Topic: The Prospect of Victory

Shaye OConnor

Date: 2014-05-03 09:06 EST
((Contains reference to adult activities.))

An army encampment is a strange sort of place, especially when it has been in place for years. It becomes a sort of tented city, with merchants and wives and children, and all the other little things a city can offer living alongside the soldiers who train and fight and take on missions given to them by their commanders. Shaye fell easily into step with the way of life, recognizing it as following the order of the days she had spent as a recruit all those years ago. Gregor Makos took particular delight in ordering the First Blade of Arctra around, if only because of the genuine astonishment on the faces of his other men when Shaye did as she was ordered with only a grin for her old sergeant. With Liam often in war councils, she was left to her own devices, refusing to be a part of the planning unless she had information they needed, and today was no exception.

The grunt of bodies and slap of wooden sparring swords rang out from Makos' training ground, and very soon a small crowd had gathered. The First Blade was proving how she had stayed alive all these years, three cocky soldiers at a time. There was already a group of nine resting at the edge of the ground, each of them bearing bruises in uncomfortable places, watching as Shaye Dervla beat the ever living crap out of the three biggest men in her husband's army.

War councils seemed to take up most of Liam's time of late, though not so much that he did not have time to do his husbandly duty and keep his wife satisfied. It galled him that he could not share all their plans with her, but they could not chance Velasca finding out if she was to encounter the First Blade again before she was defeated. Most days, he knew where to find his lovely wife, and today was no exception. He knew better than to challenge the First Blade to a spar. If by some chance he managed to beat her - and it was uncertain whether or not he would - he could very well find himself in the precarious position of assuming the title of First Blade. Knowing all he did, it was a chance he could not take. He could, however, amuse himself by watching her defeat every challenger who entered the yard, including his own second. Conall was no slouch when it came to a sword, but there were few who could meet the skill of the First Blade.

Today seemed to be a lesson in humility for some of the troublemakers in the army. Men who couldn't keep their mouths shut, men who sneered at orders, men who drank too much, who thought too highly of their own dubious skill in battle. Men who needed taking down a notch or two. And these last three had watched nine of their comrades beaten down by one woman, bearing one sparring sword, in the last hour.

From the edge of the field, Makos' voice bellowed out, "Get on with it! Show us why you need no training! She's just one woman!"

Shaye grinned at the decidedly uncomfortable men in front of her. "You heard the man," she taunted them, her sword circling in her hand. "Come and get me, boys."

After a moment's hesitation, the biggest of the three charged with a roar. Shaye side-stepped easily, tripped him with one out-stretched foot, and spanked his rear end hard with her sparring sword before tapping his back with the point.

"Dead!" Makos roared, and a cheer went up from the small crowd watching as the other two attacked the First Blade.

It really was pitiful how quickly they, too, went down - one with a knee to his bollocks and a sweep of the long, smooth wooden blade across his neck, the other with a broken nose and the equivalent of his guts hanging out. With their audience's laughter ringing in their ears, they didn't dare take offense at being beaten by the First Blade. After all, there was no dishonor in it, even if she had won depressingly fast.

"She takes far too much pleasure in beating them," Liam remarked to Makos as he strode into the yard, fresh from a meeting with the Wild Ones, crunching on an apple he held in his hand. His Second was nowhere in sight, off working on some project of his own in preparation for the battle to come. Dusk would bring them all together again for the evening meal, but for now Liam welcomed a few moments of amusement spent watching his wife kick the tar out of the more arrogant of the group.

"This lot deserved it," his step-father told him, watching as Shaye shook hands with the men she'd just humiliated. "Men who can't keep their opinions to themselves need teaching a lesson; who better than the First Blade to do it?" He glanced at Liam with a grin of his own. "That one rubbing his arse" Spent most of last night declaring that no woman had ever been born who deserved the honor of a weapon in her hand." He laughed. "Still think she enjoyed that too much?"

"Hmph," Liam grunted a reply as he took another bite of the apple. "Even I was never so arrogant as that. I doubt he will repeat that remark." Now that their Commander had entered the yard, there would be no more insults of mutterings regarding the First Blade, so long as he was in range of hearing. "Do you think we've been too easy on them, Gregor?" Refugees came to them from all over Arctra, eager to fight, but often with little or no skills. It was up to them to mold them into soldiers, just as Gregor Makos had once molded a young Liam O'Connor and Shaye Dervla.

There was a pause while Gregor put together his answer. He was an old soldier by now, but by no means unfit for battle, his temperament ideally suited for commanding on the ground in the midst of a bloody fight. And even more perfectly suited to training the ragtag of men and women eager to fight for the true Queen, whoever and wherever she might be. "Haven't had a good fight in more than a year," he commented finally. "Soldiers get lazy, lack discipline, when there's no fighting to be had. One good battle, and they'll be hard again. They're good lads and lasses for the most part, and the ones that give trouble know better than to do it openly."

"They'll get their fill of battle soon enough," Liam remarked, taking a final bite from his apple and tossing the core aside. Though he had not shared everything Liayna had told him, Makos was his most trusted general, not to mention an old friend and his step-father. If there was anyone Liam trusted, it was Makos, and he had shared with the older man as much as he dared.

"Aye, they will," the sergeant nodded, interrupting himself to bellow out a drill order across the field. Too many people standing around doing nothing, and now they had drill to do. Shaye slipped out of the way, not prepared to spend the next hour waving her wooden sword at nothing just to please her old sergeant. Gregor chuckled as she skipped hurriedly off the field. "And how is married life treating you, lad?"

Shaye OConnor

Date: 2014-05-03 09:07 EST
Liam glanced over at his wife as she hurried off the field, a soft smile on his face at his general's question, somewhat reminiscent of the smile he used to get on his face when he was a boy in the first throes of love. "What do you think?" he answered the question with a question.

"I think you've finally found a place you can dip your wick without running the rest of us ragged for a week to get over the guilt," Gregor chuckled, unafraid to speak his mind to his commanding officer. He grinned, slapping Liam on the back. "Make the most of what time you've got. When the fight comes, that time'll disappear quick."

He looked over the drilling men and women in front of them, barking out this order or that instruction, as Shaye skirted the edge of the field, replacing her sparring sword in the rack behind Liam. "So," she said cheerfully as she came up beside them, "did you bet against me again, or have you learned your lesson by now?"

Liam chuckled at Gregor's analogy. "I haven't dipped my wick in years!" Not until a few nights ago anyway when he and Shaye were married. The look on his face was priceless when he overheard his wife's voice and realized she'd been standing right behind him. "I would never bet against you, unless you were fighting me," Liam replied with a slightly smug grin.

"These days, you don't have to throw the fight to get me an extra bread ration," she pointed out cheerfully, making a face at Makos as he laughed and moved away. Hands on her hips, she looked at her husband with a warm smile. "Stop looking so smug. Had a good meeting, rua?"

He blew out a breath, a slight frown on his face. "I'm tired of meetings," he said as he turned to face her, sliding his arms around her waist to tug her close. "Think you can manage to distract me from more talk of battle?" he asked, a playful smirk taking the place of the frown.

Shaye laughed, tucking her arms about his neck. One thing that could be said for career soldiers - they didn't mind the awkwardness that came with embracing while wearing armor. Dark eyes teased up at him as she considered the playfulness in his expression. "You wash my back, I ....bite yours?"

"Something like that," he admitted, with an amused sparkle in his eyes. "There's a spring I know of not far from here." Too far for walking, but not so far they couldn't get there and back by nightfall on horseback. A spring that was far enough away that it ensured privacy.

"Why, Commander O'Connor," Shaye laughed teasingly, utterly failing to keep her voice down. Liam was hers, and she was going to make damn sure everyone knew it. "Are you suggesting we go skinny dipping together?"

"I suppose I am..." he faltered as he realized he wasn't sure of her rank. He couldn't address her as the First Blade, and she didn't really hold any rank with the rebels. "Wife," he added, with a smirk, thoroughly enjoying each opportunity to address her as such.

"You should probably make it an order so I don't turn it around on you," she warned him in a playful tone of her own, letting her arms slip from about his shoulders as she turned away from the training field. Her fingers twined with his, though, keeping her claim obvious as she looked up at him. "Or steal your clothes and make you come back to camp starkers."

"Hmph," he snorted doubtfully at her remark. "Do you really think it's a good idea to give everyone a sneak peek at their Commander?" he asked, presuming she was just teasing....he hoped. It wasn't that he was ashamed of his body, but he assumed she'd prefer to keep that view to herself. "Why don't I get the horses while you grab a change of clothes?"

She laughed at the doubt on his face. "Don't you trust me?" she asked him sweetly, but didn't push it. A change of clothes was probably a good idea - her armor needed to go on the stand, rather than get left in a pile by a water source for however many hours they were going to be cavorting. "I'll meet you there," she promised him, reluctantly releasing his hand to lengthen her stride toward the place where their tent was set up.

He paused before letting her hand go, lifting it to his lips in a very un-Liam, romantic-like gesture. He touched a kiss to the back of her hand, that amused smirk on his face again. "Should I?" Letting go of her hand, he started away from her toward where the horses were kept.

It didn't take long for Shaye to meet him, her armor on the stand in the tent, unashamed of the close fit of the tunic that protected her modesty. Over one shoulder, she carried a satchel containing food, ale, and that change of clothes, along with a pair of towels. Never let it be said that she wasn't good at organizing herself, even for a short trip.

The question had gone unanswered, both of them knowing Shaye was not above stealing Liam's clothes, but also knowing to do so would allow other women to have a peek at what now belonged to her. For some reason, the thought of that amused Liam to no end, and by the time Shaye met him at the paddock, he was whistling to himself, very un-Liam-like, while he finished saddling up her horse.

Finding him was easy, given that she was probably one of only two people in the entire camp who could recognize Liam whistling. Moving up behind him, she touched a kiss to the back of his neck affectionately, reaching past to stroke her mare's neck, too. "You seem in an uncommonly good mood today, rua," she commented, settling her satchel securely on the saddle. "Dare I ask why?"

He smiled softly as he felt her lips touch the back of his neck. If he wasn't careful, his troops might think their leader was getting soft and sentimental - or maybe just soft in the head. "I feel like I've spent the last sixteen years doing nothing but fighting. I want to relax and enjoy one day with my wife and not think about war for a while," he replied, as he finished tugging the last strap into place. "I think we deserve it, don't you?"

Shaye OConnor

Date: 2014-05-03 09:08 EST
"We deserve each other, no matter how or when it came to be," she agreed with a gentle nod, touching her fingers to his bearded cheek for a moment. "I think the war can spare us for a few hours, rua, if we get away fast enough."

"Then we'd best leave now before Makos decides he needs me for something," he said, catching her hand and brushing a kiss against her fingers. "I love you, lea. I feel like I have not lived - really lived - these last years. Not until now." He'd already told her his life had been empty without her, and he'd meant it. Sure, he'd had a purpose and plenty to keep him busy, but his entire life had been about duty and very little more, since they'd parted. But all that had changed now.

With a gentle tug on his beard - something she was probably getting a little too fond of, really - Shaye pulled him down into a soft kiss, biting his lower lip gently as she drew back. "I missed you, too," she assured him, and hip-checked him out of her way to climb up into the saddle with a grin. "Lead on, o master of the universe."

He chuckled at her cheekiness. Like she'd already observed, nothing much had really changed. She was still the same old Shaye, except for the fact that she was older and wiser and prettier and the most feared swordsmen in all of Arctra. "Hardly," he replied as he climbed up onto his own horse's back. "I'd be happy with Master of the Rebellion."

"How about Keeper of Shaye's Undies?" she suggested as she nudged her mare to come alongside his stallion, the horses settling into a comfortable walk as they traversed the familiar camp lines, following Liam's direction.

"Mmm, I think I prefer Keeper of Your Heart," he countered, gently kicking his horse into an easy jaunt away from the camp. "I can't tell you where we are exactly," he said with a small frown of regret. "Not yet. Not until all this is over. When we leave camp, we'll have to blindfold you again." He didn't sound pleased about the prospect of that, but he couldn't chance Velasca finding out where they were. It was bad an assassin had somehow infiltrated the camp once. He could only hope no word had reached Velasca as to their whereabouts. "I'd move camp, but it would prove difficult."

"It's fine, rua," she assured him, pulling a length of cloth from her belt. "I'm prepared to blindfold myself. And I've been carefully not making guesses to learn where we are, either." As the horses dropped into an easy trot, she raised the cloth to tie it securely about her eyes, blocking out all sight of the world around her. "At least this time I'm riding forwards and untied."

"It's not you I don't trust," he told her, though he thought she must know this already. It was obvious who he didn't trust, and he couldn't take a chance with the lives that had been placed in his care. They had come to him, followed him here to the mountains, flocked here, slowly at first, but now their numbers had swelled to that of a small army, and all of them were his responsibility and under his protection. "I'm sorry, lea. I just can't take a chance." He reached for her horse's reins, able to guide them both at this easy pace.

Shaye smiled beneath the wrap of cloth, resting her hands on the pommel of her saddle as he took the reins of her horse. "Liam, please," she assured him. "I know why this is necessary. I'm the one who asked them to blindfold me when they brought me in. Believe me, I know you trust me, but I also know the dangers. And I'm more than happy to work with you on this, so please stop worrying about it."

"You were right, Shaye. I'm an idiot. There was an assassin right under our noses, and I never noticed it. What if word got back to Velasca" What if there are more traitors in camp?" Hadn't he been the one to say he didn't want to think about any of that for one day' And here he was thinking about it. His duty never seemed far from his thoughts, even when he wanted it to be.

"You're on the verge of making the first progressive step toward an end to all this," she reminded him gently. "Even if word has gone back to Velasca - and it hadn't arrived before I left - there's nothing she can do about it now. It would take her at least a month to get an army up here, and by then, you and your people will have moved." This wasn't exactly leaving the war behind them for a few hours, but he was clearly worried. If she could help in any way, she would.

"I know," he replied, a frown in his voice. It irked him to no end that the camp had been infiltrated, but they'd been lucky. It had been sixteen years, and as far as he knew, only one assassin had ever managed to find them in all that time. That had to say something for the loyalty of the rebels for both the cause and their leader. "Velasca tried to torture it out of some of them."

"I know." There was a dullness to her tone as she acknowledged the cruelty of the Usurper, the ruthlessness of a woman trying to hold onto a throne that had never been hers to take. "I did what I could for them, when I could." But she had never been able to aid in an escape. What she had done was end the pain and misery for those who asked for it, deaths she counted among the many that would be avenged with Velasca's own death.

"She tortured Conall. I'm sure he hasn't told you. He doesn't like to talk about it. I don't think he's even told Liayna." The thought of it still made him angry, only adding to the deep and bitter hatred he held for the Usurper. "I am sorry you had to suffer at her hand." He quieted a moment as he steered the horses toward the left. "Tell me about Adare," he said, changing the subject, curious about the boy that would be king....or more accurately, the girl who would be queen.

Shaye bit her tongue to keep from commenting on Velasca's preferred methods of torture, sure that Liam didn't want to know the details in any case. It was Conall's story to tell, if he ever would. Brought to the subject of the boy all their hopes rested upon, she softened, smiling a little at the memory of the handsome youth with his quiet ways and strong sense of justice. "What would you like to know?" she asked Liam curiously. "I met him only recently, and then, only for a short time. I don't think I know much about the boy."

"They say he is cursed with a ghost. What do you know of that?" he asked, just making conversation to pass the time until they reached their destination, but it was conversation with a purpose.

"I would say they are right." That, in itself, was shocking enough - that the First Blade would agree with peasant rumor at all. She sighed softly, trying to make a little sense of what she had seen and put it into words. "I would not say it is a curse, though. I witnessed something coming to his defense, when Valeyna was drunk and trying to force herself on him. Something unseen knocked her away, tried to take her dagger from her belt, and that same something obeyed when Adare told it to go away. It destroyed the room before it did. Whatever it is, it's angry. Very angry."

Shaye OConnor

Date: 2014-05-03 09:09 EST
"Do you think it's his mother's ghost protecting him?" he asked, curiously. If they were going to reveal the truth and put Adare on the throne, they needed to know what they were dealing with exactly.

"I don't know," Shaye admitted awkwardly. "I find it hard to believe that Arian's ghost would harbor so much anger as to want to kill a girl simply for being drunk and crossing her boundaries. That, and the ghost ....it has always been said that the ghost is attached the Adare in some way. Wouldn't that suggest that it's his stillborn sister" And if that's the case, then of course she'll want to protect him."

"His sister?" Liam echoed, not having expected that suggestion. He had already heard of the ghost that supposedly hovered around the boy, but hadn't considered the possibility that it might be his twin. If Shaye's theory was right, that meant it was the stillborn brother that was hovering, since Liayna had already informed him that Adare was actually female. "What about Valeyna" Do you think she'll give us any trouble?"

"Oh, I think she'll give us plenty of trouble," Shaye growled. It was obvious, just from that reaction, that though Velasca was bad, her daughter was worse. "She's hungry for power, and she exercises cruelty whenever she can. She has some truly terrible plans for Adare when they marry - she'll crush his spirit and destroy what makes him who he is, just for the fun of it. If she takes the throne, she'll hold it and we won't be able to get it back. She's already been in contact with Skarran mercenaries - there's a whole army waiting for her to call on them to fulfill their contracts."

Valeyna was a problem, as far as Liam was concerned. While he didn't relish killing if he didn't have to, he didn't think he'd have much choice but to kill Velasca. The daughter was another matter, however. "We cannot afford to be fighting a war with Skarra right now!" Though it didn't really matter. So long as they reached Phalion before the blood moon, Velasca's plans would be thwarted, and the rightful queen would be restored to the throne.

"The raids are becoming more frequent along the coast." she told him, understanding that frustration easily enough. "I'd say they're getting impatient for her to call on them. Of them both, though, I'd say that Valeyna is the greatest danger to Adare. He's already afraid of her, but I spoke with his new squire before I left Phalion. With any luck, Rory should be able to keep things from getting out of control."

"Has the boy been taught how to defend himself?" Liam asked, carefully wording his questions so as not to let on that Adare wasn't really a boy at all. He found it a little hard to believe himself, but he had no reason to believe Liayna wasn't telling the truth.

"Yes, he has," Shaye nodded. It felt strange, holding a conversation on horseback while blindfolded, but at least it passed the time. "Dalan, his captain of the guard, has been training him in swordplay and archery. He isn't the best, and he never will be, but he can defend himself. His squire will be able to as well, in a few weeks. Dalan's a good man."

"Good, perhaps Valeyna will be wary. What's this Dalan like" Is he someone who's likely to cause trouble or join the rebellion?" he asked, adding a soft, "Whoa," for the horse's benefit as he brought them to a slow halt.

As the horses slowed, Shaye had to remind herself that Liam had not spent the last sixteen years in the midst of the politics and maneuvering that had given her the insight she had. "Dalan was captain of the guard for Adare's father," she told her husband quietly. "He's absolutely devoted to Adare, the only father the boy has ever known. Almost everyone in Phalion would do anything for that boy, and not just because he's Arian's son. He has a way about him - you want to keep him safe, because he inspires confidence that he will make things better."

"Perhaps that will make things easier," Liam admitted with a frown she couldn't see behind the blindfold. "You can take the blindfold off now," he instructed, as they'd reached their destination. This was a place she had presumably not been yet. It was a place he and Conall had stumbled across while on patrol of the area and had decided to keep to themselves. If the others knew of its existence, there would be too many flocking here to make use of the warm soothing waters, and it could threaten the security of the entire camp.

Raising her hands, she undid the length of cloth, blinking to clear her vision as she adjusted to the light once again. A faint smile touched her lips as she recognized the vaguely sulfuric smell in the air, making an intuitive guess as to what he'd brought her here to do. "Is my lord and master of the opinion that I need a particularly hot bath?" she asked playfully, swinging down from the saddle with a chuckle.

"Would you prefer a cold bath?" he asked with a smirk. It might be summer, but he'd always found the hot springs soothing any time of year. "No one knows about this place but Conall and I," he explained as he climbed down off his horse.

"And I assume he isn't cavorting with his Wild One in the water somewhere nearby, or we wouldn't be here," Shaye laughed, taking the reins of her mare to lead the creatures further between the trees to a place that looked better suited for leaving horses to their own devices.

"I don't think they've been here," he replied, knowing Conall had been busy with a special project few knew anything about. He followed along behind her toward a spot better suited for the horses.

Leaving the mare on a long rein wrapped about a handy tree to prevent runaways, Shaye took the satchel from her saddle, and turned to face Liam with a small grin. "Are you going to get all shy with me this time?" she teased him affectionately, remembering the first and last time they had shared a bath. "As I recall, that ended with a head injury for you."

"I think I've outgrown shy," he said with a smirk as he tethered his own horse to a tree, like her mare, giving him enough room to roam and graze without getting lost. "There's not much you haven't seen already." And there was little chance of them being stumbled on, except by Conall and Liayna and that was highly unlikely.

"Not much?" She laughed, nudging his shoulder with her own. "Prove it, rua, I dare you." She set the satchel down and began to take off her boots, grinning at him all the while. One thing Shaye Dervla had never been was shy about her own body.

Shaye OConnor

Date: 2014-05-03 09:10 EST
"You dare me?" he echoed, scowling at her like he always did when he thought she was trying to wind him up, but instead of getting angry, he only laughed. "Have you forgotten that we're married, woman' Do you think I'm hiding something?" he asked, hands on his hips as he watched her grinning up at him. She had already seen him stark naked, though she might have been a little distracted at the time to get a very good look.

That scowl was one of the first things Shaye had come to love about him - even when it was trained at her in anger, she always smiled to see it. Hearing him laugh was worth prodding at his temper, though. "In case you hadn't noticed, you're usually doing something highly suggestible when you're naked," she pointed out innocently. "I'm very easily distracted when that happens." And speaking of highly suggestible ....with her feet bare, she stood up, and peeled off the tunic that covered her small clothes, flashing him a cheeky wink.

Liam rolled his eyes. "You have always been too bold for your own good." But then, that was one of the things he loved most about her. The truth was that if it hadn't been for her boldness, they might never have spoken. "What do you think I brought you here for?" he asked, as he tugged his own boots off. Had they been swimming, he might have thrown her in for her cheekiness, but he wasn't about to do that here.

"I assumed it was to roger me silly where no one can hear us for once," she said cheerfully, already down to her skin while he was only just removing his boots. There was the body he was beginning to know almost as well as his own, the body he could be absolutely certain no man living had ever seen so vulnerable but him. "Unless you've come over all girly and want to braid my hair again."

He snorted at her remark. "Somehow, I think I can find better things to do." He tossed his boots aside, pausing a moment to admire the body that he was finally getting to know, feeling his own body reacting to the vision of loveliness before him, and very Liam-like, he turned his back to her so that she wouldn't see that obvious reaction as he finished getting undressed.

Sadly, turning his back didn't save him from his wife's unique brand of bold immodesty. She pressed close to his back, lips brushing his neck, and slid her hands down his chest to undo the laces on his pants, taking full advantage of the situation to encourage that obvious reaction even more. "And you said you weren't hiding anything."

"If you are so eager to see what I'm hiding, why don't you help with me undress?" he asked, though it seemed no sooner had he said it and he felt the heat of her body pressed against his back, even through his tunic, her fingers tugging at the laces of his pants. At this rate, they weren't even going to make it into the water.

She chuckled into his ear, nipping softly at the sensitive skin there as her hands abandoned his undone pants to smooth up beneath the hang of his tunic. "You're taking too long," she warned him impishly, and stepped back, landing a slap right onto his backside with a snicker.

"Am I?" he asked, turning to face her with that scowl on his face again, eyes narrowed in mild annoyance. "Perhaps you'd like to eat first. I presume you packed something in that satchel of yours," he teased, hands on his hips, pants loose, but not yet falling down. "You are always in too much of a hurry."

"Oh, you want me to eat first?" she asked him sweetly, stepping close once again to smooth her hands over his skin, beneath his tunic, dark eyes gazing into his with unmistakable longing. "Are you sure about that, rua" Do you really want me to stop doing this just to eat?" The this she referred to was all too obvious - those hands of hers were roaming with the confidence that was growing on her when it came to his body and his likes.

He groaned as her hands smoothed over his skin. Both of them knew neither really wanted to share a meal now, not when something so much more immediate was on their minds. It was the first time since she'd arrived that they'd been able to get away without someone nearby to overhear them, even if it was only guards. "I think you know what I want, lea. I did not bring you here for a picnic."

She rose up onto her toes - though it was hardly necessary - and touched a very soft kiss to his lips in answer, those wicked hands rising to draw his tunic upward and over his head as she leaned back. "Is it so strange to imagine that I want the same thing, rua?"

"I have wanted it for many years," he reminded her, assuming she had felt the same. He tossed the tunic aside as it was tugged over his head. "Do you love me, Shaye?" he asked her, gazing into her eyes and touching a kiss to her lips. Though he already knew the answer to that question, he never tired of hearing the words.

"I've loved you since I was old enough to know what love is," she promised him, nose to nose and heart to heart, unafraid to be bare and vulnerable in his arms, even out here where there were no canvas walls to hide them. "I've only ever loved you, Liam. I only ever will."

No words were sufficient enough to respond to that declaration of love, and so, Liam choose to show her his feelings the only way he knew how, taking her in his arms and kissing her with such passion and depth of feeling that would leave no doubt in her mind as to how he felt about her. And when he was done, he smiled down at her, a hint of mischief in his gray-green eyes, mingled with obvious affection. "It seems there's more than one way to conquer the First Blade."

For him, and him alone, Shaye was putty in his hands, melting lovingly into the kiss he bestowed on her as he drew her close. His passion sparked off hers - it always had done and always would, even if his way of phrasing things left a little to be desired. Her brow rose as she looked up at him, her smirk matching the mischief on his face. "Careful, ladyboy," she warned him impishly. "Talk like that might land you wearing my armor."

"You can have it. I have my sights set on Captain of the Guard," he informed her, though that should come as no big surprise. His father had been Captain of the Royal Guard, as his grandfather before him and so on. "My father was no traitor," he added, though it went without saying. But he didn't really want to talk about that now. "I don't suppose you want to turn around so I can take off my pants."

Shaye OConnor

Date: 2014-05-03 09:11 EST
"So shy, Captain," she teased, but released him obligingly, turning to move toward the inviting hot water close by. "Anyone would think you were thirteen again." Her laughter bubbled back to him as she stepped down into the naturally heated water, letting out a low groan of delight at the sensation.

Maybe he wouldn't be so shy if it were dark and they were in his tent alone, but here, in broad daylight, he felt a little self-conscious of his nudity, though he certainly had nothing to be ashamed of. "Closer to thirty. I'm getting old." As promised, he turned his back to her, pausing a moment to look around as if to make sure they really were alone, but it seemed not even the horses took notice.

"We're both getting old, if you put it like that," she pointed out, quick to lounge in the hot water as she turned to admire the firm rear end he had pointed in her direction. "You do know you have possibly the finest *ss in the country, right?"

Her compliment brought a chuckle to his lips. He glanced over his shoulder as he dropped his trousers onto the ground. "Just my *ss?" he asked, wondering what she thought of the rest of him. He was a boy no longer, just as she was no girl. But despite the years, some things never changed, and Liam backed his way toward the pool of warm water.

"Well, since you won't let me see everything, I'm just gonna have to make do with the *ss and the face, aren't I?" she laughed, flicking water at him as soon as he was in range. "As you love reminding me, we're married now. You're not supposed to be shy about waving your thing at me."

"It's not a thing, and I'm not going to wave it at anyone," he told her, just a little irritably. Of course, if she wanted to see that thing up close and personal, all she had to do was ask. She was his wife, after all. For a man who was fearless in battle, he still had a tendency to be a bit shy about some things.

"You're going to trip over your own feet if you keep backing toward me, you know," she pointed out through her grin, easing through the water with cheeky intent. "I could always guide you in, of course." A moment later, warm wet hands cupped his rear, taking full advantage to squeeze and tease before he was in any position to do the same back.

He exhaled a slightly exasperated sigh, as if he was dealing with a child. "You are going to be the death of me," he said, though he kind of liked the way her hands felt against his skin. He managed to back his way into the water, with or without her help, and without tripping over his own feet, as she had predicted. Once he was submerged to his waist, he turned to face her, though the water really didn't offer much cover for his shy modesty.

And for all his effort in protecting himself from her eyes, that was not the best position for protecting himself from her hands, which dipped straight beneath the water just to make sure he hadn't been hiding anything else. And to make absolutely certain he understood that she loved all of him, not just the parts he was comfortable showing off. She grinned, nipping at his lips tenderly. "You love me anyway, rua."

He sucked in a breath as her hands found what he'd been too shy to show her, obviously not needing much stimulation from her in that regard. Maybe with time and a little encouragement, he would overcome his shyness, at least with his wife. "I cannot deny that, wife," he agreed, sliding his arms around her bare waist. Whether he was a little shy about his own body or not, he certainly seemed to enjoy seeing and touching hers. He dipped his head to capture her lips as his hands cupped her rear to pull her up close.

Despite the fact that he was the only real lover she had ever had, there was no shyness in Shaye when it came to Liam. Each kiss, each touch, was met with equal passion, equal fervor, unafraid of her own body or her reaction to his. But it was passion urged on by love, and that seemed to make all the difference, prompting each new attempt at boldness as she wrapped herself around him in the enveloping heat of the hot spring.

He'd had several lovers over the years, but none that equaled Shaye and none that he'd loved the way he loved her. Each kiss, each touch, each embrace renewed the love they had shared all those years ago, even if they had never shared it in such a way as this. He matched every kiss, every caress, learning more about her and sharing more about himself with each touch. He learned what made her tremble and sigh and moan with pleasure, and shy though he might be, he let her touch and discover and learn him, just as he learned her.

Each time they came together like this, it seemed to bring them closer. It showed Liam a side of his wife no one else was ever likely to see - the vulnerable girl who was still inside the deadly warrior, who could be set to giggling over the slightest thing, who could be brought to tears by the simplest of compliments. Who lolled in his arms in the heat of the hot spring, trading kisses back and forth as she simply enjoyed being with him in the aftermath of their love making. "Remind me again why you're so shy?"

He frowned at the question and shrugged his bare shoulders, unsure how to answer. "I don't know. I suppose-I suppose I'm afraid you won't find me attractive, that I'll disappoint you somehow. I'm no longer a boy. I bear the scars of battle. I am not the handsomest of men."

She smiled gently, nuzzling a tender kiss to his lips. "Rua, would I really be naked in your arms right now if I didn't find you attractive?" she asked him in a soft tone. "I love you. And in case you hadn't noticed, you are not the only one bearing the scars of battle in this marriage. To me, you are the handsomest of men."

"Your scars only make me love you more, lea. I only wish I could have taken you with me and saved you from Velasca, but I will not question the Gods' wisdom. They have given you back to me, and I am grateful," he told her in an uncharacteristically soft voice, exchanging yet another soft kiss.

"If I had not stayed, we would all be dead," she reminded him quietly, teasing her fingertips through his wet hair, happy to trade kisses as they talked. "It has not been ideal, but this is how it had to happen. No one else could lead the true army but you; no one else will be able to restore the true bloodline but you. It will be strange to have a king for the first time in centuries, but it will not last so long. Adare will father a daughter, and Thalan's promise will hold true again. You and I will make certain that little princess has a country to rule when she comes to it."

Shaye OConnor

Date: 2014-05-03 09:12 EST
"You put much trust and faith in me, lea," Liam admitted with a small smile, pleased and yet troubled all at the same time. If he failed, if her faith in him was misplaced, everything they had worked so hard for the last sixteen years might go for naught. "The boy's life is more important than anything else. More important than the rebellion, more important than you or I. He is the key to our future and to our children's future." He was not much of a speech-maker, but there were certain things he felt strongly, even passionately about, and restoring the true heir to the throne was one of them. It seemed this was something in which they agreed.

"Then he is our priority," Shaye said softly. "As much as we would both like Velasca to die on the road back to Loscar, we need to secure Adare before everything else. Let Conall and Liayna perform their little switching routine - by the time Velasca realizes it, Adare will be at the head of an army marching on the capital. She won't be able to stop us."

Liam had been considering another plan of attack, eager to shed Velasca's blood and free Arctra of her rule, but he realized Shaye was right. He had said it himself - the boy who was really a girl was their priority. There was nothing more important than that. Velasca would just have to wait. "Agreed," he said after a moment. "But we need the sword. Velasca holds too much power over you. I do not want it in her hands much longer."

"Agreed." She drew back just a little, holding his gaze with solemn understanding, knowing better than he did the dangers of Velasca continuing to hold the Sword of Arctra. "So I have a suggestion, one that I think you should present as your own to your war council. They won't accept it from me." There was no need to go into detail - everyone in the camp knew that she was a threat so long as the Usurper held the Sword. "I suggest that Conall and Liayna do the switch, while we take the army to Phalion. They can travel faster than we can - they can infiltrate Velasca's camp on the road far more easily. And they can still beat us to Phalion and be waiting, with the Sword. Adare can take it in his hand the moment he is declared King."

He appeared thoughtful a moment as he considered her plan. He did not like leaving Velasca alive any longer than necessary, but without the sword, she would be almost powerless. She'd have no hold over Shaye any longer, and that couldn't happen soon enough for Liam. "We have to reach Phalion before the blood moon," he told her. Time was of the essence, though he couldn't yet tell her why.

She frowned thoughtfully. He hadn't told her what the time limit was before now, and though she was deeply tempted to ask, she knew it would be a waste of time. It obviously wasn't safe for her to know why the blood moon was so important to them. "That gives us four weeks to take Phalion," she mused softly. "Velasca will be leaving the city by the end of this week - she intends to spend the eclipse in Loscar, and the journey is a full month from Phalion to the capital with her retinue. If we start moving within the next few days, we can arrive just in time for your deadline."

"How close is Conall to finishing the sword?" he asked, knowing the timing was critical, especially where Phalion and Adare were concerned. Once they had the sword and the truth about Adare was revealed, Velasca's days were numbered. She might take refuge in Loscar, but it was only a matter of time before they took the capital, as well. But for now, all their plans depended on Conall's ability as a swordsmith.

"Tomorrow evening, I think," Shaye said with a quiet sigh. "I know he worked all night last night to get the steel up to temperature and folded exactly the way he wanted. I think the next step is shaping the hilt and the blade, and then he'll put them together and we'll finish up the details tomorrow."

Liam arched a brow in surprise. He hadn't expected the sword to be ready so quickly, but that was a good thing. "He's going to need a few days to rest. How long do you think it will take them to catch up with Velasca?" It was going to take far longer to march an army through the mountains to Phalion than it was for Conall and Liayna to intercept Velasca on her way to Loscar.

She bit her lip, chewing as she thought over the possibilities. "Well, even if Conall sets off on the same day Velasca leaves Phalion, he'll meet her retinue on the road within a week. A couple of days to scout and make the switch, couple more to lay a false trail, and he'll be at Phalion before we are."

"So long as they don't get caught," he added with a worried frown, but they had no choice. They needed the sword, and not just because it held Shaye under Velasca's control, though that was a good part of it. "We're just going to have to chance it and hope they don't get caught." He felt a little torn between going to Phalion and going after Velasca, but he knew Shaye was right. This was the best plan of attack. He'd just have to put his faith in the Gods to keep his friend safe.

"That's why you need to send Liayna with him," his wife pointed out gently. "Her Goddess is rather attached to her, and we've both seen that power at work. I doubt a deity is going to put in that much effort to keep someone safe, and then just drop her the moment she does something potentially risky for all the right reasons. Don't you?"

"I have no idea what her Goddess will do, but I know what Velasca will do if she catches them." He didn't bother to go into details, but Conall had been tortured by Velasca's men once already. "I'm not even sure if he'll agree to go. If Velasca gets her hands on him, it won't be pleasant." And Liam wouldn't be able to rescue him this time.

"Then you need to ask him if he'll go," she pointed out. "Ask, don't order. There are plenty of others who would serve in the same position for the same task, but he is your first choice. And to be honest, I don't think there's any chance of Liayna allowing him to go without her. She's practically attached at the hip."

It was Liam's turn to thoughtfully chew at the corner of his lip for a moment. "He wants to go to Phalion, but this is too important to trust to anyone else. It has to be Conall. I just don't trust anyone else. I'd feel better if Liayna went with him. I don't want him going alone."

Shaye OConnor

Date: 2014-05-03 09:13 EST
His wife caught his gaze with a faintly amused quirk to her expression. "I think your trouble will come if you try and stop her from going with him," she reiterated with a smile. "I could be wrong, but I think he married her, you know. Whether he knows it or not, that woman acts as though they belong together, and the other Wild Ones do, too."

"They do belong together. Anyone can see that. That's not what worries me. What worries me is if they get caught." But then, Liam couldn't do everything himself. He had to trust others to do their part, too. "Velasca tried to break him once, Shaye. He was in pretty bad shape. We weren't sure if he was going to make it." But then again, there was no one who hated Velasca more than Conall or who wanted vengeance.

"Everyone here knows the risk if we fail or get caught, Liam," she pointed out firmly. "You can't do everything yourself, and no one would let you anyway. There's nothing to say that this is the way it has to go, it's just a suggestion. But if Adare truly is the priority, then getting that Sword becomes number two, and is almost as important."

"They're both important, but I can't be in two places at once, and..." He sighed. Sixteen years of leading, commanding, and making most of the decisions was starting to take its toll. He didn't want to send people to their deaths, especially people he cared about, but this was bigger than them. The entire future of Arctra depended on whether they succeeded or failed. "It's up to Conall and Liayna. If they don't want to go, then I'll just have to send someone else." Though he knew in his heart that Conall would do whatever was asked of him, no matter how dangerous.

Gentle fingers stroked against his cheek as she watched him wrestle with this. As First Blade, she had never been in command of anyone but herself, subject to orders only when Velasca remembered she had that power. She couldn't imagine the difficulties involved. But at the same time, this was what they had both trained for, all those years ago. Command was something they had both been thought well-suited to. "We can do this, rua," she murmured, trying to be encouraging. "Only a little while longer."

A good commander cared about the men and women who served beneath him, unlike Velasca who cared only for herself and her bitch of a daughter. Liam had become that man, perhaps sooner than planned and out of necessity, but it was what he'd trained all his life for, and part of his success was having loyal and trustworthy men and women under his command - men like Conall and Makos, women like Shaye and Liayna - and everyone else who looked to him to lead them. "We will do this, lea," Liam countered, looking to her as she touched his cheek. "We have to."

She kissed him then, not liking to see him so worried, so caught up in the war he'd said he was going to leave behind for a few hours. It wasn't that she didn't appreciate those worries, far from it. But she knew as well as he did that living the war every moment of every day was a sure fire way of driving yourself insane. "Talk to your council, decide on a plan of action," she told him. "You'll feel better when you have moved beyond the stage of just talking about what is planned."

A simple kiss from her soothed his worries more than she could know. "I will," he replied, returning that kiss and offering another. "Later," he said, arms going around her, a soft smile on his face. He'd brought her here to escape the worries and stress of war for a little while, and he didn't want to ruin their short time alone with more talk of strategy and plans for battle. Had they been apart for so long they had nothing to talk about but war" "Enough talk. Kiss me again."

"Mmm ....remind me to tell Conall to give you the Sword for a night or two before you give it to Adare," Shaye teased softly, laughing as she leaned in close to do exactly as he had asked her. "Imagine having me completely unable to disobey you, husband."

"Perhaps I should hang onto the Sword a bit longer," he remarked, kissing her again before lightly leaning his forehead against hers. That was one way to ensure she'd obey him. "I'm glad you're here, Shaye-lea. I've missed you," he told her, though she'd heard this often enough already.

That girlish giggle that only he had ever heard made itself known in answer to his teasing remark, easing away as she sighed with deep contentment, happy to linger there in his arms for however long they had together in this place. "I won't ever be more than ten minutes from your side ever again, rua," she promised him in a fervent whisper. "Never."

"I will hold you to that, lea," he told her, touching his lips to hers with a soft, contented sigh. It seemed everything they had worked so hard for was finally coming together. All the years of training, all the years apart. Now that she had returned to him, he was never going to let her go again. In a few short weeks, they would free the city of Phalion and return the line of Arlan to the throne of Arctra, but for now, they weren't the First Blade and the Rebel Commander. They were just Shaye Dervla and Liam O'Connor, two souls who had met when they were barely children and had promised their hearts and lives to the other for all time.

A blood oath sworn in the dark of the night too long ago had finally come to fruition, and though neither had said it in so many words, both were determined never to break it. No matter what came next, no matter the horrors the fighting brought to them, they would always be, at the heart of it, Shaye and Liam. And that, at the very soul and center of things, was all that truly mattered.

((So the plans are made and already being worked on, but what is happening at Phalion, I hear you ask" Well, maybe we'll get to that soon! :grin: Huge thanks, as always, go to my partner in crime!))