Pesci looked at his quaking brother. He’s never seen him so vulnerable, timid.
“Aren’t you going to say anything?” Prosciutto asked.
“I never thought highly of father. In truth, he scared me a bit. He never did anything, but sometimes I saw the way he looked at you. I didn’t understand why. Now I know. I’m so sorry. If I had known–”
“It’s fine. It’s all in the past. Father never did anything to you, did he?”
“No, but brother, are you alright?”
“I–” Prosciutto regained his composure. “I’m fine. Thank you. We should head to bed.”
The two went to bed in the same room, sleeping in two separate beds. In the middle of the night, Prosciutto’s whimpers awoken his brother. Pesci got up from the bed and woke the other up. In response, Prosciutto pounced on top of him, bringing a knife to his throat. Once he realizes it was his brother, he dropped the knife near him.
“I’m sorry,” he said. “I wasn’t expecting that.”
“Are you going to be alright?”
“Yeah.”
Pesci went back to his bed, but he scooted it closer to Prosciutto.
“What are you doing?” the blond asked.
“I want to make sure you’re safe, so I’m getting closer to you.”
“Thank you.” Before they could sleep, he had one more thing to say. “Don’t tell anyone about this, please.”
“I won’t. I won’t. Goodnight, brother.”
“Goodnight.”
The two had fallen asleep peacefully.
-
It was nearing lunch when the brothers returned to Cheydinhal. Pesci felt somber. Prosciutto was probably done watching over him now. Once they entered the sanctuary, the green-haired man completely forgot about Risotto, who was sitting in his brother’s chair near his desk.
“Hello once again, you two,” the Dark Elf said.
“Risotto, greetings,” Prosciutto replied. Before he could say anything, the blond handed Pesci his reward, which was some coins and an enchanted dagger. “I’m ready to go.”
“Perfect,” he said, “but there’s one last thing for Pesci to do.”
“Is that so?” the blond replied. “What could it be?”
“I’ll tell you here right now. Prosciutto, you’re going to kill Adamus Phillida.”
“What?” Prosciutto raised his voice. “Aren’t his bodyguards watching him 24/7?”
“That’s where Pesci comes in.”
Risotto looked at the younger brother whose head was sweaty.
“Bodyguards, as in multiple of them? How many?” the green-haired man asked.
“Three,” the Dark Elf answered. “Physically, they are strong. However, Kars knows a few alteration spells, possibly master rank spells, Esidisi knows a lot of destruction spells, mostly fire, and Wamuu knows some spells, too, although probably not as skillfully as the other two.”
“There’s no way I can do that by myself!” Pesci said.
“Not only that,” Prosciutto added, “but wouldn’t this grab too much attention?”
“We know, but worry about that later,” Risotto answered. “I’ll inform you all later where the Blue Road meets Red. At night.”
-
Pesci had trouble sleeping. After being told what to do, he immediately slept, but his anxiousness kept him up. He didn’t know who Kars, Esidici, or Wamuu were, and nor did he care until now. He would ask anyone about the current contract, but he had the feeling nobody had information.
And now Pesci was where the Blue Road and Red Ring Road met. Prosciutto, Risotto, and a stranger with blue were there. Prosciutto was wearing his fancy garments while Risotto, who was holding a torch, wore his bloodied black robes. As for the stranger, he was wearing a blue velvet outfit and red glasses. Said stranger was also a High Elf.
“You know,” the High Elf started a conversation, “whoever named these roads needs to change them.”
Prosciutto looked at him in confusion.
“Why is it called the Blue Road?” the elf continued. “At least paint the road blue. The same goes for the Red Ring Road too.”
“Don’t take it so literally,” the blond responded. “They’re named that for a reason.”
“So, is the Blue Road called that because it leads to Cheydinhal, a population full of Dark Elves? So it’s a racist thing then.”
Prosciutto sighed. He noticed Pesci approaching them. “My brother is here.”
The blue-haired High Elf turned around to see him.
“That’s your brother?”
“Half-brother.”
“I was about to say you guys don’t look alike at all to be related. Well, you still don’t, but whatever. I never had a sibling. Anyways, Risotto, you can tell them about the plan.”
Risotto looked at Pesci.
“First,” the Dark Elf said, “make sure you aren’t followed. Cast the detect life spell.”
Pesci checked the area around them, but nobody was there.
“It’s all clear,” he assured them.
“Since you two know half of the plan, I’ll tell you the rest right now. Prosciutto, earlier before, you were worried about how much attention that would bring to us. That’s why Ghiaccio is here. You two are going to disguise yourselves as guards and turn him in. Ghiaccio will cause a prison riot while you two are fighting your own battles. Prosciutto, as soon as you get into the Imperial City prison, you must cast your spell. Ghiaccio, I need you to slightly freeze Pesci. Does everyone understand?”
All three of them nodded.
“Good, now make sure you are all prepared for tomorrow. You’ll all be resting at the Waterfront District. A friend of Fugo’s has a shack there where you can rest. He goes by the name of Mista.”
“You have this all planned out, huh?” Pesci commented.
“Yes,” Risotto replied. “It wasn't easy setting this up. We were lucky enough to bribe a guard. I have confidence in your abilities. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
-
Before they set out and don their armor, they went into the market to buy supplies. Judging from Risotto’s response last night, it seems like everything would go well. However, the brothers wanted to make sure they get out alive. They stalked up on poisons but mostly potions: healing, stamina, magical resistance, speed, and strength. When they were ready, they headed back and dressed for the assassination.
“This body armor is heavy,” Pesci complained. “How do guards walk around in this?”
Ghiaccio was in front of them, hands tied behind his back.
“They were trained,” the elf answered.
“Guys,” Prosciutto interrupted, “stop chatting away. We’re guards turning in this elf who assaulted someone.”
As they went outside of the Imperial Prison District, Prosciutto cast his spell.
“It sure is a hot day out,” Prosciutto said, signaling that he cast his spell.
“If only I could be cooled off,” Pesci said.
Ghiaccio cast his frost spell, chilling the younger brother.
The aging effect wasn’t instant, but some signs were showing. The guards were fatigued. Once they locked Ghiaccio in the cell, the aging effect greatly affected the guards, since they were patrolling the area and wearing heavy armor. They were getting old and wrinkly. Pesci and Prosciutto climbed the ladder to reach the top. However, they eventually confronted the bodyguards in a dark room.
As Risotto said, they were former arena combatants, and it’s clear as day how strong they were. Unlike the guards, they didn’t wear anything heavy. They were showing a lot of skin.
“There’s a prison riot outside!” Prosciutto warned.
“That’s not our problem,” Esidici, the Redguard with white hair, said.
“But what about the guards outside? They’re all too tired,” Pesci said. “The prisoner is a spellcaster!”
“The one you placed in the prisons?” Kars, an Imperial with long purple hair, inquired. “I noticed that all the guards are in a weakened state except for you two.
“How come you three aren’t affected?” Prosciutto questioned.
Pesci looked into Kars’ eyes, and they looked familiar. They reminded him of Illuso and Formaggio.
“That’s impossible,” the green-haired man commented.
“What is it?” Prosciutto asked.
“T-they’re vampires!”
“What?”
“I’ve never seen you two around here. I’ve examed every face,” Kars said, “and I don’t recognize either of you two. Well, I think you two might be assassins. You won’t be getting far.”
“Pesci,” Prosciutto said, tossing him an enchanted sword, “it does fire damage. I don’t have time for this. I’m completing my contract. I’m not failing today. Good luck.”
His brother sprinted toward the ladder. Kars grabbed him, but then Pesci pulled out his bow, aiming for the arm. It pierced him, causing him to let go of Prosciutto. The blond climbed the ladder, and Kars tried to follow, but he couldn’t open the trapdoor.
“Some comrade you have there, leaving you to fight three vampires in a closed space,” he commented. “Esidisi, see if you can burn the trapdoor.”
Before Esidisi could approach the trapdoor, Pesci aimed and hit his foot. The Redguard vampire looked at him in confusion.
“If you’re trying to kill us,” he said, “aim for the head or perhaps the heart. I suppose that won’t matter with me; I am undead after all.”
The arrow in his foot disintegrated. Esidisi began casting a fire spell.
“Hey, you’re a vampire, right?” Pesci panicked. “Why are you playing with fire? Isn’t that especially dangerous for you?”
“I like a little danger,” he replied. “I used to fight in the arenas way back then. Have you heard about the grand champion before Fugo? I heard he was half a vampire. I’m a bit envious. At least he was able to go out into the sun and fight.” He then sighed. “I miss fighting. You don’t look so tough. I can tell just from looking at you. I was hoping for a challenge. I bet that other assassin might be worth my trouble. Whatever, it looks like we have no choice but to demolish you.”
“Hey, this isn’t a fair fight!” Pesci said. “I’m fighting against three of you.”
“Then you shouldn’t have stepped in in the first place!”
A fireball hurled towards Pesci, heating his heavy plated armor and making it glow red. He was no longer feeling chilly but very hot. He removed the armor, making him able to dodge any spell. Esidisi cast another fire spell. Pesci tried to dodge, but it still hit him. Due to the aging effect still active, Pesci’s green hair turned white and his skin wrinkled.
“Interesting spell your friend has learned,” Esidisi said. “I’d asked him, but I’m afraid he has to go too. He’s probably dead by now.”
“What?”
“Ah, I forgot to mention,” Kars said. “I gave him the gift of vampirism. He was so desperate to eradicate the Dark Brotherhood.”
Pesci was scared. He couldn’t do anything. He was weak and tired. They had failed the mission. He closed his eyes, waiting for it to end.
-
Will Zeppeli sat in his cell, waiting for anything to happen. The other prisoners here didn’t seem responsive when he tried to make small talk. He looked at the scratches on the stone walls. Somebody has been here for 100 days. If Will had to guess, they probably had been here longer than that. He looked at the dry bloodstains. Hmm, perhaps the poor fool lived for 100 days.
He sighed and noticed that he could see his breath. It was suddenly so cold.
Will tried to look out from his cell.
“Hello?” he called out.
“I’m breaking you out of here!” said the voice.
“Did Jonathan send you or was it Avdol? Do you know about the vampires working with the guards?”
“What? I don’t know who those two are, and what are you talking about?”
The voice got closer, and Will saw his face. It was a blue-haired High Elf with red glasses. He opened the cell with a spell.
“At night, there are three strangely buff men who drink the blood of prisoners here. They dare not infect us with vampirism, so they cut us somewhere. I hate to tell you this, but Adamus Phillida is also a vampire. We have to get rid of him! That’s why I was thrown into this cell.”
“No,” the elf replied. “No way. Impossible! They’re fighting them right now.”
“Who?”
“Shit, no time to talk! We have to help them!”
Before Will could help the elf’s friends, he got his white suit and hat. They climbed the ladder to where Pesci was. The elf cast a frost spell on him while Will faced the three vampires.
“Don’t worry about me,” Will said. “Tend to your friend. I have experience fighting vampires.”
First, Will cast a turn undead spell. Esidisi and Wamuu lost confidence and started running around in fear. As he suspected, Kars was too powerful to be affected by the spell.
“It’s going to get hot in here,” the vampire hunter warned Ghiaccio.
“Just keep yourself cool,” replied the elf.
Will hurled an explosive fireball spell towards Kars; however, Esidisi got in the way, turning into ash almost immediately. Kars looked annoyed and cast a calming spell on Wamuu.
“Wamuu, it’s time to get serious,” he said.
“I can’t believe he killed Esidisi! No matter, you shall all die.”
Unsure of his strength, Will cast a weaker fire spell toward Wamuu. The spell didn’t touch him. Instead, it was blown away back towards Will. He cast his ward spell, saving himself from getting burnt. Before he could cast another spell, Wamuu charged toward him, backing him into the hard stone wall. Will pushed him away with a kick before casting a powerful fire spell. Wamuu was burning away, but before he died, he twisted Will’s right arm.
“Are you alright?” the elf asked.
“It’s just one arm. I can cast with the other.” Although that was my dominant hand he twisted. “If you’re done tending to your friend, mind helping me out here?”
“Two against one,” Kars commented. “That seems a bit unfair.”
“Are you kidding me?” the blue-haired elf yelled. “Originally, it was three against one! Also, your dead friend twisted this guy’s arm.”
“Enough!” Will said. “Do you know of any powerful fire spells?”
“Every spell I know is frost except for the basic fire spell, and I can conjure a scamp. But since this guy is way too strong, it won’t even last a second.”
“Every little bit helps.”
“If you say so.”
The elf summoned his scamp. As it cast a spell, Kars killed it with an ice spike spell.
“What did I tell you?” the elf warned.
“It’s just what I needed.”
While Kars was distracted by the scamp earlier before, Will cast a weakening spell that increases fire damage done to him.
“Now get incinerated!” Will yelled, casting one last fire spell. He tried making the fireball bigger than the ones he cast before. The heat was so intense that his skin started to wrinkle. He flung it at him. A big pile of smoke filled the room, causing the elf and Will to cough.
“By Sith— the Divines!” Ghiaccio corrected himself. “Was that necessary? Don’t forget, my friend’s spell is in effect.l
“Well, that’s done. Let’s go check on your friend.”
“I think you may have spoken too soon.” Ghiaccio pointed at Kars.
The smoke cleared, and Kars was unharmed. Not a single burn was visible. Amused by their bewilderment, the purple-haired vampire grinned.
“Now it’s my turn!” The vampire conjured a two-handed battle axe, charging at them full speed. The two dodged him, but Kars turned his body around to hit Will, slashing him in the chest.
The wound wasn’t deep, but he tried to cover it with his arm. “Oh, if only Avdol were here.”
The blue-haired elf returned to Will’s side and whispered, “I have an idea. How about I just completely freeze this guy solid?”
“We don’t know what type of vampire this guy is,” Will whispered back. “He could be from the north, and those guys are slightly more resistant to frost.”
“Slightly? So, that means not completely. Good because I’m going to freeze him solid.”
And then the elf did what he said he was going to do, and Kars was frozen completely.
“That actually worked?” Will said in shock.
“I’m a master at frost magic. Hmm, earlier ago, you mentioned Avdol. What’s he like?”
“Archmage Avdol?” Will said. “Well, he’s a master of magic, but he favors using fire. If I managed to tell him about these vampires, he would’ve helped us, but I was framed and thrown in jail before I could.”
“Hmm, I feel like I should fight this guy one day.”
“Archmage Avdol has no time for games. Anyways, now that we’re basically finished with this fight, who are you and why are you here?”
“I’m Ghiaccio,” the elf answered. “That won’t matter in the end. You’ll never see me again. And as for why I’m here, that’s none of your business.”
Will did find him a bit suspicious, but there was nothing he could do. That, and he didn’t trust the guards after learning about Phillida. “I’m Will Anthonio Zeppeli, a vampire hunter. A pleasure to meet you. Will your green-haired friend be okay? He’s been asleep for a long time.”
Ghiaccio put his hands on Pesci’s neck. “His heart is still beating. Let’s just get out of here with my… friends.”
-
Pesci awoke in the sanctuary. Sorbet and Formaggio stood near him.
“Oh, you’re awake!” Sorbet stated. “Everything went well. Prosciutto is still resting from his injuries from his contract.”
“Speaking of your contract,” Formaggio butted in, “I noticed Prosciutto got a lot of bite marks. Now if I weren’t a vampire, I would’ve thought he’d spent his time with some wild lady. That, and I know he’s a serious person. But, Pesci, since when did you guys become vampire slayers? Should I scream and panic?”
Pesci giggled. “No, I’d never slay you.”
“Anyways,” Sorbet interrupted, “there’s a contract for you once you fish resting.”
He sighed. “I just finished a contract, and Prosciutto said that was my last one.”
“Your last one for a while,” the Wood Elf corrected. “This one was so sudden. You’re to assassinate a nobleman named Jonathan Joestar. Whoever wanted him dead has richly rewarded us, and they aren’t picky about how you execute him.”
“Very well,” Pesci said. “I accept.”
No comments:
Post a Comment