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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Paka" data-source="post: 1002436" data-attributes="member: 100">Story Post #18Epilogue #1 – Durgen the SilentDurgen sat in his cabin, his crew knew their duties.  He hoped that there would be no battles with the many terrors of the Pellurian Sea.  The men were all tired, never having combatted a Shadow Minion of this magnitude.  He thought about leaving the Esben world, just taking off and joining the Pirate Princes. Damn the wardenship, damn the Sea Tower and most of all damn the Esben family.Fool thoughts, thoughts for a boy who still believes in fairy tales.No, he would return to port.Durgen took out his dagger and sharpened it.  It was the dagger he had used to cut out his own tongue.  Few knew it was of Elven make, curved slightly with intricate braidwork on the handle.  He thought about the dagger and how he had first used it.Durgen had distinguished himself as a good soldier, manning his father’s finest ships and meeting success after success.  The former Warden of the Sea Tower, Kell the Reaver had been embarrassed by his young Squire’s many successes.  It was coming time for Durgen to be knighted and his induction into the order would mark him as a competitor for Kell’s highly sought after position.  Back before his tongue had come out he was called Durgen the Brave.None knew that Durgen Esben was haunted by dreams of a woman with long reddish brown hair the color of brass and eyes entirely black.  She was as beautiful as a rolling thundercloud and when he awoke he was always saying her name.  In time he found out the name on his lips was that of the Witch-Queen of Erethor.  That father could know of these dreams was the only thing in all of Eredane that frightened him.  Indeed, his father was the only person he had ever met who struck fear in his heart.Kell and Durgen orchestrated a brutal ambush at sea, using the morning’s mist and an oracular Sea Hag. During the vicious battle at sea an Elf died in Durgen’s arms.  The Elf, with black eyes like the woman in Durgen’s dreams, stared at his killer, Durgen Esben.  When the he died he placed a dagger in Durgen’s hands and whispered his last words, “Why do you kill us when you have seen the Queen’s beauty for yourself?”  At that point Durgen had been dreaming of the Witch-Queen every night for a year and a day.The battle was decisively won, with the combined battle-wisdom of Vildar’s most battle-wise sons,  Kell the Reaver and Durgen the Brave.  As they divided the spoils, Kell clapped his younger brother on the shoulder and Durgen responded quickly, plunging his newfound Elven dagger into his black-hearted brother’s throat.Then Durgen spoke to his men and released his final words, “If you would overthrow the tyranny of my father and the spiteful Demon he serves from the North then kill for me now.  Slit the throat of anyone here who serves the Shadow willingly and serve me, Durgen the Usurper!”He had expected to be killed, cut down but men responded.  One hundred men were left when the slaughter was done.  Years later less than sixty remained and he counts himself lucky to have that many.He cut out his own tongue, scared that his words might one day betray him or more importantly, betray Her.  The deeds done during the ritual Durgen was put through in order to be anointed a full knight in his father’s order still woke him at night.  But he told himself, every night he awoke covered in sweat and guilt, “Those were the vile deeds I had to do in order to accomplish any good in this broken world.”Durgen thought of his brother, Karhoun the Knife.  Karhoun had earned his moniker when he offered his knife to Vildar as his only weapon.  Later Karhoun engaged in a bloody battle with the Oruks who held his weapons and used the dagger father had poisoned to kill his enemies.  Karhoun earned the name yet again by taking his dagger to the Manticore in a desperate attempt to wound the beast.  None of the Esbens would ever hear of that battle, though.  Durgen thought of the terrible road that the fates had set head for Karhoun and him.  Durgen thought of the blood, the strife and pain and did something he only did in private; Durgen the Silent smiled.</blockquote>

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