Ghosts of the Past

Sun broke through the overcast sky that seemed to constantly plague Serenity Valley, shining down over a small collection of stone carved buildings. An Eldari with flawless creamy skin and silky black hair lazed on a chaise of gold fabric. Her little refuge sat in the middle of a wide stone circle, at the centre of which lay an open pit. A triangle of crystal peaked out of the centre of the pit, sitting upon a monument of divinum and stone. Liliana Korvesa, legendary Eldari Magi who had ‘died’ many years before, watched with yellow eyes as her Minions transported unrefined Divinium down into a network of caves. Men and women in black robes strode about, directing the dead as they went about their work. Aristorath, her most faithful puppet, shouted orders as he circled the tip of the conduit. Her mind touched his, invasive, suggestive, controlling, and he told her what she wanted to hear. The work was almost complete.
Liliana jumped with a start as the wards around Serenity Valley were breached, sending a warning sparking through her. A single sentient being had crossed the wards. Curiosity and boredom made her stand up, and with a thought, she commanded the closest Black robed figure to join her. He did, his head down not daring to look directly at her face. “Mistress?” He asked. “Gather a few soldiers. My wards have been breached." The man nodded, but then paused. “Do you intend on joining us, Mistress?” Liliana watched him for a moment, then smiled. “Yes. I think I will." She said, as she picked up an ornate Divinium Chain and looped it around her waist.


Why the heck did I agree to meeting here again?” The Eldari paced back and forth nervously as she waited for her Heanta best friend. In truth, she knew why they had picked the outskirts of Serenity Valley to meet once they had taken care of their own bits of business. They were heading into Mondolin once they reunited, and so they picked here as a handy jumping off point. Still, Fayla couldn’t shake the feeling of unease she felt in the shadow of one of the most infamous battles in the history of Asmir. Compounding her fears was the memory of her father, Calrados, and the stories he told her of his encounter with this accursed place.

Calrados had returned from an extended scouting mission one day when Fayla was a child, and she had overheard him telling her mother and their friends about something strange he had seen when he traveled past the Valley. However, his tales of dead bodies rising up and walking Asmir once again were mostly dismissed. Mariel put it down to the stress of being away from home for a long time, while Yavanna initially put it down to Calrados’ odd sense of humor. Rowan was the only one of the three who didn’t dismiss Calrados’ story out of hand, and once it became clear that it wasn’t a joke Yavanna joined Rowan in his assessment. Still, once the Golden Council decided to suppress the Eldross’ report along with any other knowledge of Serenity Valley, the matter was never followed up on.

Calrados himself seemingly accepted the Council’s decision, though he still felt the need to warn his daughter about the place through bedtime stories. Fayla remembered his stories vividly now, and suddenly found herself staring towards the Valley muttering to herself. ”Blast it Vala, where are you?” Then, she saw movement, and her blood chilled. At first, it appeared to be a human, in ragged chain armor. It bore a sword of crude iron, thick and single edged. It was clearly made for only one purpose. Fayla’s eyes widened when the human got closer, and she realized that he lacked eyeballs, and the exposed parts of flesh were a sickly grey in color, with parts peeling away. Drawing her sword, Fayla charged the creature. Swinging with desperate strength, she severed the creature’s head from it’s shoulders. The body fell to the ground with a thump, and Fayla knelt down beside the body.

The creature was humanoid, and Fayla recognized the crest of the Kingdom of Mondolin on the man’s armor, but the armor itself she didn’t recognize. As she examined it, a twig snapped and she looked up, as several more disheveled creatures stepped from the forest around her. A man in a black robe walked forward, stopping just behind the line. Fayla looked around desperately, fear beginning to take hold of her. She spotted the robed man and locked eyes with him. ”Who are you?” But the man said nothing, and Fayla’s gaze was drawn by another figure emerging from the forest. The figure was a woman, and floated several inches off the ground. When she got close enough, Fayla could tell she was an Eldari, by her yellow eyes and pointed ears. A crystalline voice spoke in her mind. Hello, little Eldari. The woman said. She smiled a tender smile, and then Fayla’s mind was hit with a calming force. Come, come. It’s alright. Let me get a better look at you.

Fayla could not fathom why, but she began to step closer, as if she was a passenger in her own head. The woman’s smile broadened and she finally spoke. ”Aren’t you lovely? So young and lovely. And..” She paused, tilting her head slightly. ”Green eyes. You must be half Eldross. Very curious. What is your name, little one?” Fayla’s body again acted of its own accord, speaking without hesitation in a deadpan voice. ”Faylandrea Shor.” The woman’s smile darkened. ”Wonderful. Is he still alive, Fayla?” Fayla shook her head mechanically, but said nothing else. ”Good. Now, I have to apologize, but I can’t let you leave. Why don’t you come along with me. We can talk about everything that’s happened since I left Sindaron.” She smiled, nodding with her head into the forest.

Fayla started to walk, when she heard a familiar voice calling to her. ”Hey Fayla! Where are you, you dunderhead!” Vala’s voice broke through the woman’s spell, allowing Fayla to realise what was happening and break herself free. ”Vala!” The woman scowled. Fayla spun on her heel and ran, dodging one of the undead as he lunged for her. ”Kill her.” She said the robed man, who drew a staff from the air and fired a blast of energy. It struck a tree just ahead of her, and watched as it withered and died. Fayla gave herself no time to think about that, and ran. Another blast hit a rock to her left, and she looked over her shoulder to see another blast coming directly for her. She leapt over it, leaving a Second Chance clone behind to take the attack.

The black robed man followed her, hovering a few inches off the ground as he fired more attacks. Behind him, five undead soldiers followed, barely keeping pace. There was no sign of the Eldari. Then the man vanished in a snap, appearing ahead of Fayla and cutting her off. Fayla stopped short, eyeing the man warily. She heard the shuffling of the undead soldiers behind her, and realized she was running out of options. She dive rolled to the side, landing behind a tree. She then grabbed the tree and used her Wild Step, vanishing into the tree just as a blast hit it and reduced it to a dried husk. Fayla re-emerged in the canopy above the robed man, and dropped towards him with a downward slash. But the man had somehow anticipated this and turned to her as she dropped, and her eyes widened in shock as he fired a blast that caught her square in the chest. She shot backwards and crashed through some branches before landing on the ground hard and rolling to a stop on the forest path. As the world around her faded, the robed man approached. He raised his staff, placing the tip against her chest, and then a small red blur struck him from the side.

The man crashed through the bushes as Vala’s kick connected with his head, and he struggled to rise. She stalked forwards to finish him, when she spotted soldiers moving towards her. She turned and grabbed Fayla’s unconscious form, lifting her easily before vanishing into the foliage. She didn’t stop running until Serenity Valley was well behind her, and when she did stop it was only to make sure Fayla was still breathing. Concerned that she hadn’t woken up, Vala headed to a small village, one she’d passed on the way out of Mondolin named Calixto, and sent word to Lilian and Andreas in Mith Silvanus, as they were the only ones she knew she could trust. A messenger left for the Silver City, while Vala secured a place for Fayla to stay while they waited. She only hoped that they wouldn’t have to wait too long.


Liliana watched the Eldari flee into the forest, then with a sigh she headed back to Archus. She would have enjoyed speaking with her own kind after so long, but that one’s will had been stronger than expected. Normally one did not simply break free from her dark compulsions. Liliana returned to her chaise, and awaited the Necromancer’s return. An hour later, he stumbled in, a massive bruise across his face. Liliana did not see the girl’s corpse among the dead and glared at him. Her mind assaulted his, and he fell to the ground screaming in pain. Where is the girl? Over cries of pain he forced the words out. “She e-escaped, mistress!”  How?! She demanded. “A heanta caught me by surprise. It must have been the one looking for her.” Lilian eased up, letting him slump to the ground. Heanta. Her face darkened at the word, and she let out a violent scream. Carmine appeared in her hand, a bloodred spiked rod, and she lunged from her chaise, driving it into the Necromancer’s chest.

She drained the life from him as he stared at her wide eyed, and when there was nothing but a husk left, she looked to another Necromancer. The man averted his gaze and bowed as he joined her.  ”Send out scouts. Find the Eldari and Heanta, and bring me their rotting corpses. Do not return empty handed.” She Said. The man nodded as Liliana blasted the corpse beside her with energy, and it started to move.  ”Take that one with you. A reminder of what awaits if you fail. Now go!” Liliana turned her back and returned her chaise, annoyance flickering across her features over the troublesome development.


Meanwhile, in the Mondolin village of Calixto, Vala arrived with an unconscious Fayla, looking for aid in the nearest settlement she could find. Sending a call for help to the only people she knew she could trust in the Human kingdom, Vala rested in Calixto, trying to make sense of what had happened while the village healer tried to help her Eldari friend. The next day, Lilian and Andreas Toral arrived with supplies, and Vala brought them up to speed on what had happened to Fayla and what she had seen in the forest near Serenity Valley. In addition, due to whatever magic she had been struck with, Fayla still remained in a baffling state of unconsciousness. The village healer managed to treat the Eldari’s physical wounds, but she needed the skills of a more powerful healer. Thus the decision was made to get help from multiple sources. Lilian traveled to Sunshield Hold to get help from the Order of the Sun, as they were closer than Mith Silvanus, while Andreas traveled into Eldari territory to try and get help from their healers for Fayla.

While Lilian and Andreas were away on their respective missions, Calixto found itself under heavy attack by undead soldiers led by a necromancer named Kyren Mellis. The village marshal led a defense consisting of a hastily assembled militia and the village watch, while Vala attacked Kyren in an attempt to get some information. Kyren informed her that he had been ordered to kill Fayla and Vala by his mistress, someone named Ariella, in accordance with “The Great Plan”. Vala fought hard, forcing Kyren to use a transformative power which turned him into a hulking monster. Vala still managed to stay in the fight, forcing Kyren to undergo one final transformation that increased his size and power to unbelievable levels, but also revealed a glaring weakness which Vala was able to exploit. After a hard-fought and exhausting battle, Vala vanquished Kyren Mellis. The remaining undead forces became idle without their leader, and were cleaned up handily. However, as Vala and the village marshal surveyed the scene, they knew this was only the beginning.