[Well,] Caraid said in amus.e.m.e.nt, [looks like this Prince upgrade is going to come with a few new interesting abilities.][I wonder if you can level-up projectile vomiting?] He said laughing.
Before I could respond, still trying to remove the last vestiges of vomit from my face, I was interrupted by a door slamming against the wall as it was thrown open.
I braced myself, uncertain who the figures entering were and if I"d be required to fight again. I hoped not. I needed time. Time to reconcile my actions with events.
Startled by their entrance I lost the link to the power I had been channeling to maintain Belenos aura. A trickle of energy I hadn"t been aware I was using stopped flowing. The fires that still burned instantly extinguished, snuffed out as quickly as they had appeared.
Caraid was easily able to identify the intruder, [The man wielding the flail is Lord Kel, Thom"s father and the liege lord of this stronghold. The two brandishing the tonfa are his guards.]
"Tonfa?"
[Accessing your memories…]
[They are similar to the batons and nightsticks your law enforcement officers would employ on Earth.]
Comparing the two men, I didn"t see the resemblance. I wondered if the reason Thom was jealous might be because he suspected he was not the true son of Lord Kel. It wouldn"t be the first time a Lord had been made a fool, raising a son that is not his.
Thom was a brute of a man. Easily over 7 feet tall, with a body that reflected hours and years of exercise. He had a strong jaw, high cheekbones, and flowing blue hair. If it weren"t for the eyes, he would have closely resembled what most people envisioned a hero to look like. But his eyes were empty. No life, no fury, no hate, nothing. They suited him, a reflection on the qualities of his character.
There was nothing there to build a personality on. Maybe that was why he compensated. He chose to belittle and trivialize the worth of others as a mechanism to fill that emptiness by destroying others.
His father, on the other hand, was shorter, dressed in royal raiments and accouterments. He was softer, possibly from spending more time as Lord than in training, and his eyes, at the moment were filled with fury, no pools of emptiness. Anger was preferable to nothing.
At the moment, the worry and uncertainty he must be feeling were like sparks waiting to fan the inferno that could match my abilities, engulfing and incinerating everyone in the room. He was angry, confused, and afraid. Still, even in his confusion, he radiated a steadfastness that was built on a bedrock of experience and determination.
"What is going on here, and how did Odharc get into the Ascension chamber before his majority?" Lord Kel demanded.
"Father," Thom began falling to his knees, "it was a misunderstanding. We simply meant to show Odharc the chamber when he entered by mistake."
[What a contemptible snake.] Caraid said in fury.
[Entering the Ascension chamber without your liege lord"s consent and before your age of majority has been proscribed. Thom lying will place the onerous of his actions, and the repercussions on you.]
[You need to make sure that Lord Kel knows the truth, or Prince or not there will be consequences.]
"You are going to risk lying to your Lord, as a further transgression of what you have done here today, Knight Thom?" I asked, my contempt evident.
"There were no mistakes.
"You lured me to this place and compelled me to enter the ascension chamber using your Right of Inheritance as heir to our Liege Lord. It was a direct command, given from you to me.
"You have hated, abused, and conspired against me from the moment Lord Kel placed me in family quarters.
"Today you attempted to murder me, knowing that if I died in those chambers, no one would ever know what happened. I would have vanished and been labeled an ungrateful hybrid that spits on the hospitality I had received from Lord Kel. Someone lacking in all honor by abandoning my duties to my liege," I was positively seething and hissing in fury as I concluded my denunciation. My anger real even if Thom"s actions were directed at Caraid and not me.
If I thought Lord Kel was steadfast before, that composure was shattered at my p.r.o.nouncement. His despair and disappointment with his son were brief. Thoughts flittering quickly across his face, it was noticeable when he connected Thom"s actions and the ramifications of those actions.
The anger he"d demonstrated when he"d first entered the room was nothing compared to the inferno that blazed around him now. Recognizing what his son"s crimes might mean to him and his territories. I was worried for a second that he was going to disregard the truth, in order to protect his son, until he responded.
"You stupid, stupid boy!" he spat in a tone so cold and devoid of warmth it was even more unsettling than the fury that was contained within his eyes.
"What do you think Duke A"Daoine will think of your actions?
"What do you think he will think of a house that plots to destroy and kill one of its own?
"What. Do. You. Think. He. Will. Demand?
"He ordered our house to raise Odharc as one of our own, to show him and teach him the duties and responsibilities of what it means to be Seelie.
"What you have done here today. This betrayal of guest rights and family. These actions are what you think it means to be Seelie?
"How contemptible. Even Unseelie wouldn"t act in such a dishonorable fashion!"
"You leave me no choice," he continued, rage spent as quickly as it had appeared. Resignation and acceptance entered his voice, as his shoulders slumped in defeat, "You are stripped of rank! I renounce you and cast you out! Further, I remove from you your status as my heir, take back your royal prerogatives, and withdraw the protection of your name!
"You have no authority here!
"You are not a son of house Kel," he proclaimed.
"Guards! Strip him of his belongings. Allow him a set of clothing and 100 gold. Then escort him from these demesnes.
"He is declared anathema.
"If he is ever seen on our lands again, his head is forfeit. I name my daughter, Leian, heir to fief Kel."
[Actions have consequences: Your words have brought injustice to light. You have brought truth and justice to the man responsible for attempting to murder Odharc. You have been awarded 30,000 experience points. 9,970,000 experience points needed to Prince level 2.]
"Wait!" I thought to Caraid, "are people going to be able to strip me of my rank like that?"
[I doubt it.]
[There are certain criteria that need to be in place for someone to be able to do that. First, you have to be a direct descendant. Second, you have to be the declared heir for the bloodline. Finally, you have to have been complicit in performing an unforgivable transgression.]
[Thom tried to kill a guest of his house. A guest that had been awarded family rights.]
[Guest rights are sacrosanct, and any violation of those rights can have deadly consequences.]
"What"s stopping him from leveling up or hiring someone to a.s.sa.s.sinate me?" I asked. "Seems to me he"s going to be really p.i.s.sed about this, and his family and I are going to be the targets of his rage."
[Nothing. I"m sure he will do exactly that.]
[You will need to be on guard, and you might suggest to Lord Kel that he create a geas. A binding oath that protects you from Thom while you are in this demesne.]
"Why not a geas that stops Thom from taking any action that may harm me or Lord Kel ever?" I wondered.
[A geas that so tightly constrains an individual"s free will like that would unravel. The personality and the geas conflicting and battling for supremacy may even result in madness and insanity. It"s always better to place a geas that is as lightly controlling and narrowly focused as possible.]
I agreed, now how to phrase it in such a way so that what must have been a painful decision for Lord Kel didn"t transfer his animosity towards me.
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"Lord Kel," I started, drawing his attention away from his former son and towards myself. Once I had his full attention, I bowed my head slightly, my attempt to be as regal as possible, "I have full faith that you had no knowledge of this person"s intentions. What concerns me are any retributions he may attempt in the future towards you or your family."
Glancing back at his former son his face painted with anguish, Lord Kel nodded subtly conceding my concerns. "He wouldn"t dare harm my daughter, Leian, his mother, or I. He may not be my son, but my blood still flows in his veins. To attack me or his sister would condemn him, there would be no place or person in this world that would allow him safe pa.s.sage or refuge.
"But continuing to conspire against you is a real possibility."
"I can"t protect you completely, his connections are too numerous, his network of friends to widespread. But I can gift you with some protection while in my lands.
"Knight Thom," Lord Kel began, his voice echoing with power and vitality that permeated the very air contained within the room, "As Lord of these demesnes, I bind you. I forbid you from making any further plans, from hiring, or from doing harm to Prince Mac De Belenos while on these lands controlled by me or my va.s.sals.
"Do you accept this geas? Know that refusal will result in immediate death. Further, recognize that oath-breakers are punished by the Wild Hunt!"
Thom"s facial expression quickly morphed from resignation to indignation. I think he had hoped to plead his case and at least return to the family in a diminished capacity. Understanding the full gravity of his situation he bent his head in acceptance, "I, Knight Thom, accept the lawful geas placed upon me by Lord Kel."
A gong resonated within the room as a system announcement was displayed.
[Regional Announcement: Lord Kel has cast out his son Thom, stripped him of his t.i.tles, lands, and prerogatives and has declared him anathema in these lands.]
[Thom has been geas locked to do no harm to Prince Mac De Belenos.]
[All Hail, Commoner Leian, Lord Kel"s daughter, heir to the Kel demesne.]