Two years after Prince Heiko witnessed the death of his father during the 91st Battle of Tyton, and subsequently, the defeat of his kingdom, he was sent to the gates of the victor, armed with nothing but empty words and a command from his elder brother to form a treaty of peace. 

Two years after General Celestino Adesso released the arrow that felled the great king of Simo, he is presented with the youngest of his sons. Though barely a man at seventeen summers, the prince was far from wet behind the ears. In fact, his tactful yet brazen form of statecraft vaulted him far beyond his years. Coupled with his draconian mannerisms, and a knack for callous pleasure, it was only a matter of time before Celestino caught a whiff of something sinister. 

But Prince Heiko was no fool. He was betting heavily on that sharp nose. He wanted a sense of dubiety to gnaw at the general. He needed to create mistrust in his elder brother in order to build credence in himself. Because he knew of Celestino Adesso, and of the illustrious king he served. He knew they wouldn't trust him over his elder brother any more than they would trust a raincloud to bring sun. He knew that to those men, he wasn't honorable, and because of that, he was forced to play the games he was known for. The ones that conspired in the dead of night, the ones that spoke no words but shifted kingdoms. The ones that could obtain the allegiance of General Celestino. Little did the young prince know, however, allegiance was not all he would obtain. But no matter how much Heiko wanted to offer the man what he desired, he could not - not while bound to the gods. 

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“It’s a perfectly valid question,” was all the boy could manage, too worn out to procure anything wittier. And anyway, the natural response to the comment would’ve been defending against people assuming Geoff to be dim-witted, but there was no credence in it. Everyone in the Simonese court believed him to be dense, nothing more than a massive bundle of muscle and obedience. But Batt didn’t feel too bad remaining quiet on the subject - like the prince, it was quite clear that Geoff thrived on their ignorance. 


Batt hopped over a wet pile of leaves that the man was able to stride over without so much as a second thought. There were many questions the slave had for him, now that there was less of a power dynamic, but it was hard for him to discern which were the most pressing. 


“Ground’s gettin’ soggy,” Geoff grunted. “No doubt, we’re in Burke.” 


“How did you come to be in Prince Heiko’s guard?” 


Dulcet and Duplicitous - Part 11