Morning everyone. I hope you are having a good day. I know it is a day of remembrance, but I have found that as I have gotten in the habit of starting my day with writing prompts, I tend to feel a little off balance if I skip doing them. And so we start today with a morning prompt. Timers set if you are joining in.
It took me a bit to figure out where this was going. I think I finally found where it was heading about the time I ran out of time. It is something to think about though.
Wednesday, September 11th: We will begin at first light.
“We will begin at first light,” he said. There was nothing ominous in his tone but still the words sent shivers up my spine. He closed the door ass he left and I was alone with my thoughts. I stretched out on the bed. It was the only piece of furniture in the room. At the moment this sparse room held the bed, me and the loaded pack I would carry on my back in the morning. There would be pack mules of course. A group this large always had a baggage train, but the specialized tools I was taking with me I would keep under my special care.
I pulled and arm up behind my head, using it to lift my head. While the blankets provided were warm and thick, the pillows were flat and somewhat miserly. ‘Maybe there is a shortage of good down,’ I thought as I tried to settle myself. I knew I should take off my boots and actually dress for bed, but I wasn’t quite ready for sleep even if I could take advantage of the moment of relaxation.
It seemed the past few months there had been no time to stop. Ever since the attacks on the mountain forts began it seemed there was no time for anything. Supplies had to be gathered and shipped off to various places. Men had to be armed, troops gathered and sent to various places. Everything was in a constant state of motion.
And then everything went silent. The attacks stopped. I, along with the others, awaited word. None came. We could see the lack of smoke and knew that the attacks ceased. Emperor Giluss sent a peace treaty in which he conceded the forts to us, declaring the battle over. Our emperor agreed. He sent word to the forts to bring excess troops back. No troops returned. No runners came back either.
Finally one did. A runner looking far worse for wear than he should have managed to make it back from the mountains. He could not speak, his face was filled with horror and while he made it back, he died with no more information being gleaned. His body was searched and a letter written by one of the commanders was found. I didn’t know the details of its contents but I knew it was written but never sent back. I knew it hinted that something was wrong. And I knew that I was somehow a part of the team sent to investigate.
Not for the first time I wondered how different my life would have been had I not figured out that Earl Keran was the one poisoning various members of the royal family. My suspicious nature wouldn’t let it rest and I uncovered the plot. For my efforts I received a royal commission, land and a title of my own. I was also called out anytime a mystery presented itself. Since then I had been wounded several times in defense of the crown, come close to death on a number of occasions, and foiled two attempts to overthrow the current emperor. Each event earned me more rewards and further cemented my place as the person in charge of solving mysteries for the crown. I felt a shiver once again run don my spine and wondered if this time, this mystery, would be the one to kill me.
Ten til Midnight 