[Sverdar]

Medieval setting for the Inheritance Forums. The rest will be explained. Got this idea after reading a bit of DaoCFan's War of the Inheritance Forums.

It's based on Alagaesia Hobbit, or Mikey, the newest addition to the RPG Staff. Note: Most of the events displayed in this story are fictional and shouldn't be thought of as reflecting anything that actually happened or anything.

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Chapter I

Hobbit of Alagaesia, a tall, thin adolescent, hurried cautiously through the Palace, sneaking around every corner. He was but a lowly gladiator, and occasional painter, and the Palace was only intended for Masters and Magistrates. Though he had been summoned, by Yolandus herself, he had to be cautious. If an official caught him sneaking about the Palace, he would surely be beaten.

So, skittering along quietly, Hob made his way towards the Masters' chambers. Turning a corner, Hob spotted the large archway that lead in to the chambers. He hurried faster now, breaking into an all out dash for the archway. But then, just as he reached the hall, a figure appeared before him, shaded by the building's poor lighting. Hob closed his eyes and braced himself, seeing surprise in the figure's eyes. Familiar eyes.

"Hob? Oh, my Paolini!"

Hob sat for a second, terribly confused, then looked up. Opening his eyes, Hob saw a beautiful female face looking down on him, deeply concerned. It was, of course, Euphia, a Magistrate and Hob's close friend.

"Euphia!" Hob exclaimed, kissing the outstretched hand of the female Magistrate.

"What are you doing here?"

"I've been summoned by Yolandus," Hob explained, glancing up and down the hallway.

"That would explain-...Ah, " Euphia began thoughtfully, "I've just come from Yolandus' office. Well, you better go along. I'll see you afterwards in The Perpetual Boredom?"

"Of course," Hob replied with anticipation. The Perpetual Boredom was the bar in which Hob, Euphia and, occasionally, their friend Sverdar would meet and discuss their days. "I'll get Sverdar to come also."

"Until we meet again." And with a bow, Euphia was away, striding down the Palace corridors. Hob watched her go, still smiling, then turned back to the archway. Passing into the Masters' chambers, he immediately spotted a door marked "Office of Yolandus Administratus", and stalked towards it. Standing tall, Hob knocked on the door.

"Who calls?" Came a high, wispy voice from within the room.

"‘Tis I, Hobbit of Alagaesia."

"Enter."

Entering the room, Hob immediately thought that he had gone blind. There was no light; only two yellow eyes peering at him through the darkness.

"Hobbit," the voice spoke contentedly. The voice sounded like the wind on a cold, dark night. Chilling and painful, but, at the same time, breezy and numbing. "I have been expecting you. Would you care for some light?"

"Yes, please." Hobbit replied, relieved but, at the same time, frightened at what he might see. Only a few select people, mainly other Masters and Magistrates, had ever seen Yolandus' face. And none that had would speak of it.

The yellow eyes that had been watching Hob since he entered rose to meet Hob's face and turned left, past Hob. As the eyes moved, the sound of footsteps echoed across the room. When the footsteps ceased, there was a small flash of light, causing Hob to close his eyes. As they opened, Hob saw a roaring flame in the fireplace next to him and a short female figure standing in front of it. She was the fairest sight that Hob had ever seen, but, even after just a glance, he could tell there was something amiss. Her face reflected a seemingly kind smile that, after looking at her for a few seconds, Hob could tell seemed to be hiding something. The look was meant to make one feel as though they knew nothing in comparison to her. And, Hob decided, it seemed to be working rather well.

"Now, let's get right to business, shall we?" Yolandus began, walking back to the desk that she had been sitting at earlier. "Here's what it is. The Magistrates of the Gladiatorial Games have been watching you at the games. They are impressed with your display of tactics, fighting technique, even putting together a couple of your own games. So, after considering this and reading over your application, I have decided to give you the position of Gladiatorial Magistrate."

Hob was taken aback. This was not what he was expecting. He was sure the visit was going to be about a missed tax payment or a stolen pair of shoes, not being given a government position.

"Do you accept this position?"

"Yes." Hob didn't even have to think about the answer. It had been his dream to be a Magistrate someday and now it was coming true.

"Good. Now, repeat after me: I give my oath that I will fulfill my duties as Magistrate with all of my soul and forsake anyone who may pose a threat to the land of Inheritania."

As Hob repeated the oath, he felt a certain weight fall on his shoulders. It was a magic bond, of course. Euphia had often mentioned a bond tugging at her when she was away from Inheritania.

"Wonderful. Now, let's move on. Your first assignment, as a Gladiatorial Magistrate, is Ex-Gladiatorial Magistrate Sverdar."

Hob's eyes narrowed, gazing on the Master with confusion. "What about him?"

"You are friends with him, are you not?"

"I am."

"Good. Your assignment is-...Well, to be quite frank, I need him killed."

"Killed?!" Hob exclaimed. Tons of thoughts ran through his mind. Sverdar had been his friend for almost his entire life, he couldn't kill him. Why would Yolandus want him dead? The fact that, through all this, she kept a calm smile on her face scared him deeply.

"Indeed. He learned...some things as a Magistrate that cannot be made public. Now go. But, before you do, go to the office of Camthalion Luinwe. He is the commander of a rather secret military force that will aid you in your assignment. Consider this mission...your confirmation. Now, away with you. Oh, and...your Magistrate badge is with Camthalion."

With that, Yolandus flicked her wrist, opening the door of her office. Hob, still in shock, walked out the door and moved toward the archway. It was horrible. He couldn't even bring himself to ponder the thought. Yolandus knew that Sverdar was his friend. It was meant to test how far he would go for Inheritania. Already he could feel the bonds of duty trying to wash away any thoughts of his friendship. Could he do it? Could he forsake his friend for the good of Inheritania? He wasn't even sure what Sverdar knew. How could it possibly be bad enough to kill for? Surely not.

Then, after what seemed like a lifetime, Hob found himself standing before the door to Camthalion's office. He considered, for a moment, the effects of him not even going in. But that didn't look terribly promising. It would likely just be the death of both of them. Not promising at all. So, with a terrible weight upon his shoulders, Hob opened the door and stepped into Camthalion's office.

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Table of Contents Coming Soon...

No, I don't, in my numerous delusions of grandeur, imagine myself needing a whole different topic for the Table of Contents. =P

[Excelsior]

Oh my gosh. Bravo! I love it! Please, please write more.

[Revenge]

Wonderfully well done. Great descriptions. Sucked me right in.

[Sverdar]

Thank you. I will definitely write more. Second chapter is being written. It'll be up by tomorrow night.

I had hoped it would be okay. I was going to do a comedy, but I figured that'd be a bit too much like WotIF. So I went for more of a thriller/action story.

Critique and suggestions are definitely encouraged.

[alagaesia hobbit]

OH EM GEE! What possesed you to write a story about me? I don't want to kill Sverdar! I'd end p like a messed up version of Anakin Skywalker xD I want to see more! I like the whole writing style. And the way you described Yolandus Administratus as evil, even though she's... Ah, continue! I want more! dang it!

[Master of the Blade]

Hey you stole my name for Yoli!!!!!!


You are so sued

[alagaesia hobbit]

Actually, it was neither of you who came up with that name, it was /me/

[Euphoria]

Oh, man, Sameth! You're so awesome! I'll have to stab you in the face if you don't continue with this

[alagaesia hobbit]

Update this Sam, I want to see this finished. =)

[Sverdar]

Alright, Nate. I'll pay you a pound for the rights to Yoli's name, eh? But, since I'm not planning on profiting from the story, it won't really matter, will it now?

Next chapter coming in a bit...

[alagaesia hobbit]

I look forward to it.

[The Chronicler]

Will I be in it? stupid question, of course not! Good jobbus.

[Sverdar]

Many, many more people will enter into it when Hob gets out of the Palace.

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Chapter II

“Hobbit.”

The deep, hollow voice echoed across the large, empty room. The room was around a hundred square feet, yet the only thing visible was a large weapon rack, up against the back wall. Then, after looking for a while longer, Hob spotted a tall, fit man standing next to the great weapon rack. The man, though rather tall, seemed rather unimposing next to the easily twenty-foot tall rack. Moving slowly, Hob walked towards the man, across the large room.

“Camthalion?”

“Indeed.” As Hob neared the Magistrate, he noticed that his long, dark hair seemed to emanate a sort of blackness. All the light, from various torches, in the room seemed to stop just at Camthalion’s face and cast a shadow over his body. This strange occurrence added to Hob’s already heightened anxiousness as he continued towards Camthalion.

“Yolandus said you had my badge?”

“Indeed,” repeated Camthalion, reaching into his robes. After a moment of searching, Camthalion’s hand emerged, now holding a small plate of gold. He held it out to Hob as he approached. Giving Hob the badge, Camthalion spoke again. “You have been informed of your mission?”

Hob’s mind ran over that horrid conversation with Yolandus once again when the Magistrate mentioned it.

“Yes. Yolandus informed me. To...kill Sverdar.”

“Good. Now, before we proceed, let me tell you a bit about The Tail. The Tail is a group of assassins, made to protect Inheritania, under the direct command of yours truly. I assume you have heard of The Flame, the army of Inheritania?”

Hob nodded. Of course he had heard of the Flame. Their recruiters were constantly pestering the people of Inheritania, trying to get them to enlist to fight in the continuing war against Antis Inheritania, the rebel group that had broken off from Inheritania just recently.

“Well, consider the forces like the attacks of a dragon. The flame of a dragon is used as a main attack, to pack the greatest punch; whereas the tail is used to come ‘round the back, striking quickly and efficiently. We are the tail of the Inheritania dragon. We strike precisely, quickly and, if placed correctly, can cause far more damage to an enemy than The Flame.”

As Camthalion went on, Hob took a closer look at the contents of the weapons rack. There were crossbows, daggers, quivers full of poison-tipped arrows, short swords, even a few broadswords, but absolutely no spears, the number one weapon of the Flame.

“We even-,” Camthalion paused as he saw Hob glancing at the weapons, “Well...do you see anything you like?”

“Sorry? Oh. The weapons. Well, I was just noticing how you don’t have any spears.”

“No, indeed. Large weapons, such as spears and halberds, are not conducive to our kind of combat. We’re more of the cloak and dagger sort of fighting.”

“I see.”

“We have, in our ranks, thirty of the best fighters in all of Inheritania. Many of them are Gladiators that you may have met before. Others...well, some of the others don’t usually get out and about much. I have a complete list of members with me.” He once again reached into his robes, this time pulling out a piece of parchment and handing it to Hob.

Hob grabbed the parchment and looked it over, curious as to who he might find. He immediately saw a few names he recognized: Corsair of Angmar, Blood Knuckles, Risstalle (trainee). Then, several names down the line, Hob spotted a name that startled him quite a bit.

“Sverdar?” Hob read the name aloud. This might have explained why Yolandus needed Sverdar dead. If he had once been a member of the Tails, he would know many secrets that not even Magistrates knew.

“You are correct.” Camthalion nodded, as though confirming Hob’s suspicions.

“Correct about what?”

“This is why Sverdar must be killed. I had a feeling that it was what you were thinking. Yolandus taught me some, though not much, about mind-reading. She herself is a master at it. But, yes. Sverdar learned too much as a Magistrate and as a Flame...he must be eliminated.”

Hob just stood still for what seemed like the longest time, pondering what he might do. It seemed obvious that not killing Sverdar would mean death, in the end. But how could he look at himself in the mirror again if he did? If he betrayed and slaughtered his best friend because of something he knew absolutely nothing about.

“You have enough to think about now. Go, get some rest. Drink a bit. Come back tomorrow and we’ll plan the mission out.”

A few seconds later, Hob was once again walking down the mazelike corridors of the Palace, now much more worried. No longer worried about running into a Magistrate. After all, one look at the golden badge, that was now dangling from Hob’s chest, and the Magistrates would realize he was now one of theirs. No. His worry now lay on the tugging sensation in his gut. His duty.

Exiting the Palace, Hob gazed about Paolini City. It was a wonderful sight and Hob surely would have enjoyed it, had he been in a better mood. But now all Hob saw was a bleak and miserable city, full of disappointment and turmoil. He immediately set off towards Perpetual Boredom. Euphia would be there. Hob smiled. The prospect of speaking with his close friend eased his worry. She would help him with his decision. All would be well...he hoped.

[alagaesia hobbit]

xD I like. You must post more, and more, and more. Classic.

[Excelsior]

Yay yay yay...my appetite is insatiable, post more soon!