The Crimson Champion

Grelnar Side Story: The Assassin's Attack

(Author's Note: This side story takes place around 12 years before chapter 1, and it's from Grelnar's point of view the night he was attacked by the assassin Rothzal! Please enjoy!)

I bring out some meat and start cooking it over the fire. Once it's done, I hand some to Sonia and Shana, then take some for myself, making sure to toss a piece to Skullcrusher before I start eating.

I smile as the four of us have dinner together as a family. After we're done, I sit where I am and watch Sonia and Shana play. Sonia uses a bit of magic to make Shana float and she giggles. "Yay!"

I stand up and stretch, then I hear Skullcrusher growl, so I go over to him. "What's wrong?" He turns to look at seemingly nothing, but then a strange purple-skinned elven man in purple armor walks out of nowhere.

I narrow my eyes and walk towards him with my hand on my axe, ready for a fight. "Who are you?" The man smirks. "My name is Rothzal, The Violet Shadow, and I am here to aid my mother's plan."

Sonia walks towards me. "Grelnar, what's going on?" Shana just says nothing as she hides behind her mother, hesitantly holding the gale daggers that her mother made for her.

I look at Rothzal suspiciously. "Who is this mother of yours? What is her plan?" He grins evilly and flicks his wrists, making purple claws come out of the gauntlets on them. "I am here to kill you all, of course. Mother wishes it.”

I immediately pull my axe off my back and hold it at the ready. "How dare you even think of coming here and threatening my family?! You're the one that's going to die!"

I leap at the man and slash, but he easily parries my axe with a claw. He uses the other to swipe at me and he manages to cut my arm open.

I glare at him and I watch for an opening. Eventually he lunges at me and I dodge sideways, then I swing at his side and leave a wound. He growls and rolls forward to get some distance between us, then he sees Sonia and Shana and smirks.

"I think you two are next." Rothzal goes up to Sonia and he swipes at her, but she quickly pulls out her daggers and blocks. "I'm not as weak as you think!"

Sonia unleashes a flurry of slashes and slices at Rothzal, and he blocks most of them, but a few get through and leave cuts. He glares at Sonia furiously and he tries to go around her to attack Shana, smirking at her. "Are you scared?"

Shana shakily points her daggers at him. "No! Get away from us!" Rothzal grins. "I'm afraid I can't do that." He tries to claw at her, but he yells out in pain as Sonia stabs him in the back with her daggers. "GET THE HELL AWAY FROM MY DAUGHTER!”

Rothzal reaches behind his back and grabs Sonia by one of her arms, then uses his strength to throw her into a nearby tree. She struggles to stand and Shana runs over to her.

Rothzal laughs and starts to stroll over to them, but I jump at him with my axe raised, ready to bury it into his back. Unfortunately, he manages to turn and block, just barely preventing it from harming him.

Then, he somehow backflips, then he sprints at me. He slashes at my arms, leaving cuts, and I struggle to keep a grip on my axe. "Damn you..." I back up a little bit and of course he immediately goes for Sonia and Shana.

Shana stands in front of her mother, as if trying to defend her while she gets up. "You're not going to hurt her!" Rothzal just rolls his eyes and shoves Shana aside to get to her, but Sonia slashes Rothzal's arm as she fully stands up.

Rothzal hisses in pain and he swiftly swipes at Sonia's hands to make her drop her daggers. I rush towards them, but I can do nothing but watch in horror as Rothzal cackles and slashes Sonia's throat.

"NO!" Sonia collapses to the ground and I storm at Rothzal, intending to tear him apart. He just looks at the sky and he starts to talk to himself. "What's that, mother? Oh, I see." A strange purplish aura starts to appear in the area, so I try to attack him, but everything goes black.

*******************************************

Rothzal kneels as a tall winged woman appears out of the aura, and she grins at him as she walks over. "You've done a good job, my son. Wait here for my next command."

The woman goes over to Shana, where she lies passed out from shock, and chants some words. "You shall not remember my presence, young one."

The purple-skinned woman then goes over to Grelnar, chanting and summoning purple aura around him. "You shall follow my command and wake up shortly."

She then opens a portal nearby and Yuri Solaris walks out. "You summoned me, Lady Zetarus?" Zetarus nods. "Yes." She gestures at Rothzal and Yuri gets an annoyed look on his face as he sees the now smirking assassin.

"I wish for you and my son to pretend to fight. You must drive him off in front of that brute, for he will be grateful and a large help to your armies." Yuri nods. "Of course, thank you for your help, my lady."

Zetarus then goes over to Rothzal. "You must now fight Yuri, my son. After the brute has seen you two fight, let Yuri drive you away. It will be a good help for the future." Rothzal nods. "As you wish, Mother." Zetarus disappears and Rothzal jumps at Yuri, ready to start the fight.

*******************************************

I wake up holding my head, and I see the purple bastard fighting a strange man in black armor with twin katanas. Thankfully, Rothzal seems to be losing.

As I hold my axe at the ready and start to run over, the man manages to get past Rothzal's defenses and slashes his chest repeatedly, leaving multiple cuts.

Rothzal growls and retreats. I attempt to go after him, but the man stops me. "That would not be smart, trust me. He will probably die of his wounds anyway." I sigh and put my axe away. "Thanks for your help, stranger."

He grins. "I'm Yuri Solaris, the emperor of Solaris." I quickly attempt to kneel, but he shakes his head. "That's not needed. Even though you don't know of me, I've heard of you, Grelnar. I've heard a lot about your strength, so I have an offer for you."

I raise an eyebrow. "What's that?" He smirks. "I'd like to enlist your services as a general in my army. I'd provide a place for you and your daughter to live, and give you everything you need. What do you say?" I don't even hesitate with my answer. "It would be an honor.”