"Faith was never a problem for me. My issue was belief. I had more faith in another than belief in myself." - Toren Eringer

Imposter. The word bounced around Eringer's head again.

"Tragic, yes. However, Mith-Fell, and Illiar as a whole, has weathered worse times. We will elect new members to the Council in short order and life will resume. The question is, how do we respond?" A haughty nobleman was lecturing the small group of which Eringer was included.

An older gentleman, who looked to have some elf in his blood a few generations back, answered. “Well I think it’s obvious. We have to strike back. Go on the offensive, for once.”

The youngest in the group, another human with distant elf heritage, struck a different tone. “I’m not so sure, father. Since I was a boy, there have been wars and skirmishes seemingly non-stop. Don’t you think we should stop that?”

“Yes, because the king sitting on his throne is greedy and selfish. He sends his people to war without worry of reprisal. Twice now in your lifetime, son, he has invaded our lands and received essentially no punishment. Haren has to be removed as a threat.”

The gentleman that postulated the question nodded. “I think you may be right. Your son has a point, but like you, I don’t think it will stop until King Reysear is stripped of power. Even then, I hear his eldest is more of a warmonger than he is. What do you think, my friend?”

Eringer had only half been listening, as he was focused on the imposter. He continued staring at the gaunt man while he responded. “The next war will be worse than the previous two, and may very well be unpreventable at this point.”

“Yes, my friend, I fear that, as well. It is not an easy thing to send our children to war. But I think it must be done.”

If Eringer had been paying more attention, he may have lost his composure and berated the nobleman. As it was, however, he was still focused on the man in disguise. The gaunt man looked his way and their eyes met.

Imposter! Go after him!

“Excuse me, gentlemen.” Eringer strode forward, directly toward his charge. Those that saw him moving parted and he stepped around those that did not. His off hand fell instinctually to the scabbard at his side. It would look odd if anyone peered too closely, considering he concealed the weapon in his magical disguise. The sword would come into the view of everyone, however, were he to draw it.

His quarry made subtle gestures with his hands, clearly casting a spell.

This did not surprise Eringer, as the man was magically disguised. He felt no different, so he assumed the spell was not targeted at him. People nearest him started to back away, some looked aghast while others looked confused. Eringer looked down and noticed that his magical disguise had faded. He waved his dominant hand as he muttered the brief incantation to resume his role. It was quite obvious that those around him had seen this.

One woman pointed at him as she continued backing up, yelling, "Guards! An armed man in disguise! Right here!"

Eringer ignored the shouts and looks, doubling his pace. Everyone moved out of his way as those nearest knew he was not who he appeared to be.

The quarry tilted his head slightly, as if curious. The distance was only ten paces now, but the imposter performed another bit of magic and vanished.

The veteran knew there were a number of spells that could do that - Invisibility, Misty Step, or any variety of teleporting spell. There were probably many that he did not even know of. Damnit! He kept a close eye on the surrounding area as he approached the spot the man disappeared from, just in case it was some sort of invisibility spell. He looked around, but did not see anyone act surprised or move in an unusual manner nearby. Eringer assumed a Teleport, or a variation of it, was used.

The guests were still giving him room as they backed away. The same woman was continuing to yell, "Intruder!" even though she was no longer in sight.

Eringer saw some adventurers moving in his direction, hands on weapons, but none drawn. He instinctually looked for his charge, finding the councilwoman flanked by several guards already.

Slam! The doors to the kitchen opened, violently hitting the walls and bouncing. Guests closest to the kitchen screened in alarm, though that subsided after a few moments. Several dozen guards fully geared streamed into the large room. Though they were not marching, their formation was tight and they moved together. The group turned toward Eringer's end of the room and hustled toward the people surrounding the councilwoman.

Eringer walked toward her, as well, but adventurers were between them and they held their hands up to stop him moving.

The man nearest the veteran spoke up. "Sir, who are you and why have you disguised yourself?"

Knowing his identity was given away, Eringer dropped the illusion. "I am Retired Captain Eringer and security for Councilwoman Silverwind. Please stand aside and allow me to return to my charge." He paused a pace away from the other man.

"Varin, Coslow; do either of you know this man?" A male elf and female gnome were on either side of the human, and looked to be part of the same team.

"Nope."

"Not a clue."

"I'm afraid we don't know who you are. We will have to verify." The man looked back toward the Councilwoman, who was now being ushered forward by the guards around her.

"I do not have time for that. I was tasked by the Councilwoman herself to not let her out of my sight. She is being led away and I must get to her. Come with me if you must confirm my identity."

As the man hesitated, the large formation of guards closed in on Silverwind.

"Look, I do not know what those guards are doing and I need to get to her. I am going to see her." Eringer held his hands out slightly in front of himself to show he was not holding anything. He then moved to push past the other human.

The man held up his hand again, as if to protest, "I... um."

The gnome spoke up, "Relax Stikaar." She turned, looking up to Eringer. "We'll accompany you over there, just don't grab your weapons or anything and I think everything will be fine, eh?"

Eringer nodded and set out at a brisk walk to intercept the councilwoman.

Two of the guards saw him approaching and broke off to stand in his way. "Woah there, sir. We are escorting Councilwoman Silverwind to safety and no one is allowed near her."

Eringer raised his voice so that the Councilwoman could hear him, "I am her personal guard, Retired Captain Eringer. She instructed me to stay nearby."

"If that was the case, sir, why were you over there so far away?"

Silverwind was now looking over, but a guard had his hand firmly on her arm, leading her away. They were moments from meeting up with the contingent of guards that appeared from the back. "Hey! Let him through, he's to remain near me at all times!"

The guard ignored her. "I'm sorry, sir, no one is allowed near the Councilwoman until it’s deemed the scene is safe."

"You heard her! Step aside and allow me to escort Councilwoman Silverwind."

"Umm..." the guard appeared apprehensive now and turned to look for support from his companion.

The second held up her hands innocently, then shrugged her shoulders. She shied away by taking a step back, clearly conveying she was going to give no help to her fellow guard.

Eringer did not await an answer, pushing the first guard aside and walking between the two.

Neither put up any resistance, but the first pretended like he was still in control of the situation, "Yes, that should be fine." He then whispered loud enough that Eringer overheard, "Thanks for the help, Valarie. We were supposed to stop him, you know!"

The veteran filed the information away for later and pushed through the dispersing crowd to get to his charge. Unfortunately, the delays from the brief discussions were enough that the contingent of guards were already around her by the time he got to them.

One of the larger guards stepped in front of Eringer. "I'm sorry, sir, but no one is to get near the Councilwoman."

"As I told the others, I am her personally hired protection. She requested I be near her at all times."

"Again, apologies, sir. You may see her again when the situation is deemed safe."

"What exactly are you expecting? No one here has even drawn a weapon! Take me with you, then. I am not to allow her out of my sight!"

"I'm afraid you will have to wait. You can stay here and someone will come to retrieve you when Councilwoman Silverwind is safe."

Eringer's blood boiled, but he also had an idea. He took little more than a moment to glance at one of the guards standing still nearby before speaking. "I'll be talking to your superiors about this." He whirled around and pushed through the crowd. Once he had placed a few rows of people between him and the guards, he turned to parallel them and expertly donned a magical disguise.

Pushing his way through the increasingly dense group of people, Eringer could see the Councilwoman being escorted through the kitchen doors ten paces ahead of him. A group of around twenty guards were in trail, so he slipped into the last row of custodians.

The man nearest the veteran turned his head, noticing the extra man in the ranks. Though his eyebrow rose questioningly, he said nothing. The man nodded and Eringer returned the gesture. The guard then resumed his gaze upon the companions before him as they walked through the kitchen doors.

Every servant and cook were staring at the escort, with one man yelling at them. “What are you all doing!? Get back to work, now, or I’ll dock your pay!” This seemed to have little to no effect on any of them, as the gawking persisted.

The Councilwoman was pushed into a room right off the kitchen, and the guards before Eringer began filing in behind her. Several of the guards peeled off to stand outside the room as he continued to get closer. The one wall he could see through the doorway looked like it was filling up quickly.

The disguised veteran leaned forward and kept his gaze on the room, hoping that a determined appearance would be enough for the guards to allow him inside. He pushed past the men on his left and slipped into the room.

Chairs were being moved to the walls by some of the guards as a few more came in behind Eringer. In the center of the room was a table with a single chair, where the Councilwoman was unceremoniously shoved into. She was facing Eringer, but a very large man was on the opposite side and looking down at her.

He had a slight green tint to his skin and a muscular build. He turned his head and looked at the only other person beside the councilwoman in the room that was not in a guard uniform, “Silence any sound coming from here then stand by me.”

“Umm, yes, of course, Captain.” The man was wearing a cloak and clutching a large spellbook against his chest under crossed arms. He went to the door as he opened the book, searching for a particular page. He then spoke a few words, and all sounds coming from the kitchen ceased. The man promptly went to the Captain of the Guard’s side.

The deep voice of the half-orc rumbled, “Councilwoman. I’ll make this easy for you. Simply sign this document, and no harm will come to you.” He slid a rather large piece of parchment, along with a quill, across the table.

Silverwind began reading, with her eyes opening wide after the first few words. “I’ll never sign...!”

Slap!

The back of the Captain’s left hand swiftly crossed the table, striking the Councilwoman. “If I want you to speak, I’ll ask you to. Now sign. The. Document.”

With a look of terror, and her left hand holding her cheek, she shook her head in defiance. Her determination seemed to be returning quickly.

“I suspected you would be unwilling. I have brought some motivation for you.” He turned to the mage at his side. “Show her.”

The robed man nodded, opening his spellbook once again and placing it on the table. Again, he muttered an incantation, holding his left hand out palm up. A small translucent cloudlike orb appeared just above the outstretched fingers. A young woman could be seen talking, though no sound came from it.

Councilwoman Silverwind’s eyes grew wide once again, her mouth falling slightly open. She looked back and forth several times between the half-orc and the image.

“I’m having her followed.” He turned to the spellcaster, “Zoom out. Show her my men.”

The mage raised his right hand above the image, then pulled it up and away. The cloud changed perspective to a higher vantage point. Though it was tough to judge distance within the image, there were two men hanging out near the woman.

“They have instructions to make sure she is never seen again, if they don’t hear back from me tonight.” He put his left hand on the parchment, moving it slightly closer to her. “Sign this, and I will tell them to leave her alone.”

Eringer was racking his brain for who the woman in the image could be, but he could not be certain. As far as he knew, Neylene had no children. It must be a close relative. Perhaps a niece…

The Councilwoman’s eyes closed tight. She tilted her head slightly away in visible distress as a tear rolled down her cheek. For nearly a full minute, she sat there, deep in thought and unmoving.

The tension was palpable. Every guard, including the leader and the mage, were staring at Silverwind. It seemed like everyone was holding their breath waiting to see what she did.

She let out a sigh as she brought a hand to grab the parchment and another the quill. Several tears were visible rolling down each cheek while she signed the paper.

The half-orc grabbed the parchment, inspected it briefly, then rolled it up. “Thank you. We will leave the young lady alone.” He gestured with one large hand to the guard next to Eringer. “Take her to the predetermined location.”

“Yessir.” The man looked to his right, nodding to the guard there before turning and doing the same to Eringer.

Eringer returned the gesture as the guard strode forward. The two guards that were to the man’s right followed, so he did the same.

The first guard reached the Councilwoman, placing a gauntlet under her left arm and lifting her up. She looked completely defeated now, putting up no resistance as the man led her out with a small entourage that included Eringer.

As the door opened, the sounds of the kitchen came flooding back. The guards, along with Eringer, escorted Silverwind out of the room. Rather than going back toward the party, they took a left turn and headed to the back of the kitchen.

Again, many eyes were drawn to them as the servants observed them. Some were subtle, but most were not.

The manager appeared flustered once again, “Keep working! People come through here all the time, so pretend like they aren’t here at all!”

The guards in the lead pressed on through the room into the hallway without paying any mind to the staff, with Eringer in tow. They traversed the hallway to the back exit, leaving promptly.

There was no one immediately behind the building, and only a few people walking the street. Though heads turned, they did not linger on the small party.

No other moon hung in the sky, which would ordinarily make it difficult to see. Eringer’s newfound vision made it seem as clear as day for a short distance, however. The other guards' pace slowed to compensate for the lack of vision.

They trudged on, mostly taking side streets and alleys. “What is..” the Councilwoman began, before the guard in front of Eringer stuffed her mouth with a rag.

“Quiet. If you make any more noise, I will knock you out personally.” Silverwind’s head bowed as her lips closed tightly.

Left, right, left again. They continued for a quarter hour as Eringer took a closer look at each of the other guards. The lead guard, immediately before him, had a moderate amount of armor and a longsword. The guard to his left was fully decked out, with armor in quality nearing his own as well as a shield and sword. The guard to his left wore a breastplate, in addition to a pair of short swords and a bow.

They carried themselves well, enough that a fight would likely be fairly even. If I can strike while they are unaware, I may be able to end this quickly…

Another right. This street was a little wider than the last, but completely bereft of others. This is my chance…

Eringer placed a hand on his sword, simultaneously pushing the Councilwoman to the ground as he drew it. In a flash, he stabbed twice at the heavily armored guard. The first sunk in behind the right arm, below the shoulder. The second into the man’s neck as he turned, eyes wide.

The second strike was accompanied by a radiant light, empowering the cut. The man stood no chance, crumpling while clutching his neck. The others released Naylene Silverwind as they reached for their own weapons.

“Traitor!” The man next to Eringer lunged wildly, striking only metal armor plating with a pair of swords.

The lead guard whirled around, brandishing his own longsword in two hands. He raised it over his head, only for a moment, before bringing it down on Eringer.

The veteran deftly deflected the blow as he raised his recently donned shield, retaliating with a swing of his own. Again, Eringer willed the blade to strike with his deity's magical power.