Episode 6: Land of the Rising Star (Part 4 of 6)

Nodding to Locke's comment, Akorrin steps forward first with Locke right behind him as the duo begin to ascend up the right hand staircase. Curving upwards as they ascend it, the staircase takes them up onto a platform that is located high above the great hall. Locke and Akorrin look around their surroundings to see that the walls are built with the finest marble, which have long regal drapes of red and purple silk adorning them. The carpets beneath their feet are thick, springy, and a royal red colour. Any door handles, stair railing knobs, and the like are solid gold as marble plant pots containing red roses are scattered here and there throughout the hall. Finally, the duo see that a single door stands in front of them, while off to the left and right hand sides are two archways which lead into separate corridors.

"Nice place to live," Locke mutters while his eyes scan around the hall. "How about we try that door first?"

"Yes. . . But quietly."

Locke and Akorrin walk carefully towards the door, the two standing in front of it for a few moments, before Locke presses his ear against the door to see if anybody lies on the other side. As he presses his ear against the wooden door, Locke hears what he thinks may be the clattering of pots and pans, as well as the sound of boiling water.

"Sounds like a kitchen back there," Locke whispers to Akorrin as he continues to listen through the door.

"Hmm. . . We'd best not disturb them. Lucio's guards might be feasting."

"I suppose," Locke replies as he takes his ear away from the door and steps back beside his master.

Looking towards the left archway, Locke motions with his hand for Akorrin to follow him as he begins to walk away towards the arch with his master not far behind him. As the pair walk into the next hall, they see that they are in a small room with an ornate table and some chairs. Against the wall to their right lies two small doors; there also lies a single staircase, which is directly across from them in the left hand corner of the small room.

"Hm, more doors. I have a feeling we'll be seeing many of these," Akorrin grimly notes.

"True. It is a mansion after all," Locke answers. "Lilanei could be anywhere."

Akorrin nods, "I suppose we'll have to check them all."

Instead of verbally replying, Locke instead walks over to the nearest door to our duo; once again he presses himself up against the door and listens for any sounds that might behind it. As he focuses beyond the door, Locke hears the clinking of glasses as well as loud laughter. He then looks up to Akorrin to report his findings.

"Sounds like the party's going on in there. . . or at least part of it."

"I am unsure if we should proceed. What do you think?" Akorrin asks.

"I'm not sure either," Locke replies. "I dunno how many are in there. But then, Lil could be in there. . . Maybe I'll glance through this keyhole and see if I can see through it."

Locke kneels forward and peers through the keyhole; however he is unable to see too much through the small opening. All he sees are a few blurry figures and nothing more to determine how many people may actually be in there. Sighing, Locke stands and once again strolls beside Akorrin before then moving to the next door in the hallway. Again, he presses his ear against the door to see if there are any sounds lurking behind it, but to Locke's disappointment, there is no sound; however, as it is silent, Locke decides to see if he can open the door. Turning the handle with ease, the door softly swings open. As he peers into the dim room, he observes that it is a very simple guest accommodation, with a single bed and side table located in the far right corner. Nothing of much interest seems to lie inside it.

"If I'm not mistaken, these rooms must be Lucio's guest chambers," Akorrin quietly explains.

"If you've been here before," Locke comments, "how is it you don't really remember your way around?"

"Hrm, I am an old Dragon, Locke. I do not remember much from that fateful day. Not much except for the horrible end."

Locke nods, understanding what sort of horror his master must have endured during that time. The two then turn around and look at the table that is in the room to see if there is anything of use or at least a clue to their current location – but it merely contains a single vase with a black and wilted rose. Looking at the staircase, Locke and Akorrin decide to make their way up it, their footsteps softly echoing through the large halls as they make their climb up to the next floor. As our Heroes ascend the staircase, they hear a pair of footsteps pacing the hallway in front of them. A Halfling suddenly emerges from a nearby corner and spots the pair.

"Hey. . . What are you doing here?" The Halfling bellows, narrowing his eyes at the pair.

Locke immediately goes back to using his persona that served him well back at the bandits' close, replying as he clicks his fingers and moves his shoulders in a jig-like fashion, "Eh? We're here for the party, y'know? Y'know, birds, booze. . . and Lucio!"

Raising his eyebrows, the Halfling stares them down for a moment as he is soon joined from behind by a tall and grumbling Orc; silently, they look to each other before the Halfling turns and says, "Huh. . . Well, whatever. A bit early, but go on then."

The two companions look to each other again and with shrugs, they walk past our Heroes and down to the next floor.

"Pretty easy to fool them," Locke softly announces. "I guess the accents and phony names work pretty well."

"It was good thinking. Now, let's move on," Akorrin says in a praising manner.

Akorrin and Locke move on, slightly more bold in their strides as they have been after having passed the first test that lay ahead of them – even though they know in the back of their minds that not all of Lucio's henchman may be that easy to fool. The two stop in front of a wide open door and cross the hall to stand in front as they look into the room. As they take a peek into the open room, they see it is a large drawing room – a fireplace adorning the wall ahead. Two men sit in front of the roaring fire, conversing as a few women stand by to serve them drinks and food. At this time, they take no notice of our duo. Locke looks at the women and notices that none of them are Lilanei; however, he does take great note in the fact that all of them are scantily clad as they serve the men.

"Hey, check them out," Locke whispers to Akorrin with a slight grin on his face. "Lucio has his women baring all, huh?"

Anxiously, Akorrin nudges him as he says, "Locke. . . I don't think this is the time."

As he is nudged, the grin on Locke's face is replaced with a stern look once more. The two begin to walk away when they notice one of the maiden's heads look up; as her eyes now directly gaze at Locke and Akorrin, the two immediately freeze in their tracks. However, the maiden simply smiles to them for a brief moment and goes back to tending to the men – as Locke's face once again curls into a grin before the two then sneak away undetected. The two now come to the next part of the hallway to notice that an ascending staircase is on the left side of the hallway ahead, while on the other lies another closed door. Akorrin and Locke move further into the hallway, stopping in front of the stairs. They look ahead further to see that in the corridor is another door, which they can just see is open – while another staircase, which leads downstairs, is ahead of them. Akorrin looks towards the door, causing Locke to move in front of it as he listens inside the room once more. He tries to listen through the large door; nevertheless, despite focusing all of his concentration, a storm brewing outside of the mansion echoes over any movement or conversation that may be taking place behind the door. Locke stands from the door and looks to Akorrin, shaking his head.

"I can't hear a thing. That blasted storm is getting stronger."

"Indeed. . . Perhaps you should peek into this room, just as you attempted to before," Akorrin calmly suggests.

Nodding, Locke crouches and peers through the keyhole that lies just above the door handle of the door. As Locke peers through the opening, he cannot see much at first due to what appears to be a great amount of steam of the other side. Yet, he focuses for a few moments and as he does, he begins to make out an image of what lies beyond. He sees what appears to be a large bath tub with the head of a Dwarf as well as a human female protruding from the water. The man appears to be chatting as the young woman giggles.

Locke looks up to Akorrin before saying, "Lil's not in there. I don't understand what exactly this gathering is about, or what this mansion is for, aside from Lucio living here. But it seems almost like a place for his bandits to come and be. . . entertained."

"Entertained?" Akorrin echoes, before slowly realizing what Locke means as he turns away uncomfortably and says, "In any case, let's move on."

Akorrin begins to walk away, as Locke peers into the room once more, saying quietly to himself, "Maybe this life of a bandit isn't so bad after all. . . "

"Locke!" comes a hushed demand from the other end of the hall.

Immediately, Locke jumps up away from the door and swiftly moves to Akorrin's position. The two look at the staircase, before Akorrin suggests that they check the open door first, with caution. The two sneak towards the open door in the new corridor as Locke begins to peer through it, only his head appearing in the doorway so that he may see inside. As he attempts to peer into the room without actually stepping inside, Locke sees nothing but a mass of steam flowing from the room. Deciding he can't see enough, Locke begins to casually walk past the open door, his head turned to see into the room as he slowly walks past, while Akorrin keeps his position. Still seeing nothing, Locke slowly walks into the room as Akorrin then decides to follow him in. As they step into the steamy room, their eyes begin to adjust and they realize that they are in a large bathroom. A massive bath tub sits in the center, with many wash basins and towel racks surrounding it. The floor is still wet from its last use, as the tap drips steadily with droplets of water.

"Nothing here," Locke notes. "Let's go back to that staircase."

Akorrin nods and they then turn to leave the room; however they soon begin to hear wet footsteps as a Dwarf, wrapped in a towel, steps into the room.

Seeing the intruders, his face becomes painted with annoyance as he holds the towel around his waist tightly and yells, "Oy! What are you doing?"

"Sorry, tiny," Locke replies with his fake accent again. "My buddy an' I are here for the gatherin' tonight, and we just got lost. We're leaving."

Ignoring Locke's explanation, the Dwarf simply narrows his eyes narrowly as he echoes, "Tiny, eh? Well, this tiny Dwarf is gonna kick your huge behind straight to the moon if you cross my path again!"

Akorrin growls beneath his breath as he looks to Locke and motions to the door. Quickly, Locke looks to Akorrin and the two walk past the Dwarf, who then slams the door shut behind the duo.

Locke looks back at the door and then to Akorrin before noting, "What is it with these Dwarves? They all seem so. . . angry."

Akorrin shakes his, whispering, "Perhaps you've merely had bad luck, for the Dwarves I've met in my travels have been quite kind."

"Huh," Locke mutters. "I met one Dwarf who really has it in for Lil and I now, but probably for good reason. . . Have you ever been to Tuli?"

Akorrin shakes his head, "Not quite, but I have passed it on my travels."

"Lil and I had a run-in there just before this whole mess occurred. I'll tell you about it sometime, maybe. Let's keep going."

Akorrin and Locke walk back down the hallway they came from until they reach the ascending staircase, which with no hesitation they climb. As Locke and Akorrin climb the steps, leading upstairs, they find themselves emerging in a massive ballroom-like chamber. Tables are scattered all over the brightly lit room – plates and jugs laid out neatly. Ahead of them at the end of room is a large stage, and finally, behind them is another staircase besides the one they just climbed, which leads to the next floor. As they take in these surroundings, they notice movement of a figure above the stage; however it quickly disappears into the back. Locke looks up to Akorrin and slowly the two begin to cross the ballroom, their eyes peering from side to side of the room as they look at each table, until they come to front of the stage.

"Did you see that earlier?" Locke asks. "Somebody's moving around back there."

"Yes. . . It may be worth looking into," Akorrin answers.

Immediately, Locke swiftly hops up the steps as Akorrin follows behind, his large clawed feet skipping a step for everyone he takes until they emerge on the stage. Their feet cause echoes to sound across the ballroom as they step across the wooden platform. Coming to the back, where they first saw the figure, they immediately notice a staircase which seems to lead down into a brightly lit chamber. Akorrin motions to Locke for them to continue down the staircase to which Locke complies – his feet softly leading the way down the steps. Finally, Locke and Akorrin descend into a large room and both begin to blush immediately as they realize they have just stepped into what seems to be Lucio's harem. A large number of women surround them, giggling and whispering amongst themselves. As they see the men enter the room however, their eyes dart up towards them and they become completely silent. After a few moments, seeing that the men say nothing, they soon continue with their business – seemingly used to intrusions by strangers.

"I'll handle this," Locke whispers to his master before he takes a step forwards and claps his hand, rubbing them together before he announces, "Heeellooo ladies! How are you all today?"

To his disappointment, none of the women pay heed to what he says. His grin is suddenly wiped off his face and his shoulders droop as the women ignore him, Akorrin shaking his head slowly behind his young pupil. Now, with a dejected expression, Locke glances about the room before his gaze settles on a particular woman. Flowing green hair brushing her almost bare back, she now sits with her back turned to the duo as she reads a book at a desk. Locke's eyes widen and his head perks, seeing the familiar figure in front of him.

He swiftly walks across the room and places his hand on her shoulder as he whispers, "Lil, are you alright?"

Immediately, the woman turns and Locke's face drops. She is not Lilanei, but instead reveals herself to be a beautiful Elven female with almond shaped brown eyes. She looks to Locke before quickly shutting the book she reads and seemingly hiding it away.

"Oh?" She emits a velvety whisper before her mouth opens in a smile. "Men in our chamber? This is a most welcomed surprise. It often gets lonely when Lucio does not visit us."

"Well," Locke replies with a grin on his face as he slides onto the desk in front of her, "I thought you were a friend of mine, but obviously not. Tell me, what's your name?"

"My name?" She softly echoes. "Why, it's Lia – and I'll be your friend if you want me to."

"Ha ha ha. . ." Locke chuckles, his grin getting wider. "My names L— erm, Key."

"Lucky?" Lia innocently smiles. "What an adorable name. Almost as adorable as you are. Maybe if you're a good boy, you will be lucky."

Locke's eyes widen and his grin turns into a full smirk as he leans forwards and begins to stroke Lia's cheek with the back of his hand, "How lucky?"

Slightly shying away from his hand, the woman now narrows her eyes at Locke as she grins and says, "How lucky do you want to be?"

"Well," Locke begins, "a very, very lucky man if you let me show you a good time. Otherwise, I'm going to feel like I've gamble away my life."

Lia now stands from her seat and steps back beckoning Locke with her right index finger as she points up the staircase, "Well. . . If that's what you wish, then follow me."

As Locke's gaze is directed to the staircase by Lia's pointing finger, he notices Akorrin now stands awkwardly in a corner as two petite human females curiously stand before him. They whisper aloud as they shift shyly on their bare feet, gazes directed at the Dragonborn.

"We've never seen a Dragonborn alive before!"

"Yes. . . Your kind is so much cuter when you have life in your cheeks!"

Locke's eyes seem to widen once more – the trance he was seemingly under disappearing as he looks at Akorrin. However, as he looks back to Lia, the temptation is too much. Swiftly, Locke scuttles up to Lia and walks up the stairs she pointed to.

"Locke," Akorrin grumbles nervously, awkwardly trying to make his way through the two girls.

Locke looks back suddenly and before he says anything, Lia steps in front of the stairway, motioning for the women to go away; as they obediently do as she says, Lia smiles, stating, "Your friend can come too if he wants."

Locke looks towards Akorrin and frowns, "I'm not too sure he would like to come along. He's a bit old, y'see. Just have the women leave him alone and he'll be fine waiting for me. He's my bodyguard, you see."

Akorrin now glares at Locke with venom in his gaze; however his eyes soften as Lia suddenly grabs one of his massive claws and pulls him up towards the stairs.

"Nonsense! There's room enough for your friend."

"B-b-but, I'd prefer it to be more personal than that!" Locke stammers, feeling awkward in front of his master.

Lia giggles as she takes Locke's hand and now holds both of them in her grasp as she begins to pull them up the staircase.

"Hush, silly! Be a good boy and I'll make it worth your while."

Locke simply sighs, his gaze cautiously keeping away from Akorrin. Lia finally manages to lead our two Heroes back up into the ballroom and onto the stage. Letting go of their hands, she hops forward a few feet before turning to face them with a large smile and bright eyes.

"Oh now, what shall we do first? Hm. . . I know! I can do my famous dance for you two, if that's what you'd like."

Akorrin, arms crossed across his chest, simply glares towards Locke who shifts uncomfortably on his feet.

"Erm. . . My bodyguard seriously doesn't want to be a part of this," Locke anxiously announces.

Lia's eyes now narrow mischievously as she smirks and says, "But. . . You'll like my dance. It's a very special one."

"So. . . What do you think, Boots?" Locke finally asks. "Wanna see her dance a bit?"

Akorrin simply growls beneath his breath, two puffs of smoke emitting from his nostrils. Locke's eyes widen, knowing that Akorrin only breathes smoke when his ire is raised. He looks to Lia, now with a serious expression on his face as he gulps.

"You know, Lia," Locke begins. "My bodyguard is getting testy because he's here to see an. . . old friend of his. He's rather eager to see her, you see."

The mischievous look on her face growing even more deviant, she now grins widely as she says, "But you won't need an old friend – not when I'm done."

"Listen Lia," Locke replies, "unless you want to see these good looks fried, I'd comply with his wishes. Otherwise he's going to take his wrath out on me later. We're looking for a Half-Elf, and in repayment for his services, I promised him that he'd see her again. . . Please."

Lia's smirk now diminishes as she purses her lips and glares at the duo, grumbling, "Oh Lucky! You're not being a very good boy right now."

"Believe me, there's nothing I'd like more than to see your dance. But Boots here is seriously annoyed, and unless you've got a prod or something to keep him away from me, we need to get him to his friend. I'll gladly watch you dance once he sees her!"

"No!" She immediately snarls, her lips still pursed in anger. "I don't think you understand, Lucky. You haven't been a very good boy, and Lia doesn't like bad boys. No. . . I think I have other plans for you."

"Slime," Locke mutters under his breath.

Lia's face now twists into an evil smile as she begins to cackle evilly. Soon, Locke is taken aback in both surprise and disgust as the beautiful maiden's skin begins to fall away, beginning down at her feet. As it does so, he sees what appears to be many black beetles swarming on the ground beneath her.

"What the heck?" Locke screams.

Lia, in actuality a Lamia, continues to cackle evilly for a moment before she glares at Locke, now speaking in a high pitched and nasally voice, "Lia doesn't like little boys that are misbehaved! I will destroy you! And then I'll roast your angry friend on a skewer!"

"Why is it every woman I meet seems to have something else in mind other than a good time?" Locke asks Akorrin in frustration as he withdraws his sickle; however Akorrin simply snorts as he looks away and steps back a few feet.

"You've been taken a fool and now you must reap the seeds you have sown," Akorrin states gruffly, before finishing, "and by yourself."

"But, master!" Locke pleads.

Akorrin roars, "No buts!"

Locke looks back to the Lamia and gulps slightly, giving a nervous grin to mask his fright as he exclaims, "Okay, darlin', let's dance!"

Lia, a great grin on her devilish face, seemingly dashes forwards despite the fact her legs are a mass of beetles. She thrusts her fist forwards, and as it passes through the air, it morphs suddenly into another mass of beetles aimed straight for Locke's face. Yelping, Locke tilts his head to the right, causing Lia's fist to pass his head – his head returning upright as she withdraws her arm back. Immediately, Locke raises his right arm which holds his sickle, and quickly, Locke thrusts his arm forwards in a similar motion, plunging the blade into the mass of beetles that makes up Lia's left leg. As the sickle plunges into the leg, it causes the beetles to shriek loudly as Locke withdraws the blade, shaking some dead insects from it.

"Gross!" Locke exclaims. "And you were going to show me a good time?"

Lia grimaces at Locke before crying, "Oh, and I still will! Just after I slaughter you, and use your body to give birth to my child!"

"Sorry, I'm not into animals," Locke replies in disgust. "Nor do I find that offer particularly appealing."

Lia cackles evilly before thrusting a right hook at Locke's chest as she yells, "You have no choice!"

The attack connects as the many beetles plunge into Locke's chest and knock him backwards, causing him to become very dazed. He stumbles around slightly – the wind knocked out of him – as he breathes heavily, trying to shake off the sluggishness he feels as he is dazed. He looks at Lia, but his vision is blurred and impaired as the image of Lia seems to wave from side to side. Undaunted, due to knowing his life is on the line, Locke stumbles forwards, seemingly out of his wits, which causes Lia to grin and thrust another punch forwards. However, either by luck or by fate, Locke steps to the right as Lia's fist flies past him. He then grabs Lia's wrist with his left hand and swiftly butts her elbow with the handle of his sickle as he pulls her arm forwards and causes her to stumble. As Lia stumbles forwards, Locke dizzily spins into the spot she was just in, and before she can turn around, Locke slashes his sickle in a diagonal motion across her upper back before pulling the blade back and slashing it the opposite way, brandishing an "x" wound on her back.

Looking on to the wound in triumph, Locke's cocky expression suddenly changes to one of shock as the wound begins to open more as beetles crawl from the “x” and begin to swarm on her back. Without a moment's notice, this swarm leaps forward and consumes Locke in a black mass which bites, nips, and otherwise injures our Hero. As he cries out in pain, the swarm slowly subsides – Lia now turning to face him with a maniacal smirk as she sees blood flowing from his wounds.

"Whoa Lia! Now I know what you really look like, you can save the love bites!" Locke cries before he charges forth at Lia once more and brandishes his sickle.

Locke, now with his wits once more, is in complete control as he dips slightly to the right causing Lia to follow his movement to try and catch him. Nonetheless, this is a mere ploy by our Hero as he notices she has left her torso unprotected. Instead of grabbing her like he normally would, Locke simply thrusts his sickle into Lia's chest; the sickle strikes and sinks into the mass of beetles, which screech upon being hit. Keeping the blade inside her, Locke turns on his feet and causes Lia to swing across the room by about five feet. From there, Locke takes the blade out of Lia's chest and once again butts her with the handle of the sickle as this time the handle collides with her head. Locke looks on now to see many beetles weakly screech as clumps of these dead insects begin to drop out of Lia's body.

In great distress, Lia throws her head back and emits a furious roar of anger. Immediately, she raises her hands before her and thrusts them forwards as swarms of beetles seemingly launch from fists directly at Locke; however Locke leaps to the side as the beetles fly harmlessly past him and drop dead upon impact with the floor. Locke lands directly in front of Lia once more, sheathing his sickle on his boot as he does so. Immediately upon landing, Locke reaches back and pulls out his repeating crossbow which is already loaded. Locke releases the safety mechanism and quickly aims the crossbow at Lia. With a clear shot and Lia right in front of him, Locke pulls the trigger of his crossbow which sends a small bolt out from it – which hits and plunges deep into Lia's forehead as it turns into a mass of beetles that begin to drop into a dead heap on the ground.

Lia emits another loud cry of rage, taking no hesitation thereafter to launch a great mass of beetles from her forehead towards Locke – but Locke ducks and once again the beetles land on the ground, dead on their arrival. Rising upright, Locke points the repeating crossbow at Lia once again, and as soon as her head meets the front of his crossbow, Locke pulls the trigger and fires causing another bolt to fly from the weapon and plunge into Lia's head. This time the bolt lands slightly to the right of the last one. As Locke looks on, he realizes that Lia is barely able to stand as masses of beetles and chunks of her disguise fall to the wayside – leaving her looking like a very miserable and decrepit pile of insects.

Enraged beyond limit, Lia slowly moves forwards and towards Locke, her evil voice still cackling slightly, "Oh. . . Lucky. . . We could've had something special!"

"Another evil woman said the same thing to me once," Locke replies. "However, unlike you, she was truly beautiful. . ."

Her cackle grows louder and drawn out as she continues to approach Locke, her hands slowly raising in front of her. Attempting to catch him in surprise, she suddenly lunges forward as her arms and upper body become one giant mass of swarming beetles which now leap in Locke's general direction. Seeing this, however, Locke leaps to his right and tumbles on the floor before standing upright and facing Lia in a diagonal direction. Once again, Locke wastes no time in raising his crossbow before he fires off another bolt from it. This time, the bolt flies through the air and slams right in the side of Lia's head. As the bolt strikes, the mass of beetles emits one final piercing shriek as they begin to slowly fall apart and collapse to the floor – Lia's form soon becoming nothing more than a pile of dead insects on the ground. As the beetles roll over and die, a small book emerges from this pile, sliding down the side of it and onto the floor in front of Locke's feet.

Putting away his crossbow, Locke notices the book before he bends down and picks it up. He opens the book and flicks through the pages, recognizing the handwriting and various small doodles inside to be Lil's. His eyes widening, Locke looks from the book and rushes over to Akorrin, waving the book in the air before he stops in front of him and hands him the book.

"Look at this!" He exclaims. "This is Lilanei's handwriting! This must be hers!"

At first glaring to Locke, still angry, the Dragonborn takes the book and observes the pages within before his face turns quite grim.

“Hm," he snorts quietly. "This is quite the bad omen."

"What do you mean?" Locke asks. "At least we know Lil's here somewhere."

"Yes, but. . . Locke, do you not know of the creature you have just thought?"

"Well, no," Locke replies. "You never taught Lil and I about the various monsters that inhabit this world."

"Well, I will tell you this now. That woman was a Lamia – a deadly monster which disguises itself in order to lure young fools, such as yourself. When they are within their grasp, the Lamia then strikes and kills. The beetles that lay behind you are the very souls of the ones they have defeated."

"So you mean to tell me that one of those beetles was Lil's soul?" Locke asks quietly.

Akorrin's gaze now turns down to the now closed book which lay in his claws as he quietly says, "There's no way to be sure, but it may very well be true."

"I don't believe that!" Locke snaps, his eyes becoming watery. "Lil's very much alive – I can feel it! That woman may have looked a lot like her, but I don't believe for a fact that beast consumed her! Come, we've got to find her!"

Akorrin nods before handing Locke the book and saying, "Yes, let us continue."