Deathless

Deathless Chapter Six: Preparations

Chapter Six: Preparations

"So what did you guys think of Iepenel?” Sirya asked as the rather peculiar trio walked through the silent, grey streets of Ninquelen to the Singing Serpent inn, where adventurers of all sorts from across the Sea came to share tales of their valor.

“Didn’t quite like him all that much,” Lindale thought aloud. “Seemed too uptight. As I expected.”

“I don’t know,” Vanya said in reply. “He was better than I’d imagined. I’d always thought that Iepenel the Merciless would be more, you know, merciless.”

“He just sent us into hostile territory, with nothing other than that idiot captain of his as protection,” Lindale muttered.

“He did ask nicely,” Sirya said mockingly. “And the gold we’ll get if we succeed! That’ll be a hoot to spend. On that note, guys. I was thinking we spend it on booze. Tons and tons of booze.”

“Damn it, Sirya, you can’t just spend everything on alcohol!” Lindale made a sour face. “We’ve lost about a thousand Arlenian silvers from your ‘nights out’. Enough is enough.”

Sirya laughed. “Nothing like a good ‘night out’ to calm my nerves. What say we have one right now?”

Lindale sighed, exasperated. “Are you even listening to me?”

Vanya laughed. Those two. Always bickering over money and whatever the hell else. But she knew that Lindale, given the chance, would probably spend the cash on supplies. Rather boring. If it were up to Vanya, she’d spend it on a new weapon. Her mace was starting to rust. It wouldn’t be long before the steel dulled.

She thought back to when she’d gotten the mace. It had been five years ago, two years after she’d met Sirya. The two had chanced upon a coal mine run by bandits. After Sirya had gone scouting inside, she’d discovered that their leader had a huge bounty on his head. Rajar Bonebreaker, they called him, famous for doing exactly what the name said.Over the course of a single evening, from dusk ‘till dawn, Vanya and Sirya had worked in silent shadow to assassinate the bandits patrolling the mine. At last, just as the sun shone over the horizon, they snuck into their chief’s main quarters.

The fight had been short and bloody. After the five bandits in the room were slain, their leader the only one remaining, he’d refused to back down and charged at them wielding the Bonebreaker’s signature flanged steel mace.

Rajar had managed a direct strike to Sirya’s left arm, which damn near fractured it, and managed to knock Vanya’s sword to the ground, bent and broken. Before he could finish the mission, though, Sirya had his arm off at the elbow, and Vanya grabbed his mace from the severed hand from where it lay and cracked open his skull.

It had also been then that they’d met Lindale, the man who stayed after all the other slaves ran off. He had pledged his services to Vanya, being an honorable man at his core, and had committed himself to repaying his debt.

Over the years Lindale had saved Vanya’s life countless times, and Vanya had saved his as well. Vanya had been grateful ever since that they’d chosen to assail that particular coal mine, since the comrade they’d gained that night was irreplaceable.

“I’m just saying that for once, you could celebrate a completed job without getting completely drunk!” Lindale said sharply, effectively snapping Vanya back to reality.

“Oh yeah! That reminds me,” Sirya said, delighted. “I haven’t celebrated yet after we got Angard’s bounty! See you guys at the inn! I’ve got bars to hit and I’m burning moonlight!”

She left them then, merrily skipping off to the nearest pub that had the words, “CHEAP BOOZE” written in large, bold letters on their door.

“No- damn it, Sirya!” Lindale called after her. “And now she’s going to get drunk, and we’ll mess up tomorrow.”

“Ah, let her go.” Vanya waved her off. “I doubt she’ll get too drunk. She’s got enough sense for that.”

“Very funny.” Lindale scoffed. “Mark my words, tomorrow we’ll find her piss- drunk in an alley somewhere.”

“Yeah, well, I guess we’ll find out, won’t we? Why don’t we bet on it? Ten silvers says she’s perfectly fine tomorrow.”

“Sure, but I hope you’re not as damn intimate with money as that girl.”

As it turned out, however, that very night, Vanya ended up ten silvers richer, and Lindale ten silvers poorer. Sirya showed up at their room at the Singing Serpent, not intoxicated in the slightest.

“Damn wuss bartenders,” she grumbled. “Too damn scared of the rebels to even give me some quality ale. I couldn’t even find a bar that was open.”

“Haha!” Vanya chuckled. “I’ll have my ten silvers now, Lindale.”

“That wasn’t a fair game,” Lindale muttered, annoyed. “You knew all the bars were closed when you made that bet.”

 “A bet’s a bet, Lindale.” Vanya gave a sly grin. “Give me the money.”

“Fine,” Lindale murmured as he handed over the silver coins.