Fyrisvellir's yellow eyes narrowed in the darkness. Amidst the fires and smoke of the siege of McDunnalds, it was hard to spot her foe. Her eye's did not possess special qualities like that of her mentor , but she remained focused even through the smoke and fires of the siege. Her patience paid off as a troop of goblins tentatively broke cover. The lead goblin looked nervously as he tested the safety of the street. He took a few steps , then relaxed a bit. The rest of his fellows quickly followed him as they made their way down the street.
Fyris let the first one past, and then the second and third. The fourth however faced the force of her wrath. She said a quick prayer to Mirrodin , then her arrow flew true and deftly found its mark. The hobgoblin fell gurgling with an arrow in its throat. The others panicked and roar. The second goblin fired its crude bow randomly in the darkness, no doubt seeing his mysterious attacker in the shadows and the smoke. The third tried to run back into the cover of the building , but an arrow pierced its leg bringing him crashing to the ground. The first goblin was the smartest and ran ahead, separating itself from its fellows.
Another 2 arrows brought down the one with the crude bow. She sneered at the crude weapon. It lacked the power and the grace of her elven longbow. It was fairly useless in combat unless fired en mass . The goblins relied on their sheer number of arrows rather then skill and accuracy.
She heard the goblins and hobgoblins shriek at one another . Goblin was one of the many languages Fyris had mastered in her young life. They were cursing each other and their scout. The pinned hobgoblin yelled for its fellows to help him, though the others refused. The hobgoblin swore at them, then shouted if the sniper was still there he would have been shot by now. A few tense moments later, 2 lone goblins were pushed out of the building , they quickly ran to their down comrade and attempted to pull him back into cover.
Fyris fired two more arrows, and both goblins fell from her deadly bow . The fallen hobgoblin screamed and cursed into the darkness. She waited a few more seconds to see if more "help would come" and then fired another into the wounded hobgoblin. Putting him out of his misery. She frowned , the 2 goblins were probably forced or threatened to get their comrade, rather then selflessly running to their comrades aid. Regardless, it was war, and she had no time to be merciful.
Captain Fyris shouted into the darkness in goblin, " Come out...I can wait here all night! ". She was confident they were sufficiently scared now and slipped catlike out of her cover. She wore a green and white elven cloak , given to her by her mentor Princess Brita of the Ice Elves, it helped her already formidable hiding skills and let her stalk out of the abandoned house she used as a sniper position. She quickly but silently crept through the darkness. The young captain was wearing a breast plate, but like the rest of her gear it was elven in manufacture . Her movements were subtle and she flowed through the darkness like a whisper or a shadow. Even Elven and halfling scouts were astonished at her skill in moving through the darkness, she was a natural at it and they said her skills were wasted as a holy knight of Mirrodin.
Fyris always wore the traditional silver broadsword of her order, but she preferred the size and speed of the elven scimitar in most circumstances. She drew her blade in a fluid motion as she flowed through the darkness. Fyris smelled her prey before she could see or hear him. A shaken goblin was huddled behind some wreckage. He was curled up in a ball , silent and hidden. Only his puddle of cowardice gave him away. The young captain shook her head, she didn't despise this creature, only pitied it. They were a violent and cruel race, but they lived in seclusion and peace for many years. They were conscripted with force by the Gnollish horde of Yeenoghu. There was a part of Fyris that wanted to let the creature go, but distant sounds of the seige told her she had no choice.
A goblin head was lobbed through the air and landed through a window of the abandoned house. The remaining platoon stared at their comrades head and angrily cursed and shouted in the darkness. Though none of them were brave enough to charge out.
The young knight made her way back to the main keep. Despite her valiant solo efforts the battle seemed to be going against them. The battle lines of the siege were constantly changing but a full route of their side seemed likely. She grimaced at the thought of a long protracted siege. She silently cursed the snakemen that overwhelmed the eastern gatehouse. She knew they weren't vigilant enough in their patrols to hunt them down. Fyris knew they had made several recent attempts against the god emperor's life, but they were thought to have been defeated and culled. The reports said hundreds of snakemen attacked from disguise and the sewers at once. Such a thing seemed impossible, but the harsh reality of her burning city told her otherwise.
"Captain Fyris...the eastern gate has fallen!", reported a squire as the battle weary knight marched down the main hall. Fyrisvellir sneered at him for reporting something so obvious to her. She glared at the young man icily and he was sent scurrying.
"Lady Fyrisvellir...The noble and fair Lady Vil wishes to know if you are all right?", asked a young maid. The young captain nodded simply , which was enough of a response for the maid to return with her message.
"Good hunting Bloodshadow!", said a young lieutenant who noticed her marching down the hall. She hated that name. She preferred Lady Fyrisvellir, or even Lady Fyris. She gave him a guarded smile, and continued her march. She saw the young man before , he had attempted to get her attention several times in the past . She sighed , didn't he realize we are on the verge of annihilation? Her mentor Brita the Pure, told her it was one of Mirrodin's tests to his battle maidens. To remain pure and true in the service of his holy armies. Fyris tried to live up to her mentors maidenly standard, but she failed that test a long time ago. Many men and women told her she was a natural beauty . She was above average in height , and had a shapely and lean physique. Her hair was normally wound in a tight pony tail. It was a light brownish red almost bordering on blonde . Despite the numerous battles and injuries she suffered in the past, her golden skin remained mostly flawless. A few minor scars were all that blemished her beauty. She possessed a unique look amongst both the surviving northern knights, the ice elves and the Grommers.
The keep shuddered , as a mighty force struck it. Dust and minor debris fell from the roof. She caught a glimpse of the cause from an arrow slit, and saw one of Alphonso's siege golems engaged in battle with several huge demons, and a troop of frost giants. The ancient golems were nearly invincible, but nearly invincible wasn't enough. Its attackers had pushed the construct back and it fell onto the keep, resulting in the minor quake. A squad of Grommish soldiers fired volleys of dragon golem fire at the demons and giants to break up their attack. Their fire was enough to give the siege golem a window of opportunity in its attacks. It lifted itself off the keep and picked up a stunned demon , raised it high above its head, and slammed it down with a thunderous strike onto a pair of giants. Before the trio could recover it smashed them with its mighty battlefist. Grinding them into the ground. The remaining attackers fled from the golem, but Fyris knew they would be back.
Two impressive looking knights guarded the war chamber , the first knight saluted her , he was emotionless and stern in his duty. He made eye contact but it was cold and determined. She couldn't remember his name, it was Flank or Klank or something. The other guard was Sir Branndr. Almost everyone knew him from the taverns, but he was all buisness when he was on duty. Fyris was both mildly disappointed that her beauty had no effect on these men. She gave them a warm smile and salute as she entered the central war chamber.
The war chamber had a circular board table. Maps of the countryside appeared to have been pushed away hastily for maps of the city. No one had expected the enemy to break through so easily. Gathered around the table , was the halfling general Adara, her mentor Lady Brita, Lord Kerr of Lueders, Champion Ari of the Mammoth, Dalton the Red, Governor Nils and a mysterious hooded man. A nondescript servant offered her a drink of wine or water, but she waved him away . The golden haired Lady Brita motioned for Fyris to sit beside her, and she promptly did.
Fyris thought she was the last to arrive but apparently she wasn't . A pair of knights and a veiled woman entered from the other door, after Fyris. Adara and Brita both greeted them warmly. She sat quietly and watched her normally silent mentor and guardian converse briefly with them. The handsome armored man was named Arnborg, the large barbaric knight was Karszar and the veiled woman was named Rydia. Fyris suspected they were old "adventuring" companions of her mentor. She knew Brita was part of a famous group of adventurers called the Knights of Winter. They were quite active in the north till the defeat of the Great Host. The thought of that battle brought a tinge of fear and regret in her.
Adara took center stage. Her tone was defeated and her voice carried a great burden " Gentleman , ladies, I think everyone here knows whats going on right now. The gnoll army and their allies had broken through into the city. Even now they seek to drop our magical defenses so they can unleash the full might of their demonic powers onto us. At the current rate the city will fall and we will be completely under siege in 3 days. Dwarven reinforcements from the west are not due to arrive for another week. Grommish ones from the capital not for a month. Only the airships of Captain Kasmir can provide us with any respite, but I fear its not enough."
The room seemed to explode in chaotic discussion. There was much grumblings and accusations of who was derelict in their duties from the assembled group. Fyris said nothing, despite being a captain she knew her presence was only tolerated here because of her mentor's wishes. The large knight named Karszar tried to catch her attention with a toothy smile but she ignored him .
General Adara struck her small but powerful fist onto the wooden table and it almost cracked under her blow. The room fell silent as the general continued. " The enemy expects us to retreat and attack us while we are most vulnerable. My scouts have reported that they have 40,000 hyena riders hidden in the hills to descend on us if we attempt a withdraw. Even with Dalton's assistance , Captain Kasmir would not be able to ferry all our troops out. Most of their winged demons are not currently engaged in the siege , and I suspect they are being held in reserve in case we attempt the aerial path."
The room seemed tense. Most wanted to add to this one sided conversation but did not want to draw the halflings ire. Fyris didn't know too much about the small general, but was told she took command of the Third Army after General Olive perished in the defeat of the Great Host. There were rumors she had draconic blood in her ,though Fyris didn't believe it. However, the way she smashed the table with her small fist gave her second thoughts.
Adara sighed, "All is not lost thought, we have an opportunity to turn the tables on our attackers. ". The room erupted in talk once again, despite Adara's earlier show of force. Champion Ari was spouting off how the gnolls can't be stopped while being led by their demon god. Governor Nils was talking about how they must secure the nobles out of the city first. Dalton mentioned they still had time to mount one last expedition into the ruins of Boryis to retrieve the last piece of a mystical rod. Karszar yelled at the nondescript man to get him a sandwich.
Adara was fed up with the chaos. She smashed her fist into it once again, this time a large visible crack appeared. The room fell silent once more.
"May I continue? ...", the room met her violence with silence" Ok...I'm going to turn the floor over to my superior."
The nondescript man took center stage." Hello, some of you might already know me ," , he gave a wink to Brita who to the shock of Fyris became visible flustered," to the rest of you I am senior royal adventurer Earl. Also the holder of the title Sir Eggbert, the lion of Grom. That makes me the highest rank person here."
The man grinned, as the room silently grumbled and whispered amongst themselves. An uneasy nervousness fell on the room. Most have heard of the assassin Eggbert , but few met him before. It was said to be visited by him was to be visited by death. It was said he plied his trade by ruthlessly slaying the enemies of Grom . Only the head royal adventurer and the newly crowned God Emperor were said to outrank him. Fyris was one of the few assembled that had never heard of him, she thought he was just a bad waiter.
"Well...not the highest ranking person here...", he said while bowing to the hooded man." But for practical and field purposes you can say I'm in charge." . Adara rolled her eyes at Earl's performance. She knew he was doing this flippant act on purpose to draw out the dissenters. But his bait wasn't taken, the room listened to him intently.
Karszar was about to say something, but was elbowed harshly by Arnborg. Earl scanned the room for any troublemakers , and gave a disappointed frown that no one would challenge him. " Years ago, the demon king of Grom, our beloved tyrant lord Alphonso, created many wondrous creations as you all know. The greatest of which are the mighty siege golems . They are the only thing we have that gives the enemy pause. Lets be honest, even the bravest most powerful warriors in the world were no match for the demonlord Yeenoghu. I was at the destruction of the Great Host. Over 100,000 of the finest warriors the world had ever seen defeated an army 5x their number . Thanks to the combined efforts of the Champions of the North, the High Priest of Rawk, and our own General Olive. However, the demonlord Yeenoghu used the battle as a diversion to escape his prison. Even the assembled champions and the bravest adventurers were no match for him. He slew Madgar of the Mammoth, Hero of the Boar, Hildraxel of the Lion , High Priest Fetch, Frank the Brave, ...and countless other heroes."
A lump came to Fyris's throat. She almost added a certain Bard, but held her tongue . She was only a baby during the battle, she should have been eat, slained or enslaved after the Great Host fell . Thankfully , Brita rescued her from the demonic gnoll host and raised her like she was her own daughter. Fyris was surprised that the mention of the hosts destruction still had an effect on her. She saw other members of the room seemed affected by Earl's speech as well. Many brave heroes and comrades were lost that day. Even her own mentor Brita lost her father, Hildraxel the Champion of the Lion, to the unstoppable denizen of the Abyss.
"Okay ..state secret time. The information I tell you now , if it leaves the room, I'm gonna have to visit you in the night." the room shifted uneasily at the threat. Earl reveled in their fear. He saw Brita was unimpressed with his theatrics and he gave her another wink. " ..unless of course you want the visit", he said with a smile.
"The problem is ... these golems are hard to control. Only Alphonso and those of his blood could control them or pass control to one of his lackeys. When Alphonso disappeared , only a few trusted minons were given power over them. Well... as the years past, many of these guys were slain in battle or grew old and died, the most powerful of mages were unable to wrest control from them."
Dalton interrupted him, " That's not that big of a secret, almost everyone knows that or a version of it."
"Thursday 1 am good for you Dalton? My schedule is free and I want you to examine my new dragon slaying dagger ...", said the assassin mockingly . Dalton fell silent unsure if anyone caught the reference. "Ok...where was I. Oh yes, when the golems become inactive we normally buried them or set them up as statues to Grom's former greatness. Over the years our reliance on the siege golems lessened and we only have a handful of active ones . Typically only the dwarven, or half elven handlers lasted this long. Now...", Earl picked up one of the maps on the city and wrote something on it with chalk. " As you can see I've marked the location of several inactive golems. The enemy probably sees them as statues to be ignored. I propose we get a handler over to them, activate them and crush our enemies while they are caught in our golem net. "
Nils raised his hand nervously, Earl smiled and nodded to him to speak, " Do we have handlers that could do that? From my research I've done with Karlston's own siege golems, once the handler dies, its control is not transferred. Even Boryis the Spider was unable to decipher a method of switching their control."
Earl frowned, "Does everyone know this state secret or something? Hmmm...you are correct governor, control can not be transferred, only King Alphonso could command them. "
The room grew silent in anticipation. "I PRESENT TO YOU ...KING ALPHONSO! THE DEMON KING HIMSELF HAS RETURNED! "
Governor Nils passed out . Dalton prepared a teleport spell and hoped it could break the fortresses barriers. Even Lord Kerr broke out in a sweat.
Earl chuckled, "Ahhh...I'm just kidding,...no return of the king here. But...I have the next best thing. May I present to you, flown directly from Grom City just last night, the recently crowned God Emperor! . ", he pointed to the silent hooded man who stood up and revealed himself. " That's right our very own and beloved figure head king, God Emperor Clovis is secretly a direct descendant of Alphonso. A Lot of you wondered why we the royal adventurers would submit to a merchant a few months ago, and dissolved the republic back into a monarchy. Some of you thought we were bribed of all things! HaHa...Imagine us being bribed! The real reason is because we discovered he's an actual descendant of Emperor Alphonso. Not from Princess Mai's side, but from the traitors Everic's side. We all agreed to keep it a secret , for safety reasons obviously. ..."
Clovis held his hand and Earl smiled and bowed ." Thank you Earl...for that dramatic entrance speech, and exposition of my past. We don't have much time so I'll get right down to business. I can command the siege golems and send them to destroy the gnolls. However to establish control I need to get close. Unfortunately the magics that protect us also prevent me from getting to the golems. I need a small band to protect me , the sooner the better. The more we wait the more the enemy establishes a lock on McDunnalds... Adara I believe you have chosen some candidates."
The small general nodded and stood up" It will be a small group, I know many of you wish to come, but your skills are needed elsewhere. Karszar will accompany you my emperor, he's one of the most powerful knights we still have, a legendary Knight of Winter. "
Karszar pointed to himself and stared at Ari. "The real deal " he silently mouthed, much to the mammoth champion's anger. Fyris didn't know anything at all about Karszar, but she did have dealings with Ari before. She found him a braggart , who was competent on the battlefield but not exceptional. She heard he was named champion partly due to his mother the Lady Janya , but more importantly because all the really good Mammoth knights were slain or hunted down after the destruction of the Host. She also hated the unwanted attention he gave her, and was glad Karszar was chosen ahead of him. The large barbarian and Champion Ari stared at each other intently, they exchanged a few quiet but hostile words before he left.
"For a healer, Arnborg. His skill is unsurpassed I assure you. " , the handsome knight bowed, the woman beside him with the veil seemed unmoved, but Fyris detected a shift in her demeanor like a heavy weight was put on her shoulders.
"Finally , you need a scout. And as great a rogue as our resident assassin is, we need him in the keep to maintain...order... so I'm going to send Captain Fyrisvellir instead. ", said Adara to a shocked crowd.
Lord Kerr was first to speak "Preposterous! Karszar and Arnborg I know are great heroes, but Captain Bloodshadow is untested, shes known more for her ability to turn heads then as a scout. She even wears metal armor! How can anyone sneak in that! ". Fyris was stunned by her choice, but still resented Kerr's comment, she knew she was as capable as anyone in the room.
Brita the Pure spoke next ," This mission although ambitious sounds like suicide. Even if they established control, they would be targeted first. I doubt any would survive. It is too much of a risk for our new Emperor."
More arguments similar to Kerr's and Brita's were voiced, but Clovis held out his hand and they all fell silent. Fyris was still stunned at Adara's choice, she looked up at her mentor, her parent , her friend Brita. Brita gazed back and smiled then nodded at her, a small tear formed in her eye.
Clovis stated, " Yes I realize its suicide. If I make it to the golems I would tell them to destroy gnolls and their allies, and they would continue with their mission even I am slain. If I manage to activate all the golems even Yeenoghu himself would be forced to retreat. I've lived a long comfortable life, When I was young I had a chance to make a diffence in the world, instead I chose the easy path. Looking back there are things I would have done different. Today I have a chance to make right some of my past mistakes. I rather face death looking my enemy in the eye, then attempt to flee his wrath like a running dog. Its the least a figure head god emperor can do for his subjects. "
The room contemplated his speech. Adara saluted her King. Earl followed her and gave a serious salute as well, followed by the rest of the room.
Clovis sighed, " I could get use to this. "
Despite Karszar's buffoonery at the meeting, he was silent and serious out on the field. He was more like a great lone wolf then a man on the battlefield. He dispatched several giants and gnolls with his massive great club as they snuck their way through the city. He even slew a "small" hyena headed dragon as it was devouring its prey. It helped that Arnborg placed a temporary silence spell around the hulking the warrior, Fyris didn't think he was too adept at being subtle and silent normally.
Arnborg didn't say much to Fyris but he seemed friendly. Even faced with certain doom , he seemed upbeat and cheerful. Fyris noticed that the man was blind but had some sort of extra senses about him that enabled him to interact with his environment. She wondered what the man could sense and what he couldn't. Before he left, Fyris noticed Arnborg kissed the veiled woman passionately. Fyris was young but she still had a few brief romances , despite Brita's teachings. However the young knight had never known someone she could call her true love before. She often wondered if such a thing actually existed or was it just nonsense spouted by bards and poets. After watching Arnborg and Rydia she knew her answer.
Fyris knew very little about Clovis. She knew he was a rich merchant in Karlston and McDunnalds, but Fyris had never met him till now. He didn't look that impressive, she guessed he was 40ish, but heard he was pushing 60 . His life was most likely prolonged by magic. Even still, he was slightly balding and had a merchants paunch. Despite this he seemed to handle himself well. He had a small fancy case with several wands in it that he seemed to use with great skill. Fyris was glad he was pulling his weight, and this wasn't going to be a strictly baby sitting mission.
The group swiftly worked their way through the ruins of McDunnalds. The pockets of resistance were slowly being singled out and destroyed by the invading gnolls and their allies. Fyris cursed them as she witnessed their destruction first hand. Several giants and large demons attempted to bring down one of the famous Golden Arches of the City. They smashed and wailed till the arch shook and crumbled down on them. She smiled as a large chunk of monument smashed into a platoon of gnolls.
The group was almost at their destination , the eastern gate. Fyris signaled them to stop, it wasn't defended directly but too many enemies were nearby. She guessed they could attempt to wait for a better chance to get closer. If that wasn't possible then they would have to fight their way in. She found a partially collapsed building and used her holy vision to seek evil but found none in the ruin. She was surprised that she sensed a dark presence about Clovis . She hadn't expected such a strong taint in the noble man. The young captain suspected it was more likely due to his dark heritage from being the son of Everic the butcher, and the grandson of the demon king Alphonso. She learned long ago to master her holy vision , but she placed more trust in her judge of character and the actions people perform, then a blanket judgement from her magic.
"I knew your parents ...they were good friends.", said Clovis as they waited.
Fyris was shocked at his sudden revelation. Brita told her about her parents past, but even she knew little about them. Her mentor met them briefly in the past, and fought alongside them during the destruction of the Great Host, but knew little else.
"You're surprised , and so you should be. A long time ago, I was one of those reckless adventurer types.", he paused and pointed at Arnborg and Karszar." Its a dirty buisness adventuring, I cashed in my chips before it claimed me. I lost a lot of friends to that trade... Frank, Hank, Frank, Ymir, Brandy, Otis...", he was about to continue when Fyris motioned him to be silent.
A large horde of gnolls had just passed the gate, two other groups were arguing amongst themselves on who was to go through next. A brawl was started between them. Fyris wanted to hear Clovis's tale, but this was the opportunity they were waiting for.
The four scrambled towards the pair of silent statues guarding the gate. The invaders tried to deface and destroy them but were unable to even scratch them. They most likely grew tired of their wasted efforts and moved on thought Fyris.
As the group advanced, suddenly Arnborg ran up and pushed Clovis to the ground. Fyris was trying to figure what happened when she saw the cleric bleeding on the ground with a great black arrow in his back.
"Ahh, the blind cleric with the special sight. Having special senses kind of defeats the purpose of being blind don't you think? However the blind mouse just wasted one of my special slaying arrows though ." , said a familiar voice.
Fyris's eyes focused in the darkness. From one of the buildings stood Ari, with a massive composite bow in hand. Rising next to him were several other mammoth knights. Their bows were drawn , but they waited for their leaders orders.
"Traitor! ", shouted Clovis.
"Oh don't be that way. I can see the writing on the wall. The gnolls will over run us in a few years, even with your golems. How could mere constructs beat a demon lord. It would take an epic hero or something to do that. Last I checked we don't have any. I figure if I give the demon lord the emperor of Grom's head, that should get me some brownie points with him. I'm tired of losing, I want to be on the winning side for once. ", Ari said with a smile on his handsome face . "Hey Bloodshadow, there is still room at my side if you want, or do you want to be at the gnolls mercies. I've heard what they do to our women...its not very nice."
Fyris fired an arrow in response, but Ari casually leaned to the side and dodged it . "Oh please, I'm not the champion of the Mammoth for nothing you know."
Fyris prepared another arrow, but Karszar pushed her back and roared " Do you know who killed your father, Ari? It was me! Your father didn't like the attentions I gave your sister, so I fought for her hand ! And guess what , he was a lot more noble and a hell of a lot better archer then you. ! You know what! I'm going to kill you too!"
With his challenge issued, the mighty barbarian ran forward towards Ari's building with his massive war club in hand. He dodged a few arrows from the group of archers but most found their mark. The Great Karszar ignored them, as he bounded skywards with a mighty leap. He crashed heavily into the building swinging his deadly weapon at his surprised foes. Archers fell before his relentless assault.
Ari met his great wooden club with his iron spear, and the 2 weapons locked for a second. The pair seemed evenly match. Their anger and hatred for each other would be settled atop the roof of that ruined building that night.
Fyris wanted to watch the barbarian crush Ari into a pulp, but Clovis grabbed her arm ," We must move, the fools have alerted the enemy."
He was right, Fyris could see the gnolls alerted by Ari's speech and then Karszar's roar. They stopped their brawling and advanced towards them .
Fyris pushed Clovis forward. "Go! Activate the golems! I'll handle them!" Clovis looked at her, and nodded and ran towards the nearest golem.
Fyris drew her silver broadsword. The holy blade of Nirrodin hummed with power, as she grasped it with both hands. She preferred the elegance of the elven scimitar, but in a mass battle, the brute power of the broadsword would serve her better. She singled out the largest most impressive gnoll and charged it. She channeled her gods power and smote it before it could react to her attack. Her blade sundered the creatures battleaxe , and tore through hide, bone and muscle like cloth. The other gnolls fell back to her attack, but she still pressed forward .
For several minutes she fought . Hacking and slicing her foe till a pile of bodies grew at her feet. She moved like the wind, and danced amongst the gnolls . However, her enemies were many and they wore her down with their number. She dodged and parry most of her attackers, but the gnolls pressed their attack. She felt an axehead impact painfully on her shoulder, but thankfully her elven armor saved her from immediate death. The blow still sent her sprawling into the gore covered ground and she knew death was close. The young captain prayed to Mirrodin that her sacrifice was not in vain.
The gnolls around her kicked and clawed her prone body. She struggled to rise but was stomped back into the dirt. She heard the gnolls chatter amongst themselves in their guttural laughing tongue.
"She will make a strong slave."
"No...hehehe...she is fine of form and body...she will make a good breeder..."
"She killed too many of us...she deserves death..."
"Yesss...heheheheeee...a slow death... a long and slow one..."
The young knight laid face first on the ground. Even though she was in great pain she was not yet defeated . She couldn't move her legs and wondered if her spine was broken. She knew several of her ribs were cracked and felt her left arm twisted out of its socket. Fyris still had one good arm left though, and slowly moved it towards her dagger concealed in her boot . She would wait till one drew closer and pierce her foe by surprise.
"Aiiieeeee", Fyris screamed, as the point of a battleaxe was slowly lowered into her shoulder. All plans of her sneak attack vanished as her remaining good shoulder was maimed by a gnoll.
"Heeeeheeeheee..." , the gnolls cackled as they slowly tortured their foe.
Fyris choked back sobs of pain as she laid there dieing . She saw her life flash before her eyes. Of the brave emperor Clovis who most likely sacrificed his life for his kingdom. Of Brita the Pure , her beautiful golden haired halfelven mentor. Of her parents, who she had so little memory of. She didn't know her parents at all, but Brita commissioned a painting of them for her room. She heard they were brave, and powerful...but not brave or powerful enough for the hordes of Yeenoghu . She wondered if they died like her... surrounded and beaten by gnolls. She briefly wondered if this was her fate all along. To die by gnoll hands on a battlefield. The defeated captain considered Ari's words, even if they would have won today, what could defeat a demonlord?
As the blood slowly blurred her vision, she prayed one more time to Mirrodin. "Please don't let my death be in vain...Let the emperor complete his task...then I can face my parents in the afterlife..."