"The people are under a new rule, not that of the royal family but under a false group of idiots that has managed to the have get a strangle of Earth's weapons." Jarren stated flatly, his eyes half open as he glanced at Lyssara who remained in her bed, her gaze barely lasting on his figure.
"Why are you telling me this? It's not like they want something from me." Her statement met with silence that suggested otherwise. "What do they want?" Her tone filled with irritance and suspicion. "They want to know more about you, your backing in order to use you as leverage and power I presume."
Jarren went on, his tone monotone as his usual serpentine smile was replaced with a faint formal smile. "Well in that case I'm sure that you can deal with it. Just make sure that you don't make too much noise." Her tone laced with an air of privilege that fit her character well. 'A true actor.' Jarren concluded as he made a bow and left.
With Jarren now gone, Lyssara finally let out a sigh of relief as she glanced at the book tucked in her pillows. Still she had yet to give it back to Jarren and given his negligence of asking for it, she held onto it. She had been lost with his words, unsure of what he meant and yet she tried to look for something deeper.
After an entire night of decoding his poem and with no success, she was forced into admitting defeat. "There has to be something more to this." She muttered inwardly skimming through the pages and yet what met her were blank pages. One more try which proved that the book had nothing else to offer, she callously tossed it to the side.
Rising to her feet, she stretched her hands as she let out a faint groan. With how long she had spent in the game, she thought that it would be great to spend some time in the real world. As much as she didn't want to admit it, the loneliness of the game made her itch for someone to talk to and she was forced to settle with Jarren.
"Jarren... I didn't think that he would take his role so seriously." Even when she made an absurd claim the night prior of having him scout the streets for intelligence, he did as asked. Whether the means was authentic or not eluded her therefore she chose another test. Her tone had grown more irritable, something a spoilt noble would have and still he endured through it.
Her constant ridicules of him, her clicks and such and yet he persisted through it. 'Or is there a price to this?' She couldn't help but wonder as she made her way to the side cabinet where Jarren had placed her morning tea. Another request she was sure that he would refuse and yet he executed it dutifully.
"But at this point I'm sure that I can't leave without paying my share of the toll." A self deprecating laugh escaped her lips as she took a sip of the tea. Glancing back at her unfurled bed, her gaze sharpened as she darted at the pillow. Grabbing the book once more, something she hadn't seen before caught her interest.
A small piece of paper that had been sticking out of the back cover. 'You clever bastard. I'm sure he wanted me to find it.' She thought to herself as she opened the page wide open.
...
Painted locks on broken doors,
Silver dreams spilled on the floor.
I've been drifting past my name,
Shadows hum but sound the same.
Don't wake me when the colors fade,
I'd rather drown in what I've made.
There's peace in the blur, a hush in the spin,
A thousand lives where I've already been.
Threads of glass between my hands,
Slip away like promised lands.
Call me cruel, call me divine,
I'm just lost between your lines.
The wind hums our requiem tune,
Drifting close to something true.
If I forget the face I wear,
Will you still see me there?
Painted locks, the key's long gone,
Yet still, I hum this same old song.
Drifting, drifting till I'm gone.
...
Her eyes read through every line, her mind baffled with the melancholy of it all. 'I didn't think that he could write.' She muttered taking another bird's sip of her tea. By the time she was done, a faint sense of dread lurked in her heart, unsure of what it actually was and yet it refused to leave regardless of how much she tried.
However there were a few set of lines that jumped out to her, making her wonder who he meant. 'If I forget the face I wear,
Will you still see me there? I never thought that a horror like him would be so emotional.' It felt like a joke reading through the whole thing and yet her question remained unanswered.
'Is this Callista, Clomere or Kaelin?' Recalling the initial poem, she had concluded that the two were on their way to meet Kaelin, a figure she had yet to meet. 'Or is it me?' A thought rose in her head however she quickly dismissed it as soon as it came. 'He has the entire world in his hands, I'm sure that there are far more beautiful damsels for him to pick.'
So far his gaze of her had been playful or apathetic with no form of intrigue. 'But then again I'm sure that he's not into such games.' She told herself as she put the piece of paper away. She was sure that with Callista now watching her that she too was aware of this piece of paper.
Placing the book back on the stand next to her, she made her way to the bath and freshened up. Coming out, a fresh pair of clothes were waiting for her and his book was gone. 'So that was what he wanted me to find.' The more she studied him, the more questions than answers she had about him.
She wasn't whether it was part of his game or there was something more to it that he was aiming at. Still, she hoped for the latter with the goal of finding out what he dreaded she would come to realize. Crashing back onto her now tidied bed, a knock filled her ears to which she lazily permitted access.
This time it wasn't Jarren but another worker of the inn, their face hesitant with a warm smile on their face. "I'm so sorry to interrupt miss but I'm here to pick up your clothes." Her gaze locked with the figure, her eyes turning daggers. "Do you mind explaining who you are?" Her voice turning to ice.
"Ah! Miss must have missed me last night! I'm Perrit Krowe." The man mused with an ear to ear smile however Lyssara's skeptical gaze didn't falter. "My servant should be more than enough to take care that." Her tone still unwelcoming that made the man persist with his smile. "Of course! I was just checking is all." He gave a nervous laugh as he scratched his head.
'Do these clowns really think that I would fall for something as childish as this?!' She furrowed her brows as she showed her tuck to the man. "If you don't take your leave then I'll make sure you leave this room in bits." Her estoc glimmering in her hands that made the man pause for a moment before snapping back to the conservation.
Raising his hands, he began to make his way towards the door, his back facing the exit. "I understand, I'll make sure that I won't bother you again." And with that the man left her room. With a thought the estoc went back to her inventory, her first plan of baiting the man a success. 'The mere sight of gold and he's already swoon, bastards!'
With her years of slavery, she had sighted such people who she had grown to hate as they were the reason she was in captivity to begin with. However now she wasn't sure to thank them or to curse at them for the hands she was currently in. 'Still, there are others who don't deserve to face such a fate.'
She sighed sinking into her bed, minds swirling in her mind. With the limited options she had within the town of Dunvale, she could only stay in her room and wait till her first game was over. 'The first act? Is this what he feels?' She glanced at her hands, pale and pristine but hers regardless.
'With eternity within your palms I'm sure that it does get a little boring.' She let out a laugh realizing what she had just mused. Gripping her hands before letting them go, she was unsure of what she grew to be with each passing day. At first, she had nothing but hatred for Callista and Jarren which evolved into fear and now it was something that she could barely make out.
Something along the lines of admiration, curiosity and subconscious fear. A being that was far above the game of mortals and gods, appointing humans to sit by his side and judge the game with him, indulge in hedonistic bliss and throes that in between would reveal the shell and the one hiding beneath the skin.
'Why do you have to make this so difficult for me Jarren?!' She cursed herself at what she tried to attempt, trying to understand and calm the unknown that could erase her with nothing more than a thought. 'But still, I'm sure that there's more to you than just your games.' She let out a sigh, her body melting into the sheets as she let slumber take her.
...
"Hey you! Do you think that you can just walk wherever you please?! This isn't the same place that you came from!" An irritated voice was shot at Jarren who kept his face calm and composed, still adorned in his lavish butler uniform. "I'm here to talk with the leader of the Motley Club." His words making the two men glance at each other with suspicion before breaking into laughter.
"I'm sorry but do you think that you can just waltz in here without a care!" One mused flashing an unsightly grin. "Just for that joke, I'll have your price for bothering us to give hundred blue malcore shards." The other states joining his comrade in his laugh. Jarren however remained persistent as he broke their laugh.
"You two plan to kidnap Miss Lyssara, right?" His words ending the laugh in a heartbeat. "Where did you hear that?!" One asked with a look of skepticism. "I'll talk to your leader." Before either of then could talk, the door behind them creaked open. "Who is this clown and why is he here?!"
A man asked, his frame far bigger than the two who stood watch outside. His face adorned with a scar and tattoos coating his right hand. Dressed in a light vest and brown shorts, he cracked his knuckles as he sized Jarren aware of who he was. Not as the horror who sat with the queen of Redfall but rather the servant of Lyssara, their target.
"You know who I am so let's skip this useless banter and take me to your leader." His tone showing his impatience as he recalled the alleyway he had to take to get here. 'For a party, they certainly do love to hide in the shadows.' His muse serving as self amusement as he locked eyes with the man who had recently stepped out.
"The boss doesn't let anyone in so easily, besides he's busy at the moment so come back at another time." The goliath of a man grunted however a sigh rather than acceptance escaped Jarren's lips. "It does pain me to do this however I have a task to complete."
His words making the three wonder what trouble a butler could do before their vision turned black. Their heads rolled the ground, their eyes wide with horror as they failed to understand how they met their end. Jarren on the other hand straightened his coat as he wiped the blood off and made his entrance into the bunker below.