Altriona: When Honour Backfires
Mar. 15th, 2010 10:40 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
velvetpageWhy is it that our attempts at honour seem destined to lead only to deeper guilt?
With the help of the first citizen of Sartosa, Mr. Reginald Rackham, we have hired a schooner with a crew, and a crew for our own ship, in exchange for three eighths of our plunder for the next year, whereupon the contract will be renegotiated. Against Mallion's better judgement, Lorandara and I went to the Lainar to talk to Tidurion. We told him that we had arranged safe passage back to the Empire for his crew and himself. We did not spell out that we were to become pirates, but it was unnecessary. He became distraught, and stormed off.
Smoke is a most fearful sight on a ship. We had loaded the elven and human former crews onto longboats when we realized it was seeping under the door frame from the direction of the Captain's cabin.
Lorandara burned through the lock on the door, and stayed to put out the fires he had lit there while I chased Tidurion through the hold of the ship. Stopping to extinguish the fire in the cargo hold took precious time, and by the time I realized he had reached the powder magazine, there was already smoke coming from it. I could not open the door, so I called desperately for Mallion, who employed his horns to break it.
Tidurion was indeed within, fuses to the kegs of gunpowder already lit, with a pistol cocked and ready in his hand. He shot Mallion, whereupon Lorandara used her radiant gaze to injure him badly. I cut the artery in his leg, spilling his life's blood. We put out the fuses without further mishap.
Mallion's anger was palpable. He pointed out that our misplaced honour was responsible for the damage to our ship, indeed that it had nearly cost us our lives. Where Lorandara and I would still have buried Tidurion honourably at sea, Mallion simply tossed him overboard, wrapped in a singed sail.
It frightened me, to see my gentle brother so menacing to one who was acting with what honour he could in his command. We had to kill him in the powder magazine, and it is true there will be no more quarter to any servant or member of House Imholien. In that I am in accord with my brother.
And yet I cannot find it in my heart to regret our attempt at honour with Tidurion. He had a right to know, and he had always dealt fairly with us until the very last. He claimed as he shot Mallion to be fulfilling his earlier promise, to give him an honourable death should he fall too far into chaos. I am sorry it was necessary to kill him. I would have prefered to see him heed our warning, return home with his crew, and seek employment with some other House where he would not run afoul of us.
It seems in this, as in so many dreams of late, I was destined to be disappointed. The weight of this death lies heavily on my soul.
When Mallion and Lorandara returned to shore, I remained on the ship to oversee the first changes to be made to her. Our fine vessel is henceforth to be known as Morehaig's Scythe. It is a name calculated to strike fear into the heart of any elf and any man who has sailed with elves. The work went well, and the men needed no reminders to obey orders - at least not yet while we are still in port. I have no doubt there will come a time when I will need to assert my authority, but it shall not be yet. It has been decided that Mallion will be Captain and I will be his First Mate.
While I was on the ship, Lorandara and Mallion were challenged by Herr Galeiter. It would seem our escapades have cost him dearly in the eyes of his banking house, and he felt we had broken a promise to him. It is true we had told him we planned to sail back to Marienburg, but we were careful to phrase it as contingent upon factors outside of our control. Since the Prince in Tobaro has put a price on our heads, as has the patricide of House Imholien, it would seem obvious to us that we are released from that aspect of our promise.
In any case, he challenged Lorandara to a duel, clearly expecting Mallion to act as her champion, and the dwarf trollslayer was to act as his champion to kill the monster; an act he was nothing loath to accomplish.
My sister was prepared to fight, using her magic as her weapon, but Mallion would not permit it; nor would he permit me to take up arms, though I have been styled "swordmaiden" by the people of this town. Strategically, he was absolutely correct; it would be a horrible idea to give the banker a way to profit from the death he sought anyway, when we had done nothing wrong. Mallion set out to hire a champion, which he managed adroitly, if dearly. The only person on the island willing to fight the trollslayer was Rackham's own lackey and champion, the ogre Mr. Anastasi.
Mallion sent for me to witness the battle, since it was mine as much as his or Lorandara's. The trollslayer opined to his master that we had chickened out by hiring a champion. Mallion responded that if Herr Galeiter was prepared to fight his own battle, any one of the three of us was willing to fight him, but if he were to use a champion, we would do the same.
Lorandara pointed out that Herr Galeiter could always rescind the challenge, since we were in the process of fulfilling the contract and would see him returned to Marienburg, though not with us. He pretended he had not realized this before, and agreed to rescind the challenge. We made sure Mr. Anastasi was rewarded with two casks of wine for his trouble, and went our way.
As Mallion pointed out, though the rules of polite behaviour are very different from anything we have lived under before, at least in Sartosa, the rules are strictly observed. In Tobaro, Galeiter would have found a way to sic the witch hunters on us if he did not get his way; here, he was able to save face without fighting.
In a day or two, the repairs to our ship will be complete and we will sail to begin our revenge. Valadar will rue the day he sought to o'ertake Mallion as first son of Imholien House. Nevertheless, I have the terrible premonition that revenge will not be as sweet as it is purported to be.
With the help of the first citizen of Sartosa, Mr. Reginald Rackham, we have hired a schooner with a crew, and a crew for our own ship, in exchange for three eighths of our plunder for the next year, whereupon the contract will be renegotiated. Against Mallion's better judgement, Lorandara and I went to the Lainar to talk to Tidurion. We told him that we had arranged safe passage back to the Empire for his crew and himself. We did not spell out that we were to become pirates, but it was unnecessary. He became distraught, and stormed off.
Smoke is a most fearful sight on a ship. We had loaded the elven and human former crews onto longboats when we realized it was seeping under the door frame from the direction of the Captain's cabin.
Lorandara burned through the lock on the door, and stayed to put out the fires he had lit there while I chased Tidurion through the hold of the ship. Stopping to extinguish the fire in the cargo hold took precious time, and by the time I realized he had reached the powder magazine, there was already smoke coming from it. I could not open the door, so I called desperately for Mallion, who employed his horns to break it.
Tidurion was indeed within, fuses to the kegs of gunpowder already lit, with a pistol cocked and ready in his hand. He shot Mallion, whereupon Lorandara used her radiant gaze to injure him badly. I cut the artery in his leg, spilling his life's blood. We put out the fuses without further mishap.
Mallion's anger was palpable. He pointed out that our misplaced honour was responsible for the damage to our ship, indeed that it had nearly cost us our lives. Where Lorandara and I would still have buried Tidurion honourably at sea, Mallion simply tossed him overboard, wrapped in a singed sail.
It frightened me, to see my gentle brother so menacing to one who was acting with what honour he could in his command. We had to kill him in the powder magazine, and it is true there will be no more quarter to any servant or member of House Imholien. In that I am in accord with my brother.
And yet I cannot find it in my heart to regret our attempt at honour with Tidurion. He had a right to know, and he had always dealt fairly with us until the very last. He claimed as he shot Mallion to be fulfilling his earlier promise, to give him an honourable death should he fall too far into chaos. I am sorry it was necessary to kill him. I would have prefered to see him heed our warning, return home with his crew, and seek employment with some other House where he would not run afoul of us.
It seems in this, as in so many dreams of late, I was destined to be disappointed. The weight of this death lies heavily on my soul.
When Mallion and Lorandara returned to shore, I remained on the ship to oversee the first changes to be made to her. Our fine vessel is henceforth to be known as Morehaig's Scythe. It is a name calculated to strike fear into the heart of any elf and any man who has sailed with elves. The work went well, and the men needed no reminders to obey orders - at least not yet while we are still in port. I have no doubt there will come a time when I will need to assert my authority, but it shall not be yet. It has been decided that Mallion will be Captain and I will be his First Mate.
While I was on the ship, Lorandara and Mallion were challenged by Herr Galeiter. It would seem our escapades have cost him dearly in the eyes of his banking house, and he felt we had broken a promise to him. It is true we had told him we planned to sail back to Marienburg, but we were careful to phrase it as contingent upon factors outside of our control. Since the Prince in Tobaro has put a price on our heads, as has the patricide of House Imholien, it would seem obvious to us that we are released from that aspect of our promise.
In any case, he challenged Lorandara to a duel, clearly expecting Mallion to act as her champion, and the dwarf trollslayer was to act as his champion to kill the monster; an act he was nothing loath to accomplish.
My sister was prepared to fight, using her magic as her weapon, but Mallion would not permit it; nor would he permit me to take up arms, though I have been styled "swordmaiden" by the people of this town. Strategically, he was absolutely correct; it would be a horrible idea to give the banker a way to profit from the death he sought anyway, when we had done nothing wrong. Mallion set out to hire a champion, which he managed adroitly, if dearly. The only person on the island willing to fight the trollslayer was Rackham's own lackey and champion, the ogre Mr. Anastasi.
Mallion sent for me to witness the battle, since it was mine as much as his or Lorandara's. The trollslayer opined to his master that we had chickened out by hiring a champion. Mallion responded that if Herr Galeiter was prepared to fight his own battle, any one of the three of us was willing to fight him, but if he were to use a champion, we would do the same.
Lorandara pointed out that Herr Galeiter could always rescind the challenge, since we were in the process of fulfilling the contract and would see him returned to Marienburg, though not with us. He pretended he had not realized this before, and agreed to rescind the challenge. We made sure Mr. Anastasi was rewarded with two casks of wine for his trouble, and went our way.
As Mallion pointed out, though the rules of polite behaviour are very different from anything we have lived under before, at least in Sartosa, the rules are strictly observed. In Tobaro, Galeiter would have found a way to sic the witch hunters on us if he did not get his way; here, he was able to save face without fighting.
In a day or two, the repairs to our ship will be complete and we will sail to begin our revenge. Valadar will rue the day he sought to o'ertake Mallion as first son of Imholien House. Nevertheless, I have the terrible premonition that revenge will not be as sweet as it is purported to be.
(no subject)
Date: 2010-03-15 08:58 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2010-03-15 09:18 pm (UTC)