He Who Dares...

Chapter 2: Preparation

The high noon sun beat down on the back of Livewire’s neck as he made his way north along the causeway. He had spent the entire morning journeying and was growing bored and numb from being on wolfback all day.

He rode under the blanket of stealth almost perfectly camouflaged from the various groups of marauding goblins and orc that littered the path to his objective… He had decided to first case the place out, because if this wizard was as almighty as Coireatie said, then he wasn’t about to run in all gun-ho. Afterall he was a Thief, not a Fighter…

It wasn’t until the beginning of sunset that he reached the turning for Bitter Point Valley, the road became a lot clearer and easier to navigate, but it was getting dark and dangerous to travel. He checked the map again and rode on around to the first turning where there was a campsite marked out… and where he would rest the night.

He dismounted from Diamond and watched for a moment as he wandered of down to the pool to take a drink… Livewire sat and studied the drawing of the Tome he had been given.

It was odd looking, bound in scale shards and had runes etched into the fancywork. He couldn’t make out what they meant, for they weren’t of elvish language, or even ancient gnomic… he had shown the picture to Karli too and she confirmed they weren’t sylvan either…

As he sat there he began to ponder on why Corieatie wanted it so badly. No matter how hard he tried to hide it his eyes always lit up when he mentioned the Tome, that night in the tavern… It was obviously of great importance… or some at least.

The temperature dropped dramatically as the sun disappeared on the horizon, only to be replaced with a cold fog which forced the hairs on the back of Livewire’s neck to standing attention! He began to shiver slightly as if the campfire wasn’t enough to keep him comfortable… but he silently enjoyed the cold night air, it made him feel alive and kept his senses sharp… which would be vital tonight, because who knows what lay beyond the front gates of the old wizards manor…

Livewire woke with a start! He heard a rustle and sat up instantly catching sight of something move in the bushes about 20 feet or so away to the north along the trail… He gave a blink and wondered how the hell he could have fallen asleep! Quickly shaking off he snapped up, grabbing his dagger in the process…

He stood there silent, poised and still… ready for the slightest fraction of a movement. It was early morning by the sound of the birds chorus, but still dark so he would have to play it more by ear than anything else… His eyes scanned the area ahead, his glance darted this way and that… to the trees, by the rocks, along the path dead ahead and back to the bushes… It was alone or with some very well hid comrades he assured himself bringing the dagger close to his temple held by the blade. His left arm judged the distance and kept him on balance as he stood there, carefully listening for signs of anything behind him, and still for whatever it was just ahead… “C’mon, C’mon… make a move dammit” he said to himself, fearful he had lost track of it altogether!

A good 10 minutes had passed and there was still no sign of a hostility… Livewire relaxed and gave a short sigh of relief… but it was at that moment the creature attacked!

It shot from its position in the tree and took a head dive straight at him! Giving Livewire just enough time to blink before he swung the dagger blindly and rolled to the right only just avoiding his head being taken off!

He stood solidly and ready to take another swing, but turning around he found the creature in a heap, trailed by a mark where it had landed and skidded to a halt, and unmoving. He got a little closer to examine what it was but from the size of its claws he wasn’t going to give it CPR in a hurry. Instead he backed off and picked up a metal bar from the framework of an old rotten cart by the roadside and proceeded to beat what ever shred of life it had out of it.

Satisfied it was far from retaliation he dared himself to get close enough to roll it over… but no sooner had he reached out, it de-materialised away into thin air!

“Just an Illusion…” he said, putting his dagger back into his boot. It seemed this guy didn’t care for houseguests and Livewire would have to keep on his toes if he wanted to avoid getting into that situation again.