Xandar stirred from his slumber, roused by the sensation of a firm hand shaking his shoulder. He raised his head, which felt heavy and oddly light at the same time, and found Erdrik in a similar state, his face planted on the table, drooling like a leaky cauldron.
The persistent hand ceased its shaking, and the innkeeper moved over to attend to Erdrik, giving him a few vigorous shakes. Xandar blinked groggily, surveying the now deserted tavern hall. The candles were extinguished, leaving only one lantern and the dim embers still flickering in the fireplace. The innkeeper’s wife was busy going from table to table, meticulously cleaning up.
Erdrik finally came to his senses, pushing himself up from the table and rubbing his forehead. He turned his head from side to side, taking in the empty room around him, as confusion quickly turned into anger.
“Where is the drow?” he demanded of the innkeeper, rising to his feet and swaying lightly. “There was a dark elf with us.”
“He left a while ago. Even paid for you.” The innkeeper replied, his tone tinged with accusation.
“Why did you not wake us up?” Erdrik pressed on.
The innkeeper shrugged. “People passing out is not a rare sight here, though for most it takes more than three drinks.”
Erdrik’s ire intensified, “And you don’t find it concerning that people at your establishment are knocked out completely so early in the evening?”
The innkeeper’s response held a hint of weariness, “Run an inn for a few years, and you’ll find yourself less concerned about many things. Now, if you don’t mind, we’re trying to close up here.”
Erdrik appeared ready to argue further, but Xandar interjected, rising from his seat and steadying himself on the heavy wooden table.
“The book, Erdrik,” he hissed, tugging on his companion’s sleeve urgently.
Erdrik’s gaze snapped back to Xandar, his focus sharpening.
“Alright. Thank you for your wonderful hospitality.” he said to the innkeeper, dripping sarcasm with each word, before striding towards the door.
They began with a brisk walk which quickly escalated into a full blown run. Soon Erdrik was wheezing and falling behind, prompting Xandar to slow down. By the time they reached the Barking Toad, he was gasping for breath, stumbling as they rushed up the stairs. The door to the room was shut but, upon closer inspection, unlocked. Inside, Xandar was not surprised to see that the hefty tome with its leather binding and the red letters was gone. He searched from desk to desk, then peered into the closet.
“Looks like he took the amulet too, along with the scrolls containing the new spell,” He reported.
Erdrik clutched his big, square face with both hands. “Blast it!” he exclaimed to the room in general. “Bloody hell, bloody fuck, bloody everything!”
“Didn’t you have protection spells on your books and the room?” Xandar inquired.
“Of course I did. He must have been bloody strong to break them.”
“Or maybe he didn’t work alone.” Xandar suggested.
Erdrik gave him a questioning look. “What do you mean?”
“I told you, Elderon got here with an adventuring party. I also told you that they stayed put while he claimed to have parted ways with them, remember?” Xandar pointed out, the elation of proving Erdrik wrong momentarily overshadowing his panic.
Erdrik’s rage seemed to subside, replaced by a disappointed expression. “It’s not about who was wrong and who was right. What matters now is figuring out how to get it back.”
They tried to scry on Elderon, an attempt that neither of them was surprised to find unsuccessful, then on his party members whom Xandar remembered well enough.
“He must have placed some protection spell on all of them,” Erdrik muttered when the silver mirror before them once again showed nothing but a pool of blackness.
Xandar let out a sigh. “Maybe we could find a similar book that looks like the original? They don’t know what’s inside anyway...” he mused, but Erdrik silenced him with an icy look.
“Our reputation is on the line here, and we’re not giving up that easily,” he said firmly. “Besides, it’s only been a few hours; they couldn’t have gotten very far.”
Xandar wasn’t entirely convinced. “And if we find them, how are we going to take it back? Do we fight Elderon and his entire party? What if they are stronger than us?” He challenged.
“There’s no point thinking about it now, is there? Especially when we still don’t know how to find them. Let’s focus on locating the book first, then we can figure out how to retrieve it. One thing at a time,” Erdrik replied impatiently.
A mental image of the book appeared in Xandar’s mind as Erdrik mentioned it, and for a moment, he thought he felt a strange, tingling, sensation.
The moon shone high in the night sky when Duriel awoke from her meditation to find Kaizer looming over her, gently shaking her by the shoulder.
“You’re shift’s up.” he yawned.
They had chosen a small grove, not far from the side road they had been traveling, to set up their camp for the night. A cluster of spruce trees and some shrubs provided natural shelter, and it was conveniently situated between the winding side road and the main road, from which they had been cautiously keeping their distance. As per usual, Duriel willingly took on the second guard shift. She wasn’t a druid herself, but after having spent her entire childhood under the guidance of one, Duriel developed a fondness for the second shift of the night, when Father Moon watched over her.
The elf had left her quiver and arrows on the ground beside her as she sank into the trance-like state of her meditation but slung them over her shoulder upon awakening. You could never be too ready. She rose from the cross legged position in which she had been sitting and stretched, watching the hulking warrior curl up not far from the small bundle that was Tomlin. The gnome was blissfully asleep. Only one bundle was missing.
She wandered around the small camp until her gaze fell upon a dark figure leaning against a tree, a fair distance away from the embers of their cooking fire and the harmonious symphony of snores performed by Tomlin and Kaizer.
“Still up with that book of yours?” she asked. “We’ve been traveling all night and a full day without rest. You should get some sleep.”
The dark elf looked up from his book and gave her a sly smile. “It warms my heart that you worry about me,” he replied playfully.
Duriel frowned, retorting, “I’m only thinking about the safety of the group. If you don’t replenish your energy and prepare your spells, you’ll be of no use to us tomorrow if we run into trouble.”
“Our fearless leader..” Elderon teased.
“I am not a leader nor a follower.” Duriel snapped back, but then her stern expression softened as she added, “Though I’m probably the only one here with even a hint of common sense.”
Elderon chuckled at her remark.
“So what’s in that book anyway? Was it worth all the trouble?” she asked, looking down towards the foreign letters.
Even with her keen vision, which remained unhindered by the lack of light, she struggled to discern the unfamiliar characters on the pages. In contrast, Elderon seemed unfazed by the darkness as he read.
“Turns out this Garnazar The Vile character is some lesser demon with a knack for summoning insects,” Elderon explained with a tired sigh. “I’m halfway through translating one of the spells, but it’s quite strange, even with the amulet’s assistance.”
“That could be useful,” Duriel mused, “You could confuse, maybe even disarm, an enemy with a swarm.”
“Perhaps, but I don’t think it’s a swarm, more like a few very large and unpleasant insects.” Elderon said.
“Persuasion, then,” she suggested with a shrug. “I’ve heard that some folks are terrified of insects. Holding a giant bug up to someone like that could surely get them to talk or do whatever you need them to.”
A wicked grin stretched across Elderon’s face. “That’s devious... You’re starting to think like a true drow!”
Duriel’s frown was never too far away, and it quickly returned and took control of her expression in an instant. “I am just considering strategy.” she asserted stubbornly.
“You’re considering-” Elderon began but stopped mid sentence. “Did you hear that?”
Duriel had already begun to creep through the trees, stealthily positioning herself for a better view point.
“Torches approaching on the main road,” she reported upon her return. “Sounds like at least six horses. I don’t think they’ll spot us here, but we’d better wake the others just in case.”
As she spoke, Duriel slung her slender bow off her shoulder and drew an arrow from her quiver. Elderon closed his book and set off to awaken Kaizer and Tomlin. She could hear him smothering the embers of their fire and the hushed conversation as he roused the others. Kaizer rose with a grunt, immediately unsheathing his mighty sword.
Hidden behind the trunk of a tree, Duriel watched, motionless. At first it seemed like the riders would continue along their way, passing their camp and avoiding unnecessary encounters. However, without warning, one of the horses slowed to a stop, and the others followed suit.
A brief exchange of words followed, the contents of which Duriel could not make out, before the riders turned and directed their steeds straight toward their encampment.
“They’re coming here.” she whispered, glancing back.
“I’ll go talk to them.” Announced Kaizer, patting his sword confidently.
“Oh, sure, let the big oaf do the talking, if by talking you mean poking them with the pointy end of a sword,” muttered Tomlin as he nudged the tall warrior aside and strode past him. “Let me see what it is that they want. Sometimes all people need is a little song to cheer them up.”
He flashed a grin at his own jest and approached the edge of the grove. Duriel remained in the shadows, ready to strike if the gnome was in danger. As always, she found Tomlin’s behavior reckless, but Duriel had to admit he possessed the skills to defuse tense situations - especially when he wasn’t the one causing them.
A riding party of eight halted their horses just before the tree behind which she was hiding. Six of the people wore the unmistakable outfits and armor of the city guard. Another one appeared to be a wizard. The nature of the last party member, however, remained a mystery for Duriel; He held the demeanor of a leader, stopping his horse ahead of the rest, his expression radiating the annoyed air of authority, but he didn’t appear to be carrying any weapons, and his clothes - which were not the typical robes of a wizard - appeared too expensive for travel.
“How may I assist you this fine evening, gentlemen?” Tomlin said. His unusual lute already found its way into his hands, and his quick fingers were dancing absentmindedly across the strings.
“A member of your party stole something from us.” the leader of the group announced. He had the tone of one who was used to having others obey his commands, Duriel observed.
“Do we look like thieves to you?” Tomlin chuckled, “Why we’re adventurers, not thieves, living on the edge of danger and protecting the realm from evil. Stealing is beneath us.”
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“I don’t care about what you claim to be, and trying to charm us will not work, bard,” the leader retorted, his expression unchanged. “Elderon the drow is among you, and he possesses something that does not belong to him. Moreover, he had a contractual obligation that he broke, and according to the laws of Rovalia, he must return the stolen item or face justice.”
“I’m getting tired of this,” came a grunt from behind Duriel and she saw Kaizer lumber his way to confront the riders.
“Listen here, pal,” he said, leaning his great sword on one broad shoulder, “The way I see it, there’s eight of you and four of us, only that each of us can take out a small pack of gnolls single-handedly. Some city guards and a wizard? Come on, you’re just wasting-” Kaizer stopped mid-sentence and studied Xandar.
“Aren’t you the fellow that worked magic on my sword?” he asked, pointing the blade at Xandar.
Xandar cleared his throat. “That was me,” he croaked.
“That was a nice spell you did. I wouldn’t want to fight you, but I will if you don’t all go away now.” Kaizer warned.
“You could fight us, of course,” Erdrik nodded, as if acknowledging a well articulated argument rather than a threat. “However, that would also mean fighting the city guard. You would not only be breaking the city’s law but also assaulting the city itself. That would undoubtedly mean your name plastered all over wanted signs, and the city would be off-limits for the rest of your lives.”
Kaizer stared at them in confusion. “And what of it?”
“Consider the following: right now your reputation precedes you as renowned adventurers and heroes. But if you chose the criminal path instead, a different reputation will precede you, slamming many doors in your face. People will fear you, inns will turn you away, and while you may not mind, perhaps even anticipate the occasional fight, imagine the weariness of constantly having bounty hunters on your tail.”
The silence behind the trees was broken by a familiar voice saying, “You can’t be taking him seriously, can you?”
“Maybe you’re used to it, Elderon, but I like being welcomed. If I’m denied entry to taverns and inns, who am I going to play for? The wolves and Beholders?” the gnome, Tomlin, burst out, “I didn’t sign up for this to become the bad guy.”
Kaizer chuckled at that. “Yeah, remember Jasper City? He almost retired after that!”
“Don’t tell me you agree with that,” Elderon exclaimed in disbelief from the shadows.
This time a new voice spoke, ethereal and melodic, yet bearing an unwavering composure, “If the fat man is right, it would be a significant hassle,” the speaker stated matter of factly. Xandar glanced aside just in time to catch an insulted expression on Erdrik’s face.
“It sounds like the reward is not worth the trouble,” the unseen speaker concluded.
“So you,Duriel, the untamed huntress of the wilds, will let the laws of men determine your actions?” Elderon prodded.
“I abide by the laws of my own reasoning, and right now, my reasoning says that fighting these men would be a major inconvenience. Avoiding this encounter seems the preferable course of action.” Duriel retorted, her voice growing colder and slightly less patient.
They could hear Elderon sigh.
“Just return the book, Elderon. We don’t need overgrown insects to win our battles,” Duriel spoke again. It took a few moments, but eventually, and with exaggerated reluctance, Elderon emerged from the trees, holding the book up and avoiding Erdrik’s eyes. Xandar couldn’t help but think that the dark elf resembled a scolded child begrudgingly apologizing.
“Take your stupid book,” he muttered, “It’s useless anyway.”
Erdrik reached out, solemnly accepting the peace offering, but just as Elderon was about to hand over the book, Xandar felt the urgent need to add, “I told you you can’t trust a drow.”
The effect was instantaneous. Elderon’s expression twisted into a fierce grimace, baring his teeth. “You had it coming for a while now,” he growled, swift to raise one hand, the book already open in his other, as he began reciting the arcane words. The sounds alternated between the dry crackles of fiery sparks and the slow gurgle of molten lava.
A startled yelp escaped the gnome, and from the shadows, a nimble elf in a green cloak darted forth, but she was too late to intervene. Xandar gritted his teeth, his mind racing, scrambling to conjure a protective spell, while Erdrik raised his hands, chanting his own incantation.
The explosion erupted in a burst of crimson energy that made Xandar instinctively squeeze his eyes shut. He waited for the light to subside, then hesitantly peered through his eyelids, dreading what he might see. To his surprise, the scene around him remained unchanged. Erdrik and the guards were unaffected, as were the rest of Elderon’s adventuring party. Only one figure was conspicuously absent - Elderon had vanished.
“Found him.” the elven ranger called a moment later, crouching to retrieve something from the ground. Rising to her feet, she presented a large creature to the bewildered onlookers - as long as her forearm and twice as thick.
“The secret society won't be thrilled about this,” Xandar mumbled under his breath.
“So this is what this book does? Turn you into a bug?” Tomlin burst out, approaching Duriel and inspecting the unusually large insect with revulsion-free fascination. “Is it reversible? Can I try it too?”
Erdrik cleared his throat, regaining control over the situation. “The book, please. Unless there are any other challengers.”
The ranger glanced toward Tomlin and kaizer, tilting her head in a gesture they seemed to immediately understand.
“And the amulet, if you will,” Erdrik requested as the gnome presented him with the leather bound tome, the scroll with their spell pressed between its pages.
Tomlin appeared baffled, looking around in confusion.
“It must have fallen when Elderon.. uh, changed,” Xandar noted, and indeed, after a moment’s search they had it.
The ranger glided toward them, her steps no more than a whisper in the nocturnal stillness. Elderon was still perched on her arm, looking like a falcon if a falcon had dusty wings, bulging eyes and feelers. “You got what you came for, now leave our camp,” she said to Erdrik.
Xandar gaped in amazement. He had caught a few glimpses of her before, but nothing could have prepared him for her striking features. When he finally managed to break free from the spell of her enchanting aura, he also noticed she kept her bow drawn, arrow poised to fly. He had little doubt she could release it before he or Erdrik could even utter a word.
With a cold thank-you, Erdrik turned his horse, and they galloped away without exchanging a word. It wasn’t until the city’s silhouette emerged on the horizon, a murky shadow with three distinct spires, that they eased their pace.
“I must admit, I didn’t think it would be so easy.” Xandar said, riding alongside Erdrik.
“Convincing them?” Erdrik retorted, “Well, once you understand the people you’re dealing with and their motivations, it becomes a breeze. Elderon’s attempt didn’t surprise me either; I had already prepared the ‘telekinesis’ and ‘sphere of holding’ spells.”
“Still, I never imagined the outlaw scenario would convince everyone so fast. Everyone other than Elderon, in any case.” Xandar said, still awestruck.
Erdrik shrugged. “Adventuring isn’t just about the treasures, right? A significant part of it involves sitting in a tavern and spinning tales of how you vanquished a giant Gibbering Mouther to a crowd of wide-eyed simpletons. Most adventurers live for those moments, so being banished from a place like Rovalia would be living hell for them.”
It was one of the rare occasions on which Erdrik made sense. And truth be told, while the encounter unfolded smoother than Xandar expected, the rest of their operation was far from easy to pull off, especially given the tight window of time they had to execute it.
Only when they were within city walls did Erdrik dispel the illusion that clung to the three makeshift guards - a pair of brawny men recruited from a nearby tavern and a menacing student seeking some extra coin - making them sprout twin reflections. A close inspection might have revealed that their uniforms were far from the authentic city guard attire, but they served their purpose well enough. They were surprisingly easy to find too, Xandar never ceased to be amazed by the treasures one could dig up in the university’s cellars and storage rooms, which he luckily still had access to.
Even luckier was the fact that the binding spell they had cast on the book still held strong. Xandar had been the last one they tested the binding spell on, and even when Elderon somehow managed to introduce himself as the book’s owner, the enchantment remained tethered to Xandar.
It was close to sunrise when they returned the borrowed uniforms, paid off their hired muscle, and made their way back to the Barking Toad. Erdrik wasted no time, deciding they would set out on the very same day to deliver the book and their completed work to the secret magic society. Xandar wholeheartedly agreed; too many people now knew of the book’s existence, and their mission was accomplished.
Xandar wasn’t surprised to find the innkeeper already awake and bustling about, sweeping the floors, as they entered the inn. She wore a vibrant purple dress, with butterflies made out of a transparent, yet sparkly material sewn onto every available piece of fabric. She smiled at them warmly.
“You gentlemen look tired,” she announced, looking up from her work, “But it’s nothing a warm cup of tea and a jam cookie can’t fix!”
A while later they were seated in a corner of the dinning hall, their bags resting on an empty chair, sandwiched between them and the wall. The hall was deserted, yet they couldn’t resist stealing glances at their belongings every few moments, just to ensure they were still there.
“It still baffles me how he swiped the book without triggering any of my protection spells,” Erdrik pondered aloud, cup of tea in hand, fingers interlocked under his chin.
“That elf - Duriel - I thought she was a ranger, but what if she’s a druid? You know, the kind who can morph into different animal forms and sneak past your spells unnoticed?”
“Even if she transformed into a butterfly, she would still have to move the book, and that alone would set off the spells,” Erdrik replied.
“Then perhaps elves have other spells that bypass ours.” Xandar suggested.
A simple chariot soon arrived, and they clambered aboard with their bags and the book, along with the amulet - concealed amid piles of clothes and layers of spells. Erdrik pulled out his spellbook, contemplating how to revise his spells to prevent such an incident in the future, while Xandar closed his eyes, letting the gentle swaying of the chariot lull him to sleep.
Thoughts of the elf, Duriel, resurfaced in his mind. Right before he made his careless remark, which provoked Elderon’s rash response, she had managed to convince the dark elf to return their belongings without a fight. It might have been a trick, of course, a deception allowing him to cast his spell from a shorter range, but the gesture seemed genuine, and the serene acceptance on Elderon’s face spoke volumes. Dueirl’s reasoning was the only one Elderon seemed willing to listen to. Xandar marveled at how effortlessly she persuaded the dark elf, despite all his sinister whispers, how his tone softened when speaking to her. Elves must truly possess spells unknown to humans, he decided, very strange spells indeed, and all of a sudden, Xandar felt relieved that he hadn’t spent long enough in Duriel’s company to get entangled in one.