Lost Souls: New World

POV David 

May 21st 913 (2016)

I wandered the halls of the Manor. We'd arrived the night before after several weeks of hard riding. Lodi, the 'capital' of Centuria. The regent had not been happy to read the official letters of the Queen and new Countess. But what could she now do? I was ruling in my sister's stead, Smith was off inspecting the soldiers we technically now owned…

I wasn't quite sure how the military here worked, but from what i'd gathered so far various nobles owned their respective armies called Laga, though there was some standard organization? I'd have to ask Smith again.

Finding the regent's office I walked inside to see her at the desk. A hot flash flew through me. She'd been relieved of duty last night…

She glanced up from her paperwork. "I'm sorry, I'm not seeing visitors at the moment."

"Perhaps I did not make myself clear last night. You are no longer employed by the county of Centuria." I said in a firm but polite voice.

"Quaint." she replied as she set down her document.

"Article 6. 'No man shall take what a woman owns unless it is dictated by written agreement or a higher power.' unfortunately your deluded grandeur is misplaced at best and under the provision of Article 5… 'No man may force themselves upon another, for the Goddess sees it unjust.' This completely destroys your argument. You have neither the authority of the Countess nor her approval to do any such thing." she replied with a smile, though the frost in her eyes betrayed a different story.

"Which articles are you referencing? I've read a vast majority of the laws of these lands." I replied, I tried not to bristle at the absolute nonsense she'd just thrown at me.

"The Vandame accord. Perhaps you should read them sometime?" she replied snarkily. I stood there silently for a few minutes before turning on my heel and leaving, walking across the manor I found my brother staring out one of the windows with a cold air around him, it felt like invisible razors were circling him.

"Got blown off too?" he asked quietly, his voice seething with rage. I walked to his side, my silent nod the only reply he received.

"We have some work to do." he replied.

"Indeed, what are you going to do?" I asked while we stared out the window at the beautiful blue waters of the Lobau River.

"Not sure yet, I need to do everything from scratch, from the ground up." he replied.

"Huh…" I mused for a moment then thumbed the key in my pocket. I slowly pulled it out and smiled. The treasury key. Smith glanced at the reflection. A pair of predatory grins returned showed from our faces on the glass pane of the window.

"Let's put these assholes in their places." I said quietly as we spun on our heels. We walked down several halls, stopping by our rooms to grab our swords before heading down to the basement. We walked to the end where a pair of guards stood lazily at the thick iron door leading to the treasury.

"Hey, you can't be down here." One of the guards called out.

I pulled out my sister's crest and held it before me like the cross of Jesus himself. "By the power vested in me, on behalf of the Countess of Centuria, I, David Fulton, Regent of Rebecca Fulton, herby dismiss you of your duty. Return to your quarters."

"Yeah, like that's going to happen." They scoffed.

"Look at the two boys playing at being a lady." The other laughed.

I shared a look with my brother, then addressed the two again. "I find the guards of the treasury in contempt of orders, under noble law of military personnel, misconduct before a noble section 3 b. I, David Alexander Fulton, acting Regent of Centuria relive you of service."

The flabbergasted look they gave us gave us more than enough time, our blades drank, red spattered on the walls as the two former guards slumped to the floor. We dragged them to the side and confiscated their keys.

I used the key I'd taken from my office last night to open the large main door, then used the key of the guard to open the inner door, we closed the inner door and locked it behind us as we lit a torch and walked deeper into the treasury. 

"Make sure the money is still here, I'll find the ledgers." I shouted to Smith as I quickly found the table and began pulling several ledgers out. I began flipping through several of them, quickly finding the newest ledger and working backwards from a few days ago.

"David!" I heard Smith shout…

"Yeah?" I called back, still trying to piece together what the treasury should currently have.

"How much money does the treasury have?" He said, much quieter and far closer than I though he was.

"Uhhhh, around thirteen thousand silvers?" I replied, glancing at the recorded transactions.

I heard a heavy thunk. Smith pried open a small chest. "Well, there's maybe a few hundred left."

"No…"

"Yes."

"That's…"

"Who made the last few transactions?"

His question broke me from my shock and I started running through the ledger again, Baroness Urnor withdrew, Regent deposited, Regent withdrew, Regent, Regent, Urnor, Guard Captain withdrew salary, Regent withdrew, withdrew…"

"They haven't deposited any taxes in… five years." I said after scanning through the whole ledger.

Smith whistled. "Must have been some nice benefits."

"No shit, five years of the county's taxes?" I said reaching for some other ledgers. I pulled it down from the shelf and started reading through it before I set it down.

"These people are idiots…"

"What's they do?" Smith called from the other room, looking around for any coin he may have missed.

"They kept a record of all the taxes collected, it's all right here."

"There's no way…" he came back into the room and stared at the ledgers.

"We can use this…" he said slowly.

"If we can spread word to the people, get them on our side, a public, speedy trial…"

"You know enough of the law to get around that?" He asked, I gave him a smirk, did I know law? I likely had a better grasp than most of the nobility at the moment.

"Tell you what, grab a dozen or so silvers, post a request at the guild, the more people gathered at the Lodi bridge; the more payout the guild receives. Also see if you can hire someone that knows thaumaturgy."

Smith chuckled then grabbed a handful of silver from the chest. I took the ledgers. We locked the treasury and kept the keys, they wouldn't need to be returned. We took our horses from the stables, thundering into the vast river straddling city of Lodi.

I made for the long bridge over the Lobau, I stopped near the middle, dropping off the saddle and patting the horses's mane. I looked at the river, the powerful current stained a faint red from the iron ores of the distant mountains. I looked south at those distant peaks, though I'd been told to even reach the base of those mountains I'd have to ride hard for at least a week from here.

Just how tall were these mountains actually? I'd been able to see the peaks for almost a week now… I mused over these strange lands as slowly people began to gather, at one point my brother pushed through the crowd until he was next to me, a scrawny boy no more than ten at his side. I nodded to my brother and the kid muttered the incantation. I climbed onto the stone railing of the bridge and faced the crowd.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, people and citizen of Lodi and Centuria. A fortnight ago my sister, the Heroine Rebecca Fulton was ennobled as ruler of Centuria, she entrusted me, her brother with taking the position of Regent." My voice echoed across the wide river. A great many people stood on the bridge, half listening to what I had to say.

"When my brother and I arrived last night, we were met by the former regent, and as of this morning, during our inspection of the treasury, we have discovered the gravest of betrayals." Suddenly all eyes turned to me. I had become the center of attention.

"The hard work, the blood you've spilled, the sweat you've toiled with, all of it robbed from you. For the regent and her cronies have taken your wealth, taken your hard labor, taken your privileges… and cast them into the river below us."

"This morning I inspected this ledger, among many others. Inscribed within are the counties treasuries and bonds. The taxes and wealth of the people of which you have all paid into, was stolen. First by the regent, then by her cohorts." I could feel a wave of outrage begin sweeping through the crowd. I played it to my advantage.

"They have robbed you. Robbed your families, your friends, your children! She and her consorts of the devil hath stolen your very futures. The treasury is all but empty, abused to fulfill a lifestyle of glutinous desires." Rumbles spread through the crowd.

"Friends, I beseech you directly. Aid me in delivering justice, help me help you, so that I may return your stolen future!" I shouted, my voice echoing off the walls of the buildings and the river below.

"You've seen their contemptuous looks! You've been trodden under their heavy boots, you've toiled and slaved away for their desires, their benefit, their prosperity, what have they done for you?"

"They stole from us!" I heard a cry from the crowd.

"Correct!" I yelled.

"The old regent and her allies, these so-called nobles, have bled this county dry, lining their pockets with silver stolen from you. You work, and they prosper! You toil, and they take what is yours!" The crowd began to murmur, anger flickering between them.

"Should we stand aside and let this continue? Shall we let them press their boot deeper into our necks? Or shall we stand up for ourselves? Shall we stand for what is right? What is just? Monrovia has always been a land of adventure. A land of the free! Let us free ourselves of these corrupt filth!"

I hopped off the railing and into the saddle. I pumped my fist into the air. "Who will stand with me?"

Roars of anger were my reply. 

"No more! Today, you have made a choice. You choose not to continue living as slaves in your own land, bowing to those who care nothing for you! Let us cast down these corrupt thieves from their thrones!"