The Terrible Tale of Sir Death

From: Martin Laurie <MLaurie_at_compuserve.com>
Date: Mon, 8 Sep 1997 18:39:58 -0400


The Terrible Tale of Sir Death: A common story in the west.

Once upon a time, the world was broken. War and strife filled the lives of everyone. God was invisible and paganism ate the =

souls of the unwary. =

It was during this terrible time that a foreign knight came to our =

lands from the east, mounted on a white horse, wearing black =

armour and wielding a ferocious array of weapons.

His aspect was cruel and scarred. His body was like tightly =

woven steel ropes and his teeth were made of iron, fanged =

and ferocious. He called himself Onslaught though he was =

known to most as the Death Knight or Sir Mort to some. =

He said he followed the evil socerer of Death - called Humct =

Indeed this Sir Death took many away from us for he served =

many different lords in his time and each asked him to do what =

he did so well. =

Always he searched for war and slaughter and always he =

found it. During those wicked days there were many lords =

who sought war or domination over another. Sir Death became =

champion for one and then another and wherever he went =

victory followed and so he was sought after ever more. Of =

course there was a price to be paid for his victories as those =

involved with him were cursed by his presence and often =

died on his sword when he was hired by their rivals in a later =

struggle. =

So utter did the violence in the land become that good knights =

lost their virtue and began to follow this harbinger of doom. His =

free company swept the lands far and wide and many evil =

barbarians came to join him.

At last, his depredations grew so great that the Saints and =

Bishops of the Holy Church saw their only salvation in his =

destruction. They planned accordingly. =

Their first strategum involved honourable combat but Sir Death =

knew no honour and had the ill grace to kill all the champions =

sent against him. He hacked them, cut them and smashed =

them. Occasionally one wounded him but he only seemed to =

enjoy the struggle all the more and soon no-one could be =

found with the courage to oppose him.

Their second plan involved sending the Sisters of Piety to =

convince him of his errors. The sisters strained mightily at =

their task, using every concievable ethical argument and =

theological tactic to impress Sir Death with the purity of their =

cause. He was unmoved. Even the full use of their Gift of =

Tongues failed to stir his interest. A back-up plan using the =

Choir Boys of Innocence also failed to have any effect.

Desparing, the Saints hired assassins from accross the =

known world to dispense with Sir Death but he spotted =

and slew them all with ease, as if he could sense them =

coming. The assassins complained that he didn't even =

bother with a bodyguard and seemed pleased when they =

showed up, as if their attempt to kill him relieved some =

great boredom. Soon, no amount of money could procure =

his demise.

Armies were summoned and a Crusade was called. =

Valliantly they marched to fight and valiantly they were =

crushed beneath the mailed fist of Sir Death's army which =

instituted a crusade of their own and killed all who opposed =

them. =

Sadly, the great Saints and Bishops of our land sat to =

contemplate their failure. All seemed lost. Bishop Gantayer =

cried openly "Who will rid us of this turbulent knight?"

And then a woman was brought before them - a pagan =

priestess of healing who claimed knowledge of Sir Death. =

She said she'd felt the Death he brought growing in the world =

and had come to stop him. She knew the warrior personally =

having ridden with him in the distant past, in the days of her =

youth. She said that only the healing magics of Life could =

defeat his evil. The Bishops disliked dealing with a pagan =

but swallowed their pride and agreed to help her reach Sir =

Death.

Across a battlefield of blood and slaughter they led her and in =

the midst of the heaviest fighting they spied Sir Death. He =

stood among his foes likean icon of ire, smiting left and right =

and a cold gloom of despair surroundedhim. The healer =

almost fainted at the grim sense of seperation that tuggedat =

all the souls of the living when they neared Sir Death. =

Flowers in the field died around him, even animals sickened =

in his presence.Finally he hacked his way through a line of =

knights and faced his old companion. As was his way, he =

nodded a greeting and kept on killing butthe priestess =

performed a great magic, called on her Goddess and =

linked her soul with his. He stopped his endless combat =

and froze, locked in a soul embrace. She poured fourth her =

joy in life,showed him hat he too was human, part of life and =

not a cold blade of seperation. He staggered. =

His childhood memories flooded his mind for the first time =

in decades, he remembered the comfort of sleep, the touch =

of a woman, the joy of friends. He remembered what it was =

to be alive! =

With great compassion she showed him that his existence =

was meaningless, that a being of Life should not exist to promote the abstract that was Death. The warring armies =

stopped and held their breath as she embraced him, held =

him through his armour and the offal that covered him. She =

poured out her feelings of love, compassion and tenderness =

in a tidalwave of joy and it struck him to the quick. Sir Death =

knew at that insant that his life had been an extreme, a =

segment of the whole, a whole that he had cut from his heart =

with a ruthlessness that had surpassed any other before =

or since. =

The priestess smiled with the joy of victory as she saw the =

realisation in his black eyes, the sense of a soul awakening from a deep sleep.

Then Sir Death rammed his sword through the back of the =

priestess and through his own body with all the force he =

could muster. =

 =

As his own heart tore and her stunned face spewed forth =

her lifes blood down her chin all heard him say with his =

wicked metal grin. "Bet that was a surprise!"

And the priestess mouthed; Why? as she choked.

He spat through the blood in his mouth to reply and though =

the pain must have been overwhelming, his voice was =

rock-steady and heard all across the battlefield; =

"You have shown me the life I chose to forget. I show you =

the Death you chose to ignore. I have seen my error. =

Humakt cannot be with me until I have accepted his final =

seperation and now _you_ understand. Life must always =

submit to Death but Death submits to nothing!"

And they both died.

Martin Laurie


End of The Glorantha Digest V5 #145


WWW at http://rider.wharton.upenn.edu/~loren/rolegame.html

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