"Unfortunately, it is often our conflicts that define us

I grabbed another chicken leg, hastily scarfing it down before reaching for the water beside me. I drank down the liquid even as I cried tears of joy at having food. My thoughts briefly drifted to those who were not here with us today. A glance at a sad looking Alistair, who ate with no gusto, but with a sad pace dominating his movements, the absence of his wife and eleven daughters being a more mind-hazing experience than the strong wine he drank.

My eyes continued to wander along the hall, spying faces both overjoyed and forlorn. Unconsciously I began to list off names of those who had lost someone. There was Freja, whose infant brother was carried off by a small nevermore, Juul, who watched his father die after being poisoned by a deathstalker.

The list went on and on, a myriad of deaths for a myriad of faces. I snorted, chuckling to myself at the poetic likeness of it all. Here they were, a thousand miles from home because they could not face adversity, and they were turned away because those they sought help from would not face adversity, now they owed loyalty to a new Lord because he had to face adversity.

Really puts things into perspective doesn't it?

I realize that I am unimportant in the grand scheme of things, one individual among many, one man among millions. Utterly unremarkable. A pawn. A tool used to fight adversity by creating adversity of its own.

A soldier in an army, and one lost soldier is not viewed in a negative light.

Did that mean I was inconsequential? That I am easily thrown away? Surely someone as inconsequential as I will have no effect on the greater scheme of things.

But even my actions have consequences, consequences that will last for eternity. If I went and killed all of the council that rejected us, the council would simply be replaced, my actions would be utterly reversed. I acknowledge this as true, as water removed from an ocean will always find its way back.

Though the fact it was removed lasts forever.

No matter what, if the council was replaced and lasted a thousand years, the fact that I killed the first council will always be true, even if the people forgot, the world never would. The very face of existence would be marred a d reshaped into a new visage by the hands of fate, should fate exist at all.

Truly, any individuals actions, no matter how small, change the face of reality irreversibly. That while I may be insignificant in the scheme of my betters is true, I possess the power to change those schemes, for both good and evil.

I may be insignificant, but I am anything but.

I was brought out of my musings by a pack of children running around the table, bumping into everything and knocking over plates of food and drink. My arm struck out, grabbing the biggest child in the group, before promptly swatting him with the flat of my axe several times. He cried out and teared up, struggling to get out of my grip. I swatted him again for good measure, before turning his head to look at me.

"Quit your damn foolishness and show some respect! If I catch you acting up again I'll string you from the ceiling and have you hold torches! Teach those other children to behave, or I'll find you again!"

I promptly shoved the child off my knee, wathcing him scramble on the floor before hurriedly getting up and speedibg away.

Not before muttering something under his breath.

Again, my hand struck out, grabbing him by the neck and bringing him up to my eye level. I could see the fear in his eyes just as I was sure he could see the anger in mine.

"Care to explain what you said you miserable whelp? My ears must be clogged from all the damned snow!"

"I didn't say anything! I swear!"

"lying now, huh? Your silver tongue is worth alot I'd bet, I might just melt it down and sell it after I cut it out of your decieving head! You spilled the food that our saviosavior has given us and I'm going to take the worth out of your hide!"

I picked him up by his armpits, and carried him outside into the cold, grabbing a plate and a bottle of some reddish liquid along the way.

I placed him down in the snow, his small body only covered by a pair of pants and a snow skirt made of fur, shivered as the wind blew across his bare chest, his skin bumping up at the caress of lady winter's fingers. I pulled his arms straight out and placed the plate and bottle in his hands. I stepped back and observed how he stood, like a servant offering ale to his lord.

"You're going to damn well stay there until I say otherwise and don't you move or let that plate fall or I'll break my axe across your back!"

I turned and went inside, fuming at the foolishness of children. These blasted youths didn't understand the effort it took to get here, the effort I put in to save them! So they ran around and wasted food people would have murdered for a day earlier, wasted food people had murdered for!

I brought my food and drink back to a window from where I could observe the child from, and with a quick glance I assured myself that he was still in that pose, though he was balling his eyes out now. I rolled my eyes at his behavior and continued with my meal, savoring the way the meat tasted, and the way the rich wine felt.

Spearing a green something off my plate, I brought it before me, before promptly snapping my jaws around it. I smiled and laughed to myself, the reality that I was eating finally sinking in. I was finally eating food! Finally drinking something not contaminated with piss or murky with some bumbling old man's filth. I had endured, and my reward was food I could be thankful for.

What of those who had not endured?

How many people had died before they could experience this? My thoughts drifted to that little girl who fell through the ice, had fate been a little kinder, she would be here with us, eating and drinking.

It wasn't right that we should reap our rewards with such gusto, forgetting those that attempted alongside us.

I lifted up my glass, standing up as I turned to the victors inside Beacon's hall.

"I propose a toast!"

Everyone turned to look at me, expectant.

"To those who are not with us today! To those who braved the earth's cold fury, and did not make it to see her next bright summer! To those who sat alongside us, who fought alongside us. To our brothers, our fathers, or sisters and our mothers, to our sons and daughters! Though the ice has claimed her pound of flesh, and the wind has claimed the land of our bones, here do we stand!"

Several people had now stood, raising up their glasses and mugs.

"Here do we stand in the face of adversity! Here we stand triumphant and victorious, despite all that have died, we survived to carry on their memory! So let us toast to those who have been lost, to honor them with our survival!"

"HUZZAH!"

The cry went up, the entire hall reverbrating with our shouts, and echoing in the distance.

The cry settled down, and we went to finish our food. I briefly peeked out the window and saw that the boy was still standing there, still crying.

I knocked on the window, and once I got his attention I motioned him inside.

I've never seen someone run so fast.

Soon however, the meal was over, and we all settled around the hall to sleep, careless of what we slept on, just happy to be out of the cold.

My name is Wulfknoth Reave.

And I have survived.

"To be without fear is not courage, it is enduring even with fear that is."

The second chapter has been finished! While short, I was hoping to lay some groundwork for this character! Hopefully it all works out. If you have any ideas please PM me. Favs and reviews are welcome!