The Honour Guard of Ahraz
Introduction
At the Winter Solstice 384YE Vaclav Mladenovich Kosti, the Minister of Historical Research instructed the Department "to learn the origin, names and deeds of the ten orcs interred with Empress Ahraz. To explore the detail of events there; including the nature of interment of the orcs." There was some uncertainty as to whether this work could be completed following the Senate's decision to expand the Prognosticators' Office. In the end, this document was prepared by Snowstorm Henk of the Department of Historical Research, on his own time and using his own resources, and was presented to the Minister for Historical Research at the Spring Equinox.
The Tomb
After Emperor Ahraz passed away, he was interred in a discreet tower of black marble in the Necropolis, placed in a weirwood coffin, and transported to the Necropolis. The Emperor had been clear in his last months that he should rest in the Necropolis, alongside the other dead Thrones, but his final wishes were ambiguous and some controversy over the issue remains.
Some years later in 342YE, during the reign of Empress Giselle, a legion of Imperial Orcs were arrested while apparently trying to break into the tomb. The magistrates suspected them of being grave robbers, but they denied any ill intent. The magistrates were able to confirm they had not touched anything, but rather had left behind three orc bodies wrapped inside beautifully embroidered shrouds.
These orcs – Ironfoot Bo, Brightsash Kerr, and Splintermute Kaggan – were among those who had first negotiated with Ahraz, and been swayed by his arguments.
The legion - the Duskwinter - had been determined that the Emperor who had brought them into the Empire should not be alone, even in death. There was also a desire among some of the Imperial Orcs that those they saw as being just as responsible for ending their rebellion – the orcs who had seen a future for their people alongside the Empire – should be granted the same level of respect as Ahraz.
There was some strongly voiced opposition to the idea that these orcs should rest alongside the actual Throne. It was unprecedented, and the Empress herself expressed some scepticism about the entire thing. There were some complaints that the entire thing smacked of barbarian practices, reminiscent of the way some Jotun allegedly interred the bodies of defeated enemies alongside their great champions.
The arguments went back and forth for six months at Anvil, but in the end both the Synod judged that it recognised bonds of Loyalty, and should be allowed. The Imperial Senate passed a motion towards the end of the year, explicitly calling for the Duskwinter to be allowed to reopen the tomb until the ten Imperial Orcs most responsible for the end of the rebellion were interred within. Duskwinter Arrak was given the title of “Captain of the Fallen Guard” responsible for selecting the orcs who would rest alongside the Emperor.
Over the following two decades, the tomb was re-opened seven more times, and seven more Imperial Orcs were interred alongside the dead Emperor. After the tenth, Duskwinter Arrak refused to resign their post as “Captain of the Fallen Guard”, but the Imperial Senate abrogated the title.
As far as anyone knows the ten bodies are believed to still be there, arranged in a rough circle around the Emperor's tomb.
The Honour Guard
The ten honour guard, in the order they were interred, are believed to be as follows:
Ironfoot Bo
Descended from Jotun thralls captured during the reign of Emperor Guntherm, Bo followed his ancestors' traditions and refused to fight during the rebellion. Instead they supported their fellow rebels as an apothecary and physick. It's not known how Bo came by these skills, they were born into slavery and certainly wouldn't have been taught such knowledge as a mine slave in Varushka. We spoke with an orc who claimed to be have been taught the healing arts by Bo, and they said all they knew was that Bo bartered for the skills in a "bone trial", but she never discovered what Bo gave up in exchange. To this day, there are scores of aging orcs across Skarsind who can recount individual tales of being saved by Bo after being wounded in battle. Although he refused to fight, he served on the front line taking huge personal risks to save others, despite not carrying a weapon.
When Ahraz made his approach to the Imperial Orcs, to try and end the rebellion, Bo initially opposed any compromise, demanding that the former slaves be given their own land and left to create their own nation. He was eventually convinced that this course of action was doomed to failure, and grudgingly came to support Ahraz' vision of Imperial Orcs as part of the Empire.
Ironfoot Bo steadfastly refused to take up weapons or fight, though they continued to serve with the Winter Sun until their death in 342YE. They had wandered off alone into a terrible winter gale while the army were on campaign in the north. It took two days for the storm took to abate, their body was frozen rigid by the time they managed to find them.
Bo was one of the first three orcs interred in Ahraz' tomb. Those who investigated the scene report that his body was unnaturally cold to the touch, "as cold as the biting winds of Sydanjaa" in the words of one magistrate. Only Bo was affected in this way, Imperial magicians were able to confirm the presence of a powerful magical shroud but were unable to find out more.
Brightsash Kerr
A foreman on a farming estate in Astolat, she claimed to have learned to fight with a spear by watching the yeofolk drill and practising their moves with a hoe. When rumours began to spread of the coming revolt, Kerr stole a whetstone, sharpened her hoe to an edge and then used it to kill both of the overseers watching the fields. She then stole one of the overseer's spears as well as their robes and sash. There is an a Dawnish troubadour's description of the incident that draws parallels between her actions and the practice of girding - a ceremonial stealing of the power of her former masters.
Through the revolt, Kerr, made herself an obvious target with her bright Dawnish surcote and hood. While many orcs favoured swords or axes where they could get them, Kerr continued to practise with the spear claiming that the weapon was the only way the orcs would be able to arm everyone who came to fight. Those who knew her said she was an inspiring commander, but her intensity was unnerving. She seemed to have little time for anything but battle and war. One orc we spoke to said "she made you believe you would win every fight when she took the lead, but she had few friends despite that." Warriors flocked to her banner to fight, but she was uncomfortable to be around at other times.
Kerr particularly resisted any suggestion that the Imperial Orcs take on a subservient or secondary role, even temporarily. Right from the start of the negotiations she insisted that the Imperial Orcs must be given absolute parity with the Imperial Nations, even if they had no territory. Many of her demands were acceded to, but she failed to win the argument that the Orcs must have a senator even without territory. She fell in a Druj ambush in 342YE and was one of the first interred in the tomb, wearing the same surcote and hood she had worn during the rebellion.
Splintermute Kaggan
As a slave, Kaggan had his tongue cut out early in life as a punishment for some unspecified incident. After the rebellion began, he stole books and scrolls from the Varushkans and taught himself to read and write. He served as a bodyguard for Thrace and the two were rarely seen apart. Eventually he founded a small legion of his own, the Splintermute legion, training others to protect those in their care.
There is some evidence that he began correspondence with the Imperial abolitionist movement during the Rebellion, though of course such records are hard to come by, since the Imperial citizens involved were committing treason. None-the-less both Ahraz and Thrace claimed he was was instrumental in actually getting the Emperor into a position where he could negotiate with the Imperial Orcs. He was present for all the negotiations with Emperor Ahraz. Often discounted for his silence, his role was to watch the Imperial citizens and then advise the others on ways to exploit their weaknesses.
Kaggan died in 342YE in battle with the Druj, alongside Brighstash Kerr. His was one of the three bodies first interred alongside Emperor Ahraz. Next to his body there is a stone tablet that reads "Death will not still his voice. With a word from him, the Abyss will part, that he may pass untroubled to the other side." He is the only one of the ten orcs interred to have such a marker.
Bonesetter Kerun
Kerun worked a herb garden in Hercynia prior to the Rebellion, before trekking east to Varushka to join the main body of orc resistance. They tended the injured during the rebellion, ensuring that those around them could return to the fight. An apothecary of some talent, they were also adept at making supplies last especially over the cruel Varushkan winter. Every orc who met Kerun remarked on their generous spirit and warm humour. In the early days they took time to get to know everyone who joined the rebellion personally, winning their trust and support. Hardship was a constant feature of life in the rebel camp, but they were effective at persuading everyone to share what little people had, assuring those that contributed that they would be supported in turn. A handful of older bonesetters say they learned their craft from Kerun and claim that they should be regarded as the founder of that tradition.
Once negotiations to end the Rebellion started, Kerun often remained on the periphery, but made sure that the news of what was being discussed was spread through the orc camps. They also worked to smooth conflicts among the disparate orc groups, especially between those who had fought in Varushka and those from elsewhere in the Empire, refusing any suggestion that Thrace's allies were somehow “above” the other orcs.
Kerun died in 346YE, and was the fourth Imperial Orc placed in Ahraz' tomb.
Steelbrow Tonnot
Once a maker of tools on a farm in Temeschwar, she quietly turned her blacksmith skills to the making of weapons once news of Thrace's initial rebellion reached the farm where she worked. When the orcs on her farm rebelled, they killed the Temeschwari landowners and engaged in a months long campaign of banditry and raiding caravans travelling through the wild places around the city.
When they finally made contact with other orcs, they turned over scores of weapons and arms they had looted or made, suits of armour, shields, and countless quivers of arrows. Tonnot and the Steelbrows – as the orcs who fought with her started calling themselves – continued to raid Imperial merchants wherever possible, and argued for the plan to capture Temeschwar. Although the attack was eventually abandoned, Tonnot would later unsuccessfully argue that the city and territory be handed over to the nascent Imperial Orcs nation as their homeland.
During the negotiations, Steelbrow Tonnot was one of the loudest voices against the idea the Imperial Orcs should fight for the Empire. Instead she argued they must be free to choose where they fought, and that they must be free to fight for themselves. Many reavers still look to the example provided by Steelbrow Tonnot; her relentless refusal to back down and ambition when it came to striking at the wealthiest targets are quite inspirational.
She died in a raid on the Thule in 349YE. She and the other Steelbrows had travelled through the Sentinel Gate planning to loot a Thule caravan carrying mithril stolen from northern Varushka. She was not a popular figure in Imperial politics - she had many enemies in the Imperial Bourse due to her habit of publishing pamphlets denouncing them. As a result, there were claims by the Steelbrows that the Thule were warned they was coming, but no proof was ever discovered.
Bloodcrow Fenrak
Fenrak was a Varushkan slave, with a strong connection to their ancestors. They helped other shaman to deal with the tumultuous ancestral voices, and were known for their uncompromising savagery and cunning in battle - to the point where the rivers allegedly ran red with Varushkan blood where Fenrak fought.
After the rebellion, they helped develop the modern traditions of orc magicians. During the negotiation period, however, they primarily focused on spiritual matters, insisting that the Imperial Orcs would not give up their belief in the Howling Abyss, nor that the voices of their ancestors were real, which caused some strife with the Imperial Synod. Fenrak died in 350YE, and apparently not everyone was happy with the decision to inter them as part of Ahraz' guard.
Many Bloodcrows continue to attend Anvil regularly, as members of the Imperial Orcs. They are almost certainly the best source for reliable information about this important historical figure.
Brasstongue Urd
Brasstongue Urd is a rare figure in the orc rebellion, as she was apparently never a slave. They lived in the Brass Coast at the time of the rebellion, making a living running a smuggling operation that moved contraband in and out of the Coast. Several of their customers were Freeborn citizens, but Urd and her band operated outside of Imperial influence - the magistrates would likely have considered them bandits. As part of this work, she claimed to be familiar with both Sarvos and Tassato, a dangerous state of affairs for an orc in the Empire at that time.
Urd and her band somehow found a way to travel north when the Rebellion began, a perilous journey that took them through the Brass Coast, Marches, and Wintermark before they finally arrived in Varushka. They were initially mistrusted by Thrace and the other rebels, who questioned how they could possibly have lived free in the Empire - they were suspected of being spies or double-agents for a long time. They were finally able to prove their loyalty by procure enough supplies to help keep the rebels alive through the cold winter of 323YE.
Urd was widely seen as a key figure in the negotiations leading up to the meeting between Ahraz and Thrace. It was Urd that convinced other orcs that Ahraz could be trusted, that the Freeborn had little love of orcs, but they despised slavery far more than they hated the Grendel, the Lasambrians, and the Jotun. It was Urd who persuaded other orcs that it might be possible for the Imperial Orcs to live free in the Empire after their efforts to approach the Thule and the Druj were rebuffed.
She died in 350YE fighting against the Jotun alongside the Summer Storm.
Irontide Sutin
A contemporary of Thrace, Sutin was not present when he died but continued to fight to liberate the orcs in the north. Present at the negotiations to end the rebellion, Sutin insisted that the orcs would not give up their weapons, and argued that they must instead have their own armies.
Many Irontide continue to attend Anvil regularly, as members of the Imperial Orcs. They are almost certainly the best source for reliable information about this important historical figure. Their famed Iron Banner of the legion was stained with a drop of Ahraz’ blood, a symbol of their bond to the Empire.
According to Imperial history Ahraz arrived late to Anvil at the summit. Appearing just as Imperial Senate was about to begin, he marched in to the building accompanied by a band of heavily armed orcs and Freeborn. Over the protests of the Speaker, he presented the agreements he had forged as a fait accompli demanding that the Imperial Senate session pass his accession treaty. There were angry protests from many present, and loud insistence that the orcs could never be trusted. To prove his faith in them, the Emperor instructed Sutin to draw his knife in front of the entire Imperial Senate. He very publicly stepped away from his bodyguards to let Sutin cut his palm. He then smeared his blood on the Irontide banner and swore them to the service of the Empire, effectively daring anyone to stop them.
Scholars of Imperial history suspect the scene may not have been quite as spontaneous as the legends suggest, based mostly on the fact that a Freeborn senator had submitted the motion to accept the treaty to the Speaker's Office two hours earlier.
Sutin died fighting the Jotun in 356YE.
Forgeborn Alkh
Alkh escaped slavery in Necropolis, but he claimed to have been born in the Broken Shore and to be have been sold across the sea by unscrupulous traders. He was one of the first Forgeborn, who took the shackles of ex-slaves and forged them into something new. He urged slaves to rise up and use their tools to break the bones of their masters, claiming their broken weapons and armour and reworking them. There were a number of blacksmiths in Thrace's force by then, but Alkh was by far the most talented and the only one experienced at forging weapons and armour.
Thrace allegedly once claimed that Alkh was the most important of all his followers saying that without him the rebellion would have been doomed to failure. The boast is not as incredible as it sounds, without the weapons and armour that Alkh and those he taught to forge and maintained, it is inconceivable that the slaves would have been a match for an Imperial army in battle. The will to fight will only take you so far against a wall of professional well-armed soldiers.
After the rebellion was successful, Alkh encouraged the Forgeborn to take on a new identity. He claimed that the role of the artisan was to take the things of the past and forge them anew. The Forgeborn eventually faded away and became the Sunhammers. Though many of this group used to attend Anvil regularly, they sadly died during a battle in 382YE.
Forgeborn Alkh died in 357YE
Hareshammer Leva
Little more than a child in Karsk when the revolution began, Leva was favoured by the Prince with a Thousand Foes and became one of the eternal's champions. She led a warband of other younger orcs who called themselves Hareshammers, and engaged in daring raids in Varushka. They used the boons the eternal granted to smash gates and break chains, sometimes alongside actual heralds of Ira Harrah. She had the singular “honour” of being the first Imperial Orc to be declared a sorcerer (although obviously she was not actually an Imperial Orc at the time).
Hareshammer Leva invited herself to the negotiations with Emperor Ahraz, and held her own in debates with people twice her age. She particularly argued that there must be an amnesty – that the orc rebels could not be tried for the things the Empire considered crimes while they were fighting for their freedom. Her position as a friend of Ira Harrah caused some friction as the eternal was under enmity at the time (mostly for his support for the Imperial Orc rebellion).
She would go on to become one of the first warcasters, once the Declaration of Sorcery against her was rescinded. She was also one of the first orcs to explore the Imperial Conclave, although she is not believed to have ever joined any of the orders.
Hareshammer Lev was the last to join the honour guard, dying in 362YE. Her escort to the tomb was apparently accompanied by a pair of Ira Harrah's heralds, this despite the fact that the eternal was once again under enmity at the time. Those who spoke to the heralds say that they claimed to have come so that the "Prince with a Thousand Foes might pay tribute to the passage of his favourite daughter". Despite protests from the Highborn stewards, they entered Ahraz' tomb with the body and did not come out.
Ahraz' Body
A small controversy endures about the remains of Emperor Ahraz' body. The wishes of his family were that the Emperor's body be burned in accordance with Freeborn tradition. Unfortunately Emperor Ahraz left specific instructions for his remains to be interred in a tomb in Highguard as per tradition. As a result, his body was interred intact, as per the Highborn tradition, rather than the body being burned. The issue remains controversial with some Freeborn who point out that Ahraz' instructions could easily be interpreted to mean his body should have been burned and the remains interred as per Freeborn tradition.