Book 13 Chapters 4-6 "Our Lunch with Jallarzi"

[Argent]

Chapter Four:

“Your very long night was finally over,” Maggie noted. “What happened the next day?”

“It came way too early for our tastes,” Argent stated. “But many things were going on that I was not fully aware of yet.”

“I seem to recall it all starting with someone knocking on our door,” Lady Argent explained.


“Go away!” A very groggy Argent cried out in response to the knocking. Lady Argent just moaned incoherently from elsewhere on the bed. The person knocking didn't listen, instead they opened the door and went in! They went to the windows and parted the curtains, letting the light of day flood into the room. Argent was forced to close her eyes as she was lying on her side and was facing the windows.

The intruder moved to the side of the bed and in an amused voice said, “I wish I could say that this was the strangest thing I have ever seen, but it's not. You two must have had an interesting evening.”

“Hanna?” Argent muttered as she tried to open her eyes using her hand to block the sunlight. Hanna was Jallarzi's childhood friend and ran the serving staff in the dining room. Argent was well acquainted with her as she was also Jallarzi's most trusted assistant. “What's the big idea?”

“The Lady Sallavarian is expecting both of you in her private chambers shortly,” Hanna replied. “So hop to it, you both have a big day ahead of you.”

“Okay, okay,” Argent muttered as she opened her eyes once more. As Argent became more and more awake, she became aware that an arm was draped over her side. That, in fact, was the arm of Lady Argent, and she was sleeping right behind her!

Now much more awake and irritated, Argent scrambled out of bed with a cry of, ”Get off me!”


“Was that deliberate?” Maggie wondered.

“I honestly don't remember that happening,” Lady Argent reported. “We were so exhausted that I fell asleep almost immediately.”

“We sometimes snuggled up to the men we slept with,” Argent noted. “That was my conclusion after being able to think clearly about it. I don't believe that it was intentional.”

“It's a reasonable determination given the circumstances,” Lady Argent agreed.


The Lady Argent had also been sleeping on her side as well, but now she fell over face first as Argent rapidly vacated the bed. She groaned again and was starting to wake up. “What's going on?”

“Nothing! Nothing at all,” Argent announced. She wasn't sure if it was for her benefit or Hanna's. “Jallarzi wants to see us. Get moving.”

“Maybe we should have killed each other,” Lady Argent muttered, half awake. “I surely would have felt better than I do now.”

“Don't tempt me,” Argent said under her breath. To Hanna, she added, “We'll be there. One way or another.”

“I'm sure you will,” Hanna laughed as she went to the door and departed the room. “Lunch will be served there as well.”

“Thank the gods for small favors,” Argent mumbled. “I'm famished.”

After Hanna departed, Argent went to the wash basin, filled it with water from the pitcher and proceeded to clean up. The water would help wake her up as well. She was sorely tempted to dump the contents of the basin on her doppelganger, but Argent resisted that notion. She had promised Jallarzi that there would be no more fighting under her roof.

Seeing that Lady Argent had closed her eyes once more, Argent nudged her shoulder. “Come on, get moving! Jallarzi is expecting us! Do you want to be late for that?”

“I suppose I don't,” Lady Argent admitted. She rolled on her back, yawned, and tried to keep her eyes open. “What time is it?”

“We're having lunch with Jallarzi, so it must be around that time.” Argent stated as she ducked behind the changing screen.

“Wow,” Lady Argent mouthed. “You really are here, and last night really did happen. I was hoping it was just a horrible dream.”

“I'm not that lucky,” Argent muttered as she slipped out of her sleeping clothes and into one of her old work dresses. This was the garment she wore while working in the kitchen while an apprentice. “This is far too real,”

After a time, Lady Argent moved to a sitting position on the side of the bed. She rubbed her face absentmindedly and looked out the windows. “At least it's a sunny day.”

“Come on, move it, sleepy head!” Argent commanded as she emerged from behind the changing screen.

Looking in that direction, Lady Argent realized just what she was wearing. “Oh no...” Lady Argent moaned, her spirits sinking. “You don't think..?”

“Who knows?” Argent answered, throwing her hands up. “Hard to say what Jallarzi's state of mind is. If we're going to be doing more work, I want to wear something that I don't care if it gets dirty. Hence, the old apprentice uniform.”

“I had hoped to never wear that thing again,” Lady Argent sighed. “But it does look amazing on you. Selma does outstanding work.”

“She's a master tailor,” Argent agreed. “It still fits just as well.”

With another yawn, Lady Argent finally got to her feet. She moved behind the privacy screen and repeated the process her counterpart had just done. Selma had provided them with several working dresses back when they were apprentices, so there were spares. “Still fits me as well.”

“I'm surprised,” Argent stated. “I figured that you had gone soft being a noble now and all.”

“I wish,” Lady Argent said wistfully. “I seem to have to do more now than I did before. I might have declined if I knew how much work this was going to be.”

Lady Argent emerged from behind the dressing screen as Argent watched. “We really are identical!” Argent noted. “I don't think anyone, even our parents, can tell who is whom.”

“We've become the Sherry and Terry of our family.”

Sherry and Terry were the identical twin daughters of Lord Sharadin, and we've met them many times before. They tended to dress the same and would even finish the other’s sentences.

“I'm not finishing your sentences,” Argent stated. “And don't start finishing mine!”

“Didn't plan on it,” Lady Argent agreed. “Let's get this over with. I'm starving!”


We departed our quarters and started to walk to Jallarzi's private suite. The hallway our room was in ended at her parents' old rooms. Right now, it is being used by the new Duke and Duchess of Streel. Going the other way, we went into a long hallway that bisected the top floor of the mansion. We turned to our left and on our right were several doors that led to the outdoor balcony that overlooked the back of the property. It was too cold out right now to make use of it, but the rest of the year it was a nice place to relax and read. The hallway was currently deserted.

Up ahead on our left was another hallway coming off the main one. It was down this hallway that led to Jallarzi's suite of rooms and that is the direction we walked in. Much like the other hallway, there was a room on either side. The one on our left was the room that Kylie used when she was an apprentice here. Jallarzi's newest apprentice was currently using it, a young half-elf by the name of Tinuel. The other room was regularly used by Sherwood when he was visiting the estate. A double door at the end of the hallway led to Jallarzi's rooms. Standing before the door was a lady in platemail armor who was clearly a follower of Helm.

“What's up with that?” Argent wondered.

“As I was telling you last night, we are in dangerous times right now,” Lady Argent answered. “It's her bodyguard.”

“I never thought Jallarzi would need a bodyguard.”

“I doubt she did either,” Lady Argent agreed. As the pair stepped closer, Lady Argent said to the armored guard, “Lady Sallavarian summoned us to her chambers.”

“You are expected,” the armored woman answered as she moved aside, opening the door to the chamber beyond.

Lady Argent nodded to the guard as she walked past, while Argent gave no response. The door was shut behind us. We had been to Jallarzi's private chambers many times before. The main entrance led into a large sitting area. Jallarzi's more private areas branched off from this room. Our entire room could fit inside her sitting room! Numerous chairs, couches and tables lined the walls of the room, with more in the middle surrounding a large table. Jallarzi had her favorite chair at the far end of the table. It was one that faced the door. A serving cart was close by filled with several different lunch dishes.

Jallarzi looked at us and a pleased look came into her face. “I wasn't sure if you two were going to make it through the night or not. I half expected Hanna to report back that she had found a bloody mess.”

“I think we've come to an understanding,” Lady Argent reported. “We are trying to coexist with each other.”

“The Duchess really gave us a lot to think about,” Argent added.

“Aunt Lysandra has that effect on people,” Jallarzi noted. “Good, now that we've gotten past that foolishness, we can get on to more important matters. I honestly cannot tell you apart when you’re both wearing the same clothes. Don't ever do that again! Wear different things, so people can tell you two apart.”

“Yes ma'am,” we both quietly answered.

“Why are you wearing your work uniforms anyway?”

“We couldn't be sure if our chores were done or not,” Argent spoke up. “If not, then I wanted to wear something I didn't mind getting dirty.”

“It was her idea,” Lady Argent added as she pointed at her double.

“That you went along with,” Argent noted.

“We have more important matters to deal with today,” Jallarzi interrupted before another squabble would break out. “You'll need your adventuring gear for when we go into town. In the meantime, have some lunch and we'll catch up. Lady Argent take this chair, Argent that one.” Jallarzi indicated which chairs we were supposed to sit in on opposite sides of the table. “So I know which one is which.”

“Yes ma'am,” we said once more at the same time. It annoyed everyone in the room. That was going to be a habit that was very hard to break. Since we were essentially the same person, but duplicated, we tended to think the same thoughts.

We took a plate and helped ourselves to the food that was available. Predictably, we took the exact same meal and a glass of water before taking our appointed seats. We each wondered just what Jallarzi wanted to discuss, although we had some guesses. In the meantime, we ate heartily.

[Argent]

Chapter Five:

“So what did Jallarzi want to discuss?” Maggie wondered.

“Many things actually,” Lady Argent reported. “What I had missed from the day before. I had remained behind at the Estate as I was going on the Blackhawk mission, so I missed what happened in town.”

“And as it turned out there were so much that I was unaware of,” Argent added. “I had no idea just what was really going on. Just how much had happened while I was away.”


“What's going on?” Lady Argent wondered after a time. “What did I miss?”

“Quite a lot really,” Jallarzi casually explained. “I accompanied Her Grace into town yesterday after our gathering. We stopped at the Azrellan Temple so that she could pay her respects to Mother Boelle. Her cremation was earlier this morning.”

“Mother Boelle was killed?” Argent said in astonishment. She really didn't have much contact with the Azrellan High Priestess, but had heard Elspeth talk about her in the past. She was a mother figure to many of the priestesses. This passing was news to her.

“She passed naturally a few days ago,” Jallarzi explained. “It was her time. Elspeth has since replaced her and should be properly called Mother Elspeth.”

“The one thing I have noted since becoming a noble,” Lady Argent said to Argent, “is using a person's proper title. Some are very particular about that.”

“I will endeavor to call people by their proper titles,” Argent answered. “Assuming I know what they are.”

“It's proper manners when dealing with nobles or those in a superior position,” Jallarzi added. “Technically, you should address me as The Lady Sallavarian, but I have given you permission to just call me Jallarzi. Unless the person wishes otherwise, use their proper title.”

“I'm also starting to understand just what you were trying to tell me yesterday during Her Grace's meeting, Jallarzi”, Lady Argent told her mentor. “I will endeavor to behave better in such future gatherings.”

“Good. If you thought either of you were done learning new things, you are both very mistaken. After Aunt Lysandra's meeting, we caught up with the King and the Duke in Old Town,” Jallarzi continued. “Many of the local High Priests were on hand as well.”

“So, was he there?” Lady Argent asked with a devilish grin.

“Was who there?” Jallarzi asked innocently.

“You know who,” Argent added, picking up on what her counterpart was talking about. “Killian.”

Killian Thalamar was the local High Priest of Tymora, the Goddess of Luck. Everyone knew that he was charming and that he was dashing. Argent first met him on the evening she arrived at the Sallavarian Estate and saw his charms firsthand. Killian and Jallarzi have had a very quiet relationship for several years now. It was something Argent picked up on when she first came to the Sallavarian Estate.

“He was there to greet the King and Duke Relon,” Jallarzi confirmed with a slight trace of embarrassment. “We exchanged greetings, but nothing more.”

“And after that?” Lady Argent wondered.

“After that?” Jallarzi repeated with a long sigh. “After that my aunt and uncle outed us in front of everyone.”

“They did what!?” Argent exclaimed in amazement.

Lady Argent looked just as surprised as her counterpart. “There has to be more to the story than just that!”

“Late yesterday afternoon, Duke Relon announced that he and Duchess Lysandra were treating everyone for supper at the Waterfall Inn,” Jallarzi explained.

Both Argents were familiar with the establishment from their time as apprentices. “Lovely place,” Argent noted.

“Great food,” Lady Argent added.

“We'll need to visit when we have the chance,” Argent agreed.

“I didn't think anything of it at first, as they included all the priests who were present,” Jallarzi continued. “Aunt Lysandra sent select individuals to the upper floor including Killian. They basically told us that they could tell we were in love and a couple. Duke Relon played the role of the over-protective father and asked Killian what his intentions were towards me!”

“I would have paid gold to see that!” Argent said with a laugh. Lady Argent nodded in agreement.

“I was, naturally, embarrassed and almost teleported out of there,” Lady Sallavarian explained. “But I stayed for Killian's sake. He quickly recovered and charmed my aunt and uncle seemingly winning them over.”

“Of course he did,” Lady Argent said matter of factually.

“It's what he does,” Argent agreed with a shrug.

“That is one secret neither of you have to conceal anymore,” Jallarzi concluded. “Now everyone knows we are a couple.”

“I am never going to have an outburst like last night in front of your aunt and uncle ever again,” Argent realized. “They are very scary people!”

“So did he sneak into your bed chamber last night?” Lady Argent wondered, only having some idea how many times Killian had done that before.

“There was no sneaking around last night,” Jallarzi responded firmly.  “There too much going on to for such social calls.  Too many important guests in my house including the King himself and at least six knights of the realm.”

“No wonder she was so grouchy last night,” Argent teased. “Her love life has been lacking as of late.”

Jallarzi sighed and took a drink of water. She had established an unusual relationship with all her apprentices. There was the professional side where she was the mentor teaching her students. Then there were the private relationships that they had where they were more like friends. It was not unusual to gather in this same room and just talk like women would. Including about their relationships.

“You two are in no position to be harassing me,” Jallarzi said with a trace of annoyance. “I never realized how good I had it when there was just one of you. This is neither the time nor the place for such a discussion. Besides, you should talk. You're both seeing one of Lord Sharadin's apprentices. Not to mention that barbarian fellow.”

“Oh, you knew about that?” Argent realized meekly.

“I know a lot about what goes on in Elcadan,” Jallarzi revealed. “Even if you tried to hide it from me. I would have loved to see the size of the castle he would have built for you and your children.”

Argent said nothing and turned a bit red in embarrassment. She took a long drink of her water.

“We've come to realize that we need more than just muscles when it comes to a suitable mate,” Lady Argent finally said, breaking the uncomfortable silence.

“We need intellect as well,” Argent added. “Someone we can have intelligent conversations with. Which was a role that Thorvid could not fill.”

“We all have different needs when it comes to picking a companion,” Jallarzi noted. “But discussing boys is not the purpose of this meeting. There are important matters we need to discuss.”

“We can talk about boys later then,” Argent said with a laugh.

“Anyway,” Jallarzi continued, while casting a glare at Argent, “before we went to the Waterfall Inn the King and Duke Relon traveled to Castle Elcadan.”

“I hope it was in much better shape than the last time I was there,” Lady Argent interrupted. Turning to Argent, she added, “We ran into a swarm of wraiths, drow and a deep dragon!”

“Wait!” Argent interrupted, clearly confused. “Are you telling me that there were undead and dark elves in the home of the Duke and Duchess of Elcadan and no one knew that?”

“Oh,” Lady Argent said in surprise. “You don't know?”

“Obviously not,” Argent countered. “I did say I had been away for a while.”

“Duchess Marta was actually a demoness in disguise,” Jallarzi explained. “The real Duke and Duchess had been killed years ago. It's her fault that Elcadan fell into such chaos. I also believe she was the one responsible for the death of my parents.”

Shock registered on Argent's face. Lady Argent knew most of this already. “I am so sorry, Jallarzi. You never talked much about what happened to your parents, and I was honestly too afraid to ask. Was this demoness dealt with?”

“For now,” Lady Argent explained. “They are from the DeVille Family and are known as Alu-Demons. They are three diabolical sisters who have done nothing but cause misery for all. The Guardians have banished two of them so far.”

“Temporarily,' Jallarzi added. “Demons that powerful can only be destroyed on their home plane. They will reform eventually and return. But we now have a way to permanently destroy them.”

“What's changed?” Lady Argent wondered.

“They broke into the hidden chamber in the basement of Castle Elcadan,” Jallarzi said. “The one where Alexander DeVille was imprisoned. He was actually imprisoned inside a Spell Engine!”

“A what?” Argent uttered, having never heard the term before.

“Oh dear,” Lady Argent stated in sympathy. “You really are far behind. A Spell Engine is a device created by the Alphatians that is powered by magic made to perform a limited number of tasks. We'll have to show you the one on the Blackhawk. It allows the ship to fly through the sky instead of sailing on water.”

“I think I want one,” Argent said excitedly. “To be able to travel and take all your stuff with you would be wonderful!”

“I said words to that effect when I first learned of one too,” Lady Argent noted. “But how did they imprison him inside a Spell Engine?”

“It wasn't the kind of Spell Engine like on the Blackhawk,” Jallarzi explained. “This one was designed with a different purpose in mind. It was built by the remaining Fellowship of Mages members after Old Elcadan fell.”

As everyone present knew, the Fellowship of Mages was a group of young, idealistic mages who came from Alphatia to build something of their own. They built the original Elcadan using great magic, but it was much further to the west on the far shore of Lake Amosrak around 1100 years ago. The exact circumstances remain unclear, but some of their members became affected by magic items called the Crowns of Eternal Night. One of the Fellowship opened a gateway to the Abyss inside the city and demons poured out. Elcadan fell, and the survivors moved further east to build anew. They called this new city Elcadan again, although it has been called Darokin City at various times during the passing centuries. Castle Elcadan was also built by the Fellowship.

“Clearly, a defense against demons and devils was high in the minds of the surviving members of the Fellowship of Mages.” Jallarzi continued. “To that end, they created a special Spell Engine they called the Diabolus Molentis.”

“The Demon Grinder,” Argent and Lady Argent said, at the same time translating the Alphatian name into Cynalonian. They exchanged annoyed glances after speaking at the same time yet again.

“Unlike the Spell Engine on the Blackhawk, this one has a central cage to hold prisoners in,” Jallarzi continued. “It was inside this cage that Alexander was held by chains around his wrists attached to the frame.”

“How could he still be alive?” Argent wondered. “I mean without food or drink he would have died pretty quickly.”

“It must have been part of his demonic nature that allowed him to survive,” Jallarzi surmised. “The Diabolus Molentis was created to draw demons and devils inside the cage. I can only speculate that the Spell Engine drained the energy from Alexander and that left him in a comatose state. Duke Relon settled the issue by thrusting his sword through the tiefling’s heart. “

“So much for Alexander DeVille,” Lady Argent noted. “Can't say I was sad to see him go.”

“No one was,” Jallarzi agreed. “After Alexander was removed from the cage, I bonded with the Diabolus Molentis and cast a few spells to power it up. In the process, I understood just what this device could do and why the Fellowship built it. The Alu-Demoness plot became apparent to me. They charmed the former Duke of Elcadan, presumably when he was out of town, and had him deactivate the Spell Engine.”

“So, this device was some sort of defense against creatures from the lower planes?” Argent guessed.

“Yes, when I activated it, any devil or demon in Elcadan was drawn to it, and they appeared inside the cage,” Jallarzi explained. “There is a platform on the side of the device for the controller to stand. Other settings allowed me to destroy these creatures instantly, as they were just lesser evils placed as guards by our enemy.”

“It really is a Demon Grinder!” Lady Argent said in realization. “Chops them into tiny little bits.”

“Nothing remained of them,” Jallarzi confirmed in a satisfied voice. “Not even ash.”

“The demons charmed the old Duke so that he could shut down the Spell Engine so they could come into Elcadan,” Argent said, putting the pieces together. “They killed the Duchess and took her place once it was safe. Your parents,” Argent indicated Jallarzi, “probably found out and the demoness killed them for it.”

“That is the most likely theory,” Jallarzi agreed. “Even better, the Diabolus Molentis can destroy more powerful demons. They are drawn into the cage and the operator can Plane Shift the device to where the evil came from. There they can be permanently destroyed. Josetta DeVille was the one who impersonated the Duchess. She was banished recently, but can return to Elcadan in time. When she does, she'll be in for a big surprise. On that day I will finally have avenged my parents.” A very satisfied smile came to Jallarzi's face with those words.

“That will be a very grand day indeed,” Lady Argent agreed, raising her water glass up in a toast. “I look forward to it.”

“Hear, hear,” Argent added as the glasses rang out in a satisfying chime.

[Argent]

Chapter Six:

“Then what happened?” Maggie inquired.

“Jallarzi started to fill me in on what had been going on while I was away,” Argent explained.

“The very start of this was before our accident,” Lady Argent added. “In fact we were just beginning our explorations of Karn's Keep at that point. But before that, there was a few things left over from the previous day.”


“There are a few matters of note from yesterday to still cover,” Jallarzi announced. "With the danger of an enemy army coming to Elcadan and since I would most likely be a target, I've decided to evacuate the estate to the castle.  Move the families and children there for their protection.”

“A sensible precaution,” Lady Argent agreed.

“You're not going to defend your family home?”  Agrent wondered in disbelief.

“I absolutely will be defending it,” Jallarzi acknowledged.  “I just want those who cannot fight out of harm’s way.”

“We'll help,” Lady Argent said, feeling comfortable that her double felt the same way.

“This place has been my home for the last few years,” Argent noted.  “I will-- we will protect it with you.”


“Had I been there at that time, you could have counted me in as well,” Maggie stated. “The Sallavarian Estate was too important in shaping our lives to allow some thugs to ruin it.”

Lady Argent raised her wine glass in a toast, as did Argent. “Hear, hear!”

“Had we all been there, I am sure that what happened to the estate could have been prevented,” Argent announced as she sipped her wine. “We're almost our own army!”


Jallarzi smiled gratefully at the pair for their dedication.  “One last piece of business from yesterday.  Late last night, I took Sir Corley to rescue Lady Ardel and return her to the estate.  She’s resting comfortably now, but will probably be moved to the castle this afternoon.”

“That's wonderful,” Lady Argent said in relief.  “Good for them.”

“I don't know who those people are,” Argent admitted.

“One of the knights in the Guardians of Light,” Lady Argent explained.  “And his love interest.”

“That brings Lady Argent up to date with the happenings from yesterday,” Jallarzi concluded.  “Now to catch Argent up on things.”

“That all just happened yesterday,” Argent shook her head in disbelief. My days were nothing like that.  So, what did I miss?”

“It all started with Elspeth,” Jallarzi stated. “She had one of her visions, and it involved my uncle, the Baron of Pyris. Something horrible was going to happen to him. We went off to Pyris as soon as Elspeth explained to me what happened. In addition to the teleport location that we have at the Green Dragon Inn, I have a personal one at Castle Pyris as well.”

“Makes sense,” Lady Argent noted. “It's where your Aunt and Uncle live after all.”

“I would have done the same,” Argent added.

“Something did happen to Baron Relon, but Elspeth was in time to stop it,” Jallarzi continued. “The family had just received a case of wine from Rennydale. It was an annual event as Lord Cavius of Rennydale was a friend of Baron Relon. They were both members of the Defenders of Cynalon adventuring band in their younger days. The tainted wine was intended to change Baron Relon in some fashion, but just to what we do not know.”

“I summoned Sherwood to Castle Pyris to help me investigate. We quickly discovered that the wine had been delivered by a man named Lothar. Sherwood was familiar with the name as being the leader of a bandit group that operated around the Twin Forks area.”

“We formulated a two-pronged plan. Baron Relon was going to be bedridden for many days with Elspeth by his side. I would use my Hat of Disguise and take his form in the meantime and continue his normal activities. We were concerned that someone in the castle could be involved, and perhaps this deceit could flush them out. Lord Corley Rowan, a family friend, was also visiting and became the Baron's bodyguard during this crisis.”

“Sherwood went out to recruit a band of adventurers to travel to Twin Forks to capture Lothar and learn why he tried to poison the Baron of Pyris. We volunteered Kylie for this mission.”

“So that's how you got Kylie out into the world,” Argent noted. “It was probably long overdue.”

'You’re ones to talk,” Jallarzi said. “I had to kick you out to get you to leave.”

“It was just so nice here,” Lady Argent tried to explain. “The world was a big and scary place. Plus, with what happened to Shaunil, I wasn't all that eager to go out on my own.”

“We had Shaunil's old room too,” Argent quietly added. “That didn't help.”

“That was unfortunate,” Jallarzi agreed with a sigh. “But getting you out into the world needed to be done.”

Shaunil was the very first apprentice that Jallarzi trained. The night Argent arrived at the Sallavarian estate, Shaunil was also present and was going away on an expedition with Sherwood. She visited Argent and Kharyna for a little bit that evening and then was gone the next morning. That adventure was where Sherwood gained his sword, Lifeshield. However, Shaunil was killed during that quest. Argent saw firsthand just how distraught Jallarzi was over the death of her apprentice. Sherwood stayed away for several months. When he finally did return, it was with Kylie in tow and that was the start of her apprenticeship with Jallarzi.

“I'm glad I didn't know about the poisoned wine,” Argent stated. “Given our love of Rennydale Red, it certainly would have made me hesitate to drink it.”

“Very true,” Lady Argent agreed.

“Lord Corley Rowan and Lord Validar Vanarkus, the son of the baron and my cousin, joined Sherwood's group and they set forth to Twin Forks,” Jallarzi continued her tale. “There they captured Lothar and broke up his bandit operations. They also encountered two individuals by the names of Artur and Arkane.”

“He actually called himself Arcane?” Lady Argent said with a laugh.

“I know, right?” Argent added as she giggled as well. “It would be like us calling ourselves Invoker!”

“They were defeated in battle, but when they fell both of their bodies were quickly consumed by black flame,” Jallarzi said, ignoring what the Argents were going on about. “The flames burned their flesh, but left their bones and clothing untouched. Sherwood recognized it as the infamous Black Flame of legend. Even worse, the flames burned their souls away. There was no afterlife for them.”

“I saw what the Black Flames could do with my own eyes at Baltron's Beacon,” Argent said, her attitude turning more serious. “It was the most horrible thing I have ever witnessed. I never want to see it again.”

“I'll take your word for it,” Lady Argent agreed, but was happy to have never seen it.

“Lothar was captured,” Jallarzi related. “He was charmed and Sherwood questioned him. Lothar claimed that he was hired by Lord Cavius to deliver the shipment of wine to Castle Pyris! With the scope of the original mission changing, Sherwood asked only for volunteers to continue the quest and travel to Rennydale. Everyone agreed to continue and the Guardians of Light were founded that evening.”

“From such humble beginnings did the Guardians arise,” Lady Argent noted. “But they still had many great things ahead of them. We're not even to the time when I joined them yet.”

“Lucky for them,” Argent said sarcastically.

“From Twin Forks the group made their way to Sherwood's Tower,” Jallarzi continued. “Next was Elcadan and my home. Kharyna and her companions were already here and the two groups joined forces. The combined group continued their journey north until they reached Rennydale. They were forced to do battle against Lord Cavius and his forces. During a critical point in the battle, the magic that controlled Lord Cavius was dispelled, and he returned to his normal self. The tide of battle turned quickly, and the Guardians were victorious.”

“Afterward, Lord Cavius was able to fill in the missing details of this mystery. The cause of all this trouble was a being calling himself the Lord of Corruption and his lair was in the dismal Beleme Swamp. He was using something called 'Black Water' to control others. This Black Water was magical, so this was what was dispelled in Lord Cavius. The wine shipped to Castle Pyris was laced with this Black Water, but Elspeth was able to prevent it from taking over Baron Relon. The Guardians planned on marching on the Beleme Swamp and defeating this Lord of Corruption.”

“Back here in Elcadan,” Jallarzi related, “Elspeth had yet another vision which drove her to my estate late in the evening. Sherwood was present when Elspeth arrived and we both listened to her tale. We did some research in the library, but couldn't find much in the way of useful information. We decided to move to Karn's Keep in the morning and see what we could learn from its much larger library. That's where we ran into this Argent,” Jallarzi indicated Lady Argent. “You,” Jallarzi gestured towards Argent this time, “had gone off on an adventure. We learned what we could and were getting ready to leave when...”

“When I asked them to come along,” Lady Argent interrupted. “As I explained earlier, there wasn't much I could do with my research on the Pillar Artifact, since I could not use them anymore. Plus, I learned that Kylie and Kharyna were both with the Guardians, so I naturally wanted to go along and feel useful.”

“And as I said earlier, I would have done the same thing,” Argent noted.

“That's correct,” Jallarzi added. “We felt that having you both out in the field and adventuring would help determine if you recovered from your ordeal or suffered any side effects.”

“Wait a moment,” Argent uttered. “Are you saying that you went along with this adventure as well, Jallarzi? I don't think I've ever seen you out in the field before.”

“I go 'out in the field', as you put it, when the situation warrants it,” Jallarzi corrected. “In this particular instance it did.”

“Oh, yes,” Lady Argent stated. “It was me, Kharyna, Kylie, Jallarzi and Sherwood on this mission along with the rest of the Guardians. It was a very large group and very informative. Jallarzi held a conference for group spell casting.”

“I'm not following,” Argent said. “Is there a difference?”

“A great deal of difference,” Jallarzi answered. “I trained you both to know what offensive and defensive spell selection you should carry for yourselves. But this was dealing with what spells to carry when you are part of a larger group with many other spell casters. In short, those who specialize in certain types of magic, such as both of you being Invokers, you should focus solely on that type of magic. Simply put, do what you do best and don't bother with unnecessary spells. There will be other casters to handle those other magicks.”

“For instance, Chareos is a mage and a warrior, so he backed up the front line fighters,” Lady Argent explained. “So his spells were better suited to the ones that helped him fight, or he could use and not catch his other companions in their area of effect. Kylie and I were further back, so we focused on ranged damaging spells, and so on. It was an interesting experience and one that has shaped my spell selection ever since.”

“A unit of trained mages who function as one can be a very powerful force on a battlefield,” Jallarzi summarized. “That was what I was trying to do with all the spell casters going on this mission.”

“I imagine they would be,” Argent realized. “It might have made some of our earlier battles with the Company of the Sword easier.”

“Most likely,” Lady Argent agreed.


“Might have saved a few lives as well,” Maggie lamented. Her sisters could only agree with her, as many had fallen in the early days of the Company of the Sword.