Trial By Shields Ⅰ
Rhea found herself venturing through the forests near Loregard, on her way to the spot Analine had been waiting for her. She said that they were going to be undergoing some special training, and Rhea knew that meant Analine was about to put her through her paces today. That's normally how training with the woman went anyhow.
She didnt expect it to like this though, as what she saw when she reached the meeting spot was heavy on her heart. A pile of corpses was in front of her, the look on Analine's face said all she needed to know. "It seems that a group of Vikinger rogues are responsible for this atrocity. We need to stop them now before anyone else is killed like wild animals and sully the name of Clan Loregard."
With a nod, the two women set off to find them. "For your training, you are only allowed to fight with your shield." she noted, causing Rhea to sigh as they ran along a forest path. Both women stopped as they came up some tracks. Looking in the direction the tracks had gone northeast, a direction Rhea had realized was that a small lumbering village that she used to visit.
"We must hurry, there's a village in that direction, there are good people there." she announced, taking off in that direction. The duo had been traveling for what seemed like neverending hours, it was like an endless journey, Rhea worrying for the lives of the people there. They came by several piles of corpses along the way, small in number, but similar to the one they initially found. She began to see the effects for those who couldnt fight for themselves, and it disgusted her.
It appalled her to see the outright disregard for the lives of others these bandits had, especially since these villagers were slaughtered in such a way. They finally reached the Lumber village, perched on a hill nearby. She couldnt believe that this band of traitors was treating their own people as livestock to be killed at their pleasure.
"We need to stop them now." Rhea suggested, finally reaching for her weapon, taking the hilt of her sword, only to remember what Analine's words. Extending her hand she materialized her shield, looking to Analine and giving her a nod. Creeping down into the village, both women waited till the sun began to set. Neither one cared about the numbers as they were going to slaughter every last one.
Fear.....that's all she could feel as they laid in wait for the opportune moment to strike. Her shield held tight within her hand she looked to Analine and was waiting for her signal. They could hear the traitors roughing up the villagers and Rhea was becoming impatient. If they didnt act now, they could lose what remained of the villagers and Rhea was not having it. "I'll go to the right, you take the left." she said using non-verbal hand gestures as best she could, Analine nodding in agreement.
The two heroines eased their steps, inching closer to the corner of the home they had been using for cover. Once there they listened as the brutes were barking orders to the remaining villagers. Rhea noticed that they were separating them, the woman from the men. Peeking her head around the corner, she could see them inspecting the woman, sorting them it seemed.
"This one has a nice face, but her figure is less than desirable, put her with the men to be killed later." the one in charged appraised, moving on to another girl, a redhead, and rather ravishing look to her. "Oh well look what we have here? You will do nicely, and fetch the boss a nice profit too. Take this one and put her with the rest of the merchandise"
Rhea did her best to stifle her shock, a gasp fighting desperately to escape her hand covered lips. She had come to the conclusion they were sorting the woman, like cattle. Rhea could stand much more of this, and it appeared neither could Analine. Her friend came from around her corner, burying the blade of her ax into the back of the nearest slaver.
Rhea, taking that as her cue, came from around hers, raming the edged point of her shield into the neck of the one next to her, No words were exchanged as both women continued their assault, Rhea was forced to use her shield as her weapon bashing these disgraceful men around with it. One could hear the audible crack of limbs as she hit them with as much force as she could.
It was a good thing that she bit of anger to help fuel her attacks. She found that it could deliver enough impact to bat foes away, not to mention bludgeon them to death, Striking repeatedly at one of the men's faces with her shield till he was no longer resisting. It wasn't as if she held any sort of remorse for them. It was a deplorable thing they were doing, and her anger would not be quelled until they were all erased.
Lunging into the direction she chose to defend the villagers, she bashed her shield across the skulls of several men, ones of little to no note at all. Admits her fray however she notices that Analine was being set up for a pincer strike by the rogues. After dealing with the ones that we near her, each one receiving an anger-filled smack across the head, she turned on her heel and sent her shield flying, aim to the one at Analine's rear away from her.
With a loud crack, the man went down, gripping his arm as he yelled in pain. Willing it, she called for her shield to return to her, the connection between her and her shield, strengthening from the act a little. Continuing on her attack, she knocked the other fools away with one swing and bash after another. It was requiring a lot of strength to do this, but it was all worth the effort and Rhea was willing to expend it.
She soon had an obstacle of her own, as a brute with an axe, swinging it in her direction. Quickly she threw her shield up to block the attack, only to be sent back, crashing against the wall of a nearby building. She let out a gasp as she hit the floor, quickly scrambling for her shield. She knew she had to gain the edge in this and fast but how? She needed to kill this beast and protect these people.
She found her shield, cling to it closely, the brute towering over her, his axe raised high. Throwing it up in front of her, she braced for the impact as the axe came down on her shield. The sheer impact was enough to make her feel as if her arms would break, her eyes widening as she saw him wind back up for another strike.
He was just about to bring it down on her, except it was his head that came falling down next to her, rolling off to the side, his body and axe thudding against the ground. Analine stood there, panting with her battleaxe in hand, as she had cleaved the brute's head from him. Helping her friend up she came to stand on her feet, as a few more of the thugs they were killing came into view. With her adrenaline pumping, she was reinvigorated and ready for the next wave, brandishing her shield as she charged them.
One blunt strike after another, bones cracking under each swing, Rhea comes out of the fray, bodies of broken men laid at her feet. She watched them all writhe in agony of the pain before ramming the sharp edge of her shield into a vital organ, one by one she did this, till only one remained. A scruffy young man who was trying to inch himself away on a broken leg.
Standing over him as he tried to get away, she just stared at him, watching him try and slink away, his please of mercy falling on deaf ears as she would not hear any of it. Raising her shield high, she was poised to drive it through the pleading man's spinal cord. The poor lad, wailed to be spared, but she was not listening.
"Wait!" Analine shouts, catching her arm before she killed the man. "We won't know whats going on and why they are doing this if we kill him." she stressed, Rhea just continuing to stare at the man as he thanked Analine for saving his life. Turning to him, she yanked him up by his hair and glared.
"If you don't want my friend here to bludgeon you to death, I suggest you start talking now!" Analine ordered, Rhea, coming to kneel in front of him. A look of pure disregard for his life was on her face, disgusted with him as a person. "Why are you attacking villages and taking their woman, sorting them like animals for auction?" she inquired, glaring at the young man before grabbing his groin in a vice grip. "Well out with it, dont keep us all in suspense!" Rhea roared, tightening her grip, causing him to break and fold into a crying mess.
Analine looked to Rhea, concerned for her friend, never having seen her in such a way. The peaceful and bashful girl she has come to know, the one she grew up with, trained with, was not the woman in front of her and that realization sent a shiver down Analine's spine.
Young man: "Its a group of slavers, traffickers, they were looking for pretty girls to take abroad to sell as slaves. They forced us into helping, saying they needed a local to help pick out the merchandise. We didnt want to do it in the first place, but their threats were all too convincing. The money they were giving us for each girl was helping keep us from starving, please have mercy!" He squealed, crumbling into a ball after being released from Rhea's grip.
In a fit of rage, Rhea swung her shield across his head, knocking him out. She couldnt believe it, here in her own lands, the land of her family, her people. "This is just great, we can't allow this to continue Rhea, we have to stop this before more women are taken." Analine said, pulling the only survivor to a safer spot, away from a rageful Rhea.
"For now we need to help these people recover, we'll clean up the trash afterward." she noted, as she used Dematerialize on her shield, not ready for what was coming. The pain the invaded her body caused her to collapse to the ground, Analine racing her side and holding her in her arms.
It was a pain most unimaginable for her, she was feeling everything her shield had experienced in the fights moments ago. Tears cascading down her face it was the most unbearable feeling she had ever come across. Every minute felt like hours on end as her shield was dematerialized back into her soul, and she was too distracted by the pain to try and think of a way to fix it. But how could she do that? "I.....I CANT...TAKE IT!!" she screamed, her body spasming in Analine's arms.
The surviving villagers came running to her rescue, A call for the village's healer to come and look at her, as the men carried her to a nearby home for treatment till she well again.
"Common Tongue"
"Kokalath Tongue"
"Analine Dialogue"
"Hellig Dialogue"
Searing 15th, Year 120, A.o.S
She didnt expect it to like this though, as what she saw when she reached the meeting spot was heavy on her heart. A pile of corpses was in front of her, the look on Analine's face said all she needed to know. "It seems that a group of Vikinger rogues are responsible for this atrocity. We need to stop them now before anyone else is killed like wild animals and sully the name of Clan Loregard."
With a nod, the two women set off to find them. "For your training, you are only allowed to fight with your shield." she noted, causing Rhea to sigh as they ran along a forest path. Both women stopped as they came up some tracks. Looking in the direction the tracks had gone northeast, a direction Rhea had realized was that a small lumbering village that she used to visit.
"We must hurry, there's a village in that direction, there are good people there." she announced, taking off in that direction. The duo had been traveling for what seemed like neverending hours, it was like an endless journey, Rhea worrying for the lives of the people there. They came by several piles of corpses along the way, small in number, but similar to the one they initially found. She began to see the effects for those who couldnt fight for themselves, and it disgusted her.
It appalled her to see the outright disregard for the lives of others these bandits had, especially since these villagers were slaughtered in such a way. They finally reached the Lumber village, perched on a hill nearby. She couldnt believe that this band of traitors was treating their own people as livestock to be killed at their pleasure.
"We need to stop them now." Rhea suggested, finally reaching for her weapon, taking the hilt of her sword, only to remember what Analine's words. Extending her hand she materialized her shield, looking to Analine and giving her a nod. Creeping down into the village, both women waited till the sun began to set. Neither one cared about the numbers as they were going to slaughter every last one.
Fear.....that's all she could feel as they laid in wait for the opportune moment to strike. Her shield held tight within her hand she looked to Analine and was waiting for her signal. They could hear the traitors roughing up the villagers and Rhea was becoming impatient. If they didnt act now, they could lose what remained of the villagers and Rhea was not having it. "I'll go to the right, you take the left." she said using non-verbal hand gestures as best she could, Analine nodding in agreement.
The two heroines eased their steps, inching closer to the corner of the home they had been using for cover. Once there they listened as the brutes were barking orders to the remaining villagers. Rhea noticed that they were separating them, the woman from the men. Peeking her head around the corner, she could see them inspecting the woman, sorting them it seemed.
"This one has a nice face, but her figure is less than desirable, put her with the men to be killed later." the one in charged appraised, moving on to another girl, a redhead, and rather ravishing look to her. "Oh well look what we have here? You will do nicely, and fetch the boss a nice profit too. Take this one and put her with the rest of the merchandise"
Rhea did her best to stifle her shock, a gasp fighting desperately to escape her hand covered lips. She had come to the conclusion they were sorting the woman, like cattle. Rhea could stand much more of this, and it appeared neither could Analine. Her friend came from around her corner, burying the blade of her ax into the back of the nearest slaver.
Rhea, taking that as her cue, came from around hers, raming the edged point of her shield into the neck of the one next to her, No words were exchanged as both women continued their assault, Rhea was forced to use her shield as her weapon bashing these disgraceful men around with it. One could hear the audible crack of limbs as she hit them with as much force as she could.
It was a good thing that she bit of anger to help fuel her attacks. She found that it could deliver enough impact to bat foes away, not to mention bludgeon them to death, Striking repeatedly at one of the men's faces with her shield till he was no longer resisting. It wasn't as if she held any sort of remorse for them. It was a deplorable thing they were doing, and her anger would not be quelled until they were all erased.
Lunging into the direction she chose to defend the villagers, she bashed her shield across the skulls of several men, ones of little to no note at all. Admits her fray however she notices that Analine was being set up for a pincer strike by the rogues. After dealing with the ones that we near her, each one receiving an anger-filled smack across the head, she turned on her heel and sent her shield flying, aim to the one at Analine's rear away from her.
With a loud crack, the man went down, gripping his arm as he yelled in pain. Willing it, she called for her shield to return to her, the connection between her and her shield, strengthening from the act a little. Continuing on her attack, she knocked the other fools away with one swing and bash after another. It was requiring a lot of strength to do this, but it was all worth the effort and Rhea was willing to expend it.
She soon had an obstacle of her own, as a brute with an axe, swinging it in her direction. Quickly she threw her shield up to block the attack, only to be sent back, crashing against the wall of a nearby building. She let out a gasp as she hit the floor, quickly scrambling for her shield. She knew she had to gain the edge in this and fast but how? She needed to kill this beast and protect these people.
She found her shield, cling to it closely, the brute towering over her, his axe raised high. Throwing it up in front of her, she braced for the impact as the axe came down on her shield. The sheer impact was enough to make her feel as if her arms would break, her eyes widening as she saw him wind back up for another strike.
He was just about to bring it down on her, except it was his head that came falling down next to her, rolling off to the side, his body and axe thudding against the ground. Analine stood there, panting with her battleaxe in hand, as she had cleaved the brute's head from him. Helping her friend up she came to stand on her feet, as a few more of the thugs they were killing came into view. With her adrenaline pumping, she was reinvigorated and ready for the next wave, brandishing her shield as she charged them.
One blunt strike after another, bones cracking under each swing, Rhea comes out of the fray, bodies of broken men laid at her feet. She watched them all writhe in agony of the pain before ramming the sharp edge of her shield into a vital organ, one by one she did this, till only one remained. A scruffy young man who was trying to inch himself away on a broken leg.
Standing over him as he tried to get away, she just stared at him, watching him try and slink away, his please of mercy falling on deaf ears as she would not hear any of it. Raising her shield high, she was poised to drive it through the pleading man's spinal cord. The poor lad, wailed to be spared, but she was not listening.
"Wait!" Analine shouts, catching her arm before she killed the man. "We won't know whats going on and why they are doing this if we kill him." she stressed, Rhea just continuing to stare at the man as he thanked Analine for saving his life. Turning to him, she yanked him up by his hair and glared.
"If you don't want my friend here to bludgeon you to death, I suggest you start talking now!" Analine ordered, Rhea, coming to kneel in front of him. A look of pure disregard for his life was on her face, disgusted with him as a person. "Why are you attacking villages and taking their woman, sorting them like animals for auction?" she inquired, glaring at the young man before grabbing his groin in a vice grip. "Well out with it, dont keep us all in suspense!" Rhea roared, tightening her grip, causing him to break and fold into a crying mess.
Analine looked to Rhea, concerned for her friend, never having seen her in such a way. The peaceful and bashful girl she has come to know, the one she grew up with, trained with, was not the woman in front of her and that realization sent a shiver down Analine's spine.
Young man: "Its a group of slavers, traffickers, they were looking for pretty girls to take abroad to sell as slaves. They forced us into helping, saying they needed a local to help pick out the merchandise. We didnt want to do it in the first place, but their threats were all too convincing. The money they were giving us for each girl was helping keep us from starving, please have mercy!" He squealed, crumbling into a ball after being released from Rhea's grip.
In a fit of rage, Rhea swung her shield across his head, knocking him out. She couldnt believe it, here in her own lands, the land of her family, her people. "This is just great, we can't allow this to continue Rhea, we have to stop this before more women are taken." Analine said, pulling the only survivor to a safer spot, away from a rageful Rhea.
"For now we need to help these people recover, we'll clean up the trash afterward." she noted, as she used Dematerialize on her shield, not ready for what was coming. The pain the invaded her body caused her to collapse to the ground, Analine racing her side and holding her in her arms.
It was a pain most unimaginable for her, she was feeling everything her shield had experienced in the fights moments ago. Tears cascading down her face it was the most unbearable feeling she had ever come across. Every minute felt like hours on end as her shield was dematerialized back into her soul, and she was too distracted by the pain to try and think of a way to fix it. But how could she do that? "I.....I CANT...TAKE IT!!" she screamed, her body spasming in Analine's arms.
The surviving villagers came running to her rescue, A call for the village's healer to come and look at her, as the men carried her to a nearby home for treatment till she well again.
"Common Tongue"
"Kokalath Tongue"
"Analine Dialogue"
"Hellig Dialogue"
