Thrum of The Flame

Orc Dragon Blade/Molten Templar

Born: 583 BCE

Died: ?

Birthplace: The Forbidden City, United Continent

Allegiance: Erosen Empire (Formerly), United Council, The Division Council (Formerly).

## An Orc in Erosen

In 583 BCE, in a medium income home in Erosen Captial a green skinned orc was born. His father named him Thrum. His parents, named Dorum and Thanma raised him until the age of the Rites.

The Rites are a series of trials that will dictate what role they would play in the Erosen Empire. Usually these Rites have to deal with combat capability, magical prowess, or quick thinking. Thrum proved to be most capable in combat capabilty, he was average in quick thinking but his magical prowess was poor.

Thrum was returned to his parents with the charge of Soldier. His father was incredibly proud, fobut r he was a soldier just as well. So for years his father taught him the art of Orcish fighting, Military Discipline and his foes that he would fight. Once Thrum came of age that the Army would take him, his father had reached the age where he would no longer be useful in combat and was retired. The ceremony was made special because Dorum allowed Thrum to take his own blade for training.

Erosen Basic Training was brutal. It was hard, fast, and efficient. And while Thrum was used to seeing other races in the Empire, this time was when he learned not only the races on a personal level but also their position in relation to him. He was an orc and so he was expected to be able to lead the other races into battle properly. The other races would defer to him if they had to, but that doesnt mean that other races couldnt lead, but Thrum learned truely that Orcs had the combat capability almost in a monopoly.

With Basic Training complete Thrum began to take his shape in the Erosen Military. But after many years, the unthinkable happened.

## The Breniki Wars

Thrum was but a simple foot soldier when the Erosen began their march to war during the Breniki wars. As such he fought in quite a few battles. Most notably he was in the first invasion into the destabalized Duniir lands. Up until then he never actually saw the Heros of Ancient, it wasnt until much later that he would meet them in battle.

After Overlord Stormfist betrayed the Three Hammer's Clan with the help of Vynros and the Falven Empire, the full brunt of both the Heroes of Ancient and their forces were bent upon the Erosen first. At first the Erosen felt that they had nothing much to fear. Especially the lower soldiers, even though at this point Thrum had earned a promotion or two but was still in the lower echelon of power, who were told that the battles were going well and that the walls were holding the ursurpers off. But the ire of the betrayed Heroes of Ancient grew and grew and their offensives grew more devastating. It was after this that Thrum began to be promoted very fast. What he thought was that he was doing well in the Overlord's eyes but in reality it was that all the upper ranks were being slaughtered in battle, or executed by assassins. It was not until Thrum breached what could be called the officer ranks that he truly began to understand the dire situation at hand.

Thrum then put his quick thinking and critical thought toward the offensive. With Thrum at the hedge in the western side of the front the Erosen actually took back some land and gave punishing defeats to the Three Hammers. His tactic of choice was to push forward with as many troops as possible, but at the apex of the battle, to pull all the way back even out of the city and flank, then when the weary soldiers fanned back out into the battlefeild the forces would crush them. It was after these offensives that Thrum began to earn the eye of Stormfist.

Thrum's military offensives didnt stem the flow of attacks levvied against them and it certainly didnt stop the assassins and once the Council of Silence was brought in due to Exfriel del Thornblade, most of the high advisers began to die. It got to the point where when the last military adviser, Tarall Stoneguard was

assassinated Thrum was appointed straight to the position.

### The Throne Room of the Erosen

Finally it got to the point where the Three Hammers Clan offensive reached the Erosen Capital. Out of all the offensives this was the most brutal. The fighters had seige weapons but before the walls even fell the fighters managed to push into the capital itself. Berau the Sly, Prime General Redon and Seroth Barune led their forces through the city.

Thrum was in the bunker with Overlord Stormfist, High Champion Windlasher, and Grov the Mighty trying desperately to come up with a plan to repel the invaders. In the middle of the discussion the bunker was breached and Overlord Stormfist grew cold and certain. He told Thrum and the others that it was over, the bunker was breached. In short time a report came through reporting that most of all the orcs in the city had been slaughtered, men, women and children by what would be revealed to be Barune's forces. The orc race had been all but wiped out in one single battle.

The Heroes of Ancient stormed the sanctum but Knarl and Exfriel were captured and brought to the inner sanctum. Not long after Nathanial and the others were brought in as well. There a very tense discussion began between the Heroes and the Overlord. Nathanial Anderton led the discussion and became very distraught at the realization of what had actually been occuring on the battlefeilds. When the generals joined them in the Sanctum Nathanial confronted them demanding to know who committed the slaughter. Ultimately Nathanial's emboldened words fell upon deaf ears and in the end Redon and Overlord Stormfist performed an Alakai. Redon won and Thrum was crushed, he just watched the world crumble around him, his people slaughtered like pigs, his leader cut down before him. And so he didnt participate when High Champion Windlasher attacked the group.

### The Aftermath

Grov the Mighty chose to fight against the orcs in the end. He couldnt stand to fight against his freinds in the Heroes of Ancient. Thrum did not participate but Nathanial did notice him. Both of them were agast at the battle for different reasons, but a mutual understanding was reached between them without words. Both just had their respecive belief systems turned on their heads. It was during this and when Nathanial was trying desperately to convince the Overlord to stand down and see reason that Thrum grew a deep respect for the Prime Champion. He saw his honor and desire to see what was just. But this was the last Thrum would see Nathanial Anderton in that state.

Grov being the nearest ambassador left in the Empire and leadership fell upon him. The empire had fallen and Grov's goal was to try and return to the Orcish roots and so he seperated the rest of the orcs from the races of the empire and took up the title Warchief. Grov knew that Thrum had a significant military ability to plan and fighting capability so he gave him the title "Right Hand of the Warchief" meaning that he was the military adviser to Grov himself. Thrum however, refused the offer. He was a broken man and worse off, he was a broken orc. So Thrum left the ruined capital with permission of Redon and Nathanial's forces and he began to walk.

## Finding Faith

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