Glow of the Darkness
Chapter I
Darkness was his ally,his only friend beside his weapons, it rarely failed him and never dissapointed him, and tonight there was no difference.
Nal'rim has been waiting in the embrace of the shadows for over an hour now,patiently and silently. Several humans passed him but he acknowledged their presence with nothing more than a glance.
Instead he reviewed the knowledge he had about his next victim.
An arrogant petty Cormyrean noble that thought his family reputation and wealth made him invurnerable, so he humiliated and insulted everyone that stood in his way. But unfortunately for the noble, calishite merchants often respond to insults by hiring an assassin.
His target soon emerged from the nearby tavern accompanied by several friends, obviously drunk and unsecure on his feet, the noble bumped into a passing man. Instead of appologizing he hit the man. The poor fellow fell on the ground and was soon beaten to near death by noble and his friends. Done with their „fun" they continued on laughing and bragging how hard they have hit the unfortunate passer by.
Nal'rim shook his head in dissapointment „This task I'll enjoy fulfilling." he said in a whisper.
Still laughing, noble and his friends soon passed Nal'rim's hiding place. Silently the assassin detached himself from the shadows that clinged to him unnaturaly and without a sound approached the unsuspecting noble. One quick thrust and Nal'rim was back in the shadows.
-
Noble's friends didn't saw or herd a thing and they continued down the street still laughing and talking loudly. One of them noticed the noble's absence and turned around to find his wealthy friend lying face down in the mud. He called the rest of his friends and they all turned to face the fallen noble
„Jern c'mon what yer up to. Your bed is surely more comfortable than that mud." the man called out laughter still present in his voice. „Ah, leave him alone Pat you see he's as drunk as a mule." When the noble didn't respond Pat called again and then broke in the run. Haste of their friend broke the drunken haze of the rest and they soon joined him by Jern's body. When they reached Pat, he has already rolled the noble on his back. „Call the Guards, Jern has been murdered." Pat said in a teary voice, his eyes never leaving the bloody stain that was forming over the noble's heart.
-
Nal'rim observed the passing of Suzail's guards with fleeting interest. When the Purple Dragons passed below him he jumped off the roof and landed gracefully and silently on another lower one and immediately broke in a run.
His journey upon Suzail's rooftops ended at one of the many seedy taverns that existed at Cormyr's capital.
Nal'rim entered the room he rented through the window.
He trapped the window, and then checked the door to see if anyone tried to break in. When he saw that the trap he had set was unactivated he unsheathed his weapon belt and took off his cloak.
He untied his long silver hair from a ponytail and then he, fully dressed, sat crosslegged on the simple bed that occupied a corner of the small room.
Nal'rim took a deep breath to relax himself and then he started to weep.
-
Nal'rim woke abruptly with a feeling that someone was outside his room. He silently strapped his weapon belt and unconsciously lowered his hands to the hilt of his swords. Feel of the familiar weapons reassured him.
He herd a slight movement outside his door that would be inaudible to any human, but his elven ears picked it out easily.
Nal'rim positioned himself beside the door and waited patiently.
He didn't have to wait long. Soon his door burst inward and two large men, wearing masks and armed with a hand axe and a long sword started slicing up his bed.
Behind them entered a plump calishite merchant that ordered the noble's assassination wearing a smug smile on his face. When the agressive attack on his bed ended and the two men realized their mistake Nal'rim attacked.
He drew his sheathed weapons with such speed that they seemed to appear in his hands. He sliced the nearest man across the throat cutting his vocal chords and nearly relieving him entirely of his head.
Never stopping, Nal'rim used the momentum and surprise of his first attack to rupture the other man's chest with his other weapon.
The merchant stood dumbfounded and he still hadn't comprehend what had happened when Nal'rim started slowly and menacingly walking toward him. Fat Calishite started staggering backwards and he barely managed to say in a shivering and frightened voice „Please, I'll pay you four times more than I promised, just don't kill me." When the only response he got from Nal'rim was silence, he dropped on his knees. „I beg of you I'll give you ten times more than I promised, no I'll give you twenty times more money,please spare me."
Nal'rim stopped his advance and sheathed his swords.Merchant's face ignited with hope and relief, and he started to rise, when he saw a slight movement of the assassin's left wirst, a moment later he was dead.
-
Aerryl Do'avin snapped out of reverie when he herd someone banging at the door of his room. He rose from the floor in one swift motion and aproached the door, his hand resting near the hilt of the dagger he kept hidden in his robes. He opened the door and instantly relaxed when he recognized Ry'thar Casthe a half-elven officer of the Purple Dragons he befriended during his stay in Suzail.
Ry'thar's grim expression wiped the smile from Aerryl's face.
„What's the matter my friend?" Aerryl asked while motioning his friend inside. Ry'thar sat on the edge of Aerryl's bed and looked the elven cleric straight in the eyes.
„I need your help. There's been a murder, several of them actually, and I'd like you to come with me if you're able, your wisdom would be of great help."
Aerryl nodded „Of course my friend, give me just a minute." Aerryl picked up a ring and a bracelet that had a small round metal on top from the bedside table and slipped them on his left hand. He picked up a sheathed blade next and strapped it on his belt. With that done he approached the window and pulled an amulet shaped like a crescent moon that hanged around his neck. He looked at the rising sun and spoke in elven
„Aman lyr ar vara Corellon Larethian." He turned toward Ry'thar „I'm ready my friend, lead the way."
-
Aerryl and Ry'thar walked the streets of Suzail in silence. Aerryl soon saw a crowd gathering around something and a company of Purple Dragons maintaining order. Ry'thar's rank gained them quick passage through the crowd and they reached the crime scene. Ry'thar went to the commander of the company for report and Aerryl knelt beside the body of the dead noble and studied the wound. Ry'thar soon approached him „What do you think?" Aerryl's gaze never left the corpse while he addressed Ry'thar
„This is the work of a very skillful assassin." Aerryl turned the body on its face and pointed to the small needle like object sticking from the noble. „Assassin probably has elven blood, because I have never seen a human using an tankil." Ry'thar nodded in agreement and Aerryl continued „Someone whealthy had to order this murder, because the assassin of this caliber does not come cheap. Did these poor man had enemies?" Ry'thar didn't say a thing he turned his back to Aerryl and started walking. Confused Aerryl soon joined him in silence. „That's the thing that confuses us," Ry'thar started „we believe that the contractor is the other dead man I told you about."
Soon they reached „The Laughing Goblin" a seedy looking tavern and encountered a Purple Dragon officer arguing with a grumpy dwarf.
„How long will you occupy me tavern, yur costing me money?"
„What seems to be the problem?" Ry'thar asked, dwarf focused his attention to the approaching pair
„Problem? Problem is that yu be here for 3 hours now and ye didn't clear the mess, yer scaring me customers and makin me loose money,that's what the problem is."
„We apologize for all the inconvenience,we hope you could accept this as an antonement." Aerryl intervened handing the dwarf a small bag. Dwarf reluctantly opened the bag and gazed inside, his features immediately lightened up and he said „Yur me type of elf, stay as long as ye like and if ye need any assistance just call for ol' Fingle." Aerryl nodded in appreciation and entered the tavern with Ry'thar close behind him.
„What did you give him?" Ry'thar asked, Aerryl just smiled and said „Does it matter?" Ry'thar returned the smile „No it doesn't.This way." He said and started to climb the stairs.
Aerryl entered the room only to see a sea of blood spreading across the floor. He murmured a quick prayer to Corellon Larethian and began to inspect the bodies. Ry'thar waited patiently without a word for Aerryl to finish.
He spent a small amount of time around the bodies of the two large man. He inspected the body of the fat calishite merchant for a longer period of time. When he joined Ry'thar outside the room his face held a disgusted expression.
„Can you tell me what happened in there?" Ry'thar asked
„Each man in there died of a single wound, I have never seen such brutal efficiency, this assassin enjoys too much in his work." Aerryl answered with hatred radiating from his voice.
He continued „I think that the merchant ordered the death of the young noble, and when he found out the deed was done he became afraid that the assassin will report to the authority who hired him so he came here with two ruffians to insure that his involvement remains a secret. I guess the assassin herd them and was prepared for them."
Ry'thar stood in silence contemplating the revelations his friend has given him. After some time he spoke „Are you sure this was the work of the same assassin and that the merchant was the one who hired him in the first place." Aerryl just nodded „I'm certain. The merchant was killed in the same manner as the noble an tankil pierced his heart, and the large quantity of coins lying around and on the merchant is probably the sum the assassin requested from the merchant."
„Why did he leave the money then?" Ry'thar asked confused „I don't know." Aerryl said „but I intend to ask him when I find him." he stormed out of the tavern in a direction of his room Ry'thar had to run to keep up with the determined elven cleric.
-
Nal'rim was lying in the grass looking at the starlit sky. He has ridden the entire previous day going toward Waterdeep and this is the first time in a week he rested peacefully. His horse was pasturing nearby and the fire he had built was almost extinguished. For the first time in many months, even years, he felt like an elf, he wanted to laugh and dance under moonlight, he still loved moonlight regaredless of his profession and heritage.
But that was not to be, he soon felt the familiar tingling in the back of his head. He focused on it and said „What do you want Telram?" „Oh hello Nal'rim,did I wake you?" a sarcastic voice entered Nal'rim's mind and it was followed by a picture of the human he was talking to.
Telram was his associate,if you can call him that, he was the one who arranged all the assassinations.Telram was an opportunistic and sadistic little man with no apparent talent,except the sharpness and quickness of his tongue. „So how did the job go?" Telram asked and the words formed themself in Nal'rim's mind.
„I had to kill my employer." Nal'rim thought of the answer „Cyric take you Nal'rim,does that means we didn't get payed again?" „That means I didn't take the money,now what is really that you want I don't think you're using that ring just so that we can have a chat." Nal'rim responded
„You're right as ever. I have a new job for you. It's paying well and please don't blow this one up as well."
Nal'rim just sighed „Whose the target?" A picture of a beautiful elven woman accompanied Telram's words „Her name is Kalianna Sunflower and apparently she poses somekind of danger to our client. She is currently in Selgaunt, but according to our clients informants her next destination is Athkatla. The clients would like the matter to be solved before she reaches Amn. Farewell." Telmar said and his image dissapeared from Nal'rim's mind. He didn't even notice, he was staring somewhere in the past and one word was still on his lips when the sun rose „Kali".
-
Kalianna Sunflower was sitting in her room reading an old tome, when the door burst open and an unlikely trio entered.
„Stupid dwarf always playing jokes." Izidor the gnome mumbled under his breath, but Kalianna's sharp ears caught that and she couldn't help but chuckle.
Apparently the dwarf herd him as well because Kalianna herd him whispering „Stupid gnome always complainin'."
The third member of the group was sitting on the Gorn's shoulders with a wide grin on his handsome face and a bouquet of flowers in his hand. He jumped from the dwarf landing gracefully on his feet.
„Mother, these are for you." Al'mar said giving her the flowers.
„Thank you honey, now please go play on the terrace while I talk with your uncles." Kalianna said to her 14 year old son. Al'mar complied with a smile.
Kalianna turned her attention to Gorn and Izinor who were in the middle of yet another heated discussion, she couldn't help but smile. „Sometimes it seems they arethe children and not Al'mar."
Argument ended when they saw her approaching and they all took a seat at the table.
„We've booked a passage at The Smiling Mermaid , it will take us to Westgate." Izidor started but Gorn interupted him „It's a good ship." Izinor looked at him menacingly „Do you mind?" Gorn just flashed him a smile.The gnome just shook his head in disbelief and continued „It set sails 6 days from today at dawn, although I don't like the prospect of staying here for another week it's better than traveling on horses. I just hope that no more assassins drop by." „If they do I'll beat them up and serve instead of mash potatoes." Gorn said patting the head of his massive warhammer to insure the credibility of his words. Izidor gave him a disgusted look „You're never cooking again."
„Why not?" Gorn asked seeming hurt and dissapointed and then added mischiveously „You liked what I served last night." Kalianna thought that Izidor's eyes will pop out
„I thought that something was funny about that dinner.What did you put in that stew you bearded excuse for a troll?" She couldn't help but burst in laughter when the gnome picked up a frying pan and started chasing the black bearded dwarf . Kalianna turned her atenttion on her son who was watching the show with obvious amusement. „He looks so much like his father." Kalianna thought. A loud noise broke her train of thought.
Izidor managed to hit Gorn with the pan causing a large bump to appear on the dwarfs forehead. Angry now Gorn grabbed his warhammer and started chasing the now frightened gnome. „Kalianna! Al'mar! Keep this rabid animal away from me." „This will be a very long week." Kalianna thought as she rose from the chair to stop the cataclysm.
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End of Chapter1. Hope you liked it. Please R&R so that I can now what you think of it.
P.S. Elven language and thoughts are written in itallic. Elven words I got from the online dictionary I found on the net.
Thank you.
Ilthary