A lone boat cut through the dark water, seemingly moving of its own accord. The moon shone eerily, casting the vessel a ghostly appearance. Amir sat huddled in it, swathed in a flowing black cloak.
Up ahead, an island towered out of the water, silhouetted against the clear, starry night sky. The passenger aboard seemed to simply be sitting there, lost in his own thoughts.
But today, that was not the case.
He was on a mission to infiltrate a underground safe and steal its occupant - the Blade of Souls.
His orders were to kill all witnesses and then surrender all of the town to King Malachi, his employer, as slaves for him. But ever since his failure in stealing a relic of equal renown- Faelis's Amulet, the king had lost faith in him and sent a dozen highly trained agents to 'assist' him on his mission.
Behind the folds of fabric, Amir held a glowing crystal, the sapphire light illuminating his dark skin and eyes. Inside was a sprite: his guide to his destination - the wreck of the Church on the isle of Eilean Shona.
Years before, King Malachi, had ordered a ruthless attack on the island by a mutant breed of wyverns in pursuit of a relic which would be the last piece to awakening the giant volcano where a dragon's egg would finish being forged. When this was done, he would harness the dragon's power and use it to destroy the Rebellion, the biggest enemy of The Shadowhawk Society.
The sudden darkness broke Amir out of his concentration. He looked up, realizing that he was brushing up against the shadow of the island.
"Zelznik, what are you doing?!" he whispered angrily to the sprite. A shrill cackle filled his head.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but His Majesty never said to make it easy, only it get you there. Nothing more nothing less.
Checking his map in the light of the screen, Amir slowly maneuvered the boat towards the docks, partially concealed by a light mist that began to drift in, which was undoubtedly going to soon cover the entire island in a blanket of white- just as he had planned and expected.
Once he heard the bump of boat against dock, Amir swiftly jumped onto the planks, rope in hand. He tied the vessel down, and sprinted of into the dense forest, black cloak flapping behind him.
Where is this town I'm looking for... he thought to himself, squinting to decipher the thin lines indicating his path.
After a long while, he set of up the slope, careful not to step on the densely packed shrubbery. It was tedious, but as the moon touched the horizon, the village was in sight.
Taking a deep breath, he ran the last stretch down the hill to the wreck. Digging his heels into the soft soil, he slowed himself enough to leap behind a tree.
Peeking out around the thick trunk, Amir's eyes widened. The few paintings he had seen back in the castle had understated the wreck. The houses were barely intact, charred and dusty like the rest of it's bleak features. But the worst part, the part that made Amir recoil, were the deep and huge claw marks gouged deep into all surfaces practically screaming terror.
This is... horrific. The painting really left those out...
Eyes scanning the ruined landscape, he located the abandoned and wrecked church not far from his vantage point. Picking his path carefully, he darted from house to house, moving in all different directions, secretly placing tiny orbs on the cold stone walls, allowing the Society to spy on the ruins. At last, he reached the ruins, panting. Checking that no one was watching, he crept towards the wrecked mosaic, only to see a black dog lurking in the shadows. Eyes still fixed on Amir, it started barking, waking his owners who rushed out into the court, searching for the source of the commotion.
Just in time, Amir leapt behind a particularly damaged house, hoping the dog couldn't smell him.
Unfortunately for him, the hound darted after him, his scent still permeating the air.
"We know you're there, Wesley!"
He froze. An idea crept into his head. Mimicking the couple's accent as well as he could, he replied softly, "You caught me." and, in the momentary pause, he pulled a tube out of his pocket and swiftly uncorked it, white powder billowing into the air.
The two of them fell onto the ground, unconscious. Amir cringed as they hit the ground, as he was never very comfortable with harming anyone.
Still, he didn't look back and climbed up a wall, making sure everyone else was asleep, and there weren't any more dogs trying to get him killed. Finally, he decided it was safe to proceed to the Church. He leapt off the wall, landing lightly.
According to Zelznik, the shepherd's eye piece was steel, not the normal glass and led to ..... somewhere, presumably the vault where the artifact was kept. He retrieved a glass circle about two inches across and held it up to his eye, squinting.
"Revelo seilium" he said, the lens lighting up
It zoomed in on a beige chunk, in the center of which a black circle was placed - exactly what he was looking for.
He jumped off the roof, gaze still locked on the chunk. He meandered around the wreck, eventually coming to his target. He picked it up, inspecting the slab. Gently pushing the black circle inwards, making it pop out.
Tapping the smooth surface, the hollow sound told him what he needed. He unscrewed the top, revealing a intricate network of black wires.
Smiling inwardly, he thought, Phase one - done. Here comes the hard part.
He tried not to think about what would happen if he failed.
I'm not certain you'll succeed, but I am certain that if you don't, you'll regret it. Deeply.
The King's words echoed through his head, making him shiver. Malachi was not one to disobey. On his arrival, the King had shown him his museum: the stuffed replicas of slain creatures, but most terrifying of all, his collection of failed agent's skeletons.
He did not wish to fail the King.
- < ~ > -
Many hours later, he was still searching for the entrance, but with no luck. Amir continued to leap from destroyed house to destroyed house, searching desperately, as dawn was mere hours away.
Only when the door below him opened and a tall red-head strolled out did he realize that the streets were filling up, and, to his dismay, he was trapped.
What kind of people are up at this time?! he paused.
What kind of a person destroys thousands of innocents for some kind of selfish reason?
Thinking fast, Amir slid down the wall, rummaging through the red-head's drawers until he found a patchy tunic and pants.
He pulled them on above his clothes, then leapt out the window, searching for a more secluded space where he could use the Dark Arts to locate the vault. The town being wrecked and small, this was not easy feat. As soon as he pulled out the crystal, someone would walk through the alleyway, house, or square nearly catching him.
Resorting to the forest, he loped through the thick underbrush until he was sure no one on the path or in the town could see him.
"Zelznik." he said into the crystal. It lit up and the surly sprite slithered out looking disapprovingly at him. Amir glanced around to make sure that the sprite's mauve aura was not drawing unwanted attention.
"I hope you summoned my for a good reason." he said in his cold, nasally voice.
Amir rolled his eyes. "Can you locate the vault now that I have the key?"
"Only if you admit your incompetence. " he replied folding his arms.
Amir was not in the mood for fighting.
"Fine, Zelznik. I am incompetent and useless without you."
"Yes, you are. I'm glad you finally realized that on your own." He closed his eyes and flicked his hand outward, a dull indigo glow dispersing in a wave until it faded at the edge of the trees.
"The big house at the far end of town behind the tapestry in the bedroom. It belongs to their leader.
"Thanks." Amir replied grudgingly. He scuffled down the hill back into town, this time skirting the edges until he came to the slightly larger wreck of the chief's house. Checking that it was vacated, he let himself in. Touring the rubble, he eventually came to a cot and beside it, just as Zelznik had promised, was a tapestry. Ripped and and burnt but still a tapestry none the less.
He slide it aside, revealing a key hole. He popped it into place and turned it until he heard a click. Without looking back he lowered himself into the dark corridor. He hurriedly set out all the torches and hurried down the hall. In his well-trained eyes, he made out the hidden box and pulled out the key, unlocked the door and placed it back into it's place, hopefully giving him an easier time capturing the keeper who was undoubtedly not here.
He shut the door behind him and lit a match, it's red and gold light washing the space with light.
That's when he noticed the numerous hidden booby traps lining the walls, floor and ceiling were all set off.
"So you made it." a someone said out of the dark, then stepped into the glow of the candle. It was Elijah, one of the agents sent to assist him. "We were starting to doubt you'd ever come."
A chorus of a dozen voices snickered, still unseen.
"Correct me if I'm wrong, but all eleven of you came through Malachi's demonic portals once I had located it and risked certain death to come here. You're welcome."
Elijah opened his mouth to speak when the sound of footsteps moving towards the floor board moved them all into action.
Amir ran over to the sword in it's case while the others sprang into hiding positions, ready to strike if necessary.
He lifted it out carefully and set it down just in view of the door, put out the match, then joined the others in hiding.
Mere moments later, a brown-haired girl, about fifteen entered. She looked around in dismay, walked over to the case, then finally located the sword. She moved towards it, making to grab it when Amir caught her wrist and pulled her against the wall.
"In the name of King Malachi, surrender yourself and your town!" he said, the agents stepping out of the shadows behind him.