Post by Morec0
((
Gilnean Moon (Part 1), for the previous portion of the storyline. ))
Ivan sat the now empty mug of Gilnean fortified brandy – his tenth this hour – down on the bar table with a deep sigh. “Barkeep,” he stammered, “refill.” The barkeeper of The Patriot’s Return – the most prestigious drinking establishment in Gilneas – nodded and poured the noble another mug-full, which Ivan downed instantly. “Refill,” he said again, the barkeep again giving him another drink.
The door to The Patriot’s Return opened and an armored female soldier stepped in. She had blond hair and striking green eyes that scanned the room until she saw Ivan. She walked over towards him and sat at the barstool next to him. “Barkeep,” she said, “a round of whiskey for me and the hero.” The barkeep nodded and turned to pour each a glass. “I thought I’d find you here,” she then said, looking over at Ivan. “And I know what’s troubling you. Ivan, your brother’s disappearance wasn't your fault.”
“Then who’s was it?” Ivan snapped at her, the effects of the alcohol clear in his now-hazy eyes. “I couldn’t protect him from that… thing. And when I sent him to the city I didn’t even think about going with him.” He slammed his fist down hard on the table. “Because of me he’s been captured by the remaining Northgate, and who knows what they’ll do to him before they state their ransom.”
“There’s no proof that-.”
“Who else would have kidnapped him?” Ivan yelled, jumping to his feet and glaring at the woman. “Damn it, think! There’s no one else in this entire damned nation that would even think about abducting a noble, NOT ONE!”
The woman was not fazed at all by Ivan’s outburst. “I've known you – fought beside you – far too long to even be slightly intimidated by you Ivan. Yell all you want, but you’re not going to get any more of a reaction out of me that this.”
Ivan’s fell silent and he sat back down, placing his face in his hands. “Elizabeth I… I’m sorry. I’m just worried about Blaine.”
“I can tell,” Elizabeth Mary said with a chuckle. “And you shouldn’t worry; you knew the moment you reported Blaine disappearance to King Greymane he would send soldiers to scour the countryside for him, we all did. There’s nothing to worry about, Ivan, he’ll be fine.”
“I hope your right,” Ivan said with another deep sigh. The barkeep, who both soldiers were sure had been listening to their conversation, turned back around and placed two large mugs of Gilnean whiskey on the bar-counter. Ivan reached for the mug, but before he even had a chance to grip the handle of the mug he saw Elizabeth grab hers and down the drink with a single gulp out of the corner of his eye.
“Another, barkeep,” she said
The eldest Jeret sibling shook his head and chuckled. “You’re the only woman I know who can out drink any one of the men in the whole of Lordaeron.”
Elizabeth smiled at him then drank down the whiskey. “I think I’ll take that as a complement,” she said after a satisfied, aspirated “ah”. “Barkeep, another drink.”
“You should,” Ivan said, grinning from ear to ear, “It’s one of the reason I love you.” He raised his mug for a toast, “to our engagement and Gilneas.”
Elizabeth smiled and touched her mug to his. “To our engagement and Gilneas,” she repeated. Both of them then drank down their alcohol, slammed the mugs down on the table, and simultaneously ordered another.
Many hours later Ivan staggered out of the bar, an arm around Elizabeth to help support himself. After several rounds of whiskey he had lost all feeling in his legs, now barely able to stand he would need some help getting home. Fortunately, Elizabeth had no intention of letting him spend the night in the bar and so was willing to make sure that he got home personally.
“Light,” Ivan said as he was practically carried to the nearest carriage, “I believe that I that I have lost control of my senses.”
“You think?” Elizabeth said with a chuckle. “Don’t worry; I’ll have you home in no time.”
“You’re a nice lady,” the noble managed to say before he blacked out completely. Elizabeth sighed as she struggled to keep him from falling to the ground.
Finally she reached a carriage, and with help of the driver got Ivan into one of the seats. “Where to ma’am?” the driver asked with a tip of his hat.
“The Jeret Manor,” she said, climbing into the wagon and sitting next to Ivan. The driver bowed and closed the door behind her before climbing back up into the driver’s seat. With a crack of the reigns they were off. Ivan slumped over into Elizabeth’s lap as the vehicle started moving, she just smiled.
The trip took them west through the city to Aderic’s Repose and then south up the road from there. It was a long trip, lasting at least half an hour, but eventually they reached the door of the three-story manor that the Jeret Family had called home for three generations. It was an impressive structure, even though some parts looked to be in slight disrepair. If it was anything that needed immediate attention, though, Elizabeth was sure they would have paid to have it repaired immediately.
The carriage driver helped Elizabeth carry Ivan to the front door, and the female soldier then knocked. Almost immediately it was answered by a woman with dark brown hair and blue eyes wearing a very expensive robe. “Ivan!” Krista Jeret –middle child of the Jeret family – exclaimed when she saw her eldest brother. “Servants, take my brother to his quarters.”
A butler and few maids hurried to the front door and took Ivan from Elizabeth and the carriage driver, carrying him up the stairs with obvious effort. “You little wench,” Krista said glaring at Elizabeth with contempt clear in her eyes. “What did you do to him?”
“I’ll be waiting at the carriage, ma’am,” the driver said, and turned and walked back towards his vehicle without another word.
Elizabeth did not even notice. “Krista, please,” she said with a frown, “I know you still don’t approve of mine and Ivan’s engagement, but you have to understand that-.”
“That what?” Krista said, crossing her arms. “That you seduced my brother like some kind of succubus? That you’re using him to get your filthy peasant hands on our fortune and then will leave him for someone else even richer to continue your gold digging ways? That you-.”
“That’s enough!” Elizabeth yelled. Standing to her full height and placing a finger in Krista’s face. “I have tried to tolerate you for the sake of your brother, my fiancé, but I am going to tell you this once and once only; your brother and I are going to be married in a week, so I suggest you get used to the idea before then.”
Krista brought up a hand and struck Elizabeth across the face. “I want you off of our land, now. Can you understand that you insolent, stupid, pathetic wh0re?”
Elizabeth brought an arm back to punch Krista square in the face, but instead managed to force herself to relax her gauntleted grip and lower her arm. “I will not repeat myself,” she said, turning around and walking away. “I’ll see you in a week, sister-in-law.” She climbed into the carriage, which took off in the direction of Gilneas City.
Krista glared at it as it went, or, more specifically, the sole passenger inside it. She then turned around and reentered her manor, slamming the door behind her.
Post by Morec0
Writer's Commentary:
First commentary for Gilnean Moon, so I'm going to go ahead and use it to put out some points from the previous ones as well instead of necroing them.
In the
Prolouge I tried to set a darker atmosphere then I feel most of my stories have, and what better way to do that with a funeral? Especially one that blatantly states the three Jeret Siblings - barely near their teenage years - are alone. I intended to make some mention of what exactly killed the Jeret's siblings parents, but in the end just forgot. I attempted to find a High Priest or bishop of some kind to preside over the funeral in Gilnean lore, but ended up pulling a blank. Thus Bishop Leonard Balthazar was created. The way Genn reacted to their deaths was also tricky, as, after reading Lord of His Pack, I realized that having said "I learned about the need to aid others from them" or something along those lines was completely out of the question.
I also began the introduction of Ivan's character, who - as the eldest of the Jeret siblings and who's worgen side I have been trying to flesh out for what feels like eternity - will be the predominate character throughout the series - of course supported heavily by his siblings and other major lord characters. I decide to start the action off at the end of the Northgate Rebellion/Gilneas Civil War because 1) there's not that much information on it, and 2) introducing the worgen right off the bat seemed to be moving things along too fast.
---
For those of you who remember the failed
Gilneas Moon RP, the opening - and, in fact, entirety - of
Part 1 should look familiar, it’s fairly similar to the opening posts I used for my characters in it. Only here Ivan was leading a large amount of soldiers, not just a few, and Blaine gets infected almost immediately, along with other major changes.
Altogether, I think it’s the most-well-written page of the series thus far, especially in regards to the worgen transformation. As for the cannibalizes and devouring of the horses, I figured after a transformation like that – especially with so much growth in bone and muscle – that the body would have exhausted a lot of its resources, sending the brain into starvation mode. Although, I suppose the amount of people/animals Blaine’s worgen form ate was slightly overkill.
---
Part 2 itself finally introduces Krista Jeret as a character, and I have to say; I hit the nail on the head with "stuck up b!tch." It also introduces the supporting character Elizabeth Mary, Ivan's bride-to-be and a character, although brand new, that will be playing a crucial role in the story as far as I can see. Regardless, I'm a bit disappointed with how this page turned out. I feel I could have done a lot better with the presentation of it.
Also of note: I got the idea of Ivan instantly blaming his brother's disappearance on the Northgate rebels from Varian instantly blaming the reason his people weren't waking up on the Horde in
Stormrage.
The worgen have yet to strike again, and there has been no mention of the body Ivan had taken to Gilneas City after searching the Darlin Estate for weapons. Both that and the lack of mention on whether Ivan found anything or not were both oversights, and will be corrected
Soontm.
Enjoy.
