"Now, where were we? Oh yes, Sir Otto had just learned the cause of his grief. A Shadow-Spinner had entered the Temple of the Golden Serpent, slaying all within. No small feat, considering the martial abilities of the Knights therein." grandfather says, confiding with the boy. "Now, to make matters worse, Sir Otto suddenly realized he was no longer at the castle! And that he had left the King and the Princess, with no Knights from his order there to protect them!' "Uh-oh..." says the boy. Nodding, grandfather continues, "And so, without waiting any further, Sir Otto raced from the Temple to his horse, Cloud, and galloped down the road toward the castle at full speed!" grandfather paused, letting the image of a racing Knight on horseback sink in to his grandson's head. "Then, upon reaching the gate of the castle, Sir Otto was instantly relieved. For the gate was sealed shut, the drawbridge up, exactly as he had left it, and the guards were still at their posts. After gaining entrance to the castle, Sir Otto jumped off of Cloud, and raced inside. Alerting the guards as he went that they should bring the general and warlords to the war room. For the tale of the temple needed to be told, and Sir Otto wanted the plans for the defense of the castle to be drawn up immediately." at this point grandfather stretched a bit, pulled his grey blanket about his feet, and settled in. "The King, the Princess, Sir Otto, the General, and the three other warlords barred all the doors to the war room, and sat, horrified, as Sir Otto recounted the events of the Temple slaughter. "How is it that the messenger made it to us in one piece?" one of the warlords asked. "He was my messenger." said the King. "Bearing a scroll to the Temple of the Golden Serpent to bring Sir Brighthawk and Lady Silverfang to our meeting hall, that we may discuss the future of the Kingdom under our joint solidified rule, with Sir Otto's order, -the King nodding to Otto, being the elite force of arms to represent my rule. He found the temple empty, gazed within, saw the slaughter, and ran out of the Temple. Most likely while the slaughter was yet going on!" the King explained. Grim nods all around the table accepted the logic. "What amazes me most," said the King, "is that if the assassin could so easily kill the Knights of the Golden Serpent, why, then, would he not have simply come here to kill us all as well?" The boy, enlightened to this new idea, spoke up "Yes, gran-pa, why? Why not just kill the King? Instead of his Knights, a much harder target?" the boy asks. "I think we'll have to wait and see..." was all grandfather would say to this. "Who knows the ways of an assassin? Especially a Shadow-Spinner!" The General said, spitting on floor to show his disgust of the profession. "Damn cowards hide in the dark, then sneak up on you while you're dreaming dreams of a fair fight!" said a warlord, also spitting in disrespect at the notion. "I know not." said Sir Otto. "And I care not. For all I know, is that he or she, or it, may come here next." And with that, everyone shuddered at the thought. "We would do best, then, to prepare for it's arrival." stated the King flatly. And they did indeed prepare a plan of defense. One that involved several clerics from the temple, with light-bearing spells, and light-enchanted objects, set to go off upon command, throughout the entire throne room and sleeping chambers. But the Shadow-Spinner did not come that night, nor the next, nor the next after that, and Sir Otto, being a Knight, could barely contain himself at the start of the fourth day."
"Why didn't the Shadow-Spinner come, gran-pa?" the boy asks, not understanding. "Because, my boy, Sir Otto had forgotten something about Shadow-Spinners. A Shadow-Spinner is indeed a very powerful assassin, perhaps one of the most powerful kinds, but there is something about them that makes them different from other assassins..." grandfather explains. "What's that, gran-pa?" the boy asks. "Like a spider, the Shadow-Spinner makes a web, then methodically kills everything that gets in it. Not missing a single victim. And it will always chase the one closest to the edge of the web first, to be sure it doesn't get away." grandfather says emphatically. Gasping, the boy says, "The other Knights!" Proud of his young grandchild, grandfather nods knowingly, with the hint of an evil grin creeping across his older, but distinguished features. "Exactly." grandfather says.