Ak'Jilah studied the entrance to the cave hidden deep in the forest. He heard of the many stories that surrounded the cave known as Blood Den and had to see for himself whether these were true or just rumor. He was perched in a tree high above the forest floor, undetectable by all but the most skilled hunter. He shifted slightly to regain comfort, but stopped short as he noticed movement at the entrance to the cave. A small Orcish boy stumbled out of the cave, blood dripping slowly from his neck and gasping for breath. Ak'Jilah watched on as he lied down and curled into a ball, pleading to Bhall, the God of Fire and sacred to the Orc race. Ak'Jilah considered descending from the tree to assist the boy when the boy sat up and surveyed his surroundings. The Elven assassin noticed something odd about the boy. His eyes were a pale blue now and his canines had grown slightly. Seeing this, Ak'Jilah felt a shiver run down his spine as he realized the rumors were true. Antia the Vampire Queen had taken up shelter in Blood Den and was feasting on the villagers of the nearby Orc village of Hezic'kul. He slid back closer to the trunk of the tree and out of sight as the boy stood and returned to the entrance of the cave. The boy looked around before entering the cave. Ak'Jilah considered his options with what he knew and what he had. He went back in his memory to when he visited Hezic'kul after hearing of the strange disappearences and bloody murders...
He entered the bar and looked around at the people inside. Goblins scrambled around, serving the Orc villagers with brandy and mead and cleaning any mess they found. Ak'Jilah sat at the counter and ordered a pitcher of mead and used his Elven ears to listen to the conversations around him. Most were of the work in the village, but a few concerned the reasons he had come to the village. After being given his mead, he wandered over to one of the tables discussing the murders. He sat in a chair and introduced himself to the Orcs that eyed him with suspicion.
"Do not worry, Orc. My name is Ak'Jilah and I belong to the Elven Assassin's Guild. I am here on orders from my superiors to look into the recent happenings and happened to hear you mention them. I don't mean to interrupt, but I was hoping you could tell me of what has happened here."
The Orcs looked at eachother as if considering whether to talk with the assassin or to bludgeon him with the large metal clubs that rested by their sides. After a few moments, a big, burly Orc began speaking to Ak'Jilah.
"Yes, we expected to see at least one of your kind around here. I mean no disrespect, I've served with many Elves in my time. My name is Thurnatos." He gestured to the Orc to his left, missing an eye and scowling at Ak'Jilah with suspicion. "This here is Rangar. He and I grew up together and have known eachother all our lives. Arawn, we were paired together when we exited the Warrens. He was involved in the Orc-Elf altercation a few months back and lost his eye to a well-aimed arrow. Do not mind his attittude as he still holds some contempt against your kind, but he warms to people quickly, especially after a few pitchers of mead." Thurnatos gestured to the younger Orc to his right, a thin, clean shaven Orc with a large scar running down the side of his face. "This here is Ruton. Me and him first met a few months back when wolves were raiding our trade routes and we were sent to mop them up. He payed his dues with blood and flesh as you can see by the scar on his face."
Ruton bowed his head to Ak'Jilah to which he returned the nod. "Unlike our friend Rangar here, I rather enjoy the company of Elves. As you can see, I wasn't born as strongly built as most Orcs so I took up the art of stealth. Maybe you and I can speak later about some techniques, if you're willing."
Ak'Jilah smiled slightly at Ruton. "Of course, I'd be glad to show you some techniques later, but I was hoping you could fill me in on the rumors surrounding this village."
Thurnatos grinned and down his pitcher of mead and ordered another one before turning back to Ak'Jilah. "So, you've come to rid us of our monsters, have you? Very well, we shall help you as best we can. We, too, came when we heard of the stories and have become quite knowledgeable in this village's problem. I guess we shall start at the beginning. Rangar and I arrived at this village shortly after he had lost his eye and we seeked out the local shaman for assisstance with his eye. In the meantime, we asked them about the problems. There have been many disappearances in the village. Several men, women, and even children have gone missing. Nine in total as of now. Along with the disappearances was the murder of poor Ingta. They found her body behind the granary, her throat torn apart as if by a savage animal. We've heard whispers that the Vampire Queen Antia is behind it, but as of so far we cannot figure out where she could be hiding. We would check the nearby forest, but we don't have the necessary supplies to investigate. Though, Rangar did see something interesting in the past few nights while on nightwatch duty. You may ask him if he'll tell you, but be prepared if he says no."
Ak'Jilah turned to Rangar and bowed his head. "I understand that you have some distrust towards Elves, but I promise I am not one of the kind that hurt you. The kind you faced were the Svartalfar, enraged that this village would not stop their worship of Bhall, believing that all Gods are anathema. I am of the Ljosalfar and I hope that calms your nerves a bit. I do wish for you to tell me of what you saw. Would you confide in me?"
Rangar's scowl softened slightly and he took a large gulp of his mead then looked Ak'Jilah in the eye. "Yes, I don't like your kind. Svartalfar, Hippus, or even the Ljosalfar, but as you've shown me respect, I will tell you what I saw. A few nights back I was on the watchtower facing the Dark Forest that borders the town. Halfway through my shift, I felt myself starting to become incredibly anxious. On edge, you could say. I started quickly when I heard a soft rustle coming from the forest. I peered over the side and saw a quick blur pass underneath the tower and into this very tavern. I passed it off as an Elf that simply wanted a drink and returned to my post. Shortly after that, the blur swooped by again, but it appeared to be holding something, like a small child. I jumped down from the watchtower and chased after the blur, but soon lost it in the dark. I returned to the village and informed Thurnatos of what I saw. Soon after we heard that a young boy was taken from his home."
Ak'Jilah processed the information that he just heard. Nine disappearances, a murder of a poor woman, and a mysterious blur that enters the village at night. The only plausible explanation could be that there was a band of Baron Duin Halfmorn's wretched offspring residing in the forest. If there truely were Werewolves in the forest, the town could be wiped out once their numbers got high enough. He turned to the only Orc at the table he hadn't questioned, Ruton. "Ruton, have you seen anything? Anything strange? Like a wolf acting strangely or heard loud howling coming from the forest?"
Ruton shook his head and looked back at Ak'Jilah. "No. I know what you are thinking and this is not the work of Werewolves. It's too clean. If it was a Werewolf, there would be more death and not as many disappearances. No, this sounds like the work of a Vampire. A powerful one, too. We've heard stories that the nearby Calabim city of Lacuna had been attacked by the Bannor armies trying to capture the Vampire Queen Antia. She released every Vampire she had and all captured prisoners and disappeared in the chaos that ensued. My personal belief is that she may have taken up shelter in the forest. There are several caves and old Frostling Dens she could have taken shelter in. However, she most likely chose the old cave at the base of the mountains known as Blood Den as her lair. I would check myself, but I have watch duty since the security around here has been hightened. Perhaps you could investigate?"
And so Ak'Jilah did and now he had his proof that it was Vampires. Maybe not the one they suspected, but Vampires nonetheless. He returned to the village swiftly and searched out Thurnatos. "I have found the source of the disappearances. There is a Vampire nest in Blood Den. I fear it may be Antia so I will need some assisstance in clearing out the cave. Would you care to assist me in this quest?"
Thurnatos thought over the proposition then bowed his head. "Yes, I will accompany you on this assault, but we will need more than just the two of us. I can assure that Rangar and Ruton will join us, but we will need a spell caster and possibly some more soldiers. We shall meet at the base of the watchtower outside the forest in the morning. I will recruit some of the soldiers here in the village. Now, go. Sleep. You seem exhausted and as skilled as you are, no man is immune to fatigue."
Ak'Jilah bowed his head and went to the local inn to rent a room for the night. As he approached the counter a hooded figure approached the assassin. "Greetings. I hear you come to our village to heal it of its wounds. You will need help and I am here to offer my services. If you are interested."
Ak'Jilah turned to the stranger. He could not see his face as it was obscured by his hood. "Well, it depends on what you can do. Would you care to introduce yourself?"
The stranger removed his hood to reveal an old, grizzled Orc that had a twinkle in his eyes that could only indicate strong magical powers. "Yes, I will. My name is Lanthis, head shaman of the village. Your friend Thurnatos has already spoken to me, but I was skeptical to your intentions, but I can tell you wish the best for this village. I am well-versed in the art of fire, healing, and powers of the mind. If you say yes, I will meet your group at the watchtower in the morning. Will you accept my offer?"
Ak'Jilah looked the old Orc over. He was mostly covered by his cloak, but he could sense a strong aura coming from the man. "Of course I accept your offer. We need all the help we can get and a spell caster of your abilities is more than welcome to join us on this venture."
Lanthis bowed his head, grinned, and slinked away up the stairs. Ak'Jilah watched as he left, rented his room, and headed up the stairs. As he entered his room, he closed the door and sat down on the bed. He removed his equipment and layed on the bed and shortly fell asleep.
"I know you are coming..I can sense you, feel you..You have no hope..Come if you must, but no one stands up to the Vampire Queen and survives..Come at your own paril.."
Ak'Jilah bolted upright covered in sweat. What kind of dream was that? No, it wasn't a dream. It was the Vampire, speaking to him in his dreams. He remembered it saying "The Vampire Queen" which led him to belive that it was indeed Antia, the Vampire Queen that escaped from Lacuna. He noticed the morning sun shining in through his window and stood. He put his equipment on and proceeded to the watchtower. As he approached, he noticed the group waiting for him was larger than he had expected. There were seven figures he could see from where he was. As he got closer he spotted Ruton and another young Orc at the top of the watchtower which brought the number to nine. He spotted Thurnatos, Rangar, and the old shaman Lanthis quickly. Thurnatos approached Ak'Jilah and bowed his head. "I hope you slept well for we will need your skills to survive. I have rounded up all that were willing to join us." He motioned to the young Orc that accompanied Ruton. "That is Arsis, long-time friend of Ruton and just as capable as capable as he is." He motioned to the four others that Ak'Jilah had not met. "The Orc with the battleaxe is Turin, a local soldier. The two Orcs to his right are Jessua and Kessua, twins skilled in the art of the spear. You can tell them apart because Jessua has a mohawk and Kessua does not. The last one with the bow is Aethil, master marksmen and also a local soldier. These are the men that will accompany us into Blood Den."
Ak'Jilah greeted each in person and then had them come together as a group as he addressed them. "I am Ak'Jilah. I am a representative of the Ljosalfar assassins guild. The guild heard of your plight and sent me to investigate. I have taken it upon myself to gather a group of the bravest to investigate the matter. I've located the source of the problem as being a Vampire nest in Blood Den." As he mentioned the word Vampire, he looked at the faces of each of the recruits and was impressed to see no fear in their eyes. "We have been joined by the village's head shaman Lanthis. We must keep him alive as he has the power to heal us and assist us from afar. Now, unless there are any questions, we need to head out. We need to reach the cave before dusk." There were no questions, so the ragtag group entered the forest and headed towards Blood Den.
As the approached the entrance of Blood Den, Lanthis stepped closer to the cave than the others. "I sense a powerful darkness residing in this cave. Ak'Jilah could be right and we could be facing the Vampire Queen Antia. We travel with caution."
The group took his words to heart and got into formation. Ruton and Arsis went ahead of the group into the cave to make sure the first chamber was clear. As soon as they gave the all-clear, the rest of the group entered the cave. They lit their torches and gazed about the inside of the cave. They were shocked at what they discovered. The walls were drenched in the blood of orcs, men, and all other kinds of creatures. Crude symbols were painted in blood on the walls and numerous blood trails traveled along the floor of the cave into one of the passages. Ak'Jilah studied the interior of the cave. It had a tall ceiling, almost 20 feet high. There were three passages. The first was the entrance in which they had just come through. The other two led deeper into the cave. Ruton and Arsis went ahead into the left passage and reported that it was blocked by a cave-in, leaving only one passage to go through. The team traveled slowly through the passage, led by Ak'Jilah and Rangar, followed by Thurnatos, and the Orcish spearmen Jessua and Kessua. Behind them were Ruton and Arsis on both sides of the shaman Lanthis. Taking up the rear was the Orcish axeman Turin and the Orcish bowman Aethil. They proceeded slowly and Ak'Jilah used his Elven eyes to take in his surroundings quicker than the Orcs. The passage was dark, lit only by the torches carried by Turin, Lanthis, and Rangar. Blood dripped from cracks in the wall as if there were giant deposits of blood built up behind the walls, waiting to burst. They entered into another chamber, but this one was bright than the other as it was lit by candles. The candles were placed in skulls that were stuck on pikes sticking out of the ground. The group looked around nervously and proceeded with caution.
It was then that Aethil noticed a dark figure slinking behind the group 10 to 20 feet behind them. They all turned to look and it stood to its full height. It let out a loud roar and lept at Aethil, trying to bite at his neck, but was torn off by Turin. Turin approached the fallen creature, but was floored as it lept on him, dropping his axe and torch in the process. It bit down deeply into his neck and blood poured from the wound. Arsis ran for the creature and buried his dagger up to the hilt in its back, but it only angered the creature. It swatted Arsis away and bit back down into Turin's neck, drawing more blood. Ruton rushed towards the creature and jumped onto its back, slashing at it with his dagger as Rangar and Turanthos attempted to release Turin from the creature's hold. Jessua threw his spear at the creature and successfully impaled its skull. The creature fell limp and was thrown off Turin. Rangar checked to see if Turin was still alive and, after confirming that the axeman had died, they turned to look at the dead creature. Jessua pulled his spear out of the creature's skull and Thurnatos picked up Turin's fallen torch and held it up to the creature. It was an Orc. Lanthis approached it and examined the creature. Its eyes were a pale blue and its canines had transformed into fangs.
Lanthis turned to the others with a grim look on his face. "This man was changed into a Vampire. We must burn it as well as Turin as he could become one at any moment." Ak'Jilah turned to look at Turin and noticed he was standing. He let out a shrill scream before an arrow pierced his skull and he fell to the ground. Aethil grimaced at the dead Turin and turned away. Thurnatos and Rangar dragged the Vampires to a small crevice in the side of the passage and Lanthis used his magic to set their remains ablaze. The group stood for a few moments in front of the make-shift pyre. Ak'Jilah's Elven ears soon picked up the sound of something scrambling closer to the group. Soon the entire group heard it and turned to face this new foe. Lanthis lit a ball of fire in his hand and held it up only to reveal a large mass of Vampires racing towards them, scrabbling and crawling over eachother to get at their prey. Thurnatos and Rangar ran towards the mass of Vampires as Aethil began firing arrow after arrow at any clear shot he could find. Thurnatos swung his sword into the Vampires, beheading them and then turning to the next. Rangar swung his mace around him and connected with a Vampire's skull, crushing it into a bloody pulp. He threw the carcass in front of more oncoming Vampires and rushed towards them. Jessua and Kessua entered the frey as soon as Ak'Jilah did and began cutting and stabbing into the Vampiric nightmares that surrounded them. Ruton and Arsis remained behind, fighting off the few Vampires that got through the others to protect Lanthis. Ak'Jilah got lost in his rage and soon began to fight on instinct. Stab, turn, slash, dodge, stab again. He could hear the others fighting their own battles and saw Kessua fall under a large writhing mass of Vampires. Lanthis extended his hand and set the pile of Vampires ablaze with Kessua still underneath, killing them all in a single action. As the last Vampire was killed, the group assessed the damage. They had lost Kessua and Jessua had been badly wounded. Ranger had a large gash on his forehead, but was otherwise unharmed. Lanthis approached Jessua and began the rituals to heal him, but he died before the first ritual could be finished.
The group was back in the first chamber, sitting on various rocks and outcroppings. They were all thinking about what had occured. Only an hour into their assault on the cave and they had already lost three of their members. They all looked to Ak'Jilah for guidance, but he had nothing he could say. He had never seen so many Vampires in one nest in his entire service to the assassins guild. All they could do was continue on as they must have killed a large number of the Vampires that were hiding in the cave. They passed through the chamber filled with the carnage that had ensued just a few minutes before with hesitation, wary of any of the fallen members to rise and attack them as Turin did, but none did. They were dead, Lanthis had seen to that. Ak'Jilah and Rangar took up their positions at the front with torches, followed by the bowman Aethil. Arsis, Lanthis, and Ruton followed them and Thurnatos took up the rear with a torch. They advanced slowly, looking around every corner before going around it and checking behind them regularly to avoid another sneak attack. The passage began to slowly descend into the earth as they went deeper and deeper into the cave. Ak'Jilah extinguished his torch so he could use his Elven eyes to see through the dark shroud around them. He stopped the group silently as he noticed several forms lying in crevices carved out of the cave wall. He approached one slowly as the rest of the group remained at the entrance. Step by step, he got closer to a young female Elf whos canines protruded from her mouth and rested on her bottom lip. He removed his dagger from its sheath and plunged it into her heart and felt her breathing stop. He motioned silently for Arsis and Ruton to advance and dispatch the rest of the Vampires sleeping around them, unaware that the Vampires they had left to protect them had fallen. Ak'Jilah realized these must be the elite Vampires in this nest as only the most powerful get their own sleeping area. He noticed that three of them were empty and realized that they must be awake and deeper in the cave.
As the last of the elites were dispatched, Ak'Jilah turned to the others. "Three of them are missing and are most likely further in the cave. We seem close to cleansing this cave so we must move on. There can't be many left."
The group returned to their formation and continued through the passage. The ground began to level out, as if it was the last level of the nest. They advanced slowly, aware that there were three elite Vampires prowling around them, as well as the Vampire Queen Antia awaiting them. They entered a large chamber lit by the skull torches they saw before. This chamber was brighter than the others and had two passage leading forward. The group settled down on some rocks as Arsis went down the left passage and Ruton went down the right. The group waited nervously, looking around them waiting to see a Vampire lunge at them or crawl out of a crevice to attack them. Time seemed to move slower as they waited to hear from Arsis and Ruton. Arsis returned shortly, but there was no sign of Ruton. The team decided to go down the passage Ruton had taken to find him and soon came across his mangled corpse. It must have been a quick death as no one had heard a thing. Neither did he, it would seem, as his head had been removed and rested 3 feet away from his body. Lanthis performed the rituals to set the corpse aflame as the others peered around cautiously for Ruton's killer. They then heard Arsis scream and the group turned to find him suspended in the air, held there by a tall Orc that had sunk his teeth deep into his neck. Aethil shot an arrow in Arsis's skull to relieve him of a brutal death and began firing more arrows at the large Orc. The Orc Vampire roared loudly and swung his fist at Rangar. Rangar swung his mace around to meet the Vampire's fist and shattered the bones inside the Vampire's hand. The Vampire barely noticed his now mangled hand. It roared again and advanced on Rangar, backing him up to the wall. Thurnatos lunged at the Vampire and sunk his sword into the Vampire's side, but was swatted away and slammed into the side of the passage. The Vampire roared again and Rangar roared in return and ran towards the large creature. He swung his mace at the creature and connected with its ribs and heard a loud crunch as they collapsed under the force of the swing. The Vampire roared and back away as he began to feel the pain of the sword in his side and the broken ribs on the other. It pulled the longsword out of its side and swung it at Rangar, slicing his arm open. Rangar swung his mace one-handed only to miss the Vampire and receive another swing to his leg. Rangar felt to his knee and roared at the Vampire. The Vampire swung the sword at Rangar's remaining arm and severed it above the elbow. Rangar watched his arm fall to the ground then felt pressure on his head. The Vampire had grabbed Rangar's skull with his remaining hand and began squeezing. Ak'Jilah lunged onto the back of the Vampire and stabbed into its back repeatedly with his dagger only to be thrown off as Thurnatos was. Aethil fired an arrow at the Vampire but only caught its shoulder. Rangar screamed with pain as his skull began to buckle and then fell limp in the Vampire's hand. Thurnatos regained conciousness, picked up his longsword, and swung at the Vampire's head, severing it completely and barely avoided the Vampire's falling body before falling unconcious once more.
Rangar's broken body lay burning on a pyre built by Thurnatos, who had demanded he be allowed to set his friend's soul free himself. Ak'Jilaj, Aethil, and Lanthis looked on as Thurnatos bellowed a loud roar in honor of his fallen friend and looked to the others. "He..He was my best friend..This witch, this vermin! She will die. She will die as well as the rest of her wretched offspring. I will see to it myself..You may flee from this battle, but I will see this through to the finish." At this he continued on through the passage. Ak'Jilah looked to Lanthis and Aethil and nodded as they hurried to catch up with Thurnatos. They walked down the passage using all their senses to seek out the remaining Vampires. A Vampire reared up in a crevice and shrieked at them only to burst into flames at the hands of Lanthis. It fell to the ground and writhed in pain as it was slowly engulfed in the flames. Ak'Jilah realized this only left two Vampires to kill that they knew of. An elite and the Vampire Queen Antia. They continued a little slower, realizing they must be reaching the main chamber of the nest. Ak'Jilah spotted a large Vampire standing at the exit of the passage. Aethil quickly dispatched it with an arrow to its skull and they passed over its body into the next chamber. It was by far the largest. Several bloody and mangled corpses lay strewn about the chamber floor. There were more symbols drawn in blood on the cave walls. Cages hung from the ceiling with the rotting corpses of what Ak'Jilah could only guess to be mortal prisoners that died long ago. And at the end of the chamber was a large throne carved out of stone. Sitting in this throne was a female Vampire, smiling at them as if pleased that they had arrived. Ak'Jilah would have considered her beautiful if not for the pale skin and bloodsoaked dress she wore. Her blonde hair was stained with blood and her fangs protruded from her mouth as she smiled at them.
She looked them over one by one and laughed seductively. "Ah, the valiant heroes. Here to save the day and kill the evil that plagues a village. The village is already mine. You may have destroyed most of my minions, but I am more powerful than any of them. Even my dear Lanthis." At that, a large Orc Vampire approached from behind Aethil and swatted his head off before he could react. His head bounced off the cave wall and rolled on the ground. Thurnatos turned to look at this new Vampire and noticed that it was Lanthis, the shaman that had accompanied them through this expedition. He laughed at the shocked looks of Ak'Jilah and Thurnatos and rushed towards them. They both dodged his oncoming attack and Thurnatos swung his blade at the Vampire's leg, slicing it open and causing the creature known as Lanthis to stumble. Ak'Jilah pulled out a throwing knife and threw it at Lanthis, only to have him swat it away. He formed a ball of fire in his hand, but fell to his knee as Thurnatos sank his blade into his leg. Lanthis closed his fist around the ball of fire and his fist burst into flames. He swung his fist around and caught Thurnatos in the chest, breaking his ribs. He grabbed Thurnatos's head with his flaming hand and lifted him up until he fell limp and threw him to the ground. Lanthis looked around for the Elven assassin that had slipped away during the short battle. Ak'Jilah pounced onto Lanthis's back and plunged his dagger into the back of his skull, killing him instantly. He pulled his dagger out of Lanthis's skull and turned to the throne to confront Antia only to find her missing. He sank back slowly, looking around in the darkness trying to catch a glimpse of her. He gasped as he felt a sharp pain in his neck, but felt no urge to fight back. He felt calm, comforted. He was content and felt a soft touch on his chest as he began to slowly lose conciousness. He could feel his blood pouring down his neck, but could only think of the comfort he felt. Eventually, he fell limp and closed his eyes as his world turned to black.
Ak'Jilah stood up slowly, careful not to stumble. He was thirsty..Very thirsty..He looked at his surroundings and found himself on the edge of a forest. He couldn't remember how he got there or why he was there, he could only think of the thirst he felt. He saw a small village inhabited by Orcs outside the trees. They looked so good..And he was so thirsty.
