Bane glanced back, his eyes narrowing as he looked back at the forest. He was aware he was being tracked, using Dire Wolf mounts. This could be Waste elves, orks or perhaps even humans. He looked forward to the ruins, and knew an ambush was up ahead. The ruins were like a memory to him. Where a wall stood he remember a building. This was Moonlight, once the greatest city in the land, and had been cut open by a portal to elsewhere. What emerged had been terrible and a great many friends and good men had died that day. If he did die here, which he doubted, at least his soul would join the others he knew so well. The architecture was simiar to roman, but grander and more edged. Bane looked around and saw a pair of eyes looking at him from the darkness. They closed and Bane looked around, getting to his feet.
"Perhaps you would like to show yourselves?", Bane said loudly, jumping off of the horse and walking forwards. The eyes weren't ork, he knew that much. His horse whinnied and Bane turned to face the hooded figure. It had its head down and had a blackstone staff in hand, which had a ruby nestled nicely on the end. Rubies were often used to channel Pyromancy and Necromancy, but were very good universally. Then it looked up, revealing a pair of glowing white eyes. White lines went up his face, and he instantly knew it was a Pureheart.
"Hello, Bane", it said, unmoving.
"Why are you here?", Bane asked, drawing his sword. The Pureheart looked at it and rose its obsidian hand. Light shone round it and it smiled, revealing glowing white in its mouth.
"I suppose you think me and my allies have come to kill you", the Pureheart said. "I am Syx, and I do not work with the other demons."
"Why not? Haven't seen any nice ones yet, and I don't expect that's going to change", Bane said, tapping runes along his arm, ready to strike.
"You are aware of Hearton community in the Southern Region, close to the Wasteland", Syx began, and paused. "Recently, the empire broke the treaty and raided our city, destroying it."
"I never liked the empire, but wasn't going to put my neck on the line without good reason", Bane said simply.
"Bane", a familiar voice said from behind him and he turned to see a pale ork standing in front of him. It was Nyx, an ork gifted with great combat skills and the ability to negate magic at will. He looked at Bane with a smile.
"Nyx", Bane nodded, more liked he was a brother than an aqcuaintance.
"After Rakk was killed", Nyx said. "Many of the orks were lost and then, during a full moon, a pack of hulking werewolves came to them. I saw it. At first I thought they'd tear us apart, I mean, there had to be three dozen of them. But then they proposed an idea- to serve. You've heard the rumours of the emperor, and you know what I'm thinking."
"Logan's name doesn't change anything", Bane laughed a little. "It doesn't mean he's a warewolf."
"Perhaps something more convincing", someone jumped down beside him, with pale skin and streaked black hair. His long fangs potruded out of his mouth and Bane could see his long claws. The vampire looked to the others and then at Bane. "I am the son of a vampire you hate most of all."
"Harst", Bane said, his fist tightening.
"Indeed, I loved him at first. But soon I realised that he was taking more people than usual", the vampire said. "Mostly those that had magical potential. So, I tagged along to one of the trips- believe me it was hard enough convincing him- and then I realised the sick bastard was draining their souls to charge magi crystals for the emperor's sorcerers."
Bane didn't say anything.
"And then there's me", someone said and Bane turned to see a half-wolf, not Wolf himself, walking towards him, his fur grey, but he walked strong and was fully armed.
