measured_words (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
measured_words) wrote2006-08-06 09:23 pm
measured_words) wrote2006-08-06 09:23 pm
Entry tags:
More Hadyn stuff
I've been working on this for a while now. I know what I am doing next but I don't have any more written yet, which is a first. Usually I am a chapter ahead in my paper journal, but not this time. Anyway... I stil need a name for this ;)
Matteo Atremi was a relatively young Aldryn elf, only 175. He’d been studying music at the university in Exia before the invasion, and supplemented his lifestyle by working in the city guard. It was common for elves to pursue their education at a slower pace, and Matteo was no exception. He’d found the daily experiences in the guard more engaging, in any case, and as he had centuries to complete his degree he‘d begun taking fewer and fewer courses and pursuing them at an even slower pace. Meanwhile, he’d increased in rank in the guard, and eventually been promoted to work in the palace under the supervision of Gordon Fenning in the intelligence branch. He’d been on duty on the Night of the Crimson Death, when figures masked and robed in deep red had whirled through the city, spreading terror, chaos, and death. Matteo had helped protect the prince’s entourage during the flight after they’d found king Cedric murdered. They’d headed to Shinkyo, and that was where he found himself now, standing guard at the entrance to the underground compound that served as the prince’s headquarters.
The complex itself was borrowed from one of the Southern lords who supported the cause of Exian Liberation. The Masks, henchmen of the Holy Church of Salistrom still controlled the city and kept the citizens hostage. Now, if their intelligence was reliable, Exian forces were marching on Trylith, the Den of Sin and Thieves, the Great Northern Whore. Trylith was infamous for the number of warring criminal organizations that infested all levels of the city. It was the main port city of the north, and could muster a sizable naval force, at least in theory. If the church of Salistrom managed to control that navy, they would be extremely difficult to defeat. It had been more than a week since prince Lynel’s mysterious return from his secret mission, and his subsequent departure for the north. This time, he’d taken more support, drawing from the ranks of those who’d pledged their assistance to the cause. Mostly, it was the same group that had recovered the sword Seijun, plus the chancellor. That left Shevan in charge.
She hasn’t calmed down any since the prince’s return, which had been everyone’s hope. She riled against anyone who questioned her leadership. He’d heard various rumors flying around the compound, that Caena had talked her into forming a council based on the group that had advised King Cedric, or that she was leaving, or that she was mad. The first seemed unlikely, the third was nearly certain. Some people were just not meant to be in charge, and if this was the case, he could only hope that the second rumor was also true.
Matteo’s main concern was not with Loyalist administration, though, but with security. The day before the prince returned, the High priestess had let out publicly that there was a spy in their midst. She’d tightened security, taking some measure that seemed logical, but she was unwilling to listen to suggestions. Increasing the door guards from one to two made sense. He’d never fully accepted the earlier reason for cutting it back in the first place. Yes, their numbers had been low, and there were other concerns, but Gordon had always stressed the importance of good security.
He was still unsatisfied with their password system. Having one code word that never changed was ludicrous. Yes, their allies were fairly sparse, and it might be difficult for newcomers to identify themselves. Agents whose missions took them away from long or undeterminable periods of time would find it difficult to keep up with a randomly changing passcode, but there were ways around that as well, and Matteo could think of several.
He sighed. No one really liked guard duty, and he often found his mind wandering like this. He glanced over at John, who was stifling a yawn. Despite the fact that Elves didn’t need sleep, Matteo found himself mimicking the human soon enough. For all their security concerns, the truth was that almost no one even came to their hideout. There was a regular crowd who left to go out in the evenings, often coming back as late as the next morning. He was a member of that bunch often enough when off-duty, and knew them all fairly well. Servants sometimes left to run errands, but the majority of the Loyalists were fairly sedentary. There were still few enough of them around, especially since the prince had taken such a large crown up to Trylith.
Matteo stretched, and was surprised briefly to see someone approaching the exit. It was Hadyn, one of the most reclusive members of the cause. He rarely even attended the emergency meetings, and never ate in the communal hall. Most people ignored him, but there were two small but vocal camps which either defended or decried the elusive wizard. They both included a number of people who had either worked or traveled with him. They al seemed to know something they didn’t talk much about, and Matteo’s training inclined him to interest in these types of secrets.
There were other elements that added to the mystery. The first was his ties to the Alient Company, the group contracted by Gordon himself to investigate the warring Churches of Salistrom in Exia before the fall. The second was that he’d been among the group that had accompanied Gordon to the south to Shinkyo, before his boss had given up the ghost, as the humans said, and released his spirit from the magic binding it to another man’s body.
The third element of mystery was the large purple-black feline prowling down the corridor behind him. She didn’t fit Matteo’s understanding of what a familiar should be. She didn’t fit the description of any animal he’d ever heard of, either, not in the most outlandish songs he’d heard. She could be some kind of exotic panther, but she wasn’t. Her colour was wrong. Her build, though powerful, was too slender and her tail, with its wispy tuft, too slim. Her eyes were too intelligent, even for a familiar.
He nudged John, who started into alertness and blinked at Hadyn as he approached.
“Oh, hey.”
“I need to go out for a bit.” He sounded guarded.
“Well, we’ve got the log now.” John gestured at the register. Hadyn nodded, scowling slightly as he leaned over to scribble in his information. He walked out without another word. The two guards looked at each other and shrugged, but Matteo remained curious.
“Is he always like that.”
“Pretty much, yeah.” John, always casual, shrugged again. He saw the mage somewhat more frequently since he’d started his own studies in magic. Matteo was pretty certain that the interest was a direct result of John’s growing interest in the shy Kyla Smith, though he continued to deny the insinuation. “He’s all paranoid, mostly, but he’s really smart so maybe it all evens out. What did he put down?”
The elf was already reading the register, trying to decipher Hadyn’s hasty scrawling. “Getting supplies for something? Hmm. Alchemical supplies?”
“Yeah, Volaris had a list of stuff he wanted for the lab. Maybe he needed something?”
‘Probably.” It didn’t really matter. The higher-ups – those who liked Hadyn, anyway, seemed to give Hadya lot of leeway, and Volaris was certainly one of them. He could put anything down n and never get seriously questioned. The same was true of just about everyone, though. One of the druids had even gone as far as to scratch out something in some language none of the guards could read, which Kyla later translated as ‘none of your damned business.” The ledger was only ever going to trick people who were bad at keeping their lies straight, and whoever the mole was, they were certainly too clever to fall for that.
Matteo wished he knew more about Hadyn and some of the other Loyalists. As one of the few people remaining with any kind of intelligence or counter-intelligence training, he was sure he could be making more efficient contributions. He also knew that he wasn’t nearly as competent as Gordon had been… yet. It would take him a while, but he could, and would, stick things through here. The cause was worth it, and he certainly had the time.
Matteo Atremi was a relatively young Aldryn elf, only 175. He’d been studying music at the university in Exia before the invasion, and supplemented his lifestyle by working in the city guard. It was common for elves to pursue their education at a slower pace, and Matteo was no exception. He’d found the daily experiences in the guard more engaging, in any case, and as he had centuries to complete his degree he‘d begun taking fewer and fewer courses and pursuing them at an even slower pace. Meanwhile, he’d increased in rank in the guard, and eventually been promoted to work in the palace under the supervision of Gordon Fenning in the intelligence branch. He’d been on duty on the Night of the Crimson Death, when figures masked and robed in deep red had whirled through the city, spreading terror, chaos, and death. Matteo had helped protect the prince’s entourage during the flight after they’d found king Cedric murdered. They’d headed to Shinkyo, and that was where he found himself now, standing guard at the entrance to the underground compound that served as the prince’s headquarters.
The complex itself was borrowed from one of the Southern lords who supported the cause of Exian Liberation. The Masks, henchmen of the Holy Church of Salistrom still controlled the city and kept the citizens hostage. Now, if their intelligence was reliable, Exian forces were marching on Trylith, the Den of Sin and Thieves, the Great Northern Whore. Trylith was infamous for the number of warring criminal organizations that infested all levels of the city. It was the main port city of the north, and could muster a sizable naval force, at least in theory. If the church of Salistrom managed to control that navy, they would be extremely difficult to defeat. It had been more than a week since prince Lynel’s mysterious return from his secret mission, and his subsequent departure for the north. This time, he’d taken more support, drawing from the ranks of those who’d pledged their assistance to the cause. Mostly, it was the same group that had recovered the sword Seijun, plus the chancellor. That left Shevan in charge.
She hasn’t calmed down any since the prince’s return, which had been everyone’s hope. She riled against anyone who questioned her leadership. He’d heard various rumors flying around the compound, that Caena had talked her into forming a council based on the group that had advised King Cedric, or that she was leaving, or that she was mad. The first seemed unlikely, the third was nearly certain. Some people were just not meant to be in charge, and if this was the case, he could only hope that the second rumor was also true.
Matteo’s main concern was not with Loyalist administration, though, but with security. The day before the prince returned, the High priestess had let out publicly that there was a spy in their midst. She’d tightened security, taking some measure that seemed logical, but she was unwilling to listen to suggestions. Increasing the door guards from one to two made sense. He’d never fully accepted the earlier reason for cutting it back in the first place. Yes, their numbers had been low, and there were other concerns, but Gordon had always stressed the importance of good security.
He was still unsatisfied with their password system. Having one code word that never changed was ludicrous. Yes, their allies were fairly sparse, and it might be difficult for newcomers to identify themselves. Agents whose missions took them away from long or undeterminable periods of time would find it difficult to keep up with a randomly changing passcode, but there were ways around that as well, and Matteo could think of several.
He sighed. No one really liked guard duty, and he often found his mind wandering like this. He glanced over at John, who was stifling a yawn. Despite the fact that Elves didn’t need sleep, Matteo found himself mimicking the human soon enough. For all their security concerns, the truth was that almost no one even came to their hideout. There was a regular crowd who left to go out in the evenings, often coming back as late as the next morning. He was a member of that bunch often enough when off-duty, and knew them all fairly well. Servants sometimes left to run errands, but the majority of the Loyalists were fairly sedentary. There were still few enough of them around, especially since the prince had taken such a large crown up to Trylith.
Matteo stretched, and was surprised briefly to see someone approaching the exit. It was Hadyn, one of the most reclusive members of the cause. He rarely even attended the emergency meetings, and never ate in the communal hall. Most people ignored him, but there were two small but vocal camps which either defended or decried the elusive wizard. They both included a number of people who had either worked or traveled with him. They al seemed to know something they didn’t talk much about, and Matteo’s training inclined him to interest in these types of secrets.
There were other elements that added to the mystery. The first was his ties to the Alient Company, the group contracted by Gordon himself to investigate the warring Churches of Salistrom in Exia before the fall. The second was that he’d been among the group that had accompanied Gordon to the south to Shinkyo, before his boss had given up the ghost, as the humans said, and released his spirit from the magic binding it to another man’s body.
The third element of mystery was the large purple-black feline prowling down the corridor behind him. She didn’t fit Matteo’s understanding of what a familiar should be. She didn’t fit the description of any animal he’d ever heard of, either, not in the most outlandish songs he’d heard. She could be some kind of exotic panther, but she wasn’t. Her colour was wrong. Her build, though powerful, was too slender and her tail, with its wispy tuft, too slim. Her eyes were too intelligent, even for a familiar.
He nudged John, who started into alertness and blinked at Hadyn as he approached.
“Oh, hey.”
“I need to go out for a bit.” He sounded guarded.
“Well, we’ve got the log now.” John gestured at the register. Hadyn nodded, scowling slightly as he leaned over to scribble in his information. He walked out without another word. The two guards looked at each other and shrugged, but Matteo remained curious.
“Is he always like that.”
“Pretty much, yeah.” John, always casual, shrugged again. He saw the mage somewhat more frequently since he’d started his own studies in magic. Matteo was pretty certain that the interest was a direct result of John’s growing interest in the shy Kyla Smith, though he continued to deny the insinuation. “He’s all paranoid, mostly, but he’s really smart so maybe it all evens out. What did he put down?”
The elf was already reading the register, trying to decipher Hadyn’s hasty scrawling. “Getting supplies for something? Hmm. Alchemical supplies?”
“Yeah, Volaris had a list of stuff he wanted for the lab. Maybe he needed something?”
‘Probably.” It didn’t really matter. The higher-ups – those who liked Hadyn, anyway, seemed to give Hadya lot of leeway, and Volaris was certainly one of them. He could put anything down n and never get seriously questioned. The same was true of just about everyone, though. One of the druids had even gone as far as to scratch out something in some language none of the guards could read, which Kyla later translated as ‘none of your damned business.” The ledger was only ever going to trick people who were bad at keeping their lies straight, and whoever the mole was, they were certainly too clever to fall for that.
Matteo wished he knew more about Hadyn and some of the other Loyalists. As one of the few people remaining with any kind of intelligence or counter-intelligence training, he was sure he could be making more efficient contributions. He also knew that he wasn’t nearly as competent as Gordon had been… yet. It would take him a while, but he could, and would, stick things through here. The cause was worth it, and he certainly had the time.