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*Once everyone had arrived at the Temple and had gotten organized, Penthesilea, Kodiak, the members of Handfasting party and the Sisters gathered for a late and hearty lunch and a chance to go over their ritual parts. This part of the handfasting rite normally occurred at night but since the most auspicious time for the ceremony had been determined to be at 2 in the morning when both the lesser and greater moons, showing their Dark Faces, were directly overhead, alterations had to be made!  Everyone present smiled when Penthesilea entered the dining room  and Kodiak saw her. It was evident that the Darklord and his Lady had missed each other. Custom demanded that Kodiak do no more than kiss his Lady’s hand but the intensity of his gaze as he did so and the very palpable energy that passed between them made everyone one aware of what was on their minds! When everyone was seated around the Temple’s dining table, Karika stood.

Text to be added. Rewrite in progress.

*The lull in activity that had prevailed since the noon meal ended with the sun’s setting. As darkness gathered and Thea, the lesser moon, rose into the sky followed by Sharra, the greater moon, the Castle and Cathedral began to stir. The Handfasting was scheduled for two in the morning and the principals were preparing themselves.
In her temporary suite, Penthesilea and her attendants were dressing. For the Handfasting itself, Penthesilea donned a simple gown of bright red silk that stopped a hand span above her knees. She had wanted to wear black but after a stern talking to from her grandmother, who happened to be the Goddess of  Marriage, the dress had been made up in red. She looked at her reception gown and smiled. It was black with a center panel of dark green and embroidered with silver, diamonds and emeralds.  Over the red gown, she donned her formal, ceremonial armor. Made in the Amazon style, it had been made to her measure, a painstaking process that involved many fittings to get the fit around her breasts correct!  It was silver over steel with black enameling detailing the scrollwork. Once that it had been fastened into place, she donned the dress forearm guards and once her sandals had been strapped on, the greaves that protected her shins. She strapped on her sword belt but left the scabbards for her knife and Hellion empty. She would take them up just before leaving the room, along with the spear and shield she would also carry. She regarded the pile of arms dubiously and knew why Amazon Queens seldom married.
     “Over here, my Lady.” The hairdresser from the Castle had arrived to dress her hair and Penthesilea took her seat. She was perfectly capable of arranging her hair in the simple style that had been selected but Aphrodite had insisted that Penthesilea submit to being pampered and so she had had the ritual bath with fragrant lotions massaged into her skin and now would have her hair arranged and her makeup applied by others while she sat patiently. She supposed that it was no worse than standing guard duty in a blizzard...
Penthesilea’s hair was brushed until it shone and gathered into a simple tail behind her left ear and draped over her left shoulder. When the woman was satisfied, Penthesilea’s aunt Aphrodite, in her guise as Lady Cynthea, undertook the application of her makeup. While this was going on, the rest of the women were getting ready. MoonCat and SpiritFire were attired like their mother, in formal Amazon armor. MoonCat’s undergown was sapphire blue while SpiritFire’s was purple. The rest of the female attendants wore short semi fitted tunics that reflected the bride’s ancestral heritage in the color of the Quarter she would call. Also present was Bladeraven’s little son, Grasshopper, who was busy practicing his Ring Bearer duties when he wasn’t being fussed over by the women. Finally, a Temple Sister came with the word. It was time. Penthesilea and the others took up their weapons and left the room. *

REMOVED FOR REWRITE

*Sir Michael had ordered that the Castle be “press free” for the arrival of Penthesilea and Kodiak after the Handfasting. The Castle’s staff photographers would be taking pictures which would be distributed to the press after the event.  Sir Michael was determined that the Keyholder’s handfasting would not turn into the sort of media circus that he has seen in other countries. Since Hypatia agreed with him, the Main Courtyard held only invited guests and staff when the aircar came to a stop and Kodiak assisted his Lady from it.*

Kodiak: Before we go in and become royalty, my dear, I have something to show you. *Penthesilea allowed herself to be led toward the Courtyard that separated the Ballroom/Pub wing from the Parking Garage. Kodiak got her in position and then stepped behind her to cover her eyes. She felt him nod and heard people moving then he uncovered her eyes. She gasped in surprise and wonder.

Penthesilea: Kodiak. They are so beautiful. *She spun and threw her arms around his neck delivering a passionate kiss in gratitude for the gift.*

Kodiak: (inspeaking) Keep THAT up, my dear, and we will NOT get to the reception! *Penthesilea giggled, knowing that it was the truth, and left his arms to examine her gift -- four beautiful black mares, the most perfect she had ever seen.* I’ve been looking for them since you were horse hunting in Black Harbour. *He said as he joined her.* It took a while to find them. I almost didn’t make the deadline. *Penthesilea allowed herself only a quick inspection of the mares. She would make their acquaintance more fully when there was time.*

Penthesilea: I suppose we should get the presentation over with. *She looked toward the crowd that was already starting to move toward the Great Hall.*

Kodiak: The sooner we do, the sooner we can be alone. *The promise of being alone with her love was enough to stiffen Penthesilea’s spine. Together, they headed for the Main Doors.*

*The reception turned out to be quite a pleasant party. Penthesilea and Kodiak danced the first dance and were joined by other couples. Penthesilea danced with many partners, some of them friends that she had not seen in years. Kodiak also danced a good deal. It had been impossible to exclude all of his former lovers from the guest list but the most stridently disappointed had been left off and Kodiak accepted the congratulations of the remaining disappointed ladies graciously.  As dawn approached, Kodiak knew that something was up. The ladies that had kept company with Penthesilea during their separation were gathering around her. A quick glance told him that his companions were gathering too. He knew what was up and Kodiak was having none of it! He wore Penthesilea’s Consort Band on his left hand but the onyx ring that had been her Yule gift rode on his right. With a thought, he disappeared from where he stood to a spot beside her. He reached out and encircled her waist, pulling her close. Penthesilea started to laugh. She knew what was coming as they disappeared.
Behind them in the Ballroom, the Lord Marshall laughingly announced that the happy couple had retired for the night and the party went on.... *

Our Story So Far.....

     Penthesilea, Clan Swordkin, Amazon mercenary and sorceress together with her friend, Bladeraven has lead an assorted group of refugees deep into unmapped territory fleeing the sack of the fortress town of Dunn’s Keep. Penthesilea has been summoned by her mother’s ancestral home -- the Keyholder’s Castle -- which has remained vacant since the death of Penthesilea’s uncle.  After establishing her claim to the title of “Lady Keyholder” and the power that came with it, Penthesilea and her people set about restoring the Castle and the nearby town both of which had fallen into ruin. Word of the Castle’s reclamation quickly spread once the new arrivals were noticed by the inhabitants of the nearby river town of Crow Haven. Soon new people began to arrive most notable among them the handsome, mysterious warrior, Darklord Kodiak who carried a dark secret. He was infected with the Living Vampire Virus or LV2 which while it endowed him with special abilities it also cursed him with the need for the blood and lifeforce of living beings.  His need was minimal compared to that of a True Vampire but it was enough to cause fear and hatred in those who learned his secret.
     The Lady Keyholder also had a secret. She is the daughter of Ares, the God of War and, along with her daughters, MoonCat and SpiritFire, is immortal. She was also cursed. Centuries ago, she accepted a gift from a desert goddess that was really a curse. No man could become her lover without first beating her in a fair fight and the goddess made her unbeatable. The gift was supposed to be temporary. Penthesilea needed the edge to liberate a village from a gang of bandits. Once the village was freed, Penthesilea went back to the goddess to return the gift. The goddess refused to take it and gloatingly explained that since Penthesilea had refused the advances of the goddess’s son a hundred years before she would have no lover at all unless he could defeat her in battle. Penthesilea quickly learned what befell any man that tried to ignore the condition -- death by spontaneous combustion. She also learned, rather unpleasantly, that True Vampires were exempt from the curse.  So it was after several centuries of enforced loneliness and heartbreaking lessons that Penthesilea finally caught a lurking Darklord at a Castle party, pulled him out of the shadows and then fell into his eyes.  She tried to convince herself that his friendship was enough as she struggled not to fall in love with him. She knew that if the Goddess of the Sand realized how much the Darklord’s life meant to Penthesilea, Kodiak’s life would be forfeit.  So she smiled fondly as she watched him flirt with many women before disappearing into the night with them and then tried not to listen to the tales of the Darklord’s amatory exploits that circulated through their little world.
     Minor wars soon diverted both the Keyholder and the Darklord as various groups of malcontents and bandits tried to seize the Castle or its lands. Realizing the danger, Kodiak called on his resources to raise an army to defend the Castle. In response, Penthesilea made him her Lord Marshall. The least she could do, she said, for someone willing to shed his blood for her. It was while the Darklord was away that the first vampire attack on the Keyholder was carried out. Fortunately, an old friend, Ashe, returned in time to intervene before she could be carried off. It was at this time that Kodiak was forced to reveal his condition to Penthesilea. She did not reject him and they grew closer. Shortly after this incident, Penthesilea’s half brother, Daemon FarWalker arrived at the Castle.
     It soon became apparent to Penthesilea that she was deeply in love with the Darklord. She was positive that he did not return her affection and regarded her only as a friend. She was frantic with the knowledge that if the Goddess of the Sand learned how much Penthesilea loved her Lord Marshall his life would be measured in minutes. Believing that Kodiak was in love with a young woman of the Castle, Penthesilea broke her vows as a Priestess of Aphrodite and cast a spell that pushed Kodiak into proposing to the young woman. Then after witnessing his proposal to the young woman, Penthesilea suffered through their first night as lovers. The Castle, whose semi sentient intelligence had summoned Penthesilea in the first place, linked her mind to both Kodiak’s and the young woman’s so that Penthesilea felt everything that the lovers experienced but without release.  By morning, she was exhausted and nearly broken.
     As punishment for breaking her vow never to interfere with the will of another, Penthesilea was sentenced to be the blood and sex slave of any vampire that wanted her. Alone in her tower, she prepared herself and then magickally teleported herself to a club owned by the Darklord. At the club, she submitted herself to a True Vampire who raped her, drained her blood and forced her to drink his. His intention was for her to become a vampire as well but Penthesilea as an immortal demigoddess could not die by bleeding out. Penthesilea intended to remain at the Club until she had recovered from the attack and then return home under her own power. Unfortunately, she was discovered and returned to the Castle while she still struggled to fight against turning into a demon possessed vampire.  In an attempt to aid her, the Darklord fed her his own blood. This backfired badly since it gave Penthesilea, who had lost control of her body to the invading demon, the strength to attack Kodiak and force him to drink her blood as well. After a harrowing ordeal, Penthesilea regained control of herself but it was too late.  Furious beyond words, Kodiak cursed her, saying that he wished for her to regret what she had done. A god heard him and for reasons of his own, granted Kodiak’s wish. Less than eighteen hours later, Penthesilea had been transformed into the lowest form of vampire -- one who fed on insects and vermin with no release from her hunger. For two days and three nights, Penthesilea ran through the wilderness, driven by her hunger and eluding all attempts to capture her. Finally captured and returned to the Castle, she underwent a descent into an Underworld in an attempt to purge the curse from her.  The descent worked and Penthesilea returned free of all curses, including the one that prevented her from declaring her love for Kodiak. Among her first acts after her return from the Underworld, Penthesilea broke the spell that she had put on Kodiak and all other spells on him as well.  Unfortunately, before she could make her feelings known to Kodiak, he left the Castle at the urging of his fiancé who convinced him that Penthesilea’s ordeal would make her look at him with revulsion. Kodiak took his army and rode away, intending to lose himself in battle against Penthesilea’s enemies, but found that he could not leave her. So he returned, settling into the Castle’s Pub to drink until he was drunk enough to end his own life because he had finally realized that he loved Penthesilea and that it was too late.  But before he reached that point, Penthesilea was alerted to his presence in the Pub and confronted him, stopped his attempt at suicide and knocked him cold. Penthesilea’s father, Ares, took the young man in hand and, after a period of intensive training, deemed him fit for his daughter.
     While Kodiak was getting straightened out, the Castle was invaded by nobles from five different city-states all of them intending to marry the Keyholder in order to get control of her lands. Penthesilea had to play courting games with them while dodging groping hands and assassination attempts. Finally, a few weeks before Yule, Kodiak returned and after helping foil another assassination attempt, declared his love for Penthesilea and asked her to marry him.  She accepted but refused to consummate the relationship then. Shortly thereafter, she discovered that Kodiak had not broken his previous engagement to the young woman and a furious argument ensued that ended with Penthesilea throwing her ring at Kodiak and teleporting him, naked, into a cold shower!  Unable to decide between the two women and knowing that he had to, Kodiak summoned his army which was commanded in his absence by his older brother, Cujon. They arrived on Yule and Kodiak appointed Cujon as his replacement as Lord Marshall. Then, harboring still another secret,  Kodiak went to tell his Lady of his resignation and that he was leaving the Castle. He told her of his decision and watched her trying not to cry and he knew which woman he wanted. He told her his secret, that he had somehow become immortal, and that he loved her. They became lovers that afternoon.
     After more harrowing adventures, the lovers were handfasted on the night of the Summer Solstice Dark Moon amid great rejoicing among their people and the foreign dignitaries that had gathered to celebrate their union and the founding of their new nation, Valcaria.