A Dusty Tome: Strye Einhander

[Strye]

Page's 1-3: Salvation

_The cold, tingling sensation of walking through the empty, dark plane- a labyrinth of dark halls and ominous sounds- always woke me half-way through my sleep… It felt like months I have been lost in this place. The only signs of light from my ring and cantrips guided my meandering. Though never-changing in weight, my almost endless amount of food in the bag of holding began to show signs of decreasing. I never knew true desperation or panic until today. Only a few days worth of edible rations remained in my bag; another week's worth spoiled. Eating nothing but stale crackers and apple juice and ale, I stumbled through the endless halls into another dead end. Even my own intelligence began to fail- I could only memorize so much of this place- and frustration began to overcome my will. At the dark end of the way, I could see strange carvings. Two circles were embossed into the wall- like vacant eye sockets. I hung my glowing ring closer to the wall and saw runes of some sort scribed beneath it. I recognized one. "Two".

As I peered closer, the familiar echo of monstrous footsteps filled the halls, but strangely close. Silently, I removed my bastard sword from my bag and tossed the glowing ring in to allow darkness to shroud me again. Adrenaline pumped through my veins and my body went into a sweat as a pair of fiery orbs appeared in the distance. A good fifty meters away, they still glowed brightly- showing the wicked twisted form of a demon. I could feel it's aura of terror grip me, even at that distance. My hands shook and I gripped my sword with both to keep it still. It would've made a great tale if I escaped this place alive- such trivial thoughts ran through my head as I helplessly held my breath for what seemed half an hour.

Strangely, the demon seemed to be reading the numerous amounts of markings on the in front of it for a good minute... I wish it would be done and off! Illiterate bastard of a demon- my lungs cried for air and I exhaled... followed by a cough.

It echoed the halls for a terrible two seconds, and the pair of fiery orbs became four- the two orbs I had been staring at before was just one side of its head. They glowed even brighter and a piercing cry shattered the silence in the halls. The floor rumbled with each rapid step as it advanced towards me and I whimpered as I stood up and raised my sword. I could barely mutter a bardic war song... the fear of death gripped my neck like a tight noose. I muttered a quiet, sad song of lamenting. My body stilled and I stared straight at the monstrosity rushing towards me. Time seemed to slow, as I watched it open it's huge jaw and bare a dark void circled with red and black daggers of teeth... and then I thought of home for one last time.

The warm fires and cool winds of a comfortable place came to me again. I would laugh and smile and shout- nothing limited the happiness there. Smiling faces would greet me, mugs of ale would empty, plates of food would disappear- song and dance would last the night... Jiyyd was home. I had no gods to cry out to, no power to call upon... I let my eyes tear and turned away from my fast approaching death. My bastard sword dropped from my hands and I planted my forehead against the freezing cold wall... I was too much of a coward.

A deafening cry again filled the halls and I knelt against the wall, wishing a quick, painless death. It was only after a few more seconds did I realize a large hand had grabbed my arm and the place was silent again. I turned my head to to see a robed figure now in front of me- I could not see much- the being was in the way. A second later, another cry from the demon- it was still there, for I could still see it partially from behind the figure- and the sound of a hundred bones breaking crackled afterwards. Again, silence- I tried to move my arm from the wall, but the large hand held me still with rigid force.

"You're a very, very lucky man...", said what I had already decided was a mage of some sort. The voice was rich, deep and calming- I sniffled and opened my mouth to speak, but no words came forth. An expanding pool of blood surrounded my boots- I bent low enough to pick up my sword, now well-dipped in smelly demon blood.

"I've been watching you for a moment, hoping you could lure it out- though something else was on your mind. Thank you for helping me capture this specimen- allow me to send you home."

Without asking the man his name, I nodded my head once and sighed. The man opened a small tome in his hand and waved a small rod in my direction while muttering an incantation. Still dark and the glow from the demon's eyeballs fading quickly, I could only see a crumpled mass of flesh and bone of what was once the demon's body. Holding my belongings, I looked at the man and opened my mouth to speak, but my vision went black and felt a powerful wind carry me... I then lost consciousness._