Chapter One
Gathered back in the warmth of the Briator Arms Krei, & her companions & Kalagash, her latest bed fellow, discuss what little they know of Queen Gundren's nemesis, Korvin & how to kill him, Krei however, whilst half listening to the conversation watches through half closed eyes a woman who seems to be paying their discussions, & Kalagash for that matter, far to much attention. Eventually the stranger introduces her self as Kareida Reyan confiding that she has a personnel interest in the spread of Armash or Yellow Lotus as it is locally known, with a brief nod of heads her input is welcomed & the conversation continues late into the night.
Early the next morning, the eighth of Octarius, Krei wakes & uncurls herself from the clasp of the sleeping Kalagash, dressing quickly before he wakes, she strokes the blade in her hand along the back of his neck, sighs & whispers,
"not yet my Kalagash, you have much yet to teach me"
As Briator wakes the companions, including Kareida, wend their way slowly out of the village & turn North into the foothills below & begin their search for Korvin's sorcerous lair, moving along Krei keeps close to Kalagash wary of Kareida's intentions towards him, however as the morning draws on Krei warms to her presence, plain of face, drab even, but the woman has a keen wit & looks useful to have around.
Shortly before noon Kalagash turns & announces that they are being followed, Krei, turning can see nothing however Kalagash is adamant that they are pursued, intending to take their pursuer unawares Kalagash casts a shadow over Krei & Lung telling them to remain motionless until who ever follows is upon them, whilst the others continue, more slowly, along the trail Krei watches as the woman, Kareida, slithers up the trunk of tree with astonishing grace, unable to pursue this further Krei files the information for later.
As the others disappear up the trail a figure comes into view, watching closely Krei is impressed, for a big man he moves well, a Erenlander by the look of him. Pausing, intermittently to check their trail, he slowly comes abreast of Krei & Lung's position, springing forward as he passes Krei's dagger slashes across the base of his spine, a great stream of blood staining the crisp white snow. As the man spins, Lung lunges for him but misses, Krei strikes again, intent on only wounding, as her blade bites again the figure shimmers & disappears from view, from overhead an arrow shrieks past,
"Bitch" mutters Krei,
Although invisible the wounded follower's position is clear for all to see from the trails of blood streaming from his wounds, slashing again Krei feels blade bite into flesh but before she can strike once more the figure reappears & collapses into the snow, a burnt circle upon his chest, turning, Kalagash & the others can be seen returning however Krei & Lung stare as Kareida descends the tree, head down like some kind of beast.
As the others approach Krei, Kareida & Lung swiftly search the corpse, liberating a bulky copper filled purse, a plain looking ring & a sheathed dagger in the form of entwined snakes, easing the blade from the sheath the blade is liberally coated in, something, presuming some form of blade venom, the blade & its sheath quickly disappear beneath Krei's cape, not before however Kareida quietly mentions that sorcery is wound about this "Adders Sting" as well as the ring. Realising that there is far more to this woman than meets the eye Krei rapidly readjusts her opinion of her by several more notches.
"Yes I know we wanted him alive, but mistakes happen, life's a bitch"
As the others arrive Lung upends the laden purse & coppers cascade to the ground, as all are about to walk away, Krei & Hillan gesture towards one particular coin which doesn't quite match the others, there is a sharp intake of breath from Kalagash,
"The eye of Korvin, with it he can follow our every move"
After various options to dispose of the eye are discussed it is simply buried but not before Krei carefully smears contact venom over it.
Following an uneventful, if not colder, afternoon night settles in, as however visibility remains good they travel late into the night, when the evening camp is finally made, watches are set & food prepared, not long before midnight the howl of a wolf drifts across the snow unnerving several of the resting travellers, Lexian, whom by now has confessed his ability to communicate with the horses, talks with the creatures intending to calm their nerves, it is with surprise however that he tells those awake that they do not share the concern of the humans, in fact they welcome the wolves as protectors, he, Lexian, is somewhat confused however as he confides that the wolf call translate as a welcome to someone referred to as "The Lady"
Kalagash listens intently to Lexian's words & then turns to study Kareida,
"Kalagash my dear, am I not enough for you, or do you tier of me so easily" "She intrigues me Krei, the wolves, they talk to her & she to them"
The following morning dawns crisp, clear & colder than the previous & after breaking their nights fast they mount & continue North through the tree littered rolling hills, occasionally some small hamlet or homestead is seen in the distance however the group stay true to the northern trail.
Lost in her own world, Krei is startled as a cry from ahead brings the progress to a sudden halt, Turbulane, Hillan & the others are looking towards a dozen or so mounds in the snow some five hundred yards distant from which a great many arrows protrude, taking her eyeglass from its case Krei scans the trees beyond but can see no movement but all agree something is wrong. Lung unslings his staff, nods & glides forward across the snow hardly leaving a footprint, Turbulane fans out to the left whilst Krei, tailed by Kareida, goes right, Lexian, Kalagash & Hillan remain with the horses.
Watching from the right flank Krei can see Lung close until he is in touching distance of the first mound, as he sweeps the snow aside there is a scream from behind, spinning around she watches, fascinated, as Kalagash slips from his saddle to land unmoving in the snow, dropping, to present a smaller target, Krei can see Lung dart forward towards the cover of the trees ahead only to suddenly stop still exposed, when no further salvo explodes upon them, Krei about to move to aid whatever ails Lung, freezes as a silver wolf lopes past her & disappears into the trees ahead, shaking her head Krei turns back towards Lung &, joins with Turbulane as Lung struggles with something holding his leg, glancing back to the woods, Kareida emerges smiling.
Reaching Lung it is clear why he did not reach the cover of the trees, about his calf are the steel jaws of a gin trap, gingerly the jaws are prised open but before any can assist with Lung's discomfort, he waves his hand over the damaged limb, the wound & bruising instantly fading. Glancing at the ambushed bodies in the snow uncovered by Lung, Krei, Turbulane & Kareida look at each other, they'd been had, the corpes were dead pigs not an ambushed party of travellers.
As Krei & the others join Hillan & Lexian it is clear that Kalagash is no more, an elaborately carved arrow has pierced his heart, its head having burst through his chest, the carving on the shaft matches that of the dagger taken from their pursuer the day before. Checking the trail behind them the others report there is no sign of the assassin, the arrow struck "bodies" were a ruse, Kalagash was the target.
Angry at the premature death of Kalagash, Krei joins the others in stripping his corpse of anything of any use, as a sorcerer, apparently of some considerable talent, there are considerable baubles of interest to the group, Krei selects a finely made rapier which Kareida identifies as enchanted, & looks on with some jealousy at the cloak which Hillan fastens around his neck, as if feeling his eyes upon her, Hillan, told of the cloaks ability to blend & distort the form of its wearer, offers to loan the cloak to Krei if needs arise, smiling sweetly she thanks him for his kind offer. As the others relieve Kalagash's of his treasures & the serpent inscribed arrow Krei snips a lock of his hair as a memento of his rutting.
Hearing the others comment about how he looks fatter dead than he did alive Krei wonders if that was the true benefit of the cloak now adorning Hillan's shoulders, but before she can consider this matter further there is a momentarily blur of . . . . . a shadow, maybe and Kalagash's skin begins to crawl as if worms were burrowing beneath his flesh, indeed as they stand back from his body the snow around & on the trees above begins to melt as an unnatural warmth emanates from his corpse.
Moving quickly away Kareida warns the others of what she is about to do, slowly her form changes to that of a wolf, so that's how she does is thought Krei, silently moving ahead of the group Kareida picks up the trail & leads the group around the "ambush" & takes up point duty.
As evening approaches Kareida retakes human form warning the party that a league or so ahead she smells fire but before they can reach the place indicated by Kareida their plodding progress is suddenly halted as one then another & finally all the horse's collapse in a flurry of thrashing limbs, Lexian quickly speaks with the animals but before anything can be done, all lie dead, their skin crawling & the snow melting as had that of Kalagash, quickly their packs are pulled from the horses & excess equipment reluctantly left behind, Lexian tells that the last horse to die simply said that it felt uneasy/unwell.
Kareida, again in the form of a wolf, leads the others towards the campfire, suddenly Kareida's voice echo's around her head, startled, Krei looks for the wolf but she is nowhere to be seen,
"two outlaws, one healthy, the other . . . . pox ridden maybe, rotting but alive"
Remembering the decaying troll in the Genth Pass, the group hesitate before entering the clearing, raised voices can be heard as the two argue about the apparent plague that one of them carries, before however any of the party can act a dark shadow rips through the clearing gouging out the throats of both men, instantly their bodies begin to fester, without waiting Krei & her companions slink back into the woods & move away as quickly as possible.
With night upon them they do not travel far, remaining within the shelter of the woods, watches are set & a meagre meal prepared, Lexian, devout man of god that he is, constructs a small shrine to Jarak.
The next morning, the tenth of Octarius, a foul & bitter wind greets their ablutions, departing quickly they continue in a northerly direction but find their path littered with corpses, birds, squirrels, badgers & many more, all dead & festering as elsewhere, coming across a horse drawn cart a half mile further, both the farmer & his poor unfortunate horse have suffered a similar fate.
Krei, appalled at this wanton carnage, calls for a change in direction, convinced by know that whatever is killing, is doing so to protect them for good or bad, bizarrely maybe at the behest of Korvin himself. Turning westerly the move on hoping still to reach the imperial highway sooner rather than later.
Before long signs of domestication become apparent, tilled fields, sheep & in the distance cattle & horses, coming upon a small gathering of buildings a simple sign hangs from a tree announcing the village to be the hamlet of Plaig, no mere coincidence surely thinks Krei. Entering the village however all is surprisingly pleasant, with the exception of some village idiot beating a flock of indignant & unmoving sheep with a stick, again Lexian uses his talents & communes with the stupid creatures, as one the creatures stop & stare, alarmingly at Krei, why she is not sure.
The idiot spills out a storey regarding the nature of the village, it is protected by a priest, an elf who abides just beyond the village, central to the clearing is a shrine to Willowstar, Lexian decides he must speak with this master of tranquility &, along with Lung leaves the others to quench their thirst at the tavern, outside of the inn four healthy & laden horses are secured to the rail.
Inside, the landlord, arms wide, jovially greets the party & offers food, a warming fire & a comfortable bed, Krei immediately calls for a bath, the inn keeper nods & calls for one of his numerous daughters to prepare hot water.
Sat around, what is a sizeable room, are three, no four other patrons, three apparently merchants pass idle chatter with the companions as Krei heads for the room which is being prepared for her & Kareida, intent on bathing before ought else can disturb her. As she mounts the stairs she gets a better view of the fourth man, a sullen looking chap from the look of him, smiling to her self Krei wonders if he has warm feet.
Several hours later Krei joins the others below & learns that the traders are heading for Breem & beyond but were waylaid by outlaws, the sour-faced fourth man, Edelith, being the only survivor of their hire guard, one boasts of how he is a mighty warrior killing no less than eight of the thieving bastards, intrigued Krei decides to try her luck & moves towards Edelith's table, however Krei's flirtatious approach is rejected in no uncertain terms. Shrugging, Krei turns back to join the others in their evening meal seated in front of the fire. Later, one of the merchants, inspired possibly by Krei's own natural charms, crudely tries his hand at gaining a bed fellow for the night, whispering seductively in his ear, Krei steps back slaps the leer from the fat oaf's face before retiring for the night.
Assuming Lexian & Lung will not be returning at this late hour, the others soon head for their own beds.
Late into the night Krei & Kareida talk, learning much of each other, eventually however they sleep only to be disturbed by a scratching at the locked & barred door, expecting trouble they are surprised to hear the voice of the rejected trader offering gold for a warm bed & some fun, but before he can be dealt with there is a thud then silence, opening the door his body is slumped across the corridor, his throat ripped out. As Turbulane & Hillan emerge from their own room a noise is heard from below, as one the four head down to the main tavern, from the rafters the corpses of the two remaining merchants slowly swing.
Something rolls down the stairs leading back up to the inn keepers private quarters, it is the head of one of his, now not so beautiful, daughters. Springing up the stairs Edelith is on his knee's, the headless body of a young girl in his arms, blood & death all around him, raising himself from his stupor he speaks,
"I swear this carnage was not my doing, I swear, the outlaws, a shadow perhaps, it ripped out their throats, believe me I did not commit this foul deed"