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Kaiser was in the rear courtyard where the guard barracks were located and sparring with one of the other knights. He and the other were standing in the dirt circle, each holding a wooden sword in one hand and a bracer on the opposite arm. Kaiser had taken off his shirt and vest, leaving his upper body exposed and revealing the pendant that he normally kept tucked in his shirt. The trinket around his neck was a silver hawk with wings spread, dangling on a long silver chain.
The men in the circle were staring at each other, focusing and planning their next move. Kaiser’s opponent made the first move, starting off with a horizontal slash at his abdomen. The duke simply swiped the blade to the side, while leaning forward with the blade held back. Kaiser sent the blade forward, having it crash against the knight’s legs and forcing him to fall forward. Just as the knight was about to get up, his blade was pinned down by Kaiser’s foot and saw the wooden blade against his throat.
Kaiser looked down at his defeated opponent and then smiled. He pulled the blade away and helped the defeated knight up to his feet. The man looked up at the duke and smiled back. “Looks like I’ll be sleeping in the barracks tonight,” he said to Kaiser. The duke just laughed a bit and responded with a nod. “I suppose so, but you must admit that the palace rooms are quite wonderful,” Kaiser said with a smile on his face. The knight laughed as well and picked up his clothes and other items. “That they are, my lord,” he said simply.
As Kaiser was about to begin buttoning up his white shirt, a young servant came rushing up to him and bowed. “My lord, there is a messenger here who wishes to see Queen Esmedella,” the blonde,. teenage boy said. Kaiser was one of the few that knew that the queen was out on a short expedition with the leader of a powerful bounty hunter clan in hopes of establishing good relations and safe passage through their territories. The duke began buttoning his shirt and said, “Tell the messenger that the queen is not available, but that I will pass his message onto her. Also, say that I shall meet him in the entrance hall.” The servant boy bowed and ran off. The knight looked at Kaiser and said, “This is a little strange. The queen always informs us of the possibility of a messenger or a diplomat or any other powerful figure arriving at the palace. How come she did not let us this time, my lord?” The blonde noble had just finished tying his sword around his hip when he responded, “I don’t know, but I’ll find out.” Kaiser was then off towards the meeting place.
It took him quite a while to get from one end of the palace to the other, especially due to the fact that everybody was stopping him so that he could do some important task. Just as he was approaching the entrance hall, Kaiser thought to himself. Esmedella, you owe me this time. It didn’t take that long to pick out the messenger. He was the tiger-like humanoid that was elegantly dressed in robes of gold and green with the insignia of the small nation of Alterria, which was a peacock of dark green with feathers of various of hues of green behind it.
Kaiser approached the tiger man with his hand outstretched and said, “Greetings. Forgive me for the delay, but I was in the rear courtyard and I am temporarily dealing with the Lady Esmedella’s affairs in the palace.” The messenger smiled, his sharpened fangs showing, and shook Kaiser’s hand. “Do not worry about it, my friend. I understand that we all must do our duty to ensure order,” he responded, his thick accent focusing on each of the syllables. The duke nodded with a smile and the two released the others arm. Kaiser then started speaking, “The queen is going to be away for a few days, but I can make sure that any message you have for her will be passed along.” The tiger-man’s smiling face became much more serious, making him look a bit more vicious. He reached into the left sleeve of his robe and pulled out a rolled up parchment that was sealed by wax, bearing the Alterrian peacock. “My lord, the Marquis Noverto wanted me to pass this along to his niece, Queen Esmedella,” he said, holding the parchment out.
Kaiser grabbed the message and looked down at the wax seal, glistening in the light. “My lord also instructed me to let you know that if you were to be the one receiving the letter, you may want to read the letter. Seeing as how it not only deals with the future of her kingdom, but also of her entire life,” the tiger creature said in a lower voice. At the last part, the duke’s head shot up and looked into the messenger’s eyes. After a few seconds, Kaiser nodded and responded, “Thank you for your work. I will make sure she receives this and I will have a room prepared for you so that you may rest before setting out on your return trip tomorrow morning.” The messenger bowed and said, “Thank you. Your hospitality is most appreciated.” The blonde man motioned for a servant woman to come over and instructed her to show the tiger man to one of the guest rooms in the west wing. The woman bowed and cautiously guided him to his room, being slightly frightened by the powerful image he portrayed.
Once the messenger was out of sight, Kaiser began to walk quickly through the halls. He avoided a majority of the people as he headed towards the middle of the palace and the council chamber that was currently unoccupied by Esmedella and her advisors. Kaiser walked in, shut the doors behind him, and locked the doors. He walked over to one of the chairs that was surrounding the long wooden table and sat down. Kaiser looked down at the parchment, his fingers tracing the wax seal. He was debating whether opening the message and reading its contents was the appropriate thing to do. On the hand, he would be invading Esmedella’s privacy and be doing something dishonorable. But on the other hand, the marquis did say that he was permitted to read it and that it contained very important information regarding the queen’s future.
Kaiser broke the seal and unrolled the parchment. The light coming from the candles on the walls was dim, but it still clearly showed the writing on the parchment. He began to read the long letter from the marquis to his royal niece. At first, it seemed like a normal letter. He was wondering how she was, saying that he was okay, and other pleasantries expressed between close family members. But as the letter began to continue, Kaiser began going into a state of disbelief. The words that were written by the marquis were entering his mind, but they were having difficulty being processed. The information of this paper was almost unbelievable and absurd.
After several minutes and having read the letter a few more times, Kaiser rolled up the parchment again and stuck it into the sash around his waist. He let himself out of the council chamber and began to walk towards the rear courtyard. The duke, once again, managed to dodge all of the palace personal who were frantically looking for him. He reached to the dirt ring, where the knight was. Kaiser sat down on a rock and sighed. The knight approached him and asked, “Did you speak to the messenger?” Kaiser nodded. “Do you know what he wanted?” the knight asked again. The duke responded with the same nod. “Well, what was it, my lord?” the man questioned a third time, this time filled with curiosity. Kaiser looked at the knight with a grim look and simply said, “All I can say is that things are going to become far more complicated than before.”