The Crimson Fang

As the Crimson Fang assembled on the other side of the Mirror of Shadow-Walking, King Albert and Davinthos were waiting for them. They certainly seemed more elated than the last time they had met up. “We were wondering how long it would take you to get back.” King Albert was ecstatic as he greeted the Fang. “We figured you would be coming back soon. I felt Serpenthos’ death, as I am certain all the Altros did. It is good to see you back and well, Ami. Not that I had any doubt the others would reach you before anything happened.” Davinthos smiled and hugged her. “The Altros are going to become more secretive in their dealings, now. They have seen the consequences for a bold, open attack, so they will be more subtle. That is, if they don’t go into hiding altogether.”

They all move into the audience chamber, where they would have more room to move, and so that King Albert could sit while he spoke to them. “I have a mission lined up for you. This mission will take precedence over your hunt, but not replace it. We have a possible lead on a group of Altros led by another Highlord. However, we only have the city that in which they are located. You are to find them and destroy them, no matter how long it takes. This means you will likely be away from Crimsonia for quite some time, maybe even years. During this time, you will be staying in a house owned by the Crimson Nobles, used as a safe house for a Conduit, located in the city. It is your choice whether or not you accept the mission, or if you wish to allow somebody else to handle it, so you may continue hunting those filthy creatures down. Do you accept?” The Crimson Fang looked at each other, smiled, and bowed. “We accept the mission. It shall be done.” King Albert smiled back at them. “It is settled, then. Here are the coordinates of the city.” He motioned to Davinthos, who gave them a piece of parchment with some numbers on it. Geoff looked at the numbers, confused. Sakura patted his shoulder. “These are latitude and longitude. It is how the world’s many locations are marked,” she informed him. “But why are you giving us the coordinates, instead of having us take the Mirror?” Joseph asked. “Unfortunately, we do not know if the Conduit is marked by the Altros. This is one of the first things I want for you to check when you arrive. If it is marked, I need you to send me a message, via one of our carrying birds,” King Albert motioned toward a hawk. “We will send somebody to disarm it, placing a trap on it that will make the Altros believe it has not been tampered with. If it is not marked, then I want for you to send one of your members through to inform us. This way, the Conduit becomes usable to us once more.” “What do you mean ‘marked’?” “Davinthos has informed me that the Altros have placed powerful magic on many Conduits, in order to inform them of our presence, if they are used. That was they can escape or hunt the Crimson Nobles who use them down. Hopefully this one is not marked, as that would mean that using the house would alert the Altros that you are in the city.” The Fang looked at the parchment, once more. “Unfortunately, you are going to need to travel by land to the city, for which arrangements are being made, as we speak. Whilst you are there, you will assume the role of a noble family. There will be staff members in the house that will be able to provide you with your roles. You will be attending social gatherings and events, both to keep up your appearance, as well as seek out your targets. Good luck.” He began to walk away, but then turned back. “I almost forgot. Elder Simon, could you teach them what we discussed?” Everyone was taken aback, as Elder Simon came out of the shadows. “It would be my honour, my king. Gather round, members of the Crimson Fang. I will teach you how to hide your identities.” They gathered around him, eager to learn what he was teaching to them.

The Fang took their leave, preparing to make way on their journey. They packed some fine clothes, as well as any other supplies they would need to pass themselves off as humans. There was a carriage waiting outside the main gates to the city, which they climbed into. It was extravagant, covered in jewels and gold trim. Draken knocked on the walls. “This is solid ebony! We really are travelling in style!” “Where did you learn so much about wood?” Sakura asked him. “When you live in the wild, as I have, you learn these things.” “That’s pretty impressive. I don’t think I’ve read any books on the subject.” They travelled for several weeks, practicing their arts along the way. They perfected what Elder Simon had taught them, changing their eye colour to look more common, as opposed to the striking red that they usually were. Joseph had settled on a deep brown, with a hint of yellow. Sakura and Ami had turned their eyes an emerald green colour. Geoff has decided that his eyes looked best as a yellowish colour. Draken’s eyes became a dazzling, deep blue colour. “It’s like looking into the ocean,” Sakura told him.

They finally arrived in their target city, and pulled up to an extravagant, palatial estate. “Oh, you’ll be staying in a house,” Draken said in a mocking tone. “This isn’t a house; it’s a small city in itself!” The others laughed at his joke. As they approached the front doors, they opened on their own, or so it seemed. There was a well-dressed man inside, signalling for them to enter. “First and foremost, new masters, thou shalt need to work in thy manner of speech. The people in this city have yet to be on par with thy relaxed way of speaking. Secondly, we welcome thee to the grand city of Carten. I assume thou art the Crimson Flame?” Joseph stepped forward, offering the man a salute. “It is ‘Fang’, not ‘Flame.’ I am Joseph, unofficial leader. It is nice to meet…thee.” “Very good, I shall see to it that all members of thy staff are made privy to the actual name of thy party. I am Walter, and I am head of thy staff. Also, I ask that thy speech not sound so strained. It needs to flow more, shall we say, naturally? Lord Albert sent us word of thy arrival, as well as instructions for thee. We are to inform thee of thy roles during thy stay. However, thy first order of business is to tend to the Conduit of Shadow-Walking. Follow me this way, if it pleases thee.” He led them to a cellar, through several rooms, explaining the rooms as they went. Draken kept talking to Ami about how much more complicated he was making their speech, and she giggled. “Walter, we will require coaching on our speech so that we may speak more like thee. I believe it would be paramount to us passing ourselves off as humans,” Joseph said to him during their tour. “That is an excellent observation, my lord. I shall see to it that once of the staff is available to tutor thee.” “Thank you Walter. I mean thank thee.” “There is no need to show me gratitude, Lord Joseph. I am merely completing mine duties as they are required of me. We have come to the Conduit room. I hope that there is no need to complete any maintenance on it, as that would create quite an inconvenience.” He opened the door and led them inside. Joseph and Draken looked around the room, trying to find any sign of entry, while Sakura and Ami tried to sense any unusual presence. Geoff was asking Walter if anybody unknown had entered the estate. Feeling satisfied that nothing was out of the ordinary, Joseph sent Sakura through to inform King Albert that the Conduit was not marked. When she returned, they all went upstairs as Walter continued to explain the various rooms.

Once upstairs, Walter began to go over the details of their mission. “Tonight, thou shalt attend thy first social event. Ser Geoffrey, thou art to pose as Earl; Lady Sakura shall be his wife. Lord Drakenarius, thou art t pose as heir to the family line, in succession. Lord Joseph, thou art the youngest son, which means that if thy brother, Drakenarius, were to pass, thou would be next in line as heir. Lady Ami is to act as Lord Joseph’s fiancé. Now, I shall summon the staff to assist thee in preparations for the party.” He snapped his fingers, and several members of the estate’s staff almost instantly appeared.

The Fang was assisted by the staff in selecting and dressing in their clothes. They were fancier than was they had brought along, and fit snug in many places. Joseph chuckled to himself as he thought about how much Draken must be protesting. He couldn’t even stand dressing in normal Human clothing, he laughed to himself. One of the humans looked up at him, showing concern. “I apologize for that; it is nothing,” he informed him.

The five of them met up in the main foyer of the estate, once they were all dressed. Draken was, of course, the last to arrive. He was coming down the stairs while several humans were still attempting to put more clothing on him. “I am not wearing that!” He was attempting to deny putting extra pieces of his outfit on, although it was of little use. “Joseph is not wearing it! Why the hell should I have to?” Joseph laughed. “As the heir, you have more clothes and accessories to wear than I do.” “It is the way Humans are, Draken. As the heir, you have to wear many more fineries than your younger brother. You will be under much more scrutiny than he will, as much more is expected of you. It is just something that you are going to have to deal with. And I expect you to behave yourself, young man!” Sakura laughed at her little joke. She was clearly going to enjoy herself. The Fang walked outside, where their carriages were waiting. There were three separate carriages. “Why are there three? Are we not going to the same place?” “It is a symbol of thy status. The first carriages shall house the Earl and his wife. The second carriage is how the heir shall arrive to the party. The last shall carry the youngest and his fiancé, which of course shall have the least attention brought unto it. When thou have arrived at thy destination, thou shalt await for the carriage door to be opened, before thou art to exit the carriages. Good luck to thee, and god speed.” Draken decided it was time to complain about something new. “Do we have to talk like you?” he whined. Sakura smacked him in the back of his head. “Of course we do! We need to ensure that the humans believe that we are one of them, and if the Altros are present, it will allow us to blend in as well.” They loaded up into the carriages and departed for the party.

Once they arrived, they had to wait for a little while before the doors to the carriages were opened, as the other guests had to exit their carriages. Then, Geoff and Sakura’s carriage opened and a voice shouted, “Presenting the Earl Geoffrey and the Lady Sakura, of the House Crimsoni!” Geoff exited the carriage with Sakura hanging on to his arm. The other guests eyed them suspiciously, not recognizing these new faces. They ignored the stares, keeping the illusion that they were better than everyone else; another sign of their status. Again the voice shouted; “Presenting Lord Drakenarius, Lord and heir to the Earldom of Crimsoni!” Draken exited his carriage and walked behind his “parents.” There were more stares, as well as many whispers. Draken could hear words like “heir” and “handsome” coming from the crowd. The last carriage was opened, as the voice shouted once more. “Lastly, present the Lord Joseph of House Crimsoni and his fiancée, the Lady Ami!” The crowd became completely silent as the two exited the carriage together. The previous two carriages had carried exactly what the guests had all expected. The first had held a man and woman who carried themselves with obvious strength. The second had carried a young man who was handsome, and clearly knew it. The two that had exited this last carriage, though, surprised everybody in attendance. They were quite possibly the two most beautiful people anyone had ever seen. They walked with an air of confidence that resembled those without fear, but with the grace of the very king and queen themselves. It was only when the family had completely entered, that anybody spoke again.

Once inside, the family was once again announced. The guests inside had nearly the same reaction, with the exception of the sighs that were quite audible when Draken and Joseph were announced. “What do we do now?” Draken whispered to Sakura. “We need to mingle with everybody here, while trying to find any information on the Altros,” she replied. She and Geoff walked over to a group of other lords and ladies to introduce themselves. Draken went over and stood by a wall, attempting to avoid making contact with the “shallow humans,” as he referred of them to Joseph and Ami. This proved to be futile in the end, as a group of the young, single ladies instantly rushed and mobbed him. Comments were made such as, “thou art so handsome tonight, my lord,” and “Thy eyes are so striking; I may become lost in them forever.” Another group flocked over to the young “couple.” The two of them attempted to back away, but before they knew it, they were surrounded. They were asked questions like “How did thou meet?” and “Why could I not be thy fiancée?” Others asked about how they had never seen or met the family before. Some of the ladies were telling Ami how beautiful she was and how beautiful a couple they made.

After a while of this, (Geoff and Sakura were seen over with the other family heads, laughing) dinner was announced. Everybody at the party made their way into the dinner hall, where an enormous table was set. They were all directed to their seats. Geoff and Sakura were seated at the host’s end of the table, with the other lords and ladies. The others were placed at the other end of the table, with the other children. “Great. More of this nonsense,” Draken whispered to Joseph, before he was separated from the other two.

Sakura and Geoff took this opportunity to learn everything that they could from the other lords and ladies. This included learning a great deal of information on the latest in human culture, as well as the rumour that their host was “new money.” He had apparently bought the property less than a few days ago. Nobody knew anything further about him, having not seen or met him before.

The three on the other end of the table had nowhere near the same amount of luck as them. They never even had a chance to ask any questions. The other party-goers had been unsatisfied with the time before dinner, and began pelting them with even more questions. One young lord, in particular, absolutely refused to leave Joseph alone. “How long hast thou been a member of nobility?” “I have been a noble member of my family since birth.” “Where didst thou meet Lady Ami?” “Our families have been friends for years. Our parents arranged the marriage.” The questions kept coming until “Dinner is served,” was announced.

The host and his wife entered, accompanied by their son. To the dismay of the Fang, none of them could sense any trace of Altros among them. The host sat at the head of the table, along with the other lords and ladies, while his wife and son sat at the end of the table with the others. The son sat himself down in a chair beside Ami. “Allow me to introduce my family. I am Anfred, head of the house of Drexel. This is my wife Allison and my son, Robert. “The two of them stood when their names were called. The servants placed dishes on the table, as the introductions were made. “Now, let us commence the feast!”

Everyone began eating. Even the Fang, who had never consumed human food, ate to keep up their appearances. Robert put his utensils down and turned to Ami. “Forgive my forwardness, milady, but I must tell thee this. Thy beauty hath astounded me beyond words. This may seem a little blunt, but I do believe that I have become smitten with thee. It is love at first sight!” Ami stared at him, dumbfounded. “Prithee, tell me thy name, my angel.” She turned to Joseph for help. “Ahh, but my angel is the strong, silent type. That shall merely make for the chase to be far more interesting.” Joseph decided to speak up. “As much as it pains me to do so, sir, I am afraid I must inform thee that thy angel is my fiancée. Robert looked utterly shocked. “But thou art so young!” The conversation continued in this manner until an announcement was made that dinner was over. Everyone adjourned back into the main entrance, where Lord Anfred thanked all the guests for attending, while seeing them out. The guests slowly left, along with the Fang.

When the Fang had arrived back at the estate, they were greeted by the staff. “I never want you guys to put me through that again!” Sakura looked at Draken, a look of disappointment in her face. “We’re going to be going through this again, many times. There’s no choice. We didn’t obtain any information on the Altros’ whereabouts. We are here as long as it takes, as per our orders.” Walter spoke to them, “Another gathering has been scheduled for tomorrow evening. We shall have thy outfits prepared for thee tomorrow. We fully expect you to cooperate with the staff tomorrow, Lord Drakenarius.” Draken sighed, entering the estate.