Rats Revision Page02

Here I begin my analysis of Valerin, the Warrior Women: Here we’re first introduced her. She is an imposing, powerful, professional mercenary in her first appearance, pictured above. Armed with a wicked mace and broad shield, she takes a job finding a missing girl named Ana, a waitress at The Fair Harvest Inn. One day Ana went into the cellar of The Fair Harvest Inn to get something and never came back. The Inn’s proprietor, Albert Fiskborne, has hired Valerin to search for his missing employee.

We know nothing of Valerin’s past, save that she has, or had, a lover, so let’s look at the body language and see if that tells us a story. Her demeanor here shows an expression of confidence, determination, and a distinct lack of fear. The grit isn’t an issue, but the cool lack of fear speak volumes. Before I go on, I want anyone reading this to click to one of the next couple of images to get a better look at that hole she’s staring down. Done it? Alright… JUST LOOK AT THAT SIZE OF THAT HOLE!

To Valerin's knowledge, that’s the only clue to Ana’s disappearance, and that alone is enough to paint some semblance of a picture. That picture is that of a powerful, unwavering beast clawing its way through the earth. In order to get into the cellar, it would have had to tear apart the rock and bricks through the foundations spanning several thick layers before coming to the cellar. I don’t know about you, but that doesn’t sound like a beasty to be trifled with. It body and teeth and/or claws would have been tough to be able to do that. Therefore, if someone like me who has never seen a battlefield, has never worked in pest control, or even been in a fight for over a decade can figure this much out, then so has she.

So given what we know she KNOWS about the hole, we can determine from Valerin’s lack of concern or any reaction to it, really, that she self-assurance in her abilities goes beyond simple confidence straight into arrogant pride. Granted, it’s not necessarily unfounded pride, because why would she have ties with someone like Luther Vandermoor or been picked for a job like this if she was only second rate? However, as I will explain in “Rats Redone Page02,” she is not invincible.

Other points of interest: obviously, Valerin is not the first person to see that hole. We can determine from an outsider’s perspective, that at least Albert, some of the barmaids, and probably Luther and some city guards have all seen this hole in the wall. So why is Valerin alone? Why would Luther Vandermoor send a lone warrior, however good she is, down into the depths of a cellar where a powerful and vicious monster probably is taking up residence?

Well, let’s take a look at Albert. He has a business to run. His Inn is a big building with a large dining are and bar, and an upstairs portion where the guest’s rooms are. Maintain everything within (and without) the building takes money, and lots of it. After the cost of food, drink, maintenance, and employees and this being the Dark Ages, Albert won’t have a lot left to put into paying a hired blade to find Ana. So we can conclude that Valerin is the only merc that took the job. So she does have her finer points counterweighing the flaws I spoke of earlier, implying a lot of heart and a soft spot for hard luck cases. If her occupation and manner are anything to go off of, maybe Valerin herself came from a difficult background. Perhaps she's always had a tendency to take low paying jobs simply because the people paying need the help. I can only guess looking at the situation, but that is the picture this paints for me.