The Raven's Blade

Picturesque

Ilsa

The rays from the rising sun glanced off the crystal lake. Ilsa flung her hand up to protect her eyes as Adamo and her rode down the hill towards the small town up ahead. The two of them had woken up early that day to get to the town as quickly as possible, Ilsa almost didn't have enough time to pin her hair up and now that they'd arrived, she was so transfixed by the lake that she almost forgot why they were there in the first place.

"Are you okay?" Adamo asked, concern laced in his voice. That's how he'd been speaking for the last day. Just constant concern and 'how are you going' that was nice the first couple of times but now only served to irritate Ilsa.

She turned away from the lake to face him, "Yes. I'm fine." After the events of yesterday, she'd felt...different. She'd never expected to have to kill a person and never wanted to have to kill again. She still hadn't completely come to terms with what occurred, it felt a bit like looking into a mirror and seeing another person in the reflection. A woman with blood on her hands.

They dismounted at the edge of the lake and walked down with the horses to the lively town ahead. Two girls who must've been about ten years of age looked up and enthusiastically waved as Ilsa passed by.

"There's an inn over there." Adamo pointed towards the building, "we can get rooms there and tie up the horses while we look around."

Ilsa nodded and lead the way over to the inn, after tying up the horses outside they entered the building. The polished door swung open smoothly to reveal a pleasant looking bar (which Ilsa hadn't seen many of) and behind the bar stood a burly, kind-looking young woman with light brown skin who looked very happy to see them.

"Hello visitors! It is pleasant to have your company. Are you seeking a room for the night?" She greeted enthusiastically.

Ilsa and Adamo shared a glance. She hadn't met any inn-keepers quite this excited.

"Yes we are," Adamo stepped forward in what appeared to be an effort to break the weird tension.

"Brilliant! My name is Oma and it is wonderful to have your business!" It didn't seem possible but Oma's smile seemed to get even bigger. Okay, something was definitely off here. Paired with the entrancing lake and the grinning children outside, Ilsa was weirded-out.

"Thank you, Oma. However before we grab our rooms we were hoping to just have a quick walk around town, is that alright?" Ilsa smiled in what she hoped somewhat matched Oma's energy.

"Of course! Take your time to search our lovely town! We are happy to meet everyone. I eagerly await your return" Oma grinned again and began polishing glasses.

They left the bar quickly and began walking in what was definitely not a suspicious manner.

"That was definitely strange." Ilsa muttered under her breath.

Adamo nodded, "maybe Keir had something to do with this?"

"Perhaps. This doesn't seem like the sort of place to harbour kidnap victims and evil cousins," she murmured as the pair wandered down the street. Adamo hmmm'ed in agreement. It really did seem all too picturesque, the idyllic lake, the laughter of children as they played in the grass. No sign of the aforementioned evil cousin.

Someone spoke from behind her, "From out of town, are we?"

Ilsa spun around to face the speaker, a broad-shouldered man wearing a dark blue cloak. A woman wearing a similar garment at his side with silky black hair pinned up on her head shifted to the side, cloak falling aside to reveal a large dagger at her belt.

"Yes?" Adamo answered, hesitant. Ilsa slowly reached for her knife.

The man raised his palms in an almost apologetic manner, "sorry about this sweetheart but we simply cannot have outsiders."

Before Ilsa could do anything, the woman muttered something under her breath and her vision went dark.

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"Ilsa! Adamo!"

Ilsa groaned and reached out to hit whoever it was that woke her up but her hand only hit cold metal. Her eyes flew open and she sat up. She was facing bars. Cell bars. Shit.

She glanced to her right to see Adamo stirring. He seemed fine, thankfully.

"Pssst, Ilsa!"

Ilsa squinted into the darkness and saw a familiar face in the cell opposite.

Rosina.

"What happened to you?"

Rosina pressed a finger to her lips, "be quiet, don't make them come back."

Ilsa peered anxiously into the darkness, "who?"

"Me." The man from earlier stepped out of the shadows, same cloak as before with now a longsword strapped to his belt. The woman was back as well. She must have some sort of magic to be able to knock them out. "Sorry about before, darling, but my employer doesn't like outsiders. Especially him." The man gestured to Adamo with a flick of his hand.

"Your employer? Keir?" Ilsa pulled herself to her feet. "I know he's in this town."

The man leaned against the wall, "that's not my information to disclose but... lets not be hasty, we still haven't gotten to know each other. My name is Pascal and this-," he gestured to the woman, "is Esadore."

"What the hell do you want?" Adamo finally spoke up.

"Ah. The prince." A knowing smile slowly made its way onto Pascal's face. "There are many things I want. Money, for one. However what my employer wants with you, I cannot say. I do have some questions. I can't seem to figure out how you fit into this tale, Ilsa."

Ilsa froze. "How do you know my name?"

"I mean," Pascal continued, ignoring her. "Adamo here is the prince of Aprirsa and obviously is needed. My employer wants power, what's better than royalty? Rosina is a warlock which is very useful if you're interested in magic and a friend of Adamo's to use as bait. So, what use is a random scholar from Saevalon?"

From the corner of her eye, Ilsa noticed Esadore's eyes flick towards her at the mention of Saevalon. Interesting, but she was more scared about how much information Pascal had on them.

"How would I know? Ask this famed employer of yours." She rolled her eyes.

"Hm," Pascal gave a dismissive wave of his hand. "You may be right, not really my problem. Which moves us to the matter at hand. You may not realise it, prince, but your kingdom is on the brink of collapsing. You know, of course, that your mother grows sicker by the day."

From behind her, Adamo gave a sharp intake of breath.

With a sly grin, Pascal continued, "Or perhaps you weren't aware? You've been out of touch with your sweet family for too long and the king still doesn't know that the heir to the throne is off playing physician in another kingdom."

"Leave him alone," Rosina snapped. "This has no benefit for you."

"Oh but it does. My employer has been paying handsomely. Actually-" Pascal glanced down the dark hallway as Ilsa became aware of slow footsteps heading towards them. "He can tell you himself."

Out of the shadows appeared a man with a very similar appearance to Adamo, apart from his eyes. Bright green eyes that shone strangely despite the low lighting.

Adamo's expression twisted into a scowl. 

"Keir."