W Navarre

Very nice work! Those are so similar to the pictures, great choice of parts.

Hello all, here's a little vignette I recently made. Hope you'll like it! Expedition: E1 Foraging by General 尓àvarre If you like it you could favorite it on flickr, I would really appreciate that! All comments and criticisms are also welcome, thanks for stopping by! (P.S. I put a few more close-up pictures with my train, for those of you who asked.)

Okay, I posted the bios of the De Cioto family now! Check them out here. You are welcome! Being complicated can be fun . I hope it all made sense to you and makes for an enjoyable read!

I posted the bios of the De Cioto family now! Check them out here.

Hello all, here are a batch of figs. They are my family, built thanks to pressure from @Basiliscus . The De Ciotos by General 尓àvarre From left to right: Aluysio De Cioto, Arama Di Athena De Cioto (wearing her armour), Aramo De Cioto, Cetiago De Cioto, Raimonde De Cioto, and Fiorello De Cioto. (Missing member of the family: Arama's half-sister, Ercilia De Cioto, who is a character shared by me and Rogue basically, I don't know but I suspect there's already a fig for her). Aramo De Cioto: There are two heads of the De Cioto family. Aramo De Cioto handles most of the Eastern affairs, and deals with the intrigues, while his Uncle Cetiago deals with . . well, the crazy stuff out on the Western side of the island. Aramo alleges that he is a direct decedent of the legendary Aureo De Cioto, and prides himself on his long noble lineage. He has two daughters and one son, and he was nothing less than thrilled to see his oldest daughter, Ercilia, married to the Rego, viewing it as a long awaited step in the right direction. Kind and thoughtful, if devious, nothing puzzles Aramo more than his namesake, Arama, who turned out to be the wildest De Cioto in several decades. He is very fond of his wild daughter, however, and they live together in a branch of the large Amancio Mansion in Illaryian, although they have many other lands and castles throughout Eastern Varlyrio. (no picture) Ercilia De Cioto: Ercilia is a rather brilliant lady. She is the daughter of Aramo and his first wife. She was married to the late Rego, thanks to her beauty and grace, and had a very nice time, and his apparent death threw her happy life into chaos. Some whisper that she had to do with his downfall. Which may be true. Others whisper that her heart was torn in two by his death. Which also may be true. No one knows much about her, actually, although she appeared in public many times as the graceful queen. The truth is, not even her family knows her well: but it is certain that she is very close to Arama, and the two half-sisters are purported to love each other dearly. Aluysio De Cioto - deceased: Aluysio, Aramo's second eldest, was born right before the death of his mother, but oddly enough the dashing young soul turned out more like his half-sister than like his sister. Aluysio and Arama make a very deadly and clever duo, and do many things together . . . including some rather underhanded things, like taking out political enemies. Nevertheless, Aluysio is fairly staid (compared to Arama), and joined the Royal Guard, and then busily fought his way up in the ranks, until with his brilliant swordsmanship and well known good character (only because no one has caught him during his black operations with his half-sister) Aluysio almost made it to the very top rung, as Captain of the Royal Guard. Arama Di Athena De Cioto: After Aramo's first wife died mysteriously, he married again, only for his second wife to also sadly die while giving birth to Arama. Even while she was little, Arama was a feisty little girl, and not much changed, since in pity for her Aramo let her always have her way. Wild and dashing, Arama always has some mischievous (or more deadly) trick up her sleeve, and is unquestionably ambitious. Although she actually doesn't hide her attitude and the fact that she conspires and fights (like a wildcat) all day long, she does throw most people for a loop with her unexpected and unpredictably mad actions. And by always wearing her thoughts on her face she manages to hide what she's actually doing almost all of the time. Cetiago De Cioto: Aramo's Uncle, Cetiago De Cioto, is a strange wanderer of Western Varlyrio and has a passionate infatuation for gold. Nothing else shiny will do, but that glossy gold shimmer never fails to catch his eyes, and he actually occupies much of his time searching for a long famed golden dye. If he could only find it he would change his white hair to gold, and become pretty much invisible in his large goldmine near the dwarvish mountains of central Varlyrio, where he vowed to settle down as soon as he found the golden dye. Raimonde De Cioto: Unlike his rambling father, Riamonde set's his mind on something (something real, usually) and get's it. For example, he wanted an eye-patch, and he dueled like a devil with all the best archers in Varlyrio, challenging them to take out his eye until at last, a good deal of dead archers later, Raimonde got his wish while dueling with an even better archer than most, and so he quickly got an eye-patch to cover his right eye. And then he dueled with the same man again and killed him, and took all of his gold. Fiorello De Cioto: Arama's little cousin, ten-year-old Fiorello is a little brat. Not surprising, considering his father; but he is very unlike his father in at least one thing: he likes to read. On the other hand, perhaps you can guess what it is that he likes to read about . . . yes, gold. When he was little an unfortunate accident occured, and it should be no surprise that when his hand had to be cut off his father promptly arranged for a hook to be placed in it's stead. Yes, a gold hook. -.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.- Hope you like them! Feel free to kill or rob, or blackmail, or kidnap most or all of them, but it'd be nice if some of them could last so I can continue the story . Arama Di Athena De Cioto is my main character. C&C is welcome!

As soon as I finish editing and posting them on flickr I will add some close-ups to this post for details :) . I'm glad you like it! Thank you, sir! It was a big challenge to finish it! Yes, I took some just have to edit them and then I'll let you guys know and post them here soon hopefully.

Thank you, sir !

Hey guys, I would really appreciate it if you checked out my latest diorama that I made. It's over 200 studs long and I did it in one week! Deep State Espionage: Sukhai Mission E2 by General 尓àvarre Every favorite on the picture is appreciated, as is all C&C. Thank you . Hope you like it!

Hello all! Here is a MOC I recently made, with a fire effect made using lightbricks: The Dark Angel: 核 子力 by General 尓àvarre This is my flag for a game on flickr. Any favorites are very appreciated . Unfortunately some of the pictures came out a little grainy. Any advice is welcome! Hope you like it! Let me know what you think .

You welcome! Glad to know that helped, it would have been better to have Garm's team post first, but they didn't finish until the very last minute . Yep, the back of those shirts have some real nice chain-mail with no sigil, so that makes them so useful!

I am so glad you guys could enter! This build, as one of the first for the challenge, no doubt sent a wave of inspiration all around! It's so good, you ended up with a very beautiful scene!

Well done, i dig the tumbled pillar! Making ruins look organic can be a challenge, awesome build!

I am so intrigued to read the full story, sire! The rising path is very good, and the entrance posts are unique! Great build, I also like how it matches your other Varlyrio build, great coherency!

@Grover You can now read (if you care about the story) a more clear summary of truth versus propaganda of my story here.

Here is a run down of the events that take place in the most recent political machinations by the di Carlos and the De Ciotos, given in answer to Basiliscus's intelligent questions: I'll be glad to give you answers, thanks for asking! 1 (Yes it is his main character) Of course, the De Fiori story comes in between the first part of this (the intro) and the second! I am so sorry many people missed this essential detail! I knew of the De Fiori story, but I couldn't link it since we posted our story first! 2 Oh, I am so sorry! I just misread it and have gotten it wrong since then. I didn't have the time I wanted to double check everything, like the fact that Poppa was in Kaliphlin or this name. Agreed, the De Fioris (Garm) wanted Staffen (you) betrayed (in game and in good fun of course! I hope there ware no hard feelings between your team and me!), so Di Carlo (Zlatan) agreed to do so with De Cioto's (my) help. Yes, they did so after Staffen, in accordance with the alliance, helped Luca to the throne, as per Garm's collab and story. 3 Correct, allegedly she was kidnapped by Luca di Carlo and is now held somewhere. 4 Yes. Both the De Cioto and the Di Cioto family are mine. Don't worry about the Di Cioto, they have nothing to do with this, since no one in Varlyrio knows they exist (they don't even know their own name) and they haven't stirred in any of this matter! It is a well known fact that, as per the History of Varlyrio, the De Cioto family is of good standing. Ercilia De Cioto was married to the Rego Supano Amancio (that's why they were in the Amancio Palace). I will try to come up with more info on the De Ciotos shortly. As I told you elsewhere the only ones I have already come up with are: Widow Ercilia De Cioto. Her sister: unmarried Arama Di Athena De Cioto. (Their father is alive but doesn't have a name yet. He is the official head of the family). 5 Yes. Cadgie De Fiori, known to be cruel, duels with two men and is killed. 6 Yes, kidnapped by unidentifiable soldiers. 7 No. I'll give what really happened in just a second! 8 Yes. 9 Yes! We were crazy to do this, but thanks to Garm's installment Luca was already on the throne, so we had four builds to wreck some havoc . Now for the details, here is what really happened: Luca isn't stupid, he doesn't want anyone to know of what he has done, so this is what he did, after becoming Rego. 1 Secretly, without anyone's knowledge Luca murdered Staffen - pretending with perhaps some reason (or maybe not) that Staffen was on the point of turning against the alliance and betray Luca in order to justify the murder to the Royal Guard. (Only Alesio De Fiori, the new Royal Guard, and Arama De Cioto who helped with all the plans, knew of it, (I'll leave up to you what happened with Minos) for the rest of the Conzagas and the people Staffen simply vanished). 2 Luca also secretly kidnapped Poppa in Kaliphlin (or perhaps he lied to Staffen? Up to you.) 3 Luca sent an assassin to kill Alesio. The assassin failed and Alesio survived with a deep but not too serious wound. 4 Luca sent two men (who? up to you) to kill Cadgie, another prominent Fiori. 5 Luca left Arama De Cioto in charge of using this distraction to kidnap Capri. 6 Arama and Luca agreed to a plan to make Luca look benevolent, kind, and good to all the people and to the De Fioris: 7 They agree to make it look like Arama De Cioto was behind all the murders, including Staffen's, and the kidnappings, 8 And to leave traces. So the assassin of Alesio told him it was the De Ciotos and the paper was left behind on purpose during the kidnapping. 9 Alesio unexpectedly survived the attempt to assassinate him of course, so as you can tell in the story he surprised and startled both Arama De Cioto and Luca di Carlo, 10 But the plan continues. 11 Luca quickly gets up his Royal Guard and Alesio's men and pretends to be furious with the De Ciotos. 12 Luca and Alesio storm the Amancio Palace, where Arama De Cioto and Ercilia De Cioto and possibly others reside. 13 Luca's men, who are ordered to rescue Capri, find her during the fighting, and so they withdraw with Alesio and Luca after they face Arama (as Luca and Arama had already planned). 14 Arama lets herself be wounded, to make her look noble and to further convince everyone of the narrative that she had gotten mad at the de Fioris and kidnapped Capri and probably assassinated Staffen, Cadgie, and attempted to assassinate Alesio. And also to convince everyone that she and Luca are now no longer friends (you may notice Arama was present throughout the plans to put Luca onto the throne, and she is in Garm's build watching the coronation. She also helped, through her sister Ercilia, to overthrow the Rego, since Ercilia, the Rego's wife, naturally knew a lot). 15 But Luca does cleverly keep Alesio from killing her (purportedly because Luca is benevolent and because Arama is just a girl around 19 years old). 15 Luca talks to Arama Di Athena De Cioto in secret, so that the reader knows that in reality they still are friends and allies. Note: all the times I say "up to you" I mean it's up to whoever writes the next story. This may be you, or Zlatan, or me or Garm, etc. All Varylrio stories are canon, unless they go against the rules of the Intrigue thread or contradict another story, in which case it's up to Garm's discretion (or in this case who wins the challenge) which account is truth. Personal note: This is really something I've very proud of, since it took my brother Garmadon by surprise, striking a blow at the Conzagas as he suggested, but also a serious blow at the De Fioris! All while keeping up Luca's popular image as the new Rego! And tricking everyone in Varlyrio into thinking that Arama De Cioto (my new main character) has no power now, when really she is the Rego's closest friend! Garm also had just helped put Luca into power as Rego, so the betrayal is real!! Haha. I planned this with Zlatan's help. I hope it will help to keep Varlyrio alive and encourage intrigue, retaliations, and more stories for Varlyrio . The builds can be seen and story can be read here: Further note on my family: There are two completely separate branches (of the same family): The De Ciotos and the Di Ciotos. Don't confuse them! The Di Ciotos are for all practical purposes in hibernation, although I went through all the trouble of coming up with bios I haven't posted them and won't post them now, to avoid confusion. From now on, since I don't have time to build for or write for the Di Ciotos, I will always be dealing with the De Ciotos unless clearly stated otherwise. My new main character is Arama Di Athena De Cioto, sister of Ercilia De Cioto (who is former wife to the former Rego Supano Amancio: so now she might be called Ercilia Amancio, or Ercilia Amancio De Cioto). Her family consist of: the father of Arama and Ercilia, head of the De Cioto family. Ercilia, wife of the late Supano Amancio. Arama De Cioto, 19 years old more or less and a conspiring ambitious wild girl (you can see her, to build her, in the MOCs from the collab above). And her younger brother, a boy of about 10. You may use them all and name the unnamed ones. If I like the names I will use them myself, or at least I will turn it into their middle names. You may also invent more characters from the extended De Cioto family who are close to Arama or to the father. You may kill and do as you wish with anyone, but I'd appreciate it if you don't kill Arama (unless you have a really good story and reason for it!) She is my main character after all! Current status: Rather out of favour with the people and the powerful rulers of the realm because of an alleged murdering spree. But not feared or worried about too much because the Rego was angered with them openly and officially banished Arama from his Court. But in reality she visits him and is one of his closest allies. P.S. I hope people aren't vexed with my intrigue! I hoped it would be well received, but now I feel like I delivered the News from a different planet, that no one knew anything about! Everything in my story has a reason and hopefully makes sense. Feel free to ask questions, @Basiliscus and @Grover!

True, hehe, thank you again! Nice to know ! It was definitely a thing I wanted to do! Thank you! I'll be glad to give you answers, thanks for asking! 1 (Yes it is his main character) Of course, the De Fiori story comes in between the first part of this (the intro) and the second! I am so sorry many people missed this essential detail! I knew of the De Fiori story, but I couldn't link it since we posted our story first! 2 Oh, I am so sorry! I just misread it and have gotten it wrong since then. I didn't have the time I wanted to double check everything, like the fact that Poppa was in Kaliphlin of this name. Agreed, the De Fioris (Garm) wanted Staffen (you) betrayed (in game and in good fun of course! I hope there ware no hard feelings between your team and me!), so Di Carlo (Zlatan) agreed to do so with De Cioto's (my) help. Yes, they did so after Staffen, in accordance with the alliance, helped Luca to the throne, as per Garm's collab and story. 3 Correct, allegedly she was kidnapped by Luca di Carlo and is now held somewhere. 4 Yes. Both the De Cioto and the Di Cioto family are mine. Don't worry about the Di Cioto, they have nothing to do with this, since no one in Varlyrio knows they exist (they don't even know there own name) and they haven't stirred in any of this matter! It is a well known fact that, as per the History of Varlyrio, the De Cioto family is of good standing. Ercilia De Cioto was married to the Rego Supano Amancio (that's why they were in teh Amancio Palace). I will try to come up with more info on the De Ciotos shortly. As I told you elsewhere the only ones I have already come up with are: Widow Ercilia De Cioto. Her sister: unmarried Arama Di Athena De Cioto. (There father is alive but doesn't have a name yet. He is the official head of the family). 5 Yes. Cadgie De Fiori, known to be cruel, duels with two men and is killed. 6 Yes, kidnapped by unidentifiable soldiers. 7 No. I'll give what really happened in just a second! 8 Yes. 9 Yes! We were crazy to do this, but thanks to Garm's installment Luca was already on the throne, so we had four builds to wreck some havoc . Now for the details, here is what really happened: Luca isn't stupid, he doesn't want anyone to know of what he has done, so this is what he did, after becoming Rego. 1 Secretly, without anyone's knowledge Luca murdered Staffen - pretending with perhaps some reason (or maybe not) that Staffen was on the point of turning against the alliance and betray Luca in order to justify the murder to the Royal Guard. (Only Alesio De Fiori, the new Royal Guard, and Arama De Cioto who helped with all the plans, knew of it, (I'll leave up to you what happened with Minos) for the rest of the Conzagas and the people Staffen simply vanished). 2 Luca also secretly kidnapped Poppa in Kaliphlin (or perhaps he lied to Staffen? Up to you.) 3 Luca sent an assassin to kill Alesio. The assassin failed and Alesio survived with a deep but not too serious wound. 4 Luca sent two men (who? up to you) to kill Cadgie, another prominent Fiori. 5 Luca left Arama De Cioto in charge of using this distraction to kidnap Capri. 6 Arama and Luca agreed to a plan to make Luca look benevolent, kind, and good to all the people and to the De Fioris: 7 They agree to make it look like Arama De Cioto was behind all the murders, including Staffen's, and the kidnappings, 8 And to leave traces. So the assassin of Alesio told him it was the De Ciotos and the paper was left behind on purpose during the kidnapping. 9 Alesio unexpectedly survived the attempt to assassinate him of course, so as you can tell in the story he surprised and startled both Arama De Cioto and Luca di Carlo, 10 But the plan continues. 11 Luca quickly gets up his Royal Guard and Alesio's men and pretends to be furious with the De Ciotos. 12 Luca and Alesio storm the Amancio Palace, where Arama De Cioto and Ercilia De Cioto and possibly others reside. 13 Luca's men, who are ordered to rescue Capri, find her during the fighting, and so they withdraw with Alesio and Luca after they face Arama (as Luca and Arama had already planned). 14 Arama lets herself be wounded, to make her look noble and to further convince everyone of the narrative that she had gotten mad at the de Fioris and kidnapped Capri and probably assassinated Staffen, Cadgie, and attempted to assassinate Alesio. And also to convince everyone that she and Luca are now no longer friends (you may notice Arama was present throughout the plans to put Luca onto the throne, and she is in Garm's build watching the coronation. She also helped, through her sister Ercilia, to overthrow the Rego, since Ercilia, the Rego's wife, naturally knew a lot). 15 But Luca does cleverly keep Alesio from killing her (purportedly because Luca is benevolent and because Arama is just a girl around 19 years old). 15 Luca talks to Arama Di Athena De Cioto in secret, so that the reader knows that in reality they still are friends and allies. Note: all the times I say "up to you" I mean it's up to whoever writes the next story. This may be you, or Zlatan, or me or Garm, etc. All Varylrio stories are canon, unless they go against the rules of the Intrigue thread or contradict another story, in which case it's up to Garm's discretion (or in this case who wins the challenge) which account is truth. --This is really something I've very proud of, since it took my brother Garmadon by surprise, striking a blow at the Conzagas as he suggested, but also a serious blow at the De Fioris! All while keeping up Luca's popular image as the new Rego! And tricking everyone in Varlyrio into thinking that Arama De Cioto (my new main character) has no power now, when really she is the Rego's closest friend! Garm also had just helped put Luca into power as Rego, so the betrayal is real!! Haha. I planned this with Zlatan's help. I hope it will help to keep Varlyrio alive and encourage intrigue, retaliations, and more stories for Varlyrio .

Thank you, guys, @KevinyWu @mrcp6d no problem! @Kai NRG Haha, I know what you mean. Thank you! I'm sorry you didn't like the story very much! I think you're missing something that should be clear . Garmadon's De Fiori story comes in between the introduction here and the part where Staffan is assassinated . I hope that makes it all clear. Why Garm (and his De Fioris) wanted to make Di Carlo Rego, you must ask him, lol, but he did, there is no denying! And of course the builds as I said are organised with a main picture at the start of each part, so I see why you think it's out of order. Hope that clears some of the thoughts up for you! If not you can read my analysis in response to Bas in just a minute! There are various different ones, most of them are just backwards chainmail from the Red Dragon wave of knights (it was one of the most recent Castle themes).

Agreed, I will get to this as soon as possible! I'm sorry I haven't been able to do it before, action must be taken so you can start backstabbing soon .

Really great work guys! I enjoyed the story, and Ayrlego I really loved how your story went with your build 100%. It's rare that so many details are in both the story and the build! Garmadon, you really nailed the lighting, lovely windows! Long live Luca di Carlo . Kahir you really made an enjoyable story! And the action in the build is very cool! Puvel, great architectural details! I like the drain for the canal. Brilliant collab guys!

I agree! Certainly in some pictures the colours went better, but on the whole it was a failed experiment, which I didn't have time to fix. I thought of lots of different colours, and didn't like any of them. What do you think? For the second story I thought of teal, or spring green, or just tan. The white was for sure, but finding a color to go with the light yellow first floor was too hard. Interesting thought about the hangings, I didn't even notice it. I was more irked by the other colors. I would probably not have done the sparkly parts in the end if I could have. Thank you! It doesn't have to be slanting, in some shots it isn't. I admit I just got lazy, since they kept falling .

Oh, I changed it for the other thread, so too bad, lol . If you think I should keep it, let me know. You left me very confused .

Previously... I had the same idea as Louis of Nutwood apparently! To make the reading easier, for those who hadn't read the story yet, or for those who want to find it all in order, I'll post the whole story here, with each main scene and a few of the best illustrations. I hope you enjoy it! I'd be glad to hear your thoughts. P.S. I would recommend listening to this piece of music from Assassin's Creed while reading, it really flows with the story! And so without further ado: La Cospirazione: Part I It was a calm, quiet evening, and the only noise stirring the silent streets of Tergiversa was the resounding trod of heavy boots on the rough streets again and again as Alesio de Fiori hurriedly made his way to the outskirts of the city. As he approached a small gateway he heard voices and paused, warily peering into the shadows: all was safe. There was a man on horseback, another sitting on a small part of the wall, and two others figures outlined a little further back, one a tall Minotaur and the other a slim girl. As Alesio arrived the man on the horse jumped down and grasped his hand in excitement. “Tomorrow!” exclaimed Staffan Conzaga, stamping the ground. “All is arranged! Tomorrow we will meet in the palace of Illaryian: there will be none to stop us! Di Carlo will be crowned Rego and by Sana Argenta, the people will be wildly pleased with it!” Di Carlo nodded, and Alesio stroked his beard. “All seems to be going well. Supano should have known his days were numbered. Are there any final matters to arrange, Luca?” Luca skipped off the wall and there followed a short talk, all in hushed whispers. Finally everything was settled, just as the sky began to darken. “Addio, gentlemen,” Staffan remarked, climbing onto his horse with a short glance at the sky. “Tomorrow then, at dawn, I will meet you in Illaryian.” “Godspeed!” Luca waved him off. Then he leaned back casually on the wall as the man and his bodyguard the Minotaur galloped off. “An ambitious man,” Alesio remarked. “Aye,” di Carlo assented carelessly. “He will stop at nothing,” Alesio flipped a knife in the air. Luca looked up thoughtfully. “None of us will?” he ventured with a sharp look. “What I mean is ... ” Alesio de Fiori fingered his knife suggestively. After a short silence he added, “I don’t think you should let him escape out of your hands.” Di Carlo stepped back in affected horror and ventured no remark. The girl leaning on the wall watched out of the corner of her eyes. “This will be the last time Staffan Conzaga ever plays himself into your hands,” Alesio leapt forward and spoke with animation. “If he once gets away he will grow all too powerful. He is cautious and scrupulous: we will never be able to get him in his fortress at Laryian, and he will stop at nothing. I promise you he will not be satisfied with the gains tomorrow’s work will get him. He has played himself into your hands this once, but it will be the last time. Finish him now or it will soon be too late.” Alesio frowned and let the knife slip into his belt. “And you will live to regret it.” The girl inclining against the wall leaned closer, moving her fingers nervously. Alesio saluted her and shook Luca’s hand. Not another word was exchanged, only De Fiori mouthed silently, “Assassinate the man.” Then Alesio De Fiori pulled his cloak about him and walked quickly away, back into the city, and Luca watched him out of sight with his hand held pensively to his chin. “Assassinate him?” he mused, eyeing the girl with a slight grin. “I suppose we just might be able to do so.” .-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-. The beautiful blue water of the canals of Illaryian calmly reflected the stately arches of the Rego’s munificent palazzo, but all else in the city was far from calm, and inside the luxurious palace halls there hung a thrilling atmosphere of victory and success. Soldiers and guards marched hurriedly to and fro through the palace’s otherwise empty halls, and, besides that, throughout the courtyards and rooms barely a whisper could be heard; save the whisper of the wind as the fresh air seeped in through the open windows. But in one corridor a calm and even voice broke the stillness with measured tones, as Luca di Carlo, the Rego now of the twin lands, conversed thoughtfully with Staffan Conzaga about the affairs of the Realm. As they finished the talk Alesio De Fiori walked in and bid them adieu. “Sirs, I have matters to attend to,” he bowed, “and will make my way to my house now.” “Aye, sir,” Luca di Carlo nodded. Alesio thought that he seemed to be looking past him, and looked briefly around. There was only a distracting shadow moving behind the pillars. He bowed again to Staffan. Bowing shortly in return Staffan cried vehemently, “Well met, sir! Without your aid, I swear by Sana Argenta, we would have never seen a day this glorious!” He chewed vigorously on an old herb popularly used by the farmers of Northern Varlyrio. “Who would have thought that it would be so simple? Such a show as at the coronation today I have never seen. Far too much shouting. Ah, yes, addio, sir!” Alesio walked smartly out, just tipping his hat as he passed out of sight through the archway. “I as well will now leave, with your permission, Rego,” Staffan grinned conceitedly. “There are pressing matters to attend to at Laryian, and I expect we shall not see each other again, for some time.” The olive merchant merely grinned good-naturedly in return, and waved his hand casually. “But au revoir, di Carlo,” Staffan smirked, lowering his eyebrows in a clever way. “When we do meet again, remember the ones who put you into your position.” “I will remember you,” Luca commented with boyish insouciance, “very kindly for your aid and support. No better man could I have by my side, sir.” A sound flowed through the room as of the barring of a door. Staffan turned, startled for a brief second. “Farewell,” he said, dismissing it quickly, and walking a few paces. “Minos!” he loudly shouted through the passageway.  "Minos!" he shouted loudly. “Oh, Minos is already gone sir, I dismissed him,” Luca smugly remarked, pushing a loose tile around on the decorated floor. Staffan looked at him keenly, a puzzled look in his eyes. The sound of footsteps in the corridors increased. “I do not need to say, my dear Staffan, that he has been well payed,” Luca genially observed. Suddenly from every direction the Royal Guard poured into the room and Staffan stepped quickly back. “What does this mean, Luca?” he bellowed. “What are the guards here for?” Luca di Carlo waved them up with nonchalance, and Staffan turned pale.  Luca motioned the guard to close in. “What … what is this, man?” “It was not my idea, sir,” Luca grinned, stepping up till his face was within a few inches of Staffan’s. The soldiers clamped into a square about them, leaving no room for escape. “And I am sorry for the fate that befalls traitors, Staffan Conzaga. But the only place for traitors in our Realm lies below the dirt; and I do not mean the Sunken City.” “Traitors? What do you speak of?” Staffan cowered, his trembling hand clutching something behind his back. “What do I speak of, sir?” Luca’s voice rose now. “Matters to attend to at Laryion? Your proud domineering air? A dagger in your hand?” Luca grasped Staffan’s hand and dashed the dagger he held in it to the ground. It slid across the room, and Staffan fell to his knees, powerless in Luca’s grasp. “Oh, consider my family!” he cried. “Your family? You are very close to them,” Luca mocked, “while they are all leagues and leagues away, where you sent them, far away from you! Except the girl Poppa. Ah, but she is in a dungeon somewhere now. Non importa, I will take care of her and assure her an honorable husband in due time.” The Captain of the Royal Guard bent over and retrieved Staffan’s gilded dagger. “No!” Staffan cried, violently seeking to shake himself from Luca’s fierce hold as the Captain of the Guard approached. Luca Di Carlo only soberly remarked, “Such be the fate of all traitors in our Realm.” Then he threw Staffan to the floor, and at his signal the Captain of the Guard bent down and buried Staffan’s own knife into his heart. Staffan's death. It was over, and silence reigned once more in the vast halls of the Palazzo of Illaryian. .-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-. La Cospirazione: Part II Alesio de Fiori was deep in thought as the little gondola floated calmly down the canal. Darkness was falling, and by the gleaming evening light he surveyed the beauty of Illaryian with a keen eye. Supano Amancio had been dealt with, but there was much left to arrange. Cadgie had gotten himself into another mess. The Rego, Luca di Carlo, had informed him that Staffan was sewing mischief in the North. But it was mischief in the palazzo that Alesio mostly feared. Was Luca to be trusted with the elimination of the most powerful and influential Varlyrian noble? The Rego had sworn that he would resolve it all today, and Alesio expected that Staffan Conzaga would never leave the palace again. But doubts troubled him. And then there was Capri, that troublesome little creature. More mischief was to be expected in the De Fiori castle than anywhere else while she was around. Something caught Alesio’s eye in the water. He swore something had moved, and he silently touched the shoulder of the gondolier. “Assassin?” he whispered, pointing to the shadow fliting across the water. “Ašišī!” cried the gondolier in a terrible fright. With one quick motion he dropped the oar and dived off into the water, rocking the gondola, so that as Alesio spun round he stumbled to one side. There on the bridge, under which they had just passed, crouched a dark, masked assassin with a dagger in his belt and another in his teeth. He had already leapt into the air, and Alesio just had a moment to grasp the oar when the assassin landed beside him, dashing the dagger into his side: but for the sway of the rocking boat it would have gone to his heart. The assassin leapt into the air! Alesio struck the man who with his other hand sought his second dagger. There was a fierce struggle, until Alesio managed with a quick move to draw his knife and bury it deep into the man’s breast. “Who sent you?” Alesio furiously seized his coat with his free hand. “It is the Cioto, signore!” gasped the man. “The Cioto?” Alesio grit his teeth and closed his eyes. Everything was spinning! He dropped the man who tumbled into the blue canal waters, and grasped the prow of the gondola. The blue water of the canal turned red with the assassin's blood. “The Cioto?” he repeated faintly. So then! There was more mischief afoot than he had expected! “Intrigante!” He sighed as another thought came to him. “Which Cioto?” .-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-. La Cospirazione: Part III Cadgie De Fiori had indeed gotten himself into another mess. And if the mess he made was not enough he had Capri De Fiori to handle for the day, and that may have dwarfed all the other problems he had in life. It’s not quite certain in fact how much of a hand she had in all of his problems. But problems he had, and of a sobering nature. “Dawn. At dawn Alesio arrives. At dawn Capri should be off my hands. At dawn I must see those brothers. And I don’t think they have good intentions. It was certainly not wise to accept their tryst after that affair with those people the other day. And certainly Alesio must arrive. And most certainly I must not take Capri tomorrow.” But Alesio did not arrive, and Capri did accompany him: much more due to her willful nagging than to his own wishes; perhaps it also had something to do with her remark, “You can’t leave me here alone in this bleak old castle! I’ll follow you on foot!” To which Cadgie had pertly answered, “I go by gondola, signorina!” “Then I’ll follow you swimming, signore!” was her impudent retort. Well, that would have been worse. Since Capri did not know how to swim. But Cadgie knew she would keep her word, and he did not wish to spend part of his busy dawn fishing the girl out of the water, so that is how they both found themselves disembarking in the busy little piazza near the southern end of Tergiversa. “Sit here,” whispered Cadgie, motioning to a wooden bench by the waterside. He sighed deeply. “Please, Capri, don’t move unless I tell you to.” “Are you going to fight?” Capri cried impatiently, looking over Cadgie’s shoulder at the man pacing up and down near the statuette in the center of the piazza and the small crowd that was gathered near him. Cadgie smirked very good-naturedly at her. “Now, Uncle, you know it’s not good to go fighting other people, what is none of your business.” She stood on the bench and looked down on him. “If you kill somebody I am going to tell my father!” Capri imperiously avowed. “And I mean it, sir, and my Uncle!” “Unfortunately,” Cadgie remarked with a sarcastic smile, “it is my business.” He tapped his fine sword proudly. “I am Captain of the Guard, Capri De Fiori, and if these trouble makers want trouble, it is my task to give it to them!” He put his hand to her lips to stop her from talking anymore and sweeping round marched to the center of the small piazza. An alley led away to the left, and a man leaning against the wall there leapt off it and moved forward, backing up the fellow who had been pacing up and down. “Look here, De Fiori, you gentlemen are too proud,” began one. “Is it true,” took up his companion, who wore a heavy black jerkin, “that Susto and Falco de Fiori, and the guard of Tergiversa, were the chief conspirators and collaborators who overthrew Supano Amancio?” “Explain this, Cadgie De Fiori, or bring the murderers here and have them answer.” Cadgie grasped the hilt of his weapon and snapped, “What murderers?” “Susto and Falco De Fiori!” cried both men vehemently. “Who dares to insult the name of Fiori?” answered Cadgie, enraged. “Quelli in incognito,” they retorted fiercely. “We’re here to settle a debt, De Fiori, and you must pay it if your sons will not!” continued the man in the black jerkin. A pair of swords flashed out and glittered in the sun. Cadgie threw himself at them at once. “The De Fiori’s have no innocent blood on their hands, Gentiluomini!” he thundered. “He who says otherwise may answer to my blade!” A cloud of dust rose into the air as the two men stepped forward and lashed out with their blades. Cadgie De Fiori, a skilled swordsman, defended himself with skill, poise, and tact, but the supposed brothers who were matched up against him were incredible warriors. Blood was spilt on both sides, as they marched up and down the streets dashing about with their swords, playing with the point and the edge of their weapons, and taking advantage of every aspect of the environment around them. Twice Cadgie had one of them trapped against the walls, and once he cut deep into the arm of the foremost of them. But the unequal combat left only one possible outcome, and at last one of the attackers dashed Cadgie De Fiori against the statuette in the center of the piazza and put his sword against his throat. “It is the end of the power of the De Fiori’s,” the man whispered coldly. He forced open Cadgie hand and his sword clattered to the ground. “At least the De Fiori’s are no murderers or cowards!” Cadgie hurled back at him, striking him across the face with his heavy metal gauntlet. “You will pay for that blow, Fiori!” the man brandished his sword wildly as he recovered his balance. Cadgie gasped, dashing for his weapon. But with fire in their eyes both men leapt forward and plunged their swords through Cadgie De Fiori’s mail breastplate. Then with a final blow the one struck him to the floor. Capri De Fiori had watched the whole fight on her tippy toes, restlessly hanging on the edge of the crowd, and with a frightened cry she jumped forward as the man dealt the final blow. She threw herself at her uncle’s side, crying, as the assassins sprinted quickly away. Cadgie De Fiori’s eyes lit as he saw her face bending over him, and he whispered fiercely, “Capri!–” “Poor Uncle, what did they do to you?” She passionately gritted her teeth. “Listen Capri,” the Captain of the Guard said briefly, holding on to life for only a moment more, “they have plotted the end of the De Fiori: girl, run!” Capri whirled round with wide eyes and saw at once what Cadgie De Fiori meant. A troop of soldiers were rushing at her! She quickly kissed her dying Uncle on the forehead and then leapt up and sprinted for the alley, but she could not beat the soldiers, who with cries and shouts intercepted the girl, seizing her by the hands. “Don’t struggle, little girl,” one of them whispered kindly in her ear. “Va bene,” Capri answered in resignation. She let herself hang limply in the hands of the soldiers as they dragged her away. Then as the fateful piazza square slowly passed out of sight she said softly, “Addio, Uncle!” "Addio Uncle!" She knew she would never see her Uncle, Cadgie De Fiori, Captain of the Guard of Tergiversa, again: for he was dead. The abandoned Piazza. .-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-. La Cospirazione: Part IV Alesio arrived late to the De Fiori castle in Tergiversa. He was weak, weary, and haggard, and as soon as he entered he felt in his heart that something was wrong. “Capri!” he cried loudly, and the echoes of his shout reverberated off all the walls, down the long halls, and throughout the castle. But there was no answer. Alesio dashed forward, slamming through all the doors of all the rooms, wildly calling Capri, and Cadgie, and the servants! Not a soul was there! The servants had all gone out deeply frightened, some of them searching with the royal guard for Capri and others burying Alesio’s brother. It took the wounded man only a few hours to learn all this, and in spite of his wounded side, with gritted teeth and burning eyes he leapt on his horse and rode madly back to Illaryian. Later that day the doors of the Palazzo of Illaryian burst wide open with a resounding clang. “Where is Capri!” roared Alesio with all of his might. “Luca di Carlo, son of an olive merchant, I demand your presence!” Alesio flung a heavy gauntlet onto the ground, and the tiled floor cracked. It was Cadgie De Fiori’s gauntlet. Footsteps then sounded in the corridor, and Luca appeared all out of breath, running up to Alesio and grasping his hand. “What is it man? Why, you are pale! Accidenti! Alesio, you frighten me!” Luca cried, startled. “Capri has been kidnapped,” Alesio flung out the words. “My brother is dead!” Luca gasped and gnashed his teeth. “Impossibile!” Luca dropped Alesio’s hand and spinning round paced the length of the room. Alesio sunk back against the wall. “The only clue left was this, sir,” he said, holding out a small slip of paper. Luca leapt up and grasped it eagerly. “Signore, Ercilia has given me the word. Capri is to be taken, and the Captain of the Guard sla–” The paper was torn, but Luca grasped at the ray of hope it offered. “Ercilia De Cioto!” he cried eagerly, marching to the edge of the hall and crying, “Man!” As a footman approached Luca looked briefly at Alesio, and then he spoke rapidly. “To the stables! Fit out the horses, order the Royal Guard to arms! We march for the De Cioto palace!” “The palace of the Amancios, signore?” the footman gasped. “The Amancios,” he warned, trembling, “still are very powerful, although the Rego is dead, and Ercilia is a popular and influential friend of the people.” “Go, man! Il demone take the Ciotos and their influence,” he cried excitedly, “if they dare go about murdering the Fioris in secret, besides the very throne! Come Alesio! Peste, man, you do not even mention your own wound,” Luca sprang to Alesio’s side to offer his hand. Alesio pushed himself off the wall and bowed, refusing the hand but saying, “It is a trifle, sir. Do you think there is hope, Luca?” he added with a slight tremor. Luca di Carlo’s eyes glinted. “They will pay,” he averred. “And we will find Capricia! Even if every Cioto has to be interrogated and each of their mansions ransacked! To horse!” And without another word they sped out of the room. .-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-. Very early the next morning, just after dawn, the doors of Amancio Palace were crashed through with a deafening noise. Luca leapt off his horse and shouted with a powerful voice, “Smash every piece of furniture, search every wall, and do not let a man escape! Find the girl!” “Capri De Fiori!” cried Alesio. “Where is she?” He sprinted up the stairs as the soldiers marched through the archways and doors, crushing and searching everything, everywhere, and seizing the weapons from the startled guards. Meanwhile Arama De Cioto, a thin girl with a long flowing black cape around her neck, snatched a narrow rapier from the wall and leapt down the stairs at the head of a group of retainers. Alesio met her midway and dashed aside one of her men. “De Cioto!” he snapped, adjusting the sword in his hand. “Do not cross swords with me, girl: tell me, where is Capri, my daughter?!” “Signore De Fiori!” she cried astonished in response. “I see there is blood on your mail,” she breathed sharply, dashing up with her sword and trapping Alesio against a corner of the balustrade. She raised her hand and her retainers passed them both quickly. Descending the stairs they threw themselves upon the Royal Guard with fury and loud cries and shouting broke out. Luca watched nervously, pacing up and down and shouting commands to his men. Then he saw Alesio with Arama De Cioto on the parapet of the staircase and with a start he rushed towards them. As there were soldiers on the ground floor, blocking off the stairs, Luca jumped up and grasped the top of the balustrades. As he pulled himself up he saw Alesio fling the slim girl back and heard him say, “What do you have against us Fiori, you Ciotos? Hand me back my girl and we will leave you in all the peace your mind can achieve!” The girl shook her head and laughed. “Capri is dead, signore!” Before Luca could leap down and grab Alesio’s hand he sprang forward and struck Arama a fierce blow at her side. Her thin rapier shattered in two and she shrank back as the sword cut through her leather coat and blood seeped through it, turning it from blue to red. “How dare you,” breathed Alesio with fury. Luca put his hand on De Fiori’s shoulder. But just then a shout rang out. “Capri! Capri è vivo!” cried the soldiers of the Royal Guard. “Out, now out of here!” Luca exclaimed, grasping Alesio’s cape and dragging him towards the lower stairs. Luca let him go, looking back as he sprang down the stairs. The sound of shouting and approaching men could be heard from the floor above. Alesio waited no longer and muttered, “You will pay dearly, De Ciotos.” Arama clinched her firsts and watched them leave as her men rushed past her. Then she leapt vivaciously up the stairs holding her side tightly. Just as she reached the window the troops had forced their way out, with Capri De Fiori, and were hurrying to their gondolas and horses. “Goodbye, Luca,” she murmured with laughing eyes and a quick smile. “Ci vediamo domani!” .-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-. The palazzo grounds of Illaryian once more: “It is quite difficult, girl,” Luca said with a sigh. “You can’t imagine it. If only you were Rego.” “I don’t want to be Rego, capretto.” “Well what happened. Don’t leave out a single detail.” “Very well, signore. The assassin failed to kill Alesio.” “I noticed,” Luca remarked dryly. “And my guard took Capri as your men dueled the Captain of the Guard. The paper slipped out of my hand. Touché, you know that, signore, it was your suggestion. When Alesio came to the De Fiori castle in Tergiversa he found it empty, and he came here. You managed it all nicely from there. Il fastidio, my side hurts. Well, what would he have said had he known that Luca Di Carlo had hired the assassin who slipped my name to him, and the men who killed Cadgie? And them all?” She laughed merrily. “They are certainly unsuspecting.” “Accidenti! It is over at least,” Luca rejoined, flinging a gold coin into a pool in the courtyard. “Over?” laughed the girl. She blinked her eyes. “I doubt that! It will be over when you find a knife in your back,” she added. “That is so, Arama di Athena De Cioto,” Luca wryly frowned, with a cheerful look at the girl by his side. “Thank you for pointing it out, De Cioto. That is just so.” .-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

You sir, have been very busy! (Now I get why you haven't had time to answer my flickr mails ) The monster wolf is so awesome! The landscape is great, and the bones work for either bones or snow! I'll have to remember that. Great cave for extra detail, the dead figs and the stalagmites look good, and the layers of colors in the rockwork are top notch. You can tell you studied for the story, and it's an excellent explanation for why the Rego was busy!

Excellent colors! That bridge is perfect, just like the ones seen in Venice, a good choice of color and great use of the arch pieces! I like the widening canal, the gondola, and the nice poses of the assassin! I love that he's on the roof in the main picture, nice and out of sight from the passerbys .

Come on. You can play with whatever you want when it is allegorical. That was intentional. It's like when playing a game, you use every part. I played with the words, the letters, and the screen. See. I know, it's awkward. But admit it, you just couldn't find a typo.