The streets of Elgurid were never empty, even on rainy nights such as these. Despite the late hour, everything was bathed in a warm glow that came from the forges on the east side of town. Elgurid was a steel town. Its forges operated around the clock, smelting iron from the surrounding valley, turning it into the finest steel in the provinces. This was a town that never slept, which delighted the rural folk when they first arrived, lured by the promise of work. However, the work at the forges was hard. Life in the town was hard and unrelenting. The conditions were poor, especially in recent years, and the new arrivals often left quickly, only to be replaced by fresh batches of wide eyed newcomers.
Thorace Hardin was one such transplant, having arrived when he was ten. He was a five year veteran of the town’s mean streets. A scrawny, gangly boy, he was tall for his age and on this night, he wore a hooded cloak to protect himself from the rain. He stifled a yawn and watched rainwater gush out of a nearby gutter, turned black by the soot that caked the sharply sloped roofs that were characteristic of the town’s buildings.
Soot from the forges covered everything here. Homes, clothes, windows, walls, but lately, something new permeated the air. It drove people to step quickly when walking the streets, which they did only when absolutely necessary. It caused them to stay away from windows after dark, and it caused the atmosphere, already heavy from the constant smog to grow heavier still. It was fear. Fear from the string of gruesome murders that had occurred over the past month. People had been going missing only for their badly mutilated bodies to turn up days later.
Rumours had abounded, and sightings of ferocious monsters and misshapen giants, straight from the pages of fables, were reported to the Watch almost daily. The reports were so numerous and persistent that it was impossible to separate rumour from fact. Many of the disappearances had occurred here, in the Downwater District, and Thorace had taken it upon himself to get to the bottom of things.
That was as sure a way as he could think of to win himself acclaim and perhaps a way out of this foul, black stained town. Or at least a way out of poverty. Then, perhaps the Teahouse’s apprentice would see him in a new light. His heart swelled when he thought of Liara Junkov. She was a year older than he, with hair the colour of fresh straw and sparkling blue eyes…
He shook his head and admonished himself. He had to focus lest become the Downwater Demon’s latest victim. When he tore his gaze off the gutter, a flash of red caught his eye. He turned to see four figures clad in red cloaks walking down the street and blinked. He thought he was imagining them at first. The rain stained everything it touched black, but these cloaks looked immaculate. He looked down the street and saw several other passers-by following his gaze.
Two of the figures appeared to be men and two were shorter. One was an inch shorter than Thorace, but much broader at the shoulder. A dwarf from the look of it, while the other was even shorter. Perhaps a young child. An odd combination to be found wandering the streets, regardless of their garb or time of day. The boy decided to follow them. He was not a little proud of his ability to stalk the streets unnoticed. A valuable trait in the rougher parts of town.
As he approached them, he saw that at least two of them were armed. One of the men carried a sword at his hip while the dwarf had a large axe slung across his back. Thorace took a deep breath to gather his courage and walked closer still. Soon, he was close enough to listen in on their conversation.
“We’re attracting stares, Vi,” the dwarf grumbled. His voice was deep, and he spoke with a rough brogue.
“It’s not my fault these yokels haven’t seen magic before,” the other diminutive one said with a woman’s voice. “Besides, you know how hard it is to get soot stains out of our cloaks.”
“Now children, let’s not fight,” the unarmed man said. His voice was tired, and he sounded old. He appeared to walk with a slight limp and was happy to lag behind the others.
“Captain please, talk some sense into her,” the dwarf pleaded.
The armed man took a deep breath and the others fell silent. “A little attention isn’t a bad thing, Tavar.”
“But Captain…” Tavar began to protest.
“Remember why we’re here,” the Captain said.
“To get to the bottom of these murders?” Tavar ventured.
The Captain shook his head. “We’re here to get paid for getting to the bottom of these murders, and to that end, standing out is not a bad thing.”
Thorace backed off when the dwarf turned his head from side to side before remarking. “Can’t see a thing in this muck. It’s a shame Etsara isn’t here. She’d find whatever it is we’re looking for in a jiffy.”
“I’d wager this place would make her violently ill,” the older man remarked. “I can’t imagine being further removed from nature.”
Thorace darted into an alley when the old man broke into a violent coughing fit. He stood just out of sight and spied on them as the quartet came to a stop and looked at the old man with concern.
“Perhaps we should find you an inn where you can rest for the night, Lector,” Violet suggested, her voice tinged with concern.
Now that she had turned around, Thorace saw that she had a young woman’s face and large, round ears. Gnomes were rare in Elgurid and it took him a while for him to identify her race. The old man was gnarled and raised a hand. Once he finished coughing, Tavar handed him a flask of water. The dwarf had a thick, black beard that was neatly groomed and flinty slate eyes that were the colour of slate. He was powerfully built, and his arms were almost as thick as Thorace’s waist.
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“She’s right, you know,” he said once the old man took it. “We can’t have the Company doctor getting sick.”
“It’s just the air,” Lector protested. “I just need to get used to it is all. Besides, what will happen if one of you gets injured when we do encounter this… thing that we’re after.”
“It’s probably just someone who’s snapped,” Tavar snorted derisively. “We’ll make quick work of him.”
“Oh no we won’t,” the Captain said. “We won’t do a thing before payment is safely in my hands.”
The dwarf’s eyes went wide. “So we will stand idly by and watch whatever or whoever this is murder someone?”
The Captain shrugged. “If it comes to it. We don’t work for free. We learned that the hard way, remember?”
“That is not what the Company stands for, Averal,” the doctor croaked after swallowing a sip of water.
“It is now,” the Captain said sharply.
Thorace sighed softly. The red cloaks were mercenaries. The town steward had sent a call for aid out recently, so their arrival in town was not unexpected. Mercenary bands were common and had an unsavoury reputation of being little better than the bandit gangs they were often hired to keep away. Where they went, violence and crime often followed.
The boy didn’t know what band this bunch belonged to, but he knew that he would be best served having as little to do with them as possible. As he backed deeper into the alley, the hairs on his neck stood on end. He wanted to turn around, but fear gripped him, making him immobile. Like a prey animal caught in the sights of a predator, he felt as though any movement might cause the predator to strike.
He felt the presence draw closer until he could feel its hot breath on his neck. He was in its sights now. He willed his body to move but it wouldn’t listen. His mind went to the mercenaries, but he could no longer hear their conversation. Perhaps they had moved on. In front of him, he saw a man walk past the alley, but he was on the other side of the street. He might as well have been a hundred miles away.
Thorace felt his legs tremble as the breath moved away from his neck. Whatever was behind him was rearing back, perhaps to strike. The boy’s life flashed before his eyes. Then, his mind fixated on Liara’s face. Smiling warmly from behind the counter at Fleur’s Teahouse. He knew he couldn’t die now. Not without telling her how he felt.
“Help!” he managed to choke.
The creature growled in surprise, and Thorace felt as though a spell had been broken. He could move again and attempted to run out of the alley. His legs, though, were uncooperative, and he stumbled, tripping over his own feet. As he fell, he felt something large rushing past the back of his head, missing it by a hairsbreadth.
He fell to the ground. Hard. Tasting blood, he attempted to scramble to his feet but when he looked up, he saw a pair of heavy boots running towards him. It was the dwarf, and he had his axe held high. The dwarf let out a loud roar as he leapt over Thorace’s prone form. The boy ducked his head and winced as the Tavar planted his foot square on his back. The dwarf weighed a ton, and Thorace saw stars for a moment.
Moments later, the weight was lifted, and the sound of steel striking stone filled the alley. When he could, Thorace rolled onto his back and saw the dwarf driving a hulking thing back with furious strikes of his axe. The dwarf’s foe appeared to be wreathed in shadows, obscuring most of its features, but it stood at almost twice the dwarf’s height and was covered in green scales. It had an elongated snout that was lined with razor sharp teeth and its reptilian yellow eyes glared at Thorace with cold fury. The dwarf’s axe was a blur as he swung his weapon expertly, but the creature was nimble for its size and dodged each blow easily.
“Tavar, stand aside!” Violet cried from the mouth of the alley.
“Now wait just a minute!” Averal protested.
Violet paid her Captain no heed and held out her finger, pointing it at the creature. “Augue!”
Moments later, a huge ball of fire rocketed over Thorace’s prone form, singing the boy’s hair. At the last moment, Tavar flattened himself against the wall of the alley to get out of its way. The creature wielded the shadows around it like a cloak and raised its arm, causing the shadows to envelop it completely.
The fireball collided with the shadows and exploded, briefly turning night into day. When the explosion subsided, the creature was nowhere to be found.
“You didn’t incinerate it, did you?” Tavar gasped.
“Of course I didn’t!” Violet snapped. “I’m not a novice.”
“How was it, Tavar?” Averal asked as he walked into the alley.
The warrior grunted. “Nothing I couldn’t handle. I faced far worse in the Fall.”
The Captain grinned. “Good. Now then, let’s go see the Steward.”
“Do you know where we might find him?” Tavar asked.
Averal shook his head. “I don’t, but he probably does.”
Thorace blinked in surprise when the others turned to him.
Averal frowned when the boy didn’t reply. “You do know where the steward is, don’t you?”
“The boy is in shock, Averal,” Lector said as he appeared over the boy. He examined Thorace with steely green eyes before extending his hand towards the boy. “Are you alright? Can you stand?”
Thorace nodded and allowed the old man to help him to his feet. “I think so…”
“You’re lucky we came along when we did, lad,” Tavar remarked.
“Thank you,” the boy managed.
Tavar bowed his head. “I am Tavar Broadaxe, and you are?”
“Thorace Hardin,” the boy mumbled feeling self-conscious.
“And I’m Lector Broadshore, that is Violet Huscar, and the sour faced man over there is Averal Danpur, our Captain,” Lector said. “We’re…”
“Mercenaries,” Thorace blurted. “I know.”
Averal’s eyes widened in surprise, and he walked up to the boy, towering over him. He was a powerfully built man in his thirties. Unlike the others, who kept their appearances neat, their Captain’s hair was shaggy, and his beard unkempt.
“What makes you say that, Thorace Hardin?” Averal asked.
“I was following you and overheard your conversation,” Thorace blurted.
The boy’s face turned red as soon as he spoke. His first impulse had been to lie, but for reasons unknown to him, he had spoken the truth instead.
“I didn’t notice him following us,” Averal remarked before turning to Tavar. “Did you?”
The dwarf shook his head slowly.
The Captain grunted and turned his attention back to the boy. “That’s quite the talent you have there.”
“Thank you,” Thorace mumbled awkwardly, not knowing what else to say.
Averal eyed the boy for a moment longer and Lector cleared his throat. “He’s too young, Averal.”
“I didn’t say anything,” the Captain protested.
“But you were thinking it,” the older man pointed out.
“You’re a mind reader now, are you?” the Captain demanded sharply.
Lector shook his head. “No, but I’ve been around you for long enough to know what you’re thinking… Don’t give me that look.”
“You’re the reason discipline is in the state that it is,” Averal sighed before shaking his head.
“No, as Captain, that falls squarely on your shoulders,” Lector replied softly but firmly.
A crooked smile twisted the Captain’s lips briefly before he turned his attention back to Thorace. “Now then, do you know where we can find the Steward of this town?”