I frowned at the massive man standing in the entrance of my prison cell. His face was completely impassive but his body language, with his rigid posture and folded arms, told me he expected no less than absolute obedience on my part. I threw Alius a nervous glance, but the ragged looking man could only sigh and shake his head helplessly. It was clear he was in no position to offer me any assistance and that I was on my own for now.

I looked back at the much larger man—Burkin, his name was. Strangely, as ridiculously burly as the man was, I found myself wary, but not quite afraid of him. The axe on his back and the sword on his hip made me nervous, but if it came down to a fight where weapons weren't involved, I felt like I could've defended myself at least somewhat adequately. Given his injury, I might've even been able to best him and make my escape.

Still, it wouldn't do to underestimate the man just because I knew I was strong, and I didn't feel it was a good idea to try anything right now anyway. Instead, I wordlessly got to my feet and waited for Burkin to escort me out. With a grunt of satisfaction, the bandit stepped back from the cell door and jerked his head toward the dungeon's open doorway at the top of the cobbled steps.

“You first,” he rumbled in his gravelly voice, “I'll be right behind ya.”

I hesitated for only a moment before carefully stepping out of the cell. With one last glance back at Alius, who just gave me a rueful grin, I walked down the small, dark and damp corridor, up the cobbled steps, and out of the dungeon. I could hear the heavy thud of Burkin's fur-lined leather boots as he followed right on my heels like a looming shadow.

Beyond the dungeon's entryway was another, slightly longer corridor built entirely of some kind of glossy dark stone. The walls were lit by small sconces and I could see a thick wooden door leading to another room to the left a short distance away. At the end of the hall was a single opening that led to a spiral staircase. From what I could see, it looked like I was on the lowest level, with the staircase going up to who knew where.

A sudden shove from behind caused me to cry out in surprise and stumble forward a few steps. I caught myself and whipped around to see the stoic brute behind me giving me an impatient look. It wasn't until that moment that I realized I'd stopped walking at some point. Though he didn't say anything, the bandit motioned for me to continue with his unbloodied hand. I grimaced, but silently obliged.

Off to my left, behind the wooden door, I could hear the muffled laughter of maybe two or three other people. The room was evidently insulated enough that I couldn't make out any conversations being had, but it was still loud. I tried to ignore it, but as my prison keeper and I passed the door, I heard the telltale sound of approaching footsteps from within.

Before I could say anything or react, the door suddenly swung open, revealing a heavyset man with a bald pate, a bulbous red nose, and a thick, scraggly black beard. Unlike Burkin, this man was all fat and no muscle, his prodigious bulk blocking the rest of the room from view. The man staggered a few steps out of the doorway before catching himself, and this close, I could smell something bitter on his breath, likely alcohol.

He stood up and blinked a few times before turning to where Burkin and I stood. His beady black eyes roamed over me with a mix of confusion and... something else. Something that made my skin crawl. I saw the confusion clear up slightly when he finally spotted the big bandit behind me. He blinked again and a toothy grin crossed his dirty face.

“Ah, Burkin!” the fat man chortled, his raspy voice cracking out like a whip, “Shame 'bout the hand, but what are ya gonna do, eh? Somebody's gotta take responsibility for that little fiasco back at the manor! No hard feelings, right?”

“It is what it is,” Burkin grunted. His tone was even, but his glare was ice cold as he spoke, “now outta the way, Darrel. Me and Vikky got orders to bring this one to the boss.”

My brows furrowed as something he said caught in my mind.

Vikky? Wait... is he talking about—

“Right, right, Cassius' new toy,” Darrel replied, waving a dismissive hand at Burkin's glare. The rotund bandit made a show of indifference, but he stepped aside nonetheless, “we know the drill, we got our own order to keep our mitts off her.”

Rather than head back into the room, Darrel paused in the doorway. The man looked me over for a moment and let a twisted grin warp his features into something hideous. I shuddered and looked away, trying desperately to clamp down on my disgust and an alarming urge to pulp the man's face.

“A damn shame, that. Damn shame,” Darrel muttered before addressing me directly, “but hey, if Cass ain't to your likin', you could always join us down here, girl. We'll treat ya proper, you have my guarantee.”

Despite what I'd been through and done, I still didn't consider myself a violent person by nature. I didn't actually know that for sure, given my amnesia, but from what I could see in the visions of my past and the whole 'Princess of Friendship' thing, it didn't seem likely. That said, I was finding the idea of a violent breakout just a little more appealing then.

I tried not to look at the man as I slowly unclenched the hands I'd unconsciously tightened into fists. With my jaw set, I ignored Darrel and started moving forward. Burkin didn't hesitate to follow after me, but he spoke to the other bandit once last time as he passed by and his words surprised me.

“Why don't you pull your brain outta your dick and do something productive for once?” Burkin growled before snapping a working finger toward the dungeon we'd just come from, “Alius is in there alone and he's got that look in his eye—the one that means trouble. Get in there and make sure he ain't up to nothing, because if he escapes again, it ain't just gonna be my hand on the crushing block. Next time, it'll be all of our heads. Get me?”

Darrel—who was much smaller despite his roundness—quailed under Burkin's vicious snarl. The man swallowed and gave a shaky nod before hurrying past his fellow bandit toward the dungeon. All the while, a series of mocking jeers and laughter from the room he'd just left followed in his wake. The sound was cut off for the most part as the heavy wooden door swung shut on its own and Burkin clicked his tongue in irritation.

“Alright, girl, get a move on,” he commanded, his gruff tone evening out once more, “we've already wasted enough time.”

And so we made our way to the staircase and headed up without further incident. I was curious about Burkin's order and what he said about Alius, but ultimately decided not to pry. I doubted the bandit would've told me anything anyway. As it was, the thoughts were quickly forced out of my head as we reached the entrance to next floor up. As we stepped out of the cramped stairwell through the open entryway, I froze.

The stairwell led us to another corridor, this one built of a lighter grey stone with what I could only assume were wooden support beams above. This corridor was longer than the ones below and I saw a few doors lining the right side of the wall, but I ignored them. What caught my attention instead was a familiar armored woman near the end of the stone hallway.

The corridor turned right at the end, leading off to what I presumed was another corridor. Leaning against the wall near the turn off, with eyes closed and arms crossed over her armored chest, was none other than Havik herself. The platinum blonde woman somehow managed to give off an air of both boredom and impatience without visibly showing either.

So it was her, I thought with a conflicted frown, honestly, I didn't expect to see her again so soon. Then again, I'm not sure how long it's actually been...

Unprepared for the encounter, I wasn't sure exactly how I felt seeing her. I wanted to be angry, and I was to a certain extent, but something was holding back the full brunt of my ire. I thought I'd accepted the fact that she'd thrown me to the wolves, but looking at her again, I got that same feeling I'd had before. I just couldn't get myself to fully believe she was that heartless despite her attitude and the circumstances.

Havik's head whipped around at the sound of our approach, her piercing golden eyes ignoring Burkin and locking right on to me. The intensity of her stare made me want to look away, but I resisted the urge and held her gaze. I tried not to let my warring emotions show, but Havik's own severe features gave nothing away so I wasn't sure if I succeeded or not.

I was expecting her to say something, but Havik didn't say a word as we got closer. I couldn't quite tell from her facial expression, but I got the sense that she was also struggling with something. It could've been my imagination and I didn't know the woman well enough to tell for sure. Thankfully, Burkin spoke up before things could get too awkward.

“Havik,” the burly bandit began with a curt nod of acknowledgement, “everything ready to go?”

“Yeah,” Havik replied, finally tearing her eyes away from me to give Burkin a nod in return, “all we need to do is bring this bitch to Cassius and he'll give us what we want.”

Burkin scowled at that, looking skeptical and even a bit concerned for some reason. The large man's steel grey eyes flickered to me for a second before settling back on Havik. “You sure about this, Vikky?” he asked, his tone doubtful, “if she tries anything stupid in front of the boss—”

“It'll be fine, Burk. Trust me,” Havik replied, a bit of exasperation leaking into her voice. With a dismissive flick of her blonde locks, the armored woman turned and began heading further down the hall. “I'll make sure things go the way we want myself if I have to, now shut your trap and let's move. We don't have a lot of time here.”

Instead of responding, Burkin just sighed and shoved me forward again. We continued on, taking a right down another corridor and past a large pair of double doors that led outside. The halls were lit with more blazing sconces, but there were also a few small arched windows lining the wall on either side of the large doors we passed by. It was clear that night had fallen while I was incapacitated, as I could barely see a few meters beyond the paneless windows.

What I did see made me frown. I could just make out the sight of a few moving torches in the distance and the dark silhouettes of partially intact and crumbling buildings here and there. There were clearly more bandits patrolling around outside, but what surprised me from what little I was able to glean was just how rundown everything was.

Even in such low visibility, it was obvious to see that this fortress was, in reality, nothing but an old ruin. The bandits probably stumbled upon the likely abandoned garrison somewhere in the woods and chose to take it over. I caught myself wondering just what this fortress was doing in the woods in the first place. I hadn't seen any other ruins or signs of civilization, so what was the fortress trying to protect?

Then again, I was unconscious for most of the trip, so maybe there's more ruins just beyond the fortress?

Another thought crossed my mind as we made our way through more of the fortress' corridors. We'd taken another right and climbed another set of stairs to the next floor up before heading down yet another series of stone hallways. All the while none of us said a word, and in the silence, I began to realize that it was, in fact, too silent. Not only that, but I didn't see any other bandits around.

Stranger still, I'd begun to smell a distressingly familiar scent in the air. It was a smell I was more familiar with than I would've liked—that strong, coppery tang that filled the nostrils and wouldn't leave. It was the smell of blood, and it only got stronger as we got closer to our presumed destination. I swallowed nervously and looked between the two bandits escorting me, but neither showed any signs that they noticed anything out of the ordinary.

Do they know and are just ignoring it, or am I the only that can smell it?

At a glance, I didn't see anything that could be giving off the smell, but we had passed by several closed doors. Perhaps it was coming from one of the rooms behind those doors, or perhaps it was coming from outside beyond the fortress' walls. In any case, neither Havik nor Burkin reacted so I just tried to push down my growing unease and press on.

Still, I couldn't help feeling that there was a connection between the lack of bandits in the halls and the smell. I wasn't sure what it meant, but if there was something going on, then maybe I could use it to my advantage somehow, or that was my hope anyway. Either way, I got the sense that my meeting with the bandit leader would be an eventful one.

Rather than bother with suspicious circumstances beyond my control, I focused on the other sensation growing within me as we walked. The void I'd been trying to ignore inside me was gradually vanishing the closer we got to wherever Cassius was. I wasn't sure what was going on at first, but it didn't take me long to understand that I was starting to feel...whole again. Once I realized that, it was a simple conclusion to make that I was getting closer to my Spellblade.

Once I was in a certain range, I was certain I'd be able to use my magic again. For all I knew, I could probably use it now, but I decided to at least wait until I actually had eyes on the weapon. I didn't know what was going on, and acting rashly could still put me in a bad position—or a worse one than I was already in at any rate. And so I waited. I remained quiet as we passed another corridor and headed up one last spiral staircase.

The higher up we traveled, the worse shape the building seemed to be in. Cracks in the stone here and there became holes that grew more and more pronounced. I could spot various areas where support beams and wooden doors had rotted through. There were some areas where the forest had taken back over, with roots and small spots of mossy foliage seeped into the cracks and holes in the stone walls.

I idly wondered why the lower levels were so much more intact than the halls and rooms above, but figured the bandits must've done some work at some point. By the time we reached the top of the staircase, the stench of blood had largely dissipated and the earthy, loamy scent of the forest had replaced it, the smell much stronger in comparison.

It turned out, we'd been making our way up through a small tower at the edge of one of the fortress' inner walls. The open entrance. When Havik, Burkin, and I stepped out of the stairwell, it was to an open stone walkway lined with standing torches. On the left from where we stood was the outer wall of another building with a single large door leading into another room or corridor. The right afforded me a view of much of the fortress grounds from above—or rather, it would have if it wasn't so dark.

As it was, all I could really make out were the shadows of more ruined structures, a few large trees grown over or through some of the fortress' outer defensive walls, and the lit torches of several patrolling bandits wandering the grounds and buildings in the distance. Since we'd stepped outside, I was finally able to orient myself somewhat.

From what little I could see, the fortress wasn't nearly as big as I thought it'd be—more a fort with a few dilapidated auxiliary structures than an actual fortress, really. It looked like the building we'd been in was connected to the fortress' keep, though the design was strange to me. Looking up, I could see the structure to my immediate left was tall enough to be considered a tower, but the design was more cuboid than cylindrical. In fact, the entire fortress, from the buildings to the walls, was pretty much all angles and no curves.

I hadn't seen the whole building from the outside, but the halls we'd wandered through all had sharp, ninety degree turns and at no point did the corridors curve. The staircases and the smaller tower we'd just left were just as sharply angled. The other strange design choice was the fact that the keep was built into what I presumed was the southernmost wall at the back of the fortress rather than the central courtyard.

That meant that if anyone wanted to attack the fortress from behind, the keep would be right there for the taking. Reflecting on it for a moment, I tried to recall just how I knew about fortress design, but my memory came up blank. The knowledge was just there in my mind. Unable to figure it out, I just assumed I'd read about military strongholds in a book somewhere and left it at that.

More important was the fact that there were no bandits patrolling out here either. I tried peering into the opening of the tower on the opposite side of the walkway, but it was too dark to see inside from where I stood. In all, I was really only able to get a cursory glance of my surroundings before I was once again ushered forward by Burkin. The three of us kept moving across the stony path, but only as far as the large door in the center of the central tower.

Without a word, Havik pushed open the door and motioned us inside. Past the doorway was what might've once been an antechamber or a foyer of some sort. On the right was yet another staircase that spiraled upward through several stories. I couldn't tell exactly how high the staircase went, nor could I determine what was in this current chamber. The biggest reason was something above—a large chunk of a wall maybe—having collapsed and burying most of the floor under a massive pile of stone and wood debris.

I could just make out a doorway across the room, but there was no going that way. The entrance was blocked by rubble and—to my surprise and bemusement—a massive knot of tree roots, making it completely impassable. The only thing even remotely intact was the staircase, and even that was riddled with large chips and cracks and overgrown with more roots and weeds. Further up I could also make out a few missing steps here and there. All in all, Everything about this area looked very... unsafe.

How do these people manage to live like this...? The fortress is literally a crumbling ruin isolated in the middle of some no name forest... Then again, Qaedis seems to manage just fine.

...Actually, now that I think about it, his living situation makes even less sense.

The thought was an idle one, one that was quickly replaced by worry for my own safety as we climbed the decrepit steps. There was no hand rail or anything to stop us from falling over the side to the ground below. Despite that, both Havik and Burkin pressed on like a single misstep wouldn't send them tumbling to their deaths. I supposed they were used to the climb by now, but I held no such familiarity and pressed myself closer to the wall as we climbed.

I saw evidence of more floors as we went up, but whatever rooms or facilities they held had all come tumbling down at some point. The main tower, which is what this was no doubt supposed to be, was the most ruined part of the fortress I'd seen so far. Strangely, I could occasionally see more tree roots poking in and out of cracks and holes in the floors and walls. And just like below, the higher we went, the more nature had wormed its way into the tower.

Weird... shouldn't it be the other way around?

Another thing I couldn't make sense of was why the leader of the bandits would hole up here of all places. The place was isolated, a pain to navigate, and was falling apart. The rooms I'd seen below weren't much better, granted—most being completely caved in. That said, there had to be a better option somewhere in this dilapidated pile of stone and wood in the forest. Was it an ego thing? Did this Cassius just want literally the highest seat in his own little kingdom?

I've never met the man, but somehow that wouldn't surprise me...

All I could do was mentally shake my head at the arrangement and keep moving upward. Eventually, we reached the top of the stairs and I discovered why the lower levels were piled high with rubble and infested with tree roots. Looking up, I saw that more than half of the ceiling was gone, along with a good portion of one wall. In their place, it looked like a gargantuan tree had smashed into the top of the tower, destroying half the room in the process.

Or maybe it would've been more accurate to say the tree had grown up through a part of the tower with how the roots were intertwined with the stone. A little further up from where the top of the tower would have been, I could hear the soft rustling of leaves that were probably half the size of my forearm. Squinting, I tried to get a grasp of just how big this tree was, but couldn't make out full details in the dark.

I could see that the leaves above the branches were far larger than they had any right to be. The tree's monstrous crown blotted out most of my view of the night sky, but I could just about make out the pale light of the moon peeking through the rustling leaves. In all honesty, the sight would have been rather beautiful if not for my circumstances. Even then, I had a hard time tearing my eyes away from the sight.

It wasn't much longer until we reached the top of the tower—or rather, as high as we could feasibly go within the tower. With the tree in the way, there was no further path up to the roof anymore. Some of the rubble had cut off the rest of the way up, but it was mostly the ridiculously sized branches of this massive tree that cut us off. Miraculously, both the tree and the falling rubble had missed most of the staircase so we were able to get this far, and apparently that was good enough.

The floor we'd reached was also in bad shape, but there was enough of it left to move across safely. On one side of the room, opposite the staircase, was a set of wooden double doors. The doors had been ornate in their design once upon a time, but had long since been worn and rotted with age. Standing on either side of that door were two bandits—the first I'd seen since Darrel and the other two accompanying me.

The two bandits were clearly guarding the entrance, and they couldn't be more different from one another if they tried. The one on the left was a big man with short cropped dirty blond hair and a mean scar across the whole left side of his face. He wasn't nearly as big or brawny as Burkin, but he definitely had muscle to spare. He stood ramrod straight, his arms folded and amber eyes taking us in with cold indifference as we approached.

The bandit on the right, in comparison, was incredibly lanky with a long face to match. His black hair spilled across his shoulders in an oily cascade and his cobalt blue eyes had a noticeable upward slant to them. At a glance, the man gave off a... slippery air—like a snake or an eel. In contrast to the vigilance of his fellow guard, this bandit was content to lean his back against the wall and pick at his fingernails with a dirty, chipped dagger.

The man obviously had no interest in his role as a guard, or that's what it looked like anyway. His eyes flicked toward us and I saw them narrow slightly but the look was gone in a flash. His focus was back on his fingernails before I could register what I'd seen. Both guards wore the same type of armor I'd seen from the other bandits so far, all furs and leathers. A short sword hung from each of their hips, but that was about it if you didn't count the slippery man's dagger.

While the giant tree's branches took up most of the room, a lot of the middle section was impassable because of the caved in floor. A yawning gap had opened up beneath the branches, and if you were careless or incredibly unlucky, it was a long way back down to the bottom of the tower. There was a path, but we had to go around and practically hug the non-destroyed wall to avoid falling into the pit below.

Crossing the narrow pathway was a harrowing experience, mostly because I couldn't help looking down. Thankfully though, we all got across without incident, even Burkin for as big a man as he was. If anything, he seemed to have the least trouble despite being almost as wide as the path itself.

Once we were all across, Havik called out to the pair of bandits. “Brio, Kao,” a wicked smirk crossing her face as she nodded to the duo, ”got a present for Cass. Told us he wanted this one, ASAP. He's in, right?”

“Oh, he's in alright,” the thin man on the right snorted before jerking his chin toward me, “the dragon hasn't left his lair since you brought her in the first time. Too busy slobbering over the new shiny trinket in his hoard, no doubt.”

“Can't really blame the man this time,” the well-built man on the left replied with a slight shrug. His accent reminded me somewhat of the burly warrior woman I'd killed back when Havik first captured me. “If that thing is real, I'd be slobbering over it too. Likely it's not, but even then, it'll still fetch a good price in Ruvenbor.”

“An understatement if I've ever heard one!” the thin man cackled before addressing Havik, “but yeah, you three can go on in. He's waiting in there for you right now.”

I grimaced, but didn't say anything. It was obvious what they were talking about. I don't think I ever had any attachment to swords or weapons of any type in my previous life, but this? This was different. This sword felt like a part of me—was a part of me. It was familiar. It was comforting. It was my cornerstone, my waypoint, my soul.

It was magic... and it was mine.

And I'll pry it from his cold dead hands if I have to.

I blinked at the thought, then blinked again, then frowned as I realized I meant every word. This wasn't some lingering influence from the Headhunter. There was no rising bloodlust or disgusting glee at the thought of committing gruesome violence—not this time. No, this was anger and grim purpose... and it was all me. It didn't sound like me. I felt like it should go against everything I stood for, yet there it was.

I was fully ready and willing to kill this man to get my Spellblade back.

The realization should've made my stomach turn, but it didn't. It didn't, and I didn't know why, and that scared me more than anything. Perhaps the blade really was just that important to me, or perhaps there was something else at work. Or maybe this world was just finally getting to me. I didn't know for sure, but in any case, something had changed. Unfortunately, my thoughts were interrupted as I was shoved forward yet again.

“Fucking get your damn head out of the clouds and get moving,” Havik growled in my ear as the muscular guard stepped in front of the double doors, “and don't fuck this up for me, got it?”

Havik didn't wait for an answer. Instead, she just shoved me ahead of her and Burkin as the blond bandit—either Brio or Kao—pushed the doors open and stepped inside.

“Got Havik and Burkin here to see you with the goods, boss,” I heard him say to the man in the room.

“Burkin's here too?” came a surprisingly androgynous reply from within, “ah, doesn't matter. Let them all in.”

With that, the blond man stepped aside and gestured for us to enter. I did so, going in first with Havik and Burkin following close behind. I couldn't help raising my eyebrows in shock at the sight of the room. Everything I'd seen up until this point was either breaking down due to age or had been overrun by nature, but this room was a world apart. Everything in here was immaculate.

It wasn't a very large room all things considered and the walls were still the same dark stone, but the room was stuffed with... well... stuff. The walls were stacked end to end with shelves and displays and armoires of all kinds. Each of those shelves and displays were packed with all kinds of shiny treasures and strange baubles I couldn't make heads or tails of. An entire set of armor sat in one corner and several different bladed weapons hung on the walls above the shelves.

On one wall hung a large map whose landmarks I couldn't discern from where I stood. In the center of the room near the back sat a lone desk that somehow brought the whole room together. In the wall behind the desk I could see a thick metal door with a heavy padlock and a little barred window. On the desk itself, front and center, was a very familiar sword hidden within a very familiar scabbard.

And seated behind that desk was the man I presumed to be none other than Cassius.

Cassius... did not look the way I expected him to. I couldn't get a full measure of him since he was sitting behind the desk, but I was baffled by what I could see. Unlike the other bandits with their furs and leathers, Cassius wore an exotic looking, formfitting robe made of some type of dark brown material I couldn't identify at a glance. He looked kind of thin, but not like the slippery looking bandit outside.

I couldn't tell for sure, but he didn't look particularly tall either. I couldn't guess at his build due to the robe, but his face was another story. The man couldn't be called anything other than beautiful. His was a feminine beauty but it did nothing to distract from his more masculine features. He had high cheekbones, soft lips, and skin so pale it was almost white. He was like a porcelain doll, right down to the pitch black eyes.

His silky black hair that fell across and well past his shoulders in a solid sheet as he hunched over his desk. All in all, I found Cassius' appearance to be rather eerie. Maybe it was his porcelain-like skin, but it was probably due more to his eyes. They were slightly narrowed like the thin guard outside, but had a hauntingly empty quality to them. They were like bottomless black pools of nothingness, empty yet dangerous.

The bandit leader hadn't once looked up from his desk, even as his burly blond underling stepped back out of the room and closed the doors. All of his attention seemed to be focused on the sword and scabbard before him. It took Havik loudly clearing her throat twice to finally grab the man's full attention. He blinked once before raising his head to look directly at me. I shuddered at the sheer intensity in his gaze, repulsed on some deep, fundamental level.

His expression was blank and for an uncomfortably long amount of time, he didn't say anything. No one did. Then, after what felt like an age, he smiled. It was a pleasant smile that didn't even come close to reaching his creepy black eyes. When he finally spoke, his tone was just as pleasant, and just as fake.

“Ah, I'm so glad to see you up and about at last,” he began in a calm, almost breathy voice. Slowly, deliberately, he folded his hands over the desk and leaned forward, his smile growing a touch wider, “Havik has told me much about you, Miss Sparkle. If you'll excuse me for being a bit forward, I'd like to propose a deal to you... an offer that would benefit both of us greatly.”

Next Chapter: Episode VII – The Bandits ~ Part III Estimated time remaining: 58 Minutes