[Epicurus D. Vampyler]

He just wanted to blurt out that he probably knew why the empress wanted to see him; he wanted to tell her his relationship and how it actually went beyond being friends. His friendship with the empress had blossomed; a bond between the two had grown into so much more. Then again if he did not tell his sister, and she found out some other way Epicurus would be in a heap of trouble, to keep such a thing from his sister would mean certain doom. He had never in all his years been able to keep anything from her, it was is if she could see right through him then would back him into a corner to submit.

”Well, I met Arabella before she was the empress, back in Daltina. It was a chance happening, she had snuck out of the confines of her escort and gone for a walk. Daltina is not the best place to go out alone in, and she was taken into a back alley to be mugged. I was able to just catch site of it and sort of rescued her I guess, from there we have grown to be, well, a lot more than friends I guess.” Epic took another sip of his tea, he was sure that she had summoned him so that he had a good reason to get away from Medonia. It just seemed odd that she would not ask him first, then again it may have something to do with her being empress and not being able to pursue what they had. He hoped this was not the case, Arabella was a rare person and he was not ready to let go of her so easily.

”I guess I’ll find out.” Epic let out a long drawn sigh and scratched the side of his scruffy face as he tried to push the thoughts of Arabella out of his mind for the moment. Right now it was his sister he had to focus on and make sure everything was well with. ”As for a sword trainer, I have spent a lot of my time, of course, in Medonia so all of the sword trainers I know reside there. If you were to choose though I would say a Mr. Marik Bane, he has been my most recent teacher in the art of the long sword.” Then came the question that Epic was waiting for, the question of family. He had not told her of Liselle yet, for Epic was not so sure if it had all been true or just a dream.

”I guess, the big news would be that you are now an aunt. I have a daughter…eighteen patterns young.” He let the comment linger, soak into Jaki’s mind a bit, he knew this was going to raise an entirely new series of questions.