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Post by Anne of Lothlorien on Mar 20, 2016 6:56:17 GMT -5
The Masked Man was gone. She quickly glanced around the room. It was completely empty. Hilla slowly walked to the door, a heavy stone door, set in the reddish rock walls. She held her breath and tried the handle. It was locked. She slumped to the floor, bringing her knees up to her head and wrapping the folds of her new dress around her knees.
"Where are you" she whispered. "I'm locked in here. That man, Kado, was terrible. I don't know if I can trust this Masked Man."
"Of course you can." Hilla screamed and scrambled to get up. She tripped on her dress and fell forward. The Masked Man leapt over the couch and caught her arms before she hit the floor.
"You know," he said, as he half carried her to the couch. "I never said you had to bow to me every time I entered the room."
"But...but how did you enter the room? It was empty...empty." whatever strength Hilla had recovered fled her body and she seemed limp and lifeless.
The Masked Man wiggled his eyebrows. "Wouldn't you like to know? Actually," he lowered his voice and whispered close to her ear. "I have a secret door behind one of these tapestries. But it's locked of course. Do me a favor and don't tell anyone." he glanced at the dress she was wearing. He quickly left the coach and stood at the corner of the room, leaning his head in his hand.
"The dress...so like her...so like my Katarin."
Hilla heard his mumblings. "Who...who was Katarin?" she hesitantly asked.
The Masked Man whirled to face her. "She was no one of importance... to you. She is in the past. Never speak of her again! Do you understand?"
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Post by SierraJoanne on Mar 20, 2016 7:22:36 GMT -5
Hilla shrank backwards. "Y- yes." she stammered.
The Masked Man rubbed at a spot on his temple. "Good." he said briefly.
Hilla stared at him, hur curiosity aroused, but too frightened to risk his anger by asking about this mysterious Katarin.
There was a knock on the door, and the Masked Man quickly crossed the room, seeming to take a breath to compose himself before opening it.
"M'lord," a man in the hallway said. Hilla shifted slightly on the couch, but couldn't see the new person's face.
"Yes, what is it?" The Masked Man asked.
The men's conversation was too low for Hilla to hear completely, and the scattered pieces she caught made no sense. Finally the Masked Man sighed. "Thank you, Jorgen."
There was the rustle of clothing, the man bowing, Hilla presumed, then footsteps.
"Jorgen," the Masked Man called.
The footsteps stopped. "Yes, m'lord?"
"Keep me informed."
"Of course, Lord Gregory."
The Masked Man shut the door and turned around to see Hilla staring at him with wide eyes. "What?" he asked, perhaps a bit sharply, running his hand through his hair. Jorgen had delivered bad news.
"Lord Gregory?" Hilla squeaked. "You're Lord Gregory?"
He almost groaned out loud. Instead, he snapped, "Yes."
"But you disappeared!" she exclaimed. "Everyone thought you were dead!"
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Post by Anne of Lothlorien on Mar 20, 2016 14:04:27 GMT -5
"Well, obviously I'm not. Or are you hallucinating?" the Masked Man asked sarcastically. "You know that's supposed to be a secret. But Jorgen couldn't shut his mouth in the presence of guests. Though he probably didn't know you were here."
"But...but..."
"Yes?"
"But how!" Hilla burst out. Strength rushed to her limbs and she sat bolt up right. "The assassin. The cliff. The...the body! We all saw it! I was only nine but I remember. The council seat told us..."
"Whatever the council seat tells you is probably a lie. It is never wise to trust them." the Masked Man rubbed his forehead. "The body was actually the assassin's assistant, whom I killed in defense. The council said that body was me because they wanted everyone to believe that I was a bad guy, and now was dead. The government is not usually tolerant of militant radicals who oppose them." he smiled wryly.
"But, wouldn't that make you a good guy?" Hilla was puzzled.
"Yes. Are you surprised?"
"Well, you're not supposed to be. The government told us..." Hilla trailed off into silence.
The Masked Man arched an eyebrow. "I told you. They spread lies to gain control of the people. They know who the Masked Man really is, but they don't know where to find me. The Caverns of Camelot are a very secret place. They don't want any uprisings to steal their power. They are controlling your lives for a very dark reason."
"What?"
"I cannot tell you. Yet."
"Wait!" Hilla almost shouted. "If you are on the same side as my brother, then why are you trying to lure him here with me?"
"Oh. I should explain. You see, I knew the Silent Hawk would never agree to meet with me. I am supposed to be a terrible man, and yes, I have tried. But he refused. So I thought after I'd lured him here with you, I would convince him that I really am on his side. You'd help me wouldn't you?" the Masked Man gave Hilla a gratifying smile.
"I'm not sure." Hilla replied. "I don't know if I've convinced myself."
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Post by SierraJoanne on Mar 20, 2016 18:38:12 GMT -5
"Well then," the Masked Man said. "I suggest you decide. Soon."
He bowed towards her and then headed to the door. He paused with his hand on the knob and turned back around. "If you are hungry, I can have food sent in to you. Otherwise, dinner is at six." He waved a hand towards a cord on the wall. "Ring the bell if you need anything."
"I..." Hilla's stomach growled, and she laughed nervously. "I guess I am a little hungry."
"Very well." The Masked Man nodded. "I shall have food sent in momentarily."
"Th-thank you." Hilla said quietly.
The Masked Man paused. "You're welcome." He said, his voice expressionless, then turned the knob and slipped out into the hallway.
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Post by Anne of Lothlorien on Mar 20, 2016 20:25:43 GMT -5
Hilla walked to a tall chair draped in golden rugs. She slowly sat down, trying to mentally process everything that she had just learned. The Masked Man was really Lord Gregory, a man supposed to be dead for years. There was a mysterious girl named Katarin from his past. And he was really on the same side as her brother, and she was now the bait for a devious yet seemingly well meaning trap with a supposedly good outcome. It was overwhelming. She sat in a stupor, thinking, and thinking hard.
After a few minutes, Hilla was startled by a timid knock on the door. "Who are you?" she called timidly.
"Phylliss, ma'm. I am here with your food."
"Come in."
The door opened and a short slender young woman entered carrying a tray full of tantalizing food. As the smell wafted to Hilla she suddenly realized how famished she was. She fairly grabbed the tray from Phylliss and scarfed the food down. After a moment she paused and saw Phylliss standing beside her.
"Phylliss?" Hilla began hesitantly. "Who...who was Katarin?"
Phylliss' eyes opened wide, and she darted them back and forth between Hilla and the door. "Who told you that name?" she whispered.
"The Masked Man, though he didn't mean to."
"She was... I don't know if I should say ma'm."
"Please?"
Phylliss sighed. "Please don't tell anyone I told you." she leaned in closer, speaking so low Hilla strained to hear. "She was his betrothed."
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Corissa, Maiden of Praise
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Post by Corissa, Maiden of Praise on Mar 21, 2016 17:26:00 GMT -5
"Was?" Hilla persisted.
"It's a rather tragic story," Phylliss said hesitantly, obviously still reluctant to speak.
"If I'm to help him, I need to know as much about him as I can."
"Very well; I suppose it won't hurt anything." Phylliss leaned closer to Hilla, and lowered her voice even further.
"It would have been about 8 years ago, only months before his supposed murder. The two of them were madly in love, but Katarin's father didn't have enough of a dowry set aside to please the father of Lord Gregory, so even though Lord Gregory didn't care anything about money, his father continued to put off the wedding and pressure Katarin's father for more and more of a dowry.
"Lord Gregory finally realized exactly what was going on, and he was absolutely irate that his father would be so miserly. So he determined that he would wait no longer, and that he and Katarin would elope- without his father's knowledge.
"Katarin didn't completely understand what was going on, although I guess she had a vague idea- but her father was willing, and that was enough was her, so preparations were hastily made.
"Whether Lord Gregory's father found out and made the rash decision or whether it was a chance tragic mistake I do not know," Phylliss continued, "But as Katarin was on her way to meet Lord Gregory and tie the knot, an assassin shot her. She didn't stand a chance- she was dead before Lord Gregory could say goodbye."
"So now you know." Phylliss stood, and made as if to leave, but paused at the door.
"And I do hope that you will help Lord Gregory- he dearly needs it." And with that, Hilla was alone with her thoughts again.
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Post by Anne of Lothlorien on Mar 23, 2016 9:41:03 GMT -5
Hilla left the rest of her meal untouched, though the smell was delicious and tantalizing. She stood up and wandered the room, touching a statue or stroking a vase. She felt as if the weight of one man's life had been placed one her. She knew his sorrow, his history, though it was a small bit, and his reaction to her question about Katarin was now plainly understandable.
To loose someone you loved was hard, she knew. Her parents...they had been.... Don't think of that, Hilla told herself. Think of Lord Gregory. Yes, loss of parents was hard, but to loose your love, the person you were going to marry... it would be almost unbearable. She had no experience with love like that yet, but it seemed as if he should have gone mad, or receded so far into himself that no one could help him out.
"And I do hope that you will help Lord Gregory-he dearly needs it."
Hilla recalled the words Phylliss had spoken to her. How could she help him without revealing that she knew about his past...about Katarin.
She wandered to a small shelf on the wall. A box there had been drawing her closer ever since Phylliss had left. It was a small box, no bigger than her hand, simple, made of wood. But a single brilliant stone was embedded on the top. Hilla gazed at it in wonder. She had never seen anything like it. It was clear, but hazy, as if she could see through it to another jewel inside. Colors swirled around, almost seeming to move and shift as Hilla stood fascinated.
Her hand reached out, almost involuntarily, to open the lid. In the back of her mind she thought it odd it wasn't locked. Slowly, slowly she raised the lid. She gasped.
The inside of the lid was engraved with the words, 'To My Katarin'. And nestled inside, on a small pillow of velvet, was a ring. A silver ring, delicate, an exquisite example of metalwork. Leaves and flowers swirled in a circle to surround a ruby, brilliant as the sun.
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Post by SierraJoanne on Apr 2, 2016 14:12:20 GMT -5
Hilla stared at the ring. She had never seen anything this delicate and beautiful!
She heard a gasp from behind her, and the box was snatched from her hands. "Don't touch that!" Phylliss cried, fumbling to shut the box and replace it on the shelf.
Hilla took a step back. "I- I was only curious."
"Don't go digging through the past, that's not what I meant when I said I hoped you might help!" Phylliss said, wringing her hands. "Oh, I never should have told you!"
"I'm sorry." Hilla ducked her head.
The woman shook her head. "Leave the past be." she whispered, then turned away, straightening the box among the other items on the shelf, so it looked the way it had before. When she turned back, her tone was brisk and normal again. "Lord Gregory sent me to tell you, his messenger reported that your brother is on his way."
Hilla's breath caught, the box and the ring temporarily forgotten. Caleb was on his way? He was alive, then!
Her joy faded as the nagging doubts surfaced once more. "Phylliss," Hilla began slowly. "Is there somewhere I can watch their conversation... without my brother seeing me?"
Phylliss gave her a long look, then nodded. "You'd have to ask Lord Gregory about that, though. Come now, I'll bring you to him."
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Post by Anne of Lothlorien on Apr 4, 2016 13:00:08 GMT -5
Phylliss led Hilla through tunnels of reddish rock. Down one passage and up another. Hilla's mind swirled with all the twists and turns. Phylliss glanced at her sympathetically.
"Almost there." she smiled.
Finally, Phylliss stopped before a blue door set in the rock. She timidly nocked twice.
"Who is it?" a voice called from within. Hilla recognized it as Lord Gregory's.
"Phylliss, sir, with the young lady. She wishes to ask you something."
"Let her in."
Phylliss opened the door and gave Hilla a little nudge.
"Go on." she whispered. "He's waiting for you. Ask him."
Hilla nervously stepped forward. The Masked Man was seated at a wooden desk in the very center of a plain room. He looked up at her expectantly.
"I-I...um...I. Could I listen to...to you talk to my...my brother? Without him seeing?"
"What for?"
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Post by Anne of Lothlorien on Apr 13, 2016 13:51:27 GMT -5
Hilla was suddenly confused. Why didn't she want to see her brother? Conflicting emotions swirled through her head, causing her to feel almost faint. She didn't want to see him after their argument, but... wouldn't it be right to talk? Shouldn't she let her brother know she was alright?
"I-I don't...know." she stammered faintly. "I just...don't think I should see him...now."
Lord Gregory rubbed his chin in thought. A light shone in his eyes, a dim light, yet full of understanding. He leaned forward and his voice was soft, sympathetic, and almost caring.
"Why don't you want to see him? What happened?"
"We...fought. I...told him...I didn't...I...I don't want to talk about it now."
Lord Gregory sighed. "I know. But...the times when we don't want to talk, is when we should." he turned away. "I once had struggles...just like you...with my brother. But my family was torn apart because of them. My brother...he broke away and joined the government. He rose in the ranks. He's one of their leaders now. I am fighting my own blood with everything that I have. Because of anger, dishonesty, and malice, brother is pitted against brother. And the whole land might be ravaged with the war. Don't hide it like I did."
Hilla stared at Lord Gregory. His past was so troubled, so difficult. And yet he was still fighting...for justice. She took a deep breath.
"Before the tunnel...I told him... thatI was leaving. That I was going to find my own way. Our parents were...dead, and he never seemed to care about me. He was always gone, vanishing at all hours, not even caring where I was. I was tired of being ignored. I had heard of a rebellion. I wanted to join. I wanted..." Hilla broke off with a bitter laugh, "I wanted to serve the Silent Hawk. But now, my own brother is the Silent Hawk, the leader of the rebellion, and I...I don't want to be back with him again, always being ignored. Never talking about our parents, about how much we miss them. I want him to feel. To show that he's sad. But...he never did. He was stiff and calm. And now...he just moved on with life like nothing had happened. And I don't want to see him and think that he doesn't care again."
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Post by SierraJoanne on Apr 14, 2016 18:31:22 GMT -5
Lord Gregory stared at her for a long moment before slowly nodding. "Go into the room next door, behind the tapestry of the dragon is a tiled mosaic. Press the blue, pink, and yellow flower petals at the same time. The mosaic will slide back and there will be a peephole in the wall of the hidden room. It looks out through that mosaic over there." He gestured towards an elaborately tiled section of the wall. "You will be able to hear and see everything, though if you are too loud your brother will also be able to hear you."
Hilla nodded and backed towards the door, away from Lord Gregory's penetrating stare. "Thank you."
"Hilla." his voice stopped her, "Don't make the same mistake I did. Don't let you and your brother be driven apart."
Hilla hesitated before she nodded. "I... I won't."
You might. You're still bitter at him, the nagging little voice in her head said. Hilla shook her head as she entered the hidden room and put her eye to the peephole.
I won't. Just becuase I'm mad doesn't mean I'll let us be driven apart. I won't.
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Post by Anne of Lothlorien on Apr 18, 2016 10:03:58 GMT -5
Are you sure? the voice persisted.
Hilla began to get frustrated. "Yes I am." she mumbled. She shook her head, annoyed at herself for getting upset over it. She had to be quiet now.
Hilla waited for her brother to come, but he didn't. She wanted to shift positions, but anywhere else wouldn't allow her to see the study. Lord Gregory continued to sit at his desk, shifting papers or mumbling to himself too low for Hilla to hear. A half hour passed, and still her brother didn't appear.
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Post by SierraJoanne on Apr 28, 2016 19:40:12 GMT -5
Suddenly the door was flung open. Caleb stode in, his expression unreadable. "Where is she?" he demanded of the Masked Man.
"Ah, Mr. Hawk, how good of you to join me." Lord Gregory stood and motioned to a chair. "Won't you have a seat?"
"I'll stand." Caleb said tightly. "Answer my question." His hand dropped to the weapon sheathed at his side. "Where is Hilla?"
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Post by Anne of Lothlorien on May 2, 2016 9:41:03 GMT -5
"Why here of course." Lord Gregory spread his hands out to encompass the whole room. "I have very fine accomodations, don't you think?"
Caleb slammed his hand down on Lord Gregory's desk, spilling an ink bottle and scattering stacks of papers to the floor.
"I've had enough of your games man! Where is my sister?" he roared.
Lord Gregory's face remained calm, almost bored. Hilla was surprised he was this unfazed at her brother's outburst.
"How can you have had enough? You've only been here two minutes. Or one even. Now that's hardly enough to form a sound opinion."
Caleb growled. "Where. Is. She? Before I slit your throat."
Lord Gregory shrugged. "All right, she's over there." he lifted his hand and pointed to the wall behind which Hilda stood.
Caleb whirled around, and Hilla flinched, somehow thinking he'd see her. But Caleb didn't. He scowled, then swiveled on his heels.
"I said, no more games."
"It's not a game. As I live and breath, she's over there."
Caleb yelled and leapt to Lord Gregory's side, drawing his sword. He held it before him in a fighting stance. Then Hilla heard a metallic cling, then saw the flash of steel, and suddenly, Lord Gregory drew his own sword faster than she could see and had Caleb pinned to the wall.
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Corissa, Maiden of Praise
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Post by Corissa, Maiden of Praise on May 4, 2016 13:54:28 GMT -5
Caleb stared at the man in a strange visage of fury and amazement.
Lord Gregory slowly lowered his sword and sheathed it again, returning Caleb's stare with a fierce glare of his own.
"Believe me, if I wanted you dead, you would have been long ago. But I do not delight in killing anyone, let alone a warrior as brave as yourself."
"Then why did you kidnap my sister?" Caleb growled.
"Kidnap? Did I ever say that I kidnapped her? On the contrary, my good man, I saved her from certain doom. Ask her yourself," Lord Gregory said with a flippant glance at the wall. Hilla caught her breath. Caleb searched the wall, and twice Hilla nearly cried out when it seemed they were making eye contact.
"What is it you want?" he asked, turning back to the Masked Man. "Do you want me to make a fool of myself by talking to a wall? Are you trying to determine the depths of my stupidity? I do not enjoy being toyed with, and were it not for my sister I would run you through this instant."
Hilla rolled her eyes. Seriously, Caleb? You already tried that. If Lord Gregory were not so honorable, you would be dead already, Hilla thought with disgust.
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