Impetitus, Markham, Verene, and Viridal found themselves sprawled on the grass within the forever twilight of the Dark Forest. The Templar rose slowly to his feet and scanned his surroundings.

"I'm ready for that blasted giant dog," growled Markham as he readied his shield and battleaxe.

They heard howls in the distance.

"Viridal, use a gem," Impetitus ordered. The large Templar gathered everyone close.

"What if the beacon is down? Or the encampment is lost? Will we go back to the Cemetery Camp?" Markham asked.

"No, you dolt. That is likely too far. What will happen is that we remain here," the wizard snapped, and the dwarf glowered at him.

The four stood close to each other as Viridal broke the gem, and they vanished.

The Dark Forest Adventurer Camp

The group materialized in the center of a dimly lit encampment. They arrived next to the beacon in an open grass field. The sky above them was purple twilight, and surrounding them was a ring of twisted trees that led into the Dark Forest. Unlike the other encampments, this one was quieter and smaller. There were a handful of tents and maybe two dozen or so other adventurers sitting in groups of four to six around campfires. The nearest was a squad of extremely rugged-looking hunters and warriors. They sat around a small fire, sharpening blades and fletching arrows. Stretched out on racks beside the fire were shadow wolf pelts, the main prize for adventurers in this part of the Wasteland since the Talisman was already taken. They nodded without smiling at Impetitus and his comrades.

"Do we need to recruit a new tracker?" Asked the dwarf.

"Unless you think you can find the next portal," scoffed Viridal.

"I'm getting tired of your attitude," the dwarf growled.

"Enough!" Barked Impetitus.

Verene had already made her way to the nearest group of adventurers to see if anyone with tracking skills would be interested in doing a Dungeon run. The Templar saw her talking with a warm smile that he knew was fake. The group of hunters shook their heads. Good money could be made from Shadow Wolf Pelts, and no need for them to risk going into the Dungeon that was already looted.

"I was there. It is huge with lots of treasure still ripe for the taking," offered Verene. Still no takers. She moved on to the next group.

"Markham! Is that you?" A burly half-orc with a scar along their left cheek called out.

"Gregan! While I live and breathe," responded the dwarven defender. The two clasped hands.

"I hear you might have a score to settle with ole Nezarit, the wolf lord."

"Aye, he done me in last time I was here."

"My squad plans to take down the beast and claim his reward. Hey! You should join us. We could always use another defender," the taller half-orc explained.

Markham's eyes widened. He glanced at Impetitus. The Templar had a very stern look on his face. A look that said know your duty. But what do I owe them? Markham wondered to himself. Gregan was his type of people. No-nonsense, grit, and steel warriors. And much better drinking partners too. The burly grey-skinned half-orc was already calling out to his comrades to introduce them to Markham. Gregan's company included a dwarf dressed in heavy armor like Markham, except this one, who had red hair and a beard and favored a large two-handed Dane axe. Markham and the dwarf grunted to each other in greeting. The final two were elves with short dark hair. They appeared to be sisters, but to the dwarf, all elves looked related. Markham was happy to note that they wore practical mail armor and used bows. Their backup weapons were swords and shields. They didn't say much, and each introduction was followed by a firm handshake and a shoulder pat. My type of people, Markham thought to himself.

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"Can any of you track?" Verene asked smoothly, sliding up next to Markham from out of nowhere. As if she was created by the twilight itself.

"Yea, we all have some talent with that," Gregan answered. He was a little startled. The mage thief had a cold smile. Something about her was off to the half-orc.

"We need a skilled tracker to do a Dungeon run," Verene said.

"Good luck finding one. Everyone here is after Shadow Wolves. Like I was telling Markham here, we are making a go after the Wolf Lord," Gregan said, his face hardening in resolve.

"Hmm, Just you four?" Verene pondered, tapping her chin with a slender finger.

Gregan stood tall, jutted his jaw forward, and growled, "What are you implying? I'm not one for word games."

"Have you seen the Shadow Wolf Lord?" Verene asked, this time walking amongst the others to look at each of them with her dark pupilless eyes.

"We killed many Shadow Wolves and gotten rich from their pelts," the dwarf grumbled while fingering his two-handed axe. It was a nasty-looking weapon. A single large axe blade at the end of a wooden shaft with Dwarven runes etched on the blade's head.

"I didn't ask about Shadow Wolves. I asked about Nezarit, the Shadow Wolf Lord," Verene said, with a grin that carried no mirth behind it.

The silent elven sisters shook their heads. Their faces were impassive, but Verene's sharp eyes saw what she wanted on their faces. Doubt. Inwardly she knew she had them. But this interaction was delicate, and she needed to make a play in order to get what she wanted. Sometimes, that meant a little sacrifice.

"We know enuff about the wolf lord. They say he is larger, like a bear. Fierce and dangerous. But so are we!" Exclaimed Gregan, spittle coming from his single-tusked mouth. The red-haired dwarf nodded in agreement.

"What are you getting at Verene?" Growled Markham, but the mage thief ignored him. She was tapping her chin as if she was thinking.

"Glory and fame are what you are after," she observed. She had made her way to stand before Gregan, barely coming to the tall half-orcs chin.

This was her final play. She knew the elven sisters had concerns. Possibly one of them might join them, but that was doubtful. Gregan nodded proudly at her statement.

"The Dark Forest is challenging, sure. To adventure here is respected. But there are two more areas of the Wasteland that are more renowned. The Scorched Plains, and finally. The Dungeon."

"We are not dumb. We know who you are. You, the wizard, and Templar were a part of the crew that had already claimed the Dungeon. No one has claimed the Shadow Wolf Lord," Gregan retorted. His dwarven companion nodded gruffly.

"You four are not enough for the Shadow Wolf Lord. You will fail," the mage thief said flatly.

"I think I'll be joining them," Markham said defiantly. He was tired of being disrespected. At this, he did not get the look of shock he had hoped for, and Verene simply nodded.

"Maybe, with Markham. He is extremely formidable. He has seen the Wolf Lord up close. He probably has gotten the closest of anyone. But did you know the Wolf Lord is a demon? His wounds heal. Normal weapons can not kill him."

"Our weapons are enchanted, and they were blessed by a priest," Gregan said.

Verene shrugged lazily, "Maybe. But there is a reason no one has claimed the Shadow Wolf Lord. Many have tried and failed."

"Stop yer games, Verene," Markham growled.

"We will aid you with killing Nezarit. You can keep the reward and even the credit. We care not for that. In return, you aid us," Verene proposed. This was her play.

Impetitus, who was silent the entire time, looked shocked. "We don't have time for this," he said darkly to Verene.

The mage thief ignored him. She made her move, and she waited calmly. Gregan, the dwarf, and the elf sisters conferred with each other. Verene knew they would agree. After a moment, Gregan turned from the group and approached the mage thief.

"Agreed," he said and extended his hand. Verene smiled.

"Excellent, we are in a hurry, so let's depart first thing tomorrow," she said.

"What is this about?" Impetitus growled when he and the mage thief were alone.

"Us four were barely enough to make it to the Dark Forest. If you recall. We bested the Dungeon with ten!" She snapped.

"You should have consulted me," Impetitus said darkly. His jaw set with barely contained rage.

"We were about to lose our defender. This is our only option," she growled back.

Impetitus's grey eyes stared down long and hard at the mage thief. For a moment, she feared he would lash out at her. But the Templar nodded in agreement. It was clear he was still angry.

"What happened?" Viridal asked, looking up from his book.

"We are going after the Shadow Wolf Lord," Impetitus said.

"Nezarit?"

Impetitus nodded.

"Are we still going after the goblins?"

Impetitus nodded again.

"That's good," the mage said with a shrug and returned to his book.