Oh, it´s always worse. Not only hallucinations, not only hearing things, but now Silanus FEELS things. And not only Silanus, but EVERY member of the Fratis is worried; why? The dreadful Valkyries, THAT´S WHY! The corrupted Valkyries are powerful creatures, however, they´re not immortal. Charging against the whole "city" of the Fratis would be suicide, of course, so they only… They only stay there, staring… HIDING! Making the poor people suffer, the fear causes some people to even kill themselves or worse, each other!

There is unrest, oh, a TERRIBLE unrest in the garrison of the Fratis. Sometimes corpses are found in their own houses, the fishermen never return and hunters are found hanging in a tree. It´s unknown if the two corrupted Valkyries are slaying people or what, but it HAS to stop.

Valkyries were supposed to be neutral creatures, just taking the souls of the warriors who were killed in battle and sending them to a better Place. Something natural, something fair for both the soldiers and the angels. But, what happens if that unprejudiced process does not happen "according to the plan"? What if the warrior who was supposed to die IN battle, somehow lives? The Valkyrie is not happy. The soul was supposed to leave it´s mortal body, the soldier was supposed to die in battle, not survive… 

Sadly, when the soldier survives the battle, the Valkyrie stops being a common angel, and becomes a fallen one. Until they don´t claim the soul they were supposed to, they will not be able to become an angel once again. Let´s say that Valkyries HATE the idea of being a demon instead of an angel, so they will do EVERYTHING they can to claim the soul. It is THEIR soul, they OWN it. The demons, or sometimes called Corrupted Valkyries, will do ANYTHING they can. From battle, to magic, to curses… So, the Fratis are cursed with… Madness.

It´s enough, Tacitus Silanus and his fair people CANNOT live like this. If they are to live peacefully, the valkyries must DIE. Those creatures usually attack small groups of people, so, a small bait will do the trick. Silanus and 8 of his most elite soldiers travelled to the Highlands, hoping that the two Valkyries will attack them… The day was gray and covered with fog, it could be considered a spooky day… A big creature emerged from the fog: It seemed to be human, perhaps a native of the highlands, however, it had… Well, particular legs. Perhaps a satyr? Or a Faun? The Fratis did NOT believe in satyrs, they are myths created by fools! They only believe in fauns, and fauns are sacred. They represent nature, finding a faun would be… Simply great.

Girfic moved through the harsh weather, his heavy cape gaining more and more weight as snow gathered upon it, causing it to be damp, but it kept him warm and that's what mattered. His shield was to his side, the great, double-bladed axe wielded in both hands. Thankfully, his legs were those of animals made to climb mountains as easy as a fish could swim or a bird could fly, but the weather still provided a challenge, for Girfic couldn't see well; the world before him was blurry and snow was in his eyes. Sometimes he thought he saw a moving figure, but it was only a tree or a boulder. He squinted, peering through the falling snow, and noticed an opening not too far away. He put the axe to his side and jumped from rock to rock; he needed shelter as soon as possible. Finally reaching the cave, he dropped his sack and lit a small fire, the warmth and light more than pleasant in this harsh place. He took off his fur cape and laid it beside the fire, and even though he was as close as he could be without getting burned, he still felt somewhat cold. Girfic ate a small meal; a rabbit and a little bit of cheese, along with a swig of ale. When it was dry, he sat huddled beside the fire in his heavy cape, and, watching the snowstorm outside, fell asleep.

Two days had passed and he still remained in his cave. Not a single living creature he had seen, not until the storm calmed down and came to a halt. He got out, leaving the cave as unchanged as it was when he had arrived, and continued making his way forward. Night fell, and Girfic had been going for hours straight, resting little. He made camp under a tree, and after a small meal like the one in the cave, drifted into sleep. He woke up at first light, and the weather was cool. He rose and took in the view before him. This city… It must be The Fratis. The streets were empty, with a small and hardly notable movement every now and then. He started going down the mountain; not the way he had come, but towards The Fratis. The lower he got, the more mist was around the ground.

Girfic finally reached the bottom of the mountain. It must be around noon now, but he couldn't tell. The fog hid the sky and the city before him, and everything more than thirty feet away. But there was no noise from The Fratis… Not until he heard that of metal armour clinging. There must be less than ten soldiers. Gripping his axe and his shield, the Satyr carefully moved forward, and he saw them; first as dark figures like ghosts, then as they got closer, he could clearly see the eight armoured men.

He knew very little about the people of this place… Except that they were pretty good fighters. But were they aggressive ? Will they attack him ? He tightened his grip on the axe, ready to strike or block at any moment. He studied them, not saying a word. They seemed scared of something, their eyes constantly darting around, but they kept landing on him. He let out a low grunt.

The man was clearly a faun; and he seemed to be strong. Those creatures are usually seen in hills and high places, but not like this one. This hill is always in a heavy blizzard or at least a thick mist, very few people have explored this area completely. Travelers prefer surrounding the mountain to cross countries.

The hills that divided the Steppes and the Highlands did not even have a road, nor animals living there! Why is a faun wandering here? Those kind creatures not only represent nature, oh, they are also known for guiding lost travelers to a safe place! 

The soldiers did not even un-sheate their weapons, instead, Silanus placed softly his fist in his chest area, and said: "Hail, oh good faun. Truly a surprise, finding you here. Name's Silanus, and those are his 6 loyal soldiers. We seek a valkyrie, you seen one?" Silanus stopped talking and stared at the faun.

Odd noises could be heard; what did cause them? Noices like two shards of ice touching each other one time… Two times… Three, four, five times! It got closer, and closer, and even closer. As if something was behind them…

Three spikes of ice were shot at the soldiers. They were fast, and blocked them with their shields. Other spikes simply broke when they crashed against the thick steel armors. Two magical ice snakes appeared and attacked the hoard of men. They were easy to destroy, however, their speed made them very hard to hit.

The ice snakes floated in the air in a very elegant way, they almost seemed to be dancing! One of them approached one soldier, and quickly hit his face with it's ice tail. It was a minor wound, but it could have been worse.

Silanus attacked one snake with his spear and destroyed it, sharp shards of ice flew everywhere… Another soldier managed to cut another ice snake in half with his sword. The hostiles were dead, but the danger was not.

The ice mist became thicker and thicker; it was impossible to see at more than two meters! A soldier said: "It's an ambush! Where did they come from? Men, stay aler…" the man could not even finish talking before a large ice spike penetrated his face, and obviously died. 

Three more ice snakes, and now a 6 meters tall ice golem surrounded them! The soldiers raised their shields and Silanus said: "Steady, men! We can win this! You, faun! You better know how to fight, things are about to get rough"

Faun ? He was no faun. He was a Satyr. Fauns did little to no fighting. Clearly these men haven't heard of Satyrs before. He opened his mouth to speak when the two serpents attacked. Before he could react, the two were killed, and immediately three more appeared, followed by an ice giant, and the storm raged even more. Introductions didn't matter if they were going to die now, so he'd better destroy the beasts before him.

Raising his axe in both hands, he charged at the ice golem before him. His shield was now back to his side; he had no use for it, and it allowed him to have a better grip on his axe. The beast took a swipe at him, and he blocked waved his axe, sinking it in the golem's hand, creating a huge crack. The monster roared in pain, and one serpent slithered towards Girfic. Once more he waved his axe, but this time he missed. Fortunately, the blunt of the axe hit the snake, sending it sprawling in midair. The golem slashed his hand once more. It hit Girfic, sending him after the snake, which was struggling under a heap of snow. As the Satyr started to rise, the golem turned to the soldiers.

He charged once more with a yell that was drowned in the storm, and sunk his axe in the golem's right leg. He quickly pulled out his axe and swung it again, this time severing the monster's leg. As the monster fell, it swung its arms wildly, and one hit Girfic as he raised his axe. Girfic fell to the ground, his axe embedded in the monster's arm. The monster gave a wild jerk, freeing the axe, which fell right beside the now unconscious Satyr.

Silanus yelled at two of his soldiers: "Hey, you two! Get your distance and fire your crossbow bolts at the golem!" He then gave a new order to other two soldiers: "And you, destroy the two remaining snakes! The rest of us will take down the golem by melee!" The crossbowmen readied their weapons and the other two soldiers charged against the snakes.

The Satyr did a good job taking down one snake and damaging the golem, but it was now time for professionals to fight. The 3 soldiers, led under Tacitus Silanus, flanked the golem. One to the left, the other one attacked in the right and Silanus and his trooper attacking in the front.

Crack! One bolt was shot against the golem, which hit his thick shoulder. Crack! Another shot, this time in the face. The flanking soldiers hacked their sword many times, until finally causing minor slashes; short swords aren't the best weapon against a golem… The golem berserked and with his damaged arm, he crushed the soldier to his right. The poor sod had a quick, almost painless death…

Two more bolts were shot at the golem, this time staggering it. Silanus' sword arm began to glow, as he did cast a spell to become physically stronger. While he was preparing his spell, the golem sent the soldier next to Silanus flying some meters away with a strong hit. Of course, he will live, but he was unable to fight for now.

The final attacks were about to start. More crossbow bolts were shot at the golem, and the soldiers who finished killing the snakes threw their javelin spears at it. The golem was overwhelmed! Silanus finished casting his spell, which made him extremely strong. Tacitus spinned to gain "momentum" and slashed the golem's thick leg, causing a strong cut. The leg was not completely cut, but it was an excellent hit.

The man to the left managed to pierce part of the monster's leg with his sword, which distracted the golem. The ice golem was about to attack him, but Silanus jumped and stabbed the golem's head with his steel sword. Now, the golem was lying on the ground, dead. Silanus took a heavy breath and said to his troopers: "You did… An outstanding job. Someone bury Gaius and someone take care of Spurius, he's wounded. The rest of us will build a small camp, oh, and help the faun too. He helped us."

One man buried the dead soldier Gaius, while anoter one took care of the wounded soldier. Everyone else was makng a camp with simple tents and bedrolls they carried. Then, they took the Satyr to it, so he could rest.

They were sailing in the middle of the sea. The sky was brilliant blue, dotted with clouds. The waves were gentle, hitting the ship, The Carcass, and white foam rebounded off her prow. The sail was up and the crew were relaxing on the deck, watching the beautiful, blue sea, as the wind moved The Carcass Southeast. They weren't far from the Vilpamolan Coast from which they had sailed, but it was fading from sight.

The sun was close to setting. The waves were still calm as ever, and the sky  was purple. The crew were watching the beautiful scene of the huge sphere of light sinking into the water. There were many myths surrounding the sunsets, but one thing they all could agree upon; it was indeed a truly beautiful sight.

The pleasure, however, did not last for long, for another great ship came into sight…. She seemed to have crept upon them, for none has noticed her until she was thirty feet away and the captain and his first mate were bellowing orders. They came onto The Carcass, and the crew barely had any time to draw their weapons. Girfic was without his axe. He raised his shield in one hand and lunged for the axe, but by the time he had grabbed it, fighting had already broke out and three men were bleeding heavily; one from The Carcass and two from the enemy. Yelling, he charged at an enemy with an extremely handsome face, and he awoke from the recurring nightmare with a start.

The Satyr found himself in a sleeping bag. It wasn't very comfortable, and it was on the ground, inside some kind of a tent. There was a lamp that emitted dim light near the portable bed, along with a jug of water and a plate of food; fruits and a loaf of bread. Before he could take in the rest of his surroundings, Girfic felt a throbbing pain in the back of his head. Where was he ? What happened ? There was some sort of light from outside; firelight, and the shadows of men was on the canvas. He slowly rose and walked to the entrance, hesitated for a moment, then stepped into the entrance.

There were several men, seated around a fire, talking and drinking and eating. He was about to exit the tent when he remembered something; his shield and his axe ! Girfic whipped around and scanned the tent, and his eyes landed on the shield and the axe propped against the brown canvas. He slung his shield over his back and placed the axe to his side. The Satyr left the tent. Upon seeing the armour of the people before him, and the mountain looming ahead, he remembered where he was, and that he was probably knocked out by the monster he was fighting. Girfic saw the man that greeted him before the skirmish and walked over to him, heeding no other being, and sat down beside him.

"Well ?" He half said half asked, a little too gruffly, "What's going on ? Who are you ?" He looked into the soldier's eyes, and firelight was reflected in all eight pairs of eyes; the seven soldiers' and Girfic's.

Oh, he was finally awake… For a brief moment, the men thought the warrior was in coma or something; Silanus looked at the satyr with a neutral look and spoke: "You're not a very thankful one, now are you? You're welcome for not letting you freeze in the middle of a mountain…" said the soldier, with a veeery sarcastic voice tone.

One of the troopers served a special drink in a goblet which had grape wine, honey, sugar and extra alcohol. He then offered the drink to the Satyr, saying: "Here, drink this. Try to drink it slowly, it's rather a powerful alcoholic drink." The trooper then sat in a log around the campfire.

Silanus licked his almost freezing lips and removed his steel, red plumed helmet, leaving it on the ground nearly. He then talked once again: "That was a dangerous assault, wasn't it? The casualities were minimal, but it could have been worse… Name's Silanus, and those are the loyal men who proudly serve the Fratis. It's been an honour to meet you, faun."

Silanus saw how a trooper walked nearby and sat next to them. The soldier then said: "Sir, the soldier Gaius informs us that there is a stone statue nearby, with a sanctuary. There are native monks there. Shall we ask them information the… Valkyries?" Silanus answered: "It's very likely that they know something. Tear down the camp, we're leaving…" the soldier then walked away to inform his comrades.

Silanus sighted and looked back at the satyr. With an unproud voice tone he said: "Silanus regrets to say that you have visited us in the worst of times. We are in hunt for a corrupted valkyrie, a hard mission… You can walk away if you like, but you are welcome to join us… Anyways, how are you named?' Asked the commander.

"Ergh… Thanks" He muttered gruffly.
Girfic sat around the fire, and accepted the drink thankfully, nodded his thanks to the soldier, then took a swig. It was a good drink, and obviously stronger than the ale he was used to, but being a Satyr, it made him only slightly drunk. It was sweet and was golden with a strong tint of dark red… Mead. Girfic had tasted mead only once or twice before in his life, before The Carcass had sunk.

"That mead's splendid. Magnificent indeed." He exclaimed before taking another swig. He listened to Silanus.. Faun ? He was no faun. Fauns didn't fight. Fauns didn't wield axes. Fauns didn't sail on ships. Fauns live in forests and are more peaceful than a narcissus (daffodil), unless angered, of course, but even then they themselves don't fight, but they call onto the powers of nature. But Satyrs were different. Sure, they might looks similar, and they both might love nature, but Satyrs never have horns, and they wield weapons.

The Satyr laughed roughly and turned to Silanus.
"Girfic, last survivor of the blight." He paused for a couple of seconds, then went on. "And a faun I am not, for fauns have horns and wield weapons, but I am a Satyr, and I shall accompany you, for I owe you a life."

Girfic took another swig of ale and stared into the embers in the fire. He always liked the way they looked.

When Silanus saw the satyr enjoying the special wine. It was no mead, but who cares how Girfic calls the beverage, the only thing that mattered was the fact that he liked it. Silanus carefully listened to the man. The commander thought to himself: "His name is Girfic, and he is the last survivor of a blight…" The satyr said something confusing, that fauns have horns and wield weapons, so that he is a satyr. Quite odd, since Girfic was wearing a huge axe, perhaps he was just drunk?

Silanus looked at the bottle the trooper left before, the bottle containing the special wine. He grabbed it and took a very small sip… Oh… What a wonderful beverage. Girfic offered to accompany the party of soldiers and hunt the fearsome valkyrie. "What a brave faun." Thought the commander. He still did not understand that Girfic was not a faun, but he knew NOTHING about satyrs, so claiming that the man is a satyr is like claiming a lizard is a dragon, or atleast that´s what Tacitus Silanus was thinking.

A soldier came walking with a big leather backpack in his back and said to Tacitus Silanus: "Sir, the men are ready. Are we taking the faun fighter with us or he chose to leave?" Silanus looked at the soldier and answered: "His name is Girfic, and he gladly accepted to accompany us. We´re moving, we need to find the valkyries before a new blizzard occurs…" The soldier nodded and walked towards the crew of soldiers, ready to leave. 

Silanus stood up and spoke to Girfic: "Very well, the Fratis is proud to have you fighting by our side, Girfic. Let´s go, the valkyries shouldn´t wait a lot for us, hah!" The commander extended his hand to Girfic, in order to help him standing up.

The Satyr noticed his mistake only too late; for he said that fauns did weild weapons, but that didn't matter now. In a single swig, he drained the tankard of mead to a mouthful and placed it roughly on the ground before him. A soldier came eand asked if Girfic was coming, but Silanus answered for him.
"Satyr." He muttered gruffly.

Girfic looked for a moment at the hand before him, then gripped it tightly and rose, knocking the tankard to its side, spilling what remained of its contents on the rough ground. He went to his tent and emerged a minute later, his belongings in a bag over his shoulder, his shield to once side, his axe in another.

"Ready to go." Girfic spoke to the soliders. The firelight was reflected in their weapons and in their armour, and certainly his shield and axe as well. He glanced over the mountains, where the air was shifting, then he saw a dark being rising into the air. And just as the satyr realized what the monster was, the great dragon let out a deafening roar. It started to fly towards them, then as the Satyr pulled out his axe, ready to charge, then the beast let out another roar, not one of anger, but of fear, then started plummeting to the ground, dead.

The first of the valkyries has arrived, coated in armour, great black wings spread and flapping.