A Herald with news

Beldan stood quickly dropping Winlay in a heap onto the polished tiles of the floor. For an instant she clung to his legs pressing her face to his thighs, but then her desire for him faded as swiftly as it had been enflamed. Instead of lust a wave of well-being swept through her. Winlay still felt a strong admiration for the great man, but the unexpected need that had led to her completely inappropriate seduction of the High Priest was gone.

Looking for the miracle that saved her from humiliating herself with His Holiness, Winlay saw a Herald dressed in white robes and hood with the scarlet cords of office around her waist.

"How dare you interrupt me in my private chambers!" Demanded the High Priest angrily.

"Forgive me your Holiness, I knocked several times." Something about the Herald's nervous voice was familiar, but with her face hidden in deep white hood and Winlay's mind so overwhelmed with the recent events she just couldn't figure out what it was.

"I bring urgent news from the Imperial Palace." The Herald continued. "News from Cryn." She added holding out a scroll case hopefully when Beldan stepped towards her clearly still furious at being caught with a nearly naked initiate sitting on his lap.

The High Priest snatched the case from the Herald's hand and as he stepped away the hooded courier glanced for the first time directly at Winlay. Winlay gasped in surprise; there was no mistaking her roommate’s pretty face or the concerned look in her eyes.

"Mika?" Winlay asked in stunned surprise. How could her friend be here? Wearing Herald's robes??? The High Priest heard the surprise in her voice. Beldan turned back to Winlay lowering the case just as it opened so the cloud of fine powder shot away from him into the room. Winlay stared at the swirling dust in stunned confusion. The High Priest on the other hand shared none of Winlay's stunned hesitation.

"Assassin!" He squawked loudly as he stumbled backwards, he threw the empty scroll case at Mika before he turned and ran for the doorway at the far end of his suite. Mika didn't hesitate a second either and was close behind him with a short but nasty looking blade in her hand. Winlay watched helplessly as Mika closed the gap between her and the High Priest. Just as the obese man reached the doorway her knife cut the back of Beldan's fat neck and across his upper back leaving a bright crimson line on the silk undergarment. That was the only blow that landed though because as soon as he was through the opening a heavy door slammed in Mika's face.

By now Winlay was beginning to understand what was happening. The carefree young woman whom she thought was her friend was actually an assassin. Winlay could hear the High Priest's guards banging on the door to his suite. She didn't even take the time to pull her robes back on, instead she sprinted for the door and reached for the heavy bar that had kept the door sealed.

"Winlay, NO!" Yelled Mika from the far side of the room, but it was too late. She wrenched at the bar lifting it from its slot and pulled open the thick wooden doors to the suite. In the hallway she could see several bodies lying bleeding on the floor, but with the door finally open a warrior pushed his way past her and into the room. There was only one, but he wore the uniform of the Templar thank Xelta.

His grey eyes took in the entire scene almost instantly. Mika by the far door, Beldan's and Winlay's robes lying on the floor and Winlay herself wearing only her cotton briefs, her sandals and the golden hairnet on her head. He looked like something from an old Earth fairy tale, a knight in shining armor with his strikingly handsome face and drawn sword in his hand. Only when his eyes lingered on her bared breasts did Winlay remember her state of undress. She covered herself as well as possible with her arms blushing furiously as she reacted to the look in his grey eyes; and then, the Templar turned away from her to confront Mika.

The Templar had a substantial advantage over Mika, not only was he a trained warrior who outweighed the young woman by almost 50 kilos, he was fully armored and carried a lethal sword. Despite the fact that she now knew Mika had deceived and manipulated her Winlay felt a undeniable sense of dread knowing that she'd be seeing her friend's demise.

However, the Templar did not immediately attack like Winlay had feared. When she saw him turn to question Mika Winlay understood that the man very much wanted to capture the High Priest's would be assassin alive.