Private Tales For Mankind

[Trajan Meng]

The harbor of Elbion.

A place of ceaseless busyness. Massive in scale and second only to Alliria. The stream of boats and ships arriving from the world over and departing back out into the same. Legions of dockworkers laboring by sun and by lantern. Sailors and captains and fishermen and harbormasters and guild liaisons and guards and travelers and merchants and adventurers all in constantly shifting ratios making way across the docks and the piers and the solid stone, heading to and from the ships and to and from the harbor warehouses and Elbion proper.

An enormous undertaking. And, yes, such an environment gave cover to smuggling and other illicit activity. Even such things that were not technically against the law of Elbion. Coin could be leveraged to make overworked and unscrupulous harbormasters turn a blind eye, and in this way the Luminari had so purchased some warehouse space that afforded them a place to import supplies for use in Elbion and export spoils and personnel back to Vel Anir.

Their boat approached and docked at one of the smaller piers, mostly the personal or family owned crafts of fishermen and the like. Trajan stepped out of the boat, watching as the mercenaries disembarked. During the voyage back to Elbion, he had Dio send another bird ahead to inform Khadija of his intentions and to have Claire prepare the rest of the mercenaries' pay.

They'd be waiting in the appropriate warehouse, the very same they had used as a staging area earlier for the journey up to the red mists. The day was waning and the busyness of the Elbion harbor at large was slowing. Though it never completely stopped, the harbormaster of the warehouse would 'generously' send his dockworkers out on break on Trajan's prompting, affording him some measure of temporary privacy inside.

Trajan looked to Valkery and said, "I've some business to attend to here at the harbor. You are welcome to join me, if you so wish. If not, I will meet with you at a place of your choosing. In either case, I suspect that it will not take much time."

 

[Madame Valkery]

"I will accompany you, I have no other arrangements as of now." She said with a stalwart nod. It would be good to see how he conducted his business. It might also be helpful for her to meet some of his comrades. Not only to understand their skill sets and demeanors but to understand their values. She had gained Trajan's trust and admiration but the rest of them knew nothing about her. There was bound to be some distrust at first, and rightfully so. Her only concern was that with many eyes watching her it would be more difficult to keep her racial heritage a secret. She would just have to deal with these problems as they arose.

"Lead, the way," she said gesturing with a graceful wave of her arm at the city in front of them.

 

[Trajan Meng]

"Very well."

Then Trajan stepped forward along the pier and said, "Men. Follow me. For the remainder of your pay."

* * * * *​

Inside the warehouse. Walkways and sectioned storage areas more or less bracketed by the wood and carved stone support pillars. Some sections moreso stocked with crates and barrels and canvas sacks than others. Outside light trickling in at an angle through glass-less windows.

The last few dockworkers leaving past Trajan and Valkery and the mercenaries. Off on a generous break. No guild liaisons or merchants present. Good.

Trajan could see Khadija, down in the Luminari's small section of warehouse space. Most times it leaned toward empty, some things present merely for show. Materiel moved quickly, sent to the Meng estate in Vel Anir or dispersed among Luminari loyalists in the Elbion area. But now, oddly, there was a whole carriage stored in their section. As Trajan and the mercenaries entered the section and stood before the carriage and Kha leaning against the door of it, he decided not to ask her about it.

Kha grinned and opened the door of the carriage and with a grunt took out a small chest of Elbion coin and brought it to the man with the long beard and Norden-styled hair. The other mercenaries peered as he set the chest down on the floor and opened it and all of them smiled and grinned as though a second victory had been won.

Trajan stepped out in front of the gathering of mercenaries and said, "Spare me but a moment of your time, men. I would have a word with you all."

The Norden man looked to his fellows and they all nodded and said in turn, "Aye."

A brief pause as Trajan looked them over. "You've done well for yourselves. Displayed exemplary valor, to a man. Here you have before you the spoils of your daring. Your courage. And these coins..."

He reached down and grabbed a handful of them and held them up for the mercenaries to observe and then let them slip from his hand and through his fingers and back down into the small chest. "These coins have worth to each and every one of you not for the fact that they are currency, no. They have worth because you earned them. Things that are simply given have. No. Value. Perhaps you doubt my words, but search your hearts. Do so with honesty. Your spirits are fulfilled, are they not? For you all have triumphed this day, each of you voluntarily becoming part of something greater than any single one of us. Imagine what terrible languishing those fearful men who had not come suffer now, having so let this achievement slip from their hands. Yes, you sought coin, but in the seeking you have found something of transcendental worth, so luminescent and brilliant is it that it graduates these very same coins from simple and base metal into a manifestation of your satiated spirit. For what is earned lives forever within you, and no misfortune may rob you of it."

Trajan scanned the half-circle of collected men again. A throaty hmph and a smile. And he said, "I dare say that you crave more. That your daring and your valor yearns on. You had but a small taste of duty and service to your fellow man and woman, and such a taste has left you starving. Yes. Duty. And service. For you are not the louts and the layabouts who fancy themselves fighting men yet turned their backs and sheathed their swords when the hour grew dark and dire. No, you, each and every one of you, stand taller than them. You have the privilege to call yourselves true men, while they are mere boys who seek nothing more substantial than their next fulfillment of vice. Yes, you knew the full range of danger and peril that could lurk in the unknown of those foul mists and yet you dared. Indeed, you dared."

Trajan held his hands behind his back. Raised his head just so. "And yet the threats to Mankind are still myriad. Peace requires constant vigilance. And there are men and women who will shy and shirk from this most profound and solemn of duties, to be a watcher against the terrors that so besiege the innocent. But not I. Nor Khadija. We are but two of many. Those who so dare to be such watchers, such vigilant guardians. Those who dream of a Mankind united. A Mankind which honors its kin, and has joined together in an unbreakable spirit of brotherhood and sisterhood. There is much more at stake than a simple chest full of coins, men. Yes. What awaits you, if you so desire it, is the opportunity for your names to shine."

Trajan lowered his head. Level. "But that must be earned. If you so dare. And I implore you to speak with Khadija if you are interested in earning more than just coin. For now you know that there are deeds which invigorate the spirit in ways otherwise unobtainable. And Mankind needs true men and women, now, more than ever. And when the proud stand tall and victorious, I ask, will you be among them?"

A look to each individual man again. Quiet throughout the warehouse. And Trajan said, "I thank you for your service. It has been an honor, and I may yet have the honor again. Good day."

Trajan walked to the edge of the Luminari's warehouse section and to Valkery there. The mercenaries looked about each other and all made glances as if in unspoken agreement and to a man they each approached Khadija and stood about her and asked their questions in turn to her and she was all too eager to answer them as they were asked.

Trajan, his face with some small hint of satisfaction, said to her, "Shall we find a private arrangement to further discuss our business?"

 

[Madame Valkery]

Valkery lingered on the edge of the warehouse space and watched as the mercenaries were given their coin. The presence of a carriage was rather unusual. From the way that the aura of a busy city street still clung to it and the mud still wet on the wheels it seemed to be a recent addition. She listened to Trajan's speech, he was a good rhetorician, a bit long winded but he spoke with valor and conviction. Conviction was always a good way of swaying the opinions of others. If one did not have faith in one's own views then no one else would either. That was a lesson she had learned a long time ago.

When Trajan finished his speech he came over to meet her, she nodded in greeting, "It seems you are a quite skilled commander, you know how to speak to a man's heart," She said, though she had no doubt that it had been her quick thinking and rallying words on the battlefield that had lit that spark. If some of their numbers had been lost tody she doubted they would be as quick to join Trajan's group. "But do, let us find a place to discuss matters more fully."

 

[Trajan Meng]

* * * * *​

The Broken Quill.

An inn often frequented by Khadija, at first, and then other Luminari members. The innkeeper was a dwarf, yes, but in a sense it made for a kind of camouflage. Caution and care was preached throughout the Luminari, especially so in the early days. They'd not had a problem yet with turncoats or vengeful xenos seeking to hunt specific members or the group as a whole down, and in this they had been so blessed. An inevitability, perhaps, as the group grew larger and larger, their endeavors bolder. If and when the day would come, the mere presence of an oblivious dwarf or similar xeno innkeeper/proprietor might provide cover to the actual presence of Luminari faithful dwelling within; those seeking might be inclined to simply write off the inn or other building in question in that regard.

A small measure of defense against ambush. Some risk, yes, as the defense was predicated on the xeno being unaware of the business of their patrons.

Trajan approached the dwarven innkeeper. Spoke calmly and cordially. Just a weary adventurer seeking a place to stay. The dwarf was as gruff as dwarves tended to be. A funny thing to be noted, their exchange of superficial pleasantries with one another. Trajan spared him no sympathy for all the things he surely found abrasive about Elbion or human settlements in general. The dwarf had brought it upon himself, coming here. Just as Trajan, had he a mind to be so foolish, would have brought such tribulations upon himself if he had set up a shop in Belgrath.

Key in hand, Trajan walked up the stairs to the second floor and found the matching door and opened it for Valkery to step inside before he closed it behind them. Not a ratty inn like some of the more infamous places in Alliria and even here in Elbion, which explained in part why Khadija was so fond of it. A moderately sized room. Cleaned and cared for. Window, bed, cabinet, rug, decorations, arcane etchings for light, table with four chairs, even a wooden bathtub and pail if one were so inclined to fetch the water or pay to have the water fetched for them.

Trajan walked to the table and sat and set his warhammer down head-first and leaned the shaft against the edge of the table. Motioned for Valkery to have a seat as well.

"If you would, tell me of this former student of yours. Eleanor. And how we might extricate her from the misfortune she has found herself in."

 

[Madame Valkery]

Valkery glanced around impartially the room and sat down in the chair, folding her hands in front of her. She waited for Trajan to sit before she began.

"I suppose it is only right that I tell you everything that I know. The situation is quite complicated, too be honest. As I mentioned before an old student of mine was abducted at the college by some sort of a dark cult and her brother was killed. While investigating the incident I found out that the cult was also targeting this Lady Armon for assassination. When I went to talk with the Lady I quickly sensed that she and her attendants were not mortal, though they kept a powerful guise of mortality if they were able to fool all the many powerful magicians at the college. If it was just the cult or just the undead I might have been able to handle it on my own. However, as it is I am stretched a bit thin.

"My student, Eleanor, made some sort of a deal with the cults god. So my goal is two-fold, to find a way to free her from her contract and to rid the college of the undead that plague it. Anything that you can do to aid me would be much appreciated," She explained.

 

[Trajan Meng]

Complicated.

Yes. They had not merely the vile undead to concern themselves with, but some manner of cult as well. And this cult which had taken Valkery's student also appeared to be at war with the undead. Interesting, tactically, but ultimately inconsequential. Both ought to be destroyed. The enemy of Trajan and Valkery's enemy was still, in fact, their enemy too. Certainly no friend.

It spoke to the weakness of the College, this entire affair. The infiltration of insidious undead, the brazen attack and abduction of Eleanor by the cult on their very grounds. A worrisome tread, these cults. The seduction of those vulnerable, those who lacked a proper unified family, brothers and sisters to watch over them, to keep them from straying from the path. Yes. The increased prevalence of these cults were desperate cries from an ailing humanity, symptoms of a disease which ran deep and which Trajan sought to rectify.

"A deal," Trajan said. A grave look on his face. "We may only pray that she can be salvaged. Put back onto the righteous path."

A thought.

"This 'god' of the cult in question," he said. "Do you believe it to be real? Not merely some sorcerer's deception or the like, but an actual being? If so, how could we combat this manner of foe? There must be a way."

He recalled the Fiend in the mists. Perhaps it was impossible to say if it was truly dead. Steel had won the day, miraculously, but what of foes whose otherworldliness was such that the weapons of Arethil would fall short? At the very least, the Fiend had a body which could be struck down.

And if this 'god' did not?

 

[Madame Valkery]

Valkery steepled her fingers and let out a sigh, "I'm not a particularly religious person but I would be a fool to deny the existence of powerful beings that influence our world. From the way Armon spoke of him and the dark energies I was sensing off of both Eleanor and the priestess that was with her, I would say it would be best to assume that it is the real thing. The god goes by the name Bastellen. However, if the information the undead gave me is to be believed they said that he is much weakened and is trying to gather a new following in order to regain lost power. The undead also spoke of a way to break the contract involving swearing allegiance to their own god. However, any god that they follow undoubtedly is no better than the cults god. But this does tell us that it is possible to break the contract"

 

[Trajan Meng]

Bastellen.

There were, of course, any number of tales and hearsay and wishful thinkings and devotions to things imagined. Fervent recountings of confirmation thereof and protestings of skepticism, assertions this way and that. Trajan did not often spare much thought to the potential goings-on that were separated from Arethil, for there was far too much to concern himself with here. A simple approach, but he trusted in what he could see and sense, in what he already knew to be true and what was very likely to be true.

But the coming of the red mists had forced him to adjust his outlook, hadn't it?

Yes. This Bastellen. Whatever it was, a god or a being that in its immense vanity considered itself such, it could very well be real. As real as the fiend which lurked within the mists and sought to bring much more ruin to Arethil than it had. Troubling, then, that Valkery also mentioned the undead alluding to a god of their own.

"I will give deference to your judgment, Madame Valkery. I know my limitations, and I am no expert in matters such as these."

A consideration.

"So this Bastellen is weakened, and can be weakened further. This is heartening. What fortune it would be if this creature could be made so weak that it could no longer enforce any such 'contracts'. But such, even it were the case, would likely not be the expedient route to take in this endeavor."

A glance back. Over his shoulder and out through the window. The scraps of evening sky visible beyond the roofs of Elbion. Yes. Troubling. To think that Mankind faced foes even from beyond Arethil herself. A calling, perhaps, lay in the knowledge of this.

But, after a moment's thought, he turned back to Valkery and said, "Do you believe it is possible that this contract Eleanor is suffering under may be undone by a means purely magical? Or is it necessary for her to swear allegiance to another god?"

It would be preferable for Eleanor to be completely freed from the constraints of servitude to any divine being. For her life to be wholly her own again. Perhaps it was possible. Perhaps not.

Regardless, whatever method they choose to try, Trajan suspected that subduing Eleanor would prove to be difficult. What manner of corruptions and unholy twistings of her body and mind had this Bastellen wrought?

 

[Madame Valkery]

"In the end, even the god's must follow the laws of magic. It is undoubtedly possible, whether or not we are capable of enacting such a feat is another question." Valkery stared contemplatively into the distance pressing her steepled fingers to her lips. Then her brows raised as she recalled the specimen she had collected earlier that day. Reaching into her pouch she drew out the small glass vile and held it up to look at the black worm that was still wriggling inside.

"We do have this," She said her eyes not leaving the specimen, a thin predatory smile crossing her lips. "Those creatures in the mist had anti-magic properties. No, not quite anti-magic... it felt more like it absorbed magic. Like how I collect aura... If I can figure out how to harness such a power it would be a formidable weapon." She stood abruptly, a fire in her eyes as the cogs of a brilliant working mind began to fall into place. "I should return and collect soil samples... and inspect that stone before too many others from the college get to it." She stopped abruptly halfway to the door, realizing that Trajan was still there. "Sorry, I got a bit carried away, but we both know it would be best for me to get there before the college takes or destroys anything worth investigating. Where can I find you again?"

 

[Trajan Meng]

The Laws of Magic. Arethil's boon and blessing against beings from elsewhere that might seek to enact any manner of nefarious machinations upon good men and women. Perhaps the sole reason that Arethil herself had not been overrun by the likes of the fiend from the mists and all else. Heartening to know that, at the very least, it would in fact be possible. Yet, despite the assurance of the Laws of Magic, the task remained grave. For what would be required? What amount of power and prowess and sheer luck, even?

Then Valkery produced a vial wherein a worm from the mists was contained. Trajan regarded it as he might any other tool, as if such a thing were as mundane as a scythe or a shovel.

She did smile, Valkery, at speaking of and gazing upon the creature. An eagerness and a facet of character there that broke through her formal composure. Yes, this was her domain, was it not? To learn how it is that these nightmarish monsters function and to use that knowledge for her particular technique of aura magic. To turn that knowledge into a practical weapon against evil.

Her calling. And it was always encouraging to see that in others, they who have found purpose in a cause that would make for a better world. Some, like Valkery, came to find such purpose all on their own, so strong was the fire in their heart. Some, like the twelve mercenaries, needed the proper guidance.

Trajan stood. Said, "You've no need to apologize. And upon that, the college tampering with the site of the mists after all the danger has gone, yes, upon that we can both wholeheartedly agree. You should make haste, and I will assemble volunteers and begin preparations."

He picked up his warhammer and shouldered it. "I am not often here at The Broken Quill. Perhaps the best place would be the dock warehouse from earlier. If none of my fellows are there, then the harbormaster in charge of the warehouse will be able to send a message to them, such that they can contact me."

Trajan walked toward the door. Opened it. Stood beside it the portal. "I should hope that you are successful, Madame Valkery. For Eleanor's sake. And, perhaps, the sake of many more good men and women."