Lepharists and Daevas

Part 1

I've spent the last five years in a Morheim cell. I was the lookout on a raid that went bad and several of us got caught. Since I was just a kid, I got the lightest sentence. It was a joke. Those people who huddle in the shadow of the fortress are sheep just waiting to be sheared. Everyone seems to be afraid of the Daevas, but I'm not. Far as I'm concerned, they're just a bunch of arrogant, stuck up, good-for-nothing flitterbys.

My people don't believe that ascension is only given to the chosen ones. We believe that anyone can become a Daeva. To that end, we have been working toward a process to allow anyone who wants to ascend the chance. Of course, that involves some sacrifice on the part of already ascended humans. Our leader is convinced that with enough research, a breakthrough is imminent.

I care not for that. I don't want to be a Daeva for as far as I can see, they aren't really good for anything except looking down on the human folk. They don't defend our lands or help us out in time of need. We've had to fend for ourselves since the Cataclysm war ended hundreds of years ago.

I guess it's pretty obvious that I'm a lepharist. I was born into the life and wouldn't have any other. My father is a captain and we live in the Halabana Outpost. It's pretty nice out here. We have plenty of land to farm on, we're close to the citadel and there are some hot springs close by. We rarely have any snow on the ground, even in the winter due to the springs, so it's warmer here than anywhere else in Asmodae.

To the west of us is a Klaw habitat. They are good eating and great sport to boot. All the young men who want to prove themselves will go out there to try and catch the biggest Klaw without getting killed. You've got to catch it, then bag it and drag it back to the camp. Klaws can sometimes grow to the size of a seven year old child, and their claws are razor sharp. So far, no one has found the queen klaw yet so the supply of food and sport will continue.

So, you really want to know if I caught one? Well, I did. On my fifteenth birthday, I went out to prove I was old enough to join the ranks. I caught one all right and a pretty struggle it was. I carry the scars of that battle across my chest. But I earned the right to be called a man, or as Mary says, a fool.

Mary is supposed to be a servant, but usually she is the boss. She keeps our household running smoothly. I don't have a mother, and father is not domestically inclined. Mary came to us as a convert but I think she just came to make my life miserable. She is constantly after to me to dress properly and mind my manners. She won't let me swear in the house, or even come in with dirty feet. She rules our house with an iron fist, and woes be to anyone who thwarts her authority.

So now that I'm home again, it's time to rejoin the ranks. My friends have all had a chance to move up and I'm starting out at the bottom. It sucks to be the oldest recruit in the guard, but what's a man to do. So I sucked it up and got down to business. I've got a natural talent with weapons and there isn't anything I can't swing well, except maybe a greatsword. I'm only 5'11 and weigh about 170 pounds of solid muscle.

My specialty is guns. We've just recently acquired a shipment that was supposed to go to Alsig Village. The first time I picked one up, I knew I had found my weapon of choice. The scholars are also looking to ahold of an aethertech machine. These are machines that one can actually sit in. I prefer to travel on my own two feet or on the back of a brax.

Today my task is to escort a prisoner to the Citadel. He's a Daeva of very low stature. We found him drunk outside of Alsig village. He was an easy capture and not really worth all that much. However, the scientists demand prisoners for their experiments, so prisoners we bring them. He's trussed up like a sack of grain and gagged so he can't spit or vomit on any of us. The trip to the Citadel takes about half a day of steady walking so we'll be able to make it back by nightfall. No one ever wants to stay at the Citadel. It's better not to ask about what goes on in there. I surely hope I don't ever get stationed there.

He's too hung over to walk, so we sling him over the back of a brax and head off. He spent the first hour moaning and squirming on the brax, so I hit him a few times with a stick and he finally shut up. I had to keep a close eye on him though as I didn't want him to choke on any vomit. I was ordered to deliver a live prisoner and that's what I aim to do. We had to stop a few times and let him dry heave. The motion of the brax was making him sick. It is disgusting, but you do what you got to do. We finally get him there and turn him over to the guard at the citadel.

We made much better time on the way back. After checking in with our commander we were free to hit up the tavern. It looks like there are a lot of men here. There also looks to be a fresh batch on slaves as well. We stop to take a look at the catch. There are plenty of men to work in the mines and about seven women as well. All of them are young and pretty. Most of the men are ogling them and making lewd comments.

The men will have an easier time of it than the women. They will have to work in the mines, but if they work hard, they will be treated all right. The women will be given as prizes to soldiers that have pleased the Commander or have done something worth reward. My mother was one such and was given to my father to use as he pleased. She tried to escape when I was a small child and was caught. She was taken to the citadel and I haven't seen her since. I suppose she either died or is a slave there.

We don't have very many women that voluntarily join us. The ratio is about five men for every woman here. That doesn't include the slaves. The women chose who they want to be with and if you make them unhappy, you can forget about any chance of having a partner for a night or for life. Since I hadn't been out of lockup very long, I took my time enjoying their beauty. After a while the prisoners were moved into the cells and my friends and I hit up the tavern and the drink.

I staggered home later that night totally sloshed. Thank the gods I didn't have the duty tomorrow, so I could sleep in. Mary wasn't up when I came through the back door, so I was able to get to my room unmolested. The following morning my father was there to see me. He looked good. I hadn't seen him since before I was imprisoned, so we had a lot of catching up to do.

My father told me about another raid that was planned. It was against Morheim Observatory. The scientist at the Citadel wanted the crystal that kept the Aetheric field up at the observatory. My squad was to provide rear guard coverage. If we could pull this off, we could protect all of Halabana Outpost without having to constantly guard the borders. Our spies reported that most of the outpost personnel were going to put down an uprising at the Mist Mane Village which would lead the outpost undefended.

It would also enrage the Morheim guard. They most likely would send a few Daevas out to put us in our places. The scientists were keen on getting their hands on more daevas. So it was a win/win for us. We get the crystal and a few more daevas to boot. That night I went over my gear. I made a few repairs to my armor and cleaned my guns. I also sharpened the two boot knives that I always carried as well. Then I was ready.

We set out the following day. We don't march like a regular army does. We go in twos and threes and sometimes singles so as not to be noticed. We don't want anyone who sees us to think 'army on the march' and report us. It took us several days to arrive at the observatory. It didn't appear to be staffed with anyone at all. My father gave us our orders and we all moved out to surround the main building.

It was too quiet. It occurred to me that this could be a trap. Morheim knows all about us and what we stand for. They've set traps before and they still have several of our people in jail. I hope the spies that told us about this are trustworthy, or else this will be the shortest offensive ever. The observatory sits on top of rocky outcrop. It's reached by a series of slabs that crisscross back and forth across the outcrop to reach the top. We would be in sight long before we would reach the building.

The assassins went up first. Their job was to take out any sentries on the walk before they could give the alarm. We had rangers stationed on adjoining hills to pick off anyone who tried to escape. There seemed to be a lot of creatures roaming around the observatory and some of them are dangerous if provoked. The assassins began to take out some of the creatures. Crap, that's bad. There was nowhere to hide the carcasses so they just let them lie where they fell. Great, just advertise that we are here.

No one came out though so I guess the place really was as empty as it appeared to be. My father gave the signal and the first group rushed up the path. They met no resistance at all. The second group began to ascend the path and that's when the trap was sprung. A hail of arrows flew out of nowhere and took out most of the men on the path. We turned just in time to meet a rush warriors that had been hiding in what seemed like open ground.

They were too close for pistol work, so I pulled out my knives and prepared to defend myself. The battle was short and brutal. Our rear guard was overrun in about 10 minutes. They had Daevas with them and those warriors wrecked death upon us from the sky. We had no chance at all to retreat. I saw several of the men fall off the hill to their deaths. I found myself in a life and death struggle with a Templar. He was big and heavy and just kept forcing me back towards the edge of small cliff.

My knives were of no use against his plate armor. In desperation, I pulled out my pistols and shot him at close range. Both shots hit him in the chest but didn't even slow him down. He charged me and we both went over the edge. I landed on my back and I hit hard. He landed on top of me and drove the rocks I was laying on into my back. I could feel blood running down my legs from the damage I took from his armor. I couldn't feel my legs so my back was probably broken. This was it then. I never thought I would die like this. The Templar pushed himself off me and stood up. He looked down at me then grinned. He drew his sword and plunged it into my chest.

The pain was incredible. I couldn't seem to catch my breath and blood bubbled up on my lips. I tried to cough but couldn't with the sword still in my chest. He stood there and watched me struggle to breath. The light was fading away and I was surprised that darkness had come so soon. I could faintly hear someone speaking, and then the Templar pulled his sword out of my chest. More blood welled up and I watched as he wiped the blood off the sword with my cloak.

He walked off and I watched him go. The light continued to dim and I finally passed out from blood loss.

To be continued…