Quest Cult of Calamity

[Smiling One]

It was good to see Scythe and Nyght again especially Nyght and it was interesting to see an actual Dragonborn. Willis has seen Dragons during his travels but never has he seen a real-life Dragonborn in the flesh. Willis kept his cool though he didn't want to squeal in awe of a new species standing in front of him he wasn't that boy from years ago. Right now the focus was on the job, he had to that coin back with interest and what the person presented sounded interesting.

The young man sighed, the sooner they all leave the better but right now there was a pretty woman next to him as well. "So Aeyliea?" Willis smirked leaning closer to the white-haired woman. "So what got you into the sellsword business? A love for fighting? A love for exploration? You got a lover? A cute lover?"

Willis loved to push it at times even if the woman is annoyed. Sometimes it works, sometimes he ends up with a black eye. "I mean with the way you look and present yourself I'm surprised no man came up to you and said: Damn you are beautiful! Are you single? Well besides me." Willis winked at Aeyliea while chuckling.

 

[Aeyliea]

"Time for this I do not have," she growled to herself. They were in the street now, out I front of the manor of their employer. The white-haired woman suddenly spun on the hapless monster hunter, eyes flashing dangerously.

"Perhaps think with your big head and not your little one, you should," she hissed at Willis. She took a moment to master her temper, shook her head, and resumed walking towards The Shallows. Willis might have expected black eyes, but it was all too possible, and perhaps more likely, that she might gut the man.

"I do this work to make money. One day, return to Vel Anir I shall...with a thousand men. To make war, and slaughter them as they have my people." Delivered in calm, clear tones as if she wasn't discussing both going to war with a nation state and the killing of hundreds or more.

She cast a sidelong look at the draconian, expression suddenly unreadable. "I see," she said. It could have meant anything, or nothing; whatever it was, neither tone nor expression gave much away. "Matters to me not. Though question I do how you survive, yet the others did not."

She left it at that.

Walking, they arrived at her compound. It looked much the same as the twins might remember it, fenced in yard and crumbling plaster fronted building. A man stood at seeming ease in front, almost appearing to be asleep at his post, but as she walked by, they eyes were clearly open and very alert. Captain and watch exchanged not a word, only nods to one another.

"A caravan I can arrange," she said as they stepped into the office in the front of the building, ceiling high and cobweb encrusted. The plaster of the walls here was cracked, and the furnishings hard used. Filing cabinets and a desk, and a few chairs. A door led deeper into the building, and another to the yard outside. "I would much prefer not traveling by boat up the coast."

She looked to the others.

 

[Szesh]

Szesh looked sidelong at the twins, though his black eyes gave no indication of his gaze. These two talked a lot. Perhaps they would make the journey more entertaining, if not a smidge annoying... but they did look the part of killers. Talking or no, Szesh suspected their cavalier demeanor was hiding something sinister.

The other man didn't seem to be hiding anything at all, and openly solicited their newly appointed leader. Szesh was surprised that she did not cut his throat... so perhaps there was something under that silver-tongued face. It must be something, because this woman was willing to go to war with one of the most powerful cities in the world.

He turned back to Aeyliea. "I was not with them when they... fell." He had never truly been a part of the company, just a temporary contractor for some extra coin. He had been far away at the time the company was slaughtered, although her words did make him wonder. If the company were not targeted randomly, could he be in danger?

The sight of a sleeping guard did not make him feel safer, but Szesh felt very foolish when the captain and the guard exchanged looks. The guise of incompetence as a trap? It very well may have worked if Szesh had been trying to break it. He would have to keep his wits about him while he worked with these people.

Another small room, another low ceiling. Szesh bent his head again and tucked his wings, hoping they would not need to be indoors for too long. His head snapped back up, though, at the mention of travel.

"No!" he said, too abruptly. He caught himself, regaining his composure. "No boats." he muttered.

 

[Scythe and Nyght]

Rei Company.

And right about...here was where Cynthia was killed. Just flat dead here in the middle of the street. Damn, you hate to see it. Other good mercs just trying to get some coin getting dropped like that. If they were on the other side, sure, fuck 'em, but Cynthia and Scythe and Nyght were on the same team at the time.

They slowed a little bit as Cap and Dragon-man and Willis went to the gate. Both their bodies looking down at the spot. All cleaned up now, wasn't it? Nobody who wasn't there that day would even know. That's how all this was going to end for everybody, this whole life thing. Dead and gone just like that, and probably won't even see it coming, like Cynthia. Hell, at least Scythe and Nyght were lucky enough to see theirs coming. They ended up not dying, of course, but if Leona had been a little more accurate with that knife then they would have, and that would've been that.

Got a new perspective on life out of the deal, though. Get your good times in while you still can. Hopefully Cynthia got hers.

Scythe and Nyght didn't linger for long. They followed in after Cap and the others into the compound proper.

A caravan this time, Cap said. Yeah, good call. There were only so many antics they could play on sailors. Was the same thing true for caravan hands? Sure, yeah, probably. But at least they weren't all trapped in the same confined space. Had the wide open road and the surrounding environs and all that and Cap did get seasick didn't she? Made sense she'd--

Scythe and Nyght each flinched when Dragon-man suddenly objected. Damn it, always jumpy. He really didn't fancy the idea of traveling by boat, did he?

Well. Shit. They had flinched at the exact same time and in the exact same way. Break it up with a little loose and asymmetric conversation.

"I can imagine dragons and big things made of wood don't mix," said Nyght.
"Heard it here first, lads, Dragon-man said no to sailing," said Scythe.
"Well make that two of us. Three, counting Cap."
"Wait. Aren't wagons made of wood?"
"You fool, Samuel. You've doomed us all."

Nyght's body grinned. Scythe's body made like he was pondering some deep insight.

 

[Smiling One]

"I'm known to do both," Willis smiled at Aeyilea. "Though many women especially Nyght has found that my little head anit exactly little." Willis decided to drop the flirtation for now given that the white-haired woman looked as though she wanted to murder him. The last thing they all needed bad blood between each other even if the group in question are pretty powerful people.

The Dragonborn suddenly became a bit hostile which made Willis place his hand on the hilt of his cutlass. Being a Monster Hunter, seeing an unknown race losing their shit gave Willis pause. He recalled how many monsters revealed themselves after they lose their cool. Alas, not all monsters are evil and destructive something Willis begrudgingly learned when he first learned about being a monster hunter. Sometimes he just wishes that the world was black and white. Find monster, kill them and collect the coin but there are monsters who just have complex personalities.

Though Szesh is not a monster but a person, his species was rare and can be easily mistaken for a monster given the stories of Dragons roaming the fields and killing insight. "You would think," Willis said letting go of the hilt and crossing his arms. "That a man would've stayed far away from a port city if he was pissing himself over boats."

The young man sighed getting closer to the Dragon. "We're gonna have to get on if we want to get to our destination faster," Willis explained. "I don't want to take the scenic route, there's a damn migration of Hill Giants roaming around in the forests. I'd rather steer clear of them."

Turning to the twins Willis shrugged. "Szesh is a guy who seems who can control himself," he said. "But I definitely prefer sailing. I know the seas better than the back of my own dick. So with my help, we can get to our location faster than usual."

 

[Aeyliea]

"Not by water," she said a little more sharply than was strictly necessary. Was it a trick of the light, or did she look a little....green...in the face? She absolutely was not terrified of the ocean, and that was that. She just felt a little ill when she was on the water. "If you want to coast up to the Spine and meet up with us there, that is all on you, Willis," she added. It would keep the randy man out of her way for a little while, anyway. There was no way she would voluntarily subject herself to days spent on the waves, vessel rolling gently beneath her feet...

She felt like throwing up already.

She made her way around the desk in the front room, scowling at the paperwork scattered about it. A dozen contracts currently underway in the manner of the Rei; small, specialized units of people performing specific tasks that they were hand picked to deal with. It proved to be a profitable business model, since the call for full companies of soldiers were limited in the world today.

"You two, stop your stupidity for a minute and listen," she snapped at the twins. She shifted through the papers the secretary had scattered all over the desk, and caught movement out of the corner of her eye. A man of average height, wearing black leather, had stepped into the room from the yard. Without missing a beat, he spun on his next step to head back the way he came. "Don't fucking move, Tian." If she had snapped at the twins, then this was a veritable roar.

The man stopped, one foot not quite to the ground.

"Coin, I will cut loose a small portion of the agreed amount. Supplies you must buy, here to gather in the morning." She looked up sharply at the former assassin standing in the door like an idiot. She was removing coin from a box under the desk, the lock open. The short stacks of silver were far neater than the rest of the desk. "You, Tian, will accompany us. Go and find Alek, and Toothless while you are at it." She scowled at the last name, but it was something that could not be avoided. Not all things could be dealt with via steel and bow.

"Sure, yeah, whatever," the black clad man replied, face hidden in perpetual shadow no matter how the light fell on him. "I mean, yes sir, Captain sir," he replied and then quickly ducked out before there could be any retaliation. She stared after him, eyes like augurs.

And then looked around the room with a scowl. A single appraising look to Willis, and then a disdainful sniff. "Well? Take your coin and leave! Here, in the morning before sun up." Rude or not, it was a clear dismissal. She settled into the seat behind the desk, muttering about the absence of the young woman that was supposed to be doing this job, but was clearly not here.

---

The daunting reaches of the mountains towered high overhead, their snow-capped peaks far above the clouds. The plains warrior had never really been into these reaches of the world, sticking to the lowlands that were much more familiar to her. There, it was warm. Here, there was a bite to the air of an evening that she did not like very much.

Dancer shifted under her. The animal was a gelded roan, his coat smooth and lustrous. She loved the horse, which was no surprise given her upbringing. She did not like to fight from horseback, which was a bit strange of a horse warrior. The beast looked splended with his saddle, a unstrung wood and horn horsebow in a scabbard on one side of the beast, and several short spears on the other. A buckler, small and light, rested on the pommel of her saddle, within easy reach should she need it.

She had changed from the minimalist attire in the city to something more befitting her purpose here, wearing a leather jerkin and trousers with light chain. Nothing so heavy as to hinder her, but certainly more sensible than the revealing things she wore in the city. On her back, the great two-handed sword that she preferred as a weapon sat on her shoulder, shifting and clanking with each step the horse took.

Two weeks on the road. She did not know if the others had become saddle sore yet, or not; that at least was not a problem for her. She would have spent the entire nine day journey by water offering up everything she had ever eaten to the gods of the seas, spiteful things that they were. This, at least, was something she was well accustomed to.

The ridges and hills around them were forested, mostly in pine trees further up and the broadleafs down here, in the valley. The road was one of only a few that penetrated into the heart of the mountains, heading to Mericet and Molthal in the north and Belgrath in the south. It was a major trade route from Aliria to either of those places, and many times on this journey had they been forced off the road to allow traders to pass by, their wagons laden with goods from those distant places. The caravan guards did not look best pleased to see even their small band on the road, and hands had always been near weapons when the two groups passed each other by.

"Shouldn't be too terribly far now, boss," the black-clad man said, not for the third or fourth time. This stretch of road looked every bit as much like any other. "Small village, but not a soul in it."

She grunted in acknowledgement, looked to the others with a grim face. "About time," she muttered.

 

[Smiling One]

Aeyilea didn't seem to be the type that loved the sea her pale skin turned to a shade of green when she mentioned that they weren't going to go by water. It was a shame too, Willis would've showed them a good shortcut to their destination but if people aren't willing to go then might as well find another way around. Aeyliea then snapped at Willis saying that if he wanted to go by the sea then he should do so. Willis crossed his arms and thought about that possibility. He could set sail now and beat them by a couple of days, Willis knew the captain of the ship having volunteered as a sail hand for their many voyages.

Willis frowned when the ashen haired woman turned her attention towards Scythe and Nyght chastising them. While Willis found the twins behavior odd at times, he is good friends with them and no one insults Willis' friends in front of him. "Hey," Willis growled at Aeyelia the flirting persona replaced by a more fierce and protective one. "I suggest you remove the stick up your ass. They didn't do anything to warrant your anger so I suggest you cool it."

Turning to the twins, Willis shook his head. "Come on you two," he grumbled turning on his heel and grabbing the coinpurse. It felt pretty light in his palm, hopefully he'll earn more after this mission. "Let's get on the ship, don't worry I know this captain. He'll allow us to drink, sing songs and...." Willis approached Nyght and caressed her freckled cheek smirking.

"You and I can catch up on all of the times we've been separated baby," He whispered in Nyght's ear. "Along with the fact we'll reach the village a day or two before the massive bitch and Szesh arrive."

The young man then crossed the wooden bridge, tossing his small coin purse towards the captain who pocketed it away. "You two coming?" He asked Scythe and Nyght. "Last call,"

"I'll see you on the other side my scruffy looking Owlbear herder." Willis called at Aeyilea.

As predicted Willis approached the village a few days before the others arrived. He didn't enter it though due to it looking very suspicious. It had a foreboding presence about it and it made Willis feel very uneasy, he decided to set up camp and prepare his weapons occasionally doing some light scouting of the place. When Aeyliea finally arrived Willis was sharpening his blade with his whetstone. "Why hello there sweetheart!" He said. "It took you long enough! I've done some scouting and this place feels off best be cautious."

 

[Szesh]

Szesh held his tongue for a time, embarrassed at his outburst. The twins’ banter continued, and Szesh was pleased that they had chosen to play off the awkward moment instead of drawing attention to it. The other one, though, he reached for his blade as if by instinct. People did this regularly around him, but Szesh could still feel the defensive reflexes twitch in his own body. A low growl escaped him after Willis’ taunts, and he curled his lip ever so slightly to expose just a hint of jet-black tooth.

Luckily, the captain jumped in to defuse. She and Szesh would go by land, Willis by sea. This seemed the most prudent plan of action, and provided no small amount of relief. Szesh had been on too many ships as of late, and he was not eager to board any more for some time.

He had hardly noticed the man in black enter before Aeyliea barked at him. Another two would be joining their party, it seemed. But more importantly, they were all getting some of their pay in advance. Szesh moved forward after the others to pick up the small stack of silver. It wasn’t much, but enough for a hot meal and a sharp blade. He tucked the coins into a small pouch at his belt, and left the office.

The air was cool that night, and Szesh glanced up at a dark sky. He couldn’t see any stars, but that was probably due to the bright blacksmith’s fire in front of him. The metal hammering had gone on for some time, and the rhythmic clangs soon blended into the background of his mind as he looked into the inky heavens, almost trance-like.

“Alright,” said a gruff voice, bringing Szesh back to solid ground. The blacksmith dipped glowing metal into a bucket of water, and a great hiss of steam billowed forth. “This’ll do ya real fine,” he said, and he set a shining, silver spearhead onto a thick table with his tongs. It was strong and sharp, with two small barbs on either side. On the center the smith had pressed his mark, which was what drew Szesh to his forge in the first place. A slender dragon, with a long curving tail and graceful wings, twisting up the length of the piece. A weapon bearing the mark of the great ones would be fearsome in combat, indeed, and any craftsman who chose that symbol surely held some fire in his own veins.

”Perfect,” he growled, carefully lifting the steel and turning it over in his hands, watching the light dance over it.

“It’ll be a piece extra to fix it to the old handle, less’n you want ‘ta do that yerself.”

”I will fix it,” Szesh said, handing the man his silver. ”Thank you, smith.” The man nodded, took the coin, and turned back to clean his forge.

After a meal of two whole chickens at a local tavern, Szesh made himself at home in the Nobleman’s garden for the night, swooping in over the tall walls and resting comfortably on soft grass.

The following morning he arrived at the company’s office, new spearhead firmly attached to his weapon, ready for the journey ahead.

 

[Scythe and Nyght]

Scythe and Nyght flinched when Cap snapped at them. Even before their mind-merging they were each individually like that. Twitchy. Like a pair of cats. Ol' One Eye, one of their raider buddies, even said as much. He said it in a way that wasn't very flattering, but it was still true, wasn't it?

Well. First Dragon-man. Then Cap. At least it proved they still had good reflexes. Hopefully.

Could be worse. They could be roof-lurker Tian right now. He got yelled at. Maybe he had it coming, maybe he didn't, hell if they knew. Oof. Could be even worse. They could be that guy with the nickname Toothless right now. That's a nickname you never wanted to get.

As it turned out though, Cap wasn't about to start disciplining everyone. Just handing out advances, of all things. Fair enough. Actually paying people had to put anyone in a sour mood. The Philanthropist sure as hell didn't like that part. Scythe and Nyght could only imagine, they were always on the receiving end. That came with its own headaches, like the whole earning it part, but jobs would be jobs alright.

Scythe and Nyght stepped up to the desk and collected their portion of the silver. Supplies. Not the most exciting thing to spend coin on, but it was an investment. Little expenditures for a big payoff. Then the good times would come.

And Willis...didn't seem to get on very well with Cap. Scythe and Nyght tended to let that shit roll right over them, those inevitable clashes of personality of all flavors. They'd each fucked up enough and took so much shit in their old raider band that they didn't harbor much in the way pride or shame anymore. All for the better. Meant they could literally be yelled at the entire time by Cap or other such employers or commanders, still get the job done, get paid, and then get drunk without a care in the world. It really was great.

Then Willis whispered in Nyght's body's ear. They made Scythe's body pretend like he didn't hear, just stand there and count the silver coins, trying not to giggle from the ghostly feel of breath on his ear. Let alone the feel of a hand on his cheek. This was asynchronicity gold, whenever somebody had a little fancy for one of their bodies and not necessarily the other. Yeah, they fucked up a lot and let the charade slip every now and then, but it was moments like this that built it back up.

Nyght's body canted her head a bit toward Willis. Grinned a little. Said, "Oh, but Willis...Cap's the one in charge. See?"

True, they were all about slacking off and doing jack shit. But coin was on the line, and coin fueled the fun. Just made good sense to travel with Cap. Sure, she wasn't the one paying them, but she was bringing a lot of the muscle. You know, people to do a good chunk of the work while Scythe and Nyght plucked off a few crossbow bolts here and there. Just like the last contract. Sure it got wild, but they all managed, didn't they?

Scythe's body turned and started slowly walking toward the front door. And Nyght's body said to Willis, "Don't let me die. You know, when we get there."

Asynchronicity gold.

* * * * *​

What Scythe and Nyght needed: their own horse. What Scythe and Nyght didn't have: their own horse.

Sure, nobody in their old raider band had their own horse. Every horse they stole was sold off for cheap. So the band just walked from place to place. Scythe and Nyght were used to long journeys on foot, given that, but it didn't mean they liked them. Eh, maybe the boat was the smart idea. They didn't even have much in the way of scuffles on the way. Just some awkward passings with caravans heading the opposite way to Alliria. Scythe and Nyght couldn't help but eyeball those juicy wagons as they went by. All that loot. That sweet, sweet loot. Right there and easy and ready for the taking. Just dome a few caravan guards and it was all theirs.

Yeah. They weren't raiders anymore. But they still had that shit in them. Hungry dogs, but on a leash now. Probably for their own good.

Tian said they were getting close. He'd been saying that.

"Almost there!" said Scythe.
"I love being almost there!" said Nyght.
"We've been almost there for a few days now."
"Does it hurt you so, Samuel?"
"Wait. What are we talking about?"

Honestly, they had no idea how Tian was reckoning how close or far they were. Had to have come this way before. They knew a little something about navigating the great wilderness of Arethil, but unfamiliar ground was unfamiliar ground.

So they walked along behind Cap and the others. Crossbows on their backs and their coats closed about each of their bodies.

Maybe they were getting close. They all ran into Willis along the road. How long was he waiting there?

 

[Aeyliea]

She looked at the monster hunter with flat eyes, and then sniffed at him disdainfully. Young or old, warrior or homemaker, a woman was a woman, and one that was scorned was one to watch out for. She did not respond to his offhand comment, instead deferring to Tian. That worthy was leaning against a tree at the side of the rode, idly picking his nails with some thin throwing knife, flicking the dirt he scrounged up out into the wind.

"Well?" she asked. Stated. Whatever. She was a hard woman, and for good reason; the soft ones died in this line of business, or got knifed in the back and left with nothing. She had built a company of a hundred or so like minded souls, and that took some doing.

"What do you want me to say?" He looked displeased to not have an answer. Or, rather, displeased that there was nothing for him to be flippant about. Hurt the former assassin about as badly as punching him, when it came to it. "Might have been a hundred people living here at some point in the not-so distant past."

She looked at him. He shrugged. "What do you want me to say, boss? Ain't no trace of them. It like...its like they simply got up and left, all at one time."

"What do you mean by that?" She didn't sound very pleased. The other Company members stared at Tian with unreadable faces.

"I mean that there's still burned bread in cold ovens. Still congealed slop at tables, one house burned down as though they had left a fire going and simply...left. No sign of any struggle at all." He sounded...perplexed. That was not a good sign in Aeyliea's eyes, as she knew a little bit about the man's story. It was a very long story, and he had a lot of experience in these things.

Down below, the road dropped into a shallow valley with a stream running along the westernmost edge of it. The houses were of a kind, walls of rounded stone and mortar and roofs of thatch. The scent of wood smoke was absent in its entirety, hinting at the length of time the place had been uninhabited.

She studied the town. A couple of main streets, both of dirt, intersected with the one they were on. There was a general goods store as well as a pub or inn; honestly, in a place like this it was probably both. A couple of farm houses stood not too far off from the township itself. And, threaded through everything, was a sense of wrongness. It was not imagined, the warrior woman was sure of it. There was a pervasive feel of evil spirits about this place, and she did not like it.

She spit to the side, and made a warding gesture with one of her hands. "Should we split up and look the town over as a group? There might be something to find there." She looked to each member of the party with the question in her eyes.

 

[Szesh]

The town had an air of the unnatural. Several buildings had been burnt to cinders, but no scent of smoke remained. The fires had long since died, and the air hung still in the streets.

A town full of unfinished meals and open food should be crawling with vermin chasing the scraps, but there were none. No birds sang in the nearby woods, nor soared overhead. Every living being had simply vanished.

Without a word, he spread his wings and crouched low. Then in one powerful, fluid motion, he brought the wings down and pushed off from the ground, bolting into the air. Slow, heavy wingbeats lifted him high above the town, and he surveyed it from above. As it was below, so to was it from the air. He could not see any sign of inhabitation or movement of any kind. He soared for a couple of lazy loops, and then glided back down, landing forcefully at the intersection nearest the group of mercenaries.

”He is right. No one here.” he spoke, his reptilian accent harsh and hissing. He answered Aeyliea, ”Cover more ground if we split.”

He peered down the street on either side of the intersection. A similar sight met him in both directions: abandoned homes, empty streets, silence. He picked a direction at random, and slowly started to walk. If their appointed leader disagreed he was sure she would let him know. Otherwise, he would not waste time and effort on discussion.

 

[Smiling One]

Willis smirked at Aeyliea she was annoyed by him but now wasn't the time to act smug. Staring at the village made Willis feel on edge. He doesn't know but his gut feeling is telling the young man that trouble is brewing. Placing his Cutlass against the whetstone, Willis listened to Aeyliea converse with Tian. They along with Szesh shared Willis' feelings about nature of the village. Thankfully Willis brewed a potion just before the rest of the group caught up. Given his low tolerance to potions though, Willis wouldn't use in case of an emergency.

"I'd say we stick together," Willis said remembering a rule of survival that Captain Davis taught him: "If you're in a group take advantage of it! At the very least you can use your ally as a meat shield in case enemies attack!"

"Whatever is in that village we need to stick together," Willis got up and sheathed his Cutlass. "There's no telling what lies in that place. If anything we might be doing whatever those inhabitants are in a favor by splitting up. We'll be easier to take out separate."

Willis then looked at the building again. "Just because there's no one home," he said. "Don't that they're not there. It could be invisible stalkers who consumed a village and are lying in wait for their prey. They've been known to do that from time to time."

The young man got closer to Aeyliea and frowned. "That's just my suggestion based off experience," he said. "I'm willing to go with whatever plan you got."

 

[Scythe and Nyght]

Force of habit is a motherfucker.

Scythe and Nyght looked at each other. They really didn't have to, even if it was good for the show, but they did it anyway. Wasn't a conscious thing. They just used to do it all the time before they were mind-merged when occasions like this cropped up. You know, things that fell somewhere in the range of "I don't know about this..." to "Oh hell no." You know, like what Tian was describing right now. They weren't quite sure yet where in the range this particular situation landed, but it was definitely there. Sure, it wasn't like that noble sap back in Alliria didn't describe something like this from the get-go, but...well, proximity made a hell of difference.

And now they were here, a little unsure and a little spooked, and they looked at each other. Force of habit, lads. Some things just didn't change.

"What do you think?" said Scythe.
"What do you think?" said Nyght.
"I asked you first."
"A swarm of angry bees chased them all out."
"Someone lost their sweet roll, and they're all out looking for it still."

Eh. Didn't even feel all that good making light of the situation. Obviously everyone in that town was fucked. Scythe and Nyght didn't know the exact nature of the fucking, but the fucking sure happened alright. Nobody just up and left all of their stuff. Any exceptions to that rule didn't bode well either. And now whatever happened to the villagers was Cap and Dragonman and Willis and Scythe and Nyght's collective problem. Gold could make people do some wild, dumb, and/or suicidal shit, couldn't it?

Dragonman did dragon things and came back with nothing new to report, and...

Split up?

Oh hell no. Hey, found the range.

But still, oh hell no. Scythe and Nyght didn't deal well with splitting up. One of the nagging particulars of the mind-merging. Even if their bodies stayed together as the group as a whole split up...fuck that too. Diffusion of responsibility aside, wasn't this place and this situation spooky enough?

"Willis is right," said Nyght.
"Yeah, Willis is right," said Scythe.
"I'm not trying to die alone, Cap."
"Yeah, I'm trying to die in someone's arms."
"Well isn't that sweet, Samuel."

They each shouldered their crossbows and held them at a low ready and glanced down at the distant abandoned village and then (with conscious effort) asynchronously at their comrades.

Wouldn't it be nice if the worst didn't come to pass for once?

 

[Aeyliea]

She looked at Willis, features flat and expression unreadable. "Invisible, eh? Feel this place? Empty, it is."

But that wasn't quite right, either. There was that pervasive feeling of being watched, of something dark and sinister just on the edge of perception. Like some kind of evil miasma that hung about like a fetid vapor in the air. Aeyliea made her warding gesture again, muttering something thick in No'rei that didn't sound very positive.

She shook her head firmly. "We split up. Willis the twins, and Toothless can go one way, while myself, the Dragonkin, Alek, and Tian go the other. If you run into anything odd at all, return here." She looked at all of them, but no expression was forthcoming yet. Only her hard, hard eyes.

Toothless looked at the dark skinned young man and the twins and grinned. Despite his name, he did in fact have teeth, and they had been filed to points at some point in the past. It gave him a distinctly sinister look that was no hurt by the orcish ancestry in his family line. The wizard carried a sword and a dagger, both mundane enough, and wore simple tunic and pants. He knew how to use those weapons, but they were not what made the man terrifying. "Oh boy!" His voice was a hissing rasp, completely out of keeping with the words he was speaking. "A real adventure!"

His eyes made clear the mockery he was portraying.

"Whatever," the Captain replied, and turned to begin the investigation of the town.

***

Watching.

New friends to play with me! The words were thoughts inside the watcher's head, if it even could be said to have such a thing. All was relative, after all. It had found many new friends of late, and seemed to keep finding more and more.

My, the games they could play with each other! The nameless entity could scarcely contain the eagerness to allay the boredom of years upon years spent sealed away from the world of light.

Watching.

***

Tian stepped out of another house, idly cleaning the nonexistent dirt under his nails with the tip of a throwing knife, shaking his head. "Place seems awful quaint and picturesque," he remarked. There was a certain light in his eyes that belied the off-color nature of the remark.

The Captain shook her head, thick braid saying as she did. For once, she had spear and buckler with her, unsure if the sword would be as useful in their current situation. In truth, she could have left both behind with the horses. Looking back, they still stood placidly tied to the trees as the side of the road, cropping grass unconcernedly. Clearly they didn't feel that pervasive, heavy presence that seemed to saturate the air here.

That feeling. It felt nearly familiar to her, but she could not put her finger on where or why. It gnawed at her, as if it were important in some way that was indefinable.

"No sense. Makes no sense," the white-haired woman muttered under her breath. The town was as empty as it had seemed at first. And wherever it was they had gone they had left in a fair hurry, as Tian had thought. Everything dropped right where it was at the time, and left to rot or burn. It was almost as if they had been transported where they stood to some other place.

Alek grunted. He had said nothing since they had arrived in this place, his usual gruff attitude even darker than usual.

"Big scaly have any ideas?" Tian jabbed a knife in the direction of the Draconian, only grin on his face visible from the gloom of his permanently drawn hood.

 

[Szesh]

Szesh waited for Aeyliea, Alek, and Tian to catch up. The group walked in loose formation, checking out houses here and there. All of them were the same: empty and left hurredly. There were no signs of any sort of preparation. On the contrary, the more they looked, the more obvious it became that these people had up and disappeared very quickly.

As they ventured further from the city center, a feeling of unease began to take hold of Szesh. It was different than the general weirdness of the situation that they all felt, now it was almost physical. Peering through fogged windows, he looked in on a quaint sitting room. The furniture appeared untouched, and had collected a fine layer of dust. Bookshelves stood similarly undisturbed, and a floor length mirror to the side---

Szesh's heart jolted in his chest as he looked in the mirror. A foreign face had peered back at him, just for a moment, but it had terrified him. The moment it disappeared Szesh could not remember its features, and he now stared at his own distorted reflection. His veins felt like ice, and the fear slowly gave way to confusion.

The scar on his back seared, and he grit his teeth against the pain. Burn, Exile, the thought floated through his mind... but it was not his thought. Who was there? How did they know what the mark meant? Beginning to panic, Szesh smashed the windows with a scaled fist, tearing through the glass and wooden panes. He stared at the mirror, but saw only himself. Holding his spear tightly, he ducked through the now-open window into the room. Something was here.

He stepped gingerly through the room, rounding a corner into what appeared to be a small kitchen. If anyone called out to him, Szesh could not hear them. He was entirely fixated on the feeling of dread that permeated this place. His scar throbbed.

Another flash of that face, this time to his side. Again he could not describe its features save that it was horrific to behold. Szesh turned wildly and belched out a column of flame, catching the room ablaze. He heard a voice, Shame, it rasped. He could feel a tendril in his mind, picking through his memories. Shame of what, I wonder..... ahh! Murder...

"Stop!" Szesh roared, swinging his spear around behind him and piercing it through the thin walls and out the front of the bookshelf on the other side. The fire had begin crawling up the far wall.

Screams in his mind, still not his own. Szesh wrenched his spear from the wall and ran blindly, smashing through a door and into a small bedroom. Smoke was filling the house now. Using the light from a nearby window as his only guide, Szesh bolted and crashed through, back out into the street. He looked around wildly. The voice subsided, the fingers in his brain seemed to withdraw, and his scar returned to its normal dull pain. He breathed heavily, steadying himself, while the building behind him shuddered and burned.

Finding Aeyliea, he spoke, "Cursed," A few more deep breaths, reflection on the memories that were not his own. "The village is cursed."

That voice had known things about him, things that no one should know. Had the gods finally judged him? Had Draco found his crimes unrepentable, and sent his brother Dron to devour Szesh's soul? And what did that have to do with this village?

Nothing made sense, and his head hurt. The voices had stopped... but he feared that something had taken root.

 

[Smiling One]

"That's what they all say," Willis shrugged at Aeyliea. "Then the Stalkers slit their throat when they least expect it."

Invisible Stalkers were known as "ghosts" by villagers, though there may be some truth to that whether Invisible Stalkers were ghosts or not is something of a contention of the Monster Hunter Grandmasters. Some say a person can't see the Stalker and therefore it can be classified as a ghost, though others disagree with that assessment. Either way of all the monsters that has been recorded in the Great Book, Invisible Stalkers is one of the few monsters that haven't received a picture or even a drawing.

"Sounds good," Willis said knowing that Aeyliea would stubbornly stick to her plan. She is a very pretty woman, but damn she was stubborn. Willis couldn't risk pissing her off again especially when there's coin on the line. At least he'll be with Scythe and Nyght.

"Good luck you guys," Willis said nodding to his team. "We'll report back here if there's anything suspicious." Based on the village, there will be definitely something suspicious and Willis had a feeling it's worse than Invisible Stalkers.

As the group began to separate, Willis lead the group closer to the town center. Usually if a person wants information, then they go to the notice board that is usually located in the town center. "Let's get to the notice board you guys," Willis whispered to the group. "Let's see if we can't gleam any information there."

However the closer Willis got to the town center, the more his head started to ache. Willis stopped and placed both hands on his temples. He hadn't drank any alcohol in a while, the captain whom he sailed with became sober and got rid of any acholic beverages on his ship. The contract he gave to his crew was that there will be no alcohol during sailing. This kind of attitude won't make any sailor want to take the job but the captain paid a lot of coin for them to not resist though they'll still grumble.

This had to mean one other thing...… someone or something was lurking in his mind. The young man stood still remembering his monster hunting training. He closed his eyes and took deep and controlled breaths. The more he struggled, the more mind probe would be successful he had to clear his mind and acknowledged that he was being attacked. "I know you're trying to invade my mind," Willis said in his head. "Who are you?"

Just then the mind spell dispersed causing the young man to stagger a bit. Willis' heart was racing wildly and his entire body began to shake. He's had his mind messed with many times during his years of monster hunting. Willis has found ways to counter them however he wasn't sure if his allies were capable of fighting a mind probe as well. "Scythe! Nyght!" Willis called out desperately breaking into a cold sweat. "Something's here! Somethings-"

He found himself unable to speak as images flickered in his mind. How could this be? Willis got rid of the mind probe! Unless the spellcaster came back with a stronger incantation. It wasn't a mind spell but rather..... visions? No, memories of this town? There were disembodied shrieks that filled the young man's ears causing them to ring continuously. In addition there was also a blurry face that wasn't human, was it an Elf? A Dwarf? Not likely as well but one thing Willis sure about was the face wasn't human.

Gritting his teeth, Willis racked his mind trying to fight back these visions he has been receiving. There was a lightless cave and a door closing and shutting in the light. "Scythe!" Willis growled taking out his knife from his pocket. "Nyght!" The young man then stabbed himself on his hand and blood came pouring out from it immediately ending the visions. That was another way to get rid of a mind probe, self-harm or that was what Willis thought was a mind probe.

His vision cleared as Willis breathed heavily, all of a sudden the young man felt a sense of rejection and loss. It was a feeling, he hadn't felt since..... Molly Blackwood. Shaking Molly out of his mind, Willis removed the knife out of his hand and immediately wiped the wound with water, applied some healing ointment and wrapped his hand with a white cloth. "Guys," Willis said. "We're not alone! Someone is definitely watching us! We need to back to the meeting place immediately!"

 

[childish brandino]

Please, help us.

Remembering the desperate plea interrupted the swordsman's thoughts. He recalled some Allirian of relatively high standing seeking him out over the matter of a missing son- the oldest son. Kishou had caught wind of the ambiguous situation regarding caravans around The Spine from some contacts within the mercantile classes in Alliria. More interestingly, one associate approached him with a rather lucrative opportunity, which resulted in the formation of a contract. The terms were quite simple: return the son to the father. For fifty gold coins, half paid upfront, how could the swordsman refuse?

Thus resulted in his current situation. Lost. Hungry. Without a clue. The man was not a tracker, and he had overestimated his ability to find a person far from the reach of civilization. He had not considered the difficulty in navigating the foothills of The Spine- an area he has no prior experience in traveling. This type of nuanced work was not within his field of expertise. While he was not a simple man, he preferred simple tasks. He left the working of finer details to those with a propensity for it. He also preferred those same people to point his sword in the direction of anything that needed cutting. However, fifty gold coins left Kishou unwilling to discriminate the given task.

He departed Alliria with a borrowed horse and supplies for the journey. Now, he knelt on the bank of a pond. A reflection of his face stared back at him. The reflection was broken by small ripples from the horse lapping water from the modest body of water. As the ripples distorted his image, he thought back on his plan.

Ride east.

Find villages.

Inquire.

As if he knew where any damn villages were. In retrospect, it was a silly plan. He plucked a small rock from the soft dirt with his forefinger and thumb while rising to his feet, and threw the stone into the pond. He turned to the horse while rubbing his thumb and finger together, knocking off any loose dirt that clung to his skin. By some stroke of luck, he had stumbled upon a village. He mounted his horse and guided the equine in one direction. He suddenly turned, remembering that the town was in a different direction, and made his way there.

Hopefully, he would find answers.

He did not know that the village was deserted aside from a small group of mercenaries and that they would not have his answers.

 

[Scythe and Nyght]

Toothless.

Yeah, it really shouldn't have bothered them as much as it did. That shit Willis was saying about Invisible Stalkers ought to have bothered them more. Hell, maybe there were invisible monsters that did the town in. Maybe. That or something just as bad hiding in every corner you forgot to check. Maybe.

They walked just behind Willis, each of their bodies letting their crossbows lead the way. High and stocks to shoulders and ready to sink a bolt into whatever the fuck scared them first.

But Toothless.

Why was he called Toothless when he had teeth? No seriously. No seriously, lads.

Seriously.

"Hey," whispered Nyght.
"Toothless," whispered Scythe.

Willis suggested they check the notice board in the town center. Scythe and Nyght would have been fine with barely crossing the periphery of the town, saying they didn't find shit, and calling it a day, but fuck it. Follow Willis. Old saying from their raider days: "If you're gonna be wrong, everybody needs to be wrong together!" And they had already split up once so fuck doing it again.

So Scythe and Nyght both nodded and followed after Willis. Not as asychronous as they would have liked, but chalk it up to training or some shit.

They each stared down the length of their readied crossbows as they walked. You know, it wasn't even a bad day, considering. Maybe a touch nippy, but that's what their coats were for. And this town was like a dozen other towns throughout the Reach and wherever else; even had that nice view of the mountains. See. Nothing to be afraid of. No invisible monsters. No creepy people. No pissed spirits. No nothing. Just a normal, awfully quiet day in...whatever this town was called. Shitsberg. Good enough.

See. They even made it to the town center just fine. Lovely place, really. Got that small village feel to it what with the stone walled houses and thatched roofs and all. Quaint. Shit, houses like these were castles to Scythe and Nyght at one point in their lives. You were one lucky son of a bitch if you lived in something like this. Meanwhile, at that particular point in their lives, Scythe and Nyght had a rating system for how luxurious tents were, and theirs scored a two. Two because of the lack of holes, lads. Could always be worse, couldn't it.

Willis was having a headache. And he...made an interesting accusation. Scythe and Nyght lowered their crossbows a bit and each glanced at him.

"It wasn't me," said Scythe.
"It was probably Toothless, honestly," said Nyght.
"I don't even know how to invade minds."
"Wait. You think he's not talking to us?"
"Wait. Did he seriously say 'invade my mind'?"

Was...was there something? Doing that? Uh...where? And they felt fine. They felt perfectly fine. Was Willis going crazy? Toothless' nickname was a perplexing one, sure, but it wasn't enough to make a man crazy. Scythe and Nyght glanced at each other. They did it again. Force of habit, damn it. Look at Toothless. One at a time. He wasn't going crazy, was he? They weren't going crazy, were they?

You disgust me.

Scythe's body heard it. Or was it Nyght's? They didn't know. How the fuck could they not know. They always knew.

You deserve this.

They didn't know which body heard it. But they where it was coming from. The street they had just came from. Scythe and Nyght's bodies each turned around.

Leona was there. Dagger in hand. Blood dripping from it.

It emanated from her. The rage.

Warmth. On their chests.

Scythe and Nyght each lowered their crossbows and touched their own chests with their left hands.

Red.

And they each reflexively squeezed their hands. Both of their hands. Including their right hands. Right hands that were wrapped around crossbow triggers. And two bolts went into two feet.

Scythe and Nyght each yelped and dropped crossbows and toppled down to the ground, each body holding their own injured foot.

"Ah, shit!" said Nyght.
"We fucking shot ourselves!" said Scythe.
"We didn't even miss!"
"Fucking hell, we could have at least missed."
"Damn it, Leona!"

Good news. Through their groaning and wincing and gritting of teeth and holding of booted feet with crossbow bolts sticking out of them...at least Leona wasn't actually there when they looked again. Nor did they have their old chest wounds.

Bad news. They had actual crossbow bolts in each of their right feet. And, well, whatever fucked with Willis and whatever fucked with them was still presumably out there. And now they were hobbled.

Hey, at least Willis fucked up and injured himself too. Look at that hand. Ouch. See? Don't need to feel so broken up about it now.

"Not alone, you say?" said Nyght, grimacing on the ground.
"Watching us, you say?" said Scythe, grimacing on the ground.
"We made the smart choice coming here."
"It was a splendid idea, really."
"Don't worry, we'll be right behind you."

They stayed on the ground.

 

[Aeyliea]

The old wizard grimaced as the young mercenary took charge, but he did not say anything about it himself. He had lived a long time, and if someone else wanted to take the blame for when things went poorly, well, he was fine with that. He grinned at the youth, long lower canines giving his already sinister appearance and added twist, as if that was even possible.

The notice board seemed like a decent idea, but he was not so sure they would find anything. He was, by trade, a sorcerer. His senses for the occult were highly refined, fine tuned machines that had done him great service through his long life. Something made his senses scream, giving dire warning of the danger they were in...but his senses could not identify what, how, or where. There was no perception of sorcery having even been used here recently. Just a low grade miasma of...of what?

The old warlock reached into a small leather satchel at his belt, and withdrew a long necklace. It was made of teeth of a variety of species, and it was quite clear that the majority of them were not from animals. He began to run them through his fingers one at a time, muttering something to himself that was indistinct. He could feel something in the air, and he did not like it one bit.

And then, for a moment, he could feel it. Whatever it was. A presence, a very powerful presence, a very old thing. Magic sprung up around the old wizard as he continued to mutter, and for a long moment he was lost in the incantation. Whatever it was that had descended upon them exerted pressure upon him, pressing is defenses as surely as an expert swordsman would an opponent of great skill. For a moment, there was only the struggle to keep the thing, whatever it might be, at bay.

And then it was gone.

Toothless sagged where he stood, sweat on his forehead, and took in the situation. Two members of the party down, crossbows having been discharged into their feet. Blood dripping from their erstwhile leaders hand from a self inflicted wound. The old man shuddered.

"Why don't you say something more obvious, young buck?' The raspy growl from his throat carried a warning to it. "Do not move just yet, let me tend to our friends here." Unrooted from the spot he had been holding his ground on, Toothless made his way to the fallen twins. Kneeling, preparing to place his hands on both at once, he paused.

Something indistinct stood in the center of the village green. A visage, humanoid in appearance, wearing rags that were more tattered and moldy than whole, with a featureless face and scraggly black hair fluttering in the light breeze. It was looking at him - them - with an expression of anger. Except that its face did not have any defining features, so how could it possibly express anything.

Toothless opened his mouth to speak, blinked, and the thing was gone. He knelt there, unsure if he had seen anything at all..but the balance of evidence suggested he had.

He shook himself, and offered some of the healing that he knew to the hobbled pair. It was crude and painful but effective. "I would say...some kind of ghost, except a ghost doesn't make hundreds of people disappear into thin air..."

***

They had split up to check houses in this part of the village. There was very little to see.

The mercenary captain entered another building, this one a two story affair with a sign over the front that bore a sigil on it rather than words. A cart, and a pickax by the look of it. Which fit the interior of the building quite well, for beyond the office in what was presumably a workshop of some kind, there was a great deal of rock, white quarts shot through with veins of a very familiar metal.

So. The town was here because of a mine somewhere nearby. That still did not explain where everyone had gone, and was therefore useless information for her purposes. Looking through the building turned up nothing, as had every other building they had looked in so far.

In fact, all she had discovered was an unnerving sense of being watched. She reflexively made the warding gesture again, as she had every time she entered a house or building, every time she went into a room. The sense of watchfulness was tinged with a feeling of frustration, but that was just her mind playing tricks on her.

She stepped back outside. There was no sign of Tian, nor of Szesh and it had been a while since they had parted ways with the others. The white-haired warrior stood in the middle of the dusty street, hands on her hips. Completely confused as to what it was they would do next. There was no evidence of anything untoward in this town beyond its emptiness and the pervasive feeling of wrongness. Just-

The howl of the dragonkin cut through the silence like a knife. Aeyliea spun around and saw the smoke rolling from a building - the one that Szesh had gone into, if she remembered correctly. Even as she pelted toward the building, ready to do battle with something, anything, the dragonkin came bursting out, shouting about some kind of curse. She slowed, and finally stopped out of reach of the man, unsure of what was going on.

Breathing a little hard, her eyes narrowed. "What do you mean, it is cursed?" A moment, a pause, and then she pointed up the road leading out of town. "Is that one of the people who live here?" The man was still distant, and she found herself waiting to hear an explanation from Szesh and for this stranger to come closer.

 

[Szesh]

Szesh took a moment to quiet his breathing. The scent of smoke was heavy, and the building behind him continued to groan. He could feel the heat of the flames at his back, and the scar seared.

”Visions…” he began, trying to explain. Explain what? What had just happened? ”Voices,” it could scarcely have been less helpful. All he knew was that he had seen a face, a terrible face, that had disappeared immediately. That he had heard voices.

And the fear… a cold primal thing that grasped him by the heart. Szesh had seen many battles and had bested many foes. He had also tasted defeat, and he had certainly lost his cool and given in to anger more than once. But fear had never overcome him like that. Never before had he felt like a defenseless animal, fighting and clawing for its very life.

He did not admit this to Aeyliea, the voices were evidence enough of the supernatural. He assumed, from her questions, that she had not experienced any visions or whispers. Was it only him?

Alone…

The cold thought fluttered through him, unbeckoned and unwelcome. He clenched his jaw, trying to block out the intrusion.

He looked down the road when Aeyliea spoke, and saw the man standing alone. The fog in his mind parted, and he stood taller. He did not move, and adjusted his grip on the spear. The scales of his back reflected the flames behind him, and his shadow danced on the road before him.

Was this another explorer, or had they been sent to silence prying eyes? Or maybe they were a bandit looking to pick the bones of the dead.

 

[Smiling One]

Ah shit..... Scythe and Nyght were both lying the floor with a crossbow bolt imbedded on their foot. Willis clutched his injured hand watching them lying on the floor unable to get up much less stand. The twins may be a bunch of goofballs but they are competent at their jobs. It was that invader who tried to infiltrate Willis' mind it had to be sadly they must've got into Scythe and Nyght heads as well. "No!" Willis said rushing over to Nyght and kneeling next to her. "Nyght! Scythe!"

There was no time to panic the infiltrator could make a come back anytime now and they could cast stronger mind spells. Willis is capable of fending off the most basics of telepathy, with intermediate mind spells he's inconsistent and advanced ones? Forget about it. Staring at the bolt, Willis immediately removed it from Nyght's foot. It was unfortunate that the twins shot themselves on the foot it'll most likely open up an artery or two rendering his healing potion's effectiveness.

Thankfully blood didn't come pouring out and Willis immediately removed Nyght's boot and took out some healing salve from his black bag. "This is gonna sting a bit," Willis said clenched teeth while grabbing her hand. "Hold on just squeeze my hand if you feel pain."

Willis gently spread the salve around Nyghts wound before wrapping it tight with a white gauze and then worked on Scythe. After he was done, Willis picked up Nyght in a bridal carry and stared at Toothless. "Probably," Willis said to the old man shrugging. "If you ask me though, It's too elaborate for a ghost to set up."

"Pick up Scythe!" he yelled. "Let's get the fuck out of here!"

With Nyght in his arms, Willis began heading for the meeting place.

 

[childish brandino]

Useless thoughts occupied the foreigner's mind as he navigated through the woodland. The ground was uneven, yet flattened out somewhat when he found the trail leading to the village. Being in foothills somewhat unsettled him. He was far from lands that he knew. The sun was out and the sky clear, yet the cool air attacked his exposed skin. He wore a thick outer garment which helped fend off the cold. It was tied below his neck, and the garment wrapped around his body like a cloak. There was a split in the middle, but when closed it covered his entire body down to his thighs. He felt quite comfortable with it on, as it held in his body's warmth.

The ride itself was short- he had rested a short distance from the village. As he got closer, the foreigner could see a pillar of smoke over rolling hills. One hand gripped the reins while the other reached into a saddlebag, withdrawing a strip of dried meat wrapped in a leaf. He bit a piece off, thoroughly chewing the dehydrated meat as he approached his destination.

The foreigner could tell there was a commotion in the village as desolate wooden structures came into view. As he rode through the outskirts of the village, he saw not a soul. The column of smoke became more prominent. Vigilantly, Kishou rode towards the fire. He saw nobody as he rode through the village, yet knew that somebody, or something, started that fire.

 

[Scythe and Nyght]

Just how do sayings get started?

There's that first lad who was genius enough to string the words together. Right. Has to be. And those words? They're catchy. Like a whorehouse disease. Yeah, a lot like that. Because the saying spreads about as fast. Faster, actually. Less exertion involved. Scythe and Nyght ought to know. So it starts with one lad and it flies around Alliria or Elbion or wherever until most of Arethil has it.

So there must have been somebody out there who coined the saying 'More is better.' Well. Fuck whoever said that right now. Generally true, sure, but fuck 'em anyways. Because two bolts sticking out of two feet and feeling both across two bodies was godawful.

Cue grimacing and hollering. Moaning and groaning. Bitchin' and complainin', as an old raider buddy would say.

Didn't take long for both Toothless and Willis to come around. Maybe whatever was doing the mind games would give everyone a break right quick. Enough for Toothless and Willis to stick some dirt into Scythe and Nyght's wounds and get them going again. They really didn't want to earn some new nicknames here. Imagine. Scythe and Nyght the Footless. Feetless? Hopping around Alliria like a couple of three-legged rabbits.

Well, the Mind-Gamer wasn't a complete asshole. And hey, it wasn't dirt they got patched up with. Toothless did a wiggly-waggly thing and Willis had a salve handy. Scythe's body had to pull the bolt out of his own foot, but, you know, Willis only had so many hands. And Nyght's body. Well, just squeeze my hand if you feel pain, Willis said.

So Nyght's body squeezed the everloving shit out of Willis' hand. Scythe's body would have too, but, again, lack of hands. Toothless' sparkly-do magic closed up the wound on Scythe's foot, sure, but what the fuck was it with healing magic? Always hurt just as bad if not more than mundane ways of healing. Hell, it felt like a fat rat was taking a nap inside Scythe's body's foot right now. Nyght's body's foot had that tingly, prickly, slow-salve burn going on too. What a combo. Come on, mages. Do some research or something for fuck's sake.

Ghosts were mentioned.

"Is it bad if ghosts would be preferable right now?" said Scythe, wincing.
"I fucking hate ghosts. Not that I met one. But I'd love ghosts right now," said Nyght, wincing.

They were about to stand on their own when...a different option presented itself. Willis picked up Nyght's body like a man on the verge of continuing his lineage. Huh. Interesting. So they shot themselves in the foot. It happens. BUT. Now they'd stumbled onto a way to do even less than normal and still get paid. Don't even have to walk under their own power back to the meeting spot. Ha. Thanks Leona. You bitch.

Well. Crossbows. Check. Nyght's boot. Check. Yeah, time to go. And here's a little asymmetry to balance things out.

Scythe's body glanced to Toothless and groaned and said, "Oooh. My foot. It's too much. I won't make it. Be a lad and help me out, would you?"

Two for two? Maybe.

 

[Aeyliea]

Toothless fixed the back of the young monster hunters' head with a very unkind look, grinning mirthlessly. The pointed teeth gave the man a certain air of savagery that would be hard to replicate in any other way. Spitting to one side, he looked at the stricken man. Darkly.

"'the fuck up, you lazy bastard," he said suddenly. "Kids these days, can't stomach a little pain." He shook his head, and then headed off to follow the monster hunter who had made himself more or less the defacto leader of this particular group of mercenaries. Toothless himself was no leader of men, charismatic or otherwise. He was a survivor, though, and had no qualms doing what was required to service the continuation of his own life.

There was still some presence here, pressing in on the defenses he had erected around his mind. He was not blind, and had little doubt that whatever it was had gotten to the both of these men with him. What effect that might ultimately have was beyond him, and he was not about to worry about it.

Something caught his eyes as he was turning away from the fallen twin. A glint on the ground. Curious, the old wizard went up to it to find a piece of white quartz streaked with gold veins. Gold ore. So, this town was a near a gold mine, likely, seeing as there was ore here. It would make it a very tempting target for bandits, waylaying a town like this for its ore...

...except that it had spread beyond just this little town.

"Willis," the man rasped, and held up the chunk of ore as he kept walking. "Might be important. Might not be." Spooks, abandoned towns, and gold. It was a winning combination, right?

***

The woman said nothing at first to his assertions. Something was prying on her mind, as well, and for a brief moment she caught a glimpse of something she could not possibly know of. A different world, or the same one at a different time. The shriek of feral rage that came through made her physically wince, and she made the warding gesture yet again.

It seemed to help.

The stranger had disappeared in amidst the houses, and so she beckoned for her oversized friend to follow. The figure seemed oddly familiar from a distance, but such distances could play tricks on the mind. "Keep your wits about you," the white-haired woman said. She herself was having a hard time keeping things straight in her head, right now. That pressure from without seemed to be building, giving her a touch of a headache. "We'll see who this man is, and then go from there."

She hadn't noticed that Tian had vanished, as had Alyk, without a word or a trace.

 

[Szesh]

~*~ 35 Years Ago, The Spine ~*~

”Szesh!” the voice called out. It was a harsh, slithering sound made by a body not attuned to common speech. He looked up, and a tall bronze-scaled draconian towards him along the tall stone wall.

“Khalesh,” Szesh replied as he drew nearer. The two dragonkin clasped forearms and brought their foreheads together, a comrade’s greeting. They were both armed with spears and both wore naught but simple loincloths against the harsh mountain air.

”How did leave treat you?” Szesh asked in his native tongue. While draconian lives were rigidly structured, they were not without mercy. Soldier like Khalesh and himself were granted periods of leave, about a week or so depending on the previous working period. These breaks were infrequent, but well needed to keep an alert and satisfied militia. Khalesh had been on leave for some time (earned by a most glorious performance against brigands in the village’s hunting grounds) and Szesh was set to begin his own leave upon his return. This aside, Szesh was glad to see the molten scales once again. All draconians in the village viewed each other as family, the communal hatcheries and lack of parental records meant that anyone could be true kin, but Khalesh was a long-time friend.

”Soft and fat,” Khalesh quipped, and the pair shared a rasping laugh. “Have you plans for your own?”

”No,” Szesh answered. “But I should like to see the snowcaps again.”

Khalesh shook his horned head. “Leave is a time to rest. Do not waste it by trekking through snow. There is plenty to see from these walls,” and he gestured to the snow-covered peaks in the distance.

Szesh nodded, “Just so,” although he still felt the wanderlust within him.

~*~ Present ~*~

Szesh’s wanderlust had been more than satisfied in the past few decades, and he would have traded all of it to regain the bonds to his home. While it always tore at him, he had become adept at ignoring and deflecting from the pain. His scar had burnt for so long that it had become background noise, and only in his darkest times did he truly feel the shame return.

Something about this place was bringing it to the forefront. A whispering voice that taunted, one that both spoke into his mind and twisted through it.

You are alone, it whispered, you have always been alone, and you will always be alone.

The figure in the distance drew nearer, and Aeyliea’s words brought Szesh out of his own mind once again. He banished the voice as best he could. He had been alone for 30 years and survived, and had long since resigned himself to that fate. It was fine. He was fine. He no longer cared.

Liar

He stepped forwards, perhaps action would silence the thoughts. He shook out his wings, letting ash fall from them as the newcomer came into view. They were mounted, but rode slowly. If they were armed they made no motion to draw.