Chapter Twelve: Black Tusk

I turned my back on the smouldering ruins of the constructs and swiftly made my way over to the members of Black Tusk, who were still unmoving and staring at me in a sense of disbelief.

They must have been enraptured by my little performance. It's true I had a bit of a flair for the dramatic but if you're a King it's kind of a necessity.

Why fight a battle if you can just summon a storm and let fear take it's course? Why let any mage believe he is your superior when you can just give him a glimpse of your aura? Marwenna always complained that I showed no tact when dealing with difficult people but I would argue that I prevented further problems down the line by being a little over the top.

It seemed to have worked on Xolumbrandir and, incidently, on the members of Black Tusk, which brings up a whole different issue.

They had seen me go all out. I had summoned my power and brought damnation down on the swords toys. But that was the problem, I doubt any of these mercenaries have ever seen someone with that kind of magic, going by the stunned looks on their faces.

The only one that seemed to be in any kind of cohesive state was Ada, although she still looked slightly pale from the ride over here. She was smiling at me and clutching the mask to her chest, awe firmly etched into her features.

“Well done, thief! That was amazing!” shouted the girl from her resting place in the arms of the vampire commander, Bell.

Thief? Was that my name now?

As if hearing Ada's voice was some kind of alarm, the other's snapped out of their trances and looked awkwardly at one another and then me, each looking uncomfortable. Even the she-wolf looked uncomfortable and she towered a good three feet over me.

I gave a nod to Ada and continued to make my way towards them, carefully stepping around the piles of debris that marked the battlefield.

When she saw I was still walking forward the vampire, Bell, placed herself slightly in front of the rest of her band and glared at me, her hand never leaving the axe that was affixed to her belt. I smiled in return, it was important that they felt at ease, although going by Bell's stance I'm not sure if my grin was working as effectively as I wanted it to.

She raised a hand, indicating for me to stop and I did, raising my hands slightly in surrender. Another important factor was that Bell and her band think they were in control of the situation, it would only make what follows easier.

I needed the information that the vampire leader could provide. Who sent them, why exactly? This was one of the reasons I had saved them in the first place... of course I probably would have saved them anyway, being the big sap that I am, but it all had the added effect of allowing them to trust me, even a little.

Try the carrot before the stick. But keep the stick handy. I just hope I wouldn't have to use it.

While I didn't know any of them very well, Ada seemed like the sort of girl that wouldn't get caught up with a bunch of incompetents so I can only assume that they would at least be willing to hear me out.

After I came to a complete stop Bell gave the smallest, almost imperceptible nod and turned her back on me, walking further down the now demolished cobbled road that led directly to my tower. She quickly indicated to the others to follow and they did without another word. Ada was the only one to hesitate for a second before she gave me a smile and a 'wait a moment' with her raised hand.

I returned her smile and sat down on the ground, crossing my legs and pulling them up and under my chin, wrapping my arms around them and trying to get comfortable. Well, as comfortable as one can get while sitting on stone.

Ada quickly jogged to catch up with her friends, the bout of dizziness over our rather rapid arrival seemingly forgotten from her mind.

They stopped around thirty feet from my location and talked in hushed whispers that wouldn't be a problem for me to hear if I had the intent. I did not however. I needed to respect their privacy and afford them at least some of the trust I was expecting in return. At the very least, I could now get a good look at each of the members of Black Tusk without causing any harm.

The first, and largest, of the three I had yet to properly meet was of course Ursula. A wolf kind and she seemed to be quite the specimen. Although she was not in her human form you can learn a lot about a wolf kind by seeing their transformed selves.

As a species the wolf kind are a rather savage breed and dwell in the heavily forested country of Paltos just south of Omara and east of Vermalia. The place really had no permanent cities and instead consisted of hundreds of wandering tribes, some as a small as maybe fifty members and others that stretched into the thousands. They only ever really intermingled with one another during yearly festivals that celebrated their gods, held at the ancient fortress in the north most part of the country.

It was decrepit for the most part and only a small section of the actual structure was used for revelry, but the fact that it could hold all of the wolf kind clans gives one an idea of it's size. The fortress itself was called The First Home and had been the site first settled by the wolf kind when they had arrived in Vita from some unknown land across the sea, guided by the three Gods of the moon.

Of course I know that was bullshit now. Vitriss had talked plainly about the Erralith and how they were in fact the ancestors of all the races in Vita. Changed over time due to the magic effecting their bodies, I presumed. How else could it have happened over thousands of years instead of millions?

But then I couldn't really trust Vitriss either, now can I? There's another problem that I will have to inevitably deal with.

I shook my head of such thoughts and brought my focus back on the large she-wolf in front of me, trying to stop the ideas that were rampaging through my head from gaining traction.

While rather large in comparison to her companions, compared to Abhor she may as well be a pup. Long, slim and heavily muscled limbs settle gracefully on the ground, her fur almost a silky brown. Her body moving, rising and falling as she drew breath, even as her large muzzle swung around to occasionally give me a look, making sure I'm behaving myself.

When I catch one her looks I raise my hand and smile.

I can hear her growl even without enhancing my hearing.

While earlier she may have acknowledged me as her superior, it doesn't mean that she has to show me respect. The wolves have a very strange way of acting around their fellows that would put an outsider on perilous ground if they knew nothing about them. For instance, it is considered common courtesy in Paltos to bring meat to the Alpha of a clan upon arriving in their camp. If one does not do this it is considered an affront to the Alpha's person and can only be resolved through blood.

Funnily enough that is how I met Abhor for the first time. He was my enemy when he demanded my blood and quickly became one of my knights after I defeated him, swearing his life to me.

That was a pretty intense day.

I noticed that Ursula was no longer staring at me and seemed to be focused intently on Bell so I allowed my gaze to drift over to the elf standing close to Ada.

A proud species, the elves. I had known a few and even grown up with their princess, but no matter how hard I tried I don't think I would ever be able to fully understand them.

They did things at their own pace and would not be rushed for anything, while they didn't have any gods of their own, magic was their god and they believed themselves to be blessed beyond any other race. In this regard I have to agree with them. They are strong, fast and their talent for magic is the highest out of all the inhabitants in Vita. The only reason they had to agree to the predominantly human church taking over was due to the vast numbers that humanity commanded. Elves have children rarely and, as a result, their population is quite low with the estimate placing them at less than a quarter of the humans and nearly half of every other race.

This elf, Leigh I believe her name was, is a rarity among elves because of her being a part of a mercenary band. Strictly speaking, elves consider themselves above the other races and distance themselves as much as they possibly can from interaction that is more than a few hours long. Maybe that had changed with Marwenna and Valant in charge, who knows, but if they had managed to somehow bridge the gap then it was a massive accomplishment

Like all elves, Leigh was beautiful, her dark blonde hair, sea blue eyes and sharp nose giving her a rather mysterious look. She also seemed to look the most nervous out of the four and kept sneaking quick, curious glances my way.

When she let her gaze linger a moment longer than usual I quickly raised my own eyes to meet hers and heard her give out a squeak before hiding behind Ada, who turned and glared at me.

I raised my hands in an apology as I laughed quietly. While I hadn't meant to scare her, I know now that she is most likely shy around new people. Of course, that didn't take away from her combat ability, she must be quite fearsome if she was willing to walk into this city with only three other's beside her.

Finally, I turned my gaze onto Bell and found that she was already staring at me quite intensely, her brow furrowed and her eyes slightly squinted.

I matched her stare for a few seconds, looking deep into those blood red vampire eyes, before they fell away and seemed to stare at the road, looking at a lose.

I could understand what was going through her mind right now. As a commander and king I had often found myself in the same position. She was looking through the options that were presenting themselves and trying to find the best way out of the situation in front of her. If I focused I swear I could see the well oiled cogs of her mind turning over and over, looking for the best available solution. As far as I could see, she had three.

She could run with her band and abandon her mission entirely, however, that would mean letting down a client and ruining their reputation among mercenaries in general. Soldier's for hire rarely have a chance to prove themselves twice.

The second was hear me out and ask for my help with whatever problem they are facing. I had assumed they were here for me but now I'm beginning to think otherwise. Ada had said that they had received their instructions from a client in Scarl Forest, the homeland of the vampires, and while this is not suspicious in itself, if I were to assume that Marwen had sent people they would have come from Callai, not the Red Citadel.

The third was to immediately kill me and try to complete the mission without my help, but to do so they would need to be near the tower, where Xolumbrandir dwells, and while the sword would hesitate to attack me, it would show no such concern against mages that could not hope to compete with it's magic.

And the cog's keep turning and turning, her eyes still glued to the ground as she considers her options.

I took this opportunity to examine the commander of Black Tusk.

She was a vampire, that much was clear. All vampires share similair features that include their pale skin and dark red eyes, as well as a thirst for blood. But they do not feast on the blood of other races as I was told as a child. Most vampires sustain themselves on merely the blood of animals. This is a common stereotype that has been passed down through the ages, but it is not at all true. Most vampires despise the taste of blood from a human, dwarf, elf or wolf kind, however, there are exceptions to this rule. Some vampires do drink the blood of the other races but it usually ends in them becoming what is known as a feral, a beast that has lost it's mind to the thirst and kills and drinks from anything that approaches them, even other vampires.

Thankfully it was not that common and usually only happened when a vampire had been starved to the point that any meal looks appetising. The blood of a truly sentient being seems to do something to the mind of a vampire, twists it and turns it back on itself. Not to be mistaken, ferals are a real threat to the population of Scarl Forest, but very few ever live long enough to become a large problem.

Unfortunately, Cinder fall's into the category of feral.

She drinks from anything, it was the main reason Marwenna was so scared of her to begin with. I found Cinder when she was young, half-dead from the thirst, surrounded by a group of recently deserted soldier's I had been tracking with Faral. The horror I saw that day was almost inconceivable. Pale and gaunt bodies, drained of blood. All the while the little girl stood in the centre, smiling, playing in a puddle of the aforementioned liquid.

We managed to save her mind... mostly, but she would never be like anyone else.

I withdrew my thoughts from the memory of that day. I didn't want to think of Cinder like that again. She may be a feral, but she is still my little girl and my knight. I didn't give her that position lightly.

As I was lost in thought, it appeared that Bell had come to a decision with the rest of her band. Together they began to make their way towards me, Ada in the lead with a tight smile on her face, in one hand her bow and in the other my mask.

I rise and brush the dust off my clothing and patchwork leather armour. I would need to ask the ladies where they got their custom built suits, they interested me almost as much as their purpose for being here.

They stopped about five feet away from me, still on alert, still wary. Leigh the elf had her hand attached to the hilt of the slim, curved sword at her waist while Bell's hand never left her axe. Ursula of course remained unchanged and stood as a guardian behind the three girls, her eyes focused on me and only me. I knew that if I were to move in that moment the wolf would pounce at me, despite it meaning her death. I don't think she cared if it saved her friends. That was something I admired.

“So, what have all decided?” I said, trying to get the ball rolling. While we had been messing around I have no doubt that the other troop from Callai were approaching with every minute, at my estimate they would be here in a day or even less. I needed to sort this mess out with the Black Tusk now before they arrived. I may be powerful, but I would never reject an ally.

Bell and the other's looked at each other. To my surprise, and theirs I gathered, Ada decides to speak first.

“We'll hear you out, Thief, but you need to tell us the truth and, in return, Bell will tell you what she knows about who hired us”

“Ada!” Bell hissed from beside her, grabbing the girls arm, but Ada remained steadfast and turned to face her commander.

“I listened to what you were saying Bell, but we can't trick or fool him. I don't know how I know, I just do.” Ada responded as she placed a gentle hand onto Bell's arm “We need his help, you said we had to stop the other group from taking the sword and that's what we're going to do. But without him, we can't get close to it!”

Bell stared at her subordinate for a few seconds, indecision etched into her face, before deciding to let loose a weary laugh. She looked at both Ursula and Leigh in turn and they both gave their approval with tense nods.

Bell turned to look at me, her gaze meeting my own, but this time she held the stare.

“Ok, I agree to the term's laid out by Ada, but I need a guarantee that you will help us in our mission and do no harm to any member of Black Tusk. Do you agree?”

I stood stock still for a second and didn't let my gaze leave the beautiful vampires. It seems that she had chosen a fourth option, trick me into either aiding her or giving her whatever information she wanted about the sword. Clever, very clever.

In fact, this was most likely a well used play by the members of Black Tusk. Each one of them was beautiful, I'm sure that Ursula would also be considered so in her human form. Turning that beauty into a weapon is indeed skilful and useful in certain situations. Ada was right however, they wouldn't be able to trick me. Even mind magic would be completely ineffectual.

I give a nod to the girls “I agree to your terms, Bell of Black Tusk. But I must add something onto our deal, if you would be so kind.”

Bell stared at me warily “Ok... what is this 'additional' term?”

“Can you feed me?”

Bell blinked “What?”

I stare at her earnestly and with passion “I am starving, haven't eaten in what feels like centuries, you guys wouldn't happen to have any food laying around would you? Feels like my stomach will start eating me soon”

The four girls stared at me for what must have been several minutes before, as one creature, they burst into laughter. Even the wolf was laughing, I couldn't understand what was so funny.

“You... killed... and... food!” Ada was rolling on the ground now and seemed to be unable to stop her explosive bursts of laughter at my expense.

Eventually the ladies managed to calm down enough to stop themselves from what I can only assume was a brief moment of insanity.

“What was so hilarious?” I asked scathingly. To be honest, I was more used to people fawning over me, I was not used to being the court jester for all to come and gawk at. I am The Rebel King, dammit!

“Sorry Thief, but you could have asked us for anything, we can't complete this mission without you and all you requested was food. Kind of funny, don't you think?” Leigh stated in a high, song-like voice, typical of the elves, wiping tears from her eyes.

“And information...” I said grumpily, trying to make myself appear to be more put together than I was.

Bell seemed to think I was a bit of an idiot instead of a powerful magic user as she rolled her eyes and gestured for me to follow.

“We'll head back to the temporary camp and you can have all the food we have, which is quite a lot. Ursula usually eats enough to feed a family of five.”

A small bark of protest left the muzzle of the wolf as she loped after Bell, while Leigh gave me a shy smile and chased after the duo.

“Well, you met my team, what do you think?” asked Ada, her grin wide and face still red from her bout of madness.

“I think you guys have weird sense of humour” I say with a weak smile before taking the mask from the young girl and making my way forwards, with Ada by my side.