Book Of Karl - A Witcher Kings AAR

[SirLlama]

Book Of Karl
A Witcher Kings AAR
by: SirLlama
​

I have after a very long time decided to try and give AAR's a go again. The narrative structure some people create and stories that can be told from just a couple of screenshots have always intrigued me.
With the COVID-19 pandemic going on I thought this would be a good time to write this. I am still working as I am placed under "essential workers" here in my home country but I hope that even if this AAR is not for you that you will still get some enjoyment out of it. This moment in history is a scary and menacing one for many of us and I hope that we can gather around stories to stay at home and take care of not only ourselves but out loved ones.
I will be updating this post regularly (hopefully) and writing down what mods I used for the game and giving more information. The first part will be put up with this thread post.
This is, of course, a Witcher Kings AAR if you have not noticed yet.

I normally do not use screenshots but I will try to add some here and there to give some flavour and a visual representation of some characters.

 

[SirLlama]

Chapter: I
​

“What kind of Lord will you be?” Diana lay down into the bed, facing her husband.

“I don’t know. I hope a good one” Karl smiled. Diana stroked his hair. It had been some weeks since their wedding now and they had both gotten used to their new role as Count and Countess. Karl had spent the day with his councillors.

Karl did not enjoy the long meetings but he knew they were for the best of Formyre. He was a strong man. A well-trained man. A man groomed for combat and leading soldiers but Karl also knew that there is more to life than leading soldiers into battle, so he listened. He listened carefully and patiently to his advisor's. None of them was especially skilled in their field but most were better than Karl.

“Diana,” Karl said.

“Yes?”

“Are you tired?”

“Well a little bit, why?”

“I can’t sleep. I’ve been looking at papers and maps and reading letters the whole day.”

“What are you thinking?” She smiled

“Let’s take a walk”

“Now?” Diana looked intrigued. “But it’s the middle of the night.”

“The stars are much clearer now.” Diana agreed and the two stepped out of bed again and dressed. Karl picked up his sword from its stand. He wasn’t planning to use it but you never know.


Karl and Diana walked to the hill closest to the stars that did not stray too far away from the keep. Diana had packed some cloth and spread the cloth over the grass. The two would lay next to each other for minutes without saying a word.

Karl was a tall and muscular man and much larger than his wife. Diana was quite small. Not small enough two reassemble a dwarf’s height but still small enough to be considered smaller than the average woman. At their wedding, Karl had been talking with Diana’s sister older sister, Magdalena. She was very drunk and talked about how she made up for her height and light weight by being gifted in certain parts of her body and it was clear Magdalena was full of jealousy. She was rather, as Magdalena put it to Karl: Flat while her sister had the curvature of a proper woman.

“It was a good idea to come here” Diana turned her head to Karl, away from the stars.

“It was” Karl turned his head and smiled. “I remember when we came here after the wedding. It’s nice to be back here, sober this time.” The two laughed and Diana moved closer to Karl, placing her head on his chest.

“The marriage scared me,” Diana said. “Mother used to tell me how she was forced to marry father.”

“He seems like a nice man”

“He is. But she loved another. She had a stable boy far away that she wanted to marry.”

“Sometimes duty calls our hand elsewhere and to another person.” Karl sat up and Diana followed his movement.

“You’re right.” Diana’s gaze searched around the hills. “Do you remember when we met?”

“At Cidaris? Of course.”

“Home in Troy I used to walk the harbour. Count the ships. Overhear conversations that maybe should have been kept elsewhere.” She looked to the stars. “Cidaris was no different. Everybody talked about this new count. Lord Karl Skinkel, count of Formyre. Father had heard about your skill in combat and I was his fourth-born daughter.” She looked back at Karl and with a shrug said: “He had three attempts to marry his daughters to powerful men.”

“You think I am weak?”

“Well now yes.” She gave him a smile. “You are a strong man, nobody doubts that. But a strong Lord? Not yet.”

“I will be. In Cidaris I heard them talk about me as if I am below them.”

“Are you below them?”

“No. I will rise and prove myself.” Diana was happy to hear about her husband's ambition. “I might have gotten the opportunity. A rider came this morning. A rider from Roggeveen.”

“Duke Holger sent for you?”

“He wishes for me to come to Roggeveen and serve as his marshal. If I can show my liege lord that I am capable count I only have the rest of the Lord of Cidaris to win over.” Karl sent a smirk Diana’s way: “And how hard can that be?”

 

[stnylan]

Good start.

A presentational piece of advice - reading on screen it really helps legibility if each line is separate by a clear line break.

Like you I am still working, if from home, and I have found picking up the "pen" (as it were) again very useful. I hope you do too.

 

[SirLlama]

Chapter: II​

Karl rode at the front of his small host nearing Formyre. He had been serving as marshal at the keep of his liege lord, training his men and learning from others. He had gained a better understanding of strategy and tactics.

“I hope you enjoyed your time at Roggeveen My Lord” Thengill said. Thengill had been training intensely under Karl’s instructions and pleaded for Duke Holger to let him join Karl.

“I enjoyed it very much Thengill but I must say that I miss Formyre.”

“My father was once also a Lord. He felt the same way, home is best."

“He was? Who was he?”

“You wouldn’t know him, he was from south of the Yaruga. My mother met him when he visited The North”

“I’ll ask my council to teach me more once we get home. Where was he from?”

“Toussaint, My Lord”

Karl looked surprised. “My mother was from Toussaint” He looked to the skies and started reminiscing about the stories he was told of Toussaint. The vineyards and the beauty of Beuclair.

“She was? I did not know”

Karl had no idea how his mother had ended up in Cidaris, he only knew what his father had told him. “Neither did my father when he met her. He was sitting in a tavern with his friends when she walked in and he knew he had to talk to her but he was not alone. His three friends all fancied her, so he rolled up his sleeves, readied his fists and waited for their reaction. They all jumped on him at once at they started fighting for her.” Karl laughed. “They might have been a little drunk”

“So who won?” Karl chuckled at Thengill’s question.

“Father was knocked out cold but remembers waking up just on the outskirts of the village. My mother was nursing him after he had taken a beating.”

“Must’ve been nice knowing them. Mother always told me my father was a rich Lord that travelled through Cidaris and he found her working. She was the daughter of a stable master and he required a new steed. They spent some nights together but one day, he was gone.” Thengill did not seem to be affected by retelling the story. He was a nice man and was probably raised by a nice woman. “When she realized she was pregnant and alone she prayed to Melitele day and night. Hoping that she would face no troubles bearing me. And she didn’t.”

“Dine with us tonight Thengill. I would love to hear more about this.”

“Thank you, My Lord, I would love to.”

“But first, as marshal on my council, I need you to…” Karl said and saw Thengill’s mouth opening but before a sound could come out Karl said, even louder than before: “Yes marshal. You’ve done well under me. Now I need you to find me, suitable commanders, if anybody was to attack us. And don’t worry, we will wait for you at the table.”

The two men smiled and saw the keep at the top of the hills not far away.




“I was thinking about going hunting later.” Dinner was slowly being prepared for Karl and Diana, Thengill had not yet arrived but Diana had seen him talking with some of the soldiers and had a feeling he would be there soon. Karl and Diana had not seen each other as much after Karl was assigned marshal at the court of Duke Holger of Roggeveen. Karl had learned many things the many months he had spent there but always looked forward to visiting home again, visiting Diana. The two were becoming more affectionate of the other but Diana being busy running Formyre while Karl was in Roggeveen disrupted the relationship from blossoming.

Formyre wasn’t far away from Roggeveen but Karl did not enjoy being there, all because of his liege Lord: Holger.
Holger was a mean man. A cruel man. He had no sense of diplomacy or warfare and Karl would often save Lord Holger’s face when discussions got heated. Holger was a small man, much smaller than the average person, so when Karl, a towering bundle of muscles, would speak up for his Lord people would listen. Maybe the nastiness of Holger was what made Karl so happy to return to his wife, again and again, return to her kindness.
“A hunt?” Diana said. “If you are going hunting you might want to bring Mayor Thorgnyr with you, he has talked day in and day out about wishing to walk the forests with you.”

“He has?” Karl was surprised. Usually, his chancellor preferred sitting inside the keep, far away from the dangers of the world. “Well if he wants to I’ll let him join.” As Karl finished his sentence Thengill walked in with a man beside him.

“I trust you found me a commander,” Karl said. “Gisl, correct?” The man looked surprised.

“Ye-Yes, My Lord” Gisl answered. Thengill looked to Karl, just as confused as Gisl.

“My Lord, if I may, how did you know this man’s name?”

“You don’t think I know my men well enough to know who can lead the others and who cannot?” Gisl and Thengill did not answer but according to their faces, they were rather impressed. Karl lied. Truthfully Diana had told him when she had seen Thengill outside. She had never talked to Gisl but knew everybody of importance in Formyre.
“Gisl you are expected to join the hunting party later. Thengill will get you. You may leave” Karl said. Gisl left and Thengill did not move an inch, waiting for commands. Diana and Karl had not noticed and slowly started eating, Diana had just broken her bread in half when she finally realised. “Thengill” She waved her hand towards herself and Karl. “Come sit with us, no need to stand there like a statue.”
“Thank you, My Lady.”
“Spare the formalities,” Karl said. You’ve gotten more noble blood in you than me, maybe I should be calling you My Lord.”



After the dinner, Karl, Thengill, Gisl and Thorgnyr, the mayor of Randlev and Karl’s vassal, gathered some men and rode for the nearest forest where Karl had hunted some times before while back home. The sun was low and darkness would soon swallow the sky and the stars burst through that darkness. While in Roggeveen Karl had lashed out on some people once or twice, not because they had made a huge mistake, but because a small mistake was all he needed to burst the bubble of anger Lord Holger’s jealous comment had created. Of course, Karl apologized to the men, he was, in fact, sorry that his Lord’s envy had affected him so much it affected them. Karl used to be a very patient man but his time at Roggeveen had tested him and he was about to break. The last place he expected to lost his temper was home. Thengill and Gisl had started arguing while walking the forest. It started fine as Gisl asked Thengill about his parents and lineage whereto Thengill gave Gisl the same story Karl had heard earlier that day. Thengill tried to explain to Gisl that Melitele had helped Thengill’s mother through her pregnancy but Gisl would have none of it. He knew it was The Eternal Fire that had seen the fire inside her burn bright and helped her through. The calm and carried voices turned to yelling and furious screams. It was only when Karl had had enough, raised his voice, and boomed: “Silence! If you keep going on about which gods were most interested in your mothers you will scare off every single creature here!”. Birds and deer fled instantly and the voices of Karl’s host were drowned by the hooves of the deer sprinting across the dirt and the flapping of wings all around them.

“My Lord, it was not about our mothers, only my mother,” Thengill said, still full of energy after the argument.

“…and I believe you already scared away the animals” Gisl continued. Karl looked back at the two, in his eyes, children. He was not angry but they knew that he was displeased as it dawned on them what they had said to him.

“Get off your horses. You walk home” The two didn’t hesitate and got down from their horses. Karl looked to two of the soldiers and pointed at the horses. “Bring them home.” He did not want to punish them but he also knew that he has to set an example now and then, even if it is just by making men walk.

As time passed the party neared Karl’s usual spot. Empty. He was confused, there was always fresh game to be hunted here but not tonight.

“My Lord” Mayor Thorgnyr had been silent up until now. “If I may speak with you privately.” Karl nodded to his other men prompting them to turn around. “You must have some interesting to say since you joined us on the hunt Thorgnyr.”

“Your wife told me that you have been prone to well…impatience and some outbursts of anger. So I thought it best for you to do something to relax you.”
“It is a nice gesture of you, but to relax me from what?”

“A rider came before you arrived today.”

Karl had not heard about any rider. “A rider? From where?”

“From Roggeveen, My Lord.”

“Would you look at that, Lord Holger misses me already. I must’ve made an impression.”

“It is a disease, My Lord. He came to tell us of the disease. We do not know what yet but we know it ravages everything around us. Even the capital isn’t spared.” Karl had seen sixteen summers and sixteen winters. This was his seventeenth summer and now sickness was spreading around him. He had never experienced anything like it before. Luckily he was not alone.

“What do you suggest we do.”

“Wait. Wait and see if anything comes to Formyre. From what I know, nobody is sick right now.”

“Alright.” Karl nodded confidently but he was all but confident. “When we get back, write to Lord Holger that during this sickness I will remain here and until then he must finder another marshal.”

“As you wish my-” Thorgnyr’s words were cut short when he, Karl, Thengill, Gisl and the remaining two soldiers heard noises from the woods. Something was rampaging through there and suddenly tackled Thorgnyr. He was knocked to the ground and all air left his body at once as a giant bear had charged into him. A giant bear had emerged from the trees and Thorgnyr. The two soldiers unsheathed their swords and rushed towards the bear. The beast ran from Thorgnyr towards the soldiers to meet them head-on. Meanwhile, Gisl and Thengill ran to get their bows and arrows while Karl ran to his horse to get his spear. The bear's claws slashed across one of the soldier's face before his sword ever met the bear, while the other sword slashed right across it’s nose. The bear unleashed a deep cry and with all of its weight hammered down onto the other soldier burying him deep under it. Thengill and Gisl started firing arrows into the sides of the bear to no avail. As the bear realised what had hit it charged towards the two men scaring not them but the horses around them distracting Thengill, who now tried to calm them. Gisl stood firm, readying another arrow, this time aiming for the bear’s head. Just before reaching Gisl, the bear stopped and quickly turned around, Gisl fired his shot and instead of the head he hit it in the stomach while it was turning towards Thorgnyr who had risen and started slashing at it. The bear once again raised itself, standing on two feet, towering over Thorgnyr, ready to slam down on him. He leapt to the side as if its paws met the ground, with Thorgnyr having managed to elude its grasps. He ran besides Gisl and the now returned Thengill.

“What are you doing! We have to corner it!” Gisl shouted as Thorgnyr readied himself next to him. Gisl let out a sigh and readied his bow once again alongside Thengill and Thorgnyr standing ready with his sword.

“Watch out!” Karl shouted behind them, spear in hand charging towards the bear. The bear charged into a full sprint towards Gisl, opening his mouth, ready to go for Gisl’s throat. As the bear was right up against Gisl, he ducked down giving a way for Karl and his spear to pierce into the throat of the bear. As the spear’s momentum stopped it snapped into two leaving only Karl a stick as the bear jumped back in pain. “Give me that!” He said to Thorgnyr who without hesitating gave it over.
The bear now distracted was not ready for Karl charging once again into it. Hacking and slashing it until finally delivering a killing blow, piercing its skin.
The two soldiers were still on the ground, alive but heavily injured.

“Thengill,” Karl said panting

“Ye-Yes, My Lord?” Thengill said, trying not to sound as if out of breath

“Ride back. Get your and Gisl’s horses. We’re gonna need them unless you wanna carry those two fellas”

 

[stnylan]

Word of disease and in the same breath injuries, near enough. One hopes that is not a bad omen of what the diease may yet do.

 

[Eludio]

Oooh, I've never actually read an AAR set in the Continent! Great start, I look forward to seeing the rest!

 

[SirLlama]

Good start.

A presentational piece of advice - reading on screen it really helps legibility if each line is separate by a clear line break.

Like you I am still working, if from home, and I have found picking up the "pen" (as it were) again very useful. I hope you do too.

Thank you!
Coming home from work and being able to pick up the pen has definitely helped me pass time much quicker and get into an old hobby.

Oooh, I've never actually read an AAR set in the Continent! Great start, I look forward to seeing the rest!

Thank you! I've always loved the universe of The Witcher and ASOIAF but you mostly see AAR's of the latter and thought: "Well why not give it a try"

 

[SirLlama]

Chapter: III

​

It had been a little over a year since the bear incident. Karl hadn’t been injured during the fighting but some of his men were. One of the soldiers that was damaged the most was Netho. A simple man living a simple life, serving as a soldier for Karl. Every other week after the incident Karl would check upon him and his wife in the infirmary, seeing if he was getting better. It did not look good in the beginning. His arm was ravaged and was slowly getting infected and ended up getting removed from him completely. Karl knew that a soldier with one arm might not be the most efficient soldier so he relived Netho from his duties. He gifted him and his wife a small cabin in the nearby woods where the could live a peaceful life.
A little over a year after the incident, he decided to visit him again.

As Karl navigated through the woods he thought back on when the bear attacked him and his men. He thought back to Gisl and Thengill’s bickering and how he hadn’t really felt as patient since then. He would explode with anger or act recklessly but he definitely felt that his temper had been shortened.

“My Lord” Netho walked out from behind the house. “I didn’t know that you would come today.”

“With sickness surrounding us, taunting us from afar, much of my day has turned into council meeting after council meeting and right now I really just needed some fresh air and now: Here I am.”

“Would you like something to eat My Lord?”

“No, but thank you for the offer.” Karl reached into his pocket and took out a piece of paper. “This is for you.”

Netho took the paper and started reading it. “My Lord, you shouldn’t have”

“It feels right. With your wife pregnant…”

“How did you know? Efre has told no one about it”

Karl smiled. “There are certain things as a lord I need to know. Maintain the wellbeing of my subjects. So when my wife told me that you were expecting…well, I thought this wasn’t the right place for a child to grow up.”

“My Lord, I owe you my life. If ever you need me just call upon me and I shall be there.” Karl put a hand on Netho’s shoulder.

“When this sickness has left the lands you will sail from Cidaris. I will make sure you get there safely and that you get on the ship. Your family deserves a good life.”

“Thank you. Thank you, My Lord.”



Karl stayed at Netho’s for a while before travelling back home. He knew that a council meeting waited back home. He knew that they would have to talk about the disease ravaging the lands around them even though it had not touched Formyre. Karl knew exactly what he was walking into.

“My Lord! Welcome back” Thorgnyr greeted Karl. Karl wasn’t in the mood for pleasantries right now. He felt a tremendous burden on his shoulder. Promising a new life to a family but being unable to give them it during these times. He tried to hide his discomfort, seemingly to a great effect. Only Diana saw through it. There was nothing Karl could hide from her.
All the members of the council sat down, ready to discuss what action to take.

“You’ve all been assigned one task. Gather information about this disease that has us surrounded. Tell me what you’ve discovered.”

Mayor Thorgnyr and Diana had discovered most. They explained that this sickness, this disease made people cough blood, sweat profoundly and experience extreme weight loss. The victims would turn pale and the common folk have dubbed it The White Plague. It had spread to Temaria, Redania and now all of Cidaris, except for Formyre.

“Are we safe from it?” Karl asked. He would do everything in his power to keep this away from his people.

“We are safe,” Diana answered. “Nobody has been spotted with these symptoms and we have made sure to check everyone that travels in and out of our domain.”

“Good. Thank you, Diana.” Karl was ready to leave so he stood up and asked before leaving. “Anything else of importance that I should know of.” To which Thorgnyr reluctantly answered.

“We have a rider from Roggeveen. He claims he represents Duke Holger.” Holger. If The White Plague had brought Karl one good thing it was the absence of Holger in his every day. He respected him as his liege lord but not much else. A cruel and envious man, Holger would go to great lengths to make sure his enemies would feel his wrath.

“Where is he?” Karl asked, curious about what Holger would want from him.

“Down by the stables, we instructed him to stay there to make sure he wouldn’t spread anything to us.”

Karl instructed everyone but Diana to carry on with their day and only Diana to come with him. When they arrived at the stables they saw that the messenger was in fact from Roggeveen. He carried the coat of arms of Duke Holger and had a scroll with him with Holger’s seal on it.

“My Lord, Lord Holger has instructed me to inform you that he wishes for your return to Roggeveen.”
“Return? For what purpose should I return?”

“He did not tell me my Lord but should you refuse to return he wanted you to have this letter.” The messenger handed Karl the letter, but Karl waited before opening it.

“How is the duke?”

“He is sick My Lord.”

“The White Plague?” The messenger nodded. Karl opened the letter and started reading it. He handed it over to Diana
.
“Ride back to Roggeveen. Ride back to Duke Holger. Ride back and tell him that I will never step foot in his keep again. If he wants me to he would have to drag me in chains.” Karl gave the messenger his message and was ready to leave with Diana. As they turned around and walked away the messenger opened his mouth.

“I know it is not my place to question your-” The messenger began.

“Then don’t.” Diana didn’t even turn around to meet the gaze of the messenger. The messenger rode home, dreading having to tell the Duke of Karl’s message.


Karl had had enough of talking about disease and the message from Holger didn’t exactly put him in a good mood. Not wanting to ride through the hills and forest again he chose to the another thing he was good at: Fight. Or practice fighting. But you can only swing at a dummy so many times before getting bored. Karl hadn’t fought many battles. He had never fought in a war but he wanted to be prepared to fight one day and also lead his men. From the corner of his eye, he could see somebody. A man he had seen before but wasn’t sure who was. He had arrived with taxes many times before but Karl never truly got to speak with him. He, just as Karl, was training.

“Hey!” Karl shouted.

The man quickly turned around, not expecting to see anybody, and in confusion almost tripped.

“Hey hey, easy now.” Karl walked over to him. “I’ve seen you before haven’t I?”

“Yes my Lord, many times.”

“But if I am correct we haven’t talked yet, have we? Been properly introduced?”

“No my Lord, we have not.” The man smiled. “But I know who you are of course. Karl. Karl Skinkel.”

“Then you also must know my family is rather new here. You know me but I, I do not know your name”

“I am Ongull, my Lord.”

“Ongull. Ongull what?”

“Just Ongull. I come from Struer my Lord. I was born and raised there and now the people have chosen me to lead them.” Karl nodded along while Ongull talked. He had heard that the previous baron of Struer had been an unfortunate end after disrespecting some sorceress.

“You know who to swing that?” Karl looked down at the sword.

“No, not really my Lord. But every man should be able to defend himself”

“And his family” Karl added.

“Indeed. And with whispers of Nilfgaard expansion, you never know when it’s gonna come in handy.”

The two started training together. Every time Ongull was at Formyre he went to train with Karl. Each time Karl complimented him on his progress, even though Ongull was no fighter and never would be. Karl simply enjoyed the company of the man.
In these stressful times, even the most stoic of all needs a friend. An Ongull.

 

[SirLlama]

Chapter: IV​

It had been four years since Karl became lord of Formyre. Four years of Karl trying to understand the politics of Cidaris. Four years of training if war knocked at his door. Two years since The White Plague surrounded Formyre, slowly strengthening its grasp of the lands around and slowly choking its populace. But Formyre remained untouched. Karl and Diana had spent day and night working with their councillors to make sure Formyre would do well while the plague threatened them. Duke Holger would occasionally send Karl letters calling him “cowardly dog”, Karl had become so used to it he quickly scanned the letters with his eyes looking for the insult before throwing it in the fire.


“Diana?” Karl asked. Both in bed, unable to sleep.

“Yes?”

“I can’t sleep”

“Me neither.” Diana stood up and began looking for something.

“What are you doing?” Karl sat up in bed.

“Well, I can't sleep,” Diana found a coat that she wore during the winters. “And you say you can’t sleep.” She put on the coat.

“You wanna go for a ride? Now?” The two had left for the hills a couple of times during their time at Formyre, but never too far away.

“Why not?” Diana smiled. She knew that was a disciplined man but that he was unable to resist her charms. She wasn’t the fairest of all but she had seen how Karl looked at her from time to time. Especially in the last couple of weeks.

Karl stood up, put his clothes and a thick coat on. “Let's go then”


“Meet me down by the stables in a bit, I need to get something before we leave” Diana quickly left the room and before Karl stepped outside the door she was gone.

So Karl listened to what Diana had said and gone to the stables and waited for her. He must’ve waited for some time before she showed up since he had caught himself talking to his horse. She was a good listener though he thought.

Diana finally showed up with to goblets in one hand and a bottle of wine in the other.

“Out of all the wines you could have chosen, you chose that one?” Karl could recognize that bottle anywhere.

“What? I know you don’t like it but I’d rather pour this on you than our guests in future.”

Karl thought about it for a moment. He silently nodded to himself, acknowledging what she said. Diana put the goblets and bottles in the bags at the side of the saddle of Karl’s horse before turning to him and giving him a quick kiss on the cheek.

“Good husband. A good husband should be as a good commander. Know when to pick your fights and when to surrender.” Karl mounted the horse. “And besides, I wouldn't want my poor father to get a heart attack when he tastes that foul drink.” Diana jumped up on the horse, sitting right behind Karl.

“You wanna ride with me? Don’t you think poor Lucile will get jealous?” Karl said and Diana gave her trust steed a quick glance.

“It’s just a one-time thing.” She put her hands around Karl, holding tight onto him. “Now, let's go!”



They rode further and further than ever before. Normally they would ride not too far away from the keep but tonight they wanted to find the highest point. And they finally did. After riding further away from the keep than ever before they found a hill so close the stars that, as Diana herself said, she could almost hold the stars in her hand.

They sat down atop the hill, gazing at the stars. Karl was a big man, especially in comparison to Diana, but when he sat under the stars he felt so small. He might be a large and muscular man, he might be the lord of a keep but he was nothing here. He felt like a small part of something much bigger than himself did not truly understand yet.

“Wine?” Diana started pouring in his goblet. Karl had been so mesmerized by the stars that he hadn’t even noticed that she had already begun filling his goblet.

“Alright then.” Karl took a sip. “But no more than two of these, alright?” Karl didn’t want to drink for two reasons. The first being that he wanted to be able to ride back home safely and the second, well it just tasted like cat piss.

“Only two,” Diana smirked. “But just try and stop me on the third one. I’m feeling adventurous today.”

The two laughed and for Karl one sip quickly became two and then two became three and suddenly his goblet was filled again. But Diana did not drink.

“This is nice,” Karl said. “Really. I needed this.”

“That makes both of us.”

“I’ve noticed something Diana.”

“What?”

“The wine in my cup keeps on disappearing, whilst yours remain untouched.” Karl gave his wife a suspicious but playful look.

“Back home in Troy my sisters and I would call this liquid courage. After drinking enough we would all be able to slay even the mightiest beasts, or at least we thought so. I’ve had enough of this at home.”

“So why did you bring it then?”

“Because you’re always busy with ‘The good of the realm’ and ‘protecting the people’ and ‘making sure we have a secure place to live’. I appreciate it and all and I’m happy that I can help but it gets so boring.”

“So you decided that it would be more entertaining to try and get me drunk.” Karl looked at her, dead serious, for a couple of seconds before throwing the goblet away.

“Karl!” She gave him a light slap on the shoulder before quickly running after the goblet. “Do you know how much these are worth!”

“No.” Karl simply smiled. She knew that he was teasing her.

“You can’t just throw out stuff around.” She went in for another slap on the shoulder, this time with more force but not enough to make it an aggressive gesture. Karl knew where it came from.

Karl grabbed her wrist before she hit him. “If you wanna fight, do it properly”

Diana squinted as Karl let go of her wrist. “All right, but not now. I’ll get you when you least expect it.”

Karl couldn’t keep back his smile. The best thing that came out of him becoming lord was meeting Diana. He had grown to genuinely care for her. He had felt things change between them these last couple of weeks but wasn’t quite sure what to make of it. He knew how he felt but wasn’t sure about her. They were man and wife but to be lovers were a whole other thing. To tell her how he really felt. Every time he had gotten close to saying it in the last couple of days he felt more vulnerable than ever before.

Neither of the two had realised that none had spoken a word in some time now and had just looked at each other, but aware of the gaze of the other but without meeting it. Suddenly they both realised the silence had taken over the conversation. Deep inside they liked the silence, liked being this close to the other and just communicating without words but none of them was truly brave enough to show this to the other.

Diana quickly thought of something to talk about. Children, yes of course children. Normally a topic that would be reserved for after the revelation of affection for the other, but now that they were lord and lady children was as important as being able to raise troops.

“One day we will have children. You know it.” Diana said. “But how should we raise them? What should they believe?”

“Believe? Like what gods to believe in?”

“Exactly. I know you follow Melitele and the people here heed her word but I am not from here Karl. I may be from The North but I don’t follow your god.”

“Well, then we’ll tell them about Melitele and The Eternal Fire.”

“And you’re fine with that?”

“Why shouldn’t I be?” Karl raised his eyebrow. “They’re the same in the end, aren’t they? When I was told about the gods I was told that they’re all the same. Doesn’t matter if it’s Melitele or The Eternal Flame, it’s the same god but just different interpretations.”

Diana smiled and let out a small chuckle. “Sometimes you surprise me. You truly know so little of the world and yet I feel like you have all the right answers.” With her hand, she slowly caressed the side of his face. When he turned his eyes to look at her she quickly retracted her hand.
“Religions tears communities apart. It causes chaos between classes and families and sometimes even kills people. And yet here you sit, claiming it’s all the same in the end.”

Karl was confused. “Did I say something wrong?”

“No. Not at all.” Diana smiled. She moved closer to Karl and without even thinking about it Karl put his arm around her. When he felt how close they were he was about to move his arm but Diana grabbed it so he wouldn’t remove it. “Don’t. This is nice.” She said nervously. She tried to mask the fact that it felt like her heartbeat a million times faster when they sat this close.

It wasn’t that they had never been this close before. Of course they had, they had tried and tried to get a child many times before but this was different. This wasn’t about the Lord and Lady but about Karl and Diana.

“What about the afterlife? Do you think we all end up together?” Diana asked.

“I don’t know.”

“What don’t you know?”

“The afterlife. I’m not sure what to believe. Maybe we end up in some magical garden or end somewhere bad or maybe there is nothing. I’m not sure.”

“That’s rather brave.”

“Being unable to form an opinion?”

“No, questioning all of it. Not many people do that back in Troy.”

Karl couldn’t hide it anymore. He was just as nervous as Diana. His heart was about to burst out from his chest.

“There’s something I want to tell you.” Karl moved his arm from Diana and sat in front of her.

Diana wasn’t sure if he was about to tell her he cared just as much for her as she did for him. She was scared. What if his feelings weren’t mutual but why shouldn’t they be. Everything pointed that way but she was still nervous, she had never felt this way before. In Troy she would have suitors begging at her feet but not because they wanted her, they wanted her name. Karl was different.

“I don’t know about you but there is this thing, I can't really explain it. It’s just when I’m around you I’m happy, not that I’m not happy without you, there’s just something about being near you. When we sit close or when we touch hands I’m about to explode from the inside, in a good way, if that makes sense.” Karl pause for a moment and fixed his eyes to her now, he had been nervous and staring at the ground.
“With everything happening around us I have just had more time to be around you in another way and…I’m not really sure what to say.”

Diana's hands were shaking. She couldn’t believe it but it also made perfect sense. Of course, he liked her too.

“What I’m trying to say is that I really like you Diana and I know I sound like a child when I say it like that, but I really care for you. I have feelings for you”

Diana went close to him, their knees up against each other. “I love you too.” Blushing and about the cry from all the tension that had been in her Karl saw something in her eyes. He had known Diana for many years now. But in this one moment, her eyes had told him more than her words ever had.

They moved closer and their lips met. Of course, they had kissed other people before but this, this was more than a kiss. It was passion. Love.

As their lips parted, they lingered close to each other, close enough to almost feel the breath of the other. Even with their eyes almost closed they could understand each other perfectly. Understand that this was perfect. As their eyes moved up Diana grabbed Karl’s hand and moved closer to her stomach. With the other hand she took her goblet with the wine and poured out on the grass beside them, she wasn’t going to drink it and Karl definitely wouldn’t want to drink It voluntarily.

“You must have done something to please Melitele. I think The Mother has blessed us with a daughter.”

 

[stnylan]

Sometimes you just need to get some healthy outdoor exercise.