.:Assassino Amore Principessa:. (Locked, DON'T DELETE.)

[Cloudsong]

As soon as his feet were once again on the ground, Elton leaned up against the castle wall, staying as far away from her as possible. He wasn't trying to seem immature, just didn't want her to try anything. "So... what did you want to tell me?" he asked her, voice wary and hesitant as he lifted the hood from off of his head, running a hand through his hair to even it out. He felt awkward standing there, with her watching him so intently. It was uncomfortable to him that she may be thinking things things that he didn't; she still hadn't moved on, after all.

Glenna smiled slightly as he removed his hood, and took a step towards him. She obviously didn't notice the flash of worry that went through his eyes as she approached, or if she did, she didn't regard it. "I've missed you so much..." she breathed, her tone full of meaning, as she stood a few inches away from him.

He pressed himself up against the wall, feeling trapped, and at the same time, guilty. "Glenna..." he protested, trying to break out of their conversation.

"Shh.. don't talk," she murmured, her eyes pleading. "When you left, I thought I'd never see you again... But then, you came back." Her eyes were bright as she remembered the encounter, and she obviously felt quite happy to be so much as next to him at that moment. "And I felt my world return around me. I couldn't believe that you would just leave again, and without saying goodbye..." She got even closer, and Elton let out a hiss of annoyance that she didn't notice.

"Glenna, please. I told you last time that I'm with someone already. Kateliana is the one I love." He hated how hurt she looked as he said this. "Look... you and I had something a few years ago. But that something is over now." He gently pushed her away from him, and she stumbled slightly. "I think it's time you moved on."

She was silent fo a long moment, until an expression of determination broke out on her face. "I know you don't really mean that," she whispered. And without warning, she lunged, kissing him fully on the mouth before he could jump out of her grasp.

--

Noel tipped her head to one side, smiling slightly as he took her hand, guiding her onward towards the hallway. She felt ecstatic with happiness; all her life, she had always wanted to get engaged. It wasn't because Alexander was a king that she was happy; in fact, that was the reason she wasn't dancing for joy. If only Alexander wasn't... I hope that I won't disappoint him. Inwardly she sighed as she thought of that; it would be too hard to assume if she let him down.

She was fully aware of the guards that turned their heads to watch them, and she felt her cheeks color with a faint pink blush as she realized that talk of their engagement would be all over the castle soon. All of the servants would know, and she was sure that jealousy would arise. And Morgan would find out as well, and she half-wished that she could be the one to tell him about it.


(Lol I hate Glenna right now XD)

[Captain Kaycee]

Kateliana rode past the people and occassionally waved at a few. It wasn't bad to make them feel proud of their superiors, but Kateliana thought that these people needed more. They probably wanted to see change from the new king, and maybe more protection and less taxes on their homes. I'll have to request that to Alexander, she thought for a moment before pushing Kratos back into a trot and heading through the castle walls.

At first Kateliana didn't notice Elton and Glenna. She was looking at one of the guards who was at his post, and waved happily to him. The guard bowed in return, but then his eyes widened as he pointed over to the two "lovers". Kateliana noticed the man's shock and she stopped Kratos to a hault, staring in shock at the two.

What seemed like a ball of fire lit up in Kateliana's eyes as her teeth clenched and her hands balled up into fists. She was clenching onto the reins hard, and Kratos let out a snort and lifted his head up high. "Elton!?" Kateliana hissed, a hint of panic and jealousy in her voice. Before he could reply, however, Kateliana narrowed her eyes and let out a growl of anger.

"I thought I almost couldn't believe you were angry at me this morning, but now I see why you did. You just wanted an excuse to get me away. Seems like my thoughts about you were wrong, Elton Starr," Kateliana snarled. Tears were almost seen in her eyes, but before they dropped she wiped them away. Kateliana snapped her head forward and reared up on Kratos, then bolted off in a gallop up the stony hill towards the castle. She didn't say a word as she rode up, just left Elton and Glenna in the dust behind her.

--

Alexander led her up the stairs, ignoring every person that walked by them. He didn't even pass a glance at some of them, which already began to whisper to each other. As they reached the top, he guided her down the hallway and towards the largest bedroom in the castle. Alexander glanced over at her quickly, then smiled and opened up the door to his bedroom. Inside on his bed was a beautiful blue satin dress, with light gold trim to bring out the beauty of it.

Alexander turned to Noel and pointed to the dress, a smirk imprinted on his face. "Another gift. I was hoping that maybe dressing up like a noble would help you a little bit. And do not fret over the cost, this is my gift to you," he whispered to her, then folded up the dress neatly and handed it to her.

[Cloudsong]

Elton's eyes widened in surprise as the girl threw herself at him, kissing him passionately on the lips. Instantly he felt trapped, and panicked as he heard Kateliana's voice. How could she be here, seeing this? He roughly pushed Glenna off, breathing heavily as he looked over at the jet black horse, with Kateliana on it. As she angrily growled, he opened his mouth to speak, interrupted by her again. "Kateliana! This isn't my fault!" he spat, but his words came too late. She had galloped off, not even looking back at them. He felt dazed, almost in shock. What would be of them now? He was almost certain that she would want nothing to do with him anymore. The fight they had had that morning seemed tin compared to this.

Inside, he felt as if he were dying. Feelings of anger, sorrow, and fear filled him. She didn't understand. It hadn't been his fault that this whore had started to kiss him, and what horrible timing it had been that Kateliana happened to be there when she had. As he looked over at Glenna, who had a look of smugness on her face, his anger rekindled, and he felt the sudden urge to slap her. "What the hell was that?" he hissed at her, eyes full of fury. She obviously could see it, and her expression changed, being replaced with slight fear. He wished he could take out his sword and point it at her; anything to make her feel the pain that she had inflicted upon him, and his family. She had ruined everything he had ever wanted; the one thing he loved. However, he couldn't bring himself to hurt her. Kateliana had told him that killing wasn't the answer, though this was a time when half of him believed that it was.

"I didn't know you were together," Glenna said defiantly.

"You damn liar!" Elton spat. His anger made his words come out more harsh than they normally would be. But he didn't care if he offended Glenna, or about anything she had to say. "I told you we were. Are you trying to ruin my life?" She just had, anyway. He breathed in deeply, trying to calm himself down. He wasn't sure what would be the result of him losing his cool again. "I don't think you realize what you just did to me-"

"Elton! All I care about is you. I don't care about Kateliana or anyone! These past years, all I can think about is you... I need you back. Please... give me another chance." She had tears in her eyes.

"Rather dead would I give you another chance," he snarled, not caring that she was crying. "If you cared about me at all, you would want me to be happy. Because you, Glenna, have just ruined my life." He turned away, too disgusted to look at her anymore. Though he was sure that she would want nothing to do with him, he needed to find Kateliana; she needed to know the truth. He needed her back...

But something inside of him told him that he couldn't follow her. He hated to think of what he had just done to her, but knew that going back to her would just hurt her further. The only thing that he had given her was pain, and he knew that she couldn't have any more of that.

[Captain Kaycee]

Kateliana rode up to the courtyard of the castle and unstrapped Kratos from his bridle and saddle. Even the large black horse seemed to be distraught over the situation they had left, as his head was down the entire way back to his stall. She let him inside, hugging the horse around its neck for a few moments with a couple tears sliding out from her eyes. "You'll never leave me," she whispered to him, then backed away and closed the door behind her.

Her mind was whirling with questions, and each of them turned to be even worse than the last. Was it on purpose? Did he really love her more? Was he going to leave me? The last question left Kateliana dazed, and before she entered the castle she stopped in her tracks. The idea was a horrendous one, especially with their two children. What would Allegra and Daelen think? Both of their parents would never talk to each other, and both of them would have to pick a side.

Suddenly the sound of several horses appeared in the courtyard, and Kateliana looked behind her to see one of the top commanders of the Fortuna army followed by a dozen soldiers also on horsebacks. "Lady Kateliana! We have an urgent message for the king!" he yelled out to her, jumping off from his horse and walking over to her.

"Commander Lombardi? You look out of breath, is everything alright?" she asked him as he kissed her hand politely. His face was very handsome compared to most people, and a small beard was beginning to form around his chin and cheekbones. He had brown hair that was placed in a small ponytail on his neck, but it was fashioned nicely for his form. As for his overall physical appearance, he was very muscular and appeared to actually work out most days.

Commander Lombardi let out a huff of air, then lifted his head and stood up straight. "There is an army... far beyond the numbers of Fortuna's army coming this way. They haven't crossed the border yet, but will most likely be here within the next full moon. It is larger than any army I have ever laid my eyes upon..." he explained to her in his heavy Italian accent. Kateliana's eyes widened at the idea of an army heading straight for Fortuna's walls. Was it Sergio's army? The thought lingered in her head, but it was pushed away as the commander took her hand and accompanied her towards the king's chamber.

As they headed upstairs to her brother's quarters, she tried hard to remember the commander's first name. It sounded something like an ancient Roman name, but for a moment she couldn't remember. Suddenly it came to her. Antonius. Most people usually just called him Tony for short, but in desperate times he was almost known as Commander Antonius. She didn't mind him guiding her upstairs with her hand in his, but it still brought back the idea of Elton kissing that woman. Heat rose up inside her at the mere thought of it, but she knew that she could do nothing. There was the idea of asking him what actually went on, but that idea was gone as Tony stopped in front of the king's room and knocked twice before heading in.

--

Alexander lifted his head over at the sound of his door opening, and his eyes widened when he saw the looks on both Antonius and Kateliana's faces. Kateliana appeared to be much more distraught over something, as her eyes were red as if she had been crying. Antonius, on the other hand, had a look on sheer terror. He glanced back at Noel for a moment, then nodded and stepped forward towards the two of them.

"What is it that troubles you both on this evening?" he asked them, placing a hand on his chin. "Your majesty, a massive army has been formed from the southwest border of the kingdom. This is still about a month's away as they haven't hit the border yet, but it is larger than any army I have ever seen. It is far greater than our own, and I fear that it could lead to our downfall," Antonius explained to the king, letting go of Kateliana's hand to fold his arms across his chest.

Alexander bit his lip as he heard the news, not wanting to think that what seemed to be one of the greatest days of his life had turned full swing against him. The thought of an army entering the kingdom was more than he could bear, and just thinking about it could jeopardize the entire kingdom. If they stormed Fortuna itself, the castle would be destroyed in hours.

"We must find the general as soon as possible and gather the rest of the commanders. We are going to need a battle strategy as soon as possible, as well as gathering as many troops as possible. Do you know if they weild magic?" he asked him, inwardly hoping that the army would not.

"I do not know, sire. All we know is that they hold colours that I don't recognize. They were mainly in black armour, however. They didn't see us luckily, and we rode for Fortuna as quickly as possible. We have at least a month to gather troops for the invasion," he muttered to the king.

Alexander let out an irritated sigh as he grabbed his red cloak from the bed and tied around his lower neck for it to flow out behind him as he walked. "Let's waste no time then. Antonius, please gather the rest of the commanders as well as General Starr to the military table. Kateliana, I wish for you to aid us in sorcery tactics so you will have to be at the meeting as well. Noel, follow me as well. I wish your judgement on this matter," he commanded everyone, then turned around and kissed Noel gently on the cheek.

"I am sorry, but this is urgent. I promise we will come back up later though," he whispered to her quietly before turning back around to Kateliana. She was still in royal armour from leaving earlier in the day with Kratos, which is normally what she wore when she went outside the city walls. Her hair was pulled back slightly so that it was out of her face, and a beautiful silver sword with engraving on the steel itself was on her side.

Kateliana turned to Noel and smiled happily for her, glancing down at the diamond ring she had on her finger. She knew exactly what it meant too, that she was going to be coronated into the royal household of Fortuna as well as become Queen of Fortuna. The two men turned around and headed down the hallway, while Kateliana helped guide Noel down as well. She could hear Antonius mumble words to Alexander about Noel, and no doubt he would have lots of questions.

"Wasn't she a servant? I was sure that you were going to choose that princess from Milan..."

"She wasn't my type. And for me it doesn't matter whether they are a lower class or not. I love her, and she has more qualities of a queen than any of the princesses in the neighbouring kingdoms."

"She is a beauty, my lord. I do not doubt that she has leadership either. I'm just hoping she doesn't get overwhelmed by royalty. I remember when you went from being a street boy in Rome to finding out that you were a prince. Then you become king. Hah, those were the good days."

While the two men continued conversing amongst each other, Kateliana turned to Noel and lightly tapped her shoulder. "So it seems my brother finally asked you. I knew he would sooner or later. You'll be great for this kingdom, I promise," she whispered to her, feeling a little at ease that she was able to actually talk to somebody again. Elton was still slightly in her mind, and inwardly she wanted to tell Noel all about the encounter she had with him and that... woman.

Suddenly when she looked forward, Antonius had disappeared for a moment, but instead the sound of a military bell was heard throughout the kingdom. It was only used in dire situations, when all of the commanders, top knights, and general were to attend a military meeting for war.

(Long post. .___.; And I'm really tired tonight, so I'll post on the other one tomorrow. (: )

(EDIT: Oh, and the armour that Kateliana is wearing looks a lot like this. Only more fit for a female xD And Alexander looks like he's a knight himself as well as Antonius.)

[Cloudsong]

Noel couldn't help but smile as he glanced back at her before opening the bedroom door. She knew what lay behind the dark mahogany door; his bedroom. The times that she had been sent to clean it were too many to count, and she recalled the time when they had first properly spoken there... The day he had gotten there. As he released her hand and stepped in, she quickly glanced around. It hadn't changed very much; in fact, the only difference she could see was his armor that was laid un-neatly on the table. She made a mental note in her head to tidy it later before Lermin found it, then stopped as she remembered with a shock; I'm a servant anymore. It was surreal still to her, and she pushed it out of her mind, not wanting to worry about that now. Her smile rekindled as she looked over at him, feeling a glow inside for the affection she felt for him. As he pointed out the dress, she couldn't help but stare, though.

She approached it slowly, her blue eyes admiring its beautiful detail and the quality. Somehow, as she reached out a finger to stroke the trimming, she couldn't really imagine herself wearing it. It was much too expensive, and honestly, she didn't feel ready to start wearing such breathtaking clothing. Not wanting to disappoint Alexander, however, she smiled happily, picking it up gingerly between her delicate hands admiring it further. "It's beautiful," she said quietly, her eyes bright with the happiness that she would make her feel, no matter the circumstances. "I love it, Alexander." Without another word, she embraced him into a hug, closing her eyes as she rested her head against his chest, loving every moment they spent together.

As she heard a loud rap on the door, she released him instinctively, and drew away slightly, to keep a distance between them. Before today, their relationship had been a secret to anyone in the castle, and it still hadn't quite clicked in her mind that it was fine to let them find out. After all, it was inevitable, for the two of them would marry soon. Like it or not, the people would need to understand, and Noel found herself dreading that moment where the people might speak out against her. She knew that they expected a princess to marry him, and along that would come unity with another kingdom. They would want another protection to know at least another city wouldn't attack them.

The door creaked open, and Kateliana and Antonius entered. Her head tipped to one side as she looked between the two. She rested her gaze on Kateliana, seeing instantly that the woman had been crying. Instantly she felt pity, and wished that she could comfort her. Noel had always been able to sense what others felt; it had always been something that she had just been able to do. Especially so when it was about a person she knew well, and Kateliana was her friend. What had happened? Had she and Elton had a fight? She hoped that the two hadn't had any misunderstanding; it was obvious that they loved each other very much, and she did not want to see them break up.

The news struck her like a whip. An army... coming here to attack? She bit her lip, nervous. People would die. What if Alexander or Morgan died in this battle? Or Elton Kateliana, and all of her acquaintances in the castle... It obviously wasn't a good thought to her, and she bit her lip, obviously worried.

As they walked through the hallways, she fell into step beside Kateliana. She blushed slightly as she mentioned the engagement, and nodded shyly. "Thank you for your faith in me," she murmured. "I can only hope that you are correct."

--

As soon as Glenna understood that he wanted nothing to do with her, she had left, running through the streets, her blonde hair whipping behind her, sobs echoing through the streets. He couldn't find it within himself to feel sorry for her; instead, he just watched with a cold expression, and climbed up onto the wall again, sitting down again to watch the city as he had before. The thought that he and Kateliana had fought so badly hurt him both mentally and physically. It was as if someone had tore a hole through his chest, and ripped out his heart. She had believed what she had seen, and he didn't quite blame her. Seen by someone else, it could easily have been viewed differently than it had actually happened, and Elton wished that he could clear everything up with her.

He missed her already.

(I'll post for my other two characters next time... Could you respond to my post previously of Marcel being in the dungeons dying? >:D Allegra and Daelen could try and find him or something...)

[Captain Kaycee]

Antonius commanded the lower knights to continue ringing the bells in the guard tower while he searched for General Starr. No doubt was the man somewhere in the castle, and while the rest of the high knights and commanders entering the room, he needed to get the general as well. "Continue ringing it until we have assembled in the meeting room," he ordered the soldier, waiting for the man to nod quickly before heading down the stairs to find General Starr.

He first looked throughout the castle, with very little luck. He did, however, remember Kateliana muttering something to herself about Elton by the castle walls, which he decided to run down to try and find him there. After some time of looking both up and down the walls in nearly every direction, he found Elton casually on one and overlooking the city below. "General Starr!" Antonius yelled up to him so that he could hear.

"The king has requested you come to the meeting room immediately. An entire army is coming for Fortuna and we need you to help," he explained quickly to the man, nearly out of breath as he had ran around the castle looking for the general.

--

Alexander finally headed down the stairs and stood waiting for a moment as two guards opened up the room to a large room filled with a huge circular table with chairs surrounding it. Knights and commanders already were standing behind their chairs, waiting for the rest of the people to come. Five chairs were still unoccupied, each for the king, his future wife, the sorceress, the general, and the leading commander.

Alexander took Noel's hand and guided her over to their place, two chairs both placed next to each other. He sighed to himself as he walked to his chair, hoping that Noel would not be distraught over all of the men around the table. "Do not worry, they will not be a threat to you," he whispered to her, hoping that it would give her slight encouragement.

--

Kateliana looked at the last three chairs without anyone standing behind them. One of them was more towards the other commanders and a little ways away from the other two. The two main chairs, however, were each side-by-side. She guessed that they were for her and Elton, and for a moment Kateliana groaned to herself. She was not looking forward to sitting next to him after what she had witnessed earlier, but inwardly she wanted to ask him why he had done it in the first place. Somewhere deep down she was hoping that what he had done was not real. While the idea was a long shot, she could still hope that it was really true.

--

Daelen and Allegra both lifted their heads at the sound of the military bell. They had reunited after a failed attempt to find their father, and Allegra had finished reading her book shortly before trying to help her brother find Elton. "What's that bell for?" she asked her brother, and he shrugged his shoulders.

"Dunno. Maybe it has something to do with a prisoner escape or something. Maybe we should go check it out in the dungeons to see!" he told her, a hope of excitement in his voice. Almost immediately Allegra knew that he wanted to go into the dungeons to find out if somebody really had escaped, and she truthfully didn't want to.

"Do we have to, Daelen? It's so dark and disgusting down there!" she hissed to her brother, but he simply punched her lightly in the arm. "What are you, chicken? It is screaming for adventure! Now come on, unless you want to continue reading your boring book!" he yelled at her as he turned around and began to run off towards the dungeons.

Allegra let out a sigh as she knew that there was no other choice, and she began to run after her brother. "Wait up!" she yelled after him as she followed him down the hallway and in a staircase that led under the castle. A familiar horrible stench went up her nose, and she grimaced at the foul odor.

Daelen, however, appeared to be unaffected. He grabbed a torch from the wall and led the way down the dark corridor, looking around as he heard the moaning and groaning of people in the cells. As they finally got down, he could hear prisoners screaming and yelling at each other. The guard that was set on watch noticed the two kids in the dungeon, and he got up from his chair to walk over to the two. "What do you think you're doing here in the dungeon?! It's not safe for kids," he told them, and Daelen just shook his head.

"We heard a bell and thought it was something with prisoners," Daelen explained to him. The guard looked at him strangely for a moment, then began to laugh. "Oh no! That was the military bell for meetings!" he laughed to the kid, completely ignoring the boy's sister.

Allegra had begun to look at the horrible prisoners in their dirty clothing, but then her eyes widened at the familiar sight of somebody. "Marcel!?" she gasped, then jerked her head over to the guard. "That boy needs to be released immediately by order of the princess and her brother the king. She is my mother and he is my uncle... and they both gave me the order to," she declared to the guard. His eyes narrowed at her, but something told him that she was really the princess's daughter.

"Why should I? He nearly stole the king's sword," he growled, pointing to the boy. "He doesn't deserve it."

"Yes he does!" Allegra screamed at him, then took the keys from his belt and opened up the door for Marcel. Daelen looked at his sister with a look of panic on his face, then kicked the guard's shin and knocked him over onto his back. The guard let out a large snarl as Daelen punched him in the face while Allegra yelled for Marcel to get out from the prison cell. "Marcel! We need to get out of here! Hurry!"

[Cloudsong]

The loud ringing irritated Elton up on his wall, and vaguely he wondered what was going on. What could all the fuss possibly be about? Had a prisoner escaped? As he drew his legs up to sit cross-legedly on the narrow ledge, he decided that it must be that. After all, nothing else was endangering them. In the back of his mind, he was already thinking of the million ways he could apologize to Kateliana. Would any of them work, though? She had seen what she had seen, and he realized that she had the right to be angry. This was entirely his fault, and he found himself completely at fault.

Hearing the voice that was yelling up at him, the fist thing that Elton felt was further irritance. He instantly stood up, not wobbling in the slightest as he turned around to look down at who was yelling at him. He was about to ask angrily what the man wanted, when he heard the dire news. An army...? His eyes widened slightly, and all anger disappeared. Instantly he jumped down next to the man. It was much too high, and he ignored the slight pain that he felt in his feet. "An army?" he repeated, dreading realization creeping upon him. "From where?" he demanded.

'I will return, Elton. And you will all be sorry. Fortuna will have my revenge.' Sergio.

"Who is leading the army?" His voice was dead-quiet, and his expression was stony as he felt cold dread seep through him. This was all his fault. Innocent people would die in this battle, and it was all his fault.

--

Noel followed Alexander, looking at the chairs that were for them. She swallowed, and at that moment, she didn't feel afraid of what the men there would think of her. As some of them raised their eyebrows, she blinked, meeting their gazes steadily. Though on the outside she appeared to be unmoved by their gazes, inside she felt herself almost trembling. Silently she looked down at the floor, feeling out of place there with everyone.

--

Marcel looked up, his breaths heaving as he heard the voice of the two of them. Though he was in agonizing pain, and felt as if he could fall dead at any moment, he felt himself smile slightly. At least if he was going to die, he would have his two friends - one of his only friends - there with him. He struggled against the chains, making his lungs heave even more. "I can't," he gasped. Pain engulfed him like a cloud as he tried to speak, and the more he tried to move, the more agonizing it was. Getting any breath into his lungs was a challenge, and the more seconds that ticked by, the more he gasped.

[Captain Kaycee]

"We spotted a shady figure riding on a black horse by the cliffs of where the army was, but we couldn't get a visual of his face. There was, however, what seemed to be a white-haired witch riding next to the figure on a white horse. She was beautiful, almost like a goddess..." Antonius's voice trailed off for a moment as he thought about the moment he laid eyes on the woman.

She truly was gorgeous. Even from the distance that she was at they could see her almost white hair flowing in the gentle breeze. For a brief moment they were transfixed by her, but as she began to turn around to look at their intruders, the men all widened their gaze and left the scene riding their horses at full speed towards the kingdom.

Antonius finally finished reliving his short memory, then began to speak again. "... Anyway. They were coming from the Unknown Regions. It is strange, because the regions were known to have just a barren wasteland with a castle from the olden times," he explained more to Elton, then began to walk away towards the castle. "We should hurry back to the castle, General Starr. The king is waiting, as well as the Lady Kateliana and the rest of the top military men," he muttered to Elton as he ran up the hill to enter the castle and head to the meeting room.

--

Alexander glanced over towards Noel and noticed how she seemed to be staring at the floor, attempting to not meet anyone else's gazes. As if to reassure her, he placed a hand on her shoulder, nodding once to her. "Do not worry about them. It will only take a few minutes for them to realize who you about to become," he whispered to her, matching the gazes of the men. Almost immediately they broke contact with his bi-coloured eyes, looking down at their feet as Noel had.

--

Kateliana stood behind her chair with her fingers tapping the top of it nervously. She had both of her hands resting on the top of the chair, and she couldn't stop moving her fingers. The idea of Elton sitting don next to her was beginning to bother her, especially since she hadn't seen him since the encounter with Glenna and him. She remembered that woman from Elton's village, and wondered why she would want to come to the city just to see him.

Because he wanted her to see him, a voice in the back of Kateliana's head told her. Instantly she let out an internal growl, making her face look unpleased. Until Elton could find a way to apologize and gain back her trust, she wasn't going to believe that Eltonhad merely seen Glenna in the city. She wanted to listen to the entire story and its true contents.

--

Allegra bit her lip hard as she grabbed the keys she had opened the cell with and ran over towards him. She gritted her teeth as she noticed all of the metal chains and cuffs around him, and based on his stance it was difficult to breathe. "Don't worry Marcel... I'm going to get you out of this..." she whispered to him, a small hint of hope in her voice.

Finally Allegra had unlocked the chains around him with several keys on the ring, and gently placed him on teh ground. She heard her brother's voice behind her, sounding a bit shocked at something. "Um... sis, I accidentally knocked the guard out," he mumbled, his hands a bit bloody from the bloody nose that the unconscious guard had recieved from him.

"That buys us more time. Make sure that he doesn't wake up while I help Marcel," she called back to him, then focused her attention on the heaving boy laying on the ground. Based on his uneven breathing, she could tell that he had a collapsed lung from the tightness of the chains. It would make it nearly impossible to breathe, giving her only minutes to heal him.

She remembered the spell that her mother had said when she healed her brother, but she wasn't sure if she could perfect it. Allegra had only tried it once on a hurt rat in her room, but she ended up only hurting it further. It's either now or never... she thought desperately as she placed her hands over his chest.

"Marcel... I'm sorry if I don't get this right. I have to heal you... because I don't want to see you die," she whispered to Marcel with tears in her eyes as she closed them and inhaled a deep breath.

"Kian unto frey'a ein siche..."

[Cloudsong]

Elton's suspicions were confirmed as the soldier described the two leaders. Sergio and Persephone, he realized with a sharp intake of breath. They were coming to get their revenge on him; Persephone for he had killed her sister, and Sergio because of all of the battles they had had together. Neither one of the two would leave Fortuna alone until he was gone. The chances of defeating them were slim, and he realized that the only thing he could do to help the city was to enforce the soldiers as much as possible, and at the last moment slip out and turn himself in. By doing that he would prevent the battle, and no one would be harmed other than himself. The thought of turning himself in to die didn't seem as bad to him as it used to, however; after what had happened today, he knew that Kateliana wouldn't forgive him. And the thought of living without her wasn't very real. Better dead.

When he heard the man mention Kateliana being there, he hesitated, considering the thought of avoiding the meeting and going directly to the men. Common sense prevailed, however, and he forced himself to keep walking, looking around the familiar castle as he followed, his feet hardly making any noise as they made contact with the marble floors. Though he didn't truly expect her to ever want to speak to him again, he knew that he needed to at least try; she couldn't always remember him as the man who cheated on her.

--

As she unlocked the chains that held him to the wall, Marcel instantly lost his balance as blood rushed to his head. He fell to the ground, and try as he could, couldn't get up. Though his arms were no longer held over his head, he still could not inhale the air into his lungs. It felt as if they weren't responding. Instantly he began to panic, feeling himself lose his breath all together. As he waited, in despair, to die completely, he wished that he hadn't listened to the man who had bribed him. All for what? For a handful of gold. The thought was a bitter one, and he wished he had never come here with them. He could be now on a ship somewhere, perfectly alive and out at sea.

Just as he thought there was no hope, he felt as if there was something glowing inside of him. He stopped attempting to gasp for breath, and heard Allegra's voice faintly in his ears, saying words that were strange to him. As the warmth grew inside of him, he felt as if everything wrong was right, almost. The pain he felt subsided, and he felt his breath returning to him. Marcel breathed in quietly, and he felt relief wash over him. As soon as his strength returned to him, he pushed himself off of the stone ground, and looked at her, surprise and gratitude on his face. "Thank you," he whispered.

[Captain Kaycee]

Antonius finally came to a stop in front of one of the doors, and opened it to allow Elton inside. Almost immediately all eyes were on the general, even Kateliana who stood close to her brother. Elton's seat was next to hers, and after the meeting she was determined to talk to him. However, her eyes were narrowed at him instead of happy like the rest of the people. Her expressions disappeared when her brother's voice rang throughout the room. "Everyone please take their seats."

Everyone gradually slid their wooden chairs out and sat down, getting comfortable around the circular table. Being the gentleman he was, Alexander pulled open Noel's chair for her to sit down. Once he did, he sat down in his own, placing his hands on the table. "As you all know, there is an army far greater than our own coming towards Fortuna as we speak. According to our scouts, it will take at least a month to come. That does not mean that this is the time to slack off. Instead, we must fortify Fortuna's defenses, and aid the villages inside of our kingdom's borders. Two people supposedly command this army, although we do not have visual as to who they are," he began speaking, then nodded to his sister as Kateliana stood up and placed a single hand on the table.

"Based on the appearance of the first commander, who was described to be a white-haired woman with features of a goddess, this is the witch Persephone. Earlier this month my brother and the general rescued me from the witch as well as her sister. Although the witch's sister was killed during the rescue, and that is why we believe she comes to wreck havic upon our lands. She is very powerful in sorcery, and while we do not normally use magic in times of war, this is an exception. We must send out soldiers who can find wizards that can help us in this desperate hour," Kateliana told the people around the table, her voice sounding like that of a natural leader. After speaking she sat down, glancing slightly over at Elton with a pained look on her face, but it disappeared once her brother began to speak again.

"General Starr, do you have any idea as to who the other commander is?" he asked calmly to the Elton, remembering vaguely about the man in the mirror. He could only see the shady man from the corner of his eye in the dark tower, but he had a feeling that it was he who commanded the massive army.

--

Allegra opened her eyes slowly as she felt the magic disappear from her fingertips. Her gaze widened as she noticed that Marcel was breathing once more, and slowly her jaw dropped. "I... I did it?" she whispered to herself, then instantly wrapped her arms around Marcel's neck and hugged him tightly.

"I... I thought that I wasn't going to save you! But you're alive! Oh Marcel... I was so afraid..." she nearly cried, tears of joy inside of her eyelids. From the look upon her face, she was astonished to know that her powers had actually worked when she had failed earlier. But now the spell she had tried worked, and it had kept her friend from dying.

Before Allegra could say anymore, however, her brother Daelen had entered the cell and faked a cough. "Not to interrupt your little reunion, but we're going to have guards coming down from the other side of this dungeon in a matter of minutes, and I would like to be long gone from here when that happens," he muttered to the two, folding his arms across his chest.

Allegra turned her head to look at her brother, then nodded and let go of Marcel. She stood back up on her own two feet, holding out a hand for Marcel. "Come on, we need to get you out of here quickly," she informed him, not wanting her friend to come back to the dungeon in chains.