Mortis! Mortis! Come out here at once! Hound, where is your master!”

Umbren slowly opened his eyes with an intense grogginess. He had gotten little sleep the previous night because of his excursion with Morta, and even after that, he couldn’t seem to fall asleep. Honestly, it felt like he hadn’t slept at all.

The blurry image of a furious yet distraught Lord Taldry greeted him, “Well! Are you going to answer me?”

Before Umbren could respond, Taldry directed his gaze from Umbren to the entrance of the tent,”There you are! Care to explain yourself, Mortis!”

Mortis walked out of the tent, rubbing his eyes, “What has you this early in the morning Taldry.”

Taldry jabbed his finger at Mortis, “Don’t be daft. You know exactly what I’m talking about! What possessed you to move the Hounds so close to us? Especially with the meaning of our conference!”

Mortis gave a yawn, “What are you…”

“Don’t stall! The Hounds assault luxcian village on Consol to the south west, so tell me why!”

“The Hounds act…” Mortis began, but was interrupted by the roar of an attoka behind. He turned with an amused grin and found Umbren riding away through the camp on an attoka.

Mortis looked back to Taldry, “Don’t I’ll deal with it.”

He started walking off much to Taldry’s frustration.

“Good riddance.” Alsarie’s voice came from behind him.

“Don’t get too excited. We're going to follow him.”

The color red filled Alsarie’s cheeks“We’re going to follow him! Together!” she said with excitement. Though she soon took on a confused expression, “Forgive my questioning my lord, but why do you want to go after him? If you go…won’t Lady Morta get mad. I mean not being present at today's conference.”

“She’ll be madder if I don't ease Taldry’s concerns. Besides, they'll kill that boy if we don’t go.”

Alsarie tried to take on a reassuring tone, “But my lord, he is a Hound. I’m sure that…”

“He is a Hound, but not one of them. You should know that better than anyone else.”

***

Umbren rode hard throughout the whole day. The scenery was a blur as he passed it. Even the horizon was out of focus.

“Not again. Not again. Please Tenebrage, Geodine, Caetem, Fulgcere, even Luxcian, please don’t let it happen again. It can’t, it just can’t!”

Grimel felt his master’s fear and desperation from their bond, and responded with an unbounded gallop that wouldn’t cese until they arrived at their destination. Scenes of a burning city filled Umbren’s mind. Like a phantom, visceral screams filled his mind and the smell of ash overcame them, hastening their pace more so.

Reality became skewed in Umbren’s mind as the change in terrain and the day to night eluded him. He was only awakened by Grimel halting suddenly. Umbren blinked twice, noticing his surroundings. An illuminated luxcian village stood before him, but there was no sign of life. Umbrens heart started to beat faster.

Umbren tried to urge Grimel forward, hoping that an impending reality was false, but the beast did not move. Umbren looked down at his companion and found that his eyes were fixated to something to their right, and he felt the beast’s horror.

It was only then that Umbren noticed the smell, and the light around them.

Umbren stared at the illuminated village, refusing the reality of what was next to him and the smell…Umbren shook his head and gulped. He slowly craned his neck, so that he could see what Grimel saw.

Umbren’s hands started to shake as he held the reins. He forced his eyes to remain open as he witnessed the scene.Charred corpses consumed by flame a mountain high; a morbid bonfire.

Sweat dripped from Umbren’s brow, “Impossible…how? Who did this?”

Umbren turned his gaze back to the abandoned village in front of him. He formed his hands and clenched his teeth as he prompted Grimel on. The beast agreed, sharing his emotions.

As Umbren walked through the village his hairs stood up on end, and so did Grimel’s. It was as if he felt the eye of someone bearing down upon him. The sound of the shadows suddenly became real and threatening.

A glint of light caught Umbren’s eye, and he launched himself off of Grimel to the ground, narrowly missing an axe that now lay embedded in the building behind him.

Suddenly a swarm of black cloaked figures rushed him. Umbren had just enough time to throw three knives instinctively. One struck true as a black cloaked figure crumpled, but the two others seemed unfazed. Umbren once again jumped back, narrowly missing three blades, and throwing two more knives. One sent a figure to the ground, choking on its own blood, but the other swatted it away.

This figure wore a black mask with an intricate purple symbol painted onto it. The masked figure rushed at the figure with ferocity. Umbren threw one more knife, hitting the figure in the abdomen, but to no effect. The figure swung at Umbren, Umbren met the blade with Cronai.

Umbren pushed the figure's blade aside and jabbed a knife into its neck.

Umbren continued to struggle to hold his own against the other cloaked figures, but he was mostly forced to dodge.

Suddenly a slamming of a door reached Umbren’s ears, “Wow, you all are having some trouble with a lap dog, aren’t you?

Why did that voice sound so familiar?

“Shut up Tadea! If you think it's so easy to beat him down, then why don’t you try to!”

Umbren’s eyes went wide at the name as he jumped back, wrapping his face in darkness. Though before he could recover, he felt the cold end of a blade on his throat.

“See? It wasn’t that hard. Really, you all have gotten too old for your own good.” The women said nonchalantly.

One of the figures came close, and Umbren caught his furious smile, “You're gonna regret putting a knife in my shoulder like that.”

Suddenly a wave of purple energy sent everyone to the ground. Luckily for Umbren, the women who held a blade to his throat held her ground.

Mortis atop Yamack came riding into the village with Alsarie trailing behind.

The pair halted in front of the group and Mortis looked down on Umbren with indifference, “You’re not dead,” he turned his gaze to Tadea, “Well, not now anyway.”

Tadea bowed her head without lifting her scythe, “My lord. I hope your ride was pleasant.”

“The Hound scours that we encountered on the way here weren’t kind enough to show the common decency to appear before our lord willingly, so they will not be returning.” Alsarie remarked.

Tadea’s expression lit up at the other woman’s voice, and she lifted the scythe from Umbren’s throat and rushed to Alsarie, “Is that you, sister! Don’t tell me you're still wearing that old green cloak…ah but it does look like you’re putting more effort into how you look.”

Alsarie blushed a little and slid off her attoka, “We’re not sisters anymore, Tadea.”

“Oh, don’t be like that! We may not be related by blood, but you’ll always be my sister.”

Tadea then embraced Alsarie, and under normal circumstances Umbren would have found it funny how the cold Alsarie was now being overwhelmed by another. However, nothing like that went through his mind. As Umbren gazed upon the face of the women who held Alsarie, he felt a sinking feeling in his stomach, but also a relieved and excited feeling rising in his chest. He had not seen that face since he was a child. The face of a sister.

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Mortis dismounted Yammack, “Where is he?”

Tadea broke her away from Alsarie and sheathed her scythe, pointing down the road, “There’s a big inn down the road. There’s a fulgcere performing that’s been entertaining everyone for quite a while now.”

Mortis handed the reins to Tadea, “Then why are you here testing a new recruit? Surely not to make sure he lives.”

“It humbles me that you know me so well my lord. Yes, you are right. I was simply looting the house over there.”

Mortis started walking down the path, “I see…” he stopped himself as the sight of Umbren’s veil of darkness over his face caught his eye, “What are you doing?” His purple pupils glowed in the dark as he looked around himself. Once his eyes rested on Tadea a grin appeared on his face, “Hmm, how interesting.” He turned back to the road in front of him, his grin never fading, “Tadea would you like to guide me to Shamel?”

Tadea dropped Yamack’s reins and walked ahead of Mortis, “Of course!”

As Mortis walked away the other black cloaked figures followed wordlessly, “So did he pass?” Mortis asked?

One of the Hounds spoke in a shrill voice, “The way he fought was cowardly, from a distance. His reaction to our ambush was good. Under normal circumstances that wouldn’t be good enough, but…”

“But?”

“He killed Langen in close quarter combat, well what was left of him anyway. He had fallen to the flower…”

“Did the boy pass or not?” Mortis said with irritation rising through his voice.

“Barely.”

“Good.”

Umbren was left on his knees, mumbling to himself, “How… I thought she was dead or missing, but… but not this.”

Umbren received a kick from his side, “Stop acting like that. You’re embarrassing our lord. Do you hear me?”

Umbren was jerked by his collar and came face with hazy green eyes through the darkness, veiling his face.

“Disperse your blessing. I won’t ask twice,” Alsarie siad.

“I…I can’t.”

Alsarie bit her lip and threw Umbren to the side. She looked around herself, and finally her gaze rested on the masked figure with a knife in his throat, “How embarrassing. I never imagined you would have been killed by someone like him. How the mighty have fallen.”

Alsarie went and unmasked the figure, withdrawing as she did, “My, now I see why you wanted to hide your face so badly. Looks like you were hit in the face with an arrow of light.”

Alsarie shoved the mask into Mortis’ hands, “Wear this, and stop showing so much weakness. If you act like this in front of Shamel, he’ll gut you even if Mortis is next to you. That will be my only warning.”

Umbren put the mask on his face, and suddenly the world was clothed in a purple hue.

Umbren slowly got up and stumbled behind Alsarie as she followed Mortis and the other Hounds. Mortis kept his head down, averting his gaze from the ghost town around him. If he even glanced at a building, he would be reminded of the bonfire outside of the village.

Soon Umbren was following Alsarie through a door and was greeted by chaotic livelihood. Such an environment seemed incompatible with the outside. The building was packed with black cloaked figures who held onto each other with glasses of beer, and brawls could be seen from every direction. The tables were stained purple and smoke of the same color permeated the room, smelling of lavender. A fulgcere danced and sang an upbeat song upon a table in the center of the room. A mirror similar to the one the tenebrage came through when they arrived in tenebrage rested on his back. He flipped and spun as he dodged knives, bottles, and the like from the onlookers. The mirror spun around him as he moved.

Suddenly a chair shattered on the wall in front of Umbren, nearly hitting Alsarie if she did not turn to the side.

The man who threw the chair yelled in chagrin, “Damn you Grelsan, why did you have to dodge like that! I’ll make sure not to miss if you say that again…” his voice trailed off as he stared at where the chair had shattered, “What the hell is a Greencloak doing…”

Alsarie’s vicious glare caught him in his tracks, “To do such a thing in the presence of our lord! How lucky you are not to have hit him. If you had your entrails, you would have littered the floor, Fardam.”

“Alsarie!?” He let out.

Suddenly the room seemed to freeze in place, leaving the fulgcere performing looking unsure or not if he should continue his performance. All eyes rested on Alsarie and by consequence.

“I thought we had gotten rid of…I mean uh, who’s that wearing Langen’s mask too short to be him, and did you say lord?” There’s no way Mortis is here…” Fardam looked around nervously.

Umbren was surprised by the question, and looked around to find Mortis surrounded by the Hounds he had walked in with. If you weren’t looking for him, he would be hard to spot, especially in the vivacious environment of before.

Alsarie looked to be preparing to spit back, but the fulgcere’s music sloped, drawing everyone’s attention to the performer and subsequently the metal gauntlet that was raised in the air in front of him. The gauntlet seemed to provide little protection, and from its sharp and jagged nature, it looked to be more perilous for the wearer.

“Silence fulgcere,” A weary, but authoritative voice permeated the room.

The owner of the gauntlet slowly rose from his chair and turned to look behind him, revealing a stern yet amused face, and a silver wolf mask that covered half of it, “Welcome home it took you long enough. Oh, and the lap dog I’ve heard so much about, it seems like you’ve passed the test based on that trophy you now wear.” The man eagerly looked around the room as if playing a game, “Ah! Mortis! You look as good as ever!”

A gasp went up as the Hounds moved away from Mortis, “And you all are just as lively as ever I see! Seems you’ve had a successful night?”

“Hah, it seems like it, doesn’t it?! Come, we have much to discuss.”

Mortis and Tadea made their way over to the table with the other Hounds, but after a reprimanding glare from Alsarie they dispersed. As Alsarie, Umbren, Tadea, and Mortis sat at the table the man asked a question, “I don’t think that you’ll appoint another wolf on this visit, will you?”

“No, not this time, Shamel.”

“Sits fine with me, but there is another slot left to fill.”

Mortis shook his head, “A slot to fill, but no one to fill it.”

Shamel gave another wave of his hand and the fulgcere started playing again, “Sure there is. I mean Alsarie would fit, wouldn’t she?”

Alsarie crossed her arms and gave an irritated expression, “I’m not a Hound anymore Shamel.”

“Oh, sure you are! I mean you’ll always be a Hound in my eyes.”

Alsarie looked unimpressed while Tadea gave a stifled giggle.

Shamel turned his gaze towards Umbren, “Oh and I’ve heard a lot about you! Umbren, Mortis’ lap dog. From what I’ve heard you’ve never left his side in a whole year! A year! I mean even I would get sick of him by then!” Shamel leaned in a bit closer to Umbren over the table, “Though what I haven’t heard is why you wear the black.Care to tell me your story.”

Umbren was overwhelmed to say the least. He honestly didn’t know why he had received the cloak, and if he did, he would still be struggling to find an answer to the question because his missing sister was now across from him, a Hound.

“Hey, why aren’t you answering me?” Shamel’s voice suddenly took on a threatening chill.

Mortis gazed at Umbren then to Tadea then to Shamel, “He helped retrieve Night and assisted set fire to the village of Lucel.”

“He helped in retrieving Night, and you rewarded him. Really Mortis you have my condolences, I would think that Morta having Night would be a real pain…”

Alsarie’s eyes went wide with fury and her body started to tremble, “Do not speak of our lady in such a way!”

Shamel held his hands up defensively, “Okay, I won’t anymore, but Lucel…that sounds familiar where is it located?”

Shamel looked to Umbren and caught him staring at Tadea.

“Oh…what are you starin at?”

Umbren jumped in his seat and quickly averted his gaze from his sister, prompting hysterical laughter from both her and Shamel.

Shamel gestured to Umbren, “This is the Hound you present to me Mortis after all this time? He’s gets like that when I point out his gawking of a woman.”

Mortis gave a sideway glance to Umbren with an amused smirk on his face, and his eyes filled with knowledge and consideration, “He has potential.”

Shamel took a chug from the glass in front of him, “I hope you're right, but it's not like I have to deal with him. He is your lap dog after all.”

Mortis considered Shamel for a few seconds, “Why are you here Shamel?”

Shamel leaned back and gave a sigh, “Well, I didn’t want to tell you until we showed something for our efforts.”

Mortis furrowed his brow, “What efforts?”

“Prince Aldamon left Fotos and we gave chase.”

Mortis slammed the table, standing up, “To go where?”

Shamel shrugged, “I don’t know; somewhere near here maybe. We’ve halted the group's progress and slowed them down, but we were never able to stop them."

“What do you mean? How could the Hounds not stop the prince’s escort.”

Shamel shook his head while a minor smile seemed to take hold, “That would be too good to be true, but he currently has two general’s riding with him, and the corresponding number of men.”

Mortis remained standing. “You disappoint me Shamel, no number of men should keep the Hounds from their target.”

“I would agree, but it's not the men that impede us, but the Daughters.”

Alsarie jerked while Tadea looked on sympathetically, “Gatla leads them Alsarie.”

Alsarie spoke through gritted teeth, “Why would that monster be so concerned to send Gatla and other Daughters to assist the prince.”

“I don’t know, but they’re a pain in the ass.” Shamel remarked.

Mortis turned his back on the table, “The prince heads for Canalith no doubt, I must leave immediately before he plants his roots in the other disciples' minds.”

Shamel waved Mortis’ words away, “Don’t worry the force is still at least a two days' ride from where it is. I have Hounds spying on it every second of the day.”

Mortis turned back to the table, “Even so, the Hounds moving so close to Canalith have Taldry having an anxiety attack, soon enough I’ll have Morta and Cere bothering me about the matter too. I have to get back to inform them of the situation.”

“Well, you could do that…or help us with another issue.”

Morta furrowed his brow, “What issue?”

Shamel started to fidget with his finger, “Well I can’t say I’m eager to say…”

“Be out with it!”

“Well, a Healer has taken residence in the village, killing many Hounds, and we can’t seem to do anything about it.”