Mikansia: the main character, a female elf played by Lena. Last session the General had made plans for a last-ditch effort to get reinforcements. Mikansia had volunteered, but her commander, Akseli, had forbidden it. It was finally revealed that Mikansia's mother, Makirta, had been a dark elf, who had tricked Akseli. When he found out she had lied to him Akseli had abandoned her. She finally convinced Akseli and Yngvar to let her go on the mission.
Yngvar: Mikansia's firstsword. She had convinced him that she needed to be judged on her own merits, not on Makirta's, who had apparently tried to seduce him at one point. He's coming along on the mission on a misguided mistrust of her that he just couldn't shake.
The Lone Keep: A particularly vile cult of dark elves, dedicated to the Nameless, eldritch horrors from the beyond. Krakeru, Mikansia's evil father, is a member of this cult.
At dawn, twenty soldiers made a break for the southern dark elf battlement from Fort Elfwatch. Tyce was right; it was less guarded, but that didn't mean it was totally unguarded. Twenty was all the General could spare, four of them accomplished navigators. One of them, Elaine, was a prostitute who had taught herself orienteering to take her mind off her job.
Ten died in the charge out of the fort, two of them navigators. Thirty of the dark elves gave chase. Elaine lagged behind. Mikansia dropped back. Only Yngvar noticed what she was doing, so he dropped back with her. Mikansia called out to one of the men, trying to get them to help Elaine, but they didn't stop. So Mikansia picked up the malnourished Elaine and booked it, being pushed along and encouraged by Yngvar.
Somehow she outran the dark elves. when they all stopped running Yngvar said, sheepishly, that he would have happily have carried Elaine, if only Mikansia had asked. Mikansia chuckled and patted him on the shoulder, and told him she had it covered. Elaine joked that her ribs begged to differ. Yngvar looked at her a bit differently after that. Everyone began to began to discuss what they needed to do next. A few options were bandied about, from a last stand, in the hopes of killing them all before moving on, to hiding until the dark elves gave up.But the one everyone agreed to was five staying back to be a distraction, while the navigators were spirited away to Fort Priesdefair, where there were human reinforcements... five days away. It was a long shot but it was all they had. Yngvar and Mikansia volunteered, without hesitation.
They went a bit up the road they had been on, and buried themselves beneath the snow near the road. Ten dark elves came down the road. They were completely blindsided. Five dark elves died in the initial rush. the other five turned around and Mikansia squared up with one, sword and shield in hand. When Mikansia's opponent saw her he froze and said, in awe, "Yetekaida". Mikansia was a whirlwind of steel, stabbing the dark elf in the leg, defeating him in one hit. Two of the other dark elves were killed outright. They rest were captured as they gaped at Mikansia: "Yetekaida" they all said, one after another. Mikansia took out her knife and the others helped get the truth out: the dark elves didn't really care about the reinforcements, not really. They didn't want the reinforcements to come, but not because they were worried about the siege. The humans within would have been wiped clean by the time anyone could get back. But had they known that Yetekaida had been there, they would have stopped attacking. The Lone Keep was hers, after all.
Yngvar went pale. Mikansia took him aside and questioned him. Yngvar told her the Lone Keep expected a dark messiah of sorts, someone would be the chosen of the Nameless, who would help return the Ring of Tears back to the world, away from the Nameless.
But why the hell would Mikansia be "Yetekaida"?
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