Cold water splashed Parcival's face and he sputtered. Han held a opened water skin. He stood up and wished he hadn't. The pain flooded him and he passed out.

"Are you alive? Come on, my friend wake up!"

He felt his shoulder being patted but just wanted to go back to sleep, blissful quiet.

That patting again.

"Ten more minutes."

"You can't go back to sleep from the beating they gave you, you might not wake up. Sit up, now!"

Han pushed on his chest and rolled him back and forth.

Merryn. He had to bring her home, dad should be able to help.

Parcival opened his eyes.

"Here we go--again," Han said.

"Quite sick of this, after we find her again, there will be no further stops. Any more delays could be fatal." He ground his teeth and spat on the grass.

"Agreed. I can only heal so much, am only a third tier priest."

"As soon as possible, we are to go back to my home city. Those men must be dealt with."

He stood up and wobbled. Han moved over to help him, but he put his hand out in front of his face.

"No."

"Well, you'll just have to tell her then," Han said.

He shook his head. "We will just take her, the illness seems to be taking away any rational thoughts at times."

Han scowled.

They headed off to the West following the horse's tracks. A week passed the tracks vanished.

I still think she should not be trusted fully, given that she's a thief. They are a shifty lot."

"Yes, but thieves don't use prayers, there's something off about her."

Han jump onto the horse. "Trickery, she has a darkness to her, you just refuse to see it, blinded by a pretty face!"

Parcival pointed to a pathway that split off the main road.

Near the side of the road, a flock of sparrows landed, surrounding a rare blue Amarryllis. Some said they gave luck, she needed more that's for sure.

He bent down and picked it and wrapped it in a handkerchief. Han shook his head at him as he placed it in the horse pack.

The way her hair swirled in that first meeting came to mind. The way her touch jolted across his skin, and her voice soft and low. She's not evil, just rough and coarse at times.

"Fine. I'm not paying for your coffin though," Han broke him from his thoughts. His ears twitched and he looked at him. His feline eyes glinted with hardness. He didn't blame him, after all, she had tried to kill him earlier.

The long miles gave much time to think, too much, it was confusing another week passed before they found the pathway that lead to the town on the map, was a good investment purchasing one from the merchant in the last town.

Parcival crossed his arms over the chest for a while and then continued down the pathway. Another hour later, they came across a small town, this one had a sign at the end of the path.

Welcome to Badgervill!

Home of the Darker-kin law abiding need not enter.

Parcival and Han exchanged looks.

"Could be a good place to gather information," Parcival said. If they don't kill us first.

They pulled the hoods of their cloaks up over their heads as they enter the town. They try to blend in with the assorted riff-raff that milled about. A blond haired man sat on the barrels near the town entrance to the right.

The man had a startling wide scar. It started from his right eye down to his upper lip, two long Bagh Nakh on each of his hands. The Nakh were of two blades running down about four inches in length.

They pushed through a crowd as they entered a marketplace. He seemed to be trying a little too hard to act relaxed.

It took up most of the town center as it had vendors packed, booth to booth on both sides, offering their wares of clothing, carpets, weapons, foods, and exotic goods.

The vendor merchants had large gray hoods pulled past their faces hiding their features. Except for the eyes, that glinted with malevolence.

"Best watch our backs in here as well," Han whispered.

Parcival nodded and continued through. A young girl streaked out of a tented stall, running down the middle of the Bazaar, and collided right into Han knocking him over.

"Ooof!"

The young girl spilled a bag full of tiny egg shaped candy. Several rolled near Parcival's foot.

"Dang it girl! Cannot you watch where you are going?" said Han.

"I'm sorrys!" Turning her large brown eyes, brimming with tears up at him. "Don't beat me!" the waff said. She whimpered.

Han patted her on the back.

"Now, now, no one will do that to you."

The girl jumped up and grinned. "Thanks, mister!" she ran off past them.

He stood up with an amused look on his face. This disappeared, as he pointed to Parcivals waist.

"Your pouches are gone."

"Give me back my pouches you bilge rat!"

The girl was gone, she had disappeared as fast as she came.

The merchants in several of the stalls snickered. One that is close by, bent over his counter.

"That is Bolt, one of the best thief's in this town. You're lucky she didn't take your boots too!" he said.

"Gerr ... I guess so," Parcival said.

He stepped over to the merchant.

"Have you seen a tall Elven woman around here?"

The corners of the merchant's eyes tightened, and all humor drained from his face.

"One watches what they say carefully around these parts. Also, I find it is hard to remember things some days ..."

"Of course, one must be careful with what they say. I propose an exchange?" Parcival took off an emerald ring and slid it over.

"Perhaps, I have heard what some would say is a woman weeping, somewhere ... ah, my memory fails me so, please excuse this foolish old man," the merchant said.

Parcival reached out and yanked him over the stall, then leaned in close.

"That ring is worth over a thousand gold, take it or I'll pound the greed out of you." He let go of him.

The man snatched it up and waved them to follow.

"Come back here, quickly now."

Pushing back a long tent flap that is behind him. Parcival and Han step behind the counter into the tent. The man closed the flap. And, went to the other end of the tent undoing a button that held that end closed.

"This way, and be quiet, I will lead you to where I heard the weeping."

The merchant brought them down a long alleyway way between some houses and takes a turn to the left. They both followed him to the edge of the town. The man leading them stopped at a house that was at the end of the ally.

"This is the house. The men that live here just built this .... out of nothing. I would be worried about even entering such a place."

"Thank you," Parcival said.

As he turned around, the man had vanished.

"This place is unnerving the sooner we find her the sooner we can get out of here."

Striding over to the small house he knocked on the door. Hope she's still alive if she's even here.

Han mumbled something about seekers under his breath.

The door opened wide. Jason snapped his fingers.

Parcival tried backing up but was frozen in place. Han the same with a paw on a hip.

"Well, you two are refreshingly direct, stupid, but direct. Oh, spide-bun has your tongue? What is it? You both cannot move? Aww. Hey, boss, they came to the door just like you said they would!"

"Ah, a bit earlier than expected, but no matter. Bring them in here, and close the door," the guard from earlier-Maxwell.

Jason dragged them both inside and dumped them near a long table. Maxwell seated himself on a chair that floated into the air.

The table from the off kilter position Parcival could see was covered in scrolls, weapons, and jars of assorted animal parts. Along with Merryn's weapons, and pouches in a corner of the desk.

He floated down off the chair and looked at them shaking his head. A dry, sly smile spread across his face.

"You know, this day just gets better and better."

"I don't know what to do first, what with so many delicious ideas running through my head right now," his grin was unsettling.

How did he know we were going to be here?

"Humm, I could force her to watch you both die, and afterwords just barely keep her alive until she dies of old age," Maxwell said.

He paused for a moment. "Considering she is part Elven this would take ... quite some time. Or, I could ... let Jason take over. He has particularly good ways, to drive people to madness."

He sat down again and steepled his hands. He looked down at Parcival with a sly smile.

"I do not think you would like what he would do to your precious wench."

"Jason! Bring the wench up here."

Tossing him a ring of keys. Jason caught them and went down a hallway. Jason later carried up Merryn; her cheeks were sunken in and her skin once a warm permanent tan now ashen.

He winced at the faint cracks that webbed her once warm brown skin, it looked as thin as paper; about to break. Her head was hanging down, her once lustrous blue hair was a tangled into a dull mess that covered her face.

On her wrists a pair of shackles, that had an abominable dark red glow. Jason dumped her in front of Parcival. They will die by my hand, and their bones ground to dust and mixed in an unholy ground. For now, all he could do was glare.

Maxwell kicked her sharply in the thigh jolting her.

"Sit up now!"

She attempted to push herself up, but fell back down several times, before sitting up with her knees bent under her.

like a broken doll she fell back down several more times, before sitting up with her knees bent under her. Her head was still bowed, she made no sound. Monsters both of them. He tried again to move.

He knelt down next to Parcival.

"You'll wish soon you'd had stayed out of this."

Going over to Marryn he pulled her in an upright position.

"If you care for these men you'll tell them. If you do not I will hang them both above the city forge. While they cook like squealing pigs."

Her voice came out thin and raspy. "I will tell them. If you allow them to move. So they can talk."

She looked up through one slit of her hair at Parcival for a few seconds, her gaze was intense. She wanted something?

He rubbed his chin for a while, and paced back and forth, between the heroes to the fireplace. On top of the mantel was a thin long vile, and next to it was a syringe.

He uncorked the vile, and green gassy vapors wafted out of the top of the vile. He blew the vapors away, being careful not to breathe them in. He tipped the pointed end of the syringe into the vile, drawing up the green liquid.

He walked over to him and bent down.

"You know what this is? He asks him. The man's words caused his hair to stand up on his neck.

"Stop. I will tell them," she said.

Turning around, he looked at her through thin slits. Before turning again, Maxwell tapped Han and him on the solder.

He stood up, and went over to a bench, laid a wooly sheepskin on it before sitting down. He motioned to him.

"Go on, tell them," he crossed his arms, silent.

She still faced the floor. After a time she spoke almost too low to hear. "This isn't an infection, I am not ill."

"Then what is it?" Parcival said.

"I am a spirit adapt, able to call on them when in need. This is but one job my main purpose why-I exist at all is to carry the wretched god Unnamed to its death."

"What? Can't it be destroyed some other way instead of making you go through this."

"Not possible, I am the only vessel born this generation."

Maxwell poked her with a boot, "Finish it."

She shifted away from him. "Unnamed body was destroyed long ago, the way to destroy him is if he has a physical form again."

"Meaning?"

"For him to die, I too must die." She turned away and wiped the sides of her face with her hands. 

His chest pinched and blazed like a hot poker was jammed into it.

"No."

"That will do."

Maxwell leaned over taping Han on his head twice.

"What she didn't and can't tell you as they didn't tell her, is if the god isn't destroyed it will push her soul out and take her body. I couldn't think of a more satisfying revenge."

Han's face took on a look of shock. "Maxwell? The only one I knew of that name betrayed King Darathan a millennium ago!" who immediately froze again after speaking.

"No, that was my great grandfather."

Maxwell grabbed Merryn by the back of her head, forcing her to look at him, he held out the syringe in front of her face. Merryn stared at the syringe for some time, like she was in a trance.

The spark returned to her eyes, she burst up and snatched it, then jabbed him in his shoulder, breaking off the tip.

His hands shook from the strain of fighting the urge to throttle the man. Not yet.

"I can't believe you had the energy left to do that. Vile woman!"

Jason came running behind Merryn intent on skewering her with his spear.

Now!

Parcival jumped up and wrenched the spear out of his hands. "Merryn!"

Maxwell spun around tapping him on his forehead before he could even dodge away.

He then froze into place with both his hands gripped on it in an uncomfortable position pointing at an upwards right angle.

Maxwell grabbed her by her throat, and with his other hand started chanting.

A large black crackling portal opens in the room. "How many times must I punish you, before you submit?" He heaved her into the portal. The portal closed with a blinding flash.

Maxwell slowly dragged himself over to the table, pulling himself up slowly.

"Throw those two down into the cellar, I must make an antidote, and do not want to be disturbed!"

Jason silent picked up Han by his left arm and tossed him down the steps, where he crashed into the wall, landing on his side with a loud thump.

Going over to Parcival, he tried pulling out his spear, but was unable to; so he dragged Parcival and pushed him down to crashing into Han.

Jason locked the door and shut out the remaining light.