I do not own anything relating to Fable II, although, sometimes the thought does cross my mind as to what it would be like to. Regardless, you can also find this story on my deviantart under the name of Esuerc

Fiendish Winds -0-0- Chapter 1 -0-0- Esuerc Voltimand

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Malicious Chase

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The carpet, dingy and sanguine in colour, wore away against the constant pacing about the small room, the floorboards beneath groaning violently even under the light pressure of her step. This was not an unusual occurrence, mind you. For long, the young girl had paced like so in deep concentration, her thoughts completely focused on what she had been so long preparing for… her "escape", as she would like to call it.

Hideous, the man was to her living in the Bloodstone Manor high atop the hill, securely tucked away from the foul refuse and putrescence that littered the streets beneath them like an undying plague. Not only his attitude, demeaning as it was, but his very existence, was disgusting to her. Constantly, she woke to the sound of his sick enjoyment- the pleasures of the body- and found herself unable to sleep the remainder of the night on many occasions due to that saddening fact.

But no more would she stand for it, she told herself upon coming to a stop in the center of the quaint, small room that had been given to her so many years ago by her employer. Today was the day, for better or for ill, that she would announce her "retirement" of her servitude to him. Feeling as though she held no debt to the man, putrid and perverse as he was, by taking on the job of scullery maid she held a secret pact with herself that now was the time she was to bid Goodbye.

Gathering the small assortment of things she owned in a satchel placed upon her back, the straps pulled snug about her shoulders, she took in a deep but shaking breath to calm herself. She would need all her nerve to stand tall against the man and announce her well deserved freedom. All would go according to plan, she thought. Surely, he had enough servants as it was to continue the jobs about the small Manor without noticeable lag from her departure. Lunacy, if would be, if he denied her request, no, her statement, more or less, simply due to this fact. It wasn't as though she was being paid for her services to the empty household, much to her dismay.

Regardless, she trotted quietly to the door on the far wall leading out to the balcony hanging just above the gallery, breathing deep before silently turning the latch and creeping out into the dimming hall. With evening approaching she knew it would be the best time to act; the darkness would fall and cover her tracks upon her escape… if it escalated to that point. Leaving the door open behind her to the now empty room she placed her hand upon the secure, carved railing preventing her fall into the gallery below, her eyes transfixed on the slender and lithe form of the man beneath her. His shadow cast en eerie scene about the room from his position before the roaring flames of the lively fireplace, his back to her with a relaxed hunch to his shoulders. It would seem that he was oblivious to her appearance.

Resisting the urge to forsake the plan completely she clenched her hand tightly about the railing, sighing and closing her eyes for a brief moment to collect herself. "Master Reaver." She pitched bravely, the typical accent of those of Albion not evident in her quiet voice. Try as hard as she might she couldn't help but feel the involuntary shiver course through her spine upon his icy eyes setting on her over his shoulder, leaning against the fireplace casually. Not expecting a vocal answer, she continued, gaining confidence in what she was doing without the thoughts of the repercussions of her next actions occurring to her.

"I am terribly sorry to inform you but I am here to announce that my servitude to you is over. With sincerest apologies, I—" She was cut short suddenly, caught up in the sight of him slowly turning fully to her, a typical malicious grin spread across the angular features of his handsome face. "I…I…" She stuttered at length, the very sight of his gaze taking the strength from her once well planned words.

With the shake of his head, his styled hair bouncing to and fro effortlessly, he laughed lowly and shot a charming, harmless smile up at her that surely hid his true ire. "Really, now?" He inquired, pivoting and leaning on his leg with his arms wrapped gingerly above his chest. "Taking your leave all too soon, are we? Wasn't aware that you had a choice in the matter, my dear." This angered her, her fists tightening in front of her as she leaned forward slightly on the creaking railing, preparing to release an onslaught of words that surely would have surprised even the Pirate King himself. But he merely laughed at her antics again, taking obvious enjoyment in the constantly changing emotions on her pale face. "Gale." He started in a coo, amusement evident in his all too suave voice that usually implied that he was hiding his annoyance. "Mind your next words with care. Redeem, if you must, the little respect I held for you."

Sighing again she opened her eyes to him, dark in colour, and aimed squarely at him. "I am not a child anymore. And as such, I am perfectly capable and responsible for my own decisions. With that said, I decide that it is my time to leave. I owe you no debt; that has long since been paid." Gale took a shaking step back from the railing to collect herself, regretting now her action to announce her departure to Reaver, thinking instead, that perhaps it would have been far smarter to simply flee without consent. All the same, she watched him place his hand gently upon his gun, the same signature smile on his attractive face, and pull it forth in a flash that caught the glow of the roaring fire to his backside.

With a short, painful intake of breath that stung her lungs like spring pollen Gale backed away farther, instantly regretting her decision for the umpteenth time in those past few seconds in her head.

In the blink of an eye, Gale narrowly dodged the bullet that screamed past her, biting its way past the elegant wallpaper and lodging itself deep in the wall behind her in the area where her head would have been moments before. She raced around the bend in the hall and leapt to the floor below over the railing of the second floor awning, her feet stinging with intense pain from the impact. In but a second, she recovered only to hear the door behind her burst open with a powerful kick from Reaver.

Surprisingly, he missed again, something that irked Gale considering the man's reputation, a fabled ability, with a gun, hitting the oak door that barred her from the world that she had so dearly missed. Giving chase, although leisurely as if to enjoy the "hunt" of one of the very few people that dared to speak out against him, Reaver strode out the door and into the courtyard to catch a glimpse of the young girl as she disappeared just behind the hill leading down into the squalor that was Bloodstone. Not wanting to exercise his full capabilities at the moment he quickly snapped his gloved fingers, catching the attention of the once idle guard standing to the left of the door, wagging his fingers in the direction of the escaping girl with the raise of his brow.

The young guard understood the gesture and tore himself from his post of leaning against the wall of the Manor, his heavy boots thumping on the hard cobblestone of the ground, whilst sprinting after Gale with his hammer drawn and at the ready; a short crop of blonde hair bouncing about from beneath his head wrap as he went. Casually, Reaver followed the pursuit, overly enjoyed that he would, at least for a long while, be able to shoot one of his many employees; a pleasure he had missed quite sorely.

Gale ran recklessly forward through the thinning thicket of people gathered in the marketplace, many of them heeding the scene as one that meant Reaver was not too far behind and escaping into their own homes for safety. Too soon, did she hear the guard at her heels, his large hammer thrown across his shoulders upon giving chase through the hilly terrain of the town, his deep, unsteady breaths echoing in her ear as he struggled to keep up with the serpentine fashion of how she ran. Eventually, hoping that he would give up the chase and inevitably return to the fuming Reaver with bad news, Gale made her way to the caves on the coast of the town, far away from the sights and smells of the marketplace for anyone to notice their disappearance. Seeing the Sinkhole cave in the crags, an outcropping just to her right leading out to the vast sea before her, she scurried into the darkness, taking a second look back over her shoulder to spy how close her pursuer was.

Gale came to a sudden halt at the sound of the floor beneath her moaning dangerously, creaking as it bent slightly downward under her soft padded boots. This posed a problem. A scream echoed through the cave with the thundering sounds of the boards snapping, the young guard close behind able to do nothing but break his stride at the lip of the new hole and look down to where he was certain he heard a deafening splash of water below. There would be no getting out of there, he mused silently to himself, relaxing his hold on the thick, leather-bound handle of his hammer.

"Fortenbrasse!" He heard his name called, turning about on his dug heels to look at the approaching Reaver at the mouth of the cave. "Oh my, how unfortunate for dear, little Gale." He jested, joining the guard's side to gaze down into the void. "Well now, that certainly is an inconvenience… but," Reaver laughed curtly and looked quickly to Fortenbrasse, "Nothing you certainly cannot handle. Tatty bye!" He backed away and swiftly brought a kick between his guard's shoulders, driving him down into the hole without so much as a hint of remorse across his handsome face.

"Do not tally, Fortenbrasse. I wish to have my dear Gale returned so that I may get to the matter of 'punishment' myself." Reaver called down with his gloved hand curved about his mouth, a smirk heard in his snarky voice and his gun now neatly placed back into the safety of its holster at his side.

Unbeknownst to the poor guard and the Pirate King, Gale's satchel had hooked onto one of the many exposed rocks jutting from the crooked sides of the deep hole, clinging limply, helpless, in the air above the water only to view the painful collision between Fortenbrasse and flotsam ridden surface pool below. Sure that Reaver was gone from earshot and her eyes now adjusting to the darkness of the void she swung slightly and clambered up the rock face, making her way back to the safety of solid ground in the entrance of the cave.

"Fortenbrasse." She called quietly, having known the guard's name from her work in the Manor. "You alright?" A groan emanated from him in response, surely struggling to stay above the surface of the algid water with the weight of the hammer on his back threatening to pull him down to his slow death. Even though she knew he was under the orders to capture and return her to Reaver a pain filled her chest with the thought of leaving him there to die. Instead, she shuffled through her belongings stashed away tightly in her bag, producing a thick, long line of rope that she began to uncoil and lower down to him. "Grab hold and I'll help you out." She ordered, knowing he would acknowledge and accept it for what it was. Unexpected help.

Groaning under the tremendous strain of his weight Gale trembled with every pull of the rope, glad for her gloves as they prevented the horrible burning that was bound to find its way through their thick hide. Regardless, the blonde, spiky crop of Fortenbrasse's noggin crowned the pit, his hands clutching wildly at the rocky ground to pull himself up the last few feet to safety at Gale's side.

Fortenbrasse collapsed, both of them panting, but he being the only one soaked to the marrow with water, dirt now covering his clothes and face from the dusty ground he so lazily laid his head upon. "Me garb's sallied, now." He announced with closed eyes, his accent thick and his voice hoarse but a welcome relief compared to the voices, raspy and high pitched as they were, of the other guards that Reaver constantly employed. "Mortifyin', it is."

This made Gale laugh softly, appreciating the fact the he had yet to come after her like his master ordered. "Can' very well hurt ye after ye helped me, now can I? Not real polite and bad form, that be." Fortenbrasse pushed himself up into a sitting position and relieved himself of his hammer, placing it on the ground and wiping the water from his gaunt face with a rough, gloved hand. Gale watched, entertained, as he attempted to fix the small tuft of hair running up his chin, failing and leaving it how it was to settle on draining the water collected in his boots. "Why'd he get mad at ye like tha', anyway, if ye don' mind me askin'?" He said at length, looking over at her crouched form beside him.

"I just wanted to leave." Gale admitted finally, her eyes dropping to the ground just in front of the square toes of her worn boots. "To go out and experience Albion for all it's worth." He agreed, nodding his head in approval, all the while slipping his boots back on up his bandaged legs, "Why are you here?" she dared to ask, cocking her head to the side.

Fortenbrasse chuckled cheerfully, his eyes curving with the smile etched on his lips, "I jus' needed money, is all. 'Eard Reaver paid well." Gale scoffed but grinned at him, finding this side to the otherwise unruly guard refreshing and enjoyable, to say the least.

A thought hit Gale like a bolt from the blue, her eyes widening suddenly. Fortenbrasse noted this and neared her slightly with his mouth hanging open unconsciously. "Ye alright?" He asked, concerned for her silence.

It was now or never, Gale thought. "I have a proposition for you." She sat her hands on her knees in a cross-legged fashion, "What is it that you really want to do in life? His face faltered, his eyes traveling to the entrance of Sinkhole Cave as if he would gain support from the fading light of the setting sun far out on the golden horizon.

He groaned lowly, tightening his belt like a nervous twitch. "Well, if ye really mus' know…" His eyes wandered again, "… I wan' to join the Assassination Society." Gale's eyes widened again, her mouth falling in disbelief. "I know, I know, I know." Fortenbrasse responded quickly, shaking his hands in front of him in defense, "Ain't tha' great a job choice, but seems fun to someone like me, ye know?"

She agreed, the guard letting out a much needed sigh of relief. "Wha's this ye were sayin' 'bout a proposition?"

Gale straightened, quickly remembering. "Right! Well, if you wanted to join the Society, and I wanted to get out of Bloodstone, we can…" She waited, seeing if he was getting the point she was so desperately trying to make. But he merely sat there, unfazed and waiting for her to continue. Not so bright, she wondered, rolling her eyes. "… Work together." She finished slowly, smiling genuinely at him.

Finally, he understood, joining her with a crooked grin of his own, "Really now?' He asked, sounding almost unconvinced, "How do ye suppose we get out. I ain't be goin' through Wraithmarsh. Too dangerous, an' don' know the way, an'—"

"Don't worry." She stopped him with a raised hand. Gale gave him a wry smirk, "I've got a plan."

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Chapter 2-

--Journey Out of Bloodstone

Author's note:

Fortenbrasse is pronounced *four- ten- brah* just in case any of you were wondering.

Sparrow does not exist in this story, so don't expect to see him/her in here.