A Tale of Blades & Blood-Chapter 13: Cakes & Flowers

[Noran's Point of View]

An hour before the siege, a couple makes their move...

I will never forgive what they did to my father. Those men in cloaks... those traitors. The toast of Lord Folius was all grand and innocent until many nobles dropped dead. I still remember it...

"A toast!" he began, "To the groom and bride!"

Everyone drank their wine, and all was good. Then came the feasting of the cake. I did not eat any cake, for I was never fond of it. Ever since I was a child, I would always fall ill if I ever ate one. The Ravenmen that specialized in the body told me that it was because of the milk and eggs, and that my body does not react well to it. It does not tolerate it.

My bride, on the other hand, loved cakes. She took two slices of it, contrary to the tradition of only eating one. Lord Folius raised his hand, holding a small plate, filled with cake. "Let us feast..." he said, "...to celebrate this union of houses!"

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Everyone cheered on, chanting the words "Lord Noran and Lady Orelia!" again and again. After a while, they prepared their mouths and their cutlery. At the time, I wished I had gotten myself cake. I had not tasted one for a while. They all ate it at the same time. More than a hundred men and women- some even children – ate a slice of the green cake.

My bride took only a single bite. "I will save it for later..." she told me, "...and perhaps you could have the other piece." she generously offered. I simply smiled at the remark. The celebration continued. The jesters and the performers were put back on the stage. The exploding torches, the long sticks for legs, and the comedic dwarfs all came back to entertain the guests. The atmosphere at the time was almost hopeful, innocent, and joyous.

I could hear many men congratulating my father, and I could see people toasting again and again to our name. One man even got drunk so much from the wine he fell on the floor, his speech slurred. Soon enough, Lady Orelia began to feel the effects of the poison.

"Noran." she called.

I turn to see her, grasping her throat. "My throat feels... tight." she told me. Panic surged through me- what was happening to her? I asked myself.

"What happened?" I asked her.

"I cannot b-breathe." she explained. She grasped her throat so tight. Her legs began to wobble, and her face began to turn blue. She was suffocating from the poison.

I caught her in my arms as she began to lose consciousness. "Let me take you outside." I offered.

"Please..." was the only word that came out of her mouth.

I helped her to walk outside. We passed by the guests one by one, each asking what happened. I replied to their questions again and again that she only needed some air. Eventually, we reach the hallway. Then, we reach the courtyard, the garden, where we were met by the kind face of a Ravenman. This one looked younger... not like the others. Most of them would have already grown old before they received their titles and their duties. This odd fellow looked so young. He had a handsome, almost baby-like look, and his hands were quite small and tender.

It did not matter, I said to myself, my bride needs the aid of a wise man. I approached him, holding my to-be-wife by her arms. "Excuse me..." I began, "...do you know of any matter in this?"

"My lord." he greeted, as he bowed. "What seems to be the matter?" he asked.

"My beloved feels ill..." I told him, "...her throat tightens to the point where she can barely breathe."

The Ravenman looked at Lady Orelia. "May I, my lady?" he asked her. My wife only gave a subtle nod. Don't try anything funny, Ravenman, I thought.

He took her hand away from her throat. It turns out that her neck was slightly swollen red. The rash that formed was only mild- thank the gods. At that time, she could only breathe so little that it pained me to see her like this. If only I were in your body, I wished to say, so that I may suffer on your behalf and that you may be joyous in mine.

The Ravenman took his hand off of her throat. He began to smile hopefully- and relieved, as if saying this one is curable, and my head shall not be on a spike today. "All my lady needs are time and water. This particular occurrence is rare, my lord, but it is only a mild one..." he told me as he handed her a vial of... well, something. "Might I ask what she ate, my lord?" he asked as she drank it.

"Only cake." I replied, "Green and delicious cake."

The Ravenman looked puzzled. He looked at the plate with a slice of cake on it, which I held in my hand. "What kind of cake would make such an effect like this?" he pondered. Soon enough, my bride began to breathe easier. Thank you, young man, my thoughts said.

"Never mind..." I told him as I handed him the plate. "...take it for your research if you want. Thank you for healing her." I remarked.

"As the lord commands, I do." he says with a bow... again. Seriously, I can't fathom how they still manage to stand straight with all that bowing.

I found a small wooden bench in the distance. Slowly but surely, we made our way there. Past the shrubs and the roses, my wife finally sat down. "That vial tasted like horse waste!" she exclaimed, coughing up while laughing. To be honest, it only took her smile for me to start laughing as well.

"Thank the gods this was only a mild one..." I told her, "...if not, who knows what could have happened to you." I remarked. What did happen to her? I asked myself. What was in that cake that Lord Folius served?

Eventually, it was just the two of us at the garden. The maids there went off to chat at another place, and the young Ravenman rushed to do his work on the cake I gave him. "What in the world happened to you?" I asked with a chuckle.

"For a minute I thought I was poisoned..." she began jokingly, "...perhaps I simply ate something in that cake that my body could not handle." she answered jokingly.

"Aw..." I began, "...not being able to eat such a delicacy is such a pain in the-"

"Hey!" she exclaimed while putting her hand on my lips, "No swearing in this marriage, little blue prick." she remarked.

For a moment we just paused, looking into each other's eyes. Eventually, our smiles began to show, and they turned to laughs. "You'll make a fierce mother to our children." I told her.

"Is that so?" she asked. "And how many children do you wish to have with me? One? Twins? Perhaps three, the perfect number?"

"One fierce mother is enough..." I told her, "...why add a fierce daughter into the mix?" I jokingly asked. I covered my face, bracing for a hit that I knew would happen. Sure enough, she did land a good hit on me. After a quick motion, her hand landed flat on my shoulder. Ouch, I thought.

"Another wrong word and a slap will hit you again!" she said, mimicking a strict mother's tone. Yes, I thought, she will make the PERFECT mother to our children. "You'll make quite the funny father." she told me.

"What makes you think that you little gremlin?" I asked her. Again, I brace myself for a slap. She did not joke with me when she said the next blow would hit. Soon, a large, red mark would appear on my face.

She covered her mouth, on the verge of laughter. "Don't." I warned her while smiling.

"Too hard?" she asked. I gave her a nod, then a chuckle.

"Enough with it, got it?" I asked while laughing, still feeling the area where hand landed. "That's enough hits for today-"

The sound of yells caught us off guard. Soon, out from the door came the wailing maids and the troubled workers. What is it now!? I thought. "Stay here!" I ordered her. I ran to see what happened. I could hear the maids yelling all sorts of words, but none I could understand.

"What happened!?" I demanded from them- an answer. "What happened in there!?" I asked aloud.

"My lord, the nobles have all but perished!" answered a maid who ran past me. "The men in armor come, my lord! You must go out and escape!" yelled another. What are they talking about- armored men and death? I thought. I held the handle of my sword that rested on its hilt and let it free as I rush into the keep.

I could hear them, men that yelled loudly with rough voices. "Where are they!?" one yelled out. "There are four missing, ser!" another one replied. "Check the stables!" the first voice replied, and I could hear the sounds of three men that went away. The other man left to check elsewhere. Unfortunately, that place was where I stood.

He held his sword tightly, and he wore his armor, partially covered by his cloak, but I could see where he came from. That is Strix armor, I realized. He did not hesitate to swing his sword at me. He raised it high and had it crashing down, which I avoided as I backed away from him. The blade sunk deep into the wooden floor, lodged between the wooden planks.

With a quick move, I took my blade and brought it up to the left, taking off his head. Disgusting, I thought. I moved inward, only to see the perimeter was clear. The once beeswax scents the hallway had turned to the smell of corpses... too bad. Orelia, I thought, I must take her out of here.

Immediately, I rushed out of there, passing through decaying bodies only to find her being carried off by another armored man. "Orelia!" I called out as I ran towards them. The armored man held her by the neck. He was large, larger than me, and bulkier. I did not care. He pushed her aside, having her fall down to the gravel path. "You touch her; I cut your throat!" I remarked.

All I could hear was a laugh from inside his helmet. He took his sword from his sheath, and pointed it towards me. "There you are." the soldier said menacingly with a deep voice.

Without a thought, I got myself ready. The bull of a man charged towards me as I crouched down, going through his legs. I turn around, and aimed my blade, stabbing him in the back, near the top of his pelvis. A large growl-like scream came from the man. For a moment, my blade is stuck, yet I manage to get it free.

He turned around, rage filling him as his breathing became faster. "Come on..." I tormented, "...give it all you got!"

With a loud cackle, he raised his long blade and had it come down on me. I rolled aside to the right, just as I did with the first man. Unfortunately, the huge man let his blade fly to his left, almost cutting off my head. Thank the gods I had let it down. With another step forward, I dig my blade at the side of his chest from the cracks of his armor, piercing his lung.

He did not scream. All I could hear was a faint sound of air coming out from his mouth as he fell to the ground. He almost dragged me with him if it were not for me freeing my blade. I turn to see Orelia, speechless, still laying on the gravel.

"Are you alright, my lady?" I asked her.

"I am fine." she replied, standing up as I held her hand. Soon I hear the hooves of a horse, as a small carriage with three people on it move towards an exit gate. The stables! I remember.

"Quick, follow me!" I told her.

Without hesitation, we make our way down from the ladder at the garden that led to the stables. There it was, the last horse, standing on a pile of hay. I gestured for her to follow. Soon, we had both gotten on and secured ourselves to the saddle. Thankfully, this one was quite large, and thankfully, I had learned how to ride a horse, thanks to my father. Oh, father... I realize, what has happened to you?

"Go down to the stables, you lot!" exclaimed a soldier.

I got the horse to finally move, and we rode to the nearest gate, where the small carriage had gone to. At that moment, we had made our grand escape from the hands of death. As we rode out to the city, I could only look back to see the windows... flames bursting out of it. The wails of women and the groans of men had stopped... replaced by the silence that their deaths had caused.