Let Me Serve You
A Chronos Mephistopheles & Neko Ninja RP

Setting: In the deepest reaches of the Dark Forest, up against the Withering Mountain Range rests a surprisingly light and cheerful town by the name of Gloucester. Within Gloucester resides the Royal Family, charged with protecting the people of the light town, toward any cost. And this year, the peace within is about to be disturbed.

Character:

Name: Phoebus
Age: 23
Profession: Knight of Gloucester
Attributes: Trained in the art of war, is anticipated to become the next Captain of the Guard, manages to be playful and serious in the same instance
Appearance:

eyes the color of Coffee Au Lait
Crimson Glory hair that flows to mid back, tied back with a small black ribbon
height of the average man, his form lithe and long, similar to that of a runner's

Character:

Name: Tristyn
Age: 19
Profession: Prince
Attributes: The only child of the King. Destined to become the king once he turns 21. Cares about his people.
Appearance:
Eyes the color of the sky
Navy blue hair that hangs a bit in in his face, shorter in the back
Height: Average, a bit skinny, but strong enough to defend himself

RESERVED FOR ADDITIONAL CHARACTERS

RP START

Every morning, Phoebus woke before dawn. He would do some brief morning exercises before running along the edge of town. He would then cleanse himself, dress in his usual armor, and make his way to the Royal Quarters. There he would greet the same maids every day, thanking them for bringing His Highness's breakfast while taking the tray, and would step inside. He would ignore the lavish decorations of the room that made his bare rock of a room look like a dungeon as he would place the tray on the table before setting it and then waking His Highness from his sleep. This wasn't the typical behavior of a knight, of a soon-to-be Captain of the Guard, but Phoebus found His Highness's reactions to it amusing, and it quickly became habit.

Unfortunately for His Highness, the usual morning routine was completely forgone.

Phoebus had been expressly forbidden from sleep the night before. His Majesty had refused to leave his State Room until early in the morning, appearing just as drained as the knights who were finishing up night shift. Typically there was no reason for the knights to be stationed at all hours. One could consider it something completely idiotic, as the palace and town were usually without night guards, but the creatures in the Dark Forest or the ones that roamed the mountain range offered natural protection against anything that ventured inside.

And yet the King was suddenly protective. Something was up.

With a yawn, Phoebus stumbled up the stairs to His Highness's suite. He managed a wave at the worried maids and stepped inside the room. The window curtains were already drawn back, the breakfast appeared to have been eaten already -- Phoebus's stomach grumbled in disappointment -- and the Prince was nowhere to be seen. Just to be sure he was seeing correctly, he threw the covers off the bed. No prince there.

Where could he be?

A yawn interrupted his calling for the prince, and he warily rubbed at his eyes. Oh, so sleepy...

Tristyn was awoken far sooner than his liking. He rolled over, intending to snap at Phoebus, but only to see that it wasn't him that woke him. It was one of the maids. That was unusual. He had gotten used to seeing the knight when he woke.

He didn't snap at the girl, it was far to early for that. And he was never rude to the servants. Only Phoebus. But that was different.

He ate his breakfast in silence before getting dressed. The girl had told him his father wanted him, so might as well go see what he wants. He left the room and went to his father to see, but when he got there, nothing was said. He was told to sit down and stay there.

Eventually a maid came in, interrupting Phoebus' half-hearted attempt to find his prince. Her soft-spoken voice finally informed him of the Prince's location. A cup of tea was shoved into his hands, the maid bidding him to drink as she led him to the location. A sweet honey tea was just enough to give him some energy, clearing his blurry eyes just as the maid stopped him just as they reached the doors.

He thanked her and entered the room. As he took it in, he saw Prince Tristyn sitting calmly, if not a bit impatiently, and walked towards him. For appearances sake, he gave a half-bow before circling behind Tristyn and standing to the right, behind him, as was directed in etiquette.

Underneath his breath, he greeted the prince: "you woke on your own?" The amusement was apparent in his tone.

Tristyn looked up when the door opened. He wouldn't admit it, but he was glad to see Phoebus when he came in. He had thought something had happened to the knight and that was the reason he wasn't there to wake him up.

His head shook slightly. Of course he didn't wake up on his own. He never wakes up without someone to wake him. If it was up to him, he would sleep until after noon. But that was probably because he could never fall straight asleep. Maybe if he did he'd be able to wake up on time.

"Of course not." he muttered.

Phoebus was unable to help his chuckles, brushing a hand against Tristyn's arm. "I figured as much. No worries. One day you'll figure it out on your own." He took a calming breath and his smile immediately dropped at the entrance of the Royal Advisers: a group of six men who seemed to share the same thoughts and ideas, thus never an argument occurred between them. In Phoebus's personal opinion it was slightly worrying; why should all six advisers be of the same opinion? Wasn't the point of them to have differing ideas to support their King better?

The group murmured with one another, their eyes all focused on their prince. The glint in their eyes was worrying, but all Phoebus could do was be prepared for anything they might attempt to do. He straightened up more, his hand slipping unconsciously to the hilt of his blade. Unfortunately any actions he wished to make was stopped the second His Majesty entered the room.

Tristyn was unable to stop the small smile that formed on his face when Phoebus spoke. "I'm sure I will." he said, his smile falling as the Royal Advisers entered the room. He never did like these guys. But, his father trusted them, so he had to. Besides, they did know what was best to help the kingdom. Not liking them wasn't a reason not to trust them, right?

When the King entered, he was on his feet. "Father. Why did you have me brought here at such an early time?" he asked. He normally had so much more time to sleep than this. So he really didn't understand the need to wake him up so soon.

The King of Gloucester peered at his son and loyal knight with the critical eye of an expert strategist. He'd been pouring over the status reports and numerous sightings from the villagers all night and all the evidence wasn't looking too fortunate for his people.

The opposing country of Redbridge was slowly encroaching on their territory. Typically this wasn't an issue as the Withering Mountains tended to scare off any potential invaders: the maze of catacombs within that all citizens had memorized was more than enough to turn soldiers away; it was the fear of ambushes and being lost without resources that turned them off. But Redbridge wasn't following the usual pattern. It was going to call for some form of negotiation, as Gloucester was a small city of traders, peddlers, and travelers. The Knights were more of a formality than anything else, as there wasn't a skilled enough trainer, nor any need to recruit many.

"I'm afraid we have an issue with the country of Redbridge." He began, his deep timbered voice carried through the room easily, giving the impression that he could rumble and crack stone with it should he wish. "We will be initiating negotiations as Gloucester cannot afford to lose any people to a petty territory battle. We have nowhere near the amount of soldiers or resources necessary to retaliate should they attack."

Phoebus nodded, taking in all the information like a sponge. It was easy to see what the King was going to have to offer. They had no crucial land resources such as gold or iron, the trees along the mountain base were much too large and wide for them to be cut down safely. He knew his prince wasn't going to enjoy it at all, but it was his duty, as it was his father's and the Kings before him. The Royal Family took an oath to protect their people at all costs.

Including betrothal.

Tristyn was silent as his father was speaking. He really hoped things didn't end up with a war starting. That would be terrible. He knew that if it came to that, that they would lose.

It took a few minutes for him to realize what it was his father did have to offer. And it wasn't something he liked. Not at all. He wasn't ready to get married! He was only 19! Of course, he knew he would have to eventually. He just wasn't expecting for it to happen so soon. He was hoping for a few more years of being by himself before it would happen. Apparently he didn't have a choice.

"I understand, Father. I will do everything in my power to keep our people safe." he said. Sure, it was his duty to protect the people. But that wasn't why he was doing it. He was doing it because he cared about them and their safety. It was his top concern.

The King nodded, pleased with the response given. "You may return to your quarters, I will send someone later with more details of this arrangement." With a flourish, the King and his advisers left the room.

Phoebus remained in standard guard position at Tristyn's side until the door finally shut. At the resounding clang, Pheobus relaxed his muscles and resisted the urge to topple to the floor in exhaustion. "So it seems its as we feared. The guards had noticed the movement a couple days ago, and I hoped it was a false alarm." Taking a deep breath, he took a step back and offered Tristyn a hand. "Let's return to your room, Your Highness, and we'll continue our discussion there."

Tristyn was stiff for a few minutes after his father left. He wasn't able to make himself relax at first. But when Phoebus spoke, he managed. He gladly took the hand offered to him, though he wouldn't have any other time. He wasn't sure he would be able to stand on his own. Let alone walk. The prince nodded to what was said. "Alright. Let's go." he said, ready to get back to his room and lay down.

Recovering from a minor daze, Phoebus linked his arm with the Prince and began the process of guiding him through the numerous hallways and staircases, all busy and crowded with maids or lords and ladies. The lords and ladies continued speaking to one another, barely acknowledging their movement through the hall except to offer Tristyn a faint bow in respect. When they passed the maids and servants, the girls would smile widely with a blush, the boys would nod and bow. Phoebus waved to them slightly, offering a grin and would drop it as soon as the group would return to their work, gossiping over how the Prince and his Knight had linked their arms, and whether there was any meaning to it all.

Once inside the Prince's quarters, Phoebus led Tristyn to his usual chair before he collapsed on the love seat nearby. His armor clanked and rubbed together making odd small screeching noises, and Phoebus groaned in drowsiness. "Who knew it would come to this, huh?"

Tristyn walked through the halls with Phoebus without really noticing anything. His mind was focused on everything that just happened. It was a lot to think about, after all. He only focused once he was in his room and sitting down. His attention moved to the Knight when he heard him speak.

"I knew I'd have to get married eventually. Just not that it would happen so soon." he said, leaning back in his seat.

"Well," Phoebus sighed, "it's going to be a nightmare with the guards, getting that unused wing in the castle cleaned up." He groaned as he sat up, bloodshot eyes peering at the prince apprehensively. "I wonder if you'll be going to their royal city, or they here. That'll change the approach to this whole deal in the end." He ran a hand through his hair and sighed, unable to hold back the yawn that followed.

Phoebus stood and began removing his outer armor, placing it carefully on the ground to limit the overwhelming noise steel tended to make on the floor. Once he remained in his pants and a thin tank top, he collapsed once again on the love seat.

((I'm thinking its your turn to offer something, as my brain is dying and the posts aren't encouraging me to write more. So any long or well-timed plot moments will work and help me figure out where to go from here, I need something to work with))

Tristyn was silent as Phoebus was speaking. He would offer to help the guards out, but he knew he would just get in their way. So, he kept quiet, thinking about it all.

"If I go to their royal city, then our country would be left without an heir. On the other hand though, I can't imagine any king would want to send his daughter out here to the middle of nowhere. So, I don't know which it would be." he stated. Sure, staying here would be easier for him. But there was always a chance that he would have to leave. And that was something he didn't want to happen.

Phoebus nodded, Tristyn's claims were logical but not completely thought through. If one country was desperate enough, the less in control one would be moved. Unless, he thought, both countries had princes, in which case the marriage would be only a formality. However they wouldn't know until the opposing party arrived in the castle. The Redcastles tended to withhold all information until absolutely necessary, which was why news rarely came from that direction.

Tristyn sighed, laying back on his bed. He hated that he had to do this. He wasn't ready to be married! It was times like these when he wished he had an older brother, someone else to take responsibility. Then he immediately feels bad about thinking that, because he loves being there for his kingdom. He knew that even though he didn't seem to have a choice, he would do it, if only to protect his people.