Nostrum: Tales of Valor

Aberrant Dens

Sitting against smooth, clay stairs, Yuler gazes into the skies overhead. Her eyes fill with pinks, reds, yellows, and purples as she skims the many glittering dots that have begun to show through. Yet, the impending future does not allow her to enjoy what she sees. As she continues to do so, the sound of hard soles clopping against the patio behind her becomes audible. Knowing who it is that is approaching her, she does not turn to see.

"Enjoying yourself?" Marne wonders, finding a place to sit alongside her.

"If you could call it that." Yuler curls her lips in his direction as she examines the moons on the horizon.

"An exceptional sight to see. When it can be seen, that is." Marne juts a finger towards a small red outcropping against the surface of the foremost moon. Then, leans back on both arms so as to take in the view himself.

"It's certainly a rare occasion. Isn't it?"

"Indeed." Marne's eyes widen with wonder as he looks over the surface of the second moon. Vibrant red fields, hills, valleys, and all else that there could be, peak his interests. "Curious, isn't it? That something so close to another could be so different?"

"Maybe. Maybe not."

"Not?" He asks, taking his gaze away from the heavens for a moment to look towards Yuler. "How not?"

"Well, the largest of the two is nothing like the land beneath our feet. Neither is it anything like the one which resides behind it. It seems... common." Yuler leans back in a similar manner to Marne, then lays entirely on her back. "Why might it be that we never truly see it in all its glory?"

"Well," Marne starts with a chuckle, "they don't call it Impar for nothing."

"There was once a time we could." The pair dart upright and turn to face the manor, where a third now stands. Their own gaze entirely locked onto the moons. "My sister and I saw it only once in our lives."

"You've seen Impar's totality?" Marne's expression suggests both impression and doubt as he looks towards the brother Decwick.

"I have." He assures, now smiling down at those before him. "Soon enough, we shall see it again. It is... quite a spectacular occasion."

"When might that time come?" Yuler offers, trying to keep the conversation moving.

"The date is not for another year and some odd days. Yet, it will surely come when it's ready." Shaking his head, he takes in a soothing breath and looks back at the manor himself. "Ah, it would seem the others have decided to join us." Looking from Hael and Lee to his own sister, he gives a greeting nod. "Have you settled in well?"

"As best we could, I'd say." Lee sips at a flask as he speaks before allowing it to fall back to his side.

"Excellent!" The brother looks to Hael and expresses a moment of perplexion. "Er, forgive me, but won't those bindings disrupt your ability to fight?"

Hael does not answer him, nor does she seem to react to his words beyond facing him directly.

"She'll do just fine." Lee assures, giving the man a devilish grin that even sends a shiver down Yuler's spine.

"Well, I for one am appreciative of any amount of help we could get our hands on." The sister moves to be alongside her brother, then cusps her hands together just above her rounded belly. "We put in the request many, many moons ago."

"It was nearly a lost cause in our eye." The pair giggle for a moment before turning to face the yard and beginning their trek to the improvised stone wall. "Come, there is much to be done."

As the four of them begin their walk with the Decwicks, the siblings take the lead, Hael and Lee take the middle, and Marne and Yuler take the tail. With the Decwicks telling Hael and Lee about their gardens, the purpose of the land beyond the fence, and more about their estate, Yuler turns to Marne in a hushed tone.

"Does none of this seem... strange... to you?"

Marne turns to her with a look of confusion, which tells her to explain further.

"These creatures have managed to get within their walls, and yet they never attempted to attack the manor itself or those within. Since when do beasts care for the boundaries of others?"

"Perhaps they caught the situation early enough that it could be contained?"

"Perhaps... but what are the odds of such a thing?"

"Here we are." Breaking away from the others, the male Decwick begins shifting a bulky plank of wood about. Attempting to break it free from a much larger door that is seemingly made from the same type of tree. "Just beyond this point is where your adventure begins."

"Samuel, should we not be concerned about opening it up with us all... right here?"

"Never mind that." Lee pushes, attempting to reassure the woman. "If they're anything like all others we've come across, they won't be active for another hour, perhaps longer."

"I admire your knowledge on these things." Respectfully states Samuel, having only just managed to slide the plank away from the door. "There we are." Slapping the dirt from his palms, Samuel looks back to the others, but more specifically, his sister. "Perhaps, now, you might like to head back indoors, Samara?" His sister gives a nod to him and a curtsy bow to the others before turning back towards the manor and heading off. "Forgive her. These things have always made her nervous."

"It may not be my place to ask, but may I?" Questions Marne.

"Seeing as I cannot be sure of what it is you mean to ask, I am obliged to say that you may." Samuel smiles at Marne as he says this, but gets nothing more from Marne's expression than a blinking stare, as he seems to have momentarily confused him.

"Your sister and yourself do not seem unlike one another in age. Are you-"

"Twins? Indeed." Samuel presses his smile to one side as he looks his visitor over from head to toe. "Fraternal in nature. Is there a... more pressing reasoning behind your asking?"

"N-no. Of course not!" Feeling the brother's eyes darting through him, Marne quickly stands beside himself. "I've no interest in a taken woman. Your sister's pregnancy is something that should be honored by the man whose child it is." As these words leave his lips, the brother's glare turns into a look of general confusion.

"My sister isn't pregnant, nor is she a taken woman. Still, I must say that I am grateful you would take such things into consideration."

A stinging pain crosses the back of Marne's head and he swiftly looks to Yuler, whose stiff and open palm remains in the air.

"That was certainly NOT my intention!" He sharply whispers. "How was I to know?"

"Silence you two." Demands Hael with the shaking of her head.

As the four of them cross through the door's threshold, Samuel begins closing it behind them. Ensuring that he leaves it open just enough that he can speak through the crack before truly sending them off.

"Now, as a precaution, I simply ask that when you are ready to come back through, you knock at the door and shout out your name. This will allow the guard we are posting a moment's notice and assurance that it is in fact you. Unfortunately, if you sound overly panicked, they have been ordered to not open the door. I am sorry for this... but I am also certain that each of you understands why exactly that is."

"Of course we do." States Hael in an agreeing manner. "It would be unfair of us to expect anything more."

"I appreciate that very much. Is there anything more I can do for you before I head off?"

"We could use a lantern or two." Lee looks about the pines overhead, acknowledging how little sunlight makes it through them already. "Without a means to see, I fear that the beasts will most certainly get the best of... well... most of us." His eyes set themselves on Hael as he states the last bit.

"Of course, of course! I apologize for that. Give me just a moment and I will return with a few we have on the patio. Until then, please remain at the door, just to be sure nothing else makes its way. The guard is already posted as well, so if something seems to be going wrong, they will most certainly shut it." With these final words, Samuel's footsteps can be heard making their way back up to the manor.

"Being trapped with beasts and hunted for the amusement of the wealthy is not how I saw myself leaving this world." Lee takes another swig from his flask as he finishes making his claim, but spills a small amount as Hael knocks her wrist against his elbow.

"That is not what is happening here."

"For what reason are we doing this again?" He questions as if to have forgotten.

"You decided we needed a clever cover and the guards placed one right in front of your greedy little nose." Lee grumbles as Hael nips at him. "Though I must admit, I don't consider this entirely a loss. Perhaps, if we gain their trust, they will share with us what information they might have on the location of the catacomb."

"What makes you think they'll have any information at all?"

"Secrets like these are something the Decwick family would surely know of. They have been around for many generations. You know this."

"Alright, I've returned." The four turn back towards the door, with Yuler and Marne trying their best to act as if they haven't been listening in on Hael and Lee the entire time. In doing so, they each collect a lantern in hand and pass two others off to their partners. With everyone now carrying a light, they begin venturing into the pines. Leaving the only known exit behind with nothing to remind them where it was, aside from the sound of the plank being put back in place.