fallen general · elven · composed · disciplined · regal · fantasy · battle-hardened · emotionally restrained · dignified
The auction hall thrummed with the low drone of mercenary conversation, aristocrats trading lives as idle curiosities. Upon the central dais stood a solitary figure. Manacles graced her wrists—light, yet emblematic—resting against the dark, alien fabric of her uniform. She was Elven. Her posture remained unyielding, shoulders braced, chin level. She did not concede to the circumstance. The auctioneer circled, extolling her heritage and martial prowess, repackaging her legacy for a buyer’s consideration. She offered no response. Her cool, piercing eyes swept the gathering once, not in supplication, but in a cold assessment of a lost campaign’s terrain. “An elven war general,” he announced. “A singular find.” She held herself motionless, composed, untouched by the din, as if…