There was a time, many years ago now, when that nightmare of folklore, Aekold Helbrass, was the

respected son of a noble household, living in his father's mansion house in Altdorf.
， ， ， · ， ， 。
Back then, Aekold had everything a young man of the Empire could possibly want: wealth, power,
a beautiful fiancée and a commission within the Templar Order of the Jade Griffon.
， : 、 、 ， 。
But these good things were not to last.
。
His problems started when he joined what he thought to be a harmless secret society calling itself
the "Brethren of the Golden Eagle."
， “ ”。
He had understood little of the principles behind the Brethren's complex rites, but they had shared
a common goal.
， 。
They wanted to change the world.
。

Aekold had always believed that there had to be something more to existance than the petty
bickering and selfish politics of city life, despite the fact he had found little evidence of that
something more in all his twenty-six years of living.
， ， ， 26 ， 。
In his quest for a better way, Aekold embraced the Empire's state religion with a passion, seeking
to devote his life to the service of the Heldenhammer.
， ， 。
But over time he found even the teachings of Sigmar's Holy Church lacking, in that they promised
little but expected much.
， ， ， 。
They taught that there would be no cessation to the pain and pettiness of this life, and even after
death there could be no guarantee of peace or an afterlife, so grave were the horrors that beset
mankind.
， ， ， ， 。
It seemed that the lives of men were doomed to be spent in the pursuit of petty things for an
uncertain reward.
， 。
Day and night Aekold prayed to Sigmar, begging the first Emperor to show him how he could
change the world for the better - to make a difference.
， —— 。
But no answer came.
。
Then, as Aekold's hopes of ever finding the knowledge he sought had begun to fade, a drinking
friend introduced him to the Brethren of the Golden Eagle.
， ， 。
Aekold saw at once that this was what he had been looking for all his life.
 ， 。
The Brethren were dedicated to the notion of changing the world, and their every word and
endeavour stretched towards this end.
， 。

The Brethren's preacher was an intelligent and urbane man by the name of Melic Rosencrantz.
· ， 。
He was a magus of considerable skill and power, easily a rival to the initiates of the Colleges of
Magic, able to change base metals into gold, heal wounds with a word and change animals into
new forms.
、 ， ， ， ， 。
Here was a man that Aekold could follow.
。
The young knight was certain his prayers had finally been answered.
。
The rituals of the Brethren called upon a "great Lord of Change", beseeching this divine being's
aid so that improvement might be found in this world and in this life, rather than in the uncertainty
of the next.
“ ”， ， ， 。
Aekold's intelligence and powerful personality soon earned him a position in the Brethren's most
secretive Third Circle, and before long he had been initiated into the many secrets of the coven.
， 。
Then, one night, the Templars of Sigmar raided his cult's hidden shrine.
， 。
Aekold only narrowly escaped their clutches, but under the interrogation of the witchhunter
captain himself, one of Aekold's fellow acolytes broke and revealed the names of all the members
of the coven, Aekold amongst them.
， ， ， 。

Aekold's commission in the Order of the Jade Griffon was revoked, and his fellow knights came to
arrest him and bring him before the authorities of Sigmar.
， ， 。
Aekold begged them to listen to him, but they cared nothing for his excuses.
， 。
Three of them died under Aekold's sword, and the other two were so badly wounded they would
never fight again.
， ， 。
No matter what could be said about him, no one could doubt that Aekold was the most talented
swordsman of his order.
， 。
Aekold fled through the streets of the Empire's capital, pursued by his former friends, the town
watch and the feared Templars of Sigmar.
， 、 。
In his desperation, Aekold sought refuge at the house of his betrothed, Lady Johanna von Leber,
but even she had barred her windows against him.
， ·· ， 。
He tried to explain the unjustness of the assumption made against him and why he had been
declared an outlaw, but the lady did not want to hear him.
， ， 。
She declared that she did not ever want to see him again, accusing him of bringing disrepute upon
her family and their standing in society.
， 。
Aekold knew then that but for Validus, his warhorse, he was truly alone.
， Validus， 。
With little else to do, Aekold headed for the River Gate.
， 。
Without pause or leave, the once-knight rode down the guards and took the north road at a
heedless gallop.
， ， ， 。

Before long Aekold had left the Reikland's borders far behind him, but Sigmar's witch hunters
were always close at hand.
， ， 。
Forced to live like a beast of the wild, Aekold slept in the darkness in the deep forests and
travelled by night to avoid the eyes of the curious.
， ， 。
His food he stole or bought from roadside farms, and he avoided every town and toll gate.
， 。
All the while the humiliation of his fall from grace made his blood run hot.
。
At the borders of Ostland, one of Sigmar's Templars finally caught up with him, and a crossbow
bolt intended for Aekold's heart only narrowly missed taking his life.
， ， 。
Only by throwing his great zwei-hander, an unthinkable deed for a knight, did he manage to kill
the witch hunter before one of his crossbow bolts could find its mark.
， ， 。
The two-handed sword had struck his foe squarely in the chest, and Aekold had barely managed to
recover from the attack before the ferocious hunting dogs of the Count of Ostland appeared,
snapping at his heels.
， ， ， 。
Perhaps fate had been unkind to Aekold.
。
After all, the young man had only sought to escape the monotony of his jaded and dull existence
as a young nobleman of the Empire.
， 。
All around him he had seen the decadence of the Imperial capital: the filthy streets and the
hopeless mobs of the poor, begging and scraping out a miserable existence in hovels and disease
ridden slums.
 ， : ， ， ， 。
Aekold had wanted to change

change everything, to begin a new, start afresh, to cast down the old, corrupt society and be part of
building something new, something better.
， ， ， ， ， ， 。
But this was not to be.
。
His life was in ruins, his father had disowned him, and his friends turned against him.
， ， 。
He had been driven beyond the borders of Kislev to the very edge of the civilised world, fleeing
for his life and with a price on his head.
， ， ， 。
All he had left were his weapons, his strong sword arm and his will to survive.
， 。
They would have to be enough.
。
He was about to enter the Troll Country and none would dare to follow him there.
， 。
Aekold travelled northwards for seven days before he encountered any resistance.
7， 。
He had seen the groups of misshapen creatures in the shadows of the treeline or upon the distant
horizon, but they had never sought to approach him.
， 。
They seemed content to watch.
。
Why, Aekold did not know, but until they became a threat he decided to pay them no mind.
? ， ， 。
As Aekold travelled onward, the trees grew thinner and thinner, and the land grew ever rockier.
， ， 。
After a time he came across a great monolith, a standing stone carved as if by some titanic hand.
， ， ， 。
It was inscribed with sigils and runes that seemed to glow in the gathering darkness.
， 。
Though he could not say why, Aekold knew that the carved slab was of vital importance to him.
， 。
He had to know what was written on the monolith, even if it would cost him his soul.
， 。
But the monolith was not unguarded.
。

Out of the crude shrine that stood next to the carved pillar, a huge creature emerged.
， 。
The earth shook under its great cloven hooves and gigantic muscles writhed under its thick hide.
， 。
Huge horns spiralled above a bovine head, and yet the creature's body was humanoid, though
massive like that of an ogre.
， ， 。
In its hands the bull-creature carried an axe that Aekold reckoned must have weighed almost as
much as he did.
， 。
Aekold recognised the creature from the grimoires of the Brethren: this was a Minotaur, a gigantic
blasphemy against nature, a cross between a mighty bull and a giant man.
: ， ， 。
Yet, despite its brutal appearance, intelligence gleamed in the creature's bloodshot eyes - the low
cunning of an animal combined with some of the sense of a man.
， ， —— 。
Forcing his voice to stay calm, Aekold told the creature of his desire and intention to study the
carvings on the monolith.
， 。
In coarse and barely recognisable Reikspiel, the Minotaur replied that only the Chosen One could
find the path, and that all those who could not Change must perish.
、 Reikspiel ， ， 。
Then, bellowing a battle cry, the Minotaur lifted its gigantic axe and charged.
， ， 。
Aekold slammed down his visor and spurred Validus to a gallop.
， 。
They thundered towards each other, man and beast, one screaming the battle cry of an Imperial
knight, the other bellowing and snarling in the dark tongue of Chaos.
， ， ， 。

They struck.
。
Aekold's lance pierced the Minotaur's left shoulder, its wooden haft shattering with the force of the
impact.
， 。
Rearing upwards, Validus lashed out with both iron-shod hooves and crashed down against the
Minotaur's skull.
Validus ， 。
But the creature's gigantic axe had just as great a reach as Aekold's lance, and its swipe was
blindingly fast.
， 。
It hit Aekold's raised shield but the tremendous force of the blow ripped it from his hand, leaving
his left arm numb.
， ， 。
The Minotaur swung again with its free hand and its massive fist, perhaps twice the size of
Aekold's head, smashed the knight from his saddle.
 ， 。
Aekold crashed to the ground, the air driven from his lungs by the force of the impact.
， 。
With a ferocious roar, the Minotaur tore the steel tip of the lance from its shoulder and threw it to
the ground.
， ， 。
Thick blood oozed from its wound, but the creature seemed not to notice.
， 。
With blood-red eyes and crimson foam pouring from its mouth, the creature bellowed once more.
， 。
All vestiges of sanity had disappeared from its face.
。

It rushed towards the fallen knight, swinging its axe in a huge arc, it axe struck a stone where
Aekold's head had been but a heartbeat before, and such was the force of the blow that the blade of
the axe cracked and the haft snapped in two like a dry twig.
， ， ， ， ， ， ， 。
Aekold regained his footing and scrambled towards Validus.
， 。
He drew his sword from its scabbard hanging from the horse's saddle.
。
But the Minotaur had been just as quick.
。
Two mighty arms closed around Aekold's chest, squeezing him until his armour creaked as he was
lifted above the head of the Minotaur.
， ， 。
Though his ribs threatened to break and his strength faded, Aekold swung his blade downwards.
， ， 。
It struck the Minotaur in the neck, cutting muscles, severing tendons and sinew, and splintering the
bones beneath.
， 、 ， 。
A cry of fury and pain cut the air.
。
As the Minotaur toppled forward, Aekold hit the ground alongside it.
， 。
The world seemed to spin and go dark.
， 。
When Aekold woke, the Minotaur was nowhere to be seen.
， 。

Groaning with agony Aekold rose to his feet and staggered across to the monolith.
， ， 。
Despite the pain, Aekold felt driven to see the carvings immediately, as if forced to by some
unseen hand.
， ， 。
As he looked upon the swirling designs and jagged runes that covered the monolith's surface,
Aekold realised that they formed a picture.
， 。
Stepping back, Aekold began to make out the shape of a knight with the device of a rampant
Griffon on his shield, the same device on Aekold's own shield.
， ， ， 。
The former knight studied the ancient carvings, and while he was no expert, he was sure that
judging by the wear of the rock they had to have been several centuries old.
， ， ， ， 。
And yet, undeniably, the knight carved on the stone was supposed to be him.
， ， 。
A chill ran down Aekold's spine.
。
He turned his back on the monolith.
。

Days passed and Aekold rode further north.

， 。
Here was a place unfit for mortal men, only those who had pledged themselves to darkness could
travel safely.
， 。
Yet Aekold sensed that he could still choose his path, as if he stood at the very edge of sanity but
had not yet crossed to the madness beyond.
， ， ， 。
He knew that this was his very last chance to turn back and rejoin civilisation.
。
He could ride to Tilea or the land of the Border Princes and offer his services as a freelance to one
of the countless mercenary bands of the Old World.
Tilea ， 。
He was strong and fast, well versed in tactics and strategy.
， ， 。
With a little luck he could quickly win fame and fortune, and soon lead a mercenary contingent of
his own.
， ， 。
For a long while Aekold held Validus in place, and then, making up his mind, spurred the horse
onwards, to the north and darkness.
Validus， ， ， 。
It might have been his imagination, but mocking laughter seemed to whisper upon the cold wind
as he rode on.
， ， 。
Day and night lost all meaning.
。
The eternal darkness of the Chaos Wastes was lit only by the strange lights emanating from the far
north.
。
Each time Aekold blinked his eyes, the landscape appeared to have subtly changed.
， 。
When he tried to focus his eyes on any landmark it seemed to almost flee from vision, and things
he thought would take minutes to reach escaped ever further into the distance no matter how hard
he galloped towards them.
， ， ， ， 。
Water now could not quench his thirst.
。
He yearned for something of more substance, something he could not yet name.
， 。
Neither did he feel the need to sleep any more.
。
He felt wide awake, and his senses were sharper than he had ever dreamed possible.
， 。
He felt no hunger.
。
He felt strong, healthy and fast, stronger and faster than he had ever been before.
、 、 。

His warhorse, Validus, had also changed.

Validus 。
Its teeth had grown sharp, and it no longer shied back with fear when one the foul creatures from
those endless plains approached: its eyes glowed red in the eternal darkness of the Chaos Wastes,
and its hide had become darker and tough as leather.
， ， : ， 。
Aekold noticed that Validus's tongue was now as rough as sandpaper and had grown long and
forked.
Validus ， 。
The steed no longer brushed its nose against Aekold's face, but always stood silent and unmoving
when they were not riding.
， ， 。
The unearthly wind of the Wastes was full of sounds, strange voices that whispered to Aekold
about all his noble and evil deeds, as if warring for his attention, perhaps even his soul.
， ， ， 。
But one voice was stronger, and it drowned out all the others:“Be strong," it would say, "only the
strong are welcome.
， :“ ，” ，“ 。”
"When one day Aekold cried back to the sibilant voice that he was strong and that he feared
nothing, mocking laughter returned in answer.
， ， ， 。
Then the voice whispered to him once more:
 ， :

"Then show me, gallant knight.

“ ， 。
Prove to me your courage.
。
"On the horizon, a gigantic shape loomed from the darkness.
， 。
It was a gateway that stood on top of a long flight of steps.
， 。
It was a titanic altar, perhaps erected by the giants of ancient times when the world was young and
the gods of Chaos first turned their eyes upon it.
， ， 。
In the sky above the gateway flames danced, forming the shapes of eldritch runes, not unlike the
ones Aekold had seen on the grimoires at the temple of Sigmar, hidden and locked away from
ordinary folk.
， ， ， ， ， 。
But as a part of his training Aekold had learned to decipher them, and so read aloud the message
written in the sky:
， ， :

Then Aekold dismounted, and started to climb up the stairs.

， 。
On and on he climbed, higher and higher, until the air grew thin and cold and clouds whirled far
below him.
， 、 ， 。
Despite his heavy armour, Aekold felt no fatigue.
， 。
At the top of the stairway Aekold gazed around him.
， 。
He had come to the end of his journey.
。
The gateway before him seemed to be made out of polished silver, reflecting the grim darkness
and dancing lights of the Chaos Wastes.
， 。
Aekold stood before the portal and stared at his mirror image.
， 。
Looking back at him was a young, handsome Templar in burnished armour, holding a shining
sword with a jade griffon set into its pommel.
， ， ， 。
This was what Aekold could have been, something he had now lost for all eternity.
， 。
The mirror image spoke:
:"Shamelna Tzeen'neth! Atde phaosden tak'zith!"

Then Aekold dismounted, and started to climb up the stairs.

， 。
On and on he climbed, higher and higher, until the air grew thin and cold and clouds whirled far
below him.
， 、 ， 。
Despite his heavy armour, Aekold felt no fatigue.
， 。
At the top of the stairway Aekold gazed around him.
， 。
He had come to the end of his journey.
。
The gateway before him seemed to be made out of polished silver, reflecting the grim darkness
and dancing lights of the Chaos Wastes.
， 。
Aekold stood before the portal and stared at his mirror image.
， 。
Looking back at him was a young, handsome Templar in burnished armour, holding a shining
sword with a jade griffon set into its pommel.
， ， ， 。
This was what Aekold could have been, something he had now lost for all eternity.
， 。
The mirror image spoke:“I am the Guardian.
:“ 。
I am the defender of humanity.
。
You are an abomination.
。
"With that the reflection stepped out of the portal with its sword raised in a knight's salute.
， ， ， 。
Then it charged.
。
So swift was the attack that Aekold barely had time to defend himself.
， 。
From the first blow Aekold knew that his life was at stake.
， 。
Never before had he met a man who could match him in a sword fight.
。
But this warrior from beyond the mirrorgate was just as fast, strong, and skilled as he was.
， ， 。
They slashed and struck, weaving dodging and parrying as they circled each other warily.
， ， 。
Now and then one of them Jaunch an attack with blistering speed, only to be parried by equal skill.
， 。

Aekold was struck suddenly by the pointlessness of it all.

。
Why did he struggle so much to defend himself when he had nothing left to defend?
， ?
But instead of giving in, Aekold smiled, brought up his sword and charged.
， ， 。

Both men struck.

The Templar's sword sliced through Aekold's armour, cutting deep into his ribs.
， 。
But Aekold's sword took the Templar's head from his shoulders.
。
As the body of the white Templar fell, blood gushing from the stump of his neck, Aekold sank to
his knees, his own life blood oozing through the gaps in his armour.
， ， ， 。
He was dying and he knew it.
。
Yet he had come so far and seen so much, too much to let it all end in that moment.
， ， ， ， 。
Agonisingly slowly, Aekold began to crawl back to the portal, leaving a trail of blood behind him.
， ， 。
Now the silver of the mirror showed no reflection, only the multicoloured flames of the Chaos
Wastes coloured its surface.
， 。
Aekold touched the mirror's surface.
。
He knew that his own death waited for him on the other side of it, yet still he had to continue.
， 。
As the world seemed to spin around him, Aekold heard the sibilant voice again, only now it
seemed to echo all around him:"The way lies beyond this portal, yet only the Chosen One may
enter!
， ， :“ ， !”
Are you he?”
?”
For one final time Aekold felt a pang of guilt - for one last time he longed for his former life.
—— 。
But what had he to go back to?
?
His past was as dead to him as the headless Templar that lay behind him.
， 。
Finally Aekold pushed against the surface of the mirror-portal.
， 。
A searing pain, like lances of pure white fire, ripped through him.
， ， 。
Aekold screamed in agony as he felt talons, hotter than hellfire, colder than the void, tearing him
apart, separating flesh from bone, raking his very soul and obliterating whatever was left of his
sanity.
， ， ， ， ， 。
Then all sense and feeling left him.
。

Aekold , the son of Graf of the Reikland, was gone.

， ， 。
The newly born champion of Tzeen'neth standing before the mirror-portal turned around to study
his new form.
。
The pale reflection in the mirror showed a face quite unlike the young knight who had left Altdorf
all those months ago.
， 。
Two eyes, glittering like multi-faceted gems and burning with inner balefires, stared back at him.
， ， ， 。
His armour was covered in twisting runes that glowed in the flickering darkness of the Chaos
wasteland.
， 。
His sword gleamed with blue light, and seemed to moan as he moved it, its shape changing with
each motion.
， ， ， 。
Aekold began to laugh.
。
He raised his sword, lifting it in a challenge to humanity and all the things he had once held dear.
， 。
His laughter turned to a scream of hatred and vengeance" I will return!" he cried.
。“ !”
“For now I know the truth!"
“ !”