“I think you’re overthinking things a bit, I say go in there and get it done, it won’t be that hard for you.” Alex whispered out, sitting cross-legged on the ground, waiting at the entrance of the colossal cavern.
Elyza paced circles around him, her mind racing with thoughts of the immense task ahead. “Alex, I appreciate your confidence in me,” she began in hushed tones, her frustration simmering beneath the surface, “But that is a FUCKING DRAGON.”
“You're going to win,” he reassured her, his voice steady with conviction. “And if it seems like you’re going to lose, I’ll jump in and help.”
“I thought we were partners,” She stressed, continuing, “You expect me to battle a dragon on my own?”
“No, I expect you to win, or at least tire it out or make it believe it’s going to lose so it has no choice but to flee.”
As she tried to stare him down from the idiotic assumption that she could take down a beast of legend, the look of pure confidence in her abilities he had in his eyes, chipped away at the apprehension in her mind, till it was finally overcome.
She relented with a resigned sigh, “Fine.”
“Great!” Alex exclaimed, clapping his hands together with a bit too much enthusiasm. The sound echoed off the walls, reverberating until it dissolved into a low groan. Panicking, Elyza spun around to face the dragon, who was still snoring peacefully, its head shifting into a more comfortable position. “What are we dealing with?” he asked, already aware of how deep a dragon could sleep.
Terra Draconis were members of a species commonly known as dragons. Unlike their brethren, or what most thought were dragons, they were rarely seen flying even though they had the biggest wings of the species, preferring to tunnel underground. And one of this size would surely be mythicised as a minor earth deity. Each breath it took sent tremors through the cavern walls, as if the earth itself was bowing to its presence.
The dragon’s scales resembled rocks, and along with the natural matter, actual stones melded with the plates to form a jagged exterior crafted to protect its organic underside. As it slept, its body curled up, it almost appeared as a baby mountain, trapped in the dolomite walls of the cavern. If not for the two’s prior knowledge, its red exterior, mostly composed of Jasper, would’ve hinted to it being a Fire Dragon, which would be pretty disadvantageous, considering they were in an enclosed space whose walls were fireproof.
Suddenly, the dragon yawned, giving the two a perfect view of its swordlike teeth and a maw big enough to swallow them both whole, before it slammed shut as the dragon shifted its head once again. Its head had much softer features than the rest of the dragon, its flat snout having a slight underbite, its nostrils fluttering open to take another breath, pieces of stone jutting out randomly from its skin, disrupting the head’s stocky features.
But by far the most insightful feature was its horn. A dragon’s horns could tell you its age and even its gender. Unlike other dragons, whose horns were more akin to crowns, earth dragons had what could only be described as a blend of a bull's and a rhinoceros beetle’s horn. The keratin pointed forward to form a natural spade to aid with digging, and the females usually sported much curvier and bigger horns. The one snoring before them displayed some of the largest horns Alex had ever seen, and Elyza could discern from the pattern on them that she was female.
“A female dragon of the earth, has to be at least a thousand years old, and judging by the rocks, it has migrated here from somewhere else.” Elyza summarised, her voice no longer hushed.
“Took only a minute this time, impressive,” Alex professed, before quizzing her for his amusement, “What does it spew?”
Sighing, she focused on the dragon’s mouth, trying to look for something that may unveil the nature of its breath, “It can not be magma, there would be a build up of igneous rocks around the maw, and we would be able to smell acid from being this close. My best guess? It either regurgitates rocks or can expel sand, but there is a likelihood it may just not be able to breathe any element, though that would be surprising given her age.”
“She may be one of us.”
“A half-breed? Unlikely, lower level dragons rarely mate outside their family.”
“What’s the plan then, Ears?” Alex asked, rising to his feet and cracking his knuckles, injecting a semblance of readiness into his demeanour.
“I should probably set up some glyphs before she awakens, maybe prepare some seeds…” Elyza mumbled, absent-mindedly running her fingers through her seed pouch, trying to think which plant would be the best for restraining a colossal force of nature.
“Better do that quickly, seems like she just woke up,” He remarked, surging electricity into his hands, holding them an inch apart and letting it flow. A cloud of lightning jumped through the air, crackling and sizzling as it travelled, and as the air contracted in its wake, it produced a marvellously thunderous, and loud, sound.
Instantly, the dragon's eyelids shot open, revealing eyes that glowed with an otherworldly intensity. With a mighty heave, she lifted her weary head, unleashing a primal symphony that reverberated through the air, shaking the entire cavern with her deafening roar. It was a sound that filled the air with her sheer power and ferocity, echoing off the walls and causing loose debris to tremble and fall like rain.
Elyza took a deep breath to calm herself before noting, “You are a dick.”
“Yes, I am,” Alex remarked as she called upon her halberd, grinning as he slipped into his shadow. Moments later, He emerged from the ceiling, on a hammock crafted from umbra, in prime position to witness the battle, shouting down at her, “Try to have fun!”
The dragon’s gaze flickered momentarily toward the shadow-cloaked figure before settling back on Elyza, identifying the elf as the primary threat. With a menacing glare, her eyes narrowed, the pupils elongating into slitted forms as her lower eyelids slid over them. Despite the anticipation, the dragon's jaws remained ominously still, devoid of any projected onslaught.
The dragon’s jaw opened, yet it spewed nothing. At first, they both thought she was gearing up for an attack, and they were proven right. Elyza sensed the surrounding air change in pressure, and suddenly everything was pulled towards the gaping maw of the dragon.
Air, dust, rocks— even boulders— were ensnared in the swirling vortex, trapped in its relentless grasp, forcing Elyza to jam her halberd’s blunt end firmly into the ground, using it as an anchor to resist being sucked in.
Wrapping one arm around the shaft, she was pushing down on her spear, leveraging it against the ground to keep her footing, as her other hand pulled out some acorns, intending to infuse some mana into them and let go. However, the turbulent air tore the seeds from her grasp before Elyza could focus.
Yet, amidst the chaos, inspiration struck. “Ymgynnull dan fy ewyllys” she uttered, invoking a spell to aid her control over the wind, wrestling her will upon the tempest whipping past her, stealing the faster gales to wrap around her halberd, while she used the rest of the current to form a shell around her, forming a protective shell that ripped apart any stone unlucky to touch it.
The dragon seemed to catch on to what she was planning, slamming her mouth shut as soon as the elf took control of the situation. Her neck inflated like a canvas pouch as she readied to return all that she had ingested, but Elyza remained resolute, the spear at her side, held firmly at shoulder height, its pointed tip directed unwaveringly toward the dragon, a silent threat.
Rage filled the dragon, her wings bursting out from their rest. There wasn’t enough space to unfurl them fully, but flight wasn’t the reason she was showcasing them, no, it was a display of dominance. As her wings, studded with formidable rocks, spread to their fullest extent within the confines of the cavern, she reminded the intruders why her kind were revered as forces of nature.
At the very moment the tips of her wings grazed the cavern ceiling, the dragon's jaw snapped open, capitalising on the brief distraction of the elf to spit out a massive boulder. It was technically not a boulder, made of pieces of whatever the dragon had ingested, but even if it was, it truly did not matter.
Dodging would have been the safer choice, but Elyza opted for a more audacious manoeuvre. Stepping forward, she swung her halberd, manipulating the swirling whirlwind around her weapon to form and aim a razor-sharp wind blade. The blade of air shattered the incoming projectile, and the debris that remained were ground into dust as they hit the orb she resided within.
Undeterred, the dragon shot out another boulder, and another, each attack resulting in the same outcome. A trail of dust formed behind Elyza as she inched forward, using up the least amount of mana she could with her attacks. As the size of the boulders diminished over time, she remained cautious, fully aware that the dragon’s desperation was mounting with each passing moment.
A fierce snarl echoed through the chamber, powerful enough to shake the very foundations of the room. Rather than lunging at Elyza in a blind fury, the dragon raised her left claw in a menacing display. But that just gave Elyza an opening.
With fluid grace, she slid her halberd back, her right hand gripping the weapon at its centre of gravity, drawing her arm back, preparing to hurl it toward the dragon's exposed right wing. As it left her fingers, she willed the gale around her halberd to aid its path, causing it to spin, and launching it faster than any person would have been able to on their own. And she wasn’t finished.
“Hollti'r awyr” she cast, using the wind circling around her to form a javelin. With a deft spin on her heels, she unleashed the makeshift weapon, sending it hurtling toward the dragon's opposite wing. Both projectiles tore through the thin skin of the dragon's wings, sending a cascade of rocks showering down as they continued on their deadly trajectory, the javelin dissipating as it struck the cavern wall, while her halberd embedded itself into it.
The dragon's primal roar reverberated through the cavern, a symphony of pain and fury that seemed to echo off every rocky surface, and as she did, she brought both of her massive hands crashing down toward the elf.
Four razor sharp talons came down on her, yet with the calmness of a monk, Elyza opened her pouch, hovering one hand above it while the other commanded the remnants of her spell. Barely a moment separated her attack and the dragon’s retaliation, yet it felt like an eternity waiting for the claws to get close, restraining her will to jump out of the way till it was perfect. She even felt her shadow come alive courtesy of Alex, ready to pull her through if it went wrong.
It was time. Elyza jumped, coming ever closer to her demise, air condensed beneath her feet, as her arm shot forward, the wisps of wind swirling around following it, propelling the elf backwards. The dragon’s claws struck the ground, and the stone faulted as it failed to absorb her monstrous strength, the whole cave shaking violently as it took the impact, as if the hill was hit by an earthquake. Alex had to grab a hold of his hammock to steady himself, but his companion faced no such problem.
The air beneath her feet cushioned Elyza's landing, allowing her to slide gracefully as her boots touched the ground. With a fluid twist of her torso, she added a spin to her movement, hoping to present herself as a vulnerable target to the enraged dragon. As she slid, her hand grabbed a mix of barberry and poison ivy, feeding them her mana till they were on the verge of bursting, her mind already constructing the glyph they required.
With calculated precision, Elyza hurled the charged seeds straight at the dragon's wide-open maw as she completed her rotation. They sailed past the creature's menacing dagger-like teeth, disappearing into her gaping jaws.
In an instant, Elyza's command rang out, a single word laden with power. “Smachtnaigh,” she declared, her voice echoing with authority as she activated the spell. A floating glyph materialised alongside her, amplifying her mana as it surged forth.
Within the dragon’s cavernous maw, past her dagger like teeth, the charged seeds burst into life. Vines erupted from within, a chaotic tangle of brilliant red thorny barberry and deep green poisonous ivy. They writhed and twisted, racing and battling for dominance within the confines of the beast's mouth, sprouting through the gaps in her teeth and forcing her jaws to their limit, and pushing through their own.
As the vines surged forward, some recoiled from the dragon’s maw, lashing out like serpents to ensnare her arms. They wrapped around her limbs with a vice-like grip, pinning them to her body and the rocky ground beneath her.
Elyza had shown, if only in the confines of the cavern, the dragon was outmatched, there was no possible way she would be able to beat the elf, and the monster should’ve realised that. Her wings were clipped, her breath nullified, and Elyza was clearly dexterous enough to dodge her claws.
The best possible choice, which even a slime could figure out, was to retreat.
Yet, as Elyza gazed into the dragon’s eyes, expecting to see fear or at least apprehension, she was met with burning rage and unyielding determination. It was as if the concept of retreat was foreign to the creature, an option not even worth considering.
Her mind, facing something acting in a way that defied her logic, reviewed the past three minutes it had seen. Despite her formidable physical prowess, the creature had made no attempt to use her tail as a weapon, nor had she moved her body in any significant manner. Even now, as Elyza stood in front of her, seemingly distracted, the dragon struggled to break through the vines, despite the fact that the elf lay within easy reach of her tail. She didn’t want to use it, and that meant it was preoccupied elsewhere.
With a sudden realisation, Elyza’s focus snapped back to the dragon just as she shot a glance toward Alex, suspended above them. And then it clicked. The monster’s reluctance to move was due to a fear of revealing what she was concealing to the man above.
A snap echoed through the cavern, and it soon sounded like a firework had gone off within the space. The dragon, with a desperate ferocity, forced the vines down her throat, causing blood to spurt forth as the spikes tore through the tender flesh of her mouth, disappearing into the depths of her gut. The poison wouldn’t take effect immediately, and the dragon knew it, lunging at the elf with her blood stained teeth, bloodlust oozing from her demeanour.
She was never going to reach Elyza. Shadows erupted from the darkened rocks, almost screaming as they surged forward to protect her. Unleashed onto the unsuspecting dragon, the shadows coiled around her, tentacles restrained her limbs, smaller tendrils shooting from them to ensure that her entire body was wrapped in an abyssal embrace. It looked like her entire body had disappeared, no light able to escape the unrelenting call of the shadows, all except the dragon’s head, two lone blackened hands clamping on her snout, keeping her from baring her fangs.
Alex jumped from his hammock, only to show off, shadows beneath him shooting upwards to meet his legs, allowing him to float gracefully down with them as they sank back into the ground. He was grinning as usual, but Elyza could tell there was a bit of worry in his voice as he remarked, “You figured something out, didn’t ya? I can see it on your face, so c’mon, don’t let me stew in my anticipation.”
Elyza met his gaze, her expression solemn. “She is protecting something,” Elyza revealed, eyeing the shadowy hands that were holding the dragon’s jaw shut, a bit apprehensive about their capabilities to resist the creature's relentless struggles.
“Have you deduced what? Or are you contemplating giving me the pleasure of figuring that out?” Alex replied, his eagerness palpable. He wanted to finally do something interesting after sitting on the sidelines and just watching his companion beat a dragon.
“Go ahead,” Elyza conceded, her body yearning for a moment's respite from the day’s strain.
He simply smiled, and raised his hand, guiding a pillar of darkness, which soon dissolved to reveal Elyza’s halberd, joking, “You should tie a string to this, I won’t always be there to find it for you.”
Fake laughing, she grabbed the halberd, and with a single thought, shrunk it back into a ring, as Alex pirouetted, his interest fully shifted to the dragon.
“Now, let’s see what we have here…” he declared, his voice a strange blend of tones, pitches, and emphasised syllables that lent an unsettling air to his words. Coupled with his usual eccentricity and whatever emotion he decided would suit the particular situation, his speech had the power to unsettle even those who couldn’t comprehend his words.
The dragon, already on edge, reacted to Alex’s peculiar performance with a renewed sense of panic. Air hissed from her nostrils as she intensified her struggles against his spell, her efforts proving futile against the suffocating embrace of the darkness that swaddled her.
So futile were her attempts, or so tired was she from the battle, her struggles within his domain were akin to cotton being dragged over Alex’s fingers. The panic within the dragon only increased as he leapt onto her snout, pulling out a dagger, calmly strutting on her scales, unable to be thrown off no matter how much she shook, crouching before her eyes.
“I wond~er…” Alex mused under his breath, his voice a low murmur that seemed to echo within the cavernous space. With a deliberate shift in volume, he directed his words toward the dragon, his tone carrying a blend of curiosity and condescension.
“Sorry, I was wondering why you didn’t run, you absolute moron, even a rock would know you had no choice against my friend, and yet you remained, fighting an unwinnable fight.” He expected anger to flare up, but as he stared into the dragon’s earthen green eyes, they remained stoic, as if they didn’t know what he was yapping about.
“Or it may have been pride, but a lady of your wisdom would know better than to fall into its age-old trap.” His tone shifted to reverence, just as abruptly as it reversed, “Mea~ning, your excellence, you’re hiding something. It could be a mountain of gold, though this hill might be too small for your affluence,” he added, his tone dripping with mock concern, “Maybe you’re guarding some cult’s base, bound to do their will, but again, why would they set up near a town like Rexham?” He rambled, paying close attention to the minute shifts in her eyes, and almost grinned a bit too wide when he recognised the emotion in them — a feeling of superiority that Alex loved to express whenever he knew something others did not.
“Or,” he added, allowing his body language to convey his realisation, “You’re worried about what we’re going to do to the eggs your tail is currently wrapped around.” The dragon’s eyes widened, a growl emanating from her stomach, and the wool being dragged over his hand became obsidian shards. She definitely understood him. Letting his grin grow ever larger, he jumped off of her snout, returning to Elyza, who now was the one sitting on the rocks.
Concern spread over the elf’s face, because she knew that nothing good was going to happen when her partner returned from threatening the dragon’s unborn children and smiling after the fact.
“Well, to help ease your worries, here you go,” Alex announced, snapping his fingers. His shadows retreated as fast as they had emerged, leaving the dragon unrestrained, her jaw was now free to gobble them up.
Unfettered by the notion of being devoured, Alex abandoned his eccentric mannerisms and spoke with a semblance of sincerity. “I hope this will convince you of our goals,” he stated, his voice devoid of its previous inflection, “and lead to a more relaxed and amicable conversation from henceforth.”
The dragon lifted her head, her movements fluid and deliberate as she regained control of her own body. Her wings folded back into hiding, dislodging rocks that cascaded to the ground as the wings nestled into her hide. Suspicion radiated from her every movement as she held her head high, her piercing gaze fixed upon the duo. Her eyes betrayed the ongoing deliberation within her mind, not knowing whether to trust the two.
Then, unexpectedly, her horn began to vibrate, the motion slow at first, producing a gentle hum that resonated through the air like the buzz of a bee. Soon, the scales on her snout joined in, emitting a sharp chittering sound that accelerated into a high-pitched whine. As the vibrations reverberated through the rocks, acting as an amplifier for the sound, the dragon opened her mouth—not to roar, but to growl. Suddenly, all the sounds in the cavern melded into a powerful, deep voice that echoed with authority.
“Tell me, you insolent child,” her voice rang out through the cavern, reverberating with supremacy. “Why should I allow you to continue drawing breath when you dare to threaten my progeny?”
“Because we require answers,” Elyza stated, getting forward as she took command of the conversation. “We were not even warned that this cave was the home of a dragon” She admitted.
A low growl emanated from the dragon, prompting Alex to intervene. “What my friend is trying to say, Lady…?” he began, searching for her name.
“I have been given the name ‘Tlānāhuaccatl’ by your ancestors,” The dragon declared, a slight tremor shaking the cavern as her name was uttered.
“Well,” he started, trying to figure out a way to pronounce her name that wouldn’t greatly offend the force of nature, “Empress Tlanahuaccatl, there have been reports from the neighbouring town of people going missing near the cave, and we just need to know if you had anything to do with their dis — ”
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“Name yourself,” the Empress interjected, her gaze piercing.
“Of course, I apologise, mortals call me Nemo,” he responded, grinning slightly as he gestured toward Elyza.
“I am Penelope,” Elyza answered, bluntly asking her own question, stealing control of the conversation, “Did you have anything to do with the disappearance of adventurers in the past month?”
Tlānāhuaccatl’s eyes narrowed, her clittering scales falling flatter as her head lowered, baring her fangs as she spoke, her voice devoid of any timbre. “Why would I be interested in the lives of flesh walkers, and think before you accuse me of such frivolous acts,” she warned, her tone a clear warning to watch their words.
With a regal air, the Empress raised her head above them, peering down upon the two intruders. “I have noticed my cave intruded more frequently than I would’ve liked, but I have not squashed any bugs under my claws in a year.”
“Then, whose remains have we encountered…?” Elyza bluntly retorted, her gaze unwavering.
The Empress didn’t try to mince her words, her eyes matching the elf’s gaze, “I found their bodies outside the cave, already dead. I find it… tiresome to hunt these days, and I do not want the smell of decomposing flesh around my children.”
“Do you know the reasons behind their deaths?” she pressed further, her voice firm.
The dragon appeared to click her tongue, or at least that was what echoed off the cavern rocks. “It may befuddle your primitive mind, Penelope, but most people have enough decency to let a being such as I to rest, imagining correctly the repercussions if they disturb me,” Her words carried a palpable threat, amplified by the cavern under her control, her head drawing nearer to the duo as she spoke, warm air billowing from her nostrils toward them.
“Fortunately, it seems you would find good company with those that came before you,” the Empress continued, her tone laced with disdain. “All, removing a few, dared to think they were worthy of a fight, all left when they realised they stood no chance, and I let them. I would not have chosen to nest here six months ago, if I thought there would be so many unwarranted visitors. I was delighted when they seemed to have stopped dropping by, but I’m afraid it was just wishful thinking.”
With a resigned air, she lowered her head back to the ground. “Now leave, I grow tired of this conversation, and I trust that I won’t find you two lying face down outside. Because, if I get any more intruders, I will destroy the town you came from.”
Elyza was satisfied with the information she had gleaned, but one detail still nagged at her. “When you found their bodies, did they have their equipment on them?”
“No,” The Empress answered, her eyes already closed, signalling the end of their conversation.
“Damn it, I wanted to ask that.” Alex let out a fake protest as he got up from squatting, a bit curious why his companion looked outwardly happy, a smile tugging the corners of her mouth as her ears angled upwards, “What are you smiling for? I’m sure you were confident,” he prodded.
“I was pleasantly surprised you did not make any unseemly comments in the conversation,” Her voice lowering as to not disturb the Empress.
“Honestly,” he added, playing along, grinning as he continued at his normal volume “I had so many things pop into my head, just begging to be uttered, the majority of which were about her suc-” Thankfully, Elyza was able to shut him up with a smack to his arm.
“Keep those comments locked up in your mind, but thank you,” she remarked, pushing him back towards the caves.
“I told you, I’m just here to follow your lead,” Alex declared, lighting his hand on fire once again, illuminating the path they came from, quickly, “and make sure you don’t do anything dumb.” His statement strangely caught Elyza off guard, her mouth letting out an audible laugh that contrasted her usual demeanour.
“So, what’s the plan now, boss?” he added, his tone turning semi-serious.
“We go and see if the thing that killed the others dares to show up,” she calmly stated as they delved back into the tunnels.
Much more cautious than when they had traversed the route earlier, they scanned their surroundings for any sign of change. Against his body’s protests to let it stabilise, Alex pulsated streams of mana every few seconds as they walked, waiting for any indication of danger. The red flames he held flared up as the waves of mana passed through, revealing nothing amiss.
The remains of the adventurers were left undisturbed, except for a few bones that sprouted legs made of mycelium and scurried away as soon as the duo passed through. While the air still carried some weight, its effect was lessened now that the two were heading away from the threat.
They both waited, tense and expectant, prepared for something to leap out from the next corner. Their weapons were at the ready, poised to strike at a moment's notice. But as the light of the sinking sun bounced off the rocks in front of them, they turned the last corner to see nothing but the golden sky. With one last burst of mana, Alex confirmed that nothing seemed to be waiting for them, the surrounding area devoid of anyone significant.
After noticing Alex's shoulders’ relaxing, Elyza summarised the situation, “Nobody is there.”
“Haven’t felt anyone yet…” he murmured, his voice coloured with doubt, his gut screaming at him to keep his guard up.
“This gives my theory more to stand on,” she murmured out loud, scanning the tree line for humanoid silhouettes jutting out from the white pillars.
Alex looked back to her, curiosity causing his black eyes to sparkle, smiling as he motioned her to continue, “Elucidate.”
“The House received the plea for help from Rexham five days ago,” Elyza vocalised her thoughts, her voice steady as she organised her thoughts, “even the fastest horses would take a day to travel to the capital from here. That matches up with what Tlānāhuaccatl noted about the declining frequency of adventurers around that time. But she's been living here for half a year. It's improbable that the guild was unaware of her for that long. And why did she find them without their armour?”
She waited for a moment as her mind came up with a way to present the rest of her theory. “Which means that someone in the guild was hiding her existence,” she continued, her voice gaining momentum as her thoughts aligned, “and either it was the same person responsible for the deaths of the adventurers or someone else was taking advantage of the workings of the guild, most likely profiting of the equipment they looted from the bodies. Since we didn’t come here from the guild, and since no one expected us to, it’s unlikely that the party responsible for the killings was aware that anyone would be entering the cave. This would explain why there was such a big gap between the arrival of the Empress and the guild wanting an excavation of the cave, and why they did not know that a dragon was nesting here.” She concluded, her ears flattening against her head as she finished her speculation.
Silence filled the air as Alex’s mind ran over her words, trying to find anything to add to the theory, making sure there weren’t any glaring holes in her logic.
He found one, saying, “Well, if she’s speaking the truth, and people were invading her home that frequently, it must mean that someone high up in the guild was behind these deaths…”
“The Guild Master.” Elyza picked up on what he was hinting at.
“I agree, but our guts are biassed against him, so while he’s a likely candidate, we need to be sure.” Alex cautioned, downplaying her suspicion, though his own thoughts echoed her sentiment. “And might I add, any killer worth their salt would just stay here and wait for people to leave the cave-” His words were abruptly cut off as he felt something sharp stab into his left arm.
Alex grew annoyed as the sensation of pain shot through his arm, a small jolt that seemed insignificant at first. But then a liquid began to drip down his arm, and he realised he had been hit by some sort of projectile. Thankfully, the reinforced cloth of his shirt prevented it from piercing his skin entirely, though it left a scratch.
“What are you thinking about?” Elyza asked, noticing his expression drop into annoyance, his whole body turning slack.
“Just thinking of ways to kill this coward,” he grumbled out loud as he let himself fall on his face, adding, “Play dead.”
“Wh-” Elyza could only get out the first syllable of her confusion, before she felt a sudden impact on the inside of her left knee. Something had embedded itself into the leather pad of her pants, and she too crumpled into an unconscious heap, following Alex’s lead, but laying on her back.
Both kept their eyes half-open, feigning unconsciousness as they waited for the assassin who had attempted to poison them to reveal himself. It was Alex who first spotted their would-be attacker. Emerging from the concealment of the trees was a man with a distinctive feature—a leg fashioned not with a peg, but with a wooden mace. Other than that oddity, he resembled a farmer, clad in a worn-down, tattered shirt covered in dirt. A cloth wrapped around his legs and waist resembled loose pants, matching the state of his upper wear.
But Alex’s attention was stolen by the state of the man’s face. The lower jaw appeared as if it had endured the fury of a relentless inferno, its once-flesh now resembling a melted wax sculpture. Strands of sinew dangled precariously from the skeletal frame, ensnared in a web of blistered skin that seemed to cling desperately to its fragile anchor. Beneath the grotesque exterior, a tapestry of deep red hues pulsed through the scarred remnants. He had been burned, but not by flames. His mouth housed a metal jaw, and the weight of the copper teeth was threatening to snap the mandible off.
The man approached their bodies, unfazed by the sight, looking rather pleased with himself as he surveyed his handiwork. “Oh, look at that armour, along with those cloaks…,” he mumbled to himself, his voice deep with age, yet as if it was being heard through a metal pipe, crouching to touch the fabric of Elyza’s cloth, feeling it between his fingers. “Has to be worth at least fifty gold,” he noted, a satisfied smile playing on his lips.
He pointed towards Alex's face, as if talking to him, “I told him that no one would be able to resist coming here, even when people knew what happened, and I’m glad I saw you lovebirds head this way. This may be the most loot I’ve gotten yet.”
It would’ve taken all of his will power not to just laugh as the man pointed to him, but Alex was more focused on creating his illusion. He had been letting his mana leak into the proximity, ever since he had fallen, and the air was just about to reach full saturation.
Focusing his mind, he chose to start behind the crouching man, calling to his mana to create itself. Drops of mana formed, beginning to coalesce and change their density to reflect the colours that were needed, before exploding and stretching themselves into threads. The shadows underneath produced a shell for them to lay on, allowing Alex’s mana to weave itself into what he pictured in his mind, sprinting across the umbra surface as they did. The process usually would’ve taken longer than it took, if not for the fact he was replicating himself.
Barely any time had passed between the man pointing at Alex, and reaching for Elyza’s breastplate, when the copy tapped his shoulder. The illusion wasn’t concentrated enough to replicate the touch, but the shadows that wore it were, if only for a moment. Just as its fingers brushed the man’s shoulder, the assassin spun around and swung his knife at the copy, only to find the blade striking at mist.
Before the man could comprehend why he felt no resistance, a deafening crack shattered the air as Elyza's foot connected with his ankle. She gave him no chance to recuperate, swiftly swinging her other leg into the back of the killer's broken ankle. Using the momentum gained, she spun herself back onto her feet. The pain caused the man's grip to falter, and the sudden loss of his footing sent his dagger clattering beside him as his back met the rocky ground with a thump.
The killer let out a yelp of pain, his right hand trying to reach for its weapon, but Elyza promptly stomped on his wrist, and his screech turned into a blood-curdling cry. She knew that he deserved no mercy, yet her rationality prevailed, able to resist cracking his head in two.
Alex stood behind her, crouching to pluck the projectile that had been embedded into her knee pad, holding it up with the poison dart that had hit his arm. Both the darts resembled syringes, with feathers woven into its rear to act as stabilisers. Transparent windows stretched along their lengths, revealing the luminescent cyan liquid they contained. The poison dart that struck Alex had lost half of its poison, while Elyza’s remained intact.
Sighing, Alex began,“I absolutely despise poisoners…” looking down at the panicking killer, meeting his rapidly shifting eyes as he continued, “I know, I know, poison is a useful tool in an assassin’s arsenal, but those that only use it, are just creatively bankrupt.”
As he dangled the darts against the sky, attempting to spot the impurities in the poison, trying to deduce its nature, Elyza grabbed the killer’s neck with her left hand, lifting him up till his feet were dangling like an infant, his struggling grunts falling on deaf ears as she addressed Alex, “What type of poison?”
“Mmmm…” Alex hummed as he stared at the dark liquid, which barely let any light go through it, nary anything floating in the fluid. “It’s really potent,” Alex began, rubbing some of it off the leaking one, and holding his finger up wind of his nose. As his brain disregarded the chemical fumes that wafted through towards him first, Alex detected a slight scent of algae and something else he couldn’t quite place.
“Seems to be a natural extract, and judging by how fast this dumbass thought it would react,” Alex continued, flicking his finger down at the killer, ridding it from the toxic liquid, which splashed dangerously close to his mouth, “There’s definitely some sort form of sedative mixed in with it, and since there are a lot of things that can shut down the body that quick, the only way to be sure is to test it.”
“Shame,” Elyza spoke, her stare cutting straight through the killer’s gaze, his one good hand clawing at her arm, desperately looking for an escape. “I would have preferred to snap his neck,” she muttered, finally turning her attention to the hanging man.
“Tell me who you work with.” she commanded, tightening her grip around his throat, offering him a chance to live.
His futile struggle against the elf’s strength became more desperate, barely able to manifest the effort to spit out his words, “Kill yourself.”
“That would be impossible, my partner would never allow it,” Elyza replied, her expression dead serious, unaware that her words didn’t come across as a jest. She continued, lying with ease, “I hoped we could have stopped here, but since you do not know the name of your own partner, at least we can find out how you killed the others.” Fear filled the killer's eyes at the notion of facing the very poison he had created.
“Hold on a moment,” Alex interjected, and a flicker of hope ignited within the killer. “I think your arm is going to get tired if you hold him up for much longer,” he added, pocketing the dart filled with poison, holding up the syringe that struck him, relishing the despair that replaced it.
“You have a point,” Elyza agreed, hating the look of relief that flashed across the man’s face. She loosened her grip and positioned her right hand below his shoulder, as if she was going to help him down.
In an instant, she willed her spear to materialise in her hand. The butt of the spear dug into the ground, the rest shooting upwards from her hand, yanking the killer two metres into the air. His scream pierced the air, cursing the gods he worshipped. Blood dripped down the ironwood, the pole head glistening with the liquid in the dwindling rays of the sun. Its hook had punctured through his shoulder, having found a way through without cracking the bone, thanks to the angle Elyza had chosen.
The burst of pain had energised the man, his desperation evident as he pushed against the staff, attempting to free his shoulder from the grasp of the hook. His movements only succeeded in driving the iron deeper into his flesh, each twitch causing fresh blood to trickle down the halberd. With each attempt, his breath grew more haggard, his eyes weary with pain.
“You only need to tell us who you're working with, and all of this pain will stop,” Elyza implored, trying to appeal to his rationality. She sensed that he was on the verge of breaking, his mouth beginning to open. But just before his will crumbled, a flicker of resistance surged through him, and he forced his mouth shut once again.
She said nothing, allowing Alex to step forward with the syringe in hand, which he promptly injected into the killer’s left thigh, palming the dart as he returned to stand beside his partner. The poison seemed to take effect almost immediately as the killer’s shoulders drooped, his jaw relaxing dangerously along with his legs, which had ceased their struggling. Only his good arm was able to move in any significant way, clawing at his throat, trembling as it massaged his neck. The sound of heaving filled the air as his lungs forced him to take in deeper breaths, as if his body had stopped listening to him.
“Damn,” Alex blurted out, his mind comparing the sight before him to the various cases of poisoning he had encountered before. “Got it wrong, there isn’t any anaesthetic mixed in. Seems to be a mix of a muscle relaxant and, by the looks of it, a neurotoxin that’s affecting the heart’s ability to pump…” he deduced.
His disappointed expression turned into one of unrestrained curiosity as he walked up to the suffocating man. The killer’s shadows parted, allowing dark tentacles to slither out, their wispy darkness crawling up the man, restraining his limbs as they pulled him closer to their master, in order to ensure the man stayed perfectly still. The hook dug deeper, but suffocation silenced the killer's cry, leaving him to struggle in silence as Alex placed his hand on the man’s chest.
Alex knew exactly how much energy to put through a person to induce arrhythmia in a person. Conversely, he also knew the precise amount of electricity needed to make the experience as painful as possible while stabilising the killer's heartbeat.
Electricity danced across Alex's arm, arcing from his fingertips as his mana flowed through him like a steady stream, prepared to do as his command. The charge started slow, before electricity abruptly surged through the killer, calming down for a moment before attacking his body once again. With deft control, Alex adjusted the flow of mana, guiding the pulses until they formed a perfect rhythm.
As the lightning steadied, the man gasped for air, relief flooded his darkening face as he was finally allowed to breathe.
“Here’s what’s happening,” Alex began, using his other hand to pull the killer’s head down to meet his gaze. The killer's eyes were bloodshot and barely able to focus. “I’m currently allowing your heart to beat properly, while the poison is circulating through your body trying to get it to stop doing so. This means, I’m allowing you to live. In around a minute or two the poison will be a tad more diluted, and your body will be able to fight, giving you the opportunity to survive. Only if I continue to power your heart, because as soon as I stop, the toxins go back to work, but this time you would be dying a much slower death.” He could see in the killer’s eyes, how little was left in his mind to comprehend his words, so he asked to clarify, “Did you get that?”
“Yeah,” the man groaned.
“Who. Do. You. Work. With?”
“Crane.”
As soon as he confirmed their suspicions, Alex lifted his hand, the shadows releasing their grip on the man, and Elyza willed her halberd to return to her ring, causing the man to fall to his knees. Panic filled his face as he grabbed his throat, expecting to suffocate once again, but confusion washed over him when his heart kept pumping.
“You have no idea how much control our mind can exert on our body.” Alex remarked, grinning, crouching as he spoke, waving the half-filled dart before jamming it into the man’s chest.
“Let us pay Mr. Crane a visit. I would like to end this today and hopefully get a good night’s sleep,” Elyza stated, as the killer slowly suffocated, gasping for air in front of them. Alex cracked his knuckles and nodded, visualising the inn’s reception as his shadow enveloped them both.
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Mr. Crane walked through the halls of the guild he managed, his posture slouched, his hair ruffled, and the top button of his shirt left undone. As the day wound down and the band of highwaymen had finally been processed and booked, he felt a sense of relief wash over him. Yet, a lingering thought remained in his mind—the couple that had apprehended the criminals. Since their arrival in his town, his gut had warned him that they would spell trouble, but they both hadn’t left the inn after getting back from their picnic.
Sighing, he pushed open the door to his study, eager to tackle the paperwork that awaited him, hoping to finish it as quickly as possible. The room was dark, only the crystals hanging above giving out any amount of light, and even that was faint, and the stained window was covered by curtains, blocking the twilight outside.
Feeling around for the orb embedded into the wall and finding it, Crane poured his mana into it, not waiting for the crystals to brighten as he walked towards the window, slamming the door behind him. He reminisced about his youth, as he went past the trophies he had collected of the beasts that had fallen against him, glancing at their empty eyes, relishing the stories crafted around them. Reaching his desk, past the vacant chairs, the room was still dark, the crystals strangely struggling to release their brilliance. He was forced to reach for the curtains, pulling them aside to let the dwindling sun rays flood into the room.
In an instant, the curtains pulled themselves closed, and the light crystals flickered off, causing darkness to envelop the chamber. Then, just as suddenly, the crystals flared back to life, and Crane found himself confronted by the floating heads of his past conquests. They hovered beside his desk, having left their pedestals, their eyes glaring at their killer. The shadows within their gazes seemed almost endless, as if something primordial was judging him.
Hands pressed down on his shoulders, anchoring him to his seat as if by invisible chains. From the lone guest chair emerged a figure, his features hidden beneath the shadowy hood, which shared the unending darkness that the eyes of the skulls had, with only the curve of his smiling jaw illuminated by the surrounding spotlights.
“It’s rude to keep your fate waiting, Mr. Crane, even I have to sleep sometimes.” the figure declared, his voice melodious yet erratic, threading the barrier between calmness and mania. As Crane tried to ask who he was, the hands on his shoulders tightened, digging into them, threatening to crush his fragile bones if he dared utter a word.
“Why did you do it, Lucian?” The figure's question hung heavy in the air, his knowing gaze piercing Crane’s facade of innocence. He knew. The fear in Crane’s eyes was enough admission of guilt for the figure. With a grin, he added, “What excuse can your mind cook up to justify thy actions?”
Panic threatened to push the guild master to spew out some futile defence, but the person behind him swiftly covered his mouth. Her voice, unlike her partner’s, was clear as frigid ice. “Is that truly necessary?”
The figure stroked his chin with a gloved hand, contemplated for a moment before grinning as he agreed, “You know what? You’re right. We already know that they were selling the adventurers’ equipment, so I’m guessing Mr. Crane did it for the oldest of vices — Greed.” Rising from his seat, he approached Crane, circling around his desk to stand beside him. “And even if it didn’t start out that way, the fact that you kept on doing it, has sealed your fate.”
“How do you want to do this?” The figure asked, revealing a syringe full of cyan liquid, the same poison that they had used, presenting it in one hand while the other held nothing.
Crane was allowed to speak, to scream, as the figure’s partner removed her hand from his mouth, but before he could, she intervened, “It would be better if his family thought it happened naturally.”
The figure sighed, pocketing the toxic dart, his disappointment clearly evident even through his smile. “Alas, my friend is right, it would be too conspicuous if you died by poison the day we arrived. So…” He began, turning the guild master’s chair towards him with a kick, helped by his partner returning her hand over Crane’s mouth and twisting him towards the figure.
“…while I would love to see you suffer the same way you had others, it seems that fate has allowed you a simpler exit, but don’t you worry, I’ll make it as painful as possible,” The figure continued, grinning as he placed his hand on Crane’s chest, and every single hair on the guild master’s body stood up in anticipation.
As Crane's eyes widened in terror, the figure advised, “I suggest using these fleeting moments to prepare what you’re going to say when you reach whatever afterlife you believe in.”
There was a slight crackle in the air as electricity started to pour into the guild master’s body, causing it to jolt. It didn’t carry enough energy that the surge of electricity would lead to his skin burning up and charring, but the threat lay not in its power to disrupt his nervous system. As the electricity kept steadily flowing, Crane’s muscles started to twitch ever so slightly, but the real danger the flow possessed revealed itself when his nerves started to misfire, especially around his heart. As soon as the guild master’s pupils dilated, the figures let go, and instantly Crane’s hand grabbed his chest, his skin turning increasingly pale, his breath turning erratic. He stumbled out of his chair, trying to run towards the door, but the effort was too much, and his heart gave up.
Crane fell on his carpeted floor, which muffled the last sound he would ever make.
“Well,” Elyza began, staring at the lifeless mass in front of her, “We should go downstairs and report Tlānāhuaccatl residence in the cave.”
Stretching his body, which was sore thanks to the guild master’s lateness, Alex asked, “Dinner afterwards?” Snapping his fingers to break his illusion, the skulls in the air dissolving along with the masking illusion that hid them on their pedestals.
“Of course.” she replied, and their shadows pulled them downwards.