URI:
   DIR Return Create A Forum - Home
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       The Damn Forum mkIII
  HTML https://thedamnforum.createaforum.com
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       *****************************************************
   DIR Return to: Empire of Ergoth 
       *****************************************************
       #Post#: 683--------------------------------------------------
       429 AC Wydara Blood and the Arena Story Two: Freedom and Favor
       By: Dungeon Master Date: December 4, 2023, 5:39 am
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       Warning: strong, sensitive subject matter ahead. Consider this
       Thread M/A Rated R
       [center]
       Wydara Blood and the Arena
       Story II: Freedom and Favor
       Chapter One: In the Clink[/center]
       Ansalon
       Northern Ergoth
       Gwynned
       Wydara has tried to keep this all in perspective, but there has
       been time enough; she has begun to feel concerned that she is at
       the whims of the mercurial Mercadior Redic the VI. He may very
       well put her in the games or take her head and put it on a
       spike, or hells, even draw and quarter me. Of course, the
       waiting may be the worst of it at the moment. Waiting for your
       end.
       The Seneschal, the Emperor’s right hand and closest confidant,
       handles the questioning. She heard her Klar Dwarf ally become a
       little unbalanced earlier, and she worries about him. As far as
       cells go, these are almost pleasant compared to the ones that
       are far below ground in the deep dungeons. She feels like she is
       on pins and needles.
       The Questions related to whether there was a plot or conspiracy
       to release the proscribed Northern Barbarian. Further, they
       wanted to know if any of her staff were involved or any of her
       Gladiators. They have all been questioned, but she does not know
       if everyone held to the truth and did not break to save their
       skin. She feels sick to her stomach, but the feeling passes.
       The Questioning sessions go on and on over three days. During
       the second session, a messenger comes in and whispers to the
       Seneschal. The Questioner looks at Wydara and whispers back to
       the messenger, and he leaves the detention area of the Palace.
       On the third day,
       The Seneschal says, “that upon questioning everyone at your
       school has all backed your claim you wanted to see the contract
       fulfilled. The emperor is moving north to hunt this barbarian
       now, before he left, he told me hen to release you on parole in
       advance and tell you that your school has been reinstated.”
       Wydara absorbs this turn of events, and she asks about her
       assistants.
       The Seneschal assures Wydara that her Staff are being released
       even as they speak.
       Wydara finds that she is searching his face, wondering if this
       is all just code before he walks them out to be executed. She is
       told she could gather her things and follow the Men at Arms from
       the premises. Wydara waits for her staff, and they finally
       reunite wearily. They all manage a smile of relief and hug one
       another before following the Man at Arms out of the detention
       area and out of the side door of the Palace. He leads them to
       the gate and sees their departure. They are urged to head back
       to her school. Wydara asks if she can find somewhere to get
       food.
       Wydara sees Las pull up in a carriage, and they load the food on
       board with the staff and head to the school. When Wydara
       arrives, her Gladiators give out a cheer. They welcome her back
       and ask if she is okay. Wydara tells her boys she is just glad
       to be home. She tells them to “Take four days off and return and
       be ready to get back to work. She also tells them she will send
       down a couple of barrels for the night. They cheer as She, Las,
       and her Staff come upstairs with their boxes of food. They do
       not unpack what they just went through tonight; it will stay
       with them for now. Wydara wants to know what has happened in the
       city, and she wonders aloud the obvious if they still have a
       place here in Gwynned.
       The last couple of days have been a bit more than what she was
       prepared for. The Money is good, the competition has been
       top-notch, and life in the city has been mostly tolerable, but
       this episode has been intolerable. The Conclusion around the
       table is that they all feel they are second-guessing coming
       here. They are willing to see if this will work, but this had
       better never happen in any way again, or the next time they are
       out.
       
       After they are fed, Las asks Wydara to come home with her, and
       she will bring Wydara back. Wydara agrees, and they disappear
       through the ether and reappear at Lashia’s house.
       [center]Next, 429 AC Las in Ergoth Chapter Fifteen: Reunion
  HTML https://thedamnforum.createaforum.com/empire-of-ergoth/las-in-ergoth/msg688/#msg688<br
       />[/center]
       #Post#: 815--------------------------------------------------
       429 AC Wydara Blood and the Arena Story Two Chapter Two: Back to
        Work  
       By: Dungeon Master Date: March 25, 2024, 11:20 pm
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       Read 429 AC Las in Ergoth Chapter Fifteen: Reunion
  HTML https://thedamnforum.createaforum.com/empire-of-ergoth/las-in-ergoth/msg688/#msg688<br
       />and come back here where we start anew.
       [center]Wydara Blood and the Arena
       Story II: Freedom and Favor
       Chapter Two: Back to Work  [/center]
       Western Ansalon
       Northern Ergoth
       Imperial Capital City of Gwynned
       Wydara returns to her school and comes across Kol and Roric
       having a drink. It appears the Imperial were a bit overbearing
       when they took Roric in, his angry bruising to the face tells
       Wydara the kind of time her trainers had. She comes in gets a
       chalice and sits with them, to which a smile breaks out.
       Wydara asks who is left below, to which Kol answers that
       everyone who is left is down there. It should be about ten.
       “Not going to be enough.” Wydra answers.
       “We don’t know when we will fight again, or even if there will
       be another fight this season.” Roric tells his Boss.
       “Will just be more mouths to feed in the off season.” Kol, her
       Klar friend tells her.
       “We are down from fifteen. We lost some of our best fighters. If
       we going to stay here, we have to be competitive.”
       “Are we going to stay here? Roric asks.
       “I have not decided yet, but I want to be ready if we do stay.
       I’m not fully convinced this is the best place for us, but it
       has been lucrative. Kol, we are going to market tomorrow, Roric
       will get the men into the yard for a training session. Lets keep
       things light for a couple of weeks until we know more. I am
       going to clean the mess the imperials caused in the villa. Thank
       you two for coming back. I’m sorry it happened to you two.”
       They come over, hug her in turn, and tell her they would rather
       be nowhere without her.
       #Post#: 831--------------------------------------------------
       429 AC Wydara Blood and the Arena Story Two Chapter Three: The F
       reelancer
       By: Dungeon Master Date: April 20, 2024, 7:59 pm
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       [center]Wydara Blood and the Arena II
       Story II: Freedom and Favor
       Chapter Three: The Freelancer[/center]
       Western Ansalon
       Northern Ergoth
       Imperial Capital City of Gwynned
       Wydara still has the core of her Gladiators. She has lost some
       old friends in Hale from the Ice Wall, Bril of the Blood Sea.
       Those hurt to lose, but her other gladiators are capable and
       more than willing to get some payback.  With just under ten left
       in the company, Wydara has Roric put the men through the paces
       for the morning and Wydara and Kol walk through the market. Not
       finding any recruits worthy to take on, Wydara decides to see if
       any freelancers may consider coming on.
       Current Gladiators list
       Barret of Ergoth
       Aidan of Ergoth
       Sarus the Merciful
       Jason of Tarsis
       Cullen of Kharolis
       Aric of Solamnia
       Zachariahas of Tarsis
       Mataus from distant Flotsam
       Kevon of Kharolis
       A new Minotaur is in town looking for sponsorship, She has made
       it down here earlier than the other owners, but she spots an
       agent of the owners talking to the minotaur. Wydara decides to
       go for it. The minotaur is rare, an albino, from the Blood Sea
       Isles. She approaches and cuts the Agent off by asking where he
       has fought before. Her gamble pays off. He is only too happy to
       talk about his many victories across the eastern games. Wydara
       gives him her record in the Eastern games, and he has heard of
       her. Wydara wins and soon the minotaur joins them on their walk
       back to the School. Wydara explains he is the only minotaur in
       the school, not goring with his horns on her Gladiators in
       practice, something he can agree with. He tells her his name is
       Marok and they talk about coins. Wydara is a smaller school than
       the others, she is not rich by any standard, but she has amassed
       enough to bring him for the rest of the season at least.
       They return to the school and put Marok into Roric's hands.
       Marok steps out upon the sands of Wydara's school and is
       introduced to the other gladiators who are all deeply impressed
       with the Minotaur but fear fighting him and getting gored. He
       has already been warned against using his horns in practice
       against his teammates. It gives all of them valuable experience
       fighting against him in practice, for many, it is their first
       time fighting a minotaur and so, you have almost certainly lost
       before you ever fought one because you have no concept of what
       is come. The gladiators feel his strength and power. They begin
       to learn what it takes to fight him.
       #Post#: 861--------------------------------------------------
       429 AC Wydara Blood and the Arena Story Two Chapter Four: Blood 
       and Sand
       By: Dungeon Master Date: July 6, 2024, 5:17 am
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       [center]Wydara Blood and the Arena
       Story II: Freedom and Favor
       Chapter Four: Blood and Sand
       [/center]
       Wydara awakens to the sounds of wooden swords clashing on
       shields in the Training grounds outside. The curtains blow
       gently with the cool fall air. The Fighting Season is nearly at
       its end. We have two more fights left. Well, if we are lucky and
       get in the Emperor’s games at the end of the season, then we
       will have two.
       Wydara rolls out of bed and dresses, and goes for a run to her
       other school, which is closed. The road is steep, and it is a
       brutal climb, but this is how she decides to work out today.
       When she reaches her school at the top, she comes back down the
       hill, goes to her villa, and has her breakfast on the veranda
       overlooking parts of the Capital and her training grounds. She
       immediately notices the Albino minotaur has corked his horns,
       whether that was Roric’s idea or his, she is glad to see a
       hurdle to training has been eliminated, provided it works, and
       nobody gets killed.
       Barret of Ergoth and Aiden of Ergoth are training together.
       Adian was the Top Sword until their last match, and Barret saved
       Aiden’s life and killed their opponent, giving him the Top
       Sword.  They will be in the games to fight for their spot in the
       Emperor’s games
       Marok the Albino minotaur is fighting against the big Barbarian
       Sarus the Merciful; they will be fighting in the next match to
       vie for a spot in the Emperor’s Games. Their fight is going
       well, This is giving Sarus invaluable experience and confidence
       if he ever must face the Black Minotaur.
       She wants all her gladiators to train with Marok, but there is
       not enough time. She is going to have him switch after midday to
       train with Adian and Barret.
       Jason of Tarsis is fighting Aric of Solamnia, they will be
       fighting to fight for a spot.
       Kevon of Kharolis is fighting Zachariahas of Tarsis, and they
       will be fighting in the games to fight for a spot in the games.
       Mataus from distant Flotsam is on the Training Dummy and will be
       transitioned in the course of the day.
       Roric is overseeing the morning's training session, and Kol is
       watching for anyone slacking and not giving their all.
       Most of these guys came with her to Northern Ergoth. Aidan and
       Barret for from Northern Ergoth, and she got them here, but the
       others came with her from the arena and the School they built in
       Tarsis. They have had some heavy losses this season.
       She hears Roric stop the training and use a Gladiator as an
       example of a teachable moment before the men.
       Wydara goes back to her breakfast and takes a sip of orange
       juice. Wydara takes a piece of parchment and writes a quick
       invitation and seals it in a scroll case to be sent over to
       Las’s villa. She will invite the kids again if they aren’t too
       traumatized from the last one. Hopefully, we have that
       excitement behind us. I will invite La and her +1 as well,
       though I doubt they will take me up themselves. Wydara decides
       she is finished with her breakfast and slides it away. She calls
       for Kol to join her. Wydara tells him what she wants to happen
       after midday, for Barret and Adian to train with the Albino. We
       give Sarus some time to rest up afterward, in fact, knock off an
       hour early later. “Give them a good meal. I will be back; I am
       headed down to see what the matches will be.”
       Kol asks if she wants him to come with her but Wydara declines,
       telling him she wants him here to tell her what he notices and
       observes at training.
       Wydara trains for a while, washes up, and dresses in what she
       thinks is appropriate to venture down to the forum and find out
       what the matches will be. She has a messenger deliver her
       invitation and then she is off to the forum.
       
       List of Gladiators that came from Tarsis and Wydara’s School
       Sarus the Merciful
       Jason of Tarsis
       Cullen of Kharolis
       Aric of Solamnia
       Zachariah of Tarsis
       Mataus from distant Flotsam
       Kevon of Kharolis
       The Current list of Gladiators from Wydara’s School
       Barret of Ergoth      Top Sword
       Aidan of Ergoth, Former Top Sword
       Marok the Albino Minotaur Freelancer
       Sarus the Merciful
       Jason of Tarsis
       Cullen of Kharolis
       Aric of Solamnia
       Zachariah of Tarsis
       Mataus from distant Flotsam
       Kevon of Kharolis
       #Post#: 876--------------------------------------------------
       429 AC Wydara Blood and the Arena Story Two Political Games
       By: Dungeon Master Date: July 9, 2024, 1:48 am
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       [center]Wydara Blood and the Arena
       Story II: Freedom and Favor
       Chapter Five: Political Games
       [/center]
       Western Ansalon
       Northern Ergoth
       The Capital of Gwynned
       Wydara had left to find out the card the editor had put together
       and was denied for the first time since arriving in Gwynned,
       beyond frustrated. She storms home to try to come up with a game
       plan. She wants to find out if the Card has been shared with
       anyone else before the Games begin. She puts Kol to the task and
       departs for the city to try to find out what Wydara wants to
       know.  This will not let her preplan matches, and this is one of
       the most important ones. It determines who fights in the
       Emperor’s final match of the season.  She walks out on the
       veranda and starts cussing in elven. Her servants know a drink
       will instantly calm her down, and pours her favorite drink, and
       a brave servant brings it out to her.
       Wydara takes it from their nervous hand and thanks them, and
       then tells them to get scarce. She takes a drink and sits at one
       of her tables overlooking the training grounds. Adian is
       practicing on the dummy still, long after everyone has gone to
       drink and merriment. Normally, Wydara would never allow this,
       but this was just Adian’s way. He was always like this. A couple
       of times a week. He is worried about his upcoming fight. He
       thinks it will be the Black Minotaur, and he could be right, I
       just don’t freaking know…
       A couple of drinks later, she is still at the table on the
       veranda when an unfamiliar noise stirs the guard dogs. Wydara is
       jerked awake, and she goes for her sword in the front room. She
       sees Kol coming in with a young dark-skinned human woman, Wydara
       knows, though not very well. This woman traffics in secrets and
       has been helpful many times over since Wydara arrived in
       Gwynned.
       Wydara lowers her sword and calls out to her servant to bring
       refreshments for the guests and a cup of tea. Wydara bids her
       guest to come with her to the sitting room, and each finds their
       chair. Kol begins and says, “I was coming up empty everywhere,
       seems everyone is as blind as we are. Sina here has seen the
       card, though she has not told me how. I don’t know how secret
       the card is, maybe people are lying, looking out for their best
       interests.”
       Wydara asks Sina what she knows about the card for the matches.
       Sina answers timidly, “I know the odds are stacked against you,
       I fear the owners have banded together against you and The
       Emperor’s hunt for the proscribed Ackalite has not gone well in
       the north. The Assassins that has gone after him has come up
       dead and the Emperor has entered a foul mood.”
       “...And I am catching the brunt of it. This has all come back to
       bite me in the proverbial bottom. Wydara exclaims. “To make
       things right with the Emperor, am I going to have to get
       involved to kill this Ackalite? She considers the stakes vs. the
       reality of what she has proposed. “The Emperor should have just
       killed him when he had a chance; that is on him, not me.”
       Sina and Kol agree and begin to think about a way to help.
       Between the three of them, they hatch a plan. Sina knows somehow
       where the Assassins were killed at Tantyvil. Wydara has a
       well-defined map of Northern Ergoth and brings it to the table.
       Sian tells Wydara, “Tantyvil is Thieving Guild territory. It
       effectively cuts off the land route to Gulfport, stopping any
       riders with orders to ready the Imperial Army in the north,
       though I am sure the Emperor has surely sent the message by ship
       by now."
       Wydara says Do we think he is still there, The people of
       Tantyvil will get rewarded if the Ackalite is turned over to the
       Emperor. If they don’t, the Emperor will bring reprisals against
       the town.”
       Sian agrees that Tantyvil is walking the fine line of treachery.
       I think he is still there, on the hillside overlooking the city.
       His strategy has been working out for him so far, but he will
       try to reach the lands of his father before long to rally the
       people behind him. The only way to do that is to breach Gulfport
       and get to friendly lines, it is a deadly no-man's land between
       the Ackalite and Imperial Fortresses. I doubt very much you can
       target him there. Wydara sends a letter out to her niece, Las,
       and has a messenger deliver it immediately. She then pulls
       herself up to her feet and goes to make herself presentable, and
       gets her equipment ready in a pack. She retrieves her Elven Bow
       and quivers of arrows from Qualinesti, a gift from her niece
       Marilee, and prepares everything so that when she returns, she
       can head out immediately. She has her staff prepare food for her
       journey, then she heads into town and straight to the Imperial
       Mansion, and is met by the Imperial guards, who turn her away.
       She tells them to bear this message to the Emperor, “I, Wydara,
       am going North to kill the Ackalite."
       [center]Continues in 429 AC Las in Ergoth Story One Chapter
       Sixteen: Doing Something Crazy
  HTML https://thedamnforum.createaforum.com/empire-of-ergoth/las-in-ergoth/msg880/#msg880[/center]
       #Post#: 1067--------------------------------------------------
       429 AC Wydara Blood and the Arena Story Two Chapter Six: The Fig
       ht of Your Life 
       By: Dungeon Master Date: March 29, 2025, 6:25 pm
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       Las in Ergoth Story One Chapter Sixteen: Doing Something Crazy
       leads in this story…
  HTML https://thedamnforum.createaforum.com/empire-of-ergoth/las-in-ergoth/msg880/#msg880
       TV-MA Rated R for suggestive themes and actions
       [center]Wydara Blood and the Arena
       Story II: Freedom and Favor
       Chapter Six: The Fight of your Life[/center]
       Western Ansalon
       Island of Northern Ergoth
       North of the Capital City, Gwynned
       Tantyvil
       The Witching Hour
       Wydara, Las, and the Ergothian Wizards enter the Inn with a
       Thieves’ guild connection. Through negotiation, intimidation,
       and threats, the Imperial Wizards finally find a thief, about to
       become a lord on this day, as he sells out the Rebel Barbarian’s
       last known location.
       Hours pass,
       As Las and Wydara ride Las’s Griffon, they hunt down the
       barbarian in the dead of night. A whole lot of nothing. Feeling
       they have been duped, they start to prepare to return to the
       Inn, when
       Wydara sees something and has Las land and drop her off. Las and
       her griffon take to the sky again.
       She sees the wild Ackalite. He heard the griffon. He’s spooked.
       Wydara brings up her bow, nocks an arrow, and draws back, he is
       in her sights; she could end this, she could wound him, it would
       make things easier… What is he doing now, trying to line up his
       bow and searching the sky. Wydara releases her breath as she
       fires.
       The arrow strikes his left lung, and his shot goes wide. Las
       rains a fire spell from above, down on him, and he avoids the
       flames. He reaches for the arrow, still embedded in his chest,
       when he catches movement out of the corner of his eye.
       Wydara is upon him with sword strike after sword strike. He only
       just gets his blade up to defend. Wydara keeps it up because she
       knows if he gets his hands on her, it could be over. The
       Ackalite becomes too much for Wydara to handle; his power and
       ferocity are rising. Wydara steps to the side and twists the
       arrow, shooting, tearing pain through him. He screams in agony
       and tries to suck air. He elbows Wydara hard in the face,
       breaking her nose and slicing his face. He backs off and circles
       her; the fire from the earlier spell is behind him, flickering.
       Wydara catches him trying to suck in air and launches into a new
       attack, with faints, and skill that nearly finishes him, he
       fights for his life.
       A sudden shift in tactics stops Wydara’s momentum and suddenly
       defends low on an attack, and then she is punched in the face,
       over and over. She grabs the arrow and twists, doing significant
       damage to him internally.
       He nearly drops to the ground in pain, and he turns around and
       punches her hard, He punches her again and again, and he rears
       back to beat her face in when Wydra side-steps and cuts off his
       sword hand, Wydara then drops down and takes out the back of his
       leg tendons, she then backs off as he drops to the ground.
       Wydara stands up and moves to his blade, kicking the hand still
       gripping the sword away from his reach.  Blood pours from her
       face as she looks down on him, dealing with a collapsed lung on
       the ground.
       Wydara manages to mumble out “Justice for Ragor and Hale”
       (Wydara’s fallen Gladiators killed by this Barbarian. Wydara
       thinks back to the savage way this Ackalite killed them in the
       Arena. Wydara spits blood on the ground and looks down at the
       Ackalite Northman as he is trying to express his last words… the
       Ackalite word for freedom is uttered…  Wydara stabs his heart
       with her elven dagger and thus ends his suffering.
       The jerking stops, and all is quiet in these woods for several
       moments until there is a flutter of wings, and Las and her
       Griffon come into view. Wydara retrieved her blade and wipes off
       the blood absentmindedly.
       Las comes up and takes in the scene of the dead Barbarian and
       her bloodied aunt. Las wipes away what blood she can before
       Wydara tells her to stop. It hurts too much. Las asks if she “is
       hurt anywhere else?
       
       Wydara manages a “no” before telling her niece to backup. Wydara
       cuts off the Barbarians head with her elven sword and tells Las
       to ready it for transport as she stumbles to sit back in a
       fallen log and takes a few breaths before she wipes her sword
       clean and puts it back into her scabbard.
       Las does as her aunt tells her and prepares the head for
       transport, wrapped in black cloth.
       Soon
       Las cleans up Wydara’s face, meets the Wizards, and they bring
       the thief-lord return to the Capital City of Gwynneth. The
       Priests of Mishakal healed Wydara, and she fell asleep in the
       healing ward for a few hours before Imperial guards arrived and
       escorted Wydara to the Imperial Palace. She barely has a chance
       to look around at the stately manor before she is quickly
       brought into a waiting room and explained the imperial rules of
       meeting the sovereign, how to curtsy, what not to do like show
       her back to him, it is all a swirl of does and don’t before
       suddenly the doors opened up and her name is being announced and
       suddenly Wydara is in the throne room, the Majordomo relieves
       her of the head she is carrying and takes off to the side while
       they verify.
       Emperor Mercadior Redic VI sits on the lion throne and has been
       watching Wydara since she entered the throne room. Her dark
       tunic is bloody, so much blood.
       Wydara steps forward and curtseys, something she has seen done,
       but never attempted in actuality. She manages to give a stiff
       try and does not fall in the attempt.
       The Majordomo reports that the head bears the slave scars and
       markings matching the Imperial Mine, that of the House of Markus
       Avfinus, which owned the Ackalite.
       Mercadior smiles to himself. The deed is done.
       “You have settled the Ackalite problem where other experts in
       their craft failed. Explain.”
       She got a thief to turn over what he knew. “You know the rest,
       he was paid a lofty sum for his troubles. We had been scanning
       the ground from the sky on the back of my niece’s Griffon. We
       were in the area our guide had directed us to. I asked her to
       put me down because saw something, and used my niece for bait,
       while I wounded him with an arrow through the lung, I think that
       was the deciding factor, it threw him off his game and allowed
       me to provoke him into making a mistake.”
       The emperor exclaims, “Used your niece for bait…so you could
       take a shot.” The emperor looks at Wydara in a new light.
       “Indeed, you of course will regain your position for the final
       games of the season. I was not sending a message to you, but to
       the other Schools, but you just had to change the game by going
       after him yourself. You…Yourself.  I will also allow you to
       explore opening your school for Woman Fighters. I don’t know if
       this society is fully ready for this; the people may hate it and
       in turn hate us for it. If I should get a whiff of discontent, I
       will not hesitate to shut it down.”
       “I understand. Thank you, I will endeavor to make them like it.
       my Lord.”
       The meeting is at its end, and Wydara is escorted out. Wydara
       sees her niece and thanks her for her assistance. Wydara turns
       down an invite from Las and tells her she will see them in a
       week. Wydara proclaims she is going to sleep for a week or relax
       the whole time in her robe and drink. I saw my end more than
       once last night. That’s going to stay with me for a while.  Las
       tells her, “We will come by in a week to check on you.” Then she
       is off to her home.
       Wydara watched her go, thinking of what she had said to the
       emperor. “It’s only half true.” She thinks that she used her as
       a distraction for the length of time it took to get within melee
       range.
       Wydara enters her Villa, soon a bath is drawn for her, and a
       drink is prepared and handed to her as Wydara settles into her
       tub and soaks, her eyes closed, reliving each moment of the
       fight of her life. She lies there for a long time until she
       stumbles into bed.
       #Post#: 1079--------------------------------------------------
       429 AC Wydara Blood and the Arena Story Two Chapter Seven: True 
       to Her Word
       By: Dungeon Master Date: April 6, 2025, 12:49 am
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       [center]Wydara Blood and the Arena
       Story II: Freedom and Favor
       Chapter Seven: True to Her Word  [/center]
       Western Ansalon
       Northern Ergoth
       Imperial Capital City of Gwynned
       Wydara stays true to her word. She is either sleeping or in her
       gown, drinking and in a daze at her villa in the capital.
       Roric has been getting the men into shape. Wydara has not gotten
       involved in the fight coordination. She just fought the
       barbarian and lived through it. She had her doubts. But mostly,
       it was instinct. It was him or me. She has wrestled with the
       moral implications of what she did. She made a judgment call on
       the future with the Ackalites. They treat woman worse in the
       social structure than their horse. Ergoth may be backward, but
       it has the potential to move forward someday.  The Ackalites
       will not.
       She still feels her nose being broken and getting hit in the
       face again and again. Over and over, sometimes in her thoughts,
       even though she was healed soon after.
       Worse, she dreams about it. His face. His wheezing at the end.
       She awakens, and no one is around. Wydara tries to go back to
       sleep.
       Kol comes in a couple of days before the fight this weekend and
       asks if she wants to know who our guys are fighting. He shows
       her the card.
       [i]Invitation to the final games of the season at the royal
       coliseum to sit in a box next to the emperor.
       Wydara looks at the card
       “We will have to win nearly every fight to have a chance at the
       end.” Wydara flatly states.
       “Already accounting for some loses?” The Klar asks
       “You saw who Aric is fighting. Can he beat the Black Minotaur?”
       Wydara asks
       Kol thinks for a moment before he answers. “Marok has been
       working with him, giving him pointers, he might have a chance.”
       
       “At least that is something. Nothing to bet money on though.”
       Wydara puts her head on the table for a moment, then tells Kol
       she will see him outside. She takes a bath and gets dressed to
       train Aric so she can have a clear conscience.
       *****************************************************