When Ilchymis had successfully tended to Lawrence and Domingo and the adrenaline of the difficult battle had subsided, the taciturn mercenary turned to Domingo and asked sternly, "Alright, Big-shot - what the hell was that thing?"
Domingo blanched. "Why are you asking me?"
"Because when we ran up I heard you say 'I was wondering when Lord Bane would send another one of you to tail me'," Lawrence shot back, face sour. "So I want to know what that thing was, what it was doing here, and who Lord Bane is. And I'm pretty impatient, so you'd better explain fast." He finished by sheathing his falchion and crossing his arms pointedly; Centime and Ilchymis were similarly looking displeased, so Domingo heaved a sigh, belted the kukris on his hips, and sat down.
"Okay, take it easy; I've got nothing to hide." Domingo removed his pack and carefully extracted the golden mask he had looted from the chest earlier, holding it up for the others to see. "That thing was called a Zivilyn Bane, and I'm sure it was after this."
"What's a Zivilyn Bane?" demanded Lawrence, but Ilchymis fixed him with a disapproving glare and motioned for him to be silent; Domingo nodded once in thanks.
"A Zivilyn Bane is the highest caliber of thief in all of Arcadia. They've plundered the world for generations looking for rare artifacts tied to the Old World, ancient weapons that once belonged to heroes, and powerful magical items. But they kill anyone that gets in their way and keep anything they find for themselves, and ever since I became a treasure hunger I've had to stand toe-to-toe with them every step of the way. They're nothing but ruthless, cold-hearted assassins."
"But who is Lord Bane?" Ilchymis inquired politely.
Domingo's eyes flashed darkly, and for the very first time they saw something akin to hatred in their depths. "Lord Bane is their leader, and no one but the thieves that work for him and the pirates he kills personally have ever seen him. No one has ever even seen his face; they say he's one of the stealthiest, most dangerous men on the planet." Domingo broke off, looking uncomfortable, and finished quietly, "And he was almost... my employer."
"...What?!" Lawrence spat waspishly, and Ilchymis and Centime bolted upright in alarm.
"...Yeah..." Domingo chuckled sheepishly and fidgeted nervously. "Well, Lord Bane only picks the best - a lot of the stuff I hunt for is thousands of years old, and if you're not careful with it you could cause permanent damage - and I am the best at what I do. And when I kept beating his top thieves to the artifacts he had his eyes on, he sent me a personal invitaion into the order. So I thought about it a lot, but in the end I realized that my morals were way different than Lord Bane's, so I declined. Since then he's been sending his minions to assassinate me every time I'm out hunting, and so far I've been lucky, but..."
He broke off again, looking a little scared, and Lawrence heaved a sigh as Ilchymis laid a comforting hand upon Domingo's shoulder. Centime was studying the golden mask with fascination when Lawrence finally turned back to face the treasure hunter; Domingo fully expected the volatile mercenary to shout at him for placing them all in such danger when Lawrence said, "Okay, alright, here's what we'll do - if Domingo finds any other treasures that he thinks this Lord Bane guy will want too, we'll take that as a sign to keep our guards up. I don't like the sound of this guy, and I think Domingo's right; stuff like this - " he indicaated the mask " - Belongs in a museum. So let's all keep our heads up and keep pushing forward - we've still got five Crystals to find, and the Red Moon Crystal to steal back from Admiral Belleza. Come on, let's get moving."
Centime passed the priceless golden mask back to Domingo, who slipped it slowly into his pack and slung it over one shoulder. Ilchymis rose gracefully, smiling at a tittering Cupil, and Lawrence took the lead as Domingo beamed at his back in admiration.
Author's Note: Do I sense a little Domingo side-story in the mix? Stay tuned, fight-fans.
Derek Barona: Hey, I know brilliance when I see it. Thanks again for the contribution.
Syek: I'm flattered. Thank you.
Meowzy-chan: Yeah, the fight with Lord Bane was a bitch, but I kinda liked running into the regular Zivilyn Banes just so I could whip them, lol.