The Chronicle of Heroes ~ Of Fiends and Shadows

[The Midgard Times]

Day 25

The lighting was not too bright, and not too dark at Ciar’s dining room. Several lit candles gracefully adorned the table. Tiamat walked into the room, guided by the professor himself. She gasped in awe at the sight of her favorite dinner waiting for her on the table.

“Wow, you really outdid yourself this time…” The woman commented, as Ciar moved back the chair for her to seat in.

“Only the best for you.” The professor replied, sitting on the other side of the table. “So… I was wondering…”

Before he could say anything else, a male voice spoke out. “The council must convene. It’s urgent.”

Both Ciar and Tiamat stood up abruptly. “Who’s there?” The professor asked, creating a small fireball that hovered above his hand and lit up the room.

Rajnish appeared next to the dining table. “Sorry to interrupt, but we have to go.” He said in a distressed tone, heading for the door.

“How do people keep getting in here…?” Ciar murmured.

“He’s a master rogue.” Tiamat replied, following Rajnish. “Plus, you always leave the second floor windows open.”

Ciar sighed, burying his face in his hands before quickly chugging down from his wine cup and running off.

The three exited the mansion and were guided through lonely alleys instead of the main road. “Is it Kushiel?” Tiamat asked Rajnish.

“I’ll explain when we’re all there.” He replied. By then, the clouds had blocked the moon, further darkening Rachel’s streets.

Eventually, the three made it to an unassuming house in the southeast district. Inside, Sir Melot and Lord Matthew waited, with an unhappy expression. “We’re all here like you wanted. Can you please tell us what’s going on now!?” Melot exclaimed.

Rajnish rubbed his neck as he paced around the room. A deafening silence fell, as everyone stared at the stalker and waited for him to speak up. “I’ve called you all here on such short notice because…” He began, but stopped, trying to find the right words to use.

“Spit it out already!” Ciar burst out, irritated by whatever was going on.

Rajnish looked at him, then down at the floor, and nodded. “Almost 1 month ago, Matthew and I travelled to Hel’s Castle with a crate full of Dreamstone crystals. I had only one goal in mind: To trade it for Mystra’s Soul.” He explained. Tiamat looked at Melot, worried about how he might react. “With it, I hoped to defeat Kushiel and then send Mystra back to Lady Hel, but… I was told it was not possible. Out of desperation, I ended up bringing back Ostellos… whom you probably know as Orpheus nowadays…”

Melot, having not blinked once during Rajnish’s explanation, glanced over to Matthew. The lord knight glanced at him, and quickly looked down at the floor again.

“Let me guess. He turned against you, and now you’re telling on him.” Ciar commented, with his arms crossed.

Rajnish nodded. “Kushiel had destroyed our HQ and decimated our troops. I lost an eye and almost a leg because of him.” He explained, pointing at the patch covering his left eye. “Desperation can drive a man to do crazy things.”

Melot closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and exhaled. “What are his plans?”

“I don’t know for sure, but he’s gotten in our members’ good graces. He might want to split us to take control.” Rajnish replied, shrugging. “Whatever his goals are, we can stop him. Tonight.” He added.

“Why tonight?” Tiamat asked.

“Every night at eleven, he warps to Rachel and walks toward an inn on the southwest district. It’s his current residence.” The stalker explained. “If we wait any longer, he might be on to us. He’s very perceptive.”

Lord Matthew scoffed. “So you have little over an hour to ambush him...” He looked deeply somber as he spoke.

“Gear up.” Melot told the four council members, in a restrained tone. “Steer clear from the city square. If you need any resources, use the Temple’s Kafra services.” He added, walking away from the group, staring at Rajnish as he passed by him.

At ten minutes until eleven o’clock, Ostellos warped into Rachel square. He silently walked along the main road to the inn he was staying at, seemingly unaware of what awaits him. He entered the empty building and used his key to go into his room. Inside, Lord Matthew and Rajnish waited for him.

“They’re onto us, Ostellos. We have to go!” Rajnish exclaimed, in a distressed tone.

“Really? I’ll need to pack my stuff quickly then…” He answered, looking into Rajnish and Matthew’s eyes while taking small, slow steps forward. Suddenly, Ostellos flung a stream of lightning at the light bulb on the ceiling, glass shattering against the wall.

Ostellos exited the dark room, with a ball of silky cobwebs in his hands, only to find Tiamat standing in front of the door, Ciar blocking the way to another room, and Melot about 10 feet from him. “Thought you’d escape your fate so easily?” He asked, brandishing a violet blade with two hands.

“Five against one? That hardly seems fair.” The dark-clothed professor snickered, surrounding himself by a wall of thick fog with just a wave of the hand. Just as Melot began to move, a stream of silky web was shot from the fog, stopping the paladin in his tracks. With a violent thrust of the hand, Ostellos broke Tiamat’s concentration, stopping her spell from being executed. Ciar rained down a flurry of ice shards unto Ostellos, but was promptly encased in stone.

Rajnish, now free of his web prison, lunged towards Ostellos, going for his weapon and armor. The professor rebutted by blocking the attack and delivering a strong kick to his injured knee, incapacitating him. Melot took the opportunity to slash at the scholar. Having barely avoided the blow and with a bloody arm, the professor raised a spiritual barrier around him, only to be knocked violently against the wall by a ball of lightning from Tiamat. Ostellos endured a second barrage of ice splinters from Ciar as fire danced across his fingertips. He stared Melot down as the paladin charged at him with a raised blade as the last of the splinters finished piercing his robes.

Just as the two were about to unleash their fury at each other, a crimson blade stopped their attacks. Melot jumped back from the impact, surprised to see Matthew standing between him and the scholar. Ostellos waved his hand at Tiamat, who began to wheeze and choke, the mana siphoned right out of her. He set fire to the carpet that covered most of the room, which quickly spread and separated the high wizard and Melot from the rest.

Rajnish, though still barely able to move, managed to grab Ostellos by the leg and repeatedly stab him, only to be struck in the stomach by Matthew’s boot. The lord knight helped the injured scholar up, while Ciar simply watched, astonished at the turn of events. The two friends looked at each other for a short moment, sharing unspoken words, before the crimson knight escaped with the dark scholar through the door behind Ciar.

Melot left through the main entrance with Tiamat, while Ciar helped Rajnish escape through a window. The four hurried through the alleys and made it back to Ciar’s mansion before the authorities got to the scene of the fire.

Day 26

The next morning, Rajnish woke up. He limped out of bed, and head for the living room. Tiamat sat, silently sipping tea. Ciar looked out the window, with a frustrated look. All of a sudden, Rajnish found himself grabbed by the neck. Melot raised the hefty stalker with little difficulty, slamming him against the wall.

“I should kill you for what you’ve done.” The paladin commented, with a violent glare.

“And I-I... very well deserve it…” Rajnish gasped, providing the most sincere reply after Melot's actions just moments earlier.

“You would like that, wouldn’t you.” Melot growled at the man, throwing him several feet away.

The stalker struggled to get back up. “I can… fix this!” He exclaimed, propping himself against a chair to stand on his own two feet again.

The paladin turned his back against the stalker. “You’ve done more than enough.”

Just then, someone knocked on the door. Ciar opened it, motioning a rogue to come inside. “Any news?” Tiamat asked, walking up to the two.

The rogue seemed rather distressed. “Orpheus arrived this morning and gave a long speech.” He explained. “Half of our troops left with him.”

Melot sighed and looked back at Rajnish, who kept quiet. He turned to look at Ciar and Tiamat, who stood by him, awaiting orders. “I want our best stealth troops gathering intel on him, and a thorough check of the temporary HQ for explosives. Ciar, I want you stationed at Midcamp so the Dark Allegiance is well represented when Kushiel attacks.” He turned to Rajnish again. “And you…” The paladin began, pointing his finger at him menacingly. “If you know what’s best for you, you’ll stay with me at all times.”

<><><><><>

Meanwhile, in the gloomy realm of Niflheim, Ostellos and Matthew walked along a dark road. “This is where I said she was staying. It’s finally time for you two to meet.” The scholar said, stopping in front of a lonely house. “She’ll be a powerful ally to us…”

(And with that, we can officially begin the new story Arc. Stay tuned to this thread for future event dates and details!)