The Homecoming 152.

The Castle...

Tamric Drubine makes his way across one of the courtyards on the western side of castle Lé Dic, heading for the central keep of the massive castle as the late afternoon sun of the clear spring day, continues to shine down upon this part of the kingdom of Druvic.
The nobleborn teenager from the kingdom of Sarcrin, who has sent most of those he was in command of along the west side of the massive castle, to help with the clean up now that the battle has ended, and the remaining enemy have fled.
Has a fair idea the reason why the battle turned so quickly is that baron Harkonin's advisor, the dark druid Palvarc was killed on the roof of the central keep, when confronted by Helbe the elven thief.
After that, the elven princeling from the island of Laerel was free to do what he wanted. Casting multiple spells upon the enemy which quickly led to their defeat.
The son of the former knight of castle Drubine in northern Sarcrin passes through an open gate, and goes through a walled garden to get to the central keep of the massive castle that's been the home of the Lé Dic family for centuries.
Tamric Drubine or Tam as he's more commonly referred to by the rest of the group. Enters the central keep of castle Lé Dic, and after making his way along a long hallway, he enters the main chamber of the central keep.
And though there's a number of people in here, including sir Percavelle Lé Dic's ex wife, the lady Marsaé Duc de Laér. The nobleborn teenager doesn't spot who he's looking for, until he catches sight of Lisell Maera in an open doorway across the chamber.
Tam crosses the main chamber, which is essentially a throne room, come dining hall here in the central keep of the massive castle.
"Well?" quietly asks Tamric Drubine in the elven language when he gets to the attractive young woman from the city-state of Brattonbury. "This way" says Lisell Maera in the same language.
Who after a last look into the main chamber, where a number of people are at the tables eating an early dinner, before they go back out and help with the clean up along the battlements, as well as outside of the castle.
Turns and leads the nobleborn teenager down the hallway behind her.
"Busy over on your side of the castle?" quietly asks Tam "Not really" says the attractive young woman who hails from the city-state of Brattonbury, which is on the west coast of the Southlands.
"A small number of them topped the north wall, we were able to repel them pretty easily" says Lisell Maera who is more commonly called Lis by the others in the group.
"What about your side?" asks the attractive young woman who is the daughter of a street prostitute for a mother, and a father who was a sailor, a man she never met.
"Nothing much over there too" says the son of the former knight of castle Drubine "Well apart from them burning down half of Massic" dryly adds that nobleborn teen as Lis leads them to one of the doors on the right.
The attractive young woman from the west coast of the Southlands nods to that, then she knocks on the door.
A moment later, and the door opens to reveal one of the private dinning rooms here in the central keep of massive castle that's the ancestral home of the Lé Dic family.
Tam looks around inside to see who's here, then after slightly frowning the nobleborn teenager asks Lis "Where's Dorc?".
"Outside" is the reply of Lisell Maera who grins then adds "He's still on the south side moat" she continues with "Helbe thought it would be best if he stayed out there whilst the dead are cleared away".
Tamric Drubine chuckles then says "He won't be liking that" as he, like everyone else in the group knows. The large ork absolutely despises water.
The young noble from the feudal kingdom of Sarcrin looks at the others in the private dining room, well it's a small hall really, that's used by the Lé Dic family on occasion.
And as he looks by sir Percavelle Lé Dic, who in a loud voice is explaining to his niece, the lady Linara Lé Dic, and to her governess, the lady Hollis Duc de Laér. What he got up to during the battle. Much to the delight of his young niece.
Tam quietly says to Lis "Where's Riley?".
The attractive young woman from the west coast of the Southlands grimaces, then quietly says "He's dead".
The nobleborn teenager stares at Lisell Maera for a few moments, then in a tone of shock, and disbelief, he mutters "Fucking hell".
Tamric Drubine shakes his head, then sighs for he had known Riley Hait the mercenary ranger longer than anyone else in the group, as he was hired by his father, a former knight of castle Drubine, just before the winter that Mira Reinholt the mage, Dorc da Orc and the now dead sorceress Kail Ariss turned up at his family's castle in northern Sarcrin.
And even though he now knows the truth about the ranger Hait, and previously before him, the sorceress Ariss, as well as others he never met.
He's still going to miss the mercenary ranger who he has known since he was seven years old.
Tam stands there in shock and disbelief for a few moments, then nods his head when Lis quietly tells him "It's not as though he was the real Riley you met all those years ago".
"That's true i guess" quietly says the nobleborn teenager from the kingdom of Sarcrin.
Then Tamric Drubine spots Shur Kee the monk sitting at a side table in the shadows as there's no lamps or candles near that table.
The short, statured monk looks like he's talking to someone else who is at the table with him.
"Who's that with Shur Kee?" quietly asks the son of the former knight of castle Drubine.
Lisell Maera frowns as she looks to the side table where the acolyte in the order of Bru Li is sitting with someone.
"I don't know" quietly says the attractive young woman from the largest city-state on the coast of the Southlands, the city-state of Brattonbury.
"He wasn't here when Helbe told me to go and wait for you" adds the Lis.
After a moment, the two of them quickly look at one another in surprise, then they hurry over to the side table where the physical adept sits with someone else.
He looks up, and sees the two young people hurry over to the table in the shadows he's sitting at. After hurrying over, they stop next to the table, where they look at him first, then at the monk, in the odd, conical shaped hat he's sitting with.
Shur Kee the monk clears his throat, then he quietly says to Tamric Drubine and Lisell Maera "This is friend Darid" he briefly pauses then adds "Darid Parsen".
The acolyte in the philosophical order of Bru Li looks at the young soldier in the Lé Dic army, and says to him "Darid this is" Shur Kee then falls silent to see if Darid will say something.
A name comes to his mind as he looks at the young man, a teenager really, who is looking at him, he says that name.
"Tam" says Darid Parsen, who then looks at the attractive young woman standing next to the teenager named Tam, and another name comes to him.
"And Lis" adds the soldier who was born and raised in the town of Massic which is right beside the massive castle that's the ancestral home of the Lé Dic family.
Tamric Drubine and Lisell Maera share a look, then the two of them look at Shur Kee the monk, then Tam asks the physical adept "Is it?".
"Yes it is him" says the short, statured monk, who grins then adds "Friend Zubutai".
Darid aka Zubutai the barbarian hordesman, whose memories aren't yet complete, either his own or that of Darid Parsen, slightly grins then says to Tam and Lis "Yeah it's me".
As Tamric Drubine and Lisell Maera get reacquainted with Zubutai Timaginson, and newly acquainted with Darid Parsen, a squad leader in the Lé Dic army, who died earlier this afternoon during the battle for castle Lé Dic.
In a stable on the western side of the massive castle, Helbe the elven thief who is blurred and shielded, has just brought down baron Raevar Harkonin from the hayloft.
"Come on you" quietly says Helbe the elven thief who having stripped the baron of his armour, so that he's only in his under clothes and a tunic. Slings the unconscious baron over his right shoulder as he blurs him,
The young elven noble steps out of the stables, and looks over to the central keep of castle Lé Dic. The elven magic user then shifts himself and baron Harkonin over to the central keep, and without anyone knowing, he makes his way inside with the head of the Harkonin family,
Taking him into the heart of the abode of his enemy, the Lé Dic family.
In the large chamber in the central keep of the massive castle, the blurred and shielded elven spellcaster looks around and with a slight compulsion spell has the lady Marsaé Duc de Laér leave, and make her way to the smaller, private dinning hall that the rest of the group minus Dorc da Orc are in.
The elven master assassin with the unconscious baron Harkonin slung over his right shoulder, follows after the former wife of sir Percavelle Lé Dic.
The grandson of the ruling prince of Laerel follows the noblewoman down the hallway, then into one of the rooms on the right.
And as the lady Marsaé Duc de Laér sits next to her sister, the lady Hollis, and pointedly ignores her former husband, who has fallen silent at the appearance of his ex wife.
The young elven noble from the island principality of Laerel drops his blur spell, then drops the unconscious baron on the floor next to the chair that the lady Linara Lé Dic is sitting in.
"A gift m'lady" says Helbe the elven thief to the lady of the fief, who like the others at the main table in the room, is slightly startled at the sudden appearance of the elven magic user, who has just dumped the baron Harkonin on the floor.
After a moment, the lady Linara Lé Dic says "Thank you your highness". The elven princeling nods his hooded head, then with a thought he wakes up the unconscious nobleman from the fief across the border to the east.
As baron Raevar Harkonin wakes up, the elven masterthief says to the young girl who rules the Lé Dic fief "Whatever you decide to do, I'd advise you do it quick, and out in one of the courtyards so that your people know what's happening".
The lady Linara Lé Dic looks at her governess, the lady Hollis Duc de Laér, who nods, and when she looks at the lady Marsaé Duc de Laér, she nods too.
The young girl then looks at her uncle the famous knight "His highness doth speak the truth Linny" says sir Percavelle Lé Dic, who continues with "The people have to see the reason why they fought this battle for our home".
Then the three older nobles get up out of the chairs, and stand behind the chair the lady Linara Lé Dic is sitting in, as a groggy sounding baron Harkonin groans as he wakes up.
Prince Helbenthril Raendril with a boot nudges the waking nobleman from the fief across the border to the east, whose army has been defeated today.
Baron Raevar Harkonin blinks as he sits up, and with a look of disbelief on his face as he looks around, he gasps then says "What?".
After glancing back at her governess the lady Hollis Duc de Laér, and her uncle sir Percavelle. The lady Linara Lé Dic says to nobleborn prisoner sitting on the floor infront of her chair, wearing nothing but his small clothes and a tunic "Baron Raevar Harkonin".
She briefly pauses as she notices the others in the room, her uncle's mercenary friends, as well as the squad leader Darid Parsen have all stood to watch what's going on.
"For the attack upon my army, and invasion of my family's fief, and the attack upon our home here" adds the young girl who rules the Lé Dic fief, who then continues on with "You are to be publicly executed by way of hanging".
The stunned looking baron Harkonin, with his mouth agape, shakes his head in disbelief, and after a few moments of silence, he says "You can't do this, my army will".
"I can do this" says Linara Lé Dic as she interrupts the nobleman from the fief across the border to the east "And your army has been defeated, and those that survived have fled" adds the nobleborn girl who rules the Lé Dic fief.
The baron looks around at those watching him, still not believing the situation that he's in. Then as he's about to say something, the lady Linara Lé Dic looks back, and says "Uncle, shall we proceed?".
"Of course" says sir Percavelle Lé Dic who steps forward, and along with Helbe the elven thief, they grab the baron Harkonin and haul him to his feet.
"Let us be off then" says the lady Linara Lé Dic, who along with the others in the room, follow after the heavily armoured knight and the elven princeling, who march baron Raevar Harkonin out into the hallway, on their way outside to the main south courtyard of castle Lé Dic, where the head of the Harkonin family will be executed . . . . . .