Board Thread:Roleplaying/@comment-5824038-20150203191459/@comment-5583506-20150218203244

Valkyrie strolled through the burning streets with an almost apathetic expression on her face. She was not the least amused by this turn of events. So many dead... and for what?

On her path back to the mansion a soldier still alive groaned and reached out for her. She simply put a boot on top of his helmet and drew the Bereaver, placing a shot straight through the gap and silencing the man's life for good.

"I am through with these wargames", she muttered angrily.

Her mansion wasn't a pretty sight. The three sister ships had rammed into the mountainside above the buildings and small pieces of burning debris came floating down like rain and fell over the roof.

"Hmph", she grumbled. "That crazed warlord just had to land above my house, didn't he? Doubt that he is alive though. I doubt that it wasn't even his intention to come out of this alive. This was all just... just a test... Thousands of innocent lives lost at the price of a test. It sickens me."

She didn't seemed the least surprised to find her mansion grounds littered with the strewn bodies of Maximilian's forces. Gastas had done a good job defending the mansion, and she had expected no less.

The mansion doors opened and the Dunmer butler made an elegant bow to welcome his mistress home.

"Glad to see you alive, Gastas", she said. "You never fail to please me."

The Dunmer gave his mistress a sly smile. "Never", he repeated. "You told me to defend the Ghost-Wolf family home and that I have. Your orders were my command, nothing more nothing less."

She shrugged. "Seems like you have some cleaning up to do on the outside."

"Oh dear. Would be terrible if I missed a spot now, would it? By the way, mistress. There have been some... complications..."

She raised an eyebrow. "Complications? How?"

"Upstairs, ma'am. I... didn't want to just leave him lying there in the mud so therefore I took the opportunity to bring him inside and nurse him to the best of my abilities. Up in your bedroom, ma'am."

"Who?"

The Dunmer smiled and made a light bow before heading out the front door to clean up his "mess". "Ma'am", he simply said.

Valkyrie headed up the stairs slowly and entered her bedroom. She didn't know what to make of the situation. Her first intention had been to draw the Bereaver and shoot the impostor in her home, but when she saw the rebel's weakened state she couldn't bare the thought of her shooting someone who was bed-ridden... and probably on the brink of dying anyhow...

"Wraith?" she asked.

The rebel was lying in the bed. The sheets had been dragged up all the way, leaving only the odd wolf-shaped helmet visible. There was a faint wheezing sound coming from within. She took it as a confirmation.

"How are you feeling, Wraith?"

"Like... like I have been victorious..."

Valkyrie shrugged. "Victorious in ruining the scenery of my mansion grounds? I take it that it was you who drove the three sisters into ruin?"

The rebel nodded vaguely. "He... had... to be... stopped..."

She smiled and sat down by the bed. "That he is. You succeeded. And to think I first took you for a common criminal. Glad you proved me wrong." She then turned serious. "Those first noblemen you killed? Axel Dumont, Alfred Levontius and the Merchant King Sixtus Preventius? You didn't kill them just because you wanted to send a message to the common people, did you? You killed them because you knew that they were a part of... this."

The rebel turned the head to her slowly and nodded. "Nothing... was for certain. I knew however that... they were working... working for... for..."

"For whom?"

"The Council of Nobles."

Valkyrie turned pale. "Are... are you sure?"

The rebel coughed. "My dear Ghost-Wolf, do I look like I am in any position to be lying to you?"

She rubbed her forehead and then leaned over the rebel. "I am no fool, Wraith. I know that we have met before. Before you... did something to me... before you used your power on me that day in Shademist, I knew that we had met. I am asking you: Do you know me as a person who would reveal a secret?"

Wraith shook the head. "Never. The esteemed Valkyrie Ghost-Wolf was ever a reliable source of aid. Highborne as commoner..."

"Exactly, so therefore I am going to ask that you allow me to remove your helmet."

The rebel flinched for a moment. "I..."

"I am not going to harm you", stated Valkyrie. "I just... just need assurance that it really is you. If it is, it would all make sense."

There were still sound of hesitation in the rebel's voice. "I... I can't..."

Valkyrie moved her hands to the helmet. "I am taking it off, Wraith. You have nothing to worry about. I won't turn you in or tell anyone. Not if you are the one I know you are."

Wraith's voice changed in pitch as the helmet came off. "How did you... know?"

Valkyrie shrugged and smiled. "I didn't. Not until you mentioned that the Council of Nobles were behind the attack and of course... that vague memory I had of those eyes in your face before you used your power on me..."

Wraith, she reflected. ''Such a sad name for a rebel to bear. This person here is no more rebel than I am a queen, but both have we been shaped by the society to play our roles as given to us...''

The rebel seemed ashamed without the mask. The green and the blue eye looked down into the sheets with sadness. "It's been a long time, Valkyrie."

"Yes", said Valkyrie and took the 'rebel's' hand, squeezing it tightly. "Yes, it has..."