Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Sept 18, 2014 18:47:26 GMT -5
Far to the north, in a snowbound hamlet no one more than a hundred miles away ever heard of, a burly man of thirty five winters stepped through the door of the lodge, holding in his arms a thick bundle of blankets and furs. From inside the furs came the sound of an infant's cry. He brought it to a chair and sat down, rocking gently back and forth, while five curious young faces gathered around him. "What is it, Papa?" one of them asked.
"It's your new sister," he said. He smiled and put a pinky finger to the tiny babe's mouth, and she suckled on it, placing one tiny hand to its side with her eyes closed shut.
"What's her name, Papa?" another asked.
"Her name is Katessa," the man said. "After five strapping boys, the heavens have decided to grace this house with a girl." With a slight chuckle, he added, "May they continue to have mercy on us all."
"What will she be like?" the oldest boy asked.
"Oh, I don't know, Jaffrem," the man answered. "We'll have to wait until she grows up and see."
"How long will that take, Papa?" the oldest boy asked again.
The man smiled and said, "It takes as long as it takes. But you boys have a job to do, right? You gotta watch out for your sister. Ain't nobody lays a hand on this little girl, or your name ain't Fensbain, right? Gods only know she won't fight for herself."
"What about us?" one of the others asked. "Can we play with her?"
The father smiled and said, "Sure. You boys all play together, right? Ain't see no reason a Fensbain can't play with a Fensbain."
Long into the night, the man sat with his boys, talking about the years to come with their newborn sister, they peering into the bundle of covers, and he rocking her in his arms by the fire.
...
"Oh Ka-TEEEH-saa," Jaffrem called out, stalking into the lodge with an oversized grin on his face. The sixteen year old boy held something behind his back, walking in with his four brothers in tow behind him. "Where ARE you Katessa?" he called out, his vocal inflection indicating his intent to play.
Behind one of the chairs by the table, a blonde haired girl of perhaps eight summers peered out with clear blue eyes. "Go away!" she called out, looking at her brother with an expression of trepidation.
"Hey boys," Jaffrem said, "I think we FOUND her!" The boys piled through the door and formed a semi-circle in front of it. "You watch the door, and I'll get the girl," he said, stalking forward with an exaggerated step.
Katessa squealed and bolted from her hiding place to hide behind another chair. Jaffrem ran in, and she sprinted around the table, trying to keep out of his reach. He being twice her age, he easily caught her by the waist, and Katessa yelped. "Gotcha!" he shouted in triumph. "Time to go outside!"
Jaffrem hoisted Katessa over his shoulder and carried her, kicking and flailing her arms, towards the door. Her four other brothers followed, giggling and hopping about, until all six children were out in the grass in front of the lodge. "Guess what WE got, Katessa," Jaffrem said.
"I don't want any grass in my hair!" Katessa called out, beating impotently on Jaffrem's back with her little fists.
"Oh no," he said. "We don't have any grass this time. We have ..." He slung her off his shoulder, and the four younger brothers all piled around and held her down on her back. Jaffrem said, "Bugs!" He held out a spider in front of Katessa's face, and she screamed. "Here comes Mr. Creepy Crawly Spider!" he said, dangling it by a leg closer and closer to her face. "Come on, Kat, you can get out of this. You BETTER get out of this!" He smiled as Katessa struggled, trying to get free.
"She can't get out, she's a dumb girl," Rodd said.
Jaffrem lowered the spider down until it took hold with its tiny feet on Katessa's cheek. She shook her head, trying to dislodge it, and it scurried down her shirt. All the boys got off her, and Katessa rolled around on the ground, trying to find the spider and get rid of it.
The four boys let Katessa up, laughing and rolling on the ground, and Katessa spit, imagining things in her mouth that weren't there. "I'll get you!" she said. "You just wait!" She got up and went stomping into the lodge. The five boys followed after her, and she went over to the corner where there was a mop standing in a bucket of water with some cleaning agents mixed in. She wrapped her tiny hands around the mop handle and started trying to pull it free of the bucket.
"What a great idea!" said, Rodd, the youngest brother. "Come on, guys! It's time to mop the floor!" The five of them sprang forward, and the games continued ...
...
It was the morning before Midsummer, and the town was abuzz with preparations for the celebrations of the next day. People were hanging flowers, and wreathes, and all manner of decorations all over anything that didn't walk, crawl, swim, or fly. In the middle of the town square, a thirteen year old boy came up behind Katessa, now eleven, and dumped the bundle of vegetables she was carrying out of her hands.
"What the heck you go and do that for?" she demanded.
"Because you're ugly," he said. "And stupid." This wasn't the first time Halgarod, as he was named, had picked on Katessa. The two had been having a spat at least once a tenday for some time.
"Oh yeah?" Katessa said, putting her hands on her hips. "I think you're the ugly one. You're so ugly, you can't even tie your boots by yourself."
"What does being ugly have to do with tying your boots?" Halgarod said.
"I didn't say ugly," Katessa said. "I said stupid."
"You said ugly," the boy answered. The two went back and forth repeating to each other, "ugly," "stupid," "ugly," stupid! As they did, a crowd of youth formed around the two, a crowd which happened to include the Fensbain boys.
Finally, Katessa lashed out and punched Halgarod in the nose, and he struck back, hitting her in the stomach. The two of them tussled for about five minutes, before Halgarod finally landed a solid blow to Katessa's ribs which made her cry. He kicked her in the shin one more time, saying, "And don't mess with me again!" Katessa turned away and headed for home, crying all the way.
As Katessa walked away, Jaffrem motioned his brothers closer, and the five of them huddled in close for a chat. "You see that?" Jaffrem said.
"Sure, what of it?" Jezelm said. "She's a little girl, and she got her butt whooped by a boy."
"We can't let that go by," Jaffrem said. "You remember what Pa' said? No one lays a hand on that little girl."
Orgid rolled his eyes. "Come on, Jaff," he said. "We can't protect her forever. 'Sides, she hit him first."
"Wouldn't you?" Jaffrem said. "He had it coming."
Rodd said, "Jaffrem, you can't seriously be suggesting we do something about that. She's gotta learn she can't raise a hand like that."
Jaffrem said, "Look. If it gets around that he did that to Katessa, and nobody did anything about it, it's going to make it look like the Fensbains are soft. We can't have that. She may be a girl, but she's a 'Fensbain girl.' And if you say it like that 'Fensbain' comes before 'Girl,' which means we gotta do something about it, for the Fensbain part."
The other boys stopped and considered Jaffrem's logic. Orgid said, "Hmm. So then, that would mean, like, 'bull *troll*' is an actual 'bull' before it's a pile of '*troll*?'"
"That's exactly what I'm saying," Jaffrem said. "Now are we going to do something, or not? Besides. It's some other twerp from some other family we're gonna mess with anyways, so what's the harm?"
Five Fensbain heads swiveled on their respective necks to focus on Halgarod in united consensus. The next day being Midsummer, Halgarod spent the entire festival hanging upside down from the town gate by his feet, serving as a makeshift tetherball in a brand new game that had been invented overnight by Orgid Fensbain. And he never complained a word.
...
The wind howled past the shuttered windows early in the evening, deep in the middle of winter. It had been three years since Katessa's brothers had left to seek their fortune abroad as adventurers. Their father had been apprehensive about the decision, but he'd supported it, and now the five of them had returned home to fill their father's lodge with the trophies of their victories. Dragon fangs, giant fingers, and riches beyond anyone's imaginings lay scattered all about the floor. Katessa sat listening, utterly fascinated, as they boys recounted tales of battle and adventure, confronting monstrous beasts from Luskan to Anauroch, and plundering massive hoards the likes of which she'd scarcely heard anyone speak of, let alone actually seen.
As Katessa listened, she imagined herself at the head of a party, like Jaffrem, her oldest brother. She saw herself wielding a magic sword and striking the head from giants and dragons, just like he had. Legions of foul soldiers, like Banites and Malarites, fell to her blade in her imaginings as the five of them told their tales. By the end of the evening, Katessa was hooked, and her mind was made up. She, too, would be a bold, glorious adventurer, like her brothers were. At a moment of lull in conversation, Katessa stood up in the middle of the lodge and said, "I'm going to do it, too. I'm going to be an adventurer."
All conversation stopped.
Finally, after a long, awkward pause, Orgid finally spoke, saying, "You can't do that. You're a girl. Girls don't fight."
"Sure they do," Katessa said. "What about all the stories about all the other girls that have been adventurers?"
Katessa's father said, "Your mother and I need you here, Katessa, to help look after the home. We don't need you traipsing about the wilderness. It was enough of a sacrifice that your brothers did it. We need you here."
Jaffrem said, "Look, Pa. She's a Fensbain. We're all Fensbain's. We all can do it. We're a strong lot. She's got it in her. Give her a chance. You ain't seen what she's done, like we have. She can fight. I dare say, it's what she's made for."
The family argued long and hard, and Katessa left to sit by herself in the barn, her heart aching. Finally, after what seemed like hours, Jaffrem came out to see her. "Hey there," he said, sitting down gently next to her. Jaffrem was one of the biggest, and definitely the strongest, man Katessa had ever met in her life. But the air over him at this time was unlike anything she'd ever seen from him in all the time she'd known him. He was calm, peaceful, gentle, composed, and full of a warm care, nothing like the boisterous, brash Jaffrem she was accustomed to.
"Hey," she said.
Jaffrem said, "We've come to a decision." He paused for a moment, and said, "They're going to support your adventuring, reluctantly and having voiced their objection."
"Because of you," Katessa said.
"You could say that," he said. "Look, Kat, I never said this to you before. But I believe in you. I see a spark in you that I don't see in anyone else. Not even your brothers." She looked up at him. "All those times we wrestled around?" he said. "You're gonna be great, Kat. There's no way of knowing what you're going to do, but I know you're going to be great."
Katessa gave a weak smile and said, "Thanks. They don't really believe in me, though, do they."
"That doesn't matter," Jaffrem said. "And it doesn't matter that I do. What matters is, you believe in you. And you know where you're going. You've always believed in yourself. When you got in that fight with Halgarod, you believed in yourself, right?"
Katessa smiled. "I forgot about that," she said. "But I lost."
"It doesn't matter," Jaffrem said. "You had the courage to fight. I've never fought anything I couldn't beat. Neither did any of your brothers. You did. And you didn't back down until it was over. You've got courage, Kat. Don't second guess yourself."
The two sat and talked long into the night, catching up on nearly two decades of missed opportunities to really talk.
...
Cormyr had proven to be an interesting place, populated by more types of people than one would have ever imagined. It was a challenge, too, because with all the different sorts coming and going, it was a long climb to the top. So many individuals were always competing over that top spot, to master all of Cormyr would have been a significant feat indeed. And as an added bonus, so far from home, there would be no comparison to her brothers. Katessa would be able to stand on her own two feet and make her own mark and name, for good or ill, on her own.
The first few years had been full of thrilling adventures. She'd fought dragons, giants, and all manner of ferocious beasts, just as her brothers had done. She'd also told the stories of her brothers more times than she could count, and with each telling, the affection she had for them in her heart only grew, as did her sense of pride at being their sister. She never spoke of them, not even once, without also calling them "the fiercest band of adventurers the North has ever known." And her assessment wasn't far off.
Katessa met and adventured with more people than she could realistically count. Among the more influential individuals was a northman named Dave. He was brash, and he acted from the seat of his pants, in the sense that if he took it into his head to do something, he just simply did it. More than once, Katessa saw it get him squashed by something he should have left alone, to the point she started distancing herself from him, so as not to get caught in the blast radius. But she always admired his courage, and she secretly fantasized about spending some time alone with him in the wilderness somewhere. The exact location of their meeting didn't matter to Katessa. The operative point was that it was time spent alone with Dave.
Another individual Katessa spent a lot of time with was a spellsword named Wyeth. Wyeth was a rather soft spoken man, and she saw his power grow in front of her eyes from what she thought of at the time as the most hopeless, ineffective excuse of an adventurer she'd ever seen at the beginning of his career, into the most formidable fighting force she could imagine by the time his abilities fully matured. How she could have been so wrong about him in her earliest assessment of his abilities, she could not begin to fathom. It only went to show her how even the humblest of beginnings can lead to the most amazing heights of greatness.
Salina was an elf woman who Katessa had adventured with quite a bit. Supposedly, Salina had some part in some nefarious deed shortly before Katessa had arrived in the country, and she could never seem to live down the notoriety. What the fuss was about, Katessa could hardly understand, because as far as she'd ever seen with her own eyes, Salina was a kindly soul intent on doing nothing but serving the good hearted citizens of the realm at her own risk and expense, and to the detriment of Cormyr's criminals and monsters. She had never seen anything to lead her to do anything other than trust Salina, so, trust her she did. In fact, the one time Salina did something questionable in her sight, teleporting an obnoxious man out of Suzail's marketplace and into the Hullack Forest where he was badly injured, the man was obnoxious enough that he had it coming, his destination was a mistake, and the whole thing was Katessa's idea anyways. So Salina couldn't bear sole blame for the episode. Katessa did hear some time after, however, that somehow, Kyra Greytower, a leader in the Royal Corps of Monster Hunters, got it into her head that some woman named Erynne (whom Katessa had never met and who wasn't even present at the time) had put Salina up to the teleport. Katessa felt so bad about the misunderstanding, when she heard how much grief Erynne had gotten about it, that she sent word through Holance of Katessa's apologies.
Kyra was another interesting individual. Katessa had entertained the idea of applying to the Royal Corps herself. For some reason that Katessa couldn't piece together, Kyra had taken it into her head that Katessa worshipped Garagos. Of all the deities to mistake Katessa for, the primary enemy of her actual god, Tempus, was both the most insulting mistake to make, and the furthest removed from reality. When it became plain that the more evidence to the contrary Kyra ever came across, the more entrenched the idea became, Katessa became convinced that the Royal Corps of Monster Hunters was where Cormyr put all of its lunatics in order to keep them reporting in with official reports, in order to keep tabs on them all the time. Since Katessa did not consider herself a lunatic, she decided not to join the Corps, and she decided not to take Kyra's assessment seriously, but to make fun of her by way of her own misinterpretation at every opportunity just to entertain herself.
Ronso was a very persuasive, thoroughly corrupt sorcerer who seemed to have a hard time making up his mind what god he wanted to serve that tenday. He started out as a Banite, having kept his allegiance under wraps, and Katessa didn't come to find out his worship of Bane until he had changed to follow some other god, which was still unknown to most everyone else. As difficult as he was to pin down, Ronso made an extraordinary adventuring companion. He was one of few people who she never saw defeated in a fight, and considering some of the foes they fought, this was quite an accomplishment. At one point, in his corruption, he had taken Katessa and tossed her through a portal in order to see if it sent people to a safe destination. Still, even after this, he was clever and persuasive enough to brush the episode away and convince Katessa to work with him yet again. It wasn't until the two of them were confronted by Velisario, Wyeth, Holance, and Amothrade in the Hullack Forest that the full import of who and what he was finally set in, and she made up her mind never to adventure with him again. All that gold they could make together was still terribly tempting, but she disciplined herself to say no.
Fiona, fellow Tempurran warrior, was a force to be reckoned with. She was another who Katessa watched virtually grow up in front of her, beginning as a completely wet behind the ears initiate of the sword, and growing into the single best non-magical warrior in all the realm, by far, bar none. She also was possessed of a fiery, take-no-*troll*-from-anyone personality which Katessa admired deeply. To hear Fiona was now wanted for killing Nyxta, and for what reason, filled Katessa with pride at her courage to do the deed.
When Katessa arrived in Cormyr, the warrior to beat, considering only purely physical warriors like herself, was Aris. Aris was the most notorious villain in the realm for his part in the Greatgaunt Fire, which he had perpetrated along with Salina. Aris, however, never repented. But, he was still the best swordsman in the realm. Despite the evil of his ways, Katessa found she admired his skill and courage to face any foe, no matter what. In fact, so much time went by that she saw and heard her other friends, particularly Holance, Velisario, and the dwarf Torgar, talk about how much they wanted to do something about Aris, and then never doing anything, that she went and found Aris and challenged him to a duel herself. She had no illusions of being able to beat him, but she figured that if she shook the apple cart a little bit and got people into a fighting mood, maybe someone else would take him on and finish it.
When Katessa found Aris and challenged him, since he had no quarrel with Katessa, he said to her, "And why should I accept a challenge to duel you?" She said to him, "Did you ever turn down a challenge before?" He answered, "No," and she said, "Well there you go." The next thing she knew, they were dueling north of Suzail. He won, but she made a showing, and others challenged him afterwards. The dwarf Torgar nearly killed him. And if he had, it would have been the fruition of Katessa's plan in challenging him to begin with.
No description of Katessa's time in Cormyr would be complete without talking about the influence of the members of the Triad who she got to know, Holance, Velisario, and Henrik. Holance and Velisario were paladins that Katessa spent a fair deal of time adventuring with. She had watched them as well grow from novices to nationally renowned champions of Torm. They had hunted orcs together more times than she could remember, and when they did, Katessa had, to some extent at least, taught them how to flank off of her shield and do the striking, while she stopped the enemy's blows. It took some convincing, however, to get them to let her stand in harm's way. It seemed they could not stomach the thought of a woman facing an enemy's blade, and so would act in ways that compromised the tactics of the group in order to keep her safe. It wasn't until she challenged each of them to try and work their own sword around her shield in a sparring match, and she proved to them by experience just how hard she could make herself to hit, that they finally allowed her to take the role with no further objection. To their credit, however, once they had seen, they believed, and the rest went well from there.
Henrik was a man who defied any likeness to anyone Katessa had ever met. He was a priest of Ilmater, and he was a healer who'd taken vows of nonviolence. Katessa was intrigued right from the start with Henrik and his ways. As given as she was to the act of fighting, she found it hard to imagine going through life having promised to the heavens never to strike at anything alive. Still, Henrik was obviously firmly committed to his cause and his calling. His skills were also extraordinary, and many times on adventuring missions, she herself had felt the benefits of having so skilled a healer in their midst. Given time, Katessa came to a profound respect for Henrik's courage to hold fast to his convictions, even with the temptations to strike back at his enemies and those of his friends that presented themselves on a daily basis. He was no coward. He restrained himself out of courage and strength.
Henrik, for his part, was more difficult to get to come to terms with Katessa's calling as a fighter. There was no doubt in her anywhere that she was made to fight. Henrik seemed either reluctant or unable to understand this. She could kind of understand where he was coming from, but as a man who she bore such respect, it cut her to the heart that he had such trouble either seeing or acknowledging her role in the grand scheme of things.
At the same time, Henrik, in his calling, heightened the sense Katessa had of a certain emptiness in the act of fighting for the sake of fighting, and the pursuit of power for the sake of power. She still wanted to be the greatest fighter in all the land, but she began to question what it meant to be such. She began to seek out wise men and women and to question them and talk with them at length, trying to satisfy the longing of her heart to know what it was that truly made the greatest fighter of all. All of a sudden, another drill session at the combat dummy and another jaunt through an orc cave just didn't seem to hold the answer anymore.
It was around this time that Fiona and another Tempurran, William, took Katessa to two of the realm's shrines to Tempus where they were invited to join the Order of the Steel Fang, one of the highest honors a Tempurran can receive. One of the requirements for joining was that an initiate would duel to the death against an equal or better opponent, and win. Katessa thought long and hard on this. Given the way the influence of her friends was taking her, she decided not to seek entrance into the order. Something about it did not seem right, to even be tempted to take someone's life for the sake of an honor, no matter how great an honor it might be, and even against someone who most would agree deserved to die. The thought that her judgment about who she should fight to kill and who she shouldn't might be influenced by a chance to join the order was enough that she turned it down.
Katessa continued to seek to discern where her heart was leading her. She spent more time around Henrik and the paladins, and one day, she decided she must swear to serve Henrik as his knight. As a servant of Ilmater, he was well acquainted with sacrifice, and suffering so that others need not. So, Katessa made up her mind that she would serve Henrik as his knight, so that she would fight in order that he would not need to. That she would take up that burden on his behalf, not just for the sake of fighting, but in order that Henrik's hands may remain clean of spilling blood. A sacrifice, in a sense, of battle so that he may not have to fight. All of sudden, Katessa's calling made sense. She would fight, not for those who couldn't fight, but for those who chose not to out of principles she respected.
When Katessa found Henrik and offered her service to him, he was somewhat surprised. He asked her, "Katessa, what makes you want to do this for me?" For her part, referring to the dedicated, loving care that he showed all living things, his humility, and all the other virtues he showed from the heart, she said to him, "After all you do, and the sort of person you show yourself to be, how can I possibly respond to that with anything other than humble submission?" Henrik was satisfied, and the agreement was made.
Time continued to pass, and it came to be that a certain Banite named Zyraxas began to plague her friend, Holance. Zyraxas had also committed a number of murders, including that of Purple Dragons, so the crown had put out a considerable bounty for his capture. Katessa longed to mash this man into powder, but he was very elusive, and she also understood he was more than a match for her in a fight. Still, she hoped for the chance to help her friends catch him and put an end to his threat in Cormyr for good.
The day came when Katessa went up to the triadic keep to visit her friends, Holance, Velisario, and Henrik. When she arrived, Holance and Velisario were sparring. At one point, Velisario challenged Henrik to spar, so Katessa, as his knight, immediately drew her scimitar and stepped forward, accepting the challenge on Henrik's behalf. Never before had Katessa felt so right about taking up a fight. It was the first time she'd ever stepped forward to fight on behalf of anyone else, and it felt like she finally found the true purpose she had been made for. The two sparred a bit, and Velisario won, and then she fought a losing bout again with Holance. But, none the less, there was no sting in defeat. She had done exactly what she felt she was made to do, and it felt entirely right.
Next, Velisario and Holance were to spar, so Katessa went down to the temple to offer some prayers, but on her way, she decided instead to go and see if the squires guarding the bridge would be game for a chat. She took out an orange and started to peel it to eat, and pulled up at the bridge. After they'd been chatting a minute or two, a strange man wearing a dark helm appeared at the bridge and addressed the female squire there. He began threatening her, and the two squires immediately started shouting that it was Zyraxas. Katessa immediately drank every potion she had on her, drew her scimitar, and shouted to the two squires to run for help while she held him off at the bridge ...
...
Near a snowy bluff, the wind whipped across the frozen landscape like a razor across exposed flesh. In a clear sky, the stars stood out in distinct clarity, the likes of which is hardly seen. Tucked into a sheltered cleft, a small fire glowed amidst a small number of temporary tents, in which slept a half dozen or so men. Slowly, a dim light began to arise just outside the circle of tents, growing gradually to a gentle, yellowish radiance. A gentle, female voice called out softly, "Warrior, awake." A moment passed, and again, the voice called out, slightly more strongly, "Warrior, awake."
Inside the nearest tent, Jaffrem Fensbain stirred and opened his eyes. "What is it?" he half-growled.
"Warrior, awake," the voice said again, remaining gentle in its tone, despite repeating itself for now the third time.
Jaffrem looked around inside the tent, his brow furrowed. He put his hand out towards the tent flap, paused a moment, and pulled it quickly aside. "Who in the hells are you?" he said, looking and sounding quite wary.
"I am Murimiel," the voice said. Slowly, a female form, clad in a white tabard overlaying gleaming silver scale mail faded into view. "I mean you no harm," she said. "Your brothers, they sleep. There is something you must see."
"Me?" he said. "Why me?"
Murimiel said, "There are some things the right to see is earned. The others must not see. Only you may come and behold."
"Alright," Jaffrem said. "Where are we going?" He climbed out of the tent, decking himself with his warmest furs.
"Not far," Murimiel said. "This way." Turning, she began to walk towards the bluff and along its edge. "What you are about to see is of importance to you. You may be shocked or dismayed. But it is believed that you will understand."
Jaffrem grunted. "Alright," he said. "Show me this thing."
Murimiel lifted a hand, and in the air off the edge of the bluff, a mote of light appeared and stretched in all dimensions until it was the size of a man in height, and half that across. The light shifted, taking on colors and shapes, until Jaffrem could see a bridge across a river, near a keep. The scene zoomed in, and he could see three forms standing there talking with each other. "Katessa ..." he said. "Where is she?"
Murimiel said, "If you wish, I can lower the vision. If this is difficult to watch."
"No!" he said. "No, I wish to see."
Murimiel nodded. In the image, a new form appeared, a dark helmed man. Threatening gestures were made, a woman in armor ran for the keep, and battle was joined between the newcomer, Katessa, and her ally.
"Katessa! Come on, girl, wreck him! Give him the hells!" Jaffrem shouted. "Come on, girl! Kick his arse!" Katessa's ally fell, and the enemy turned on her. "Come on, Kat! Kill him! Kill him!" The battle was ferocious, and both fought like truly skilled warriors. Jaffrem's heart rose with pride to see his sister stand as she did with such conviction against such a formidable opponent. "Come on, Katessa! You can do this! Come on!" As it became clear the battle was turning against her, Jaffrem fell to his knees, and shouted at the top of his lungs, "KATESSA! NO!" She fell to the ground, and Jaffrem fell silent, kneeling perfectly still, hoping beyond hope she was still alive.
The scene in the picture zoomed in again, and the helmed man picked Katessa up, tossed her weapon away, and pulled her up on her knees. As he put a blade to Katessa's throat, Jaffrem knew she was yet alive, because one normally does not threaten a corpse. A few minutes later, a half dozen armored souls came running into view from across the bridge.
"Stop," the helmed one said. "One step closer, and I kill her."
"She has no part in this," one of them said. "Release her."
Jaffrem couldn't hear everything being said, but he made out, "How many are you willing to allow to die for you?" "You are a murderer." "I made him what he is." It became clear to Jaffrem that the helmed one was trying to tempt a paladin to fall.
"Don't listen to him," Katessa said, apparently fighting for the paladin's soul. "Don't give in to him." The helmed one jerked her up a bit and threatened her again, tightening the dagger at her throat.
"That's it, Katessa," he said. "You're a fighter. You always were a fighter. You know how to fight. You're a Fensbain. Don't let this go unopposed. You know how to make your presence known." In the image, the group continued talking on the same lines as before. "Even with a dagger to your throat, my little sister makes her presence KNOWN!" Jaffrem roared the last word so loud it echoed across the valley below.
The view zoomed in further still. Jaffrem heard the helmed one hiss to Katessa, "And what of you? Are you willing to die for this paladin?"
Katessa steeled herself, straightened up, and said the words Jaffrem himself had repeated so many times in his father's lodge. "A true warrior dies every time he fights." He had spoken those words countless times. He now watched as his sister lived them. She took hold of the helmed man's arm with both hands and then shouted out, "Kill him! I have him! Take him before I fade!"
The image became indistinct, mercifully so, Jaffrem thought. But he saw the shapes of those gathered rushing forward. He saw the motion of the helmed one's arm. And he saw Katessa stand to her feet, hands at her throat, then drop to her knees, and then fall forward into the snow.
The image slowly faded into darkness. Jaffrem knelt on the bluff overlooking the snow covered valley below, in stunned silence. His heart swirled with a mixture of loss, grief, and pride. He looked around himself, and Murimiel was nowhere to be seen. He was now alone in the darkened snow beneath the night sky, one filled with the most brilliant stars he had ever seen.
Jaffrem's eyes closed. It took a minute or so, but his eyes began to stream with tears, and one of the mightiest warriors the north had ever seen began to weep, brought to the point of abject surrender by the weight of almighty love.
...
Three tendays later, the Fensbain Boys had tracked into Silverymoon, laden with treasures and trophies once more. While they were all carousing about the city, Jaffrem came out of a parlor, about to put on his shirt. On his chest was a new tattoo, one of a tower shield crossed with a scimitar, and all bound with the cords of Ilmater.
"What's this," Orgid said, seeing the tattoo.
Jaffrem gave an easy smile and said, "It's a symbol. An inspiration. It' a representation of the greatest warrior the north has ever known."
"Anyone we'd know?" Jezelm asked.
Jaffrem chuckled as he thought for a moment. "Nah," he said. "I'm pretty sure you don't know this one. In fact, I'd say you never met."
|
|
malleus
Old School
The first breath is the beginning of death.
Posts: 450
|
Post by malleus on Sept 19, 2014 5:20:15 GMT -5
Time continued to pass, and it came to be that a certain Banite named Zyraxas began to plague her friend, Holance. Zyraxas had also committed a number of murders, including that of Purple Dragons, so the crown had put out a considerable bounty for his capture. Katessa longed to mash this man into powder, but he was very elusive, and she also understood he was more than a match for her in a fight. Still, she hoped for the chance to help her friends catch him and put an end to his threat in Cormyr for good. The day came when Katessa went up to the triadic keep to visit her friends, Holance, Velisario, and Henrik. When she arrived, Holance and Velisario were sparring. At one point, Velisario challenged Henrik to spar, so Katessa, as his knight, immediately drew her scimitar and stepped forward, accepting the challenge on Henrik's behalf. Never before had Katessa felt so right about taking up a fight. It was the first time she'd ever stepped forward to fight on behalf of anyone else, and it felt like she finally found the true purpose she had been made for. The two sparred a bit, and Velisario won, and then she fought a losing bout again with Holance. But, none the less, there was no sting in defeat. She had done exactly what she felt she was made to do, and it felt entirely right. Next, Velisario and Holance were to spar, so Katessa went down to the temple to offer some prayers, but on her way, she decided instead to go and see if the squires guarding the bridge would be game for a chat. She took out an orange and started to peel it to eat, and pulled up at the bridge. After they'd been chatting a minute or two, a strange man wearing a dark helm appeared at the bridge and addressed the female squire there. He began threatening her, and the two squires immediately started shouting that it was Zyraxas. Katessa immediately drank every potion she had on her, drew her scimitar, and shouted to the two squires to run for help while she held him off at the bridge ... ... Near a snowy bluff, the wind whipped across the frozen landscape like a razor across exposed flesh. In a clear sky, the stars stood out in distinct clarity, the likes of which is hardly seen. Tucked into a sheltered cleft, a small fire glowed amidst a small number of temporary tents, in which slept a half dozen or so men. Slowly, a dim light began to arise just outside the circle of tents, growing gradually to a gentle, yellowish radiance. A gentle, female voice called out softly, "Warrior, awake." A moment passed, and again, the voice called out, slightly more strongly, "Warrior, awake." Inside the nearest tent, Jaffrem Fensbain stirred and opened his eyes. "What is it?" he half-growled. "Warrior, awake," the voice said again, remaining gentle in its tone, despite repeating itself for now the third time. Jaffrem looked around inside the tent, his brow furrowed. He put his hand out towards the tent flap, paused a moment, and pulled it quickly aside. "Who in the hells are you?" he said, looking and sounding quite wary. "I am Murimiel," the voice said. Slowly, a female form, clad in a white tabard overlaying gleaming silver scale mail faded into view. "I mean you no harm," she said. "Your brothers, they sleep. There is something you must see." "Me?" he said. "Why me?" Murimiel said, "There are some things the right to see is earned. The others must not see. Only you may come and behold." "Alright," Jaffrem said. "Where are we going?" He climbed out of the tent, decking himself with his warmest furs. "Not far," Murimiel said. "This way." Turning, she began to walk towards the bluff and along its edge. "What you are about to see is of importance to you. You may be shocked or dismayed. But it is believed that you will understand." Jaffrem grunted. "Alright," he said. "Show me this thing." Murimiel lifted a hand, and in the air off the edge of the bluff, a mote of light appeared and stretched in all dimensions until it was the size of a man in height, and half that across. The light shifted, taking on colors and shapes, until Jaffrem could see a bridge across a river, near a keep. The scene zoomed in, and he could see three forms standing there talking with each other. "Katessa ..." he said. "Where is she?" Murimiel said, "If you wish, I can lower the vision. If this is difficult to watch." "No!" he said. "No, I wish to see." Murimiel nodded. In the image, a new form appeared, a dark helmed man. Threatening gestures were made, a woman in armor ran for the keep, and battle was joined between the newcomer, Katessa, and her ally. "Katessa! Come on, girl, wreck him! Give him the hells!" Jaffrem shouted. "Come on, girl! Kick his arse!" Katessa's ally fell, and the enemy turned on her. "Come on, Kat! Kill him! Kill him!" The battle was ferocious, and both fought like truly skilled warriors. Jaffrem's heart rose with pride to see his sister stand as she did with such conviction against such a formidable opponent. "Come on, Katessa! You can do this! Come on!" As it became clear the battle was turning against her, Jaffrem fell to his knees, and shouted at the top of his lungs, "KATESSA! NO!" She fell to the ground, and Jaffrem fell silent, kneeling perfectly still, hoping beyond hope she was still alive. The scene in the picture zoomed in again, and the helmed man picked Katessa up, tossed her weapon away, and pulled her up on her knees. As he put a blade to Katessa's throat, Jaffrem knew she was yet alive, because one normally does not threaten a corpse. A few minutes later, a half dozen armored souls came running into view from across the bridge. "Stop," the helmed one said. "One step closer, and I kill her." "She has no part in this," one of them said. "Release her." Jaffrem couldn't hear everything being said, but he made out, "How many are you willing to allow to die for you?" "You are a murderer." "I made him what he is." It became clear to Jaffrem that the helmed one was trying to tempt a paladin to fall. "Don't listen to him," Katessa said, apparently fighting for the paladin's soul. "Don't give in to him." The helmed one jerked her up a bit and threatened her again, tightening the dagger at her throat. "That's it, Katessa," he said. "You're a fighter. You always were a fighter. You know how to fight. You're a Fensbain. Don't let this go unopposed. You know how to make your presence known." In the image, the group continued talking on the same lines as before. "Even with a dagger to your throat, my little sister makes her presence KNOWN!" Jaffrem roared the last word so loud it echoed across the valley below. The view zoomed in further still. Jaffrem heard the helmed one hiss to Katessa, "And what of you? Are you willing to die for this paladin?" Katessa steeled herself, straightened up, and said the words Jaffrem himself had repeated so many times in his father's lodge. "A true warrior dies every time he fights." He had spoken those words countless times. He now watched as his sister lived them. She took hold of the helmed man's arm with both hands and then shouted out, "Kill him! I have him! Take him before I fade!" The image became indistinct, mercifully so, Jaffrem thought. But he saw the shapes of those gathered rushing forward. He saw the motion of the helmed one's arm. And he saw Katessa stand to her feet, hands at her throat, then drop to her knees, and then fall forward into the snow. The image slowly faded into darkness. Jaffrem knelt on the bluff overlooking the snow covered valley below, in stunned silence. His heart swirled with a mixture of loss, grief, and pride. He looked around himself, and Murimiel was nowhere to be seen. He was now alone in the darkened snow beneath the night sky, one filled with the most brilliant stars he had ever seen. Jaffrem's eyes closed. It took a minute or so, but his eyes began to stream with tears, and one of the mightiest warriors the north had ever seen began to weep, brought to the point of abject surrender by the weight of almighty love. ... Three tendays later, the Fensbain Boys had tracked into Silverymoon, laden with treasures and trophies once more. While they were all carousing about the city, Jaffrem came out of a parlor, about to put on his shirt. On his chest was a new tattoo, one of a tower shield crossed with a scimitar, and all bound with the cords of Ilmater. "What's this," Orgid said, seeing the tattoo. Jaffrem gave an easy smile and said, "It's a symbol. An inspiration. It' a representation of the greatest warrior the north has ever known." "Anyone we'd know?" Jezelm asked. Jaffrem chuckled as he thought for a moment. "Nah," he said. "I'm pretty sure you don't know this one. In fact, I'd say you never met." Super nice story and Again thanks for letting me be a part of it  |
|
