Answers
This story takes place shortly before Shattered Fates begins. For the purposes of this story unique names for non-unique allies from Call of the Crystals, such as Jasmine Rosecultand Dirk Saber
, are positions within various organizations. For example, the Rosecult is a sect of female warriors from Lyth; the Jasmines are those who practice assassination through seduction, whereas the Lilies are trained to turn any object into a weapon.
The war had been raging for two years. Two years that seemed like an eternity to the people of Balor.
Serena Thoughtripperand her rag-tag group of warriors and bandits were rushing from the frozen city of Ishbond to the city of Gorgyle, where creatures that had not yet been seen in the war against the Shadows were suddenly appearing. Even worse, this group of creatures seemed to be highly organized, and even the known creatures in this group seemed to be accountable for more damage than normal. Serena
’s force was tasked with tracking down the marauders, finding out why they were so destructive, and either stopping them or getting a message back to Gunther
on what the best methods might be.
As they crested the top of the mountain, the land of Layar came into view. Serenacalled a halt for her troops as she and her second in command, Lyra Blackrose
, took out their eagleyes, crystals enchanted by the mage Loest
to allow their users to see things in the distance more clearly, as if they were right in front of the users.
The route to Gorgyle passed directly past a small farmstead bordering on a forest. The farmstead was a bustle of activity as the inhabitants rushed around, attempting to reinforce the fences while arming themselves with anything nearby. There were pitchforks, scythes, pickaxes, hatchets, and a handful of bows, but not a single sword or battle-axe among them. Meanwhile, just far enough back into the forest that they could not be clearly seen through the eagleyes, glimpses of the forces of the shadow could be seen. Although they did not seem to be organized just yet, they were clearly massing for an assault on the farmstead. They would likely attack before Serenaand her troops could reach the farmstead, but maybe there was a chance that they could arrive in time to save a couple villagers. Serena
put away her eagleye and signaled her troops to start moving again, double time.
Raikka Spellseeker, Seril of Orem, was not amused.
When she had first crossed through the Shadow Gate into the world of Balor, she thought that her magical prowess had impressed the mysterious Man of Shadows and his lieutenant Arthyle. Having had to deal with these lesser creatures for the past couple of weeks, she no longer knew what to think.
Raikkashot a stream of flame between two of her troops, both denizens of Thriss but of differing beliefs. “Enough! Would you two stop your bickering for once?”
The Bloodstained Marauderturned towards Raikka
. “This damned fool refuses to take advantage of our full destructive potential by acknowledging our ancestry from the Asyn! Only recognition of our divine inheritance allows us to bring our full wrath to bear on our enemies!”
The Falseblood Cultistsnarled back “Your false belief is a weakness! Once you realize that we are not the descendants of the Asyn, your loss of faith and conviction will be your own undoing!”
Raikkasummoned another fireball in her hand. “I have no concern with which of you is right. I could not care less if one of you believed that you were descended from a rock, which is probably more accurate considering your combined intelligence. All that matters is that you fight to the best of your ability and trust that my power will make you even stronger. Can your puny brains hold that information for another day?” The two Thrissans glanced at each other before muttering their ascent. “Good. We start our attack now.”
*****
Serena and her troops were still a two hour march from the farmstead when the Shadow forces erupted from the forest. Stopping for a moment to get out her eagleye and scanned what they would be up against. She recognized the familiar figures of Bloodstained Marauders, Ironhide Karashes, Furrion Terrors, and even a Scourge Colossus, but there were many other creatures that remained unrecognizable. Serena urged her troops on faster and said a quick prayer to Vozit that they would manage to save at least one of the farmers.
By the time they arrived, they were nearly too late. Serena saw three areas where fighting was still ongoing: to the right, an assortment of lesser creatures was harassing the remaining fighting men; to the left, the Colossus was wrecking havoc among the livestock, ignoring the farm boys trying to hurt it with their slings; and in the center, a lone farm girl defending a cluster of cowering children, attempting to hold off a Thrissan and an elf that seemed to be the leader of the Shadow forces, the farm girl with naught but a broomstick. Drawing her cutlass, Serena quickly gave out orders. “Jasmines and Lilies, hold back the Shadows on the right; Dirks, get those men to safety then help the Sisters of the Rosecult finish off those Shadows. Night Owls and Nightshades, take down that Colossus. Lyra, with me, we are going to take down that elf!”
As Serena and Lyrarushed to the farm girl’s aid, the elf threw a fireball directly at the girls, knocking her backwards and off her feet while completely incinerating the broomstick. Serena was just close enough to hear the elf yell “Finish her off you addle-brained Cultist!”
The farm girl stayed on her hands and knees, staring intently at the ground, while the Thrissan lunged forward, arm upraised and claws bright with fire. Suddenly, to the slight surprise of Serena, a lightning bolt erupted from the ground under both of the farm girls hands, one striking the Cultist and the other reaching out to strike the elf. Then, to Serena’s greater surprise, a frying pan shot out of the rubble of one of the houses and hit the Cultist in the face before shattering and knocking the Cultist out cold. The elf appeared to be in even greater shock at the turn of events, but recovered quickly and fled into the forest before Serena and Lyracould stop her.
As Lyrastopped to comfort the children, Serena sheathed her cutlass and walked over to the farm girl. “I’m sorry dear, we arrived as quickly as we could. I’m afraid that there isn’t much left for you here, but my troops and I can escort you and your fellow farmers to Gorgyle. If you are interested, we can then take you on to meet with General Gunther
, who I believe would be interested in meeting you with your abilities.”
The farm girl stood up. “Thank you for the escort. I do not wish to continue fighting these monsters, but I need to know why we were attacked. If meeting with Guntherand joining his fight are the fastest way to get those answers, then I will go with you to meet with him and do as he asks.”
Serena nodded. “Well said. Guntheris a good man and, were things more stable, would try to get you your answers without forcing you to the frontlines. But with things as they are since the assassination of King Rothem, I’m afraid Gunther
might be forced to send you out to fight at some point. If you don’t mind, may I ask you your name?”
“I am Aramia.”
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