Lightstar Family/Xarnelf/Roleplay 21
To Quest, or Not to Quest?
Still distraught with confusion and concern over the recent events surrounding Lady Arella's sudden disappearance, Xarnelf found no sleep as he tossed and turned in his cot. Finally sighing in frustration, he resigned himself to another restless night and decided to take a stroll to hopefully ease his troubled mind.
It was quiet outside; the only audible sounds were the crackling of the few torches set at intervals around the camp and the chirping of the unseen crickets residing in the field. The young knight breathed in the crisp, chill air, filling his lungs deeply and shivering with his eyes closed as he felt renewed vigor coursing through his body. He walked out of the north perimeter, nodding silently to the two men posted there on sentry duty as he passed.
Several hundred yards away, Xarnelf spotted a low outcropping and paused. After a brief moment of contemplation, he lowered himself down to the slanted slab of rock, reclining against it with his hands folded over his abdomen and his legs stretched out before him. As the young man gazed up at the myriad of stars shining in the clear sky above Larmebsi, he tried once again to make sense out of all the chaos seemingly envelopping his dear realm.
His thoughts wandered along the many paths of the past, dwelling on different events that both directly and indirectly involved Taith Aenil--wars being declared, battles being fought, treaties being signed. Invariably, though, they always appeared to lead back to one nagging subject: that peculiar Book of Promises.
He considered his previous notions concerning a possible connection between the riot in Idapur which began on the steps of the temple and the encounter with the misinformed peasants in a village on the outskirts of Nahad. What if these two events were somehow linked to the great outburst of hostile declarations among the entire continent? Perhaps the Arcangela's seemingly unexplained departure was a part of the underlying reason as well, if not a result.
Xarnelf thought back to Lady Arella's excited speech introducing this mysterious and then-recently-discovered manuscript of the Aenil during the first week after the completion of the new temple. She had asked for everyone to peruse this Book and then contribute to the walls of the Vandaenil guildhouse any passages they found significant and noteworthy.
It had seemed an innocent and harmless enough task, and life proceeded as normal; but then the times gradually grew darker as the weeks passed, with the irrational revolt in the capital followed by reports of disturbances of the peace in the outlying regions. Xarnelf could not help but feel that the Book of Promises had no small part with all of these occurences, especially since the apparent leader of the misguided farmers in Nahad had forcefully recited a line from a copy of this religious text to justify his demands.
Yet again, the young knight reasoned that these matters were neither his business nor his concern and that he should just leave them to those who had greater experience coupled with a better understanding, such as the wise Lord Orphen and the strong Lord Helios.
Try as he might though, he could not rest assured that all would be well in the realm. Xarnelf doubted his own rationalizations, feeling that he should be doing more, that these matters should be both his business and his concern, since there was a good chance that these events were indeed associated with the abrupt leave-taking of the Arcangela.
He reflected next upon Lord Orphen's orders telling all the active nobles to disperse throughout the land in search of any and all signs of Lady Arella and then questioned his initial decision, or more precisely lack thereof, to remain stationary in Larmebsi while scouting the surrounding lands for trouble on a daily basis.
Xarnelf asked himself if it truly felt right to just stay relatively safe within the borders of the realm with nothing better to do with each passing day than watch for indications of approaching danger. He could not honestly say that it did, and though his mind believed he would serve Taith Aenil better by continuing his self-imposed duty as sentry in the north, his heart insisted that his role must be to travel without the borders of the realm to look for clues as to the whereabouts of the beloved Arcangela.
Silently, the young man vowed then and there to follow his feelings. He would visit the lands of Arcaea to the north and, with the Aenil willing, he would discover a piece of the puzzle that threatened to throw the entire world out of harmony. Above him, the stars seemed to sparkle with increased luminescence in response to his new resolve and planned course of action.
Before embarking on his quest though, Xarnelf decided that he must return to Nahad for another visit to the bank. He would not make the same mistake of running short on gold again. As the knight rose to return to camp, he considered his unit of men that he had come to know and trust. The Farsighters were a good group, battle-tested and dependable. He sighed wistfully as he realized what he must do after they reached the city.
