Crimson Shield (SC'20)
Written by Steve Tremblay
12th of Dulin, 1263
In the late spring of 1263, some 3 years ago, an experiment was beginning in the (then) city of Overwatch to form an elite unit of soldiers to help advance the ongoing war effort raging across Ellara. Starting off on probably the wrong foot, King Zannon Carter was not informed of the teams formation as he was out of the city, the Commander and Captain in charge of the team held vastly different ideas for it's usage and the team itself was caught in the middle of the petty squabbles. The initial lineup for the squad was: And they were later joined by: Aralove Grimnas and Mason Darktree. The team was envisioned as a hit squad for complicated missions but almost as soon as they returned from their first mission, personalities within the group began to clash. Una, always a "hit first, ask questions later" person grated on the plan-heavy Gavin and the religious "moral" center, Marcus. Jadzia and Fie generally avoided those conflicts and focused on their jobs but could not avoid being dragged in for long. Within 2 days of being formed, the group found themselves in a unique opportunity. They found Briahna Ebelmare while traveling to a nearby town. Briahna was the leader of a guerrilla group fighting against the Overwatch and they attempted to capture her. During the fight, Fie was killed and Briahna was indeed captured causing the biggest rift within the squad. Una had decided that Briahna was to be protected as her bravery and courage inspired Una, a fervent Kord follower. Not long after, Fie was resurrected and Una led a coup against her own team by faking Briahna's death and carrying her 'corpse' out of the city. The team took steps to rebuild trust which clearly did not work. On the very next mission, the group was sent into the heart of the Elven forest to destroy some abandoned equipment and ran into a healing and very much alive Briahna. Anger flared from most towards Una and allegiances to the "humans only" city of Overwatch began to waver. It is learned in the very near future that Una was actually a half-elf and Fie was a changeling. Both would at the very least be given a court martial for hiding their 'affliction' and at worst would be executed as traitors for returning to their city. As the squad spirals out of control, the Commander, Patrick Grace (Jadzia's father) added a new member to the group: Aralove Grimnas, a tiefling and sister of Malchus Grimnas who was one of the highest priority targets of the war. With even more friction on the team and an impending defection of half of the team, Gavin decided to sacrifice himself for the mission they were sent on and blew himself up along with the equipment they were sent to destroy to make sure the job got done. Another new member was added, Mason Darktree and briefly Poe Tutillo. Una, Fie and Jadzia officially defected from Overwatch, Marcus began to assume control and started a power grab and the luck of the group got worse from there. Fie's mother Flo and Commander Grace were hung in the city square as traitors as Marcus plotted to move up the chain of command, helping to put Captain Tenbolt into the Commander role and Marcus was advanced. Shortly after, Tenbolt was also executed and Marcus was ever so briefly elevated to Commander himself. **Side note - Commander Grace was a spy on the inside, working with the White Ravens alongside Briahna and unknown at the time, fellow spy Poe. Poe convinced Aralove and Mason that they were fighting for the wrong side and all of them failed to return to the city abandoning Marcus as the sole surviving member of the Crimson Shield. Marcus met his end when he traveled to the city of Esterholt to convince them to join Overwatch in the fight, but instead found a city in flux and most of his former group: Una, Jadzia, Fie along with Vallus Grimnas (brother to Malchus and Aralove). They now united under a new name, The Shield of Grace named in honor of Jadzia's late father. Jadzia and Fie took the honor of killing Marcus who cowered and refused to defend himself from his own death. They sent his head in a box back to Overwatch as a message but it is believed that it was never delivered. The story covers a lot of ground, but the reality is the Crimson Shield lasted about 3 weeks before imploding spectacularly.
In the late spring of 1263, some 3 years ago, an experiment was beginning in the (then) city of Overwatch to form an elite unit of soldiers to help advance the ongoing war effort raging across Ellara. Starting off on probably the wrong foot, King Zannon Carter was not informed of the teams formation as he was out of the city, the Commander and Captain in charge of the team held vastly different ideas for it's usage and the team itself was caught in the middle of the petty squabbles. The initial lineup for the squad was: And they were later joined by: Aralove Grimnas and Mason Darktree. The team was envisioned as a hit squad for complicated missions but almost as soon as they returned from their first mission, personalities within the group began to clash. Una, always a "hit first, ask questions later" person grated on the plan-heavy Gavin and the religious "moral" center, Marcus. Jadzia and Fie generally avoided those conflicts and focused on their jobs but could not avoid being dragged in for long. Within 2 days of being formed, the group found themselves in a unique opportunity. They found Briahna Ebelmare while traveling to a nearby town. Briahna was the leader of a guerrilla group fighting against the Overwatch and they attempted to capture her. During the fight, Fie was killed and Briahna was indeed captured causing the biggest rift within the squad. Una had decided that Briahna was to be protected as her bravery and courage inspired Una, a fervent Kord follower. Not long after, Fie was resurrected and Una led a coup against her own team by faking Briahna's death and carrying her 'corpse' out of the city. The team took steps to rebuild trust which clearly did not work. On the very next mission, the group was sent into the heart of the Elven forest to destroy some abandoned equipment and ran into a healing and very much alive Briahna. Anger flared from most towards Una and allegiances to the "humans only" city of Overwatch began to waver. It is learned in the very near future that Una was actually a half-elf and Fie was a changeling. Both would at the very least be given a court martial for hiding their 'affliction' and at worst would be executed as traitors for returning to their city. As the squad spirals out of control, the Commander, Patrick Grace (Jadzia's father) added a new member to the group: Aralove Grimnas, a tiefling and sister of Malchus Grimnas who was one of the highest priority targets of the war. With even more friction on the team and an impending defection of half of the team, Gavin decided to sacrifice himself for the mission they were sent on and blew himself up along with the equipment they were sent to destroy to make sure the job got done. Another new member was added, Mason Darktree and briefly Poe Tutillo. Una, Fie and Jadzia officially defected from Overwatch, Marcus began to assume control and started a power grab and the luck of the group got worse from there. Fie's mother Flo and Commander Grace were hung in the city square as traitors as Marcus plotted to move up the chain of command, helping to put Captain Tenbolt into the Commander role and Marcus was advanced. Shortly after, Tenbolt was also executed and Marcus was ever so briefly elevated to Commander himself. **Side note - Commander Grace was a spy on the inside, working with the White Ravens alongside Briahna and unknown at the time, fellow spy Poe. Poe convinced Aralove and Mason that they were fighting for the wrong side and all of them failed to return to the city abandoning Marcus as the sole surviving member of the Crimson Shield. Marcus met his end when he traveled to the city of Esterholt to convince them to join Overwatch in the fight, but instead found a city in flux and most of his former group: Una, Jadzia, Fie along with Vallus Grimnas (brother to Malchus and Aralove). They now united under a new name, The Shield of Grace named in honor of Jadzia's late father. Jadzia and Fie took the honor of killing Marcus who cowered and refused to defend himself from his own death. They sent his head in a box back to Overwatch as a message but it is believed that it was never delivered. The story covers a lot of ground, but the reality is the Crimson Shield lasted about 3 weeks before imploding spectacularly.
The entire run for the Crimson Shield can be found by searching for Dungeons and Randomness on your favorite podcast player and starting at Arc 1 - Episode #037 ending at Arc 1 - Episode #076. Not all episodes in that space are related.
Comments