Galea Legends

Part I: A Hero is Born, Ch. 2

2008-09-03T01:36:00.000-07:00

Rhein emerged from his room in beautiful red and gold armor, perfect for a future dragoon, a smug expression on his face. Vince had already headed down to the conference room before him, and so all Rhein had to do was follow. He could barely hold his excitement as he walked back down the familiar marble staircase and to the left, then down a long hall lined with pictures of the royal family and paintings of Geldarm. This was his chance to meet new people and learn of many things outside of the kingdom. Plus, this was the young knight's first time receiving a personal order from the King himself. Perhaps his hard work was really paying off!

A few moments later, Rhein entered the large, circular room, Vince following him right after. "I thought you came down before me?" the young knight asked quietly as they took their seats.

Vince gave a small cough to clear his throat as he answered, "Well, I sorta ran inta dis gard'ner on me way her'." The bulky knight tried to discreetly wipe lipstick stains from his cheeks and mouth as the other held back a grin. Both knights knew that the garden itself was a several minute detour from their destination, and so Rhein guessed Vince's "chance" meeting was little more than luck.

Yet, Rhein simply shook his head slightly in reply, opting to keep his friend's dignity in tack, and looked around the room to see who else had joined them. His heart quickly sank as he recognized the three knights that were supposed to accompany them on their mission. Blaine, Arden, and Shadax, three brothers and Geldarm Dragoons, sat in the seats opposite Rhein and Vince. The brothers were the best knights in the kingdom, each being masters of their own skills. Blaine was quite the swordsman, and many said he could even prevail over the King in a fair fight. Arden, the greatest archer the land had seen, was occasionally compared to the Elven legends, while none could withstand the power and speed of Shadax's fists.

Questions began to run through Rhein's mind as he thought about what their order could be and the presence of the kingdom's finest dragoons meant. What use could he and Vince be among such brilliance? Rhein was still a trainee, and, although Vince recently obtained the honor and was quite strong and powerful, wasn't the brightest of the bunch. Rhein's brow furrowed as he continued to wonder, but his thoughts were soon interrupted by a deep, commanding voice.

"Shall we begin?" the voice asked as the room's occupants adjusted themselves in order to pay better attention. Lord Deshler, the owner of the powerful voice, was accompanied on either side by Lady Ceyx and Lord Sokaji. All three were the King's most trusted advisers and were thus in charge of the three most important aspects of the kingdom: its people, its army, and its history. Lord Deshler cleared his throat as he continued. "Well, let us discuss your assignment. As you may know, it includes much traveling and will take several weeks. Your job is to escort his highness to the kingdom of Bhelliom, where he has to take care of some political issues. Since he has to arrive there immediately, the shortest route to take is over the Yrem Mountains and through the province of Lowder."

The knights began to whisper amongst themselves at the sound of the cursed province, but the adviser of military issues simply raised his hand for silence so that he may continue, and they all obeyed immediately. "This mission has many hazards, so we, as well as the king, are counting on you five to take him to his destination alive and in one piece."

"No problem, sir!" Vince quickly replied. A mocking smile appeared on the lord's face, as well as the other two advisers, who had remained quiet so far during the briefing. Vince just looked at them curiously, wondering what was so amusing.

"Very well then," replied Lady Ceyx, guardian of the kingdom's people. "You all leave first thing tomorrow morning. I suggest you take the rest of the day off from training and spend the time with loved ones, for this journey will take a few months to complete, considering the perilous terrain that must be crossed." Everyone nodded, understanding her suggestion, and so she ended the meeting with, "Good-day, everyone."

The five Geldarm knights stood up and left the room in silence, the three advisers lingering behind to discuss personal matters. Out in the hall, Vince waited until the other three knights were out of earshot before turning his attention to Rhein, who stood solemnly by the conference door. He seemed to be trying to listen to what it was the advisers were discussing, but to no avail. "So, waddaya plan on doin' tha rest o' tha day?" the rugged knight asked, examining the confused look on Rhein's face.

His friend simply shrugged in reply, and Vince responded with a raised brow. "Well, I plan ta meet a couple o' gals at tha tavern," Vince continued. "Ya care da join me? Me thinks one has a sista." He gave Rhein a wink, a large grin appearing on his face as he shook his friend's shoulder encouragingly.

"No, it's alright. I'm going to say goodbye to my mother." Rhein's face held a dark expression, and Vince understood at once not to push the invitation.

"Well, visit tha tavern if ya need me, a'right?"

"Yea, okay," replied Rhein absently, his attention no longer on his friend but returned to the voices within the circular room. Vince simply shrugged, concluding there was nothing more to say, and left the younger knight alone with his thoughts. After much concentration, Rhein was finally able to make out the words of the three voices, and so continued to stand by the small crack in the door, listening intently.

Part I: A Hero is Born, Ch. 1

2008-09-02T02:41:00.000-07:00

Rhein slowly opened his eyes to the sound of swords clashing outside his bedroom window. A small smile played at the corners of his mouth as he eased himself out of bed and towards the wash bin. The quiet man enjoyed his life as a knight, and his room just above the training courtyard had the best view for someone with his fighting spirit. After a quick rinse of his face and certain extremities, the knight dressed himself into a pair of brown breeches, a white cotton shirt, and black boots before heading out through the small oak door.

Several familiar faces greeted the dragoon-in-training as he made his way down the corridor towards the marble staircase that led to the main hall. The tantalizing aroma coming from the nearby mess hall began to make Rhein's mouth water, and he picked up his pace. However, he was soon stopped at the entrance by a tall, slender, dark-haired woman. He stared at her in confusion as she bore into him with eyes filled with a woman's wrath. He wondered, frightened, as to what could have possibly made such a lovely kitchen maid look so gruesome. "Listen," she began, the knight wincing at her sharp tone. His eyes took note of the large bin she held, it, along with its contents, shaking slightly from her fury, but never removed his stare from the woman herself. "Tell that... that friend of yours that if he ever comes near me again, I will gut him clean with a salad fork." Rhein gulped at the image, knowing exactly which "friend" she was referring too, and quickly nodded. It was clear to him now what had happened, and he did all he could to restrain the smile that fought to surface, despite being wary of the woman. He could tell that the woman was not satisfied with his response and, with a small, "Humph," she left Rhein to himself, muttering something profane under her breath as she headed towards the kitchen's side entrance.

The knight let out a small sigh of relief as he walked into the mess hall and towards the large table lined with food. His tongue smacked his lips as he grabbed a nearby plate and began to pile on his breakfast, the enticing images greatly complimenting their wonderful scent. A few moments later, Rhein found himself shoveling down food next to a knight that had just finished off his own meal with a large goblet of mead, originally filled to the rim. For the knights of Geldarm, it was never too early, or too late, in the day to drink. "Mornin' Vince," Rhein managed to say through spoonfuls of biscuits and gravy.

"Mornin'," the bulky, rugged knight replied wearily, following his greeting with a large belch. "Wha's yer excuse fer wakin' up late?"

"I always wake up at this time," answered Rhein with a sidways grin as he started on some eggs.

"Oh yea," Vince noted, as if his memory had just returned to him. He let out a gaping yawn as he pushed his plate aside. The blonde kitchen maid that was currently making her rounds gave the louse a disgusted look before taking his dishes, along with the ones she held, into the kitchen. Rhein noticed the expression on her face, remembering his earlier encounter with her friend, but withheld the smirk that tried to force its way to the surface.

"But what about you?" Rhein said, trying to remove the thought from his mind. "You're always out there before I am."

"Ah, well, I hadda late nigh' wit' a few guards. I also ran inta dat maid I tol' ye 'bout."

This time, Rhein could not help but allow the smirk that tugged at his cheeks to appear. "Who? That brunette kitchen maid?" he asked innocently.

"Aye! Dat be her... I sure gave da lass a good nigh'!" Vince gave him a wink and a hearty laugh, and Rhein tried all he could to hold back his own. There was no doubt that the robust knight was quite the ladies' man, having personally seen him with two, sometimes three, women at a time, but after meeting the kitchen maid first hand, Rhein knew that his friend's tactics had run him into hot water. However, he decided to play along with Vince's fictitious victory, at least for the time being.

Finishing his breakfast off with his own goblet of ale, he asked, "Isn't there anything other than girls and fighting that you can think of?"

Vince pondered Rhein's question for a moment, then gave him a huge grin. "O' course not!" He slapped Rhein hard on the back, almost making him choke on the sweet liquor, accompanied by another full laugh. The knight then drowned himself in another glass of mead before looking at his small friend. "Well, dat be it fer me. Ya comin'?"

"Yeah..." Rhein replied as he pushed his nearly clean plate to the side for the approaching kitchen maid. The two knights stood tall, stretching out their tired and filled bodies slightly before heading towards the large, open double-door exit to the courtyard, opposite of the entrance Rhein had walked into earlier. However, they hadn't made it five feet towards their destination before they were immediately stopped by the voice of a tall, thin, and scrawny looking man. The irate messenger looked at the several strong faces that occupied the room before settling his menacing glare at the couple near the door. He approached the two knights with a confident stride, his glowering expression never losing its firmness as he approached them, despite how much bigger and stronger they were.

Rhein sighed, "What is it now, Grey?" The knight crossed his arms as his companion rested his own on the knight's shoulder.

Grey's brow narrowed, his response cold and clean. "The king has ordered you two, as well as three other knights, to meet him in the conference room as soon as possible." The messenger didn't take kindly to knights, believing his service to the King as a personal messenger to be far more important than anything those pathetic fools could offer.

"Ah, come on, Grey," Vince whined. "Wha's he wan' us fer? I was justa 'bout ta kick Rhein's arse here till ya come."

The gaunt man narrowed his eyes even more until they were nothing more than dark slits, his patience wearing dangerously thin. "I don't know why his highness wants such buffoons as you two. However, it is not my place to question his majesty's wishes." Grey handed Vince their orders and left the dining hall, a trail of whispers and scorning remarks following him.

When Grey was finally out of ear shot, Rhein let loose a small laugh. "Poor guy," he remarked, his arms falling to his sides once more as he turned to head out the door.

"Na, poor us," Vince said quickly and showed the curious Rhein the scroll. "Chaos, I hate Lowder! Der be nutin' but thieves, bandits, 'n' cutthroats in them parts."

"Yeah," Rhein agreed, "but we don't have much of a choice." He handed the order back to Vince as they both shrugged, turning to head towards the marble staircase that led toward the knights' quarters.