Eternal
You’ve gotten this far without begging for Dendrin’s help before, you’re not going to start now. Given that he hasn’t spoken to you in years maybe he’s finally lost interest. If that’s the case you’d hate to tempt disrupting that by calling on him directly.
Before you go to sleep, you decide that it’ll be better off to kill the problem eternals that look like they’re going to continue being as such. You’ll make up some sort of story that Dendrin told you or some such nonsense. Everyone will believe it. You have it done soon after you get to your destination though, no sense in wasting potential manpower in hostile territory.
Having made your decision you drift off into a deep sleep. You’re really tired, the stress of the day and the move in general has gotten to you more than you thought!
In fact you’re so tired you don’t even wake up when you’re attacked in the middle of the night. It isn’t until Talia slaps you across the face that you awaken.
“Ow! What the hell’s going on?” you ask rubbing your cheek.
“We’re being attacked! Get up and move!” she shouts.
A bright light is illuminating the nighttime sky along with several fire arrows. You’ roll under a wagon to avoid immediate danger.
It would appear General Ackerson’s men have discovered you and have attacked in force. They’re being smart about it too, attacking at night with archers and unfortunately also a couple of battle mages who are making the darkness disappear with their spells.
“How the hell did they sneak up on us? I had scouts around the perimeter to avoid this sort of thing!” you mutter to yourself. Doesn’t matter now you suppose, what you have to do is get the hell out of here as fast as possible. You don’t like running, but you’ll end up losing more people if you stick around and fight. Besides, there are probably more troops behind the archers or at least on their way. However you do see this as an opportunity, in fact it saves you the trouble of even weeding out various eternals.
You deliberately give orders that all the eternals need to engage Ackerson’s army while the rest of the shadows make the escape attempt.
“Everyone else, grab what you can, head for those hills, speed up and cloak!” you shout.
“You can’t send them to engage the army, they’ll all be killed!” Talia says.
“If it is Dendrin’s will, then that’s what’s going to happen, better that they should die in his service than all of be destroyed, now let’s move!” you shout back.
Talia isn’t happy with the decision, but follows your lead.
The soldiers are still shooting at you of course, but they’re doing it blind. Some of the mages get a few people though by blindly throwing fireballs in the general direction. It isn’t long before the ranged attacks become lessened when the eternals close in for combat. As you get closer and closer to the hills, the arrows and fireballs have seemed to have stopped altogether.
The next few days also involve some fighting with more soldiers in the hills, and while it’s mostly swordsmen you still don’t have a major advantage as you’re short several good warriors since losing all of the eternals. You curse the fact that you behaved so rashly. Though nobody is cursing more than Cyrus when Dravin gets cut down by a lucky soldier, he nearly kills all the skirmishers himself after that happens. After the battle he still hasn’t calmed down.
“Cyrus I know you’re upset about Dravin, but we’ve got to keep moving.”
“Fuck you! This is YOUR fault!” Cyrus shouts as he morns over Dravin’s body. “If you hadn’t sent all the eternals to sacrifice themselves we might’ve had more people with us to close the gaps in our defenses! What the hell were you thinking?”
“I was thinking that I was trying to save most of the shadows instead of all of getting killed instead!”
“Well you’ve sure done a great job of that oh great Shadow Master!”
“Cyrus, you honestly have a problem with me being Shadow Master after you practically begged like a pathetic worm for me to spare your life?”
“And that was the biggest mistake of my entire life! I see now that you were never the chosen one of Dendrin, either that or he’s abandoned you and as a result us completely! Did you ever really talk to him at all or did you just make it all up?”
“I knew I should’ve killed you…”
“What’s stopping you now?”
Talia attempts to separate the pair of you, but both of you are ready to draw weapons on each other. Meanwhile Theo is attempting to keep the rest of the shadows in order who are not only demoralized by the attacks and loss of people, but also the fact that their leadership is fighting on top of it.
Things go from bad to worse when Talia is accidentally stabbed in the chest by Cyrus when he tries to stab you instead. You see her fall to ground with a look of shock on her face. Cyrus stands with a bloody dagger in his hand with a similar look of surprise on his face.
“I…didn’t…I meant to…I…” Cyrus stutters as your eyes look right through him.
You waste no time and tackle him to the ground. Theo shouts for you to stop, but you don’t hear anything until you hear the last sounds of Cyrus’ breath as you choke the life out of him before breaking his neck. By the time you’re done, no body knows what to think or do. They just stand around watching the self destruction of their order.
You go back over to Talia’s body and find her still alive, but breathing weakly.
“I’m sorry Talia, I…should’ve be able to stop…”
“Stop what? It was Dendrin’s will that…I die obviously…at least I’ll see my eternals again…my children…” Talia says and lapses into unconsciousness and then death.
You shed a few tears over her death, then Theo tries to get you to move.
“Shadow Master we have to keep moving as you said.”
“You want to keep moving go ahead Theo. I’ll be staying here.” Looking off in the distance.
“But you’re the Shadow Master, you have to…”
“I don’t have to do shit! You want the job? Go ahead, I make you Shadow Master. Lots of luck! Now begone!” you shout.
Theo stands there for a while and starts to say something, but stops. Instead he just tells the remaining shadows to keep moving and eventually they’re all out of the area leaving you alone with several dead bodies surrounding you.
When the rest of General Ackerson’s men reach you, you’re still sitting on the ground cradling Talia’s body. They shout some predictable threats and such at you, but you ignore them. You don’t care anymore. You’re numb all the way until you feel a sword blow to your head.
And then you feel nothing ever again.
Before you go to sleep, you decide that it’ll be better off to kill the problem eternals that look like they’re going to continue being as such. You’ll make up some sort of story that Dendrin told you or some such nonsense. Everyone will believe it. You have it done soon after you get to your destination though, no sense in wasting potential manpower in hostile territory.
Having made your decision you drift off into a deep sleep. You’re really tired, the stress of the day and the move in general has gotten to you more than you thought!
In fact you’re so tired you don’t even wake up when you’re attacked in the middle of the night. It isn’t until Talia slaps you across the face that you awaken.
“Ow! What the hell’s going on?” you ask rubbing your cheek.
“We’re being attacked! Get up and move!” she shouts.
A bright light is illuminating the nighttime sky along with several fire arrows. You’ roll under a wagon to avoid immediate danger.
It would appear General Ackerson’s men have discovered you and have attacked in force. They’re being smart about it too, attacking at night with archers and unfortunately also a couple of battle mages who are making the darkness disappear with their spells.
“How the hell did they sneak up on us? I had scouts around the perimeter to avoid this sort of thing!” you mutter to yourself. Doesn’t matter now you suppose, what you have to do is get the hell out of here as fast as possible. You don’t like running, but you’ll end up losing more people if you stick around and fight. Besides, there are probably more troops behind the archers or at least on their way. However you do see this as an opportunity, in fact it saves you the trouble of even weeding out various eternals.
You deliberately give orders that all the eternals need to engage Ackerson’s army while the rest of the shadows make the escape attempt.
“Everyone else, grab what you can, head for those hills, speed up and cloak!” you shout.
“You can’t send them to engage the army, they’ll all be killed!” Talia says.
“If it is Dendrin’s will, then that’s what’s going to happen, better that they should die in his service than all of be destroyed, now let’s move!” you shout back.
Talia isn’t happy with the decision, but follows your lead.
The soldiers are still shooting at you of course, but they’re doing it blind. Some of the mages get a few people though by blindly throwing fireballs in the general direction. It isn’t long before the ranged attacks become lessened when the eternals close in for combat. As you get closer and closer to the hills, the arrows and fireballs have seemed to have stopped altogether.
The next few days also involve some fighting with more soldiers in the hills, and while it’s mostly swordsmen you still don’t have a major advantage as you’re short several good warriors since losing all of the eternals. You curse the fact that you behaved so rashly. Though nobody is cursing more than Cyrus when Dravin gets cut down by a lucky soldier, he nearly kills all the skirmishers himself after that happens. After the battle he still hasn’t calmed down.
“Cyrus I know you’re upset about Dravin, but we’ve got to keep moving.”
“Fuck you! This is YOUR fault!” Cyrus shouts as he morns over Dravin’s body. “If you hadn’t sent all the eternals to sacrifice themselves we might’ve had more people with us to close the gaps in our defenses! What the hell were you thinking?”
“I was thinking that I was trying to save most of the shadows instead of all of getting killed instead!”
“Well you’ve sure done a great job of that oh great Shadow Master!”
“Cyrus, you honestly have a problem with me being Shadow Master after you practically begged like a pathetic worm for me to spare your life?”
“And that was the biggest mistake of my entire life! I see now that you were never the chosen one of Dendrin, either that or he’s abandoned you and as a result us completely! Did you ever really talk to him at all or did you just make it all up?”
“I knew I should’ve killed you…”
“What’s stopping you now?”
Talia attempts to separate the pair of you, but both of you are ready to draw weapons on each other. Meanwhile Theo is attempting to keep the rest of the shadows in order who are not only demoralized by the attacks and loss of people, but also the fact that their leadership is fighting on top of it.
Things go from bad to worse when Talia is accidentally stabbed in the chest by Cyrus when he tries to stab you instead. You see her fall to ground with a look of shock on her face. Cyrus stands with a bloody dagger in his hand with a similar look of surprise on his face.
“I…didn’t…I meant to…I…” Cyrus stutters as your eyes look right through him.
You waste no time and tackle him to the ground. Theo shouts for you to stop, but you don’t hear anything until you hear the last sounds of Cyrus’ breath as you choke the life out of him before breaking his neck. By the time you’re done, no body knows what to think or do. They just stand around watching the self destruction of their order.
You go back over to Talia’s body and find her still alive, but breathing weakly.
“I’m sorry Talia, I…should’ve be able to stop…”
“Stop what? It was Dendrin’s will that…I die obviously…at least I’ll see my eternals again…my children…” Talia says and lapses into unconsciousness and then death.
You shed a few tears over her death, then Theo tries to get you to move.
“Shadow Master we have to keep moving as you said.”
“You want to keep moving go ahead Theo. I’ll be staying here.” Looking off in the distance.
“But you’re the Shadow Master, you have to…”
“I don’t have to do shit! You want the job? Go ahead, I make you Shadow Master. Lots of luck! Now begone!” you shout.
Theo stands there for a while and starts to say something, but stops. Instead he just tells the remaining shadows to keep moving and eventually they’re all out of the area leaving you alone with several dead bodies surrounding you.
When the rest of General Ackerson’s men reach you, you’re still sitting on the ground cradling Talia’s body. They shout some predictable threats and such at you, but you ignore them. You don’t care anymore. You’re numb all the way until you feel a sword blow to your head.
And then you feel nothing ever again.
