“Damn,” I sighed, and then laughed a little as I leaned back more in the booth. These were the kind of agonizing choices that added so much spice to a game. Ohlavar Quest was wonderful, and as soon as I thought it couldn’t get any better, the game amazed me again. I’d made a real connection with Lady Feeyaz Tyth, but now had to make a difficult choice on the next leg of my quest. Was the brief time I spent with her enough to know her true disposition? Absolutely not, but I couldn’t deny that I had felt a desire to know her more. I wanted to let her live, if for nothing else besides I thought she was a great NPC, but if my gut was wrong, it might mean the death of my friends.
“Well, dearest friend Leo, I’ve got a plan, but I’ll need your help to either distract or kill the woman. You know what my preference is, but my plan involves you wielding the blade, so you have to be committed to the cause. I’ll go with whatever you decide. What will it be?” Cornalic leaned forward as he spoke, and his voice dropped to a whisper.
I closed my eyes for a handful of seconds and thought about the two options. The reasonable course of action was killing the woman, but the idea left a horrible taste in my mouth. It would be like executing someone for a crime that you thought they would commit… because of their race. However, letting her live to maybe torture my friends made my stomach churn with dread. I didn’t know what to do, but then an idea sprang into my skull, and my brain began to chew on it like Cornalic was chewing on his steak.
“I think I have an idea,” I said at last. “But it is a bit crazy. If it works, we won’t have to kill anyone, we’ll get the glove and ring, and we won’t have to worry about them coming after us.”
“And if it doesn’t work?” he asked with a raised eyebrow of concern.
“Then we’ll probably have to spend days washing the blood off of our weapons. If we even live.” I laughed, and then took a sip of my beer.
“Sounds interesting, and insane. Tell me more, my dear friend Leo.” The man gave a small chuckle, and I leaned across the booth to explain how we’d both get our loot.
Chapter 22
“Dearest friend Leo, the part I don’t like about this is that you are taking all of the risks,” Cornalic whispered to me from the dark shadows of a large oak tree.
It was an hour after dusk, and Cornalic had shown me a hidden path up the hillside of Arnicoal so that we avoided the gate. The journey had involved a lot of steep trail climbing, and a few instances of trespassing through estate grounds of rich nobles, but we had escaped detection from the city guards, and were watching the two guards in front of the baron’s mansion from our hiding spot a good hundred yards away.
“You are taking some risk as well, but I appreciate your concern, and thanks again for agreeing to the plan. I don’t want to kill the woman if we don’t have to.”
“I do disagree with that part, but I trust your judgment.”
“I’m sure you get a lot of presumptions about your disposition just because you are a half-orc,” I said to him with a wry smile.
“Yes. That is true friend Leo, and perhaps that is another reason I am going with your desire to give the woman the benefit of the doubt. However, I still have booked our passage on the next ship to leave for Tylue, did you speak with your friends?” the muscular man asked.
“Yeah,” I sighed. “Artus and Gratia were sad to hear that I might be leaving, but they understood that I needed to continue my quest. I also told them that, if things went as planned, then I won’t have to flee, but they are going to have my things waiting at the docks come dawn. Then I will say goodbye to them again.”
“Leaving dear friends is hard. How did Allurie take the news? You didn’t speak of the pretty elf girl.” The man hadn’t spoken during our trip up the steep hillside, and I could tell that the conversation was bursting out of him like a blown dam.
“She was upset,” I whispered after I took a deep breath, “and she stormed out of Artus’ house. She has done that before though. I thought about looking for her, but I didn’t want you to wait. She’ll get over it.” I tried to push the image of the beautiful crying elf out of my memory, but I could still hear her painful sobs.
“She is young, and elven. They love with every fiber of their being, but they do recover quickly. She’ll have plenty to do when Gratia finds the perfect spot for her gallery.” The half-orc man rested his hand on my shoulder and gave me a slight squeeze.
“This is just in case something goes wrong. I’d prefer to wait a few more days before we leave. I think they will just take the deal.”
“Let’s pray to the Light that they do. Are you ready?” he asked.
“Yeah. As ready as I’ll ever be. How is my hood?” I asked as I pointed to the cowl of the cloak that Cornalic had given me.
“Looks dashing and mysterious. I can see the bandages underneath also, so it does seem as if you are injured. A noble and powerful warrior returning from a grand battle.”
“Ha. I’m going for more of a ‘Looks like our goons almost killed the man, and now he wants to deal because he is terrified’.”
“Oh, I could see that angle also, but the image is difficult for me to imagine because I hold you in such high regard.” I could only make out the faint outline of the man’s grin in the darkness, but his words did help drive away some of the ice in my stomach.
Damn. I really hoped this plan worked.
“Okay, I am going to go. See you after this is all over.” I glanced at the staff in my hand again to make sure it was unwrapped, and then I stepped from behind the tree.
“Good luck, dearest friend.” Cornalic’s voice was a faint whisper in my ear, and I almost turned around to give him a final nod, but I didn’t. The man had his job to do and I had mine.
And he was correct; my job was much riskier than his.
My mind wandered to thoughts of my father and mother. Dad was starting his treatment today. It had actually finished a few hours ago, and I wondered if it had gone well. Part of me wished I could have been there, but I also needed to work, and I’d seen how the first session of my mother’s treatment had gone. Zarra had set up a breakfast with him tomorrow morning, and I hoped that I’d be able to log out of the game in time to make it. The breakfast with my mom had been wonderful, and I hoped that my dad would have a similar recovery after his first session of treatment.
I just needed to get this relic. Then I could take a few days off.
I made as if I was limping down the street, and pretended to lean heavily on my staff. The position made the walk down the street toward Baron Yinnia’s house annoyingly long, but I wanted them to think that I was injured. There were emberbrand stands every thirty feet or so, and I made no effort to avoid their glow. The two guards at the front of the baron’s estate could easily see me approach, but the cloak I wore concealed my face from them.
“Who goes there?” one of the men asked, and I recognized him as the younger guard that I had spent the time with this morning.
“It is Leo Lennox, sorry for the cloak, I’ve been injured. Men tried to rob me. Please tell the baron that I am ready to deal if he will give me sanctuary.” I raised my head some after I spoke, and I saw the men glance at the bandages I had wrapped around my head. I’d even put a dab of blood that I’d obtained from a butcher on the wrap, so that it would appear as if I was bleeding more than I actually was from the small injury on my right ear lobe.
“Wait here,” the man I spoke with this morning commanded, and I saw him nod at his partner before the other man ran inside of the garden.
“By the Shadow, how many men attacked you?” the familiar guard asked.
“I’m not sure. Nine or so. I killed four of them, and the rest ran away. I’m sorry to have come, but I feel as if they have been stalking me through the city. You don’t see any, do you?”
As soon as the question left my mouth the man’s eyes shot away from me. His neck twisted as he looked around the dimly lit street, and I saw the panic spread on his face. It would seem that the man had no
thing to do with the others that the baron had sent to kill me. It was a good sign, and it meant that there was a possibility that Lady Feeyaz didn’t know either.
“I don’t see anyone,” the guard whispered as he clutched his polearm.
“A few had crossbows. I got lucky. I should be dead. Does the baron have any healers in the house?” I asked as I pulled the cloak tight around my stomach with my left hand.
“He’s got someone, but let’s step on the other side of the gate,” the man said as he opened the waist high doorway. His eyes were on the street behind me, and he didn’t notice my smirk.
“You are too kind,” I said as I set my gaze on the far door of the mansion, as if on cue, it opened, and half a dozen guards poured out into the front garden.
“We’ll take you inside to see the baron,” one of the men said, and two guards grabbed my arms. Their grips felt firm, but I had no doubt that I could rip free of them easily with my superhuman strength. My main concern had been keeping possession of my staff, and they didn’t try to take it from me as they escorted me into the mansion.
The inside of the gray slate foyer was lit with only a trio of emberbrands, and their small amount of light almost did nothing more than make the shadows of the staircases a darker black. I had expected them to drag me into one of the galleries, but they pulled me to the right instead, and the group walked into a long slate lined hallway. There were hangers for more emberbrands on the wall here, but only one out of every four actually held a light, and I felt a bit more dread creep into my stomach. We passed ten doors, and then the group stopped me in front of the eleventh. It was a double set, and one of the chain mail wearing men, knocked on the left door.
“We have the adventurer, Leo Lennox,” the man announced.
“Bring him in,” the baron said, and the man opened the door as if it was covered in snakes.
They escorted me into the next room, and I was surprised to see that it was a grand library. The room was a good fifty feet deep, seventy feet wide, and at least thirty feet high. Shelves, ladders, leather chairs, desks, and lanterns were purposefully placed around the area to provide a comfortable reading environment. There must have been tens of thousands of books lining the shelves, and probably half that number of rolled scrolls.
The room was magnificent, and even though the man had sent his minions to kill me, I had to respect someone that had a library this grand in their home.
“Sir Lennox, why are you here?” Baron Yinnia, asked me. I turned around in the room, but I couldn’t see where the man was. Then I noticed a large fireplace on the opposite side of the space. There was a large chair facing the flames, and two over muscled guards stood on each side.
The guards pulled on my arms, and we stepped closer to the fire. The flame was bright, but the area wasn’t as warm as I thought it would be. If anything, the room felt colder the closer we got to where I thought the gnome was sitting.
“Where is Lady Feeyaz?” I asked when the guards stopped pulling me. They had positioned me a respectable fifteen feet or so from the back of the chair, but I still hadn’t seen the man’s face.
“She is busy at the moment. Why are you here?” he asked again.
“Can we speak privately?” I asked.
“I think not, Sir Lennox, and I am beginning to become annoyed with your lack of response to my question.”
“Yeah, if anyone has a good reason to be annoyed, it is me. I’m here to renegotiate the trade of my crown and staff.”
“Oh?” I heard the voice say, but it almost sounded as if the words came from behind me as well as from the chair. The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end, and I wondered if I had planned around the wrong powerful partner.
“Did you send your men to kill me and take my items?” I asked, and I felt the men holding onto my arms tighten their grips a bit.
“Of course I did. You wouldn’t trade. I was wondering why they hadn’t returned yet. I guess you took care of them? That annoys me, Sir Lennox. Good men are hard to come by.”
“I’ll trade now, if you’ll promise to leave me alone,” I said.
“Really?” the man asked. “I’m surprised that you would trust me not to try and kill you again. I’m still wondering exactly why you are here. Seems a touch foolish. You know that I tried to kill you, and since I know that you know, I might as well just finish the job.”
“Naw, you’ll deal,” I said. “Where is Lady Feeyaz? I thought you two were partners? Does she know that you tried to kill me?”
“Sau, and Roy, turn around my chair so that I may speak better with Sir Lennox,” Baron Yinnia ordered, and the two muscular humans lifted the large leather chair so that the gnome and I could see each other. I half expected the man to have changed shape to reveal himself as some sort of horrible demon, or monster, or something intimidating, but he was dressed in the same green attire he wore this morning, and I still thought he looked like a leprechaun.
“My deal has changed, Sir Leo. Give me the staff, the crown, and your sword. Then you may leave here alive, but with one additional caveat.” The man’s face twisted evilly, and I tried not to laugh at the idea of him sliding down a rainbow. Then again, the only reason I found him so funny was that I came prepared.
“What is that?” I asked.
“Leave Arnicoal. I don’t want you in the city anymore. I’ll have someone escort you to the docks, and put you on the next passenger vessel out of here.”
“Don’t worry, I plan on leaving the city anyways. I figured that you would be vindictive, and I don’t want to worry about watching my back.”
“So we have an understanding then, hand the st—”
“Where is Lady Feeyaz? You haven’t answered me yet, and I wanted to ask her if she had an opinion on our deal.”
“She is in her room, I’m sure. Probably lamenting about your death. I didn’t tell her that my men are still absent. I’ll continue to let her think that you are dead.”
“She knew that you were going to try and kill me?” I asked.
“The woman knows my methods. I can’t have those pieces in anyone else’s collection. It is your fault really; you should have taken her offer to work for me. It was very generous.”
“What if I take it now?” I asked with a raised eyebrow. “I can bring you more items.”
“No, Sir Lennox. You’ve insulted me.”
“Insulted you?” I scoffed.
“You didn’t take my offer. No one insults me like that and leaves unbloodied. Lady Feeyaz begged for me to let you leave though, and I decided to spare her from the sight of your corpse.”
“It seemed like you two have less of a partnership than she led me to believe,” I said with a shrug.
“I let Lady Feeyaz negotiate the purchase and trade of my collection. She offered you the best deal I’ve ever seen, and I was angry with her when she told me I should just trade the glove for your staff and crown. I think her lust has clouded her judgment. I’ve done a lot for that woman, but she forgot all of my support and patronage when you arrived. Do you know how long I’ve courted her? She turns me down each time, and then she flaunts her affection for you, a man she just met, so openly! She would have never survived on the surface without my aid. The whore needs to be taught her place, so I’m glad that you came back here. As soon as I show her your items, she’ll forget about you.”
The gnome’s voice grew more enraged as he spoke, and it almost sounded like the small man was throwing a temper tantrum. A scorned man was dangerous, but not as dangerous as a scorned drow woman, and I was glad that I’d been more right than wrong about their relationship. I’d now heard enough to know that Feeyaz wasn’t actually in control of the gnome man, and it sounded as if their relationship was a bit strained. If she had turned down Baron Yinnia’s sexual advances, she probably wouldn’t mind if I took vengeance on the man for trying to kill me.
“Here is my counteroffer: you give me the glove and the ring, and I don’t kill you.” As soon as I said the w
ords the guards around me tensed, but I guessed that they had already predicted that they would have to either kill me, or beat the shit out of me.
The man laughed.
It was half evil, snarky bellow, and half leprechaun giggle. He kind of twisted in his chair when he cackled, and his little legs beat against the cushion that he sat on. He stopped after a full twenty seconds, and then he met my smiling face with his own half grin.
“You are a fool. There are eight guards in this room, and two with crossbows to the side of you.” As the man gestured, I saw the two men step from behind the closest shelf of books, they were only twenty feet away, and their addition didn’t worry me.
“You don’t have your sword out. My men are powerful,” he said as he gestured to the two muscular goons standing next to his chair, “and you—”
“I’ll use my staff. This is your last chance. Give me the glove, and the ring, and I’ll let you live.” I said the words to the gnome, but then I turned to the guards that stood next to me. “The same goes for any of you. If you leave right now, you won’t die.”
“I know what that staff does, Sir Lennox. You can’t use it. No one can use it. I’m done talking to you.” Baron Yinnia waved the back of his hand toward me and then nodded. “Kill him.”
I’d already started to use my items when the gnome raised his hand. The warm blood on my right earlobe tingled for half an instant when I triggered Never, the Earring, and I felt a swell of power fill my chest. It was almost like I swallowed an energy drink and chased it with a shot glass of painkillers. My vision turned white, and I saw a glowing icon of a flying bird appear on my UI. As soon as I saw the flash, I slammed The Darkest Death on the thick carpet of the room and triggered Death Burst.
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