SilentSister
Secret Goddess
- Joined
- Apr 11, 2020
- Location
- north of Nowhere
The Wyrmberg. A small but pivotal nation caught between mighty empires. For centuries the bastion of freedom and fair trade has stood against its powerful neighbours through the use of canny alliances and political machinations, always ensuring that its continued existence is far more valuable as a strategic buffer than a conquered, rebellious fiefdom would ever be.
The Royal Family of the Wyrmberg, whose original name has long passed from living memory, has stood the test of time so far, but in recent days that has changed. The old king is dead in mysterious circumstances, and his bride queen long before him. His only living heir left behind, the Princess Ravara of the Wyrmberg, has only just come of age and many do not believe her fit to take charge of the nation.
With the kingdom's leadership in doubt, ambassadors from many of the major nations have descended on the Wurmberg seeking to gain favour with whomever ends up seated on the throne, or whomever stands behind it giving the orders to the puppet ruler.
It was a crisp, cool Autumn day, with the threat of snow hanging in the air of the far flung provincial kingdom as the ship finally docked at the harbour. High about, the majestic floating mountain that was the Wyrmberg proper hung suspended in the air, giant chains holding it in place as the mysterious science of the dwarves lifted it above the ground. Few knew the secret of the inverted peak, although many had surmised it was no magic which made the giant rock fly.
For the passengers disembarking however, the wonder of the city had waned over the last few long days of their voyage. Many of those onboard were returning once more to the city, following pilgrimages from small farming settlements and distant towns still loyal to the old rulers of the kingdom to pay their respects to their recently deceased sovereign, but some were travelling there for the first time. Even for them though the peak had become just another part of the landscape, and most were just happy to finally arrive back on dry land, even land which lived under the shadow of such a sight.
Taking his time, one particular individual sat to one side of the gangplank, watching as each of his fellow travellers disembarked as his hand scribbled note into a small, leatherbound book held at his waist. For many this was the first time they had seen the stranger during the long journey as he'd seldom left his cabin on the upper decks. Now that they did, they saw a elegant individual, clearly of elvish descent although his precise race was a little uncertain. His clothes were well maintained, and immaculately cut to his body, although most of them were obscured by the heavy cloak he'd decided to wear while confronting the chill wind washing off the sea.
After a few moments, the individual rose to his feet, and with a nod to a deckhand who was in the process of offloading the passengers' cargo began to make his way down onto the docks. His stride was forthright and certain, while at the same time a small bounce in his step showed him to be more graceful than somer would first guess, and as he stepped down onto the wet dockway he tuned with practiced ease to watch as his luggage was lowered down beside him.
Suddenly from out of the crowd, an individual dressed as yet another dock worker stepped forwards, placing one hand on the strangers as he leant in close to whisper something in their ear before slipping back into the crowd once more. The whole exchange had taken but a moment, and at first there seemed to be nothing untowards to it, but a moment later the stranger turned, his mouth hanging open in shocked surprise as he lifted a bloodstained hand from under his cloak, lifting it up as if trying to understand what he was seeing.
The crowd murmured in surprise as the stranger collapsed down onto the dock, his bloodstain hand outreached as a rapidly growing pool of his precious life fluids spread out around him.