A Crow's Final Sacrifice [PK Post]

[MikoMonster 1396]

Spoiler

 

 

 

 

Spoiler

 

 

 

A portrait of Dame Primrose in her early thirties.

 

---

 

“Mind my accompanying you?”

 

The woman’s voice rang out quietly in the dead silence of the cave. Her comrades stood on the ledge alongside her, peering down to the monstrosity of a creature below. Its gaping maw was lined with jagged teeth; its own spawn crudely speared upon them. The tail of the beast wound through the walls of the massive cavern, its length immeasurable. 

 

“Of course not, so long as you remain quiet.”

 

The response came back at an equally low tone. The patter of a rope’s frayed end met the floor. The dame shuffled around the gathering, waiting for the Volik to make his way down the rope, following soon after. The enormous worm appeared even more terrifying to the pair as they silently padded closer, its breath reeked of rotting flesh; one of the worm’s many offspring wriggled from its mother’s stomach. Whilst suppressing a gag and covering her nose with a gloved hand, Primrose and the man crept closer.

 

 

---

“Papej! When will Mama be coming home?” A seven-year-old Primrose called out to her father from across the square of Old Reza as she ran to him. “She’s working, Prim. She’ll be home in a few nights.” Nikolaus responded, swiftly scooping his daughter up in an embrace. “Why is she never here?” She murmured to him softly, resting her chin over his shoulder.

 

“There, your bunny’s all stitched up, little one.” – Lotte Kortrevich, lovingly repairing her daughter’s 

toy, the stains of her uncle’s blood still splotching its fabric.

 

---

 

The Volik man clambered into the sleeping worm’s mouth, ordering the woman to remain at the edge of the worm’s jaw. At this, he ventured into the beast’s tooth-lined gut. Within minutes, he returned. In his grasp was the helm and sword of Saint Karl, who had been swallowed by the worm centuries prior. He handed them to Primrose just as she hopped down from the mouth of the monster, wrinkling her nose at the odor of the relics.

 

 

---

“If you scream, I won’t hesitate to kill you.” Primrose, merely ten years old, nodded as she pressed herself against the tree. Her captor brandished a dagger, toying with it as they awaited her buyer. Within minutes, a man’s voice rang out through the trees, a voice Prim recognized. The footsteps grew closer as her captor stood to fight. Her uncle, Rodrik Kortrevich, circled around the tree, his blade drawn. “Prim, get behind me. Now.” 

 

Several years later, a young Primrose stood in the center of Helena, oblivious to the brewing conflict between her homeland and Renatus. Ser Aldis Chase stood scowling over the young girl, brandishing his blade. “I asked you already, where is your family?” “I-I think my uncle is here…” she squeaked in reply, pointing to her relative from across the square. The man beckoned him over. “Primrose,” Rodrik began as he came to stand before her, donning an unfamiliar set of armor, “You need to leave. If I see you here again, I’ll kill you myself.”

 

---

 

Just when all appeared to be well, then showed Bralt with his band of tribesmen, carrying barrels of metal pots and pans. Before the Haensemen could realize what was occurring, the barrels were emptied into the cavern through the pit above and the metal objects clattered against the stone floor of the cave. The worm quickly awoke at the vibrations, immediately clamping down on the man who remained in its maw, sending blood spurting across the stone walls. Alarmed, the Haeseni party ran for the exit, but not before the worm leaped towards it, cleaving through the stone and swallowing it with ease. Their exit was now blocked, and their wildling enemies only further disturbing the worm. The group realized that they needed to act quickly. 

 

 

---

“I love you, Prinzenas, become a dame and make me proud.” – Duncan Kortrevich to Primrose as he prepared to sail away from Arcas.

 

“You already made me proud, doing more than I could’ve ever asked for.” – Sarah Greenhill-Kortrevich to Primrose and Roderick the evening of her death.

 

---

 

The dame remembered her oath to her nation in that moment. She quickly handed the relics of Saint Karl to Alaric Stafyr before scaling down the rope to where the pots and pans had been thrown. The protests of her companions were ineffective; Primrose determined in her responsibility to protect the rest of the party. As the second bout of kitchen utensils rained down upon Primrose, she shielded her head. Though the vibrations caused the worm to shift in annoyance, it didn’t move from the exit. The dame looked up to her comrades, saluting them one last time as she picked up two of the pans. As she recognized what she was about to do, she thought of her children and husband- of those she would be leaving behind; the promises she would be breaking. With a deep breath, she began clanging the pans against each other, the continuous vibrations from their collisions being enough to attract the worm’s attention. 

 

 

---

“If we die, we die side by side.” – Roderick Kortrevich to Primrose.

 

---

 

The worm shot out, opening the escape route for the rest of the Haeseni party. They quickly fled through the opening, but Primrose knew what awaited her. Before anyone could realize, the worm flung itself towards Primrose, its movements creating a blinding cloud of dust and stone.

 

As the dust cleared, all that remained of where Primrose had stood was a gaping hole.

 

Primrose Kortrevich would not be coming home. 

 

 

---

 

REQUIESCAT IN PACE

Dame Primrose ‘The Forbearing’ Kortrevich

1703-1758

 

[Zanthuz 1863]

Ser Nikolaus Kortrevich witnessed the sight of his eldest daughter sacrifice her life in order to save the rest of the Haeseni grouping from the comfort of the seven skies.

 

He extended a sturdy hand out to Primrose to hoist her up with ease as she made her ascent to the skies that flew above.

“Come, Prim. Hoist yourself up here where you may alleviate yourself from your oaths and the many vows you swore to uphold and dine with your mamej and I. We’ve been waiting for both you and your sister to join us ever since we ourselves made our ascent.”

 

Nikolaus offered a heavy embrace to Primrose where he stated;

“I speak for your mamej as well as myself by saying that we are most eternally proud of your renown love-filled life you lived. From the earliest dawn of your childhood when you were but a mere child you sought to become a Dame and quickly as years passed you accomplished that feat and not only brought your menage honor but the Kingdom to which you represent the utmost amount of prestige. Your sacrifice to your compatriots will naught ever be forgotten as your very action to sacrifice your own life saved the lives of your liege lord and the other Haeseni lords and ladies alike.”

 

Lotte and Nikolaus would offer a nod to Prim as they both pulled back their wooden chairs for the trio to all sit down together and rejoice on their lives they had all lived and convene together finally for the many lost memories they had forfeited along the way.

 

Nikolaus: “Prim, my have I missed you! Be it only seven years since I made my ascent it feels like an eternity since I last held you in my arms. Oh how I’ve missed you.” he placed a kiss on her forehead as he leaned back into his chair.

 

Lotte: “Princess, I’m sorry for the faults I had in your life but let it be that we forget our misgivings and spend time together now as a family reconnected.” she embraced Prim with a warm hug as a flurry of kisses flew over to Prim’s cheeks.

 

Prim’s face became rosy in color as tears flowed down her face: “I love both of you ever-so dearly as I’ve missed you both far more than I can put into words. But, my God, am I grateful that the three of us are here together where we may guide those we’ve left behind to a state of resolve.” 

 

 

Nikolaus, Lotte and Primrose all held each other's hands tightly around the table as they continued to reminisce on the times and memories of the past.

 

Nikolaus then recited a tenet from the Haense chivalric tenets code; 

‘To guard the honour of your King, God, liege lord, and fellow brothers.’

 

“Out of all the Knights and Dame alike that I saw honoring their oath, you amongst the likes of many remained true to your oath up until your last breath. Tales will most certainly be told of you, decades if not centuries later to the generations of children that come after us.”

 

Nikolaus once more offered a heavy embrace to his eldest daughter with Lotte intertwining through the embrace;

“Allow us to guide those we’ve left behind to a state of relief following your passing, may we await for your sister’s arrival and may we extend out aiding hands to your uncles that still forbid themselves from leaving the war-riddled Arcasian plains.”

[AndrewTech 3329]

After countless hours of endless running, Ser Konrad Stafyr had once again found himself back at at Haeseni base camp.

 

He had not dared to show his fatigue, his shock, his grief in front of the younger members of the expedition. He and Primrose were two of the most senior knights on the voyage, sworn to protect the King of Haense and his kin.

 

Collapsing at the side of his favorite pond, Konrad silently took hold of his fishing rod. Casting it into the waters, he was quiet for a good, long moment.

 

And then, he began to tear up as he remembered Primrose Kortrevich. She was the wife of his mentor, the mother of his godchildren, and one of the few remaining friends that he had from his youth. He had not felt so empty since the death of Harold Bell, so devoid of optimistic feeling since Erich Stafyr, his cousin and lord’s, untimely demise.

 

“It should have been me, brave thunderchild...” Konrad murmured to himself, the rod slipping out of his hands as he buried his face within them. Perhaps, had he acted a moment sooner, he could have saved Dame Primrose from her untimely demise. But he had not been there, having remained near the flank of the convoy to guard the expedition as they ventured further into the cave.

 

And now, Primrose was dead. She had given her life to fulfill the vow she had given to her King, but he had not. 

 

But there was one thing that echoed throughout Ser Konrad’s mind above all else, which he murmured to himself as tears continued to stream down his cheeks:

 

”...What am I going to tell Kamilla?”

[garentoft 9265]

Ruslan Amador rubs his hands against his face. While he had carried Otto, Primrose had sacrificed herself for the entire expedition party. He wonder if he would ever be capable of showing such bravery himself.

[Twandhi 384]

Reserved

[Mark2282 305]

Reserved

[yandeer 734]

Covered in soot and gore- the remnants of blackpowder and the crushed fragments of a sphinxbeast that had exploded right into her face- Franziska Klara could finally breath, could finally come to terms with what she had heard at the beginning of Petrus: her mother was dead.

 

Taken from her. Gone. Vanished. ‘Niet,’ she thought. ‘She was devoured and- and I’ll never see her again.’ 

 

That was the worst thought- that there was no body to bury, no grave to return to, no vengeance to be had against the monstrosity that had robbed her of the woman who had raised her since birth, who had given her all the love in the world and then some, who had been a role model- the very picture of what it meant to be a Knightess- a Dame. 

 

What stung the most was that there had been no true goodbye. She had simply been there one day and then been gone the next. There was no amount of glory that could bring her back- no amount of heralding as “Dragonslayer” or gifts of jewels and trophies that could give her that last moment of peace with her mother.

 

At the end of the day, with no battles left to fight, Franziska Klara finally let herself mourn over the only parent she had truly known.

[Legoboy7984 3155]

A single tear slowly falls down the cheek of Stefan Vyronov as he hears the news of his grandmothers death before doing the lorraine cross.

 

“Can’t believe that the woman who took me in after my parents died is now gone. Sadly, once I was able to walk and talk I never got to sit down with you as I was stuck being with my fellow Vyronovs. Now that you are gone I promise that my children shall hear the tale of Primrose Kortrevich, the most fierce woman knight in Haensetic history. It was you who was my real hero, my godmother, and most importantly my grandmother. May GOD welcome you to the seven skies where you may reunite with those you love dear...”

 

 

[Tigergiri 3073]

 

 

 

 

Spoiler

 

Within the seven skies, Lotte was settled down in her peaceful little slice of heaven. The faithful or maybe just a mothers instinct. The notion of her head ringing. As she moved towards the door to open the door, the area around them shifting and changing from the Markev household to the Haeseni. Plates and dinner with shining red wine in three crystal glasses in an elaborate fashion. A knowing smile was ornamenting her face as she rushed to open the door...

 

"You are merely in time for dinner; I've missed you, My sweet little rose." Lotte's blues eyes connecting to her sweet brave little one's mismatched ones and embracing primrose into a hug and a kiss on the hair. 

 

"You've been so courageous, my kind-hearted princess. You don't have to be so brave anymore, You did your job perfectly.. No need to be sad now, Mama’s here."

[Pureimp10 5691]

Primrose had given the artifacts of Saint Karl to Alaric before she went back into the cave, despite his protests. He had not known her long, but in that moment as she sacrificed herself for the rest of the party, he knew that she was a woman worthy of his respect, one that the world would miss dearly.

 

“Rest in peace, Dame Primrose. May your sacrifice never be forgotten.”

[MeteorDragon 3441]

Xavis Ashwood would leave a new sword burred, blade down, in the sands around Sutica. A small ribbon tied around the handle of the sword. 

[Sarven 2619]

Reserved

[Fwied 301]

Lukas let no tears fall as he walked around the docks looking out hoping maybe that it might be wrong? but he knows it is not, he knows he could have done better, he knows that maybe he could have tried to show his mother more love, he knows that maybe he could have taken her place, he knows that every choice is final, and he knows history will never change. One day he might find that he is proud of himself, but that day will only come when he dies how he should truly die. and that is with honor and with a sword in his hand as his mother has. He turned and walked home not knowing what do to with himself he decides to just move forward with his sword and God guiding his path.

 

[erictafoya 3276]

Elgon hears of his nieces death, with a proud look on his face “At least she died as a Kortrevich should. By protectin’ ‘er comrades and dying in battle. You’re in the seven skies with yer pa and yer ma young Prim.”

Erik catches wind of his nieces death in the fiery depths of hell. A smile on his face appears an\s he looked up “Excellent job Young Primrose. You died how a true Kortrevich should. Your Uncle Erik is proud”

Ivan would look toward the sea on the docks as he hears of his mothers death. He is silent as he grips the letter tightly. He thinks about all the many lessons she gave him. About the happy times he spent together with her or about how she told him to always be brave and smart. He is thankful for all of this. However, he is afraid to talk, or to show emotion. He should be happy that his mother has died as any true Kortrevich should, but he is heartbroken to see her die before his child could see his or her grandmother. As hard as he fights his emotion, a single tear sheds from his eye. He wipes it without hesitation, his hand shaking as he did so. He leaves the docks where she departed and does not say a single word but inside his soul was shattered.

[Bisscy 64]

Within the quiet Grove on the night of the Roddy’s return a Servant waited with a sadden expression. ”What is it Maribelle?“ the man would ask placing his belongings down. ”I am sorry Sir Kortrevich I..” she’d reply as she struggled to speak. Clearing her throat she would raise up a letter for him. 

 

”What are you on about you’ve hardly ever called me by that Maribelle.”  he would say raising a brow before taking the letter and opening it. As the man read through the letter his expression quickly changed and he began to stumble backwards leading him to trip and fall. Finding himself in a pond the grown man sat in silence only to slap away Maribelle’s hand when she tried to help him out.

 

“Go.. Leave me be I am fine.” he’d bark out as he brought his knees to his chest. “Wh- What do I tell your children?” the now crying lady would ask looking down at him. “Failed her.. I failed.” he would mutter while he rested his head against his knees quietly crying in defeat.

 

(( Long live the Rose of the Kortrevich family.