Norren leads Kaptain Lucer into the Pantheon’s marbled receiving hall, the floors and walls so smooth and polished that the Drakhirri kaptain could see his own reflection in them as clear as any mirror. Although he had been to Esduin before, multiple times in fact, the architecture still awed him.
He found himself looking out through the columns and toward the sea. Not too far off was his ship,
The Sea Matriarch, anchored not so far away in the shallows.
“So... what brings you to our domain this time, kaptain?” Asked Norren, who seemed to have recovered from their talk on the dock, “isn’t it too early in the day for intimacies with…
Her Majesty?”
Lucer rolled his eyes. The Drakhirri kaptain's relationship with the elven queen was a very terribly kept secret among North Esduin’s higher ups, but he didn’t necessarily care what the nobles thought of him. Being in bed with the queen of a frightfully powerful nation had its perks, and he was about to exercise one of them.
“Well,” Lucer grunted, “I have acquired information that all of Esduin will be interested in hearing.”
"Hmph, we'll see about that," muttered Norren.
The two approached the thick oak doors to the second room and much like the ones at the entrance, they too had opened on their own accord. Lucer silently cursed under his breath, glad they swung back rather than outward and probably catching him in the face.
Norren entered first and bowed low to the throne and the graceful figure seated within.
“Your Highness,” he greeted as he raised, “Kaptain Lucer of Draklon has arrived.”
Queen Asmelda smiled as the Drakhirri kaptain stepped forward. “Kaptain Lucer,” she cooed, her smile still lingering, “what brings you to our humble isle? I trust this is no social visit.”
“My queen, I’ve come with important information and a request in exchange,” Lucer said and bowed.
The queen looked interested, “relay this information first, then I will hear your request.”
“Very well,” Lucer nodded. “Your majesty, do you remember the dwarves that once served under Esduin?”
Queen Asmelda’s face hardened, “of course I do. The Gravelgrinder clan betrayed us. They fled our land and disappeared overseas. Why do you ask?”
“Because in the Upper Norselands, my men and I have discovered a stronghold whose banners sported their crests.”
The queen looked fascinated. “Dwarves living in the coldest region of Northeros... It is no wonder we could never track them.”
“Yes your majesty, and from the looks of things they had been there awhile,” Lucer confirmed.
Queen Asmelda inclined her head, “this information you’ve provided will be most useful, now what was your request?”
Lucer grimaced, “the Gravelgrinder dwarves aren’t alone up there, as strange as it seems.”
“Go on," urged the Queen.
Lucer recounts his battle from over a year ago, "they’ve allied with a mountain nation by the name of ‘Frostborne’, and at my first encounter with them they just seemed to be a band of savages... I was wrong. It cost me several good fighters when I tried leading a raid on one of their settlements.”
“And now Frostborne has acquired our dwarvern technicians?” the queen said, realization in her eyes.
“Yes exactly my queen, and they haven’t forgotten about my men and I, that's for sure. Ever since our defeat, I’ve kept some tabs on them. They’re growing larger by the week; I fear they will find us and finish what’s left of my Drakhirri.”
“So you want us to help you defeat them?”
“We would be forever in your debt, your highness. Plus it’d be the perfect chance to get back at the Gravelgrinders, wouldn’t it?”
Queen Asmelda looked thoughtful for a moment. “It would, but if the Northeros Empire, let alone the Dwarvern Kingdom, sees a fleet crossing the horizon, some questions may spring up...”
She seemed to have voiced Norren’s concern, who during the entire exchange seemed to be itching to say something. “However,” she continued, “I would suppose that a small enough fleet would go unnoticed." She paused, almost seeming to hesitate.
"Yes, Kaptain Lucer, North Esduin will help you eradicate the Frostborne barbarians in exchange of the lives of the Gravelgrinder dwarves," she finally said.
"You are as benevolent as you are graceful, Queen Asmelda," Lucer murmured, containing his satisfaction.
"I know," the Queen said with a small but wicked grin. "Now go, Lucer. By my decree, Frostborne will be eliminated and our dwarves returned to their rightful homes..."
~THE END?~
Kaptain Lucer x Queen Asmelda.