The Battle of Liberty's Axe

As told by Thane Falgrin Vintergard, and scribed by Cassius Sjeckyik, on year 143.

Month 10, year 131.

In the seventh of twenty years of Thanedom his excellency Thane Ghestaldt Blimth crafted the Thane's Kuldarn. This is the story of its founding. Warriors had been called to his side, his goal within the depths of the Abyss. With beating hearts, sweat and blood he would forge those samman into oath-bound uniformed warriors. The gathered was Ulstevaurd Garmr Stonesoul, a wise Runecaster, Warden Murin Ironsorn, Naly Gottrasdottir later of Vintergard, Cregor Wilbor, Balin Hammerhelm, Hugan Stoneshelther, and Brekor Az'Garan.

The journey long from Golden halls to the Crags. In the depths in the earth we uncovered a path into the fortress of the Talassians. A swift assault stood. We faced stiff resistance, in a large chamber. Countless cultist launched themselves at us in fanatical-frenzy. Sparkling lightning in their eyes and blades. Gore cast up from the very floors as we clashed. My target, a thin man suddenly turned to run. Not knowing better, I followed to cleave him. I found myself enter through a portal that bad been the blood fount.

My axe soon found his back. Demons emerged to surround me. I stood my ground and became like stone. I paid the crimson price but i held until Thane Ghestaldt Blimth arrived and gave me aid. I was close to strike at him, but his familiar voice managed to calm me. Soon my fellow Kuldarn came through the portal as well and we had arrived in full into the flames of the abyss. Rivers of lava, and scourging air that would put the great foundries of Umbrick Halls to shame. There were carvings of men in the sandstone and ashes reminding me of the snow at home in the Spine of the World. We began marching through this desert of red-sand. Facing the demons resistance at every step of the way in our relentless march.

Wave after wave of demons emerged from the pits of the abyss. We swiftly took advantage of the natural defences provided us and claimed nearby ruins. In the distance, battle-clad dark dwarven silhouettes approached. Soon it became apparent it was a throng of Duergar that marched directly against us. Amongst their ranks stood a halfling. An exchange of harsh words, between the grey-Dwarves leader and the Thane, quickly turned to battle-cries. The hot sand was painted in crimson, and the battle would rage, but even as we fought hordes of demons continued their relentless assaults. We stood strong in our formation.

The hideous Duergar Chieftain with his black-soulless eyes snarled at us in his twisted and degenerated dialect of Dethek to stand down and join forces, that we were in the abyss and that we should let our grudges aside or we would all surely perish. Strong of conviction and faith, the Thane would not stand down and the battle raged around our steel-wall of Samman. The demons fell, both our forces bloodied. It would seem the demons had stopped their relentless assaults and it was time for another parley. The Thane managed to convince the Hin to stand down and not fight against us and in return, she would be spared and brought back to the surface. It was revealed that she was a mercenary. A treasure-hunter that had been hired by the Duergar to aid in search of a relic.

After the parley, the battle commenced once more. When our throng and the duergar horde took up arms once more the demons would start their assaults anew. I saw brothers and sisters fall in the accursed sands as did the exiles. When the Barakor Thane, Ghestaldt Blimth eventually fell after hammering many exiles to the ground I placed myself before him and became his shield.

The winged Balor demons launched another wave of attacks. Many of our warriors, was heavily wounded or unconcious or even dead. Ulstevaurd Garmr the Wise declared as the acting leader, that he accepted the ceasefire. When our common enemy was dead we allowed the Duergar to gather their wounded and dead. The leader spoke his pledge, to leave us and to not seek the relic.

The conditions were not great, but we did not lose anyone in the realm. Wounded and tired, we marched onwards into the ever-shifting wastes. Our only clue of what the relic The Liberty Axe did was held by Ulstevaurd Garmr Stonesoul and our only lead of its location was the hin. We knew only that it was of significant value and that we must prevent it from falling to the hands of the exiles.

We arrived at the eye of the storm in this realm. It was a stair-carved from the side of a cliff. Beneath it was a narrow passage for it was blocked by lava on the other end. This was the location we had been searching for. The Hin had seemed lost, but the landmark she had been telling us she was guiding us towards was finally found. On top of the stairs we found a small platform. We had finally found it, The Liberty Axe.

Strangely it was not a remarkable looking blade, it's craftmanship poor. When Brekor of Clan Az'Garan lifted the axe, he felt its power. The unremarkable weapon was not sharper than a simple iron axe, but it held innate powers. Subtle runes and suffering infused it. This axe could withstand any enchantment spell that would seek to shackle the holders mind. When we were watching this axe some of us surely was impressed by the powerful protection it held. Able to ignore any spell from an entire school of magic.

Another oath was broken, and another entry made it to the book of grudges the grey Dwarves had returned, this time in greater numbers. A Vast throng of exiles emerged clad in their black armours. The black-eyed soulless Chieftain stood in their midst. The Thane's Kuldarn shields formed a line at the narrow passage. I was a young warrior at the time. But I knew that their numbers would count for little due to the landscape and our positions.

The breaker of oaths snarled, in desperation he urged us to give up the axe or we would suffer terrible fates. He claimed that it was a symbol. A relic of the Duergar that we had no right to claim. This axe had been forged in secrecy during the years that they served as slaves to the Illithids. A fate they suffered after isolating themselves from Deep-Shanatar with their tyrannical and isolationistic ways making themselves a easy target for the mind-flayers. The other realms of true Shield-dwarves stood strong together, pushed back the illithids and reclaim the lost territory.

Shackled to the whims of the Illithids, this axe had been used in the uprising to slaughter the mindflayers. The Duergar Chieftain wanted this axe for it was a banner to gather his people around. He seemed desperate for it, but the Thane. Disciplined and forged in service to Gorm and his people gave no mercy and cast the Axe into the lava, to be melted before the eyes of the oath-breakers.

The axe faded in the lava, enraged by the destruction of their relic the duergars attacked like savages. Our shield wall stood unbreakable. Corpses piled before us. From the steps of stone above, the Rune-Caster called down the wrath of Moradin on the traitors. Searing flames from the skies while our shields held the monsters at bay.

The battle was won, the first major Battle of the Thane's Kuldarn. The Battle of the Liberty Axe. A major Duergar relic destroyed, a Chieftain and his Warband perished with it. A handful of Duergar was gathered and put into chains to be brought back to the halls. In the Grand Halls of Legends, the initiation and the formal founding of the Thane's Kuldarn was performed. It was there, each of the brave warriors that had fought the hordes of evil were given their uniform and took the oaths before the Gods, the Thane and the people.

The First Oath, a pledge to the Thane.
The Second Oath, a pledge to the Thane's Warden.
The Third Oath, a pledge to the fellow Kuldarn.
And the last oath. The oath to stand against the evil. The oath that we each spoke to the Duergars black eyes as we executed them.

Scribe's Notes:
Kuld means axe.
Kuldar means warrior.
The title Thane's Kuldarn means the Axemen of the Thane. (Thank you, Golden Monk, for the suggestion.)
Ulstevaurd is the second of the Thane. His steward.
Warden is the military leader. Later called Thane's Warden. <br.Thanes are like Kings but elected and without royal blood. While a Dwarven King can only become so if they are of one of the royal lines but they are almost entirely gone from the realms.
To become a Thane one must first become elected Regent and then coronated to Thane. It is in practice, identical to a human King.

A thank you to Thane Falgrim Vintergard for the fine retelling.

'Scribe Cassius Sjeckyik'