[h3][color=fff200][b]Spring Wind Keep. 15th Day of Summer[/b][/color][/h3] There was a certain benefit to being a massive tower of a man, people weren't keen on standing in your way. As the shield of Belia made their way slowly but surely made their way to where the Duchess would speak, Theowald had admire the sheer diversity among their ranks. Nul Rahn was famous for their mercenaries, and he saw all manner of men and women. He passed a small group of redhatted, pike wielding dwarves that he knew were the "Uzhgut Kahzdu". Dwarves from Last Respite, the northernmost settlement in the entire world. They had heard the call of gold, and knowing the Uzhguts trophy hunting tendencies, the call of a unique opponent. When they passed a group of men swathed in silk who each wielded large curved swords, Alexus leaned in. "Those are the Kahalemi, they are Pirate Hunters. They got a personal stake in this. Several of their numbers made Nubina their home and made good coin keeping the trade routes safe." The dark skinned paladin said as they themselves seemed to draw just as much attention as any other group. Many of the eyes he studied, studied him right back. One pair of eyes held his, or rather a single eye. It was elven and almost shone inside the darkness of a heavy red and blue cloak. For a second, he could swear that eye stared into his very soul. Then whoever that piercing eye belonged were lost in the crowd of people. He shrugged as he caught up with his comrades, who were now starting to see the stage. Here, the noise was deafening to say the least. Now people didn't care to move aside. Some pushed and shoved their way, but there was a order to a chaos. A wish to not rock the boat when it was in such dark waters. "’Ere she comes." Mathea said as she strained to look over the crowd. And just as she said, there she was. The Duchess strode with confident steps onto the wooden ramp and up the stage. She was dressed in full battle regalia. The Stormsparrow emblazoned on her right pauldron. Her sword hung from her belt and those eyes of hers could give a tiger pause. There was a fierceness to her that could be felt even through all the shouting. As she made to the center of the stage, she raised her hand and it was like magic. People quieted down, the tension rose to palpable level in a single heartbeat. There were people on the stage with her Theowald suddenly realized. A dwarf wearing the red cloth of the Cardinals Call, but also an elderly human and an elf. The elf he soon realized, was the owner of the eye before. She wore an eyepatch, had long blonde hair and a gaze that seemed to flicker around, as if it was always looking for potential dangers. The Dwarf looked calm and downright unimpressed by the throng of people that spread out before him. The elderly man looked nervous. With her face to the crows, Lady Aina spoke to her subordinates. And when the Douches spoke it seemed to reverberate across that sea of people like a ripple. Heads snapped to attention, soldier got out of their slouch and Theowald swore he saw someone remove their damn hat in respect. She sure had the presence of a leader allright. "Friends and brothers of arms, hear me now!" She yelled. “Behind me stand representatives our allied Kingdoms. I trust them with my life, and so you must trust me. As we speak, the Operathian Kohort has begun to move in the South western mountains. They will have the daunting task to trekking through forest filled with gods know what only to besiege Castle Balth.. And further West, the Melfician ready themselves to take back what was once believed to be lost forever. A effort that is gonna hinge on us doing our part.” Her voice was steady. “And it falls on us, on me who offered my sword and my banner to lead this effort, to bring you to the Walls of Nubina. Where we shall vanquish the undying and once more restore Nul Rahns pride and joy. This is vital to our campaign, should we fail, the undying will have a stronghold from which they can assault our allies flank. And we will be without a vital trade route. The resistance will be fierce. The enemy will throw everything at us, and he will be dug in. We know that they adapt, that they adopt news strategies. That they create nww horrors to break our spirits with. We know this, because we faced it during the War of Perseverance.” At this there was some grunts and a whole lot of mumbling at that. Many here were veterans of the last war. They knew all to well. "Friends!" Her voice rang like steel in his ears once more and silenced many of the voices. It was fascinating. She looked younger then him, yet she spoke like she had spearheaded this army for just as long as he had been a knight. Not a tremble in her tone, not a single outward twitch of nervousness. This was better than zeal, better than blind trust in gods and lords. This was confidence in one's own purpose. ”I will not lie to you, some of us will die.” There was a murmur in the crowd as she so bluntly stated what they all knew all to well. The three Shields of Belia looked at one another, a grin on each of their lips. ”Oi. She go' som' real fire ey?” ”You seen anyone like it?” ”Yes.” Theowald said as he stared up at the stage. ”In storybooks.” ”But I am sure nore of you, none of US will go willingly into the dark slumber!” Her voice rose, and it was like a storm was brewing. ”For each that fall on his difficult journey, we will carve another name into the foundations of Aith Anurs citadel. For each man or woman who fall, we shall raise a cup in their memory!” ”We'll be bleedin' drunk and dead o' drink befo' that” Alexus shouted over the din of the crowd, amused at the notion they'd drink for each dead person. But he was shushed by Mathea Her eyes were alight with inspiration and the zeal of someone who just seen a god in flesh. ”I swear on my sword” The Duchess drew her sword and held it aloft. ”I swear on my Banner. I swear on my own heart. May it be torn out of my chest before I give up or stop.” That elicited some stirring. The fire was being stoked. More and more were starting to seemingly limber up, gruff voices began to mumble in agreement rather then in doubt. ”And I swear to each and every one of you, that I shall drive this blade into the stone of Aith Anurs throne or die trying!” Now there was some tentative cheering. ”Some of Us will perish, yes. But not without a blade in hand. Not without a curse on our tongue. Not without a foot on blood soaked soil, on our soil! For this is not merely vengeance!” Now people were hanging onto every single word. Theos heart was beating. ”This is a crusade, A holy mission, A retribution!” She leaned in so hard of the stage that Theo feared she’d fall of the stage. She staring out of her with a fire in her eyes. Yelling at them like they were right at the walls, ready to scale them. ANd now swords were being drawn to mimic her own, lifted high above their heads, a fire burned in thousands of hearts. ”And Be you from across the sea, I swear to you we will fill your flagons twice over as we celebrate victory! Be it that you came for the Coin, we will fill your coffers.” That got roars of approval from a throng of different mercenaries. ”And are you Sons and Daughters of Melfic, Of Operath. Of Nul Rahn!? Then this is your soil, your lands. And you are merely collecting what is owed you!” Now people were screaming bloody murder. It was a sore spot, a great blot of shame. One she was now telling them to clean up. “Be you of the ol’ folk! We will put your nighmares down for you! You became our brethren the second your swords pointed towards the dead!” This made the elven woman with a eyepatch smirk. She slammed her sword down so it sunk into the wood by her feet. ”We shall take back what is ours, we shall be fire that burns the rot away!” Now people were roaring, chanting along with her speech. ”BURN THEM! BURN THEM!” ”We are the Steel that do not bend or break!” Her voice was so full of vigor it shook Theodore to his core. Who was this woman. Where in all of Efratel did she come from. She was heading for Canonization in a dozen religions if she kept this up. “We are the Steel!” ”And should you meet your god, and you are asked why you deserve rest and peace. You answer them this!” She lifted curled her fist, seemingly in anger. As it she was ready to punch a literal gods lights out. But a chain dangled from each side of her grip. She had torn her own Nethlin pendant off. “Because my life was true, and my life was not always good. But I died for the good of all life, and that is the TRUTH!” More cheers, the ground was shaking now. It was like a small earthquake under his feet. “And so, Take my Death and the hundred rotting bastards I brought with it!! BY FIRE AND STEEL. WE TAKE BACK WHAT IS OURS!” ”BY FIRE AND STEEL! BY FIRE AND STEEL! BY FIRE AND STEEL!” A massive, thunderous chanting came from the armed men and women who had been entirely sucked into this womans aura of confidence, zeal and almost divine sense of purpose. ”WE ARE THE KING CARDINAL; THE BLOOD RED BIRD; THE LIFEBLOOD OF THIS ALLIANCE BY FIRE AND STEEL!” She was waving around her closed fist at all of them. Growing more heated, more animated by the second. And the crowd ate it up. Screaming and cheering, shaking their weapons, banging their shields. ”Bloody 'ell....” Alexus mumbled as they stared, slackjawed. ”I think That feeling just now. I think it was hope.” ---------------------- [h3][b][color=6ecff6]Blackshore Castle, Nul Rahn, Warcouncil[/color][/b][/h3] Duke Elithan Stormsparrow leaned back in his high backed, oaken chair. Before him was a long table with every participant of note when it came to their massive undertaking. Most notable of these was the Matriach of Operath, Lady Ironwill herself. The dwarf folded her arms over her chest and spoke with a tone and command that would give a mountain second thoughs wether to stay in her way or not. “The Kohort has begun their advance. But us dwarves are not known for our quick marching. This is going to be a perilous trek.” She eyed the Duke who nodded in understanding. “But we have been makin’ good time. Earily enough, they have acted almost exactly like we thought they would. Our advance troops came under heavy fire from archers as they marched out of Elms Pass, but as soon as the first were through, the enemy retreated wholesale. ” “Yes.” A man spoke. His name was Otto Von Weismarch and he was a Melfic Lord who ironicly enough came from Operathanian stock. Hence the name. He was almost as far away from Elithan as possible, his leaning slightly on his arm while idly watching the going ons. “We to encountered resistance almost down to the detail of our predictions. They hardly tried to hold Wilmire Keep.. But once we took it they threw nearly a thousand shambling corpses in what was basically a lost cause. We hardly sustained any casualties.” “So then Lord Elithan” A old, crone like woman spoke. Her robes indicated her a High Priestess of Nethlin. “We can indeed predict the enemy before he strike. Up to a point.” “Indeed.” Elithan nodded. “I fear we only seen the first of many such attacks. They are prodding us. What ever is behind them is no simple creature. Or what say you?” “I’m afraid you are right. While I was to young to be at ground zero of the Undyings creation, it is clear that whaetever it is that came through is intelligent and malevolent. And powerful enough that it can escape The Grey Eye.” “Ah yes. Your elven gods.” A dwarf with coppery hair and dark, sunken green eyes said. His name was Bathnan Copperhand and he was the Great Shield of Belia, a title bestowed on the de-facto leader of the entire order. He had remained entirely silent for the entire meeting up until now. “Do tell us where they come into this. Very few followed outside of you Grey Elves. And according to our texts, you were not keen on sharing.” “You must not forget Ser Bathnan, that the Belia Shield backed Operath in wars with Aith Anur in the past. Far be it for someone to share their inner workings to a order that fights you on the field. Hm?” “...Point taken.” “I thought so. But do not fret.” The elven ambassador raised his hand in a placating gesture. “I will tell you what I know. I am not a follower of the Grey Eye myself, albeit all Grey Elves pray to him once. “Before the Grey Sleep?” Bathnan asked, leaning against the table. “Aye. Before the state we know as Grey Sleep. As his name entail, The Grey Eye watches over us as we transcend toward the other side. He guide our spirits as all we are and all we known is laid bare before the veil. So we pray to him to take the madness away, to let us rest.” “And…” The Dwarf raised his eyebrows “And Whatever it is that now rests inside my city, Great Shield Bathan.” He leaned onto table. “It has likely been held back by the Lord of Tranquility and our gods. What we can tell from what documents and rumors that escaped the city. Is that our queen managed to suspend the grey sleep in an attempt come back from it.” “Necromancy?.” The Nethlin crone spoke in a almost accusatory tone.” “No. Necromancy animate and bind spirits, it can only destroy a soul.. This was different. Our archives tell of Soul Casting..” “I do not recognize the term. What does it entail?” The Duke said. “We are still trying to find an answer to that. You see, apparently our ancestors though it so dangerous and foolish, that they burned any records of it.” “Lovely..” ----- [h3][b][color=00a651]15th day, 8th hour, Marching Orders. Road to Nubina.[/color] [/b][/h3] The had begun to move in high spirits and with the fires of Zeal burning in the more pious of people. Others were here for the glory, many for revenge. The militia men trudged behind mercenaries while Those with horses, mainly nobles and their retainers. The Spring Wind Keep lay looming behind them, the army could be seen all the way down the road from the keep. Ahead of them lay the hilly, lightly forested area of Northern most Nul Rahn. Past that was the Port City of Nubina. The first step towards retribution. And so the army of Cardinals Call trudged on. Theowald was to big for anything other then a massive thoroughbred and he liked the marching for now. It helped his mind to keep from distractions. Next to him trudged alexus, ever steadfast. Around them the remains of a small farmstead lay in long forgotten negligence. Pale bones jutted out of the mud at some point, sobering the passersby somewhat. Zeal was good, overconfidence was not. A bleak reminder of what they faced might just be for the benefit of all in the end. “That was something huh?” He said as they walked past the charred remains of a grain silo, A couple of ravens fought over a dead fox by its base. Theo noted that what ever killed the fox had left some seriously big pawprints. It had only been around 2 years and yet nature had quickly reclaimed what it could. He knew that further in they got, the less normal and the more twisted said nature would appear. “Indeed. But look how quickly the confidence escape so many of our numbers. “He nodded towards some poor militia men who looked all but tripped over the remains of a broken cart that had long since rotted and become part of the road. Remains of bags that had once held goods was half buried now. Among them were tiny bones. Someone had hid their child among the bags no doubt. That's when the men ahead stopped suddenly. The two large knights looked to one another before jogging to the front of the group. The sight that was before them gave them pause. “Belias braid..” Theo muttered. Before him was bones, seemingly washed up from the dirt by the now ceaseless summer rain. Stretching between the marching army frontline, all the way to the small birch forest beyond, was a field of bones, broken weapons. But most jarring was the neatly row upon row with pikes, each with a still writhing, screaming body on top of. Some of them were old and half rotten, likely from the war of perseverance. One or two out each ten however, where fresh. Wearing the Countess colors. “Scouts… You can tell by their vests.” Alexus said, a bit pale. "They must have been caught only hours ago." He was right of course, the enemy had strung up the Countess forward scouts. Theo could see Countess glare at the pikes she had taken a position where she could have a proper view. Her face showed anger and sadness mixed into what he assumed was a ever growing fervor to claim vengeance. “A warning” Theo began. “ No. A statement” A gruff voice spoke behind them. Their Chapter Master spoke, having made his way over to them as they stood gawking. "This is where the difficult part starts." [quote] [b]Current Situation[/b] Rows upon Rows, a grand total of 300 hundred undying corpses writhing 2 meters above the ground. Limbs flailing and scratching at unseen enemies. They all speak in a guttural, unknown tongue, a senseless, rythmic noise that escapes their moves between struggling. Each pike is firmly shoved into the ground, taking several men to remove. An effort made more difficult by the flailing undead creature liable to attack you. The field is so full of old bodies it is hard to walk with crushing a bone or skull. Jagged, broken spears and sword litter the ground. This is where the last of old Nubinas garrisons fell, after they tried to protect the refuges. These are their remains, almsot 18 years have they lay here. Forgotten. Unseen until now. Before you, the otherwise ligh forested area looks so much more foreboding then any such sparse, light birch forest should. A feeling of unrest lay thick on men and women who were inspired and fired up just moments before. [/quote]