Ultimate Assassin Saga: Tundra

That was the only thing that the Blood Lord knew for fact that he had in common with the other man. The two men had fought side by side in the wars and they had a mutual respect for one another. The Blood Lord took a step forward, his violet colored hair flowing out behind him and he stopped in front of the man, staring into his light blue eyes. The Ice Lord stared at him, his eyes chilly and empty of all emotion, obviously wonder why he should join them in their betrayal of the Empire that they had helped to build.

"Because your clan will be drawn into a war." Shido replied in a stern and determined voice. The Ice Demon Lord stared into his eyes, looking neither one way or another. He didn't look concerned, but that couldn't be said for his Mate. Flake was staring at him with wide eyes, and if possible, her face paled even more while staring at the violet haired man. "Emperor Azrieal will draw you into the war with his brother Acheron and he won't stop until his brother is dead, no matter how many of his own that he must sacrifice in the process."

"I will not war with the General." Glacier said in a sure voice and he blinked a couple of times. Then, he turned on his heel and he slowly ascended the dais to the ice throne. He turned around, his boots quite loud on the ice floor as he sat down in the throne and he crossed his long legs. He placed one hand on top of the Ice Lady's hand and he looked up at his Mate. She stared at him, and then, she nodded her head. He nodded back to her and turned his attention back to the two Blood Demons in his midst. "I am in for whatever plan that you put forth and any one of my men will be happy to come to your aid."

The Blood Demon felt a smile wash over his face and he knew that his blood red eyes were glowing in the darkness of the main hall as he stared at the two of them. He turned his attention to his Mate and he saw that Leanna was looking unsure, but she wouldn't gainsay him. She was his Mate and she would back him no matter what.

The Blood Lord reached out and cupped her cheek. Then, he lowered his lips to her's and kissed her chastely. Things were going better than he had first believed they would and he knew that he needed more than one clan ally to deal with the one's that would stay allied with the Emperor and fought to destroy them. There were many who would stay at the side of the Emperor and many who hated the Command Assassin that would love to get their hands on him.

They would simply have to fight harder than ever before.

Darville walked ahead of the Demon and with his sister at his side. The other Barbarians were behind them and flanking them so they wouldn't be attacked. He was glad for that and glad that he wouldn't have to be too on guard while heading back to their home. This was the last move that they were ever going to make and their nomadic tribe was becoming a settled one. He knew that his people would already be building a village of stone and he couldn't wait to pitch in. With the Demon with them, they would be able to build faster and larger buildings.

The other Barbarian tribes would know where the Elk was and that was how they wanted it. No longer were they going to uproot their lives and leave when they were attacked. They were going to stay in one place and defend it as their home. He didn't know how, but the Elk was going to become the dominant tribe in the Tundra and rule over it with an iron fist. They just had to wipe out the other tribes first, or that was what his father wanted to do anyway. However, he had something very different on his mind.

He believed that the only way for them to become the most powerful among the tribes was to pull them under their wings and to make them all one Empire of power. He would like to see all the tribes joined together under one banner and creating a strong defensive front against anyone who would attempt to attack the Tundra. Other than the Dark Races and the other Barbarian tribes, there was the sovereign nation to the north who were quite powerful. They were something to worry about and he knew it. After all, the nation of Shadir was to the north of the Tundra and Shadir was filled with enemies of all races to all that was good.

Shadirans were some of the vilest and darkest of creatures who thirsted for blood. It was thought by his father that Shadir was a part of the recent influx of the Dark Races - Orcs, Ogres, Goblins, etc. - into the Tundra. His father theorized that Shadir wanted to add some land to the Shadiran Kingdom, and being as the Tundra was directly south of the small Kingdom, they were the perfect choice. No one knew exactly why they would choose to expand now, but no one could disprove it either and that was the only reason that they weren't discrediting it all together as the ravings of a paranoid mind.

That and the fact that those so called "paranoid ravings" came from the lips of the Barbarian King of the Elk.

Darville was a warrior and a warrior was how he would die. Just like all other warriors, he sought to die in battle and he was fairly certain that his death wouldn't be that far away. After all, how long could one hope to live when there were raids from other tribes all the time? His life span was going to be a short one if he wasn't careful, but he didn't despair over it. He was a warrior and he was prepared to die. Then again, what he didn't want to do was leave his the throne empty, but he had another brother and he could easily take the throne with his death. At the thought of his brother, he frowned.

Darcine was very different from he and Diana. In fact, the rest of his family were kind and only killed when they had to. It seemed that Darcine had the blood lust of a Demon and the might of one as well. He was dangerous and quite the lethal warrior. He had known his younger brother to beat a man near to death because the man had offended him in some way, usually by spilling his beer. If there was one thing Darcine didn't tolerate, it was someone running in to him and making him spill his beer. He was very particular about his alcohol and that was really the only thing that the two brother's were alike in. Other than that, they were polar opposites and he couldn't be prouder to be opposite his brother.

The Barbarian Prince turned his head and he saw that his sister was looking back to the Demon walking behind them. He narrowed his eyes and he found himself wondering what it was that was going through his sister's mind. He had never really understood women and his sister most of all. She was a strange creature and she was as mind boggling as their late mother had been. Their mother had been dangerous and sharp witted, but that sharp wit had earned her a cut throat when Diana was younger. The killer was never caught, but their father was still looking and the killer would be found.

He noticed the small smile on his sister's face and her cheeks were dark red. He knew that she didn't really feel the weather anymore and that her cheeks wouldn't color because of that weather. That could only mean one thing. She had something on her mind that was embarrassing her, and judging from her line of sight, he would guess that it had something to do with their guest. The Demon didn't seem to notice her look, but he wasn't sure just how he didn't see it from just how obvious about it she was being and he shook his head. She was a truly strange creature and he didn't guess he would ever understand his baby sister. She was a child after all and who could understand the mind of a child but another child?

And Acheron was definitely no child of any sort.

Darville shook his head and drew his mind from his reverie. He could feel the wind blowing around him and the snow hit his exposed skin, but he was far past any sort of feeling the cold anymore. When he was born, the first thing that he'd known was the extreme cold and it was only because of that cold that he even remembered. The next thing was the face of his father and the warmth of another more slender frame clutching him. After that, there was nothing but emotion and that tight grip that held him tight while he fed for the first time of his mother's breast. Over all of that, he'd been able to sense the overwhelming love.

The overwhelming whiteness out in front of him would've blinded a lesser people, but they had lived with it their entire lives. They were simply use to it and no longer fazed them. That was why he could walk the snow and not feel a thing. He could have gone completely naked and he wouldn't have felt a single damn thing. He had actually done that actually. He'd bedded down with a woman before when he was in the snow outside of the camp and he'd enjoyed the feel of the snow on his back and buttocks as she rode him.

Her father hadn't been to happy with that of course, but being who he was, he didn't face any sort of punishment. Well, except for the fact that the woman would one day be his wife, but not just yet. On his thirtieth birthday, he would be wed to the woman and his life as a family man would supersede that of his life as a warrior. He knew that, his father knew that, and his brother knew that.

Of course, Darcine saw it as a weakness and he would do everything he could to angle himself into position to take over the tribe. However, he knew his father and he was certain that he had other plans for his Heir. No, Darr, King of the Elk tribe, wouldn't let him off that easily. He would probably abdicate the throne and make his eldest son the new King. If that happened, the only battles that he would ever see was when he couldn't avoid them. He didn't want to avoid battle, but he knew that there was no way for him to get out of it. He was trapped and trapped to a woman who's name that he still didn't know.

He didn't doubt that his brother would do all he could to get in good with their father so he could be the next King. There was no love lost between the two brothers, and even though Darville didn't feel any certain way, he was certain that Darcine hated him with every fiber of his being. He didn't know for fact, but his brother had always been an angry one and that was the only thing that he hadn't been given was the seat of Heir. Everything else he had and that was why he fought all the much harder to be seen as better than his brother.

It was that reason that Darcine had become a warrior and participated in as many battles as he possibly could. Darcine was a leader of a troop, and even though many thought it was because he was a Prince, he knew better. His father didn't put anyone into places of power without real reason and merit was the only reason that they could have for such a placement. There was no such thing as nepotism with the Elk tribe and there never would be.

The Barbarian Prince walked slowly up the hill with his soldiers, sister, and the Demon behind him. Reaching the top of the hill, he stopped and looked down at the white open space before that stretched for miles in every direction. It was like a sinkhole with hills on all four sides and lent down to the stone buildings that were being built at this very moment. He knew that they had found the stone with the last Barbarian tribe that had attacked them and had chosen to take it. What they couldn't steal, they could manufacture from rough cutting the buried stone all around them.

There were several men working, slowly building up building after building, but they weren't left unprotected. There were sentries all around, their weapons bare and ready to fend off any kind of attack that would come upon them. To the southern side, there were thousands of black tents that had been erected and he knew that they housed the Barbarians that weren't currently working.

The women lived within the tents and the majority of them would be taking care of the homestead while the men built their new home. It would be slow going for a little while, but things would pick up in a short amount of time. The children, if old enough, were expected to help their mothers and the older members of the homestead with cooking, sewing, or anything else that they needed. It was a very smooth operation and there wasn't one person who begrudged their place in life.

Darville noted that there was more than one woman among the male guards and he smiled. The women were armored and armed similarly to the men, making them a powerful force. However, the majority of the women had smaller blades and some even carried bows on their backs. The women of the Elk tribe were some of the best archers and it was said that they could nail a mark from five hundred yards away with their exquisite marksmanship.

"So, this is our new home." came the voice of his sister, Diana, and he turned his head to look at her. She was standing right next to him and she was staring in unmasked wonder at the construction going on below. He smiled slightly and he turned his attention back to the basin in where the buildings were being built. "It looks like a good prospective home for our people."

The Barbarian Prince had agreed and that was one of the reasons their new home was going to be here. Everyone had agreed that the basin was a good idea and they'd started building. He'd intended to work on his home the moment they arrived, but when he looked through the ranks of the more than fifty thousand strong Barbarians, he noted that his sister wasn't there. After speaking with his father, he'd acquired a contingent of warriors and he'd disappeared into the Tundra to find his sister.

Now, he would be returning victorious and with a little extra. It was that little extra that he was worried about. He knew that his father wasn't a bigot and he didn't believe all Demons were evil, but it was a well known fact that the majority of Demons were devious. However, he believed that his father was a good and fair man so he believed that he would welcome the Demon without any prejudices which was much more than what could be said about the others of the Elk tribe.

"Come, we need to speak to father." Darville told her and turned his eyes to the Demon. The man didn't turn and flee which went a long way for him. It showed that he didn't have a guilty conscious and was willing to enter the camp of the Barbarian tribe without a second thought. He nodded to the Demon before he turned his head and he set to walking down the dune of snow, walking down the steep incline with practiced ease that could only be born of one who was familiar with all sorts of terrain.

He could hear the snow crunching behind him and he could see movement behind him. He knew that his people were following behind him, and once they got to the village, the soldiers would go home to see to their wives and families. However, Diana and Acheron would accompany him to their King's home. His father was a good man, but he would be quite busy and they wouldn't be able to meet with him right away.

When they got there, it would be best if his sister took the Demon to her tent and watched him while they waited for their father to get non busy. King Darr would be quite busy with the whole project of building their home and it could be a while before his father was no longer busy, but he wasn't too worried about it. After all, once King Darr found out there was a Demon in the village and that his own children had brought the Demon among them, he would come running.

If he was betting, he would say that his brother would be close behind. Darcine was always with their father, levying for a more political issue on how to get through to their father. Darcine wanted the throne of the Elk tribe and he wanted it bad. He knew that out of the fifty thousand people, only ten percent were supporters of Darcine and his right to the throne. Because of the majority of the Elk tribe being in favor of the King and Prince Darville, none of Darcine's followers would act on their need. They would continue to slink through the shadows and continue to gain support for their chosen Prince, but they would fail. Long before any of them could gain the majority of support from the Elk, both Darville and Darcine would be long dead.

That didn't mean that his own son wouldn't have to worry about it. He could only hope that his own son or daughter would be able to mend broken fences with Darcine's children and forge an alliance with them. After all, they were family and families were suppose to have one another's backs. However, power corrupted and it would seem that the Elk tribe was no different. His brother had been corrupted by the thought of the throne being his and that hurt him deep in the heart. Darcine was his brother after all, and even through all of their squabbles, he still loved his younger brother.

Reaching the bottom of the hill, the Barbarian man walked right past the guards who watched them and none of them looked at them. However, he saw the expressions on the faces of the sentries when they caught sight of the Demon in their midst and the guards reached for their weapons. It was as if the guards thought that they didn't know what the man was, but that wasn't right. Hell, he didn't even know why the guards were tightening up. He looked far too Human for them to know what he was, but they were still uneasy and he knew that he was going to have to intervene or things could get ugly.

"Leave him alone." Diana's voice cut through the wind sharply and he turned fully, staring at his sister. The tiny woman had moved in front of the Demon and she had her arms extended out by her sides as far as they would go to ward off the guards. The sentries stared at his sister and the looks on their faces were obviously filled with confusion. What had alerted them, he didn't know, but he didn't like it. There was something wrong here and he needed to get to the bottom of this right away. For one, they weren't backing down and they looked ready to cut down his sister to get to the man, but she showed no fear as she glared at the men. "He is with us and you are not to touch a hair on his head."

The Barbarian Prince would've been impressed by his sister's actions if he wasn't so damn surprised. His sister was meek and mild when it came to warriors. She'd often stated that she didn't want to get in their way and prevent them from doing their job. He could understand her feeling that way. After all, she was but a child and was of little use to the tribe really. She was little more than a hindrance really, but then again, so were all the children of the tribe. However, they were still coveted and protected just like the elderly who had survived the many battles that they'd lived through were protected. Then, there was the look on the Demon's face.

Acheron was standing behind her, and because of the difference in his height compared to his sister's, there was more than two feet of difference. In fact, the top of her head stopped at the middle of his stomach and she looked like a small child trying to protect a horse. However, he looked unconcerned with what was going on and the fact that several armed guards looked ready to attack him, no matter what. Why would he be worried? He was a Demon and could easily cut them all down with ease. Then, there was the amused smile on his face as he stood behind her with his large arms crossed over his chest and staring down at the top of her auburn head.

The blonde haired man saw the sneer on one of the men's face and he knew that the man wasn't going to back down. Just what the hell was going on? Why were these men so on edge and ready to attack anyone that was out of place even when both Barbarian Royals were vouching for him? It made no sense and that was one more thing to bring up with his father. First, he was going to have to step in and stop what was going on here before blood was being shed.

"Stand down right now or face charges of treason." Darville called out to the men in a menacing voice and he watched each man's eyes turn to him. He gripped the shaft of his war hammer and rested the weapon on his broad shoulder, staring at them. He raised a single blonde brow and he lowered the hammer to the snow, setting it easily into the snow, head down. Then, he leaned against the handle and dared any one of them to attack him, but not one of them moved to draw their weapons or dart forward to attack him. "You all know the punishment for treason and you know my father makes no exceptions. Stand down and leave here."