Here's pretty much the end of Katherine's (bloody) career as the Master of Death. Sorry for the delay, took me a while before I even got enough to writing this chapter. This particular segment of Katherine's life is inspired by the tactician's backstory from the fic "Hammer of Terrascars", but also Tywin Lannister (A Song of Ice and Fire, or Game of Thrones if you haven't read the books).

Enjoy!

Midnight Conversation

(Etruria)

Born and raised in the knightly environment of Lycia's most prominent noble houses, Hector and Eliwood had been taught to follow the ideals of chivalry. Although both had heard stories of the Master of Death's ruthlessness and cruelty, Eliwood's idealistic nature and desire to not judge people meant that he was more willing to give Katherine the benefit of the doubt. On the other hand, Hector was well known for his straightforward mannerisms and reckless personality, which, along with the way he would sometimes let his emotions get the best of him, explained why he was so hostile towards her.

"Is there something you'd like to say, Lord Hector?" Katherine asked. The blue haired lord's only response was to glare at her. "Very well. Whatever you may think of me, I was a tactician in service to Etruria and I took my job seriously. I did not make people suffer simply for pleasure."

"That doesn't wash away all the blood on your hands," Hector said bluntly.

"I know," Katherine replied, taking his words in stride. She paused for a moment to take another sip of wine and continued her story. "I spent eight years working as the Master of Death. To recount everything would take too long, but there were three conflicts in particular worth mention. The War of the Western Isles was the first, the second happened a few years later. A gang of outlaws had been causing trouble in Etruria for some time, mostly just complaining about the government being corrupt, it's behaviour during the war, and that Etruria would employ someone as extreme as the Master of Death. All in all, little more than a minor nuisance. Then they were joined by mercenaries and survivors from the Western Isles, most notably the Bandit King's son, or 'Radcliff One-Eye' if you will, who named them the Springwood Jackals. From there they kidnapped several nobles, evaded early attempts to capture them and even attacked me, not to mention Princess Elizabeth's escort, the king's own sister."

"Really?" Eliwood piped up. "I heard stories about the Springwood Jackals when I was a boy. They were thieves and lawbreakers, yes, but they were at least seen as sympathetic to the common man. Actually, I remember a bard who came to Pherae when I was a boy and sang a ballad that went something like this…"

"Beware the Springwood Jackals, that merry band of wily rascals. They'll steal a noble's fortune down to his lace, they'll laugh at any soldier as he gives chase. No poor man need fear that something's amiss, though fair maiden may find one stealing a kiss. Far and wide across the land, people cheer that outlaw band."

Katherine gave him a flat look for several seconds, then began reciting a piece herself.

"When they robbed the princess of her jewels, the king cried: 'Do they take me for a fool?' He called an army and told the general: 'Hunt them all down and clear out this rabble.' Radcliff One-Eye was good at hiding, but could not match the general's cunning. With careful planning he laid out a trap, and caught some jackals as if they were rats. Once he was done he came for their friends, surrounded their home and this was the end. They cursed their enemy with their last breath, that man they call… Master of Death."

The lords stared at Katherine in silence once she was finished. "I've heard the ballads too," she explained. "Anyway, as you can imagine, the powers that be were none too pleased, so they ordered me to crush the outlaws. I was joined by the Mage General, who was betrothed to Princess Elizabeth and wished to 'avenge his honour'. Despite his aid, four months went by and we were no closer to finding them. Like Eliwood said, they were seen as sympathetic to the common man, so I decided to use that to my advantage."

"How did you accomplish this?" Lyn inquired, curious.

"There was a small village I suspected was involved with the outlaws. One night we evacuated the entire village in utmost secrecy, removed every man, woman and child and put soldiers in their places. We even had the soldiers' families join them to complete the illusion. Then we waited patiently until one day some of the outlaws came through, and before they knew it, the trap was sprung."

"What did you do with the villagers?" Eliwood asked, a cautious look on his face.

"We took them to our camp and held them captive until our work was done. We couldn't just let them go free and risk alerting anyone," she explained, seeing Hector's disapproving frown. "Once the Jackals were subdued, they were persuaded to give up the location of their hideout. If you must know, the fact that they followed the Bandit King's son meant they knew what I was capable of, so it wasn't all that hard to make them talk."

"'What you're willing to do doesn't matter as much as what they think you'll do'," Lyn said, recalling a moment during the Caelin campaign when Katherine had said those words.

The tactician nodded at her friend. "Exactly. We found Radcliff and the rest of the Jackals entrenched in an old fort in the forest. I had my men build a makeshift shelter to give them cover, then they started hammering the gates."

"That sounds oddly… straightforward of you," Lyn remarked. "Unless… it was a distraction, wasn't it?"

Katherine smiled in amusement at this. "You know me too well, Lyn. We made a big show of trying to break down the gates, while some of the Mage General's men snuck around the back, scaled the walls and set fire to the fort. By the time the Jackals realized what was happening, it was too late. Radcliff chose to kill himself rather than face Etruria's judgement, while the others tried to break through and escape, only to be killed or taken captive. We brought all our prisoners to the capital, but the nobility needed to make an example of someone, and with Radcliff dead…"

"You mean…" Eliwood muttered, looking as if he was dreading the answer.

Katherine locked eyes with the Pheraen lord, and gave him a look that was dead serious. "The person I was back then had no problems carrying out such orders. Besides, that's not the worst thing I've done."

"What the hell could be worse than than the butchery you-?" Hector began, only for Eliwood to interrupt.

"House Goldmoore."

"I'm sorry, what's House Goldmoore?" Lyn asked, her brow furrowed in confusion.

"House Goldmoore was one of the minor noble families in Etruria," Eliwood explained. "They… no longer exist."

"What hap-?" Lyn cut herself off, then slowly turned her head to look at Katherine.

"I happened," the tactician said, casually taking a sip of wine. "To understand the circumstances behind the fall of House Goldmoore, you need to know a little about House Osbrandt. You see, House Osbrandt is one of Etruria's most influential families, next to Reglay and Caerlon. Years back, they were owed a great deal of money, in particular by House Blackwell and Goldmoore, two of their vassals. The Count Osbrandt of the time was a weak man, to the point that when he'd broach the subject of payment, people would simply laugh it off and insist that they'd pay him back later. During my last year in Etruria the Count died of heart problems and his son took his place. The new count was already fed up with the way people mocked his family's name, so he asked for my help. Now, he'd already gone against Lord Blackwell and Goldmoore in the past, but his father intervened before anyone died. This time, things went differently…"

Flashback

A lavish ball had been arranged to celebrate the ascension of the new Count Osbrandt after his father's death due to a weak heart. A magnificent crystal chandelier hung from the ballroom ceiling, servants stood at the ready with refreshments, and guests in fine clothes were dancing, drinking and socializing. A grey haired nobleman with a bushy moustache was speaking with a younger, clean shaven noble with slick blond hair when a new voice interrupted. "Lord Blackwell." The two nobles jumped in surprise, then turned around and noticed a slim brunette man with sharp green eyes standing nearby, dressed in a black military style coat and cape. "A pleasure to see you again," Mark said smoothly.

"Ah, yes…" Lord Blackwell replied, taking a second to clear his throat. "Fancy seeing you here."

Despite the older man's attempt to maintain his composure Mark noticed his hand twitching, but made no mention of this and nodded politely before focusing on his companion. "And unless I'm mistaken, you must be Lord Goldmoore."

"And you are…?" the blond haired man asked, a bored look on his face.

"Of course, where are my manners? Mark, of House Westburn. Or General Mark, if you will."

"Yes, pleasure meeting you. Hmm… You do seem somewhat familiar…" Lord Blackwell leaned in to whisper in his ear. Lord Goldmoore's eyes widened in surprise for a second, before he put on a more respectful expression. "My apologies, General. I didn't recognize you."

"That's alright, no harm done," Mark said reassuringly. He beckoned one of the servants over and grabbed three drinks, passing them each one. As the servant walked away, he raised his glass to make a toast. "To the new Count Osbrandt. Long may he rule."

"Long may he rule," the lords echoed, raising their glasses.

Over the course of their conversation, they talked about foreign affairs, politics, court gossip and such. Mark also explained how the current Count Osbrandt had advocated to hire him as tactician when he'd first come to the court, and that they'd fought together in the War of the Western Isles. Mark discreetly observed the two lords' behaviour, noticing that while Lord Goldmoore showed him a measure of respect, he wasn't intimidated by him the same way Lord Blackwell was.

"My lords, can you keep a secret?" Mark asked, lowering his voice so only they would hear.

"Please, do tell," Lord Goldmoore replied, seemingly interested in what Mark had to say.

"Well… I've spoken to the new count and just between the three of us, he tells me he's been having trouble with disloyal vassals. He asked if I might help him deal with them, and I'm considering lending him my services. I'm not sure which vassals he was referring to, but for their sake, I hope they behave. After all, and not to flatter myself, but there's a reason people call me the Master of Death." A spark of magic flickered in Mark's eyes as he gave them both a pointed look, causing Lord Blackwell to go pale. For his part, Lord Goldmoore still seemed to carry himself with a typical nobleman's self assurance. Mark's expression suddenly changed, putting on a friendly smile, although it didn't reach his eyes. "My lords, it's been a pleasure, but I'm afraid I must attend to some business. Take care of yourselves." Mark gave them a short bow, then turned around with a swish of his cape and walked away.

Flashback End

"Despite our conversation, Lord Goldmoore believed that Count Osbrandt was bluffing and didn't pay him back," Katherine said. "In response, the Count sent out an official order demanding the immediate repayment of his father's loans. Anyone who refused would have their lands and assets seized, be stripped of any titles, thrown in the dungeon and tried for treason. As expected, Lord Goldmoore responded by rising up in rebellion and renouncing fealty to House Osbrandt."

"You knew what was going to happen?" Lyn inquired.

"Another quote I read from Markus Pathfinder was: 'Know your enemy'. I already knew about Lord Goldmoore, but the ball allowed me to meet him in person, to test him and observe his reaction. And afterwards, I knew Goldmoore had no intention of paying back the money he owed, so I advised Count Osbrandt to threaten severe sanctions in order to provoke him into rebelling."

The Sacaen girl still seemed confused, so Katherine looked at Eliwood, silently prompting him to speak up. "You needed an excuse," he guessed, looking back at the tactician "And an open rebellion would allow you to take military action against him."

"Correct," she replied calmly. "Having prepared in advance, we moved swiftly to cut off Lord Goldmoore from any allies. I sent a host to deal with House Caulston, a minor house allied with Goldmoore. A team of mages blew up the main gate, allowing the others to storm the castle and take the garrison captive without a single casualty. At the same time, I met with Lord Blackwell personally and convinced him to surrender without a fight."

"You just walked into his castle… alone?" Eliwood asked. "And he gave up just like that?"

"Speed and the element of surprise were important to this plan," Katherine explained. "Lord Blackwell had seen me at work in the War of the Western Isles, so I used my reputation, as well as the fact that he was intimidated by me, to apply the right amount of pressure, and…" Katherine snapped her fingers for emphasis. "Suddenly Lord Goldmoore was all alone." The three lords sat there in silence, stunned by her boldness. "Once the news reached Lord Goldmoore, he panicked and rode out to meet us with what troops he could gather, but we outmaneuvered him and smashed through his forces with considerable ease. By the time he fled back to his castle, most of his men were dead or dying."

Katherine glanced at her glass for a second, then finished the last bit of wine and set it aside. "Goldmoore's castle had been built centuries past, atop an old mine to guard his family's wealth. After the gold ran out, one of his ancestors converted the mine into rooms to expand the castle underground. Lord Goldmoore had no hope of defending the entire castle against us, so he and his people barricaded themselves in the mines below. He thought that I wouldn't try to fight my way inside the mines, that he could force me into a protracted siege. He was only half right."

"How did you beat him?" Lyn spoke softly.

"With another lesson in natural sciences, and the creative application of magic. Rapidly cool a boulder that's been heated up, and cracks will appear. If water should get into those cracks and then freeze, it will expand, making the cracks wider. When the ice melts, water trickles down further into the cracks. By striking key locations, all we needed was to add more water, repeat the process, and eventually…" Katherine clapped her hands together to punctuate her statement. Hector glared at her angrily, Eliwood looked down in disappointment, while Lyn covered her mouth with one hand. "And that's how the rebellion came to an end: With Lord Goldmoore, his family, and hundreds of men, women and children crushed under tons of rubble."

Hope you liked it, please review, and next update (whenever that happens) will see Katherine moving on to her life in Bern.