"Total agreement. It's going to be fun squeezing out information from the princess, heh heh. I can't wait to see what chaos will stir up! Oh it'll be so much fun!" Vindle said, jumping up with an excited grin.
"And remember me well! I'm the most sinister bastard you'll ever come across!" he shouted back as he walked away.

Emery looked at his commander, placing his hand on his shoulder. The devilish king's back was turned." My commander..your most definitely hungry ..aren't you? " he said. A smirk came across his face. Alston smiled." Yes my lord. If you dont mind, may i quince my hunger?" Alston asked. Emery shook his head and walked ahead." Do what you must ...." with that, emery left for the dining room while Alston gathered some men and walked towards town

Alex took the money and returned to the camp with his men. One of the other hunters said "Are you sure we should trust the rebels, they've been known to be as ruthless as the king himself." Alex said " my guess is that they want to use us to get in the castle, since they brought the offer up after I mentioned that we brought slaves to the king." Another hunter said "well what if they betray us." Alex said "Then we help them at little as possible since they probably don't trust us much either." One hunter said "so what are you going to try and offer." Alex said "I have plan that could get them in and out before anyone notices they've gone, though they will have to trust me for it to work"

A woman approached the city gates, her clothes torn and her body bruised she stood with a certain melancholic energy as the guards approached her. "State your business, outsider!", the guard commanded. The woman raised her head without a word before taking a few steps towards the gates. The guards in turn unsheathed their swords upon her approach, the very guard from before quickly approached her and placed his hand firmly on her shoulder. Still in silence she looked at his hand before grabbing it and twisting his arm behind his back, she held one of her daggers to his throat before finally speaking, "I'm not in the mood to deal with your stupidity! Now open the damn gates and we won't have a problem!" the guard she had held hostage nervously gestured for his men to lower their arms and he managed to let out the words, "O-open the gates!". Within moments the gates flung open and the woman removed her dagger from the guards neck and spun him away with a grin. As she walked away from the guards and towards the city she heard one of them ask, "who is she?" the woman stopped and turned her head to face them answering, "Name' Varri, and oh if you don't mind let's keep our little meeting between us. Or who knows I might just pay you all another visit, alright?" Varri didn't wait to see their reply, they got the message.

Entering the city Varri only had one thought on her mind, a drink and a warm bed. She had been traveling for months and finally arrived at the city the last thing on her mind was sightseeing. She happened upon an inn and once inside made her way to the counter. "Barkeep!", she called out over the sounds of the busy inn. The barkeeper walked over but his face looked as if he was insulted by her presence. Before Varri could speak he cut her off, "This ain't a charity, unless ya got coin get outta here!" Varri slowly moved her hand for her dagger but stopped herself. If she's learned anything a fight in a busy inn tavern was the last thing she'd want to do in her condition. She held her hands up as she started for the door, "Alright, alright I'll go somewhere else. Hopefully someplace without as many rats"

"Wait!", the barkeep shouted. Varri let out a devious smirk, she had him right where she wanted him. Turning around to face him asking, "What, I was just leaving!"

"What are you getting at girl?", the barkeeper's face was red with anger but he controlled himself for the moment.

"Rats! The place is crawling with them. It'd be a shame if your customers found out about it, I hear infestations destroy businesses", Varri simply stood their with her eyes slowly moving around the room almost carefree. The bartender quickly handed her a tankard full of wine which Varri accepted but not before asking, "House reserve?" to which the barkeep hurriedly shook his head in agreement. Varri chugged the entire tankard before slamming the empty tankard on the counter. She hadn't had a good drink in days. "And how much for a room, my friend?", she grinned as she looked up to the bartender who at this point was miserable upon realizing his current situation, "It's free...for our best customer as long as you need it" Varri's smug expression only intensified as she headed upstairs to her room. Upon entering it she found it to be quite a catch. A more than comfortable bed as well as a desk by the window to work long nights on her plans. A fireplace to warm the nights during the winter. And her own dining table she made sure to remind herself to have the inn keeper bring her meals to her room. Varri could see herself staying here for awhile, oh the money she'll make here. But first, rest as she collapsed into her bed and falling asleep almost immediately.

Anya was quietly listening to them talk, sometimes she heard other elves talk like this she knew their language well enough but it never translated right. "There have been whispers in the caslte of war" she said and reached up to the woman for her hand she held it softly "If there is one I'll always be on your side" she said in a low whisper in a bad elven accent. She took uhls hand too and meshed it with the womans with anyas in the middle "Togetherness will always conquer bitterness" she said and smiled happily and twirled again getting her dress a little muddy. She didnt mind much and winked up at them though she was short for 15 she knew who she had to be faithful to

Glancing at the princess, Sylvestra stopped speaking elven. She couldn't afford being found like this by some royalty. They'd expect the worst. The young princess was so innocent and sweet, despite her gentle nature however her evil father might corrupt her eventually. Something that troubled Sylvestra. "There have been whispers in the caslte of war" the princess said, and took Sylvestra's hand. The druidess was taken aback, not by her taking hold of her hand, but by the sudden comment of war. She didn't realize Anya knew this much. "If there is one I'll always be on your side" said the princess, in broken elvish, which made Sylvestra smile gently, but she was troubled. The princess was so naive... So young... So innocent... Sylvestra bent one knee to the soft grass, and took hold of Anya's hand with both of her own. She looked her deeply in the eyes. "Princess, if there is indeed a war, the last thing the king would allow was for you to be near elves. You are of gentle nature and pure soul, but war is not a place for such beings." Sylvestra said, and looked concerned... But she just looked sad instead. War was such gruesome business. She was deeply bitter about the loss of her kingdom.
"... But if war comes, Uhl and I shall keep you safe. Right, Uhl?" she said and turned to Uhl, and gave him a discreet wink that Anya couldn't see from her angle.

A while after Vindle left the Fox's Den Feyd exited as well. He had the plan, the way in the backup, what he needed was the smuggler. The city is filled with people looking to make easy money, but this wasn't easy work. No he needed a professional and so Feyd spent the rest of the night going from tavern to tavern looking for someone capable of the job. Finally he arrived at an inn where he heard news of an outsider staying there. Apparently she was able to get past the gate guards and procure a room without even paying. Feyd had found his smuggler and so he asked the bartender where the traveler was, "Most likely in her room, damn caldari thief arrived with cuts and bruises all over herself. Probably got the energy sapped out of her doing who knows what. If you ask me she's probably part of a bandit group whose raid turned south" the bartender would have kept rambling on if Feyd hadn't walked away towards the stairs where the rooms where. He kicked open the doors to every room until he found the one. She was still asleep and her bruises seemed to have healed somewhat. He sat in the chair that was beside the bed and moved his hand towards her. Before he could the woman quickly grabbed her dagger push him against the wall and held the blade to his throat, all in one swift and fluid motion. "The hell do you want half elf!", she demanded to know. Feyd's face remained emotionless as he began to explain his reason for being here, "I got a job, a big job. One that for you could mean being set for life. I'm in need of a smuggler and was told your my best option. So is it true?" Varri took a moment before lowering her dagger and sitting down on the bed, "I may be interested, what's the job?"

"I'll be here to pick you up tomorrow night, from here I'll take you to the meeting where the rest of the team will gather to put the final touches on the plan before executing it. If it all goes well you could walk away with a fortune", Feyd exited the room and headed downstairs but Varri followed right on his heels.

"Woah woah hold on a second. You barge into my room, propose a job to me, then leave without even buying me a drink? What kind of business man are you?!", she exclaime nd as she grabbed his arm. Feyd sighed before buying two drinks and bringing it to their table. He rested the tankards down and before he could sit down Varri grabbed both and began to chug the two down one after the other. "....I guess I won't be drinking tonight then", Feyd mumbled Varri put the tankards back on the table and rested her hands behind her head as she sat back in her chair, "So half elf-"

"It's Feyd", he cut her off.

"...so Feyd, mind telling me the details of the plan?" I'd like to know more about my job than just the pay. It helps to know what I'll be doing", Varri continued with a certain carefree tone in her voice.

"Its simple, me and a friend will be brought in as "prisoners" to the castle. Once in the dungeon you will smuggle our gear into the dungeon and break us out of our cells. From there your job is done...well half done, after we get what we came for we'll need you to have an escape route ready for us"

Varri rolled her eyes before answering, "And you want this all done by tomorrow night, I'll need to get a layout of the castle, I don't suppose you have one."

Feyd looked down as he hide his embarrassment, "No but I know a guy who should you'll meet him tomorrow"

"So since I can't do anything till tomorrow I'm free for the night? Great, it's been nice meeting you Feyd but now it's time for you to go. I have busy stuff to do like drink, sleep, and repeat", the caldari girl pushed Feyd out the tavern door and slammed it behind him. "Well I guess there isn't much to do besides wait for tomorrow then", he grumbled as he started walking towards his home. Upon arrival he dropped onto the bed and not long after was asleep. Tomorrow was going to be a big day.

"Et parnethas sin'kvalost." Uhl slowly repeated a well-known elvish mantra. The former assassin nodded his head, trying to find healing between all of the pain that the Qacian elves have experienced. How could these wounds heal? All Uhl could see were festering incisions that needed a drastic cure; the cure could be war. The elf shook his heads off of these thoughts, then, his focus was diverted by a small hand that grabbed his. Uhl eyed the princess cautiously, as if preparing himself for combat. As the princess grabbed his hand, Uhl winced a little bit: the Slave Cuffs, crafted from magic, would always tighten whenever someone else would touch Uhl. Ironically, only a touch from a royal could remove the cuffs, however, it should be a touch where the royal is willing to remove the said cuffs. However, Uhl tried his best to hide the numb pain. He listened to the princess' terrible elvish, and smiled a little from amusement.

However, Uhl's smile vanished when the princess mentioned of a war. How could she, a sheltered, naive, and innocent creature, know of the darkness of this world? The princess was still ignorant of the terrors of war. When you kill a person, no matter how much you wash your hands, the blood of the victim will always stay in your soul. It gnaws at you, the thoughts of you taking a life is terrible to live with. The princess didn't deserve any of these horrors.

But then again, should the princess be taken hostage, wouldn't that mean that she could serve as a bargaining chip to oust the king? Wait, wait! Uhl coughed at these thoughts, removing them from his mind. Still, Uhl smiled at the small declaration of the girl to take the elves' side in the war. Well, what could she do anyway for them?

As Sylvestra knelt to the ground to honor the princess, Uhl also bowed in respect. Uhl looked at Sylvestra, noticing that she gave him a wink; he got the message clearly, and so, he nodded. "What Sylvestra said is true, milady. When war comes, we will do our hardest to keep you from harm. You are a princess and must be treated and protected as such." Uhl smiled gently as he looked at the princess. "By the way, milady, you might want to return to the royal dining hall. The court might be already looking for you."

Anya frowned slightly at thier words "I want to help! I can defend myself im not as innocent as people think" her voice went a bit cold, unlikely of her tenderness. She pushed away from them and let a small dagger peek out from under her dress and then turned around dark purple orbs formed in her hands. "I've been learning magic since i could speak, it was done discreetly, I'm not going to let anything happen tou either or you" she said her voice still cold once she smiled her magic vanished. She rolled her eyes when uhl said the royal cort would miss her by now.

Uhl was taken aback at the Princess' sudden outburst. The elf was stunned at the princess' confidence; was it purely hubris, or was it pure skill? Uhl got an eyeful of the princess' weapon, a concealed dagger. Did she know how to use it though? Back in the Qacian Assassin Corps, Uhl was taught how to conceal weapons, and by all honesty, Uhl agreed on the notion that the princess was doing a poor job at concealing her weapons. If only Uhl could get that dagger... NO! The elf shook his head again to remove the thoughts. Suddenly, the princess let out another surprise-- she could use magic as well; she could use Dark Magic as it seemed, Umbramancy if Uhl could recall. Now, Uhl realized that the princess was not helpless, but she was far from Sylvestra's level or even his. However, she has potential-- they could train her further.

Uhl turned to Sylvestra, making sure that his good eye was set on her. "i' tarien val*" Uhl muttered in a husky voice. "Lye caro balan rhien**" he continued, now gazing at the princess. "Still, I'm glad that you can defend yourself, milday." Uhl smiled as he placed scratched his head. "Pardon me for mentioning your relatives, I should have learned of your distaste for them." Uhl chuckled as he brushed his fingers through his hair. "Well, if you really want to stay in Sylvestra's garden, the least I can do is to play some elvish music. This was an ancient tune played throughout a mourning for a great person." Uhl nodded as he lifted his cloak, revealing the wooden flute.

With nimble motions, Uhl placed his lips on the embouchure hole, and blew on it gently. His fingers skillfully pressed on one key after another, producing mystic and calming tune that the elves would recall as a Litany of the Fallen. A melody played to honor the dead; its rhythm depicts the highlights of elvish life, and the fear of death, especially in war. After the war ended, no trace of this tune was played -- none were left to even play it. The number of the slain amounted by the thousands, the rivers ran red, and the blood was stained with crimson ink. This was a festering scar on the elves; something that they would never forget nor forgive.

* - She has potential...
**- We could make her more powerful

One of the hunters said "so what's the plan." Alex said "I may not like some of their methods but It may be better for us to help them over giving them up to the King." Another hunter said "but the king would reward us handsomely for them." A different hunter said "but he may arrest us and torture us with them for even talking to them." Alex said "Then it's decided when we go to the meeting tomorrow we are going to give them our full support." The other hunters all gave a shout in agreement.

Feyd tossed back and forth in his bed before he was finally awoken. He was anxious to complete the mission he couldn't stay asleep. "Maybe we should do it now?", he thought "No, I need to give our smuggler some time to prepare...If she is preparing that is" the half elf paced around his home until he had enough of being cooped up inside. Putting on some inconspicuous clothes he exited his home and began to walk the city streets. The fresh air didn't do much good to calm his nerves. "Perhaps a drink will do the trick", he mumbled as he headed for the Fox's Den. Once again entering he retrieved a tankard full of Caldari Bloodwine from the counter and sat in his usual booth.

As he sat there he noticed someone approaching his booth but quickly realized it was Abbas. "Ah Abbas, I was wondering if I'd see you anytime soon", Feyd said with a somewhat dissatisfied tone in his voice "Did that shipment raid I risk you about go down successfully?" Abbas sat in Feyd's booth before answering. "Unfortunately no, the shipment could not be located. I do however know of something you might be interested in"

Feyd raised an eyebrow as he inquired, "Really? And what might that be ?" He asked. Abbas handed him a piece of paper along with ink and feather. "I have discovered an elven woman named Sylvestra sends letters to the higher ups of the resistance"

"And this is important to me how?", Feyd asked somewhat annoyed.

"Usually it's only the higher ups who communicate with her but since you are attempting to break into the-", Feyd put a hand over Abbas' mouth.

"How do you know of that!", he whispered harshly. Trying to hold in his anger he slowly removed his hand from Abbas' mouth.

"I deal in communication, words and plans are my speciality. But don't worry this operation of yours is safe with me", Abbas said with a warm smile.

"Thank you, my friend. I'm glad you understand my need for secrecy. So what did you mean to tell me about this Sylvestra?"

"Well I have a carrier crow, if you want I could send a message to her and with luck you may get her to help you with your plan"

Feyd thought over his decision for a few moments before making his choice, "Alright let me write the first message"

Taking the quil in his hand and dipping the point into the ink Feyd began to write;
"Sylvestra, You do not know me but my name is Feydrien Aranyil. I am a member of the resistance and I wish to procure your services on an assignment which may prove crucial to our people's cause. Myself and a few of my fellow comrades are attempting to infiltrate the king's castle. Once inside we hope to procure something to use as leverage against the tyrant. If you could provide an exit for us once we locate the target I would be greatly indebted to you. I hope to hear your reply before tomorrow night. Sincerely, Feydrien Aranyil"

Feyd made sure not to write what exactly they were going after incase this was a trap. He handed Abbas the letter and the informant sent the crow off with the message. "Now we wait", Abbas stated calmly. And so the two sat there as they waited for a reply.

Vindle walked... er, kind of danced happily, to his house.
"What a world! What a world! What a beautiful fun world!" Vindle said as he walked into his house.
Now I just gotta hope Feyd isn't stupid enough to trust anyone else with this plan other than the two of us and the smuggler. I'll beat 'em up if he does, just a teensie bit, though. he thought as he walked into his bedroom.

Not long after she shoved Feyd out the door Varri somehow managed to egg the entire tavern into a drunken brawl/party. The Caldari swung from the chandeliers as she kicked back the drunken patrons while chugging down mead like tomorrow was her last day. Which it might be since she took a job breaking into the king's castle, the punishment would surely be death. But she had been in worse situations before and she wasn't terribly worried about it. Once the brawl had subsided and the partakers of it had all fallen to their injuries Varri decided it was better to start working before the day of the job. She exited the tavern and immediately began asking around for Feyd. It took some time but she finally found out where he lived. Arriving at his house she quitely picked the lock before slowly opening the door. Only to her surprise her employer was nowhere to be found, in his place however was a direwolf ready to pounce on her at any moment. "Woah, easy boy, easy. I don't want any trouble alright? I'm a friend, I was just here to see Feyd", hearing the name of his master Witherfang began to calm down. Varri inched her way closer and closer to the beast and stretched out her hand but the direwolf growled once more causing her to pull back slightly. She paused but kept on and was eventually running her hand through the fur on his head. Witherfang became comfortable and quickly lowered his guard. "That's it, thaat's it. See I'm not as bad as you thought huh?", she said cheerfully and in reply the direwolf began to pant happily. "Alright I think it's time we go see Feyd...or we could have him find us", she said with a devious smile...

Sylvestra was taken aback by the sudden display of courage and "power" by the princess. Dark magic? she thought. How has the princess even learned this?. She looked at Uhl, who spoke to her in elven. "She has potential..." he mumbled, and Sylvestra couldn't help but agree, in her mind. She thought that yes, the princess has a lot of potential to be a great ally but also she could be a foe if the king realized what potential she had. She was strong, but the King might set his claws in her, corrupt her. "We could make her more powerful..." Uhl continued. Sylvestra looked at him sternly. The thought had crossed her mind as well, even though teaching elven magic and martial arts to a human was strictly forbidden by the elders of old. In these times, the elders were no more and the rules they set were fading. Perhaps Anya could be taught elven magic and how to fight. She could be a great ally. It would certainly deal a heavy blow to the King.

When Uhl started playing, Sylvestra smiled at first, rising from her kneeling position. However, as she recognized the tones of the melody, she had to turn away. The song brought images of the war to her mind, and tears began flooding her eyes. The garden stilled, and fell silent as the trees and birds themselves listened to Uhl's song. Sylvestra ran her hand over the bark of the tree next to the bench, and she began to sing. The words were old elven, so old they were barely used anymore. That's how old this song and melody actually was. It was a calm and peaceful song, yet for those who understood the words and their meaning, they would find only sadness. Sylvestra wiped the single tear that fell down her cheek, and turned around, hiding it well.

"I see you have power, Princess." she said softly. "Perhaps I am wrong for saying this but... As you are always welcome in the gardens, I would be happy to teach you some things that might help your skill in the sorcery improve. If you would like such things, that is."
Sylvestra bowed graciously, awaiting the princess' reply, and Uhl's. He could probably teach her how to be discreet about herself, and how to properly wield a weapon. I have to tell the resistance about this... Sylvestra thought, hopeful of the future.

Anya danced along with the music over looking sylvestras saddness. She heard their words but continued to dance it was always fun dancing her life and fears away. "I'd love to learn more magic.. maybe you could translate my spell book" she said and giggled as the same golden brown squirrel came out to her and ran around at her feet. She laughed and tiredly stumbles to sit downand the critter runs off.

Alex and his men got their stuff together and then they took turns watching guard on the camp. During Alex's turn he thought about what is going to happen tomorrow. "let's hope that this guy is going to be willing to trust us, or this plan isn't going to work." Alex then began to sharpen his blade as he watched guard.

"Humans... they never realize the sadness of this melody." Uhl thought to himself as his lips breathed out such a melancholic hymn. Suddenly, familiar elven words were now being sung by Sylvestra. It was old elvish, and as such, he only had a limited knowledge about it. However, Uhl felt every word as if they were blades that pierced into his soul. The lyrics of the song-- they were haunting. A single tear flowed down Uhl's eye as he lifted his lips from the flute, causing the melody to stop. Uhl bowed his head, contemplating on the course of future actions.

He knew what Sylvestra could be thinking -- the princess had power, and should the King make use of it, she could be a disastrous threat to them. However, if they could convince her to fully fight on their side, and if they could train her, she could prove to be a major catalyst in the scheme of things. This Princess Anya-- the fate of this war would rest on her hands. However, he was going to try his chances... Uhl was willing to gamble; he was betting blind, but it was better than nothing.

Uhl turned to Anya, and with a smile, he bowed. "Milady, if you so wish it as well, I would like to offer my aid to enhance your skill with the blade. Furthermore, Sylvestra and I are trained in translating Ancient Elvish, we can help you accomplish so much more." Uhl nodded to Sylvestra. "We are glad at your good and kind heart, princess. However, you must always be careful of your father. He might not appreciate your liberal thoughts." the servant mumbled on as his right ear twitched. He suddenly spun around, facing the sky. Uhl's hand gripped on the tip of his flute, as if there was a blade hidden underneath... Then, he relaxed his stance and turned to Sylvestra.

"I hear a messenger crow approaching. Its wings beat at a fatigued rate. It might be for you, Sylvestra." Uhl bowed as he kept his eye on the environment, cautious of any movements from humans.

Some time had passed and Varri began to grow impatient while waiting for Feyd to return, "ugh does he always stay out this late?", she asked witherfang. The beast simply tilted in response, "well its late and I'm not in the mood to walk home so.." the caldari stretched her limbs before laying in the bed, her hand still combing the fur on the direwolf. Not long after she fell asleep only to be tormented by nightmares. These were different from the average persons nightmares in the sense that these were realistic fears. Mostly because these were memories of her past. The ship wreck, her travels to the caldari, everything besides where she came from replayed over in her mind.

She woke shortly after in panic before calming down. This time to find Feyd leaning against a wall, "Sleep well? I thought you had a place?" He asked sternly. Varri took a moment to compose herself before answering, "I do but I visited when you were out doing whatever. I waited and after a while figured I'd stay here. Not really I'm the mood to walk back to my place"

"Not my problem, get out. I need my sleep", Feyd said coldly as he approached his bed.

"Yeah not my problem either", Varri replied almost mockingly. She threw the covers over herself and went back fo sleep. Feyd released a sigh of frustration before leaving the house, "I guess I'm spending a night at the Den" he said. Upon arrival he decided to wait a bit longer for Sylvestra's reply.

Anya stopped and listened to Uhl's words, they could teach her so much.. but her father the king would never allow it it would be done in secret in the garden, she could put up a spell only she and the elves could penetrate. Her powers weren't That strong but she could be taught better magic. The book she had was big and dusted her family didn't know about it because she kept it hidden even some of the servants didn't know an older elfish woman taught her most of the spells but later died because of treason, she planned on killing the king. the princess didn't know much about it until recently, when an elf spat at her and muttered the old womans name followed by death. Her heart raced when she got to the castle but she didn't let anyone see her tears."Thank you both , I'll gladly accept your help"