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"The Purple Onion," Randyll muttered to himself as he looked up at the tavern. "Well, I'm hungry

enough."

The second he stepped through the dooray, he sensed trou!le. is shoulders tensed, and his hand edged

toards his concealed dagger. Warily, he strode to the !ar. Six thugs, he thought to himself as he scanned his

surroundings. #ame company, all fat, ugly, and drunk. Oh, and look, they're all sitting ne$t to me.

%es, as soon as he sat don at the !ar, the si$ arranged themselves near him. The !artender thre a

glance at them, then looked aay.

Randyll cursed himself in his fiery train of thoughts. e didn't kno hat set him out from the rest &&

aside from the fact that he as ne. lone. e asn't e$actly the !iggest either.

"le(" he called. Immediately, the !artender slapped a clay cup in front of him and scurried off to a

safer distance.

The ale tasted grate, and Randyll might've en)oyed it if he didn't feel one thug's disgusting !reath on

the !ack of his neck.

"*ight ant to consider handing your purse oer here," a lo voice groled.

"nd hy ould I do that+"

The thug and his friends arranged themselves closer around him. Three sat, one !ehind him, and to

gloering at him from the corner of his eye.

"I'll give you si$ reasons," the same thug said. is companions smirked ugly grins and laughed. Randyll's

hand clenched angrily around the clay !efore him. e sensed a hand reahing for his shoulder, and !efore he

could think, he hirled around and smashed his cup into the side of his aggressor's head ith such force that

he shattered the clay and sprayed the !ron liuid to all four corners.

-rynden had atched the entire scene unfold. The man ho had alked in as tall, ith unruly !ron

hair. e didn't get a good look of his face, and the man had covered the rest of his physical features ith a

cloak. oever, -rynden recognied the ay he'd alked && hungry, thirsty, and cautious tinged ith a sliver of

fear. e definitely didn't e$pect him to take on si$ oafs like the one in the room.

The stranger handled himself ell, hoever. #ome ale splattered near his !oot from the no&shattered

cup, and the man striked to more sharply !y the time the knight looked up. /udging !y their reactions, the

man pro!a!ly ould've knocked them out if it eren't for his eakened state.

0nfortunately, for the loner, his sift and sure moves ere getting sloer, his strikes softer ith much

less effect. Of course. e as tired from a long day's travel, he'd gone on for ho&knos&ho&long ithout a

decent meal, and he didn't finish his drink either. When one thug managed to deflect coming !los and

smashed his fist into the loner's gut, -rynden couldn't help !ut feel a pang of sympathy.

When the man as knocked don and pinned don, -rynden found himself crossing the room in fe

steps and pulling to thugs off the man !efore smashing their heads together, )ust !efore kneeing another one

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leaping at him in the groin. #hoving the others aside, he uickly pulled the stranger off the floor. "-ehind you("

he yelled. -rynden turned to see one man rush toards him, a sord that came from nohere he'd seen rise

high a!ove and ready to cut him don. e as already e$tremely close, and -rynden didn't have enough room

to sidestep the !lo. Instinctively, he raised his left arm to !lock the !lo.

Crack

Pain lanced up his left arm, and -rynden looked don to see his used armor dented... and ith half of

the atacker's !lade on the tavern floor, !roken clean off.

Roaring, -rynden uickly connected his right armored first straight into the side of the frightened once&

sordman's head, and kicked him !ack straight into his friend ho had )ust tried to get off the floor, diy.

Turning, -rynden itnessed the man he'd help slam into the stomach of another man and thro him

over his !ack. Turning to face -rynden, the stranger )erked a dagger from his !uilt and thro it in his direction.

#urprised, -rynden sidestepped it, and as even more surprised to atch it sink deep into the !are arm

of another ruffian ith a raised chair, ready to clo!!er him. #creaming in pain, the man attracted the attention

of his friends ho rushed forard to help him. Wincing ith pain, -rynden grasped at his !ad arm out of ha!it

as the others scurried out the tavern ith their ounded companion. s soon as the doo slammed shut !ehind

them, cries of cheers and laughter rang throughout the room, and !artender *ort came out laughing, holding

several tankards. "ll ale on teh house for the rest of the night(" he announced, draing out even more

enthusiastic cheers from the crod.

-efore he could speak to the stranger, *ort placed his hand on -rynden's shoulder. "1et's look at that

arm of yours," he said uietly.

"I thought I recognied your face," said a voice. -rynden looked up. *ort's ife had taken him into the

!ackroom, and made him take his upper armor and garment off and tended to his fractured forearm. In the

dooray stood the !ron&haired tall man ho as still ore his heavy dirty cloak, making -rynden feel

foolishly underdressed for a !rief moment. The stranger stepped forard and stared at -rynden. "1et's see...

#hort hair, !lack !eard, gray eyes, sharp nose accompanied ith a heavy )a. Oh, and ho could forget that

huge !ear cloak of yours that still !arely fully covered your half&giant sied !ody."

"I'm sorry," -rynden said, confused. "2o I kno you+"

The stranger smirked. -rynden noted that it carried more dark humor than he as used to in a smirk.

"Right, I forgot. The last time you sa me..." the stranger took a red piece of cloth hanging from his !elt andtied it around his mouth, forming a !andana. "... I pro!a!ly looked something like this.3

#canning his face, -rynden's eyes idened ith realiation. #uddenly, he as reminded of cleaner,

!etter&kept short !ron hair covering the head of a ell&!uilt man in a deep oodsland, accompanied ith

cunning green eyes full of malicious humor. The man had ore dark garment ith the sigil of to crossed

!loodied ara$es && the infamous gar! of a plundering !andit gang in the Redynne regions. 4o, his face as

covered ith the asme red cloth, !ut -rynden could still sense a smirk underneath it.

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*ort's ife uickly finished her ork and scurried out. #he ouldn't dally any longer. When -rynden

looked over the !andit's shoulder, she noticed her hispering urgently ith her hus!and.

"2o you remem!er me no, #er alf&giant+"

"What are you doing here+" -rynden hissed, his shoulders tense. e stood and straightened to his full

height, staring don hard at the man !efore him.

The !andit tugged the cloth off his face. "I onder hat happened to your courtesies, my lord. *y

name is Randyll, and I remem!er yours !eing -rynden." e ent to sit in *ort's a!sent ife's chair, -rynden's

eyes never leaving him. "s for hat I'm doing here... Well, I'm not part of the Red untsmen anymore." s if to

prove his point, he tossed his red cloth into the hearth !eside them and atched as it as eaten !y the flames.

5or a single moment, his deep green eyes glinted dangerously. "oever, if I do see one of those !astards

again, I'll put a !lade in his heart." e then leaned forard. "%ou saved my stupid ass, not let me repay the

favor. I don't kno hat a fancy knight is doing, frolicking through dangerous oods at night and !reaking his

arms in !arfights, !ut I do kno this3 e are !oth alone, e !oth need help, and e !oth have a goal in mind. I

can see it in your eyes."

-rynden sat don, !ristling. "nd hat makes you think I need your help+"

Randyll snorted. "Please. If it eren't for me, you ould've gotten a chair !roken over your head, and

you ould have more than a !roken arm to orry a!out. nd if it eren't for you, I'd pro!a!ly ould have had

the my skin !eat off me. 4o, hatever you have in mind, I'm sure I can help you ith it. nd I kno you can

definitely help you ith hat I need." e then took off his right glove and put his !are hand out for a shake.

"What is it that you have in mind anyay," -rynden asked, his hands in his lap.

"6illing every last untsmen I come across," the e$&!andit hissed.

"nd hy should I !elieve you+" -rynden asked. "Or trust you+"

Randyll shrugged. "We're not so different, you and I." When -rynden snorted in dis!elief, Randyll ent

on. "We're !oth alone, like I said. We !oth need help. %our arm is !roken, and I dou!t you'll !e a!le to do much

on your on, and neither can I. *ay!e you can't trust me no, !ut take no folly in hat I have to say, for at the

moment, all I care a!out is killing those untsmen."

Randyll stared at his hand. "I don't like !andits." Randyll laughed. "4either do I( We already have more

in common than e kno. -esides, I think e can kill more !andits together."

"I'll atch your !ack if you atch mine," -rynden said.

"2eal," Randyll smiled and met -rynden's hand ith his on, forming a !ond of alliance.

7

"Where is it you are taking me+" *ilos asked *ercer as he as lead through the dark corridors.

"#ome place you can tell no one hen e're done," muttered *ercer, his tone tinged... #orro+

1onging+ Pain+ That as something the older man couldn't tell.

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*ilos hesitated, then, "What a!out -rynden+ -ethany's !roken a!out it, of course, !ut hat a!out

you+ What are you going to do a!out it+"

*ercer stopped and turned to face *ilos, the torch in his hands splashing liuid fire on teh alls. "I

intend to find him and give him a trial.. Then release him and find the true murdereds and crminals !ehind

these heinous acts."

"%ou do not think he committed these crimes, then+

*ercer snorted. "I kno he didn't. 4o, if you're done uestioning me a!out the o!vious, let's move

on."

When the stopped at a stone dead end ith an unlit torch on a circular tile in the middle, *ilos

e$pected his companion to simply light it. Instead, he as surprised hen *ercer reached for the unlit torch

and, o!viously, failed to tist it horiontally. *ilos atched him in confusion. "*y lord&&"

"*ilos, I'm not a fool, I kno hat I'm doing. I )ust need to..." *ercer angrily handed his torch to *ilos

and and gra!!ed the second ith !oth hands and tried to turn it a fe more times !efore giving up

e$asperated. "8urse it. *ilos, hand me that torch, and you try to turn it. %ou're stronger. 8lockise. full turn

should do it."

"*ercer, it's !olted to the all, and the circular tile is sealed&&"

"/ust do it."

2espite his many dou!ts, *ilos did as he as !id. Reluctantly, he handed over the lit torch and reached

for the one on the all ith !oth his hands and put his strength !ehind them, forcing the torch to turn sloly...

*uch to his surprise. The circular tile !eneath it turned sloly, its torch as its lever. When he'd turn it

completely, he stepped !ack and looked at *ercer. "I stand corrected."

*ercer nodded && he rarely smiled&& and placed his free hand on *ilos' shoulder. "4o atch."

To his fascination, the all pushed itself in sloly, and then slid to their left, revealing an even darker

corrido.

"o did you find this+" *ilos asked as they moved forard.

"%ou kno that even though our elders advised against it, you, my !rother, and I andered these

corridors hen e ere children," !egan *ercer. "One night, I ent alone, and found that all. 9ven then, I

had a feeling something as off a!out it, !ut I never found out e$actly hat it as until no. Those many times

I found myself alone ith the keep's li!raries and records eren't for aste. I have found many rumors and

proof that proved those rumors true."

*ilos reached out and touched the all on his right ith his finger. e felt a thick layer of slime, and his

finger slipped off. "Where e$actly does this corridor lead+"

"One of to things," *ercer replied.

"nd they are+"

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*ercer turned to face him, !ut continued alking. *ilos thought he sa a flash of dark humor in his

gray eyes, !ut it as left uickly. "Possi!le death, or..."

Oh, good. Possi!le death and "... What else+"

*ercer nearly smiled. "The famed 6eep of the :riffins. The half&earth&su!merged palace that as said

here my house founder first discovered and raised his griffins. 8an you imagine+ If it ere real..."

"The griffins of -lackmont haven't !een seen in thousands of years, *ercer."

"If I didn't think e ould at least find the remains of the 6eep," retorted *ercer, "I ould not risk our

lives and the time you spend to oo my seet -ethany."

*ilos cringed. e'd forgotten that *ercer as one of the fe ho kne a!out *ilos' affection ith his

sister. oever, he never forgot that if -rynden found it, *ilos ould have to hide for eeks in corridors like

the one he andered in no.

*ilos agered that the alk through the corridors took at least the !etter part of almost an hour and a

half. The corridors should've !een cold, !ut *ilos alked close to *ercer ;the corridors didn't offer much

space< ho held their torch, hich gave off its on armth. The hike as tedious, long, and mostly hot. *ilos

hoped it didn't end ith their deaths.

5inally the corridors opened to a large room ith an immensely tall and ide all that stalled their

trek. Its idth could've fit five gron armored horsemen riding !eside each other comforta!ly, and it as a!out

five storey tall.

*ilos didn't need another ord from *ercer. e could see the glint in his eyes. The all had to

griffins carved into the it, mirroring each other. The great !easts stood on their hind legs and faced each other,

fangs revealed. *ilos vaguely remem!ered a description like this. *ay!e once it as magnificent, !ut no it

as recked !y age and covered in dirt and dust. -eteen the carvings as a small, straight crack that *ilos

figured as a!out as long as his hand. When he stuck his longsord into it, he came to his hilt and still met

nothing resisting his !lade.

"Is this&&"

"%es," *ercer smiled. "The doors to the keep."

"I e$pected it to have... andles."

*ercer shoved his torch into a sconce on a different all. "It has its on special ay to open," he

replied, pointing to a !asin !uilt into the all ne$t to the doors that *ilos had so conviently missed. "oever,

its special ay is an offering && the !lood of a true -lackmont !lood." -efore *ilos could reply, *ercer dre an

ancient&looking, crude !lack&!lade dagger from his !elt. "8ut !y only nightglass."

*ilos' eyes idened. 4ot a sliver of nightglass has !een seen since 6ing ndrus of ouse 4ostrand,

5irst of is 4ame, as elected to clim! the nely forged royal throne of the united realms. %et hat as !efore

him as truly nightglass && *ercer did not )est a!out such matters. "Where did you get that+"

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"This isn't the fight time I anded !eneath the keep," *ercer said, gently touching a flat side of the

!lade. "I found this pretty little thing && and cleaned it, don't orry&& among others of his kind. It as full of

nightglass, *Ilos. I ished I'd !ought you to see it. -ut this, this is more important."

"What ill you do ith the nightglass+" *ilos asked *ercer as he stepped to the !asin.

"fter this, I'll send good and loyal men to collect the metal and set my !est and most loyal smiths, lead

!y *ikken, of course, to learn its secrets." *ercer turned his head to face him. "It ill also !e a very closely

guarded secret. nd so ill this." Thurning !ack, *ercer hovered his finger over the !asin. *ilos stepped closer,

and noticed a small o!elisk&shaped spire standing proud in the center of the !asin. *ercer uickly pricked his

finger ith the !lade and overturned his finger to drip his a droplet of his !lood onto the tip of the o!elisk, only

to !e pierced and slide don on the sides.

#uddenly, ith a rum!le, the entire room shook and smal de!ris fell from the ceiling. *ilos' uickly

turned to face the entrance in hich they came in, !ut dust uickly filled the room and soon there as nothing

he could see. #uddenly, the uake stopped. Then, as uick as it ended, it started again. This time, *ilos could

hear the unmistaka!le cracking of stone near!y, and *ercer cursing. This is it, *ilos thought. We're going to

get buried alive, with no one to follow our paths.

5inally, surprisingly, the shaking stopped for the final time. 8oughing, his eyes shut, ith one hand on

the all, *ilos felt a hand on his shoulder. e opened them, to see *ercer ne$t to him, the dust mostly gone.

e pointed !ehind *ilos, and he turned.

Where the griffin all had !een as an opening. *ilos stepped toards it, and he noticed incredi!ly

eak strings of light coming from it. e turned !ack to *ercer, ho nodded and snatched his torch from the

all !efore alking through the opening.

"-y the gods..." he hispered as he entered the room, gaping at the ancient onder !efore them.