Setting Sail, Coming Home

[LithiumSedai 5750]

 

Spoiler

 

 

 

 

 

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As he rested upon the weathered dock, impressions of His Divine Imperial Majesty’s coronation fading; gazing across the vast blackness of the ocean before him, Aran felt peace at last. To have finally discarded the Qalasheen robes of the Camel Bandits to once more embrace his signature black plate of the State Army and gotten rid of the tangled mess his hair had become, brought the old man, who now stood dressed as in his prime, relief he attributed to GOD’s mercy alone. Through the grace of the Almighty he was relieved of his paranoid delusions and forged conspiracies, if only for a short while – even if temporary, and even if sparked by an elf’s advice, it made him see clearly for the first time in years.

 

His inner peace stayed unbroken even through the raucous cough escaping him; the hit his health had taken proved impossible to mend, and Aran knew he would not have long left. A veteran of the Bloody Road and the Third Crusade, hero of the Czena War, once a boy who defied King Aurelius in the name of a dead Empire and lived, passing away in a warm, cozy bed? He chuckled at the irony, but could only be thankful for the wisdom to make the right choice, to not take the fall forgotten and alone. Somewhere in the north of Aeldin, said the map and the letters: he would see them again. His wrinkled visage shifted briefly in joy. Aldren and Melody, Reyne and Hazel; his own children, Tristan and Circe; not a single disagreement mattered anymore –  he would reunite with them one last time in this life.

 

He thought of those no longer with them, too; allowing his steady stream of thoughts to be briefly shaken by a bout of pain, Aran thought of his beloved dead. Father, John. Mother, Renna. His beloved wife, Marinna. His beloved wife, Yulianna. He loved them as they loved him, despite his absence and his numerous mistakes. They would sail with him too, he had decided, sending word (and coin) ahead of the family mausoleum he wanted made for them all. He hoped they would find the strength to forgive him, when they meet in the Seven Skies at last.

 

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“Seigneur,” suddenly spoke the man clad in mail and plate, the flickering flames of Aran’s lantern beside dancing in reflection upon the soldier’s kettle helm. Aran hadn’t heard his approach. “We’ve nothing left to carry. The Spirit of Rennes is ready to set sail.”

 

”Good. They await,” said Aran Talraen de Rennes. Once a famous Administrator, knightslayer, crusader and baron; now an elderly, tired man setting sail towards his home – not Adelburg, Senntisten, Carolustadt nor Rennes, but the place he would live his final days in, surrounded by those he loved most. It was all that mattered.

 

 

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[!] The following letter would be delivered to the Imperial Advisory Council, the Imperial Arch-Seneschalty, and what remained of the Talraen household in Carolustadt:

 

 

 

 

 

To the esteemed Lords and Ladies of His Divine Imperial Majesty’s Privy Council, Administrators of the Office of the Imperial Arch-Seneschal, and all loyal subjects of the Barony of Rennes:

 

Per my final decree as Arch-Seneschal and Baron, let this letter serve as my last will and notice of resignation. The disease that has taken my aged mind and body has left me in a state unable to dutifully proceed with my obligations towards His Imperial Majesty, the Lands of the Imperial Crown of Exalted Godfrey, and the Barony of Rennes; thus, I hereby resign from my post as Arch-Seneschal of the Lands of the Imperial Crown of Exalted Godfrey, and abdicate the titles of Baron and Lord Protector of Rennes. It is my hope that the hard-working men and women of the Imperial Administration shall proceed with their commitments to their duties as dictated by my decrees, until the Divine Imperial Throne sees it fit to bestow upon them a successor to the Office more worthy than I had been. It has been an honor to serve the Realm of Man since the age of thirteen, and alongside my loyal Stewards and Auditors.

 

I leave the titles of Baron and Lord Protector of Rennes and all my remaining possessions and belongings to my sole legal heir remaining upon the lands of Atlas, my grandson Charles Edmond Talraen. It is my final wish that, should His Divine Imperial Majesty deem it fit, he confirm this appointment, and that my personal belongings my grandson will have no use for are further distributed according to my private decrees.

 

 

 

IN NOMINE DEI

HIS EXCELLENCY, Aran of the House of Talraen, Arch-Seneschal of the Imperial Crown of Exalted Godfrey and the Imperium Septimus, Baron and Lord Protector of Rennes

 

 

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Spoiler

[OOC: I’ve been through a lot with Aran, the only character of mine I had played since birth, but his story’s finally come to an end. I thank everyone who’s RPed with me for our interactions, whether good or bad. Expect more letters and items to be delivered in the near future!]

 

             

[osumanduas 1442]

Moved to The Great Library. It shall be sorted into the appropriate category shortly.

 

If you feel this is a mistake, please contact myself or any FM and we'll restore it.