Year 60

"Fort Glory has fallen sir." A disheveled messenger tells you while you look over a map of Nalin in your tent.
"Doesn't matter, it was no longer a priority anymore." You say not looking up.
"So you're still going through with the plan involving the kobold sappers?"
"Yes. I figure it'll take a few days for those eternals get settled in their new conquest and then that fort crumbles right underneath them. A shame, I used to like that fort, but this is war."
"Sir, I don't mean to question your orders, but how can you trust those little scaley bastards? They're little more than animals."
"That may be, but they're animals that are more scared of me than anything else, and that's all that's important. Speaking of which how do things fare in eastern Nalin?"
"All major settlements are under martial law, lots of structures destroyed, several dissidents executed and there are reports of rebels in the wilderness, but most of it is still under our control."
"Good enough for now I suppose. Tell Captain Yasil, that I want her to mount an attack on Camp Conquest in a tomorrow. We're going to make our major offensive soon and I want her to weaken that camp as much as possible."
"…you mean that large eternal camp in northern Nalin? The main one? That's suicide! Her company is only at half strength from the last mission you sent her on!" the messenger exclaims.
"Her sacrifice will be remembered. That will be all." You say still not looking up.

The messenger sounds like he would like to say something else, but realizes he better not and just leaves. Smart move on his part. You would've killed him. You have little patience for hesitation nowadays, especially since you've got nothing left to lose.

You rub your eyes and stop looking at the map of Nalin and sit down to take a short break. You're tired, but you don't remember the last time you had a good night's sleep. You look over at a portrait you had made of Brenda a long time ago before this war ever broke out. An image of her in happier times.

You often speak to the portrait, during times like this and tonight is no different.

"You were right, shouldn't have broken that trade agreement with the ED (Sigh) just wish I would've been the one that paid for that mistake instead of you. Though I suppose I paid for it, when some suicidal asshole shot you in the head two years ago."

You focus more attention on the portrait

"Maybe you're better off…I mean you were getting increasingly unhappy. Heh, who knows maybe you would've just left altogether. You were right about ruling not being any fun too, I've been trying to do your job and mine, but I find myself just not caring about much lately. I'm half ready to just get up and leave it all behind, but I still feel the need to control and regain what has been lost. Maybe it's that old Empire syndrome popping up again. I dunno. Recently I've just been focusing on the war. It's about the only slight pleasure I get anymore. Sometimes I wade into battles, bones creaking, joints aching and five times slower and weaker than I once was, yet do it anyway. I guess I'm hoping to at least die a warrior's death, but somehow I still manage to survive. The war's not over yet though, so maybe there's still time right?"

You pick up the portrait and look directly into Brenda's face.

"I don't know if you still loved me near the end of everything, but I still loved you. Still do. Maybe I'll be with you soon." You say.

You put down the portrait and lie down on your bed. You won't get a good night's sleep, but you don't need it. You just need a quick recharge before you go back to the business of war.

The next couple of day pass and you're ready for your final push. You have no idea if you'll actually succeed in driving out the Eternal Dominion, but you're ready to put an end to this one way or another. You lead the battalions to the north.

When you arrive to the frontlines, you receive a report that Fort Glory completely collapsed and killed a couple of companies of eternals that were planning their next move from there. Kobolds took advantage of the chaos and finished off the wounded. Captain Yasil's mission was also somewhat successful, you see the smoke in the distance from the main ED camp. The smell of gunpowder from the cannons lingers in the air; hundreds of trenches are filled with the living and the dead on both sides.

You heard that this is how the battlefield looked when the Empire fought the Felkan Kingdom, seems like this is going to be standard for war, until something else changes in the way people kill others. You remember when things were much simpler though. The funny thing is that the Felkan Kingdom is despite being accustomed to this sort of fighting and more technologically advanced, they're apparently having a much worse time holding off the Eternal Dominion than you have, though you imagine that they're getting more of the brunt of the combat.

You are approached by several of your officers; they say their respective companies are ready to advance, if you give the word. You nod and tell them the attack will commence.

You watch as thousands of your soldiers run forward to kill and die for you. If there has always been one consistency with you, is you ability is muster up a shitload of people to do that, even when you're not popular. And you're REALLY not popular with the average Nalin citizen right now.

But ungratefulness is something you're used to. You experience the same thing in Rask, after you destroyed all the barbarian tribes. Peasants complain and know nothing of real sacrifice. Not like you do.

The battle is going strong and a cannon ball from the other side even crashes a few feet away from you. One of your majors advises that you should step further back from the battle so you stay out of harm's way.

But maybe you don't want to; in fact maybe you want to just end it all right now.

You stay where you are

You tell you subordinate to fuck off and state that you're not going to run away and cower in some tent. You're going to observe and give assistance when necessary like a general should. He pleads with you once more, but you merely tell him that if he doesn't get out of your face you're going to kill him yourself.

No sooner have you said that, a nearby explosion knocks you off your horse, which ends up falling on top of you as well. You feel a sharp numbness in your right leg, which is under the horse.

You look over at the major who was speaking to you and half of his face has been blown off. You can't hear a thing as the explosion has made you completely deaf though your hearing wasn't the greatest with only one ear and all.

Using all your strength you pull yourself out from underneath your horse, which is quite dead. A couple of your other officers see you and come to help pull you out and you see that your leg is broken to the point where the bone is coming through the skin. One of your lieutenants goes to stop the bleeding and she's obviously yelling at others to get help, but you still can't hear a thing.

You can make out her saying something to you, probably that she's going to put the bone back in place. You just nod quickly and shout at her to do it. She does and it's one of the most excruciating things you've felt in a long time and you've had more than your share of wounds. It's only through your own will power that you don't scream out.

While the lieutenant wraps up your leg with a splint, two others come with a stretcher. You don't want to be helped up, but you are any way. "Standing up" straight you decline being put on the stretcher and insist that you'll hop to the nearest horse if you have to. The female lieutenant says something to you while she continues to help prop you up, but you're still deaf and can't hear anything she's saying. You can only guess it's something about doing it for your own good.

You aren't going to be told what to do and you push her away, only to fall down. You curse and yell at your weakness and begin to crawl away. You can only assume the rest of your staff is yelling at you back, but you can't see their faces, your eyes are staring at dirt right now.

You crawl for a moment and that's when you start to hear something again.

"Gen……..mu….now! C… on!"

You feel several hands turn you around and your staff is intent on forcibly putting you on the stretcher. You don't bother struggling because that's when through your damaged hearing that you hear a distinct whistling sound.

"Brenda, I..." You say before the explosive cannon ball wipes you all out.