Chapter 5 – Rescue Mission.

Lady Knight Sorene had always hated Myne. She saw in her everything that she had wanted to be, but wasn’t. Talented, beautiful, and liked. A natural at everything she did. Even now as she watched with pleasure at the pain that the harbinger was suffering as she laid waste to the village of Evergreen, fully under the control of her master, she was still brimming with hate for her. Why had the child also had to be harbouring such power. She shrugged to herself as the black flames of the harbinger charred the corpses of the villagers and reduced the decrepit buildings to piles of ash. A fitting end for a cursed place.

Sorene was a lady of ambition and desire. Not satisfied with her lot in life she had always wanted more. More riches, more prestige, more power. An average looking girl born forty five years ago to an average family of average wealth in one of the border villages, she had been ecstatic when her Jade gem had awakened in her marking her as a Rider and the Clan had come to collect her. The high was short lived though when she found herself still middle of the pack amongst the Sisters of the Clan, everyone else either prettier than her, with bigger dragons, or just plain better at magic or life in general, her view of everyone tainted by her jealousy. Sure with a lot of hard work she’d be able to improve her standing and prospects, but it would never be enough to get her to where she wanted to be, as ones gem did place a hard limit on what could be achieved. And so she was easily swayed to join the ranks of the dark faction that formed inside the clan, under the very noses of the oblivious leaders. Winter, the leader of the faction, was short sighted in Sorenes eyes. She sought to free the great evil from the core and partially resurrect him, to gain more power and give more purpose to the Clans. She knew her stuff, more than she ever revealed to the rest of the faction, but her reasons were somewhat murky. Not that it mattered. Sorene could see beyond what Winter did, her own plans forming, and during the insurgence into the core twenty one years ago she had taken Winters life, impaling her from behind and feeding her blood to the seal, the last sacrifice of power needed to break it and release Zorthac from it. She then took her place as leader of the faction, controlling them through promises of power and straight out fear.

She had been the first to give herself to Zorthac, becoming the Mask of Air in exchange for what she desired. Her new and improved body boosted power of her gem and dragon three fold, and her cold features were strikingly more beautiful. With lies weaved around the events at the core and power to back up her words she became a member of the Clans council, taking the title of Lady Knight. And right in front of them, the council unaware of her true intentions and unable to see through her actions, she continued to spread the influence of the faction throughout the clan, extending her reach into the guilds as well.

Sorene had been surprised when Myne had suddenly appeared before her, interrupting her initial trail at coaxing and controlling Zorthac’s demons, but very quickly realized the potential of the situation. Myne had been unaware of what had been going on, and as she was currently shouldering the blame for the mess at the Southern Temple it would work in Sorene’s favour for her to be brought to Zorthac. He was looking for more subjects to turn into harbingers, corrupted souls under his control that he could channel his power through, but most that had been brought to him had been unable to survive the process. Myne, with her leaking Onyx, was a perfect choice. It was similar to what had been done to most of the Masks, Byron being the exception of course as he had declined the change, but more thorough and complete. You could say that the Masks were partly tainted, while the harbingers were fully tainted.

Zorthac had been most pleased with the offering, and as expected she had survived the process, power flooding out of her on completion. Myne was almost a different being now. Black flames danced around her when she fought, her fists also encased in the flames, as well as forming wings on her back. The flames burnt all that they touched, even if she had already drained the blood of her victims with her fangs. While she had been beautiful before she was now absolutely stunning, her pale skin complementing her strong features and now deep rose coloured lips, a pair of dragons horns having grown out of her head. The back of her arms were now covered in dragon scales, a likely side effect of her conversion. Her dragon armour had also started to change, gone from her arms and trying to accentuate her sensual figure in other areas, but without Myne’s actual free will to direct its formation it had mostly faded away, leaving just the shoulders covered and a pair of heeled boots. Sorene’s jealousy of Myne's new body was a terror to behold, and she was a lot rougher than she needed to be when she transported the unconscious Myne around in Zerifs’ claws.

Zorthac’s plans were now moving into the next stage, and the actions of the harbinger were just the beginning. She had made sure that at least one witness survived each attack, to further blacken Myne's reputation and plant the seed of fear in the people of the kingdom. Once they were done here and Zorthac had knocked her out she’d drop her off at the next location. While Myne could probably fly herself around, she still managed to internally fight with Zorthac at times, the fire in her eyes fading when she did so, and hence they weren’t willing to take the risk.

With Myne finally finished and collapsed on the ground, Sorene moved in to collect her. She had a long list.

Myne woke from the haze of her mind to find herself standing in the ruins of a village, the dwellings on fire and bodies scattered all around her. Black flames licked her hands as she gazed around in horror, a young boy hiding behind the remains of the village’s well looking at her with abject terror. She had done all this, hadn’t she. But why, and how? What was going on? She sank to her knees, the confusion fading away as her memories flooded in.

After being struck from the air from behind she had woken in an ancient tomb, chained beside a pile of charred corpses, Lady Knight Sorene standing beside her with a look of glee on her face, her battered dragon pinned down against the floor by Zerifs, who was about twice his size. Myne had glared at Sorene, struggling unsuccessfully against the chains. Her presence at the village hadn’t been a coincidence.

“Don’t worry dear,” Sorene had taunted. “It won’t matter any more very soon.”

As much as she had wanted to tear that smirk off her face, her attention had been taken by the arrival of a skeleton of a man, only held together by the magic that flowed through him. She recognized him instantly, having seen him on the murals in the ruins and in her dream. He had looked down at her, his eyes blazing with power.

“You are mine now child,” he declared, “assuming that you survive of course,” he added as an afterthought, motioning to the corpses.

He had then put his hands on her temples, excruciating pain flowing through her as his magic entered her, tainting her and changing her, corrupting her body into something else. She had screamed throughout the whole process, the pain from his magic nothing compared to the torment on her very soul as she watched the magic touch Vel’nas too, corroding him away until there was nothing left at all, leaving a great void within her. The end of the process had been marked by an explosion of magic within her, as if something had been released by the change, the backlash knocking Sorene off her feet, a small consolation.

“Well, well, what do we have here,” the skeleton had then muttered, as he placed magical chains upon her, which sank deep within her being, binding her to him.

“I am Zorthac,” he stated to her, “and you are the first of my Harbingers.”

Exhausted from the process, her mind had then clouded over as he exerted his control over her, unable to resist.

Myne stood and screamed out in fury, the flames inside her intensifying in response. She did not want this, did not want to be someone else's tool. She would not be someone else's tool. She just wanted to be back with Izen. She didn’t quite understand what Zorthac had done to her body either. While she knew she now looked at least a little different (the black flames and some scales for a start), she could also feel a deep unquenchable thirst within in, and right now it demanded blood. Had the loss of Vel’nas caused that she wondered? It didn’t matter though. She would make him pay. She surveyed the destruction around her, and spied Sorene hiding off to one side, turning to go towards her. She would have to pay her price too.

‘No you don’t child.’ Zorthac declared to her mind, the haze starting to encroach again, stopping Myne's advance.

‘I am not yours,’ she scream internally in response, falling to her knees again, briefly pushing his influence aside, before Zorthac’s power overwhelmed her, the haze covering her conscious again and causing her to collapse.

Things had been steadily going downhill since their return to the Bluemoon branch of the Fall Haven Guild, and with Laphir getting edgy about it all Alice knew it wouldn’t be long before they were on the move again.

Their trip back to the town had been reasonably uneventful after Velvet’s departure with the other Rider, though Alice had been sad to see her go. It wasn’t often that the guild had much to do with those of the Clans, and Velvet had been a very odd one indeed with her cute little dragon and unusual magic that seemed to be some form of hybrid between what she’d expect from a Caster or a Feral. She’d taken a liking to her, and been keen on learning more about her, but it wasn’t to be. Their haul of materials had also been worth the trip, and quite a bit of her time since their return had been spent purifying it and preparing it for use. Feeling it prudent, they had left any mention of Velvet out of their reports, but even so their warning about the sudden spike and increase in Night Beast activities, as well as the potential return of demons had been met with scepticism. Comfortable and set in their ways, and being mostly of the older generation, those at the Bluemoon branch couldn’t see any reason why things should suddenly change, so through their rose tinted view of the world they didn’t. Unsurprisingly their unwillingness to heed Laphir’s warning frustrated him to no end, so instead of doing more work for the guild he’d been spending his time at the tavern, listening in on everyone's conversations, especially of those who had been out and about, piecing together the bigger picture (well, at least of this small area of the kingdom). They had learnt that the Rider that Velvet had gone with, Myne, had a bounty on her for ‘Disruption and Destruction’ at the Southern Temple, but from what they had heard of the conversation between the two Riders they were certain there was a lot more to it than that and probably not as much truth, especially as the Witch, who was meant to be the enemy of the Riders, was who the pair were seeking. And while there had been no further reports about demons, the increase in Night Beast activity was evident, although as for Laphir, this the leaders of the branch decided to ignore.

Underneath the leader of the Guild, the Guildmaster, were 4 captains who helped facilitate the running of the guild, and beneath them were all of the branch leaders. Three of the captains were still very active, but the fourth, Arnold Crispwater, had semi retired, and was doing his duties from the Bluemoon branch, probably in an effort to stay out of most of the guilds businesses, but like all who came here he’d only been semi successful. Arnold, along with the branch leader Eseau, had been summoned to the capital on urgent Guild business, but had gone missing en route, and the replacement branch leader that had been assigned from the capital, a Tourin Applecart, was slimy and sleazy, and Alice had taken an instant disliking to him. Perhaps he’d been taunted too much as a youth about his families name (mind you only the wealthy and nobles had family names in the first place, so he’d probably deserved it), but he was very difficult to get along with, and Laphir had been shut down before he’d even had a chance to talk to him about their concerns. Shino had been as casual about it as always, declaring that if they didn’t want us then we didn’t need them, and while it had been said in the heat of the moment there was some truth to it. Alice had scaled back her work, and made sure that the wagon was always packed and ready to go, as once Laphir had made up his mind as to their next course of action that would be it, and with the way they had been treated their loyalty to this branch of the guild was getting sorely tested. The final straw had been when Tourin had found out about their side project, and while the branch had always been happy with what they did, seeing the quality of what they had recently acquired he declared that anything done by Guild members belonged to the Guild, and he’d confiscated all of the materials in her workshop, along with a number of her personal designs. While Alice had been unhappy about it, but willing to let it slide for the greater good, both Laphir and Shino had been furious, with Laphir telling them that that evening they would be departing. She knew that he’d had no destination in mind, but he would have a convenient excuse before they left.

Then that afternoon they received a visitor, a young nobleman by the name of Charles Burdesdance, who had asked for them in particular. He had said that he had heard of their work, and he felt that they were just the people for the job that he had. It wasn’t unusual for well known Guild members to be asked for in person for certain jobs, but they weren’t that well known, and Tourins willingness to have them meet and take on this task made Alice certain that Charles had probably paid him very well as well.

“It is quite a complicated mess,” he had started, “but the end result of it all is the locating of a library that has been lost to us for a long time.”

“Do you have any clues as to where we’re to start searching?” Shino asked, jumping ahead as always as Laphir sized up Charles, obviously not trusting his intentions.

“Yes and no,” replied Charles, straightening the glasses perched on his nose. “We knew where it was supposed to be, but we have scoured that area over and over for generations, and found absolutely no trace of it.”

“But,” he continued, holding up his hand to interrupt Shino’s interruption, “We believe it has been found by a pair of independent explorers. Now the trouble is, they currently have been separated, and I don’t think either of them will be willing to aid us at all until they are reunited. Once together though, I’m sure they’ll be willing to take you to the library, and after you have seen the it I’m sure you’ll be able to make the right decision.”

“There seems to be a lot of vagueness and assumptions in all of this,” growled Laphir.

“I believe we can trust you,” stated Charles matter of factly.

“So, what do you have on these two ‘explorers’ then,” queried Alice. She could already feel that there was more to this than met the eye, and she knew that Laphir knew too.

“Well,” said Charles, pulling out a small notebook and flipping through a few pages, “One of them has been captured and is being held against her will. A Feral with dragons horns. We’re not a hundred percent sure on exactly who the captors are, but they are people of power. We do know however the names of many of the places that they have already visited, and as their path is forming a crescent moon shape, so we are certain that their future destinations can probably be deduced.”

“Why not rescue her yourselves then?” queried Alice.

“We’re not warriors,” Charles replied, “and while I understand that insurgence is not your strength either, we believe that you are the people for the job.” He shrugged with an odd smile on his face. “And money seems to talk a lot in the Guild too, and of that we have plenty.”

“We work by choice,” Laphir growled. “We are not a commodity that can be brought.”

“That I know,” Charles agreed. “Your seniors on the other hand are an entirely different breed. Hence why we’ve come to you.”

“Continue please,” Alice request of him. Something was odd about all of this, but she was curious about it and wanting to know more.

“Right, now where was I?” Charles resumed. “Ah yes, the captured one. I’ll give you the list once you start the job. Now as for the other one, it’s both a bit trickier and more straight forward. They’re actively looking for the captured one, but lack the tools to find them on their own. They do however, along with your help, have the necessary strength to rescue their captured comrade, and keep you safe on the journey as well. While your Guild seems to be ignoring the return of demons, I for one know that they are out there.”

Charles had Laphir's attention now. “And how do we find this other one then?” he asked.

“Oh, you won’t need to,” Charles replied. “Once they find out that you have taken this job they’ll find you instead. We just don’t know exactly when.”

Alice had to agree with Laphir. There was a lot of vagueness and assumptions in all of this, and she knew that Charles wasn’t telling them everything. On the other hand it would allow them a lot of freedom if they took it, especially with Tourin’s current stance on their endeavours.

Laphir stood up, motioning for Charles to do the same. “I don’t trust you one bit,” he stated, “but I am curious about your job, and it fits in with what we want to do, so we’ll take it.”

Charles gave him a half bow, before shaking his hand to seal the deal. “Your cooperation is most appreciated.”

With their wagon already loaded and preparations already made, they left that evening as they had planned, heading north.

“We’re not coming back are we?” queried Shino, as Bluemoon disappeared from view.

“No.” Laphir’s answer was straight to the point. “The rot has finally reached it, and our path lies elsewhere now.”

Alice knew he was right.

Another village, another massacre, although looking at the scene of destruction around her Myne was certain that she wasn’t responsible for all of it. It appeared that Sorene had been appointed her keeper, and she would be very surprised if she hadn’t taken part as well. How the Clan wasn’t aware of her side actions was a different question altogether.

Myne sighed. All of this would be a massive black mark against her when she finally managed to rid herself of the Demon Kings hold. And it would be a when, not an if.

Zorthac’s haze started to creep in over her mind again, and Myne screamed out loud with rage. “Stay out of my mind,” she yelled, pushing the haze back temporarily. She was not going to make it easy for them, and if they made a mistake with her, she’d take full advantage of it. He could control her mind at the moment, but, as she had discovered, the power that flowed through her was hers alone. She would not be his harbinger forever.

‘You can fight child, but you will not win.’ Zorthac intoned, the haze intensifying, wearing Myne down.

‘You wish,’ Myne sneered internally, as the haze finally took over again.

mogust

A little more focus on Alice and her companions for this post, as Myne and Izen start to find themselves more directly caught up in, well, everything ^^. Nothing like knowing your enemy by seeing them face to face. Myne on the other hand, isn't so happy about having met the Demon King.

This is a bigger chapter, so I have split it up into three sections, which it does well enough naturally. Proofing is going well for it, so I should have it all up fairly quickly (ish). This is the shorter of the three parts, with the final bit being the longest.

Hope you enjoy the chapter. Feel free to comment :)