Marked Ones: Advent of the Demon Prince

Based only on the strange look the elf gave the masked individual, it was easy to guess that the man did not laugh very often. Still, Kestis and Sheza were confused as to what part of her words made him laugh. For Kestis's part, he was extremely nervous.

When he looked at the masked man, he sensed no mana. His presence was even less than that of an Unranked mortal. Were he in a crowd, he would be so unremarkable in his presence that he might as well have been invisible to anyone who was not specifically looking for him.

Sheza started to shout angrily at their guest. She was infuriated that she was seemingly being mocked. Though that may not have been the man's intention, it was certainly how she took his actions.

Before she could truly upset their guest, Kestis had come to a realization. He had heard of people like this in the past, though they were only whispered about. Strange people in featureless masks. They vanish into a crowd, yet their presence is unmistakable. It was a information gathering group that rivaled the spies of the Wisteria Concord, though they seldom acted outside of the kingdom of Eroa.

"You're one of the King's Shadow, aren't you?"

Sheza's tirade stopped instantly. Apparently, she did not recognize the man's mask for what it was like Kestis had. However, she did recognize the name of the organization. Her look took on a more somber tone as she almost retracted into herself.

Rumors had it that the King's Shadow specialized in assassination. It made them a veritable 'monster-in-the-dark' to those in positions of import. Sheza had been informed of these potential dangers when she trained to try and protect Kestis.

However, from what Kestis had learned as an adult, most of the King's Shadow never left Eroa, and those that did served in an information gathering role, rather than assassination. The darker side of the organization seemed to mostly be reserved for those causing problems within their home territory.

"So, you know of us? Good, that makes this easier."

"Before you continue," Kestis put a hand up as he interjected, "You are member of that organization. So, does that mean it is true? The rumors that Lord Lucius Kane, Titan of Eroa, Commander of the King's Shadow, is here?"

"He is."

"Why has he not simply destroyed the city then? Sheza said as much earlier, but we have heard of his exploits. Surely, we could simply be turned to dust at any moment. I also doubt that having two of his subordinates here would hold him back."

The masked man laughed again, though for much shorter than the first time. "Some stories are exaggerated. You think a person who can destroy a city at a whim simply walks around freely? That they can move between borders without the interference of the King and Empyrean Rankers?"

"Then how do you explain…"

"Planning and luck." The man interrupted. "However, we are not here to discuss Titan's actions. I am here to determine how much more work will go into this infiltration. You, Kestis, are easier to converse with since your brother would not take kindly to my kind."

"You are some sort of mixed race, yes? Since you are of the King's Shadow, you must have some beast in you."

The man nodded in the affirmative before slightly shifting his hands. The man's fingernails elongated and sharpened like claws before immediately retracting. Since he had the ability to shift, though only partially, it was likely he was a half-blood.

"Alright then, so, how can I assist you? Mind you, depending on what you ask, I would need to request appropriate compensation. Running a rebellion is hard work you know."

"Only a question." The man said calmly, though his tone was far colder than one would have expected, "Have you heard of an elf by the name of Shiyani?"

After the question was asked, the man took a small letter and envelope out of a storage ring. When he placed it on the table, Kestis's eyes went wide. Imprinted on the outside of the envelope was a familiar symbol, one of a shattered orb.

He had received no small handful of these letters himself. Some of them even saved his life, such as warning about the incoming soldiers from Ayalla's army and the possibility of 'impure elves' and non-elves being expelled from power or worse.

"Are you who sent all those letters? Thanks so much for saving me. The information contained within them has saved my life so many times already."

"I did not send them. Nor do I know who did. Rather, I received this letter which suggested I might find information out about Shiyani in this city. I will ask again, do you know anything about her?"

This time the cold tone had changed to one much more threatening. Kestis felt the atmosphere in the air change. Both he and Sheza found it somewhat difficult to breathe. He instinctively put out a hand to hold Sheza back from attacking. What he saw was a first in his life for him.

The woman who dedicated her childhood to learning how to fight so that she could stay by his side and protect him, was cowering and quaking with fear. Her eyes had gone wide with her pupils fully dilated as if she were a terrified animal standing before a predator.

"We have no idea who this Shiyani is." Kestis managed, "Her name sounds elven. If she is an elf, she might be in one of the wealthier quarters, or maybe even in the service of my brother."

The pressure vanished while the man sighed. Sheza gasped for breath while trying to regain her confidence, though failing spectacularly. Everyone could see the remnants of fear in her gaze and the small tremble of her hands.

"Call me Wulf," the man said, "We will be working side-by-side for a while until I manage to speak with your brother. A pleasure, Lord Kestis din Varris."

Wulf stuck out a hand for him to shake. Hesitantly, he grabbed hold of the hand and responded in kind. They came to a quick agreement regarding how things would work between them.

For the most part, Wulf and his subordinate, Snow, would work independently within the city. Their ultimate goal was to get to Kestis's brother, Indarel. Since that aligned with the Varris Resistance, they could work together on occasion to that end.
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They would agree to stay in separate locations, but maintain an open line of communication to trade for favors and resources as needed. In exchange for an unused safehouse, the first mission that Wulf would undertake on their behalf would be to intercept supplies meant for the city garrison and redirect them to Resistance forces.

Supplies had been running low for a handful of weeks and they were in need of a large windfall to recover physically and mentally as a whole. Wulf agreed to help without complaint, stating that Snow would be more than capable of assisting Kestis with the job.

Wulf would be doing preliminary scouting of the Varris Estate in the noble district of the city. Sheza volunteered to assist him in this since she knew the area by the back of her hand. She had grown up there after all and was familiar with many of the gaps in standard guard routes as well as the hard to find hiding places along the grounds.

At first neither of the two were keen on working with one another, Wulf clearly preferring to work alone and Sheza still feeling like a pray animal under his gaze. However, they agreed to help one another after coming to some sort of silent understanding between warriors that was far beyond Kestis's understanding.

"Now, Sir Wulf," Kestis sighed, "Any requirements in your space's needs?"

The strange and terrifying guest thought for a moment before giving out a list of requirements. They were simple enough to fulfill. He wanted to ensure it had a basement for supply storage and was at least two floors with roof access. Neither he nor Snow seemed to care about the quality of the space or if it had furnishings of any kind.

As long as it would not collapse on them in the night, then they seemed fine with it.

Their open availablility made it easy for Kestis to choose a location. It was halfway between his own building and the Varris Estate. Since there were a number of abandoned buildings now, it was easy to hide just the two of them much closer to his brother than they were.

Being too close in proximity would be bad for Kestis and his men, given the amount of movement they would have to hide. But for Wulf and Snow, they were only two in number, and it was much easier to hide their activities.

When Kestis pointed out one of the options on the map, Wulf analyzed the location for a moment. He seemed to look into Kestis's soul to ensure he could be trusted with the location selection, but other than the strange sense of dread from the gaze, Kestis held firm. Wulf acknowledged this and easily accepted the offer.

Snow stepped forward and gave a slight bow, "Lord Kestis din Varris, I am yours to command for the mission. Please provide your orders."

"O-of course…" Kestis mumbled quickly. He couldn't tell it immediately, but it almost felt like Wulf rolled his eyes at Snow's actions…