text: war where they should've pressed an attack and took territory. Their fate is probably sealed at this point. Only a matter of time, assuming the ED keeps with it's policy of total conquest, and doesn't fuck it up. Anyway don't get me started on how I nearly got dragged into serving on both sides of that conflict."
  
  "Okay, but how about another proposal?"
  "I'll bite. What is it?"
  "Well, as you know I'm going to be here awhile looking after my mother, but I need something to do. Rask still has areas of it that are largely unexplored. I sort wondered if you'd like to come with me on an adventure in this very area."
  "Oh? And where would this place be? Most of the places you're speaking of involve mountains, and as bored as I am, I'm not about to go dragging my ass up a fucking mountain."
  "Ha ha, nah not the mountains, though it still might involve a little bit of climbing."
  "Okay, so where?"
  "The Wendigo Hills."
  
  Now there's name that's spoken of in only whispers nowadays in Rask. Everyone knows about it and doesn't speak about it, let alone go near it, from humans to ogres and even the few giants still left. Ever since you wiped them out forty five years ago, there have been little problems from those evil spirits. Years later after you first left Rask you heard the various villages got their holy men together to perform some sort of ritual to make sure none of the spirits managed to ever escape from those cursed hills ever again. Of course every once in a blue moon some unfortunate idiot... usually an adventurer gets himself possessed and no expense is spared in hunting down the creature and destroying it.
  
  Now it looks like Ulivik is intent on being that new unfortunate idiot.
  
  "Have you lost your fucking mind, because if you haven't, then you will if you go there and that's if you're lucky. I went to that blasted place once, I had a company of soldiers with me and I was in my prime. I barely got out of that place alive and you know what happened to the few soldiers that survived with me? Four of them ultimately committed suicide from their nightmares and the other two got discharged and thrown in the asylum for just going batshit insane. No, I'm not going and if you got any sense, you won't either. That place does shit your mind. The spirits there are pure evil, and they are not to be trifled with."
  "No, I have a remedy for that! Look at these!" Ulivik says and produces two amulets with a faint blue glow.
  
  "Let me guess, these things are magical and they're supposed to protect us from getting possessed."
  "Correct! Even when I was little, I heard there was supposed to be great treasure in those hills. Nobody has ever had the skill to go in there and claim it, but I want to be the first because I truly feel like I'm ready now. You're the about the one who has traveled the most in those hills and survived. You would be a great help and we can even share whatever we find! Come on, it'll be like old times!"
  
  "Old" being the key word here. While you were wondering if you were becoming more complacent in your old age, you aren't sure if going to the Wendigo Hills is something you want to do just to prove "you still got it."
  > help Ulivik
  Ulivik may be an accomplished warrior now, but out of all the tales he's told you about his adventures; he still hasn't faced anything like the wendigos and he's going to get himself killed or worse if he goes into this with just the hope of some magic bauble around his neck. As much as you're loathed to go through this again, you decide to help Ulivik.
  
  "Alright I'll go, but as soon as I think we're in a shitload of danger that we can't handle, you better listen to me, because this isn't going to be the fun adventure you think it's going to be. Understand?"
  "Sure, but I really don't think it's going to be as bad as all that."
  "No, it'll probably be worse. Now if you don't mind I'm going to get some sleep and get my mind focused on this fool's task."
  "Fool's task? You're coming with me."
  "Yeah, which says more about my own foolishness than yours, because you don't know any better. I know we got these magic amulets or whatever, but these...  things are going to try to get inside your head and if they succeed, it's all over. If that happens to you, I won't hesitate to put a sword through your head, and I expect you to do the same."
  "Ha ha you'd kill me so easily?" Ulivik laughs, but you're in no mood.
  "Hello, I don't believe we've met... by the gods have you remembered nothing of the stories of my past? Of course I'd fucking do it so easily! I've killed innocent men and their entire families just because they disagreed with how the Empire was doing things, hell I even killed one of my Eternal brothers because of it. Wouldn't be anything to kill someone who was turned into a mindless beast even if... "
  
  You stop yourself right there.
  
  "Even if what?" Ulivik asks.
  "Even if... he's too stupid to see this is a really bad idea! Anyway, I'm ranting and I'm tired. I'm going to bed, you can let yourself out. And don't say that I don't have to go, because I'm already committed now. I gave you my word as an Eternal."
  
  Ulivik knows when you say something like that, you're being serious, so he just nods and tells you he'll be by tomorrow morning before leaving. As for you, you head off to bed with a myriad of thoughts going on in your head.
  
  "Can't believe I nearly said he was like a son to me. What the fuck am I thinkin' about? Better get your head in the game old man, because wendigos are going to thrive on that. They live on weakness." You mumble before drifting off to sleep.
  
  The next morning you and Ulivik set off for the infamous Wendigo Hills. Along the way, you go on about your own major conflicts with them, even when they were originally just thought to be people infected with lycanthropy like the rest of the old barbarian tribes around Rask. Ulivik listens to you in fascination like he did when he was much younger as you've never spoken of your experience with the wendigos before to him except in passing. It's good to know he's still listening.
  
  "So after that battle, no wendigo has ever left those hills?" Ulivik asks.
  "Eh, we had a couple that still managed to snag bodies and kill a few people before being brought down and exorcised by some of the local hedge wizards we recruited later, but that was mainly due to people idiotically still going into the hills in the first place. Sort of like what we're doing." You say.
  "But if they're spirits can't they just float about possessing people?"
  "You'd think so, but for whatever reason they can't leave these the hills in pure spirit form, they need a body. That's why when they're killed they immediately try to hop into a new one or else they get pulled back to the hills. Dunno why, and I don't think anyone's bothered to learn the history either. Everyone's just glad they were deprived of nearly all of their bodies by a certain Eternal decades ago."
  "Ha ha, but what about animals? Couldn't they just possess animals and leave the hills that way?"
  "Always wondered that myself, but again if they could I'd imagine they'd still be a major threat. Besides, when I traversed those hills I didn't see a single animal, not one, of course I assumed that they probably ate them all. The wendigo are basically consumption and hunger in its purest form. They aren't big thinkers in the scheme of things and it's fortunate that they never organized past their barbarian tribal hosts."
  "Sounds like it, but if they are all spirits as you say, then we shouldn't experience any physical combat at all and with these amulets and our steel trap minds we should be fine! We might even find some sort of ancient lore about how the wendigos came to be tied to those hills!"
  "Well you're as optimistic as ever. I suppose that's good, it'll keep your mind better prepared when the wendigos try to oppressively crush your free will. Y'know, now that I think about it, I think that's what partially saved me. My mind was so dedicated to the Empire back in those days, the wendigos were trying to crush something that wasn't really my own to begin with."
  "And now?"
  "Now? I got my impenetrable cynicism to protect me, which I'll definitely put more stock in than this ridiculous magical amulet that'll undoubtedly fail to do anything."
  "Looks like you're off to a good start with your cynicism."
  
  The after a couple days of travel, you eventually make it to the base of the Wendigo Hills. The markings and warning signs line stretch up, down and all the way around as far as you know. No real physical barriers of course, but even those dumb ass ogres that can't read know better than to pass the line. Of course they usually knew better to begin with, which proves that they're smarter in that respect. You take a deep breath and step past the markings and make your way up the forested hills.
  
  It's at this point your amulet starts to glow a brighter blue, Ulivik claims "that's how you know that it's working!" Great. Still, you don't hear any sinister whispers yet, but there is still that dead silence you remember. As if nothing living is here.
  
  Ulivik, mentions that he found a crude and well worn map of some of the Rask area during his trip through Eternal Dominion lands and wants to explore some ruins that are clearly marked on it. You mention you haven't been here in a long time, but you don't remember ever seeing any, so you can't be as of much help as he might've thought. Ulivik says he doesn't care though, he's just glad to have you along.
  
  "That map is probably old Empire. Like really old Empire, and much might've changed since then. It could also be inaccurate to begin with."
  "Yeah, that's true, but we might as well find out. It's the journey, not necessarily the destination that's important! That's what adventuring is all about."
  "Funny, I always thought it was the misguided hope of finding lots of loot and the avoidance of a real job." You reply.
  "That's just a bonus." Ulivik comments and you allow yourself to chuckle. Never thought you'd do that while in this cursed place.
  
  After a half hour or so of walking, you start to get an uneasy feeling of being watched. You mention this to Ulivik and he says he's getting that impression too. You ask him if he's hearing anything, but he says he isn't except the snow crunching under foot. Neither are you, maybe the amulets are working, but it's obvious the presence of the wendigos is near.
  
  Another hour of travel and you and Ulivik see something you didn't expect.
  
  "Do you see that? That's a rabbit! I thought you said nothing was living here?" Ulivik says.
  "When I came through I didn't see a living creature, so I just assumed there wasn't. I guess there is though." You reply.
  "Maybe the wendigo aren't here anymore and everyone has been scared of this place for decades for no reason."
  "I wouldn't go that far. Something is definitely here and just because we're seeing rabbits doesn't mean it's safe. It just means animals must not be suitable hosts for them."
  "Well... hey that rabbit it's hopping towards us. Hmm, a little larger than average and hopping towards people is rather unusual behavior for a ra... "
  
  Before Ulivik can finish, his leg is leaped upon and viciously attacked by the rabbit. After some hollering from the surprise, you grab the little furry beast and break its neck. You toss its lifeless body in the snow while Ulivik examines the bite marks in his pants
  
  "Fuck, that thing chewed through my pant leg and broke the skin! You never mentioned killer rabbits on your travel to here."
  "That's because I didn't encounter any, and I doubt if that was really a rabbit anymore. It would seem that animals CAN be hosts after all, they just need a human one or something similar to leave the hills. Anyway, we should really get out here, there are more coming."
  "What? So? I'm sure we can handle a few overgrown possessed rabbits." Ulivik says still preoccupied with his very minor wound.
  "A few, sure, but how about hundreds of them?" you say and draw his attention to literally that number popping up all around you.
  
  The glaring red eyes of hundreds of possessed bunnies are upon you and their herbivore buck teeth have now been replaced with the toothy fangs of a carnivore hungry for flesh. And they look like they haven't tasted a bi-ped in a long time... 
  > fight your way back home
  You slash out at the nearest rabbits and shout at Ulivik that you need to get the hell out of here.
  
  "What?! We can't run from rabbits! We've both fought worse than this!" Ulivik shouts chopping down a few more of them.
  "First of all they aren't just rabbits, they're rabbits with wendigos in them. Second of all rabbits are notorious for breeding at an alarming rate. Chances are there are even more bunny bodies for the wendigos to take control of even if we manage to kill all of the ones here. Running from rabbits might not exactly be the bravest thing, but constantly being assaulted by a horde while going deeper into enemy territory and trying to find something that might not even be there anymore is just stupid." You say hacking at more of them and shaking off the ones jumping on you.
  "... agh! Oh all right!" Ulivik shouts and the pair of you manage to cut a path through the rabbit mass and make a break for it."
  
  You and Ulivik run chopping up rabbits along the way as the "little" nippers are hopping after you and occasionally leaping on you and get a few bites in. This might all be very comical if your life wasn't in mortal danger.
  
  "SHIT!" Ulivik shouts when a group of rabbits catch up and pile on one of his ankles, biting and clawing at it. He falls down face first into the snow and you immediately get rid of the rabbits around Ulivik who is doing likewise.
  
  "Get off! Get off!" he shouts killing them.
  
  While you're kneeling down trying to help, one of the rabbits jumps on your back and with his teeth takes the amulet chain and leaps off with it.
  
  "What the... get that little furry bastard!" you shout when you feel it lifted from around your neck, but it's too late the rabbit has run off with it and the rest of the horde is coming.
  
  "Come on we gotta get outta here!" Ulivik says and the pair of you resume your escape. Unfortunately you're starting to hear the whispers again. The multitude of them, though one in particular stands out.
  
  "Welcome back Bane of Rask, we've been waiting for you... I'VE been waiting for you." A voice in your head says.
  "Shit, it's starting, they're getting inside my head!" you say stomping on another rabbit.
  "Just ignore it like you did last time!" Ulivik exclaims.
  "Easy for you to say! Argh dammit! My fucking head!"
  "You've gotten old Bane... you should just give up and let me take over, you'll be able to lifetimes... " the voice says.
  "Shut up."
  "Why do you resist, you're too weak now. Just submit and this will all go easier... "
  
  Between the spiritual assaults on your mind and Ulivik's chewed up ankle the pair of you aren't exactly running the fastest anymore. You have to stop many times to fight your way through, but it may be true that luck favors the fool and the pair of you have been mighty foolish for doing this in the first place, and eventually you see the end in sight.
  
  "There! The markers! If we get past those we'll be fine!"
  
  Ulivik speaks too soon however as it is at this point several hundred white rabbits who were blending in with the snow open their eyes and reveal the glowing red pin points of evil within them. They sit between you and the closest escape and a larger gray rabbit comes bounding out of a nearby hole in the ground. It's nearly the size of a bear. You fought a gray wendigo before; you would guess this is the same one. Their leader and the main one that's been taunting you the whole time.
  
  "Give up Bane! Your time on this earth is over!"
  "SHUT THE FUCK UP!"
  "Become meat then! I'll just use your svelk friend since you seem to care for him so much!"
  
  You hadn't heard it yet even with the assault on your head, but all of the rabbits in unison make that awful howling noise that you tried so hard to forget about. Even Ulivik with his magical protection winces at the noise. The battle is then joined as they run at you. You feel bites and slashes of several little claws and teeth breaking your skin. In a way the physical pain helps since its counter acting the mental attack still going on in your head.
  
  The wendigo leader clumsily leaps towards you even stepping on his own smaller brethren. You roll away and give him a couple chops to his head, succeeding in lopping off part of his ear. This only serves to anger him further and he does a short rush into you, knocking you down. Other rabbits immediately take advantage of the situation and hop on top you and start to bite. You're busily trying to get them off of you and then the leader smacks you in the head with his oversized claws. You fall into the snow again, this time in a daze.
  
  "You call yourself an Eternal... such arrogance of an incredibly short lived race. WE have more right to be known as eternals and I will make you suffer for your hubris!" you hear the voice say and then several long fangs sink into the lower part of your leg as the leader attempts to eat you alive. Now you aren't exactly sure at this point due to the extreme physical pain, but you believe the wendigo leader has most likely bitten straight through your leg and if it hasn't been completely severed yet, it's only hanging on by broken bone and torn skin.
  
  You yell out and muster all your remaining strength, sit up and bring your sword down onto the wendigo leader's head. Blood spurts everywhere as you twist it into his skull and your own leg is still chewed on in the death throes of the wendigo's host. Ulivik, who was being overwhelmed by the rest of the rabbits, finally manages to get to you and runs his own sword into the side of the gray wendigo several times causing it to finally release its fangs from your mangled leg. You quickly remove it from the wendigo's mouth and see a good portion of your leg completely destroyed and bleeding profusely. Despite this fact, you're determined that you are NOT going to die today. You didn't get this far just to be eaten by some possessed fucking rabbits. Ulivik helps you up and you hop as fast as you can towards the markers leaving a trail of gore in your wake. When you fall, you crawl as fast as you can instead. Ulivik tries to carry you, but you tell him to just keep the rest of the rabbits off of the pair of you.
  
  Exhausted and severely injured you manage to make it past the safety barrier, causing the attack to completely cease and you no longer hear the whispers in your head any longer. The rabbits all stare at you from afar. You're only about ten feet away and you can feel their hatred all the way from here. Ulivik drags you further away from the wendigo area until you tell him to stop.
  
  "Hey! Stop it, I'm not a fucking rag doll!" you shout. "I need to do something about this leg and fast, I'm beginning to feel really dizzy over here. Make a fire and quickly!"
  
  One quick look and you know there's no way it can be saved. It's only hanging on as it is. You make the decision and chop through the remaining bone and muscle that was still connecting it to the rest of your body. This part doesn't hurt as it's mostly already disconnected from any nerves anyway. The following part of applying your heated sword to stop the bleeding hurts like hell though.
  
  Dizzy and weakened from this whole ordeal, you see that you've stopped the bleeding and fall unconscious mumbling "Don't leave my leg here."
  
  A couple days later you finally wake up, though you almost weren't expecting to.
  
  "Ah, you're up, good. Your new leg is finished; I had the wood carver make one for you after I dragged your body back to town. The people here were shocked to see you laid out in such a manner. They thought you were dead at first."
  "Ugh, I sort of wish I was... I'm hardly the supreme warrior I once was, if I'm getting my leg chewed off by oversized rabbits. I'm just not quite ashamed enough to kill myself over it, my will to survive is just too strong I guess."
  "It's my fault anyway, I should've went into that area myself... "
  "Oh no. Don't start doing that. Blaming yourself for what MIGHT have happened is a losing battle. Trust me, I've had that same battle. I'm an adult I make my own decisions and I chose to go with you, besides if I hadn't have come you would've had all those little killer wendigo bunnies all over your ass instead and knowing you, you would've still insisted on heading to those ruins and gotten yourself killed in the process."
  "Ha ha, maybe so."
  "(Sigh) fucking rabbits...you know they must've been cannibalizing themselves in those forms for years. Well the wendigos might not have killed me, but I'm sure my reputation is. Ah fuck it, if I get a few snickers from the locals for losing my leg to a damned rabbit, it's not the worst thing in the world."
  "Yeah, about that... I sort of lied. I told everyone you saved my life from a ten-foot wendigo that had taken host in an ogre turning it into a complete abomination with rows of teeth and that it was planning to organize a way for the rest of its fellows to leave the barrier."
  "What?!"
  "I know you don't like to lie, but I just thought it sounded a lot more impressive. I mean you know the situation was really dangerous and I know the situation was really dangerous, but everyone else would just think... rabbits? And then laugh like you said."
  "First of all, I'm not actually opposed to lying, I just don't do it when I respect the person enough not to do it to them. Anyway, I guess you were just concerned about my reputation. I won't argue the point and it's done now, besides it's not like anyone's going to confirm it by going up there. Hopefully I just don't get anymore snot nosed kids following me around town begging me to train them because those days are long over." You laugh.
  
  You and Ulivik both talk for a few more hours before he eventually leaves to go see his mother. You take the opportunity to inspect your new wooden leg and try it on. It's going to take some time getting used to, but most major changes do and you've survived those.
  > Continue
  Year 75
  
  As the years creep up on you and despite missing part of your leg, you still feel don't feel in any ill health. It's mostly just aches and pains from your more physical years catching up with you. After the leg incident though, you took that permanent position at the Keplavisk military academy as a strategy instructor, though nowadays it's looking like it'll become the Rask military academy. Rask is in the process of becoming a "real nation" rather than just a collection of allied towns. You don't really know all the politics of it, but the main guiding force was justified Raskian paranoia again. Ever since the Eternal Dominion's war with the Felkan Kingdom grinded to a halt, the ED has been making overtures to Rask to join them in the veiled form of threats rather than any sort of diplomatic alliance agreements.
  
  While starting a war on two fronts is always a bad idea you're guessing Edgar needs the resources that Rask has to make his final push to conquer the Felkans once and for all. You're also guessing he's intent on ignoring your advice of not attacking Rask too, you're just surprised he held out this long. You're not really worried about it if it comes to war. The Raskians may not have the unnaturally bred "eternals" like the ED does, but they're trained well enough to make the cost very high if they are in invaded. You should know, you trained most of them.
  
  You hear a knock on your door and you slowly make your way over.
  
  "Mail for you Mr. Bane." A delivery girl says to you when you open up the door. You toss a gold coin to her and take your letter.
  
  At first you figure it's from Ulivik, no doubt telling you about whatever grand adventure he's on this time. The last time he was here, he was for his mother's funeral. He kept his composure for the most part, but it still wasn't a good time for him. He didn't say it in so many words, but he did say that you were the only family he had left. You didn't follow up, but the pair you said your goodbyes both of you knowing that you had that bond similar to that of a father and son.
  
  But this letter isn't from Ulivik, it's mysteriously labeled as from "a friend." Considering you've never really had any, you're baffled to as who it could be. When you open it you see that it's from Edgar, several pages in fact. You sit down to read all of it.
  
  The beginning of it hopes that the letter has found you as he wants you to take in all of what he has to tell you. He begins by stating that he's dying. He mentions his health is deteriorating by the day and he doesn't know how much longer he has left. His "successors" are likely to start a war with Rask soon after his death, it's only due to their respect that they don't. The same way his respect for you caused him not to.
  
  The majority of the letter explains that he wants you to understand why he did what he did and how he wished that you had joined him. He says the incident with Kane never left him and how if he'd only been there to listen to him and help him more, none of that might've happened. Perhaps even the Empire would've survived. (You doubt that though, it would've just taken longer) When the Empire was in its last days he saw how chaotic the new eternals were and realized they needed guidance and a purpose much like Kane did. He always thought that you'd do it, but you left leaving him as the only person willing to. He says it was very difficult and while they ultimately they fell in line, but without the purpose of conquest they wouldn't stay that way for long. So he began forging a new empire as it were, with the eternals as the leaders as it always should've been. The newer generations of eternals were better disciplined, as he made sure their training went very much the same way yours did. Still, they are much more arrogant that he ever was. They believe it is their destiny to rule the world and he believes that he's set something in motion that even he is no longer in control of.
  
  "Ah Edgar, always getting yourself in over your head." You say to yourself.
  
  The rest of the letter mentions that you two are the last of the old Eternals. Warrick died in Battle of Yaquan when the ED successfully took the city from the Felkans eleven years ago. He says that while he still considered him a traitor to side with former enemies like that, he took no pleasure in his death and heard he died well.
  
  Brenda died four years ago, but she apparently had become increasingly withdrawn years before that, to the point where she no longer even participated in the major decisions concerning the ED. She was found dead by her own hand with a note stating that she wished to be burned and her ashes scattered near Fort Glory like she did with her husband Roldan. This wish was of course granted.
  
  Edgar's last portion of the message also states that he has a last request as well, he wants you to come to the Eternal Dominion as he would like to see you again. He knows that you've had your differences and you weren't ever friends, but right now, you're the closest thing he's got. He's already made the arrangements to let you through and will have an escort waiting for you on the Rask/ED borders for the next few days. He also has placed a separate message with his seal on it, so that they may identify you.
  
  The message ends there.
  > take a trip to the Eternal Dominion
  If Edgar wants to see you, then why not? If he had anything sinister planned for you like having his escort kill you when you arrive. Besides you're old and you didn't worry about dying in combat when you were twenty, you're not going to start worrying about it now.
  
  You pack a few things for your trip and get your horse ready since you know Rask carriages don't travel through ED territory anymore. It's hard getting on damn a horse ever since losing part of your leg, but you're not about to walk the way there!
  
  When you reach the border the next day, you see a group of soldiers camped out in the distance beyond it. You see an ED Flag flying so you assume that's the escort Edgar told you about. When you approach several of the soldiers point muskets at you... heh you sometimes forget of how technology has marched on.
  
  They immediately ask for identification and you state your name and hand them the message with Edgar's seal on it. The leader, who is a blonde woman with fair features reads through it and greets you.
  
  "Greetings sir. My apologies on the initial caution, but we had to be sure. I am Sergeant Kalah, and I am to escort you to Prime Eternal Edgar. I am told he will be most pleased to see you, though I must admit I was also curious about you myself. Many are, as the Prime Eternal has mentioned you several times in high regard."
  "Heh, yeah I've heard about that before. Never get used to it though. Well let's get on our way then."
  
  Sergeant Kalah is very talkative on your trip, and goes on about great the ED is, and how it provides for all. She sounds very much like you did a long time ago. You're a little curious about something so you interrupt her propaganda speak.
  
  "Tell me sergeant, you and your men are all on the youngish side, what generation of eternal are you exactly?"
  "Me sir? I am fourth! We all are, we are newest eternals to serve directly in combat and I'm proud to say that we are so far the first to have natural night vision!"
  "You can see in the dark eh? That must come in pretty handy. Wish I'd had that back in the day."
  "Oh yes, the glorious Eternal Dominion was able to fight those treacherous svelk mercenaries that the cowardly Felkans employ on equal footing when we were deployed!"
  "Hmm, any other natural abilities?"
  "The fourth generation also regenerates better than the third even though they were the first to have such abilities. Under the right circumstances we can potentially regenerate a lost limb."
  "Now THAT is something I definitely would've liked to had!" you say knocking on your wooden leg. "Still, with all these advantages I'm sort of surprised you haven't utterly crushed the Felkans yet."
  "I believe we would, even with our resource shortages. Most of us do! We have the Felkans on the run, I do not understand why we have not pressed forward with our attacks, I long to be in combat again... but it is not my place to question the Prime Eternal's decisions, I'm sure he has a good reason... "
  
  Wow, that line sounds familiar.
  
  "Well all I can say is, sometimes the political aspects of a nation are more complicated than the wars." You reply
  
  Sergeant Kalah doesn't argue, but just says that you may have more wisdom about such things. Kalah and you continue to speak with each other about various subjects and she's courteous the entire time, in fact she's downright friendly. You definitely weren't expecting that and it's sort of a nice change of pace. While traveling through a town, a couple of pathetic peasants are being beaten in the streets by another soldier, though his uniform seems to be a different color even though it has the same markings.
  
  "You there! Why are you beating these peasants! What crime have they committed?" she demands.
  "Ma'am! These peasants were caught stealing food."
  "Well you shouldn't be beating them just for that... you should be chopping their hands off!" Kalah says, followed by pleas and screams of the peasants.
  "... yes ma'am... alright get over here you lousy thieving scum, let's make this quick!" the soldier says drawing his sword and striking out at the screaming peasant. However, in his enthusiasm to follow orders he ends up hacking off the peasant's entire arm.
  
  More screaming arises from the female peasant who rushes to what is probably are dying husband. Sergeant Kalah rolls her eyes.
  
  "I swear never let a human do an Eternal's job... men shoot all three of them."
  "No wait!" the soldier says before several musket balls hit his body. The two peasants are also killed instantly.
  
  The onlookers of this event duck and hide, but the sergeant makes her point known.
  
  "Listen up! This town is now on watch! If I hear of anymore thievery or other crimes, I'll be back to burn down this whole town! And for those of you in charge of keeping the law around here, I better see more competence displayed in the future than I saw today or I'll have you drawn and quartered! You are ALL servants of the Eternals! We are your masters, we know better than you and you will OBEY."
  
  And there it is, the ruthless arrogance. It would appear than Kalah's friendliness extends only to other Eternals. Can't say you're surprised though. You all move on and eventually you reach the capital and the palace where Edgar resides. Funny how this is the first time you've ever been to the palace after all those years serving the Empire.
  
  "This is where we part company, but I must say I hope we meet again in the future, it was an honor to meet you."
  "And it was a pleasure to meet you too... " you say and then you decide to give her a big fat thrill. "... and if I may say if we have more eternals as pretty and commanding as you, we will no doubt rule for thousands of years to come."
  "... I... oh... well thank you sir!" she stutters and smiles before riding off.
  
  New guards accompany you into the palace and through it. You've never been in here before, so you do a little sight seeing as you walk. Eventually you reach the royal bedroom. An older woman is sitting on a chair outside sobbing. She looks regal. Did Edgar get married? You've never heard of their being any sort of "queen" of the ED you always assumed he was just ruling alone. Another older muscular man with a stern expression is standing nearby pacing. When you arrive, he frowns even more.
  
  "Oh so you decided to come after all. A pity." He says.
  "Well, I certainly can say your military is politer than the royalty around here."
  "That is probably because they believe all the stories Prime Eternal Edgar says about you. Such is the foolishness of youth."
  "And who the hell are you exactly?"
  "Hmm, not surprised a deserter like you doesn't remember me. My name is Rissok and I served under you during the Empire riots. I saw you kill my friend in cold blood. A true eternal who served with honor!"
  
  "Oooooh now I remember. You and your other buddy were looting houses while Felding was attempting to rape a woman. Yeah, real honor there." You say and Rissok gets in your face.
  "Don't mock me! You are only here because the Prime allows it! If it were up to me, I would have you labeled as a traitor and have you killed!"
  "Well nothing is stopping you. You got the guards here, Edgar's too sick to prevent it and I've only got one leg, so I'd say it's a fair fight." You remark.
  "Stop it! Stop it please! My Edgar is dying! Can't we have one moment without murder and killing?" the woman sobs.
  
  At this point Rissok storms off without another word, the guards stick around and tell you that you may enter at any time. Before you do, you have to ask the woman who she is because you get the impression she isn't an eternal. You just sense it.
  
  "My apologies, I didn't know that Edgar was even married. What title do you go by, queen? Emperess?"
  "(sniff) No, I'm none of those things. I'm just Eva. Sometime Lady Eva if we're being formal, but I am not married to Edgar nor am I common knowledge to a majority of the public, I am merely his companion of sorts. He could not marry me, for concern of marrying a non-eternal might weaken his position of leadership. I understood this from the beginning though and do not blame him for it. Eternals have more wisdom on these matters."
  
  You're pretty sure that isn't necessarily true, but you understand Edgar's rationale and Eva seems to genuinely be in love with him. You ask her if she wants to come in with you, but she says she has already said her goodbyes and that he wants to see you alone when you arrive. Having no other questions, you enter the bedroom.
  
  When you see Edgar, he's lying in his bed and looking completely unwell. He's pale and his face has a gaunt looking appearance. You can't even believe this is the same man you fought along side at Fort Defiance.
  
  "Edgar? "
  "(wheeze) ah... you came... I knew you would. (cough cough) You're also looking much better than I am... minus a leg I see. How did that happen?"
  "Long story... but you! How the hell did you get this sick?! Other than physical pains racking my body, I've never been actually sick. I didn't think we could!"
  "Well... after you've suffered five or six assassination attempts all laced with various poisons, it tends to fuck up your body a lot quicker... anyway there isn't much time left I doubt if I'll make it through the night (cough cough) you've read my letter I take it?"
  "Yes."
  "Well then you know that when my death comes, anarchy will ensue."
  "Don't you have a successor? What about Eva?"
  "I don't know if you've noticed, but we can't have children. We Eternals seem to be sterile or barren. I've had people try to look into this problem, but they haven't come up with anything yet. It would seem what makes us superior, takes away our ability to reproduce. Maybe it's nature balancing itself out, so that we don't take over the world like so many of our younger eternals seem to want to do."
  "Hmm, I have to admit, I always wondered why all those strumpets I slept with during my merc days never came back with little bundles demanding support." You reply. "Anyway (cough cough) I've drawn up official forms for the person I think could be a successor... "
  
  You already know where Edgar is going with this.
  
  "Oh no... don't say that's why you dragged me out here... Edgar they aren't going to listen to me! I haven't even been living in the ED since it's formation!"
  "That doesn't matter! You're still an Eternal! One of the first and probably the best of us! (wheeze cough) They'll listen more likely than you believe, why do you think I always spoke so highly of you? The younger ones will most likely follow without question, your major opposition will probably be the second generation... but there aren't too many of them left, you could easily purge them all if you had to."
  
  Sheesh, you haven't even agreed to anything and Edgar's already suggesting mass purges. It's like you never left the Empire.
  
  "Please... I tried to build something here... (cough) I tried to do what you might've done if only you'd taken the reins of power, but I can't go on any longer. The only person who can guide the Eternal Dominion into something worthier is you. I'm asking you not just as former comrade in arms... but as a (cough cough) a fellow Eternal... "
  
  Edgar's trying to guilt you into this mess, but it's just not going to work. This plan of his is doomed to fail and you know it. Every high ranking Eternal is probably going to be vying for power and that idiot Rissok will probably the worst of the lot before Edgar's body is even cold. Still, this is his dying request. You could always accept his proposal just to appease him on his deathbed.
  > lie and tell him you'll accept the position
  This is his last request, what could it hurt to reassure him on his deathbed? It's not like he's going to know after he dies.
  
  "Okay, Edgar. I'll take it, but I'm still skeptical that I'll do as good a job as you." You say to Edgar who manages to smile.
  "Thank you, but as I have said, you will find that you will have more support than you think. Now then, let us talk, I wish to know what you've been up to. So many years have passed and my own time is short."
  
  You oblige Edgar and try to tell him as much as you can about what you've been doing since you first left the Empire. He seems to enjoy your tales while interjecting a few of his own, but he mostly just listens as the hours pass his life tether to this world begins to slip away. Finally he has stopped listening completely and died. You sit in silence for a moment to say goodbye to your former comrade in arms... no, a brother.
  
  You are about to leave and that's when Rissok comes barging in with a couple of guards and Eva.
  
  "Is he dead yet?" Rissok asks.
  "Yes, and show some fucking respect." You say.
  "Respect? I have been serving the Prime with distinction for years! What have you done, except turn your back on the eternal name! You're no better than that traitor Warrick! Worse, you think to come here to steal the throne, well not on my watch!"
  
  At this point Rissok pulls out a flintlock pistol and points it at you.
  
  "Steal the throne? Hah! I wouldn't want to run this asylum even if I was begged to, which I was."
  "I knew it! I knew the Prime wanted to see you for such a reason!"
  "Yeah, and I said I wasn't interested, so you can just calm the hell down... "
  "Rissok stop it! Is your lust for power so overwhelming that you can't even contain yourself even in the presence of my dead loved one's body?" Eva shouts tearfully.
  
  "Shaddup, ya human harlot!" Rissok says and smacks Eva in the face with the flintlock, dropping her to the floor. You take this opportunity to rush at Rissok, but unfortunately you aren't as fast as you used to be. Rissok manages to step backward just in time to shoot you in the chest. You fall to the ground mortally wounded.
  
  "And so ends the first generation. You had your time in the sun, now it is time for the seconds to take over where you failed. Guard, finish this relic off."
  "Nah, we're not following you either." A guard says and raises his own musket to Rissok and blows his head off. Rissok's body collapses on to the floor next to you, blood, skull and brains leaking all over the place.
  
  Staring at Rissok's headless body, you chuckle in between your dying gasps before finally passing from this world.