expected some resistance but when he found nothing but a wry smile in return he was quite surprised. The human was ushered into the former king’s chamber not far from his own and Rose’s former cell. Once inside Merik placed two guards at the door and forced the human down onto his knees to wait for Leonidus. The wait proved to be short as the old elf walked back in wearing his robe and carrying his staff.
“Now Premus, you’re going to tell me everything I want to know.” Leonidus removed the man’s gag and reached into one of the pockets of his voluminous robe and pulled out a small object. Presenting the still-wiggling bug to Premus he spoke a few words in ancient elven and put it into the prisoner’s mouth, forcing him to chew and then swallow. “That was a desert wallowroach just so you know; nothing poisonous.”
“Your magic won’t work on me old one, I am immune.” Premus said triumphantly as he licked his lips and smacked them a few times for good measure. “Not bad, best meal I’ve had in days.”
He did well not to register a look of shock upon his features. The enchantment he had placed upon that particular insect was the most powerful he knew. Setting his staff to the side against the wall he put his hand back into the pocket and pulled out a thin pointed shard of wood. “Let’s try something different then eh?”
“I told you, I’m immune to your magic. You’ve got no hold on me.” The triumphant Premus said to the threat with his face still showing supposed superiority.
“Who said anything about magic my dear boy? This is a goathian fireshard carved from the burning trees of the eastern wastes, the ability to craft these has been long lost to the ages or so they say. Have you ever heard of them? No? Then let me give you a little background then. The Goathian Empire used to forge whole weapons out of this rare wood. It can be honed to a fine point, sharper than even the finest metals. As an added bonus the natural oil that permeates the wood causes a burning pain so terrible it’s been known to disable lesser men with just a scratch.” Leonidus paused speech for a moment and pricked himself with the wooden instrument and closed his eyes, gritting his teeth at the pain. “Oh how it stings my friend.”
The old elf scraped the wood across the human’s cheek making sure not to break the skin on his first pass. He scraped hard enough for the man to cringe and his forehead to bead up in sweat. “You can feel it can’t you? It doesn’t take much, mind.”
Leonidus used the tip of the wooden instrument to poke a very small hole in the man’s neck. The resulting howl of pain echoed through the ruins louder than even Merik could have guessed. He had never heard of the wooden instrument that Leo was using but he had a newfound respect for the elf as he watched the human writhe around on the ground as if he were engulfed in flames. Merik licked his suddenly dry lips and vowed never to get on the former king’s bad side.
“It burns, by the darkness it burns!” Premus cried out as he attempted to get his hands free to cup the wound or tear the surrounding flesh just to get the pain to stop. His body was aflame and his muscles were tensing involuntarily. After what felt like a lifetime of agony it began to subside and the burning dulled to a harsh tingling throughout his system. “Do to me what you will; my master would prepare a worse torment were I to reveal anything.”
“Are you so certain?” Leonidus grinned wide and looked up at Merik for a moment. “You may want to leave the room; this is going to get ugly.”
~~~~
Two hours had passed and the entire time the screaming had not stopped. Merik and the others felt haunted by the cries of the suffering man but nothing ever came of the sounds but primal retorts. Nothing else had transpired the entire time. Then as suddenly as it had started silence took over for the hoarse captive. Curious, Merik walked over to the room.
“Now Premus, you’re going to tell me everything I want to know.” Leonidus removed the man’s gag and reached into one of the pockets of his voluminous robe and pulled out a small object. Presenting the still-wiggling bug to Premus he spoke a few words in ancient elven and put it into the prisoner’s mouth, forcing him to chew and then swallow. “That was a desert wallowroach just so you know; nothing poisonous.”
“Your magic won’t work on me old one, I am immune.” Premus said triumphantly as he licked his lips and smacked them a few times for good measure. “Not bad, best meal I’ve had in days.”
He did well not to register a look of shock upon his features. The enchantment he had placed upon that particular insect was the most powerful he knew. Setting his staff to the side against the wall he put his hand back into the pocket and pulled out a thin pointed shard of wood. “Let’s try something different then eh?”
“I told you, I’m immune to your magic. You’ve got no hold on me.” The triumphant Premus said to the threat with his face still showing supposed superiority.
“Who said anything about magic my dear boy? This is a goathian fireshard carved from the burning trees of the eastern wastes, the ability to craft these has been long lost to the ages or so they say. Have you ever heard of them? No? Then let me give you a little background then. The Goathian Empire used to forge whole weapons out of this rare wood. It can be honed to a fine point, sharper than even the finest metals. As an added bonus the natural oil that permeates the wood causes a burning pain so terrible it’s been known to disable lesser men with just a scratch.” Leonidus paused speech for a moment and pricked himself with the wooden instrument and closed his eyes, gritting his teeth at the pain. “Oh how it stings my friend.”
The old elf scraped the wood across the human’s cheek making sure not to break the skin on his first pass. He scraped hard enough for the man to cringe and his forehead to bead up in sweat. “You can feel it can’t you? It doesn’t take much, mind.”
Leonidus used the tip of the wooden instrument to poke a very small hole in the man’s neck. The resulting howl of pain echoed through the ruins louder than even Merik could have guessed. He had never heard of the wooden instrument that Leo was using but he had a newfound respect for the elf as he watched the human writhe around on the ground as if he were engulfed in flames. Merik licked his suddenly dry lips and vowed never to get on the former king’s bad side.
“It burns, by the darkness it burns!” Premus cried out as he attempted to get his hands free to cup the wound or tear the surrounding flesh just to get the pain to stop. His body was aflame and his muscles were tensing involuntarily. After what felt like a lifetime of agony it began to subside and the burning dulled to a harsh tingling throughout his system. “Do to me what you will; my master would prepare a worse torment were I to reveal anything.”
“Are you so certain?” Leonidus grinned wide and looked up at Merik for a moment. “You may want to leave the room; this is going to get ugly.”
~~~~
Two hours had passed and the entire time the screaming had not stopped. Merik and the others felt haunted by the cries of the suffering man but nothing ever came of the sounds but primal retorts. Nothing else had transpired the entire time. Then as suddenly as it had started silence took over for the hoarse captive. Curious, Merik walked over to the room.
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