Jaredson's Bizarre Adventures
Chapter 1
In the aftermath of the encounter on the shores of Sevnonicha, Jaredon, Jochen, and Markus all took cover in the woods, with Jaredson and Jochen making a temporary camp and enough shelter to keep warm. Markus was cold to his bones, and was unable to do much, and to keep them both safe throughout the night Jaredson, now going by Cedric, used his Control Flames to keep the two Men alive, never sleeping for even a moment. Through this harsh night, Cedric thought long and hard about his decision to leave his family. He wanted so badly to just go to Kastus’s mansion, curl up by the fire, and wake up to Cadougan cooking, or Allister barking orders. Kastus would probably be telling someone some obscure history about his country he loved, and Slate would be standing guard or helping with various activities, anything he could do to aid those around him. These thoughts put Cedric’s mind at ease through the cold night just as the fire warmed his body, but ultimately his heart still felt cold.
In the morning they came up with a new plan. Sneak back into the city and through the port board a trade ship sailing back to Dalhurst. Ultimately Cedric didn’t have a clear plan, he just knew he wanted to find someplace to lay low for a while and gather his thoughts. He told Jochen and Markus that they would set out to acquire fame and glory. Sneaking back into the city proved to be harder than they anticipated, with Markus almost giving them all away. Cedric could tell Jochen was getting nervous of Markus, thinking his inexperienced would get them into trouble. Cedric had to agree, but he couldn’t abandon Markus now. The three eventually were able to stow themselves away on a trading vessel within the cargo crates. Most of the crates had standard logos on them, except one which appeared to have a creature with the head of a blue dragon but the body of a snake painted on it.
After traveling across the sea, the ship finally arrived in Dalhurst, and using Invisibility, Cedric was able to get Jochen and Markus off the ship quite easily. Back in Dalhurst the city was still bustling with activity, with whispers of the intelligence agency being attacked still wet on people’s tongues. This however also meant that what's left of the agency and those who support it are on high alert now, even with a trial against their employers underway. Cedric could feel the eye’s on him as he and his companions walked through the crowd. It wasn’t safe inside the city, and unlike before when Cedric had powerful friends to back him up, he was virtually alone now. He put up his hood with his hand to cover what he could of his face, but his hair, which had grown long since leaving Ulnost, now reaching past his shoulders, was still visibly peeking out of the hood. To make things even worse Jochen was also out on display, his face easily recognizable by any former agents.
One step. Two steps. Soon three different sets of steps were distinctly following Cedric and crew through the crowded city. Cedric gave a look to Jochen and Markus, and just smirked. Yes, Cedric was nervous, maybe even scared, but he couldn’t let them see that. He thought of what Allister would do as they walked through Dalhurts. Sure enough the crew made their way towards one of the gates of the city. Past the gates were fields of crops, and blue skies, but more importantly, opportunity, and Cedric wasn’t about to pass it up. However there was one thing to take care of first. Cedric held up his one hand, with Jochen and Markus stopping instantly.
“Jochen, go take young Markus here and gather us some horses from a nearby stable for our journey.” said Cedric. Jochen just gave a looking glance towards Cedric, but he didn’t look back, simply staring straight ahead at the gates which had people flowing in and out. Jochen and Markus began to walk towards the stables, and as they did two of the distinct footprints could be heard walking towards them.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you” said Cedric as he turned around and locked eyes with his followers. One was a rather short and fat man who had no business following anyone as he could be smelt from a mile away. Next to him were two taller and leaner Men, with one having a large wart on his cheek, and the other appearing to be quite plain in appearance. The short fat man stepped forward.
“You know I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw you get off that ship, but there is no mistaking that face and appearance. Where’s the rest of your group? My friends and I would like to have a ... chat with them” he said with a wide grin.
“I want no trouble with you, just to be left alone” replied Cedric back. The short fat man reached into his tunic and flashed a familiar item.
“You know I could walk right over there and flash this sigil to those guards at the gate and have you taken away right? Despite everything going on, this still holds some weight” said the fat man, this time with a greasy smile. The two Men next to him also began smiling now as they reached for their weapons.
“This is your last warning” replied Cedric calmly, “Before you embarrass yourself in front of all these people by crying on the ground.” At this insult, the short fat man's stare began filling with anger at such an absurd comment, which was only fueled by seeing Cedric’s missing hand.
“You crippled idiot. You think you alone can take us? I think not. Now move slowly towards us and don’t make a soun … HRRMPH!” said the fat man, breathing in heavily and holding back any cries of pain.
“Boss? Boss you okay?” said the plain looking man looking worryingly at the short fat man. His boss couldn’t say a word without gasps of pain and fear leaving his lips. Cedric simply kept his composure holding his hand by his side, but like he was grabbing something.
“If you guys don’t turn around and leave right now, your boss is going to be even less of a man than he already is,” said Cedric as he squeezed his hand tighter, using Mage Hand to grab onto the fat man's balls, threatening to crush them.
“Boss?” the other man with a wart said as he looked over at the fat man. The fat man just barely managed to let out:
“Get out of here you idiots! Go!” he hissed. The Men, confused, obeyed him, and began running away, probably to get help. The fat man turned back to Cedric, his once angry eyes replaced by fear, and rightly so. At this point eyes from the ground began looking at the fat man who just stood there with his face becoming red. Someone actually walked up and asked if he was okay or sick. Cedric just looked through the crowd of people gathering around, focusing on the fat man, squeezing ever so much harder when he tried to speak up. Doing this brought no joy to Cedric, but without his family, he needed to adapt and adjust. Finally Jochen and Markus returned, both riding horses with one to spare.
“Don’t tell me how you acquired them, let's just get out of this city” claimed Cedric as he turned and mounted his horse. As the three Men began to ride towards the gate the fat man just barely looked up over the crowd, watching his target be lost to the sea of people, forever to be gone once past the city limits.
“DON’T LET THEM LEA..” was the last words the fat man could utter before Cedric clenched his fist as hard as he could. The last thing Cedric heard was the fat man cry out in pain, and the gasps of the crowd around him.
Outside the city the group set up camp in some woods along the main road leading South, which they would continue to travel once morning hit. Spirits were a bit higher, but they were still low of gold and supplies. Cedric wasn’t worried however, as there are plenty of ways to fix both problems. This time however, he would acquire these things through less morally suspicious ways. He was not the same man who left Ulnost all that time ago. That night Cedric cut off all his hair, having Markus do the finishing touches. It wasn’t perfect, but now he was a least a little less recognizable. Jochen couldn't hold in his laughter at the sight of a bald Cedric, with Markus joining in moments later, and finally even Cedric had to admit he probably looked pretty ridiculous. While dinner cooked Cedric, Jochen, and Markus all told stories around the fire. Markus about his family and village, Jochen about his time with the Hand, and Cedric about his real name, and the heist to reacquire Argent Lily. Cedric finally was able to sleep.
Chapter 2
The road South was surprisingly quite pleasant. The roads are kept nice and there's quite a bit of activity be it merchants, farmers, or patrols. Cedric and crew talked on the way about where they should head. Jochen thinks we should hide East, Markus South, while Cedric is debating the two. The prospect of getting closer to Eastwythe finally drove Jochen to agreeing South. Finally as the Sun came down the group began to slow down and debate where to camp. “ I think that hill would be a good spot” exclaimed Cedric with only his hand on his eyes covering them from the lowering Sun. Jochen agreed, nodding his head, but Markus was looking a little worse for wear. That was until he saw a sign at the fork in the road leading towards a village called Rootsburg. “Look!” yelled Markus in an enthusiastic yelp. “We could stay in a tavern for the night. Nice warm beds, food drink, maybe even women aye Cedric?” giving a wink. Cedric and Jochen laugh at his enthusiasm. “ Markus that's a lovely idea, but we aren’t exactly out of trouble yet now are we?” said Cedric looking back at an ever pouting Markus. “Actually..” starts Jochen. “ I wouldn’t exactly be opposed to a warm bed either... or a broad.” Cedric looks back at his two companions, who at this point both had small smiles on their faces. Cedric lets out a loud sigh followed by eyes rolling, and finally his head nodding in agreement. “Yes!” replied Markus who practically jumped off his horse in excitement. The group then trots off towards the town of Rootsburg. They continue on early into the night not ten past nine when Jochen says “Wait!” with his hand raised and now his nose reaching in the sky. “You guys smell that? Smoke” he says. Cedric and Markus both raise their own noses and sure enough they could smell a strong odor of smoke. The group looks at each other and begin to race towards the village. As they get nearer they can see a large light emanating behind the horizon of trees. Finally they come into range of the village, and can see one of the houses on fire. “Come on! They need help!” yell Cedric as he spurs his horse onwards, with Markus and Jochen following behind. The group pulls up in front of the house where the villagers are trying to stop the spread of the fire by throwing dirt onto it and digging around the house. The group quickly dismounts and begins to aid the villagers, grabbing shovels and doing everything they can to help. “Who are you?” says one villager with a large beard. “Does it matter?” Replies Cedric. The bearded man gives a grunt and holds out a shovel to Cedric, but Cedric just takes it in his one hand with the bearded man looking almost a bit awkward seeing Cedrics stub. Cedric takes the shovel and begins to use it like one would with any shovel, even using the same motion of his stubbed arms. (Cedric is using Mage Hands to use the shovel). As everyone is pitching in to help they create a dirt barrier around the house to prevent the spread, but the actual house is completely alight. As everyone is digging, a light creak can be heard coming from the fire, and everyone goes silent and stops. Villagers begin to look around at themselves, as does the group. Suddenly the entire house collapses all at once, shooting fire in all directions right at the villagers. “Look out!” says one villager as the rest gasp and expect the fire to hit them...but nothing happens. They felt the heat but the pain did not follow, and when they looked up they saw why. Cedric was holding his hand out, and using Control Flames he was holding the fire back, containing it in a sphere around the house. However, he has never used control flame to this extent, and he could feel his abilities failing ever slowly. He begins to panic, with sweat rolling down his face as he grinds his teeth. Thinking to himself “Fuck, what do I do? What would Allister do? What would Vesser…” Cedric turned to Jochen and Markus. “ Go get the people away! Come on move it!” he yells at them, not in an angry way, but of authority. They both nod to him. “You heard him come on lets, go lets go!” Markus first starts as he ushers the people away. Jochen soon joins him and in a matter of seconds the villagers move away at a safe distance. When Cedric sees they are at a safe distance he simply lets go of the spell, feeling exhausted and tired. As he does the flame resumes its desired trajectory, and shoots out in every direction engulfing Cedric for but a moment. Cedric drops to the ground with a couple flames still licking his clock, but are soon patted out by Markus and Jochen. They remark if he's okay, to which he replies that yes he is, just tired. The villagers soon approach them with the fire from the house becoming colder and evolving into dimly lit ash. “Thank you strangers. My name is Burke, the leader of Rootsburg. I’m sorry you had to arrive at such an unfortunate time.” “ House fires happen” replies Markus. “There's no need to apologize. We were happy to help, although some free lodging would be appreciated for our aid” he quickly puts in there which actually makes Cedric smirk thinking of Cadougan. “ No no I know regular house fires happen, but this, this was deliberate.” Burke responds looking worried. “What do you mean by that?” replies Jochen. At this point the entire group is looking at Burke. “ This fire was set by a local outlaw group, called the Woodland Wanderers. Stupid name if you ask me, but they come and go when they please, demanding tribute and then vanish back into the woods. We don’t have any significant weapons to fight them off, nor do these thieves take enough that is significant enough for our lord to do much about” “So what? This was some sort of fear tactic I guess?” Says Jochen, understanding that it's a problem something he would've done when he was back in the Hand. “ Oh this? Yeah, they usually get something out of us, but a couple of us had had enough and tried to stand up to them. We thought our numbers would help, but instead they just slew the family of this house and stole their daughter to do gods know what with her.” Burke explains looking down, almost as if ashamed they had even attempted to stand up to them. The group all look at each other, eyes darting back and forth, and with no words even needing to be spoken they all nod and Cedric said.. “Okay, we’ll get her back”.Chapter 3
“Am I the only one having second thoughts about this?” asked Jochen as he, Cedric, and Markus are tending to their horses and preparing for the journey. Markus upon hearing this gives Jochen a puzzled look. “Look I’m just saying is it really worth it? This gal, she's probably dead already for all we know. I’m just worried we could be getting in over our heads.” “I think either way we should help. Come on Jochen, she's a damsel in distress! Just like in the stories, we will be heroes!” exclaimed Markus clearly excited by the prospect of being considered a hero. Cedric stays silent during this discourse, focusing very closely on fixing his horses saddle, and thinking. Just thinking. The people of Rootsburg give the group food and supplies for their travel, and points in the direction of where the Woodland Wanderers come from. Upon setting out they find the trail and head out in search of the girl. Cedric leads the way, with Jochen behind him, and Markus following in the back. Jochen however does ride forward next to Cedric. “Are you sure the kid is ready for this?” asks Jochen. Cedric pauses for a moment. “No, I don’t think he is, but he is in good hands. We won’t let anything happen to him.” replies Cedric. Jochen looks displeased at this answer. “Look, not saying I care for the kid, but I don’t want to put him into a situation this dangero-” Cedric cuts him off. “He will be fine, Jochen. These are nothing more than simple bandits and ruffians. I’ve fought much worse.” says Cedric, silencing Jochen mid sentence. Cedric won’t admit it, but he knows the danger of the situation, but at the same time can’t refuse a call to help. On the rest of the ride he thinks of his own village, how he was taken, and how nobody came for him. After half a day's ride the group comes up towards the side of a mountain where a cave entrance can be seen. They move towards a small hill where they have a good vantage point and upon getting closer they hear more ruckus of voices and equipment. It looks like a cave entrance which has been converted into a makeshift mine. Surrounding the mine is an entire camp patrolled by some of the bandits, but most surprisingly are the women who are shackled at the legs, being used as slave labor. Some women can be seen bringing up some sort of mineral or ore from the mine's entrance, while the others are busy loading up the mineral in wooden crates. As Cedric looks closer he sees a distinct symbol on some of the creates. “Well I think we can bet our damsel in distress is somewhere in there.” claimed Cedric, but something else catches his eyes too. “ Look there,” he says. “There is that blue dragon insignia on the crates again.” “ I see ten guards, but we don’t know how many could be inside. I think the best course of action is to wait till nightfall.” whispers Jochen to Cedric who nods in agreement, however Markus looks distressed. “Nightfall? Guys she could die before then. There must be something we can do for these girls beforehand.” responds Markus. Cedric looks at him acknowledging. “Markus I know how you feel, but if we act too hastily then people can get hurt, trust me. I acted too quickly once and it cost me the life of a good friend. I won’t let something like that happen to either of you.” replies Cedric. “Both of you keep it down,” said Jochen sharply as he pointed a finger towards the mine. Riding into the camp was a lone rider of darker complexion, and wearing some sort of scarf around his head. He is welcomed into the camp, where he rides up to the cave entrance and is met by a hooded man walking out of the cave who greets him and breaks words with him. “Their leaders?” asks Jochen. “I’m not sure. The one looks like some foreigner by the clothes. Looks to be some sort of business dealing” replies Cedric as they watch the two Men walk deeper into the mine out of view. “ Well we can ask when we get down there” quips Jochen with a grin on his face. “What do you think Markus?” to which there is no reply. Cedric and Jochen look around, but Markus is nowhere to be seen. “That damn idiot! He’s gonna get himself killed.” snaps Cedric. “Come on let's make sure that doesn’t happen”. “Agreed” replies Jochen rolling his eyes, wondering how he got himself in this situation. Following Markus’s trail Cedric and Jochen find themselves down the hill almost 100 yards away from the camp where they watch from the tree line. From the trees Cedric spots Markus, who has managed to get right on the edge of the camp, hiding behind a tent. By this time there is still too much daylight, and the fool is about to get himself caught. Even worse, Cedric sees one of the guards who is walking towards Markus. Jochen sees as well and draws his blade, but Cedric stops him, and holds out his left hand, using minor illusion to create a loud cracking sound coming from the forest hoping to draw the guards away. (BOOM) A loud sound is created from the forest just as Cedric had wanted, however instead of drawing the guard off, he grips his weapon and yells out. “Attack!” he yells, at the other Men who grab their bows and swords and huddle down in the camp, not knowing where the attack is coming from. On the bright side the guard hasn’t seen Markus, however now he is stuck. Cedric looks longingly at Markus, and then at Jochen. “Do me a favor? Go help the kid.” is all Cedric says, as he slowly walks out of the forest, the falling sun shining over him in the light. “Hey!” he yells as all the guards turn towards him, taking out his bow and firing one arrow that hits one of the guards right in his shoulder. The other guards return fire, and six of them give chase as Cedric runs back into the woods, whilst the other guards order the women back into the mine at swordpoint, hoping to better protect their property. Their numbers lessened now, Jochen and Markus moved in. As the evening continued, and the woods became darker as the Sun set. Cedric fought a great battle in the woods against the guards, using invisibility, shadow blade, other spells, and his innate ability to hide in order to slowly but surely cut all the Men down one by one until there was but one bandit left. The last of these Men saw Cedric standing before him, bloodied, with a slight sadistic smile on his face. The bandit simply dropped his weapon as his knees hit the ground, and his hands fell into a position of prayer, murmuring words to one of his gods. Cedirc began walking towards him, blade in his left hand. “Jaredson” is all that spun through his mind. He couldn't deny that he had missed this feeling of power. It had been so long since he could just let go and prove to others he wasn’t useless. He wasn’t nothing. He was a threat. Not to be laughed at!! He is something to BE RESPECTED! HE IS JAREDSON! That's what went on through Cedric’s mind as he drew nearer, and raised his blade, looking down at this pathetic life, seeing the fear in his eyes as he knew what was to come. But, it never did come. Instead Cedric put his blade away. “Leave” is all he said, and turned to walk away, and walk away he did, hanging his head low in shame.Chapter 4
Cedric arrived back at the cave when the Sun had gone to rest, and the moon was beginning to take shape in the sky. When he arrived, he ran into the cave, where Jochen and Markus had what appeared to be the leader of the Woodland Wanderers on the ground dead. Cedric directed Markus to free the prisoners here, who were huddled against the wall. “Well that wasn’t so bad” said Jochen with a grin towards Cedric. “I wonder what they were up to here?”. “Men like these don’t need a reason to do such awful deeds. Although I still wish it hadn’t come to this, I don’t see how else it could have ended.” replied Cedric. As he reached down to close the leaders eyes, they heard hooves at the entrance of the cave and when they looked, there stood the strange looking man atop a black stallion with his sword drawn. The group formed up, each one taking out their weapons, with Cedric igniting his black dagger. “If you mean to fight, I would suggest you read the situation” said Cedric, with a touch of sarcasm in his voice. However the man sat still, staring at Cedric's dagger before he sheathed his sword, and spoke. “I think in this situation you would be right, Jaredson.” spoke to the man. Cedric’s eyes grew wide, as he charged the man, but he began galloping away into the night. “After him! To the horses!” yelled Cedric, and Jochen and Markus didn’t hesitate. Hours into the night, the group was still following the trail of the mysterious figure through twists and turns in the woods, and long strides in fields. “What will happen to those people we freed?” asked Markus, loud enough for them to hear. “They will find their way home, with the Woodland Wanderers out of the picture the roads should be safe.” replied Cedric. “So then, why are we chasing this fellow? More importantly, how did he know to call you Jaredson?” asked Jochen, giving Cedric a curious and worrisome look. Cedric looked back, “I’m not sure, but that's what we are going to find out”. The group rode on into the night, until they found themselves at the coastline of West Wythe, looking in the distance at a village with lights and loud sounds coming from it, sounding like a celebration of sorts. As the group came closer to the village, they dismounted and continued on foot. The village itself looked like it supported no more than 70 people, but there was a great fire near the center of it, with different foods being cooked around it, and the people were all wearing masks whilst dancing or socializing. Walking into the village Cedric walked up to a local and asked. “Hail friend, we are travelers who need a place to stay for the night. What is going on here?” The man who was wearing a mask resembling a goat replied. “Why, we are celebrating one of our local holidays, but even more importantly we have been blessed by the gods! A trade ship came into port today bearing gifts, exotic beasts, all things we can trade. Our village will make a small fortune selling these wares.” “And what do they ask in return for these gifts?” inquired Cedric. “Nothing! That's the best part! They wish to merely make good relations with West Wythe as they procure a trade contract with our lord.” “ Ah well thank you for the information” said Cedric. “Before you go please partake in our celebration! My daughters have been making masks all night, it is traditional” said the man. He clapped his hands and held up three fingers behind him, which was followed by two young girls wearing a white smiling mask, and a black frowning mask. The daughters who were no more than 12 or 13 brought three of these masks to the group and handed them out, all being some sort of animal. Cedric was given a boar's mask, Jochen a bird, and Markus a fish, which brought great joy to Jochen who was laughing at his mask. The man looked down at Cedric's missing hand, only noticing it just now. “It was a sparing accident a long time ago” is all Cedric said after noticing the man staring. Anyways thank you for these, we shall take your advice and enjoy the celebration” said Cedric while bowing to the man in appreciation before the three man group started off towards the center of the village. “So, what's the plan here Cedric? Please tell us you have a plan.” asked Jochen with worry in his voice. “Relax Jochen, look it's me okay? I’ve always got a plan.” replied Cedric as he briskly walked away leaving Jochen and Markus to look at each other. “We are going to die aren’t we?” asked Markus. “Probably” shrugged Jochen as they raced back towards Cedric. Towards the coastline the group saw a large ship which had docked next to the village, with Men who were unloading and sharing in their supplies with the villagers, and in return were given food and drink. These traders all appeared to be jolly and in good spirits, being lightly armed and wearing little armor, but they were definitely foreigners, speaking the common tongue, but with an unfamiliar accent. “I’d wager our friend is inside that ship” said Cedric as they scoped it out from a distance. “So what are you thinking, steal some clothes from one of these guys and sneak in? Dive in the water and gain access from there?” asked Jochen, using his prior knowledge as a Hand member. While Jochen seemed to be in his element, Markus looked more uncomfortable. “What about all these people? If we are about to start something it could be dangerous for them.” asked Markus. “You didn’t have any problems running into that cave Markus. Getting cold feet now?” replied Jochen. “No, not cold feet” Markus shot back. “But this is different. We don’t know who we are dealing with.” Cedric decided to interject. “Markus, I won’t let anything happen to these people, trust me. This will be a simple recon mission which is why I’ll be going alone.” “Now hold on a second, what makes you think going alone is a good idea? I was a Hand member too, you know Cedric.” replied Jochen sounded a bit offended. “Can you go magically invisible?” asked Cedric. Jochen took a step back, looking for the right words. “Exactly,” said Cedric. “I need you two to stay back here and cover me in case I get into trouble, got that? In the meantime, enjoy yourselves, this is a party after all.” was all Cedric said before he snapped his fingers and vanished from sight leaving Jochen and Markus. “Do you ever feel like he's kind of a dick sometimes?” asked Jochen to Markus before being interrupted. “I’m still here” said the invisible voice of Cedric making Jochen jump, and kept walking, this time silently. Cedric then proceeded to silently walk towards the ship, being completely invisible he knew he’d have no trouble getting in, and he was right. Despite the Men going back and forth, Cedric was able to hop onto the ship with no trouble. The ship itself was larger than it had looked from a distance, with cargo on top of the deck, some of it covered in cloth, all marked with a symbol he had seen before, a blue dragon. Cedric tiptoes his way into the large cabin on the ship, assuming it’s the captain's quarters. Sneaking inside, he slowly opens the door and peers inside, not seeing anyone, and in fact doesn’t even see any candles lit. Using his dark vision, Ceric is able to faintly get a good layout of the quarters. It is very neat, with a large table in the center, swords and other various weapons are decorated across the wall. Unfortunately Cedric doesn’t see or find any evidence of the man they were chasing, but he knows he has to be here somewhere. As he's about to leave he looks towards the table and sees a bunch of papers and even a map diagram with pieces on it, but he can't quite make out all the details. Quickly, Cedric grabs one of the unlit candles, and lights it to get a better look at the stuff on the table, and what he sees makes his heart fall into his stomach. On the table are maps of The Autumnvale, and the pieces on the map are representing forces, and ships. Cedric realizes he's stumbled upon an invasion plan against The Autumnvale. He rapidly begins to grab the maps, letters, notes, anything he can carry in order to show someone, anyone. If he can make it out of here he could send these to The Autumnvale to prepare them. As Cedric is able to leave the quarters the doors slam open with armed soldiers bursting in with weapons drawn. Cedric stops in his tracks whilst still invisible. “Jaredson, come out wherever you are, and the villagers won’t be hurt” said a voice from the back of the group, who when walking forward shows himself to be the man they've been chasing. Cedric backs up further, he counts over a dozen soldiers, and they are blocking the way out. “We can’t let you out of here with the information you now possess, Admiral's orders, I’m sure you understand. Now I’ll say it one last time, surrender yourself, or sentence this village to death.” said the man with a cold gaze in his eyes, and raising his hand as almost to give a signal. “Okay okay! Don’t hurt anyone” says Cedric, revealing himself and throwing his hands in the air. “Don’t suppose we could come to some agreement?” asks Cedric with a smile.Chapter 5
Outside the ship, Markus and Jochen were enjoying the festivities with the locals, with Markus even dancing with one of the local gals who was wearing an owl mask. The drink was flowing, and the food was roasted by the fires to perfection. However, Jochen began noticing something strange. The foreigners who were trading and partying with the locals were whispering something to one another and beginning to slowly retreat back towards the ship to be unnoticed, which Jochen could recognize. He went and grabbed Markus out of the circle of dancing people. “We have a problem.” “Yeah, we do, you aren’t even enjoying the party” slurred Markus. Jochen grabbed the drink out of Markus’s hand and threw it on him. “Focus Markus, Cedric is still inside that ship and we’ve no word from him. Plus look at the enemy. What are they doing?” “Why, they are just walking, no they are moving back to the ship, but why?” responded Markus. “Whatever it is, I know it can’t be good. Come on, let's go find Cedric, he might need help” said Jochen. The two began making their way slowly towards the ship when a voice yelled from the deck of the ship. “Dear friends! Tonight we drank, enjoyed good company, and did good business!” yelled a bald man with a long dark beard who was the second in command of the ship. The villagers began gathering on the dock and yelled in agreement, raising their drinks to him. “However, it saddens me to learn that you have also not been truthful with my captain. It would appear that you have been hiding a wanted man in your midst.” The villagers grew silent, puzzled, and the murmurs between them were deafening. Then Cedric was brought forth from the deck, his arms bound behind him, and he was thrown onto his knees for all to see. Jochen and Markus both put hands on the hilts of the weapons they carried. “Do not fear though, we know not all of you meant such a transgression towards my captain. In his mercy, he is willing to offer a deal. Surrender the other two companions we saw walk into the village with this one, and my captain will forgive you all.” The murmurs grew louder, with Jochen feeling the different eyes fall upon him and Markus from the crowd. Even with the masks on, they stuck out like weeds in a garden from the other villagers, that is until a hand threw itself into the hair and pointed at the two weeds. “Those two! They aren’t from our village, grab them!” yelled the villager who had put his hand up. In a moment's notice, Jochen and Markus were descended upon by some of the village Men, being pinned to the ground. Some villagers tried to protest, especially the young woman Markus had been dancing with, but it was no use. The two were brought forward to the ship, where they were handed over to some of the armored guards that now came forth from the ship. Bound just like Cedric, they are taken to the deck and thrown down next to him. “Don’t fight back. They've threatened to harm the village if we try anything funny. Just follow my lead” whispered Cedric. Jochen nodded, while Markus was looking a little shaken. “Markus, it's going to be okay, I promise you. Nothing bad will overcome us as long as we stick together” said Cedric, which stayed Markus’s fears, and he managed to look at Cedric and give a sly smile which Cedric reciprocated. “If only that were true” replied the man they had been chasing since the cave who stepped forward from the shadows behind them, putting a cold hand on Markus’s shoulder. The man gave a nod to one of the sailors on the deck, who walked over to the bow of the ship and uncovered a large device from underneath a cloth which was concealing it. “Now that we have that resolved, we can proceed with the festivities!” yelled the second in command. The sailors at the bow proceeded to maneuver parts of this device into place, mixing together different powders and liquids until finally waving a torch holder forward to the device. “Please now, remain where you are as we have one last final gift for all of you!” the voices in the crowd began to murmur in excitement at one another. The fire got closer and closer to this device until it finally clicked with Cedric what they were doing. In a moment's notice he jumped from his position but what kicked down hard and darkness overtook his mind. Visions passed over Cedric as he heard the screams of the villagers, and the heat in the air. The smell of things burning were overtaking his senses, and even though his vision was blurred, the light from the fire being spewed off the ship was blinding. He thought of home.Chapter 6
Deep within the ship, the brig is given new members to call it home. Jochen and Markus are both confined to a single metal cell, while Cedric lies unconscious in his own cell, arms bound to the wall by metal shackles, and an anti-magical collar from Santa Alessa locked around his neck. Along another wall were more cells full of other prisoners. Cedric begins to stir in his sleep, his breath getting faster until finally waking. “RUN!” he yells only for a second, until he looks around and realizes his predicament, and his eyes fall upon Jochen and Markus. “Are you both alright?” Jochen turns to Cedric. “For the most part,” he says. Cedric looked at Markus, but he hid his gaze from Cedric. There were no windows, so Cedric had no idea what time of day it was. “What happened?” asked Cedric. Jochen again turns to look at him. “The village was burned Cedric. Everyone who wasn’t cooked alive was hunted down by these vermin. Women, elderly, even the fucking children.” Cedric’s eyes didn’t move, no muscle in his face twitched. “I’ve seen some bad things in my life Cedric but this was something else.” Jochen said as his voice echoed with sadness. The door of the brig opened up, illuminating the dim room and casting the despairing groups shadows on the walls. Guards walked in carrying a man by his arms, and opened one of the open cells, tossing him in with a loud thud as he hit the floor and groaned. “Traitorous slug” one guard said and he spit on the floor of the cell. Then, as quick as the guards had come in, they left, but this time leaving the door slightly ajar. The brig was once again cold and dark except for the sliver of gold light that escaped from the door, and now with one extra guest. The new member got to his feet slowly, wearing only basic underclothes which appeared to be stained by blood. He was tall, physically well, but sported new cuts and bruises across his face. He looked over at Cedric, Jochen and Markus. “You should've seen the other guy,” the man said. “Who the hell are you?” replied Cedric, not moving his head to look at the new prisoner, and clearly not amused with the prior comment. The man backed away in what little space he had in his cell. “I am Kaveh, son of Kav, and child of Barazar,” replied Kaveh. “Although I’d imagine my father will disown me once he hears of my treason.” “What treason?” asked Jochen. Kaveh fell silent for a moment, as if trying to find the right words. “I wouldn’t do it. I couldn’t kill them all. I joined the navy because my father wanted me to, no, expected me to, but I didn’t join to murder those who can’t defend themselves,” said Kaveh as if finally expressing something from deep within himself. His gaze finally fell on Cedric. “You are the one they call Jaredson aren’t you? We've all heard the legends of the Argent Company, but I thought you were supposed to be in Sinopa?” “He is,” said a voice from the door. All faces looked towards the door and standing in the frame was the man who they had been chasing since the cave, however he had shed his clock and his face was clear and on display. He bore scars all across his nose and jaw, and his eyes were a hollow gray. His hair was long and dark, but looked coarse as it draped down his shoulders and upper chest. Kaveh’s eyes fell to avoid contact with this man, and stood still so as to not draw attention to himself. But Kaveh had nothing to worry about, because the man was not here for him. The man walked inside the brig, followed by a guard with a large bag, until they reached the cell holding Cedric. “Open it up,” the man ordered to the guard, who froze and looked at him puzzlingly. “Sir, are you sure? You know wha-,” “Don’t worry” the man cut the guard off. “He can’t do anything now. He is beaten,” he said as he watched the guard open the cell with his keys, and the man entered, only feet away from Cedric. “I’m glad we can finally have some time to talk. I can’t say the cave was a great time to get to know each other,” the man said looking down at Cedric. Raising his head, Cedric met the man’s eyes directly. “The captain I presume?” asked Cedric. “I could understand why you’d think that, but no, I am merely my king's loyal servant,” replied the man, which made Cedric raise an eyebrow. “Yes that's right, this is no ordinary ship, but King Gulzar’s personal vessel. We were on our way back home from important business in Acton before we stopped and had our untimely interaction with you. However we never intended on running into you here, because our source in Acton had recently told us of your group's exploits in Sinopa. I guess his information is somewhat outdated,” “Huh, didn’t realize we were that famous. Did Alicia pull you all into this plan of hers to invade The Autumnvale? It’s a smart move honestly. It’ll pull Allister away from the group, and without him there's no way they’d stop her. Oh except there is one thing you and your little king are forgetting. It's that the Argent Company will always find a way to win, and trust me, if you step on a single blade of grass in The Autumnvale, Allister will have your necks,” replied Cedric, with a smirk and grin across his face. The man however did not look so amused. “Well that is quite the little story you’ve imagined inside that little head of yours, but trust me when I say we actually want your group to succeed against Alicia. It simply eliminates one more potential threat to our plans,” said the man whose expressions mimicked a teacher to his student, and that bothered Cedric. “And what exactly is your plan? What will invading The Autumnvale accomplish?” asked Cedric. The man let out a hearty laugh, like it was the funniest thing he had heard that day. “I’m sure you’d like to know, wouldn't you, but I doubt you’ll live long enough to see my king's plans come to pass anyway so there's really no point. Enjoy the long trip to Barazar Jaredson,” and the man turned to leave the cell. “Wait, who are you?’ asked Cedric. The man stopped and turned his head back. “I am Mahin, son of Machin, child of Barazar,” “Thank you Mahin. I will look for you once I am freed from these chains, and send you to whichever afterlife you so choose,” said Cedric in a cold demeanor, eyes fixated on Mahin. But Mahin did not make any noticeable reaction to this threat. “Ah that reminds me,” Mahin said, and he snapped his fingers which led the guard to hand him the large bag he had brought. Mahin took the bag and threw it inside Cedric’s cell. The bag opened up, and dozens of masks from the village poured onto the floor in front of Cedric. He looked down and saw some were burned, others had blood coating them. FInally, Cedric’s blood boiled as he saw the white smiling mask, and the black frowning mask that the two little girls were wearing before him on the floor of his cell, each one bearing scorch marks on them. Jaredson clenched his jaw, and his eyes were locked onto the sight before him. “They died because of you Jaredson. I pray when they judge you at the gates of Death, they are merciful,” said Mahin, closing the cell door behind him, and leaving with the guard through the door, and once again the brig embraced the prisoners in darkness. To his dismay, Jaredson’s half elven eyes still gave him enough sight to see all the masks.Chapter 7
Jaredson got little rest that first night, only drifting into sleep because of his body's exhaustion. It hadn’t been long since he left the Argent Company, and yet it felt like a lifetime ago. The guards had taken all his belongings, including his dagger, his other weapons, poison, money, and perhaps most importantly the piece of clay Cadougan had given him if he had needed them. Jaredson had thought he could handle the situations given to him, but within minutes it had all gotten out of control, and here's where it landed him, locked away en route to a strange land, by strange Men. “Jaredson?” His eyes opened up and looked at Markus who was staring his way. “ You looked like you were having a bad dream,” he said. “Hmm, I don’t remember.” replied Jaredson, allowing his gaze to fall once again at the masks on the floor, and then at Kaveh who was murmuring things to himself in his cell. “Kaveh,” no reply. “Kaveh!” this time he jolted up and looked at Jaredson. “Yes?” he replied. “Tell me more about your people Kaveh,” “My people? Well we come from the Kingdom of Barazar, a small kingdom but one with a long tradition of sailing and perseverance. We used to be under the thumb of the Aparnavosi, but after their fall we shed off their chains, and have since become our own power once again. Our enemies in the Southern Seas who used to be obstacles now bow to us. Our kingdom may be small, but we make up for it with various colonies that our forefathers established throughout the centuries. If we can’t produce or trade for something we rely on seasonal raiding of our enemies. Our greatest secret is that of dragon fire, which you have already experienced. The exact ingredients are closely guarded state secrets, but our enemies are well aware of its power. We scarcely use it however, which makes me wonder why the Admiral used it on the village.” “Because your people are murderous savages.” replied a voice from the darkness. In one of the other cells sat up a small figure, a woman, who drew closer to the bars. “You and your people murdered everyone aboard my ship, and I won’t rest until I see you all in Pakle Zubietza!” the woman yelled at Kaveh. Jaredson could see the woman more clearly now. She was smaller than he, but not weak looking, with red hair that came down to her shoulders. Her eyes were a dark brown and she moved with the confidence of ten Men. “Strong words from a pirate who tried to rob us,” replied Kaveh, shooting her a demon-like glance. “The Basilisk was a family heirloom and was worth more than all your shit in this ship! I will have my revenge on you Azarian’s for sinking her.” said the woman before slouching back down in her cell. “What is your name?” asked Jaredson to the women. She looked at him, puzzled that he would even ask. “Svjetlan” she replied. Jaredson took a moment to ponder it. “Svjetlan, you are a pirate?” asked Jareson. She gave a small nod. “Although I prefer the term entrepreneur if you must know.” “Well Svjetlan, it is a good thing these Men got to you before my one friend. He would have killed you.” said Jareson, smirking to himself in the dark before he once again passed into slumber. His rest was cut short however when he began dreaming, and from his dreams came a great shape which chased him over an open field. As Jareson ran he saw the beast grow wings and the space between them practically vanished. The beast reminded him of the Azarian flags with the great blue beast upon them. After what felt like hours of running, Jaredson made his way to a lake, and the beast was nowhere insight. This moment of rest was however broken when the beast arose from the lake in a devastating show of force. Rather than attack, the creature spoke to Jaredson, but he could not understand it. The creature grew angry at him, and opened its jaws, and right before it clamped down on Jaredson, he finally recognized the creature. “Svarcliste?” was all he said before he awoke in a sweat.Chapter 8
Following his capture, Jaredson would spend the next couple weeks imprisoned on the boat, feeling it dock at places for supplies, and hearing some of the sounds from above through the wood. The guards who kept the prisoners fed would hardly look at them, and merely dropped off the meal and left. Throughout the time Jaredson would learn more and more about Barazar from his new neighbor, Kaveh. He learned their history, religion, and power structure. Jaredson would also converse with Markus and Jochen, attempting to pass the time by telling stories of home and adventures they had been on. Svjetla also joined these conversations, detailing about her Sevnoni mother and Aparnavosi father, and her adventures as a ship for hire among different organizations. Jaredson had to admit it to himself, she was quite the woman, very blunt and straightforward, but with a longing for freedom. Despite the company, Jaredson still held onto his fears, his regrets, not having an outlet to deal with his feelings and emotions in a healthy manner. In the dark of the ship during the night, Jaredson still suffered from horrible nightmares. After what seemed like forever had passed, the prisoners awoke to the sound of the keys jigglings at the door. From the entrance, five armed guards walked into the room with chains and restraints. “Lets go scum” said one of the guards, as they began releasing everyone and binding them to their shackles. Jaredson, still wearing the collar which restricted his magic, was brought up to the deck of the ship, but not before he was able to slip down and grab the two halves of the masks the little girls from the village were wearing. He did not want to leave them, and felt so guilty, he shoved them into his clothes. When the group was brought to the deck they got their first glimpse of sunlight in weeks. It was mid morning, and the sun had risen above the horizon, but it was the horizon that caught the groups attention, for from it they saw a large city, and a mountain range behind it. “Niloofar” said Kaveh under his breath. He had described the city to Jaredson beforehand, but in person it was a different experience. Much like when he first laid eyes on Dalhurst, Niloofar was a large city, with a keep watching the waters from the right hand side, and from the left was the Bethel of Azdar and his children. The docks were full of life, with ships coming to drop off cargo, exotic animals, prisoners of raids, and everything in between. As they approached closer the group heard music coming from the city from instruments they could not name, and heard the choir of voices from the Bethel of Azdar which blanketed the city in the music. People were laughing and enjoying the day, giving thanks to Azdar for creating the warmth of the Sun, and Barazar for watching over and protecting this land they called home. Jaredson took in the scene, and let it boil within himself, wishing nothing more than to see this place burn and crumble into dust. The ship docked at the port, and guards surrounded the ramp where the group were led down, with their leader Mahin, whom Jaredson had chased from the cave, saying, “The King has requested they be brought to him at the keep. He will be most interested in your possessions, Jaredson.” as he nodded towards one of the guards who was dragging a cart with a large bag in it. The guards, some twenty strong, began escorting Jareson and the group to the keep. They were taken through the city, where passersby and children watched and stared at the prisoners, likely never seeing so many guards for so few people. The crowds began fluttering around the guards eager to get a look at the prisoners, and Mahin began having trouble breaking through. Jaredson looked at the crowd, and saw a child look directly at him, not with fear, nor hate, only innocence. Jaredson thought of the Autumvale. He thought of home so vividly that he didn’t even notice the screaming at first, but once he did he looked up and saw masked figures attacking the guards escorting him. The people watching began running in fear, and created a stampede, which only aided the assailants who shouted, “Down with Ham'Bal! Paise unto Kazeem!”. Along with the chaos, some of the Men ran up, slew the guards around Jaredson, and grabbed the keys from one of the guards, freeing Jaredson and freeing the group as well before shouting, “Follow us!”. Jaredson looked at Markus and Jochen, and without any words they began running, but not before Jaredson looked down and picked up the key from the guard to his collar, placed it at the lock, and undid it with his one hand. Jaredson felt the weight fall from his neck, and looked around for Mahin, but he could not see him through the small skirmish. He then ran over to the cart with his belongings and grabbed them with his hand, slinging it over his shoulder. As the masked attackers began to retreat after killing at least ten of the guards, Jaredson took off and followed them with Markus, Jochen, and Svjetla. “Where is Kaveh?” Jaredson yelled while they ran. “Hopefully got gutted in the fight.” replied Svjetla “I think I saw him take off down an alleyway,” said Markus. Jaredson nodded, knowing he'd cross paths with Kaveh again in the city. The group followed the masked Men and women through the streets of the city, until they came to one of the sewer entrances and began hooping in. As the group hopped down into the sewer system, Jaredson took one look at the city and the keep, taking his dagger out of the bag with his Mage Hand, he felt whole again.Chapter 9
The sewers underneath the city smelled of piss and decay and it ensnared the senses of all who entered them. The tunnels were tall enough for a person to walk through easily, or in Jaredson’s case, to run through. He, Markus, Jochen, and Svjetla followed their masked saviors who numbered a dozen as they made their way through the system, winding and turning everywhere until Jaredson had lost all sense of direction. More than a simple sewer system, it was a labyrinth, whether by design or by chance. After what felt like half an hour, the group slowed their pace until the leader of their group held up his hand. Exclaiming something in the Baraza tongue, he looked directly at Jaredson and company. “We walk from here.” “Who are you?” asked Jaredson, curious as to whom he should owe a debt to. The masked leader did not stop to answer, which bothered Jaredson. It wasn’t long before Markus walked closer to Jaredson. “Well we seem to have found ourselves a little bit of luck after all huh?” Markus said, with a tingle of optimism in his voice. “Stow those thoughts Markus, we don’t know who these people are yet, we very well could find ourselves in a worse scenario. Be on guard. You are a long way from home horse thief.” Replied Jaredson, attempting to calm his own nerves. Everything had happened so fast, and it all hadn’t quite processed for him yet, but for the sake of his outer persona he was trying to remain calm. After another ten minutes of traversing the tunnels the group finally came to a solid wall of brick. The leader began pushing in one brick, then another, and finally a third in a mechanism which opened up the wall, splitting it down the middle just like two doors swinging wide open. From the entrance of this secret door the group were greeted with a great hall of a hidden ancient city, with walls and columns made of marble and granite. The great hall clearly held some sort of significance in a bygone era, but for now it was the room where many of the sewer tunnels led too. In the center of the hall was a throne which sat on a slight elevation in the room, on all sides were small marble stairs leading up to the seat. The room, despite being ancient, was inhabited by many young Men and women, Jaredson figured a couple hundred, who were busy with all sorts of tasks ranging from food storage, weapon repairs/maintenance, medical attention, etching out more of the room to make more space, etc. Below the throne was a long table where older Men and women were gathered around talking amongst one another, but all turned their attention towards the door as it had opened and they saw unfamiliar faces. Jaredson and the group were led into the room in front of the elder members, while the younger people stopped their work to watch these strangers inside their sanctum. The leader of the masked warriors stepped forward, and bent the knee to one of the elders who was wearing a purple robe with golden trimmings. “Father,” he said as he took off his mask revealing his face. He was young, mid-twenties, with short dark hair, freckles dotting his face, and dark brown eyes. He also had a noticeable scar running from his nose down his lips from a blade. “We failed our mission to assassinate the king, he was not there as our information had foretold.” Bowing his head in shame. The father stepped forward and put a hand on his son's shoulders. “Fear not Arshan, you will have another chance at your cousin. Remember, for those who are true of heart, Azdar will reward, and our cause is just. Now the more serious matter, who do you lead into the heart of our rebellion?” the older man asked. Jaredson stepped forward now still standing. “My friends and I unfortunately found ourselves as prisoners aboard a ship in a serious misunderstanding, but your people here were able to free us, albeit with some blood shed. We are simple travelers and wish for no trouble.” He said, attempting to bring about his best Cadougan impression. “We simply wish to charter a ship away from here and be on our way.” Jaredson looked back at everyone who began nodding hesitantly. The elder man looked towards Jaredson and his company, squinting his eyes, almost as if to gleam into their very souls. To the benefit of their story, everyone had been stripped of their armors and weapons, except Jaredson who had managed to get ahold of his dagger, the clay, and the two pieces of masks which he had in a bag over his shoulder. The elder man walked over to Jaredson and began sniffing around him like a curious dog. “Ahhhh, so then what is a simple traveler like you doing with such a strong connection to Daei?” the older man questioned. “I'm not sure I understand what you refer to.” Jaredson replied, backing away one step which caused the masked warriors to raise their weapons, but the older man held up his hand to stop them. “They are no danger to us, in fact, he could be who Azdar has sent to me in my dreams. Let us make formal introductions. I am Kazeem, father of Arshan, uncle of the current King Ham'Bal, brother of the late Bádshah Eshin, and loyal servant of Barazár.” Jaredson looked at Jochen, then at Markus before looking at Kazeem. “I am…Jaredson.” A long silence followed, the only noise coming from running water. “Of…The Autumnvale. Uh son of Jared, the fisherman.” Everyone in the room looked around unimpressed, but the old man just smiled at him in a gentle manner before his gaze came to rest on Jochen. “ Ah yes this is Jochen, a man who is SUPPOSED to know how to go places unseen-“ Jaredson remembering how he and his friends had captured him “ and next to him in Markus, young enough to be learning where his talents lie, and finally Svjetla, a far traveler and descendent of those who love-“ Jaredson thought for a moment, remembering Giles telling of how the Aparnavosi and Azárians have a deep history rooted in violence, “- the snow and cold reaches of the Tip of the World”. Each one of them showed their respect in their own cultural way. “ Well it is nice to make greetings with you all, come follow me, I’m sure you are all hungry. How do you all like your Golden Tea?” Asked Kazeem who waved the group to follow him as he began walking away slowly, bowing his head towards the other elders while speaking a couple words of Azárian before he made his way to one of the many fires lit. He motioned for everyone to sit on one of the many ornate rugs and pillows that surrounded the flames. Jaredson followed his lead and sat down cross legged, accepting the tea when it was handed to him, and true to its name the tea resembled a foggy golden haze. The taste was a mixture of sweet tea mixed with goat's milk with spices added in for extra flavor which at first assaulted Jaredson’s senses, but after a couple more sips he found he could tolerate it, although he still wasn’t a fan of the taste. Svjetla and Markus on the other hand seemed to be addicted to the substance from the moment it touched their lips, with the former letting out a cry of excitement. “By Myrvûs!” exclaimed Svetla throwing her legs into the air in excitement like a child who just tasted a sweet pastry for the first time. The group had not had quality food, or much of any food, for weeks and their hunger was evident to their host. Kazeem called forth more food like stuffed olives, and fresh fruits along with drinks for his guests which prompted Jaredson to ask. “Tell me Kazeem, if you really are running a rebellion here, why gift us all these foods? Supplies must be hard to come by.” Kazeem looked at Jaredson almost as if he had been insulted. “I will forgive your lack of understanding for our culture since you are new, but we Azárians pride ourselves on our etiquette, and we spare no expense on guests.” Kazeem exclaimed happily as he indulged himself on a couple olives. “True, but perhaps you mean to butter us up in an attempt to win over our friendship in the hopes that you could request a favor from us.” said Jochen. Kazeem froze, his fingers merely grazing an olive. “I’m onto something aren’t I?” asked Jochen. Kazeem, not looking at anyone, grinned. “You Wythian folk are always so direct aren’t you. Never wanting to stop and enjoy the little things life has to offer, you get right down to business. Well very well, yes there is something I had wished to discuss.” The group stopped eating, except for Svjetla who was still sneaking bits and pieces of food. “I would like you to succeed where my son failed. I want you to kill my nephew, the king.”Chapter 10
“No” Jochen said in a stern voice. “I am not going to be used as some sort of political weapon for these people!”. The group found themselves in a stone room deep in the ruins with all the comforts these rebels could afford which meant some cots for beds, rations and drinks. They couldn’t risk lighting fires since there was nowhere for the smoke to go, and the smell could lead the Azárian military to them. Prior during dinner the group had told Kazeem that they would think on his proposition and give him an answer in the morning. For the rest of dinner Kazeem told them of his nephew, Ham’Bal and his rise to power. Official reports say that the late Bádshah (Imperial Wythian: King) Eshin, Kazeems brother, was traveling to a city state previously under control of Barazár during the height of their power to negotiate a reunion with Barazár, when their vessel was attacked by pirates. Ham’Bal was able to fight off and kill most of the brigands, but his father, mother, and elder brother were all slain, making Ham’Bal next in line for the throne. Fortunately his sister Mahal had also survived the attack but not without suffering an injury to her head, causing serious damage and led to her retreating from public view. After three days at sea they were finally found and escorted back to Niloofar, where Ham’Bal was crowned Bádshah of Barazár at the age of fourteen. Ham’Bal wasted no time in his duties, and began making speeches to the people and the Bátenigal (Imperial Wythian: Inner Tribe) about a new golden age for Barazár. He talked about reforming the army and rebuilding their naval strength tenfold, and after they reconquered all their lost territory, they would be Wythe’s Bane. Months later, to everyone's astonishment the Jangól Chawl, legendary Azárian raiders returned to Niloofar and declared their support for Ham’Bal, naming him Daryásálar, a title not held for centuries. Kazeem supported his nephew for eight years, until rumors began to spread about the tragedy of the late Bádshah Eshin and his family. The rumors were that it was no tragedy at all, but a planned assault by Ham’Bal to gain power and situate himself on the throne. “I didn’t want to believe it, but as I dug deeper in these rumors, the more it started to make sense. I wanted nothing more than to see my nephew grow into the greatest Bádshah Barazár had known, but blood must be paid in blood. I spoke with other members of the Bátenigal and they shared my views. So we agreed to do something about it. ” Kazeem had told the group. Seeing no other path forward, he accused Ham’Bal in front of the entire Bátenigal. “Murderer! I cried out in the middle of one of Ham’Bal’s speeches to us. The whole room had fallen silent, even Ham’Bul himself seemed taken aback. I declared him a kinslayer, unworthy of the throne, and that his murder of my brother would be avenged! Wouldn’t you believe it, but at that moment he didn’t look like a Bádshah. He only looked like a small frightened boy who had broken something, and knew he was in trouble. I looked at my fellow allies who had also agreed to stand against Ham’Bal, but as they stood and their mouths began to open, Ham’Bal spoke.” “What you speak of is whispered between whores in brothels, and stableboys as they sweep shit from your stall. Hardly suitable for my own uncle to be repeating them, and yet you have. Very well, since your accusation is a heavy one, we will let the gods decide if I am unworthy. I challenge you uncle to a Jadáládel (Imperial Wythian: Fight for Honor) tomorrow in the Thèlomon Zarri (Imperial Wythian Ring of Ordeals) in front of everyone, nobles and regulars alike.”. According to Kazeem, at that moment the frightened boy had been replaced by a devious snake that was preparing to lash out. All of Kazeem’s allies had sat back down, not wanting to be challenged themselves. Everyone knew of Ham’Bal’s skill with a sword since he was a young lad, and only a fool would go up against him in a one on one duel. Kazeem was no fool. Ham’Bal had given his uncle two choices. To fight and die in the arena, silencing any would be protestors to his reign, or to flee in cowardness which also made his accusation void of all merit. Kazeem chose the latter, and fled Niloofar that night with his son into the countryside. At least this way he could survive to hopefully turn more hearts against Ham’Bal, even if it took years. That was three years ago, and since then Kazeem and his son Arshan have gathered a couple hundred other acolytes who would hear his voice, and declare to free Barazár from Ham’Bal’s grip. After the story, Jaredson, Jochen, Markus, and Svjetla thanked Kazeem for the food and excused themselves to their temporary quarters to determine their next move. “Didn’t you hear anything we were just told Jochen?” Markus spoke up now. “These people need our help.” “Are you actually going to believe everything that old man said? Besides, if this Ham’Bal dies, who do you think is going to take his place? Trust me kid, this is just a grab for power, simple as.” Jochen replied, crossing his arms and leaving back onto the wall near the door, peering out to see if anyone was listening to them. “Cedric you agree ri-” “Jaredson.” “What?” “My name is Jaredson.” “Okay… well Jaredson you agree that we have to help right? It was you and the Argent Company who helped me when I needed it, and I just can’t feel that maybe destiny brought us here to help also.” said Markus. Jaredson was sitting at the table by the single candle in their room, eyes fixated on the flames flickering, using his magic from his hand to control the flames making it grow bigger and smaller, over and over again. The table in front of him lay his dagger, and the two halves of the white and black masks from the village. “Destiny didn’t do shit Markus. I agree with Jochen, this isn’t our fight.” Markus’s face showed defeat, his shoulders lowered. “Good call Jaredson. I’m sure we could manage to steal a ship and sail it back to Wythe, especially since we have such an experienced captain with us.” Jochen strode over and put his arm around Svjetla’s shoulder, brushing against her curly red hair. “Maybe this time the ship won’t sink though hu–OOF” said Jochen, with Svjetla jabbing her elbow hard into his side making him stumble back coughing. “I said I wanted to make these Azárians pay for sinking my beloved Basilisk, and now Myrvûs has given me such an opportunity. Striking inside their own homeland is a better opportunity than I could have hoped for! Plus what's left for me back in Wythe? I’m with the kid, oh sorry, I’m with Markus on this one, I say we strike them in whatever form that comes in.” exclaimed Svjetla as she moved across the room closer to Markus, drawing an invisible line with her and Markus on one side, and Jochen and Jaredson on the other. Jochen stepped forward. “Fine have it your way, I really liked you Markus but I’m not willing to die for these people who we don’t even know. If you all want to stay and go on some self sacrificial campaign then fine, but Jaredson and I are leaving.” “No, you ALL are leaving, I’m staying,” said Jaredson abruptly. The room fell silent. “You all have no stake in this fight, but I do. None of you need to stay for it. I don’t wish to see any of you hurt.” “Now hold on just a sec,” spoke Jochen again. “Look I know you hate yourself and everything over what happened in your past, but that's no reason to be stupid now. Dying here won’t help anyone.” “What happened in your past?” asked Svjetla. “Hey mind your own business alright?” replied Jochen. “You can't talk to her like that!” yelled Markus stepping forward in between Svjetla and Jochen. “Stay out of this kid, oh wait you can’t! You just love shoving yourself into problems that aren’t your right?” replied Jochen. *WHACK* Jochen spun backwards, Markus’s fist landing a clean blow across his jaw. Jochen got up and lunged at Markus, but the flame from the candle exploded in a fury of anger. “Both of you stop it now!” yelled Jaredson, standing up now. “They are going to attack my home. They are going to strike at The Autumnvale, and if I don’t stop them now, many more will be killed, just like that village. Do you want that to happen again?” Jochen and Markus stood still, remembering the screams of the villagers as they cooked alive, none being spared. After a minute of silence Jaredson sat back down. Jochen outstretched his hand. “I’m sorry Markus, and Svjetla, I was out of line. I’m just scared.” “We all are,” replied Markus, throwing his own hand out to reach Jochen’s as they shook. “I’m sorry I punched you.” “I’m not,” said Svjetla. “Talk to me like that again and I’ll be the one kicking your ass.” as she too reached her hand out to take the others. “If you all truly insist on staying and helping me, I swear this now Jochen, none of you are dying here,” Jaredson said as he raised his one hand and laid it to rest on the others. “I will protect you all, even if it's the last thing I do.” There was a moment of silence for the group, but the energy was already beginning to rise. “I will inform Kazeem of our decision,” Two weeks later, a full Moon rose over Barazár, its light illuminating the capital city of Niloofar, and shining off the water like sunlight shines off glass. Two Azárian guards are stationed near the harbor at one of the doors leading to the shipyards. By day this shipyard is bustling with activity of Azárian shipbuilders creating new ships for the growing navy per the Bádshah’s orders, but at night one can hear the water as it gently beats against the docks. It's because of this silence that one of the guards doesn’t notice when his partner’s throat is sliced open, preventing him from screaming for help. His partner only notices too late when his spear clanks against the ground. “Sadaf?” he asks as he watches his friend clutch his throat in a feeble attempt to stop the bleeding as he finally succumbs and falls into a pool of his own blood. The guard’s eyes widen at seeing this, and begins to yell. “Radk–” an invisible hand covers his mouth before a foot lands a kick on his chest, breaking a rib, and tossing him against the door to the shipyard. The guard’s vision blurs, making out only a dark figure approaching him. As his vision returns he looks in horror as a figure wearing a white mask with red designs painted on it draws a dagger as black as night, and before he can mutter any other words the deed is done.
Chapter 11
Bahtáwa’s eyelids felt like an anchor trying to reach the bottom of the harbor, but something kept pulling it back up before it would bury itself into the soft sands of sleep. The cool night air tickled his skin and sent goosebumps down his body, but this was temporary as he made his rounds in the shipyard. This was his third night shift in a row, but after tonight he had a couple days off which he planned on using to spend time with his wife Róshnái and their three daughters. “Maybe I’ll take them out into one of the county towns for a day, buy the girls some new jewelry or toys, and Róshnái a new dress. Perhaps my friends would like to go to the tavern and play some dice.” Bahtáwa thought to himself as he made his way back to the other two guards and his captain who were sitting on crates by a small fire in between two ships which would be seaworthy by the weeks end. “See anything Bahtáwa?” said one man, passing cards around to the other two guards. “No Captain, quiet as the dead out there. Deal me in would you?” replied Bahtáwa as he placed his shield and spear down, keeping his sword in it's sheathe and pulled another crate towards the fire to join the other guards and stay warm. “Have you all heard about the assassination attempt on the Bádshah a couple weeks ago?” asked Rukhsar, a scrawny man who just barely cut it as a guard physically. “I heard it was those rebels” replied Zabit, the biggest of the guards. He wore his black hair in a ponytail, sporting a gray streak down the right side and an impressive beard to tie it all together. The guards would joke that he was a former Jangól Chawl which he gave no answer to making it all the more likely. “Officially we are supposed to call them traitors Zabit.” said the Captain, not reprimanding him, but merely addressing for his own good in the future. “Yes Cap’n. I know a guy who is stationed inside the Lesser Citadel, around all the military officers, and he's heard rumors about them.” “What kind of rumors?” asked Bahtáwa with a grin. He always did enjoy hearing all the latest rumors, and his wife loved when he would report them back to her as well. “Well apparently this isn’t the first strike they've made against the Bádshah, but the higher ups have covered up the other attacks so nobody thinks the Bádshah is vulnerable.” replied Zabit, looking around to make sure there are no secret agents of any kind over hearing him. “I would like to see them try to kill Bádshah Ham’Bal! The man is a legend of our time, and still so young! He's leading Barazár towards a better future, why can’t the traitors realize that?” spoke Rukhsar, but the Captain stood up now. “Not all people are going to agree, and sometimes we have to respect that. If they are willing to die for their belief that Bádshah Ham’Bal is a kinslayer and unworthy of the throne, then they must have some strong evidence. Either way their fight is commendable in a way.” “Captain! Sir, you can be imprisoned for such talk,” Bahtáwa said in a low hush. “Surely you can’t believe those lies.” The captain looked over the Men, the fire shining bright full of conviction in his eyes. “Just because I understand them doesn’t mean I agree with what they are doing. When I served in our glorious navy, everyone on the ship had to be as one. Think as one, work as one, hell we even had to sleep as one. The point is, if someone lets say didn’t like the captain, and decided to go their own way, you know what would happen to them? Well, it wasn’t pretty, and at our next stop at a harbor they would be kicked off. My point is, even if these rebels think they are right, their actions hurt the whole ship, and therefore they have to be punished, and left behind. Regardless of what I personally believe, I am a son of Barazár and I am one.” The guards looked at each other and nodded to one another before carrying on with their game. “Anyone else going to the Shádeh Pashang (Imperial Wythian:Festival of Shells) this year?” asked Bahtáwa. “Only if your sister is going Bahtáwa” replied Rukhsar in an evil laugh, resulting in a smack on the head by Bahtáwa’s spear, making all the guards laugh now. Their laughter was even enough to drown out the noise of the flames growing all around them slowly. “Hey, does anyone smell that?” asked Zabit sniffing the air. “It smells like a fire.” “Azdar protect us, don’t tell me Sadaf out front lit something else on fire again. He’s going to get more than a beating again if that's the ca–” Rukhsar is cut short as the Captain stood up and pointed his finger up to the deck of the ship to their right. “TO ARMS Men!” he screamed out, his finger pointing directly at the shadowy figure on the ship, covered in dark clothes, and wearing a mask with red lines drawn on. The figure peered down at the guards as they grabbed their weapons and shields, but did nothing else. At this moment Bahtáwa and the other guards could see the light of the fires that were being set all around the shipyard, slowly burning away at the dozens of ships. In the distance they heard the clanking of metal as the other guards around the shipyard were engaging the enemy. Screams of Men being butchered and burned tore through the previously quiet night. Everything was happening too quickly for Bahtáwa’s mind to keep up. He had been glad he got the shipyard position because of how safe and boring it was. He never anticipated he would actually have to fight. He gripped his spear and held it close to him in a defensive position, trying to calm his nerves, but his bravery was further tested as the figure was joined by three other people, all wearing different masks with different colors and shapes, and all seemingly coming out of the shadows brandishing lit torches. The first of them to appear with the red lines on his mask raised his hand, and pointed at the ship they were on, and the other one next to the guards. They nodded their heads and repeated something in Wythian to him before getting to work burning the ships.
