Hey people! P12ussia and I have returned for our trip and Amiacon was kind enough to help us with writing while we were gone. The story is having some difficulty with having places where the chapters can end solidly. Anyway, on with the story!
Disclaimer: None of us own DFO, nor do we want to.
"Good shot!" Eromreven said, clapping.
"I guess..." Evecil muttered.
"Seriously! I haven't seen many kids your age who would have both the spectacular aim and the power to blow that bitch's head off in one go."
"I was just trying to kill her. I really didn't know which spells I was using."
Eronel giggled. "Maybe you've got it in you to be a Berserker too!"
"Never joke about that! I would never be that bad," Evecil exclaimed with a shiver.
"Yeah, he could never!" Eromreven agreed. "He's missing a little... something." Grinning, he flexed his demon arm.
"What makes you think I would even want to be a Berserker?" he questioned.
"Well, it is what you were just doing," Komlin pointed out.
"You'd be mad too if you ran into your killer, wouldn't you?"
"No, I'd be dead," Komie said with typical Slayer acuity.
"If you were in my shoes," Evecil said while rolling his eyes.
"Then my feet would be really cramped!"
"Forget it! You're never going to understand what I mean."
"All right!" Komlin agreed. "Forget what? Were we making lunch plans?"
Eromreven leaned down next to Evecil. "You know the little bastard's just messin' around, right?"
"Whatever," Evecil sighed. "Let's just go back to town. I need to sell some of the materials I picked up."
"You and me both!" Eronel said. She had made out like, well, a bandit.
"Ok! Back to town," Arren hummed in a cheerful manner.
So back to town they went. After all business was done with, they met back at the entrance to Grand Flores.
"Well, the only place you haven't been now is the Shadow Thunderland," Eromreven said in a spooky voice.
"There's some sort of something you're supposed to do to get there, but I found a short cut."
"Ok," Evecil said, his voice holding suspicion.
"Before we go, I want to get something straight," Eronel said. "I've heard rumors about zombies there?"
Eromreven nodded. "Yep."
"Cool!" She and Komlin high-fived.
"Why must there be more undead creatures? And before you make a joke, no they're not related to either of us," Evecil said in an annoyed tone. Arren was only partly listening while still holding on to Evecil.
"Dammit!" Eromreven snapped in mock frustration. "There goes my punchline. Apparently there's some sort of evil interdimensional oogy boogy that makes things get up and go bump in the night. Don't ask me for details."
"What?" Arren asked coming out of his daydream.
"Didn't I just say don't ask?" Eromoreven said. "There are walking corpses there, that's all I know."
"Oh..." Arren hummed. "Wait. Walking corpses? Evecil, I'm scared!" he yelled.
"Can we just leave him here?" Evecil asked.
"Maybe if he'll let go of you," Komlin chortled. "Can we just go and kick some zombie butt?"
"I'm good as soon as Arren will let go," Evecil said while looking at Arren. Arren did get what he meant and let go of him, but instead became his shadow.
"Better idea." Eromreven walked towards the brothers and scooped them up, one over each shoulder, on his way into the forest. "Come on!"
"Put me down, Damnit!" Evecil yelled in protest.
"Fine." Eromreven gave Arren a meaningful look, mouthed "one, two, three," and dropped them.
"I hate that you can be so literal," Evecil muttered.
"I hate that you're so grouchy all the time," Eromreven countered. "We're even."
"Can we just go?" Arren asked with impatience for the first time since Evecil had known him, and Evecil was slightly shocked.
"Sure, sure," Eromreven said lightly, walking on. "I just thought you'd want to wait for your brother to get his ass out of the mud."
"I'm fine. Thank you very much," Evecil remarked.
"Great," Komlin said, passing him to join Eromreven.
Arren, being the silly kid he is, yelled, "Adventuring we go!"
"Shut up, Arren! You're making my headache worse," Evecil whined.
Eronel passed him a potion. "Drink that. I can't guarantee about brothers, but it'll make your headache go away."
"Thanks. I'll be in a better mood after it's gone," Evecil said, and drank the potion.
They walked on for another twenty minutes or so when Eromreven suddenly stopped and held up his hand. "Stay here a minute," he ordered. He continued on into a clearing surrounded with dead trees. The air here was still and lifeless, carrying not a sound nor a breeze. He walked slowly, sweeping side to side across the clearing, feeling the air for something. At last, his hands went frigidly cold and he gave a small smile. "Gotcha." Stepping back, he pulled his bludgeon out and hit the small column of freezing air with a Ghost Slash. The sweep of his weapon seemed to unzip a door in the air, a whirling purple portal. "After we get through this, it'll close up and we can't leave until we beat boss zombie," he called, beckoning them forward. "Everybody ready?"
"Yeah," Evecil said. Arren just nodded his head in agreement. Eronel and Komlin also gestured their assent.
"I'll go last, just in case it closes before we're all through," Eromreven said. "Komlin, we want a hard hitter in front."
The young Slayer stepped through the portal and shivered. It was like walking under a freezing, sticky waterfall, but, fortunately, the sensation only lasted a moment before he burst out on the other side. Zombies. Everywhere. A mass groan rose from the dead horde and they shuffled towards Komlin. He drew his blade and rushed to meet them, joined a second later by Eronel. Evecil came next, then Arren, and finally Eromreven.
"Damnit! Why are they so resistant to magic?" Evecil yelled, firing bolt after bolt trying to keep the horde back.
"They're up an' about 'cause of some other stupidly strong magic," Eromreven said.
"Great," Evecil and Arren groaned.
"Doesn' mean you should give up though!" the Berserker growled. Eronel and Komlin were surrounded. "Blow up the fucking ground right behind 'em!" he advised.
"What made you think we would give up?" Arren asked, while he and Evecil cast a few spells.
"Oh, great," Eromreven mocked, slouching exaggeratedly. "Just makin' sure."
"Well thank you for caring," Evecil said with mock appreciation.
"Welcome!" Eromreven grinned broadly. "Jus' doin' what I'm here for, aren't I?"
"Whatever," Evecil muttered. "Arren there's more coming your way!" he yelled.
"Got it!" he answered, and fired off several Wind Strikes.
Eronel and Komlin teamed up to finish the last zombie, then returned to their teammates.
"Wow..." Eronel panted. "That was intense."
"No kidding!" Komlin cried. "I'm totally pumped now!"
"Yep," Evecil agreed. He was bandaging some minor wounds that he and Arren had gotten.
"Want some help?" Eromreven asked, trying not to sound too eager. He had satiated the demon already; it was his own bloodlust now.
"I don't trust you enough to come near me or Arren," Evecil stated. "So, no."
"Not with the medicine shit, you moron!" Eromreven scoffed. "The fightin'!"
"I guess. Arren and I are temporarily unable to fight beacuse we used up too much energy, but we'll be fine in a bit. I don't know about those two though," Evecil said.
"I'm good!" Komlin said.
"Yeah, we're both all right, but an extra weapon out there wouldn't hurt," Eronel agreed.
"Hahaha, hell yeah!" Eromreven whipped out his bludgeon and easily spun it between his hands. "I been gettin' bored, watching you kids have all the fun!"
Evecil took a swig of an MP potion and gave the rest to Arren. "Ready?" he asked.
"You know it," Arren replied. "Let's kick some zombie butt!"
"I'm in!" Eronel said.
"Yeah, let's go!" Komlin was almost bouncing with excitement. The demon was beginning to have an influence on him, kindling the brutal desire for battle.
"Then what are we waiting for, dammit!" Eromreven shouted. "Let's go!" He sprinted away. Komlin bounded after and Eronel chased after him.
"Come on, Arren, and try to keep up!" Evecil shouted, running after the group.
"I can keep up, brother, and you'll have to keep up with me," he called to Evecil, momentarily passing him.
"You'll have to keep the lead for longer than a few seconds!" Evecil yelled back.
They dashed right into the next mob and Eromreven, as was his wont, brutally massacred anything within reach.
"Arren, watch your back!" Evecil yelled while fending off some zombies. "You're wide open!"
"Thanks for the tip!" Arren yelled back.
Komlin skidded around, dodging a Forest Zombie's swiping claws, and came face to face with his bloody mentor. "Whoah!" he cried, jumping. "Scared me!" He reached out and sliced the thing in two, then they just grinned at each other and ran off to where Eronel was fending off three Hollow Eyes.
"Just in time, guys," she said dryly, separating one from its arms with one knife and carving open its stomach with the other.
"Thanks." Eromreven jumped into the air and pierced one of the remaining two from the head to the ground while Eronel and Komlin attacked the last. Zombies gone, they paused to heal, and spent most of the afternoon in this manner.
"Finally we can take on the boss," Evecil said slightly worn out.
Eromreven held his hands in front of him and walked stiffly like a zombie. "Ready to face the dread monster Goulghish?" he asked in his creepy voice.
The other four burst out laughing. "That is so funny," Arren giggled.
"You know it!" Eronel said. She leapt at Eromreven, dagger pointed at his heart. "Come on, Goulghish!"
Eromreven batted her attack away. "It'll take more than that, puny mortal!" he cackled.
"How about this?" Komlin had snuck behind him and brought his sword up to Eromreven's throat.
"Yeah, that oughta do," Eromreven said, nodding calmly. "I do like my bloody head where it is, thanks."
They collapsed into laughter.
"Man, I haven't laughed like that in a while," Evecil said while catching his breath.
"I don't remember the last time you did laugh, brother," Arren commented.
"Don't push it, Arren..." Evecil warned.
"See?" Eromreven chortled. "A bastard like me can be fun! You just gotta loosen up some."
"Alright. I'll try to stop being such a stiff," Evecil said.
"There's the brother I know!" Arren exclaimed happily.
"It's not going to be that much of a change," Evecil added. "Can we go kill Goulghish now?"
"Onward!" Eromreven agreed.
"Heh heh, he's a stiff," Komlin suddenly guffawed. "That's funny!"
Arren looked at him oddly. "Is he always like this?" he questioned.
"I think he's drunk on adrenaline," Eronel said. "Komie, pull yourself together!" She smacked him in the back of the head.
"I am just fine!" Komlin attempted to assure them.
"No you're not," Evecil said. "You might get yourself killed at this rate."
"I will not." Pouting, Komlin turned away from them.
"Hey, I said might, that doesn't mean it will happen," Evecil shot back.
The air was getting colder as they walked on. "We're close, aren't we?" Arren asked nobody in particular.
"Yep," Eromreven confirmed.
"Then let's go!" Evecil exclaimed.
"Why are you so eager, Evecil?" Arren asked.
"I honestly don't know," Evecil said, slightly worried.
"Because he should be a Berserker!" Komlin joked. "He just doesn't want to admit it. Berserker Mage? Who's ever heard of that before, right?"
"Oh, Shut up. I'm worried that I'll end up like Binoche," he explained.
"That won't happen to you, Evecil," Arren said, trying to comfort him.
"Thanks, Arren" he replied.
"Like Binoche how?" Komlin asked. "Dead? Again."
"Idiot. I don't want to go mad with power," Evecil said. "It can happen to any mage, but usually the ones that tend to be stiffs like me," he explained.
"So by being me, I'm doing you a favor!" Eromreven laughed.
"Just forget it," Evecil said, turning to the gate. "Let's just go."
"I've always wondered why they build these gates," Eronel mused on the way through. "Gates in a forest? Why?"
"Ruins?" Arren offered.
She nodded. "Makes sense. I doubt the monsters could do something like that on their own."
"We can ponder that later, because we have company!" Evecil told them. "There must be at least fifteen zombies in here."
"Awesome!" Komlin yelled. "Let's go!" The three melee warriors dove into the fray.
"Arren, let's try combining our spells," Evecil said.
"But that could be dangerous!" Arren yelled while attacking some Hollow Eyes.
"And this isn't?" he shot back.
"Point taken. Let's try it."
"Alright, here it goes," Evecil said. Both mages prepared their spells. Evecil charged up a Water Cannon, and Arren charged a Concentrated Fury.
"Let's hope this works," Arren muttered.
"Focus, brother!" Evecil snapped, and let the spell fly. Arren's followed close behind, and the energies collided with a bang!, forming a ragingly unstable twister. The blast flew toward the group of zombies - and Eronel, Komlin, and Eromreven.
"Oh, shit!" the Berserker shouted, tucking into a roll just in time to dodge the storm of magically-charged water. The other two jumped at his shout without looking at what they were avoiding. It turned the mob of zombies into a pulpy, bloody mess. Goulghish alone still stood, staggering on its leg and a half. Evecil shot a Wind Strike at Goulghish, and Arren followed close behind with an Ice Sword. The tornado threw the zombie in the air, and the sword cleaved it in half before hitting the ground.
"Whoah..." Komlin said. "That was AWESOME!"
"Thanks, I think," Evecil answered. Arren looked to see if Goulghish had any good items on him.
"Evecil, come look!"
"What Arren?" he asked.
"I found some MP potions on him," he said cheerfully.
"Thanks for finding those. After that spell, we need them."
"That was some damn slick magic," Eromreven congratulated them. "Even when it was almost blowing my head off."
"Sorry about that," Arren said. "We didn't know what would happen when combined the spells, so you can't really blame us."
"Don't worry about it, squirt!" he laughed. "We're all alive and the undead're more dead!"
"So, back to town?" Evecil asked.
"Back ta town," Eromreven agreed. "Komie, wanna do the honors?"
"Sure!" The young Slayer followed him to Goulghish's body.
"This guy's the key to gettin' out. Feel 'round for a cold spot, then Ghost Slash it, got it?" Eromreven instructed.
"Yeah." Feeling a bit awkward, Komlin felt around in the air above Goulghish's body until his hands found the frozen air. "G-got it," he said, surprised at the intensity of the sudden chill. He backed off a couple of steps and raised his sword. Eromreven also stepped away and nodded, indicating that it was clear. Komlin's blade slashed downward, wreathed in the familiar shadow, and ripped the air open into the swirling portal.
"Let's go!" he said, beaming with his victory. They filed through, Komlin going last.
"So, does it have to be Ghost Slash?" Eronel asked once they were all back in the dead clearing, shaking off the chill of the portal.
Eromreven shrugged. "Dunno. Could probably be any shadow energy, but I only ever came alone. Never had someone else ta test it with."
"It doesn't feel that cold to me," Evecil stated. "I wonder why that is."
"Ain't it grand havin' good resistance to magic?" Eromreven answered.
"Is that it? It feels like the chill is more than just resistance."
"Hell if I know," the Berserker said simply. "Just guessin' here."
"M'kay," Evecil said. "Anyone need to sell anything?"
"I think we all do!" Eronel laughed.
"Oh, I had forgotten the stuff I had on me," Arren said. "Silly me."
"Silly you indeed!" She noogied him and started back the way they came. "Shall we?"
"Sure," Evecil said. "Want to meet back at the tavern?"
"Sounds good," Komlin agreed. Eromreven nodded, and Eronel said, "Plan made, then!"
"Alright! See you then," Evecil said, and walked off with Arren following close behind him.
"Do they know the way back?" Eronel whispered.
Eromreven shrugged. "Probably oughta go with 'em, eh?"
"We heard that, and we do know how to get there!" both of the twins yelled.
"Better sense of direction than I have, then," Eromreven said. "I only know this place so well 'cause of all the damn times I got lost."
Nel giggled and went to follow the Mages. "Well, if it works for you!" she said.
They emerged from the forest, blinking in the sudden brightness.
"Stupid Sun," Evecil muttered. "Spent too much time in that forest."
"Try living underground most of your life," Eronel said. "This doesn't seem too bad compared to my first day."
"Good point."
Back at the tavern, there was much joviality. Arren, being an idiot, let the Slayers give him some alcohol.
"This's -hic- weird!" Arren slurred. "Th'floor won't stop moooooving!"
"That mighta been a tad strong for the kid," Eromreven said, scratching his chin.
Komlin nodded. "Yep."
"You idiots should know that you never give a mage alcohol. He could seriously hurt someone," Evecil stated.
As if to prove Evecil's point, Arren had gotten up, tried to walk, and was now spinning, magic sparking from his fingers and scorching his chair.
"Haha, pretty," he giggled, falling down. He tried to climb back up, but the chair could no longer support any weight and snapped, spilling him to the floor again.
"This might be a problem," Eronel groaned.
"No shit," was Eromreven's eloquent reply. He looked around nervously for Suisha. "She's gonna ping me for this, an' then bye-bye booze..." He sighed despondently.
"Arren, let's get you up to the room," Evecil whispered, knowing Arren's head would hurt later.
"But but but but - th' pretty lights!" Arren whined. "They're down here!"
"Those lights can hurt you," Evecil explained. "I don't want you to get hurt."
"No they WON'T!" Arren pounded the floor with his fists and a gout of flame rose from each.
"Oh, no..." Komlin said.
"Oh, no is right!" said a stern voice over his shoulder. Eromreven looked guiltily up at Suisha. "Which of you idiots gave a young Mage anything stronger than apple juice to drink!"
The Slayers shrank down in their seats, trying to be as small as possible.
"I should have known it would be you, E," she said, glowering down at him.
"Komlin helped!" he protested.
"Fine." She grabbed each of them hard by an ear and dragged them away. "See if I let you in for a couple of weeks! That'll teach you not to burn my bar down!"
"Nononononono! Suisha, I'm sorry!" Eromreven howled as she shoved them out the door.
"Serves you right!" the elf growled, slamming the door on them.
"Suisha, I'm sorry for how my brother's been acting," Evecil said and handed her some gold. "I think that's enough to cover for the damage he caused."
"Thanks," she said, taking the money. "And don't worry about it too much, he's blitzed." She went back behind the counter and grabbed a bottle, returning to the table. "I always keep some sleeping potion on hand just for this kind of thing. Let's get it in him before anything else happens." She forced Arren's head back and poured some of the amber liquid down his throat. Within moments, he was curled up on the floor. "There. That ought to lessen his hangover, too. Geez, what were they thinking..." she murmured.
"Nothing, that's what they were thinking," Evecil said.
Suisha shook her head. "Of course. What else could I expect from a kid who'd fall in with E?"
"Not much," Eronel confirmed.
"Yep, well I need to get Arren in bed. See you later," Evecil called.
"I think I'll head up too," Nel said. "Thank you, Suisha."
"Not at all! Where do you think most of my profits come from?" Suisha asked. "It's a good thing most adventurers are an honest enough lot to pay for their messes." She waved them goodnight and left to return to tending her bar.
"Gee, thanks a lot," Komlin scowled. They were back at Eromreven's campsite.
"Me?" Eromreven said. "Who gave it to him?"
"Who ordered it?"
"Fuck ordering it, whose idea was it?" Eromreven snarled.
"I... Don't remember..." Komlin said with a frown.
"So I blame you," Eromreven said, lying down on the grass.
"Well I blame you!" Komlin yelled, punching him.
Eromreven, eyes blazing, leapt up and tackled Komlin to the ground, gripping the kid's throat. He stared down at Komlin for a long moment, panting hard, fighting to regain his composure. "Night," he said suddenly and flopped back down on the grass, back to Komlin.
"Night," Komie said, shaken by the episode.
The next morning the group met outside the tavern.
"Have a nice night?" Eronel teased.
"No," Komlin and Eromreven grumped simultaneously. Evecil was chuckling, and poor Arren was groaning because of his hangover.
"You stupid Slayers had to get me drunk?" He asked wincing at every sound he heard, even his own voice.
"Shut the hell up, you little punk," Eromreven snarled. "You're the one who drank the booze."
"Don't blame him," Evecil interrupted.
"He's just mad 'cause Suisha kicked him out," Komlin hissed.
"Dammit, shut up!" Eromreven roared, smacking Komlin in the head.
"Oooh, got a little soft spot for more than just her drinks?" Nel crooned.
Eromreven glared at her. "Drop. It."
"He does, he does!" she laughed.
"Let's get going," Evecil said. "We should use what daylight we have."
"Yeah, it's a long trip to the West Coast," Eronel said.
"Guys, I don't feel so-belgh!" Arren emptied the contents of his stomach on the pavement.
"Come on, Arren, you should not move so much," Evecil stated.
"Then how do you expect me to get there if I'm not s'posed'ta move?" Arren asked.
"Levitation spell," his brother simply stated.
Arren gaped. "All the way there? I'm not that good at them!"
"Idiot," Evecil said. "I'm casting the spell, and I have plenty of MP potions, so don't worry."
"Just don't drop me," Arren whimpered. "My head might explode."
"Haha. I won't drop you," Evecil said softly. "You're my brother and I would never do that."
Eronel and Komlin stifled their laughter at Evecil's unexpected kindness. Eromreven just rolled his eyes.
"Hey, you have to be nice to hungover Mages. If you aren't there is a high possibility of getting hurt or worse," Evecil explained.
"Get hurt how? The Tau stampede in his head or the cotton on his tongue?" Eromreven growled. "He can't do shit right now. You just don't wanna admit you c'n be nice."
"I do have a nice side. It's just when I'm not in a good mood for a while I act a lot nicer than usual."
"It's true," Arren whispered.
"Weird," Komlin muttered.
"Some people say that's such a difference that I have two personalities. Which isn't true."
"You sure 'bout that?" Komlin asked.
"Yes," Evecil sighed. "I'm not mentally unstable."
"I had my doubts," Komie muttered.
"Guys, road trip? West Coast, Sky Tower?" Eronel reminded them. "Ring any bells?"
"Yeah, we're coming," Evecil said while levitating Arren.
They set out in silence until, on the edge of town, Eromreven cried out, "DAMMIT!"
Eronel looked askance at him. "Something wrong, E?"
"Suisha still has our weapons," he groaned. "Damn no-weapons rule."
"Crap! You're right!" Komlin realized.
"Oh, well," Eromreven sighed. "We'll go to Kargon when we hit the West Coast."
"Arren, I need to put you down now," Evecil said.
"M'Kay," Arren replied as he was set on the ground. "I think I'm better now."
"That's good," Evecil said with a slight smile.
The journey lasted two weeks on foot. It started smoothly enough. The usual banter continued for a few days until they ran out of things to talk about and fell into an easy silence. Early during the second week, Eromreven changed - he became withdrawn, angry, and when asked a question only spoke in grunts. All the time now, he hunted, but he only returned with dried-up bodies. At night, he slept away from the others and trailed behind when he walked with them during the day.
On the third day of this behavior, Komlin was elected to find out why.
"Why me?" he whined.
Eronel gave him the look. "Because he might actually talk to you," she said.
"It's our only option," Evecil added.
"Fine," Komie sighed. "But if he attacks me, I blame you guys!"
"If you're scared, wait until he comes back tonight. Then we'll at least be close," Nel suggested.
Komie nodded. "Good plan."
Eromreven returned late carrying a handful of rabbits by their necks. As he tore into the first one, Komlin crept from his bedroll and circled around to approach their unpredictable party member from the front.
"E?" he asked timidly.
Eromreven, in the middle of a bite, only looked up for a moment before returning to his dinner.
"What's… What's up?" Komlin tried again.
"Food," was the guttural response.
A word. That was encouraging. "I… see that."
"The hell you want, shrimp?" Eromreven grunted.
"I... That is, we - the others and I - " Komie couldn't seem to get the words out. An impatient growl issued from Eromreven's throat. "We - we were wondering, are you... okay?"
"'m I okay?" the Berserker repeated skeptically, throwing away the bare rabbit skeleton. "Jus' fine! Only got a bastard of a parasite I gotta feed on rabbit guts!"
"Oh," Komlin said. "Is it bad?"
"Shit, it's bored." Eromreven dug his teeth into the next bloodless coney's neck, ripping the fur from its back. "Whatever the hell you do with yer life, kid, make sure it ain't this."
"Yeah..." Komlin left Eromreven's camp for his own, suddenly finding meat very unappetizing. As he reached into his pack for some bread, the others peppered him with questions, asking what he had learned. "He needs blood. A fight. The demon's bored."
"So why aren't you like that?" Nel asked.
"He let it have a lot more influence than I have. Or ever will." Komlin looked sadly over his shoulder at the bestial figure sitting in the dark. Did Eromreven just want to be alone as he fought for his sanity? Or was he truly afraid that he would lose it? Komie was afraid to know.
"Whooah..." West Coast was a huge, bustling port city infused with the scents of salt, fish, and people.
"This is incredible!" Nel said. "I've never seen the ocean before, or even smelled it." She inhaled deeply, enjoying the salt's tang.
"Not the best time," Komlin whispered. "I think we should just find this Kargon guy pronto."
"This way." Eromreven pushed past them down the main street. They kept as close as they could to the gruff Berserker as he shoved through the bustle of the street, which eventually opened on a market. He led them to a dark elf standing in front of a forge. The elf looked just as grumpy as Eromreven, but he was the best weaponsmith they could get to right now.
"Kargon, I need something," Eromreven said, digging for his wallet.
"What kind of something?" Kargon asked archly.
"Big. Metal. Preferably pointy. Something."
"Ah, the eloquence of a Berserker," sighed the smith. "Just a minute." He vanished into his shop and returned carrying a huge sword. "This flamberge should suit you just fine. Can you afford it?"
The asking price was ridiculous, but Eromreven haggled it down to only most of his money, not all. He quickly handed over the gold and took the blade. "Sky Tower, south entrance," he called, running off.
"Did he mean follow him?" Arren asked.
Komlin snorted. "Doubt it. We'll meet him there later. He has to take care of that arm first."
"Take care of?" Kargon asked. "Did something happen?"
"We just came from Hendon Myre," Eronel explained.
"It was about two weeks, and the trip was awfully uneventful," Komlin continued.
"Two weeks without feeding it properly?" Kargon asked. "No wonder he was in such a rush."
They finished their shopping, did a little sightseeing, and meandered their way to the massive structure that dominated West Coast's skyline: Sky Tower, the bridge between Arad and Empyrean. The main entrance was swarming with adventurers. The less impressive southern door drew a much smaller crowd consisting of those who did not like to be near that many people at once. After they had been waiting for about half an hour, the stone door ground open and Eromreven emerged, looking a little battered but in much better spirits. He hoisted his new blade over his shoulder and waved, strolling over to his party. "Remind me," he stabbed the sword into the ground and plunked down next to it, "to congratulate Kargon on his craftsmanship."
"All right," Arren replied. "Into the tower?"
"I don't see why not," Evecil said.
"I'm ready," Eronel said. "Komie?"
He gave a thumbs-up. "Let's go!"
"Just a minute. I'm starving." Eromreven pulled out some of his rabbit jerky, cleaned from the bones and torn into strips to everyone's relief, and choked down a few pieces as fast as he could. "Dry shit," he said, swallowing, "but it does the job. Onward!"
That's where it ends. Hoped you liked it, R&R please!