User blog:SCORNFUL1/Adjusting To Changes.

It has only been a few weeks sense the events of "The Black Crucible". Armata De'Sange, one of the last male Vampires, is home. The crisis averted with the help of some unwanted allies, Amrata returns to his normal daily routine, but one thing has changed in the wake of it all. The solitude and quite he once knew, now a distant memory as he adjusts to the prospect of his first companion in years. Deidre Ironback, a Dwarven princess who has appointed herself as Armata's personal body guard and commanding officer of the dark legions that reside in his grand castle far to the north of Zahmeria, home of the legendary Marcus Jaghund.

Deidre is the daughter of Bale Ironback, leader of the Dwarven kingdom of Hrungnir, making her a Dwarf princess. In her youth she had a stubborn and harsh personality, but sense she has met Armata, she has embraced a more refined demeanor. But her stubbornness and strong will has not changed, she is a powerful combatant and considered a champion amongst Dwarves. However, Deidre's lineage as a half-dwarf half-human, has produced an unpopular view of her in the eyes of the Dwarven community. But just like any Dwarf worth their salt, she is intelligent, foul-mouthed and loyal to her kin and beliefs. Sporting a cocky and flirtatious attitude, Deidre's hides her low self-esteem, born form the lack of acceptance she has become accustom to. This has also lead Deidre to believe her chances of finding a suitable husband are dismal at best, due to her questionable lineage and infirm social status. Having such a fatalistic view point of her future love life, all it took was one show of interest from Armata and she was hooked. They met during the events that transpired during The Crucible incident.

Deidre stands at 3 1/2 feet tall, relatively higher then most Dwarves, due to her heritage. She has blonde hair and blue eyes. Her body is toned and she sports a decent bust for a Dwarf. After the events of The Crucible, Deidre now stands at Armata's side. It is taking some time for the Vampire to fully adjust to his new companion, as everyday his routine is closely watched by the Dwarf princess. Simple mundane tasks that would mostly be quiet, gain a slight boost of flare with Deidre. Today, is no different.

As the moon rises, Armata's coffin slowly opens. The Vampire rises up and lets out a big yawn. He lingers for a moment and scratches his chin, his eyes adjusting to his dark quarters. A room of dark blue stone with fire pots bellowing a crimson flame that tints the room in it's beautiful shade. He steps over the edge of his coffin and heads out into his throne room. His massive throne, a gargantuan stone chair built into the very wall, black tattered drapes hang from the pillars that line the sides of the room. He slumps into his throne and rubs the sides of his head, still slightly asleep, until the doors to the grand room fling open and Deidre marches in and takes a kneel, adorned in her new black armor that symbolizes her authority.

"My lord..." She starts. "Good evening, I hope you rested well." The Vampire does not respond. She pans her eyes up at Armata while still keeping her head down, looking to see if he's pay attention to her. Deidre's expression quickly grows annoyed as she realizes he has fallen asleep. "MY LORD!" She shouts, Armata comically jumps a little and opens his eyes.

"Yes Deidre, I'm awake. What do you want?" He asks in a yawn.

"My lord your bath is ready, you'd best get to it before it becomes cold." She replies.

In a groan Armata rises out of the chair like a Zombie and shuffles to his personal bath-hall in the next room. Deidre follows him in, until the Vampire begins stripping away his pants. Deidre half way through her next step, spins around and waits for him to enter the bath. At the sound of him plopping into the water, she turns back and collects the assorted soaps and shampoos he likes. Steam rises in the bath-hall as Armata relaxes in the warm water. Deidre's face bright red as she scrubs his back and washes his hair. Admittedly, her eyes wander low several times, but dart back up the moment she suspects her lord may be aware of her gawking. After 30 minutes of cleaning, Armata rises out of the bath and dries himself off. He tosses the towel aside and it lands perfectly on Deidre's head.

She moves aside the towel as Armata strolls back into his quarters to dawn his signature outfit. His black leather pants and boots. A dress shirt with frills at the end of each arm, he does not button up the chest area, instead he leaves it open to reveal his abs. He buckles a large belt around his waste, a black belt lined with silver studs and buckle. Next his long crimson trench coat also lined with silver trim and studs. He plays with his hair and in the mirror until he is satisfied and returns to the throne room. He has handsome features and a mustache/goatee combo. He has yellow irises and his skin is pale. He walks past Deidre who still has the wet towel in her mits, she follows behind him and tosses the towel at the first guard she sees along the way.

The day is uneventful as Armata moves form one simple task to another. First it was talking to the captains of the watch, checking to see if anything interesting happened while he was slumbering. Next they moved to the training yard for Armata to practice his combat. After words he moved to the alchemy laboratory and continued his research into his blood manipulation abilities, this is where most of the evening was spent. Deidre rather bored, began playing around with assorted vials, attempting to relieve her boredom. Armata was deep in concentration until he hears a crack and turns to see Deidre not far from one of the vials broken of the floor. A stern, displeased expression is on the Vampires face as he slowly approaches the ashamed Dwarf. She fully expects for him shout and curse, but instead he flicks her head, leaving a swollen red mark square in the center of her forehead.

Lastly, they depart from the laboratory to the library. It is the most beautiful and spectacular part of the castle. The library is several stories high and long enough that it spans several ballrooms in length. The mass of knowledge contained in this menagerie of literature would keep even the most adamant scholars busy till judgment day. Books on grand adventures of legendary warriors, battles of the ancient world, bestiaries, sorceries, encyclopedias, biographies, scrolls and much, much more. Armata sits in a dark oak chair. Right next to him a small table of the same color and wood, a goblet on the table filled with an undefined red liquid. His legs are crossed as he sits there reading a book written by "The Wondering Scholar". As flips a page, Deidre is high on a ladder, she is on her toes, her arm outstretched, trying to grab a book just out of reach. As she inches ever closer, the ladder wobbles ever so slightly. Quickly she grabs hold of the book shelf and holds tight to steady herself.

Armata's eyes shift from his book to the Dwarf princess as she fumbles around on the ladder. With the ladder secure, she looks over to Armata, who has turned his attention back to his book. She opens her mouth to speak, but words fail to come out, she has second thoughts about disturbing her lord. Again she tries to obtain the book, but this time her luck runs out. The ladder wobbles and the Dwarf loses her balance, falling to the floor, she lands with a thud that knocks several books of the shelves. Deidre's head serves as a landing pad for one of the falling books. As she rubs to the top of her head, she looks up again to see a displeased Armata. The peace and quite of the library disturbed.

However, Armata's expression goes from displeased, to a small smirk. He shakes his head sarcastically and floats up to the book Deidre attempted to claim. He descends to the floor and hands the gold colored book to her. Not saying anything, he then heads back to his chair and sits down, adjusting himself slightly until comfortable and continues to read. Deidre cleans up the books and stacks them neatly on a large table not far off and takes a seat. She opens the old tome of knowledge and enjoys a nice read.

Hours pass and it is nearing dawn, Armata closes his book with a loud clap of the pages and exits the library. The journey back to the throne room always seems short to Deidre some how, but she always feels a sense of sadness at this time. knowing that the lord will soon be asleep and she will have to return to her duties. As she and Armata reach the throne room, Deidre wishes her lord a good morning, in his case.

"I must return to my duties my lord, may you rest well...." She says softly as he strides into his quarters. He does not respond to her. Instead, Deidre watches as his quarter's doors close behind him. [Another day, just another day.] She thinks to herself.