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Chapter 5

A good five or six hours had passed before Jem and Russo emerged from the pub. Russo was a little buzzed and Jem was totally smashed. The collie had his arms wrapped around his human companion and leaned on him in an attempt to maintain his balance. Russo did his best to hold his friend up and keep him from going horizontal.

"We have way too much time and alcohol on our hands, you know that Jem?"

No intelligible response came from Jem as slurred words came fumbling out of his mouth along with copious amounts of slobber.

"We're not even going to make it back to your house before you pass out are we?"

Jem responded by nuzzling his head against Russo's shoulder and mumbled something about how soft and warm his cloak was.

"...My thoughts exactly. Let's just focus on getting you back to the guild hall for tonight. You can crash there, I'm sure the master won't mind too much."

In response Russo heard Jem quietly snoring, his head resting comfortably on his shoulder, drool and booze trickling out the side of his mouth.

"Jem how the hell are you still walking? You're not even conscious!" The human sighed. "It doesn't really matter though, we're almost there."

After a couple of near slip-ups Russo finally managed to lead Jem into the guild hall and to a table. Jem laid down on one of the benches at the tables while Russo removed his cloak and fluffed it up into a makeshift pillow for his friend. Soon enough Jem was sleeping like a dead person, oblivious and unresponsive to the world around him.

"Hmm... maybe I should at least give the master a heads up that there may or may not be somebody passed out in the middle of his guild. Can't hurt I suppose."

The sun was just beginning to set and pale yellows, oranges and even tints of reds and purples began to bleed into the sky. The slowly fading light bathed the hall through the windows and made Russo feel wistful. Not because the day was coming to an end but because Jem was already down for the count and the day wasn't even over yet. The two of them REALLY needed a mission to eat up their time and give them something to do. "Not like complaining to myself will do anything about it though," Russo thought to himself as he walked towards the back of the hall. There wasn't another soul in the hall, and that only served to further reinforce the wistful feelings of disappointment he had been feeling moments before. Some clattering dishes broke his train of thought as he began to climb the stairs. "I'm guessing Dax is still here then," Russo mused as he reached the top of the stairs and knocked on the door.

"Who is it?" the master called out through the door.

"It's Russo."

"Ah! Perfect timing, come in, come in, I have something important I need to discuss with you. Close the door on your way in too."

Russo's curiosity was piqued as he slowly entered Varun's office and closed the door behind him. "What's this important thing you want to talk to me about?" the mage said as he took a seat at the chair in front of the master's desk.

"Before I delve into the details Russo, be aware that you're one of the only people in this guild I would speak to about this. Which means this stays between us and only those people whom I give you permission to speak to on the subject."

"O...okay," Russo uneasily stated as he became nervous.

The master took a deep breath before he began speaking. "There have been rumors circulating lately amongst the magical guilds in the province that a powerful dark relic can be found deep within the ruins of a decrepit abandoned city."

"So, sounds like just that. A rumor. It's vague and leaves a lot to the imagination."

"But what if I were to say those "ruins" in question were only a few days travel away on foot? Or that it's well known amongst the senior guild masters in this province that that place in question was witness to rituals and practices that can only be described as sins against all of creation?"

"I'd...I'd be a little more inclined to give that rumor some credibility."

"Russo, I doubt you've heard of it but does the name Peccamen mean anything to you?"

"I've heard it mentioned in a few of the older tomes you've lent to me for reading. I've only heard it in passing references to things one should not do with magic. Strangely enough none of those tomes really elaborated on why Peccamen was such a prominent example of what not to do with magic."

"Russo, amongst the senior guild masters, certain knowledge is shared and passed down from one generation of leaders to the next. It's been that way for nearly two hundred years now. Maybe one day I'll tell you more about it should you prove yourself to be a capable leader. Nevertheless, there used to be powerful barriers preventing entry into the deepest parts of that desecrated city and from time to time, the guild masters before me as well as the current generation, myself included, would visit that place to maintain it. Those nearly two hundred years of cumulative magical effort were rendered completely pointless a few days ago when the barrier fell, much to our horror. Worse yet the rumors began circulating shortly before the barrier came down."

"There was... no there IS something deep in that city that you all don't want anybody to find, isn't there?"

"Precisely. The tradition of maintaining that barrier around Peccamen has continued on for so long that most of us have frankly forgotten just what we are trying to keep trapped in there and people away from."

"Old man why are you telling me all this? Why not just erect another barrier?"

"Because somebody will just tear it down again like it was nothing! Whoever the individual or maybe even group responsible for this is, they cannot be ignored. As we speak the other guild masters and I have been doing all that we can to track down whoever is responsible for this."

"What about Peccamen then? Anybody can just waltz in there and claim whatever hellacious... thing, is hidden there!"

"Which is where you come in. Russo your attitude and methods towards your work are cause for alarm and you and I will have a chat about that one of these days. However, you produce results and you are one of, if not the most powerful mage in the guild. I want you to go to Peccamen and destroy whatever is housed there. Whatever it is, that thing's very existence is a mockery against all of creation and is an abomination of magic."

"The way you talk about that relic and that place is making me have doubts about this master. Do you really think I'm capable of pulling this off on my own?"

"Alone? No. You don't have a snowball's chance in hell pulling this off on your own."

"...but you just said."

"Listen, all of the guild masters in the province are assembling the best members they have in order to destroy that thing. You will be a part of that united effort, as will Jem. I know I just said that I consider you to be one of the most powerful mages in the guild but should you ever be stripped of your spells or your magic, frankly you're little more than useless. Jem is one of the strongest warriors in our guild and I know that you two work well together and complement each other's strengths. As well as compensate and cover for each other's weaknesses. You two are the only ones I can trust with this."

Russo paused for a moment as he let everything the master said sink in, criticisms and all. "...So when is this happening? What's the exact plan?" He quietly asked.

"You and Jem will both head out immediately tomorrow morning, south to Peccamen. There's a small town known as Letum near the ruins. You two will meet up with the members of the other guilds there and continue on from there, as you two will be the last ones to arrive.

"So we just head out to Peccamen after we finally reach Letum?"

"AFTER you've familiarized yourself with the others and gotten a day's rest you will all head into Peccamen. Everyone needs to be in top form when you go in there."

"Understood. One quick question though, is this technically a mission then?"

"As far as the records will show, this is just another mission, urgent mind you, that requires the combined efforts of our most skilled mage and warrior. ...You won't be getting paid for this if that's what you're asking, which damn well better not be what you're thinking about right now."

"Of- of course not," Russo said weakly.

The guild master sighed and shook his head. "Just go relay the message to Jem and get some sleep. You two will have a long couple of days ahead of you and you'll need the rest."

Russo nodded as he stood up and began to exit the master's office. He was interrupted by the master before he could open the door.

"Russo, before you go, be careful. Peccamen... the land itself there is cursed. That place... it's just wrong. You can feel it trying to rot you from the inside out, just yearning to corrupt and decay those who would walk those tainted grounds. Get in there, destroy the relic and get out. Spend as little time there as possible."

"I understand."

"I don't want to see you and Jem come back here changed is all. Please, be careful. ...By the way, was there something you needed to talk to me about when you first knocked on my door?"

"Nah, it was nothing, don't worry about it." Russo took a breath before continuing on, "You can count on us, Jem and I know how to keep each other out of trouble."

With that Russo exited the office and closed the door behind him. Varun leaned back in his chair and had a look of worry carved into his face. Countless fears and doubts swirled through his mind, even though he knew that some of Tedrah's finest were on the job.

Russo made his way down the stairs and back to where Jem was sawing logs. With great difficulty he managed to get Jem to his feet and dragged him back one of the guild's basic guest rooms and managed to deposit him on a bed. The mage spent the rest of the evening gathering supplies for their trip, plenty enough for both he and Jem. After bringing the supplies back to the guild hall, packing them up and dumping them in the guest room with Jem, the human did his best to clean up for the night. Once all the preparations were complete Russo trudged back to the guild guestroom to try to get some sleep.

It was a stark little room with only two very basic beds and a large window being the only noteworthy feature. As he undressed Russo could see through the window that the moon had rose high into the sky. Its crescent shape simply hovered there. Like it were some great eye, half-closed in interest, just watching him. A sense of unease gripped him when he laid his head down on his pillow and tried to imagine just what to expect in Peccamen. He closed his eyes and a thought passed through his head, "I was bitching about wanting something for the both of us to do and look what happens..."

Unfortunately sleep never overcame Russo as he restlessly remained in his bed the duration of the night. His eyes were shut and his body was physically tired, but his mind was racing, worries and doubts about the task at hand dominating his thoughts. If even the old man was hesitant to just go to the outskirts of that place, then heaven knows what was lying in wait deep inside it?

Time passed by slowly. Russo finally gave up trying to sleep and impatiently waited for the faintest traces of light to start peeking through. After what seemed like an eternity he heard Jem rustle around in his bed and wake up.

A loud and drawn out yawn broke the silence. "...I had way too much to drink last night," Jem said only slightly groggy.

The mage would never understand how Jem could ingest so much alcohol and wake up bright and early the next morning without a hangover.

"About time you woke up," Russo said as he sat up in bed and turned towards Jem.

"Russo? What are you doing up this early?"

"It's... sort of a long story. Wait aren't you surprised at all to see me? Or to find that you didn't wake up in your own bed?"

"Nah... you always bring me back to the guild whenever I've had too much to drink. I'm used to waking up here after a night of hitting up the pubs. That and you usually crash here to keep me company. Hehe, you're such a good friend," He said grinning at the human through the darkness.

"Yeah, yeah, I know I'm predictable as can be."

"I didn't mean it like that. It really does make me happy knowing that you care enough to keep an eye on me when I can't even walk straight."

Russo smiled sheepishly after hearing his friend's genuine praise. "Thanks Jem," he sighed, "but we've got some business to attend to."

"You mean a mission? When did that happen?"

"Last night when you were out cold. This mission came straight from Varun. And... well it's different to say the least. Different from any other mission we've done before."

"What do you mean?"

"I'll explain later. I've already packed up our supplies for the trip, it'll take a few days to get to where we're going. The old mna's instructions were to head out at the crack of dawn and we should be getting ready to leave soon."

"...I'm not sure what the urgency and secrecy is all about but okay. Where are we headed to?"

"To the south. Some god forsaken place called Peccamen. I don't know much about it but apparently the history of that town gives him the chills. Just get yourself cleaned up and let's go. I'll tell you everything as soon as we're outside of town."

Jem hastily bathed himself as Russo did a double check on their supplies to be sure they had everything they needed for their trip. When Jem came back to the guest room Russo began gearing up and dressing himself. Putting on his clothes, his boots, his vest (he finally got one after some additional nagging from Jem) and his red cloak he was good to go in no time.

The collie and the human quietly exited the guild hall and headed south out of the city. The sun hadn't quite broken over the horizon yet, but its light began to fill up the eastern part of the sky. Jem and Russo continued walking in muted tones until the last traces of darkness dissipated from the sky. With the cover of darkness having retreated for now Russo began to relay Jem everything that the master had told him and about the known and yet unknown threat that they were getting ready to confront.