Kyrisse

More Than A Lifetime (Kyrisse x Neno 1445)

A look of anguish came over Adrian's face. While he had always said that the servants were there to serve and the soldiers were there to protect, hearing that the men had died for him made him feel horrible. His mind began trying to make sense of what had happened. What had been the purpose of the attack? Were the assassins rogue border soldiers that had wanted revenge for the swift justice he had dealt the corrupted border officials? Were they radicals who wanted to prevent him from ever ascending the throne? There were so many questions in his head that it was confusing him. "I..." he started.

There was a sharp intake of breath that came from the door followed by a sigh of relief. "You are finally awake, Adrian," the Queen hurried towards his first born and enveloped him in a hug. "I was so afraid that you will never regain consciousness and had begun to doubt that the physician's antitoxin worked."

A familiar self assured smile appeared on Adrian's face, one that was in place for the sole purpose of soothing his mother's anxiousness. "It will take more than an arrow to kill me, Mother," he said in a light tone of voice.

"Seems that way," came Adam's voice from the door.

Adrian turned his brown eyes towards the door as Adam came into view. "I did not want to disappoint anyone by coming home a poisoned corpse. I did come close, did I not?" Adrian's tone was still light as he directed his words towards the younger prince.

Adam stopped by the foot of the bed, a lopsided grin on his face. "You certainly did, you bastard. You made all of us worry, he shook his head. "I am glad that you pulled through though.

A warmer smile appeared on the crown prince's face as he looked at Adam. "I am as well."

Adam smiled back and then gestured towards Alessandra. "I believe you have earned yourself an extremely loyal handmaiden, dear brother. Aly had refused to leave your side until you woke up and I believe she was the most worried about you. Even more than Mother."

Adrian raised an eyebrow upon hearing Adam use a nickname for Alessandra. His eyebrow was still raised as he looked from the prince to his handmaiden. But before he could say anything, the queen began speaking again. "Yes, I believe she was the most anxious about your condition," she chuckled as she turned her attention to Alessandra. "I truly am grateful that you took care of my son. You may rest your head now, Alessandra. Adrian has awoken. You may take your leave and rest yourself," she smiled fondly at the her before she turned her attention back to his son. "Your Father had also visited you every day since you came back home. He will be very pleased to know that you are finally awake."

More Than A Lifetime (Kyrisse x Neno 1445)

Adrian nodded his head at the news about the king and queen but looked thoughtful about the update on Adam. He'll have to talk to the younger prince a little later. Find out what's been happening. And maybe talk to Henry to find out about the ambush. He stopped short and looked at Alessandra. "Did the soldiers who accompanied me survive? Theo?"

A few hours after Henry and Adrian made it to the castle, Theo had rode in, barely clinging to life. He had managed to escape the ambush but passed away while he was being treated, the same poison that had run through Adrian's body ultimately claiming his life. He had managed to report that the soldiers they had brought with them all fell in battle. The King had immediately sent out soldiers to gather the bodies of the fallen and they were given a proper burial a day before Adrian awoke.

More Than A Lifetime (Kyrisse x Neno 1445)

"Stubborn as always," Adrian commented as he put the empty glass back on the night table. The tone of his voice sounded almost amused. Perhaps it was because he was still weak that he was not as conceited or arrogant as before. He looke at her, contemplating on whether to send her away or allow her to stay. "Very well, you may stay," his brown eyes looked weary despite being asleep for the whole three days. He reached for a pillow and propped himself up against it. "I have been away for the whole month. Would you bring me up to date about what has been going on in the castle while I was away?" he paused, as if he was considering whether or not to ask the next question. It didn't take long for him to make up his mind. "What has Adam been doing?"

More Than A Lifetime (Kyrisse x Neno 1445)

Adrian looked at the woman in front of him. The moment that he had felt the poison taking effect in his body, he didn't expect to make it back home alive, much less see her again. It was strange to see concern and relief on her face. She had often looked burdened everytime she had to stay by his side that it was an expression he expected the least to see. He looked down on her hand grasping his. On a normal day, he would have given her a snide remark about touching him or about her staying in his room. But the honest look of concern in her blue eyes disarmed him. He gave her a small smile instead. "Have I been unconscious long? he asked softly as he looked towards the chair she had been sleeping on and noted the rumpled blanket on it. "It must have been a huge inconvenience to stay beside me all this time. I appreciate it but at the same time, I apologize for it." he reached out for the glass of water sitting on the night table beside a water pitcher. He drank the water, the liquid soothing his parched throat. "I am...better now. You may return to your own chamber so that you may rest better.

More Than A Lifetime (Kyrisse x Neno 1445)

It took Adrian a whole 3 days to finally awaken. He opened his eyes and slowly looked around, disoriented about where he is and why he was there. He tried to sit up but weakness and the prolonged period of being on his back made him dizzy. He placed a hand on the bed beside him to steady himself while his other hand shot up to his head. When the dizziness had subsided, he looked around. The sun had not come up yet and the room was dark. But despite the darkness, he could make out the bed and the furniture and he knew that he was back in his room. He had no idea how he got there. The last thing he remembered was... being ambushed by a barrage of arrows on their way back to the palace.

His eyes grew wide at the memory and he looked around. What happened to his men? To the prisoners he brought along? Why was there a searing pain that shot through his shoulder everytime he moved his hand?

He looked down and saw that his left shoulder was swathed in bandage. He thought back to their ill fated trip and remembered being hit on the same shoulder by an arrow.

He looked around once again. A figure was fast asleep on a chair by the foot of his bed. He could make out the figure's long blonde hair in the darkness.

"Alessandra?" his voice was raspy.

project//Godslayer

@Shadow Daedalus Go ahead. Slot 7 is yours. I'm dropping out of this rp.

@Sarcelle Renard Sorry about this.

More Than A Lifetime (Kyrisse x Neno 1445)

"Thank God for that," the queen sighed in relief. Adam looked just as relieved as he stood beside his mother but there was a sort of horrified look that lingered on his face as he looked at his still and pale brother. The Queen turned around his eyes towards the Doctor. "Can we bring him up to his room? I believe he will be more comfortable there."

The physician gave the queen another respectful bow. "Of course, Your Majesty. I will administer the anti-toxins to Prince Adrian in his chamber."

---

Several minutes later, a clothed Adrian lied in his own bed, still pale but breathing easier. The queen had bustled around the crown prince, placing a mint humidifier near his bed. "This always made him relax better," she mumbled more to herself than to anyone and then began placing pillows around her son. When she was finished, the prince looked like a small child caged in the bed with pillows to prevent him from falling. It was almost funny if the situation wasn't so serious.

The queen reached out for another pillow but Adam laid a hand on his mother's arm. "Mother, I doubt Adrian would roll around in his sleep and fall off the bed. I believe there is no need to add more pillows, unless you want to smother him with it," he lightly joked.

The queen blinked and looked towards the bed. A small chuckle escaped her lips even though her eyes were watery with tears that threatened to spill at any moment. Busying herself was her way of distracting her mind from thinking of what may have happened had Henry not been able to bring Adrian back home as quickly as he did. [color=salmon]"You are right," she said as she placed the pillow she was holding at Adrian's feet.

"I'll stay and watch him, Mother. Please have your rest, Adam said. When the queen merely stared at Adrian in response, Adam looked at Alessandra. "Watch Adrian. I will bring mother to her room and will return after." He walked towards the queen and gently led her out of the room.

More Than A Lifetime (Kyrisse x Neno 1445)

Tomorrow again! ^_^

More Than A Lifetime (Kyrisse x Neno 1445)

Henry stood guard at the door while Adrian was being tended to by the physician. He refused any treatment until his prince had been well taken care off and out of danger. He looked tired and worn out, his armor chinked in places where the arrows had hit. But aside from that, he looked unwounded. He looked down at Alessandra and was about to speak when the Queen and Prince Adam arrived. The Queen was frantic while Prince Adam looked strangely calm.

"Where is my son?" Queen Anne demanded. "What happened to him?"

Henry immediately bowed in respect to both the Queen and the second prince. "We were ambushed by assassins a day away from arriving in Whitehaven, your Highness. Ruther and the rest of the royal army we brought along with us stayed behind to allow me to make haste and ride back with Prince Adrian. He took a poisoned arrow to his shoulder," Adrian's guard quickly brought the Queen up to date. He stepped aside to let them pass.

With an anguished cry, the Queen rushed into the physician's chambers, Prince Adam following closely behind.

Inside, Adrian was on the bed, half naked. The blood had been wiped clean from his face and the doctor was bandaging the puncture wound on his shoulder. He was pale, his lips had a bluish hue and his breaths were shallow. He looked close to death's door. The Queen immediately rushed to his side and took her first born's pale, cold hand in hers. But it was Adam who spoke first. "How is he, doctor?

The physician looked up and bowed his head low to the two royalties. "The arrow that had pierced Prince Adrian's shoulder was laced with a potent poison from a plant called the Blue Mountain Star. If he had arrived a minute later than he did, he would have succumbed to it. However, Henry was able to give the Prince an herb that was somehow able to slow down the progression of the poison in his body. I have already administered the anti-toxin. I will need to administer it every 8 hours for three days."

Prince Adam let out a relieved breath. "My brother is safe then?" he asked.

The physician nodded. "If the antitoxin is administered successfully, there is no doubt that he will make a full recovery."

More Than A Lifetime (Kyrisse x Neno 1445)

A cheeky smile appeared on Adrian's face. "Improve all you want but my horses are off limits to everyone, including you," he warned but his tone was light, a sure sign that his mind was preoccupied. On a normal day, he would have sounded arrogant.

A few days later, the King sent Adrian to the borders for a routine inspection. He also wanted his son to go out, to immerse himself with the people and to learn their ways. He thought it was the best course of action to mold his first born into the King he hoped him to be and at the same time show the people who he is and what he stood for. The Queen had been worried especially since there had been news that the people were divided in their loyalty to the princes. She had initially insisted that Adrian bring along Alessandra to tend to his needs but the Prince had declined. ”Bringing her along would endanger her life," he had simply said, knowing full well that the majority of the kingdom’s population did not favor him.

“Do not worry yourself too much, Mother. I will only be gone for a month. And as you always said, this is my chance to show the people my worth. And perhaps change their mind," he assured the queen, despite the foreboding feeling he felt. He mustered a smile onto his face as he kissed her cheek and bid her farewell.

In the end, he left accompanied only by two personal guards and a handful of royal soldiers.

The routine inspection the King sent Adrian to turned out to be far from routine. The army partroling the borders had become bored and greedy and had begun fattening themselves with the overly expensive tolls they charged merchants for passing through. A fourth of the toll they submitted to the royal coffers as tax, the rest they pocketed for themselve. Some of the men had even resorted to consorting with thieves to avail for themselves some of the wares of the merchants for free. These were all reported to Prince Adrian by the scout and Adrian had dealt with it swiftly and mercilessly. He sent word to the King about it and the King sent a tenth of the royal army to stand guard at the borders in place of the men Adrian had taken into custody for questioning and judgment in Whitehaven. Afterwards, he spent a few days in the surrounding villages, talking to people and doing his best to change their opinion of him.

The mission had been a success, earning Adrian both the trust and admiration of the merchants and those of the villages by the border. Some, however, still thought him arrogant and his actions in the border a grand act to try and win them over. But most had begun to look at him in a different light.

Before the month came to an end, Adrian and his men set out for their journey back to Whitehaven along with the corrupted men from the border, their pace just fast enough to make it back in two days time. Unknown to Crown Prince was the presence of assassins that were dispatched to kill him. They were only a day away from the castle when then assassins struck. Torrents of arrows rained down onto the group, successfully killing all the prisoners and several of the men with Adrian. His personal guards did their best to shield their prince but Adrian himself was struck through his shoulder with a poisoned tip arrow.

The poison was fast acting and in a few minutes, the prince felt faint and weak. What was happening around him turned into a hazy blur. He clutched at the reigns of his horses, his knuckles white as he struggled to keep himself from falling off his horse. There were shouts and the sound of more arrows whizzing past them. The next thing he felt was the acceleration in the pace of the horse he was on. "Stay with me, Prince Adrian," came a sharp commanding voice in his ear. "Here, chew on this. It will slow down the poison," he felt something pressed into his hand. He moved agonizingly slow as he lifted his hand to his lips and popped whatever it was that he had been handed into his mouth. He bit down and a bitter taste filled his mouth. He coughed but obediently chewed.

"We will be at the castle soon, your Highness. Please hold on," came the same commanding voice. It sounded like one of his guards but at the hazziness of his mind, Adrian wasn't quite sure who it was.

"The men...?" Adrian managed to ask.

"I'm afraid we had to leave them behind, you Highness. But I am certain that they will not fall easily. Now please, conserve your energy," came the same voice.

Adrian lurched forward and blood trickled down his lips. He tightened his grip on the reigns but unconsciousness was slowly overtaking him. He felt steady arms hold him in place. "Henry..." at this point, all he could really do was guess.

"Yes, sire, it is I," the voice confirmed. Henry was one of his personal guards and the man he trusted most between the two.

"Thank you," Adrian said before he coughed out blood and darkness overtook him.

"We will be back in the castle soon, your Majesty," the assuring voice drifted into Adrian's mind as he fell into unconcsiousness.

---

A great commotion began in the castle as soon as Adrian arrived. Blood was steadily trickling down his chin, his pulse had slowed down and he had paled significantly. Henry began barking orders as the servants scurried around to help bring the Prince to the royal physician.

Prince Adam, who had been on the balcony with both Emily and Alessandra, looked down into the courtyard. He had no clear view of what was happening but he could hear Adrian's name being mentioned by the servants that were there. "I believe my brother has returned home," he smirked. "I never knew him to make such a grand entrance though," he quipped, a strange unreadable expression on his face.