Joan Def Arch

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The quest began

The plains of Farsten had once a coat of good soil that grew lush growth of the essential crops that fed millions, but with the need to showcased their influence on others, an ongoing war was declared. It was fought by the two opposing sides, the Monarch and the Lords for over two decades then. With both sides exchanging the ever fluid claims, the land had been trampled and meshed with the debris of the rampaging armies. It also took on the destruction of the livelihood of the people who lived off the land. The refugees of that land had pleaded for a truce but their vocals were ignored or silenced by their masters. It would had been the case but the last two years, the war had been overturned to favored the Lords. They had held hard on their conquest and diminished ever the influence of the Monarch.

Such time called for a champion to fight for the people.

Such person exist during the era.

Such person may be seen to be misled by first looks but the perception may be misleading.

"Not another one." King Lear bemoaned the loss of another tract of his land. He frowned up his eye lashes and then gave the voice command to end the hologram in the chamber. The King had around him, the retinue of adv Advisers and their accompanied partner. He looked at the Senior Adviser and shook his head. The elder statesman saw him looking, nodded his head.

"We are losing our lands to those greedy Lords." King Lear hollered out. "Tell me among all of you, who could win this war?"

"We must seek the advise of the stargazers. Their opinion weighed on our chosen one." High Priestess Lucince spoke her mind from the left side of the King. A lady covered in red gown with the dark black stripes that cut diagonal neat the bottom hem. Her headpiece was a long tapered narrow hat that flared to the rear in wide spectrum of red shades. "If its ordained that we lose half our land, then the annals of our history should record as it is."

"Then I shall be the last King of the land." King Lear retorted back. "You old fools! I am surrounded by fools."

"Not so, my liege." The silent and wise one who was the personal advise to the King, had sat himself back at the rear of the hall, then spoke up. "She could be the one."

From the hands of the personal adviser, a hologram appeared; a figure of a young lady dressed in the armor of the Farsten best, carrying the sword of the Farsten Trooper blade in her right hand. Her suit was that of the silvery metal covers with the appropriate chest plate to suit her appearance, but the was augmented by the silky white piece that she had wrapped around her waist to her knees. Her headpiece was the standard war helmet with the double respirator builtin.

"The damsel again." High Priestess Lucince mocked her voice to a higher tone. "A vixen that claimed to hold the vision of the savior. I heard her claims before yet no one had laid belief to it. She as said by me, a vixen hoping to dashed herself onto a warrior in her quest."

"If I was what you claimed, then the personal guards of the King are either jesters or the servants in disguise." The voice came from the doors to the Hall, and there it stood the lady in mentioned by the High Priestess. The lady there removed head piece and bowed to the King. Before from the door opening, was seen the eight personal guards of the King laid to sleep with bruises on their faces.

"I had come on your moment of need to removed the Lords from our land. I am Joan De Arch, once a farm girl, but now wields the vision of the savior to Farsten." Joan De Arch looked up to her King. "Give me your command and I shall do the needed. If I am to fail, then let it be at the sword end of the Redeemer."

 

The quest continues

Both armies met on the valley that day; five thousand strong Lord Guards with a division one thousand strong of mercenaries against an army of three thousand Farsten Troopers. The battle was fought over two days, and the Lord Guards were pushed to the rear by the determined Farsten Troopers. The commander of the Lord Guards sat in his command armored vehicle looked to the vid screens that showed his Guards in full retreat.

"Another one. Who is this lady?" General Morte asked. He had fought many battles and foes, but never had he faced such a worthy one like her. He had massed his army into a pincer move, and yet she had countermanded it with her strategic withdrawal; feigned withdrawal to stretched his army before she engulfed from the left to his massed center. She had placed his reinforcements into the battle before they could organized themselves into a force. Just as he was back tracking his advanced right Guards, the Farsten had routed the rear lines.

"A lady with a determined army that would followed her call anytime." The voice belonged to Major Jurge who was in the uniform of the Farsten Trooper. He was here on his freewill as he worked for the Lords. Technically, you can judged him to be a spy as was the name given in the ancient annals. "I must be getting back. I am to report to the lady for the next onslaught."

Major Jurge stopped himself at the armored rear lowered hatchway. He then to look at the General.

"You did not know of the unguarded section on the rear, Uncle. It leads to the river." He just did not want his uncle to escape into a trap. The lady of Farsten had set up a trap for the retreating Guards.

Major Jurge climbed up his hover bike and rode the unit back to his line. He had his tracks well covered and hardly anyone knew of his trail. He was wrong that time. He was stopped by Captain Tacker near his line.

"Are you on your recon?" Tacker forgot his military rules on rank as Jurge was his academy mate. Major Jurge stopped his bike and looked to the Captain.

"Was she looking for me?" There was a running joke between them that the lady would fall for one of them. Captain Tacker laughed and did not see the blaster that appeared on the Major's left hand. It cost him a friendship.

Major Jurge walked into the command center of the Farsten Unit. There were the usual officers there and missing one commander. The personal aide of Major Jurge pointed to the secluded corner where the commander of the army was on her knees to seek herself in the coming battle. She does that every time there was a major battle coming up. Major Jorge took his seat while placing the war helmet on the flooring.

"Thank you for coming back, Major." The Major looked to his rear where the commander was pacing over. She strode over and stood looking at the officers. "General Morte escaped our dragnet."

"Damned!" Major Jurge cursed out. "I was hoping to get the medal for his capture."

"You may get it soon. We are chasing them to the river." The officers all sighed. The river meant the fortress there build by the Lords. They had the place packed with phaser cannons that an armored division would be like a platoon against a division. Before the officers could reply, Joan was already slipping on her helmet.

The running battle took over a few days and ended up at the river fortress. The fortress had a set of ten phaser cannons which leveled any armor that was sent against it. With that and a division of Guards behind the walls, the Lord commanded the river crossing. That running battle ended there with General Morte had sent his retreating army across but he had stayed on. He wanted to see the defeat of the lady and the destruction of the Farsten Troopers. The battle stalled there with the Farsten Trooper laying a siege on the fortress.

"Shall we attack, Commander Joan?" The Major asked as he motioned to his hover bikes squad of Troopers. They been on alert for the move to storm the walls but Joan had stopped him. She still gave him the no action glare and then looked to the skies. Major Jurge looked up and marveled what the clouds could do.

Or not.

There was a flash of thunder on the clear skies, and the lightning came down to hit the fortress structure. The structure gave out a flashing from within its wall and then silence. It was also then, Joan jumped on her hover bike to charged at the walls. The other troopers followed suit and the armored vehicles roared to life. The troopers made more impact that battle, as the phaser cannons seemed to had died that day. The armored vehicles lent their firepower on the walls while the hover bikes hit the Guards. The Farsten Troopers achieved their target while their commander had looked to the skies as if she was talking to it. General Morte was one of the captured ones, and he walked up to the Farsten officers.

"You got a vixen there." General Morte told the Farsten officers. "No one could had done that."

No one ever did. Not before. But then no one wanted to believed it.

 

The quest end

Major Jorge hauled the lady into the Lords Hall to be greeted by the lineup of Lords and Ladies. There was also a group of Truth Ministers who were there to upheld the qualities of true belief. Joan was not dressed in her armors but in a plain frock while holding onto the silky white piece. They allowed her to keep that piece at her betrayal by her trusted officer, Major Jorge.

Commander Joan was with the Major on a routine scouting ride when she saw the ambush in front. She tried to warned the Major but the other had ridden on ahead. The shot came and the Major was seen felling off the bike. Joan gunned her bike engine to aid the Major.

"Get on mine." Joan reached out with her left hand for the Major. She looked over and saw the gun in the Major' hand. She pulled back but the Guards was already onto them. She was trapped.

"A vixen she was." Minister Kerto spoke out loud. "A commander that leads armed warriors are well known, but the ones who worked in the dark arts are rare. More than rare, she was a single entity ever exposed in the last thousand year.  We are sensible people; we offered sanctuary to return her to the Truth, but she declined our help. Even her own had rejected her. She hides from the truth."

The High Priestess had denied her return to Farsten since the capture of Joan, the High Priestess have been reinstated to the popular list for advise. The High Priestess had advised King Lear to reject the return of the Commander in view that the war was called off . Both sides had reclaimed their original boundary. With the war ended, Joan was left to the previous foes.

"We have a way to handle the twisted." Minister Kerto declared. "It the way of the works of the ancient. We had no recourse but to re-introduce the works."

The lineup of Lord and Ladies in attendance stifle their vocal opinions, but to adhered to the words of the Minister. No one wanted to be denied sanctuary. The Grand Lord spoke out in a last track of approach to avoid the suggested opening of the ancient works.

"Lady Joan De Arch, you could speak Freely as there are none who denied you in his Hall." Grand Lord looked at Joan but the lady said she would not speak to the heathen who parades themselves here.

"I have only my own to speak to." Joan replied. "All of you have been offered a chance to redeem your sins. I ahve offered to right the wrong but you never learned. It may be this war or the next one, but never would it ceased until one of you are totally defeated. All of you were warned. All of you are due to termination."

"We the ones you named as heathen would not be intimidated." Minister Kerto raised his voice. "Drag the lady to the execution ground." 

Joan was dragged to the opened roof area which a table top was laid there. She was lain on top the place and bounded by the Guards. Minister Kerto walked up to the table and pulled out the ancient blade to rest it on the lady' heart.

"She who was not one of us would be removed." Minister Kerto raised up his blade up high over his head. He was to swing the blade on her when the roof was covered in darkness. The attended looked up and saw the over powering sight there. It was majestic in size that covered the surrounding land with it darkness.

"Oh my goodness!" Minister Keto looked up. Some of the ladies fainted. The Minister would that be denied the sacrifice. He swung the blade down but the figure was not on the table. She was moved. She then stood by the far side of the roof, with a squad of armored droids that towered twice the height of man. Each of the twelve droids was armed with phaser cannons and missile launcher.

"You been warned!" Joan hollered out. Then the figure and squad of droids disappeared from sight.

The planet that housed the Lords and Monarch were terminated for failing to learned how to live within their limits. Such was the rules of the Universe under the ruling of the Redeemers.

They are the masters of the Universe.