[PK] The Alpine flower Knight's Fall

[Tremerus 1188]

 

 

https://youtu.be/we0-cIofJNI

 

Spoiler

This post is long overdue as it's been quite some time since I played this character, but I wanted to finally give this sendoff to the first character I played upon my return to LOTC. I've met some truly wonderful people during my journey with Theoderic and wanted to say thank you all of being part of his story. 

 

As a child, he would peer through the gates of Minitz, always wondering what was on the other side.  

 

“Danger lurks beyond these walls, you never know what you’ll encounter out there, and you must be prepared for anything,” warned an older family member. “We’re at war; and there are few things civil about it.” 

 

There weren’t many plants that grew inside the town, few trees to provide shade. The view of the river was poor and seeing the same houses with the same people made each day blur into the next. He could only endure this for so long before he decided to venture out once more. 

 

So he left.

 

Theoderic von Theonus ventured out on his own, wandering outside the relative safety he found in Minitz. He’d do so time and time again in what became a simple routine for the young Waldenian. 

 

The routine began with a walk by the river, along which he’d stop and pick a fresh cornflower that he’d carry with him throughout the rest of the day’s tasks. Whether it be mining, training, standing guard or helping with other tasks throughout the small city, he had it with him. It served as his reminder of the outside world. 

 

Those flowers accompanied him everywhere. 

 

He had one with him when he served as part of a joint force, patrolling the road between Minitz and Adria. A force that launched a successful ambush against a small Adrian force. That day he saw his first taste of combat against an enemy force. 

 

In fights against the Mori horde

 

Among which include a fight in a cave near the Petran capital of Valfleur against a Dread Knight. Or as he and others from Minitz ventured deep into a Mori cave, and his name was called to join a small group of soldiers and knights as they continued onward to face whatever Mori threats were in the tunnels. Before he ventured deeper into the cave, he handed one flower off to his future wife - “In case I don’t return.” he said as he handed the flower to her. 

 

And in defense of his home that faced an overwhelming Mori army, and during his stay as a refugee before him and the rest of the residents of Almaris fled the Mori threat. 

 

He held one flower in his hands when a family member asked him why he was always seen carrying a flower. He paused a moment before giving his answer. 

 

“A soldier doesn’t always have to carry a sword.”

 

One was placed in his hair as he scooped up a young baby Rose into his arms, and danced with her in the temporary home they lived in between fleeing Almaris, and arriving to Aevos. Her laughter in that moment served as a temporary reprieve from the horrors the new family had faced in recent months.

 

Yet another was stored away nearby as he stood in the church and watched his future wife walk down the aisle toward him when the two were finally able to be wed.   

 

Soon thereafter, the von Theonus family moved to the Commonwealth of the Petra. It was an uncertain time for all of them, but he managed to find comfort in continuing his morning routine here as well. It was here that he and Calla welcomed three more flowers into their lives; Aster, Lillian, and Sorrel von Theonus.

 

He watched as these new flowers bloomed and lived their own lives of adventure, with their own trials and tribulations and went on to forge their own paths, joining the other wayward sons and daughters of Icathia as they chased untamed horizons.

 

He had found himself some success working in various roles in the Commonwealth as well, first in the River Guard as a soldier, and later as a knight. Queen Renilde knighted him and two others after they pursued and rescued Princess Catherine from captivity of the Order of Dead Men. The trio thwarted the cult's plans, saving the Princess from sacrifice and returned her safely to Vallagne.

 

Later, he served as part of various artillery teams during the war against the Veletz League and their allies. His efforts helped secure key victories in artillery duels and played a pivotal role in breaching the defenses during the siege of Stassion’s Keep, clearing the way for the Covenant forces to charge into the breech.

 

And finally he served on the River Council as the Treasurer and later as the Knight Commander.
 

Through it all, he maintained his routine, always picking a flower on his walks. But as the seasons passed and his steps slowed, the walks grew shorter.
 

He retired quietly, passing his mantle to those who still chased adventure as he once did and retreated into a quieter life in Vissingren, where he spent his days tinkering with potions and animi. He’d watch from afar as the following generations of Theonus lived the stories he no longer could.
 

One morning, Theoderic von Theonus simply did not wake. His story had reached its final chapter. There was no grand farewell, no last words. Just a single flower resting on the windowsill, placed there the night before for his family to find. 

[Destructokeith 1142]

A somber song flows through the yard of Vissingren.

 

Flags are lowered on the mast as one more goes to join the skies

 

Artair nods as he watches the casket the contains the man who once held his job decend into the crypt's

 

Another off to join their kin in the skies

[Hom 1987]

Somewhere off in the Skies, Atticus shuffles a deck of cards. In that ever-shifting and warm dream of an afterlife, the movements follow nigh-nonsensical patterns, but they always seem to wind up in a perfectly random stack on the tabletop. He begins to deal to the two other men across from him, all age having faded from them in this place. Everything fades, but it does so with such bliss you hardly even notice.

 

He glances up as he notices a new presence, and his face splits into a grin. “Good God, we almost had to start without you- Thought you’d never show up!

[mothsthetic 2250]

Laughing at something Artel had said across from him, it takes Wilford a moment to register Theoderic’s approach. As soon as he does, he stands.

“T’ere ye are, ye ol’ bastard!” He welcomes with a grin, giving the war hero a clap on the shoulder as he moves to sit back down. 

“Had me t’inkin’ ye were ne’er gonnae make et.”

 

And the dealer deals, and the dead drink together as they had years ago.