Disclaimer: I don't own Neopets the Darkest Faerie.

Chapter 12

Tor tore his eyes from all of the treasure. They were on a mission. One day they would return and collect what they could, but now wasn't the time. He looked down both of the tunnels that split off from the room, wondering which one they should take. It had been agreed that this time they wouldn't split up if they could help it. If Roberta were to find Lucy then she still wouldn't have the antidote. Not to mention that it was very likely that they might have a run in with the Assassin. If it were to happen, they would stand a better chance if they were together. Tor had already been stabbed once.

"What now?" Roberta asked. "I didn't expect this to happen so soon."

"Me neither." Tor looked between the tunnels hoping for some type of clue. Back in the previous lair the main passageways had been marked with skulls. This time they weren't. "And I would rather not have to go one way and have to back track later because we took the wrong one."

"Well we have to make a decision now!"

Tor began to pace back and forth, examining everything that he could. The one on the left sloped downward while the one on the right seemed to go up, which slightly confused him. How high could it possibly go? Did it go straight to the top of the cliff? Tor frowned. "I say we go down."

"Fine with me. Lead the way, Tor."

Their footsteps were light as they moved from shadow to shadow. It seemed that the place was built rather like the lair in Werelupe Woods as far as the way the tunnels opened up into rooms. There were other false tunnels too, leading only to dead ends, causing the two to have to back track. They encountered many werelupes, all of whom had been killed in their sleep. It wasn't Tor's favorite way to do things as the werelupes had no clue that it was even coming before they fell victim. They spared only the children as neither could bring themselves to harm them. It was less honorable than killing the sleeping beasts.

Tor sliced the throat of a large werelupe and dropped the body back onto the ground with a dull thud. That was the last one for this particular room. He looked over at Roberta who was wiping her brow with her arm. Her wand was in one hand, the dagger in her other. She looked sadly at a young werelupe, still asleep without any knowledge of what was happening. Tor made sure that it wasn't Lucy, hoping that he would recognize his sister, even as a werelupe. He pointed down to another tunnel to the right of him and Roberta nodded.

A squeaky howl reached his ears, echoing down the tunnel. Tor grabbed Roberta and hit behind a barrel filld, overflowing with gold. He crouched down, making an effort to be as small as possible. But he didn't hear any footsteps coming toward them, just that same pained howl. A gruff voice followed. "Shut up already, will ya?" Following was a loud crack and a whimper.

"Take it easy on her Luke," A more feminine voice admonished who was apparently Luke. "You were turned too! You know it's not easy."

"Yeah, yeah. Don't know why the king is making us guard her though. Not like she can bust out of that cage by herself. And even if she did, at this point she'd be more like the pack than her little farmer family."

Tor's eyes widened and exchanged a shocked glance with Roberta. They were talking about Lucy! His sister had been turned. He felt the glimmer of hope he'd previously felt during their travels burn out. At this point Lucy wouldn't even recognize him. He forced himself to sit still for just a few more moments and listen.

"Why do we even listen to that gelert in the first place? He's not even one of us!"

"Quiet Mary!" Luke hissed. "If he hears you you'll be killed."

"It's better than this! Alcasar had the right idea!"

Tor frowned. It seemed that not everybody was happy with the Assassin being their king. He turned his head to look at Roberta who mirrored his thoughtful expression. "We can't sit here like this," he said under his breath. "We've got to act now."

"I know. I say we stick to the shadows as much as we can. Attack when their backs are turned."

Tor nodded once and inched forward, around the barrel. The voices had come from a smaller tunnel that branched off to the right. Judging from the way the echoes sounded, it was just a short tunnel with a smaller cave at the end. He peeked around the side and saw two large forms pacing in front of a cage. He had to hold back a growl as he slipped into the tunnel, pressed against the wall. There were no torches here so it was easy for the two of them to blend. They moved quickly and quietly, sliding into the cave on one of the rotations that the guards took. They were strangely precise, Tor noticed, taking about ten seconds to walk one way before spinning around and going the other way, passing one another in the middle. He crouched behind one boulder to the right of the entrance while Roberta took cover behind another barrel to the left.

He watched the paths the guards were taking closely. Another ear splitting howl erupted from within the cage and Luke bashed on the bars with his bone club. That's when Tor made his moved, darting out from behind the boulder, his sword drawn. Roberta acted at the same time, casting a dark spell that hit Mary right between the shoulder blades. Luke whipped around to see his friend dead, but before he could do anything, Tor's sword was through his throat, protruding from the back of his neck. Tor wrenched his sword to the side, ripping it free. Blood splattered across his face and he attempted to wipe it away, succeeding only in smearing it into his fur.

"You alright?" Roberta asked, coming to stand next to him.

"Yeah." Tor nodded and stared at her for a moment before turning to look inside the cage. He barely recognized the creature as his sister. Her fur was now a dark brown and matted, her lips drawn back in a snarl as she backed into the corner of the cage and her wild eyes now colored a deep red. She was still wearing the pink dress from the night of the party, though now it was dirty and shredded. Tor took the vial from around his neck. "She won't recognize me," he said sadly. He took a few steps back. "Blast the lock off the cage," he ordered.

Roberta didn't look so sure. "Tor, that's not your sister anymore. She's going to—"

"I know." He handed her the vial. "Just do it." He crouched into a defensive position, his sword now sheathed. He wasn't going to hurt Lucy. Roberta sighed and took aim. A beam of red light shot from her wand and the lock broke cleanly into two pieces. He cage door swung open and immediately Lucy charged. She slammed right into Tor's chest, carrying him off his feet. He grunted as he hit the ground and rolled over, planting himself on top of his sister. She continued to struggle, attempting to bite or scratch any part of him she could. One of her claws caught his cheek as she struck out wildly. Tor hissed and planted a knee on that arm to keep his hands free. He grabbed her around the muzzle and wrenched her jaws open. "Roberta! The potion!"

Roberta uncorked the vial and dumped it into Lucy's open mouth. There was a choking sound while she attempted to spit it out, but Tor clamped her mouth shut. She was forced to swallow. Tor and Roberta waited in anticipation. He noticed her struggles to escape growing weaker. Her blood red eyes closed and for a moment, all Tor could feel was panic.

And then, as if Queen Fyora herself had sent some miracle, her fur began to change. The shaggy brown slowly became shorter, beginning to turn into her natural golden color save for some dried blood where she'd been bitten. He began to shrink into her normal size and Tor shuffled to the side, staring at her face. Her elongated teeth shrank, disappearing back into her mouth. Slowly, her eyes fluttered open. Deep brown.

"Tor?" she croaked out softly.

The young lupe knight was overcome by a wave of emotion and he swept his sister up into his arms. "I'm here Lucy. We're going home."

"I knew you would save me! I knew it!"

Tor laughed, wiping a tear from his eye. "Of course I would! I saved you from Shadowglen, didn't I?"

Lucy didn't answer. She'd seen Roberta who was sitting to Tor's left. She launched herself from Tor's arms and at the startled acara. "Roberta! You came too!"

"Well I couldn't let your brother come alone!" Roberta said warmly, looking over Lucy's shoulder at Tor with teary eyes. "But now isn't the time for this. We have to get out of here."

Tor nodded in agreement. Soon the sun would be rising again. They had to leave before that happened. He got to his feet and helped Roberta up. "Yeah, let's go. Get on my back, Lucy. We've got to hurry." He bent down to let his sister crawl up onto his back. Then with a small smile at Roberta, he set off, back down the tunnel.

….

The going was easy. None had woken yet so the bodies hadn't yet been found. Lucy had hid her eyes in Tor's armored back as Roberta had told her to. Neither wanted the small lupe to see what they had done. Tor feared that she might be scarred for life, though rationally he knew that wouldn't be true. Lucy had always been adventurous and the sight of blood didn't scare her. Their mother had been the nurse around the farms and Lucy had been her helper on many occasions.

Tor sighed with relief when he saw the first room they had come to upon entering the caves. It was just up ahead and soon they would be out. In the event that they ran into trouble it would be hard to fight with Lucy anywhere near him. He didn't want her getting hurt again, and especially not bitten. Their whole mission would have gone to waste and the thought of doing it over again made Tor feel slightly depressed. He shook his head to clear the thought away as they stepped into the circular room.

The sound of footsteps made Tor look to his left. There coming from the entrance of the second passageway that went up stood four werelupes. They all stared at one another in shock for a few moments. Then one howled, "INTRUDERS!"

Tor dropped Lucy onto the ground and ran forward with his sword drawn. He stabbed one through the chest and kicked another that had come up behind him, sending it staggering back. A dagger whizzed through the air by his ear and sank into another's skull. Tor wrenched his sword free, and slashed at the one he'd kicked, ripping open its stomach. The werelupe tried desperately with his large paws to hold the wound closed, but blood continued spilling onto the stone floor. Soon it dropped with the other three. Already Tor could hear the pounding of footsteps from the rest of the pack. He picked up Lucy and began to run.

"Sic transit gloria mundi!" he shouted as he ran, causing the entrance to reveal itself. He ran through, followed by Roberta who was casting spells behind her to keep the werelupes at bay. The sun was beginning to rise, bathing them in an orange glow. Tor kept on running until he heard a shriek behind him. He skidded in the sand as he turned around. Roberta lay on the ground, a werelupe hovering over her. She hurriedly cast a spell and it flew back from the force of it, landing about twenty feet away. Tor helped Roberta to stand, but her leg had been bitten badly.

Roberta swore under her breath as she stumbled. "Dammit Tor!"

Tor looked behind him. They'd had a good lead to begin with, but the pack was gaining on them. Without a word he picked Roberta up and continued running. "Hang on tight Lucy!" he said to his sister who was practically choking him with the grip she had around his neck.

"Tor this is just going to slow us down!"

"Shut up, Roberta! We're still ahead!" Tor ground out, wishing that he'd carried a Meerca Speed potion with him. Sand wasn't easy to run across to begin with, but carrying Roberta and Lucy was making it harder. He rounded the side of the cliff and was relieved to see the rope gun still hanging there. However when he saw a large brown shape climbing down the side of the cliff, his heart nearly stopped. How was he supposed to fight like this? "No! This can't be happening!"

"Wait!" Roberta gasped. "That's Alcasar! He followed us!"

Tor's eyes widened and he realized that his companion was right! He stopped at the base of the cliff and set Roberta on the ground. Lucy jumped off and Tor hurried to get the backpacks which he pushing into Roberta's arms, just as Alcasar dropped the last few feet to the ground.

"Got yourself into a bit of trouble, didn't you?"

"Naturally," Tor answered. He looked over his shoulder, shocked at how close the pack was. "Roberta, take Lucy and the packs and go up to the top!"

"What about you? I can't leave you here!"

"Yes you can!" Tor hissed, drawing his sword again. He swung his shield off his back and gripped it in his left hand. "I'll be fine! Alcasar and I will hold them back. Wait at the top. Alright?"

"You had better come back, Tor!" Was all Roberta said.

Tor didn't wait to see if she obeyed, but faced the pack instead. "You ready for this, Alcasar?"

"Yes. We'll hold them back. Don't let them reach the cliff."

With that the two ran forward and jumped into battle. Tor slashed his sword in timed strokes rather than the wild swings he had once used before learning the ways of fighting from Master Torak. He cut down werelupe after werelupe, blocking their attacks with his shield. He leaped over a dead body and plunged his blade into another's shoulder. It ran off, howling with pain.

It seemed like an eternity before Tor heard a loud howl, signaling for the rest of the pack to retreat. His muscles were sore and he had another gash on his right cheek, joining the once his sister had given him. Tor watched the pack run away before looking over at Alcasar who bore several minor wounds, but nothing bad. His bone club was covered with blood.

"You alright?" there kind werelupe asked as Tor put his shield onto his back.

"Yeah. You?"

"First time I've fought in a long while."

Tor nodded and took out his gloves from the belt on his waist. He strapped them tightly around his wrists and walked toward the cliff. "I'm guessing that you can climb fairly easily judging from how you got down here."

"Indeed. These claws can be rather useful you know."

Tor grinned and jumped up, gripping a hold on the rock tightly. His father really did come up with some good inventions. Tor was easily able to climb his way up the stone face at the same pace as Alcasar. Twice his feet slipped, but the gloves enabled him to keep a good grip that ensured he didn't fall to his death. Finally Tor pulled himself up over the side and he lay there, catching his breath.

"Are you alright?" Roberta asked worriedly, hovering over him. He smiled at her.

"Tired is all. How about your leg?"

"Lucy bandaged it for me. Tor, you had better not do something so idiotic like that ever again, unless you want me to—" Her words were cut off by a whimper from Lucy who had caught sight of Alcasar and was now cowering away from the werelupe. Roberta moved from Tor's side over to Lucy's and said quietly, "It's alright, Lucy. Alcasar is a good guy. He just saved us from the pack. You're safe."

Lucy cast a wary glance at Alcasar who kept a respectful distance. "Promise?"

"I promise. He won't hurt you."

Tor watched his sister latch onto Roberta's leg. Lucy had trusted Roberta completely from the first time they'd ever met back when they freed the farms of the purple clouds. Roberta in turn adored Lucy and once told Tor that she was like a little sister to her. Slowly Tor got to his feet. "We have to keep moving and get as far away from this place as we can. We're still much too close for my taste."

Once Lucy had climbed onto his back again, they set off. "You want to know what Tor?" Lucy asked.

"What?"

"I didn't notice it before, but you really stink."

…..

It was another two days before they reached the home of Alcasar and Bredda. The she-lupe had been waiting for them at the entrance and had immediately welcomed the travelers into her home. Lucy had easily gotten past the fact that they were werelupes and got along well with Nym and Medea. Tor could hear them playing as he washed his wounds using water he'd collected from a nearby stream. One of the werelupes had managed to get through his armor, giving him a deep gash on his back. He would need Meridell's armorer to fix that for him. She was the best around and had been eyeing his strange armor for over a year.

"That looks painful," Roberta commented as she made her way down the hill on a makeshift crutch. Bredda had dressed the bite on her leg and it would heal quickly with the help of one of their many potions. Tor would use the same on his own wounds.

"Yeah. Damn werelupe got through my armor."

"Here, give me the cloth." Tor handed her the rag he'd been using and she soaked it in the water. He winced when she gently cleaned away the dried blood, getting close to the tender flesh. "Don't be a wimp," she scolded good humoredly.

Tor gaped. "I am not a wimp!"

Roberta laughed. "You flinch at a bit of water!"

"It hurts!"

"Wimp!" the sorceress sang. Tor cupped his hands and filled them with water from the barrel and tossed it over his shoulder. It splashed Roberta in the face and she shrieked. "You jerk!" she snapped, whipping his arm with the cloth. Tor bent over with his hands on his knees as he laughed loudly, unable to help himself. "And to think I came down here to help you," she muttered, crossing her arms as a drop of water dripped from her chin.

"You definitely asked for it," Tor said, still sporting a large grin.

Roberta rolled her eyes. "Turn around. Your wound still needs to be cleaned."

Tor chuckled and faced away from her and looked to the woods. He couldn't help but keep his ears pricked for any sounds, even though they had left the pack far behind. You never knew what could happen.

"I think that one day after all this is over, we need to go back there and retrieve the treasure that was stolen from Brightvale," Roberta suggested. "That treasure has been missing for decades and now it's finally been found, but we can't even take it."

"I agree with you there Roberta. It needs to be returned. And hey, we might even get a reward for doing it!"

Roberta smacked his shoulder lightly. "Trust you to think of the money. It's not about being rewarded! Besides, not everything down there was stolen from Brightvale. It wouldn't hurt to keep it for ourselves."

"I like the way you think!"

"And I think you've been spending too much time around Meridell's thieves!"

Tor chucked and lifted his arms as Roberta began wrapping bandages around his chest to cover up the wound. She had applied the potion to it already and Tor immediately felt the somewhat soothing sting. He sighed and lowered his arms. Roberta handed him his shirt and he pulled it over his head. "Thanks for the help."

"Well I highly doubt you would have accomplished it by yourself."

"Dinner!"

Tor looked up the hill at Bredda's call. He bowed his head to Roberta. "After you, Lady Roberta."

"Why thank you Sir Tormund." Roberta said graciously, though there was humor in her voice. Tor followed her up the hill and into the cave where Alcasar, Nym, Medea, and Lucy were already circled around the fire. He and Roberta joined them, Tor seated between Roberta and Alcasar. Bredda passed out wooden bowls to all of them and they each waited their turn to ladle a hearty meat stew into their bowls.

"Did you run into the Assassin at all?" Alcasar asked. Over the two days of walking back to Alcasar's cave they hadn't spoken very much about what happened in the lair of the werelupes, preferring to wait until they were all comfortable and alone.

"No," Tor shook his head. "And though I would like to face him as soon as I can, I'm glad we didn't. Roberta and I were already tired and Lucy was with us. Getting her out of there was the main goal."

Alcasar nodded slowly, glancing at the young lupe, giggling along with his daughters as the flicked bits of stew into the fire. "I find it strange that he didn't show himself."

"He may not have been there at all," Roberta said. "Actually there is a very good chance that he wasn't. He's highly trained in old magics in which I myself have only scratched the surface of and many of them are dark. He can teleport himself over long distances using a technique I believe is called Smoke Step."

"I just say disappearing into purple clouds," Tor cut in, flashing Roberta a grin. And then he frowned. "Wait, you've used dark magic?"

Roberta gave him a serious look. "Tor, we were out of touch for nearly a year and many things happened. Most scorcerers to dabble in dark magic, that way they know it's properties and can fight it. The problem is that some lose their way and the darkness takes over. Even I have felt the pull of it, especially when fighting the werelupes. Every dark spell one ccasts brings them deeper into it, but as long as you have the will, you can fight it off." She gave a deep sigh and sent Tor a sad look. "You've used it too Tor, every time you used a mote of dark properties. You probably haven't felt the pull because motes, though powerful, aren't a very concentrated source of magic.

"Anyway, he can use that technique to teleport himself to wherever he wants; although there are limits as to how far you can travel in one go. Right now it is suspected that he's put himself in charge of the Ixies out near Cogham. He might have been there, but we haven't had contact with Meridell since leaving the Kingdom."

"This man must be stopped quickly!" Bredda gasped. "He'll cause a war if this keeps up!"

"I'm sure that's exactly what he's planning," Tor agreed. "He's extremely powerful, nearly up to the Darkest Faerie's standards. She even chose him to take out Roberta and me when we were trying to free the lands of her magic. And he's held a grudge against me ever since I nearly beat him. He transported away before I was able to finish him off."

"Coward," Alcasar growled. "If he had any honor then he would have accepted his loss with dignity instead of running away!"

"He's also a dirty fight," Roberta said. "He uses Smoke Step to confuse his opponents, showing up behind them."

"I wish I could learn that," Tor muttered.

"Well I'm sure you could actually. Everyone has the ability to use magic, but with the amount of work and concentration involved, Most don't have the time."

Tor frowned. "Really? I always thought that only few neopets are born with the ability."

"Not true, though that's what most think. Some just have a stronger hold on their magic and show it in accidental ways."

"Hm." Tor grunted. He placed his empty bowl on the ground in front of him and fell onto his back as he stretched his arms behind his head. "Well maybe I ought to get into that. It would give me a bit of an advantage."

Alcasar nodded sagely. "From what you've said the Assassin will not underestimate you any longer. You will need every advantage you can get."