Private Tales A Fallen Knight

[Finn]

"Oh," she replied quietly and squatted down across from him, surveying the symbols he made. She was careful not to get too close. Being magic null and all that.

"Taken from your family because you had magic and to serve Vel Anir?" Finn didn't know much about that city's politics. She knew enough about Elbion's to forget. To try and forget at least.

 

[Talus]

He frowned, stopping the drawing again as he looked up at her.

Initially he thought she was taunting him, but the confusion in her eye made it clear that Finn had no such intention. His lips thinned, and then he slowly nodded in confirmation. "Mages in Vel Anir belong to the state."

A crude way of saying it, but true.

"Peasant, noble, doesn't matter." Ostensibly anyway. "If you can do magic, you are taken and trained."

It was for the better of the city, for the people. At least that was what Talus had been told all his life. In truth he was still not sure if he truly minded. His life now was not so bad, and he knew that as soon as he assumed the title of a full Dreadlord it would get even better.

Could he still be angry with how he was treated?

 

[Finn]

She was quiet as she watched his face. Rocking back on her heels, she stood. Hands released from her pockets, hanging down at her sides. Curved shoulders bowed inward, as she still hunched slightly to see the markings he made.

“I suppose it’s better than growing up on the streets. I wonder,” voice trailed off as the mused to herself. If she knew more about the rigorous training, the fighting. She’d probably think otherwise. Her body just wasn’t made for fighting. If she knew better, she would’ve known she only would’ve survived if they’d wanted her to

 

[Talus]

Talus wasn't entirely sure how to respond to the statement. There was no anger in him, not like there had been when he'd faced the Elbion students.

How could Finn have known what training in the Academy had been like? She had never seen the inside of a school, had grown up on the street with her own woes and sorrows. In truth, Talus could only feel a slight pang of pity.

The idea that she would think the Academy better just seemed…sad to the young Dreadlord.

"It wasn't all that great." He commented to her finally, catching her gaze with a slight frown before he focused his attention back on the Rune. They could talk more when they were done with this.

If they survived.

His fingers tightened on the charcoal. "Ready?"

 

[Finn]

Eyes caught his.

The girl gave him a sharp nod.

She was ready.

She took a half step back, ever wary of her magic. Blues watched the runes. There was a mixture of curiosity and dread on her face.

She hoped they survived this.

 

[Talus]

Talus drew the last line of the rune.

Instantly the charcoal began to glow a deep purple, Talus standing and taking a single step back as the Rune began to shape and reform itself. Within just a few seconds the lines of the ancient language shifted, and a map of the village lay before them.

It seemed to hang there for a few moments, and then a pulsing rush of small scattered lines began to cut themselves into the floor.

They moved through the town, cutting through streets and alleyways. Talus followed the scratches with his eyes, watching as they moved closer and closer until they eventually ended at a representation of what appeared to be a large fenced Manor just above the town itself.

 

[Finn]

Blonde brows shot up.

"Some trick," she breathed. Finn stepped closer, index finger pointing and extending. "There," she breathed. The image flickered as she poked it. At least they knew where to go. She moved closer and suddenly the image disappeared all together. The runes that Talus had just drawn seemed to dull.

She knew it was her; her power.

Ooooops.

"Maybe we could give it an hour and then try to sneak out and head that way?"

 

[Talus]

He looked at her for a moment, frowning as the rune broke up in an instant and then shattered.

"That will be useful." Talus murmured quietly to himself.

If whatever was infecting this village was magical, that meant that Finn could likely stop it. Curses were complicated, necromancy even more so, and demons...well demons were something else entirely. He just hoped the problem in this town was one of the former too.

Not the latter.

"An hour." He agreed. "But then we move."

 

[Finn]

An hour passed quickly. Finn took the time to sit and conserve her energy. But she felt restless. It was hard to wait out a time to peak outside. Fingers ran through her hair for the umpteenth time.

"Okay, I think it's time." Blues flickered across the semi-dark space to Talus. If anyone needed the rest, it was him.

She stood, adjusting the pack on her shoulders and took the stairs up to the door. She stayed away from the ruins until she turned back and made sure Talus was ready. She knew she'd destroy them like the others with her void.

"Ready?"

 

[Talus]

Talus nodded his head.

He'd used the hour to sleep, and to eat some of the small pieces of food that he'd managed to grab before all of this broke out. If they were to fight, the young Apprentice knew that he would need the energy.

The wounds he still carried slowed him, and that meant more likely than not he would have to end up using his magic.

Yet the more he used that, the more tired he would be. If he overdid it Talus risked falling into a coma, or worse. Fingers tightened slightly as he sheathed his sword. I need a way to keep going.

He thought to himself as he made his way over to the stairs being her, waiting for her to pop the bulkhead open.

When she pressed the first door aside, Talus poked his head through, finding none of the ravenous villagers waiting.

 

[Finn]

With a quiet grunt, she pushed the door aside and stepped out. The street was quiet and empty. Good.

Boots crunched against the dirt of the street as she motioned Talus forward. Worried gaze went closer to his hunched form. She darted down a smaller alleyway between two buildings.

"Are you sure you can do this or do you need more rest?"

 

[Talus]

"About a week." He commented with a frown. "But that's not exactly an option."

Come to think of it, Talus could actually do with a bed instead of the uncomfortable floor of a cavern or an airship.

That wouldn't come soon either though, and thus Talus stepped out into the alleyway behind Finn. His blade was already his hand, gripped tightly enough in case one of the strange living dead went after him or Finn.

He motioned her up the street. "As quiet as you can."

The Dreadlord urged.

 

[Finn]

Thin lips pressed. She didn't like it. The last thing she needed was him to collapse on her. She wouldn’t be able to get him out. She’d have a hard enough time dragging him without armor. It would be impossible with.

Shaking her head once at him, she moved forward.

She farted behind another building. Down another street. And another. Until they found themselves at the mansion from his rune drawings.

 

[Talus]

Talus ran quickly after after Finn, crinkling his nose slightly as they fell right in front of the fence.

Before Finn hopped over it Talus grabbed the back of her shirt and pulled her down in front of the small stone wall that cut off the manor from every other building in town. "Hang on."

He whispered to her quietly.

Fingers tightened as he pointed just above the first story.

"There." He growled quietly. "Someone's up there."

 

[Finn]

“Eeeep,” she squealed in surprise as he tugged her down. She huddled next to him, his armor digging into her side. He was far too close for comfort. Finn was big on personal space and didn’t like the touchy-touch.

Pale cheeks blossomed red.

“You can let go now,” she whispered, indicating his fingers on the back of her shirt. She didn’t look at him as she said it, gaze going up to that window instead.

“Do you think it’s one of them?”

 

[Talus]

"Has to be." He said with a slight nod, letting go of her shirt without really thinking much about it.

As far as he was concerned everyone in this village was one of those creatures. The entire town had chased them around on those roof-tops, and although he had no idea where they'd all disappeared to now, he could feel a sinking in his chest.

They had to do this quickly. "Let's go around back."

He said quietly as he motioned towards the overgrown backyard of the manor.

Perhaps they could catch whatever that thing was by surprise.

 

[Finn]

“Okay,” she whispered, Giving that hand of his a side-eye. Finn crouched behind the fence and began crawling. She followed the perimeter until they were around back. Lifting her head, she peaked over the op of the fence. There was a small garden. Looked like a hedge maze before the house.

She could hear the sounds of a fountain too. Fountain run on magic?

Fingers reached up and unlatched the gate and she crept forward, looking back at Talus once.

 

[Talus]

Talus had already reached up and begun to climb over the fence when he heard the creak of aged iron rubbing against itself. A frown touched his features as he saw Finn using the gate, lips thinning slowly and his cheeks coloring in embarrassment.

His throat cleared, and then he quickly followed after Finn.

The Apprentices steps then quickened, moving in front of Finn as they reached the door to the manor. His fingers tested the lock, finding the heavy wood easy to push open.

Surprisingly the inside of the Manor was illuminated with dozens of candles, lanterns, and half a dozen other sources of light that seemed to bloom from every corner. Talus blinked, stunned by the luminous display that seemed brighter than even the sun.

 

[Finn]

Finn blinked. She didn't fart. As she stepped into the massive room, the lights began to fade around her. Only where the girl stepped.

"More magic," she whispered.

There was a dark chuckle up the stairs. Finn gulped. Whatever was up stairs knew they were here.

"Come little rats," the same, dark raspy voice filtered down the stairs. "Come join my circus."

 

[Talus]

Talus drew his sword.

His fingers curled slightly, and he took a step away from Finn. He was glad that she had told him of her magic. If she had not he might have taken a step towards her in protection. Yet he knew that doing so now would cut off his own abilities.

If they were going to win against...whatever the hell was haunting this manor, they would need his abilities just as much as hers. "Well..."

He said quietly as he looked over his shoulder.

"You heard it." His hands let off a wisp of blue as he stepped forward, magic coursing through his veins as he prepared himself.

The candles seemed to dance around them, the hall in front of the two slowly shifting and changing as shadows began to dance along the walls.

 

[Finn]

Finn's lips trembled but she nodded. She didn't have a sword. She had a knife. But she hated using weapons. She'd rather not. Mostly, she just ran. She'd always been good at running and hiding.

The little inventor stepped forward. The shadows rushed at her and then veered off, heading for Talus instead. Head whipped around as her blue eyes followed. A bony hand landed on her shoulder and tugged her forward, causing her to be dragged forward.

She took a swing but felt the second bony hand wrap tightly around her wrist.

That same voice emanated from the corpse dragging her forward.

"I've finally found an interesting little rat."

 

[Talus]

Something reached out to touch him. A shadow that peeled itself off the wall, tearing itself free as though it were being ripped from some part of reality.

Within the darkness of its half shaped form Talus saw a face. It was a warped thing, red eyes and a smile brighter than it had any right to be. It grinned to him, it's lips parting in a maw as it pounced towards him in an attempted to capture him in a terrible bite.

In an instant Talus entire body seemed to shift.

A ghostly visage shrouded over the young Apprentice, his form turning into an ethereal blue. The change happened so quickly that the shadows face hardly had time to turn to horror.

Talus ghostly blade swept upwards.

It stabbed through the shadow, wrenching through the odd non-corporeal form and ripping into it. The face twisted in horror and pain, then the creature exploded. A virulent force sent Talus' phantom flying back, his body returning in place of his ghost just in time for him to strike the wall.

His sword clattered to the ground, falling and sliding into place just before where Finn was being dragged.

The Apprentice's head lulled, his head spinning as he looked around. He spotted Finn, a curse echoing from his lips as he rolled to the side and crawled towards his ally and the corpse attempting to take her.

 

[Finn]

Finn wasn't completely useless. Well, physically. Sure, she wasn't very strong. And she was small. But she could deliver some sharp kicks. And deliver them she did.

The corpse cursed and a sick crunch resounded as it lost it's kneecap.

He screamed and tugged her sharply forward, slamming her into the wall. She kicked again and there went another knee. The half-skeleton fell to the ground with a scream.

 

[Talus]

Screams echoed in the hallway as Talus scrambled to move forward and grab his sword.

The clatter of steel against aged wood could be heard as he used the blade to push himself off the floor. His feet struck the ground, and he looked up just in time to see Finn kick the skeleton in the knee and force it to the ground.

Before the creature could get up Talus took three quick steps forward.

His boot struck the creatures skull. A loud crack rang out, and then it shattered into a thousand different pieces.

Talus chest rose and fell, his gaze flickering to Finn. "You okay?"

 

[Finn]

She nodded quickly and silently. Fingers ran down her arms. A bruise on her wrist was forming but that was all. Blues flitted to the prone and crushed skeleton on the floor.

"I don't want to be here anymore," she whispered.

She was done with this town. But knew for them to have a chance, they had to see this through. "But," she took a breath. "I think we should go where it was dragging me." She stepped away from Talus and the skeleton and the wall. Quick, small strides brought her further into the house. Toward the center where there was a grand library.