by Edward Brody
“King Rutherford was quite fond of fucking women—or so I’m told—and like many horny Kings, he had a child out of wedlock.” Satorin shrugged. “Who knows how the secret got out, but rumors got to spreading that there was a bastard child, and Cristo Rutherford—The Dark Hand and only legitimate son—set out and murdered the mother and bastard child to secure his future seat on the throne. Not too far from here even—near the Crystal River from what I understand.”
I nodded and pretended that I hadn’t heard the story before. It seemed that Satorin didn’t know that Jax—the supposed murdered child—had actually survived.
“The King was livid when he found out what Cristo had done and cast him out of Highcastle. That’s how the Dark Hand was born and the Sparrows were created. But even killing your own baby brother and being an outcast doesn’t remove your claim to royalty. Highcastle law states that any son of the King will always have rights to the throne when the King passes.”
I nodded again. “And if there’s more than one, the people of Highcastle choose.”
Satorin nodded. “But there was one thing that Cristo didn’t know…” He raised a finger and gave a half smile. “There was another child born of a whore from Outer Highcastle, just a few months prior to Cristo. Dryden Rutherford, now known as Dryden Bloodletter, is the King’s eldest child.”
“Dryden Bloodletter…” the lady mumbled fearfully. I turned to glance at her, and her face was pale.
Satorin nodded again. “Unlike the murdered bastard, the King and Dryden’s mother had kept the elder child’s existence well-hidden. When the King found out that Cristo had killed his newborn, he immediately sent his eldest son and mother across the Serpent Sea to avoid Cristo finding out and attempting to kill him as well. Only Dryden’s mother and a few of the King’s closest council members knew anything of Dryden. The king gave mother and son enough gold to live burden-free for the rest of their lives.”
“But you said that the Dark Hand wanted to kill him, so then he actually knows of his brother’s existence?” I questioned.
The Sparrow raised his chin towards me. “You haven’t let me finish the story yet, Raymond.”
I sat silent as I tried to tie all the information together.
“Dryden always knew who his father was and the existence of his brother Cristo. He could have lived a simple life, but there must be something in King’s blood that makes men ambitious for power.”
Not always, I thought. Jax seemed to have no ambition for power whatsoever.
“Dryden knew that if he were to ever sit on the throne in Highcastle, he’d have to kill his brother or earn the people’s vote. Either way, he’d need to acquire power to do so.
“He used the gold that his father had provided to form a small band of men, and eventually that band turned into a larger group of mercenaries. As various wars were fought across the land, it was soon known that hiring Dryden’s mercenaries would almost always secure a victory. Even when faced with a larger army, the mercenaries would brutalize their victims, castrate, decapitate and do unmentionable things that destroyed the moral of whoever they were fighting. They used slaves and killed innocents indiscriminately. Eventually, someone pegged them as Bloodletters, and that’s how Dryden and his group of mercenaries got their name.
“Now…” Satorin sighed. “Dryden commands one of the most dangerous groups of mercenaries anywhere in Eden’s Gate, rivaling that of any king’s army. He lives… in some ways… better than many kings, inside a stone keep at the edge of The Endless Sands. When news spread that his father was nearing death, he began to make plans to sail his army across the Serpent Sea.”
“To overtake the King’s Army?”
“Not listening?” Satorin scolded. “To kill the Dark Hand. Satorin holds no ill will towards his father. His father went out of his way to keep him alive, after all. But if it weren’t for his brother, he would’ve never been sent across the Serpent Sea in the first place.”
I shook my head and squinted. “If this is all so secretive, then how do you know all of this? And how does the Dark Hand know?”
The edge of Satorin’s lip raised as he spoke. “I’m Dryden’s right-hand man.” He tilted his head to the side. “Or at least I was until I joined the Sparrows.”
“Now I’m more confused,” I muttered.
“Understand this, Raymond. Dryden Bloodletter gets what he wants when he wants it, even if it means stealing another man’s wife.” Satorin clenched his teeth and his eyes were ice cold.
“Your wi—” I began to question.
“Yes,” he interrupted. “Despite me being Dryden’s closest friend, serving without question for years, and despite him already having dozens of women in his harem, he still decided that my wife was his to claim, just as he had countless others before her. And what could I do? If I challenged his authority, I’d be skinned alive as an example to others, and I simply don’t possess the skills to sneak my wife out of the keep and get away with our lives. So, I live knowing that my only true love is serving another man, and I’m helpless protect her.”
“Ugh…” I groaned. I really felt bad for the guy. “I’m sorry to hear.”
“And to answer all your questions, that’s how we arrived where we are today. I volunteered to cross the Serpent Sea to scout the situation and infiltrate the Sparrows. But instead, I saw an opportunity. The Dark Hand, with all his flaws, isn’t nearly as terrible as Dryden Bloodletter. I thought that by joining the Sparrows and telling the Dark Hand about his brother’s existence—of his plan to cross the Serpent Sea—that there might be an opportunity for Cristo to kill Dryden and for me to retrieve my wife.
“Right now, the Bloodletters have half their army occupied in a small war west of the Sands and the other half building ships in preparation to cross the Serpent Sea. The Sparrows don’t have the same strength that the Bloodletters possess, but with an ancient weapon like the Fellblade, they may have had the power to kill Dryden and end a bloodbath before it started.” Satorin took a deep breath. “But you…”
I gulped. “I stole the Fellblade…”
“Exactly.”
Satorin’s story was compelling, and if he was telling the truth—which he seemed honest enough—then the story of the Fellblade and even Jax’s story was even more complex than anyone knew. I was one of the only people in Eden’s Gate—and perhaps the only one—who had heard the story from each side.
“But now I see a new opportunity,” Satorin said. “I spared your life today, because you may have the skills to do something that I can’t.”
I shook my head. “What can I do?”
“If you were able to infiltrate the Sparrows and steal the Fellblade right under the Dark Hand’s nose, perhaps you can infiltrate Dryden’s Keep and free my wife, Maleena. Do this for me in exchange for your life today.” Satorin gave a slight tilt of his chin and stared hard at me. “Do this for me, and I’ll forever be in your debt.”
Chapter Ten
1/19/0001
You have been offered a quest: A Traitor’s Request
Satorin would like you to free his wife, Maleena, from the hands of Dryden Bloodletter. She is held captive in a keep somewhere in The Endless Sands.
Reward: 20,000XP
Do you accept this quest? Accept/Decline
I held up my hand as I read the quest prompt that appeared in front of me. “Whoa, whoa, whoa.” I rattled my head from side to side. “You said you’re from The Sands, right?”
Satorin nodded.
“I guess that’s another name for The Endless Sands?”
He nodded again. “The shorter name.”
“And that’s somewhere across the Serpent Sea?”
“Yes, and I can lead you there. With the help of magic, it won’t take long.”
“So, if we can travel there by magic, why is Dryden building ships to sail his army across the sea? Wouldn’t it make more sense for him to cast a portal or something and end things quickly?”
Satorin la
ughed. “A typical portal only contains enough magic to transfer a few people at once, and casting one takes quite the toll on a caster. The Bloodletters don’t have enough mages or reagents, for that matter, to cast portals for an entire army. Sailing is the most viable option.”
“Okay, ummm…” I let out a long exhale and then glanced over to lady who had been sitting in silence the whole time. She seemed mesmerized by the whole story. And while the tale was compelling, it sort of made no difference to me at the same time. I had already promised Jax that I would kill the Dark Hand, so if some crazy tyrant crossed the sea and killed him instead, it would save me and my guild a lot of trouble. And that’s beside the fact that I didn’t have time to cross the Serpent Sea and run off some sort of rescue mission. I need to level up my magic, visit Adeelee, and work on building my guild.
And how could I trust the guy anyway? I had just been tricked into entering the lady’s house with a deceptive quest, so who knew if there was some sort of trickery in what he was asking me. 20,000 XP looked hella nice, but I wasn’t ready to spend that kind of time or take that kind of chance.
I shook my head. “I’m sorry. I… I just don’t have time to help you right now. I’ve got a guild here and lots of things to take care of. I can’t cross the Serpent Sea.”
You have declined the quest: A Traitor’s Request!
“A guild?” Satorin asked. “Near here, I take it? Somewhere in the Freelands?”
I nodded, partially lying.
“Then are you prepared for your guild to be under the rule of a Tyrant, the likes of which have never been seen on this side of the Serpent Sea? Your guild members will be no more than playthings when Dryden sits on the throne. He’ll burn the whole of the Freelands if people defy him.”
Sounded like empty threats to me. “I thought you just wanted me to save your wife? Saving her wouldn’t stop him from coming here.”
Satorin’s eyes lowered, and he gave a slight nod. “That’s true, but even better, go ahead and kill the bastard if you can. But if you can save my wife, I’ll assist you and your guild in getting far away from here before things get ugly. Unless Dryden is eradicated, war is coming to the Highcastle and The Freelands. I can promise you that.”
I rolled my eyes at him. Whether he was lying or not, I was beginning to get the feeling he was way over exaggerating. And even if Dryden managed to take Highcastle and the Freelands, how much would that affect me? Edgewood, where our guild was located, was under elven rule, and the Queen wouldn’t just hand over the forest if Dryden were to take it away.
“Why don’t you steal the Fellblade again?” the lady in the room suddenly asked. “You can’t let the Bloodletters take Highcastle.”
“Yeah,” I said with a nod. “Just go steal the Fellblade again if you have to. Keep me out of this.”
Satorin snorted. “The orcs will have the Fellblade under lock and key after the first theft. Impossible.”
I shook my head from side to side. “Well then, I don’t know what to tell you, but I just can’t help you with your quest.”
Satorin twisted his neck and took a deep breath through his nose. He reached for the pocket in his shroud and pulled his dagger out, holding in front of him. “Then I suppose you still owe me your life,” he hissed.
“No!” the lady cried.
Shit, I thought. I had been so caught up in the conversation that I had almost let my guard down entirely.
Satorin rushed towards me and lunged the point of his dagger at my throat, giving me barely enough time to dodge out of the way. Still, even with dodging my head and neck out of the way of his dagger, he slammed his other arm across my chest, knocking me backwards and causing me to fall down after a stumble.
He started to lunge at me again as soon as I was on the wood floor, and I went with what I felt was my only option at the time—Arcane Missile. Fireblast was arguably a stronger spell, at least with me being more skilled in Fire Magic, but I didn’t want to catch the lady’s house on fire with any of my fire spells.
I held my hand out in the direction of Satorin, and the blue energy from the spell shot out of my palm and hit him right below the neck.
He yelped and fell to the side, dropping his dagger and grabbing at the point of impact.
“Stop! Stop it!” the lady screamed.
I scrambled to my feet, and knew that I needed to get out of the house fast. I hadn’t thought to inspect Satorin since I encountered him, but I knew just from the power he had when he held me at dagger point that he was probably a much higher level than me, and I wouldn’t be able to defeat him in a fight—at least without burning up real estate. Not to mention, the lady screaming would probably attract some negative attention from anyone passing by in Inner Highcastle.
I rushed for the door and almost fell out as I grabbed the handle and pushed it open as quickly as I could.
“Raymond!” Satorin snarled behind me, and I glanced back to see him jump to his feet.
There was no time to think. I just ran as fast as I could towards the path from which I came. I glanced back again, and there he was, running after me, his shroud swaying in the breeze.
Heads turned as Satorin and I passed by, everyone obviously wondering what was going on. I whizzed by a couple soldiers who yelled something unintelligible as I passed, and again I glanced back and saw that Satorin was gaining ground.
I wondered if it was wise that I was running. Satorin wouldn’t be able kill me in broad daylight in front of guards would he? He may have been a Sparrow or a Bloodletter or whatever he was calling himself at the time, but I was pretty certain he wouldn’t get away with murder without some pretty heavy repercussions—like jail time—if he did it right in the middle of the city where everyone could see.
I rounded a corner and breathed a sigh of relief when I saw the giant statue of the Highcastle Soldier and the water spraying all around it. The market was teeming with people, giving Satorin even less of a chance of killing me and getting away with it.
I immediately headed for the area where the old man was still standing on the platform, preaching this and that about Reborns, as there was a small crowd looking on, giving me the chance to lose him in the pool of bodies.
That thought was ended as I reached the edge of the crowd though. I felt a heavy weight grab at my shoulder from behind and simultaneously push me forward, causing me to crash down hard at the feet of the onlookers. The people in the vicinity moved out of the way to give us room, and there was loud gasps and chatter as people tried to figure out what was going on.
Whoever knocked me down picked himself up and grabbed me, turning me around roughly so that I was on my back facing upwards.
Satorin.
He was a lot faster than me.
He held my shoulders down hard, which confirmed again that he was stronger than me too.
He snarled in disgust before leaning over and hissing in my ear. “I may not kill now, but you will help me or I’ll kill you eventually.” He paused a moment before clarifying again. “You’ll help me or you’ll give me your life.”
The sound of metal boots rattled nearby. “Stop whatever you’re doing!” a strong, authority voice rang out.
Satorin quickly jumped to his feet and made one quick glance behind him before dashing through the crowd of people, pushing anyone in front of him out of the way.
I pushed myself up on my elbows and shook my head a little as I regained my composure. I hadn’t lost too much health from the tackle… a few percentage points was all, but it had rattled me a bit.
Two Highcastle soldiers stopped right in front of me, but one of them slapped the other on the shoulder and pointed in the direction where Satorin ran. One of the soldiers bolted in the direction in question, while the other one hovered over me.
“What’s going on here?” the soldier asked.
I sighed and shook my head. “I was attacked.”
“Attacked?” The soldier asked. “Why?”
I dunno, I thought. A ma
dman wanted me to go on some wild quest in a faraway land, all because I stole the Fellblade to help a friend. And since I said ‘no’, he decided he should kill me as payback.
Yeah, the truth wasn’t going to work.
“I don’t know.” I shook my head. “Maybe he wanted to rob me?”
“A robbery in broad daylight?” The guard looked at me questionably. “Are you carrying anything valuable?”
At his question, my heart started thumping rapidly. I still had kroka in my bag, and if I were caught, I was going to be put in another precarious position. What had turned into a good day was suddenly turning to a really shitty one.
“No,” I muttered. “I guess he… ugh…” I had no idea what to say.
“Gunnar!” a familiar voice said. I looked behind the soldier hovering over me to see Commander Eldrich, the Highcastle soldier that I had turned Alexander Campbell over to after stealing the Fellblade in Knuckle Bay. I immediately felt a little relief. Perhaps since we had some history together he might diffuse the situation before it landed me in trouble.
“Commander!” I shouted back. I picked myself off the ground, brushed my hands against my leggings, and held a hand out to him. He reached out and accepted my shake.
“What’s going on over here?” he asked.
“Ehh… I was attacked by some guy.”
“Attacked?” the commander asked with a raised eyebrow. “That’s quite unusual here in Inner Highcastle.”
“The attacker ran off on foot,” the lower-ranking soldier said. “We’ve got one in pursuit after him.”
“Interesting,” the commander said and pooched his lips together. “With all the nobles in the city, I can’t imagine why you were targeted. Are you carrying a lot of gold or anything of value?”
“Ehhh,” I groaned. “Not really. Just some basic stuff,” I lied.
