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_ _** _ In Midnight Clad_**

Chapter 1: A Lone Traveler

With a clatter of hooves, a lone figure atop its steed slipped into an old dilapidated township as the frigid wind bit at their heels. The sky was painted a dusky black, an equilibrium somewhere between night and early morning. The air reeked of compost, hay, mud, fresh rain, and the other homely scents that any small hamlet exuded. From under the flapping cloak, the figure scanned its surroundings with an experienced and battle worn eye. This one was a cautious and calculating person. They had in their hard life, encountered countless hidden dangers and mysterious magical occurrences. They knew that not everything was as it seemed, and this place could be no different. The figure slowed their mount to a trot, the heavy splattering of mud flung from metal shod hooves turned into a lite spray. The individual slowly caressed the hilt of their massive ebony longsword, ready to unsheathe it at the slightest sign of trouble. Slung to their back was a large thick reinforced kite shield, darker than the twilight sky. It had been through many wars and had accompanied the person as long as they had been a part of the sacred order. The muddy road may have been deserted, but they would not rely on eyesight alone.

The cloaked figure was astride a massive horse. The ebony steed would fool no one. It was a fierce and noble mount, bred for warfare. The horse nickered softly and the figure stuck a charcoal black gauntlet out from the large cloak to pat the animal in-between its triangular ears. It neighed and settled down. With their mount placated, the figure used the stirrups and reins to guide it to a small and welcoming looking tavern that had a small arrow sign hanging up above the closed wooden doors with the picture of a furred individual holding a large mug, about to collapse, The Woozy Lycan it was titled_._

The tavern was not the best, but the figure had spent many previous nights in ones far worse. With a nicker, the black horse trod into the shoddy stables haphazardly built adjacent to the tavern. The inside of the dark stable was musty from the piles of stale hay, but smelled clean, quite an accomplishment for an establishment such as this. The figure riding the horse spied a young stable boy, no more than fifteen if the figure's eyes were correct. And they had never been wrong before. The pale skinned kid had straw colored hair and was sitting on a wobbly three legged stool. He was garbed in a heavily mended pair of brown breeches and a grey vest over a billowy white shirt. The kid was staring at his feet as he stirred the hay littered ground with a stick. At the sound of the clatter of hooves he looked to greet the customer and froze, staring with blatant fear.

The figure could understand the poor kids anxiety, it was not often one encountered a huge cloaked person astride a large war horse. But the figure was impressed with the courage the kid possessed. It was quite something for someone to stand up and walk over to such a stranger. "H-h-how c-c-can I h-help you?" The kid asked in a stuttering and squeaky voice. The figure could not tell whether it was from fear or puberty.

"I require lodging for my companion here." A deep male voice growled from under the obscuring hood, patting the beast on the head for clarification.

The kid nodded. "Okay sir, we have a stall available, and I can brush him down as well if you would like?" The kid did his best to steady his voice.

"That would be acceptable." The large man grunted, swinging himself from the stirrups and planting his feet on the ground with a thud and the ringing of cascading metal. His feet were clad in black plate boots, large thick and menacing. At the tip of the toes, the boot formed a small spike that looked lethal. s

Even off the horse the man was huge, easily six and a half feet tall. With broad shoulders and a deep chest, it was obvious that he was either a blacksmith, or warrior of some kind. And by judging what armor the kid could see, it was the latter. The figure turned fully to the kid and he was allowed a better look at the odd man who had stirred his uninteresting night.

The man's thick legs and visible torso were clad in thick armored plate. The suit was intricately and beautifully designed, the work of a master artificer. Etched along the armor were dull red runes that almost seemed to glow with light to the youth's hazel eyes. On the plate's chest sat a crest that sparked a distant itch in the kid's mind. It was a shield with a cross in the center. Intertwined on the cross was a pair of crimson stained dragons. Around the edge of the shield was writing in a langue the kid could not understand. The lettering swirled together perfectly in a way that drew the eyes.

The upper portion of his body, including his face, was concealed by a deep black cloak, of which the bottom was covered in mud and the decomposing leaves of late autumn. It was clear that he had traveled a great distance, yet his equipment was kept in pristine condition.

Belted to the man's waist was a sword almost as large as the kid himself. The blade's design was hidden in the leather sheathe, but the kid could see the handle. It had a standard shaped crosspiece, but in the center was a sparkling cerulean jewel, a complete contrast to the coloring of the stranger's other items. Before the kid could complete his study, a gruff and amused voice emitted from the stranger causing him to jump.

"Are you done yet kid?"

The youth realized that he had been standing there for a few minutes, staring quite brazenly. "Of course sir, sorry sir!" He apologized quickly and profusely, hoping that he had not angered the armored warrior.

In response, the toppling warrior simply handed the reigns of his noble mount to the kid. "Take good care of this horse, your life depends on it."

At first he thought that the stranger was joking, but the silence from the shadowy hood made him reconsider that. "You have my word that he will be fine." The youth pledged, with a little waiver in his voice.

The hood bobbed up and down. "Good." The stranger stuck a large gauntlet out and held it out, closed in a fist.

The youth was confused until he realized what the man was doing. He placed his own much smaller and skinnier pasty appendage, palm up, underneath. In response, the stranger opened his sealed gauntleted fist. The rattle of raining coins caused the kid to widen his eyes and inspect his payment in shock.

In his soft hands, devoid of callouses that a life here would eventually bestow upon him, lay a gold coin intermingled with a few silvers and quite a few coppers. It was a king's ransom to a community like this. "I-I can't take this!" He spluttered, shocked at the generous tip.

The cloaked stranger simply shrugged, said "Then don't", and walked out of the stable.

It took only a few seconds for the kid to make up his mind, stowing the coinage in one of his thread-bare pockets. He could feed his family for a year of those!

With an unusual gusto, the kid took care of the horse, placing it in its stall and giving it an apple out of the bin. The steed neighed appreciatively and crunched into the crisp and yet slightly soft recently harvested fruit. After that he began to brush the large mount down, thinking about the curious stranger's generosity.

******

The man strode out of the stable, assured that the kid would now make his horse a top priority. He headed for the wooden door of the tavern, only a few feet away, his boots squelched in the soggy mud of the unpaved road as he forced himself through the mire. He ignored the unpleasant smells and reached for the loose rusty handle of the unpretentious establishment. The man sealed his gauntlet around the knob and pulled, with the high pitched creak of rusty and mismanaged hinges, the door slid open. Without hesitation, the large armored man stepped inside, away from the cold.

As soon as he entered, whatever conversation that had graced the oaken walls ground to a halt as all eyes were drawn to the large armored figure in their midst. The man's eyes scanned the warmly lit tavern. There were many wooden tables spread out with no discernible order. The tables were stained a deep brown from spilt ale and they were splintering in some spots.

Occupying these tables was a collection of people in worn, frayed and muddy flannelled clothes in the same condition as the tables. No doubt they were the farmers, woodsman, and hunters of this small community. Currently, they were all staring mistrustfully at the stranger who had entered their familiar grounds. It was not often outsiders came to this place, and never one dressed like he was.

The man ignored the looks and headed over to the bar. Manning it was a portly but muscled balding fellow. He had a dark tan and the leathery skin that all hard working individuals earned out in the fields. The balding barkeep gave the man a once over, quickly sizing him up. Once the man had stopped at the edge of the counter, the barkeep spoke and the conversation around the little pub picked back up.

"What c'n I do for ya on this foine evening sirs?" His voice was mellow and quite, a soft-spoken man. His linguistic skills could use a little work, but that was common for people in such...conditions.

"I need food, water, and a room for the night." The man answered with his deep commanding tone. The light of the bar could not pierce his veil, maintaining his hidden features.

"I do not know if there be any rooms open." The barman answered uncertainly.

The armored man stood there silently, before reaching inside his cloak near his throat. There was a clinking of chains as he pulled out a pendant and showed it to the barkeep. Upon seeing what exactly it was his, disposition changed drastically. "But I's can check for ye!" The man stuttered before quickly leaving to do just that.

The man replaced the pendant back into the depths of hos cloak and stood there waiting for the man to return.

He stood in silence until he felt a hesitant tap on his shoulder. "C-can I g-get you something t-t-to eat or drink s-sir?" A nervous and soft feminine voice asked from behind him.

Slowly, the man shifted his gaze behind him to see who had disturbed him. He was, for the first time since coming to this town, stunned.

It was a female cat from one of the Polsiva clans that roamed the untamed wilds. Humanity had a tense relation with them, having fought in several bitter wars over hundreds of years. There were many species, foxes- the most cunning, wolves- the most fierce, bears- the strongest, cats- the most curious, and many other ones that were not as well known. Many years ago, facing defeat, the scattered clans had banded together to create an alliance, under one ruler. This forced humanity to concede to a peace treaty in order to prevent another hundred years of bloodshed. Personally he held no dislike or like for them, even after fighting against them. After all, they looked different, but they acted the same. But not everyone had the same unbiased opinion. There were many factions among both sides that would be glad to see a war reignite.

Shoving his random historical musing aside, the man studied this cat that had decided to walk up to him. This particular feline specimen had a dark black glossy coat, shining jade eyes, a long thin dexterous tail, and her paws looked soft and well cared for. She looked like a panther, but he could not be certain. For some reason her claws had been dulled, something he knew from previous encounters with the natives, to be a terrible thing.

She was wearing a barmaid's dress, a short pleated brown skirt showing her long toned furred legs and an equally revealing top with a corset. Her hindpaws were digitigrade so she did not wear any shoes. He was pretty sure she did not like wearing it judging from her paws that did their best to cover her from the lecherous eyes of the patrons. He found himself pitying this poor girl. It was almost certain that she had few if any friends among these people. The man was also curious, why was she here? He had rarely ever seen one of the _Polsiva_people around humans, most tended to keep their distance, and even less could speak the human tongue so well if at all.

She began to wilt under his perceived stare and prolonged silence. Seeing this, he finally responded. "Yes please, what do you have tonight?"

She relaxed marginally after he responded, her tail that had been hiked up, lowered to its normal position close to the floor. "Tonight we have the house stew, mostly just lamb and some vegetables, and we have ale fresh from the brewer in town." She responded giving furtive glances around for some reason he could not fathom.

"That will suffice; I will take an order of the stew and no ale, just water." He declared.

She bowed her furred head and her feline ears twitched as she quickly turned and walked away. He watched the feline disappear into the back room behind the bar with a frown. Something was wrong here, and as a knight of the order, it was his duty to find out.

He turned away from the bar and looked out into the crowd of peasants. They looked at him occasionally and when they saw that he noticed them, they quickly turned away. Indeed, something was not quite right in this hamlet.

"Sir, we have a room available, on the second floor, across the hall, first door on the left." He heard the voice of the barkeep say as he walked up to him, twisting his palms nervously.

"Good, I'll take it." The man said with a nod of his hooded head.

"Will t'at be all sirs?" The barkeep inquired.

"No, I have some questions." The man replied, causing the barman to frown and the man could begin to see perspiration break out across his bare head.

"W-what de ye w-ant to know sirs?" He asked nervously.

"Why do you have a Polsiva working at your...fine establishment?" The man pressed firmly.

"You be talking about little ol Cas, we found her a many years ago, wandering the roads, lost t'was she. We took her under our wing, and now she...works here." The man caught the millisecond of hesitation the barkeep had. He was lying.

The man only nodded; perhaps she could tell him more. "Thank you that will be all for now, you are free to go." The barkeep nodded thankfully and hurried away into the back room. The man turned to walk away from the counter, heading for a table in the back as he waited for his meal. He settled on one of the few ones that had no tenants and was the cleanest of the bunch. There he sat in wait, fingering the hilt of his sword.

After a few minutes, the feline maid emerged from the room in the back; her eyes were watery with unshed tears. Still, she persisted, looking around the room until her moist emerald eyes stopped at his table and she began to walk over. Half way, a particular rowdy drunken farmer reached out and pinched her rear, causing the poor feline to mewl and jump, almost losing the tray of food and sending the cup of water splashing all over her.

The man's gauntlet tightened on the hilt of his sword dangerously.

It seemed that Cas was made of stern stuff though; she collected herself as well as she could and continued the walk over to his table. When she reached it, she took a rag out of a torn pocket and began to wipe down the table. "I am sorry sir, about the water." She sniffled, the girls pointy ears were splayed back and she was sniffling quietly.

The sight was pitiful and ignited the flames of retribution in his heart. Letting something like that go unpunished, no matter the species, was anathema to the code. But before he could enact righteous judgment, he wanted to get the full story from her, about why she was here.

"Its fine my lady, it is I that must apologize for that man's brutish behavior." He responded, his rough voice taking a softer, kinder tone.

Cas blushed at being called my lady, and because of this man's compassion. The men here were not like him. "Thank you, sir." She meowed softly, placing the food in front of him.

"No need for thanks, what I speak is simply the truth." He responded quietly.

She nodded silently, unsure as to how to proceed. By now most men would be trying to grope her drunkenly with the heavy disgusting odor of alcohol permeating their breath. Confused, she turned to leave when he spoke again, stopping her. "Please, if you would sit with me, I would appreciate the...sober company." He added after hearing a boisterous laugh from the inebriated patrons.

Cas was torn, she would like to spend time with the kind stranger, but she was worried about what Calen would do to her. Last time, he had hit her and she had not eaten for a week. That had only been last week. She had not eaten in a long time. But in the end, the need for compassion won out her fear and so she nervously sat down opposite him.

"Excellent." The man said with a happy tone. "It would do this man's heart good to speak with a fair maiden."

She blushed once more at the compliment and looked down. While the men here did grope her, they never thought she was truly pretty. It was more of a game for them, torment the cat girl. "I am no fair maiden." She whispered softly.

"Nonsense, all women are beautiful, fur or not. It just takes the right person to see it." The man responded. He felt bad for this poor girl, and so sought to make her smile. His efforts succeeded as she gave him a small weak smile, but it was a smile all the same and he would take it. "There is the smile I was looking for." He chuckled warmly.

The feline laughed softly, and her tail stroked the air happily. The man found her laugh melodious. "Please sir, I can take no more."

"Alright I concede maiden." He said, smiling under his hood. He took that pause in the conversation to grab the wooden spoon from off the tray and dip it into the stew. He brought it up to his lips and noticed her watching the spoon of substance with rapt slitted eyes, and her barbed tongue lashed out to wet her needle sharp teeth.

With an amused sigh he set the spoon back in the bowl, much to the feline's confusion, and pushed the tray over to her. "Be it far from my mind to eat whilst a maiden goes hungry." He said in explanation.

"I can't take this." She said, although her tone lacked real conviction. He could see the hunger in her eyes, and it made him mad. How could this be?

"Please, take it with my blessing, but in return, tell me how come this evil of hunger prevails you." He asked quietly.

Cas was scared to tell him, but she figured that he could be a friend. So she took that chance, fearful of the consequences. "I....well, I made a mistake so Calen took my food away for the week." So saw the large armored man become stone still. What she did not see was the man's gauntlet under the table as it drew his blade a few centimeters, revealing the obsidian colored steel engraved in archaic red runes.

"This man...this Calen...has denied you food...for an error?" His voice was cold, underselling the blazing inferno building in his core.

"Y-yes." She mewled, frightened at his transformation.

"Calen is the barkeep, is he not?" The man inquired simply.

"Yes sir, but please don't tell him, he'll hit m-." She meaped and covered her mouth with her paws, horrified that she had said that. If Calen found out that she talked, her punishment would be fearsome.

The man almost lost it. "And now it seems that this Calen," the spite in his tone was venomous; no doubt if Calen had been standing there he would have dropped dead, "has done the unforgivable act of laying a hand on a woman."

It was at that point that Calen the bartender saw Cas speaking to the stranger from the order, and his blood ran cold. If she blabbed all about what he had done than he could be arrested, or worse. Quickly, he moved to head over there. "CAS, WHAT ARE YOU DOING!? He bellowed angrily as he made his approach, hoping that he could frighten her into submission before it was too late. The poor feline recoiled at the voice and cowered in her seat fearfully, holding her tail as she watched the harbinger of her destruction approach. It would seem that he just might succeed.

He had not counted on the order knight to leap to his boots and slam a black gauntlet on the thick oaken table, splintering it into matchstick tinder. "SILENCE FOOL!" he all but roared, stunting the barkeep's walk and silencing the large room.

The man almost threw himself at the unfortunate barkeep, grabbing him by the throat and lifting him off of his feet. Calen struggled to breath under the constricting cold steel of the man's merciless gauntlet. It was at that moment that Calen knew true fear. "Let me go." The man squeaked fearfully, still trying to take charge of the situation, a foolish and pitiful attempt.

"DO NOT PRESUME TO ORDER ME LIKE SOME COMMON BEGGAR OFF THE STREETS!" The man hissed dangerously, tightening his hold on Calen's larynx. He forced himself to calm down. "You know of how you speak to, whom I am affiliated with, WHAT I STAND FOR!" The man lost his temper again, shaking the poor fellow in his grip, almost causing him to fade from consciousness. "I AM A KNIGHT OF THE ORDER AND YOU DARE TO THINK I WOULD LISTEN TO YOU, YOU FILTHY WHORESON!"

"Please sir, forgive me!" Calen pleaded, using the last of his breath as the rest was forcibly removed from his body by the knight's grip.

"Forgive you?" The knight asked dangerously. "You do not deserve forgiveness." The knight tossed the man to the ground and with the hiss of steel drew his massive longsword, laying the tip of the blade on the man's throat, hard enough to draw blood. The weapon's runes blazed with an intense crimson light. "But, that is not my decision to make, it is hers." The man shifted his hood to the feline who had been watching all of this with half parts awe and half parts delight. Her tormentor, for the last fifteen years of her twenty year old life, had been laid low, by a knight no less!

She soon realized that the man was talking about her, and that the fate of her oppressor lay in her paws. She was tremendously tempted to let the knight kill him, but she had a kind heart. "Let him go." She said softly, finding her voice.

"As you wish." The knight conceded, sheathing his glowing sword and turning to a random patron. "You, fetch the watch captain!" He barked authoritatively. The man nodded rapidly and stumbled out of the tavern. He turned to the rest of the customers. "Get...out." He growled quietly, but not before grabbing the one that had pinched her and delivering a soul shattering fist to his gut, flinging him backwards.

The rest of the men were quick to comply, bumping into each other in their haste to escape the knight's retribution, dragging the groaning patron and helping him out. Once they all funneled out, the man shifted his attention to the cowering slug of a man and grabbed the collar of his shirt, pulling him up roughly by it. The shirt's fabric tore as it was yanked and when the man's face rose, the knight smashed his gauntlet into, shattering his nose and sending spurts of blood shooting out. The force of the blow rendered Calen unconscious finally. The knight could not allow him to be punished without some of it being done by him personally.

Then, he turned to the poor cat girl that this had all centered around and he bowed low. "Please forgive my harsh actions my lady, but I could not allow this farce to continue."

She was stunned again at his complete reversal. "Uh...it's okay." She responded holding on to her tail still.

"Nay it is not, the injustice this man brought upon you for so long is not acceptable, and he will face a harsh sentencing at the court in the capital of Vilkhund." He spoke adamantly.

She was still a little overwhelmed that she did not respond for some time. Her life had just spiraled into an unknown direction. She suddenly had control of it now, for the first time since she could remember. Suddenly she felt the knight's cold gauntlet's wrap around her paws.

"My lady, are you feeling well." Cas looked up to his hooded face and spotted a pair of kind and warm amber eyes staring back at her. She found her heart suddenly fluttering and she looked away with a blush, concealed by her dark fur.

"I am well, but this is all too much." She added, looking back to him. "What shall I do now? I have no friends, no home, and no family. Where do I go?"

The hooded knight thought about what she said and came to a decision. There were a few of her kind living in the capital city. They were not necessarily welcomed by most, But knights of the order held no prejudice and so he had a few acquaintances there that owed him a favor or two. He was sure that she could board up with them for now, at least until she had a plan. It would hardly due for him to help her and then subsequently abandon her to the world. "Come with me, I shall take you to the capital, I know some of your people that can help you."

Cas was stunned by his offer. This man had suddenly crashed into her life, rescued her from her forced servitude, and now offered her a way out of this place and to a better one. And she knew not even his name or face! "I...I..." she could not say what she wanted to.

The man's hood nodded solemnly. "It is a big decision, I understand, take your time my lady, I have to get my horse, this town is not fit for me to stay the night."

The knight walked away and stopped when a man in leather armor holding a spear came in with two others, similarly dressed. The knight flashed something on his chest and the three men stiffened, standing at attention raptly. The knight spoke a few words and the watch quickly came over and carried the unconscious Calen out of the tavern.

The knight turned back one last time, brought his right gauntlet to his breastplate in a fist and bowed before leaving through the door.

Cas let the convoluted thoughts become a whirlwind inside her head before coming to a decision in moments. She had no possessions, nothing tying her down to this terrible place, so she hurried after the man.

******

The knight left the tavern; he could see a commotion as the locals came out to stare at the sudden activity that exploded from the inn. He gave them only a brief uninterested glance before turning to the stables. He entered it to find the kid, still tending to his horse. The man smiled and cleared his throat grabbing the youth's attention.

The kid almost tripped as he turned to see the knight there. "Hello sir, your horse is being taken care of I swear!" He said defensively.

The man chuckled. "Good job kid, but it seems that I need my horse now. I am leaving earlier than I expected."

"Does it have to do with the commotion outside?" The kid asked curiously.

"That it does young one. Now hurry, my horse." The man ordered kindly.

The kid nodded firmly in the way only kids can and moved to open the pen. The horse came out with the boy and nickered a greeting to his master, butting his nose against the man's gauntlet happily. "Yes old friend, we're moving again." The man spoke softly to his companion.

"Hello Miss Cas!" He heard the youth call out happily. His age giving him a freedom from the preconceptions humanity bestowed upon things they understood little of.

The knight turned to see the feline woman, standing in the doorway to the stable, twiddling her paws nervously. "Have you decided my lady?" He inquired as he checked over his saddle bags, readying up for his trip.

"I have." She admitted. "I wish to go with you." Her tail swung absently behind her and her ears flicked as a fly buzzed around them.

"That is indeed good news, do you have any possessions you wish to take with you?" He asked as he closed the last of his bags, tightening the belt around it.

She shook her head softly in response.

"I...see." He responded with a twinge of sadness. "Well than, we best be off, the trip is long and first light will be upon us in a few hours." He saddled up on his horse and led it over to her, extending a gauntlet in invitation.

She hesitantly grabbed the armored glove and he hoisted her up behind him with his great strength. She wrapped her paws around his armored chest, finding comfort in the cold steel. Without noticing, she had placed her muzzle on crook of his neck, burying it in the cloth of the hood. A deep purr began to emanate from deep within her breast.

She was thankful for this man, even if she knew not what his name was. She was tempted to ask, but her ordeal had tired her greatly. With a wide yawn showcasing her pink gums, ornamented with sharp pearly white teeth, she sunk her muzzle back into the cloth and drifted off to sleep on the knight's shoulderplate with her paws still firmly wrapped around him.

With a small smile, the knight lightly nudged his horse's haunches, causing it to move in a canter. He gave the stable boy a final wave and departed the town with a new companion. This had proved a small detour from his current mission. He would be losing a night's sleep, but it mattered little in the end. He had upheld the tenants of his order.

The knight only hoped that whatever the king had summoned him for could wait until he dropped her off. The clan wards were quite a distance from the palace, but he knew it was the right thing to do. The king would understand. He was a good man after all.

Soon, the small hamlet was far behind the man, and he spent the first few hours of the journey, deep in contemplation about his new acquaintance.

So, what do you guys think? I managed to hash this out in a few hours of dedicated work. I hope that this is better than what the Crusader Saga used to be.

-Drake