Chapter 5
The games begin
.
When Anomen awoke the day before, he'd set an ambitious target for himself. He would head to the Copper Coronet to watch the comings and goings at the backrooms. Identify faces, maybe even establish a pattern to confirm a major event at Lehtinan's unsavoury little hovel. The rumours of animal fights and prostitution were enough to make his blood boil that the authorities were turning a blind eye to the man's schemes. Helm knew he'd recognised more than a few rascals from his youth lingering at the Coronet, merchants' sons with more money than sense.
Beyond that, he supposed he would keep up the search for allies, men of arms with the strength to support his quest to break the den of vice he knew Lehtinan was operating. The law needed to be upheld at all costs. Though in truth, he didn't think much of his chances, given how many fruitless days he'd spent chatting up unruly drunks in the Coronet.
Until he met Elene.
He hadn't meant to approach her at first. She was merely a harmless woman sitting in the corner. He'd only noticed her because she stood out as the only elf in the room, her fair, refined visage marking her as foreign, not part of the usual crowd. Until Amalas and his goons descended upon her like a pack of wolves and Anomen's chivalry dictated that he couldn't stand by and let her be bullied by their ilk when he was so close at hand.
As it turned out, she hadn't needed his intervention. Like Amalas, he'd mistaken her polite passivity as weakness, right up to the moment her knife appeared almost out of thin air, striking precise and true even with the speed she'd moved at. Once the unpleasantness with Amalas was done with, he'd sat with her, exchanging polite introductions while sharing a bottle of wine. Over the course of the evening, he knew he was onto something.
Elene's astute green eyes flickered in his direction over the rim of her tankard as she took a sip. Anomen had no familiarity with elves, having known one or two at most in his life. Even so, he could tell she was young from how open and guileless her features seemed in unguarded moments. She was a Northerner from the Sword Coast - waylaid at the Coast Way in the night and taken against her will to Athkatla. Worse still, her adopted sister was taken from her by the Cowled Wizards. He had thought it fitting at first that the girl was taken in, the laws against magic had been in place for as long as anyone remembered. But then he thought of his own sister, Moira, and the pang of sympathy that struck turned his tongue to lead. If such a thing had happened to Moira, he would have braved the Hells themselves to bring her home.
"Two more are being admitted," murmured Jaheira as she prodded at her pie.
Anomen's sudden urge to check over his shoulder was quelled by a sharp look from the woman. While he appreciated Elene's pleasant company, he wished he could say the same of her half-elven companion. Jaheira had not been too pleased when she was told of his quest, even less so when she found out Elene had invited him to join their group. He had a sense that Jaheira and Elene were close, having travelled together for many months. Yet their temperaments couldn't be more different. Where Elene was soft-spoken and thoughtful, Jaheira was blunt and domineering. Heavens forbid he tried to suggest something in her presence, he'd found himself shut down almost instantly.
"Yesterday was mere appetiser. The main event is clearly happening tonight," smirked Yoshimo.
Anomen's lips twitched in displeasure. Yoshimo, he'd had an instant dislike for. Something about his perpetual smile and innocuous remarks set his teeth on edge somehow. It didn't help that the man was a self-professed bounty hunter, the kind clearly motivated by naught but coin. The Realms would be a better place without his rabble, certainly.
Seeing as Elene was the only person in over a tenday to show interest in his quest, though, he would have to tolerate the company for now. Perhaps there was potential to steer this ragtag bunch to a higher purpose if they continued to work together – one that even Helm would smile upon. One thing for sure, they would not earn his God's favour by sitting around.
"We should make our move now," Anomen urged.
"Patience." Jaheira tsked. "Bernard said our lot will only be let in after the nobles are safely inside. They don't want to be rubbing shoulders with us."
So, they continued to wait. An hour trickled by with conversation at the table coming in starts and stops, mostly Elene trying to be polite. He was too agitated to entertain even innocuous topics, most his energy was devoted to stifling the desire to look over his shoulder. For a moment, he wondered if their seating arrangement had been done so on purpose, enabling Jaheira and Yoshimo to have a clear view of the side entrance while Elene kept up a ruse of cordial dinner conversation to prevent them looking too interested in what was going on. He supposed he should be helping her on that front, but he didn't much see the point. They should already be doing something!
"Oho, it appears they are ready for the common rabble now," Yoshimo piped up suddenly, eyes twinkling. "Looks like we are up."
"Then let's go." Jaheira stood, shooting Yoshimo and Anomen a cautioning look. "Follow my lead."
Two men guarded the side entrance – hulking, hostile-looking brutes who looked as though they had been bred solely for the purpose of intimidating others. Armed with cudgels and swords, they probably relished the thought of throwing misbehaving patrons out on the street with only half their teeth intact. To her credit, Jaheira approached them with utter nonchalance, as though she was simply queueing up to ask about the weather.
"I understand there are certain types of…entertainment offered up in the back rooms," she began, her voice smooth, all honey and silk.
Anomen blinked. She was like a different person altogether.
"You're not in the list," one of the brutes replied mechanically.
"I would imagine not, we'd just arrived a few days prior," Jaheira demurred. "Though, we did tell Lehtinan that we have an awful lot of gold to dispense with…" and here, Jaheira tapped the pouch at her belt, which clinked merrily, "…and he was quite happy to let us 'sample' the offerings, as it were."
The brutes immediately zeroed in on the bulky pouch. Of course, on top of consolidating all their coin in there, Elene had padded it out with small stones and loose metal bits as well, but they didn't need to know that. They exchanged a brief glance with one another, then one of them flashed a row of yellowed, crooked teeth at Jaheira.
"That so? He didn't tell us anything."
"He didn't?" Jaheira tutted. "Must have slipped his mind. Of course, I can always share with you any of our winnings. If you could open this door for us, I'll even give you an advance." Anomen didn't miss the emphasis she placed on the last word.
"Well…" one of the brutes snuck a glance at the bar, where Lehtinan lounged in all his oily glory.
"He doesn't need to know. It can be our little secret," Jaheira's smile turned conspiratorial.
Before either of them could say no, she pulled out half a handful of coins from the pouch. Another set of looks exchanged, a pregnant pause, then one brute put out his hand to receive the 'advance'. Anomen's lips thinned. Truly the lowlifes here live down to their reputation. He wondered how Lehtinan managed to keep his operation running for so long, given how easily bribed his guards were. Although, Jaheira did appear to know precisely what she was doing.
Then, after passing through a guarded, well-decorated hallway, a woman greeted them on the other side. A pretty, young thing – perfumed and bejewelled, her pale skin indicating that she was either not local or hadn't seen much of the sun of late. From her demeanour and words, she was evidently a hostess for the event. Anomen forced himself to avert his eyes, though, when he realised how much of her flesh was on display. By his side, Elene frowned as she studied the hostess closely even as they were led towards the 'audience chambers'.
"She has marks under the bangles," Elene whispered to him.
He jerked to attention, his eyes quickly latching onto the woman's wrists. Sure enough, even in the poor lighting, his trained eyes spotted the tell-tale yellowish mark of old bruising, perhaps even chafing. Odd. Such marks were common for abused wives. Or shackled prisoners. For the first time, he noticed how mechanical the hostess was behaving, as though reciting from a script that she had been drilled with a hundred times, never deviating from what was expected of her.
The hostess led the four of them into a small arena, where seats were arranged to oversee a ring in the centre, filled with sand with some weapon racks arrayed to one side. After throwing in some coin into the obscenely large betting pool, where he bet on a 'Beast of the Week', Yoshimo ordered rum and ale, all at a significant mark-up to what was on offer at Bernard's tap. Though when the drinks arrived, Anomen noted that a marked improvement from the watered-down swill the rest of the establishment had the misfortune to consume. As they sat together chatting about facetious matters, he noted that the nobles were seated on the shadowed makeshift terraces overlooking both the audience chamber and arena, thus obscuring their faces from view. Which left him wondering, what sort of show were they about to witness here?
"It's about to start," Yoshimo nudged him, jerking his chin in the direction of a colourfully dressed man stepping up to a raised platform on the other side of the chamber. An announcer, if Anomen had to guess.
"Ladies and gentlemen!"
Anomen flinched at the booming voice of the man on the platform. All chatter simmered down at the announcement, with many patrons leaning forward in their seats in anticipation.
"Thaumaturgy spell," Elene murmured with interest.
"I bid you a warm welcome on behalf of Mister Lehtinan, always a pleasure to host such distinguished men and women in our company. We hope you have enjoyed the drinks and pre-show entertainment. Earlier, we promised you a treat for tonight, and by Liira, we shall deliver!"
Cheers rang out in pockets across the chamber, especially from the terraces. Bright lights flickered to life, illuminating the ring. Anomen shifted in his seat. An uncomfortable feeling began to worm through his gut.
"I welcome to the ring, Javek the Mauler and Avirath Sharptooth!"
Two doors were arranged on one side of the ring, furthest away from the spectators. One standard and nondescript, while the other was an enormous reinforced double door that looked strong enough to keep even a ferocious bear out. The smaller door opened to the sound of scattered clapping, and out walked two men in patchwork armour, a human and a dwarf. Both appeared battle-hardened, though Anomen noted the trepidation in the way they inched forward into the ring. Despite their grand titles, they seemed afraid.
"Fighters, choose your weapons!" boomed the announcer.
The human shuffled obediently toward the rack of weapons close by. Everything from bows to swords to hammers were on display. In contrast, the dwarf planted his feet where he stood and shot a baleful glare at the arrayed audience.
"No! I am done fighting for your entertainment!" he shouted.
A murmur ran through the crowd, with some laughing at the dwarf's brazen words. Jaheira leaned forward with a thoughtful expression. Beyond that, she gave nothing away.
The announcer signalled for calm. "Nonsense, of course you will fight. Refuse, and be devoured for the entertainment of our guests. Your choice, old bean!"
Another chorus of laughter and gleeful clapping resounded in the arena. Watching the dwarf's dejected slump, stark realisation dawned on Anomen suddenly, like being dropped into a freezing cold bath. The secrecy, the sizeable betting pool, traces of gore in the sand, all set up like a glorified gladiatorial pit.
"The men are slaves," he growled.
"Shh," Jaheira made a cutting gesture toward him.
He wanted to snap at her, demand that they act, when Elene's hand settled on his forearm. "Wait."
The calm in her voice made him stop short. Under a cursory glance, she seemed unperturbed by what was happening. Except the tightness of her jaw and the strength of her grip on his arm gave her away. She wanted nothing more than to stop this travesty. Her eyes met his for a moment, and she whispered, "We gain nothing by getting ourselves killed."
Against the raging sense of injustice building within him, he settled down with a huff. He scanned the arena once more, counting the guards and armed patrons in the room. Much as he hated to admit it, a frontal assault would mean certain death. He stilled, and Elene released him.
"And now, ladies and gentlemen, the main attraction," continued the announcer, causing the crowd to hush. "We've moved the Heavens and especially the Hells themselves to bring you this. A beast unlike any you've seen here before, fresh from the swamps of East Amn, served exclusively for your enjoyment. I assure you, you won't find such a treat elsewhere! Feast your eyes on the Beast of the Week!"
Mad clapping erupted from the terrace to the lower seats. Anomen begrudgingly pretended to join in after receiving Yoshimo's pointed elbow to his rib. Despite himself, he craned his neck, watching in morbid curiosity as the ominous reinforced door opened. The dwarf, despite his earlier defiance, scampered towards the weapons rack and selected a maul for his weapon while the human held a short sword in each hand. They stood together warily as clapping intensified and the door finally opened all the way.
A creature stomped out into the ring. Seven feet tall, with gangly limbs and green, mottled flesh. Claws sharper than any blade, and teeth like small knives – its alert, beady yellow eyes surveyed the arena with no small amount of hunger even as saliva trickled from its mouth.
"How in the Realms did they get a troll in here?" gasped an audience member a few seats away from Yoshimo.
How indeed, thought Anomen. Such a creature would have never made it into the city overground, no amount of bribing would have been enough to allow it. There would be panic on the streets. They must have transported the creature through the sewers…which meant Lehtinan had an entire network set up to keep this racket going. His rumination was derailed by the troll's roar as it ambled into the ring. The reinforced door shut behind it, but it made no attempt to turn back. Why would it when dinner was served for it on a proverbial platter?
The next minutes played out precisely as one would expect with two poorly armed and armoured men going against a hungry troll. Oh, they made a decent show of it, both men forming a tag team, dodging and weaving to avoid the troll's grasping claws. They were no slouch, even managing two or three solid blows and nicks in with their teamwork. Unfortunately, any wound inflicted on the creature simply knitted itself shut before they could capitalise on any weakness. Trolls had notoriously fast regeneration and could regrow whole limbs over the course of a few days.
"They need fire or acid, or it's pointless," Yoshimo shook his head.
And it did end up being pointless for the fighters. Over time, a brutal blow put paid to the human, launching him against the door with a crack. He crumpled and did not get up. The dwarf desperately tried to keep going despite the loss of his ally, but the writing was on the wall from the beginning. Long claws raked through his armour like paper, and Anomen gritted his teeth as the troll moved in for the kill. It was a messy end, bloody and brutal against the backdrop of hysterical cheers and claps from the blood-crazed crowd. He didn't think he would forget the screaming for some time to come. Nor the horrible wet crunching sounds that followed as the troll enjoyed his meal.
Turning away, he caught the look on Elene's face as she watched on, her features part-covered by the hand she was pressing against her mouth. It was a mixture of muted horror…and something else he couldn't quite place.
"You should look away, my lady," he told her gently.
Blinking, she stirred as though awakened from a trance. As she remembered where she was, she dropped her hand and her gaze both. It took her some time to school her features back to a semblance of neutrality. Understandably so, he thought. His own stomach churned with every crunch and tearing sound coming from the ring, imagine how it must affect a woman's sensibilities. The only consolation to be found in all this was that the dwarf was already dead.
"Perhaps not the best time to point this out, but I believe we've won 50 gold," Yoshimo piped up.
Jaheira turned to favour him with her most scathing glare.
"Never mind then," he muttered.
"When can we collect the winnings?" Elene asked suddenly.
"Right after the beast is ah, done with its dinner."
"My lady," Anomen hissed. "Surely you don't propose to collect…"
"Of course we will," she cut him off with a warning look. "Just like everyone else. Excuse me, sir," she reached for a burly man to the left of Jaheira, speaking loudly. "Where do we collect winnings?"
"In the parlour," the man grunted. "Get in line, I won money, too."
"A fortuitous night for us all then," she replied with a benign smile.
With that, they sat awkwardly for painful minutes until the troll was sated. Then as though under a spell, it trudged back toward the reinforced doors, and disappeared into what appeared to be an old stone tunnel beyond, back to whatever pit it crawled from. The patrons around them and up in the terraces also got to their feet, chattering excitedly about the fight. More like the slaughter. There was no way what he witnessed would qualify as a fight, without fire or acid, the match was rigged from the start.
"Alright," Elene glanced at him. "Let's head to the parlour."
As she spoke, she shot a meaningful look past his shoulder, towards Yoshimo. The other man let out a low chuckle, oddly tickled by her statement. Anomen almost bristled at him, there was nothing remotely amusing about the current situation. But as they filed out with the other patrons, he noticed Elene nick a pouch from the man in front of her. Instead of pocketing it, though, she tossed it to the side, towards another man dressed in leathers.
"Oh! Sir, I think he took your pouch!" she exclaimed, tugging at her victim's sleeve.
"What? Son of a…"
Anomen watched as a heated argument erupted between the two men, one accusing the other of theft while the other vehemently denying it. Voices rose as they pushed at one another, postures growing more aggressive with friends beginning to intervene on both sides. Before the situation could degenerate, Yoshimo appeared with two guards at his heel. And in the midst of all the hubbub, Elene had conveniently made herself scarce.
"Come," Jaheira tapped him on the arm.
Turning, he followed her in confusion. She pushed past a gathering crowd of patrons eager to witness another fight, until they cleared the scene. Not far beyond was Elene, already waiting by a nondescript door which seemed to lead away from the main corridor and the arena.
"Quick thinking," Jaheira nodded at her.
Elene smiled slightly before pulling the door open for them.
"Where does this door lead?" he asked as he moved past.
"No idea, but none of the patrons were allowed in." She half-shrugged. "Good enough guess."
They passed through a small room, likely an antechamber for guards to rest between shifts. Luck was on their side, there were none waiting for them as they moved past the room and into an adjacent corridor, lined with torches and smelling vaguely of black lotus. Anomen wrinkled his nose in distaste. Apparently Lehtinan also operated a lotus den deeper within his establishment – while slavery was illegal in Athkatla, the punishment for that crime was merely prison time. In comparison, drug-running often resulted in a death sentence, given the Council's strict stance against the drug trade.
Halfway through the corridor, their run of good luck ended. A door creaked open to their left as they were about to inch past, and out stepped three guards. No time to turn back, no shelter to hide behind. They froze as the three men stared at them in surprise. Then weapons were unsheathed on both sides as one of the guards pointed at them.
"Hey, you're not supposed to be here!"
He'd just finished his exclamation when an arrow flashed past Anomen's right ear and planted itself right in the guard's eye, ending his life instantly. With a quick prayer to Helm, Anomen advanced with his sword and shield to engage, adrenaline lending a rush of speed to his steps as he closed in on his enemy. Behind him, he heard chanting from Jaheira, and the soft steps shadowing his meant that Elene was close at his back. Though this was the first time they'd fought as a team, the other three were no slouches and knew what to do. The fight ended as quickly as it began.
"Are you alright?" Elene peered at him in the gloom.
"Ugh, yes." He checked his shield, frowning at the deep gouge on the Delryn family crest, courtesy of a vicious flail strike. "That one put up a fight."
"Good. Come along."
Without further preamble, she faded into the shadows cast by the flickering torches attached to the wall sconces. He blinked, momentarily thrown by her skill at stealth. Fortunately, the hallway led straight ahead to a heavy door at the end, so he didn't have to guess where she was headed. He shifted to follow, then was tugged back by an insistent hand.
"I will go first," said Jaheira.
"I'm better suited for melee," he argued, pointedly looking at her chainmail armour, a weak comparison to his own sturdier splint mail. Not to mention he used a shield, and she didn't.
"Really, young samurai. You should see what the lady can do," said Yoshimo from behind.
"You will understand," Jaheira huffed as she passed him in the narrow hallway.
Somehow, he managed to hold his tongue in the face of her condescension. He glanced at the dead once more, ruefully wishing there had been a way to avoid bloodshed. He followed close behind Jaheira, holding his sword at the ready. No telling how many guards Lehtinan kept in this forsaken hole. They must be protecting something big. Before they reached the door at the end of the hallway, it was pushed open by unseen hands. Jaheira began chanting under her breath and quickened her steps to catch up to their shadowed scout.
"Oi, who's there?" called out a voice from the next room.
Jaheira kicked the door wide open. Beyond it was a large room, where Anomen saw four men in steel and chain armour standing around a table strewn with playing cards, all reaching for their weapons. One of them had a bow. Not wasting time, Jaheira spread her hands and barked out the last words of an incantation. He caught a slight buzz of divine power before a swarm of black insects burst forth from the air before the druid, moving with unerring speed towards their target.
The men shouted as the insects descended on them, weapons momentarily forgotten as they batted at their clothes and head to get rid of the foul, biting creatures. As Anomen rushed forward, he saw the bowman recover first, watched as the man nocked an arrow to his weapon. He raised his shield as he stormed ahead of Jaheira, brows furrowing as he estimated the trajectory of the arrow.
A flash of steel appeared from the corner, and it sailed right into the bowman's eye.
Elene discarded her veil of shadow, lunging into play with another dagger in hand. They descended on the guards at the same time, the three remaining men standing with their backs to each other to face their onslaught as they overcame their initial panic. Trained, he thought, these men were not like the brutes Lehtinan left to cover the side entrance. His opponent was an axe-wielder, and he turned the man's first blow with his shield before stepping into the man's guard with a quick jab. His adversary twitched away at the last moment, surprisingly agile despite the armour, and retaliated with a downward strike which Anomen barely evaded.
"You'll pay for sticking yer neck where it don't belong!" the man snarled as he circled him, looking for an opening.
"Quiet, you slaving scum," he bit back in reply.
He lunged forward in an aggressive move, but this time, he smashed his shield against his opponent's front, catching him on the arm. The impact alone would have rattled the man's teeth, though he kept hold of his weapon. Not allowing him time to react, he swung his sword at an arc to catch the guard as he backpedalled. With grim satisfaction, he saw three of the man's fingers come off, leaving the man shouting as he stared at the useless bloody nubs left behind. After that, it was child's play for him to finish off his opponent.
"To your right!" Yoshimo shouted.
Turning, Anomen raised his shield just in time to catch an arrow meant for his chest. Close call. Just as he was about to pat himself on the back, a cry of pain drew his eye towards Elene. Another arrow caught her in the torso, felling her immediately. He jerked toward her at first but changed his mind as a man with a sword charged toward him to engage.
The fight took a more desperate turn after that, with several more guards rushing in to overwhelm them. A stray thought flitted through his mind as he parried one blow with his shield and sidestepped another, how many of these goons did Lehtinan keep on his payroll anyway? They seemed distinct from the guards stationed outside, these ones clad in leather and looked more like smugglers and hoodlums than the grunts they'd fought in the hallway. How far and how deep do these stone corridors go, and where do they lead to? Had they inadvertently stirred a hornet's nest with their bumbling? If only there was a way for him to summon Order reinforcements!
In a tight spot, he pulled off a quick manoeuvre he picked up from the Hill Gnasher campaign a year ago. With quick footwork and aggressive strikes, it caught one of his aggressors by surprise, allowing him to cut the man down. The other man, however, found an opening in his defence, lunging forward to strike him in the side. He turned, desperately willing his arm to come up quickly enough to deflect with his vambrace and take a graze rather than a direct hit.
Then a pale hand appeared on the man's shoulder, pulling him back. The man froze, his body going tense as a bow string. A knife then flashed across his throat from behind, and Anomen had to duck away to avoid the resulting arterial spray. The man toppled forward, his doom sealed.
Elene stood in his place, breathing heavily. Frowning, Anomen ran a clinical eye down her torso, noted the bloody patch below her left breast, where the arrow punched through her flimsy leather armour. With a curse, he moved towards her with an outstretched hand.
"My lady, the arrow…"
"Did no lasting damage," she finished, dismissing his concern with a wave. "We keep moving."
He stood aside, baffled as she brushed past him. Indeed, she appeared to be no worse off from the wound. Perhaps it was superficial, unable to pierce through to strike her liver or lung. Beyond that, though, there was something different about her voice, her posture. Despite the arrow, she moved like a coiled predator, sharper and more alive than she had been mere minutes earlier. Almost as though a switch had been flipped.
"Nothing on them but coin and weapons," Yoshimo called out as he looted the bodies.
"Never mind that, this way," Jaheira gestured to the door the other guards piled in from.
Anomen stepped through expecting another barrack, or another hallway. Lehtinan did not seem to be creative enough to come up with different designs for his base of operation. The first thing that struck him, though, was the smell. Sweat, human waste and mould, it smelled like misery, a place that had never been graced by the sun or anything good in the world. Squinting in the dim light, his eyes widened as he took in rows and rows of cells filled with men in tattered clothing, some of them shackled to the walls.
They'd found Lehtinan's slave pens.
"Silvanus strike down that vile creature," Jaheira cursed under her breath.
"How has he been getting away with this?" Anomen growled, temper rising.
Elene surveyed the pens, moving nothing but her eyes. They glimmered in the flicker of the torches. As she stood there still as a statue, her jaw clenched as the hand holding a knife shook in the silence, he sensed uncharacteristic malevolence emanating from her, like a shroud cascading over her shoulders. A peculiar sensation. She made a valiant show of maintaining composure, but the sight of the brutalised men behind bars apparently shook her to the core.
"You." She pointed to the nearest prisoner, her voice like ice. "Who holds the keys?"
"The…the Beastmaster, ma'am," croaked the prisoner.
Jaheira exploded. "They keep beasts shackled here, too? What type of beasts?"
"Uhh wolves, gibberlings, a panther, few bears…"
"Where is he?" Elene asked.
"Further in the tunnels, just follow that corridor," the prisoner pointed the way. "Are you…are you going to free us?"
Elene pulled Yoshimo close, "Pick the strongest ones, about four. Let them out, there are weapons in the other room."
"Here we go," Yoshimo muttered under his breath, lockpick already out and ready.
"We make our way to the animal pens next." Jaheira's countenance turned dark. "I will do the rest."
As Elene and Yoshimo started work on their chosen cell locks, Anomen quietly took stock. A risky plan, leaving weakened slaves at their backs to defend their exit. But what was the alternative? There was no telling what this Beastmaster had in store for them, even if Jaheira had the power to bring the beasts under her control as a druid. Adjusting his grip on his shield, he began to prepare himself for another tough fight.
"You are not with that monster, Lehtinan."
A voice called out from a cell to his left. Even in the darkness of the cell, Anomen could see that the speaker was a mountain of a man. From his broad shoulders and bulging muscles, he could likely snap a man in half if he chose to. He also spoke with an unfamiliar accent. Northerner, perhaps? His ankles were shackled by chains bolted solidly to the wall, designed to prevent the man from reaching beyond his bars to grab at an unsuspecting guard. A dangerous man to cage…but perhaps a good ally to have on hand.
"Most certainly not. If anything, we are here to end his evil," huffed Anomen.
The man smiled, his teeth flashing in the dark. "Then fortune smiles on us this day. Release me and I will deliver your judgment with my own hands. These men will follow my call."
Anomen approached his cell, his steps wary. "Who are you to claim to be the leader of these men?"
The man's gimlet eyes were hard as marbles as he answered. "I am Hendak. And I owe Lehtinan a debt of pain."
.
.
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Author's Note
Happy to start the new year with a bang, as it were. :)
May 2022 be the year I actually finish the first draft of this longfic. Currently, I'm looking at about 50 chapter, similar to the previous instalment, but the themes explored are much heavier this time around. And this is probably a good point to highlight that I won't necessarily be sticking faithfully to a few things in the second game for creative reasons. Trust me, there's a method to the madness. I think.
Hope you're still enjoying the story as much as I enjoy writing it!