The Legend of the ruthless Empress Freya

-- POV General --

Three days had passed since the war council of the Empress of Elysium, her Commanders and their Lieutenants. The topic had been the hard battle that lay ahead and the strategy that the army would adopt. The meeting had lasted for hours, but by the end of the long discussion, hearts had been prepared.

For their part, the adventurers had continued as they had planned, unaware that Alayna and Vig had told what they knew of their plans. During these days on the road, Sarah was not her usual jovial self because she felt something was coming. Also she had not forgotten the betrayal of her former travel companions either and only dreamed of one thing, to find them and make them pay. The green-eyed leader had never been able to understand why they had helped these half-humans. She only saw the other races as objects or at best living beings used to breed the human race and destined to die by it hand.

It was already getting dark and in just a few hours the two sides would be fighting a War without mercy.

____

Inside the Empire's walls, northwest of the Dark Forest, an army of hundreds of soldiers waited. Some were eager for their first chance to fight and others were terrified. They were all gathered on the large grassy area between the walls and the city. Night was falling and it was time to start the hostilities and take the advantage as it had been decided during the council. Silence reigned supreme as the sea air blew and made the hair of those gathered before the walls dance.

The Commanders were in front of their respective sections and for the first time were dressed in the same way. Each outfit had been carefully made by Taegen, who had finished them a few days ago and adapted to the wearer. The completely black outfit of the half-humans consisted of comfortable pants, a jacket reaching to the waist, gloves and a helmet made of ice. The jackets were personal because on the back there was a unique symbol representing the commander who wore it. The helmets were simple but quite frightening because they were imposing. They covered the whole face and the top ended in two spikes representing the horns of a demon. The good thing was that they were light and didn't prevent the wearer from moving as she used to do.

The chaos Commanders were beautiful, frightening and at that moment all the soldiers behind them were admiring them. They were side by side and the aura that emanated from them was not weak and left almost the same impression as in the presence of the Empress. The female half-humans were all now at level 22 thanks to their training and the system which made them the most powerful members of the Empire after Freya and her wife. Everyone in the city knew and respected them after their exploits were also told everywhere. All of Elysium knew that these women had been the first to fight alongside their beloved Empress to free the slaves.

Vig and Alayna were present as well and both wore dark brown hooded cloaks and cloth masks covering the bottom of their mouths. Both humans wore this to avoid being recognized right away by Sarah and her group. Many of the soldiers wondered if they were really on their side but trusted Freya so they didn't ask questions. Each Commander had taken the time to explain the situation to them from the beginning, the day the battle was announced. Freya had chosen to reveal their identities, so that no soldier would be disturbed by the presence of humans in their camps if their identities were to be revealed. The she-wolf wanted these two humans to be judged first on their actions and not on what race they were and was counting on them to prove their resolve.

The last red rays of the sun were reflected on the surface of the calm water as the Empress finally made her entrance. She rode her trusty stallion Inferno who also wore a helmet similar to those of the 10 Chaos Commanders. Freya was dressed in black and was the only one wearing a cloak of the same color and almost identical to her imperial cloak. She did not have a helmet nor her crown but wore a simple half mask, also made of ice covering the upper half of her face. The Empress of Ice stepped forward silently as the soldiers moved aside to let her pass. Her chin was high, she looked proud and powerful, and one look at her was enough to raise the morale of the troops. Everyone felt honored to be fighting alongside this powerful she-wolf and the fear disappeared as Freya reached the end of the road. Her power invaded the crowd, strengthening hearts, reassuring souls and awakening warrior spirits.

The people of the Empire were all outside the city watching what was happening in the distance, their faces worried for those going to war. Gaya and Shiro were also among them and watched Freya leave with a twinge of concern that was hard to hide. The little moon of Elysium was crying softly in the arms of her mother who was doing her best not to give in. Everyone was frightened because the soldiers and their leaders who stood before them, were the only bulwarks protecting their now happy and peaceful lives.

As the Empress finally stopped in front of everyone, the entire Empire was silent. All the soldiers waited with fire in their eyes as the female Commanders smiled at the chance to see their leader on the battlefield. Freya dismounted her horse as she summoned a small wall of ice under her feet to raise herself up so that she could be seen by all. Her tied hair and cloak fluttered in the wind, her mesmerizing eyes glaring at the soldiers as she spoke.

"Tonight we go to fight...we go to fight to defend what we have built and protect those we have sworn to protect. The humans are on their way and they will not stop until they have destroyed and annihilated every last one of us. Shall we let them ?"

The Ice Empress' voice was powerful and at the same time calm and as she asked her question the soldiers all answered in unison.

"NO !"

"No we are not going to let them ! This night marks the first day of our fight for this land that is now ours ! Do not weaken, do not fear death and go into battle by my side with the certainty of returning. We will protect our Empire and by my title of Empress I swear to you here and now that I will fight to the end to ensure a bright future !"

As Freya paused in her speech, the weapons of the many soldiers began to pound the ground with vigor to build up their courage. Even the people of the city were stamping their feet, making the Empire vibrate with a perfect rhythm that revived hearts. The Empress of Ice now had a frightening smile on her face that disappeared as her voice rose once again. This time it was cold, commanding, vibrant and devoid of any emotion.

"All of you who are going to fight tonight don't forget ! You are now fighting as free and equal beings ! You have all trained like hell to never again be stepped on by a human or any other race. Show me your fire, your determination, show me your warrior soul and your bloodlust. Make your voices heard, shout to those who have never listened to you that you will fight for what you hold dear. Are you afraid ? It's only natural ! Turn that fear into rage that will destroy everything in its path ! Fight with honor, pride and dignity and I swear to you that none of you will have to die tonight !"

Freya's words were etched in minds and hearts as the soldiers' gaze changed as she continued.

"I would fight for you, for myself, I would fight for my family and this Empire that represents us all. Tonight I will not go to Hell and you know why ? Because I will create Hell...

Staring at the crowd, making it tremble, the Empress made a human skull made of ice appear in her hand before exploding it into a thousand pieces.

...and you, what are you going to do ?!"

All animated by an unfathomable rage to win, the hundreds of soldiers raised their weapons to the heavens as they responded in unison.

"We will fight for what we hold dear and we will win !"

Night had fallen and their nightly attacks could begin. No light shone in the sky. Only the she-wolf's eyes glittered as she spoke one last sentence.

"Let us create chaos on this dark night !"

The cries of rage echoed in the night and disappeared into the distance carried by the cool wind as the first army of half-humans began their march. The moon was covered with thick clouds and its light no longer reached the forest. For the first time it no longer shone but watched over these brave men and women, offering them the night.

_____

-- POV Sarah --

"Tsk...still nothing, I can't believe they vanished like that !"

We were at the ruins where my brother was supposed to be for the last time but we hadn't found anything. Everything was gone as if nothing had ever happened. No sign of their camps, no sign of their carts and horses and no sign of the adventurers or mercenaries.

*What the hell is going on here ?*

For a few days now, nothing has been going as planned. I thought I had found an interesting girl, but she turned out to be a dirty traitor supported by the one I wanted to hire. As if that wasn't enough, no clues were left behind and for the moment all the travel we had done was useless.

With the remaining adventurers in our group, we had set up camp in the middle of this clearing ravaged by what appeared to be a battle. Despite the burned and uprooted trees, there was nothing else, and knowing that Kirk had fought here didn't really help me.

*I don't know who came through here next, but those people weren't human !*

I was red with rage and I only wanted to pass my nerves. The trip had been long, tiring and my mind had been put to the test these last days. As the night had already fallen and my companions were setting up the tents, the twins were making a fire using their magic to light us. Everything was quiet and calm but I was not because something was bothering me. The more I thought about what had happened, the more a doubt rose in me.

*No human usually ventures into this forest unless they have a special mission*

The Dark Forest was known to be inhabited only by other races so those who came there were either adventurers or mercenaries.

*Among humans, it is customary to bring the nameplate of a dead person to the nearest guild. Only a half-human would have hidden them but...but something is wrong*

There had been more than 50 humans in this clearing, why couldn't any nameplates or cases be found ? In order to make the evidence disappear, it would have taken powerful people or groups of people.

*So these subraces were bound to be several...*

I knew for a long time that there had to be some trash behind my brother's disappearance, but to wipe out a whole group of 70 people, there had to be at least 100.

*Impossible, a group like that would have been reported !*

No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn't believe that a group of subraces had banded together to fight Kirk and his companions. So many questions that only increased my desire to kill all the beings in this forest. Who could have enough strength to defeat my brother ?

*They must have used cowardly means to bring him down. Maybe they went after him in numbers when he was alone ? Yes, that's the only way, Kirk could never lose in a fair fight against the filthy creatures that are the half-humans ! You scums, I'll give you a taste of my sword and you'll wish you'd never crossed my path !*

Now that I was sure of myself, all I had to do was find out where these cowards were hiding in the forest. I stood up so that the 8 adventurers beside me could listen to what I had to say.

"Tomorrow we will explore the area because after thinking about it, it seems that the group that killed the former adventurers and mercenaries are hiding there ! I think they are weak and took advantage of their numbers to assassinate Chief Kirk, if we find them it will be easy to get rid of them !"

I had barely finished my sentence when suddenly the campfire we had built shattered into a pile of ash, dust and embers. A large stone had landed on the glowing wood, burning those around, plunging the clearing into darkness. Without even having time to understand what was going on, a shower of stones rained down on us from the sky.

"What..."

Looking up, the first thing I could make out in the darkness was a woman with large gray wings, dressed in black and wearing a white helmet. As I saw her leading the aerial attack, my bloodlust was aroused as I muttered to myself.

"No need to look for them, they are already here..."

____

FULL STATUS

Name : Freya

Age: 0 years / Mentally: 25 years

Sex : Female

Course : Ice Demon Wolf of chaos - Adult

Race : Major Demon

Titles : Blessed by Titania, Goddess of endless Chaos and eternal frozen Hell.

Dragon tamer

Ruthless slayer

Level : 33/70

Exp required for next level: 100 / 34 000

HP : 90 000 / 90 000 MP : 45 000 / 45 000

Strength : 425

Defense : 421

Agility : 435

Stamina : 428

Speed : 427

Intelligence : 425

Charisma : 410 (imperial she-wolf)

Attribute points to allocate : 0

Married to: Gaya

Daughter : Shiro

Empire (menu)

Subordinates : 387

Humans killed : 148

Elements: Ice / Chaos

Skills (all):

Attack - Demon Claws (Lvl 5)

- Bite of hell (Lvl 5)

- Infernal ice spikes (Lvl 6)

- Fighting techniques (lvl max)

- Mastery of the katana (lvl max)

- Demonic aura of the empress (lvl 5)

Defense - Ice demon wall (lvl 6)

- Demonic cloak (lvl 5)

Pain Resistance (lvl 3)

Attack/Defense - Domain of the Ice Empress "frozen wrath" (lvl 1) - (under condition)

Others - Humanoid form

- Ice creation (Lvl 5)

- Storage of chaos (Lvl 4)

- Devouring chaos (Lvl 5)

- Analysis

- Second soul (Lvl max) - unique

- Telepathy

Mana detection (lvl 1)

Passives - Commander (lvl max)

- Natural Aura of the Ice Empress ]