HALF-BREEDTheWhiteWolf

BrittanyComeaux

Thisbookmaynotbeproduced,copied,oreditedwithoutpermissionfromthe

author.TheworldandcharactersofHalf-Breedarefiction.Anyresemblancetorealworldpeople,places,orotherworksoffictionare

purelycoincidence.

Copyright(c)2015BrittanyComeaux

Allrightsreserved

CoverArt(c)2015BrittanyComeaux

KindleEdition

TABLEOFCONTENTSChapter1Chapter2Chapter3Chapter4Chapter5Chapter6Chapter7Chapter8Chapter9Chapter10Chapter11

Chapter12Chapter13Chapter14Chapter15Chapter16Chapter17Chapter18Chapter19Chapter20Chapter21Chapter22

CHAPTER1

A SULLEN MISTGATHERED over the lonelytown of Rivershire in theearly morning hours. A manof large stature and primalnaturemadehisway into theold town with the intent ofearning his bread. As a

bountyhunter,heroamedthelands and rid them ofcriminals and beasts inexchangeforcoinwithouttheweightofthelawholdinghimback. When finished a jobandcollectedhispay,hetookhis leave and continued hislifedriftingfromoneplacetoanother until anotheropportunity arose. Whileothers in his trade completedwork as well as he did, he

alonemaintaineda renownedreputation.Itwastruethathisskills in battle wereunmatched by most, but thisalone did not earn the famedwarrior his title, The WhiteWolf.

TheWolfwasadvancedinhis years, but he stillresembledamaninhisprime.His hairwas purewhite, andhis determined eyes bore asilver hue, but behind them

lie a soul as human as anyother. His pale skin wasprotected by light leatherarmor. Draped over hisshoulders was a white furcloak that was fastened by ametalclasponwhicha fang-like shapewas carvedon thesurface. The hunter's pridewastheenormousbattleaxe—a weapon that requiredimmense strength and bothhands for a warrior to wield

—thatwasfastenedtoastraponhisback,whichwasmadeof a mysterious metal thatcould make steel appear asfragileaswood.

The sight of The WhiteWolf alone could send chillsthrough even the hardiestmen. Because most peoplethought nothingmoreof himthan the drifter he was, fewcametoknowthemanbehindthe savage beast. Despite his

mysterious nature, the hunterenjoyed the company ofothersonmostoccasionsandlefthis impressionbehindonplenty of people. For thosewhoknewhimevenonly foranight, theWolfwasknownasVarg.

With a bounty lettergripped in his hand, Vargcrossed the bridge into theworntownandfacedtheroadto the Count's keep.

Rivershire was modest,despite being the capital ofthe county. The county ofRivershire joined four otherstoformthesmallkingdomofFellen. Most of the countieswere ruled by a Count, butthe lastwaswhere theyKingof Fellen lived, and all theCounts answered to him.VargrarelyvisitedFellen,butopportunity forwork ledhimanywhere he needed to go.

Afterhefoundthenoticeinatavern just the night before,Varg made the decision toseekthisCountandaccepthisoffer.

Varg ignored thewhispersandstaresofthetownsfolkashe strolled by, something hegrew accustomed to over theyears. The murmurs of theWolf's arrival followed himashefinallyfoundhiswaytothe end of the village where

the road began to move upthe hill to the Count's keep.Thekeepwasnestedbesideasmalllakethattheriverunderthe bridge poured into andcontinuedwest. It seemed tobe a pleasant view andevidently the Count agreed,for a balcony overlooked thelakeonthethirdfloor.

The guards seemedcautious when Vargapproached, but did not stop

him from entering. Vargpulledoneofthetallwoodendoors open and found theentrance hall inside. Againstthe back wall sat the throne,butLordGreenwoodwasnotthere. Instead, Varg wasgreetedbyashort,plumpgirl.Varg guessed she was aservant, due to the raggedwayshewasdressed.Thegirlhesitantly approached Vargandlookedtothefloorasshe

did so. It was far fromunusual for people to avoideye contact with him, so hedidn'tpayanymind.

Vargwaitedforthegirltosay something or at leastgesture for him to enter, butwhen she remained silent hesaid,“I'vebeentoldthereisajob for a skilled bountyhunter. Might you knowanything about this?” TheWolfthenheldupthebounty

letterfortheservanttosee.The girl raised her head

slightly and glanced at theletter, then replied with ameek voice, “You must bethe Wolf. Count Greenwoodisexpectingyou.”

“HowdidtheCountknowI was coming?” Varg asked.His deep voice made thetimid girl jump and thoughshe tried to hide it, shetrembledatthesightofhim.

Athin,agingmanwearingfine emerald clothingemerged from the door nearthe back of the room toanswer Varg's question. “Asthe legendary White Wolf,”he said, “your arrival to ourhumble town does not gounnoticed.”

“So I've seen,” Vargremarked.

“I am Count EdricGreenwood,” the nobleman

said with a wrinkled smile.The Count stepped closer tohis guest and added, “Iassumeyouarehereaboutthebountyletter?”

“The letter specified thatyou required a face-to-facemeetingbeforebeginning thejob,”Varganswered.

“Indeed,thedetailsofthismission must be kept frompublic knowledge until yourjobiscarriedout,” theCount

stated.“Ifyouwillfollowme,I would be happy to explaineverything.”

Edric turned and leftthrough the doorway,prompting Varg to follow.Theservantgirl trottedalongbehind him but kept herdistance.Vargheardhershortlegs scooting along the stonefloor as she tried to keep upwithVarg'slongstride.Edric,on the other hand, kept a

steady pace and controlledposture as he marchedonward.

The Count led Varg intotheroomheemergedfrom,inwhichasetofstairssattotheopposite end. Edric went upthestairsand througha largedoor to another wing of thecastle. There were guardsstationedoneithersideofthearchway to the dining roomandanotherwhopatrolledthe

hall.Vargassumed thedoorsnearby opened to his bedchamber and perhaps hisfamily's. The Count ignoredtheseareasandcontinuedtoadoor on the opposite side ofthecorridor.

Edric opened the door toreveal a small study. Hestepped inside and urgedVarg to follow. The tallbounty hunter barely missedknockinghisheadon the top

ofthedoorframe,butsteppedinside unscathed. Curiously,theservantgirltrailedintotheroom behind Varg. It wasthen that Edric closed thedoorandmadehiswaytothedesk on the opposite end oftheroom.

The desk was placedfacingthedoorwithawallofbookshelves behind it. TheCount seemed tohavea loveof reading based on his

immense collection of tomesand scrolls. A blade andshieldhungproudlyonawallmount above the shorter,middle book shelf, a clearindicationthat theCountwasaccustomed to battle in hisyouth. The rest of the stonewalls bore banners of Fellenand Rivershire and variousartworks, one of whichdepicted a portrait of theCounthimself.

The Count sat at his deskandsaidtoVarg,“Nowthen,I assume you want to knowwhyIneededtospeaktoyouprivately?”

“Ionlyneedtoknowwhatneeds to be done,” Varganswered, “granted you havethecointomakeitworthmytime.”

Edric grunted at Varg'saudacious remark, butcontinued anyway.

“Yesterday I was visited byCount Lionel Lerington ofVirland. He was distressedabout some troublinginformationheuncoveredinarecent stringof crimes in thecounty.Hewas sure Iwouldhelp him expose thecriminals.Afterheleft,Hildaran to me and informed methat Lionel had beenabducted,nodoubtbyoneofthe criminals he'd been

pursuing,” Greenwoodexplained. He then gesturedto the servantgirl,whoVargassumedwasHilda.

Afterawarningglarefromthe Count, Hilda quicklystraightened her posture, butstill kept her face pointedaway from Varg. “I-I sawsomeone in a hooded cloaksnatchCount Lerington fromthe garden outside of thekeep. I stayed hidden best I

could.Thanktheheavensthatwomandidn'thearme! Isawherstrugglin'withtheCount.'Keep quiet!' she yelled, buthe didn't. She had to knockhim in the head to keep himfrom screamin' too loud.After that, she dragged himoffintothewoods.”

“The assailant was awoman?”Vargasked.

“She sounded like one,”Hilda answered. “After she

draggedhimoff,IranstraighttoMilordandtoldhim.”

“After that, I immediatelysent out a bounty letteroffering a generous rewardfor Lionel's safe return,”Edric chimed in. “Then Iwitnessed an arrow shootthroughmyopenwindowthismorning and hit one of myprized paintings,” the Countgestured to the wall to hisleft, where Varg could see a

holeinthepainting,“andtiedtotheendwasaransomnoteoffering the safe return ofCountLerington in exchangeforfiftygoldpieces.Ileftthegold in a hollow tree on theedge of the forest asinstructed, but I have yet tohear from the abductoragain.”

“That'swhere I come in?”Varginterjected.

“Indeed, your job is to

safelyreturnCountLeringtontomykeepordelivernewsofhis fate. The former ispreferable, obviously. Youwill be paid extra forcapturing the kidnapper aliveaswell,”Edricanswered.

Varg sat in silence for amoment and studied theCount. “How much of areward are we referring to,exactly?”

CountGreenwoodexhaled

sharply and answered, “onehundred gold pieces for thesafereturnofLordLerington.Youwillreceivetwohundredifyousecurethekidnapperaswell.”

“Fair enough,” Varganswered.HelookedtoHildaandadded,“Willyoutakemetotheabductionsite?”

Hildacringed,bututtered,“Y-yesSir.”

After a small laugh, Varg

facedthedoorandsaid,“Youdon'thavetobeafraidofme.I don't bite . . . at least notoften.”

Hilda gave a nervous andobviously fake laugh beforetrotting along behind Varg.He stopped briefly to allowher to walk ahead, thenducked under the doorwayandfollowedher.

“Over there, Sir,” Hilda

pointedtowardsagardenareanear theedgeof the town.“Isaw the woman snatch LordLerington and take off thatway.”

Varg's gaze followed inthedirectionHildapointed.Itwas theedgeofadarkwoodwhere a small pathway ledawayfromtown.Heventuredcloser to the wood openingand noticed small drops ofblood in the dirt.He thought

it odd at first, since theslightest wind or even thescuff of a boot could disturbthe drops. He deduced thatthepathmustbeseldomusedif the evidence of theabductionwasstillpresent.

“Exactlyhowharddid theabductor hit Lionel, Hilda?”Vargcalledtotheservant.

Hilda jumped, for sheapparently did not expectVarg to speakagain, and she

repliedmeekly, “Just enoughto knock him out. I think hewasstillbreathin'.”

“Wheredoesthispathleadto?”Vargpressed.

“An old minin' cave thatwas closed down twentyyears back.No one's been intheresince,”Hildaexplained.“Youdon't think that'swhereLord Lerington's bein' held,doyou?”

“I'mgoingtofindoutsoon

enough. Inform the Countthat I will return for myreward . . .” Varg looked atthe sky and saw the sunleaningwest, indicatingmid-afternoon,“...bysunset.”

Hilda nodded and trottedbacktowardsthecastle.

ThoughVarg actually hadno clue how long the searchwould take, he knew histracking skills were the bestof any bounty hunter.

Because his sense of smellwas unrivaled by any beast,Vargcouldsmellmoreblooddeeper in the forest. Henoticed that the blood trailcontinued and was almostcertainthatitwouldleadhimat least near where CountLeringtoncouldbefound.Hefollowed the trail on foot,crouching to the ground hereandtheretoexaminethetrail.Varg feared that the Count

lost toomuchblood and thathe was probably alreadydead.

The dried blood drops ledVarg into the thicker part ofthe woods where heeventually found a derelictcave.Thecaveappearedtobethe old mine Hildamentioned. The blood trailcontinued through theentrance and into the dark,and there were signs that

someone had broken inrecently. Old, rotting planksof wood lay scattered on thegroundnexttotheentranceasif someone had removedthem.Several old signshungover the decrepit archwaywarning intruders of thedanger,butVargknewbetterthantoheedthemwhentherewasajobtocomplete.

When Varg venturedcloser, hewas assaultedby a

foulsmellthatmadehimtakeseveralstepsback.Thesmellwas no doubt from rottingflesh, which confirmed hisfears of the Count's fate. Hecollectedhimselflongenoughto march against the terribleodor without gagging andwalkedrightintotheentranceof the cave, determined tofindabody.

The heels of Varg's bootssunk into the muddy ground

asthesunlightfromthecave'sentrance gradually vanishedbehind him. The only lightthatfounditswayinsidewasfrom openings in the caveceiling. As Varg venturedfurther,however,henoticedadimlightfaraheadofhim.Itwas not sunlight, butappeared to be the orangeglowofatorch.Vargreadiedhis main hand on hisbattleaxe and cautiously

inched forward. Minutes feltlike hours as the cave grewdarker and the glow grewbrighter.

Curvingleftandrightwiththe tunnel,Varg came acrossawolfcarcasslyingofftothesideofthecavewall.Asinglearrow protruded from theanimal's head, andVarg thenrecalled the Count's storyabout the arrow with theransomnotehangingfromhis

window pane. He decidedthatthekidnappercouldhavebeen the one who killed theanimal.Hetouchedthewolf'sblood and discovered it wasstillwarm.He estimated thatit had only been dead a fewminutes, so he continuedforwardtofindtheculprit.

Itwasn't longbeforeVargcameacrossaclearing in thecave where it seemed theminers once did their work.

Old mining carts littered theground with coal and tools,but the first thing Vargnoticedwas therottencorpseinthebackoftheroom,andawoman holding a torch andleaningoverit.

Though the mysterywoman had her back to him,Varg spotted a bow andquiveronherbeltaswellasablade hanging on her leftside. Though her head was

coveredwith thehoodofhercloak,Vargcouldseeshehadadelicateandfeminineframeandwasdressedintrousers,along sleeve shirt, leatherbracers and boots, and aleathervest.Nevertheless,sheappeared to be tall andwell-built for battle. With this inmind as well as her smallarsenal, it seemed that themystery woman was morethan capable of kidnapping

theCount.Varg wished to observe

her more before heconfronted her, so he took astep towards her with hishand on his battleaxe. As hestepped forward, heaccidentally kicked the dirtwith his boot. The womanshifted her position to facehim and readied her blade inlessthanasecond.

“Who goes there?” she

demanded.The woman's jumpy

behavior definitely added tohis suspicions of her. Vargpaused and readied hisweapon.Thenhesaid,“I'mabountyhunter, andmy job isto find that dead noble overthereandwhoeverkidnappedhim.”

Thewomanremainedcoolandcollected, thenanswered.“Well it appears you're too

late.”Varg studied the woman

and found no fault in herdemeanor,thenadded,“Imaynotbeabletobringhimhomesafely, but I can at least getmy reward for catching hisabductor.”

Thewoman blinked. “Justwhat do you think you'reaccusingmeof?”

Varg shrugged.“Kidnapping, theft, and I

suppose we can add murdertothatlist.”

“How dare you!” thewoman shouted. “I haven'tkilledanyone.”

“ThenexplainwhyIfoundyou standing over hiscorpse,”Vargcountered.

The woman sheathed hersword, walked forward, andsaid, “I don't have to explainanythingtoyou.Nowgetoutofmyway.”

“Sorry,Love,but theonlyplace you're going is thecastledungeon,”Vargsaid.

“IwillnotbechargedwithacrimeIdidn'tcommit!” thewomanshouted.

“Then I suppose we mustdo this the hard way,” Vargshrugged.

The woman lunged atVarg with her blade beforeher.Herespondedbydrawinghisbattleaxefromtheholster

on his belt and he held it infront of him to block. Thewoman's blade scratchedacrossthesurfaceof thecoolmetal, but didn't leave somuch as a nick. The womanbacktrackedandattempted toswingherswordforward,butVargblockedagain.

Vargtookadvantagewhenshe slowed down and hequickly put himself on theoffensive. He swung his

battleaxe low, downward,upward, sideways, and everyother direction, but the agilewoman dodged every singleattack. She was incrediblyquick and precise, but Vargknewthateveryfighterhadaweak point. It was only amatter of time until she letherself become vulnerable toattack.

Varg knew that thiswoman was far to quick to

land a hit on, so he feignedweakness and allowed her togo onto the offensive again.He parried, dodged, andblocked every attack shethrew his way while bidinghis time and waiting for hertoslipup.

The woman halted herfrontal assault, jumpedbackwards,andarmedherselfwithherbow.Shereadiedanarrow in his direction and

stood perfectly still with hereyes set unblinking in hisdirection. She smiled, loosedthe arrow, and watched as itflew towards Varg'sunprotected head. Themoment that Varg saw herfingers release the arrow, heswung his axe upward. Thecurved blade collidedperfectlyinthemiddleof thearrow shaft and snapped thewood in half in midair. The

two halves of the shaft thenflew aside and tumbleduselesslyintothedirt.

As thewomanstaredwithher mouth agape at the twohalves of her arrow, Vargthen muttered, “Are youreadytosurrender?”

The enraged womancontinued to loose arrows atVarg,who dodged from sideto side just in time to avoidbeing scraped by the sharp

metal heads. The closer hecame, the more the womanlost her concentration, and itwas the opening that Varghad been waiting for. Helunged for her bow andwrestleditfromhergrip.Shedesperatelytriedtopullawayfromhimwithsomuchforcethat she fell backwards. Hepurposelyallowedhisbodytofall onto hers, pinning her tothe ground.He then held her

armsinplacesoshecouldnolongerfight.

The woman drilled herfierce eyes into Varg's andaccusingly growled, “Justwhat you think you areplanningbeforehaulingmetoprison?”

Varg stared right back atherwithamischievoussmirkand then leaned in closer.Withinan inchofherear,hewhispered, “Don't flatter

yourself,Love.”Varg then rolled the

woman onto her stomach,pulled her arms behind herback, and tied her wriststogetherwith apieceof ropehepulledfromhisbeltpouch.

“Whatareyoudoing?Stopthat!” thewomanyelled.Sheswung her legs backwards inanattempttokickVarg,soheusedanextrapieceofropetotieheranklestogethertosave

himselfthetrouble.“I have to hand it to you,

you are not easy to catch,”Varg admitted as heunfastened her quiver andsheath, “but now you can'tfightmeanymore,Love.”

Thewomanstillcontinuedto struggle even as Vargsearched her pockets forhidden weapons. “Listen tome!Ididn'tkillanyone!Andstopcallingme'Love!'”

“Thendoyouhaveanothername I could use instead?”Vargoffered.

“Go pleasure yourself,”shespat.

“NotanameIwouldhavechosen, but oddly enough itsuits you,” Varg remarked.“Aha!” Varg pulled a pouchout of the woman's satcheland opened it up to lookinside. “How about that?Fifty gold coins, exactly the

amount of coin the Countpaidfortheransom.Thisalsohashisfamilyinsigniaonit.”

“That's my money! I waspaid to clear this cave—putmedownthisinstant!”

Varg lifted the womanoverhis shoulderandcarriedheroff in thedirectionof thecaveentrance.Heheldherinplace by placing his armaroundherwaist.

“Sorry Love, nothing

personal,” Varg said as hegrinnedwithtriumph.

CHAPTER2

VARG ENTERED EDRIC'SSTUDY after handing theraging woman off to theguards to claim his reward.The Count waited with twopouches of gold on his desk.While he didn't seem pleasewith Varg's work, Edric still

said, “Job well done, bountyhunter. Hilda has alreadypositively identified thewoman's voice as thekidnapper's. My guards alsofound the same type ofarrows in her quiver as theonethatwasshotthroughmywindow. With all of theevidenceagainsther,shewillbe charged with murder andexecuted at dawn. Aspromised, here is your two

hundredgoldpieces.”Vargraisedaneyebrow.“I

didn'treturntheCountalive.”“No,butatleasthecanbe

lain to rest properly,” Edricoffered, but it didn't easeVarg'smind.TheCount thenadded, “Now, if you willexcuseme,Ineedtocomposea letter to Count Lerington'sfamily and tend to hisservice.” Edric sat down athis desk and started writing

something on a piece ofparchmentashetookasipofwinefromhisgoblet.

Vargturnedtoleave,butaweight in his gut kept himfirmly to the ground. Heknewhisworkfeltunfinisheddespite that he'd alreadyreceivedhispay.Heturnedtoface the painting the arrowhadpierced, according to thestory Greenwood gave him,and he examined the hole.

Whilearcherywasneveroneof his strongest skills, Vargknewahole leftbyanarrowwhenhesawone.Theholeinthepaintingatfirstglancedidresemble an arrow mark, byupon further inspection, themark was more of a straightlinethanatypicalholeleftbyanarrowhead. IfVargdidn'tknow any better, he wouldhavesaidthemarkwasmadebyadagger,notanarrow.

This revelation sparkedVarg's curiosity, and on ahunch he positioned himselfinfrontoftheholeandfacedthe window. The position ofthewindowdidn'tfitthepaththe arrowwould have had totravel in order to landwhereit did. The window washanging too far to the right,andthebottomofthesillwastoo high to be able to reachthe painting from the ground

outside. Though the womanwasanexcellentshot,hewaspositive that even she wouldnever be able to land anarrow where CountGreenwood claimed to havefoundit.

TheCount had apparentlynoticed Varg was stilllingering around, for he thensaid, “The guards can showyou the way out, bountyhunter.”

The hunter took one lastlookatCountGreenwoodandstudied him for any faults inhis demeanor, but turnedaround and left the roomwhen he saw nothing. Vargknew that something wasamiss, and neither the Countnor anyone else in the castlewould say otherwise. Therewas only one person whomaybe able to shed light onthe situation, and he was

certain if she wanted to liveshewouldcooperate.

AfterVarglefttheCount'schambers, he avoided theeyesofthepryingguardsandfoundthedoortothebarrackslocatedinthecorridorleadingout of the entrance chamber.When he entered, he saw aguardinsidewhostraightenedupquicklyandtriedtohideabottle of ale before he couldseeit.

The guard quickly stoodand readied his weapon.“Whatareyoudoinginhere?Youaren'tallowed—”

“Before you make anyattempt to idly threaten me,perhaps I can offer a deal?Youletmevisityourprisonerand I won't tell the Countyou're drinking on the job,”Vargsaid.

The guard's expressionfell, then he grudgingly

loweredhisweaponandsaid,“Onlyafewminutes,brute.”

“That's all I need,” Varganswered. He ignored theguard's inebriated glares andcontinued into the corridoruntil he found the cellwherethewomanwasbeingheld.

Once Varg found thewoman's cell, he was finallyable to see who she reallywas now that her cloak hadbeen confiscated. She stood

tall and lean with clear, fairskin. Her long hair was thecolorofrichwineandformedtightspiralsdownherbackallthe way to her waist. Hecouldn't help but notice herlovelycurves,buthebrusheditoutofhishead.Ifhewasn'tin themiddleofhiswork,hemay have actually beenattractedtoher.

The woman paced backandforthinhercelluntilshe

sawVargapproach, atwhichpoint she straightened herpostureand stareddaggersathim.

“Itwasn'tenoughtotiemeup and carry me throughRivershire like a piece ofgame,” she snapped, “butnowyou'vecometo rub it inmyface?”

“Iambynomeansheretoinsultyou,”Vargassured.

Thewomanrolledhereyes

and brushed a strand of hairbehindherear.Itwasthenhenoticed something that hehadn't noticed until shestepped further into the dimcandle light of the dungeon.The woman's ears werepointed, an unmistakeablefeatureofanelf.

“You're an elf? I thoughtyour people were sealed offfrom the world, into theirdomain,”Vargpressed.

The woman ignored hisquestion and continued toglare at him. “What do youwantwithme?”

Varg brushed aside hiscuriosityandrememberedhiscurrent objective. “I need totalktoyou.”

“I have nothing to say toyou,”theelfspat.

“If you value yourfreedom, you should tell mewhathappened,”Vargsaid.

The elf scoffed. “Don'tyou think you should haveaskedme all this before youhadme arrested and chargedwithkidnappingandmurder?WhyshouldItrustyou?”

“What choice do youhave?”Vargpointedout.

The elf sighed and said,“Fine, what do you want toknow?”

“First, can you tell meyourname?”Vargasked.

“Why do you care?” theelfasked.

“Forgive my curiosity,”thehunter replied,“but inallmyyearsIhavenevermetanelf. I've only heard tales andrumors about how the elvesused powerful magic to sealtheir kingdom off from theoutsideworldmanycenturiesago.Howisityou'vecometoleaveyourpeoplebehind?”

“I don't consider those

wretches my people,” shespat. “Besides, I am onlyhalf-elf.”

Varg paused briefly andponderedwhatshe'djustsaid.He gave her a slight smileand muttered, “Small world,thisis.”

“What are you talkingabout?” thehalf-elfsaidwithasigh.

“I mean that I'm just likeyou,”Varg said. “I'm a half-

breed.”The half-elf stared at him

as if she expected him to bemakingacrueljoke.Thenshereplied,“Youare?”

“Aye, and I don't tell youthis simply for yourcooperation. I know all towell the isolation that comeswith being a half-blood. Myfather'skindhasbeenextinctfor some time,” Varg said.“Hewasajotun.”

“A jotun? You mean thefabledmenoficesaidtohaveinhabited the NorthernContinent?”

“They were hardly fable,obviously,” Varg said, “butyes, though they were morecommonly known as frostgiants. They weren't reallygiant, mind you, but theyweremuch taller thanhumanmen.”

Thehalf-elfgrewquiet,as

if she were trying to decidewhether or not she believedwhat Varg was saying. Hebegan to fear that he wouldnever gain her trust until hefinally heard her utter,“Milea.”

Varg looked her in theeyes and said, “What wasthat?”

“My name is Milea,” sherepeated.

Varg smiled and placed a

hand on one of the cell bars,then said, “That's a muchmore fitting name. In caseyou were wondering, mynameisVarg.”

“All right Varg,” Mileasaid softly, “what do youwanttoknow?”

“To start, what were youdoing in that cave next toLionel'sbody?”Vargasked.

Mileabegantopaceagain.“I came to town in searchof

workandwashiredbyamanfrom the town to clear thecaveofawolfinfestation.I'ma hunter by trade, andsometimesIclearinfestationsof pests and monsters. ThemansaidthatthewolveswerebecomingquiteaproblemforRivershire,soheaskedmetocomplete the taskimmediately and offered agenerousreward.”

Vargrememberedthedead

wolf he'd found in the cave,thensaid,“Goon.”

“I didn't find manywolves,” Milea said, “but Iwas told the nest wouldprobablybefurtherback intothe mine. Then I discoveredthat body just before youdiscoveredme.”

“What about the Count'scoin pouch I found in yoursatchel?”Vargasked.

“Ireceivedthatasadown

payment for my services. Atthe time I thought thiswas agood deal, but now I knowthatitwasaploytoframemeforthecrime,”Mileasaid.

Vargstrokedtheshorthaironhis chin andasked, “Whowasthisman?”

“He didn't give his name,just that he was a localminer,”Mileareplied.

“What about the servant,Hilda? She recognized your

voice as the kidnapper's,”Vargexplained.

Milea stopped pacing,faced Varg, and said, “Shemade that up, and the onlyreason I can think of isbecauseshe'stherealkiller.Ifnot, she's lying for whoeveris.”

Varg took a deep breath.While it seemed unlikelysomeonewouldgo toall thistrouble to frame an innocent

woman, he had to admit thatMilea's story held morewater. He couldn't imaginewhy someone like Hildawould kill Lionel, but withMilea'sstorybroughttolight,hefeltitwastimetoexaminethevictim'sbody.

The guard came in,breaking Varg from histhoughts, and said, “Time'sup.Leavetheprisonerandbeonyourway.”

Varg shrugged and turnedtoMilea.“Thankyou,Milea.I'llbeseeingyouaround.”

When he turned to leave,Mileasaid,“Ifyouhaveevenashredoftheskillyouclaim,you will find the truth. Myexecutionisatdawn,sodon'tdally.”

Varg looked back to herandnoddedreassuringly,thencontinuedoutof thebarracksas the guard sat back down

with his ale. Varg emergedfrom the corridor into theentrance chamber to findCount Greenwood andseveral guards waiting forhim.

“I thought Imade it quiteclearthatyouweretoleave,”Edricbarked.

“I'm not causing anyharm,”Vargargued.

“Youaretrespassinginmykeep,”theCountsaid.“Either

youleaveofyourownaccordormyguardswillgladlydragyourbodyout.”

“I'd like to see them try,”Vargdaredhim.“Fortunatelyfor you and them, I'm donehereanyway.”

“If Iever seeyour face inRivershire again, you willspend the rest of your life inchains,”theCountthreatened.

Varg began to walk pastthe Count, but was sure to

shoutback,“Idoubtyouhavecenturies to wait for mydeath.” He only wished hecouldseeCountGreenwood'spuzzled expression before hestrolled out of the keepwithoutanotherword.

There was a time when

Varg grew attached tosomeone.Itwasa timewhenhe was still innocent to thedangers in the world both to

the body and heart. Sincethose days had come andgone, he vowed to nevergrow attached or becomepersonal in someone's affairsagain.Thiswas thenatureofabountyhunter;completethejob no questions asked, thentakeyourleaveandneverseethe people you helped orhindered ever again. He hadto wonder why, then, did hefeeltheneedtohelpMilea.

Surely the half-elf wasn'tjust an innocent bystander inthewrongplaceat thewrongtime. Such coincidencesdidn'thappeninVarg'slineofwork.Thenagain, thiswouldmean that meeting anotherhalf-breedlikehimselfwasn'tcoincidence.Henever tookafancytobelievinginfate,buthedidn'twant tobelieve thattheonlyotherhalf-breedhe'dever met would be a cold-

bloodedkiller. In spiteofhisgutfeeling,hedecidedthatifhefoundnoevidencethatshewas innocent or that anyoneelse was guilty, he wouldsolemnlycontinuehiswayinperpetualsolitude.

After he left the Count'skeep,Vargwalked back intotownandbeganhissearchforthe mortuary. He didn't askanyone since none of thetownsfolk would want to

speak to him anyway, but healso wanted to avoid thewatchful eyes of the guards.He noticed a building to hisleft that had empty coffinslittering the ground outsideandheknewhe'dfoundit.Hecrept up to the door andwaited until he was sure noone was around before hebegantoexaminethelock.

Night had fallen, so itcame to no surprise that the

door was locked. Vargheavedabreaththat includedasilentpleaforthemorticiantobeasleep, thenhegrabbedhis lock-picking tools fromhis belt pouch. He carefullyworkedthepickandtookcareto peek around tomake sureno one could see him.Whenheheardtheclickofthelockopening at last, he gentlypushedthedooropen.

Varg heard no signs of

life, so he thanked his ownfortune and entered thebuilding.The first roomheldonly a desk and paperwork,but therewasadoorway thatled toanother roominwhichtable covered by a thin sheetlay. He took a chance andventured inside, which waswhen he realized thatsomethinglayunderthesheeton the table, which wasundoubtedlyabody.Sinceno

other bodies were in theroom, he was sure it wasLionel's.

When he removed the topof the sheet, Varg nearlyvomited.Though the sightofLerington's stiff, discoloredbodyalonemadehimwanttoavert his eyes, the terriblesmell of the Count's rottingfleshwasenough tostinghiseyesandsendchillsdownhisspine. He noticed that the

sheet had been soaked in arichfragranceinanattempttohide the smell, but he knewall too well that it wouldn'tlast long. He had to actquicklybeforeanyoneoutsidenoticedthesmellorbeforehefainted from it. He lay thesheet near the corpse's navel—at least where he thoughtthe navel should be—andstartedtoexaminethebody.

Lerington appeared to be

an older man, possibly sixtyto seventy years of age.Underhisthinninghair,Vargspotted a gash on the backside of his head. Thisconfirmed what Hilda saidabout the abductor strikingLerington, but the woundmade no sense. It was nearthe back of his head, ratherthan the front. When a manknowsheisindanger,thelastthing he will do is turn his

backonhis attacker.Thoughit was peculiar, he neededmore than this togoon ifhehadanyhopetoproveMilea'sinnocence.

Varg examined the bodyfurther to findmultiple knifewoundsintheCount'sbloatedchest. He could see severalknife wounds that seemedpanicked and jagged, but theevident cause of death wasthewound thatpunctured the

Count's heart. Due to thesloppy nature of the cuts, hecouldtellthatnoexpertkillerdid thedeed.HeknewMileawaswell-trainedinbattleandwould never have needed tostab avictim so carelessly toget the job done, so it wasonly logical to assume thatshewas in fact, innocent ofthiscrime.

Varg replaced the sheetover Count Lerington's head

and turned to leave, butstopped when he noticedsomething near the door. Onasmalltablenexttothedoorlay the Count's clothing andotherpossessions.Amongthesmall items near his tatteredrobe was a piece ofparchment with a strangesymbol. Drawn in dark redink, the symbol resembled asnake that slithered around ahand.Thedrawing looked as

though it was scribbled in ahurry and underneath it, astrange phrase had beenwritten:

TheSerpentshallleadtheworthytotheDawn.

Varghadnocluewhythis

cryptic message would beamong Lerington's personaleffects. Without thinking, heinstinctively folded the paper

and placed it in his pocket.He knew that the Countwouldneverlethimbackintothecastle,sohehadtogettoMileaandfreehersomeotherway before dawn. Hecontemplated ways he couldbreak into the keep andalmost didn't hear the frontdoor opening. Varg quicklyfoundaplacetohidebehindastack of wooden coffins. Hepeekedthroughasmallgapin

thewood to seewhen itwasclear to leave, but it wasn'tthemorticianwhoenteredtheroom.

Hilda inched her wayacross the room to thecovered corpse of LordLerington and began tosniffle. Her red and swolleneyes indicated she'd beenweeping for hours. “I'm sosorryMilord. I didn't have achoice!”

Varg couldn't believe hisears. Though he hadsuspicions about Hilda'sstory,hestillhadahardtimebelieving that she wascapable of such a heinousmurder. It only made Vargangrier to know that shewillingly blamed Mileaknowing that she wascondemning her to death.AsHilda continued to sobloudly, she never heard him

emerge from behind thecoffins and march towardsher.

Hilda turned to leave asplit second before Vargreached her and when shesaw him, she screamed andran for the door. She onlybarelyopened thedoorwhenheslammeditshutagain.

“You're willing to let aninnocent woman perish foryourcrime?”Vargshouted.

“No!Noplease, I'mnot akiller!”Hildacried.

“Don't lie to me! I justheard what you said!” Vargspat.

Hilda fell to the floor andbroke down like a frightenedchild. She sobbed so loudlythat Varg couldn't hear hisownthoughts.

“Ididhelpcoveritup,butIdidn'tkillCountLerington!”shebegged.

“Then tell me who did,”Vargordered.

Hildacontinuedtosobandtry to catch her breath. Vargdidn't want this to get ugly,but an innocent life was ontheline,sohehadnochoice.He reached down andgrabbed Hilda by the arms,pulled her to her feet, andgave her the fiercest stare hecould. Hilda screamed withterror, but another look from

him made her forget hervoice.

“Who killed CountLerington?”Vargrepeated.

“ItwasMilord,Sir.CountGreenwood murdered CountLerington,”Hildablurtedout.

Vargsoftenedhisgripandallowed her to composehimself.Hekeptasuspiciouseye on hermannerisms, thencalmly asked, “How do Iknow you're telling me the

truth?”“Milord never would've

helpedmecoverupamurder,Sir.Hewould'veturnedmeinif I was the one who killedCount Lerington,” Hildasobbed.

Vargdidn'tdoubt this,buthe continued, “Why didGreenwood make you coverhiscrime?”

Hilda wiped her nose onhersleeve.“Iknewtoomuch,

Sir. You see, I walked intoMilord's study while he wascuttin' Count Lerington uplike a hunter would his kill!CountGreenwoodcaughtmeand toldme to help cleanupandgetridofthebody.OnceI saw the rage in his eyes, Ididn' argue. We carried thebody to the mine and heburned all of our clotheswhen we got back to thecastle.Justbeforeyouarrived

intown,hedisguisedhimselfand sent that lady into themine to clear out somewolves, and made sure shewouldbetherewiththebodyin time for someone to catchher,”Hildaexplained.

Varg pressed further.“Why did Greenwood killLionel?”

“Idon'tknow,Sir.Hejusttold me to come by becausethemorticianfoundastrange

paper that he thought hisLordship might be interestedin seeing.Milordorderedmeto come get the paper andburnit,”Hildareplied.

Varg released his gripfromthepetrifiedservantandfished the parchment hefound out of his pocket. Heunfolded it and showed it toHilda. “Is this it? Do youknowwhatthisis?”

Hilda shook her head. “I

don't know, Sir. I've neverseenthatpictureinmylife.”

Varg folded thepaperandreplaced it into his pocketwithout a response. Then helookedatHildawithagentlerexpression and said, “It's nottoo late todo the right thing,Hilda. You could tell thetown officials whatGreenwood did and stop aninnocent woman from takingtheblame.”

“Milord will have mekilled if I talk! Just tellingyou will earn him my headforsure!”Hildacried.

“Then tell me how I canget Milea out of the castle,”Vargcountered.

“Milea?Oh,youmeanthelady,” Hilda said. “Well,there's adoor to thebarracksthat not many people knowabout. Guards drag the deadbodies through there. You

might be able to sneak inthroughthere,butyou'dbetterhurry.”

“Why is that?” Vargasked.

“Because the headsman isalreadyat thekeep toget theexecution over with,” Hildarevealed.

Varg's heart sank. “What?Ithoughtherexecutionwasatdawn!”

“No Sir, Milord wants to

keep theexecutionoutof thepublic eye, so they're killinghertonight,”Hildasaid.

Varg ran to the exit andquicklyswungthedooropen.Hewasabouttorundownthestreet when he stopped andtossedHildaabagofcoins.

“Wh-what's this for?” sheaskedinameekvoice.

“Get out of Rivershire, orevenoutofFellenaltogether,and start a new life. After

today, I am sure that theCount will see you as aliability to his freedom fromprosecution.You need to getoutofherebeforehehasyoudisposed of,” Varg called.Without another word, hesprinted down the road andleft the poor servant girlbehindnevertoseeheragain.

Once he left the morgue,Varg wanted to run fasterthan his legs could handle,

but he also knew he had toprevent drawing attention tohimself and ruining anychanceofrescuingMilea.Heestimated where the outsideofthedungeonwasandfounda tall brush coming from thewall. Behind the brush, hefound a set of stairs leadingdownward into an old door,which was without a doubtthe door Hilda told himabout. He tread carefully to

the door and tested the knobto discover it was alreadyunlocked. He carefully creptthe door open and tip-toedinside.

It was quiet, but Vargassumed Milea might beasleep by this hour, so hedidn't give up hope. Henavigated through the darkcorridorandfoundthelineofcells where Milea wasimprisoned. Upon closer

inspection,however,thecellsappearedtobeempty.

Varg'sheartsankwhenherealizedthatMileawasnotinhercell,butaswiftjolttohishead quickly averted hisattention and caught himcompletelyoffguard.

CHAPTER3

THROUGH CLOUDEDVISION, Varg tried tocomprehend what justhappened, a sharp lingeringacheon thebackof his headand hurried voicessurroundinghimtoldhimthathe'd walked right into an

ambush. When he finallybegan to fully regainconsciousness,he realizedhewasontheflooruntilseveralhands dragged him into oneofthecells.

“This oaf is even heavierthanhelooks,”someonesaid.

“TheCount said hewas abigone,”anothersaid.

Varg wanted to fight, buthis pounded head kept hisarms and legs limp. He

shouldhaveknown that aftertheir little confrontationearlier that day the Countwould have left menwaitingincasehereturned.

The guards stoppeddragging Varg and droppedhim back on the floor. Theythen stripped him of hiscloak, bow, and quiver, thenoneoftheguardstriedtotakehisbattleaxefromhisback.

“What the—this thing is

stuck!”theguardsaid.“It'snotstuck, it'sheavy!”

a second guard said. “Nowonder we had so muchtroublecarryinghim.”

Varg chuckled, for it wastrue that his mighty weaponcouldn'tbeliftedsoeasilybyamerehuman.

“Just lock him up beforetheCountcomesback.Iwanttogoandwatchtheexecutionanyway,”anotherguardsaid.

Varg'sheartbecamealittlelighter with the hope thatMilea may still be alive andeventheslammingofthecelldoordidn'tchangeit.

“I think he's still awake,”oneof theguardssaidjustasVarg began to regain hisvision.

“Doesitmatter?Theoafislocked up and won't begetting out any time soon,”anotherguardsaid.

Varg groggily lifted hisheadandgotonhishandsandknees. “You'd better unlockthis cell before I do it foryou.”

The guards laughed, thenoneof themsaid,“Ihavethekeys,you fool.Howcanyouopenthecellyourself?”

Varg regained his footingat last and stood up with aweary expression. “Youaskedforit.”

Just as Varg began toretain his full consciousness,hegrabbedacellbar ineachbare hand and stared theguards down. Before theirastonished eyes, the metalbars began to freeze steadilyuntil they were covered insolidicefromceilingtofloor,then continued until all thecell bars were completelyenveloped. The frozen metalshimmered in the dark, and

he allowed the sight to sinkintohisaudiencebrieflyafterhe released his grip. Thenwith a flick of his indexfinger and thumb, the frozenmetal cracked and shatteredbeforehimintoamessonthedungeonfloor.

The guards stared in aweat this spectacle, but theireyessoonsnappedintoVarg'sdirectionassoonashetookastep forward. Their legs

becamemobile again as theydarted into the corridor justoutside the dungeon. Insteadof following them, Vargreached into thechestnearbyto retrieve his equipment,along with the sword, bow,quiver,satchel,andcloakthathe recognized asMilea's. Hethen rolled everything excepther sword into the cloak, forhe knew there was a highprobability that she would

needit.Varg had just finished

fastening the clasp of hiscloak when he followed thecorridor to the entrance hall,where the three guards stoodwiththeirweaponsdrawn.Heapproached them and laid afinger on the middle guard'ssword. A thick layer of iceformed over the blade, andthe guard panicked anddropped it, causing it to

shatterontheground.The other two guards

timidly lowered theirweapons,atwhichpointVargasked, “would any of you bewilling to point me in thedirection of the executionsite?”

Without a word, all threeguards simultaneouslypointed to the door to theirleft.

Varg smiled and said,

“Thankyou.”He thendartedoff to the door and left thefrigidguards toprocesswhatthey'djustwitnessed.

Varg followed the

direction inwhich theguardshadpointedandwithenoughsearching, he spotted thecourtyard through a windowdown the corridor. Mileastoodaliveandwellwithherhandstiedinfrontofherand

a chopping block on theground before her. Theexecutioner stood behind herwith his axe ready while thetown priest performed lastrites.CountGreenwoodstoodnexttothepriestwithasmugexpression that made Varg'sblood boil. The only otherpeople in attendance were afew servants and plenty ofguards.

Vargfoundthedoortothe

courtyard and tread outsidewithout being noticed.Insteadofwatching thedoor,the guards huddled aroundthe courtyard area to get abetterview,sothehunterwasabletoslippastthemwithoutbeingnoticed,andhefoundavantagepointwherehewouldbe able to get to Milea in ahurry, if need be. As thepriest closed his speech,Milea looked up and spotted

Varg. When he gave her areassuring nod, she kept herexpressionneutralsoasnottoalert anyone, but gave asubtle nod to acknowledgehispresence.

After the priest hadstepped aside, CountGreenwood stepped forwardand addressed the accused.“Any last words before wesend your soul to thewretched realm fromwhence

itcame?”Milea looked his straight

in theeyes and said, “I'll seeyouthere,pig.”

The Count gave her adisdainfullookandsaidtotheexecutioner,“Proceed.”

Varg's heart sank again astheexecutionerpushedMileatoherkneesandthenlaidherforward onto the block, atwhichpointheunfastenedhisbattleaxe and charged

forward. As the headsman'saxe came down, Vargblockeditspathwithhisown.The bloodied axe proved nomatchforhismightyweapon,and the iron head split rightdown the middle on impact.The half that broke off flewofftothesideandtheguardswaiting there narrowlyavoided the disaster thatnearlyfollowed.

“What is this?” theCount

shouted.Varg ignored him and

helpedMilea to her feet. Ashe untied her hand binds, hesaid,“Youhavenerveaskingme why I would help thewoman you framed for yourcrime.”

“What in the world areyou talking about?” Edricsnapped.

“You know what I'mtalking about,” Varg barked.

“YousetMileauptotakethefall for a murder that youcommitted.”

The crowd erupted intochaos at Varg's accusation.Edric's face darted back andforth, as if he truly wereoffended that he would saysuch things. The crowdshouted at Varg, at whichpoint the Count knew hecouldgetoutof the situationeasilybyplayingthevictim.

“I have never been soinsultedinmylife!Howdareyou accused the Count ofRivershire of murder!” theCount bellowed. Edric facedthe small crowd of servantsandguardswhenhespoke inan apparent effort to gaintheir support. “What did sheoffer you for your services,hunter?Gold?Fame?Perhapssomething a little more . . .personal?”

Milea promptly spit atEdric's feet for his remark,but this only seemed to rilethecrowdupmore.

“Nowyouwillpay,”Edricgrowled. “Guards, arrestthem.”

The servants quicklycleared the courtyard as theguards armed their weaponsandrushedtowardsVargandMilea. Varg readied hisbattleaxe and took a

defensive stance in front ofhisunarmedcounterpart.

“Run,” Varg muttered toher.

“I will not abandon youafteryou savedmy life,” shemutteredback.

“There'snotimetoargue,”Varg urged. “Besides, Ihaven'tsavedyourlifeyet.”

“I'mnotleavingyou.”Varg gave her a quick

glance, then tossed her

sheathed sword to her andsaid, “Then be prepared tofightyourwayoutofhere.”

Mileacaughtthebladeandremoved it from it's sheath,then tookanoffensivestancebeside Varg as the guardsbegantocharge.

The first guard came atVargwithaspear,buthewasno match. He first slicedthrough thefeeblespearwithease, thenknocked theguard

across thefacewith theshaftof his axe.Twomore guardscame forward while the firstwas staggered. Vargperformed a sideways swingto knock the first guard'sbladeaside,thenhestrucktheother with his back swing.The first guard attempted tocounter, only to bemet withanother swing of thebattleaxe.

Two more men lunged at

Vargwithbothbladesdrawnand out of the corner of hiseye, he saw the first guardcompose himself and try toattack his flank. He slicedthrough the armor of the leftguard while grabbing hisbladewith his free hand. Hethen drove the guard's bladestraight through the otherguard's armor. Varg turnedjust in time to see Milea'sblade land in themiddleofa

guard'schest.Just then he heard Count

Greenwood gasp in terror.“'What dark manner ofsorceryisthis?”

VargturnedaroundtofacetheCount,whostaredinaweat the guard Varg had justslain. To everyone'sastonishment, the guard'swound had frozen solid andthefrostwasspreadingtotherestofhisbody.Beforelong,

the guard was nothing morethan a frozen husk. It was aspectacle that causedeveryone in the courtyard tohalt the battle and keep theireyeslockedontheicycorpse.

Varg turned to the Countwith a proud smile and said,“That was just one of FrostFang'sgreatabilities.”

“FrostFang?”Edricdaredtoask.

Varghelduphisbattleaxe.

“She'sFrostFang.”Edric stared at Varg with

disdain and spat, “Youactually named yourweapon?”

“A true warrior's weaponnames herself!” Vargboasted.

“Enough of this!” Edricshouted. “Bring me theirheads!”

As more guards began toarrive in time to grant the

Count's command, Vargrealized that they werebecoming severelyoutnumbered.

“Now would be a goodtime to run,” Varg mutteredtoMilea.

“I told you I won't leaveyou to fight alone,” Mileaargued.

Varg turned to face herandsaid,“Imeantforbothofus.”

Milea could see that theywere becoming outnumberedjust asVargcould, sowithaquick nod she said, “Thatwouldbebest.”

They took the nearestopening in the lineofguardsthey could find and ran forthe exit. The guards tried toblock theirpath,but they toowere no match for FrostFang.Theonlyexitwasbackthroughtheentrancehall,but

whentheyentered,therewerefive guards waiting at thedoor.

“Did you happen to findthe rest my equipment?”Mileaasked.

“Ihaveithere,”Vargsaid.He tossed her her rolledequipment.

The duo held off theapproaching guards, butreinforcementsbegan topourinto the hall from nearly

everydirection.Outnumberedand surrounded, Varg andMilea were forced to retreatinto the corridor that led totheCount'schambers.

“Ihaveaplan,”Vargsaidasheshovedthedooropen.

“Lead the way,” Mileasaid while trailing behindhim.

Varg ranup the stairs andentered the Count's quarters,but not before grabbing a

wardrobe and hurling againstthe door. The wood crackedand broke in several placeswhen the wardrobe landed,but it still proved to be aneffective barrier. The guardstried to shove their way intothe quarters, but because ofthe enormous blockage, theireffortswereinvain.

“Thatshouldbuyustime,”Vargsaid.

The Count's bed chamber

stoodonafloorbyitself.Theinterior was unsurprisinglywellkeptandfineintaste.Atthe farend,Varg foundwhathe was looking for. Thebalcony he saw thatmorningstood on the opposite end ofthe room.Thewooden doorsstood slightly ajar and hecouldseethenightsky,soherushedforwardandthrewthedoors open. The lake laydirectlybelowthebalcony,as

Varg thought, but it wasmuch farther from thebalconythanhethought.

“We're trapped!” Mileacried.

Just then, a crash and thesound of splitting woodechoed from the floorbelow.Itwas evident that they onlyhad precious seconds beforefacing the justice ofRivershireonceandforall.

MileafacedVargandsaid,

“I hope you have a goodplan.”

VargplacedanarmaroundMilea's shoulders, and said,“I'vehadbetter.”

Before Milea could say,“don't you dare”, Varggrabbedbothofhershouldersand tossed her off of thebalcony. The half-elfscreamed and cursed hisname as she fell from thebalconyandsplashedintothe

lake below. The door flewopen and guards beganpouring into the room, soVargquicklyhoppedoverthebalconyandpushedoffoftherailing with his foot into themurkywatersbelow.

Varg'sbodyhitthesurfaceof thewater at full forceandstung his skin like needles.Once he recovered from theinitial impact, he opened hiseyesunder the surface to see

Milea swimming to theopposite end.He emerged tocatch his breath just as thehalf-elf stood in the shallowsandwadedtotheshore.

Oncehefinallymadeit toshore, Varg approachedMilea, who was ringing thewater from her cloak, andsaid, “Well that went betterthanexpected.”

Milea responded bylanding a hard slap across

Varg'scheek.“What is wrong with

you?”sheyelled.“Youcouldhavekilledme!”

“Could have,” Vargpointedout.“Ifwehadstayedon thebalcony,wedefinitelywould have been killed orworse.”

Milea stared at him open-mouthed and responded,“You'realunatic!”

Varg shrugged. “I've been

calledworse.”“HowdidyouevenknowI

couldswim?”Mileasaid.Varg paused, then

admitted,“Ididn't.”It was a response that

earned yet another slap fromMilea.

“At least we escaped,”Vargremarked.

“Of all the insane stunts—”

Milea's statement was

interrupted by shouting thatcame from the other side oftheriver.Atleasthalfadozenguards gathered on theoppositebankand lookedforawaytocrosstheriver.Varglooked to them and grinned,thenhewalkedtotheedgeofthewaterandwavedhisarmstogettheirattention.

“What are you waitingfor?Crosstheriverandcomefetch us. We won't move,”

Vargtaunted.Milea jerked his arm and

said,“Whatareyoudoing?”“Trust me, Love,” Varg

said to herwith a coy smile,“theywon'tgetfar.”

Milea glared at him,presumably because of the“Love”commentagain.Vargpaid no heed to her, though,andcontinuedtowatchastheguardsbegantowadethroughtheknee-deepwater.

“Just a fewmore steps . ..”Vargmumbled.“There!”

Varg crouchednext to theedge of the water and, withhis hands hovering over theripplingsurface,heemittedamistfromhispalmsthatfrozethe water on impact. Thefrozen trail spread quicklytowards the approachingguards andwhen it hit them,their entire bodies becameblocks of ice. The guards in

fronthadnotimetoreact,andeven the guards whomanagedtoturnaroundcouldnot escape the frozen mistandwerefrozenaswell.

Varg turned to Milea tosee her mouth agape inastonishment at the sight ofthe frozen statues in themiddleoftheriver.

“What do you thing 'frostgiant'meant?”heasked.

“Forgive me if I didn't

expect that,”Milea saidwithashakeofherhead.“Sowhatdowedonow?”

Varg turned and began towalk away from the river.“Seeing that we are wantedfor murdering a noble, ourbest bet is to leave Fellenaltogether.However,there'sasecondoption.”

“Which is?” Milea askedasshetrailedbehindhim.

“Weworktogethertoclear

our names, all the whilerisking imprisonment ordeath,” Varg said.“Personally, I prefer thelatter.”

“Why is that?” Mileaasked.

“I'm much older than Ilook,Milea,”Vargexplained.“I've lived for centuries andI'll probably live for severalmore. I could just wait andreturn to Fellen when

everyone who knows aboutthis situation is dead and allmemory of me is forgotten.Any other hunter wouldsimply find jobs somewhereelse and go where the roadtakeshim,butIhate to leavea jobunfinished. I know thatLionel's killer is still a freeman, and I wish to see himpayforhiscrimepersonally.”

“That's all fine,Varg,”Milea remarked, “but

do you really think youshould get emotionallyinvolvedhere?”

That's when Varg onceagain remembered a timewhen he became attached tosomeone. It seemedharmlessenough until disaster struck.In the wake of tragedy, hisheart hardened and closeditself from theoutsideworld.Eversince,hevowedtoneverbecome emotional again,

despite his inner desire tohelpothers.

“Don't worry, I won't,”Varg assured, though hewasn't sure if it was reallyMilea he was trying toconvince.

“I suppose I'll go alongwith you since we're both inthis now. Where should wegofirst?”Mileaasked.

Varg removed the foldedpaper that was among

Lionel's possessions—despitebeing drenched, it wasthankfully still legible—andhanded it to Milea. “Haveyou ever seen this symbolbefore?”

Milea examined the wetpaper, then shook her headandanswered,“No,never.”

“I didn't think so, but itdidn't hurt to ask. I knowsomeone inBirhogwhomaybeable tohelpus,orat least

point us in the direction ofsomeone who can,” Vargexplained. He then took thepaper and draped it over hisshouldertodry.

“Birhog?” Milea said.“Whereisthat?”

“Itakeityoudon'tcometoFellen often? Birhog is avillage west of here,” Vargexplained.

“All right then,” Mileasaid. She seemed to hesitate,

but then she added, “Thankyou. You didn't have to stayand help me, but you did.You are certainly the mostnoble bounty hunter I haveevermet.”

“Nobility had nothing todowith it. I simply followedmy instincts to the truth,”Vargreplied.

“Nevertheless, I would bedeadifyouhadjustleftwhenyou had the chance. I owe

you my life,” Milea saidgratefully.

“Don't mention it,” Vargassured.

Dawn was slowlyapproachingbythetimeVargandMileahad long lost theirpursuers.Theydecidedtorestfor a few hours beforecontinuing to Birhog. Milealayherheadonabedsackhegaveher andbegan to takeanap, butVarg couldn't sleep.

Thoughhehadn'tsleptintwodays, his mind wrappedaround a memory that cametohimeverysooften,butonehe constantly tried to pushaway.Afterhoursof fightingit, he finally gave in andallowedthememorytoflow.

Varg wiped the sweat off

his brow after he finallylocked the plank into placefor the other men to begin

hammering. It was alreadymidday and he'd yet to evenhave a piece of bread.Hunger ravaged his emptybelly until the smell of freshloaves tempted him awayfromhiswork.That was the day he met

thegirlwithflamingredhairand sun-kissed skin thatmeltedVarg'sheartinstantly.SheapproachedhimfirstandVargcouldn'thelpbutnotice

thewayshelookedathim.Hewas used to people staringand gawking at him, sonormally he paid no mind.This girl was different; shedid not stare or give him astrange look, but she lookedat him like a normal humanbeing. He'd never felt so ateasebeforethatmoment.Thegirlgentlyhandedhim

a loaf of bread from herbasketandsaid,“Hungry?”

Vargeagerlyaccepted thehot bread and said, “Thankyou.”“My mother figured you

men could use something toeat after all your hardwork,so she baked you somebread,”thegirlsaid.Varg watched as the girl

handed a piece of bread toeachoftheworkersuntileachofthemweregreedilystuffingtheir mouths. None so much

asthankedherasshewalkedoff with a smile. He tried tosaysomething,oratleastaskhername,butshewalkedoutof his sight before his voicecouldreturn.

CHAPTER4

AFTER THE BRIEF REST,Varg and Milea pushedonward to Birhog. Theystayed in the woods off thetrail toavoiddetectionof thelaw.Thisof course left themopentobearsandwolves,buttheduoslew themwithease.

Varg became increasinglyimpressedbyMilea'scomfortin the wild, and it was clearthat she had had plenty oftrainingwithwoodedterrains.Milea'squickmovementsandspotonmarksmanshipprovedthat she let her guard downwhen facing Varg. Hewondered how differentlytheir fight in theclosedminewould have ended had sheonly known the extent of his

skill.Thesunwassettingbehind

the old buildings of Birhog,and Varg decided to giveMilea fair warning about thevillage's reputation. “Bewareof friendly strangers whilehere; they aren't just lookingforsmalltalk.”

“I'm always wary ofstrangers, which is why I'mstillalive,”Mileaassured.

“Good, thenyou'lldo fine

here,”Vargsaid.“I take it you're more

familiar thanyou'd like tobewithBirhog?”Mileamused.

“I didn't get mugged onmy first day, if that's whatyou're asking,”Varg said, asthey climbed the dirt trail upto the town border, “I firstcamehereabouttenyearsagoand let's just say I soonrealized the extent of thecriminal activity first hand. I

promise we won't be foundhere.”

“What makes you saythat?”Mileaasked.

“Forstarters,thisvillageisa known haven forcriminals,” Varg explained.“As a result, the locals keepto themselves and avoidsticking their noses in whereitcouldbecutoff.”

“In other words, no onewill even try to recognize

us?”Mileafinished.“Exactly,” Varg

concurred.“Thenhowareyousosure

this person you mentionedwilltellusanythingaboutthesymbol you found?” Mileapointedout.

“I've known him foryears,” Varg said. “He'llhelp.”

“If you say so,” Mileaanswered.

AsVargledMileathroughthe town, he told her storiesof his visits there. As hedescribed,Birhogwasatbesta town where aninexperienced traveler waslucky to leave with half hisbelongings.Criminalsusuallynever left town empty-handed. Locals knew betterthan to keep anything ofvalue in their homes andtravelers who knew of

Birhog'sreputationwerewiseenough to never show theirmoney when makingpurchases.

As they reached the mainstreet,thenightlifeofBirhogbegan to flourish. Drunkenslobs screamed obscenitiesand lay in alleys to sleep,rogues sat in the shadowswaiting for an easy target topick-pocket, and prostitutesluredmenintoshackstoearn

theirdailybread.“Birhog isdefinitelynota

place I'd raise a family,”Mileawhispered.

“This place isn't even atit's worst, I promise,” Vargreplied. Varg then motioneddown the street at a buildingwithasignoverthedoorthatread, “Moonlighter'sManor”,anameVargalwaysfoundtobe ironic, and said, “That'sourstop.”

“I don't believe this is agood time for drinking,Varg,”Mileascolded.

Vargstoppedandstaredather. “I have never heard thatkind of sentence spoken socarelesslyinallmylife.”

Milea rolled her eyes.“Not that I wouldn't mind adrink myself, but we're in abitofafix.”

“What better reason isthere to have a pint?” Varg

replied. “Besides, we're heretoseetheowner.”

“Very well,” Mileaconceded,“let'spresson.”

VargandMileawalked tothepubdoorandVargpushedit open. No sooner than hedid,heheardavoiceheknewalltoowellsay,“Varg!Goodtoseeyalad!”

The small-framed manbehind the counter waved ahand Varg's way and was

greetedinreturnbyawaveofVarg's hand. “Long time,Horatius.”

Horatiuswasathinmaninhis fifties, if Vargremembered correctly, whohad a slightly receding hairline and a rough beardforming on his face. Vargknewtheoldcodgerasoneofthe few honest people livinginBirhog.

Horatius stepped out from

behind the counter,approached Varg, and gavehim a giant bear hug. Thesight of this scraggly littleman embracing a large manlike Varg was a humoroussight,butVargneverminded.

“Long time indeed, myfriend,”HoratiusrepliedoncehefreedVarg.Hethenturnedto Milea and, with a coysmile, added, “Who is yourlovelyfriend?”

“This is Milea,” Varganswered. “Milea, this isHoratius. He ownsMoonlighter'sManor.”

“Pleasure to meet you,Sir,”Mileagreetedpolitely.

“Pleasure's all mine,”Horatius replied. Then heasked Varg, “You courtingher?”

Varg and Milea bothoffered a laugh, yet scowledat each other for doing so,

and then Varg answered,“No,we're currently partnersinaninvestigationofsorts.”

“Then you will not beoffended if I tell her what alovely little dove she is andhow if I were only twentyyearsyounger—”

“No offense at all,Horatius,” Varg interrupted,forhedidn'twant tohear therestofthatsentence,“butIdobelieve your wife may have

somethingtosayaboutit.”“The poor dear passed

early this year I'm afraid,” asullen Horatius responded.“She was sick since beforelastwinter.”

“Sorry to hear that.”Vargsaid.

“I am sure she's at peacenow,”Mileaoffered.

“Wellnow,enoughofmyproblems,”Horatius said.Hethen turned to Varg. “I

suppose it's the usual for yathen?”

“Ofcourse,”Vargreplied.“We also have questions ifyouhaveanswers.”

“I'm always full ofinformation,” Horatius saidwith a proud smile. “Comeand grab a pint, Varg. OfcoursethelovelyMileagetsadrinkonthehousetoo.”

“Onthehouse?Ohnosir,Icanpay,”Mileaobjected.

“Nonsense,” the old mansaidwithashakeofhishead.“Varg and I made a dealyears ago that won't bechangingtonight.TakeaseatandI'lltellyaallaboutit.”

Milea nodded and took aseat ononeof the stools andVargclaimedtheseatnexttohers just as the amiableHoratius resumed his postbehind the counter. Horatiusquickly grabbed two mugs

and filled them to the brimwithfreshmeadfroma largebarrel against the wall, thenpassed them on to Varg andMilea.

“Now then,” Horatiusbegan after the two of themfinishedtheirfirstsips.“Itallstarted about ten years ago.An infamous band of thievesbrokeintomypubandraidedthe place every week or so,sometimes multiple times a

week. They ransacked mypoor pub and stole all thedrinks,food,andmoneyIhadthat wasn't locked up, andthey threatened to kill mysonsanddoworsetomywifeif I tried to stop them. Thiswent on for an entire monthuntil Varg came to Birhogoneday.

“The bloke was justpassing by during one of theraids.Theytriedtorobhimof

everything he had, but Vargrefusedtocomply.Insteadhefought 'em all at once andkilledmost of them in just afew hits. I'd never seen abeastlikehimgoupagainstadozen armed men, but hedefied the odds and thosewho survived his attacks ranaway forever like bitcheswith tails between their legs!So then I said to Varg,'Because you saved

Moonlighter's Manor, I'mgoingtoofferyoufreedrinksforlife,'butVarginsistedthathe pay because as he said it,he would probably drink myplace dry if hewere allowedfreepints.”

“Probably? Horatius, I dobelieve I said 'definitely,'”Vargjested.

“Well, thatbeingthecase,Varg and I finally agreedupon one free pint per visit,

so here I am honoring thatagreement to both him andyou, Miss Milea,” Horatiusfinished.

Milea smiled. “You havemygratitudeforthedeliciousmead.”

“It's not often I get prettywomen to look at,much lessthe ones who know theirdrinks!” Horatius laughed.“Anyhow, didn't the two ofyou have something to ask

me?”“Oh, right,” Varg

answered.“MileaandIareinabitofa fixandweneed togather information to get usout.”

“Oh? What kind of fix?”Horatiusasked.

“We've been falselyaccused of a crime and weneed to clear our names,”Mileaanswered.

“Whatkindofcrime?”the

oldmanasked.Vargdownedabiggulpof

mead and answered,“Murder.”

Horatius howled withlaughter and slapped hishands on the counter, thenanswered, “You, Varg,accused of murder?Ridiculous!”

Varg suffered a smalllaugh, then continued,“Anyway, I found this scrap

of paper that somehow tiesinto this whole mess. Wewerewondering ifyoumightknowwhatitis.”

“Let'sseeit,lad,”Horatiussaid.

Varg removed the foldedparchment from his pocketandhelditfaceupinfrontofHoratius, who accepted thepaperandexaminedit.

Asecondlater,thecolorinthe old man's face blanched

and he urgently placed thepaper face down. His breathquickened and grew heavyand sweat formed on hisbrow. “What are you doingwaving this thing around?”He began to scan the roomnervously while he ignoredthe questioning stares fromVargandMilea.

“What'swrong,Horatius?”Mileaasked.

“Keepyourvoicesdown!”

Horatius whispered. Then heshoved the paper towardsVarg and added, “Put thataway before anyone sees,now!”

Varg returned the nowcrumpled scrap of paper tohis pocket and asked, “Whyareyousonervous,Horatius?Whatisthissymbol?”

“This mark represents thenastiest bunch of criminalsever to hit Fellen,” Horatius

whispered. “The criminalshere can only wish to havethe depravity and skill thisbunchhas.”

“Who are they?” Mileaasked.

“I don't know what theycallthemselves,andfranklyIdon'twant toknow.Anytimethey come around here, badthings happen soon after.Therewasamassmurderinasettlement north of here not

long ago, and we saw themwearing their usual blackhoods and whisperingamongst each other the nightbefore. We've got a sayinghere in Birhog, 'The quieteryou are, the more you'rehiding,'”Horatiusexplained.

“Do you knowwhen theywill be around again?” Vargasked.

Horatius gave him ajudgingglance,then,“Inever

met anyone who wanted totalk to them. Everyonealways stays out of theirbusiness. If these men areinvolved with the crimeyou've been framed for, thenyou'd better just get out ofFellenandnevercomeback.”

“And never taste yourmeadagain?”Vargmused.

“This is serious, Varg.Thesefolkarenottobetakenlightly,”Horatiuswarned.

Varg shook his head andleaned towards the old man.“Horatius, I understand thesepeople are bad news, butweneed to find them.Can't youhelpus,oldfriend?”

The old man sighed andbowedhishead.“Ifyouinsiston getting more involved inthis, then perhaps I can offeryou more information. Meetme back here tonight after Iclose the pub and I will tell

youeverythingIknow.Comeinthroughthebacksonooneseesyou.”

Varg leaned back andsmiled. “Thanks, Horatius. Iknew we could count onyou.”

The old man simplyresponded, “Aye.” He thencontinued his work and leftMileaandVargtofinishtheirdrinks.

Varg usually had moredrinks before retiring for thenight, but with the events inRivershire and Horatius'smysterious behavior, hefiguredhe should slowdownso he'd be alert enough tohearwhattheoldmanhadtosay.Hedownedhisfreedrinkwith ease, but only paid foronemore pint before he andMilea thanked Horatius oncemore and left Moonlighter's

Manor to check into thevillageinn.

The town inn was onedooroverfromthetavernandthe front door opened to asmall entryway where theinnkeeper stood at a counter.Varg offered the portly mantheir room fare for the night,atwhichpointheledthemupasmallsetofstairs,throughahallway, andup to awoodendoor. The innkeeper opened

the door and led Varg andMilea inside the cozy room.Withaquicksmileandnodtoboth of them, he then said,“Enjoyyourstay.”

“Thank you,” Varganswered.

When the innkeeperdeparted, Varg shut the doorbehindhim.He turned to seetwo inviting beds against theopposite wall and realizedjusthowtiredhewas.Heand

Milea set their equipment onthe side of the small roomand lay on each a bed for abriefrest.

“Isupposeweshouldkeepwatch for when Horatiusclosesthetavern,”Mileasaidwithasigh.

“Idon'tthinkIcanmove,”Varg mused. “I can'tremember the last time Ididn'tsleepoutside.”

“Me neither,” Milea

replied, “but I don't mindkeepingwatchfirstwhileyousleepalittle.”

“If you wait up, I willtoo,”Vargsaid.

“Asyouwish,”Mileasaid.Mileasatupandstationed

herselfattheedgeofthebed.Shereachedtothewindowinbetween them and opened acrack in the wooden frame.FortunatelythewindowfacedMoonlighter's Manor, which

made watching for Horatiusallthemoreconvenient.

“Howdoes it look?”Vargasked.

“Looks quiet, but I thinkthere are still people insidethetavern,”Mileasaid.

“Horatius will probablymake them leave soon sinceit'snearlyclosingtime,”Vargsaid. “For now, I supposethere's nothing else todobutrest.”

The silence that followedthickened the air as timepassed. Minutes felt likehours as Varg and Mileashifted in their seats inagonizing anticipation. Vargwanted to look in Milea'sdirection,butwasworriedshewould catch him and makethe situation more awkward.After several moreagonizinglyquietminutes,hedared himself to look

anyway.Varg happened to catch a

glance ofMilea's face as shecheckedoutside.TheglareofthemooncaughthereyesandVargnoticedforthefirsttimethat her eyes were the samecolor as the night sky. Hesoon found himself lookingfar longer than he intended,but he managed to breakaway before Milea met hisglance.

“Can I ask yousomething?” she suddenlysaid.

Varg looked back to herand successfully hid hisdiscomfort.“Whatisit?”

“Whenwe leftRivershire,youmentioned thatyouweremuch older than you looked.I've been thinking about itever since we left,” Mileaanswered.

“You want to know how

old I am?”Varg finishedherquestion.

Milea nodded. “I'mcurious.”

Vargsmiledandanswered,“Ican'ttellyouforsure,sinceIgaveupcountingaroundmythree hundredth year, but Ican tellyou that Iamaroundthree hundred and fifty yearsold.”

Mileaseemeddumbstruck.“How can you not know for

sure?”Varg shrugged, then

answered, “Keeping countgrew boring after a while. Iknow I've been a bountyhunter for more than threehundred years, and I was inmy late thirties when Istarted.”

“You've been a bountyhunterforoverthreehundredyears?” Milea asked inbewilderment. “No wonder

you'resolegendary.”Varg shrugged his

shoulders.“It'saliving,”The silence resumed, but

fortunately it was brokenquickly by the sound of thetaverndooropening.Aquickpeek outside confirmed thatHoratius was expelling thelast drunken patron from thetavern.

Varg's eyes darted toMilea.“It'stime.”

Theyquicklygrabbedtheirgearandcreptoutof theinn.Theonlysoundthatcouldbeheard on the dark street wasfrom the last drunksstumblinghomeforthenight.Varg tip-toed through thealleybetweentheinnandthetavern with Milea rightbehind him. He curved rightuntilhe found thebackdoor.When he was sure no onecould see them, he slowly

creakedthedooropen.Horatius stood in the

middleoftheroominsideandlooked somberly at the duowhen they entered. A lonecandlewaslitonthecounter,which cast a dim light thatilluminated Horatius'sfatiguedfeatures.

“You made it,” Horatiussaid, but something in histone gave Varg theimpression that he'd wished

theyhadn'tarrived.“Comeinand shut the door behindyou.”

“Horatius, what's goingon?”Vargasked.

“Shut the door,” the oldmanrepeated.

Varg waited for Milea toenter, then he did asinstructed. As soon as heclosedthedoor,Vargrealizedsomething was wrong whenHoratius bowed his head in

shame and said, “I wish youhadn'tdonethat.”

Before Varg couldquestion why the old manwould say such a thing, sixmen in hooded black armorcame out from behind thecounter,tables,andthestairs.One such mystery manquickly cut off their exit andlocked thedoorbehind them.He then leaned against thedoorandstareddaggersatthe

two of them as if he silentlydaredthemtotryandleave.

The rest of the hoodedthugs stepped into the dimlight and surroundedHoratius, all the while nevertaking their eyes off ofVargandMilea.

One of the men steppedtowardsthem,thensaid,“Wehear you've been looking forus.”

Varg'sbloodbegantoboil

as he realized what hadhappened. He stared atHoratius and growled, “Yousonofabitch...”

Horatius looked to theground and mumbled, “I'msorry,Varg.Wordgotaroundtown that you were lookingfor them, and they came tome and found outeverything.”

“Youmeanyou told themeverything,”Vargbarked.

“Enough of this,” theapparent ringleader spat.“You should have learnedfrom the Count's death whathappens when you interferewiththeSerpent'sbusiness.”

Varg remembered thename he'd seen on theparchment along with thesymbol. “Who is theSerpent?”

Withoutmissingabeat,allsix members of the

mysterious gang began tolaugh aloud. The ringleaderstepped forward and saidproudly, “The Serpent is ourgrand and glorious leader.You would do well to speakofhimwithrespect.”

“I don't respect thosewhodon'tdeserveit,”Vargspat.

“ThenyouwilljointheseaofdeadthattheSerpent'smenhave left in the wake of hisglory,” the gang member

said.VargdrewFrostFangand

charged for the gangmembers. Three of thecultists then left their othercomrades to deal with Vargwhile they attempted tooverpower Milea. Varg wasquick enough to dodge andblocktheirattacks,buthestillremained constantly vigilantsince there were multipleopponentstodealwith.

A sharp sting on his leftarmandasharp,eye-wateringodor nearly knocked hisconcentration off, but heignoreditinordertoblockanincoming attack. He felt theforceoftheattackthroughthehandle of his blade, whichcausedhisarmtostingagain,but he ignored it and thestrange smell in order todeliveracounterswing.

Theswingcausedhislarge

blade tomeet the ribsofoneof his attackers, which sentthe man tumbling andbleeding to the floor. Just ashemanagedtolandahitonasecond foe, his armbegan toburn again. Though he triedhis best to ignore it, his armwas in far too much pain tocontinue.His head felt dizzyand faint, but somehow hestill managed to defendagainst the third and final

assassin. It failed to last,however, and Varg could nolonger hold upFrost Fang todefend.

Throughhisfadingvision,Vargsawanotherbladecrosspathswiththeattacker.Mileawas Varg's savior, and in aswift countermove, thehalf-elf swung her blade andslashedthethroatof thefinalassassin.Throughhiscloudedvision,Varg could seeMilea

turn to himandgive a fallenexpression.

“Varg, your arm!” shecried.

Varg couldn't tell whatwas happening, butthankfully his daze endedwhen Milea pulled a smallgreen phial from her satcheland poured a cooling liquidonto his bare arm. His headfinally cleared and theburning suddenly stopped.

WhenVarglookedathisarm,he could see the remnants ofa burned gash that slowlycleared under the stream ofliquid that poured fromMilea's phial. Once thewoundwasbetter,shehandedthe phial to Varg and said,“Drinktherest,quickly.”

Varg complied withoutquestion, and as a result, hisstrengthsoonbegantoreturn.He stood up and handed the

empty bottle to his comrade,thensaid,“Whathappened?”

“Those assailants used ahighly toxic poison on theirblades, no doubt,” Mileaanswered.“Oneofthebladesmusthavemadecontactwithyour arm and poisoned you.Luckily, it didn't cut deepenough to do any severedamage.”

Varg shook his head toclearawaythelastbitoffog,

thensaid,“Thankyouforthepotion.Whatwasthatexactlywasit?”

“A very potent anti-venom. I've studied alchemyover the years, as it comesquite in handy in tightsituations like this,” thehalf-elfansweredproudly.

“Icanseethat,”Vargsaid.Thenhelookedaroundatthebloodbath that was onceknown as Moonlighter's

Manor and added, “For nowthough, we need to searchtheirbodiesforclues.”

“Fair enough,” Mileaconcurred.

The fallen assassins hadlittle on their bodies asidefrom their hooded uniformsand a few extra potions—Milea was sure to examinethe liquid, but she couldn'tname the type of poison itwas—but they still found

nothing to identify who theassassinswereaffiliatedwith.When Milea lifted one oftheirhoods,however,shewaspresented with an unpleasantsurprise.

“Varg, this one is just aboy,”shemuttered.

Varg joined her side andsilentlyexaminedtheboy.Hewas indeed young, for hisfeaturesbarelybegantoformthe angles of a man's and it

appearedthathisbodybarelyhad any musculature. Theyoung assassin hadn't evengrown a hint of a beard yet,and so Varg determined thathe was more than likely noolder than sixteen. A quicksearch of the other bodiesturned up four more youngmenwhonowlaydeadalongwiththeiradultcounterparts.

“We killed these boys,”Mileamutteredruefully.

“Milea,thisisn'tyourfault...”Vargassured.

“They were so young.Howcouldboys like thisgetinvolved in a gang?” Mileadreaded.

“It's terrible, but ithappens, Milea. I'd bet myaxe they were homeless andprobably orphaned, so theywere tempted into the gangjustso they'dhaveaplace togo and a meal to eat. It

wouldn'tbethefirsttimeI'veseen it,” Varg said. Then headded, “Don'tblameyourselffortheirdeaths.Youdidwhatyouhadtodo.Theyknewtherisksofwalkingintobattle.”

Milea shookherhead,butstill said, “You're right . . .holdonaminute.”

Milea stooped downbeside one of the dead menandpulledhiscollardowntoreveal a familiar symbol

tattooedinredonhisneck.The same haunting snake

that slithered around a handtauntedVargandstillgavenoclues to whom the symbolrepresented. Varg quicklyrechecked the bodies andfound the same symbol oneachofthem.Oneofthemenhad it inked on his arm,another on his back, and theother three had the mark ontheir shoulders. The half-

blood shook his head as hereplacedthebodyonthefloorandsaid,“UsuallywhenIseeagroupofindividualsbearingthe same tattoo, I see themformingagang.”

“Youthinkthesethugsareinsomekindofgang?”Mileapressed.

“They seem a bit tooorganized for somethingsmalltime,butitwouldseemthat they are. We had best

watchourbacksfromhereonend,”Vargreplied.

“And here I thought wealready were,” the half-elfremarked.

The conversation wasinterrupted by the sound ofmoaning.VargandMileahadbeensoinvolvedinthebattleand the aftermath that theyforgotallaboutHoratius.Theold man emerged timidlyfrom behind his counter and

gasped at the sight of thecarnage that was once histavern.

“Care to offer anexplanation?” Milea said tothelittleman.

Horatius simply looked tothe ground without saying aword.

“Horatius, you had betterstart talking,” Varg ordered.“Whoarethesemenandwhataretheyupto?”

“Varg, I can't,” Horatiusmuttered.

Varg slammed his fist onthecountermuchharderthanheintended,causingthelittlemantojump.“Younearlygetus killed, then you refuse totellusanything?”

“Ihaveafamilytoprotect!Those brutes are trouble,Varg. Considering all theother criminals and bruteswho come into town, for us

folk to be shaken by them,you know they aredangerous!”Horatiuscried.

“Then you need to tell useverything so we can stopthem,”Mileaordered.

“Just stay out of it,”Horatiuspleaded.

“Forgetit,Milea.Hewon'ttalk,” Varg said. He thengestured for the door with anodofhisheadandturnedtoleave.

As the two of themapproached the back door,Horatius said, “You two arethe most stubborn fools Ihave ever met, and I'vethoughtI'veseenitall.”

Varg turned around andsaid,“Saywhatyouwant,butI don't stop until a job isdone.”

Varg kicked the door andbroke the lock. He allowedMilea to step out of the pub

first into the approachingdaylight. Before he followedher, Varg turned to Horatiusand tossed a gold coin in hisdirection.

Horatius caught the coinandasked,“Whatisthis?”

Varg paused, staredblankly into Horatius's eyes,and muttered, “That was forthedrinkslastnight.”

TheoldmanneverbudgedasVargthrewthedoorclosed

behindhimandleftforever.Once on the edge of the

village, the strain of his oldfriend's betrayal took its tollon Varg. He wasn't about towell up with tears, but hismood became somber and ittookeverythinghehadnottopunch the nearest tree. Theonly thing that kept himgoingwasthehopeoffindingevidence at their next

destination.“Where next?” Milea

asked when they were clearout of Birhog and in theforestagain.

“Well,weknowthat thereare more of those men andthat Lionel apparently knewsome of their secrets, soperhapswe can findwhat heknew in his home inVirland,”Vargsuggested.

“Good thinking,” Milea

said.Varg could tell she was

still upset about killing theyoung men and, though hehated to admit it, he felt apang of guilt himself. Helookedatherwhilehewalkedforwardandsaid,“Iwantyoutoknow that it'sall right. It'snotasintodowhatyouhavetodotosurvive.”

“I know, Varg, but I stillcan't help but wish it could

havebeendifferentforthem,”Mileasaid.

“As do I,” Varg said. “Iwish everyonewas given thechance to choose a betterpath.”

“Whatever the case, westill need answers and it's asafe chance that we'll beattacked again before theend,”Mileasaid.

“Perhapswecanfindmoreanswers when we reach

Virland,”Vargsaid.“I hope you're right,”

Milea said. “This quest isbecomingmoredangerousbytheminute.”

“We'll be all right if westicktogether,”Vargsaid.

Milea nodded. “Agreed.I'm starting to like yourcompanyanyway.”

CHAPTER5

AFTER A SCENIC HIKESOUTHofBirhog,VargandMileawere out ofRivershireCounty, where CountGreenwood's men weresearching around everycorner. They had to travelonly in the wilderness to

avoiddetectionfromthelaw,but they also had to avoidrepercussion from themysterious organization ofassassinsiftheyhadanyhopeto survive. They stuck closetogetherandexchangedshiftsin themiddle of the night toassuretheybothrested.Aftersuch a tiring journey, it wasmore than apleasant sight tosee the tower of Virland'skeep come into view late in

theeveningonthethirdday.Evenwhenmilesfromthe

town, it was clear thatVirland's key aspect was itsdense, lush forests. Richgreens were painted acrossthe landscape in the form oftalltreesandthickbrush.Thetrees were often topped withvarious flowers and rosesoften grew effortlessly alongthebrushintownandaroundthe wall surrounding the

castle. Even the town bannerbore an emerald greenbackdrop to compliment thescenery it was lucky enoughtobeapartof.

Varg crouched behindsome brush“Everythingseems quiet, but I can't seethe keep very well fromhere,”Vargsaidashepeekedthroughasagebush.

“We should wait fornightfall to infiltrate the

keep,”Mileasaid.“I'm getting hungry

anyway. Want some jerky?”Vargoffered.

“Thanks,” Milea said andhungrilyacceptedthepieceofdriedmeat.

Varg ripped a piece ofmeat off with his back teethand said with a mouthful,“We need to scout the areabeforewegetinside.”

“That's my specialty,”

Milea said after sheswallowed her first bite. “I'llscout the area and let youknowwhatIfind.”

Aftershegulpeddowntherest of her jerky, Milea leftVargtoguardtheircamp.Hebegan to worry she'd beencaught when she hadn'treturned by sundown, but heheldconfidenceinthehalf-elfand knew she was all right.He heaved a sigh of relief

when Milea finally returnedafternightfall.

“Sorry, the guards areextremely vigilant,” Mileasaidasshewalkedupthehill.“They heard my footsteps,butfortunatelytheythoughtitwas just an animal. Thisdoesn'tmakeourmissionanyeasier,ofcourse.”

“Do you have any ideasfor how we could get pastthem?”Vargasked.

“While I was scoutingaround the wall outside thecastle and peeked over theedge, I noticed a door thatwas hidden behind somebrush in the garden area. Ithink that may be the bestoption, granted we canactually remain undetectedlong enough to get there,”Mileasuggested.

“Let's gowithyour plan,”Varg said. He turned to the

camp fire and began to kickdirt onto it, then added,“Anythingelse?”

“I heard some of theguards talking about theorders Lionel gave thembefore he left. He apparentlytold them to guard thetownspeoplewiththeirlives,”Mileaexplained.

Varg watched as the lastemberinthefirepitflickeredanddied, thenturnedbackto

Milea. “You think heexpected retaliation from theassassins,oreventheSerpenthimself?”

“Possibly, but there'ssomething else. The guardmentioned that Lionel hadn'tleft his study fordaysbeforeheleft.Ithinkthatmaybethebest place to look for clues,”Mileasaid.

Varg nodded, then said,“Thenthat'swherewe'lllook.

Let'sgo.”Varg and Milea crept

outside of town until theyarrived to a closer positionnear the castle. CastleVirland's walls were solidstone, butwere pale in colorandboreaslightlybluishhue.Itwasasmallcastle,moresothan the one in Rivershire,but appeared to becomfortableandsafe.Fromadistance, Varg could see

vinesgrowingalongthewallsof the castle, but it seemedthat no oneminded. It ratheradded to the charm this littlecountrycastleheldsowell.

Milea guided Varg to theareashespokeof,and itwasthen that Varg got a muchbetter view of the keep. Asolid, stone wall wrappedaround the property, whichwould obviously makeintruding all but impossible.

The wall was taller thanVarg, so he at least tooksolacethattheywouldn'thaveto crouch down to avoidbeingseenfromtheproperty,but it also prevented themfromseeinginsideaswell.

Vargstoodonhistoesandstill couldn't see anything, sohelookedtoMileaagainandasked, “Howdid you see thedooroverthiswall?”

“I climbed the tree over

there,” Milea said as shepointedafingertotheoldoaktreetoherright.

The tree's branchesreached over the top of thewall, granting easy accessinto the property, and theleaves were so dense that itmadetheperfecthidingplaceat night. Milea hopped ontothe tree and climbed up, atwhich point Varg followedandstalledjustbehindher.

The tree directlyoverlooked the garden, aprivateareaof thecastle thatput the rest of Virland'sforests to shame. Even withthe darkness that came withthe night, the greenery thatmade up the castle's gardenshimmered like emeraldsunderthemoonlight.Asmallstream traveled through theproperty and led to a smallpond,whichwas dottedwith

lilypadsandwhitepetals.Milea crouched onto the

nearest, sturdiest branch andpointed to a thick brushagainst the castle wall. “It'sright over there,” Mileawhisperedasshepointedtoasmall door at the foot of thecastlewall.

If Varg hadn't beenlookingforthedoor,heneverwouldhaveseenit.Thedoorwas built at the foot of a

small stairway leading fromthe ground level to a lowerlevelofthecastle.Achimneysituated on the wall outsideindicatedwhereanovenwas,so Varg could only assumethatthedoorledtoakitchen.Though they weren't veryclose, Varg could see nosigns of light or life in thewindowsanddetermined thattheroomwasempty.

“Doyouseeanyguards?”

Varg whispered to hiscounterpart.

“Not from here,” Mileasaid. “I'll drop first and tellyouwhenit'sclearforyou.”

Milea inched forward andhopped onto the ground. Shecrouched and hid behind abushandlookedaround,thengesturedforVargtoproceed.He dropped down, butmuchlouder than he intended.Thankfully he didn't attract

any attention, so he took theextra moment to quicklysurvey his surroundings. Hesaw no other way out of thegarden, so he removed arolled up piece of rope fromhis satchel and tossed it overthe branch they droppedfrom.

“Thisshouldallowaquickescape if necessary,” Vargexplained when he sawMilea'squestioningglare.

Thetwothendartedacrossthe lawn when they werecertainthattheguardsweren'tlooking and found the door.Milea tried the handle, butdiscovereditwaslocked.

“Allowme,”Vargoffered.He brought out his lockpickingtoolsandfiddledwiththe lock. After hearing theclick that assured him it wasopened,heslowlycreakedthedoor open in case someone

wasinside.Thekitchenwallswere stone and plain, muchlike the outside of the castle.Adoorontheoppositeendofthe room opened to acorridor,which in turn led tothe dining room. Anotherdoor across the roomopenedto the throne room, whichthankfully appeared to beempty. They still proceededwith caution just in case aloneguardstoodwatching,or

even if Lionel's family werestillawake.

Inthethronehall,afirepitin sat in the middle of thefloor, but the fire was nomore than lingering embers.Above the carved marblethrone sat a stained glasswindowthatallowedcolorfulmoonlight to paint theotherwise dark chamber. Aset of stairs sat to the left ofthe throne, which is where

Mileathengestured.“I'm willing to bet the

Count's private chambers areupstairs,” Milea whisperedfrombehindVarg.

Varg nodded and inchedforward to the stairs, thenclimbed to the upper level.He and Milea followed thewalkway until it led to adoorwayon thesamewallasthethrone.Heopenedacrackin the door, then opened it

completelywhenhefoundnoone waiting behind it. Thebountyhunterproceeded intothe corridor that opened toLionel's chambers.Though itstill keptupwith theCount'sapparent modest taste, themain chamber of theCount'sprivatechambershadanother,unlitfireplacewhereapairofpleasantchairsgreetedgueststotheCount.

Varg brushed aside the

pleasing atmosphere longenoughtolocateanotherdooropposite from where theyentered. He and Mileacrossed the room and wentthrough the door to find around room with a door oneither side. In the middle ofthe room, there was a largeplant arrangement with avarietyofstrangemushroomsandblossoms.

VargandMileasplitupto

checkthedoorsoneithersideof the room. The door Vargopenedledtoabedroomthatappeared to belong to ascholar. Hundreds of bookswere practically stacked tothe ceiling in stacks aroundthe bed, desk, andbookshelves. As Vargwondered who would havethe need to read so manybooks,heclosedthedoorandlooked back to his

counterpart as she emergedfromtheoppositeroom.

“Nothing in here,” Vargsaid. “Did you findanything?”

“Just an old bedroom. Idon'tthinkanyone'suseditinforever,”Mileaanswered.

Varglookedtohisleftandsaw another corridor acrossfromwhere they entered andsaid,“Let'scheckoverhere.”

“After you,” Milea

offered.Varg took the lead once

more and walked down theshort corridor. There werethreedoors at theendof thishall,onedirectlyattheendofthe corridor, and one oneitherside.Vargfirsttriedtheone on the right and foundanothersmallbedroom.Thenhe tried themiddle roomandfound a larger bedroom, nodoubt the master bed

chamber.ItwasthenthatVargtried

the last door, only there wasno light inside. “I can't see athinginhere.”

Milea peeked over hisshoulder.“LetmeseeifIcanfindalight.”

The half-elf felt along thewallwithherhandsuntil shegrabbedholdofsomethinginthe far corner. In less than aminute,adimlightsparkedto

lifebeforeherandsheheldafreshlylitcandleinonehandand a used flint rock in theother.

The dim candle lightrevealed Count Lerington'sstudy,aroomthatwasfullofbooks, scrolls, and trinketsthat were scattered in adisorderly fashion. It wasclear the Count was ascholarlyman,judgingbythewear and tear on the old

tomesandthewaytheywereplacedtothesideofhischairfor lateruse.A lonedesksaton the opposite end of theroom,whichwaslitteredwithscribbled parchment. Judgingby the state of things, it wasapparent that LionelLeringtonhadleftinahurry.

Varg rubbed his foreheadwith his fingertips andmuttered, “This mess doesn'tmakeourjobanyeasier.”

MileaplacedthecandleonLionel's desk, then movedasidearollofparchmentthatwas at risk of catching fire,thensaid,“Wehavetosearchthis study top to bottom forany evidence that points towhyhewasmurdered,solet'sgettoit.”

Varg nodded, then beganto search the top of the deskfor importantnotesorpaperswhile Milea examined the

nearest bookshelf. He foundnothing as he sifted throughthe parchment, so he startedto check thedrawers instead.Achingtobringanendtothesilence,Vargbegantospeak,“Inoticed that the restof thebed chambers in the castlehaven't been used in sometime.Lioneldoesn'tappeartohaveanyfamilyleft.”

“Perhaps,” Milea repliedasshereplacedabookonthe

shelf, “but they certainlyweren'tforgotten.Shepointedto the leftwallwherea largeportrait hung. The portraithad an older man—thoughhe'd only seen Lionel'sdecaying body, Vargrecognized this man as theCount in better days—seatedin a chair. A woman, nodoubthiswifejudgingbyherage, stood behind the chair.Two younger women who

appeared to be his daughtersstood on either side of thechair. One of the daughtersandthewifehadpalehairandeyes, but Varg noticed thatthe other daughter had darkhairandeyes,whichwasoddsince Lionel looked nothinglikehereither.

After examining thefamilyportrait,Vargallowedhis curiosity to interrupt hiscurrenttask.“Iwonderwhere

theyare?”“The daughters look old

enoughtobemarried,sotheyprobably live with husbandselsewhere. Since we didn'tfind a wife living in thecastle, it's a safe bet thatLionel was a widower,”Mileasuggested.

“Do you think hisdaughters may know moreaboutthegang?”Vargasked.

“I doubt Lionel would

have told them, since it onlywould have put their lives indanger,” Milea said. “We'llknow more once we findwhatwe'relookingfor.”

Varg closed the seconddrawer after finding nothingbutoldmaps—hetookoneofthe maps of Fellen just incase—and extra vials of inkandquills.Hecametothelastdrawer, however, and findthat it would not open. He

sifted through the papersagain to find a key, butcouldn't find one. Not toworry,hethought.Hesimplywhipped out his lockpickagainandtrieditonthelock,but he soon found that thelock was incredibly complexand quite impossible to openwithoutakey.

Vargreplacedhislockpickin his satchel in defeat, thenlookeduptoMileaandasked,

“Do you see a keyanywhere?”

“No, sorry,” Milea said.Shewalked towards thedeskagain and asked, “Somethingwrong?”

“Thebottomdrawerofthisdesk is locked tighter than aking's jewel vault,” Varganswered.

“Letmelook,”thehalf-elfsaid as she shifted throughany container, shelf, and

corner she could find. Vargdid the same on his side oftheroom,butneitherofthemcouldfindanythingthatevenresembledakey.

JustwhenVargwasaboutto search theother rooms,hespottedapeculiarspotontheframe of Lionel's familyportrait. A small section atthe bottom was discoloredcompared the the rest of theframe, and upon closer

inspection, Varg could see asmall latch in the carefullycarved wood. He gentlyfiddled with the small latchand soon opened a smallsecret compartment in theframe.Thecompartmentheldan old, iron key, and Varghadastronghunchitwastheonehewaslookingfor.

Varg turned back towardsthedeskandwithout lookingat Milea, he said, “I think I

foundit.”Mileareplacedthelidback

on the tack box she wassifting throughandsaid, “Ohgood.Let'shopeitworks.

Varg knelt before thedrawerandslowlypushedthekey into the hole as it ifwould disintegrate if nothandled properly. He turnedthe key to the left and uponhearing the click, heaved asigh of relief and opened the

drawer. He looked insideexpecting to find treasuresand terrible secrets only todiscover the drawer wasempty.

“What in theworld . . .?”Mileauttered.

“Why bother locking adrawer if nothing wasinside?”Vargsaid.

Milea examined thedrawerfurther,andthensaid,“Waitamoment.”

Mileagrabbedloweredthecandle to get a better lookinside the drawer. After aquick examination, sheseemed to have spottedsomething peculiar, so shereachedunderthedrawerandknocked. Then she used herotherhandtoreachinsidethedrawer.Withinaminute, shepulled the bottom of thedrawer up, revealing a secretcompartment.

Varg stared in awe asMilea propped the piece ofwood to the side of the deskand asked, “How did youknow?”

“I could see a tiny gapbetween the edge of thedrawer and the bottom, andwhen I knocked I could tellthat the wood was hollow.ThenIfeltaholeinthebackand pulled the false bottomoutwith my finger,” she

explained. “Now let's seewhatLionelwassodesperatetohide.”

From the secretcompartment,Mileapulledanold leatherbook.Sheopenedit to reveal messyhandwriting on crumpledpages. She ran her cautiousfingers over the illegible textandgentlyturnedthepagesasthough they were thousandsofyearsold.

“I think this is Lionel'sjournal,”shesaid.

Varg peeked at thewritings and couldn'tunderstand a word of it.“What use is a journal ifwecan't read the handwriting? Ithink Lionel mixed hiswriting and wine a bit toomuch.”

Milea stared at thedocumentandranherfingersoverthepagesandsaid,“This

isElvish,Varg.”“Elvish?” Varg asked in

disbelief,“Buthow—?”“I haven't the slightest

idea. Aside from me, therehasn't been a single elfoutside the Crystal Wood incenturies,” Milea said. “Asfar as the human realm isconcerned, Elvish is a deadlanguage.”

“What could be soimportant in that journal that

Lerington would write in anunreadable language to keepanyone from finding out?”Vargwondered.

“There isonlyoneway tofind out,” Milea answered.She began at the first pageand skimmed the text, thensaid, “I am not as fluent inElvish as I used to be, but Imaybeabletotranslatethis.”

She began to flip throughthe pages when Varg

suddenlystoppedher.“Lookhere,”Vargsaid,“a

page is missing.” He thenfished the old scrap of paperhe took from Lionel'spossessions and held up theleft side to the tear mark tocompare it. Despite havingbeensoaked,torn,andfolded,the paper was a perfectmatch.

Varg nodded andexchanged a glance with

Milea. “No doubt about it,thispapercamefromLionel'sjournal.”

“You're right, and lookhere.”Shethenpointedtotheopposite page where therewasatinysketchofamanina black hood in the cornerandsaid,“Lookfamiliar?”

“Just like the men whoattacked us in Birhog,”Vargsaid.

“This journal is exactly

what kind of evidence we'vebeenlookingfor,”Mileasaid.“Who knows what otherinformation we'll find in itspages?”

“Maybe now we can—”Varg stopped abruptly andbegantosnifftheair.

“Whatisit?”Mileaasked.“We need to leave,”Varg

answered.“What?Why?”“Now,” Varg said more

urgently.He grabbed Milea by her

free arm and urged hertowards thedoor, despite hermany questions and protests.She still carried the journaland Varg finally got herrunning through thedoor.Ofall his enhanced senses, hissmell was top notch. Vargknew danger when hesmelled it, and this time itcameintheformofsmoke.

VargallowedMileatoruninfrontofhim,soshe'dbeinlessdanger,andfollowedhertothestaircase.

“What the—who areyou?”

VargandMileastoppedintheir tracksand turned to seea guardmarching out of oneofthebedroomsbehindthem.The agitated guard drew hisswordandboldlypointeditattheintruders.

“I'm sorry, we were justleaving,” Varg said in ahurry.

The guard boldly inchedforward. “Don't even thinkabout running! You're underarrest for trespassing in theCount'scastle!”

Vargstoodhisground,buthurriedlysaid,“Look,thereisdanger nearby and you needtorunbeforeityougethurt.”

Before the guard could

argue, Lionel's study eruptedinadeafeninginfernobehindhim. The force of the blazesenttheshockedguardflyingforward and onto the floor.Varg turned and rushedtowards Milea to shield her,and he ended up falling ontop of her. Once the blastcalmed, Varg looked downand sawMilea was fine, butirked.

It was then that Varg

realized his hand was onMilea's breast. He jerked hishandbackand jumpedoffofherinahurry,tryingtostutteran apology. “I swear I didn'tmeanto...Imean,itdidfeelnice,but...”

Milea stood and quicklycomposed herself. “Nevermind that. We need to helpthatguard!”

Varg ran to the guard'sside, picked him up, and

flung him over his shoulder.He then trotted down thestairswithMileabehindhim.

“This way!” they heard amanyell.

“Go back through thegarden,”Mileaurged.

Varg did so, andfortunately there weren't anyguards in sight. Varg ranacross the courtyard withoutcaring thatanyonesawthem,andoncehemade it to some

brush near the outerwall, heset the guard down againstthe stone. The guard had afewminorburnsandwasoutcold, but was otherwiseunharmed.

“Thank Laelith for yoursense of smell,” Milea saidaftersheplaceasmallhealingpotionnexttotheguard.

“It's never failedme yet,”Vargsaidproudly.

“I can only assume that it

wasoneof theassassinswhodid that,” Milea said. “Thequestionis,how?”

“I smelled smoke comingfromthewindowarea,asifafuse had just been lit. Iassume they scaled thebuilding without the guardsnoticingandsettheexplosionto get rid of us,” Vargexplained.

“And destroy Lionel'sstudy,”Mileaoffered.

“Which means they knewabout Lionel's journal, or atleastknewhehadsomeformof evidence in his study,”Vargsaid.

“What's more, now thatthey're following us, we'llneed to cover our tracks,”Mileadreaded.

Varg nodded and scannedthe yard to make sure hecouldn'tseeanyassassinsthatcaused the blaze, but only

saw the fire from Lionel'sstudy spreading to the otherrooms of the castle. Theguards tried desperately tocontrol it, but despite theirefforts the fire engulfed theentire second floor. Vargturned back to Milea andsaid, “We'd better make abreak for it while they'redistracted.”

“You'reright,”Mileasaid.Oncetheyweresurethey'd

lefttheguardwherehecouldbefound,theyscaledthewallusing the rope Varg leftbehind and tumbled onto thedirt on the other side. Theyscrambledtotheirfeetbeforeanyone could investigate thenoise theymadeand ran intothenight,leavingnothingbutthecharredremainsofCountLerington's castle in theirwake.

Once they were clear of

thevillageandthekeep,theyslowed to a walk and Mileabegan to flip through thepagesofLionel'sjournal.

“Well, what next?” Vargasked.

“I think we should headsouth.Isawsomethinginthejournal about a gangstronghold near a villagecalledWildValley.”

Varg stopped inhis tracksand his expression dropped.

“WildValley?”“Yes,doyouknowit?”Afterabriefsilence,Varg

answered,“Iknowit.”“Doyourememberhowto

getthere?”“Not entirely, but I do

have a map I took fromLionel'sstudy,”Vargsaid.Heremoved the map from hispocketandunfoldedit.

“It's just past the borderbetween Virland and

Ironbarrow, in this forestregion,” Varg said as hepointedtoanareaonthemap.“That river runs through thevillage, so if we find theriver, we just follow itsoutheasttoWildValley.”

“Excellent,” Milea said.“Lucky for us, you've beenthere.”

“Of course,” Vargmuttered.

Vargtriedhisbesttoavoid

eyecontactwithher toavoidhaving to explain his suddenchangeinattitudeandwalkedaheadofheruntil theyfounda place to make camp. Theyset up their equipment andsnacked on bread beforegoing to sleep. Varg restedhis head on the cloth of hissleeping sack and tried torelieve the sense of dread hehad,buttonoavail.

Why, of all places in the

world, did he have to returntoWildValley?

Night had fallen over

Rivershire and Count EdricGreenwood paced in his bedchamber as he anxiouslyawaited news on the twofugitives who escapedRivershire. The Count knewhis actions that led to thissituation were rash, butLionel's discoveries could

haveleadbacktohim.Itwasunfortunate, but with hisfreedom and right to ruleRivershire on the line, Edrichad no choice but to kill hisoldfriend.Nowhehadheardthetwoupstartshetriedtosetup to take the fall not onlyevaded capture at everycorner,buthadlaunchedtheirown investigation into whyLionel was murdered in thefirstplace.

Edric felt a sudden chill,so he searched about for thesource of a draft. Hediscovered that the doors tohis balcony were open andletting in a light wind. Hehadn't left it open, but hedidn't have time to wonderabout it, so he simplyapproached the doors andshut them tight. He turnedaround again and nearlyfainted when he saw a man

he'd never seen beforestanding in front of hisfireplace.

With a gasp for air, Edricfaced the intruder and asked,“DidtheSerpentsendyou?”

Themanturnedawayfromthe fireplace and walkedforward. Now that the litcandlenexttotheCount'sbedshoneuponthestrangersface,Edric could see that he wasanassassinunliketherest.He

wasnotcladinblack,atleastnotentirely,buthadgrayandblue clothing covering hisdark, scarred skin and on hisbelt,heworeasilverandbluescimitar. His hair was paleblonde and his eyes were arich aquamarine.His pointedears indicated some kind ofElvishheritage.

“Hedid,”thestrangersaid.“YoumaycallmeTain.”

Tain removed a dagger

from his belt, which madeEdric take several steps backinpanic.

Tain simply stared anduttered, “Calm down. I amnotheretokillyou...yet.”

The Count boldly let hisguard down. “The Serpent isquite cross with me, so youwill have to forgive mysuspiciousnature.”

“'Cross' isn't quite theword I'm looking for,” Tain

said. He then began to twirlthe smallblade inhis fingersand added, “Although it is amuchnicerwordthanIwoulduse.”

“I take it thatapprehending the fugitiveshas been less thansuccessful?” Edric asked,makinghiswaytohischair.

“The ambush in Birhogproved to be no match forthem.Themenwesenttokill

them in Virland were unableto kill them as well,” Tainexplained.“What'smore,nowthey've figured out we'retracking them. We followedtheirtrailtothewest,buttheystarted covering their tracks,so we've lost them for thetimebeing.”

Edric slumped into hischair in defeat and said, “Ohdear.”

Tain started twirling his

daggeragain, thensaid,“Notto worry, for we may knowwhere they are going.” TheCount gave Tain aquestioninglook,towhichheanswered, “There is a trail atthe border of Ironbarrowsoutheastoftheirlastpositionthat is covered in rocks andcanyons.Ibelievetheywouldheadtherenextsotheywon'tleave any tracks. You knowas well as anyone that they

cannot leave Fellen with abounty on their heads, sincethere are wanted posters forthem at every border. Theironly option is to look foranswers to clear their names.Ironbarrow is the onlyterritory they could head tonext.”

“Lionel has family inIronbarrow,” Greenwoodmuttered.

“Not only that, but we

have a stronghold near theborder, so if Lerington hadsomething in his study aboutthat, then that's probablywhere they are going,” Tainsaid. “The Serpent will besuretheyaregreetedproperlywhentheyarrive.”

“TheSerpentseemsratherconfident for someone whorarely shows his face toanyone,”Edricremarked.

“He's a busy man. When

hehasn'tthetimetodealwithundesirables, he hires menlikemetodoit,”Tainsaid.

“Undesirables?”Edricshotup fromhis chair. “Youdaretosneakintomyhomelikeacommon thief and speak tome in the mostcondescending tone, eventhough I outclass you bymore than you wish youcouldachieve.Thenyouhavethenerve togloataboutyour

employer when he hasn't thegalltofacethemanwhogavehim the clearance he neededto search for the item heseekshimself!Ifitweren'tforthemoney I supplyhimwithtokeepmyenemiesatbay,hewouldn'thavehadthemoneyto hire you, so don't forgetyourplace.”

“Ifitweren'tforyourlittleepisode with Lerington, theSerpent's organization

wouldn't be compromised,”Tainremarked.

“I had no choice! Lionelwas about to take hisevidence to the King. If theKing were to take theaccusations seriously andbegin an investigation, itwould only be a matter oftime before my involvementwasbrought to light.Perhapsthe Serpent should avoidhiring rogues outside of his

organization who can leaksuchsecrets,”Edricsaid.

“Don't blame me forLerington's inability to letthings go,” Tain said with aglare.

The Count would hearnoneofthemerc'sarguments.“You hired brutes are all thesame. You make tough talkwhile you have no action toshowfor it.Noneofyoucanbe trusted, and I certainly

hope the Serpent has a planforwhenyoufailhim.”

Greenwood expected Tainto react violently or at thevery least threaten him, butinstead the strange mansimply returned his knife tohis belt and approached thebalcony. With his back stillturned,Tainsaid,“Iwillbeintouch,Count,butIwillleaveyouwith thesepartingwords. . .” Tain turned to face the

Count and showed him thetrue storm behind his sea-coloredeyes.“Ifyouquestionmy skills again, you willregretit.”

With that, Tain's bodyevaporated into a fine mistand slid through the crack inthe door pane. Greenwoodstood frozen in place for abriefmoment,thencomposedhimself and approached thebalcony.Whenheopenedthe

doors and looked down, hesaw Tain standing on thesurface of the water, quiteproud that he'd just put thenobleinhisplace.

CHAPTER6

THREE DAYS AFTERLEAVING the flaming ruinsofthecastleinVirland,Vargand Milea came across arockyterrainwhichaccordingto Lerington's map, wascalled North Iron Pass. ThePasswas a vast territory that

took almost two days tocross. Fortunately the rockypath would prevent theirtracks from being found, butthey didn't dare set a campfire in case they were stillbeing followed. Once theywere on the grass plains ofIronbarrow,thecountyeastofVirland, another half daywalk southeast took them totheforestregiononthemap.

“It should be another two

dayhiketoWildValleyfromhere,”Vargsaid.“Theeasiestroute would be to head eastuntil we find the river, thenfollow the river southeast allthewaytothevillage.”

Milea trotted up toVarg'sside and as she walkedalongside him, she asked, “Ihavebeenwondering,why isthe village called 'WildValley?'”

Varg exchanged a glance

with her, then faced the pathagain and answered, “Thevillage has thousands ofwildflowers growingwherever man-madestructures haven't obstructedthem. If it's how I rememberit, the flowersgrowall alongthe valley wall and evenseveral miles outside of thevillage.We'llknowwhenweare getting close when westarttoseethem.”

“It sounds beautiful,”Mileaoffered.

By the day's end, theyfinallyreachedtheriverVargtoldMileaabout.Theysetupcamp next to the bank anddared to set a fire, since thecanopyoftreeswouldmakeitfarmoredifficult to spotonefromafar,andspentthenightby the river. When the lightof dawn reached the forest,they set off again and

followedtheriversouth,theneast until they saw wildflowers bloomingeverywhere.

The flowers decorated thepath with colors unlike anyMilea had seen. Even whenshelivedwiththeelves,she'dnever seen such a variety ofrich shades and lovelyaromas.Theflowersbreathedthe smell of life into the air,and it made the atmosphere

allthemoreinviting.“There are so many of

them,” Milea said withdelight.

“There are more near thevillage,”Vargsaid.

Milea couldn't help butnotice Varg still seemeddistant despite the pleasingview. It seemed the closertheycametoWildValley,themore sullen his moodbecame.Mileawanted toask

himwhatupsethimso,butinherexperience, itwasbest towait for him to want to tellherinsteadofforcingitoutofhim.

Milea decided to helpVarg occupy his thoughts.“We're almost out of food,wouldyouliketosetupcampandhelpmehunt?”

Varg nodded, so Mileaeagerlyhelpedhimputa firetogether and set up their

supplies.Whenthetentswerepitchedandthefirewasreadyto be lit, they gathered theirhunting bows and venturedfurther into the forest to findgame. They later returnedfromhuntingwithawildstagslumped over Varg'sshoulder, which seemed toputhiminabettermood.

On the return walk, Vargeven began to makeconversation. “When I first

left the Tundra, I took workon a merchant ship. There Imet the captain, old Dolan,andhiscrew.Thecrewdidn'tcare for me much initially,but Dolan took me in andbrought me up for the nexttwoyears.Hetaughtmehowto fight, how to work hard,and how to be a man. Isuppose I was lucky enoughtofindsomeonewillingtobeafatherfiguretome.”

“You're right. Noteveryone is so lucky,”Mileasaid. She then took anothersip from her canteen andadded, “I bet working on amerchant ship was aninterestinglife.”

Varg sighed. “Itwas untilthedayourshipwasattackedbypirates.Oncetheydisabledour ship with catapults, theyhopped on board and tookeveryone captive. They

emptied the ship of allvaluables and then thebastards slaughtered everyman on the ship, includingDolan.Ifought,butIwasstillno match for all of them atonce,soIendedupbeingcastoverboard. They left me todie in the frozen waterfloating on some debris.Fortunately for my jotunblood, the cold didn't phaseme. Iwashedashore starving

and nearly dead, but Isurvived.”

Milea shook her head.“Howterrible...”

Varg paused and stared atthegroundashewalked,thenhe muttered, “I've hadworse.”

When they returned to thecamp,Vargskinned thebuckandslappedthemeatontothepithebuilt.Oncethefirewasniceandhot,themeatsizzled

and cooked by the time thesunset.Mileawenttothebagto gather the rest of theirbread, but discovered onlycrumbs.

ShequicklyturnedtoVargand held up the empty sack.“Ourbreadisgone.”

Vargwalkedtohersidetoinvestigate.“Maybeitwasananimal?”

Milea shook her head. “Idon't think so. There aren't

anyripsorclawmarksinthefabric,andIampositiveItiedaknothere.”

“Then it looks like wehaveathief,”Vargsaid.

“They didn't steal oursupplies,soIthinkitwasjustsomeone who needed food.Theywere probably lost andstarving,”Mileareasoned.

“Maybe, but we'd betterkeep a good eye on oursupplies tonight,” Varg said

ashesetapieceofmeatonawoodenplateandhandedittoher.

Milea accepted the meatand began to scarf it downwith no attempt at grace, butVarg didn't seem to care.After they were bothsatisfied,Varg andMilea satby the fire and rested for theevening.

The following morning,Varg and Milea packed the

rest of their belongings andtraveled southeast along theriver. As Varg had said, thewild flower patches grewmore dense the closer theycametothevillage.Richhuesof red, blue, and yellowpainted the landscape anddefined its beauty.When theland began to dip into thevalley, Milea saw the mostbeautiful sight she'd everwitnessed.

ThevillageofWildValleylay theground for the tallest,brightest wild flowers Mileahad ever seen, even in theElvish forests of the CrystalWood. The flowers grew indefiancearoundthewoodandstone structures that tried invain to stunt their growth.Flowers grew everywhereexcept on the gravel path;even some of the buildingshadvines andbrushgrowing

onthem.Livestock and cattle were

tended to in thewest part ofthe village, and severalvillagers set up small shopsalongtheoutskirtsoftowntoensure that travelers wouldnever leave without apurchase. The river alsodipped into the valley andformed a smallwaterfall andcontinued the stream throughthe valley, then outside a

trench thatwas built off intothe distance into the valleywall on the side oppositewhereMileaandVarg stood.Shewonderedwheretheriverled, but she put the thoughtasideandcontinueddownthegravel path leading into thevillagewithVargbehindher.

“Wild Valley truly isbeautiful,”Mileasaid.

“You should see it at thepeak of Spring,” Varg

commented.Milea paused and

examined his demeanor. “Iseverything all right? You'vebeenveryquiet sincewe leftVirland.”

“I'm fine,” Varg said, butMileacouldtellhewaslying.

“Doyouwantme towalkwithyou?”Mileaasked.

“I would rather be alonefor a while, if you don'tmind,”Varganswered.

Milea sighed, butconceded. “All right, I'll stayoutofyourway.”

Varg turned his head toface the ground. “Thankyou.”

Varg walked awaytowardstheotheredgeof thevillage, butMilea decided toventure towards the amazingaroma she smelled. Thebaker's shop was the culprit,so Milea's first stop was to

satisfy her hunger. Shearrived just in time to catchsome bread fresh from theoven. She took a bite fromonerollassheemergedfromthe tinybuildingandhad therest stuffed into a bag. Hernextstopwastoseethefarmsandwatermill,thentorestockon supplies at the merchantstands.

With every stop, Mileawas sure to keep a watchful

eye for any signs of ganginfluence.Shedidn'tdareaskdirectly in case any of thevillagerswere in leaguewiththegang,fortheydidn'tneedanother incident like the onein Birhog. She took note ofbody language as she madelight conversation with thelocals, but no one in WildValley seemed visiblynervousoronedge.

Milea's next destination

was the mill on the easternendof thevillage.Shedidn'tseeanyworkers,butassumedtheywereonbreak. Itwasn'tuntil she heard a deafeningscream that she thoughtanything was out of theordinary.

Milea straightened up andpreparedfortheworst.Withahandonthehiltofherblade,she ran around the mill tofind a scuffle erupting.Upon

further investigation, shenoticed that there were threemen, presumably the millworkers, beating and kickinga fourth person who waslyingontheground.If ithadbeen a gang member, Mileawould have been relieved.The person who withstood abeating from the millworkers, however, was achild.

“Wehavehaditwithyour

thievery,” one of the mensaid.

Mileawasneveronetogetangryeasily,butthesightshewitnessedwasenoughtoturnevenherintoaraginglunatic.She marched up to the menand yelled, “What in thenameofLaelithdoyouthinkyou'redoing?”

The three men stopped intheir tracks and turned tostare at her, daring her to

speak again. The child theywere kicking lay limp, butbreathingon theground.Thechildcurledupdefensivelyina ball in order to shieldherselffromfurtherhits.

“Back off, woman,” saidthe third man. “This doesn'tconcernyou.”

“You're right, it doesn'tconcern me,” Milea said.“Three grownmen beating adefenseless child absolutely

enrages me. You have noright!”

“We have every right,”piped the first man. “Shestealsfrommymillandhomealmosteveryday.”

“Your solution to beat adefenseless child is no betterthan thievery,” Milea said.“Be aman anddealwith theproblemwithoutyourfists.”

The miller scoffed andcharged for Milea with his

fistsdrawn.“Sincewhendoesawomanhavearighthowtotellmehowtobeaman?”

Milea stood her groundand readied herself againstthechargingmiller.Whenhewas within close range, sheblockedhispuncheswithherforearms and countered withherownswing,whichlandedright in the middle of hisnose. She felt the instantsatisfaction of crunching

underherknucklesandbloodgushing out of the miller'snostrils. Themiller cried outin pain and stumbledbackwardsasheprotectedhisbrokennosefromfurtherhits.

Satisfied, Mileaapproached the dizzy millerand looked him right in theeye. “When she's more of amanthanyouare.”

Milea walked past themillerandhistwoworkers—

neitherevendaredtostopher—andkneltbesidethegirl.Inan act of revenge, the millertried to charge at her again,buthisfriendsstoppedhim.

“She ain't worth thetrouble,” one of them said.“Let'sjustgetbacktowork.”

The threemenwalked offindefeat asMilea turnedherattention to the girl whopickedherselfuptoherhandsand knees. Clad in rags that

were far to big for her, thedirtygirllookedatMileawithdarkeyesanddidn'tshowtheslightest hint of weakness.Her bare feet were nearlyblackandsheappeared tobecold,buttriedinvaintohideit. Milea had no doubt thispoor girl was homeless andobviouslystarving.

Milea examined the girl'sface, then said, “How odd, Icouldhavesworntheyhityou

in the face. You don't evenhaveabruise.”

The girl stumbled to herfeet and kept her guard up.“Well you're wrong. Theymissedmyface.”

Milea straightened up andcrossed her arms. “I juststopped three men fromnearly beating you to death,so the least you could do isshowalittlegratitude.”

The girl looked away, but

finally muttered, “Thankyou.”

Milea nodded, then stoodup once the girl relaxed.“Nowwouldyoumindtellingmeyourname?”

The girl studied her face,thenanswered,“It'sErril.”

“Erril,didyou really stealfrom those men?” Mileaasked.

“I just took a little food,”Erril said. “It's not like those

pigsdon'thaveenough.”“Whydon'tyoujustask?”

Mileasuggested.Erril scoffed. “You don't

think I've tried? The greedypeopleofthisvillagecan'tbebotheredbyastarvingchild.”

“Still, you could get intotrouble like that again and Iwon't be around to help youagain,”Mileawarned.

“You think that's the firsttime I was beaten for

stealing?” Erril asked. “I'vebeen stealing from thisvillage for two years. I getcaught,beaten,andleftinthedirt,butIalwayshealupandstart again. When I am notstealing here, I steal fromtravelersinthewoods.”

Milea came to arealization.“Soyou'retheonewho took our bread lastnight.”

“That was your camp?”

Errilasked.Milea nodded. “You

know, you could have justasked.Wewould have givenyoufood.”

“I've never met a travelerwhowasthathospitable,soIdon't exactly trust anyone,”Errilsaid.

“Whereareyourparents?”Milea asked. “Surely theywouldn'twantyoutolivethisway.”

“I don't have any,” Errilspat.

“Oh . . . I'msorry,”Mileareturned.

“Don'tgivemeyourpity,”Erril retorted. “I ran awayfromanorphanage twoyearsago and started living in thewoods. I hoped tobeofferedat least a small meal and aplace to sleep, but none ofthese selfish bastards wantedaworthlesslittlewaifaround.

IhadtostartstealingthelittlefoodIcouldgetmyhandsonjusttostayalive.”

Mileahadno response forthe girl. She could notimagine the horrible life thispoorgirllived,andsheknewshe alone had to dosomething to help. Mileaproducedtwoloavesofbreadfrom her bag and handedthem to Erril. “Here, thisshould last a fewdays.What

elsedoyouneed?”Erril lookedas thoughshe

wanted to argue, but insteadshe lowered her head inshame and muttered, “Ablanket.”

“Wait here,” Milea saidgently, and then left Erril toreturn to town. She laterreturned to find the orphangirleatingapieceofbreadasifitwerepreciousgold.

Milea approached the

starvinggirlandgentlyrestedthe new supplies next to her.“Ihavehereablanket,shoes,and a knife for hunting anddefense.Nowyouwon'tneedtostealyourfood.”

“I'veneverhuntedbefore,”Erril said after a gulp ofbread.

“I can give you a quicklesson,” Milea offered. Thehalf-elf knelt next to the girland brandished the knife.

After showing her a fewquick slashing moves, shethen said, “You will need tostart small, like with rabbitsand foxes. A deer or an elkwouldbetoobigforsomeoneof your size to handle, butwith enough practice youcouldtakethemdownfromadistancewith abow.Be sureto skin the animals andcollecttheirpeltstoo.”

“Why would I need the

fur?”Errilasked.“Once you skin the pelts,

you can give them to thevillagerstomakeupforwhatyou stole, then after the debtisrepaidyoucansellthepeltsor make clothing out ofthem,”Mileasaid.

“ThanksMilea,”Errilsaid.“Youmust know a lot aboutthis.Howlonghaveyoubeenahunter?”Longer than you can

imagine, Milea thought.“Takecare,Erril.”

Asthegirldartedbackforthe woods with her newsupplies and fresh food,Mileadecidedtoreturntothevillage and head to the inn.Assherounded thecornerofthe mill, a flash of whitecaughthereye.Shelookedinthat direction and saw that itwas Varg facing away fromherandstandingontheother

side of a brush patch alongthe outskirts of the village.She knew she'd promised tostay out of his way, but hercuriosity got the best of her.She tip-toed behind him anddid her best to leave himundisturbed.

Milea could see thatVarglooked down at something,but the brush hid the objectfrom view. As she camecloser, she saw stone statues

inthesmallyard,andbeneaththem lie several stone slabs.The dreadful sight of the oldgraveyard made her wonderwhy he chose to visit thissolemnpartofWildValley.

Varg stood in reveredsilence at the foot of theoneoftheoldestheadstonesintheyard. He produced a handfulof wildflowers and placedthem on the grave. As heknelt before the decrepit

stone, Milea quietlyapproached him from behindand tried to read thegravestone. Though thecarvedletterswerewornwithage, she was able to makethemout.Itread:

HereLiesTreasa

Evenindeath,yourlovewillstaywithusforever.

Before Milea could stop

herself, she suddenly asked,“WhoisTreasa?”

Varg bowed his head andtook a deep breath. “Awoman I knew a long timeago.”

Milea tried to place herhand onVarg's shoulder, butbefore she touched him, hestoodup.Hedidnotfaceher,butquietlyresponded,“Ifyoudon't mind, I'd like a fewmoremomentstomyself.”

“Of course,” Milearesponded bashfully. “I'll gocheckintotheinn.”

Varg then turned towardstheentranceofthegraveyard,stillwithoutfacingMilea,andwalkedintothewoods.MileawasunsurewhyVargrefusedtofaceher,butonelookuponthegrave suggesteda theory.Milea examined the flowersand saw what looked like atearstainononeofthepetals.

Vargdebatedtohimselfon

whetherornottoturnaroundand tell Milea the truth, buthefinallysettledonspendingtime to collect his thoughtsfirst. His chest felt emptywhen he thought of Treasa,and no amount ofwomen ormeadcouldmaskthepain.

Varg kept a slow andsteady pace as he passedseveral trees and came to a

dense brush. By the time hefound a clearing, his chesthurt even more because ofwhat he saw. A beautifulclearingsurroundedbyawallof brush and trees, hiddenfrom the world, lay beforehim. The small pond nearbywas surrounded by thethickest patch ofwildflowersinthevalley.Theirbrightandexuberant colorbroughtbackVarg's most beautiful

memory, but also his mostpainful.

Heclosedhismoist,silvereyesandallowedthememorytoovertakehim...

The night was quiet and

the full moon shined itsbrilliance on Wild Valley.Varg crept up to the side ofTreasa'shouseandscaledthewalluptoherwindow,allthewhile trying not to wake her

sleeping parents. She waswaiting just inside with awarm smile and open arms.Whenhereachedthetop,sheopened the window and methimwithakiss.When Varg removed his

trembling lips from hers, hewhispered,“Areyousureyouwanttodothis?”“I am,” she assured him.

WhenVargtriedtoclimbintothewindow,however,sheput

a hand on his chest andadded,“Butwemustn't do ithere. My mother and fathercould hear, and I want nointerruptions.”“Where did you have in

mindthen?”“Follow me, I know the

perfect place,” Treasa saidwithahighspirit.Varg allowed Treasa to

climb onto his back, then heclimbed down from her

windowherherarmsaroundhisshoulders.Oncetheywereonthegroundandawayfromthe village, she gently pulledhim along by his handthrough the brush a shortways outside of Wild Valley.Her flaming red hair andwhite shift blew in the nightbreeze, all the while Vargeagerlyawaited toseewhereshewasleadinghim.They came to a beautiful

moonlit clearing. A smallwaterfall trickledintoapondthatwasjeweledbybloomingbuds. Beside the pond, ablanket layspreadoutonthegrass. The tree canopyopened to allow themoonlight to flood the smallclearing, nearly bringingtearstoVarg'seyes.“The flowers here are the

mostbeautifulinWildValley.WhenIdecidedtogivemyself

to you, I could think of noother place to do it,”Treasawhispered.His love approached the

blanket and took a deepbreath. From there, shepulled her shift over herhead. The moonlightilluminated her pale, barefleshas sheallowed the shifttofallinthegrass.Vargtorehis eyes from the forbiddensight only momentarily to

removehisownclothing.Hisface flushed as he dared toapproach her. With weakarms he held her and kissedher quaking lips. He gentlylayherdownontotheblanketandreliedonlyonhisinstincttoguidehimthroughthebestnightofhislife.

CHAPTER7

VARG MET MILEA ATTHE INN just as she wasgettingreadyforbed.Neithersaid much as he walked in,and he preferred to keep itthat way for the time being.He was thankful that Milearespected his wishes and

didn't pry, but deep down hewished she would saysomething.

“Everythingallright?”shefinallyasked.

“Just thinking,” Varganswered.

“If you need to talk, justletmeknow,”Mileasaid.

“Iappreciatetheoffer,butI'mfine,”Vargassured.

In an apparent effort toease the uncomfortable

silence, Milea changed thesubject. “I've been checkingaroundthevillageallday,butso far I haven't found anyevidence of the gang'sactivity.”

Varg conceded to thechange in topic. “We knowtheyuse fear andviolence tokeeppeoplequiet about theirpresence—as we wereunfortunate to discover withHoratius—so anyone could

know anything about whatthey are up to. The fact thatwehavealmostnothingtogoonsaveforaforeignjournal,an odd symbol, and crypticmessagedoeslittletoeasemymind.”

“For starters, we need tofind the stronghold,” Mileasaid, “but as far as I can tellthe journal doesn't give anexactlocation.”

“Then how are we going

to find it?” Varg wonderedaloud.

The conversation wasabruptlyinterruptedbyahighshriek that echoed fromoutside.VargandMileabothjumped and rushed to thewindow to investigate.Outside, they could seeseveral villagers rushingaroundwith torches trying tofindwhoeverscreamed.

Varg darted from the

windowtothedoorandsaid,“Let'sgo.”

He waited for Milea tocollect her equipment, andthentheybothrushedoutsideintothecommotion.Themenof the village went door todoortofindthesourceofthescream while the womenclungtotheirchildrenandranbackinside.

“It came from the woodstothenorth,”onemansaid.

A group began to marchtowards thewoodswith theirhounds and makeshiftweapons ready. Varg andMilea trailed behind thegroup to offer assistance ifnecessary. When the groupreachedtheedgeoftheforest,Varg heard one man shout,“Hold on, I've found adagger.”

The color immediatelydrained from Milea's face.

“No...”Withoutwarning the half-

elf rushed forward into thecrowd. Varg sensedsomething was wrong, so hequickly followed as shenudgedthemenasideonebyone.When she arrived to thesiteof thedagger,sheletoutagasp.

“Erril!”Mileacried.“Who's Erril?” Varg

asked.

Milea ignored him, butinstead looked to the crowdwith a storm brewing in hereyes. “Which one of youcowardshurther?”

The men looked at eachother confused, and Vargbrokethesilence.

“Milea, what are youtalkingabout?”heasked.

“I gave this dagger to agirl earlier today to protectherself,” Milea explained.

She then gestured to a smallgroup of men, “A girl whothese three were beatingsenseless before Iintervened.”

Oneofthemenwhohadabadlybrokennose—Varghada strong hunch that his fierycounterpartwas the culprit—stepped forward and spat,“She'snothingbutanogoodthief. This village will bebetteroffwithouther.”

“She's a child!” Mileashouted.

The men would hear nomore of her protests andsimply walk off to return totheir homes. Milea calmedherself, then turned back toVarg.

“We don't need themanyway,” Varg assured. “Letmesee if Icanfinda trail tofollow.”He thencrouched tothegroundandexamined the

grass. There seemed to havebeenascuffle,judgingbythelevel of disturbed soil, andtwo sets of footprints lednorthintotheforest.“Hereitis.Followme.”

The half moon was outand lit the path for them asthey ventured north towardsthe forest.Varg followed thetrail of disturbed grass andbrush while Milea trailedbehind with her bow ready.

As they searched,Milea toldVarg the story of how Errilwasanorphanwho regularlystole food and othernecessitiesfromthevillage.

“Shewasalsotheonewhostole our food,” Mileaexplained.

“You think some of thevillage men may have donethis?”Vargasked.

“Ididatfirst,butweonlyfound tracks leading away

fromthevillage,”Mileasaid.“I just hope it wasn't the

gangmembers,”Vargsaid.“Idread to thinkofwhat they'ddotoher.”

Milea appeared visiblydisturbedbythisthought,andanswered, “Regardless, wehave to help her. She cannothopetodefendherselfagainstthem.”

Varg nodded. “Don'tworry, I'm an excellent

tracker.I'llfindher.”Mileadidn'tseemanyless

concerned, but she noddedanyway.

Varg kept his eyes on theground, careful not to losesight of the footprints. Henoted that they were far toobig to be a child's, so it wassafe to assume that she wascarriedoffbytwopeople.Heexamined the bent blades ofgrasshepassedandthebrush

that seemed to have beenviolentlypushedaside.Whenhe looked up, a dim glow inthe distance caught his eyes.ThefootprintsledVargcloserto the mysterious orangeglow. Milea followed closebehind quietly and patientlyashebenttoexaminethetrailagainandagainuntilitfinallyledintoaclearing.

In the clearing stood alarge, stone fortress. The

glow came from fires lit onthe four corner towers of thestructure. Upon closerinspection, several gangmembers marched along thewalls surrounding thebuilding.

“That must be the gangstronghold,”Vargsaid.

Milea shook her head andmuttered “It's just as Ifeared.”

“What would they gain

from kidnapping her?” Vargwondered. “She has noparents, as you said, so thisisn't a ransom. If she stolefrom them, they wouldprobably just kill her on thespot. Kidnapping her servesnopurpose.”

“This whole situation isbecomingmorebizarrebythesecond,” Milea said with ashake of her head.“Regardless,savingherisour

toppriority.”Varg nodded. “Any ideas

onhowwecangetinside?”“We need to somehow

avoid detection, first of all,”Milea suggested. Then shepointedtoatowertothewestandsaid,“Theoldbellinthattower could be used as analarm, so we should disablethatfirst.”

“Very well,” Varg said.“Howdowegettoit?”

“Maybe we can scale thewallandsneakpasttheguardwhen he makes his round inthe other direction,” Mileasuggested.

“Wouldn't it be easier tojust kill him?” Varg askedwithashrugofhisshoulders.

Milea shook her head. “Iftheotherguardsfindhisbodyor even realize he's missing,they'll raise the alarmandbeonfullalertforintruders.”

Varg nodded. “Goodpoint,leadtheway.”

Varg and Milea movedthrough the dense trees andbrushuntil theycame to facethewestsideofthewall.Thetowerwasbuiltdirectlyinthemiddle of the wall with aguard patrolling on eitherside.MileamotionedtoVargto wait for her signal. Onceboth guards were lookingawayfromtheirdirection,she

urgedhimforward.They ran up the the wall

and flattened their backsagainst the cool stone.Mileareached foravine, testedherweight, then started to climbwhen she discovered it wasstable enough. Varg did thesame with another piece ofvineandfollowedhercloselyuntil they both reached thetop.Mileariskedapeekoverthetopofthewall,thengave

Varg the signal that it wasclearforthemtomove.

Withthereflexesofawildcat, Milea hopped over thewallontothewalkwayaboveanddartedforthetowerdoorwithout a sound. Vargfollowed,butbarelyremainedas quiet and nearly tumbledforwardwith the grace of aninebriated troll. Milea gavehimawarningglare,butVargsomehow managed not to

alert any of the guards. Aquick peek inside toldMileathat the towerwas empty, soshe creaked the door openand closed it once she andVargweresafelyinside.

The tower had a woodenspiral staircase that followedupwardalongthewall.Atthetop of the tower, an old ironbell hung unguarded in aroom with two windows oneitherside.Theroomseemed

unkempt,asifnoonehadsetfoot inside for ages. Thecobwebs on the brass bellleading up to the ceiling ledthem to believe that it wasrarelyused.

Milea inched forwardcarefully and peeked underthebell.Whenshecameout,a confused and suspiciouslook spread over her face.“Thisbellisinoperable.”

Varg then realized what

happened.“Ican'tbelievewejustfellfor...”

Before he could finish hissentence, a dozen hoodedassailants dropped from theirhiding places on the ceiling.With drawn blades thatthirstedforblood,thefamiliarassassins surrounded the duoand dared them to makeanothermove.

Varg's expression fell inshameofhisownstupidity.“.

..anambush.”Varg immediately drew

Frost Fang and prepared tofighthiswayoutofthetower.The bounty hunter foundhimself in worse situationsandcameoutofitwithoutsomuch as a scratch, but hisworry lie with Milea, whobarely had time to draw herbladebefore shewasquicklydisarmedandapprehendedbya small group of the

assailants.Withhisbladeheldagainst

her throat, one gangmemberlooked to Varg and said,“Droptheweapon.”

Varg stareddaggersat thegang member and eyed theothers with equal contempt.Though Milea did not lookfrightened, the sight of theblade against her exposedneckgaveVarg the incentivehe needed. He grudgingly

dropped his enormous bladeonto the groundwith an ear-shatteringclank!

Varg was then forced tohis knees by several gangmembers. They grabbed hisenormousarmsandtiedthembehindhisback,allthewhilemakingsurehesawMilea.

A calm voice interruptedhisthoughts.“Smartmove.”

Varg turned to his left todiscover a man with dark,

scarredskinandpalehairsaton the windowsill twirling adaggertobethespeaker.

Varg growled under hisbreathandretorted,“Itseemsbeing confronted with anunderhanded trick forces myintelligencetothesurface.”

“You call it underhanded,I call it business,” the mansaid. “I also find businessruns smoothly when you ridyourselfof interruptions, like

someone who won't keepquietforinstance.”

Vargdidn'tknowwhattheman meant until he felt ablow to the back of his headand soon felt the weightdisappear from his body andhisvisionwentblack.

Varg moaned as his

consciousness slowly cameback to him. A dull glowwhich seemed to be coming

from candle light hoveredaround him and made himdizzy. Varg lifted a hand torub his temple, only his armnever moved. He soonrealizedhewastiedtoanoldwooden chair; his armswerebound behind him and hislegs were bound to the chairlegs.Varg jerkedhis arms totry and break free of theropes, but they weresurprisinglystrong.

“Varg, are you awake?”Milea was apparently boundbehindhim,andshemanagedtotouchhishandwithhers.

Vargshookhisheadtogetit back in focus. Then hegroggily asked, “Are you allright?Didtheyhurtyou?”

“No, but they took myequipment,”Mileasaid.

“Mine too, I think,” Vargsaid.

Their brief conversation

washaltedwhenamysteriousvoice said, “Finally, you'veawakened.”

Varg'seyesbegantofocusand he searched for thesourceoftheunknownvoice.First he saw several blackshapes and assumed theywere more assassins. Oncehis eyes adjusted to the dimlight, however, he realizedthat thesemenwerefarmorecomposed and wore black

hooded robes, much like themonks and priests in thedifferent faiths Varg hadseen. With obscured facesthey waited patiently withtheirhandsfolded.

“Varg, I don't think we'redealingwithmerecriminals,”Mileasaid.

Varg looked around theroom and saw differentcandles lit in formationbehind the robed men.

Several banners hung in theroom, all with the samesnake-like symbol that theshadow men had marked ontheir skin.Varg turned tohisleft where the most candleswere and saw a large altarraised on a platform. Behindthealtarandon thewallwasa statue of some demonicsnake-like creature. In frontof the altar stood anotherrobedman, but his robewas

more decorated than theothers.

Varg now understoodexactly what was going on,and it didn't make thesituation look any better ontheirend.“Thisisacult.”

“Now now, there is noneedtocarelesslycastaroundwords when you haven't theslightest clue what we'reabout,”saidtherobedmaninfrontofthealtar.

“Are you the Serpent?”Vargasked.

This comment earnedVargafewchucklesfromtheothermen, then the priest ofhigher status responded, “Iam flattered, but I'm afraidI'mnottheSerpent.”

“Where is he?” Mileaasked.

“The Serpent is away atthe moment, but once wesendwordofyourcapture,he

will want to greet youhimself,”theleadersaid.

Mileafidgeted inherseat,“WhereisErril?”

“You mean that girl whobit and kicked our men whoonly offered her shelter fromthe bitter forest?” the priestasked. “She will be on herway to see the Serpenthimselfshortly.”

“Why?”Vargasked.“If you must know, the

Serpent has a special interestinher,” theleadersaid.Afterhespoke,helookedtoVarg'sright and said, “Ah Tain,you'vearrivedjustintime.”

Varg turned and saw thesamemanwithdarkskinandpale hair he'd seen before,only now the man had aname. What's more, Vargnoticed for the first time thathehadpointedears.

“He's another elf,” Varg

whisperedtoMilea.“Not like my kind,

though,” Milea whisperedback.“Thisoneisawaterelf.They're from a continentacrosstheocean.”

The priest ignored theircomments and insteadaddressed the water elfnamedTain.“I trustyouwillbe leaving with the girlshortly?”

“Iwould,”Tain said, “but

it appears that the girl isgone.”

The priest straightened upand stepped forward. “What?How in the world could shehaveescaped?”

“Yourguess isasgoodasmine,”Tainoffered.“Aslongas I have no prisoner toescort,Iamofnousehere.”

The priest looked aroundtheroomandgesturedtotworobed cultists near the

entrance, a set of woodendoors.“Iwantthetwoofyouto tell the others to searchhighandlowforthatgirl.”

The two men bowed,creaked the doors open, anddarteddownthecorridor.

Then the priest looked toTain again and added, “Youwill report back to theSerpent that we have theWhiteWolf and the huntressincustody.”

“Finebyme,”Tainsaid.“Igetpaideitherway.”

Tain turned and leftthrough the double doorsbehindhim.Everyonewaitedfor thesoundofhisfootstepsto stop, then the priest said,“Now then, back tobusiness.”

“Ifyouaren'tgoingtokillus, thenwhat doyouplan todowithus?”Mileaasked.

“Ohyouwilldie,dear,but

onlyaftertheSerpentdecideshow. Should he make anexample by leaving yourheadsonthedoorstepsofourenemies, or should he justkeep things quiet and slayyouonthespot?It'sreallyallfun to think of thepossibilities,” the priestmused.“Theonlycertaintyisthat theSerpentwill use youto send a message to otherswho are foolish enough to

standinourway.”“You thinkwe're the only

ones who will fight?” Vargretorted. “If Lionel's deathcouldn't scare us away, whatmakes you think ours willscareothers?”

“You think this is justabout inciting fear?” thepriest laughed. “The Serpentisn't satisfied with peoplesimplyfearinghim.Hewantsthe world to see what he's

capable of, that no matterwhostandsinhisway,heandhis followers will obliteratethemonebyone.”

“Then is this an issue ofpride, or simply vanity?”Vargremarked.

The priest chuckled.“Typical unworthy wretch,youpass judgment on amanyou've never met for 'sins'that you yourself have morethanlikelycommitted.”

Varg cursed under hisbreath. “You shouldconsideryourself lucky my hands aretied,otherwisetheywouldbechokingthelifeoutofyou.”

“Keeprunningyourmouthand I just might do that toyou,”thepriestsnapped.

Varg smirked, then said,“Oh? Do I detect a bit of atemper under that shadowcloak?”

“Do not test me, you

wretch,” the priest snapped.“You don't want to knowwhat happens to those thatdo.”

“Comeandgetmethen,ifyou think you're manenough,”Vargdared.

“Varg, what on earth areyoudoing?”Mileabarked.

Varg laughed. “Don'tworry, Milea, he's doesn'thavetheballsto—”

His sentence was halted

abruptly when the priestcharged forward and grippedVarg's throat with a bonyhand. He squeezed with allhismight toensurenobreathcouldescape.

“I warned you, fool,” thepriest growled. “The Serpentmay reprimand me fordenying him the pleasure ofending your life, but youcause more trouble thanyou'reworth.”

Varg struggled for breath,but had just enough togrumble, “First rule ofcapturingajotun...”

In a flash Varg's handscameflyingoutoftheirbondand gripped the priest's arm.Thepriest's arm slowlygrewa layer of ice under Varg'shands.Unabletomoveaway,the priest watched in horroras his own arm slowly frozesolid and continued over the

restofhisbody.By the timehe managed to break awayfromVarg's grip, the ice didnot stopuntil his entirebodywasafrozenhusk.

Varg stood up and toeveryone's astonishment, hetossed his frozen, brokenbondsontothefloor.Thenhestaredatthefrozenstatuethatwas all that was left of thepriest,thensaid,“...bewareofhisbite.”

The remaining cultistsprepared to attack as Vargfroze and broke off Milea'sbindings.

The half-elf spun out ofherchairandrushedtoVarg'sside, then said, “What now?We aren't armed and yourpowers can only get us sofar.”

Varg didn't openly admitthat he didn't think his entireplan through, but he was

determined to fight his wayout of the strongholdregardless of the odds. Justwhen he was facing thecrowd of aggressive cultistsandforminganescapeplaninhis mind, Varg's thoughtswere interrupted when thedoubledoorsflewopen.

Everyone turned to facethe doors expecting morecultists to arrive, but theywere instead met by dozens

of men in blue and silverarmor. One of themen, whowas covered head-to-toe insolid steel, stepped forwardinto the roomwithhis swordandshielddrawn.

“BytheorderoftheCountof Ironbarrow, you are allunderarrest forunlawfulandunholy practices, kidnappingcivilians, and murder. Ihereby order all of you tostanddownandfacejustice.”

Instead of heeding theplated warrior's warning, thecultists lunged forward withspellsreadyandweremetbythe rest of the unknownarmed soldiers. Soldier andcultist alike collided, turningthe small chamber into abloodybattlefield.

MileadraggedVargtotheback of the room and theyducked behind the altar toavoid the carnage. “We need

to find Erril and get out ofhere. There's nowaywe canhopetosurviveunarmed.”

JustwhenVargwasaboutto respond, Milea lookedbehindhimandsaid,“Erril!”

Vargturnedtoseeasmall,dirty girl crouching besidehimwith a knife in her handandasatchelacrossherchest.

“What are you doinghere?”thegirlasked.

“Would you believe us if

we toldyouwewerehere torescueyou?”Vargasked.

Erril stared at him andremarked,“Finejobofthat.”

Milea ignored her remarkandcountered,“Whatareyoudoing in the middle of abattle, Erril?You're going togetkilled!”

Errilthensaid,“I'mheretoreturnthefavoryougaveme.I'llstartbyleadingyoutothearmory so you can get your

equipment.Followme!”Erril turned and darted

through the quarrel withamazingspeed,andVargandMileaquicklyfollowed.Vargshielded himself and Mileafrom stray blade strikes witha large ice shield he formedon his arm. He rushedforward until they made itintothecorridor.Thegirlledthem to a stone staircase,which they followed to the

bottom floor. She then ledthem to a door near theentrance and shoved it opento reveal an armory, whereFrost Fang awaited Varg'sgraspagainstthebackwall.

Varg quickly dartedtowards his prized blade andas he grasped the handle, hefelt whole again. Hebrandished the cool blade inboth hands and smiled.“I'vemissedyou...”

“Oh please,” Errilmuttered.

Mileahastily retrievedherblade, bow, quiver, satchel,andcloak,thenturnedbacktothe others and said, “Thatshould do it. Let's get out ofhere.”

As they emerged into thecorridor just before the exit,the corpses of severalassassins and soldiers laysprawled and bloody on the

floor,andtherumblingsoundofbattlecouldbeheardinthecourtyard.Whentheymadeitoutside, they wereimmediately met by anotherbattle looming before theenormous portcullis. Thesoldiers had apparently beenambushedbythecultistsafterthey infiltrated the hideout,and were now desperatelytrying to regain control overthegate.

Milea exchanged a lookwith Varg and asked, “Whoarethesesoldiers?”

“Are you really going tocomplain when they'rehelping us escape?” Vargasked.

“No,butIfeartheireffortsmay be in vain,” Mileareplied.

She pointed to the gate,where several cultists armedthemselveswithbowsandlet

loose arrows unto theinvading soldiers. Thehardened men fought toothand nail to regain control ofthe gate, but if the archersmissed their marks, thecultistsonthegroundinfrontof thegatedealt swift deathstothesoldiers.

Varg'sheadsnappedtotheleft to avoid an oncomingarrow, which struck thewooden arch behind him. It

was then that he noticed thearchersonthetopofthewallssurrounding the stronghold.They focused on the soldiersin thebackof thecrowdandit was evident that if theywere dispatched, the soldierswould be either killed,captured,orworse.

“We have to stop thosearchers,”Errilsaid.

“Wedo,Erril,”Mileasaid.“Youneedtogettosafety.”

“Wheredoyouexpectmetofindcover?Underabaleofhay?” Erril remarked whilepointing to the stables thathad just caught fire from astrayarrow.“Untilwecangetthose archersoutof theway,I'mstuckinthisbattle.”

“I can take some of themoutwithmybow,but Idon'tthink I kill enough of thembeforetheykillthesoldiers...orus,”Milealamented.

“Don't worry, I have anidea,”Errilannounced.

Likeafox,ErrildartedoffintothebattlebeforeMileaorVargcouldstopher.Thegirlflewthroughthechaosasshedrewaknifeandcut throughthe cultist's legs and anklesbefore they even saw her.Vargadmittedtohimselfthathe was impressed by herspeed, but he still ran afterher to protect her from any

harm while Milea agreed toprotect his flank. Erril ranthrough the crowded battletowards thefrontgate,wherethe guards were waiting forher. Each of them slashedforward after her, but herquick movements helped heravoidtheirblades.

Erril stopped just beforethegateandproducedasmallgray round object from herpocket. Varg realized what

theobjectwaswhenErrillitafuseontheobjectonanearbytorch. She tossed the smallbombover thewall,where itlandednearthearchers.

“Run!” Erril screamed atVarg.

Erril ran his way, so hegrabbed the girl with botharmsandspunhimselfaroundso that he faced away fromthe impending blast. Asecond later, a deafening

inferno erupted behind him.Thestingingheatbit theskinonhisback,butotherwisedidnotharmhimorErril.

The blast killed everyarcher above the gate andhurled their charred bodiesintotheair.Thesoldierstookadvantageofthesuddenshiftin control and lead a fullassault on the gate. Thecultists who survived theblastwere slaughteredbefore

they could recomposethemselves. Milea aided therest of the soldiers with herblade in close combat withtheremainingcultists.

Varg turned to see thesoldiers taking control of thegate at last. They release themechanism that held thegigantic portcullis in place,and soon the ironbarsbeganto rise and open the pathoutside of the fortress. Varg

releasedhisgriponErrilandordered, “Go, get out ofhere!”

Erril arose to her feet,faced Varg, and said, “I'llwaitontheotherside—”

ToVarg'shorror,acultist'sarrowflewfromthewestwallandstruckErrildirectlyintheribcage. The shock of whathad happened left herdisoriented as she coughedand hacked blood and fell to

the ground.Milea ran to thegirl's aid and held her toshield her from furtherattacks.

Varg shrieked with rageand searched the crowd forthe shooter.Whenhe spottedtheculprit,acultistonthetopof the western tower, Vargpositioned his hands a fewinches apart with his palmsfacing one another andpouredhisenergyintoasolid

piece of ice. Varg launchedthe ice into the direction ofthe shooter andas it traveledthrough the air, the iceformed a sharp, spear-likeprojectile that was nearlylonger than Varg was tall.The icy spear made a directhit and impaled the shooterthrough his chest and left anemptycavity thatbledout inseconds. The remains of thecultists then fell from the

towerandhit theground likeanoldragdoll.

Varg then ran to Milea'sside and helped her carryErril outsideof thegate.Thesoldiers who had witnessedwhat happened covered theirflank as they ran and alsocovered them until theyreached the safety of thewoods. Varg and Mileastoppedjustattheedgeofthewood and propped Erril

againstatree.Erril gasped for air and

muttered, “Take it out. Takethearrowout.”

“Hold on, Erril,” Mileasaid. “I have to do thiscarefully, otherwise you willbleedtodeath.”

“Oh for goodness sake,”Errilgrumbled.

To Milea's horror, Errilyanked the arrowout and letout a blood curdling scream.

Milea desperately tried toopen Erril's old shirt to tendto the wound, but Errilstoppedher.

“It's going to be fine,Milea,” Erril insisted. “Justwatch.”

Erril carefully lifted hershirt to reveal the wound,onlyitwasn'tnearlyassevereasitshouldhavebeen.Intheseconds that passed, thewound was rapidly healing

before their astonished eyes.They stared in awe until thewound sealed as if it wasneverthere.

Varg and Milea lookedErril in the eyes, and with alook of amusement, the girlsaid,“ItoldyouIalwayshealup.”

CHAPTER8

WHEN THE BATTLEFINALLY SUBSIDED, thesoldiers had collected thesurviving cultists and swiftlyarrestedthem.Astheyloadedthe cultists onto prison carts,the plated warrior ordered agroup of his men to escort

them to a nearby prisonwhere they would beinterrogated and rightlypunished for their crimes.Asthe cart pulled away, theremaining soldiers began topay their final respects totheirfallencomrades.

Erril had soon regainedenough strength to stand,despite the fact that Vargadvised her against it. Shewalked through the gate to

investigate the aftermath ofthe massacre and Varg andMileafollowedher.

As they walked, Mileastayed by Erril's side andasked, “Where did you getthat power, Erril? I've neverseenanythinglikeit.”

“I've always had it,” thegirl said. “As long as I canremember,Iwouldbeinjuredone minute and healed thenext.”

“It's truly astounding,”Mileasaid.

“Not to mention howquick she is on her feet,”Vargadded.

Varg looked to the crowdof soldiersagain.Thereweremanycasualtiesontheirpart,but because of Erril's quickthinking and movement,many more were spared. Hecaught a glimpse of themanin charge once again and

when the armored man methis gaze, he began to walktowards them. When he waswithinhand-shakingdistance,the steel soldier removed hishelmet.

Thewarriorwasamiddle-agedmanwithabeardedfaceand confident features. Hesmiled and held out anarmored hand toVarg. “Youhandledyourselveswell.Youmustbeseasonedwarriors.”

Varg accepted thehandshake, then answered,“We can't take all the credit.Wehadhelp,afterall.”

The warrior allowed hishand to fall back to his side,then said, “Aye, but few cansaytheycanconjureicefromnothing or fight with thecunningandagilityofawildcat.Weoweyouour thanks,great warriors.” The soldierthen looked to Erril and

added, “Especially to you,younglady.”

Erril strained to stand up,despite Milea's insisting sherest, and then she said, “Ionlywantedtogetawayfromthere. The archers were justblockingmyexit.”

“Wheredidyoufindthosebombs?”Vargasked.“What'smore,howdidyouknowhowtousethem?”

“After the soldiers freed

me from the dungeon, theytold me to hide. I didn't, ofcourse, so I found someequipment in a supply roomandthebombsweresittingonatable.Theyweren'tdifficultto figure out,” Errilexplained.

“You are quiteresourceful,” the soldiercommented.

“Igetby,”Errilmuttered.The soldier then turned to

the others and said, “Allowme to introducemyself. I amConley Rowan, Count ofIronbarrow.”

“We owe you our lives,Count Rowan,” Milea saidwithaslightbow.

“Please, it's Conley,” theCount replied with anotherlaugh. “It is fortunate wearrived when we did. If wewere any later, the ShadowHand would have killed you

all.”“That priest mentioned

something about the ShadowHand.Isthatwhatthatgroupcalls themselves?” Vargasked.

“Aye, and they aregrowing in number everyday,”Conleyreplied.

“We've been crossingbladeswith them for awhilenow. You clearly aren't fondof them either,” Milea

commented.“Why would I be? The

Shadow Hand has beennothing but trouble for thepastyear.Theyscourthelanddoing gods know what toinnocent civilians and theymake everyday life evenmore dangerous than italready is.When I refused toaidtheircause,theybegantokidnap civilians and raidshipments from the other

countieswellasIronbarrow.”“They wanted you to

join?”Mileaasked.Conley shook his head.

“No, I believe that theywanted to form an alliancewithme so they could evadethe law better. I also suspectthey want to use my armedforcesfortheirownpurposes.I'vebeentryingtoworkunderthe public's nose to rid theproblem, because the last

thing Ironbarrow needs is apanictoarisefromitspeople.

“ThistimeIhadnochoicebut to strike directly. Lastweek they ambushed andkidnappedagroupofmymenwho were returning fromVirland. Theywere last seennearhere,sowecheckedintothe rumors in the nearbyvillages and found out thelocationofthishideout.”

“We didn't see any other

prisoners while here,” Mileacommented.

“I did,” Erril said.Everyone turned to her andshecontinued,“Mostofthemwere dead, but one wasbarely clinging to life nearmycell.”

“Yes, my men havealready informed me aboutthe survivor. I am actuallygoing to tend to him once Iam finished here. Gods only

knowwhat thathe'shasbeenthrough,”Conleysaid.“Inthemeantime, rest well myfriends.Your journey is onlyjustbeginning.”

“What do you mean bythat?”Vargasked.

“YouareTheWhiteWolf,correct? The white-hairedwarriorwho is famed for hiswork as a bounty hunter?”Conley asked. Varg nodded,so the Count continued, “I

normally don't hire outsiderstocarryoutmymissions,butyou know more about thesecultists than anyone else I'vemet, and I will take all theallies I can get in the waragainst these terrorists.Therefore, Iwish to pay youandyourfriendshereforyourlong term services regardingtheShadowHand.”

VargandMileaexchangedglances, and then Varg

lookedbacktotheCountandsaid, “It's a deal. What didyouhaveinmind?”

“Iwouldfirstliketoinviteyou toaccompanymy troopsback to my castle inIronbarrow, where you willstay asmy guests. Then youcan explain everything youknow about these cultists sothat we may decide on acourseofactiontotakenext,”Conleysaid.

“Verywell,”Vargagreed.He shook hands with

Conley again and then theCountadded,“Mymencoulduseabitof restafter thedaythey've had, as I'm sure youlot could too.We will makecamp and depart in themorning,sobeprepared.”

The Count's troops began

their march at the crack ofdawn and Varg, Milea, and

Erril followed with thecrowd. Once the sun hadcompletely risen, it revealedthe vast, rocky plains ofIronbarrow's landscape. Thewide, open countrysideprovedapleasingatmosphereafter a daunting mission andunsettlingturnofevents.Thepath the troops traveled onhadawallofcliffs,hillsandcaverns along either side,none of which seemed to

obstruct the dense trees thatdottedtheterrains.

By day's end, the troopsassured Varg and the othersthat Ironbarrow was only ashort distance away. Whenthey could finally see thepeeks of the Count's castleover the edge of the cliff,Conley halted themarch andaddressedhismen.

“March on men,” hecalled. “Tonight I extend an

invitation for you all to joinme in celebration over theover our victory against theShadow Hand in the GreatHall!”

The crowd of soldiersbegan cheering with glee atthe sound of their gracioushost's invitation, and Varghimself couldn't help butcracking a smile at thethought of drinking andrelaxingforachange.

They continued theirmarch down the path thatstretched from the top of thecliff,wrappedaroundthelandand sloped down to theground,andledthemrighttothe front gate of the city ofIronbarrow.Theguardsatthefrontgatesgreeted theCountas theyopened theenormousand sturdy double doors toallow the troops entrance.The troop rode through

Ironbarrow,catchingtheeyesof everyone they passed.Wives approached theirhusbands and greeted themwhile others leaned out ofwindows to wave at theirfriends and family. Thoughhe didn't know the feeling,Varg enjoyed seeing thepleasinghomecoming.

Vargthensethissightsonthe town structure itself. Thewooden buildings lining the

roadwerelinedatthebottomwith stone and brick. Vargwasnotsurprisedtoseesuchamazing craftsmanship whenhe came across a largemason's shop around thecorner the troop passed. Asthe castle came into view,Conleyledthetroopsacrossadrawbridge into a courtyard.Once inside the men begandismounting their steeds andbringing them to the stables.

Varg brought his ownborrowed stallion as well asMilea's and Erril's to thestable while the latter twofollowed the crowd to thekeepentrance.

Once Varg caught up,Conley addressed turned tothem and said, “I bid youwelcome to my home,IronstoneKeep.”

The guards then openedthe double doors that led to

an enormous great hall. Twowooden tables lined up oneither side of the room. Thetableswerebothcoveredwithafantasticfeastthatbeckonedthearrivingmenwithit'sricharoma. A third table sattowards the back and facingthe door. This table wasobviously meant for Conleyand his family, for a thronesat against thebackwall justbehindthetable.

“We feast at once!”Conleybellowed.

Themenwastednotimeinstealing the closest seat theycould at the tables. Theirrumps barely touched thebenches before their handsgrabbed goblets, plates, andfoodalike.

The Count turned to hisguests and said, “I invite thethree of you to join me andmy wife at my personal

dining table.” Conleygesturedtothethirdtableandgestured for Varg andcompanytofollow.Theseatsatthistablewerenotbenches,but actual chairs made ofcarved wood. Conleyinstructed Varg to take theseat on the left of his ownchair, which was larger andmore detailed. Milea sat onVarg's left and Erril on herleft.

TheseatshadVargandtheothers facing the frontentrance and looking downupon the feasting soldiers.Varg recognized the smellofmeadbeforehimandreachedfor a goblet. He gulped halfthe goblet down in secondsand tookadeep,appreciativebreath.

“That's the bestmead I'vetastedinages,”Vargsaid.

Conley laughed. “It's

always a pleasure to meet afellow man who appreciatesgoodmead.”

Vargnoticed in thecornerof his eye that Erril wastryingtosneakatastefromanearby goblet, but before hecould stop her, the girl washaltedbyalovelydark-hairedwoman.

The woman gentlygrabbed Erril's goblet andplaced it out of her reach,

thensaid,“Idon'tbelieveyouareoldenoughtodrinkmead,younglady.”

Errilglaredat thewoman,but conceded and beganeatingapheasant leg instead.The woman, who bore asharp, yet gentle expression,thenwalkedovertoConley.

The Count immediatelystood up and said, “Catrina,my love, you made it.”Conley turned to Varg and

the others and added, “Varg,Milea, Erril, this is mybeloved wife, Lady CatrinaRowan.”

Catrina smiled and said,“It's always a pleasure tomeetConley'sguests.”

It was then that Vargrecognized Catrina as thedark-haired girl in Lionel'sfamilyportrait.Itwasevidentthat Milea realized this too,for she met Varg's gaze and

offered the same expression.Henoddedherway, then thetwo of them stood up andfacedCatrina.

Milea stood before theLady of the household and,after offering a slight bow,said, “My lady, we need tospeak with you and yourhusbandinprivate.”

Before Catrina couldanswer, Conley interjected.“Surely this can wait until

later? You three deserve agreat feastafter thebattlewehad.”

VarglookedtoMilea,whonodded,andheturnedbacktoColeyandsaid,“Itcanwait.”

Once the introductionswerecomplete,Catrinasat tothe right of her husband andVarg and the others happilyreturnedtotheirdinner.

When the feast was done,

thesoldiersleftthecastleandreturned to the town to seetheir families. The Countretreated into a room behindhis throne, where severalservants helped take hisarmor off. Once he wasdressed comfortably, ConleytheninvitedVarg,Milea,andErril to his study to discussthe events leading up to theincidentat theShadowHand'hideout. Catrina joined them

as requested by Varg anMilea.

“What is this all about?”Catrinaaskedoncetheywerealone.

“I believe it's best to startwith what we wanted to tellyou, Lady Catrina,” Mileasaid.

“What is it?” Catrinapressed.

Varg cleared his throat,took a deep breath, then

asked,“Areyou thedaughterofCountLionelLerington?”

Catrina seemed takenaback,surprisedthatheknewsuch information, but shecollected herself andanswered, “Yes, I am, butwhat doesmy father have todowiththosecultists?”

“We believe your fatherwasinvestigatingtheShadowHand,”Mileaexplained.

“How odd, he never

mentioned them to me,”Conley said. “I actuallywarned him about them incase they approached himtoo.”

“Itseems theydid,andherefused to cooperate withthem. The Shadow Handdidn'ttakekindlytoit,”Varganswered.

“What are you trying tosay?”Catrinapressed.

Varg took a deep breath,

thenanswered,“I'msorry,butyourfatherisdead.”

To his surprise, Catrinainitially showed little to noreaction to thenews.Despitethe noblewoman's desperateattempt to remain gracefuland composed, however, thegrief settledonher shouldersand her tears came pouringoutwithnowarning.“No...no...no!”

Catrina fell to the floor

andsobbed.Being thedotinghusband he was, Conleyquickly knelt beside hiswifeandwrappedhisarmsaroundher.Hertearsstainedhisvestand though Though Vargmanaged to keep hiscomposure, the image ofCatrina's grief struck himrighttothecore.

OnceCatrinawaspacifiedfor the time being, she stoodandcontinued to leanagainst

herhusband'sshoulder.Conleyheldherclose,and

beganmuttering,“Whydidn'the tell me the ShadowHandwas after him? I could havehelpedhim.”

“He probably thoughtinvolvingyouwouldonlyputyou and Catrina in danger,”Mileaoffered.

“How did this happen?”Conleypressed.

“He discovered too many

oftheirsecrets,sothecultistshad to get rid of him beforehe could tell anyone,” Vargsaid.Hethoughtitwisenottotell them about Greenwood,since they probably wouldn'tbelieve that a fellownoblemanwouldgetinvolvedwithacult,muchlesskillforthem.

“How did you two getinvolved?”Conleyasked.Damn, Varg thought. He

wanted tooffer the truth, buthe knew that the truth couldseem too farfetched for thenoblestobelieve.

Milea thankfully chimedin before the nobles becamesuspicious. “We happenedupon the whole incidentcompletely by accident,actually, Varg and Idiscovered Lord Lerington'sbodyinacavernduringajob.We investigated his murder

only to become targetsourselves. First we searchedhis keep inVirland for cluesand we found his journal. Itwas written in Elvish, but Iwasabletotranslatehisnotesand discovered an entry thateventually led us to thestronghold nearWildValley.Erril lived in thewoods nearWildValley and the ShadowHand kidnapped her, so wesneakedintothestrongholdto

find her. Unfortunately, wewalked right into an ambushandwouldhavebeenkilledifnot for the efforts of theCountandhismen.”

Varg was impressed athow quickly and calmlyMilea was able to answerConley's question without asingle lie, yet withoutrevealing anything that couldincriminatethem.

“I see,” the Count

answered.Catrina straightened her

demeanor and calmly asked,“Whatbecameofmyfather'sremains?”

“MyapologiesMilady,butwe were unable to obtainthem,” Milea ruefullyanswered.

Catrina swallowed hard.“Washeproperlytendedtoatleast?”

“I believe so,” Milea

assured.“Lionel will be missed

dearly,”Conleysaid.Hethenraised his goblet and added,“Tonight, I drink in hishonor.”

Conleytookonelonggulpof wine, then he continued,“Well then, Lionel wouldn'twant us to fret over him, hewouldwantustocontinuehiswork against the ShadowHand. That iswhy Iwant to

hire the three of you tocontinuetheinvestigationandbring those responsible forhisdeathtojustice.”

“You mentioned hisjournal before, Milea?”Catrinaasked.

Milea nodded. “While Ifound no mention of hisfamily in the entries, I dobelievethatbasedonthewayhe wrote that he left thejournal for someone to find.

Wasityou,perhaps?”“I never understood

Elvish, so I doubt it wasintendedforme.Heprobablyleft it for Oliva,” Catrinaexplained.

“Yoursister?”Vargasked.“HowdidyouknowIhad

asister?”Catrinaasked.OnceVarg explained the familyportrait they found inLerington's study, sheanswered,“Olivaismyniece;

hermotherwasmysister.Shewent to live with hergrandfather after her parentsdiedfromanillness,butnowshe stays in Balik at theAcademyofArcaneArts.Thepoor dear probably hasn'tevenheardthenews.”

“I also worry about hersafety now that Lionel waskilled. What if the Serpentknows about her?” Conleymentioned.

“You're right. I fear whatwould happen if she were toreturn home to find thosecultists waiting for her,”Catrinasaiddreadfully.

“What's leftofherhome,”Vargmuttered,which earneda swift elbow jab to the ribsfromMilea.

Fortunately, neither of thenobles heard the remark, forthe Count then continued,“Lionel's birthday was

supposed to be in the nextfew weeks, so Oliva willmore than likely be leavingschoolsoontovisithim.”

Milea raised an eyebrow.“She could just leaveschool?”

“Indeed. The Academy isnot like other schools whereyou have to stay for a setperiodoftimeandfinishyourstudies accordingly. StudentsoftheAcademycomeandgo

as they please until theirstudies are done. It makes iteasier forstudents toworkattheir own pace and have abetterchanceofsucceeding,”Conleyexplained.

“You're certain Oliva willbe leaving Balik soon?”Mileaasked.

“Absolutely,” Catrinaanswered. “Oliva is a verydedicated student, but familyis first and foremost. She

neverwouldhavemissedhergrandfather'sbirthday.

“Thenweneedtogetwordto her before she leavesBalik,”Vargsaid.

“You're right,” Catrinareplied. Then she addressedher husband. “Shouldwe getsome of your soldierstogethertoescortherhere?”

“No, it would only drawattention to her if I send asmall armada,” Conley

reasoned.“Ibelievethisistheperfect job for our friendshere.Vargandtheotherscanget into Balik and escortOliva to Ironbarrow withoutplacingherinmoredanger.”

“Oliva would never leaveschool with total strangersunless she had proof of theirintentions. You should givethem a letter to present toOliva so she knows they aretrustworthy,”Catrinareplied.

“You're right, Love.”Conley returned his attentionto Varg and said, “Can thethreeofyoubereadytoleavebytomorrow?”

“I have no objections,”Vargsaid.

“NorI,”Mileaconcurred.“Same with me,” Erril

chimedin.Catrinablinkedand stared

at the girl before she said,“Youarebutachild. Icould

never allow you to putyourselfinsuchdanger.”

“Who saidyou could stopme?”Errilretorted.

“My love, I have seenErril's skills with my own Iand I assure you shewill beallright,”Conleypromised.

“Then you should havearmor fashioned for her. Ican't stand the thought of achild getting hurt on mywatch,”Catrinaoffered.

“Don'tworry,Iplannedtosupply everything they needfor this journey,” Conleyassured.

Catrinanoddedandturnedto her guests. Then she said,“The three of you arewelcome to stay in thecastleforthenight.”

“Thank you for yourhospitality, Lady Rowan,”Mileasaidhumbly.

“Please dear, call me

Catrina,” the noblewomananswered.

“As you wish,” Mileaconceded.

“I will have the servantsprepareaguestroomforeachof you,” Catrina said with anod. She then took her leavewhile Conley poured Vargand Milea each another cupof mead. Catrina returned ashortwhilelaterandledthemto each a room on the next

floor. After Catrina openedthe door to Varg's room, hegave his thanks to thenoblewoman and steppedinside.

A warm bath welcomedhiminthecorneroftheroom.After he closed the door, hestripped and stepped into thehot water for the mostrelaxing bath he'd had inyears. At least not alone, hethought with a smile. When

he emerged from the water,hedriedoffwiththetowelonthe little table beside him.Then, he donned only histrousersandsatonthebed.

After sitting in silentcontemplation for a fewminutes, Varg finally blewoutthecandlenexttohisbedandreadiedforsleep.Itdidn'ttakelongforVargtopassoutfrom exhaustion after hefinally lay his head upon the

pillow and covered his bodywith the silky sheets. In hisdreams he experienced afamiliar dream, but one thathauntedhimallthesame.

Vargreleasedhislipsfrom

Treasa'skissonlytowhisper,“Areyousureyoudon'twanttojustelope?”Treasashookherhead.“I

could never get marriedwithout the blessing of my

parents,evenifit'swithyou.”Treasa's parents never

approved of her relationshipwith Varg. He was just adrifter,asherfatherhadsaid,with no home or money tosupport a wife, much less afamily. Treasa washeartbroken, but ultimatelydecided to keep seeing Vargin secret. After they startedbecoming more intimate, thestrain of sneaking around

took its toll. They brazenlytried tomake loveduring thedayandasaresult,theywerecaught in theactbyTreasa'sfather.At first hewas angry, but

he kept under control so asnot to alert the rest of thevillage of his daughter'saffair.Oncehecalmeddown,her father took Varg andTreasa aside and hada longtalk with them. The initial

conversation was nothingmore than judgment andcriticismofTreasa's immoralbehavior—he didn't seemsurprisedthatalessdesirablepersonlikeVargwouldresortto carnal relations out ofwedlock.However,herfathersurprised them; becauseTreasa was no longer avirgin,shewouldnotbeabletomarryaman fromagoodfamily as her father had

planned. He thereforedecidedthattheloverswouldhavehisblessingonlyifVargcould earn the money toprovide a better life forTreasathanhecould.Now here he was, saying

hisgoodbyestoTreasabeforeleavingformonthstoworkatafisheryinthesouth.“I will miss you,” Varg

saidgently.“And I will miss you,”

Treasa said on his lips. “IpromiseIwillwaitforyou.”Varg only wished that he

hadn't left, that he'dconvinced Treasa to leavewithhimandforgetaboutherfather's prejudices. Theycouldhavegoneanywhereinthe world and done anythingtheywanted, as long as theyhad been together. It wasn'tuntil he returned to Wild

Valley that his world wouldchangeforeverandhisheavyheart would always knowregret.

CHAPTER9

VARGMANAGEDTOPUTthedreamoutofhismindbythe time he arriveddownstairs to the entrancehall for breakfast. Mileaalready clearedhalf her plateby the time Varg sat besideher. She bid him a good

morning before takinganother bite of cheese. Errilsoon joined themand lookedmore rested than she hadsincethey'dmether.

“I can't remember the lasttime I slept so well,” Mileasaid.

“Me too,” Varg lied. “It'sbeen so long I forgot how todream.”

“I can't remember the lasttime I slept in a bed,” Erril

remarked.Fortunately Milea was

able to break theuncomfortable silence thatensued when she said, “Bythe way, the captain of theguard toldme Conley wouldbe waiting for us outside bythestableswhenwe'redone.”

Varg scarfed down a loafof bread and took a big gulpofhisdrink, thenasked,“I'mreadywhenyouare.”

They finished their food,thanked Catrina and theservants once again, andemerged from the entrancehall to the courtyard justoutside the castle. Near thegate just before thedrawbridge, Varg and hiscompanions found Conleywaitingwithtwohorsesandapony.

Conley held up the reignsandsaid,“Iamamanofmy

word. These horses are foryour journey to Balik. Thesaddlebagscontaincanteens,medic supplies, and campequipmentforyourjourney.Ihavealso taken the libertyofwriting an order for theguardstoallowyouentryintotheschooland Ialsowrotealetterdirectly toOlivasoshewill know you aretrustworthy. I will pay youhalf of your money up front

so that you may use it forexpenses, and when youreturnwithOlivasafelyIwillpayyouinfull.”

After they received thesupplies, Varg, Milea, andErril mounted their horsesand rode to the entrance ofIronbarrow and continuedontothetrailsouthwest.Theyfound the southern edge ofthe forestwhereWildValleylie and made camp as dusk

approached. With the dawnlight, thecompanionspackedtheir camp and set off onhorseback once again. Thehooves of their steedscloppedontherockyground,but soon the flat trail of theVirland countryside led themout of themountains and thebrilliant city of Balik cameintoviewbylateafternoon.

The trail ledVarg and hiscompanionsstraighttoBalik's

gates. The travelers left theirsteedsinthecareofthestablehand nearby and approachedthe gates, where they weremet by the city guard. Theguards offered no resistance,but there was a level oftension coming from themthatgaveVargtheimpressionthat outsiders such as themweren't exactly welcome inBalik.Nevertheless,Vargdidashealwaysdidand ignored

their stares as he walkedthroughthegates.

As Varg held one of thelarge doors open for Mileaand Erril to pass, Mileaturned to a guard and asked,“Where is the Academy ofArcaneArts?”

The guard huffed andanswered, “In the CrownDistrict at the heart of thecity, but first you have to gothrough the Trade District

andtheCommonsDistrict.”Milea nodded, then

followed the others throughthedoors.TheTradeDistrictmadeoftheoutercircleofthecity and, as the namesuggested, was made up ofvarious merchant stands,taverns, and shops. Themerchants tried to getVarg'sattention as he walked past,but he as well as hiscompanions ignored the

persistent salesmen andcontinued towards the nextdistrict.

The Commons DistricthousedtheresidentsofBalik.Thehomesvariedfromsmalland humble to larger andfiner the closer they came tothe final district. The moreprominent residents stared atthe passing “riff-raff,” asVarg heard the all toofamiliarwhisperers utter, but

it did nothing to deter himfromhismission.

“It doesn't look like theyappreciate visitors,” Mileacommented.

“Like I care,” Errilremarked.

The Crown District, thesplendorofBalik that set thecity's reputation, opened tomuch taller, polishedstructures like manors andhallsthatsetthestandardsfor

themorecommonfolkinthepreviousdistrict.ThepassingcitizensoftheCrownDistrictscoffedas the travelersdaredto set foot in their preciousneighborhood and staredaccusinglyas theywaitedfortrouble to start. It was soonevident that the previousdistrict would gladly throwthem a party before the highclass citizens of the CrownDistrict would even spit at

them.The Academy was

impossibletomiss,foritwasthe tallest building in thedistrict. A large courtyardwith a running fountain—Mileapointedoutsomerunescarved into the stoneworkwhich allowed for the waterto flow—and the very top ofthe stone building wasadorned with three large A'sside by side. The Academy

also seemed to be the mostguarded place in the city notjustbymenstationedoutsidethe entrance, but also by, tothe travelers' astonishment,livinggargoylesthatmarchedalong the rooftops andbalconies just daring anyoneto start trouble within theirdomain.

“What magnificentcreatures,” Milea said. “I'veheard of such magic used to

enchant the statues alongcastlessothattheymayofferprotection to their masters,but I've never seen it inaction.”

Milea and Erril followedVarg to the front entrance ofthe school where two cityguards waited. When theyapproached, Varg began topull out the letter fromConley when the guardsreadiedtheirweapons.

“Halt,”orderedoneof theguards, “what is it you arepulling from your pocket?There will be no hiddenweapons allowed in theschool.”

“Calm down, I'm onlypresenting a letter from theCount of Ironbarrow,” Vargreplied as he removed thepaper from his pocket andofferedittotheguard.

After the guard accepted

and read the letter, he foldedit again and returned it toVarg. “Very well, you mayenter.Pleasekeepyourvoicedowninside.”

Vargnoddedandwhenhesteppedthroughthedoorway,he realized why the guardadvisedthemtobequiet.Theentrance hall held anenormous library wheredozensofstudentssatatlong,wooden tables and hovered

overparchmentandbooks insilence. The walls werecovered in book shelves oneither side of the room. Ontop of the shelves rested awooden walkway thatwrappedaroundtheroomandattached to the staircase onthe opposite wall from theentrance. This walkway heldeven more bookshelves, andatop them rested a thirdwalkway that started at the

staircase and held evenmorebookshelves. The threestories of shelves left nospeck of wall uncovered andassuredthatnostudentwouldgo without the knowledgetheyneededtosucceed.

A walkway that wasdecoratedwitha long,ornaterug led from the entrance allthe way to a desk that satdirectly in front of thestaircase. She fiddled with

paperwork and wrotesomething in a book, whichhintedthatshewasmorethanlikelythekeeperofthegrandlibrary.

Varg approached her asquietly as he could, andasked, “I'm looking for astudentnamedOliva.”

Thewomanlookedupandblinked when she saw Varg,then said, “What businessdoes a man like you have

withastudent?”Varg ignored the tone in

her voice and replied, “I amhere to escort her toIronbarrow by the request oftheCount.”

He then showed herConley'spassand,thoughshestill gave him a suspiciouslook, she replied, “I willreturn shortly. Please have aseat.”

The woman left her post

and retreated into the doorbehindherwhileVarg,Milea,andErriltookseatsnearby.Afewminuteslater,thewomanemerged with another, mucholderwoman.

The second woman worerichgreenrobesandhadgrayhair thatwas tiedup in looseknot.Shegavethetrioasternlook and said, “My name isEmila Vahn, and I am theheadmistressof theAcademy

of Arcane Arts. I understandthat you wish to speak withmy apprentice, Oliva. May Iask what business you havewithher?”

Vargstoodupandsteppedforward. “Iwas hired by heruncle, Conley Rowan, toescort her back to his castle.Hewouldlikeforhertoleaveimmediately.”

“You will understand thatIamskepticalofLordRowan

hiring a group of individualsoff the street to escort hisniece to Ironbarrow?”MistressVahnreplied.

Varg didn't try to hide anannoyed sigh as he onceagain showed the pass, butMistress Vahn put her handup to stop him. “I know thatthe pass has beenauthenticated, but I still findit hard to believe that LordRonleywouldn'tsendhisown

menforsuchamission.”Before Varg could say

another word, Milea steppedup.“HeadmistressVahn,withall due respect, thecircumstances are veryserious and the Lord sent usonly because this is a veryurgentmatterthathetrustsusto handle. I can assure youthat Oliva will be safe withus.”

“With all due respect,”

Vahn replied, “I believe thatas her guardian I reserve theright to know why it isappropriatefortotalstrangersto demand I release Oliva tothem.”

“I apologize, but CountRowan requested that thisremain a private matter. Hewishes to explain things toOliva in person,” Mileareplied. “We have a letterfrom the Lord to give to

Oliva so that she mayauthenticate our visit aswell.”

Emila paused for amoment, then somberlyuttered, “Something'shappenedtohergrandfather.”

Varg straightened up andsaid, “Why would you saythat?”

“She'sbeenwritingtohimforawhilewithnoresponse.He always took the time to

contacther immediatelyevenfor simple conversation, butshe hasn't heard any wordfromhimsincehetoldherhewasgoingtoRivershire.Thatwas several weeks ago,”Emila explained. Varg andMileabothremainedsilent,atwhich point she nodded andsaid, “I see. I assume this isthe private matter in whichthe Lord wishes to speak toOliva about, so I will not

breathawordtoher.Sheisinmy study chambers at themoment working on her lastproject of the term, so Iwillbringyoutomeetwithher.”

Emila led them into thehigher floors of the school,where they saw variouspractice halls and corridorsfull of class rooms. Thehigher floors were quieter,and it could be assumed thatthosewerethelivingquarters

forstudents.At thetopfloor,sheveeredrightandledthemto a door on the end. Theheadmistressopenedthedoorto reveal a large study insidewhere a petite young ladydarted back and forth frombookshelftobookshelf.

“Oh dear, where is thatvolume on fireenchantments?” the girlmutteredfrantically.

“Oliva,youhavevisitors,”

Emilasaid.Thegirl turnedtofacethe

headmistress with curiousblue eyes. Thin, reddishblonde hair hung over hernarrow shoulders and framedher fair face. When she sawVarg and his comrades, shetiltedher head as if trying toplacetheirfaces.

“Iamsorry,butdoIknowyou?”Olivaaskedwithasoftvoice.

Varg cautiously steppedforward and replied, “Youdon't.Yourunclehiredmetoescortyoutohishome.”

Oliva eyed him curiously,almostasifsheweretryingtoread his mind to find out ifwhat he said was indeed thetruth.Witha tiltofherhead,the girl wondered aloud,“What could be so importantthat Uncle Conley would hehire complete strangers to

fetchmefromschool?”“It'sallinthisletter,”Varg

said,pulling the sealedpaperfromhispouch.

Oliva accepted the paper,release the seal, and read insilence.She took longer thanany of them had expected,almost as if she reread thepaper several times. It wasclear that the inquisitive girlhad a keen eye for detail inevery situation.After several

minutes, Oliva finally foldedthepaperandsaid,“Yes,thisis my uncle's seal andhandwriting,butheonlysayshe needs to speak to meurgently.Curiousindeed...”

“Your uncle asked us notto reveal anything until heand your aunt have a chanceto speak with you,” Vargreplied.

Oliva pondered in silence,asiftryingtosearchhermind

for a correct answer. Whenshe was satisfied, she finallyanswered,“Idohateto leaveschool so suddenly, but ifUncle says it'surgent, Ihaveno cause to distrust hisreasons.”

“You'll come with us,then?”Vargasked.

Olivanodded.“Yes, and Isuppose we should leaveimmediately if the situationtrulyisurgent.”

“Traveling at night wouldbe far too dangerous,” theheadmistress objected. “Iwouldhighlyrecommendthatyou wait until morning.Besides, I'msureyourguestsaretiredfromtheirtrip.”

“I suppose,” Olivaconceded, “but I want toleaveatthecrackofdawn.”

“We can do that,” Varganswered.

“At thevery least, I could

finishmyworkbeforeIretirefor the evening,” Oliva said.“NowifIamtoleaveschoolandtraveltoIronbarrowwithpeopleI'venevermet,couldIat the very least know yournames?”

“Myname isVarg,”Vargreplied. He then gestured tohis comrades and added,“ThisisMileaandErril.”

Oliva'seyeswidenedatthesight of Milea. “My

goodness, you're an elf! Ihave never met one of yourkindbefore.Howintriguing!”

Milea gave a nervousshrugandreplied,“Iamonlyhalf-elf.”

“Even still, I find yourlanguage and your culturefascinating,” Oliva cried.“My family has studied thelanguageforgenerations.”

“How interesting,” Mileasaidwithasmile.

Emila then approachedVarg and said, “There is aninn near the entrance to theCommons District. ShowthemLordConley's pass andtheyshouldallowyoutostayfornocharge.”

“Thank you,” Vargreplied.

“Iwillsendwordtoyouinthemorningonce Iamreadytoleave,”Olivasaid.

“Very well,” Varg told

her. “We will set outimmediatelyafter.”

“Of course. It was apleasure tomeet all of you,”Olivasmiled.

“Likewise,” Milea repliedwithasmile.

Oliva then turned back toher work after she found thebook she was searching for.After the headmistress gavethem directions to the inn,Varg and his crew then left

thegirltoherstudiesandleftthe Academy just as the sunwentdown.

Emila Vahn had always

seenOlivaasamodelstudentwith a bright future. Hercurious nature gave her thedrive to learn things moststudents only ever dreamedof. The girl had theintelligencetoleadtheschoolherself someday, and the

headmistress took everymeasure to ensure shereachedherhighestpotential.If therewas one thingEmilataughtOlivaaboutleadership,itwasthat leaderssometimeshadtomakesacrificesforthegreater good. It was a cruelresponsibility, one she onlyhoped Oliva wouldunderstand.

Emila left Oliva in herstudy to finish her work and

once the bounty hunters hadleft the school, she took adoor down the top floorcorridor that led to adifferent, lesserknownsetofstairs. The stairs led town adark, empty tower and thecreakingof theoldstepswasthe only sound that could beheard.To seewhere shewasgoing, the headmistresssummoned a ball of light toguideher.Sheclimbeddown

to the bottom floor and thenintoanundergroundchamber.

Emilalookedtothecornerof the chamberwhere amansatatatable.Shetookastepout of the shadows and said,“We have a problem. CountRowan has discoveredLionel's fate and sent theWhiteWolfandhiscomradesto fetch Oliva. She's set toleave at dawn, so you willhave to make the grab

tonight,Tain.”Tainsheathedthebladehe

wastwirlinginhishandsandreplied, “Good, I hatewaiting.”

CHAPTER10

RAINPOUREDFROMTHENIGHT SKY as Oliva, withonlythedimlightofacandletoguideher,struggledtostayawake to finish her project.Shesilentlyadmittedthatshenormally could have finishedmuch sooner, but the past

day's events kept her curiousmind occupied. First shewroteyetanotherlettertohergrandfather in the morning,then threecomplete strangersarrive to tell her that UncleConleydesiredherimmediatepresence at his castle. Shehad no idea why her unclewouldhire bountyhunters tofetch her, but she read theletter several times over andshe had faith that he had a

sound reason for trustingstrangerswithhersafety.

Withaquickstrokeofherquill, Oliva put the finishingtouches on her paper. Shecleanedoffherquill,replacedthecapontheinkbottle,andlooked over what she'd justwritten on the parchment.Normally, she would haverewritten this, but given thecircumstances of having totravel early in the morning

and that it would take toolongtowritethepaperagain,shegrudginglydecideditwastimetostop.Sheblewontheinkuntilitwasdry,rolledupher parchment, and placed itonMistressVahn'sdesk.Shethenpackedherquillandinkbottle back in the case hergrandfather had given her,replaced the books she wasborrowing onto theirrespective shelves, and

packedherownnotesintohersatchel.

As Oliva reached for hercandle to return to herchamber, she could havesworn she caught sight of adark figure moving in thecornerofhereye.Sheshinedhercandle in thedirectionoftheshadow,butsawnothing.She reasoned that she wassimply tired and her mindwasplayingtricksonher,but

she still couldn't shake theoddfeelingthatsomeonewaswatchingher.

Oliva emerged fromMistress Vahn's study andlocked the door with herspare key. The dark corridorseemed eerie with thepounding rain, but she wasconfident that her candlewould provide enough lighttoseehertoherchamber.Sheapproached the staircase and

climbed down to the fourthfloor, where the girls' livingquarters were. She emergedfrom the stairs on the fourthfloor and walked down thecorridor towards the towerdoor when she spottedanother shadowmoving. Sheturned sharply to the left toinvestigate, but again sawnothing.Despiteher constantreminding herself that shewasjustimaginingthings,she

could have sworn she heardsnickering.

Asherheartstartedtobeatfaster, Oliva picked up herpace until she heard atrickling sound. It soundedliketherainleakingthroughawindow, butOliva didn't seeany windows open. Thetrickling soon turned into agush, and Oliva noticed thatwater was starting to spreadin a large puddle across the

floor. The puddle grewbigger,blockingOliva'spath.She backed away from thewater,butitseemedtofollowher every movement. To herfurther shock, thewater thenrose from the ground andbegantotakeshapeinmidair.

Withoutasecond thought,Olivadroppedeverythingandran from the cursed water.She heard the gushingcontinuebehindher,as if the

waterwaschasingher.Itwasso dark that she couldn't seewhere she was going exceptfor when lightning struckoutside.Shefinallyfoundthestairs and ran up to the fifthfloor.Shesomehowmanagednot to trip in the dark andwhenshefoundthetopofthestairs, she ran towardsMistressVahn'schambers.

Oliva didn't make it thatfar. The water wrapped

around her feet andsomethinginthewaterpulledher feet backwards andknocked her to the floor.Oliva splashed into a puddleas thewaterbegan to retreat.She turned onto her back,propped up with her elbows,just in time to see a figuresolidifying out of the waterandstandingoverher.

The water formed thefeatures of a man with dark,

scarred skin.His pale blondehairfelloverpointedearsandhis blue and gray armormaterialized soon after. Thelast thing to form were hissharp, aqua-colored eyes.Thoughshewanted togetupandrun,herbodywasfrozenandunresponsive.

The mysterious manpulled her to her feet andmuttered,“Don'tscream.”

Oliva did scream, and it

was the last thing sheremembered before a sharppain in the back of her headmadehervisiongodark.

Varg's sharp instincts

saved him from death onmultipleoccasions.Itwasdueto this fact that when heawoke with a start in themiddleof thenight, heknewsomething was wrong. TheroomwasdarkandMileaand

Erril slept soundly in theirown beds, but Varg sensedthat something was amissdespite the apparent peace.The streets outside were fartoo quiet and the nightseemed darker than it shouldhave.

VarglookedtoMilea'sbedto see her chest rising andErril seemed just as well onthe next bed over, so Vargallowed himself to breathe

again. Just when he wasabout to dismiss his feelingthat something was wrong,Varg heard the floor creak.He reached for Frost Fang,which was rested against thewallnexttohisbed.Oncehefelt thecoolmetalhandle,hefirmly gripped it and swungin theairbeforehimwithallhismight.

FrostFang'sbladecollidedwith a black figure that

lunged for him with a knifedrawn. He halted theattacking cultist a meresecond before his bladereached Varg's throat. Thedead cultist tumbled acrossthe room inabloodiedmess,causing Milea and Erril towake from their deepslumber.

“What's going on?”Mileasaidasshehoppedoutofbed.

“A Shadow Hand cultist

just tried to kill me,” Vargexplained.

Milea followed hispointing finger to the lifelesscultist across the room, thensaid, “If theShadowHand isinBalik,Olivaisindanger!”

“We have to find herbefore they do,” Varg said.“Let'sgo.”

Once the crew grabbedtheir equipment, they rushedoutoftheinnandignoredthe

questioning glares from theinnkeeper. They made hasteto the CrownDistrict, wherethey rounded the corners ofthe tall buildings until theyfound the courtyard of theAcademy.Thecourtyardwasempty except for a fewguards patrolling the area.There were no evident signsof cultist activity from theoutside, but Varg had afeeling they should keep

looking. He decided to startbyaskingoneoftheguards.

Varg approached a guardstationedinfrontofthewaterfountain. “Everything allright?”

The guard eyed Vargsuspiciously, but answered,“Nothing out of theordinary.”

Varg continued, “Youhaven't seen any suspiciouscharacters wandering about

the school property, haveyou?”

The guard lookedVarg inthe eyes and said accusingly,“Asamatteroffact,Ihave.”

Milea pulled Varg awayby the arm, then said to theguard, “Sorry to bother you,Sir.We'llbeonourway.”

“You do that,” the guardremarked.

Varg marched away fromthe guard with Milea at his

side and Erril trailed behindthem. He finally looked toMileaandsaid,“Whatnow?Idoubt the other guards willlisten, much less grant usentryintotheschool.”

“The spells protecting theschool wouldmake sneakinginnotanoption,letalonethegargoyles. If we snooparound outside, we mayarouse more suspicion fromtheguards,”Mileaexplained.

“Then what should wedo?”Errilwondered.

Varg let his eyes wonderaround the grounds oncemore, desperate to find somekind of hint. At first he sawnothingbut theguardsagain,but a sharpmovement to theeast end of the yard caughthis eye.He pointed towherehe saw the movement andsaid,“Overthere.”

Varg rushed to the site of

theoddity,whichledhiseyestoastrangeglowfrombehindpartoftheschool.Hesawthefigureofamanmoveneartheglow and step down a set ofstairs and disappear fromsight. He crept towards thelight and crouched as he gotcloser.He tookahiding spotbehindawallnexttoasetofstairs.Mileacrouchedbehindanother wall opposite Vargand Erril crouched down

beside her. They peekedaround the corner andsurveyedthescene.Thestairsdippedintoasmallerareathatseemed fairly unused bystudents,but the scenerywasnotwhatcaughthisattention.

A group of cultists stoodtriumphantwith thewaterelfthey had seen at the hideoutin Wild Valley. Tain stoodwith none other than Olivaunconscious in his arms. To

Varg's shock, not tomentionire,EmilaVahn stoodbeforethecultistsandspoketothemas if she were scoldingstudents.

Theheadmistresstiltedhernoseupwardandlookeduponthe cultists with contempt asshespoke,“Itoldyoutokeepit quiet!Nowhalf the schoolis up and about looking forher!”

“I toldhernot toscream,”

Tainremarked.“If you don't want the

Serpant'splantogoawrythenyou'd better get out of Balikwiththegirlbeforetheguardscatchyou,”Emilabarked.

Varg's blood boiled at thesightofEmilaspeakingaboutOliva as if she were a tool.His knuckles tightenedaround Frost Fang's handlethatthemetalshaftthreatenedto shatter. Varg exchanged a

glance with Milea, whonodded inhisdirectionalongwith Erril. Varg nodded inreturn, and all at once theychargedintothescene.

Vargmarched straight forEmilaandspat,“Youtraitor!”

The headmistress and thecultists jerked their heads insurpriseattheambushers,butTainseemedindifferent.

“I should have knownbetter than to send Rokir to

handle those three. The foolcouldn't handle getting intothe district without someonegiving him directions,” thewaterelfmuttered.

Emila ignoredhis remarksand shouted, “What are youthreedoinghere?”

“Ithinkthebetterquestioniswhyareyoubetrayingyourown apprentice to theSerpent?”Vargcountered.

Theheadmistressstuckup

hernoseagain,agesturethatmadeVargwant to rip it offher facewith his bare hands,andsaid,“Idon'texpectyourkind to understand mymethods nor do I under anycircumstance owe you anexplanation.”

“Nothing can justifyselling your own apprenticeto the Shadow Hand!” Vargspat.

Tain stepped forward and

interrupted, “If everyone isdonehere,perhapswecanbeonourway?”

“You aren't goinganywhere until you releaseOliva,”Vargcountered.

“I believe I made myselfratherclear,”Tainretorted.

“AsdidI,”Vargbarked.“AsmuchasIwouldlove

spending hours arguing withyou,Idon'thavetimeforit.Ihave a job to do and the

Serpentisnotapatientman,”Tainreplied.

Tainnodded tooneof thecultists,and thecultistpulledacrystal fromhispocketandtossed it against a nearbywall. Insteadof bouncingoffthewallandontotheground,thecrystaldisintegrateduponimpactand in itsplace,a tallportalofpureshadowformedon the wall. Tain made amove towards the portal,

prompting Varg to chargeafterhim.

“Stop!”heyelled.Thewaterelf ignoredhim

and stepped through theportalwithOlivainhisarms.The remaining cultists fledthrough the portal behindhim. The portal remainedopen for a few seconds, butfaded away before Vargcouldfollowthem.

“Dammit!” Varg yelled.

Hethenofferedaswiftpunchto the wall where the portalhad been and left a crack inthestonework.

Varg then turned hisattention back to theheadmistress.Withfieryeyesandahandonhisblade,Vargcharge at Emila Vahn withthe full intent of ending herlife for her treachery. Theelder mage had her spellready as Milea whipped out

herbowandloosedanarrow.It missed the headmistress,but Erril used the resultingdistraction to land a sneakattack with her dagger. Thegirl landedadirecthitacrossthe headmistress's forearm,but an invisible barrierseemed to block the damageand prevent the dagger fromevenpiercinghersleeve.

Varg quickened his pacewhile the headmistress was

distracted and brought FrostFang to her proper position.When he was close enough,he swung at Emila with fullforce. The blade merelybounded off of a shield ofenergy created by theheadmistress before the blowlanded. Nevertheless Vargrounded for another attack.Allwasinvain,itseemed,asthe headmistress'smagicwasfar to powerful to penetrate

hershields.“Enough of this,” Emila

growled.With a jerk of her hands,

she struck Erril with alightning spell and sent thepoor child flying backwardslike a rag doll. Varg quicklychecked on the girl, saw shewas healing up, and returnedtobattle.AfterMileasufferedthe same fate as Erril, Vargdecided that he needed to

fightmagicwithmagic,sotospeak.Withhisfreehand,hethrew large icicles at Emila.The headmistress swiftlydodged the spears, but Vargcould tell that she wouldn'tlast long. Given his manyyears of practice with hisnatural skill, Varg hadbecome quick and deadlywithhisicypower.

Emilawasfarquickerthanshe seemed to be, almost

more so thanMilea or Erril.The battleground was soonbecoming a frozen tundrawithallthemissedshotsVarglet loose. The half-bloodplanned to use this to hisadvantage and waitedpatiently for theheadmistressto make a mistake. It camewhen she took a step on asheet of ice and slipped ontoherback.

Before the traitor could

collect herself enough tobegin a new spell, Vargpulled all of his powertogether and sent nearly adozen large icicles flying inher direction. Theheadmistress was still quickdespiteherdisorientationandmanagedtododgeallbutone.Emila howled in pain as thefinal frozen spear sliced herarm open. The headmistressstared in horror as the skin

around her wound blackenedwithfrostbiteandfrozesolid.With the sudden still ofbattle, she looked in Varg'sdirection and backed awayfromhim

“Whatkindofmonsterareyou?”shemutteredinterror.

Varg gazed upon thedamage he'd done andrealized that theheadmistresswouldhaveno furtheruseofher arm even if she were

healed before the frost bitekilled her. He wanted to sayhe didn't care, but a pang ofguilt tugged his gutnonetheless. The way hedelivered this fate withoutmercygaveVargachilldownhis spine, as he rememberedall too well what happenedthelasttime...

“What'sgoingonhere?”The guards from the

courtyard came rushing onto

the scene to discover theinjured Emila Vahn and herfoes, themanholdingagiantaxe and the now recoveredMilea andErril.Varg lookedat the headmistress and sawhermindworking.Beforethedread even hit him, Emilastruggled to her feet andcaught the guards' attentionandpointedafingerinVarg'sdirection.

“Guards, a student has

been abducted by hoodedassailants. These are theconspirators who lured herfrom the safetyof the schooland handed her over to theabductors,”Emilasaid.

“That'salie,”Vargspat.Emila ignored him and

continued, “I tried to stopthem,butIwastoolate.Thenthat monster tried to kill meso I wouldn't be able to sayanything. Arrest them,

quickly!”The guards readied their

weapons at the trio, thenMileaturnedtotheothersandsaid,“Run.”

Varg hesitated, to whichMilea responded, “We can'thelpOlivafromaprisoncell!Run!”

Varg cursed under hisbreath and made the wisechoice to retreat. Milea andErril followed him and the

guards began pursuit. Thesoundofanalarmhorncouldbe heard behind them, so hequickly picked up the pace.Varg spotted a nearby alleyand decided to lead hiscomrades through theminaneffort to shake off thepursuingguards.

“Does anyone know howwe can lose the guards?”Vargasked.

“Asamatteroffact,Ido,”

Erril said. “Just keeprunning.”

The girl stopped in hertracks, and revealed a smallorb from one of her pockets.She hurled the orb onto theground and it exploded onimpact,leavingtheentireareabehind them in a thick,inescapablecloudofsmoke.

The guards andheadmistress desperatelyhacked for air and tried in

vain to find theirway out ofthe forest of black smoke,which gave Varg and theothersthetimetheyneededtohide.

“Good thinking, Erril,”Varg said as they trotted outof sight behind a large stackofbarrels.

“What now?How canweleavethecitywithallofthoseguards looking for us?” Errilasked.

“FirstweneedtogettotheTrade District, then we canfigure out what to do fromthere,”Mileasuggested.

“I doubt the gate guardswill just let us walk rightout,”Errilretorted.

“Maybe there's anotherway,”Vargsaid.“Followmylead.”

Varg peeked around theside of the barrels and whenhe saw that everything was

clear, he gestured for MileaandErril tocross thealleytoa spot behind some crates.Once they followed hiscommand,hejoinedthemandcontinued to repeat thisprocessuntiltheywereintheCommonsDistrict.

WithVarg'slead,thethreecompanions carefully evadedtheguardsandkepthiddeninthe shadows.Milea used hermagictoshieldthemshoulda

guard venture too close totheir hiding place. A fewslumbering guards later, andthey soon made haste to theTradeDistrict.

“There aren't as manyguards here,” Milea said asthey hid in an alley a fewstreets away from the cityentrance.

Varg peeked around thecorner, looked back, andadded, “They don't seem to

belookingforuseither.”“Maybe they still think

we'reintheCrownDistrict?”Errilchimedin.

“Then there's hope,”Vargsaid. “If we can keep a lowprofile,maybeweangetpasttheguards.”

“Afteryou,”Mileasaid.Varg took the lead again

andmadehiswaytotheroadleadingtothecityentrance.Itwasn't long before they

started to hear voices inhushedtones,whichputVargon edge.He slowed his paceto listen in on theconversation, but he didn'thave to try hard to hear theshoutingthatsoonensued.

“I need to leave Baliknow!”

The familiar voiceassaulted Varg's ears and herounded the corner only toconfirmtheowner'sidentity.

Edric Greenwood stareddown the guard and shouted,“I am the Count ofRivershire,andIdemandyougrantmetherighttoleavethecityatonce!”

“Count or not, my ordersstill stand. There arecriminals on the loose, so nooneleavesorenterswithoutaquick caravan check,” theguardcountered.

It wasn't until he

mentioned it that Varg sawthe caravan near Edric thatcity guards were rummagingthrough.

“You would dare accuseme of harboring fugitives?”Edricfumed.

“Myordersstillstand,”theguardrepeated.

Vargshookhisheadatthesight of the pretentiousCount,buthishead suddenlyclearedwhen a fumingEdric

marchedawayfromtheguardandintotheirdirection.

“Everyone hide, quick!”Vargsaid.

Milea and Erril duckedbehindsomeanoldcartwhileVarg waited behind amerchant stand. Edricmarched into the alley,presumably to blow offsteam,andbegantopaceandmutter to himself about the“audacity”of thatguard.The

grumblingCountturnedawayfromVarg, giving the hunteran idea that could save hisand his friends' hides. Hegestured for Milea and Erriltostayhidden,thenhecarriedout one of the boldest plansheeverhatched.

Varglefthishidingspottocreep up behind the Count.Fortunately the nobleman'sranting drowned out anysound Varg made that could

havealertedhim,givingVargample opportunity to reachfrom behind him and coverthenoble'smouth.Edrictriedto scream, but Varg's handswere quick and muffled thesound. He grabbed Edric'shands and pulled him to thehiding place behind the cart,then Milea and Erril quicklyhelpedVargdetainhim.

Trapped like a piece ofgame, Edric began to shake

violently.Varg wasted no time and

looked the Count in the eyebefore muttering, “Make asound and your head willroll.”

The Count noddedfuriously with Varg's handstilloverhismouth.Oncehewas sure the Count wouldn'tdare scream for help, heremovedhishand.

Withhismouthfreeagain,

Edricthenstammered,“Whatareyoubrutesdoinghere?”

“The only important thingyou need to know is thatweneedtogetoutofthecityandyou'regoingtohelpus,”Vargreplied.

“Why would I do that?”Edricpressed.

All Varg had to do wasdraw Frost Fang, and theCount started talking again.“Even if I wanted to, I

couldn't.”“You owe us after what

youdidinRivershire,”Mileaargued.

“Are you still on aboutthat?”Edricremarked.

Varg ignored hiscomment.“Ihaveaplan,andit involves you smugglingusout of the city in yourcaravan.”

“The guards are searchingit as we speak, so that plan

will never work,” Edricrebuked.

“They'researching itnow,butthere'snoreasontosearchittwice,”Vargsaid.

“Whatever you areplotting,Iwon'thaveanypartof it,” the Count saiddefiantly.

“Oh you will, otherwisemy axe will taste yourblood,”Vargsaid.

Edric studied Varg, then

said,“Iwilldo itonly ifyouswearIwon'tbeharmedonceyouhavenouseforme.”

“You have my word,”Varg growled, although itwas a promise he wished hedidn'thavetokeep.

“Fine, tell me your plan,”Edricmuttered.

Varg and Milea crept by

the city wall with a largestone in his hand, aswashis

part inthedaringescapehe'dplanned out with hiscomrades. With the guardspatrollingthegateandthetopof thewall, theyhadnowayofsneakingout.Therefore, itwasonlyreasonabletogetridof theseobstacles inorder toleave the city of Balikwithout fault. All Vargneeded was a signal tocontinue, and his planwouldsoonbegin.

The signal came whenErril's shouted from a fewstreets away, “Help! Guards,comequick!”

The guards around thecaravan stopped in theirtracks and shot off in thedirectionofErril'scries.Oncethey were out of sight, Vargtossedhisstoneoverthewall.He heard it smash onto therocks on the other side andevidently the guards heard

too, for they immediatelyranoff to thesourceof thenoiseto investigate. Pleased withhis plan's success, Vargrushed to the street withMileafollowing,whereEdricdiverted his driver's attentionawayfromthestowaways.

Varg opened the caravandoor and allowed Milea toenter before hopping inhimself.Withinseconds,Erriljumped inand tookaseaton

thebenchacrossfromthem.“Sorryaboutthat,Milord,”

one of the guards said. “Weheardafalsealarm.”

“Am I cleared to leavenow, or do youwish to takemy caravan apart first?” theCountremarked.

Varg clenched his fists,hoping for Edric's sake thatthiswasn'tatricktogetthemdiscovered, but fortunatelythe guard said, “No Milord,

youarecleartoleaveBalik.”“Very good,” Edric

huffed.TheCountsteppedintothe

caravanafewmomentslater,and the caravan began tomove a few seconds afterthat. Edric never took hiseyesoffofFrostFang,whichsatproudly in its owner's lapasareminderfortheCounttokeep his end of the deal. Afew minutes past, and Varg

dared to peek out of thecaravan door to see thesplendid city of Balikgrowing smaller in thedistance.

CHAPTER11

AN HOUR HAD PASSEDSINCE the daring escapefromBalik justice, and Vargcould already see the dawnlight peeking through thecracks in the caravan door.Hehadn'trealizedthetimeofnight when he and his

comradesfirstlefttheinn,butdepsite his lack of sleep hehardlyfelt tired.Edricontheotherhand,seemedtoalwayslooktired.

The Count finally huffedtobreakthesilence,thensaid,“Are you quite ready toleave?”

“Get your driver to stopthecaravan,”Mileaordered.

Greenwood scowled, butobeyed her command and

said loudly, “Stop thecaravan.”

“As you wish, Milord,”theyheardthedriversay.

The caravan came to anabrupt halt and jolted thepassengers around, then theyheard footsteps approachingthedoor.Vargandtheothershoppedoutofthecaravanjustas the driver rounded theback.

When the caravan driver

saw them, he tensed up anddrew his dagger. “What isthis?Whoareyou?”

Without a word, Vargapproached the driver andmade a fist. He delivered asharpblowtothebackoftheconfused man's head andwaited. The driver's eyelidstwitched, then closed as hefellforwardsontotheground.

WhenGreenwood steppedoutside and saw his caravan

driver facedown in the dirt,hebecameutterlydefiantandsaid,“Whatisthemeaningofthis?Didyoukillmydriver?”

“Don't worry, he's onlyknockedout.Wecan'tlethimget in the way of ourbusiness,”Vargadded.

“What business?” theCountpressed.“Ithoughtyouweregoingtoletmego?”

“We will, but first you'regoing to answer our

questions,”Mileaanswered.“I'lldonosuchthing.”“Don't test me,” Varg

warned.“It'syour faultwe'rein this mess and now you'regoingtohelpusandOlivagetoutofit.”

Edric 's expressiondropped. “Lionel'sgranddaughter?Ishouldhaveknownshewasthetarget.”

“You knew about thekidnapping?”Vargasked.

“That'swhyIwasinBalikin the first place,” Edricexplained. “I haveconnections in thecityand itwas my job to help theassassins enter Balik. Theyhadanotherconnectionintheschooltolettheminthere.”

“The headmistress,” Vargreplied.

“Emila? I can't say I'msurprised,” the Countremarked.

“So why were you tryingto leave in a hurry if youknew about the ShadowHand?”Mileaasked.

“Ifyoumustknow,”Edricbegan, “I was awake lastnight to await confirmationthat thecultistshadmadethegrabandwereoutofthecity.I happened to look outsideand saw the guards runningabout, then I heard themshouting about the arrest

warrant for a largemanwithwhitehair,anelfwoman,andachild.Iknewonlyonemanwithwhitehairwithanelfinhis company, so Iwas tryingto leave before youdiscovered I was there. Inhindsight, ifIhadjuststayedput I would be dreaminghappily in a bed with satinsheets and you would berotting in a Balik cellawaiting your well-deserved

fate.”“Enough,” Varg

interrupted. “Now that that'sout of the way, we need toknow why Oliva wasabducted.”

“What makes you think Iknowwhy?”Edricremarked.

“You helped the ShadowHand kidnap a student andyou didn't even knowwhy?”Mileasaid.

“Unlike some people I

know not to interfere or askquestions where I don'tbelong,”Edriccountered.

“Then why do you offerhelp to the Shadow Hand?”Vargdemanded.

“Becausetheyaren'tafraidto get their hands dirty so Idon't have to. There's beentalkofpeoplequestioningmyrighttoruleRivershire,sotheShadow Hand assures thatthese only result in mere

whispers of rebellion. Inreturn,theyhavefreereigntodo what they see fit inRivershire'sland,”Edricsaid.

“Youmusthavesomeideawhat the Shadow Hand is,otherwise you wouldn't havemade the trouble to come allthe way from Rivershire,”Mileasaid.

The Count looked up andstared into space, and whenhe had an apparent idea, he

lookedbackattheothersandsaid, “Well, I do know thatthe Lerington family oncetended to an Elvish shrinesomegenerationsago,butit'sfallen into disrepair. Lionelmentioneditwhenhecametomeandsaidthecultistsaskedhimabouttheshrine.”

“Why would a Count ofFellen have ties to an Elvishshrine?”Vargasked.

“Hundreds of years ago,

the heir of the Leringtonfamily married an Elvishpriestess. She brought anancient artifact of Laelithwithherandclaimedshewasentrustedwith it'ssafety.Herhusband built the shrine soshe could lock it away.Onlyher blood could open theshrine, and her descendentsafter that carried on thetradition until about eightyyearsago,whenabanditraid

all but destroyed the oldtemple,”theCountexplained.

“The Shadow Hand musthave tried to get Lionel toopentheshrine,butnowthathe's gone they needOliva todo it,”Mileareasoned.“Thatalso explains why theirfamily could read and writeElvish.”

“Where is the shrine?”Vargasked.

TheCountrolledhiseyes.

“It's a short walk from theriver south of here. Justfollow the trail leading fromthe river and it's on top of ahill.Now ifwe're done here,thenIshallbeonmyway.”

“Not yet,” Varg said. “Ihaveonemorequestion.”

Edric sighed. “I growboredofthisgame.”

Varg grumbled, butcontinued, “Who is theSerpent?”

“Excuseme?”“You heard me,

Greenwood. Who is theSerpent?”Vargrepeated.

Edric sighed again, butthis time it lacked theannoyanceithadbefore.“I'veonlymethimonce,but Icanassure you that it's anencounter that I will neverforget.TheSerpentkeepshisidentity a secret to everyoneexcept for a select few, and

even then only his closestfollowersareallowedtoevenrefer to him by his name. Ihappen to know his nameonly because one of hisfollowers let it slip in mypresence.”

“Sowhat is it?What's theSerpent'sname?”Vargurged.

Greenwood stared at him,then ruefully answered, “It'sJin. The Serpent's name isJin.”

“Jin? That's an unusualname,”Mileasaid.

“I've heard that he's fromsomewhereacrossthesea,butnotevenhisclosestfollowersknow for sure. I honestlydon't even knowwhat he is,much less where he's from,”Edricsaid.

“What do you mean?”Vargasked.

“Jin isn't exaclty human,”Edric explained. “He has a

face you only see innightmares, the kind of facethat haunts your mind andsets the standards for yourworst fears. Ican'texplain it,andI'drathernotreliveit,sothat's all I will say on thematter.”

“Verywell,there'snothingmore I need from youanyway,” Varg said. “Aspromised,you'refreetogo.”

The Count finally relaxed

and straightened his posture.“Well it's about time.Domeafavoranddon'trunintomeagain. I have enough to dealwith.”

“Don't push your luck,”Varg remarked, “because Ipromise if I see you again, Iwon'tspareyou.”

Without another word,Varg,Milea,andErrillefttheCount to his caravan andunconsiousdriver.

Once they were clear outof earshot,Erril trotted up toVarg and said, “You shouldhavekilledhim.”

Varg admitted to himselfthat she was right, but hesimplyresponded,“Igavemyword, and no matter what, Ineverbreakmyword.”

“Do you think he wastelling the truth about theshrine?”Mileaasked.

Varg shrugged. “Even if

he wasn't, his information istheonly thingwehave togoon.WehavetofindOlivanomatterwhat,soI'llfollowanyleadIget.”

By the time the sun set,

Varg,Milea, and Erril foundtheriverbendsouthofBalik.They turned eastward fromthereandfollowedthenearbyhill as instructed until theycame across the ancient ruin

of an Elvish shrine. Afterdecades of abandonment, thecrumbling walls of thestructure nowmade home tovines and brush. Cricketschirped in the dark and theslithering sound of snakesechoed from the dirt. Dimlights from within the ruingaveawaythattheywerenotalone.

“They're here, all right,”Vargwhispered.

“What's our plan?” Errilasked.

“Tread lightly. We don'tknow how many of ourfriendsarewaitinginsideorifthey have anymore trickswaitingforus,”Vargadvised.

“What about Oliva? Howdo you expect to get her outofharmsway?”Errilpointedout.

“I don't know yet,” Vargsaid, “but I'll figure

somethingoutoncewehaveabetter idea of what we're upagainst.”

Vargtooktheleadandtheotherscoveredhisflankasheapproachedthedecrepitdoorsthat once opened into thetemple. Once inside, it wasclearthatthearchitecturewasof Elven origin. Severaldelicate runes were etchedinto the once white stonewalls.Therewerealsomurals

depicting ancient Elvishpeople. Varg noticed theirprominent pointed earsmuchlikeMilea's, only theirswerelonger. Upon reaching theendofthefirstcorridor,therewasawalldirectlyinfrontofVarg with another muraldepicting several more elvesbowing down to a larger elfwoman in the middle.Enveloped in light, the elfwomangazedgentlyuponthe

elveswithasmuchadorationastheyofferedher.

“That is the goddess,Laelith,motheroftheelves,”Milea explained. “She wasknown for her wisdom andlove for the elves,whomshecalledher'children.'”

Varg didn'tmuch care fordeities,butmerelyresponded,“Ineverknewtheelvesweresoreligious.”

Mileanodded.“TheGrand

Temple is a central point oftheentireElvishkingdomandthe oldest standing structureintheCrystalWood.”

Behind the wall, thepathway continued on theright. Varg continued in thefront and led his comradesinto the unknown. Oncebehind the wall, he enteredanother corridor and saw theglowagain.Hethenbegantohearmuffledmalevoicesand

was sure that Milea couldhearthemtoo.

“Lookslikewearegettingclose,”hewhispered.

He placed his main handon the handle of his axe andreadied himself for battle ashe slowed his pace and triedto make out what the voicesinside were saying.Within afewminutes,heheardwhohewas certain was Tain and afemale voice, more than

likelyOliva's,whoseemedtobe pleading with the firstvoice. Then a third,unfamiliar voice thatsomehow made Varg uneasycame.

“Shrine...yourbloodline. . .what I seek,” is allVargcould discern from themysteriousvoice.Vargdidn'tknow what told him, but hewas almost certain that thisvoicebelonged tononeother

thantheSerpent.Varg came upon a

stairwell stretching from thedirect path and had a stronghunchheshouldtakeit.He'dlongsincelearnedtotrusthisinstincts, so he beckoned theothers to follow him. Thestairs led to a second floorthat seemed to support theirweight despite the witheredstone, so the three creptcautiously and found a

balcony overlooking a roomofworship.

Though the roof hadcrumbled and littered debrison the ground below, thechamber still retained abrilliance that few ruinspreserved. A round platformwas raised by steps on allsides andon theplatformsatanaltarwithstrangesymbolson it. In the middle of theroom stood Tain, who held

Oliva'sarmsbehindherback,half a dozen cultists whowaitedobedientlyandorderlyto the side of the room, andthen another, much moremysteriousman.

The last entity, whomVarg could only assumewastheSerpent,garbedahoodedwhite robe with a violet andgraysashunderabeltholdingastrangebladeinasheathonhis left side. Although Varg

could not see the Serpent'seyesunderhiswhitehood,hecouldseehispalelipscurvingintoatwistedsmile.

“Dear Oliva, all I requireis your cooperation and youmaywalk free this evening,”the Serpent said smoothly.His eerie voice gave Varg asick feeling in his stomachand it seemed he wasn't theonlyone.

“Something is horribly

wrong about him,” MileawhisperedinVarg'sear.

Varg couldn't deny herwords to be true and noddedinresponse.

“Why do you needme toopen the vault?” Olivapressed.

“Your family sealedsomethingofgreat interest tome in the vault to protect itfromthosewhowouldmisuseit. Sadly your grandfather

wouldnotcooperatewithmyfollowers, and he paid theultimate price for it,” theSerpentsaid.

“What are you talkingabout? What happened tohim?”Olivacried.

TheSerpentsmiled.“Yourgrandfather intruded intobusinessthatwasn'this,sohehadtobetakencareofbeforeitgotoutofhand.”

“He's dead? No! It's not

true!”Varg's heart sank at the

sightofOlivabreakingdown.He wished that he'ddisobeyed Conley's requestnot to reveal Lerington's fateto Oliva, for at least shewouldn't have to find out insuchacruelway.

“Do not fret, dear, for hewas unworthy,” the Serpentpatronized. “I promise that ifyougivemewhatIdesirethis

night, there shall be a placeforyouintheDawn.”

It was then that themysterious message on thepaper found on Lerington'sbody rang through Varg'smindonceagain:

TheSerpentshallleadtheworthytotheDawn.

“My grandfather was a

wonderful man!” Oliva

argued.“My dear, you are in no

position to argue,” theSerpentwarned.

Oliva shook her headfuriously and struggled tobreak free of Tain's grasp.“Do you think I care whathappens to me? You killedmy grandfather! I won't giveyouanything!”

“I did not carry out thedeed myself, Oliva, but I do

notdenythathehadtodietoprotect our mission. TheShadow Hand have a nobledestinythatwillridtheworldof unworthy and weak-minded pests,” the Serpentreplied.“Iwillnothesitatetouseforcetoaccomplishthis.”

“Dowhatyoumust.Iwillnever submit to you,” Olivacountered.

TheSerpentheavedasigh.“Verywell, you leavemeno

choice.”The Serpent made a

gestureatTain,whoreleasedhisgriponOliva.Before shecould run, the Serpentgrabbedherarmandheldherin place.He placed a glovedhand on his hood, which inturn caused every cultist inthe room to drop to theirknees and bow before him.He then removed his hoodandlefttheroombreathless.

Though the Serpent hadslight human features, it wasclearthathewasacreatureofan ancient magnitude thatcouldstrikefeareveninthosewho lived on the battlefield.His skinwas sickly pale andrich,violet scales surroundedhiseyes,framedhisface,andtraveled down his neck. Hishairwas long, smooth, andapale shade of violet and fellarounddarkhornsthatcurved

with the shape of his head.His eyes were a frighteningshadeofgoldwith thins slitsforpupils,muchlikeasnake.

Oliva began to shakeviolently at the sight of theman known as the Serpent,which only made him offerher a twisted smile inresponse.

“You should be thrilled,”he hissed, “for only a selectfew are granted the privilege

to look upon the face of theSerpent!”

Oliva calmed herself andtried to hide her weakness,but Jin was not deterred. Hedragged her to the altar and,while holding her hand overthe concave part of the altarwith his hand, he revealed asmallknifefromhisrobeandimmediately slit her palmopen.

Oliva cried out in pain as

her blood dripped into theconcavity. To everyone'sastonishment save for theSerpent,thesymbolsbegantoglow and travel along thefloor towards the walldirectly behind the altar.Thesymbols twisted and danced,taking the shape of anarchway. Once the glowingsymbols stilled, an openingformed between them,revealinganothercorridor.

“Excellent,” the Serpenthissed.

He shoved Oliva backtowards Tain, who thencaught her and held her inplace.

“You said you would letmego!”Olivaargued.

Jin simply stared at herand answered, “I don't knowwhat awaits us in the InnerSanctum of this temple. Asfar as I'm aware, Imayneed

your blood again yet. Itwould thereforebeunwise torelease you until I know forsure.”Jinturnedtotherestofthe cultists and added, “Youwill wait out here for us toreturn.”

The Serpent marchedthrough the open door withTain following with Oliva.She desperately struggled tobreak free, but to no avail.Tain kept his grasp firmly

aroundherarms.Varg searched frantically

for an idea. Oliva was incertain danger now, but nowthat she was separated fromthe other assassins, Vargknewtheywereopen targets.His mind worked quick andspunupaplan,thenheshotaglance toMilea,whonoddedinreturn.

Thehalf-elfquicklyarmedherself with her bow and

nocked an arrow. Shecarefully took aim, thenlooked back to Varg andawaitedhissignal.WithFrostFang ready before him andErrilbrandishingherdaggers,Varg nodded toMilea again.She loosed her arrow andbeforeitpiercedthethroatofhertarget,thethreedivedoutof their hiding places andchargedintobattle.

CHAPTER12

THE CULTISTS WEREIMMEDIATELY caught offguardbytheambush,soVargseized themoment bymadlyslashing Frost Fang throughthecultists.Thehoodedthugshadno time to bleed as theirwoundsfrozewherethegreat

axe's blade contacted theirskin. The frostbitten woundsspread and poisoned theblood of the cultists, giventhem a quick, but agonizingdeath.

“I want your weapon,”Erril called to Varg fromabove. She and Milea thendropped from the balconyonto the ground belowwithoutmissingabeat.

“Now that the cultists are

taken care of, we need tofigure out how to rescueOliva,”Mileasaid.

“Let'sgo,”Vargsaid.The trio ventured into the

archway,whichledtoanotherdarkened corridor. Ahead ofthem, Varg could hear theSerpent speaking, so he heldFrostFang in frontofhim topreparetoblockandcarefullyinchedforwardashebegantoseelightaroundacorner.

Before long, Varg couldmakeoutJin'swords.

“It's not here either,” Jinsaidwithahintofdisdain inhisvoice.

Varg held a hand out tohaltMileaandErrilbeforehepeeked around the corner.The Serpent stood near theback of the wall where astrangegemsatonapedestalon another raised platform.Tain stood near the foot of

the platform with Oliva stillinhisgrasp.

“So what now?” Tainasked.

“The Lerington familyapparently guarded yetanotherforgery,sothegirl isno longerof anyuse tome,”the Serpent responded. Hethen nodded in Oliva'sdirection and said,“Therefore, she must bedisposedof.”

“Youwantmetokillher?”Tainasked,thoughitsoundedmorelikeinprotest.

“Is there a problem?” theSerpentreplied.

“I was only supposed tokidnap her. Killing her wasnot part of the deal,” Tainsaid.

The Serpentwalked up toOliva, released her fromTain's grasp, and pulled hertowards the platform. Once

on the top step, he looked atTainandsaid,“ThenyouwilltakecareofourguestswhileIdispose of this one.” Varg'sheartskippedabeat,atwhichpoint the Serpent added,“Youmaycomeoutofhidingnow,Wolf.”

Vargdidn'tseethepointinhiding anymore, so with hisbattleaxeinhand,hemarchedinto the chamberwithin Jin'ssightagainsttheprotestsfrom

Milea.The Serpent smiled again.

“That's better. Now howabouttherestofyou?”

MileaandErrilgrudginglysteppedoutoftheshadowstofacetheSerpent.

“Why you must be thehalf-elf who has beentravelingwiththeWolf,andIassume you are the girl thatescaped my fortress in WildValley,”Jinsaidtothem.

“Release the girl, Jin,”Vargcommanded.

Jin blinked, apparentlytaken aback that someonewould dare call him by hisname. “I do not believe wehave met, so it wouldn't beproperforyoutospeaktomesocasually.”

“Release the girl,” Vargrepeated, brazenly ignoringJin'sirritation.

“I cannot do that,” Jin

replied. “She has seen toomuchandcouldprovetobeathorn in my side like you. Iknowyouallright,thefamedWhite Wolf of the Tundra.Youhavebeeninterferingfartoomuch inmyaffairs and Ifeel Imustmakeanexampleofyou.”

Jin looked at Tain again.“Killthem.”

“Not until we renegotiateourdeal,”Tainreplied.

“Whymustyoumake thisdifficult,Tain?”Jinsighed.

“I am taking no furtheraction until we have anarrangement,”Tainsnapped.

“There is no room fornegotiations. You do the jobas I tell you or you getnothing,”Jinshrugged.

“You owe me for all theworkI'vedonethusfar,”Taingrowled.

“You really believe that

you have a right to tell theSerpent what he must do?”Jinasked.

“I am not below you asyou might think,” Tainargued.

“Oh but you are,” Jintaunted.“Youfollowedallofmy orders so willingly untilnow.YouwerewillingtokillsomanyothersformeandallIhadtodowaswaveabagofgold in your face, like a

master tempting his houndwithachopofmeat.”

Then Tain mutteredsomething in a foreignlanguagethatVarghadneverheard, though by the tone inthewaterelf'svoice,heknewitwasnothingpleasant.

“Calm your language,Tain. Your words are emptytome.All thatmatters is theDawn and those worthyenough to live for it,” Jin

said.“What does it mean?”

Varg interrupted. “'TheSerpentshall lead theworthyto theDawn.'Whatdoes thatmean?”

Jin glanced at Varg andreplied, “Only a chosenpeople are worthy enough tosee the Dawn. I have yet todeterminewhetherornotyouareworthy,Wolf.”

“My name is Varg. You

could at least get thatcorrect,”Vargcorrected.

“Very well, Varg,” Jinreplied.“Seeingthatmyonceloyal servant will not obeymy command to kill you, Ihavenochoice.”

Jin held Oliva closer tohimwithherbackagainsthischest, drew his hidden bladeagain,andheldittoherneck.

“Drop yourweapons,” Jinordered.

Varg growled, butcomplied. Frost Fang fellfromhishandsontothestonefloorwithaloudclank!Mileaalso removed her quiver,bow,andswordandfollowedsuit. Erril stared blankly, buta warning shot from Mileaprompted her to drop herbladesaswell.

“Verygood,”Jinsaidwithapleasedsmile.

Then he addressed Erril.

“You will come with me inherplace.”

Thegirl tookseveralstepsback,thenspat,“Iwillnot.”

“What do you want withher?”Mileaasked.

“My reasons aremy own,but I canassureyou shewillbe a guest of honor in myhall,” Jin said, with littlecomfort.

“I won't move until youtell me why you want me,”

Erril countered. Then sheadded, “Is it because of mypowers?”

Jin laughed. “All will beexplainedintime,child.Icanpromiseyou,though,thatyouwill have a far better lifewithout those wretched foolsholdingyouback.”

“If you want me to joinyou,forgetit,”Errilspat.

“IfyouwantOlivaheretolive, I suggest you comply,”

Jinwarned.“AndwhatifIdon'tcare?”

Errilsaid.“Erril!”Mileashouted.The girl looked at Milea

and replied, “Oh stop it,Milea! What use is there tocareaboutotherswhenothersdon'tcareaboutyou?”

“Icare.”EveryonequicklylookedtoOliva,whostunnedeven Jin by her suddencomment. The noble girl

cleared her throat and spokeagain. “I care about you,Erril.WhichiswhyIcan'tletyou go with the Serpent inmyplace.”

Before Jin could react,Olivabegantoemitastrangeaura from her body. Theenergy from her bodyreleased, which broke theSerpent's hold on her andgave her the opportunity torun. Oliva darted out of

danger before Jin couldgrabbed her again andMileastepped in front of her withher blade drawn to preventhimfromcomingnearher.

Jin straightened hisdemeanor and smiled again.“It would seem you caughtmeoffguard.I'llallowthattogo unpunished, as I'm shorton time and really must begoing.”

“You aren't escaping,

coward,”Vargspat.Jin laughed. “I wanted to

spareyouahorrible fate, butifyou insist, thenIwouldbemore thanhappy to lendyoumyblade.”

Varg brandished hisbattleaxe and chargedforward.Beforehecouldlandan attack, Jin pulled a long,strange sword from the sashon his robe to block. FrostFangcollidedwiththecurved

blade, but did no damage.Varg figured the swordmusthave magical qualities tostand up to his ownweapon.He swung the axe again, butJin easily blocked everyattack. Varg tried swingingharderinanattempttohinderJin'sholdagainsthim,butallitdidwasslowVargdown.

“How entertaining,” Jinhissed.

With a quick swipe of his

sword,JinslashedtheskinonVarg's upper arm when hetried to block. Varg tookseveral steps back in shock,for not many could drawblood on him so easily.Though he was startled bythis, Varg charged again,ready for whatever else theSerpentwouldthrowhisway.He was met by a strangeforcethatcamefromthepalmof Jin's hand. The dark force

halted the half-blood in histracks andheldhim inplace.Then with a wave of theSerpent's hand, Varg wasflung backwards carelesslyandlandedonhisback.

The air was knocked outofVarg'slungsandhisvisionmomentarily darkened. Itwasn't until he heard themetal of Frost Fang scrapeagainst the stone floor of thetemple that he recomposed

himself. He looked aroundand spotted the blade severalyards away against the wall.With no time to reclaim it,Varghoppedofandfacedhisattacker with bare fists. Hedodged another set of Jin'sshadows that slithered alongthe ground towards him andcounteredbylungingforwardagain. Desperate to gain theoffensive position, Vargloosed a large icicle towards

Jin.TheswiftfienddodgeditandeveryotheronethatVargsent his way, and it soonbecame apparent that Milea,Oliva, and Erril were faringnobetter.

Jin finally stopped in themiddle of the room andlowered his blade. Then hesighed and said, “I growbored of this little game. It'stimetoendthis.”

Jinsheathedhisswordand

began towavehishands inacircularmotionandchantinamysterious tongue. A ball ofpureshadowformedbetweenhis hands and grew rapidlywith every passing second.The energy from this corruptorb thinned the air and leftVarg and his companionsgaspingforair.

Jin stopped chanting andthe ball stopped growing.With one quick motion, Jin

released the built up energyuntohisfoes.

Varg instantly felt the lifedrain from his body. He fellto the ground expectingdeath,butonlyfoundhimselfweakened to the point ofbeing unable to move. Hemanaged to turn his headenough to see that hiscomrades suffered the samefate. He tried desperately toget up and rush to their aid,

butitwasnouse.Jin walked around the

roomandobservedwhathe'ddone. He no longer took anoffensivestance,whichmadeVarg wonder whether or nothe would kill them. Theanswer came when Jinchuckled and said, “I believeI've delivered the messageproperly.Noneedtostainmybestrobesbykillingyou.”

Varg was relieved, but it

didn't last. Jin soon pulledanother crystal from hispocket and tossed it to formanother portal against thenearby wall. Jin approachedthe portal, but before hewalked through, a familiarvoicesounded.

“We aren't done yet, Jin,”Tain said. The water elfwalked forward from hisresting spot against the wall.“You still owe me for my

services.”“Your services included

obeyingmy every command,which you did not,” Jincountered.

“Ifyoudon'tpayme,Iwillnothesitatetoexactrevenge,”Tainsaid.

“If you would truly raiseyour blade to me afterwitnessingthelessonItaughtthesewretches,thenyouareafool,” Jin said. “You are no

more than a mercenary forhirewhobloodiesyourbladefor coin. You are simply ameans to an end, and youknowyoucouldneverstandachanceagainstme.”

Tain stared daggers deepinto Jin's flesh. A stormbrewed behind his seacolored eyes and threatenedto drown the Serpent. Tain,however, stood his groundfirmly and vowed, “This is

notover.”“Yes it is, Tain,” Jin said

withasmile.Withthat,theSerpentthen

walkedthroughtheportalanddisappearedfromsight.

After a hazy recovery,

Vargwas finally able to risetohisfeet.Helookedovertohis companions and said, “Iseveryoneallright?”

While still on her back,

Erril moaned, “Could bebetter.”

Milea sat up and held herheadinthepalmofherhand.“I never want to experiencethatagain.”

“At least everyone issafe,” Oliva said groggily.“Whydidn'thekillus?”

“To send a message,”VargsaidasheheldahandtoErril to help her stand. “Hewants us to go out and tell

everyone about his immensepower.”

“If he's really that strong,thenwedon'tstandachance.No one does,” Errilcommented. “I say we quitnow while we still have thechance.

“I refuse to quit aftercomingthisfar,”Vargsaid.

“You're actually going tokeep fighting Jin after henearly killed you?” Erril

countered.“Inevergiveuponajob,”

Vargsaidwithpride.“Conleyhiredme to stop theShadowHand,andthat'sexactlywhatIintendtodo.”

Varg paused briefly toobserve the somberexpressions of his comrades,thencontinued,“Ifanyofyouwanttoquitnow,Iwon'tpassjudgement.”

“What exactly do you

hope to accomplish byundertaking this suicidalquest,Varg?”

Varg exchanged a glancewith his elf companion, thenhe sighed and answered.“Perhaps I could simply goback to being a bountyhunter,wanderingfortherestof my life. As much as Icould get by for as long as Idid, I can no longer accepthaving nothing to show for

mylifebesidesafewbeatupcriminals and beast headsadorning a noble's wall. Iwant to fight Jin and theShadowHand,andIknowit'smuchtoask,butIwantallofyoutojoinme.”

There was a brief pause,thenMilea said, “You reallythinkyoucanfindpurposebyrisking your life like this,Varg?”

“I know it doesn't make

sense,”Vargsaid.“Actually, I understand

your reasoning perfectly,”Mileareplied.

“Youwill joinme, then?”Varg asked with a hopefulheart.

Mileanodded.“Strangeasit is, I feel compelled tofollowyou.You and I are atour best when we sticktogether. I amwith you untiltheend,myfriend.”

Varg smiled. “Thank you,Milea.” He then turned toOliva and Erril and said, “Ipromise to see you bothsafely to Ironbarrow. Afterthat, you may do as youwish.”

Olivalookedtothegroundtimidly, then answered, “Itwould be a disgrace to mygrandfather's name if Iwithdrew from this misson.Therefore, Iwish to joinyou

in your quest to defeat theShadowHand.”

“Gladtohaveyouwithus,Oliva,” Varg said. Then heturned to Erril and added,“Whatsayyou?”

ThegirlstudiedVarg,thenanswered, “I think it's a badidea,butIneedtoknowwhatI am and what Jin wantedwith me. It's not like I haveanythinglefttolose.”

Varg nodded. “Then it's

settled, we will return toIronbarrow, tell C0nleywhatwe've learned, and figureoutwhattodofromthere.”

Suddenly a familiar voicesaid,“You'reallfools.”

Tain's sudden statementstartled everyone, as they'dforgotten he was there. Heleaned his back against thewall with his arms crossedand observed the scene untilthatmomentwhenhedecided

tospeakup.“No one asked your

opinion,”Errilremarked.“Watch that tongue of

yours,child.I'vebeenknownto cut them off,” Taincountered.

“Please, let's not fight,”Olivasaid.

“Look around Princess,”Erril remarked, “there isn'tmuchelsetodo.”

“Settledown,”Mileasaid.

“We need to make haste toIronbarrow. Standing aroundarguingwon'tgetusthere.”

“Do you really think youstand a chance against Jin,especiallyafterwhathedidtoyou?”Tainremarked.

“I plan to go downfighting, if that's the case,”Vargreplied.

“Doyouplantodragyour'friends' along with you?”Tainrebuked.

“Please,stop,”Olivacried.Tain eyed her curiously,

then said, “What is it withyou?”

Olivasteppedtowardshimtimidly, then looked him intheeyesandsaid,“YouhaveareasontofightJinnowtoo,correct?”

Tain scoffed. “I do, but Iknowbetterthantofighthimdirectly. I'llgetmypay fromhim one way or another,

whether it's in coin or if oneof his shipments just sohappenstogomissing.”

“Would you be willing tojoin up with a group ofpeople who were trying tobring an end to hisorganization and find justicefor those who he's harmed?”Olivasaid.

Tain rolled his eyes. “Ifyou think I'll join you andyourmerrybunchofwarriors

to fight the good fight andsave theday,you'rewrong. IonlyfightforcoinandIfightalone.”

Oliva paused and enteredher thoughts, then she saidwith a confident grin, “If it'scoin you want, then I canprovidethat.”

Tain exchanged a glancewithher, thenmuttered, “I'mlistening.”

“Before my grandfather

died, he assured me that heleftmeasumofmoneyinhiswill. If you will lend yourservices to me and my teammates, then that money isyours. All of it,” Olivaexplained.

“Do you really expectmetojusttakeyourwordthatthemoney even exists? Before Ieven set foot out of thistemple with you, I expectsome sort of payment,” Tain

countered.Oliva stepped back,

apparently offended that hewould even suggest she waslying. She then sighed andremoved a jeweled amuletfrom her neck. “This thenecklacemygrandfathergavemewhenIlefthometostudymagic in Balik. It's yours ifyoucomewithus.”

“Oliva, are you reallywilling to give up such a

precious gift just to hire amercenary?” Milea said.“Especially one whokidnappedyou?”

“Iwant to bring justice tomy grandfather, and I feelthatwithTainonoursidewestand more of a chance,”Olivareasoned.

TainapproachedOlivaandtook the amulet from herhands. He examined it, thenwhen he determined it was

valuable, stuffed it in hispocketandsaid,“Youhaveadeal.”

“Very well,” Oliva saidruefully. “Follow us toIronbarrowandIwillseetoitthat my grandfather's affairsare dealt with, then you willreceivemyinheritance.”

“Also, if there's anythingyou know about the ShadowHand, feel free to tell us,”Vargadded.“Butfirst,Ithink

Oliva deserves to knowsomething.” Tain raised aneyebrow, and soVarg turnedto Oliva and added, “It'sabouthowTainherewasableto gain access to yourschool.”

Oliva paused as a look ofdread washed over her paleface. “I didn't want to thinkabout the possibility of atrustedmemberof theschoolletting them in, but it's

impenetrable otherwise.Whowasit,then?”

Varg took a deep breathand answered, “It was theheadmistress.”

Oliva'sexpressiondroppedand her skin became evenwhiter. “I . . . I neverimagined . . . how couldshe?”

“ShewascorruptedbytheShadow Hand, as manywere,”Vargsaidregretfully.

“To assume that everyoneunder the Serpent's thumb ismerely doing his biddingbecause theywere 'corrupted'is petty and foolish,” Tainremarked.

“You'realreadyonmybadside,sodon'tmakeitworse,”Vargsnapped.

“Varg, don't start a fight,”Mileasaid.

Tain ignored Milea andcontinued. “The Serpent

threatened to kill the otherstudents if the headmistressdidn'thandoverthegirl.”

“Are you saying shesacrificedone student for thesake of hundreds?” Mileaasked.

“That's exactly what I'msaying,”Tainconfirmed.

Theroomgrewquiet,thenOliva suddenly said, “I canunderstandthatshewantedtoprotect the students, but this

wasn't the way to do it. I'mnotjustsayingthisbecauseitwasmeshesacrificed,but tomark just one student fordeath is still wrong. No onehas the right to decide wholivesordies.”

“At any rate,”Milea said.“We need to return you toIronbarrow. Unfortunately, Idon'tthinkthere'sanywaytoprovetheheadmistress'sguilt,soI thinkit'sbestifwedon't

mention what happened toConley.”

“Milea, I cannot lie tomyuncle,”Olivasaid.

“Justletusexplainit.Youwon't have to say a thing,”Vargoffered.

Oliva nodded hesitantly,then said, “Thankyouall foryour courage. I only hope Ican find mine. I owe it toGrandfather,afterall.”

CHAPTER13

THE NIGHT SKYGREETED Varg and theothers as they arrived atConley's castle. The wearyguards lowered thedrawbridge with some effortfor everyone to pass intoConley's courtyard. After

visiting the stables to returntheir horses, Varg and hiscomrades then approachedthe front doors to the castle,where two guards eagerlyopened the doors to allowthem entry. Oliva addressedone of the servants to alerther aunt and uncle to herarrival, and within minutes,Conley and Catrina rushedintotheroomtogreether.

“Oliva! Thank goodness

you're safe!” Conley said ashe and Catrina embraced thepetitegirl.

They finally releasedOlivaaftershegaspedforair,then Conley added, “I amsorry to bring you here onsuch vague information, butnow that you are here wemusttalk.”

Oliva gave her uncle anervous smile and said, “It'sall right, I already know that

Grandfather is dead.”Conley's face blanched anddartedinVarg'sdirection,butOliva quickly added, “It isnot their fault, Uncle. Theyweren't the ones who toldme.”

“Then who did?” Conleyasked.

“Itwas aman named Jin,but you know him better asthe Serpent, fromwhat Varghas told me,” Oliva

explained.Conley's face turned from

white to red in less than asecond and he tightened hisquaking fists. “That bastardhad thenerve tocomenearamemberofmyfamily!”

“I wouldn't be here if itweren't for Varg and hisfriends,”Olivapraised.

It was then that Conley'seyes fell on Tain. “Who isthis?”

Oliva cleared her throat,thenanswered,“ThisisTain,Uncle. He's a mercenary Ihiredtohelpus.”

“A mercenary?” Conleyrepeated indisbelief. “Wherein the world did you meethim?”

Oliva paused hesitantly,then answered, “He used toworkforJin.”

Conley blinked, then said,“IthinkImisheardyou.Fora

momentIthoughtyouhiredamanwhousedtoworkfortheShadowHand.”

“Uncle...”Catrina interjected at that

point. “Oliva, you hired amanwho associatedwith thevery people responsible forthe death of yourgrandfather? Please don't tellmeyoupromisedhimanyofyourinheritance?”

Oliva only had to shrug

before Conley turned aroundfuming and pacing andCatrina stared at Oliva as ifthe girl had just insulted herandsaid.

The noblewoman shookher head in disbelief. “Oliva,how could you tradesomething your grandfatherworked his whole life tosave? He never would havewantedyoutogivethataway,evenforhissake.”

“Iknow,butTainisoneofthe best allies we could askforagainsttheShadowHand.Weneedalltheallieswecanmuster against this cult,”Olivareasoned.

“I just hope you knowwhat you're doing, girl,”Conleyspat.

Catrina then broke thesilence that followed. “WellDear, perhaps our guestswould like to retire for the

evening? It is already pastdinner, but there may besome food we could offerthemaswell.”

“We ate the last of ourfood before coming intotown,Aunt,butIthankyou,”Olivareplied.

“I'm too tired anyway,”Errilsaid.

“So am I, but we havemuch to discuss about theShadow Hand and I'm sure

Conleywouldliketohearit,”Mileapointedout.

“Let us discuss it in themorning,” Conley suggested.“Oliva is safe, and that's allthat Ineed toknow fornow.Itwouldbebest for us all toretire for the evening. Varg,wouldyouliketojoinmeforadrink?”

“Youalwaysknowhowtoprovidetoyourguests,”Vargsaidwithasmile.

With that, Conley bid theothersgoodnighandCatrinagave Oliva one last hug andkissbeforeshowinghertoherroom. She informed MileaandErrilthattheymayreturnto the guest rooms they usedduringtheirpreviousstayandoffered Tain another room.Milea nodded and thankedCatrinaonceagainbeforesheleft thefoyer toretreat toherroom, with Erril trailing

behind her and rubbing hereyes.

The following morning,

breakfast was spent in thethrone hall of Ironbarrow'skeep.BecauseofOliva'ssafereturn, Conley treated hersaviors to a full breakfastprepared by his personalcook. Oliva and Catrinabarely nibbled on their food,presumably due to their

proper upbringing. Erril, bycontrast, gobbledherbiscuitsasthoughtheywouldbegoneif she ate too slowly. Vargwas tempted to do the same,butkepthimselfcomposed.

Aftermostofthefoodhadbeen cleared from the table,Varg began to recount theeventsinBaliktoConleyandCatrina. He left out the factthat Tain was the actualkidnapper to prevent Conley

fromthrowingthewaterelftothe headsman's choppingblock, but recounted that theShadow Hand gained accessto the city through and theschool in order to get toOliva.

“There's one thing I don'tunderstand though,” Mileasaid.

“What's that?” Olivaasked.

“We know that Jin had

you kidnapped so he coulduse your blood to open theshrine,butwhydidn'ttheygoafter Catrina? Wouldn't shesharethesameblood?”Mileaasked.

Catrina gently placed hergoblet on the table andanswered, “I don't, actually,becauseIamnotLionel'srealdaughter.”Astunningsilenceensued, at which pointCatrina continued, “It's not a

widely known fact, but it isno secret that I was adoptedbytheLeringtonfamilywhenI was only six. I was but apoor, homeless beggar whowasfoundsiftingthroughtheLeringtons' trash for scraps.Lionel invited me in to eatdinner with the family thatvery evening, and ever sincethen he's treated me like adaughter.”

“He sounded like a

wonderfulman,”Mileasaid.“If it weren't for him, I

wouldprobablyhaveresortedtothieveryorworse,”Catrinasaid. “Thankfully, I feltwelcomed into their livesenough tomakeachangeforthebetter.”

Oliva reflected on heraunt'sstory,thenchangedthesubjecttopreventherselfandher aunt from dwelling ontheir loved one's death any

further. “Milea foundGrandfather's journalwithallhis notes on the ShadowHand. She gave it to me tolook through,” The mageapprenticeproudlyplacedthejournalon thebreakfast tableand declared, “and I havediscoveredapossiblelead.

“What is that?” Conleyasked, placing his goblet onthetable.

“Grandfather wrote a

passage about a mountain tothe north, just south of theWhitspireCounty border.Hementionedsomethingaboutastrange gem rumored to beguarded by a clan ofdwarves,”Olivaexplained.

“Just a rumor?” Tainremarked.

“It'stheonlyleadwehavefornow,”Mileapointedout.

“I say we check it out.Evenifitisjustarumor,it'sa

safe bet the Shadow Handwill go there at some point,”Vargsaid.

“Aye, but beware of thismountain.Dwarvesdon'ttakekindly to intruders, so you'dbestbeonyourguardforanytraps they may spring,”Conleysaid.

“Then we'd best prepareimmediately,” Oliva said. “Iwill need a staff and somespell scrolls if I have any

hope to use my magic in afight.”

“I can have one deliveredfrom the shop in town,”Conleyoffered.

“Thank you, Uncle. Thatwould be great,” Oliva saidgraciously.

The dawn light carried

Vargandtherestofhiscrewthrough the forest northeastof Ironbarrow and to the

rocky plains that led to themountain mentioned inLionel's journal. In the hoursthey spent riding through thedense forest, the travelersgrew weary and hungry.Thus, they set up camp andthen Varg and Milea set outto hunt for food while theothers kept watch on thesupplies.

Armedwithhuntingbows,VargandMileafoundapatch

of wood where some wildboars roamedaround lookingfor food themselves. Theystalkedthepigscarefullyandlooked from afar to find anice fat one that wouldproduce good meat. Mileafound the perfect one andreadiedhershot.Asilentshotthrough the night airmet theboar's eye and felled thebeast.

“I have to say, your

archery skills are quiteimpressive,” Varg said asMilea replaced her bow onherquiver.

Without looking at him,she replied, “I've had plentyofpractice.”

“Inevercouldgetthehangof using it in combat. All Ineed is Frost Fang to splitsome skulls and my icepowers for the survivors,”Vargmused.

Milea began to stepcarefully in the direction ofthe downed boar. “Despitemy skills, I prefer meleecombat.Myfathertaughtme,afterall.”

“I take it he was yourhuman parent?” Varg asked,carefully following behindher.

Mileanoddedandpluckedher arrow from the fallenboar. “Hewas a great hunter

inhisday.Histrackingskillscouldrivalevenyours.”

Varg couldn't help but beimpressed by this man henevermet.“Ifhewasasgreatas you say, perhaps I wouldhavelikedtogohuntingwithhim.”

Milea laughed, thenfrowned as though sheweren't supposed to. Vargcould sense that somethingwas wrong, so he asked,

“Everythingallright?”“Let'sgetthisboarbackto

thecamp,”Mileasaid.He sensed that she didn't

wanttodiscussthematteranylonger, so Varg simplynodded and placed the deadboar across his shoulder andturned back towards thecamp.

Varg and the othersmade

itoutof theforestand to the

mountain in just under twodays.Themountainwaslargeenough to touch the sky,whichseemedabitexcessivefor a small dwarven clan toinhabit.AsOlivapointedout,Dwarves were expertcraftsman and buildeverything for functionalityover anything else. Themountain wall provided theperfect shield for not onlyweather, but invaders and

raiders.“In my research,” Oliva

said, “it said that dwarvesonce made an alliance withelves in ancient days. Eversince the elves isolatedthemselves, however, theylost contact with all of theoutsideworld. If thedwarvesstillhaveanartifactentrustedto them, then there's a safechance that they won't let itgoeasily.”

“At least the outside oftheir settlement seems nearlyimpossible to penetrate,”Varg stated. “The cultistswouldn'tbeabletogettotheartifactinathousandyears.”

Not a second had passedafterVargspokewhenhewasinstantly proven wrong. Thebase of the mountain justnorth of their positionexploded and instantlyeruptedintoflames.Theforce

was so great that the groundrattled beneath them andblack smoke began to stainthehorizon.

“I may be wrong,” Vargoffered over the roar of theexplosion.

Thealliesdismountedandleft their horses near a patchof brush andmade sure theywerewellhiddenbefore theyventured closer to themountainbase.The soundof

chaos could be heard fromwithin the rockywalls in thewake of the explosion, andVarg feared that they mayhave been too late. He ranaheadofeveryoneelseandasthey came to the base of themountain, they found acavern ahead. The mountainopening appeared to havebeenman-made. It stood talland slender and formed aperfect archway that was

carved with letters from alanguage which VargassumedwasDwarvish.Vargdrew Frost Fang as he ranthroughthearchway.

Thecarvedcavecontinuedintoalargetunnelwhereonceinside, the allies witnesseddozensofdwarvesintheheatof battle. Familiar hoodedassassins flooded the tunnel,killing every dwarf theirblades met. The dwarf folk

remainedresilliantdespitetheodds, thoughVargknew thatthiswouldn'tlastlong.

“We have to help them!”Olivacried.

“Agreed,”Vargsaid.Without anotherword, the

half-blood charged into thebattle with Frost Fang readywhile his comrades assistedthe dwarves nearest to them.Varg slashed his mighty axethrough thebodiesof several

cultists and the dwarveswhowitnessedthisstoodinaweasthe opponents who nearlykilled them turned to ice.Milea drew her blade andfearlessly charged into thebattle todefendahandfullofdwarves who were taking asevere beating from a largergroupofcultists.

Tainwhipped his scimitarand drew water from thenearby well to act as his

companion and he utilized itwith ease. Oliva used herstaff to conjure barriers forthe charging dwarves andonce they were well able totakethepunishmentofbattle,shebegantohurlfireballsatany cultist who left himselfopen.Erril on theotherhandrushed through thebattlefieldand took out enemies beforethey even knew she wasthere.

Vargcametotheaidofaninjured dwarf beingambushed by half a dozencultistsandnarrowlyblockeda fatal attack from befallinghim.Theothers joined in thebattle and not a single dwarfcomplained. Varg continuedto aid the dwarves nearest tohim until one particularlygruffonecametohissideandshouted, “You have come toouraid,yes?”

“We have,” Varg repliedas he sliced the head off ofanothercultist,hoodandall.

“I know not yourintentions, but you are anenemyofourenemy,andthatisenoughforme!” thedwarfreplied. “Seek out our chief,Tollack, intheuppertunnels.Hurry!” The old dwarfgestured to a walkway thatsloped upward and led to acarved stone tunnel. The

clanking of metal echoedfrom the cave and warnedanyonewhoenteredthattheywouldwalkintoabattlefield.

Varg turned back to thedwarf and asked, “Whatabouttherestofyou?”

“As long as your friendsstay with us, we'll be fine,”theolddwarfassuredhim.

After he witnessed hisfriends' tireless effort todefend the dwarves and he

was sure theycould carryonwithout him,Vargnodded tothe old dwarf and dartedtowards the tunnel. Otherdwarves he aided quicklypointed him in the rightdirection as he continued topress forward, slaying eachcultist he came across. Hesoon came to more densetunnels that seemed to go onforever.He soon foundmoreand more cultists trying to

push forward and wearydwarves trying to fend themoff. The dwarves wereshocked to see outsidershelping them, but remainedgratefulnonetheless.

Finally Varg came acrossan enormous chamber ofstone where he saw a dark-haired dwarf dressed in fursfighting off several cultistswith an axe in each hand.Severalotherdwarves fought

by his side, but Varg couldeasily tell that he was thechief. An enormous pool ofwaterformedoneithersideofalongstonewalkwaythatledto another platform, whichwas where the battle tookplace. Varg ran across thewalkway and swung FrostFangmadlyatthefirstcultisthesaw.

The dwarf chief, Tollack,looked to Varg and shouted,

“Friend,orfoe?”“Friend!” Varg assured.

“My comrades are aidingyour men below while I aidyouhere.”

“You are a welcomeaddition to this battle, then.Theseenemiesarerelentless,”Tollacksaidashedispatchedanothercultist.

“Aye, but I can help youstopthem,”Vargcalled.

Despite his assurance,

Varg could see that he andthe dwarves were steadilyoutnumbered.Evenwiththeirtough hides and unyieldingendurance,thedwarvescouldnot meet the agility of thecultists. Tollack yelled abattle cry and ran forwardwith his surviving comrades,but the cultists were far tooquickfortheslowdwarvestoland a hit on.Thoughhehidit well, Varg could tell the

chief was becoming wearyandwouldn'tlastinthebattlemuch longer. Varg himselfwas losing energy quick andcouldonlyhopeforawayoutofthebattle.

Vargknewtheonlywaytodefeat such organizedenemieswas towork closelywith the dwarves and comeupwithaplan.Hismindwentthrough everything he knewabout the situation and he

searched the room foranswers.Hiseyesonceagainfell on the pools of water intheroom,anditwastherehefound his answer. He swungat the enemy in the pathbetween himself and Tollackand killed him on impact,thenranpasthiscorpsetothechief'sside.

VargblockedanattackonTollack's flank, then said outof earshot of the cultists,

“Help me get them into thewater.”

“I hope you have a plan,”thedwarfchiefanswered.

Despite his apparentdoubts, Tollack rallied hiscomrades as they began todrive the cultists back to thewater. The cultists caught ontotheplanandtriedtoresist,but the hardy dwarves keptthematbay.Vargmanagedtokill another opponent as he

rantotheiraid.Withonelastdaringmove,Varg threw hishand forward and strong, icygust tossed the remainingcultists into the pool, whichthenfrozesoliduponimpact.

After it was quiet oncemore,thesplashesandripplesin the water were frozen inplace.Lookingintothefrozenabyss,Vargcouldseethestillbodies of nearly a dozencultists. Something inside

him remained on edge untilthedwarfchiefspoke.

“Incredible . . .” hemuttered. “I never thought Iwould see the power of ajotuninmylifetime.”

Varg turned to see theTollack,alongwiththerestofhis allies, stepping forwardcautiously.

“IamTollack,chiefofthisdwarf clan,” the dark-haireddwarf said. “To whom to I

owe thepriveledgeofcallingmybattlebrother?”

Varg stepped forward.“My name is Varg, and myallies and I have heard arumor that your clan is inpossession of a powerfulElvishartifact.”

Tollackfrowned.“Howdoyouknowaboutthat?”

“It'squitealongstory,butIwilltellyouthattheartifactis exactly why the cultists

attacked themountain,”Vargexplained.

Tollack stood in shock,and it took him severalmoments to answer, “Notmany people know about theartifact, and there is nothingelseofvaluesaveforthetoilsof our hard work other thanthatgem.”

“I don't know how theyfound out about it, but myfriends and I were hoping to

beat themtoitandspareyouaperilessinvasion.Obviouslyweweretoolate,”Vargsaid.

Tollack bellowed withlaughter. “My friend, youfought by our side when weneededitmostandbecauseofyou,weprobablysavedmorelives than we could havehoped to do on our own. Ifthere is anything I can do torepayyou,justsaytheword.”

Varg thought about the

chief'swords, thensaid,“Weneedtoseetheartifactsothatwe may find out why thecultistsarelookingforit.

Tollack sighed, then said,“Normally I cannot just giveit away, seeing that myancestorswerecommissionedwith guarding it. However, Ioweyouadebtforprotectingmymountain from thosevileassassins. I suppose I willallow you to investigate it if

youmust.”Before Varg could offer

his thankstothedwarfchief,Milea, Tain, Oliva, and Errilcame into the chamberfollowed by several bruisedand bloodied dwarves. Theyappeared weary, butotherwisevictorious.

“There you are,” Mileasaid when she saw Varg.“Thedwarfyouhelpedintheentrance chamber told us he

sent you in here to aid thechief.Wejustfinishedoffthelastoftheenemies.”

“Tollack,” said one of thedwarves, “the remainingcultists have fled thanks tothe efforts of these people.Their abilities in battle areunlike any others we'veencountered.”

“Indeed, I have seen theabilities of this man firsthand,”Tollacksaid.

Varg turned to his alliessaid, “Tollack here is thechiefofthedwarves,andhe'sgoing to show us where theartifactis.”

“Oh good,” Milea saidwith relief, “for a moment Ithoughtweweretoolate.”

“Thanks to the lot ofyou,the cultists never stood achance,” Tollack saidproudly.

“You dwarves are

formidable foes,”Milea said.Thensheadded,“Andallies.”

Tollack beamed andanswered, “Aye, that we do.As soon as I show you theartifact,wewillforeverknowyouandyourkinsmenasourbattlesiblings.”

As thedwarfchief led thewaytothesanctumwheretheartifact lie, Varg explainedwho the Shadow Hand wasand all that they knew about

them. Tollack seemedintrigued by the mysteriouscult despite his constantstatingthattheywerenothingby rogues and should bepunished accordingly.Nevertheless, thedwarf chiefeagerlylistenedtoeverythingVarg and his comrades toldhim.

“If what you say is true,then this 'ShadowHand' is aforce to be reckoned with,”

thechiefsaid.“Aye, and now you have

first hand experience withthemaswedo,”Vargstated.

Tollack gave anotherhearty laugh and said, “Andwe know how to prepare fortheirattackagain.Still,Ican'tthank you enough, Varg. It'snice to know that a smalltrace of the jotun racesurvives.”

Varg's footsteps slowed,

then he said, “You've heardofthejotuns?”

Thechiefstopped,causingeveryone else to stop, thenturnedtoVargandanswered,“Sadly they all died beforemy time, but I have heardplenty of stories. Our raceswereactuallykin,bornunderthesameancestors.Overtimeweallbecame two races,butoursimilaritiesremain.Ionlyheardrumorsandtalltalesof

the legendary War of theTundra that wiped them allout, but I wouldn't force afellow warrior to recountsuchhorrors.”

“Icouldn'tifIwantedto.Iwasbornafterthefact,”Vargsaid.WhenTollackgavehima puzzled look, Varg added,“My father was a jotun whohadanaffairwithmyhumanmother during the war. Itwasn't until after he fell in

battle alongside his kin thatmy mother discovered shewaswithchild.”

Tollackbowedhisheadinregret,thensaid,“Isee.It'saterrible shame you neverknewyourpeople,Varg.”

“I can'tmisswhat I neverhad,”Vargadmitted.

The chief said no moreand continued walking downthetunnel.Thegroupwalkeda bit further until Tollack

came to a large stone doordecorated with ancientDwarvish symbols. Hewhispered something, thenthe symbols disappeared andthe doors opened withoutassistance. The only lightcame from a windowedceiling just above a strangepedestal near the back of theroom.Nestedon thepedestalwasalarge,shimmeringbluegem that was bigger than

Varg'sfist.Tollack tread forward and

stoppedjustafewfeetbeforethe pedestal. “Here it is, theElvish artifact my ancestorvowed to protect from thewronghands.Forcenturies ithas made its home here,untouchedbymortalhands.”

Milea cautioustlyapproached the pedestal andsaid,“MayI?”

The chief nodded and

stepped aside for Milea toexamine the artifact. Thehalf-elf looked curiouslyaround the crystal tree as therestofhercomradesobservedin silence. A few minuteslater,Mileashookherheadindisbelief.

“This artifact is not theone the ShadowHand seeks.It'safake,”shesuddenlysaid.

“Fake?” Tollack spat. “I'llhave you know that a

priestess of Laelith herselfexchangedquiteabitofgoldfor the protection of thiscrystal.Iguaranteethatit'satleastworthsomething.”

“I mean no disrespect,Tollack, but the elvesapparently went to greatlengths to hide the item theShadow Hand seeks.Forgeries like this probablylie all over the continent, theentire world even, just to

serve as decoys for oneincredibly powerful item,”Mileaexplained.

“Aren'tyouanelf?Surelyyouwouldhave a clue aboutthis,”Tollacksaid.

Mileaignoredhisquestionand instead answered, “Ipromise this has no magicpropertywhatsoever.”

Tollack sighed. “Verywell,Iknowyouelveshaveawaywithsensingmagic,soI

trustyourjudgement.”“What now, though?”

Varg asked. “We know thatthis is also a fake, so we'vehityetanotherdeadend.”

“Not to mention that theShadowHandwillmorethanlikely prepare another attackif theyhaven'tyetdiscoveredthe artifact's true nature,”Tainoffered.

“Don't worry about that,”Tollack assured. “We were

caught off guard by thesecultists, but now we knowwhat to expect and we canbetter prepare ourselvesagainst another attack.Besides, I'm sure the oneswho escaped will tell theirmasterthatyouwerehere,sohecanassumethatyoueitherfound the artifact anddiscovered it wasn't the realone,orthatyouhavetherealone on your person. In the

meantime, should you everneed a few able-bodieddwarvestofightbyyourside,youknowwheretofindthem.Call on us any time and wewill come to your side withaxesdrawn.”

“We will keep that inmind,” Varg said. “Takecare.”

Once Varg and every oneof his comrades shook thehandof thedwarfchief, they

backtracked through thetunnelsuntiltheycametotheentraceofthemountain.Theywere saluted and thanked byevery dwarf they ran into,who assured they wouldcome to help if they wereneeded. Once they finallymade it outside, the lateafternoonhadsettledandtheyset off down the mountaintrailtofindtheirhorseswhenacloudofsmokecaughttheir

attention.Something seemed to be

hurdling towards them atgreat speed, promptingeveryone to draw theirweapons and prepare for acounter attack from thecultists. When the figureemergingfromthedustcameintoview,Mileasquintedhereyes and said, “Is thatConley?”

The half-elf was proven

rightwhenVargrealizedthatnone other than Conley washurdling towards them onhorseback as if he'd just runintoaghost.

“Uncle!Whatintheworldare you doing here?” Olivaexclaimed.

Conleystoppedonlyafewfeet in front of his niece andtheothersandjumpedoffhishorse before it even settleddown.TheCountwasweary,

and his fatigued horse barelycompared, and his heavybreathwouldn't allow him tospeak.

“Conley, calm down.What'sgoingon?”Mileasaid.

Milea led Conley to anearby boulder where shemade the noble sit for a fewminutes to catch his breath.Conleykepthisheadlowandtried in vain to explainhimself.

“Catri...ShadowHand...”hemumbled.

“Take a deep breath,Conley,”Vargsaid.

The Count obeyed, andmanaged to slow hisbreathingafterafewminutes.He finally composed himselfandstood.

“It's Catrina,” Conleygasped.

“What about her?” Vargasked.

Conleyshookhisheadandfought back tears, then said,“She'sbeenkidnappedbytheShadowHand.”

CHAPTER14

“KIDNAPPED?”Varg askedindisbelief.

“Oh poor Aunt!” Catrinacried.

“How did this happen?”Mileapressed.

Conley tried in vain tocalm himself, but explained,

“Shortly after I sent you offonyourmission,Ireceivedamessagefromthewatchtowernortheast of town that therehad been some sightings ofShadow Hand activity. Irushed over to see about itmyself only to discover allmy men at the tower weredead. I knew immediatelythatitwasatrapandreturnedhometofindCatrinamissingand several guards killed.

One of the surviving guardstold me that the ShadowHandinfiltratedthecastleandmade offwithCatrina, albietnot without a fight. He theninformed me where thecultists brought Catrina andhowtogetthere.”

“Why would the ShadowHand tell you where theybroughtyourabductedwife?”Tainasked.

“For ransom, of course.

They want me to escort myarmed forces there for theSerpent to use in hisconquests. That's the entirereason they'vebeenafterme.Thatandso that Icouldgivethem free reigns to conducttheirbusiness in thecounty,”Conleyexplained.

“We must save AuntCatrina,”Olivaboldlystated.

“How do you propose wedo that? Jin's strongholds are

impenetrable,” Tainremarked.

Conley finally caught hisbreath and straightened up.Then he composed himselfandanswered,“Ihaveaplan.My men are marchingtowards the stronghold withthe white flag raised. Whilethey await my orders, myscouts will search for a wayinto the stronghold. If theycanfindit,youwillsneakin,

escort Catrina out, and thenmy men can lay waste toevery cultist that breatheswithinthatstructure.”

“Where do we need togo?”Vargasked.

“The Shadow HandclaimedtohavetakenCatrinato a stronghold just west ofhere. We should be able tofind it within a few hours,”Conleyexplained.

“Let's not waste a

moment,” Varg answered.“Leadtheway,Conley.”

Conleyledhishorsewest,while the others followed ontheir own steeds, and foundthe Shadow Hand hideoutwell before sunrise. Thisstronghold was bigger thanthe one in Wild Valley, soVarg presumed that this wasthe main location for theShadow Hand. The wallsseemed to be made of solid

stone and the entire fortresswas built into the mountain.A waterfall poured fromunderneath one of the topfloors into a wide riverbelow. The river traveledalongthefrontofthefortressand only a drawbridgeconnected the two sidesallowing entry to be granted.Though the fortress seemedimpenetrable, Varg wasdetermined to bring waste to

the cult that was repsonsiblefor countless deaths. Thoughhewishedtoemergefromthestronghold with the Jin'ssevered head perched on topof Frost Fang, he knew thatsaving Catrina was his toppriority and wouldn't darejeopardizehersafety.

Conley's troops had theirwhite flag raised and thestrongholdinturnraisedtheirown in a temporary peace.

Vargand theothers left theirhorses in the care of thestable hand while Conleytookhisleavetoconsultwithhis returning scouts. TheCount returned shortly aftertotellthemwhathe'dlearned.“My scouts have informedmeofasmallbarredentrancehidden by the river. It openstoasmallstreamthatmergesinto the river. The bars areold and rusted, so they may

bebrokenfairlyeasy.”“Just tell us when to go,”

Vargassured.“FirstImustenterthrough

thefrontwithmytroopssoonso they won't get suspicious,andassoonaswedepartyoumayproceed,”Conleysaid.

“We won't let you down,Uncle,”Olivaassured.

“Actually, Oliva, I needyoutostayhereatthecamp,”Conleysaid.

“What? Why?” Olivaobjected.

“This is an incrediblydangerousmission, and thesecultists already kidnappedyou and put you in harmsway once. I won't allow thatto happen again,” Conleysaid.

Oliva's expression fell asshetriedtoprotest.“ButIcanhelp...”

“Outofthequestion.Your

auntwould never forgivemeif I allowedyou towalk intothat fortress even for hersake,”Conleysaid.“Youwillstay here and await theirreturn.”

Oliva wanted to objectfurther, but she finallyconceded and hung her headin disappointment as heruncle walked away withoutanotherword.

“Don't worry, Oliva,”

Milea said. “We'llmake sureyourauntissafe.”

Oliva nodded, but shenever looked up. Thatchanged when Tain steppedforward and said, “I supposeit's only fitting that I staybehindwithmyemployer.”

Oliva's face shot up andsheshookherhead.“Tain,it'sall right. I hired you to helpfighttheShadowHand,nottoactasmybodyguard.”

“That's true, but a biggroupsneakingintoafortressisn't the best way to fightthem. I think the others canhandlethiswithoutme,”Tainsaid.

“Good idea,” Mileaadmitted.

“It's just the three of us,then?”VargaskedMileaandErril. The two nodded inreply, and Varg then added,“Then as soon as Conley's

ready,wemarch.”OnceConley had finished

his preparations and beganthe march with his troops,Varg gathered his owncomradesand theybegan themarch to the location of thehidden entrance. Whilehiding behind the troops,Varg led his comrades downthe slope of land beside thedrawbridgeuntiltheycametotheriver'sedge.Vargstopped

at the edge of the water andlightly tapped the surface.The water rippled and frozein place.An icy path formedfromtheretotheothersideoftheriver.

Varg turned to hiscomrades and said, “Carefulhowyou step.”He then tookastepontotheice,whichwasfortunately solid enough tohold his weight, and slowlymade his way across the

river. Despite his carefultreading, Varg could feel hisboot sliding against the icyfloor.Heheldhisbreathashelookedstraightaheaduntilhisfeetfinallyfelt thedirtoftheoppositeshore.

Varg turned to Milea andErril, who despite the icyconditionsweremanagingthewalk.Mileawasn'tfarbehindhim,thoughonlybecausesheproceededwithmorecaution.

Erriltrailedbehindnervously,takingeach stepas if itwereher last, so Milea laggedbehind to assist the girl. Thehalf-elf bravely escorted heracross the rest of the ice andeach heaved a sigh of reliefwhentheyfeltthedirtcrunchundertheirfeet.

“Everyoneallright?”Vargasked.

“IfIwantedtowalkoniceI'd go live in the Tundra,”

Errilremarked.“We shouldn't have much

furtherleft,sokeepyourchinup,”Vargsaid.

Theywalkedalongsidetheriver edge until they found asmall archway where thewaterescaped from lieat thefoot of the fortress and wasluckilyencasedintheshadowofthedrawbridge.

Erril approached the barsand examined them closely.

Then she said, “These arecoveredinrustandcrumblingto bits. It won't take muchforcetobreakthem.”

The orphan girl grabbedoneof thebarsandrattled it.Bitsof rustcrumbledoffandshe was able to pry the barfrom its resting place. Shesqueezed through the newspace effortlessly and beganto pry off another bar. Vargcreptforwardandassistedher

andbefore long, the twohadremovedallbutonebar.

Varg stopped and tossedtheotherironbarsaside,thensaid, “This should be plentybig for us all to fit through.Let'sgo.”

Varg waited by theentrance until everyone elsehadentered.Hecreptthroughthe archway behind Mileaandtheyallgotalookattheirnew surroundings. A stone

platform was next to thestream and led into a tunnel.They climbed onto theplatform and followed thetunnel in hopes of findingtheir way to the dungeon.Insteadthetunnelopenedintoa largeroundchamberwherethewaterwaycontinuedtotheopposite side. The waterwaycontinued out of the roomfrom there through anotherbarred archway. The ceiling

stretched to the sky andseveral higher floors withwalkways lining the roomcould be seen from theground. The floors wereconnectedbyastaircasethatspiraled from the ground allthewaytothetop.Alongthewalls there were ShadowHand Banners, which wereblack with silver trim andbore the familiar crimson,serpent-like symbol, on

oppositecornersoftheroom.Vargscannedthechamber

and saw nothing, but hisfamiliar gut instinct told himsomething was wrong. In ahushed tone, he faced Mileaand Erril and said, “Thisplaceisfartooquiet.”

AsifVarggavethesignalhimself, hundreds of cultistsemerged from the floorsaboveandbegantopourontothegroundlevelaroundthem.

With weapons thirsty forblood, the cultists chargedforwardandsurroundedVargandhiscomradesbeforetheycould even draw theirweapons. Despte theoverwhelmingodds,thealliesdrew their weapons andprepared to defendthemselves.

Once the cultists grewstill, a voice Varg wish hehadn'theard said, “Ihonestly

didn'tthinkyouwouldfallforsuch an obvious trap, butperhapsIoverestimatedallofyou.”

The shadows at theopposite end of the roommaterialized and took Jin'sform. The Serpent soonbecame whole andapproached his bewilderedcaptives with a welcomingsmile.“Nowthatyou'rehere,though,” he said, “I suppose

there'snothingleftforyoutodo except surrender to theShadowHand.”

Varg gritted his teeth as awolffacingasnakeandspat,“You kidnapped Catrina justtoleadusintoatrap?”

“Ohno, thatwas purely abonus end of the deal,” Jincountered. “My originalintentwastogetLordRowanto finally cooperate with theShadow Hand by handing

over control of his troops inexchange for the Lady's life.Handingyouover tomewasjust toensurehiswifewouldbe left . . .unharmed.ThusIget full armed forces toensure that my men couldmovemore freely throughoutthecountyofIronbarrowandIcanfinallyberidofyou.”

Varg's blood boiled.“Conley is no traitor!” Vargwanted to believe that was

true,butdespitehiswordstherealitysunkinharderthanherealized.

It was only confirmedwhen the Count ofIronbarrow himself steppeddownthestairswithanescortofcultists.Hisheadhanglowandwithagrudgingvoice,heanswered, “I'm sorry, myfriend.”

Varg felt his skin heatingfrom the fire under his skin.

Hechargedforward,ignoringthebladespointedathim,andyelled, “You son of a bitch!Howcouldyousellusout?”

“Varg, I had no choice,”Conleymuttered.

“We could have helpedyou,” Varg spat. “We couldhaveorganizeda realplan tosaveCatrina!”

“Icouldn'ttakethechance.I'msorry,”Conleycried.

“Enough,” Jin hissed.

“Now that we have custodyofthesewretches, it's timetoleadthemtotheirfate.”

“You're going to kill us?”Mileaasked.

“Oh no,” Jin replied, “atleast not yet. I still have useforthelotofyou,despitethefact that you have openlydefied me since the day wemet. For now, you will waitinthedungeonsuntilIdecidewhattodowithyou.”

“Not if I can stand andfight,”Vargshouted.

“Of course, but will youstandandfightifyourfriendsare in the direct line ofbattle?”Jinasked.

Before Varg couldquestion what Jinmeant, thecultistsswarmedaroundthemanddisarmedMileaandErril.With blades against theirthroats two cultists grabbedahold of each and turned to

face Varg, daring him tomake a move. Despite theirstruggling, Milea and Errilcouldn'tmoveamuscle.

Varg stared in horror,afraid a single breath wouldagitate the cultists' blades,thenshookhisheadandsaid,“Youbloodycoward.”

Tohissurprise,Jinsimplylaughed. “I tried to reasonwithyou,Varg,butyoumakepolite conversation

increasinglydifficult.Perhapsnowyouwillcalmdownandlend me your ears when thetime comes?” Jin turned tothe cultists and said, “Takethemaway.”

Twomorecultistsgrabbedahold of Varg and disarmedhimofFrostFang.The jotunat least got the satisfactionthat it tookhalfadozenmento even lift the blade. Varglooked anxiously to Milea

and Erril, who were beingescorted themselves. Whenhe made eye contact withMilea,sheofferedanervous,butbravesmile.

“Now then, Conley, ifyou'll follow my men to themain hallwe can soon beginour negotiations,” Jinsuddenlysaid.

“Not until my wife isfree,”Conleyspat.

“All in due time,” Jin

assured. “Just await myarrival in the main hall withyour men and I will bringCatrinatoyou.”

“Thisisn'tover,Jin!”Vargyelled.

“You're right, Varg. Thisisfarfromover.Considerthisthe first day of the end ofyour life,” Jin replied. Withthat, the Serpent disappearedintotheshadowsonceagain.

Withthescreechingsoundofmetalagainstmetal,Varg'scell door slammed shut.Alone and unarmed, hewatched helplessly as MileaandErrilweretossedintothecellacrossfromhis.Theytoowere stripped of theirweapons and equipmentbeforehand.Mileahadputonquite a display of herunarmed fighting prowesswhen one of her escorts

patted her down for hiddenweapons a bit too intimately.Vargmanaged a laughwhenthe cultist fell to the hardfloor holding his groin afterMilea's foot made generouscontact.

“Nowthelotofyoubetterbehave while youwait,” oneofthecultistssaid,whosentaglaretoMilea.

The half-elf proudlynoddedinreplyasthecultists

marchedoutof theroomandslammed the dungeon doorshut.

“Nowwhat?”Errilsaid.“We escape this cell and

find Catrina,” Mileaanswered.

“These cell bars are solid,but perhaps I could breakthem if I froze them first,”Vargoffered.

Milea examined the bars,thenshookherheadandsaid,

“That won't work. It lookslikethere'saspellonthemtopreventbreaking.”

Varg looked closely andsureenough,thereweresmallcarvingsinthemetalbarsthatglowed dimly. Varg didn'trecognize the spell, but hetrusted Milea's intelligenceandtookherwordforit.

“Then we're trapped,”Vargmuttered.

“Varg?Milea?Erril?”

“Catrina!”Errilcried.Catrina Rowan emerged

fromthebackofthecellnexttoMilea'sandErril's.Shewasa bit dirty and lookedexhausted, but otherwiseseemedunharmed.When sherealized she was amongfriends, the Lady heaved asigh of relief and said,“Thank goodness! I neverthoughtIwouldseeafamiliarfaceagain.”

“I wouldn't thank anyoneyet, because we're trappedtoo,”Vargsaid.

“Surelythisisjustanotherplan of Conley's?” Catrinasaid.

“Oh it is, but I'm afraidyour husband is the reasonwe'reinhere,”Errilsaid.

Catrina exchanged aconfused expression withVarg, who then nodded andreplied, “It would seem that

Jin offered to return you toConley in exchange for ourcapture.”

Catrina's expression felland she faced the floor inshame of her husband. “Ican'tbelieveit...”

“It's all right,Catrina.Wedon'tblameyou,”Mileasaid.

“It's not all right. Howcould Conley do this?”Catrina shouted. She thenlooked around the room and

said, “What happened toOlivaandTain?”

It was then that VargunderstoodwhyConleymadeOliva stay behind. He thensaid, “Don't worry, theyweren't with us. They'reoutside of the fortress withsomeofConley'smen.”

“Well at least Conley hadenoughsensetokeephisownnieceout of danger,”Catrinasaid.

Just then, the dungeondoor opened again and twocultists stepped inside. Theyapproached the cell withMilea and spoke directly toher.

“The Serpent wants tospeak to you privately,” oneofthemsaid.

“Whyme?”Mileaasked.“Because the Serpent

commanded it. Now move,”theothersaid.

Varg's heart sank whentheyopenedthecelldooranddraggedhishalf-elffriendoutof her cell, but not beforegiving Erril, who tried toleave behind her, a quickshovebackintothecell.

Varg approached the barsof his cell and gripped themas hard as he could, thenbarked, “Don't you dare!Leaveheralone!”

“Keep your mouth shut,”

oneofthecultistsspat.“Ifyoubastardslayahand

on her, I'll rip your heartsout,”Vargspat.

“I'll be all right, Varg,”Mileacalledfromjustoutsidethe door. “Just keep theotherscalm.”

Despite knowing thatMileawas in terrible danger,Vargknewshewasright.Thelast thing he wanted was tomake Erril or Catrina panic,

sohereleasedhisgriponthecell bars and noddedassuringly to Milea. As thecultists led her to the door,Vargcalledafterher,“Iwon'tletJinhurtyou,Iswear.”

The last thing Varg sawbefore the dungeon doorslammed shut was Mileaturningtohimandgivinghimanervoussmile.

CHAPTER15

AFTERHELOSTSIGHTofMilea, Varg desperatelysearched for a weak point inthe cell that could allow hisescape. He knew the bars ofthecellwereunbreakable,buthe first set his sights on thelock itself. He pulled a

lockpick from his boot—healways kept one hidden inthereforemergenciessuchasthis—and fiddled with thelock.Tohisdismay, thepickwouldn't even enter the lockand Varg blamed anotherspellastheculprit.Hecursedunderhisbreathinfrustrationand made another feebleattemptatsearchingthecell.

“Varg,there'snowayout,”Errilremindedhim.

“There's always a wayout,”Vargretorted.

“Varg,Iknowyouwanttohelp Milea,” Catrina said,“but you mustn't waste yourenergy in a vain attempt toescapewithoutthinkingaboutthis logically. Try and focusyourenergyonplanningyournextmove first, then carry itout once you have it in yourmind.”

Vargfinallyconcededand

backed up against the wall.Hehunghisheadback,tryingto think of any possiblescenariothatcouldincludeanescape,butallhecouldthinkof was Milea. He dreadedwhatJinhad instore forher,but more so he feared thatthey would all perish thereandneverbeable to stop theShadow Hand frommurderingmore innocents. Itweighed on his heart, and he

knewthatitwasonlyamatteroftimebeforeittookit'stoll.

His mind returned toreality when a loud thumpsoundedoutside.Thenafterafew seconds, the dungeondoorflungopen.Heexpecteda set of cultists to come inand retrieve Catrina, butinsteadVargwaselatedtoseenone other than Oliva andTainenterthedungeon.

“Aunt Catrina!” Oliva

cried as she ran to her aunt'scell.

“Oliva, what are youthinking coming into thisdeath trap? Get out of herenow!”Catrinareplied.

“Not until you're safe,”Olivaargued.

“It looks like the missionwas compromised after all,”Taininterrupted.

Varg nodded. “We wereset up. Conley organized an

ambush with Jin to saveCatrina.”

“Wh-what?” Olivastammered.

“It's true, Oliva,” Catrinasaid with her head hanginglowagain.

“That explains why wedidn't hear fighting asplanned,”Tainsaid.

“We were worriedsomething went wrong, so IconvincedTain tocomewith

me inside,” Oliva explained.“It'sagoodthingwedid.”

“You were worried,” Tainmuttered.“Ididn'twanttogetinvolved.”

Oliva ignored him andcontinued, “We defeated theguard—”

“I defeated him,” Taingrumbled.

Oliva took a sharpbreath,thenadded,“—andTaintookthekeysfromhisbelt, sowe

cangetyoualloutofhere.“You shouldn't be risking

your life for me like this.None of you should be,”Catrinasaid.

“You needed help, and Ialways lendmy axe to thosewhoneedhelp,”Vargsaid.

Olivalookedaroundinthecells, then asked, “Wait aminute,whereisMilea?”

“The cultists brought hertoJin,”Varganswered.

“Then let's get you out oftheresowecangohelpher,”Olivaoffered.

Tain used the keys tounlock Varg's cell first, thenCatrina's, then Erril's. Thenoblewoman embraced hernieceassoonasshewasfree.

“All right, let's go helpMilea,”Errilsaid.

“No,allofyoushouldgetCatrina to safety while I goand find Milea. Have

Conley's men send word tohimthateveryoneissafeandthat they can fight their wayout,”Vargsaid.

“What about you andMilea?”Olivaasked.

“Milea and I will find away to escape during thechaos,”Vargassured.

“Before you go,” Olivasaid, “we passed by a roomthathadyourweaponsinside.Wewouldhavegrabbedthem

but we wouldn't have beenabletocarryitall.”

“Thankyou,I'llbesuretograbmyaxebeforeIleavetofind Milea,” Varg said. “Bythe looks of things, I'll mostcertainlyneedit.”

Vargmade hisway to thearmory after Oliva pointedhim in the right direction.Frost Fang lay unharmedagainst thewallat theendofa trail of drag marks—at

which point Varg smirked atthe thought of a handful ofcultistsstrugglingtocarrytheheavy weapon. He proudlygripped the handle andbrandished the blade andhurriedly grabbed Milea'sequipment before darting offdownthehallway.

In order to find Jin'squarters, Varg went past thedungeon again and down therest of the corridor.Thepath

turned to another, and thenew path led to the tunnelwhere they first entered thestronghold. There hefollowed the path again untilhe came to the tall circularroomwhere theambush tookplace and took the stairs upwhen he saw no one around.Varg stopped at the secondfloor and decided to checkthere first. He listened forvoices, and heard them

around the first corridor, sohedaringlyventuredclosertolisteninontheconversation.

“Iheardthatelfgaveyouahardtime?”someonesaid.

Varg's heart leapt and helistenedcloser.

“Aye, she's a feisty one.Devon and I offered to stay,but theSerpent insisted tobeleftalonewithher,”theothersaid.

The first voice chuckled.

“Idoubtshe'dbeamatchforhim anyway, and the onlyplacetoescapeisthroughthewindow. It's far to high forhertosurvivethefall.”

“At least she would getawaywith smashing that biguglywindowtopieces.Ihatelooking at that thing everytimeIwalkupthemountain,”thesecondsaid.

Varg remembered theenormous stained glass

window he saw from thebottom of the fortress. Hequickly crept back to thestairs and continued all theway to the top. Though hewas sure he could fight offany cultists who got in theway,VargrefusedtotakethegambleofJinbeingalertedofhis escape and possiblyhurting Milea as a result.Therefore, he tread up thestairs carefully and looked

over the railingof each floorbeforeproceedingupward.

Varg finally came to thetopofthestairs,whichledtoanornatedoorwith thesamefamiliar symbol carved intoit. He opened the door andfoundanother corridorwhichledtoanotherdoor.Thisdoorwas left slightly ajar andallowed a dim light to peekintothedarkhall.WhenVargcame closer to the door, he

couldhearvoicesontheotherside. He decided to stop andlistenwhenherecognizedthevoicesasbelongingtoJinandMilea.He then crouched andwaitedjustoutsidethedoortolistenfortherightmomenttoact.

“Pleasehaveacupoftea.I

promise you will enjoy it,”Jinsaidhospitably.

Milea certainly wasn't

about to comply with herhost's all but generous offerafter he'd had his men dragher there against her will.After retrieving her from thedungeon, the cultists led herto the topfloorand intoJin'squarters. The Serpent badehis men to leave, and to herdisbelief, the first thing hesaid to herwas, “I hope youfindtheroomtoyourliking.”

Despitebeingtheleaderof

a blood thirsty cult, Jin'schambers were decorated asthough he were royalty.Milea's situation didn't seemhopeful, but she still couldn'thelp but admire the richfabrics and rugs, along withthe ornate hearth. She madenoefforttohideit,butneitherdidshehidehercontemptforher host. Milea was no fool,and she made sure he knewthis. She stared at Jin, doing

her best to avoid his yelloweyes.

To her surprise, Jinlaughed and said, “Milea,thereisnothingsinisterinthetea.Youhavemyword.”

Though taken aback,Milea shook her head andsaid, “You will understandmycautiousnature,giventhecircumstances?”

Jinsmiled.“IfIwantedtokillyou,Icouldhavedoneit

when my men ambushedyou.”

“I suppose,” Mileaadmitted, “but you still can'texpect me to trust you afterallyou'veputusthrough.”

Jin shook his head, thenanswered, “Remember,Milea,Ineverstartedthiswarwith you and your kinsmen.You cannot blame me forcounteringwithforceafterallthat's happened. Now then,

howaboutacupoftea?”Jin handed Milea a small

cupwithsteamingdarkliquidinside.Sheheldthecupunderher nose and admitted toherself that it smelledenticing,soagainstherbetterjudgment sheblew the steamawayandtookasip.

“Wonderful, isn't it?” Jinasked. “If it weren't for theimportsinRivershirewehaveaccess to Iwouldneverhave

comeacrosssuchadelectabletasteinmylife.”

Milea hated admitting hewasright,butsheignoredherthoughts and replied, “Whydidyouletuslive?”

“That's because I wish toextend an invitation to youandyourcomradestojoinourranks,”Jinexplained.

Milea nearly slammed hercup onto the nearby table,then spat, “You can't be

serious.”Jin shrugged and held up

hishands.“Youareall adeptfighters who have thepotential to see the light. Iwas hoping that you wouldcease your war against theShadow Hand and come toouraidinstead.”

“Why would you ask meand not the others?” Mileaasked.

“I'vebeenobservingallof

youinourbriefdealingswitheach other,” Jin said, “and itseems tome thatyouare thevoice of reason among yourranks. I had hoped that youwould relay what I tell youtoday to your allies and helpthemseethelight.”

“You think I'm going todropeverythingtojoinacultsimply because you askedpolitely?”Mileaspat.

Jinchuckledandshookhis

head. “Milea, the ShadowHandonlymeantospreadthetruth. We are most certainlynotacult.”

"Yourmenpractically selltheir souls toyour service. Ifthat isnotacult,what is it?”Mileapressed.

"The Shadow Hand are agroup of people with openheartsandmindswhochooseto abandon their hopelesslives fullof trialsandsorrow

and embrace enlightenment,"Jincorrected.

Milea scoffed."Enlightenment? Your menkill for fun and stealeverything they get theirgreedyhandson.Anyactthathurts innocent people iswrong."

"Those who play the'innocent' role are nothingmore than foolish andignorant masses who close

theirminds to the truenatureof the world. Innocence isnothingmorethananillusioncreated by mortal kind tocope with what they don'tunderstand,"Jinexplained.

Milea scoffed. "You justforce peoplewho don't thinklike you do to suffer. Thatisn'tenlightenment,it'sevil."

Jin laughed. "Evil, good,both words that are passedaroundtoolightly.Dowenot

all believe what we do isgood?Weallbelievewhatwedo is the right thing whileothersperceiveusasevil,butin reality, we choose toaccept the world as a darkplane destined fordestruction. It's not evil toaccept reality and embrace itin order to prepare ourselvesforit."

"Whatareyousaying,thattheworldisgoingtobecome

abarrenwastelandofanarchyandthatyouare tryingtogettothetopoftheheap?”

“Not quite,” Jin replied.“The Shadow Hand have agreatdestinyaheadofus,andwe must prove ourselvesworthy of living to see theDawn.”

“What does that mean?What is the Dawn?” Mileapressed.

Jinshookhishead.“Allin

goodtime.FirstImustsecureyour loyalty before I canreveal such things. Do youhonestlythinkIcamethisfarby telling everyone mysecrets?”

Mileabecameincreasinglyirritated by Jin'scondescending tone, butsomething made her uneasyaswell. Jinwas far toocalmabout theway he spoke, andit was apparent that he was

toyingwithher.Thenhecontinued,“Dono

fret, for if you are indeedworthy, then you havenothingtofear.Youwilllivea life with no fear, sickness,or...betrayal.”

SomethinginMilea'schestdropped and she couldn'tfigure out why. She feltsomething tugging herthoughts and swimmingviolentlythroughhermind.A

haunting memory assaultedher, and if the half-elf didn'tknow any better, she wouldhave thought that Jin couldseethesceneunfoldinginhismindaswell.

TheSerpentsmiled,whichonly confirmed her fears.“You know betrayal, don'tyou Milea? You know whatit's like to have your trust insomeoneonlyforthemto...violate it. That's why

something as simple as anofferofteacausesyoutofearthethingsIcoulddotoyouifIwanted.”How does he know this?

Milea's mind screamed. Shedroppedhercuptothegroundandhearditshatter.

Jin heldout a hand to herand said, “Join me, Milea,and Iwillmakesureyouseethe Dawn and never knowsuchpainagain.”

Mileafeltfaintandplacedher hands on her head tocombat the growing paincomingfromwithin.Shetriedto cry out for help, but hervoice was gone. Her mindwas twisting and changingviolently and she began totake in Jin'swords as if theywere gospel. Her visionbecame clouded, so sheclamped her eyes shut andtried to think, but her

thoughts evaded her. Sheknew that Jin was warpingher mind somehow, for shecouldswear she sawhispalelipscurlintoatwistedsmile.

Varghadseenenough.He

sawMilea's reactionandwasworried about what Jin wasdoingtoher,soheknewthatnowwasthetimetoact.Withhis hand on Frost Fang, hecharged into the open and

growled, “Leave her alone,Jin.”

Jin turned to face theintrusion and broke his gazewith Milea, who thenstumbledbackwardsandtriedto compose herself. Vargrushed toher sideandheldadefensive positionwith FrostFang, a gesture to which Jinresponded by whipping outhiscurvedbladeandpointingit at Varg. The half-blood

never faltered, but heldFrostFang sideways and stood infrontofMileatoshieldher.

Jin stared at Varg, thensighed and said, “I thoughtthe enchantments on the cellwouldbeenoughtoholdyou.ApparentlyIwaswrong.”

“You're damn right youwere,”Vargsaid.

“Don'tmakeafussVarg.Iwouldn't want to see whathappenstoMileaandtherest

ofyourfriendsifyouweretodisobey,”Jinsaid.

“You won't get to themuntil my corpse is the onlything in your way,” Vargthreatened.

Jin laughed. “You havenerve, Varg. I could usesomeonelikeyou.”

“Notachance,”Vargspat.“You really shouldn't pass

judgment before you evenknow the entire truth,” Jin

said.“I know that you're

harming people, and thatitself is enough to convinceme you aren't to be trusted,”Vargspat.

“Then it comes to this,”Jin answered. “Here we areagain,facingeachotherattheendsofourblades.Iwonder,will this be a repeat of ourpreviousbattle,orwillIhangyour bloody head from my

mantle?”With Milea's weak

condition, Varg knew hecouldn't risk getting her hurtinabattlewithJin.Moreover,heknewthatwithJin'spowerhehadnowayofwinningatthis point, and his primarygoalwastogetMileaandseethat the rest of his friendsescaped the hideout. Hehoped that Oliva, Tain, andtheothersmadeitoutsideand

had word sent to Conley.Then perhaps the battlewould start andkeep the restof the cultists busy. Therewas still Jin, of course, andVarg knew that the Serpentwouldn't leave them alivebefore tending to the otherbattle.At the endof theday,Varg had to think of someway to escape before theSerpentdecidedtobite.

Jin brandished his long

blade and stepped forward.“Areyoupreparedfordeath'ssweetembrace?”

Varg realized he had nochoicebuttofight.Hegaveaquick nod to Milea, whonodded back and backedaway,thenheheldFrostFangforward and said, “Only if itmeansItakeyouwithme.”

Varg took a deep breath,knowing fully well that hecould die this night, and

charged tomeet the Serpent.Jin in turn heaved forwardand their blades met. Thegrinding of metal screechedand caused Varg's ears tonearlypop,butthehalf-blooddidn't falter and swung hisblade to the side. Jin parriedandcounteredwithaslashofhisown,whichbarelynickedVarg'scheek.

Varg soon went on thedefensive and never took his

eyes off the Serpent. Jinswung his blade withincredible speed, and Vargbarely held his own as heheld Frost Fang up to block.JinknewVargwasbecomingweary and thus pushed evenharder and faster in an efforttobreakhisdefenses.

Just when Varg's armsnearly collapsed under theweightofthebrutalattacks,adeafening roar from below

caught everyone's attentionand caused Jin to stop hisassault. Cultists wereshouting desperately in theupper levels and when Vargfocused his ears, the distantsound of clashing bladesechoed throughout the stonewalls. Varg allowed himselfto breathe, for he knew nowthat Conley was beginninghis assault and that theShadow Hand would soon

fall.Jin apparently understood

whathappened,butinsteadofreactingwithangerorfear,hemerely shook his head.“Conley, Conley. Why mustyou always make thingsharder?”

“It's over Jin,” Vargbarked.

Jin laughed again.“Thousands have fallenbefore me. Countless armies

have bent their knees to mywill, and you think this onehas a chance of stoppingme?”

Milea suddenly appearedby Varg's side, weak butstanding strong. “Yourfortressisunderfireandyourmen will die by the drones.Do you honestly think youstandachance?”

“A fortress is simplystone. Stone can be rebuilt.

There are plenty of otherstrongholds that house theShadow Hand throughoutFellen,sodestroyingthisonewouldn't even put a dent inour operations. The ShadowHand always stands strong,”Jinreplied.

Itwas then that dozens ofcultistscamepouringintotheroomasiftheywereawaitingtheir master's words. Not asinglemanwasn't armed and

waiting to strike at amoment'snotice.

“My Lord,” one of thecultistssaid,“theCount'smenareattackingthefortress.Wecametoprotectyou.”

Jin smiled. “I thank youforyourloyalty,butIbelieveI have everything undercontrol.”

The cultists faced VargandMileawiththeirweaponsdrawn.Vargdespisedrunning

frombattle,butMilea'ssafetywas more important than hispride. The question nowwashow to get away when theironlyexitwasblocked.

Jinsmiledagain,thensaid,“There's no where left toescape,Varg.”

Then Varg rememberedwhat the cultist whoseconversation he overheardsaid.Theonlyplacetoescapeisthroughthewindow.Varg's

mind went back to themoment he first saw it fromoutside, where a waterfallpoured out from underneathinto the river below. Even iftheyjumpedandlandedinthewater, a fall from that highwouldmakethemlandintheriver like they were landingon stone. If Vargwas quick,however, therewas a chancehe could lessen the fall.Given the circumstances, he

hadtotaketherisk.Varg took a deep breath,

then he sheathed Frost Fang,atwhichpointJinsaid,“Verysmart.Nowstep forwardandawaityourfate.”

Varg looked straight intothe eyes of the Serpent, andsaid,“Idecidemyfate.”

Before Jin could respond,Varg liftedbothofhishandsand sprayedan icymist ontotheground.Themistbecame

solid and formed a wall ofthick ice that grew from thefloor to the ceiling beforeanyone could react. Thecultists charged at the walland tried in vain to cutthrough the solid ice, atwhich point Varg turned toMilea and asked, “Do youtrustmewithyourlife?”

Without any hesitation,Mileaanswered,“Yes.”

“Then hold onto me and

don't look down,” Varganswered.

Varg acted quickly andwrapped his arm aroundMilea's waist. With his freehand,hedrewFrostFangandsmashed it through thewindow, which left a wholelarge enough for the two ofthem to fit through, andreplaced theaxeonhisback.He then lunged through thewindowintothenightairand

began their descent from thehighest peak of the ShadowHand fortress. As he lookedto the river below, Vargfocusedallofhisenergyintohis palm and the waterfallbent to hiswill.A long stripof ice formed from the fallsand stretched all the waydownto theshore. Inmidair,Vargtwistedhisbodysothathe landed onto the ice first,and he and Milea slid down

the slope. When they werealmost at the bottom, Vargused the heels of his boot toslowtheirdescent.Helandedonto the shore withoutdamage and the two tumbledintothedirt.

Once they stopped, theylayontheirsidesfacingeachother. Varg opened his eyesto seeMilea still in his armswith her face buried in hischest. The rising dust from

the disturbed dirt chokedthem both, but once theystood up and brushedthemselves off, they bothrealized they'd escapedseriousinjury.

To Varg's surprise, Mileabegan to laugh. “That wasinsane.”

Vargshrugged.“WhatcanI say, I'm good atimprovising.”

Mileaembracedhimagain

and replied, “I don't knowwhat I would have done ifyouhadn'tshownup.”

“IpromisedIwouldcomeforyou,andyouknowIdon'tbreak my promises,” Vargsaidwithachuckle.

After they walked up thehill from the river,Varg andMileacameface to facewiththerestoftheirfriends.

“You made it!” Olivashouted.

“Barely, it seems,” Tainremarked, seeing their dirtyandtornclothing.

“We saw you falling,”Catrina gasped. “I neverthought Iwouldseeanythingas amazing as that icemagic.”

“When Uncle Conleybegan his assault, we wereworried that you wouldn'tmake it out in time,” Olivasaid. “I'm so glad you're

safe.”“I'm just glad the rest of

youmanaged to escape too,”Mileasaid.

“Do you need to rest,Milea?”Vargaskedwhenhenoticedhertrembling.

Mileashookherhead.“I'mall right. Let's just wait forConley.”

Despite her insisting,however, Varg removed hisfur cape and wrapped it

around her shiveringshoulders.

VargandMileamadetheirwaytothecampwiththerestof the Ironbarrow soldiersand sat around a campfire.Catrina insisted that they eatsomething, and they werehappy to oblige. They atesome stew and stared at thefireinsilence.

Varg finally broke thesilence.“Doyoufeelbetter?”

Milea nodded. “Mystrengthisreturning.”

“Whatexactlyhappened?”Vargaskedsuddenly.

Mileaplacedher spoon inheremptybowl.“Ithoughthedruggedmyteaatfirst—don'tlook at me like that, hewouldn't stop pestering meuntil I drank some—but thestrangelookinhiseyesmademe think that he used somekindofmindmanipulationto

warpmysenseofjudgment.”Varg swallowed a large

gulp of stew. “Do you thinkhe does that to all of hisfollowers?”

“It'spossible,because justbefore it happened he askedme to join the ShadowHand,”Mileasaid.

“Whatwouldhewantwithyou?”Vargasked.

“He wanted me toconvince you and the others

tojointheShadowHand,buthestilldidn'ttellmeanythingabouttheirreasoningorwhatthey're even after,” Mileaexplained.

Varg sighed. “So we stillknownothing.”

Just then Varg looked uptoseeConleywalkingtowardthem. Varg's blood boiled,but hemanaged to stay calmandplacehis emptybowlontheseatbesidehimandstand

upwithoutreachingforFrostFanginthemeantime.

“Varg...”Conleysaid.Varg lost the battle with

himself and let his fist flyright into the Count's jaw.Conleyfellontohisbackandsparkedareactionfromeverysoldieraroundthem.

With blades drawn, theymoved in to arrest Varg, butConleythrewhishandupandsaid, “Stand down.” Catrina

ran toherhusband's sideandhelped him to his feet. Varglooked proudly at Conley'sbloodied lip. “I suppose Ideservethat.”

“You're damn right youdo,”Vargspat.

“I don't ask forforgiveness,Varg.Youwoulddo thesamefor theonesyoulove,”Conleyreplied.

Varg shook his head. “Iknow what it's like to have

everythingatstake,Conley.Ialso know that you alwayshave a choice. You didn'ttrustustohelpyou,andthat'swhyyousoldusout.Despitewhatyoumaysayordo,youwill never have my trustagain.”

“Don'tthinkyoucanjudgeme for being dishonestwhenyou'vebeenlyingtomesincewe'vemet,” Conley growled.“I received the urn with

Lionel'sasheswhileyouweregone along with the bountyforhismurderers,amanwithwhite hair and an Elvishhuntress.Ialsoreceivedwordof twosimilarsuspectsandachild being responsible forOliva'skidnapping.”

Varg figured he shouldhave know Conley wouldfind out the entire truthsoonerorlater,sohedecidedto clarify every detail and

didn'tcareiftheCountdidn'tbelieve him. He huffed andthen began, “Lionel waskilled by Edric Greenwood.He set up Milea to take theblame and hired me tocapture her and bring her toface execution. When Idiscovered her innocence, Iwas blamed too andwebothfled Rivershire and beganfinding clues to clear ournames,andthat'showwegot

involvedinallthis.Asfortheincident at Balik, theheadmistress sold Oliva outand allowed the cultists tokidnap her from the school.When we intervened, shecalled theguardsandblamedus.”

Conley shrugged. “Ihaven't know either of youlong, Varg, but I know youweren't involved. Youwouldn't have come this far

and gone to great lengths tohelp us if you wereresponsible, but at the veryleast you could have told usthetruth.”

“Likewise,” Varg spat.Then he sighed and added,“Perhaps it would be best ifwe just went our separateways and forgot about eachother?”

Conley sighed. “No, weneed to stay together to fight

the ShadowHand,Varg.Mymen searched throughout theentirestronghold,butJinandseveral cultists escapedsomehow,sothisthreatisnotover. From here on out,though, we must be honestwith each other, no matterhowthetruthmaysound.”

“Very well,” Vargconcurred.

With that, Varg marchedback toMilea,who stood by

the fire, and walked awaywithher tositandcollecthisthoughtsinpeace.

CHAPTER16

IRONBARROW'S CASTLEWALLS did nothing toprevent the chill fromreaching Varg's wet skin ashesteppedoutof thebathtubinhisbedchamber.Thechillmeant nothing to him, ofcourse, as he dried and

dressed himself. Severalthingstuggedathismind.Ontheonehand, they still knewnothing more about theShadow Hand save for thefact that they had heavyinfluence throughout Fellenand that Jin could somehowcontrolminds in order to getwhat he wanted. Yet theirmotives and ultimate goalstilleludedVarg.HeworriedagainaboutMileaandthough

he didn't tell her, hewonderedwhat“betrayal”Jinreferredto.Hedecidedthatifnothingelse,hewishedtoseehowMileawas handling thissituation.

After Varg was fullydressed, he marched to thedoor and opened it only tofindhimselffacetofacewithLadyCatrina.

The Lady still had herhand up, apparently ready to

knock on the door, but shelowered it and said, “I'msorrytointerruptyou,Varg.”

“It's no trouble. Do youneed something?” Vargasked.

Catrina caught her breath,cleared her throat, andanswered, “Yes.May I comein?”

Varg stepped aside andgestured for her to enter.Once she had walked inside,

Varg closed the door behindher.

CatrinawalkeduptoVargandsmiled.

“I wanted to properlythank you for helping me,”Catrinasaid.

“It's what I do,” Vargreplied.

“It was more than that,Varg,” Catrina assured.“Without you and theothers,Conley never would have

been able to lead such adaring attack. Perhaps youand the rest of your friendscould forgive Conley for hisdeed?”

Vargsighed,forheshouldhave seen this coming.“Maybe someday, Catrina,butit'stoosoonrightnow.”

Catrina said nothing, butlooked to the floor as shewalkedovertothewindowtostareattheapproachingnight.

Without turning around toface him, she then said,“Varg, did you know thatthere is a law here in FellenthatallowsaCounttoendhismarriage should his wife beunabletobearhimanheir?”

Varg didn't know whereshe was going with this, buthe simply answered, “No, Ididn't.”

Catrina turned to faceVarg. “Many things can be

said about Conley. He'sstubborn, ignorant, and quiteshort-tempered, butregardless of hisshortcomings, he's theman Ilove. You can imagine myelation when I discovered ashort time after our weddingthat Iwas carrying his child.Conley was especiallyoverjoyed,andwhenheheardthe news he ensured I hadeverything I needed to be

comfortable and he madeevery plan to welcome ourchildintotheworld.

“However, one night Iawoke in horrible pain.Conley lifted our sheets andtoourhorror,hefoundbloodsoaking our bed. Over thenext several weeks, hebrought countless doctors toour castle, but all of themsadly informed us that thebaby was gone. In the years

thatfollowed,Ineverbecamepregnant again despiteconstant praying and trying.ThedoctorsdeterminedthatIwas barren at that point, andthey advised Conley to endourmarriage.

“Conley would hearnothing of it. He told themthatifIcouldnotgivehimanheir, then he would diewithoutone.Theycalledhimafool,anoaf,andahopeless

dreamer to think that havingthe woman he loved by hissidenomatterwhatwasmoreimportant thanpreservinghisfamily'sbloodline.”

Catrina smiled and wipeda tear from her eye, thencontinued, “Varg, no matterwhat mistakes or foolishchoicesConleyhasmade, allof it comes from hisunyielding capacity for love,kindness, and courage. He

has never been popularamong other nobles becauseof his idealism and zest forjustice, but I wouldn't tradehim for anyone else. I knowwhat he did was wrong, butpleasebelievemewhenIsayhehadthebestofintentions.”

Varg said nothing inresponse to Catrina'srevelation. Instead,hesimplysighedandnodded.

Catrinasmiledandwalked

tothedoor.“PleasejustthinkaboutwhatIsaid?”

Varg nodded again, andCatrina left and closed thedoorbehindher.Hegavehera few minutes, then he tooleft through the door to findMilea'sroom.

Milea stepped into the

shift Catrina had loaned herand walked barefoot to thebed. Though it was barely

nightfall, she still feltexhausted after herconfrontation with Jin. Shecouldn't understand how heknew the things he did, andwhat's more she could stillfeelherheadswimmingafterwhat he did to her,whateveritwas.

A sharp rapping at thebedroomdoor startledMilea.Thoughsheworenothingbuttheshift,shewasfarfromthe

modest type and called,“Comein.”

MileawassurprisedtoseeVargstepthroughthedoor.

Oncehesawherrevealingattire, he quickly averted hiseyesandmuttered,“I'msorry,Ididn'tmeanto—”

Mileashookherhead.“I'mnotashamed.”

Varghesitantlylookedherway again. After she gavehim an assuring nod, he

walkedovertoherandsatonthebednexttoher,“Didyouneedsomething?”

“Iwanted to see how youwerefeeling,”Vargsaid.

“That's kind of you,”Milearepliedwithasmile.

“I'm only sorry that Icouldn't keep you out ofharm'sway,”Vargsaid.

“It wasn't your fault tobegin with, Varg,” Mileawhispered.

“Even still, I feltresponsible for everyone inourcrew.Ifeelitwasmyjobto protect you all,” Vargreplied.

Milea smiled and shookher head. “You risked yourownlifetosavemineandthelives of everyone else. YouevensavedConleyafterwhathe did. You proved yourselfto be quite the hero thatnight.”

Varg lowered his head.“I'm no hero, Milea. I havedarkmemoriesthatstillhauntme to this day, and thoughtI've done whatever I can torepent,Istillcan'tforgetit.”

“Likewhat?”Mileaasked.Varg shifted in his seat,

then he began, “Youremember the day I told youthe tale of how piratesattackedthemerchantvesselIworked for and left me to

die? Well after I washedashore I had nothing left, nomoney,nofamily,nofriends,so you won't judge me tooharshlywhenItellyouwhatIresorted to in order tosurvive.”

“You became a thief?”Mileaasked.

Varg shook his head.“Worse, I became a bandit.There is a fine differencebetweena thief andabandit.

A thief acts with precisionandstealthtosnatchtheitemshe wants while keeping hisbladecleanandnotharmingasoul. A bandit, on the otherhand, is a cutthroat whoplundersandkillstogetwhathe wants. I fell into a groupofsuchthugswhoofferedmea place to stay in exchangefordoingafewjobsforthem.For someone like me whocouldn't find anyone else to

give him the same mercy, Ifelt I had no choice but tocomply. It started with mejust sharpening their bladesandhandingout theirfoodindrinks, to more field worklikeraidingcartsandshops.Imadea fewkills that I'mnotproudof,butattheveryleastwe never harmed anyunarmed civilians. That allchanged the day our leader,Cyrus, ledaraidintoasmall

miningvillage.“We ordered the civilians

tohuddle into a group in themiddleof thevillage,butnotbefore separating the menfromthewomenandchildren.Afterwe'dobtainedjustabouteverything of value fromeverybuilding,Cyrusorderedthe men to be killed, thechildren to be locked away,andthewomentobebroughttoourhideout,andI'msureI

don'tneedtotellyouwhy.Atthatpoint,Istartedtowonderwhy such violence wasnecessary, but it wasn't untiltheotherbanditsbegantoslitthethroatsofeverymanthere—rightinfrontoftheirlovedones—something in mesnapped. I knew it waswrong, I knew all of it waswrong,andIfinallygrewthecouragetostopit. Idrewmyweapon and began to attack

every one of the people Ionce knew as my friends. Ididn'tstopuntil theywerealldead except for Cyrus. Thewomen and children ran asCyrusand I facedoffoneononeinadeathmatch.

“We kept the battle goingwell into the night, and itseemed that neither of uswouldgivein.Wewerebothweary and struggling not tomake any foolish mistakes,

but fortunately it was Cyruswho slipped up first. Helunged for an attackwith hisblade,andas Idodged to theside I could see that his armwasexposed,soIswungatitwithallmystrength. Imeantto simply break his arm andrenderhimuselessincombat,butIactuallyseveredhisarmentirely. He screamed andbled out, but instead offinishing him quickly, I

simplywalked away and lefthim to bleed to death. It'ssomething I regret, in morewaysthanone.”

AsVargfinishedhisruefultale, he saw Milea'sexpression and was relievedtosee thatshedidn't seemtobe judging him. The half-elfshifted her position so thatshesatsidebysidewithVargand laid a hand on hisshoulder. “Everyone makes

mistakes.Youaren'tthatmananymore, and that's whatmatters.”

Varg looked her in theeyes and smiled. “If there'sanything I've learned in mythree centuries, it's that Iwould rather feel pain,sorrow, and misery than gothroughlifefeelingnothing.Ihave learned to cherish myhumanity with all it's beautyandbile.”

Milea turned her facedownward and smiled softly.Varg found himself leaningcloser to her, awaiting aresponse.

“Varg, there's something Ineed to tell you,” shewhispered.

Vargstraightenedhisbodywith anticipation andanswered,“Oh?”

“Yes,”Milea stopped, buthesitantly continued, “I have

neverrevealedthistoanothersoul, but after the events theothernight,Ifeelit'stime.”

Varg's expression musthave revealed something, forMilea then added, “I had afeeling you may haveoverheard something thatnightwithmeandJin.”

“Idid,butIdidn'twanttobring it up until you wereready to talk about it,” Vargsaidgently.

Milea sighed and steppedoff of the bed. She pacedback and forth for a minute,then, “Jin knew somethingabout me that he couldn'thave,thatheshouldn'thave.Idon't know if he's a mindreader, or if I hallucinatedpartofit.”

Varg shook his head andanswered, “You didn't. Hementioned something aboutbetrayal and then you started

togointosomekindoffit.”Milea cleared her throat,

then said, “Jin's revelationmademestart thinkingabouthow thishas taken its tollonmeforsolong,andIthinkit'stime I finally confide insomeoneaboutit.”

“I'm listening,” Vargassured.

Milea closedher eyes andprepared herself before shespoke again. “It all started

whenI left theCrystalWoodwithmyfather. I'll spareyouthe details, but let's just saymymotherdecidedshedidn'twant to be married to ahuman anymore and leave itatthat.FatherandImovedtoa small fishing village in thewest,wherehe tookupworkas a dock worker andeventuallyremarried.Itwasamodest life,butnice.Despitemybeinghalf-elf, therewere

some peoplewho didn't treatmethatharshly.Idon'tmeanto brag, but when I enteredadolescence I actually had afew admirers. One suchadmirer ofminewas the sonof the village leader. I likedhim, but I wasn't sure I wasinterested in a relationshipwithhimandIwassuretolethim know that. Still, he keptpining afterme. I assumed itwas harmless, but I was

unfortunately...mistaken.“One night, when I was

returning home late afterhunting, I ran into myadmirer a goodways outsidethe village, where heconfrontedmeaboutdenyinghis advances. I finallydecidedIhadenoughandtoldhimfirmlytoleavemealone,but this only seemed to fuelhisanger.Hegrabbedmeandthreatened my life, at which

pointIpulledoutmyknifetodefendmyself,butheprieditfrom my hand and knockedme to the ground. That waswhenhe...forcedme.”

Varg's chest felt tightwhen he heard Milea's lastwords. The half-elf bowedherheadinshameandtriedinvaintocontrolhertears.Vargpatiently allowed her tocollect herself before shespokeagain.

“Whenhewasdone,heletme dress myself and leave,for he knew Iwas too afraidto tell anyone what he haddone.Iranhomeandassoonas I approached the frontdoor, my father walked outwith a torch, apparently tosearch for me. He saw mywet cheeks, bruises, and tornclothing and knew instantlywhat had happened. HedemandedthatItellhimwho

did it, but it took severalminutes and him reassuringme that it wasn't my faultbeforeItoldhim.

“My father flew into arage worse than anything I'dever seen. He ran to myattacker's home and savagelybeat him to death in front ofhis entire family.Despite thecircumstances,myfatherwasarrested and hanged formurder the very next

morning. I rememberwhen Isaw his body fall, I just lostall sight of who I was. Itwasn't until after my step-mother blamed me for hisdeathandthrewmeoutofthehome my father built for usthat I realized justhowaloneItrulywas.”

Milea turned to Varg andwatched his expression. Heremained calm, but his eyesboreasignofsorrow.Shesat

on the bed again with herback facing him, unable tolookhimintheeye.ShethenheardVargstepoffofthebedand his footsteps steadilytravel around the bed, so sheshut her eyes and put herhandinherhands.

“I've been alone for solong.AllIwantistobealonemostofthetime.I...”

Milea was interruptedwhenVarggrabbedherhand

and gently pulled her to herfeet. Without a word heembracedher.Sheburiedherface in his wide chest andkept her eyes closed for thelongest time, fighting backtears for every second. Shedidn't understand what madehimsoeasytotalkto.

Milea craned her neck toface him and opened hereyes.Hisbeautifulsilverorbspenetratedhervery soul.She

felt a rush as their eyesremained locked, but neithermoved a muscle. She wasn'tsure if the hesitation camefrom her experiences in thepast, or if she feared whatwould happen in the future.All she knew was that herstiff body refused to budge,asdidVarg's.

Finally,Vargsmiledatherandbrokehisgaze.“Ishouldbegettingtobed.Sleepwell,

Milea.”“You too,” Milea

answered.Varg turned awaywithout

anotherword, thoughhisfeetseemed to stall before heapproached the door.Precious seconds flew by asshe watched him open thedoor and leave the room.Whenthedoorclosedbehindhim, time returned to it'snormal flow and Milea

simplystaredatthedoorasifshe expected it to fly open.When it remainedundisturbed, she finallyturned her attention to herbed, where a restless nightwouldawaither.

CHAPTER17

EVERYONE CROWDEDAROUND the table inConley'sstudyinthemorningto discuss the next plan ofaction. A map lay spreadacross the wood surface thatConley held in place with aknife on either side. The

Count stood directly in frontof the map, while everyoneelse stood on either side ofhim.

“We know that Jin hasinfluence in Rivershire andquite possibly other countiesof Fellen, but as far aswe'reaware, he doesn't have fullcontrol of Fellen,” Conleyexplained.

“Howdowefightthismanwhen he has the law on his

side?”Oliva pondered aloud.“He'svirtuallyuntouchable.”

“Yes, but not completelyuntouchable,” Conley said.“That's why I believe weshould take this directly toKingReman inWhitspire. Ifheknewofthethreatloomingin the shadows, hemay takeactionandpurgethekingdomoftheirkind.”

“That's a wonderful planConley,”Vargsaid,“buthow

do you propose we get anaudiencewiththeKing?EvenaLordcan'tjustwalkintotheKing's court without beinggrantedpermission.”

“Iwouldgettothatifyoupermit it,” Conley remarked.“The Reman's youngerbrother, Arther Rainald, ismarriedtoadistantrelativeofmine—third cousin to beprecise—so if Icanconvincehimofthedanger,perhapshe

canputinawordtotheKingon our behalf. Arther couldsurelygetusanaudiencewiththe King if he believes thecrisisisseriousenough.”

“WhatiftheDuke,oreventhe King, are already underJin's control?” Tain finallyasked.

“Letuspraythatthatisnotthe case. The Duke lives inEastwold, which as you canguess by the name lies near

theeasternborderofFellen,”Conley explained, hoveringover a map of Fellen. Hepointedtoacityjustnorthofadenseforestandadded,“Asyou can see, Eastwold isnortheast of here, and itshouldonlytakeusabouttwodays on horseback to getthere.”

“Us?”Vargasked.“Artherwillonly speak to

me, so Imust gowith you,”

Conleyreplied.“Do you think it will be

thateasytospeakwithhim?”Mileaasked.

“Arther and I have foughttogether in many battles andwe've coexisted peacefully,soIhavenodoubthe'lllistento reason,” Conley assured.“Weleaveintwohours,sobeready.”

True to his word, the

Counthad the servantsequiphis armor andhad thehorsessaddled and groomed just intime for brunch. Everyoneelse met him at the stablewith their equipment readyand supplies restocked andthe entire party departedbefore lunch. Following theroadfromIronbarrow'sgates,Conley led Varg andcompany to the easternreaches of Fellen. The path,

as Conley instructed, ledstraight from Ironbarrow toEastwold. Their horsesclopped along the road byday, and they setupcampatnight.Withtheseconddawn,Conley continued to lead theway until they arrived atEastwoldbymidday.

Eastwoldwasmuch largerthanVargwasaccustomedto,sohefoundhimselfquiteoutof place. Not to his surprise,

just about everyone stared athim as he rode past. Sometried to look away andpretend they didn't noticehim, but others couldn't andblanched when he made eyecontactwiththem.

When they arrived at thecastle gate, the guards raisedthe portcullis to allow thementry once they realizedwhoConley was. Conley led theothers to the stable before

enteringthefrontcastledoor.“LordRowan,towhatdoI

owe the pleasure of yourvisit?” the steward said,coming down the stairs fromtherightsideoftheroom.

“Ihave anurgentmatter Ineed to address to HisLordship, Duke Rainald,”Conleyanswered.

“I am afraid that you justmissed the Duke, for he leftthismorningtovisittheKing

in Whitspire,” the stewardruefully informed. Uponseeing the guests' fallenexpressions, he added,“However, I am sureAlastorwouldbewillingtomeetwithyouonhisbehalf.”

“Who is Alastor?” Vargasked.

ThestewardstaredatVargas though his ignoranceactually caused him physicalpain, then answered, “Lord

Alastor is the eldest son ofthe Duke Rainald.When theDukeisaway,LordAlastorisleftincharge.”

Conleysteppedforwardtoavoid conflict between Vargand the steward and said,“May I speak with Alastor,then?”

“He is quite busy at themoment, but perhaps I cansee if he has time tomorrowmorning,”thestewardsaid.

“This is important,” Vargboldlyinsisted.

Though he seemedagitated, the steward lookedat Conley and said, “I canperhapsfityouintoseehim,but you must talk to himalone,LordRowan.”

Though itwasaclear thatthe steward was making anindirectstabatVarg,thehalf-jotun exchanged a glancewith Conley, who nodded

reassuringlyandfollowedthesteward.

The steward led Conleythrough the throne room intoa door that opened into acorridor,thenhefollowedthecorridor until he came toanotherdoorthatopenedtoalibrary. Inside the library,Conley witnessed a meetingbetween an unfamiliarwealthy man and a youngergentleman whom he

recognizedasAlastor.Conleywaited patiently by the doorwith the steward at his sidewhile theDuke's son and theother noble guest conductedtheir business. Once theyweredone,andthenoblemanstormed out after the Duke'sson denied his request, thesteward stepped forward andbowedhumblybeforethesonoftheDuke.

Alastor, aman in hismid

thirties with dark, handsomefeatures, said to his steward,“Alain, I believe I requestednovisitors.”

“Apologies for theinterruption, Lord Alastor,but Lord Conley Rowan ofIronbarrow wishes to speakwith you on an urgentmatter,”Alainsaid.

With a stone expression,turned toConley and offeredhim a respectful nod and an

outstretched hand. “LordRowan, it's a pleasure to seeyouagain.”

Conley shook Alastor'shand and said, “Likewise, Ican only offer my humblestapologies for arrivingunannounced.”

Alastor excused Alain,whobowedagainandsteppedout of the room. He thenofferedaseat toConley.“TowhatdoIowethepleasureof

meetingyouthisfineday?”Conley accepted the

invitation and sat downopposite Alastor. “I requirean audience with hisHighness,KingReman,andIwish for you to put in yourwordwithhimonmybehalf.Some colleagues of minehave been investigatingstrange occurrences in Fellenrecently, and it seems thatthere is a group of people

plotting violent crimes in theshadows.”

“What kind of crimes?”Alastor asked, pouring agoblet of wine. He offeredanother goblet to Conley,whogratefullyaccepted.

“They have been scouringFellen for some kind ofartifact of Elvish origin, andthey've been known to killthose who get in the way.They believe in something

called the 'Dawn', and thattheir leader, theSerpent,willleadthemtoseeit.”

“I see.Doyouknowwhothese people are, and howthey've managed to goundetected by any of ourother county officials?”Alastor pressed as his lipstouched the rimofhisgobletforanotherdrink.

“They call themselves theShadow Hand, and it is our

belief that they are gainingpowerful men as allies toallow them to move morefreelyinthecounties.They'vecomeaftermeandmyfather-in-law with their offers, butwe both refused. I'm afraidthat Lionel wasn't luckyenough to escape theirrevenge like I was,” Conleyannounced after a sip of hiswine.

Alastorloweredhisgoblet,

then calmly asked, “Whatproof do you have that theseso called 'cultists' even existother than your ownaccount?”Alastorpressed.

Conleywent to speak,buthesitated, then answered,“None.”

Alastor placed his nowemptygobletona tray thataservantheldoutforhim,thensaid,“LordRowan,youdon'tknowwhatthesepeoplewant,

nor can you provide proofthat theyevenexist.Tellme,whatexactlydoyouwantmeormyfathertodo?”

“Please, Alastor, I haveseen these cultists with myown eyes. They've killedmymen, terrorized my citizens,and even tried to harm mybeloved.Theyaredangerous,and therefore I must speakwith hisMajesty about this,”Conleypleaded.

“Whatdoyoupropose theKing do about these allegedcultists?”

“He could send his troopsinto their strongholds andbreak their forces,” Conleysuggested.

“You suggest that KingReman remove his troopsfrom the borders and majorcities, where I remind youwhere they protect us frominvaders, to follow this wild

goose chase?” Alastorremarked.

“Alastor, I beg you to seereason! These cultists are fartoodangerousforustoallowthem to inhabit our kingdomanylonger,”Conleypleaded.

“Enough,” Alastor raisedhisvoice.“LordRowan,yourrequest for an investigationagainstthissocalled'ShadowHand'isherebydenied.Goodday.”

“Alastor,youmust listen,”Conleybegged,nowstandingfromhisseat.

Alastor stood as well.“You will not raise yourvoice to the nephew of theKing! Leave before I haveyouarrested.”

Conley wanted to pleadwiththenobleman,butitwaspainfully evident thatAlastorwould listen no more.Admitting defeat, Conley

marched out of the room assilentlyasheentered.

“Hewhat?”Varg snapped

when Conley told him ofAlastor'sdecision.

“Iamsorry,buthewillnotlisten.Hedoesnotbelievethedanger, and frankly I don'tblamehim,”Conleysaid.

“Uncle, how can you saythat?”Olivaobjected.

“We have no proof of the

Shadow Hand except forLionel's journal, but Alastordoesn'tunderstandElvishandhe could argue that we areonly translating it to fit ourstory. I should have knownthat Alastor would not listento reason. He's always beenstubborn, but this is justabsurd,”Conleysaid.

“I will make Alastorlisten,”Varggrowled.

“Varg, don't do anything

you will regret,” Milea said,tryingtocalmhistemper.

“Thelast thingweneedistogetarrested,”Tainadded.

“I agree, but this bastard—” Varg was suddenly cutoffbyConley.

“Varg, please, keep yourvoice down! IfAlastor heardyouspeakingofhimthisway,he'dhaveyourhead!”

Varg sighed, for eventhough he hated the idea of

following Alastor's laws, hedidn't want his friends to bepunished for his actions.“Whatnow,then?”

Just then,Alaincame intothe room and said, “LordAlastor wishes to invite youand your party to dine withhimthisevening.”

Conley seemedhesitant toaccept, but he soon replied,“Very well. Send mygratitudetohisLordship.”

The steward nodded, thenturnedandexitedtheroom.

“Well at least he'shospitable,”Mileasaid.

“Perhaps if he listened toall of us, he might at leastsend some of his scouts tospyononeofShadowHand'sstrongholds so that they canverify our claim,” Conleyoffered.

Varg shook his head. “Ihopeyour right,but Ihavea

badfeelingaboutthis.”“There's no need to be

paranoid,”Conleyanswered.“Maybe, but paranoia has

saved my life before,” Vargargued.

Varg knew that his gutinstinct was never wrong.Alastor refused to listen toConley,thensuddenlyinvitedthem to stay for dinner as ifthey'd just had a long,friendly visit. Perhaps the

events in the pastmonth hadsimply clouded hisperception, but Varg vowedto remain vigilant should hisparanoiaprovetobejustified.

For the rest of the

afternoon, Varg and the restof his allies were allowed toroam freely through thepublic area of CastleEastwold until dinner wasready. Varg and Milea

walked together as theyexplored thegreenhouse, andwhile Milea excitedlyexaminedtheexoticherbssheoften used for alchemicpurposes,Vargcouldn'tshakethe feeling that he shouldkeep his guard up.Nevertheless, hedidn't let ontoMileawhathewasfeelingsothathewouldn'tputheronedgeaswell.

WhenAlainmade thecall

to tell the guests that dinnerwas ready, Varg's instinctsrose and stayedwith him. Inhisparanoid state,he refusedtopartwithFrostFangfortheevening.Tohisrelief,noneoftheguardsstoppedhimasheenteredthefeasthallwiththegreataxeattachedtohisback,and he was even morerelieved that his comradescarried theirs as well.Fortunately it wasn't

uncommon for everyone,even the royals, to haveweaponsontheirpersonatalltimes. Even Alastor had alarge, black sword sheathedonthebackofhischairatthehead of the dinner table. Itgave Varg solace to see thatAlastorwasnotdisturbedthathecamearmedtodinner,butinstead smiled as the lotentered.

ThesonoftheDukestood

from his seat and said,“Thank you all for joiningme.ThoughConleyandIhada bit of a disagreementearlier, I wish to offer mythanks for your concern forFellen.”

Conley stepped forwardand shook Alastor's hand.“Your hospitality is muchappreciated,Alastor.”

Alastor smiled andapproached the rest of the

group.“Idohopeyou intendto introduce me to yourassociates.”

“Certainly,” Conley said.“These are the people whohave been helping me fightthe Shadow Hand. Youremember my niece Oliva?Thenthere'sTain,Erril,Varg,Milea...”

Alastor approached Mileaafter Conley said her name,smiled, and took her hand.

“It's always wonderful tomeetsuchatenderandlovelywoman.”

Milea looked away andgave a nervous smile, thenremoved her hand beforeAlastorcouldplanthislipsonthem.

“Now Alastor, I don'tbelieve your wife wouldappreciate that,” Conleymused.

“The poor dear passed in

thespring.Thefeverwasjusttoo much for her,” Alastorsaidruefully.

“Mycondolences,”Conleyreplied.

Alastor shook his head.“Nevermindall that.Now isthe time to feast. I promiseyouwill have a dinner you'llneverforget.”

The son of the Dukeshowed them to their seats.He resumed his position at

the head of the table aftereveryone else had beenseated. The food alreadyadorned the table and eachguest had a plate set in frontof them.Alastor bid them tobegin their feast, and no oneobjected. Varg loaded hisplate with meats and breadsuntilthepilethreatenedtofallover, then he ate every lastpiece and loaded his platewithseconds.Thenhehelped

himself some apple pie, adelicacyherarelygottoeat.

Everyone ate in silenceuntil Conley finally said,“Alastor, Iknowyoualreadyrefused our request, but Imustbegyoutoreconsider.”

Alastor sighed and placedhis goblet on the table.“Conley, I understand thatyouwanttokeepFellensafe.Believe me, nothing I wantmore is to look out for

Fellen's best interests, butunless theKing has proof ofthis cult, he will not act. Ifhowever,youcanreturnwithsuch proof, my father and Iwould be happy toreconsider.”

Conley hung his head indefeat,atwhichpointAlastoradded, “I promise thatnothingwillgetinthewayofFellen's well-being. Thiskingdom will surely flourish

foragestocome.Nowthen,atreatformyguests.”

One of the servantsentered the roomwith a trayoffinegobletsandabottleofwine. Alastor stood andgestured to the servant as heplaced the goblets on thetable in front of each guest.“This wine is a rare anddelicatedrink,onethatIwishtoofferuponyou,myguests,asapeaceoffering.”

The servant then pouredwine into each goblet—except for Erril, who wasgiven cider instead—andstopped before he got toAlastor.Thesonof theDukeshook his head politely. Theservant bowed and didn't fillhismaster'sglass,butinsteadquietly departed the roomwith the wine bottle in hishands.

Varg lifted the cup to his

lips when noticed somethingstrange. All it took was awhiff and Varg could smellsomething that was familiar,but unsettling. He lifted thegoblet closer to his nose andsniffedmoreclosely,andthatwaswhenherealizedwhat itwas. The wine was full ofpoison, andVarg bet his axethat the poison was the verysame one the Shadow Handcultists used on their

weapons.Mileanoticedthecupnear

Varg's lips and whispered,“Varg,waituntilheoffersthetoast.”

Varg'sheartsankwhenherealized that hewas the onlyonewhoseemedtonoticethesmell. He looked around theroom and neither Conley,Erril, Oliva, Tain, or Mileahad taken their first drinks,much to his relief. He knew

he had to warn themsomehow,buthedidn'tknowhow.Furthermore,hehadnoproof other than his sense ofsmell that anything waswrong. Varg hatched a plan,but the chances that itwouldworkwereslimtonone.

Alastor stood and raisedhis goblet. “A toast to LordConley Rowan and hisassociates. Your bravery andloyalty is unmatched, and

may your blades ever besharpandyoureyessharper.”

Alastor liftedhisgoblet inthe air, at which pointeveryoneelseliftedtheircupstodrink.

Vargpanickedandshotupfromhis seat. “Ihavea toasttomake.”

All eyes, includingAlastor'sdarksuspicouseyes,pointed to him. The half-blood stammered and

sweated, trying to think ofwhat to say. In a last ditcheffort toavoid the suspiciousglaresof thenobleman,Vargraisedhisgobletandsaid,“Atoast . . . toLordAlastor forhis hospitality andconsideration.”

His friends eyed himcuriously, and Varg hopedthey understood by hismannerisms that somethingwas wrong. Then he

continued, “I . . . I believethat we should show bettergratitude to our host. Afterall,whatkindofguestswouldwe be if we drank such awinebeforeourhostreservedthefirsttaste?”

Alastorgrewstillandstiffdespitehistryingnottoshowit.Thenoblemanthencalmlysaid, “Nonsense, you aremyguests. Therefore, the firsttaste should be reserved to

you.”“Butyouareourlord,and

it would be rude to drinkwithoutyou,”Vargsaid.

“He's right,” Conley said,much to Varg's relief, “itwould be rude to drinkwithoutourhost.”

Alastorgrewpale.“Ihavehad enough to drink for thenight.Please,Iinsist.”

“Surely you can afford asmall taste?”Varg asked.He

hadhimnow.“I must decline,” Alastor

replied, a bitmore forcefullythistime.Apparentlyhistonewasnoticedbytheothers,forthey exchanged confusedglanceswitheachother.

Varg simply smiled. “Is itbecauseyouknowthewineispoisoned?”

Alastor's eyes widened inhorror, but the slick noblecovered up by laughing.

“That'squiteanaccusation.”“Not one I do lightly,

either,” Varg answered. Ashis friends looked at himworriedly, he continued,“Onewhiffof thiswinegavemealltheanswersIneeded.”

“What are you talkingabout, I don't smellanything,”Conleysaid.

“Normally no one cansmell this, but my nose isdifferent,” Varg said. “This

poison has a very uniquesmell, one I've only smelledfromtheweaponsthecultistsuse. In other words, ourfriend Alastor here is underthe influence of the ShadowHand.”

“How dare you,” Alastorgrowled.

“Varg, are you sure aboutthis?”Conleyasked.

“Of course not,” Alastorinterrupted. “I should hurl

him into the dungeonmyself.”

Varg didn't answer, butinsteadtossedthecontentsofhisgobletontoAlastor'sbarehand. The noble suddenlyyelped in pain and held hishand from view. The roomstilledwithsilentanticipationuntilAlastor'shandcameintoview again. The skin hadturned red and bubbled,whichwasall theproofVarg

neededforhiscomrades.“By the gods,” Conley

said.“That poison is extremely

rare and deadly,” Varg said.“It's no coincidence that youuse the same one as thecultists,isitAlastor?”

A small, unsettlingchuckle sounded fromAlastor's lips. The noblecomposedhimselfdespitehisblistering hand, and smiled.

“Youcaughtme.”Conley shook his head in

disbelief. “Then it's true,youhave allied with the ShadowHand. Why, Alastor? Whywouldyoudothis?”

Alastor began to walkaround the table. “TheSerpentapproachedmeabouta year ago. He gave a fewtempting offers in exchangefor my cooperation with theShadowHand, but therewas

nothing he could give me Ididn't already have. I havewealth, material pleasures,”he slowed behind Milea'schair and brushed hershoulder with his fingers,“not tomention . . .personalpleasures.”

Disgusted, Milea slappedAlastor's hand away andbacked away from him. Thisonly earned another laughfrom the noble, who then

continued, “That was whenJin came to his offer forpower. Now, I already havethe power to do as I please,but Jin proposed a scenariothat would ensure a seat onthe throne for me and farmore than I could everachieve on my own. Inexchange,Iamunderoathtoprovide the Shadow Handwith unlimited resources andfullaccess toFellen'sdarkest

corners where they can findthe treasured item they seekthat will lead them to theDawn.”

“That's insane,” Conleyspat.

Alastor ignored hiscomment. “Unfortunately,since your . . . associatediscovered my silent methodof dealing with meddlers, Iwill have to take moreextreme measures.” The

noble them grasped his handagainandshouted,“Guards!”

Afterthefloorrattledwithhurried footsteps, thedoor tothedininghallflewopenandthree guards darted insidewith theirweaponsdrawn, atwhich point Alastor showedthem his hand and said,“Thesepeopletriedtokillmewithaverydeadlypoison,asIwasunfortunatetodiscover.Arrestthemimmediately!”

“You underhanded, poorexcuseforawarrior!”Conleybellowed as he drew hissword in response to thecharging guards. The othersreadied for battle as soon asmore guards came pouringinto the room after hearingthecommotion.

The guards began theircharge and Varg readiedFrost Fang for a swing. Hestruck the first guard before

the poor bloke could land asingle hit, and after he frozesolid Varg charged in foranother swing. After hedisableyetanotheropponent,he turned to his comrades tooffer themaid, but it seemedas though they were faringwellenoughwithouthim.

Mileahadonlyjustloosedan arrow into her foe'sshoulder before she wasalready nocking another.

Conley had his sword in adefensive position while twoguards assaulted the steelblade.ErrilandTainbothhadknives out to match thecultists' swift attacks, andOlivanearlysetthetapestriesablazewhenhefirespellsenta burning cultist flyingthrough the nearby window.Noneof themneededhelpatthemoment,soVargtooktheopportunity to pursue the

reasonfortheambush.Varg faced Alastor and

charged head on. The son ofthe Duke already had hisgreat sword ready and metVarg's charge halfway andtheirbladescollidedwithfullforce. Despite Varg'sstrength, Alastor parried anddodged every strike of hisaxe. Varg managed to keepup, but stillwondered how amere human could be so

powerful.VargallowedAlastortogo

on the offensive so that hecouldget a better look at hisfighting style before strikingagain. The noble was verywell trained, and it wouldn'tsurpriseVargifhe'dservedinthe King's army. He wasincredibly strong and quickdespite the heavy armor hewore. The half-bloodsearched for fault in his

opponents style ormovements, but could findnone.Alastor, itseemed,wasaperfectlybuiltwarrior.

Varg was determined tomatch him. He swung againonlyforFrostFangtobemetonceagainbyAlastor'sblacksword. What's more, Varghad a difficult time keepingup with Alastor's quickmovements. The noble knewhehadtheadvantageandwas

sure to make it known toVarg.

“Giveup,wretch,”Alastortaunted.

Vargblockedhisattack.“Inevergiveup.”

“Then you will die here.”The son of the Duke swungagainandVargwasunabletoblock in time. The blacksword made it past the half-blood's defenses and struckhim hard. Varg felt no pain

with the initial blow, but assoon as the gushing blooddripped down his vest andtrousers, the reality of whathadoccurredsettledin.

Varg fell to his kneesgrippinghis bleeding side.Asharp pain shot through hisbody like a bolt of lightning.Frost Fang tumbled from hisgripontothestonefloor.Hecouldn'thearorseeanything,and he was sure time had

stopped if Alastor hadn'tfinished him yet.He thoughtit was already over when hefeltapairofarmsgentlypullhimup,butbeforehisvisionblackened, he saw a wall ofsmoke surrounding Alastorand imprisoning him whilewhatever or whoever heldVargmadetheirescape.

Varg's blurred vision

returned along with a warm,

soothing mist that envelopedhim.Hesawanemeraldlightbehind his heavy eyelids.Hetriedtoopenhiseyesonlytohearafamiliarvoicespeaktohim.

“Easynow,holdstill.”When Varg's eyes came

into focus, he matchedMilea'sfacewithhersoothingvoice, and thewarming lightVarg felt came from a smallorbinherhands.Thehalf-elf

held the healing light againstVarg'swoundandhewatchedinamazementastheskinandmuscle resealed before hisveryeyes.

“What is that?” Varguttered.

“A healing spell,” Mileaanswered. Then she added,“Mymothertaughtmemagicwhen I was young. I don'tnormally use it, but a potionwouldn't have healed your

woundfastenough.”“How did we escape?”

Vargwhispered.Milea looked at him and

said softly, “Alastor wasabout to finish you, but Errilthrew a smoke bomb todistracthimandOlivausedashield spell to prevent thesmoke from reaching us. Igrabbed you and Conleyhelpedmedragyououtofthewindow. Once we were

outside, we were surroundedbyguards,butOlivausedhershield spell to protect uswhileweallranforit.”

“You and Conley carriedme?”

Milea laughed. “It wasn'teasy, but yes. We were sodetermined to get you to outoftherethatyourlargestaturedidn'ttakeit'stollonusuntilwemadeittosafety.”

Varg looked up to see a

canopy of trees. He felt therough bark of another treeagainst his back. He lookedaround and saw no familiarsurroundings. He alsorealized that only he andMilea were present. “Whereare we? Where are theothers?”

“In the forest south ofEastwold,” Milea explained.“Conley is standing guardwhile Oliva uses a spell to

lead the guards in anotherdirection and Tain and Errilare off scouting the area.They should be back soon,butfornowyouneedtofocusonresting.”

Varg looked down at hiswound and saw it was nowbarely more than a surfacescratch. He found himselfplacing aweak hand on hersand said, “I think you'vealready takencareof that for

me.Thankyou.”Mileashookherhead.“It's

the least I can do after yousaved our hides back there.The light from Milea's spellfaded, and then she said,“There,it'ssealedup.There'sgoingtobeascar,though.”

“Iwouldn'tbeawarrior ifI didn't have scars,” Vargsaid.He didn't let on that hemeant it in more ways thanone.

Milea smiled and lookedaway. “Just wait a fewminutesbeforestanding.Youlostalotofblood.”

Varg leaned upwards,coming within inches fromMilea's face. When the half-elf turned back to face him,she too leaned closer andlocked eyes with him.Mileagently placed her hand onVarg's chest, andhe returnedthe gesture by brushing a

strand of hair from her face.An all too familiar wave ofheat erupted inside him,promptinghimtoleancloser.Milea rested her foreheadagainst his and moved hermouthclosertohis,butVargbarelyfeltthetenderbrushofher lips on hiswhen a voiceechoedthroughthewoodandbroketheirtrance.

“Look's like we've lostthemfornow.”

Conley appeared into theclearing first just afterMileamoved away fromVarg. Sheknelt beside him and lookednervously away as if she'dcommitted a crime. Sooneveryone else followedbehindtheCount.ConleyandOliva approached Varg justas hewas trying towrap hishead around what justhappened.

“Good,itlookslikeyou're

healed,”Conleysaid.Varg shifted his position

and felt his newly closedwound. “Milea's quite thehealer.”

“We should be safe herefor the night, so you justfocus on regaining yourstrengthuntilwemoveinthemorning,”Conleytoldhim.

Varg disobeyed and triedto stand. “What if Alastor'smenortheShadowHandfind

us?” Varg's head began torush, prompting him to sitbackagainstthetree.

“Don't be stubborn, Varg.Rest,”Olivascolded.

Varg grudgingly noddedandcomplied.

Once Tain and Errilreturned and informedeveryone that the area wasclearandtheyweresafetosetupcamp,Mileawentintothewoods to hunt and later

returned with fresh game.ConleyandTainsetupafirepit and Milea roasted themeat into a stew.She helpedVarg eat in silence, andavoidedhisgaze.Hefeltabitstronger once his belly wasfullandafterhecladhis torncuirass,hedaredtostandandstretchhislegs.

Fortunately,thehalf-bloodrecovered quicker than usualandpaced forabitbeforehe

felt dizzy again. He noticedthat Milea avoided his gaze,but he'd hoped it was onlybecause she was as anxiousand confused as hewas, andnot that she felt regret fortheir experience. As fatiguesetintohiswearybody,Varglay down on his sleep sacknext to the campfire andwatchedMilea as she tendedthe flames. His heavy eyesgot the best of him and he

began to fall asleep, but notbefore he felt the soft touchof awoman's handbrush thehairfromhisface.

CHAPTER18

WITH THE MORNINGLIGHT, Varg had enoughstrengthforthepartytobegintheir march away from thewood and onward toIronbarrow.Theyreachedtheforest edge by the afternoon,andfortunatelytherewereno

guards waiting for them, sothey continued onward untilthey safely reached thecounty border. By theevening the next day, theyfinally reached thewelcoming gates ofIronbarrow andwent straightto the castle to tell Catrinawhat theyhad learned.Then,afterabriefrestinthecastle,Varg suggested a trip to thetavernforaroundofdrinks.

Conley, Milea, and Tainall joined Varg around thetableinthecornerofthebusytavern as they began todiscussthenextmove.

Conley in particular wasquite on edge and didn'tbother to conceal it. TheCount shook his head andresteditonhisfist,thensaid,“I just pray the King hasn'tbeen influenced by theShadowHandyet.”

Mileawasthefirsttoofferthe Count solace in thematter.“Ifthatwerethecase,then Jin wouldn't needAlastortotakethethrone.”

“I hope you're right,”Conleyreplied.

“What do we do now,then?”Vargwonderedaloud.

“Obviously we need towarn the King about Alastorand the Shadow Hand,”Conleysaid.“Consideringwe

are going to be accusing theKing's own nephew oftreason, our best casescenarioincludesalifetimeofprisonandtorture.”

“I saywe go to the castleand just tell the King aboutthe cult without mentioningAlastor. Then if he doesdecide to investigate,we canhelp prove the bastard guiltyand watch him hang,” Vargsaid.

“We won't get past thefront gate without beinggrantedanaudience,”Conleysomberlyreplied.

“There has to besomethingwecando,”Mileasaid.

Before Varg could sayanything else, a tap on hisshoulder prompted him toturn around.A tavernwenchwho balanced a tray in onehand held out a folded piece

ofpaper tohimwithher freehand.

Varg accepted the paper,thenasked,“What'sthis?”

“Apatronpointedyououtand asked me to give youthis,”thegirlreplied.

“Thanks, I guess,” Vargsaidas thewenchwalkedoffandcarriedhertraytoanothertable. Varg unfolded thepaper and looked it over insilence. After he looked up

again and saw the curiouslooksonhiscomrades' faces,readitaloud,“'Iknowhowtoget rid of the ShadowHand.Meetmeinmyprivateboothupstairsintenminutes.Comealoneandunarmed.'”

“Who do you suppose itcouldbe?”Mileaasked.

“And why do they wantyou to go alone?” Conleypressed.

“Not to mention

unarmed,”Tainadded.“Idon'tknow,butIhavea

feelingthisistheonlywaytogetanswers,”Vargsaid.

“Varg, we are in adesperate situationhere.Thisisn't thetimeforgut instinctsandhunches,”Conleyargued.

“Conley, Varg's instinctshaveneverbeenwrong.Ifhethinks it is worth checkingout, then we should trusthim,”shesaid.

“Fine, butwe shouldwaitdown here for any signs offoulplay,”Conleysaid.

Varg took one final gulpof his pint, slapped the mugonthetable,andsaid,“Well,I'd better not keep ourinformantwaiting.”

Varg climbed the stairs of

the pub and came across acouple of vigilant guards.They took one look at him

and thoughVarg expected tobe turned away, one of themsaid, “His Lordship isexpectingyou.”

The guards moved asideandopenedthedoorforVarg.The upstairs room appearedto be reserved for high classguests. Several wealthy mensatincomfortableboothsandwere waited on by finelydressedbarmaids.

“Over there,” said one of

theguards.The guard pointed to a

small booth in the cornerwhereVargsawamansittingfacing away from him.Though he couldn't see thenobleman'sface,Varg'sbloodboiledandherealizedexactlywhoitwas.

Vargmarchedtothetable,looked his informant in theface, and spat, “Greenwood,yousackofdung.”

Edric Greenwood lookedup at Varg and answered,“Lovely to see you again,too.”

“What do you want? Isthisoneofyourtricks?”Vargaccused.

“This is just you and metalking,hunter.Noambushes,no tricks, just a chat. Nowsit,”Edricsaid.

Varg glared at the Count,but satanyway.“Yousaid in

yournotethatyouknowhowto defeat the Shadow Hand.Tellme.”

“Not here,” Greenwoodreplied.

Varg breathed deeply tocontrol his fists, then said,“Whydidyoucallmeuphereifyouweren'tgoingtotellmeanything?”

“IfiguredyoualreadytoldConley about myinvolvement in Lionel's

death.IreasonedthatifIhadsimplystrolleduptothegatesof his castle, he would havehad me killed on the spot,”Edricexplained.

“Give me just one reasonwhyIshouldn'tdothesame?”Varggrowled.

Edric straightened up andheld out a hand in protest.“Justcalmyourselfandthinkfor a moment. I have aproposition for you and I

know it's youronlyoption atthemoment,soIsuggestyoucomply.”

Vargdidn't like thisatall,buthegrudginglyadmittedtohimself that the Count wasright. “Fine, what is yourdeal?”

“Like I said before, nothere.Ionlywantedyoualoneso you could convinceConley to allow me into hiscastleandmakeplansthere.I

don't expect you to trustme,but perhaps you would beinclinedtolistenasyouhaveno other way of getting intothe King Reman's castle,”Greenwoodremarked.

Varg straightened up andcountered, “How did youknowweneededtogettothecastle?”

The Count stared amoment and then shruggedand said, “What other option

would you have? I'm sureyou've discovered that theShadow Hand has moreinfluence in Fellen than yourealized, soRemanwouldbethe only person who couldtake action at this point. Iexpect you will listen toreason?”

“On one condition,” Vargsaid. When the Count gavehim a curious look, Vargcontinued, “You are to look

OlivaandCatrinaintheeyesand admit to them that youkilledLionel.”

“They already know I did—”

Varg boldly cut off theCount to speak again. “Theyknow you are a liar and acoward,butyouaregoing toface themandallowthe lookon their faces to burn intoyourmindforever.Iwantyouto think of that every time

you close your eyes. I wantyou to imagine the bloodiedcorpse of the man you oncecalled your friend when youlook at his daughter andgranddaughter and tell themwhatyou'vedone.”

Edric sighed. “If that willsatisfy you. Leave yourresponse with the barmaiddownstairs. Good evening toyou.”

Varg then rose from his

seat and marched for thedoor, but not before givingone last icy glare to thedeceitful and murderousCountofRivershire.

When Varg returned

downstairs, he told everyoneabout his conversation withGreenwood. Conley inparticular grew agitated bythisrevelation.

“He doesn't actually

expect me to allow him intomycastle,”Conleygrowled.

“I know, Conley, but heknows how we can stop theShadowHand,”Vargsaid.

“Ihatetoaccepthelpfromhim,butVargisright,”Mileaagreed.

“I doubt the rat is worththetrouble,”Tainargued.

“Tain is right. I cannotallow Catrina or Oliva to bein the same room as that

man!”Conleysaid.“Itwouldbe an insult to Lionel'smemory.”

“Conley, Oliva andCatrina are far stronger thanyou give them credit for,”Milea said. “If it will satisfyyou, let themdecidewhetheror not we listen to whatGreenwoodhastosay.”

Conley sighed. “I won'tlie,Idon'tlikethisatall.Firstthe two of you tellmeEdric

Greenwood murdered myfather-in-law and framedMileaforit.Thenyoutellmehe was responsible for theShadow Hand gainingentrancetoBalik,wheretheyabducted Oliva. Now youwantme to forget all of thatandmake him a guest inmyhome?InCatrina'shome?”

Vargshiftedinhisseat.“IwantGreenwood's head on aplatterasmuchasyoudo,but

if we have a chance ofdefeating the Shadow Handbecause of his cooperation,I'm willing to form atemporary alliance with him.I don't know why he'ssuddenlyworkingagainst thepeople he killed for, andfrankly I don't care. All Iknowisthatwemayneedhishelp,andnotasingleattemptat pleading or bribery cansparehimmywrathshouldhe

betrayus.”Conleytookadeepbreath.

“IwanttoatleastdiscussthiswithCatrinaandOlivafirst.”

“That's fair,” Vargconcurred.

Conley rose from his seatand left his tip on the table.Then he announced, “ThentelltheCountheshallreceiveconfirmation within thehour.”

After Conley was out of

earshot,Tain facedVarg andasked, “Do you really thinkthisisagoodidea?”

“No,butwehavenootherchoice,”Vargadmitted.

“We need to take everyprecautionwithhimaround,”Mileasaid.

Vargnodded.“Agreed.”

Varg took a sip from hisgobletofmeadashewatchedEdric stare silently across

Conley'sstudyatCatrinaandOliva.WhenConleyhadtoldthem the Count's proposal,theyweresurprisinglywillingto listen to him. After theirconfirmation, Conley thenhad a courier bring themessage to Greenwood tomeet him in the castle, andnowitwashisturntofulfillabargain.

With watchful eyes, Varglowered the goblet from his

lips and said, “Say it,Greenwood.”

The Count of Rivershirecleared his throat and spoke.“I . . . killed LionelLerington. . . . because heknew too much about theShadowHand . . . and Iwasafraid the King would soondiscovermyinvolvement.”

The room grew silent,which ended with Catrina.The brave Lady stepped

forward, held her head high,and spoke. “You tellme youmurdered my father for thefavoroftheSerpent,yetnowyouoffertohelpusfighthim.Tell me, why should I trustyourintentionsarepure?”

Greenwood caught hisbreath.“TheSerpentseesmyactions as a liability to theShadow Hand, since themurder of Lionel promptedallofyou to investigate their

dealings.Hemaynotwanttoadmit there's a problem, buttheSerpenthashadhishandsfull trying to rid himself ofthelotofyou.Ilearnedfromoneofmysourcesthatheandplans tohavemedisposedofonceAlastortakesthethrone.Iplan tomakesure thatdoesnothappen.”

Catrina had already heardthe story about what hadhappened to everyone in

Eastwold,but she still asked,“WhatwouldplacingAlastoron the throne of Fellenaccomplish for the ShadowHand?”

Greenwood continued hisstory. “Isn't it obvious?Witha King in Jin's control, theShadow Hand could haveunlimited resources andpower to do whatever theywant. They could eliminateanyone who tried to stop

themandif there'saproblemwithwitnesses, aKing couldeasilycoverthetruth.”

“How do they plan toplaceAlastoronthethrone?”Vargasked.

“The Serpent is leadinglegions of his cultists tolaunchanattackonthecityofWhitspire. They plan toinfiltrate the castle and killthe royal family as well asDuke Rainald,” Edric

explained.“They're just going to

marchintothecityandattackfull force?” Milea asked.“Wouldn't they normallyworkinsecret?”

“Idon'tknowforsure,butIbelievetheywantthepublicto think they were just anunorganized crime ring andthey hope that once Alastortakes the throne, it willappear that he's cleaned up

everything. I am willing towager thatAlastor persuadedhis father to go so that itwould look like he wassimply in thewrong place atthe wrong time. Alastor willbe able to take the thronewith no questions asked andnoinvestigationsagainsthim.After all,whowould suspecta grief-stricken sonwhowasmiles away from the site ofthe attack of cold-blooded

murder?”Edricsaid.There was a brief silence

that was broken by Conley.“Well then, we know whatJin is planning, but do weknowwhen?”

Count Greenwood clearedhis throat and answered, “Infourdays.”

“Itwill take three days toarrive in the castle, so weshould leave tomorrow,”Vargsaid.

“Itoldyou,thatcastleisafortress,” Conley said. “Wewillnotbeallowedinsi—”

“I would be,” Edricinterrupted. Once all eyeswereonhim,hecontinued,“Ican get into the castle andwarntheKingandDuke.”

“Oh yes, I forgot. TheKing is your brother-in-law,correct?”Conleyasked.

“Yes. The King's sisterwasmylatewife.IfIsayit's

important, he will see mewithout question,” Edricreplied.

“Then why do you needus?”Vargasked.

“No one has proventhemselves a match to themexceptforthelotofyou.TheKing's army knows notwhatthey would face, so you arethe kingdom's greatestdefense,”Greenwoodreplied.

“We cannot hope to fight

them alone. As you said,there will be an army ofcultists,” Milea said. “Wedon't have enough fighterswho know what they aredealingwith.”

“Yes we do,” Vargcountered. All eyes were onhim now, and he added,“Tollack and his merrydwarveshaveascoretosettlewith the Shadow Hand,remember?”

“It's an unlikely plan,Varg, but will we get to thedwarves and back toWhitspire in time?” Conleyasked.

“I have the map here,”Milea said. She took out thelarge roll of parchment andexamined themarkings, then,“Themountain isonlyhalf aday's detour on the way toWhitspire. We could stillmakeit.”

“Iwillleavetonightonmyjourney to warn the King,”CountGreenwood suggested.“We cannot all travel in agroup together, for it wouldbe too obvious that someonewas going on. One of youmay come with me andpretendtobemyescort.”

“I will,” Olivavolunteered.

“Noyouwillnot,”Catrinaprotested.

“Aunt Catrina, I must bethe one to keep and eye onhim,”Olivasaid.

“Oliva, this man hascommittedmurderagainstourfamily. You can't actuallythinkitwouldbesafe tostayalone with him,” Catrinapleaded.

“I'll go with her,” Tainoffered.

“You?” Conleyquestioned.

“She'smyemployer,isshenot?”Tainsaid.

Afterawarningglarefromthe water elf, Edric gulpedandquicklyresponded,“Verywell, the two of you maycome as my escorts toWhitspire.”

“I will go to the dwarvesand request their help,”Conleysaid.

Milea stepped up to theCount's side and offered,

“The dwarves haven't metyou, Conley, and thereforewill not know you are afriendtous.Ishouldgotosothat they know you aretrustworthy.”

“I'm going too,” Erriloffered.

“SoamI,”Vargsaid.“Actually, Varg, I think

you should go to Whitspirewithout us and the others,”Conleysuggested.

Varggavehimaconfusedlook and said, “What goodwillthatdo?”

“We need someone to bein the city to prepareeveryone for the attack.Going with Greenwood andthe others will be tooobvious, since the ShadowHand could spot you a mileaway.Youmustgoaloneandstay out of sight until it istime to act. I don't know

another warrior with yourlevelofskill,andsoIbelievethat you are the best man toprotect the people of thatcity,”Conleyexplained.

Varg looked to everyone,surprised to see the hopefuland confident expressions ontheirfacesandwasfilledwithinstantconfidence.

“Verywell.Iwillgoaloneto Whitspire and defend thecity as soon as Jin and the

Shadow Hand dare to drawtheirblades,”Vargagreed.

“Then it'ssettled,”Conleysaid. “We will makepreparationsandthenrestforthe evening. Tomorrowmorningis thestartofa longjourney. I won't lie, wemaynot all survive this, but Iassure you that if we fightwithallwehave,wemayjusthaveachanceof ridding thisland of the Shadow Hand

forever.”With that, the Count of

Ironbarrowofferedhisgobletinatoastandeveryonedranktogether,morethanlikelyforthe last time before CountGreenwood, Oliva, and Tainmade preparations anddepartedIronbarrow.

When night fell, Varg

entered his bedroom,removed his cuirass, bracers,

and boots, and approachedthewashing bin.He grabbedthedampclothontheedgeofthebasinandhescrubbedhisfacewith it.He removed thecloth and peered into hisreflectioninthemirrorabovethe basin andwas startled todiscoverthathewasn'talone.

Milea stood in thedoorway and when he sawher, she said, “Am Iinterrupting?”

“Not at all,” Varg repliedto the reflection.He replacedtheclothontheedgeofbasinand turned to face her. Heoffered her a smile andwalkedovertothebedtosit.After he plopped onto thebed,heaskedher,“What'sonyourmind?”

Milea took a few stepsforward, but stopped justbefore the bed and placed ahand on the corner post.“I'm

justabitconcerned.”“About?”Vargpressed.Milea sat down next to

Varg and continued, “Thiswhole situation seemsodd tome.FirstGreenwoodcontactsyouandtellsyouofaplottomurder the royal familyafterhe'salreadyframedusforthemurder of Lionel. Then hetellsusthattheShadowHandis going to attack Whitspirefull force in order to get it

accomplished. Then there'sthe fact that all of this iscoming to light just as weneed towarn theKingof theShadow Hand. It all seemstoo coincidental, don't youthink?”

Varg pondered her wordsand realized theymadesomesense. He knew that Edriccould very well be settingthemupinorder towinbackJin's favor; Varg never

expected less fromtheCountof Rivershire. “Whatever thecase, we don't have manyoptions. It's best we just goalong with Greenwood andbeware of his treachery,”Vargreplied.

“I just wonder how this'treachery' might affect usshould we not see it cominguntil it's too late,” Mileauttered.

The half-elf seemed like

she had more to say, butwouldn't. Varg hated to pry,but he still asked, “Is thatall?”

Mileadebatedwithherselfwhether or not to speak, butshe finally conceded. “I justrealized that tomorrow willbe the first time we'vetraveled apart since we firstleftRivershire.”

Varg couldn't help butchuckle at the memory of

their first encounter back inthe cavern. “You're right.We'vebeen throughsomuchtogethersincethen.”

Milea stepped down fromthe bed and started to pace.“Inallhonesty,Ifindtheideaoftravelingwithoutyoutobeabitdaunting.Itwon'tbethesame without your smartremarksandboldattitude.”

Varg laughed. “Well then,besuretomakeitthroughthe

battle so we can keeptraveling after the ShadowHandisgone.”

Milea stopped andexchanged a glance withVarg.“Youwishforustogoon more adventurestogether?”

“Ofcourse,”Vargreplied,“youandImakeagreatteam.I only hopewe bothmake itthroughthisnextbattlesowecan see the extent of our

teamworkinaction.”Milea gave a nervous

smile, but quickly turnedaway and covered hermouthwith her hand. Varg'sadmirationforhisfriendsoonturned into concern as hehopped off of the bed toinvestigatehersuddenchangein demeanor. He approachedherfrombehindandsaidinagentlevoice,“Whatisit?”

Without facing him, the

half-elfmuttered,“Dammit, Ijust can't control it. I'm sopathetic.”

“You're not pathetic.You're one of the strongestpeople I know,” Vargassured.

“Ican'tevenfaceyouafteryou said such wonderfulthings about me, Varg. Howisthatnotpathetic?”shesaid.

“What's really going on,Milea?You don't have to be

afraid to tell me,” Vargpressed.

Milea turned around afterwipingherfaceandsniffling,and revealed her reddenedeyes. “Varg, I haven't caredfor anyone in such a longtime, and now that we'regrowing so close, it scaresme.”

Varg felt his heart drop,forheknewall toowellhowshefelt.“We'reclosebecause

nooneunderstandsuslikewedo. We know each otherspain, fears, and memories.We've stuck together whenmost people would go theirseparate ways. I won't lie, Inever wanted to care aboutyou this much, but mystubborn heart won't let medecideotherwise.”

Milea stared at him withtears welling in her eyesagain, and it wasn't until he

blinked thatVarg realizedhewas too. Milea took a boldstepclosertohimandsaid,“Ican't lose you, Varg. That'swhy I have to go into battlewithyouandprotectyou.”

“I feel the same, Milea,”Varg admitted. “I can't standthe thoughtof losinganyone,much less you. You and Ihave been in this togetherfrom the beginning, and Iintend for us to finish it

together. I won't be dying inthis upcoming battle, and Iwill see to it that you won'teither.”

Milea bowed her head inshame.“I'msorry,I...”

“There's nothing toapologize for. You only feelwhatyourhearttellsyou.Justlike mine tells me that youandIare in thiswar togethernomatterwhat.”

To his surprise, Milea

looked up and smiled. Thehalf-elf walked over andembraced him, a gesture hereturned without question.Sheheldherarmsaroundhiswaste andwhispered into hischest, “You know, I stillremember the day you savedme from theheadsman's axe.You claim that you onlyfoundmy innocence becauseyou didn't want to leave thejob unfinished, but was that

reallyalltherewastoit?”Varg smiled, then

answered, “For themost partwhat I said was true, but Iadmitthatapartofmesimplywanted you to be innocentdespite my better judgment.Imagine my surprise when Ijust so happened to meetanother half-blood, of allpeople, in possibly thebiggest coincidence of alltime. I couldn't stand the

thought of carrying on aloneanymore, so I was bent onproving your innocence nomatterwhat.”

Milea craned her neck sothat her lips brushed onVarg'sneck. “Youwillneverbe alone again, and if you'llhaveme,I'dliketoproveittoyoutonight.”

Varg placed his hand onher cheek and pulled hercloser.The touch of her skin

ignited a once lost part ofhim, and before he losthimself in the moment, hewhispered,“I'myours,Love.”

Milea smiled and gentlymet his lipswith hers, and itwas all it took to losethemselves. Varg pulled herbody closer and wrapped hisarm around her waist. Sheplaced her arms across hisbarebackandheldhimtight.His heart raced as he kissed

her and every touch of herfingertips sent shiversthroughhisbody.Heallowedher to strip him of hisremaining garments and hereturned the favor. With abrush of his hands over hersmooth,barecurves,VarglayMileaontohisbedandjoinedherunderthesheets.

As the night carried on,Varg struggled for breath asmoved with Milea's body in

perfect unison. Despite hisrapidly draining energy, heheldhercloseranddidn'tdarestop. Instead, he pushedthrough the pain in his chestand kept the rhythm to hisbest efforts. If it wasn't theway Milea gasped when shefelt his touch, it was hershivering touch on hissweating skin and herentrancingeyesgavehimlifewhen he thought he would

collapse. It was Milea'sintoxicating kiss, however,thatdrovehiswildinstinctstothesurface,andallheneededwas one to carry on throughthebreathlessnight.

When it was over, Vargcollapsed beside Milea andlaysilentlybyhersideforaneternity, but no words wereneeded. His entire bodytrembled carelessly as beadsof sweat fell from his brow

and stained the sheets, butwhen Milea turned to facehim and lay her head on hischest,hedidn'tdarestopher.He simply wrapped his armsaroundherandashefellintoadeepsleep,hecouldfinallyfeelhisheartbeatcalmingandhisinnerbeastsubsiding.

In his dreams, he saw

Treasa once again. She wasstandingbeforehim,not in a

memory,but inempty space.She looked at him with asmile, then whispered, “It'stime.”

CHAPTER19

CONLEY GATHEREDVARG, Milea, and Erril inhisstudyonelasttimetogivethemaquicksummaryofthejourneytheywouldbetaking.They would depart from thefrontgatesofIronbarrowandtraveleast,thennorthasthey

traveled with the road, thentheywouldrun intoa fork inthe road a ways after thecurve. Conley told them thattheywouldneedtoturnleftatthis fork, and then continuenorthwest until they came toanother fork,where one pathwould lead to the mountainwhere Tollack and thedwarves lived, and the leftpathwouldleadtoWhitspire.

Varg readied his horse's

saddle with bags of supplieshewouldneedforthejourneytoWhitspire of Fellen. FrostFang was fastened in it'susual place on the claspattached to Varg's back,Conley supplied Varg withanother leather vest—for thelastonehadseveraltearsinitfrom the previous mission—and new leather bracers andboots sewn together with furpelts inside of each. He felt

more than ready for battle,although the bloodshed thatwas sure to come didn'toccupyhismindlikeitshouldhave.

As Varg made sure thesaddle strapswere secure, hecouldn't help but allow hismind to venture to the nightbefore.Mileawasanamazinglover,moreso thanhe'deverimagined. He couldn't stopthinking about the way she

lookedathimtheentiretime.He could think of nothingbesides waking to her thatmorning toseeherbarebackfacing him and her wine-coloredcurlsdrapedover thesheets.

Soon the half-elf herselfwalked into the stable withher own horse ready. Sheducked under the woodenbeam separating herself andVargandsaid,“Conleywants

us tomeet him at the bridgewhen we're ready to leave.”She then walked around thewooden beams, held out asatchel to Varg, and added,“AlsohereareafewpotionsIwhippedupjustincase.”

Varg accepted the satcheland tied it to his horse'ssaddle. “Thank you. I'malmost done here. Need anyhelpyourself?”

“Actually there is one

thing you can do for me,”Mileaanswered.

Without another word,Milea grasped Varg's cloakand pulled him in for a kiss.When shepulled away,Varganswered,“Icandothat,”andkissedheragain.

Conleywaited for thematthe bridge just as Varg andMilea rode their horses tomeet him. Erril trotted alongbesidehimonherownpony.

“Ah, you two are finallyreadythen?”Conleyasked.

“As we'll ever be,” Varganswered.

“Then let us be off,”Conley said, “for we have alongjourneyahead.”

“Andanevenlongerbattleattheend,”Mileaadded.

The four travelers rodethrough the town to the frontgatewithConley leading theway. They took the left path

fromthegate,thenafterafewhours of travel, they turnedleft at the first fork in theroad. At the end of the day,theyfoundthesecondfork.

Vargstaredat thewoodensign in between the tworoads. The part of the signthat pointed left said,“Whitspire”, and he knewthat it was where he neededtogo,butsomethingkepthimfirmlyplantedinhisposition.

“This is where we split,”Conleyadvised.“Varg,makehaste toWhitspire, and goodlucktoyou.”

Varg snapped out of itlong enough to nod inConley's direction. Heventured to the leftdown thepath, but not before catchingsight of Milea giving him asilent goodbye. His chesttightened at the sight of herleaving, but he knew that it

was for thebestanddivertedhis attention to the roadahead.

When the evening came,Varg stopped and made asmallcampatthebottomofacliff just south of theIronbarrowborder.Ashe layhis weary head on hissleeping sack, he lookedstraight up and admired theclearnightsky.Despitetryingto occupy his thoughts with

thecelestialbeauty, thenightsky only reminded Varg ofhis new lover's eyes onceagain. Now that she wasn'twith him, even though heknewhe'dseeheragain,Vargfelt an empty space inside.Could Varg possibly bebreaking thevowhemade tohimself all those years ago?Could it be that his heart,after all these years, desiredto be torn apart again? Varg

cared for Milea, of course,but as far as he wasconcerned, his heart stillbelongedtoTreasa.Whyelsewouldhehavedreamtofherafter making love to Milea?Therewouldneverbeanotherwoman who could melt himthe way the red-hairedmaidenofWildValleydid.

Varg found Whitspire on

the third night after he left.

He knew he'd finally arrivedwhen he spotted the King'sgrand castle over the mistyhorizon of Fellen nearnightfall. The town itselfseemed quiet and, to Varg'sdiscomfort, quite unguarded.Did the others arrive asplanned? Did GreenwoodturnonOlivaandTain?Vargmade the rash, but necessarydecision to enter the town inorder to look for his

counterparts and ensure theymadeit.

Whitspire wasn't as largeasEastwoldorBalik,but thequalityofthecityliveduptoits capital status. Thoughmany of the structures weremodest in taste, they werebuilt with solid stone andwood, which is much morethan the denizens of villageslike Birhog or Wild Valleycould ever achieve. This of

course had nothing on thewealthier parts of town,where thebuildings stretchedtallandproud.Evenfromtheoutside, Varg could tell thattheKing'scastlecouldfittwoof Conley's. It would seemthatthecityofWhitspirewasbuilt to last against all kindsof abuse, whether it was theelementsofnatureoranarmyof invaders,but thisdid littletoeasehismind.

Varg came across thetavern and figured he couldfind information there. Vargtied his horse on the postoutside and entered thetavern. Inside the dim lightsshone upon the loud anddrunken patrons, but Vargsaw no familiar faces. Evenwiththecommotion,hecouldhave spotted his comradesand Greenwood easily, buttheywere nowhere in sight.

Varg therefore sat at the barbefore the pub owner andorderedadrink.

“I'll have a pint of meadand some information ifyou'vegotit,”Vargsaid.

“Information eh? Can't betoo careful now,” the pubownerjested.

AshepouredVargadrinkfrom the barrel behind him,Varg then asked, “I waswondering if you've seen

somefriendsofmine?”“I'veseenalotofpeople,”

answeredthepubownerasheplacedVarg'spintbeforehim,“so you'll have to be a bitmorespecific.”

“One of them is a waterelf, and he's probably got abored expression while he'stwirlingadaggerinhishand.Then there's an old fellowwearing fine, green clothesand a has a false sense of

entitlement. The last is ayoung woman, a mage, whois more than likely siftingthrough a book,” Vargexplained.

“Can't say I've seen eitherof them, sorry lad,” the pubownersaid.

Varg was certainlyperplexedandwonderedifheshould ask around town, buthisgutinstinctstartedtokickin and told him he should

keepquietforthetimebeing.Thenwhat am I to do?Vargaskedhimself.Hedownedhispint, paid the bartender, anddecided to look aroundoutside.

Nightwas falling quickly,soVargbegantolookforanysigns of his comrades. Hesearched for strange symbolsthat Oliva may have createdfor magical protection, butfoundnone.He tried to peek

under the hood of everypassing stranger, but saw nofamiliar faces. It was soonapparent that the three neverarrived,andVargwasstartingtopanic.

Varg'sconcentrationbrokewhenhefeltahandcoverhismouth. Before he evenrealizedwhathappened,Vargthrashedviolentlyaswhoeverheld him from behinddragged him into the nearby

alley. His abductor releasedhimassoonas theywereoutof sight from the street, soVarg seized the opportunitytodrawhisweapon.

Just when Frost Fangnearly collided with thecloaked assailant, he put hishandsoutindefenseandspat,“It'sme,Varg!”

Varg recognized Tain'svoice and quickly halted hisattack. He peeked under the

mysteryman'sdarkhoodandrealizedthatwhileTain'shairand eyes were dark and hisscars were gone, his facialfeatureswerestillthesame.

Varg blinked furiously tomake sure he was seeingcorrectly. “How in theworlddidyouchangeyourface?”

Tain glared at Varg andcame within inches of hisface.“Whatareyouthinking,walking around town like

that? You could have beencaught.”

“Evidently I was,” VargremarkedasheloweredFrostFang, “but you didn't answermyquestion.”

Tain rolled his now darkeyes and said, “Come, I willexplainwhereit'ssafer.”

Vargreturnedhisaxetoitsrightful place and followedTain to a small shack on theoutskirts of the village. On

theoutsideitappearedthatnoonewasthere,butwhenTainopened the door, the roomwas anything but abandoned.Instead of a withered shack,the inside appeared to be acozy parlor straight out of acastle. The walls and floorwere rich stone covered intapestries and ornate rugs.Though the room itself wasstill small, a set ofcomfortable chairs and a

blazing fireplace made theplaceseemlikehome.

Oliva sat before the fireandflippedthroughthepagesof a spell book. When shenoticedthatVarghadentered,she quickly closed the bookandrantoembracehim.“OhVarg!Thankgoodnessyou'rehere!”

Varg accepted the hugbriefly, then broke away andsaid, “What has happened?

Where is Greenwood? WhydoesTainlooklikeahuman?And how did . . .” Varggestured around the roomwithatwirlofhisforefingers,“...thishappen?”

“It's a long story,” Olivasaid, “so you had better sitdown.Would you like sometea?”

“Sure, but I want anexplanation too,” Varganswered.

Varg sat down in acomfortable chair andwatched as Oliva startedboiling water in a small,quaintkettle.

“We only just arrived acouple of hours ago due tosome delays. There werecultists everywhere, and wehadtofindalternateroutestoavoidthem,”Olivaexplained.

“When we arrived,” Tainadded, “Greenwood went to

the castle to get an audiencewiththeKing.Wewaitedforseveral hours, but we neverheardfromhim.Ithoughtthebastard had double crossedus, but then we saw cultistsdisguised as guards and werealized he'd beencompromised.”

“How did you know theywerecultists?”Vargasked.

“We saw one take hishelmetoffandhisbrandwas

onhisneck,soweknewtherehad to be more, no doubt toprovide inside access to thecastle for the attack,” Olivaadded,pouringVarg'steaintoacup.AssoonasVargtookasip, she continued, “Wefigured they had capturedGreenwood before he couldwarn the King, and it wasconfirmed when I contactedhim.”

“How?” Varg asked,

accepted the cup Olivahandedhim.

“A magic spell involvingreflectivesurfaces,preferablymirrors.Itservesasawindowto communicatewith anotherperson. Each person mustcarryaspecialstonethatpairswith the other to activate it.Greenwood was placed in acell with a small puddle ofwater, thankfully, and sincehe still had the stone on his

person I was able to contacthim through the puddle,”Oliva explained. “Heinformed me that cultistswere in fact in thecastleandhad placed him under arrestand were looking for us aswell.”

“I found this shack anddecided we should hide hereuntilyouarrived.That'swhenOliva broke out her spellbook and spruced the place

up,”Tainadded.“I was just making the

shack a little comfortable.Besides, the spell I castmasks the sound and lightfrom outside, so it will stilllook abandoned. They won'tfindushere,”Olivaargued.

“Thatdoesn'texplainthis,”VarggesturedtoTain.

Tain removed thehoodofhis cloak and his appearanceswiftly changed back to it's

original form. “Oliva castanother spell on this cloak,which can alter theappearance of anyone whowears it. This helps us blendin if we have to go out inpublic.You shouldwear onetoo.”

“You're probably right,”Varg said, running a handthroughhiswhitehair.

“Don't worry, I have anextracloak,”Olivasaid.

“Whatdowedoaboutthecultists inthemeantime?It'sobvious that we can't warnthe royals before the attackhappens, and the three of usalone cannot hope to protectall of these people,” Vargsaid.

“I will contact CountGreenwood again and ask ifhe's heard any details of theattack,”Olivaoffered.

“I suppose it's our best

option,”Vargreplied,“unlessyoutwothinkwecanstalltheattack.”

“Not without revealingourselves and endangeringthetownbymakingourselvestargets,”Olivasaid.

Oliva thenwalkedover toamirror hanging on the sideof the roomand sheheld thestone out in her palm. Sheuttered a short incantationand the stone began to glow.

Shetouchedthesurfaceoftheglass with the stone, and ashort while later, an imagestarted to appear on themirror.

The image on the mirrorwas muddy and ripplestraveledacross thesurfaceoftheglass,asifstaringupfromunder a surface of water.Count Greenwood's faceappeared into view, only hewaswornanddirty.

“What news do youhave?”Olivaasked.

“Nothing new to report, Iamafraid,”Edricsighed,“butIseethehunterhasarrived.”

Varg stepped towards themirror. “Greenwood, do youknow awaywe can get intothe castle and warn theKing?”

“Youmeanget past all ofthe cultists and then the realguards before the steward

even grants you an audiencewith the King all in onenight? It's impossible,”Greenwoodsaid.

“I've managed to pull offmore impossible missions inthe past. Remember, thecultists cannot act before it'stimesoasnottoalerttherealguards of their presence andcompromise the operation,”Vargpointedout.

“That is why I still live,

I'm sure, for the King mustapprove an execution, andkilling me themselves wouldraise suspicion since I wasalready seen by real guards.Nevertheless, I tried to arguemy case and was silenced.Even if you could spot thesteward,theywillnotbelieveawhitehairedbarbarianwhobroke into the castle,”Greenwood argued. He thenstared into space and added,

“However...”“However?” Varg

repeated.“It is a long shot, but if

you were somehow able toget past the guards in thevillage and make it to thestable on the east side of thecastlewall,mywife toldmeonce of a secret passage inandoutofthecastlehiddeninthe stable. It leads to anareanear the throne room, so

perhaps you could meet theKing himself and issue thewarning,assuminghedoesn'thaveyoukilledon the spot,”Greenwoodexplained.

Suddenly,aloudsoundonGreenwood's end made theCountglanceofftotheside.

“Someone is coming! Imust go!” he whisperedurgently. The image thendisappeared and the mirrorwasnormalagain.

Varg looked to hiscomrades for their reactions.“It sounds like our onlychance.”

“It's suicide,” Tainmuttered.

“That's right,” Olivaagreed. “Breaching thecastleispunishablebydeath,Varg.Itisaverydangerousgamble,but it's your decision.Whatever you choose, we'llhonorit.”

“Speakforyourself,”Tainretorted.

Varg ignored Tain'sremark,butanswered,“I'llgoalone. I won't endanger thetwo of you based on ahunch.”

“Very well, but you willneed this,” Oliva said. SheheldupanothercloaksimilartoTain's.

“Oh, right, your disguisespell,”Varganswered.

In response,Olivareadanincantation from her bookandwavedherhandover thecloth, and then handed it toVarg. “All you need to do itput it on. It should work inseconds.”

Varg unfastened his furcape and handed it to Oliva,who then traded him theenchanted cloak. Varg tiedtheoldcloakaroundhisneckand pulled the hood over his

head.Thenheapproachedthemirror and waited for areaction. Soon his hair, skin,and eyes became darker. Inan instant, the man he sawstaringbackathimlookednodifferent than any otherdrifter.

Once the transformationwas complete, Oliva smiledandsaid,“Good,nowyoucanwalk outside withoutattractingattention.”

“Since you were struttingaround like an oaf out in theopen,thecultistsareprobablylookingforyou.IwouldkeepmyfaceinshadowsifIwereyou,”Tainadded.

“I'll do my best,” Vargmuttered, his eyes still fixedonhisreflection.Vargturnedforthedoor,butnotbeforehecaught a glimpse of FrostFang in the mirror. Whilenormally the blade was light

in color and made purely ofmetal, the blade now lookednodifferent fromanold ironbattleaxe.

Oliva caught his reactionand explained, “I made thespell strong enough to alteryour weapon since it's alsowell known by the cultists.Thespellwillbreakonceyoudraw it though, sobe sure tokeep it sheathed until youabsolutely need it.We'll stay

here andwatch for any signsofcultistactivity.”

Varg nodded then madeforthedooragain,butfirstheturnedtotheothersagainandsaid, “If I don't return alive,canyou tellMileasomethingforme?”

“Sure, what is it?” Olivaasked.

“Tell her I'm sorry. She'llknow what it means,” Vargasked. With that, he left the

shack before either Tain orOliva could question hisrequest.

CHAPTER20

VARG WALKEDTHROUGH the streets ofWhistpireandtohisrelief,nooneseemedtonoticehim.Hemadehiswaydown the roadtowards where the Countclaimed the stables were.Very few people remained

outside, as it was quite late.Everything seemed quiet fornow,butVargstilllookedforsigns of cultists just in case.StillVargkepthiseyessharpshould the moment of trutharise.Hescannedeachcornerof thestreet,butsofarallhesaw were a few drunks,travelers, and guards. Twoguards were stationed at thefront gate surrounding thecastle directly ahead of him.

His was about to take hisattentionoffofthemwhenheanother guard coming fromthecastle.

Thenewguardapproachedone of the stationed guards.Varginitiallyassumedhewasswitchingshifts,buttheguardwhisperedsomething into thestationed guard's ear, thenwasansweredbyaquicknod.Thenewguardthenretreatedback to the castle and the

stationedguardnoddedtotheother,thenlefthispost.Vargmade a quick decision tofollow the guard, despiteknowingwhere he needed togo.Hewalkedcasually soasnot to alert his quarry, thenfollowed him through analley. The guard didn't seemto notice he was there, butVargwas still sure to keep asafedistance.

The guard stopped in the

middle of the alley, whichmade Varg's heart sink. Hewasabouttokickhimselffornot beingmore carefulwhena hooded traveler caught upwith theguard.The twomenstopped in the middle of thealley and began to hold ahushed conversation.Fortunately Varg was closeenough to eavesdrop, so heleanedagainstthewallofthenearestbuildingunderacloak

of shadow and listenedclosely.

“Is everything ready?” thehoodedtravelerasked.

The guard nodded. “Yes,the royal family is in ourcustody. All that we need isthe signal from the Serpentbeforewegetridofthem.”

“Did they offer anyresistance?”

“The King did, but onceour othermenwoundedhim,

helearnedhisplace.Noneofthem dared to fight us afterthat.”

Vargbegantofear thathemay be too late. Not onlywere the royals captured, butnowheknewthatatleastoneof them was hurt. What'smore, Jin couldn't be farbehind,sotherecouldonlybeprecious moments beforeinnocent liveswere cut shortincoldblood.

VarglefthishidingspottorunandwarnTainandOliva,but he felt something tug hisfoot and lunge him forward.He stumbled onto the streetandlookedbacktoseethatitwas an old bucket that hetrippedoverthatdidthedeed.Then he looked down thestreet and realized that the“guard” and hooded manwerestaringstraightathim.

Atfirsthefiguredhecould

play itoffas thoughhewerejustastumblingdrunk,buthesuddenly realized his hoodhad come off. The illusionhadwornoffandhecaughtaglimpse of his loose strandsof hair turning white in thecorner of his eye. His handswere pale again, as was theexpressions of the cultists heunwittingly revealed himselfto.

Varg froze in place and

gulped.“Goodevening.”Thetwomendartedoffin

the opposite direction. Vargcursed under his breath forhis own stupidity and ranafter them, but the disguisedcultists darted out of sightquicker than Varg couldround the corner. He knewchasing them would bepointless if he didn't knowwhere they ran off to. Hecursed under his breath and

darted for the main street asfast as his legs could carryhim. He knew that now thatthe cultists had been foundout, he only had preciousseconds before the battlewouldbegin.

It wasn't until he finallymade it back to the tavernthathesawdozensofcultistshopoffoftheroofsandcatchpassersby off guard. Thecultistscutdowneveryonein

their path who didn't havetime to react, but fortunatelya handful of travelers andcitizens drew their weaponsintimetodefendthemselves.

Varg first hatched a plantoget innocenttownsfolkoutof theway before it was toolate. With his free hand, hebanged on the front door ofeach home he passed andshouted, “Whitspire is underattack! Everyone get to

safety!”As the civilians came out

of theirhomes to investigate,theyweresoonmetwithmenin black hoods holdingbloodthirsty blades up tothem. Several people tried toretreat back inside, but toVarg's horror the cultistsbegan to break into thehouses and slaughtereveryone inside. The rest ofthe civilians who ran for it

barely got away in time forVargtorushtotheirdefense.

The half-blood jumped infront of a family and heldFrost Fang in a defensiveposition as three cultistscharged towards him. Beforethey reached him, he swunghisaxeandeasilydispatchedthe first foe, and the secondfell after Varg countered hisattack. The third almostreached the family, butVarg

caughthimbythebackofhiscollarandtossedhimontothestreet. Varg then chargedforward and dropped the tipofhisaxethroughhisdownedopponent's chest. Thewoundfrozeandcoveredthecultistsentire body until he wasnothing more than a frozenhusk.

The family managed toescape out of harms way, ifonecouldcallrunningintoan

empty alley safe, whenanother set of cultists ranVarg'sway.Beforetheymadecontact with his axe,however, one of the cultistswasmet with a sharp jolt oflightning and the other wastossed into the air by awhipmade of solid water. Vargswungasthecultistfelltotheground and his axe slicedthroughhisribcageinmidair.

OlivaandTainreadiedfor

another attack as they ran toVarg'sside.

“Weheard thecommotionand figured somethinghappened!” Oliva said toVargjustasshefiredanotherlightningboltatanoncomingcultist.

Varg saw the petrifiedcivilians trying to run fromthe looming bloodshed thatwas once known asWhistpire, then said, “We

need to get these people tosafety!”

Oliva nodded. “I may notbe able to fight much, but Iknow a way I can help. Iknow a shield spell and if Ican pull it off, I should beable to protect all of thewomen and children.” Shethen turned and yelled intothe crowd, “All those whocannotfight,followme!”

Varg and Tain covered

Oliva as she gathered theunarmed civilians ofWhitspireandledthemtotheedge of town into an oldwarehouse. Once they weresure she and the crowd ofwomen and children wouldbesafe,thetwomenreturnedto the town to aid the menand women who stayedbehindtodefendtheirhomes.Though the people ofWhitspire were bold and

adept in battle, dozens ofthemfellbythesecond.Vargjoined into the fray to aidthem,buthewasn't surehe'dbeabletoholdoffthecultistsuntilhelparrived.

Justwhenall seemed lost,a horn sounded over thehorizon. Varg had slain thelast of his enemies when heturned toseenoneother thananarmyofdwarveschargingintothetown.Hisheavyheart

leaped at this sight, for nowthey stood a chance. Thoughtheynowhadanarmyaidingthem,itseemedthatmoreandmorecultists spawnedby thesecond.

Varg quickly searched thecrowd for familiar faces. Hefound Conley and Tollacknear the entrance ofWhitspire, and as Vargparried an attack fromanother cultist, he saw a

quick flash of dark green onthe ground.Erril brought herknifearoundtheanklesofthecultistVargfoughtandslicedthe back of his heels.As thecultistfelltotheground,Errilthendroveherdaggerintohisthroat.

The girl looked to Vargonly briefly before runningoff and said, “You'rewelcome.”

Vargwouldhave laughed,

but he was met with yetanother foe. He swung highand brought Frost Fangdownward, but the trickycultistdodgedtothesideandattempted a counter attack.Withnowaytomoveintimeduetohisslowswing,Varg'ssidewasleftvulnerabletothecultist'sblade.Asinglearrowchanged Varg's fate in theformofthecultist'spuncturedjugular.Thearrowthatkilled

hisfoewasalltoofamiliartoVarg, and with a smile heturnedtotheshooter.

Mileastoodhergroundonthe roof of a shop as sheloosed another arrow into acultist who tried to climb upto her position. Varg rushedto the shop and used FrostFang as a pole vault to landonapileofcratesnexttothebuilding,thenquicklyhoppedonto the roof to meet her

fromthere.AsVargrushedbyMilea's

side, he blocked an attackfrom another arrow andshouted, “Glad to see youmadeit!”

“Do you question mybattleprowess?”Mileamusedas another one of her arrowsstruckadisorientedcultist.

“Only if you questionmine,”Vargassured.

“Did you come to chat or

doyouhaveareasontospeakto me in the middle of thefiercestbattleI'veeverseen?”Mileaasked.

Varg swung Frost Fangagain and flung a nowdyingcultistoffoftheroof.“Ineedtoget to the stables to findahidden entrance into thecastle. I could use an extrablade.”

“Or a bow?” Milea saidwithasmirk.Shethenloosed

another arrow and broughther blade to the throat ofanother cultist who tried toattackVarg'sflank.“YouleadthewayandI'llcoveryou.”

“All right, let's go,” Vargreplied.

Varghoppedontothenextroof and fought the enemiesin the front while Mileaoffered support andprotection for his flank. Hecouldseethestablesfromhis

position,whichwasstationedagainst the wall just beforethe drawbridge. Though thebattle in the streets wasdownright bloody, Vargdecided he could easily cleara pathon the rooftops, sohecontinued to hop along untilhe made it to the wall thatsurroundedthecastlemoat.

Vargjumpedtothegroundfromthelastroofandchargedfor the stables with Milea

behind him. Fortunately, itseemed that everyone elsewastoopreoccupiedtonoticewhattheywereupto,sotheywere easily able to sneakbehind the bales of hay andsearch for any kind ofentrance. Just when Vargthought Greenwood had liedtohim,heaccidentallykickedan old cloth on the groundwith his boot and discoveredasmalltrapdoor.

Varg fiddled with the oldiron handle and pulled thedoor up to discover a set ofstairs.Thenheheaveda sighof reliefandsaid,“This is it,all right.Nowallwehave todois—”

Vargwasinterruptedwhenhe turned to face Milea andwas met with her lips.Without a single protest heembraced her and returnedher kiss. His body pressed

againsthersagainstabaleofhayandMileamoanedbeforebreakingaway.

“I apologize, but I neededonemorebeforeweentered,”Mileawhispered.

“Since when is stealing akiss fromme a crime,”Vargasked.

“When there are lives atstake,”Mileaanswered.

“Goodpoint,”Vargsaid.Varg and Milea climbed

down the trap door anddiscovered a dark, damptunnel.Theycarriedoninthedarkasthepathdippedlowerunderground,nodoubttoleadunder the moat, and then upagainuntil theyfinally foundanopening at the end.WhenVarg pushed the door open,hefoundadarkchamberthatappeared to be one of thecastle corridors. The door heopenedwas in facthiddenas

part of the wall behind atapestry. When he emergedinto the corridor, Varg heldthe rich cloth out of Milea'sway until she passed, thenallowed it to fall back intoplace.

Varg looked left and rightdown the corridor, thenmarched to the left and said,“Now let's find the royalfamily before we have anyfurtherinterruptions.”

When Varg rounded thecorner, however, he collidedwith someone.Hewas aboutto draw Frost Fang when herecognizedCountGreenwoodinthedark.”

“Oh good Lord,”Greenwoodnearlyshouted.“Iwas about to get outside tofindyou.”

“How did you escape?”Vargasked.

“Escape? What's going

on?”Mileaasked.Varg gave the short

explanation of why CountGreenwood had beenimprisonedtoMilea.

The Count seemedexhausted, but still said in acalm voice, “The guards andthe cultists in disguise werefar too preoccupied with thebattleoutsideandthecaptureof the royal family that theydidn't realize that they'd left

the dungeon key on a tableright next to my cell. I wasable to reach it and unlockmy cell and make myescape.”

“Where is the royalfamily?”Mileaasked.

“They are trapped in thethroneroomwiththecultists.It's just a short walk thatway,”Greenwoodexplained.

Varg and Milea began towalk in the direction the

Count mentioned, when outof thecornerofhiseyeVargsawtheCountturntotheexit.He immediately turnedaround and spat, “Where doyouthinkyou'regoing?”

The Count froze, thenturned and said, “I'm no usetoyouinbattle.Iwouldonlyget in the way. I'll just waitoutsideand—”

“Run before you can payfor your crimes?” Varg

answered.The Count sighed. “Varg,

there are far more importantthingstoworryabout.”

“You made sure of that,didn't you? You knew wewould be too preoccupiedwith innocent lives toprotecttopursueyou.Nowyouhavethe perfect opportunity toescape justice and get rid ofthe only thing that stands inyourwayintheprocess.You

cowardly, wretched, piece oftripe,”Vargspat.

“Varg, forget him. Wehavemoreimportantthingstoworryabout,”Mileaurged.

Varg ignoredher, but stillsaid, “You win this timeGreenwood, but I promisethat when this is over, Iwillhunt you down and kill youmyself.”

To Varg's ire, the Countsmiled and said, “Let the

gamebegin.”TheCountthendarted to the stable entranceanddisappearedfromsight.

Varg turned toheaddownthe corridor, at which pointMilea joined him and said,“It'sallright,we'llfindhim.”

“You're damn right wewill,”Vargsaidcalmly.

They tread through thedarkcorridoruntilitledthemto a door. The two quietlycrept towards the door and

heard terrified voices inside.A crack in the door allowedthemtolookthroughandseethe entire scene withoutalertinganyoneinside.

Two men, one of whomwas holding his injured arm,a woman, and two younggirlshuddledtogetherwhileahandful of cultists patrolledtheroom.

“Please . . . don't hurtmyfamily,” the injuredmansaid

as he tightened the blood-stained sheet around his armtocontrolhisbleeding.

“Father!” a young girlcried.

Vargthenrealizedthattheinjured man was KingReman, and he assumed theothermanwho knelt by himwasDukeRainald.

“I would advise that youmake your daughter hold hertongue before I cut it off,” a

cultistspat.“Please spare them! You

can kill me if you wish!”Remancried.

“No one will harm youagain while I still breathe,”DukeRainaldsaidboldly.

Vargwanted to charge in,but he knew itwould be toorisky with the hostages atrisk.Helookedforsomekindof clue as to what he coulddo, then saw that only one

cultist stood near the royalfamily.

Varg turned tohishalf-elfcomrade and whispered,“Milea, if you take out thatcultist near the hostages, doyou think you can run overthere fast enough to protectthem?”

“Of course,” Milea saidwithpride.

“Assoonastheothersturntheir backs, loose your

arrow.”Milea nocked an arrow

and pointed it through thecrackinthedoor.ShelookedatVargandsignaled thatshewas ready. In response, henodded her way, at whichpoint she loosed the arrowand charged through thedoors. Milea charged fullspeed to aid the royal familywhile Varg ran to cover herandkeepthecultists'attention

on him. Fortunately itworked, for the cultists nowaimedtheirweaponsathim.

Varg stareddaggersat thecultists and said, “Where'sJin?”

“TheSerpentwillbealongmomentarily. He has todecide the fate of the royalfamily after all,” the leadcultistsaid.

“Jin won't live longenough to make the

decision,”Vargdeclared.“We will see about that,”

thecultistsaid.Without another word the

cultistschargedatVarg,whoreleased a gust of sharpicicles through the airwith aswing of his axe. The icestruck several of the cultistsandshatteredagainstthewallintosmall,bloodypieces,butmostof thecultistswere stillstanding and charged again.

Thistime,Vargallowedthemto get within close rangebeforehe swung again.FrostFangglidedthroughtheairasthe closest cultist rolled toavoid the enormous strike,then attempted to counterVarg during his back swing.The cultist was met by anarrowfromMilea,butitonlyslowed him down. Vargpicked up the slack andattacked him again, and this

timehedidn'tmiss.Frost Fang's larger blade

met the cultist right on hisneckandbeheadedthecultistbeforeVargswungyetagain.He charged forward andbrought the weapon down,then up again, and from sideto side before he finally leftthe throne hall nothing but abloodymess thatwas once ahandful of Shadow Handcultists.

In the midst of thecarnage, the royal familyhuddled in awe and fear oftheWhiteWolf'smight.

“By the gods . . .” TheDukewhispered.

Milea turned to the royalsand said, “Come with me. Iwill bring all of you tosafety.”

The royals heeded thehalf-elf's command andfollowed her to the door.

Milea helped Duke RainaldcarryKingRemanoutof theroom, and Milea gave anassuring look to Varg, whostayedbehindtowaitforJin.

Varg took a deep breath,then gazed around the emptyroom.His heart beat rapidly,though it was more out ofanticipation than anxiety. Hefinally looked up andshouted, “Jin, where are youhiding, coward? Your

followers have fallen beforeme.It'stimetofaceme!”

Afteramomentofechoingsilence,afamiliarandall tooeerievoicecamefrombehindVarg,“Thenturnaround.”

CHAPTER21

VARGTURNEDSHARPLYin thedirectionof Jin'svoiceandwitness himmaterializedfrom the shadows. TheSerpent sat upon the thronewithonelegcrossedovertheotherandremarked,“Youarequiteloud,youknow.Itisthe

middleofthenight.”“I'm in nomood for your

games,Jin,”Vargspat.Jin calmly stood from the

throne and replied, “Mymy,aren'twetouchy?Ihadtogetyou to listen Varg, and thiswastheonlyway.”

Varg's breathing haltedwhenherealizedwhatJinhadjust said.Once he caught hisbreath again, he said, “Youmean to tell me that the

capture of the royal family,the countless lives losttonight, and the needlessbloodshed of your ownfollowerswas all so thatyoucouldluremehere?”

“Youareastubbornone,”Jinmused,“soforgivemeifIneededalittleleveragetogetyour attention. Besides, Inever intended to allow theroyal family to live. As I'msureyoualreadyknow,Ihave

plans to place a much morecooperative king on thethrone.”

“SoyoumadeGreenwoodlead me here, then?” Vargasked.

“Yes,butthepoorfoolhadno idea he was doing mybidding. I had long sincerealizedhewasunworthy, soI made sure the informationleaked to him and sureenough, he ran off to seek

yourhelplikea littleswine,”Jinexplained.

“Withall this carnageandterrorizing, you'd better haveagoodreasonto talktome,”Vargwarned.

“Oh but I do, Varg,” Jinsaid.

“Then what is it?” Vargpressed.

“YoualreadyknowwhatIwant,”Jinsaid.

“IalreadytoldyouthatI'm

not joining you,” Vargshouted.

“Now Varg, you haven'teven heard my speech,” Jinsaid.

“Allyoudoishurtpeopleforyourownselfishgain,andIwantnopart in it except tostopyou.”

“Selfish?” Jin asked, hiscalm demeanor suddenlyturned violent. “I am not theselfish one here, Varg. Our

peopledonothingbut spreadthe truth to people who willlisten. Those we kill aresimply the ones who get inthe way of our destiny. Westriveeveryday to aid in thearrivaloftheDawnsothatallthosewhoareworthycanlivein paradise with no strife,sorrow,orfear.”

“Get over yourself,” Vargspat.

“You and your comrades

are all like the others whohavestoodinourway.You'reall nothing but arrogant,worthless, and ignorant foolswho fight what they can'thope to understand simplybecause they fear it!” Jinyelled.

“My friends are the mostselfless people I have met.They fight to protect whattheyloveandcherish!”

Jinscoffedandtookastep

forward. “Your friends onlyfight because it's the mostconvenientforthem.IfMileahadn't been framed formurder, she would havenothing to do with theShadow Hand or you. Olivaand Conley only fightbecauseoftheirwarpedsenseof justice. Erril fights withyou because she has nothingelse, and Tain is only drivenbyhisdesireforcoin.

“And then there is you,”Jinnowsmirkedagain.“You,Varg, are the worst of all.You love the thrill of battle,the sound an enemy makeswith his throat slit, thebubbling of a burning man'sskin, and the screams whenyouraxefreezesamanalive.Thebloodofbattle isallyoulive for. No matter what, itwillalwayscallyouback.”

Varg wanted to call Jin a

liar, but the more his wordssunk in, themore truthVargfound to them. He foundhimself thinking back to thedayallofthisbecamereality,and the pit of his stomachchurnedwhenhecouldsmellthebloodagain.

“Your power issensational, Varg. If youwould allow it, I can teachyoutoputyourskillstobetteruse. No more killing and

capturing for money. Nomorelivingonthebattlefield.You can live and use yourbattle skills for the sake ofthose who would not onlyappreciate it,butpraise!Youcan live tosee theDawnandput these selfish masses toeternalslumber.”

Varg paused, trying tothink of some way to argue,butallhecouldsumupwas,“It doesn't matter why we're

fighting you. The ShadowHand is responsible forcountless murders and mustpay for it, no matter whoenacts the justice. Iowe it tomyfriendsand lovedones toput a stop to you and yourcult.”

“Loved ones?” Jin saidcuriously. For amoment, Jinlooked as though he werethinkingonVarg'swords,butthenhesmiledagainandsaid,

“You mean people likeTreasa?”

Varg's heart nearlystopped.“How...?”

To his further shock, Jinlaughed at Varg's reaction.“How do I know about yourlost love? It matters not.What matters is the task athand,andshewillprovetobethe key to yourenlightenment.”

“You leave Treasa out of

this! She has nothing to dowithourfight!”

“That's where you'rewrong. She is a shiningexample of what happenswhen the thrill of blood lustcallstoyou.”

Varg'sbloodbegantoboil.“Shutit...”

“OhnowVarg,youshouldlearntocontrolthattemper.Ithink we both know whathappens when you let your

temper get the best of you,”Jinreplied.

Varg smashed Frost Fangonto the stone floor,shattering bits of pebbleeverywhere, and spat, “Youknownothingofme!”

“OhbutIdo,Varg.Iknowthat you are a battle-drivenbeast.You cannot denywhatyoudid,”Jinsaid.

“Idon'tdenyit...I...”“You run from it, you try

to forget it, but no matterwhatyoudo,thememorywillhaunt you until the day youdie,”Jintaunted.

Varg didn't understandwhy, but his head soonbecame clouded and hisvisiondarkened.Hefought itthrough thepoundingpain inhishead,butallhecouldseewas the same nightmare he'dhadforthepastthreehundredyears.

It had been a hard

journey,butVarg finallyhadthecoinheneededtobuildaproperhomeforTreasa.Withjingling pockets full of hard-earnedgold,VargtrottedintoWild Valley with a smile onhis face and his heartyearning to see his love. Heranup toTreasa'shome,buthermothertoldhimshewenttowait forhim“in theplace

where it all began”. Vargknew all too well where thatwas, so he went to theoutskirts of the village toTreasa'ssecretclearing.He found Treasa waiting

there, and her face lit upwhen she saw him and hisheartleapt.“I have something to ask

you,Treasa,”Vargsaid,andhewassuresheknewexactlywhathemeant.

Before he could finish,however, he noticedsomethingbehindTreasathatmade his heart nearly stop.Two strange man ran upbehind Treasa and they bothgrabbed hold of her arms.Sheshrieked,butbeforeVargcould run to her aid, he toowas apprehended two morestrange men. Despite hisstrength, Varg could notbreaktheir firmholdonhim.

Hepanickedwhenhethoughtof what might happened toTreasa if he couldn't breakfree, and that fear turned toreality when an all toofamiliar facestepped in frontofhim.“It'sbeenawhile,hasn'tit

Varg?”Cyrus, the bandit leader

that Varg left for dead morethan two years ago, stoodbeforehimandstaredhimin

theeyes.Varg gasped for the right

words to say, but could onlymanage,“Howdid—”“How did I survive?Well

to be truthful, it wasn't easygiven the circumstances youleft me in,” Cyrus said. Hethen held up his right arm,which was amputated in themiddle of the forearm. Vargremembered how he'dsevered the bandit's arm

duringtheirbattle,andCyrushadapparentlycauterizedthewound,which left burn scarsinit'splace.Cyrus smirked. “You

ruinedeverythingforme,andyou made the horriblemistake of leaving me alive.Now, I'm going to takeeverythingfromyou.”The color drained from

Varg's face when Cyrusturned towards Treasa. He

tried to beg, protest, oranything, but no sound camefromhismouth.Itwasn'tuntilCyrusbrushedhisgoodhandacross Treasa's tremblingshoulder that Varg finallyfoundhisvoice.“GET AWAY FROM

HER!”hebellowed.Cyrus ignored his

screaming, but said, “Youhavegoodtasteinwomen,I'llgiveyouthat.I'vealwayshad

a fondness for women withredhair.”“No...”Vargpleaded.Cyruschuckled, thensaid,

“Leave the begging to yourwoman. She's going to bedoingplentyofit.”As Cyrus spoke his last

words, the two men holdingTreasa forced her to theground and Cyrus began toclimbontopofher.Theloveof Varg's life screamed in

terror asCyrus began to puthis hands on her. Vargthrashedviolentlyashe trieddesperatelytobreakfree,butall it did was cause thebanditstolaughevenmore.Then something inside

Varg broke free, and all hecould smellwas the blood ofthe men around him and allhecouldhearwasthebeatingof theirhearts.Hecould feelan icy stream traveling from

his shoulders down to hisfingertips. Before anyoneeven knew what washappening, the hands of thebandits holding onto Vargbegan to form ice on thesurface of their skin. The icespread and thickened so thatthey couldn't move, despitetheir feeble attempts toreleasetheirprisoner.The blood curdling

screamsofthebanditsalerted

Cyrus and the other two towhat happened and theyhaltedtheirassaultonTreasajust before they began todisrobe her. They chargedafter the savage beast whileTreasa took the opportunitytofleefromtheirgrasp,butitwas too late for theircomrades. The ice hadcovered their entire bodies,andwitha swift, inward jerkofhisarms,Vargrippedtheir

frozen arms off and freedhimselfoftheiricygrasp.Varg lunged for the

attackersfullforceandstruckwith his bare hands. Heripped, clawed, and smashedevery single body part hecould reach on the bandits.With the third and fourthbeaten to death and the firsttwo bleeding beyondrecovery, Varg set his sightsonCyrus.

The bandit leader couldonly face him with a singlesword,andthoughhetriedtomaintain his fearlessdemeanor,Vargcouldseetheutter terror in his eyes. Heswung and disarmed thewretch, causing him to fallbackwards. That was whenVarg gave Cyrus a twisted,primal smile, and the banditleader knew then and therethat he had made his final

mistake.Cyrus screamed as Varg

tackledhimandbegantodighis hands straight into hischest. With no concept ofmercy, Varg ripped Cyrusapartfromtheinsideoutandenjoyed every second of it.The bandit begged formercywith the little breath he hadleft, but itwasn't longbeforeVarg had crushed his throat.Varg continued his savage

assault until Cyrus lay stillandthelifelefthiseyes.In the wake of the gore,

Varg's fury slowly subsided.Hestoodandsearchedaboutfor Treasa and was relievedthat she wasn't harmed, buthe could still see the fear inhereyes.Varg tooka stepcloser to

her and gently said, “It's allright,Love.They'redead.”Treasa then found the

courage to move as shebacked away from Varg. Tohisshock,sheshookherheadandstuttered,“S-stayback!”Varg stopped, unable to

understand what was goingon. He was about to turnaround to see if she waspointing at another banditwhocameoutofhiding,butitdidn't take it long to realizeshe was speaking to him.Varg didn't understand at

first, but when he caught aglimpse of his hands, hisheart sank to the pit of hisgut.The hands that once held

Treasa in the happiest ofmoments were now stainedwith the blood of multiplemen and his fingers hadbecomeclawsduringhisfitofrage.Varg's eyes then fell tothe ground that was nowlitteredwith the torn, frozen,

and withered flesh that wasonce five, breathing men.Their bodies wereunrecognizable due to thecarnage he had deliveredunto them, and all he couldthink of was what kind ofbeastcoulddosuchathing.Itwasthenthathecaughtsightof a nearby pond. He treadthrough the sea of bodies tothe water's edge and peekedathisreflection.

The thing he saw was nohuman. The whites of Varg'seyeswere nowblack and hisface contorted to resemblesome kind of demoniccreature he never wanted tomeet. His nose was wrinkledand as he opened his mouthtoletoutascream,henoticedsharp fangs protruding fromhisgums.VargturnedtoTreasawith

pleadingeyesandsaidalmost

as a growl, “Treasa, please,thisisn'tme.”Itwasthenthathemadethemistakeoftryingtogetcloser.“NO! Don't come near

me!” Treasa cried as sheturned and ran away fromVarg and disappeared intothewoodbeyondtheclearing.Vargtriedtorunafterher,

but all his legs would allowhim to towascollapse to theground and stare at the last

place he saw her. Tearsstreamed down his cheeks,but itwouldneverbeenoughto wash away the bloodstains.“Treasa!TREASA!”

Varg opened his eyes and

allof the fear anddreadhe'dfelt in thatmoment returned.He lost his breath anddropped to his hands andknees. He fought back tearsbutshamefullylostthebattle.

“It's all coming back toyou, isn't it? You'reexperiencing the same fearyou had that day and formany years to come, thegreatest fear you've everknown: the fear of yourself,”Jinsaid.

Varg's body becameweakand he finally broke down.Jin was absolutely right, andhe knew it. All the driftingand wandering was simply

Varg'sway of escapingwhathad happened. He avoidedemotional involvement atevery turn, but it alwaystemptedhimback.

“You don't have to beafraid anymore. You possessgreat power that you don'tknow how to use. Had youknown then, itwouldn't havecostyoutheloveofyourlife.You should never regretembracingyourbloodline,for

I can help you control yourdarkness,” Jin said. TheSerpent held his hand out toVarg and added, “Join me,and you will never have toliveinfearagain.”

In the moments thatfollowed, Jin's hypnotic eyesmet Varg's and poured intohis very soul. His mind feltweak and warped violently.His vision blurred and histhoughts twisted. Everything

Jin was saying sounded likegospel.Varg knewwhatwashappening, and he wasdeterminednottoallowJintocontrol his thoughts. Hesearched throughhisviolatedmind in order to find somekindofmemoryorthoughttoclingtosothathemayretainhis true self, but all hecouldthink of was reaching theDawn.Histhoughtsfelltohisfriends, and how they could

be at his side when Jinopened their hearts and ledthem to paradise. He sawgrand visions of Conley,Oliva, Tain, and Errilstanding in the light next tohim.Theysmiledandpraisedthe Serpent with open heartsandarms.

That was when Vargrealized someone wasmissing. He tried toremember who it was, and

soontheimageofthewomanwith wine-colored hair thatdrove him wild appearedbefore him. Milea stared athim with fierce eyes, butdidn't say a word.While theothers praised and bowedbefore the Serpent, shesilently defied him andinsteadgaveVargastern,butpleadingexpression.

“Don'tgivein,”thespecterMileawhispered,“fighthim.”

Something in his mindtriedtopushasidethisvision,despite his best efforts tofight it.He felt a rush of thesame beast that slaughteredthe five bandits. The beastwastryingtosurfacetoattackthevisionofMilea,butVargfoughtwithallhisstrengthtokeep it atbay.One look intoMilea's eyes made the ragecease, and Varg could feelhimselfreturningtonormal.

Itwasat thatmoment thatthe pain stopped and Vargcould think clearly again.Heopened his eyes to findhimself staring straight intoJin's.

The Serpent took severalstepsbackandstaredatVargwith disbelief. “What's this?Whyisn'titworking?”

Varg responded bydrawing Frost Fang andlungingforward.Hewasmet

byJin'sforeignblade,andtheSerpent attempted to counterattack. Varg blocked andcountered with an attack ofhis own, but Jin dodged andsummoned a ball of shadow.VarghungbackandmetJin'spowerwith his own. Ice andshadow collided as thehurlers never ceased tosurpassoneanother.

Varg breathed deeply tocontrol his fury and charged

forward through the cloud ofshadow and icy mist, intenton landing a surprise attack.Jinmet him in themiddle ofthe fray and their bladescollided once more. Thescreeching of metal poundedagainstVarg's earswitheachcollisionoftheirblades.TimeseemedtoslowdownasVargstudied each of Jin'smovementsandwaitedforanopening.

He found it when Jinbrought his blade downwardas Varg was about to bringhis up. Instead of blockingwith his axe,Varg raised hisleftarmtodefend.Jin'sbladestruck straight through theleatherbracerandintoVarg'sexposed skin. Varg brushedaside the pain and broughtFrost Fang up with his freehand right into Jin's openabdomen.

The tip of Frost Fangmade contact with theSerpentandpiercedhis robe,the armor underneath, andright into his gut. Jin fell tothe ground with dark bloodpouring from his abdomen.He coughed and hackedblood as he tried desperatelyto retain his consciousnessand control the bleeding. Hethen howled in pain as hiswound began to freeze and

spreadoverhisbody.Varg halted his attack as

he waited for his opponentslast breath, but was insteadgranted a sickly laugh fromthe Serpent. Jin looked up atVarg with a stream ofblackened blood pouringfromhispalelipsanduttered,“I'm impressed. You are notonly the first to resist myinfluence, but also to causemeharm.”

Varg looked upon thebleeding Serpent and said,“AllIneededwasareminderthat I'mnomonster, and thatwith enoughwillpower I cancontrolmyinnerbeast.”

“Varg...”Varg turned to see Milea

standing in the doorway ofthe throne room. Shewalkedto his side and smiled withprideforhim.

Varg turned back to Jin

andsaid,“It'sover,Jin.”Jin laughed again and

answered, “It will never beover,don'tyouunderstand?”

“What are you talkingabout?”Vargpressed.

“This conflict didn't startwithme, sowhatmakes youthinkitwouldendwithme?”Jin countered. “My deathmeans nothing now. TheeventsarealreadyinplacefortheDawntobegin.Myplace

in this is only minorcompared to what is tocome.” Jin stumbled to hisfeetand laughedagain.“Youare both doomed to perishbeforetheDawn.Youarethemost unworthy wretches theworld is poisoned with, andyou'd do well to take yourownlivestospareyourselvesthe torment you will facebeforeI'mthroughwithyou.”

TheSerpentthenproduced

a familiar crystal from hissleeve and tossed it to thewall.Asaportalappearedonimpact,Jininchedbackwardsand said, “You've won thistime,Varg,butIpromisethatyouwon't be able to revel inyourvictoryforlong.”

“No,wait!”Varg shouted,butJinturnedandranthroughthe portal despite his gravewound. Before Varg couldreachtheportalandstophim,

the portal had vanished andtheSerpentwasgone.

The bloody throne roomlayinsilenceintheaftermathof the battle, and all Vargcould do was hang his headand leanhisbodyagainst thewall. As he allowed himselfto sit on the floor,Vargwassoon aware of the intensepain in his arm. He lookeddown at his arm and saw astream of blood oozing from

adeepgashallthewaytohisfingertips.

Milea rushed to his sideand activated her healinggreen light above his arm.Varg watched as the woundclosed before his very eyes.Onceheshewassurehewashealed, Milea sat on thegroundbesidehimandleanedagainsthiminsilentcomfort.

CHAPTER22

VARGANDMILEAMADETHEIRWAYoutofthefrontentrancetothecastlewiththeroyal family marchingproudly behind them. BeforeVarg's battle with Jin, Mileahad led the family to a roomwhereshegave theDukeher

own sword so he coulddefend against anyone whobroke in, and once theychecked on them, the Dukegave her his thanks andreturned it to her. Thenseveral guards came in andescortedthewoundedKingtothe medical wing of thecastle.

Outside, the sun was justabout to rise andVarg couldjust now see the death toll.

Bodies littered the streets,human, cultist, and dwarfalike.Itseemedthebattlewasover,butVargknewthatthiswas only the beginning of awar.

AfterMilea recounted theeventsinthethroneroomtoawithered and beaten Conley,he stood tall and announced,“The surviving cultists fledthe city just a while ago.When Jin disappeared, the

attackwascalledoff.”“Our side suffered heavy

losses, but the townspeopleheld their own very well,”Tollacksaid,“but Iwasveryimpressed by your niece,CountRowan.”

“Yes, Oliva's barrier spellprotected the women andchildren in the warehousewhilethebattleragedoutside.The poor girl is exhausted,but thanks tohernoneof the

civilians were hurt,” Conleysaidwithpride.

“Ijustescortedherwalktothe medical ward in thecastle. The guards areallowing the injured to go infortreatment,”Tainsaid.

Conleynodded.“Iamsurethegirlonlyneedsrest,but Ihad better go see about her.At leastwehaveavictory tocelebrate.”

Varg turned his head and

lookedaround.Hewatchedasawomanweptoverherdeadhusband, how two childrensearchedtheseaofbodiesfortheirparents, andhowamanbreathedhislastbreathwhileholding his dead lover in hisarms.

Varg lookedwith a heavyheart to Conley and said, “Ifthis is avictory, Idon'twanttoseealoss.”

Thenextseveraldayswerespent healing the woundedand starting thereconstruction of Whitspire.Milea tended to thewoundedin the castle, as did Olivaonce she was rested. ErrilhelpedTain search the castleto make sure there were nomore cultists, but thankfullynonewerefound.Bymorningthreedayslater,everyonehadbeguntodiscussthenextplan

ofaction.Conley,Varg,Milea,Tain,

Erril, and Oliva gathered inthe throne room before theKing, who now had hishealingarminasling.

King Reman sat proudlyupon his throne as he spoke.“WhileIdon'twanttobelievemy nephew was involved inthis attack, we've interceptedcouriers and Shadow Handscouts who carried evidence

thatprovesit.Alastormustbearrested immediately andcharged with treason, but Iam afraid the coward wasgone by the time my menarrived to my brother'scastle.”

“Youdon'tthinktheDukewould harbor him after whathedid?”Conleyasked.

“Idon'tbelievemybrotherwould do such a thing evenfor his own son, but if he is

hiding Alastor, I won'thesitate to bring him tojusticeaswell.Unfortunatelyweweren'table toapprehendCountGreenwood either, butI can promise you he won'tescape justice forever. In themeantime,wehavecontactedhis sons; his eldest isreturning to takehisplace asCount of Rivershire. I havealready delivered warning toall other nobles that if they

areinvolvedwiththeShadowHand, they should comeforward to avoid furtherprosecution,” the Kingexplained.

“What about theheadmistress inBalik?”Vargasked. “She was responsiblefor Oliva's abduction by theShadowHand.”

TheKing nodded. “I'll besendingmentoinvestigate.Ifwhat you say about her is

true, then we should be ableto find the evidence to arrestEmila, but rest assured thatthe word of the heroes ofFellenwillcarrymuchweightin the case against her. NowConley,Ibelieveyouwantedtoaddressyourcomrades?”

Conley stepped forwardand nodded. “It involves thecleanup process for theremainder of cult activity.Varg, you and the rest are

more than able to clear outtheir hideouts until they'regone. We then should sendword to other lands so thattheymaydo the same.Let itbe known today thatwewillnot rest until the ShadowHand is no more. I believeVarg has some informationthatshouldprovequiteusefulaboutJin.”

Varg stepped forward andaddressed the rest of his

comrades and the King. “It'sabout how Jin controls hisfollowers.”

“What is that?” the Kingaskedcuriously.

Varg took a deep breathand continued, “It's fear. Jincan somehow see the thingsyou fear the most and allmemoriesassociatedwiththatfear. He then manipulatesyour mind and brings thatfear out, so that you will

listentowhathesaysinorderto escape that fear. Once Irealizedwhathewasdoing,Iwas able to fight through itand break his control overme.”

Varg felt Milea's handtouch his shoulder, at whichpoint the King said, “Weshall see to it that he doesn'tcontrolanyoneelsefromhereon out. Count Rowan, Ihereby give you and your

comradesfullauthoritytoridthe land of the strongholdsand hideouts where theseheretics are hiding until theyareoutofFellenonceandforall.”

After much of the town

had begun to rebuild, theKing made plans for aceremony honoring theheroes who saved him, hisfamily, and his people from

certain death. On the day ofthe ceremony, Varg and hiscomrades stood in the GreatHall before a crowd oftownspeople waiting for theKingtomakehisspeech.

“A fortnight ago, adangerous group ofindividuals carried out anattackthatmeanttoslaughterusall.Knowingoftheattack,the people standing beforeyou bravely intercepted the

invaders and led an attackthatsparedmanylives.Ifnotfor their courage,determination, and wit, wewould all have perished thatnight.Today,wehonor themfor their deeds,” the Kingsaid.

He stepped in front ofConley,whokneltbefore theKing.

“Count Rowan,” the Kingbegan, “It was because of

your charisma and strategythat the cultists were unableto overpower the citizens ofWhitspire. It ismyhope thatyou will lead your men intothe depths of the ShadowHand and destroy theirnumbers.”

ConleybowedhisheadastheKing placed his blade onConley's shoulder. Heremoved the blade, and thenstepped before Tollack, who

knelt like Conley did.“Tollack, dwarf chief ofIronbarrow, you and yourmen did not have to step inand defend Whitspire fromthese fiends, but you provedto be invaluable allies. Youwill always be protectedundermyrule.”

The King then moved onto Erril. “Young Erril, youshowed great courage anddrive for a child your age.

You will undoubtedly growtobecomeafinewarrior.”

TheKinghonoredherwithhisblade,andthenmovedontoOliva.“ToOliva, foryourincredible magic power andwitthatsavedcountlesslives,I honor you and your lategrandfather. I have no doubtyouwillliveonandhonorhismemory with your intellect,compassion, and selflessaffinitytoprotecttheweak.I

willalsoprovideyouwithallthe assistance you require asyou ascend to the throne asCountessofVirland.”

Then the King moved toTain. “To the mercenary,Tain, for your cunning andstealthy skills thatoutmatched those of thecultists. Those who usedtrickery and cowardice weremetwith your quickness anddetermination.Youareaman

of few words, but youractionsspeakforyou.”

Then Milea. “To thelovely elf lady, Milea, foryour strength and skills thatprotected my family fromcertain death. You will liveonforeveras theprotectoroftheRainaldfamily.”

Finally, the King came toVarg.Hehesitatedatfirst,butVarg eventually bowed liketheothers.“Varg,youarethe

oneImust thankmostofall.If not for your strength,courage, and leadership, mypeople may not have beenabletofendoffthecultistsintime.Youtookrisks,buttheyprovedwise,andforthat,youreceivemy everlasting honorandgratitude.”

The King completed hisspeech, and then said, “Nowis the time for the feast!Ourheroesdeservetheirrest!”

Aftertheceremonyclosed,the roomquicklybecame thesightofagrandparty.Asthecastle bards played music,Conley led Catrina to thedance floor, much to herteasingprotests.OlivatriedtopullTaintothefloor,butthewater elf remained stone-faced and planted to theground. Erril wasted no timein stuffing her plate, andpockets, with food from the

table. Milea simply drank agoblet of wine and watchedthecrowdofpeopleenjoyingthefestivities.

Varg on the other hand,felt no need to celebrate. Itwas true, he had savedcountless lives, and eventhoughheknewtherewasnoway to save everyone, it stillput a weight on his alreadyheavy heart. Normally hewould be the first to get

drunkatapartylikethis,butinsteadhewatchedthecrowd.His eyes looked to Mileabriefly, and she seemed toenjoy watching everyonehaving fun. Though hewished to joinher side,Vargwasn't in the mood to befestive, so insteadhe steppedoutsideintothecorridor.

BeinghonoredbytheKinggaveVarg the freedom togoabout the castle without the

protestsof theguards,buthestill avoided them so hewouldn't have to talk toanyone. He eventually foundan area of the castle that ledto a rooftop garden, of sortswherehesatonastonebenchunderanivycoveredarchwayand stared off into thehorizon. The sunwas settingto his right and the air wasstartingtofeelchilly,notthatitbotheredhimofcourse.

“Thereyouare.”Varg turned to see Milea

walking up behind him.Though he'd initially wantedto be alone, he was glad toseeher.“Youwereboredtoo,Itakeit?”

“No, but it isn't a partywithout you there,” Mileaanswered. She sat on thestone bench beside him andthey both watched the skydarkenandturnorange.

“It's beautiful. Thoughsadly, far from the end,”Mileasaid.

Varg turned to her, thensaid,“Whatwasthat?”

“Though we have endedthisbattle, I fear it'sonly thebeginningofwhatisaheadofus,”sheclarified.

“You're right,” Varganswered. “Jin can't stay inhiding forever. We will findhim.”

“I'm here, Varg,” Mileasaid, touching his arm. “Iwant to always be therethrough any strife you have,be it in the present or thepast.”

Varg had a hunch thatMilea had overheard part ofhis conversation with Jin. Itwasn'tuntil thatmoment thatVargrealizedwhathisdreamabout Treasa meant. Hepicturedherstandingtherein

his mind, and her voiceechoedthroughhisthoughts.It'stime.Varg knew now what she

meant,andwithMileabyhisside he knew he stood achance.Itwastimetoletgo.

Varg thengotcomfortableand told Milea everything,from the first time he metTreasa, to the moment theyfellinlove,tothedayhelosther forever. He spared no

detail,andawaitedforMilea'sreactionwhenhewasdone.

Milea just stared at himwith gentle eyes, then said,“Itmusthavebeenterribletocarrythatforsolong.”

“Ican'ttellyouhowmuchbetter I feel now,” Vargadmitted.

“What did you do afterthat?”Mileaasked.

“I made the decision toreturntotheTundratospend

time there trying to makepenance. I also thought if Icould find survivors of thejotunrace,orattheveryleastsome of the knowledge theyleftabandoned,Icouldbetterunderstand theprimalbeast Ibecame that day,” Vargexplained.

“Going back after so longmust have been hard,”Mileasaid.

“Itwas,butIcouldn'thope

tocontrolthebeastifIsimplyignored it,” Varg replied. “Itravelednorthuntil I reachedtheshoresoftheSeaofMists,then I made voyage on apassengershiptothesouthernshores of the Tundra. Oncethere, I used the last of mymoneyfromthefishingjobtobuyamapandsupplies.

“After that, I survivedsolely on the game I huntedintheicywoodsandsoldthe

peltstowhomeverwouldbuythem.Onesuchtradercraftedsome of the snowwolf peltsinto a cloak in exchange formeat. He made this,” Vargpointed to his fur cape, thenthetailpeltsonhisbelt,“andthenusedtherestforthis.”

“Very fitting, consideringyourtitle,”Mileasaid.

“I'm almost certain thatthat was how the 'WhiteWolf'namegotstarted,”Varg

replied.“You didn't come upwith

it?”Mileaasked.Varg shook his head and

answered, “It was never anameIwouldhavechosenformyself, but with time Iacceptedthetitleasifitweremy birthright.” Varg shiftedin his seat and thencontinued,“Ijourneyednorthuntil I could see no moresigns of civilization. The air

hadgrown so cold and bitterthat no mere human couldlive comfortably, but to evena mere half-blood jotun, itwas paradise. I found themountain where the jotunssettledonthankstothestoriesmy mother used to tell meabout them. I searched fordays, but all I found wereempty huts and stone halls.Everythinghadbeenexposedto the elements for so long

that hardly anythingregarding the jotun way oflifesurvived.

“Then I reached thehighestpeakof themountainand found the ancient keepwhere the elders, thegovernors of all the clans,oncelived.Theoutsideofthekeep was decayed, as wasexpected, but to my surprisethe inside was amazinglyintact. I searched through the

ancient corridors and foundnumerous texts, but I couldnot understand the languagetheywerewrittenin.Noneofthe faded murals nor thecrumbling statues revealedanything about their nature,culture,ortemperament.

“I almost gave upwhen Ifounda strangedoorwith aneven stranger symbol carvedinto it. The door led outsideto a path leading further up

the mountain. With nothingelsebehindme,Imarchedupthe path until I came to thehighestpointofthemountain.ItwassocoldthatevenIfeltthe winter's chill, but beforeme stood the mostmagnificent sight I wouldever see.” Varg drew hisbattleaxe and held it upproudly, then continued, “IfoundFrostFang standing insolidiceatopasnow-covered

platform. It was obviously aweapon that was highlyrevered given its state, so Igrabbedthehandleandpulledwith all my strength. It wasan exhausting effort, but Ifinally freed it from its iceprison.

Once I held the battleaxe,it felt so natural, like it wasmadeforme.ItwasthenthatI made the decision to leavemy past behind and start

anew with Frost Fangstrapped tomy back andmyheadheldhigh.EventhoughInever found the jotunknowledge I sought, I foundsolace in the fact that I hadone piece of my father'speopletoholdonto.”

“That'sanamazingstory,”Mileasaid.

Varg ran a hand throughhis hair, then resumed, “Youknow, I spent ten years of

penance on that mountainuntil I finally made thedecision to never becomeemotionally involved withanyone again, but the day Imet you, that all changed.Whenyoutoldmeyouwereahalf-breed like me, I brokemy vows and reached out toyousoIwouldn'tfeelalone.”

Milea took Varg's handand locked her fingers withhis,thenansweredsoftly,“I'll

behere.Always.”Varg met her gaze, then

smiled and said, “I lookforwardtoit,Love.”

As the sun soon began toset,MileakissedVargonthecheek and went back to thepartyafterheassuredherhe'dbe along soon. He stared offintothesunsetandclosedhiseyes.Onelastghostfromthepastcametohim,anotherdayhe remembered a similar

sight.Ashestoodandwalkedawayfromtheamberhorizon,he smiled and allowedhimself to slip into the pastonelasttime.

In his hundredth year,

Varg made a pass throughFellenintheeastandstoppedin a small village near theEastwold border. Hedevoured his second pint,whichwasbettercomparedto

his drinking habits in hisyoungeryears,andhappenedto catch sight of two womenwho entered the tavern.Normally he wouldn't payother patrons anotherthought,butthewomenstoodout and he couldn't help butwatchthem.Bothwomenwere elderly,

butonewasfarolderthantheother. The younger womanled the older one to a table

behind Varg and sat herdown.Varg felt compelled todraw his attention to them,but he managed to keep itsubtle so as not to alarmthem.As theyoungerwomanset

theolderoneintoachair,thelatter shook her head andscolded,“ItoldyouIcanfinditmyself.”“Mother, you're blind.

Please let me take care of

you,” the younger womansaid.“I hope you allow me a

little more independencewhen we arrive in WildValley,”theoldwomansaid.Varg's ears perked up

when he heard the words'Wild Valley,' and though heswore he would forget thatplace forever, he foundhimself wanting to speak tothisoldwoman.Heturnedto

see her daughter walk away,stating that shewasgoing torun outside and ask fordirections,andhejust tookamomenttostudythewoman.Varg wouldn't be

surprised if this woman wasalmostasoldashewas.Hereyeswerewhite,which cameasnosurprise.Notaspeckofher skin wasn't worn andwrinkled, and her posturewashunchedandfragile.Her

long,bonyfingersgraspedanoldwood cane as she staredoffintospace,lostinthought.Before he could stop

himself, Varg asked, “Did IhearyousayyouweregoingtoWildValley?”The frailwoman liftedher

tiredheadandformedasmilein her wrinkled face. “I wasborn there. Now that myhealth is failing, Iwish tobehome one last time. If fate

should decide it, then I willalsobeburiedthere.”“Isee,”Vargreplied.“Have you been to Wild

Valley before?” the oldwomanasked.Varg gave a weak, sad

smile.“Ihave.”“It's beautiful, is it not? I

left home more than eightyyearsago.IonlywishIwouldbeabletoseetheflowersonelast time, but my sight has

beengoneforsometime,”theold woman said. To Varg'ssurprise, the woman thensaid, “Would you spare anold woman some of yourtime? I would love to talkmore about home withsomeonewhoremembersitsoImaypictureitsbeautyinmymindoncemore.”Varg didn't want to

remember,buttheoldwomanwon his heart over, so he

smiled and replied, “Ofcourse.”The old woman's face

liftedwithjoyandVargcouldseeasmall traceofa tear inher eye. “You are so kind,young man.” Varg smiledagain, but he frozewhen theold woman then added, “Myname is Treasa, pleased tomeetyou.”Varg's heart nearly

stopped. He tried to speak,

but his throat became so drythat no words could escape.All he could manage was asmall,chokinggasp.“I'm sorry, what did you

saydear?”Treasaaskedhim.“You're name . . . is

Treasa?” Varg managed toask.Treasa nodded her heavy

head.“That'sright,dear.”Theshockoflonglostlove

of his life sitting before him

again froze Varg in his seat.What's more, because shewas blind, she couldn't seewhohewas.Hewantedtotellher, but at the same time,something was holding himback. Would she rememberthe last time they saw oneanother, the terror she feltwhenheviciouslyslaughteredthe bandits with his barehands?Would it evenmattertohernow?

Varg ignored his innerwarandsimplychose tosay,“Apleasuretomeetyou.”WhenVargsatdowninthe

chairacrossfromher,Treasacontinued, “I used to loveWild Valley so. I neverthought I would leave, butonethingledtoanotherandIfound myself running off tothe city for betteropportunities. I don't regretit, of course, because I met

mylatehusbandthere.”Varg's chest tightened.

“Your husband was a goodman?”Treasa smiled.“Ohyes,a

very good man. He treatedme and our children quitewell. We weren't verywealthy, but we livedcomfortably and I loved himso. It was a simple life, butoneIalwayshopedfor.”It was that moment that

Varg realized that Treasa'sleaving him was the bestthing that ever happened toher. It was true that hewanted to be the one to giveher the life shedeserved,butnot until she told him abouther life did he finally realizea most agonizing truth.Though he still selfishlywished things could havehappened differently, Vargrealizedhewouldneverhave

been able to give Treasa thelife her husband, her truelove,gaveher.Vargallowedateartofall

fromhischeekwhenhefeltaweight lift fromhisheart.Hewas overcome with joy hehadn't felt since he last heldTreasa in his arms. Eventhough he lost her, hecouldn't ask for anythingmore than her living her lifethe way she wanted with the

mansheloved.Once he dried his eye,

Varg dared to ask, “Treasa,why did you leave WildValley if you loved it somuch?”The old woman lowered

her head. “There was . . . ayoungman.”Varg'sheartfeltheavy once more, until theold woman continued, “Hewas my first love, and wewere actually going to get

married, but . . .” the oldwomancollectedherself,thenadded,“...Ilefthim.”Vargtriedtofightbackhis

tears.“Isthatso?”“That was the day I left

home, actually. I ran home,packed my things, andwithout a single word to myparents I fled Wild Valleyforever. It was the mostpainfulthingI'veeverdone.Ideeplyregret thedayIbroke

his heart and ran away fromhim. Itwas a terrible endingto such a beautiful love. Idon'tknowifhestilllives,butIprayhefounditinhishearttoforgivemeforwhatIdid.”Vargcouldbarely contain

himself, but calmed himselfenough to say, “I'm sure herealized you were too goodforhim,andthatheknewyouwould find thehappinessyoudeserved.”

“Mother?”Treasa's daughter came

backintothetavernandshota questioning glare at Varg,then marched over toTreasa's side and said,“Mother,whoisthisman?”Treasa shook her head,

then said, “Actually, I neverdid get your name, youngman.”Vargsmiled,stoodup,and

said, “Let's just say I'm a

friend.”HethenreachedovertoTreasaandsparedhimselfone last embrace from theonlywomanheeverloved.Treasa gleefully accepted

his embrace and laughedtenderly. “Oh my, such astrappinglad.”Varg approached the

taverndoorand stepped intothe doorway, where theapproaching sunset greetedhim. He stopped briefly to

look back at Treasa one lasttime and said, “GoodbyeTreasa, I wish you all thehappiness in the world foryourfinaldays.”Beforehe steppedoutside,

VargheardTreasa'sdaughtersay, “Mother, what are youdoing talking to strangemen?”“Oh come now, child,”

Treasa said, “he was onlyproviding me with some

company. Can't an oldwomanhaveabit of comfortfrom someonewho's actuallyseen the beauty of herhome?”“Comfort? Mother, the

manhadwhitehair!Hedidn'teven look human!” thedaughtersaid.Just as Varg allowed the

door to close behind him, heheard Treasa gasp andwhisper from her aging lips,

“...Varg?”

ToBeContinued...

ABOUTTHEAUTHOR

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