Chapter 1
These images are AI created and are simply "close enough." They are absolutely not accurate, but give a general feel for how the characters look. Your own imagination still reigns supreme here.
The light of the tavern spilt over the cobblestone street, the laughter and merriment drifting out along with it. The night was fresh, and no one thought anything of going home just yet. The people laughed and shouted, the jovial air a beacon in the dark night for a weary traveler.
The noise hardly paused simply because the door opened. No, it wasn’t simply that someone had walked in. Plenty of people had walked in already, some even fairly rough looking. It was the oddity of the man who stepped in that gave the folks their hesitation.
His steel gray eye scanned the room, resting on each person for only a heartbeat. A single ugly scar bisected his otherwise handsome face, running from the line of dark brown hair on the left, through the eye and ended at the bridge of his nose. It was that eye that drew all the attention in the room. It gleamed in the light of the chandelier overhead, swirling a molten silver in eternal motion.
Roan was used to this; it no longer bothered him. All things were drawn to his eye, whether they wanted to be or not. Anything with magic. It was the creatures that couldn’t look away that he was after.
He strode to the bar without concern for the attention he drew, his leather boots thudding softly on the floor boards only because he wished it. He was not stalking right now. There was no need. His thick black cloak did little to hide the fact he had a sword at his hip despite it being held closed at the front.
He sat and ordered a meal. The barmaid did her best not to stare at his other eye, quickly turning away to obey. He ate his food slowly; almost, one could say, carefully.
When his hand reached far enough to take his drink, a tattoo was visible on the inside of his wrist. A rat, though with a silver eye instead of a black one. On his other wrist in the same area was another, larger tattoo; an emblem that struck fear into the hearts of men and monsters alike.
No one sat near him. In fact, people moved away from him, eyeing him warily. Whispers moved through the crowd, and the sounds of enjoyment hushed a little. Roan was used to this, too.
The sound of heavy boots thumping up to him did not change the way he ate. He did not bother to acknowledge the burly trio that had gathered behind him until one of them boomed angrily.
“Hey! Seeker!”
The tavern went quiet. People put their heads down.
Tilting his head, he did not look back at them. “Can I help you, gentlemen?”
“Yeah,” replied the same one. “You can get the fuck outta town.”
“I will leave when I am ready.”
“You should leave now,” the man insisted, fists clenching. “We don’t like your people around here. You always bring the monsters with you!”
Roan smirked a little with a chuckle under his breath. “I believe you have it the other way around. Why else would we be called ‘Seekers’?”
“Well, they weren’t here until you showed up!”
Nodding slowly, Roan did not bother to correct him further. “Very well. I will let him feast.” A little smirk curled his mouth. “After all, he’s given me the same courtesy.”
A dark, inhuman chuckle caused a collective shudder through all but the Seeker. An older, unassuming man in the corner grinned wider than a human ought to, exposing teeth that had become sharp. His once blue eyes turned black and shiny, while the healthy glow of his flesh grew ashen and leathery before becoming covered in wiry black fur. Standing, the creature continued to grow and change until it had to hunch over a bit in the small space so that its horns did not get caught in the ceiling. Spreading immense, leathery wings, it chuckled again as it strode forward, its ugly upturned nose flaring with the scent of human terror that had filled the place.
“All right, Seeker,” its deep, raspy voice rumbled wickedly. “I shall do your dirty work. And then, I shall kill you, too.”
Taking another bite of his food, Roan appeared unconcerned. He did not turn to witness the chaos that erupted once the vampire had snagged its screaming prey, blood exploding from a gaping wound in the man’s neck. People fled the tavern in a frenzy, screaming down the streets.
Finished, the vampire dropped the drained husk and turned to Roan, blood dripping down its face and over its fur. “Now, Seeker. Let us….”
It did not have the opportunity to finish its sentence. Eyes wide, it looked down at the wooden spike protruding from its chest. Magical insignia etched into the wood glowed a pure white. The glow spread across the vampire’s chest like cracks. Grimacing, it opened its mouth to let out a hellish screech, the light pouring from every orifice now. By the time it lifted its arms to claw at its throat, its body had begun to turn to ash until there was nothing left but a pile of soot at his feet, the wooden spike lost within but useless now.
Without a word, Roan sat back down to finish his meal in the empty tavern. Just another thing he had grown used to.
What he was not used to was the slow clap that broke the silence. Perking, he spun around. At the door stood a tall, slender figure. In a dark green cloak and a roguish leather outfit that hugged her feminine form and showed off the weapons strapped to her, she steadily applauded him. Within the shadow of the hood, he saw the opalescent shimmer of wide slitted pupils.
“A nimbus spike!” she exclaimed. “I’ve only ever heard of them. To see one in action was a treat!”
Smirking at his confused expression, she pulled the hood down before looking around. “This is nice. I do hate a crowd.”
Her graceful ears swept up through her hair, almost as long as his forearms. Her choppy undercut was straight and silvery white but not from age.
“What is an elf doing out here?”
When she batted her lashes and bared her teeth with roguish charm, she showed delicate canines that most elves ground down.
He did not wait for her to answer. “A wild elf.”
“Wild!?” she gasped, appearing injured before her eyes rolled up thoughtfully. “Hmm. Suppose so.”
With a little titter, her boots were heavy against the wood floor as she strode to the bar. Roan found that odd considering all the elves he knew hardly made a sound.
Pausing beside him, she grinned again at his curious inspection. “I like the sound,” she answered his unasked question.
While Roan certainly wasn’t as tall as some other men, he was nonetheless imposing in his own right. Even stiffening up straight, he was eye level to the bridge of her nose and had to tilt his gaze up to look into her electric green eyes– yellow around the pupils radiating through bright emeralds. But, it was more than the beauty of her eyes that piqued his interest. She did not even glance at his silver eye. She focused on his normal eye effortlessly, not even so much as curious.
“Like what you see?”
Realizing he’d been staring at her in bewilderment, he scoffed and plopped back into his chair to finish his food. He did not even take a bite before he watched as she easily hopped over the bar and began to rummage through the various bottles.
“Well, since everyone is gone, guess I’ll help myself.” She paused and peered up at him from under her long lashes. “You’re not gonna tell on me, are you?”
Her sultry pout made his brow pinch together in irritation. “No.”
A knowing smile made her downright impish. “Good, because I don’t have any money.”
That cheeky drawl with a soft, bewitching purr made every nerve hum. He scowled at her flirting. “What do you want?”
“Food,” she answered honestly, looking at the bottles of spirits in her hands. “After a sip. I’ve been in the forest for a really long time.” Tipping the bottle back, she sniffed the air between chugs and followed the smell to the kitchen without stopping.
Pressing his lips together, he battled between his intrigue and irk, his thumb tapping on the bar. She was already infuriating him. He had killed men for much less.
But… why did she not look at his eye?
