Ah, the Overworld of the Heroes. So full of life, and happiness, and hope...till you reach here. Neverend Keep, way out on the absolute fringes of the Sunlit Kingdom.
It's not even that it's any less pleasant than anywhere else in the Kingdom, but somehow, it feels like they're just smiling for the look of it.
The phrase 'As Above, So Below'(Though in this case, it would be 'As Below, So Above') seemed to be appropriate to describe the look of the Keep situated far above Skid Row. The town itself is more 'Real Medieval', as it were, than 'High Happy Fantasy': people did their jobs, lived their lives, and sometimes even moaned, got annoyed and argued a little, sometimes leading to tiffs that lasted....ohh, for days. This clearly marked them as aberrations to the norm. As for the Keep itself....it certainly had seen better days. The stone had been a pure, glistening white-now it was a muted grey. Time and dirt were actually taking their toll on the structure, and would eventually claim it.
One wonders why there is a keep all the way out here, where few people live, and less go.
Skid Row was pretty much the dregs of even the Underworld's society. But, it was still a point where they could potentially assault the surface, so, as was standard, a Keep was crafted, and a Knight and some forces assigned to watch the area, keep the peace, protect the populace, and-if necessary-venture down into the depths and destroy any threats. And this they did, well enough that the local towns relocated closer to it so that they would be better protected. And those towns merged, and thus did Neverend(Dubbed 'Netherend' by the unkind, or those down on their luck)become the Castle Town it is today.
And it is to this place that two Thieves are running, like all hell was at their heels.
___
The Lord of Neverend was a man called Disrald. He was one of a fairly uncommon breed amongst Knights: Whilst many had been born to the role, Disrald had worked his way up the ranks, starting as a lowly Thief. Whilst this had some advantages-he and those like him had some more magical tricks because of it-it also meant that he was distrusted to an extent. For whilst Thieves, like everyone in the Kingdom, worked to the common good, Theives tended to like lining their pockets with excess Gold(No-one's sure WHY, precisely:Everyone has all they need, or even WANT up here), and it was always expected(Though it had never actually occured) that there would be...backsliding.
Currently, he was cleaning his equipment. Another oddity: Most knights always looked like their equipment was not only just-forged, but just-polished. His? Took effort to keep at 'fairly tarnished'.
A moment should be taken to describe Lord Disrald. The longish hair of the Thief is a liability in full armour, so the hair is cut short. However, it seems Nature wishes him to be long-haired, so his hair is uneven, from where the hair is mounting a fightback.
Regardless, his concentration was interrupted when the door of the main hall was near blasted in by two figures, who soon ran and fell to their knees. Usually, this is a sign of respect. To Disrald, it felt more like they were praying. Their stance didn't help.
"Disrald! Lord Disrald!"
"What in the world!? What happened? Siefird, Tierhad, calm yourselves, and report!"
"We..we entered Skid Row in disguise, like always. At the....the auction....There was a new guy. Someone we never saw before!"
"That can't be enough to..."
"He..he had...."
"Had what?"
"...A REAPER!!"
"Impossible! They don't..."
"You can have your Wizards check if you like!! You think we'd make this UP?!"
"I've come up with stranger in my time. But...find the wizards, and get them to check up your memories, as you said. If what you say is true...If a Reaper has come to the world again...then the entire kingdom must prepare for war. For Reapers do not give their power to just anybody, even a fool knows that. And if he's around HERE..."
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(Posted Wed, 30 May 2007 22:28)
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らんま1/2 © Rumiko Takahashi
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