sat there in silence, watching him. Finally, her shoulders lifted and fell in a small shrug and she let out a quiet sigh, clasping her hands together. "Well. No big deal. As long as she agreed to help out, yes?" She raised a brow in a questioning manner, hoping that after Seraphim was revealed the reason why Zane was seeking armor for a woman, wouldn't refuse to help her out in making her some armor. She sighed again and tucked away a strand of black hair. "So she is coming here then? To measure me, yes?"
Arms folded over her chest and she thought quietly to herself. "We're not giving her much time here. With Brennus' death, the war should be here any minute and I am sure she's already really busy with making weapons and such..."
Sapphire eyes studied Zane and she cleared her throat. "We need to make sure that uhm...Even though..." She glanced down, her arms shifting to cover over her chest. "The armor still looks like a man's..."
A small grin formed at the corners of her lips and she shook her head at herself.
Phim would let out a breath as she made it to the castle. Eyeing a guard with those stoic features, she'd lift the sack of armor off the weapons and wait for them to come to her. A hand resting on her belted hip as they looked at the weapons. "Please take these to the master guard, these are for you all. Then please have someone escort me to the Queen." Hazels met the guards, which was rare for her, she never really looked at them, they hardly took notice of her except when she came with gifts that were so shiney and sharp, "And please bring me back my wheel barrel."
With that, she waited a moment until someone came to lead her on or fetch her to the Queen. The handon her hip went to help hold the sack of armor.
His broad shoulders rose up in what was now the Zane patented shrug. He knew very well the smithy was busy with a list that probably dragged on and on. "She said she had some scraps and it could be done quickly." That was all he knew of the matter and that was all he could offer to her. He knew little about armor and even less about how long it would take to be made.
His eyes moved from where ever their gaze held to drift to her but then quickly adverted when she spoke. Zane was ever the gentleman and he honestly saw Aurora as his sister. A hand came up to gingerly slide against the muscles of his neck in embarrassment at her words and where his eyes almost had wondered off to. Zane had been previously in his own thoughts and had taken a little longer to grasp onto what she had meant... hence his quick aversion. "Well yes. I think if you requested such she would be happy to comply. But stick with the reason that to defend the castle you do not want the enemy to know you."
The two waited and talked a bit more before one of the guards knocked and then announced the anticipated blacksmith. Zane's head bobbed in the polite greeting. He chose that time to move to a local table and brought himself up to rest upon it. His knees bent as he rested his feet in the seat of the table's chair.
Alexandria caught glance of Zane's embarrassment and she laughed quietly to herself. She hadn't meant to embarrass him, she was just stating facts.
She nodded though, in response to his suggestion and sighed just before there was a knock at the door and the guard announced Seraphim's arrival. She forced a smile a nd nodded to him. "Aye, let her in..."
Alexandria sat quietly, and waited for the blacksmith woman to enter. It had been a long while since she had seen her and she was happy that she'd be able to now. She respected the woman, especially since she had gone along and risked her life with those that went to Saelis to save her.
Her smile crept into a more genuine one as her sapphire eyes fell upon the tall woman. "Seraphim. It's nice to see you. How are you?" She was almost certain that was a stupid question. The woman was busy, no doubt, with all the war preparations and weapons that needed to be made. But she had faith that Seraphim was the best at what she did, and she'd rather not have any other blacksmith in Avalendor, unless of course, Seraphim hired one, or asked her to find an assistant.
Phim would be lead to the Queen's area as she continue to lug around the sack of armor. Waiting for her time, she would not lightly to the guard as she finally stepped past and into the room, the door shutting behind her. Oddly proper as always, she would bob her head and curtsy before she'd approach and glance over the two.
She would set the sack down and open as the Queen spoke, her responce was that same quiet warmth, "All is well with me, dear Queen, I hope all is well with you." She was pulling the items out, setting them down. The rough cuts, some sharp edges still, arms and leg plates, the breast and back plate, at least the chest resembled something of a woman's torso. There was even rough skirting to protect the hip area, much like Roman armor, though shorter. Nothing had been fitted with straps to hold it on yet, it was harder to work with items like leather that burned when you placed them in the fire.
At last, she'd raise that wide gaze to the both of them, waiting for their instructions.
Zane spoke up first, like he was in charge when he wasn't. The two just seemed so stiff and formal and he felt like he was intruding on them. A man just simply waiting for a woman to be fitted for armor. His seat upon a table top was a short distance from the two and his knees bent as feet rested there on the table's chair.
"The less the armor actually looks for her the better. The less the armor looks fitted to a woman the better, since everyone will be looking for her."
He had added his two cents and now he simply shrugged. Was it possible to fit the armor and have it look more like a man's? Maybe not. His hand searched deep into the inside pocket of his padded tunic that he wore. Fingers finally hooked on the pipe that he sought and slowly it was pulled out. It seemed he always had to be doing something and right now he chose to pack the small thin pipe. A pouch of tobacco was pulled from his back pocket and unfolded. A soft strong scent filled the air as he loosened some from it's clumping. The flakes of tobacco separated only to be packed down into the house of the pipe.The blend is a luxurious white burley base laced with flavorful Latakia and Irish tobacco.
"I also think a neck guard is important. What does the expert think?"
The first indicator of trouble was the fact that Zane had to sneak something into the castle. Oh, the queen knew what was going on because she had been the one to make the request. But she didn't want anyone to know and it seemed the best way to keep her cover was to avoid any quirky stars and questions he didn't know the answer to. The Wonder Boy thought it best to bring his devices in under the guise of a tapestry, rolled up in their neat little blanket and carried in under his arm. It worked. He found the queen and the two entered the spaciously empty ball room. She knew what he was up to and she didn't even recognize the disguise. He had to roll out the thick gaudy rug to expose it's wrapped presents... two practice wooden swords.
The second indicator was the fact that she was so eager to learn. He made her stand in a still position for dozens of minutes strung together, until her muscles cried out in despair. He learned in that string of moments that she was willing to endure anything. This should have been the sounding alarm to danger but it wasn't. Perhaps Zane was too excited to heed the signs. He was teaching someone, not just anyone either. She, Aurora, was his adopted sister. The two had met under informal circumstances and Zane found it mighty difficult to revert back to proper words and smiles. The two just had this instant connection... like brother and sister with out the blood line.
She was eager to learn and Zane was willing to teach. He taught her how to spot the differences in sword designs and what type of advantage and disadvantage each had. Form came next as it was the only place he knew to start. He was a perfectionist at heart and would move her leg for her if it was even just a hair out of place. He knew the task was dull, boring, and any other word that could describe it. Yet, indicator 3, she ate it up. She would smile up to him under those dark strands of hair that would fall in front of her face and simply listen to his advice. She was the perfect student, even though his lecture sucked. He blamed it on the material.
Days came and passed and with each of them he showed up. She had stashed the practice swords away from public speculation. It wasn't until the 3rd day that he allowed her to even use the smuggled teaching devices. He knew that form was key and that her body needed to know the movements with out the aide of her brain. In a fight there was no time to think, even less at the battle field. But she wasn't stupid enough to want to fight in the war.. or was she. He didn't linger on the thought, again ignoring any alarms that signaled because his brain was just stuck there on autopilot
By the end of the week she was sparing him. He had showed her many offensive and defensive moves, all of which utilized physics. To him each fight was all about physics, what lever needed to be used to get the most torque. She was smaller and his strength was much greater but he was trying to teach her to take advantage of the opponent's strength, to make him do all the work. She was a quick learner and Zane was grateful for her patients. Most fighters wanted to get in and see the blood, but fighting wasn't strictly about that. Zane knew this better than most and he was grateful that his first pupil, ever, under stood this too.
"Your small and your best attack is a good defense. You can disarm a man by simply using his own force." There was that physics word, force. It was how he thought about things, vectors and forces. Too bad he didn't have the great wisdom of modern physicists to back him up. "Today we will go over unarmed defensive moves. These are very important because if someone breaks our ranks and comes in you will most likely be unarmed. In hand to hand you will have the greatest advantage because I can teach you to throw him." He wasn't sexiest, but a foe was always male in speech. It seemed more natural and anyone was welcome to correct him on this.
Zane moved around her as he spoke. In this space, here and now, she was simply Aurora to him. There would be times where he would have to address her with formalities but in the close personal space he used her old name. It sounded more fitting of a queen anyway. "I have never seen anyone use these techniques before. I met the man who taught me on a Dutch embargo about 5 years ago. The ship I was on had teamed up with these Dutch men for an entire year of trade; the Dutch are some funny peoples. Anyway, there was a man they had on ship who had taught me how to disarm any man of any strength." His voice paused as he cleared his throat. Yes, this is an Asian style of fighting technique that the Japanese posses. To give a short history lesson, the Dutch were some of the first to make port on the small isolated island of Japan. Some Japanese left on their boats and some of their men stayed in harbor until world war 2. This was before Japan had closed their ports to export and import of all types... Apparently they didn't like religion.
He showed her the counter movements to an attack, so as to throw a man from his balance and onto his back. At first there was no weight being thrown around, simply a display of proper form. Who ever thought that Zane would be such a stickler? Then the next day he would allow her to try and throw him. "You know this might be easier if you had a servant come in that you trusted? I could throw him and you could watch..." She might have asked him to help and she might have been willing but he was not about to throw her onto the ground. He was a gentleman after all.
Alexandria was ever so grateful for what Zane was doing for her. Though she was surprised he hadn't picked up on the truth of why she really wanted to be trained to fight. Either he was clueless, or she was doing a great job at hiding it. But every moment she spent training with Zane, guilt would rise within her and she just wanted to blurt it out. But her tongue remained bitten. She was certain that if anyone found out, she'd have people locking her up in the castle and more guards to watch over her and make sure she would not do anything foolish...Which was exactly what this was. She was being foolish, but she also did not want to stand by watching her people fight for her while she sat safely behind castle walls. It just did not feel right to her. This was her own doing. The whole war, it was her fault. Though others tried convincing her it wasn't, Alexandria knew better. If she had just agree to marry the suitor they had for her, instead of running away; perhaps the man would have brought on a war anyway, but it would have bought them some more time, perhaps. Or maybe she could have done something to prevent it. Maybe if she had just left behind that secret.. Then maybe they would not still be after them. This was all on her shoulders now. So she felt this war was hers to fight, as well.
She felt she was taking advantage of Zane and she hated that. But who else could she have trusted to keep her secret? Everyone else, especially Thais and Orin, if they had found out, would lock her in her room, themselves.
Alexandria was an excellent student. She listened to every word Zane told her, she caught on quickly with every direction he gave her. She memorized everything after the first time she was told it. She did seem rather eager with every new thing Zane taught her, and she was certain that would give her away, but still it did not.
As Zane explained the ability to lift and throw someone heavier than herself, she smirked slightly and thought to herself. He requested to have her get someone to come in and help them with a little demonstration. She pondered the idea for a moment and then walked away from Zane, moving towards the door of the ballroom. She carefully and quietly opened it, peeking her head out of the room, searching for a man servant that would be walking by. Lucky for them, a servant man was walking by. A cook, at that.
"Jacob... Could you come in here for a few moments, if you are not busy?"
"For the queen, anything." He bowed and Alexandria held the door open for him. After he entered, he glanced around, eyes curiously falling upon Zane. She shut the door, letting it click closed silently and Alexandria would explain the situation. "My lord... Zane here is teaching me how to better defend myself, should the enemy get into the castle and try to harm me. It would be better that I be able to defend myself, yes?"
The man nodded and moved closer towards Zane. "So, Zane here... Needs someone to help him demonstrate something to me." She would not explain what, incase the man would decide to back down after he was told. The man nodded in agreement and stood in front of Zane, silently preparing himself for whatever was coming to him. The man was a big heftier than Zane was, so Alexandria had chosen the right man to demonstrate Zane's point.
She stood off to the side a bit and watched very closely, awaiting to see and study as closely as she could as Zane would take down the man. A grin never faded from her lips. She was finding this somewhat amusing, but was worried about what the poor cook would say after he was down on the floor.
The man coughed and let out a loud laugh after Zane would show Alexandria what it was he was trying to show. He just laid there on the floor laughing until he caught his wind again. "Would the two of you like something to eat?" He stood back up and brushed himself off.
"That would be lovely. Thank you...And thank you for helping us out with the demonstration." She grinned softly and offered him a nod. The man bowed again and made his way out the door again, leaving the unofficially adopted siblings alone again. Alexandria laughed and looked to Zane. "Very impressive, I must say..." She moved around him, studying him closely before she let out a long sigh. "I have a confession, Zane. But you need to promise me you are not going to flip out on me. But I just can't keep this secret anymore... Not to you, since you are being so nice in helping me with all this...You should at least know the truth..." She quietly moved away from him and sat down in a chair off to the side. Her elbows rested down onto her knees and she placed her face into her hands, sighing again and thinking of her words very carefully. Her head was lifted again and she stared up at Zane with a serious expression. Her words were spoken so silent, so that only the two of them would be able to hear them.
"I wanted you to teach me to fight... Not only to defend myself... But also to be able to fight in the war, disguised, of course. I need you to help me dress and act and fight like a man..." She looked to him with hopeful eyes, but the expression on her face would clearly read that she was expecting him to go off on her, call her crazy and decide their training lessons were over and he would not do anything further to help in risking her life and a greater chance of Avalendor losing the only heir to the throne.
The unsuspecting volunteer had a very bewildered look upon his face as he entered but he tried to cover it up because he obviously would have done anything for the queen. Zane smiled though to him and reassured him with a nod. "Alright Aurora, stand right here and watch my hands closely. Now sir, please come at me as if you are going to punch me." Again he had to give a reasurring nod, allowing the man to come near striking him. The cook's movements were a bit chopy but he wanted to impress the queen so he did as he was told. As his arm came up to Zane and his weight shifted forward on his front foot, Zane brushed off the incoming arm and with his other hand he gave the forward momentum a boost and the man was flipped right onto his back. Zane had not expected the soft rumble of laughter from the cook but it was much better than having him upset.
"Yes, thank you."
Once the man left, Zane was excited to start showing her how to do the flip but she seemed to have something else in mind. She sat him down and hesitently started telling him what he already knew was coming. He hadn't known she was going to say it conciously but as soon as she made him vow not to get upset he knew what she was going to say. As she started to reveal the surprise he folded his arms over his chest bracingly and simply nodded as she spoke. Once she had finished he let the silence take the moment and the pause streached out between them. He needed to think about what she wanted before he spoke; it had to be well thought out.
"You are going to do this even if I don't support you, aren't you? If you are going to do this we better start training you with the lance because you are not to leave my sight. If I'm the only one who knows your out there you will have to fight along myside."
Zane stood up from his half seated lean and a hand came to rub the stubble on his clefted chin. Hmm... she was about the same size. "I think we should get Terra to fit for a second set of calvary armor and it would probably fit you just fine." His fingers stroked the mental foreman area in thought. What else would they have to do? "We can stuff your helmet with horse hair to help your disguise. But what horse will you ride? Your's will surely be recognized..."
Alexandria sat there, silently waiting for Zane to flip out on her and start tying her up to lock her away in her room, like so many others might have done. But instead, he assumed that Alexandria already had her mind made up, whether he would support her or not. And she had already decided that. She nodded in response. She grinned and quickly stood up as he agreed to letting her do this and helping her out. She threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly. "Thank you, Zane. I really appreciate it..." She smiled and nodded in agreement. "Well, that just gives me a chance to watch your back too and make sure your safe. That's the real reason why you want me fighting along side you. To defend you, huh?" She grinned and let out a quiet laugh, letting go of him. She took several steps back away from him and thought quietly as his swarm of questions came at her.
She'd nod carefully to each one. Yes, she would need some armor to fit her. Alexandria cleared her throat. "Could you talk to her and try and get me some armor? Without so much blowing my cover? Is this woman trust worthy? If she somehow finds out, would she keep this secret?"
A small sigh escaped her and she sank back down into the chair she had been sitting in moments before. She scratched the side of her head in thought and as soon as Zane mentioned her horse, her eyebrows lowered and she shook her head. "No... I cannot not fight with Obsidion...I don't trust any other horse. My white mare horse isn't fit for riding in war. Obsidion was a war horse. He knows how to carry me and would know how to carry me through the war... I'm not riding another horse." She shook her head again and thought. "...He's a black stallion horse... We could throw armor over him to cover his nose and face... and chest..And legs. Cover up any spots that would make him look familiar. He could go unnoticed. He's not that unique looking. Just a black horse..." She was trying to convince Zane, as if he had the ultimate say in what horse she would ride and she was desperate to be able to ride her own horse. She really did not want to learn to trust and ride on a different horse.
[ I am sorry for the length of this post. You can skip all the way down to where the dashes are if you want to get to the less boring stuff.]
It was planned to disguise the horse as best they could and they talked about the steps that would be needed to prepare her to be his ultimate defender. After all, he wanted the best protection to watch his back out there on that battle field. That night Zane had thought about the situation and came up with a lesson that would probably be the hardest for her to learn. It would both serve as a deterrent and as the most important lesson that a solider, facing a war, could learn.
The next day Zane arrived at the castle like planned but instead made a request to go for a horse ride. The two escaped the walls of the castle without her normal entourage and saddled their horses to depart. The ride to his preset destination was not a very long one from the stables. He took her to a spot he felt was secluded from the normal flow of traffic; a spot where they were tucked away behind large sun bleached rocks and the soft lapping of the water would server to drown out the hum of their voices as they discussed what no man wanted to think about. Business was achieved once the horses were properly tied up and secured in a single position.
................................................................................
Zane, a normally shorter than average fellow, stood in front of the queen with his most business like facade. He had thought long and hard about how he wanted his words to come out and like most people, he had practiced in the privacy of his room. But, as things were, the words were now lost to him and came out as a poor replica to the words he had rehearsed.
"I must apologize if what I am about to say offends you. But I feel that I must say it despite the social and possibly personal taboo of things." The words were formal and dry as they tumbled from his mouth. Once out he paused to re-gather himself and attempt to start. "The hardest task about fighting is not the actual form, or strokes, or skill with the weapon. While that is all important, it does not matter once you are out there fighting along side your friends and family. Even the most skilled fighters have frozen up cold when real combat presents itself. There is this moment of realization, when the opponent's sword is fallen and his hopes are crushed. You are inches away from the pupils of his eyes and in them you can see his defeated soul. Both of you are the molded from the same stone but at opposite sides and after the dance of hell you both have waltzed, are now faced to face with your other half." What he said possibly made no sense to her at all and his eyes surveyed her own to see if sparks of understanding had ignited or if a dull void of boredom had inched across her mind. It didn't matter, he had yet to reach his point and that alone was the climax and the eye opener.
"These are not just soldiers who are heartless and lonely, these men that will depart the ships will be like our own. They will be fathers, brothers, sons and daughters that have come to support the lie that is their government. They do not know any better or worse and if they are hard they have only become that way from past struggles. There is this moment before that fatal blow, where time stops and you can imagine the life that those pair of eyes held. Armatures hesitate here and their moral system shakes as they wrestle with their first kill and their second kill and their third."
Perhaps it was imagination but the sun seemed to dart behind him in fear of his words and a shadow grew across his normally pleasant features. The said shadow darkened his eyes and made the warm strong lines of his face grow darker and more edgy. He almost looked stone cold in his pause. "There is nothing wrong with a person who pauses. In fact that is natural and normal and means that they have a pure heart. But this pause can kill a person and does kill them, either by their opponent's recovered sword or by the killing blow they have finally decided to give. You can never recover your innocence, you can only lose more of it."
The stark cold face that was before her was obviously speaking from honest experience. She might have been able to see just how many pieces had been torn away from him as he spoke so plainly to his queen. The tucked bow of his head was not of reverence but of mild shame or sadness at his own life's actions. He didn't regret them in the least because that was who he was. But she didn't have to be like that, she could stay away from the tragic honesty of the war if she wanted. Zane knew that she might not have had the most innocent past but he also saw in her an innocent fire of hope and he believed it was that fire that sparked her people to movement. He moved from his position, shifting the heavy weight of his body and moved to go and capture up an innocent looking sack that had been neatly hidden behind a stone. It was obvious that something was captured in that sack as the sides of the sack rippled from something's struggle.
The chicken, finally free from the browning thick potato sack, fluttered it's wings in a stretch. It's neck was held by one of Zane's mighty hands and the other hand pulled out his short dagger that was tucked with in his double looping belt. It was now pretty obvious what her next lesson was.
"I will let this chicken go and you will have to kill it. If you are sure this is what you want... then kill this innocent bird."
Alexandria watched Zane closely. Listening to his every word. She stood there quietly, sapphire-colored eyes remaining focused on his face as he spoke, giving her the little lesson about war and trying to prepare her for what she has seen. There was so much that so many people knew little about her... But she knew it was typical for everyone to assume she held such an innocence. She was mostly quiet and very spirited. She nearly always smiled, unless something was seriously eating away at her and she just could not bring herself to do just that. She hung on his every word, understanding what he was trying to get at, and what he was trying to prepare her for. There was a small pang of guilt that resided within her. Mainly because she felt closer now to Zane than she did with Orin... her own and true adoptive brother, whom she had known and been through life with since she could remember. She felt like she could trust Zane, strangely, even with the small amount of time she had known him in. It had been the same way with Thais, too. Only this was even different from that. She was not attracted to Zane, but instead found him more as a best friend. A close companion she could count on for anything. With his little lesson, Alexandria felt somewhat compelled to tell him what exactly she had been through, though she wasn't sure he'd want to hear of it. It had been hard enough for her to tell Thais, though she knew she had to. Since he would be her husband, he had the right to know everything about her. Alexandria carefully wrapped her arms around her torso, watching Zane still. She wasn't exactly sure why he thought she would be offended by him trying to prepare her for what she would be faced with. She actually appreciated it. And it opened her eyes a bit further. A slow nod was given to him, and her lips had even parted to speak, but Zane moved away, reaching for the moving sack. Eyebrow rose and furrowed slightly as she watched him with curiosity. When he freed the chicken from the sack, and held it out to her by its neck, she stared at the poor chicken, trying so hard to free itself from its doom. Alexandria stared at the animal as Zane spoke his words. She knew very well what he was trying to do, now. He was either trying to prove to her that she wasn't ready to fight in a war if she couldn't kill a chicken, because in the war, she'd have to deal with dying men all around her, and have to deal with killing to defend herself. Or well... That was the only reason she could think of for Zane giving her this little lesson. Perhaps, he had hoped that in this little task, he could show her the reality of war and that she shouldn't be doing what she wants to do now. That it would be best for her to stay in the castle and watch everything from the sidelines. It was his last words... "then kill this innocent bird..." that made her decide he was trying to put the guilt on her, attempting to make her feel bad enough so that she wouldn't, or couldn't do it. And then he could lay into her about how she wouldn't be able to survive. Alexandria let out a long sigh from her nose and closed her eyes for a moment. Her arms fell down from her chest and to her sides and she stood there, just thinking quietly to herself. She had seen far worser things than the death of a chicken...and she knew this. Though Alexandria had never killed anyone before, and never really wanted to... She knew she'd need to deal with it if she wanted to help defend her kingdom and its people. She slowly opened her eyes and moved forward, towards Zane, taking the dagger from him. She stepped back and quietly prepared herself. It was only a chicken... Zane's little lesson was right and she knew it. If she couldn't kill a chicken... She would not be able to survive a war with people being killed, and she would never be able to get over the fact that she'd kill a person if or most definately did. It was seriously just a chicken.. She ate chicken for dinner. It wasn't a big deal. But this was different. The chicken that she ate was already dead and cooked... And hardly looked like it was once a living creature. But now, here was a struggling creature, fighting for its life.. And he was asking her to take it from it. Alexandria took another deep breath and shook her head. "Give me a minute..." She closed her eyes and just thought back to her past. She thought about Saelis. How she had been forced to watch them assassinate men she once knew that had defended the old Kingdom of Avalendor. She saw the head of William at her feet. The man had done nothing but defend and protect her and Avalendor, and had even confided in her and told her of his royal line of blood, in hopes of being able to persuade the council that she could find her own marriage and escape the arranged marriages they were throwing at her. She knew she could have grown to love the man and he would have made a good king. And instead, for all the greatness he had done, he had lost his life for her. And she was forced to watch it. Forced to stare down at his head as it rested by her feet. Her grip tightened around the hilt of that dagger she held and she shook her head again, opening her eyes. "Alright. I'm ready. Let him go." She'd watch the bird, not Zane, as she waited for him to release the creature. Once he did, Alexandria moved quickly, not even trying to let her mind wander to the creature, but rather the things she needed to think about... The reasons why she wanted to fight for Avalendor. She tackled the chicken fown, catching it, and quickly, the dagger was sliced along its neck, ripping its head off of its body before she stabbed the dagger into back, causing the body to fall dead. She slowly stood up, the bloody dagger still in hand, and she looked at him. She wore no smile, but rather a look that said 'didn't think I could do it, did you?...' But she wouldn't look back down at the bloody mess she had caused. Instead, her eyes focused on Zane in a cold manner that perhaps he or anyone would have never expected to see. It was quite obvious then, just in the look in her eyes, that Alexandria had been through far worser things than anyone could ever imagine. And no one, besides Thais now, knew the truth of it all. She wasn't as innocent as she looked. She cleared her throat and threw the dagger down to the ground before she'd move closer to Zane and turn her back to him. She pulled her hair away from her back and over one of her shoulders, revealing the top of her back to him. "Unbutton the first few buttons of my dress... Go ahead and do it..." She would stand there, unmoving as she simply waited for him to do what she told him to. Already, even without unbuttoning the back of her dress, he might be able to see the faint markings upon the upper part of her back. But if he had followed her directions and undid the buttons, he would be able to see a horrible sight upon her back. There were hardly any spots upon it that did not have a scar. Whip lashings, stabs, gashes that looked as if they had been very deep. Her back was like a road map... carrying all of the scars of the horrid life Alexandria had been forced to live for five years of her life.
The lesson hit it's mark, right on the bulls-eye. Zane watched her compose herself before finally delivering the sharpened blade of his dagger into the innocent fleeing chicken. He felt a pride swell up in himself, pride of himself and of her ability to overcome the task. Zane had doubted himself, not sure that the task would be lame or if it would be of value to the future fighter. The chicken laid in a crumpled pile and his eyes studied it for a long time before finally lifting to see just how it effected her. He saw those icy blues crystallize in a harden gaze and she moved to stand in front of him. Her voice was even and she gave an order that made Zane take a few steps back. The long wrinkles in his forehead scrunched as his eyebrows lifted questioningly. He said nothing not really knowing what she was getting at. But finally his fingers did move and the top two buttons were freed from their holders and the dress's back slid apart slightly to reveal the marled flesh that was normally hidden from the world. His eyes had seen enough and those fingers pushed the buttons back through the slits. He let those big arms sag back to his sides in a sad return. He had never known the stories and he wasn't sure he was ready to hear just how each of those marks landed upon her back. He said nothing.
Zane lowered his upper half down and fingers picked up the dagger by it's handle. Blood still clung to it's blade in an effort to remind him of what he just made her do. A square of cloth was removed from his pant pocket and used to wipe the fresh blood form the dagger which was safely returned to its home. A good 5 minutes had dragged by and finally Zane chose to speck. "I will show you how to disarm a man from his sword and I shall show you how to fight atop your horse. Soon we will practice with the lance." His voice was soft in the sense that it could hardly be heard above the gentle rocking of the water below but his voice was hard and business like. He wasn't mad at her and eventually the two would be able to return to their natural banter of things, but for now this was serious stuff and her road ahead would be a difficult one. He would clean the mess up later, they had other things to cover and the sands in the hour glass were running out. Soon the hoards of ships would be upon them and he still had the lance to introduce her to.
Phim had resigned herself that she would not be one to sleep much for a long while. A loooong while. Thus, she finished her few things to a point where she could properly stop. Zane had come and gone and now she would simply stack swords, daggers and a few axes in her handy dandy wheel barrel. Murph was up and ready to go where ever she was, as long as it was out of the heat.
She had taken about five minutes to freshen up, wash most of the sweat, stink, and grime off, to change into the plain humble homespun of deep green. Making sure the full sleeves on the underdress's blouse were fastened about her wrists, the ties that kept the over homespun taunt at her sides were fastened properly, and lastly, her heavy locks were braided and then covered by a saffron headscarf.
A breath was taken as she looked at her mess of a...smithy-shop-home, taking care of the fire, pushing it far back into the hearth to keep one going, but keep everything safe. Seraphim would finally reach one of her crates and pull the loose lid off and to the side. Pushing through straw, she'd let strong hands pull out pieces of armor, much like the set Terra had received. Eying them carefully, they were roughly formed, thick in areas, ragged in others. They were far from finished, but not so far they could not be made quickly if she had no more interruptions.
Lips pursed and she'd simply move the items into a heavy weight fabric sack and then tie it off, placing it on top of the wheel barrel. Final preparation for her outing was her smithy belt, the thick leather was slung low over slender hips, giving that lean, long figure the appearance of more curves then there were.
With the world before her feet, she'd give a look to Murphy and gripped the handles of her wheel barrel and push off. It would not take too long for her to reach the castle, Murph bounding and nudging her along the way.
Fighting was like dancing, in both the partners had to move gratefully with respect to each other. Just knowing how to move properly with a sword did not win battles. One had to know how to move in response to another's actions, to anticipate what was coming next. Zane attempted to teach Aurora everything he knew and then some. She learned form when fighting with a sword and then with a lance and then on horse with a lance. He showed her how to carry her shield and even simulated how heavy it would be once she had armor about her. She was sent on a quick crash course and that course was nearing it's final lessons. Days were spent with Zane drawing line formations, drills that the calvary division were running and she would have to know.
" I want you to stay with in 10 feet of me at all times. I need some close personal protection." He gave a Cheshire grin and then departed his joke by continuing on. "If you lose sight of me I don't want you to come looking for me. It'll be distracting and you must keep a watchful eye always on your surroundings."
Finally he had ventured to the blacksmith and put in the order for her armor. It would be plain and inconspicuous. It was just too bad that he had to let the smithy in on who it was for. He left the shop and returned to the castle. That was where the blacksmith was going to meet them, she had been so animate about the proper measurements that he couldn't get around it. He found the queen and told her the bad news.
"I had to tell her. I didn't say that you were planning on fighting but just in the event that you had to defend the castle. I'm really sorry. I could not get around it and you need the armor. I hope you do not mind." He gave her his best I'm sorry look which melted into a 'do you hate me now?' look.
The two had waited for Seraphim to arrive later that day. Zane wanted to be there to make sure the armor design would also work on the horseback fighting style of the calvary.
Alexandria sat quietly, staring at Zane as he confessed that he spilled their secret to Seraphim. After he finished explaining, she just sat there in silence, watching him. Finally, her shoulders lifted and fell in a small shrug and she let out a quiet sigh, clasping her hands together. "Well. No big deal. As long as she agreed to help out, yes?" She raised a brow in a questioning manner, hoping that after Seraphim was revealed the reason why Zane was seeking armor for a woman, wouldn't refuse to help her out in making her some armor. She sighed again and tucked away a strand of black hair. "So she is coming here then? To measure me, yes?"
Arms folded over her chest and she thought quietly to herself. "We're not giving her much time here. With Brennus' death, the war should be here any minute and I am sure she's already really busy with making weapons and such..."
Sapphire eyes studied Zane and she cleared her throat. "We need to make sure that uhm...Even though..." She glanced down, her arms shifting to cover over her chest. "The armor still looks like a man's..."
A small grin formed at the corners of her lips and she shook her head at herself.
Phim would let out a breath as she made it to the castle. Eyeing a guard with those stoic features, she'd lift the sack of armor off the weapons and wait for them to come to her. A hand resting on her belted hip as they looked at the weapons. "Please take these to the master guard, these are for you all. Then please have someone escort me to the Queen." Hazels met the guards, which was rare for her, she never really looked at them, they hardly took notice of her except when she came with gifts that were so shiney and sharp, "And please bring me back my wheel barrel."
With that, she waited a moment until someone came to lead her on or fetch her to the Queen. The handon her hip went to help hold the sack of armor.
His broad shoulders rose up in what was now the Zane patented shrug. He knew very well the smithy was busy with a list that probably dragged on and on. "She said she had some scraps and it could be done quickly." That was all he knew of the matter and that was all he could offer to her. He knew little about armor and even less about how long it would take to be made.
His eyes moved from where ever their gaze held to drift to her but then quickly adverted when she spoke. Zane was ever the gentleman and he honestly saw Aurora as his sister. A hand came up to gingerly slide against the muscles of his neck in embarrassment at her words and where his eyes almost had wondered off to. Zane had been previously in his own thoughts and had taken a little longer to grasp onto what she had meant... hence his quick aversion. "Well yes. I think if you requested such she would be happy to comply. But stick with the reason that to defend the castle you do not want the enemy to know you."
The two waited and talked a bit more before one of the guards knocked and then announced the anticipated blacksmith. Zane's head bobbed in the polite greeting. He chose that time to move to a local table and brought himself up to rest upon it. His knees bent as he rested his feet in the seat of the table's chair.
Alexandria caught glance of Zane's embarrassment and she laughed quietly to herself. She hadn't meant to embarrass him, she was just stating facts.
She nodded though, in response to his suggestion and sighed just before there was a knock at the door and the guard announced Seraphim's arrival. She forced a smile a nd nodded to him. "Aye, let her in..."
Alexandria sat quietly, and waited for the blacksmith woman to enter. It had been a long while since she had seen her and she was happy that she'd be able to now. She respected the woman, especially since she had gone along and risked her life with those that went to Saelis to save her.
Her smile crept into a more genuine one as her sapphire eyes fell upon the tall woman. "Seraphim. It's nice to see you. How are you?" She was almost certain that was a stupid question. The woman was busy, no doubt, with all the war preparations and weapons that needed to be made. But she had faith that Seraphim was the best at what she did, and she'd rather not have any other blacksmith in Avalendor, unless of course, Seraphim hired one, or asked her to find an assistant.
Phim would be lead to the Queen's area as she continue to lug around the sack of armor. Waiting for her time, she would not lightly to the guard as she finally stepped past and into the room, the door shutting behind her. Oddly proper as always, she would bob her head and curtsy before she'd approach and glance over the two.
She would set the sack down and open as the Queen spoke, her responce was that same quiet warmth, "All is well with me, dear Queen, I hope all is well with you." She was pulling the items out, setting them down. The rough cuts, some sharp edges still, arms and leg plates, the breast and back plate, at least the chest resembled something of a woman's torso. There was even rough skirting to protect the hip area, much like Roman armor, though shorter. Nothing had been fitted with straps to hold it on yet, it was harder to work with items like leather that burned when you placed them in the fire.
At last, she'd raise that wide gaze to the both of them, waiting for their instructions.
Zane spoke up first, like he was in charge when he wasn't. The two just seemed so stiff and formal and he felt like he was intruding on them. A man just simply waiting for a woman to be fitted for armor. His seat upon a table top was a short distance from the two and his knees bent as feet rested there on the table's chair.
"The less the armor actually looks for her the better. The less the armor looks fitted to a woman the better, since everyone will be looking for her."
He had added his two cents and now he simply shrugged. Was it possible to fit the armor and have it look more like a man's? Maybe not. His hand searched deep into the inside pocket of his padded tunic that he wore. Fingers finally hooked on the pipe that he sought and slowly it was pulled out. It seemed he always had to be doing something and right now he chose to pack the small thin pipe. A pouch of tobacco was pulled from his back pocket and unfolded. A soft strong scent filled the air as he loosened some from it's clumping. The flakes of tobacco separated only to be packed down into the house of the pipe.The blend is a luxurious white burley base laced with flavorful Latakia and Irish tobacco.
"I also think a neck guard is important. What does the expert think?"