It's the Dark Ages. The Great Armies of Chaos have swept through the land, plagues run rampant, nobility is corrupt and justice is only given to those who can afford it. Hope is nigh unheard of. The heroes are all off to war, and now it's up to the average person to pick up the pieces. Enter one such person:

Drachena Vogt grew up in a very poor household in a wealthy town of the Empire. Her mother passed on when she was young and her brother, many years her senior, went off to fight the great armies of Chaos, leaving her to care for their elderly father at a very young age. Her father was unable to work and she was too young to earn much money, so he had to borrow to keep food in their bellies. One day, the wealthy merchant to whom he owed money decided to call him on his debt, and when he could not pay, he took the only thing worth taking - Drachena. According to the law, he was within his rights to do so.

A sick man with a taste for pretty young girls, the merchant intended to use her for a pleasure slave, but when he tried to force himself upon her she fought him off, leaving a nasty gash across his cheek. "So, you want to fight, do you!?" The jilted merchant asked, "So be it!" And with that, he called for his guards.

She was led to his unkempt Gladiator pits, and the merchant watched with a spiteful pleasure as she was unmercifully thrown to the pit fighters below, men who had gone without the company of a woman in years... It was during those horrible days at the hands of those brutes that Drachena swore no man would ever touch her again.

She learned to fight quickly, as a necessity to keep the other fighters away, and eventually became a worthy opponent, inside and outside of the combat arena.

Four years later, a much wealthier merchant, who saw great promise in her, attended one of her fights and afterward the sale was made. She moved on to much better, more regimented pits, with better food, better training, more guards to prevent "fraternizing" and inner-gladiator fighting, and better medical care. All around, this owner treated his fighters like prize animals.

It was here that she met Yngvar Stokken, a Norsican follower of her god, Ulric. (Ulric is is the embodiment of strength, honesty, power and courage, and demands no less from his followers.) The two became the closest of friends, but with the understanding that someday they may have to fight and, were that time to come, they swore they would never hold back. They agreed, however, that there would be no dishonor in losing to the other.

Two years year later, a wealthy, jaded noble came to the pits wanting to hire to Gladiators for a fight to the death. Their owner, not used to accepting such propositions, but not wanting to turn down such a lucrative offer, worked out a deal by which both fighters’ prices would be paid for, so he would make up his loss and the winner would earn their freedom. With that incentive, he went to the pits and asked for volunteers for what would be one Gladiator’s final battle, and in the end Yngvar and Drachena stood.
At that moment of sad realization, they agreed that whomever won, they would remember the other well.

When the fight came, both stood honest and true to their word and their god. Neither held back and both fought to their fullest, as they swore. It was truly a well matched, long, and entertaining, battle. Yngvar slashed her across the cheek, and while his arm was raised she impaled him on her sword... The fight was over. He slumped to the ground, and they locked arms, taking one last glance and one final nod before he faded away. The small gathering of nobles cheered, after seven years of servitude Drachena Vogt was a free woman.

She sees value in Gladiatorial combat, especially in a world suffering from war and plague. It takes troubled minds away from the toil and struggle of every day life, and with each victory, with each roar from the crowd, the common man, who hasn't much else to look forward to, gets a glimmer of hope. For now, as a freelancer, that is what she will bring them. She will also use her skills to defend the weak and bring justice to those who can't afford it, divulge dishonesty where she sees it, and right wrongs against the innocent. Some day, however, she dreams of finding a way to correct the system that allows young girls to be taken from their families; the system that allows the wealthy to tread on the poor, that allows corrupt nobles to rule the world.

Now she heads home, to Hochland, to see if her father is still alive... if her brother has come home... if there is anything left, or if the armies of Chaos have devastated her home like much else of the Empire.