Mounted

The ground ahead was split open, it was as if a giant baby had crawled from the depth of the planet. They called this place Embryo and for the first time in his life, Blaidd was on land far away from the capital.

Today he was no different than the beggar next to the meat stall, head down with overgrown hair and his cup waiting for generous ladies walking around with their husband’s money. What separated Blaidd from the rest was that he was going to do something about this. Revenge was all he could think of, how he would have Jav – King of the land - bow before him.

For now, however, his main task was answering the call his stomach was making. Alas, he couldn’t afford anything and so he was scouting for the busiest butcher stall; they could lend him a pound or two of meat, of course they didn’t know they were going to be generous today, but they also didn’t know that he intended to pay them back.

He continued looking for a bit, scanning his prey, until he found one situated right before the hill that led to Embryo’s deep. A fat man and his assistant were busy getting orders ready. Their stall, four large tables filled with every kind of meat cut you could imagine, Cows, Oxes, even Charions. He scouted a lean cut of beef and asked the butcher for it. The man complimented his ‘great choice’ and began wrapping it in a paper bag. The guilt racked up in his throat, threatening to have him start gagging over the tables. On a whim, maybe just maybe, he checked his pockets and relief washed over him as he felt thick coins in a sack hidden deep in his trousers, at least they had the dignity to spare me a decent amount of money.

While he waited a fly floated on his nose, zipping around and landing on the mark below his eyes causing him to remember it was there, the pain still fresh. Thankfully, no one here was familiar with the Kingsguards’ mark of honorable discharge, or lack thereof. Still, he would need to hide it if he was to make his way back to the capital. A few moments later the butcher handed Blaidd his meat and smiled when he was given a gold coin and was told to keep the change.

Now to find a place to rest, he thought to himself. His plans were shortly interrupted when he saw a crowd forming at the bottom of the hill. He was going to ignore it, if not for the entire population here making their way to where a carriage with prisoners was being parked next to a makeshift stage. Public execution, he didn’t remember the last time he saw one; the capital had abandoned these barbaric acts a long time ago, so it was strange to see them take place. On the other hand, he knew that surrounding states only publicly reprimanded those with extreme offenses, so this was likely a rapist, murderer, or both, Blaidd didn’t care; whoever were behind those bars deserved their fate and that was what he cared about.

Unfortunately, there were guards here and so he his identity needed to be hidden, so he undid the wrapping around the meet piece and brought it over his head. He used the side that wasn’t stuck to the meat and wore it as a mask to hide everything below his eyes. The mark began itching at him and that was a trade he had to make if he wanted to avoid trouble.

He was glad for his height as he was able to see the stage with no real issue. A distance of a few dozen meters separated him from the platform, which meant he wasn’t going to see everything in full detail, so he gently tapped his lower eyelids instantly focusing on the wooden structure.

A loud cheer sounded from the left and he saw the prisoners being escorted from their carriage. Their faces were hidden under bags to hide their identity, as was the tradition with these events; a final token of respect. Blaidd heard another roar of cheers, but this time it was almost deafening. It had come from behind, he turned around to find a distant carriage making its way through the crowd. Blaidd’s heart sank when he recognized the retinue that had followed it. Oh god, have mercy. Why in the deepest levels of hell was the King attending this execution? Suddenly he was alert of his surroundings, was the man going to arrest him and have his recent Honorary Guard be executed? He didn’t think so, not after being banished here. So why then? Who was behind those masks?

It took a few minutes before another loud cheer sounded from the crowd, as their King made his way to the top of the stage. He’s going to do it himself. NO, that could only mean Alana was behind those masks. Blaidd found the prisoners again and realized that it was a feminine figure behind one of them. NO, NO, NO, he gave me his word. Was this some kind of sick joke? The King had personally chosen Embryo to be Blaidd’s banished land. This had to be a final slap to Blaidd, a way to condemn him for stumbling on a secret that he should have never heard.

The prisoners were brought up the steps to the stage and King Jav made a speech out of holding people accountable and how he held himself to that same standard. As he reached over to personally reveal the faces under the mask, Blaidd found himself falling to the ground from the shock, his head nearly exploding as he registered Alana and Penelope’s faces, then he lost all sense his surroundings; falling unconscious.

****

Blaidd walked through the hidden pathways, a gentle breeze being his only companion. As was his tradition during events of this scale, he patrolled the tunnels, hidden from the sight of anyone. He was isolated, away from the rest, a small part of him wanting to enjoy a night with Alana in these halls. Unfortunately for him, the king was always under threat and the fact he was hidden behind literally invisible walls still made him anxious. How on god’s land was this place inhabitants of the castle for so long?

Thankfully, with Alana joining him tonight he was able to cut down on the amount of ground to cover and so that allowed him to keep an extra one eye on those he was already suspicious of. Looking through the walls that had always given him goosebumps, he felt naked under the eyes behind them. Anytime someone stared into the distance made him alert for a few moments, before he remembered that to them this looked like any other regular wall. Ancient magic had been placed on them, and he was sure a powerful Caster been behind this.

After a while, he rendezvoused with Alana near an intersection. She stumbled on her way to meet him and he wasn’t sure whether her armor clicking had been heard to those outside, it appeared that the room was too crowded for him to confirm. She gave him an apologetic smile and the two exchanged a kiss, hidden from everyone else.

They continued the rest of their patrol for the remainder of the night, snooping around as he ticked off the figures on a list he’d made. After the party died down and people started making their way back home he decided it was time to call it off. He opened his satchel and picked out the map, searching for the nearest exit location, later deciding to pick the one next to the Guard’s quarters since it’ll be the least crowded with people and considering the time of the day, they’d be able to return to their room unnoticed.

They made their way through the stoney corridors before hearing a low breathing sound, it came muffled, as if someone was holding mouth to keep their voices unheard. His heart rang faster when he realized the sound was coming from inside the walls. He grabbed at a dagger from the satchel and Alana did the same, as they instantly got into a fight stance, whoever was there would lose their life, master Keaton had stressed no one could hear of this place’s existence, let alone be in it. As he got closer he saw two figures, a man and a woman, the man mounted on top holding his partner’s mouth.

Blaidd’s heart sank as he noticed who those two were. The King and his sister, Penelope, could not believe themselves when they saw him.