The Encounter

Jack Scar moved silently acros the Cairn. As always while he was scouting, it was the most unpleasant place to walk around. Soon it would be night, so Jack move fast to reach home before the sun goes down and the monsters came out of their hiding places. When the night falls, the Citadels gates would close and the defences would be at it's strongest. In a few days, the Citadel suffered many attacks, from Elves warriers to a Ogre Siege to a monstrious mad Beast to a rather unsuccesfull Dairkwasp swarm, but it was still standing. Jack could already see the smoke of the Citadel. Then, he stand still and watched again. The smoke was coming out of the Cairn. Jack looked at the smoke for some time, and then decides to move to it. Maybe there was someone who knew the herbs he was seeking.

When Jack entered the Cairn, he directly saw the smoke coming from the altar. 'It seems that here was some sort of ritual lately' he whispered to himself. Then, he saw someone moving. He did never see someone like that before. Most Humanoid being like Elves, did have more skin, less horns, and less daggers and swords sticked in them.
S'akn, is t'at ya? said the being. Jack directly silented his breath. What was that, he tought. That thing didn't speak at all!
Me 'ere, Wits'! Do ya 'ave w'at me wantz?
Phew, thought Jack, saved at last, but now, let's get fast away.
Me 'ave, S'akn, but it ain't 'or ya. It all goez to da boss.
What a weird accent, thought Jack.
Und w'at do we 'ave 'ere? suddely asked someone behind him.
Jack turned around, and the face he saw was even worse than he imagened. Red, skinless muscles, his eyes were blood-red,glowing coals. His theet are yellow and he has a foul breath. Additonal, some parts of his face were replace by some weird black metal, and weapons of the same metal did stick out of his body. And even more weird, he was unable to sense his Vis, his lifeforce.
W'o are ya? Did the thing asked again, without moving his mouth.
Juzt leave it. said the one he knew as Wits'. Da boss needs to get da Relic, elze WE 'ave a problem.
Yez, but do we 'ave problem w'en t'iz getz away wit' da information? said the one behind him.
Thee screeches sounded through the forest.
Letz leave it be'ind for da monsterz to eat said S'akn. This plan seemed to be agreed by the others, as they did dissapear in the night mist.
Jack standed up, ready to run, and got plucked up as a Dragon's meal.

Imnea awoke with the feeling that Death awaits this day. She sighed. When did she begin to die, was it in her early life, when she let's fire dance on her fingertips? Was it when she begins to use her own Vis to preform magics? She looked in the mirror, seeing an old face, but then, Witches do live other than normal people. Their lifeforce buring away faster while weaving magics. Immnea was only fifty-four, young for a Elf, but she felt like twohunderd. After she did heal the Blue Pest a few years ago, she swore that she would never heal someone again, never use her Vis to let other peoples Vis burn again.

Someone knocked on the door. Imnea sighted, still people came to her, begging for her help. She was always kind to them, but refused to help them. She opened the door. Then she blinked with her eyes. Before her stand a pair of Goblins. It was very rare that she saw some living Goblins, and it had never happened that they came for help. The largest of them, possibly the mother, asked her "I heard that only you can help my child, so would you please help her?" She looked quite desperate and worn out. "She has the BLue Pest.." were her last words before kneeling on the ground, begging for Imnea's help. Immnea looked at the desperate girl that stand before her. She was wrapped in cloths, but she could still see the symptoms of the Blue Pest. The Pest was too dangerous to let around. "Okay" Imnea said "I will heal her." She sought in her body to the Vis, and while humming a chant, she wove a spell that should heal the girl. After that Immnea began to cough up blood and kneeled on the ground. No, she tought, Not now! The Goblin woman and her child silently walked away, leaving a bag of money behind.

After some hours, Imnea laid down. "So this is how it ends." she said, and died.

The Goblin child looked with her blood-red eyes at her skinned, red arm. Happy that she doesn't feel ill anymore.

The river was calm for once. There where no signs of fast currents or whirlpools that were dangerous threads for the caravan. But then, Sata knew, it was still safer to move away from it, then to cross it. "Why don't we cross this river, Sata?" asked Ruld. "It will get us much faster to the Citadel. That would be nice for the guards." And to get more profit, tought Sata. "We don't cross this river. We will never do. And if you want to cross it, you will have to do it on your own." said he to Ruld. "Fine, I will do that then." said Ruld. "Fard, move the wagons up to cross the river!"

"Ssssah! Captain, these landdwellers are gonna cross the river! Aren't they the biggessst idiotsss in the world!" "Sssssah! Human issss sssynonym for idiot. I tought you did knew that already Sssklugh. Anyway, it issss much easssier to raid them.Sssssssah!"

Ruld moved his wagons to the river crossing. That stupid Sata, he tought, he didn't even saw the most comming thing for profit. Why was he scared for such a simple river. It was calmer then ever.

"They are nearly within range, Captain!" "Ssssah! Make sure everything is ready for the great welcome!" "Captain, there are some Ermon who wants to help plunder!" "Ermon? Whyunt, then! Ermon, who thought they were real after all!"

Ruld smiled when the first wagons crossed the river. Realy, there wasn't anything that could go wrong now. Then he heard the screams. He runned forward and the he saw them. Tall creatures where attacking his wagons. The creatures where human till their waists, below they were snake like. "Turn back!" shouted Ruld. "Tur.." Ruld saw large monsters, wrapped in thick, black armor rising from the waters.

Sata didn't look back when he heard the screams. "That is what you get for crossing the river" he said. "The Razaks doesn't care about your profit. They only care about their own. Let's continue to the Citadel"