They all made their way in the direction Leanna had pointed to, and found a large farm exactly like she had said they would. The fields were filled with fruit trees of several different varieties, most of which grew well in marsh-like environments. Beyond the fields were a large house and a barn. The barn seemed quiet, while the main house was a bit livelier. Candle lights were coming from inside, suggesting that someone was awake inside the house.


    Holden signaled for the others to remain quiet, and follow him. He then led them to the barn. Given that it was closed up, it was safe to assume that no one would be in there. However, it was better to be thorough just in case. The last thing they needed was any surprises.


    Holden made his way over to a door on the side of the barn. There was a large lock on the door, but it only took Holden a couple of seconds to pick it. The door creaked open, allowing Holden to slip into the dark interior of the barn with the others staying behind him.


    The moment the group entered the barn, Sable felt an unnerving sensation that made him dizzy. The cait-sith fell off of Holden’s shoulders, hitting the wood floor with a thwack.


    Everyone froze, thinking they had just been compromised. However, there was nothing but a bunch of muffled mumbling. Holden pulled a glowing stone out of his bag to light up the room. The first thing they noticed were a bunch of large crates scatter about the area. One of them had been busted open, revealing a bunch of strange purple stones within. These stones made everyone dizzy when they looked at them directly. However, the most startling thing was the three people all bound, blindfolded, and had their mouths covered to prevent them from speaking. They were all mumbling and grumbling, while struggling to get themselves free.


    Holden moved closer so he could get a look at each of their faces. They were Elliot Manson, Captain Briarthorn, and Celia Kamrot; three of the people who had gone missing along with Elliandra recently.


    Holden removed the cloth preventing Captain Briarthorn from talking, then asked. “Are there any other captives?”


    Captain Briarthorn yelped. “Cut these bindings and I’ll be glad to tell you everything.”


    Seeing as they were in Leudox territory, time was of the essence, so Holden didn as he said. “Alright. But you better tell me everything that’s going on.”


    “Fine. Fine,” Captain Briarthron grumbled. “I’m not even sure why the Leudox captured us in the first place.”


    Holden started cutting through his bindings while asking, “I thought you were working with the Leudox as part of their trafficking ring. They’re cleaning house, aren’t they?”


    “What!? That’s preposterous. I’ve never worked with the Leudox before. None of us have. Do you even know who I am?”


    “Yeah. You’re the captain of precinct 13. Can’t think of any other reason they’d plan on kidnapping and killing you, though.”


    “Maybe because we’re enemies.” Once he got free, Captain Briarthorn then went for one of Holden’s daggers, only to end up with said dagger pointed at his throat.


    “Don’t do that,” Holden hissed, slightly pricking the captain’s neck with the tip of the dagger. “I don’t have an qualms about killing you. Or letting the Leudox do it for me.”


    “Sorry. I thought we were enemies. Who are you with then. Followers of Balmusk? Black Wing Mercenaries?”


    “So that’s who you’re working with,” Sable said. “The Leudox are getting rid of competition, not cleaning house. You’re rather loose lipped for a police captain.”


    Captain Briarthorn gnashed his teeth, and took a step toward Sable, only to meet the edge of Durik’s ax. “Hold up there, Captain. We have a lot to discuss. Same goes for the rest of you.”


    The captain scowled at Durik and the rest of the group. “We’re wasting time here. The Leudox will be coming to check on us any time now.”


    Holden drew a second dagger from his belt, and held it up. “We’ll be fine. I can just slash your calves, keep you from running, and leave you here to die. Now tell us what’s going on.”


    “Alright. We don’t work for anyone specifically. We just take bribes, or other favors in exchange for covering up some activity. The Leudox must be rivals with whoever we’re working with, so they probably want to take us out. Not sure why they bothered kidnapping us, though.”


    Elliot grunted. He was still bound and blindfolded, but the cloth preventing him from speaking had been removed by Atticus. “I bet you they’re trying to make some kind of statement. Trying to show their rivals in the government that they can kill us, but they can also whisk us away at any moment.”


    “That’s a pretty good guess,” Captain Briarthorn admitted. “I’d certain kidnap and kill someone just to make a point.”


    Mathias drew his sword, pointing it at the captain. “You’re disgusting. Have you no shame. You’re a man of thelaw.”


    “What are you? Some kind of knight? Get that blade out of my face, boy.”


    “No. We’re taking you back to Chrimoria where you’ll pay for your crimes.”


    “I’d rather die.” Captain Briarthorn began casting a spell. Holden quickly threw a dagger, piercing the captain’s shoulder. The captain yanked the dagger out, and charged Mathias, only to be chopped in half by Durik’s ax.


    If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.


    The minotaur huffed while glaring at Elliot and Celia. “Either of you want to die by the ax tonight? I’d be glad to oblige anyone who wishes to greet their death’s with open arms.”


    Elliot and Celia both shook their heads. They were both still bound and blindfolded, yet the two of them could hear Captain Briarthorn being sliced in half. Neither of them wanted to end up that way.


    Atticus proceeded to remove their blindfolds and the ropes binding their legs. He didn’t plan on removing the bindings around their hands, though. It was a precaution to discourage them from attempting to flee.


    Holden was curious about what this purple rock was. His first guess was that it was the delirium that Alwin had mentioned. Holden stuffed a couple fist sized stones into his coat, then gestured for the two captives to follow them. “Like the kid said, you two are going back to Chrimoria to face justice. You’re going to confess everything. In fact, I think we should have a little chat on the way back to town. Starting with Elliandra’s location.”


    Elliot and Celia both looked at one another with confused expressions as the group made their way out of the barn. They both shrugged their shoulders, then Elliot asked, “Who’s Elliandra?”


    “You know the prosector for the Mages Union,” Holden explained. “Wasn’t she with you guys?”


    “No. There was only the five-.” Elliot paused, and began to quiver.


    Holden and the others turned around to see a group of eight men leaving the main house walking in their direction. Each man was armed with a weapon of some kind. Two of them held wands in their hands. One of these men carrying a wand began giving orders to the others.


    “Surround them. Don’t kill the prisoners. The others are fair game, though.”


    Holden, Mathias, Atticus, and Durik all had their weapons at the ready. Sable jumped to the ground, growling at the group of Leudox thugs. Meanwhile, Elliot and Celia cowered in the rear.


    Holden looked at the way each of the thugs held their weapons. None of them looked like professionals, though the mage who was giving orders carried himself with a cool confidence that suggested he actually knew what he was doing. “An ally mage would be a real blessing right now.”


    The leader of the Leudox thugs raised his wand above his head. He was about to give the order to attack when both sides felt a sudden chill in the air.


    Aaaahhhhh! A blood curling shriek reverberate all around them. The leader of the Leudox thugs then sudden started to decay rapidly, turning into a pile of mush right before everyone’s eyes.


    Several of the other thugs cried out from shock. One of them then started bellowing out. “The witch. It’s the Witch of the Hollows.”


    One by one each thug began to decay at an alarming rate. This was accompanied by a flash of black light right next to Holden. The light appeared and disappeared in the blink of an eye, and Leanna emerged in its place.


    Leanna glanced at Holden with a deadpan expression. “I have a favor I need to ask of you. Morlax will take care of these men in exchange.”


    Holden felt a chill run down his spine at her sudden appearance. However, he was able to relax a little when she mentioned a favor. “It’s nothing to creepy or grotesque I hope.”


    “No. Nothing of the sort.” She then pulled a piece of paper out of her robe’s sleeve. “I just need some things from Chrimoria. Tings I can’t get here in the Hollows.”


    Holden took the slip of paper from her hand, and looked it over. “Are you asking me to get groceries? Everything on here is just food.”


    “Even the Witch of the Hollows needs to eat. Some of them have uses in medicines as well.”


    “I thought you were a necromancer?” Holden said. It was more of a statement then a question.


    “Necromancy and medical magic are two sides of the same coin.”


    Holden was waiting for her to say more. However, all she did was stare at him with her dead eyes. “I guess you have a point. Probably don’t want to know what kinds of medicine you’re concocting anyway.”


    “Nothing harmful. Just the helpful kind.”


    Holden wasn’t sure whether or not to believe her. The only expressions he had ever seen Leanna make were apathy, or a complete lack of emotions. It make it difficult to tell if she was lying; almost like her emotions were completely stunted. Regardless, he did now owe her a favor for taking care of the Leudox thugs.


    “I’ll get it all of this for you.” He then paused to wonder if Elliandra might be somewhere else on the property. “Are there any other Leudox members around? Or perhaps have you seen an elf woman with red hair and crimson eyes? She’s a friend of mine.”


    “I’ve seen no one fitting her description. Nor do I sense any other living things on the premise. If you’re friend was taken by the Leudox, she most likely isn’t here.”


    Holden sighed, then thanked Leanna for her assistance. Once all of the thugs were dead, she disappeared from their sight. With her assurance that there weren’t any other Leudox thugs, Holden and the others began their interrogation of the


    “Hey, you two,” Holden said, getting the captives’ attention. “So tell us everything. There aren’t any Leudox to worry about anymore. So spill everything you know about the trafficking ring, and anything else you’re involved in.”


    Celia was the first to speak up. “I assumed you be more worried about the other person who was with us that the Leudox took away.”


    Sable was standing on Holden’s shoulders was again, and turned his head to look at Celia. “You mean Sia Reinhouse and Halrick Ironborn? We already knew what happened to Sia. Though we might be interested in hearing what happened with Halrick.”


    “Oh,” Celia said with genuine surprise. “I only knew that they took Sia away. What exactly happened to her? Though I think I can already guess.”


    “She’s dead,” Sable replied. “Her body was found earlier today.”


    “I see.” Celia said, somberly. “They took her away sometime last night. A couple of men grabbed her, and took her outside of the barn. Same thing happened to Halrick earlier today. Not sure what happened after that.”


    “And what of Elliandra?”


    “She was never with us. Sia did hear her name mentioned once. Something about a collaborator holding her hostage in another location. That’s all was able to hear, though.”


    “I guess we have the beastfolk’s sensitive hearing to thank for that,” Holden said, crossing his arms. Since this location was obviously a bust, he wasn’t sure what their next move should be. They had no other leads to follow, other than the knowledge that the Leudox had some other collaborator. “Can you two tell me-.”


    Shoop! Right in the middle of Holden’s sentence, he felt a gust of wind rush by him. An arrow then pierced Celia dthrough the heart. Holden and the others turned in the direction of the arrow, but were too late. Another arrow had already pierced Elliot in the head.


    Holden managed to follow the path the arrow took, and that was when he saw it. A man with a grey face and long black hair. He wore black leather armor that covered his entire body, and wielded a rapier, along with a bow and arrow.


    Holden’s face contorted in a mixture of rage, confusion, and bewilderment. He couldn’t believe what he was seeing, because it was a face he was somewhat familiar with. Although he couldn’t understand why they were here, or why they would kill Elliot and Celia. Holden gnashed his teeth while whispering the name of the man under his breath. “Alwin.”