Her Majesty Queen Galfrey's page

Blinking away tears, Aravashnial walks out into the sunlight to take in Kenabres. He gasps at the devastation but remains silent as Queen Galfrey follows him, and moves to the centre of camp.

She raises a hand, and her voice booms out, magically enhanced by some means.

"Devout of the Inheritor, your commanders are here. The Knights of the Fifth Crusade have placed Irabeth Tirablade as commander of this army. Today, you march to retake Drezen and strike our first great blow against the Worldwound in a decade. Be strong, be brave. The Gods are watching us, and they smile at our valour. For the Inheritor!"

A cry of "FOR THE INHERITOR" goes up from the amassed paladins. Queen Galfrey turns to the group.

"Good luck."

And with that her bodyguards bring her a horse, and she mounts to ride off.

Irabeth heads out from the tent, the normally soft-spoken half-orc calling out in a booming voice.

"ALL RIGHT YOU LOT BREAK CAMP! LET'S MOVE!"

Nurah wipes away a tear and even Aron smiles despite himself. Irabeth and Anevia just watch with smiles on their faces. Galfrey looks upon Aravashnial with a kindly expression.

"You have been granted your sight by the holy writ of Iomedae and have pledged yourself to her cause. This is good and I am glad."

She turns to the group.

"Your army awaits you, Knight Commanders. I will go forth to give the troops my blessing before we depart. Are you ready?"

"Your timing is superlative," says Galfrey. "I had just arrived. Sosiel has impressed upon me the importance of Aravashnial, whose reputation as an expert on demonology precedes him."

She produces a scroll. "This was not easy to find, I do not keep a stack of scrolls this powerful at all times. Many of us have suffered grave wounds, and the decision to choose who is healed, and who is not is not one I wield gladly. But Aravashnial, you have done great service to our cause and it is imperative that the Riftwardens thrive and replenish their numbers. Sosiel, if you would be so bold."

Aravashnial leans on his staff, his hands trembling as Sosiel unfurls the scroll, looking over the words carefully.

Galfrey looks sternly at Nilus and Dejik but seems somewhat swayed by their words.

"This is a difficult request, but Aravashnial's reputation precedes him and your argument is sound. I will do what I can."

With that, she turns on heel and leaves the room, striding swiftly away. The smile on Aravashnial's face almost lights up the room.

The door swings open and Queen Galfrey steps into the room, prompting everyone to stand.

"Sosiel was talking about a scroll of some kind? Be quick about it."

With the party knighted, Queen Galfrey turns to a paige, who hands her a wooden box. She opens it to reveal several ornate military medals.

"Finally, for your individual actions in combat to this date, I am delighted to award all of you with righteous medals. These symbols are for the greatest of crusaders, they are blessed with divine power, and they will aid you."

She steps over to Sarkast.

"Sir Sarkast, for your stout heart, determination, and courage I award you the medal of vigor. You have taken mighty blows from the most terrible of foes yet stand before us this day, a testament to the strength of the Kellid people."

A red hexagonal symbol bearing a white castle is affixed to Sarkast's chest.

"Dame Dejik, for your intelligence, kind heart, and devotion to the Light of the Sword, I award you the medal of clarity. The information gathered has perhaps turned the tide of this war, and your devotion is peerless."

A blue symbol bearing white eyes is affixed to Dejik's chest.

"Dame Jalal, Sir Black, and Sir Sarkast once more! For your speed in battle, having felled powerful demons with precise and grace, I award you the medal of agility."

All three receive a triangular medal of a demon's face ringed with swords.

"Sir Romani, I have two medals for you as well. For delivering the death blow to demons of great power, you receive the medal of valor. And for perhaps the greatest act, for convincing the tiefling Arenius to throw down the hatred of the Worldwound and take up the shining sword of the crusade, I award you the medal of command."

Nilus receives a medal of crossed swords over a shield, and another of swords sticking out of a demon's skull.

She then leans in. "I won't make you give a speech," and then winks before turning to the crowd.

"The Knights of the Fifth Crusade!" Another thunderous cheer goes up, and the crowd is given the sign to be dismissed.

"My gentle men and women, you have your mission, and a reward I am certain none of you asked for. I will now retire. The specialists assigned to your mission will be awaiting for you in the war room."

With that she turns, and leaves you outside. A few people come up to congratulate you, but soon the roar of the crowd and the incredible attention paid to you has abated for now.

The medals have yet more buffs! I will explain in the discussion thread.

As Galfrey strides out she looks to Sarkast.

"As you are in charge, you bring who you wish. This mission is of utmost importance and provided you keep the army small, bring whichever specialists you wish. Irabeth would be an excellent commander if that is your desire."

Now outside, Queen Galfrey steps to the side and the five of you are lined up with Jinxx sitting beside Ronan.

"Loyal citizens of Kenabres, crusaders, and valiant servants of the Inheritor. We are here today to recognize our brave heroes for their great personal sacrifices for this city." She draws her longsword and turns to the group.

She turns to the group. "Kneel before the Gods and your Queen. Ronan Black, Nilus Romani, Ayesha Jalal, Dejik, and Sarkast. I dub thee the Knights of the Fifth Crusade!"

A thunderous cheer arises from the crowd as she taps you on the shoulder with her sword. "Arise Sir Black, Sir Romani, Dame Jalal, Dame Dejik, and Sir Sarkast!"

After hearing no further response, Galfrey nods once and stands.

"Then please, come with me. A ceremony has been arranged for you while we have met. I understand you are not accustomed to leading armies. Rest assured, I expect there will be one leader for this army. But you are blessed by Iomedae and the decisions must be yours. Choose a leader from amongst yourselves or your friends. Follow me."

With that she turns, and leads the group through Defender's Heart, and back to the dusty square in front of it. There, the remnants of the crusade as well as a variety of important-looking people in military regalia, officers and senior clerics, are assembled in a crowd. They break into applause as you step out behind the Queen. Anevia hoots and hollers from the side before being elbowed by Irabeth.

Irabeth is not actually present.

She nods over at Sarkast. "In this case, questions are what I hope for and expect. I'm unaware of how much information you have about this going in."

Galfrey holds up a finger. "One. Despite the name, it's not a sword. It's a battle standard-an artifact once used by Iomedae herself during the Shining Crusade. The church loaned the banner to the First Mendevian Crusade and allowed it to hang in Drezen, where it bolstered crusader morale and, perhaps more importantly, warded against demonic attacks, deceptions, and even teleportation. It is a perfect defense against demons. It is located somewhere within the Citadel Drezen. At one point it was held within a special vault, but our divinations have revealed only that it is in the Citadel. The Sword of Valor, by design, is hard to pinpoint. We assume it is kept as a trophy."

A second slender finger arises. "Two. Drezen was built during the First Mendevian Crusade as a strategic foothold inside the World wound. Dwarves chiseled it from of a rocky hill near the source of the Sellen River. It held for well over a decade, withstanding almost constant war before a traitor turned the Sword of Valor over to the demons. We never found out who it was, but with the Sword ofValor's protection gone, the demons took Drezen in a night. It has been in their clutches for decades."

And finally a third. "Three, your army will be one hundred crusaders; devout paladins of Iomedae. A small, but elite force. I feel it will allow you to move without attracting attention. You will also be accompanied by three specialists, chosen by me personally. Aron Kir is a cleric of Shelyn, an excellent healer with a deep knowledge of demons and their tactics. Sosiel Vaenic is an expert on siege tactics, traps, infiltration, and scouting. He will have the maps you want. And lastly there's Nurah Dendiwhar, she'll support you with bardic magic and is an expert on the region. She knows more about Drezen than anyone I know."

Galfrey nods as the group replies. "I should specify - I only require a single commander for the army. You presence is a motivating one, and your powers are of great use for more specific situations. I recommend that you choose one of yourselves as the sole commander, or someone you have worked with and trust. When I delegate, I mean it truly. The army is yours, but the command of the army should be given to one who is most capable. I know this is the correct course."

She raises a finger. "This plan is a risk, but it is a worthy one. The demons will not expect, and may not even notice it, what with their attentions focused on the southern border. If you can secure Drezen quickly enough to find the Sword of Valor, it should do most of the work keeping the place safe once you've reactivated it."

She folds her hands and she looks from person to person. "No questions, truly? You know all there is to know of the Sword of Light, Drezen, its denizens, the people I send with you?"

Galfrey seats herself and the party follows. She peaks her her hands and looks evenly at each person in turn.

"I will be direct, for I have much to say. Your act of destroying the wardstone, though it was the brain child of Quednys, has been attached to your names by the populace. Rumours fly quickly, and although you are now hailed as heroes, there are narrow-minded souls among the crusade who blame you for the destruction of the wardstone border. They are scared, and foolish. I do not begrudge you for what you did. Far from it. From the sound of it, you saved entire legions of crusaders from a most vile fate by preventing Vorlesh from transforming them, and the blast of energy gave us the time we needed to regroup and
prepare for what will certainly come next."

Galfrey irritably brushes some long hair from her face, having come loose from the braiding in the back. She grabs her cup of water and drinks half of it.

"But you understand the implications of what you've done, I'm sure. The wardstones are gone, but Iomedae has seen fit that you will be their replacement."

She pauses to let her words sink in.

"I can think of no other reason that would explain why their power would have settled in your bodies and souls and didn't merely fade into the ether. In time, the demons will regroup and reorganize-we can trust their inherent chaos to make this period of regrouping longer than it otherwise would take, but we shouldn't underestimate them. They'll be back soon enough. Already I've had reports from along the front lines that small groups of demons are attacking fortifications and settlements along the southern border."

Galfrey raises a finger, speaking carefully as she looks into the eyes of each party member in turn.

"But what intrigues me most is news from several reliable sources that as our fiendish enemies are starting to mass in the southern reaches along the Riftshadow within the Worldwound, they have left several of their northern lairs relatively unprotected. In particular, the fiend Aponavicius has taken the bulk of her army from Drezen, leaving it only moderately protected as she joins with the Storm King in lz to, no doubt, plot greater attacks on larger targets targets like Nerosyan, Karcau, and beyond."

Her hand slaps down on the table as she raises her deep, rich voice.

"The time is right to strike into their territory! Drezen was the first of our cities to fall after the First Crusade, and we lost more than our kin and our pride that day. We lost the Sword of Valor, a magical banner carried by the Inheritor herself during the Shining Crusade. If Drezen could be retaken, if the Sword of Valor could once again be held by the crusade ... well, I trust I don't need to explain how well that would affect morale. But with the imminent attacks along the border, I cannot spare many to lead an assault on Drezen. And even if I could, a large army attacking the city would only draw Aponavicius back to defend the place."

She then stands, pacing and still carefully sizing up each one of you.

"Remain seated. The obvious tactic is to send in a group of capable heroes with a modest but well-trained army to strike now, while the proverbial iron is hot! And this is why I've sought you out. If you can retake Drezen and reclaim the Sword of Valor, not only will you silence the fools who would brand you traitors for destroying the wardstone, but more importantly, you would bolster the entire war effort with your heroism. And I fear we need all the bolstering we can get!"

Galfrey then returns to her seat, and pours herself some more water.

"This is my plan. To restate, the two hundred paladins who were my honour guard to Kenabres will be yours to command. Your orders will be to take lead this army, strike at Drezen, and reclaim the Sword of Valor."

Despite her intense, and humorless demeanor she allows herself a smile.

"Questions?"

Galfrey smiles warmly as the party stands forth to introduce themselves.

"I will retire to my room and we shall meet shortly. Commander, ensure there is a comfortable place for us to meet," she says, looking to Irabeth. She then turns to look over her retinue. "Aron, Nurah, Sosiel - be available at my call." Behind her a plucky-looking halfling woman, a somewhat hollow-eyed young man, and a serene man in armour bearing the songbird of Shelyn all bow their heads in turn.

"AND MARCH!"

A call goes up from the grand procession of paladins that have framed the Queen's grand entrance. At least two hundred of the religious warriors turn on heel, and march away towards what is presumably their camp. The Queen's retinue of at least twenty remain, half of which have now rushed into Defender's Heart to begin preparations.

Galfrey sweeps by you into the fortress-like inn, and you are soon lead to the now-familiar meeting room where your original attack on the Grey Garrison was planned.

After around ten minutes, Galfrey arrives in plain tunic and breeches, though with no less a commanding presence. She enters the room with the five of you, and the door is shut behind her.

"Be seated. We have much to discuss."

Galfrey rides up on a brown palfrey. She is dressed in ceremonial armour, adorned with runes in yellow lettering and a feathery blue crest. Her face is young, far younger than would be expected for the longtime ruler of Kenabres, although with the hard, wise eyes of a monarch in a land of perpetual war. Her voice is surprisingly deep, deeper than Irabeth's, but resonant and clear.

"Crusaders of the Eagle Watch, people of Kenabres," she looks to the party, assembled to Irabeth's left. "And our heroes. I bid you welcome. I bring with me my armies to secure and restore Kenabres. It is a new day in Mendev and we shall take greatest advantages of our opportunities. The blessings of The Inheritor be with all of you. She watches us, and she is proud of your work today."

She dismounts her horse, handing the reins to a nervous stable master, and removes her helmet before gesturing at the party.

"Your descriptions do not do you," her eyes move to Jinxx. "Or him justice. It would please me that you introduce yourselves."