Author's Note: This doesn't mean I'm back, or active, but I'll leave this here anyways... Sorry about all this. Also, I'm not at all satisfied with this chapter. It's different trying to write from a third-person perspective. I've grown too fond of writing from a biased, emotional, first-person one. Not to mention, my writing style may have changed since the time I started this. This chapter doesn't feel as immersive as the other chapters and I have trouble feeling excited about it. Nonetheless, since I've written something, there's probably no hurt in posting it. It's one step closer to finishing the story, one step closer to reviving my favourite character (and pairing), and one step closer to the fun bits. (Waggling eyebrows) ...If you know what I mean. ;)

Exeunt . Chapter 14

Laboratory Depths

An awkward trio of Colhen residents tromp about through an eerily silent forest. There is still dew on the leaves and grass in some places, along with the lingering smell of morning, and the remnant chill on the air from the night hits them through their clothes. The sun breaks through the canopy, leaving quaint shafts of light that make the seemingly invisible path just visible enough for Brynn apparently to navigate. It's surprisingly bright for a property owned by someone so twisted as the man they are about to steal from, they think. But Fiona can't help but notice something odd.

"It's early morning, and I'd expect to hear birds somewhere right now, but," she starts.

Lann looks to Fiona and catches onto what she's thinking, finishing for her, "But it's quiet."

She nods. "Either the birds are still sleeping, or..."

"Or they're avoiding this place."

And why? The mercenaries can only wonder to themselves what can be so bad about a hidden dungeon that frightens the world's most chattiest wildlife into silence. Meanwhile, Brynn was noting how good they were becoming at finishing each other's sentences.

"We're here." Brynn tells the other two, stopping right in front of a completely moss-covered patch of ground.

"Where's here? I don't think this is even near the manor." Lann questions in disbelief.

Brynn folds his arms and gives a flat look as he explains, "The dungeons are underground, thus they can extend to any size the builders want it to be, granted the property permits. This also makes it convenient for us, because any hired help guarding the manor will likely be focused near the manor."

"Okay, okay, I get it. I just don't see any entrance..."

Fiona walks forward a bit, only to stop as she feels and hears something different under her feet. The sound of her feet hitting the ground over the mossy patch sounds like wood and not of the density of earth as she was expecting. Moving off the patch, Fiona bends down to inspect it more closely...

"This is...!"

Brynn smiles slightly, though the amusement fades quickly, "Yes, this is the entrance. It is connected to a tunnel that leads down into a hallway. The tunnel itself is hidden behind a false wall, and Argeld isn't one to waste time exploring, so he's likely to have never discovered it."

"Well lucky us. Let's go already." Lann cuts in, and the spurred party of three hurries into the secret entrance to the Laboratory Depths.

The trip into the dungeon in the beginning goes surprisingly smoothly, though they are not entirely sure which room should have the research they need. The man had expanded to other rooms in the dungeons because of the amount of research he had been accumulating in the time Brynn last saw this place. They saw this when they thoroughly searched the rooms nearer to the entrance, only to find stacks of trivial research stored in shelves there. Brynn thus came to the conclusion that they would have to search every room until they got to the right papers... but would they have the time?

"The rooms seem themed, at least. All these rooms have had trivial research seeming to be at least related in some respect. The room I last looked at, with the shackles on the wall, had research relating to a certain reptile's scale's properties in various products."

Fiona frowns, but iterates her own conclusion, "If the rooms are themed, then at the very least that means you won't have to go through every file and folder in the room."

They exit the room and head further into the dungeons.

The dungeon is as dark and foreboding as one would expect, a harsh contrast to the eery peace that they had been walking in for hours above ground. The corridors are surprisingly spacious, constructed with large cuts of a dark stone that seem to have gained some moss and mushrooms in its time left unattended. Every step the group makes echoes helplessly further down the barely lit hall, disappearing around corners and into shadowy corners where Goddess-knows-what manner of creatures live. Once in a while they'll hear shifting or groaning that isn't of themselves, keeping them alert and tense. It's quickly becoming mentally draining. Lann in particular is becoming visibly irritated, though they are all affected to different extents. It doesn't help that the lack of action so far has not given them even the chance to release some of their stress.

As they exit another room, a curious clicking sound catches their attention. Reacting first, Fiona brings up her shield and steps before Brynn. Her foresight saves him from a surprise attack as she blocks a few long-shafted arrows that might've severely injured (not to mention impaired) their scholar. Lann is already running forward. With the reflexes of a professional, he is dodging and deflecting where necessary in order to reach the other side of the sudden barrage... He spots a lever that would appear to deactivate the trap they sprung, and lunges for it. Click, click, click... The sound of gears sound out before stopping with a muffled thud. Lann sighs in relief.

Fiona and Brynn hear an end to the arrows, and look over to see Lann waving them over silently. When they regroup, Lann holds a finger up to his lips and approaches a corner, appearing to listen. The other two still, and they listen as well.

Rapidly approaching footsteps are what they hear, and they consequently feel themselves go cold in dread. A moment later they realize the footsteps aren't human, though it does not ease them much. Something wooden crashes near the approaching footsteps, and they feel the low vibrations of a beast's growls. The trio from Colhen raise their weapons defensively.

...

However, none of them are quite prepared for the three-headed monstrosity that's barrelling around the corner, and it is with great pains that the two mercenaries engage it to hold its attention away from the scholar whose expertise is needed to succeed on this mission.

"Eugh! Goddess, this thing stinks!" Lann growls as he slices down across what seems to be the muzzle of some kind of canine on one head.

Fiona doesn't comment, though one glance at her face would make obvious her displeasure as well. Bringing down her hammer with a timed strike, she easily incapacitates another head that resembles the head of a long-necked bird.

It's the middle head that makes the trio uneasy however, and that is because—though warped and misshapen—it is unmistakably man-shaped. The sight of it is altogether disgusting and horrifying to them all.

"Please tell me that isn't what I think it is, Brynn." Lann calls back to Brynn in peaking distress.

Brynn doesn't know how to reassure him. Instead, he says, "I hope you realize now just how important it is that we find the experiment notes for Evie."

"Goddess help us." Lann mutters a prayer, bolstering himself emotionally for another round.

The sounds that exit its mouth however are not words, but senseless growls and garbling. If it was ever human, it wasn't anymore.

Brynn's hand hovers around the end of his staff, and using a curling motion, a glowing ball grows quickly beneath his fingers. His hand leaves his staff as he aims the simple weapon at the artificial beast.

"I advise you step aside for a moment." Brynn warns them a second before releasing the rapidly engorged ball of fire. Fiona and Lann duck out of the way.

The flames engulf the beast, who is no taller than the trio are though is twice as long. The beast lets out garbled shrieks as it writhes, trying to put out the flames that ravage its body. The three watchers standing by can't help but flinch at its dying sounds. They realize after a couple agonizing minutes that death by fire takes a while, and Lann takes pity on the sad beast. Unfortunately, as he moves closer to decapitate it, one of its heavy and very hotly burning arms flails and strikes Lann.

"Lann!" Fiona calls out in alarm.

He lets out a pained hiss, but decaptiates the beast anyway.

Brynn moves forward hurriedly, gesturing choppily with his staff for a healing spell. After it is healed, they bandage it for good measure, if only to prevent it from getting infected while they move about here. The continued their quest in thick, uneasy silence. That is, until Fiona decides that it is just as uncomfortable.

"Well," Fiona says lightly, attempting to break the tension in the group, "that was an altogether emotionally scarring experience."

"If we can help it, I'd rather not go against one of those things again." Lann agrees.

Brynn seconds, "I would have to agree. Imagine living with the man involved in its making, though. I could have become one of them, perhaps."

"I've been curious about that," Fiona admits, "you've said that you used to live here, but aside from that, how were you involved with this monster?"

"And by monster, she means Argeld. Actually, I've been wondering, too. What's that all about?"

Brynn is silent for a bit, and the group starts wondering if she should just not have bothered asking. Perhaps it brought back traumatic memories for him, and he can't even if he wants to. Maybe it is more ethical to let the matter drop, regardless of whether the knowledge might be useful.

Eventually however, and with a visible show of effort, he lets out a strained sigh before explaining.

"Argeld, in status alone, is treated like a noble. He has his hand in the pockets of all the influential aristocrats in high society. His knowledge in obscure magics puts him at a distinct advantage over other magicians. Of course, because of the nature of this knowledge and how he gets it,... other than letting the public be aware of the fact he exists, he mostly keeps to himself in this manor."

That much makes sense to them so far.

Brynn continues, "When I was but a naive boy, Argeld seemed to be recruiting young children with the potential to be magicians. The public didn't seem to notice that those families he bought children from usually had met with some kind of disaster until they complied. Merchants would lose business, beauties would suffer disease, healers would be poisoned, ... Argeld would come at these tragic times, offering a comfortable life for these children."

The look on their faces is enough to tell Brynn that they are disturbed at the implications.

"And these children that he acquired, I am unsure what he really did with them. During my stay at the manor, there were only two other children that I could see, despite the dozens he apparently had taken custody of. One of them quickly disappeared in my first two days there... The other was Evie, or Crow as you may have known her. She seemed to be the only constant in this place. I believe Argeld's intentions for Evie lay somewhere else. Perhaps he was avoiding using her for research so he could marry her off to a rich family, which would provide him with more funds. That's a common thing in high society, marrying for wealth. Anyway, needless to say, I escaped once I realized what he had planned for me."

Silence falls over them again as they absorb this new (for Lann and Fiona) information. Brynn focuses on the documents in archive rooms they encounter.

...

"I see now why Evie was so scared." He says unsteadily, still shaken from the revealed truths about their comatose friend, the potion maker, and the evil behind all their pains. "This is sick."

The two mercenaries are outside the room Brynn is currently in, watching the corridors for any sign of life that could mean an end to their clandestine operation. Fiona turns to Lann, eyebrows furrowed in confusion. Most people, Fiona thinks, would look at Evie and think she's actually pretty happy as long as friends are around her. 'Scared' is an adjective that is hard to pin to the perky young woman.

"What do you mean, Lann?"

Of course, Fiona couldn't have known about the Argeld incident in Colhen. She had joined the mercenary group just after Argeld's visit to the outpost. Lann explains in brief what happened that day Argeld came to Colhen looking for Evie, through his own eyes.

Fiona whistles. "She confessed to me once that she was running from something in her past, but I had no idea it could be something this complicated."

Lann looks a bit startled at hearing this. "She told you? She never tells me anything!"

Fiona in turn now looks distinctly uncomfortable, if becoming any more so in this kind of place is possible. She fidgets as she rationalizes, "I don't think she even meant to tell me, Lann. She looked really upset that time, and when I confronted her, it seemed to just come out of nowhere. It wasn't even anything detailed. I just assumed it might have been either abuse, or maybe criminal in nature, and left it at that. I guess that was sort of right."

Lann seems put out, but accepting of the rationale. He doesn't have any choice, really. The only person who could tell them the truth about anything is comatose, and here they are left grasping at straws, scrabbling along the depths of an underground laboratory—illegally—to find evidence of what happened to Evie while she was in Argeld's "care".

It seems like a lot of trouble to go through, and it is, but they know that their unconscious friend would do the same. Even though they don't want to be involved with Argeld, is is a necessary evil if they want to revive their friend. They must find the information they seek at all costs.

The door behind them creaks open, startling the two mercs, and out steps Brynn holding a small wooden crate crammed full of miscellaneous objects and papers.

Interpreting this as the first good sign in a while, the awkward trio dare to share a rare smile.

"I've got it."

Tracing back their steps, they have a brief scare when human footsteps are heard approaching. Finding refuge in a different hidden passage behind a drape, they tensely wait for the person to pass so they can continue to the exit leading away from the manor.

Peaking through a sliver of space between the drape and the wall, they see who it is. Fiona, not being familiar with the face, turns to the other two with a raised eyebrow. They both nod.

Argeld.

They still again as they hear him muttering.

"It's active. It's finally active and I can't even reach her, stupid peasants! Meddlesome mercenaries! I must have her at all costs. The window of opportunity will only stay open for so long. Perhaps I can call on some favours to have her 'removed' discretely from... Yes, I'll... send... immediate..."

Argeld's voice grows faint as he turns a corner and fades out of audible range.

A sudden urgency to return home spurs them towards the exit at a run.