Burning Road

All Roads Lead Down- Part I

Howling...

Howling filled the tunnel to bursting, reverberating through every stone, pipe, and ghoul gem until their rattling added to the din. The terrifying noise turned steel resolve to jelly. The old creepers were fond of saying 'Even the thickest, foulest blood runs cold when the hellhounds bay'.

Howling...

Howling filled the air, closing in on all sides. The coursing dogs of The Wild Hunt were closing in.

Miminda Akka Yodiha was quick and light on her feet, easily skipping over the ancient debris cramming the old ruins of Novabia's Folly. She slid under a toppled pillar, and dashed down a side passage. It wasn't her first time dancing through The Folly nor was it her first time running afoul of The Wild Huntsman. However this was the first time she'd cut things so close. She felt his hounds right on top of her, their heat breathing down her neck.

Miminda shuddered again at the sound of another baying of the hounds, and shook her head as centuries old dust fell into her eyes. Her desperate path led down another large tunnel. Older than any of the previous, it stank of thick dust and ages of neglect. Tucking her bundle close, Miminda Yodiha jumped down a filth encrusted chute, and burrowed through ancient refuse forgotten by time.

Eventually she found herself in a hall of pillars and balconies sitting vigil on either side of a wide expanse of polished stone. Despite the dust of antiquity, the place felt preserved. Ghoul gems, larger than Miminda had ever seen, rested in sconces lining the walls, allowing her sensitive eyes to see in the darkness. This hall was in far better shape than the rest of the old ruins.

Miminda eyed one of the huge ghoul gems. It's exquisite cut directed the illumination downward in a wide cone, a style which hadn't been popular for many cycles. For a moment she forgot about running for her life. The Mimi thought of one thing. Treasure.

She knew of one fence, an old goblin from Glass-in-Fire-Basin, that would pay handsomely for such old world trinkets. She also knew a number of imps who would pay her even more, but, as a rule, she avoided working with bastards from The Dark whenever possible. There was only one exception, The Wild Huntsman himself.

Cross. He wasn't as bad as most darklings...  at least that's what she always told herself. Cross was master of The Wild Hunt, charged by The Heir to The Dark to run down lost souls as well as those souls more stolen than lost. He was devilishly handsome, in a literal sense, with a thing for virgins of the cloth. Some even said he couldn't go a fortnight without prowling into The World Above and claiming the virtue of an untainted nun to satiate his cravings.

Miminda was no nun, but Cross seemed to like her anyway. He hired her for a few dozen job, and paid generously. Miminda used that connection to her advantage. She used that familiarity to ease past The Raven, Cross's meanest and most frightful hellhound. That was how Mimi was able to creep into Cross's private chambers, one of the most fortified spaces south of Three-Cold-Stones. That was why his favorite hunting horn was clutched under her arm.

The howl that found Miminda in the old hall made her knees weak. Most of The Wild Hunt sounded the same, horrible and terrifying, but  The Raven, bitch from the frozen depths of The Dark, had a howl all her own. Hers was more frightening than all of the others combined. The old creepers called it 'The end of all things put to music'. The Raven was far scarier than her master and the vile princess he served. The Raven was fear made flesh, and she was close.

Miminda ran down the long hall gripping her prize like a protective mother. She'd worked hard for her spoils and intended to enjoy them. She had a blade of iron, a silver hand axe, and a shortbow. None of which would be very effective unless the hellhounds came for her one at a time. That wasn't likely. Mimi also had sprite paint and the basic knowledge of any novice. Miminda could write sprite script, but she'd never be a battle scriptor.  Any darkling stronger than an imp would kill her before she could work her creeper magic. Sprite script wouldn't help Miminda against the likes of The Raven and her pack.