AN: I've been thinking of this for a long good while thanks to Total War. Thanks to...
Mountains of Faith (Warhammer Fantasy/Dragon Age Crossover)
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EIN
AN: I've been thinking of this for a long good while thanks to Total War. Thanks to @RedrumSprinkles for being my beta, and @Gaius Marius , @Teen Spirit and @Arcman for helping me out in the idea department,. AS always, thoughts and criticism make the author happy.
Father was dead. Without a body to bury, Sir Reinhardt von Grauberg mourned his memory instead, praying his grief away on a cold and dark Marktag. He hoped his Father's soul could rest with a simple burial, his name spoken aloud as a priest of Morr performed his rituals to the God of Death. Though a Knight of the Burning Hammer and a devotee of Sigmar, he prayed to Morr that it would be enough… that the fell forces of Chaos had not already claimed his soul. That was all he and his siblings could hope for as Sigmund, the new head of the family, blearily took up Father's seat on the table.
"Ulric demands vengeance," Mother growled between gritted teeth. "Your Father," she said as she pointed to each of her children, teeth barred in anger. "Your Father left with the family guard to hunt what smelled like Chaos infestation from one village. It was worse than he feared."
"Before Sir Gerhart died, he described the situation to us." Sigmund continued, his massive frame already burdened by what Father held up for so long. "A foul sorcerer of Chaos managed to corrupt one of our villages by the Gray Mountains into a small horde of mutants. Since then, they've raided and kidnapped other surrounding villages,even those beyond our lands. It is a threat that we must handle immediately."
"This is why I've called you all here, asking to bring whatever aid you can muster under such short notice." Sigmund sighed. "We must purge this foul corruption from our lands, and gain what little revenge we can from doing our duty."
"I've sent word to Helmgart already," Mother continued. "And while they have sworn to send in what they can, tensions on the border mean they cannot leave. Altdorf and the Reiksguard are too far to intervene."
"Which leaves us." Sigmund stood, clad in fine dwarf-forged plate, his zweihander across his back. He in turn took a moment to glance at everyone on the table. There was Katherine, a wizard of the Gold Order, and eldest child. Then Ulrica and her husband, Lord Urqhart, both Ulricans and ready as ever to pick a fight. Keen Jakob, a brace of pistols and his arming sword at his side at all times. Only young Viktor wasn't here, no doubt secure in Nuln, learning in some of the finest schools Father could arrange for. If worst comes to worst, and everyone dies on this expedition… then Viktor will at least be left to pick up the pieces, Reinhardt glumly thought.
"We take the rest of the guard with us, and ride for the village Sir Gerhart marked for us." Sigmund grunted as he grabbed his helm,. "No food. Weapons, ammunition, and water only. Let's go!"
With a roar, The House of von Grauberg roused themselves from their gloom, and made ready for war.
_
Within the hour, Reinhardt and his family were riding for the tainted village. Father had departed with only twenty of his best men and was cut to pieces. Now, the family marched forth with nearly their entire guard, along with the prestigious help of a few friends and family. Their main advantage would be the aid of their sister Katherine. It will be her spells that will hopefully be the deciding factor, turning what weapons the mutants may have forged against them.
As Reinhardt brought his horse around, his eldest sister Katherine looked him in the eyes. Unhorsed, she would be about his height, and she shared the distinctive brilliant red hair of the von Grauberg family. He couldn't remember her face though, for the last time he had seen her without her golden mask was over five years ago, before he left the Pistolier corps to join his Order.
"Reinhardt," Kat greeted with a nod. Cold, and Reinhardt would've sworn with a hint of an echo. "How are you?"
"If you're asking how I'm dealing with Father… I'm fine," he grunted in reply, clutching his amulet. Typical Kat. "Sigmar guides us this day, for we will avenge him."
"Good," she nodded as she turned towards the road. "Channel that hate into something useful for once."
"If this about that time at the Drakwald, then may I remind you I'm no longer an initiate... I've learned a lot since then."
"Like to pay attention to your surroundings?" she replied. Reinhardt knew deep within his bones, that Kat had her eyebrows all raised up and a grin plastered under that mask like the know-it-all she was. It was so much worse that she was right.
"May I remind you that I managed to call down a blessing from Sigmar himself that day?" Reinhardt countered. "Who granted us flames to purge the Greenskins?"
"Yes. After I created the opening by weighing down what crude weapons the brutes had by turning them into useless lead." she teased. "Don't worry brother, I'm sure we'll do fine today."
Reinhardt grumbled but nodded. In her own way, Reinhardt knew she was looking out for him and the others. She always did baby him, even before the… magic. Further mastery just made her even more distant than when they were kids.
Within the hour, Reinhardt could feel the air change. Where once the skies were clear and blue, now he could feel the air grew heavy with each passing moment. The horses grew skittish, as they too knew the wrongness in the air.
They were getting close to their quarry. Sigmund soon gave the signal to prepare their weapons. Reinhardt checked his pistols, careful to make sure that they were loaded. He and the other Knights had their lances, but after the initial charge Reinhardt would prefer to unleash one more volley of death before he entered the melee.
Physically ready, Reinhardt prepared himself in the most important manner. Eyes closed, he chanted parts of the Deus Sigmar, retelling the tales and glories of Sigmar when he still walked the world. Reinhardt noticed Sigmund nodding in appreciation, though Ulrica's husband scowled before he and the rest of the Ulricans began their own howls.
Unlike some of his other brothers in the order, and quite a few Sigmarites when Reinhardt thought about it, he had a great respect for Ulric and his followers. It helped that mother taught him the important aspects, but he never forgot that before Sigmar ascended, Ulric was Sigmar's god. He deserved respect as is proper.
As the minutes passed and the air became thicker with the... wrongness of it all, Reinhardt figured even the most fanatical Sigmarite among the group appreciated the feral Ulrican howls. The stench of Chaos grew with each passing moment. The trees grew bleak, branches twisting and turning, their shadows cast horrible teeth unto the ground even with the sun up high in the sky.
Sigmund signaled for a stop. Not a word spoken. Something was wrong.
Out of the forest they came. Men and women turned into… things. Tentacles and teeth where naught should be, the few who still had faces recognizably human, frozen in agony. Whatever the foul sorcerer was doing, these people wanted no part of it.
"Charge!" roared Sigmund as he drew his sword, as we met the mutants at the treeline.
Mutated beyond reckoning they were, tentacles and claws where arms and legs should be. Eyes all over bloated, horribly muscled bodies, and what little was recognizably human was contorted in agony.
"For Sigmar! For the Empire!" Reinhardt roared as he turned his mount around, firing a volley of shot before unleashing his wrath with his maul. This would only be the beginning of their trials.
Left and right, he smashed the skulls of the poor souls who'd been turned into these monstrosities, chanting all the while. All the while, he kept close a memory playing in his head. Father and him, in the Grand Cathedral, just taking in the beauty of it all. Something he may never do again, thanks to the monster that created these.
And just like that, it was over. Over two dozen of the mutants lay dead, with but a few cuts and wounds among the party. Thankfully it wasn't a Nurglite infestation, or it would've been something to worry about. With naught a word said, the party gathered their weapons, poured oil on the corpses and burned them.
Forward they marched, into the heart of the madness. The village of Kessel was once a quaint place where they could obtain some fine furs or gems from the nearby Grey mountains. Now it was a pit where vile horrors gathered, and the screams of their victims rang across the air miles before they could be seen.
Reinhardt countered by raising his voice, chanting verses from the Deus Sigmar all the while, vowing to put the poor bastards down. No innocent deserved a life like that, to be twisted beyond measure or imagination.
More of the mutants came streaming out of the twisted trees again, moving on all fours like beasts, howling and screaming all the while. Again Sigmund ordered the charge, and again justice was served.
Maul in hand,he dispensed Sigmar's will upon the mutants. Skulls smashed, left and right as his friends and family joined him in the caranage. An eternity, all crafted into a brief few minutes as the trampling of horses on mutants and the rage of those who would see justice served.
Nothing mattered then but the present. Nothing of Father and how he raised them all to be good, loyal and proud citizens of the Empire. Nothing of how they will avenge him by slaying the monster that killed him. All that was in front of Reinhardt was Sigmar, and laying down His wrath upon the mutants.
In an instant it was over. To Reinhardt's eyes, over a dozen mutants slain in the initial charge, and more than twice that crippled on the field. Reinhardt took the time to finish them off, a crushing blow to what could be recognized as their heads. Everyone knew this was only the beginning. The mutants' unholy strength had already claimed the life of one of Ulrica's guard, not to mention the various bruises and cracked bones that many no doubtedly now sported,
As one, they gathered around Sigmund. Without a command given, members produced oil ,and drenched the dead in it. There would be naught but ashes by the time they reached the sorcerer.
"Oh Almighty Sigmar," Reinhardt began as the others started the grisly task. "Guide us today as we begin your righteous work. Steady our hands as we dispense your wrath upon the Heathen. Most of all, nourish our bodies and spirit, as we are assailed by the foulness of Chaos." he finished, laying his hands first on Sigmund.
Within moments, Sigmar granted his prayer, healing Sigmund of his wounds, rallying his spirit, ready and fresh once more to do battle. His healing done, he moved next to Kat, hoping that Sigmar would be generous today.
By the time the sun had passed its zenith, Reinhardt had gone through the party's wounds, ready and refreshed for the battle to come.
Reinhardt could only pray that it would be enough.
Father was dead. Without a body to bury, Sir Reinhardt von Grauberg mourned his memory instead, praying his grief away on a cold and dark Marktag. He hoped his Father's soul could rest with a simple burial, his name spoken aloud as a priest of Morr performed his rituals to the God of Death. Though a Knight of the Burning Hammer and a devotee of Sigmar, he prayed to Morr that it would be enough… that the fell forces of Chaos had not already claimed his soul. That was all he and his siblings could hope for as Sigmund, the new head of the family, blearily took up Father's seat on the table.
"Ulric demands vengeance," Mother growled between gritted teeth. "Your Father," she said as she pointed to each of her children, teeth barred in anger. "Your Father left with the family guard to hunt what smelled like Chaos infestation from one village. It was worse than he feared."
"Before Sir Gerhart died, he described the situation to us." Sigmund continued, his massive frame already burdened by what Father held up for so long. "A foul sorcerer of Chaos managed to corrupt one of our villages by the Gray Mountains into a small horde of mutants. Since then, they've raided and kidnapped other surrounding villages,even those beyond our lands. It is a threat that we must handle immediately."
"This is why I've called you all here, asking to bring whatever aid you can muster under such short notice." Sigmund sighed. "We must purge this foul corruption from our lands, and gain what little revenge we can from doing our duty."
"I've sent word to Helmgart already," Mother continued. "And while they have sworn to send in what they can, tensions on the border mean they cannot leave. Altdorf and the Reiksguard are too far to intervene."
"Which leaves us." Sigmund stood, clad in fine dwarf-forged plate, his zweihander across his back. He in turn took a moment to glance at everyone on the table. There was Katherine, a wizard of the Gold Order, and eldest child. Then Ulrica and her husband, Lord Urqhart, both Ulricans and ready as ever to pick a fight. Keen Jakob, a brace of pistols and his arming sword at his side at all times. Only young Viktor wasn't here, no doubt secure in Nuln, learning in some of the finest schools Father could arrange for. If worst comes to worst, and everyone dies on this expedition… then Viktor will at least be left to pick up the pieces, Reinhardt glumly thought.
"We take the rest of the guard with us, and ride for the village Sir Gerhart marked for us." Sigmund grunted as he grabbed his helm,. "No food. Weapons, ammunition, and water only. Let's go!"
With a roar, The House of von Grauberg roused themselves from their gloom, and made ready for war.
_
Within the hour, Reinhardt and his family were riding for the tainted village. Father had departed with only twenty of his best men and was cut to pieces. Now, the family marched forth with nearly their entire guard, along with the prestigious help of a few friends and family. Their main advantage would be the aid of their sister Katherine. It will be her spells that will hopefully be the deciding factor, turning what weapons the mutants may have forged against them.
As Reinhardt brought his horse around, his eldest sister Katherine looked him in the eyes. Unhorsed, she would be about his height, and she shared the distinctive brilliant red hair of the von Grauberg family. He couldn't remember her face though, for the last time he had seen her without her golden mask was over five years ago, before he left the Pistolier corps to join his Order.
"Reinhardt," Kat greeted with a nod. Cold, and Reinhardt would've sworn with a hint of an echo. "How are you?"
"If you're asking how I'm dealing with Father… I'm fine," he grunted in reply, clutching his amulet. Typical Kat. "Sigmar guides us this day, for we will avenge him."
"Good," she nodded as she turned towards the road. "Channel that hate into something useful for once."
"If this about that time at the Drakwald, then may I remind you I'm no longer an initiate... I've learned a lot since then."
"Like to pay attention to your surroundings?" she replied. Reinhardt knew deep within his bones, that Kat had her eyebrows all raised up and a grin plastered under that mask like the know-it-all she was. It was so much worse that she was right.
"May I remind you that I managed to call down a blessing from Sigmar himself that day?" Reinhardt countered. "Who granted us flames to purge the Greenskins?"
"Yes. After I created the opening by weighing down what crude weapons the brutes had by turning them into useless lead." she teased. "Don't worry brother, I'm sure we'll do fine today."
Reinhardt grumbled but nodded. In her own way, Reinhardt knew she was looking out for him and the others. She always did baby him, even before the… magic. Further mastery just made her even more distant than when they were kids.
Within the hour, Reinhardt could feel the air change. Where once the skies were clear and blue, now he could feel the air grew heavy with each passing moment. The horses grew skittish, as they too knew the wrongness in the air.
They were getting close to their quarry. Sigmund soon gave the signal to prepare their weapons. Reinhardt checked his pistols, careful to make sure that they were loaded. He and the other Knights had their lances, but after the initial charge Reinhardt would prefer to unleash one more volley of death before he entered the melee.
Physically ready, Reinhardt prepared himself in the most important manner. Eyes closed, he chanted parts of the Deus Sigmar, retelling the tales and glories of Sigmar when he still walked the world. Reinhardt noticed Sigmund nodding in appreciation, though Ulrica's husband scowled before he and the rest of the Ulricans began their own howls.
Unlike some of his other brothers in the order, and quite a few Sigmarites when Reinhardt thought about it, he had a great respect for Ulric and his followers. It helped that mother taught him the important aspects, but he never forgot that before Sigmar ascended, Ulric was Sigmar's god. He deserved respect as is proper.
As the minutes passed and the air became thicker with the... wrongness of it all, Reinhardt figured even the most fanatical Sigmarite among the group appreciated the feral Ulrican howls. The stench of Chaos grew with each passing moment. The trees grew bleak, branches twisting and turning, their shadows cast horrible teeth unto the ground even with the sun up high in the sky.
Sigmund signaled for a stop. Not a word spoken. Something was wrong.
Out of the forest they came. Men and women turned into… things. Tentacles and teeth where naught should be, the few who still had faces recognizably human, frozen in agony. Whatever the foul sorcerer was doing, these people wanted no part of it.
"Charge!" roared Sigmund as he drew his sword, as we met the mutants at the treeline.
Mutated beyond reckoning they were, tentacles and claws where arms and legs should be. Eyes all over bloated, horribly muscled bodies, and what little was recognizably human was contorted in agony.
"For Sigmar! For the Empire!" Reinhardt roared as he turned his mount around, firing a volley of shot before unleashing his wrath with his maul. This would only be the beginning of their trials.
Left and right, he smashed the skulls of the poor souls who'd been turned into these monstrosities, chanting all the while. All the while, he kept close a memory playing in his head. Father and him, in the Grand Cathedral, just taking in the beauty of it all. Something he may never do again, thanks to the monster that created these.
And just like that, it was over. Over two dozen of the mutants lay dead, with but a few cuts and wounds among the party. Thankfully it wasn't a Nurglite infestation, or it would've been something to worry about. With naught a word said, the party gathered their weapons, poured oil on the corpses and burned them.
Forward they marched, into the heart of the madness. The village of Kessel was once a quaint place where they could obtain some fine furs or gems from the nearby Grey mountains. Now it was a pit where vile horrors gathered, and the screams of their victims rang across the air miles before they could be seen.
Reinhardt countered by raising his voice, chanting verses from the Deus Sigmar all the while, vowing to put the poor bastards down. No innocent deserved a life like that, to be twisted beyond measure or imagination.
More of the mutants came streaming out of the twisted trees again, moving on all fours like beasts, howling and screaming all the while. Again Sigmund ordered the charge, and again justice was served.
Maul in hand,he dispensed Sigmar's will upon the mutants. Skulls smashed, left and right as his friends and family joined him in the caranage. An eternity, all crafted into a brief few minutes as the trampling of horses on mutants and the rage of those who would see justice served.
Nothing mattered then but the present. Nothing of Father and how he raised them all to be good, loyal and proud citizens of the Empire. Nothing of how they will avenge him by slaying the monster that killed him. All that was in front of Reinhardt was Sigmar, and laying down His wrath upon the mutants.
In an instant it was over. To Reinhardt's eyes, over a dozen mutants slain in the initial charge, and more than twice that crippled on the field. Reinhardt took the time to finish them off, a crushing blow to what could be recognized as their heads. Everyone knew this was only the beginning. The mutants' unholy strength had already claimed the life of one of Ulrica's guard, not to mention the various bruises and cracked bones that many no doubtedly now sported,
As one, they gathered around Sigmund. Without a command given, members produced oil ,and drenched the dead in it. There would be naught but ashes by the time they reached the sorcerer.
"Oh Almighty Sigmar," Reinhardt began as the others started the grisly task. "Guide us today as we begin your righteous work. Steady our hands as we dispense your wrath upon the Heathen. Most of all, nourish our bodies and spirit, as we are assailed by the foulness of Chaos." he finished, laying his hands first on Sigmund.
Within moments, Sigmar granted his prayer, healing Sigmund of his wounds, rallying his spirit, ready and fresh once more to do battle. His healing done, he moved next to Kat, hoping that Sigmar would be generous today.
By the time the sun had passed its zenith, Reinhardt had gone through the party's wounds, ready and refreshed for the battle to come.
Reinhardt could only pray that it would be enough.
ZWEI
AN: Customer service is universally bad. Finally got internet back for my potato after a week. Thanks once more to @RedrumSprinkles and @Arcman for their input on this!
Katherine Voss had seen many things in her time among the Colleges of Magic in Altdorf. Mysteries great and small had revealed themselves to her, and yet she had also seen the terrors that Chaos can inflict, often on the unprepared or arrogant. People feared Wizards for a reason, and Kat did not begrudge them of it. A single mistake, and she could send herself and those she were trying to protect into the void, begging for a quick end as they were torn apart by daemons.
This in mind, Kat enjoyed the fact that few could get a read on her as she hid behind her golden mask. Not even her family could get an idea of what was going on underneath all the glitter. It made it so much easier for her to look strong when really...
She missed Father so much.
Her favorite part of every visit was showing him what she'd learned over the years since she'd gone to Altdorf. Bonding over the library, telling him about all her discoveries and adventures. She knew that a lot of it went over his head, but the fact that he was so… willing and open to listen and take her in despite her magic. Logically, Mother still loved her, though she knew it would always be torn between her Ulrican upbringing and her maternal love.
Now he was dead, torn apart by those he was sworn to protect. Yet another casualty in the neverending war against the Old Night.
For that, there can only be vengeance.
She must play the part of the Eldest. Sigmund may head the family now, but she was still the eldest. Like it or not, the younger ones turn to her for her wisdom and knowledge. She may not be in line to inherit anything, but she was not a woman without her means. The Gold Order had taught her more than enough to establish a personal fortune to rival the von Grauberg's.
Even then, she knew from experience that the next fight would not be easy. This was not her first tangle with Chaos, having dealt with more than one godsdamned cult and warband at the behest of her mentor and the Empire. That so many mutants were already gathered, and were intelligent enough to use crude weaponry was… troubling to say the least. This sorcerer probably had enough control over them to direct them in such a manner suggested he was a powerful one too.
Kat could only hope that she had enough skill to thwart whatever spells this foul monster would throw at them. The libraries didn't say much about Chaos, but that and her few experiences meant she'd do most anything to avoid it.
For Father though… For Family.
Her brooding was interrupted when she realized of how painful the silence grew. At the very edges of the glade, she could at least hear the wood of the trees creak as the horses neighed and clopped along the hard earth. Add sand, and some greenskins, and this might be what the Badlands are like.
As they approached the village itself, she could hear nothing but the earth eating up the horse's hoofbeats, and their panicked neighs. Not even a slight whisper could be made as the village came into sight, twisted beyond the little hamlet it once was.
The little hovels were stained blood red, their roofs black like caked blood. Though there was no wind, Kat could smell the foul stench of ancient blood from here. As they drew in closer, she could make out the mutants forming into a line at very entrance of the village, their growls intermixed with some begging for death.
And at the very center of it all was the Bastard who killed father. Clad in swirling purple and eyes that glowed to her witchsight, Kat knew this was the thrice damned godsforsaken whoreson that killed Father. His cackles echoed throughout the village, like thunder shaking the Drakwald.
"I see the fools of Sigmar have come!" he gasped between cackles. "You're too late! The ritual is ready, and soon, I will have power beyond any of you mortals!"
"Form up!" Sigmund ordered, ignoring the madman's cackles, even as the screams of the mutants grew more frenzied.
"Fools!" the sorcerer roared. "Kill them all!" he ordered, as he ran towards his foul ritual. Kat could make out images that hurt just glimpsing them, villagers naked and nailed to the ground, tattooed with vile runes Speaking foul words that echoed in the air, each syllable heralding doom, even as the monstrosities blindly rushed to meet them in battle.
"For Sigmar! For the Empire!" roared Sigmund. As he spurred his horse into a charge, Kat and the rest followed in his wake. Left and right, the mutants were cut down like wheat to a reaper. While Kat did her part, sending molten shards of metal where she could. The Wind of Chamon blew strongly here today, and she was channeling it wherever she could, keeping weapons sharp and armor whole, despite the inhuman blows that rained down on dwarf-forged plate.
Kat slashed left and right, finishing off those pushed aside by the vanguard. The tide of mutants seemed endless, the charge blunted by their weight of numbers. If nothing else, they must stop the sorcerer, as who knows what he will summon with that ritual.
"Sigmund!" Kat roared over the din of battle. "We must stop his sorcery!" she cried even as she beheaded a mutant. "A ritual of this size, who knows what horrors he'll drag here!"
"Reinhardt is closest!" he replied, even as he hewed his foes. "Follow him and push onwards. We'll hold them off!"
Nodding, Kat directed those nearest to her to follow her as she spurred her mount forward, following Reinhardt's chants from the Deus Sigmar. Gods know he'd be the one to be chanting something coherent amidst all this. In every battle, she's ever been in, whether it was greenskins, beastmen,or foul Norscans, look for the Templars or Priests. They would hold against all odds.
That's Reinhardt. The Pillar. The Mountain.
"And thus was the foulness cleansed!" Reinhardt roared as he smashed a mutant's arm, before turning to crush another's skull, the scent of gunpowder hanging about him. "Forged in battle, brothers against the darkness!"
Kat threw a volley of molten metal at a mutant right behind Reinhardt. It's screams even as the metal melted it's face drew Reinhardt's attention towards her, as a sort of lull developed. Typical of him to leave his back open.
"Reinhardt," Kat nodded as she drew her mount alongside him, her escort joining Reinhardt's comrades.
"Kat," he nodded back as he turned his attention towards the sorcerer. "Sigmund wants me to lead the charge then?"
"Indeed. We cannot allow him to complete his ritual." Kat replied as she checked Reinhardt, her eyes quickly scanning him for anything. "Your armor's dented a bit."
"I felt the blow from one of the mutants," he grunted. "I'll live." Always a stubborn one him. She smiled.
"Let me help with that a bit," she nodded as she concentrated, harnessing the winds of Chamon to harden the armor of all her comrades. A moment later, and the spell was done, the armor glistening in her witchsight. "That should do it," she said as she gave Reinhardt's armor a quick rap with the flat of her sword.
"Let us begin then," he smiled as he reared his mount towards the sorcerer. "Sons of Sigmar, to me!" he roared, spurring his mount towards a small clearing.
A few men followed suit, their armor and weapons caked in gore, faces grim, but ready to fight. Some mounted, though many were now unhorsed and leaning on their own weapons, breaths ragged as the fatigue crept in.
"Men of the Empire," Reinhardt bellowed, pointing at the sorcerer. "There lies the enemy! There lies the beast that spawns all our woes! Will you let it stand?"
A resounding roar of NO's echoed from Sigmund all the way to Reinhardt's crowd. "Then let us not tarry! Onwards Sons of Sigmar!" he roared spurring his mount forward, promises of vengeance roaring from his and many other's mouths. Kat couldn't help but smile, proud of her little brother.
She followed in his wake, bolstering their armor as the mutants rained inhuman blows, sharpening their blades to cut through their iron hard hides. Blood and limbs flew around and Kat felt her stomach lurch at the sight of it all as she remembered why she fought on.
It didn't help that whispered "thank you's" echoed from the dying mutants. They fell, their monstrous bodies littering the village as Sigmund's charge carved a path straight into the ragged mutant lines.
"Fools! The Ritual must not be stopped!" the sorcerer growled as he turned his attention to the van, throwing bales of warpfire at them before returning to his ritual.
Reinhardt's mount, along with a few unfortunate souls were caught in the blasts. Kat could only watch in horror as Reinhardt was thrown from his mount as the screams of the dying begged for relief from the unnatural flame.
"Push!" she shouted, the command echoing above the battlefield, even as she began to cast more spells. She slashed left and right, her only thoughts was of reaching her brother. She couldn't bear to lose someone she loved again so soon. No screams, no blood, no disorder. Only the single goal of reaching Reinhardt.
She slashed left and right, cutting through the mutated flesh like a hot knife through butter. She could make out Reinhardt already, fending off mutants while he was trapped between a hovel and the braying mutants. Maul in one hand, he fended them off, swearing and praying to Sigmar all the while.
"Reinhardt!" Kat screamed as she broke through the circle of mutants surrounding him, dismounting as she did so. Back to back with her brother, she couldn't help but grin. "I see I've once again come to your aid brother," she laughed, relieved to see him alive.
"It's always appreciated sister. Barely." Reinhardt replied ,grinning, eyes never leaving the thinning circle of mutants. "We're not too far away from the foul sorcerer now. One last push, and we can end this once and for all."
"Ask Sigmar for aid. We'll need all the help we can get." Kat nodded as she began her own preparations.
"Almighty Sigmar!" Reinhardt began, his hammer glowing with each verse, "Grant us the aid in this time of battle! Smite down these fell mutants, that we may cleanse this darkness from our lands!"
As he finished, Kat noticed her own sword, already razor sharp from her own spells, was now glowing with holy fire. She had read many an account of these events, how though rare, they each turned the tide of battle. Kat smiled, Reinhardt had truly done well for himself.
"Sigmar's granted us this blessing friends!" Reinhardt began, raising his maul above his head. "We need only take what is ours! Forward for the Empire!" he roared, charging into the midst of the mutants.
Kat joined suit, saving her spells for the final duel with the sorcerer. Gods above know that she will need everything she has to fight him. She slashed left and right, the mutants burning at the slightest touch of her blessed weapon. Like the texts had said, they were turning the tide, as their tiny throng of warriors drove fear into the mutants, who were already beginning to rout.
"No!" the sorcerer roared, his voice cracking under the strain of this ritual. "You cannot stop me!" he screamed as he threw fireballs with wild abandon. Kat managed to catch a glimpse of Reinhardt weaving between the fireballs before they incinerated his companions, their screams echoing over the battlefield.
Kat charged, a spell on her lips as she turned the sorcerer's staff into lead just as he was about to cast. Thrown momentarily off balance, the sorcerer floundered as the ritual began to unravel before them. Kat could only smile as Reinhardt took the opportunity to smash the sorcerer's knees, driving him onto the cold hard earth.
"For crimes against the Empire, for the murder of my Father, I sentence you to death!" Reinhardt began as he raised his maul to deliver the finishing blow.
"If I cannot finish this ritual… then I'll take you with me!" the sorcerer cursed as his eyes grew blindingly bright. Five fell words that hurt to even hear, and Kat beheld something she had feared ever since she entered the Colleges of Magic.
A portal into the screaming abyss, glowing emerald green, emerged right above her and Reinhardt. Distracted, the sorcerer only cackled, even as Reinhardt drove his maul into his skull ending him forever.
Kat took comfort in the fact vengeance was achieved before the portal swallowed the two of them, and all she could do was scream.
Katherine Voss had seen many things in her time among the Colleges of Magic in Altdorf. Mysteries great and small had revealed themselves to her, and yet she had also seen the terrors that Chaos can inflict, often on the unprepared or arrogant. People feared Wizards for a reason, and Kat did not begrudge them of it. A single mistake, and she could send herself and those she were trying to protect into the void, begging for a quick end as they were torn apart by daemons.
This in mind, Kat enjoyed the fact that few could get a read on her as she hid behind her golden mask. Not even her family could get an idea of what was going on underneath all the glitter. It made it so much easier for her to look strong when really...
She missed Father so much.
Her favorite part of every visit was showing him what she'd learned over the years since she'd gone to Altdorf. Bonding over the library, telling him about all her discoveries and adventures. She knew that a lot of it went over his head, but the fact that he was so… willing and open to listen and take her in despite her magic. Logically, Mother still loved her, though she knew it would always be torn between her Ulrican upbringing and her maternal love.
Now he was dead, torn apart by those he was sworn to protect. Yet another casualty in the neverending war against the Old Night.
For that, there can only be vengeance.
She must play the part of the Eldest. Sigmund may head the family now, but she was still the eldest. Like it or not, the younger ones turn to her for her wisdom and knowledge. She may not be in line to inherit anything, but she was not a woman without her means. The Gold Order had taught her more than enough to establish a personal fortune to rival the von Grauberg's.
Even then, she knew from experience that the next fight would not be easy. This was not her first tangle with Chaos, having dealt with more than one godsdamned cult and warband at the behest of her mentor and the Empire. That so many mutants were already gathered, and were intelligent enough to use crude weaponry was… troubling to say the least. This sorcerer probably had enough control over them to direct them in such a manner suggested he was a powerful one too.
Kat could only hope that she had enough skill to thwart whatever spells this foul monster would throw at them. The libraries didn't say much about Chaos, but that and her few experiences meant she'd do most anything to avoid it.
For Father though… For Family.
Her brooding was interrupted when she realized of how painful the silence grew. At the very edges of the glade, she could at least hear the wood of the trees creak as the horses neighed and clopped along the hard earth. Add sand, and some greenskins, and this might be what the Badlands are like.
As they approached the village itself, she could hear nothing but the earth eating up the horse's hoofbeats, and their panicked neighs. Not even a slight whisper could be made as the village came into sight, twisted beyond the little hamlet it once was.
The little hovels were stained blood red, their roofs black like caked blood. Though there was no wind, Kat could smell the foul stench of ancient blood from here. As they drew in closer, she could make out the mutants forming into a line at very entrance of the village, their growls intermixed with some begging for death.
And at the very center of it all was the Bastard who killed father. Clad in swirling purple and eyes that glowed to her witchsight, Kat knew this was the thrice damned godsforsaken whoreson that killed Father. His cackles echoed throughout the village, like thunder shaking the Drakwald.
"I see the fools of Sigmar have come!" he gasped between cackles. "You're too late! The ritual is ready, and soon, I will have power beyond any of you mortals!"
"Form up!" Sigmund ordered, ignoring the madman's cackles, even as the screams of the mutants grew more frenzied.
"Fools!" the sorcerer roared. "Kill them all!" he ordered, as he ran towards his foul ritual. Kat could make out images that hurt just glimpsing them, villagers naked and nailed to the ground, tattooed with vile runes Speaking foul words that echoed in the air, each syllable heralding doom, even as the monstrosities blindly rushed to meet them in battle.
"For Sigmar! For the Empire!" roared Sigmund. As he spurred his horse into a charge, Kat and the rest followed in his wake. Left and right, the mutants were cut down like wheat to a reaper. While Kat did her part, sending molten shards of metal where she could. The Wind of Chamon blew strongly here today, and she was channeling it wherever she could, keeping weapons sharp and armor whole, despite the inhuman blows that rained down on dwarf-forged plate.
Kat slashed left and right, finishing off those pushed aside by the vanguard. The tide of mutants seemed endless, the charge blunted by their weight of numbers. If nothing else, they must stop the sorcerer, as who knows what he will summon with that ritual.
"Sigmund!" Kat roared over the din of battle. "We must stop his sorcery!" she cried even as she beheaded a mutant. "A ritual of this size, who knows what horrors he'll drag here!"
"Reinhardt is closest!" he replied, even as he hewed his foes. "Follow him and push onwards. We'll hold them off!"
Nodding, Kat directed those nearest to her to follow her as she spurred her mount forward, following Reinhardt's chants from the Deus Sigmar. Gods know he'd be the one to be chanting something coherent amidst all this. In every battle, she's ever been in, whether it was greenskins, beastmen,or foul Norscans, look for the Templars or Priests. They would hold against all odds.
That's Reinhardt. The Pillar. The Mountain.
"And thus was the foulness cleansed!" Reinhardt roared as he smashed a mutant's arm, before turning to crush another's skull, the scent of gunpowder hanging about him. "Forged in battle, brothers against the darkness!"
Kat threw a volley of molten metal at a mutant right behind Reinhardt. It's screams even as the metal melted it's face drew Reinhardt's attention towards her, as a sort of lull developed. Typical of him to leave his back open.
"Reinhardt," Kat nodded as she drew her mount alongside him, her escort joining Reinhardt's comrades.
"Kat," he nodded back as he turned his attention towards the sorcerer. "Sigmund wants me to lead the charge then?"
"Indeed. We cannot allow him to complete his ritual." Kat replied as she checked Reinhardt, her eyes quickly scanning him for anything. "Your armor's dented a bit."
"I felt the blow from one of the mutants," he grunted. "I'll live." Always a stubborn one him. She smiled.
"Let me help with that a bit," she nodded as she concentrated, harnessing the winds of Chamon to harden the armor of all her comrades. A moment later, and the spell was done, the armor glistening in her witchsight. "That should do it," she said as she gave Reinhardt's armor a quick rap with the flat of her sword.
"Let us begin then," he smiled as he reared his mount towards the sorcerer. "Sons of Sigmar, to me!" he roared, spurring his mount towards a small clearing.
A few men followed suit, their armor and weapons caked in gore, faces grim, but ready to fight. Some mounted, though many were now unhorsed and leaning on their own weapons, breaths ragged as the fatigue crept in.
"Men of the Empire," Reinhardt bellowed, pointing at the sorcerer. "There lies the enemy! There lies the beast that spawns all our woes! Will you let it stand?"
A resounding roar of NO's echoed from Sigmund all the way to Reinhardt's crowd. "Then let us not tarry! Onwards Sons of Sigmar!" he roared spurring his mount forward, promises of vengeance roaring from his and many other's mouths. Kat couldn't help but smile, proud of her little brother.
She followed in his wake, bolstering their armor as the mutants rained inhuman blows, sharpening their blades to cut through their iron hard hides. Blood and limbs flew around and Kat felt her stomach lurch at the sight of it all as she remembered why she fought on.
It didn't help that whispered "thank you's" echoed from the dying mutants. They fell, their monstrous bodies littering the village as Sigmund's charge carved a path straight into the ragged mutant lines.
"Fools! The Ritual must not be stopped!" the sorcerer growled as he turned his attention to the van, throwing bales of warpfire at them before returning to his ritual.
Reinhardt's mount, along with a few unfortunate souls were caught in the blasts. Kat could only watch in horror as Reinhardt was thrown from his mount as the screams of the dying begged for relief from the unnatural flame.
"Push!" she shouted, the command echoing above the battlefield, even as she began to cast more spells. She slashed left and right, her only thoughts was of reaching her brother. She couldn't bear to lose someone she loved again so soon. No screams, no blood, no disorder. Only the single goal of reaching Reinhardt.
She slashed left and right, cutting through the mutated flesh like a hot knife through butter. She could make out Reinhardt already, fending off mutants while he was trapped between a hovel and the braying mutants. Maul in one hand, he fended them off, swearing and praying to Sigmar all the while.
"Reinhardt!" Kat screamed as she broke through the circle of mutants surrounding him, dismounting as she did so. Back to back with her brother, she couldn't help but grin. "I see I've once again come to your aid brother," she laughed, relieved to see him alive.
"It's always appreciated sister. Barely." Reinhardt replied ,grinning, eyes never leaving the thinning circle of mutants. "We're not too far away from the foul sorcerer now. One last push, and we can end this once and for all."
"Ask Sigmar for aid. We'll need all the help we can get." Kat nodded as she began her own preparations.
"Almighty Sigmar!" Reinhardt began, his hammer glowing with each verse, "Grant us the aid in this time of battle! Smite down these fell mutants, that we may cleanse this darkness from our lands!"
As he finished, Kat noticed her own sword, already razor sharp from her own spells, was now glowing with holy fire. She had read many an account of these events, how though rare, they each turned the tide of battle. Kat smiled, Reinhardt had truly done well for himself.
"Sigmar's granted us this blessing friends!" Reinhardt began, raising his maul above his head. "We need only take what is ours! Forward for the Empire!" he roared, charging into the midst of the mutants.
Kat joined suit, saving her spells for the final duel with the sorcerer. Gods above know that she will need everything she has to fight him. She slashed left and right, the mutants burning at the slightest touch of her blessed weapon. Like the texts had said, they were turning the tide, as their tiny throng of warriors drove fear into the mutants, who were already beginning to rout.
"No!" the sorcerer roared, his voice cracking under the strain of this ritual. "You cannot stop me!" he screamed as he threw fireballs with wild abandon. Kat managed to catch a glimpse of Reinhardt weaving between the fireballs before they incinerated his companions, their screams echoing over the battlefield.
Kat charged, a spell on her lips as she turned the sorcerer's staff into lead just as he was about to cast. Thrown momentarily off balance, the sorcerer floundered as the ritual began to unravel before them. Kat could only smile as Reinhardt took the opportunity to smash the sorcerer's knees, driving him onto the cold hard earth.
"For crimes against the Empire, for the murder of my Father, I sentence you to death!" Reinhardt began as he raised his maul to deliver the finishing blow.
"If I cannot finish this ritual… then I'll take you with me!" the sorcerer cursed as his eyes grew blindingly bright. Five fell words that hurt to even hear, and Kat beheld something she had feared ever since she entered the Colleges of Magic.
A portal into the screaming abyss, glowing emerald green, emerged right above her and Reinhardt. Distracted, the sorcerer only cackled, even as Reinhardt drove his maul into his skull ending him forever.
Kat took comfort in the fact vengeance was achieved before the portal swallowed the two of them, and all she could do was scream.
DREI
AN: Thanks once more to @RedrumSprinkles for her much needed help in editing and cleaning this out. To people who know WHF lore better than I, pls do not smite me.
For an eternity Reinhardt screamed prayers to Sigmar, eyes shut as he and Kat were sucked through the portal. He screamed what felt like the entire Deus Sigmar over a dozen times, until one blessed eternity later, he felt solid ground beneath his feet.
Only then did he dare to open his eyes. And what a wonderful sight greeted him. Never before had he thought he'd welcome finding himself lost in the middle of an unknown forest in the middle of who knows where, but he'd take the very known threat of the forests over the realms of Chaos itself. He quickly turned to look for Kat, only to find her behind him. He immediately turned to envelop her in a crushing hug.
"I'm glad you're okay." he breathed out before letting her go.
"And you as well." she replied, voice hoarse, probably smiling underneath that mask of hers. "And we've survived the impossible!" she laughed. "We're alive! Thank the gods for that!"
"Sigmar and all the gods be praised!" Reinhardt said, joining in his sister's laugh. "And not a sign of corruption either! No mutations, no burning desire to strangle you... beyond the norm!" he joked.
"I do feel like you deserve a good slap to the head," Kat joked as they both sat on the cool moist earth and reveled in it all. They were alive, and gods be praised, they were whole and free.
"Now," Reinhardt panted after a moment, the situation reasserting itself on them. "Where are we?"
"In the forest, dear brother. Can't you tell?" Kat snorted as she leaned on her staff. "In all seriousness, I have no idea."
"I'm sure Ulrica or Mother could tell which way to go, but… We both know forests don't agree with us." Reinhardt added.
"Which just means we must be alert. We both know what lurks in the woods." Reinhardt replied.
"Of course," Kat nodded back as she took charge. "Let's head this way. We'll follow the sun until we can't make out where it is anymore."
Reinhardt shrugged back, nothing more to add. The two of them marched forth, alert for any signs of beastmen, orcs, goblins or any other dangers the forest held. Wherever they were,they knew better than to let their guard down amidst the green boroughs.
An hour later, they struck gold. "A road! Sigmar be praised!" Reinhardt grinned. "We must be near a guard post then."
"Pick a direction then, brother. Either one will eventually lead us home." Kat nodded.
Reinhardt was about to do so when he stopped. One hand on a pistol, and the other signalling Kat for silence, he listened keenly for sounds that signaled one of the many dangers of the forest.
"Horses," he said a moment later. "And a lot of voices. A party's headed this way!" he grinned. "We're lucky today, sister," he finished as he enveloped her in another hug.
"Umph," she gasped before patting Reinhardt's back. "Yes, now let me go. We want to be presentable to whoever it is we're going to see. At the rate our luck's going it may very well be the Emperor himself."
Happy to see that Kat still had a sense of humor, Reinhardt dusted himself off as best he could. His armor and maul were still caked in gore, and while Sigmar granted many blessings, He wasn't too fond of cleaning up after battles. Kat didn't look much better either, her sword and staff were still gleaming, but her robes were ruined.
After doing their best to make themselves presentable, the two followed the sound of the incoming party, and while distant, he could hear distinct voices, even laughter. Clearly they weren't expecting any trouble, possibly they were still within the vicinity of a guard post. It would still be best to greet them. It was the polite thing to do after all.
Soon, Reinhardt could make out the leading party. A woman, (judging from the slim figure), in armor of foreign make riding an unbarded steed. Behind her he could make out a similarly dressed woman and another woman who was obviously a wizard. The staff and robes were a dead give away. The banner that they were riding under though, was unknown to Reinhardt - a golden eye, pierced with a sword on a field of black.
"Do you recognize the sigil? Or your colleague over there?" Reinhardt asked.
"Much as everyone thinks that every wizard knows each other, that only applies for within our own colleges." Kat sighed. "And no, I recognize neither. We could just be far north, judging from the chill, or even somewhere near Marienburg. Possibly even the edges of the Wastelands. One thing I can definitely tell you is that they aren't a Chaos warband."
"Maybe," Reinhardt sighed as he walked towards the group, hammer sheathed. "Best greet them now then. Hopefully we're still in the Empire.The last thing I'd want to deal with now would be those damn Marienburg traitors."
Reinhardt walked calmly towards them, Kat trailing behind. Worst comes to worst, he was the one in full plate, and could afford to take hits. "Ho there friends!" he shouted, catching their attention. "We mean no harm!" he said arms raised. "We're just a bit lost!"
To Reinhardt's dismay, the one in front with the foreign armor, presumably the leader, replied in some foreign language he couldn't make heads or tails of. Reinhardt turned to Kat, hoping that she knew what they were saying, but a shrug told him all he needed to know.
"I'm sorry," he shook his head. "I don't understand you." he replied, eyes darting towards the forest. No telling if their little mummer's play here would attract the wrong kind of audience. Beastmen were cunning enough to grab any opportunity, even one so close to a guard post.
The leader nodded and turned around, calling for someone, presumably their translator. Maybe these are visitors from some foreign land? Kislev, or perhaps even legendary Cathay?
While waiting, the leader mimed putting his hands down, which Reinhardt gladly did. Not only was he beginning to get tired, but he took it as a sign that these were friendly people. Good with the bad, he supposed.
To Reinhardt's further relief, he caught sight of a dwarf running towards the front, a massive crossbow on his back. Friends of the Empire, surely this one would know some Riekspiel if he were away from the holds. He looked rather young though, and definitely the first dwarf he'd ever seen without a beard.
"Friend Dwarf!" Reinhardt boomed. "I'm Reinhardt von Grauberg, and this is my sister Katherine von Grauberg."
"Ah an Ander!" the dwarf replied. "And a cheery one too!" the dwarf laughed as he turned to the one who led the ride and translated for the leader.
"I'm Varric Tethras, and this is Ser Eveylyn Trevelyan,Herald of Andraste, we're with the Inquisition!" the dwarf translated. "Do you need any help? You look like you just came from a scrap."
"We're fine thank you. We slew some vile sorcerer and his minions a scant few hours ago. Which brings us to our… predicament."
"What my brother means to ask," Kat interrupted. "Is that we're lost."
"Lost? " Varric asked before turning to the leader, speaking their strange tongue . They had a bit of back and forth before Varric turned to reply. "Well, it's a few hours ride to Therinfall Redoubt. We're headed that way, and The Herald's certain that as long as you're with us, they'll let you rest before you make your way to somewhere more civilized. Or if you don't mind the trip, it's about a few day's travel on foot the other way to the nearest town."
"We have no idea where any of those places are." Reinhardt sighed.
"None? You're in Ferelden friend! I'd have thought you'd have realized that you're not in the Anderfells anymore, what with the whole having trees and not surrounded by darkspawn." Varric chuckled.
"We don't know any Ferelden lands," Kat replied. "We're from the Province of Reikland, of the Empire." a hint of pride in her voice. Reinhardt agreed, who didn't want to be a Reiklander?
Varric narrowed his eyes at that and turned to the leader. By the animated back and forth, Reinhardt wasn't sure that was the right thing to say.
"Well…" Varric sighed. "You don't strike me as the slaving type. Not to mention we've never heard of Reikland, so I doubt we're talking about some province of the Tevinter Imperium here."
"Tev-"
"What's with this delay Herald?" some masked man said, in the most bizarrely accented Bretonnian Reinhardt had ever heard. "We're supposed to be at Therinfall before nightfall."
"I have the situation under control Lord Abernache," the woman replied likewise, if in an equally strange accent.
"Thank Sigmar! A language we speak" Reinhardt replied. "We'll join you to Therinfall. We… seem to be even further home than we realize."
"Fair enough. A proper introduction though is in order. I'm Evelyn Trevelyan, a servant of the Inquisition." she bowed slightly.
"Reinhardt von Grauberg, Templar of the Order of the Blazing Hammers, and this is my sister, Katherine von Grauberg, Magister of the College of the Gold order." he replied as Kat did a slight curtsey.
"Pleasure to meet you," Kat said as she walked up towards them.
"A Templar?" Eve asked. "And you don't know Therinfall?"
"No. Should I?" Reinhardt asked.
"It's where your Lord-Commander has gathered your order. It's in fact why we go there, we need their aid." she replied.
"Aid?"
"Indeed. We believe they're our best shot at stopping the Breech and preventing Demons-"
"Demons!" Reinhardt interrupted. "Where?!"
"You'll see what we're talking about soon as we leave the forest."she nodded, face grim, as she stirred her horse forward. "I'm afraid we don't have any spare mounts. You'll have to join Varric and the others on the carts."
"That's fine." Kat nodded. "In the face of Chaos, it is our duty to aid you."
She stopped at that, turning around to face them. "That's it? We know very little of each other, and judging from how foreign you are, of the Inquisition. Despite all those unknowns, you're willing to lay down your life to fight demons?"
"Sigmar protects the weak against the corruption of Chaos and dark magic." Reinhardt replied, his hand firmly grasped on his amulet. "It is the duty of the strong, to protect the weak. I am oath-bound to do so."
"Indeed," Kat nodded. "We must close this… 'breach' as soon as possible. Gods know what a portal open for this long will let out."
Eve frowned at her use of the word gods, but Reinhardt let that go. He was in a foreign land, and as much as he'd hate to admit it, Sigmar wasn't popular outside the Empire. Sigmar founded... The Empire, and arguably was part of its very identity, no matter how much Middenland would argue otherwise. Besides, if they were Chaos worshipers, they'd want to keep the demons coming, not preventing them from doing so.
"I see. Well, follow Varric. He'll take you to our carts, where you can rest. Something tells me we'll have a long day ahead of us." she sighed as she mustered her horse again.
Reinhardt nodded, following the dwarf's lead back down the column. Here he passed many of what were obviously nobles, with their foreign but flaired fashions and masks of all designs. What struck him most though, beyond the dated fashions of the oblivious nobles, was the light guard surrounding them. Surely a trek through the forest with obviously important people demanded a better escort? Perhaps the battle against Chaos was worse than he thought, and they were thinly pressed for men. But then why would an order of Templars not heed the call to arms?
As they approached the very end of the convoy, Reinhardt saw a great pair of horns, like a bull's resting atop an enormous man's head, a war axe that would look right at home in an Orc Warboss' hand, strapped on his back. Letting out a growl, Reinhardt grabbed his maul before Varric stopped him.
"Wait!" Varric shouted as she dashed in front of Reinhardt. "Tiny's harmless… Well to us, the enemy is another thing. But still, he may be qunari but he's with us!"
"He's a beastman," Reinhardt muttered through grit teeth. "A gor. I've seen more than my fair share of what their foul kind do, emerging from the forests, laying down a path of rape, shit and destruction in their path."
"Woah," the beast talked, in fluent Bretonnian. "Qunari are many things, but shit and rape isn't us."
"Wh-what's this? You speak!" Reinhardt gasped, hand still firmly grasped upon his maul.
"Yeah. We're big, and foreign looking yes, but we're not mindless beasts." he snorted.
"Kat?" Reinhardt asked turning to his sister. So far, Sigmar hadn't sent any signs that this beast is with Chaos. Better safe than sorry though.
"I see nothing brother," she replied. "And mayhaps… he and his kind are like the lizardmen oft told from Lustria. Foreign, and alien in mind and body, but still an enemy of Chaos."
"Hmph," Reinhardt grunted, sheathing his maul. "You may not be a beastman, but I'll keep my eyes on you."
"What's one more pair among hundreds?" the beast laughed as Reinhardt climbed aboard the cart.
"Well," Varric laughed as he followed. "You two are certainly interesting folk."
"I'm starting to get this feeling that we're far farther from home than we think." Kat sighed as she climbed on.
"That said," the beast grunted as he turned to them. "Introductions are in order. You've met our resident storyteller Varric already. I'm Iron Bull," he smiled. "And this here," he pointed to the hooded figure in red, "is Sera."
"I'm Katherine von Grauberg, a Magister of the Gold Order. This is Sir Reinhardt von Grauberg, Knight-Templar of the Order of the Blazing Hammer. " Kat replied for Reinhardt, his eyes still pinned on Iron Bull.
"You lot look all skully and gory." Sera muttered. "Not like the Templars or Magisters we usually see. No flaming swords… plenty of blood. Who'd you murder then eh?"
"It wasn't murder. It was justice," Reinhardt replied, looking her in the eye. "He used his foul sorcery to turn an entire village into horrible mutants. It was only with the aid of my family that we not only avenged the village, but we avenged our father, and did our duty."
"Nobles you two?" she spat.
"Technically, even if both of us can no longer inherit," Kat replied. "Though believe me, when one walks among my peers, I understand your distaste for them."
"Hmph," she replied, her hood dislodging, displaying a pair of pointed ears and alien features.
"By Sigmar, you're an elf!" Reinhardt gasped. "And you're working with a dwarf!" he said as he turned to Varric.
"What of it?" Varric asked.
"Yeah, Varric's all weird with his words and stuff, but he's alright." Sera replied, eyebrows raised.
"Alright?" Kat gasped. "No Elf would call a dwarf alright with a straight face! And no Dwarf I know would ever work with an Elf! No without much cajoling and never with you two so… so friendly!" Kat wailed, looking between the two. Reinhardt could practically hear the gears grinding in her head as she came to a conclusion Reinhardt was deeply praying wasn't what he thought it was.
"... Brother, I'm now certain we're much farther from home than we realize." Kat finally said, breaking the silence that hung over the cart.
"Sigmar preserve us," Reinhardt breathed as he collapsed on the cart, his body taking its due.
For an eternity Reinhardt screamed prayers to Sigmar, eyes shut as he and Kat were sucked through the portal. He screamed what felt like the entire Deus Sigmar over a dozen times, until one blessed eternity later, he felt solid ground beneath his feet.
Only then did he dare to open his eyes. And what a wonderful sight greeted him. Never before had he thought he'd welcome finding himself lost in the middle of an unknown forest in the middle of who knows where, but he'd take the very known threat of the forests over the realms of Chaos itself. He quickly turned to look for Kat, only to find her behind him. He immediately turned to envelop her in a crushing hug.
"I'm glad you're okay." he breathed out before letting her go.
"And you as well." she replied, voice hoarse, probably smiling underneath that mask of hers. "And we've survived the impossible!" she laughed. "We're alive! Thank the gods for that!"
"Sigmar and all the gods be praised!" Reinhardt said, joining in his sister's laugh. "And not a sign of corruption either! No mutations, no burning desire to strangle you... beyond the norm!" he joked.
"I do feel like you deserve a good slap to the head," Kat joked as they both sat on the cool moist earth and reveled in it all. They were alive, and gods be praised, they were whole and free.
"Now," Reinhardt panted after a moment, the situation reasserting itself on them. "Where are we?"
"In the forest, dear brother. Can't you tell?" Kat snorted as she leaned on her staff. "In all seriousness, I have no idea."
"I'm sure Ulrica or Mother could tell which way to go, but… We both know forests don't agree with us." Reinhardt added.
"Which just means we must be alert. We both know what lurks in the woods." Reinhardt replied.
"Of course," Kat nodded back as she took charge. "Let's head this way. We'll follow the sun until we can't make out where it is anymore."
Reinhardt shrugged back, nothing more to add. The two of them marched forth, alert for any signs of beastmen, orcs, goblins or any other dangers the forest held. Wherever they were,they knew better than to let their guard down amidst the green boroughs.
An hour later, they struck gold. "A road! Sigmar be praised!" Reinhardt grinned. "We must be near a guard post then."
"Pick a direction then, brother. Either one will eventually lead us home." Kat nodded.
Reinhardt was about to do so when he stopped. One hand on a pistol, and the other signalling Kat for silence, he listened keenly for sounds that signaled one of the many dangers of the forest.
"Horses," he said a moment later. "And a lot of voices. A party's headed this way!" he grinned. "We're lucky today, sister," he finished as he enveloped her in another hug.
"Umph," she gasped before patting Reinhardt's back. "Yes, now let me go. We want to be presentable to whoever it is we're going to see. At the rate our luck's going it may very well be the Emperor himself."
Happy to see that Kat still had a sense of humor, Reinhardt dusted himself off as best he could. His armor and maul were still caked in gore, and while Sigmar granted many blessings, He wasn't too fond of cleaning up after battles. Kat didn't look much better either, her sword and staff were still gleaming, but her robes were ruined.
After doing their best to make themselves presentable, the two followed the sound of the incoming party, and while distant, he could hear distinct voices, even laughter. Clearly they weren't expecting any trouble, possibly they were still within the vicinity of a guard post. It would still be best to greet them. It was the polite thing to do after all.
Soon, Reinhardt could make out the leading party. A woman, (judging from the slim figure), in armor of foreign make riding an unbarded steed. Behind her he could make out a similarly dressed woman and another woman who was obviously a wizard. The staff and robes were a dead give away. The banner that they were riding under though, was unknown to Reinhardt - a golden eye, pierced with a sword on a field of black.
"Do you recognize the sigil? Or your colleague over there?" Reinhardt asked.
"Much as everyone thinks that every wizard knows each other, that only applies for within our own colleges." Kat sighed. "And no, I recognize neither. We could just be far north, judging from the chill, or even somewhere near Marienburg. Possibly even the edges of the Wastelands. One thing I can definitely tell you is that they aren't a Chaos warband."
"Maybe," Reinhardt sighed as he walked towards the group, hammer sheathed. "Best greet them now then. Hopefully we're still in the Empire.The last thing I'd want to deal with now would be those damn Marienburg traitors."
Reinhardt walked calmly towards them, Kat trailing behind. Worst comes to worst, he was the one in full plate, and could afford to take hits. "Ho there friends!" he shouted, catching their attention. "We mean no harm!" he said arms raised. "We're just a bit lost!"
To Reinhardt's dismay, the one in front with the foreign armor, presumably the leader, replied in some foreign language he couldn't make heads or tails of. Reinhardt turned to Kat, hoping that she knew what they were saying, but a shrug told him all he needed to know.
"I'm sorry," he shook his head. "I don't understand you." he replied, eyes darting towards the forest. No telling if their little mummer's play here would attract the wrong kind of audience. Beastmen were cunning enough to grab any opportunity, even one so close to a guard post.
The leader nodded and turned around, calling for someone, presumably their translator. Maybe these are visitors from some foreign land? Kislev, or perhaps even legendary Cathay?
While waiting, the leader mimed putting his hands down, which Reinhardt gladly did. Not only was he beginning to get tired, but he took it as a sign that these were friendly people. Good with the bad, he supposed.
To Reinhardt's further relief, he caught sight of a dwarf running towards the front, a massive crossbow on his back. Friends of the Empire, surely this one would know some Riekspiel if he were away from the holds. He looked rather young though, and definitely the first dwarf he'd ever seen without a beard.
"Friend Dwarf!" Reinhardt boomed. "I'm Reinhardt von Grauberg, and this is my sister Katherine von Grauberg."
"Ah an Ander!" the dwarf replied. "And a cheery one too!" the dwarf laughed as he turned to the one who led the ride and translated for the leader.
"I'm Varric Tethras, and this is Ser Eveylyn Trevelyan,Herald of Andraste, we're with the Inquisition!" the dwarf translated. "Do you need any help? You look like you just came from a scrap."
"We're fine thank you. We slew some vile sorcerer and his minions a scant few hours ago. Which brings us to our… predicament."
"What my brother means to ask," Kat interrupted. "Is that we're lost."
"Lost? " Varric asked before turning to the leader, speaking their strange tongue . They had a bit of back and forth before Varric turned to reply. "Well, it's a few hours ride to Therinfall Redoubt. We're headed that way, and The Herald's certain that as long as you're with us, they'll let you rest before you make your way to somewhere more civilized. Or if you don't mind the trip, it's about a few day's travel on foot the other way to the nearest town."
"We have no idea where any of those places are." Reinhardt sighed.
"None? You're in Ferelden friend! I'd have thought you'd have realized that you're not in the Anderfells anymore, what with the whole having trees and not surrounded by darkspawn." Varric chuckled.
"We don't know any Ferelden lands," Kat replied. "We're from the Province of Reikland, of the Empire." a hint of pride in her voice. Reinhardt agreed, who didn't want to be a Reiklander?
Varric narrowed his eyes at that and turned to the leader. By the animated back and forth, Reinhardt wasn't sure that was the right thing to say.
"Well…" Varric sighed. "You don't strike me as the slaving type. Not to mention we've never heard of Reikland, so I doubt we're talking about some province of the Tevinter Imperium here."
"Tev-"
"What's with this delay Herald?" some masked man said, in the most bizarrely accented Bretonnian Reinhardt had ever heard. "We're supposed to be at Therinfall before nightfall."
"I have the situation under control Lord Abernache," the woman replied likewise, if in an equally strange accent.
"Thank Sigmar! A language we speak" Reinhardt replied. "We'll join you to Therinfall. We… seem to be even further home than we realize."
"Fair enough. A proper introduction though is in order. I'm Evelyn Trevelyan, a servant of the Inquisition." she bowed slightly.
"Reinhardt von Grauberg, Templar of the Order of the Blazing Hammers, and this is my sister, Katherine von Grauberg, Magister of the College of the Gold order." he replied as Kat did a slight curtsey.
"Pleasure to meet you," Kat said as she walked up towards them.
"A Templar?" Eve asked. "And you don't know Therinfall?"
"No. Should I?" Reinhardt asked.
"It's where your Lord-Commander has gathered your order. It's in fact why we go there, we need their aid." she replied.
"Aid?"
"Indeed. We believe they're our best shot at stopping the Breech and preventing Demons-"
"Demons!" Reinhardt interrupted. "Where?!"
"You'll see what we're talking about soon as we leave the forest."she nodded, face grim, as she stirred her horse forward. "I'm afraid we don't have any spare mounts. You'll have to join Varric and the others on the carts."
"That's fine." Kat nodded. "In the face of Chaos, it is our duty to aid you."
She stopped at that, turning around to face them. "That's it? We know very little of each other, and judging from how foreign you are, of the Inquisition. Despite all those unknowns, you're willing to lay down your life to fight demons?"
"Sigmar protects the weak against the corruption of Chaos and dark magic." Reinhardt replied, his hand firmly grasped on his amulet. "It is the duty of the strong, to protect the weak. I am oath-bound to do so."
"Indeed," Kat nodded. "We must close this… 'breach' as soon as possible. Gods know what a portal open for this long will let out."
Eve frowned at her use of the word gods, but Reinhardt let that go. He was in a foreign land, and as much as he'd hate to admit it, Sigmar wasn't popular outside the Empire. Sigmar founded... The Empire, and arguably was part of its very identity, no matter how much Middenland would argue otherwise. Besides, if they were Chaos worshipers, they'd want to keep the demons coming, not preventing them from doing so.
"I see. Well, follow Varric. He'll take you to our carts, where you can rest. Something tells me we'll have a long day ahead of us." she sighed as she mustered her horse again.
Reinhardt nodded, following the dwarf's lead back down the column. Here he passed many of what were obviously nobles, with their foreign but flaired fashions and masks of all designs. What struck him most though, beyond the dated fashions of the oblivious nobles, was the light guard surrounding them. Surely a trek through the forest with obviously important people demanded a better escort? Perhaps the battle against Chaos was worse than he thought, and they were thinly pressed for men. But then why would an order of Templars not heed the call to arms?
As they approached the very end of the convoy, Reinhardt saw a great pair of horns, like a bull's resting atop an enormous man's head, a war axe that would look right at home in an Orc Warboss' hand, strapped on his back. Letting out a growl, Reinhardt grabbed his maul before Varric stopped him.
"Wait!" Varric shouted as she dashed in front of Reinhardt. "Tiny's harmless… Well to us, the enemy is another thing. But still, he may be qunari but he's with us!"
"He's a beastman," Reinhardt muttered through grit teeth. "A gor. I've seen more than my fair share of what their foul kind do, emerging from the forests, laying down a path of rape, shit and destruction in their path."
"Woah," the beast talked, in fluent Bretonnian. "Qunari are many things, but shit and rape isn't us."
"Wh-what's this? You speak!" Reinhardt gasped, hand still firmly grasped upon his maul.
"Yeah. We're big, and foreign looking yes, but we're not mindless beasts." he snorted.
"Kat?" Reinhardt asked turning to his sister. So far, Sigmar hadn't sent any signs that this beast is with Chaos. Better safe than sorry though.
"I see nothing brother," she replied. "And mayhaps… he and his kind are like the lizardmen oft told from Lustria. Foreign, and alien in mind and body, but still an enemy of Chaos."
"Hmph," Reinhardt grunted, sheathing his maul. "You may not be a beastman, but I'll keep my eyes on you."
"What's one more pair among hundreds?" the beast laughed as Reinhardt climbed aboard the cart.
"Well," Varric laughed as he followed. "You two are certainly interesting folk."
"I'm starting to get this feeling that we're far farther from home than we think." Kat sighed as she climbed on.
"That said," the beast grunted as he turned to them. "Introductions are in order. You've met our resident storyteller Varric already. I'm Iron Bull," he smiled. "And this here," he pointed to the hooded figure in red, "is Sera."
"I'm Katherine von Grauberg, a Magister of the Gold Order. This is Sir Reinhardt von Grauberg, Knight-Templar of the Order of the Blazing Hammer. " Kat replied for Reinhardt, his eyes still pinned on Iron Bull.
"You lot look all skully and gory." Sera muttered. "Not like the Templars or Magisters we usually see. No flaming swords… plenty of blood. Who'd you murder then eh?"
"It wasn't murder. It was justice," Reinhardt replied, looking her in the eye. "He used his foul sorcery to turn an entire village into horrible mutants. It was only with the aid of my family that we not only avenged the village, but we avenged our father, and did our duty."
"Nobles you two?" she spat.
"Technically, even if both of us can no longer inherit," Kat replied. "Though believe me, when one walks among my peers, I understand your distaste for them."
"Hmph," she replied, her hood dislodging, displaying a pair of pointed ears and alien features.
"By Sigmar, you're an elf!" Reinhardt gasped. "And you're working with a dwarf!" he said as he turned to Varric.
"What of it?" Varric asked.
"Yeah, Varric's all weird with his words and stuff, but he's alright." Sera replied, eyebrows raised.
"Alright?" Kat gasped. "No Elf would call a dwarf alright with a straight face! And no Dwarf I know would ever work with an Elf! No without much cajoling and never with you two so… so friendly!" Kat wailed, looking between the two. Reinhardt could practically hear the gears grinding in her head as she came to a conclusion Reinhardt was deeply praying wasn't what he thought it was.
"... Brother, I'm now certain we're much farther from home than we realize." Kat finally said, breaking the silence that hung over the cart.
"Sigmar preserve us," Reinhardt breathed as he collapsed on the cart, his body taking its due.
VIER
AN: So just to let in a little secret, but I've got a lot of this written down in advance. Thanks again to @RedrumSprinkles for taking a looksee at the earlier much rougher work of mine. Once again lore specialists, pls don't skewer me to
Eve watched the two strangers stare at the Breach as they made their way out of the forest. From what Varric had told her mere moments ago, these two were telling the truth. No One could fake the sort of shock he heard in their voices at the very idea of Sera and Varric working together, let alone tolerating their presence.
He went on to further describe their reaction Bull, calling him a "beastman", and how much Reinhardt kept glaring at him the entire time, one hand clenched around that hammer amulet of his, the other on his gory maul.
Now the two of them stared at the great gaping green gash in the sky. A portal into the Fade, where demons could freely crawl out to wreak untold havoc amongst the world. All the while the column moved slowly forward to Therinfal.
"By Sigmar and all the Gods," the templar, Reinhardt muttered as he sat back properly. "It is worse than I feared."
"Every day, we lose more men holding the demons from small rifts at bay. Not to mention... it could grow even bigger." Eve sighed as she slowed down her horse, wondering how this all started.
"And corruption? Madness amongst the ranks? That close to a portal of that size…" the woman, Kat asked as she turned to Eve.
"I'm… not sure what you're talking about there." Eve replied. "We lost them only to battle and wounds."
"But… to be exposed to Chaos so close." Kat muttered. "I'm more surprised more of your men have not mutated by now. You are certain?"
"Yes." Eve nodded in understanding. They were probably worried about possession and abominations. "The Inquisition keeps a very close eye for what I think you're talking about."
"Astounding," Kat replied, turning back to the Breach. "You must tell me of your methods. If they do not involve the gods… then it may become one of our most powerful weapons against demons."
"I'm sorry, I hate to interrupt but gods?" Eve finally asked, her curiosity getting the better of her. "The only ones I know of who still worship gods to speak are the tribes far to the south and the Dalish. Who are these gods of yours?"
"I myself am curious to hear about them,"Varric added. "If nothing else, I find ancient myths are great for my writing."
"Of course," the brother, Reinhardt grunted. "A far away land, with foreign gods, and not even a hint of the familiar. No matter, as a Templar of Sigmar, I may as well educate you as best I can on my god and the basics of others." he finished, sitting up ramrod straight.
"First," he bellowed such that probably the entire column heard. "There is Sigmar, the Man-God. He founded our great Empire centuries ago, bringing together our ancestors together with the brave dwarves to fight off the greenskin menace. Under his rule, our Empire thrived, until one day he left for the far East, to ascend towards his rightful place as chief of the gods. His tenets are simple: Obey orders given to you. Aid the dwarves of the Karaz Ankor when you can. Work towards the unity of the Empire, even at the cost of your own freedoms. You owe all allehgiance towards the Emperor. And finally… wherever you walk, inside or outside the Empire, you must root out and destroy the evils of the Old Night. Goblins, Orcs, servants of Chaos and those who wield corrupt magics, wherever they hide."
"Hence you saying it's your duty to go aid us," Eve nodded.
"Yes. I am duty bound by my god to help you in your quest. Though in far lands we may be, Chaos affects us all, and if I fail to aid you here… well, I fear for my homeland." Reinhardt sighed.
"Then there is Ulric," Reinhardt added. "Mother always tried to get us to follow her ways, but I'm afraid only Ulrica ever really took them to heart. He is the Wolf God, the Winter King, and a god of warriors.He always demands that warriors defend their honor and fight with their own strength."
"There is Verena," Reinhardt went on. "But Kat knows her better than I."
"She is a Goddess of knowledge, learning and ultimately, justice." Kat nodded in return. "She demands that we guard what we know, that we consider it in the context of the situation, that we may be able to deal true justice, the spirit of it, not merely the letter.We must seek wisdom so that we may deal justice properly. "
"The others I'm afraid like many in the Empire, I only know the essentials, none of the deeper mysteries of their cults." Reinhardt continued. "Shallya's the goddess of healing, and abhors all violence. Taal is the God of Nature, while Rhya is his wife, the Goddess of nurturing and farmers. Morr is the God of the Dead, he who guards our souls in the afterlife from foul necromancers and Chaos. Though we revere him much, few know his secrets.Manaan governs the seas, and… then there is Ranald." he finished with grit teeth.
"He is not talked among polite company," Kat added, nodding. "The god of thieves, beggars, and pranksters."
"Whut, nothing poncy?" Sera smirked "Sounds like a right simple guy unlike all the others." she laughed, eliciting confused gazes from the two siblings. Almost as if they just saw a nug talk.
"Fascinating," Eve replied, noting to ask why the two why they thought an elf and dwarf working together was so strange. She couldn't help but be enthralled by people who had such an interesting pantheon from some unknown land. She'd heard of the Dalish and their own gods, but this was the first she'd ever hear of another pantheon still being worshiped by humans.That their experience of elves and dwarves were so different, only added another layer of mystery to the two siblings.
"And you?" Reinhardt asked her. "What of your gods?"
"I'm afraid I'm not much help there," she sighed. "Though I came from a pious family… fact of the matter is I never really paid much attention. The Maker made the world, and we ruined His creation. Only Andraste managed to convince him to turn back to us, but we killed her. Now unless we spread the Chant of Light everywhere, we won't be able to return. Not that recent events have helped much."
"Why?"
"Because they think she's the next coming of Andraste that's why!" Bull roared. Of course he'd be the one to let that one out. She sighed as she covered her face in shame.
"It's complicated," Eve muttered as she turned her head away from them. "We're an hour away from Therinfal. You should infact be able to see it very soon."she deflected.
She hated that people thought she was the next coming of Andraste. Maker above, all she wanted to do was represent the family up at the Conclave, and out she comes with a weird… mark thingy that allows her to close these rifts that spit out demons, and seen by many as the Herald of Andraste.
Talk about getting more than you asked for.
Still, she had a responsibility to do what she can to close not only the Breach, but also all other rifts. Chaos reigns supreme, and like it or not, the Inquisition is needed to stop this Hence why she needed the aid of the Templars. She hoped the weight of respect behind their order would help pave the way for any unforeseen troubles up ahead.
"Rather old fashioned castle over there," she heard the foreigner, Reinhardt comment. "Like one of the old forts near the Drakwald. Not the good, "old because it was made by dwarves" kind either."
"You can see the disrepair too," Kat replied, her voice having this strange echo to it. "I'd wager my fortune that only an hour's worth of bombardment from some of gunners in Altdorf to take it down."
"Therinfal was abandoned centuries ago," Eve answered, even as Varric and Bull gave the two of them strange looks. "It was only recently that the Templars decided to go back. Ever since the… Templar-Mage war they've been headquartered here."
"A war?" Kat asked. Unsurprising considering her magical roots. "Between magic-wielders and Templars you say?"
"Yes. Magic is to serve man, not rule over him." Eve quoted. "Chant of Light. I don't know how you do things in your Empire, but all mages must be quartered in their Circle."
"Lest the dangers of demons and Chaos consume them," Kat nodded. "A very sensible approach. And your templars are sworn to either guard them, or kill those who go rogue?"
"Apostates and maleficar. Those who perform vile sorcery." she continued. "It's all very complicated but suffice to say that there's bad blood."
"Oh the Templar position is perfectly understandable," Kat said, to Eve's surprise. For someone with the title Magister to agree that mages should be in the Circles… Whatever this Empire was, it was no Tevinter obviously. "Normally we treat all mages not with the Colleges or apprenticed to an appropriate one with a good old fashioned pyre. Our state-approved licenses are very important to prevent this." she said before bringing out a small piece of parchment. The words were foreign, though made in a very elegant script, with an emblem on the bottom with a griffon. "Any without must be sent to the Colleges or, if tainted or refuse, die."
"They would be too dangerous without training then?" Eve asked, curious. Surely it was not something as binary.
"Worse. They might be tempted by the dark powers," Reinhardt grunted. "None are exempt. Every citizen of the Empire knows this. They fear magic with good reason. It was only with the aid of the Elves in fact that we allowed any to even have magic in the first place. Before that, most would be outright killed on the first signs of magic. Those few who didn't die, became hedge-mages, doomed to eventually be consumed by demons and corrupting magics."
"Some are still of the opinion that never should have been allowed in the first place." Kat added. "You lot sound rather accepting. A refreshing change of pace I must add," she nodded. "And a decentralized system? It could work I suppose… if we got the other Electors to see reason."
Eve only quietly stared at them. The Circles? A Refreshing change of pace? She's only ever heard something approaching that from Vivienne, and even then only in passing.
The more the two talked, the more they painted a wild and unusual portrait of this Empire of theirs.
Why did Kat always wear a mask? Is it like the Orlesians where hiding their faces is a thing? But why didn't Reinhardt have one too? And how did worshiping multiple gods work anyway? Is there not any conflict between their Chantrys? Maker knows there's enough fighting within one Chantry, let alone several.
The two strangers occupied her thoughts for what felt forever before she was jolted of her musings by Cassandra.
"We're here," she said as Therinfal came in sight. "The Lord Seeker I remember would be amiable. But he is not the man I remember... if he cannot be made to see reason, there will be others who can. I know we've made the right choice here."
"I hope so too," Eve sighed as they made their way up towards the castle, friends, strangers, and nobles in tow.
Eve watched the two strangers stare at the Breach as they made their way out of the forest. From what Varric had told her mere moments ago, these two were telling the truth. No One could fake the sort of shock he heard in their voices at the very idea of Sera and Varric working together, let alone tolerating their presence.
He went on to further describe their reaction Bull, calling him a "beastman", and how much Reinhardt kept glaring at him the entire time, one hand clenched around that hammer amulet of his, the other on his gory maul.
Now the two of them stared at the great gaping green gash in the sky. A portal into the Fade, where demons could freely crawl out to wreak untold havoc amongst the world. All the while the column moved slowly forward to Therinfal.
"By Sigmar and all the Gods," the templar, Reinhardt muttered as he sat back properly. "It is worse than I feared."
"Every day, we lose more men holding the demons from small rifts at bay. Not to mention... it could grow even bigger." Eve sighed as she slowed down her horse, wondering how this all started.
"And corruption? Madness amongst the ranks? That close to a portal of that size…" the woman, Kat asked as she turned to Eve.
"I'm… not sure what you're talking about there." Eve replied. "We lost them only to battle and wounds."
"But… to be exposed to Chaos so close." Kat muttered. "I'm more surprised more of your men have not mutated by now. You are certain?"
"Yes." Eve nodded in understanding. They were probably worried about possession and abominations. "The Inquisition keeps a very close eye for what I think you're talking about."
"Astounding," Kat replied, turning back to the Breach. "You must tell me of your methods. If they do not involve the gods… then it may become one of our most powerful weapons against demons."
"I'm sorry, I hate to interrupt but gods?" Eve finally asked, her curiosity getting the better of her. "The only ones I know of who still worship gods to speak are the tribes far to the south and the Dalish. Who are these gods of yours?"
"I myself am curious to hear about them,"Varric added. "If nothing else, I find ancient myths are great for my writing."
"Of course," the brother, Reinhardt grunted. "A far away land, with foreign gods, and not even a hint of the familiar. No matter, as a Templar of Sigmar, I may as well educate you as best I can on my god and the basics of others." he finished, sitting up ramrod straight.
"First," he bellowed such that probably the entire column heard. "There is Sigmar, the Man-God. He founded our great Empire centuries ago, bringing together our ancestors together with the brave dwarves to fight off the greenskin menace. Under his rule, our Empire thrived, until one day he left for the far East, to ascend towards his rightful place as chief of the gods. His tenets are simple: Obey orders given to you. Aid the dwarves of the Karaz Ankor when you can. Work towards the unity of the Empire, even at the cost of your own freedoms. You owe all allehgiance towards the Emperor. And finally… wherever you walk, inside or outside the Empire, you must root out and destroy the evils of the Old Night. Goblins, Orcs, servants of Chaos and those who wield corrupt magics, wherever they hide."
"Hence you saying it's your duty to go aid us," Eve nodded.
"Yes. I am duty bound by my god to help you in your quest. Though in far lands we may be, Chaos affects us all, and if I fail to aid you here… well, I fear for my homeland." Reinhardt sighed.
"Then there is Ulric," Reinhardt added. "Mother always tried to get us to follow her ways, but I'm afraid only Ulrica ever really took them to heart. He is the Wolf God, the Winter King, and a god of warriors.He always demands that warriors defend their honor and fight with their own strength."
"There is Verena," Reinhardt went on. "But Kat knows her better than I."
"She is a Goddess of knowledge, learning and ultimately, justice." Kat nodded in return. "She demands that we guard what we know, that we consider it in the context of the situation, that we may be able to deal true justice, the spirit of it, not merely the letter.We must seek wisdom so that we may deal justice properly. "
"The others I'm afraid like many in the Empire, I only know the essentials, none of the deeper mysteries of their cults." Reinhardt continued. "Shallya's the goddess of healing, and abhors all violence. Taal is the God of Nature, while Rhya is his wife, the Goddess of nurturing and farmers. Morr is the God of the Dead, he who guards our souls in the afterlife from foul necromancers and Chaos. Though we revere him much, few know his secrets.Manaan governs the seas, and… then there is Ranald." he finished with grit teeth.
"He is not talked among polite company," Kat added, nodding. "The god of thieves, beggars, and pranksters."
"Whut, nothing poncy?" Sera smirked "Sounds like a right simple guy unlike all the others." she laughed, eliciting confused gazes from the two siblings. Almost as if they just saw a nug talk.
"Fascinating," Eve replied, noting to ask why the two why they thought an elf and dwarf working together was so strange. She couldn't help but be enthralled by people who had such an interesting pantheon from some unknown land. She'd heard of the Dalish and their own gods, but this was the first she'd ever hear of another pantheon still being worshiped by humans.That their experience of elves and dwarves were so different, only added another layer of mystery to the two siblings.
"And you?" Reinhardt asked her. "What of your gods?"
"I'm afraid I'm not much help there," she sighed. "Though I came from a pious family… fact of the matter is I never really paid much attention. The Maker made the world, and we ruined His creation. Only Andraste managed to convince him to turn back to us, but we killed her. Now unless we spread the Chant of Light everywhere, we won't be able to return. Not that recent events have helped much."
"Why?"
"Because they think she's the next coming of Andraste that's why!" Bull roared. Of course he'd be the one to let that one out. She sighed as she covered her face in shame.
"It's complicated," Eve muttered as she turned her head away from them. "We're an hour away from Therinfal. You should infact be able to see it very soon."she deflected.
She hated that people thought she was the next coming of Andraste. Maker above, all she wanted to do was represent the family up at the Conclave, and out she comes with a weird… mark thingy that allows her to close these rifts that spit out demons, and seen by many as the Herald of Andraste.
Talk about getting more than you asked for.
Still, she had a responsibility to do what she can to close not only the Breach, but also all other rifts. Chaos reigns supreme, and like it or not, the Inquisition is needed to stop this Hence why she needed the aid of the Templars. She hoped the weight of respect behind their order would help pave the way for any unforeseen troubles up ahead.
"Rather old fashioned castle over there," she heard the foreigner, Reinhardt comment. "Like one of the old forts near the Drakwald. Not the good, "old because it was made by dwarves" kind either."
"You can see the disrepair too," Kat replied, her voice having this strange echo to it. "I'd wager my fortune that only an hour's worth of bombardment from some of gunners in Altdorf to take it down."
"Therinfal was abandoned centuries ago," Eve answered, even as Varric and Bull gave the two of them strange looks. "It was only recently that the Templars decided to go back. Ever since the… Templar-Mage war they've been headquartered here."
"A war?" Kat asked. Unsurprising considering her magical roots. "Between magic-wielders and Templars you say?"
"Yes. Magic is to serve man, not rule over him." Eve quoted. "Chant of Light. I don't know how you do things in your Empire, but all mages must be quartered in their Circle."
"Lest the dangers of demons and Chaos consume them," Kat nodded. "A very sensible approach. And your templars are sworn to either guard them, or kill those who go rogue?"
"Apostates and maleficar. Those who perform vile sorcery." she continued. "It's all very complicated but suffice to say that there's bad blood."
"Oh the Templar position is perfectly understandable," Kat said, to Eve's surprise. For someone with the title Magister to agree that mages should be in the Circles… Whatever this Empire was, it was no Tevinter obviously. "Normally we treat all mages not with the Colleges or apprenticed to an appropriate one with a good old fashioned pyre. Our state-approved licenses are very important to prevent this." she said before bringing out a small piece of parchment. The words were foreign, though made in a very elegant script, with an emblem on the bottom with a griffon. "Any without must be sent to the Colleges or, if tainted or refuse, die."
"They would be too dangerous without training then?" Eve asked, curious. Surely it was not something as binary.
"Worse. They might be tempted by the dark powers," Reinhardt grunted. "None are exempt. Every citizen of the Empire knows this. They fear magic with good reason. It was only with the aid of the Elves in fact that we allowed any to even have magic in the first place. Before that, most would be outright killed on the first signs of magic. Those few who didn't die, became hedge-mages, doomed to eventually be consumed by demons and corrupting magics."
"Some are still of the opinion that never should have been allowed in the first place." Kat added. "You lot sound rather accepting. A refreshing change of pace I must add," she nodded. "And a decentralized system? It could work I suppose… if we got the other Electors to see reason."
Eve only quietly stared at them. The Circles? A Refreshing change of pace? She's only ever heard something approaching that from Vivienne, and even then only in passing.
The more the two talked, the more they painted a wild and unusual portrait of this Empire of theirs.
Why did Kat always wear a mask? Is it like the Orlesians where hiding their faces is a thing? But why didn't Reinhardt have one too? And how did worshiping multiple gods work anyway? Is there not any conflict between their Chantrys? Maker knows there's enough fighting within one Chantry, let alone several.
The two strangers occupied her thoughts for what felt forever before she was jolted of her musings by Cassandra.
"We're here," she said as Therinfal came in sight. "The Lord Seeker I remember would be amiable. But he is not the man I remember... if he cannot be made to see reason, there will be others who can. I know we've made the right choice here."
"I hope so too," Eve sighed as they made their way up towards the castle, friends, strangers, and nobles in tow.
FÜNF
AN: Thanks once more to @RedrumSprinkles for giving this a looksee, and fixing any issues. The train's still on the canon rails but I'm sure you can sense the weight of things soon enough.
The Castle immediately felt wrong to Reinhardt. His amulet was pulsing, a comfortable warmth on his chest. Instincts honed over many battles told him this was a trap.
"I sense it too," Kat muttered in Reikspeil. "Though I don't think our new friends realize it."
"It's too quiet. Something is wrong about this place, though I know not what yet." Reinhardt replied as they passed through the castle's gates. "Do the winds at least blow favorably here?" he asked, eyeing the heavy plate these 'templars' favored as they glared at him and the rest of the entourage.
"Very." Kat replied. Reinhardt shivered at the answer. "Enough that I may cast some of the more… effective spells."
"Good." Reinhardt nodded. Kat worked best when the enemy surrounded themselves in the heaviest armor.
"Keep a sharp eye out brother," Kat nodded back. "It may be nothing, but from what they tell me this Order was founded to fight demons and abuses of magic. Yet they sit here with a portal of Chaos hanging above their heads.."
"What are you two up to?" asked a woman, her face scarred from many battles, and hair cropped short. She proudly wore her armor, emblazoned with the Inquisition's heraldry in white.
"Forgive us, as my brother is rather paranoid," Kat replied before Reinhardt could. "He's telling me he has a bad feeling about this place and I was merely trying to mollify his fears."
"We are surrounded by Templars under the command of Lord Lucius. We're safe enough here," she nodded back. "I'm Cassandra Pentaghast, a Seeker who trained under that man. If there's anyone who we can trust among all this… madness it would be the Lord Seeker."
"I'm afraid that to us foreigners that means nothing." Reinhardt replied, looking directly at her. "Still, if you're so confident… I'll try and not let my distrust show." he grunted.
"I understand," she said, her face still locked in that scowl of hers as they were approached by Eve along with one dark skinned templar in full plate. A Ser Barris if Reinhardt remembered, he greeted Eve at the gate and spoke of the unusual circumstances.
"I've decided," Eve said as she walked up to three of them. "I'll do the ritual. I'd like you and the others to watch."
"Oh?" Reinhardt asked, remembering the small request the Lord Seeker wanted them to do. Something to do with flags, incredibly trivial yet... "Why do this ritual? Why play into his hand?"
"Because I see no harm in performing it," Eve sighed.
"Inquisitor! Let's not keep the man waiting," said one of the nobles. Reinhardt never really got any of their names. A mere few hours with them was enough to convince him that their arrogance was almost as bad as the Bretonnians back home. Almost.
"We've time enough for this," Eve answered back as the noble stomped away. "Shouldn't take too long." she said as she walked up to one wall. On it hung three flags, one of a blazing sun, another a golden dog, and the last the flaming sword of the order.
"Take your pick as to what should come on top." Ser Barris, the templar that greeted Eve at the gate explained.
Reinhardt watched Eve stand there for a moment before heading towards the dog's winch, She hefted it high above as Barris explained it representing the people. Next she raised the sword, obviously representing this order of templars, leaving the sun last in importance.
"Interesting choice, picking the people and the order over Andraste. Any reasons?" Barris asked.
"They are my own thank you," she nodded back. Now if you could kindly?"
"Of course," he bowed before leading them deeper into the keep, a small escort of templars following them.
Yet the further they walked in, the more Reinhardt worried. Where there should've been activity, even amidst the heavy rain that began to pelt the castle, there was instead only silence. The castle's inhabitants waited with baited breath but for what, he could not say. Only that it wasn't going to be good for them.
Even Eve and the others, the… qunari, Bull foremost among them seemed most uneased by the silence. Only Cassandra and the foreign wizard, Vivienne, seemed at ease while walking through these halls, perhaps still trusting in these 'templars.'
They quickly arrived at a small room, maps and charts scattered about, but no sight of anyone. Reinhardt took the opportunity to take a look at the maps. He frowned as he took quick look, and though he was no cartographer, he saw nothing familiar.
""I see nothing either," Kat whispered in Reikspiel as she walked up to the charts. "And this place feels wrong."
"I agree," Reinhardt whispered even as one of the nobles argued with Barris. "I fear the worst is here," he continued in Reikspiel.
"A cult?" she whispered.
"An insidious one," he nodded, hand resting on his maul. "I'm certain that is the warning Sigmar is sending me now."
"I'm ready brother," she nodded back, leaning on her staff. "I'll follow your signal."
"I don't know what you two are talking about," Eve said as she walked up to the two of them. "But I don't like what the Lord Seeker is-."
"Wait," Reinhardt interrupted as he clutched his amulet. "We're in trouble."
"The Lord Commander has sent me here," said one templar, a captain if Reinhardt judged by his armor's ornaments. The moment he caught a glimpse of his and his guards faces though...
"Chaos!" he roared, as he drew his pistol and fired a shot, downing one of the guards as his head turned to pulp.
"You were supposed to be changed!" the captain roared as he pushed forward with his guard. "Now We purge the questioners! For the Elder One!"
More of them came from behind, taking down several of the uncorrupted escorts Barris brought along, oaths of brotherhood meaning nothing to these cultists.Their treachery ended as Kat turned their lauded armor into molten lead, their screams echoing throughout the chamber as Reinhardt chanted the Deus Sigmar.
"Though he was surrounded," he roared as he smashed in the skull of one treacherous bowman with his maul, "He persevered! He brought upon all who came against Him, His righteous wrath!"
Again and again, he brought down the enemies of man. Again he purged the corruptors. Again he brought justice, as he swung down with his maul, felling any who stood in his wake.
At last until only their captain remained. Reinhardt managed to corner him, even as he deflected each blow of Reinhardt's maul with his shield until with one deft strike, Reinhardt smashed his kneecap, bringing him to his knees.
"Wait!" Eve panted, even as Reinhardt had his maul raised. "I want him alive."
"You'll make him talk?" Reinhardt asked.
"By any means," she nodded back. Satisfied, Reinhardt decked the captain before he could talk further.
"Take him outside!" she ordered Varric and Bull. "The rest of us will go find the Lord Seeker. He has much to answer for."
"And you!" she scowled, finger pointed at Reinhardt. "What was that!? What if he were-"
"He had clear signs of Chaos taint. I thought you would have recognized it." Reinhardt stated, staring into her fierce, strange purple eyes.
"I have no damned idea what this, this this this Chaos taint is!" she bellowed. "This isn't over." she panted, finger at Reinhardt's chest. "We'll find the Lord Seeker, then you'll explain your actions."
"Of course," Reinhardt bowed, confident that his actions were vindicated. "Shall we then?" Reinhardt urged. "We must help them purge this place of these corrupted templars."
"Barris," Eve said, ignoring Reinhardt's quip. "Lead on."
"Of course, follow me." he bowed as he led the way deeper into the castle.
They quickly emerged into a courtyard, the last before the great keep, where this Lucius now awaited. Between them and that keep, was a battlefield of uncorrupted and corrupted templars.
With no need to hide, these cultists unleashed their more corrupted kin, red crystals emerging from their backs, talons sprouting from shattered gauntlets.More beast than man, these mutants were making short work of the loyalists as their claws cut through plate like it wasn't even there at all.
"Sigmar!" Reinhardt cried, digging deep into his heart. "Though our spirits may falter as we face Chaos, grant us the strength to carry on! For Sigmar! For the Empire!" he finished as a comforting warmth settled on him. A warm blanket against the cold of Chaos as Reinhardt and the others charged into the fray.
For Reinhardt, all that mattered then was the now. The crushing of skulls, and the spray of blood against his face. All while he recited the Deus Sigmar, swinging his maul left and right as Eve and the others dispensed death.
Vague glimpses of what went on around him passed by. Eve beheading a mutant, her sword sharpened by Kat's magic. The foreign wizard dispensing lightning like a Celestial, while the elf summoned fireballs to roast the enemy.
They turned out to be the deciding factor in the battle. What looked like a desperate battle for the righteous moments ago dissolved into a mop up as the cultists and their mutated ilk were slain by both spell and sword.
Panting, Reinhardt leaned on his maul as he took stock of the aftermath. The cultists were routed for now here, but from the sounds of battle still rang throughout the castle, this was but a temporary respite. There were more of these cultists lingering deeper within.
"What was that?" roared Eve as she stomped up to Reinhardt. "Your chanting, in that foreign language of yours and the warmth and the the the the- you were glowing!"
"That's no magic. None I've ever seen." the shaggy elf said as walked over, eyes wide.
"Sigmar granted us aid," Reinhardt replied. "Though I find it strange that he aided you unbelievers, I am not one to judge. He must have judged the battle to be worthy to aid all."
"Your god granted us aid." Cassandra stated, staring into Reinhardt. "Your god."
"Aye. And you're hurt," he said to Eve, noticing how Eve clutched her side. "Broken rib?"
"Yes but- What are you doing?' she gasped as Reinhardt laid his hands on her shoulder.
"Blessed Sigmar," Reinhardt began, continuing in Reikspeil. "Though she is an unbeliever, grant her the strength to continue the fight. That we may dispense your will upon the great enemy, and fight off the horrors of the Old Night."
Sigmar was generous today. Eve gasped, her hands patting her ribs repeatedly. "Healing too?"
"Sigmar is generous today," he nodded, taking a moment to translate the verse he had in mind. "And lo against the Enemy, he united the peoples, and together, they brought down the enemies of man, and built the Empire."
"And your other gods… They answer you too?" Eve asked, almost whispering.
"I have seen priests of Ulric and Morr do great things, and I've owed my life to Shallyans countless times." Kat replied. "It is rare for a Templar to be granted blessings of Sigmar, and I'm proud to say that Reinhardt is one of the few I know to be be blessed with his ear." Reinhardt spirit glowed at the praise from Kat. He didn't think he'd hear her give out praise in his presence.
"We'll talk after all of this." Eve glowered. "For now, the Lord Seeker has much to answer for. If this this... Sigmar will aid us then all the better. If not, then we'll do this the old fashioned way."
Reinhardt nodded as he followed Eve further into the castle. The others in the party were giving him…. Looks. The elves especially, Sera and Solas, gave him glancing looks, as if they didn't know what to make of him.
Let them judge. He dispensed Sigmar's will to protect people. If they doubted his motives, let them. He knew what guided him every day. He will prove himself in deed as Sigmar did.
A few skirmishes with scattered pockets of cultists later, and the party found themselves at the base of the steps to the very doors to the Great Keep. From there, this keep commanded views of the surrounding hills, the rich soil turning to mud amid the raging storm.
Above those steps stood the man who was responsible for all this madness. The man who served Chaos.
The party crept forward, eyes peeled for any signs of traps. That he stood there unmoving, not even bothering to look down on them spoke to his bones that nothing here was right. Maul in hand, Reinhardt was ready to dispense His Wrath.
"Lord Seeker!" Eve demanded as she reached the top of the steps. "What have you done?"
The man stood there ignoring them even as Reinhardt and Eve drew closer, weapons in hand. Reinhardt drew to strike, but Eve signaled him to hold. Fine, if he can speak of the source, maybe this Elder One, then mayhaps he can serve a purpose in his capture.
As they drew within range to strike, the man turned around and grabbed Eve. Without thought Reinhardt charged forth to tackle the man, even as a glowing green portal opened up right behind him.
"Siiiiiiiigmar!" he roared even as he, Eve and the monster was swallowed whole by the portal.
The Castle immediately felt wrong to Reinhardt. His amulet was pulsing, a comfortable warmth on his chest. Instincts honed over many battles told him this was a trap.
"I sense it too," Kat muttered in Reikspeil. "Though I don't think our new friends realize it."
"It's too quiet. Something is wrong about this place, though I know not what yet." Reinhardt replied as they passed through the castle's gates. "Do the winds at least blow favorably here?" he asked, eyeing the heavy plate these 'templars' favored as they glared at him and the rest of the entourage.
"Very." Kat replied. Reinhardt shivered at the answer. "Enough that I may cast some of the more… effective spells."
"Good." Reinhardt nodded. Kat worked best when the enemy surrounded themselves in the heaviest armor.
"Keep a sharp eye out brother," Kat nodded back. "It may be nothing, but from what they tell me this Order was founded to fight demons and abuses of magic. Yet they sit here with a portal of Chaos hanging above their heads.."
"What are you two up to?" asked a woman, her face scarred from many battles, and hair cropped short. She proudly wore her armor, emblazoned with the Inquisition's heraldry in white.
"Forgive us, as my brother is rather paranoid," Kat replied before Reinhardt could. "He's telling me he has a bad feeling about this place and I was merely trying to mollify his fears."
"We are surrounded by Templars under the command of Lord Lucius. We're safe enough here," she nodded back. "I'm Cassandra Pentaghast, a Seeker who trained under that man. If there's anyone who we can trust among all this… madness it would be the Lord Seeker."
"I'm afraid that to us foreigners that means nothing." Reinhardt replied, looking directly at her. "Still, if you're so confident… I'll try and not let my distrust show." he grunted.
"I understand," she said, her face still locked in that scowl of hers as they were approached by Eve along with one dark skinned templar in full plate. A Ser Barris if Reinhardt remembered, he greeted Eve at the gate and spoke of the unusual circumstances.
"I've decided," Eve said as she walked up to three of them. "I'll do the ritual. I'd like you and the others to watch."
"Oh?" Reinhardt asked, remembering the small request the Lord Seeker wanted them to do. Something to do with flags, incredibly trivial yet... "Why do this ritual? Why play into his hand?"
"Because I see no harm in performing it," Eve sighed.
"Inquisitor! Let's not keep the man waiting," said one of the nobles. Reinhardt never really got any of their names. A mere few hours with them was enough to convince him that their arrogance was almost as bad as the Bretonnians back home. Almost.
"We've time enough for this," Eve answered back as the noble stomped away. "Shouldn't take too long." she said as she walked up to one wall. On it hung three flags, one of a blazing sun, another a golden dog, and the last the flaming sword of the order.
"Take your pick as to what should come on top." Ser Barris, the templar that greeted Eve at the gate explained.
Reinhardt watched Eve stand there for a moment before heading towards the dog's winch, She hefted it high above as Barris explained it representing the people. Next she raised the sword, obviously representing this order of templars, leaving the sun last in importance.
"Interesting choice, picking the people and the order over Andraste. Any reasons?" Barris asked.
"They are my own thank you," she nodded back. Now if you could kindly?"
"Of course," he bowed before leading them deeper into the keep, a small escort of templars following them.
Yet the further they walked in, the more Reinhardt worried. Where there should've been activity, even amidst the heavy rain that began to pelt the castle, there was instead only silence. The castle's inhabitants waited with baited breath but for what, he could not say. Only that it wasn't going to be good for them.
Even Eve and the others, the… qunari, Bull foremost among them seemed most uneased by the silence. Only Cassandra and the foreign wizard, Vivienne, seemed at ease while walking through these halls, perhaps still trusting in these 'templars.'
They quickly arrived at a small room, maps and charts scattered about, but no sight of anyone. Reinhardt took the opportunity to take a look at the maps. He frowned as he took quick look, and though he was no cartographer, he saw nothing familiar.
""I see nothing either," Kat whispered in Reikspiel as she walked up to the charts. "And this place feels wrong."
"I agree," Reinhardt whispered even as one of the nobles argued with Barris. "I fear the worst is here," he continued in Reikspiel.
"A cult?" she whispered.
"An insidious one," he nodded, hand resting on his maul. "I'm certain that is the warning Sigmar is sending me now."
"I'm ready brother," she nodded back, leaning on her staff. "I'll follow your signal."
"I don't know what you two are talking about," Eve said as she walked up to the two of them. "But I don't like what the Lord Seeker is-."
"Wait," Reinhardt interrupted as he clutched his amulet. "We're in trouble."
"The Lord Commander has sent me here," said one templar, a captain if Reinhardt judged by his armor's ornaments. The moment he caught a glimpse of his and his guards faces though...
"Chaos!" he roared, as he drew his pistol and fired a shot, downing one of the guards as his head turned to pulp.
"You were supposed to be changed!" the captain roared as he pushed forward with his guard. "Now We purge the questioners! For the Elder One!"
More of them came from behind, taking down several of the uncorrupted escorts Barris brought along, oaths of brotherhood meaning nothing to these cultists.Their treachery ended as Kat turned their lauded armor into molten lead, their screams echoing throughout the chamber as Reinhardt chanted the Deus Sigmar.
"Though he was surrounded," he roared as he smashed in the skull of one treacherous bowman with his maul, "He persevered! He brought upon all who came against Him, His righteous wrath!"
Again and again, he brought down the enemies of man. Again he purged the corruptors. Again he brought justice, as he swung down with his maul, felling any who stood in his wake.
At last until only their captain remained. Reinhardt managed to corner him, even as he deflected each blow of Reinhardt's maul with his shield until with one deft strike, Reinhardt smashed his kneecap, bringing him to his knees.
"Wait!" Eve panted, even as Reinhardt had his maul raised. "I want him alive."
"You'll make him talk?" Reinhardt asked.
"By any means," she nodded back. Satisfied, Reinhardt decked the captain before he could talk further.
"Take him outside!" she ordered Varric and Bull. "The rest of us will go find the Lord Seeker. He has much to answer for."
"And you!" she scowled, finger pointed at Reinhardt. "What was that!? What if he were-"
"He had clear signs of Chaos taint. I thought you would have recognized it." Reinhardt stated, staring into her fierce, strange purple eyes.
"I have no damned idea what this, this this this Chaos taint is!" she bellowed. "This isn't over." she panted, finger at Reinhardt's chest. "We'll find the Lord Seeker, then you'll explain your actions."
"Of course," Reinhardt bowed, confident that his actions were vindicated. "Shall we then?" Reinhardt urged. "We must help them purge this place of these corrupted templars."
"Barris," Eve said, ignoring Reinhardt's quip. "Lead on."
"Of course, follow me." he bowed as he led the way deeper into the castle.
They quickly emerged into a courtyard, the last before the great keep, where this Lucius now awaited. Between them and that keep, was a battlefield of uncorrupted and corrupted templars.
With no need to hide, these cultists unleashed their more corrupted kin, red crystals emerging from their backs, talons sprouting from shattered gauntlets.More beast than man, these mutants were making short work of the loyalists as their claws cut through plate like it wasn't even there at all.
"Sigmar!" Reinhardt cried, digging deep into his heart. "Though our spirits may falter as we face Chaos, grant us the strength to carry on! For Sigmar! For the Empire!" he finished as a comforting warmth settled on him. A warm blanket against the cold of Chaos as Reinhardt and the others charged into the fray.
For Reinhardt, all that mattered then was the now. The crushing of skulls, and the spray of blood against his face. All while he recited the Deus Sigmar, swinging his maul left and right as Eve and the others dispensed death.
Vague glimpses of what went on around him passed by. Eve beheading a mutant, her sword sharpened by Kat's magic. The foreign wizard dispensing lightning like a Celestial, while the elf summoned fireballs to roast the enemy.
They turned out to be the deciding factor in the battle. What looked like a desperate battle for the righteous moments ago dissolved into a mop up as the cultists and their mutated ilk were slain by both spell and sword.
Panting, Reinhardt leaned on his maul as he took stock of the aftermath. The cultists were routed for now here, but from the sounds of battle still rang throughout the castle, this was but a temporary respite. There were more of these cultists lingering deeper within.
"What was that?" roared Eve as she stomped up to Reinhardt. "Your chanting, in that foreign language of yours and the warmth and the the the the- you were glowing!"
"That's no magic. None I've ever seen." the shaggy elf said as walked over, eyes wide.
"Sigmar granted us aid," Reinhardt replied. "Though I find it strange that he aided you unbelievers, I am not one to judge. He must have judged the battle to be worthy to aid all."
"Your god granted us aid." Cassandra stated, staring into Reinhardt. "Your god."
"Aye. And you're hurt," he said to Eve, noticing how Eve clutched her side. "Broken rib?"
"Yes but- What are you doing?' she gasped as Reinhardt laid his hands on her shoulder.
"Blessed Sigmar," Reinhardt began, continuing in Reikspeil. "Though she is an unbeliever, grant her the strength to continue the fight. That we may dispense your will upon the great enemy, and fight off the horrors of the Old Night."
Sigmar was generous today. Eve gasped, her hands patting her ribs repeatedly. "Healing too?"
"Sigmar is generous today," he nodded, taking a moment to translate the verse he had in mind. "And lo against the Enemy, he united the peoples, and together, they brought down the enemies of man, and built the Empire."
"And your other gods… They answer you too?" Eve asked, almost whispering.
"I have seen priests of Ulric and Morr do great things, and I've owed my life to Shallyans countless times." Kat replied. "It is rare for a Templar to be granted blessings of Sigmar, and I'm proud to say that Reinhardt is one of the few I know to be be blessed with his ear." Reinhardt spirit glowed at the praise from Kat. He didn't think he'd hear her give out praise in his presence.
"We'll talk after all of this." Eve glowered. "For now, the Lord Seeker has much to answer for. If this this... Sigmar will aid us then all the better. If not, then we'll do this the old fashioned way."
Reinhardt nodded as he followed Eve further into the castle. The others in the party were giving him…. Looks. The elves especially, Sera and Solas, gave him glancing looks, as if they didn't know what to make of him.
Let them judge. He dispensed Sigmar's will to protect people. If they doubted his motives, let them. He knew what guided him every day. He will prove himself in deed as Sigmar did.
A few skirmishes with scattered pockets of cultists later, and the party found themselves at the base of the steps to the very doors to the Great Keep. From there, this keep commanded views of the surrounding hills, the rich soil turning to mud amid the raging storm.
Above those steps stood the man who was responsible for all this madness. The man who served Chaos.
The party crept forward, eyes peeled for any signs of traps. That he stood there unmoving, not even bothering to look down on them spoke to his bones that nothing here was right. Maul in hand, Reinhardt was ready to dispense His Wrath.
"Lord Seeker!" Eve demanded as she reached the top of the steps. "What have you done?"
The man stood there ignoring them even as Reinhardt and Eve drew closer, weapons in hand. Reinhardt drew to strike, but Eve signaled him to hold. Fine, if he can speak of the source, maybe this Elder One, then mayhaps he can serve a purpose in his capture.
As they drew within range to strike, the man turned around and grabbed Eve. Without thought Reinhardt charged forth to tackle the man, even as a glowing green portal opened up right behind him.
"Siiiiiiiigmar!" he roared even as he, Eve and the monster was swallowed whole by the portal.
SECHS
AN: Thanks again to @RedrumSprinkles for helping me out on the technical end of this. Hope you guys enjoy, and please please forgive any of my... finagling with the lore on both ends.
Eve wasn't sure what happened. One moment, she was demanding answers from Lord Lucius, the next, she was tossed into a rift, Reinhardt dragged along with her.
She had no idea where they were. A fog surrounded them, with distant fires revealing a strangely familiar hall. Reinhardt had this wild look on him,clutching his maul so hard his hand was as white as bleached bone, chanting in Anderfel.
"Reinhardt!' Eve commanded, taking hold of him. "Calm down!"
"Where are we? Where are the demons?!" he roared.
"I don't know," she said turning from him. "But panic will do us no good."
"Yes. You're right," he said calming himself down. "What now?"
"I… think we have no choice but to move forward..." she sighed. As if her life couldn't get any weirder.
"It's toying with us," he scowled. "Like a wolf playing with its prey. I know of no demon that would do this." he waved his hand about.
"You're certain it's a demon?" Eve asked. "How?"
"I've… heard of men possessed by demons. Just a shell, a prisoner within their own bodies as the demon goes on to destroy everything they loved." He sighed.
Eve shivered at the thought. "Let's move on. I'd rather not dwell on that," she said as she stepped forward, following the fires.
It turned out the fires weren't coming from torches. They were corpses. Kneeling while burning, just like back at the Breach where all… this started. Reinhardt was visibly worried, chanting ever more from that holy book of his
Not that she could blame him. She was terrified, and like the rest of her life so far, seemed to jump from one event to another each time, making things progressively weirder and worse.
As they approached what looked like the end of the burning bodies, Eve caught sight of two familiar, impossible faces. Cullen clad in plate and that fur coat on his shoulders, and Josephine in her golden dress.
Last to come in was Lelianna, knife in hand.
"Does this form please you?" the demon, for that was not Lelianna's voice, spoke
"Begone foul Demon!" Reinhardt roared.
"You don't belong here!" the demon hissed as it slit the illusionary Cullen's throat. "I don't want to be you!"
"Be him?" Eve asked.
"All must serve their place in the Elder one's plan! He will ascend to Godhood and I will get to be you!" it screeched as it turned back to Eve. It's back turned to Reinhardt, he smashed the fake Lelianna's face in.
All they heard was laughter echoing through their bones.
"We haven't slain it," Reinhardt said as a door appeared on the wall before them. "I fear we're doing what it wants."
"Any chance your god, Sigmar can do anything?' Eve asked as she turned to him.
He shook his head. "This is a trial we must go through on our own. Maybe later he'll send us a sign."
Eve sighed as they walked on. That… that was another problem. Reinhardt, a warrior priest of sorts? With a god who actively grants blessings to his followers? If- no when the rest found out, well… She'd hate to be part of that shit storm.
What was she thinking, she'd be at the center of that shitstorm. She brought them aboard after all. She wouldn't be surprised if at the end of the day this… Sigmar had fresh new converts.
The Inquisition, home of heretics, pagans, and apostates. As if the Chantry didn't have enough reasons to fear them.
"What is this?" Reinhardt asked as they passed into a familiar cellar. The one from Haven, where she first met Cassandra. "Why are you chained and surrounded?"
"It was a misunderstanding." she sighed. "I was the only survivor of where the Breach now is. They say I walked out of it...The Breach that is."
"Alive and untainted," he muttered. "You are blessed. By who I cannot say."
"I never asked to be treated like the next coming of Andraste." she sighed.
"Good good," the demon cackled as they passed into the next room. This time soldiers bearing the golden eye of the Inquisition chatting, all wondering at the speed the Inquisition managed to gain power and influence.
Each room they passed, the scenes got darker and grimmer. To her horror, the Inquisition, something she joined to bring order, was now torturing the innocent, killing her friends, twisting it into something she'd never imagine it to be.
"Do you see? This is what the Inquisition will become once I become you!" it cackled as they entered the final door. The demon probably had enough to fake being her, judging from the pillars that spat ethereal emerald fires. They can not pass.
"We've done what it wanted." Reinhardt sighed. "Walked into it willingly."
"We can't give up now," Eve said as she looked about the room. "There has to be a way past!"
"Look!" Reinhardt said as he turned around. "A new door."
Eve walked over, and opened it, revealing a small office, a center at the very center of it. She towards it, mindful of any traps before she opened it. Finding it empty, she sighed, and looked around for any way past the fires.
"I watched you and the templars as you walked in. You impressed them, but not like the Lord Seeker" a new voice, a young man's said.
"The Lord Seeker is a demon," Reinhardt stated hand firmly grasped on his maul. "Where are you, demon?"
"I'm not a demon," said the young man as he appeared on the chest. Dead eyes under a wide brimmed hat stared at her as the young man spoke. ""Envy is trying to take your face. I heard, reached out and then in. Now I'm here."
"You're an invisible spirit that enters people's minds?" Eve asked. "Does this mean I'm in my own mind? Reinhardt too?"
"Yes. Time slows to a crawl outside, but I wouldn't say it's safe for either of you here." the spirit said.
"We're in the Realm of Morr," Reinhardt breathed. "As close to one can get to without dying. At least I think so. And you… must be sent to help us."
"Grim, black and filled with skulls. Feared but respected. Don't care, all come to see Morr's garden.Father rests there now." the spirit said as it looked into Reinhardt. "I.. don't know who Morr is, but I want to help."
"The demon wishes to possess you," Reinhardt stated as he looked into Eve's eyes, his blue brining with something Eve has never seen before. "We must defeat him before he can make you a prisoner within your own body." he said before turning to the spirit. "Spirit, if you are indeed sent by the gods, help us leave! How can we defeat this Envy? Help us so that we may send you to rest in Morr's garden!"
"The more you push, the more Envy tires. It's hard to be someone. Being many, and it breaks." the spirit stated, before cocking its head. "I'm not what you think I am… I think."
"Thank you friend spirit. May we know your name?" Reinhardt said.
"Cole… My name is Cole," he said as he walked past them towards the fires.
"I'm glad it's so friendly," Reinhardt whispered as he walked to Eve. "Few are the spirits I've seen that rest easy. This one must have been killed by the demon and won't rest till we have slain it."
"I think you and I have very different ideas of spirits," Eve said as she followed Cole out towards the fires.
"Think of water," it said as it stared at the fires. "Ideas are stronger here. It's your mind."
"Water?" she thought, thinking of the Waking Sea. How the waters ever churned along the Storm Coast, water raining down like there was no tomorrow.
And instead of fire there was now only water.
"That thing cannot help you!" the demon screeched.
"It's working!" Reinhardt smiled. "Onwards!"
They pushed forward, each time entering rooms where her friends, people she'd come to trust screech her name in anger and agony. The demon cackled as it watched Eve pass her friends suffer under this farce that was called the Inquisition. The worst part was that it looked so real. The demon wore her face, used her voice, and had her friends tortured in ways she couldn't bear to see. What hurt the most was the look of betrayal on their eyes. She paused to stand in front of each of them, knowing that though it was an illusion, it all just looked so real.
Reinhardt stood by her side each time, not a word spoken. She was glad he knew when to keep quiet. The fact that they were in her mind, meant that he, a stranger, might see some of her more private thoughts… she was glad he knew to keep his distance.
Cole… the spirit helped. In twists and turns, he'd show a path that was not there moments ago. Still, if what she'd read about them was true, then she had to be careful They can twist into demons under certain circumstances. The fact that she didn't know what those were meant she had to be ever more watchful.
For a man sworn to destroy demons, Reinhardt seemed to trust Cole. Perhaps a quirk of his gods, or this increasingly strange Empire he talked of.
At last they came to what had to be the demon's threshold. Its rants on the Elder One, and how he'd ascended had transcended into a blind fury, promising vengeance in what it would bring about when this was all over.
Now they were at a battlefield, surrounded by shades, lesser demons drawn into the world from the Fade. Bodies littered the ground, all from Orlais… But why Orlais?"
"Behold! Your Inquisition will become hosts to the horde of demons my master will unleash. And when he ascends, I will be left to rule!" It bellowed. "We will drive through the heart of the Empire and burn all to prepare for his ascent!. Show me what you'd do to fight it!"
Okay he's angry.
"Or don't. He can't make you," said Cole. "You're getting stronger. You're almost there."
The end in sight, Eve pushed onwards, ignoring the wailing cries of the dying as best she could, Reinhardt in tow. In minutes they were back where all this weirdness began, at the doors to the Great Keep. Before she could test the door, the demon popped up right behind them, knocking Reinhardt to the floor.
"Unfair! The thing kept you whole, and the intruder helped you onwards!" the thing screeched, its outline very distinctly her own. "We'll do this again. This time, more pain. The intruder will be useful there, yesssss." it cackled.
"It's afraid of you," Cole said, popping up behind it.
"Away!" the demon cursed, turning its back on her.
Eve took the opportunity to stab the damn thing in the back. Eve wouldn't lie to herself to say that she didn't enjoyed its squeals as her sword went through the impersonator's plate like it was never there. Instead of blood pouring out of the wound, only blinding light spilled forth. She smiled as the warmth of the light embraced her, and she saw nothing.
_
She was back on the steps of the Great Keep. But instead of the body of Lord Seeker Lucius in front of her, there stood a demon, skin of a babe, streched along great gangly limbs.It screeched, its cry echoing through the keep like a thousand screaming swallows, before it turned into a cloud of green smoke that flowed past the army of templars beyond the doors and further beyond past some great glowing green barrier, barring the way further into the keep.
"Lord Seeker?" Barris exclaimed in a panic.
"That was no man." Reinhardt grunted. "A demon infests your ranks, and donning the skin of your leader, corrupted your Order's leadership." he spat. "Envy was its name."
"Envy." Cassandra exclaimed. "That means only one thing."
"The Lord Seeker is caged or dead!" Barris cried. "It took his form, then corrupted the captains with the red lyrium. They often give us new lyrium, and the captains take it first to prove it's safe."
"And now it lies beyond that barrier," Kat said as she eyed Reinhardt. "Brother?"
"Sigmar!" he began as he chanted in that foreign tongue of his. He chanted, hand on his maul, yet nothing came. No glow, no warmth, nothing. He ended, turning back to the party. "Sigmar will not help us in this." shaking his head. "I sense there are trials we must endure."
"Brothers!" Barris said as he turned to his fellow templars. "What is Envy?"
"A coward!" they roared. "It studies! But above all else it hides!" They chanted.
"They may have the captains," Barris said as he turned towards the party. "But the lieutenants may fight on. Find them and the untainted lyrium, and we will finish what this man failed to do."
"What about you?" Eve asked.
"We will hold." Barris said as he turned towards the rest of the templars.
"Go," Reinhardt said as he leaned against a pillar. "Kat and I will help these men hold off the Storm."
"What? Why?" Eve asked as she strode towards him.
"This will be the center of the storm. The demon will summon all he can spare to take this barrier." Kat said, her voice an echo on the wind. "Between Reinhardt and I, we have held our ground in more battles than I dare imagine.' she sighed. "A lamentable experience."
"Alright," she sighed. Far be it for her to demand they come with her, their reasoning was sound. And these templars looked far too tired for her tastes. "Do what you can."
"Very well then," she smiled as she turned towards the rest of the party. "Let's find those lieutenants."
Eve wasn't sure what happened. One moment, she was demanding answers from Lord Lucius, the next, she was tossed into a rift, Reinhardt dragged along with her.
She had no idea where they were. A fog surrounded them, with distant fires revealing a strangely familiar hall. Reinhardt had this wild look on him,clutching his maul so hard his hand was as white as bleached bone, chanting in Anderfel.
"Reinhardt!' Eve commanded, taking hold of him. "Calm down!"
"Where are we? Where are the demons?!" he roared.
"I don't know," she said turning from him. "But panic will do us no good."
"Yes. You're right," he said calming himself down. "What now?"
"I… think we have no choice but to move forward..." she sighed. As if her life couldn't get any weirder.
"It's toying with us," he scowled. "Like a wolf playing with its prey. I know of no demon that would do this." he waved his hand about.
"You're certain it's a demon?" Eve asked. "How?"
"I've… heard of men possessed by demons. Just a shell, a prisoner within their own bodies as the demon goes on to destroy everything they loved." He sighed.
Eve shivered at the thought. "Let's move on. I'd rather not dwell on that," she said as she stepped forward, following the fires.
It turned out the fires weren't coming from torches. They were corpses. Kneeling while burning, just like back at the Breach where all… this started. Reinhardt was visibly worried, chanting ever more from that holy book of his
Not that she could blame him. She was terrified, and like the rest of her life so far, seemed to jump from one event to another each time, making things progressively weirder and worse.
As they approached what looked like the end of the burning bodies, Eve caught sight of two familiar, impossible faces. Cullen clad in plate and that fur coat on his shoulders, and Josephine in her golden dress.
Last to come in was Lelianna, knife in hand.
"Does this form please you?" the demon, for that was not Lelianna's voice, spoke
"Begone foul Demon!" Reinhardt roared.
"You don't belong here!" the demon hissed as it slit the illusionary Cullen's throat. "I don't want to be you!"
"Be him?" Eve asked.
"All must serve their place in the Elder one's plan! He will ascend to Godhood and I will get to be you!" it screeched as it turned back to Eve. It's back turned to Reinhardt, he smashed the fake Lelianna's face in.
All they heard was laughter echoing through their bones.
"We haven't slain it," Reinhardt said as a door appeared on the wall before them. "I fear we're doing what it wants."
"Any chance your god, Sigmar can do anything?' Eve asked as she turned to him.
He shook his head. "This is a trial we must go through on our own. Maybe later he'll send us a sign."
Eve sighed as they walked on. That… that was another problem. Reinhardt, a warrior priest of sorts? With a god who actively grants blessings to his followers? If- no when the rest found out, well… She'd hate to be part of that shit storm.
What was she thinking, she'd be at the center of that shitstorm. She brought them aboard after all. She wouldn't be surprised if at the end of the day this… Sigmar had fresh new converts.
The Inquisition, home of heretics, pagans, and apostates. As if the Chantry didn't have enough reasons to fear them.
"What is this?" Reinhardt asked as they passed into a familiar cellar. The one from Haven, where she first met Cassandra. "Why are you chained and surrounded?"
"It was a misunderstanding." she sighed. "I was the only survivor of where the Breach now is. They say I walked out of it...The Breach that is."
"Alive and untainted," he muttered. "You are blessed. By who I cannot say."
"I never asked to be treated like the next coming of Andraste." she sighed.
"Good good," the demon cackled as they passed into the next room. This time soldiers bearing the golden eye of the Inquisition chatting, all wondering at the speed the Inquisition managed to gain power and influence.
Each room they passed, the scenes got darker and grimmer. To her horror, the Inquisition, something she joined to bring order, was now torturing the innocent, killing her friends, twisting it into something she'd never imagine it to be.
"Do you see? This is what the Inquisition will become once I become you!" it cackled as they entered the final door. The demon probably had enough to fake being her, judging from the pillars that spat ethereal emerald fires. They can not pass.
"We've done what it wanted." Reinhardt sighed. "Walked into it willingly."
"We can't give up now," Eve said as she looked about the room. "There has to be a way past!"
"Look!" Reinhardt said as he turned around. "A new door."
Eve walked over, and opened it, revealing a small office, a center at the very center of it. She towards it, mindful of any traps before she opened it. Finding it empty, she sighed, and looked around for any way past the fires.
"I watched you and the templars as you walked in. You impressed them, but not like the Lord Seeker" a new voice, a young man's said.
"The Lord Seeker is a demon," Reinhardt stated hand firmly grasped on his maul. "Where are you, demon?"
"I'm not a demon," said the young man as he appeared on the chest. Dead eyes under a wide brimmed hat stared at her as the young man spoke. ""Envy is trying to take your face. I heard, reached out and then in. Now I'm here."
"You're an invisible spirit that enters people's minds?" Eve asked. "Does this mean I'm in my own mind? Reinhardt too?"
"Yes. Time slows to a crawl outside, but I wouldn't say it's safe for either of you here." the spirit said.
"We're in the Realm of Morr," Reinhardt breathed. "As close to one can get to without dying. At least I think so. And you… must be sent to help us."
"Grim, black and filled with skulls. Feared but respected. Don't care, all come to see Morr's garden.Father rests there now." the spirit said as it looked into Reinhardt. "I.. don't know who Morr is, but I want to help."
"The demon wishes to possess you," Reinhardt stated as he looked into Eve's eyes, his blue brining with something Eve has never seen before. "We must defeat him before he can make you a prisoner within your own body." he said before turning to the spirit. "Spirit, if you are indeed sent by the gods, help us leave! How can we defeat this Envy? Help us so that we may send you to rest in Morr's garden!"
"The more you push, the more Envy tires. It's hard to be someone. Being many, and it breaks." the spirit stated, before cocking its head. "I'm not what you think I am… I think."
"Thank you friend spirit. May we know your name?" Reinhardt said.
"Cole… My name is Cole," he said as he walked past them towards the fires.
"I'm glad it's so friendly," Reinhardt whispered as he walked to Eve. "Few are the spirits I've seen that rest easy. This one must have been killed by the demon and won't rest till we have slain it."
"I think you and I have very different ideas of spirits," Eve said as she followed Cole out towards the fires.
"Think of water," it said as it stared at the fires. "Ideas are stronger here. It's your mind."
"Water?" she thought, thinking of the Waking Sea. How the waters ever churned along the Storm Coast, water raining down like there was no tomorrow.
And instead of fire there was now only water.
"That thing cannot help you!" the demon screeched.
"It's working!" Reinhardt smiled. "Onwards!"
They pushed forward, each time entering rooms where her friends, people she'd come to trust screech her name in anger and agony. The demon cackled as it watched Eve pass her friends suffer under this farce that was called the Inquisition. The worst part was that it looked so real. The demon wore her face, used her voice, and had her friends tortured in ways she couldn't bear to see. What hurt the most was the look of betrayal on their eyes. She paused to stand in front of each of them, knowing that though it was an illusion, it all just looked so real.
Reinhardt stood by her side each time, not a word spoken. She was glad he knew when to keep quiet. The fact that they were in her mind, meant that he, a stranger, might see some of her more private thoughts… she was glad he knew to keep his distance.
Cole… the spirit helped. In twists and turns, he'd show a path that was not there moments ago. Still, if what she'd read about them was true, then she had to be careful They can twist into demons under certain circumstances. The fact that she didn't know what those were meant she had to be ever more watchful.
For a man sworn to destroy demons, Reinhardt seemed to trust Cole. Perhaps a quirk of his gods, or this increasingly strange Empire he talked of.
At last they came to what had to be the demon's threshold. Its rants on the Elder One, and how he'd ascended had transcended into a blind fury, promising vengeance in what it would bring about when this was all over.
Now they were at a battlefield, surrounded by shades, lesser demons drawn into the world from the Fade. Bodies littered the ground, all from Orlais… But why Orlais?"
"Behold! Your Inquisition will become hosts to the horde of demons my master will unleash. And when he ascends, I will be left to rule!" It bellowed. "We will drive through the heart of the Empire and burn all to prepare for his ascent!. Show me what you'd do to fight it!"
Okay he's angry.
"Or don't. He can't make you," said Cole. "You're getting stronger. You're almost there."
The end in sight, Eve pushed onwards, ignoring the wailing cries of the dying as best she could, Reinhardt in tow. In minutes they were back where all this weirdness began, at the doors to the Great Keep. Before she could test the door, the demon popped up right behind them, knocking Reinhardt to the floor.
"Unfair! The thing kept you whole, and the intruder helped you onwards!" the thing screeched, its outline very distinctly her own. "We'll do this again. This time, more pain. The intruder will be useful there, yesssss." it cackled.
"It's afraid of you," Cole said, popping up behind it.
"Away!" the demon cursed, turning its back on her.
Eve took the opportunity to stab the damn thing in the back. Eve wouldn't lie to herself to say that she didn't enjoyed its squeals as her sword went through the impersonator's plate like it was never there. Instead of blood pouring out of the wound, only blinding light spilled forth. She smiled as the warmth of the light embraced her, and she saw nothing.
_
She was back on the steps of the Great Keep. But instead of the body of Lord Seeker Lucius in front of her, there stood a demon, skin of a babe, streched along great gangly limbs.It screeched, its cry echoing through the keep like a thousand screaming swallows, before it turned into a cloud of green smoke that flowed past the army of templars beyond the doors and further beyond past some great glowing green barrier, barring the way further into the keep.
"Lord Seeker?" Barris exclaimed in a panic.
"That was no man." Reinhardt grunted. "A demon infests your ranks, and donning the skin of your leader, corrupted your Order's leadership." he spat. "Envy was its name."
"Envy." Cassandra exclaimed. "That means only one thing."
"The Lord Seeker is caged or dead!" Barris cried. "It took his form, then corrupted the captains with the red lyrium. They often give us new lyrium, and the captains take it first to prove it's safe."
"And now it lies beyond that barrier," Kat said as she eyed Reinhardt. "Brother?"
"Sigmar!" he began as he chanted in that foreign tongue of his. He chanted, hand on his maul, yet nothing came. No glow, no warmth, nothing. He ended, turning back to the party. "Sigmar will not help us in this." shaking his head. "I sense there are trials we must endure."
"Brothers!" Barris said as he turned to his fellow templars. "What is Envy?"
"A coward!" they roared. "It studies! But above all else it hides!" They chanted.
"They may have the captains," Barris said as he turned towards the party. "But the lieutenants may fight on. Find them and the untainted lyrium, and we will finish what this man failed to do."
"What about you?" Eve asked.
"We will hold." Barris said as he turned towards the rest of the templars.
"Go," Reinhardt said as he leaned against a pillar. "Kat and I will help these men hold off the Storm."
"What? Why?" Eve asked as she strode towards him.
"This will be the center of the storm. The demon will summon all he can spare to take this barrier." Kat said, her voice an echo on the wind. "Between Reinhardt and I, we have held our ground in more battles than I dare imagine.' she sighed. "A lamentable experience."
"Alright," she sighed. Far be it for her to demand they come with her, their reasoning was sound. And these templars looked far too tired for her tastes. "Do what you can."
"Very well then," she smiled as she turned towards the rest of the party. "Let's find those lieutenants."
SIEBEN
AN: Told you guys I have a lot of this already written up. thanks once more to @RedrumSprinkles for being my grammar nazi, and helping fix this up. Hope you all enjoy.
Kat found it hard to think of something she could be prouder of than seeing her little brother act like he was now. The moment the woman, Eve, left in search of templar lieutenant and this 'lyrium', Reinhardt turned round and asked who was the most senior among them.
Turned out to be Barris, the same man who let them in, was a veteran of several hunts for rogue mages, but no battles. Reinhardt directed him to have these green men amble up into a shieldwall, barricaded the doors, and positioned archers atop the steps by the barrier.
Between herself and Reinhardt, Kat estimated that they had seen enough battle for each of these greenhorns. Kat could tell, few of them had seen battle before, the fear evident in their eyes. Barris did his best to keep the men focused, giving them as many tasks he could.
Time would tell if it would be enough.
"How old are you?" Barris asked Reinhardt, as the cries of the mutated cultists grew louder.
"Twenty six," Reinhardt huffed. "And a veteran of… 15 battles by my count. More skirmishes than I can keep track of either."
"Maker, I'm older than you and you've seen so much," he sighed. "How many enemies does your people have?"
"Countless," Reinhardt sighed as the pounding on the doors began.
"A warrior priest of Sigmar would take this moment to remind the men of their enemies, but I am not these men's leader." Reinhardt said as he turned to Barris.
"Me?" he whispered as the pounding on the doors grew more frantic.
"We are strangers, and you have rallied these men in the absence of your commanders." Reinhardt nodded. "Lead, remind them of their duty. We may aid in the laying the foundation, but you must be the pillar for these men in this time." He pointed at the templars that were with them, rested and whole, but their spirits wavering underneath their fine plate and tower shields.
Barris paused before nodding, turning towards his brothers in arms as he raised his voice."Brothers and Sisters! We stand here today, deceived by our commanders, our leaders. We are the last of the uncorrupted members of our order!" he roared pointing at the great oaken doors being pounded on by the cultists.
"Already our former comrades, abominations now, beat on those doors!" he screamed. "Yet will we let our order fall this day?" he paused, letting a resounding chorus of no's echo throughout the hall. "We are Templars! Champions of the Just! Let us earn back that name tonight!" he finished as the mutants broke through, screaming all the while.
Most of the cultists were still recognizably human, hidden under fine suits of plate underneath red tabards. These guided their maddened, mutated fellows, more beast than man, strange crystal growths growing out of their hunched backs, and clawed hands. Their inhuman strength guided by the cruel cunning of the traitors,were the raging river, pushing against the makeshift levee that was the templar shieldwall.
Reinhardt ran along the line, bolstering where the line was weakest, dealing Sigmar's wrath as he chanted from the Deus Sigmar. He spoke of the great deeds of Sigmar, this time quotes from what sounded like Black Fire pass, somehow ending each verse just as he smashed in an opponent. Typical showboat.
Kat, channeled the winds of magic. Chamon was strong here, and it was now that she dared perform one of the order's most deadly spells.
She pooled the winds into her hands, channeling them as she had been taught so long ago. Then, seeing a crystal encrusted mutant the size of a minotaur burst through the door, she knew she had her target. She unleashed the spell, concentrating all the while lest she bring upon a fate worse than death upon her.
It wouldn't do to tempt fate twice in a day.
The mutant screamed as first its legs, then its torso slowly turned to solid gold. Inch by inch it screamed until at last it could no longer move, now a single solid statue of solid gold. Already several other mutants and cultists shared the same fate, turning into smaller, yet no less dead statues of pure gold. In mere seconds, the victims screamed their last and a small statuary now blocked the cultists path.
"Maker's breath!" panted Barris as he turned to Kat. "That's no magic I've ever seen!"
"I am a Wizard of the Gold Order," Kat replied, turning to him. "The Lore of Metal, and all alchemy is mine and my colleagues to command. Many a Wizard of the Colleges has turned the tide of a battle with a single spell. "
"And I've never seen it happen in such a… spectacular fashion."
"I've been told so often enough," Kat grinned. "Enough, the mutants will clear away the statues soon. We must prepare-"
With a crash, the statue of the behemoth fell, toppling over nearby statues. Again the mutants poured through like a river breaching a dam. Again they poured forth, smashing against the templar lines, a crazed bunch of mad animals. The templars held for all their worth. They stood fast, pushing against the mutants as they clawed their way forward.
Kat did her best to support the templars. Strengthening their armor and blades, destroying what tools the cultists had… yet after turning that behemoth into gold, the winds had died down quite a bit. She had to pace herself and hope that this was but a mere break, otherwise she was just a woman with a shiny staff and a decent swordarm.
"Reinhardt!" she cried, noting the mutants begin to push back. "We-"
"Almighty Sigmar!" he cried, smashing in a cultist's helm. "I beseech thee, aid us in our endeavour today!" he said as he raised his maul, glowing against the dark. "Smite your enemies Sigmar!" he roared as his hammer let loose an explosion of light.
Dozens of the fell beasts burned, their bodies writhing in agony, as if their very skin turned to fire. Sigmar's wrath cleansed the hall of the mutants, and more than a few of the cultists driving the survivors away in fear, as a righteous gods' wrath fell upon the world.
"Forward!" Barris roared, pushing back against the horde. Kat joined, Reinhardt at her side, as together they slashed and crushed any who still stood against the frenzied templars, screaming cries for their Maker as they slew their former comrades in arms.
The templars charged forth, unleashing their wrath against the traitors they once called brother.Scattered and broken as they were, those that were caught under the templar blades were given swift deaths. The pain of betrayal, soothed by the balm of justice done.
In moments it was over. Cries of victory echoed throughout the hall as Barris and his fellows celebrated their win. Kat, however, knew better. Chances are, there were more of them lurking in the castle, and this was but a momentary respite. More will come, and Kat didn't know if they'd be able to hold off another.
The mutants had dealt more than their fair share of damage. Once promising knights lay dead on the floor, the hall slick with their blood. Others remain grievously wounded, already being tended to as best their comrades could
"Blessed are the righteous, the lights in the shadow. In their blood the Maker's will is written." a templar murmured, his voice echoing throughout the hall. Fitting, Kat supposed as she took a look at the survivors, not a one untouched by the battle. Another attack like this...
"Open the doors!" cried someone from a side passage.
"Who goes there?" asked the attending templar.
"It's Lieutenant Darron you-"
"It's me the Herald!" cried Eve. "We've brought both reinforcements and the lyrium!"
"Excellent!" Barris cried as he signaled for the door to be opened. In streamed a dozen men in full plate, accompanying Eve and the others. To a man, each of them looked like they were filled with the wrath of the gods as they looked upon the hall.
"You lot!" one of them ordered. "Shore up the barricades over at the great doors. You! Clear up the bodies. If we're to fight we must have a clear field." As the surviving templars scurried to follow their orders, Eve walked up to Kat and Reinhardt, a grim look on her face.
"What happened?" she asked.
"We held them off," Reinhardt stated. "Could've been worse I suppose."
"Worse? It's as if you lot just fought Denerim." Sera stared as she took count of the bodies.
"I have… seen enough battlefields to recognize good work," the older one with the great black berard commented.
"When you've fought a Greenskin horde, you learn what it means to be outnumbered," Kat shrugged. "How much longer till these templars can take down the barrier? They will not take long to rally another attempt."
"Not long," Barris nodded. "Most of the preparations are not for the ritual, but for the battle that is sure to come. You must hold them off."
"Again?"
"Aye. Much of the veterans will be performing it. There is no way that those things will just let us take down." Barris sighed.
"Let them come," Reinhardt snorted. "We dispensed justice once. We will do so again. We shall make Sigmar proud this day," he grunted as Kat smiled beneath her mask. Just imagine how he'd have turned out if she were around to knock more sense into him she thought. Oh well, perhaps here she can help him become so much more.
"Glad to see you're so confident," Eve smiled. "Well, if you two caused all this," she pointed at the climbing pile of bodies. "Let's see how much more they have left to throw at us."
Kat let their bravado climb. They'd need it.
Kat found it hard to think of something she could be prouder of than seeing her little brother act like he was now. The moment the woman, Eve, left in search of templar lieutenant and this 'lyrium', Reinhardt turned round and asked who was the most senior among them.
Turned out to be Barris, the same man who let them in, was a veteran of several hunts for rogue mages, but no battles. Reinhardt directed him to have these green men amble up into a shieldwall, barricaded the doors, and positioned archers atop the steps by the barrier.
Between herself and Reinhardt, Kat estimated that they had seen enough battle for each of these greenhorns. Kat could tell, few of them had seen battle before, the fear evident in their eyes. Barris did his best to keep the men focused, giving them as many tasks he could.
Time would tell if it would be enough.
"How old are you?" Barris asked Reinhardt, as the cries of the mutated cultists grew louder.
"Twenty six," Reinhardt huffed. "And a veteran of… 15 battles by my count. More skirmishes than I can keep track of either."
"Maker, I'm older than you and you've seen so much," he sighed. "How many enemies does your people have?"
"Countless," Reinhardt sighed as the pounding on the doors began.
"A warrior priest of Sigmar would take this moment to remind the men of their enemies, but I am not these men's leader." Reinhardt said as he turned to Barris.
"Me?" he whispered as the pounding on the doors grew more frantic.
"We are strangers, and you have rallied these men in the absence of your commanders." Reinhardt nodded. "Lead, remind them of their duty. We may aid in the laying the foundation, but you must be the pillar for these men in this time." He pointed at the templars that were with them, rested and whole, but their spirits wavering underneath their fine plate and tower shields.
Barris paused before nodding, turning towards his brothers in arms as he raised his voice."Brothers and Sisters! We stand here today, deceived by our commanders, our leaders. We are the last of the uncorrupted members of our order!" he roared pointing at the great oaken doors being pounded on by the cultists.
"Already our former comrades, abominations now, beat on those doors!" he screamed. "Yet will we let our order fall this day?" he paused, letting a resounding chorus of no's echo throughout the hall. "We are Templars! Champions of the Just! Let us earn back that name tonight!" he finished as the mutants broke through, screaming all the while.
Most of the cultists were still recognizably human, hidden under fine suits of plate underneath red tabards. These guided their maddened, mutated fellows, more beast than man, strange crystal growths growing out of their hunched backs, and clawed hands. Their inhuman strength guided by the cruel cunning of the traitors,were the raging river, pushing against the makeshift levee that was the templar shieldwall.
Reinhardt ran along the line, bolstering where the line was weakest, dealing Sigmar's wrath as he chanted from the Deus Sigmar. He spoke of the great deeds of Sigmar, this time quotes from what sounded like Black Fire pass, somehow ending each verse just as he smashed in an opponent. Typical showboat.
Kat, channeled the winds of magic. Chamon was strong here, and it was now that she dared perform one of the order's most deadly spells.
She pooled the winds into her hands, channeling them as she had been taught so long ago. Then, seeing a crystal encrusted mutant the size of a minotaur burst through the door, she knew she had her target. She unleashed the spell, concentrating all the while lest she bring upon a fate worse than death upon her.
It wouldn't do to tempt fate twice in a day.
The mutant screamed as first its legs, then its torso slowly turned to solid gold. Inch by inch it screamed until at last it could no longer move, now a single solid statue of solid gold. Already several other mutants and cultists shared the same fate, turning into smaller, yet no less dead statues of pure gold. In mere seconds, the victims screamed their last and a small statuary now blocked the cultists path.
"Maker's breath!" panted Barris as he turned to Kat. "That's no magic I've ever seen!"
"I am a Wizard of the Gold Order," Kat replied, turning to him. "The Lore of Metal, and all alchemy is mine and my colleagues to command. Many a Wizard of the Colleges has turned the tide of a battle with a single spell. "
"And I've never seen it happen in such a… spectacular fashion."
"I've been told so often enough," Kat grinned. "Enough, the mutants will clear away the statues soon. We must prepare-"
With a crash, the statue of the behemoth fell, toppling over nearby statues. Again the mutants poured through like a river breaching a dam. Again they poured forth, smashing against the templar lines, a crazed bunch of mad animals. The templars held for all their worth. They stood fast, pushing against the mutants as they clawed their way forward.
Kat did her best to support the templars. Strengthening their armor and blades, destroying what tools the cultists had… yet after turning that behemoth into gold, the winds had died down quite a bit. She had to pace herself and hope that this was but a mere break, otherwise she was just a woman with a shiny staff and a decent swordarm.
"Reinhardt!" she cried, noting the mutants begin to push back. "We-"
"Almighty Sigmar!" he cried, smashing in a cultist's helm. "I beseech thee, aid us in our endeavour today!" he said as he raised his maul, glowing against the dark. "Smite your enemies Sigmar!" he roared as his hammer let loose an explosion of light.
Dozens of the fell beasts burned, their bodies writhing in agony, as if their very skin turned to fire. Sigmar's wrath cleansed the hall of the mutants, and more than a few of the cultists driving the survivors away in fear, as a righteous gods' wrath fell upon the world.
"Forward!" Barris roared, pushing back against the horde. Kat joined, Reinhardt at her side, as together they slashed and crushed any who still stood against the frenzied templars, screaming cries for their Maker as they slew their former comrades in arms.
The templars charged forth, unleashing their wrath against the traitors they once called brother.Scattered and broken as they were, those that were caught under the templar blades were given swift deaths. The pain of betrayal, soothed by the balm of justice done.
In moments it was over. Cries of victory echoed throughout the hall as Barris and his fellows celebrated their win. Kat, however, knew better. Chances are, there were more of them lurking in the castle, and this was but a momentary respite. More will come, and Kat didn't know if they'd be able to hold off another.
The mutants had dealt more than their fair share of damage. Once promising knights lay dead on the floor, the hall slick with their blood. Others remain grievously wounded, already being tended to as best their comrades could
"Blessed are the righteous, the lights in the shadow. In their blood the Maker's will is written." a templar murmured, his voice echoing throughout the hall. Fitting, Kat supposed as she took a look at the survivors, not a one untouched by the battle. Another attack like this...
"Open the doors!" cried someone from a side passage.
"Who goes there?" asked the attending templar.
"It's Lieutenant Darron you-"
"It's me the Herald!" cried Eve. "We've brought both reinforcements and the lyrium!"
"Excellent!" Barris cried as he signaled for the door to be opened. In streamed a dozen men in full plate, accompanying Eve and the others. To a man, each of them looked like they were filled with the wrath of the gods as they looked upon the hall.
"You lot!" one of them ordered. "Shore up the barricades over at the great doors. You! Clear up the bodies. If we're to fight we must have a clear field." As the surviving templars scurried to follow their orders, Eve walked up to Kat and Reinhardt, a grim look on her face.
"What happened?" she asked.
"We held them off," Reinhardt stated. "Could've been worse I suppose."
"Worse? It's as if you lot just fought Denerim." Sera stared as she took count of the bodies.
"I have… seen enough battlefields to recognize good work," the older one with the great black berard commented.
"When you've fought a Greenskin horde, you learn what it means to be outnumbered," Kat shrugged. "How much longer till these templars can take down the barrier? They will not take long to rally another attempt."
"Not long," Barris nodded. "Most of the preparations are not for the ritual, but for the battle that is sure to come. You must hold them off."
"Again?"
"Aye. Much of the veterans will be performing it. There is no way that those things will just let us take down." Barris sighed.
"Let them come," Reinhardt snorted. "We dispensed justice once. We will do so again. We shall make Sigmar proud this day," he grunted as Kat smiled beneath her mask. Just imagine how he'd have turned out if she were around to knock more sense into him she thought. Oh well, perhaps here she can help him become so much more.
"Glad to see you're so confident," Eve smiled. "Well, if you two caused all this," she pointed at the climbing pile of bodies. "Let's see how much more they have left to throw at us."
Kat let their bravado climb. They'd need it.
ACHT
AN: New bit up and ready! Hope you guys enjoy, and i'd love to hear more discussion on the Fade and other associated thoughts on divinity. Thanks again to @RedrumSprinkles for giving this a looksee before release.
The moment these 'templars' began their strange ritual, drinking that pulsing blue mineral they called lyrium, the cultists renewed their assault. Reinhardt knew in his bones that they would not retreat, for they knew it was victory or death.
Of course, the same could be said for his party, but semantics.
They had far less mutants now, drawing instead from the more sane ones. Again and again, they charged forth, clashing with their own lines. Reinhardt dashed to and fro, reinforcing where the line was weak, bellowing passages all the while.
"He bade them stand against the dark! Together, they fought off the Old Night!" he roared as he smashed in a cultist's head, even as a bolt of lightning soared over his head and fried an incoming cultist.
Taking a brief moment to nod in thanks to the wizard, the elf Solas, Reinhardt returned to the battle. He chanted, asking for Sigmar's aid once more.
"Oh mighty Sigmar!" he cried as he smashed in another cultist's chest. "Hear my prayer! Grant us the strength today, to fight off the minions of the Old Night once more! Grant that we may stand together as one, and fight!" he finished. Reinhardt sensed nothing, and knew Sigmar demanded they fight this battle on their own terms. So be it, man can overcome the evils of the world alone. Sigmar merely evens the playing field.
And today, they were well matched. The woman, Eve and her myriad assortment of companions fought very well. The foreign wizard, Vivienne, certainly had to be kept an eye on, no telling how well trained they were against the trickery of demons, but he could trust the Elf to cast mighty spells. Eve and the other warriors, the stoic Blackwall and scarred Cassandra fought such that they would be worthy of entering any Knightly order, or possibly even the Reiksguard were they servants of the Empire. The other Elf, Sera, still boggled Reinhardt, yet she possessed the skill of an High Elf, picking out targets from far away in instants.
Reinhardt wondered if he and Kat were still drifting through the Ether, and this was all a tortured fantasy concocted by one of the dark gods.
He shook his head. He had no time for what ifs now. There was a battle to be won, honor and glory to attain!
Once more, he fell into the trance, ducking and weaving, crushing the enemies of man. Now there was only the battle, him, and Sigmar above as he cried out and dispensed the will of his God.
In moments it was over. The last of the cultists dead or dying on the gore slicked floor of the hall. Yet the barrier still stood, and the veterans and Barris all still deep in some sort of trance as they worked to bring it down.
"How much longer?" Reinhardt asked Eve as he walked towards her, maul in hand.
"Can't be much longer. Look," she pointed at the barrier, already beginning to shimmer. She turned back to him and asked, "Your god… Sigmar, does he have any help to give?"
Reinhardt shook his head. "We must prove ourselves to him in the next battle. I sense that much. He has already paved the way, we must merely prove ourselves worthy of it."
"Your god doesn't make sense to me," she said as she leaned over.
"Many an Estalian or Tilean would say the same," Reinhardt smiled. "Doesn't prevent Sigmar from protecting them by keeping the Empire whole. You're always welcome to learn more if you want. I've memorized the Deus Sigmar, and can tell you his life story."
Eve scoffed before moving on to check on the others. He didn't mind her or others not knowing of Sigmar, he was no true priest, capable of divining his deeper mysteries. Nor was he meant to spread his word. He was meant to deal justice directly unto his foes, with or without his aid.
Yet to be honest, Reinhardt found it perplexing how often Sigmar answered his prayers. Was it a sign of the conflicts to come? That they face something powerful enough that Sigmar must turn his gaze on them? It was rare for Sigmar to answer prayers, let alone for a Templar such as he.
It was times like these that Reinhardt wished he knew the mysteries of the priesthood. Maybe then he could interpret the signs and portents, instead of them passing on by.
The sound of shattering glass brought Reinhardt out of his musings. The barrier had fallen, and the path was clear. Wordlessly, he and the rest of the party followed Eve while the veteran templars stayed behind, too exhausted from their ritual.
In minutes, they reached the end of the path, a great courtyard slick from the storm that now washed over the castle and the last dozen cultists, still clad in the ornate armor that spoke of commanders. And at the center of it all, amidst the last of its deluded followers and under that damned Breach, was the demon in its true form. An amalgam of gaunt limbs and newborn flesh, hissing as the party approached weapons drawn.
"You will all die," it hissed as it pointed at the party. "Kill them for the Elder One!"
With a cry, the two groups clashed while the demon watched from the rear. These monsters were obviously once the best men of the order, as they fought with both the experience of a lifetime, and unholy strength given to them by their forsaken master.
Fortunately, Kat proved the deciding factor as their armor turned to rust, and their razor sharp blades, were naught but lead cudgels when she was done with them. Again Reinhardt charged into the fray, his blessed hammer raining down the wrath of Sigmar unto these damned heathens.
Reinhardt ducked and weaved, crippling these cultists for the others to finish off while he steadily strode towards the demon, the source of all this.
"Though he the dwarfs did him no kindness before, he ventured forth! He saved Kurgan Ironbeard, crushed the foul greenskins, forged an alliance between man and dwarf forever and earned the hammer, Ghal Maraz!" he roared, as he broke through the cultists and came face to face with the demon itself.
It hissed as Eve came up alongside him, shield raised.
"The Elder One promised you would be mine!" it roared. "Now no one will have you." it hissed as it jumped forward, thrashing about with its gangly arms.
Reinhardt jumped back, waiting patiently for the opening. Though the arms looked as thin as a branch, Reinhardt knew well enough that looks can be deceiving. Already he'd seen those arms gouge out part of the stone courtyard. One wrong move, and he would be resting in Morr's garden. The others followed suit, slashing when given an opportunity otherwise ducking and weaving through its wild swings.
At last, Reinhardt found the moment, and with a mighty cry to Sigmar, offering this foe as a sacrifice to him, he smashed its knee. Foul demonic flesh and bone stood no chance against his blessed maul as it cried in agony, it's pitch high squeal stunning all for a moment. Blindly he swung again, feeling the maul strike true again, sending the demon down onto the cold stone.
Screeching in pain, Eve walked up, and finished the would be imposter, a single thrust of the sword down in its head. It evaporated in an instant, burning up back into the hells it came from.
"It is done," she sighed, as she sheathed her sword.
"We heard," cried Barris, a group of his brothers and sisters in tow. "We had recovered enough but-"
"It is no trouble," Eve replied, waving him off. "What's more important" she said as she pointed towards the Breach, "Is that today, I have seen courage and valor in each of you that have fought against the corruption that plagued your order today. The Inquisition needs your help to seal the Breach. Everyone needs your help to seal it. Help us seal the Breach, and rise above the stain on your honor that fell on you today."
"We are leaderless, gutted by the betrayal today," Barris shook his head."Though you speak truths that we should have seen."
"Your order is respected by people all over Thedas! That cannot, must not die today, especially in these times of chaos. We offer you an alliance, supplies, weapons, shelter, whatever aid you might need. All we ask," she paused as she pointed towards the gaping hole in the sky, "is that you help us seal that."
"Well brothers and sisters," Barris said as he turned towards the untainted templars. "What say you?"
A resounding chorus of ayes rang throughout the now dead halls. Well, Knightly Orders have recovered from such stains before. Never in one lifetime, but Reinhardt supposed these men and women deserved a chance… provided they were untainted.
He and Kat would just have to inspect everyone left, no matter how long it takes.
As everyone made their way out of the tainted castle, Reinhardt noticed a few templars, men and women he recognized from the battle in the hall, approach him shakily.
"Ser?" the leader, a woman asked as she approached. "We… were wondering what was it you did over there. In the hall?"
"I did what any of you were doing, fighting." Reinhardt huffed.
"No! Not that…" she whispered. "It was… like this warmth, filled me. A certainty filled my body in action, and we felt it. As if the Maker himself was raising our spirits."
"We all felt it, and knew in our hearts that this was no magic done by a mage. Something we're trained to do… so what did you do?" another one added.
"It was Sigmar, the man-god, filling you with the courage and will to stand against his foes." he said.
"Sigmar? A god?" one of them whispered before turning to the others. He searched around for something, before they nodded in return.
"Tell us more."
This… this was unexpected. Interest in Sigmar outside the Empire.
Well… it couldn't hurt to tell them his life story could it?
The moment these 'templars' began their strange ritual, drinking that pulsing blue mineral they called lyrium, the cultists renewed their assault. Reinhardt knew in his bones that they would not retreat, for they knew it was victory or death.
Of course, the same could be said for his party, but semantics.
They had far less mutants now, drawing instead from the more sane ones. Again and again, they charged forth, clashing with their own lines. Reinhardt dashed to and fro, reinforcing where the line was weak, bellowing passages all the while.
"He bade them stand against the dark! Together, they fought off the Old Night!" he roared as he smashed in a cultist's head, even as a bolt of lightning soared over his head and fried an incoming cultist.
Taking a brief moment to nod in thanks to the wizard, the elf Solas, Reinhardt returned to the battle. He chanted, asking for Sigmar's aid once more.
"Oh mighty Sigmar!" he cried as he smashed in another cultist's chest. "Hear my prayer! Grant us the strength today, to fight off the minions of the Old Night once more! Grant that we may stand together as one, and fight!" he finished. Reinhardt sensed nothing, and knew Sigmar demanded they fight this battle on their own terms. So be it, man can overcome the evils of the world alone. Sigmar merely evens the playing field.
And today, they were well matched. The woman, Eve and her myriad assortment of companions fought very well. The foreign wizard, Vivienne, certainly had to be kept an eye on, no telling how well trained they were against the trickery of demons, but he could trust the Elf to cast mighty spells. Eve and the other warriors, the stoic Blackwall and scarred Cassandra fought such that they would be worthy of entering any Knightly order, or possibly even the Reiksguard were they servants of the Empire. The other Elf, Sera, still boggled Reinhardt, yet she possessed the skill of an High Elf, picking out targets from far away in instants.
Reinhardt wondered if he and Kat were still drifting through the Ether, and this was all a tortured fantasy concocted by one of the dark gods.
He shook his head. He had no time for what ifs now. There was a battle to be won, honor and glory to attain!
Once more, he fell into the trance, ducking and weaving, crushing the enemies of man. Now there was only the battle, him, and Sigmar above as he cried out and dispensed the will of his God.
In moments it was over. The last of the cultists dead or dying on the gore slicked floor of the hall. Yet the barrier still stood, and the veterans and Barris all still deep in some sort of trance as they worked to bring it down.
"How much longer?" Reinhardt asked Eve as he walked towards her, maul in hand.
"Can't be much longer. Look," she pointed at the barrier, already beginning to shimmer. She turned back to him and asked, "Your god… Sigmar, does he have any help to give?"
Reinhardt shook his head. "We must prove ourselves to him in the next battle. I sense that much. He has already paved the way, we must merely prove ourselves worthy of it."
"Your god doesn't make sense to me," she said as she leaned over.
"Many an Estalian or Tilean would say the same," Reinhardt smiled. "Doesn't prevent Sigmar from protecting them by keeping the Empire whole. You're always welcome to learn more if you want. I've memorized the Deus Sigmar, and can tell you his life story."
Eve scoffed before moving on to check on the others. He didn't mind her or others not knowing of Sigmar, he was no true priest, capable of divining his deeper mysteries. Nor was he meant to spread his word. He was meant to deal justice directly unto his foes, with or without his aid.
Yet to be honest, Reinhardt found it perplexing how often Sigmar answered his prayers. Was it a sign of the conflicts to come? That they face something powerful enough that Sigmar must turn his gaze on them? It was rare for Sigmar to answer prayers, let alone for a Templar such as he.
It was times like these that Reinhardt wished he knew the mysteries of the priesthood. Maybe then he could interpret the signs and portents, instead of them passing on by.
The sound of shattering glass brought Reinhardt out of his musings. The barrier had fallen, and the path was clear. Wordlessly, he and the rest of the party followed Eve while the veteran templars stayed behind, too exhausted from their ritual.
In minutes, they reached the end of the path, a great courtyard slick from the storm that now washed over the castle and the last dozen cultists, still clad in the ornate armor that spoke of commanders. And at the center of it all, amidst the last of its deluded followers and under that damned Breach, was the demon in its true form. An amalgam of gaunt limbs and newborn flesh, hissing as the party approached weapons drawn.
"You will all die," it hissed as it pointed at the party. "Kill them for the Elder One!"
With a cry, the two groups clashed while the demon watched from the rear. These monsters were obviously once the best men of the order, as they fought with both the experience of a lifetime, and unholy strength given to them by their forsaken master.
Fortunately, Kat proved the deciding factor as their armor turned to rust, and their razor sharp blades, were naught but lead cudgels when she was done with them. Again Reinhardt charged into the fray, his blessed hammer raining down the wrath of Sigmar unto these damned heathens.
Reinhardt ducked and weaved, crippling these cultists for the others to finish off while he steadily strode towards the demon, the source of all this.
"Though he the dwarfs did him no kindness before, he ventured forth! He saved Kurgan Ironbeard, crushed the foul greenskins, forged an alliance between man and dwarf forever and earned the hammer, Ghal Maraz!" he roared, as he broke through the cultists and came face to face with the demon itself.
It hissed as Eve came up alongside him, shield raised.
"The Elder One promised you would be mine!" it roared. "Now no one will have you." it hissed as it jumped forward, thrashing about with its gangly arms.
Reinhardt jumped back, waiting patiently for the opening. Though the arms looked as thin as a branch, Reinhardt knew well enough that looks can be deceiving. Already he'd seen those arms gouge out part of the stone courtyard. One wrong move, and he would be resting in Morr's garden. The others followed suit, slashing when given an opportunity otherwise ducking and weaving through its wild swings.
At last, Reinhardt found the moment, and with a mighty cry to Sigmar, offering this foe as a sacrifice to him, he smashed its knee. Foul demonic flesh and bone stood no chance against his blessed maul as it cried in agony, it's pitch high squeal stunning all for a moment. Blindly he swung again, feeling the maul strike true again, sending the demon down onto the cold stone.
Screeching in pain, Eve walked up, and finished the would be imposter, a single thrust of the sword down in its head. It evaporated in an instant, burning up back into the hells it came from.
"It is done," she sighed, as she sheathed her sword.
"We heard," cried Barris, a group of his brothers and sisters in tow. "We had recovered enough but-"
"It is no trouble," Eve replied, waving him off. "What's more important" she said as she pointed towards the Breach, "Is that today, I have seen courage and valor in each of you that have fought against the corruption that plagued your order today. The Inquisition needs your help to seal the Breach. Everyone needs your help to seal it. Help us seal the Breach, and rise above the stain on your honor that fell on you today."
"We are leaderless, gutted by the betrayal today," Barris shook his head."Though you speak truths that we should have seen."
"Your order is respected by people all over Thedas! That cannot, must not die today, especially in these times of chaos. We offer you an alliance, supplies, weapons, shelter, whatever aid you might need. All we ask," she paused as she pointed towards the gaping hole in the sky, "is that you help us seal that."
"Well brothers and sisters," Barris said as he turned towards the untainted templars. "What say you?"
A resounding chorus of ayes rang throughout the now dead halls. Well, Knightly Orders have recovered from such stains before. Never in one lifetime, but Reinhardt supposed these men and women deserved a chance… provided they were untainted.
He and Kat would just have to inspect everyone left, no matter how long it takes.
As everyone made their way out of the tainted castle, Reinhardt noticed a few templars, men and women he recognized from the battle in the hall, approach him shakily.
"Ser?" the leader, a woman asked as she approached. "We… were wondering what was it you did over there. In the hall?"
"I did what any of you were doing, fighting." Reinhardt huffed.
"No! Not that…" she whispered. "It was… like this warmth, filled me. A certainty filled my body in action, and we felt it. As if the Maker himself was raising our spirits."
"We all felt it, and knew in our hearts that this was no magic done by a mage. Something we're trained to do… so what did you do?" another one added.
"It was Sigmar, the man-god, filling you with the courage and will to stand against his foes." he said.
"Sigmar? A god?" one of them whispered before turning to the others. He searched around for something, before they nodded in return.
"Tell us more."
This… this was unexpected. Interest in Sigmar outside the Empire.
Well… it couldn't hurt to tell them his life story could it?
NEUN
AN: Thanks once more to @RedrumSprinkles for her help in editing this. Please don't murder me people who know the fluff better than I a mere mortal. Hope you guys enjoy and let me know your thoughts!
Therinfal was no more.
After evacuating what was left of the loyal templars, and after Reinhardt had inspected each of them for signs of this 'Chaos taint' he spoke of, they burned what they could and left the place. Even now as they walked under the shadows of the Brecilian forest, Eve could make out the faint wisps of smoke drifting over the skies.
As they made camp at the other side of the forest, Eve couldn't help but hear that distinct booming voice of the stranger from this Empire, Reinhardt, coming from the back of the camp, nearest the forest. Seeing as she had nothing better to do, she made her way there, Cassandra following her as always .
"Something at her feet stirred and a cry split the night," the man boomed from the side of a roaring fire, a couple of templars and his fellows on the cart listening with all their heart. "Wallowing in the blood of human and orc lay a baby. Its head was covered in thick black hair and it rested on the birth caul. Above the battlefield, a great comet, trailing two tails of flame, streaked across the sky, heralding Sigmar's birth. He who entered the world with the sound of battle in his ears and the feel of orc blood on his skin. That is the tale of the birth of man-god, Sigmar." he finished to the applause of many, even Varric.
"That was quite the story!" the dwarf said as he patted Reinhardt on the back. "If this whole templar thing doesn't work out for you, you have a future in storytelling friend!"
"I say only the truths of Sigmar's life," Reinhardt replied with a simple nod.
"If that was his birth… I imagine he had a far more amazing life," one of the templars said.
Eve scoffed a bit. Really? This was all probably just myth blown out of proportion. Something like that Calenhad those Fereldans love. A national hero to rally behind, and a bloodline to respect.
"Aye, Sigmar fought and slew many a dread foe in his day. From mighty Orc Warbosses, to fearsome Dragon Ogres. He even defeated the evil Nagash, most dreaded of all Necromancers." he replied, eyes closed, almost as if he were imagining each of the fights. "Yet he was not only a mighty warrior, and fine general, he was also a wise leader, able to unite the warring tribes of what would become the Empire. He even forged an alliance with the brave dwarves of the Karaz-Ankor, one that has stood the test of time."
"An alliance with dwarves?" Varric asked. "One that has stood for… how many years?"
"Thousands." he replied with a nod.
"What did he do to earn that?" Varric scoffed.
"Sigmar saved Kurgan Ironbeard, then High King of the Dwarves, and earned both the warhammer, Ghal Maraz, and eternal friendship with the dwarves that day." Reinhardt nodded. "Each high king since then, has honored the alliance, even if man was not always as diligent in fulfilling his end of the deal." he replied, the last bit sadly.
"I can't even imagine Orzammar holding up their end of the deal for a year, let alone thousands of years…" Varric muttered. "The merchant guilds aren't any better."
"I… find it hard to imagine dwarves not honoring an agreement," Reinhardt replied after hearing that. "I've met dwarves, unable to fulfill their oaths or agreements, swore themselves into the Slayer cult, to die an honorable death. Not to mention what they will do to make the other party pay back."
"Hmph, sounds like a lot I wouldn't want to meet." Varric mumbled as Eve tried to process this increasingly weird and wild world Reinhardt painted. Though it could just be his dedication to what was clearly a warrior god. Eve thought that maybe the mysterious older sister, Kat, and her dedication to a god wisdom and justice, would be able to paint a less bleak world, where man was seemingly surrounded.
So she sought her out, Cassandra still following, and a few minutes later, she found her on watch, keeping her eyes steadily on the forest.
"Eve," the woman said, eyes still trained on the forest.
"How did you know?" Cassandra asked.
"Her hand… it glows to my witchsight, yet she is no wizard, or even has an inkling of the gift." she replied. "It is not tainted with Chaos yet… the Winds react to it."
"Witchsight?" Eve asked.
"I see the magic in your hand, how it can manipulate the winds of magic, something like a wizard's yet… it is hungry. I sense that in time, it will consume you." she replied.
"That would be the mark then," Cassandra sighed. "We know not how or why she has it, only that it can close these rifts. It will kill her if the Breach grows."
"I see," Kat replied. "How may I help you?"
"You can relax you know," Eve said as she walked up next to the woman, her face hidden behind that golden mask of hers. "There's nothing in that forest but wolves, bears and the occasional bandit. Any of those stupid enough to try and attack a full force of the Inquisition would just have it coming to them."
"It is… strange to think that I need not be vigilant around the forests," she sighed as she broke her vigil and turned towards the night sky. Up there, hung the two moons, Selena and Saturnia, lighting up the rest of the world. "The moons themselves are the true indication of how far we are from home. I should have suspected it when we first arrived and the strangeness in the air… not to mention the very Winds of Magic itself." she sighed.
"Why? What's different about the moons?" Eve asked.
"You need not fear them for one," Kat answered. "Or to be more precise, fear the one, Morrslieb, the Dark Moon." she paused. "It is an ill omen, a portent for ill things to come, and you can never predict when it will arrive. Men and women must hide, lest their exposure to the moon's light mutate them."
"Wait, the moon can literally mutate you?" Cassandra asked aghast. "What happens to them?"
"If they are lucky and retain their sanity, they may appeal to the gods to cure them. If, however, they were not living just lives…. they may retreat into the dark, forever outcast by society, otherwise they die by our hands before they worsen. Those are the lucky ones."
"The truly unlucky, are those that have lost their minds in the process, lashing out against their friends and family, destroy entire villages before retreating into the forests."
"Maker," Eve cursed. "Is your Empire so besieged by enemies that even the moon is a danger?"
"Even within our own borders we are not safe."Kat answered. "Beastmen… Mutated fusion of man and beast, great in cunning and strength, lurk within our forests forever a threat to outlying towns and villages. Without Morrslieb or the other fel magics of Chaos it is probable they do not exist here," she sighed as she turned towards the forest. "Greenskins as well, Orcs, creatures twice the size of a man and much stronger. Numerous beyond count, aided by their goblin minions, small yet full of great cunning. They and their warbosses rampage across the Empire, from the Badlands to the south, from the mountains that border our Empire, and even from the forests themselves. To the east lie the Vampire Counts of Sylvania. Foul undead necromancers who raise the dead to wage eternal war on the living. And always, from the north in Norsca, does the threat of Chaos hang in the air, ready to rush down from the Chaos wastes, south through Kislev and into the Empire. The Elector Counts, the leaders of each province have an army, and always are they ready for war, either with each other or against the numerous foes of the realm. "
Eve was flabbergasted. How… how could people live like that? The closest she'd heard about was the darkspawn in the Anderfels and the Dwarves… Like a perpetual Blight.
"Have… have you tried making peace with them?" Cassandra asked after a while the silence becoming too much for the two women.
"Peace is only possible when the other side doesn't want you dead." Kat answered frankly. "Beastmen are beasts, cunning beasts, but beasts. Orcs want to fight, they live for it. At best you can buy some to fight others. The Vampire Counts will not rest until the Empire is under their 'rightful' rule, and Chaos desires the destruction of all. There can be no peace between us."
"It sounds to me that your Empire would have been great allies in the early days of the Breach," Cassandra said. "Great warriors, experienced in fighting demons and the like."
"I'm afraid you'll have to settle for a humble wizard and templar," she said as she turned towards them. "We will do our best to not shame the Empire. Maybe in time, we shall find ways home. If not…" she sighed, turning back towards the forest, the idea hanging about.
"You two have already pulled your weight and more back at Therinfal," Eve said, trying to comfort her. It was now obvious why those two went through those Red Templars like a hot knife through butter. Obviously they've fought and seen so much worse in their lives.
"In any case… you two are more than welcome among the Inquisition," Eve nodded.
"Thank you," Kat replied, her vigil still alight. Eve let her be as she and Cassandra made their way back to their own tents.
A world constantly at war… Eve thought. Yet Reinhardt for all his seriousness, had a certain sort of charm to him, Eve grudgingly admitted. That sort of humor amidst a battle, and a flippancy to the dangers that surrounded him. Though that may just be because he had seen worse. Kat, cold and distant though she may be, seemed an amicable sort, and certainly not cold the way Vivienne was.
Maybe life in Thedas isn't so bad, now that she had something to point out and say it could be worse. The trick now was making sure some asshole didn't destroy it.
Therinfal was no more.
After evacuating what was left of the loyal templars, and after Reinhardt had inspected each of them for signs of this 'Chaos taint' he spoke of, they burned what they could and left the place. Even now as they walked under the shadows of the Brecilian forest, Eve could make out the faint wisps of smoke drifting over the skies.
As they made camp at the other side of the forest, Eve couldn't help but hear that distinct booming voice of the stranger from this Empire, Reinhardt, coming from the back of the camp, nearest the forest. Seeing as she had nothing better to do, she made her way there, Cassandra following her as always .
"Something at her feet stirred and a cry split the night," the man boomed from the side of a roaring fire, a couple of templars and his fellows on the cart listening with all their heart. "Wallowing in the blood of human and orc lay a baby. Its head was covered in thick black hair and it rested on the birth caul. Above the battlefield, a great comet, trailing two tails of flame, streaked across the sky, heralding Sigmar's birth. He who entered the world with the sound of battle in his ears and the feel of orc blood on his skin. That is the tale of the birth of man-god, Sigmar." he finished to the applause of many, even Varric.
"That was quite the story!" the dwarf said as he patted Reinhardt on the back. "If this whole templar thing doesn't work out for you, you have a future in storytelling friend!"
"I say only the truths of Sigmar's life," Reinhardt replied with a simple nod.
"If that was his birth… I imagine he had a far more amazing life," one of the templars said.
Eve scoffed a bit. Really? This was all probably just myth blown out of proportion. Something like that Calenhad those Fereldans love. A national hero to rally behind, and a bloodline to respect.
"Aye, Sigmar fought and slew many a dread foe in his day. From mighty Orc Warbosses, to fearsome Dragon Ogres. He even defeated the evil Nagash, most dreaded of all Necromancers." he replied, eyes closed, almost as if he were imagining each of the fights. "Yet he was not only a mighty warrior, and fine general, he was also a wise leader, able to unite the warring tribes of what would become the Empire. He even forged an alliance with the brave dwarves of the Karaz-Ankor, one that has stood the test of time."
"An alliance with dwarves?" Varric asked. "One that has stood for… how many years?"
"Thousands." he replied with a nod.
"What did he do to earn that?" Varric scoffed.
"Sigmar saved Kurgan Ironbeard, then High King of the Dwarves, and earned both the warhammer, Ghal Maraz, and eternal friendship with the dwarves that day." Reinhardt nodded. "Each high king since then, has honored the alliance, even if man was not always as diligent in fulfilling his end of the deal." he replied, the last bit sadly.
"I can't even imagine Orzammar holding up their end of the deal for a year, let alone thousands of years…" Varric muttered. "The merchant guilds aren't any better."
"I… find it hard to imagine dwarves not honoring an agreement," Reinhardt replied after hearing that. "I've met dwarves, unable to fulfill their oaths or agreements, swore themselves into the Slayer cult, to die an honorable death. Not to mention what they will do to make the other party pay back."
"Hmph, sounds like a lot I wouldn't want to meet." Varric mumbled as Eve tried to process this increasingly weird and wild world Reinhardt painted. Though it could just be his dedication to what was clearly a warrior god. Eve thought that maybe the mysterious older sister, Kat, and her dedication to a god wisdom and justice, would be able to paint a less bleak world, where man was seemingly surrounded.
So she sought her out, Cassandra still following, and a few minutes later, she found her on watch, keeping her eyes steadily on the forest.
"Eve," the woman said, eyes still trained on the forest.
"How did you know?" Cassandra asked.
"Her hand… it glows to my witchsight, yet she is no wizard, or even has an inkling of the gift." she replied. "It is not tainted with Chaos yet… the Winds react to it."
"Witchsight?" Eve asked.
"I see the magic in your hand, how it can manipulate the winds of magic, something like a wizard's yet… it is hungry. I sense that in time, it will consume you." she replied.
"That would be the mark then," Cassandra sighed. "We know not how or why she has it, only that it can close these rifts. It will kill her if the Breach grows."
"I see," Kat replied. "How may I help you?"
"You can relax you know," Eve said as she walked up next to the woman, her face hidden behind that golden mask of hers. "There's nothing in that forest but wolves, bears and the occasional bandit. Any of those stupid enough to try and attack a full force of the Inquisition would just have it coming to them."
"It is… strange to think that I need not be vigilant around the forests," she sighed as she broke her vigil and turned towards the night sky. Up there, hung the two moons, Selena and Saturnia, lighting up the rest of the world. "The moons themselves are the true indication of how far we are from home. I should have suspected it when we first arrived and the strangeness in the air… not to mention the very Winds of Magic itself." she sighed.
"Why? What's different about the moons?" Eve asked.
"You need not fear them for one," Kat answered. "Or to be more precise, fear the one, Morrslieb, the Dark Moon." she paused. "It is an ill omen, a portent for ill things to come, and you can never predict when it will arrive. Men and women must hide, lest their exposure to the moon's light mutate them."
"Wait, the moon can literally mutate you?" Cassandra asked aghast. "What happens to them?"
"If they are lucky and retain their sanity, they may appeal to the gods to cure them. If, however, they were not living just lives…. they may retreat into the dark, forever outcast by society, otherwise they die by our hands before they worsen. Those are the lucky ones."
"The truly unlucky, are those that have lost their minds in the process, lashing out against their friends and family, destroy entire villages before retreating into the forests."
"Maker," Eve cursed. "Is your Empire so besieged by enemies that even the moon is a danger?"
"Even within our own borders we are not safe."Kat answered. "Beastmen… Mutated fusion of man and beast, great in cunning and strength, lurk within our forests forever a threat to outlying towns and villages. Without Morrslieb or the other fel magics of Chaos it is probable they do not exist here," she sighed as she turned towards the forest. "Greenskins as well, Orcs, creatures twice the size of a man and much stronger. Numerous beyond count, aided by their goblin minions, small yet full of great cunning. They and their warbosses rampage across the Empire, from the Badlands to the south, from the mountains that border our Empire, and even from the forests themselves. To the east lie the Vampire Counts of Sylvania. Foul undead necromancers who raise the dead to wage eternal war on the living. And always, from the north in Norsca, does the threat of Chaos hang in the air, ready to rush down from the Chaos wastes, south through Kislev and into the Empire. The Elector Counts, the leaders of each province have an army, and always are they ready for war, either with each other or against the numerous foes of the realm. "
Eve was flabbergasted. How… how could people live like that? The closest she'd heard about was the darkspawn in the Anderfels and the Dwarves… Like a perpetual Blight.
"Have… have you tried making peace with them?" Cassandra asked after a while the silence becoming too much for the two women.
"Peace is only possible when the other side doesn't want you dead." Kat answered frankly. "Beastmen are beasts, cunning beasts, but beasts. Orcs want to fight, they live for it. At best you can buy some to fight others. The Vampire Counts will not rest until the Empire is under their 'rightful' rule, and Chaos desires the destruction of all. There can be no peace between us."
"It sounds to me that your Empire would have been great allies in the early days of the Breach," Cassandra said. "Great warriors, experienced in fighting demons and the like."
"I'm afraid you'll have to settle for a humble wizard and templar," she said as she turned towards them. "We will do our best to not shame the Empire. Maybe in time, we shall find ways home. If not…" she sighed, turning back towards the forest, the idea hanging about.
"You two have already pulled your weight and more back at Therinfal," Eve said, trying to comfort her. It was now obvious why those two went through those Red Templars like a hot knife through butter. Obviously they've fought and seen so much worse in their lives.
"In any case… you two are more than welcome among the Inquisition," Eve nodded.
"Thank you," Kat replied, her vigil still alight. Eve let her be as she and Cassandra made their way back to their own tents.
A world constantly at war… Eve thought. Yet Reinhardt for all his seriousness, had a certain sort of charm to him, Eve grudgingly admitted. That sort of humor amidst a battle, and a flippancy to the dangers that surrounded him. Though that may just be because he had seen worse. Kat, cold and distant though she may be, seemed an amicable sort, and certainly not cold the way Vivienne was.
Maybe life in Thedas isn't so bad, now that she had something to point out and say it could be worse. The trick now was making sure some asshole didn't destroy it.
ZEIN
AN: New TW DLC was up. Defeated Chaos with the aid of Volkmar the Grim! hope you guys enjoy the next bit as much as I enjoyed the DLC (Free Company Militia are awesome) Thanks to @RedrumSprinkles for helping me out with this.
Haven was very different from what Reinhardt expected.
Instead of a fortress with strong walls and an impressive keep, Reinhardt found a snow covered village with an army of tents outside its palisade. He'd seen villages with better walls, though these Inquisition troops were certainly better drilled than any village militia he'd ever seen. Knights oversaw each of the raw recruits as they practiced relentlessly.
"I know it isn't much," Eve said as they passed closer to the village gate."But… its sheer proximity to the Breach more than makes up for everything else. "
"It's… quaint," Reinhardt conceded. "I'm more shocked at how lightly defended this place is. For an organization like yours… I expected more. Other than the palisade, I like this place. It reminds me of our home." He smiled, thinking of the Grey mountains. Sure they had tons of creatures that would sooner rend you limb from limb, but they were a great backdrop to his ancestral home. A little chillier, as if he were in Nordland, but bearable.
"Well you two might be the exception to this place." Eve shivered. "We know enough to say that whoever this Elder One is, he's behind the Breach. Once we close it, we'll move out and concentrate on bringing him and his allies to justice. " she continued.. "I for one look forward to it. This place is a frozen isolated village. We can leave the villagers be while we look for a real place to headquarter ourselves."
"Find an abandoned keep, kick out the monsters living in it, move in." Reinhardt supplied. "Many a Knightly order started that way. Or was resurrected. Still, the point stands." Reinhardt shrugged.
"Hammer, the more you talk about your world, the more I start to worry just how sane you and Shiny are." Varric mumbled.
"This is all perfectly normal in the Empire. Gods know how many keeps and orders have been lost to the countless wars and enemies that plague us," Kat nodded earning more dumbfounded looks from the locals.
Reinhardt was getting this sinking feeling that he and Kat were somewhere both foreign and naive. Not the good backward like Kislev or arguably Bretonnia, but more like Estonia or Tilea. All squabbling, and no true idea of the greater horrors that surrounded them.
His thoughts were interrupted by a cheer coming from the recruits. It seems the greenhorns caught sight of the convoy and the templars in two. A ragged cheer echoed throughout the valley as the end was seemingly in sight.
Reinhardt knew better than to let his guard down. Not so close to the Breach. This close to it, the damn thing was impossible to miss. Yet… something was odd about it. It hurt to look at it yes, but there were no whispered lies coming from it. No mind-shattering images imprinted onto his vision by glances.
It was certainly magical. You didn't need to be a wizard to figure that out, but… part of him knew it wasn't Chaos, the Great Enemy. Still it was an enemy to man, and Sigmar demanded it closed. This much he knew for certain, and he would do his duty.
By the time they reached the village square, centered around some temple to their Maker, a crowd had gathered around the stone building. On each of their tired, frozen faces was the idea of hope. Hope that all their troubles will come to pass.
"People of Haven," Eve stated from her horse. "We have secured the alliance with the Templars. Soon we will close this Breach!"
The crowd cheered at the thought, as soldiers and villagers alike hugged each other in relief. If they were anything like home, this village will be a town in a year's time.
Ignoring the cheers of the people, Eve canted up to Reinhardt and Kat's wagon. "I'm afraid Cassandra and myself must inform the rest of the leadership of what happened. Varric and the others can help you two get settled."
"I'd rather start with a bath. And a change of clothes if you please," Kat replied. "We've… rather ruined our clothes I'm afraid."
Eve giggled before pointing out a set of tents by the palisade. "Go find Threnn the Quartermaster. Tell her the Herald sent you, and you can requisition some clean clothes. Better yet," she smiled as she turned towards Varric and the elven wizard.
"Bull, Varric, Solas, why don't you two help them settle in." she asked.
"It'll be a pleasure," Varric grinned, while the elf, Solas bowed. "Of course. I'll do my best."
"Thank you," Reinhardt said with grit teeth before he followed the three. He may not be a beastman, but Reinhardt didn't trust Bull. An hour later, he and Kat were clean, warm, and settled in a cottage on the outskirts of the village. Its former owner had apparently died, at the epicenter of the Breach. And none had claimed it till now.
"So," Solas started as he settled on one of the benches. "I gathered that you two are… from very distant shores. Yet there are dwarves and elves there?"
"Aye," Kat nodded. "I've met many a dwarf, but very few elves. For a moment when we first saw you, I thought you one of the Wood Elves, though I've only heard of them. By your… speech though I would say you are more kin to the High Elves."
"Oh? There are different kinds of elves?" he asked, curious.
"I know very little of the Wood Elves, and if rumor is true, so do their kin." Kat nodded. "High elves though, are the mightiest wielders of magic bar none. They can wield magic that would kill mere men as if it were nothing, and utilize them to great and terrible effect. All proper human nations respect them and their duties towards keeping the world safe."
"I see," he nodded. "But what made you think I was more kin to these High elves?"
"It's the barely restrained disdain." Kat sighed. "I'm not offended by it, gracious me no. You're one of the most bearable Asrai I've ever met. There are those who in their sheer arrogance and disdain for their inferiors, would tempt even the most patient to break politeness."
Solas frowned yet nodded all the same.
"Sounds completely different from the elven situation here," Varric grunted. "You'd be hard pressed to find a respected elf alive today."
"What."
"It's complicated, but needless to say, the Elven nation and human nations fought, the elves lost, and have since then been relegated to the side." Varric waved his hand. "It's… not pretty but," he shrugged.
"If any elf heard this…" Reinhardt gasped, imagining the revenge they would wreck. "Well, it's a good thing we're far away from Ulthuan or Naggaroth."
"It is a despicable situation for my people," Solas sighed.
"My friend, I promise to do what we can to alleviate these pains." Kat and Reinhardt nodded.
"I've got a question," Bull snorted. "In this… Empire of yours. How common are those?" he pointed to one of Reinhardt's pistols.
Teeth grit, Reinhardt grabbed his maul before he turned to Bull. "Do what you want qunari, but the secret of gunpowder dies with us."
"Relax," Bull replied, hands raised. "I ask because my people back home have orders to keep an eye on anyone who figured out the secret to something like gaatlok."
Reinhardt shivered as the image of beastmen armed with guns and cannon came to mind. It was a nightmarish thing, each piece likely covered in their filth before used to tear down great cities of the Empire.
"I curse thee Bull for the horrible nightmares that are sure to haunt me," Reinhardt spat.
"Brother," Kat scolded. "Calm down. We are far from home and he doesn't seek it." she said before turning to Bull. "The secrets of powder and shot will likely die with us. We are sworn to its secrets for the Empire. Reassure your comrades that we will not be trouble."
"I'll try." he sighed. "On my, I will do my best. Not that it smells right anyway. It's just that you guys are the closest ever to come close to it."
"On your head are the consequences," Kat declared, staring down the giant right as the door opened.
"It's time," Eve declared. As one the five of them gathered their weapons and armor and followed Eve towards the Breach. In mere hours,they found themselves at the very edge of Inquisition lines, a small camp of soldiers keeping a sharp eye out for any demons that could come from the breach or any other rifts.
Yet the closer they came to it, the more confused Reinhardt got. He felt none of the signs of Chaos as they approached, or saw any of the signs. Blasted, scorched earth, like a Bright Wizard unleashed his fury on the area, but no taint, no mutated creatures or twisted trees. Even the still and charred corpses that littered the area should have been feeding ground for whatever evil creatures it attracted.
He turned to Kat, looking for some sort of wisdom. She shook her head, whispering "It's as if the Winds… the winds do not blow properly."
"There is no taint?" Reinhardt gasped in disbelief.
"None." she nodded, "Though I dare not try anything without further study. Or your eyes."
"Of course," he nodded. Were anything to go awry… He must do his duty.
"There it is," Solas pointed as they reached the edge of a crater. On the fringes, reinhardt could see great red crystals, similar to the ones emerging from the backs of the mutants at Therinfal. If nothing else, that meant that these things were evil.Anything that did that to normal people…
Yet as they reached the crater's edge, what captured Reinhardt's attention was the green rift, hovering above the ground. He could make out vague shapes within, and not a sign of the usual madness were he to stare this long into a portal.
So… what were they looking into if this wasn't the realm of Chaos?
"Watch," Cassandra said as Eve walked down towards the rift. Their escort of templars, each took a swig of that mysterious mineral, lyrium, then took up positions on the crater edge. He watched as she approached the rift, her right hand glowing as a bolt of energy struck the rift.
The Templars, as one, bent the knee, plunging their swords into the charred earth. Yet from here, even here could feel the electricity in the air as the Templars did… something.
"Impossible," Kat muttered.
"What?" Reinhardt asked.
"They are doing what I thought was impossible by a human. What the Runepriests of the dwarves could and, if rumor be believed, do. They are dampening the very winds themselves, stilling them." she gasped. "I thought it coincidence before at Therinfal, but now... "
"Now we know there is a method to stopping magic," Reinhardt whispered as Eve completed the ritual. Sealing the Breach as a shockwave of air passed above their heads. Whatever this Breach really was, whatever strange realm it lead to, it had closed.
Haven was very different from what Reinhardt expected.
Instead of a fortress with strong walls and an impressive keep, Reinhardt found a snow covered village with an army of tents outside its palisade. He'd seen villages with better walls, though these Inquisition troops were certainly better drilled than any village militia he'd ever seen. Knights oversaw each of the raw recruits as they practiced relentlessly.
"I know it isn't much," Eve said as they passed closer to the village gate."But… its sheer proximity to the Breach more than makes up for everything else. "
"It's… quaint," Reinhardt conceded. "I'm more shocked at how lightly defended this place is. For an organization like yours… I expected more. Other than the palisade, I like this place. It reminds me of our home." He smiled, thinking of the Grey mountains. Sure they had tons of creatures that would sooner rend you limb from limb, but they were a great backdrop to his ancestral home. A little chillier, as if he were in Nordland, but bearable.
"Well you two might be the exception to this place." Eve shivered. "We know enough to say that whoever this Elder One is, he's behind the Breach. Once we close it, we'll move out and concentrate on bringing him and his allies to justice. " she continued.. "I for one look forward to it. This place is a frozen isolated village. We can leave the villagers be while we look for a real place to headquarter ourselves."
"Find an abandoned keep, kick out the monsters living in it, move in." Reinhardt supplied. "Many a Knightly order started that way. Or was resurrected. Still, the point stands." Reinhardt shrugged.
"Hammer, the more you talk about your world, the more I start to worry just how sane you and Shiny are." Varric mumbled.
"This is all perfectly normal in the Empire. Gods know how many keeps and orders have been lost to the countless wars and enemies that plague us," Kat nodded earning more dumbfounded looks from the locals.
Reinhardt was getting this sinking feeling that he and Kat were somewhere both foreign and naive. Not the good backward like Kislev or arguably Bretonnia, but more like Estonia or Tilea. All squabbling, and no true idea of the greater horrors that surrounded them.
His thoughts were interrupted by a cheer coming from the recruits. It seems the greenhorns caught sight of the convoy and the templars in two. A ragged cheer echoed throughout the valley as the end was seemingly in sight.
Reinhardt knew better than to let his guard down. Not so close to the Breach. This close to it, the damn thing was impossible to miss. Yet… something was odd about it. It hurt to look at it yes, but there were no whispered lies coming from it. No mind-shattering images imprinted onto his vision by glances.
It was certainly magical. You didn't need to be a wizard to figure that out, but… part of him knew it wasn't Chaos, the Great Enemy. Still it was an enemy to man, and Sigmar demanded it closed. This much he knew for certain, and he would do his duty.
By the time they reached the village square, centered around some temple to their Maker, a crowd had gathered around the stone building. On each of their tired, frozen faces was the idea of hope. Hope that all their troubles will come to pass.
"People of Haven," Eve stated from her horse. "We have secured the alliance with the Templars. Soon we will close this Breach!"
The crowd cheered at the thought, as soldiers and villagers alike hugged each other in relief. If they were anything like home, this village will be a town in a year's time.
Ignoring the cheers of the people, Eve canted up to Reinhardt and Kat's wagon. "I'm afraid Cassandra and myself must inform the rest of the leadership of what happened. Varric and the others can help you two get settled."
"I'd rather start with a bath. And a change of clothes if you please," Kat replied. "We've… rather ruined our clothes I'm afraid."
Eve giggled before pointing out a set of tents by the palisade. "Go find Threnn the Quartermaster. Tell her the Herald sent you, and you can requisition some clean clothes. Better yet," she smiled as she turned towards Varric and the elven wizard.
"Bull, Varric, Solas, why don't you two help them settle in." she asked.
"It'll be a pleasure," Varric grinned, while the elf, Solas bowed. "Of course. I'll do my best."
"Thank you," Reinhardt said with grit teeth before he followed the three. He may not be a beastman, but Reinhardt didn't trust Bull. An hour later, he and Kat were clean, warm, and settled in a cottage on the outskirts of the village. Its former owner had apparently died, at the epicenter of the Breach. And none had claimed it till now.
"So," Solas started as he settled on one of the benches. "I gathered that you two are… from very distant shores. Yet there are dwarves and elves there?"
"Aye," Kat nodded. "I've met many a dwarf, but very few elves. For a moment when we first saw you, I thought you one of the Wood Elves, though I've only heard of them. By your… speech though I would say you are more kin to the High Elves."
"Oh? There are different kinds of elves?" he asked, curious.
"I know very little of the Wood Elves, and if rumor is true, so do their kin." Kat nodded. "High elves though, are the mightiest wielders of magic bar none. They can wield magic that would kill mere men as if it were nothing, and utilize them to great and terrible effect. All proper human nations respect them and their duties towards keeping the world safe."
"I see," he nodded. "But what made you think I was more kin to these High elves?"
"It's the barely restrained disdain." Kat sighed. "I'm not offended by it, gracious me no. You're one of the most bearable Asrai I've ever met. There are those who in their sheer arrogance and disdain for their inferiors, would tempt even the most patient to break politeness."
Solas frowned yet nodded all the same.
"Sounds completely different from the elven situation here," Varric grunted. "You'd be hard pressed to find a respected elf alive today."
"What."
"It's complicated, but needless to say, the Elven nation and human nations fought, the elves lost, and have since then been relegated to the side." Varric waved his hand. "It's… not pretty but," he shrugged.
"If any elf heard this…" Reinhardt gasped, imagining the revenge they would wreck. "Well, it's a good thing we're far away from Ulthuan or Naggaroth."
"It is a despicable situation for my people," Solas sighed.
"My friend, I promise to do what we can to alleviate these pains." Kat and Reinhardt nodded.
"I've got a question," Bull snorted. "In this… Empire of yours. How common are those?" he pointed to one of Reinhardt's pistols.
Teeth grit, Reinhardt grabbed his maul before he turned to Bull. "Do what you want qunari, but the secret of gunpowder dies with us."
"Relax," Bull replied, hands raised. "I ask because my people back home have orders to keep an eye on anyone who figured out the secret to something like gaatlok."
Reinhardt shivered as the image of beastmen armed with guns and cannon came to mind. It was a nightmarish thing, each piece likely covered in their filth before used to tear down great cities of the Empire.
"I curse thee Bull for the horrible nightmares that are sure to haunt me," Reinhardt spat.
"Brother," Kat scolded. "Calm down. We are far from home and he doesn't seek it." she said before turning to Bull. "The secrets of powder and shot will likely die with us. We are sworn to its secrets for the Empire. Reassure your comrades that we will not be trouble."
"I'll try." he sighed. "On my, I will do my best. Not that it smells right anyway. It's just that you guys are the closest ever to come close to it."
"On your head are the consequences," Kat declared, staring down the giant right as the door opened.
"It's time," Eve declared. As one the five of them gathered their weapons and armor and followed Eve towards the Breach. In mere hours,they found themselves at the very edge of Inquisition lines, a small camp of soldiers keeping a sharp eye out for any demons that could come from the breach or any other rifts.
Yet the closer they came to it, the more confused Reinhardt got. He felt none of the signs of Chaos as they approached, or saw any of the signs. Blasted, scorched earth, like a Bright Wizard unleashed his fury on the area, but no taint, no mutated creatures or twisted trees. Even the still and charred corpses that littered the area should have been feeding ground for whatever evil creatures it attracted.
He turned to Kat, looking for some sort of wisdom. She shook her head, whispering "It's as if the Winds… the winds do not blow properly."
"There is no taint?" Reinhardt gasped in disbelief.
"None." she nodded, "Though I dare not try anything without further study. Or your eyes."
"Of course," he nodded. Were anything to go awry… He must do his duty.
"There it is," Solas pointed as they reached the edge of a crater. On the fringes, reinhardt could see great red crystals, similar to the ones emerging from the backs of the mutants at Therinfal. If nothing else, that meant that these things were evil.Anything that did that to normal people…
Yet as they reached the crater's edge, what captured Reinhardt's attention was the green rift, hovering above the ground. He could make out vague shapes within, and not a sign of the usual madness were he to stare this long into a portal.
So… what were they looking into if this wasn't the realm of Chaos?
"Watch," Cassandra said as Eve walked down towards the rift. Their escort of templars, each took a swig of that mysterious mineral, lyrium, then took up positions on the crater edge. He watched as she approached the rift, her right hand glowing as a bolt of energy struck the rift.
The Templars, as one, bent the knee, plunging their swords into the charred earth. Yet from here, even here could feel the electricity in the air as the Templars did… something.
"Impossible," Kat muttered.
"What?" Reinhardt asked.
"They are doing what I thought was impossible by a human. What the Runepriests of the dwarves could and, if rumor be believed, do. They are dampening the very winds themselves, stilling them." she gasped. "I thought it coincidence before at Therinfal, but now... "
"Now we know there is a method to stopping magic," Reinhardt whispered as Eve completed the ritual. Sealing the Breach as a shockwave of air passed above their heads. Whatever this Breach really was, whatever strange realm it lead to, it had closed.