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Fable : Fall of the Guild	By : Samson Category: +A through F > Fable Views: 8222 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
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Dangers Of Darkwood.
Fable : Fall of the Guild

Part V - "The Fall"

By: Jesse Racine AKA Samson

Original Date Written: November 9, 2011

Timoteo and Bianca had headed up towards their stash of obsidian cleavers, buried beneath the earth under a false grave. In time, as they walked among the trees, they found the grave and noticed how it looked freshly disturbed. The two would've been worried, had they not known that Darrah had helped herself to, hopefully, only an equal share of the stash. Timoteo pulled out his mace and, clumsily, began to dig away at the dirt of the false grave. Largely in part because the mace had no flat and sharp surface to it, the digging was slow and tiresome work. When they finally got to the cache of cleavers, however, they were both pleased and a little surprised to see that Darrah had only taken four of the dozen cleavers; she had left the other eight, including the obsidian katana. "She actually took a fair share?" Bianca said, a little surprised. "Considering she spent all of our earned gold last time on her armour commission, this is a pleasant turn." Timoteo said, pulling up the arms from their burial spot, resting them down on the ground beside the pit.
As Timoteo lifted up the weapons, he spotted something amidst the dirt. His brow furrowed as he reached for it, pulling it out of the earth. "What's that?" Bianca asked. Timoteo's eyes were curious as he said "It's a note...Must be from Darrah." Bianca was silent as Timoteo looked the parchment over. It wasn't a very big note, smaller than a typical piece of paper yet still larger than Timoteo's hand. It was coloured bone white, but was a little brown with encrusted dirt. The writing on it was legible, despite the dusting of dirt.
"Timoteo...I feel stupid for writing this note. You probably won't even read it.

Any time you want to talk, don't be afraid to contact my Seal. But please don't try to see me while you've got that witch hanging around you. I've got some things I think I'd like to talk to you about...But they can wait for whenever you want to speak with me."

Timoteo gazed at the note for a few seconds after he had finished, and Bianca eventually asked "What does it say?" Timoteo, a little softly, said "Darrah wants me to talk to her, some time..." Bianca didn't say anything in reply. Timoteo shook the note for a few seconds, making sure it was completely cleared of dirt grains before climbing up out of the pit, folding the note up and slipping it into his pack. He shouldered his pack and looked to Bianca, seeing her to be picking up several of the cleavers he had unearthed. He picked up the rest, saying "So, after we sell these, Brute wants us to meet at Knothole Glade...I've never been there, so I've never activated a Cullis Gate in the area with my Seal. Have you ever been there?" Bianca shook her head. "No...We'll have to take a boat, I suppose?" Timoteo nodded. "Unless Calvin wanted to come get us and teleport us with him..." Timoteo raised an eyebrow, saying "Actually, yeah. I could just ask him to do that, it'd be a lot faster."
Bianca smiled a little, pulling out her improvised Guild Seal from within her cloak. Timoteo pulled his from his pack, the two teleporting to Bowerstone South. Finding the popular blacksmith nearby, they promptly sold off their loot. They were both smiling widely when the blacksmith paid them approximately eighteen thousand, five hundred gold pieces, all in one sack. Most of the gold pieces were rounded up into coins of higher denomination rather than coins worth a single piece of gold, so they luckily had a sack that didn't weigh an extreme amount. The sack, having a nice weight to it, was pushed into Timoteo's pack. Timoteo pulled out his Seal again, contacting Calvin. Reaching him, he said "Calvin, it's Timoteo. I'm ready to meet up with you, but taking a boat to Knothole Glade will take days. Could you just come to Bowerstone South and teleport my friend and I to Knothole Glade with you?" Calvin said "Sure, I'll be there in a few seconds. Marst and Gibbons wanted me to do the same for them, and Brute's already here. Darrah didn't want to meet up, at all."
Timoteo was silent for a second, but when he spoke, he didn't respond to the news about Darrah unwilling to meet up. "Alright, we'll be here." He cut off the line of communication, slipping his Seal back into his pack. He looked to Bianca, who raised up her hood silently, shadowing her face. "How do you think Calvin will react to me? Or the others, for that matter?" Bianca asked with a soft, curious tone. Timoteo slowly said "...Hard to tell, really. They might still be angry with you for what you did to Travis...But, it's been years. I guess we'll just have to wait and see." They didn't have to wait long. Calvin appeared in a shimmer of blue light, standing over the Cullis Gate by the entrance to Bowerstone South. He glanced around for a moment before he saw Timoteo standing by the blacksmith's, a hand raised to hail his friend. Calvin began to walk over, his eyes mostly on Bianca, wondering who the dark figure with his friend could be.
"Hey, Tim. Nice to see you. I guess this is your friend?" He said as he walked up to them both. Timoteo nodded, looking to Bianca, saying "Yeah, this is her. Eh...You already know her, actually." Calvin's face went perplexed. "Before, you said it was another Hero. Someone from the Guild?" He asked. Bianca quietly said "In a sense..." Calvin's face went even more confused at the sound of her voice, like he faintly recognized her voice yet couldn't quite remember where he had heard it before. Bianca raised her hands to her hood, pulling it back, speaking as she pulled it back. "It's been a long time, Calvin...Do you remember me?" When her face was revealed, Calvin's eyes went a little wide. A second later, he said "Of course, I remember you...Bianca. You were exiled." Bianca nodded softly, her plait swaying along her forehead. "Yes...A long time ago. It's nice to see you again." Calvin's eyes relaxed, and he seemed hesitant to reply at first, but he spoke his words, nonetheless. "It's nice to see you, too. How long have you..."
Calvin glanced at Timoteo. Timoteo said "Very shortly after our graduation ceremony. She came to me in the night." Calvin nodded. Looking back to Bianca for a second before looking back to Timoteo, he held out his right arm, saying "Alright, hold on to me. We'll teleport to Knothole Glade and meet the others. I'm disappointed Darrah doesn't want to meet up, but...Not like I can force her." Timoteo said nothing, but his eyes fell towards the ground in thought. He reached over, holding on to Calvin's arm by his elbow, Bianca holding on to Calvin's forearm, near his wrist. Calvin held his Seal in his other hand, teleporting himself to Knothole Glade, taking the others with him via physical connection.

When the trio appeared just outside the main gate of Knothole Glade, standing by the Cullis Gate, Timoteo and Bianca both felt their Seals vibrate for a moment; it had reacted to the nearby presence of the Cullis Gate, and would remember it should either of them wish to teleport to Knothole Glade. Timoteo glanced behind him to the Cullis Gate. The gate looked different than the one inside the Guild of Heroes. It looked like a raised platform of tan stone, steps leading up to it. Over the middle of the platform, shaped like a circle, was a large spot that was inky black like a starless night sky, rimmed with glowing blue light. Soft shimmers of blue rose up over the black circle, rising to about head-level before fading away. Timoteo looked back over as he noticed Calvin take a few steps forwards. Standing outside the opened main gate, on the grassy clearing between the community and the tall, thick trees out on the island, stood Marst and Gibbons, along with Brute.
Calvin said "Where's Pyre?" Brute shrugged. "Said she had better things to do than have someone try to convince her to head up to Snowspire like some exiled freak. Her words, not mine." Gibbons snorted with amusement, smiling widely as he held back laughter. Calvin sighed deeply, and as he sighed, the others noticed Bianca. Bianca, without her hood up, had her face instantly scanned by the others. "Bianca?" Marst said, disbelief ringing clearly in her voice. Brute raised a hand, wagging out a digit, saying "I knew I remembered her face from somewhere!" Gibbons' face was fairly calm as he said "...Seems like she's still working into her chosen alignment..." Bianca and Timoteo walked up to the two of them along with Calvin, having heard them perfectly clearly. Bianca spoke once she had reached the others. "Hello Marst, Gibbons, and Brute. It's been a long time since we last saw each other. How are you all?"
Brute glanced at Marst as she took a step forward. Marst seemed to have the slightest bit of apprehension about her own actions as she said "Bianca, it's good to see you again...I'm glad you've done well. Weaver sent you off with no supplies, but you must've managed to make it home, or something?" She came close to Bianca with her arms outstretched, which seemed to be the root of her mild apprehension, but Bianca didn't shy from the embrace. The two gave each other a hug, Bianca saying "I didn't go to my old home...I found a new one." They slowly released each other, Marst raising an eyebrow and glancing down towards Bianca's chest for a moment before meeting her eyes again. Obviously, she had detected the immense growth Bianca had undergone in her years away from the Guild, though none of the others did due to Bianca's cloak being closed at the time. She said nothing about it however, and Bianca, who had noticed Marst's glance, didn't ask her about it.
Marst stepped back, Bianca looking to Gibbons. She nodded, saying "Gibbons, it's nice to see you again. How have you been?" Gibbons smiled a little, saying "Well, I was shot not long ago and nearly gutted by some crazy woman, but other than that, everything's been pretty cool. Making a living through thievery has been even easier than I thought it would be." Bianca chuckled in her throat and smiled. "Still want to be the most famous thief Albion has ever seen?" She asked. Gibbons grinned. "Of course! That's the dream!" He replied. Bianca smiled a little more at his response. Looking to Brute, she said "Brute, you've gotten even bigger than I imagined you would've. You certainly live up to your name, now." Brute smiled a little, though felt struck with an odd bit of shyness that kept him from responding. What exactly made him shy, he didn't know. Timoteo, paying attention to Brute as Bianca spoke to him, didn't notice Marst walk up to him.
He was caught off-guard when she hugged him, releasing him a moment later, smiling happily as she said "Hey Tim, it's been a little while. I was at your graduation, though you probably didn't notice me in the crowd. How have things been for you, lately?" Timoteo smiled a little, pleased to hear that she had been there to see him officially recognized as a full Hero. "Not too shabby, aside from a fight here or there." Marst chuckled, and Gibbons jokingly said "We're Heroes, man. Fightin's part of the job description!" Timoteo smiled a little, saying "I know. I meant...Personal fights." The others gave him peculiar looks, all aside from Bianca. Timoteo elaborated with a single word: "Darrah." Gibbons nodded slowly, Brute saying "You know, when you two decided to stick together, I...Damn, I don't know what I thought. You guys were friends for a while, but before that...I dunno. Guess I thought you guys would be fine." Timoteo raised an eyebrow slightly, losing his smile, his vision lowering to the ground. "Yeah, well, nothing's perfect." Everyone was uncomfortably silent for a moment before Timoteo said "But, we're not here to talk about our personal problems. This is about the League, right?" Calvin nodded.

The six of them stood in a small circle just outside the gates to Knothole Glade, the sun dipping down with evening, darkening the sky and turning it a little crimson. Calvin began. "Look. You all know why I wanted to meet you here. The Anti-Hero League is growing in strength every day, and firearms are becoming more and more readily available. It pains me more than you all realize to say this, but..." Calvin raised his eyebrows, shaking his head a little, saying "Under Merlin, with Weaver's advice, the Guild isn't doing anything. I don't know if it's going to be able to save itself when the League attacks, and it will attack, eventually. The League hates Heroes, every damn member of the group wants us dead or gone, and the League is popping up chapters in every major town in Albion. Pretty soon, there won't be anywhere a Hero could run to. A disaster's coming." Gibbons' brow furrowed as he said "Heroes could grab some firearms and show the League a thing or two about how to use one of those damn things. I know it. I've used one of them myself, and it's not hard."
Calvin responded with "But that's assuming Heroes want to fight back. Look, Weaver and Merlin are telling everybody that it's all going to pass, and that violence will only make us look bad. Good Heroes don't want to hurt people, and most everyone else respects Weaver too much to go against his guidance. What I'm afraid of is, once the League attacks, Heroes still won't want to fight...And it'll just be the end of the Guild." Marst said "Assuming that Heroes don't want to fight, and Anti-Hero League groups crop up in every major town and city...What choice does that leave us? I, for one, am not really in favour of spending my days in a place as frosty as Snowspire." Gibbons and Brute both nodded in agreement.
Calvin's face was grave yet pleading as he said "Look...If the League attacks the Guild and overcomes it, it's not going to get every Hero. Obviously, some will run, and it's not like every living Hero stays at the Guild, anyway. But the League isn't going to risk striking the Guild and then calling it quits, that's ridiculous. If it gets strong enough to attack the Guild, it's not going to stop until it wipes out Heroes entirely, by killing them or making them all run, it doesn't matter. It won't just stop. I mean, what if the remaining Heroes banded together and actually fought back? That'd be a problem. Too big a problem." Timoteo raised an eyebrow, asking "So you want to go to Snowspire to just avoid the whole situation?" Calvin urgently said "Where else? Snowspire's so far north, and it's such a cold and nasty place, the Anti-Hero League probably doesn't think any Hero would want to hide there, and it's right! Look! None of you want to go there! You're just playing into their assumptions!"
Gibbons and Brute glanced at each other. "Don't you think there could be other places someone could hide to avoid the League? Somewhere where we won't run the risk of having our sensitive bits turn black with cold and fall off?" Brute said. Bianca remained silent, looking over to Calvin as he shook his head. "I doubt it. If the League's run by people smarter than a piece of tree bark, they'll comb all over Albion for Heroes. And what do you think they'll do if they find them? They'll launch a wall of pellets at them with firearms!" Brute said "You know, this whole situation is contained to Albion. We could always just leave." Gibbons shook his head. "Albion's my home, I'm not leaving because some people don't like what I am." He said, firmly. Brute said "Knothole Glade's my home, and I'm planning on staying here despite the League. There are some League people here, sure, but not enough to be a threat to me or the other Heroes here. I'm willing to take a ship and get out of here if I have no other choice, though."
Calvin looked to Bianca. "Bianca? What do you think? You're not technically a Hero, but you can still use Will, right? That'll make the League lump you in with us." Bianca softly said "I have prior engagements...I'm looking for someone, and I'm sure she's still in Albion." Calvin sighed slightly with disappointment, but Bianca spoke again. "...If it gets bad enough that my search is being hampered by this League, however...I will head north with Timoteo." Calvin smiled a little. Timoteo said "I've got nothing keeping me in Albion, and I'd rather not feel like a hunted animal because of the League. I'll head to Snowspire if things get bad enough." Calvin grinned at his words.

Gibbons said "Tim, do you know what Snowspire is like?" He raised his eyebrows, his eyes a little wide, his expression one of incredulity. "It snows all the time! There's ice everywhere, and some crazy monsters that would love nothing more than to rip you to shreds!" Timoteo said "Yeah, but people live up there. There must be safe communities. I'd rather have peace than being on the run from people with firearms." Marst nodded gently, putting her hands to her hips. A second later, she narrowed her eyes, her head darting over to the side. Everyone noticed her action. "What is it?" Bianca asked, gently. Marst kept looking off to the side as she slowly said "...I thought I heard something..." Calvin looked around urgently, saying "Oh Avo, one of them must've heard us." "So?" Gibbons said, without a care or fear. Calvin looked back to Gibbons, hastily hissing "They could come after us with their firearms! We need to get out of here!"
Brute smiled with amusement. "I'm not going anywhere. This is my home, they're welcome to try and part me from it." Timoteo said "Calm down Calvin, it could've been anything, not just an Anti-Hero League member." Calvin slowly seemed to relax. Gibbons gazed at Bianca's face for a few moments before he looked down towards the ground, his brow furrowing a touch, his eyes calm. Calvin said "All the same, we should wrap this up." Marst raised her eyebrows, saying "Calvin, we all just got here! Now you want us to go all the way back?" Calvin said "I'm getting out of here, too. If I find another safe place to meet up, I can contact you. As it is, though, I'm going to see about taking a ship north to Snowspire. Maybe I won't leave today, but I want to know the option's open before I try swimming across a freezing ocean." Brute shook his head, saying "Calvin, the League's got you paranoid." Calvin's eyes went wide and he muttered "I'm just looking out for myself and my friends."
He let off a sigh, his eyes relaxing. Everyone was quiet for a few seconds before Gibbons slowly said "...Right. Look. I don't want to head to Snowspire. I want to stay here and fight the League. Firearms or no firearms, I don't want these ungrateful bastards trampling over us and what we were supposed to do with our lives. I mean, c'mon, we're Heroes, are we really going to let these buggers ruin our lives because they think that we think we're above the law? C'mon. That's cowardly." Calvin raised his eyebrows, saying "At least tell me where you'll be from now on, and what you'll do if the League attacks. Give me that, so I can have some peace of mind!" Gibbons sighed through his nose, speaking with mild exasperation as he said "I think I'll be heading down to Oakvale. Bowerstone is a bit of a no-go for me, right now. And it's easy for me to blend in with normal people, I mean, I haven't done anything huge to make me obvious. Just dress in normal clothes and don't act suspicious, people won't suspect you. I'll blend in if the League somehow takes down the Guild."
Calvin looked to Marst. She shrugged gently. "I wish I could say I could just blend in, like Gibbons. But I've started to make enough of a name for myself that people would notice me if I just tried walking around. I think I'll stay around Bowerstone and the Guild, I'll keep an eye on things. If the League attacks..." Marst shrugged again. "I'll have to get back to you on going to Snowspire. I don't like the idea, but if it's the only choice I have..." She said, trailing off. Calvin looked to Brute. Brute reached up and gave the side of his thick neck a light scratching as he said "Snowspire's not a place I'd want to be, honestly. Sorry Calvin, but I prefer warmer places. Like I said, I'll stay around my home, and if it gets to the point where the Anti-Hero League is screwing around in Knothole Glade, I'll just get a ship and sail for other countries. Maybe Samarkand."
Calvin looked to Timoteo and Bianca. Bianca looked to Timoteo, saying "After this, if you'd like, you can come down with me to Darkwood and meet Grizelda...I can teleport us down to a Cullis Gate deep in Greatwood, it's very close to Darkwood. From there, I can show you the way to Grizelda's home. After that...I'd like to search for her." Timoteo nodded, looking to Calvin, saying "Bianca and I will be busy, for a while. But when the League attacks...We'll try for Snowspire. I promise." Bianca looked to Calvin, nodding softly, showing she was in agreement with Timoteo's words. Gibbons raised an eyebrow, slowly glancing back and forth between Timoteo and Bianca, but whatever thoughts were running through his head, he didn't vocalize. Calvin hastily said "Guess that's it, then. We'd all better split up and go on our way, before a mob comes thundering after us with firearms." Everyone nodded, saying their goodbyes to each other, everyone but Timoteo and Brute pulling out their Guild Seals.
As Bianca held her improvised Guild Seal and prepared to teleport away, she and Timoteo clasped hands by each other's side, disappearing in a red shimmer of light together. The others teleported away in shimmers of blue light. Brute simply took in a quick breath through his nose before exhaling, pushing his hands into his pockets before walking off, heading into Knothole Glade just as the sun began to set over Albion...

Timoteo and Bianca appeared over another Cullis Gate, Timoteo's Seal vibrating for a moment once again as it reacted to another Gate. Timoteo could tell that the duo were somewhere in Greatwood; tall, leafy trees stood all around them, aside from the path that faced before them. Still holding hands, the two set off down the path, Bianca calmly saying "I'm happy the others were warmer to me than Darrah was...I wonder what she'll do if this "League" attacks." Timoteo was quiet for a second before saying "I get the feeling she'll fight. That's just the impression I get." Bianca slowly squeezed Timoteo's hand. He gave her hand a gentle squeeze in return. "How long will it take to reach Grizelda's home?" He asked. Bianca and he took a sharp turn in the path, heading south then instead of north. Bianca softly said "A couple of hours. Three, at least..." Timoteo glanced to the sky, darkening rapidly to night with the sun having set.
"We should rest for the night, first." He said. Bianca glanced to the sky. "We could...But if you're worried about more dangerous creatures coming out at night, there's no need." Timoteo raised an eyebrow just slightly, glancing over to her, saying "Oh, yeah. You said that it's always night in Darkwood, right?" Bianca nodded gently, a little smile coming to her. "It doesn't matter what time we enter Darkwood at. It'll still be dark, and the native creatures will be out in force. I'm certain we'll run into something on the way to Grizelda, but we can handle ourselves." Timoteo slowly said "Balverines, Hollow Men, Nymphs, trolls...Hobbes?" Bianca nodded gently. "Hobbes, too." She confirmed. Timoteo sighed gently, but up ahead in his view came the sight of a wandering trader. Walking down the path, heading north and thus towards them, he was dressed in the typical garb of a trader: a brown jacket buttoned up to the middle of the chest, along with dark blue slacks.
Brown boots were on his feet, along with brown fingerless gloves on his hands. He had a very large and prominent moustache on his face, which stuck out far towards the sides of his face, curling upwards to twin points. He wore a large hat, the brim of which came down and shaded his eyes, two feathers of red and blue stuck into the side. On his back was a big brown backpack, obviously where the trader kept his goods. Timoteo nodded towards the trader, saying "Maybe we should buy some potions from the trader, there. I'm kind of hungry, too." "So am I, but I was willing to wait until Grizelda's...Eating now will keep our strength up, though." Bianca said. Timoteo nodded, the two eventually coming close enough to the trader that Timoteo was sure the man could hear him if he spoke. "Hey, trader! Have you got potions, or food? We'll buy whatever you've got!" The trader started out saying "Well certainly, I've got..." He tilted his head back until he could see the two from under the low brim of his hat, and when he saw them, his expression darkened.
When he took in Bianca's appearance, his eyes grew particularly perturbed. Quickly but firmly, he said "I don't serve Heroes, anymore. Find some other trader." Timoteo's face went confused, but Bianca's expression didn't change. Her face was cool and almost emotionless. Timoteo said "Er, did I offend, somehow? We're willing to buy whatever goods you-" The trader's eyes widened, and he snapped out "I don't serve Heroes! Leave me be!" He suddenly launched out a wad of spit, spitting to the ground between himself and the duo, hastily walking past them. Timoteo and Bianca turned around, Timoteo's face growing even more confused. "Maybe he's a League supporter?" He quietly muttered, still surprised over the trader's hostility. Bianca released Timoteo's hand and pulled it back, in the air. Before Timoteo could react, she swung her hand down, a large fireball zooming out on the air. It struck the trader over his pack, quickly bursting it into flames, the flames twisting along the trader's torso hardly a second later.
The trader screamed out in shock and sudden agony, collapsing to the ground, rolling along the dirt of the path in an attempt at killing the hungry flames. Timoteo looked to Bianca with a touch of surprise. Her face was calm as she watched the trader writhe against the ground. Timoteo slowly looked back towards the trader, who had just barely gotten the flames extinguished before his jacket had been cooked to his skin. "He deserved it." Bianca murmured. Timoteo quietly said "I can't say he didn't deserve something." Bianca wordlessly turned from the trader, beginning to walk down the path towards Darkwood once more, Timoteo turning and walking off beside her a second later. At the end of the path, there was a little clearing with a Demon Door off to the side. Timoteo looked to the Demon Door, taking in how it looked. It was a tall stone gateway of sorts, set into the wall of a small rocky cliff, the gate solid and sealed shut.
Designed over the front of the stone gate was an elderly man's face, a long, curly beard to him, his eyes shut. Timoteo knew that, should the two approach the Demon Door, the face over the front of the gateway would animate and seem to come alive. It would speak to them, and offer them some sort of challenge. If they could complete it, the gateway would open, and who knows what kinds of secrets would be found within. The Demon Door wasn't their destination, however; not too far from the duo sat a cave opening, and beyond that, Darkwood. Heading over, they descended into the cave, holding hands in the gloom while Bianca took Timoteo through dark, twisting passages...

"...And, here it is. Darkwood." Bianca said, stepping out through another cave opening. Timoteo stepped out a second later, standing by her side. His face was solemn as he looked around. He recognized Darkwood from the dream Bianca had risen in him, on his first night out of the Guild. The trees were skeletal and bare, gnarled and practically withered. The ground was mostly bare of grass, simply dirt. The sky was dark, similar to how it had been over Lychfield; there were no stars, but the moon was visible up above, full and bright. The air was a little chilled, but like Lychfield, it wasn't cold enough for one to see their breath appear before them when they exhaled. Bianca took in a deep breath of the cool, dank air, exhaling slowly with a smile appearing on her face. "It's nice to be back home." She lightly said. Timoteo smiled a little at her tone, glancing at her before looking forwards once more. She reached over and held his hand, threading fingers with him, Timoteo holding her hand back.
The two set off down the path, walking deeper into the inhospital Darkwood. There was an eery feeling Timoteo couldn't help but notice, and it was very similar to Lychfield. He felt like he was being watched by someone, somewhere. Subtly glancing around, however, he never saw anything in the skeletal trees around them. Trying to get his mind off of the prickling feeling, he thought back to how he had wanted to ask Bianca about her home town. Looking over to her, he asked "Bianca, can I ask you something?" Bianca looked over to him, saying "Of course." He slowly said "Before the Guild...At your home...What happened?" Bianca's face quickly became emotionless, her eyes closing a little. She looked forwards, down the path, her eyes pointed downwards. Timoteo said "You mentioned at Travis' grave that something happened with the people at your old home...And, well...Something caused your body to reflect an evil morality."
Bianca was silent for several long moments. The only sound that surrounded the two was the sound of their own footsteps, hitting the dirt. "If you don't want to tell me..." Timoteo lightly said, still looking over to her. She was silent for a few seconds more before she gave his hand a strong squeeze. Her mouth hung open a little before she softly said "...I told you that when I chased my mother...I cast a spell to try and get her...That's how the Guild found me. I didn't tell you all the details...I've never told anyone before. Weaver simply found out because he put two and two together. Grizelda never asked me, either. Like Weaver, she just added things up." Timoteo looked forwards, then. "It's fine. I don't have to know." He said, lightly. Bianca gave his hand another strong squeeze. She was silent for a second before she quietly began to speak. "When I chased my mother...It was a busy day outside. People were going around everywhere...Almost everyone was out in the town square."
Timoteo quietly listened to her speak, thinking about how Bianca seemed to want to explain things to him, despite it obviously being deeply personal and perhaps traumatizing. Bianca's mouth hung open for a few seconds, no sound coming from her. Her eyes were still pointed to the ground. She raised her eyebrows slightly as she said "My mother was bumping into people as she ran...She was kicking up so much dust, it was easy to follow...She almost seemed to be confused, like she didn't know a proper way to escape after the murder. Maybe she was panicking..." Bianca slowly took in a breath before exhaling lightly. "She tripped near the fountain in the town square. A few people saw the heart in her hand and started surrounding her to see what was going on. I ran up to her, but she kicked me away and took off. People started to surround me, then. Like with her, they must've been curious...Wondering what was going on..."
She was quiet for a moment before murmuring "I don't know how to explain what happened next. I don't remember it too well. I think I might've blocked most of it out. I remember...There was a red light under me...It was making a circle. There were runes, and eyes, and triangles...And this noise, high-pitched, it was getting louder every second. The people began to scream and run, but..." Bianca gave his hand a trembling squeeze, and Timoteo looked over to her. He realized, with surprise, that tears had begun to run down her pale cheeks. Bianca kept her voice under control as she softly said "I could still feel my mother, somewhere close...I...I don't know what happened. I can't remember trying to cast a spell, but that's what I did. The circle of light beneath me, it...It let off this c-crashing sound once the high-pitched noise got loud enough." Bianca's bottom lip trembled, and she suddenly hung her head down, taking in a sniffle.
Timoteo released her hand, his face sympathetic as he reached an arm around her, bringing her close. Still, the two continued to walk, taking a turn in the dirt path, entering a swampy clearing. Bianca took in a deep breath to try and steady herself, exhaling shakily. "The people around me were lifted up into the air...Bright beams of red light shot up at them from the ground, and they were shaking like mad...And...Th-There were these...Things...They might've been ghosts...B-But they didn't look like how Grizelda said they did. They were black...And they had red eyes...And they were zipping through the air around ev...Eryone..." Bianca let out a shaky sigh, holding her arms in front of herself, crossing them over her stomach as she held on to her elbows. She took in a sniffling breath before saying "I couldn't move...I could feel my Will being drained...It was the first time I had ever felt it, and it drained me so badly, twice as worse as the Minion did...I was so tired...It was like I was asleep, b-but I was still conscious...I could still see and hear...And..."
She stifled a sob, a choked sound that made Tammo feel like his insides had been sucked away. He gave her a comforting squeeze with his arm. They took another turn in the path. "The spell kept going for a few seconds before it just e-ended in a flash...Everyone...Everyone around me...They all disappeared...They vanished in little bursts of this weird red l-light..." Bianca breathed shakily, her voice finally tightening with emotions. "I killed so many people...I...I destroyed them...I didn't want to kill them, I-I didn't want to hurt them, I wanted to get my mother!...A-And even after the spell ended...I could still feel her!! She was laughing at me!!" Bianca stopped walking, bringing her hands up to her face, covering her face with her hands as she began to sob. Timoteo stopped walking, turning to her, bringing both arms around her. Her arms against her chest, her hands still to her face, she remained motionless as he held her, the only movement coming from her being the trembling of her body as she wept.
He felt terrible inside. Cold. He had made her cry when he asked her about her time before the Guild, he felt completely at blame. After several seconds of weeping, Bianca sobbed out "Th...That's why I look the way I do!!..." Timoteo held her tight, softly saying "I'm so sorry, Bianca...It's okay...I'm sorry..." Bianca kept crying for a minute or two, despite Timoteo's repeated attempts at soothing whispers. When her sobbing began to die down, she lowered her hands from her face, running her hands down along him until they met his waist. She looked up to his face. Her eyes were a little red from her tears. Her bottom lip quivered lightly before she took in a breath to steady herself. "The people at my old home...They're the only people I've killed that I felt really didn't d-deserve it at all, and it rips at me to remember them...All they did was stand there...Th-They didn't...They didn't deserve it at all...Nothing made m-me feel like I had to kill them...It was all my mother...They were j...Just caught in the path..."
Timoteo lightly said "Bianca, you...I'm sorry..." He raised his eyebrows, sadly saying "You...You couldn't stop yourself. You wanted to stop your mother..." Timoteo was at a slight loss for words as Bianca gently slipped herself out of his embrace, turning her back to him, standing slightly away from him. She didn't look to him as she spoke, her head hanging down slightly. "I'm a mage...I cast that spell, somehow...It's my fault...I should've had better control of myself...I...I just..." She turned back to look at him, her expression tortured, her eyebrows raised. "There's no justifying it, there's no explaining it away, it was wrong and evil, and it made me look like I do now. And it was caused by my mother, at the root. I killed people that didn't even do something to spur me, like Travis did! I've never done that s-since then, and I never want to again..." Bianca breathed slowly then, calming herself down. She reached up to her face and wiped at her cheeks, removing any moisture from her tears.
"...Let's keep moving. Please?" She asked, softly. Timoteo nodded wordlessly. Walking for a minute or two in silence, they walked across soggy earth, passing a little creek whose waters barely reached their ankles. "I don't really know what to say...About what happened..." Timoteo said, a little quietly. The left corner of Bianca's mouth curved upwards slightly, her tone understanding as she softly said "I don't blame you...I'm sorry for coming apart like that. Making a scene isn't a ladylike thing to do. I've never told anyone, though...Once I started, I couldn't stop." Timoteo gently said "Don't feel bad about it...What happened is tragic. I'm sorry it happened to you." He smiled a little, holding out his hands by his sides, saying "But you can't really make a scene in a place like this. There's nobody to see you!" Bianca smiled more, suppressing a chuckle. "Good point." She murmured. Timoteo grinned a little, pleased to see her smiling again.
Suddenly, Bianca froze in place, her eyes straight ahead. Her face went still. Timoteo looked up ahead. Down the path, the duo saw what looked like a cluster of floating spheres made of white light, rapidly whizzing around with each other. "Wisps." Timoteo said, narrowing his eyes. He pulled his mace from his pack. Bianca glanced off to the side at the sound of a loud caw. Timoteo glanced over as well. Abel, Bianca's crow, sat perched in one of the skeletal trees nearby. Timoteo looked back towards the wisps as he heard a high whizzing sound. One of the glowing spheres shot down into the ground, in the middle of the path. It was rapidly followed by the other five. Bianca looked back over as the ground let off a faint rumbling sound, vibrations appearing beneath the duo's feet.

Suddenly shooting up from the ground, violently bursting from the earth, the Hollow Men came up in standing positions. Dirt flew from their bodies, the holes they had come up from collapsing in on themselves and sealing. The Hollow Men were comprised of four men and two women. Three of the men were dressed in bits of armour, ancient and rusted, while the fourth was dressed very much like the trader the duo had come across before entering Darkwood. The two women looked like regular women, dressed in ordinary clothing. The men in armour had rotted away entirely, not a shred of flesh remaining on their old bones. They were each armed with swords, and one of them had a shield. The trader had decomposed meat to his arms, legs, and head, but his torso had been reduced to mere bones, his shirt shredded in some violent attack, likely the one that killed the trader, and revealing his ribs and spine. His pale face was twisted up in anger, dried and cracked blood still evident on his chin and throat.
In his right hand, he held a large knife. The first woman, wearing a dark blue tattered dress, held an old cleaver in each hand. She was comprised mostly of flesh, but her stomach and hands had rotted away to reveal muscle and, over her hands, partial sections of bone. The second woman, a portly female, was missing her right arm at the shoulder. Her feet had rotted away entirely, leaving her standing on the bones left behind. In her left hand, she held a decently sized club. She was dressed in regular pants and a shirt, the shirt frayed to mere threads. Every single one of the Hollow Men had bright blue lights coming from their eye sockets, and those among them who had lost their nose to decomposition, a blue light was visible from within the bony slits remaining. The Hollow Men all let off haunting calls and groans, all wordless, all echoing ethereally. They began to shamble towards the duo, though the trader and the lean woman in the blue dress walked perfectly fine, thanks to their feet still being more or less intact.
Timoteo cast his Physical Shield, Bianca holding up a hand before herself, her palm facing the dark sky. An orb of fire crackled into life in the palm of her hand, significantly lighting up the air around the duo. "They're weak against fire, it can break them faster than a regular weapon. Cast with me, Tim." Bianca said. Timoteo kept looking at the approaching Hollow Men as he replaced his mace to it's spot, on the side of his pack. The two stood beside each other, Timoteo holding his hands close together over his stomach, a roaring ball of fire rapidly swelling into life between his hands. Bianca's orb grew until it was too big for her to hold over one hand, and she, like him, used her second hand to hold her magic. The Hollow Men were fairly close to them when they raised their arms, throwing them down and releasing their Will. Their fiery spheres hit the group of Hollow Men and tore along them viciously, eating up the old flesh clinging to some, destroying the clothing they wore.
Timoteo smiled with victory as he saw one, then two, then three, collapse to the ground, the flames having broken the Hollow Men up too much for the wisps to control any further. Their blackening bones collapsed in a heap, rattling when they struck each other. Timoteo's eyes widened when he saw one of the Hollow Men, still on fire, suddenly sprint forwards in the blink of an eye. It had raced directly for Bianca, the warrior Hollow Man raising his sword over her head. Bianca reacted quickly. Casting Assassin's Rush, she disappeared in the blink of an eye, materializing behind the flaming Hollow Man. She threw a hand up towards the undead warrior's back, a blast of Force Push coming out, rippling through the air before it hit the skeletal fighter. It's body broke up in a jamble of bones and armour, it's sword and shield landing with clangs. Timoteo saw one of the other Hollow Men run up behind Bianca, raising it's sword, swinging down before Timoteo could react.
Bianca stifled a cry of pain as the Hollow Man's sword bit through her cloak, slashing deep into her left shoulder. Bianca rushed forwards, turning around and facing the Hollow Men, her wide eyes going to her shoulder as she slumped over slightly with pain. Timoteo pulled out his mace again, racing towards the Hollow Men in a rage, swinging as hard as he could. His mace cracked into the flaming head of one of the Hollow Men, shattering it, the fiery bones left behind collapsing to the ground in a heap. He swung over for the last Hollow Man, cracking into it's spine, over it's throat. It, too, fell down in a destroyed pile. Timoteo turned to Bianca, putting away his mace.
She was breathing a little rapidly, looking to her wound as she said "We need to go...The noise might've attracted something else." She hastily began to walk, moving past him. He followed after her, pulling off his pack, reaching inside as he pulled out a a health potion. "Bianca, drink this, you can't ignore that injury!" He said, worriedly. She turned, looking to him, then to the potion in his outstretched hand. She took it, thanking him, downing the entire thing. She threw the empty bottle off to the side. "Come on, balverines can hear things better than humans can, we need to move!" She said, urgently. Timoteo nodded, rushing down the path with her.

The two went along for an hour or two. They passed by tiny little streams, swampy sections of ground, muddy hills and constant skeletal trees. Timoteo asked Bianca once if her wound had healed, and she said it had, but then remarked that she'd need to stitch up her cloak at Grizelda's. Timoteo had smiled at this, and they said no more. After another thirty minutes, they were both too winded to continue. Bianca leaned against a tree, tilting her head back to rest it against the wood. "We're close...Grizelda's home isn't far..." She panted out. Timoteo leaned over, putting his hands to his knees, panting as he said "Alright...Should we...Keep moving?..." Bianca said "Let's rest a minute..." Bianca suddenly stopped breathing, holding her air in as she looked down the path. Timoteo looked over his shoulder. Standing down where they had come from was a small pack of balverines, numbering six or seven. It was hard to tell how many there were in the shadows of Darkwood, and while their eyes glowed in the dark, they darted around rapidly as the balverines moved and blinked, creating confusion in any that attempted to count their numbers from afar.
"They were waiting for us to get tired." Bianca said, her eyes a little wide. "Let's go!" Timoteo said, rushing closer to her, grabbing her by the hand and beginning to run down the path. "Wait, Tim, they're faster than us! Wait!" Bianca urgently said. Timoteo stopped moving, looking to Bianca. She released his hand, turning to look down at the balverines. They had already begun to chase after the duo, seeing that not only was their prey winded, but had also realized that they were being followed. If there was ever a time to strike, it'd be then and there. Bianca raised a hand, snapping her fingers. Her snap seemed exceptionally loud, echoing out around them, sounding out through the trees. Still, the balverines ran for the duo. Bianca lowered her hand, pointing a finger down at the balverines. Suddenly, a ruckus rose up so loud that Timoteo flinched. Seemingly from thin air, perhaps two dozen crows and ravens suddenly flocked out from the trees, zooming towards the balverines.
Timoteo hadn't paid exceptional attention to the trees, but they all lacked any and all foilage, so Timoteo was certain that he would've been able to see the birds in their branches. Either the birds were that adept at blending in and remaining hidden, or Bianca had somehow summoned them with her Will, Timoteo wasn't sure which was more plausible. The crows and ravens all called out loudly, constantly cawing and shrieking as they swarmed the balverines, flying around them and scratching with their talons, pecking with their beaks. While the birds didn't do much damage to any of the bestial creatures, they acted as excellent distractions; while the balverines swatted at them, trying to knock them out of the air with their claws, the birds were just moving too fast. They were too numerous and too confusing, too disorienting with their cries and scraping talons. Bianca grabbed Timoteo's hand again and the two were off, racing down the path, leaving behind their pursuers.
After a few more minutes of near-breathless running, Bianca took Timoteo off the path, running through some of the trees with him. Through the trees, over hills and through slight dips, past thorny vines that creeped between collapsed trees. The two even ran past an immense rocky mound at one point that Bianca hastily avoided, saying it was a troll. For many dazed and hurried minutes they ran through parts of Darkwood more dangerous than most dared to know, for while the main paths through the forest were chancy, going off the path meant rushing through territories ruled by beast, not man. Eventually, when Timoteo felt his lungs crying for rest, his limbs echoing in chorus, the two entered a clearing. The trees disappeared from around them, the small grassy opening before them having only a single thing to it. A cottage made of dark stone sat in the middle of the clearing, it's several tiny windows golden with inner light. A chimney stuck up from the roof on the far side, smoke billowing out from it, almost instantly becoming invisible as it reached up into the dark sky.
A large pile of chopped wood sat beside the outside of the abode, the wooden front door to the cottage shut tight. Bianca smiled, panting deeply along with Timoteo as they came to a stop at the edge of the clearing. "This is it!" She breathlessly said. Still holding hands, they raced along towards the cottage. As they neared the door, Timoteo thought he heard something behind him. Looking over his shoulder, he saw a much larger pack of balverines, numbering nearly nineteen, standing just at the edge of the clearing, still amongst the trees. "There's more of them!" He said. He and Bianca came to a stop in front of the dark cottage's door. "They won't...Follow us into...The clearing..." Bianca panted. "They know better..." She added. Timoteo kept looking at the balverines as Bianca began to rap at the wooden door to the cottage. The balverines continued to watch them, some of them growling every now and then. They were waiting, it seemed. Perhaps watching to see if anyone would answer their knocks at the cottage's door.
Timoteo continued to look at them as the door to the cottage was suddenly pulled inwards, a bath of golden light washing out at them both. After spending hours in the gloom of Darkwood, a constant darkness Timoteo wasn't exactly accustomed too, the sudden bright light from within the cottage was strong enough that it made Timoteo look over and almost completely shut his eyes to stop the light from paining him. A youthful, yet mature and womanly voice sounded out, the tone being one of jubilation. "Bianca, you're back! And I see you've brought a man, hmm?" The voice chuckled in a somewhat knowing way, Timoteo hearing Bianca speak with mild embarrassment as she said "Please Grizelda, don't embarrass me...This is Timoteo, from the Guild." "I figured as much. Come in, come in! Let me get a look at him..." Timoteo felt gentle hands rest over his shoulders, guiding him into the cottage, his eyes still unused to the light...
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Fable : Fall of the Guild