laneys.info Beware of Yankees, drunks, and loose women.

As the cock crowed that next morning, William awoke in a comfortable bed instead of on the hard ground, out in the elements. A courtesy that he enjoyed on occasion when on a mission for the church. He pushed himself up and glanced up towards the small bullet shaped window into the large, orange bottomed clouds hovering overhead and knew that today would be the first of many important ones in his search for this demon.
Once cleaned and geared, he grabbed his saddlebags and carried them to the door, then walked out into the stairwell that circled the outer wall of the large keep. Smells from the cookfire guided him down into the great hall then further into the ground floor stables. He moved to his horse as it chomped on oats afforded to it by their host.

“I’m going to get something to eat myself,” he informed as he laid the saddlebags onto the saddle resting atop a wooden platform. “Then we’ll get back on the road.” A loud snort as the warhorse continued eating revealed that Rusty was ready to go, as usual. As he turned and headed back towards the stair, he noticed the stablehand who emerged from between two other horses.

“I’ll have him ready to go, sir,” the boy informed, his face and hands already dirty from the morning’s chores. Being right on the river, they had an unending source of fresh water which flowed from the southern Abor Mountains so, little excuse not to take a bath every day.

“Thank you, sir,” he replied and headed up for a quick meal. Respect to all, irregardless of rank or status was his motto and had been since his childhood. Something not widely practised in these lands, a fact which made him sad at times. As he entered the large sitting room, he noticed Sir Kevin and his lieutenant conferring, then part as the younger adjutant nodded as he passed the paladin and headed outside. “Sir, I appreciate your hospitality.”

Kevin nodded, grinning as he approached. “I’m going to send a patrol out to scout the area while you’re doing your investigation. They’ll forewarn you if anyone’s still in the area but, I’ve advised them not to interfere.”

“Appreciated.”

The knight glanced to the pair of squires as they prepared the morning’s breakfast. “Boys, don’t keep the paladin waiting long, he has important business to tend to.”

“Almost ready, milord,” one of them replied nervously as Kevin bowed his head to William.

“Excuse me for a moment. If I don’t see you before you depart, sir, I hope you find this problem and destroy it soon.”

“Arhus guide and protect you and your men, sir.”

* * *

Once mounted, he passed through the westernmost limit of the king of Davos’ rule, though help and guidance had been extended to the Frontier baronies during some recent problems. The baroness of Carbost had gained a rare treaty with the dwarven kings to the north however, something lost when the isthmus that this kingdom commanded was in the hands of their eastern neighbors. The Kuzomen had made a notorious name for themselves by attacking one of the dwarven settlements and the residents of the Black Mountains to the northwest had to be patiently coaxed from their underground cities to sign a treaty with the present king. Being descended from enemies of the Kuzomen endeared him to the dwarves as they fought together to rid the land of the taller men from the east.
Rushing beneath him, the Dovey River had been the natural border to separate three races who now coexisted peacefully. He only hoped the tenuous peace with the elves to the south would remain quiet as the weapons of war hadn’t been heard between humans and elves since the First Dark Age, thousands of years before William was even a thought. The long string of human settlements between both kingdoms wouldn’t survive long if the dwarves and elves decided to reclaim their land.
Sunlight and shadow raced perpindicular across the bridge as he rode, directed by the clouds above which raced southeast and behind him. Soon, the bridge gave way to a long, brown cut into the forest heading west into the foothills of the Black Mountains and he set his mind back to the task at hand. Hazel eyes soon noticed the road to the south and turned his horse from the highway as the covered road greeted him quietly. Various birds sang their praises to Elminoir, the goddess of nature as he soon noticed the clearing around the ruins. Like an angry wound, the stone walls jutted from the ground, blackened from the fires that gutted it. The orcs had been thorough, he thought as he dismounted and quietly walked through the opened doorway.
Large, the temple had once housed nearly fifty templar and squires as well as the bishop and his retinue of priests. He had visited this place on several occasions and knew some of the men that operated from here. Over refuse, and roof tiles, he walked towards the dais where the bishop would give his messages from and stopped for a moment.

“What had they done to deserve this,” he thought aloud, then turned and headed towards the large, angled door that gave access to the underground living quarters and other rooms below. He leaned over and pulled on the ring, lifting the heavy door and letting it fall to the side, slamming into a fallen, stone column and headed downstairs.
From his belt, he retrieved a small globe and lifted it to chest height. “Ori’fan,” he said which prompted the globe to brighten and highlight the stone walls and the bottom of the staircase, to the open doorway beyond. As he reached the landing, he peered into the large well that centered the circular room and turned to the right. The door on the far side had been opened and remained ajar, revealing another escape route beyond. He noted the revelation and wondered if it was used to escape or infiltrate the compound instead.
He walked through the illusory section of wall and passed into another long hallway which led to the main sitting room and study to find the charred remains of furniture. Acrid smoke still hung in the air and stank of death as he winced, nose upturned as he continued on through the great hall and kitchen. Scanning the rooms, he found no symbols in blood on the walls or any other indications that Saterists had been here at all. Normally they would scrawl glyphs in victory over their enemy, using the fallen’s blood to do so.
Another long hallway turned left once he passed through the dining room and he noted someone had been here as well. Footprints in the dust and charred remains from tapestries told of a large group. Probably eight or ten, he determined, then continued to the door at the far end of the hallway.
On the floor of the empty storeroom, bright light glinted off of something embedded in the floor and he neared the doorway and knelt down. As he studied the raised, rounded stone he noticed a glyph in dark blue etched into it. He placed the lighted globe into his mouth, then drew his dirk and began prying it out. Once free, he replaced the dagger and studied the glyph for a long moment as he removed the globe with his right hand.
Smooth, the work was done by a master craftsman and his eyes scanned into the room to notice uniform rows of these stones throughout. Two of them had been removed already near the doorway and he untied a small pouch from his belt as he stood, then placed the clue inside and returned the small, leather sack to his belt. He would need someone else to help him identify this symbol. Pushing the door fully open to his left, he realized how large this room was as it’s bordering walls disappeared into the darkness. As he glanced right, he realized the stones had also been placed into the walls, then upward to find the same in the ceiling. How odd.

He turned and continued through the other rooms to find only a gutted interior and soon walked through an obvious lab. The previous inhabitant must’ve been very particular about his work, he thought as he glanced to labels along one shelf and noted names for various types of seed.
Moving to the only closed door found so far, he turned the large ring and pushed it open.
Suddenly, large flowers turned towards him as a gout of flame made him jump backwards and dodge, nearly having his hair and eyebrows burned off. Knowing he couldn’t close the door, he backed from the line of sight and hoped they wouldn’t uproot and chase him. Quickly, he pulled the door to the lab closed as he retreated into the hallway and decided to head back to the great hall, then waited. Smells of newly burned wood began to strengthen as thick smoke poured from underneath the doorway.
Eventually, he realized the plants must’ve been constrained to their own room as the door to the lab was stil intact. His heart calmed from the surprise, he chuckled to himself, turned and continued back through the living room and to the staircase, closing every door behind him as he passed. Once back into what was left of the main sanctuary, he dropped the main door back down and turned to notice four of the knights from the outpost across the river glance to him. Standing with their horses, he strolled towards them and passed through a large breach in the stone wall as he stepped over blocks and other masonry.

“Good day, gentlemen,” he called out as his eyes then found a line of freshly dug graves beyond where the stables once stood. “I’m sorry for your loss,” he looked to them, then motioned with his hand to them.

“Those weren’t ours,” one replied as they finished a quick lunch. “We thought you had buried remains from here, sir.”

William shook his head, now confused. “No. I’ve been below most of this time,” he glanced down again and noticed wooden markers for each of the twelve. “Has there been any of my Order out here since the attack?”

“No, sir,” the knight approached and finished a large piece of meat from the end of his dagger, then wiped it off on his tabard and replaced the weapon into it’s sheath. “Not unless someone from Soderham was in the area, then headed back west when they finished.” William knew that was a long way to travel and no doubts, any paladin or templar finding this scene would be investigating it instead of returning to the mountain city.

“I guess anything is possible,” he acquiesced, then smelled the air for any sign of a demon but, found nothing in the surrounding foliage to indicate any. This enemy was indeed intelligent if it passed unnoticed even through the forest and busy highway.

“Have you found what you seek, sir?”

Hazel green eyes soon returned to the knight. “I’m not sure actually. But, you can all return to your post. I’m sure the knight commander has more important tasks for you than babysitting me.” A comment that garnered a chuckle from all four.

“It’s no trouble at all, sir.”

William nodded. “Have you found tracks of anything else besides the orcs around here?”

“Only a few humans,” he motioned back towards the road and northern woods which led to the highway. “In that direction but, we saw them once the bridge was done come through the fortress.”

“All headed through Inellan,” he mused.

“Yes, sir.”

He nodded, then glanced back down to the graves. “Thank you, sir. That’s all the questions I had for now.” Tiredly, he knelt and wondered at the scene again and realized he had one more. “Anything unique about any of those people?”

As they mounted up, the knight glanced down to him. “One of them was a big fella,” he pointed to his forehead. “Had a tattoo of the symbol of Arhus right here.”

William recalled the pair that entered the church as he was leaving and remembered the man. “I think I may have seen him,” he revealed as he stood and noticed Rusty round the front of the temple and calmly walk towards him. “He was a big man, indeed. Perhaps he and his friends were the ones that buried these men,” his voice trailed off as he realized that whoever was here at that time may have some insights to the group that loosed the demon. With renewed purpose, he moved quickly to his horse, mounted up and turned the reins back towards the road.

“Quite possible.” He spurred Rusty into action as the horse galloped away and he heard the quartet rumbling behind him as they soon turned right and thundered across the stone bridge. Pushing up beside him, the sergeant glanced to William.

“What is it, sir?”

“I have to return to Inellan with all haste. I thank you for your help.” Hopefully the large stranger and his friends hadn’t left the town yet.

* * *

He shaved a little time off of the return trip but, had still been gone for over five days as William entered the busy streets of Inellan. Given a break at the ruins, he hoped his advantage in the investigation wasn’t lost with the departure of the pair of faithful to Arhus and as he soon reined in at the front steps to the chapel, the revelation hit him. What if those two were the one’s mentioned before? He stopped in his tracks with the thought, but realized they wouldn’t be able to enter this house of worship if that were true. At least not without difficulty. Pressing on, he let the attendant take Rusty for a much needed brushing and hoped that he wouldn’t have to interrupt that anytime soon.
Once inside the main sanctuary, he noticed the crowded room as the Vicar spoke on the grace and mercy of their patron deity and realized what day it was. How could he have been so busy as to forget the sabbath? Quietly, he made his way behind the rear ranks of bourgeoisie and around to the right where he could awesome his rightful place. Albeit a bit late.

As the service closed and everyone filed back out for their afternoon dinner with family, he moved towards the large acting bishop as the plump servant of Arhus glanced to him, displeased.

“I’m surprised that a faithful servant of Arhus would be late to worship service,” he greeted haughtily as he closed his bible and tucked it underneath a beefy arm.

“I was about our Father’s business,” William replied without remorse. “I’ve found something and I was hoping you could help me identify it.”

Turning to him, the priest sighed. “Accompany me to the great hall, I’m famished.”

“Of course,” William nodded and followed the priest through the short hallway to the great hall as orphans and church servants rushed to set the table. Albert joined them as the vicar removed his priestly robes and laid it over the cleric’s outstretched arms, then dropped the leatherbound tome on him also, not breaking stride to his appointed throne at the head of the table and sat down.

Dzeron grabbed the silver goblet before him and gulped down the wine within, then lowered his hand to have it refilled as he glanced to William who claimed the seat beside him. “Well, what is it?”

Retrieving the small stone, he handed it to the veteran cleric whose self importance seemed to outshine his duties to the people. “Interesting,” brown eyes studied the smooth stone as he continued to drink, then lowered the goblet long enough to breathe. “It’s used for an illusion,” he set it back on the table and glanced to the approaching porters as they set the large plate of vegetables surrounding a suckling pig, then quickly retreated as the other clerics and guests joined them.

“What kind of an illusion?”

“I’m not sure. But, whomever scribed this was not a novice, that’s for sure,” the priest informed as he ate ravenously.

William picked the stone back up and studied it closer again, then remembered the fiery plants that nearly killed him. “Was there anyone there who dealt in alchemy for the compound?”

“Yes,” Albert interjected. “Alisandro. He came to town on many errands as well as worked with me on various elixirs for healing and such. He lived in the compound for several years.”

William sighed. “I guess he perished with the others then. Too bad.”

“No,” the vicar began amidst chomping jowls. “He returned to Bakony. The coward apparently escaped the fighting somehow. I heard that he stayed at the inn for a night before continuing on.” A glimmer of hope in the darkness then as William grabbed a quick bite, then rose.

“Thank you for your help in this matter, milord,” he bowed to the vicar then turned and headed back towards the sanctuary.

“Anytime,” the bishop replied, still distracted with dessert, then belched.

Silence now gripped the main sanctuary as he walked into the empty room and noticed Orem stride up the central aisle and smile once their eyes met. He greeted his friend at the front of the noble’s row of seats with a sturdy handshake.

“Good news,” the templar inquired.

“I found this,” William handed his comrade the etched stone. “And learned that the one that made it resides now in Bakony. He filled a large room with these and it’s the only thing I could find out of the ordinary there. No evidence of Saterist activity at all.”

“What’s it for?”

“Apparently they created an illusion in that room. I’m still puzzled by why but, I’m hoping this Alisandro can shed some light on that for us. How about you?”

Orem handed the stone back to him and cleared his throat. “Only things I found here led to everything else but our demon. Seems the lady that owns the estate on the western side of town has been communing with the Dark One. When I discovered that, she and her house up and disappeared. The baron has seized her holdings and I destroyed the shrine she had built, then had a priestess of Elminoir cleanse the land.”

“What was her name?”

“Lady Alysia. Seems her late husband was killed during a hunt some months back.”

William placed the stone into the small pouch and retied it. “Interesting way to gain wealth,” he mused.

“Seems we’re in the wrong business,” the templar joked, smiling broadly.

“I need to rest Rusty and then we should depart for Bakony in the morning. I only hope that this alchemist is still there.”

“One way to make a good living is hire yourself to the next largest church in the duchy when your home gets burned to the ground. He’s not going to make much here,” blue eyes motioned towards the dining room.

Nodding, William turned and led his companion towards billeting. “Did you happen to see that large man-at-arms with the tattoo on his forehead around town lately?”

Orem shook his head. “Not since that day, no. Why do you ask?”

“I think he and his friends may have buried the dead at Laksay. I’m also beginning to wonder if they’re the same ones that’s escorting our demon friend right now.” He shook his head in disbelief. “Something that still doesn’t sit right with me though.”

“Seems odd that servants to a demon would bother.”

“That’s why that theory has so many holes in it.”