Chapter Two

Chapter Two
    The group continued farther into the cave.  There were five intact passageways through which they could go.  They marked each one and took the first passageway.
    Lia’s spell expired, and Brandis and Zen’dik each lit a torch, dimly lighting the area.  Still, they could barely see.
    Zen’dik walked ahead of the others, turning his torch back and forth, lighting different parts of the tunnel.  He was expecting another attack, as the fight with the guards had created a lot of noise.
    “Lia,” he said, “By chance could you cast that spell that you cast the last time we were here?  The one that knocked out that odd creature we found later?”
    “No, I can’t,” Lia responded quietly.  “And to be honest, I’m not sure that it’s my spell that knocked it out.  I think it might have been dead.  There was a bruise on its forehead and a spot in which the skull may have crushed.
    “I have no idea what killed that creature, but whatever it was, it either had a punch that can shatter bone or some sort of warhammer or other blunt weapon.”
    “Then it could have been one of the guards,” suggested Brandis, lowering his torch slightly and gazing through the firelight.
    “Possible,” said Lia, “But not likely.  Those maces are spiked, and so it would be difficult to kill soemthing with one without drawing blood.”
    Brandis grunted.  He rather disliked having his ideas simply thrown aside.  “It was those guards,” he insisted, “mark my words.”
    Zen’dik nodded his agreement, then stopped in his tracks.  He held out his arms and the torch in a motion telling his companions to stop.  “I can smell something.”
    Lia took something out of one of the many pockets in her robes.  It was a fine dust.  She cast it through the air, then held out her hands toward it.  The sand came together to form a familiar shape; four arms, four legs, and a strangely shaped head.  “I’ve seen these before,” she said.  “Somewhere in these caves.  It’s one of those things that you said the guards are killing.”
    Brandis grunted again.
    “Relax, my friend,” said the tiefling quietly.  We are not this creature’s enemies, unless it first makes enemies of us.”
    Yet again, the mercenary grunted loudly.
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    The Quadrupedal Zedonian had seen the three adventurers enter the tunnel.  It was thankful that they had killed the guards, who’d hunted it and its kind for years.  But it also wished for them to leave.  It could see the tiefling in front; one who no doubt wished to lift the curse on himself.  The Zedonian walked forward to block the hallway.
    “What brings you here, Adventurers?” he asked loudly.  “If you seek to lift this one’s curse, then he must pay a different price for his sins.”
    Zen’dik spoke up.  “I have done nothing.  It was my corrupt sister, who was willing to turn us all into tieflings in order to gain incredible powers.”
    The Zedonian seemed confused at this.  “This is a strange situation,” he said.  “Perhaps we should speak to the Elder.”
    The Quadrupedal Zedonian led the tiefling and his companians through a winding maze of rock and tunnels, up a perilous rock face, and then to a cave.
    “In here,” said the Zedonian.  “Only the Cursed One, no other.”  He entered, and Zen’dik followed.
    Lia and Brandis stood outside as the torch which the latter was using to illuminate the cave was slowly snuffed out.  
    “Great,” said Brandis, “Now what do we do?”
    Lia could see Brandis with her elven senses, but he couldn’t see her.  “Stay here,” she said.  “I’m going to get some more of the flammable rock that’s common in this cave, then I’ll light it with a fireball.”  Brandis sat down.
    Lia turned around, assessed her surroundings, and noticed that some of the rock was at the top of a rock face.  “I”ll be right back,” she said, running toward the rock face, then jumping up onto it and placing her fingers inside small holds in the rock face.  She couldn’t see any more above her, so she prepared a spell that made her fingers razor-sharp.
    Lia dug into the rock face, placing one hand above her and climbing up as quickly as she could, for when her spell expired her fingers would be stuck inside the rock.
    Inside the cave, Zen’dik was met with another of the Zedonians, but this one was not quadrupedal.  Instead, it floated through the air, a wispy cloud with a bairly-discenable face in it.  “Greetings,” it said.  “You have come seeking a way to break the curse that was forced upon you by your sister’s blasphemous acts, not by your own sins, correct?”
    “Indded,” Zen’dik confirmed.
    “In that case,” said the zedonian, “You must seek out and defeat your sister.  Not kill her, simply hurt her enough that you can transfer your family’s curse into her.  
    “You must take this gemstone,” the zedonian continued, handing Zen’dik a ruby-like stone.  “When your sister is subdued, place it on her body and it will draw the curse from you and your family members and into her.  She will become a tiefling, and you will be human once more.”
    “I would do that,” said Zen’dik sadly, “but her power is far superior to my own.  She’s more powerful than ten of me, and she wouldn’t hesitate to hurt me.  She’s become so twisted, so corrupted by her immense influence.”
    “But,” responded the zedonian, “There is a way that you can defeat her.  A weapon lies somewhere within these caves.  You must find it.  It will be able to knock your corrupt sister unconscious with a single strike.”
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    Lia was crawling back down the rock face, magical stone in one hand, when she heard Brandis shout.  “Zen’dik’s back!” he bellowed.  Lia quickly jumped down onto the ledge, placed the stone inside the torch, and held it up.
    The wizard held her hand open, and in it formed a fireball.  She tossed that fireball at the torch, causing it to ignite.  The room was fully illuminated instantaneously.
    Zen’dik squinted to keep the light from blinding him.  “I’m going to have to find some sort of weapon within the caves,” he said loudly.  “Only then can I defeat my sister and become human again.”
    Brandis nodded.  “Now, how do we find it?”
    “We don’t.  Not tonight, at least.”  Lia had spoken.  “For now, I’m going to set an arcane glyph here, allowing us to telleport back here in the morning.  For now, we’ll teleport to my tower.  You’ll find it can be very comfortable in addition to being mostly taken up by my private stores, workroom, and library.”
    Both Brandis and Zen’dik nodded.
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    The next thing that Zen’dik knew, he was standing in a small room with a bed in the corner and a window.  He walked to the window and looked out, seeing nothing but endless sky.  He looked down and saw, miles below, a city.
    Lia had prepared rooms for Brandis and Zen’dik, and each one was very comfortable and provided whatever they wanted.  Quite literally, the spell allowed them to make food come out of the wall on command.
    Zen’dik clapped his hands once and said, “Cold water.”  It came to him, but he did not drink it, for he’d already fallen asleep.
    Brandis, meanwhile, was very awake.  He lay there, his hand to the side.  He was thinking of his home, where he’d stayed his entire life, until Lia came offering him money in exchange for his sword arm.
    He missed his wife, Kari, and his son, Tam.
    Brandis slept then, but even then he dreamed of home.  Tam was asleep, Brandis and Kari were having a cup of tea.  Brandis remembered exactly when this was; it was the day Lia had asked Brandis for his services.
    Brandis took a sip of tea, smiled, and said, “I think it’s time I left.  I’ve got work to do.”  He set down his cup, stood up, and walked toward the door of the house.
    The house had wooden walls, with the grain going horizantally.  Brandis went to open the door--
    When it began to open itself.  Brandis was faced with an elf wielding a staff and wearing robes.  Her deep green eyes pierced Brandis, searched his soul.  The wizard had black hair, which hung loosly down almost a foot beyond her shoulders.
    “Greetings,” she said.  “I understand that you are a mercenary.”
    “Um...” Brandis wasn’t sure how to reply.  “Well, I sort of am, but I’ve never actually been hired before and....”
    The wizard cut him off.  “I wish to hire you.  I seek to help a man named Zen’dik lift a curse placed on him by no fault of his own.  I will need you to help fend off those who do not wish for this curse to be broken.”
    “I...”  Brandis trailed off.  Everything was fading.  The memory, the sights and sounds.
    Brandis was jolted awake.  Sunlight streamed through the window, onto his face.  He opened his eyes slowly, seeing the blurry form of a face over him.
    It was Zen’dik.  The tiefling had a sword in one hand and his dagger in the other.  “Brandis, we’re under attack.  Somehow, somebody has managed to get in, and they’re sneaking through the passageways in the tower.  Lia’s chasing after them, but she might not catch them without our help.”
    Brandis leapt up, ran to the side of the room, and grabbed his sword.  He didn’t bother putting on his armor, for it would take a while to do that.
    Zen’dik led Brandis out of the room and then walked straight into a wall.  He passed through.
    Brandis shrugged, grunted, and charged into the wall.
    Suddenly, he was standing in a darkened staircase.  Walls surrounded him, except forward of him, where he saw steep stairs.
    Brandis climbed up the stairs while Zen’dik quickly ran ahead.  Zen’dik went through the passageway and opened the door, then slowed down so that Brandis could catch up.
    When Brandis and Zen’dik came out, they were standing in a strange room.  Lia was standing on the ceiling, studying her spellbooks.
    “She’s not on the ceiling,” whispered Zen’dik, amazed.   “We are.”  He drew out his throwing dagger and dropped it, then watched as it flew up and dug itself into the floor where Lia was.   The dagger vanished and reappeared in Zen’dik’s scabbard.
    “Gods,” Brandis muttered.  “How tricky are these wizards?”
    “Tricky enough.  Let’s go!”  Zen’dik ran forward, towards another door, then knocked it open.  Inside it, an orc was standing with an axe in hand.
    “Who you?” asked the orc, holding its axe ready.  “Me Skullcleaver.”
    “Is that your name?” asked Zen’dik.
    “Enough talk, Zen’dik, let’s just kill it!” Brandis yelled, red in the face.  “Who cares if it has a damn name?”  He drew his sword out of his scabbard, just as the orc responded to Zen’dik’s question.
    “No.  That title.  Me cleave elf-skulls all the time, because me an orc and orc-chief hate elves.”
    “It’s settled then,” responded Zen’dik.  “As our friend’s an elf, we can’t have you sneaking about this tower.  Either get out and never return, or we’ll have to kill you.”
    “That won’t be necessary!” yelled a voice.  “Orc, if you think you can kill me, you’re very mistaken.”  
    The orc turned around.  “Elf!” he yelled.  “Me kill you!!!”
    The orc charged forward, holding its axe high into the air.  Just as it as approaching the elf which was evidently Lia, something slammed against its head.  It was a staff, crackling with magical energy.
    Lia swung the staff again, this time hitting the orc in the gut.  He yelped in pain, thrown against a wall.
    The orc, knowing it had been dealt a mortal blow, snarled in rate and threw his axe -- not at Lia but at Brandis.
    The axe swirled through the air, the orc’s own blood flying off of it.  Zen’dik instinctively leapt to the side and tried to block it with his sword, but the axe simply drove the sword out of his hand.
    The sword clattered to the floor nearby, while the axe hit Brandis square in the chest, before he had so much as a small chance to dodge or block it.  He screamed in pain, faalling down to the ground.  The mercenary lay on his side, screaming, while the orc slumped to the ground and died laughing.
    Brandis stared up at Lia and Zen’dik for a moment, as they rushed frantically to save him.  Lia placed her hands on the axe and enchanted it, then slowly began to draw it out.  Brandis screamed again as the axe was removed, dripping with blood.  The gaping hold in his chest was bleeding so badly that Brandis felt that he would be completely drained of all blood.
    Lia placed the flat side of the axe on Brandis’s wound, held it there for a moment.  She closed her eyes and concentrated on a healing spell.
    Brandis felt the pain easing, but he still was dying.  Lia restored to one final technique for healing Brandis; she placed her hand on his chest and began to cast a spell of sealing.  The skin of the wound began to knit back together, and Brandis passed into unconsciousness.
    Brandis was thoughtless in his unconsciousness.  He couldn’t feel his own existence, just a vast emptiness.  He never felt the passage of the few hours between the time he fell into a coma to the time that his heart ceased to beat and his shallow breathing came to an end entirely.
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    He floated through featureless gray; nothing was there except for the fact that he could feel his own presence.  And he could see.
    Brandis looked down at his wound -- only to find that his torso was not present.  Nor were his legs, or his arm.
    A voice spoke.  “Brandis,” it said, “You are ready to return to the land of the living.  Will you come back?”
    “Yes!” Brandis cried out to the voice.
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    Brandis awoke, with Lia watching over him.  “We must finish our task now,” she said.  “This is no longer a matter of lifting Zen’dik’s curse; in the year that you’ve been dead, his sister has taken over the kingdom.  She’s ruling the land by the power of her evil magic.”
    Brandis blinked.  “What?  How... how long have I been dead?”