TheColonel He held his arm too stiffly, and so was thrown back repeatedly, until at last I seized his forearm and snapped it back against itself. His training suffered while the arm healed, of course, but I felt this was a lesson he must learn early, and well. Colonel Kel, ‘Honing the Ki’ During the PatternFall War, many heroes went unrecognized, overshadowed by the glories heaped upon the nobility of Amber. One such hero, Col. Apollonia Kel—known to most only as ‘The Colonel’—led a desperate holding maneuver against insurmountable odds on Amber City’s Temple. Had her troops faltered, Chaosian heavy troops would have cut the city’s defenses in two. Like the Spartans of antiquity, she held the line until Prince Corwin’s fortuitous appearance. Wounded terribly during the battle, she was awarded the King’s Favor and Prince Benedict’s attentions after her recovery. Benedict’s interests in the woman intensified and he enlisted her into his elite guard unit, the Black Cloaks. She served with him for thirty years until their relationship became too intimate. Rather than shaming her commander, Kel took an instructing position at Faiella University, teaching the various martial skills and athletics courses that are a mandatory part of the curriculum. She is feared and respected; mostly feared. Her kendo team is unmatched and regularly wins the Golden Circle tournaments. |
