Cal Soulshadow

Things had changed since she’d been away, and not for the better. The general, it seemed, had let his big dog off the leash, and predictably he had immediately gone out to cause trouble. A big dog was exactly how Cal thought of Duo; a snarling, slobbering beast interesting only in fighting and fornicating. He was cut from the same cloth as her half-brother, Zool, but whereas Zool gave her a certain amount of respect, the same was not true of Duo. To Duo she was an obstacle, a hindrance, a pain in the arse. No doubt he had been delighted by her departure, and now that she was back, dismayed by her return.

Still, he had wasted little time in destroying the good work she had done in Trinsic. Relations between Kaldor and Trinsic had become distinctly frosty; indeed, Duo had stated quite openly that he wished to wage war on the city. He and Talon had been having meetings with Vesper, and were evidently trying to cement an alliance.

The general, however, had given orders forbidding the Kaldorians to raise arms against Trinsic or Vesper. When Vesperians attacked Trinsic for the second time that week, Cal could only stand and watch. It frustrated and angered her. Her blade thirsted for blood. She had been sent here to do Raza’s work, and she was damned if she was going to sit on the fence while war raged all around her.

It pleased her, then, that two nights later, the Vesperians should turn on the Kaldorians, just as they had done in the past. It was unfortunate that Gorn and the new footsoldier sustained injuries (while they were unarmed; their backs turned, according to them), but as the old adage went, you can’t make an omelette without breaking a few eggs. They would heal soon enough. And more importantly, they now wanted Vesperian blood.

Blood would be spilled. And Raza would be satisfied.

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Cal Soulshadow

Damn him, Cal thought. Damn that nature-loving idiot to hell!

Vesper had struck while there were few Kaldorians in Trinsic. Only Cal, Gorn and Vegeta had been there, and Vegeta, curse his cowardly hide, had refused to fight. His refusal had cost them bitterly. Three may have stood a chance. Two, however, did not. Trained warriors or not, they were easy prey for the Vesperian mages.

Dondinians, she thought sourly. What good were they in an army? Dondinia was a goddess for farmers, veterinarians and botanists. Real soldiers followed Raza, the god of war.
That was the trouble with this army. There were too few Razans left, and that was why it had grown weak.

This was about to change, however. Already, Edward and Gorn had agreed to undergo the trials necessary for them to become disciples. Kali the mage had also shown an interest.

And then there was Aeries…

Cal smiled thinly. Vegeta’s “friend” would be a fine disciple. Already she had seen the light. Now it was time to show her the way.

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seon

It was night. Gorn was sitting by his window overlooking the swamp. He was tense. That night he had agreed to take on a trial to be initiated to the world of Raza.

He used to be a Dondinian, but not a strong supporter. More because he was forced to due to his post as a maul sergeant in Strongholt before...

His past was like an eclipse of the Sun. He was a convict, serving Kaldor as a life debt for crimes against it. Murder...espionage...betrayal... He felt a strong urge to destroy something, as if that would redeem his crimes.

He was a convict and a soldier of Kaldor, and what better honour is there than fighting, living and dying for ideals like Honour, Pride, and Glory.

It is done...

He donned his helmet and strapped his shield on his back and went outside.
He had a long way to the where Cal told him his trial awaits.

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Arakasi

The entrance was right infront of him , his breath went a little faster. Edward closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He was about to set the first step on his way to become a disciple and he knew it wouldn't be an easy one.
"Go to the labyrinth of fire and kill 20 minions of Xathos"
He stepped into the darkness...It took him a little while to adjust his eyes to the darkness, holding his crosbow ready to fire. The area seemed clear and he proceeded carefully , follown the path to his left till he reached a building. Strange sounds could be heard from inside , whipsering voices talking of death and chaos. He opened the door and stormed in....
A few moments later he was surrounded by the bodies of dead mages. " Is this the best you can do ? Is this my challenge ?" Laughing loudly he left the room , confident in his own strength and skil. " And now for the liches" Because what else were they then just mere mages , undead perhaps but stil... Overflowing with confidence he continued his path , convinced he would deal with the liches swiftly.

Another agonizing pain ran trough his body as the firebolt hitted him. He tried not to choke while he ran as fast as he could , looking for a way to get out of reach of the liche's spells. The cold laughter of the creature sends shivers to his spine as he slowly recovered his strength. He held his breath , his heath pounding so loudly in his ears he feared it would warn every lich in the area. Finally he gathered all his couarage and readied his crosbow , prepared to either die or be victorious in the name of Raza. The liche reacted immediatly when he shot his arrow at it.

Run and shoot , run and shoot...over and over again...
He could barely feel his feet anymore , his triggerfinger felt as if it would stay in that position forever. But finally , after what seemed to have taken a lifetime of fighting , he managed to bring the liche down. But there were stil so many to go.

He would never forgget those hours at the firedungeon , battling the minions of Xathos till he could barely think or feel anymore , shooting the arrows just out of instinct. Everytime he felt like giving up he reminded himself why he was here , to show Raza his determination. Failure wasn't an option. So he kept fighting till finally the last one was slain , an unearthly silence falling over the place. He kneeled down and dropped his bow ,raising his heat up to say his prayings to the god of War , cutting his hand and pouring the blood over the liches remains as an offering. Then he picked his weapon up and made his way back to Stronghold , ready to take the next step...

Cal Soulshadow

Betrayal. She hadn’t seen it coming.

Vegeta, apparently upset at her comments the other night, demanded satisfaction. Cal had no wish to fight a man she had served alongside for so long, but he questioned her honour, and that, she would not tolerate. As not only a follower but a priest of Raza, honour was important to Cal. Reluctantly, she consented. As she turned to climb the steps of the keep to the duelling ring, Vegeta shook his head. To Honour Shrine, he said. An ironic choice, given what transpired moments later.

As they faced each other in the jungle, Cal heard him call upon his goddess, as though he didn’t trust in his own strength. Yet there was something in his eyes she had not seen before. Hatred? She didn’t have much time to think about it as he ran at her, his huge axe carving an arc through the air. As the two fought, a shadowy figure emerged from the undergrowth, and Cal knew too late that she had been betrayed. She felt the blow land, almost like a punch, between her shoulder blades, and then the heat of poison in her veins. Some kind of paralysing agent, she realised, as her knees buckled and she pitched forward. Helpless, she could only listen as the two men exchanged words. She heard “Keina” and knew that it was Talon.

Impotent rage welled up inside her as Vegeta dragged her up off the ground and slung her over his shoulder like a kit back.
“Put me down!” she hissed weakly, but he ignored her.
“It is for your own good.”

She found herself dumped unceremoniously on the floor of a prison cell by the mutinous Vegeta. This was Duo’s doing, she found out. He was planning to lead an Trinsic, and wanted her out of the way.

Thus confined, there was little she could do until, some time later, they returned, looking battered and bloodied. So they had lost. Serve them right, she thought. But she was dismayed by how many Duo had managed to gather. Mordred was there, and Shelly, and even Gorn and Corwin, who had been attacked by the Vesperians just days ago. But the sight that wounded her most was that of the tall figure she saw standing with them. Someone she had not expected to see for a good while yet. Kai.

“Let me out!” she yelled, but they would not. Mordred said he would not act until the general arrived.
Was the general behind this too? She could not believe that. She began to rage and curse, slamming her fists against the bars until her knuckles bled. They would pay for this, Raza damn them all! They would pay.

But then she saw them move away, towards the door of the building. The Trinsicians were here.
The cell door opened. Duo. “I’m moving you.”
She glared at him, but followed him warily. He gestured towards the stairs down.
The Inquisition room? Hell no!
A surge of adrenaline took her up stairs to the floor above. There was a flat roof there… She pushed open the door and jumped.
Hot rods of pain shot up through her shins and knees as she landed heavily on the grass below. She swore vehemently.
“Lady Soulshadow, are ye alright?”
Kaelyn was there, and Devante and Gwen, and various other members of the Marksmen and Duchy.
They had come to see what had happened to her, and they were offering assistance. A safe haven from the mutinous Kaldorians.
She gritted her teeth until the muscles on either side of her jaw bulged like walnuts. Betrayed by her own men…the humiliation was unbearable, but if she went with them it would be a thousand times worse. She waved them away and limped off towards the Temple of Raza.

Here, in the Inner Sanctum, she would be safe from Duo and his lackeys. Safe, and yet helpless. Though she prayed to Raza, she received no answers. For the first time since she had joined the army, she felt entirely alone.

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Cal Soulshadow

A meeting the next day yielded little satisfaction. Insults were thrown and angry words spoken. Cal was furious to hear that the general would take no action against the mutineers. Not that she was at all surprised. Duo and Talon were his pets. His favoured ones. His special little darlings. And she – well, she was that most troublesome of things. A woman.

She no longer knew who to trust. There was no one she felt she could confide in. Kai would not understand, and Mordred had apparently thrown in his lot with Duo. She went to the one place she thought she might find an answer: Lady Alraune’s tarot salon, just outside the walls of Trinsic.

The reading was dire. It spoke of tricks and treachery. “Duo’s antics are not yet over,” she was warned.

From there Cal went to Trinsic, for she had learned from Alraune and Adammair that Vesper had attacked the city again.

“Vesper came, I take it?” she asked the guards at the gate.
Kaelyn nodded. “One undead chased them away.”
Well, that was something. An undead driving away the Vesperian forces…quite a turn-up for the books.

“Commander.”
Cal turned and saw Mordred behind her.
“Are ye alright?”
She raised a brow. “Of course I’m alright.”
“There was nay attack ‘ere?”
“Vesper.” She shrugged. “I was havin’ my tarot read.”
“Ah then we did hear correctly. We just came ter make sure yer were not injured. Ah see ye are in nay need of assistance.”
Cal arched a brow. “I feel safe enough here.”
“As ye wish, Commander.”

Close by, a woman Cal didn’t recognised mouthed something about traitors.
Mordred turned on her angrily. “Ye wench, shut yer trap. Ye got no idea what she talkin’ about.”
The woman shrugged. “I have an idea what I'm talking about though.”
Mordred glared at Cal. “Yer plan on keeping; this game runnin’ fer a bit longer?”
She looked at him blankly. “What game?”
“The one yer beh playin’ right now.”
“Sergeant, ye speak out of turn,” she said coldly.
“Maybeh ah am. But ye are out of turn too.”
She glared at him. How the hell did he figure that? She had only just got here. What was he implying? Duo must really have done a number on Mordred to poison his mind so.
“Such conversations should be in private, sergeant,” she snapped, feeling her temper rise.
“Aye well ah nay think yer kept yer part of the story private judgin’ by their reactions. Nay even yer thoughts.”
Oh so that was it? He thought she had come here to piss and moan to the guards? What little opinion he must have of her. Idiot. Did he not realise the Poste had reported the mutiny?
She had no chance to defend herself, however, for he turned his back on her as though she was nothing. He, a man she once loved, and was once married to. She felt disgusted. He would not get away with this.

Using magic, she travelled back to Strongholt, where she waited for him. Summoning him to her office in the keep, she bade him explain himself.
“We came ter Trinsic ter see if yer were fine,” he began. “We checked the Rose first, which was empty. Then went on ter the tarot place where we were told that yer were there but left. Then we came ter Trinsic and yer know what happened there.”
“Aye, ye accused me o’ all sorts o’ crap. Quite unwarranted accusations, Sergeant, seein’ as I had just got there.
“Ah never uttered a word before yer played that bloodeh game, Commander.”
Cal’s blood boiled over. “What bloody game?”
“Yer nay heard what that lass said eh? Ah wonder where she got that frem... The game yer beh playin’.”
“Not from me,” she snarled. “And there ye go again, makin’ accusations. Have they poisoned ye that much?”
“Nayone has poisoned meh Commander.”
“Duo is a snake, and so is Talon. They spill their venom in yer ear and ye believe their filthy lies.”

She listened to his words, but it was all waffle and excuses. And then, the final insult, he admitted that he would bypass her entirely in the chain of command and get his orders straight from the general. He was a lost cause, and she hated him for it.
“Sergeant,” she said icily, “the latrines need cleanin’. And if ye talk like that again in front o' the men and I will brand yer tongue.”

War was being fought, but it was not the war between Trinsic and Vesper that concerned her. It was the war within the army.

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