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"A Deal With the Devil" (L'Renouille) Jittery couldn't even BEGIN to describe the sensation that was tearing savagely through his gut. Solon Jhee's armored footsteps clanked in a muted procession as he wordlessly strode down the dark, carpeted stone hallway deep within the night-enshrouded royal palace of L'Renouille. The echo of his footfalls against the otherwise silent moonlight-filtered passage did nothing to ease the anxiety that caused his stomach to flutter painfully. Why? Why was just MEETING that man--or merely HEARING his name--causing his blood pressure to skyrocket and a cold sweat to break out over his face and neck? He had faced life and death upon the battlefield, fought opponents that would cause most men to shrink back in fear, dared near-hopeless battles... But...it was Lord Ruka Bright, the prince of Highland, that he was dealing with...not a State soldier or general or even an assassin. Ruka's name was reason enough for any person, warrior or not, to cower like the omega of a wolf pack...to bring nightmares to even the bravest soldier. And just the very thought of having to take up an audience with the violence-manic prince was enough to give Solon a few more premature gray hairs. The oil lamps set into the stone walls of the hallway flickered dully, bathing the normally gray-white walls in a rich vermilion glow. Solon noted how the vivid color was tinted so much like blood...and that, once again, the irony of his thoughts brought back the image of Lord Ruka's lupine face and savagery-kindled eyes within his troubled mind. The marble statues of the angelic figures and noble visages of the nation's guardian spirit, the howling silver wolf, all seemed to twist and writhe into demonic shapes within the corrupting light...and the carpet at his feet suddenly resembled a thick river of blood... The almost manic cackling--Lord RUKA'S sinister laughter--that suddenly echoed almost inaudibly through the hallway didn't help the pain that turned his stomach top side over. Ye merciful GODS, I just got back to L'Renouille this morning, Solon mumbled mentally, shivering when a trickle of sweat dripped down his back, through his armor. If Lord Agares hadn't ordered that I report to his SON for the remainder of the war... The dull clank of the Highland general's armored footfalls eventually ceased as he reached a moderately-sized domed cul-de-sac at the end of the dismal hallway. Opposite of where he stood, imbedded on the north side of the circular room, was the heavy, blackened oak door that separated Lord Ruka's chambers from the rest of the castle. A pair of heavily armored guards silently stood watch at the door's flanks, their expressions forced masks of seriousness that were shadowed by their helmets and the dim lamplights that waned at the west and east room sides. There were definite glints of nervousness imbedded within the unseen eyes of the two sentries; he honestly couldn't blame them for that. Any job that dealt with either working for or guarding Lord Ruka was both risky and foreboding. Solon took in a deep, faintly shuddering breath as he slowly paced up to the heavy door. The intricate ironwork set upon the obstruction was crafted in the form of a snapping, savage metal wolf, its eyes crafted of smooth, blood-red rubies, each about the size of Solon's armored thumb. How fitting, he thought, holding his head level even though his eyes traveled down, focused upon the lifeless metal guardian upon the door. If men's true natures turned them into beasts and monsters, Lord Ruka would undoubtedly resemble THIS abomination... Solon quickly steeled himself as he rapped his gauntlet-covered fist upon the doorway, the sound metallic and hollow. Another sliver of cold crept down his spine as Lord Ruka's voice bellowed dully from within the adjoining chamber. "Enter, General Solon Jhee..." With a moderate shove, the doorway opened back with a loud, painful creek as the interior of Lord Ruka's chambers came into full view. Solon reflexively winced, his eyes trying to adjust to the sudden advent of darkness that clung to the room. The quarters were furnished lavishly...but they appeared almost disheveled, as if a testament to the mind of the man that occupied them. Numerous weapons of war and hand-to-hand combat were mounted upon the walls, as were the heads of various savage beasts won through the bloody ritual of the hunt. Even so...none of the morbid artifacts that accented the chambers compared in instilling the same sense of nagging dread as the hunched, leering figure seated within the faint lamp illumination of the room's central desk... Lord Ruka's thinned lips parted in a wide, wolfish smirk as he watched Solon Jhee wordlessly enter and gently shut the door behind him. The prince's hair was a thick mane of disheveled black hair, complimenting the equally mad black-glass eyes that seemed to pry the Highland general apart, piece by painful piece. His tall, muscular body was framed by a blood-splattered suit of full plate silver-toned armor, its edges accented by gold and black iron trimmings. A heavy silken cloak was draped over his armored shoulder, its color a blue reflecting the deepest fathoms of an ocean, fittingly enough where the pressure and cold was enough to crush the life out of any flesh-and-blood creature. But those eyes...those cold, black eyes... The prince was slumped back within the plush black leather chair of his equally dark-stained oaken desk, a large armored hand, close to his smirking face, clasping the tattered remains of a once-white feathered quill pen that had been unconsciously crushed during use. Traces of the black ink contained within the quill trickled through the cracks of his gauntlet, like black blood squeezed from the neck of a fresh kill. He regarded Solon with his ebony eyes, those icebergs within a blackened sea of madness, and chuckled faintly. Solon Jhee suddenly wished the nausea that suddenly welled up in his throat would die off as he became sickened within his Lord's balor gaze. "You sent for me, Lord Ruka...?" Prince Ruka's smile turned snakelike as he pulled himself up, out of his chair, his armor clanking loudly within the confines of the high-roof chamber. His eyes narrowed, the madness blazing within the dim lamp light growing tenfold. "Do you think this so-called 'peace treaty'," he hissed, voice only slightly audible, "is as worthless as I think it will turn out to be, General...?" Solon's face contorted in noticeable surprise at the unexpected question. "W-What do you mean, my Lord...?" "PAH! You know exactly what I mean!" Ruka spat, his voice going to its normal tone of spite and intimidation. Even so, his intense smirk had only somewhat faded. "You pledged allegiance, like your father and grandfather before you, with King Agares and therefore to ME, with your Highland knight's honor...so you should know that Agares is a fool for trying to make peace with the Jowston State dogs! Do you honestly plan to be his boot-licking SERVANT for the rest of your days and forego the justice that we deserve...?" "...If it means we can finally attain the peace the people have wanted..." Ruka growled, his smirk contorting into a vicious snarl. "The peace-loving fools in this nation have become cowards who forgot WHY we decided to fight in the first place," he cursed, slamming the shattered feather quill onto the desktop with an audible bang. The very sound and action caused Solon to jerk back slightly in surprise and even fear. "Do well to remember what those State pigs did to Her Majesty, the Queen...my MOTHER," the prince continued. "King Agares has forgotten this! He's willing to make peace with traitorous DOGS!" Solon felt himself shiver at Lord Ruka's overzealous show of anger but did what he could to tightly leash whatever sentiment of fear his face might have displayed. "... ...I haven't forgotten, at least," he quietly replied, gulping down the lump in his throat before it caused his voice to faulter. "But maybe it'll actually LAST this time. We can't tell for sure until we give it a chance--" "A chance...? A CHANCE!?" Ruka suddenly burst out into a fit of crazed laughter, the sound echoing painfully within the dimmed chamber and through the adjoining silent hallway. "Don't get so hopeful around ME, Solon! I don't have ANY faith in those State bastards! And I certainly don't have faith that King Agares' choice is for the benefit of this nation...and I'm sure that YOU, of all the Generals in this country, understand how I feel, am I right...?" Solon grimaced. Lord Ruka was a beast of the battlefield, that much he knew...but in that end, he himself was no different than his prince. A soldier was a soldier...and soldiers were meant to kill, to fight, to shed blood. And why...? He shed blood for his King, for his country, for his own honor... Jowston took your life away from you and you know it. Your father died an honorless death at their hands and transferred the shame over to you. ...They took away from you the only woman you ever cared for in your LIFE...so are you SURE you can't say that you want the battle to continue, to make them suffer as you had...? Are you willing to lie down and let their deeds go unpunished as they trod upon your bare back? For what they call "peace"? Is that HONESTLY how you feel? Maybe the choice was predetermined. He felt his sword hand ache with sudden yearning... "...What do you have in mind, my Lord?" Ruka Bright's lupine smirk reformed upon his stony face, his insane eyes revealing a glint of satisfaction towards his subordinate's gradual agreement. "I want for you to keep your company fully armed and prepared...purely as a precaution," he said, slumping back into his plush black leather chair once again. "The State will undoubtedly be the first to make a move. ...They'll be their own undoing. When that happens, the preparations I've made and your own troop will come into play." Solon Jhee bowed slightly as he stepped back towards the chamber door. "It shall be as you wish, Lord Ruka." Ruka waved an armored hand in a dismissing fashion. "Don't disappoint me, Solon. You know my price of failure!" "...I'll not fail you, my Lord." Sliding out of the doorway and into the cul-de-sac once again, Solon gulped down the second wave of rising bile that hung within his tightened throat. If what Ruka said was right...or what he was thinking was dead on...his job as a Highland general was FAR from over... The grip on his sheathed sword's hilt tightening reflexively, Solon Jhee adjusted his olive-green cloak and began his trek down the long hallway once again, leaving his back to the door to Lord Ruka's chambers. The tastes and smells of war were hot upon his senses once more.
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