Chapter I: The Bounty Hunter
Gondar, the Bounty Hunter slowly made his way towards the center of Majuak, a relatively large town within the land of Ulmarain. The morning sun slid over the sleepy buildings and other various structures of daily life. As it began to blanket him, Gondar drew up the hood of his simple tattered cloak. It had been a long night and an agitating hunt. Muffled groans of discomfort could be heard from the writhing sack he dragged in tow. This particular catch was wanted for the thieving of precious metals from the town reserves. The contract required the mastermind to be brought back alive, his cohorts were not so lucky, and worse; made the mistake of trying to protect their leader. Disposing of them had been simple enough; dragging the man back on the other hand, had been quite taxing physically considering Gondar's small stature. He made a mental note to rent a horse on his next bounty. Despite these problems, he trudged on across the cobblestoned roads towards the courthouse, where he could relieve his burden, and collect the reward. It would be a meager sum yes, but one could not afford to be picky in these harsh times. It was all a means to an end.
It wasn't long before the streets began to fill with merchants, families, and travelers; the lifeblood of the town. As they began to pour in from their domiciles and places of business, he could see less than one hundred paces away, the town courthouse looming ahead. The crowds of townsfolk parted as he crept up upon his destination. Those who didn't took only one look at the large burlap sack squirming about and quickly moved aside. Finally arriving at the steps of his goal, using both arms, Gondar hefted the sack onto the dirt caked steps and sat on it. The wriggling of the bag intensified as a small gathering of people looked on. Feeling parched; he drew a water sack from his cloak, and poured into his throat the very much deserved nourishment.
A court guard, clad in ornate albeit slightly worn armor loudly slumped down the steps and lowered his javelin threateningly at him. "State your business vagrant!" he spat out. His patience already wearing thin, Gondar's ears twitched with annoyance at the man's tone. Withdrawing his water skin whilst pulling back his hood, he announced himself firmly. "My name is Gondar and I've come for my payment." Motioning towards the sack with one of his digits, "Inside is the thief you call Lerin. Will I be paid or shall I let him go?" The guard, faintly beginning to shake stammered; "P-Pr-Present him so that we may confirm this deed!" Gondar's deep red eyes squinted. "Fair enough…" Standing up, he unsheathed his obsidian tracer, from beneath his cloak; and sliced the bag apart with one perfectly placed cut, skillfully returning it to the scabbard beneath his attire.
The unfortunate thief Lerin, rolled out of the remnants of his temporary prison. He was gagged and bound with a wild fright in his eyes. The crowd issued a collective gasp. Gondar's acute hearing picked up their whispers of his past exploits; he could smell their fear, even from this distance. There was a momentary pause by the guard and then he signaled to others as they homed in taking Lerin away. The remaining guardsmen beckoned to Gondar to follow him into the courthouse to see the judge. As they walked through the halls of the building, he noted the many expensive looking wood carvings of punishment and justice. Eventually he stood before a pair of massive elegant doors. The guard pried them open and directed him inside where the glow of sunlight issued through a pair of large windows. The light settled upon a single wooden desk with an elderly man sitting behind it, with many books piled to either side of him.
His thick and demanding voice acknowledged the guard "Leave us." The command was promptly followed. The judge set down his quill and stood hunched over, immediately beginning his line of questioning. "I am Judge Harper. I was told you brought in Lerin alive. How did you manage that?" Gondar's eyes lit with amusement, "Swiftly and silently." He slowly iterated. Harper seemed to accept this answer and walked over to a small chest beside his desk, taking out a key; he unlocked and removed a small leather bag that jingled with the sweet sounds of coins. "Very well, your payment in full…"
Gondar took hold of the purse and weighed it with his three digits. Something was amiss… "There is more in here than what was offered on his bounty." Harper smiled, "You truly do have keen senses. I have another job for you in mind and even more where that came from, should you accept." Gondar's eyes thinned, "I do not accept more than what was agreed to when I chose the target. You have however made this next part far easier for me than Lerin." The judge chuckled. "What do you mean?" The bounty hunter began to explain "Lerin and his unfortunate crew seem to have been hired by someone of high standing. There is a corrupt official within the town government that accepts bribes from criminals for a piece of their gains. The High Lords of Ulmarain hired me to track and eliminate them. For quite a hefty price I might add. Lerin was a stepping stone to speak directly with a government official of the region. I was not expecting it to pan out this well. I never would have pegged you for my target, I'll give you that."
Harper's face went ghostly pale as he opened his mouth to shout for the guards. With reflexes honed over a lifetime of combat, Gondar closed the gap between them instantly, grabbing Harper by the throat tightly with his off hand. "Shhhhhh." He persuaded the silently weeping judge as he held his obsidian tracer to the target's eyes. "Now tell me, are there any other nobels involved?" He loosened his digits slightly to allow the judge to speak and dropped the leather purse, the coins clinging together echoed throughout the room. "No one else! I swear it on the life of my Lord! Mercy! I can pay you anything you desire!" Harper desperately whispered. Gondar could only smile. "I'm terribly sorry Judge Harper but I've already accepted this contract. I can't very well go back on it."
The judges' eyes bulged as Gondar put a death grip upon his throat and proceeded to plunge his tracer into the man's skull. Harpers eyes rolled back as his body began to twitch and spasm uncontrollably. He set the corpse upon the desk as its fluids flowed and pooled upon it. Gondar wiped his tracer clean using his cloak and gingerly plucked the bounty gold for Lerin off the floor. He untied the seams and plucked out the extra coins, tossing them upon the now dead Harper. It was time to leave, he would slip into the shadows and leave town at dusk. The High Lords additional clause within their contract seemed odd to him, even now as he prepared to exit the large window. Gondar was to meet with a Magus in Ultimyr to discuss a new job. But not just any Magus, supposedly this was a summons from the Grand Magus himself. He had heard only rumors of the figure but still... such propositions were not to be overlooked or dismissed. Especially not with the amount of gold he was offered to go merely chat with him. Gondar's ears propped high as the sounds of banging armor scurried down the halls...
Moments later, the guards barged in, wondering why their judge had taken so long to settle matters with the bounty hunter.
They were only greeted by a dead man and the wind whistling from the open window.