Mousia

Sworn By Their Swords

Oh really? Now that you mention it, I can see that. That's cool. To be honest, if it was me in there with Melissa, I'd be scared out of my skin, magical influence or no.

Sworn By Their Swords

Alice ignored the woman’s insults. Sticks and stones, she figured. Besides, quarreling with her wouldn't do her any good. However, she abandoned trying to act familiar to gain her trust. She obviously had more deeply-rooted concerns about her trustworthiness than that.

“You don’t have to talk to me, but I recommend it. Look at it this way: if you think you will die either way, what do you have to lose from at least trying to obtain the good graces of your captor? That being said, I don’t expect you to trust me just yet, but for what it’s worth, I would rather you alive than dead,” the young woman replied in response to the gored prisoner’s first rasp after she’d finished her piece. Though her surroundings were beginning to seep into her notice, she hid her reaction in a well-trained mask of an expression. It was essential to become quite used to distasteful things to be a successful diplomat, a little-known fact among the common people. There were throngs of people with odd scars and limbs missing who came before her at various times, and she couldn't simply turn them away because of that. Perhaps she was naive for being such an idealist to be focused so purely on equality, but that didn't faze her.

“I also sincerely repent for referring to you by the improper title. What is it that I may call you? And who might this Miranda be? I was informed that you were captured alone.”

It occurred to Alice then that this captive might be mentally hindered. She seemed to be greatly disillusioned as to the role of princesses. Did she really think that she was personally responsible for all of the things going on in her kingdom, much less the castle? It nearly made the blonde chuckle. No, as much as she’d like to be omnipotent and be able to take care of all of her nation’s issues at once, that simply wasn't the case. And anyway, who was Miranda? She was absolutely sure the woman had been captured alone. None of the reports left room for any suggestion of an accomplice. Alice hoped that this person wasn't gone in the head. That would make all of her efforts moot, and she would probably be forced to have her put to death or kept captive for the rest of her natural (or unnatural, depending on the guards sent to watch her) life.

Alice opened her mouth to speak, closed it, and paused to consider. After a bit, she spoke again, her voice echoing quietly in the gory room.

“I will do you this favor in good faith: describe to me this Miranda and I will personally seek her out and give you confirmation that she is alive and well.” Her eyes locked onto the prisoner’s, and her lips ever-so-slightly pressed together at the sight of her empty socket, though her gaze did not waver. “But respond quickly, because I cannot guarantee the long-term safety of a fugitive without knowing who she is so that I may order her protection.”

Sworn By Their Swords

Alright. Awesome.

So, full disclosure, I'm going to be travelling this Thursday, December 18th, so I will probably be unavailable on that day, and I may not be able to be very active until the fourth of January, though I am sure that I will have time at night most nights to post and I will have my laptop so it won't be too inconvenient to post. Just thought I'd let you know so you wouldn't get concerned if I couldn't post as often while I'm there.

Sworn By Their Swords

Awesome! My post looks kinda long but it's mostly dialogue. Haha whoops. XD

Sworn By Their Swords

“Do not approach her, Princess. It’s not a good idea!” The chastising voice of her adviser made her eyes roll as she continued toward the dungeon without hesitation.

“I told you I’d let you handle the information extraction for a while, but now it’s my turn to give it whack, so to speak.” Alice’s placid tone didn’t have much variation, though her slight annoyance was rather evident. After it was clear that the princess had no intention of changing her mind, the royal adviser muttered a small complaint and hung back reluctantly.

With a gaze, she ordered the door open and entered the dark, long stairway down to the dungeon to meet with the source of her recent headaches.

“You can breathe now, Knight. It’s only me.” The casual manner of speech was all part of her plan. She had to gain her knight’s trust in order for any secrets to be spill, obviously. Physical pain had proved to be entirely unuseful. The guard at the door stood patiently, and Alice took the opportunity of him standing there to have him do some legwork, because she simply wasn’t built for heavy lifting.

“Undo her arm restraints, if you would, sir. That can’t possibly be comfortable.”

“Princess, she may escape if she is unrestrained.”

“Well, then put a heavily-weighted ankle restraint on her to keep her from moving very far at one time. That would seem more logical than torturing her to death and having her hang by the arms in the meantime, wouldn’t it?”

“Certainly, Your Highness.”

“Thank you, sir.”

He dragged his feet in undoing the more uncomfortable restraints, but eventually it was done and she was left to support herself...or not.

“There. Now if you would please excuse us, Guard.”

“Your Highness-”

“I’ll be sure to call if I feel endangered. Please wait outside the door.”

“Yes, Princess.”

“Thank you, sir.”

Alice stopped speaking then, instead opting to take the guard’s resting chair from near the door and moving it closer to her prisoner. She sat down rather stiffly and paused to collect her thoughts before speaking again.

“Now, I realize that I may not be in your highest esteem. I assume that you work under another person due to your strategic and systematic attacks, so my first question would obviously be who that person might be. However, if I were in your place, I would never simply answer that question. So my first question for you is a rather simple one, as I aim to earn your trust over time. What is your name?”

Sworn By Their Swords

I like the whole mental deterioration aspect in Melissa, and the mystery surrounding Yggdrasil. I'm excited to see where this goes. :)

Sworn By Their Swords

Alright. Awesome. In that case, I'll leave you to it and come back either later tonight or tomorrow afternoon (I live in the EST timezone, by the way).

Sworn By Their Swords

Added the appearance just now, with an image and a short description. I don't know. Whichever is easier for you is alright with me.

Sworn By Their Swords

Let me know if I need to change anything at all. I tried to make her flaws as pronounced as I could so she didn't come off as Mary Sue-ish (because she's definitely not in my head), but I'm not sure if they're all that clear. Anyway, here it is:

Princess Alice of Crescentia

Name: Princess Alice of Crescentia
Age: 19
Appearance: The princess is of average stature for the era, and she has pale skin and mousy brown (aka dirty blonde) hair. Her eyes are a neutral hazel, and her sharp nose, small chin, and childbearing hips give her the proper noble air. She wears the dresses the nurse puts out for her, often bright in color to show her wealth, as nobles must do. She dislikes the uncomfortable garbs she must wear outside the castle, so she only wears gowns with soft fabrics and things of that sort when she plans on staying inside to work all day.
Personality: Not given much of a chance for a childhood due to having been thrust into a position of power so young, Alice is fairly serious and placid, not entirely in tune with her own emotions, for better or for worse. Duty and justice are of utmost importance to her, and due to her direct enforcement of her country’s laws with her elderly parents’ inability to do so any longer, she has been taking a more prominent role in making sure that justice is served and that each citizen is both safe and providing for the country in one way or another, whether it be by farming or keeping the economy afloat with trade.
History: Princess Alice was born to her two royal parents, coming from noble blood for generations. As such, she was groomed to be the heir to the throne from a very young age, taught to read, write, and reason. Her nurse in secret taught her to lead, and some of the castle knights taught her preliminarily to fight, at least enough to defend herself from immediate danger before fleeing. She was already quite a well-rounded person on the surface at sixteen, when her parents began to lose their competence. Gradually, she gained more and more control over her family’s nation, and continued the regime of peace and prosperity. However, once notified of the border disturbances, the young ruler became determined to root out the source of the problem and put a stop to it at once.
Weapons: The princess has access to a very small knife for self-defense purposes only, but she is not a trained soldier by any means, and would struggle with more than one opponent at once greatly. However, her guard and adviser keep her safe from most harm anyways, so she doesn’t always carry her knife anymore.
Abilities: Alice can read well enough and write to a degree (though she dictates important documents to avoid catastrophe), and can handle herself well at a formal event such as a ball or a banquet. Her public speaking skills are ones she has honed for obvious reasons, so she prides herself on them quite a bit. The princess has been taught how to escape certain dangerous situations, but due to her lack of practice, she is a bit rusty, to say the least.
Other: Though the princess is no-doubt competent and her fair skin, mousy brown hair, and wide hips make her fairly attractive, she has refused to settle down (to her parents’ disappointment), citing reasons such as putting the country first. She has also been known to work for hours upon hours and later spend only a few hours sleeping before getting back to work, and her adviser and servants haven’t heard a peep out of her about her feelings about anything at all besides some mutters about injustice needing to be rooted out since she was perhaps fifteen. Who knows how much longer she can last with this fragile shell threatening to break at every breeze?

Looking for someone to join me in a lighthearted RP!

Sure thing. I look forward to it.