Vengeance Without Redemption or Glory.

[ArbitraryApe]

A group of elves hurried down along the road as arrows whistled past them over head from behind, as archers fired upon the wretched blackbloods that were trying to drag their wounded away from the caravan. A few cries of agony and rage escaped their miserable and unworthy mouth's before they fell dead to the ground. Those that weren't taken down by the arrows were quickly disposed off by the group of elves as they reached the wagons belonging to the caravan.

The air was thick with death and the bitter sweet stench of blood. Corpses of both man and orc lie scattered around the caravan. The elf appearing to be the leader of the party motioned to his group to search the battlefield. He cried out "Amelwynithiel!" his voice trembling with worry. A few moments later the men in his party reported back and told him that there was no sight of her, his beloved daughter. But with bitter looks they told him that they had found his son-in-law, alive. They hurried over to the wagon in the front of the caravan and lead him to the bloodied body of his daughter's husband. He'd been dragged out from under the wagon and into the light of day and the elves were attempting to attend to his wounds. Even though clad in steel his stomache had been ripped open and his innards were barely being kept in place by his own feeble grasp and the elves saw to him. The elderly elf kneeled down next to him and grabbed him by the shoulders and pulled him up into a sitting position.
The man coughed out blood and groaned in agony. The elf then slapped him accross the face and roared at him, "Where is she?! Where's my daughter?!". The man looked up upon his father-in-law as tears ran down his cheeks making a path through the blood and grime as he uttered the words "They... Took her...". The elderly elf attempted to draw his dagger from its sheath crying out in anger. Two of the other elves grabbed him and pulled him away from the mangled man before he had a chance to finish what the foul orc had started.

The elder ordered some of his scouts into the Nether Mountains to track down his daughter. He then gazed at the bloodied body of his son-in-law with a disgusted glare and cursed in the elven tongue. His men loaded the bodies of the dead caravan guards onto one of the wagons and the mangled body of his son-in-law into another. And began to prepare the horses pulling the wagons for the journey towards Sundabar, the closest settlement. Before they began to ride the elder climbed into the wagon of his son-in-law and whispered to him as he glared hatefully at him, "Kalek, dont you dare die, now! May the gods have mercy on you if you do, for I will have none! I'll have you resurrected so I can slay you a thousand times myself you wretch!". He then stormed out of the wagon before Kalek had a chance to reply. Kalek coughed up some blood and whimpered quietly to himself as the wagons began to move.

[ArbitraryApe]

The cold wind blew with a whine through the small clearing wich hid a small company of armed men. With hushed and low voices they murmured between themselves with tired expressions. They whispered about their disaproval of the expedition's length and how they should've turned back long time ago.

On the edge of the clearing a man in fullplate with a thick wolfskin on his back was kneeling, looking down the side of the mountain down towards a small patch of forest that look like any other ordinary small patch of forest. The only thing different being that there was a cave entrance in there where the last trace of the group of orc that had kidnapped his wife had been picked up by his hired ranger. His chest felt heavy as they had been sitting there for a day and a half in the cold waiting for the ranger to return, was he dead? Or simply stuck, hiding from the orc?

It didn't matter, they would wait till first light the next day before they would began their retreat from the mountain back to Everlund. The thought of not finding his missing wife from this last gamble sent a cold jolt of misery along his spine, his heart aching with guilt and loss, his knees felt weak and he leaned himself against the rock next to him keep himself upright. Even though they had gone through several smaller tribes of orcs and laid waste to their homes and ending their miserable existances, it hadn't brought him any of the solace or relief that he had hoped for. He furrowed his brow and rested his forehead in his hand and groaned quietly to himself.

The mercenary leader made his way past his men toward the man with the wolven fur cloak, the cold wind biting at his face. He kneeled down next to him placing his hand on the mans shoulder. "Kalek, we've waited here for a day and a half already, he's either dead or he's run off by now. We should get out of here before the orc find us." He said with a concerned expression.
Kalek glanced at him for a brief moment eyeing him and then looked back down at the forest patch with a grim look on his face saying nothing.
The mercenary leader, was a tall burly man with a rugged fullfaced red beard with streaks of gray, Frigvold was his name. Frigvold snorted and spat down the steep slope infront of them and grunted. "We've already stayed longer then we originally agreed too. This expedition is getting too dangerous and most of the boys wish to live long enough to spend the plunder we've gathered so far." Kalek gritted his teeth and then faced Frigvold giving him a long hard look before he replied with a frustrated voice. "I'll double everyones pay as well as reward you with my share of the loot if you and your men follow this through." He then lowered his head staring at the ground with a pained look on his face as he knew this would ruin whats left of his family's wealth. He then muttered prayers for the rangers safety and for his hasty return.
Frigvold grinned greedily and nodded to him. "Very well then.... I'll inform the men. Im sure I can persuade them to stay a little longer . But we're only staying here for another two day at the most. Then we're leaving with or without you." The burly mercenary stood himself up and walked down to his men giving them the news. Some cheered faintly while others groaned and reluctantly agreed to remain.

Kalek sat himself down, his back against the rock facing the company of sellswords. They'd been at this since his recovery a few months back. He knew they were all fatigued and weary of battle from every skirmish and smaller battle they'd fought against the orc until now. There's roughly two dozen left of them now, a dozen less then they were at the start of the expedition. If it hadn't been for his reputation and all of his family's wealth as well as the rangers skill wich had seen them past plenty of ambushes and trouble, they would've deserted long ago. He'd better still be alive Kalek thought. If this had all been for nothing he'd go insane.

He leaned himself against the rock resting his eyes for a bit. A scream startled him and he quickly rose to his feet and spotted all the orcs that were coming at them from all sides. Arrows whistled through the air and man and orc alike died all around in a desperate struggle for survival.
Kalek reached for his sword, but couldn't find it. The wind whined past the wagons and he felt his body freeze and he looked down only too realise that he was naked. With a feeling of impotence rushing through his body he fell to his knee's as the orcs slaughtered his men all around him. He could hear her screaming his name and he tried to call out too her but his lips appeared to have frozen shut. Out of the corner of his eye he spotted something huge and he turned to face it and saw the visage of a massive orc, a specimen truly impressive for its race with muslces bulging beneath it's chainmail. It wielded a large two-handed bearded axe wich it rose over its head and with a malevolent grin swung down with all of its masculine might, striking him in the abdomen.

His body spasmed and his eyes opened up wide and he flailed his arms in panic at the monstrosity before him. "Calm down, Kalek. Its me!". At the sound of the ranger's voice he calmed himself down somewhat and rubbed his eyes making the blurriness go away. His body ached and he stiffly stood himself up with a groan, his entire body feeling like it had been cast in ice. He shivered and looked over the ranger with a faint smile. The sky was dark now, he must've slept for atleast a few hours he thought to himself.
"You had that dream again?" asked the ranger.
Kalek nodded with a grim look on his face. "Ive already had Frigvold assemble the men. The orcs sent out a warband not long ago and it blocked my path so I couldn't make my way back. They sent out almost all of their warriors. My guess is that they are going to attack one of the neighbouring clans. If we move now we should be able to raid their lair without much resistance." He patted Kalek on the shoulder and made his way towards the mercenaries. He always went straight to the point and spent little time with small-talk that ranger. He never did tell anyone his name either, wich Kalek thought was odd.

"She better be there...." Kalek whispered to himself and followed the ranger.
Frigvold ordered the company to move out and they all begin to make their way towards the small forest patch accross the valley.
They had walked for a good hour or so at a slow pace to in order to make less noise as they moved through the dark. The ranger was nowhere to be seen as he was a long ways ahead of the company to make sure no orc guards that did see them ever made it back to the others.
Frigvold ordered the company to a halt with a few handgestures. Everyone kneeled down in silence. The ranger squatted down beside Frigvold and exchanged a few words with him. Kalek and none of the others even saw the ranger approach them and only saw him when he began to talk to Frigvold. They were likely close to the cave entrance Kalek thought to himself but it was hard too see anything at all as little light pierced through the canopy of the small but dense patch of forest. Frigvold made a few handgestures in silence, from what he had picked up over the months Kalek knew he ordered the crossbowmen something.
The crossbowmen quietly stood themselves up and took aim whereas the ranger dissappeared into the shadows again. The mercenary leader then made another hand gesture that told the two magelings to get ready.
A moment passed and they all sat there in silence. Frigvold then raised his arm and swung it forward. The two magelings began to read from their books and chanted out words Kalek couldn't even begin to comprehend.
A few grunts and alerted shout could be heard infront of the company not ten paces away. The magelings finished their spells and the area infront of them, lit up as two shining orbs flew over their heads. The five or so orc guards infront of them drew their weapons looking bewildered
"Fire!" Frigvold cried out and the crossbowmen let loose a volley killing three of them instantly. The two other turned around and tried to flee but were struck by two arrows in the back of their necks that might as well have been fired simultaneously as they both hit their marks with little time between each arrow.
"Swordsmen! Lets send these beasts to the hells!" Frigvold shouted and drew his blade as the men charged into the cave with their swords drawn, Kalek at the front with Frigvold. The surviving orc nearby the entrance fled back into the cave their cries echoed through the cave.
The company reached a room wich was empty with a fire in the middle. It was clear that the orcs had fallen back to regroup. The cave wreaked of the stench of orc filth and refuse. The room had two exits and Frigvold ordered half of the men to Kalek and the rest to himself. "We'll fall back here if things go awry!" Frigvold called out and pressed his men forward through the left doorway. Kalek motioned those under his command to follow him as he ran through the door way.
They entered a long hallway wich like the room before wasn't a natural cave formation. The orc here must've dug their way in to make a home or butchered whoever had mined here before their arrival.
They made their way down the hallway and ran into no resistance, they passed a few smaller rooms wich looked like they had been recently abandoned. As they cleared the last room, battlecries and weapons smashing into both flesh and shield alike echoed further ahead. Frigvold mustve ran into resistance. Kalek and those who followed him hurried down the hall in hopes of reaching Frigvold and his men to support them.

They had kicked in the door and surged in only to be surrounded shortly thereafter by a huge worn looking orc and his band of warriors, they were likely a rear guard left behind to protect their home while the warband was off fighting the neighbouring clan. Frigvold urged his men to fight on as the orcs harried them from all sides in the centre of the cavern. They were slowly being killed off one by one and wouldnt last long. After a few short moments of dogged fighting Frigvold found himself trying to fight off the elder orc with its giant wooden cudgel.

The orc repeatedly smashed at his shield, his arm felt like it'd break with every blow. His shield began to splinter and crack as he continued to block of the relentless strikes of the huge orc."To the hells with you, you inbred mountain pig of a (germbag)!" He cried before spitting at the orc, feeling that he wouldn't last much longer as he wasn't able too even strike back at it.
A few more of his men had been slain. They screamed for aid or their gods before the orc sent them to the hells. "Kaaaalek! You bastard! Where are you!". Frigvold cried out shortly before the cudgel crushed through his shield and splintered it and broke his arm and forced him down onto his back. The orcs growled triumphantly as they began to overrun Frigvold and his men.

[ArbitraryApe]

The wounded lie scattered around the hall groaning from the agony and strain of battle. The few wounded orcs were being finished off. Grunting or cursing at their killers before they were disposed off. Frigvold's arm was being taken care of by one of his men. "Took your sweet time Kalek!" He said bluntly his eyes following Kalek's back watching him dispose of the orc.
Kalek glanced over his shoulder just after he'd plunged his sword into the chest of an orc and grinned at Frigvold. He then motioned the mercenaries to advance down the hall to secure the door further in.
The elder orc lay dead on the floor amidst his warriors with several bolts in his back. Any normal orc or man would've died from them alone but the orc had managed to fight on, taking down one more man and injuring another before Kalek had made his way up behind him and breaking it's spine with a heavy blow from his greatsword.

The men made their way down the next to the door at the end of the hall past the room where the fight took place, Kalek catched up with them before they kicked it in. As they charged in ready for battle they were met by meagre resistance wich was swiftly dealt with before they realised they'd entered the last room, where the orc had hid their women and children. The handful of orc that had attacked them as they barged in had been mothers and their children began to wail and cry as their mothers met a gruesome end.

Kalek felt sickly when he realised his wife was nowhere to be seen, he'd thought the orc had defended their loot and slaves wich had been why they had fought so hard. A hand then began to tug at his leg and he looked down only too see one of the orc females lie there with tears in her eyes, blood staining her clothes. She said something in their wretched tongue but he couldn't understand what she was trying too say before he noticed her eyeing the children and then back too him with a pleading look in her eyes. He gritted his teeth and kicked her arm away before plunging his sword into her head, her face forced into a horrific grimace that nothing that was alive could make, as the blow of his sword distorted her facial features into a bloody mess.

The mercenaries had begun to secure the children in the corner of the room where they seemed to have slept as there was only a cauldron in the centre and beddings spread along the sides of the room. Kalek made his way over to the cornered children hatred gnawing away at his heart his hands trembling with rage as his quest too save his wife was now nothing but a failure as this had been the place where the last track had lead to.
"What do we do with them?" Asked one of the mercenary crossbowmen, his weapon pointed at the children who were terrified and crying. "Kalek glanced at Frigvold who shrugged and then eyed Kalek back, "It's your expedition Kalek..." He said and awaited the answer.
"Kill them, they'll only grow up to be like their parents, vile wretched creatures." He said with a cold stare and the slaughter began.

The men took what little of worth the orc had and made their way out and began the long journey home. The mercenaries were cheering as they could finally go home to feast and carouse for months to come with the money and loot they had made from the expedition. Kalek walked at the front with the ranger with a hollow expression. The ranger didn't say a word the entire journey, they'd simply given eachother a nod just before Everlund before the ranger had gone his way.

The years that came afterwards, Kalek spent trying to recover financially and emotionally as he knew he'd never see her again and that her father would forever hate him and never forgive him for his failure.
He began to make a name for himself around the merchant routes too and from Everlund working as a caravan guard or bodyguard for merchants. And the local waukeenite priesthood often praised him during their sermons and meetings and usually sent merchants in need of protection his way.

Even though he had hoped to find news of his wife along the trade routes, no such thing ever came to be and he began to travel further and further from Everlund in search of anything.

[ArbitraryApe]

As the years went on he had begun to travel between Everlund and the Sword Coast. Both guiding and protecting caravans and sometimes aiding them financially, so as to spread the availability of goods in the region in the name of his goddess Waukeen. He found himself on the Sword Coast for quite long extended periods of time, meeting all sorts of folk friend and foe alike. He never really meddled in local politics unless it meant helping trade, he'd object to any sanctions made on trade that would limit or hinder it. In hopes that what little authority the clergy of Waukeen had given him would atleast have some influence on the trade of the region.

But he would find himself returning home to Everlund quite often, leaving the Sword Coast when the ghosts of his past became to heavy to bare in foreign lands. He'd catch up with the letters sent to his family's home written by his younger brother Ardelle and his younger sister Vurnea and send out letters in hope that they'd reach them sometime within a year. Wich was an optimistic thought at best as they were usually out to sea in their merchants ship "The Hardy Oxen" transporting goods for profit between the harbours along the Sword Coast to the Sea of Swords and sometimes going as far south to Calimport and other ports in the Shinig Sea.

And now he finds himself in the Sword Coast again.