Private Tales Deposing the Warlord Gromagg Ur

[Madame Valkery]

Valkery didn't have time to think, her heart pounding in her ears as adrenaline rushed her system. There was an opening. With a burst of speed she drew the long silver hat pin from her hat and leapt up onto the monsters back, her hat flying off and her sword arm wrapping around his neck as her long silver pin plunging deep into his silver eye. Gromagg roared dropping his axe. Valkery withdrew the silver needle with a spatter of blood. The monster reached over his shoulder and grabbed her, flinging her over his shoulder slamming her back first into the ground in front of Trajan. There was a crack in her ribs as she made contact with the ground, Valkeries vision flashed white, her senses blinded, and she gasped as the breath was forced out of her.

She looked up dazed gasping for air, Gromagg stood over her one hand over his absent eye, blood streaming down his face. Her blade had gone in deep, he was loosing a lot of blood. She saw his fist coming down towards her scull. She gasped as aura filled her lungs with air again and she rolled out of the way. She drove the silver pin into his hand. He let out another roar and went down on one knee.

Valkery sensed more then saw the remaining sword bears as they struck at him in the back. Spears piercing him from the front as collectively they drove him down and he succumbed to his blood loss.

Valkery sat up breathing heavily, a sharp pain piercing her chest with every breath. She looked up at Trajan her senses wavering in and out. Why was he looking at her like that? Oh, her hat, her ears... She tried to stand, why did her head hurt? She collapsed. Her hand reached up to touch the back of her head. She held her hand in front of her face, staring at the red stain in confusion for a moment before her vision went black.

 

[Trajan Meng]

Valkery did it. Trajan knew he could trust her.

The demon orc's all-seeing eye had been gouged out, and what a grievous wound it was. But there was no time yet for any early celebration. Just as soon as Valkery had delivered her decisive strike, Gromagg had taken hold of her and slammed her flat on the ground in front of Trajan to a degree sickening enough for him to feel a pale shadow of the impact.

Trajan tossed away the battleaxe discarded by the Warlord. Saw that the xeno then was reaching down for Valkery spun his warhammer around into a blow that cracked into the orc's elbow. Yet Valkery had already rolled clear of the Warlord's grasp, and drove her unorthodox weapon ever further into the massive orc's skull.

The culmination of the battle came then, when--after Trajan and Valkery's efforts--the Luminari warriors armed with their swords and their spears plunged steel, steel, and ever more steel into the hulking mass of the xeno, soaking their weapons in the foul blood of the beast. And it was through the combined effort of all that the Warlord, Gromagg Ur, drew his last corrupted breath upon Arethil and slumped to the ground.

Trajan's Iron Skin faded, and he let out a firm exhale. Examined his gathered men and women, his believers, they who fought for the cause of a united humanity.

"For Raddica," he said. "For our fallen brother, Tobias. For all the faithful who have perished with him."

Trajan's eyes scanned over those who still stood in the gathering circle before the Warlord's hut.

"For Mankind!"

And the cheer went up. The grief and the mourning would come next, yes, and such sorrows would be borne with all due reverence for they who shined the brightest this day, they who sacrificed everything for a dream they did not live to see realized, they who gave of their blood in the hope that it would, one day, be true. But for now, as it was surely the want of those who undoubtedly watched from beyond the mortal coil, this short celebration and proud basking in what had been accomplished this day was allowed.

Here is where Trajan turned to regard Valkery. She was alive, as he had expected. Injured severely, as he had expected. Yet his gaze reported something that he did not expect.

She had sat up. Breathing heavily, there on the ground and without her hat. Trajan looked at her for a moment, and she looked back. She tried to stand. Failed. Collapsed. Lay on her back and touched the back of her head and regarded for a second the blood that stained her hand before the hand fell in a limp manner down onto her chest.

Trajan glanced to a few of his men--they who had seen as well. The majority of the others were preoccupied, cheering and embracing one another and making a vigorous clatter by banging their weapons against the rims of their shields. Many others still were systematically searching the camp, having not engaged Gromagg at all but rather concerned themselves with the utmost important task of freeing the human captives.

Those few men who saw glanced at each other. Glanced back at Trajan. Their faces, their expressions, betrayed nothing. Neither did Trajan's.

He stepped beside the fallen Valkery. Allowed his warhammer to slide down in the grip of his right hand until the head of the weapon touched the dirt. Hand on the bottom of the weapon's shaft, Trajan slowly crouched down. Eyes at the bottom of their sockets, gazing at her from over his nose.

Trajan said nothing.

Then: "Madame Valkery. Can you hear me?"

 

[Madame Valkery]

Valkery herd her name distant and muffled, her eyes fluttering open light flooding the darkness, Trajan's face. His cold gaze. Then she remembered. She sat bolt up right and gasped at the sharp pain in her chest. She glanced around. So it seemed as if she had only been out for a couple of seconds. Her aura was low and she had already drained most of the aura from the environment during the fight. She would have to heal herself the traditional way.

She didn't look Trajan in the eye's instead she reached into the medical pouch at her side and pulled out a cloth pressing it against the back of her head where she felt the most pain. She glanced at Trajan, the eyes that had looked at her with shining admiration were now stone hard and unreadable. It reminded her of the look her superior had given her when she fought as a weapon in their war so long ago.

Valkery's usual aloofness was replaced with a heavy exhaustion behind her tired eyes. Pain filling her body with a dull aching. "I won your war for you. Now what?" She said echoing the words she had spoken all those years ago. She was not bragging. More so surrendering her portion of the victory to him, as if she never had a right to claim it in the first place, her words holding a weighty resignation to them.

 

[Trajan Meng]

He watched her sit up. Watched as she pulled the cloth from her pouch and saw to her wound. Only his eyes tracking her movement. Said nothing as she did so. The celebration continued on around them, save for the noted exceptions of those few who had seen and who themselves were watching their leader and Valkery. Watching to see how the man they had put their unwavering faith in would resolve this matter.

I won your war for you. Now what?

Trajan pushed off against his knee and stood. Still, he held his warhammer by the bottom end of the shaft, head of the weapon in the dirt, akin to how a man might hold a cane.

He said simply to Valkery, "Stand."

 

[Madame Valkery]

Valkery felt a sharp pain as her chest tightened and her heart rate increased. Was he going to kill her? She was to weak and drained to read any murderous intent in his aura. He hadn't killed the xeno slaves or the surrendered orcs, but in his eyes they had not betrayed his trust. If he was going to kill her she knew there was no way she could defend herself in the state she was in. She pushed herself up onto one knee and glanced around for something to use as a cane but she doubted she would be able to put her weight on her left arm with the pain it was in and her right arm was holding the rag to her head.

She stood carefully, she felt a weakness in her knees and a trembling in her limbs, it was all she could do to stand up straight and look Trajan in the eyes. She knew he wasn't going to listen to excuses or explanations. It didn't mater what she said anymore, it would always be tainted by her fathers elvin blood. But she had to say something.

"I suppose I owe you an explanation." She said, her voice low so it did not carry. "I am a weapon, born from the trespass of an elvin man and the pain of a human mother. I share no love for my other side. If I were to meet my father today I would feel obligated to kill him for his sins." Tears pricked at her eyes, drawn froth by a combination of pain and old memories. "When we first met you saw my humanity. Please, chose to see past my fathers sin."

 

[Trajan Meng]

When we first met you saw my humanity.

"I still do," Trajan said. His tone firm with conviction. "I witnessed it during the Pandemonium Crisis, and I have witnessed it this day as well. Madame Valkery, I humbly aspire to match your example."

And with that, he placed a hand on Valkery's shoulder. Not with a firm clap--aware of her sustained injuries--but not with a meek softness either. A grip of camaraderie, from one warrior to another. And, despite the initial turmoil that had wracked his mind at the unexpected reveal, his eyes now conveyed a warm acceptance.

"Valkery, you are my sister, and we are kin."

Others, those who had been celebrating the righteous slaying of the brutal Warlord Gromagg Ur, began to notice. Gradually more and more watched on, as had those who had first seen Valkery, and Trajan's first moments of reaction. She had not the fully-distinctive features of an elf, Valkery, but she was a half-human. And there were some gathered who believed in leniency for those born of a human and a xeno, for it was not the fault of the child.

But others, from more radical cells in the Luminari, did not. And while they remained quiet now, Trajan did not know that this would cause him a great deal of trouble in the road ahead.

That this would shake the Luminari to its very core.

 

[Madame Valkery]

Relief washed over Valkery as she looked up at Trajan and saw warmth in his eyes, "Thank you," she muttered as what little strength she had left drained out of her and she leaned into Trajan to keep from falling. "I should sit... Do you know how to stitch a wound?" She breathed. It was all she could do to keep from blacking out, her senses were empty and her breathing was tight, a sharp pain marking every breath. Her heart beat swelled, pounding in her ears. She could sense her own aura pulsing with the rhythm of her heart, growing, swelling till she became aware of her surroundings again. She was sitting down again with Trajan beside her. She wasn't sure if she had collapsed or if he had helped her sit down somewhere. Her vision stabilized and though it still pained her she felt better able to breath.

Valkery reached into her medical pouch and handed Trajan a needle and thread along with a small bottle of alcohol. Removing the cloth from the back of her head it came away soaked in blood. She knew that even though it was a lot of blood it was probably a rather small gash. She gingerly removed the two hair pins holding what was left of her bun in place, her white hair falling matted and red about her shoulders.

"I suppose you are wondering why I tracked you all this way in the first place" She said turning so that Trajan could see the back of her head. "I found out some vital information about the cult."

 

[Trajan Meng]

She had been hurt badly, but it was only appropriate to have her stand to receive his endorsement. Such an occasion deserved the utmost dignity and formality; this especially so with the other Luminari believers gathered about and looking on. He needed to set an example of judgment, of the right way. Those of the Luminari were not afraid to kill, but they were not slaughterers; a united humanity did not mean the purging of every xeno from the face of Arethil.

(Yet there were those in the Luminari who did believe this. Some among their number watching Trajan now, with disguised disgust, as the half-human xeno leaned into him. He had gone soft. Allowing himself to be swayed by this.)

"Yes. I can stitch a wound," Trajan said. This skill harkening back to his time in the Anirian Guard.

He assisted Valkery in sitting down on the ground, crouching beside her. To his gathered believers, they who had survived the encounter with the Warlord, he said, "Go, and liberate the human captives from their bonds and see to their safe passage across the river to Khadija. We will depart soon."

And his faithful (even those of a souring opinion toward him) obeyed, setting out to scour the camp. Among those captives liberated would be Tobias's brother Jeremiah. And Trajan would have to be the one to deliver the tragic news to him. These were the burdens which weighed heaviest upon him, the informing of a fallen believer's surviving family members. The looking in the eye and the telling that their loved one had perished.

He let this apprehension fade from mind for now. Focused instead on the present task of carefully stitching shut Valkery's wound, there at the center of red core staining her white hair. It was a shame that Aiofe, the Luminari's recently recruited healer, was not available for this operari.

"Indeed, I surmised that this was the matter on your mind," Trajan said, working the needle as delicately yet effectively as he could. "And I have not forgotten my promise. What news have you, Valkery?"

Madame Valkery

 

[Madame Valkery]

Valkery tightened her jaw as she felt the needle working on the back of her head. When he had finished stitching she took a breath, relaxing as she handed him a roll of bandages to help wrap up the wound.

"I had an encounter with the cult in Alliria. Eleanor came back to her parents house with another woman from the cult who called herself Eleanor's teacher. Though from what I could tell she was probably a priestess. I was able to get my hands on one of their sacred books for a short time. It explained many aspects of the workings of the cult, their structure, and the many items of power they use. I was able to read through most of it before losing it again. Eleanor has become quite powerful, the corruption runs deep, though I could tell she didn't want to kill me."

When the bandage was securely tied around her head she turned to face Trajan. "The most useful piece of information I found from the book was that the books themselves serve as a vessel for the priestesses power and if a priestess was to be separated from their book they would not only be helpless but they would be in constant agony till it was returned to them."

 

[Trajan Meng]

Trajan took the roll of bandages. Smoothed out Valkery's hair as best he could, in an effort to prevent as much snarling and matting as readily possible. And he wrapped the wound as she explained, running the bandage around her temples and across her forehead a few times.

(And Trajan was being watched. Brief little glances from those who would come to be counted among the number of the Luminari Purists, these glances as they crossed by the gathering circle and went about their business of scouring the camp for human captives. It was an affront that Trajan would aid that pointed-eared xeno. This, before even lifting a finger himself to help secure the humans still being held by the orcs around the camp.)

Trajan regarded Valkery as she turned around, seated to face him. These books seemed to be the key, then. From Valkery's discovery, it would cause Eleanor a great deal of pain to be separated from the book she was bound to, but it was pain that was to be necessarily endured. For the salvation of her soul, it must be.

"It is good to hear that Eleanor yet clings to her humanity, even in the throes of this foul corruption. Through the strength of her faith she spared your life, and this is promising indeed. Evidence that there is still an Eleanor to be saved yet from these loathsome cultists."

A thought.

"Did Eleanor herself have such a baleful book bound to her, or was it only this 'teacher?'"

Perhaps the matter could be made much easier if it indeed was Eleanor. That aforementioned pain necessarily endured rendering her helpless, yet able to potentially receive the help her human spirit doubtless clamored for. If it was solely this teacher, this priestess, who had the book, then such a weakness could still be leveraged to remove the fiend from the equation; Eleanor herself would prove difficult to subdue in this case, but perhaps Valkery had likewise learned of another weakness to exploit in so reading the book she had secured.

Madame Valkery

 

[Madame Valkery]

Valkery nodded. "We should start heading back to camp," Valkery said. She glanced around her eye's falling on her hat and the bloodstained silver pin that she had dropped in the fight. She got up gingerly and picked her way around the corps of the corrupted orc. She picked up the pin and cleaned it off with a rag and tucking it like a dagger in her belt. She also picked up her hat and put it back on to hid her ears again, her loose hair still falling about her shoulders. Once she had done this she turned back to Trajan. "Might I lean on your arm?" She asked raising her brows and smiling.

Once he acknowledged her she took his arm, if it wasn't for the fact that she was using his arm to partially support her weight they might have looked more like a couple taking an evening stroll, not two injured soldiers returning from war.

"Now back to the subject of the cult," Valkery said as they started back through the camp. "Eleanor did have a book, though hers felt much more powerful than the one I was able to get. I will also warn you that even I had trouble touching the book I had without it trying to consume me. I was able to keep it at bay for a while but the void was so cold it burned my entire left arm, I almost lost some of my fingers. If you or any of your followers were to touch her book directly you would most likely be consumed. Thick leather gloves might be enough to survive very short periods of exposure but I can't guarantee it. Though the book seems to be able to be damaged like any other book. I was able to rip out some of the pages. I will continue to run tests on them to see if there is a safer way to handle them and I will let you know my findings." She explained.

 

[Trajan Meng]

Trajan likewise nodded when Valkery said that they should start heading back. As she started to collect her items, Trajan hefted his warhammer up and laid it to rest against his shoulder. A glance spared to the corpse of the demonic xeno. Hmph. Such was the price--and as well the fate--of fiends such as that. It was as if his natural orcish bloodlust was not enough, that he should beseech the creatures lurking in the Pandemonium mists for more. But through the strength of belief, his and Valkery's and especially those who gave their lives for the fulfillment of this endeavor, the Warlord had been felled and this small part of Arethil in this fleeting moment was--for a time--put right.

Might I lean on your arm?, she asked.

"You may," Trajan said, with a small forward offering of it for punctuation. Having before asked of her to stand under her own power while so injured, it was the least he could do now.

And they started walking back through the camp. Brief thoughts of Valynthe crossed his mind as they did, of how she would on occasion lean on his arm very much as Valkery did at present. These were thoughts of a time far bygone. A time when he was a much younger man--a boy, truly, for he had not even served in the Anirian Guard yet--with younger ideas about the world. A time he himself had put to rest. As he did now, by banishing said thoughts back into the closed tome of the past.

(Those who watched with stolen glances and from the sides of their eyes could hardly believe what they were seeing. If what they had witnessed before was an affront, this was an outrage. And this caused a solidification of the idea that Trajan was unfit to lead the Luminari, to lead the Cause for a United Humanity. For he was weak. And thus, future conspirings were being plotted independently in the minds of the soon-to-be Purists.)

Valkery elaborated on the baleful nature of the books used by the cult. It explained the hints of bandages about her hand, the slight peeking of them above the high collar of her blouse on her neck; nearly lost in the cold's grasp.

As they approached the periphery of the camp--those orcish geomancers still lying where they had been earlier slain--Trajan said, "Very well. And I should pray that you devise some method or discover some weakness by which the books could be handled safely. If not, then if seizure of the book is a pivotal part of our finalized plan it would seem the task would by necessity fall to you, Valkery."

Trajan looked forward as they walked. Human captives were already being escorted across the wide river and to Khadija's detachment on the other side. Fortunately, none of the surrendered xenos had gathered enough bravery or foolishness to attempt an insurrection.

"But I have a number of willing believers who have pledged to aid us in this endeavor, and I have seen to it that they are equipped and trained to fight against foes inclined toward magic. If you must carry the book and be made vulnerable in so doing, I and my faithful shall have you guarded. Rest assured."

Madame Valkery