Private Tales The Legend's Heir

[Serafina]

They stole into the room like unwanted dreams.

Dressed in clothes that helped them blend into the shadows and night itself with cloth pulled up over their noses, it was only their eyes that caught the glimmer of the predawn. The group of men were well trained and their footfalls were light but not out of concern of waking the girls. No, a few greased palms and a spun tale of two girls abducted by Bandits who had been trying to pass them off as helpless strangers had gone a long way. Especially for a young Assistant who knew no better of the world. Sera might have needed something for the pain in her leg but nothing so strong as Willows Breath which would render her practically insensible for hours yet to come. It was designed to make difficult patients docile but still aware enough they could take their medicines and feed themselves.

Two stayed by the door, either side of the frame in case someone should enter, whilst the other two walked towards the bed. One gently eased Sera out of the sheets and flung her over his shoulder whilst the other hovered by Violet in case she woke. She had been given the same dose so it was unlikely.

"Sol...?" Sera murmured, drifting in and out of lucid dreams. There was no reply but that wasn't exactly unusual for him and her eyes shut heavily. The man strode from the room at the same moment the Bandit Chief was nearly upon the door. For a moment he froze and then said a word in a language which spoke of hot deserts and rare oasis'. The remaining three drew their blades as the man holding Sera turned and with a quickened step made for the exit.

 

[Solgrin]

Solgrin moved with lightning speed.

By the time the man closest to him drew his blade it was already too late. The Bandit Chief grasped the man by his collar, tossing him into the wall with a heavy crack of wood. His hand went limp as blood splattered from his broken skull, Solgrin reaching down to grab the curved short sort.

Steel met steel, what Solgrin could only assume to be a curse echoing out as the two blades clashed together.

The remaining man stepped forward, seizing what he saw as an opportunity and swiping his own blade forward towards Solgrin. Flesh gave way along with cloth as his sword cut into the Bandit Chief's side, slicing a deep gash as a hand shot out to grab the assassin's wrist.

There were a twist, then another loud crack as Solgrin yanked the man forward and smashed his forehead into the bridge of his nose.

The man tumbled to the ground with a loud thud, and then his friend quickly joined him as with a surge of speed Solgrin stepped forward and drove his sword through his sternum.

 

[Serafina]

The soldier carrying Sera took the stairs two at a time and barged his way out into the courtyard where the man on the horse was waiting. His cloak obscured the majority of his face apart from a pair of thin lips which twisted into a satisfied smile when he saw the girl his man carried. With care the soldier slid Sera from his shoulder and passed her up to his master who cradled her like she were made of porcelain. The man meanwhile leapt onto his own horse which had been tethered nearby. He wheeled his horse about and then looked expectantly back to his leader for the order to leave with little care for if they left the others behind.

"Solgrin comes for his prize," the robbed figure said with all the arrogance of a man who believed he had all the time in the world to make his escape. He didn't look up though as his fingers traced the curve of Sera's cheek and jaw, his smile growing wider. "Far better than I expected," he sighed and the gem about his neck swung free of the cloak. As it brushed against her hair it glowed white.

When Sol appeared the figure looked up and the hood slid back from his face.

"You grow too complacent old friend," he smiled and conjured a ball of flame in his hand. An expression of ecstasy rippled across his face at the same moment one of pain and discomfort crossed Sera's as the energy was pulled from her. The man launched his attack towards him and then wheeled his horse around and towards the city gates.

 

[Solgrin]

The fire seemed to lance just to the side of him, arching around his form as thought bent by some unseen force. It lashed into the building, crashing against one of the wooden wall and exploding outward in a burst of flame and splinters.

It drew together, the smoldering flames grasping at the wooden building and quickly rushing into the air as the Bandit Chief drew forward.

Screams could be heard. Those of women, those of men as the fire began to rage far faster than any ordinary flame. Solgrin stood just ahead of it, a scowl on his lips as he watched the man on the horse wheel around and rush off down the street.

Fingers tightened.

The blade in his hand suddenly flipped, and like a man of the stories Solgrin suddenly flung it forward into the air.

Like a javelin the sword flew through the air, traveling with an almost unnatural guidance from Solgrin's touch. A strange sheen clung to the blade as it suddenly arched, a pale glow surrounding it's tip as it arched and headed directly towards the robed man's mount.

 

[Serafina]

The blade struck something but it was not the galloping horse. The air bent inwards in odd rippling waves as though the knife had plunged itself into a pool. Its path slowed until the point it almost stopped and then the air snapped back into place. As it did it pushed back against the weapon and flung it back down the street where it clattered against the cobbled stones. The man glanced briefly over his shoulder and threw back a laugh but he didn't pause in his stride. Whilst he may have been arrogant he knew that the wargs Sol used were fast things and he would need all the advantage he could get on the road.

In the saddle he gently manoeuvred the limp girl so that she straddled the horse and thus would be more secure. His arm snaked about her waist and pinned her tightly against him whilst his lips brushed against her ears.

"You will find me a far kinder master, Serafina," he murmured and sighed against her hair. A small shudder ran through her body but her mind was too addled by the drugs to do much else.

Back at the inn the fire raged on. Maria came bursting out of the door with Violet thrown over shoulder and smoke colouring her cheeks.

"Do we follow?" she glanced to the horses which would have belonged to the other men.

 

[Solgrin]

Solgrin stood for a moment, glancing over towards Maria to see that she was carrying the other girl.

A small amount of relief washed over him. He had lost the more important resource but at least he still had the lesser. Serafina cared about this girl, and that would mean he inevitably still had a bargaining chip that would be useful.

"Aye." Solgrin said with a slow nod.

His fingers tightened for a moment.

He had spent nearly five years looking for that damned girl, and he would rather throw himself to the nine winds of hell than to give her up this easily. A sharp whistle echoed from his fingers, and the sound of splintering wood could be heard as the five Wargs he had taken into the city broke free.

"Take the girl to the others." He hissed. "See that no one touches her and tell Ivil to follow after me."

Maria gave a nod as they pulled themselves up onto their respective mounts.

There was no time for arguments.

 

[Serafina]

Sera drifted in and out of her lucid dreams as the black beauty thundered across the plains heading for the forest. It was in those snatches that she learnt little bits about the man who had stolen her out from under Solgrins nose. His name was Nassar and he was from the great Western deserts. He had also, apparently met Sol at some point in his life before he had become a Bandit. He, like Sol, had believed in the magic of the gem and had gone in search in his own homelands where he had discovered a shard of the gem.

It had led him straight to her.

They rode until the sky shed the pink fingers of dawn and the sun rose high into the sky. At Midday they entered the forest and he finally slowed his horse down from its headless gallop. The beast didn't seem to be tired though and Sera found herself growing more so to the point she wondered if her new master was diverting her energy to the horse.

They meandered carefully through the thick foliage but didn't take time to mark their footfalls - the gem Sol had would make his path true anyway. The key was to get to his men for the battle yet to come. They crossed a river and then were off again for another hour until they reached a wide clearing with several tents propped up. Nassar leapt down then more carefully drew Sera into his arms.

"Where..."

"Sshh... sh my sweet, save your strength and let us get you more comfortable."

 

[Solgrin]

Solgrin rode fast, hard.

The Warg moved as quick as it could, urged on and on as they chased their query. Horses had never been as quick as the beasts, but they held more stamina in them. They could ride for longer without tiring, travel for longer distances before needing rest.

It wasn't as much as a problem when you had more than a few of them.

Solgrin rode the first of his mounts near to death.

He pushed the Warg as fast as it would go, as far as it would go, and when it collapsed into the ground he climbed onto the second and kept going. He pushed and pushed until the scenery around him changed back into forest.

It was only when that second mount grew tired that Ivil finally caught him. "They are still ahead."

That was the only greeting he gave to the ten men that join him. The only hello that they received.

Without a word they fell into step, knowing their masters prize was more important.

 

[Serafina]

Nasaar gently set Sera down on a cot that had been made up in one of the tents and cupped her cheek.

"Now, let's get you into some better fitting clothes shall we?" he smiled and moved over to a chest on the other side of the small space. The girl watched him with wide eyes like a terrified rabbit caught in a hunters trap. Sol she had at least begun to figure out but this man was an unknown. If he knew the Bandit Chief then he might be just as bad, if not worse. She struggled into a sitting position and brought her unbroken leg up to her chest then wrapped her arms tightly around it. Her eyes flickered briefly to the tent flap at the same moment Nasaar turned around. In his hands he held a bundle of clothes but his attention was on where her gaze was.

"You're not a prisoner, Serafina. You can leave the tent but not the camp. It's not safe beyond and I wouldn't want you to get lost," he stepped back towards her and she flinched back. With a sigh he stopped and then with one hand in the air to show he meant no harm bent and set the clothes down. "I'll let you get dressed whilst I get you some food, are you hungry?" When she didn't answer he continued on regardless. "I'll just get you a bit of everything and you can eat if you want to. Please," he motioned to the clothes and then ducked out of the tent.

Sera stared after him for a while and then carefully crawled towards the clothes. They were in her size and felt soft and warm. After another hesitation she began to climb out of her oversized borrowed clothes and get into the offering.

 

[Solgrin]

Solgrin slipped from the Warg as it neared the edge of death. His boots hit the forest floor with a soft thud, and the beast beside him seemed to all but collapse as he landed upon the ground.

His hand absently patted the creature, a reassuring touch that would have to be enough.

"Nasaar is mine." His voice was a low growl, a threatening hum that strangely seemed to thrum to those that stood around him. The other Bandits looked at him for a moment, some appearing confused, others nodding their head in complete understanding.

"There will be many." He told them. "A dozen, perhaps more."

Nasaar had always been clever, always been able to gather fools to him.

It was not the same loyalty that Solgrin imbued within his men. The people that followed Nasaar followed him for power, for the greed, for the chance of being something that they were not. "Slaughter them."

Solgrin instructed as he turned away and stalked forward into the wood.

 

[Serafina]

"Here."

Sera had retreated back to her corner by the time Nasaar returned with the tray of food which he set down carefully on the edge of her bed before taking a few steps back to give the girl space. He took a seat on the opposite side of the tent and extended her another warm smile. Sera hadn't experienced kindness like this in so long it felt foreign to her and she was still waiting for the other shoe to drop.

"The clothes look good, I had to guess but I think I was right," Sera ran her hand slowly down the soft woolen jumper he had given her. It was more suited for the colder climate than anything she had been given yet and it was a deep blue colour that spoke of expensive taste. She wore it tucked into a thick black riding skirt that trapped the heat against her legs and relieved the pressure breeches had on her injured leg. He had even provided her with a modest amount of underwear including a short riding corset, slip and warm knitted leggings that she could wear when the brace was off.

"They're lovely... thank you," she said shyly and pulled the tray closer. Nasaar grinned and was about to say something else when a shout went up outside from one of the scouts.

"Excuse me, please eat," he nodded and then made his way out to get the report of the Bandits approaching. His men were ready and well rested compared to Sols and he still had the energy source. He was confident, cocky.

 

[Solgrin]

Solgrin wasn't a fool.

He had fought battles, lead armies in his youth. General of the Armies had once been his title, and he had been fool while wielding it. The Bandits he had sent forward first were men he trusted, good, reliable, and smart enough to know when to draw back.

They would be the thrust of the spear, but little more than a distraction. They were meant to draw Nasaar's men away, focus upon something else while Solgrin himself made his way towards the back of the camp and through it.

It would be enough.

Nasaar had always been a clever man, powerful, but arrogant beyond all belief.

He would want to move to crush Solgrin as quickly and ruthlessly as he possibly could. That was who the man was at heart. He manipulated, he played games, but he did not understand the way of things like this.

So as the calls went out, Nasaar's men would rush forward into the forest. A few remained behind of course, protecting the Camp and staying alert, but none saw Solgrin as he slowly crept up in the underbrush. In his hand was a knife.

That would be enough.

 

[Serafina]

"I do apologise about that, ah excellent you finished," Nasaar smiled as he closed the flaps of the tent once more. The forms of two men either side of the entrance were silhouetted against the canvas. Sera's eyes shifted from him to the men outside warily and then back again. This was more of what she had become accustomed too and in a sense it made it almost more... comforting. She knew where she stood with guards and threats. Slowly she licked the last crumb from her fingers and then sat back once more though this time she didn't press herself into the corner. Her reaction seemed to please him and he settled back down into the chair.

"He won't stop following you, you know," Sera said quietly and the smile died a little on his lips. It was only for a brief moment but she saw it true enough before he masked it with a chuckle.

"You do not need to worry yourself, Sera - can I call you Sera? - Sol and I have a long history. He will fight for you but he will lose. You do not need to worry about being back with him."

"What makes you any different?" her brows pulled down into a frown. "You just want to use me for the magic just like he does!"

"My poor girl," he sighed and shook his head, fingers dragging through his beard. "I do not want to use you, I want to help you. Do you have any idea what you can do with this gem? Only you. Yes, yes, the holder of the gem can control it but it is really you who possesses this magic. When we find all the pieces, together we can make a change in the world. What would you do with it, Serafina? If you could control the wind and sea, fire and earth? What would you do to the world?"

 

[Solgrin]

His knife slid over the throat of a man who had wandered too close to the line of the forest, his body collapsing onto the ground seconds later with a muted thud.

Fingers drew out, grasping the mans sword and freeing it from it's scabbard.

There were twelve more men within the Camp, and in the distance he could hear the echoes of men and women fighting. Steel clashing against steel, shouting, it all echoed out, it all called like a strange sort of symphony.

It was familiar.

All too familiar.

Solgrin crept forward into the camp. His steps were surprisingly quick, surprisingly quiet for a man of his size. He moved behind and between tents, covering himself within the darkness of the night as he crept towards the largest of the canvas housings.

Voices echoed from it, and slowly the Bandit Chief came to a stop.

"I know what Solgrin would do. He is a Warlord, a butcher. A man who cares only about himself and his next step."​

 

[Serafina]

Sera couldn't exactly deny Nasaar's accusation and it was a thought she had been trying to avoid since his intentions for her had been revealed. Why did he want the gem? What was he going to do with it? She thought of all the men he had slaughtered already without a care in the world, the way he had blown up the Maw without hesitation. She could understand the need from his viewpoint in both of those cases but where did the wrath stop? It was not just the men he had killed when he had snuck into Yarrin to steal her but women and children too. He had trodden them beneath the paws of his warg too in the Maw.

Nasaar sighed and stood up, making his way slowly across the room to sit on the bed beside her.

"Together, Sera, we could rid the world of people like him. We could rid it of wars, of corrupt powers. We could do anything you wanted," he cupped her cheek and smoothed his thumb across her cheek. Her eyes had been focused diligently on the hands in her lap but now she slowly raised them to look at him. A glimmer of hope began to blossom there and he smiled in encouragement.

"T-that would be nice..."

 

[Solgrin]

Solgrin stood still, perfectly still.

Nasaar may not have been a General, but the man was not a fool either. He could fight just as well as some soldiers, and his magic...his magic was deadly. Even before he'd found his piece of the gem one had to tread carefully around him.

The Bandit Chief tightened his finger around the knife, closing his eyes. He tried to listen more carefully. Not to the words, they did not matter. He already knew that he would practically have to drag Serafina back to his own camp, but rather to where they were.

His face tightened.

The voices echoed.

Slowly he crept around the Tent, moving towards the side edge of it and slinking forwards with his dagger. The tip of the blade dragged through canvas, and then suddenly he burst into the tent.

His stolen sword flickered forward, slicing directly towards Nasaar whose features were painted with utter shock. The man managed to take a single step back, a lurch just long enough to see the tip of the sword cut only through the side of his face.

 

[Serafina]

Sera screamed as Sol burst into the tent. Nasaar spun onto his feet with cat like grace, surprise, shock and then anger registering on his face as the blade slashed towards his cheek. Hot blood ran down his jaw but he didn't utter a sound of pain. Instead he was focusing on drawing his sword from the scabbard on his hip with the practised ease of a man who spent more of his life on the battlefield than off of it. Then he pounced.

His blade sliced through the air in a quick series of strikes both defensive and offensive. Sera had seen Sol fight before. He was like a wolf; quick and decisive, vicious in the way he slit peoples throats of emptied them of their guts. But Nasaar was a tiger, sleek and powerful. She hadn't thought there was a soul alive who could give him a run for his money but now... now she wasn't so sure.

Her eyes slid to the cut in the tent. This was her chance.... She began to crawl slowly towards the opening.

 

[Solgrin]

The fight was vicious, quick, but above all a counter balance of the two men. The way Nasaar moved was in almost complete opposition to Solgrin. He fought with lithe agility, quick movements, patient attacks. Solgrin was like a bear raging from it's cavern.

He rushed forward again and again, cutting, slicing, roaring.

The Bandit Chief was like a savage monster. Swipes of his sword carried the weight of a mountain, slamming down on Nasaar's blade and pushing him back even as the manipulator struck back. Cuts and gashes formed upon Solgrin's flesh, and yet each one seemed to only spurn him more.

He fought viciously, monstrously.

Then suddenly his blade caught the hilt of Nasaar's, and with a quick sweep and thrust both of the swords aside. They flew to the left, impaling the earth just inches away from where Serafina was crawling as Solgrin charged forward and grasped Nasaar by the throat.

 

[Serafina]

Sera flinched as the blades landed criss-crossed in front of her very nose. If she had been a little further on they might have cut her head from her shoulders and the thought shook her to her very core. Sol's words in that dark forest came back to her and after another furtive glance towards the exit she instead sat back down on the cot. She wouldn't get far on her leg and he still had Violet. He wound hound her to the ends of the earth and punish her friend for every second he had to waste doing it.

During her resignation, Nasaar choked on Sol's grip as it tightened about his throat. One hand clamped over his wrist and the other reached out, thumb trying to gorge itself into his opponents eye and force him back. Now the weapons were out of the way it turned to magic instead and with a flash beneath the hand that held onto Sol's fire burst to life.

 

[Solgrin]

The flames burned him.

Licked at his flesh. Scarred his skin.

Yet none of it mattered. The pain. The agony. Every rabid feeling that coursed through his veins was ignored in favor of one single emotion. It lanced through him, and caused a smile to bloom on his face as he stared into the eyes of a man he had once considered his friend.

No words passed his lips as his grip tightened, no taunt, nothing.

Fingers dug into flesh, thumbs pressed on skin, and then the tent echoed with the guttural sound of tearing flesh and cracking bone. The Bandit Chief twisted his hand, dragging Nasaar's head to the side and ripping his skull from his neck.

A gruesome sight of blood and gore enveloped the two men as Solgrin tore his foe apart, his display of strength a silent echo of what man he was.

 

[Serafina]

The noise that escaped from her throat was one of pure animalistic terror. She had pulled her knees up to her chest in an attempt to make herself as small as possible but now she hid her face in them and wrapped her arms over the top of her head. It was as if she were trying to block out everything; smell, sight, sound. There was also a part of her that was absolutely terrified about what it was he was going to do to her next. How much of the conversation had he heard? She had only let herself dream for a brief moment that she could wield the power for herself. Would that be another broken leg, another bruise to restart her faded collection?

Silence filled the tent. In the distance the faint sounds of battle coming to the end reached them and then even that fell silent. Their ragged breaths and the quiet drip, drip, dripping of Nasaars blood into the ground were their only melody.

When he didn't grab her straight away and beat her black and blue Sera slowly, tentatively unfolded herself. The blood that covered him was not entirely his own. The smell of charring flesh was strong and smoke still wisped off his injured arm. His side was torn and his shirt matted to his side. There were other wounds too, bad ones that would have kept many other men from living another day. She just couldn't bare the silence any longer and slowly she stood.

"Y-you're hurt," perhaps her words would stop him staring at the head in his hands. Sera kept her eyes very pointedly off of that. She swallowed and took a small step towards him, her hands held up to show she meant no harm, was not armed, then took another step and another. If he didn't stop her she gently reached out and took his charred arm to inspect it carefully. "I need to wash this," she said very quietly and looked up at him through her thick, dark lashes then pointedly to the chair that was miraculously still in tact.

The world held its breath.

 

[Solgrin]

Solgrin looked down at Sera for a moment, lips thinning for just a second as he glanced towards the wounds in his flesh.

The blood stained clothing around them obscured the cuts, gashes covered up by crimson. His hand reached down and he gently swiped his fingers over where one of the strikes of a blade had touched him. As he wiped away the blood nothing but muscled flesh appeared.

As though no blade had ever touched him.

The arm that Serafina held seemed to ripple slightly, his flesh moving even as she touched him. No pain crossed his expression, not even the slightest hint of discomfort. Wrinkled and charred sinew seemed to knit together and reform, slowly dragging itself back into place.

It was a grotesque sight, though clearly one that The Bandit Chief was used to.

"We have to go." Solgrin said as he slowly looked over at the dismembered body on the ground.

His hand gently extended, brushing passed Serafina's arm and gently urging her towards the slit he had made in the back of the tent. "He'll be back soon."

The words were cryptic, impossible, but Solgrin knew Nasaar. He had seen the trick before, and he would not be fooled by it again.

Leaning down Solgrin quickly yanked the piece of the gem from his foe, sliding it into his pocket before urging Serafina forward again.

 

[Serafina]

Sera felt her stomach lurch as the muscle writhed beneath her hands and knitted itself back together. She let go of him as though he were on fire and fixed him with an odd look. Magic wasn't common in Yarrin and it was often mistrusted; their histories were full of people who had abused it and so it was hard for her not to feel uncomfortable when he demonstrated it. She was still staring at his newly made flesh when he began to urge her towards the slit at the back of the tent. Her eyes followed his and she instantly regretted it, turning her face away from the beheaded body. She let him turn her towards the exit until her eyes landed on the chest.

"Wait," whilst Sol bent and plucked the shard of gemstone from his old friends bloody stump, Sera limped her way to the trunk in the corner. Inside was filled with clothes in her size including luscious warm cloaks, mittens, hats and new boots. She bundled as much as she could up into one of the blankets, fashioned it into a sack and then ducked out of the tent. "Saves you having to worry about it," she said shyly when he gave her an odd look.

Outside was another massacre however and Sera drew up short, leading to Sol almost crashing into the back of her. The bodies of Nasaar's men were littered across the ground missing their heads and the wargs prowled amongst them helping themselves to a meal here and there. The stench even in the crisp morning air was foul.

"Where's Violet?" she asked with growing concern but she could only see a small amount of the Bandits.

 

[Solgrin]

He blinked for a moment, but decided that it was not worth saying anything over. The girls would still need more clothes, especially considering what they were going to be walking into next, but he remained quiet as she bundled up her own garments.

Nasaar had been well prepared.

The man had always been clever, always had a plan, and no doubt he'd had an idea in mind to twist Serafina around his finger as best he could. Solgrin was no different, not really, save for the fact that he was more upfront with his desires.

As they stepped outside Solgrin froze, his hand coming down on Serafina's shoulder to stop himself from launching into her. "The Camp."

He quickly did a count of the bodies on the floor, his own men.

More than half of those he'd brought with him were now dead, or not in the camp at least.

"Go." He told her. "She's safe."

Safer than they were here.

 

[Serafina]

Sera didn't flinch away when Sol's hand came down upon her shoulder like she would of before, though she did still stiffen slightly. When he spoke she half turned to glance up at him and read his face. She was coming to learn that though he could play his voice as well as any bard could a lute, his face was a lot harder to school. Especially those eyes. Her blue hues flickered between his for a moment and then she nodded, trustingly, foolishly.

Warily she limped her way around the bodies, taking care not to put the odd brace on her foot into anything; she wasn't entirely sure how someone cleaned this thing and he had said it had to be on for six weeks. The smaller warg who had the beginnings of an odd bond loped towards her with his tongue lolling out, blood coating his teeth. Gently she scratched behind his ear in the place she liked and then before she was prompted pulled herself up onto the saddle. She settled the bundle behind her and strapped that down then secured her thighs in place like Maria had been showing her the past few days.

A cold wind blew across the field and she pulled the fur lined hoof of her new cloak up with a shudder.

"What did you mean he'll be back...?" she asked when Sol mounted up beside her.