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Eve reclined in a chair near the fire and watched Paneb while he prepared a small dinner and poured some ale. This was the third town they had come to together, and it was the second town that Wulf beat them to, destroying almost everyone it came across. They found the tavern empty of life, even empty of death. Either there was no one in the bar when they died, or someone else cleaned all the grotesque bodies out.
Any way it happened, Eve was glad she did not have to lay her eyes on another dead body now.

Another few minutes passed and Paneb brought a couple of plates with bread, cheese and some dried meat on them. He put them down and headed back to the bar, grabbing the two mugs of ale. The two ate silently, each pondering something different.

Paneb wondered how they were going to destroy a cloud, for he still had no knowledge of the beast the cloud carried.

Eve thought about her home. Was it still safe? How many others had left trying to save those who did not want to leave? Mostly her mind lingered on how she was going to control the monster. She still had not told Paneb her true reasons for following the evil; she felt he would still not accept her reasons. The moment that would be best to tell him still eluded her as well. Eve was sure that she and Paneb would have bedded by now making him easier to turn to her side.

"Who were those men that attacked us?" Paneb asked breaking Eve's train of thought.

"Your town was definitely sheltered wasn't it Paneb?" a smirked crossed her face at Paneb's confused look. "Those men form a 'sacred' priesthood set to worship that monster that destroyed the lives of your loved ones. They believe that it has been sent here to cleanse the world of all evil."

Paneb drained his mug of his remaining ale and slammed the mug down on the table. "Then they are our enemies as well." He nodded decisively. "If others know this, why don't they take up arms against them?" He said more to himself then to Eve.

Only hearing the question and not noticing it was not aimed at her, Eve answered anyway. "They are scared of them, and have been brought to believe that the priests control the beast and if they do not comply with their wishes they will bring down a wrath and kill them." She paused, staring at her mug for a minute and then continued. "In fact, those who learn the beast's name, only learn it in the hour or so of their death."

Paneb scowled. "Then how is it you know its name and are still alive?"

Eve became silent and stared at her plate. She talked too much sometimes, especially when it would be better if she just kept her mouth closed.

"Eve, answer me. How do you know its name and still live? Are you in league with these men?"

Eve rolled her eyes at Paneb. "If I was working for them, what would be my role?"

"Maybe you are recruiting people to be slaves of Wulf and the priesthood." Ashamed of his accusation he kept his eyes adverted.

"Then why would they send those after me, out to kill us, or to be killed by us?" Temper on the verge of flaring, she stood and turned towards the door. She turned to face Paneb, her anger making her dark eyes appear red. "I showed no mercy to that bastard because I am secretly trying to take down the Priesthood and control Wulf myself!" Her intentions slipped in her anger. Did Paneb believe they were her true intentions, or did he think she was raving mad, implying that his accusations were truly misplaced and he was an utter fool?

"Eve, I did not mean to…" He stopped short as the door to the tavern slammed open.

Both Eve and Paneb prepared themselves for an attack by this mysterious stranger. Eve's rapier gleamed in the firelight and Paneb picked up his own chair, ready to hurl it across the room.

A small man entered the room. He was not old, yet his few years showed on his face. Small framed glasses sat on his nose, his mousy brown hair disheveled. He was shorter then Eve, but in reality was probably her exact height if she weren't wearing such tall boots. Strapped to his back was a quiver full of arrows and he carried a bow, using it as a walking stick as he entered the room more. He saw weapons brandished against him, but he did not run in fear, nor break a sweat.

"May I ask what you are doing in my tavern?" He asked calmly, raising one eyebrow in Eve's direction.

Eve flared at him. "Your tavern" she asked in disbelief.

"Well I would think that when a person cleans the place of all the death that was inside and keeps the place cleaned and stocked with food and supplies, that it is indeed his own place." He put his bow on the bar and took off his case of arrows placing them next to the bow. He turned to face the visitors, sitting on a barstool and watching them. "May I ask what you are doing here?"

Paneb put his chair down and sat in it, answering before Eve could. "We were looking for a place to stay and some food. We are only weary travelers."

The man nodded, satisfied with Paneb's answer for the moment. "Well please feel free to eat and sleep here for the night." He eyed them waiting for them to relax, for Eve to put down her weapon and for them to sit back down.

Eve did not intend to let this little man off so easily. She strode towards him, rapier still in her hand. "Who are you?" She eyed him suspiciously, looking for any indication that this man was a part of the Priesthood.

The man looked Eve over just as carefully as she looked him over. "The name's Drystan." He eyed her rapier and then looked her up and down taking in her appearance.

Finally deciding that this man was no threat to her, Eve sheathed her rapier and brushed a few loose strands of hair out of her eyes. "I'm Eve," she stated matter-of-factly. "That," she turned and motioned behind her, "is Paneb." Her eyes traveled up and down the man's body, taking in everything to his mid-calf boots to his green button down shirt that hung un-tucked from his pants.

Drystan smirked to himself at the sight of this attractive woman taking in his features. Nobody ever really looked at him much, which made his work that much easier to accomplish. "Can I ask where you are traveling to?" His curiosity getting the best of him.

With a swish of her skirt, Eve was back at the table where her food and drink awaited her. She sat silent, not about to tell this man what they were up to. She had no reason to believe this man would help her in her ultimate mission. Paneb would follow her like a puppy soon enough, but how would she be able to turn this man to her side, if that is what she decided to do indeed.

Unfortunately she had no control over Paneb and his actions or his mouth.

Paneb strode over to the new guy, hand extended in greeting. "We are after an evil that should be erased from this world entirely. My companion just recently informed me of it's name, but forgive me if I refuse to pronounce it." He turned to look back at Eve; her scowl showed her utter disapproval of his actions. Paneb shrugged to himself and turned back to the man at the bar. "We have been following it's actions since it destroyed my town and my life."

He dropped his head in a moment of reflection over what he lost that day. If only he returned home a few hours sooner, then he might have saved them, or died with them. Either way he would not be living now with the painful feelings and memories that haunted him when he was alone at night. He shook his head and brought himself back to the moment at hand, his fist clenched as he continued to speak.

"Are you friend or foe of the horror that sweeps the land?" He decided he should ask before he became too friendly with this newcomer.

Drystan looked at the man now seething with anger but remained calm. He rounded the bar and poured himself some ale, pouring another mug for the man in front of him. "Drink this." He almost ordered. "You will feel better."

Paneb looked at the mug in front of him and then looked up at Drystan, no longer able to control the anger. "You expect some ale to make me feel better after losing my family and friends!" He shouted at the man who stood there as if they were having a normal conversation. He slammed the mug down on the bar, spilling the liquid inside all over the counter. "Answer me now little man! Are you friend or foe to the evil that haunts the land?"

Drystan took his time, gulping down the golden liquid inside his mug. He set the mug down and looked Paneb squarely in the eyes. "I do not know whether or not you could call me friend or foe. I have no taste for the destruction it causes, but yet if it is destroyed I can no longer continue my research."

Unable simply to watch any longer, Eve was quickly at Paneb's side. She placed her hands on his arm hoping that human touch would calm him. "Research?" She questioned her curiosity peaked.

"The beast seethes a poison. I am researching the effects both negative and positive that the poison has." He looked from Eve to Paneb and the quickly back to Eve again. The large man was growing angry again and he did not intend to upset him further.

Eve ignored Paneb's reaction to Drystan mentioning positive effects of the poison, but she had to ask, she was way to curious to forget now. "Does Wulf's poison have positive effects?" She asked him with an almost giddy sound in her voice.

Shaking the shock of the beast's name mentioned Drystan sadly shook his head. "I have yet to find anything positive yet, but what I really need is a sample of the poison that I can test out any positive effects it might have. It is possibly like a snake's venom, mixed correctly with some other chemicals; it actually counteracts other snake venoms that have entered the blood stream." He picked up his mug and gulped more of his ale down before continuing. "I have learned one important fact. I am immune to the poison, and so are you."

*****

His litter bounced down the road as fast as the legs of his slaves would carry him. Every so often Corin's hand would emerge from inside holding a whip and he would use it against the back of the leaders, 'encouraging' them to move faster. His lecture worked on his oracle and he managed to discover where a power stone he could actually acquire was located.

A smile played on his lips as he remembered the old woman kneeling on the floor before he killed her. Her body twisted in death afterwards. Oh how he enjoyed the power of taking people's lives. He glanced backwards, thinking about his oracle and the enjoyment he received while getting his most recent information.

He insured the slaves that carried the oracle's litter would not stray to peek inside; an example had been made already. The twit was caught pulling the curtains back. Corin would not be easy on him. In front of all the other slaves, the disobedient man knelt in front of him and begged for mercy as Corin stabbed his eyes and pulled them out of their sockets.

"Sir, we have arrived." His manservant spoke through the curtains, bringing Corin back to reality.

Tasting blood on his lips, the realization struck that thinking about the pain he inflicted forced him to cause himself pain. How he loved pain in all its forms.

His litter was held aloft while Corin made his exit, using a slave to help him step on his manservant, then onto the ground in front of him. He scanned the area in which they stopped, noticing how desolate and lacking of life it seemed. There was no town at their new location, no smoke rising in the distance to signify life of any sort.

"You are positive this is the final stop. The location I gave to you brought us to this place." Corin barked at his manservant who was brushing himself off.

"Yes sir, this is the place you tell us to go to so we come here." He bowed to the Priest. "Follow me; I take you to where you say you find what you look for." He turned and started to lead Corin to a pile of brambles and branches near a large rock formation. He motioned several times to the area as Corin came up behind him.

"Find it!" Corin ordered the servant.

Trying not to look displeased, the manservant kneeled down and started to dig through the branches, blood started to trickle down his arms from the twigs scratching his arms. All the while he dug for whatever his master was looking for he hoped he would indeed find it, for if not the punishment would surely be worse then what these branches were doing to him now. A glint of red caught his eye and he dug faster, surely what he was searching for was close at hand.

Corin watched his servant dig squinting in the sunlight. Normally someone would be standing with a sunshade over him, but he only brought the one man with him to find the stone. He did not need more people seeing the power stone then was necessary. He smirked as he watched the blood trickle down the servant's arms. Slowly his smirked turned into a grin as the man brought forth a small green stone with a red eye in the middle.

"Ah, finally," Corin patted the bloodied man on the head and took the stone from his hands. "How truly divine that I have found this power stone. Now those who do not fear me or my master will have no choice."

He wrapped the stone in his hands and carried it gently back to his litter. A simple glare is all he gave to his slaves telling them their short break was over and it was now time to continue onto their next destination, the town called Priam. There, the oracle informed him, he would find more of the stones and possibly another way that he might stay on top of his enemies and every move they made.

*****

"Immune?" Paneb questioned the young man.

Drystan shrugged. "Well I have been exposed to the monster several times and to his poison rain and I am still here to talk about it. Further experimentation has proven that any town that has been attacked by Wulf, as you call it, still carries the poison in the air."

Paneb choked on the beer he was drinking, the little that remained in his mug. "You mean the poison is still here?" He asked wiping his mouth and mouthing 'what' to Eve who glared at his recent display.

"Yes, but the important thing is you are still here as well. This means you are immune to his poison. If you ever you are caught in his attacks you need not worry about the terrifying deaths that await the others."

Paneb glared again at the man standing behind the bar. "You obviously have not had someone die one of those 'terrifying deaths' or you would not be so at ease about talking about them."

Drystan shook his head at the older man. "No," he stated, "I have not had that unfortunate thing to have to bear. But you see I have no family to worry about losing." He continued to tell them about his travels and his way of life. Paneb calmed down and finally took a seat at the bar next to Eve.

Maybe this man could be of some use to her, Eve considered as she listened. If he was looking for a cure to the poison, maybe she could assist him in finding it, then she could administer the serum to her family and friends back home so she would not have to see them suffer the same fate that Paneb's friends and family suffered. Finally, the man stopped talking allowing Eve to ask him her question.

"We are headed to another town, not far from here. Following Wulf of course." She started. "I think that we would benefit each other if we traveled together. You would no longer have to be alone in your travels; we could use your expertise on the monster as well." She watched the man for his reactions.

"You know I have no interest in killing the beast, yet, correct."

Eve nodded her head slowly.

"Alright then, I will travel with you two. I could use some companions in this journey. Perhaps you will be able to assist me with my experimentations as well." He grinned at Eve and held it while moving to look at Paneb's glare. "Where is our next stop?" He questioned Eve, his gaze never leaving Paneb's.

She thought about it for a minute trying to recall the name of the next town full of vermin they were headed to. "Oh yes, we are headed to Priam." She nodded in satisfaction, then suggested to the others to get their rest, the next few days would be long.