 |
| Female Storm's Cry Member; Weapon Prototypes |
 |
| 'Cleaner' Version (Contrast Removed) |
Basic Information
The Storm's Cry is an elite--if mysterious--sect of unbelievably skilled duelists originating from the dark holds of the Pelonimbrae Chain. Though their numbers are not known with certainty, the Storm's Cry is an incredibly inclusive, secretive organization. To call them sellswords would be inaccurate; they are not your average blade for hire. Members of the Storm's Cry possess a silent, unyielding morality that bows to no ruler. Indeed, many a king, seeking to buy the services of these assassins, has been turned down with a cold courtesy. Rulers more persistent on fulfillment of their petty desires have offered anything from sprawling estates to unimaginable wealth to lordship--all to no avail.
As a rule, the Storm's Cry generally stays clear of politics, though rumors and housewive's tales hold that they have played a major part in the inexplicable deaths of many a tyrant.
Tenets
Steel is the song of our heart
Formless, the one part you
Could never conquer; we
Fall like lightning, leap like the rain, then
There is nothing but silence
And murmurs in the sea.
What will we sing
When your bones in the ground
Turn to dust?
The sun parts the sky
But this storm does not break.
--The Third Mantra
The Storm's Cry shuns subterfuge, never seeking to disguise themselves or their intent. Concealment, however, is completely acceptable, and that they excel at. Even garbed in their distinctive hooded armor, they are capable of vanishing completely--even in broad daylight in the center of a crowded Shimmersand bazaar. All killings are performed by hand or blade; the use of poisons or traps are unheard of. Another defining trait of the Storm's Cry is their unfathomable willpower; they are considered Unreadable by even the strongest of the Flayers of Thought, psionicists who usually have the ability to glance at a man and read his darkest secrets as if they were plastered on his forehead. Because of this, many speculate that the Storm's Cry undergoes vigorous mental (maybe even magic) schooling in addition to their physical training.
Members of the Storm's Cry almost always work alone, only banding in groups of twos or threes for missions logistically impossible for an individual to carry out. The organization's locus of power is unknown, though the eminent spymasters of the day have agreed on one thing: The Storm's Cry reports to a single leader figure, and he is younger than most would begin to imagine.
Traditional Garb
The Storm's Cry regalia keeps just one thing in mind: ease of movement. As such, their armor is fashioned almost entirely out of shadeweave, the shimmering, silklike fabric native of the isle of Syr. When treated with ash from the Weir-trees of the Northern Reaches, the shadeweave armor gains the toughness of famed watersteel and almost appears to be carved from a solid block the banded metal. All the while, the ashwood shadeweave remains supple enough to allow for unhindered motion in absolute silence.
Shoulder guards of the Storm's Cry armor are more often than not asymmetrical: a simple, overlapping series of 'shells' on the right and a much more elaborate and solid set of flared--often bladed--guards on the left. True to form, even armor can be turned into weapons. Whereas the right-side spaulders are used almost exclusively for protection should an enemy blade slip past their guard, the flared pauldrons on the right can easily crush bones and puncture armor--all it would take is a simple lunging pirouette into a startled foe.
The Storm's Cry are almost never seen without their distinctive hoods on; these are also made of shadeweave, though inlaid with silver thread that invokes images of smoke,There is no need for the shadeweave to be treated with the weir-ash, as the Storm's Cry are perhaps best known for their protective two-piece masks, which cover everything but a small band around the nose area. Crafted from some unknown midnight black substance with the heft and consistency of steel plate, the masks seem almost to swallow surrounding light The effect of these masks is perhaps more terrifying than even the grotesque steel visages of the Flayers of Thought, especially when combined with the implacable, deadly silence that members of the Storm's Cry shroud themselves in. How they manage to see and breathe out of the solid plating, though, is still up to discussion.
Weaponry--Based on Prototypes in Picture
Being first and foremost an order of duelists, members of the Storm's Cry forgo the use of all ranged weaponry save for a set of seven simple throwing daggers. In combat, they almost exclusively wield two weapons simultaneously, a style that lends itself to fluid precision rather than brute force. Descriptions of the two weapon prototypes drawn are as follows:
Asp and Pincer (Bladed Staff)
The bladed staff consists of a jagged, curved edge mounted on a shaft about the length of an outstretched arm. Blade designs vary, although most are typically single-edged and used for deadly slashes. The steel shaft splits around halfway down its length to form a ring, which lightens the weapon slightly. A favorite (if risky) move of the Storm's Cry elite is to catch the tip of an opponent's blade in the wring before wrenching it painfully from their grasp. The asp and pincer are dual wielded, and identical save for one feature. Whereas the 'pommel' of the asp ends in a deadly needlelike point, the back end of the pincer hollows out into a ridged tube flanked by two bladed "wings". The end of the asp is often the tool used for assassination, while the pincer excels at gouging at exposed eyes or trapping enemy weapons midsweep.
The asp and pincer can be combined to form the distinctive two-handed bladed staff simply by inserting the point of the asp into the sheath of the pincer. The bladed staff is wielded in much the same fashion as a traditional bo staff,
Lirael
The lirael is a hiltless double-edged blade about four and a half feet long from tip to pommel. It holds the distinction of being by far the most difficult weapon to forge. The reason is simple--if the balance of the weapon is even the slightest bit off, the weapon becomes about as effective as a rod of dented steel. Although the blade is curved in the same general shape as a northern Mhekelion infantry scimitar, the lirael is fluted in wavelike dips along both edges of the narrow blade. The angle, length, and thickness of all the curves needs to be exact to create the ideal weapon--a curve a hair's breadth longer is capable of throwing the warp of the blade completely off balance. Because of these limitations, it often takes master blacksmiths thousands of reforgings to create a weapon that is considered useable; as such, lirael are extremely rare and are hard to find even among the most deadly of the Storm's Cry.
Note
All images in this post are scanned in from an original sketch I did today (6/10/12). Links to the two files can be found on my imgur account here.
