11/27/1098
22:45

Oszar sat opposite Yris, staring across the table at her in silence as she sipped her tea. He drained his cup over the course of minutes with the semblance of hours, until the last drop was gone, and he began to speak. "Who are you, how did you find me, and what do you want?" Yris stood up. "I'm Yris, I'm a smuggler and thief, I found you by following you home from the catacombs last night, and I want to work with you because I think it will be safer and more lucrative than smuggling opium and stealing silverware for the rest of my life." Oszar furrowed his brow. "And why would I want to work with you? I take my craft far too seriously to sell it to strangers for a few coins, and the few times I have used it for personal gain have given me enough gold to live comfortably for as long as I please." Yris returned to her seat and crossed her arms.. "And how is your craft faring, anyways? It can't be easy to get materials, what with the royal ban, especially for a man of your age. I mean, you're robbing catacombs for God's sake, if the person who caught you hadn't been as open-minded as I am, you'd be shipped off to the capitol and tried for treason. And those are just the simple materials, I'll wager gold for copper that you can't get your hands on half of what you need for your workshop. I can get you anything you want, provided you can get me profit. So, would you like to work together?" Oszar sighed. "Before we begin, I must warn you: this won't be any safer than your last job."

5/14/1066
17:22
Lia trudged through the woods of the outlands, her sack full of mushrooms. Today had been a good day of foraging, and she beamed as she imagined the praise her parents would doubtless lavish upon her on her return. As she approached the cottage, she heard voices arguing, and began to frown. She hated it when her parents fought, and she wished they could just get along. As she came nearer, however, she realized that this was more than a simple domestic dispute, and hid in the undergrowth to see and hear as much as she could without being seen or heard. Three soldiers stood outside the house, bemusedly watching as her parents tried to argue, then negotiate, and after a time, beg. Lia couldn't make out much of the conversation, but she didn't need to. She watched as her parents entered the house and came out with all the belongings they could carry strapped to their backs, and ran to them as they left the clearing around what had been Lia's home for all eight years of her life. As she caught up with them, Lia's mother opened her mouth as if to say something, but before she could utter a word, Lia presented them with the bag of mushrooms she had gathered. "Mama, Papa, look how many I got today!" They rewarded her with forced smiles, but her real reward was the look of relief on their faces when they realized she had given them an excuse not to talk about what had just happened.

8-14-1092
7:30
The instructor stood behind the podium as the boys chattered away in their seats. "Attention". The sum total of the voices quieted slightly. "Attention." The second time was no more effective than the first. "ATTENTION!" The room fell silent. "I'm sure you boys expected the academy to be all fencing and horse riding and archery. Well, it won't be. Any peasant can hold a sword, ride a horse, or shoot a bow. But you were born better, nobler, and wiser than peasants. And as noble men, it is your right, your duty, and your destiny to command the commoners in the service of your kingdom, which is why you'll be spending most of your time in this classroom." Klaus smirked in the back of the room. They weren't better, nobler, or wiser than the commoners. It was neither their right nor their duty, but somehow their destiny to bark orders at their less fortunate equals. However, one of the boys in the front row seemed to have figured out what the real issue at hand was, and decided to loudly share it with the rest of the class. "So when do we learn about artificers and dragons?" The instructor sighed. "Dragons don't exist, artificers will be only briefly covered, as they are not currently a threat to the kingdom, and in the future, you will not speak until you are asked to do so." And this, thought Klaus, is what the class truly was: a bunch of children, raised on fairy tales and dreams of glory. And in seven years' time, they would collectively hold thousands of lives in their hands. "And now", the instructor continued, "open up your codices to page 4, and we'll begin the lecture."