Lightstar Family/Xarnelf/Roleplay 73
The Weary Captain and the Resolved Duke
Mathias visibly paled at the duke's calmly spoken words, as a chill ran up and down his spine. He began shaking his head slowly and directed his gaze downwards to the ground. This was insanity, there was no other word for it... Or was it, as that one soldier had said to the other, pure brilliance? Well, either way, he had had enough of this business. Nodding absently to the man, as if to appease or reassure him that his mad plan would succeed, the captain took his leave as quickly as possible.
Later that night, he delivered his resignation, for he had grown weary of battle, weary of sending so many young men to their "glorious" deaths, and weary of the seemingly unstable mind of his liege... no longer.
Xarnelf sighed heavily and read the note once more. So, the poor captain had finally had enough, eh? Well, no matter, there were plenty of others to take his place, but still... The hero sighed again, folding the letter back in place. He figured it might happen sooner or later, yet he was surprised and stunned by its happening now, nonetheless. Xarnelf did not blame the captain for his choice; any other rational man would have quit long ago. However, since Mathias had remained with him for so long, the duke had begun to take him for granted, so this was a rather severe blow.
He turned to gaze into the flickering flames of his fireplace, off to the side. Well, his resolve, though shaken in light of this recent news, was far from broken. The man stood up from his desk and strode over to stand directly in front of the dancing fire. With one more glance down at the folded letter in his hands, Xarnelf tossed it into the hungry, burning depths and crossed his arms over his chest.
He narrowed his eyes and went over his plan again in his head. Yes, it would work; it must work! Soliferum would burn, as surely as the parchment in front of him was burning...
