Heathen

[Leanne Martin]

Ilyana read the note Lucas' sent him over and over. Yes, he had to disappear, but he wasn't dead yet, which made her smile. However, with so many people gone in and at least as much deserted to New Hope, Ilyana feared about the future of Cove.

Vesper already had been finished at it'd be only a question of time before any royalist would take steps into her hometown. And with royalists in Vesper, it wouldn't take long until they'd march towards Cove. Ilyana knew she had something to do, because Cove would be outnumbered greatly. Her plan was the forbidden spell of Armageddon.

However, that spell'd require a high amount of concentration and a failure would cause her won death and even a succes could make her life less happier. The chance of being infected with blackrock during the process was high. She spoke the words of power several times, over and over, focused on the might of blackrock. And then a loud explosion. She was able to make the blackrock explode into blue fires, but was not able to control this intense energy for long. She got damaged by the attempt, but not killed. She still had much to do and learn, before she could use that mighty spell properly. Until then, she had to find another way to protect her homelands...

[Leanne Martin]

It has been a long time, since Ilyana experimented with blackrock. She used the spell quite a few times and she began to hear voices. Some calling for help... Others calling her to kill... However, recently, the voices had become silent. She got plagued by them for a long time, but now that they were gone all of a sudden, she knew... that something was wrong. She decided to skip the blackrock, as another failure would surely infect her, and the thought, she could loose the mind over her actions frightened her too much.

But now, as she finally was able to build an arcanist headquarer in Cove, she had room to put her studies and efforts on other "forbidden" things. A secret and locked room in the building itself contained various of these stuff. Necromancy spells, odd gems, a pentagramm... All she needed for a beast as mighty, that she only could summon it with the help of her friends and members of the squad... Pyros...

[Leanne Martin]

"You seen Lenley? You help Lenley?"

The same voices went through her mind over and over again. Long time she was not able to translate these voices... However, lately she felt the urge to go to the Sanctuary... The voices drawned her there.

It was a cold night, no winds dared to blow as she stepped over Jassi Cowin. Holding her head from the pain, Jassi asked if everything's alright. Ilyana smirked and shaked her head. She asked him to accompany him to Sanctuary, to stop these voices once and for all. They two forced their way through the fiends in these dark lairs and eventually came across a mouse hole.

"You seen Lenley? You help Lenley?"

Ilyana could hear the words quite well this time, like someone would stand beside her. Even Jassi could hear the voices now... However, Lenley was not seen. Only Ilyanas reveal-spell made him visible. And... It was a ratman! He asked for help, he flailed the two to escort him outside these caves. Ilyana noded to the ratman, as they started to run outside.

However, Lenley tripped to the floor and immediately got attacked by his own race! Ilyana rushed to his help and fought the rats back, but... Lenley didn't breath anymore... After all this time she searched for a redeem of her infection, she finally found the first step for it, but now... Lenley was dead and with him... The voices? She got plagued by them for so long and now they vanished with Lenley... But something was... wrong.

[Leanne Martin]

Long time passed and Ilyana managed to keep her infection under controlle. Freed from the voices, she grew stronger, mostly because of her infection. However, the animals around her noticed her infection and in response, they avoided her. To keep the infection and the growing powers for herself, she mostly drowned into work, trying to avoid long talks.


Leanne entered the barracks, where, once again, Ilyana was busy with paperwork. "Come on... Ye're planning to stay inside all day again and work? Don't ye have other things to do?" "Aye, I have better things to do, than to waste my time outside." "Aww... And I was just playing the lute for ye." Ilyana smirked and replied: "I feel sorry for the poor instrument." "See? I knew I could make ye smile." Both grinsed at each other...


A few months later, Ilyana heard rumours about the orcs, slaving people and missusing them as workmen. After the parade, Ilyana led, together with Torrak Keres, the men towards Yew, where they encountered them, together with some undeads. One of them, a bone lich... Ilyana never felt such power ever before from a foe, not even from herself, nor Bersi, nor Cel. The tensions grew as the orcs refused to let the people free and eventually a battle started to begin. Dispatched immediately from the other Covians, Ilyana was now all by herself, facing at least five of the evil coalition. She bittely battled them and even managed to take down a few, however... The constant stabbing from all sides made her fall unconcious.


Waking up a bit later again, she found herself being captured and surrounded. On her side, Faden and Jassi. To safe her friends, she offered the undeads a deal. "Oi, bone lich... I have a deal for ye..." The bone lich moved closer towards her... The cold aura of it made each of Ilyanas skin hair stand up. "A deal..? Ssssso?" "Please, let my men go and do with me as you please. This was my gamble and my gamble alone. My men had nothing to with this." "Let them goooo? We have youuu... And them... Why sssshould we...?" Ilyana thinked quickly of a plan to make them accept her deal. "Surely a mighty undead knows the difference between a poor pawn, and the powerful queen in chess' game, don't ye?" The lich seemed to be thinking and accepted "Deeeaal... Ye're now our ssssslave... Your name from now on is Ssssssaarraaaa... And Ssssaaarra only..." Ilyana tried to hold her teards back, as the bone lich laid his cold fingers on her.


They moved, now with Ilyana assisting them, towards Stonekeep, where already the next battle emerged. The Covians that managed to flee now joined forces with Stonekeep. Ilyana, corrupted by a dark magic attacked and healed all, the undeads, orcs, Militia and Covians. As the ones who captured her fell, one after another, the dark grasp around her got weaker and she started to recieve more control back over her actions. Yet however, the evil creatures were fighted off. But the bone lich stayed away as well... She sacrificed herself to save her friends, yet however... That was a mistake more grave than any other. The grasp of the bone lich was still there... And for what prize? Now she's cause even more chaos upon the one's she tried to protect...

[Leanne Martin]

Many moons passed since her capture in Yew. Yet she managed to free herself from the vil grasp of the undeads and stepped right into another.

On a rescue patroulle in Covetous, she got cursed and possesed by an ancient murders spirit with the name Valefar by the events afterwards. Only thanks to her constant opponent Sergio she was able to survive when she was doomed. Her body changed... A lots of new scars, burnings and other bruises painted her skin. Though even after the protection spell... Ilyana was no yet save, and therefor, she decided to leave Cove until she'd manage to find a way to free herself of the evil spirit.

A long journey lied ahead of her. The Lycaeum and Terort Skitas should be the places to find her answer. She soon found out that the use of blackrock made herself being safe during the effect duration, however, this was not a forever solution. After many days and nights, she stepped on a book just about the situation she was in.

She explained her situations the spellcasters in the Lycaeum and they willed to free herself. Valefar also could have been captured into something that was once alive. However, making him to leave Ilyanas body was the more difficult part. With the aid of the mages however, she was able to transfer the evil spirit into a mongbat skull. She was free again...


She happily returned to Cove and with her, Bersi as well. Finally, her mentor and secret love had returned from his many visits to whorehouses. With him on her side, Ilyana felt unstoppable again. But to not ler herself get dragged into political issues again, she decided to leave things in Cove on Bersis hands, and in the meantime, she'd continue her studies about human anatomy and first aid in Terort Skitas.

Her long time, drowning the head in books, made her thinking about big questions about herself as well. Her acting, her sspeaking, everything. It seemed Ilyana finally got a bit wiser and adult, leaving her childlike personality behind. No longer she felt any grief or the urge of vengence for betrayers. She finally realiced, if she'd follow her heart by serving Cove, why wouldn't those that did quit the army not do the very same? It was time to head home...


Back in Cove... It looked like a ghosttown. No one around. Here and then she spotted a few strollin' guardsmen, however, no one was able to tell her what happened. Vesper established itself under Escaflowne and weakened by it Cove. No Hoagie, no Torrak were around. It seemed she was the last standing Command member for now. And even though there was hardly nothing left to protect in Cove, she'd give her last breath against anyone trying to give any cruelty to her home. For now, her goal was to secure the soils on east and west and prepare for any assault of orcs and undeads. Once again, she was ready to die, if necessary... Alone...

[Leanne Martin]

Ilyana managed to overcome first trouble, and Cove was slowly regaining its strengh. Her long time alone in studies and on duty made her become less cruel again.. She even startet to gain idealist ideas - Her ambition no longer lied in war or to harm anyone, it was to unite the land under one banner.

With Commander Keres, Captain Grayner and the Baron himself gone once more, she now hold control over Covian forces. Not even the church could challenge her any longer, thanks to her great numbers of loyal followers and a strange group named Jaana. Without anyone denying her position, she could focus on political affairs outside Cove.

And already after a short time, she managed to enthusiasm people all accross the lands. The past was their forefathers ambitions, not the ones of the youth. The political situation with Vesper, the Duchy, the mercenaries and many others were never in such bloom as currently. Even Stonekeep would be on the path to peace. With the old war bringers gone silent, she arranged a meeting between Vesper and Stonekeep, to get rid of hate between the two.

But before that, she had to welcome back the banished brothers of Cove. Nothing could stop her momentum now!

[Leanne Martin]

Ilyana managed to settle a sort of peace in the lands. Yew, Trinsic, Vesper, Cove and many others spent their time together. Of course they all still insulted each other here and there, but no longer they drew their blades against each other.

Some weeks later, the Baron, Commander Keres and Captain Grayner did return, however... Commander Keres retired and he gave the position as Commander towards Ilyana. "I don't trust the Baron, as he doesn't trust me... No matter what, make sure Abi or Leith are not gonna make anythin' stupid, ye hear?" Ilyana noded, and as time went by, the peace had established.

However... Her endless experimations with blackrock made her sick... Her body slowly got eaten by inside. A deadly disease of which she could not find any cure... It was that night, when her last hour ticked and she sat in the barracks, when Abel Nightroad entered...

"Come to think of it... the last few years have been spent to consolidating our rule... What's more... I had moved with an uncharacteristic sense of haste. I had fooled everyone." Ilyana laughed and coughed. "My time here is done. Abel. Tell my cousine that she is free. And make sure... that Cove stays in peace." "I will..." "Just make sure... ye walk the right path... I just wished... I could see my ambitions see realiced... The land... united under one banner... I can't... believe... I die... on an empty stomach..." And thus, Ilyana Drachen, the Mad Mistress, first female Commander of Cove, and a cunning intellect mastered tactics and strategy, drawn out her last breath... And faded forever...