[Tale retrieved from a blue robed man who only identified himself as part of the Order.]
The morning was no different than any other of the last 7 months. Akron had awaked before sunrise as was his custom and began gathering his supplies. Akron was the field commander of the 300 soldiers assigned to this area. He was not the sole commander though; his Pack together acted as a group to command the soldiers. Akron was the head of his Pack---though rarely did he act outright as if that was his position. Most big issues of command were discussed amongst the Pack.
Upon exiting his tent Akron noted the usual movements of the camp. His soldiers were preparing to move the base camp, something they did every few weeks to tactically keep any enemies off balance. Moving allowed them to concentrate on areas of resistance and confused the enemy as to where their position was. The timing of moves was not scheduled; when the Pack decided to move, the camp moved. This tactic had been successful in reducing any direct attacks while camped up.
Typically the plainsmen forces on the mountain front rotated in thirds with respect to patrols. The whole force would attack any sizable enemy camps discovered. Because the regiment was used to moving, there became a certain rhythm to the move that Akron noticed. That's how being in the field became to Akron: you seemed to develop an extra sense that determined if the surrounding rhythm was normal. During his tour of the vast eastern front (with one of the 4 roaming patrols), Akron had learned to listen to this extra sense because it had saved his hide on several occasions. This particular camp move would likely be their last before moving south to meet their replacement patrol. Then they would have several months of rest at home.
Akron was on his way to see Talia while he thought of move and going home. Home had become so foreign to him during his time on the front; and then there was the issue of telling his family about Talia. Talia was a member of the Pack and had become Akron's lover over the last 4 months. He knew this was dangerous because it could compromise the decision making that he needed to make as a leader and the decision making of the Pack as a whole. That is why they decided that they should wed. Of course this meant that she would have to leave the Pack. Women who became pregnant or wed were forced to leave any Packs and removed from any active fighting contingents. Replacing her within the Pack would be hard---but then again, it was never easy to replace a Pack member. Some Packs simply went out without ever replacing a lost member. The bond that formed during years of training and fighting together were often too hard to replace.
Akron was near Talia's tent when he became aware of the feeling; something wasn't right in the air. As he began to search the area for any visible warning signs he heard the air rushing. A flurry of arrows had taken flight from the surrounding woods. Akron was able to take cover as the arrows began to strike. Immediately Akron started shouting orders and his men responded, preparing for battle. Akron began to assess the force behind the threat when arrow volleys launched from all sides, followed by the war cry of the Eye People. They flooded the camp from all angles bringing destruction in their wake. Never had a force even half this size been sighted, Akron thought as he struggled to get to Talia's side.
Then he saw her in the heat of battle. Her slender spear was dealing out death at all angles. Her opponents were simply used to seeing women as spoils of war or house wenches, and they paid dearly for their overconfidence in trying to brush her aside. Finally Akron closed the distance to his lover to fight by her side and could protect her as he was meant to do. Then time stopped. As Talia spotted Akron and that look was able to pass between them, she was run through. A captain of the Eye People had taken his bastard sword and simply ran it hilt deep through Talia's back.
In a daze, Akron looked around, witnessing the slaughtering of his troops by overwhelming forces. In this moment of desperation he swore allegiance to the god of war, Werra, in return for the ability to destroy this enemy that had taken the only thing that he had ever truly loved. In what can only be described as a dance of death, Akron rose from his knees and pursued the Captain. In one powerful move he ducked his opponent's slash and embedded a spear under his armour and ribs. He then picked up the Captain's bastard sword and beheaded the man. Then Akron moved with inhuman speed and skill and began the dance of death. He became so consumed that his mind simply blanked. What had began as a slaughter of the plainsmen quickly became the slaughtering of the Eye forces. Some ambushers even began to flee---but Akron ran them all down and killed them to a man. The troops left under his command also fought and killed with a zeal never before experienced.
After the battle Akron collapsed and laid unconscious for the next 2 days. It is said that he was able to say his goodbyes to Talia's spirit before it moved on to the spirit world.
A week after the battle the remnants of the patrol headed south and met up with its replacement. There all the wounded were able to get better treatment. During repeated retellings the tale of Akron's dance of death grew and grew. Yet Akron was very distant from everyone for those few weeks after the battle. It was also during this time that he noticed a symbol upon his chest that was never there before, the mark of Werra.
Akron keeps as a reminder of his love the earrings that Talia always wore, even in battle. He wears them attached to a leather cord around his neck, leaving them to rest on Werra's mark upon his chist.