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Post by evander on Jan 6, 2021 20:13:48 GMT 1
Evander stood and observed his modest hall with pride. The walls were sparse, devoid of art or pageantry, just his collection of swords and armor adorned them and a large slightly ripped parchment containing the geography of Agonia as best the cartographers knew it. The humble mountain fort, fondly named "The shack" for its cozy demeanor was his new home. He owed it to the great Dwar Thebiggerone who built it's sturdy walls in record time that he had a new home of his own just mere months having returned to these lands.
Evander's dramatic return was met with warm response from the Order. Indeed old friends were quick to welcome another sword in these trying times, he also cast aside old rivalries with all parties acknowledging the greater good, mere survival. He had witnessed the destructive power of the dark ancients on this island, as well as the cursed Forsaken and the havoc they reached. It poisoned him and drove him close to his own demise and the even worse fate of madness. Indeed he had come close to turning on his former brothers and the thought he buried deep down, out of shame and fear.
More bad news had reached Evander's ears. Achilles and Grimsboro, his former companions and brothers. whom he'd happily sacrifice his own life for theirs, had turned to the Forsaken. Old grudges die hard and he now found himself in the position of facing off against old friends. "It's the only way" he grumbled to himself as he peered at the crumbled map mounted onto the wall. Multiple "X"s marked spots of battles, both past and ones yet to be fought.
A small retinue of poorly armored warriors, lacking the stature that Evander carried, slowly assembled into the hall. Evander turned to address the ragged brigade.
"Men, women, welcome. I am glad you have answered the call." Evander looked at their worried faces, some looked like they had not seen a real battle at all. Yet they were here and that was the first step to glory.
"Many of you know me as a war master, and a crusader." the men remained silent, intimidated to speak out of turn
"I will always be a crusader and a war master. However there is a more select purpose that demands my attention. Whether we like it or not Agonia is our home, and it is under threat. The evil that lurks on this island will devour us all unless we defeat it. I have seen it with my own eyes, many times." Evander prowled from side to side unnerving his small audience.
"The forsaken numbers swell, far beyond our own. Our battles grow more intense and more frequent and I fear we are losing this war. This is not a war for territory or for wealth, this is a war for the very survival of our race" Evander grabbed the hilt of one of his mounted swords, a fierce blade imbued with the power of fire itself, with one hand he pulled it from the wall observed it before casting his attention back
"I intend to die, a bloody violent death but not without slaying many more of our enemies" he lifted the sword into the air "I will die for The Order, this is prophecy and this is promise. Today I launch the grand inquisition. The path of an inquisitor leads to only one end, a glorious death, our destiny is to find our enemies and destroy them mercilessly. We will fight until our bodies give up. We will fight until we cleanse the Forsaken. Agonia belongs to the Order and we will kill and die to prove it. Now tell me, who is with me?" A modest cheer shocked Evander, this was a pretty good speech he thought. He shouted even louder his booming voice reverberating around the sparse hall "WHO IS WITH ME?" a slightly more enthusiastic cheer would have to satisfy his desire for a dramatic rally call.
"Very well brave warriors of the Inquistion, get out there and train, for our fight begins today and our destiny awaits." he nodded as the warriors left the hall, with a slightly more enthusiastic step than when they had entered. Evander's oratory needed some work but he felt he made his message clear. A slow clap came from the back of the hall, it was Groinky, the crafty nuruk he had befriended since returning to the Order.
"You've been practicing your speaking skills more than your sword skills lately" , Evander couldn't deny that.
"I assume word has reached about Grimsboro and Achilles?" the nuruk asked with an air of concern
Evander nodded his head in a bowed fashion that showed his deep concern
"Indeed, I feared this day would come"
"The war council is assembling, I've come to seek the attendance of the Inquisition"
Evander laughed "Then you've come to the right place, yes war it is, the way it always has been"
He pointed with his sword to some inscriptions on the wall
"I see you've added two names" Groinky said surprised "That was quick"
"The grudge of the inquisition, these inscriptions are our purpose, only when the names on this list are eliminated is our destiny met." Evander said in a much more serious tone.
"Yes Achilles and Grimsboro, they have joined the list of the damned, from here on they live on rented time, the Inquistion will find them, I will find them and I will destroy them." Evander said with a mixture of sadness and steely determination
"Very well, make your way when you're ready, but be quick, you always have trouble keeping up with me" laughed Groinky as he left the hall.
Evander nodded and looked back up at the Inquisitor Grudge list , every name on this list would be crossed off at some point and only when they were would he fulfill his self imposed destiny and be at peace. He now viewed his two former friends as just two more skulls to take. It was the only way.
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Post by evander on Feb 21, 2021 23:12:55 GMT 1
The hall doors of the craic shack flung open and Evander stumbled in. He flung his heavy platemail to the floor. Several inquisition recruits aided him and helped him to his seat, a large concrete slab, a monstrous parody of a throne.
"I'm fine, i'm fine...just fetch me some wine" Evander he gestured the help away, is face covered in bruises and caked blood.
A young mythos trainee returned with an ominous bottle of deep red liquid and passed it to Evander. He took a deep swig before blurting out the liquid all over the recruits. They winced, covered in a mixture of sticky red Kiith wine and perhaps blood.
Evander coughed, "Sorry..ahem...make note that we must request more Wine from Askytos, surely Barkeep has better quality than this Kiith piss" one trainee nodded and went to grab the wine from his hand
Evander furled his brow and took a defiant swig "Leave me" he bellowed before hushing his tone "leave me friends, I just need to rest for a moment". He gave a slight smile and nodded and the 8 recruits departed the hall. Evander leaned back and looked towards the sprawling grudge list etched into the stone wall. His eyes were drawn towards names on the left Butcher, Johtul and back towards the top Tiana, Grimsboro. It had been a busy few weeks. For his whole life he had only known war, any gaps no matter how brief always felt strange even his time up north with the Free folk, it was always war. He would cross those names from the rugged stone once he had the strength. There were more, plenty more and in this world even the defeated warriors always come back, stronger, angrier and determined to kill. It was endless.
He took another small sip of the wine and coughed but not as violently. His wounds were dire but he would live. He rubbed his head and felt a slight dent no doubt this would be permanent, the fight at Winterhaven was ruthless and the injuries Evander sustained felt critical. Deep down, a part of him wished they were.
The doors swung open and one of the recruits rushed in "Lord of iron, we have trouble" , "Again?" Evander muttered, "Word of invaders on the Iron mine, the War Masters have sent word". Evander stood up and nodded "Make ready then, I will be with you in a moment." He sighed and placed the wine on a creaky wooden tabled, which was carved for it's functionality not its style. His eyes were drawn to the wall opposite the gurdge list, upon which his collection of great swords were mounted. Some glittered with runes, others were plain but had fierce edges and showcased some of the finest craftsmanship in Agonia. Such a beautiful weapon has no place on a wall. In the corner of his eye he spotted a young mythos he had not yet met "You, recruit, come here!" he barked at the timid figure who felt he was out of eyeshot. The recruit timidly walked over to him "Yes War Master?" , "Please relax, what's your name?" , "Helios - lord, after the Sun Ancient" , Evander laughed "I haven't heard of the Sun god for sometime...so another mythos?" , the recruit nodded his head "Yes lord, er Evander, but I was born here, my father was Anatolis" Evander gave him a fierce look "Anatolis? I fought with him, he was a good man" Helios nodded his head "Yes, from my few memories...he always spoke highly of you, it was why I joined the inquisition" , "Anatolis died by my side, defending the central spine pass...that was...some years ago now" Evander said with some sadness in his voice, Helios nodded.
Evander had never dwelt upon his age, not until this moment. There was an uneasy silence between the two, with Helios stood attentive. Evander snapped out of his haze for the recruits sake.
"You look like him, you know...he was a good man, strong, fierce with a spear and quick too"
"I hope I can fight alongside you, just as he did"
"That's brave..." Evander was struck by the young recruit who was so willing to follow in his fathers footsteps, as the memories continued to flood, he remembered just how bloody an end poor Anatolis met.
"If I can be of assistance war master?" Helios said to break the awkward silence created by Evander's daydreaming
"The sword" He pointed to the wall of swords "That one..." the trajectory of his finger led to a mighty giant sword, imbued with lightening runes claimed from the corpse of a dragon itself
Young Helios struggled to bring the sword off it's mount, owing to it's weight but eventually he presented it to Evander who gripped the hilt and lifted it with one hand.
"I'm feeling better already Helios, now go and make the preparations with the others, I will be out in a moment." Helios smiled and bowed his head and ran out of the great hall.
Evander waited until he was out of sight before muting a large groan and falling to the floor, the echo of the heavy blade causing a hypnotic reverberation bouncing across the four sparse cold concrete walls. He certainly was not feeling better but duty was calling. He crawled to his feet and placed the sword on the wooden table. Opting for a lighter, more nimble battle sword lightly placed up against a wall. He looked at his heavy platemail and knew he lacked the strength to carry it, he would take a lighter armor that the recruits usually wore.
Evander and 8 of the recruits set out towards the Iron mine. It wasn't a long journey but crossing the mine itself could take days, in recent times locals jested that Evander had become "Lord Of Iron" due to the frequent battles he had fought here. The wealth the mine produced was also critical for the order war effort therefore it was often a point of conflict. Upon approaching the bridge he was greeted by two Kiiths, Ariaelle and Dihajh, long time friends and some of the Order's finest warriors.
"Lord of Iron, you arise" Dihajh laughed
"We thought you got lost returning from Winterhaven" Ariaelle smiled
"Just took a slight detour, that's all" Evander smiled, masking wince and a sharp pain in his gut from one of his many wounds
"Forsaken scouts are on the Iron Mine again, we caught one but the other has retreated to the highest pass, I don't think we will catch him" Dihajh reported
"Nuruk?" Evander inquired
Both the Kiilths nodded somberly
"Damn, we will never catch him over stone...or any terrain for that matter" Evander cursed
"We will head back to the Eye, the is talk of a Tytanomyrmama roasting fest and we don't want to miss it. Do you wish to join?" Ariaelle smiled making Evander wince noticeably this time, he would never understand the Kiith people.
"Wait..." an idea struck him, at the very least this would be a polite excuse to avoid eating Kiith delicacies
"There is a pass...around the central Miragaia waste, I could make it"
"Then you'll be on their side of the mountain?" Dihajh quered looking at Ariaelle, the Kiith's were perceptive but it didn't take supernatural perception to see Evander was in no shape to undertake a round trip on Double Iron mountain.
"Yes...but if you can wait here, just for the evening and keep his attention, I can sneak up on him" Evander nodded in an attempt to convince himself as much as his comrades
"He is only a scout? Surely it is not a priority?" Ariaelle questioned, her concern split between Evander and the prospect of roasted insekts
"Every intrusion on this mine is an intrusion on our people, no scouts, never" Evander turned dark and his voice gritty. He cleared his throat and spat out a ball of phlegm and blood, "Can you hold the mountain for just one night". Dihajh nodded.
Evander took his men aside," I need you to defend the bridge, the kiiths will position on the mountain but you must hold this bridge..."
"Lord, I can accompany you?" One of the veteran inquisitors spoke up but Evander immediately shot him down
"No, it is more dangerous to move in a group here, hold the bridge and I will return by nightfall" he looked at each of his men in the eye, taking extra time with Helios and giving him a reassuring nod. "Make the ancients proud boys, I will see you in the morning". He turned and left quickly. Truth be told, he could have used the help but he knew the risks and he didn't want to be responsible for the deaths of those who looked up to him. Their admiration was uncomfortable enough.
Evander dashed as quick as he could across the plains and as night descended he reach the deep Miragaia wastelands that were death of too many of his people. His body was fit and active again, thanks to a concoction of potions provided by Ariaelle, they would keep him in fighting shape for the night, but the pain tomorrow would be fivefold. He had to quick, quiet and conscious of the many scouts who plagued this region. As he crept along the edges of the waste where it met the mountain he eventually found the pass he was looking for. A small rocky pass, difficult to climb and hostile to any who dared. He placed his sword on his back and begin scaling the jagged rock.
The climb was short but painful, his hands were cut but he had made good time. Across the far distance he could see the subtle embers of a flame the Nuruk had lit for himself, confident that no one could reach him and content to sit and observe for the night. Evander had other plans. He carefully traversed the shortest route to his prey, but it also proved the most perilous as he was harassed by the horrific Mythunga birds that inhabited the mountain. Eventually he was in strike distance and strike he did.
He darted out and caught the nuruk completely off-guard. Armed in nothing but leather armor and a small cheap blade he was no match for Evander who slashed through him with fury and purpose. As the body dropped silence ensued. It was too dark for even a kiith to make out his figure at this distance, no way of letting his allies know he was successful. Evander looked over the mountain to the east , yet again he found himself behind the enemy line.
He was cold and deathly tired, he waited as long as he could before drinking the last of his kiith potions. It renewed his strength and now that the daylight was rising, it was time to trek back across the mountain. The scouts would be around the central area which he came, he had to go over rock and he had to go fast, he could see from his vantage point distant forsaken activity to the eas. The beatings of war drummed just as loud on their side of Agonia as they did on the Order's.
He carefully scaled, jumped and climbed over different arrays of rocks, he knew this mountain like the back of his hand and he knew the convenient ways to get over it. If he could get to the riverside there was a low cavernous tunnel he could escape through, which led right to the spot Ariaelle and Dihajh were tasked with holding. As he reached the low lands something didn't feel right, was it a creature? A mythunga? He feared nothing on this mountain but it didn't feel like a common monster or animal, there was some other disturbance. Before he realised a huge thud on his head coincided with a splash of water he stumbled back and instantly he knew what faced him, a lightfoot. The fierce creature moved at a speed Evander had rarely seen, he slashed aimlessly as the lightfoot darted in and out battering him with a hammer. As Evander took a second blow to the head which knocked him on his back he finally recognized the lightfoot.
It was Antidievs, they had fought before in the battle of the bridge, the Order's great and most successful crusade. On that day in the thick of war Evander bested the lightfoot, but that was the past and this was the present, and in this present Evander was about to meet his end. He rolled over and the lightfoot's hammer crushed the rock below into dust. Evander steadied himself and successfully lunged with his blade into the lightfoots gut, they were hard to hit even for a skilled swordsman. Antidievs took little notice of the wound and propelled himself off the mountaino wall forcefully into Evander who grabbed him and flung the lightfoot, and himself over into hard rocks on the next level of the mountain. The damage to Evander was more significant. The seperated as they rolled down and Evander managed to frantically scramble and retrieve his sword, he landed another slash which grazed the lightfoots cheek but did little to stop him. A furious blow to Evander's chest sent him to the ground and he was defeated. Antidievs stood over him to deliver what would be the final blow. In that moment Evander felt a strange peace, an end to war. He awaited the inevitable, but death never came. He heard noise and the rushing of more warriors. He closed his eyes and listened to the fury of battle.
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Blurry vision, greeted him, days later. He awoke in chambers that looked familiar but he couldn't place. What had happened he couldn't quite place either. It hurt. Everything hurt. He could feel his swollen face, and while his vision was blurry that was only in his left eye, his right eye he couldn't open due to the swelling. After a few moments some form of clarity returned. He was at the Eye, in his old chambers. He hadn't been here much recently. Not since the split which took him, Achilles and Grimsboro north, had he ever stayed a long period here. Technically he was still a war master but his past and his shame made it difficult for him to carry out the deeds worthy of that title. Thereby he started the inquisition. He tried to crawl out of the bed but he couldn't and was resigned to lying prone and lifeless save for a few muted and periodical breaths through bruised lungs.
More and more came back to him as he sat in silence for what felt like an eternity. He continued to drift in and out of consciousness, his mind spiraling to all forms of darkness while his body lay still. Sweat poured as horrific visions of war and death flooded from the past, he saw Anatolis die on the spine, he saw himself fall against Mutuwa, he saw Corax's frozen dead body, he saw himself lose a dual to Kran, the bodies of the crusaders he fought and died with littered around the central spine mountain. He saw his second lose to Kran vividly. His mind raced towards the Eye in flames after the Forsaken overwhelmed them and towards the battle of the bridge and the deathly spectacle Evander helped create. His whole life really played out and as the concept of time in this moment was lost on him, it felt as if he was reliving every moment. Suddenly a flash of peace, an oasis in his sea of madness, it was Massalar. She spoke to him like an angel. His mind transported him to the quiet river up north where they sat that first night. She spoke to him now, as if she never perished at all. She knew of all his pain and all of his fear. Yet she stayed and they talked and looked at eachother. It was enough. He wanted to be consumed by this moment. To remain in her presence forever. But this memory was short and the walls of reality began to set in as the atmosphere around him melted away into darkness. That was all there was, darkness yet he continued to hear Massalar's faint voice:
"You burn bright Evander, that is your legacy, that is your purpose, burn bright and become the light"
"Burn bright and become the light..."
"AGH" Evander let out a huge scream as a horrific face stood above him. This was not a nightmare, no, this was his friend, War Master Rangar.
"You survive, you said something about the light, eh?" The huge giant crammed himself on top of a large table which served as an undersized chair for his gargantuan frame.
"Just a dream" Evander croaked still lying prone on his back and speaking to the ceiling
"You have Dihajh and Ariaelle to thank, saved you there" he jested
"Saved by kiith, if there was a fate worse than death..." Evander tried to laugh but his weak organs prevented it
"Umm, the healer says you'll recover, week or two maybe" Rangar stood up and placed his huge hand on Evander's should in a sign of support
"I can't tell you how much pain I am in right now" Evander managed to mutter out of his declining voice
"War inflicts wounds on the body, on the mind, on the soul..." as Rangar began his monologue Evander mustered the strength to finish his sentence
"Your hand" he squeaked and gasped as the giant lifted his huge fist
"Oh, sorry, I forgot how fragile you lot are...I'll leave you to it" He said walking towards the door frame and ducking to fit under it
"Oh and by the way, the war council meets in two weeks, have a think about what you want to do"
Evander couldn't responded verbally but managed to creak his head back and forth in a sign of acceptance.
As the thundering footsteps trod down the hallway his mind etched back towards his dreams, think about what you want to do, he wasn't exactly what he wanted to do, or what he even could once or if he ever healed. Right now, he just wanted to sleep and return to exploring his dreams. He felt a strong sense that all would be revealed to him there.
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