Ella mouth gaped open
"I-I didn't"
she closed her mouth turned on her heel and stormed out, but before she left
"I'll think about it now that you said that"
she continued walking pushing open the door, she glanced back at the guard and gave him a nod to let him know she was finished
"I might be back a little later, he wishes to speak to me again."
she smiled then headed out of the dungeon and made her way back to her room and plopped on the bed facing the ceiling
"what am I going to do, the king wants to marry me tonight"
she closed her eyes
'then that man wants me to bring him a pint of blood to help me kill the king, what am I going to do?'
she sighed and then thought about mathuriel and everyone else
"I hope the group is doing ok"

Elyan nodded to Valeria and started to walk off.
"Well, I guess it's time for me to "acquire" a guard outfit. Let's see...which way was it to the barracks again? I'm sure I'll run into it at some point."
He made his way to town. The thought of buying a map crossed his mind.

Valeria made her way back to her family's home. She saw the small-ish, lavish house, and sighed heavily. 'The fruits of father's labors.' She thought to herself. As she walked towards the house, she spotted her older sister, sitting in the small garden. 'Here goes.' She took a deep breath. "Merrideth?" She spoke softly to her older sister.
Valeria's older sister looked almost like her, only maybe a year or two older than Valeria. She lifted her head slightly, and looked at Valeria in disbelief. "What are you doing here?"
Valeria walked into the garden, with a concerned expression on her face. "I need your help, Merrideth." She said.
Merrideth put the book she was reading down, and patted the place next to her on the bench. "What's wrong?"
"Well," Valeria remained standing, as she looked around the garden. "Can we go for a walk?" She asked. "I really don't want to discuss this here."
Merrideth nodded her head. "It's probably for the best." She said, as she rose to her feet. "Father will be back any moment now."
Valeria walked out of the garden, leading her sister way from her former home.

The king entered the room and walked to the bedside, looking down at Ella.
"Is someone tired from visiting prisoners without asking permission?" he teased.
The next thing Ella knew, she was wearing a collar that chained her to the bed.
"Perhaps a certain bitch needs to be taught to stay when told to."

Mathuriel watched them go and turned to Allora.
"Our task... is going to be neutralizing Ella. You OK with that?"

Ella quickly sat up when he spoke about the prisoner and her meeting him
"But I..I didn't...."
before she could say anything else she felt the collar around her neck. She placed her hands on the collar feeling it. At this point there was nothing she could really do. Fighting the king would only make him angrier with her and if he wanted to he could simply have her killed. She hung her head.
"I'm sorry your majesty. I was told by the guard that a prisoner wanted to see me. I didn't know I wasn't allowed in the dungeon."
she looked up at him
"I would understand if you wouldn't want me as your queen. Since I'm apparently a bitch who needs to be taught"
for the king it could have sounded like she was being smart


Allora nodded
"So how do you want to neutralize her?"
she looked up at him
"whats your plan?"

Ella's clothes vanished, and the king slapped her hard in the face.
"Keep that attitude, and it's going to be so much fun beating it out of you," he said, smiling kindly. "I'll train you to be a good queen. You've still got some fire in you, but you'll learn this is... hmm... a very one sided partnership." He slapped her again.
"Now what should you say to me?"

Mathuriel looked sideways at Allora. "Just so we're clear... you don't have a problem killing Ella if it comes down to it?"

Ella winced and cried out when he slapped her the first time. It took all she had to fight back the tears welling up in her eyes. She had placed her hand on the freshly pink skin it was tender to the touch. Being slapped like that had brought back too many bad memories. She was about to retort but then he had slapped her again, this time it was hard enough to knock her over to where she was now laying on her side. Sparks started to fly out of her fingertips as anger set in but she fought it back. Instead she clenched her fist took in a deep breath
"I'm sorry your majesty"
she exhaled the rest of her breath as tears started to stream down her face. Her face hidden behind her hair
'this was a big mistake, what have I gotten myself into. Ella how could you have been soo stupid'



Allora crossed her arms
"I dont know the woman well enough, therefore i have no problem killing her if need be"
she raised a brow
"I think the question falls more on you...will YOU be able to do it?"

After making his way into town, Elyan asked around and eventually found out where the barracks are. He waited for the cover of night to make his move. He looked at the outside of the barracks and saw two guards standing in front of it.
"Only two...works for me. Looks like I was right thinking that they'd have a little less security at this time."
A slight grin crossed his face as he looked around to see what would be the best way to the entrance.
"Let's see...around those houses...under the bridge...past the stables...that should work."
He mumbled vague directions to himself, getting ready to make his move. Soon after, he quietly started to make his move, keeping himself as well hidden as possible. But despite his best efforts, he couldn't get close enough to the guards to attack them without warning.
"Hmm...what now? I can't get any further than this without them noticing. There's got to be some way to bring them over to me."
He smiled, having a sudden burst of inspiration. While standing behind the building, he knocked loudly on it to get their attention. The horses in the nearby stable seemed to be slightly startled, and the guards immediately turned their attention in that direction.

"Huh? What was that noise?"
The other guard shook his head.
"I don't know...I'll go check it out. It's probably just some idiot trying to cause trouble."
He walked over to where Elyan was.
"Hey! Who's there?!"
Elyan was pressed up against the wall so that the guard would have to be very close to see him. You can imagine how that turned out.

Elyan grabbed the guard from around the corner and slammed him on the ground behind him, knocking the guard out instantly.
"One down," he muttered to himself.

Time passed and after a few moments, the other guard called out.
"Hey! Is everything alright over there?"
Nervously, he left his post and went behind the building to see what was going on. When he found his unconscious comrade on the ground, he gasped. That was all he could manage before Elyan jumped down from the roof onto him and slammed him into the ground, knocking him out.

Elyan dusted himself off and started to walk inside, mumbling to himself.
"That wasn't too bad, actually. Let's see if anybody's home."

"That's better."
He noticed her rubbing the tender skin, so he roughly pulled her hand away and slapped it even harder, and harder still.
"If you don't learn from that, next time I'll draw blood," he hissed in her ear, before kissing her roughly and throwing her on the bed. "Now stay here and if I catch you attempting to escape, I'll cut your limbs off and leave you as a ugly stump."
He left the room, leaving Ella chained to the bed.

Mathuriel gave Allora a look that bordered on murderous.
"Don't test me. Don't."
He was leading her around the castle, moving to the back forest behind the castle. "We're going to teleport into the king's room, and you're going to keep a lookout whilst I deal with her. Got it?"

Ella flinched and whimpered each time he slapped her. The side of her face was now throbbing with pain. She wanted to push him away when he forcefully kissed her but she was in too much pain to do so and knew that if she did he probably would hit her again. When her threw her on the bed she pulled her legs up, curling up into a ball. She held her breath until he he was out of the room before she burst into tears, she was clenching the blankets and sobbing into them wishing she was anywhere else but here.


Allora gave him a questioning look
"What are we going to do if the king is in there with her"
she shifted her weight to one side
"How do you know the king isnt in there right now, having his way with her. She did offer herself to be his queen"

Inside the barracks a few guards sat around the table, playing cards. None of them had noticed Elyan.

Mathuriel rolled his eyes. "Then I guess I'll be cock blocking him, won't I? And if that is the case then I'll try my hardest to kill them both in one shot or die trying then. That alright with you?" he said sarcastically. "Or are you concerned he might be letting his entire royal guard bed her as well, or even bed HIM as well?" He shuddered at the thought.

(OOT: Let the stealth mission continue!)

Elyan slowly crept around the barracks, keeping an eye out for any wandering guards. He noticed a few guards sitting around a table playing cards and decided it would be for the best to just slip by them. Since he was unfamiliar with the layout of the area, it would take some time to get to the armory. But then, as luck would have it, he encountered a lone guard getting some sword practice on a target dummy.
"Perfect. I'm sure this poor sap can give me some directions."
He thought this to himself as he slowly made his way inside the room. The guard was so busy with his practice that he didn't even notice. When he went in for a stab on the dummy, Elyan took his chance. He grabbed the guard from behind, made him let go of his weapon and dragged him back a few feet in a headlock, making sure to keep an arm wrapped over his mouth to keep him quiet.

"MNNMNNMRRR! MNN MRR MNN MNNMNNMRRR!!! (Translation: Intruder! We've got an intruder!)"
The guard struggled and tried to call for backup, but it wouldn't do him any good. Elyan shushed him to try to calm him down. When the guard finally realized that he wasn't getting anywhere, he stopped trying to scream.

"Finally decided to cooperate, huh? We could've saved some time if you just did that from the beginning, you know. Now...you're going to tell me everything I want to know, or I start getting violent. If you're ready to talk, just nod your head."
As Elyan whispered in his ear, the guard let out a sigh and nodded his head in defeat.
"Good choice. First, I want you to tell me where the armory is."
Elyan pulled down his arm ever so slightly so the guard could speak.
"One floor up...second door on the right."
"Excellent, here's the second question. When is the king most vulnerable?"
The guard let out a slight gasp. He whispered angrily in reply.
"Like I'd ever tell a rebel like you that! I swear, if I get out of here alive--"
Elyan cut him off.
"I thought that might happen. Third question, how long do you think it'll take you to pass out?"
The look on the guard's face was priceless as Elyan put him in a sleeper hold, knocking him out after a few moments.
"One floor up, second on the right. Thanks for the tip."
He gave the unconscious guard a pat on the shoulder and slowly made his way upstairs.

Mathuriel reached the hilltop, held Allora's hand, and closed his eyes.
"Three... two..."
When they opened their eyes, they were inside the king's bedroom - with a sobbing Ella chained to the bed.
"I'm guessing he was rough with you?" Mathuriel said icily to Ella.

Ella heard a familiar voice speak to her and she instantly froze knowing that by now he probably hated and despised her. Ella looked up at him keeping her hair in her face as to not reveal the marks on her.
"M-Mathuriel?"
She blinked to make sure she wasn't seeing things, she thought maybe the king had slapped her hard enough to make her hallucinate.
"W-Why are you..here?"

The conversation Valeria was trying to have with her elder sister did not go as well as she had hoped...and after her sister threatened to expose her to the king for the traitor that she was, she had rendered her older sister unconscious. Valeria sighed heavily, trading clothes with her sister...even taking her glasses...tied her up, and made sure that she couldn't scream or make a sound if she woke up...then left her where one of her comrades would find her.
Valeria dusted herself off, put her hair up into a bun, and straightened the glasses her sister usually wears, and made her way to the king's palace. 'Luckily for me, my sister being in the palace would not be unusual.' She thought to herself.

Mathuriel raised an eyebrow, a dark glint in his eye.
"Take a wild guess. You know the saying "if you're not with me you're against me?"
He waited for her to get it.

The guards at the front door of the king's palace saw Valeria coming - and smiled.
"Ah, good, you're back. How did the visit with your sister go?" they asked, genially

Upstairs in the armory, a guard lay slumbering next to a locked cage filled with weapons and armor. The key to that room lay around the sleeping guards neck, buried in his great drooping mustache.

Elyan quietly made his way upstairs, following the guard's directions. He slowly peered into a nearby room and noticed a sleeping guard next to a cage full of weapons and armor.
"Oh, please. Now they're making this too easy for me."
Thinking this to himself, he slowly and quietly walked inside the room. The thought of just going straight for the armor crossed his mind, but he decided to play it safe. Meaning, he sneaked up behind the guard and put him in a sleeper hold, of course. The guard woke up in a panic and let out muffled yells of confusion before passing out.
"Alright, on to the disguise."
He tried to open the cage but to his disappointment, it was locked. He decided to go back to the guard and search him for a key. After a few seconds he found it, then he mockingly shook the guard's hand.
"Good man. It would've made my life a lot harder if you forgot your keys today."

He opened the gate and grabbed a set of armor. A light suit of chain-mail, a shield embroidered with the king's insignia and a helmet that covered his entire head. He began to put them on over his regular equipment and after he had finished, he looked like the spitting image of a completely average guard. Satisfied with his disguise, he made his way to the king's castle.

Valeria looked at the guard with a disappointed expression on her face. "Not well I'm afraid." She spoke. "I really hoped she would have come to her senses by now." She added with an exasperated sigh. "I sent her away, like father had when she left, and told her to never return."

"If you're here to kill me I wont fight you"
Ella removed her hair from her face revealing the bruises on her cheek. She gave him a sorrowful look then turned, facing away from them
"I know you hate me now for what I did"
she grabbed the blankets and wrapped them around her
"As punishment the king has taken it upon himself to put me in my place..."
as she moved the chain that was tied to her neck rattled
"I gave up my freedom...."
she laid her head on the pillow, the tear welled up in her eyes
"So that you could survive"


Allora stood by the door with her crossbow at the ready. She was listening in on the conversation between the but kept quiet. If Ella were to try anything she would not hesitate to shoot to kill

Mathuriel didn't know what to believe. Was it a trick?
"Did you really have so little faith in us?" As he spoke, he knew his words rang false - the king had had them dead to rights. Ella's stunt may have saved their lives.

The guards stood aside, tutting, to let her pass. "Well, at least we've got you onside."
Then they noticed Elyan coming up. "Hey, recruit, you're late to training! Get inside, on the double!"

Ella shook her head
"Everyone was weak from the previous battle. The king hadn't even lifted a finger yet, and we were all exhausted just by battling a few of his men. We weren't ready, it was my fault for leading everyone in to fight I thought we were, but I was wrong"
She clenched the blankets in her fists
"I saw we were all getting weak and had to think fast to get the kings attention. So I offered to be his queen to get his attention. Telling him that I was the one to lead you all to him put the blame of the attack on me. It was to keep him from taking it out on you."
she placed her hand on her face where it was now tender to the touch, she winced
"Thankfully he didn't punish me for that or I would probably be dead"
she turned slightly to look at him
"If you're here to kill me, then just get it over with before the king returns and kills the both of you. I wouldn't advise staying to long he has a way of finding things out"
a tear streamed down her cheek
"The wedding is tonight, I thought I would have more time to think things through and come up with a plan. But the king has made it to where I can't leave this bed. He will most likely kill me if I do"

"Great. This is the part of the mission I was dreading the most."
Elyan grimaced as he thought to himself, though you couldn't tell through his helmet. Putting on his best performance possible, he bowed politely to the guard and spoke in a nervous, higher-pitched tone.
"I-I'm terribly sorry, sir! I'd like to get to the training grounds right away, but I can't seem to find my way around the castle!"
Thinking quickly, he came up with a way to get some very valuable information right away.
"If you wouldn't mind, could you tell me where I can find a map of the whole castle? I'm terrible with directions...I just can't help it, I get lost so easily!"