Iris opened the heavy door leading outside squinting as the bright evening light shone right into her eyes.
"Woah." A soldier stepped back from Iris as she threw open the door to the dungeon.
"What?" Irritated Iris barked back at the human guard.
"Nothing lady just... you know." The young-sounding voice sounded from under the metal visor. "Could I ask you lady did you see another group of people down there? We are very worried about them." The human managed to say to the elf.
"And how is that my business?" She asked.
"The commander said that two groups of huma- people didn't come back in a while and since you are here I figured you might have bumped into the other group."
"How much time had passed in the real world when we were there?" She ignored the guard's question as she looked up at the sun which didn't aligned with what it should had been according to the elf.
"About two days lady." The guard answered hoping the elf would answer his original question.
"No, sorry we didn't see anyone down there," Iris flashed the guard a small pitiful smile one would do when hearing about someone's death. "But I hope they come back safely. I shall pray to Aspects for their safety." She said before leaving the guard alone.
Humans walked in the evening light through the streets in small groups laughing and cheering about something Iris had no interest in. When the two were exiting the upper city through the open gate the merchant they met a few days ago was no were to be seen causing Kia to make a sad "Ooohh" sound. The elf weaved between a company of soldiers marching in a uniform step toward the outside walls eventually arriving in the lowest portion of the fortress city. In the tight zigzagging streets of the lower district, the smell of alcohol assaulted her nose as she neared the guild house.
"Long live the Ki- Fecking crows shiting on me again!" A loud shout came from outside as Iris slammed the wooden door behind Kia. She looked around the guild but Denson was nowhere to be seen. Maybe for the better.
A rumbling sound came from behind the elf, she turned around to find Kia wobbling on her legs.
"If you are hungry, you can pull something out of your inventory," Iris said to the half-awake girl. "I will go upstairs in the meanwhile." She said seeing no reason to drag the mage upstairs right after arriving. Shortly after a tasty-sounding crunch appeared from behind her.
The elf turned the door handle a cold draft hit her face as the outside air tried to close the door. She pushed the door open and saw a figure wearing knightly black plate armour sitting on the window sill idly twirling a dagger between its finger.
"Finally," The figure stood up, the metal plates of the black armour silently sliding on one another. "Ignoring invitations of one's kin is quite rude in my opinion," A deep rough-sounding voice came from under the helmet. "No matter the messenger sent." The dark knight added, watching Iris as she stared at him in complete silence.
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"Brave you are and it would have been a smart idea if you had any chance of even hurting me." The armoured figure said at the same time as his dagger was replaced with a letter sealed with dark red wax. "My Mistress is expecting you to listen this time." The figure gently left the letter on the window sill where he stood and left accompanied by loud caws of the murder of crows outside taking into the air.
"Feels weird to not feel intimidated after that." Iris thought to herself as her cold headed mind processed the information. She carefully walked up to the window, careful of any nasty surprised left behind. She picked up the letter made from soft, delicate paper heavily scented with expensive-smelling perfume. A goblet with a skull inside it was branded into the crimson wax. Iris broke the elaborately designed seal and read the letter's contents written in beautiful calligraphic handwriting.
"Young children as an Overtyrant of our unliving kind in Firmusa I recommend you hurry to a place dubbed Underdark in the upper city." Iris read the short message. "Show this to the human owner and follow him." Was written in the left corner in a smaller font with a rough sketch of where the building was.
"On the Court." The elf cursed out loud wanting to crush the letter in her hand and burning it so that even the ash would not remain. Instead of doing this the risen examined the page again calculating if angering this Overtyrant was worth the possible risk.
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POV Change
The entire forest shook as a fireball hit the tree setting it alight. Two lines of dully-coloured humans slowly advanced at each other. As the distance between the two shortened, arrows started to whistle through the air some managing to hit their marks through the red canopy above them, painting the white timber with dark crimson. As the men were about to clash, a valley of javelins rained on one of the sides forcing those struck to chuck their tear-drop shields aside.
The sound of the battle raging in full, filled the air as the ground gained a new scarlet hue. Roddern watched the battle happening in front of him intently observing the frontline. Neither of the sides had deployed their second line nor the third if his enemy had it.
Roddern closed his eyes picturing the formation of his forces in his mind, he deployed his first line in one long continuous line consisting of fresh recruits from before his uprising. The second line which was made primarily out of his mercenary company formed a concave line with the flanks being heavily reinforced leaving the centre weak. He left his elite troops beside him to quickly reinforce if needed.
When he oppened his eyes he tracked a fiery sphere traveling through the canopy with a high arc suddenly plunge down engulfing some of his soldiers in flames causing them to flay on the ground trying to extinguish the flames. Each of his soldiers should easily be worth three of the enemy soldiers but it was glum to see a true warrior die without a proper fight.
"My Lord!"
"What is it?" He turned his head away from the carnage to look at the man on a horse, judging by his equipment it was one of his scouts.
"We have spotted the Firmusian leader aimlessly wandering the woods to our left flank!" The man breathlessly voiced as he rushed to communicate the vital information appearing completely exhausted.
"Is that a trap of some kind?" Roddern could not believe the Firmusian general was so incompetent. "They are not that daft?"
"No my Lord! The enemy's general is surrounded by his guards and nothing else!" The soldier's words ignited flames long extinguished in Roddern's soul. His forces where barely holding against the royal army and although he managed to win some minor battles he lacked the seemingly endless supply of soldiers his enemy possessed.
"Fluddson take the command!" Roddern ordered his officer. "Order the third company to follow me." He said to a soldier standing beside him. "If what you saying is true your section will be awarded that general's body weight in gold."
"Yes my Lord!" A spark of greed appeared in the young man's eyes.
"For our birth right!"
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POV Change
"I can hear the roar of the battle!" A man riding on an armoured reiter in a light set of armour with a purple collar yelled at his guards. "I will answer its call alone if the Worm's gifts choose differently! I will not coward from my duties!" He declared to the guards clad in black armour pulling the reins of his own monstrous mount.
"My Excellence I have to prevent you from such rash action. For your own safety of course." The enormous guard blocked the High Marshal's way with his mount. "This call you hear is just a skirmish. Our main forces are in front of us." A calm deep voice coming from under a visor explained.
The venerable high noble was about to try rushing passed his assigned guards but a sudden rustle of brushes flanking the forest path turned his attention to where the noise came from. His vision blurred as he felt his body being flung forward from his mount before hitting the ground. The ground was rocked by the heavy hoofs of the reiters galloping away from him. His now headless reiter kicked the soil into his mouth as even without a head the beast tried to stand up, yet even this finest of reiters collapsed a meter a way from the Marshal.
"Oh!?" An uncomfortably familiar voice reached the fallen High Marshal. "Didn't expect you where the lost noble in the forest or should I say abandoned?" A half-Norling wearying polished scale mail with a the two-handed axe held in his hands said approaching the betrayed noble. "Long time no see."
"That worm." The High Marshal gritted through his teeth, slowly standing up. "For Firmusa! For the Star!" A defiant war cry alongside a metallic whisper came from the old human pulling something from his boot and charging the person he once called a friend.