Aetherian(Part 1): A War Begins

Roderick

 Prince Roderick barely slept in the night with the thought of the Epsilon Silver Hawks able to make it to the top of the Ivory Tower undetected. He tried to tell himself that the Knights of the Dragon Guard would keep him and his family safe, but they appeared so quickly and suddenly, that they almost got past Trevor and Illyria within seconds, and they would have if him, Arry, and Melody didn't show up to help them. Ser Lloyd was the oldest Knight he'd seen, with probably thirty years of training, but the Silver Hawks might have ten times that. Roderick wasn't sure whether to bet his money on an old, but still deadly, Knight, or an assassin that used eastern fashioned weapons with three hundred years of training or more. Roderick had a hard time keeping his eyes open as he marched down the halls of the Ivory Tower in his Lysander armor and Busch cape, and it was noticed by Princess Andrella as he walked past her.

"Did you get any sleep last night, brother?" she asked.

"No.," said Roderick. "None."

"What kept you up?" Andrella asked.

"Other than the attempt on Belle's life?" Roderick snapped.

"It wasn't on Belle's life, it was on Trevor's," the Princess corrected.

"She would be dead if those assassins got past them," said Roderick.

"And they would be dead if you weren't there," Andrella reminded. "And Ladies Melody and Arry."

"They were able to get to the top of the Ivory Tower, and no one saw them!" said Roderick. "How? I don't understand that."

"I thought one of them had to have been here before," said Andrella. "Anyway, don't worry about it. Belle is safe, now. No one will touch her with you at her side. Also, father has instructed Ser Admon and Ser Colton of the Dragon Guard to look after her."

"Yeah, because they're the best ones for the job," Roderick talked down.

"They wouldn't be protecting father if they weren't good at what they do!" Andrella snapped. "They both fought valiantly against the Redwalds."

"If anyone should be looking after Belle, it's me," Roderick suggested. "But I don't know what I'm going to do if more of those Epsilon show up."

"They're after Trevor, remember?" said Andrella, as they saw Belle and the two Dragon Guard Knights coming down the hall, then she whispered "Look, just take her to breakfast, or something. Talk to her.", and she walked off.

"Wait, wait!" Roderick whispered, but his sister was already too far away to hear him.

"I was looking for you," Belle suddenly said, and Roderick turned around.

"Were you, my lady?" said Roderick.

"You may as well call me by my name, Roderick," Belle insisted. "As long as I may call you by yours."

"You may," said Roderick. He couldn't think of what to say next. Belle was beautiful, with long, dark hair, and bright blue eyes. The sight of her made Roderick's heart beat out of his chest, but he managed to ask her one question.

"I was just going to breakfast," he managed. "Would you like to join me?"

"I would," Belle answered. As they walked down the halls of the Ivory Tower, with the Dragon Knights following them, they began to speak to one another.

"Look, about what happened yesterday evening," Belle started. "Those assassins outnumbered Trevor and Illyria by a dozen. They would have been killed."

"And you would have, too," added Roderick. "But I heard that they weren't after you."

"No, my father said that it's House Karvine that the Silver Hawks want to kill," said Belle.

"Trevor's family?" asked Roderick. "But they're all dead, right? And Trevor's a Guardian, so he isn't actually a member of a house. The only people that might want him dead is any Sandlands house loyal to the Redwalds, right?"

"Well, I looked into the history of Trevor's ancestors and I found something interesting," said Belle. "Two thousand years after the Dragon War, an Epsilon army tried to invade Aetherian from the east. King Bowman Karvine and his son, Tavon, burned them all, riding Araxes and Vhagar."

"The dragons?" asked Roderick, and Belle nodded her head.

"The Silver Hawks have been enemies of House Karvine ever since, and they almost came close to killing the last one yesterday," said Belle. "And they would have, if you, Arry, and Melody weren't there." She then walked in front of Roderick, and held both of his hands, looking into his eyes. "Not only that, but Trevor's been a brother to me ever since I was born, and he's alive because of you. Thank you for making sure my friend was safe." Belle gripped his hands tighter.

"It was the least I could do," said Roderick. "Trevor and Illyria helped me find my sister. She would have been killed if we hadn't found her. I can't begin to tell them how much I owe them."

"You did save their lives, didn't you?" Belle reminded. "And mine."

"I'm just glad you're all okay," Roderick promised. "I would do it again if I had to."

"I'm glad to hear that," said Belle. They soon reached a small dining area with a dozen tables. There were nobles seated at each one with breakfast in front of them, but Roderick and Belle sat at a small booth next to a window that looked over the city of Mistral. It was an amazing view of the eastern shore, where the sunrise shined against the water.

"I can't believe I'm actually in Mistral," Belle blurted.

"That's what you can't believe?" said Roderick.

"Well, learning that my lifelong friend has probably thousands that want him dead was new to me," Belle admitted. "I never thought I'd ever see this city. Hey, you competed in the tournament, didn't you?"

"I did," said Roderick. "I lost." They both chuckled. "To a Ser Arthur Drumwind."

"Drumwind?" asked Belle. "As in the Drumwinds of Belhall?"

"The ones in the Sandlands, yeah," answered Roderick. "Pretty far south, I might add."

"Trevor told me about this Redwald Knight from the war a year ago," said Belle. "Ser Etgar Drumwind."

"Oh, I've heard of him. I heard his skill with a sword was unlike anyone that came before him. I heard he fell in battle."

"He did," said Belle. "Trevor was the one who killed him."

"Trevor?" asked Roderick. "Against the greatest Knight in Aetherian?"

"He wasn't alone," corrected Belle. "Neither was Ser Etgar. That was the day Trevor lost his sister. I can't imagine what he was thinking when he saw Mercy's body in that tower. If I ever found Melody or Karlon like that, I don't know how I would react. He said it was horrible, and that's it. He never talks about it."

"Did something happen between him and my father, last night?" asked Roderick. "And your father?"

"I don't know, I was asleep," answered Belle.

"I heard someone yelling," said Roderick. "It sounded like him."

"I'm sure it was nothing," Belle assured. "I don't think King Robar would do anything to hurt him after he brought Princess Andrella back."

"He's still the son of the King he killed," Roderick reminded. "And I haven't heard what happened to the older Karvine children."

"I thought they were dead," said Belle.

"I'm not sure about that," Roderick denied. "I'm not sure where they would have gone if they were to hide from my father." Belle's face was soon pale.

"I'm not entirely sure, either," she said, turning her eyes to her left. She was hiding something. Roderick didn't mean to interrogate her, but he also noticed Belle clasped her hands together.

"Well, I'm sure it's also nothing," Roderick admitted.

"Yeah," agreed Belle.