The Ghost from the dust

Ardin got up to follow her, seeing the captain leave "you have no idea" he said under his breath, and took a few things off Svenia's plate and popped them in his mouth, and followed her up "You know, leaving a meal untouched is very rude," he smiled at her, and opened the door for her, "I hope it isn't an issue that we are sharing the same room?"

She sighed and nodded. "I am sorry about the meal, it was good, but I kept seeing the bodies of the men as you two talked," she said, her face getting a pale. She shook her head, trying to block the image from her mind, and chuckled wearily at him. "We've shared a camp for some weeks already, and I couldn't afford two rooms as it was. There are two beds, so its not so improper." she smiled at him, walking into the room before him. It would be good to sleep for awhile, in a real bed.

Ardin nodded and smiled "You are new at death, I wouldn't expect you to not be thinking of it, other wise something would be wrong with you" he chuckled, taking his boots off and leaving them by the door, "If you like we can talk about it, or I can help you get them out of your head" he shrugged sitting on the bed "It was hard the first time i killed, I locked myself in my room for a week"

She sat down on the nearest bed, the image of the headless men running through her mind again, and she shuddered. "I don't think I could ever get used to killing," she said softly, remembering the orc she had inadvertently killed when they'd first discovered the ruins. Seeing the men die, humans, one of the so called goodly races, had been much harder, despite what they'd had planned for her.

Ardin leaned forward looking at her "And nor should you, getting used to killing is for soldiers, assassins and murderers, you are none of these and never should be," he let out his hand to see hers, "I had been trained to deal with things, I had been put in a cage with angry dogs, with nothing but a small knife, had my bones broken by my master, forced to watch dogs tare apart a pig," he looked up at her waiting for her hand "You have seen peace and nothing else, and it is what you should always wish to see"

She gave him her hand, her large brown eyes meeting his. "I am sorry that you had to go through so much," she said in a quiet voice. "I can't even imagine living such a life." she squeezed his hand lightly. "Did you ever to live a different life, be something other than an assassin?" she asked curiously.

Ardin placed his other hand over hers, to make her feel comfortable, and looked at it "Aye, these are not hands of a killer, they are hands of beauty and peaceful life" he looked up from her question "No, I have always been what I am, though I have been called an emperor for thirty years, I soon passed on my throne, but I remain who i am"

She smiled slightly and nodded, gently disengaging her hand from his. "What do you plan to do now though?" she asked. "I doubt there will be much cause for you to take up the mantle of an assassin at the ruins, since you said you intend to stay there."

Ardin let go of her hand and looked right at her "Assassin doesnt mean a person who kills people for money that many now think we do," he Shook his head and sighed "We have rules, once you become one, you are for ever know as an assassin, Many have forgotten the path though"

She met his gaze and nodded slowly. "If you don't kill people for money, as most tend to think, then what does it mean to be an assassin?" she asked, drawing off her shoes and sliding her legs under the covers of the narrow bed, leaning her back against the pillow and wall to be comfortable while they talked.

Ardin leaned back and layed his head on the bed, "Assassins are those who kill for those who could never bring themselves to do it themselves, we are the fighters for peace, it is our job to kill those who wish to bring war to the land, corrupt the land so that people will suffer, we stay our blade from the flesh of the innocent, we are always discreet and we never compromise our brothers," he looked up at her, with a frown "Now there are people walking around calling themselves assassins, only because they are hired to kill people. they have destroyed the name. its not a job, its a liveing, its a clan"

She nodded slowly, absorbing the information. "So 'assassin' is a fighter for the people." she chuckled lightly. "Far cry from the meaning that most attribute to it now." She smiled over at him. "You never did answer my question as to what your plans are once we get back to the ruins."