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To Know Their Truth


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--- The letter would be posted around Karosgrad, publicly available for all to read ---

 

To Know Their Truth

For those who wish to listen...

 

Dear People of Hanseti-Ruska,

 

My name is Shirren Ironwood, as some of you may know, many more may not. But it matters not either way. I am not here for myself, or for my compatriots. I am simply writing this letter to recount exactly what happened to the Rimetrolls of the North, and to give you all a new perspective on the world we live in. I write to you from a hospital bed, broken and battered, every inch of my body bruised and beaten. In fact, I cannot even lift the pen required to write out this letter myself. Thus I would like to take the time to thank Albrecht Mondblume for copying down my narrations, as well as being the one to distribute this missive around the town. His aid was invaluable to me. 

 

As I am sure many of you noticed, during the most recent Court, a one Corbin Wick stepped forth, proclaiming his plans of taking a small group of adventurers to wipe out the remains of the Rimetrolls. Many scoffed at the idea, but I stepped forth, eager for adventure. Long had my father told me tales of the monstrosity of the great Rimetrolls. The hulking beasts of frosty death, crushing all who stood in their path. That's how my father lost his legs. Crushed in an instant by a boulder hurled by the trolls during a raid. He never got over his resentment, and that made a deep impression on me. 

 

But when we finally reached the trolls, after hours of trudging through knee-deep snow and sleeting storms, what did we find but an innocent, joyous peoples. As we entered the great cavern where they resided, we laid witness to their humanity. They spoke in a unique dialect of common tongue. They had young children laughing and playing in the ice. In fact, they seemed no different than us really. Thus we made our presence known, offering a sack of potatoes the young Aleksey Ludovar had brought with him as a tribute of peace. The trolls made a great deal out of it, welcoming us strangers into their homes without a second thought, bringing forth their young, so open, so trusting. By this point, I did not know what to think. Why would these trolls be so warm and welcoming to us? Were we not the ones who burned their crops, slaughtered their warriors, and pushed them to the brink of extinction? My entire mind was wracked with confusion and guilt, unsure of what I could even say to these people. So I said nothing, just sat in silence around the fire, drinking their onion soup and watching their children play. One notable troll was Jub. She was the first to greet us, and her little cub was playful and cute.

 

I will never be able to repent for what we did to her. 

 

Things were looking excellent, with both parties open to peaceful communication over a shared meal. But then I noticed it. Corbin, Keorn, and two other mages (I regretfully did not catch their names) had not followed us into the cavern. I looked around for them, but could not find hide nor tail of them. That is, until I could.

 

A bellowing screech echoed throughout the great cavern as Keorn launched a massive fireball towards the icy roof, a surging force fueled by Corbin and the others. He had doomed us all, without warning and without reason. This act of incredible violence was not only completely unprovoked, but also completely unwarranted and posed a massive danger to the five of us inside the encampment. The ceiling exploded in a burst of flame and steam, as massive chunks of ice, some the size of a house, some bigger, broke free, flying down onto the denizens below with devastating force. 

 

Back down in the troll encampment, we leapt into action, diving forward to take cover under the magical tower shield that the elven mage Tarathiel erected, but the magic alone would not be enough to save us. Suddenly, Jub threw herself over us, using her own body as a shield to block the falling masses of ice from crushing us in an instant, each blow upon her body causing a pained shout as she was beaten to death by falling ice. 

 

Every time I try to close my eyes and sleep, those screams haunt me. And endless symphony of suffering that reminds me of all those I've ever failed, ever killed.

 

Sitting there, buried under layers of freezing ice and crushing weight, everything fell away. I had a moment of clarity, one could say, that opened my eyes to the truth. The trolls were not the monsters. We were. 

 

After that, my memory is hazy. I know I survived, with several broken bones and one less arm than before. I know we were saved by a rescue team, greatly aided by the young troll Koggo. And I know that we failed. We failed our legacy, we failed the trolls, and we failed ourselves. It was a miracle that we survived at all, and one that will forever weigh heavy upon my heart. 

 

So what's the point?

 

The time to act is now. We came to the Rimetrolls with words of peace, but behind our backs a vicious attack was made on defenseless women and children. We have wronged the Rimetrolls, and now they are on their last legs. As the Kingdom of Hanseti-Ruska, there are a few options that lay before us:

 

  1. We do nothing:
    1. This is clearly the worst option. The trolls are battered and beaten, but some yet live. Leaving them to fester in their rage will turn a group of innocent creatures who only raided our land for food out of desperation into a murderous horde thirsting for vengeance. We will be forced to waste Haensi lives in a bloody, vicious set of battles in the name of total genocide and hateful vengeance.
  2. We purge the remaining Rimetrolls:
    1. While distasteful, this is another option. If we strike now, we could enforce total extinction with only minor casualties on our side. If the Koeng really wishes it to be so, this is the second best option for ensuring the safety of Haense. 
  3. We provide much needed aid and support:
    1. This is, according to all forms of logic, easily the best decision we could make. The trolls had farms that we destroyed in our conflict, but if we helped them prepare them, we could provide them with a way to sustain themselves without ever needing to raid Haense again. This would effectively end the war with 0 lives lost on either side. 
    2. Additionally, the Rimetrolls would be a powerful ally to have. Having 10 foot tall hulking trolls on our side would be an obvious asset on any military endeavor, and would easily double the strength of our current military forces. You all saw how difficult the battle against the trolls was. Now imagine facing down our combined might. Not an easy task, eh?

 

The fact of the matter is, in many regards, the Rimetrolls are just as human as we, and treating them as monsters would be a foolish mistake. They love, they laugh, and they cry, and I am imploring you dear reader, please, have the courage in your heart to accept these people for who they are and what they could mean to us. 

 

And Corbin Wick? If you are reading this, I hope you're happy with yourself. Ask yourself how many mothers, fathers, sons, and daughters you crushed to death, and know thy sins committed. I don't know what you were thinking or why you did it, but I will never forgive you, not for how you wronged me, but for how you wronged my compatriots, Pericvel, Aleksandra, Aleksey, and Tarathiel, and the countless defenseless families in that cavern you slaughtered. 

 

 

I do not claim to know the answers, and I am just as confused and saddened and fearful as the rest of you. But know this: My compatriots and I will forever be indebted to the Rimetrolls. They offered us peace and warmth even in the face of our cruelty, and when other humans stabbed them in the back, they did not hesitate to die protecting us. Those trolls were some of the most honorable and courageous beings I have ever met, and I will not rest until I repay that debt in full.

 

 

Sincerely, 

HRA Footman Shirren Ironwood

 

 

--- OOC ---

Alright let me just be very clear about this. There are NO hard feelings OOC, and everyone should act as such.

Everything was done in the name of roleplay, and I actually had a lot of fun in this event.

I absolutely do not want to direct hate towards anyone involved whatsoever.

 

I didn't know if I needed to have included this little disclaimer, but seeing as how some things can

sometimes get out of hand, I figured it was better safe than sorry. 

 

Also poor Koggo

He needs headpats

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited by Elpreties
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Though crippled, that Elfess would smile as she regarded the missive from her wheelchair.

 

"Enchantments are a hell of a thing..."

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Henry Bishop looks upon the missive with a saddened sigh. "What Corbin Wick did was wrong, to endanger his comrades and to betray the trust of the Rimetrolls...Regardless, I feel that now we have done irreparable damage to the Rimetroll's opinion of us. In the cold harshness of the Rimeveld, its the strongest who survive. We cannot afford to make peace now, not with all the blood that has been shed. While it pains me to say it, we as a Kingdom must press on to finish what we started and eliminate them before they can eliminate us. In this war of survival, it is kill or be killed, and we as a people have made our choice clear."

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Aleksandra Ludovar lay in a hospital cot, gently lifting the missive that had been handed to her with her un-severed right arm. A faint, pained smile formed upon her lips as she perused Shirren's recollections. Weakly, the Dame peered about the hospital at her comrades who had joined her on the treacherous journey. "Ai, we were pretty fucked up weren't we?" She remarked in fruitless attempts to lighten the mood. "Bah, someone get me a Carrion," she finally stated, intending to drown her pain in alcohol.

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Mera Camian paid only half attention to the contents of the missive that had managed to circulate its way to Norland, briefly commenting, "Vell, ve invited the trolls to Svensday and taught them how to smoke cactus green and milk animals. I vonder vhy the others are having trouble vith the creatures? They seem lovely."

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Just now, AstriaS said:

Mera Camian paid only half attention to the contents of the missive that had managed to circulate its way to Norland, briefly commenting, "Vell, ve invited the trolls to Svensday and taught them how to smoke cactus green and milk animals. I vonder vhy the others are having trouble vith the creatures? They seem lovely."

 

"Poor poor Halvar" Vane says patting the utterly disabled cow on the head. "Ye still got three other nipples lass."

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Friedrich looked over the missive with a hum as he thought. With a nod to himself he decided to visit his brother in arms in the hospital so that he could talk to him about the current events. Shirren had peaked Friedrich's interest as person now, it was time to pick his brain.

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"Do not forget that you provoked the trolls first when the HRA burnt down their farm for no reason." remarked Basil Moroul.

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"This is why I moved from Karosgrad dear." Alyssa told her pet Karin in a bored tone- simply talking to herself while she laid down upon her soft sheets within her chambers- the Seregon letting a sigh as she stood from her bed and turned to her Karin- saying in her annoyed but sorrowful tone. "Because of the vile Valah men- they think they can play as gods! But- they cannot- as they cannot understand that ones who try to fly too close to the sun will burn and fall to be fed to the sharks of the deep sea- their bodies- lost and never remembered by any- only remembered- by their foolish behaviors." After the 'aheral's morbid and dreading comment- she would walk towards her vanity to apply makeup towards her naked face. 

 

After many hours of applying makeup- the 'aheral would then break her hum to finally comment with slightly cheerful tone, but still sorrow as from before- her eyes shut and her mind thinking of the cruel and unjust death of the Hanseti mage. "Hopefully their foolishness does not get anymore killed- but that is- less then likely."

 

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"And once again the Wick family seems to have little regard in terms of garnering respect from their peers." Gregory Bazin, a HRA soldier commented.

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Goliath Irsei sat in the northern wastes, reading the injured Ironwood’s recounts. A grim frown accompanied the dim light that flickered above the page, before a tear fell from his cheek. “In my time I have sought to bring greater peace, yet I have failed.” There he began to write upon parchment, as a twinge of guilt spurred him on.

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Joseph Gaultier sits in hind his office working on some arrest reports as his wife aproaches with the missive the Soldier reads over it calmly he himself had not been with the expedition that appereantly ended in tragedy.... no matter what Corbin Wick did was unjustified what parts us from the beasts is our Humanity slaughtering these beast who had nothing but peacefull intend in the procces maiming brothers in arms how dare he act so foolishly Joseph was now certain these Trolls were kin not foe and unless we make steps to achieve such kinsman ship all will end in a  bloody mess Joseph simply nodded "Ef dere be o' way teh forge peace oil gladleh take et Shirren" hed say to himself obviously no one could hear but for him it was declaring his aid to forging peace instead of death "Ye can count o' wick teh fok tins up...." hed state with a deep sigh standing up to go about his day spending some time with his wife

Edited by ThatDutchFellow
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Freya S'indri crumples the paper between her digits as she reads of the horrors Corbin has caused the Rimetrolls. She curls her rosy lip up into a snarl. Slamming the respectable paper onto the Karosgrad grounds. "All my work... all my sacrifice... Thrown away at the hands of some senile, trigger-happy simpletons." Perhaps the Karosgrad people hadn't known of her and Olaurae's countless hardships to restore the Rimetrolls to their former glory, the measures she went to to make sure the Rimetrolls never had another hungry belly. Her eyes glowed a violent red as she grumbled. "Keorn and Corbin best watch their backs.. before I put a knife into it.." She grumbles some more before adorning her enchanted ferrum blade into her garter.

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10 minutes ago, charmofinches said:

Freya S'indri crumples the paper between her digits as she reads of the horrors Corbin has caused the Rimetrolls. She curls her rosy lip up into a snarl. Slamming the respectable paper onto the Karosgrad grounds. "All my work... all my sacrifice... Thrown away at the hands of some senile, trigger-happy simpletons." Perhaps the Karosgrad people hadn't known of her and Olaurae's countless hardships to restore the Rimetrolls to their former glory, the measures she went to to make sure the Rimetrolls never had another hungry belly. Her eyes glowed a violent red as she grumbled. "Keorn and Corbin best watch their backs.. before I put a knife into it.." She grumbles some more before adorning her enchanted ferrum blade into her garter.

Olaurae comes up behind Freya as she reads this, peering over her shoulder and taking her by the waist, she whispers in her ear, "There's still hope maiylun, come let's negotiate these totems." Though her words seemed calm, there would be a glint of anger in her eyes as she watches her love. Olaurae bites down on her lip, scowling and silently contemplating the actions of the rouge mages.  As  Olaurae comes to a conclusion she would turn away and say, "No one interrupts my plans."

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