Fallen Seraph - Chapter 1 - Before
A short woman in a plain brown tunic stood stoiclly in the midst of golden wheat growing healthily in the bottom of a flourishing valley. A small breeze was kicking up every now and again, and her long, curly, pure white hair occasionally waved in the air. The day was coming to a close and the sun was drifting behind the far side of the valley, bathing her in golden light as if she were a celestial mother goddess.
A young adult bugbear, still very tall and muscular compared to the normal human, waded through the grains, leaving a feint trail of bent stalks behind him. He dipped his head slightly and spoke in a deep voice with the hint of an unintended growl, "M'lady, the duergar have arrived to tend to the farm." The woman turned to the bugbear, and looked up at him. Her eyes were devoid of any color, whiter than the normal blind man's gaze, yet somehow she still was able to come off as the obvious one in charge. "Thank-you Torunz, I guess we shall greet them before heading home," yet there was a pause on the last word that made the bugbear wonder if she even wanted to depart.
The two walked back to the barn where a very large group of dwarven-statured, gray-skinned men were emerging from the nearby mountain, scowling at the setting sun. They slightly straightened as the daunting woman approached. The woman gave them a quick smile that was replaced by her previous stern stare and went through her daily routine of thanking the duergar before she left with Torunz in tow. Into the small nearby farmhouse she disappeared, only to emerge a force to be reckoned with, fully clothed in dastard full plate; mithril shield and masterwork longsword at her side.
Her name is Serafina Marie Verona, antipaladin of the devil god Asmodeus, and this is her story.
The farm that Serafina had established in the valley was a part of a much larger region called the Caer Byrn, which in turn was the great, feral, forested area of Talingarde. Within the Caer Byrn was an odd bit of land called the spires that was pocked with tall stone spikes jutting from the earth. Only recently had one of the spires changed dramatically into what legend had described as the Horn of Abaddon, a desecrated spike slicing into the sky with three eyes and a maw carved into it, turned black and daunting with an aura of evil and a veil of pestilence that seemed to hang over its entirety. This devilish landmark was what Serafina had referred to as home, and would be so for almost the whole of a year.
She walked into the large spire through the lower left eye, or cave rather, with her bug bear lieutenant Torunz in tow. The two were sure to avoid the traps that had been set for unwanted visitors, stepping past glyphs of warding, pit traps, and making sure not to trip the ballista housed at the end of the entrance hall. Once down the hall they were greeted by three bloody skeletons, who creaked with every sway, skulls in a permanent state of grinning blindly. Serafina patted them all on the head as if they were dogs, walking past into the main hall that split off into various rooms surrounding an old fountain.
The sound of sizzling and a small explosion could be heard from one of the doors, where smoke and cursing erupted from under the doorway. As Serafina was walking by, a very tall, metal golem rushed out with a bucket, running to the fountain, filling it with water and returning to put out the small fire in the room. From the smoke appeared a man, whose face was half-scarred from a burn and he side-eyed Serafina as he coughed. They nodded to each other and the antipaladin went on her way to the end of the hall.
The man was named Victor, and that was the basis for all Serafina knew of him. She had only come to assume from various conversations that he had been burned in some way by the law enforcement of Talingarde, but she wasn"t even completely sure if she was interpreting this right. But he could make a mean bomb, deadly poisons, and his alchemical skills were to be envied. The alchemical golem was named Artephius and had been revived by Victor, becoming an exstension of the alchemist, and a very frightening force in his own right within a battle.
Alchemy was something Serafina knew nothing of and she avoided the labratory. She never even asked Victor for any potions, anything she bought was from the nearby town of Farholde. Ever since she had become a fallen paladin, it was harder for her to trust others, and she was still adjusting to having to rely on the group she had been somewhat forced to join. There was a tiefling cleric of Asmodeus named Lesciel and another tiefling named Llevos, previously thought of as androgynous, but signs of her femininity were beginning to show, that also lived in the horn with their cohorts. The circumstances of their meeting were odd ones indeed, and Serafina had promised to tell Torunz about it at the Death's Head bar within the horn that night.
A few of the dark skinned duergar were seated in the bar drinking and eating before heading out into the night. As Serafina walked through the doorway, a hush fell over the place, and loud laughs became whispers and seriousness. The white-haired mistress ordered two meads at the bar and while sipping from one, turned towards everyone. She glowered at them, and said calmly, "I'm not here to stop your rabble rousing, get back to your drinks and laughing." The volume slowly rose after her proclamation, until a few minutes later when the darkened dwarves felt it safe to go back to there normal selves.
Torunz followed Serafina to a small table built for two, holding a total of 4 pints in his hands. He planned on having them all downed, by him and mostly by Serafina, in order to hear all of his promised story that night. For a moment the two sat quietly, sipping their glasses, until Torunz spoke up, "Well?"
"Well, what?"
"You promised to tell me how the four of you came together."
For a moment the anti-paladin groaned, having hoped the bugbear had forgotten, but she decided better of it and took another drink before starting. "I had been blessed with control of an army of undead by Asmodeus and was ordered to march on the capital city of Matharyn. I was going to lead Talingarde into a time of freedom, where every man had the right to worship, but Asmodeus would be back in his rightful place as chief deity. Well, the assault started strong, churches and shrines being defaced, some burnt to the ground. But it wasn't until we approached the castle walls, that everything that could've gone wrong, went wrong."
Torunz was wide-eyed and spoke up, "You were the head of that assault? The mitrans did a well enough job at hushing everyone from spreading the news, but it still reached even our bearbug camps." Serafina stared at Torunz, unamusedly at interrupting her, and he lowered his head with a, "Sorry." "As I was saying, nothing went right that night, but I've come to realize that Asmodeus let me fail in order to become stronger. As my army was coming through the trees, he left us naked and vulnerable, and Mitra jumped at the chance to strike lightening down upon the forest and a fire quickly enveloped the landscape, destroying the majority of my army. When we emerged, what was left that is, soldiers, clerics, inquisitors and paladins were waiting for us. The same men who had trained me and whom I had fought beside in the name of Mitra were now standing in front of me, killing my men, and surrounding me, beating the butts of their swords and their ironclad fists into my face until everything went black. It was after that, I awoke in rags and shackles, being dragged into a cell at Branderscar prison. And that is how I met the others, by being chained to a wall waiting for death to come to us."
Torunz was beyond intrigued by the short anecdote and exclaimed, "Why had they been sent to the prison? How did you escape?" Serafina started upon her second drink and said, "That's a story for another night. I do not feel like travelling down memory lane right now."
"But you've only just reached the most exciting pa-"
"Not tonight, Torunz."
The bugbear frowned but didn't push the matter. He had been lucky enough to join the group on their momentous journey, and he didn't want to risk angering his mentor. Serafina sensed the disappointment and decided to say, "Curiousity is something I value in an individual. I will reward you for it one day with the next chapter of my story."
Night had fully set in after the drinks were downed, and Serafina could feel herself becoming drunk. She was a giddy, flirtatious sort when she was, and that was the exact opposite of what she wanted to be seen as, so after bidding Torunz a good night, the armor-clad woman left the inn for her room on the same floor.
She sat on the feather stuffed bed, a fashioning of her own from the fowls on her farm, and let her face fall in her hands. The locking gauntlets felt cold upon her hot skin, and she welcomed the feeling before allowing herself to cry. Serafina had been raised in a loving family, and in her adult life, had that ripped away from her. Not a night went by where she did not think of her mother, her father, her younger twin brothers, and her grandmother. They were all she had had, and when they had left, Asmodeus had filled the void, but he had only filled it with anger and loneliness. The anti-paladin had grown up surrounded by family and love, but in this moment she cried. She cried for what she would never have again.
A/N Hello everyone! Welcome to my newest story, based upon my rpg group's pathfinder: Way of the wicked campaign. There are spoilers in here about the game so if you wish to not know them...you may not want to read my story heh. Anyways, I wrote this in between writing my next chapter for Sangreal, so keep a look out for that next chapter too, but anyways, reviews, suggestions, corrections and anything else are welcomed!