Rise of Drekis: Chapter 1 Episode 05

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==Synopsis==
Elaine and her soldiers deal with the aftermath of the battle. Armor is collected and supplies stored as they prepare to settle into camp until the ship arrives to pick them up.  While they wait, Elaine interrogates the captured spearman and cleric. The spearman is executed, but the cleric is left alive for further questioning by people in the capital. Eventually, the ship arrives and Elaine returns home victorious.  
Back in Drekis, Elaine is rewarded with a promotion and wealth. After a month of rest and relaxation with her family, she is sent to Fen Den to serve as captain of the guard for 6 months. After those 6 months, Elaine is called to the capital where she meets the empress and her consorts. They give her the option to lead a new expedition to the land of Ethos. She accepts. 
==Recap ==
=== Day 16: The Battle of Arrow Island Aftermath===
After the battle, as the bodies are inspected, Elaine and her people find one of their spearmen still alive and are able to stabilize them. They also find 2 enemy spearmen who are savable, but Elaine makes the decision to put them out of their misery with her dagger. Elaine and the squad spend the rest of the day burying bodies and looting gear off the dead.
=== Day 17: Talk with the Spearman ===
The next day, Elaine speaks to the captured spearman. The man talks about leaving home to join the army and explains their mission over in Whiteshore. He then explains how Mother Ilse talked about the goblin forest as a meat grinder being used as a convenient way to dispose of people the Empire wanted gone. He doesn't think it is a coincidence that he and other farmers that were going to Whiteshore had hidden grain from the government. He talked about the strange things that happened during the war like: “necromancers with undead armies, dragons with steel skin that changes color, monsters appearing out of nowhere, assassins and invisible soldiers attacking towns and villages, small winged monsters flying around castles and keeps, and dragon slayers that are here one minute and gone the next.” He goes on to cast doubt on the idea that the “disgraced” McGary brothers could possibly kill Scoria in just a few years and that the Queen making a deal with devils seemed just as likely if not more. 
=== Day 18: Talk with the Cleric ===
The following day, Mother Ilse wakes up and Elaine goes to talk to her. Mother Ilse’s story went like this:
“Many clerics died during the war. In the ending days we were struck down in great numbers by assassins, murderers, accidents, and misfortune. There was a concentrated effort to silence the words of the gods. I made it through luck, fortune, whatever you want to call it. I had the privilege of being in the room when decisions regarding the 2nd mixed infantry company were made and we were to be taken to Whiteshore. I was there with the other commanders. With the great Lady Pentalin, who commanded the armies of the east; and I stood outside the room when the great Lady Pentalin spoke with the queen. I saw the queen enter and I saw the queen leave and I saw her consorts. I was given a glimpse at the truth of her consorts. They are not the humans they claim to be; twisted creatures they are underneath. Mathis, god of knowledge, and his twin Safia, goddess of wisdom, showed me the truth of the situation and I knew something was wrong. I have seen it with my own eyes, it has been revealed to me by the divine.”
Elaine doesn't buy her story and points out to the Mother that her actions resulted in over 30 of her own men dying. Mother Ilse proclaims that they died for a good cause, trying to save the souls of all Drekisians. Elaine asks why they planned on sailing east towards Solum. Mother Ilse explains that their true goal was to speak to the White Prine of the Dadens, a powerful cleric of Astair. She believed that once the White Prince heard her story that he would help them reveal to the people who the empress and her consorts really are. The cleric then asks Elaine to help her fulfill her mission. 
Elaine ignores her question and asks, “If you look back at all of this, do you have any regrets?”
Mother Ilse responds without hesitation, “No.” 
Elaine:  “Have you ever thought that there is a great deal of knowledge that should be kept secret instead?”
Mother Ilse: "Are you saying you too know what is happening? Is your grandmother a part of this too? How far down have the demons reached? Have they offered you things? They will offer you your greatest desires. What is it that you want, Elaine?” 
Elaine: “Funny enough, the demons have never hurt me, it has always just been people who told me I am a great shame to my family. And all I keep meeting are people who think that they should have power over others because they know better and that there are no regrets to be had for following the right path. But I honestly believe that whatever you do in your life, it should be something that ensures that life is better for all of us together. Not whatever brings the greatest honor and not whatever brings out the truth. I think what is best for us is to solve the problem of whatever makes that farmer hide his corn, whatever makes that Kel not betray his vows, and whatever doesn’t lead people astray to a frozen wasteland where they have absolutely no choice but follow the words of a cleric; because clerics are so good at speaking aren't they? They are so good at giving people hope, but in the back, people starve while they are listening to their words. No demon has ever whispered to me. Except maybe they are right now. What do I know? I know nothing about the gods.”
Mother Ilse makes one final plea to Elaine for her to join her and help save Drekis from the devils, but it doesn’t work. Elaine leans up close to the cleric's ear and whispers, “I might be a bastard, but I am not a traitor.”
The cleric is left alive but the other captive deserter is executed by Elaine.
=== Day 25: One Last Duel ===
After one week of resting in camp, Elaine gets a call from one of her soldiers on the watchtowers. The last remaining enemy knight, Kel Frieda Goblinstompen, walks up to the front of the fort and asks Elaine for a good death. Elaine meets the knight in one-on-one combat and the two clash their swords for a few minutes until Kel Goblinstompin is eventually skewered through the clavicle by Elaine’s sword, killing her. Elaine drags her body back to camp and removes her armor and gear.  
=== Day 30: Final Day ===
Five days later, the ship arrives to pick Elaine and her soldiers up. They pack up all the supplies, the bodies of the 2 enemy knights, and the bodies of all the Drekisian soldiers killed under Elaine’s command. The rest of the deserters' bodies were left on the island. 
=== Epilogue ===
Elaine arrives in the thriving town of Bon’ Theris. The lord who organized this mission, Richard Marshal, puts Elaine up in a fancy inn where she is able to clean up, heal, and have her armor repaired. One night, Elaine takes Willa to one of the pubs in town as a way to readjust to civil society. While there, Elaine chats with Willa and a variety of knights who greet her. Most of these knights are working in Eridon. She hears about Whitshore being repopulated and Shirebrook getting repaired. 
A few days after arriving in Bon’ Theris, Elaine is called upon to meet with Richard Marshal. Eliane and Willa head to the meeting. Richard and Elaine discuss the mission along with some other topics. Kel William Marshal is brought up and is described as the count of the Golden Sea in northern Eridon out of Fortune. Richard then asks Elaine to describe in her own words why Mother Ilse betrayed the empire. Elaine explains to Richard what she knows but avoids using the word demons. The discussion then moves on to Elaine’s future. Richard tells her she will be given a month of time for herself to see her family. After that, she will be sent to the city of Fen Den to act as the captain of the guard. Finally, at the end of their discussion, Richard presents her with a gift for her success on the mission. The gift is a silver locket with the Pentalin family crest on it with a block of mithral inside. 
==== Around 6 Months Later   ====
Elaine has finished her duties as captain of the guard and has been brought back to the Capital, Wikkthronrarenta, to receive her next assignment. She is told to wait in a hallway just outside the meeting room where many important people begin filing into. She sees the Empress and her bodyguards, her grandmother Lady Cora Pentalin, Imrick McGary and his apprentice, a cleric and their apprentice, and Richard Marshall all enter the room. In this room, these important people are discussing the future of the empire, and Elaine is able to hear bits and pieces of the discussion. 
Topics discussed:
* Plans for the monarch of Eridon to reclaim the parts of Eridon that seceded during the demon invasion. This includes Wake County, Gade Isle, and the dwarves of the Hemdorkas Hills.
* The nation of Mahtava is brought up who joined the empire of Drekis, but they are not holding up their end of the bargain when they joined. The dissolvement of their former societal institutions and norms has made integration into the empire difficult. 
* The elven woods in the former kingdom of Sylvas are being explored after the elves abandoned the country.  
* The islands of Minotaria and G.N.o.M.E. are brought up as places where diplomatic discussions need to happen.
* The prince and high level cleric of Chis, Van Healsing, is missing and they want to send someone to go find him.   
The final topic they discuss is this new island called Ethos. This island is to the northeast of Arcadia and it is the first new land to be created by the gods in 2000 years. Around 5 years ago, some soldiers, civilians, merchants, and surveyors were sent there to establish a Drekisan presence. They built a town called Santa Barbara, but during the war contact with the outpost town was lost. This is where Elaine’s name is brought up. Richard suggests she leads an expedition to Ethos to investigate the happenings there. The people in the room agree and call Elaine into the room. The empress directly offers the job to Elaine and she accepts. Before leaving, Elaine asks what happened to Mother Ilse and learns that she is deep within the dungeon where she will stay for a long time. 
After the meeting, Richard speaks to Elaine about the details of the next mission to Ethos. She will bring with her a spell caster, a scout, Willa, and two spears of soldiers.  
==Experience==
Elaine levels up from 3rd to 4th. She gains 11 HP for a total of 42.
Willa levels up from 2nd to 3rd. She gains 7 HP for a total of 25. She also gains one handed fighting style.
Category:Rise of Drekis Episodes
Category:Rise of Drekis