In Warhammer Fantasy as my ERP Character

“And so I depart, under the missive of the Grand Hierophant, to look north. For even if it is far from the core territories of Nehekhara, everything up north until the dwarven mountains to the northeast, was once belonged to Nehekhara.” Essah finished recounting his reason to be this far north. To look for ancient scrolls and artifacts from the Golden Days of Nehekhara. Particularly those about resurrection and immortality. As one of the few Nehekharan undead that still retains his sanity with high enough rank within the tomb guards to undertake this mission. Most of the Nehekharan undead that retain their sanity are mostly of the nobility and therefore, unwilling to venture too far for what they thought as barbaric lands. 

“My journey is going quite smoothly at the beginning. Gold eases all manner of prejudices and fears and gold flows freely from my hand in the lands you call Tilea and Border Princes. That is all before I came to your God forsaken lands of an empire! With your raving lunatics flagellating themselves while your priests waving their fetishes! RETURN ME TO MY BODY AT ONCE SO THAT I CAN FLAY THAT BASTARD LUDGER ALIVE!” Essah screams through his hollow skull that is still attached to the cat’s skeleton. The skeleton which is currently being strapped to the table began to reanimate as soon as Essah’s skull was attached to it. He has put an effort to learn Riekspiel and Bretonnian (Language for Empire and Brettonia) so that he can communicate better. Only to see that folks of the Empire are much more superstitious and insane than he anticipated. If only he arrived in Averland or Wissenland then maybe he did have a chance to get formal talks. But alas he went through Black Fire Pass and ended up in Stirland instead. His first experience with the people of the Empire is him being chased by Stirland’s children throwing dungs at him as Stirlander believes dungs ward off evil spirits. While Essah runs so that he doesn’t have dungs stuck between his cartilages as it will take forever to remove the smell. Only for the Order of the Shroud to put his head in the shroud and kidnap him. He regrets not taking Grand Hierophant’s offer for an Ushabti for his escort.

The members of the Order of the Shroud only glance at Essah’s outburst before continuing their own works. Not the first time someone wants to flay one of their members alive. Won’t be the last either. Some prepare their usual run to previous caves, ruins, and dungeons to find dead bodies and give them their rites. Some are departing to give funerary rites in the nearest villages and towns. Some are getting ready to give the children from surrounding settlements their Dooming. A rite of passage for every child on their 10th birthday in the empire where priests of Morr foretell the child’s doom. Not exactly a cheery rite and it has been well documented that whatever the priest saw in their divination can also kill them. These cases are very rare but all of them are documented. Worst documented case being a Priest of Morr seeing the doom of one child. Only for the priest to look in horror before he suddenly drops dead. What happened to the child after is unknown.

Then a sound of chalk writing on a board as Valariel writes in elvish on the pretty little seat Guerino has made for her wicker doll’s size. She lifts the board up to Kevin. The vampire that was kidnapped to be her interpreter. His arms and legs are still chained together and bound him to a metal chair with enchanted chains powerful enough to hold his vampire strength and saps his power so he is at least as fast and as powerful as a normal mortal could be. While it is true that the Order of the Shroud have abducted him, it is mainly because they caught him unprepared and during the day. Even weak and abandoned vampires can pose a significant threat if allowed to be. As for what is written, it is a simple “How about you?”. Asking about his past just like how she asks Essah. In an ordinary human’s view, it would be seen as an animated wicker doll just asking some mundane thing but for Kevin, it would look like the God of the Dead itself asking him about his sins. It took him his entire willpower to not outright confessing all his heinous acts he has done in the few decades he has lived as a vampire as he knows that is not what she asked. In fact, he feels as if the one within the wicker doll is just some young elvish maiden leaving their island continent for the first time. Asking the most mundane things imaginable like which human superstitions she has heard is true and plenty of other random things like fortified inns and taverns in most human towns really exist or not. Other than that, she has asked her to teach her basic phrases in Riekspiel. Her curiosity however made it seem like she is more human than an elf. Or a very young elf or a very sheltered one. Not even all the elves he has met during his living days in Marienburg are as clueless and curious as her. It made him wonder how her soul is stuffed in a wicker doll and how Morr is connected to her. 

“Me? I was just a peasant. Born in Osburg, a small town between Helmgart and Bogenhafen. Don’t know if it still exists or not. Then I became an accountant in Marienburg.” Kevin explains. Omitting very great details.

“An accountant? You!? How a vampire ever chooses to turn you into one is beyond me.” Essah answers, thick with disdain.

“Well, my past is as dazzling as the royal guard who follows his king to the dead, whatever his name.”

“He is Settra, the Imperishable! And you will give his name his due respect!” Shouts the skull

“And I want to be the Great and Mighty Kevin! But no one teaches me magic or how to be a vampire so I won’t be getting the title of being well preserved anytime soon.” The Vampire counters. Silence returns for a short while as Essah processes the words being said.

“LUDGER! I will forgive you and not kill you, as long as you return me to my body so I can behead this…” Insert plenty of Nehekharan curse words. Then the two undead argue with each other again as Valariel writes something on her board. This time, she raises it towards the nearest priest of Morr. The priest simply nods, called few other priests, and carry the confused Essah and Kevin to one of the unoccupied torture chambers before locking them inside. If both are not too busy arguing, then they would read “Will go to sleep” written in Riekspiel on the board.

—

Some time after midnight, back at Valariel’s Herdstone in Drakwald.

“Behold! My stuff!” I present Valariel and Morr the lifelike elven body made by the Lornalim tree branch and more than a hundred elven souls. Of course along with its own set of armor and weapons.

“What is this?” Valariel’s soul asked. Clearly noticing the resemblance on the body.

“This, my dear, is your new body. Should you decide to migrate there. It was made with an entire branch of uncorrupted lornalim tree. Technically it is a dryad body but I made sure to make it exactly like you were to ease the shift of having a proper body again.”

“And tell me, how did you make this exactly?” Morr now asks, clearly I have piqued his curiosity. Then I noticed that I cannot exactly confess how I made it as he is technically the God responsible for safeguarding souls.

“She has a soulforge.” the other Valariel just said it immediately.

“Oh, you have a soulforge.” Morr said. His voice is still calm and level as usual. Though I noticed things felt a little bit colder than before. I did not think this through. “And how did you get these… souls? Certainly not from my permission.” He adds. Fortunately I have a scapegoat for this.

“Manann gave some dark elven souls to me.” I deflect responsibility

“Some?”

“A lot actually.”

“How many?”

“Few thousand. Maybe.”

“I see.” Then I waited for a while as he did not say anything else. Am I in the clear? I did specify that it was elven souls. Unlike the human’s underworld where the souls are being safeguarded by Morr, the elven underworld is not exactly better than Slaanesh’s dinner table. Though I suppose it won’t make a difference for him as the souls are consumed in the end.

“Hmmm. I don’t know about this. Why are you doing this?” The other Valariel asks. Unsure on what to do.

“Well, you already can inhabit a wicker effigy and move around. So I decided to just might as well make a proper new body for you.” I have also thought about this for a while. I did promise her to keep her safe. And as the End Times draws near, there won’t exactly be a true safety. Not until I finish my webway at least. Another promise that I made is that I made her own personal weapon to defend herself. But being a soul without a body, even that has its own limitations. Not to mention  if I only made her the weapons, I am not exactly able to teach her how to properly use them. With a body however, I have some ideas on who can be trusted for the task.

“What if I decide to leave once I inhabit the body?” I frowned at the question. I have thought about the possibility, yes. But being asked directly is not exactly pleasant though bearable as the trust we build has moved to the point she can ask this directly.

“I have said this before, that you are the safest with me.” She winced. She has heard the exact words over and over throughout her life. Mostly from her mother to keep her over sheltered and I have repeated to keep her in the Sanctuary before. “However, even there is a limit on what I can do and it might be best if you can learn to do something on your own. Then you can decide where it is safe for you.”

She looks thoughtful as she weighs her options. It felt vain trying to give her options. But if I have options for me on how to survive, why shouldn’t she? Besides this is also for giving her a chance to survive. Should I fail in any of the options I have worked so far, there is a chance she can survive the Sundering of the World. After all, her father and uncle become the twin elven Gods of Light in the Age of Sigmar.

“You said learn, you have prepared a teacher for me?” She asks, now clearly willing to inhabit the body.

“Not exactly, but it will be a surprise for you.” I smiled and answered.

“So, how do I do this?” Just follow my lead and you will be asleep for a while as your soul will acclimate with your new body.” with her hands in mine, I guided her soul to inhabit the dryad body. It should be a very powerful vessel for her. I have spent plenty of souls to make it protect the soul within, to also resist tampering, mutations, and influences of Chaos. How effective it would be, I don’t know. Though it should depend more on her as the one inhabiting the body. After a short while, her soul settled in the body, the connection between us is not severed as I feared it might be. So all is well.

“Now that this is settled.” Come the voice of Morr. who is still present and just observing in silence. “There might be something you can do for me.”

“This is quite unexpected. You want me to make a body for you?” I asked that as it is the only specific thing that has taken his interest so far.

“Yes.” he answered bluntly. “But not using the elven souls.” With that, darkness filled my entire tent. Then the tent flap is replaced by an ornate gate that slowly opens. Revealing the underworld which still barred my perception to witness what is within.

“There are souls within my garden, who sworn to serve me even after their death and the passing of all who remember them. And now is their time.”

—

Within a deep forest, a deep rumble sounds as a tree wakes. The tree sensed something. The birth, no, not a birth, but something similar of… a kin. But different from the rest. Unnatural and out of season. Somewhere far north east. But there is Laurelorn. The tree heard that it had fallen. So quickly that neither the tree and the wood elves can respond in time. The tree rumbles again as it loses in its own thoughts. Again, something is changing. Again the tree remembers the harsh words and fears of its friends. If only its friends are still here. And again he is reminded of his hate. But Adanhu is long gone and there is no one else he can turn to for counsel. And so Durthu wakes. For there’s something he must ascertain for himself.