And now for something completely different. Explanation is at the end.

“My Specter guts your Priestess. I win!”

Raden stared in shock at the makeshift Scrap board in front of him. Crudely drawn symbols in the dirt represented various terrain while differently marked stones marked troop positions. The board was predominantly owned by his blue pieces, yet they had been outflanked and outmaneuvered by the red pieces. The entire game had come down to one red stone trapping his blue one. Specifically, the one with a pair of horns painted on the top.

He was broken out of his examination by a giggle from the six year old girl that had so thoroughly crushed him at one of the most complicated board games ever made.

“But…how did you…”

“You left your flanks open. Like you always do.” She gave him a look full of false disappointment. “You’re not very good at this game.”

“And you’re not supposed to be good at this game!” After four consecutive losses he was ready to tear his fur out. “There are people who spend years learning this games BASICS! You aren’t supposed to be this good after three weeks!”

“Well maybe I’m not that good. Maybe you’re just that bad,” she said with an impish smile.

“Maybe you’re just annoying.” She laughed again which only managed to make him more annoyed. He realized there was no chance of him winning this battle and admitted defeat with a sigh. “How about we play a different game. One I actually have a chance at beating you at. And yes, those exist!” The little Skaven girl laughed all the harder at his expression, going so far as to roll on the floor. Like every other time she wasn’t looking, his eyes were automatically drawn to the two black horns growing out of her head.

“We could play dice.” At the sound of her voice, his eyes immediately snapped down to hers. As far as she knew, the horns weren’t a problem. He intended to keep it that way for as long as possible.

“Good idea. I don’t think I’ve taught you that one yet.” She shook her head which made him smile. “Maybe I could even win a few rounds before you master it.” She laughed again while he left to find the dice set their mother had carved.

He supposed they were lucky. After all, the cave they’d found was fairly large and dry. Better than some places he’d seen people living. And it was far enough from Sheol to escaped notice, but still close enough that scavenging wasn’t too difficult. He had it better than most people he knew.

Of course, most people didn’t have to keep their little sister hidden all the time.

He left the tiny alcove that served as their bedroom (though mat room would have been more appropriate), pulling aside the thick cloth they used as doors. The main room was filled with anything and everything they could use. Scraps of cloth or metal, old trinkets, assorted tools, anything they could beg, scavenge, or steal. They’d even found an old chair. One of the legs was missing, but they’d used a stack of ruined books to keep it level. It was hardly ever moved from its place beside the fire pit which wasn’t lit except to cook since wood was rare.

And it wasn’t like they needed the light. Skaven eyes could see perfectly in the bright sunshine of the surface or the pure darkness of the lower caves where light never touched. Or at least, that’s what he’d heard. Something about their innate magic and connection to shadows. He supposed it worked considering he could see, but-

“Having fun?” He turned towards the voice to see his father leaning against the wall. “Or did you get tired of losing.”

“No…yes…shut up!” He turned away, trying to hide his smile. “Where’s that dice set we have? I want to show Skeir how to play.”

“Really? Well…I guess you could win a few games before she masters it.” He forced himself to ignore the comment while his father snickered. “I think I left it behind the pots. If not then it’s probably under some junk somewhere.”

“Thanks.” He ran over to a large stack of cookware they kept near the fireplace. His mother had often talked about building some shelves to hold things like that instead of leaving it on the ground, but they couldn’t spare the material. He checked behind the stack and found one pot toppled on its side. Sure enough, he found a small cloth sack lying there. What it was doing there, he’d never know. His parents were weird like that.

“Lesk! Angra!” Raden’s gaze snapped to the entrance to their cave. Just outside, he could see Illic, one of his parents’ friends, running towards them at full speed. At the noise, his mother came out of their room and joined his father at the entrance.

“Illic, what’s the matter?” she asked him as he slid to a stop.

“Gerg just got back from the overlook! He saw Oulan with a PRIESTESS! She’s got an entire retinue with her and their coming HERE!”

For a moment, everything froze. Raden wasn’t afraid of much, you didn’t last long if you were, but this was the one thing that terrified him. That terrified all of them. The only reason they lived in caves outside of Sheol was to escape notice. Especially when things like Skeir were concerned.

Oulan didn’t like them. Not one bit. He swore they were cursed. Most of the other’s just left them alone, preferring not to get involved. A few like Illic and Gerg actually helped them, but for the most part, they were just a part of life most palecoats wanted to forget.

But the one thing that they all agreed on was this. The Clergy could NEVER find out about Skeir’s horns. EVER. If they were lucky, they’d just kill her and be done with it. If they were unlucky…

His mother said they couldn’t handle another purge.

“Dammit! I knew we should have killed him when we had the chance!” his father raved.

“It doesn’t matter now,” Illic said, trying to console him. “We don’t have time. She’ll be here any moment.”

“Raden, you know where to go?” his mother asked. He nodded. They’d gone over the plan hundreds of time. “Get the bag, grab your sister, and head for the Wilds. Don’t go too far in. We’ll come get you when it’s safe.”

He didn’t pay attention to the rest of what was said. It wasn’t important, he knew what to do. He grabbed the small bag hanging from the wall where it never moved. It had a week’s worth of food and water, a few supplies, and a dagger in case things went bad. After a quick check to make sure he had everything, Raden dashed back towards the alcove where Skeir was. The second he walked in, she looked up from the Scrap pieces she was rearranging and smiled.

“Did you find the dice?”

“No time, we have to go.” He grabbed her by the arm and dragged her over by the wall.

“Ow! That hurts!” She pulled her arm away and glared at him.

“Yeah? Well it’ll hurt a lot worse if we don’t get going now!” He dug his claws into a section of the rock and pulled it away. A long tunnel appeared before them, just large enough for him to fit through. He supposed they were lucky. Another year and Skeir would have to go alone.

“But…”

“Look,” he said, trying to sound calm. “I’ll explain everything later, but we don’t have time right now. Alright?” She looked confused and scared. He’d expected as much. The plan was to tell her as soon as she was old enough to understand, but they’d been putting it off. She should have learned all this months ago. “Just know that some very bad people are on their way here and we can’t let them see us.”

“So…it’s like hide and seek?” she asked with just a touch of excitement. Raden put on a false smile.

Whatever worked.

“Yes. A very important game of hide and seek that we CAN’T LOSE. Got it?” She nodded with a quiet laugh. Any fear she felt was either gone or hidden. “Alright. You go in first. I’ll be right behind you.”

“Where are we going?” she asked as she crawled into the tunnel. He followed shortly after, dragging the supply bag along. As he passed through the entrance, he grabbed the hinged stone with his tail and pulled it back to its hidden position.

“Hopefully, someplace they won’t follow.”

“You, how much farther.”

“Not far,” the white furred man squeaked. Kylar had to admit, the guy had guts. Most of them wouldn’t even approach a commoner, let alone a priestess. Especially one like his sister.

“Good.” She smiled to herself. A very specific smile. The one years of experience had taught him it was best to avoid or the blood about to be spilled might be yours. “Specter!” One of the rats following them snapped to attention. She was wearing full body coverings that hid everything save a strip of gray fur and her red eyes. “Go on ahead and make sure the vermin is telling the truth.” The woman nodded and ran off. “The rest of you, pick up the pace. I want this dealt with as quickly as possible.”

The twelve remaining rats went into a light jog, save Cali who seemed to move at whatever speed she wanted while maintaining an elegant stride. Appearance was everything to the clergy, same with tradition.

Which was why they were traveling into an area full of people who hated them with only six soldiers, a Plague Priest, a Specter, a Member of the Cloth, a Harbinger, the poor sod who told them of the girl, his sister ‘her reverence Lady Cali, member of the second level,’ and her brother. Him.

“Is this really necessary?” he asked her. She stopped fingering the gold chain rapped around her body long enough to give him a withering look.

“The High Priestess herself ordered it. Of course it’s necessary.”

“But why go through all this trouble for a six year old girl?”

“A HORNED six year old girl. Don’t forget that.” Her fists clenched subtly. “The fact that she was even allowed to live past her first hour is an insult to everything we believe in.”

“Everything YOU believe in,” he muttered darkly. One of the soldiers in front of him missed a step.

“What was that brother? I didn’t quite catch it.” Her tone made it perfectly clear how dangerous his thoughts were.

“You do realize that if she had a darker coat you would probably be presenting her with sweets right about now.” Thankfully she accepted the subject change with a short laugh.

“True. But she doesn’t. So instead I’m going to present her blackened skull to the Horned Ones.” The irony of her statement seemed to elude her. “At least I have a fun assignment for once.”

“You find this fun?”

“Of course! Taking a nice walk, stirring up the locals, adding a few more tallies to my kill count, it’s very refreshing. It’s even worth putting up with trash like this.” She motioned toward the betrayer (what else could he be called) which caused him to flinch, as though she could kill him with a wave of her hand.

She probably could, but he still thought it an overreaction.

“My Lady.” The Specter returned, dropping out of nowhere as they were want to do. Three of the less experience guards, as well as the excitable Rotter, jumped in surprise. The rest of them retained their composure. They were trained to after all. Except for the Cloth Bearer who was lost in her thoughts, muttering about the arcane. He always wondered what aspect of their training caused such distance from reality. And whether or not they were really shaved bare under those hoods.

“What do you have to report?”

“It is as this one says.” She motioned towards the pale coated man who once again flinched. “There is a large cavern at the end of this tunnel. Many of the white coats have made their home there. Almost like a little town.” She emitted a laugh that was far too cute for someone who knew as many ways to kill as she did. “It’s almost like they’re people.” The betrayer looked like he was about to say something, but wisely held his tongue.

“Good. All save the Harbinger and my brother shall go on ahead and prepare a perimeter. We shall follow in a few moments.” Kylar raised a brow in confusion, but said nothing. The others saluted and ran off, taking the very scared white rat with them. A few moments were spent in silence save for the Harbinger’s heavy breathing.

“Is there something you wish to discuss my Lady?” he asked, nearly choking on the last word.

“Hold him.”

Before he had a chance to react, the large, meaty arms of the Harbinger clamped around Kylar and slammed him into the wall. The magically modified beast of a Skaven let out a bellowing roar right in his face.

“Let’s get one thing perfectly clear,” the voice of Cali told him as she walked straight up to the ten foot beast and leaned against him. “I will not allow our family to be dishonored. No matter the cost.” The tip of her staff flared with something that could only be described as dark light as she placed it right under his nose. “Do not forget that you are a third child. Expendable. Just because you’re my brother does not excuse you.” With her threat made, she turned away from him and towards the village. “Do not forget what happens to dissenters.”

Kylar looked at the monstrosity before him. Its muscles flexed, showing off their unnaturally large size under thick, hairless skin. The thing stared into his eyes for a moment, allowing him to see the complete lack of intelligence behind them. Nothing but raw emotion tethered to the priestess than held its leash. It snorted once, letting its hot fowl breath assault his nostrils before dropping him and continuing after Cali.

He stared after the pair with barely disguised disgust. Still, she had a point. He had been lax lately, confident that she would not punish family. He’d forgotten that her station always came first.

He would have to be more subtle with his taunts in the future.

The young noble picked himself up and ran after his sister. It wouldn’t due to aggravate her more than he already had. He was reaching the boundaries of what he could get away with and to cross them was a fate worse than death.

Her reached the end of the long tunnel and got his first glimpse of the settlement that had supposedly sprung up here. A single white rat with a bow was sitting on a cliff, keeping her gaze intent on the surrounding area. She visibly relaxed when he came into sight. She probably counted out the party and was worried the missing member was about to stab her in the back. He paid her no mind and continued into the village.

The area where the outcasts had chosen to make their home turned out to be a large cavern with dozens of smaller caves carved out of the rock. Various pieces of rusted metal served as walkways, decoration, or as a makeshift defense. A large pool full of deep, black water sat in the center.

The entire population, anywhere from five hundred to a couple thousand, had gathered to watch his sister who so arrogantly walked straight into the middle of the pool to address them. An enchantment from the Cloth Bearer he guessed since he could see her meditating on the ground whispering words in the deep language under her breath. To the Clergy, visual power was everything. Which was probably why she had the soldiers form a circle around it, spears out. The Specter and the Harbinger idly circled the edges of the crowd, looking for trouble. The Rotter was standing in a corner giggling to himself. What thoughts went on in his head, no one wanted to know.

“I don’t have time for pleasantries and I’m only going to say this once,” she stared at them with the unique ability the powerful seemed to have where they looked at every single member of the audience personally and all at once. No doubt she was daring someone to interrupt her. “We are here to address the rumors of a hidden abomination. Where is she?”

A man, old but not frail, approached them. Kylar commended him on his ability to hold his head up high despite the obvious danger of the situation.

“We hide nothing. Your rumors are false. That’s all they are to begin with.” Now that was impressive. To lie in front of a Priestess was almost unheard of. Mostly because anyone who was foolish enough to do so died horribly. Cali however, just smiled and motioned Kylar and the betrayer forward. They did so, him much more calmly then the terrified man beside him. He almost felt bad for him considering nearly every single person here was staring at him with open contempt.

“That is not what your friend here told us.” She grinned menacingly, knowing she was signing his death warrant. “Tell them what you told us. Might refresh their memory.” He winced and began to stutter. After a moment of this, Cali grew tired and struck him across the jaw. “Do not make me ask again.”

“Her name is Skeir!” he shouted. “Her parents are Lesk and Angra. She has a thirteen year old brother named Raden. They live in a small alcove behind the wall there.” He pointed to a few sheets of rusted metal that served as a makeshift gate.

“And what about her is of interest?” The man was silent for a few moments. Kylar was sure he could feel every ounce of the hate that was directed at him for bringing such danger to their home. Finally, he broke down and spoke in little more than a whisper.

“She was born with horns.”

“There. Now that wasn’t so hard was it?” The look he gave her might have fazed a lesser Skaven, but Cali just laughed. “It appears you have a choice to make,” she told the old man. “I am under orders to begin a purge if I find you are being uncooperative.” The fear that entered the cave was so intense that Kylar swore the temperature dropped. “So what will it be? One family or all of them?”

“I will lead you to them,” he said without hesitation. It was the only decision. Threats made by the Clergy were never idle.

“Mistress, that will make us one too many,” the Specter piped up.

“True.” She turned her gaze to the betrayer. “I guess you’ll just have to stay behind then.” For the poor man, it might as well have been a sword to the gut. He merely nodded and stared at the ground. “Good. Take us there.”

“Follow me,” he said, letting one last dark look fall on the man who had dared to risk them all for whatever reward he was promised. The rest of their party turned and followed him, leaving the man to his fate.

When they got to the wall, the Harbinger simply grabbed it and tore it down. The old man simply sighed. Kylar followed his sister into the hidden hallway. A long hallway chiseled out of the rock led to a grouping of slightly larger caves. Most likely given to families of note.

“Which one is it?” Cali demanded. The old man slowly pointed to one far in the back, tucked behind a turn in the wall. A smile that was especially malicious appeared on her face. “Your work is done. Wait here or come along to watch,” she told him. With a swift motion, she directed the rest of their party towards the cave, passing by the elder who only stared at the floor silently.

“How to play this…” she spoke under her breath. Kylar was slightly disgusted at how joyful she looked, but remembering the incident earlier he held his tongue. No one came out as they approached. He knew they could tell his party was here. The thundering steps of the Harbinger did more than enough to announce their presence. The priestess raised her staff and pounded its butt against the wall. The noise created by the enchanted metal was far greater than it should be. “Come out. Now.”

A shuffling was heard from inside as three figures appeared in the doorway. Two men and a woman. One of the men stood off to one side by himself, marking him as either a friend or a relative.

“How may we serve you?” the woman asked, showing the proper amount of submission.

“Lesk and Angra?” Cali asked tonelessly. The couple nodded. “Kill all three.”

With that, the Harbinger dashed forward and grabbed both their heads in his gigantic hands before they could even try to dodge. He slammed the two of them together hard enough to break their skulls and create a gods awful squishing sound that caused Kylar to wince and the soldiers to cheer in delight. It made him wonder why the beast even had an oversized ax strapped to its back when it could do that with its bare hands. While this was happening, the Specter ran up to the second man and sliced open his throat. He died without a sound, his face bearing more resignation than surprise. The Harbinger let the bodies drop.

“Good boy,” she said, patting its side. The monster growled contently at the praise. “You six, find the kids.” The soldiers saluted and proceeded into the cave, stepping around the mess. Within seconds, sounds of destruction echoed into the cavern as the overzealous troops tore apart everything they could get their hands on. After about five minutes of this, one of the soldiers returned, his face lined with worry.

“We…can’t find them.” Kylar had lived with Cali long enough to notice the subtle twitch of her eye.

“I should have guessed. Gather the rest of your squad and wait outside with Harbinger. The rest of you, with me.” The squadron of soldiers filed out while those chosen to accompany the priestess stepped inside the cave. The place was wrecked (not that it looked very organized to begin with). Scrapped supplies and tools were strewn haphazardly around by the troops who apparently thought ‘find the kids’ meant ‘break everything in sight.’ Kylar had to give them points for being thorough.

“I don’t see anywhere they could have hidden,” he told his fuming sister. “There doesn’t appear to be anything here at all. Just all this junk.”

“We have to find them,” she said simply. “Ursula will have my head on a pike if I come back empty handed.” It made Kylar shudder to think that she was probably understating what would really happen. “Rotter, do you have a scent.”

“In a moment mistress,” the decaying man said in a voice that wouldn’t be out of place in a tomb. Despite the unbearable stench they had to live with (a good rule of thumb was to stay at least five feet away from them at all times, ten if they are wet) Plague Priests were gifted with an extraordinary sense of smell. It was something the Specters had been trying to reproduce for generations.

“Children were here,” he rasped. The Priest in question was using his skill to great effect, sniffing every surface he could find. He slowly started working his way over to one of the curtains separating ‘rooms’. “Two of them. One male, one female. Male is older. They’ve lived here for years.”

“How could you possibly know all that?” the Specter asked with just a hint of jealousy.

“There scent coverers everything, along with their parents. Different chemicals signal different stages in life. The boy has just become of age to mate while the girl has not yet had her first heat cycle.” He inhaled a large amount of air and stayed silent for a moment. “They came this way.” He shambled over to one of the curtains and entered to room on the other side. Cali motioned them all to follow. Kylar was loath to enter close quarters with the rotten man, but his sense of self-preservation overruled his disgust and he entered the small alcove.

The soldiers had no more spared this room then they had the entrance. Two sleeping mats on the floor had been completely torn to shreds. Broken toys and crude game pieces found their final resting places amid the scraps. The Rotter was over by the far wall, running his hands over every inch. After a moment or two a loud click was heard and with surprising strength, he ripped a stone out of the wall.

“They went through there,” he said, pointing at the small tunnel revealed in the rock. The Specter ran up (being careful not to touch the diseased being beside her) and examined the hole. The assassin sighed audibly, a sure sign of bad news.

“They are smarter than I thought.” She returned to Cali, head down as if expecting punishment. “Mistress, the hole was sized specifically for the young. None of us can fit through without injury.”

“Clever little bastards aren’t they.” Her voice betrayed no small amount of annoyance. Patience was not something his sister had in excess. “Can you resize the tunnel?” she asked of the Bearer.

“Yes, but it would take time, and earth magic isn’t exactly silent. By the time I was finished, they would have realized we were coming and fled.”

“Then there is only one option.” Her gaze shifted to Kylar. “Go on, do your trick.”

“I was told to keep it hidden.” He tried to cover up his eagerness at a chance to finally put his ability to use.

“Special circumstances permit a bending of the rules. Do not make me repeat myself.”

“Alright.” He approached the tunnel, mentally preparing himself for the strain that would follow. “I suppose you want me to bring them back alive?”

“No, kill them both and bring back the girl’s head. I won’t risk them escaping.” The order surprised him enough that he had to restrain an outburst. Cali usually enjoyed doing such things herself. For her to pass the task to him meant she felt it was the utmost importance that it be done, no matter who performed it.

It was so out of character for her that he almost missed the fact that he’d been ordered to kill a child.

“As you wish.”

The magic wasn’t that hard, at least not anymore. He’d spent three minutes practicing in secret after he rediscovered the old recipe. I simply involved clearing your mind, picturing what you desired, and a little pain.

As he summoned the energy required, he felt his body begin to change. His bones shifted while skin stretched. His structure was elongate as his spine reconfigured to a quadropedic structure. He was forced to drop down on all fours as it could no longer support his weight. The whole process only took half a minute, but when it was done he resembled a very large, very lean rat. He let out a little screech (his vocal cords having also been reconfigured) and looked towards the others. All but his sister were staring in shock.

“Come back with her head or don’t come back at all.” Knowing what refusal brought, he simply nodded and entered the tunnel.

It was her life or his and the Skaven had no gods for mercy.

“How much farther?” she asked him, her voice betraying no small amount of annoyance. Raden wasn’t surprised. They’d been crawling through the tunnel for nearly twenty minutes. It was the only reason they’d been given their cave. The thing was carved years ago as an escape route if things went bad.

“Just a little. We’ll be home free before you know it.” He hoped. No one had used this tunnel for a couple years. Part of it could have collapsed for all he knew. Still, he tried to remain optimistic. If only for Skeir’s sake.

“I think I see something.” She immediately started pulling ahead of him.

“Don’t go too far!” He’d heard plenty of stories about what inhabited the wilds. Screeches, Hook Horrors, Pech, Fungal Creepers, all manner of beasts who’d just love a tasty, Skaven flavored meal.

“I think-EEEP!” He felt his heart drop into his stomach when she fell from his sight. There was a short scream followed by a grunt of pain. Raden scrambled forward as fast as he could possibly go.

In retrospect, he probably should have realized that the tunnel was a few feet above the ground.

Skeir had the good sense to move out of the way before he smashed into the ground face first. He pulled himself up to see Skeir rubbing a decent sized bump on her forehead.

“Are you alright?” She nodded weakly. Satisfied that she wasn’t in mortal danger, he turned back to the tunnel to pull out the bag of provisions he’d been dragging behind him.

The tunnel had emptied out onto a cliff overlooking one of the great rifts. Chasms so deep it was said they went to the very pits of Hell itself where the dead roomed freely and the Chosen drew their power. Being so close to one was enough to give him chills. He felt Skeir grab onto him in fear.

“Come on,” he told the little girl beside him. “There’s a place a day or two from here where we can hide until this all blows over.”

“When can we go home?” she asked. This was one of the few times Skeir had ever been outside their cave. It stood to reason she’d get homesick quickly.

“Our parents will come and get us when it’s safe. A few days. Maybe a week.” It was a blatant lie. The Clergy wouldn’t let his parents live even if they only thought Skeir was a rumor. There was a good chance they’d simply kill everyone in the colony. And even if they didn’t they’d still hunt Skeir. They’d hunt her to the ends of the earth, down to hell, even to the surface if they were stupid enough to go there.

He didn’t have the strength to tell her yet, but it was only a matter of time. She was to smart no to figure it out.

This place, the Wilds, it was their home now.

So you're all probably wondering what's going on. Well the short version is that while I was fleshing out Skaven society with another author, I found myself wanting to do a story about one. And rather than going through the trouble of bringing in another chess piece, I decided to just use a natural born member of the race. Plus it lets me practice my 3rd Person and prevents author burnout.

So every five chapters or so I'll write a little about Skeir and eventually she'll tie into the main story. I'm sorry for posting two abnormal chapters in a row, but in a way this was a good thing since I was completely stuck on how to write a couple scenes. This no longer being a problem, my next chapter will return to the regular story (and will hopefully come out sooner).

Thanks for reading!