The peace that formerly reigned in Terra Nova has eroded, now little more than a memory. War ravages the continent. Disputes divide kingdoms; ideals divide families. The quest for power consumes absolutely and indiscriminately. None are immune to its allure.
Who will rise and who will fall? Only time—and ambition—will tell.
UPDATES
05.26.2023
2 month character creation hold for all existing members begins 6/5/2023. Ended 8/5/2023.
10.29.2023
Change in how times flows. Was 4 IC seasons, now only 2 IC seasons per 1 OOC year.
5 whole years of Heir Apparent goodness! When I started the site, I knew I was hunkering down for the long haul, but I never could have predicted the numerous twists and turns this roleplay site has seen. Hundreds of plots, characters, and members have come and gone, all leaving marks on the site. I am so very thankful for those who have invested. Because you keep coming back, keep getting on, and keep writing, Heir Apparent has the legacy it does today. Three cheers to us!
Warren often found himself alone in the courtyard in the earliest hours of the morning. Soldiers came and went from the barracks as they switched shifts and either made their way toward home or duty. Warren had slept on the couch in his office, working too late and preparing to wake too early to bother going home. The combination of the crisp, cool, morning Autumna air and the relative quiet that fell over Rainecourt castle at such an early hour made the space ideal for training without distraction. The lieutenant's time was often taken up by teaching others, but he had to remain just as disciplined himself.
The sun was just brightening the cloudy sky when he finished his normal exercises, taking a moment to catch his breath as he walked over to the dummy that he'd draped his tunic over. He used the shirt to wipe the sweat from his head and sighed. A soldier called out and he turned. "Good morning, Lieutenant," the soldier said simply. He was an older soldier. One Warren had known for years, not like those who avoided him at all costs.
"Good morning, Mr. Shelby," Warren replied, exchanging nods before the passing soldier was gone again. Turning back to the dummy, he tilted his head slightly to stare at it, as if it might say something. He must have stood there for two or three minutes, unlike Warren Woodwick to waste time, before tugging his tunic on and tucking it back in. Then he took a drink of water from his canteen, tossed it back on the ground, and decided to give himself a little longer to clear his mind. He took up the proper stance and began exchanging blows with the dummy, suddenly entranced in his task.
It was still early in the morning but the stern noblewoman found herself making her way over to the palace. Not by horse or carriage, but on foot. The crisp air made her feel awake and alive, a feeling she hadn't felt in a very long time. A warm, soft coat covered her body, but a belt complimented her curves and cinched her waist. The courtyard was pretty empty apart from some other courtiers that had woken up early to breathe in some of the fresh morning air. She nodded a greeting to some familiar faces and roamed around the yard for a while.
Suddenly an idea overcame her. Lately she had been thinking a lot about Romulo's past. She felt like since they got married, she hadn't shown enough interest in her husband's history. They had had some awkward talk about how Gunne didn't want to let Ruben join the military, even though he wanted to become a soldier, like his father had been. Rom supported her in the choice but she knew it still hurt him. He couldn't have anticipated marrying a woman with unresolved issues regarding the crown and the military. Just like her uncle, she wasn't fond of any Morrigan-related people joining the military, fighting for a king that wasn't their true king.
The brunette changed course and made her way over to the military wing. If it was normally guarded, then she must have just arrived during a guard shift because she easily entered the wing. She wanted to take in the environment, find out where her husband had spent so many hours and days of his life. Not soon after, she entered a training court. At first she didn't notice anyone, so she calmly walked around the yard, taking in the architecture and the atmosphere. Then a sound startled her. She turned around and saw a man standing in front of a dummy. His canteen hitting the floor had caught her attention. She hadn't noticed him before because he had been silently staring at the dummy. Now he was fighting it, but that didn't keep Gunne from simply starting to talk. "Oh my, good morning. I hadn't noticed you."
At first, though the words filled his ears and he heard them just fine, he hadn't thought that they were directed at him. His mind was elsewhere, and the spinning dummy, with arms that stretched out to turn and attack the soldier as it was hit, had whatever little attention his could focus. He hit it twice more, blocking the last swing of the wood arm with his forearm before he turned enough to see her out of the corner of his eye.
"Lady Cortell," he said through a deep breath or two, turning to address her and bowing accordingly. "I apologize, I didn't realize it was I whom you spoke to." He reached up to wipe his face with his hand, fingers dragging through his hair, sticking it upward with sweat. Then he rested his arms behind his back, as he always did. He felt a little under dressed with his jacket off. "Good morning to you," he continued, though he was a little unsure of what to say. It wasn't often he saw nobility unrelated to the military wandering around the military wing. "You're here very early. Is there anything I can help you with?"
Post by Edith Byron on Jan 9, 2023 10:43:22 GMT -5
The man continued to fight the dummy for a bit, making Gunne unsure whether he had heard her greeting or not. To prevent startling him, the woman remained standing where she was, simply looking at his practising for a little longer. A certain move made him shift his vision, making him see her. He then greeted her and the brunette smiled, bowing too and even lifting her skirt a little to be extra polite.
"You're the only one training at this hour, so I was indeed talking to you", she said with a soft, heartily laugh. She walked closer to him, coming to a stop near the dummy. "Oh no, I didn't come here for help or to talk to someone. It's mere coincidence that I meet you here." She looked around. "I needed a little break from my children and took a walk. Upon seeing the military wing, I wanted to see for myself where my husband spent so much time. Did you ever meet him, Romulo Cortell?"
There wasn't much that would embarrass Warren Woodwick. He'd lived too long to let little things get to him, but as she pointed out that there was literally no one else for her to be talking to, Warren did glance around and shake his head at how silly his response might have sounded from her point of view. "It appears you're correct," he acknowledged, and cursed himself for being so out of sorts. He really needed to pull himself together. There was no space for distance in times of war.
"Yes, I know Lord Cortell, though not from our time in the military. I believe he retired before I became lieutenant and as soldiers we never crossed paths. I recently helped return some stolen items to him, pieces of jewelry that someone had lifted." It occurred to him that just because he was aware of who she was, it didn't mean the opposite was true. They'd never been formally introduced. "I'm Lieutenant Warren Woodwick. I apologize for my late introduction." He gestured to the dummy. "I've been a bit distracted this morning."
Post by Edith Byron on Jan 28, 2023 7:55:06 GMT -5
She had heard much about Warren Woodwick and knew that he was a very capable man. Yet it seemed like he wasn't exactly the smartest and Gunne secretly considered him to be a buffoon. He hadn't noticed that she had been talking to him, which was comedial to say the least, considering the fact that they were alone in the training yard.
She had closed the distance between them and stood next to the dummy to talk to the soldier. He wasn't the tallest man, but he was still taller than her, and his muscles surely made him look intimidating. Yet Gunne never really felt intimidated by soldiers. After all, they wouldn't hurt her as long as she played nice. She pretended to listen to him talk about her husband, but in all honestly, it didn't really matter to her whether he knew Romulo or not. At first she had been here with the sole purpose of seeing how her husband lived before he injured his shoulder, but coming across Warren had made it all the more interesting.
"Oh my, no need to introduce yourself. I would be embarrassing if I didn't know a successful lieutenant like yourself", she said, flattering him a bit. "I can't blame you for being distracted. It sure seems like there's a lot on the horizon." She faked a sigh, looking hopeless and afraid for a moment. "But if you're fighting the enemy like you're fighting that dummy, we should all be safe... right?"
Last Edit: Jan 28, 2023 7:55:44 GMT -5 by Edith Byron
"It would be rude of me not to introduce myself, as we've yet to formally meet, Lady Cortell," Warren said, eyes scanning her as she spoke. "While I appreciate the kind words, I've done little to stand out among my peers and could not expect an esteemed lady of the Morrigan family to know a lower noble such as myself." Her words were sharp, not meant to sound malicious and yet sounded as such anyway. The tongues of the women of Nevermere were their most dangerous weapons and Warren knew that as well as anyone. He remembered his conversation with Romulo Cortell, where the man had in a way avoided his questions about their son joining the military. He hadn't given it much thought until now, but he couldn't think of anyone from the Morrigan family who had become a soldier.
"Yes, there's quite a lot ahead of us," he agreed, eyes flickering back to the dummy as she spoke of it, and then returning to her. "I should hope that those we end up in combat with will not look as well as this dummy does." Normally he would have finished his training by now and returned to his office, where he'd clean up and pull on his jacket. As he was, he probably looked no different from any other soldier who might enter the courtyard with dirty training clothes and a stain of sweat down the center of his tunic. "But the safety of the citizens of Nevermere is our utmost priority, so you have nothing to worry about, Lady Cortell. Given your husbands service to the military, I'm sure you know just how formidable our soldiers are."
Post by Edith Byron on Feb 11, 2023 9:56:18 GMT -5
His modesty bored her. All these soldiers always pretended to be so humble and kind while all they did was count the people they had killed at night and thank their fake ruler for the opportunities that he had given them. She disgusted the military and the crown. If they had such a good military, where was Rosamere? Nobody had even tried to find her, even though Hadrian pretended like they had searched for her. They had reached an end and had just accepted it instead of digging deeper. The woman let her eyes wander over the man in front of her. No, she didn't respect him much.
"It's good to hear we have nothing to worry about", she said although there was definitely a hint of sarcasm hidden in the message. "But what should we be preparing for? Us women don't really know how to protect ourselves when we need to." She batter her eyes, pretending to be a lost little lamb. She had her magic, sure, but actual combat? She didn't even know how to throw a punch.
Yes, now he was sure of it. She was mocking him. He detected the sarcasm immediately, and her following statement was entirely ridiculous. Did she think all men thought that way? That civilian women of Nevermere were poor, weak things that needed to be taught to protect themselves? Unfortunately, that hit the wrong mark. Warren had grown up surrounded by women not in the military, and he'd been on the receiving end of his fair share of damaging magic at the hands of his sisters, who had never fought a day in their lives. This all felt silly now, but Warren wasn't the kind of socialite that could weave subtlety into his words and phrases to get his point across. He was a straight to the point kind of person, and that was rarely the way to be with higher nobility.
"Anyone who would underestimate any witch of Nevermere would likely find themselves sorely regretting it, if they lived to regret it at all," he said instead. "I'm sure you're as capable as any of us, though I doubt there will be any need for you to defend yourself." He noted a few soldiers as they appeared in the courtyard, nodding to them when they addressed him. Then he looked at her once more, inhaling a deep breath. "Can I be of any further service to you, Lady Cortell? Shall I assign someone to give you a more guided tour of the military wing?"
Post by Edith Byron on Mar 21, 2023 6:08:27 GMT -5
Blah blah blah. Of course, the military was so great that women wouldn't have to defend themselves. Whatever made it easier for Woodwick to sleep at night. But Gunne smiled at him, nodding. "Well, thank you for your service, lieutenant Woodwick", she responded, bobbing a curtsy to him. When he asked if she wanted someone to show her around the military wing, she shook her head. "Thank you, but no, I should be going home. Children, you know?" The noblewoman chuckled. "I won't keep you any longer. Enjoy the rest of your day, lieutenant."