The Crimson Rebellion
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SWhceZ4ghF4
Kamees 33rd of the Great Harvest, Year 45
Clink clank, clink clank. The armors bulk exterior fought itself as the suits occupant strode over the cold stone floor. The sounds multiplied, a flurry of sudden yet coordinated movement erupted. August Flay, a man who had not been seen in decades took in the sight of his home - The Dreadfort - as his three companions crowded behind him. The fort was the same; cold, uninviting, and with a horrid stench always lingering. However, the head Flay was not the same, nor would he ever be again. August looked around one last time, at nothing in particular before ascending the bare stone steps that led into the equally lax decorated meeting hall. With a barely noticeable look of disdain, he sat at the head of the table- slouching- yet somehow maintaining a feel of rigid posture. The guards that had followed him looked amongst themselves, unsure of what to do; it was clear something had changed in their leader. It had been less than a week since August had returned from his multi year journey, one he refused to speak of.
Had the guards looked at August’s' face instead of their boots, they may have noticed what exactly had changed. August Flay once had a look of delinquency and mischief on his face, perhaps even kindness. He was well known for his jimmies and sense of humor, despite the fact that this was usually based around the suffering of others. Instead, there was nothing. No look of sadism, anger, fear, joy, no expression at all was discernible from the face of the man with the reputation of a colorful (albeit disturbed) personality. If anything, the face looked solid, if such a thing is possible; not unlike the material the entirety of the roo m was made out of. Even the blood red bandanna that so characterized the now stoic man looked colorless and without life. He tapped his fingers against the armrest of the seat.
"Maps. Reports"
The voice came, without any noticeable tone, although a sense of dread filled the men at the sound. The man known as "Stalwart" quickly stepped forward, moving the already present map closer to his employer. Silence filled the room once again, 'Stalwart' began to sweat. Never had he ever truly feared August, and he was not quite sure why he did so now. Stuttering occasionally, the thug explained the major actions of the bannermen of House Flay over the years during August’s disappearance. Slowly, he began to gain confidence as August nodded acknowledgment as he spoke, showing no external signs of anger. As the soldier finished, August spoke.
“I had thought that leaving my brother to the responsibility of leading House Flay would result in the further advancement of our position in this realm...seeing as how my past and reputation barred such progress. However, it is clear that we no longer stand to gain anything from our ‘King’ Godfrey. I have been gone years, and nothing has changed. I am tired of this faca-”
August stopped mid sentence as a man came running in, excusing himself and placing a elegantly packaged letter onto the table. He slid it over, bowed, then ran off again. Raising an eyebrow, August examined the exterior of the message, the seal of House Horen lay stamped onto the opening. As he read, the slightest of grins came across his face.
“I have just heard of your return, August Flay, and I am filled with joy.
You are like a brother to me, and I know that we will bleed and die together. So help me, my old friend; help me end the tyranny that is my brother’s reign. My wife, whom you know I love so dearly was one held by treacherous villains. My brother refused to help, stood by as she languished in prison, just because he had nothing to profit off of. He also uses you as a hound, to sic on his enemies. Peace loving people are murdered, your men are sometimes lost, and who is the one that stands to gain? King Godfrey, and Godfrey alone. He violates the rights of man, bending natural sovereignty in his quest to quench his lust for power. Help me bring the realm back onto a righteous path, and we will rule this land together.
Signed,
Prince Richard of House Horen.”
As he gently placed the letter onto the table, August walked over to the wall of the meeting room, where a large map of Asulon and its settlements hung. He brushed his hands through his hair as he did so, watching in silence as a few strands of gray fell among the mix of brown. Without a word, he turned to the men waiting, promptly motioning for a quill and scroll. With a vigor, he wrote, sealing the letter with the Flayed man that was the sigil of the house, and handed it to the waiting soldier.
“Take this to Richard, and gather the men.”
-Two hours later-
Guards patrolled around the perimeter, wary of any spies or wayward travelers.
There was a great commotion outside the Dreadfort, near a hundred men were gathered; talking, swearing, fighting. Interspersed throughout were banners of the various households assembled. House Xiphias, Loken, Adelban, Aeries, and of course, Flay. The tanned, haughty men of House Xiphias found themselves cackling over tales of malice and mirth, with drink in hand, and a smoke in the other. Soldiers of Adelban and Loken remained stoic and quiet, uniform to the tee, observing the ongoing discourse with a mechanical stare. The eerie and eccentric rogues of Aeries plotted amongst themselves, while men of Flay were everywhere in between, belligerent and twisted as always. A general silence overtook the men as a figure appeared on the balcony above them. Their former leader, August Flay, with his brothers the Count Tiberius and cruel torture master Gawyn standing close behind. Ser Alistair, or “Savage”, playfully sat on his fours, with August’s cold, wiry fingers dancing in his mangled hair. A hand was raised, and the men watched in anticipation.
“Servants of Flay, Sons of Horen. My departure had seemed spontaneous, outrageous, and cowardly. A man who served his nation, his bloodline, his peoples, gone to the wilds of Asulon, his rough tongue ceasing to bark orders of virtue and justice. But gentlemen, barbarians, warriors, brothers, I did so for truth to prevail. I had a faint notion, a bold yet distant one, that my actions of past, the carrions granted comfort through the embrace of death, would have inhibited our Houses from the statuses they truly deserved.
By giving my brother, untainted and sinless, a man who had been convicted of no true crime, rule of Flay, I had sought to have our status elevated. But Godfrey had not elevated our houses, it was not I who restricted our ascension to power, but the twisted man himself. What purpose do we serve to be his peons, his worthless soldiers, grains of sand in his shores of power! We did not fight to die in the tundra of Hanseti, the dunes of Seventis! We fought for GLORY!
Glory is not begot through servitude to Godfrey. Are we his feudal serfs to bark and bully? Are we not sons of Horen as he is? Is he granted such powers through our blades, do we truly permit such travesty to occur under OUR steel!? NAY!
Release your shackles to the crown. Your ties to the Empire hold no bounds to your own obligations. As a warrior, a man of arms, a man of battle, passion drives our strikes, fuels our swordplay. We will not wither and rot as veterans of war, wounded and abandoned by our king, unrecognized for our fortitude and steadfast loyalty. We were not sent to war in the name of justice. We were not sent to war in the name of honor. We fought for glory.
We mark ourselves for the blood we shed, the burden we bore, in the name of a king of false judgements. Our crimson banners and clothe will bring a new era to Asulon; one of power and might. Our rebellion, the sparks of our swords, the sounds of our swings, will play forevermore in the halls of the heavens, as angels sing our praises in life and in death. We fight, we fight to end Godfrey’s reign.
Our blood will drown his falsehood. Our wrath will know no bounds.
Our crimson will glisten forevermore.”
As he finished, August tore off his dark red bandanna, twirling it in the air madly.
“This is how this rebellion starts! Follow my lead!”
The bloodthirsty cheering echoed all throughout the valley the fort rested on, and the expansive desert it faced.
“Blood for Coin!” “Flay! Flay! Flay!”
“Long live House Flay!”
“KING RICHARD!”
“Xiphias!!” “Adelban!”
“Savage has rights too!”
“Blood fer Coin! Death te’ the King Godfrey!”
“Lead us to victory, August!”
The screams continued, war chants of all kinds being shouted and the sand sifted as the men stomped and threw fits of excitement. Articles and scraps of garment flew all over, men fastening armbands, headbands, masks of crimson red. August rested his arms on the fencing of the balcony, watching over the hundreds of men that would fight for Richard, fight for House Flay, and most importantly, fight for him. Had he ever felt loyalty to this King he so easily denounced? Perhaps, but he assured himself, swore to himself it was a blind and false love. He would never love anybody but himself, it was impossible for any other kind of affection to take place, he told his conscious. Before leaving the balcony, August muttered to himself.
“Let the madness, begin.”
With his words said, his point made, August promptly descended down the stairs towards the war room, flanked by his Captains and Commanders. For there was to a war to be planned, and it would be a long one.
((We ask that nobody meta games the information detailed here. This has all been arranged by both sides involved and we'd like everyone to know that we're still friends OOCly and that this is entirely to provide a fun RP event for get people involved in.))