The Winter Lords (Knight)

Euwald Mors the "Landless"

The early realms of Aenoch housed a great many lordly families. They ruled lands given to them from the Emperor in Al-Liosh from the far northern Grunlich Mountains even to the Amber Sea. The Rhuneland, Luneberg Plains, the Bay of Massiff, all housed the many lords and ladies, their vassals and holdings. When the dark came, the world changed. Unklar took up the Cunae Mundus Usquam, the Crown of the World, the crown of the God-Emperors of Aenoch and called all to swear homage to him. From fear, the greater part of them lay their swords at his feet; others refused and he bound them with sorcery; yet others took up arms against the usurper and they died.

Four hundred and eleven years after the coming of the dark, Gineld, wife of the petty knight Titaneious of Mors, gave birth to a son. She named him Euwald, which in the old tongue of Aeonoch meant “sunlight.” Euwald grew up a stout lad, fair of face and with a calm disposition. He treated all men fairly, great or small, young or old. Titaneious taught him the virtues of his people and thought to distance him from the darkness of their days.

Euwald proved an easy student. He learned to ride and lance, to fight with sword, axe and mace. He wore armor like a shirt, and carried a shield, using it as both weapon and shield. He fought for the joy of it; for the joy it brought his father to see him excel. At 15 he won his spurs and his father gave him a mighty steed, who Euwald named Goldhome. The young destrier soon became a part of him and the two were welded as one.

In those days, there were few tourneys in the shadow of the tower, and no manner in which young men could prove themselves, except upon the field of battle. Titaneious sought to dissuade his son, but at 17, young Euwald would not have it and rode to war with a great host of soldiery. These sought to put down a rebellion in the west, along the slopes of the Voralberg Mountains. Leaving his home he joined the armies of the horned god and went to war.

The host came upon the people of those mountains in a fury and none could withstand them. Belock, the Captain General, a great armored giant, weighed into the fray with his club of iron slaying men, women and children and those that followed in his wake did the same. The slaughter that fell upon the men of the Voralberg shook the heavens and made young Euwald take pause. Alone of all the host he stopped, bringing his steed to a halt. In the midst of the teeming madness, the wanton slaughter, mounted on Goldhome, like a rock in turbulent sea, the waste of war crashing against him, he did not move.

He comrades called him coward, other called his actions treason, still others called for his head. At the last Belock came from the fray to see this knight upon his steed. “What now? Fear take you, young Euwald? Wet your sword and you’ll feel the better for it.”

Euwald looked upon the giant for a long while. At the last he turned Goldhome around and rode slowly away. The giant called for him to stop but in his heart he feared Euwald for such bravery was not seen in the world in those days.

He called four riders to pursue him to death and bring him his skin so that he could stretch it over his warboard and use it as a shield. Four armored knights rode forth to end Euwald; their names were Enri, Fuelk, Ty, and Bults.

But Euwald perceived them long before they reached him. Putting spur to Goldhome’s flank he rode a great distance, their cat calls following him across the snowy ground, before he turned around. Couching his lance he let Goldhome fly toward the four knights. The mighty steed's hooves churned the earth, driving fear into those before him.

Enri, an accomplished horsemen and skilled with the lance, laughed and put spurs to his own steed, rode to meet them, already counting the great honor that would be his.

The echo of their clash shook the ground and startled the steeds of the other riders and they fell back dismayed as Enri’s backside exploded in a wash of iron, bone and blood. Goldhome did not slow.

Tossing aside the shattered lance, Euwald pulled out his ball and chain and thundered down on the other men. They rallied but before speed could be gained and lances used Fuelk’s head was stove in; so great the blow that the spiked ball drove through the skull and lodged in the back plate of his mail. Ty pushed forward to fight Euwald but Goldhome crashed into Ty’s own steed and knocked both knight and mount to the ground. Pulling his sword he rode Bults down, cleaving him shoulder to navel. Turning he rode to the stricken Ty and said only this “I’ll fight no craven’s war. I’ll lay no hands on women or children; or any others who may not defend themselves. So you shall live for today. But tell Belock and all his ilk that should I see them again, I’ll end them.”

With that he rode off toward home to warn his father of his deeds.

When confronted, his father thought long and hard about what they should do. He counted little time left to them before Belock’s army would come to them and destroy them in vengeance. “I shall hold them here, while you take your mother to safety. Bring her to the havens in Ihsla and set her on a boat to the west. We have kin in Karilia. Send her there.”

He took her then on Goldhome’s back and rode south.

His mother safely delivered, Euwald returned home to find the ruin of it and his father done cruelly to death. He took no vows of vengeance; only the mantle of his father and his father’s before, swearing to right the wrongs of the world. He took now the name of Euwald Mors, that is Euwald the Landless and he set out to right the wrong that was Belock. Across the frozen wastes he pursued his army but learned that it had disbanded and gone in many different directions.  And so his war began.

For years he tracked all those who fought with the giant;some he found easily, others he employed the wandering magi of the woods; but allthat were found he called out and slew them in open battle with sword or axe. Some fell while mounted with Euwald upon Goldhome, others he fought in duels upon the ground or under it. He favored sword and shield but did not shy from any weapon that came to hand, so long as it allowed him to come to grips with his enemy. Hundreds died and the spoils of their killing he took and brought it to those in need, food, steeds, jewels, gold, weapons and more. Throughout the long Luneberg Plains, his war waged and the commoners loved him while overlords feared and hated him.

In time, he learned that Belock the giant dwelt in the north country in a great castle and Euwald set forth to slay him. But Belock had not grown great in the councils of the wise because he was a fool and always he set watchers on the road to him and so he saw Euwald from afar. He saw how great a knight his adventurers had made him and he knew then that he could not overcome him. Fear gripped him and he called on the winters to protect him and summoned a great storm.

Euwald saw the storm brewing but took no heed. When the snows fell he rode on, pushing Goldhome into the blinding white. As the storm grew, the wind picked up and the power of the Winters Dark made itself felt and Goldhome failed in the last for the steed was old, and weary and bore many battle wounds taken in the service of the knight. When Euwald saw his horse was done in and dying he took the trappings from his back and sought to comfort him; cradling Goldhome’s head in his lap he called on the old gods to bring him warmth. But the old gods feared the Winter Dark and heeded him not in the unrelenting cold.

It was Ty that found him, the following day, frozen upon the wastes, Goldhome cradled in his lap. And despite the orders of his master to bring him the body, he brought Euwald to the far south, to the ruins of his castle and there laid mount and man to earth and prayed for their safe passage out of the world.

But it was not so, for Euwald’s spirit proved greater than death and he rode again, watching over the common folk, mounted they say, upon his great steed Goldhome. Thus it is in those parts that on a cold winter’s eve the people of those lands burn extra wood, and offer it to warm Goldhome’s heart so that he can bring Euwald to the Stonefields and give him peace at last.