Episode 64 – The Wolf, the Witch and the Large Wardrobe (Part III)
| The Assassins |
Azareth - Wizard 5th Level LE (PC) Craven - Fighter / Rogue 3rd/3rd LE (PC) Creighton - Fighter 5th Level LE (PC) Keldirk - Rogue 6th level NE (PC) |
| Locale | unknown. |
| Date | after 4th Goodmonth 582 CY |
| Time | Midday. |
Buoyed by the hope of an end to the suffering of the people in his care, Sheriff Downes scoured the village of Hamlynn for silver. For two days he entered every house, opened every box and cabinet and collected as much of the precious metal as the townsfolk possessed. This he passed to Arlwyn, the village blacksmith, and asked that he forge a weapon of silver. Sheriff Downes hadn't told the folk of Hamlynn why he was taking their silver; for he had no wish to alarm them or offer any false hope.
Arlwyn melted the small collection of trinkets and jewellery and, after a further two days of work, the blacksmith had managed to forge a solitary dagger. It was a simple blade, but its edge was keen and functional. The sheriff took the small blade to Keldirk, spokesman and apparent leader of the Silver League, and prayed that it would be enough.
| Keldirk | That's it? That's all you could come up with? |
| Sheriff Downes | I warned you that this was a poor village. Many families have sacrificed heirlooms of great sentimental value to produce even this. |
| Keldirk | (looking at the dagger incredulously) One dagger? What do you expect us to do with that? Take turns? |
| Craven | (raises his hand to silence Keldirk) We will do what we can, good sheriff. We thank the people of Hamlynn for their sacrifice just as we thank you for your diligence and faith. At least now we have something with which to fight. |
| Sheriff Downes | Well, I hope it's enough. |
| Azareth | It will have to be. |
| Craven | Indeed. We will take our leave and prepare for our conflict with the Overseer. |
| Sheriff Downes | Good luck. |
| Keldirk | (under his breath) We'll need it. |
The group left the Sheriff to his own thoughts and headed along the road to a secluded spot some distance out of town. Beneath the shade of a large oak Keldirk threw his small bundle of equipment, gifts from the thankful villagers, down in disgust.
| Keldirk | We're screwed. What are we supposed to do with this tiny little knife? |
| Craven | (chuckles) I'm surprised at you Keldirk, I would have thought you would jump at this opportunity to prove yourself. |
| Keldirk | (looks at Craven confusedly) Prove myself? What in the nine hells are you talking about? |
| Craven | Well you are always bragging about your abilities and desire to go it alone. Now is the perfect opportunity for you to shine. You are trained for this sort of thing, are you not? |
| Keldirk | You expect me to sneak into the Overseer's home and kill him? By myself? |
| Azareth | Actually, Craven has a point. |
| Keldirk | (looks at Azareth suspicion in his eyes) I see what's going on here. You three can't kill me yourself so you send me into a hopeless situation where I get killed whereby you neatly avoid a black scroll. Well sorry to disappoint you, it's not going to happen. |
| Azareth | Stop being so melodramatic. Just think about it. Of us all, you are the best suited to stealth and murder. |
| Keldirk | What about Craven, he has been trained in the stealthy arts just as I have. |
| Craven | True. But you are the only true assassin among us Keldirk. |
| Keldirk | Very convenient. |
| Creighton | I'll do it. |
| Azareth | (turns to Creighton in surprise) Excuse me? |
| Creighton | I'll do it. Give the dagger to me and I'll walk in and kill the bastard. Keldirk's bitching is getting on my nerves and isn't helping us get home. So give me the damned knife and let's get this thing done! |
| Craven | (thinks for a moment) I don't think that's such a good idea. Remember the last time we fought one of these things. That were-leopard damn near killed us all; you wouldn't stand a chance against the Overseer alone. |
| Keldirk | (laughs) And I would? Is that what you're saying? You're argument is failing miserably Craven. |
| Craven | (sighs) Not at all, killer. You should be able to sneak into his lair, get up nice and close and finish him with a single blow, without the need for combat. You are the only one among us who has had that kind of training. You know it and I know it. Don't do yourself the disfavour of demonstrating your uselessness to this group. (smiles) After all, as you said, I can sneak just as well as you can, so without this one skill you bring nothing to our party. |
| Keldirk | Is that so? What about Creighton... |
| Azareth | (raises his hands) Listen. Either you will do it willingly or you will not. We cannot force you to kill the Overseer so make your decision. If you refuse, we will have to find another alternative. This bickering is getting us nowhere. |
| Craven | You're right. (looks at Keldirk) Will you do it? |
| Keldirk | No. |
| Creighton | Fine! Then I'll do it. |
| Keldirk | What I will do is sneak in but it wont be to kill the beast. I'll look around his lair and see what I can find. Chances are he'll have a cache of weapons or something. I'll see if I can find anything useful and steal it. |
| Craven | And if you don't find anything? |
| Keldirk | Then I'll return empty handed and we'll discuss the situation again. |
| Craven | Fine, but let's make a deal. If you have an opportunity to kill the Overseer, take it. We might only have this once chance to get the guy unawares. Stealing his equipment, assuming he has some to steal, is a good idea but he might notice its absence. And you don't need me to tell you how much more difficult things will be if he is expecting an attack. |
| Keldirk | But when we do strike, at least we'll be armed. |
| Azareth | There is no guarantee of that. |
| Keldirk | (thinks, then nods) That sounds reasonable. But if I get myself into trouble I want you guys in there quick smart. I don't care that you can't hurt the bastard at least with more targets in the area he may not direct all his attacks my way. |
| Creighton | Plus you'll be able to give the dagger to me, so I can hurt it. |
| Craven | No, if that happens give the dagger to me. Creighton, you still have your magical fire so use that while I use the dagger. (looks at Keldirk firmly) Assuming it comes to that. |
| Keldirk | It wont. |
| Azareth | Well I would say that is about as close as we are likely to come to a plan. Let us waste no further time. We have been watching the Overseer's house for two days now and we know that there is no movement during the day, we still have a few hours of daylight and I can see no reason to put this off any longer. |
It was almost completely dark inside the building. The small tallow candle in Keldirk's hand flickered as he moved through the Overseer's stone dwelling. The candle's meagre light did more to enhance the sense of foreboding than to dispel the darkness.
The Overseer's house was located on the outskirts of the village of Hamlynn and the boards covering the windows blocked all but the smallest pinpricks of sunlight. As Keldirk carefully picked his way through the building he shuddered. What an idiotic situation, thought the brash young assassin. Sneaking in to the house of a lycanthrope armed with nothing more than a small, silver dagger of dubious quality was certainly asking for trouble. But what other choice was there? Despite his earlier objections Keldirk reasoned that this was the only logical course of action and, on some level, he was enjoying the feeling of excitement that he always felt when plying his craft. But that didn't make the situation any less dangerous and Keldirk was sure it was no fun being dead.
| Keldirk | Lycanthropes. I hate lycanthropes! |
Keldirk knew the layout of the house, as did the others. Sheriff Downes had provided them with a floor plan of the building. The Sheriff had procured the plan from the previous owner, a man now living in the village tavern after being evicted by the Overseer. So Keldirk knew that the master bedroom lay to his right, and the kitchen was directly ahead. He also knew that the house had a sizable basement under the kitchen and Keldirk felt that the basement was the most likely place to find the cache of equipment he was hoping for.
The young man crept silently passed the bedroom door and entered the kitchen. He spent several minutes trying to locate the trap door leading down into the basement and eventually found it in the pantry. Keldirk was struck by the lack of fresh provisions, much of the foodstuffs he could see had clearly been there for some time, possibly having belonged to the previous owner, and - judging by the foul smell - some of it had definitely gone rancid.
With care and precision Keldirk opened the trap door and waited, his keen hearing strained to pick-up the slightest noise. Hearing nothing unusual, he made his way down the stairs and into the basement. The darkness here was even more total, the globe of light granted by the shrinking candle grew even smaller and for the first time Keldirk felt the onset of fear. A little at first, just tugging at his subconscious, telling him he was out of his league, in way over his head. He was able to ignore the sensation at first, but his paranoia was insistent and Keldirk was forced to stop at the base of the stairs, his limbs all but paralysed with fear.
| Keldirk | Snap out of it man! |
With effort he looked around and tried to silence the voice of worry in his head. It was then that he heard it.
Breathing! Someone or something was down here.
Gradually Keldirk inched forward. With one hand on the wall for support, he made his way further into the room. The floor was strewn with odds and ends; Keldirk could make out wooden boxes, sacks, barrels and other objects. Then his heart skipped a beat. Among the paraphernalia Keldirk spied a pile of weapons, even a few battered pieces of armour. The equipment he hoped for was indeed here. But, scant inches from the equipment, lay the sleeping form of the Overseer. It made sense that a creature who avoided sunlight as much as the Overseer would sleep in the darkest part of the house and Keldirk cursed himself for not having thought of that earlier.
Steeling himself, the young assassin approached the creature's sleeping form. It was enormous and semi transformed. It would have stood well over seven feet tall, and its bulk would have dwarfed Creighton. It didn't appear to be wearing any armour; after all what would a creature that can only be harmed by magical or silver weapons fear in a village like Hamlynn?
Allowing the candlelight to illuminate the Overseer, Keldirk spied an impressive set of yellowed claws on the ends of the creature's fingers. The young assassin barely managed to suppress a frightened gulp. Attached to a belt around the Overseer's waist was a small pouch, it was impossible for Keldirk to tell what the pouch contained but he suspected that his true goal lay within.
| Keldirk | Now what? |
The young assassin steadied his breathing and considered his options. Try and take the pouch now, and risk waking the giant wolf-man, or go for the kill? Either way was fraught with risk.
If he succeeded in stealing the pouch the Overseer would definitely notice the theft and be after them as soon as he awoke. Alternatively, he might fail in his attempt to steal the pouch and alert the Overseer to his presence, missing this chance to end the threat once and for all and be forced to confront the were-beast in combat.
Unfortunately Keldirk knew he was alone in this, either way he would not get any help from his companions. There was no chance of any of them hearing his call from down here so it was up to him, here and now. At least so far, the Overseer had not shown any sign of having been disturbed by Keldirk's presence.
In a few moments he reached his decision. Silently Keldirk eased the silver dagger out of his belt and took one last look around the room to see if he could locate another useful weapon. He spied several swords and other daggers but he had no idea if they would be effective against the were-wolf. The dagger was his only viable option.
Keldirk placed the candle on the ground, gripped the small blade tightly and prepared to strike. He decided he would go for the throat, he didn't think that the blade was long enough to reach the creature's heart. He carefully moved closer to the creature's head and placed the dagger into position, his heart pounding loud enough to silence his earlier fears.
Just as Keldirk was about to draw the blade across the Overseer's jugular vein, a single bead of sweat dropped from his nose. The small droplet glistened in the candlelight and, though it seemed to take an eternity to fall, Keldirk could only watch in absolute horror as it splashed onto the were-creature's cheek. At first it began to seem as though nothing would happen but then the Overseer's eyes snapped open and it looked directly at Keldirk. The young man was momentarily frozen by the shock, but regained his composure quickly enough to open up the creature's throat.
Unfortunately it was not enough.
While the wound was horrific, it was not a killing blow. Blood flowed freely from were-wolf's neck and the creature clamped one hand tightly to its throat in an attempt to stem the crimson tide. With its other hand it batted Keldirk away like a rag doll and struggled to rise.
Keldirk rolled nimbly in mid-air, artfully dodging the small tallow candle on the floor. Without light, Keldirk knew he was dead.
The young assassin knew he only had one more chance. Pushing the pain aside and banishing the blinding stars from behind his eyes, Keldirk jumped forward. His lunge carried him into the rising were-wolf and he stabbed again. He plunged the blade deep into the creature's side. The Overseer howled in agony, but the cry came out as little more than a gurgling snarl. Once more Keldirk stabbed, this time driving the silver dagger into the were-wolf's back. The Overseer stiffened, and lashed out once with its clawed hands, before it collapsed with a thud. The creature's final slash had opened up a long series of cuts on Keldirk's chest that sent the young assassin crashing to his knees, gasping for air. He was unable to retain his sense of balance and Keldirk fell, knocking the candle over. Its wan light winked out and plunged the basement into a tomb-like darkness.
Keldirk lay rooted into place. Slowly he crawled until his back was against the wall, the dagger held tightly. The young assassin listened for any signs of movement from the Overseer but he could hear nothing. Nothing, that was, save for the pounding of the blood in his veins. In the room, the silence was as total as the darkness.
He had won.
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