Bonus: The Recap - Week 7/13 While the siege of Maidenstar continued, another battle began. While most of the troops of Braebrecken were largely depleted after Bright Shadow and Taiphen lead their elite to Maidenstar, Syn did not feel it proper to abandon the city and its lightning ballista to an unopposed army loyal to the Bull of the North. Upon arriving with Reiza at his side, he convinced the Dynast Dragonblood and his fifty men at the location not abandon the city but to instead defend it. The battle had changed. The Bull was not going to attempt to swarm the nation with one solid army but a three prong attack. No front could lightly be ignored. The commander trusted Syn’s insight into the events. To further cement the defense efforts, he quickly brought the remaining forces of the city and its king into the fold. Under his guise a Lost Egg Air Aspect, Syn lead the people into a frenzy to set up a defense. The civilians were set to turn the surrounding swamp land into even more of a nightmare, diving small rivets and ditches in randomized patterns so that they couldn’t be used for cover and would pool murky water. In addition, he also conjured a water based demon called an Infernal Worm to haunt the water passage that the Bull would have to use, resulting in them landing their ships off course in less advantageous positioning. In the end, the forces of the Bull found themselves dragged through a nightmare landscape for the large force. However, the horde still was set to invade, lead by a powerful Fair Folk queen who went by the name Diamond Empress. Diamond and Syn exchanged words mid-field before the conflict, Syn offering her his usual grins and coyness though with purpose. In the end he let the Queen know that he didn’t wish to see her beauty shattered in the mud and that in the end she could choose: a bed of comforts if she liked, or a bed of iron. The gambit was successful, the queen both drawn towards and fearful of the man but her orders were what they were.
The battle for Braebrecken proceeded soon after. As the armies approached however, they found not an army rising to oppose them, but naked man. Syn sang out at them as he walked across the battlefield, singing : "I stand before you with nothing but grace
Bare before this horde, its might.
Let me warn you what you face.
Before I thrash you this dawn and night.
Here is my pole arm
Here is my spear
This is thrusting.
This is for fear." The army was taken off guard by the strangeness before the armies before the Solar clashed with the main forces. He tore into their ranks with masterful skill and blurs of speed, resulting in a shockingly fast battle. Almost no sooner than their initial contact, the Empress’ field commanders found themselves disadvantaged. The pair, Roaring Playmate and Sylvas Wolkin, both found themselves cut down by the orichalchum dire lance before they could even lay a true wound upon the champion. The leaderless forces were quickly cut down in explosive displays of lightning and arrow fire as the combined forces of the city assaulted the men from afar. The battle soon ended afterward and the forces of Braebrecken had never felt so confident. In the aftermath Syndoriel left the Fae Queen a present near their men’s lines: a blue pillow with a bottle of fine wine crossed with a single arrow. From the arrow’s feathered end laid a nail of cold iron while the bottle had a blue strip of silk. He reminded her that in the end it was her choice between a bed of comfort or a bed of iron. Art: While the comic was done by myself, the beautiful second picture was done by the amazing @temixart. Please check her out! Content on her blog is often NSFW however I will advise! Also, thank you to her wonderful friend who helped inspire the mini song from this event.