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| Vale of the White Horse | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: 5 Jan 2010, 13:03 (19,279 Views) | |
| Sonja | 13 Jun 2010, 21:19 Post #3751 |
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Red & dangerous! Rawr!
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Like Rhywallon. Despite everything, she had to smile faintly. It could be worse, she told herself. They were alive and wasn't that all that really mattered? If this group he was affiliated with was led by Silures, then perhaps it was the safest place they could be. Not that they could protect her against being pregnant... What if she really was? What would Rhywallon do? She didn't dare to ask. She'd held off on any contact more intimate than an embrace - not for lack of wanting, though. She was just so afraid. 'I'll be looking forward to meeting them,' she said when she realized she had been silent again. |
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| Marieke | 13 Jun 2010, 21:22 Post #3752 |
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Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
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‘…Good.’ He didn’t know what to tell her. Should he perhaps break her open as one might force a locked door? Maybe she would simply crumble if he did. And it might be a truth he did not want to know at all – better was the shadow of doubt, in which he could at least pretend that nothing was wrong. ‘It will not be much farther.’ |
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| Sonja | 13 Jun 2010, 21:31 Post #3753 |
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Red & dangerous! Rawr!
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Gwenllian nodded, putting one foot in front of the other, and again. Perhaps she'd get used to being on the run, some day. Maybe she'd find a way to get rid of the invisible barrier that seemed to hang between them now, too. Would talking do the trick? If she knew what to say, then perhaps it would. 'We'll not get there for dark, will we?' Hardly the magical words she'd hoped to find to make everything all right again. |
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| Marieke | 13 Jun 2010, 21:34 Post #3754 |
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Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
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He shook his head. ‘No, Gwenllian. But I promise it will not take another week.’ He stopped briefly. ‘I will carry you if I must.’ |
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| Sonja | 13 Jun 2010, 21:47 Post #3755 |
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Red & dangerous! Rawr!
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'You don't have to,' she said and drew up a smile. It was almost as if she had to drag it up all the way from her feet. 'I'll manage. But thank you.' Her arm twitched a bit. She wanted to touch him, but found that she didn't have the heart. |
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| Marieke | 14 Jun 2010, 21:11 Post #3756 |
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Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
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He was able to keep his promise. Within three days, they reached the familiar woodlands where he knew was the seasonal base camp for the brotherhood. Not everyone would be here. Morcant was probably still stationed near Caer March and Cuhelyn and a couple of others were with him. He had received no word of Gwyddien having relocated however, and it was his guidance he sought most of all. ‘Whatever you see or however they look at you,’ he told Gwenllian, standing on the slope that looked out over the tents, ‘don’t be afraid. No one will hurt you.’ |
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| Sonja | 14 Jun 2010, 21:21 Post #3757 |
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Red & dangerous! Rawr!
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No matter how they'd look at her, it could not be anywhere near as bad as how Sulpicius had looked at her, could it? Gwenllian nodded, longing for a long night's sleep without having to wake up to a day of walking again. And food. She could smell it in the air; a delicious scent of cooked meat. 'If they're your friends, I'm not afraid of them,' she said. |
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| Marieke | 14 Jun 2010, 21:23 Post #3758 |
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Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
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‘Allies,’ he murmured, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. He had never considered mingling in the group enough to become friends. Thought he didn’t need those. ‘Come on.’ |
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| Sonja | 14 Jun 2010, 21:32 Post #3759 |
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Red & dangerous! Rawr!
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She fell silent as they walked down the slope and into the camp. The scent of food got stronger, as did the sounds of human inhabitation. It was as if she walked into a completely different world; one that was if not safer, at least kindly disposed to them. Just before they entered the camp, a man appeared from behind the first of the tents. He looked positively fearsome, Gwenllian thought, what with the blue tattoos swirling over his face. 'Rhywallon,' the man said in greeting, before looking at her curiously. |
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| Marieke | 14 Jun 2010, 21:36 Post #3760 |
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Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
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‘Elgued.’ He squeezed his fingers in Gwenllian’s shoulders, then released her. ‘We’re both very tired and shaken.’ ‘Indeed, you look like a banshee from overseas,’ Elgued muttered. ‘What’s this new custom of our men to show up with strange girls? Did you take a chieftain’s daughter as well?’ Rhywallon’s mouth twitched, but he was too weary to bring up a smile. ‘Ah, you mean Morcant? Nothing like that. I don’t kidnap.’ |
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| Sonja | 14 Jun 2010, 21:44 Post #3761 |
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Red & dangerous! Rawr!
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'Then who is she?' Gwenllian felt a little uncomfortable under this Elgued's scrutinizing gaze, but at least there wasn't a sense of maliciousness emanating from him likeit had done from the Roman. 'My name is Gwenllian,' she answered before Rhywallon could, determined not to show that she was nervous. 'Pleasure,' Elgued said with a brief inclination of his head, before looking back to Rhywallon. 'What's happened?' |
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| Marieke | 14 Jun 2010, 21:50 Post #3762 |
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Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
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He gave a grumbling sigh. ‘I’ll talk to Gwyddien about it. If you’re there, no doubt you’ll get to hear it. But first Gwenllian needs food, and rest. And Elgued…No one to bother her improperly.’ |
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| Sonja | 14 Jun 2010, 21:56 Post #3763 |
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Red & dangerous! Rawr!
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'I'll tell the men.' Elgued looked as if he wanted to make another comment, but decided against it at the last moment. He simply stepped aside. Gwenllian followed him after a look on Rhywallon, who closed the line. It felt safe. Then perhaps things would get a lot better from now on. The smell of food made her stomach grumble, and she suddenly realized how much she longed to scrub the dirt of their days on the run off of her before sleeping the day away. |
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| Marieke | 14 Jun 2010, 22:01 Post #3764 |
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Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
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Reaching a large fire, where flames shot up into the air, he gently pushed Gwenllian down on the log beside it. ‘Rest,’ he told her, feeling his own legs ready to cave in. Ah, but he couldn’t, not yet. ‘There’s enough food here. Take what you need.’ |
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| Sonja | 14 Jun 2010, 22:02 Post #3765 |
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Red & dangerous! Rawr!
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'What are you going to do?' she asked, her voice a little higher than usual. She really didn't want to be left alone, what if something dreadful would happen again? |
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| Marieke | 14 Jun 2010, 22:06 Post #3766 |
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Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
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He wanted to tell her he’d just be with Gwyddien for a bit. Yet the look on her face was of such desolation, that he swallowed. ‘Nothing. Nothing.’ Gwyddien could come from his tent and sit with them. |
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| Sonja | 14 Jun 2010, 22:15 Post #3767 |
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Red & dangerous! Rawr!
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She slowly released the breath she hadn't realized she was holding. Elgued had left them, but other men walking past kept throwing glances at them. At her, more specifically. Gwenllian looked at the fire. Placed over it was a rig with a pot hanging from it. A couple of bowls stood next to the fire, and she scrambled to her knees to get them some of the food. Every movement hurt, but she grit her teeth and tried to ignore it. 'Here,' she said quietly and gave Rhywallon the bowl. When she sat back with her own, she realized she didn't even have the strength to eat it. |
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| Marieke | 15 Jun 2010, 19:01 Post #3768 |
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Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
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There was silence for a while. He heard it ringing through the crackling of the flames, the murmurs of the brotherhood. They left them well alone, forming a small open circle around their log. After a while he heard footsteps. A moment later a person sank down next to him, keeping an arm’s length of distance. Rhywallon bowed his head briefly to Gwyddien. Elgued stood behind him as a shadow, a bodyguard. |
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| Sonja | 15 Jun 2010, 19:10 Post #3769 |
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Red & dangerous! Rawr!
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Gwenllian looked at the man that had taken a seat next to Rhywallon. It was an older man, though he looked powerful despite his irongrey hair and. His gaze was piercing, but friendly. 'So you are our latest visitor,' he inquired. 'Gwenllian, your name is?' She nodded her head. The visitor before her must have been that girl Elgued had spoken about, kidnapped by the man named Morcant. Did they do that more often, she wondered, kidnapping girls? 'I am Gwyddien,' the man continued. Good men, Rhywallon had said they were. She certainly felt as though this man could be trusted; confided in. 'Tell me what happened.' He looked at Rhywallon, his head held at a bit of an angle. |
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| Marieke | 15 Jun 2010, 19:17 Post #3770 |
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Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
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He tried to speak, but needed a moment to gather his courage. ‘I overestimated my own capacities.’ It was hard to force himself to say that. ‘Gwenllian got badly hurt in the aftermath. We have…momentarily no safe place but here.’ There was a bitter taste in his mouth, despite the wild, roasted meat. ‘I see.’ Gwyddien looked into the flames for a while. The silence made Rhywallon uncomfortable. Behind the man, Elgued shifted, his gaze sharp. |
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| Sonja | 15 Jun 2010, 19:24 Post #3771 |
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Red & dangerous! Rawr!
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She braided her fingers together in her lap, a little nervous for no reason she could see. There wasn't really anything she could say, and she didn't like it. Gwyddien had his lips lightly pursed. 'It seems this is weighing heavily on the both of you,' he continued. 'I assume it has to do with your personal quest?' |
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| Marieke | 15 Jun 2010, 19:27 Post #3772 |
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Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
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‘That quest is finished,’ he growled, pressing his lips together hard. After all, everything about that was ruined now – and what did it matter? ‘I was foolish.’ Gwyddien turned his bright eyes on him. He felt oddly like a boy. ‘It must cost you all of your strength to say that aloud,’ he observed mildly. ‘Well.’ Dignity was only a burden to him at this point. ‘It doesn’t matter.’ |
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| Sonja | 15 Jun 2010, 19:33 Post #3773 |
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Red & dangerous! Rawr!
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'It does,' Gwyddien continued calmly. 'A brave man doesn't just know how to fight against the odds, but also has the strength to admit that the odds overwhelm him.' Gwenllian wanted to reach out and touch Rhywallon's arm to give him some support, so tormented did he look, but she didn't dare to with the other men around. Instead, she shifted a little and tried to support him in thought. |
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| Marieke | 15 Jun 2010, 19:37 Post #3774 |
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Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
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‘That’s great, Gwyddien.’ He unclenched his fingers, then tightened his fists again in an exercise of control. ‘Your philosophies are admirable, but I don’t want to hear them now. For confessions, I’ll turn to the gods from hereon. You want to know facts. Unfortunately, I failed in eliminating one of our people’s most dangerous enemies, the Roman called Spurius Sulpicius.’ |
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| Sonja | 15 Jun 2010, 19:42 Post #3775 |
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Red & dangerous! Rawr!
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Rhywallon's tone almost made her wince. Gwyddien's face hardly changed, but she thought she saw something shift in his eyes. 'I see. Well, facts then.' The man leaned back, turning his gaze on her. 'You failed, and I suppose the reason was Gwenllian's presence?' She suddenly felt guilty and had to do her best not to look away. |
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| Marieke | 15 Jun 2010, 19:52 Post #3776 |
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Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
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‘No, as a matter of fact, it was not.’ It was a curt answer, but he wanted to growl it. Elgued was still staring down on all of them, assessing the situation. ‘On the contrary, without her presence I would not have returned to you. So, he lives and is currently on the border of Silures territory –’ ‘Do you suppose he will rise as a threat to our cause?’ Elgued interrupted. Rhywallon nodded. ‘Of course. The man has no conscience. I would say he is our worst enemy from hereon; we should station men there, but make sure they remain well out of his reach.’ ‘We have our men currently sent to the Vale of the White Horse,’ Gwyddien answered with a measured voice. ‘From what we gathered, it is where the Tribune Marcus Lentulus is.’ |
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| Sonja | 15 Jun 2010, 19:58 Post #3777 |
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Red & dangerous! Rawr!
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'The only thing Lentulus is threatening at the moment, is the fidelity of the Vale's married women,' Gwenllian said softly, speaking more towards the fire than to the men gathered. Gwyddien raised his eyebrows. 'He's a political wolf, too,' he remarked dryly. Her cheeks started burning. 'Yes,' she admitted, 'but he's a cub compared to the monster that is Sulpicius.' |
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| Marieke | 15 Jun 2010, 20:03 Post #3778 |
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Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
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Elgued leaned forward.. ‘Gwyddien, I believe we should take this report seriously.’ ‘Hrm.’ The man ran a hand through his hair, where little braids bobbed up and down in the gesture. ‘And you propose – what? We’re too small to have good man at both camps.’ Elgued’s face hardly changed in the firelight. He had hard features, enhanced by the swirling pattern of tattoos. ‘I can go to the Vale myself; keep an eye on this Lentulus. Then you can dispatch the other men to form a circle around Sulpicius’ camp.’ Now he smirked slowly. ‘What must hide inside a rabbit hole is sure to be killed accordingly.’ |
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| Sonja | 15 Jun 2010, 20:09 Post #3779 |
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Red & dangerous! Rawr!
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'It has merit,' Gwyddien said slowly and turned to Rhywallon. 'Lentulus is definitely less of a threat than Sulpicius, then?' |
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| Marieke | 15 Jun 2010, 20:15 Post #3780 |
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Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
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‘Lentulus is more patient,’ he replied. ‘Therefore, he can wait to be dealt with.’ |
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