What Are We Really Fighting For? | The Legend of Tanith Part 2

Previously on The Legend of Tanith Part 1:

“Do all your answers involve violence?” -Kalen

“Okay, you all can tell me if you like this or not!” Gwen said taking a deep breath. “We split up into three groups and each group goes and talks to each of the options.” -Gwen

“But I’d be willing to accompany Cassie; I trust her.” -Keonna

“But there’s a chance that danger might be heading our way…” -Manasi 

~The Bar Tender~

Keonna and her group strolled over to the bartender, a tall thin man, while Sage and Manasi stayed towards the middle of the room, keeping an eye out for any danger.

Kalen put his elbow on the bar. “Excuse me, have you heard any rumors?”

The bartender put down the wooden cup he was holding and stroked his mustache. “Rumors? Well, there was a group of men that came in here a few days ago, looking for some sort of scroll. The only thing I remember was the leader had an eye patch. I overheard them talking and they said they were headed to one of the desert villages.”

“Oh really?” Dahlia said. She knew that was where Rae was from. To the side of Keonna, Cassie rubbed her hands anxiously. This bartender was a little more suspicious than other village bartenders.

“Yes. They seemed a little weird to me. But that’s all I remember from them. There are a lot of people that come through here you know.”

Someone at another table waved the bartender over. “I’m sorry, I’ve got to help some other folks. Thanks for coming in!” He rushed away quickly. Julia watched as he ran over to another table before the group walked away.

~The Figure~

Rae nervously walked up to the mysteriously figure, trying to keep her hands from shaking. Why was she so scared? She’d done plenty of dangerous bounty hunting jobs before, but this one was different. Maybe this time, she was worried for more lives than her own. And if anyone died along this journey, it would be her fault.

As Rae approached the figure, Gwen followed her trail, making sure she didn’t put herself in a position where she had to talk. Perl stood on the right side of Rae, while Ilana stood on the left and Kyra a little farther back.

“Excuse me sir, can I buy you a drink?” Rae said, remembering her whole “no greed” speech. The figure didn’t respond and tucked its face deeper into the hooded cloak. Kyra bent down, her elbow still resting on the wooden table and tried to get a peek of the figure’s face. When she did, she stood up immediately and whispered to Rae, “It’s a lady figure.”

Rae cleared her throat. “Excuse me, ma’am, is everything alright?”

A sudden breeze blasted at Rae out of nowhere, knocking her from her feet. On the way down, she bumped into Gwen and they both tumbled to the floor. Rae shot up, helped Gwen, and stomped over to the figure. “You’re an air, aren’t you?” In response, another air breeze ruffled Rae’s braids.

“Please, help us. Do you know anything about the scroll?” As soon as the words left Rae’s lips, she clamped her hand over her mouth. The figure’s head shot up, her hood falling down, revealing the unexpected.

An elf.

The elf had two Dutch braids, making her elf ears stick out more, and light blue eyes which was a stark contrast to her black hair. Why was she hiding beneath that cloak?

The elf girl stood up, her chair falling behind her. “You should stay away from the scroll! The Dark will stop at nothing to destroy you. Believe, I know. They killed my family and they will kill you.”

Rae lowered her voice and leaned in. “We aren’t your regular old bounty hunters. We are trying to stop The Dark.”

“Nothing stops them.”

Rae hesitated before speaking again. “Will you join us? You can avenge your family’s death and we can stop them from hurting more people.”

“Please?” Ilana added. Amare cocked her head.

The elf considered that but shook her head. “No. I will not join you but I will help you. If you really want to beat The Dark, you’ll have to find the All Knowing Gem.”

Kyra coughed. “The All Knowing what?”

“The All Knowing Gem. A powerful Elvin gem only a few know the place of. Lucky for you, I do know where it resides and I do know that it will help you.” The elf leaned in. “Listen to me. You CAN NOT let anyone know the place of this gem. If the word spreads and gets to The Dark, it will be over. Promise me this.”

Rae nodded. “I promise.” She turned to her group. “Understand?” Thankfully, she got a lot of nodding heads.

The girl leaned in and whispered, “It is hidden in one of the tunnels of the Crystal Caves. When you get there, you’ll have to figure out the riddle before you can ask the one question you want to know. No one has ever figured out the riddle but if you do, will have access to ask the one thing your heart most desires. The Dark CAN NOT know about this.” The elf put on her hood. “Good luck.” And she disappeared out the tavern door.

~The Men~

After talking to the bartender, Keonna joined the group going to talk to the loopy men. “Hello there.”

One of the guys turned around and eyed them. Then smiling, he said, “Hi.” Keonna stepped defensively in front of Cassie, Elle, and Audrey. “Excuse me, but have you seen anything suspicious going on around here lately?”

The man narrowed his eyes. “Nothing lately, except for your group. And I know you aren’t up to anything good. Since this is considered our spot to hangout in town, you should leave.” Keonna and everyone held their ground.

Sage and Manasi rushed over, their eyes wide. “Let’s go. They are all pulling out knives!”

Keonna pulled out of Sage’s grasp and lit a small fireball in her hand. “No. Let’s fight.”

Sage tapped her brain. “That’s not smart. You could end up blowing the place to pieces. We are going now.”

Keonna huffed. Everyone else came to help convince her.

Rae grabbed the nearest peoples’ arms, which happened to be Audrey and Elle. “Just like Sage said, we’ve got to go. We no longer have the cover of night, since it’s morning.”

The loopy men all rose, knives in their hands. Had they gone insane? As everyone rushed out the door, one of the men called back. “Never come back here again bounty hunters!”

---

Rae gathered everyone together in the middle of the village cobblestone street. “I’m not sure we got a lot of information, but we need to decide where we will go next. And as we are preparing to leave on our journey, we should stock up on some supplies from the market.”

Rae lifted her eyebrow. “So tell me, where should we go from here?”

{To stock up on supplies from the daily market, check out the market page on my blog. Don’t forget to check out The Legend of Tanith page too! (It will be frequently updated!) The next post won’t be coming out on July 16th but rather July 17. Make sure to get everything you need for the journey! Feel free to explore around the market, but no leaving. Find some rumors for me!}