Chapter 132
Chapter 132
Salzahar glared daggers at the leaving vampire from atop a ledge above the audience hall. He fidgeted with the hoop earing on his right side, chittering to himself while consider whether or not he should take the shot at his long-time rival now.
The plan to lead the dwarves over to Snagger’s position had been fumbled, utterly fumbled, and he’d been left humiliated while losing out on a huge amount of profit the dwarves had laid out for him and his crew. Now, in all likelihood, the dwarves thought Salzahar having betrayed them for his own people.
Ironic, considering he’d done quite the opposite only to be bastardized by this new vampire oddity. Salzahar could only helplessly watch while the dwarven attack squad he’d led to Snagger’s position had been demolished and eaten - and the sheer power this man had utterly dumbstruck him.
How could someone be this powerful? Salzahar had spent quite a lot of time thieving, sneaking around, assassinating people, and plotting - putting himself in a position to kill numerous others while they slept for meager amounts of XP points. It’d awarded him a grand total of 17 levels flat. He’d even say he was on the higher end of many of the rat-kin, or dwarves, and yet this ‘Riven’ had shown up out of nowhere to blast his plans to smithereens.
It irked him. Oh how it irked him.
“We kill-shoot Snagger, yes-yes?” Salzahar’s companion, another wretch of brown hair and buck rat teeth by the name of Brutis asked with a cocked crossbow.
Salzahar snarled Brutis’ way, pulling the bow out from sight of those below and slapping his bare tail against the ledge’s top. “Idiot-fool! Do you not think-care that brood-mother is here-now? She is powerful-strong, favors-coddles Snagger, and Mesha-kin too. She find-seek us out, kill-strangle us in cold-evil ways.”
Brutis frowned back with a half sneer of his own, but stepped back from the ledge with a nod. “Fine-fine. I want dead-kill soon though, Snagger-kin needs to be dead-gone before credit for ally-friends to Deepnest it goes. Should queen-mother see Snagger helping Deepnest kin-city again-now, he will take spot-place of you-us in the ranks-files of fighter-guards. And where is Chishish? Chishish-kin not here-be where supposed to.”
“Not know-see. Find Chishish-kin now. Go-come.”The two of them turned around, heading back into the tunnel from whence they’d come to watch the proceedings below and plotting together about their schemes. The tunnels turned a corner, seeing over two dozen of their closer co-conspirators waiting for them, and a shadow they did not notice trailed behind them with a shimmer of magic in the air as they passed.
“Wonder if Chishish think sly-cunning for Snagger-kin to reach fake ally-friends. Need assassinate-kill Snagger now before brood-mother tells-hails queen-mother. Can also murder-kill vampire bat-kin too?” Brutis asked, pulling out a silver bolt from a jacket pocket and glowering evilly at his compatriot while his little pawed feet scuttled along the hardened stone and clay floor. A dozen others in their band of cutthroats cackled or snickered at the thought of what they were going to do to their brood-mother’s favorite nephew, and if the vampire was collateral damage - so be it. Riven certainly wouldn't be the first vampire they'd killed after having such a long history of sharing the underdark with their blood-attuned brethren. “If bat-kin red-eyes is dead-gone, Snagger cannot get credit-value from queen-mother or brood-mother. Deepnest not need ally-friends from surface, we can win-kill dwarf-devils by ourselves. Yes-yes!”
Another rat-kin with white fur and a pair of goggles behind them raised two daggers high overhead. “Agreed-yes! Kill red-eyes bat-kin and-”
A flash of green light illuminated the tunnel in front of them, stopping them dead in their tracks mid conversation. It’d only been there an instant, but it was literally a beacon in the dark for that brief moment of visualization. It’d been some sort of sigil, and it’d glowed an eerie neon-green before winking out into nothingness once more.
“What that-that?” Salzahar said in a hushed whisper, drawing two obsidian blades from the sides of his belt. Others quickly followed suit, drawing their own cutlass, slings, and pikes out moments later.
Then Salzahard lurched to one side when another green sigil appeared behind them on the opposite side of where the first had, and his eyes went wide with confusion and fear. “What that!?”
Then they startled again, and again, ears up tall and hearts rapidly beating as sigil after sigil briefly flashed in the air on either side of them in the tunnel they stood in, until all went deathly silent.
A faint feminine laugh echoed through the lonesome, empty corridor - and the two dozen rat-kin went into a full panic. They screeched and bolted down the direction of the exit, skittish and afraid of the unknown, only to slap face-first into an invisible trap sigil that they’d not realized was still there.
The blast of unholy energy triggered other sigils nearby, and the tunnel erupted in an explosion of shrapnel and stone. Blood and body parts flew in all directions before being crushed under part of the tunnel collapsing, but the violence was short-lived and soon only dust remained.
At the end of the corridor, beyond the blast zone, Riven stood looking with a slight smile on his lips while slowly clapping at Fay’s performance. She let down the illusions, bowing and winking his way while he stared ahead at the destruction.
“Good job.” Riven stated with an unblinking stare, focusing on a limp hand protruding from the rubble; absentmindedly wiping away blood from his mouth to smear it across the rest of his face. “How hard was it to track them through the underdark?”
“Didn’t have a problem once you identified them, master. When we got to Deepnest, it was slightly harder… but only a few of the mages here noticed me and they all attributed my presence to you. Which was accurate, but it wasn’t any of their business and your other demons were already out in the open.” Fay perked up, wings spread out, and beamed with a brilliant smile that’d melt any man’s heart. “You were the one who noticed they were following you after the dwarves were killed. I should be congratulating you on being so observant.”
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Riven’s cold gaze turned, settling on the one these rat-kin conspirators had called Chishish. She was an older rat-kin mage based in some kind of Earth magics, though from what pillar she oriented towards exactly - Riven could not tell. A broken wand lay on the ground at her feet, and two other rat-kin who’d been with her lay headless and bleeding out on the stone floor beneath them.
The female rat-kin stood quivering, eyes wide and a long bloody claw-mark along one cheek where she’d been threatened earlier. Hesitantly and with a shaking voice, she looked up to meet his gaze where the blood of her comrades still dripped off his chin; and visibly gulped with an almost comically frightened expression.
“May I go-leave now?” Chishish asked, terror dripping from her words as she patted her brown, blood-splattered robes absentmindedly to nervously fidget. “I did as you-you asked-told…”
Riven’s crimson eyes flared and narrowed, and he reached down - picking the terrified rat-kin up by the scruff of her collar with one hand to bring the shorter creature to an eye-level gaze. “You did as you were told because I forced you to do so with a spell, you weak-willed little shit. Too bad for you: I don’t want to leave any loose strings that could harm my newfound friends… and you’re not needed anymore.”
In a blur of motion, Riven slammed the three-foot tall rat-kin into the stone wall with a violent thrust of his arm.
*CRACK*
Blood splattered all along the floor, Chishish’s neck loudly snapped, and he let her body drop to the ground like a limp rag doll. Then he stepped back, fangs exposed with a predatory snarl, and turned his head to grin at Athela. The demoness was evaluating him with raised eyebrows and crossed arms while leaning against the wall.
“I think we can safely assume that’s all of them.” Riven stated, licking his lips and stepping over the new corpse. “Burn them to cinders.”
Athela slowly nodded, watching the pooling blood on the floor coagulate before Azmoth stepped forward and began to clean up what remained of the murders. She glanced left, sharing a look with Fay - who just shrugged with a wide and proud smile, no doubt happy to be valued by the master and dwelling in the compliments he’d given her.
Though Athela wasn’t so sure this was something to be happy about. What had happened to the cute, virgin-like little man who’d been so easy to mess with and mean-mug back in the hellscapes? She’d noticed a subtle change in Riven ever since the elves had been dealt with, but this was a few steps beyond what she expected for him even after his lack of trust in others had developed.
Sure, his trust issues had pushed him to investigate the group of ingrates that’d decided to try and kill Snagger or involve Riven in the process - but it was borderline paranoia now. Even if he didn't outwardly show it. Not everyone was out to get him, but she could see that Riven was of a different mindset. He’d put off going to see The Blood Moon Requiem because he didn’t trust the intergalactic space vampires. He’d stopped the greenskins from participating in the war to help the Kingdom of Dawn because he didn’t trust the newfound humans. He’d summoned fay to follow shadows in the dark while cloaked in illusions because he didn’t trust Snagger or the rest of his kin at first, and even now he still didn’t.
It was an unhealthy mindset to have, in her opinion. But then again, after all he’d been through, she didn’t blame him.
Sighing to herself and pushing off the stone wall, she came over to where Riven was flipping through a notebook one of the rat-kin had been carrying that detailed their plans on assassination plots surrounding Snagger. It had something to do with an honored position in the queen-mother’s elite guard and was of little importance to Riven or his minions other than it’d almost swept them up in a murder plot.
Nevertheless Riven was going through it again and again to make sure he didn’t miss any detail, and was going to no doubt give it to Snagger on their way out of Deepnest.
“Riven?”
Riven shifted his gaze up to Athela, who’d come to stand with her hands folded in front of her. The casual arrogance she usually showed was gone, and in its place was… something different. It made him stand up straighter, taking her more seriously at a moment’s notice after all the time they’d spent together attached at the hip. “Yeah Athela? What’s wrong? Why are you giving me that look?”
Athela’s soft gaze let on a timid smile, and she let out a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding. Stepping forward and pushing herself into Riven’s personal space, she let her hands gently rest on the book in Riven’s hands - and her eyes sank down to his chest. “You’ve been going over that book like it’s an obsession. How many times have you read it now?”
Riven’s mood darkened. “I’m just being careful, Athela.”
“How many times?” Athela pressed softly, staying where she was and letting her fingers touch his.
He looked down at the physical contact, somewhat surprised, and let her words sink in. “Probably fifteen times.”
She nodded, but said nothing.
They stood there like that for some time, and Fay gave them a curious look while nudging Azmoth in the side and whispering something to the larger demon.
“You know…” Athela began, then pulled the book from his grasp and tossed it to the floor behind her. Turning back around, she slowly pulled him into a hug - locking her arms around his back and resting her head on his shoulder. “You may not trust others like you used to, Riven. But there will always be people who you can trust. Don’t let the world get to you just because of who and what you are. When you’re important, you draw the ire of other people who want to take you down a peg or completely get rid of you for no other reasons than jealousy, spite, or fear.”
Riven stood rigidly in place, almost in a state of shock upon hearing Athela’s genuine and heartfelt words while her warm body pressed up against his in a firm but kind embrace. “I… Athela, what are you trying to say…?”
She closed her eyes, heaved her shoulders with a deep inhale - and then slowly exhaled with a content smile while resting her cheek on his shoulder. “That I’ll always be there for you. Even if the world abandons you and tries to involve you in their plots and schemes, even when the gods and demon lords of the hells try to push you towards a quick death, I’ll stand by you. So don’t ever think that you’re alone, and don’t change the person you are just out of a fear that you’ll one day be betrayed by all the people you love. Because, Riven, you’d be wrong to think so. I will never abandon you.”
How Athela had known what internal emotions and struggles Riven was dealing with was beyond him. Why she’d decided to bring it up now was also beyond him. But her words resonated with his soul, and the awkward, rigid contracture of his muscles slowly softened as he felt a lump began to form in his throat. Slowly taking Athela back in an embrace of his own, he fought back tears and nodded wordlessly - focusing on the feeling of her body against his.
“Thank you, Athlela.”
She nodded, arms still wrapped around him. “No problem, twirp.”
They held each other for over a minute, just standing there while Fay gawked in surprise and mild amounts of jealousy, before Athela pulled back - stood up on her tip toes, and planted a long, drawn-out kiss on Riven’s cheek.
The arshakai demoness wiped blood off Riven’s face and wiped away a lone tear that’d begun to fall down his cheek, then brushed his hair back with her fingers and adjusted his hood. She gave him a pat on the shoulder, and smiled. “Don’t get the wrong idea about this, but come on. We have to get back to the surface now that you’ve done your exploring… we cannot help these rat-kin at all until we deal with our own problems topside. And, for the record Riven, I think I’ll be staying with you for a little while longer. Going into the underdark by myself, abandoning you right now, to search for those other vampires in the state you’re in is a bad idea. Maybe later, but right now - I think you could use a friend.”