Bitter and Twisted
IV
Mercenary
The elf made her way through the bustling streets of Weissbruck.
She was dressed in travelling leathers complimented by blue leggings. Slung over her back was a crossbow bearing signs of expert elvish craftsmanship. From her hip was a sword resting in a scabbard covered with intricate designs. And from her head was a cascade of thick blonde hair.
The elf made her way down the street, her mind busy on her next move. It was more accident than design that she was here in this human settlement: The elf was journeying to find some degree of work.
She was a mercenary by nature and she had currently run out of gold coin. Thus, the elf chanced upon this settlement – Weissbruck was it called? – in the pursuit of finding funds for her journey.
Since arriving here, she had heard whispered talk that there was an Orc encampment nearby. And there was a threat of a Chaos cult as well. Thus, this seemed like the ideal place for a mercenary to put their sword to trade…
The elf could feel one or two eyes following her as she made her way through the streets. She was however, far from worried: No doubt it was the human eyes having never been accustomed to see a female elf before.
Not that she minded….
Eventually, the elf's eye caught sight of a tavern: The sign outside proclaimed itself to be the Howling Gryphon.
The elf blinked at the tavern – Might be a good place to start….
Walter blinked at the woman who had just entered. It wasn't unusual to see a woman come into the tavern – but this one looked…
…different.
This woman had a grace about her far removed from the humans he served day in day out. She had a beauty that looked like it was from another world – glorious one minute but alien the next.
Somehow, this newcomer reminded him of Torestorm…
Walter blinked again as revelation hit – So this is an elven woman?
Damn…..
In spite of his awe, the bartender managed to keep his head together as the elf approached.
"Can I help you?" Walter asked.
"Yes you can" the woman replied "I have heard that this town is in need of mercenaries and I'm keen to lend my skills."
"Well you heard correctly" the bartender replied "You may be interested to know that there is a band of mercenaries who operate out of this place…."
"Really?" the elf asked, leaning forward and smiling a seductive smile "Think there might be room for one more in their ranks?"
Walter blinked in unease before swallowing.
"You would have to take that up with their leader. When he returns that is….."
"And when will that be?"
"I think …they'll be back this evening…"
"That's fine" the elf smiled "I can wait…"
And with that, she turned and headed back out of the tavern, hips swaying with each step.
Torestorm gazed upwards – towards the forest canopy through to the grey sky. All around he could feel was the cool air of the morning.
All around was a soft mist, encasing everything in grey. The sun was on the rise and, for now, the darkness of night was on the move for another day.
The Outcast paused – pausing to breathe in the morning air. His human allies were still asleep which gave him time to reflect.
Just then, his elven ears detected the sound of footsteps approaching from behind. But he didn't move a muscle. He knew who it was.
The elf cleared his throat.
"One of my allies has been killed" he said.
Saraielle's face grew with shock.
"Torestorm" she said gently "I'm so sorry…."
"It was the dwarf Gognak" the Outcast went on.
"He was the one who got you into the Starlight Guardians yes?"
"The same"
"What happened?"
"He was murdered" Torestorm explained "Someone attacked him outside the tavern in Weissbruck and killed him. The human Watch are trying to track down this murderer but no progress has been made."
"I see….." Saraielle said.
Torestorm sighed heavily.
"I take it he was a major influence in your life?" the bard inquired.
Torestorm nodded.
It wasn't the first time that the elf had an ally die underneath him but there was no denying the dwarf had done a lot for him: he had got him in touch with Althion, granted him access to the Starlight Guardians and, in spite of his gruff and coarse attitude, shared the similar goals of combating the many evils in this world. The dwarf had been a major guiding force in his life and now…
….he was gone.
In his many years of existence, many had fallen beside Torestorm whilst he kept on going. It was a price that came with living a life that lasted centuries.
"I have lived a long life already" the Outcast said to the bard "I have seen many friends, elf and human alike, fall and their faces remained emblazoned in my memory for years afterward.
"Alongside the faces of the many foes I've killed."
"It certainly is a miserable existence indeed, fighting the forces of darkness" Saraielle noted.
Torestorm said nothing.
"You could turn away from it if you wanted to" the bard added.
"And do what?" the Outcast snapped back "Live a normal life? It's hard to do when the forces of evil never rest."
The bard sighed heavily and turned away.
"So where've you been?" Jarek asked.
"I could ask you the same question!" Torestorm retorted sharply.
"I was asked to do a little job"
"By who?" Dimitri growled.
"The Merchant's Guild" the Tomb Raider replied.
Dimitri and Torestorm exchanged suspicious glances.
The journey back to Weissbruck had proven uneventful: The elf, the bounty hunter and the priestess arrived late the night before - however unchallenged. Along the way, Torestorm studied the diary of Calarion intently, trying to grasp what it was that the Bitterwind Rose were planning.
Upon arrival at the Howling Gryphon, the elf, the bounty and the priestess were greeted by Jarek. And it was around their familiar table in the tavern that the four mercenaries pondered their next move.
"So back to my original question" Jarek then said "Where did you go? Back to that cavern?"
"Yes" the Outcast answered.
"We found a diary" Lilly added.
"Really?" Jarek said "What does it say?"
"It's written in elvish" the outcast explained as the three humans leaned in closer "And it would appear that the Dark Elves of the Bitterwind Rose are planning something involving the pirate colony of Sartosa."
"What type of plans?" Lilly asked.
"Judging from the text, it would appear they are after something called the Shimmering Gate" Torestorm went on.
"And what is that exactly?" Jarek asked.
"The text doesn't seem to say" the elf answered "But it would seem to require a key of some kind"
The four mercenaries paused to exchange glances.
"So what do we do now?" the priestess suddenly asked.
"What can we do?" the elf answered "We need to return to that bastion"
"Again?" Jarek burst out.
"Yes again!" Torestorm replied sharply.
"But that elven criminal is dead!" Jarek protested
"True" the elf retorted "But he must've known something. And if he managed to escape us once before then there must be a secret door in that cavern.
"And if we find it, we can find just what he was up to"
"And then what?' Jarek asked "We go after this Shimmering Gate?"
"Precisely"
"Really?" the Tomb Raider said "Correct me if I'm wrong but that diary said we needed a key! Where are we going to find that?"
"Well I…." Torestorm began before being interrupted.
The interruption came in the form of Walter approaching the table, a tray of drinks in hand.
"Good hunting this time?" he said, setting the tray down. Immediately four hands each found their respective drinks.
As the outcast grasped a goblet of wine, the bartender leaned forward.
"Someone was asking about you earlier this morning" he said to the elf.
"I can imagine they were Walter" Torestorm replied nonchalantly "Who was it?"
"Don't know" came the reply "They wore a heavy cloak but they had the voice of a man. He looked about your height"
Upon hearing this, the elf's eyes hardened.
"He left a note for you" Walter went on, producing a folded piece of paper "He asked me to give it to you"
Torestorm took the piece of paper and opened it up. His eyes scanned the paper and grow increasingly hardened.
"What is it?' Lilly asked.
"Family business" the elf replied softly.
Then he got to his feet and, without another word, he strode away.
Later that evening, Torestorm sat alone at the table, his eyes studying the note for a second time and his eyes heavy. The rest of the tavern was otherwise empty.
The note brought no good news: the elf studied again, only this time with a wariness about him: A wariness usually associated with a criminal on constant run from the law.
Just then, he looked up to see a familiar face approach.
"You asked to see me?" Dimitri inquired.
"Yes I did" the elf replied "Take a seat."
The Kislevite sat down opposite the outcast.
"I may have a request of you" the elf said "I will not be present to lead the others back to the bastion. I want you to lead Jarek and Lilly in my place"
The bounty hunter locked the elf with a hardened gaze before eventually nodding.
"I will" he said "But where will you be?"
Torestorm sighed heavily.
"That man Walter described was an elf" the outcast explained, tapping the note with his finger "It seems he may have some information that may be of interest to me"
"What kind of information?"
"I'm after someone"
"I'm always after someone" Dimitri growled.
The outcast blinked before sighing.
"I have a son" he said softly "One who I have not seen in many years.
"I was separated from his mother when he was born. Instead, I was in Naggaroth fighting the Druchii. Thus he went through childhood and grew up as I was tortured and forced into serving the Druchii cause.
"I've wanted to meet my son for the longest time. I've travelled many leagues and have obtained every last scrap of information in order to find him."
The elf paused but then he blinked in surprise.
The bounty hunter was listening quite intently, his normally stern face softening.
"What will you do when you find him?" Dimitri asked.
"I want greet him as a father to son"
A silence descended down upon the two warriors.
"It would seem we have a common goal" the Kislevite said suddenly.
"What do you mean?"
Dimitri opened his mouth – but before he could say anything, he was interrupted.
"Pardon me" said a voice
The two mercenaries looked up to see Walter. Behind him was a she-elf, dressed in travelling leathers.
"What's the matter?" Torestorm asked.
"Seems stories are being told of your exploits" the bartender said "And someone would like to speak to you about it"
The elf stepped forward.
Torestorm raised an eyebrow at the elvish mercenary. Immediately, his eye recognised the distinctive features of his race. And at the same time, he also noticed signs of wear on her clothes and muscles on the hand built up from sword usage – all indications of a life lived on the road.
Dimitri however appeared unmoved.
"I would like to join you" the elf said with utmost confidence.
Torestorm looked to Dimitri – who merely shrugged.
"How did you hear of us?" the outcast inquired.
"Just arrived in town and heard of a mercenary band" the elf said "Thought you could do with an extra sword-arm"
"Well, I think we may have an opening" Torestorm said "One of our comrades recently fell in battle.
"What's your name?"
"Fanriel"
"Experience?"
"Trained with the elven clan the Shadow Kindred" the elf named Fanriel replied "And several years of mercenary work"
"Reason for joining?" Torestorm then asked.
"I need the money!"
"I guess that's as good a reason as any" Torestorm shrugged.
And so, when the morning came, there were three at the gates of the Weissbruck.
"Who's your friend?" Jarek asked Dimitri.
"New recruit" came the reply.
"Fanriel" the elf said, hand outstretched in greeting.
Jarek answered the handshake before turning to the Kislevite.
"So where's Torestorm then?"
"He has been summoned elsewhere"
"By who?"
"Private matter" the bounty answered sharply "Where's Lilly?"
"At the temple of Shallya" Jarek answered "Seems they need some extra hands for the time being."
Dimitri frowned.
"And who's Lilly?" Fanriel asked.
"She's with us" Jarek answered "Our source of healing"
"So then what?" the elf asked "You're going on without her?"
"We are" Dimitri said bluntly.
And with that, he turned and headed out into the wilderness.
Jarek blinked before frowning.
"Here we go again" he muttered as he followed the bounty hunter.
Fanriel blinked at her new found allies. It wasn't the first time she found herself working in a partnership – and it certainly wasn't the first time she found herself wondering what on earth she'd gotten herself in for.
With a sigh, she set off after the humans.
And as she set off into the wilderness, she could feel a soft chill drift through her.
"Winter must be coming…" she muttered.
And once again, Dimitri and Jarek found themselves at the abandoned Dwarven bastion.
"Welcome back" the Tomb Raider muttered.
"Been here before huh?" Fanriel asked.
"We did" Jarek explained "Fought some elves here…
"…..Dark elves!" he quickly followed up.
Fanriel blinked.
"So why are we back here?" the elf asked.
"Seems those Dark Elves have been hiding something from us"
"Yes? What?"
"That's exactly what we want to find out" the bounty hunter said.
The two warriors, along with their new-found ally stood in the cavern where they had previously faced Calarion and the Wights. In the time since that encounter, the place appeared to be completely unchanged. Everything seemed undisturbed and even evidence from the battle before was well and truly still present.
"There must be a secret door here" the Kislevite said "And I want it found!"
And with this command, the three adventurers spread out across the cavern. They went to the walls and began running their fingers across the rocky walls and stalactites. The three mercenaries looked into every possible avenue that may suggest a secret exit.
For a while, nothing was found and then a shout came from the Tomb Raider.
"Hey look!" Jarek suddenly exclaimed "I think I may have found it!"
Dimitri and Fanriel hurried over to his side. There, they found Jarek kneeling down and brushing away some of the sand off the cavern floor.
To reveal a trapdoor.
"Well, if this isn't a secret door I don't know what is" the Tomb Raider proclaimed.
"Think our man went down there?" the elf asked the Bounty Hunter.
"Only one way to find out" Dimitri replied as he reached down and grasped the door handle.
It opened easily.
The trio found themselves in another cavern. Before them, stood an object of massive size. It was fashioned in a rectangular shape, bordered with carvings of dragons, bearing teeth, wicked claws and spread wings. It was unclear what the carvings were constructed out of but it was an impressive sight nonetheless. And at either side, was an outstretched claw with the palm facing upwards, as if in offering.
And in the middle of the object was an empty space.
"I have never seen anything like this before" Jarek breathed "How about you?"
"Can't say that I have" Fanriel replied "What on earth is it?
"One would think it's a doorway of some kind"
The Tomb raider moved closer to the carvings, his treasure-hunting eye fixed on the outstretched palms. Slowly he moved his fingers to touch it.
"Are you certain you should be touching that?" Fanriel asked.
"To be honest" Jarek replied "No."
"Wait a minute" he then said "There are some indentations here."
"Meaning?" Dimitri demanded.
"Meaning these carvings were designed to have something placed within them."
"So?" Fanriel asked.
"So we go find these items" Dimitri said "And we use them to find out just what this thing does….."
Before the mercenaries stood an open door- one that led into room boasting a panelled floor. All the panels were coloured red except one: A gold panel located in the direct centre.
Further up the corridor rested a barrel.
"What do you think this is?" Fanriel asked.
"This looks suspicious indeed" Jarek murmured "It stinks of a trap"
"You know traps" Dimitri asked the tomb raider "Seen something like this before?"
"Can't say that I have" came the reply "But I wouldn't trust that gold panel…"
Dimitri paused.
"Wait here" he then said. Treading slowly, he made his way into the room. He stepped slowly onto the first panel…..
Suddenly, without warning an enormous slab of rock came crashing down behind him! The bounty hunter spun around just in time to see his comrades disappear behind a mass of grey. His eyes grew wide of alarm as he quickly realised he'd been sealed inside the room.
Fanriel and Jarek blinked in surprise and horror at what had just happened.
"What happened?" the elf demanded.
"I don't know!" Jarek yelled back "It came out of nowhere!"
"Dimitri!" Fanriel shouted "Can you hear us? Are you all right?"
But the Kislevite couldn't hear such words. Instead, he gazed up at the slab trying to comprehend what had happened and whether there was a way out.
He hammered the slab with his fists but it wasn't the type of stone that budged easily.
"What do we do?" Fanriel demanded to the tomb raider.
"How the hell should I know?" Jarek snapped back.
"We can't leave him trapped in there!" the elf insisted.
The two mercenaries looked at each other only to see an equally helpless face staring back.
"You'd need explosives to shift a rock this big" Jarek groaned.
"What, in here?" Fanriel finished "You'll bury us all alive!"
"Got a pick axe then?" the tomb raider grinned sardonically.
Back in the room, the Kislevite was deep in thought – the enormity of the situation, not to mention the prospects of being entombed alive were slowly sinking in. In the dim light of his lantern, he struggled to see anything of value.
He could find nothing – apart from himself, the room was otherwise empty.
Except for the golden floor panel.
With a sigh of hopelessness, the bounty hunter made his way over to the panel…
As his boot trod onto the panel, it sank underneath him. Raising an eyebrow, the bounty hunter put both feet onto the panel and stood upon it.
And then, the panel sank down past the floor and triggered the sound of a small click. Suddenly, the rock shuddered and slowly rose up from the doorway.
Fanriel and Jarek peered into the now unsealed room blinking in astonishment.
"Are you all right?" Fanriel asked.
"What happened?" Jarek inquired.
"The door is a trap" Dimitri noted "It seems that the slab will come down when pressure is released from the gold panel here."
"So looks like you're stuck there' Jarek noted "Unless that plate can be weighed down"
"Wait!" Fanriel said, snapping her fingers "That barrel! It might do it!"
The elf ran over and opened the barrel. It revealed itself to be half full of small rocks.
"This just might do the job"
Through a combination of their efforts, Fanriel, and Jarek, proceeded to shift the barrel over into the room.
"You think this going to work?" the tomb raider huffed.
"Just shut up and push!" the elf snapped back.
With care, the barrel was placed on the panel where Dimitri was standing.
The bounty hunter stood off the plate and the barrel was slid into his place. The plate went down and the slab stayed up.
"Crisis averted" Fanriel grinned.
"Good thinking" the bounty hunter noted.
"And next time" Jarek grinned "Leave the finding of traps to the expert!"
"If you say so" the elf said "Better such traps kill you than the rest of us!"
Three skeletons approached the warriors, leering at them with unseeing eyes.
Fanriel however did not show one trace of fear across her face. Instead, she calmly unslung her crossbow off her back.
"All right then" she said, loading her weapon "Who'd like to be first?"
When she received no reply, Fanriel fired her crossbow
The bolt sailed through the air and struck the nearest skeleton. The projectile plunged through the skeleton's bones smashing them as they went and leaving them brittle. The skeleton staggered backwards by the force of the bolt and collapsed into a heap.
Dimitri ever ready with his own crossbow, too fired a bolt. It slammed into one of the other skeletons, knocking him off his feet and sending him sprawling. The skeleton struggled to it's feet – but the bounty hunter rushed over to beat him to it. And with a sharp, lethal kick from his boot, Dimitri smashed apart the skull.
This left the last skeleton in the hands of Jarek. Gritting his teeth, the tomb raider looked at his sword. In an instant, he realised that a sharp blade would have little effect on pure bone. Thinking quickly, he decided to resort to another weapon he had at his disposal.
His fists.
With a mighty swing, the tomb raider dealt a lethal uppercut into the skeleton's rib cage. The impact of the blow was nasty to say the least, but only to Jarek. He grimaced as pain most incredible ripped through his body but, in spite of it all, he gritted his teeth. The skeleton grinned back in blank, but still mocking, fashion.
With a roar, Jarek kicked out his foot to the skeleton's pelvis. This time the blow was successful: The skeleton wobbled backwards, thrown off balance. This gave the tomb raider the perfect opportunity to strike back.
And he did by grasping the skull – before ripping it completely from the body.
This in turn sent the rest of skeleton crumbling to the floor.
Victorious, Jarek breathed heavily as Fanriel grinned.
"Nice move there" she said.
"You don't fight too badly yourself" the tomb raider answered.
The elf paused and then her sharpened elven eyes caught sight of something: There, lying in amongst the bones was something shining. Leaning down, she dug through the bones.
"What are you doing?" Jarek asked.
"I thought I saw something here…"
And then, she saw it: set deep within the flagstones, was a small black diamond. Fanriel, tugged at it and, much to her surprise, it came out with ease.
The elf paused to examine this new discovery: She had never seen a black diamond such as this one before.
"What is it?" Jarek asked.
"I think this may be the answer to the gateway problem" the elf said.
"You actually think this may be the key that the carvings need?"
"It's the best lead we have" Dimitri noted.
"It's the only lead we have" Jarek added.
"We can only try…" the Kislevite said softly.
And so the three warriors made their way back to the cavern where the carvings rested.
But this time they weren't alone: The three warriors arrived just in time to see a man hidden by a heavy dark cloak standing between them and the carving.
And at his side was a quartet of wights.
"You there!" Jarek called out "Who are you? What are you doing here?"
"You!" the man snapped back.
And without another word, he hurried over to the carving. In his hand was a darkened diamond, exactly like the one Fanriel found.
"What's he doing?" the elf demanded.
The man slammed the diamond into one of the carved palms – and suddenly the empty space contained in the carving lit up! A small explosion burst from the carving, sending the room shuddering.
But with the explosion came something unexpected: Where was once an empty space was now a pool of blue light.
"What the hell?" Jarek growled.
"That wasn't just any carving!" Fanriel exclaimed "It's some kind of gateway!"
"Correct" the man sneered.
And to prove it, the man dived straight into the pool of light. Seconds later, the pool of light evaporated – leaving nothing in its wake. The man had disappeared completely.
But not without leaving his wight guardians behind.
The four wights glared with sightless eyes at the three intruders. Gripping their rusted weapons, and compelled by the powers of the darkest of magic, they began to advance. With movements slow and a comprehension that could only be alien, the four undead monstrosities advanced.
"Fought any of these before?" Jarek asked Fanriel
"Can't say that I have" the elf replied "But…."
"But what?" Dimitri demanded.
"I know for a fact that sharpened weapons will have little effect on the undead!"
"Meaning?"
"Your axe may be useless against these fiends" Fanriel noted "And we may need to find another way to stop them"
"You don't say…" Jarek said, producing a small salve of liquid from his belt. Pulling forth the stopper, he then flung it towards the advancing undead. The salve sailed through the air, spilling the contents as it went – And finally, it came crashing down upon the wights. The salve smashed into pieces, sending the liquid onto two of the undead.
"What the…" Fanriel started.
"Just watch" Jarek grinned kneeling down with his lantern in hand. Slowly he lowered his lantern as close as possible to the liquid.
And then, without warning, the flame from the lantern ignited the liquid. A jet of flame burst forth across the floor – it went up along the trial left by the salve and roared towards the Wights.
Within seconds, the Wights were engulfed in flame. They screamed hollow screams as the flames ate at their bones and armour, eventually sending them face down onto the floor below.
Jarek turned and grinned in triumphant fashion.
"Fuel for my lantern" he explained
Dimitri nodded before unslinging his crossbow.
And without a further moment's hesitation, he fired at the remaining wights.
The bolt smashed into the skull of the nearest wight. It struck with so much force and within such a short range that the skull was severed from the rest of the body. The skull came crashing down to the floor as the wight crumbled lifelessly to the floor.
Fanriel blinked before loading up a bolt in her own crossbow. Then, in the blink of an eye, she fired. The bolt slammed into the second wight – smashing rotted armour and bone as it went.
And with that, the last undead in the room fell to the floor.
This left the three mercenaries with the carvings.
"So what do we do now?" Jarek asked.
Dimitri said nothing but looked towards the carvings.
"What on earth is that thing?" the tomb raider asked.
"You tell me" the Kislevite retorted.
"I have no idea!" Jarek spluttered "I have never seen anything like this before in my life!"
"Same here" Fanriel chimed in "But I'm certain it must be some kind of gateway"
"It's possible" Jarek said "It may explain where that strange fellow disappeared to"
"You really think that?" Dimitri asked.
"At this point, I'm willing to accept anything as possible!"
"If this is a gateway" Fanriel mused "I wonder where it goes?
"Only one way to find out!"
And with that, the elf placed the black diamond into the other outstretched palm.
And as before, the empty space contained in the carving lit up to reveal a pool of blue light.
The elf turned to the humans and smiled.
"See you on the other side" she said – before stepping into the portal.
Dimitri turned to Jarek.
"Oh no!" the tomb raider exclaimed "I'm not going in there!"
"Zatk`nis!" the Kislevite growled back.
And with that, the big man grabbed the tomb raider by the front of his shirt.
"What are you doing?" Jarek yelled.
But Dimitri wasn't listening. Instead he marched towards the still-open gateway with the tomb raider kept in a tight grip.
"I'm not trusting this magic!" An increasingly frantic Jarek yelled.
But the Kislevite marched onward – approaching the gateway he stepped through…..