pure493

Darkness and Light

Rouen had sipped a bit more from his goblet of wine."Now that is fantastic quality, a bit spicy, I wonder if its a new southern import," he thought. He gulped the rest of it down. "Better than the usual grapepiss that is brought out."

He eyed the empty goblet. It took seconds before he realized his mistake. The world began to spin around the edges of his vision. He felt off-balance and put a hand down to stop himself from falling to the side. Suddenly he realized he couldn't feel his fingers. A creeping numbness spread throughout his entire body.

The voices of the nobles sitting on the tables across him began to blur together. The constant chattering gave him a headache. The cheer from the crowd that went up as the song ended only made it worse. He bit down on his tongue, and leaned forward.

"Damn it!" he thought. Something wasn't right and he had a strong idea of what happened. He whipped out his flask and sniffed the top. The mixture smelled sweet but there was a slightly putrid scent that lingered. It was a clear sign that it was long past its prime.

The medication rose in potency the longer it sat, and it obviously was sitting for a while. Whatever was in the wine probably intensified its effects ten fold. He wondered how long had it been since he had kept this batch of medication. Maybe it was a week or maybe months. He couldn't remember. The result of the numbing agent in the concoction. He mentally berated himself for his stupidity. You couldn't alter one part of your mind without affecting everything else. By dulling his emotions it dulled his memory. Now as a consequence he was about to lose his wits in front of the court.

Rouen leaned back and closed his eyes. His entire body was numb at this point. He focused his thoughts inward, trying not to faint onto the ground.

When he felt like he got a hold of himself he opened his eyes. His immediate attention was to look for water. It was the only thing that could dilute the concoction that was in him. His hand shook through silverware, goblets, and pitchers. When he realized there was none his attention turned to a small girl @Cuccoruleracross the table.

It took tremendous force of will for him to speak.

"You there! Serving Girl! Bring a pitcher of water!" he bellowed at her.

Darkness and Light

@ViolentViolet Ah k. What I meant was that Rouen probably had a good idea of what was going on at Krowsguard and had plans for the slavers. I didn't mean Rouen would physically be at Krowsguard.

Darkness and Light

Rouen was probably already through the door by the time Viola stepped in. I'm sure he will find ways to amuse himself in the feasting chamber. (Observing Sam being one of them) Of course if Viola comes in with a sulky Cleo in tow, that would definitely spark his interest.

Darkness and Light

One lone face out of the many caught Rouen's eye.

It was Reaver, the personal moniker he gave to the King's personal lackey, Sam Spark. A man who dealt with wetwork and less scrupulous affairs.

"And one with an obvious taste for blood," he thought. He thought back to the reports his informants gave. The aftermaths of Reaver's missions were particularly brutal.

Rouen knew his presence wasn't anything out of the ordinary. The King always kept the man a hair's breath away, especially during events like these.

He smirked as he watched the man sipping on a goblet while leaning against the wall.

"In a party like this, dancing, socializing, and enjoying oneself is the norm. You my good friend are deviating from the norm quite clearly. I don't think you are nearly as good at hiding as you think you are," Rouen thought.

Rouen took another sip from his goblet as he continued to watch the lone man stand amidst the hundreds of other folks dancing and talking with each other.

Darkness and Light

On second thought I decided to be more subtle about it. Rouen's involvement in the Krowsguard affair will be apparent later.

Darkness and Light

Rouen entered the grand chamber.

A cheer went off as the cork popped off a massive bottle of vintage wine. People shouted with glee and clanged mugs of ale in a frenzy of movement.

Music echoed through the room. A troupe of famed musicians played their instruments from a pedestal. A magician had conjured up a miniature sun above them, radiating light without heat. Around them people danced in a circle to the tune of their music.

Rouen eyed the colorful outfits people wore to the festivities. The shining lights from the conjured sun only made them look more prominent.

Around the dancing courtiers the high nobles of the kingdom sat at long tables. They conversed with each other and merrily drank wine, occasionally pointing and laughing at each other or the courtiers dancing in the center.

Amidst the celebrations few seemed aware of his presence. Wearing his dull blue brown garb it was a fact Rouen preferred.

As he passed by the laughing nobles he twitched an eyelid. His eyes narrowed and his mouth drooped into a frown.

He sighed and walked up to his own seat at the table shared by the King, his family, and the Kingsguard. His chair was the one furthest from the King's seat, an obvious indication of their current relationship.

He slid his flask into a pocket and picked up a goblet of wine. He took a sip and looked around the crowd for familiar faces.

Darkness and Light

My next post will also get Rouen involved in the upcoming raid on slavery on Krowguard

Darkness and Light

Since Alarieth our king will be gone for a couple of days I think we should have our characters converse and enjoy the casual delights of the feast, with the king being absent. When Alarieth comes back we can have a grand entrance for the king with announcers and all the important cultural traditions that follow.

Darkness and Light

Rouen smiled.

"Well the young sprout has some spirit in him after all Excellent, it saddens me to admit but we could use more personality. It wouldnt bode well for a group such as to be stagnant. We could probably use a little bit of change," he chuckled.

"You'll make a fine knight if you can temper yourself. Kingsguard or not however, Ser Jaime and I as the senior knights are old enough to be your great grandfather. Most humans in the kingdom, including the king himself are but children to us."

"So when we call you boy don't take it personally, take it as a form of endearment. Do you understand. Boy?" he said.

Rouen pointed down the hall and whispered," The kitchens have a back entrance if you turn right down this corridor. You certainly arent the first knight to pull something lile this off. The carrot wine will give you a surprisngly good feeling but wont dull your wits. Perfect for events like these."

 Rouen winked and walked passed around him towards the feasting chamber, taking another sip from his flask.

As he walked into the chamber he said," And fix that accent, the language of the common folk isn't proper for your station."

Darkness and Light

@Otakuforreal Just posted! Let us see how this goes.