Talwater didn’t acknowledge her further as he strode forward to meet with the Admiral and other captains. Val wondered if he would still be alive at the end of this. She wouldn’t put it past the Admiral to kill all who defied him or even had hints of descent. Val made her way to the room she had stayed in previously, and after ensuring the four men guarding her door were in place, she barred it from the inside and sat on the floor. She needed counsel and only Lilith was here to provide it. It took her longer than she wanted to reach the peaceful mindset needed to interact with the starry meadow. When she did, there was little peace within. The stars above were dim and the tree line was brown and the leaves fading. The grass had turned to charred ash and cracks ran the length of the meadow. “Lilith?” Val called. It was a long moment before Lilith materialized. “I am sorry, Val. It is all I can do to maintain this place. You are almost out of Scath units. You were already low but tr

As he passed her, the rune blade came free from his arm and he fell into the spinning blades with a sickening scream that was cut short suddenly. Val cracked her head on the metal support and dangled from her one remaining safely strap a few feet above the spinning blades of death while her head swam in pain and dizziness. It took a long moment before Val could muster the strength to pull herself back up onto the catwalk. She sat on the metal walkway staring at the dark Scath that kept the Luna Marra in the air but finally gave up the notion. The cage seemed to have built-in defenses that would make it difficult for her to kill one and, for now, she had other things to do. She finally got to her feet and climbed the ladder to the main deck of the pier and quickly found the flag near the center. Val looked around and realized this was the main docking Pier, so there was next to nothing to hide behind. However, there was a cable that connected this pier to the dry dock pier two. Val l

The fall to the streets of the Luna Marra would have been quick enough. What Val was not prepared for was the rush was she fell through a wide opening she had not been aware existed. It was a surreal feeling seeing the underside of the Luna Marra flying away from her as she fell through open nothingness. Her braids whipped across her face as the Luna Marra grew smaller.[13000 feet, impact in 50 seconds]Oh for fuck sake. Val thought darkly as she helplessly fell from the sky.[12,000 feet][11,000 feet][10,000 feet. Impact in 30 seconds]What a shit way to go.Val’s short life flashed before her and she thought over the decisions that had led to this point. Some things she might do differently, but the one thing she would change now was that she would have made sure Grakcus was good and dead. Never leave an enemy that could come back to kill you.She wondered what the Ancients would-Ancients…

Valkyrie waited until the staff sergeant was gone before locking herself into the treasure room. This would take more than just the elements so she sat cross-legged on the floor and sought the calm peace of mind needed to reach the starry meadow. She just hoped Lilith would still be able to help her.After a few minutes of meditation, Val slipped into the dream-like state and found herself on a dusty plain. She looked around and realized the meadow grass had died and the trees in the distance were bare as if it were deep winter.“Lilith?”“Yes, child?” Came Lilith’s tired voice from behind her.“I see I need to hurry.”“Indeed. I fear that it will cost more than you can know to maintain what is left. You must hurry.”“Lilith, I will be heading out tomorrow. Before I go, I have the ingredients for a follower spark. Well, six actually. Is there enough left of the spark matrix to activ

Valkyrie Black stepped off the Sea Banshee and made her way down the pier, escorted by ten marines in front and twenty behind. Tarra seemed glued to her hip as they entered the city. “Tarra, this is where we part ways.” The girl turned to look at her, her face pale and bloodless. “Alone? You are just sending me on alone? What about bandits, or, or, more pirates?” The tremble in her voice nearly made Valkyrie drop what she was planning and escort the girl herself. “Tarra, I am not sending you alone, nor empty-handed. Marine Major Gunner will be escorting you with some of his best men. I think your father will also find the crate you return with to be sufficient dowry to see you comfortable for the rest of your days. And, who knows, perhaps I will see you again the next time I need to travel between Durres and Surret.” “When will that be?” Tarra asked, a bit of hope returning with the color to her face. Val thought about it, “Well, if everything goes according to plan, I will head b