Jackal Among Snakes

“You want to give us a ride?” Argrave questioned Durran.

“I do,” Durran nodded, spinning his wyvern scale helmet about in his hands. Up close, the armor was quite impressive—a coat of gray lamellar wyvern scales stretching down to the knees, held together with studs of what looked to be brass. His glaive was made of wyvern bone. It was done in the style of the southron elves. All-in-all, impressively armed.

Argrave crossed his arms. “Why?”

“You probably saved me from Titus,” Durran answered at once. “I owe you a debt.”

“I’d expect you to default on the first payment of any debt you got,” Argrave shook his head. “And it’s not ‘probably.’ I did save you from Titus.”

Durran laughed. “You act like you know so much about me. It’s a bit perplexing.”

Argrave stared at Durran. The man was obviously in better spirits—he couldn’t help but spare a glance at Garm.

“I know an uncomfortable amount about you,” Argrave nodded. “Your favorite color is gray… particularly when supported with burgundy.”

“Maybe that’s why I’m coming,” Durran suggested.

“Because your favorite color—”

“No, because you know so much about me,” Durran interrupted.

“There is something I don’t know,” Argrave confessed. “Your father. You said he was dying?”

“Well… he improved in time to dish out some spiteful, life-ruining nonsense, but yeah,” Durran nodded.

Argrave looked to Anneliese, and she nodded, confirming he was being honest. Argrave turned away. Did he just catch an illness randomly? It’s certainly possible… but it could be foul play, too. Argrave juggled the idea, but then realized, Does it really matter, now?

“How in the world do you know so much about me while being ignorant of common knowledge within the tribe?” Durran stepped forth back into Argrave’s sight.

“For reasons you couldn’t comprehend or codify,” Argrave snapped back to attention. “Listen… the place we’re going is very out-of-the-way.”

“That’s fine. It’ll be nice to have a last long voyage with my girl,” Durran looked to where his wyvern was. Some of the southron elf children played with the creature cautiously. “She isn’t mine. She’s the tribe’s. She’ll go back to the tribe when I set her loose. She’s still young, and she needs to have children. Not many females left living after the battle.”

“Finders, keepers, maybe?” Argrave suggested.

Durran was confused for a second, but he placed the meaning after a time and laughed lightly. “She’s a social one. She won’t last long away from the others.”

Argrave sighed. “Maybe you can get another, then, bring it too. I’ll take it.”

fly,” Durran turned his head back.

noted. “Happy to accept free transportation. I’ll need to get things together, secure

#####

They were only a few hours past sunrise, and the suns had not yet come over some distant mountains, keeping the black desert illuminated only by the pale blue light of

had been better illuminated, the only thing they’d be able to see better would be the eternal black dunes of sand. Not a bit of civilization could be seen in any direction, even from their significant height. To be

aren’t taking me somewhere secluded to do me in?” Durran shouted

I don’t think seclusion would be necessary,”

him, he saw Anneliese struggling with her hair—one of her braids had come loose, and strands of hair battered about everywhere. Argrave leaned in, shielding her from

said. “Perhaps I should cut it. Given how

a tragedy,” Argrave stated. “It looks

said nothing in response. Argrave turned

sure that nothing was amiss—the Wraith’s Heart was fine, the Amaranthine Heart still functioned, the Unsullied Knife still retained its power, and the Crimson Wellspring had

Black Blooded as Argrave had a thousand times more weight than it had in ‘Heroes of Berendar.’ Failure and success both promised to be monumentally emotional things. If Argrave failed, now… to say

he would be as eager to perform this surgery as Argrave would be to receive it. Such was his nature. Argrave was more worried about whether or not his companions

dunes and tapped

Argrave nodded.

spot, Durran,”

started to slowly descended, spurred downwards by its rider.

and he slid down the dune a bit in a sitting position. His Brumesingers abandoned him immediately, jumping to safety. Once Argrave came to a stop, he overlooked a

center of one of the pits. It wasn’t meant to catch

to his side, their golden eyes glowing. Apparently, they had much to eat here—plenty of souls drifting about, ready for feasting. Anneliese stepped up to Argrave, her own fox held in her hands. It quickly jumped down from her arms and watched the pits ahead, eating souls in silence

“Desolate,” Anneliese noted.

“Depressing,” Galamon confirmed.

finished the alliteration with an ill-fitting word, then sighed. “Now I’m thinking about Brium, that poet

is the treacherous path you mentioned?” Durran walked up, too, still holding his

a hole, any hole… actually, that hole, specifically,” Argrave pointed one out. “I’ve taken this

want us to jump into quicksand?” Durran

you wanted to

“If I have to tag

of that answer. Durran was whimsical, but not to this degree. He had a purpose, certainly. He wondered what Garm had said to the man—it had to be something related to that. Argrave wished to simply ask, but he feared he might make Garm

to relax his vigilance—especially not when he was at the cusp of becoming Black Blooded. Argrave liked Durran.

a word with Anneliese and Galamon, have them keep a closer eye on Durran, he decided with some measure of guilt. He felt paranoid. He wasn’t about to let guilt ruin months of blood, sweat, and tears, though. He wanted to trust Garm,

to follow, follow.” Argrave rose to his feet with a grunt. “But maybe I’m just a madman about to jump

genius and insanity are two sides of the same coin,” Garm commented. “Fortunately, you’re none too genius,

first,” Argrave said with

his backpack, unstrapping it from the wyvern’s back,

mean, the thing probably isn’t deep

path