Valeran crumpled the letter up and tossed it onto the still burning corpse of an irekei raider. A single tear could be seen trickling down his face. To the men around him in their red armor it appeared but one more bead of sweat. "You will not have it." Valeran stated. "What, Lord Commander?" came the query of a grizzled templar by his side. "Nothing, Luhan. Get the men ready. We must move out before the sun sets. I want the Irekei village in flames by sundown." The old veteran nodded curtly and hopped off to give out the order. A small man wearing the robes of a confessor stepped up to Valeran's side. "Who will not have what templar? Confess to me what troubles you." "The Duchess does commit a treacherous act against the vows she took. She has forskaken our vows and finds solace in the arms of another. She wishes divorce." The confessor nods and speak softly. "Perhaps it is time we visit. Perhaps she has forgotten her faith since her last cleansing?" For a brief moment Valeran thought to try as he had so many times to divert such from the Duchess. The though passed and with it one part of who Valeran was passed with it. A wry grin came to the Templar's face and he nodded with an almost gleeful look. "Yes, Confessor. She should be cleansed. We should seek to do so in the coming days. The world must be cleansed." The demon wanted to laugh gleefuly. The human had been unbelievably resilient when it came to resisting his control. The love he had for his wife and people had always allowed him to resist. But here, so far away from his people and love, his spirit had finally weakened just a brief moment. That moment was all the time the demon needed. As the confessor walked away Valeran spoke softly. "This body is now mine. And the Temple is the perfect tool to spread the one thing they oppose. Chaos. This world and the others will begin falling. Two are nearly so. Soon... soon." |