Asrinon

Attention!
The High Monarchy of Asrinon is calling upon any able bodied men and women to assist in the apprehension of bandits and murderers. All those interested, please come to Bran, capital city of Asrinon. Regardless of applicants, all those who assist will receive 500 gold. Double if those taken from the town of Jaski are brought back alive. The search and apprehension of said criminals will begin on the 8th of Aendas.

Whether you be mercenary, bounty hunter, or law-bringer, you see this post on the local tavern wall in all major cities south of the Rydony boarder. You look at the date and realize you have just enough time to make it to Bran in time for the contract. Without so much as a second thought you begin your journey to Asrinon, in hopes of finding either fortune or justice.

It was a crisp, clean autumn morning in Asrinon. The wind was cool and the large mountains surrounding the capital of Bran blocked the sun from burning its locals. However, things were not quiet within the quaint capital, as news of the attack at Jaski was still firmly in the minds of the community. The first major battle of the war in the north had occurred only days earlier, and now this grim news was returning to their ears with the new information that some from the village were taken. The unease only grew with the sight of a few strangers around Bran, having come to the secluded nation with the intent on claiming the bounty for the thieves. Numerous guards were walking around the city, directing the bounty hunters and mercenaries to the castle with the hopes of easing the minds of the locals. The men and women were directed, mostly escorted, to the "Fortress In Stone," an ancient structure built long ago, even before the founding of the city or nation. It was entirely made of stone, having been carved into the nearby mountain that overlooked the city. Local archaeologists believe it was once constructed by the Dwarves, but later abandoned as they went deeper into the earth.

Inside the fortress lies numerous hallways and rooms, almost like a maze for someone who doesn't know where they are going. The structure was circular in design, with a throne room sitting at its center. In the stone seat was the Queen of Asrinon, Mara Judiya. The Queen of the Black Rose, as she is commonly known amongst foreigners, was the 18th in the Judiya line and is currently in the 26th year of her rule. The queen sat upon her throne, looking just as regal as one would imagine her. She had long black hair, with a few streaks of gray appearing near the roots. Her garb was red and blue, but she wore no crown as it wasn't Asrinon custom. Her nickname was derived from her cold, black eyes, as one was able to tell the difference between her pupil and cornea. She looked upon the one kneeling in front of her, her adviser whispering information into her ear. "So, you come from the Temple of Maraic in Romara?" Her voice was stern and lacked any hint of true curiosity.

The person before her rose his head, revealing a one-eyed young man with a mock respectful grin on his face. "Yes, Your Majesty. The Head Priest was worried about what had befallen the town of Jaski and sent me to see what assistance I could offer." The Queen raised an eyebrow, looking at the man unconvincingly. "The Temple of Maraic, huh? How is High Priest Gerard doing these days?" The man let out a small chuckle, bowing his head back down. "He's doing just fine, Your Majesty." The Queen let out a sigh and looked at her guards. "Put him with the others by the stables." The guards escorted the man out of the room and left the Queen with her personal guard and her adviser. "My Queen, was that wise? High Priest Gerard past away over a month ago due to age." The Queen looked at her adviser, standing up and handing the middle-aged man a note. "Save for that man, only a few others outside of our own men have shown up on time. I need anyone I can get at this point. With the fear of war looming over our heads, we can't simply spare men from the border. So, this is the best we can do. If anyone else arrives within the hour, have the guards direct them to the stables. Once the hour is up, read that note." The adviser bowed and watched the Queen as she left the room with her guard.

The old stone door opened, the stables being revealed to Adrian. What was referred to as the stables was more of a back exit from the Fortress In Stone. It was a cave hidden within the forest, but hadn't likely been used in centuries. There were only a few men besides himself, mostly bounty hunters and mercenaries trying to earn a quick treasure. "Is this all there is?" One of the guards looked at Adrian, then turning his head back to the group in front of them. "Her Majesty could only put off the mission so long. As was explained to the others as they arrived, you will be assisting the local guard in the search, nothing more." Adrian smirked, knowing the man felt like his pride was being stepped on with the hiring of outside help. Adrian looked at the structure of the cave, amazed the Queen was allowing outsiders to see it. To him, that meant she wasn't very cautious, or she didn't expect them to return. Neither boded well for the man.

After a few moments of waiting in the cave, two men entered the cave. One, an obvious official, and the other, he suspected, to be the Captain of the guards. His suspicions were confirmed when the official addressed him as so. It was only too obvious that the captain felt threatened by the presence of the mercenaries. It seemed their orders were to assist the captain and his men in locating and destroying the bandits. Apparently a unit of guards had disappeared looking for them. Meaning that they succeeded in the first part of their mission, the last part though seemed to have turned the tables on them. What Xandur was most surprised about that no one knew the guards were. What, did their families just assume that their took up most of their life. Well, now that was a complete fact.....most likely. Unless they were sold in the slave trades. Most people believed slavery to be dead.....then again most people are naive and try very hard to remain so.

As they set out, Xandur had not looked up from his book. Occasionally the page would turn itself, but he was not reading it. He was actually examining everyone with closely without directly looking at any of them. He had yet to pull his hood down so it was quite easy to spy on people. So far, he didn't exactly feel comfortable with the paladin and the man with they eye-patch. The paladin for obvious reasons, but the man with eye-patch acted looked like someone trying to hide something, and hide it well for that matter.

He then started to eavesdrop on the conversation the dwarf and the elven girl were having. He was correct about her being an elf and she seemed like a sweet young girl, risking life and limb for her parents. Though I'm sure her father would much prefer her being safe and sound in his arms for a birthday present than anything she could buy him. He somehow always sympathized with parents, it always left him to wonder if he was a parent. He wasn't even sure if he was old enough to have a child. He wasn't really sure of anything, but that was why he was here.

The dwarf seemed rather friendly, an outdoors man type who thought against the norm. He was probably getting on in years and when that happened, dwarves either became extra grumpy or extra friendly. This one seemed to be leaning towards the latter. The dwarf then directed a question to the entire group. "ell I'd ask that ta each of ya." He must have been referring to when he asked the girl why she was here. He snapped his book shut with a loud thump and put it away in his satchel. He was walking in front of the dwarf and elf, so to answer his question, he spun around and faced them, walking backwards with the greatest of ease. "An odd question for a group of mercenaries. Well, an odd question for a group of mercenaries and a paladin of Janos." he said in a pleasant tone, as he flashed the paladin a small grin. He then turned back to the two. "I myself-" he lowered his hood, revealing pointed ears and the giant scar over his left eye."-am here to make contacts. The more people you know, the easier it is to get information." Xandur said in the same tone, a small smile spreading on his face.

"You see, I seek certain information that no one across two continents have been able to answer." He gave a pause, thinking about how much he should tell them. He then eyed the dwarf for a moment. "I wonder if you can help me with something. Ive asked the experts at both Kurenvar and Garron about this gauntlet, but none have been able to tell me it's craftsman. They haven't even been able to tell me what it's made of." Xandur explained as he lifted the gauntlet up to show him. He then placed his hand on the stone arm and the etchings and runes on it began to glow purple. Suddenly, and unlatching sound could be heard and the gauntlet came off of his arm, revealing his stump just below his left elbow. He then extended it towards the dwarf. "Would you mind glancing at it?"

Xandur then looked towards the elf girl and gave her a warm smile. "By the way, I'm Xandur, just Xandur. Nice to meet you all."

Alberon again went mute as the conversation kicked back up and the mage with the stone gauntlet joined in. When the young, man, half-blood, whatever he was gave him a grin, he raised a brow in a questioning manner. Soon shrugging it off he listened as the mage explained his reasons for being here, contacts and information. Odd enough goals on a mission such as this. It wasn't exactly a diplomatic or social mission. Still eyeing the gauntlet as the mage questioned the dwarf about it as it glowed in his hands. Magical Artifacts... Such devices could be unpredictable, the nature of most magics as a whole was dangerous. Holy Magic included, say a chant the wrong way and you could blow yourself to oblivion.

"By the way, I'm Xandur, just Xandur. Nice to meet you all."

He couldn't help but smile as the mage introduced himself openly. He didn't expect it, though he noticed as younger looking smiled at the elf in a warm manner. A slight chuckle escaped his lips before he spoke up and introduced himself as well. "I am Sir Alberon Durhandor, Paladin, Priest, and scholar if you will of Janos. Here to bring the bandits to justice as well as protect this band when needed. My lord Janos would be angered if none of his soldiers did not pick arms against this act of injustice during these harsh times." With that he bowed his head to the group. "Its good to meet you too Xandur, as well as the Master Dwarf, and Mistress Elf."

Xandur felt a very familiar expression spread across his face when the dwarf named Hogar announced that the stone baffled. Xandur expected no more from the dwarf but knew he had to at least try. He was about to take the gauntlet back, when Hogar piped up. He stated that the reason he couldn't identify the stone was that it wasn't from this plane and that he should seek the help of a Magi familiar with conjuration. Xandur's eye lit up with intrigue and excitement. He had a lead. After seven years he finally had a lead. Not a very strong one, but maybe he could finally figure out who he was. "Thank you master Hogar. You don't know how much you've helped me." He stated with genuine happiness. He then raised his stub and the gauntlet flew out of the dwarf's hands and reattached itself to his stub. The symbols glowed once more, and the limb began to move once more.

Suddenly, the elf girl who called herself Theresa, stated she recognized the stone as well. She then pulled and ankle bracelet off of her leg and showed it to them. The stone was of a slightly different color, but the symbols seemed to resemble the ones on the gauntlet fairly well. She stated that it was apparently a family heirloom. Xandur was about to comment on it, but it seemed they were to be quiet since they were nearing known ambush sites so Xandur remained quiet. Sooner or later though, he would have to speak with Theresa.

They finally arrived at the site of the attack, and almost immediately, Xandur felt a disturbance. Something about this place was wrong, but he wasn't entirely sure exactly what it was. Everyone seemed to be receiving orders about what to do and what not to do, but Xandur simply ignored the Captain. Xandur immediately made his way to the southwest part of the ruins of the village. He walked over a pile of rubble that he suspected used to be a house and crouched down, supporting himself with his staff. Xandur then reached up and removed his eye patch and placed it into his pack. He then breathed in slowly and opened his milky white dead eye and closed the other.

Light and color seemed to swirl out of existence into a torrent of nothingness for Xandur. Then, images and sounds could be made out, but just barely. After a bit the sounds and images became clearer, and what he stared at now, was a truly perplexing sight. The ground was teala nd the sky was purple. Streams of technicolor light danced through the sky and the very moon seemed to display a horribly twisted face with blood coming from every orifice. The entire village seemed to be on fire, the flames scarlet as blood. Sheep ran every which way, bleating for sanctuary and mercy. The sheep were being systematically slaughtered by what seemed to be statues wearing scary human masks. Their goal seemed to be slaughter and destruction. Xandur only saw this for maybe 9 seconds before he immediately closed his eye and opened his normal one. Blood was running from his scarred eye and Xandur was breathing heavily. He slowly stood up and shook his head. Though, he knew no matter how hard he tried, he would never forget those images. Things seen by your minds true sight could never be forgotten.

He looked about and noticed a few of the others seemed to have figured out what he had. That this was no bandit attack and that the situation was far more different that the Captain believed or was equipped for. Xandur wasn't sure what to do, if he said anything, than they might not be payed and they would be sent away. Xandur needed to be here and needed to do this. He then noticed the other eye patch guy seemed to notice as well. The after affects his true sight showed he seemed to be hiding something that had to do with the attack. Xandur wiped the blood from his eye and approached the man.

Xandur walked up to him with a friendly smile and patted him on the shoulder with his normal hand. He then spoke in a hushed tone, his words not matching what his face displayed. "How do you think we should proceed about this. We know each other knows about what really happened here. I know your hiding what happened, though I don't know why. Right now it doesn't matter, because if this turns out to an international incident, we get called off. If the Captain gets a hint of this being to much for his men, then we definitely get called off. Since you seem to know more than I do, I'm referring to you. So what do you think we should do?"

Adrian watched the others, pushing the occasional debris with his foot to give the appearance of searching. He could see the dwarf moving with the footprints. For those without magical prowess, it was a common thing to learn, but harder to master. Luckily, the dwarf and the tribal both were only hinting at what had actually occurred. Out of the corner eye, he could see a figure moving in his direction. Adrian watched the half-elf approach him, his right arm relaxing as the blade underneath pressed against his forearm. The elf walked up friendly enough, but Adrian knew better than to believe such a ruse.

Since you seem to know more than I do, I'm referring to you. So what do you think we should do?"

Adrian looked at the elf, noticing the faint tint of blood than ran from his closed eye. Adrian let out a slight chuckle, his yellow eye looking at the elf coldly. Its gaze was unshakeable, telling a twisted and depraved story of what it had seen. He whispered, "You see too much, elf." Adrian turned around, away from the village and pointed toward the tip of the nearby mountain which separated where they were now from Bran. "We can't afford to go back. If we all continue on, not all of us will survive. But, we can't go back." Adrian was uncertain of what the elf's response would be, but their conversation was interrupted by the sound of the Captain rounding everyone up within the town square.

The Captain looked primarily at his men, who had clearly not found a thing. "Alright, did anyone else find anything of value to our mission?" Adrian looked around the group to see who would respond. No one seemed to be speaking up which Adrian met with a sigh of relief. The Captain sighed and scratched the back of his head, muttering the word 'useless' under his breath. "Well, since no one found anything useful, I guess we'll just move on." The Captain and guards mounted their horses again, ready to venture beyond the town. "Alright, move out!" The horse began their trout once again, traveling deeper into the mountains.

A few hours later...

The sun was setting, disappearing behind the mountains. It would be dark soon, but the group was not stopping for the night. The Captain was prepared to march until they found their targets. If his maps were correct, the bandits would eventually reach mountains too high to traverse and will likely head underneath, finding shelter in a cave. At least, that was the Captain's theory. "Captain! Captain!" The Captain turned to one of his guards, seeing the man's eyes wide and pointing down the path. The Captain squinted his eyes, seeing a large object hanging down from a tree down the path. The group continued forward, stopping twenty yards short of the now visible wreckage. The object hanging from the tree was one of his guards, the body dangling from an old rope. Five other guards laid around the area, along with their horses. Save for the one lynched, the other five had been decapitated, their heads lined up on spikes just a few feet further down the dirt road.

The Captain dismounted his horse, walking to the tree and cutting the base of the rope, causing the body to fall to the ground. He spoke a few words from the Chant of The Divines under his breath not wanting to show weakness in front of his men/ Adrian walked over to the spikes, looking at the heads with reserve. The eyes had been removed, likely to be taken as a warning. His left eye shot to the trees, a shadow watching them. It was not likely one of those they hunt, so Adrian decided not to mind it. Whether the figure decided to reveal itself was its choice alone.

Cold, all almost too cold for one to bear. It wasn't the retreat of warmth from the setting sun that was responsible for the chill. The cold wasn't even an outward force. It flourished within its holder, giving her a feel of frozen veins. But the sensation wasn't a discomfort; it was too normal to be uncomfortable. It was an inward effect of magic: whatever she brought forth into reality was reflected inside her body.

Vetracene stood in the shadows of the trees overlooking the grotesque sight before her. The mutilated bodies of what looked to be a band of guards would have sent lesser men and women running. She had no love for the authority these guards had upheld, but even she couldn't cast aside this horror. But even so, she couldn't say that she wouldn't wish this fate upon her another. This world was too cold, too brutal to say that, and that's what made life interesting. Dangerous, yes, but interesting.

She had heard about the raid, if it could even be called that, on Jaski. It hadn't been hard to acquire the knowledge of the attack. Just a few hours in Bran and the news had reached her ears. Sure she just happened to be in the area, but the speed at which the news had spread had caught her attention and by extension her interest. She didn't know the area, so she hadn't been able to check the area out of curiosity. That had brought her to following this deceased regiment of guards. During her shadowing, she had fallen behind. It was only after hours of wandering that she had come across this display of barbarity. For all her disgust, this had solidified her interest in the matter. Simple bandits wouldn't have gone this far. Suspecting these lost guards wouldn't have passed the attention of those in the capital, Vetracene decided to camp out in the area, while constantly keeping on the move.

Her suspicions had been correct. Here was another group, though this one seemed much more intriguing. It seemed the queen had resorted to hiring mercenaries. They were always an interesting bunch, mercenaries. Vetracene inched closer to the arriving group, darting from shadow to shadow. Already six had caught her attention: a swordsman with an eyepatch, a dwarf, a nomad, an elf, a Paladin, and one with human and elven characteristics.

The dwarf seized her attention first. Dwarves were masters of close quarters combat, something Vetracene failed miserably in. For their short stature, they were incredibly nimble. If she chose to reveal herself, she couldn't ignore the master of stone.

Her eyes wandered to the elf. The redhead was young, but Vetracene would never judge someone for his or her age. Age only signified experience. Potential was much more interesting, and the young had pools of it. Elves were serious threats. Without knowledge of their magic, it was pretty similar to fighting blindfolded. The fact that this young elf was out and about as a mercenary meant she was confident in her skills.

The possible half-elf was mystery. Half-elves weren't unheard of but they were extremely rare. Bearing strengths of more than one race, their potential was incredible.

The other three, while no doubt being threats, didn't quite catch Vetracene's attention in comparison to the dwarf, elf, and half-elf. That didn't mean she wouldn't take them into consideration, but standing here for too long was risky. If she was going to reveal herself, she had to do it soon. She weighed the risks and her interest. Sure they could attack on her sight, and very possibly kill her, but this was a golden opportunity. If all else failed, she could probably retreat as long as the combat fighters didn't get too close to her. With a shrug she stepped out of the trees' shadows. She wasn't above making a dramatic interest. With an inward grin, she chilled the water in the air, bringing it close to freezing.

"Too slow," she drawled, announcing her presence. "I thought you would be here sooner. You shouldn't keep a lady waiting. I was starting to get bored." Her blue eyes flashed icily. "And Boredom is one of the greatest evils."