Trapped in Darkness (Canos)

[Andromeda]

Andromeda smiled as she listened to him speak. Well, it was good that this country did have enough food to support his army, otherwise there would be no army. She listened to him as he said that her uses would be for his military. "You will not be disappointed. I can assure you." Andromeda said as turned her head to look at him. Of course, she already had a lot of plans that she will have to write down when she got the chance. It was better to have them on paper then in her mind, so if she forgets she can just find the scroll that has the plans on it. Of course, she would have to keep these hidden so that no one else may find them and try to give them to the wrong people.

Andromeda eyed him curiously when he asked about her wardrobe. She propped herself up on her elbows, a small smile forming on her face as some of her hair moved to in front of her face. She used her hand to gently push it back as she thought about it for a moment. "Well, something elegant and flowing, but fitting in areas that matter." Andromeda said as she looked down at the remains of her dress. "I am sure that whatever you have will do nicely." Andromeda said after a few seconds. Anything was better then what she was wearing now. She leaned her head back, letting her hair hang in the air, the brown waves moving as she moved her head. "Just out of curiosity, if your wife does run into me." Andromeda said as she looked at him, a small smile on her face. "What should I say?" She asked.

[Canos]

Canos listened to her as she told him what kind of dress she was looking for. In all seriousness it sounded an awful lot like the dresses that Ravyn wore. He knew that she would have a good number of dresses that would fit Andromeda. They had a similar physique and their hand was nearly the same. However, he would not go to her room and ask her. It would be far too suspect and he would not risk Ravyn killing her so soon. “Well I might have something that I could afford to give you for the time being. It isn’t exactly like I can just go to the market and buy you a new wardrobe of clothes. We don’t have a market like that. We have a market for food and weapons but not for clothes. Those are trivial things here and so I do not have the need for them; although at the moment it would seem that I do.” Canos pondered. He walked over to the door and it opened as he approached it. He looked at her and beckoned for her to follow him out in the hallway. “Come with me. I will show you what I have.”

Canos had heard her question about if she ever ran into Ravyn. He wasn’t quite sure how to answer and so he took a moment to think about it. He didn’t want to answer to hastily. He waited until she was following him through the halls before he began. “Well I would like you to avoid her at all costs, but if you have to speak to her then say nothing of being my advisor. Say nothing about having a palantir. Say nothing about me having too much affiliation with you at all. In fact, be someone’s sister. I have a general that lives in the palace. You should be related to him. His name is Mathias. She will not question that I hope. If she does find somewhere to go. Truly, a conversation with her is not wise. If she senses a lie she will back you in a corner with it and trust me, you will not be able to escape.” He continued to walk, walking very swiftly through the halls. “Just avoid her.” He said as he opened the door to his room. It was far more lavish. There were rugs and tapestries. There was furniture, a large bed with a canopy with pillows; lots of pillows. Everything was lavish and elaborate.

[Andromeda]

Andromeda smiled as she listened to him. "Well, I never really expected this place to have a shop like that." Andromeda said. When he walked towards the door and it opened for him, she watched him as he becokned her to follow him. She pulled herself up from her bed, walked towards one of the dressers. She opened it and pulled out a dark colored cloth, one that would cover the palantir and Xantho, who was still curled around it. She moved to where the palantir was and put the cloth over it, covering it from anyones view. If someone did get curious and try to peak inside the cloth, Xantho would bite them. So, if they came back to a room with a dead body, Andromeda and Canos would know why.

Andromeda turned back around and began to follow him, her hair seemed to be flowing behind her as she walked. Andromeda nodded as she listened to him. It was a good lie, one that most people would not question. "Be sure to tell your general. He will have to go along with it if it is to work." Andromeda said as she noticed him walking faster through the halls. She began to moved faster as well, the heels of her shoe making a soft clicking sound against the stone floor. When they finally reached a room, he opened the door for her. She looked inside the room, seeing how it was lavishly decorated, much more then hers was. But, Andromeda would not complain. It was best not to anger someone who almost killed her today. "I take it that this is your room?" Andromeda asked as she walked around the room, crossing her arms as she looked around. She turned her head at him, a small smile on her face. "Hopefully the queen will not walk in right now, otherwise we might have a problem." Andromeda joked as she looked around the room again. "So, where are these dresses that you spoke of?" Andromeda asked curiously as her green eyes turned to him.

[Canos]

He watched her as she spoke, watching her lips move and her body motion. Canos let his glances be subtle. He didn’t want her to know that he was openly gazing on her. He knew that she knew he was, but he didn’t want to make it too apparent. He looked back up in her eyes as she asked him where he kept the clothing that he had promised her. He looked over to a door that was in the wall behind his bed and pointed to it. “Beyond that door is a room where I keep things of interest to me. Well perhaps that was an overstatement. My important investments are placed in a place that no one knows. But in any case, you go ahead and find something to wear my dear. Go ahead and try on a few things. There should certainly be something for you to wear in there. I have dresses of all sizes. Granted they are not as elegant as ones that Ravyn would wear, but they should suite you well and you will blend in better. No need for you to be all flashy. It would catch the attention of my guards and it would catch the attention of Ravyn; the latter being the worse of the two.” Canos said calmly, walking over to the door and unlocking it with a key that he took off of his belt.

He opened the door and stepped away from the door. He went over to the dresser next to his bed and he took a lit candle and went into the room. He came back out after he had lit some candles on the wall. There was no need for her to try and find clothing in the dark. That would simply be useless. Canos then walked away from the door and turned to answer her joke about Ravyn. “Lets just not even pretend about that my dear. Ravyn can be a person that anyone could fear. You would do well to fear her; at least enough to respect her. Besides, I don’t think we are going to run into her at the moment. If she does come in, stay in the room. I will handle it.” Canos said calmly. He then beckoned for her to go into the room again. Canos looked back over to the door and it closed as he looked at it. He didn’t need to actually go and open or close the door. He could do small things like that with no problem. His mind was powerful; more than just powerful enough to heat things up.

[Andromeda]

Andromeda caught him more then once looking at her, knowing that he obviously found her attractive. Andromeda watched him as he spoke about keeping things that were of interest to him in the room. Her eyes followed him as he went to the door, unlocking it and opening the door for her. "Yes, blending in would be the best course of action." Andromeda said as she watched him walk with a candle into the room, lighting the ones that were on the wall. "Trust me, I will try to avoid her as much as possible." Andromeda said with a smile on her face when he beckoned her to go back into the room. When she was inside the room, she turned around when the door closed behind her.

Andromeda began to look around at all the dresses, her hands running along them. She took off the remains of her dress, letting it fall to the ground as she grabbed a scarlet colored dress and she put it on. It seemed to be made from a velvet type of material, which was smooth against her skin. It fit tight against her body, much like the other dress, and the bottom of it dragged just barely behind her. She moved her leg and found that there was a slit that ran up to just above her knee, a small smirk going to her face. Andromeda once again looked around, taking different dresses of lengths and colors. The one that she found that was most odd was a white one, which had a pink trim around it. She shrugged her shoulders as she pulled it down and added it to the dresses that were hanging around her right arm. She also picked a few robes, which she would probably wear in the mornings.

After about half-an-hour, Andromeda walked back to the door, pushing it open. Her eyes went to Canos for a moment, knowing that the dress she was wearing would probably make any mans jaw drop. "Well, I found pretty much all the ones I liked." Andromeda said as she walked towards him. All the dresses were draped around her right arm, as she looked at the door for a few moments. "I guess we should probably get back to my room. I would rather not run into the queen." Andromeda said softly as her eyes moved back to Canos, a small smile forming on her red lips.

[Canos]

This was the classic trademark of a woman. She was shopping; well sort of. Canos could hardly believe how much time Andromeda was spending in the room. There were only fifty or so dresses in that room; she could not possibly have taken all that time to examine them. Canos had gone through there once and picked out the ones that he liked. It had taken him five minutes; not a half hour. Canos was becoming very bored with this. He was tempted to open the door and peer inside and perhaps catch her while she was undressing and trying on the different items of clothing; if that was what in fact she was doing. Canos waited though; content to simply lie on his bed and look up at the art on his roof. His room was one of the most decorated in the palace. It wasn’t even that lavish and it was dwarfed in comparison to the throne rooms of Rohan or Gondor, let alone Rivendell. He would never consider himself an interior designer to rival the elves. But, Canos didn’t need fancy things; he just needed the simple things and that was all.

Canos finally heard her opening the door of the room and he smiled. It was about time she was done. He smiled for two real reasons. The first reason was that she was finally done and that she had picked out a few lovely things. The second reason he smiled was because she was gorgeous in the dress she had picked out. He had to strain to control himself. He was, after all a man, and she was a woman, a gorgeous one at that. Canos did not show his urges and he controlled himself very well. He walked over to her and took her hand gently, bringing it up to his lips and kissing it. “Excellent choice my dear.” He said calmly and then nodded when she said that she should be taken to her room. The door opened for them and beckoned for her to follow him back out of his room and down the corridor. It did not take them very long to reach her room. “I truly hope that you are learning all these passageways. They can be a bit confusing at times I am afraid. Everything tends to look the same after a while.” Canos said calmly as he opened the door to her room and walked inside.

[Andromeda]

Andromeda smiled when he kissed her hand. When he opened the door and they began to walk into the hallways, she gave him a glance when he said that he hoped she was learning all these passageways. Andromeda nodded slightly as she looked around. "Yes, I have been trying to memorize all of these passage ways. I am sure that in time I will know them like the back of my hand." Andromeda said as she followed him, her eyes staying in front of her as they arrived at her room. When he opened the door and walked inside, she followed him into her room as she walked towards the dresser, putting her new dresses in it. Her eyes went to the covered palantir for a few moments before she turned to face Canos, her eyes moving up to his.

Andromeda smiled slightly as she walked towards her bed, running her hand along one of the posts. "Just out of curiosity, how often will I be able to use the palantir?" Andromeda asked as she looked at him. A strand of her hair fell in front of her face seductively before she pushed it out of her face. She moved away from her bed as she walked past him and towards the palantir, her eyes staying on the cloth that covered it. It wasn't like she was tied to it or anything, she just liked the fact that she had just recently gotten what she desired. She turned around to face Canos, a small smile on her face as she walked up to him. "I will tell you anything I see in it." Andromeda said as she stood about a foot from him, her eyes going up to his. Another reason why it was good that she had the palantir was that he could contact her, without his wife knowing that Andromeda and him knew each other.

[Canos]

Canos watched her walk into the room and walk over to the palantir. She was attached to it, whether she knew it or not. The palantir had that affect on weaker people and it had the ability to seduce people by its power, or by the power of the one using the second palantir. “I don’t think you quite understand my dear. There is but one palantir left besides yours and it is the only one you can connect to. You will not be able to see much beyond what little information can be derived from my palantir. It is not a seeing device in which you can look onto your enemies and find out their utter most secrets.” Canos said calmly. He looked over at the bundle that protected the palantir, looking at the snake that guarded it. Canos shook his head and looked back at Andromeda as she walked towards him. He smirked as she looked into his eyes and he did the same to her. “You may use it however you want my dear. Of course you must understand that your vision without me on the other end of the palantir will be limited. There are only so many uses of a palantir for a novice.” He said calmly. He moved his hand to her cheek and slid it down her cheek a bit as he continued to speak, “Do not worry though; being a novice is not an entirely bad thing. It just means you have something to learn and that is a challenge worth accepting.”

Canos said alluringly as he looked at her, looking into her eyes for a moment. “It would just so happen that there is only one person that will be able to teach you how to use that device.” Canos said, looking over at the palantir. “He happens to be standing in front of you.” Canos concluded. He took a step away, looking over her for a moment before he looked back up at her eyes. “I will teach you how to use the stone; how control it as best you will ever be able to. It will do things for you in such a way that your mind in general will be stronger than most. He looked at her again, “And it would seem as though I would have to teach you to become more physical. Your womanly wilds and body will only get you so far in this world my dear. You are going to need to defend yourself without your snake.” Canos continued. “These are things that you will learn in time; things that I will have to teach you; a task I will not begrudge or shirk.” He paused, “If I were you, I would be grateful of my generosity.”

[Andromeda]

Andromeda watched him as he spoke. A small smile formed on her lips when he said that she could use it whenever she wanted. She knew that she would probably not be able to see much, since Canos had the other palantir and since he said that if they were both connected, they still wouldn't be able to get a lot of information from them. But, as long as they had the palantirs, they had an advantage over their enemies. Perhaps that is why her palantir showed her this place, to bring the the remaining palantirs together. She felt his hand on her cheek and her eyes went to his. "I want to take this challenge, so I can learn to control it and not let it control me." Andromeda said softly.

Andromeda watched him as he took a step away from her and said that he was the only one that could teach her how to use the palantir. She smiled when he said that it would make her mind stronger then most. She smirked slightly when he said that her good looks would only get her so far and that she should learn to fight. When he stopped talking, she nodded her head slowly. "I am grateful. I have always wanted to learn how to fight." Andromeda said as she looked at Canos for a moment before she walked towards a wall, putting her back against the cold stone as she leaned against it. "When will my training start?" Andromeda asked, her green eyes going to him.

[Canos]

He enjoyed her enthusiasm and her anxiousness to begin training. Canos enjoyed fighting no matter if it was fighting to kill or simply teach someone how to fight; as long as it involved weapons and other people, he was going to have a good time. He moved his hand over the bedpost, running it up and down the post once before he looked over at her. “Don’t be hasty my dear. You will learn all that you need to know. It will take time to learn what I have to teach you, but it seems that time is something that you have plenty of my dear.” Canos concluded. He walked over to her, circling her in the room as best he could consider the fact that she was once again against the wall. It was vaguely similar to the last time; except for the fact that Canos was not threatening to kill her this time. It was a much more solemn and thoughtful look on his face rather than a one of rage and bloodlust.

“You have so much to learn and I in return have much to teach you. You need not worry about trivial things now. Like I said, everything will come in time.” He said calmly and beckoned for her to come over to him. “Surviving is not a matter of being able to fight or use sorcery. It is about not being seen. It is about not being noticed and from the looks of things; it is not something that you are very good at doing.” Canos said with a raised eyebrow. “I believe that you are in my palace because you killed someone in the street in plain view of other people. Come now dear that is just not wise. So before I teach you how to fight; before I teach you how to do anything with that palantir or how to defend yourself; I am going to teach you how to stay out of situations that were render you needed to know all of those things. For you see, if you avoid those situations you will be far better off. I could teach you everything I know about fighting but it only takes one mistake for you to get killed in a fight. So, it is best to just avoid them.” Canos concluded.

[Andromeda]

Andromeda watched and listened to him as he began to circle her again. Maybe he was right in the fact that she was hasty to start training, but who could blame her? If she does get trained how to fight with a sword or maybe even two, she will be a more formidable foe and people will try not to fight her. Maybe she could even gain the respect of Canos, but she knew that she was possibly never going to be as good as he was with his blades. She looked down at the ground for a moment as her hair veiled her face from view, but when she looked back up it moved out of her face. This training, she knew, would take longer then she first thought.

Andromeda smirked when he said that she was not being very good about being noticed. Of course, he was referring to the man she killed in the streets, in front of all the people. She listened to him as he spoke, her eyes staying on him as she soaked in all of his words. "I understand. It was a bad idea for me to even walk through the city, thinking that nothing was going to happen to me. I should have stayed hidden in the shadows, avoiding all contact with people." Andromeda said as she pushed herself off the wall and she walked towards him. "But, if I didn't kill him, I wouldn't be here now. I will not make a stupid mistake like that again and leave myself open to attack. I will try to avoid all fights from now on." Andromeda said as she looked at him, her hand going to the bed post that was opposite him. She kept her eyes on him, a small smile going to her face.

[Canos]

Canos nodded his head as she told him that she was no longer going to get into pointless fights and that she was going to do her best to try and avoid confrontation. Canos was more than certain that she would try but she didn’t exactly know how to avoid certain things. For instance; standing in the shadows was just as suspicious as killing a person. Canos smirked and shook his head. “Yes, because standing in the shadows does not draw attention from people who are trained to look to the shadows for possible assassins. Everyone in this city is trained to look for people that hide. It is the ones that can be invisible in plain view that are the true masters of survival. To be able to walk down the street and be noticed by no one is an art that few people have been able to completely master. If you are ordinary like everyone else you will not be noticed by anyone. No one ever noticed the ordinary people or the regulars. They always notice the ones trying to hide or trying to be too flashy in the crowd. If you are ordinary then these people will draw the attention from you. “ Canos paused, looking at her smile, watching her lips and her hair as it flowed around her and down her shoulders. “But I cannot teach you that much about how to blend in. I can only teach you how to defuse a situation should I occur.” Canos said.

As he spoke, he walked out into the center of the room and removed the robe that was around him. He was just wearing his chain mail armor with a leather breast plate over it. He was wearing simple leather pants and he had his two swords, assortments of knives and throwing devices. He beckoned for her to come over to him. He looked over at the door and it locked as he did so. “We are going to run a scenario my dear. I am going to be someone that has approached you and can possibly blow your cover or your normalcy. You are to get rid of me or at all costs prevent me from causing a scene. Shall we say that this room is a street? You may use anything in this particular room, or rooms adjacent to it, as long as everything is down subtly.” He paused, “Do we understand?”

[Andromeda]

Andromeda listened to him as he spoke about how hiding in the shadows was just as suspicious and could blow her cover. In fact, the best way to not suspicious was to be in the open, acting as normal as possible. Everything he said made sense to her. Those who blend in with the rest of the crown would be less likely to have something happen to them. Of course, she knew in her situation it would be harder to blend in with this city. First off, according to Canos, she was attractive, which would make things difficult with a city full of men. "I will try my best to blend in with a crowd. But with a city full of men, it will make things difficult for a woman to blend in very well to begin with. I could wear a robe, to cover up the fact that I am a woman, but that will only work for so long." Andromeda said softly as she leaned against the post, letting out a sigh. "I could also dress like a man and wear armor with a helmet, since most people here seem to be wearing armor." Andromeda said, her eyes going to Canos.

Andromeda watched him as he walked into the center of the room and took off his robe. She noticed the assortment of weapons he had on him and her eyebrow raised slightly. She followed his eyes to the door as she heard a soft click as it locked. She turned her head back to him, her green eyes going to his as he beckoned for her to come to him. She walked over to him, standing in front of him. She reached out with her hand and took one of his knives and she moved her leg so that it stuck out of the slit that was running up it. She pulled it up a little further and she put the knife in a sheath that was strapped to her thigh. "I will just borrow this knife for the scenario. It will make things more realistic." Andromeda said as she let go of her dress and it covered her thigh again and she moved her leg so that it was back under the dress. "I understand the rules of this scenario and I am ready whenever you are." Andromeda said to him as she looked at him, a small grin forming on her red colored lips. She was curious as to how this scenario would turn out in the end and she hoped that she would be able to pass it.

[Canos]

Canos circled her for a moment when she said that she was ready. He was thinking about how he was going to begin this examination of her skills. It would take him a moment before he figured out how to approach her. He could be incredibly aggressive if he chose to be and then try and attack her to see what she would do. He threw that idea away after a few moments. She was going to be in the middle of the city trying to blend in so that would not happen. No on was going to attack in a crowd of people. They would confront her first. So then he decided how to confront her. He could use what had gotten her in trouble before but he had already cleared all the debts and bounties on her head so she was no longer wanted by anyone for anything. So Canos decided that he should approach her because she was simply a woman. That was probably the most logical situation. She was right, robes and helmets only worked for so long. Eventually the wind would blow or something would happen and someone would be able to make light of her stunning figure. So, in that instance he decided to try and see how she would react.

He walked over to the door and then began to walk over to her as anyone else would. He was going to make this as real as possible without actually being on the street. He walked up to her and he brushed against her body as a person in a crowd usually would. Canos then turned and grabbed her roughly by the arm, swinging her around hard enough so that her hood fell off. “Watch where you are going!” Canos snarled in a voice that she had never heard before. Canos could change his voice to imitate a lot of different people. His eyes were full of anger and anyone else would sear that he was not acting in this moment. “Better yet, watch where I am going!” He said a bit louder. He couldn’t be too loud because they were in his palace but he figured that he would make it as realistic as possible given the circumstances.

[Andromeda]

Andromeda watched him as he walked towards the door and then as he began to walk towards her. Suddenly, she felt his hand on her arm as she was swung around to face him. She winced slightly when he yelled at her. For a moment, she hardly even recognized him as she stared into his eyes. She wasn't quite sure how to react or what to do at this moment. In this situation, the man who would've grabbed her would have had Xantho's fangs sunk into their skin and in moment they would be dead. Andromeda's eyes shifted to where the palantir was covered and she noticed the cloth shift a bit as Xantho moved around under it. Her eyes flashed back to Canos's as she considered what to do.

Suddenly, a thought came into her head. Since Canos was acting like any normal man did, they would not resist money. Andromeda looked up at Canos for a few moments before she spoke. "I'm sorry, that was clumsy of me." Andromeda said as she reached down and pulled out a few coins. She peeled the hand that was on her arm off and she put the coins in it and she closed his fingers over it. "Take this as a token of my apologies. Go and buy yourself a drink." Andromeda said, her eyes staying on him for a moment before she turned around and began to walk away, like anyone would have in the street. She wondered what Canos would have thought about that tactic, since most men drank and when they just got paid by someone on the street to go and buy themselves a free drink, it was a hard offer to resist by most men. But she knew Canos was not most men.