2025-01-24 08:37:38Chapter 8: A Village of Secrets
The village of Blackmere stood between hills and rich forests. It looked like any other settlement... humble homes, narrow dirt roads and the buzz of voices carried through the air. But Kael knew better.
He could feel it.
The sigil on his chest pulsed faintly, responding to something in the air, an unseen presence that curled beneath the surface of the ordinary. Something... wrong.
Kael adjusted his cloak, keeping his face shadowed beneath the hood as he and Malek approached the outskirts of the village. His eyes of a shade close to blood-red darted across the streets and noted the wary regards that some few villagers outside cast their way. They were not afraid, not yet, they were watching.
"They know we don't belong," Kael muttered to himself.
Malek chuckled beside him, tapping his staff against the ground. “You don’t belong anywhere, boy. And you never will.”
Kael smirked, though it didn’t reach his eyes. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”
The old hermit shot him a sidelong glance. “Don’t. It wasn’t.”
Kael ignored him and pushed forward, his gaze sweeping over the village square. A modest well stood in the center, surrounded by weathered buildings that had seen better days. The people moved quickly, heads down, avoiding unnecessary conversation. There was tension in the air, thick and stifling.
Something was wrong here.
He approached an elderly woman hunched over by the well, filling a wooden bucket with slow, deliberate movements. She didn’t look up as he drew near, but her knuckles whitened around the handle.
"To where shall I go?" said Kael smoothly. "We are in search of a place to stay."
The woman seemed frozen for half a heartbeat, then shook her head. "No inns here, stranger," that rough voice said, decades of hard living strung through with the words, "Keep moving."
Kael glanced at Malek, who shrugged, and replied "Friendly place."
The woman looked at him warily, her eyes running off toward the main road out of the village. "Best not stay long," she muttered. "The night is not kind to outsiders."
Kael narrowed his eyes. "And why's that?"
Before she said anything, a heavy hand clamped onto his shoulder. He turned slowly, as if drawn into a confrontation, to meet the stern gaze of a bulking, burly man dressed in a simple leather vest, a rusted sword attached to his hip. The face held much of the weather beaten and hardened attitude of a man who was used to authority and not shy about enforcing it.
"New faces bring new trouble," he said, his voice low and filled with warning. "We don't want either."
But not yet.
Kael didn't flinch but held the man's stare, allowing the tension to stretch between them. The sigil at his chest pulsed again, sucking the air out of the man and urging Kael into action-crush.
He forced a calm smile, nodded. "Just passing through."
The man regarded him for a long moment before grunting. "See that you do." Then he turned and strode off, his broad frame disappearing into the shadows of the village.
Kael breathed slowly, realizing with pleasure that the heat from the sigil was subsiding. Malek, as usual, was unbothered.
"I'm starting to like this place," said Malek dryly.
Kael scowled. "We need answers."
The old man had gestured toward a small building at the far end of the square, where a wooden sign hung lopsided above the door-"The Hollow Oak".
“If there’s a place to find them, it’s there.”
Kael nodded, leading the way. The Hollow Oak was as run-down as the rest of the village, the door creaking in protest as he pushed it open. The air inside was thick with the scent of stale ale and damp wood. A handful of patrons loitered hunched over their drinks as every new entrant glanced at them but quickly dipped their heads back to their mugs.
Kael made his way to the bar where an aged barkeeper would take out the time of his day to scrub down the glassware without really giving a damn. The old chap didn't even look at him twice.
"What're your orders?"
Slightly bending over, Kael replied, "Information."
Barkeeper snorted. "That kind of stuff is not on the menu."
Out of his belt, Kael produced a small pouch and dropped it on the table. The pouch and the music it clinked with were very much comforting but not nearly comforting enough, because nothing could shake the feeling in the air. "It is now."
Barkeep eyed the pouch then sighed before resting the glass down. ''What you want to know?''
In lower tone, Kael replied, ''Something's wrong about this place. What is it?''
The barkeep was hesitant and glancing furtively at the door. Lowering his voice slightly, he said, ''Should not be in this place, stranger. Blackmere's...not safe.''
Kael's brow furrowed; "Why?"
The man took breath, fingers tapping the counter. "Things happen. Coming up missing. Shadows moving where they shouldn't be."
Suddenly, Kael felt the sigil pulse, showing everything he assumed to be true. ''When did it start?''
The barkeep simply pressed his lips into a thin line. ''Months ago. Some say it's the forest creeping in. Others say it's something worse.''
Kael exchanged a glance with Malek. The Abyss was here. He could feel it, lying under the surface, whispering to those too weak to resist.
"And what do you say?" Kael pressed.
The barkeep hesitated before muttering, ''I say you'd better finish your drink and be off. ''
Kael smirked. "Not an option."
The door swung open with a loud thud and before the barkeeper could react, a man staggered inside. His face drained of color and eyes wild with terror. Clothes were torn. His arms were heavily slashed.
“They’re coming,” he gasped, collapsing onto the floor.
The tavern fell silent.
Kael crouched beside the man, his grip firm but not unkind. “Who’s coming?”
The man’s lips trembled. “The... shadows. They’re in the village. They—”
His body seized violently, and his eyes rolled back. A faint, inky blackness oozed from his wounds, hissing as it touched the floor.
Kael’s stomach tightened. He knew that corruption. He had seen it before.
Malek knelt beside him, grimacing. “It’s already here.”
Kael stood slowly, his crimson eyes burning with renewed focus. Whatever darkness lurked in Blackmere, it had just made itself known.
And Kael Ardentis wasn’t about to let it spread any further.
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