Well hello there! Welcome back to another chapter! Just a quick note: I am considering removing the '(Y/n)' parts and replace them with the actual name of my OC. It will still be in this '(Argen)' form to not betray the 'OC x reader' part. Also, General POVs may become more frequent from here on out. Other than those, onto the disclaimer!
Attention, citizen. This is the acting disclaimer for this chapter. Read it, or face civil judgement!
I do not, in any way, own For Honor or any resources that might make an appearance here. If I did, I would've seen better days :v
I don't know what I'm doing any more. Help me xD
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"There is a powerful driving force inside every human being that once unleashed can make any vision, dream or desire a reality."
- Anthony Robinns
- With the Warborn in Skallaborg, General POV... -
Stigandr: "It's been so long, big brother. We all thought you died when Svengard fell." The younger half-brother says to Gudmundr as they walk along a secluded area of the fortress.
They are here by themselves to catch up with the events that transpired over the course of a year. They talked about what happened after the fall of Svengard, their new hobbies, and such. But they both knew that this cannot last long, for they both have things to fulfill.
Me: "I know, little brother. I came back to see you again. It has been two years since we last saw each other." Gudmundr replies to him.
Stigandr: "What do you mean? I sure did mention that I am doing good." Stigandr says a white lie, but the wise former jarl knew better.
Me: "Don't play innocent on me, little brother. I know you wanted to see me again. I was the same." He says to Stigandr as they stop and he caressed a lone flower blooming in the cold air. It is the only of its kind in Valkenheim.
Stigandr: "I get that, but..." He pauses. "Will you not return to lead our people again?"
Me: "I have accepted my defeat long ago, Stigandr. My time as the jarl has passed. You heard that Rowan fellow. You are the jarl now." He says to the now-jarl. "The last Warborn jarl."
Stigandr: "I won't let you down." He assured him after a moment of thinking.
Gudmundr: "I know you won't. Now," He continues. "The enemy that destroyed Svengard, the Blackstone Legion, still has control of our docks to the North. They are being led by one named Julius Salavander. They left the runt in charge of the sizable force and of the garrisons they built."
Stigandr: "I know that there are still Legion forces here, but how do you know this much?"
Gudmundr: "That doesn't matter. What matters is that you must lead the Warborn and drive off the Blackstones out of Valkenheim. Cut the head from the serpent-"
Stigandr/Gudmundr: "And the rest will destroy itself."
Gudmundr: "We will see each other again soon, brother." He says as he finally started to leave.
He knew that as long as he is around, Stigandr won't be able to focus as the new leader of their now-united people. He had to leave again. Only this time, they know that their brother is still standing strong.
Stigandr: "Don't take too long." Stigandr joked to his half-brother, which earns him a chuckle from him.
Gudmundr: "Heh, no promises." Gudmundr said as he disappeared behind the snowy plants and trees.
- With the Lorderius household...-
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"Mother, before you ask, yes. I am perfectly fine. I have Father with me along with a few old friends of his and a couple of mine as well. You might have heard already, but in case you didn't, I left the Blackstone Legion. Well, more like deserted while we were in Valkenheim.
But aside that, I just want you to know that I will never forget about the family that brought me into this world. Since I have been born here, I will change it along with our people. I will make Ashfeld a better place for everyone in the world. I will unite all of the three warring factions in an alliance, even if it costs my life. If I fail, then I will go down in history as the first person to ever do the thing that our ancestors failed to do.
You may not agree, but this is what I want and what our people need. I hope you can support me, but I don't want to lose any of you. Mother and Xavier, I love you both to the ends of the earth.
- Your insane son,
(Argen)
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Xavier: "Um, mother? I think this letter is directed to you." Xavier (Archlight), (Argen's) younger brother says to their mother after reading the letter.
Seren: "How dare he say that 'I may not agree'!? I'd like to have a word with that kid!" Seren (Lorderius), (Argen's) mother half-yells half-heartedly, obviously joking about actually doing what she just said.
It's a cool afternoon in the (Lorderius) household. A letter just came in, which Xavier received from one of his men and read to his mother. Unknown to them, it is Kalec himself who delivered the letter.
Xavier: "Whoa, slow down, mother! I don't think we should overreact to this, yet."
Seren: "Hah, I'm calm, Xavier. I am just joking." Seren replies to him as both of them head towards the balcony of the manor.
They stare at the horizon with the skies blanketed by the color of the fallen leaves during the autumn season. They contemplated about the possibilities that (Argen) may offer for Ashfeld in his impossible quest. What could they be? Seren sighs longingly.
Seren: "Truth be told, I expected this from (Argen) from the beginning. Just, not at this scale. Uniting the three peoples? Even I can't think of anything that may come out of it other than an inevitable death." She says.
Xavier: "That is true. Brother doesn't want to lose us, but neither do we to them."
Seren: "I cannot agree more, Xavier." As she turns around and says this, noticing a smaller note on the ground.
Xavier noticed this too, and he picks it up and reads it:
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"You know (Argen) as much as I do, my beloved. I'm here to help him any way I can. I am not saying that you should come with us, since the path for us will be perilous. If you decide to join us, then I would be happier than ever, seeing our family together again.
- Kalec
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Xavier: "So Father also joined (Argen). I won't be surprised. What do you think, Mother?" He says after reading the letter from Kalec, but he did not see Seren anywhere near the balcony. "Mother?"
He then heard some shuffling and soft clattering nearby. Turning towards the source, Xavier sees his mother taking out what seems to be an old sheathed sword from what seems to be a secret compartment on the wall.
Seren: "Son, do you remember this sword?" She asks Xavier as she brandished the sword, showing the blade to be in pristine condition.
Xavier: "It's the sword of Grandmaster Varian Lorderius; the man who united Ashfeld under one banner long ago. Gifted to him by the people of Ashfeld." The son answers.
Seren: "Indeed it is. Your father handed this to me during our marriage. Even before that, he used to tell me stories about his ancestors and how they spearheaded the Defense of Ashfeld." She says as she set the sheathe down and admires the rather ancient but elegant craftsmanship of the sword.
Xavier: "What are you saying?" Xavier asks her, confused on where her words are heading.
Seren remains silent for a moment, still admiring the blade. Eventually, she raised her head to look at her second son and replies:
Seren: "It might be too early to say...
"But I think I am soon to see what the House of Lorderius is capable of achieving."
- Inside the docks being held by the Golden Eye Brigade, Valkenheim, two days after the retaking of Skallaborg... -
Four figures are currently inside what one can assume is the inn inside the Viking docks up North of the mountains of Skallaborg. Outside, however, are Blackstone Knights taking dead fellow Knights somewhere. It seems that some people did some handiwork with the Blackstones.
Inside the inn...
Salavander: "You two are cowards for attacking the back door rather than the front. I could get yourselves hanged or thrown into the freezing waters!"
Anaximander: "But you won't. The two of us took down some of your best men who should be at the front. You know to not underestimate what your opponents could do... Julius Salavander."
Julius' Senior Officer: "How did you know our commander's name when you just arrived here? Have you been watching us-"
Arashicage: "That, and there is someone who knows you very well and told us about you and everyone else in your 'brigade'."
Somehow, Saidan and Arashicage managed to infiltrate the astounded Salavander's defenses in and around the docks. They did have to eliminate guards who tried to attack them.
Salavander: "And who that might be? More importantly, who in the world are you two?" Julius asks the two impatiently.
Arashicage: "That doesn't matter right now, Blackstone." The Aramusha replies, although Anaximander said otherwise.
Anaximander: "It's fine, my friend. He should know." He says and Arashicage nods. He then turns his head towards Julius and his officer. "(Argen) (Lorderius) told us about you and, in a way, sent us to warn you. As for our names, I am Saidan Anaximander and this is Arashicage."
Julius' Senior Officer: "That deserter told you about us? He should be rotting in prison by now. How do we know that you are saying the truth?"
Anaximander: "You don't."
Julius' Senior Officer: "What?"
Anaximander: "We came here to warn you about the Vikings. Arashi?" He says to them, calling out to the Aramusha to continue.
Arashicage: "Before you gloat any further and saying that a mere group of Vikings cannot defeat your defenses, I am going to stop you there." Arashicage says as he puts down his bloodied weapons and reveals a map of Valkenheim on the table the four are sitting around. "While that may be true, your defenses are puny against a united force. That being said, the Warborn has united most, if not all of the clans under their banner. This particular map that I stole shows the convergence of many other clans to Skallaborg, that is South of here."
Sure enough, arrows of varying sizes are pointing towards the North to Skallaborg where Siv's fortress resides. The arrows are scattered all over the map, but they all point to one.
Julius and his senior officer are looking at the map with Viking symbols. Arashicage continues.
Arashicage: "Estimating the numbers, you and your men will be outnumbered by experienced warriors seven to one at the very least." He says. Anaximander adds up.
Anaximander: "They want the docks back, Salavander. You and your men cannot survive a day against all of those numbers."
Salavander: "So you want us to run away? Ignore Apollyon's orders just to be cowards? I'll never betray Apollyon, not like what (Lorderius) and maybe even you did!" He exclaims.
Anaximander: "Don't you see it, Salavander? Apollyon is taking you for granted. She never intended to take Valkenheim in entirety, and she left you as another reason for the Vikings to go on a rampage." He says this to the Warden, who was actually surprised of the words that the rouge Knight released. "She's using you as a bait."
Arashicage: "From what I heard from (Lorderius), you also care for the men under you. You're just good at hiding it. Leave with your men, and save them from the inevitable."
Salavander: "What do you think of this, Jorgensen?" Salavander asks his senior officer.
Jorgensen: "You two lack enough proof to all of what you just said. We are Knights. No one takes us for granted."
Anaximander: "Not all of them are the same, Blackstone. Salavander, you are the commander of these men. The deaths that we afflicted to your brigade is puny compared to what will happen in a few days."
Salavander: "You heard my officer. Get lost."
He said it. Several moments have passed in silence. Salavander has dismissed their warnings. Having no other choice, the two rouges have to conclude their sole intention here in vain.
Anaximander: "... Very well. You and your men shall fall here, but you will live to see the truth." With that, Arashicage and Anaximander take their leave.
They waited until their guest left the empty inn without bothering to issue an order for their men to stand down so they wouldn't attack them.
After the two rouges left, Julius and his officer stood up and left the building themselves and started heading towards the Viking ships that are being kept.
Jorgensen: "What kind of fools are they, thinking that they could tell us what to do? They must be crazy." Julius' senior officer comments, though Julius himself stays silent and only nods. "In the meantime, I'll reassign some of our men to replace the ones on active duty. Glory to the Blackstone Legion."
Salavander: "Glory to the Blackstone Legion." He replies and they salute.
Jorgensen leaves Julius, and Julius heads towards the helm of one of the long ships, facing the sun of Valkenheim.
Julius removes his helmet, coif and padded cap, revealing his blonde hair and blue eyes to the icy winds.
Anaximander: "... Apollyon is taking you for granted..."
Salavander: "Why do you say this to me? What caused you to tell me such thing?" He asks himself.
...
...
???: "Because it was planned by her all along." Someone tells him.
Alarmed, he immediately unsheathed his longsword and swung towards the person.
To his shock, his weapon was blocked by another longsword. Even more to his shock, the same Warden wearing the black mantle with the white cross appeared before him. He took a few steps back, his weapon and stance ready.
Salavander: "You! Why have you not left this place yet!?" He asks him angrily, putting his longsword on a top guard stance.
Anaximander stands down and retracted his blade, before turning towards the Blackstone commander.
Anaximander: "If Apollyon truly cares for her subordinates, then why are you so far away from home, deep into this godforsaken wasteland?" The mysterious Warden asks him. "Not to mention that you and your men are heavily cut off from any reinforcements, whether be it from rations to soldiers. You and your men are bait for something far worse than the Vikings themselves. And like your officer said, Knights are not to be taken for granted; to be thrown away to fight and die for a cause they know little about, and for false beliefs that were taught to you, and you taught to your men."
"Think about it, Commander Salavander..." Anaximander finishes with emphasis on the word 'commander.'
Salavander slowly stands down but stays silent. The Warden has a point. He and his men wouldn't be here for no reason.
He thinks about it; he cares for his own men, but Apollyon doesn't. The problem with their supplies and manpower has become a commonplace among them, and the infighting started to grow some time ago.
His men are losing morale, yet he remained fixated as a stalwart follower of Apollyon. He heard metal tapping on the wooden deck of the longship. Are they the sounds of his men slowly dying from the cold? Are those the sound of the impending doom that he is being warned about? He has so many questions.
Raising his head up again, he sees the spot in front of him empty. That Anaximander has left him to think about it.
Golden Eye Footman: "Commander!" Someone from the distance calls out to him from the starboard side of the longship. "We have word from our scouts that a large Viking force is massing up for an assault here!"
Salavander: "Tell Sir Jorgensen to rally up to the courtyard in an hour."
Golden Eye Footman: "Understood, sire!" The footman responds with great pride.
Just like how he first met the Golden Eye Brigade.
He sheathed his longsword and picked up his helmet from the deck of the ship. He has no time to think. For now, he has job. To lead the men looking up to him.
- With Anaximander and his group... -
Anaximander finally walks up to a steep hill overlooking the docks. At the top waiting for him are Arashicage, Yana, Gudmundr, Gulisano and Krebs, all of whom already set up a rudimentary camp.
Gudmundr: "So... Did he listen?" The former jarl asks him.
Anaximander: "He did, but he won't take action."
Krebs: "So we went here for nothing? What a waste." The Lawbringer with a similar mantle to Anaximander comments.
Anaximander: "I wouldn't say so, Krebs. He just needs something to finally convince him."
Gudmundr: "So that means..."
Anaximander: "Yes."
...
"The Warborn is that something."
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And finally done! Julius Salavander; a character that we know to be prideful and egotistic and we probably didn't like at some point actually was the same as the rest of the Knight commanders. What a revelation for him, eh? Sadly, he will have to face the Warborn here in Valkenheim. Hope you people enjoyed, and have a good day/night!
Arcani out.