Knight of Wessex (A Written World Quest)

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Hathwic was overjoyed to play middleman with the rest of his family–sure, you got the occasional trophy here and there from Norse raids, but a fully intact set of quality armor? There's plenty of market for that–and even if the runes on the helmet weren't useful, it was still a splendid helmet.

A little present for a family that had treated her well--even if it meant she ended up selling it at a bit of a loss compared to some of the other offers–but having friends and connections among the folks of Mercia would be useful down the line–you never knew when you needed to have a word with someone a few counties down the road.

The coin was still good to have too! With this and her remaining stipend, she'd have a solid base to entice specialists to her estate, and help get things started when she was assigned a place of her own!

But that was still going to be a few months–if not years–down the line, depending on how the vagaries of fate and fortune shook out–and she still had a little more training to focus on!

Right now, the important thing is mastering the Grip!

Which was exactly why she was here, pressing hands against Chad Howlande–he was a superb wrestler–as you'd expect from someone as large as he was. Normally, even Audrey's talent faltered when it came to a test of strength with the hulking lad!

But not today!

She hadn't gotten to the point yet where she could use the Grip of Samson as easily as breathing–but with time to prepare, time to push back, and good footing to rely on… She could use it in training!

She just needed the right chance to show it off, and this little test of strength and balance was precisely the right time! She reached deep into her Temple–the metaphysical foundation being far tougher and far larger than the mere hands that she worked with. Inch by inch, she suffused her flesh with her the strength of her cultivation–and she felt her reach expanding. Bit by bit, inch by inch. She stopped giving ground after a moment of this–and she saw Chad's eyes widen as she steadied her grip.

Then she lifted, relying on the vast strength of her foundation instead of the mere interface that was her physical body–hauling Chad Howlande up into the air!

Which is then when she felt her grip stiffen, a matching force arising from… His Hama maybe? Something deeper? She didn't feel the flow of Fervour in it, or any traces of Zeal… Yet he stopped in midair–eyes widened as he somehow shifted his footing into the alternate axis that she hauled him up with, and began pushing himself back down!

Outside viewers would likely find the posture of the two Knights-to-Be in question, a pair of arms twisted and postured in a way that probably should have snapped even a cultivator's limbs in half–those rare few enlightened into the mysteries of the Body though would see that each combattant was anchored firmly in their own ways.

Chad tapped her wrist, a silent gesture that maybe it was the time to cut that off–and Audrey let her Grip recede, lowering him back to the ground.

"... Huh." Chad wondered after a moment of this, looking Audrey in the eye, confused more than anything else. "You have any Howlande blood?"

Audrey puffed herself up. "Hah! Nothing of the sort! I got a few pointers from Ironjaw in the contest though, and asked him how I can be stronger! It's just been practicing to do it more reliably!"

Chad looked troubled for a minute, lips pursed. "Might have to talk with Dad." He said after a moment's thought. "That's… Uh, what we do. Didn't know it could be learned."

Audrey's face grew troubled then. "Wait, so that wasn't just you knowing the same trick? The thing Samson did with the Pillars of the Temple?" She asked. "When you sort of got your footing there and counterbalanced, I thought you just learned it from your father or something"

"No, I was born able to do that." Chad answered. "Uh… Might be best not to go telling anyone else how to do that though." He looked awkward at that request. "It might cause some problems."

Ah.

If something like the Grip of Samson was to the Howlandes what Hard-Fall was to the Eotenslaga, the piercing gaze of her family able to dissect any foe's stance… Yes, she could understand why that might be a problem.

"Still, nice trick." He gives Audrey a thumbs up there. "Going to have to step it up in future to keep up. Can't just keep coasting on that advantage, I guess."

Audrey's grin returned at that admission. Of course it was a nice trick! She did learn it from one of the strongest men alive. She did hope knowing this wouldn't cause any problems though, she had enough to worry about with the War to come!

But at least her training was going well, as was her education! She even made an arrangement to shadow the Ealdorman for a time, to see how he handled his duties and pick some lessons on how to better administrate things! Everything was lining up just right for Audrey Eotenslaga! She'd reach her potential in no time, at this rate!

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Months passed, and soon enough, the time had come for the Squires of Warwick to be gathered together in the great hall–they had come for seven years, to study under the great Knights of Wessex at the side of the Thanes of Warwick. Each had performed their duties well, serving as helper to their Knight even as they learned from them.

But soon, all educations must come to an end, and the juniors be raised to join the ranks of the adults. Squires were no exception–and to those who had survived the trials of their youth, they would be appointed as Knights of Wessex in truth–not merely ones in waiting.

The Ealdorman–as King Alfred's representative–would be conducting the induction rites, bearing an ancient sword as old as the kingdom to bequeath the title of Knight upon each of the soon-to-be Former Squires. It was a proud day, a wonderful day! Audrey knew it was going to be the start of a wonderful career!

Those thoughts lasted until a loud Bang called all eyes in the great hall to the doors–a weathered looking Thane, gasping for breath and on the edge of exhaustion standing there, still steaming with evaporating sweat and acute Maegen depletion.

"D… Dead! King Alfred has passed!" He gasped out, to the horror of the audience. "He departed to God's halls two nights ago! All soldiers of Wessex are to stand ready for action at a moment's notice!"

The silence was shattered by a spat curse from the Ealdorman. "Fuck me sideways, we're going to be in the shithouse soon enough!"

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King Alfred the Great has passed, and the time of learning and growth has ended, soon will begin a time of strife spanning many decades–right in time for you to be formally recognized as a Knight in name as well as in law.

The next few years will be a matter of confusion and uncertainty, as the new order is sorted out between King Alfred's son Edward–and his nephew Aethelwold, each of whom claims the right to the throne of Wessex. The latter isn't a very popular man compared to the direct student and son of the great King Alfred, but he does have enough support that he can't be entirely dismissed.

Yet while Guthrum remains suspiciously silent–sparing you an immediate plunge into generalized bloodshed, there is still much to do for a Knight of Audrey Eotenslaga's talent, to help hold matters together until the inevitable struggle begins.

Most importantly of all will be the receipt of her Knight's Fee–the parcel of land offered to Audrey to serve as overseer in exchange for her leal service to the Throne of Wessex. Due to her performance in many contests, the recommendations of several high ranking officials, and the discreet favor of the past King, she is at the top of the list to take on several "Challenging" posts, which will have great opportunities but also great trials to make them productive… Which is why they're still unclaimed.

The one the Court of Wessex decided to assign to Audrey was…

[ ] A Coastal Holding
-ADVANTAGES: High access to trade, rich lands with significant resources, and already partially developed, making it offer returns much sooner. Fairly stable region in terms of internal problems.
-DISADVANTAGES: Being right on the coast means you're going to be up to your ears in Raiders of all sorts, while also having little cover against attack, making it difficult to put up a static defense. You'll have your hands full crushing opportunistic attacks–and Norsemen don't tend to be deterred just by being killed in job lots.

[ ] A River Holding
-ADVANTAGES: Heavily wooded and in a defensible region, behind a few layers of ablative defenses, meaning that it's highly defensible. Significant Norse minority population means that many threats never reach your ears before some farmers with clubs beat it to death, while also giving you access to skilled crafters in the long run.
-DISADVANTAGES: Smaller holding compared to the other options limits long term potential slightly, Significant Norse minority population means you'll be up to your ears in stupid Norseman drama (and interpersonal drama of other sorts), causing all manner of curious events for good or for ill. Somewhat lower ceiling for growth in exchange for having more room for error, and generally more focus on internal as opposed to external problems.

[ ] A Woodland Holding
-ADVANTAGES: Blank slate territory in the interior, close enough to support its attached Burh but far enough away that most problems are local hazards rather than constant raids or enemy attacks. You have the freedom to develop it as you choose, and thus have the most room to tinker to your heart's content
-DISADVANTAGES: Territory is wild, and getting it to profitability is going to be both expensive and time consuming, including somehow convincing a significant number of people to actually come live there. Not quite as well hooked up to trade routes as the prior two options–though this can be mitigated to an extent in the extreme long run.

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AN: Fief Rules will be added to the front page shortly, this is you picking what kind of place you want this to be–a Tower Defense game? An Adventure Generator? A full out Manor Lords sim? While there's elements of all of this in every pick, the place your Fief is at will determine what it's best at from the start.

Do you want a rich, relatively developed place but also a high value soft target to raid? A small, defensible spot with a rambunctious local population for good or ill? Or a completely blank slate region that you can customize to your heart's content but takes a long time to start paying out? That's up to you guys to figure out!

Either an interlude or the new turn on Friday, haven't decided yet. Still feel a bit brain-cooked after the marathon session, so this doesn't feel like my best work, but the important thing is sticking to the schedule whenever possible, that's the resolution I've made and I'm sticking to it!

Anyway, glad you're all still having a good time following Knight of Wessex!