Beastborne- Mark of the Founder

by James T Callum

  “You’re going to need a population of people who can make things and those with a wellspring knowledge to make their home in this new Sanctum you’re cooking up. The people you need the most – academics, physicians, mages, crafters – are all going to be too weak to make the journey themselves. Besides, every person you take away from Rinbast hurts him at least as much as it helps us. Nobody wants a city full of meatheads who only know how to fight, Hal.”

  Hal had thought of that very thing. Getting people to the Sanctum would be hard. He brushed away the clear reference to American history in light of what Mira was offering, it wasn’t worth the prickly questions. “If you want the job, you got it.”

  Your Leadership has risen to Level 17(22).

  +1% Party damage (+22%).

  +2% Leadership efficacy (+44%).

  97

  It took them only a few minutes to divide up the tasks.

  Mira, due to her higher rank in the Adventurer’s Guild and better knowledge of both Murkmire and the Guild would accompany Hal to turn in the Coffin Contract. Noth would come along and get herself registered as a new adventurer.

  Elora would go to the Rangers and Ashera was to stay with the dwarves and help with preparations for the journey ahead.

  “What’re ye fer?” Durvin bellowed as he marched into the barrow serving as their room. “Ye planning on high-tailing it outta here without so much as a ‘by yer leave?’ eh?”

  Hal stood up and walked over to the dwarf. “On the contrary, I was hoping you’d come with us.”

  That took the dwarf by surprise. He rocked back on his heels, bronze eyes wide.

  “There are a few pieces of business we need to take care of in Murkmire proper,” Hal explained. “A good chunk of the money we’ll be getting will come from there and we have a couple of personal issues to attend to. We thought it might look bad if we just up and left so instead I’d welcome you and any of your clan that would like to come along.”

  Durvin eyed Hal suspiciously. “How do ye know we ain’t fugitives and not allowed inside?”

  Hal shrugged. “Based on everything you told me, I have no reason to think you’re anything but marginalized and treated unjustly.”

  “And if’n we were murderers and thieves?” the old dwarf continued.

  “Then I’d have to ask the particulars because I will not have wanton violence and theft in my Sanctum.”

  Durvin snorted. “Dagdamora, boy. I’ll go with ye. Don’t think any other needs to be goin’ to keep ye lot in check. Besides, they got enough to keep ‘em busy here. Ye ready to go now?”

  “Let me disguise myself and I’ll be ready to go,” Hal said.

  Thankfully he had been too out of sorts to set any Beast Magic spells early in the day, and that was for the best because Shifting Mask cost half of his 10 Burden to set.

  It meant that any day he planned on disguising himself, would be a day he would be severely hampered in combat.

  The dwarf eyed him once more. “Go on then, can’t very well keep an eye on ye if I don’t know what ye’ll look like, can I?”

  Hal chuckled. “Fair enough, Durvin.”

  Concentrating, Hal reached to the new spell given to him by Shae’kathoth’s soul. It was a little different than using a normal spell. The knowledge was strangely within himself and yet removed.

  Like a book on loan.

  His skin rippled and his whole body felt as if it had been splashed with cold water. Seeing Durvin, he focused on the strong jawline and began to mentally shape the face of the man he would become.

  It took him nearly ten minutes. It was his first time after all.

  He made himself into a dwarf, though a tall one at nearly five feet. His beard was thick and black, coming to rest on his stout belly. Complete with bright shining silvery-blue eyes and a ruddy bulbous nose that fit his dour expression.

  If not for the stark difference in hair color and beard length, he could have been Durvin’s brother. Or at least his cousin.

  Hal flexed his thick fingers. They looked muscular but they weren’t. He felt no additional strength coursing through his veins and when he closed his thick fingers into a fist, it felt nearly the same as when he was a human.

  To all the world, he was a dwarf. But a quick look at his stats showed that he was still Hal. He was still a Beastborne and still had its fell magic within him.

  Durvin, and everybody else in the room, stared at Hal with open wonder. He was covered up in a heavy set of bronze plate mail with an open-faced helm. “How do I look?” he asked, and the whole room burst out laughing.

  “Ye look the part, but ye suren don’t sound it!” Durvin bellowed. “Stay by me side and do as I say.”

  As Hal, Durvin, Elora, Noth and Mira made the roundabout trek around the eastern side of Murkmire, Durvin gave Hal a basic rundown on dwarvish speech. It took him at least half the walk to get his voice sufficiently low and angry enough to make the dwarf satisfied.

  “Nothin’ we can do about yer silly accent,” he said. “But ye look enough like one o’ them lily-livered Steeltoes that are always tryin’ to be more human. Sure they won’t mind if ye call yerself one o’ their clan.”

  “Can do,” Hal growled. It felt weird pushing his voice that low. He had to push his voice up from his gut and it felt strange every time.

  Since he had a few spare moments, Hal opened up the Persuasion perk menu, curious what it had for him. Only to find that there was no perk waiting for him.

  Suddenly recalling that in the rush of everything that happened he also never set his Investigation perk. When he looked, he found that he had already chosen a perk.

  He groaned, not because the perks were bad but because he had apparently selected them while drunk the night before.

  “What’s the matter?” Mira asked.

  “I accidentally left a perk for a while and last night-”

  “You drunk-perked,” Mira said, nodding. Even Durvin bobbed his head in agreement.

  “Happens to the best o’ us, boy.”

  The perk he apparently chose was Friendly, granting him a 20% Persuasion success against “non-aggressive entities.” Could be worse, he thought. With Oathforger’s Regal Bearing, and his growing Persuasion skill, he would soon be even smoother than Altres.

  He hoped the red-skinned Bard was okay. Hopefully, he was keeping the koblins company as he seemed to so enjoy. It was a shame the tiefling didn’t want to come along. Hal had no doubt that the man could have brightened everybody’s mood down in the Coffin District.

  His Investigation perk was Treasure Hunter. While investigating, it increased the chance for higher rarity loot and Quest originating items by 15%.

  As they closed in on the southern side, Elora broke off to go meet the Rangers, leaving just the three of them to walk up to the wide-open gates of Murkmire. The guards gave them a quick glance but either didn’t recognize any of them or didn’t care.

  Once again the sheer size of the town – which felt like a severe misnomer to Hal – assaulted him. Level upon level of ringed walkways climbed up the side of the mountain up to its very peak.

  Elegant towers glittered in the late day sun. The lowest level of Murkmire was bustling with activity. Hal saw Qalmor in his elegant plate armor walk past with a sour expression on his face. He made a beeline for the guards at the gate.

  Hal nearly waved to him, the man had been fair if a little surly when he met him at first. But the way his eyes slid over the three of them reminded Hal that the man wouldn’t know any of them.

  He had originally wanted Elora and Ashera to be elsewhere since by now word of their exploits may have hit Murkmire. Ashera’s desertion - or whatever it was, she was particularly cagey about it - would be known and Elora’s own mother had sold her out.

  This was the best group for the task.

  His first idea of merely slightly changing his features – namely his eyes and his mark – might have gotten him recognized still. And having the blustery dwarven leader alo
ng only helped to strengthen the illusion that he was just another dwarf.

  They arrived at the Adventurer’s Guild and Hal found it much as it had been before. People sat and ate in the large eatery at the center of the Guild. Several groups were checking the posted board for quests and contracts, and even a few friendly games of cards were going on.

  Several people, Hal noted, were looking with great curiosity at the missing Coffin Contract. There was a low buzz of talk about it still being gone, something that simply did not happen.

  Most people took it, failed to get in, and abandoned the contract.

  Hal pointed Noth toward the same counter he signed up at just a few days ago, stationed by what looked like the same attendant too. Noth split off from the group but took her time making her way to the counter. Was he imagining things, or did the Reaper seem… nervous?

  With a shake of his head, Hal strode forward with Durvin hot on his heels to the nearest free agent behind a counter. He cleared his throat and grumbled, “Got meself a contract to turn in.”

  The young man at the counter gave him a sour look, like Hal was something he just scraped off his shoe and it was talking to him.

  Mira came up and leaned on the counter. The sight of her eased the young man’s expression instantly. “Oh, Mira! I didn’t know you were back so soon. Are you with these… gentlemen?”

  She flashed a winsome smile. “Sure am. We just finished a little contract. Listen, Sammie I’m going to need a favor from you. When we turn in the contract you need to be cool okay? Can you be cool, Sammie?”

  The thin man raked a hand through his curly red hair and tried in vain to lean casually on the counter like Mira was. “I can be cool.” He nearly slipped in the process.

  “Because me and my friends here,” she thumbed to the two dwarves at her side. “We want some discretion, you understand. Adoring fans can wait, we’re tired and we want to finish this contract and spend our money, ya got it?”

  “Of course, of course!” Sammie began, but when he saw Mira’s accusing glare he cleared his throat and refused to make eye contact with any of them. “Totally. Like… it’s cool man, whatever.”

  “Good.” Mira nodded to Hal.

  Hal took out the Coffin Contract and gave it one last look over. As their adventure had progressed it morphed and changed as all Quests seemed to do.

  When it became obvious it was more than a simple extermination Quest, it began to add new rewards. He wondered if more Contracts were like this. Seemingly straightforward at first but then they mutated into something much grander. With rewards befitting the unforeseen changes.

  Guild Contract Completed: The Coffin Contract.

  You have come to understand the truth behind the Coffin District and its bloodied history. Not only have you freed the soul of the man responsible for so much prosperity but you simultaneously rid the world of an evil that few - through your combined efforts - will ever know of. While the bards may not sing to the praise of your heroism, they will rest easier.

  Objective

  Gain entry to the Coffin District (Complete).

  Clear all monsters from within the district itself (Complete).

  Additional objectives available.

  Discover the cause for the shadow creatures (Complete).

  Gain entry into the Vault (Complete).

  Revitalize the Manatree to prevent further incursions (Complete).

  Defeat Shae’kathoth (Complete).

  Rewards

  Guild Rank Increase (Variable).

  District Ownership Rights.

  20,000 sparks (Per party member).

  Additional rewards available.

  Experience Points (Variable).

  Murkmire Reputation (Variable).

  +2 Guild Rank.

  Adventurer’s Guild Reputation (Variable).

  5,000 sparks.

  Hal handed over the scroll.

  Sammie snorted and barely looked at it as he took out a large rubber stamp. His hand shook as he took a second glance at it. The young man’s mouth opened into a large O and he dropped the stamp to the table.

  “Dammit, Sammie!” Mira cursed under her breath.

  If the man heard her he made no sign. “I-I… this is real? I thought they were just… this… I need to get my supervisor.” With the contract in hand, Sammie ran into the back, knocking over a few other well-dressed Adventurer Guild agents behind the other counters.

  Durvin looked over to Hal. “Ye got the boy spooked something fierce,” he said with a chuckle.

  Hal had a bad feeling but he couldn’t fathom why. He felt the urge to use Splice to tap shadow and eldritch essence but stopped himself. It wasn’t necessary, not here. And yet he couldn’t shake the feeling something was wrong.

  A young man wearing opulent robes of crimson and gold stepped up from the back. He had a handsome and kind face with a hawkish nose but cold, hard icy-blue eyes. “You three completed the Coffin Contract?”

  Hal nodded. “What’s it to ye?” he growled.

  Before either of them could move a muscle, several dark-clad forms appeared behind them. Hal didn’t see where they came from. Alarm bells rang in his head. Even Besal was roused.

  “I’ll need you to come with us, then,” said the man in velvety smooth tones.

  The black cowls of the dark-clad men and women were pulled low to hide their face. But as Hal turned around to regard them, his heart stuttered. Even without his Shadesight, he could recognize the familiar – if scarred – features of most of them. It was his face. And six sets of dead brown eyes.

  98

  They were ushered into the hallways behind the counters, much to the complaints of the nearby agents.

  Herded into a small cramped room, they were seated at a tiny table. The contract was placed on the table by the lean man who was clearly a mage.

  The six darkly cloaked figures left the room. But Hal could feel them outside. As much as he tried to ignore them, their very presence felt like whispers in his mind.

  “Now, I believe introductions are in order,” said the man. He rolled his fingers and a ball of light appeared in the air, even though the room was well lit with a pair of sconces filled with glowing crystals. “My name is Hirash. Archmage to the Founder. I carry out His will in seeking enemies of the public.”

  Hal did well to mask his fear with the open contempt fitting of a dwarf. He felt a little better when he saw the same reaction from Durvin out of the corner of his eye.

  “Is that so? We look like ‘enemy o’ the people’ to yerself then?” Durvin asked. His voice was ice-cold.

  “Not at all, this is just… a friendly chat. We have reason to believe an agent of malign intentions has infiltrated the Adventurer’s Guild and undertaken this ‘Coffin Contract’ in order to harm Murkmire.

  “Of course, the Founder would never let such a thing come to pass but we must make sure such rumors are unwarranted. How else would we be able to keep the peace if we ignored such talk?”

  “Kindly show me your forearms.” His voice was excited as if he knew he was on the right track. Hal kept his smile under wraps. With Shifting Mask, the first thing he would have done was get rid of his mark. It was too easy to identify him.

  As a dwarf looking nothing like Hal – assuming Rinbast gave his description out that is – not having a Founder’s mark would be nothing special.

  They all laid their elbows onto the table, palms facing up. Durvin had to remove his leather bracers and Mira some of her scarred armor but they managed it easily enough.

  Hirash leaned over each of their arms, twisting each this way and that as if he could see the mark if only it was at the right angle. He whispered under his breath and drew symbols in the air with his fingers. The air filled with magical energy but no marks became visible.

  Hal’s alteration was no simple illusion. If Hirash knew the true nature of Shifting Mask, he might be able to dispel it but Hal kept to his hope that the man was too cocky to assume he made a mistake
.

  Hirash scoffed, spoke a few quiet words, and waved one hand through the air. Hal felt an overwhelming wave of affection wash over him. And then it was gone.

  [Hirash] casts Charm.

  Stalwart Soul activation!

  You resist the effect of Charm.

  To his side, Hal watched as Durvin shook off the same effect. He openly snarled at Hirash. Mira likewise seemed to resist it at first and then she turned violet doe eyes on Hirash like he was some dreamy model.

  Oh no.

  Hal looked to Mira, unsure of what to do. If he used any sort of magic, would Hirash know it? He had no clue what an Archmage was or how powerful the man might be. Worse, those things just outside might be able to detect something he did.

  Hal was glad he didn’t use essence that day. If those things were what he thought – namely, Beastbornes or at least Chimera Knights – then they would have felt the essence on him that would mark him as more than a simple dwarf.

  As it was, Hal could feel the cold dread of their essence auras through the wall. It made him break out in a cold sweat. Any moment he expected Hirash or one of the cowled figures to come in and expose his magic.

  He could only hope that as part of its origin with Shae’kathoth’s soul, it was outside the purview of either group’s detection. Hal certainly never knew such things existed until he defeated the abomination.

  But none of that mattered if Mira flat-out told Hirash that Hal was right there in front of him.

  Hirash twisted his thin mouth into a grimace. “Dwarves,” he muttered under his breath. “But look at you my dear, what was your name again?” He was all smiles when he looked at her.

  Mira beamed. “Oh, it’s Mira, sir. Mira Lavilieur.”

  “Ain’t this a fine keg in a commode,” Durvin grumbled. Like Hal, he was watching the proceedings with a sharp, troubled eye. They didn’t have much choice but to watch and hope for an opening.