Rena's Downfall

454 0 0

Lenny leads two knights, a man with blond hair with some stubble and blue yes wearing standard issue knight armor and a woman with red hair and eyes wearing red colored armor with gold trim that meets requirements, towards a surprisingly well built estate considering how the rest of the Palemare county has looked leading up to here. Lenny pauses for a moment at the top of a hill and asks “Johnna, Jordan, tell me. Does the main road leading to Rena’s estate look as bad as the villages we crossed?” Jordan says “I don’t know. I haven’t really been to Palemare before but from my understanding the county has been struggling to pay their taxes and has needed aid to feed the people here.” Johnna adds “No. the villages and towns along the main road are better maintained, a lot better. Tax collectors always reported that it looked like what little money the county had must have been going to infrastructure. I’m more worried about the state of the Fortified Inns on the back roads we used. While not quite as well funded as those on major routes they should have been in better shape.” Johnna remarks “Ya that’s true. I also don’t remember seeing any guards at any of them. I thought the Knight Commander never assigned Knights to the region because Palemare supposedly had enough volunteers to man those inns.” Lenny thinks for a bit longer “I see. Come, we only have so long before Rena returns. Johnna, I want you to Investigate the inside of the mansion. Jordan the grounds. I will speak with the servants here to see what they will say."

The two knights salute then go about their tasks as Lenny approaches the servants quarters where he sees three of them hard at work and says “Excuse me a moment of your time please. I have some questions about the Countess of these lands.” The three freeze for a moment but quickly get back to work. He asks “Won’t you speak to me? I promise it won’t take long” one of the servants speak “Please stop. We will be punished if the countess catches us talking instead of working without her permission. Even this much is dangerous.” Lenny asks “And if I say Queen Luna sent me to investigate her would that make you more willing?” another servent says “Ya and if your ‘investigation’ doesn’t end up locking her up then it’s US that will pay for it.” Lenny tries again “I promise that we can protect you” The third stands and faces Lenny who notices she has an eye patch…just what could a servent of noble be doing to cost an eye? The servent speaks “I am Lu. And if it means helping everyone I will speak. I-I’m not sure how much longer I could keep this up anyway” one of the other servants mutters “your funeral” Lenny says “please anything you can tell me will help” Lu begins to tell tales of over taxation of the people, harsh punishments for failure to obey orders, and other things he would expect from a noble abusing power but then…then things started getting horrifying. Tales of executing those that resist her, selling off people failing to pay to Tash’Gerran, Rena personally torturing those who inconvenienced her. The worse tale, however, was that Lu was something worse than a servent. Lu gulps “Three years ago my sister tripped and fell into one of the countess’s gardens. She was going to execute my sister for it. I begged Rena not to. She said she would spare my sister if…if I become hers. And I don’t mean a slave, I had to agree to be her toy.” Lu beings to sob “She did horrible and unspeakable things to me and forced me to do horrible things to myself and others, like gouging at my own eye with my hand or torturing a fellow servent for screwing up her dinner, and if I didn’t, she’d kill not just my sister but my whole family. But I can’t keep doing this…I can’t…” Lenny hugs her “There there. I promise you won’t have to. I have two knights searching for more evidence as we speak.” Lu manages to collect herself “I know where the evidence you need is” “you don’t have to…” she shakes her head “No. I need to make sure she can’t worm out of this.” “Very well lead on.”

After meeting up again with Jordan and Johnna they head to the basement of the mansion. Once there it appears quite normal. Lenny suspected Lu to lead them to a box of documents but she instead pushed a brick into one of the walls and a hidden door slide open. He said, “what are we about to find” Lu responds “Hell” and leads them inside down a hall that lead to four rooms. The first they found was a vault rivaling that of the legendary dragon hoards. Jordan says shocked “She’s only been the countess for a like what 5 years? How did she managed to get this much?” Lu answers “Selling some of us off to Tash’Gerran. The rest of it is from county taxes. Most of us haven’t seen money for over a year now. She takes everything now” They move on to the second room which is a torture chamber. Johnna says “Torture devices have been outlawed since before Queen Luna’s reign. How could she even get these.” Lu responds, “The same people she would sell us off to.” Then to the third room. A prison, though one far below the standards the nation uses. Lenny says, “Well at least no one is in here.” Lu shakes her head “That’s only because she feed them to what is in the next room before she went to Raybrandt to try and become a Knight.” Lenny asks, “Feed them?” Lu says “Follow.” She leads to the next room which is a large room with a throne near a pit with rather thick bars that has a hatch attached. Looking down they see a huge mutant looking beast down below. Jordan says “Gods that thing must be as big as a building. What is it?” Lenny says grimly “A theribane. A consumed one at that.” Jordan steps back “What but…I mean at the academy we learned once a theribane was consumed by it’s hunger it would mutate but they still tended to look half of what ever race they were. And nowhere near that large.” Lenny answers “That’s because in this nation at least you knights hunt them down as soon as one appears. But the more they consume the more they mutate and the larger they get. Eventully, they have no trace of what they once were appearing as monsters.” Lu nods “Yes. One of her old servants came back from the dead. And upon learning she was one of the rarer theribane she tossed the servent in this pit. Rena enjoyed seeing it hunt.” Lenny says “Jordan. Make haste to the nearest knight garrison. That theribane needs put down. Johnna and I will wait here for Rena. We have more then enough evidence.” Lu says “I wish to help” Lenny says “Are you sure” Lu nods and Lenny sighs “In that case what does she normally do when she returns” they then set a trap for Countess Palemare

Rena slams her manor door behind her and sees Lu waiting by the steps “Ah Lu. I haven’t been having a good time so you’re just the thing I want to see.” Lu says “No.” Rena blows a fuse “How many of you bastards are gonna fucking forget your place! Do you want your family to die!?! Cause I’ll fucking make you watch. It’s bad enough that those outside my county have disobeyed me I won’t fucking let my property do so!” Rena draws her sword and raises it up. “I’m gonna make sure you never fuc….” As she goes to bring it down only her arm doesn’t move wait something is grabbing her ar… “AHH!!!” She lets go of her sword as the force increases and she is hoisted into the air. She hears a voice “Got her.” Rena looks around and sees Lenny and the knight holding her in the air Johnna. Rena screams “Fucking let me go! This is my county!” Lenny says “Countess Rena you under arrest. For numerous crimes including the attempted assault with a deadly weapon.” Johnna puts Rena down long enough to bind her arms then lifts her back up and proceeds to take her outside. Rena was kicking and screaming almost the whole time till she stopped and spoke calmly “Oh well if everything is going to go this way…” She grins and says “Oh Lu. You think you won? I’m afraid not. The night you accepted my terms. I slaughtered your whole family. Every. Last. One. Bitch.” Johnna knocks out Rena and hauls her outside. Lu begins to stumble her skin turning ghost white “What…my family…all those things I…for nothing?” and faints on the spot being caught by Lenny who looks at the door “What could have made such a horrible person…”
           

Please Login in order to comment!