A capon crowed, though it was evening. He sang a warning, with a bold edge. For it was not because he knew he'd soon be a fine and tender dinner upon the plate of Baron Armâtre, juicier than any other chicken as such castrated roosters are. No; this the chicken did not know. Yet, like a vigilant dog, it seemed to sense that something was awry.

            Inside a nearby house, a man muttered, "Eliash, the rooster, is just like his namesake."

            His wife answered, "Doesn't know when to stop singing?"

            "Aye," he grinned, running a hand through his bristling short red hair. "It's his fault our son is gone!"

            They both had rich red hair, common in Haeville. She was statuesque, tall and stalwart. On the contrary, her husband was lithe and quick. Built like a knife, and just as sharp of wit.

            "You can't blame our nephew for this," she said. "We make due without Johm. And soon he'll be sending us what he can spare."

            "Right from that noble bastard's purse!"

            She sat down opposite him, to a candlelit dinner of freshly harvested vegetables. Steam rose from their plates, and still from their hearts.

            He smiled at her, and they bowed their heads in thanks to the Qurystals.

            "He'll play for the Queen, Joward, not the menacing Windsmire wretches."

            "Aye," he said again. He snickered, and the skin on his edgy nose wrinkled with discontent. "The shadows behind every page and scroll of written history in Lakeland."

            "Oh, ever the cynic, my love."

            Knife was brought to boiled flesh, and forks rose food to mouths. They ate in a silence that expressed how quiet things had been since their son's departure.

            Joward looked up from his dinner, "Y'know, I miss her. She reminds me of my gallant youth."

            "Your swashbuckling youth?"

            "Aye! A blade in my hand and a purse of good coinage."

            "She was a pretty catch. I was so proud of him." she paused to swallow. "I hope she catches up with him, before it's too late."

            He nodded calmly, and the silence resumed for a long moment. They ate, they breathed, they drank and they thought.

            And then through the window, they heard the capon crow once more. Its stunted comb and wattles were surely flailing like drops of blood, never to fall from their wound.

            "Someone ought to put an axe to that chicken's head," Joward muttered. "If I crowed like that, every day, the castle would find me in this quiet little town."

            "I'm sure they've given up on tracking you down, hon."

            And at that moment, there came a hard knock upon the door. The metal gauntlet, its folded fingers shining brightly, hit again and again upon the door.

            "Who is it?" she asked through the door, in a yell.

            And then the luminescent claymore, which the knight held with one hand, crashed through the door. Wood shattered to pieces, which he kicked aside with plated boots. Despite the weight upon him, he moved as if unarmoured.

            Joward drew a serrated knife from the nearby counter as he stood up to the sound of his wife's screams.

            The knight towered over their furniture, and rose a head taller than them both as he stepped through their doorway. A deep voice came mercilessly through his visor, "Woman, where is your son?"

            And again, the capon crowed its warning. But it was too late.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
- Basic Information
- Foreword
- Major Characters
- Minor Characters (Incomplete)
- Symbolism (Incomplete)
- Relevant Geography
- Miscellaneous Details
- Cryptic Notes

BASIC INFORMATION

TITLE: Fencing Fame's Fiance
INTENDED LENGTH: Novel
GENRE: Medieval Fantasy Romance & Adventure
NARRATIVE MODE: Third Person Limited Omniscient
AUDIENCE: It's for teen and adult readers. Rates at about PG13 right now. However, it might easily get Mature rating, depending upon how it unfolds. Right now, there are sexual undertones that aren't very subtle, and some fantasy violence which hasn't gotten graphic yet.

Chapter titles are to be triple alliterations of sorts, as the first half dozen suggest. Double entendres and other witticisms are preferred, but not necessary.



ANYTHING BELOW THIS POINT CONTAINS POTENTIAL SPOILERS! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.


FOREWORD

None of this information is set in stone. However, that does not include that which recapitulates what is already written. And writers are not limited to pre-existing characters and towns on these lists. They are mostly just to help keep track of aforementioned things.


MAJOR CHARACTERS

Naieyle von Haeville
- Pale-Skinned, Female, Heterosexual, Bald, Age 18
- Trained by the renowned Forest Fencers
- Niece of Baron Armatre of Haeville.
- Engaged to Johm.
- Is developing ardor towards Allerk
- Killed Celinde's husband.
- Naieyle is bald, and has a collection of wigs. This is part of her trade, which occasionally demands quite a bit of deception. It is yet unclear what keeps the wigs on her head in a fight. And there's probably some strange rune tatooed on her skull.
- She was inspired by this music video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Hv7Vl0RbBI

Allerk ibn Gerauhd
- Tan-Skinned, Male, Heterosexual, Black Hair, Age 13
- This is not his real name.
- Prince, but not crown prince, of a southern country. He guards this secret.
- He is to be the adoptive heir for his uncle, the king of Lakeland. However, the queen takes the throne because of Lakeland's racism towards the tan-skinned king.
- Thus, if his brother dies, he will grow up to be king of two countries.
- The King of Lakeland takes 'sapa', an extract of freshly squeezed grapes boiled in lead vats. This is to pale his skin. It also makes him infertile, hence the lack of an heir. (This is also used by Marlew von Slough.)
- Ibn means 'son of' in Arabic names.
- Allerk hides his identity in paranoid fear of a racist killing. His first contact with a Qurystal is to grant him powers over the water.
- He is to face an arranged marriage to a young maiden upon arrival in Crownlake. She will meet him prior, when Naieyle is charged by Sir Brutan with protecting the young girl.

Johm von Haeville
- White-Skinned, Male, Heterosexual, Red Hair, Age 18
- Traveling troubadour with his cousin, Eliash.
- Engaged to Naieyle.
- Unknowingly bought a shard of Qurystal, thinking it was a diamond. He had it set in the engagement bracelet.
- The Qurystal has granted Johm a great deal of strength and charisma. It stems mostly from vanity.
- Johm has a close-range telepathic link with Eliash.
- Johm's father is a fugitive.

Eliash von Haeville
- White-Skinned, Male, Bisexual, Brown Hair, Age 19
- Johm's eunuch companion, a fellow bard and his cousin.
- The two play shawm and fagotti (oboe and bassoon) interchangeably. The eunuch is responsible for widdling the double-reeds from boiled stalks of bamboo.
- He is able to magically read the emotions of a crowd, and thus manipulates them through the music. Feelings, not thoughts, are what he reads.
- Possesses supernatural hearing.
- Possesses a close-range telepathic link with Johm.

Marlew von Slough
- White-Skinned, Female, Heterosexual, Brown Hair (Dyed Blond Sometimes), Age 21
- A prostitute from the Slough Inlet
- Taken a strong liking to Johm.
- She is to become a traveling companion of Naieyle and Allerk.
- She is anaemic and infertile, because of the amount of sapa she ingests. This boiled extract of grape juice gives her a pale complexion, and acts as a contraceptive; thanks to the lead vats in which it is boiled.
- Possesses supernatural sight.

Sir Brutan Windsmire
- Male, Age 30-60
- A deadly servant of the palace.
- He has enlisted Naieyle, in hopes that she will be the personal body guard of the soon-to-arrive crown prince. (Allerk)
- He has also enlisted Eliash and Johm, because he recognizes their powers of manipulation over a crowd. The intent is to use them to control the courts of Crownlake.
- Brutan wears a gray cloak and a grim face.
- He may or may not have a liking for saffron-haired prostitutes. And he may or may not enlist them to the brothels of Crownlake.
- He follows his charges in the shadows, ready and eager to kill them should they stray from their allegiance to the crown.

Celinde von Broche
- White-Skinned, Female, Heterosexual, Gray Hair, Age 66
- The Banshee Bard of Broche is a vengeful old woman.
- Wife of the slaver that Naieyle killed.
- She intends to stalk the fencer until she has an opportune moment for vengeance.

Rossel Windsmire von Gabe
- Male, Heterosexual, Age 16-20
- Saves the injured Celinde after her run-in with that mean and nasty fencer.
- Takes an interest in Marlew's beauty.
- Plans to keep Marlew from getting in the way of Johm's engagement.
- Enlists Naieyle and Allerk as travelling companions to take a large egg to Crownlake.
- Distantly related to Sir Brutan Windsmire

MINOR CHARACTERS (incomplete)

The Slaver: Celinde is his widow. He was killed by Naieyle in the second chapter, The Slaver's Slit at Slough.

Marlew's Grandfather: He appears in Bathing Beau & Bodice, and Quartz-Quelled Quandary. It is implied that he disposes of Marlew's stillborn fetal corpses with the same magic that summons the creatures of the variety that attacked Naieyle in the first chapter.

The king of Lakeland: Allerk's father. Political marriage. From the south. Faces racism. Does not rule over the country, because of this. However, he ingests sapa to pale himself. This has led to his infertility, which has left the queen without an heir.


SYMBOLISM (incomplete)

Black and red birds, namely the cardinal and the red-wing blackbird, have been used as omens to foreshadow doom.

The wildlife have been used to fill in the world around the story and give a sense of nature. However, they're actions and reactions often have some subtle connection to what is going on in the heart of the story.

Rossel's tugging of his earrings doesn't mean much yet, but it can easily be twisted into something we can interpret and use as symbolism. Maybe something to do with his wealth and insecurities?


RELEVANT GEOGRAPHY

Broche
A marshy boardwalk town, origin of the smokesacks and the Banshee Bard. It thrives upon rice-farming.

Haeville
The center of a rural farming community, run by Baron Armatre. There is a nearby lake, however it is not part of the network of lakes, rivers and portages that stretch from the Slough Inlet to the blighted foothills on Lakeland Kingdom's northern border.

Slough Inlet
A small port town on the south edge of the network of lakes. It is a modest town, which thrives upon the ebb and flow of travelers.

Crown Lake
The lake itself is run-off from a mountain glacier, that has filled a circular, crown-like crater upon the mountain's bottom edge.

Mount Crownlake
This is the tallest mountain in the land. It is a landmark over central Lakeland Kingdom. It towers above the clouds, into five peaks and an uninhabited sky island. However, few go up that high... and survive.

Crownlake City
The bustling capital city of the Lakeland Kingdom is perched around the rocky edges of Crown Lake. It has a castle.


MISCELLANEOUS DETAILS

The diamond on the engagement bracelet is the world's tiniest Qurystal.

Merfoxes, yet to be depicted explicitly, are some kind of scale-tailed, flipperless mix between a fox and a dolphin.

The plan is for the travel to Crownlake to play out much as any sword-and-sorcery journey, but with a tent-setting, canoe-tripping, portage-taking medium. That's the standard.

The currency of Lakeland, crownlets, are metal coins shaped like crowns, diadems and circlets. Some are hollow in the middle, while others are not. The symbol is ALT 0128, a 'C' with two lines through it.

I will record, here, the values of all the coins. But first, I must re-read.


CRYPTIC NOTES THAT DYS KEEPS HERE BECAUSE HE'S TOO LAZY TO OPEN A TEXT FILE

The Laughing Loon's Lode
Looting a Lewd Load

updated Jul 31 by Dysphemism