A story about the decision to walk the path of destiny.
Cidolfus Telamon x OFC
- Erie Murdoch has witnessed the power that has brought the Duchy to ruin and plunged Rosaria into political turmoil. Stripped of everything she once knew, now a fallen p...
She didn't know how they had made it, but Erie came to a last-minute sledding halt beside Clive in the procession that greeted Archduke Elwin back from his expedition to northern Rosaria. She and Carmen had thrown on an uncomplicated red dress, and Carmen, in all her kindness and loyalty, had provided the wine that Erie would later pass to Elwin once he arrived in the throne room.
Clive greeted them with a raised thumb before Elwin Rosfield came striding through the gate on his Chocobo and the committee bowed. They watched as Elwin dismounted, handed his helmet to one of the shields, and took a few steps forward before calling out, "Rise, my friends!," and the assembled stood up straight again. It was Joshua who ran up to his father first and greeted him, "Welcome back, Father." "Thank you, Joshua. Are you feeling better?" "Yes, Father, significantly better. Jill and I went to the training field today to watch Clive." "Is that so?"
At that moment, Torgal jumped out from the back rows and Clive turned to the puppy, trying - without much success - to get him to calm down. Erie remained standing, her eyes fixed on Elwin, who was now approaching the teenagers. "He'll make a good hound one day."
"Father," Clive greeted him. Jill picked Torgal up off the ground and bowed, Erie following suit.
"Lift your heads up, girls," Elwin stopped the many bows.
"Thank you, Your Grace," Erie and Jill replied in unison. Elwin smiled kindly and gave Torgal a quick pat on the head before turning to Erie. "What happened here?" he asked her, stroking the bruise on Erie's upper arm with his gloved hand. She and Carmen hadn't thought about covering that up in their haste.
"I was down at the...in the training field today, too. Clive hit me with the wooden sword. It's not worth mentioning." Erie smiled up at Elwin in encouragement.
"Did you get revenge for that?" he asked.
"Of course, your Grace. Clive still needs a little more training before he can beat me."
"Good girl." Elwin gave Erie's bruise a pat. "Ouch..." she whispered, but was quickly calmed by Elwin's subtle wink towards her. She'd known him long enough to know that he didn't condemn her penchant for sword fighting the way Anabella did, rather welcoming the fact that his future daughter-in-law knew how to defend herself.
"The capital is pleased with your return, your Grace," Clive took the floor. Elwin leaned forward and whispered some words in Clive's ear that Erie did not understand, but were guaranteed to have to do with his expedition to the northern territories. He finally asked Clive to come to the throne room so they could talk more, and dismissed the soldiers before walking towards the castle with Erie following him along with the other nobles.
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A short time later, Erie stood next to Elwin in the huge throne room and served him the wine that Carmen had quickly handed her as she passed. Without Carmen, Erie would have been noticed countless times at court for her lack of etiquette. For her next birthday, she had to give Carmen a special gift.
"Thank you, Erie." Elwin took a sip of the drink, and Erie gave a short bow, not as put-upon as outside at the procession, but still reverent and respectful.
"Bring me the current inventory of our armory later, please, Erie. And please ask the stable master about the condition of our chocobos."
"Very well, Your Grace." Erie had been assisting Elwin here and there with operational business in the capital for the past year. She summarized supplies for the Archduke, the condition of the armory, the stables, the treasury, and other facilities at Rosalith. Of course, always with the help of the staff who handed her the records and provided the necessary information. At the same time, Erie often stayed in the background during the table rounds and poured wine.
Thus, Erie had a fairly good overview of the political situation and could imagine what Elwin would discuss with Clive. They would have to fight the Iron Kingdom for the Mothercrystal between the two kingdoms - and they would have to win.
The door to the throne room opened and Clive entered. Elwin placed the wine goblet on the tray in Erie's hands and she turned to put it away.
"Your Grace, you have requested my presence. How may I serve you?" inquired Clive, getting down on one knee in front of the throne.
Elwin leaned forward and grinned. "You can save the fawning now, your mother is not here." Erie couldn't contain a giggle, which she quickly tried to hide behind her hand. Standing to Elwin's other side, Rodney gave her a stern look. Erie replied with an apologetic nod and pulled herself together.
"Has the condition in the northern territories improved?", Clive now wanted to know more about Elwin's expedition.
And so, with a worried expression, Elwin began to report what Erie had already suspected: the northern territories of Rosaria were gradually falling victim to the Blight that was spreading inexorably and would soon cross the borders to the inhabited territories. There was only one solution: the ultimate interment of the feud between Rosaria and the Iron Kingdom, the destruction of the Iron Kingdom, and the conquest of the Mothercrystal for Rosaria.
A cold chill ran down Erie's spine as she realized that war was about to break out. Elwin announced that they would leave for Phoenix Gate tomorrow so that Joshua could speak with the ancestors of the noble house of Rosfield, as tradition demanded. Clive would first go to Stillwind Marshes to execute some monsters that had strayed there, and then also travel to Phoenix Gate to meet with the group. Lastly, Elwin called Clive to him, who came to the throne from the center of the room and received - once again - whispered words that Erie tried not to hear, as they were obviously not meant for her.
"I will do my duty, Your Grace," Clive replied.
"That's all, then. We ride at sunrise. You should rest," Elwin dismissed his eldest son. "Erie, you will please bring me the documents in the next hour, and then I too will retire."
Erie bowed and left the throne room without further words to complete the tasks assigned to her as quickly as possible.
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The picture above is an ai-generated picture of Erie. I've already spent a good amount of time generating her at different stages of her life 😊 The pictures aren't always exactly as I would have imagined, but at least they give a good impression of what she looks like.
