Vintus

The wet sound of blade sliding out of flesh bothered Storsh for the first time in decades as his father crumpled into a lifeless heap at his feet. He lifted the bloodstained sword so it caught the light, then threw it aside. One hooded figure remained, and she approached quietly. The giant ignored Jessica's presence as she placed a hand lightly on his back.
"It is done, Karesh. Remember our teachings." The woman's words echoed in his head as the frail body was lowered into the grave. Returned to the earth. "Bury the dead, in the earth and in our minds." She had looked on that day, unable to show herself to his children and the other gathered Red Earth. They embraced after it had been done, their last meeting until Storsh returned from a job in Lenalia. "Do not mourn the deaths of those you love for long. Pay your respects and release them, so they may return into the peace and stillness they were born from." Kneeling before his son's grave marker, she had been there as well. Despite the chill of the late autumn's rain, he had not risen. Jessica had retrieved his Red Earthen cloak and draped it over his shoulders. From that day on, Storsh had worn his clan's cloak in the open, forgoing the garb of a simple farmer.

"Do not allow grief and fear to grip your being. Do not let it guide your thoughts." Tarius left Madeleine's hut unharmed, and Storsh silently cursed himself for his foolishness. Jessica had been absent, and she wished she were there to tell him how to lead the ragged remains of his clan. "Let their soul be free of the guilt of their passing. Focus on the task at hand." His children set to work on the tent on the outskirts of Dorter, and Storsh stared at the flask that contained Edmundo's remains. "Allow the enemy to see you free of regret and doubt. Show them fear, while keeping your friends and loved ones close. Show them the man you are." Leafing through the pages of many books, finding nothing, Storsh researched the Impure King after all but forcing the Chancellor to bed. The result of their previous conversation distracted him from his fruitless labor. "We need you, Karesh. You saved me once." No longer would he hide himself from his allies behind the guise of a simpleton. "Now, leave these forests and your father behind, and help save us all."