Chapter 6-Bloodlust
There was a period of time in the history of Europa known as the Dark Ages. It is known as the darkest period in the history of the entire continent, brought about by a series of events caused by the Holy Order of Hemera and the extremist Cabal. For centuries, the anti-monster Order and the monster supremacist Cabal had been embroiled in a cold war, which was basically a series of direct and indirect skirmishes between the two organizations for dominance over the world at large. For many years it was a stalemate, until the formation of the Legion, a human group formed out of retaliation against the Order's more zealous members and the violent inquisitors who were a threat to man and monster alike.
This conflict reached its climax at Bloody Sunday, which saw much of the Order's high ranking members killed in a single fireball, while the Cabal's numbers were decimated. With the two dominant powers essentially crippled, a wave of lawlessness fell upon the land. Europa had fallen into a dark period of regression as the Order became factionalized, and monsters and human bandits roamed the land pillaging unprotected villages and towns. Nations warred over resources or disputes. Men were kidnapped right out of their homes by ravenous monsters looking for a mate. The balance of power shifted more than once and no one remained on top for long.
This changed with the beginnings of strange events in what was formerly known as the land of Ea in Eastern Europa. Ea was a land divided into five territories belonging to five kingdoms. All five kingdoms had been peaceful up until a year ago, when there was a sudden influx of monsters. And not just any monsters, but those of the undead kind.
No one knows what happened, only that one of the kingdoms fell to an army of undead monsters being led by an incredibly powerful Wight. From there, the undead army spread to another kingdom, then another, and then another. Within two years, four of the five kingdoms had fallen, and were merged into a single nation made for the undead, by the undead. This monster kingdom was called Innistrad, and it was the largest monster run nation in Eos to date.
Only the kingdom of Flora remained untouched, though it was only a matter of time before Innistrad sent its army to conquer the nation. Flora only retained its independence thanks to its capital being a fortress city designed to defend against large scale sieges and capable of self-sustaining itself in times of strife. Still, monsters were a hardy bunch with a lot of tricks up their sleeve.
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The kingdom of Flora was a land that prided itself on maintaining Order values without demonizing everyone who didn't follow them as heretics. Their community was built on cooperation, fairness and dependability. Though there were many towns, much of the kingdom's power resided within their fortress city, Rosa, named after the queen who made the city into an impenetrable war machine.
The city was protected by large stone walls that were reinforced with magic and the city's army was composed of soldiers trained in various forms of combat, even anti-magic techniques against enemy mages. Knights were elite soldiers with experience who trained soldiers and led them into battle, often as commanders. There were no shortage of soldiers and knights trained in magic, along with the mages whose duties were primarily magic in nature, be it defense, offense or support.
Among these noble knights was the famous female knight Claudia Valentine. Born to a noble family, she took up the sword at a young age, deviating from the common lifestyle of nobility in order to train to defend her kingdom as a loyal soldier and knight. She trained hard in swordplay and anti-magic combat, and went through rigorous training to get to where she was now, as one of Flora's strongest female warriors. Her battlefield prowess and adoring personality had made her famous amongst her comrades and the peasantry, but her beauty also put her on the map for any suitor brave enough to even talk to her.
Claudia was a woman in her mid-thirties but had a very mature figure that many women envied. Her skin was fair and flawless, her eyes were bright blue and she had long light brown hair tied into a bun. Even the silver and gold armor she regularly wore did little to hide her strong, toned, curvaceous figure. Her armor had to be custom made in order to accommodate her large breasts, and the armor on her arms and legs hugged her muscular form, though it didn't take away from her beauty. She was a woman through and through, and many young girls aspired to be like her.
The knight was currently making her way to the church where the head priestess was waiting for her. She pushed open the doors to the church and entered the large chamber where prayers were held. Down the aisle that was layered over with soft blue carpeting, she saw the young woman serving the church performing her daily prayers.
Her name was Dru, an odd name, yes, but she refused to change it no matter who tried to persuade her, her father included. Dru wore black and white nun robes that seemed to hug her developing figure automatically no matter what she wore, and her habit did little to hide her natural beauty she inherited from her mother. Even Claudia couldn't help but take a little peek at that perky ass before the priestess bowed once to the statue of Hemera and stood up to face her.
Bright indigo eyes brightened up as she saw the knight approaching and nodded to her in greeting. "Claudia, good morning! I'm sorry for calling you over here so early in the morning. I know you were looking forward to inspecting the new recruits."
"That's okay, my lady. You must have had a good reason to call me here on such short notice." Claudia said politely. "Is there something wrong?"
"Unfortunately, there is. You have a new mission that was issued by the knight commander. He's busy scouting the outer edges of our territory after a few ghouls were spotted prowling around a town." Dru said. "This mission is one of great importance. We've received word that a province on the edge of the kingdom was just taken over by a vampire and her contingent. We don't know much about her, only that she brought down the previous lord from the inside and installed her own lich servants in places of power."
"Vampires and liches, not a good mix." Claudia frowned. They were both high-class undead monsters who were potentially powerful even without magic. The fact that she was hearing this now was troubling. "What about our regiment stationed there?"
"We've lost contact with them. It's safe to assume that they were probably one of the first people to be captured before the province was overrun. Any peasants within the area are probably also trapped within their sphere of influence as well."
"Say no more, priestess. I will take my men and go there to liberate the province myself." Claudia vowed and bowed her head. "May I have your blessing?"
"You always have my blessing." Dru smiled and laid a kiss upon Claudia's forehead. Holy energy, warm and soothing, washed over Claudia's body and filled her very being. Dru imparted her blessing upon the female knight and bowed her head. "Go with grace, noble knight. Defend our kingdom and our way of life. And please be safe."
Claudia stood up straight and smiled at the priestess. "Don't worry, my lady. I'll purge the town of the undead scourge and return safely with my humanity intact. I swear upon Hemera."
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The Zorodan Province was a small region of the kingdom that was watched over by the local governor on behalf of the royal family. Claudia knew the lord's daughter, Maribelle, when she visited the family for the summer. She was a sweet girl on the cusp of womanhood and well on her way to becoming a kind and fair duchess. Unfortunately it seemed that those dreams were just that, dreams.
Claudia led her contingent of knights and mages through the forest that led to the town the duke formerly governed. Claudia led an anti-monster contingent of soldiers, all female, who were largely immune to amorous advances of monsters and were well-equipped to fight them. Better send the women to fight monsters better equipped for seducing men instead of the male knights. That's just asking for trouble.
Looking around, she could already see that the forest had a darker air to it. The sunlight seemed dimmer and the sky was filled with dark gray clouds. There were no animals, no signs of life, not even sounds. Everything felt...dead.
"Commander?"
Claudia looked beside her to see her lieutenant, Sheila, who rode up beside her on her horse. Sharena was a young girl just getting out of her teenage years with long blonde hair tied into a braid and vibrant green eyes. Her knight armor clung to her slender form, and instead of a skirt like Claudia, she wore a pair of shorts with golden armored boots. Her spear was attached to her back, her main weapon of choice as it was enchanted by her father, who was also the royal sorcerer of Flora.
"What's wrong, Sharena? Are you nervous?" Claudia asked.
"A little bit." Sheila said, glancing around her nervously. "I'm trying not to let it get to me, but reading up about those undead monsters is starting to get to me."
Claudia reached over and patted her hand. "Be calm, Sheila, just remember your training and follow my lead when we get there."
"I know, commander. Sorry." Sheila looked at her armored hands before asking, "Commander, is it true that undead monsters are the only kind of monster capable of turning human women into more of them?"
"They're not the only ones, but yes, undead monsters are the largest known type of monster to convert women. They're similar to werewolves in a sense." Claudia said, working on her knowledge of monsters gleaned from her training. "However, they are weak to holy magic, so you shouldn't worry too much. Your spear might actually keep you safe for the duration of our mission."
Sheila smiled and looked at the glyphs along her spear, magical writings infused with energy to channel holy energy. Using it always felt like her father was protecting her. It made her braver in this dark and dreary place.
"We're nearing the town." Claudia said. "Once we leave the forest, I'll make contact with..."
Claudia, Sheila and the rest of the soldiers went silent as they exited the forest and reached the edges of the town. As expected, demonic energy permeated in the air, turning the sky dark and giving the entire area a gloomy feeling, as if walking into the cemetery. There was nothing visibly wrong with the town; no signs of a battle, no damages, nothing. The houses and streets were as clean and pristine as they could be. But there were no one to be seen. The streets were empty, houses locked and boarded closed. The people were hiding in their homes, perhaps afraid and scared of the monsters now occupying them.
Claudia didn't blame them. In the distance, atop a hill where the duke's manor once sat, was a massive castle. The tall structure was gothic in tone and design, grand enough to put the castle in Rosa to shame. It was pitch black, as if made of onyx and obsidian, and seemed to literally drain the light out of its surroundings. The town was smack dab in the middle of the shadow it casted over the land, a rather blatant way of asserting dominance over the conquered.
"My goddess," Sheila gasped. "W-Where is the duke's manor?"
"I don't think it's there anymore, Sheila." Claudia growled and turned to her soldiers. "Be on guard and keep an eye out for anything strange! We'll move on the castle at once to draw the monsters out before attacking. Keep your wits about you, we won't know what to expect from liches."
