Chapter One: A Rogue's Worth
"Do it again! Do it again!" chanted two young Rogues. It was mid-day with the sun hidden behind fluffy white clouds. A large group of tents surrounded by four raggedy built walls stood out in the vast fields of the Blood Moor. Protected slightly by a wide flowing but surprisingly shallow stream, leather clad women carrying a variety of bows walked the ramparts of the fort. A large wooden gate remained partially opened, the elbow and the bow of a warrior visible. Inside was a poorly laid out camp. In the far right corner was a small tent with boxes filled with scrolls, books, and bottles surrounding the entrance to the tent. There were several other tents which housed a number of Rogues. Though the sun was hidden, the day was still unbearably hot. The warriors had taken refuge inside the tents from the sun, waiting until further orders from their leader. An elderly woman and a Rogue dressed in finer leathers talked to a merchant newly entered into the camp. But off in a corner, close to the practice area, were three younger Rogues and an older Sister.
"Do it again Ari!" shouted one of the children. The older Rogue laughed.
"OK. OK. Calm down Malee." She said, placing three rotten apples on an old piece of wood. Drawing one arrow to her bow string, she stomped her foot on the other end of the plank, sending the apple's flying. With lightning fast speed, Larianna Harhdt shot her arrow into one of the fruits. It pierced and pinned it to the wall. With the same speed, she drew another arrow, aiming the tip at the second apple. She fired. Before the arrow even touched its target, she had already drawn another arrow. She spun around, looking for the final apple.
Where is it? I thought it went in the same direction as all the others.> she thought, her eyes darting left to right searching for the fruit. She found it unfortunately, none to soon. It was falling behind her, having been the furthest fruit on the board and went flying backwards. Onto the head of an elder Sister. Since the apple had been rotten and no good for eating, she had snatched them for target practice and to entertain the younger Rouges as her leader saw her unfit to guard the camp. The apple broke on the impact, sending pieces falling all around the Rogue's head. She turned abruptly to face the person who dropped the apple.
"LARIANNA!" Her voice boomed. Malee and the two other young Rogues ran quickly, avoiding the speaker's gaze, for they new their companion was in trouble. Jumping slightly from the intensity of the speaker's voice, Ari dropped her bow and quickly removed her quiver before rushing over to the elder.
"Ye . . . yes Kashya?" she asked timidly. Kashya glared down at her.
"WHY DID YOU DO THIS? WHY ARE YOU FOOLING AROUND? YOU SHOULD BE PRACTICNG YOUR SKILLS, NOT FOOLING AROUND WITH FRUITS!" the Rogue leader shouted, throwing pieces of apple from her scarf. The elderly woman that had been previously talking to the merchant and her stepped forward. She placed a bony hand upon Kashya's shoulder.
"Kashya," she spoke in a calm voice that was demanding all the same, "Lower your tone. The girl was simply entertaining the younger Sisters." she said. Larianna nodded. Kashya breathed deeply, debating within whether to slap the girl for her foolishness or ignore it. She chose the latter and turned, storming off to one of the larger tents on the North wall. Ari took a deep breath, having held it since the second time she was yelled at. She turned around to retrieve her dropped items when a hand grabbed her shoulder.
"Thank you Akara!" She said, hugging the old woman briefly. The look in the woman's eyes told her she wasn't off the hook yet.
"Although you were merely playing with the young Sisters, you were also abandoning your training as Kashya told you."
"But Akara! I did practice! And you saw how fast I shot those apples, I don't need to practice!" she gloated, crossing her arms.
"Young Larianna," the Priestess shook her head and led the young girl to her tent, "You do need practice. As I can recall, the last of your target's landed on Kashya's head. If that had been a demon, your leader would've fallen for sure." Ari opened her mouth to speak, but Akara continued before she could get a word out. "You had your arrow drawn and ready to fire, but any miscalculations and that arrow would've been in Kashya's skull, not the apple."
Larianna opened her mouth to speak again, but thought about what Akara had said. Even during the moments before, her arrows hadn't hit dead center like they were intended. Akara was right. Any miscalculation could have killed the Leader of the Rogues. Ari gasped. Despite the harshness and cruelty between the two Rogues, Larianna loved Kashya like a mother. She had taken care of the young Rogue for as long as she could remember. Although it was not the loving, kind, caring like that of a true mother and child, but one of cautious guidance and a watchful eye. She couldn't think of anything to say at the moment and simply nodded. Akara walked over to a table at the end of her tent and opened a book, dusty from years of being unread. Ari took that as a sign to leave, for Kashya made a similar action by cleaning a bow or repairing a bowstring. The Rogue turned to leave and reached the entrance just as her name was called out once again.
"Larianna, do not leave just yet. I have something for you." The Priestess stated, closing the book and turning back to Ari. The girl straightened her posture slightly, somewhat excited to receive a gift after just being lectured about abandoning her practice. She happily walked up to Akara.
"Yes ma'am."
"Here." Akara handed her a folded piece of paper. Severely disappointed with the gift, Ari sat down on the small cot in the tent and stared at the paper. It was an old piece of parchment, torn in several places and folded into quarters.
"What is this Akara? A piece of paper? A summon? Do I get to be a warrior!" she asked excitedly. Never one to think before she acted, Larianna had always jumped to conclusions. And the thought of being a warrior was always buzzing in her mind. Akara said nothing, just nodded her head in motion that meant to open the paper. Ari sighed at the fact that her questions had been answered by a simple nod. She unfolded the paper slowly, not wanting her hopes to be shattered too fast. As suspected, they were. On the piece of paper were four symbols of twisting lines and dots. They were designed in a triangular pattern with a larger symbol in the center. One was red, one blue, one yellow, and one white. Larianna stared at the paper blankly. The symbols were lost in her mind.
"Akara, I don't know what this is. They're just a bunch of twisting lines and dots." She handed the paper back to the Priestess, confused at why she had given her a piece of paper with weird symbols. Akara simply nodded, as if she knew this would happen. Larianna had become somewhat angered in the past few seconds, having none of her statements answered with words. She turned to leave the tent. Stepping one foot out of the entrance, Akara spoke to her.
"Larianna, why is it that you cannot use the Enchanted Arrows that the elder Rogues can use?" she asked, her voice calm. Ari stopped. For years she had wondered why she could not fire an Ice Arrow or a Fire Arrow. She could hit a bull's eye from 100 meters away but she could not seem to summon the spirit energy to will an arrow to catch fire. Younger Sister's, at least four years younger than her could easily shoot an Ice Arrow with enough power to chill her bones, but she could not.
"I'm . . . I'm just not skilled enough. That's all." Larianna said, her voice stern and her back still to Akara.
"Ah. But Larianna, did you not say earlier that you did not need to practice? If you cannot wield a simple Ice Arrow that a child as young as Malee can, should you not practice more? Surely it's because you have been lacking in your studies Larianna." With a simple chuckle, as if someone had said something witty, Akara had made her point. Fully enraged, Ari turned to the Priestess. She stormed over and glared down at the now sitting woman.
"I am just as good as all the warriors in this camp! If I am not, how can I prove my worth to you! How can I prove to you I am just as good as any Rogue here! How Akara!" She shouted, waving her arms in the air in fury. Akara looked up at her and explained her thoughts, as though she had planned this all out.
"There is a cave not far from this camp. It is rumored that there are a horde of Demon's from the Hells that have taken residence in there. Not enough to serve as a serious threat, but enough to cause serious damage if they emerged. If you are truly as skilled as you say you are Larianna Harhdt, I want you to clear this cavern of the demons." Larianna, still enraged, nodded and left the tent to retrieve her bow and prove her worth.
Larianna sat with her bow in hand on one of the giant logs that surrounded the center campfire. She cradled her head with hands, her elbows leaving red marks on her knees. Ari sighed deeply, shaking her head slightly.
How am I supposed to do that? How? What have I gotten myself into?> she thought to herself, staring at a small bug crawl through the blades of grass and dirt under her foot. Larianna Harhdt, a Rogue of the Sister's of the Sightless Eye at the elder age of 19, though still younger then most, was indeed a skilled bow woman. She had lived most of her life with the Rogues. She considered them her real family. Ari could not remember anything before the age of five and only remembered living with her Sisters. She had practiced diligently and could shoot an arrow on the mark better then any of her elders at the time. Kashya was interested in this young Rogue's skills, and took her personally under her training. But when Kashya tried to teach the girl the art of Enchanted Arrows, she grew frustrated. Larianna could not seem to harness the spirit energy within her. Kashya definitely sensed a magical presence around the girl, but not that of a Rogue. The comments Akara had made back in the tent still clouded Ari's mind.
She sighed once again. The bug that she had been thoughtlessly staring at crawled up the log and into a knot hole to go about its daily life. If only she had it that easy. Ari stood and smoothed out her clothes.
"Going somewhere?" questioned a voice. Larianna turned quickly to look at the person who talked to her. It was Malee. Malee was a Young Sister, around the age of ten. She had grown attached to Ari and had even ditched out on target practice to spend time with her Sister. Ari pat her head.
"No. Just getting the bow I dropped earlier." Ari half lied. She had gone to retrieve her dropped bow, but she was going somewhere. To a dark cave somewhere in the Blood Moor that teemed with Demons and other things. The Rogue suppressed a shiver. Malee sat down on the log.
"You looked deep in thought a second ago. Something on your mind?"
"No. Well, just Kashya yelling at me. But that's happened so many times, it's just something that happens on a regular basis. I'm surprised people don't expect a daily lecture," Larianna sighed. She turned to Malee. "Shouldn't you be practicing?" Malee shook her head, trying to hide a smile. The child hated practice as much as any of the young Sisters.
"You better not be skipping out. I don't need Kashya on me for that too." Ari pat Malee's head again. She swiped her arm away, grinning.
"No. Demons got too close to the camp and Kashya had has fall back. Sometimes I wish we were still back in the Monastery. But ever since . . . Andariel, Kashya's had us training non-stop. Can you really expect a ten year old to fight hordes of demons?" Malee seemed to be talking to the ground and not directly at Ari. But nonetheless, she sat next to the girl and wrapped an arm around her shoulder in a protective manner. The two of them sat there, each collecting on their own thoughts. Larianna's were of the task she had to fulfill. Malee's were her own, though Ari had a decent guess of what they were about. Suddenly uneasy by the silence, the older Rogue broke it.
"Well, you best run off and enjoy your practice free day. I have to repay a debt to Akara." She pushed the girl's shoulders, urging her to move. Malee nodded.
"OK. What do you have to do with Akara?"
"Oh. Nothing interesting. Sorting of potions and scrolls. That sort of thing." she lied. The last thing Larianna wanted to do was make her Sister worry. Malee stuck her tongue out at Ari in a sisterly, teasing way and hurried off to go play with her other friends. Ari stood once again. First thing she had to do was to find Kashya. She needed to tell her leader about what she had to do.
Larianna headed straight to the tent that Kashya had stormed off to earlier. The tent's entrance flap was pulled to one side to let the small breeze through. At least twenty Rogues inhabited this tent, lying down on cots, repairing and checking weapons, or walking about from cot to cot. Ari spotted Kashya lying face up on a cot farthest from the entrance. Her chain mail was laid out casually on the ground along with her protective scarf. Her light brown, almost honey brown hair was pulled into a tight bun with a few loose pieces falling out. She had her arms crossed across her stomach and looked as stern and hard as when she was standing. Still cautious from her lecture earlier, Larianna approached slowly.
"Um . . . Kashya?" she asked timidly, about five feet from the end of the cot. Kashya didn't move her head, but she waved a hand to acknowledge the presence.
"What?"
"Um . . . well . . . see . . . I have to leave the camp." Ari stuttered. She didn't know exactly how to go about explaining her duty. Kashya pushed herself up with her elbows slightly to look at the Rogue talking to her. She let out a small groan when her eyes met Larianna's.
"I'm sorry Kashya. I didn't mean to interrupt you. I just didn't want to leave camp without you knowing why first." Ari was quick to explain. Kashya had grown more and more annoyed with Larianna the more and more she was around her. She loved all of her Rogues but this Sister was stubborn and so much alike Kashya herself, it was easy for them to argue. Kashya sat up completely, swinging her boots to the floor. She already knew why Ari was here. By the means of item teleportation and mental communication, Akara had explained everything in a matter of seconds.
"No. No need to explain. I know. You're going to the cavern. And I'm going to send Terini with you." She said. Larianna was taken aback suddenly and her attitude took a complete one-eighty.
"What? No! I don't need anyone else with me! I can do this by myself!" she shouted. Kashya stood and towered slightly over Ari.
"You are nowhere near skilled enough to do this by yourself, let alone at all! I don't even know why Akara suggested it! Ugh! That woman! Sometimes I don't even understand her! Terini's going with you Larianna." Lost in her rage, Kashya sat back down on her cot. Ari, in her own rage, sprinted out of the tent and out of the camp. She ran over the rickety wooden bridge crossing the creek and into the Blood Moor. She didn't need anyone's help. She could do it on her own.
Back at the camp, Kashya had stormed her way over to Akara's tent. They had made an agreement to respect each other's privacy, but Kashya made no note of it. She barged right into Akara's tent. The Priestess jumped at the intruder.
"Kashya!" she shrieked.
"Akara! Your . . . your . . . urgh, Larianna just left the camp! Alone!" She shouted at the Elder Rogue. Akara sighed and nodded.
"Think with your head Kashya! If she went out alone, then send another Rogue after her." she explained calmly.
"Knowing that girl, she'd kill her own Sister to prove her worth." Kashya spat. The Priestess said nothing and returned to reading her books. The Leader of the Rogues left the tent in search of Terini. Whether Larianna really wanted it or not, she was getting another Rogue's help.
"Terini, come here." She ordered. The young girl had been sitting on the ramparts, looking out into the Blood Moor. She noticed an elder Rogue leave in the camp in a hurry, but didn't think anything of it. She had been staring at the horizon, wondering how everyone else was doing since Diablo's return. Her thoughts of brilliant Paladins in shining armor and skilled elemental Sorceresses fighting valiantly were shattered by Kashya command. Carefully, Terini jumped off the ramparts and walked over to her commander.
"Yes ma'am." She saluted and stood at attention. Terini took her job very seriously.
"You saw one of your Sisters run off into the Blood Moor correct?"
"Yes ma'am. But I lost sight of her shortly after. Do you want me to bring her back?" Terini asked. Kashya shook her head. In return, the Rogue gave her a peculiar look.
"I'd rather not explain. Larianna has to do something and well, she's not the best bow woman out there. And Akara doesn't want her to get hurt. I want you to follow her but fall back and don't let her see you. You're going as backup and protection." Kashya explained the best she could. Terini was two years younger then Larianna and she didn't want to frighten one of her best bow women out of doing her job. Terini nodded and saluted once more, returning to the ramparts to retrieve her bow and head out after Larianna.
"OK. No more! Please no more!" Ari shouted to herself. She had been out in the Blood Moor no more then half an hour and she had already been ambushed. She crouched down under a large tree to nurse her wounds. A cut here, a bruise there. It wasn't anything dangerously life threatening, but it hurt her more then she could've thought. A few quills were lodged into her right thigh and there was a small slash on her left forearm.
"Stupid demons." She cursed. Larianna sat with her back against the tree trunk, listening to the sounds of the Blood Moor. Crickets chirped though it wasn't dark out and birds were flying from tree to tree, squawking and chirping in a catchy tune. With another deep breath, Ari stood and yanked the quills from her leg. There was a drop of blood, but it was just a scratch. Larianna had to keep going, even though battling demons was tougher than she thought.
"Akara said that this cave wasn't far from the camp," she did a panoramic sweep of the field, "But there isn't a cave in sight. I barely even see a clutter of rocks. Just trees, grass, and . . . " Larianna barely had finished her sentence when a remaining demon leapt out from behind the tree. It was bright red and carried a poorly crafted scimitar. The demon itself was only as tall as Ari's waist, but it swung a powerful hit that could do damage. The Sisters called these scrawny little demons Fallen. It chanted to itself in a strange language and waved it's weapon wildly. Ari was caught off guard and stumbled backwards, tripping over a rock. She landed with an 'oomph' as the demon charged her. Larianna rolled to the left as the demon ran right where she had been lying. She used her arms and knees to push up off the ground in a crouching motion and quickly grabbed her bow and drew an arrow. Aiming was more difficult in battle as the adrenaline and other bodily senses told Ari's body to run. Instead, she aimed the metal tip and the charging demon. It was further away then it had been when Ari had rolled.
Fallen are stupid.> she thought to herself, smiling slightly and letting the arrow fly. It pierced the eye socket and halted the demon in its tracks. The Fallen wobbled and let out a sharp yelp before falling face first into the dirt. Proud of another victory, Larianna did a little movement she had come accustom to doing after every kill. She slung her bow back over her shoulder and dusted off her hands. Suddenly, small glowing orbs began circling around the Fallen's body. They left a small glowing trail in their path, almost making it look like a cylinder of light was surrounding the demon. Slowly, the demon rose to its feet. It wasn't pushing off the ground; it was more like the body was rising. A small chime noise start up. When it was fully standing, the demon cracked its neck and rotated its arms. The glowing lights slowly dissipated and the chime sound faded into the wind.
"Uh-oh." Ari said aloud. The demon, newly resurrected, didn't see her right away. Instead, it began chanting again, even louder. Larianna backed up slowly, trying to avoid drawing attention to herself. She backed up about three feet and felt something cold and scaly on her back. Arching her back and turning her head to see out of the corner of her eye, Larianna saw what the demon had been doing. It had been calling to the rest of its clan. There were around six more Fallen along with another one that was taller then the rest and had two large horns protruding from its forehead. It stared at Ari, smiling sinisterly. Not waiting a second trying to think about what it was thinking, Larianna began sprinting further into the Blood Moor. She hadn't made it far when something leapt from the ground and hit her in the small of her back. Ari fell forward, her face slamming into the dirt and grass. She immediately tasted the foul, sour, almost metallic taste that comes with blood. A Fallen was mounted upon her back, raising its own weapon. It swung its arm down just as an arrow pierced the side of its head. From the power of the blow, the demon fell to the side, allowing Larianna to regain her composure. She looked in the direction on the arrow to find another Rogue quickly advancing.
Larianna fumed. How dare they send another Rogue to help. How dare they. As the Rogue drew closer, she recognized it as Terini Hefail, a Sister younger than her but far more skilled. That made Ari even angrier. She drew her own bow and began firing into the small group of demons. From a distance, they posed a little threat to her. With both Rogue's circling in a pattern accustom to them, the Fallen were dying quickly. But the number of demons always remained the same in Larianna's eyes.
Terini fire another arrow, taking a Fallen in the back. She was aiming for the larger demon, but every arrow she had fired was taken sacrificially by a smaller minion knowing its leader would revive it. The only way of winning this fight would be for Larianna to shoot the leader from behind. And Ari was slowly rounding on the back of the demon. Terini had fired three more arrows, picking off the Fallen closest to the leader with Ice Arrows. Their bodies shattered from the cold elemental energy entering their blood.
"Larianna! Shoot the leader! Shoot the one with the horns! It resurrects them. This battle will continue forever until we take out the leader!" She shouted, hoping that the demons couldn't understand their tongue. Larianna heard her and realized she was behind the demon leader. Terini was apparently taking out the minions closest to the leader for Ari to get a clear shot. She drew an arrow and lined it up against the bow and the string. Ari would need an instant kill to finish this. If she missed or didn't kill it with the first shot, the leader would send the demons after her and she couldn't fire fast enough. Or run fast enough for that matter. She pulled back the arrow and aimed. The leader wasn't hard to miss. It wasn't moving. It seemed to be concentrating on reviving its minions and occasionally throwing a fireball at Terini. Larianna pulled the arrow as far back as it could go, the feathers brushing her cheek. She let the arrow fly. It soared through the air and pierced the Fallen leader's head. He stopped waving his arms and the Fallen stopped getting back up. Terini quickly finished off the remaining minions. All of them fell to the ground, spilling blood and dust everywhere. Terini slung her bow over her back and walked over to the carnage.
"Thanks." She said, squatting to pick at the remains. Demons often had stolen coins or sometimes equipment on their bodies that the Rogues could use. The Fallen leader, or Shaman, had a bag of coins tied to its waist. Larianna walked over and untied the bag. It wasn't heavy enough to be a large amount of gold, but decent.
"They got nothing. No weapons. Just some measly amount of gold." Terini said to herself aloud. Ari slipped her bag of gold into her backpack. She wasn't going to share her finds with a girl that wasn't supposed to be there. Larianna glared at her from the other side of the corpses.
"We should get going. Kashya will want us back before sunrise." The younger Rogue stated, standing straight and heading further. Larianna just stared at her. She felt something. Terini turned to her and walked over.
"You . . . don't talk much, do you?" she asked. Ari didn't look at her.
"Hell-"
"SHUT UP!" Larianna yelled, cutting Terini off. She jumped. Ari stared to her left, into the Blood Moor. There was something out there. It was getting closer. Just within sight, human silhouettes appeared over the edge. They swayed back and forth, like in a sleep walk, and moved forward slowly. Larianna took a step towards them on her own, trying to figure out why these people were out in the Blood Moor. Suddenly, it dawned on her. They weren't humans.
"What is it? Who are they?" Terini asked. Ari took a step backwards. Slowly, she took another stride, stepping past Terini. She turned on her heal and began to jog.
"RUN!" Larianna ordered, picking up speed. Her Sister followed the orders and took off after Ari. The human-like figures began to run at them, though the running looked awkward and as though they were all limping. The two Rogues sprinted further into the Blood Moor. Off in the distance, there was a large rock protruding from the earth.
That must be the cavern.> Ari thought to herself. She took a sharp left and headed towards the rock. Terini skidded in the dirt as she turned almost loosing her balance. She also happened to catch a glimpse of what they were running from. Men, or things that were once men, swayed their way quickly after them. Some were missing limbs while others just had chunks of flesh that exposed internal organs or bones. These creatures were zombies, resurrected by the evils of Diablo. Terini shivered at the thought of her own body becoming a mindless walking corpse.
Larianna raced through the fields of the Moor, dodging rocks and other obstacles. She had never run so fast in her entire life. Not even when Kashya chased her around the Monastery for playing that trick on her. The rock in the distance came closer into view. Small torches were stuck in the ground, lighting the entrance into the earth. Ancient symbols were carved into the stone and skeletons lay around the way in. Not hesitating a second more, Larianna pushed more into her strides. She reached her hand out and it hit rock. Though it stung, Ari rushed down the stone steps into the cavern, jumping the last two and side stepping to the left for Terini. Her fellow Rogue tripped on her way down and landed on her butt. Ari hurried over and pulled her to her feet, yanking her away from the entrance and off into the shadows. She put a finger to her lips as they listened for action outside and inside the cave. After about ten minutes, Ari pushed Terini away.
"I don't like you." Larianna said, resting against a rock inside the cave. Terini looked at her and sighed.
"You don't have to like me."
"Go away."
"No." The younger Rogue stood and walked over to Ari. Her Sister stood and glared into her eyes.
"I don't need your help." she spat.
"I'm not leaving." Terini argued back.
"Andariel's Wench!" Larianna shouted. The other Rogue clenched her fists and bit down hard on her teeth.
"Diablo's Harlot!" Terini shouted back. The two were nose to nose, both glaring and clenching fists. Rocks were kicked and knocked around in the background. A low moaning followed by chanting sounded off in the distance. But it was the loud growl that caught their attention. Ari looked out of the corner of her eye at the creator of the sound. A huge monstrous creature, its head almost reaching the cave ceiling was lumbering towards them at an alarming rate. The Rouge pushed away from her Sister and ran off to get at a good range for firing.
Terini stumbled from being pushed and tripped once again. The cavern wall broke her fall, creating a numbing sensation throughout her body. Regaining her senses, she pulled the bow from her back and pulled two arrows from the quiver. Terini aimed and fired the arrows at the beast. They hit its kneecap, once bouncing off and the other imbedding itself in the flesh. The monster didn't seem to notice that there was an arrow in its body. Unfortunately, the attack drew the creature's attention to Terini.
"Larianna! Help me!" she cried. Trapped against a wall with no real exit, Terini began to panic. Her breathing increased and she felt her bodily movements leave her mind. Ari spun on her toes and fired as she rounded. Terini's plan was to incapacitate the beast by shattering the kneecap. The Rogue's used this strategy when battling bigger enemies. Once the kneecaps had been splintered, the creature wouldn't be able to advance any further, eliminating that threat for the moment while the Rogues could concentrate on the mass numbers. Larianna pulled back another arrow and shot one after another at the beast's knees. After firing what she counted to be thirty arrows, the distinct sound of bone breaking rang throughout the small area they were in. The huge monster buckled under its own weight and fell to the ground. There was no need in breaking the other kneecap.
"Terini, come on. Snap out of your daze. Help me kill it!" Ari ordered. Terini, who had been standing back against the wall, too terrified to move anymore then an inch, snapped to life again and began rapidly firing arrows at the beast's body. A few Ice Arrows were shot to keep the creature from moving. The monster growled in pain, hundreds of arrows protruding from its back. It resembled an oversized version of one of the spike creatures out in the Blood Moor. Larianna walked over and placed her foot on the back of its neck. The Ice Arrows helpfully prevented the beast from flailing its arms too wildly. Ari knocked another arrow and aimed for the skull. She pulled back the string and released the arrow right into the skull. The beast let out a final sound that was the mix of gurgling and a growl and its body became completely lifeless.
"Thank you so much. I thought I was done for." Terini said, walking over to Larianna and the dead monster. Ari just looked at her.
"I still don't like you. But I probably can't do this on my own like I said. You're going to help me. But you're under my command." Larianna declared. The other Rogue was quick to nod. Having her life saved was a good enough reason as any to listen to someone. Ari cocked her head towards a path.
"Let's go." And the two headed off into the depth of the cavern.
Terini and Larianna rested against the cave wall. They were exhausted. Before them lay the bloody remains of a dozen Fallen, two Shamans, three Gargantuan Beasts, and a handful of zombies. The two Sisters breathed in deeply, sucking in the damp air in giant gulps. Terini clutched a wounded arm while Ari was doubled over, a sharp pain in her side growing each time she took a breath. Out of pure anger, she kicked an amputated limb from one of the zombies and sent it flying across the room. It hit the wall and fell to the ground with a thud.
"We're done right?" Ari asked, putting both her hands on her head. She began to walk around, looking for anything they might've missed. Terini walked over.
"I'm not entirely sure. I was just assigned to help you. I don't really know why we're here in the first place." She explained, picking up a bow and inspecting it. A large crack was running down the center. She threw it back to the ground and looked through the rest of the slaughter.
"Well. If you don't know, you don't know. I say we're done. Nothing's attacked us for awhile. And we made quite a ruckus battling these demons. Let's get back to camp." Ari said. She held her bow ready as they walked through a different passage then they had came, but had previously explored. Terini followed quickly behind. They two came upon another cavern room. It was silent in here. Not even the sound of scurrying rodents reached their ears.
Something's in here. It's too quiet.> Larianna thought, slowing her pace and stepping carefully into the room. Not more then five steps in, the distinctive moaning of zombies sounded. Four zombies and another one, blue in skin tone came out from the shadows and the passage way from the other side. Instinctively, Terini squeaked in fright, catching the attention of two of the zombies. They outstretched theirs arms and moved as quick as they could towards the Rogues. Ari side stepped to the right to gain distance and began firing arrows. Zombies proved to be the most difficult adversary, as arrows didn't take them down right away. The best strategy so far was to fire numerous arrows at the creature's neck to decapitate it. Larianna fired another arrow, it piercing its target, ripping the decayed flesh from the bone. The head lolled to one side before falling off, followed shortly by its body. Terini had already made fast work of the other zombie.
Slowly sneaking to one side, Ari directed Terini to do the same so they could fire from both sides. As Terini made her was closer to the passage way, a zombie turned to her. Its eyeless sockets stared at her, as if it was searching for her, listening. Unfortunately, she tripped once again, stumbling and falling to her side. Both the eyeless zombie and the blue one, Corpsefire, turned and began advancing on Terini. Corpsefire lashed out with its arm and left a deep slash on her arm. Terini howled in pain. Larianna began firing arrows more rapidly now, though half of them missed their target. She was in a wild frenzy. Ari felt something inside her stir, but she ignored it. Another zombie fell lifelessly, though there had not been any life in it to begin with, to the floor. Corpsefire was the only remaining zombie.
Larianna was firing five arrows a second. The habit of counting her shots had been lost. She was just concentrating on saving Terini. Whatever was inside her was pulsing with her own heart, pounding at her head. She reached for another arrow but felt nothing but air. The sudden realization of ammunition loss snapped her out of the frenzy. The pulsing quickly vanished and Ari was left standing there with a ready bow but no arrows. Corpsefire was a pin cushion of arrows, still swiping at Terini. Her Sister Rogue had several gashes along her arm and her bow was broken. In a last, desperate attempt to save her Sister, Larianna took her bow and used it as a sword. With all her might, she swung the bow. It connected with Corpsefire's head, with the noise of bone shattering and wood splintering. His body was knocked to the ground, part of Ari's bow lodged in his skull. Terini was still screaming.
"Terini." There was no response other then a terrified scream.
"Terini!" The screaming continued.
"TERINI! SHUT THE HELL UP!" Larianna shouted, her voice booming over the shrieking. The Rogue stopped screaming, her face slightly pale from blood loss and lack of air. She took deep breaths and clutched her arm, though it did little to stop the bleeding. A quick scan of the room told Ari there was little of value in this cave. It was eerie how a sudden feeling of peace and calm fell over them.
"Ari, I'm . . . uh . . . I can't see straight." Terini said, swaying. Ari rolled her eyes and rummaged through her backpack. She was looking for a scroll that would take them to a certain place. Though she could not use an Enchanted Arrow, anyone could use a simple portal spell. Suddenly, she felt weary.
"What's . . . going on?" Larianna thought aloud. Terini raised her wounded arm, still covered by the other.
"You have . . . a lot of . . . burns. They . . . are open too. You're loosing . . . blood." She gasped. Ari quickly began looking through her bag. The scroll was rolled tightly and laid at the bottom of the bag. She yanked it out and opened it with one hand. Ari made her way closer to Terini and began reading the scroll. She let her mind wander to the Rogue camp. There was a bright flash of light and the sound of wind swirling. A blue circle appeared in the room. It grew bigger and bigger until it was big enough to fit even a Barbarian through. The inside of the portal was a mass of swirling blue light. The faint outline of the tents in the camp could be seen beyond the blue. Larianna pulled Terini to her feet and the two made their way through the portal.
The sensation of teleportation made Ari's stomach turn. It felt like someone had grabbed her by the belly button and was pulling her at full speed. It felt like wind, but her hair wasn't whipping around her face. And just as the feelings reached their peek, it was all over. Her feet stepped onto solid ground. The weight of Terini pushed against her, making her loose balance. Kashya rushed over to take the Rogue. Another Rogue steadied Larianna and helped her to Akara's tent.
"Akara! They're back!" A different Rogue shouted. Apparently, they had been awaiting their arrival. Akara calmly walked over to Larianna. She seemed to be the only one not running about in a frenzy.
"So, you're back. You've proved your worth Larianna. I'm sure Kashya will be pleased. Are you happy?" She said. Ari smiled triumphantly. She gave Akara a thumb's up and began leaning even further on the Rogue holding her up.
"Before I get my praise from Kashya though, I want to sleep." Ari admitted, walking over to Akara's cot on her own and quickly falling to sleep the instant her head hit the pillow.