Alexander placed the candle on the table in the study after using it to light another. At the late hour, all Druids were asleep save for himself and Elisor.

"Thank you. The flickering does terrible things to these old eyes." Elisor said. "We'll start on the research tomorrow. I'd love to discover the properties of that armor. Fascinating stuff." He raised a glass of deep red wine.

"To those we lost." Alexander toasted, raising his own.

"Yes, yes. Poor Pax and Hope. A strange effect that Hagsbane has on our visions. I suppose all of these artifacts will do the same. Clouds them in such a peculiar way. I hope you don't blame yourself for any of it. Funny thing, Pax means peace. So the death of peace and Hope could have been a bad omen for us."

Fenian did not find it funny. Perhaps somewhere inside he did blame himself. Or maybe he blamed Elisor for sending them. Most of all he was simply sad. "Fenian too."

"Indeed. So many. Even young Cassius Juliei. I had such hopes for the boy."

"Did you?" Alexander asked.

"Ahh, well as much as I could hope." Elisor said pointing to his eyes. "Though I did not expect him to go out so spectacularly. His actions were a bit premature, but he was a child. Truly a shame, indeed."

"Yeah. Could you not have stopped him? Was there no way to change things, to save them?"

"Perhaps. I have made such attempts before, though I find letting things be is usually the best option. For example, should I have sent someone else in Pax's place? Who then? Which of our brothers and sisters here would have been better suited to die? And for what? For Pax to die in the sand rather than the snow? I know it is upsetting, but the alternatives were no better. Do you understand?"

You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

Alexander wanted to agree. He wanted to share the perspective, the wisdom, that Elisor was trying to show him. "It's late. Tomorrow, if it is ok, we must look for Howlen." Alexander said as he stood. He reached for the door to the hall as Elisor went to answer.

The door flew open at Alexander, knocking him to the ground and stopping Elisor from speaking. Howlen stepped over Alexander and walked toward the old man. Elisor greeted him with a sad, knowing smile.

"I went to the hill but you were not there." Howlen said flatly. He leaned on the small table, knocking one of the wine glasses to the floor. "Do you know what I found?"

"Howlen, please-" Elisor began.

"I found my son. Dead and alone."

"Yes."

"Dead!" Howlen slapped the second glass across the room. "You know, when I saw him," he pulled Hagsbane from his coat and waved it about, "I thought about joining him. But there was something I needed to do first." He pointed the knife at Elisor.

"Howlen, consider your actions carefully. Alive I can help you. Surely you know of the curse. Surely you feel it." Howlen sunk the twisted black knife into Elisor's gut and pulled sideways. Blood poured from the old man. Alexander watched the wetness soak through his black robe and drip onto the floor.

"Help me? No, old man, you have helped enough. The world is saved!" Howlen pulled the knife back across Elisor's stomach then withdrew it. Droplets of blood splattered onto Alexander's frozen face, still sitting where he fell.

"My son knew a girl. Caitlyn, was her name." Howlen spoke to the corpse. "I never met her, but his face lit up when he would bring her up. I tried to ask about her from time to time, but that's the thing with me. I open my mouth and words escape, they go out and, well, its like they destroy the people around me, on the inside."

After a pause Howlen faced Alexander. "It didn't help at all. Do you know what I mean?" Howlen pointed to the old man's corpse.

"Yeah. I do." Alexander said, resigned to his fate.

"You were right though, about this Hagsbane curse. On that hill I did that very thing to myself. It didn't work." Howlen lifted his shirt to reveal the gruesome scar across his own midsection.

He stood from the table and stepped to Alexander. Alexander froze. He could not get up or crawl away. In silence, Howlen stepped over him and left.