Tethered : Book 1

Versorging Vineyard II

Adrian booked a camping trip to the Vineyard and purchased a pass for the night hunting tournaments, which cost about 200 yans. During his trip, he heard some chatter about many shipments of Versorging goods not reaching their destinations on time or at all and often not with what they were supposed to have. However, these rumors were given validation by the increased presence of Versorging Officials in the markets and ports around Agard. Almost every shipment was being escorted by heavily armed and armored guards. The name Dikastis was also flowing through the markets and the Vineyard. During one of his night hunts, Adrian bumped into two Versorging officials who seemed to be harassing a young man. He politely asked that the officials calmed down and speak nicely to the young man. While he was successful in getting their attention away from their target, he brought the heat to him instead. One of the officials remarked, " this is Versorging business. I advise you to stay out of it". Adrian responded saying, "I do apologize for my boldness, but you are ganging up on this young man and I cannot just walk away".

However, the young man encouraged Adrian to let it go. "Noble Sir, it's fine. No need to trouble yourself with this matter. Just, let it go". Seemingly out of nowhere, the stranger that ended the riot in the street, approached saying, "allow me to be bothered for you then. This young man is from the Ruby City, so let me fine Sir". The young man was now visibly happy to see this stranger, like he recognized him. The Ruby City and the Sapphire Keep are neighbors and long time allies. In fact, the Sapphire Keep provides security for the Ruby City and a few others near their territory. He continues, "bullying a young guest is quite low of you, but I am here now. No Ruby Clansman shall be harmed or disrespected in the presence of a Sapphire Officer". With those words, the officials did not speak further and walked away angrily.

Adrian thanked the stranger for his help and inquired if the young man was alright. To which the stranger says, "he will be fine from now on. These guys don't want any trouble with the Sapphire Keep. I guarantee it". Adrian thinks it over and remembers that there is a Sapphire Knight that has shown interest in Agard. If anything is to happen, he will be more than capable of dealing with it. The stranger introduces himself, "my name is Leon. I am an officer of the Sapphire Clan. Thank you for coming to his aid". Adrian bows politely and responds saying, "I am Adrian, a simple traveler. Though, I have taken interest in the cases of the missing people. Is it safe to say that you have too?" Leon answers, "yes it is. I am here in response to a letter that was sent to us. I guess, this makes us allies".

The young man whom they just rescued interjected, "Uhmm, Hey there. I am Mathias. Thank you both. But I am also here to help. In fact, I have been coming here quite often to gather information about this place. That is why they targeted me. It seems they have finally caught on like I wanted". Adrian says to him, "this is quite dangerous. You shouldn't be doing this on your own. How old are you anyway?" Mathias answers,"I am 18 and a necromancer in training. Well, I am near the masters stage. Though I am not alone. There is a group of us that have been investigating the trafficking and slavery network that has been running for hundreds of years. We are The Underworld". Before they could carry on with their conversation, they are interrupted by the sound of a horn signaling the beginning of the hunt. The goal is catch as many creatures as possible before the closing horn is sounded. The three decides to stick together, seeing as they are trying to accomplish the same goals.

Nothing seemed to stand out as abnormal during the hunt and they didn't have any more encounters with anyone from the Vineyard. That is until creatures called Feral Téras Fídi were released. These are snake like humanoid creatures actively seeking out people as its prey. While they are fast, strong and impervious to pain, that is not what makes them dangerous. These creatures are a result of Dark Cross Species Mutation, which can only be conducted on magical beings. It involves the merging of human and snake DNA by means of incredibly dark magic, leaning in the realm of Evil Craft. As a result of this, the venom produced by these creatures are unlike any other. These Feral Téras Fídi is the source of the corpse defiler venom. A venom that feeds off of the magic of the infected and then their life force when all the magic is drained. The only method of fighting the venom is through Class 4 necromancy, which requires you to temporarily remove the soul of the infected and using a highly potent sterilization spell. This process is painful and can take up to an hour to perform fully. Another method is having someone who has reached the level of Dark Lord neutralize and extract venom. A process which is almost as painful as the necromancing method.

A ban was placed on the creation of these creatures, but it would seem that Versorging Vineyard has chosen to disobey those laws. However, these Feral Téras Fídi are not exactly what is described in the texts. While they possess the physical appearances like the fangs, discolored skin and the serpent like eyes, they lacked the strength and endurance that they are also known for. After fighting a few, Leon took time to concentrate and yelled for Adrian and Mathias to stop. He then conjured a ring of blue flames around them to keep the creatures at bay saying, "we are being tricked. This is an illusion. These are not Feral Téras Fídi. They are regular people". Placing a finger at the center of his forehead, the symbol of the Sapphire Keep appeared and a beam of light shot into Adrian's and Mathias' head. This allowed them to see through the illusion Leon mentioned.

Practicing the Sapphire Arts gives a natural defense against mental manipulation. It becomes nearly impossible to mentally control a Sapphire practitioner and they can see through illusions not conjured by a superior Sapphire practitioner. As it turned out, they were fighting people who were made to look like the deadly creatures and manipulated into behaving aggressively. "Can you break their control?" Adrian asks. Leon closes his eyes and responds," I can. But it will alert the manipulator. For now, we should just get away from here". Just then, Mathias brought out a flute and said, "I can subdue them". On the side of the flute was written, Sielskudder; which means soul shaker. He begins to play a rather dark tune, that seem to immediately take affect. Not only did it quell their rage, it also seemed to immobilize them. Leon then conjured his blue smoke and whisked them back to the main camp grounds.

Mathias says, "I think its's safe to assume that those are some of the missing people we are looking for. Even if they are not, they still need to be rescued. I doubt others share your ability to see through the illusion". "I agree. However, there is another type of magic being used here, but I can't make it out", Adrian remarked. The closing horn sounded and the winner was announced. No doubt, numerous innocent people are being harmed here, but what is the reason. Despite having proof of Versorging Vineyard's connection to the missing people, the questions of why and how is now at the top of the list.