The White Pawn XVA hard banging at the door interrupted Meradith while she was going over the seating arrangements for all the guests at the feast, for the fourth time that morning, for which William was grateful, he hadn't a mind for wedding plans. In fact, he didn't see the need for it to be so extravagant. He wasn't a lord or royal; though Katrina's family was wealthy, and friends with some nobles in the Grasslands, sh...

The White Pawn XIVBy some undignified luck, William and the wife had lost the men chasing them and lay hidden in a dark corner behind some boxes in a random back street. They had a nice head start as the men were still searching the house for the gold thinking it was still there. William had led them off the long roads of Wall Street and into a maze of back roads and nameless streets."Who the hell were those men and what...

The White Pawn XIIIThe late Walden Fen's house stood at the end of a row of houses each identical to one another. With only about 8 feet between them, the houses were made of a wooden framework with cob walls and clay thatched roofs. Walden's home lay at the north end of the line. William walked up to it and knocked.While waiting he glanced up at the sky, the sun was slowly setting off in the distance. The door soon opene...

The White Pawn XII"It's suspicious isn't it?" The cloaked stranger asked sitting down on the stool next to William at the bar. Their voice was muffled by something covering their mouth so he couldn't tell if it was male or female. He paid them little mind as it was, he was half drunk already and didn't intend to stop there.Katrina's aunt had come into the city at last and all they did was talk about gossip back home. He w...

The White Pawn XIWilliam and Derren sat in a secluded back room at Niel’s tavern, away from prying eyes and ears. It was neither large nor small, with only one way in or out that leads into the back hall. Neil left them a small ale keg and William tossed him a silver bit. At first, he was alone, content to drink until he passed out until Derren finally caught up to him. He barely made it through his second cup. "So ready...

The White Pawn X"So what do I owe this unwanted visit, captains?" Commander Jorden asked, setting his quill down in the bottle of ink before sitting back."Ser we need to speak with Captain Lewis Gren's men right away." William asserted."How come I get the feeling you boys know something about his disappearance?"That caught William off guard, he didn't expect for Captain Gren's disappearance to be noticed so quickly. Worse...

The White Pawn IXMadam Fiona was entertaining a couple of patrons when William found her. It took some effort to pull her away, and the men were not too pleased with it either. But after seeing the look on William's face, they backed down and moved on. He turned his attention to Madam Fiona.She was a shorter woman with light brown skin and long dark curls of hair. She put her hands on her hips and tilted her head in annoy...

The White Pawn VIIIThe wine cellar was so dimly lit that William could hardly see a few feet in front of his face; let alone the six men aside him. Derren had his eight best and most trusted men with him that night. Five of them were down there with him, and the other three were keeping an eye out on the entrance to the cellar door upstairs, to make sure no one but Gem and Lewis entered. They had to trust that Madam Fiona...

The White Pawn VIIWilliam found Derren sitting on the steps to the Gods Temple waiting for him. He had asked Derren to wait after he saw him to the white Sages, but he only half expected him to do so. Especially after getting stitched up for hours by the sages, his stab wound to the side was the worst. He was lucky the blade missed his kidney by a hair width, or so the sages told him. They gave him a cane to help him walk...

The White Pawn VIThe next morning William finished his letter and sent it off with a courier before seeking out Captain Lewis. His search quickly led him to discover Captain Lewis Gren worked night patrols, he should have known that. He had a long boring day of patrolling Bulwark Street. Soon enough he pulled out the bronze Rook he had found placed next to Albert's corpse, and started fiddling around with it. When that go...

The White Pawn VAlbert's family was another dead end. It was time for him to start interrogating the guards now. It would be troublesome at the least. A good amount of the men were of his own regiment, he was disappointed in them, but they could be rounded up easy enough. The rest were men following under other captains, they might not listen to him as Percil was technically named acting lord commander. He needed another...

The White Pawn IVNiels tavern was packed, more so then William had ever before seen it. All of the customers were men of the City Watch too. Neil was holding a special memorial for Albert there, with the drinks at half price. Of course, Neil neither knew nor cared the slightest about Albert, but Will had to hand it to him; he knew how to make the best of a bad situation. William was peeved but didn't blame Neil, he had a...

The White Pawn IIIThe Sky Cloaks were back to their routine duties when William returned to Bulwark Street. It was good to see them active, even if it was in such a groggy state as theirs. Whatever the hell compelled them to drink so much? He wondered.Back at the barracks, William found the avenue was open to all, Albert's body was gone, and the blood was being washed and scrubbed out from the cobblestone. He approached C...

The White Pawn IILord Street: where the cobblestone ends and the marble walkway begins. To be sure there were always guards patrolling here. Did they see anything last night? William wondered.No, they were paid too well to notice anything outside this street. If a lady cried for help outside this district not a one of these guards would help. But if a poor looking man, or woman, walked through here half the patrolmen woul...

The White Pawn ICaptain William Royce woke with a drum beating in his head. He found himself sprawled out on of the benches inside the, now empty, tavern. Save for the dim light from the oil lantern on the table before him, the place was dark: it was still night. From the looks of the tavern now there was no sign of a party that led to a violent brawl earlier. As a city guard, it was his job to keep the peace. But William...