#knightstuff

   Adamar pressed his steed into a trot beside him, tugging his hood just a little more down over the top of his head. He lived to be outside the walls, like Araian had said... but he was no stranger to the endless dangers that lay in wait. Scanning the sides of the roads idly, nodding his head in agreement.

"Family is a hard thing to come by these days, my Lord."He said, a tinge of regret tinging his words.

"You and yours have been nearly the only family I have known." He cleared his throat lightly, trying not to think to hard on the recent events.

"I failed in keeping your daughter safe, but I mean to atone for that failure. I’ve... Never spoke of it out loud, but I've always thought of Rosemarri much like a sister. She was always there when the road grew dark for me."

  He had lost count long ago regarding the number of times they had traveled the road from Stormwind to Duskwood, as well as the many times that journey etched into their memory had been interrupted by violence of some kind. Be it bandits, beasts half-starved and desperate for a meal, or something other-worldly.

  Though not dressed to be waging war in the mud alongside tens of thousands, Araian was dressed appropriately for where they were going. A suit of chainmail was worn beneath that cloak. His sword strapped to his side and that massive war hammer rested in a holster hanging off the side of his charger, easily drawn in case the call for violence had to be answered..

"I have had more trouble holding on to family these past years than finding it. Their lives fall like water through my fingers.. I'm cannot accept their passing any longer." Sparing a glance over at the knight riding alongside him.

"My daughter's fate is no fault of your own, Adamar.. But in the failures of a father that played at war seeking vengeance for a dead king and the boy that grieved for him. Her father should have been here to protect the lives that matter most in this world to him..”

I want her back, and that is precisely what we're going to do. One way or another."

"Losing that which we love, seems to be the cost of duty." Adamar sighed softly, digging his canteen out of the saddle bag and took a quick gulp.

"Honor and duty. They used to mean everything to me." He chuckled lightly again, thinking back to his squiring days. Things were so much easier back then.

"It's just an endless cycle of war, all in the name of a man sitting upon a throne. Sure, we defended hundreds, if not thousands in the process. But, when it came time to hang up the sword... who was left to watch over those so close to home?" He stashed that canteen away and shook his head.

"That's why I'll see this to the end, my Lord. I know dark and terrible things lay in wait, but you will not fight it alone, my Lord. We’ll search through the very gates of hell and beyond until this family is whole once more."

Araian made to cut the man off with a wave of his hand.

"Honor and duty are not coffers we pay tithe to in the lives most precious to us. Those we hold dear were taken from us, and from behind our backs while we faced a separate evil no less. Those that struck at our family..Their fate is sealed and I will see all those that have wronged us turned to ash by the very Light I command." Declaring it so for all to hear, not that they were gathered around anyone at all on the empty road to Duskwood.

"The two words should hold as much meaning to you now as they did before, if not more so though, Adamar. Honor demands we answer the wrongs we've suffered with justice. It is our duty to protect the weak and combat the wicked.. Never forget that. Use it as fuel for the fire we'll burn them with." Pointing further down the road to where the Three Corners outposts' torches glinted in the distance.

“We'll start in Duskwood.. I want to see where she was taken from us.."

   "Lord Cutler. Here. Lady Blacksage. Here. Lord Dawnstride. Here. Lady Grouss. Here. Lord Sunshield. ... Lord Sunshield..?

   No voice sounded to answer the attendant's call and the rush of whispers and murmured voices rose as heads turned to spot the empty seat along the long row of tables and high-backed chairs where Araian Sunshield was to take his seat. While the wars had raged it wasn't uncommon for seats in the House to be empty as various lords and ladies were scattered across the world fighting Stormwind's battles.. But now? At the wars end attendance was almost mandatory if only to note who was still left among the kingdom's nobility. Pages were dispatched to discover what kept the Lord of Sunshield from the gathering.

   Araian pulled his gaze from the towering statue of Danath Trollbane at the sound of Adamar's approaching steed. The charger he himself was seated upon shook its head with a snort as if greeting the knight's own mount as the lord tipped his head in a knowing nod.

   "We should be attending a gathering of the House of Nobles.. I am sure they have sent summons to nearly every lord or lady they could find in the Kingdoms in an effort to determine just who remains after the war."

   Araian began, sparing a glance back down the walkway that led into the city proper, as if expecting a retinue of the King's pages sent to summon him back to the Keep.

"I have more pressing concerns and you do no one any good standing guard at the door alongside a few dozen other knights of the realm."

   The reigns were given a firm tug as his horse stopped beside Araian's and Adamar gave his own glance back towards the city. A scoff escaped him at the mention of the gathering they SHOULD be attending. He recalled his last time setting foot in there, the looks and comments that he received upon returning from their little skirmish off the coast of Kul Tiras.

   "I agree, my Lord." He allowed a faint chuckle as he reached a hand down to pat the neck of the beast.

"Any chance to venture beyond the walls, I’m grateful for. This city is poison on the soul." He turned his gaze forward once more. "This a personal matter?" He knew damn well it was.

   Amusement crinkled the skin around his eyes as Araian nodded his agreement before urging the charger beneath forwards and the clatter of the beasts hooves sounded over the distant din of the city behind them.

  "We are of a people that were born to live our days beyond the high walls of the kingdoms we serve I've found. We do no good to anyone caged up like pets. Besides,there are enough roosters strutting about the Cathedral Square as it is."

   Araian chuckled, nodding politely to those men adorned with the lion on their tabards, standing sentinel at the city gates.

"It is a family matter, Adamar. As personal as they can get and no one living within these walls will keep me from her."

The pages that had surely been sent to their estate on Manor Row would discover the Lord of Sunshield and his escort had already departed and were long gone..

   Araians words hung heavily about him, he knew the man to be right. Maybe... he had just grown used to the feeling of everything being ripped away. Adamar’s life seemed to be a never ending struggle to keep a shred of something left to call his own. Southshore, Theramore, his sister, his wife and child. The loss weighed heavily on the knight’s shoulders and silence gripped him for a time. Finally, he looked to Araian and offered a firm nod.

"I have not forgotten. Nor shall I ever."

    From the outside it must have been strange, peering in. Those that had flocked to the Sunshield banner, each of them in some way had lost more than anyone should in the journey of life. Perhaps that was a part of what made them so damn stubborn in so many aspects of life. Stubborn enough to refuse the passing of those they'd lost.. And maybe even damn themselves in the process of getting them back.

    "Nor shall we ever." He repeated those words with a nod as they crossed the bridge and into the  familiar gloom of Duskwood.

   "Her house was burnt to the ground. There.... is not much left save for the frame of the fireplace. Jerrith and myself sifted through the ashes and did not find much of anything. I searched the woods and there was not a trace of her trail, or scent. As if she just, vanished."

    Like Adamar it should have felt like home to him Duskwood, but it didn't. Those that had made it home were not there to welcome him back..

   "Aye, you told me. Still, I want to see it. I need to look with my own eyes and witness what may have happened before we continue. Come, take me there." Half hoping in the back of his mind a feral worgen, or even a lumbering corpse would dare to interrupt their objective for the night.. 

   Adamar nodded and he spurred his mount forward with haste. It wasn't that far of a ride to reach the outskirts of Darkshire where Rosemarri's house used to be. He let the wind pull his hood back, no longer worried to keep his face hidden for all in Duskwood would know him. From the last few citizens to the numerous beasts that roamed the hills. This WAS his home, and always would be.

   As Adamar took off, Araian's charger followed suit without needing the spur of the lord's boot for encouragement. A lifetime together saw rider and mount in tune with each others thoughts and before long Araian was nearly keeping pace with with the Sunshield knight. Despite the looming glow of Darkshire and the torches that lined the roads, Araian's gaze never reached the village. Instead? His stare fell on the spot that had once been the site of Rosemarri's cottage.

   As Adamar had stated earlier, little remained of the original structure but burnt bits of wood and piles of ash and debris. Only the stones piled to make the fireplace still stood to mark the spot of his daughters demise. As soon as his mount came to a halt  Araian's boots hit the ground with a 'thud!'; The war hammer holstered to his steed was drawn effortlessly and held his grip as he strode slowly towards the ruined remains of that cottage. Tentatively stopping just steps from where the door may have stood before he fell to a knee.. His free hand pressed flat to splay his fingers out across the dirt and ash.

   Adamar dismounted shortly after, giving the horse a steadying pat as he looked about the distant tree line. They were still fairly close to town, but nowhere was safe in duskwood. The husk of the cottage a testament to that. He rolled the great sword from his back and strode forward to stand a few feet behind Araian, giving the lord his space. He planted the tip of his sword in the ground and kept his attention to the world around them.

  Araian's fingers clawed at the ground, gathering up a fistful of dirt and ash as he knelt with his head bowed. Whether it was from the words of others and he'd made the assumption, or that he was a father and just 'knew' that the very spot he now loomed over was where his daughter had last stood and breathed freely before being taken.. The weight of such foreboding thoughts alone might have crushed him were it not for the rage fighting furiously against the pain the man felt.

"I am coming for you, Rosemarri. I swear it." He whispered under his breath as if they were for his daughter alone.

   Suddenly, Araian slammed his fist into the ground, striking at it with all of his might. Dirt, ash, and debris exploded outwards as the eternal bleakness of Duskwood and the ever-present cloud cover that hid the light from the forest floor broke. Blinding golden rays of light pierced through to bathe the kneeling Paladin in its warmth. Like a spark that ignited a wildfire, golden flames burst outwards from Araian's fist to consecrate the immediate area where that cottage had once stood.

   Adamar took a single step back in surprise as the ground beneath him was suddenly bathed in holy fire. It licked at his boots and filled him with a warmth that for a moment... reminded him of yet ANOTHER thing he had lost.

  His gaze turned to the sky and the light that pierced through the cloud cover and basked them in its warm glow. He looked back to the aged paladin and was awestruck. Even when he was a paladin and the light flowed through him, never had he imagined the light responding in such a way. He once more stood his ground and planted his sword into the earth so that he could lean his weight upon it. The display confirmed it... the time of sitting about asking questions was over.

The true work was just beginning.

The Knight of boundless curiosity...

STR - 10 DEX - 12 CON - 11 INT - 17 WIS - 12 CHA - 15

The dramatic Knight of true art...

STR - 12 DEX - 14 CON - 10 INT - 13 WIS - 14 CHA - 16