Passed The Limit {Jarleth}

[Aden Vigil]

"Heroes are people who rise to the occasion and slip quietly away."

The slicing of sharp weapons through the air and then the thud of that very weapon hitting the wood was melodic for Aden. This was his medicine to the world, this was how he was who he was and how he had gotten to where he was. Still though he would mutter the words to the start of the very Oath he had taken years ago. They were all phrases said by important people at one time or another and each year there were new ones to memorize, but Aden had stopped memorizing years ago.

"When the will defies fear, when duty throws the gauntlet down to fate, when honor scorns to compromise with death - that is heroism."

Aden stopped for a second as he repeated that one line over and over in his mind. His weapon rested at his side for the moment being and he relaxed. It was not often he put his body under the strain of such heat and of such activity at once, but the sweat of it all was refreshing for him. Almost like a new start, but naturally he was drawing to his limit, but this was the limit Aden wanted to break and make it harder to break next time. Such was the nature of his training.

"Heroism is not only in the man, but in the occasion. " He said as he started slicing again. The two blades in his hand were one of a kind, they were made from four daggers and two colored gems. Each hand held a double sides short sword and a hand strap was around his wrist with a crimson gem on one his right strap and a pale crimson on his left strap. He let go of the handle and spun the blades as he had trained himself to do as he once against started to practice again a larger stump of wood he had brought out here long ago.

"Upon life or death," He started as he felt the dangerous rays of the sun on his bare back; the scar glistening in the sun. "I swear to do whatever I may," He continued with a sigh as he continued to practice his handling of his weapon. He was so close to breaking that limit, but this was also where he put himself in a dangerous situation, but he had been here many times before and one more time would not kill him...hopefully, "To protect those without a weapon at their side or a warrior by them," He stated as he felt his breathing increase. It had been around six or seven hours now by the look of the sun in the sky. He had come out here this morning before any other person had been awake and now the sun was in the middle of the sky.

"On the promise of the serenity of death or the sheer pain of a sword through my heart." He said growing close to the end of the old Oath, "I am a warrior who shall not loose his honor and who shall never give in to a bribe of any kind." He said with one more sentence to muttered. His aqua green eyes closed from the strain of his training, "For I am who I have created and I'm never to change." He finished as he took a final strike at the wood and it shattered into more pieces then Aden would ever want to count.

Aden pulled the straps off his wrist and grabbed the cases as he slid one on each single blade. He then reached for his training shirt which he slipped on over his head. He felt it cling slightly, but since he was no longer pushing himself his body was naturally cooling off and relaxing. He tied the weapons to his belt and made his way for town.

Once he passed the border that had been only a little ways from where he had been training he made his way for the spot he normally visited to relax after training. It was one of the spots that people could find him in if they were searching for him, of course he didn't exactly mind people knowing where he was because it meant he would have a rare moment of silence. He looked at the tattoo on his wrist and sighed. He had gotten that as a memory of many things and as a reminder of what he had been through for the cause he believed so strongly in: Killing King Osirus.

Those same piercing aqua green eyes closed as he listened to the daily sounds of the town. He sat down and leaned against a wall. He had memorized most of this spot because of the amount of visits he had taken. He also made note of footsteps approaching. 'Maybe I should start planning...' He thought as he put his mind to work on plans, but until he had more information about the very castle that Osirus remained in he could do nothing, but create the preliminary plans that would probably be remodeled many times.

"Yes?" he asked opening a single eye to look at his visitor.

[jarleth]

Jarleth was bored beyond reason. Even moreso than usual. He had gone off hunting for a few hours, not even planning to kill anything. He caught three hares and a boar and then let them go off again to continue their little undisturbed lives. The lucky little animals, perhaps if they were fortunate Osirus' terror would not affect their poor little existence, and if it did, well then Jarleth had another reason to hate the bastard. He was about a week back in the village, having spent a week in Du Aurella, and he was already considering going back, although he wanted to avoid some sort of schedule where it was Amblethorn one week, Du Aurella the next. Then he would feel tied down and the freedom to roam that he relished so much would soon seem like a chore. Right now however, chores didn't seem like such a bad idea. It would at least be something to do.

A hand reached for his long sword and Jarleth unsheathed it, swinging it around carelessly, practicing on thin air as he wandered around the small town. Every now and then a guard or another Order member would reach for their own weapon, at which time Jarleth would stop and let them know he was an ally and not an opponent or some kind of subtle spy or assassin sent by Osirus. Some of them nodded and walked on, others were a little more unsure. "My name is Major Remnis you little runt. I'm not a spy of Osirus. Go ask anyone your senior and stop wasting my time," he eventually snapped, before stalking away in silence and a bit of a worse mood because now he was bored and irritated. He approached the egde of the town, pulling out one of his throwing daggers and flinging it at a nearby tree in an effort to put some of his rage into action.

Jarleth sighed, walked over and removing the dagger from the bark of the tree, patting the plant before he walked on, slipping the dagger back under his dark red, hooded cloak. He hardly went anywhere without that thing - after all it was his only means of fitting into most places. Jarleth's lips pursed as he thought of what his father would say if he discovered Jarleth was walking around pretending to be human; not that he was going around saying he was human, but as far as Ekoli was concerned, Jarleth should be running around slaying all the evils in the land, letting his identity be known for all to try and take him down and stop him, maybe even go after his family. Although, Aksis was already dead and they would have one Hell of a time trying to reach his parents, who lay deep in the Northern Mountains amongst the many Elven villages there. Anybody who tried to break in there to kill an Elven would be slaughtered before getting within 100 metres of the place.

Jarleth pulled out the throwing dagger again, finding that his hands ached to do more than simply populate airspace. He began to throw the dagger in the air and catch it again, careful not to cut himself on the blade and catch the hilt, although every now and then he would catch the blade and skillfully avoid the sharp edges and save his skin from breaking. Thinking more about his family and how he had gotten onto the subject, Jarleth couldn't help but wonder if Aden had to worry about his family. Then again, Jarleth didn't think Aden knew where his parents or step-parents were so for someone else to find them would be pretty impressive. Jarleth even wondered if Aden would do anything to save them; before realising what a stupid idea it was and concluding that Aden would save near-anyone as long as they weren't Osirus or one of his men... And even then Jarleth had a feeling that if a Knight were hanging from a cliff and pleading for help, Aden would help them.

He was just that kind of forgiving and helpful person. Jarleth on the other hand, well, on the offchance that said hanging guard was the one that killed his brother, Jarleth would pull the bastard up only to push him right back off again, maybe with a broken bone or two this time. Jarleth had no idea what his brother's murderer looked like - he even imagined there were a few of them. It could have been the two guards who had been moving his body, but Jarleth doubted that or they probably would have mocked Jarleth about it and bragged. Jarleth found Osirus' men were like that - vain and arrogant and ignorant of the fact that anything they say could be the last, if they say something to upset the one they're speaking to. But of course, in their own eyes, they are immune to injury or harm. Stupid fools. Some day Jarleth would just go and kill all the bastards, every last one of them, every hint of life in that castle that had anything to do with Osirus would be slaughtered and Aksis would be avenged.

But for the moment, the Order was still taking it's goddamned, sweet assed time in organising any sort of attack. Jarleth had to then wonder if Aden was actually trying to plan something right now, or what he was at. Recalling having found him training a number of times or resting from training, Jarleth did a quick search around the border of the town and soon found him. He approached Aden, who looked somehow deep in thought as he leaned against the wall. Jarleth watched his friend for a moment, almost screaming out that it was in fact him and that Aden should be working at some sort of plan to kill Osirus because all he seemed to do these days was train - and while that was all fine and dandy for Aden, sure, train himself up so he doesn't get himself killed, it still displeased the impatient Jarleth. He wanted revenge. He wanted something to do. He wanted even just the slightest sense of making his way towards his goal of Osirus' downfall.

But no, here he was, the Elven general of the Order of Lumen - leaning against a god-damn wall.

"Yes?"

Jarleth made direct eye contact with the one open eye belonged to Aden. His fist clenched under the dark red cloak draping from his shoulders. He placed the dagger he had been playing with back into his belt and then looked back at Aden, using all his will to give a polite bow to him and seem he was who really claimed to be. Major Remnis Jerikol, orphaned Elven warrior who lost his parents to Osirus' men and wanted to take the tyrant down, not only to avenge his parents but also to free the rest of the land of his terror. That was the story Jarleth had given him. Jarleth paced for a moment in front of Aden, running a hand through the short hair that was almost not there. "I was just wondering..." Jarleth began, before hastily adding a quick "Sir," after the pause. "How plans are coming along against King Osirus and his men? I haven't heard anything and I find myself growing slightly..."

Jarleth hesitated, choosing his words carefully. "Angsty. Anxious... Impatient to be honest." Nope, he should have just stopped at 'anxious' but Jarleth blurted it out, blurted out the truth. And Aden could take offence from it, but if he was the now the Elven Jarleth thought he was, he didn't think he would. Jarleth considered explaining the statement, but decided against it, lingering in the prolonged silence for the time being. Whilst Aden could take discomfort in it, Jarleth found the exact opposite and enjoyed the quiet, even if it could mean awkwardness for the superior before him - even if he was older than the superior and, if he chose to, could probably be treated at the same level if he told Aden whom he was, knowing his friend would not look down his nose at him if he just knew...

No, Jarleth had to resist those thoughts. He kept his eyes focused on Aden, gaze neither faltering nor fading as he awaited some kind of response. There was no worry of Aden recognising him, even if they stared at one another for hours, because the Jarleth Aden knew would never have stared at the same spot for more than 5 seconds. He did now though, and he chose to stare at Aden, with a hint of impatience, as he longed to know some kind of estimate as to how long it would be before any kind of action would take place. Not even action of the fighting kind, just action in the general sense of doing something rather than just wandering around aimlessly waiting to get to do something.

[Aden Vigil]

Aden was slightly suprised to see a Major as his vistor, but then again, he shouldn't exactly be surprised. As the Major spoke Aden opened both his eyes and pushed himself up so he stood at his full height, which was a good three inches taller then the male before him, "I can understand your emotions," He started using the practiced tone he had taken to avoid sounding like he was doing anything other then talking even though he was always keeping his eyes on the person he talked to, but he was also always ready to slip those straps around his wrist and fight.

"But I must tell you that impatience is something that is unneeded. I have made preliminary plans, but none can be put into action until I have a better understanding of the castle and the town surrounding it." He sighed as he moved the long bangs from his pale face, "I would like to know this because to me the idea of charging the town and the castle itself would cause many unneeded deaths and many people angered with me for such a stupid action." He held the tone that made it seem like he was only thinking about that same topic even though in his head he ran through all the plans.

"I have noticed your absences though Major and if there is any other reason for you to be coming to me and asking about our plans then I suggest you speak it now." He locked his eyes onto Remnis's face, or what he could see of it for that matter before saying, "I seem unable to understand why you wear your hood in area where we are most protected..." He said with a shrug as he moved away a bit.

"You are welcome to join me in a walk if you wish." He commented without looking back as he slowly walked towards the center of town. Something was bugging him that probably shouldn't have been bugging him. Normally he would put the idea off and act as if it were nothing, but he wasn't a naive any more. He knew not to do such an action for it could mean a penalty of death.

Absent mindedly Aden's hand traced that tattoo along his wrist as he tried to keep the memories away, but thinking of plans yet again. 'That Major reminds me of Jarleth, but he isn't Jarleth. He looks nothing like him from what I can see and Jarleth died...I should know that...' He thought bitterly as he showed none of his thoughts on a blank face. He passed a villager who smiled at him and he returned it without any idea of what he was doing.

He looked blankly back towards the wall he had been at moments before and he realized the length he had just walked was quite a short distance. A small smirk graced his features as he thought of it. "Are you coming Major? Or am I to be left alone in my thought?" He asked with a small amount of curiosity in his tone, but it remained a similar tone to before. He wasn't looking down on the Major, no, he wouldn't be one to do that, but he wasn't acting like he would to a friend.

To him the people under his command were probably not there out of friendship or anything along that. They were there to avenge other people, correct the wrongs of King Osirus and so on and so forth. That was the simple reason that Aden felt no need to act like himself around them. He had created two sides to himself by doing this though; a simple, happy person and the determined and proud General that most saw him as. He wasn't saddened by this though. It had been his choice to do so after all...

He just had his own ways and he looked at Major Remnis with interest as he waited for him to answer. Aden could have the patience of a predator or depending on the situation he could have the impatience of a young child. "If you are so impatient as to the plans then maybe you would like to suggest a few. I am open to new ideas." He said making the other know he had not forgotten the misuse of words from minutes before.

[jarleth]

Jarleth was not very pleased with the response. But that was just because this was Aden. Had it been any other commanding officer, Jarleth would be very understanding and patient and would certainly speak with more respect. But even thinking of treating Aden like a superior made Jarleth sick to the stomach, because he wasn't. He was Jarleth's equal. He could match him in battle, even if it had been around a century since he had done so, he still knew that they were probably at the same level of skill, perhaps in different areas but still the same level. Jarleth continued to remind himself that as far as Aden could see, this was not Jarleth, this was some cheeky major who had come out of nowhere and spoken to him out of turn. It was this reminder that made Jarleth choose his words more carefully.

"Forgive me for the misuse of words, but it is simply how I feel. Perhaps I am merely out of the loop, for some reasons more than others, but I find that we are not moving forward all that quickly and I only wish to end Osirus' reign sooner than later." Jarleth had tried to glide over his absences, knowing that he didn't exactly speak of his wandering off around here. He often forgot to even tell anyone he would be gone for a few days to travel. But even as he tried to glide over it, Aden made a reference to it first. Jarleth bit the inside of his lip, irritated at what Aden was now suggesting. Well, perhaps Jarleth wandering off without permission seemed somehow traitorous to his once best friend, but Jarleth had every right to roam where he pleased. He was not tied to this village and it was clear the Order was in no immediate need of him, so what was wrong with travelling for a bit every now and then?

Jarleth took a deep breath, taking in Aden's words carefully as he usually tended to do with any conversation. "I'm sorry you feel that way," Jarleth responded to Aden's suspicions of betrayal. "My absences however, whilst they are my own business, I can assure you have nothing to do with the slimeball who calls himself a King. I feel slightly insulted you might even consider it." Well, only a little. Jarleth had discovered that Aden was very cautious and very open to betrayal, by anyone, no matter how close he was to them. Jarleth couldn't help but feel slight guilt at that thought, as sometimes he found that by pretending to be someone else he was betraying Aden's trust, but it was all for the better, even if it irritated Jarleth sometimes.

When Aden invited him for a walk, Jarleth hesitated. He would have to be careful here and not be careless or get too comfortable around his old friend again. He would need to maintain a level head and not let something slip - but then again, this was Jarleth, he tended to keep a level head anyway. As Aden walked on a little bit and then turned back, calling Jarleth on, the Elven moved forward, also pulling down the hood of his cloak as he advanced. He tried to show his face to Aden as little as possible, but right now it wasn't worrying him too much because he had still seen Jarleth's face many a time by now anyway, so he was starting to feel a little more relaxed regarding the recognition problems.

As Jarleth caught up with the General, he couldn't help but think of what he had learned on his last trip to Du Aurella and he wondered if he should share the information gained from General Laties with Aden. 'No,' he told himself, 'Not yet. The time isn't right, just suggest something else.' Jarleth looked at Aden when he requested a suggestion for some form of a plan and Jarleth hesitated again. He held eye contact with his friend for a moment, before breaking it, unwanted memories of their friendship flooding back into his mind. "I'm not sure if any of my ideas would be of your approval sir, and any ideas I do have are not very well thought out. I try not to think about it, it makes me feel slightly out of place, only as a Major."

Oh, the perfect response. Numbskull. Oh well, Jarleth hoped that Aden wouldn't try to take this and turn it into something else he could use against Jarleth, already using the slip of the word 'impatient' earlier against him. Jarleth ran a hand through the short blonde hair once more, now visible to the rest of the world; a rare occurance. Jarleth glanced at Aden before glancing at the ground again. He was finding it harder to look at Aden now, because every time he did he reminded of comforting relaxing times when they were younger and longed for them again, almost thinking that if he just told Aden.

'Stop it you idiot, you're acting immature. Revealing yourself will only make Aden feel betrayed even moreso than he already does. It's time to start telling people where I'm going, going where I'm going less and talking to Aden more - as Ramnis, not as Jarleth.' Jarleth was just as skilled at hiding his thoughts and inner emotions as Aden was, his face maintaining a blank look as he walked alongside the General, eyes focused on the ground beneath his feet before he stopped and turned to Aden.

"General, I'm going to have to ask you to forgive me for what I said earlier. I'm just feeling a little bored, useless even and I suppose my insolence got the better of me. Can you please excuse my ignorance?" Jarleth was trying his best to mean this, because he did feel a bit bad about approaching Aden in such a way. Whether or not he knew it, he was still a friend to Jarleth and the Elven was just upset with himself right now. So this time he forced himself to make eye contact with those bright aqua eyeballs and maintain the connection with his own sparkling blues, knowing it would have a greater effect and mean more if he spoke to Aden this way. It was also more respectful and as irritated as Jarleth got when he felt like a lesser to Aden, he still respected the General more than anyone right now.

[Aden Vigil]

Aden listened to him speak of his misuse of his words and Aden couldn't contain the small smile that made the way to his face. He may have acted indifferent most of the time toward his Majors and other Officers, but it didn't mean he cared for their welfare or that he was cold toward them. Actually he preferred to act in such a manor just to save himself the pain because he never knew who he would loose and when he would loose them. That was part of the reason for Aden never contacting his separate families after he saw them last.

"Everything is forgiven Remnis, you don't need to speak to me as if I am an elder that strives to hear respect in people younger and under him." He started as he turned to face the male as he started to walk again, "I can understand that you feel out of the loop, but I am also sad to say that I have been more busy trying to figure out the layout of the King's castle and have lost many valuable lives that I feel quite responsible for then rather for planning a full on fight with the King. Right now that is not the sort of fight we need because while the people we do have are stronger then I could have ever hoped for they are still fewer in numbers then the King's Knights and I learned personally that numbers that outnumber a strong and well-trained individual by more then triple are such a bad chance for the single fighter."

He did not mean to say so much, but he was trying to explain things almost as he would have done to a close friend. Only then did he hear Remnis speak of Aden having proposed that he was traitor in something that he had said. The same hand with the tattoo on the wrist moved to his bangs and sighed gently, "I did not mean that I thought of you as a traitor Remnis. Indeed I am always wary of the idea because it has happened many times before and each time it has left me feeling like something below dirt for falling for such a trap, but I would not suggest that you are a traitor. I say this because I sense how badly you want King Osirus dead and I agree with that notion with all of my soul." Again he was saying so much for a man that was usually of few words.

Aden stared into the revealed eyes as something threatened to dawn on him, but it didn't. Instead it tortured him with ideas of what it could be, but none were close to what it actually was. Those eyes reminded him of a person that at the moment he could not place, but he quickly pushed the thought from his mind as he locked eyes with Remnis, "Thats a stereotypical resistance; the General comes up with all the plans and he refuses to hear that of others. You may be a Major Remnis, but your ideas are welcome. I am sad to say mine are not well thought out yet because I need to figure a few things out as I have said, but they are getting there." His head was starting to hurt from how much he was talking.

Aden couldn't help, but feel like there was bad news coming soon, but those were thoughts he refuses to harbor. He quickly banished them from his mind as he focused on the man next to him. He tried to remember what he knew of Remnis and he thought he knew of him trying to avenge some one, but he was not thinking clearly after the training he just put himself through and he couldn't remember who. He knew though that Remnis held a passion that may have been considered deeper then Aden's, well, by Aden's mind it was deeper. That was only because Aden was fighting for what he had been taught was right and not to avenge a death like Remnis was.

He looked right back into those sparkling blue eyes as they met his aqua ones and he once again smiled that small and rarely seen smile, "You are forgiven Major. With the lack of action going on around here I am sure many people think that, but I assure that as things pick up they will become more adventurous and you shall not feel useless." There was something almost comforting about the aura around the male in front of him, but he couldn't place it. He couldn't place a lot of things today and it was bothering him. 'I'll just blame it on my training from the morning and how it had been in such heat.' he thought as he remained looking at the Major's eyes for a second more before he looked before them again.

Aden's thoughts quickly turned to memories of past times that he had felt safe in, but he closed his eyes for a second to regain his composure as he brushed those thoughts from his mind. The headache was also starting to fade with the less he talked. "I do not like knowing that people who are fighting for the same cause as me feel useless so would you care to discuss what few plans we have and maybe combine a few?" Aden offered. He was unlike most Generals because he would accept ideas and he would even brainstorm with those who were supposable under him.

Though in his mind not many people were under him. Many he actually considered higher then himself even though he was ranked higher in the Order. Each of those people had something special about them that had stuck out to Aden and in a way formed who the General was that day. The person who stuck out most was Jarleth, but Aden refused to think of that elf for two reasons. One being that he was dead and two being that such ideas would lead to blasphemy, which was not a road he wished to travel. After all, Jarleth was dead and had been dead for nearly a century now.

At least he thought and believed so...