Chapter 11: Nothing can Kill the Grimace

Miar sat in the padded, mahogany chair that went with the desk in the excellent room as he answered Kyrei's question, "How did I get them to come along with me? Oh no, I'm with him, Razen. We decided to summon you for your guidance on the matter of hunting down Myodei and his accomplices."

Kyrei responded, "Ah, of course, that only makes sense. If he isn't accompanying you, then you are accompanying him. I should have expected that you wanted to know about Myodei again, but I've told you everything I know."

"I know all of that, but I— we want to know where Myodei is," Miar replied, "That can wait, however, as you do need to inform your descendant, Razen, of Myodei's evil."

"He doesn't know?" Kyrei asked.

"No," Miar affirmed.

"Ah, well, Razen, you see, Myodei and his partners in crime wished to betray the Lords themselves," Kyrei began, "First Myodei was found with the blood of a Communicant on his hands, then he was found with a water elemental of little note and devilish fire elemental named Zynaer that threatened to murder all who were of the Galiv and Veldrin bloodlines. After that, he was found with a lich named Bazrir and a traitorous energy elemental named Dyjhal. Then some mockery of an elemental named Zolkt and a darkness elemental that disobeyed the Darkness Lord himself! And finally, a wind elemental that helped some harpies eat up some helpless innocents! Does none of this confirm you to his wrongdoings? Why would he associate himself with such criminals?"

"I suppose you have a point," Razen began, "But how can you know that they're still up to vicious acts?"

Kyrei smirked, "Ah, well, Razen, I had learned that Myodei was working alongside a demon of Heck itself. Those damned creatures wreaked havoc on the Western Wastes and made them what they are, completely lifeless and desolate. What creature can claim to be good yet play a part in that or even work with something that had a role in that? I am certain based on that that he hasn't changed his act at all. He probably wants to off some more Communicants, but I say that we can't let him get the opportunity. It is for that reason that you and Miar must hunt down and stop Myodei, and, oh, am I happy that you have come upon Miar. He needed all the help that he could get."

"I'm right here, you know!" Miar exclaimed, displeased at the implied insult.

"My point," Kyrei started once more, "Anyways, back to Myodei, what more could you need to know to know that you need to stop him? He's still working with an evil creature to get whatever fiendish goal it is that he desires, so he's still evil himself which means that he needs to be imprisoned. Besides if he had truly been changed, then why would he try to break out?"

"I suppose so," Razen replied, "But Zolkt had spared me and even provided me with a safe ride home when he could have easily killed me. Why would he do that if he was evil?"

Kyrei seemed to be confused at the mention of this and pondered it. A minute or two later, he had the answer, "He was trying to trick you of course. What better way to stop you from being pursued than to trick your would-be pursuers that you've changed? If they weren't intending for something of ill-will, then it wouldn't matter if anyone was tracking them down."

"Alright, I give," Razen stated, "Miar, you were saying before we got onto this?"

"Oh, yes," Miar focused once more on what was going on, "We need to know where Myodei is going. We just saw him in Gorraran."

"Already?" Kyrei quickly spurted out.

"What do you mean by already?" I asked.

"Ah, well, you see, Kyrei and I suspected that Myodei and his minions would come here due to the oddities that Garnevin sells," Miar stated and proceeded to sigh as if it was close to revealing something that he didn't want revealed. What is he hiding from me? I thought to myself.

"This isn't good, Miar," Kyrei noted, "No, no, no, this is terrible. I don't know where he would be now. This simply isn't the same anymore."

"What!?" Miar was furious as he turned towards Kyrei's ghost with an unforgettable ferocity in his eyes that ate its way into your deepest fears. Time seemed to come to a halt as Miar slammed his hands down on the desk and rose from his chair. He was facing Kyrei with an incredibly displeased expression on his countenance. "What do you mean that it isn't the same?"

"He never went to Gorraran so early on," Kyrei explained, "He must know about this, so he is avoiding falling into the old loop. I can't tell you where he could be; you're on your own."

"How? How could he simply change his methods up?" Miar muttered to himself angrily. He sighed as he returned to his chair. "We must plan in greater depth then," He calmly reaffirmed and sighed as he said, "It's going to be a long night." He pulled out a small notebook. Miar opened it; it was filled with maps of Lore and more in-depth maps of its many regions. Miar asked, "Kyrei, where might Myodei have gone?"

"Has he been to Krovesport? If not, then he probably left for there," Kyrei said.

"How are we supposed to know where exactly he's been when we only had one chance meeting with Myodei?" I asked.

Miar had the answer, of course, "It's simple. We don't."

"What?" I blurted out in surprise.

"Well, if we can't find Myodei, then we won't look for him," Miar reiterated, "We'll simply go elsewhere. I believe that I know just who we'll pay a visit to."

"Who?" Azaila asked this time.

"His name's Joel, and he lives in Granemor," Miar answered.

"Won't we at least rest for the night here?" I inquired.

"I suppose we could," Miar responded, "We did already pay for them." Miar proceeded to chant, "Nhi Morte Vitae." Kyrei's apparition dissipated at the instant that Miar finished.

The beds allotted to us had thick mattresses that were covered with a soft cotton sheet. The comfortable accommodations allowed for a comfortable night's rest which was something that our party had been looking for for quite some time.

Throughout the night I could swear that I had heard some odd noises, but I dismissed them to allow me to continue dreaming. I was reliving that hunt for a wind dragon, and I wondered what Illoz and Rifroz were doing now after so many years. When morning came, I only recall flickering images of Illoz and Rifroz camped out in a dense forest, perhaps Greenguard? It was a premonition of some fashion. Miar wouldn't believe one word of it; he threw aside any possibility of its accuracy. As for me, I felt that it had to be right at least partially. Why else would I think of it?

After that, I recalled the time spent with Zolkt and the oddly fashion-sensitive female earth dragon that he had called to take me home. I still felt uncertain about how vile he could be even if he had threatened to kill me with what seemed to be no second thought about it. As the night went on, it all faded into a thing void of thought...

Author's Amendment:

It came to my attention through one of my editors that I had not yet described the appearance of Razen Veldrin yet, and I have supposed that this is as good a time as any to do so hence this amendment. Razen was in his late teens to early twenties during this time. His hair was dark brown, and his eyes hazel. His hair was layered, so his bangs went only to his eyebrows while the extents of his hair were pulled back and reached the base of his neck. His lips were smooth, but there hadn't been a woman to confirm that yet. A few odd scars strewn about his form marred his flesh.

His attire was not atypical of his generation. He wore a bright purple loose-fitting shirt with sleeves that ended in cuffs a tad before his wrists. A leather belt wrapped itself around his waist with iron holding it in place. His pants were a light blue. His shoes were pieces of leather-work like his belt. He carried a light green traveling cloak and hood for rainy days. His most precious belonging on his person, though, was without a doubt his pendant that his mother had given him. She had said that it had been passed down through her family for ages, and she had always favored Razen over Azaila and Zazaith. The charm was said to bestow its wearer some blessing, but it was lost in the flow of time. Its central gem came from the depths of the ocean; the gemstone was called "The Trench's Jewel" and was considered to be one of the most valuable gemstones to date.

I would explain what "The Trench" is, but I do not wish to digress any further. I will say simply that it is a place that no one wishes to visit.

Riverine Keep was to the west of Bask and the mountain temple. Riverine was a major keep that was said to under the rule of the king of Swordhaven, but the control of the region was quite disputed between Swordhaven and the city-state of Jehitus. The latter of these two had been the home of the famous Dragonlord of Light, Eri, who disrobed himself of the traditional armor of the Dragonlords for a gilded plate design with a helmet that's shape was inspired by that of majestic and regal lions of Lore. He was one of the most renown wielders of a spear with his particular polearm being made of ironwood for the shaft. Moonglow, luminite, and palladinium made for the spear's head.

Riverine Keep itself was still in good order and maintained by a good selection of knights that were handpicked by the rulers of Jehitus and Swordhaven as the keep itself was still a contested subject between the two. No one really segregated the knights, and no one really cared to know who came from which kingdom. It was a pointless affair even without those facts as Swordhaven was at war with another kingdom, the kingdom of the Golden King, a mysterious fellow that claimed he ruled a kingdom known only as the Southern Isles which was a place that had been unknown to anyone not under the Golden King's banner(short of maybe a very few exceptions). No one was exactly sure what started the war, and no one really cared either.

Riverine Keep was made of blackened stone and was built around a dormant volcano. Torches and pillars topped with fire were strewn about the makeup of the place. The barracks and armory weren't far off from each other in the back. The mess hall being the only thing between them. There were rumors that beneath the keep itself was a sprawling labyrinth that stretched for miles according to some of the more hyperbolic chaps. A forest surrounded nearly all of the fortress; the exception being where the stronghold touched the bay and even had a docks for suppliers, merchants, and reinforcements coming in from Bask.

The forest surrounding Riverine Keep suffered some from the elemental alignment of the bastion, but the effects weren't really notable enough to allow anything short of the most skillful eye to be able to spot the signs. It was near here that Zolkt and Ariyzi would rendezvous with Zynaer who had, unbeknownst to them, tagged along a young priest of the Ice Lord, Fannar. A river flowed to the east into Lake Vortin which was the main source of food, fish, and freshwater for the men at the keep. The west end of Lake Vortin being where Zynaer was said to meet Zolkt and Ariyzi.

The problem being that Zynaer was late. He was not late by a few, mere hours either; he was two days late already according to when he was supposed to meet up with Zolkt and Ariyzi. Zynaer's known for being tardy for most everything, so his delay didn't phase Zolkt or Ariyzi in the least(not to mention that they knew that he could hold himself in a fight). They were more curious as to why he had been delayed so much.

Their answer was now upon them; Zynaer appeared with a young fellow draped in layers upon layers of clothes masking his thin frame. Based on the attire of Zynaer's guest, Zolkt and Ariyzi could surmise that he had accompanied him from Bask, the Frozen Northlands, or somewhere nearby as no one would wear so much clothing anywhere else. The young man looked trouble by something while Zynaer maintained his hubris.

"What's with the kid?" Zolkt queried, "And what's got him so scared?"

"Oh, there were some things that troubled us on our way here," Zynaer spoke nonchalantly, "There was nothing of note really, but there was a giant. That's something, I suppose."

"It's rare to see giants these days," Zolkt spoke clearly, "Is that what spooked him?"

Fannar spoke now in broken sentences, "He... He looked. He looked at... He looked at us!"

"I'll take that as a yes," Zolkt noted.

"I also should have mentioned that going through the southern pass is out of the question," Zynaer declared, "Avalanche blocked off the whole path. It'd be weeks before knights from Riverine or people from Willowshire could clear it up. We can't afford to sit around for weeks and risk detection."

"Really? Confound it, it'll be a long trek to go through the west to Bask," Zolkt enunciated with some annoyance present in his tone, "Not to mention that I doubt that all four of us could skimp past Riverine Keep without attracting attention, unwanted attention."

The four were distracted with their planning, so they hadn't noticed a squadron of knights from Riverine coming upon them. Sir Raxilin led the squad. Raxilin was one of Riverine Keep's most veteran knights, and he wielded the keep's signature weapon, the flamberge, masterly. He had been sent out on scouting missions all through his life, but he never had come upon a group as peculiar as this before. Before him was a fire elemental bound by gold chains, an earth elemental composed of wood, stone, and and dirt, a wind elemental, and a young man wearing at least three layers of clothing. He wasn't exactly sure what he could do to them, so he watched things play out a little longer.

"Well, for the sake of the kid," Zynaer began, "If we do get caught, then I wouldn't risk his life by getting into a fight."

"How convenient for me then," Sir Raxilin stated as he appeared alongside his men from the thick of the forests north of Zynaer and company. There was at least ten men adorned in chainmail following him; they didn't seem to bear anywhere near the same amount of experience as Sir Raxilin who bore scars running the length of his face. Sir Raxilin was covered head to toe in full platemail which made it impossible to see his aging face and graying hair. It wouldn't be long before he retired from being a knight.

"You're all coming with me for questioning about your intrusion into militant territory of the kingdoms of Jehitus and Swordhaven," Raxilin declared, "Don't worry, no harm will come to you unless you intend for harm upon us, the kingdom of Jehitus, or the kingdom of Swordhaven. You should be fine."

"Wonderful," Zynaer jested.

"Follow me," Raxilin spoke business-like trying to keep as emotion out of his speech as possible.

The fifteen of them took to the north through a secret path to Riverine. They were able to get about halfway when Ariyzi was able to hear something through the wind. The wind told him one thing, "I don't know who you are but run, run now. I don't want you to be harmed."

Following that warning, they heard some shouts, "I see a giant with white hair, sir!"

"White hair? Are you sure?"

"Yes sir!"

"I've got to have a look at this for myself... By the Lords, it's Sarkalos. Get everyone to arms! The keep's under attack!" Following their exchange, the group heard an immense explosion, and the ground felt the aftershock of the mayhem. Raxilin fell down to the ground; he was not shaken by the earthquake but by his failure. The keep was gone while he was still in service.

In his desperation, he lashed at those around him, "You four! It's your fault that I've failed that Riverine Keep is gone! Go! Leave me with my failure; it's all I have left." Zynaer, Fannar, Zolkt, and Ariyzi took no time to take the opportunity to leave while Raxilin and his men drudged their way back to the keep that was certainly in ruins. Raxilin and his men would be okay though as Bask was due to send a shipment of supplies later that day, but it was unknown how he would deal with this devastation.

Raxilin's drudge continued on until he came within sight of Riverine Keep. The structure was perfectly fine; he was amazed. "How... How did it go through such a blast unscathed?" Raxilin spurted out. The men were filled with a new spirit; they rushed towards the entrance of the keep with such fervor that it was as if they were reborn. It was then that Raxilin realized, "They used that weapon? They must have been desperate then."

It was then that they came to the realization that no one was present; the entire keep was empty short of them. Raxilin sighed, "We're boarding the supply ship back to Bask to run an investigation on this white-haired giant and those elementals. This isn't over. I will avenge our fallen brothers in arms. Search for any survivors or bodies for that matter in the mean time."

The Skraeling was a massive, desolate wasteland of sand with a few small, insignificant blips of civilization strewn sparsely about its great size. It was here, Veqwei recalled, that Myodei and him had come upon Szayan and Dyjhal for the first time. Within its great dunes, there were sphinxes, tribes of cyclopes, mummies, fiery salamanders, nomads with Vechak lizards, the Yenghal nomads, and, of course, the fabled Jagos who holds the secret to the location of the Well of the Water Lord's Tears. The desert heat was overbearing, deadly to most, but the inhabitants of the Skraeling endured it. Veqwei and Vyrdae rarely traveled during the day within the desert as Vyrdae's darkening of the area around him made them stand out to creatures miles away, an unfavorable situation.

If it wasn't for the Chalice of Endless Water that made Veqwei's being, then he would have certainly evaporated during the long, brutal day. The night wasn't much better; it was the opposite end of the spectrum, viciously cold. The cold had little effect on the elementals, however, as neither of them were fire elementals(Zynaer would still be okay regardless). Vyrdae was never to spot during their nightly travels, but he usually tried to make a little bit of noise every now and then to affirm to Veqwei that he was nearby. The duo encountered no trouble in these nightly walks as most creatures of the desert were adapted to its immense heat rather than the cold.

Jagos never stayed in one spot as that'd make it too easy to locate him. Normally, this would make finding him far too difficult for any traveler, even an elemental, but Veqwei had something special with him. That object was his glasses; Myodei had given them to him and were capable of seeing magical creatures through solid matter if they were nearby(an early model of the Oculus). It was still unlikely that they'd find Jagos in a timely fashion even with the magical glasses.

"Bah, it's been a few nights already that we've scoured for him," Vyrdae muttered, "He's bound to burrow deep beneath the sands for the night. We'll never find him at this rate."

Veqwei was shocked at Vyrdae's pessimism, "Myodei would never send us on a wild goose hunt, Vyrdae. He knows that we can find Jagos during the night if he was willing to send us here."

"Really? What makes you say that?" Vyrdae queried sharply, "Is it simply because he gave you life? You shouldn't just blindly follow your creators; I've learned that."

"Aren't we past what happened in Darkovia?" Veqwei asked.

Vyrdae was terse in his reply, "No."

"A shame," Veqwei noted, "A heavy heart bears down on you, you know."

"You know as well as me that we lack hearts," Vyrdae snapped.

Veqwei responded, "Tsk, tsk, must we be so literal? I'm speaking of a metaphorical heart, a spirit, a soul if you will."

Vyrdae refused to speak anymore; he simply drudged towards the next set of dunes enveloping it in absolute darkness as he went. "Don't want to talk anymore?" Veqwei asked, "Oh, come on now, Vyrdae. We're good friends; we'll get over this." Vyrdae scaled the entire dune, and Veqwei struggled to catch upon with him. Water splashed about haphazardly like as if a heavy rain had beset the desert. The sound would wake any nearby creatures as it was the sound of a savior for them, and, for a tribe, it would be more than just a savior but also a means to prosper in this most vicious desert.

"Stop making so much racket; they'll hear us if you keep it up," Vyrdae snarled.

"Well, you won't slow down for me," Veqwei exclaimed, "So I needed to catch up somehow!"

"Fine, fine," Vyrdae snapped once more before he came to a halt to allow for Veqwei to catch up with him. "Better?"

"Much, thank you," Veqwei stated quite calmly.

Vyrdae replied, "Good. Let's get going then if we're done with that."

"Alright," Veqwei agreed quietly. The rest of the night seemed like it would be silent and lacking in eventfulness. Out in the distance, under one of the dunes, Veqwei was able to spot an odd creature, a magical one. He wasn't able to make out what it was however as it appeared to him as a mere speck like as when some sand would stick to his glasses. It could easily have been a sphinx, a light dragon, a mummicane, a mere brigling, an earth elemental made of animatedsandstone, an animated sandstorm, a sand elf mage, or something else as the list goes on with how far away it was. Veqwei simply knew that they'd need to avoid it regardless of what it was.

"Found something with the Oculus up ahead to our left," Veqwei affirmed without emotion. The duo drifted to their right as to completely avoid notice from whatever the thing was. It was yet still moments later that Veqwei spotted it once more, but now he could determine that it was a sphinx, a sphinx with excellent hearing and listening skills. "Vyrdae, I guess that we're not evading it," Veqwei spurted out, "It's a sphinx."

"What could it want with us?" Vyrdae pondered for only a short bit when the sphinx landed before the two. A small sandstorm followed its landing as its brown wings flung sand hither and thither. Her face bore face paint reminiscent of the sand elves, and her horns stretched much further than the norm going down all the way to his shoulders. She had short light brown hair that was more unkempt than a beggar's hair if you could believe that. Her eyes were icy blue, and her tail slung itself about every which way with sand following the motions in close pursuit.

"My, my, what can a water elemental and a darkness elemental be up to at this hour in the Skraeling?" The sphinx mused, "It seems like I caught you two by some relative surprise."

"How were you even able to notice us?" Vyrdae inquired with some annoyance that they were discovered.

"You'll find that my hearing is of the highest quality," The sphinx noted, "So what are you two doing here?"

"We wish to pay tribute to the Well of the Water Lord's Tears," Veqwei lied quite smoothly.

"Are you now?" The sphinx didn't exactly seemed convinced, "You'd have to find Jagos for its location if he's even willing to give it to anyone. He seems to know all about these types of things alongside some of the secrets of the universe. He refuses to share them with us Sphinxes, can you believe that?"

"They wouldn't be very good secrets if every two-bit adventurer worth his weight in gold knew the secrets of the universe, so I'd say it's for the best," Vyrdae asserted.

"Hmph!" The sphinx pouted, "Maybe you don't want me to tell you where he is?"

"And they say that highwaymen and thugs are notorious for extortion," Vyrdae jested.

"Mockery now, really?" The sphinx seemed quite displeased, "I'll just be on my way then, if you're going to be like that. You can wander on aimlessly in this desert if you so wish."

"What my companion means is: What do you want?" Veqwei stated, "He's the type that often needs to be rephrased, a tad bit of a sour-sport if you will."

"Why I never!" Vyrdae exclaimed at this belittlement of his character, but Veqwei whispered something to him that seemed to calm him.

"What'd you tell him?" The sphinx inquired.

"Oh, it was nothing," Veqwei claimed, "Enough about that though, what is it that you want to reveal Jagos's location?"

"A riddle," The sphinx smiled gleefully as she spoke now.

"Oh joy," Vyrdae stated, "Can we get on with it?"

"Oh yes, yes, yes," The sphinx giggled before she started smoothly, "A natural state, I'm sought by all. Go without me, and you shall fall. The Lords wish to follow my lead, and their followers wish for my end. All things desire to reach me when they pray, yet a scale starts out following me and is only led astray. What am I?"

The duo pondered on this one. What was it that the Lords could want that went against their followers' desires. They thought about Dyjhal and the Energy Dragon that led to his betrayal. They came to no avail on that line, so they drifted over to the scale. Vyrdae knew this one fortunately. "Balance!" He spurted out abruptly.

"Wonderful, that took you no time at all," The sphinx answered, "As a reward, have my name, Cihali. Let's try another then?"

"If we must," Vyrdae declared.

"Oh, frabjous day," Cihali responded, "Let's begin: First think of a person who lives in disguise, who deals in secrets and tells naught but lies. Next give me a sound often used as an expletive for something obvious. Now string them together and answer me this, which creature would you be unwilling to kiss?"

"Hmm," Vyrdae began as he pondered, "A spy, but what sound exemplifies something obvious? Duh? Ah? No, no, those make no sense with spy. Hmm, spy, spy, spy, spy der. Spider!"

Cihali frowned, "Done so soon again? You're too good for me, oh...what's your name?"

"Vyrdae," The darkness elemental made clear.

"Ah, you're too good for me, Vyrdae," Cihali declared, "So I'll show you where Jagos lies."