Fates to Bind Us

[TheWordsOfTyr]

The scrap scarred golden doors were forced open by a heavy leather boot. The rusted hinges groaned from the movement as they swung open. A troop of women took the lead. The kicker, the clear leader, wielded a fine iron blade that crackled with the kind of energy that made your hairs stand on end when you looked at it as well as a bronze axe that had seen more battles than the woman had seen years. With a slow drag of her tongue, she licked up a bit of blood pooling on her burst lip as she trudged onwards along the cobble floors of the beaten fortress. Behind the Judge of the Heated Scar walked a hulking scarred monstrosity. A great black furred jackal dragged herself forwards. Bloody, enlarged claws dug into the stone as she stalked behind her master. On either side of the beast were two mages, a Sorceress, wizened by age and an Apprentice, young but more powerful than even she knew. Trailing behind the four, limping and fatigued, were two men; an elderly Mage, standing tall and proud and dripping in the gore of battle and a battle axe wielding warrior with hate in his eyes. The leader twirled her axe in her hand, some ichor falling from the blade to land beneath her leather boots as she approached the throne room with her entourage. To her, the lack of soldiers by the gates meant the Gold Caste had either run out of warriors or they had all pulled back to defend their Baron. Taking a deep breath, she reached behind herself to adjust her messy bun with her sword-arm.
"Aya, break their wills." She said with the chill of a jaded pitfighter.
"Got it." The Apprentice nodded, tapping her throat in preparation as she fanned out to the far right.
"Ruhi, stay low, go for the neck on my signal." She continued.
"Likes Fareeha's plan. Good. Talk less, talk fast. Let me rend!" The Ascended Beast licked her teeth as she fell a bit behind, her fur blending into the shadows of the dim corridor.
"And what would you have me do?" The foreign Sorceress thumped her staff on the cobblestone with a battle-bruised smirk.
"What you do best, Shou." Fareeha gave her a knowing nod. "And you two, let me do the fucking talking. Please." She cast a glare back at the two men.
The old man grinned his bloody grin, his thick white beard stained in the blood of those who weren't afraid to be immolated and his own.
"Oh of course, good Judge. I shall stay as silent as death itself!" Ukubola's staff ignited into flames as he gave an exaggerated bow.
"So long as I get his head." Isiwula interjected, gripping his axe tighter.

The winds began to stir within the building, the arcane storm outside seeping in as Aya began to work her magic, her heavenly voice chanting a solemn sermon of suspense and horror that resounded throughout the entire fortress. The echoes of The Judges footfalls turned to thundering booms as she marched into the throne room. Illusions pulled together to make those before her see not a woman but a demon, terrible and unstoppable in equal measure. She emerged into the light that shone in from the broken skylight and raised her crackling blade. She pointed it directly at the Baron of the once great city of Gold.
"Osindile!" She declared. "None of your men had to die today. None of them had to suffer. No one of Gold's people needed to suffer. To end the storm all that was required was your head. Now is the time to cease being a coward and submit yourself for the good of your people. For the good of all of Honoran."
The Barons guards cast uncertain glances to each other with unreadable expressions. Undeterred by the Judge's party tricks, the Baron drew his sword, glaring back at the invaders.
"I will never bow to the will of the winged pox you call a master, you Godless, Dragon-worshipping lap-dog. The people of Gold are stronger than you know and will never surrender to you or your Adamantine-dwelling whoresons! You will never break us! This is your last chance, Judge, to recall your forces before I tie you to the back of a chariot and drag you across the sand from here to Bronze!"
"Or, if I may interject oh so rudely!" Ukubola sauntered into the light. "We are all people of Honoran are we not? Ever heard of the phrase 'if you can't beat them, join them'? My master, Okubi, would be more than happy to accept your surrender. You'd even get to keep your life and your city! A deal as sweet as honey, hm?"
Isiwula turned his head to the Pyromancer and yanked him over as he spoke in an enraged, barely contained whisper.
"You said we were to ensure his death! You lied to me!" He bared his yellowed teeth.
"I did nothing of the sort. Okubi doesn't want this little storm broken just yet, so he is to remain alive... for now." Ukubola smirked back at his glaring companion, gesturing to the howling arcane gale above.

Ignoring the two behind her, Fareeha turned her blade ever so slightly.
"I will break this curse, Osindile. Not your people. Don't throw your men's lives away over stubborn pride." She looked into his eyes, pleading with him with her gaze as her voice softened for only a moment. "This storm must end. For your people."
"We have survived a year of this siege. We will endure a hundred more if we must!" The Baron sneered back.
"Then, by my decree as Judge of the Heated Scar, I sentence you to death for violation of The Alliance of the Scar, allowing The Sands to rampage your territories, murder, treason, negligence, incompetence and cowardice."
Fareeha broke form immediately, raising her sword up and slashing it down into the ground. A wave of lightning arced out along the path of the swing, striking directly into the Baron's chest. He seized up, beginning to spasm and convulse with pain as the arcane electricity ravaged his body.
In the same moment, Ruhi charged from the shadows. She pounced over the back of the crouched Judge, leaping towards the nearest guard and going for their throat. The Jackal ripped them apart with her jaws. Aya's haunting chant of despair rose into a piercing shriek of horror as the remaining Gold Caste warriors gripped their heads, their minds assaulted with agony and fear. While knelt down, Fareeha pounded her axe-wielding fist into the ground, summoning a column of rock upwards beneath the awaiting feet of Shou and launching her into the air as her staff pulsed with magical energy. A wave of tangible light pulsed out from her as she hung in the air. As it passed over the remaining Gold Caste, they found themselves drained of energy, their body temperature falling rapidly as they were sapped of their very life force. A second pulse shot out of her, then a third, and on the fourth pulse, the last of the warriors fell to the ground. Ukubola frowned at his lack of involvement in the bloodshed.
"The Velnak have no mind for sport…" He muttered to himself.
Isiwula merely watched Osindile. The Baron dropped to his knees as the seizures stopped, sapped of strength and utterly defeated.
"Consider yourself added to my bloody tally. The list is quite long but I'll make room for you." The Judge slid her sword through an iron ring that hung from her hip.
"You won't lay another hand on him!" A new voice shouted.
From a newly flung open door, a woman charged forward, bronze sword in hand. She rushed to the side of the Baron, she held the blade aloft, staring down the Judge of the Heated Scar. Fareeha and Ukubola were at a loss, lowering their weapons for a moment as they came face to face with a woman they had seen die almost a year prior.
"Lila, no. I won't… lose you too." The Baron weakly placed a hand on hers.

With a cruel grin, Ukubola began to laugh; cackling in the madness of it all.
"What an exciting turn of events! Osindile, my boy! You didn't tell me you'd taken up necromancy!" He took a step closer.
"Lila, how is this possible? You were taken by The Sands. Your brothers and sisters saw you get dragged beneath. Your father prepared to brave the Scar alone to search for you. And yet… here you are. And you stand with the Coward of Gold?" Fareeha watched the woman's eyes for any kind of magic altering her mind.
The Judge didn't need to hear her response, the questions melted away as she could see something far more confusing in the woman's eyes. Lila's eyes burned with the passion of love.
"They found me. While my father and The Iron Champions 'prepared', they acted! As they carried my broken body out of the Scar, they opened my eyes. To the lies of The Champions, my father and the Dragons tyranny! I am one of the Gold Caste and will die among my brothers." She settled into a stance from her Champions training.
"I extend a hand again, my dear. Okubi, and I'm sure the Good Judge, are more than happy to allow you to return home alive." Ukubola bowed, only to have spit land atop his balding head.
"Okubi can go drown in the sand with the rest of you Dragon-lovers. I'm not leaving this fortress. This is my home now and I will defend it." Lila bared her teeth.
Pinching the bridge of her nose, Fareeha raised her axe hand, moving it back to gesture for her companions to give her room.
"Don't make me do this… Okubi might like some fight in their prey, but I don't. Just stand down, Lila." She sighed.
As they moved back, Aya voiced her concern to her companion, freely as always.
"Prey? Don't speak like Okubi, Judge. It's a bad colour on you." She narrowed her eyes.
The Judge met Aya's eyes, seeing her point but nonetheless giving her a look that reminded the Apprentice that now was not the time nor the place to undercut her authority. The Judge of the Heated Scar pleaded with Lila with her eyes, having an entire conversation with the new traitor through looks alone. She held firm, stalwart and unmoving. Just like her father. As they were given room, Fareeha straightened up and rolled her shoulders, letting out a breath of annoyance before her second declaration of the last ten minutes.
"Then, by my decree as Judge of the Heated Scar, I sentence to a Trial by Combat for dereliction of duty, desertion and treason. I'm sorry, but that's the best I can do." Fareeha drew her iron blade once more as she took up a stance opposite Lila. "Just me and you. If you survive, my forces will withdraw."
"A fair and just ruling for a lap-dog." Lila frowned, unimpressed by the act of compassion.
"Master wishes trial. Reaffirm strength! Kill quick! Kill fast! Kill hard!" The Ascended animal bared her teeth in excitement.

The group formed a wide circle around the two women and the Baron, all going silent save for the whipping winds that had pounded the fortress non stop for the last year. The first to move was Lila, going for an overhead slash down Fareeha's centre, the Judge dodged to the side and swung her sword down onto Lila's blade to keep it pinned to the floor. At the same time she attempted to swing her axe across herself to strike the woman's back but Lila raised her free arm in time to grab the handle of the axe and keep it there. Acting quickly, Fareeha thrusted her head forward, crashing it against Lila's to break the two free of their sudden stalemate. In response, the Daughter of the Iron Commander swung her sword across, slashing Fareeha along her unprotected stomach. The Judge staggered back, grunting in pain as she brought her axe hand to her gut and grip the wound. She took in a deep breath and kept her eyes on her opponent. She had taken worse hits in the fight pits. Lila attempted to follow up on her attack with an overhead swing, gripping the blade with both hands to strike with all her power. Fareeha swung her enchanted weapon in response, throwing her arm across herself to strike the sword off of its course. As the metal clashed together, Fareeha closed the distance between herself and her target, pulling her arm back to elbow the woman in the face and whipping her arm to its side, taking her head off with the iron edge in one clean swipe. Lila's body fell to the floor, bleeding across the scarred stone. Panting and turning her attention to her wound, Fareeha staggered over to Shou for the Sorceresses healing.
"Isiwula, act as my executioner, would you?" The Judge gave the man a weak wave as she pressed the head of her axe into the ground to steady herself.
"With pleasure, Judge." The former Gold Caste stepped over the corpse of Lila.
Isiwula marched towards Osindile as the Baron began to cry for his lost love. He went to speak some final words but the executioner's axe found the man's skull first. One heavy overhead swing cleaved it in two, and brought an end to the Baron of Gold bloodline. Or so it was thought.
"This is the last I got in me, Eeha. Be more careful for a while." Shou whispered with a frown as she went to work, her arcane energy sapped after the long battle.
As Shou's healing light faded and Fareeha stood upright, the group all looked to the walls. Listening.
"The Winds. They still whip. The curse is unbroken." The beast proclaimed.
"Impossible." Isiwula looked at the corpse at his feet in disbelief.
"The Storm shall come to an end when the Bloodline of the Baron of Gold comes to its end. That was the Dragon's exact wording! The curse should be lifted.." The Judge of the Heated Scar seemed at a loss for a moment. "Search the Fortress! This one may have been a distraction."

The group broke off, moving to search for either the real Baron or someone else who fit the bill. A brother, an uncle, a father, something. Anything. After a few short minutes, a shout rang out from the Apprentice. The group rushed to her position to find her standing in a doorway with despair in her eyes. Fareeha approached, taking a cautious look at her companion.
"What's the matter, Aya…" She asked, expecting to find her stuck in a trap of some sort.
"Eeha… look..." Aya's voice was stunted, broken, and pleading.
She was speaking to Fareeha, her friend, not Fareeha the Judge. As the Judge stood next to the Apprentice to look into the room, her tension replaced itself with dread. Within the room were comfortable furnishings, the makings of a nursery and within it, a cot looking freshly made. Fareeha's eyes widened as the sleeping baby within awoke and began to cry. With no one else found in the fortress, Fareeha dropped her weapons of war. The iron and bronze clattering to the floor. She stared ahead blankly as the weight of judgement fell upon her shoulders.
"Shit…"