Plains of Roaring Storms

Realm of Nine

The castle looked mostly dark and empty from were the riders first caught glimpse of it. They were on a mission, they had not stayed at any place for rest and had ridden hard for their destination. The horses were tired and their breath condensed to mist in the cold night as they struggled to keep pace with the lead rider.

The man leading the riders had his clothes singed at his left side and his left hand glowed embers, sparks flickering from the twisted broken gauntlet on his hand as the horse galloped towards the castle. He was armed like his men following him. All clothed in garb of grey and brown. Utilitarian. He was on a mission, one close to his heart.

The castle, there was no mistaking from the crumbling nature of the walls, had been abandoned. The locals would tell the King’s folly was abandoned for centuries though it had not given yet to complete ruination yet though the land itself had started to reclaim it or erase it.

The castle was build on a hill to accommodate a small army with full barracks, smithy and stables. But people gazing at it especially from the village at the foothills remembered a king before this time. There are a hundred stories surrounding the king’s foolishness that are told about that had sprung up the last decade. A hundred more tales would spin out in the next ten years.

The riders could now see the castle more clearly as they neared the village, the roads on each side now filled with farm lands, the grass plains left behind them. Light from lamps or torches shown through the window of the dark castle that faded into the night sky reminding the travellers riding through the plain below at the foot of the hill of the flickering stars. True to what they were told, someone waited for them at their destination

The villages below the castle had seen the light as well, the old talespinner had not seen the riders and carriage going up the road earlier the day. He was telling to the children gathered around him as how some of the stories started.

“A castle in the night” he spoke gesturing to the castle that could be seen behind him,” horsemen riding towards it”

The travellers didn’t stop at the village but sped through to the road that lead to the castle past an old man with kids around him who went googly eyed on seeing the rare travellers ride by.

Meanwhile the castle stood above the hill waiting.

The land itself, the elements and wildlife had started to encroach on the castle and erase the King's Folly from the land, but it would be a hundred years before it was lost and a thousand years more before it was forgotten from the memories. For now the keep waited. Watching.

A guard stood keeping watch at one of the still functioning watchtowers of the keep, the one attached to the building that was once possibly a barrack. The guard was clothed plainly, not wearing the color of any Kingdom or any insignia to identify him. This in itself would question the nature of guards presence at the ancient keep. And of the nature he was guarding. He stood watch, waiting for someone. He didn't had to wait for long.

The horses galloped through the grassy pathways up the hill spiraling around the hill to the ancient castle. Not enough use of the road to remind the road it was one, had left the wildlife grow around it , above it, claiming it.

The beasts snickered and gasped for air as they came to a stop at the gates or what was left of it. The almost erased road was not steep but was not an easy ride either.

The guard on the tower watched them, he had an arrow knocked ready to fire which he had been checking every few minutes for the past one hour.

His foot tapped on the string that was tied near his legs, the bell connected to the end of the string jingled after some seconds from the barracks below him, alerting the people waiting for the travelers. The guard breathed out, the cold air around him forming mist before his face. The waiting was over.

The men on horseback were armed like soldiers but the soldier on the tower felt untoward distrust for them, not the professional courtesy of wariness. No veteran soldier gave courtesy to mercenaries. The mercenaries like him were not marked with any identifying insignia. But then again they didn't need to.

He smelled the smoke first before the burning hand of the man that stood before the group drew his attention. What he thought was a lit torch was an everburning left hand of the man. Smoke rose from his hand, that appeared to have charred some parts of the fabric of his tunic. Embers flew from the fire lines from below the chain mail gauntlet that was worn over the left hand. The soldier had heard about this particular group.

The Hellspawn waited at the gates, it had been a tough ride, especially for their mage.

Ronun was a new addition to the mercenary group. He looked around the old construction of the castle as he patted his horse, stroking it. It was not much but it still stood. His attention was drawn to the soldier on the tower who had an arrow knocked at them. He checked his talismans to make sure the guard wont accidentally kill anyone from his ineptitude, few competitive and talented stayed in soldier business when their was more money to be made as mercenary.

He peered around the darkness of the castle, the castle had a reputation and thus its name King's folly. A Kings idiocy before hundred years. When them nobles made idiotic decisions. People remembered. Two of his colleagues were making bets about something. Their leader Avan the burning hand was speaking to his second in command.

Torches were fixed to the earth near the barrack doors lighting the area and in places around the clearing. To make them feel welcome or for certain archer to have clear shots. Soldiers needed all the help. He was not going to scorn free source of fire made available by his enemies. Potential enemies he corrected. For now prospective clients.

The barrack door opened showing a silhouette at the door which disappeared after a node beckoning them inside.

He prodded with his senses into the room, as a fire mage he could feel the hearth fire inside the barrack. He signed to his god praying to favor him and keep him safe, taking a quest or meeting from a place known for someone's folly did not sit right with him. Will their quest end up as folly as well.

His team captain has not acknowledged his pointed suggestion about it, with a man of his renown, most things didn't face him much.

He will have to prove his worth before others would start acknowledging his suggestions. He saw from the corner of his eyes Avan dismount from his ride. He and others hastened to follow their leader.

The room was lighter with candles and hearth fire, except for the corners where the light couldn’t reach, their the shadows danced

Ronun could smell the dust and rot of wood in the room, some one had done a haphazard sweep of the room. He figured they had employed a wind spell from the obvious displacement of dust and he could also feel the residue of the spell even though he was a pyromancer himself.

If the windows have been opened when whoever casted it, the work would have been better, the windows in the room were barred shut with the exists from the room being only the door behind them and the door at the other side of the wall which led farther into the castle

The door was barred by mountain of a man in knight Armor. Their team hesitated for a moment at the hall scoping the room and the knight but followed after their leader as he continued towards the knight. The knight didn’t look like he would budge

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Avan stepped a few steps before the knight, the knight was few feet taller than Avan.

Avan spoke” long time”, raised his hand as a salute of sorts and next their was a bang and the knight was thrown through the door and slammed at the other end of the wall.” Long time, since I warned you not to block my path.” Avan continued walking into the room which was much bigger than the previous one making it more impressive to Ronun that he had been able to blast the knight over the whole hall. Though he could not start wondering the nature of the relationship, their boss had with their client.

Swords scrapping the scabbards echoed through the room, giving pause to Ronun. His hands going towards the wand beside him.

“ No need for those” , spoke a voice from the end of the room, behind a row of knights with swords drawn. None of them were marked by any heraldry like the soldier outside and the huge knight smashed to the wall who was now stirring and shaking himself from the wall. Ronun was happy to notice that the other knights were normal in size.

Avan also signalled his men to stand down. Everyone dropped their stances relieved that it was not going to turn into a fight. Ronun kept his hands on the wand, just in case.

After a few minutes of pause the knights also withdrew to the sides. The huge Knight was still trying to stand back up. Ronun was wondering about the whole mission and how their boss was tied up with their clients.

“ Not much you have changed Avan”.Ronun heard the voice from behind the Knights who were hesitating to what to do . Though they have placed their blades back in scabbards they too had their hands ready to draw their weapons.

“Stand down everyone and back to your places” Ronun heard the voice agarin, sighed happy the he did not have to fight anyone tonight, he was tired from his journey. The knights in front of them looked tough and well rested, not everyone can blast people across halls. They paused for a moment and arranged themselves and walked to the sides and waited near the walls. The man behind them was now visible to their group.

A man was sitting in a throne a throne of Stalgamite, Ronun frowned as to who would have brought a throne, and the room didn’t appear to be a throne room, a normal barrack hall that reminded him of his soldier days. The man scratched his face waving to them to come closer. Ronun noticed the claw like hands, fingers that were imitation of human hands but had ended with black clawed digits. Ronun felt the room stir. The man’s pale face appeared more paler at the mage light that was hanging on the air. Ronun started to notice the light sources, no human would be able to cast these many mage lights, not fire balls . These were pure light emanating from dozen mage balls floating in the hall. People believed mage lights as one of the simpler magics, as it didn’t look much to a non mage person. For the purpose of casting light mages went for fire balls, that could also be conveniently thrown at anyone. Fireballs were easier infinitesimally more easier than mage lights. People often mistook fire balls for mage light for the same reason.

Then Ronun noticed the horns jutting out of the man’s head, in the pale light glimmer. Instead of the demons of lore the horns were not black but crystalline glass and thus he had failed to notice them in the beginning. His heart beat quicker.

A dungeon lord.

He glanced at Avan who looked up at the Dungeon Lord, paused for a moment as if he had taken some wrong step somewhere. A really big wrong step, because instead of walking into the room, he had blasted through Dungeon Lords people into supposedly that was his throne room was this a dungeon, was the throne a dungeon core. Was the castle part of the dungeon. Not a comforting though that they had pissed of someone they shouldn’t have, and he had just joined the group. Bad Luck.

The Dungeon Lord shot to his feet, Ronun’s heart pounded. He looked around and remembered all the spellworks he had in hold. The exits and the soldiers, the numbers, the memory of the barrack and the lay of the courtyard of the castle was fresh. Avan mean while walked forward and dropped to his knees. The buring arm had whiffed out, Ronun felt the change in the mana in the room, something had changed. Something that caused the fire in their captains ever burning hand to die out.

He couldn’t see what was in side the gauntlet, though broken it still cowered the hand.

He wondered if he was in a dream, a near mythical being. Wasn’t it too soon for him to know such intimate knowledge about his team captain. Did he even have trust in keep a secret. Did he himself had them

“Stop standing their, This is no dream.” he heard a voice beside him. The second in line of the mercenary group Vinakan murmured. “Kneel”

But it felt like one. It felt like he was in one, because that would be so much easier to explain than the mythic standing before him. Reluctantly he dropped to his knees, took a deep breath, and then readied himself. It atleast seemed as if Vinakan was aware of this , a quick side ways glanced let him get a read on the faces around him. Their was fear, normal behavior on understanding their situation, Surprise as well, no one expected this meeting, but none of the face showed any sign of betrayal. Might find one if head a mirror to look at, he breathed out and steadied his heart. Need to keep calm. Inventory check, his mind raced through his options.

The footsteps approached them. He did not dare raise his head.

“Avan… still no respect for your elders!”. he heard the voice speak once the footsteps stopped. “Rise Avan”

Ronun hear shuffling of feet before him. Avan rising to his feet. He tried to rationalize what was happening zoning out of his surrounding in the process. First thing. “Who is the dungeon lord?.” he heard laugheter from the Dungeon Lord in the back of his mind sending chills to his spine. He had heard legends and stories about them, and also some facts about them, or atleast parts of it. They were not of this Realm or there was no record of dungeon lords originating in this realm.

He felt a nudge at his side… a slight kick at his side and he reached for the wand in impulse and then stopped. He looked up and found everyone looking at him. Wonderful now he was all the attention. He swore at his senses and himself.

While Ronun was on his thought lane. Everyone else had risen and now looking at him. He put on a sheepish smile and stood up. “ Act natural he spoke in his head” he heard one of his colleagues snort.

Ronun always journeyed prepared. He was not feeling prepared enough. If he would have known he would end up with a dungeon lord, he would have brough a backpack of arcane scrolls and talismans. No actually he would have not journeyed at all, he would have turned around and walked around But he hadn’t planned this adventure. He hadn’t known this was going to happen.

Ronun is it stand at ease, most of the stories about us are just stretched way too much

What do you mean by most so is some of the stories true, which ones, wait how does he know my name. Ronun who was nodding froze as the thought send chills through his spine. He jerked himself out of the revelation and jerked another nod and a bow for good measure.

The dungeon lord waved him off, and turned to avan who was standing near him without a panned out look in his face but a reverent look in his eyes.

I want you to get something for me Avan. An egregore phylactery.

Avan noded to his world. Where can we find master

Ronun listened on to more damning evidence seeing his scope for freedom shrinking. Should have acted as he had lost consciousness when he saw what was coming , better yet . Should have knocked himself out that would have kept him safe probably. Now though he was stuck, they wont let him leave with the damning knowledge. Making oneself useful would be his safe option to stay alive. He listened to the conversation hoping to learn something and figure out how to stay alive. As Avan went nodding on and others on the team stood waiting , Ronun’s thoughts latched on to the words, an egregore phylactery. The terminology was releated to the undead and their realm even though had an undead incursion was small when compared the scale of incursions in known world.

The incursions into their realm did have some liches but an egregore phylactery needs something more. He could only guess at what would needed for its creation. And whoever the owner will be won’t really be willing to let one go.

Pardon me my lord but would this realm even have something of that nature. “, he asked .

“Astute one aren’t you, No for this you will need to travel to the Greyl, I have already reached the consensus with the owner of the artifact. He have approved a meeting and has been made aware of the benefits of trading the item”, the dungeon lord drawled. “ He won’t cause too many problems. My Liaison here had confirmed the same.”.

Ronun paused at that. Trying to digest that they will be going to Greyl of all places, it was a much more chaotic realm, not by nature but by politicking and power. Many factions try to attain domination over the realm as it was a gateway of sorts to southern realms of Zaura.

Was the Dungeon Lord in contact with the owner of the artifact through the Undead incursion in this realm. He broke away from his thoughts as the Lord continued to speak. Why would a dungeon lord from a Realm travel to another Realm to personally give a mission, or was it something else? Ronun pondered the issue.

“Also Avan is the most suitable candidate for the purpose, he is not a known to be allied to my cause, and can escape scrutiny of the Ascended and other elements in the region and other……. Avan I want this matter settled at fast as possible. You can expect competition, not many is aware of the willingness of the new owner to part with it, but will have to expect the unexpected…”

“As you command master” bowed Avan and straightened. The Dungen Lord waved him to rise and he turned around and started towards his throne. He continued to speak .

“ Now I am to be blamed, I didn’t let you know that I would be visiting myself and you had exposed yourself. It is only right that I make it correct. How long have you been working with this team Avan”

Ronun felt his gut twist. But Avan just blared his teeth to form a smile. He felt others in the team shuffle.

“One year my lord, Good Help is hard to come by” Spoke Avan

“I want you to be fully ready for this mission, Can’t have you handicapped and can’t have loose ends” The Lord stopped at the throne and turned to look at Ronun and smiled for the first time. His canines showed.