[Mkguild] Earning His Stripes: Chapter III

[Mark Ewing]

Here is Chapter III for all of those on the MK List.

Chapter III

I don't really know how long I was in that crate but It was a fair amount of
time. I really didn't sleep all that well when I was laying there so I spent
most of my time meditating on my current situation. As the time passed I
even managed to get in touch with a part of myself that I thought I had lost
many months before.

He looked at me with his pale grey-blue eyes and softly asked, "How long
have you been seeking me Adon?"

I looked at him slowly and finally responded "Oberon I have been seeking
your pressence since I thought I lost you more then half a year ago."

"Adon you no longer need me any more. Has not the last few months been proof
of that?"

"Oberon I've made mistakes since you left me, mistakes that have nearly cost
me my very soul."

"But you kept your soul and have grown stronger since I became part of you."

"Oberon I have missed your counsel and there were plenty of times where I
could have used it."

"Adon even though you desired it you did well enough on your own. For
instance now you are no longer doing things out of a desire to simply earn
money but instead for friends, and family, and honour."

I looked down at my feet for a moment before I looked up again. He continued
to look at with his steady blue-grey eyes before he finally said, "Adon I
can't guide you for the rest of your life, you must learn to make choices on
your own, and furthermore you must learn to stick with those choices."

I managed to nod slowly though I was still doubtfull of what he was telling
me.

"Adon I may not see you very often anymore but I still watch over you and
care for you from affar."

I nodded slowly and then was about to say something when I became aware of
something thumping on the lid of the crate that I was hiding in.

"Wake up Oberon I can't get the lid of this crate off all by myself." I
heard Misha's muffled voice coming through the heavy wood of the crate say.

I opened my eyes and put my hands up against the lid and pushes as much as
my cramped arms could manage.

The lid of the crate moved grudgingly under our combined strength. Until
finally it was laying on the floor beside the crate that I had occupied for
however long it had taken us to reach this place. This place, it seemed, was
darker then the Caves of Parenteir and wetter then the stinking swamps of
Gretchor with only a single torch providing any kind of illumination and it
was pretty feeble at that.

"We're here Oberon you can get out now." The dim form of Misha said.

I tried to stand up but buckled to my knees as my legs refused to support my
weight due to cramps that felt like my muscles had been tied into ten kinds
of knots with a god's own sewing needle. I growled loudly as both of my legs
protested my movements.

"Oberon this isn't the Deaf Mule. There are guards around we have to keep
quiet."

"Sorry Misha but my legs are tied more knots then a galleon's rigging."

"They're cramped! You've been shoved, tightly, into that box for the past
two days." He said and helped me lean against the crate.

I growled again as I leaned against the crate, as my abused muscles
protested my movements.

"Oberon...Not so bloody loud. We don't need some guard coming in here
wondering what all of this noise is."

I nodded slowly and began to massage my right calf gently with my hands.
This wasn't the first time that I had ever gotten myself so cramped up that
I couldn't stand.

Can you please hurry it up. I don't really want to be here any longer then
we have to be in case some over-curious guard comes here and decides to look
into this storage room."

"I am doing what I can Misha but getting cramps out of stiff muscles takes
time."

"What can I do to help to speed this up." the fox asked me.

I looked up into his green eyes and finally said, "If you don't mind can you
please try and get the knots out of my left calf while attent to my right
leg."

Misha nodded and crouched down and began to massage the heavily knotted
muscles of my left calf with his strong hands.

After a few minutes I managed to stand up without feeling any pain. I
wrapped dark cloak around myself and pulled up the hood to conceal my face.
Even then I knew that I would not be all that hard to spot for someone who
was really looking.

"We're in a food larder deep underground." Misha explained to me as he
looked me over with his bright green eyes.

"Well I'd best be prepared." I pulled one of my throwing knives from its
sheath and looked at the dark coloured metal and lightly shook my head. I
didn't like seeing all of my fine work obscured by some kind of dye.

Misha chuckled. "Now that we are here lets go find out exactly where we are
in this place and then get to our target and dispose of him."

"Agreed. I would prefer that we get in, and out as quickly as possible.

"Um Oberon exactly how are we gonna get out?" Misha asked me calmly.

"I turned to face him and grinned. "I really have to think on that Misha,
but it may get a little hairy when we leave, and there is a good chance that
we will have to do so in a hurry."

"All right. Are you ready to go? We have a big castle to search...without
being seen."

"As ready as I'll ever be Misha. Though you will be a lot more easy to
forget then I ever will be now. I am simply too huge to sneak around every
day like I used to be. When I was human I was one of most inconspicuous men
that you would ever meet and yet now..."

"Well its dark outside so that should count for something. Just keep to the
shadow and that should help us out a lot."

I nodded before I said, "At least we don't have great bloody boots on our
feet. I can already hear a guard coming down the left corridor about thirty
feet away. His tromping will drown out his hearing."

"I hear him too! Being part animal does have it's advantages," Misha said.

I nodded "Yeah and these feet," I pointed down at one of my large digitgrade
foot-paws. ", make sneaking....easy."

"We need to let that guard pass before we can leave this larder."

I nodded. "I concur with you Misha on that fact. I am, after all, a veteran
of more then a few assassinations."

"I know that Oberon." Misha answered. "I am pretty good at sneaking around
too."

For the rest of the night we dodged patrols by ducking into vacant rooms
occupied by nothing but skinny rats and busy spiders.

Finally I managed to ask Misha "This castle seems to be half deserted. Where
is everybody?"

"Dead mostly. They've lost a lot of people in the recent fighting, though
there have also been a fair number of desertions recently as well."

"Well this castle is about to loose at least one more resident.

Misha nodded. "Oberon that also includes anyone else who I think needs
killing, or gets in our way when we are leaving."

I grinned menacingly before I peaked out of the room that we were currently
hiding in. "Damn that guard down the hall won't move. Perhaps we will need
to eliminate him."

Misha looked out the door at the guard before he shook his head. "He'll be
missed before we carry out our objective. We'll need some kind of
distraction."

I looked at the guard again and then came up with a novel idea. "Misha do
you think that you could possibly make me look something like an ogre or a
troll?"

He looked at me and seemed to be lost in thought for a moment before his ear
perked up and he gave a little grin "We could do that. Cover you in some
green dye and give you a terrible stink. The less observant guards wouldn't
know the difference."

"Where will we get something that smells as ripe as an Ogre Misha? As I
recall they can be quite overwhelming from close range."

"A few rooms back I thought I smelled somthing that smelled similar do an
ogre. Perhaps in there you might be able to find something that will suit
our purpose. Few people get close enough to a troll for any kind of close
examination. We really just need to cover you up with something like a
robe."

I nodded slowly as I remembered how badly trolls stank. "Misha I can tell
you right now that I will not enjoy this. Trolls and ogres smell like
they've died, been burried, then later exhumed, and reanimated."

"Well I am open to a less smelly idea. If you have one." The fox countered
me by saying.

I thought about it for several minutes before I shook my head. "Not really."
I conceeded.

"All right. Now lets get started turning you green." Misha said before
picking a small jar of green dye out of his pack.

"How is this stuff going to work over my existing black dye?"

"Well Oberon it is a special formula of dark green that Pascal made for us.
It will show through. Trust me I've been using it for years and I know what
it can do."

"Well my dye is a new formulation that Pascal sold me the day before we left
the Keep." I closed my eyes at the memory of applying it, with the help of
the most enchanting woman in the entire Keep.

I felt a tap on my nose. "Keep your mind here kitty." Misha ordered "We can
get into real trouble here if you loose track of where you are and what you
are supposed to be doing."

"Sorry I was just thinking about the wonderful lady that helped me apply
this dye. Just the thought of her is.....heaven. Right now I wish that I
could be with her watching the sun set in her glorious grey eyes."

Misha nodded in response. "I know, but right now keep your mind on what we
are doing here an now. I need you to concentrate, I can't do this all
alone."

I nodded slowly before I finally stated, "She is one of the two reasons I
fight now."

Misha nodded after I said that. "We all have a similar reason Oberon. I
include myself in that group."

I nodded again as the off us backtracked to the room the Misha remembered as
having a particularly strong odour. I looked into the room and wrinkled my
nose at the stench coming from the room. It smelled like something had died
in there. "Misha you think that we can find something in there that can aid
us in our disquise?"

"Just find whatever is in that room that is making that godawful stench and
grab it." Misha said with one of his hands covering his sensitive nose. I
nodded grimly, and at great risk to my nose, I stepped into the room in
question. In the far corner of the room was a large mound of rags from which
the stench emenated. On the very top of the pile was something that
resembled a large black cloak. I grabbed the cloak and shook several piles
of, the gods only knew what, off of if before I fled the room, though as an
afterthought I also grabbed a massive sheathed greatsword from the wall in
passing.

As soon as I got back out into the hallway Misha wrinkled his nose and said
"Pull the hood over your head. Try not to speak too coherently and grunt a
lot."

I nodded and then looked down at the sheathed sword in my hand and drew the
blade from the scabbard expecting to see a blade rusty from years of
negelect and ill treatment. Instead I was thunderstruck when the blade that
I drew forth from the scabbard glimmered in the faint light of a nearby
torch. Even more surprisingly I felt a faint pulse of magical energy in the
weapon. "Misha what do you make of this sword?"

"Where did you get that thing?" He asked me as he examined the weapon
carefully, being sure not to touch it."

"In that room that stank like several things died in it." I answered jerking
my thumb over my shoulder to indicate the room that I had reccently vacated.

He leaned in closer to look at the weapon and noted several runes that were
inscribed on the blade. "That is deffinately NOT made by any lutin, and it
is too old to be something that was made under Nasoj's rule." He looked at
it again and pondered the weapon before he looked up into my eyes "Could it
perhaps be something that an elf made?"

"Misha how should I know?" I stayed away from the lands of the elves during
my sojourn in the Midlands. I really wanted nothing to do with people that
were inherently magical in nature."

Misha nodded before I asked him

"Misha do you want this sword, since I already have enough of my own?"

"Me? Oberon that sword is only slightly shorter then I am! I would be lucky
if I was able to carry it, nevermind use it!"

I shrugged my shoulders and slung the greatsword crossways across my back.
As soon as I had the weapons comfortably settled across my back, with some
hesitation I wrapped myself in the stinking black robe that I had purloined.
"How do I look Misha?"

"Perfect. And what is even better is the fact that you smell TERRIBLE. Now
you have got to remember to grunt a lot."

I nodded before I looked down at Misha's axe pointedly before I said, "Misha
now we really must do something to hid your weapons. After all this disguise
will not work at all if you appear to be still armed."

Misha looked at me and then down at his axe. "Can you hide it under your
robe?"

"I should be able to. That is if she will tollerate my touch. After all I am
not at all like you Misha."

"She should, though you should try not to get too friendly with her. She can
be touchy at times."

"Well I hope that she can tolerate the pressence of the Claw in such close
proximity to her."

"You should try and keep them as far appart as possible."

"I agree Misha that would be a prudent course of action." I stated before I
put my hand on his shoulder. "If you need her at any point in time don't
hesitate to tell me."

"Oberon if I need here I can call her to me in mere moments."

"I think I understand." I told him before I put my hand out and he placed
the haft of his black axe in my outstretched hand. In that instant a portal
seemed to open up in my mind and I was flooded with strange images, obscure
places, and alien feelings.

Misha looked up into my wide staring eyes for several moments. "Oberon....."
he started to say before he falls silent. Finally after a minute he looked
down at the axe in my right hand and softly said, "Be kind to him My Lady."

After what seemed like ages the strange pressence in my head began to pull
back and flow from my consciousness like water from a seive. When I finally
could move again I looked at Misha. "Misha this axe is a very special
weapon. In all of my life I have only ever felt one other remotely like her,
and I carry that weapon at my side all of the time."

"I would be surprised if you did my friend. Nothing like her has been made
in more then two millenia. You should be honoured that she let you touch her
mind."

I twitched my ears and then slowly bowed to the massive black axe that I
still held in my hands. Finally when I felt that I had been sufficiently
polite to the weapon in my hands I swiftly slung in in the middle of my back
from the two cross-belts that I was wearing behind my back. With that taken
care of I closed my eyes and mentally ajusted my entire being before I gave
a grunting command to Misha. "Move you feet you animal!"

My friend looked up at me and then drooped his ear, lowered his head, and
started moving forward in the most pathetic manner possible.

I began tromping on the rough stone floor as much as I could, though it was
not all the pleasant on my foot-paws. As we moved past the guard he looked
at me for a second and then waved on of his hand in front of his face and
grimaced before pointing his finger down the hall after I had grunted a
barely intelligable question."

The whole while Misha kept himself silent and in character as until we
rounded the next corner.

I flung my hood back as soon as we were no longer visible to the guard and
tried to clear the stench of the awful garment from my sensitive feline
nose.

"That went well." Misha said as he became himself once more. He paused and
looked at me for a moment. "Are you all right?"

"The stench of this robe is....overpowering and it is making me a little
nauseous."

The fox tapped his own nose lightly. "This vulpine nose of mine is just as
sensitive as yours my friend. And I have to say that that smell is
absolutely terrible. Can you please get rid of that robe now please."

I pulled the robe off and let it drop to the floor and then came to a
realization. "Misha I hate this reeking thing, but what if we need to use
that particular disguise again?"

"Do you seriously want to carry that thing around with you?"

"Well we might need it again."

"In that case try sticking it in a backpack or a bag of some kind. That just
might lessen the smell to the point where it is tolerable."

I nodded my head and with a flip of my black dyed tail ducked into another
abandoned room for a few minutes. I returned with the stinking robe now
securely wrapped in an oilskin bundle. "How's this?"

The fox sniffed at the bundle for a moment before he nodded his head. "Good
I can hardly smell it now."

I grinned at him slightly. "Much to the relief of both of our noses."

"Well lets get a move on. We have a long way to go."

I nodded in assent before I followed him down the dimly lit hall.

Several hours, and maybe four or five checkpoints later I leaned against a
wall and paused for a moment. I shook my head in an attempt to keep the
fatigue that I was feeling from overcoming me. I had not slept properly
in...a while.

Misha turned and looked at me and then asked, "Are you all right?"

"Yeah I am just a little tired."

"You want to find a place to rest for a few hours?"

I nodded gratefully at the question. "Misha I may be stong, tough, and very
durable, but even I have limits. As far as I can tell right now it seems
that I've reached one of those limits. I need to rest soon or I will be no
good in anyway if we get into a fight."

He nodded. "We can find an abandoned room somewhere in this pile of a castle
and get a few hours of sleep."

After a couple minutes of concerted searching I located a huge room with a
mouldering four poster bed in one corner and a threadbare carpet on the
floor beside. The rest of the furniture in the room was similarly
dilapidated, like it hadn't been cared for in years. "How does this look
Misha?"

"It looks good Oberon. We'll stretch out on the floor. I would stay away
from that mouldering pile of a bed. There's no telling what kind of nasty
critters have made their home in it."

I absently nodded as I pulled off my weapons and my clothes before I shifted
to my full form. I did not want to sleep on the floor in my normal form
since I would probably get some right awful sore spots on my body. I located
a comfortable spot on the floor and curled up with my tail placed over my
nose.

"Keep your weapons close," The fox ordered me. "I'll wake you up in roughly
four hours, then I'll sleep."

I opened one eye at Misha and then held up one of my huge forepaws and
unsheated all four of my two and a half inch long claws from the toes for
him to see.

He seemed to nod in understanding, even when I was in my full form I was
formidibly armed. For instance my teeth are larger then some people's
knives, and my sheer mass is also a powerful weapon. Misha sat down on a
ricety chair and softly whispered, "Sleep" in a tone that conveyed the fact
that it was an order.

I sighed slowly retracted my claws and placed my head on my outstretched
forelegs and closed my eyes.

I felt something shaking my shoulder. I opened my eyes blearily and looked
up at Misha's cool green eyes.

"Wakey, wakey Oberon." The fox said. "My turn to get some sleep."

I nodded my large head and then stretched out in a manner that only a feline
could duplicate before I returned to my normal form and got dressed and
armed. "Misha it might be a good idea if you could sleep in your full form
just like I did. It is so much more relaxing, given the fact that we have to
sleep on this cold hard floor."

He shook his head. "My natural form is too small to be of any use in a
fight." he answered. "Besides I'm used to sleeping on the floor." With that
said he stretched out on the floor and was asleep in moments.

I folded myself into a chair and drew the Claw from his scabbard and began
talking to him in the silence of our minds. His awareness, as strange and
unusual as it was, helped to keep me awake for the next four hours. In fact
when it came time to wake Misha I felt as though I had just had full night's
rest.

I gently shook my friend's shoulder and he was awake in moments his eyes
flying open and his hand groping for his axe Whisper. As soon as he was
aware that it was only me shaking his shoulder his ear dropped a little and
he said, "That didn't last very long."

"Misha you slept for four hours, and probably would have slept for four more
if I had let you."

He sat up and stretched. "I guess that it will have to do for now."

I stood up and sheathed the Claw before I picked up my kit and slung it on
my back. "Which way now sir?"

Misha looked around getting his bearings before he ordered, "Up the hall to
the right my friend."

I looked the indicated direction and nodded before I began to follow the
hall.

Several hours later, and numerous encounters with castle guards later we
came upon a set of doors that had two humans in elaborate armour guarding
them.

"I guess it is time for me to get into the smelly suit again eh Misha?"

He shook his head. "You might as well get rid of that thing now Oberon, it
won't fool these guards."

"Thank the gods for that. The last time I wore that thing I nearly lost my
breakfast, not that it was much of a breakfast anyways." I dumped the
oilcloth sack that contained the stinking thing in a nearby room before I
considered the two guards, "Misha how do you propose to get past these
guards if we aren't going to try and trick our way past them?"

"We're going to have to kill them."

I absently nodded my head as I drew the great-sword that was slung across my
back. "Do you want me to be in front or would you rather be in front?"
"What would prefer?"

I looked at Misha for a moment before I considered the issue myself. "Well
Misha you have been in and around these things for longer than I have so you
might have a few ideas that I haven't come up with. But on the other hand
this is one of the things that I was trained to deal with in my youth."

"Then by all means take the lead here Oberon."

"In that case I would request that you hang back a bit because I am NOT
going to pull my slashes one bit."

Misha nodded and began to string his longbow, the very same longbow that I
had given to him several months before. "In that case I will stick to my bow
to start."

"I understand sir." I replied before I closed my eyes and gathered my energy
for the coming attack. When I opened my eyes I was focussed on the job at
hand.

With a sudden violent move I sprang out from behind cover and let loose a
window rattling roar.

The two guards froze in their metal boots, just like I had intended them to
do before they both reached down for the swords sheathed at their hips. By
then it was too late and I was already upon them. A powerful slash from the
great-sword in my hand-paws and they were both laying on the smooth stone
floor in two pieces.

I stood over the four pieces of the two guards and grinned at Misha in a
rather feral manner. "That was fun."

"It was also a little noisy Oberon, but it was fun." He said. "Now let's get
inside before some curious guard comes to investigate what all that noise
was about."

"Well my noise did work didn't it?" I asked rhetorically as I forced one of
the two doors open with a single healthy shove.

"True!" He said as he nocked an arrow before looking into the room beyond
the door for the man that we were here to kill.

Just as I ducked through the door a crimson flash of lightening blasted
through the air where I had been and hit an unoffending rock wall to
detonate with a harsh bang.

I growled out several curses in my native tongue before I finally
elucidated, "MAGIC! It always has to be some damned Mage that I have to
kill."

"Oberon stop yakking and start hacking. The sooner this thing is dead the
sooner we can get out of this place." Misha shouted at me as he shot several
arrows in the dim corners of the room. "Come out and die like a man you
coward." He yelled into the room.

The response was immediate and dangerous. A single massive bolt of white hot
energy flashed through the air towards me. I was barely able to deflect it
into a nearby wall where it blew an unoffending statue into gravel.

"Watch it Misha those blasts that he is hurling around are kind of
dangerous."

"I noticed that Oberon." Misha shouted as he flung himself on the floor to
avoid yet another massive crimson lightning bolt.

"From where I stood I could smell the odour of singed fur from my friend's
back. "Misha did you see where that came from?"

For an answer Misha shot an arrow into a different corner of the room where
a tangle of furniture and decorations rested.

"Misha is that where you think he=85"

A massive bolt of white hot energy lanced out of the corner towards Misha as
I rolled on the stone floor and threw two of my throwing knives into the
mess of furniture.

Once again Misha only just managed to dodge the bolt of energy by rolling on
the floor. "Won't this guy just up and die on us already?"

"Misha it is never that easy." I retorted before making an observation, "Be
careful those bolts he's throwing around could quite easily kill you."

"I've noticed that," The fox said. He put away his bow and drew his massive
black battleaxe. "Let's kill him fast before he throws more at us."

"I agree." I said before I put away the elven great-sword and drew the Claw.
"Do you think that any mage in the world can face off against two people
wielding runic weapons and survive?"

Misha shook his head shortly before he sniffed the air. "Where is he?"

"I think that he's in that corner where all of that energy was coming from,
but that could've been simple misdirection. This room stinks so bad that I
can't figure out where he is with my nose."

Misha motioned to me to step further away from him as we started to stalk
towards the corner.

I held my sword in front of me in case the mage tried to attack again.

Misha shook his head and then stepped forward boldly, "No time for being
careful now my friend, we need him dead."

I nodded and advanced into the corner where all of the raw energy had been
coming from. All that I was able to find was a slight splash of blood on the
grey stones. A few inches from the blood splatter was one of my two throwing
knives, its blade darkened by the blood. "Misha it appears that I marked
him."

"Yup, it seems that way." The fox answered. "But he's no longer here. He's
slipped out of the room through some secret door."

I looked intently at the grey stones of the floor marking where our quarry
had gone to. I took a moment to finally spot the clue that I was looking
for, it seemed that half a blood drop had vanished under one of the nearby
walls. "Misha I think I found the door that our prey used here. Can you find
the trigger that opens this door?"

Misha looked where I indicated and hefted his axe a couple of times before
he smashed through the false wall as if he was cutting through paper. Beyond
the rubble of the door there was a dark passage that seemed to lead into the
heart of the castle. "Door open."

I rolled my eyes at Misha and commented, "She isn't a subtle weapon that's
for sure." ,before I looked down the dark passage beyond the rubble. After a
moment I stepped into it, and over a couple of unusual looking paving
stones. "Watch those stones Misha, I have a very good idea of what they
are."

The fox nodded and stepped lightly over the stones that I had so carefully
avoided. "So do I. I've seen them before."

I chuckled lightly. "Now this is where my feline eyes come in handy, eh
Misha? I asked as I made my slow careful way along the narrow twisting
passage. Several times I could actually smell some of the more unpleasant
traps.

"Yup, they certainly do, though my own vulpine eyes are also pretty good in
the dark."

I didn't really respond as I stepped over a stone that I knew activated a
trap that would drop the two of us down into the latrines.

Finally I reached a wall that blocked any further progress, obviously the
passage had terminated and this was the door that led out of the tunnel.
"Misha now it is my turn to do something that is NOT subtle." I stated
before I methodically demolished the offending wall in our way with a few
well placed swings of the Claw.

Misha chuckled at that. "Stealth has its place, but so does being decisive."

"Misha I am good at being decisive. I am the kind of warrior that you sent
into a situation when you want some major havoc dealt out." I stated as I
stepped out into the room beyond.

Out of instinct, and a shout in my mind from the Claw I dodged to the right
almost as soon as my feet hit the flagstones of the hall. As luck would have
it I twisted the right way for the blast of red lightning to glance off of
my left chest-plate and blow a nearby chair into kindling.

I watched as Misha dove through the opening that I had carved with my sword,
tumbling to one side. "I HATE dealing with mages."

"You and me both." I answered as I ducked down and batted a few flickers of
flames from my armour.

"You all right?" The fox asked me looking around.

"Yeah. I got a little singed, but I am fine. My armour took most of that
blast, and deflected the rest. Now let's go hunt ourselves a mage=85prefera=
bly
before he cooks us in our armour like ants under a magnifying glass."

Misha almost casually caught a lightning bolt on the blade of his axe
sending it flying harmlessly into the ceiling where it detonated with a loud
crack.

I saw Misha with his axe and shook my head before I stood up swinging my
sword in an arc that caught another bolt of pure energy, sending it into a
stack of iron bound chests. The chests exploded violently sending gold and
gemstones of almost incalculable value flying through the air as expensive
missiles that rattled off of my armour like rain off of a tile roof.

Misha hefted his axe. "Let's end this now before he gets some help." He said
before he started moving towards the mage.

"I would agree to that on principal Misha, I HATE mages." I elucidated as I
caught up to Misha, batting the odd lightning bolt out of the air with the
Claw as I ran.

In desperation the man jerked a slim little sabre from the scabbard that he
wore at his side and held it in front of him in a clumsy guard. I saw that
and altered my aim slightly trusting in the Claw to take care of the rest.
My trust was well founded as the Claw sheared through the raised sabre
without even slowing down before shearing through the dark mage with equal
ease.

"That was fast, but messy." Misha observed.

I nodded with a feral grin on my face. "Now comes the fun part, getting out
of this place and back home with our pelts intact."

"You consider that fun?" He asked before he looked around the room. "Is
there anything that you want here? It appears that he has some good
treasures in here."

"Yeah Misha I was thinking that those diamonds, that he was blowing around
like so many pebbles on a sandy beach, would fetch a nice price at home. If
you would grab a few while I collect some other trophies that would be much
appreciated."

"All right, but we have a long way to go, so don't weigh yourself down with
too much treasure."

I understand sir, I just wanted something that is small, lightweight, and
very valuable, and hence diamonds fit the bill exactly. As for the other
stuff, well I need to collect my trophy=85for my necklaces."

"Trophies?" The fox asked me as he scooped up a large number of the
glittering clear gems from the floor.

I simply rattled the necklace of lutin thumbs that I was wearing around my
neck as I used my dagger to remove the former mage's right thumb.

"All right. When you're done with his manicure, check the rest of him for
anything important."

I grimly nodded as I shuffled through the upper half of the bisected mage
for any valuable loot before I touched the heavy medallion that he had been
wearing around his neck.

I was instantly transported out of my body, and through the castle to a
small chamber that housed an absolutely massive diamond on a plinth in the
middle of the room. The feeling I got from the giant gemstone was that of a
malevolent evil that was almost waiting for me to get too close to it. I
recoiled from that evil and pulled back against it, throwing all of my
considerable abilities against the webs that it was throwing around me.
However, as hard as I fought I could feel that slowly, ever so slowly, I was
losing this battle and being drawn towards the stone like a stick in a
whirlpool.

An age later I was joined by a presence that I was very familiar with.
"Misha?" I thought as I felt his presence beside me. "Go back=85Before you =
too
are caught in this evil thing's trap. We cannot resist this evil, even
together."

"I brought along some help," The fox's presence explained. "Whisper, AND a
friend of yours."

I felt myself grin before the powerful presence of my sword joined me in my
hand-paw. I used the sword to begin swinging through the webs that the evil
thing was throwing out at us.

All four of use bent our hearts and souls in trying to escape this terrible
trap, but we still were not having any success, though we were no longer
falling inwards towards the diamond that housed the evil presence.

Suddenly we were joined by a fifth presence who's power staggered me in it
scope and intensity.

"Who's that?" Misha's presence asked. "Where did you come from?"

"Oh yon good stranger my name is Karrom Cheletoranahk and I once served as
your friend Adon Naharel's Soul Guide."

"You are his soul guide?" The fox's spirit exclaimed

"Yes I am. My father, the divine Cheletor, sent me here=85to get this most
excellent servant of his divine touch out from this place of deep
evil=85before he falls prey to it like a fly in a spiders web."

The fox nodded his head slowly, obviously impressed at my soul guide's
arrival. "Let's get free of this place."

"My father would want us to do more than simply escape this place of evil,
he would desire that we destroy it=85completely, lest it trap some other
unfortunate soul in its twisted evil."

"And how do you propose we do that?"

I looked at Misha's ethereal form and replied, "Misha we will have to
concentrate our strength on that thing until it reveals its true nature=85t=
hen
we will have to kill it." I said slowly "That is normally the way we Kelmar
deal with a problem like this."

"All right any idea what we are facing? Some kind of demon?"

"I would think so my good vulpine . Let me take the lead, I have more power
then you. Adon will follow me with his great weapon, and you can take up the
rear." Karrom pronounced.

The ethereal fox nodded. "All right." He hefted his axe in his paws. "I am
always ready for a good fight."

"This will be a very good fight then." Karrom replied before he drew what
seemed to be a sword of pure light before he began swinging it at the webs
of pure darkness that were coming from the diamond.

Just behind me Misha began lashing out with his axe against the dark threads
as they tried to swarm us under from behind.

I also swung my weapon gouging great rents in the writhing things with the
Claw relishing the feel of the finely worked leather against the palms of my
hand-paws. I followed my guide down towards the malevolent beauty of the
massive gem in the middle of the room. "Misha why does it always have to be
that something so beautiful is so dangerous?"

The fox shrugged behind me as he fought. "That is always the way of things
it seems."

I simply nodded as I fended off another streamer of absolute darkness with
my sword.

There was an angry chittering noise from inside of the get before a wave of
darkness burst form from the gem. The wave first burst forth before
coalescing into the form of a giant spider of absolute darkness. The diamond
formed the spider's bloated rear end while legs of darkness emerged from its
black body. It eight malevolent eyes glowed a smokey red colour and it
demanded, "Wwhhhooo dddaaarrreeesss!!"

Misha slashed at the spider with his massive axe. "You talk too much!"

"I will eat your souls and take your bodies as my own, like I did with my
last host."

"Why do they always chatter on like that?" The fox asked as he lashed out at
the monster. "Why can't they just fight?"

"I don't really know Misha." I said as I slashed at one of the monster's
legs.

"Perhaps it's a character flaw that they have=85 Too many people have the g=
ift
of the gab," Misha said as the fight got even more intensive.

"That's for sure." I replied as I stabbed at one of the monster's glossy red
eyes in an attempt to get the monsters attention focussed on me and Misha
while Karrom edged his way around the monster. He was trying to reach a
position so that he could jab his sword of light into the diamond that
formed the heart of the thing.

As I did so my vulpine friend lunged forward swinging his axe in a tight
deadly figure eight pattern in front of his body.

"You're good with that axe Misha." I commented as I jabbed at the spider's
eyes with the Claw once again.

"Thank you, your skills with that sword are also pretty good."

I gave a feral grin before I jabbed at yet another on the of the
spider-creature's eyes. This time I was rewarded with a chittering scream of
agony as the ethereal blade of my sword sank into the crimson orb like a
stick into a pool of quicksand.

As the creature screamed Misha slashed at it with the axe, removing one of
its legs. "Is it dead now? After all you stuck your sword in its head."

"Not hardly Misha in order for it to be truly dead that gem=85" There was a
loud crash and a scream from the spider creature as Karrom brought his sword
of light down onto the diamond shattering it like a fine crystal wine
goblet. "Now it is dead Misha."

"Finally!" The fox said as he rested the head of his ethereal axe near his
feet. "Now how in Eli's name are we supposed to get out of this place?"

Karrom turned and looked at him for a moment before he said, "I shall now
return your souls to their proper vessels. Take care of each other, and
Oberon be careful with yourself my son=85." I thought about the last thing
that he had said before I opened my eyes and tasted the cold stone floor of
the hall where we had killed that spider monster's pawn.

"Well?" I heard Misha ask from where he was sitting close to me. "How do you
feel?"

I groaned. "I feel like I just got hit on the head with a heavy-weight
trebuchet stone."

"You are lucky to be alive after that Oberon."

I nodded my head and pulled myself to me feet. "I really don't like magic
Misha." I commented before I saw the broken amulet around the dead mage's
neck. "Poor man, I wonder what he would have been like if he hadn't been
under the domination of that demon thing in the diamond."

Misha shrugged. "No telling now."

I chuckled. "Yeah. After all it is kind of hard to put two halves of a man
back together=85unless you happen to know any necromancers that would be
willing to help us."

"Search the corpse. We might find something useful."

"Other than that amulet that I located?"

"Yes. He might've been carrying something useful like other magical items."

"Ok, but you search the lower half of him."

"Yuck," The fox commented. "He's got nothing useful in this half of his
body. Even the shoes that he has on are cheap, gaudy but really cheap."

"As far as I can tell from what I am seeing here the only thing that he had
of any value was that amulet=85then again with this great hall here full of
wealth, who needs to walk around wearing ostentatious wealth on his person?"

"True. Now let's get out of this place. And Oberon beware of what you touch.
Stick to the coins alright; no more jewellery."

I nodded absently as I picked up a few more diamonds before cramming them
into an almost overfull pouch on my belt. "Misha I think I've had about my
fill of loot for=85"

BOOM=85BOOM=85BOOM! There was a loud banging at the heavy door at one end o=
f the
hall.

"Uh Misha I think that we are going to have more pressing concerns then how
rich we can make ourselves as soon as that door collapses."

"We appear to have some company, and then want in here in the worst possible
way."

I nodded slowly before I stood up fully and drew the great-sword that was
slung across my back. "I guess we have to educate these ones, eh Misha?"

Misha hefted his massive black battle-axe. "I think it is time to do some
serious killing."

I nodded in agreement as the hammering on the door grew stronger and the
wood started to crack and splinter. "We may end up fighting back to back,
especially if they try to swarm us under."

The fox nodded. "It wouldn't be the first time that I've fought that way."

As he said that the door tumbled into the great hall with a crash of broken
timbers. Following the pieces of the door were a dozen or more heavily
armed, and armoured, men who brandished a large assortment of weapons.

I swung my great-sword in a limbering up move before I took it in both of my
hand-paws before giving vent to a brutally loud roar that shook the windows
in their frames.

Right beside me Misha let out a loud and eerie yowl! Before rushing at the
men his axe swinging in a low deadly swing.

I joined him in his dash and together we hit the guards with a thunderous
crash.

I roared again as I swung my great-sword at one man who was armed with a
wicked looking axe. I didn't even alter my swing as my sword swung through
his arm, shoulder, and chest sheering a great bloody gash in his body and
sending an errant arm flying through the air. Beside me I heard another man
scream out in a manner that told me that he had just been dealt a lethal
blow.

Over the next few minutes Misha and I didn't really do a whole lot of
yakking, instead we concentrated on the business of killing anyone who got
within reach of our weapons. Never the less the guards were steadily forcing
us back. No matter how skilled the two of us were we simply couldn't
overcome the sheer number that our enemies possessed.

"Misha we have to find a way out or there won't be enough left of us to bury
when they get done with us."

"They have to run out of guards some time."

As Misha said that I heard a truly horrific sound coming from beyond the
shattered remains of the hall door. There were growls, screams, and the
sounds of bones breaking like wet, rotten twigs. "Misha I hope that isn't a
troll I hear."

The human guards around the door scattered leaving the two of us defending
ourselves against what few guards were left surrounding us.

Suddenly a massive black furred shape leapt through the door and landed
close to the last two men standing in front of us. The massive wolf crushed
one man when he landed on him and ripped the other's head off like a cork
from a wine bottle.

"Tchukendra!" I shouted in amazement and relief.

Misha laughed behind me as he turned around to face my canine friend.
"Nicely done there Tchukendra, you came just in the nick of time."

The big wolf shook his head slightly and gave a bell toned woof as Misha
surveyed the room.

I looked at the piled up corpses that surrounded Misha and I and shook my
head. "That was some serious fun, but I think we really should get moving
before they can summon more guards. I don't really feel like fighting the
whole damn garrison if I don't have to."

"I agree Oberon. I think our best bet is the direct approach and simply race
for the gate, before the garrison can close it on us."

I nodded as I leaned down and cleaned the blade of my great-sword on a shred
of cloth before I sheathed it and drew the Claw. I wanted the Claw now
because it was a much handier weapon in close quarters. Once my sword was
out and ready I jogged towards the broken door with Tchukedra at my side.

Misha quickly joined the two of us and directed us down the hall and
directly towards the main gates of the castle

Sometime later the three of us emerged into the early morning light of a
courtyard in the castle. I looked around as we trotted across the courtyard
I spotted a stable with a simply massive dark grey horse standing, tied up,
by the entrance of the stable. "Misha do you think you would be able to ride
bareback?"

The fox nodded. "I think I can. If not I can always use my foxtaur form.
That is certainly fast."

I smiled slightly in return as I, vainly, to keep the horse from shying away
from me as I tried to mount it. "Misha why is this animal so blasted
skittish?"

"Oberon. You are a three hundred pound predatory cat. He thinks you want to
eat him... not ride him."

"Can you get him to calm down enough for me to be able to mount him? We
really don't have time to be dancing around like this all day."

"How? Unless you've not noticed I am also a predator, furthermor I am soaked
in blood as wel." The fox countered.

I nodded. "Well in that case," I gave a massive leap forwards and too the
side, and managed to land myself, with a fair bit of pain, squarely on the
horses back. I grabbed the bridle reins and quickly took control, showing
the animal through my hand and leg gestures that I really meant no harm.
Regardless of that I could still feel his heavy muscles shuddering under my
thighs and buttocks. "Come on Misha we have to leave this place NOW!"

Misha looked at me, and then at the skittish horse and shook his head.
"Oberon he's not going to calm down. If you snarl or growl he is going to
bolt."

I nodded and held out my arm for Misha to grab. "Now lets move!"

He ignored my hand and walked around the front of the horse and patted its
neck before he came around the other side and leapt up onto its back behind
me. "Well then lets go."

I said nothing and simply put my heals to the horses flanks and he leaped
into motion sending great sparks flying from his hooves as he charged out of
the stable with Tchkendra at his side.

As we rounded a corner and came withing view of the main gates both of us
saw the two men who were guarding the gates desperately trying to close the
gates and trap us inside the castle

"Run them down!" Misha shouted in my ear. "We have a ton of galloping
horseflesh on our side. They either move, or get run over."

I grinned in a menacing fashion as the two men jumped out of the way at the
last moment before we thundered through the gate with Tchukendra close on
our heels.

As we left the castle behind I distinctly heard the sound of a large bell
being rung inside of the Keep.

"Well Misha now the whole garrison there knows what we did. We'll be dodging
lutins from here all the way to the damn Giant's Dike."

"Oberon we got rid of a major threat to our home so therefore the risks we
are taking now are worth it. I just hope that we can get home to enjoy that
safetey."

"I hear you there Misha." I replied as I steared our massive stead off of
the road and into the trackless forestes on out beyond the road.

Several hours later we reached a very familiar elm tree. In fact it was the
very same elm tree where we had cached our extra equipment only a few days
before.

I looked back at my companion and said, "Misha can you please get off first
and try and hang onto Tchukendra? Because when I get off of this big horse
he is gonna bolt for his life."

The fox jumped down lightly from the horse and wrapped his arms around
Tchukedra's neck before stating, "No horse flesh for you today."

Tchukendra grumbled lightly in his throut before he sat down on his
haunches.

Once I was sure that Misha had a firm grip on Tchukedra I flexed my legs and
leapt off of the horse, landing lightly a good three feet away from him.

The massive animal reared once and then bolted for the trees like he'd just
been stung in the hindquarters by a wasp.

"Thank you Misha. I really didn't want to hurt that horse after he gave us
such an invaluable service."

The fox nodded. "Agreed. Besides that big horse will leave a track that even
the dumbest lutin will be able to follow. The people from that castle back
there will follow him for days instead of trying to follow our trail. That
will give us some time to escape this region. Perhaps we will be able to
reach the Giant's Dike without too much trouble."

"Misha that is a little much to hope for at this point in the game. For now
I just hope that they don't get to close to us when we finally have to stop
to get some rest. In any case lets just collect our things and get out of
here."

Misha simply nodded and began digging up the cache The first thing that came
to light was the canvas covering our things.

When we have collected our things, and I had arranged my weapons and
equipment to suit my tastes we struck out in the direction of home.

--
Mark Ewing
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