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Chapter 4 - Curiosity Killed the Cat

The day went on quiet and uneventful for Ren, as he rested the whole time, pulling back deep within his soul, letting his problems go away for now. He let his spectral body rest; regenerate slightly while his mind gathered energy. This of course didn't mean he hadn't been awoken by something the dwarf did that made too much noise, but eventually went back to meditating. He hated being this vulnerable. He needed to rest every day as it seemed, and not just for three hours... but half a day. The loss of his master must have affected him too much, not only his mind, but his body as well. Soon, the sun started to go down, which was accompanied by the rise of darkness over this part of the world, slowly, but surely awakening the wraith from his resting. He did keep his mind and body resting, but he was awake, in a trance-like state, where he did acknowledge the sounds and movements, but reacted to them slowly, or not at all.

The wizard had started smoothing out some of the surface of the wood piece when the sun started going down. She decided to be done with it for now and put it up against the wall. It would take her a couple days to finish her little project anyway so no real rush. Her flowers in her hair started to close as the sun went down but she seemed to still have energy. She had spent some time just taking in the sun today. She would be able to stay up past sun set night. Maybe only a few hours but it was still something.

-Meanwhile-

As the men walked back towards her home as they had promised, one was obviously worried.

"Sir, I'm not so sure this is a good idea. What if we anger her? She could turn us all to dust for all we know." he said. He wanted to save their elder too but he wasn't sure angering the young wizard would get that done. Many of the stories he knew about wizards said it would more likely get them killed than anything.

"Shut your mouth..." Said the one that spoke to her before, questioning her ability. "She wouldn't be able to harm a worm if it came to killing. Remember that raid back then?" He turned around to stop the group briefly, facing the man who started to get second thoughts. "She didn't partake in the actual fight, but pulled back, I could swear she even healed an orc! And if she does kill us because of her anger..." He walked closer to him, now standing only an inch away from him. "...then she is no wizard anymore. They do have a code of honor. If she breaks it, then she will be hunted by the Order." He said, gritting his teeth at him before gesturing for everyone to move on, walking in front of the group. Soon, the lights coming from the wizard's shack came into view and sped up, wanting to reach her as soon as possible.

The other man cringed but nodded and followed his leader going quiet. He still obviously didn't think this was a good idea.

The man didn't waste time, but hurried towards her shack. He didn't even look back to see if the others were following him, as he was too much concentrating on his task. Once arriving, he lifted his hand and knocked loudly three times, then stood back, waiting for her to open her door. However, if she failed to do so, he always can break in. The current state of his elder gave him the determination to get that potion from her by force if needed.

Hyano was about to sit down again when she heard the men coming. She groaned then got up and nudged Ren lightly not wanting to shock him. Just wanted to stir him slightly.

"Ren." she said then ran over kicking the mat again and opening the trap door. "Go." she told him pointing again. She was sure he was going to be a little annoyed with her for waking him up... if he was asleep. She still wasn't sure. How could someone sleep in that position? Then again she fell asleep upside down in a tree once so who was she to talk? However, again she needed him somewhere the humans could not see him. She knew it was dark now. That would give him more energy. If that was a good or bad thing right now she had no idea.

The wraith was jerked awake from his trance-like state, and looked up, first disoriented, not sure what is going on, until he heard a noise coming from the side. He turned his hooded head to see her setting the hole in the ground free, no doubt for him again. He didn't even need to ask himself why, when he felt the sound of approaching feet. In his current state, he would be just alright if they saw him... His aura should do the job of holding them away from the shack if he so wished, but if he does give himself away by it, they would surely go and get some guards... who would make short work of him. So, after grabbing the staff and uttering a tired-sounding 'Annoooyyyiiinngg', he struggled to stand on his feet on the ground, and started going for the hole. This was when he stopped and looked around briefly.

His toy! The box was gone from his resting place, so was the rodent he normally enjoyed to mess with. This made him slightly unwilling to move again, but the thought of being discovered ushered him, so he descended into the cellar once more. At the very least... he still has her staff.

Hyano didn't even notice he didn't have the little... Shipmunk with him. Yeah, that was its new name. She thought it was funny and cute so she was going to use it. She closed the door then put the mat back over it right as the set of loud knocks on her door met her ears. Were all humans this rude or just the ones she had to deal with? She thought before sighing. She got up and made sure everything was alright. "Well... here goes." she said before walking up to the door and opened it with one of her usual smiles.

"Hello good gentlemen. I'm sorry but you have completely wasted your time. Unless you would like a bowl of warm fairy jam you will have to leave." she said acting almost as if nothing had happened earlier that day. She didn't want to cause any problems. She just wanted to send them on their way and be done with it. She had to guess that the rudest of the bunch was likely related to the elder in question. That would explain why he was so forceful. If not it might just be a rather annoying personality trait.

"I doubt we wasted our time. We came here to get the potion to our elder. He is in an even worse shape than this afternoon. So we aren't leaving until we got the requested potion." The man said, crossing his arms and raising his head a bit, indicating he meant business and truly won't leave until he got what he came for. The group also backed him up. Although they didn't say anything, they made sure she notices them.

Hyano raised a brow at his boldness. "You can either go home or wait till dawn but either way the potion will not be ready till tomorrow." she didn't seem in any way intimidated by the large bodies in front of her. "Now would you like some food or something? I would invite you all in but my home is not very large so doing so would be more trouble than anything." she offered looking more to the men behind the man talking to her. One had yet to say a word since they got here earlier that day. Maybe he was just the quiet type. She couldn't tell. Another seemed rather nervous though he tried to play it off as nothing and tried to look as strong as he could. Likely the youngest. There was the one who had blocked her door. A large fellow. Likely the kind of man who enjoyed a good bar fight from the looks of it. Then there was the one in front of her. Full of fire and everyone seemed to listen to him. He probably wasn't all that smart based on the way he was treating her but he had the makings of a good leader. She could respect him for that much at least.

"Instead making food, you can make the potion." He simply told her, not moving an inch from his position. "And I would suggest you hurry up. You had a whole day to make it, now it surely must be ready... or else..." he leaned closer to look into her eyes and come face to face with her, lowering his tone. "Or else, the death of our elder will be your fault..." he threatened her before standing once more, waiting for her reply. But no matter what she said, he will stay here, watch her, and disturb her work which had nothing to do with the making of the potion they requested.

She looked back into his eyes then looked passed him. "Does he not know how to listen?" she asked then looked back to the man in front of her. "The potion CAN'T be done till tomorrow. Period. There is nothing I can do about that. You can stand here all night if you like but there is nothing you, nor I can do to change that. Now stop being an oversized brat. Now make yourself at home on the ground." she said then stepped back to shut the door. She couldn't speed up the potion. What in those words was he not understanding?! There was more to potion making then just putting things in a pot and boiling them sometimes. In this case there was a lot more to it and no matter what she said it did not seem to drill through this creature's thick skull.

The man however didn't give up just yet. He struck his leg out and stopped the door from shutting, then pushed it open by force, stepping inside after her.

"Perhaps you have been lazy then all day yesterday? Forgot about it, and now you put everything together in a hurry?" He asked, accusing her, stepping closer once more, his hands forming into fists. "Use that strong magic of yours to speed it up... That is... if you truly are as knowledgeable as you claim to be." He said, yet again questioning her ability as not only healer this time, but as wizard as well. There were a few who stepped in with him, only one stayed outside, being more cautious.

The young wizard was pushed back as he barged into her door. Was he looking to die? She gripped her fists stepping back and glaring up at him. She couldn't risk using magic right now. The more she used the more likely it was that she would pass out. However, she might just risk it for this idiot. For now though she would only use her physical skills.

"You have no concept of the boundaries reality has and what might happen if one breaks them." she said through clenched teeth before jumping up. She moved like an animal soon on his chest and grabbed him by the collar. "This is what happens when you push the boundaries." she said then dropped bringing him down as well and slamming him into the floor. She looked down at him then to the others. "You dare walk into my home. The only one out of you who has shown me any measure of respect is the one still standing outside the door." she said then looked to him. "You can stay. As for the rest of you... if you do not leave my forest... I will send all the animals of the night after you and your ken!" she yelled slamming her foot on the floor the sound a lot louder than what it should have been seeming to blast its way through the whole of the woods.

-Meanwhile at the cellar-

In the meantime, Ren was still standing there, motionless in the darkness, savoring the feeling of his powers returning. After a few minutes, he grasped the staff in his hands tighter and walked about in the cellar. There was really nothing to do, other than sit around and hope he can go back soon. He sighed and finally sat at the ground where there were no plants, and soon getting an idea, started to use the staff to write on the ground into the earth, or simply draw shapes.

However, the blast of Hyano's stomp was loud indeed. It caused the Nazgul to look up from his writing, or drawing, and turn his hooded head into the direction it came from. All he could hear was silence though, and wondered what it could have been, what could have caused such a loud noise. Annoyed at it, the wraith sounded a loud and low hiss upwards, in his tongue asking for silence, or at the very least for a more silent activity up there. Then simply turned back to the writing he was doing with the staff and continued his entertainment.

To say the least, the man was surprised by the sudden agility the small wizard showed. She was still a child to them, but had quite the strength. Well, not really strength, but knew how to move to surprise the others. She certainly wouldn't have succeeded if he expected it, or so the man thought to ease his bruised ego. He grit his teeth and stood, not at all believing her, stepping closer to her once more, but stopped once he heard the threatening hiss from below...

The istar heard the hiss and thought quickly. She could use this. She looked up at him and smirked. "They are right under our feet sir... just waiting..." she said. It wasn't technically the creatures she had been thinking of but it would do the job. If they heard the Wraith's hisses maybe they would mistake them for other creatures of the night and get the hint.

One of the men stepped back. "S-sir, maybe we should do as she says." he stuttered slightly. He heard the hisses. It sounded like a snake but none that he had ever heard before. Much larger and stronger. He had no idea the true danger that was staying right below their feet. Hyano looked right up at the one man before stomping her foot again hoping to get a similar reaction out of Ren. "Now leave!" She snapped.

The man looked down towards the ground, where below came the noise, then back at the wizard, before meeting the eyes of the one who spoke up. He wasn't yet ready to give up as he stepped forward once more. However, even he pulled back as the highly annoyed Ren sounded yet another hiss, this time more furious, even gave in a slight shriek, wanting to have this noise stopped, so he can continue with his entertainment. The man looked left and right, before actually backing out of the cottage.

"We will come back. And you will be sorry." He said, before turning and leaving. However, he knew his retreat was only a temporary one, as he will return and hunt down whatever animal she was hiding in her basement...

Hyano shut the door, then sighed and sat onto the floor. "Good..." she mumbled softly. She felt so tired. All she really wanted to do was tell the whole village to shove off but she knew the elder and really did want to help him get better. She groaned softly. The things she put up with. She then got up and walked over to the basement door lazily and pulled it open. She didn't bother to tell him he could come up, but just left it open for him, then sat down onto her cot with a sigh. If he wanted to come up he would. If he didn't it was up to him. Might be easier if he stayed down there now that she thought about it. Just in case they did return. She would likely pass out way before then. If that happened... they had a problem.

Ren stayed down for a while longer, wanting to finish his drawing before he thought of going back up. He did notice it when she opened the door for him, but simply refused to go for now. Once finished, he grasped the staff tighter, tapping the wooden surface with his metallic fingers, thinking of what to do. He turned left, then right, looking at the plants, and in the end, the stench of some herbs forced him out. He stopped up in the room, looking around, having boredom claw at his mind. He found it was annoying. Not knowing what to do and where to go is one of the worst things that can happen to him. But then, he remembered something. His squeaky animal! Of course! He started looking around now, extending his senses, using his aura to feel any living being in the room beside the dwarf, who he forgot the name of already... After only a few minutes of walking around, he finally spotted it, curled up between some fabrics in the corner. It was shaking, certainly feeling he was near. He didn't waste time to lean down and take the squealing rodent in his hands, then simply shuffled back to his cot and sat down, resuming his entertainment this time with poking it again.

Hyano jumped as the rodent started to squeal madly then looked and saw that Ren had finally left the basement and of course found his little friend. She giggled lightly. 'At least he is consistent.' She thought before sitting up realizing she hadn't eaten since early that morning. Falling asleep on an empty stomach always felt horrible the next morning. She walked over to the huge pot and got herself a small bowl. She then sat down on the cot across from him her legs crossed. She didn't bother saying a thing as she ate her food calmly, too tired and rather frustrated, her mind still wondering to the rude humans who had been there only a few moments ago.

The wraith didn't pay her any heed. She was too boring for his taste right now, but the little toy he had was much more interesting. He let the little critter run. Well... in a way. He put it in his palm, and let it run away from him, then once it reached the end of his hand, he put the other up, so letting it walk along his hands. His hooded head followed its movements, all his attention being centered on the animal. Then he grabbed it in a hand as the stench of her food reached his senses. She was... consuming that disgusting substance again... He hissed at her, before speaking up.

"Annoyyyiiinnnggg..." he said, before shaking his head, sounding a half hiss, half groan, indicating he didn't find it pleasant, before returning his attention to the rodent in his hand, poking its small nose with a metallic finger, watching as it squealed and pulled back from his hand.

The wizard debated on giving him a not-so-nice hand signal but considering he would have no idea what it meant it would just end in her laughing till she fell off her cot. Considering she was already half asleep she really didn't need to kill any more energy laughing at someone who had no idea why. Instead, she just finished her meal before putting the bowl away. She sat back on her cot again once her items was all put away then put a finger to her lips.

"Shhhhhh" as far as she knew that was a universal sign to everyone to be quiet. She then dropped onto the cot and passed out. If she pushed it she could probably stay awake for a little longer but she honestly didn't want to. Maybe if she was lucky she could wake up when the men arrived. She still hoped they wouldn't come.

He only stopped for a little while his game when she motioned for him to stay quiet. Yes, he had seen and heard this motion before, and simply watched her as she fell back on her cot and... yet again started her regeneration with falling unconscious. He tilted his head to the side, then the other, and after a few minutes of making sure she was truly not awake, he finally stood up with the help of the staff. The wraith then proceeded wandering around the room once more, before stopping at the table. There, he noticed something glinting in the moonlight.

Something... transparent... shiny.

He gave a very faint hiss and simply put the animal down, letting it run away as he took the glass thing and inspected it, turning it in his hands. It was surely something needed for her work, but he couldn't help but think its shape interesting, just like the way it glinted with the faint light. After about half an hour of sitting on his cot, inspecting the glass, he jerked his head up, when he heard the sudden loud squeal coming from the other end of the room. It was his toy. But its squeal wasn't as pleasant, even sounded faint, painful, and could hear it struggling. He tilted his hooded head to the side, before standing with the staff in his hands and went into the direction of the sound. He stopped in his tracks as he found the animal being... surrounded by the long body of a snake. That is one animal he recognized. He stood there for a few seconds, watching as the rodent struggled breathing, its heartbeat slowed...

Wait... What?

He gave a very low the threatening hiss, diving for the creature. He took the staff and slammed it down on the body of the reptile, killing it instantly. As its body fell limp, the wraith took it and threw it into the corner, before leaning down and taking the strangely limp critter into his palm. He watched it for a while, before walking back to the cot, sitting down and holding it up. He didn't know why it didn't try to flee now... Why didn't it move? He tilted his head to the side, before raising his other hand and started poking it. First the nose, then once it didn't react, he turned it and started poking its stomach. Not a few seconds later, it gave a weak, then a loud sharp squeal, waking up. To say the least, the wraith was pleased, so resumed to poke the worn-out creature, which he -unknown to him- not only saved from the snake, but brought it back to life by poking it.

With the little animal now successfully squeaking about once more, the wraith stood again with the box in his hand, feeling enough energy in his mind to move about a little bit. Well, let us say that he was wrong.

Very wrong.

His body almost fell over as he tried to stand on his own, instead, he was lucky he had the staff at the ready, so supported his weight on it once more. He walked over to the table again and inspected the items that were on it, before the glint of that same glass item caught his attention. Looking around, then at his toy which he put it into the box that had all the food in it, making sure it was occupied, then took the glass once more. It had an unusual shape... Maybe he saw this before after all... With Uvatha. He tended to experiment and use such herbs, plants for creations. It was a glass container with a wide bottom, and a narrow, long upper part. He took it with him, putting it into the box with the rodent, then took the box in his metallic grip and carried it to the cot, where he set it down and picked up the glass again, rolling it in his hands. Every once in a while, he would reach out and crack a... 'food'... for the squeaking animal. When the night was about to end, and knew the sun will rise soon, the wraith settled down to meditate again, with the box still on the cot next to him, containing the sleeping chipmunk and the glass he found.

-Meanwhile-

The youngest of the group was panting madly. Their leader was insane. Did he seriously believe attacking a wizard like this was a good idea? He had no idea as to how to talk some sense into him though. He was the kind of person who over analyzed things. It was great for battle strategy but in situations like this it made him look like a coward even though he had proven time and again that he could easily fight if he had no other options. However, in this case there were plenty of options and for some reason everyone was choosing the deadliest one. They had no idea what was down there! It could be a giant cobra for all they knew yet for some reason they were to take the risk?!

The leader walked with strong and determined steps, ignoring everything around him, including the worried glances the boy sent him, not even glancing back if the others were following him. He knew they do. Their elder is dying, and how else could they give her back this tragedy? Of course by killing her precious animals that are near and inside her shack. He clutched a slightly blunt sword in his hand, whispering curses at the wizard and at the animals. Now they are prepared for everything. Let those animals come.

As the men approached the shack the animals that were still awake fled. A murderous aura surrounded these men telling them that it was not safe to be near. This included the chipmunk in the Nazgul's hand. Its ears perked up before he started to squeak, for once not because he was afraid of the Wraith but something else.

Ren was jerked awake by the squeaking of his toy and turned his hooded head to it, before giving it a faint hiss and told it in his tongue to quiet down. However, now that he was more alert, he fell silent and looked towards the door, hearing the noise of approaching feet. At first, he thought it might be the dwarf coming back, maybe she was somewhere else, but soon her sleeping form caught his attention on the other cot. So... these must be others. He looked around briefly, before reaching out and taking the box of... food, with the chipmunk and strange glass container in it, and stood with the help of the staff. He was still weak, seeing he couldn't meditate as much just yet, then started walking towards the still open hole the dwarf always told him to vanish into. However, he stopped his advance towards it and turned his head back towards her. She didn't move... Shouldn't she be getting up and confronting these people? After he heard them coming closer, he walked back to the sleeping small dwarf and poked her with the staff. Then again... Then again. But no reaction...

Hmm...

The leader of the group stepped up to the door and slammed his fist against it. "Wizard Hyano! We know you are in there! Come on and show us what these fearsome animals of yours can do!" he called out then put his hand on his sword at the ready for anything. He did not know that said wizard was out cold in a cot. He did not know that she was accompanied by a Ringwraith who, while weak, was still a deadly force. All he truly knew was that his elder was dying and this wizard was not giving them the potion they needed to fix the problem. So they would make her give them the potion no matter what. They had no time to wait.

At the sound of knocking and talking, the wraith thought his safety was more important than hers at the moment, so simply turned, and vanished into the cellar again with his two toys in the box.

When there was no reply the man glared at the door before kicking the door wide open. Again, Hyano didn't move an inch. The men walked in and looked around not seeing the sleeping wizard at first nor her animals she claimed to have. When the leader saw her he felt his rage hit an all-time high. She was sleeping?! Like they weren't even there? He gritted his teeth then grabbed her up roughly and there was a loud bang as she was thrown into a wall like a rag doll. She coughed as she hit the floor but besides that made no moves at all. Her body going limp again like nothing had even happened.

The mess up in the room caught the attention of the wraith as he was about to resume his drawing. The loud thud... Then a familiar tone as the dwarf coughed... What are they doing up there? He stared at the open hole which led to the room, hearing talking and steps. But the dwarf didn't talk... He shook his head, staying silent, before looking at the rodent in the box, actually meeting its gaze as it was completely silent as well. Slowly, he walked up to the opening of the basement and peered up. Luckily his dark clothes shadowed him from the eyes of the men. This was when he tilted his head to the side, unsure what to think of the situation. The dwarf was laying on the floor, now next to the wall, while at least three or four men were standing around her. He quickly ducked down. Why wasn't she moving? Laying there... just like the... Shipmunk when he got it back from the snake. Only after he poked it a few times did it move. Maybe she needs to be poked as well? But he couldn't risk to be detected. He didn't want a fight or anyone being alerted of his presence in here. He contemplated what to do... Then peered up again to look what they were doing.

The man glared clinching his fists. "You!" He basically shouted, pointing at one of the men. "Start looking through everything looking for that potion. I want this place turned upside down." he ordered him, who nodded in return and started looking through all her things. He honestly wasn't sure what exactly he was looking for. For all he knew it could be some special rock or something. He hadn't a clue but he started to tear the place up looking anyway. "You're with me." he told the other man before they started to look around looking for access to the lower levels. A few hours ago it was dark, so they couldn't easily see the door to the basement but unlike before, there was no mat covering it because Hyano hadn't been awake to put it back over it.

The Nazgul watched it all. And now... they are starting to look through the things on the table... On the cot... All around the room. The dwarf still wasn't moving... The tone of the human wasn't too respectful either. While he couldn't understand what he said, he could tell he was giving orders. Barking like a rabid warg... The dark creature saw they are moving closer and closer to the opening of the cellar he was in. If they see him... They will go and get some soldiers to fight him, and in the end attempt to kill him... Attempt. He could not let this happen... He was quite content to stay here, having an amusing servant and all the things he could explore. And his toys, the squeaking rodent and the glass container. Running all the while won't help him with recovering. He actually considered this little shack as his own territory. His base and his alone. No one else's... And if they want to look through things, they will have to get through him first.

So, suddenly angered by their boldness and disrespect, the Nazgul let out a low and furious hiss, wanting to scare them away with it. In the meantime he also extended his dark aura, letting it take care of them, if it could with causing fear in their mortal minds. However, he still didn't recover completely... so it might not have the complete desired effect.

The hiss got their attention alright. The leader heard it and looked right at the door.

"There you are you little..." he said then shivered feeling something dark run through him. He gripped his fists then glared over at the wizard thinking it was her doing. He gave her a swift kick. "You will not have me fooled so easily!" he yelled at her.

"Sir, I don't think we should go down there." said the youngest of the group feeling the effects far more than his leader.

"No! We will finish what we came here to do!" He snapped then stomped over to the cellar door. He would not be deterred so easily. Or at least in his mind it was too easy.

By the time the man made it to the basement's door, the Nazgul pulled back towards the other end of the cellar, hissing furiously all the way. He didn't expect the human to actually climb down, so made sure to pull back into the darkness, still gripping the staff. After a few warning hisses -which didn't seem to have the desired effect- he let out a hiss and a faint shriek, trying to scare him off. While he backed up behind some barrels to hide, he leaned the staff against the wall, then reached into his robes, pulling out his sword. He will not let this one leave if it saw him...

The other man didn't dare move the sounds being enough to keep him glued like a statue away from the door. Even the one who had been ordered to basically make a mess of the little wizard's home stopped what he was doing at the sound of the shriek sending that sent a shiver down his spine.

The leader gulped and stepped into the darkness seeing the odd plants below his feet before looking around. At first he didn't see anything which angered him. "The little witch lied to us!" he yelled kicking up some of the plants before noticing writing on the floor. "Hm?" he stepped towards it and tilted his head having never seen writing like this before. He shook his head turning and unknowingly to him turning so he was looking right in the direction of the Wraith.

Ren, after the man was too close for comfort stayed silent, watching him closely, holding his sword at the ready if he dared to move any closer. He watched as he looked down, inspecting the writing he made, and the seemingly shapeless drawings, but didn't utter a sound. He was sure he didn't understand it anyway. Humans never dared to learn the Black Speech, and they don't have a vision equal to his kind to make sense of the drawing. To him, it was clear what it represented, the deeper and shallower lines all had a meaning of their own. Once the human turned to look exactly at him, the wraith stayed motionless, trusting the darkness around him. But even if he did, the sword was always ready to draw blood and end the life of this daring human.

Now, normally the darkness would easily hide the Wraith like anything else from the shadows. However, there was a slight problem. The staff he carried was in no way made to keep one hidden in the darkness, instead it gave off a very faint glow, releasing some of the energy it gathered during the day. The man noticed the staff first before noting what was attached to it. His eyes moved getting more and more used to the dark, noticing that the Wraith was in fact darker than the shadows. Once he had a full view of what he was looking at he grabbed at his sword.

"Wh-what in the world?!" he cried out.

However, to his dismay, the Wraith's reflexes were quicker. Before he could grab for his sword, the Nazgul thrust forward with his, impaling him through his chest with a hiss-shriek. His first kill after his escape from the destruction.

And he enjoyed it.

The smell of blood, the sight of sudden shock and terror in the eyes of his victim awoke his hunger for mortal deaths and the want to feel their horror when they see him... Watch them run in vain... Only to be killed in the next moment by his sword. He hissed constantly as he watched the human fall to his knees, his eyes glazed over and red blood flowed from his mouth. He sniffed audibly, savoring the scent of that delicious yet disgusting substance. He started to hunger for more, turning his hooded head slowly towards the entrance to the cellar.

The youngest of the men heard the yelling of his leader and stepped back.

"Oh, Gods we are going to die!" he cried out. The other man wasn't as easily scared as his friend was and pulled out his sword.

"Come out beast and fight!" he cried out picking up a jar and tossing it into the darkness hoping to bring out whatever was in the basement.

"Are you crazy?! Whatever is in there just got him and you want to bring it up here with us?!" yelled the youngest one. He wasn't sure if his leader was dead but just by the sounds he heard he had a good guess of the fact. He stepped back towards the door feeling a heavy need to run come over him.

The wraith let the lifeless body of the human fall limp onto the floor, drawing back his sword. He watched it for a while... savoring the feeling of the kill... the blood... and death. His hooded head turned with a furious hiss as he heard someone yell from above. Not a few seconds later, something crashed on the ground near the entrance of the cellar, drawing his attention for a few seconds. He let out an angry hiss at this, sharp like a blade, and furious like a rabid warg. He stepped up towards the entrance... but knew not to go closer. Here he has the advantage of complete darkness. Now, the staff of the dwarf lay discarded and forgotten next to the dead human so it cannot ruin the… 'surprise'.

The human heard the hiss and shivered in slight fear than heard a slam and turned to see the other human had bolted.

"Damn coward." he said under his breath. He then turned back to the hole in the floor. "What in Valar's name has the wizard been keeping down there." he said to himself before taking in a deep breath then releasing a loud battle cry and running into the darkness blade swinging. He planned to cause some sort of damage before he went out.

Ren did not move from his position in the darkness of the room. Instead, he watched as the human got closer and closer... then finally his glade met his spectral body.

What happened next, the human surely didn't expect.

The blade of the weapon shattered to thousand pieces, flying everywhere, even piercing his skin as well. There is no way to stab a Nazgul. No weapon would go through their body, but would be destroyed the moment it made contact with it. But not only that... There is more. The hit itself caused his dark aura to seep into the mortal's body, causing instant damage... infecting him with the infamous Black Breath. The Nazgul however didn't move, but only tightened his hand on the hilt of his own sword, holding his hand for now... He wanted to enjoy this one's terror... And made sure he noticed him... He hissed again, this time more silently, only meaning to draw his attention to him. He wouldn't be able to run from him anymore. So why not play with his new toy?

The man cried out in surprise as his weapon shattered like ice against what he could only describe as a black phantom. However, that didn't seem to be the end of it as darkness seemed to seep into his body like blood through cracks in the floor. He gritted his teeth before falling to his knees in sheer terror and pain before his head shot up when the creature hissed almost snapping his neck.

"Wh-what are you?" he asked in a shaky breath his body shivering and his hands bawling into fists. He had never felt this way before. Been so hurt by what felt like only fear before.

The Nazgul didn't understand his words. But didn't want to and didn't care. All he saw was the trembling and wide eyes of his prey, all he heard were his loud, thundering heartbeat, the sound of its contracting and relaxing in a haste as the man shivered. The smell of fear was intoxicating... Soon, he took a step towards the human, now reaching out and extending his sword towards the man's neck, not yet piercing it, just touching, letting him feel the cold blade against his skin, letting him realize and understand his fate before he did anything. He also felt the anger within him rise, the knowledge that these... useless mortals might have actually stolen things from his territory. This made him utter harsh words in his language, scolding the human and actually informing him he will kill him now and there is no way out of this... He didn't care that he did not understand. That was a minor problem. His tone would be enough give-away that he is not in a good mood. He will first savor this man's fear, then kill him later.

Or keep him as his... new toy?

The man indeed couldn't understand and that only added to his fear. All he heard were brief shrieks and hisses, along with some uttered unknown words. This thing whatever it was felt like one of the creatures you hear the elders talk about like a ghost story. There was no way it was real. However, the feel of the blade against his neck was very real and this fear he couldn't shake had to be real as well. He gritted his teeth then a thought came to him realizing just what this thing really was.

"N-nazgul..." he said his eyes somehow opening up even wider than they already had been if that was even possible. Full of fear and terror. How was this creature alive and what's more why was it in the wizard's basement of all places?! Was she truly a dark wizard like some of the villagers thought she was? At this point there would be no surprising him.

He couldn't help the chuckle that escaped him as the human finally shakily uttered the name of his kind. Ringwraith in their language, Nazgul in his. The mortals truly took on calling them how they call themselves? This was highly amusing. Whoever they met, be it wizards or soldiers, they always said they will not dare or want to speak any word in the Black Language. Yet here they are, calling them by name in the language they fear so much.

Soon enough, he touched the blade much stronger to the neck of the human, forcing him to crawl backwards by the little strength it still had left. Ren took a deep breath, savoring the scent of blood from the deceased one, and the fresh flow at the wounded human before him. He hissed once more, this time more threateningly, pushing the blade even more against his neck, only just a little thrust forward, and he would pierce the skin, but he held his hand. Enjoying his freedom in deciding when to kill. This was the only positive effect of not having his master's guidance. He did not command him when to kill, how to kill or what to do. He had time exploring, learning new things, and enjoying a kill before he actually did it.

The man forced himself back till he hit a wall. Why wasn't he dead yet? After all the stories he heard he expected to be long dead before now. What was this thing waiting on? It felt like he was being toyed with. Part of him still wanted to defy and push against this thing no matter the extreme fear he felt. Well, that was till he saw his fallen leader and friend. He cried out the man's name in shock and sorrow. He of course had thought the other man was dead but seeing the fact in front of him was a whole another thing completely. He then turned his gaze up to the Wraith glaring, not able to help his human nature. Odd thing about humans. Even when they are at their weakest if you anger them enough that can be enough to push out any other thought or feeling.

The glare did not anger the dark creature further. After all, he cannot defy him. He knew his true feeling deep within... the fear he still felt. But the fact that he actually still fought back was just as amusing, and prolonged his life just a little bit. Until he angers him enough to give him the death blow.

"Bloody monster!" The human yelled at Ren all of a sudden without warning, before grabbing up a plant and throwing it at him to try to throw Ren off and get out from under his blade.

The plant's sudden appearance was surprising, and the Nazgul was too much concentrating on the feelings of the human itself to truly see what he was doing. The plant blocked his field of vision for a few seconds as it landed in his hood, but he brushed it off, and stepped closer to the human, giving it a kick in the side. Well, the effect was as the human expected, the blade vanished from his throat, but instead, the wraith resorted to physical torture, as he gave him another kick just for a good measure, but the sword soon returned to where it was. He wanted to see how long this human will fight until he gives up.

The man tried to bolt before being kicked and groaning then got another swift kick which forced a cough out of him. The fear he had started to take over his hand again making him break into a shivering sweat as he pressed back against the wall. This thing just wouldn't either kill or let him go. It was driving him crazy. He couldn't help feeling like a coward for it but all he wanted was for this whole hell to end. He kept thinking this all was some horrible nightmare after a very bad night of drinking but no matter how many times he tried to wake himself up he still was faced with the cruel reality in front of him.

It had been hours.

The wraith cut the man a few times, kicked him and found amusement in letting him crawl around while he chased him, savoring the feeling of being in charge of his actions. There was no master who told him to kill it, or how to kill it.

Oh no...

He was the master of his own actions. Which was flooding him with contentment. After a few hours of 'playing' with his toy, he decided to end his misery by running the blade of his weapon across his throat, letting him bleed to death and suffocate on his own blood. He stood there for a couple more hours, sniffing the air, enjoying the scent of blood, standing above the carcasses of his defeated foes and killed intruders. After all this, he emerged again from the basement with the box containing the glass container and the squeaking rodent, while the staff of the dwarf was grasped in his other hand, he held his head higher, proud of what he had done. While... his territory was a huge mess now, which he didn't mind, he successfully showed them to fear him, and disabled the disrespecting threat. He turned back around to face the entrance to the basement, then walked up to his cot, putting down the box. Before he exited the cellar, he made sure to wipe his sword from all the blood that decorated it in the clothing of one of his victims, so it was as clean as he could get it, and now it was resting in the sheath inside his robe.

He was about to sit and meditate again, seeing the whole ordeal took his energy, he turned his hooded head to look at the dwarf now laying on the floor, next to the wall where, no doubt, the intruders put her... or threw her... The way she was laying indicated the latter. To him, she was his servant, so felt even more proud by defending her. No one... NO ONE hurts, disrespects his property in any way, shape or form.

No one.

He walked up to her with the staff, and started to poke her with it, just like he did with the limp Shipmunk back then, but she did not wake... Shrugging, thinking maybe she was still... 'resting', he walked back to the cot, sat down and started his meditation, unable to stay awake anymore.

Thank you for reading.

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