Prince Fortao Ronara looked around the hall dully. A slight glaze had come over his eyes as he was beginning to feel very sleepy from boredom. All of the formalities at these things bored him to the point of feeling like a sack of potatoes. He had done his duty and officially greeted the hosts and congratulated them on their happy union. He had also given the couple the traditional wedding gift of Rhudyn, single pearl carved into a ring which symbolized the divine creation of love and eternal happiness as the pearl creates an perfect and unending circle. He had presented it form the royal family, and introduced his sister to the party. That was his true job here to watch over his sister and hope she finds an interest in someone at the event. Fortao also knew that his father was hoping he would fall into the trap as well. Sighing he lightly rolled a grape across the fine silver plate in front of him. Thinking of flicking the grape at the fat bald man sitting at the table across from him he smiled, he could see the grape smack the large bald area that was currently reflecting the lighting from the walls.

Lost in his boyish thought he didn't even notice his sister approaching until she gently slid into the chair beside him. With a dry voice she leaned over to her brother and gently speaking began, "Brother, you know I enjoy these things as much as you do, please let us leave now and retire for the night. I would very much like to return home soon."

Smiling Fortao leaned back and responded sarcastically, "but sister, there are so many fine men waiting to talk with you." Knowingly he nodded towards an area where several younger noblemen had congregated and several were looking towards Princess Shimhon. "Oh my sister that one looks quite promising" he added humorously as a nobleman around the appearance of 14 tried to make eye contact with his sister; that one in particular must be from an upstart family and use to getting his way. If he had known Fortao was considering knocking him unconscious he would not have looked so eager.

"Well my dear brother you know as well as I do you are here for the same reason that I am, so don't tease me tonight, or perhaps I'll introduce you to that girl over there."

Fortao turned to look at the person whom his sister was gesturing too and saw a beautiful young woman who appeared to be attracting a lot of attention. She was from Kaeir for sure by the look of her clothing, which is why his sister's remark was meant as a teasing insult.

On the other side of the banquet, Tiberiaxa silently yawned to herself. She had grown rapidly tired of these social events, even one as grandiose as such as this, Avan's wedding.

The initial encounter of this mass of people had provided her with a few minutes of interest. The majority of the dignitaries were uninteresting - shallow minds and equally shallow souls, no equal to her at all. Some of their discrete bodyguards, who by all physical appearances were meant to appear as simple companions and squires and so forth, were of some interest. A motley collection of sorcerers, assassins, and a few other beings of... interesting heritage, to say the least.

And then there were the rare few in the room whose souls spoke of some interest - a few whose interests, activities and associations spoke of the demonic, and then a few more whose souls spoke of another kind of Other. Yet even these souls, of the type she rarely encountered in Kaeir, and of a connected heritage to that of her birth father, maintained her interest for hardly any time.

Beyond the Green Land though, she sensed souls though, voices, who... attracted her. Not they themselves - she doubted most were aware of her, perhaps the odd few - but their essence, their nature... their... flavour. From such she could learn something, for she had learnt all she could from the Green Lady and her consort.

And yet she knew Avan would mistakenly see this as a triumph of her father, of her father's heritage. There was no demonism in her - the interests of Garr and his kind were not hers. What she desired though, was knowledge. Deep knowledge - not the kind obtainable from books and learning, which she had no shortage of, but the kind obtained from experience and action. And the knowledge gained from peers - of which she had none, save for Avan, who didn't really count for so many reasons.

And so she yawned again. With nothing of interest on the spiritual plane existing here at the banquet, that left the intellectual - and so she tuned back into physical. Save that as she returned to the conversations she was apparently engaged in, she realised they had been with a number of local lords and foreign princes whose spiritual poverty and intellectual shallowness were a double boredom.

However the effect was much the opposite as Fortao found himself attracted to her like no one else at the engagement. "Excuse me sister" he said and abruptly stood and walked towards her but stopped to get a drink before he was noticeably close.

Shimhon watched her brother's movements in surprise. It had been at least ten years since she saw him move with such grace while not in battle, usually he reserved his fine tuning movements for battle, this was like watching him while he was courting a woman. She watched intensely from across the room. Currently he could tell the woman was being sized up by her brother's perceptive eye.

Fortao, noticed her slight movements and demeanor. It seemed she had gone to a fine etiquette school, no doubt one of royalty, and yet her behavior was slightly aggressive. This woman was not to be owned, she was an equal partner woman. There was a slight mysteriousness around her, somewhat like that of his little sister, no doubt he was sensing a strong magic aura from her. Not magically inclined himself he learned early on that he did have the ability to sense the strong one's of the magically gifted. Watching her from the corner of his eye while he took a small drink form his wine he saw her smile, and he found it very pleasant. The conversation he overheard was pleasing to him as well, her voice was smooth and soft, not high pitched or overbearing, and she was able to hold a conversation on an intelligence level only seen by the well educated, and form those, only the ones who paid attention to their tutors. Truly she hit his expectations on several levels.

The man she was talking to, if he could be called that, was out of his league. He laughed at every comment the lady made, even the subtle ones that held a tone of mockery towards himself. The Prince listened in amusement as the lady compared the feather on the man's head to that as a beautiful hen or chicken. The remark was lost on him as he blushed from what he took as a complement. Feeling like the time might not get better the Prince moved in slyly to the conversation.

"Indeed my good man, I saw a feather quite similar to that some time ago on a jester who claimed he plucked it from a phoenix, have you accomplished a similar great feat sir?" Stuttering the gentleman replied, "Good gracious no" and brought his arms up to where the prince purposefully put his cup hand and allowed his wine to be tipped over.

A gentlemen in Rhudynese garb intervened in the terrible conversation she was trying to extract herself from. Whatever her opinion of the merchant-prince that had besieged her conversation, good manners was but evidence of a more basic respect for humanity, a self-evident truth she has learned from the primaeval shamans of the Deephills. Still, she prayed to He Who Is One that this Rhudynese gentleman would allow her to extract herself from this conversation, and perhaps provide a welcome escape.

"Oh, do be a bit more careful please," Fortao laughingly said. The gentleman apologized profusely and left to get a replacement drink. Fortao looked up into the girl's bright green eyes and thought, truly a "Kaeirean princess." Smiling addressed her with a bow, "Normally my lady I do not appreciate formalities, I have grown very tired of them, but for you I do not believe it would be a waste of time or effort to apply such honors as you deserve. My lady, may I introduce myself, I am Prince Fortao Ronara, of the land of Rhudyn, currently not held as

a friend to your kingdom as you know, but hopefully the same will not stand for

your favor. May I accompany you on a walk through the gardens lady…?" Letting the question hang in the air with a tone of not finishing the sentence she recognized the lead accordingly. "Lady Tiberiaxa van Anggrix my prince, and yes I would love for you to accompany me on a walk" she added impressed by the princes smoothness, she had almost not picked up on the entire move at all due to the natural ease that this prince put forth.

Prince Fortao Ronara, of the royal line of Rhudyn, she thought. She could tell from this briefest of initial encounters that he had a brain, and one of some considerable interest and capacity. At the very least, he would make this night salvageable.

Her only intellectual exercise since coming of age and taking control of the Van Anggrix house had been the Society of Scholastics. One of the few outsiders she had consistent dealings with when she resided in the Deephills had been a tutor who had been deeply involved in the activities of the Kaeirean branch of the Society of Scholastics, that international confederacy of scholars interested in the more esoteric and obscure. Orulan had been responsible for sparking her intellectual interest in the world at large, and, once she had moved to Kaeirduc, in the activities of the Society. Her prodigious wealth had given her the opportunity to fund many many scholarships and research projects amongst the various branches of the Society of Scholastics across the world - even the branches that existed in countries that were not in... positive relations with Kaeir. Only the other week she had read a mind numbing, but still significant, research paper from a scholar in Rhudyn whose research she had funded on ancient Rhudynese language. Occasionally one of the scholars or projects she funded proved to be of interest to her, and on those occasions she simply requested a full accounting of their research as she was entitled to as the sponsor.

And yet here was a tellurian, a mundane, whose sharpness of mind that she detected sparked interest within her. Who would of thought... born into privilege yet still utilising his god-given intelligence.

Shimhon watched awkwardly as her only support for this event walked out of the door with some Kaeirean lady but she had to smile as she saw a poor clumsy man arrive where the two had been with three glasses of wine to find the other two had left. Shimhon turned towards her personal guard waiting attentively across the room and nodded, the signal it was time to go.

Arriving in her room she prepared everything quickly and listened in to the conversation. "So you are the prince who rode at the head of 50,000 men against the ice deamons at the battle of Port Anorurr?" the voice sounded like velvet, soft and comforting, it was so pleasant even through her spell it was as if she could feel her sweet breath on her ear, surely her brother could.

"Yes that indeed was me, I have ridden forth against the deamons in three different engagements now as well as the bloody battle of Sout, a difficult day for both of our nations militaries." Darkly he added, "In my kingdom I have gained much respect and become known as the

prince of Rhudyn's sword, not exactly the name I had wished for myself but a somewhat noble name to be recorded in the books of our fathers none the less."

"Hmmm, my uncle fought there too, at the head of the Nightbrothers, nay Nightguard now, who went to help. He has taught me much of such matters, of war and their necessity."

Lady Tiberiaxa smiled knowingly and whispered leaning her head on his

shoulder, "Indeed I know all about names that one is labeled with and how one can be haunted by such, you should be glad, it is a strong name the people have given you, one they will respect," She then looked up into the stars and began to sing a lullaby that her mother had sang to her as a child.

Fortao, listed until he was almost asleep and then arose as his head nodded. With a voice unable to hide regret he abruptly said, "We should return my lady, before gossip begins." Outstretching his hand he gestured, "come please."

Tiberiaxa laughed quietly. "Fortao, I would if I could, abandon all such social constraints. I truely do not care what people think, yet I know the petty constraints the high and low born put upon themselves are unavoidable, as they almost singularly are unable to function without some kind of external moral framework."

Three weeks later to Shimhon's great relief the royal ship finally left the shores of Kaeir and returned home. Fortao had spent everyday in the company of that woman, and Shimhon knew that there was something that was hidden within her, but she wasn't sure of what it was.

-- Chad Powell - 25 Jul 2008