The most common question I get on Turannia and its people is “where’s that”? Well, Turannia IS one of the newer additions to the Empire and only has a small amount of trade, so it is understandable that it's not the most recognizable province to the average Imperial citizen.

The second most common question I get is why are Turannia’s people so brutal and savage? The Wulver, the Dobhar, even the Selkies had their moments before falling under the Empire’s protection. These people seem to reject civilization and peaceful discourse, living lives of continuous and unrestrained violence. They even glorify this violence, seeing it as superior to all other pursuits. Why, there are some who even claim they are monsters, rather than intelligent peoples!

But when you compare these people to the historical records of many others, the answer is surprising.

They’re not.

Or rather, they are not especially brutal and savage given the state of their societies and the conditions under which they operate. It is only by modern Imperial standards that they seem particularly bloody.

What the average citizen of the Empire forgets is that the peace they operate under is a historical anomaly. The average citizen of the Empire can go out to farm, raise a family, even travel across the Empire if they wish, and have a reasonable expectation that they will not face danger unless they seek it out themselves. Yes, I know there are still bandits in the hills and wandering monsters can strike anywhere. But in the Empire, these events are the exceptions, rather than the rule. It is even possible for an Imperial citizen to live their entire life without ever encountering a major threat to their person.

This, again, is not a natural state of affairs. This is something that has been hard fought for and is now diligently maintained by the Legion.

So for the tribes outside of the Empire?

They still live in the Age of Heroes…or the Age of Blood as some scholars like to call it. They still live in an age where a wandering monster might destroy their entire civilization. They still live near unconstrained dungeons that will send out raiding parties if not regularly fed sacrifices. They must fight to survive not just once in a blue moon, but each and every day.

Their entire civilization is dependent on having strong champions who can handle these threats.

And their societies must regularly produce such champions if they are to endure.

So it is not surprising that their societies hold martial strength as their highest value, and bestow authority and resources upon those who achieve it. And it is not surprising that they would consider war with their neighbors to be a beneficial endeavor.

This does start to change after contact with the Empire, but it is a slower process than most Imperial citizens like to imagine. When someone has lived their entire life under siege, they are loath to hand over their weapons to anyone else.

-The Peoples of the Frontiers, Volume V: Turannia and the North, by traveling author and former Exploratores Placus Paesentius Statius

And so the Empire and the Selkies organized their defenses, preparing to hold the line. Governor Aemilia agreed to the Selkies’ terms, and Chieftain Déighen had returned to his people with the signed documents in hand. The elite Selkie warriors thus joined the defense under Miallói’s command, while the remaining Selkies gathered by the coast, ready to flee should Castra Turannia fall.

And so Dux Canus got to work, redrawing the battle plans from scratch.

For the Selkies provided him much more than just numbers.

He now had a legion’s worth of elite Selkie warriors, hardened veterans who could match the comitatenses in nerve and skill. They represented an actual fighting force that was capable of aggressive maneuvers in the face of the enemy. A hammer to pair with the anvil of the limitanei.

That was something Dux Canus could actually work with.

With that force in the mix, Dux Canus could draw up real battle plans. He could now utilize aggressive assaults and maneuvers, counterattacks and flanking motions, feints and decoys; all of the tactics that the limitanei lacked the mobility and discipline to pull off. He was no longer working with purely static forces, and so he put all his many years of experience to work.

The battle was still not in their favor, but now it would be a battle.

And as the limitanei and the Selkies discussed and rehearsed, the Dobhar made their approach…

It was a day just like any other, raining as usual.

Then, the soldiers within Castra Turannia heard horns in the distance, cutting through the sound of the rain.

Then the lookouts began to shout. Beacons were lit, flags were raised, bells were rung throughout the town. Governor Aemilia gathered the civilians and made for the emergency caverns while Dux Canus, Magister Tiberius, and Miallói moved to the war room of the keep. Legate Opiter was shouting and pointing, arranging the distribution of ammunition and supplies. Limitanei rushed through the halls, grabbing their spears and putting on their armor. Selkie warriors painted their faces with traditional dyes and conducted pre-battle rituals. The remaining provincial mages double checked the magic circles engraved throughout the keep as Legion engineers readied the siege weapons.

Soon, they were ready.

Magister Tiberius and Miallói arranged their troops and sallied forth, spreading throughout the empty city beyond the keep. The limitanei and a handful of the Selkies marched up the outer walls, forming a line of shields and spear tips pointed to the sky.

And then, they heard it.

And they felt it.

The Earth rumbled under thousands of feet. The farmland ahead was covered in a tide of black. Thousands upon thousands of Dobhar marched towards Castra Turannia, blowing horns of bone and carrying the banners of their warlords. They wore little armor save the occasional breastplate of bone, mostly relying on their infamously tough fur. They carried harpoons made of bone, along with salvaged Legion gear they had taken from the abandoned forts and outposts along the way. They marched in groups of ten and a hundred and a thousand…in a manner most familiar to the Legion veterans present.

King Uscfrea Spellbreaker was not ashamed to borrow from a worthy foe, after all.

The limitanei fidgeted and gulped as they watched the army approach. The Selkies narrowed their eyes, eager to face their ancestral enemies once again.

And then the horde came to a halt, right outside the range of the Legion’s siege weapons, just close enough for the limitanei to make out the individual Dobhar.

Three Dobhar separated from the army and continued marching forward, carrying with them an ornate banner. It was an old Imperial banner, with a mage’s staff and a legionary shield in bright blue over a red field, only with a mighty axe painted over it in black. King Uscfrea’s favorite trophy, taken from the Legio Arcanum IX when the Dobhar earned his title.This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

One of the Dobhar took a deep breath, and then let out a mana-infused shout towards the walls.

“Imperials, Selkies, we greet yae. Today yae face the host of King Uscfrea Spellbreaker, King of all the Dobhar, Ruler of the Drekkjaland, Master of the Home Fleet, Breaker of Legions. Send yae finest warrior, that the King may trade words with as close tae an equal as yae got!”

Magister Tiberius heaved a sigh and turned to Miallói.

“Well, he must mean you. I’m not sure what his play is, King Uscfrea isn’t exactly known for diplomacy.”

Miallói shrugged.

“More time, good for us.”

Magister Tiberius raised an eyebrow.

“You sure? Could be a trap.”

Miallói shook her head.

“Wouldn’t bother.”

Magister Tiberius could only nod his head at that. If King Uscfrea felt compelled to take such measures against a single warrior, then he probably wouldn’t have invaded in the first place.

And so Miallói made her way down the walls, and the gates opened up. Miallói walked out, accompanied by a Selkie warrior and an Imperial centurion. As she walked across the field, the Dobhar parted ranks.

An exceptionally large Dobhar made his way between them. Standing seven foot tall, even taller than a human, he towered high over his fellow kin. He wore no armor or robes, displaying instead his prized fur that had carried him through the jaws of monsters, the harpoons of the Selkie, and the spells of the Legio Arcanum alike. He wore instead a red cloak with his symbol painted across it, the fabric taken from an Imperial officer, and a crown made from the black bones of a sea-serpent. On his shoulders rested a mighty, black-colored war-axe, forged from that same sea-serpent, that seemed to draw in all light around it.

This was King Uscfrea Spellbreaker. The legendary Dobhar warrior and king who had terrorized the northern seas for centuries. The man who humiliated the Empire’s finest battlemages. The reason the Dobhar had never submitted to the Empire.

The one who slew the former First Hunter of the Selkies, and so left them vulnerable to the Empire in turn.

He freely strode across the field, past his own envoys, right into range of the Empire’s weapons. He grinned at the Imperial soldiers along the walls, daring them to strike at him. They gulped and groaned but did not rise to the bait. He shrugged his shoulders and continued his march, until he was face to face with Miallói. The Selkie huntress seemed more like a child in front of the hulking beast ahead of her.

Then King Uscfrea Spellbreaker opened his mouth and spoke.

“Greetings to you, First Hunter of the Selkies Miallói. I am King Uscfrea Spellbreaker of the Dobhar.”

Miallói raised an eyebrow. He spoke to her not in Dobhar, nor in Imperial, but in the language of the Selkies. He spoke fluently and without accent, in a way that would have taken a Dobhar great study and practice to achieve.

“I am Miallói, First Hunter of the Selkies and Exploratores of the Empire. What do we have to discuss, King Uscfrea? We will not surrender and you will not retreat.”

King Uscfrea grinned.

“No, we will not. I would not permit them to surrender even if they wished to. I will take this fort and these lands. I will take everything that belongs to the Empire here and make it mine or see it razed to the ground. Those invaders shall have no peace until the debts of the Dobhar are paid in full.”

Miallói narrowed her eyes.

“Then, again, why are we talking?”

King Uscfrea pointed towards her.

“I am not talking with the Empire, or an Imperial lapdog. I am talking with Miallói, fierce warrior and First Hunter of the Selkies, the bane of the Dread Orcas.”

Miallói frowned.

“You mean…”

King Uscfrea grinned and nodded.

“Join me, and together we will destroy the Empire! Well, in Turannia at least, for now.”

Miallói heaved a sigh.

“You must be mad.”

King Uscfrea shook his head.

“Come now, First Hunter. Admit it, the Empire is dying. The signs are everywhere, surely you must have noticed as I have?”

King Uscfrea placed his ax in the ground, crossing his arms. He frowned.

“I’ll admit something, too. Once upon a time I was terrified of the Empire. My people call me ‘Spellbreaker’ and ‘Destroyer of Legions’ but I know the truth. We thought we won a mighty victory against the full might of the humans, sending them fleeing on their way. But then the next Legion came. And the next. And the next. And then…I learned the terrible truth.”

King Uscfrea clenched his fists.

“Back then, I did not defeat the Empire because I was strong. I defeated the Empire because I was irrelevant. They didn’t care about the Dobhar at all. They didn’t even know we were there. They were just on their way to invade somewhere else. What we thought were mighty battles the Empire considered minor skirmishes. We were not sending a mighty fleet fleeing at the end of epic battles. We were harassing a small group in transit, unable to even divert it from its course. And they kept going and conquered whoever it was they were actually fighting. No one would even know my name if some famous mage hadn't been on that ship we attacked.”

King Uscfrea shook his head.

“So the ships sailing through our kelp groves? The burning of our nursery ships? The massacre of Dobhar pups? The Empire wasn’t even trying to destroy my people. They were just trying to clear their road through the sea. When I learned the truth I despaired. I pulled my people from the Empire’s path. For decades, I trembled and hid, awaiting the terrible retribution to come when the mighty Empire finally turned its gaze to us.”

Miallói grit her teeth and gripped her spear hard.

“So what? The Empire crushed my people under heel, because you slew my grandmother, the TRUE First Hunter, and left us defenseless before their assault. You massacred the Green Harbour tribe with your own hand, including their children. There is bad blood between everyone in Turannia, King Uscfrea. The Dobhar and the Selkies and the Wulver have all done worse to each other for centuries, long before the Empire ever arrived. What is your point?”

King Uscfrea grinned.

“Oh, I’m not complaining about what they did, First Hunter. I’m telling you this so that you understand why I am here now.”

He stood to his feet and pointed behind him, waving his hand across the Dobhar horde assembled.

“Once upon a time the mighty Empire nearly destroyed my people on their way to a fight. But now? Now I march right into their own lands with an army of my own…and they do nothing. The Empire is not the power it once was. It is no longer mighty. The question is no longer will the Empire destroy us. The question is not even will the Empire survive. The question now is who gets the inheritance. And the Imperials? They don’t understand a thing, they spend more time fighting each other than fighting us these days. But soon, it will become apparent to everyone.”

King Uscfrea narrowed his eyes.

“Dark times are coming, First Hunter. The Empire will fall, and there will be a mad scramble to consume its corpse. No one will be left to restrain the demon lords or the monsters. The strong will do what they can, and the weak will endure what they must. “

Miallói frowned…but remained silent. She could not refute the Dobhar’s words. King Uscfrea continued.

“And that, First Hunter, is why we are talking.”

He held out his hand.

“Join me, you AND your people. We will take what made the Empire strong and use it to build a new kingdom in the Land of Rain, but for OUR people. We will conquer the wulver and bring them into the fold as well. We will force the Imperials to divulge their secrets. And so when the dark times come…we will be ready.”

Miallói crossed her arms.

“Under your rule?”

King Uscfrea grinned at her.

“Under the rule of the strongest, as it had always been for our three peoples, before the Empire interfered. Today that is me. Who can say who it will be tomorrow?”

Miallói shook her head.

“You cannot be trusted. Once the Empire is gone, your people will turn on mine, and we will be helpless before you.”

King Uscfrea’s smile dropped. He placed his hand over his heart.

“I, King Uscfrea Spellbreaker, hereby swear on the name of my mother Ymma, that the Selkies shall come to no harm should they side with me today. I will consider all debts of the past settled, and treat them as my own people. I will do my utmost to ensure the Dobhar do so as well. I will arbiter all future disputes as if between my own people, and see that justice is done for all. This I swear.”

Miallói gasped. To swear on their mother was the strongest oath a Dobhar could make. King Uscfrea was absolutely serious. And if the legendary king of the Dobhar had sworn so, he would ensure it was done. The Dobhar would not defy his will, not even for their ancestral hatred of the Selkies.

He genuinely did not wish to destroy her people.

Miallói frowned.

“And what will you do…if we refuse?”

King Uscfrea shrugged and smirked at her as he hefted his axe back onto his shoulder.

“I already told you. Then the strong do what they can…and the weak endure what they must.”

Miallói grit her teeth.

She now needed to make a choice.

A new route for the Selkies had opened up.

But one that would close the doors to the Empire forever.

King Uscfrea nodded and turned.

“Well, I’m sure you’ll have to think about it. I’ve always thought actions speak louder than words anyways, so if you agree, you know what to do.”

With that, King Uscfrea returned to his people.

Leaving Miallói, the frowning Selkie by her side, and the confused and clueless centurion alone.

Miallói clenched her hand around her spear.

Fight a hopeless battle for the conqueror that abandoned them, all in hopes that they would be welcomed as honored friends instead of desperate refugees?

Or betray their only ally and join forces with their hated enemy, all in hopes that they would be treated with respect instead of murdered and enslaved?

An impossible choice…with the fate of her people riding on her answer.

Miallói turned and walked back towards the city without another word.