Forum Thread

"I-I didn't hear anything about this ma'am!" He stared off in the distance, confused above all. " What kind of circus are we talking abou ?" He knelt down and asked the boy, a gentle aura surrounding him, helmet shining because of the afternoon sun. "It's okay if you don't want to tell us, we could always ask someone else." his head slightly tilting as he said that.

"T-there's people, just a bit outside of town, sir." The boy stammered. He was staring in awe, he had never been this close to a knight before. "They's be doing a circus. We's made our own flyers!" He pointed to the cloth, which seemed to have a picture somewhat resembling a circus drawn in charcoal. "Nones of us can read or write, so wes drew a picture!" Regina considered this. "Well, if it's just a circus.." she turned to Phillip. "Tell the guards bordering the city to keep an eye on this circus. And I want to talk to this ringleader or at least a member of the circus. All outside entities entering the kingdom need to be under survalience 24/7, with what's been going on."

---

"It's nice to meet you Joy, I'm Charmer-" she extends a hand to Peter. "This is my husband Peter." Her eyes soften once again. "I've heard the news, it's very fair of you guys to be catious of any newcomers." Guilt gnaws at Charmer's stomach, she manages to shake the feeling off. She turns her head towards Peter quickly, hoping that Joy didn't pick up on her sudden mood change. She takes a flyer from Peter and passes it Joy. "I do hope that you enjoy the show" her tone becomes slightly monotoned, this was an automated response. She was distracted by the larger task on hand.

"Glad to meet you!" she kindly retorted. She took the flyer and folded it just the right amount of times so that it won't get cut or incomprehensible when she unfolds it again. "I'm looking forward to it." she answered to the monotone voice of Charmer,trying to not chuckle. It showed that she has said that innumerable times. As she walked away,she kept looking around in order to marvel at everyone practicing and the few animals that were in cages. She kept occasionally placing her hand on her coin pouch to make sure that it's still there.

After a moment, Tirik have the Queen "that" look. The one that says, all on its own, "what really are you getting at?" Then he said it aloud. "No offense, your Majesty, but you're a terrible liar. What do you truly wish to know? Surely it's not just about combat." He'd adopted a slightly defensive pose, as if waiting for the Queen to become violent.

Marigold froze for a moment in pure shock. “I...m sorry, I can’t,” Her voice was breaking down as the corners of her eyes pricked with tears. “I won’t...” There was a clear tremble to her words and her face darkened. She avoided his eyed as she held her elbows bitterly. She didn’t appear to be aggressive, however she was clearly in a surprisingly fragile and volatile state.

---

Joy hadn't taken many steps away from the circus before she instinctively turned her head towards the entrance of the Kingdom. There were two people,holding hands. Their faces were unclear but their silhouettes were quite recognisable and no matter how hard she squinted her eyes she couldn't tell. One seemed like Emeralda's dress' outline and the other one was unmistakenly Timothy's sturdy body. So, she began walking closer to maybe try and identify them.

"Majesty, with all my heart I wish to serve you, however I cannot serve you if you cannot tell me precisely what you wish for. I owe you my life three times over for stationing me here, so I must do my best to carry out your orders. I can only ask for you to tell me precisely what you want to know so that I can answer with precision.

Eʂɱҽɾҽʅԃα

Having said her goodbyes to Timothy, the Princess skipped back towards the castle, standing proudly against the blue sky, though there were orange highlighted clouds framing the town in the distance. Her eyes were immediately drawn to the circus, though from this distance she couldn't tell what it was. A parade, perhaps? If that were the case, she should notify several friends, preferably before dusk. A figure moving towards her then caught her eye, the unmistakable tiara sitting dominantly atop her head.
"Joy," she whispered, smiling, whilst increasing her pace. She didn't quite know how her sister would react to her wandering off into the suburbs of the town, or spending her time with Timothy. Joy didn't mind him, she thought, but if their parents found out there could be consequences. After all, she was supposedly among the fairest in the kingdom; they wouldn't want her befriending lower-class workers such as Timmy.

"Esmeralda!" Joy exclaimed as she approached and embraced her,shortly letting her go. "Where have you been? Don't wander away from all the guards and the kingdom in general. Not when there's a threat..." she said worryingly.

"Oh! Speaking of which,have you perhaps come across a particular coin? It should look like this." she said as she took hers out of her coin purse. If anything, it gave her an excuse to look at the great detail her face was carved on the coin. "It should have your face on it." she added.

Eʂɱҽɾҽʅԃα

"I've been.. downtown," she joked, grinning a little. She was ready for the chastisement, which came as no surprise. The surprise came with the next line, instead. "A threat?!" Esmerelda exclaimed loudly, quite puzzled. Could her sister be talking about the lady her and Timothy had confronted? She doubted it. Her eyes moved to the Circus, which now seemed a lot more menacing than it had mere moments ago. She shifted a little away from it, her posture suddenly tense.

Joy was startled upon hearing that Esmeralda waan't aware of it. Thinking about it,it made a sense since she was away. "Oh... Right...." she paused for a minute. She firmly grasped Esmeralda's shoulders and looked at her dead in the eyes,trying to be as serious as possible. "...Father received a death threat. Our spies found the letter and are trying to stop whoever is plotting to kill him,hence as to why there are more guards around... Do you now understand why I was worried when you walked away from the central part of the kingdom?" she calmly asked,trying to mask he anxiety. Thankfully there weren't many people present either. She loosened her grip.

The Kingdom of Aeraya truly is a wonder of its own.

When travelling the vast lands of the country, one might seek to other Kingdoms instead, preferring their rich landscape and fine cuisine that Aeraya lacks. The thing special with Aeraya however, is the sheer amount of citizens that give it their all each day. From spies that work in the shadows, being taunted with blood-thirsty letters from unknown sources, to mages that possess great abilities and do their all to ensure the safety of the royal crown. Circuses around town. Fake priests. A prince setting foot into the magical world.
And of course - the townspeople doing their utmost best.

Without a doubt, Aeraya is one special place. One most wonder, how long the peaceful Kingdom on its own stays out of others' sights. A world without a little mayhem is no world at all, after all...

// hey! i thought that maybe people would be interested in reviving this project with me? it is completely fine if some people have lost interest, but i do believe that we can bring a satisfactory continuation of the story. if you find yourself bored by your character (or feel like joining) please do message me. it is not unreasonable to switch your character out, and it can be done in-universe in a nice way that aids to the story as well. i do hope you all will find joy in this roleplay once more :) thank you

Regina nodded. "Right then, I-" she paused as she saw a knight hurry to her, holding a message. She took it, nodded sharply, and read the message. As she read, she did something very shocking to herself. She started to cry, and smiled. "I-he's alive." She turned to Phillip. "Phillip, I have to go. My brother," she paused, "is alive and asking for me." Mounting her horse, she paused. "In my absence, I place you in charge until further notice. Send word if I am needed here." Hurrying back to the castle to announce her leaving to the other knights, she smiled a bit more. "I can't wait to see you, Feiran.." she whispered.



(Switching out my charecter, this is goodbye for Regina sadly)

---

Joy sighed,completely releasing her. "Come. I see the circus has already drawn your attention as well." she chuckled. "We'll head over there while I ask you some questions,is that okay?" she grinned. If anything,Joy was glad Esmeralda was safe but seeing them,Esmeralda and Timothy,together,aroused her curiosity.

Click. Click. There was the sound of a staff tapping against the ground as a hooded figure approached the city. The bent back might have suggested an old man, but when the stranger straightened up, and the hood slipped off, the man towered over the knights at the entrance to the Kingdom. He spoke quietly to them and then moved deeper into the city. The staff moved around, tapping against the flagstone with a thwack of wood. His height attracted some attention, but he moved quietly, not speaking to anyone. The man didn't appear to have any particular destination, but he stopped near the center of the city, moving his head from side to side, watching without eyes.

---

Charmer's head is raised and her eyes are shut. She breaths in the cool air and smiles to herself. Relief fills her eyes when she opens them. The circus was nearly done, all she had to do now was prepare for her acts. Her muscles twitch as if she were about to do her acts right now. Her eyes fall on the stage and she momentarily images herself doing the acts. Her smile falters when a shadow falls onto the stage, she turns around, noticing a silhouette for a moment before disappearing. A spy perhaps. Her heart aches at the thought of spies. It reminded her of- she grits her teeth and storms towards the opening, desperate to be out of the darkened circus and back into the bright lights. She can't get her hopes up, not right now.
All eyes seemed to be on them, that didn't surprise her, it was pretty likely that this kingdom rarely had circuses visit. She liked all eyes to be on her, but not right now. That made things difficult. But they would make things work, maybe, if they were lucky, their target would show up...

Loud knocking stirs Starlet awake. She glares at the door and throws it open with so much rage, it startles even the insane Dallas, who is standing on the other side.
"This had better be good!" Scarlet snaps. "Have you found anything yet!?" Dallas giggles nervously and takes a step back.
"I found a circus!" She informs.
"A circus?" Scarlet asks, "Such telling news, what does a circus have to do with anything?"
"The timing is odd, wouldn't you agree? If they aren't our targets then maybe our targets will show up eh? It's worth a shot" Dallas stands with a grin on her face, desperately awaiting praise like a small puppy.
"Very good Dallas, I'll check it out tonight" Scarlet replies lamely, but her minor praise is like music to Dallas' ears, which brightens under it. Dallas doesn't notice Scarlet's scoff which is followed by an eye roll. The news was appealing to Scarlet, but it was best to not encourage Dallas too much.

Tazu nodded. "Yes, there is tension in the air. Something is happening, though I am not sure what." Picking himself up, he continued tapping his staff against the ground. Hearing some sounds that piqued his interest, Tazu began moving forward. He did bump into a few people, the sound of their angry grumbles making him wince. With a quiet apology, he kept moving forward. At one point, the blind man stopped and his hands twitched. He could hear someone coming out, and from the sound, it apeared as if they were moving rather quickly. He stepped back once, in case they were coming this way. He wanted to know what all the noise was..shouting, moving things, people walking. Kingdoms were always this chaotic, wern't they?

---

Tirik shuddered. Glancing up at the sky, he took a breath. "Erm.. If we could continue this conversation later, Majesty, I'd be forever grateful. But at the moment, something has alerted the magical defenses in the area. I simply must check it." Bowing, he placed a fist on his chest. "I'll find you later, Majesty. Fare thee well." Promptly, the summoner turned on his heel and started towards the front doors of the castle. As soon as he was out of sight if the Queen, he started to sprint. In all reality, there was no magical alert. Something had just seemed... Off about that moment.

Eʂɱҽɾҽʅԃα

Small tremors worked their way down Esmerelda's spine as she stared at her sister, her mouth hanging open. Realising that she probably looked like a deceased fish, she returned her facial expression to it's normal joyful [haha, get it] composure. The Kingdom's finest guard would be ratting out the murderers now; the Royalties were all vaguely safe.
Joy's offer of taking her to the circus put a somewhat meagre smile of her face, though she didn't know what her sister had meant by 'asking her some questions' - perhaps she had done something wrong, or she simply wanted to ask what had occurred whilst she was absent; either way, she would gladly accompany her sister if it meant she could visit the circus.