Selandra Eriksdotter
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Selandra Eriksdotter
_…and Robyn searched the hills all that Summer leading into Winter. She had introduced Laethan, former squire of Koreth now in exile, to her cousin Selandra last Spring. As a priest of Tyr and knight of Tyr, they had much in common, and had journeyed on a holy quest together later that same season. Despite the considerable skills of Robyn Jahnsdotter, Alan McFee, and Tiberius Longfellow, the two followers of Tyr were never heard from again….
Excerpt from “The Blades of Tyr”, by Hormus the Elder, Bishop of Lyle, Temple of Oghma._
Somewhere in the Underdark, many, many years ago…
Laethan watched as Selandra crouched and peered down the long stairway. Her helmet was off so that she could listen better, and her platinum blonde pony-tail hung down her back. Laethan bent down and playfully buried his nose in her hair, prompting her to turn around and look at him quizzically. Laethan met her eyes and just shrugged, and Selandra just shook her head.
“You’re goopy”, she whispered, looking at him for a moment before peering down the stairway again.
“Goopy? What kind of word is goopy?”, Laethan whispered in reply. Selandra just held up a hand for him to shush, and continued listening.
Selandra was like many knights of Tyr. On glove black, the other white, a white silken tabard covering quality platemail. She was half Uthgardt, her height and stature equal to Laethan’s, her eyes almond shaped, her lips full. That’s where the similarity ended though. Her hair was blonde going to white, and her eyes clear blue like her father’s, and his father before him.
She and Laethan had met scant months ago when her cousin Robyn had introduced them, but the bond was almost instant. In exile from Narfell and still hunted by Koreth’s knights, Selandra had seen that his cause was just, and looked passed it. Together they had taken a quest by the Temple of Tyr in Suzail, and headed into the mountains and down in the Underdark to recover the Vial of Sii, before Razmarrin did
Razmarrin had been an enemy of Selandra almost since she had taken her vows. A witch-priest of Velsharoon, he sought the Vial of Sii for its legendary properties of preservation. The Temple of Tyr knew Razmarrin was seeking some sort of ascendancy into undead form, and was rumored to be after it. Selandra and Laethan had taken the quest. It was the chance to thwart a growing evil, and to be together.
“Sssh!”, Selandra whispered loudly, “Evil…I sense it approaching”
“Razmarrin?”, asked Laethan.“No”, Selandra replied, “There are many, and weaker”
Laethan nodded and put his hand on Selandra’s shoulder, indicating he was ready. With a return nod, they both crept down the stairs.
The semi-lit room below was filled with crushed furniture and chests. Goblins began fanning out and searching, while large animated skeletons, likely hobgoblins, stood guard around them. Selandra was about ready to rush forward, when Laethan put his hand on her shoulder, this time holding her back. Selandra looked back curiously.
“Let them search for us”, he whispered close to her ear. “It will be faster. If they find it, I will stay the one who does, and then you can deal with them. If not, we can look elsewhere.”
Selandra nodded and smiled. Laethan was clever. She liked that. Both of them watched from the darkness.
The goblins murmured quietly amongst themselves, searching chests, picking locks, and opening containers at a prodigious rate. Within a few minutes, one of them squeaked and held aloft a smile vial, it’s red and silver seal glimmering in the light.
“Now!”, Laethan whispered urgently. Selandra rushed forward, and with holy symbol clutched in his hand, Laethan spoke prayer upon prayer. The goblin with the vial was immediately held, and with the utterance of the Words of Justice, all four skeletons collapsed in dust. Moments later, Selandra was upon them.
As Laethan continued, invoking a prayer of blessing, he watched Selandra engage the goblins. Selandra was an accomplished rider, and her favored weapon was a long, bladed spear-like weapon similar to a glaive or fauchard. She used it both on horseback as a lance, and as a pole-arm on foot. She used it to great effect now, sweeping goblins off their feet and skewering them on the ground. Laethan joined combat moments later, and together finished them quickly. Soon they were surrounded by dead goblins and old, dry bones. Selandra picked up the metallic vial from the floor of the cavern and together they prepared to depart.
“I believe you have something that belongs to me”, came a deep raspy voice from the shadows. Selandra and Laethan both wheeled in time to see Razmarrin step out from the darkness. His heavy-set six and half foot frame was draped in a gray cloak, underneath was the metallic glint of platemail. His long, white hair hung down in sheaves across his torso, and on his shoulder rested a heavy flail. His thin pale lips smiled with grim satisfaction.
“Run or fight?”, whispered Laethan.
“It ends here”, Selandra whispered in reply, tucking the vial into a pouch. She turned to Razmarrin and spoke clearly, leveling her weapon, “The only thing you will have today is justice Razmarrin.”
Razmarrin just chuckled and shook his head, “Spoken like a true deluded follower of the one-handed my dear Selandra. Now give me the potion”, he said stepping forward, “Don’t make me kill you. I would miss our cat and mouse games”
During this time Laethan had quietly shifted position to Razmarrin’s left. Seeing the opening, he let out a hasty prayer to Tyr and swung. Razmarrin was not to be caught off guard however. With surprising quickness for one of his bulk, he leaned to his right, the mace whistling in front of him, and then leaned left, placing his hand on Laethan’s chest. It happened so fast that Selandra had no time to react. The words Razmarrin spoke reverberated about the room. Laethan stood there, a blank expression on his face, a harsh look of surprise. Then, Laethan’s lifeless body collapsed to the floor.
“No!”, Selandra cried out in shock and anger. She feinted a thrust with the polearm, then at the last minute spun around, swinging the blade high. The blade sliced through hair and opened Razmarrin’s face from temple to neck. Razmarrin registered no pain however, and there was little blood. He back peddled away from Selandra, his cockeyed grin now showing additional teeth and bone.
“You can’t beat me Selandra. This contest was over before it even begun. Now give me the potion”, he gestured, “and I might let you crawl out of here.”
“Tyr will see you receive justice first!”, Selandra cried out in anger and frustration, thrusting the bladed lance forward.
Razmarrin side-stepped the blow and brought the flail crashing down. Selandra brought the lance up side-ways to deflect it, but the Razmarrin’s strength was supernatural. The lance snapped in half, and the blow continued and impacted Selandra’s hip and leg. Bones smashed, and Selandra collapsed to the ground.
Razmarrin regarded Selandra as she backed away from him on the ground, her leg crooked and useless in front of her. She looked up at him, quivering in shock, her eyes dilated. Slowly, she took the vial out of her belt and held it behind her, as she continued to futilely crawl away.
“Truly, I had expected more of you girl”, he said with a smile, lazily matching her pace walking forward, “Now I want you to give me the potion. Give it to me”, he smiled.
Behind her, out of sight of Razmarrin, Selandra’s hand worked frantically. She looked up at him then, a look of resignation. Then she swore…The only time in her life since taking her vows.
“Fuck you”, she said, and in one smooth motion….
… drank the potion.
“NO!!!”, he bellowed, and swung the flail.
The funny thing about legends is how they get twisted over time. Tirone Sii, the great Alchemist of Thay, had a indeed created a potion of preservation. But the word preservation has different meanings, and Tirone Sii, brilliant man that he was, had created a potion that would indeed preserve him, by freezing time. As soon as Selandra drank the potion, all 10 doses, time stopped for her, preserving her in a single moment of defiance.
Razmarrin’s flail impacted the top of Selandra’s head, but he might as well have swung at the mountain. The chain and wood shattered uselessly on Selandra’s immutable form. Fueled by anger and supernatural strength, Razmarrin’s powerful hands ripped and tore away armor, backpack, even clothing, but Selandra herself remained exactly as she was, frozen in time.
Razmarrin’s screams of frustration echoed throughout the Underdark.
Many, many years later….
Grimfor Coalhammer, his brother Grild, and a slightly overweight mule named Hops peered from the bottom of the stairway. The two Dwarven brothers were old hands at exploring the Underdark, and made their living recovering ore and old treasures. However, before them was a sight they hadn’t yet encountered.
“Oi! What’s dis?”, Grimfor looked at the unmoving woman from a distance.
Grild shrugged, “Looks like a nekkid lass”
“I kin see that!”, Grimfor folding his thick arms and stroking his beard, “But wha’ in hells is un nekkid lass doin’ half a league unnerground?”
“Looks like she be drinkin’ somethin’”, Grild said, walking closer cautiously. “Hey lass! What ye doin’ der?”
Grild waited, but nothing happened, so he reached out and touched her. “I think she be made of stone. Mebbe a statue or somethin’. Aye, maybe a basilisk done her in.”
Grimfor just shook his head, “Was nae a basilisk. She’d be lookin’ more statue like. Dis lass here jus lookin’ like she be decidin’ ta stop movin’”. Grimfor continued to stroke his beard in thought.
Grild started stroking his beard as well, both of them walking around the frozen form of Selandra. Finally Grild held up a finger. “Oi! Maybe we should splash water on her face! It always worked on pa”
They both looked at each, shrugged, and began searching through their containers, sniffing each in turn. After much searching, Grild held up a small jug. “We nae ‘ave any water. ’Ow ‘bout dis brother?”
“Nae!”, Grimfor said, eyes wide, “Dat be ta good stuff!”
“Aye brother, but how many nekkid lasses you see recently, kin or not?”
Grimfor narrowed his eyes at his brother, but then shrugged. “Go ahead lad, jus’ don’ expect me ta watch. Be waste of ta good stuff it is”, he said, shaking his head.
With great ceremony, Grild walked over to Selandra, and poured half the contents of jug over her head. He finished by taking several swigs himself, wiping the foam off with the back of his hand.
Both waited, but nothing happened. Grimfor groaned, held his head in his hands and shook his head. “Wastin’ ta good stuff. It be sacrilege”
Coincidence is a funny thing. Any one of a hundred million things could have been happening when the potion wore off. In this case, it happened to be a couple of enterprising Dwarven fellows pouring a dark Lager over Selandra’s head. Before the astonished faces of the two Dwarves, Selandra collapsed with a groan and a sigh to the floor of the cave.
A few days ago…
The caravan wagon rocked rhythmically, lulling Selandra into partial sleep. The parchment she had left at her father’s some 20 years ago, was now folded and tucked away carefully in a pouch at her side. It was a letter of introduction from a Knight of Helm named “Kanen Hightower”, which had been sent by her cousin Robyn so many years ago. It spoke of a great Temple of Tyr in a city called Peltarch, in the land of Narfell in the East Kingdoms. It spoke of the need for heroes to fight the evil there, and protect the common good. It was a place her cousin had called home, and soon Selandra would too.
It would be a good place to recover she thought to herself sleepily. Despite the magical healing, the injury to her hip and leg left a permanent limp, and she would have to relearn to fight again, just to compensate. She also had 20 years of prayers to catch up on, she chuckled to herself. It seemed Tyr had all but forgotten her.
As the caravan wagon rumbled eastward upon the Long Road, Selandra finally fell asleep, and dreamed of adventure.
A note to the reader
In the Spring of 2003, when Robyn had established herself as a regular character in Narfell, I took it upon myself to create an entire family tree and back story for her. It made it easier to discuss Robyn’s past, and gave motivations and background for her actions.
The tale concerns the three children of the Olafson brothers, Jahn and Erik. Robyn, daughter of Jahn, Selandra, daughter of Erik, and Maya, who was the illegitimate child of Erik and was conceived during an affair with an Uthgardt tribeswoman. This affair caused the cessation of a lucrative trade with various Uthgardt tribes, and as a result the eventual falling apart of the brothers’ relationship.
In the Summer of 2003, I couldn’t decide whether to create Selandra or Maya, and eventually chose Maya. Now I introduce the last of their children, Selandra Eriksdotter
The events surrounding Selandra’s entry into Narfell are based on actual events that occurred in-game. Robyn was responsible for getting Laethan away from Koreth’s influence, hiding him, and eventually guiding him out of Narfell to his eventual destination in Cormyr. The letter of introduction by Kanen Hightower was based on an actual IG conversation. Selandra is even mentioned briefly in Maya’s journal, in entry #11. When Selandra disappeared with Laethan many years ago, Robyn gathered two local rangers and tried to track them, but never did find them.
This is the conclusion of the tale of three young women, all touched by the gods in some fashion. Selandra’s entry into the land of Narfell may be brief, but I hope you enjoy it.
Wolfhere
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Reviewed - XP Pending.
