I Want To Be Forgiven...

[Letho]

((Closed to Lavinian Pride and Liliana Ambria. All bunnies approved by both parties.))

“So what’s a lich anyways?” Myrhia asked, her voice rather chipper as she sipped on what seemed the largest cup of hot cocoa that she ever saw. The porcelain vessel was so large that she had to pick it up with both of her tiny hands in order to bring it to her mouth. They sat in a small café – Letho and she – in a provincial town that situated itself on the north end of the passage that led through the Comb Mountains, just south of Radasanth. The café looked like a place for lords and ladies with its refined desks with surfaces made out of white marble, scarlet canopies providing the cool shade and waiters (with their hairs pulled back and oiled) addressing everybody as a sir or ma’am. Suffice to say, a pair of adventurers, one with a titanic gunblade and the other with a spear, seemed like a rather uncanny sight. Not that the pompous clientele dared to fret about it.

“An abomination.” the swordsman responded shortly, somberly, but then she lowered the cup and revealed the cocoa smudge on the tip of her nose and he couldn’t suppress a smile. She wiped it swiftly with her sleeve though, forgetting about the napkins that the waiter kindly provided. “I never met one, but I heard more then enough stories about them. They are undead, masters of the undead so to say. Some say they can’t be killed.”

“I’m guessing they’re not very nice.” It wasn’t really a question that Letho needed to answer, but there was still a sliver of hope in her that for once they could obtain something the easy way. The minute shake of his head made it clear that it wouldn’t happen this time. “How come these items are never in the hands of the good people? I mean, how come you never hear: ‘Go to those nice Raiaera elves and they will gladly help you.’? No, it’s always monsters and fighting.”

She sighed and he wanted to smile and kiss those tiny lips of hers and once again be the sole guardian of her playful innocence. But ever since the Serenti Invitational and his betrayal, the relationship between the two changed, became more conservative somehow. She didn’t rush into his arms anymore and kissed him at random, she didn’t smile at him in the heartily way she used to. She lacked all the little details that made her so unique, so amazingly beautiful. And it was all his fault. It was his betrayal that killed those things, his betrayal that made her grow up and lose her innocence the hard way. They were walking on eggshells now, standing at safe distance and searching for a way to return to the path they walked before Serenti. However, that was the reason they were planning to pay a visit to one of the most horrible creatures on the Corone.

“Power is always most attractive to the evil, Myri. And the Tears of the Nameless Maiden are bound to be quite powerful if they can revert us back to human.” he replied, speaking the words that she already knew. They wanted to be human again. They needed to be human again. Tracked to its origin, Letho’s betrayal was directly linked with the vampirism. True, it was that vampirism that cured Myrhia from her disease, but it was that vampirism that made him bed Sivienna. It was the cursed blood that boiled with lust that clouded his eyes that day in Serenti, when Seth Dahlios held a knife to her throat and Letho called the bluff and let him cut the woman he loved. They had to rid themselves of this poison that ran through their veins, no matter what and their road to redemption started here.

Letho knew well that despite his obvious power, he couldn’t take a lich on his own. In fact, he wasn’t even certain that he wanted to face the lich. It had nothing to do with cowardice though, but rather with plain reason. Nobody ran blindly to fight a dragon. Nobody, save the foolish quasi-heroes with delusions of fame, wanted to fight the mighty wyrms. The same went for liches. That was why he requested a thief to join him in this task. It didn’t take an exceptionally long time for him to spread the word that he needed a thief. Being a man of the law, he knew well what hives to usurp in order to get the word around. He told them that whoever was interested was to meet him in the Sunnydale Café at noon. Which was now.

He had to cover all the bases though. Thievery was a good plan, but good plans were no different then any other plans; they too occasionally went sour. So if it the battle would ensue, ha wanted to be prepared, sending out a call for an able cleric to join them as well. Priests and holy people weren’t the kind he liked around his undead self too much, but they were a necessity and he could only hope that whoever showed up wouldn’t have problem with the fact that they were actually helping the kind they usually fought.

“What about my disease?” she asked, shy and sweet as she offered him a mild smile.

“I don’t think that will be an issue. Allegedly, these Tears of the Nameless Maiden cleanse the body of all impurities, reverting it to the original state.” Letho replied in a patient tone, the kind that he always had for her.

“But that would mean that you would lose your powers as well?”

He nodded thoughtfully. It was a big drawback, but it was a price he was willing to pay to have her back in his arms. A part of her, a rather large part that desired nothing then a simple everyday life of a commoner, was glad to hear that. However, despite the fact that they still traveled together, she still had doubts whether they would share that everyday life or go on their own ways.

[Lavinian Pride]

She had been searching a long time. Her life was never satisfying. She would do deeds and hardly be expected to do much with it. She had founded a colony in Haidia, had killed a local crime lord in Underwood. She had escaped a Lavinian Prison, and most of all, she had gone toe to toe with Dan. All these added up to an impressive resume, had they been on another person, certainly she would be praised. Yet she was Sarah Dahlios, and so she was forever cast into the shadows of Seth.

Yet here opportunity rang. As she moved forward towards the Sunnydale Cafe, she could feel a bit of excitement in her ample chest. Dressed a bit more conservatively she was wearing her skirt and tank top. While conservative was a relative term, she only wore her shorts and sports top on the job, and so she felt like she was applying for this job, she would have to dress to impress, and perhaps seduce her way into the group.

Moving from table to table the knives of her dagger belt were jingling in her satchel as a few heads turned to watch her go. Her boots laced up tightly and almost out of place with the rest of her figure. A bit of caked mud was left on them as with an irritated sigh she tried to ignore it. Moving through the group she could not mistake the man she was to be interviewed by, for the mere sight of his odd blade made him stick out, as did the spear of the woman beside him.

Her study of the man revealed him to be a warrior. His body toned and fit for brawling. His large hands encased in gloves, including but not limited to what she coudl only assume was dragon scale. An impressive trophy, not unlike the dragon bone gauntlets she herself wore on the job she then turned her eyes to the woman with him. Her small lithe frame betrayed a childlike fascination with the world about her. The pale skin and the scar on her cheek setting of a stark contrast. The girl had been through the ringer, and it was something that made her heart ache to figure out if she too had been through as hard a life.

The one thing she noticed was they both seemed discomforted with the brightness in the room. Her mind logging it away as she walked up a serene smile on her face, well practiced as she sought to seduce her way subtly, "Hello, I hear you're looking for someone with a few, less legitimate talents. My name is Sarah Dahlios, from Lavinya, and hopefully I'll meet the requirements."

The simple introduction was given before a slender hand was stretched out in the formal gesture of respect. Her eyes drilling into the man's as she spoke frankly. It was once said that if you could look a man in the eyes when you first met them, and they had to avert their eyes, you controlled them. A subtle power play, she wanted to see if he truly was the big dog or just another common mutt she would have to end up helping out.

[Liliana Ambria]

Seven Days, seven long days she stayed in Radasanth. The news of Seth Dahlios losing in the Lornius Corporate Challenge having rang out on the third. The fourth, she had waited, expecting Taviri to give Seth the message. On the fifth, she was getting worried, and still held out hope for Seth. On the sixth, hope was beginning to fade as she worried if her brother would even deliver the message. Each day that hope grew dimmer and dimmer.

On the Seventh, she got her orders.

With a heavy sigh she had left Radasanth as she moved to fulfill her orders, coming form the most unusual of circumstances. She had hoped Seth would have showed up in Radasanth, that she could finally see him after all they had been through. Since the events of the Adventurer's Crown, she had been unable to meet up with Seth, and it was beginning to show on him. Tales of a vicious and cold Seth, of a Seth deliriously slaughtering opponents came form the Serenti, and in the Lornius Corporate Challenge, they told the tale of a desperate and mad man.

Moving through the trails leading to the Comb Mountains, she sighed. She herself felt each step an eternity as she finally found the insufferably high-class cafe where the meeting was to take place. Sighing she checked her robes, seeing herself dressed rather plainly, but none the less appropriately. Shifting the robes a bit, and making sure her sword was secured she entered the cafe.

Already she could see the path she was to follow, if only because there was a rather stunning woman walking it. People seemed to part before her as she moved with a sure and cocky arrogance. Something she could have sworn she saw elsewhere. Stretching forth her sense of souls she felt something odd, something very odd indeed.

The woman felt like Seth did.

Moving after the mysterious woman she found the woman extending a hand as she approached, having missed the introductions. Waiting politely she folded her hands in front of her as she watched the introduction. She would be patient for now, however she couldn't help but sense another thing about the company she was keeping, two vampires seemed to be seeking a clerics help. They seemed hardly like the vampires she had faced before, and so she held a cautious reserve. The council had not seen fit to tell her about this development, and so she would adapt.

Still as she watched the woman she couldn't help but feel she knew her. The mysterious aura of Seth and the way she presented herself, where very much like the Lavinian she cared for. As she waited silently she coughed slightly in order to not rudely interrupt, but let her partners know she was there.

[Letho]

Letho was never too much of a believer. Celestial powers, determined fates, planes of existence where one either suffers eternal damnation or eternal bliss, it was all the talk for the masses that needed something to believe in, something to stop them from searching for the purpose of life. Something to stop them from seeing that purpose of life was life itself, that there wasn’t an allseeing eye watching over them and listening to their prayers, and that shit happens simply because the factors and the circumstances provided it as a final result. Gods didn’t kill Kristiniel. Gods didn’t rape Myrhia. Gods didn’t betray her. People did that because that was what people did.

However, despite his atheistic views, he had to admit there was something peculiar, some sort of intricate web of coinciding elements, that led his first companion into the Sunnydale Café. Her name was Sarah Dahlios and he seriously doubted that she just happened to share the last name with the Lavinian Demon, Letho’s... friend? Enemy? Both? Who could tell nowadays.

The woman was a genuine vixen though, her sizzling curves wrapped in just enough clothes to keep her decent and yet luring the eyes on all the taboo places on her body. Letho didn’t know why in the world she opted to make thievery her life’s calling; with a body like that she could have any man she desired. Not that he let his mind dwell on that hourglass figure for too long. All that he needed was sitting on the other side of the table and this mission was all about proving that. That was why, when those gray eyes peered into his own, all they found was the usual, slightly frowned keenness in his brown eyes.

“Dahlios, huh? Related to Seth Dahlios, I reckon? It seems that the less legitimate talents are quite common in your bloodline.” he spoke, though there was no malice in his voice, making his statement nothing more then a casual observation. He got up, accepted the handshake and offered the thief a seat. A cough, coming from behind Sarah, made it clear that there was another person present and once Letho’s eye noticed a rather unremarkable frail looking girl in what seemed like monk robes. The sense of discomfort – the unease a person gets when he’s just about to catch a bad case of flu – swept over the swordsman. She had to be the cleric.

“I assume you are here to aid us as well, miss. I am Letho Ravenheart and that is my companion Myrhia. Please, join us.”

While Letho dealt with the introductions, Myrhia was captivated by Sarah’s appearance. The woman was confident and brassy, these characteristics radiating from her every move, her every look. The redhead caught herself straying away from those piercing eyes coyly, but then found herself tracing her luscious figure which, in turn, only struck a faint blush into her cheeks. She was so pretty, a perfect woman, everything she was not, and it only reminded her how she would never be somebody who could walk into the room as if she owned it. Her pale hands reached across the table as she offered a small but sweet smile. “Hiya, I’m Myrhia.” she said once all were settled around the table. She was glad she decided not to wear her skirt on this mission, but rather decided to wear her dark crimson pants and a matching shirt. She would look like a scarecrow compared to the curvy woman.

Once the cleric woman joined them and introduced herself, Letho begun in a solemn, strict tone. “Now that the introductions are done, we can talk business. As you might have heard, I seek to find a certain artifact that is currently in the possession of a lich. This artifact is called the Tears of the Nameless Maiden and while I’m not certain what it looks like, I reckon it’s bound to be small. Like a vial or a chalice or something.”

“Excuse me, madams, but would you like to order?” the waiter delicately waited for a pause in Letho’s speech to butt in and ask his question, bowing his head to the two newcomers. Letho allowed a mild annoyance to sweep over his face as he waited for the response of the two before he continued.

“Anyways, as I said, the item is currently in possession of a lich that hides in the forest on the south slopes of the Comb Mountains. Now, I don’t want to fight that thing. I know you’re probably more then able to handle the undead, miss...” he turned to Liliana, then continued. “...but I think we all know enough about these things to agree a battle with it should be out last option. I figure we have better chances at sneaking in, getting the item, and making a swift getaway. Our best chances are during the day because the undead are not really fond of sunlight, so I reckon its awareness won’t be as high as during the night.”

“Kind of like ours.” Myrhia added in her tiny voice, revealing the fact that Letho didn’t want to get out in the open. But though she didn’t say it, he knew her reasons behind mentioning this. Camaraderie couldn’t work with secrets creeping though its every pore.

“Yes, like ours. You see, Myrhia and I, we are vampires, albeit a kind that can sustain the sunlight.” the guests of the café closest to them – an overweight middle-aged woman in a red dress and a gawky looking gentleman in a dark blue suit – seemed to overhear this little detail, their faces growing wan as they scuttled out of the café. Letho paid no heed to them. “These Tears of the Nameless Maiden were supposed to cure it, revert us to humans. However, I understand if you have doubts and reserves when it comes to working with our kind. If you want to forfeit, the time is now. If not, the payment is five hundred gold pieces, half now, half when the job is done. On top of anything we find in the lich’s lair.”

“We promise we won’t hurt you.” Myrhia felt the need to clarify, her eyes sincere and sad somehow. “We... We’re not bad people. We just want this curse to end and we need your help.”

[Lavinian Pride]

Sarah took her seat feeling the red head's eyes upon her as she did so. Letho seemed more courageous than she took him for as the direct look in the eyes, revealed a stern disposition and a loyalty she found in so few nowadays. As she began to get comfortable she heard the cough. Turning her head her jaw almost dropped open and she barely managed to keep her mouth shut. Liliana was here, and it wasn't that she was happy to see her, no quite the opposite.

Liliana represented the intangible to both Seth and Sarah. She was the perfection beyond their reach. Turning her head back to look at Letho she replied a bit shakily, "We all have our own paths through life, you could say I don't like being a side note. I would much rather be at the forefront, than sitting side saddle. I would much rather if you left Seth out of it though, a touchy subject for me..."

Sitting in her chair the waitress walked up. Sarah was half tempted to order her usual but instead decided that discretion would win through here, "Nothing, I'm fine..." She then watched Letho reveal more about them as she took in everything. Her eyes never wandering too far away as she processed the information. Finally she spoke her voice clinical and business like, "Well now, If I was going to discriminate upon Vampires then I suppose I would have to lock myself up, one of my best friends is a vampire."

She then brushed a bit of stray hair form her face as she said firmly, "As for stealing from a lich, I guess if anyone were to attempt it, it should be a Lavinian. No one has the balls to do what we do. I'll give it a go; give ya my best efforts too." The money didn't matter to her, more likely it was the relative fame that someone like Letho Ravenheart, the Serenti drop out would give her for curing him of his treacherous vampirism.

Still Liliana being there was a bit of a downer. She wasn't expecting the showing up of Seth's estranged lover. As she shifted slightly in the chair it seemed that while Liliana had been silent so far, she would soon not remain so.

[Liliana Ambria]

She remained quiet taking her seat as the by play between the mysterious Sarah Dahlios and Letho Ravenheart happened. The casualness form which he spoke of Seth caused her head to snap up and look intently at Letho. He had known Seth? Was it recent? Had he only just seen him? She didn't know the answers to these questions, but she had to find out. The uncertainty was surely tearing her apart. She had looked everywhere, from vampire nests to Lavinya itself, and had not been able to find the answers she sought.

More words were thrown through the air as Sarah and Letho talked about the thievery part. However she knew why she had been sent, the Order wanted her to merely be out of the way and be tied up while they figured out what to do with her. The week of inactivity had hurt them, and they wanted to be sure they could count on her. As she shifted slight she ignored the gaze of Sarah as she spoke her voice while soft not anywhere near weak.

"My name is Liliana Ambria, I represent the Seraphs of Sintyre, of which I believe somehow your inquiry for a cleric went. So long as what you do doesn't hurt the world itself, we are alright with your presence, and furthermore willing to help it. So, it’s not my place to question the motive of being freed from the curse of undeath. I will help you; however, further from the money I have a simple request. Perhaps Miss Dahlios here could answer with some information she herself knows," She said as she waited for the words to sink in. She knew Sarah was somehow connected with Seth, the way she spoke of him screaming bitterness.

She sighed as she waited trying to figure out how best to phrase it. Finally she found the words, coming out of her mouth slowly, "Seth Dahlios is a friend of mine. A rather close friend and one I haven't seen in a long while. I heard a few stories about him at the Serenti Tournament, and further rumors involving the Lornius Corporate Challenge..."

This was the tough part for surely they would not understand the importance. At least Letho would not, Sarah herself would more than likely know the answer, but without further information on the mysterious femme she would have nothing to go on. As she steeled her courage she spoke softly, "I need to find him, I heard horrible things about him falling apart, and I fear what might happen to him if he sinks any lower..."

She then sent pleading eyes into Letho's own as she asked, "Do you know where he is and where he's going?"

[Letho]

The intangible feeling or predetermination that Letho had when Sarah introduced herself now started to establish itself as something more prominent. Not only was Sarah Dahlios obviously connected to Seth (A sister? A cousin? He didn’t know and she wasn’t keen on telling), but the cleric girl turned up to be none other the Liliana Ambria, Seth’s better half. A lot better half. Letho never met the girl before, but during his battle with the Lavinian Demon in Serenti Invitational, Seth spoke of Liliana and his search for her. Allegedly, the woman was held captive by one of the competitors and the thief entered the tournament to save her. But though he failed in his mission, the girl seemed to find her way out of the clutches of her captors. But not back to her close friend, as she neatly put it.

And while Letho listened attentively to the dispositions of both the thief and the cleric, Myrhia wasn’t terribly ecstatic by the mention of Seth’s name. Her small pale hand went to her tattooed neck, to the small scar that marred the smoothness of her skin, to the wound that hurt her on so many levels on that day. And though she knew that Seth was merely an instrument in Letho’s betrayal, a factor that just happened to be there by a strange set of circumstances, the recollection of the battle in the Cathedral and the days of agony that followed afterwards were not something she liked to recall.

Though slightly disconcerted by that memory as well, Letho was adamant enough in his intention to proceed with this mission. He nodded to Sarah’s proposition to leave Seth out of this, but an intricate web such as the one fate woven around them wouldn’t let the matter slide that easily. Because Liliana wouldn’t let it go that easily, couldn’t let it go by what he could see in her imploring eyes that revealed nothing but honesty. She sincerely cared for Seth. For whatever damned reason, she really needed to find the man that most called an abomination, a monster, a beast that needed to be caged.

“I... I had a run-in with Seth in Serenti.” Letho finally spoke, though he failed to look the young holy woman in her tender brown eyes. “He told me that a woman named Liliana was captured and that her captors participated in the tournament. Suffice to say, he was rather fervent to proceed. I think, in the end, that battle wound up as a loss for us both.” His head perked up just enough to take a look at Myrhia across the table. “The officials thought I was the one that should proceed. I got a word out to the local law enforcers about you, but I’m not certain how efficient they were.”

“Either way,” he continued after a couple of seconds of uncomfortable silence, shifting mildly in his seat. “He wasn’t well back then, I’ll say that much, and I doubt he had gotten better in the Lorinus Corporate Challenge. If you want to seek him out, I would advise you to seek out a vampire woman named Sivienna. He fought with her in the LCC and she is bound to know his whereabouts. I can provide you with a list of places that she frequents, for I know her rather well. Too well, perhaps. She is the one that turned me, you see?”

He didn’t want to talk about it and the rather emotionless expression on Myrhia’s face made it clear that she didn’t want him to talk about it too much either. Because Sivienna was a much deeper scar then the one on the redhead’s neck. The vampire vixen was Letho’s one-night stand and it was a wound that even now refused to heal, reminding them both of his infidelity.

“Anyhow, if Sarah here doesn’t have any more info to give you, I suggest we proceed with our mission. The lair of this lich is less then a day’s ride to the south. We can reach Concordia by nightfall, camp out and proceed with daybreak. I arranged horses for us.” The Marshal spoke, getting up from his seat and setting the gunblade on his shoulder before placing a fistful of gold pieces on the table surface. The café (the attendants included) seemed rather relieved to see the brooding man and his camaraderie leave. They looked too much like the troublemaking adventurer types that more often then time disturbed the lull of their monotonous lives.

“It’s nice to see somebody without prejudices towards us vampires.” Myrhia spoke rather silently, walking alongside Sarah once the four made their way to the stone-paved street. “Most people think we’re going to jump right at them and tear them to shreds. Needless to say, it’s not easy to make friends that way, not even acquaintances. And Letho and me don’t even drink human blood.”

“I,” Letho said in his rugged voice, then offered her a smirk. “Letho and I.”

Myrhia stuck out her tongue at him and rolled her eyes, and his smirk changed into a smile with a shake of his head. It sometimes seemed to her that every day with him was a school day and every moment was a chance to learn. A part of her hated that, wanted him to just kick back and be just a normal human being that laughed and cried and went fishing. But there was a part of her that loved it as well, knowing that though some of the lessons were trivial like the one seconds before, some might very well save her life.

[Lavinian Pride]

Sarah heard the pained words of Liliana and felt a deep underlying guilt in her heart. She wasn't Seth, far from it, but she was at one time. It was because of this that her words almost tore her heart up into small bits. Still she remained emotionally stable trying to keep her face in check as Letho mentioned Sarah being able to figure out something. She sighed as she looked at Liliana, she had an option. However, to reveal too much about what she knew, would only tip her hand. If only to help ease the guilt, she decided to help Liliana.

For the first time in awhile she went to that empty spot of her heart. The spot that had once held Seth Dahlios and dove inside, her goal was to make use of their bond, a bond that had pained her greatly at times, and see what he was seeing. Focusing intently she saw him walking through an area. Books upon books were on shelves, making it hard to decipher exactly where. The eyes of her vision passed as it took in a deep sweeping glance, showing the lay out of the building to be much the same.

Were it not for the fact she had been Seth she surely would not have recognized the library of Ettermire, however she knew he would have some reason for being there. With that in mind she closed the link, the library of Ettermire fading from her vision before she said softly, "There’s a rumor he's in Ettermire looking for something. Other than that I can't tell you much. I'd check there..."

She then Looked at the two vampires as she let a eyebrow raise at the mention of Sivienna's name. So that's what Sivi's been up to...I'll have to look for her... However she pushed on following the group out she made a brief stop at the bar and purchased a bottle of ale for the night. Slipping it into her pack she slipped her satchel over her shoulder as they were mounting horses outside.

[Liliana Ambria]

She dutifully filed away the information involving Seth given to her as they began to walk outside. Her gaze never leaving Letho, as she knew he wasn't telling her the whole truth. As they mounted horses she saw Sarah had brought up the rear and shrugged her pack into position. As she finally mounted her horse they began to move out, with Sarah's horse seeming to move a bit faster to stay away from Liliana.

It puzzled her to say the least, as Sarah was far colder than she remembered most Lavinians being towards her. It was this odd behavior that puzzled her the most as she decided to give the girl the room she obviously sought. This put her horse nearer to Letho as she couldn't help but steal glances at him. It was more than a school girl crush, more than fascination; she had to know the truth. Seth had done something, but what was beyond her understanding.

Finally she spoke softly for Letho's ears only, "Please, you know more...I need to know if he gave up." She then looked at him. She knew that pestering the man about what was obviously not a good experience with Seth was the last thing she should. However, she had to know, she couldn't help not knowing, if Seth became the Lavinian Demon, he was lost to her, and that was pain she couldn't bear. Finally she asked softly, "Did he become the demon?"

She knew as soon as she asked the question that even if he didn't answer, she would get the response. His hesitation before made it almost certain that he had in fact become the Lavinian Demon, and had tormented Letho through some means. The fact that Letho wasn't badly scarred was only secondary to the wounds Seth was capable of dealing.

She still felt a twinge of pain now and then in her heart, form when one of his daggers tabbed deeply into her shoulder, the salt enchanted upon them causing her pain. She had to fight then not to pass out before he walked off leaving her for dead. She had fought for him; to the point she had stood before the council of Seraphs and told them off about Seth. Perhaps that’s why she had been forced here, but she knew one thing as they moved through the pass. Seth was not alright, not nearly as much as Letho was unwillingly admitting.

[Letho]

Though the day was rather chirpy around them, emanating life from every possible pore, a dour air seemed to be following the quartet like a magical mist. Sarah rode ahead of them with what seemed cold confidence, but given her occupation, that didn’t come as too much of a surprise. Cool head and sticky fingers were after all the prime attributes of thieves. Beside her, trying to keep her company, rode Myrhia, asking a question here and there, but generally failing to get anything more then simple sentences out of the thief. Letho knew that this wasn’t going to last for long. Once upon a time he was a brooding wanderer that honed his skill to push people away to perfection and she found a crack in his emotionless mask. All she needed was to put a chink into the armor that Sarah clad herself into.

This left Letho with Liliana who rode silently at his side, obviously disconcerted by the information that was shared back in the Sunnydale Café. His eyes were monitoring her closely, and though she always moved them away when he turned his countenance to meet her gaze, the swordsman knew that there was something bothering her deeply. She managed to withhold her questions for a while though, but once their four reached the canyon that led through the Comb Mountains, they had to slow their mounts. The road was well-trodden and the hills were gentle, but there were still fragments of rock scattered on random spots, serving as a perfect chance for the horses to make missteps and sprain their legs. So instead of a steady trot, the group now moved a little faster then walk-speed and the silence of the pass seemed like a perfect opportunity for the priest girl to ask the question that obviously troubled her mind.

At first Letho said nothing, peering into her fair face for what seemed like minutes, his squinted keen eyes – War Eyes Myrhia called them – gazing into her own. Did she really want to know? Did she want to know how Seth was the rock that set down an avalanche that nearly crushed Myrhia? And even if she did want to know (her eyes certainly wanted to), was he ready to speak of it? He didn’t respond to her, but rather moved his eyes back to the road ahead.

“The road is not a place for a palaver.” he finally spoke, his voice strong, but far from emotionless. Some things you couldn’t hide no matter how hard you tried, and the lack of indifference in his tone revealed the importance of the question she asked. They rode on, with the sun dipping below the convex peaks of the Comb Mountains, deepening the hues of the nature around them. Yellow dirt turned to orange, bright white flowers that somehow managed to sprout through the rocks turned gray, and Myrhia’s fiery red hair turned into the color of mahogany. And their spirits sunk even further.

***

“...and then Letho took on the entire contingent of Radasanth guards right there on the bridge, distracting them while Deacon and me fled from the prison.” Myrhia recollected one of the numerous adventures she had with Letho, telling it to Sarah who didn’t seem terribly interested, but seemed to be just coping with it for the time being. The redhead turned around, as if to check if the grim swordsman was listening, before she leant closer to the thief. “And even though Letho doesn’t like to talk about it, there was this captain Leeahn that kicked his ass that night.” she continued in a hush-hush tone, adding a wink at the end of it. Letho heard it all the same, but paid no heed to it. Myrhia’s ramblings seldom did damage and it made her happy, so who was he to stop her from doing what her heart wanted to?

“So I guess that was the time that both of us learned that not all thieves were malicious crooks. I think we met another one today.” she added with a gentle innocent smile, looking at the attractive Lavinian that rode beside her.

By the time the willowy redhead finished her story, the sun was gone and the sky welcomed the first stars on the bluish sky. It was their cue to call it a day, so Letho spurred his horse wordlessly and led the way, straying away from the main road and into a small grove that seemed like a good shelter for the night. There were no streams that he could hear in the vicinity, but their waterskins were still full, so he didn’t bother with finding a better location. Instead, once he was about thirty paces away from the main road, he dismounted at the first clearing.

“We’ll make camp here. The lair is a bit further, but I don’t want to be close to it during the night.” he spoke in a strict no-nonsense voice, making it clear that even if they were arguments, he wasn’t keen on changing his decision. Myrhia had a strong dislike towards this unyielding voice of his, but that was an idiom that she couldn’t change no matter how hard she tried.

“I’ll get the fire going.” she said, then turned to Sarah. “Will you help me gather some wood?”

Letho saw this as a perfect opportunity to finish the business that he postponed back on the road. He waited until the other two women were out of hearing range, Myrhia’s constant chatter serving as a good sign what was her location, before he approached Liliana.

“You wanted to palaver about Seth.” he spoke rather reluctantly, his voice deviating from the usual solidity as he took a seat on the ground and propped his back against a birch tree. “I will tell you what happened in Serenti. By all rights, I shouldn’t have participated in that tournament. But male pride is a powerful drive. It made me join the tournament... without telling Myrhia. In the second round, the draw set me up against Seth and I gave Myri another false reason why I had to go away. She followed me this time, right into the Serenti cathedral where Seth and I fought. Long story short, I had the upper hand, but he... changed. And Myrhia got caught in crossfire. He took her as a surety and threatened to kill her if I didn’t yield.”

Letho paused, dropping his eyes to the grass below as his finger sporadically played with the grass threads. The forest was silent, save for the murmur of Myrhia’s voice and the gentle breeze that descended down the Comb Mountains and into the grove. “I didn’t yield.” he finally said, his words barely getting out. “And to this day I don’t know why. But he didn’t kill her. You see, even though he was a Demon, he showed her mercy. Even though he was a Demon, he was better then me.”

Another pause, this one even heavier then the last one. Letho seemed old and weary, defeated by this fairytale gone wrong that he spoke about. “She fled and I dared not follow her. But he protected her, you see, saved her life and then proceeded to ensure her to give me a second chance. Now Myrhia tells me that there is still hope for me. I believe that there is some hope for him too.”

[Lavinian Pride]

Sarah tried to fend off the girl as best as she could. Questions rained down, and it seemed that she was to be smothered over them as she answered them with ever trick she knew not to divulge to much information....

Are you related to Seth?

"You could say that..."

Do you know Liliana? You seemed to be preoccupied with her when you saw her...

"I know of her but not her herself..."

Why did you become a thief?

"I'm trying to be better than Seth, call it sibling rivalry..."

They continued on and on. Soon however Myhria changed tactics and began to tell her of a story. It was an interesting story and she seemed rather keen to tell it. So, Sarah resigned herself to at least listening enough to keep along. The girl loved to go into details, and that was something Sarah found rather boring. Who cares what you had for dinner? You had dinner and it was in the past. Still she would reply trying to remain interested, until she saw something that set off something on Sarah's mystical radar of flirts...

“And even though Letho doesn’t like to talk about it, there was this captain Leeahn that kicked his ass that night.” she said in a conspirator’s tone. As if this was some deep dark secret that Letho could be beaten by women. The topper was the added comment that closed the event;

“So I guess that was the time that both of us learned that not all thieves were malicious crooks. I think we met another one today.”

Sarah chuckled before she spoke, perhaps for the first time genuinely responding, "Not all thieves steal for personal gain. The ones in Lavinya are only there to protect the people the trading post enslaves to the trade masters...Call us vigilantes, because they certainly don't."

She could feel two brown eyes on her as she said those lines before Myrhia commented on the firewood. Seeing it as a chance to relax before trying to hide herself from Liliana again, she assented and moved with Myrhia off into the woods. Myrhia would go about collecting sticks, as Sarah did the same, feeling her innocent green eyes focus on her. She would smirk from time to time purposefully catching Myhria's gaze before she said firmly, "Well, if you want a good look, perhaps I should stand up...."

Myrhia blushed furiously before she said, "Sorry, you just are so...confident so sure..."

If you only knew... she bitterly thought before she replied casually, "You just need to relax. Nothing is truly as scary as it first seems. Let’s take a bat for example. It flies out of its cave, it shrieks and maybe you get some bad luck and you bump into it. Sure it’s scary, but it’s just trying to get its meal. You just gotta understand that everything has a reason and finding that reason is the key to getting through fear..."

She felt such the hypocrite as she said those last words. Myhria however smiled as she said, "You sound almost like Letho when you say that. I could swear you are the female version of him, right down to the gruff attitude towards people you don't know..."

Sarah giggled before she brought the sticks over and gave them to Myhria and said frankly, "Yes, but unlike Letho, I don't have qualms about telling it like it is. You're a bright and wonderful woman Myhria. You just gotta get some confidence in ya, can't be the shy teenager forever right?"

Myrhia looked up before she sighed and said, "We better head back. Letho might be worrying about us by now..."

[Liliana Ambria]

Liliana had been watching Sarah as well, especially after the comment about the Thief's Guild. Something about her wasn't settling right, but she would deal with that later. For the moment there was information she wanted, and Letho, didn't seem to keen on giving it to her. As she waited quietly she saw Letho pull them to a halt, a rather valid reason given in order to make them stop short of their goal. The sun was setting, and the undead's time was on the rise.

Sliding off her horse she stretched as Myhria and Sarah were pulled off to gather firewood. Letho then finally felt it was time to "Palaver" about Seth. So with her desires finally being unfolded before her she listened with rapt attention. He unfolded a tale about a man desperate to find her, and one almost willing to kill innocents to reach her. She closed her eyes as she heard about the change imagining the cold voice, the harsh demands, the knife held at the neck, now realizing why Myrhia had carefully covered the injury to her neck at the merest mention of his name.

The words that followed seemed to be signs that Seth was combating the Demon, fighting him tooth and nail, a relief swept through her. Still she knew there was much to explain, and so she took a deep breath as she spoke, "He's fighting it; at least there is hope, so long as he continues to do so."

She then looked at Letho as she spoke, "Seth is, hardly normal as you coudl guess. His path has been hard on him, to the point he sometimes snaps. Each time he does, makes it harder for him to forgive himself for his actions. I would be a hypocrite if I were to beg you to forgive him his actions, so I won't dare. I merely, wish to explain some things about Seth..."

"I don't think he could kill Myrhia even if Demon wanted to. Seth doesn't like killing without a point. He had killed pointlessly for so long, that he simply wished he could die, to the point he would throw himself at everything with reckless abandon. When I saw him last he was starting to calm down, though obviously it was only because I had been able to calm him, not because he didn't want to die any less..."

She sighed looking down as she said softly, "I have got to find him, he's falling apart it seems..." She then looked up at Letho before she said, "I'm sorry if this puts a hamper on your plans, but after the Liche is dead, I must go, I can't let him fall apart without a fight. He endured too much to get where he is, and for him to finally give in is not something I can let happen without a fight..."

It was at that time she heard a twig snap and turned to see Myrhia and Sarah heading back. A sigh left her face as she said, "Looks like Palaver is over..."

[Letho]

Back in the picturesque Sunydale Café, Liliana said that Seth was her close friend and even back then Letho suspected that such a title was an understatement. But only now, when he could read the emotion from her words and her doleful eyes that looked as sympathetic as Myrhia’s, was he able to comprehend just how much of an understatement it really was. She cared for him deeply; this frail looking holy woman cared for a man that was dubbed the Lavinian Demon in many realms across Althanas. Perhaps she even loved him. Because, as Letho knew all too well from his personal experience, love was never a mystical occurrence that simply brought two misfits together by some unseen magic. No, love was readiness to compromise, to subjugate your own desires and sacrifice them for the other. And Liliana was doing that for Seth.

“I understand, Liliana.” Letho finally said to the priestess of the Sintyre as the sounds of Sarah’s and Myrhia’s footsteps started to grow louder, announcing their arrival. “And I admire your fervor. A lot of people would’ve given up on him a long time ago. Hell, I know him only for a short while and I already gave up on him. Hopefully we’ll deal with this lich tomorrow and you can return to your search for him.”

That concluded their dialogue because even as Letho finished, Myrhia and Sarah emerged from the encompassing trees under whose crowns the darkness thickened with each passing moment. “What are you two whispering about?” the redhead asked in a jovial manner, smiling meekly as she set down the gathered tinder and firewood. She wanted to believe that Letho’s fidelity was ultimate once again, she wanted to believe more then anything that the one time he cheated on her with Sivienna was an isolated incident, an anomaly in his knightly demeanor. But Sivienna was a scar that still stung and emerged every time she would see him with another woman. There was a saying that she remembered, about a man building a thousand bridges but destroying only one, and people always remembered him as a wrecker, not a builder. Myrhia hated the fact that she fell under this archetype as well, but no matter how hard she tried to cancel it out, it inadvertently crept back, reminding her of his betrayal.

“Seth.” Letho refused to lie or bend the truth despite knowing that Seth was a topic that wasn’t high on Myrhia’s most favorite list. But his tone was definite, saying that the conversation about that was finished and she accepted it with a nod and a smile before she started building the fire. The way he taught her, of course. Dry leaves at the core, surrounded by the thin, twigs in a shape of a tent, and three thicker branches over that. With a strike of the flint against her dagger, the fire sprung to life coyly at first, but after less then a minute, all traces of darkness were chased away from the vicinity. Letho smiled at her success minutely, his visage a benevolent confirmation of a job well done, but for the first time in a long while she didn’t return the favor. It was because of something that kept running through her mind, words that for some reason embarrassed her and made her mull on some things more then usual.

“You just gotta get some confidence in ya, can't be the shy teenager forever right?”

Myrhia was far from certain should she trust Sarah’s words. After all, she knew the thief less then a day and that was hardly an appropriate time for any real trust to be established between the two. And yet, Sarah looked so confident, so powerful, so self-sufficient, and it overwhelmed Myrhia to see such a thing in a woman. And she realized that she wanted to be more like Sarah, stronger, sturdier, more a woman and less a girl. Coy innocence was, after all, what always got her in trouble, her wide-eyed idiosyncrasy that was always satisfied with Letho doing the thinking, Letho doing everything because he knew what was best. And though a large part of her still wanted that innocence back, she decided to give this confidence and trust in herself a try.

“I don’t know how much of the story Letho told you, but we don’t blame him for what happened in Serenti, Liliana.” Myrhia spoke gently once she took a frying pan from one of the saddlebags and started to make beans with meat chunks. It was a traveler’s meal and as such not really a delicacy, but once she put a pinch of her own mixture of spices and herbs, the scent in the air became more then pleasant. It was inviting, tantalizing even. Letho was taken aback by her words though. She never wanted to talk about what happened in the Serenti cathedral, and yet now she spoke openly about it with a complete stranger. He decided not to interfere for the time being though, thinking perhaps it was something she kept bottled up for too long.

“It was something that he had no control over and when two such bullheaded men fight, some boundaries that should’ve remained intact are breached.” the redhead continued, stirring the beans with a spatula, but lifting her eyes to look at Letho. He knew she wasn’t just speaking of Seth and the boundaries he crossed when he turned into a Demon. She was speaking of the boundary of loyalty and faithfulness that he breached on that day. And to such confession the dark swordsman could only keep his mouth shut. Luckily, Myrhia decided not to elaborate on the issue.

“But what’s done, can’t be undone.” she finally said, using the phrase that Letho used so often. “Either way, that’s in the past and we’re in the now and now is time for dinner. Hmm... Where did Sarah go?”

Four tin plates were already prepared beside the campfire and she filled them with the meal she prepared, taking one for herself before she sat back and looked through the flames that stood between Letho and her. There were times, not long ago, when she would always rush into his arms at the day’s end, when she longed for nothing but being close to him. But nowadays they were walking on eggshells, giving their relationship a test drive, and intimacy was kept to a minimum. And as much as it ached Letho to see her sit on the opposite side of the fire, he knew that distance was a price he had to pay if he wanted to have a chance at getting her back.

“So tell me, Liliana...” the swordsman finally decided to change the subject as he picked up one of the plates. “...what are these Seraphs of Sintyre that you serve? Something like the local Clerics of Draconus her in Corone?”

[Lavinian Pride]

"Seth."

That one name had shown up far too often to her liking. As the group seemed focused on the Lavinian Demon she made her exit deciding to wander off a bit in order to properly inebriate herself. Tonight was to be for rest and relaxation, not for wondering what Seth had fucked up now. And so before even Myrhia could even pitch in her two cents, she had slipped away and moved far enough away to be out of hearing range.

The bottle was soon uncorked as she sighed and stared at the setting sun sipping it thoughtfully. The bitter acrid taste was something she was more than accustomed to, even if her body was a bit repulsed. She attributed it to the fact her mother didn't drink often, and so the body had not yet been properly pickled in liquor. As she relaxed she sipped the ale again as she sighed watching as the few rays left went slowly away, the light fading and bringing with it an oppressive darkness.

"And so another day sets on my fucked up life," She muttered as she tried to relax. The girl, Myrhia had been a pleasant distraction from Liliana, but now she would have to figure out what to do about her. The more Sarah remained around her the less time it would take before Liliana began to piece two and two together. Rubbing her eyes she sighed as she kicked her legs up propping them on a log.

A twig snapped behind her and she smirked, knowing already who was there. As interested as Liliana was in Sarah, she had far more pressing concerns. With a casual gesture to come forward she spoke out, "Come on over, I don't bite hard."

She soon saw the timid red head show up in her vision carrying a plate of food. Sarah stomach growled appreciatively as she did so, and she smiled as she said, "Thanks, I'm famished." She then took the proffered plate as she sighed and tried a bit of the meager meal.

She felt the innocent green eyes upon her as she ate slowly. She was definitely surprised by the quality of the food; however she was more intrigued by her company. Finally she looked up into those doe eyes and spoke, "I take it you wanted something?"

"You don't seem too fond of Seth..." She began.

Sarah immediately cut her off when she said, "Frankly Liliana is the only one right now that’s "fond of Seth". I know you aren't to keen on him either, so let’s just leave him out of it." Myrhia remained a bit quiet, sensing the bitter tone in Sarah’s voice as she did so. Sarah sighed as she sipped her bottle and looked down before she said, “I’m sorry, I think I’m getting far too emotional towards someone who doesn’t merit my anger…”

“Is Seth really that bad?” She asked softly. The question hung in the air, the words seeming to echo deep within Sarah. It was an honest question, but for Sarah the answer would affect her herself. Anything she said about Seth, could easily apply to her as well, for they were one in the same, however two sides of the coin, long since lost to the ages.

She took another sip as she felt her body shift and relax. Her taut muscles relieving their tension as she said, “He has some good in him, but not much. When he chooses to be he can be kind and compassionate…”

“Why doesn’t he?”

She smirked knowing the answer had to be given before she could move on, “He was hurt long ago, trying to be ‘kind” and “compassionate”. He opened up to someone who he truly and wholly loved…” Myrhia remained silent almost on edge as Sarah replied softly, “She hurt him, cut him deeply. Since then, he hasn’t spoken with his heart in forever. You know Liliana back there? She’s about the closest I’ve ever seen to getting to it, and she’s in a minefield now, she can’t go back, and has to keep pressing forward, hoping she’ll make the next step safely.”

“So he’s not bad? Or he’s not good? I don’t get what you’re saying,” She said as she sat on the log a small hand brought under her chin. Sarah sighed as she leaned back against the tree. The bottle was corked before she set it in her satchel saving it for later. Myrhia wasn’t about to go anywhere, and because of it, she couldn’t either.

“Shades of grey Myrhia. It’s a concept dating back to the beginning of time. There is no good, no evil, merely shades of grey. A man could fight in a battle, and depending on who told the story he could be the hero or villain. Seth, never tells his story, he lets others do it for him, afraid that to tell his story, he’d have to accept what he’s done as fact. Since he’s too afraid of his past, he will always be cast as the villain, when he’s only trying to survive now,” She said sagely.

A hand rested on the shin of her legs as Sarah sighed under the contact. The hand gently gripped her leg as she looked at Sarah and said softly, “So where do you fit in all of this? I have heard many stories about Seth, but none of you…”

Sarah giggled, rather femininely as she said simply, “My story is yet untold, the pages are blank. I have began to write this story, but few will see it till after I surpass Seth. Until then I am his shadow, and there is nothing I can do about it.”

“Why is that funny?”

“Because as far as he’s concerned, I don’t exist, and one day, perhaps very soon, he will be forced to make me exist…”

[Liliana Ambria]

Liliana had watched the byplay between the two of them. A gentle sadness gripping her heart as she realized Seth had hurt the both of them, all in his desperation to reach her. As she closed her eyes she shook her head hearing Myrhia's recount of the fight. Seth was falling apart far faster than the rumors had spoken, for once the whispers and gossip not being enough.

Letho's recount of their conversation, of what was said left no room for further debate on the Lavinian Thief, for she still refused to call Seth a demon. While he was capable of demonic actions, there was a good man inside, and judging from what the battle had be recounted, he had shone through at one point. Still she opened her eyes and watched as dinner was prepared, the silence almost suffocating her.

There was so many questions left unanswered, so many questions she had to ask. Still the time for questions was over, and she knew that she had to move on, Letho was a well only so deep, and to continue to have access to it, she would have to let it slowly refill, lest it dry up in a moment of rash action. As she accepted her plate a soft thank you was issued as she sat down on a log nearby the fire and ate quietly.

Soon however, Letho asked perhaps the important question, one about the Seraphs. She merely continued to eat for a little bit before she spoke, "I don't know much about the Clerics of Draconus, to be honest I don't spend my time finding out about other religions. My job is merely as a front line soldier in a war that never truly ended. Thousands of years ago, the Demon Wars broke out, and destroyed many lands. At that time people banded together to form hunting parties, trying to kill any demons they could find, in an effort to prevent their plight upon another."

At those words she shuddered slightly before she moved on without any loss of momentum, "The gods then spoke to these people, and bound them together in mission. With new direction they began to form an army of clerics, all who were dedicated to fighting the threat. In the end, the Seraphs of Sintyre were born, and the council of Eldars oversaw the war effort. To this day we remain ever vigilant against the demonic threat, for it is ever present. I am however not prejudiced against any demon, no, only those that would seek to destroy Althanas itself."

"It is these demons, the Demons of Sintyre that we watch for. Occasionally we may perform acts of good faith in order to help keep people willing to work with us, but ultimately we remain to ourselves, fighting a battle no one cares or knows about..." She said as she finished her plate and sat it down. She then stretched before she closed her eyes and stretched her senses out. She then felt a chill up her spine as she sensed Letho and Myrhia, undead and close, she then sensed Sarah, who seemed to be still generating Seth's aura about her. While this puzzled her she felt something odd, something disturbing.

Standing she rested her hand on the hilt of her sword as she stretched out further trying to feel those about her. She finally felt ice in her veins and the shivering gripped her before she said, "I feel something, strong, dead, and malignant. It could be the lich, but its far different from you two...we might want to be on guard..."

[Letho]

Letho was never much of a believer. Gods that spoke to mortals, demons that broke free of the binds of the Underworld, the celestial clashes of epic proportions, it was all the stuff of which fairytales were made. He found religions and denominations – regardless which ones – a rather ridiculous gathering of make-beliefs and bits of information of questionable authenticity. Because there were no gods. There were just beings that stood a bit higher up the ladder, powerful entities that had the ability to overlook the world and intervene sometimes. He knew that because he stood face to face with Chodan, a deity of Savion, and he felt no divine presence. From that point on he refused to believe that there was a gray old omnipotent geezer (or a bunch of them) up above, looking down on his children, because there were too many bad things going on down here and there was no hand of God to correct it from time to time. Suffice to say, Letho was the kind of a man that always thought that once he dies and the time of the Final Gathering arrives, he would have a thing or two to say to the Master Chief.

Because of that he was always surprised when people spoke of gods and religion and their beliefs with such solidity, such sincerity, as if their way was the ultimate one. Unlike some – or most – Liliana was nowhere near the pretentiousness that most believers had. Especially those Yedda druid freaks that prowled through Concordia and spoke of how everybody was wrong and they were right and how the world should repent and see the glory of the real gods. So her story about the history of her order actually found an attentive ear with Letho who ate uninterestedly while she spoke. He didn’t have anything better to do anyways. He was never eager to chew the fat and Myrhia was off somewhere, probably looking for the mysterious Sarah Dahlios who didn’t want to rub her shoulders with the rest of them.

“Well, at least your order has an actual purpose. The Clerics of Draconus seem to me like a token religion here in Corone; they are here because people need some kind of a higher purpose to believe into.” Letho spoke once Liliana was finished with her disposition, discarding his plate shortly after she did, his beans half-finished. One of the first things that the vampirism robs from you was the appetite for anything save fresh blood. Warm blood. Still driven through the arteries by the living heart. He thought Liliana’s must taste really sweet given her age and purity. But, like countless times before, he pushed the vampire part away and took a sip of deer’s blood that he carried in a flask.

The religion discussion came to an abrupt stop though, Liliana jumping to her feet as if she heard a sound that passed by Letho unnoticed. However, she seemed to have senses beyond the physical ones and what they picked up wasn’t friendly. The dark knight followed her example, getting up to his feet as his frowned eyes surveyed the surroundings cautiously. “I can’t see anything.” he said in little over a whisper, but with the nightly darkness that now took reign over the entire forest, that was to be expected. The fact that he didn’t hear anything in the serenity of the timid night wasn’t. He needed to scout the surroundings fast and he knew the perfect way to do it. His eyes closed for a brief moment and once they reopened, a pair of silver-furred wolves emerged from the darkness before them.

“Don’t worry. They are mine.” he spoke to Liliana, reckoning she would need a plausible explanation for a pair of oversized canines materializing from thin air. The Ylime and Orud, his trusty allies, he commanded in his mind’s voice.

“Search the perimeter. There might be undead abound.” And even as he finished directing the thought towards them, the beasts sprung back into the darkness, their crimson eyes flashing vigorously. For over a minute there was nothing but the sound of their furry paws paddling through the dry leaves and grass, and then it too faded away, leaving them with the soothing crackle of the fire. Letho peered into the darkness, knowing that the wolf duo passed out of the range of his vision, but peering into the night anyways, straining his ears.

“Are you certain there is something...” he started the question, but a mental message cut it in half, invading his train of thought. His face grew a bit grimmer, a bit harder, upgrading his steely-strict expression into an adamant one. “We have undead inbound.” he said to the cleric lass, pulling out his bastard sword from the sheath on his back with his right and picking up Myrhia’s spear with his left.

“Myrhia! Sarah! Get your asses over here! We have company!”

It wasn’t something that Myrhia wanted to hear right now. Because though her conversation with Sarah tended to drift to the topics that both found rather dire and bitter, she still enjoyed the palaver they were having. Sarah wasn’t just a closed book. She was a closed book that got locked in a casket and buried six feet under, but Myrhia got a feeling that she was slowly starting to uncover some details about her. And her inquisitive curious nature wanted to know more of this sturdy footsure woman that was like none she ever met. The more they talked, the more she became interested not in Seth, but in Sarah. What was her connection to Seth? Why she wanted to outdo him so badly? Why was she so cryptic about her past? Was there something behind that solid outside that she hid?

To the last question she could foresee an answer. There was always something hiding behind the mask of coldness. She established that fact with Letho and she was certain that if she dug deep enough and long enough, she would unravel something similar in Sarah. But now was not the time for it judging by the harshness of Letho’s tone.

“Aw, we just can’t have a nice night out. There’s always something ruining it.” she said in a exasperated, saddened voice as she gave Sarah’s leg a gentle squeeze and offered her a mild smile as she got up from the log. “It seems we’ll have to continue this later. Come on, let’s see what’s he shouting about.”

“What’s up?” Myrhia said, her usually chirpy tone only slightly thwarted by the whole ruckus. The first reply she got was the spear he tossed at her. She caught his deftly, effortlessly; nowadays her proficiency with a spear outmatched his own.

“I don’t know what is up, but we have undead coming. A lot of them. It seems our lich friend knew we were coming and he prepared a welcoming party.” Letho responded strictly. Myrhia failed to fall under the invasion of his grumpiness.

“How come, wherever we go, nobody throws us a nice party?” she teased.

“I don’t know. Once they come here, feel free to ask them.”

[Lavinian Pride]

She was beginning to relax and unwind before the call to arms was given. A sigh left her lips as she reached into her satchel and pulled out the dagger belt. Getting up and following Myrhia in a practiced maneuver not wholly unlike Seth her belt was slung about her curvaceous waist. She then fastened it before her daggers were pulled. Unlike Seth however, the artistic twirl held a finer grace, yet the similarities were there for those that knew of him.

Waiting silently her eyes scanned the darkness. She could almost feel the tension, the anxiety before the fight, not so much for the fight to begin, or fear of fighting. It was the anxiety of wanting it to begin, of wanting to crush their enemies before them. She smirked softly as she looked about, what amused her was even Liliana had that anxiety of battle. Someone she never knew could be so bloodthirsty seemed to have developed some of Seth's thirst to destroy. It was interesting, and something she filed away for later.

As she continued to move forward she stopped at the edge of the ring of light. Her feet where planted as she sighed and surveyed the dark forest about her. Surely the undead would be here soon, given their rather shambling gait. As she continued to wait she finally heard it, soft and slow it was a groan, followed by the sounds of leaves being kicked up. With barely any energy in their bodies the undead being sent where ramshackle.

Clothing hung off them like a second skin, which was fortunate for the first was decaying. In spots it was obvious to tell the age as bones were revealed, muscle long since lost. As she tensed and waited she could see these were zombies, but what concerned her weren’t them, no. It was those that walked behind them. They prowled about growling lowly, their gate much faster, much sterner. Two of them, they seemed to be waiting for something, and she knew what. They wanted to pounce, but were waiting for them to get distracted.

"Ghouls..." She said simply as she dropped into a stance for dagger fighting her daggers held awkward grip. As she waited the ghouls seemed to back off but her ears followed them. Soon however she didn't have to wait as she heard the sounds of rushed footsteps. Off to the left one was rushing, however the one on the right was not following suit. Cursing she ducked low as she heard the sounds of twigs cracking. The zombies started to show up just as the ghoul jumped over her, its trajectory cut off.

With a twirl of her daggers she began the dance her blades sinking into exposed flesh. What was before them was no longer human, but more along the lines of her recently acquired allies. However, its hunger was for flesh, and while many a person craved her body, she wasn't about to let someone eat her to death. The ghoul growled as it once again pounced trying to pin her to the ground. This time however she was better prepared and grabbed at the thing. Rolling back the ghoul tried to bite at her neck, to tear out her windpipe before it realized its plight too soon.

Her legs placed firmly against the ghoul she shoved hard with them sending it off. The ghoul howled just before its trajectory was made known to all, right towards the fire. As it passed through the flames it ignited, the fire catching with the amply flammable material of undead skin and the ghoul howled in fury as it hit the ground clawing at itself trying to put itself out. To no avail it floundered as she rolled out of the way of a zombie's swing. The main group of undead had hit their little camp, and now it was time to begin the dance.

[Liliana Ambria]

The zombies upon seeing prey that was far less mobile prey began to move after Sarah, trying to make an easy meal of the girl who had dispatched the ghoul cleanly. Liliana felt her anger flare up as they began to hound after the Lavinian. Feeling the rage boil up troubled her, for she could have sworn she had better control over her emotions. This bubbling anger and hatred seemed to be overwhelming as she felt the heat of anger rise up in her. Trying to keep some semblance of her former self she merely directed her rage at the monsters before her. She didn't hesitate to help the Lavinian as she flung a hand forward, "ORT!"

The effect was instantaneous; the zombies that were plaguing the Lavinian were flung far as they began to disintegrate. Turning to dust before they hit the trees she drew her sword before she swung while inexpertly, viciously decapitating another Zombie that had gotten close. Her hair flung about her face as it seemed only to add to the wild visage that was becoming the shy and timid girl.

She didn't even bother to help Sarah anymore, as she cruelly thought that if she couldn't get up it was her own fault at that point as she waited for the next Zombie. Her sense stretched out to detect at least five more zombies and a ghoul, while the zombies were steadily heading into the camp, the ghoul continued to circle, like a shark before its prey. The cold look on her face seemed to efface any trace of compassion that it once held as the fire displayed her face in an eerie light.

Raising her sword up to a zombie she sneered as she spoke, "Pathetic filth!" Her sword swung wide trying to cut a vicious arc through the zombie as it felt the bite of her blade. The zombie groaned in protest as she continued to try and destroy them. While the first few had been easy for the cleric, now she was starting to work for her meal. Holding her sword at ready she spat, "Lets see you return from death when I'm through with you!"

[Letho]

When the squadron of the undead stepped into the fire-enlightened clearing, the two women – Sarah and Liliana – engaged them in combat before Letho could even react. The cleric girl was using her holy voodoo to disintegrate the lurching zombies, turning them into vapor. And when the magic ceased to work, she proceeded to dispatch them to their overdue death with vehemence that the swordsman didn’t expect from somebody who seemed so timid and amicable only moments ago. There was something predatory in her, something that took this battle personally and Letho wasn’t sure was it simply the fact that she was fighting her direst enemies or the fact that she was simply fighting. And that was something that he expected to see in Sarah.

The thief, however, fought with calculated wisdom, her movements precise and fluent. Her confidence gave her uncanny battle serenity and she proceeded to set one of the ghouls on fire with little trouble. If her knavish prowess was en par with her fighting skills, Letho thought they would have little trouble stealing the artifact from the lich.

The two women were soon joined by the third one. The second ghoul that prowled around the clearing like a cat around hot stew picked her as the prey. She seemed like an easy catch, a jittery willowy girl with a weapon that seemed too big for her, caught in the heat of the battle. The gnarly apparition leapt at her, hands outstretched in an attempt to grab a hold of her neck and snap it like a twig, but Myrhia was too fast for him. She sidestepped fleetly, then made a run for it. The ghoul followed, eager to chase her down and feast on her flesh. It didn’t matter that she too was undead; these monsters seemed ready to eat a maggoty leg of a decaying corpse.

However, Myrhia made sure that this particular monster never feasts on anything ever again. He sprint took her straight at a rather young birch tree, her left hand catching the smooth-barked trunk and swinging around it. With the added momentum of the maneuver, she was now charging straight at the ghoul, her spear ready in her right. Suffice to say, the thing never had a chance to react, Myrhia’s weapon skewering him effortlessly. It still kept coming at her though. Even with the polearm lodged in its lungs, the clawed hands of the ghoul tried to reach for her, pulling the shaft of the spear deeper into its own body. Myrhia was dumbfounded for a second, taking a gingery step back, but then a corner of her eye caught Sarah’s finishing move. The fire, she needed to put him onto the fire like a log. With a jerk of her hands, she pulled the spear and the apparition closer to her only to fire a powerful kick with her leg. It was more then enough to detach her attacker from her weapon, sending the ghastly thing into the flames.

While the three fought, Letho started to realize why his sword was still jobless and his fingers itched from being dormant. His two summons, Ylime and Orud, were tearing zombies limb for limb, Orud tackling them with his immense bulk and Ylime proceeding to generally bite of the head of the undead soldiers. The two that passed by the canines were dispatched by a pair of slashes that sent the adamantine blade through the rotting flesh and weakened bones like through butter. It was easy, too easy. Either the lich was merely testing them or this was all a cunning deception. But for what purpose?

“Myrhia, behind you!” a voice, not of his own mind, ripped through his thoughts and by the time he realized that Ylime was warning the redhead, a wight crept behind her like a nightmare. Its bony hands were jutting out of the brownish tattered rags that might’ve been robes once, less then a foot away from Myrhia’s shoulders. The thing had no face, no legs, nothing but an outline dressed in decrepit attire that seemed from another world, an ancient world long forgotten. Letho reacted with such speed that his hands seemed blurred.

“MYRI! DOWN!” he shouted, and by the time his voice reached her and she ducked, his right hand already held the monstrously large gunblade. His aim was true. That was the thing about being a vampire; whatever physical skill you had, vampirism made it evolve, made it transcend to another level. He wouldn’t miss, his hand wouldn’t shake. The wight was going down.

CLICK

It was a dull treacherous sound, omen of perfidiousness that always happened when he least wanted it to. The Lawmaker was a formidable weapon, but its reliability was flaky when it came to gunfire. And now he had to eject the casing, put in a new one, take aim again, and even with his inhumane speed he wouldn’t be able to do it before the apparition got its hands on Myrhia.

[Lavinian Pride]

While his aim was off, hers was true. With the red head ducking Sarah went into action distracting the Wight. Her thorns plucked from her belt they began to fly as she unleashed a barrage of them, hitting the Wight in places, but not doing any real damage. The result being that the Wight turned to face the woman freshly out of throwing knives and rushed forward, its bony hands reaching out to suck the vitality from the thief.

Sarah dodged to the side before she gripped her daggers unsheathing them again. The girls pulled she waited for the Wight to come about again as she dodged it much like a bullfighter. This process continued as she tried to think of anything. She couldn't grip the thing, as she heard touching a Wight was as bad as being touched. She didn't dare take a swing for fear of committing herself to a battle she really didn't want. As she danced with her Lavinian grace, the Wight continued to grab for her only to grip air.

All the while she found herself being hedged in, while the undead were for the most part taken care of, the Wight was far faster. She knew she had to get it to hold still somehow, or else Letho would never get a proper shot. As she ducked under yet another grab she finally gave in, realizing close quarters would have to happen before she tired. Using her daggers she let the Wight grip them before she wrenched them trying to break the bones in its frail hands. However they seemed to have an iron like grip, and she was not strong enough to kill an undead by strength alone. Gritting her teeth she growled, "A little help would be appreciated here guys!"

The Wight wrenched one of her daggers cleanly out of her hands as it flung it far away, before the hand reached out to grip Sarah by the throat. Feeling the boney hand on her throat she groaned as she felt the world about her slowly fade. It was sucking what little life she had left out of her by mere touch alone. Trying to keep her animalistic instincts from clutching it and speeding it up the world was going to black as she began to hear laughter in her mind...

...and it sounded a lot like Seth.

[Liliana Ambria]

Her sword cleaving through the last zombie and dispatching it back to where it came she turned to see the situation unfold before her. The second ghoul that Sarah had reported jumped Myrhia. However, it too was dispatched using the central fire, before the Wight came after Myrhia seeking to get its sustenance of human life. Before it could do anything however, Letho was in action, and with the resounding click, failed to be able to act. Sarah however, was up to the challenge as she threw her throwing daggers with flair only a Lavinian could produce.

Then, the Wight began to attack her. She did and admirable job of keeping out of touch, until she finally resigned herself to doing something to give Letho a chance to redeem himself. The Wight gripped her by the throat, and held her up as she began to go limp the tell tale signs of life draining happening as she began to pale right before them. Her sword however didn't stay still as she brought it upward in a cleave, the result of which shattered the arm of the Wight. The result of which dropped Sarah to the ground, who immediately began clutching her throat and gasping deeply. The boney grip and caustic touch removed from her soft skin.

It cried out in a mockery of pain before it tried to go off, however Liliana was a bit too quick for the beast as the grip reversed on the blade and stabbed down, going right through the fabric of the Wight's robes. Hitting the ground and entering it, the wight found itself trapped as it turned to lunge with its one good arm at Liliana who didn't flinch as it came at her. The reason why was revealed soon when she took two steps back and the bony hand grasped air. It clawed frantically at her as she spoke her voice cold and impersonal, devoid of the warmth it once held, "By the authority invested in me by the Gods of Sintyre, I condemn you back to the world from whence you came, may the gods have mercy on you foul cretin, for I will not."

Turning she looked at Letho and nodded before she turned back to it and waited for the execution to commence.

[Letho]

Regardless of how much training sessions Letho and she held, regardless of how much she practiced and sparred, Myrhia would never be a true warrior. True warriors weren’t made, they weren’t trained and honed into these architects of destruction. True warriors were born, they come to life with this steel that runs through the very marrow of their spine, this audacity that elevated them to a level where they were sovereigns. All the training that followed was mere panache that shaped the basic material that was there to begin with. Myrhia had no such material, she had no steel running through her backbone. And when the wight towered over her and she looked into the abysmal darkness that was the thing’s face, she froze. Her legs refused to move, her hands holding to the spear desperately as she knelt on the ground, waiting for Letho to do something.

But it wasn’t Letho that saved her bacon this time around. Standing on the other side of the clearing with a jammed weapon, he was too far to react in time to save her from the inevitable encounter with the undead. It was Sarah that came to her rescue. The woman fired a throng of throwing knifes at the wight, dissuading it from attacking Myrhia and turning its attention to herself. And though she fought admirably, avoiding contact with the life-draining creature, in the end the wight got an upper hand. It was uncanny how soon her face paled after the contact, how her eyes started to fade away. Myrhia decided this was her cue to act.

But Liliana was faster. Her blade severed one of the bony hands vehemently, making the wight put the tail between its legs and run. The cleric girl decided not to give it the satisfaction of getting out of this strife alive. Well, as alive as undead creatures are. With what seemed a bit like a prayer and a bit like magic chant as well, the priestess of Sintyre stopped the wight in its tracks with little trouble, pausing its advance and providing ample time for the finishing blow. And there was no doubt it was coming.

Letho walked up to the apparition nonchalantly, the reloaded gunblade serene in his right. All of this scrambling of the wight and three women was just the misdirection he needed to prepare the Lawmaker for the slaying. It was a risk, but not one as dire as most perceived. It took a short time for a wight to drain enough life to knock a person out. But to extract every last shred of life force from a human being, it took several minutes. So even if the ghastly specter actually made contact with all three, the worst thing that could happen to them was a night of troubled sleep. Because he would end the horrid thing before it could do more, just like he would do it now.

“Amen.” he muttered in a rough voice, completing Liliana’s sentence and lining up the gunblade with the hooded cavity from which a pair of scarlet eyes peered at him with unhinged hate. The weapon thundered through the night deafeningly, the flash of the bullet exiting the gun muzzle stronger then the firelight for a fraction of a second before sending the projectile on its way towards the wight. And even as the bullet struck the nothingness of the hood, a terrible shriek arose, spreading through the entire forest like a tidal wave as the wight raised one of its hands towards the nightly sky. But it lasted only for a second before the tattered robes fell to the ground, utterly empty as silence once again took reign over their little campsite.

“Sarah!” Myrhia shouted, running up to the collapsed thief that still struggled for breath, pale as the moon that just shown its face above the canopy made out of lush tree crowns. The redhead knelt at her side, tossing her spear away and picking up one of her hands and rubbing it gently. “God, you’re so cold. Are you alright?”

“She’ll be fine.” Letho replied for her, not terribly concerned for the Lavinian, his hand reloading the hybrid weapon that stood in his hands. Myrhia’s brow furrowed deeply at his lack of sympathy, her emerald eyes whipping him rigorously. She hated how indifferently he acted at times, how his unemotional side always emerged when she least desired it.

“What do you know? You left her fight that... that... that thing all alone. It could’ve killed her. Could’ve killed us all.” the usually humble lass spoke, her tone panicky and bitter, the adrenaline and fear from the battle still prominent in her system.

“No, it couldn’t. You see...”

“I don’t want to know. Just help me get her closer to the fire.” Myrhia cut him off, putting one of Sarah’s arms over her scrawny shoulders and waiting for Letho to do the same. With a sigh and a shrug of his shoulders, the swordsman did and before long Sarah Dahlios was lying close to the fire, bundled up in a blanket with Myrhia watching over her with her sympathetic doe eyes. Sarah saved her back there, regardless of the mumbo-jumbo explanation that Letho had, and that was a sacrifice that Myrhia never took lightly.

“You’re going to be alright.” she whispered to the thief, her hand passing over the brown locks of Sarah’s hair. “Thank you so much for saving my life back there.”

“For god sakes, nobody was going to die! I had it under control.” Letho once again made an attempt to explain, but the timid redhead paid no heed to his words and his exasperated tone. In the end all he could do was roll his eyes and turn from the needless pampering. Instead he made himself busy by collecting the already decaying corpses of their foes and piling them all downwind from the clearing. It was a dirty work, grunt work, but somebody had to do it. So once all the bodies were dispatched of and all the severed limbs were collected, he returned to the three women and spoke to the one that didn’t seem busy at the time.

“I’ll take the watch tonight. You should try and get some rest.” he said to Liliana, and then added with a smirk that could’ve been mistaken for bitter. “Nocturnal nature, you know? I’m not too big on sleeping during the nights.”

[Lavinian Pride]

She felt like she was plunged underwater, pressure form all sides, and a suffocating presence about her. It was almost as if she was dying so tight was her chest; she was gasping looking for air as freely as she had forgotten to take it. She felt cold as well, as if every bit of warmth in her had been sucked out, and felt the heat of the fire gratefully upon her smooth skin. She knew she had almost come close to dying, and probably was going to be left to rest and recuperate while the others went about checking for any others that might come.

To her surprise she vaguely heard the soft voice of Myrhia, what she said, she didn't know, only that her hearing had returned. Everything till then had been like a silent play. The actors were moving about and mouthing their lines. The world was coming back into focus as her body tried to recover form the energy it had lost. She groaned softly, actually hearing it now before she felt a soft hand on her chest trying to reassure her.

"Its okay Sarah, you're safe now," Myrhia said softly. Sarah, not used to being pampered tried to sit up before she found that she had neither the strength, nor the ability to do so. While Myrhia was acting rather human, her vampiric strength was soon recalled as she forcibly held the Lavinian down. She then said softly, "Don't move, just rest..."

Her voice came frailly as she said, "Why?"

Myrhia frowned as she looked at Sarah before she said, "You saved me, why shouldn't I make sure you recover?"

Sarah closed her eyes trying to remember exactly what happened. She had thrown the thorns, and began fighting the Wight, the last thing she could recall, was when the Wight had gripped her throat. After that everything was hazy, she couldn't decipher a thing, except laughter...

"Sarah, are you okay?" Myrhia asked slightly fearful.

Sarah brought a hand to her forehead as she muttered, "I'm fine, just let me..." Once more she found the slender, strong hand on her chest cutting off her from saying anymore.

"You need rest, I don't know why but that Wight seemed to have sapped you greatly..."

Sarah knew why. She wasn't a full soul, she didn't know how she knew, just that she never felt whole, and the encounter with the Wight had underlined that glaring fact quite clearly. As she rested she sighed as she once more felt the soft hand move a stray strand of hair form her face. While she enjoyed the contact, she certainly didn't want to get between Letho and Myrhia, the last thing on her mind was finding someone to be with in any form of relationship. Things were generally simpler the less attachments you grew. It was what kept her alive for so long.

Resting on the ground she sighed as she relaxed. Myrhia was determined that she needed rest, and so Rest she would get. As she relaxed she felt truly how tired her body had become. The Wight had sapped a lot of her strength, making it hard to even think before she said softly, "My daggers..."

Myrhia frowned hearing Sarah's words before she said, "Don't worry about them, we'll find them later..."

Sarah shook her head as she once more tried to sit up, "I have to get them now..." Myrhia once again pushed the Lavinian back to a resting position. Sarah growled in frustration as she tried to get up only to have Myrhia hold her down gently. It was obvious Sarah was going to lose the battle in her state.

"If it's that important, I'll get them. How many?" She said softly. Sarah mentally did a tally of how many she lost before she sighed and relaxed once more, giving into the stubborn girl, if only because she had the strength to stop her.

"Six total, five plynt one steel..." Sarah said softly as she rested. Myrhia looked at her before she started to get up. The Lavinian looked frail, yet even still she held a confidence about her, a stubbornness and refusal to give in.

"I'll get them and bring them by you, promise me you'll sleep," She said softly as she looked at Sarah, afraid she'd try to get up before she recovered, not knowing what the Wight had fully done to Sarah.

"I promise..." she said as she yawned underlining her acceptance of the terms. Myrhia got up slowly before she nodded and began the search for the plynt and steel daggers.

[Liliana Ambria]

Liliana seemed to come out of a daze as her beating heart slowed down. Once she felt her body begin to calm down she roughly pulled the sword from the ground cleaning the blade before she deposited it back in its sheath. A sigh escaped her as she pondered her actions; cruelty towards the undead, while sometimes necessary was not something she should be delighting in like she had now.

It was something that frightened her, she didn't even know why it was happening. It was like there was a darkness within her, that lurked and slinked into the shadows, searching for a chance to be released upon a victim before slinking back and hiding, satisfied with the results. A sigh left her lips as she said softly to herself, "Is this what Seth goes through every day?"

If it was indeed true, she felt sorrier for him than before. However as she was taking stock of herself, she watched as Myrhia began to tend to Sarah. Sarah was showing the knack for being stubborn Seth had when they had first met. No injury was too big, no condition to critical. She wanted to be moving, to know she was alive, and Myrhia was doing an admirable job of making sure Sarah didn't over do it. As Myrhia got up Liliana said softly, "She'll be okay in the morning; the transfer of life is only permanent if they complete it. She’s just feeling the side effect of the drain is all..."

Myrhia only gave Liliana a stern look, as if to say the information wasn't welcomed before she moved about for the daggers. This concerned Liliana, for Myrhia was a timid shy girl, not the attitude throwing girl that had surfaced recently. As it stood it seemed Sarah's gruff spirit and attitude had rubbed off on her, and she only hoped it was a temporary change. As she stood there she heard Letho's words before she nodded turning to him.

It was quite obvious he was irritated with the new Myrhia as well, and so she said softly, "You and I both know that it would end well, however, she didn't. She just doesn't have trust right now, and from what I hear, it may have to do with my problems..." She of course was referring to Seth, who seemed to not only drive a wedge between them, but hammered it in gleefully as well. She then continued softly, "I wish I could help in some way, however only time will heal this wound."

Looking about she sighed as she said softly, "Good night Letho, let's hope tomorrow isn't quite as, eventful..." She then turned to find a comfortable spot by the fire to make her bed as she tried to relax. Her adrenaline let down long ago, and she was just tired, she wanted today to end, especially with all the information she had received.

[Letho]

“She just doesn't have trust right now...”

Trust. Next to love and weather, trust was probably one of the most outré things in a human life. Sometimes it took a lifetime to build it. Sometimes it took you by the neck and hit you in the teeth until you believed, ensuring you in an instant. But regardless of how you constructed it, regardless of how much blood, sweat and tears you put into it, it remained fragile, vulnerable. It remained a dream that you hold on to gingerly, knowing that if you grasped it any tighter, it would disappear, drift away. Myrhia’s trust in Letho was one of the instant ones, formed in that moment when he took her hand and rescued her from the tormenting hands of her master. “No matter what.” they cooed to each other so many times. Together, no matter what. Betrayal, infidelity and lying were obviously not covered by that phrase.

Letho didn’t blame her though. But as he sat in the shadows, out of sight and probably out of their minds as well, he couldn’t help but feel jealous at Sarah. Because in less then a day she managed to arrogate Myrhia’s trust, managed to find a way to the void that the lack of him left in the redhead. She needed something to rely on and the immaculate Letho wasn’t her knight in the shiny armor anymore. Whether or not he would ever attain that title again, only time could tell, and during that time they were asunder, a pair of wandering souls that once again had to find a way to each other’s arms. Whether this endeavor would lead them down that fateful path, the swordsman couldn’t say. What he could say, however, was that if tonight’s invasion of the undead was a prologue, tomorrow would be pretty damn eventful.

***

There was something treacherous in dawns that always disquieted Letho. Not the actual daybreak that was often short of magnificent, but the pale forbidding illumination that preceded it. In that ghastly hour everything seemed... undead, alive in a very twisted uncanny way, as bland as an unsalted meal. It felt as if, just before this explosion of life, there was an hour of gloom and melancholy that diversified throughout the environment. And this time he welcomed this hour alone. Myrhia was sleeping close to Sarah, sitting with her back against a tree and her chin on her chest. Her neck was bound to be sore, he told her that countless times before. Next to her, the Lavinian was serene, color returning to her cheeks with the chill of the damp dawn. Liliana was a bit further from the two, slumbering beneath a birch tree with her blade close to her side.

The fire burned low hours ago and was nothing but a heap of smoldering ash as Letho decided that there was enough light to ride by. They were bound to reach the lich’s lair at the exact time that the sun would blast the first rays over the forest and despite the protecting canopy, it was an edge he wanted on his side today. The swordsman maybe was a bludgeoner that severely lacked finesse, but when it came to fighting, his mind was like a scale that measured all the possible factors. And sun was not to be neglected, especially if the lich left them another welcoming party at the front door.

“Get up, you three.” he spoke in a loud, determined tone, spilling some water over the remnants of their fire. “I’d say good morning, but I’m not certain how good it’s going to be.”

Myrhia’s head snapped up at the sound of his voice, her hands going to her crusty eyes almost instantly, rubbing them gingerly. “You know, it’s not exactly a prediction when you say good morning. It’s just a nice thing to say, a nice thing to wish someone first thing in the morning.” she spoke, a lengthy yawn interrupting her somewhere after good morning, making her follow it up with the stretching of her limbs. Her face grimaced in slight pain as she craned her neck this way and that. He refrained himself from saying anything.

“Whatever. We need to get going soon. I want to be at the thing’s lair at daybreak.”

Myrhia was never too exhilarated by these chop-chop awakenings and today was no different, especially since she wasn’t entirely certain whether Sarah was fully rejuvenated or not. So she looked down at the thief benignly once again, offering a smile that was still a bit dreamy. “Good morning, Sarah. How are you doing? Would you be able to ride?”

Letho paid little heed to the exchange between the two and instead approached Liliana. “Time to put those hopes to a test. I want you to ride with me some fifty paces ahead. If we’re lucky, you might be able to sense an ambush before it falls on our heads.”

***

There were no ambushes and Letho wasn’t certain whether to thank the lady Fortune or find the lack of the welcoming committee disconcerting. Clearly the lich was well aware of their presence and their intentions, hence the yesterdays little run-in with its minions. It was only logical to assume that it knew they were riding straight towards the front door of its abode. Then why this utter lack of opposition? Letho could think of only one reason; they were being goaded, lured into a trap that itched to spring around them. That’s why the swordsman ordered for them to dismount and proceed on foot.

The sun just peeked over the horizon, but the forest was darker here, the coloration around them somber and disquieting. It was as if there was a veil in front of their eyes, a translucent gray thing that filtered out all the liveliness. Tree barks, grass threads, leafs and branches, it all faded to shades of gray, perpetually caught in that Dour Hour that Letho detested so much. And it was gravely silent around them, not a bird chirp to be heard. Nothing but the sound of their footsteps paddling through the decaying leafs and the stringy grass that seemed at the verge of dying.

However, they reached the cave entrance without as much as a hint of something sinister facing them. It was a wordless trek, precarious and eerily, and now they were standing before the maw that led them into the belly of the mountain. Letho turned to Sarah and spoke in little over a whisper. “Alright, your turn. Do you think there might be a back entrance? Because the front door seems terribly suspicious to me.”

[Lavinian Pride]

Despite the preference of being drunk or exhausted when she slept, tonight’s dreams were tame compared to the ones that assaulted her at times. As she made her way through to the morning Letho's barking voice awoke her with a grunt and she sat up, the blanket slipping from her lithe body. He was telling them to clean camp and move on, something she too was more interested in doing. As she began to take stock of herself stretching her lithe body Myrhia spoke, asking if she'd be alright.

"It'll take more than a soul sucking Wight to keep me from living," She said as she gave Myrhia a brave smile and slowly got up. Folding up the blanket that had surrounded her she moved off to the side in order to change into her thieving gear, before the sleeves were on her arms, the bracers placed there with care. The dagger belt slung over her waist and the snug sports top allowing her to act without fear of indecent exposure should things go wrong.

As she finished dressing she heard a soft voice behind her, "I know you're alright in body, but how are you in spirit?"

Sarah smirked, this was perhaps the first time Liliana had approached her. She merely continued to throw her stuff in her bag as she said, "I'll be fine, no need to pamper me, besides, you have someone more deserving of that."

"In my time searching Lavinya, I never heard about Sarah Dahlios, who are you? Really, who are you?"

She slung her pack over her shoulder. The truth was not something she was interested in revealing today. Instead she merely brushed by Liliana as she said, "Sarah Dahlios."

Mounting up on her horse she followed the little group quietly keeping mostly to herself. She didn't need to feed Liliana's curiosity. Instead she merely waited for her job to arise as Myrhia kept trying to get her to talk again. Sarah wasn't in the mood for the teenager's prods, and merely remained silent as they made their way to the cave. Letho then spoke his voice soft as it became her job. Closing her eyes she moved her horse forward a couple of paces before she opened them using what training she had been given under Darith.

Her eyes scanned slowly the cave, and then the area's surrounding it. As she moved about the area her eyes scanning she spoke businesslike and efficiently, "With cave networks it’s like a sewer, you have to have another way out. Not that most caves have a way for someone our size to, they merely have another outlet." She then moved about before she spoke, "My guess is its miles away form here, and if you're so keen for a twilight showdown, we'll have to step into the trap."

She then smirked as she said, "The first step to avoiding a trap is knowing it's existence. Keep on guard eh?"

[Liliana Ambria]

"In my time searching Lavinya, I never heard about Sarah Dahlios, who are you? Really, who are you?"

Sarah looked like she was going to say something. Anything that could have shed light on the enigmatic Lavinian would have been welcome. Instead she merely brushed by Liliana as she said, "Sarah Dahlios."

Liliana spun watching her walk up to the horses before she sighed. There would be no answers today. She would have to wait to figure out the riddle of Sarah Dahlios.

She mounted up as well taking the point and stretching her senses as she closed her eyes. She followed the group roughly as she felt about, only feeling that same malignant presence form the night before. Occasionally she would get a glimpse of something else, but otherwise it was just Myrhia, Letho, Sarah, her, and the lich. Moving forward she sighed as she opened their eyes, the group having stopped. Sarah spoke about caves, and she could agree with the statement. She however was concerned with Sarah's cool demeanor.

Sarah was trying ot hide something, what she couldn't say. However, what she could say was that she was right in what was being said. Liliana sat silently as she took glances at Myrhia, the only one of the three not born for this work. She was concerned with the girl after the previous nights, activities. Sarah had proven that she was capable of handling herself. Myrhia however, had frozen at a crucial moment.

As she glanced at the young vampire she couldn't help but feel sorry for her. She was the one that Letho seemed to lean on, and without her he was also falling apart. While Letho wouldn’t admit it, he was too much like Seth, arrogant and proud, and at the end of the day, tired and resentful. The only problem was, Myrhia was at least around Letho, Seth was suffering without Liliana. She could almost feel it deep inside her. The confusion, the bitterness, the outrage and the desperation, it was all a volatile cocktail. She knew she might be imagining it, but she knew that had to be how Seth felt, because that’s what she got the feeling Letho was feeling as well right now.

She then looked at Letho as she waited for Letho's response to the smarmy remark.

[Letho]

Sarah’s observation made it clear that there would be no easy way to do this, and in a way Letho foresaw this while pondering during the course of the night. Not because he had some magical aptitude that gave him visions of the future, not even because his gut told him so. It was because that was simply how the things went down. Telltales and heroic deeds aside, when it came to doing some real work, the reality was cruel and not terribly keen on offering some miraculous aid that would make it easier. Of course there were no back entrances, no secret passages that were accidentally discovered only to lead their group into the lair of the monster unseen. They had to take this head-on, spring the trap and make the trapper sorry for playing a trick of them. And that was alright. It was, after all, Letho’s preferred way of dealing with situations such as this one.

“Traps are like dung; I prefer not to step into them. But you’re right, we should waste no time searching for the backdoor.” the bulky swordsman said, his eyes locked on the darkness of the cave as he took the Lawmaker from the holster on his back. “Stay silent, stay close and no lights. We don’t want to make our presence known until it’s absolutely necessary. Sarah, you’re with me up front. Liliana, you cover our rear.”

In such a formation, where Myrhia was safely boxed in between the three of them, they moved into the abysmal darkness of the lich’s lair. However, once their eyes readjusted to the interior, it became clear that the blackness around them wasn’t as inky as it first seemed. No, not nearly as thick as Letho expected. There was in fact an eerily illumination, seemingly coming out of nowhere, that made the path before them visible just enough so they didn’t have to feel their way though the cavern. But with the light came the stench, so disgusting that it nearly made Myrhia gag, the stench of decayed flesh both foully sweet and acidic, forcing the last night’s meal up from its resting place. Things were dying here and they were doing so the wrong way. As if all of that wasn’t enough, the heat that started as nothing but a slight elevation in the temperature was rising to the point of being unbearable. Even Myrhia, whose tolerance towards high temperatures was set pretty high, was sweating profusely, her pale face trickled with perspiration, her palms wiping against the fabric of her shirt.

The path before them – wide enough for three people to walk shoulder to shoulder - swiveled this way and that in gentle curves, the nondescript stone walls beside them giving out no signs of a possible trap. It seemed an easy approach, way too easy for Letho’s reckoning. He thought that they were either going to fall through the floor at some point or they would wind up in the main hall where a legion of the undead eagerly waited for their arrival. But neither of his predictions turned out to be true.

The next time the path before them made another gentle turn, they struck a dead end. It seemed like a perfectly natural end of the path, the passage slowly diminishing until there was nowhere else to go but back. And yet the creepy gray, barely visible light was still present, almost as if it was emanated from the rock around them. Letho turned to the three women behind him, his look strict but puzzled. Did he lead them into the wrong cave? It certainly seemed so, and yet Liliana was sensing the presence of the lich in the vicinity. Did they miss to notice a turn back there? Highly unlikely with four sets of eyes looking for anything out of the ordinary. And yet something still reeked and it wasn’t just the stench of decomposing flesh.

“This is... unexpected.” Letho spoke in a barely hearable whisper. “Liliana, do you feel anything...”

And then the cave flickered. The swordsman thought it was just his mind playing tricks on him, an adrenaline-induced hampering of his vision, but once the environment around him shimmered again, he knew exactly what was going on. Once upon a time Letho walked into a farmstead where a frail looking girl called Tania was getting attacked by a pack of rabid wolves. She was an orphaned lass, left for dead with this huge patch of land and only two weak hands to work on it. So he saved her, and helped her and even fell in love with her. As it turned out later on, the farmland was a piece of scorched earth, the picturesque house was a ruin and the perky little blondie that he bedded was actually a fifteen year old caught in the same illusion as he was.

“It’s a bloody mind-trick! We need to get out of here!”

But there was no chance for it. Even as he uttered the appalled words, the flickering cavern around them gave way to the real environment. And suddenly the heat, the stench and the queer illumination had a perfect excuse for being there.

They were standing on an island in the middle of a pool of boiling lava. The cave around them was gigantic, almost as if somebody bore the insides of an entire mountain, and half-decayed skeletons hung above their heads, pinned to the stony dome. There were dozens of them, maybe even hundreds, some centuries old, some still with flesh hanging from their bones. On the other side of the sea of magma sat a solitary figure, serene on its throne made out of skulls, mostly but not exclusively human. Though it was clad in a crimson armor set, Letho could see the sickeningly scrawny physique beneath it, making the armored man look like somebody who died from starvation a couple of days ago. Only the man was alive, his eyes burning with ardent crimson, his bony fingers tapping on the armrest of his throne.

“Honestly speaking, I expected more from a man of your reputation, Letho Ravenheart. Corone is buzzing with stories of your endeavors and your battle prowess. And yet here you are, walking straight into my web like a fly.” the lich spoke with what seemed like lack of interest, but its voice reverberated through the vast room as if it was shouted. “You will certainly make a fine addition to my legion.”

“Not if I can do something about it!” the dark knight was resolute, unimpressed by the sudden change around him, stepping closer to the edge that separated the coherent earth from the heated one in motion.

“But that’s just it. You can’t.” the lich said, snapping its fingers nonchalantly, but with no obvious effect. It was only when Letho wanted to make a move that he realized he couldn’t do it. He felt as if somebody locked him in a coffin made out of stone that fitted his figure perfectly, and every time he tried to move, there was an unseen force that opposed his might.

“What the...?! I... I can’t move.”

Myrhia wanted to help him, but never got a chance to. Even as she made a precarious movement forwards, four creatures sprung from the magma. Walking on all four and growling menacingly, the hellhounds slowly prowled around them, waiting for their master’s commandments. They were hideous things, with skin made out of crusted lava and yaws that drooled yellow pus that Myrhia could only recognize as acid. The spear in her hands quivered minutely, but she gathered all the guts she had in her body and steeled his grip. She wouldn’t let them down again.

[Lavinian Pride]

Sarah as she walked couldn't help but feel like she was being watched. The temperature of the cave heating up as they went down she felt her clothing stick to her skin, but she pushed on, despite the light headed feeling she was getting. It was more likely an after effect of the Wight, but she was cautious now as she sipped her water to keep it at bay.

They would go steadily in until finally Letho stopped the group, and the truth was revealed. Immediately daggers were drawn as the situation proved Dire. She could feel eyes upon her as he arrogantly met the Lich's own fiery gaze. He seemed to chuckle before he spoke, "A scarecrow? I never thought I'd see one here..."

As hot as Sarah had been she got infuriated by the lich calling her that. It was an insult that only one man had survived to give her. The hell beasts prowled around waiting for his orders as she gripped her daggers, the knuckles on her hands growing white as her lithe frame trembled in rage. There were very few things that could infuriate her, being seen as nothing but trash, as a scarecrow was one of them.

As she looked at the Lich her eyes began to go over his armor, looked through his disguises until she saw the ornate staff he carried. Many jewels adorned it, brilliant and glowing Gems, yet one was dim, lackluster, not nearly as worthy as the others. Filing away the information she focused on the Lich as she spat, "Lets not get into name calling, I got a few to curl your toes..."

Laughter, cold and dreadful filled the air as the Lich sat back bored on his throne. "I see you're alive at least, as is the priest, so nice to see someone put some actual thought into tackling me, even if in vain." He then looked at her before he said, "I think I'll try to keep your body intact, it'll be useful when luring other would be adventurers..."

Her teeth gritted as she tried to not give the Lich any fodder. She was beyond angry, beyond enraged; she was fast nearing the irrational quality of her anger. As she waited for a hound to act she closed her eyes trying to steady her breathing. It would not do for her to go unhinged here, not in front of Myrhia and most importantly not in front of Liliana. When that happened, the similarities would be glaring, and that she couldn't afford.

[Liliana Ambria]

While Sarah was trying to brush off all concern in her direction Liliana was feeling uneasy. Perhaps it was the fact that things weren't adding up, with the temperature rising with no true explanation. Perhaps it was the fact that she still couldn't sense anything, only the overwhelming presence of the lich. All she knew however was she was the least bit surprised when the illusion dropped, and they were trapped.

Sword drawn she was ready for battle as the Hell beasts began their pacing. Sarah seemed to be getting frustrated with the situation as the Lich and her bantered forth. The mention of scarecrow meant something to Sarah for she quickly snapped back a retort as she seemed to stiffen considerably. It didn't take a genius to figure out the scarecrow comment had pissed off the wayward Lavinian.

Inside she could feel her anger; it was slithering through her veins. The righteous fury of the Seraphs was embodying her as she closed her eyes, the heat starting to weather her away. She knew she could only hold out for so long against it as it sought to grip her very core, and never release. Her eyes grew colder as she focused on the Lich. Her only hope was that it was weak, and so when the banter finished, she stretched her hand forward with authority and spoke the word of banishing, "ORT!"

The Lich laughed as it didn't even move. Liliana's heart sank as her only hope of ending it quickly went out the window. The lich then spoke its own word barely above a whisper, "Ort."

The effect was immediate as Liliana was shoved off her feet and sent almost tumbling into a hell beast. Sliding she tried to pull back from the beast as it snapped at Her, the acid that flew from its frothing mouth burning into her robe as she scrambled back. Pulling herself up the lich spoke, “Priestess, you are out of your league, I do however thank you for being a bit entertaining…” It stopped as it looked at her long and hard. The smile staying on the face, old and corroded but it no longer reached its eyes as he turned to the hell beasts. He then spoke his next words coldly, “Kill them…”

[Letho]

Though terribly inept in the magic department, Letho heard enough tales of encounters with wizardly ilk to have a decent idea of what was going on. He was the greatest threat amongst the four and the lich used the strongest spell in his arsenal to neutralize him. How the spell worked and how long it kept him bound was irrelevant at this point. What mattered was that the abomination that sat beyond the river of lava obviously had only one of these because behind Letho’s back, the three women were spry and ready to fight. And they better be, Letho thought, because two of the four conjured hellhounds started to eye him maliciously.

Luckily for him, Myrhia was a bit more mobile then the last time they fought. Though intimidated by the hell that opened up around her, she fought the queasy feeling that turned her knees into gelatin and stood fast. And the reason for the sudden courage in the redhead weren’t Letho’s lessons or some sort of surprising internal epiphany. No, the reason for her boldness stood a couple of feet next to her, arguing with the powerful lich that sat on its throne of bones. It was Sarah Dahlios and her angered bravery that Myrhia looked up to, but not because it was the first example of courage that she saw. Countless times Letho acted in the same manner with her at his side. But Sarah was a woman, somebody not so much unlike the redhead, and she was fierce, untouchable. And when the lich called her a scarecrow – which, though insulting, didn’t seem such a bad title to Myrhia who’s been called much worse in her life – Sarah only raised her head higher proudly. It was enough to ensure the former slavegirl that she could do something else then just shiver in fear.

But when she precariously made her way towards Letho, holding her spear tightly and eyeing the two magma beasts, the voice of the lich filled the cave again: “Well, well, well. What do we have here? You decided to play along, little slave? You’re not going to run away and hide somewhere again?”

“Wretched thing! I’ll kill you!!” Letho shouted, but the power in his voice was the only one he could display because, despite all the tension of his muscles, his body refused to move. He wanted to obliterate the lich now. Before the undead creature called Myrhia a slave, he would’ve been satisfied with just getting the Tears of the Nameless Maiden. But now, now his fingers yearned to feel the bones of the lich crumbling beneath them.

Myrhia was stopped in her tracks by the cold voice that raised every hair on her lithe sweat-soaked body. The hellhounds were focusing on her now, four eyes of sheer malice peering into her as their growls started to dissipate the steel that she gathered by taking Sarah as a role model. She wanted to run away. She wanted for everything to be like before, when Letho fought their battles and she was the damsel – well, not really a damsel, but close enough – in distress. But looking around her, she could see that Sarah still stood with a determined look at her face, she could see Liliana fighting the beasts. And she knew that there was nowhere to run. Her gentle brow frowned, changing her bewildered terrified expression into a much more determined one.

“I’m not going to run. And I’m not going to let you hurt anybody!” Myrhia spoke, her voice coming out so strong, she nearly surprised herself.

“Big words.” the lich retorted, still utterly emotionless as it sat nonchalantly in his morbid lofty chair. “Time to back them up.”

The hellhounds didn’t need a reiteration of the command, one of them making a jump straight at her while the other made a motion toward the paralyzed swordsman. The redhead was like a cat, rolling sideways and below the rabid beast. There was no time for a pause though. In less then a second she was up on her feet, sprinting towards Letho who was inches away from getting his face bitten off by the second hound. The thing leapt at his face, but Myrhia’s spear intercepted it, scudding through the air and piercing the side of its neck and sending it rolling back into the steaming lava. Letho sighed audibly at the last-second rescue. He could almost feel the acidic breath of the thing devouring his skin and the teeth biting into his skull.

But there was no time for congratulations on a job well done because even as she downed one of the beast, the other charged at her from behind. With a growl, the paws of the hellhound slashed across Myrhia’s back, ripping through both her shirt and her skin effortlessly. The girl’s diminutive form was thrown sideways in an uncontrolled roll that finished with her lying on her back, staring at the stony dome above and the faceless skeletons that hung like decorations. Her back exploded with pain, forcing tears out of her eyes and whimpers through her clenched teeth. But her foe was oblivious to her moments of agony. The four-legged creature walked up to her with agonizing slowness, growling viciously as it positioned itself above her tiny body. The toothy grin came inches away from her pale face, acid saliva missing her visage and burning through her mahogany hair.

“Stop!” the lich shouted from the other side of the fiery pond. “She proved herself worthy to be converted. And here I thought you were good for nothing.”

The thing allowed a sickening chuckle to escape its dry broken lips, and with it the hellhound lifted its ghastly face away from Myrhia. The redhead didn’t hesitate for a second. Her right hand pulled out a dagger out of her left bracer before driving it upwards, through the lower jaw and up to the creature’s skull. The heated creature froze for a second, wavered sideways, giving the redhead just enough time to scramble away from its collapsing bulk. Her face, now filthy with the mixture of bitter volcanic ash and common dirt, looked at the amused lich.

“You haven’t seen anything yet!” she screamed, her left now pulling the dagger out of the right bracer before sending it soaring through the air. Her aim was immaculate, the steel weapon spinning vigorously, following the trajectory that had the lich’s head as the final destination. But just as the dagger was about the hit the lich, the gnarled bony hand moved in a blur, faster then anything she ever saw, and snatched the blade from the air as if it was a fly. The crimson eyes looked at her, pulsating with rejuvenated power.

“Nice try. But too slow.” and with that said the hand once again moved with a blur. And by the time her ears registered a high-pitched wheezing sound, the blade struck her belly, making her crumble to the ground with an afflictive groan.

((Pat, I thought it would be cool if you fought the remaining hellhounds, but end with lich throwing us into the slammer with some kind of a spell or something. Up to you though.))

[Lavinian Pride]

The hounds leapt trying to scare the Lavinian as she sidestepped one and began the dance of daggers and death. Her blades plucked from their holsters she waited as the beast turned around and began a new charge. With an artistic twirl she moved and sliced neatly into the side of the hound, causing it to yelp out in pain as she moved back into stance beside the beast.

Her eyes never left the beast while she did all this, the Lich merely observing each of the fighters. Myrhia had begun to slay her own hounds as Sarah growled lowly and began the dance anew, before the dog could even begin to move again she was upon it daggers sinking in as she pulled thorns to continue the dance. When it was over the dog had thorns and the girls sticking from spots carefully, and the hell hound was howling in pain.

She watched coldly as it staggered, trying to find its feet. Slowly it began to stagger sideways before she lifted her fingers, and in a cocky demeanor snapped, just as the beast fell to the ground lying on its side. Once she was sure it was dead she pulled her daggers from it, before she watched Myrhia try to attack the Lich. While it was a good maneuver, the aim true and everything, her tactics left much to be desired.

As the knife sailed right back at the red head Sarah tried to snatch the blade form the air as she growled feeling it slide through her fingers with a quickness she never knew possible. Watching as it hit the girl in the stomach she felt her anger rise, the beast within her begging for the Lich's blood. Turning back to the creature she drew a Thorn as she prepared to throw it, the Lich grinning as it said, "Oh ho, care to cross blades with me scarecrow? You will find I'm not as willing a victim as you would seem to think."

Realizing it was somehow reading her thoughts she growled lowly as she said, "Well then, I'm sure you know what's coming next..."

"Try it Scare crow, it’s been awhile since I last laughed..."

She had to try, and the thorn left her fingers, its aim somewhat diverted as she went right for the dull gem on its staff.

[Liliana Ambria]

Liliana knew a frontal assault on the lich would possibly do nothing. However the casualness of the rebuttal was not expected and neither was the use of the old language. However, the look he gave her implied something. There was something she wasn't being told, and that was what bothered her. However the hounds were not willing to wait and as she moved she drew her sword, holding it as she was taught.

The hound snapped at her trying to catch her off guard as she swung the blade rather clumsily. Her sword had rarely been used, and yet here she was using it twice in as many days. Perhaps this is why she was frustrated with the Seraphs, she was never cut out to be one. As she tried to fend off the hounds she felt her luck slowly running out.

As the beast snapped it hit her blade and wrenched it from her hands. She immediately held her hand out as she spoke, not phased by the loss of weaponry, "Kal Ylem."

The effect was immediate as the very shadows that clung to her began to slide over her body to her waiting outstretched hand. Dodging the hell hounds advances she swung the slowly forming staff around and managed to know the hound for a good loop. Bringing the staff up under the dog's chin she heard a satisfying yelp from the thing before she spun bringing the staff about, now fully formed, like a bat right into the side of the beast. As it howled out it slid towards the edge of the island in the ever growing lake of fire.

The hound growled as it crouched, the fires upon its back increasing in size as it moved swiftly. She barely managed to get away from it before she dropped her staff in favor of her far more deadly sword. The beast bounded around and came by for another attack before she was ready and took the only logical action. In that very moment, she gave into the hatred and let it fuel her strike. As she brought the sword up she felt overwhelmed.

Anyone who looked at the girl, had they truly been paying attention would have seen a dramatic change. Gone was the compassionate look, and her hair, once a dark brown, was a deep red. Her fiery temper reaching even the locks that framed her face as she brought the sword up in a cleave that left the head of the hellish canine sailing, and the body left to tumble and fall after it.

As she breathed heavily the change immediately reverted, those not watching her would be unaware of the change as her anger was let loose, and dim shined. An explosion of force that eliminated her obstacle, and left her wondering what happened. Her sword was brought about as she faced the Lich who was standing now and applauding, "So good, so magnificent, I think I'll save you for a more, fitting death."

With a snap of his fingers the river of lava that had left them an entry way flowed over the path they had come, effectively sealing them on the island as the Lich laughed. Liliana steadied her breathing as she looked about taking stock of the situation. The thorn that Sarah had thrown was fast approaching the Lich, who held the same bored look on his face as he prepared to protect himself as he had against Myrhia's attack.

Seeing Myrhia hunched and clutching her stomach she began to move only to see Sarah take charge and move to the girl. She saw this and frowned wondering just why Sarah was acting so nice to a girl when she had been so cold and rough to her previously. All she knew was that she would have to watch the girl; for she was far more dangerous then she let on.

[Letho]

This was the second time that Myrhia took a blade to the gut and though this time she was a vampire and the wound wasn’t life-threatening, the pain was still excruciating. Tears welled in her eyes, then proceeded to slip down her face and towards her pale rosy lips that, even though clenched together tightly, let through a muffled afflictive whimper. Her torso muscles insisted on making her body writhe and soon enough she was curled into a tiny ball in a manner that she would curl at Letho’s side when the storm outside their window became thunderous. A part of her wanted to pull the blade out, but that intention was weak, thwarted by the throbbing pain that rippled through her tiny body. That pain ultimately ensured her that she was unable to move anymore.

So Myrhia lay in the ash and through her watery eyes she could see a horrible sight. Liliana changed, and even though the redhead didn’t know a whole lot about the cleric girl, she recognized this type of transformation. Empty eyes, vile red aura, malicious facial expression, Myrhia saw it all before. When Letho was pushed over the edge, he would sometimes succumb to his bloodlust and this was what he would look like. Angry, hateful, like a maddened predatory animal that didn’t hunt for food, but for sports. For the pain and anguish that come with the kill. This ultimately made Myrhia crawl further away from Lilana and closer to Sarah who made her stand against the lich.

Though from her crumbled position she couldn’t see Sarah’s attack, Letho could see it very well. The throwing knife scudded through the air with a purpose, but instead of the lich, it sailed towards the crown of the staff that the creature was wielding. It struck the jeweled weapon, ricocheting with an audible twang and... And something else. It was an almost inaudible sound, but Letho’s vampiric senses were amplified just enough for him to pick up what sounded like a minute crackle. By the time his eyes recognized it as the destruction of one of the jewels on the staff, the lich was on his feet, surveying his treasured weapon. But the mar in the perfection of the staff’s ornaments was only one of the effects of Sarah’s attack. The other was yet to be revealed.

“You bitch! You’ll pay for doing that.” the lich bawled, pointing the staff towards Sarah and launching a massive fireball towards the Lavinian. The ball of flames soared over the magma, further empowered by the heat, but before connecting with the thief, it bounced upwards, striking the stone dome above their heads. The explosion sent the cave shaking, detaching the bones of the skeletal forms above and sending them down in a torrent. Down below, standing before Sarah and Myrhia’s curled body, stood Letho with his outstretched hand that slapped the fireball away. The enchanted dragonscales of the gauntlet smoldered gently.

“Enough playing around, lich.” Letho’s voice echoed through the vast cavern, his knifelike gaze peering into the crimson eyes on the other side of the fiery river. His right hand held the massive Lawmaker sedately at his side, but the calm lasted only for a second. Letho knew he couldn’t give the lich a chance to continue this ranged combat. He had to close up, turn this into melee, and not give the bastard a chance to cast another spell. So Letho did what he did best; he charged head-on.

He ran straight for the magma, his vampiric fleetness propelling his body in a blistering leap. The arc was well measured, sailing over the bubbling lava below and landing straight into the face of the lich. The gunblade came down in a shattering overhead slash, enough power behind it to either cleave the undead king or shatter the weapon against his armor. Unfortunately for Letho, neither of those two happened. Fraction of a second before the tawny blade of his titanic weapon would hit his foe, the lich turned into a vapor, leaving only his vague outline to sustain the attack. Naturally, the gunblade went through the faint remnants of the lich like they weren’t there, its momentum forcing the swordsman into an uncontrolled roll forwards. His bulk spun through the dirt, then clashed with the throne made out of bones, taking it down before he finally struck the cave wall. Vicious laughter resonated through the entire cavern, a raucous mockery of the lich that stood some ten paces from the throne that now lay in bony shambles.

“On the contrary, you stubborn mule. The game has just begun.” the lich spoke, his confidence obvious in his boisterous posture. His eyes were filled with frolicky flames now, his sickly wan hands holding the staff leisurely, tapping it against the ground, mimicking impatience. Letho didn’t get up instantly though. Instead his hand swung the gunblade through the rubble and the fractured bones, lining the weapon with the lich from his lying position. The muzzle lined up with the armored torso of the creature immaculately and fraction of a second later the Lawmaker roared like a miniature cannon, spewing sparks and a single bullet straight at the lich. The thing didn’t even move. The shot was good, but the bullet resiled as if there was an invisible barrier around the lich, sending the fired projectile into a random skeleton above. The ashy lifeless face of the undead creature stretched into a horrendous smile.

“My turn.”

He didn’t attack though. Instead his staff struck the ground, only this time there was a powerful swoosh following the strike, sweeping through the entire cavern, powerful enough to usurp the dirt and carry some of the smaller bones. And even as this wind passed through the entire cave, the skeletons above sprung to life. They twitched, their bones clacking and crackling, and then dozens of them came falling down from above, free of their restrains. Some fell in the lava, letting out terrible shrieks, but most found firm ground on the island where Sarah and Liliana stood, and where Myrhia was bleeding with a dagger in her gut.

[Lavinian Pride]

Like a dear caught in the headlights she saw the fireball come right for her, instinctively bringing her bracers up to take the brunt of the flames. As she closed her eyes and prayed, a rather ironic twist for the girl had no true form of belief, it was answered in the form of one Letho Ravenheart returning the favor of being released. As she breathed a short sigh of relief Letho immediately rushed forward in an effort to tie up the lich.

Looking at Myrhianna's downed form she moved swiftly over to her. The two tumbled through the arena of dirt and Lava as she checked over the girl with a casual glance. It wasn't pretty, the girl was bleeding, and that knife in her gut wasn't helping any. As she looked at Liliana, the cleric seemed preoccupied with something, and so Sarah knew she had to take care of the vampire girl herself.

Sarah knelt beside the girl as she said softly, "Just relax Myrhia, just relax. This is going to hurt, but unfortunately, it has to be done..." She then carefully braced the girl, before with one swift move she pulled the dagger form the girls gut. The vampiric regeneration now stood a chance at healing her without the blade aggravating the wound. As she did this however the sounds of things falling into the dirt, and screams filled her ears.

It didn't take a genius to figure out what happened. Letho had pissed off the lich and made their situation worse. As she grumbled under her breath about hard headed men she heard the clank of bones behind her. Closing her eyes she said firmly, "Excuse me, you weren't invited to the party!"

Immediately the girls were pulled from their holsters as she spun deftly breaking through bone and shattering the skeleton behind her. Protecting Myrhia was her sole effort now as she danced trying to break the skeletons completely. As she did so, occasionally a few would require a good kick into the lava as they would claw and grasp for her trying to hold her down while their accomplices attacked. She was running out of energy, even her righteous fury unable to hold up to what the Wight had drained out of her.

Her arms felt like they were made of lead, her body was covered in sweat, and her hair was plastered to her back. Whatever beauty she held was certainly waning as she continued to fight, showing her true form, the determined girl trying to fight off the world that sought to erase her. As she fought on she growled out, "Come on Liliana, pull your head out of your ass and get to work…”

[Liliana Ambria]

Sarah was once again taking charge of the situation as Letho had been freed from his prison. The large knight rushed forward to take on the Lich as he had intended to do before. However, the problem was that now she was left with nothing to do. The problem was soon remedied as Skeletons, more than she cared to count, fell form the ceiling. Sheathing her sword she knew that only clubs worked well against the skeletons of the dead.

"Kal Ylem," She spoke as the staff once again entered her hands. Twirling it around she began to move in sweeping motions trying to fight the skeletons before they had a chance to recover, sending some into the lava, and shattering others. As all this was done she kept an eye on Sarah, concerned for the girl who seemed to be hitting her limits. It was obvious the girl was running on fumes, not having rested nearly as much as she should have.

Still the time for admonishing was not now, and even as Sarah let her frustration with the situation known, Liliana was already making her way back towards the downed form of Myrhia. The two girls were fighting almost back to back as she said, "You think you have the energy to do a bit of running?"

"I'm not going to be able to get out of here if that’s what you're asking. It made it quite clear we're its honored guests," Sarah replied sarcastically.

"It’s a lich," Liliana replied stubbornly as she swung with her staff again.

"So I keep hearing, it’s all Slavic to me," Sarah replied tartly.

"In order to become a lich, you have to seal your soul in something. Usually it’s in a gem or a jar. I don't think whatever you hit was it though. I'm thinking it’s got it hidden out of sight," Liliana replied calmly. Now was not the time for an argument.

Sarah remained silent for a bit causing Liliana to check on the tiring girl, who seemed to be swinging desperately now. Sarah was truly looking the worse for wear. However, she kept going despite the odds. As admirable it was, Liliana knew the time had to come soon, or Sarah would not be of much help. Sarah soon replied, letting a bit of the fatigue slip into her voice as she said, "What's the plan."

Liliana looked about the cave they were in, seeing a place behind the throne that seemed to go deeper into the caverns. Sighing she said, "Leave Myrhia to me, I'll protect her, but I need you to run for the tunnel behind the throne. Perhaps with your thieving skills Darith taught you, you can figure out where this thing keeps its soul."

The response was immediate, "I doubt they'll just let me through you know..."

"I'll clear the way get ready," Liliana replied. Sarah looked at Liliana briefly before she nodded. Soon Liliana moved setting up a skeleton between her the tunnel, and most importantly, towards the Lich. With a grin she raised her hand and spat out once more, "Ort!"

The result was as predicted. The skeleton, long since left with the willpower to resist such a turning was sent flying. Sarah seeing the plan only sprinted after it, following in the wake as it sailed right for the Lich. A devious grin was upon her face as she seemed to focus everything on reaching that tunnel.

With that done Liliana raised her staff and mutter a small prayer of offering. She then slammed it down as she spoke, "Kal Sanct Grav!"

As soon as the staff hit the ground the result was immediate. Skeletons were pushed back and Liliana and Myrhia were left alone as she focused intently closing her eyes. She couldn't afford to falter now as she set up the boundaries of Sanctuary. They seemed to throw themselves at the barrier over and over, but the bright light that illuminated the cavern refused to give way to the lesser fiends. A trickle of sweat poured down her face as she muttered a prayer trying to keep the barrier up.

[Letho]

Letho never fought a lich before, but he heard enough stories to understand the principle that such abominations used to sustain their life. In its essence, it was a simple trade. The gain came in a form of immortality and immense power and the price was one’s soul that was usually coffined into an unholy object. Certain witches did the same with their heart – namely Martyna who nearly robbed Myrhia of her life some time ago – prolonging their lives by turning themselves into despicable undead creatures. Their bodies became invincible that way because they were nothing but empty vessels, but the beings themselves weren’t indestructible. All one had to do was find the object in which the essence of their life was contained and destroy it. However, while that sounded simple in theory, it was seldom that simple. These objects were usually stowed away at safe places far away from the actual habitat.

Letho thought that with his rotten luck this was bound to be the case in this particular instance as well. The object – whatever it was – was bound to be buried somewhere deep in the bowels of the mountain, behind the maze of trapped caves and crumbling passages. Or even better, if the thing could teleport – which it obviously could – chances were that it was actually in an inaccessible nook surrounded with stone walls from all sides.

His mind made a reasonable rebuttal. That couldn’t be the case. If it was, they were all as good as dead.

By the time Letho got back to his feet, the skeletons and the girls were already engaged in a fierce combat on the other side of the magma river. Myrhia was incapacitated, clenching for her stomach as Sarah and Liliana fought, but they weren’t his prime concern. What was stood some twenty paces away from him with a crooked smirk on its sallow-skinned face. Letho’s hand reloaded the gunblade with a swift snap of his wrist, expelling the wasted cartridge and loading a fresh one, but the lich didn’t seem worried with this.

“Very brave of you, hiding behind that magical barrier of yours.” the dark knight spoke, walking through the bony rubble slowly.

“You have your tricks, mortal, I have mine. And I intend to use them to defend my home.” the lich replied, unmoving.

“Defend? You attacked us first if I’m not mistaken.” Letho retorted, gaze locked at the flames that danced in the thing’s eyes.

“Oh please. Like you came here with an intention to palaver.”

“No. But we didn’t come here to pick a fight either.” the swordsman said, stopping his advance some ten paces away from the lich. “I search for the Tears of the Nameless Maiden. If you hand this item over, we can part ways without any more bloodshed.”

The lich’s smirk turned into a smile that in turn gave way to a sinister chuckle. “Tears of the Nameless Maiden you say? I am familiar with this item, but even if I had it, do you really think I would just let it go to a bunch of pathetic mortals? Bloodshed is a threat you should’ve saved for those that still have blood coursing through their veins.”

“So you don’t have this item in your possession?”

“I’m tired of this vacuous talk. Time to end this unexpected visit. But thanks for stopping by.” the undead king said, pointing his staff towards Letho. The eyes in his skull flashed with renewed vigor and the enchanted weapon in his hands responded accordingly, sending out a lightning bolt towards the swordsman. However, at that very second, one of the skeletal minions came flying, striking the pointed weapon and disrupting the perfect aim. Letho had just enough time to feel the electric sizzle of the bolt pass mere inches past his head and see that Sarah was on the move. He had to keep the lich under pressure if she was to succeed in whatever she was doing.

He came at the lich’s flank with the Lawmaker extended horizontally in an attempt to cleave the thing in half at the waist. But the tawny metal of his gunblade never clashed with the armor. Just like the ricocheted bullet, his slash was diverted as if there was an invisible sphere made out of adamantine around the lich. The gunblade was pushed backwards, taking Letho’s arm in tow, and the lich countered. With a shout, the undead abomination splayed the fingers of his left hand and pushed it towards Letho. And even though the decaying skin of the thing’s hand never touched the swordsman, the telekinetic force sent him soaring through midair. Letho felt as if a train struck him in the chest, sending him headlong towards the stone wall of the cave.

Luckily, his vampiric reflexes kicked in, forcing his body in a twist that spun his body just in time for his foot to connect with the vertical surface, then push against it fiercely. Once again he was airborne and descending rapidly towards the lich. This time, however, his right flung the titanic Lawmaker, sending the six-foot weapon spinning as his predecessor. The sphere, naturally, deflected the gunblade, but even as it did, Letho landed before the lich and launched another attack. This time his adamantine bastard sword was drawn and the thrust passed through the magical barrier as if it didn’t exist. But even as it was about to skewer the lich, the staff moved in a blur, diverting the blade effectively at the very last moment. The telekinetic counter followed, but this time Letho predicted it, moving out of its way and taking a couple of steps back.

“Now, that’s more like it. A man worth killing.” the lich king said, once again motionless as the dark knight slowly circled around him like a predator. It was then that Letho’s eyes caught a sight of something. In a niche carved in the stone wall, set on a small altar and surrounded with a handful of candles, stood a rather unremarkable urn. That had to be it, Letho thought and it brought a cocky smirk on his face.

“You haven’t seen anything yet!” the swordsman responded, reiterating Myrhia’s words before plucking his dagger from his waist and lunging it at the urn. His aim was immaculate, the titanium weapon splitting the lesser metal of the urn effortlessly. And even as this happened the lich shrieked.

“Arrrggghhh...” came out in the croaky growl that echoed through the cave, the undead bowing forwards as if he had a terrible stomach ache. And then the groan continued. “...rrrggghhhhahahaHAHAHAHAHA!!”

The lich laughed, throwing his head backwards and leaning on his staff. “Do you really think I’m that stupid?” he finally said, regaining his composure and effacing the joviality from his voice. Letho wasn’t amused. Now that he thought about it, he had to admit that he actually did hope that this would turn the tides. And he had to admit that it was a fool’s hope.

[Lavinian Pride]

She was in the tunnel and exhausted. As she panted she leaned heavily against the walls the only thing keeping her going at this point was adrenaline and sheer willpower. Shaking her head to keep aloft she moved slowly through the tunnel hearing the sounds of battle dim as she did so. Her footsteps were mere scrapings of her boots as she couldn't fin the energy to lift them. Soon however, she reached the end of the tunnel, and was left with a rather odd puzzle.

It was a room, as far as the eye could see, filled with pots and jars of various heights widths and weights. She could see each one was immaculately sealed and up kept, leaving none above the rest. Frowning she thought hard about what the puzzle was. Why keep this many jars if it wasn't important to something undead. Her tired mind trying to figure it out, make sense of the odd sight before her.

In order to become a lich you have to seal your soul in something, usually a gem or a jar...

She groaned as she said softly, "Couldn't make it any easier on me could you, I'll bet some of these pots aren't empty as well..."

Sarah slowly moved through the sea of pottery as she fought with her fatigued mind. She was tried but Myrhia and Letho were counting on her now. She had to beat this Lich at its own game, and had she been fresher she was certain she would have spotted it. So, she reached out and picked up a smaller pot and shattered it, surprised to see a piece of parchment among the fragments.

Picking it up she read it softly to herself, "First mistake, two left, then you die." It was pretty straightforward. She had two guesses left to find it, and she could understand why, someone could just shatter every pot in here, and get the right one eventually. Moving about the posts endlessly she sighed as she saw a few squatter pots and a few larger pots. If ever she was in need of a pot, the room surely would have given her the right size and weight for whatever she desired.

"Its probably small, since it doesn't need to be heavy enough that he couldn't lift it. He needs to be able to carry it easily," She muttered as she began to push the large ones out of her way, and looked at the medium and small ones. It was difficult to say the least and she was beginning to grow impatient and tired. She had to keep her cool, or else she would not survive this, and falling asleep would certainly get her killed eventually.

As she moved about the smaller pots she bumped one and cursed as she reached out to grab it before it slipped through her fingers and shatters another piece of parchment amongst the mess. Knowing full well what it was going to say she sighed as she read it out loud the irritation and exasperation entering her voice, "Mistake Two, one left, then you die."

Looking around without moving she sighed as she said softly, "It’s going to be out of immediate sight, and its going to be somewhere that I would least expect it..."

Frowning she looked back at the large pots. Why on earth would they be there, especially the one as tall as her? It was heavy, and had taken a bit of effort to actually push, why something like that would even be down here was a mystery. The sea of pots was meant to house a soul, but this was getting ridiculous.

Moving forward she carefully began rocking the big pot before she smirked hearing something move within it. She then spoke softly, "Gotcha."

The exhilaration of figuring it out fueled her as she moved forward and hit it with her shoulder sending the big pot crashing down. As it chipped and broke, she reached inside for the true pot housing the soul of the lich, decorated in gems similar to the one she had hit on the bejeweled staff. A scream echoed through the room as she raised the pot up and began her downward throw to destroy the pot.

[Letho]

The battle with the lich was like a chess game and Letho was losing his pawns way too fast. Though at first sight the struggle seemed like a genuine deadlock, the combination of extreme heat and the constant exertion gradually depleted Letho’s energy. The undead thing, however, had no such predicaments. He blocked every attack with same calculated precision and might, countered in an appropriate manner and seemed like he could continue doing that until the end of the days. So even though neither combatant landed a blow on the other, the scales were slowly being tipped towards the lich with each exchange. Letho’s only hope was to last long enough for Sarah to succeed in whatever she was up to down in the tunnels.

For this purpose he called upon his transformation, encasing his body in an ivory aura and significantly amplifying his physical attributes. His weary brown irises were swallowed by the blank white look, making him look like a seriously pissed off blind man. But Letho wasn’t blind. On the contrary, he could see the lich now better then ever, the thing’s inky black aura prominent to the swordsman’s eyes. Unseen to the naked eye, this nimbus spread around the undead king like smoke tendrils, opposing the pearly white flames that danced around Letho’s bulky body.

“So, is your lack of wits proportional with the size of your muscles, Letho Ravenheart?” the lich provoked, spinning his decorated staff once before leisurely landing the butt end next to his foot. The dry decaying skin of his face once again curled into a sarcastic grin.

“Tell me where the Tears of the Nameless Maiden are and you won’t have to find out.” Letho responded, his voice’s power now enhanced to the point it overruled the lich and resonated through the cave with dominating power.

“Unfortunately, my curiosity insists at finding out...” the thing spoke in a cocksure voice, grasping the magical staff with both bony hands and preparing it for another attack. But instead of launching another deadly projectile at the swordsman, the lich paused in mid motion, his head cocking sideways, diverting his eyes to a random spot in the stone wall. The pause lasted for less then a second, and just as Letho wanted to use the moment and launch another attack, the undead king shrieked in terror.

“No! NO! THAT... THAT BITCH!!!”

The lich’s face suddenly cringed in horror, his eyes wide open and disbelieving, robbed of the playful flames that seemed effectively extinguished by whatever Sarah did. Instead of attacking Letho, the staff now struck the ground and with the sizzling sound, the lich teleported away from the main room of his cavern habitat. The remaining animated skeletons that still prowled around lost their liveliness instantly, crumbling into nothing but cones of scattered bones. Even the magma that was sluggishly flowing around the island where Liliana and Myrhia were started to cool down and in a matter of seconds a firm crust started to form on its surface. It seemed that everything in this room drew its power from the lich and now that he was gone, so was his hold over the environment. Letho waited for a couple of seconds for a possible comeback, but after a couple of shrieks from the tunnels, tranquility overtook the cavern like a shroud. The battle was over and nobody won.

The swordsman collected his discarded weapons swiftly before making his way back to where Liliana made her stand against the summoned skeletons. The cleric girl seemed rather fatigued from the travail and given the amount of bone matter that stood around the circle that her magic maintained, Letho wasn’t surprised. Myrhia was still conscious, her hand holding to her bleeding stomach as she struggled to put on a mild smile. It came out wan and bloody, but it was still vibrant enough to draw one on Letho’s bearded face.

“You alright, Myri?” he asked, hunkering next to her and pulling his hands out of the massive gauntlets before gently inspecting her wound.

“No. I feel like I got stabbed in the gut. Again.” she replied, her voice a bit smarmy. It drew out a lethargic smirk on his face.

“Well, it doesn’t look serious. It will heal up in no time. What about...” he meant to ask Liliana could she heal Myrhia, but the redhead interrupted him.

“Where is Sarah? Is she alright? I saw her making a run for the tunnels, but I haven’t seen her since.” Myrhia asked, her emerald eyes now locked on the darkness of the pathway that led deeper into the mountain. She admired the Lavinian, even envied the amount of guts that she had to step up and do her share in a struggle. Compared to her, Myrhia seemed like a nuisance in the heat of the battle, a clumsy little girl that just couldn’t do anything right. She wanted to know more about the thief so she could mimic it and maybe become just as strong one day.

“I don’t know. The lich fled rather abruptly, so I guess she found whatever the bastard hid in the tunnels.”

“You should’ve gone after her, Letho. I mean, what if that... that thing got to her? She wouldn’t be able to fight it alone.” the redhead spoke, a bit panicky and genuinely worried.

“If Sarah found what she was looking for, I think fighting is the last thing that lich wants to do.” he responded, his voice rather insipid as he turned to the cleric lass. “You doing alright, Liliana? That was quite a display.”

[Lavinian Pride]

Sarah heard the scream as she saw something swoop before her catching the falling jar. As she dropped into a defensive posture the lich seethed holding the jar aloft. His eyes burned with crimson hatred at the Lavinian thief as he scowled and said deathly serious, "You stupid Scarecrow, you think you can just waltz into here and fuck things up for me?"

"I was more willing to talk it through, but it seems your hosting skills are lacking, as is your tact," Sarah said firmly. She waited as she twirled and deposited one of the girls, quickly plucking a thorn form its resting place. She was looking for the opening she needed, and eyed him carefully as she tried to rest and conserve energy.

The lich began to point his staff forward before Sarah deftly picked up a jar, the result was that the bolt of energy he launched at the Lavinian hit the pot, and shattered it sending a piece of parchment fluttering to the floor. A grin lit up Sarah's face as the Lich frowned. The jar was tucked under an arm as he shouted, "You think you can mock me? You're very presence is a waste, the only reason you're alive, is the same reason you will die. Seth Dahlios is going to die, and without you there, it will be soon. Very soon."

"Why should I care what he's doing," Sarah said as she focused on the pot. The lich shifted irritably as he clutched it in a deathly vice grip.

"You of all people should know the answer to that, in the meantime, I think I'll kill half now, and half later," The lich then began to prepare yet another spell. Sarah moved quickly throwing the thorn before it hit the pot, and cracked the surface. Immediately a crack appeared on the Lich's face as he clutched it and growled out, "You vapid whore! I won't forget this slight! You're nothing but a Dahlios Scarecrow! One day I will burn you to the ground."

With that a flash hit the room before he disappeared from sight. Sarah began to stumble a bit as she closed her eyes. The weight of her body felt far too much. She was drowsy as she stumbled a step forward, sleep sounding so inviting. She shook her head trying to keep awake, but the battle was far from over and the armies of dreams and illusions were fast catching up with her. Falling to her knees she sighed as she collapsed on the floor. Shaking her head she muttered softly to herself, "Perhaps a few minutes won't hurt..."

[Liliana Ambria]

Liliana held it up as sweat poured form her brow. The humidity rising as she continued to pray and hold the boundaries up as strongly as she was able. She was oblivious to everything, the brawl, the effects of Sarah's actions; her world was in prayer as she continued to protect the downed form of Myrhia Bastillien. Her eyes were closed as she continued the prayer to Dumas the undead skeletons pounding relentlessly against the boundaries and slowly draining her of energy.

"Dumas I ask for your strength to protect those unable to protect themselves, to give me the guidance to get through this. Your wisdom is infinite and your mercy plentiful, all that I ask is you share it," She continued to pray. The prayer of Sanctuary was a tough one, and one she had only heard invoked one other time. Its mysteries were in the fact that the gods were quite fickle in allowing its effects, and while all clerics knew its words, very rarely had they produced as she had.

Now, she had to keep praying, almost literally kissing her deity’s ass in order to keep it up. As it as a fickle prayer she had to earn it through praise and adulation, or risk it being cut short when the god grew bored. As she continued however, she felt the presence of the Lich, expanded to not just the lich, but the skeletons that even now pressed into her barriers. She fought on her shoulders slumping as she continued another round of adulation. Soon however, a scream echoed through the area.

She couldn't feel the Lich anymore. It was as if he had not existed in the area at all. As quickly as everything came, it left and Liliana was left leaning on her staff of darkness. Letting the barrier drop she listened to Letho and Myrhia banter back and forth. Her heart slightly ached at the tones, and more, at Myrhia's reaction. Shaking her head she whispered softly to herself, "We'll set this right somehow..."

It was more a promise to Seth and her than anything however; she had little time to dwell on it before Letho spoke to her finally. Looking up at him she said softly, "Nothing more than what is expected of me. I will probably need to rest up before we move on from the next town. The lich is gone form what I can sense, and Sarah's presence is still, down the corridor she ran into. I think she's safe, she doesn't feel like she's fading..."

[Letho]

As if to rebuke Liliana’s assumption of Sarah’s safety, a shattering sound came from the shadowed passage. Given the fact that the boiling of the magma ceased and the clacking shrieks of the skeletons were nothing but a memory, the sound of something being smashed was easy to notice. Both Letho’s and Myrhia’s face shot sideways, her emeralds slightly startled, his browns frowned and seemingly emotionless.

“It’s Sarah. See? I told you. Go help her, Letho.” Myrhia said, her words somewhere between a plea and a commandment, showing genuine concern for the thief’s wellbeing. Her eyes now looked at Letho that obviously wasn’t under the same impression. The shattering was bound to originate from the destroyed vessel in which the lich confined his soul. And if that was the case, there was no point in charging blindly into a dark tunnel. His rationalization was defeated though, once the raspy voice of the lich could be heard.

“Go!”

Myrhia literally pushed him from her side and - combined with the words that seemed to bounce off the stone wall and reach them with little loss of power - it was enough to get Letho on his way. He drew out his bastard sword before disappearing into the darkness of the passageway. The cocky sound of the gloating lich rapidly grew in power as the swordsman made his way down the rather straight set of halls and sooner then he expected, Letho found himself in the hall filled with pots.

“You vapid whore!” the thing bawled. “I won’t forget this slight! You’re nothing but a Dahlios Scarecrow! One day I will burn you to the ground.”

The burly swordsman had no idea what the lich meant by calling Sarah a Dahlios Scarecrow and the lich wasn’t keen on staying around to clear it up, using his teleport once again for his vanishing act. Letho’s first thought was that the undead bastard might move to the main room once again, but given the usurped state the lich was in and the crack in his pot, that was highly unlikely. Still, highly unlikely wasn’t insurance enough when it came to Myrhia and Letho wanted to get back to her as soon as possible. But before he got a chance to tell Sarah that they should head back, the thief crumbled to the floor, mumbling something before losing consciousness.

Letho returned the sword to the sheath on his back before making his way through the forest of pots and to Sarah’s side. His hand went for the woman’s neck first, and then, after sensing a rather weak arterial pulse, to her face. He turned it, gave her a faint slap with the back of his hand, but the dark-haired vixen seemed to venture too far into the dream land to be awaken right now. Without deliberating on the situation too much, Letho gathered the lithe body in his arms and doubled back towards the spacious cavern.

“Oh my god! It got to her!” Myrhia spoke the moment the swordsman reemerged from the darkness and into the dim illumination of the vast room beneath the mountain.

“She’ll be alright. She just needs some rest. Now, come on. Let’s get out of here. This place reeks of death.” Letho responded, walking towards the redhead and the cleric girl with Sarah tranquil in his arms. “Liliana, could you help Myrhia out?”

The walk back through the stone halls of the lich’s cave seemed to last forever, much longer then it seemed when they were going the other way. It seemed that the magic lured them in, but now that it was gone, the empty lifelessness of the cave was more then apparent. It seemed to defy them, prolonging itself the more they wanted to get out of its grasp. Compared to it, the light of the outside and the warm scent of a beautiful forest day was a peace of heaven waiting for them once they stepped out of the dense darkness. It took a couple of seconds for Letho’s eyes to readjust to the light, long enough for Myrhia to bump into him from behind and hurry him forwards. He set Sarah down on the ground gently before taking a seat himself with an audible sight.

“Well, that was certainly a fruitful venture.” he muttered into his beard, taking off his weapons and setting them on the lush grass. The shadow that enshrouded the cave entrance when then first entered was gone now, departed with the undead king that was probably in search for safer lodgings for his soul pot. “Goddamn undead.”

[Liliana Ambria]

Liliana turned to help Myrhia when she stopped. Something whispered to her, it was a soft shadowy voice, and it seemed to scream "come here". It made her look around frowning as she focused around the area, the lava long since cooled without any true way to keep superheated. Her gaze finally fell upon the throne as the voice whispered again, "It's alright child, what you seek is there..."

Looking at Myrhia she said softly, "Stay here Myrhianna, I will be right back..." Not that Myrhia had much of a choice Liliana moved slowly towards the throne made from human bones before she saw something tucked against the side.

The voice spoke again as it said, "Yes, this is what you seek darling. Pick it up, give it to the Ranger. He will know what to do with it. Then, go find Seth, you will not be able to do much else."

She frowned as she reached out for the book and picked it up before she said softly, "This looks like a journal. What use would a Lich have with-"

"Don't ponder; you are already trailing the Ranger and the Thief. Just go give it to him," The voice demanded. It wasn't like when she heard Dumas speak. This voice was far different, it was stealthy, it was shadowy, but the power it emanated was truly fearsome. She shuddered hearing it before she moved back to Myrhia book in hand. Helping the girl up she moved forward, moving at the pace Myrhia set.

It was quite obvious Myrhia wasn't comfortable with Liliana, and she could understand. Something wasn't right, and she wasn't sure what it was. She was changing and she couldn't be sure it was in a good way. As they reached the daylight she remained silent as Letho set Sarah down. Of all of them it seemed Sarah had done the most work, with Letho a close second, protecting them while Sarah worked her magic. However Sarah was pale as she was brought out, and Liliana wasn't sure why exactly.

Still she figured now as good a time as any to deliver the book. Pulling it out from under her arm she extended the hand to Letho as she said softly, "This was in the chamber, on that despicable throne the Lich was sitting on, I'm not sure if it would help you, but here it is anyways."

She then sighed as she helped Myrhia sit near Sarah before she watched the prone Lavinian, who seemed to be stirring.

[Lavinian Pride]

Sarah had fallen deeply asleep following the lich. It wasn't something she truly had control over, she merely had kept pushing what should have been stopped long ago. As she slumbered she dreamed, dreams of money of fame, of being her own person. Then the nightmares began. She saw it all, Seth's entire life from her little corner of his mind. How he killed slaughtered, maimed. She was guilty, it was her fault, she didn't try hard enough. She was the Demon not Seth, she allowed this to go without second thought.

As she stirred in her sleep she tried to surface, to wake up. She hated these dreams, she felt so guilty, so vulnerable. As she tried harder she was pulled to her own despicable actions, the men that meant nothing, the women she had used for a cheap thrill. The money that she took, and the people she had hurt. It was almost intolerable as she finally awoke, to silence. It was a silence as profound as the one that occurred when she first awoke in her “new” body. There was no one there, there was nothing there. No one cared about her, no one alive anyways.

Sitting up in a rush she felt a swell of blood to her head as she groaned softly, trying to shrug off the feelings of abandonment. She shook her head as the visions shook their steely grip upon her, trying desperately to hold on under the barrage of clairvoyance. She was beginning to see through the visions, right across the way to Liliana, who seemed to be studying her. She immediately averted her gaze as she pulled the whirlwind of emotions in check. Wiping the sleep from her eyes she said softly, "Well now, nap times over, what did I miss?"

For as confident as she sounded, she surely didn't feel so much. She felt frightened and alone, however she had to be the big girl, she had to play strong. No one would want a crybaby. No one would care about a girl who couldn't be strong always. She had too much riding on her confidence so far, and she couldn't afford to let it go. As she checked her gear she sighed as she said, "Damnit, once again my daggers end up everywhere. Mind if I go back and snatch them?"

[Letho]

It appeared that his initial assumption wasn’t quite true after all. Once their four left the cave and settled on the grassy forest floor, Liliana presented him with what looked like a tome that seemed to be in usage for several centuries at the very least. Hand written and as thick as a hand, the sheer weight of the thing simply screamed that it was something important. It wasn’t written by the lich though. Even though the undead king and the journal might’ve been equal in age, the handwriting was much neater and more refined then something a despicable lich could write. It wasn’t elven either, because Letho saw quite a few examples of prissy writings of the elves with their excessive ornaments and curves on each and every letter. This writing was somehow more mundane and simple, and yet still it emanated an eerily aura around it, as if it was in fact a mage spellbook.

It wasn’t though. From what the swordsman read in the first pages, it seemed like chronicles or memoirs of some pious folk that spoke of gods and creation and bull similar to that. Letho – never a religious man – wasn’t terribly impressed by the book, but he still skimmed through the pages attentively. If the lich had it in his possession and found it important enough to keep it close to his throne, there might be some clue within the pages.

“Sarah? You’re alright.” Myrhia exclaimed at his side, the redhead turning towards the awoken thief with the usual gleeful smile. Seeing Sarah – somebody who stood to her defense moments ago – coming to seemed to erase the ache in her belly for the time being as she looked over the dreamy visage of the rogue. She wasn’t fond of Sarah’s intention though, her tiny hand gently touching Sarah’s shoulder as if to steady her and prevent her from moving.

“No, you shouldn’t be moving yet. You’re exhausted. Here, have some water.” the red-haired girl spoke, pulling one of Letho’s flasks from the saddlebags and giving it to Sarah. Helping was something that Myrhia thoroughly enjoyed, especially if she could do it for something that she cared about. And for some reason beyond her simple, innocent thinking, she grew fond of Sarah in a hurry.

“Letho will go get your blades.” Myrhia continued, turning her face to the swordsman who seemed busy with the dusty tome. “Letho, go fetch Sarah’s daggers.”

Letho sighed, put a finger on the page he was currently examining and looked at the redhead and her companion. “It’s not like they’re going to go anywhere. We’ll get them before we set out.”

“She wants them now. So either you go or I’m going.” the redhead said, an uncanny amount of sass in her usually coy voice. For some reason, she wanted to look strong - strong like Sarah - and resolute, and not a helpless little girl anymore. She made a move to get up, the mere attempt hurting her wounded stomach muscles, and that was enough to change Letho’s mind.

“Alright, alright, I’ll go get them. Just stay put and let the wound heal properly.” he said, a bit irked by the whole exchange and the final result, but obeying and entering the cave again. The tome was with him and with his vampiric vision he was able to actually sift through some pages during his walk. Luckily for him, the cave was pretty straightforward, so he seldom tripped on some rocks during his trek. It would’ve been hard to find Sarah’s blades, but once again his amplified sight served him well and he collected the peculiar throwing knives and a pair of daggers that she dropped. Before long he remerged from the maw of the cave, book in one hand, daggers in the other.

“There. I hope that’s all of them.” Letho said, dropping the weapons on the grass beside the thief and planting himself in a shade a couple of feet away from her. He continued with his studying of the book, stuck somewhere in the middle of it with no result from his prospecting. Meanwhile, Myrhia worked diligently to thank both Liliana and Sarah.

“Thank you - both of you - for helping me back there. I... I’m just not that good in combat. I just get in a way.” she spoke, her apology to both of the females usually coy and once again deviating from the strictness she used with Letho. He noted it in a back-of-the-mind manner, but paid no heed to these fluctuations in her demeanor. She was still young, she was still mad at him, and teenagers in such situations mostly didn’t know what they really wanted.

After less then a minute of shuffling through the pages and pages of what seemed like sanctimonious crap, Letho finally ran into something useful. In the section that spoke of holy artifacts, the paragraph that spoke of the Tears of the Nameless Maiden was circled roughly with red ink with a line leading to the empty space at the bottom of the page. Scribbled in a barely readable letters stood:


NOTE TO SELF: Find a way to retrieve the Tears from that bastard, Eraz’Verinthes. For the time being, stay clear of the Shadow Brook and the Eastern Cave to prevent any possible encounters.

Letho smirked minutely, closing the book abruptly which produced a visible puff of dust. He didn’t know of any Eastern Cave, but Shadow Brook was a creek that he saw on several maps of Concordia and he knew where it was located. According to the note, this Eraz’Whatever and his cave should be east of it and that was more enough of a clue for the swordsman. He got up, satisfied with his search, and handed the book back to Liliana.

“As it turned out, it was a great help. I found a possible location of the Tears.” he spoke. “But I believe you have business to conduct elsewhere, right? Well, I thank you for the help you provided so far, Liliana. You were a true ally and I regret that I don’t know more of Seth’s whereabouts to repay you for your help.”

His large hand extended to her, offering a farewell handshake. “Good luck with your search.”

[Liliana Ambria]

Liliana took the book from his hands as she placed it in her pack, curious to see what was within. However she had to remain a bit more calm than she was currently. As she looked at Sarah she seemed to be avoiding the gaze of Liliana. It wasn't hard to see why, something was disturbing her. She was hurting in some way that wasn't normal, and she was playing tough girl to compensate. That much she could feel, if only because she had seen Seth pull the same routine when his parents were brought up.

As she shook the proffered hand she said softly, "Its alright, I thank you for what help you could give. I would ask that you pray for me, but I don't think you are the praying type. Just keep me in your thoughts and hope for the best is all I could hope for." She then smiled softly at Letho before she turned to see Myrhia getting up. She winced as the tawny red head shuddered slightly upon getting to her feet, but was more surprised when she hugged Liliana in good bye.

"Go get that bastard, someone needs to calm him down," Myrhia said before she pulled back a coy smirk on her face. It was quite obvious she was trying to put on a brave face. As far as Seth was concerned anything to prevent her plight would have been welcomed. So it stood to chance that she was being sweet to encourage her, and while she needed it, she couldn't help but feel Myrhia was waiting for something from Liliana.

A sigh escaped her lips before she said, "I have an uphill battle before me, as do you. Be strong Myrhianna."

She then turned to go before Sarah chimed in with something, "Liliana..."

She turned to look at the fatigued Lavinian before she raised an eyebrow expectantly. Sarah smirked as she said, "I wouldn't call myself an expert on Seth, but if you want to find him, he always goes to one place to think. I'm not sure what he was doing in Ettermire, but I doubt he'll be there by the time you reach Alerar. As far as I know he's been pretty clouded, then again we haven't talked in years, I only have half-truths and rumors to go on. I do know that if he feels he needs to clear his head, he goes to Otaria. Just be careful alright?"

Liliana nodded before she said softly, "Thank you Sarah. Perhaps one day your brother can thank you for the help you gave me." Sarah seemed to snicker at the remark giving Liliana a moment to reflect on that comment before she sighed and said her goodbyes to each of them. She then turned and walked down the road well on her way back to Radasanth. Her job here was done, and now she was going rogue to find Seth. It was something she knew would get her in trouble, if it already hadn't.

(Spoils Request - The Tome of Uriel, a book known for knowing the places of several key artifacts. While it knows some artifacts it only relates positions, and a map will be needed to find the specific location. Right now it only imparts general areas of the world that the artifact can be found.)

[Lavinian Pride]

Sarah remained silent as Liliana went about her goodbyes. She knew Seth rather well, and if he was in Ettermire yesterday that meant he would be on the move later. As she remained silent Liliana spoke her goodbye to Myrhia before Sarah spoke up, "Liliana..."

As predicted the priestess turned to face the thief as she closed her eyes trying to comb through the vault of Seth's knowledge. When she opened her eyes and looked up at Liliana she had the expected look of a rushed woman, it made Sarah smirk as she spoke up, "I wouldn't call myself an expert on Seth, but if you want to find him, he always goes to one place to think. I'm not sure what he was doing in Ettermire, but I doubt he'll be there by the time you reach Alerar. As far as I know he's been pretty clouded, then again we haven't talked in years, I only have half-truths and rumors to go on. I do know that if he feels he needs to clear his head, he goes to Otaria. Just be careful alright?"

Otaria, that wasn't a place for someone like Liliana, but it was a place none the less. A den of thieves, murderers, and a safe haven for every despicable thing in the world. It was the perfect hiding grounds for a monster like Seth. Perhaps thats why he chose it, it was perfectly suited to a man in anarchy within his very soul, but not for the one woman he loved. As she relaxed she lay back on the grass leaving her daggers on the ground in the meantime. They were all there, she was just too tired to care.

As Liliana left Sarah felt herself relax as one obstacle was removed from her way. There would be no more pointless interrogations into the thief. She could be herself, and it was already starting to show as she absentmindedly picked up a thorn and began to play with the dangerous knife in her hand idly. She was waiting for orders more than anything. As she relaxed she could feel green eyes upon her, worried eyes, compassionate eyes.

She had to do something about those eyes soon or they would drive her mad.

It wasn't that she didn't like the girl. She was ammicable enough. It was more that Sarah couldn't afford to tie herself down with anyone. She walked a lonely road, and as it implied it had room enough for one. There could be no others, and besides, what would she do with Letho's girl? Realistically she couldn't even think of why she would want the girl around her all the time. She was a force of good, and her mind was stuck on some very evil things, like hurting Seth as much as he had her.

As she lay there her thorn twirling about in her hands she sighed wistfully as she closed her eyes and said, "If we aren't going anywhere soon I'll take a nap, wake me when we go to leave."

[Letho]

“Both of you should get some rest.” Letho said to the girls once Liliana left the clearing. “We’ll stay put until the morning, then move east. Hopefully our prospecting there would be more fortunate.”

Though he did his best to sustain the sturdy, emotionless façade, his tone gave out the air of absentmindedness, his eyes out of focus as they peered into the surrounding forest. There was definitely something brewing beyond those melancholic brown eyes, Myrhia had no doubt, but even as a part of her wanted to rush to his side and pry the truth out of him, the other, much more stubborn and even vengeful part, reminded her that she wasn’t his lap dog anymore. Before Serenti she could look at him and see this invincible man-god that sat on his throne with the world on his shoulders as his inerrable mind pondered on a multitude of things. But after his treachery tore a hole in her soul and his infidelity rubbed the salt into that wound, she just couldn’t see that crownless king anymore.

Sarah, however, was a novelty in her life, a deviation from the role model that she had in Letho. She was still a stranger to Myrhia, a jigsaw that had a plethora of pieces missing, but there were qualities in the Lavinian that she admired, that she strived for. If the redhead’s heart wasn’t still aching from Letho’s betrayal, she would probably recognize the parallels that could be drawn between the guileful thief and the fallen knight that sat a bit further from them. But there was still too much residue left in her after the initial bitterness and ache, so she stayed on Sarah’s side, watching over her as she fell asleep.

Meanwhile, Letho did his best to keep himself busy. He brought the six-foot Dehlar gunblade to his lap and started to diligently disassemble the large weapon. Ever the soldier and his father’s son, the former Savion prince couldn’t bear the thought that any weapon used in battle wasn’t tended to afterwards. However, while it usually took less then half an hour for his honed fingers to clean, sharpen and oil his arsenal, today he was moving at snail pace, paying attention to the details that clearly needed no attention in the first place.

It hurt him, this frigidity on Myrhia’s account, hurt him so deeply that if he was a lesser man with a more flexible backbone, he would’ve been on his knees by now, begging her to tell him what he had to do for redemption. It hurt him so deeply to see her curt replies and the offhanded manner in which she dealt with him, that if he wasn’t so thick-skinned and weathered, he would’ve probably cried as well. Because not so long ago, they were one and there was this almost tangible force between them that made them feel magnetized. And now, because of his misstep, it seemed that her polarity had changed. The more he tried to approach her, the stronger was the defiance that pushed him away.

But Letho didn’t cry and he didn’t beg and his face didn’t yield to the emotions that were plucking at his insides like a bunch of famished crows. He already took care of that part back in Serenti and it made Myrhia reconsider, made her agree to this mission. If they could efface this curse of vampirism from their systems, then the only connection with Sivienna would be erased as well. And that was the new start that both of them needed, a clean sheet of paper where the story begun anew. So Letho did what he always did best; he bridled his emotions, packed them in a coffin and nailed the wretched thing shut. Whether or not they would break free again was up to the lissome former slave that was for the time being out of reach.

The rest of the day was rather uneventful. Myrhia and Sarah mostly dozed in the shades, the redhead a bit more restless, waking up at the slightest sign of unrest from the thief that lay close to her. In the meantime, Letho wasn’t lazing around even though he was in a mood for little else then just throwing a towel for the day. He fetched their horses, fed them, even groomed them before leaving them to pluck on some ferns that grew around the glade. He left the site only once, returning shortly after with a pair of skinned hares, already skewered and waiting for Myrhia to season them properly. The pair of lush brownish furs were stretched on the ground, catching some of the last rays of the descending sun in order to dry properly before he would pack them in the saddlebags. The fire was up in no time and the once inseparable pair now sat on the opposite side of it, Myrhia turning the conies every once in a while to roast properly and Letho staring into the flames with a dreamy gaze.

“What are you going to do with those?” she asked, leading his eyes towards the pair of drying skins. His eyes snapped back to focus, moved to the rabbit furs and then to her unsmiling face.

“I thought I could make you slippers. Or maybe even a winter cap. They’re nice and fuzzy.” the swordsman spoke, offering a smile that got reflected on her face coyly. The smile, though faint and semi-heartily, warmed him more then any fire ever could. He shuffled through the embers with a rather straight chestnut stick and Myrhia turned the rabbits again, their delicious scent spreading throughout the clearing.

“Here, I also made you this.” Letho said, fishing something out of his coat pocket. Once his hand reached out towards her, a rabbit’s leg hung on a small leather string. She collected it rather tentatively.

“What’s that?” she asked, inspecting the furry paw.

“It’s a rabbit’s foot. It brings good luck.”

“How come it didn’t bring good luck to the rabbit?” Myrhia inquired, her tone rather mirthful.

“Oh, I think it did. I think the rabbit would be quite happy if he knew his foot wound up in possession of such a pretty girl.” Letho replied, but his compliment didn’t strike the bull’s eye the way it usually did. Instead Myrhia smiled wanly, then poked at one of the rabbits with her finger.

“He doesn’t look happy.”

[Lavinian Pride]

She was merely resting, occasionally getting in a nap or two here, but never truly sleeping. It wasn't that she didn't want to; gods knew how tired she truly was. No, it was the fact she didn't like the nightmares she knew were waiting on the other side. With each jerk she could swear Myrhia was alert and waiting for her. It was rather sweet in a way, but she had no idea what to do. She could simply ignore it, but eventually it would come back to her. She couldn't avoid the red haired woman any more than she could deny her heritage.

With the scent of a fire Sarah remained still as if sleeping and listened to the small by play between Myrhia and Letho. It seemed she was keen on not playing the sidekick to Letho anymore. It was alarming how much Sarah had rubbed off on the girl. She was sassy vibrant, and it seemed she would almost have walked off on Letho, but for the mission. It was Love, that much she could see, she was trying to give Letho a second chance. However, it seemed that while waiting for the results, she was on the prowl exploring her boundaries.

And the one boundary she returned to was Sarah.

As she stirred smelling the nearly done food she stretched her lithe form, feeling eyes upon her but ignoring them. Right now she had to play devil's advocate, it wouldn't do to be caught flirting with the woman that belonged to you boss. It came back tot he principle that you never flirted in the workplace, you never knew what would happen if things got too hot, and someone left the other in the lurch. As Sarah dusted her body off she felt immensely better rested than she had going into the cave.

Sitting on a log and forming the third wheel of the group she reached into her pack and sighed as she tossed the collection of daggers in there, before she undid her dagger belt. Tossing it too in there she muttered, "Too tired to deal with that."

Looking at the roasting rabbit she felt her mouth water in response but quickly swallowed, keeping her hunger in check. A hand clad in leather reached up to her hair and pulled a rogue strand of hair from her face as she looked at her traveling companions. Letho seemed solemn as usual, if not a bit stoic. Myrhia on the other hand seemed to be all too ready to speak up, "How was your sleep Sarah?"

Sarah snorted softly as she said, "It was sleep, nothing truly worthy of note."

Myrhia seemed put off a bit by the bluntness of the answer, however, she seemed resolved to break through the barriers Sarah had put up as she once again fired away, "The rabbit is almost done. Do you need anything to drink?"

"Nah, I got something, should probably get to drinking it sometime in the future. Especially if I want a good night's rest..."

Myrhianna frowned as she remembered the bottle Sarah had sipped from only the night before. She then sighed as she said, "You going to stay with us and eat, or go off like your grumpy self?"

A smile registered briefly on Sarah's lips as she retorted rather blandly, "I think I'll suffer through a meal together, Gods know I deserve such punishment."

Myrhia frowned at the comment. It was a rather bad joke if it was one, and while she had seen the smirk, she wasn't sure how to read it. Still she said softly, "Then I guess I'll get the food, it should be done."

Myrhia quickly retrieved the rabbits before she cut them up and offered a piece to Sarah. Sarah responded in kind with a thank you and began eating quietly remaining mainly to herself. The group ate in silence, and Myrhia seemed rather disturbed by it. It seemed that as well as they had functioned, there was no camaraderie between them. At least with Liliana there had been subject for talk, but with her gone, the subject of Seth and Sarah's connection seemed far too taboo, especially with the reaction in the restaurant they had been in only yesterday.

"So Sarah, what is it like growing up in Lavinya?" Myrhia finally asked.

Sarah stopped chewing for a second as she pondered the answer. The result was that she would have to give some answer or risk losing her cover. As she figured out how to describe it she sighed as she swallowed the rabbit then spot softly, "It’s a bit harsh I won't lie. Very few people are well off, nobility always coming in and out of the city. You could say there is three groups that run that city, and depending on who you trust, you go with a different one. The guard, the thieves, or the trade masters."

"You grow up fast in that city, you basically have to decide what you believe in and guard it jealously. Too many people don't, and while they end up living decently, it’s always by being stepped on by the trade masters and basically put in slavery to them. The guard is no better, they're all in the trade master’s pockets. Its why thievery in Lavinya is such a big deal, were it anywhere else it wouldn't be ranked as high as it is in my home," Sarah explained softly.

Myrhia seemed to remain quiet as Sarah closed her eyes, "You could say the thieves are the freedom fighters. Lavinya is supposed to be without government, but its rule by the rich. They pay the guard, the guard does as they ask, and they are happy so long as the guard can get a thief now and again to hang as an example of what freedom costs. Seth and I grew up vowing to stop that one day..."

"What happened?" Myrhia said softly.

"He lost sight of the goal. He let it slip for a moment, then he let it go. Traveling the world changed him, he lost his pride, he gave into his demons, and he began to believe what others said about him. In the end he paid a price no sane man would pay, and to this day all that remains of the Dahlios clan suffers from it," Sarah explained.

As the sun began to set on the far side of the hills she sighed as she said softly, "I think I'll take the first watch tonight, I need some time to think. I don't think I do that nearly enough nowadays."

"Mind if I joined you?" Myrhia piped up. The real answer was a vehement yes, however she knew that she had to remain cordial. Pushing the girl away would not look good. So she merely shook her head as Myrhia seemed to brighten at the prospect of being around Sarah.

It was something she was thinking she'd regret as she looked at the Marshal, "I suppose you should go rest, you've been pushing it almost as hard if not harder than me. Even vampires need their beauty rest..."

[Letho]

“Everybody has a sad story nowadays.”

Letho wasn’t certain that he had a favorite saying, but the one his mind served during Sarah’s story was probably a serious contender for the first spot. The details changed, as did the venues and the individuals, but the gist of it was compressed in that one simple sentence. Of course, there was a bit of malarkey in Sarah’s story as well. He heard thieves call themselves a lot of things, but today was probably the first time he heard one title herself a freedom fighter. And even if there actually was some truth in it, his rather prejudiced demeanor refused to admit it. So while he wasn’t thickheaded enough to assume all thieves were evil, he was rather certain that he would sooner see cows fly then to see a thief knighted.

Needless to say, he listened with well camouflaged contempt, chewing on the meat – delicious as ever, of course – apathetically. It wasn’t meat that he needed anyways. What his organism did need, came from a small flask that he kept in the inside pocket of his leather coat. He unscrewed the tin vessel, washed down the taste of meet with the metallic taste of cold, stale blood, then returned his attention to the half-eaten piece of roasted rabbit in his hand. Unfortunately, blood wasn’t like wine, it didn’t turn into vintage with time, and that went double when it was animal blood. So even as the crimson liquid made contact with his gastric juices, it proceeded to efficiently kill his appetite. He fed the remnants of his meal to the fire just as Sarah finished her story and offered to take the first watch. Letho wasn’t terribly tired, but seeing that Myrhia was mighty interested to stay up as well and taking into consideration that both of them got a fair share of resting during the afternoon, he could find no objection to the proposition.

“Fine. If I’m not up by midnight, wake me up to take over the watch.” he said, not even bothering to tell them to rouse him from slumber if there was trouble abound. Given his light sleep and his amplified senses, he was probably more likely to sniff out danger before the two of them could. He got up from his place by the fire, collected his weapons and slipped behind one of the shrubs and into the shadows. And even though he was sleepy, he wound up with his eyes wide open and peering at the starry dome above and his ears picking up the exchange between Myrhia and the Lavinian.

“It sounds like a really rough childhood, Sarah.” the redhead finally broke the silence after Letho’s departure. She nibbled on the piece of meat in her hands almost diligently, taking small, courteous bites and chewing them slowly. “But at least you grew up strong and beautiful. Unlike me.”

The last two words were added in a rather wistful tone as her emerald eyes fled to the flames that slowly became the only illumination in the proximity. Seeing that Sarah shared the story of her tough upbringing, Myrhia thought it was only right that she did the same thing, especially because a part of her wanted to talk about it with somebody other then Letho. She looked towards the thief, trying to read any kind of reaction from her fair face, but she felt the eerily gray eyes searching for her own, so she returned her gaze at the fire.

“Scara Brae is actually a rather nice place, with laws and all the bureu... buareau... bureaucratic stuff.” she managed to pronounce it in her third try, smiling embarrassingly at her lack of eloquence. “I sometimes think of it as Corone only in a smaller package. And even though my parents were simple working folk, we got by rather comfortably. I always loved going to the harbor. The smell of the ocean and all those ships with big sails and all the bustle of the docks. It was like a free entrance to a fair ride to me and my brother while we were growing up.”

The reminiscing of those days seemed to instill glee in her emerald eyes, sending them through space and time to once again witness the pleasing sight. But then, as if there was some obstacle between her eyes and the flickering luminance of the fire, they lost their brilliance. “And then my mom got very sick. I was twelve I think and my father just kicked my brother out of our house. He begun drifting, my mom started to lose her strength and within a year all that I was left with was a father who turned into a mean drunk.”

Tears welled in her eyes as she remembered those last days of joy, her mother’s words on her deathbed, the sickening coldness of her pale hands. “I tried to help out, but he just kept drinking and spending money on harlots until eventually he sold me to some slavers for a hundred gold pieces. A hundred gold pieces...” she repeated, and this time there was a tear slipping down her cheek. Luckily, it was on the left side of her face, so her mahogany red hair prevented it from being seen. What went on in the compound of Carlton Mueller, her master, she decided to leave undisclosed. It was a part of her life that she tried to lock behind a set of doors inside her head and while the tattoo that went around her neck always managed to squeeze a memory or two – mostly through nightmares – she mostly managed to keep it in check.

She managed to force a smile back to her face, even utter a faint chuckle as she looked up towards the Lavinian. “You know, I could really use a drink right now.” She said it with somewhat of a knavish yet innocent grin, casting a look over Sarah’s shoulder to check if Letho heard her words. The dark warrior was strict when it came to liquor, limiting it to wines at best, but after recalling some of the most bitter events in her life, Myrhia felt in mood for something with a bit more kick.

[Lavinian Pride]

Sarah heard Myrhia exchange her story with Sarah's, and part of her crumbled. The girl was a slave? No, Sarah couldn't conceive of ever being someone’s servant, let alone their slave. She refused to be someone’s little pet, someone’s piece of property. It was that which seemed to get her ire, was the idea that at the end of the day someone could own another human being. It was as foreign to her as the ale of her homeland was to Myrhia more than likely.

Which was a case in and of itself. She wanted something to just get her through the pain. As Sarah produced the bottle she knew better than to just give the ale to someone. Sighing she closed her eyes before she opened them looking at the bottle. She then said softly, "There is a story behind the ale you know. Most people drink to forget, but ironically the ale is meant to be used to remember. Its bitter as hell, has much more kick than your standard ale, and the reason is it’s supposed to remind you of how you got to the bottle. You are supposed to reflect on your past, see the mistakes and the problems, and not repeat them. Of course, that’s only used every once in awhile, the rest of the time its a drink like anything else."

She smirked at those words before she said, "Well enough semantics, I think you had a rather reasonable request. Not too much though, I'd hate to have to explain to Letho why you're vomiting tomorrow. I figure he'd wallop me a good one for that." She then sighed as she took a thorn and popped the cork, catching it and placing it in her pack for later. Taking a sip she said, "Small sips for now..." then passed the bottle to the red haird ex-slave.

She couldn’t get over it and she watched Myrhia take the bottle. Her slender hands gripping it by the neck as she carefully tilted it towards her mouth and took a sip. Immediately she set the bottle down and coughed patting her chest as she felt the alcohol burn down her throat. It was something that almost made Sarah Laugh, but she knew better. The girl had little confidence in herself, and it was up to Sarah to prove otherwise.

"So, you don't think you're beautiful?" Sarah asked casually. Myrhia still had the bottle and while she was keen to talk to the girl, she knew that this was going to fast be a situation she wouldn't like.

"I'm imperfect Sarah, look at the scar here?" She said softly as she pulled her hair back revealing it. Sarah looked at the scar with feigned interest before she went on, "I'm too skinny, I'm a scrawny woman. And this tattoo? It’s a constant reminder of-"

"Well, you certainly know how to dip into the well of self pity..." Sarah said cutting her off. Myrhia looked at Sarah for a second almost surprised at the forward act. Sarah meanwhile got up and sat on the side of Myrhia that had shown the scar. She then gently brushed the red tresses back as she gently drew a finger along it. She then smirked as she said, "Just as I thought, it defines you. You just don't like what it has to say."

Myrhia shuddered at the gentle touch. She then looked at Sarah as she bit her lip before she said, "It's ugly, I wish it wasn't there."

"Did Letho say that?" Sarah asked politely.

"No, but-"

"Then why does it matter? The opinions of slave owners never should matter to their slaves. It’s their job to break the spirit of them. They will say or do anything to turn their slaves into helpless automatons. Just shuffling about doing as their told," Sarah said sternly. Myrhia turned to look at her, her eyes wide before Sarah cupped her cheek gracefully, "Don't compare yourself to me; you're far tougher than me Myrhia. You endured so much more, that even I can't remain bitter around you. You're cheery, spunky, you have a sarcastic wit that makes me laugh every time it pops out to say hello."

Myrhia blushed as she pulled back. She looked confused and Sarah sighed as she watched Myrhia take a hit from the bottle. Carefully pulling the bottle from Myrhia's hands she took a sip of her own before she backed off the girl. She was dangerously close to flirting, and she had a no attachment rule. She couldn't afford to let the girl get too close. It would only hurt her in the end. She merely looked at the fire as she felt the green eyes upon her.

Myrhia seemed to be deep in pensive thought before she said, "You said it defines me, what does it say?"

Sarah smirked, knowing she was getting through, albeit slowly. Tucking a bit of brown hair behind her ear she said softly, "It says that you refuse to be tamed. It shows me that you were always resisting, much like I would, but then again I can't be certain. I didn't know you before yesterday."

Myrhia only remained silent.

[Letho]

Myrhia contemplated on the words that Sarah spoke in a semi-loopy fashion that oftentimes occurred to intoxicated people. She wasn’t completely tipsy, but the two sips seemed to go through her belly like acid and down to her knees, turning them into gelatin, before the alcohol worked its way back up to shroud her mind into mild haze. The thoughts that were usually neatly lined up like platoons of soldiers on a battlefield became a frantic mush and in the midst of these fallen ranks there was always one specific thought, one sentiment, one emotion that the pie-eyed people clung to with utmost stubbornness. Sometimes it was a trivial detail that kept rewinding in the minds of the drunkards. Sometimes it was an old love that the liquor cat dragged in. Sometimes it was a piece of wisdom whose apparency suddenly became crystal clear.

In Myrhia’s case, that one persistent mentation was the scar on her face and the incredibly kind words that Sarah spoke about it. The Lavinian didn’t try to sweet-talk the redhead with falsely empathetic words just to make her feel better. Her words had a profound meaning, offering an explanation that made so much sense, it had to be true. The gruesome scar on her cheek defined her not as ugly, but as somebody who went through hell and had a mark to prove it, not as a weakling that couldn’t defend herself, but as somebody strong enough to weather the storm. It was a view from a completely different angle and with the effects of the bitter booze that flushed her usually pale cheeks, that view became irrationally indisputable.

“Yeah.” the ex-slave said after a short pause, her voice a faint whisper. Her green eyes shyly ascended from the fire and towards Sarah and she reiterated with rejuvenated boldness. “Yeah! You’re right. I’m a cherry and spooky and all those other things you said. Who cares what others think, right?”

Despite her low alcohol tolerance, Myrhia’s vision was still focused enough to enable her to look at the beautiful thief with a grateful, beaming smile. “You know what? I’m getting rid of this hair.” the redhead said, half of her bravery originating in ale-induced stupor, the other half coming with the courtesy of the candid Lavinian. She jerked herself up to her feet, then stood there for a couple of seconds, waiting for the stars and trees to stop moving around in a centrifugal fashion, before she doggedly moved towards one of the horses. She opened one of the saddlebags, shuffled through the contents for quite some time, her other hand holding onto the tranquil horse for support. After more then a minute, he pulled out a pair of scissors.

With the procured tool, Myrhia careened back to the beacon in the darkness that was the flickering fire. She started seeing too many flame tongues intertwining with each other, but at this point she didn’t care anymore. Once she finally made her way to the campfire, the willowy redhead lowered herself right next to Sarah, offering the rather blurry girl another one of her innocent smiles.

“This stupid hair. I can never see well with it falling over my eyes anyways. But no more.” she said, her left hand grasping the mahogany locks that fell over the scarred side of her face. Her right brought the scissors, made a sloppy snip some two inches in front of the actual hair threads and left Myrhia frown at her failure.

“Myrhia, maybe you shouldn’t do that. It’s the alcohol...” Sarah tried to stop her, but even before the hands of the rogue vixen managed to touch Myrhia’s, the redhead reacted.

“No! No, it’s not the ale. I... I want this... I need this.” she spoke almost through tears, her mood fluctuation an obvious sign of her inebriation. Her tiny hands grabbed a hold of the hair once again, the scissors once again trying and failing to clip the intended locks. Sarah moved more resolutely now, both her hands now trapping Myrhia’s wrists, forcing the redhead to look up at the dominant thief.

“At least let me do it. So it doesn’t come out uneven.” the woman that Myrhia considered gorgeous by now said in a soft tone, smirking mildly, making the former slave blush even further and nod obediently. One measured snip after the other, the red hair threads fell from the front of her face and onto the grass below, taking away the curtain behind which the red-haired lass hid herself for years now. Her emerald eyes never left Sarah’s face as the woman worked, looking up at her with gratefulness that borderlined with idolization, looking up with both her eyes once the cutting was done.

“There. All better now.” Sarah spoke, brushing several renegade threads that stuck to Myrhia’s cheek. The small, pale hand of the diminutive girl went to her face, touched the newly revealed portion of her face, touched the defining scar. And instead the woe that usually struck her when she touched the scar, Myrhia smiled heartily.

“Thank you, Sarah.” she said, her voice weak and emotional as she leant forward and kissed Sarah’s cheek, wrapping her arms around the thief. However, instead of moving away from the curvy body of the Lavinian as soon as her lips left the suave cheek, Myrhia’s face lingered a mere inch from Sarah’s, her large green eyes gazing into the mysteriously gray ones of the woman.

“So pretty...” she muttered, then seemed to make a move to kiss Sarah again before her eyes rolled over and she succumbed to the alcohol in her system.

[Lavinian Pride]

Sarah watched the results of merely two sips of alcohol. Perhaps she should have poured the quantity because no matter how much she warned, Myrhia was too much a light weight when it came to liquor. As she sighed brushing the red hair from off her she carefully picked up the red head before she set her on the ground with a pack under her head at least as a pillow. That done she gently brushed a bit of loose hair from the red head's face before she whispered, "Better off not trying Kid, but thanks..."

The cryptic words said she sighed as she gathered a bit of wood off to the side, left from when Letho had gathered some firewood and used it to feed the fire. Grabbing the bottle she sighed as she took a deep draught. Feeling it begin to hit her system she sighed as she said, "Poor girl, makes my story sound like a joke..."

Sitting on the log she considered her story. It was a rather complicated one, one that she seldom went over, she was Seth Dahlios, that much was certain. However, even she didn't know what happened, and how she came to be in this body. However, she did know one thing, this body belonged to her dead mother, and it was something she was finding herself rather ashamed of.

She had desecrated the body, had turned it into something even worse than Seth ever was. She was a harlot, a drunk, a washed up thief. She had allowed too much to go without any thought. She had even subtly seduced Myrhia now that she thought about it. Her need and yearning overcame her better judgment, as she set about trying to find something to fill the emptiness inside of her.

Sipping her drink she looked at the sleeping red head. She was so innocent so pure. It reminded her of Liliana in some respects. However, unlike Liliana, she wasn't sure if she could be forgiven for what Seth had done to her. Should the truth get out and Myrhia found out that Sarah was indeed Seth Dahlios; it would tear her apart to see betrayal and anger in those innocent green eyes. As much as she had tried to not get attached to Myrhia she had. It was frustrating because should anything happen, now it would be too personal.

Perhaps that’s why she did it. She wanted to feel loved; it had been awhile since anyone seemed interested in what Sarah had to say. While she attributed it to a childhood crush she knew that it was attention, attention that had she not taken the job she would never have gotten. She liked to pretend she didn't need anyone, but in the end she needed to feel like someone out there cared for her.

Still she took a deep draught of alcohol as she got up muttering, "Bed time." She then moved over to Letho before she said sternly, loud enough for Letho to hear, "Come on, wake up, your turn. Wake me if something interesting happens..."

She then left the steadily rising man and made herself a spot to sleep as she reached into her pack and corked the bottle before she put it back in its place of honor. Shoving it into her pack she rested her head on it, before she closed her heavy eyelids.

[Letho]

The silence of the forest fallen into the cool grasp of the night was usually both a blessing and a curse for Letho Ravenheart. It was never an ultimate, graveyard silence, never completely soundless. The woodlands had a certain chaotic pattern that brought tranquility to his mind, a combination of sounds that were rather irritating on their own, but when merged into one, they created an adagio that could lull even the most troubled minds. But even when relaxed, the mind never lay dormant, it never tarried, and instead of the calm, the night usually brought a pile of unanswered questions. He would usually take a crack at them, walk in circles inside of his head for quite some time, tossing and turning until he either reached the conclusion (rarely) or his body called a timeout (more often then not).

But tonight was different. There was another set of sounds disrupting the melancholic symphony of the darkness, a pair of voices that simply couldn’t go unnoticed. Sarah and Myrhia spoke mostly in whispers and hushed tones, but in such an environment - even if Letho wasn’t curious which he most certainly was - he overheard their conversation. The Lavinian offered a touch of sympathy and a touch of alcohol and together those two managed to break through the already cracked shell of the former slave. Myrhia needed those words, she needed them like the desert needed the rain, and she needed them to come from somebody other then the man that lied to her. However given her rather serene nature, Letho never expected that she would do something as drastic as getting rid of those locks that he begged her to cut on several occasions. Maybe he should’ve gotten her drunk like Sarah did.

Suffice to say, the sleep for the fallen knight was unattainable that night, slipping through his grasp like a piece of fresh fish. So when the ale finally overcame Myrhia and Sarah had her fill from the jug she carried in her pack, the swordsman was actually relieved to take over the vigil over their little campsite. He got up with deliberately slow movements that were a mere pretense, making him look as if he was just roused from deep sleep. “Yeah, sure.” he replied, stretching a bit. “But let us hope that doesn’t happen. We’ll need our strength for tomorrow.”

Walking at a weary-looking gait, Letho reached the modest fire, unmistakably noticing kipping Myrhia. Her pale face was colored orange by the flames, all of it – including the lengthy scar on her cheek – clearly visible to the swordsman despite the inky night that surrounded their camp. He loved that scar, loved it because it was an essential part of her, a detail in her idiosyncrasy that made her look unique. But unlike Sarah, Letho found it difficult to express his emotions and explain it to the redhead. It had nothing to do with his eloquence or his vocabulary though, but rather with this weather-worn callousness that punched him in the face every time he tried to display his sentiments towards Myrhia. She was unfreezing him gradually, but it was a slow process that was still pending, especially now when they each remained at safe distance until further notice.

The hours until dawn he spent looking at her tranquil face, listening to the muffled whimpers that she let out every once in a while. He oiled his weapons once again, slowly and deliberately so as not to rouse neither Myrhia nor Sarah, but his eyes rested on her sweet visage. He mulled on what awaited them tomorrow and what would happen if this Eastern Cave turns out to be a dead end, but his eyes traced her perfect lips. He cursed his own weakness, his treachery, reprimanding himself over and over again, but his eyes caught her every movement, regardless of how minute and insignificant it was. Ultimately, when the abysmal darkness around them started to wane, Letho got up, leant over her lithe form and picked up a lock of her mahogany hair. He already had one lock of hair in his possession, a suave chestnut lock of his dead wife, Kristiniel. His pessimistic mind thought that it would be best if he prepared himself for losing another woman in his life. He tied a leather string around her mahogany hair threads, inhaled their scent once, and then tucked the inner pocket of his coat.

***

“Rise and shine, ladies!” Letho said in a falsely jovial tone, eliciting a hiss from the charcoaled embers when he poured some water from one of his canteens. “There’s a long day ahead of us, so we better start early. There’s some meat jerky for breakfast.”

Myrhia mumbled something incomprehensible that sounded like ‘too early’, rolled over on her back and yawned widely, her eyelids first refusing to open, then squinting just barely. “I’ll pass.” she finally said, pushing herself up on her elbows first, then to a sitting position. Her head felt vacant, as if there was no gray matter within her skull to dampen Letho’s loud voice. She grasped her head with both her hands in a futile attempt to stop the mild headache, but instead she found no hair in front of her face. Myrhia’s first reaction was a startle, her eyes shooting wide open and looking up at Letho. The swordsman said nothing, only smiled amiably before moving towards their mounts.

It sunk in slowly, like sand in an hourglass, her recollections of the previous night slowly presenting themselves to her. She remembered the conies and the rabbit’s foot and... “Sarah...” her mind offered in a rather ambiguous manner. Yes, they swapped their sad stories and tried to drown them in some ale and... “The definition...” that the scar gave her. The last thing she remembered was looking up at the Lavinian as she cut off the hair that obstructed her vision. But even that was enough to draw out a smile on Myrhia’s face, a smile that was unafraid of the mangled skin on her cheek.

She couldn’t wait for Sarah to get up as well and once the thief did so, the redhead scampered to her, standing in front of the woman with the two emeralds smiling with the eyes below. Letho felt a bit tired of this irrational ardor, but he was in no position to advise Myrhia right now, so he focused on checking the equipment on their horses.

“Good morning, Sarah.” she finally said, and then, without a warning, she hugged the rogue tightly. “Thank you for last night... And for this.” she touched her own face. “I’m in your debt.”

“If you two want to palaver, you can do it while we ride.” Letho spoke from the other side of the clearing, his voice somewhere between a proposition and a command.

Myrhia, still holding on to Sarah, sighed pensively. “Business as usual.”

[Lavinian Pride]

Sarah slept through the night, happy that she had finally gotten drunk enough to escape dreams for the night. As she awoke the next morning she felt the pounding headache, and the loud voice of one Marshall Letho Ravenheart. While she could hear Myrhia once again start with the sarcasm she was trying to put her head back on straight. Having done this awhile she had gotten used to the hung over mornings, just as she had when she was Seth, drowning in ale because of squandered opportunities.

Reaching into her pack for a water flask she sipped it letting the water diffuse the remnants of the poison in her system. It was that venomous alcohol that threatened to ruin her morning, and possibly her afternoon as well. That done she got up and stretched more than aware of the fact she was once again dead in the targets of the red head. Last night faded to her and she knew exactly what went on. So it was no surprise when Myrhia hugged the girl tightly speaking of a debt and furthermore of thanks.

Yeah kid, if you only knew who I was, you wouldn't be thanking me so quickly, Sarah thought bitterly as she let the girl hug her. Letho spoke up telling them it was time to go, and as Myrhia muttered about business as usual Sarah sighed and muttered, "Yeah, business as usual."

She wanted so badly to cut the girl off, Myrhia was dangerously close; she could see it in the marshal's eyes. He wasn't stupid anyone could see the infatuation. The way she clung to Sarah, spoke solely to Sarah it was quite obvious that she was the girl's idol, if not worse. She didn't want to be there logically, but that perverse pleasure, the thought of being loved by someone, it egged her on. The silent cheer that she mattered to someone, that she would be remembered fondly by someone.

Saddling up on her horse Myrhia seemed to pick up on something in the thief before she said, "You alright Sarah?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, bit too much to drink last night. Overdid what I was going for, doesn't matter I'll deal," Sarah replied calmly. She could feel the eyes of concern, and stern eyes upon her. Admitting to getting drunk on the job was not a good thing, but it was better to admit it, than try to hide it, only to have it rear its ugly head at an inopportune moment.

As they moved following the Ranger they made road as Sarah remained silent. Myrhia would occasionally try to get something out of the thief, only to get a calm and short reply. She wasn't irritating Sarah at all, but she wasn't getting anywhere with her either. Finally she asked perhaps one of the more personal questions she had ever said, "Do you have someone Sarah?"

Sarah sighed as she contemplated the answer, "No, I don't, been putting business before pleasure a lot. I try not to get too attached to anyone, helps me stay objective."

"That's a rather lonely way to go," Myrhia said a noble frown upon her face as she pulled beside Sarah. Sarah merely kept her face forward as she tried to avoid eye contact with Myrhia.

"Its hard to get attached to someone when, if they find out who you're related to, they often drop you like a bad habit. There is still some places in the world I can't say my last name, for fear I'll be lynched in his place," Sarah said sternly.

Once again the topic was on Seth, and Myrhia seemed to observe Sarah for a bit. She could sense some hostility towards Seth, and it was something that she hid carefully. If there was one thing Sarah seemed to keep secret it was her connection to Seth, which was understandable. Family wasn't something you aired out in front of everyone. Family was family, your last haven against a cruel world.

Except neither Myrhia nor Sarah had that haven anymore.

Sarah had to not look; she couldn't afford to look into those green orbs. It was already hard to keep it together, and to see Myrhia's look of pity would send her over the edge. As they continued down the road, they finally hit a road going east and made the turn effortlessly. Sarah kept her eyes on Letho, part of her wondering just how whiney she sounded to the Ranger. All she had done on this trip was clam up and try to keep her head down, yet it always got exposed, always was put in the spotlight.

A slender hand made its way to Sarah's shoulder, a hand that seemed to know. Sarah was wounded, scarred in another way. However, no matter how carefully she hid the wound, it was there as garish and ugly as anything else. The hand on her shoulder seemed to understand. It was pain, it was fresh, it wouldn't go away. It squeezed her shoulder gently as it tried to reassure her. She remained silent though; she had said too much already, she couldn't afford another misstep.

As they continued east, it was all Sarah could do not to seek comfort in those green eyes.

[Letho]

The day around them was as vibrant as they come. It was Concordia at its best, with ravishing, sun-bathed canopy forming a continuous, perforated arch above their heads, making the trio ride through a green tunnel. Most of the wild animals steered clear of the established roads, but there was still a good number that didn’t, mostly chirping birds and pesky insects that added to the whole atmosphere of a sunny day that seemed oblivious to perils and thoughts that lurked in the deepest recesses of the human mind. Well, at least one human mind.

Letho was in a miserable mood and the further they rode, the worse his state of mind became. First and foremost reason for this was naturally Myrhia and her sudden fondness of Sarah. He knew that the redhead’s kindness and compassion seldom knew boundaries and that was one of the reasons why he loved her so much. But what he saw in those emerald eyes more and more passed the threshold between mere friendliness and something significantly more serious then a platonic relationship. More and more Myrhia started to look at Sarah in a manner that she used to look at him, with that coy desire in her emerald eyes that wanted to reach out and touch a person in more then just a metaphysical way. It was a double blow for Letho, a cheap shot that got his pride on the ropes and ready for a knockout. Not only was he losing her, but he was losing her to another woman. It was preposterous and vexing and a lot of other things that should’ve made the Corone Marshal break all ties with the redhead from whose favor he was long gone. But Letho wasn’t a quitter. He took the punches and held his course, because win or lose, that was the only way he would be able to sleep again, knowing that he did everything in his power to get her back.

Still, that didn’t mean he had to like it.

Another reason for his Dour Face as Myrhia called it was the fact that his ability to judge distances once again proven unreliable, and as the day moved on and they rode eastwards, it became rather clear that they wouldn’t make it to the Eastern Cave before nightfall. They would probably get in the vicinity, but given the fact that he didn’t know the exact location of this cave, Letho didn’t want to go search for it during the night. Concordia was quite an amicable place during the day, but when the night fell and you strayed away from the inhabited places, it was as wild and as unpredictable as the Red Forest in Alerar. Probably not as dangerous, but still a risk that shouldn’t be taken lightly.

The sun was in the western part of the sky, slowly losing the vehement yellow and morphing into a calm orange, when a sign on the side of the road announced they were Welcome to Moyes! It was an unremarkable, any-place-in-Concordia town with unremarkable wooden homes and unremarkable hard-working folk and Letho knew that it wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. After all, Willowtown was not much different save for the sea of trees that here seemed to go on forever in all directions. The threesome of newcomers was followed with inquisitive but generally friendly eyes, especially once Letho took out his badge and pinned it to his coat. Folk were always more at peace knowing that a lawman just rode into their town instead of a mysterious stranger.

“We’re going to stay here overnight.” he said to the two females once they stopped in front of one of the three stone buildings that were nestled around the main square that was a little more then a large dirt patch. Besides the Wyrm’s Shadow inn in front of which Letho dismounted, there was a rather modest church with a half-finished bell tower, a two-storey manor that was probably the town hall and a general store that seemed freshly built. The locals that lazed around – mostly tittering maidens and coltish children – stopped their activities for a while, looking at the out-of-town visitors that just rode into their little piece of nowhere.

“It’s bound to be dark soon and looking for a cave during a Concordia night is like trying to find an honest man in Radasanth. It’s possible, but highly unlikely.” he said, drawing out a humble chuckle from Myrhia who jumped off her mount. “Besides, the locals might be able to give us some directions.”

Taking off his saddlebags, Letho made a move to do what he usually did; collect Myrhia’s as well. But she intercepted him this time, pulling it off her horse and throwing it over her shoulder. He took the punch and held his course, his face refusing to reflect his disappointment. And then another one came.

“If she doesn’t mind, I’d like for Sarah and me to share a room.” the redhead said, looking at the thief with the smallest, coyest of smiles. She wanted to be close to the Lavinian, to listen more about her, to nurture this little fire that was burning with her heart. But she didn’t want it to be overly obvious. “It... uhm... It’s cheaper that way. We don’t have to pay for three rooms.”

It was bull, that’s what it was, but Letho merely nodded and led the way inside. Because maybe he understood it now. Maybe Myrhia, despite all her benevolence and tenderness, despite all the innocence and lightheartedness, maybe she needed to get her vengeance on him. Making him jealous and playing impossible to get was certainly a plausible way to do it. So he took it in stride and let her have her way with this entire situation.

The innkeeper was idly nestled in his chair behind the counter, leant backwards and reading newspapers in the vacant foyer. When Letho entered, followed by the two girls, the man with an army haircut and sun-kissed tan dropped the papers, rocked dangerously backwards and found salvation in grasping the receptionist’s desk before him. The room around him was rather rustic, robbed of all unnecessary ornaments, but still very well maintained. However, given the surprise on the man’s face, Letho reckoned the business wasn’t flourishing lately.

“Greetings, ladies. And the same to you, sir... I mean, Marshal.” the man said, fumbling the papers and getting up to his feet. “What brings you to Moyes?”

“We need two rooms. One for me and one for the ladies.” Letho spoke, not interested in chitchat as usual. “Also, if it’s possible, somebody to tend to our horses.”

“Absolutely, Marshal.” the eager innkeeper spoke, then added in a courteous manner. “How long are you planning to stay in our humble establishment?”

“Just tonight. We have business elsewhere tomorrow.”

The clerk jotted something down in the book behind the counter. “Very well. That will be thirty gold pieces. Ten for the one-bed room, fifteen for the two-bed room and five for your mounts.”

Letho deposited the necessary amount on the counter and picked up both keys that the proprietor of Wyrm’s Shadow handed over. He turned, approached Myrhia and pressed the key into her hand with relative indifference. Leaning towards her, the swordsman whispered into her ear. “If this is something you need to do, I understand.”

With the words that shocked the redhead enough to gasp, Letho made his way up the stairs and towards his room. Myrhia looked at the key in her hands, then noticed that Sarah was observing her with those piercing, cryptic eyes of hers. It was enough to make the ex-slave smile a bit reluctantly. “Come on, let’s go up to our room. I’m sore all over from riding.”

[Lavinian Pride]

They had entered the town. It was a small backwater place, the kind that someone could get lost in and disappear form the public. It was a place you could call home until it no longer suited you, and it was a place that Sarah might have explored, were it not for her job. She had been so close on the way here to just breaking down, but she managed to keep it together. She was under control, she was a big girl, she was confident.

She was lying through her teeth, to herself and Myrhia.

As she approached the inn she heard Myrhia negotiate the room arrangements. It wasn't a shock that she wanted to have Sarah in her room, but it was a shock to see her trying more subtle flirts. Perhaps Sarah had merely been trying to pass it off as innocence but the girl had an air of confidence about her that seemed to scream that she knew what she was doing, if only basically. However, she didn't give it any fuel as they entered the inn, the look of irritation on Letho's face making her give the Marshal wide berth.

As she entered the room she leaned against the wall by the door as she watched the exchange between the innkeeper and Letho, then between Myrhia and Letho. It was obvious Sarah had some hold over Myrhia, for Letho was trying to hide something, be it pain, discomfort, or even jealousy she couldn't tell, but Letho was hiding something. She could identify it only because she herself was doing it, and so she could pick up on the glances, the subtle shudders. The tell tale signs that there was something underneath the gruff exterior.

Myrhia gasped at something Letho said before he moved upstairs and Sarah couldn’t pick it up, but she didn't want to either. It was their business, and while it was her business to protect their business it seemed that Myrhia was left alone with the Lavinian. As she met eyes with Sarah, she felt something pulse through her, her heart racing at something buried in those green eyes. She knew she was getting attached but she remained still, unmoving as Myrhia suggested they move upstairs.

She knew what was going to happen. That was what excited her, the idea that someone desired her. Still she closed her eyes softly as she looked down, kicking herself. She had damned them, the second she showed up she had condemned them to being torn apart. Part of her felt guilty, as she knew that Myrhia had not spent a second with Letho since her entering the group. If they were the star crossed lovers that she knew them to be, she shouldn’t have interfered, but interfere she had. Indirectly but still, she had destroyed the hope they had.

She felt sick to her stomach. As she moved for the stairs Myrhia spoke softly, "Are you alright Sarah?"

"I'll be fine," She said softly, her voice leaving a bit of an emotional edge. Myrhia seemed to pick up on it as she followed Sarah. Looking at the hallway she sighed before she said, "Lead on, I don't have the key..."

Myrhia nodded as she moved down the hall a look of confusion in her green eyes. As she reached the door she unlocked it before she opened it, watching as Sarah moved into the room. Immediately her gloves were pulled off and tossed in her pack as she began to take off her gear. It wasn't needed right now, though she was more than aware that doing such an act only gave more fuel to Myrhia's fire. The girl seemed to be entranced with the thief, and Sarah couldn't help but feel more guilt.

Myrhia picked up on this as a timid hand rested on Sarah's back. It was soft and gentle, fitting of its owner as Sarah closed her eyes freezing. She relished the touch, the feel of the hand, but she was conflicted. To invite more would surely damn her, but to deny Myrhia would be unfair to the girl, especially after how Sarah had strung her out, and led her along. As Myrhia moved close to Sarah she said softly, "What's wrong?"

Sarah clammed up as she moved out from under the hand and continued to take off her gear. Her eyes remained off of Myrhia as she continued to try and play platonic. However, it seemed that wasn't going to happen as Myrhia moved beside her, "Sarah, speak to me..."

"Just tired, long couple of days," Sarah said softly. Myrhia seemed crestfallen as she looked at the thief sit on the edge of one of the beds. Sarah gently rubbed a temple before Myrhia moved over to her and sat beside her.

"Something is wrong Sarah; it's more than that isn't it?" Myrhia said softly, Sarah could almost feel the concern washing over her as she tried to keep away. However she felt a frail hand rest on her cheek as she pulled Sarah to face her, the green eyes boring into her own as she whispered, "What's wrong? Is it me?"

Sarah felt her heart wrench at those words, the fear in the girl's eyes twisting the knife even further as she wanted so badly to make it right. As she looked at the girl she looked down and realized they were very, very close. She couldn't resist this girl her innocence her charm. Even if she knew what she was doing, she couldn't know the consequences, nor the magnitude of what she was doing. Sarah however whispered softly, "No, it's not you, I just feel wrong about you spending so much time with me."

It was out there. Garishly and blatantly she bared her emotions for a brief moment, knowing the girl was capable of hurting her. However Myrhia seemed to frown upon hearing it as she said, "Me and Letho, we aren't really together, we used to be, but we're trying different things right now."

Sarah's eyes rose to Myrhia's as she seemed in disbelief. The girl wasn't taken by the lout? If that was the case she didn't feel sorry at all. He was an idiot for not trying to get her back more forcefully. Instead he seemed the silent protestor the entire time, and while she understood to a degree, she would have broken down had this young enchantress left her. However Sarah had to be sure, "You and him, you two aren't together? You mean you aren't courting or-"

"I am a free woman Sarah, free to chose who I stay with, who I enjoy. You don't need to worry about Letho, he has no say in what goes on in here,” She answered. The answer blew away the last of the grief as she felt a bit of hope kindle in her chest. Perhaps she could get Myrhia; perhaps she wouldn’t care about who she was. It didn't matter anymore.

Myrhia seemed to notice the change as she whispered, "What’s going on in there?" The response was a full bodied kiss, as deliberate as it was forceful. It caught the red head by surprise with its ferocity, but even more, with its softness. Her arms wrapped around Sarah's neck as they embraced molding their bodies against each other.

Sarah broke the kiss as she whispered softly in Myrhia's ear, "I'll go slowly, don't want to hurry you..."

A sweet smile was on Myrhia's face as she said softly, "Thank you, I'd like that..."

[Letho]

He couldn’t be in here, not right now, not when his Myrhia was in the room next door, giving herself to a woman. The Marshal thought he could, that he would put his guard up and wait until the torrent of punches pass, but even as he entered his room, he felt like somebody was stabbing him in the gut. She was one wall away and there wasn’t a damn thing he could do to change her mind. In a way, being in this limbo where he both was and wasn’t hers was worse that being without his beloved all together. He was sustaining all the pain and getting none of the pleasure or mind ease. So Letho sat on a chair beside his bed, his elbows on his knees, his chin supported by his right hand and his eyes on the simplistic pattern in the navy blue carpet interwoven with golden yellow. He was fully dressed and chances were that he would stay that way and that his saddlebag and his weapons were the only thing that would rest on the unremarkable single bed. How could he sleep when even now he could hear the silent, tolerant whispers of the two through the thin wall? How could he sleep when he knew it was just a prologue of things to come, thing that would tear through him like a dragon’s talon?

No, there would be no rest for him if he stayed. More likely then not he would be driven insane. He knew Myrhia, knew her mellisonant moans and occasional uncontrolled screams of pleasure, knew the sound of her shallow breathing and the tears of sheer joy and pleasure that welled in her eyes as she reached a climax. To know that was happening beyond a thin wall and that he had no part in this, it would probably wreck him for good. So Letho got up. Out of hearing distance and sight wouldn’t be completely out of mind, but it would be enough to prevent him from doing something drastic. Like loading that gunblade, pointing it at his own face and turn his head into a crimson blot. He did his best to be as silent as possible as he crept out of his room and made his way down the stairs and into the vestibule where the receptionist dozed behind the counter. The man was roused form his thin slumber by the sound of Letho’s footsteps, but by the time he got his bearing, Letho already slipped through the front door.

The evening outside was still almost an hour from becoming into a full-grown night, introducing a specter of blues instead of the inky black, but the Marshal regarded the environment with barely a glance. He strode over the main square resolvedly, like a man that was late for a meeting, keeping his hands stuffed into his pockets and his eyes skimming over the people that greeted him with false smiles, courteous nods of their heads and even several curtseys from the ladies that seemed to be out for an evening stroll. They were like ghosts to him right now. He didn’t want company, didn’t want to feign propriety. He wanted to get away from all this, seek some serenity in the surrounding trees that asked no questions and sought no explanation.

Moyes was a modest woodcutter’s town so Letho exited it in less then two minutes of his determined walking and found himself in the surrounding forest. He hoped that he would feel a burden literally fall from his shoulders once he entered the thick darkness below the tree crowns, that he would find some consolation in the ruffling sound that the breeze made while passing through the lush branches above, but like yesterday night, all that tranquility brought was more questions. And thoughts of what were Myrhia and Sarah doing right now. He strode on, his pace almost a run, past the solemn, centuries-old trunks and obstructing undergrowth. Owls mocked him with their hoos, crickets played their seductive yet irritating tunes, calling for their mates. Letho’s hands balled into tight fists. He ran aimlessly now, tripping, stumbling, correcting himself, feeling the need to scream and crush something between his fingers. The air that he inhaled was like fire. The shadows around him, dense and abysmal, passed by in a blur.

He was running uphill for several minutes (almost falling flat on his face in a stream that appeared out of nowhere), fighting with the forest around him and the thoughts within his head, before he stumbled into a clearing. The entire scene reminded him of the one in front of lich’s cave, only the hill in which the cavern mouth stood seemed significantly larger, looming above him as it reached for the star-plagued sky. And just like before, there was a faint glow within the cave, only this time it was a shimmer of tantalizing warmth. Letho stopped in his tracks, his breathing now ragged and hasty, struggling to even itself out. Without careful deliberation, miserable and careless, the Marshal walked right into the illuminated grotto.

There was once again an uncanny scent in the air, only instead of the decay and death, a smell of brimstone was firmly dominating. The luminance wasn’t the eerily magical kind that emanated itself from the very walls, but much more mundane looking, growing stronger with each step he made. Once Letho turned around the first bend, no more then twenty feet from the entrance, he was introduced to the source of the light.

In a spherical room not that much bigger then the one the Marshal rented back in the Wyrm’s Shadow sat a robed figure. It was hunched and leant over a small table made out of dusty marble with a round surface that had a sheen of chintzy tin. A rusty petroleum lamp hanged from the low ceiling shaped like a rough dome made out of stone. The cave seemed like a genuinely natural formation to Letho and the sole visitor seemed almost as old as the cave. With a face that seemed ancient, the white, nicely trimmed beard, bushy eyebrows and long, silvery hair, the man that had his elbows propped on the table surface peered down at neatly arranged piles of playing cards. He didn’t seem to notice the intruder, but even as Letho made a step forwards, the old geezer spoke without diverting his eyes from the cards.

“Running through the woods weaponless is certainly not the wisest thing to do.” he said, his fingers picking up one cascading piles of cards and attaching it to another, larger one. He flipped the card that was below.

“Who are you? What are you doing here?” the Marshal asked, approaching tentatively. There was no echo of his voice, no sound other then his own clothes brushing against each other and the tap of the cryptic man’s fingers on the metal.

“Interesting. You ask me questions that I should rightfully be asking you. But I already know the answers...” the man in simple, gray robes spoke, taking a card from the stack at the side. “...Letho Ravenheart.”

Letho felt the need to brandish a weapon and bring his defenses up. Nothing sought precaution more then a stranger that knew your name. But given the fact that both the Lawmaker and his bastard sword rested on his bed back in Moyes, he had no other option but to confront the man barehanded. He circled through the room until he stood at the opposite side of the tiny, round table, placed his hands on the backrest of a vacant chair and looked at the man who sedately took another card from the stack. “Who are you, old man?”

“Names.” the gray-haired card player said. “Names are too powerful to be disclosed so carelessly, wouldn’t you agree?”

Letho did. It was one of his favorite sayings, a remnant of wisdom from the times he was a Savion prince in a land far in the West. Every name was an omen, he was taught, and as such should be handled with care. But Savion was in the past and the same laws didn’t apply to Corone. “And yet you know mine without even regarding me with your eyes.”

“It’s hard not to when it resounds across these lands like a bell.”

“Fair enough. So what are you doing here, in the middle of nowhere, old man?” Letho asked.

“Me? I’m playing a game of cards. The question is what are you doing here, Marshal? What were you chasing? Or should I ask what were you running from?” the man said, flipping another card from the stack. It was a king of spades. “Perhaps the law.” Another card, this time the ace of diamonds. “Perhaps the reputation.” The third card was the queen of hearts. “Or perhaps it’s a broken heart.”

“What are you, some kind of fortune teller?” Letho asked suspiciously, folding his hands over his chest. The man laughed a raspy, silent laughter.

“That’s certainly neatly put. Fortune teller. I ensure you, if I could tell where a fortune was, I wouldn’t be here.”

“I wasn’t referring to that kind of fortune.”

“I reckoned that much. I just enjoy the phrase. But no, I’m not a fortune teller. I merely see a lot.” the man said, raising his head for the first time and setting his crimson eyes on Letho’s. “Take a seat, Marshal. I think we should palaver.”

[Lavinian Pride]

Sarah kissed Myrhia softly and tenderly as they continued to explore the pent up emotions between them. The girl however, seemed like she was caught in a rather scary situation. Sarah had seen the type before countless times, this was new, it was taboo, it was frightening, and it was scary. She knew the best way was to simply continue at it slowly, and they would come around. A caress here a nibble there and soon Myrhia began to grow bolder.

However, she seemed to get rather shy again when she reached up to begin taking off the dress she had worn today. Her eyes lifted to Sarah as if to beg forgiveness, only to receive a gentle kiss, "Don't worry about it, take your time, this about you getting comfortable."

She smiled softly at Sarah before she whispered, "Thank you."

Sarah only nodded as she longed to help Myrhia, but knew better. You simply couldn't hurry a girl like this. To do so was to put the entire night in danger as she would run faster than a jack rabbit from the predator. Still Sarah made sure to keep the scene intimate by kissing flesh as it got exposed to her eyes. Myrhia seemed to slowly overcome her shyness, until the scars started showing. It seemed that the girl had far too much in her past to be as carefree as she pretended to be in the daytime.

Still Sarah merely waited before she pulled of her own top revealing more of her body to Myrhia. A slender hand going forward until it touched a scar that had been hidden by the top. It was small to say the least, but its location was unmistakable, it was located firmly over the heart. As she closed her eyes she heard the obvious question, "What happened?"

Sarah knew what happened, but she couldn't tell her, not yet. So she gently moved the hand from the scar on her chest as she whispered softly, "Not yet, maybe soon, but, that’s a story for another time."

Myrhia gave her a look of curiosity, something that intrigued her was that scar. However as she moved closer she noticed a very thin scar across Sarah's neck as well. Before she could ask though, the Lavinian acted with a grace that caught her off guard as she kissed her fully and pinned her to the bed. Sarah then pulled back as she whispered, "No questions tonight, perhaps later we can ask, but I think its best for both of us..."

Myrhia didn't seem to have any disagreement as she wrapped her arms around Sarah's neck and kissed her. Sarah smiled as she shucked the last bits of clothing and civility between them. The night was young, and they had much to accomplish. Her kisses helping to keep Myrhia enticed as she began to work her magic as she had for countless girls when she felt up to the challenge. However tonight was different. Unlike those girls, it was always with a shy timidity that Myrhia acted, as if she wasn't ready for this yet.

~*~

The next morning Sarah remained silent as she continued to sleep. The night had gone for awhile, but eventually they had gone everywhere they could. She stretched lithely in the bed as she felt muscles she hadn’t used in awhile groan in protest. However she then turned to face her lover, only to find her lover had disappeared. She looked about the room quickly trying to find the red haired girl, in disbelief over the situation.

Fear gripped her heart until she saw the door open. Immediately pulling up the blanket above her chest she watched as the tawny girl entered the room, a bit silent at first. It was always awkward the morning after, but Sarah knew this went beyond the normal awkwardness. Something was wrong, dreadfully wrong. Grabbing what few bits of clothing she could reach she slipped form the bed somewhat modest and went to Myrhia, "Good morning."

"He's gone Sarah! He left last night, and I don't know where he is!" She said frightened as she turned to the Lavinian. Sarah placed a hand comfortingly on Myrhia's shoulder before the girl turned and hugged her tightly a few tears sliding over her bare skin. It was then Sarah knew the truth. No matter how much she could seduce the girl, it was Letho in her heart, not her. It hurt, perhaps more than anything else, but she had a job to do, and that was get the tears. How, was a horse of a different color.

"Calm down Myrhia, we'll find him, just let me finish getting dressed and we'll be on our way," Sarah said softly. The thief was in pain, feeling somewhat betrayed, here she was thinking that Myrhia and her could be together, and go far. And here she was one the other end of yet another one night stand, the reality far from the dream she had placed hope in only last night. The red haired girl nodded solemnly as Sarah quickly washed her face and hands before she pulled on her top and slung the dagger belt around her waist with calculated precision.

They moved quickly from the inn only stopping to gather Letho's things from his room for transport to the gruff Marshal, and Myhria's chosen. It was a bitter pill to swallow but she had a job to do. She would do it, and she would disappear, it was obvious she wasn't meant to be happy by now. Even the one girl she thought she could have been with had only used her. The bitter acerbic thoughts continued in the Lavinian's head as she tried to keep herself from snapping at the red head. Emotions were not needed now, a calm head was.

Mounting up they continued east as Sarah said, "Lets look for the cave, I'm guessing that’s where he went."

[Letho]

Even though the cavern and the elderly dweller looked quite amicable, Letho realized that he didn’t really want to be here. There was something wrong in this place, something peculiar that unsettled his gut and made him suspiciously inspect the surroundings, searching for that one detail that would unravel the truth behind the ruse. But there was nothing to see. Just a cave, a table, a pair of chairs and an old man that played his card game, seemingly undisturbed by the exchanged words. And old man that knew more then he ought to. That queen of hearts and the strangely accurate comment that followed couldn’t be just fluke.

“Alright.” Letho finally said, doggedly puling out a chair and taking a seat. “Talk.”

“Before we proceed, I have a favor to ask of you.” the cryptic, gray-haired man said, finally abandoning the cards and calming his hands on the table surface. His crimson eyes were the only fraction of brilliance that his aged face pertained.

“Favors.” the Marshal grunted. “Someone once told me that...”

“That a favor can kill you faster then a bullet, I know.” the robed man interjected, his tone even and semi-affable even when he intruded into Letho’s sentence. “That’s why this favor will be even harder for you to accept. Because I will not disclose its nature to you, but I still need you to agree to it.”

“That’s not how it works.” Letho responded, his face impervious to any and all emotions. “As far as I know, you can claim my firstborn after I agree.”

“Not even if I can offer you the Tears of the Nameless Maiden?”

Silence as thick as if it was made out of metal took reign in the cave, unmovable under the shimmering light of the overhead lamp. Letho’s face that throughout this entire pointless conversation managed to preserve a rather lethargic look now crumpled into a thick, trademark frown. Yes, it made sense now. The creek in which he almost fell was probably the Shadow Brook and the grotto was the Eastern Cave mentioned in the lich’s book. That would make the card player...

“Eraz’Verinthes.” the Marshal squeezed through his thin lips.

“There, now we know each other’s names.” Eraz said, smirking faintly before he continued. “But I assure you, the favor will do harm neither to you nor to your family.”

“Then why can’t you speak of it?”

“Because time is not ripe yet for dragons and men to forge alliances.” the robed figure said solemnly.

“Dragons?” Letho asked, his tone tranquil but his eyes inquisitive. And at that moment they certainly had something to see. It probably lasted no more then a fraction of a second, and yet the time seemed to be standing still as the cave disappeared around him only to be replaced with a vast emptiness. And in the centre of this abyss, standing in front of him, was a majestic black dragon, so tall that the Marshal had to crane his neck to make contact with a pair of crimson eyes that loomed above from a head with three metallic horns. And only then he could see that the abyss around him wasn’t darkness at all, but a pair of wings that were so large, they encompassed the entire cavern, clouding all the light. The scales of the wyrm were inky black, refusing to reflect even a tiniest twinkle of light. Letho stood face to face with several of these legendary creatures, and yet neither managed to make him feel so small, so insignificant, as if he was looking at an endless starry sky. But just as soon as the vision came to him, it faded away and as he blinked the darkness turned into the dim luminance of the petroleum lamp and the crimson eyes of the dragon turned into a pair of crimson irises in front of him. The dark knight reflexively recoiled, stood up and took a step backwards.

“Now you know my true nature. But let us not pry into that more then absolutely necessary. Time will come when all will be revealed.” Eraz said, joining his hands in front of himself serenely.

“What to you want off me?” Letho asked, still standing and eyeing the man-wyrm suspiciously.

“All in due time, Letho Ravenheart.” he retorted, a bit stern this time, his scarlet eyes flashing like an ember struck by a whiff of wind. “Right now, there are more pressing matters to discuss. Tell me, why do you seek the Tears of the Nameless Maiden?” the dragon in disguise said, shifting from one topic to the other as if the previous one was concluded properly. The Marshal wanted to prod further into the whole dragon matter, but given the fact that Eraz probably was a dragon – and a strangely amiable one – he opted against pushing his luck. He wouldn’t be patronized though.

“If you know so much, you know what I seek it.” he responded curtly.

“I do, but I think you don’t. You think that the Tears will return Myrhianna into your arms. You think that the bodily purification will mend old wounds. But it won’t.” the gray-man said, his tone fatherly calm as he leant a bit more on the table. His eyes were unwavering, eerily penetrating Letho’s own keen glare.

“I’ll take my chances. I tried everything else.”

“No, you haven’t. Let me ask you another question. Who are you doing this for? For Myrhianna? For her happiness? Or for your own?”

Letho opened his mouth, but no reply came out. Eraz smiled unctuously because he was right. He was doing everything he could, that was true, but only because he wanted her back in his arms, he wanted the bliss of waking up next to her in the morning. This entire expedition, even the later rounds in the Serenti Invitational, it was all because of his desires, because he wanted back something he squandered away without even asking if that something wanted to be back.

“So what can I do?”

“Let her go. I mean, truly let her go. She will be happy with Sarah. You do want her to be happy?”

He did. There was nothing quite like seeing that coy warmth on her flushed face as she smiled, nothing like her frolicky giggles and passionate moans and the little satisfied whimpers as she lay curled below the sheets. Nothing quite like Myrhia at her best, riding on that rainbow that she deserved for all the bad things that transpired in her life. Letho nodded, closing his eyes for a second as his fingers massaged his temples. By the time he opened them, Eraz was gone, his cascading stacks of cards were gone, even his chair vanished. Instead, on the table stood a small golden statuette that depicted a figure of a long haired lass in what seemed like moments of sheer agony. Her face was contorted, her body prominently cringing, her eyes closed in front of some unfathomable horror. In her hands – that would’ve been shivering if the figurine was any realer – stood a small vessel made from pearly white porcelain. But when Letho studied it more carefully, the tiny watercraft was empty. Picking up the foot-tall statue, the Marshal made his way out of the cave that suddenly lost the vague scent of sulfur with the departure of Eraz the Concealed Dragon. He sat on a nearby stump, his figure hunched just the way it was back in his room in Wyrm’s Shadow, his eyes observing the item he coveted so much and an item that would do him no good. He was losing Myrhia either way.

In that position he remained until morning.

[Lavinian Pride]

They continued following the creek as it moved through the forest lazily. Sarah's eyes keenly searching for clues of what happened. The looks of a beast running through the area could be seen as bushes were pushed aside. Trees had bark stripped here and there where it was apparent someone had used them as a balance point. The raking scars of the bark matched massive hands easily mistaken for a bear's paws.

Myrhia seemed keenly concerned seeing all this and when she spoke her voice was soft, "I did this to him, I-"

"Don't begin Myrhia," Sarah snapped. The red head jumped at the caustic reply as Sarah merely kept doing her job. She had promised to help deliver the tears of the nameless maiden, and here she was about to give someone away. Part of her surely felt bitter, being used for nothing more than a one night stand always made things more difficult than they were. However, the bitterness was far too heavy and it had seeped into Sarah's words far too greatly.

Myrhia looked at her companion, who seemed to clam up immediately following the scene in the room. She wasn't sure what she had done, but the Lavinian's responses were more like when they first met. As discomforting as it was, it hurt even more considering the night that even now still brought a bit of a flush to her cheeks in the memory. However she remained silent, her doe eyes only gracing the Lavinian every now and then in confusion.

The forest continued with the awkward trail until it moved across the creek. Sarah moved across the creek before she dismounted as moved over to the trees. Soon Myrhia's voice broke the silence, "Is he hurt?"

"Doesn't look like it, at least not physically. I would have to say though he was pretty ragged at this point. Should probably go on foot, the horses seem a bit spooked," Sarah said softly.

Myrhia could tell there was still some tenderness in Sarah. The actions seemed mechanical to her, who had seen the Lavinian in many aspects, from anger, to happiness, to sadness, to bitterness. However, the voice seemed sympathetic, almost betraying the whirlwind in the Lavinian. Sarah seemed to be lost in a sea of emotion, much like Seth had in the cathedral. He was filled with so much grief and regret, even when he fought for her in Serenti. And here, Sarah showed much the same, if only buried a bit better.

As she moved her horse across the creek she tried to ride past Sarah before it shook its head and stopped stubbornly. Looking down at the horse she said, "It's alright, don't worry." She then tried again only to get the same effect.

"Figured as much," Sarah replied.

"What?"

"Eraz’Verinthes," Sarah replied calmly as she stepped forward. Myrhia rushed to keep up. Confusion was clearly in her green eyes, questioning the sudden cryptic quality of the name. She had heard it when Letho had talked briefly of it, but other than that she had never gotten much of an explanation.

"Who is that?"

"Not who, what," Sarah replied. The tone was like a teacher and Myrhia already emotional form the damage she had done to Letho felt a bit of childish anger swell up in her.

"Fine then, what?" She asked irritated by the cold shoulder, and more importantly the lack of information.

"Well, we're coming up on the lair soon. I doubt Letho is the type to just run in stupidly, am I right?"

"Lair of what?"

As they walked out into the clearing near the cave Sarah looked at the sitting figure of Letho. An eyebrow rose as she moved forward noticing the conspicuous acquisition before she asked curiously, "Did you already kill the dragon?"

Myrhia's reaction to the sudden imparting of information was perhaps the only thing that could have waked the dead, as birds flew from their perches at the screech, "The what?"

[Letho]

Sitting on a mossy stump with an expression of a hopeless man standing on a high mountain ridge, Letho only reaffirmed the guilt that struck Myrhia the moment she woke up in the morning. She was wrong to lay with Sarah. True, the Lavinian did to her what none did before, touched her in that forbidden manner that made her insides flutter even now. But as heavenly as it felt, it wasn’t right, it didn’t feel the same way it did with Letho. With him the redhead could be herself, he allowed her to release all restrains and just give in to her desires. With him she was a roaring, devouring forest fire whereas with Sarah she was a timid candle flame. And even though in the morning she felt sore in all the right places as it ought to be after a night of intense lovemaking, she realized that she wanted to be the fire once again. Which consequently led to guilt.

Initially she felt guilty for using Sarah as an equalizer that was supposed to sate her desire for vengeance. The Lavinian rogue didn’t deserve to be just a temporary infatuation that would even up the scores. There was benignity and gentleness beyond her bitter shell, a soft core that craved and deserved something more profound, somebody who would fill that void that she tried to hid. Unfortunately, Myrhia couldn’t be the one. The redhead realized that when she found out from the concierge that Letho was gone without leaving a note. This brought the ex-slave to the second assault of guilt. He was running rampant because of her, torn between the love towards her that he still nurtured and the rejection that she brought up like a shield. And she wound up lost between these two guilt trips, lost because she cared for both Sarah and Letho, lost because she wanted to give herself to both and unable to decide which choice was the right one. It was with this frame of mind that she stepped into the clearing, flabbergasted by what the thief just said. A dragon? He went against a dragon alone?

“It is time.” an indurate voice in Letho’s head spoke, probably the only solemn mentation in a head full of screaming voices that tried to ensure him to persevere, to hold on to her no matter what. But that one thought was the eye of the storm in his head and that made it right.

“He wasn’t in a fighting mood. I guess neither of us were.” he said, lifting his head and straightening his back as he eyed both females, his eyes remaining on the redhead. “He was actually quite chatty and generous for a dragon. Even gave me this. The Tears of a Nameless Maiden.” he finished, sighing wistfully as his hand displayed the golden statuette.

“Did it work? The Tears, I mean.” Myrhia asked, taking a couple of tentative steps forwards. Letho smirked. She looked so beautiful in the morning, especially when it was a misty morning like today. The gloomy atmosphere would make her skin lusciously pale and the slight chill would make her cheeks flush ever so gracefully. And he was probably never to see that again. This thought alone made his rising from the stump feel as if he had a mountain on his shoulder that pushed the other way, convincing him to stay down, to stay with her. But he got up all the same.

“I don’t know. That’s up to you to find out.” Letho said, approaching the timid redhead and handing the figurine over to her. She took it reluctantly, almost uninterestedly, looking up towards his face with a raised brow.

“What do you mean?” she asked, her question drawing out a smile on his face. His large hand made a move towards her face, towards the unraveled scar on her cheek and this time she didn’t recoil. He touched her like he would a dandelion puff.

“I deserve this curse, Myrhianna.” Letho said, the utterance of her full name assuring Myrhia that what he spoke of was of utmost sincerity and importance. “Just as I deserve to be alone. You gave me more love and joy and felicity then I thought was possible, you tried to tear me away from the solitude I coffined myself into. And all that I gave you in return was betrayal and pain. This thing... This artifact that I sought so fervently, it won’t change what happened, what I did to you. It won’t change the fact that I don’t deserve you.”

“No, Letho, don’t...” she tried to speak, her emerald eyes moist as they looked up into his own, but his finger shushed her effectively.

“It’s true. You deserve to be happy more then anybody and it took me a while to understand that there is a chance I wouldn’t be a part of your happiness. All I did was free you from your shackles, Myrhianna. But now it’s time for you to truly fly. I don’t know if this is a goodbye or merely until we meet again. All I know is that I want you to be happy and you have a chance to be just that with Sarah. Take care, kiddo.”

He made a move as if he was going to kiss her goodbye and a part of Myrhia hoped that she would be able to taste his lips again and feel his beard tickle her skin. But instead Letho’s lips caressed her forehead, making her close her eyes and send a pair of tears sliding down her cheeks. By the time she opened them, both the soft touch on her forehead and a slightly more rugged one on her cheek were gone and so was the bulky warrior, walking away into the woods. Her body shivered, her lips dry and quivering, her eyes misty and looking at Letho who was making his way out of the clearing at a decisive gait she knew by heart now. She turned to Sarah, almost desperate for some kind of clarification as to what she should do, but there was none to be found. This was her choice and her alone, an intersection with no signs and no foreseeable outcome, a risk regardless of the path she chose. On one side was a man who was her first love, her biggest love, her liberator, her hero... and her betrayer. On the other were Sarah and all the unknowns that a relationship with a woman could bring, a clean slate that needed somebody to take a quill and start the first chapter. Myrhia thought she was going to faint from the tension. Letho’s figure almost faded in the mist completely.

And then four words popped into her mind.

“Letho, wait!” she shouted, her dulcet voice penetrating the tranquility of the morning. The broad-shouldered swordsman stopped in his tracks, but refused to turn around. He promised himself he wouldn’t look back. It would make it more difficult, if not impossible to walk away. But he stopped and listened. Nothing moved in the clearing.

“Do you remember what we said back in Scara Brae, the oath we took?”

Of course he did. It was something he thought they would never have to break, but life had an awkward way of adding unpredictable twists where you least expected them. He not only remembered the words, but he remembered how the pine glade smelled on that day, how tangled her mahogany hair was, how her tattered dress smelled of sweat and grime, how modestly she held onto him, how her scrawny body quivered, and how he loved – and still loves – it all.

“Together.” she said, her knees suddenly weak, her eyes shedding tear after tear after tear.

“No matter what.” he concluded, his back still turned, his eyes closed and welling with tears of longing and sadness and regret.

“Well, I meant it.” Myrhia said coyly. “And I still mean it.”

This finally made Letho turn around slowly, his look traversing the whole clearing to look at her eyes drowned in tears and emotions, but his legs refusing to make a move back, afraid of false hope that would split him down the middle. But then she smiled, her lips stretching as bashfully as if she was offering her smile to him for the first time, as if she was once again that slave in Scara Brae that met a moody stranger that sought his life in the flow of the river. And before he realized it, he ran towards her, jumping over an overturned log, nearly tripping on the stump before he got a chance to scope her in his arms. He didn’t kiss her, he didn’t even look at her crying face her. All he did was hold her and spin them around and feel her next to him once again, feel her heart wanting him once again. For the first time in what seemed like eons of callousness Letho Ravenheart cried.

Neither knew how long they just held to each other like lovers that didn’t see each other for years, but once they finally broke their intimate touch, Myrhia knew there was one more thing to attend to. She squeezed out of Letho’s burly arms, leaving him with the golden statue as she approached the Lavinian. “Sarah, I’m... I’m really sorry. You... You’re an amazing woman and there is so much good in you. But I... I can’t go with you.” the redhead spoke, her tone sincere and filled with guilt and sadness as her pale hands reached towards Sarah’s. She looked up into those gray eyes and hoped to find forgiveness.

[Lavinian Pride]

Her eyes drilled into the green ones before she shrugged her pack higher upon her shoulder. She turned to go, feeling the anger well up in her, however she had to go. She had invested too much in the redhead, and it had backfired. She had tried to open up and trust someone, only to be brushed aside for the knight in shining fucking armor. She spoke her voice bitter as she said, "Tell you what, keep the money, going to need it for your nice little country house for the kids..."

"Sarah, please!" Myrhia shouted as she moved towards the Lavinian. Her hand brushed lightly over Sarah's own and she shrugged letting the hand slip carelessly away. Too many emotions were on display here and Sarah was loath to add more to the mix.

"Please what? You don't even know what I am, let alone who. You would rather be with your man, and I'm willing to accept that. Why not go be happy and let me go off in the darkness. It doesn't take a genius to figure out where your loyalty lies and it’s not to me," Sarah said firmly. She stopped as she looked down. Tears forming in her eyes as the words left her mouth.

"It doesn't have to end like this. We could be friends-"

"Friends?" Sarah asked incredulously. Her voice wavering hearing the words as she turned to look at the red head, "Friends you say? I gotta hand it to you Myrhia, you can be so grown up and naive at the same time. You have no clue about anything, and yet you try so hard to pretend the world is just sunshine and rainbows. That no matter what you do there is always a second chance. Let me tell you, there are no second chances."

"Sarah?" Myrhia asked. The Lavinian's face was hidden now as she looked down a gloved hand curled tightly into a fist as she seemed to tremble. Myrhia couldn't read the thief or what she would do next, and it was obvious that something was wrong.

"I was a mistake Myrhia. I was never meant to exist. My name, my life, it was all one big lie. At the end of the day you know who I am, what I've done? No, of course not, if anyone knew, I'd be hung from the nearest tree. My name isn't Sarah. It’s Seth."

She let the words hang in the air before she said, "Seth killed our parents, and I got shoved into one of the corpses. I don't know what happened, but I know one thing, I wasn't supposed to live. That bastard killed our parents; he pulled the knife and cut into my mother's heart, and slit her throat to mercifully end it quickly. He slit my father's throat, and then he gave his soul to some demon so he could try and get rid of his corruption. He sold out my family, the only thing that I had left for himself."

Her eyes were filled with tears, but she stubbornly held them back. She wasn't supposed to cry, she was a woman, a Dahlios, a thief, and she wasn't supposed to show weakness. Her words hung in the air as she said the one story that explained the wounds, explained the paranoia. It explained it all. She felt so numb, so exposed, and she felt so horrid. She dropped to her knees as her hands hit the ground hard. Dust flew up in the air as she continued, "I'm just a fragment of a soul, shoved into this scarecrow of a body. It isn't mine, I didn't deserve it, and now, I pay for the crimes of my family."

She fought the tears as she felt two gentle hands upon Sarah. They seemed to pull her close as she felt herself unable to hold back anymore and she finally cried. So much emotion, so much pain, she couldn't bear it any further, it had been placed so deep, but it could go no deeper. She had tried so long to outrun it, that when she finally let go she could no longer stop the flood. Her tears falling freely as she felt Myrhia sob beneath her. So much pain, Sarah couldn't shoulder alone.

As the two women cried Sarah clung to Myrhia as a small child. She had never truly developed, and while she tried to be mature and be an adult, it was blatantly clear to those watching that she was but a mere child playing at adult. She had no innocence, it was lost when she was forced to leave her home, was ejected from the guild. No, she was the abandoned child that couldn't find her way. Pretending to get by, but each day she died a little more inside.

[Letho]

Myrhia didn’t fully understand what Sarah spoke about when she referred to herself as Seth, but it didn’t really matter because the emotions in her words were genuine, finally coming from the heart that the Lavinian hid so long. The thief felt incomplete, torn between the nothingness and the half of the soul that felt guilty for the execution committed years ago. It was a wretched existence, standing on the edge between the abyss and corruption, with darkness tincturing both sides. And while she made a formidable stand so far, tiptoeing down that thin line without belonging to either of the two, she couldn’t do it anymore, not now when she thought she found something that would maybe complete her. It was more then enough to make Myrhia cry like a river as well, holding the rogue tight and burying her face into her shoulder. She knew that there was something within Sarah, something dormant that she tried to keep in check, but she couldn’t even imagine what it was and how much damage she did with her little sexual endeavor.

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” the redhead kept whispering between her sobs and snivels, clinging to Sarah just as tightly as the woman held to her. She wanted to comfort the Lavinian so badly, wanted to somehow lead her out of this dark pit in which she’s been burying herself into for years. But all she could offer were words and a shoulder to cry on.

“You’re not a scarecrow. You’re not Seth.” Myrhia whispered in the woman’s ear, struggling with the overflow of emotions that rippled through their embraced bodies. She managed to pull her face moist with tears just far enough to look as Sarah’s face down which rills of salty liquid descended. “You’re a wonderful woman, Sarah, and you’re your own person. And there is so much love inside of you, so much good. All you have to do is let somebody see it, like I did. You don’t have to run from your past anymore. Please, don’t run anymore. If you do... I may never see you again.”

Myrhia’s countenance moved sideways just enough to get her in the right position to plant a soft kiss on Sarah’s lips, the caress moistened by both their tears. She wanted to show Sarah that she was worthy of love, worthy of not being alone and on the run. And in her own timid way, she wanted to somehow take a portion of the Lavinian’s burden on her.

Meanwhile, Letho was standing several feet away, watching the exchange and the intimate kiss with his eyes once again keen and dry but lacking the deep frown. He wasn’t disturbed with what went on in front of him nor did he see it as some form of infidelity. It was Myrhia’s way to help Sarah, her benevolent way to say goodbye and he wouldn’t stop her even if their relationship wasn’t freshly mended. And besides, Myrhia was his again and if there were some loose ends that needed to be tied, all the better for them to get tied instantly then in the future.

It was at this moment, when the redhead pressed her lips against Sarah’s, that the Tears of the Nameless Maiden, sitting on the forest floor where Myrhia left the statuette, were awoken from their dormant state. The joined anguish and sorrow and pain of the two females that clutched to each other was the trigger for the magic that slept in the item and by the time Letho noticed that the solid figure became somewhat animate, the small watercraft was already one third filled with the crystal liquid that streamed from the cringed face. The Nameless Maiden wept in sync with Sarah and Myrhia, her tears flowing down her tiny face, over her neck and torso, descending drop by drop in the pearly vessel. The smooth metal glowed as if there was a source of powerful white light beneath its surface, emanating an ivory aura that grew stronger with each tear. By the time the small watercraft was filled, the item was like a small sun, enlightening the gloomy environment.

“Uhm... I think you two should take a look at this.” the redeemed swordsman said, his hand struggling to block some of the white light. Myrhia prolonged a kiss a bit longer, knowing this was probably the last time she would kiss Sarah, before they broke with a gentle, moist sound. She looked into the gray eyes of the Lavinian gently, pleadingly even as her hands stroked the long brown hair threads.

“You will never be alone. I will always be here for you, Sarah.” she whispered, offering a timid smile before the light finally captured her attention enough to draw her eyes away from Sarah. Standing some ten feet from Letho, the figurine was gone, completely swallowed by the purest white light that she ever saw. There was liberation in that light, purification of both body, mind and spirit, and they were all entitled to it. Getting up to her feet tentatively, Myrhia took Sarah’s hand tenderly in her own. “Come. This will help you. It will help us all.”

She took a pair of step forwards, approaching the light just enough for Letho to join her at the other flank and take a hold of her free hand. She looked at him, then at Sarah, smiling amicably at them both before leading the trio into the unfathomable whiteness that nearly blinded them. At first there was no reaction, just this throbbing, emanating core that seemed ready to explode could be felt in front of them. And then, without any warning, the center of the illumination detonated like a crate of dynamite, spreading a sonic boom that flattened the nearby trees and got half of Concordia forest on their feet. No physical harm came to the three though, the surge of energy passing through their bodies like an unseen river, flowing through them and taking away the taint on its energy waves. It was a sensation both wonderful and horrible, both hot and cold, and genuinely divine. It was the ultimate remedy that broke all curses and healed all wounds. Even those that hid beneath the surface.

Though the buildup to full power was gradual, the light and the radiated energy didn’t evanesce. It simply ceased to exist, blinked out of existence after what seemed like hours of being caught in the most powerful current. The proximity around the trio looked like a meteor crash site sans the combustion signs. And in the center of this phenomenon stood the reborn three, still holding their hands.

“It worked?” Myrhia asked, reluctantly eyeing Letho. And when he smiled, she repeated more jubilantly now. “IT WORKED!!!”

It did. He felt it and she felt it and they were pretty certain Sarah felt it too. The craving for blood, the disquieting feeling under the sun rays, the ominous sensation in their gut, it was effaced completely. Myrhia yawped victoriously, jumping into his arms and kissing him fiercely. This was what they were searching for, a clean slate for a relationship that went awry. And they were both overwhelmed with joy for getting it. The redhead finally broke the embrace to approach Sarah.

“Sarah?” she asked, a bit uncertain what kind of a reply she would get, what pair of eyes would return her gaze; the whipping ferocious eyes or the lovable benign ones. “Are you feeling alright?”

[Lavinian Pride]

Sarah felt something within her stir, a memory of a simpler time a simpler place. It harkened back to when she had been Seth, as a young man. It was a few days before his sixteenth birthday. It was a day that had scarred the both of them for years to come. It was the day they found out what their father truly did for a living. How he had gotten on his hands and knees and was stepped on, for a measly gold here and there. It was the day that had defined both of them, marking their passage to the other side, the side that wanted to stop such callous acts by nobility.

How idyllic, how noble the intention was.

How quickly it had been corrupted.

It was clear now what had happened. That day in infamy had destroyed the family. A son's unwillingness to stand by and watch his family stepped on all their life with a smile. It had begun the arguments and ultimately, when their best friend had joined the guard, they joined the thieves. They became vigilantes. Trying to impart their own twisted sense of justice to remain free and not be enslaved by the constraints of the Lavinian Society. In a final act of defiance that had sealed their fate, in many more ways than one.

It was that intention that had brought the both of them down the path to ruin, down the paths of Hex Magic and murder. Had Seth been here, perhaps he would have understood the true importance of that day. However, to this day it would forever mark the day Sarah Dahlios turned her back on her heritage, in a far more impressive way than Seth had. She had gone beyond wishing freedom from the nobles; she had wished freedom from her very blood.

As she was pulled along she found herself struggling to remain upright. Her body had released every ounce of grief guilt and sorrow from within. The lightening of such a burden had profound impact on the girl. It left her unsteady and unfocused. Unable to say or do anything as she watched dumbfounded as Myrhia brushed away the tears, and reassured her with soft words and a careful caress. Sarah had been wrong, Myrhia did care about her, perhaps in a way Sarah had never considered. She had let Sarah go because she knew Sarah was strong. Like a fledgling bird allowed flight, she had been set free to make her own path through the world.

Sarah saw the light as it passed through her. It hammered her heavily, weakening her further; to the point she almost couldn't stand, until it exploded. The noise deafening as Sarah brought her arms up in protection. When it cleared she was left with a gift that she had never deserved, but was given. She blinked once or twice as she felt a resurgence of strength. Something was gone, she couldn't tell but it was not there anymore. To the casual observer they would have noticed no profound change; however, Sarah felt a freedom. As if shackles she had never known were there were lifted.

Her first reaction was to touch the scar upon her neck, only to realize it was gone, no longer there. A quick check of the scar over her heart revealed it too gone. The impurities and scars left upon her wiped away, as if the body had never been killed. Her eyes closed as she felt an inner peace. The lures and temptations, the call of the Magi, calls she knew perfectly well were gone. The hole that she felt every day within her heart had been filled, brimming with energy and the conviction to use it. Something had happened, she had been made whole.

Feeling eyes upon her she smirked softly, genuine and brilliant before she spoke her voice far from the emotional wreck it was. It held strength in itself. It held conviction, and most importantly, it held the courage to continue the fight she had been losing, "Perhaps better than you could ever understand."

She looked up her eyes softened as they graced Myrhia until they revealed the most startling change of all. Gone was the cold impersonal grey of the Dahlios clan. Sarah Dahlios had been reborn, and with the tears of the nameless maiden the curse of her blood had been effaced. She was Sarah Dahlios now, a full and true soul. No, now her eyes were a warm brown, a much more natural color almost matching the shade of her brown hair as she shrugged her pack and said firmly, "Keep the rest of the gold Ravenheart. You repaid me in a way I can't possibly allow more money to leave your wallet for."

Spoils Request -

Sarah Dahlios is no longer the half soul of Seth Dahlios, but more importantly a full soul in and of itself. The most noticeable change being her eye color has changed to brown.

In terms of Profiles, the link to Seth Dahlios has been severed and the following abilities are removed from her profile:

Soul Link – Sarah and Seth’s souls are bound together by the fact they came from the same source. Because of this pain transfers between them both ways. If Sarah or Seth are injured the other will feel the pain of the wounds. In cases of major wounds minor bleeding can occur in areas that are injured on the counterpart.

Soul Sift - Every once in awhile Sarah will gain the ability to see what Seth sees. This is produced with total concentration and requires her to fight through the bond that connects them. At the moment all it allows her to see is a brief image of what Seth sees, and feel any emotions he is feeling at the time. Often she may use this if she needs to know what he has done to cause her pain, or if she needs to locate him quickly. (No battle application as it requires complete concentration)

Atop this, Sarah Dahlios can no longer become a Hex Magi.

In return I ask the following increases as a final hurrah from the link. A final leech if you will:

Dagger proficiency +1
Throwing weapons +2

[Letho]

There was warmth in Sarah’s eyes, Myrhia could see it the moment the Lavinian returned the gaze. And it wasn’t the temporary kind that she felt last night either, not the sporadic flame that the passion evoked. Instead it was a constant flame, something that took out the insipidity of the gray color and painted the woman’s irises with a much more pleasant, brown color. The color of Letho’s eyes. And the redhead realized now why she fell for Sarah so easily. There was so much of Letho in the thief, so much of that grumpy vagabond that she met in Scara Brae reflected in those eyes, so many fragments of Letho’s demeanor coming to life again in Sarah. And she wanted to help her, to sieve the bad parts out and leave the good ones just like she was doing with Letho. And while such changes didn’t happen overnight, she was elated to see that she managed to turn the Lavinian around.

“If you ever need anything, Sarah, anything at all... Our door will always be open for you.” Myrhia said, her eyes moist again but this time with tears of both joy for the recovery and sadness for the goodbye that was bound to follow. She gave Sarah another tight hug, uttering a soft goodbye: “Until we meet again, Sarah. Hopefully under better circumstances.”

Letho, on the other hand, handled goodbyes in the same manner that he handled pretty much anything; with several wise words and minimal amount of emotions. So when Myrhia finally let go of the Lavinian, he stepped closer to the woman and put his right hand on her right shoulder, his eyes incisive and stern. “I hold no grudge against you, regardless of what transpired. Farewell, Sarah Dahlios.” With that said and a minute nod from the brown-eyed rogue, he broke contact and she turned doggedly as she always did – as he always did – and made her way into the woods, leaving the pair alone in the clearing.

“You think she’s going to be alright?” Myrhia asked, approaching him diffidently and interlacing her fingers with his own as they both watched Sarah disappear in the endless sea of tree trunks and underbrush.

“I think we’ll be seeing more of her in the future. She’s as tough as old root.” he said, his tone just a fraction wistful. It made the redhead smile.

“Takes one to know one.” she said, squeezing his hand and offering a wide, warm smile that chased away the chill of the gloomy morning. Only then Letho noticed that the scar on her face was gone as was the tattoo on the foot of her neck. Myrhia was finally free of her past, free of the signs that always reminded her of the slavery that ripped her childhood in pieces and Letho’s betrayal back in Serenti. The emotional scars were still there and would probably always be, but they had a lifetime to mend and tend to those and they had every intention to do just that. Chase away the shadows of the past with a bright future. This was their second chance, their only chance to make things perfect and they had every intention to do so.

“Come on, let’s go home, Myri. We have a lot of planning to do.” Letho said, returning the smile before he picked her up in his arms, eliciting a joyous, surprised scream from her. However, even as he did so, he realized that his strength wasn’t what it used to be. In fact, his muscles felt as if somebody extracted all the inhuman might out of them. Still, Myrhia’s diminutive figure was as light as a feather, so he still carried her easily, postponing deliberation for later.

“Planning what?” she asked, her arms wrapped around his neck, her lips nipping at his cheek playfully. She was back to him alright, chirpy and merry as ever.

“For something I should’ve done a long time ago.” he replied, his strict visage mellowed down by her touch. “For officially making you missus Ravenheart.”


((SPOILS: Dormancy – During the ritual of cleansing by the Tears of the Nameless Maiden, Letho’s and Myrhia’s bodies were cleansed of all imperfections (Daywalker vampirism included), but as a side effect, all their supernatural powers are gone as well. In Letho’s case, however, because of his Chodan blood, they merely went dormant. Letho doesn’t know this and he doesn’t know if he can ever unlock them (they are unlockable only in case of a drastic event and the unlocking has to be requested as a quest spoil). The abilities affected/locked are: Righteous Might, The Gift of Chodan, The Blood of Chodan, Uncanny Projectile Blocking, Healing (only the magical facet of the skill), Letho’s supernatural strength (drops to merely thrice that of an average human), Weaponmaster (Letho might not be able to wield all weapons easily due to the fact that his strength diminished), Myrhia’s Uncanny Agility, Myrhia’s Marksmanship and Throwing and Spear Mastery (dropped to merely proficient). Dormancy will have effect only after level 8 update.

There is a catch, however, in Letho’s case because of his Chodan blood. The locked powers are able to grow in their dormant state and some might even merge upon their awakening. This, of course, will all have to pass the RoG and judge’s check, but it cannot happen until Letho at least reaches level 9.


Also, Letho receives the Tears of the Nameless Maiden statuette that is a foot tall and made out of pure gold.))

[Witchblade]

Introduction:- 7 Nothing extremely out of the ordinary here, just your basic introductions. The characters meet at a tavern, albeit a very classy tavern that you wouldn’t normally expect to see adventurers in, but still a tavern. The characters and their respective reasons for being there were portrayed very well, each one different in their own way and though Liliana and Sarah are written by the same person, you can tell them apart, which is something some writers have a hard time doing. It would be nice to see characters meeting in a place other than a tavern, but I didn’t dock points for that, after all, almost any good adventure starts there it’s just starting to get a little old.

Setting: - 6 The setting was great. I loved the trick that the lich played on all of you when you were walking through the cave. I knew something was up but I was surprised when the illusion melted away to reveal what was really going on, not completely shocked after all you set it up so the reader gets the feeling that there’s more to it than what appears to be there, but still on the surprised side. Other than though, there was just your normal setting throughout the story. It wasn’t necessarily used a lot throughout the quest though, it was a backdrop. In the cave battling the lich I kept wondering why your characters weren’t accidentally falling into lava pits. They were there but not really, because they were described then kind of disappeared until someone had to jump over a river of lava.

Strategy: - 7 The strategy used throughout the quest was nothing spectacular. It was mostly your every day stuff. The only part that stood out was the end when you get the Tears of the Nameless Maiden without having to actually fight for it. That was an extremely profound development in Letho’s character, or so I thought, which was nice to see. Instead of ‘hey let’s kill the dragon and take the item’ it was ‘let’s sit down and have a nice cup of tea’ with said dragon. Because after all, what doesn’t kill you makes you a nice cup of tea.

Dialogue: - 6 Typical dialogue. Nothing extremely great worth noting and nothing extremely bad either. Myrhia’s curiosity and constantly asking questions is always a good tool to use to advance the storyline and explain things to the reader while ICly explaining things to the character as well, be sure to take advantage of that but not too much or the reader will catch on and get annoyed with it. Curiosity only got the cat so far before he got run over by the truck.

Character: - 8 This entire story seems more about character development than the normal ‘lets go find the treasure’ which was really nice. The characters all came out beautifully and I was disappointed to see Liliana leave part way through the quest, though it made perfect sense ICly. Myrhia’s constant focus on Sarah started to get a little annoying towards the end of the quest, her constant mothering and making sure she was okay was just a little over the top though probably completely within her character. My only real concern with the characters was Sarah breakdown at the end. It didn’t seem real, it seemed like it was a necessary thing that had to happen in order for something else to happen, which consequently something else did happen. It was an emotional time but to me but there wasn’t a good enough explanation for why she broke down and just confessed everything to Myrhia and started bawling her eyes out, especially when she seemed like such a strong and closed up character throughout most of the quest.

Rising Action: - 7 Nothing wrong with your rising action. Typical battle stuff, though the second one was character driven and really had nothing to do with battling, unless of course you’re talking the battle of emotions. The only problem with this part was Sarah’s emotional state. There needed to be some kind of catalyst there, I don’t know if I just missed something along the way but her breakdown did not feel natural.

Climax: - 8 The major climax in the thread is the fight with the lich. It was interesting in the fact that no matter how hard you guys tried you just couldn’t seem to get ahead with him. I liked the idea that in order to actually kill him or even hurt him really, you had to first attack his soul and find whatever his soul was in. That was an interesting way to put it and that whole scenario was very nicely done. The second climax in the thread is really kind of like a gentle slope more so than a climax. The build up with Sarah and Myrhia and what they do and what happens with Letho and then finally the item working, they were all kind of there to build up the climactic moment but not so much as the first one even though the second was more important to the storyline. Nice to see a climax in a story that doesn’t involve any kind of fighting, just character development. That doesn’t happen too often.

Conclusion: - 7 The conclusion was a sappy eyed, smile at the fact that at the end of the day everything is perfect and wonderful kind of thing…and I loved it. After all, who doesn’t love it when everything goes according to plan and everyone gets exactly what they need? Letho and Myrhia remained together and Sarah got a full soul and is no longer linked with Seth anymore.

Writing Style: - 8 Both of you are excellent writers. Duro I really can’t say much to help you improve on anything you already done, your flow is great and you always seem to find the right words to describe a situation, including some words that I’ve never even seen before, like palaver. Pat, you need to work on your flow a little bit. Sometimes your sentences seem a little choppy and your paragraphs jump around a bit. Other than that, I noticed quite a few times that instead of saying ‘from’ you said ‘form’. I didn’t take off any points for that because it’s not something that spell check would naturally catch, but keep you eye our for things like that.

Wild Card: - 8 Isn’t it nice that they all had to cry in order for the item for work? Weird, but nice. Wild Card points for making a quest where people lose abilities, yayness!

Total Score: 72

Rewards:

The requested loss of moves from all characters is granted but will need further approval when you level up, though I do not see any problems with them.

Letho receives 4,700 experience and the Tears of the Nameless Maiden statue made out of pure gold.
Lavinian Pride receives 2,200 and 500 GP
Liliana Ambria receives 1,500 and the Tome of Uriel.

Letho, Lavinian Pride and Liliana Ambria all receives +2 reputation points.