Dawn of Arcane Destiny

Epilogue

A man wearing a midnight blue cloak and mask, who has an ace up his sleeve in any given situation can be very intimidating. At least, that's what the Nightmare prided himself on. One did not become a crime lord and infamous assassin without scaring the wits out of clients, victims, and just people in general.

The Nightmare paced in his temporary headquarters. An abandoned house in one of the many slums of Katallis. Intimidation didn't matter if he failed. And he had. Astronomically. But he wasn't the only one. Zathrian was dead. His body was reported missing then dead. Found not far from where the king had supposedly defeated the dark god of Kamasia. The Nightmare knew better. Keir would not be gone permanently. They all were just biding their time till the next catastrophe struck.

He had tried to stop him. Had tried to clean up the mess he'd made. But his efforts had been in vain. Suddenly the door banged open, slamming against the wall. He stopped his pacing to stare down the new arrivals. The guards he had posted burst in dragging a man of about twenty behind them.

"We found this drifter loiterin' outside. He was brazen enough to tell us he be knowin' you were in here. What should we do with him, m'lord?" One of the guards said in his thick commoner accent.

The Nightmare didn't bother showing surprise or even indignation. The man they restrained had blond hair and stormy grey eyes. He had a split lip and the start of a nasty bruise on his cheek bone.

"What's your name?" The Nightmare asked, making it clear in his tone that he had no patience for games.

"Sebastian. Sebastian Blackheart." The man said. He did not seem scared or even respectful. He had enough defiance in his eyes to make the Nightmare angry but intrigued as well.

"You wanted to talk to me, I presume." He said to Sebastian.

Sebastian nodded. "I just thought you'd like to know, that I know what you did."

Despite himself, the Nightmare felt his heart jump. No one alive knew what he'd done. What he's done to Kamasia. Years of experience kicked in. He kept his face smooth and his eyes hard. "You must be more specific, drifter. I assume the act you refer to is heinous but to which heinous act you refer to is lost on me."

Sebastian scoffed. "So, it's not just women of the court that act coy, I see. You know what I'm talking about, don't deny it."

The Nightmare motioned for his other henchmen to leave. No point in letting them hear this conversation. He needed to know how much this Sebastian knew and how he knew it. Then he figured a silencing was in order.

The other men left, leaving the poor fool alone in the room with the Nightmare. Not a place one typically liked to find himself. Once the door was shut tight, the Nightmare took the liberty of unsheathing one of his knives inspecting the steel blade. "What do you know?" he asked not bothering to mince words.

"I suspect you know." Sebastian said dabbing his bleeding lip. "Don't bother with the tough routine. I've dealt with worse than the likes of you."

"I will deal with you however I see fit." The Nightmare growled. "We'll play a game I'm sure you're unfamiliar with. I ask the questions. You don't mouth off and you answer me to the letter. Am I clear?"

Sebastian snorted. "I should hope not. Then I wouldn't be able to blame you properly, considering I wouldn't be able to see you."

The Nightmare threw his knife. It cut a long cut across the man's cheekbone. The knife lodged in the wooden wall, flecks of blood left on the edge of the blade. Sebastian flinched away too late. "I should inform you that I am not a patient man. Give me what I want, and you might leave with your life."

"Good to know." Sebastian said. "But I don't have anything to lose. My life is worthless to me now. You have taken it away from me."

The Nightmare scoffed. "Killed someone you loved, did I?"

"No." Sebastian shook his head. "By freeing Keir, you took me away from all that I knew and loved."

Non. So, he did know. "Explain yourself." He said.

"You and I both know that you tampered with more than you bargained for. More than you probably fathom. More than I fathomed a week ago. I know you've tried to fix it, but that's not enough. I want to go home, and you want to keep doing what you've always done. So, I'm offering my services."

That was definitely not where he'd expected this to go. "How did you find out?" the Nightmare asked.

"Irrelevant." Sebastian said looking unconcerned. "You need help. I'm here. Do you want my help or not?"

The Nightmare laughed. "You'd be surprised how many people offer their services to me. They all have one thing in common. They're scared. Scared of what I might do to them. They want insurance that I won't do anything to them or their families, as if I might actually feel in their debt. You have nothing helpful to offer me. The last man I worked with had experience, and...a special set of skills to offer."

"Oh, I think you'd be surprised." Sebastian said. "There's a reason they call me Blackheart. Alas, it's not of your world, but I think you'll find it quite useful." He held out his hand.

The Nightmare was not only intimidating, but also calculating. This Sebastian Blackheart seemed the type to bluff, but he also could be of use. He wasn't going to get straight answers and he wanted to keep an eye on him, especially since he knew.

He reached out and shook his hand. Sebastian smiled a crooked smile. He likely thought he had the infamous Nightmare under his thumb. He was dead wrong. He would bluff, he would also leak information.

It was a matter of time until he slipped up, and then he'd find the Nightmares dagger through his black heart.