| abstract | - At the guild the three looked at the Quest Cards. "We better get these out of the way before we go and see Theresa" Leo said. "Hey Leo what's you opinion on Lady Grey?" Zane asked. "A cold hearted bitch who interested in expanding her manor instead of doing what Bowerstone needs like providing books for children's in school, but that is just y opinion. I just don't trust her, she did send a Quest Card to steal from that farm couple, and where do you think that money came from to pay those Bandits?" Leo said. "She hot as hell" Ace said. "Hmm we got Break the Siege and a Lost Trader" Zane said holding up the cards. "Let's do both" Ace said. "Okay this Quest Card requires us in Knothole Glade" Zane said. "Let's go then" Leo said as they took the Cullis Gate. Later the three walked in the rain and stopped when they saw a Bandit waiting at the bride. "Halt!" he said. "The hell you want Bandit?" Ace said. "So you're the heroes they sent, eh? Well I've got a new job for you. These bloody villagers are holding our boss, and they plan to hang him so I want you to take a message to their Chief. You tell him, we'll raze his precious town to the ground if he doesn't hand our boss back. Got that? Well run along then. We haven't got all day." "Whatever" Zane said as they headed past him and reached the gates to the village where they opened and the Chief waited for them. "Hey Chief, those Bandits want their leader back" Ace said. "I'm not letting that Bandit go! He's plundered this village for far too long. We've got him under guard up the hill by the tavern and that's where he's staying, so you'll just have to back out there and get rid of the scum's bandit friends . Talk to the guard over there when you're ready and he'll open the gates for you. As for me, I'm off back to my hut. Good luck" the Chief said walking away. "Let's go guys" Zane sighed heading back to the gates. "We're going to take them on" Leo said. "You're going to take them on all by yourself? You're real Heroes or real fools. Well then, let's get started" the guard said opening the gates as the horn went off and the Bandits stood away from the gates. "Look, the gates are opening! Now's our chance to free the boss!" the Bandit said as they began to charge. "Get those bandits fore they free their leader!" the guard said. "Let's make this quick" Leo said pulling out his bow. Later! "They're getting easier" Zane said walking over the dead bodies and approached the statue of his mother where the Chief and it's people cheered. "Nice work. Those bandits won't be back in a hurry" the Chief said giving them the reward money. "Where the Lost Trader at?" Leo asked as Zane pulled the card out. "Were actually looking for the trader brother and was last known heading to Oakvale" Zane said. "My guess the Abandoned Road or Twinblade Camp" Ace said. We'll start at Oakvale" Leo said. After taking the Cullis Gate they walked into a Tavern where they saw Whisper. "Whisper!" Zane smiled. "Follow me" She said leading them outside, "I'm glad you came, I wanted to talk to you before I go..." "Go?" Zane said. "You hadn't heard I'm leaving the Guild?" Whisper said. "NO! Why are you leaving?! Is this because of what happened at the Arena? You don't need to leave because of that" Zane said. "My brother wanted me to be a great hero but...well, you were always one step ahead of me" Whisper said. "You can still be hero!" Zane said. "I had to work so hard to live up to his expectations, but you always made everything seem easy it wasn't 'til you spared my life in the Arena that I realized how jealous I was of you and what a good friend you've been. I'm sorry I was so tough on you in training. The truth is you've always been the better hero just don't tell my brother I said that..." "I wouldn't be here today without you Whisper! You Leo and Ace are my friends" Zane said as she got onto a ship at the docks. "This is goodbye farmboy, be the hero Albion needs. I'm going home, to my people" Whisper said kissing him on the cheek before the ship sailed off. "We'll meet again Whisper! And next time you will be a great Hero too! We all will! Zane said holding up his arm showing the Guild seal tattoo as Leo and Ace held theirs while Sparky barked. Whisper then smiled and held up her arms as the three saw she had gotten the same tattoo before waving. "Next time I will win our next spar!" Whisper said. "You can count on it!" Zane said. "She'll be fine" Leo said. "Come on Zane let's find that missing guy" Ace said as the three headed down the beach. Upon reach the path a trader ran up to them. "Please help me. Thomas, my brother is lost somewhere up ahead! Follow me, I think he's somewhere up here" the trader said. "Let's go but stay close, Bandits infest this area" Zane said as they followed the Trader before they stopped at the stairs. "He's deeper in the forest I'm too scared to go in." "Stay here" Zane said as they headed up the stairs. Later that night they defeated several Bandits before reaching the top of the hill where a man stood. "Help me! I'm lost! Please help! I'll follow you back to my brother. You must have seen him" the brother said. "Come on" Leo said as they headed back down the hill till they reached the stairs where Stan waited at the bottom. "Oh you found him. Thank you, thank you! Here have this you might make sense of it" he said giving them an old paper. "Let's see" Leo said holding it to a light, "To begin your quest, go to the region where scrumping Hobbes were discovered in legion. Your hunt for the treasure can only come good if you start your search where fruit lies in wood. With your back to the Lake, walk into the light. Proceed no further when it's no longer in sight. The nearest construction points with its limb. Follow its direction, but don't stop on a whim. You're not going in circles, but riddle me this: repeat the last clue, and you won't go amiss. Your reward is buried at the end of your trail. Proceed as directed, 'til you're 'twixt wood and bale." "The hell is this?" Ace asked. "It's a riddle to a treasure you dolt if we follow the directions it should lead us to its location" Leo said. "We can do that later we need to find the Grey House. "That be in Barrow Fields" Ace said. "Leads head there then" Leo said as they used Zane seal to take them to the Barrow Fields Cullis Gate and from there headed into the area with dead trees until they reached the old abandon house on the hill. "There she is" Leo said spotting Theresa by the side of the house. "Theresa" Zane said approaching. "So you've finally met Jack of Blade. I met him long ago of course. When he burned down our home and cut out my eyes but he wasn't lying when he said he knew where mother was" Theresa said. "Where is she?" Zane asked. "He's kept her in Bargate Prison ever since the night of the raid. I haven't been able to get inside, but the Archaeologist knows of an ancient secret passage." "The Archaeologist?" Ace said. "You've all met him already, haven't you?" Theresa asked. "Yep we learned a few things from him and his journal" Leo said. "Jack's creatures are still after him, just like they're after me" Theresa said. "And he thought we'd be stupid and bring her to him for a 'heartfelt family reunion' what a cad" Leo said as they headed to a fence and looked out to the distance. "I can't stay here much longer. I've left the details in a Quest Card at the Guild. You have to get mother out. She's the only one who know who to reach the sword." "The sword?" Zane said. "You did read the book I sent, didn't you?" Theresa asked. "The three of us figured it all out, the Focus Sites are the keys to the ritual to summoning the Sword of Aeons but we do not know anything about how the rituals goes itself" Leo said. "The Sword is everything, and it could turn the world to nothing" Theresa said. "Meaning in the wrong hands ergo Jacks dirty hands were all dead. We can't allow him to get that sword" Ace said. "Oh, and mother has a gift for you too. More power than you can imagine" Theresa said before walking off and as the three turned to see where she go she had vanished. "How does she do that?" Ace asked. "Not even an Assassin can do that" Leo said. "So we need to find the Archeologist again, he's the only one who can help us. I need to save my mom guys" Zane said. "No need to even ask. I will send word to my Brothers to see if their eyes and ears know of his current location" Leo said blowing the whistle for his hawk. "And I will send a letter to some Mercenaries around here and see if they got info" Ace said. "Let's head back to the Guild until we get some clues we might as well do more Quests" Zane said before Leo noticed something. "Guys I wanna see something" Leo said as they followed him into the old Grey House. "Feels like something off" Ace said as the clock struck the hour and a Hollow Man roared busting out of the floor. "AHHH!" the three jumped before pulling out their weapons and more appeared. "Inferno!" Zane yelled hitting one as the attack stopped and they all sunk back into the house. "What happened?" Leo asked. "Why they stopped?" Ace said looking out a window to see the dirt to a grave plot shuffled, "let me see the spade." "Why?" Leo asked as Ace took it and headed outside and began to dig at that grave, "HAVE YOU NO SHAME?! THAT'S GRAVEROBBING!" Leo yelled. "Yeah is this too?" Ace said holding up a dirty but clearly was stained with blood rag. "Who grave is that?" Zane asked. "Lady Grey sister but check this out" Ace said stabbing Zane sword deep into the ground, "you hear that? Nothing, if there was a coffin we would have heard a clunk." "She was to be mayor before Lady Grey" Leo said. "I suspect foul play, I think we better investigate our mayor" Zane said. Later the two reached the gates to Bowerstone North and approached the guard. "Oh, hello there. Oh yes you're well-known enough to come in" he said as he opened the gates and they stepped into Bowerstone North. "Welcome to Bowerstone North, Heroes. This is a quiet district, and we like to keep it that way. We do not tolerate uncivil behavior here, so mind you don't end up in our holding cell. We have a raving lunatic locked up right now, but he won't be seeing many more sunrises, if you know what I mean. Now Lady Grey desires to speak with you. You'll find her Grace in the gardens outside her mansion. This is a great honor even for Heroes, so mind your manners" the Guard said walking off. "Hmmm" Leo said looking around as they entered the gardens where Lady Grey stood. "So, you're the one everyone is talking about. I must say, you have me intrigued. Will you walk with me to the courtyard? I would love to speak with you" she said. "Of course ma'am" Zane said as she took his arm and lead him to the courtyard. "It's lovely here, don't you think? But sometimes it feels like the loneliest place in the world" Lady Grey said. "Why is that?" Zane asked. "You see, I haven't married yet. Somehow I have never met a man worthy enough." 'Bitch' Ace and Leo thought. "I've always known that only someone who could conquer the Arena could conquer me" Lady Grey said as they reached the courtyard. "Oh..." Zane said with a blush as she turned to him. "Perhaps you could bring me a gift from town? I'm sure you can find something fitting for a lady" Lady Grey said. "Uh yeah sure my lady I will see what I can do" Zane said scratching the back of his head and headed back with Leo and Ace. "Wow she is so making a move on you" Ace said. "Yeah no kidding" Zane said taking off his helmet as Ace and Leo eyes widen. "What?" Zane asked. "You veins..." Leo said. "What about them?" Zane said pulling off an gauntlet and gasped seeing the veins with the blood I his body was glowing blue. "It looks like the blood in your entire body glowing with your magic now" Ace said. "Whoa" Zane said putting his gauntlet back on and tied his long brown hair into a ponytail before they headed to a holding block were Zane saw a woman with short red hair and tan skin wearing purple shirt and blue pants. "I suppose she's got you getting gifts, has she?" she asked. "Yeah she had when did I agree to court her?" Zane asked as Leo and Ace shrugged. "Yeah. I thought so. Well anyway, if you want to impress her, you ought to buy her a Black Rose. She truly loves those flowers. Huh. She's the only one who dose. They're creepy, I think" she said "That makes two" Zane said before spotting Leo approaching the holding cell. "Finally, someone to talk to! You've got to help me out" the man said. "Why? What was your crime?" Zane asked. "The Mayor's having me executed. That's what happens when you start asking too many questions round here. That woman is a demon! But no one will believe me. Just because I was wrong about guards controlling our dreams by spiking our water supplies." "Yeah he's nuts let's go" Ace said. "Hold on" Leo said. "Her sister was an angel...would have made a wonderful Mayor and I know Lady Grey killed her! I just know it! You have to help me prove it, otherwise Bowerstone will remain in her clutches, and I'll be executed!" "Okay say we help you where do we start looking for evidence?" Leo asked. "Yes! Finally! We're going to bring that crazy witch down! All you need to do is get her dead sister to tell you what really happened" he said as Zane, Leo and Ace gave him a look, "don't give me that look! We all know ghosts exist! You've seen them, I've seen them. We've all seen them!" "Okay okay! We know ghosts are real! Who else can we ask? WHO IS ALIVE?!" Ace said. "Lady Grey's sister, Amanda, had a sweetheart called Rhodri. Nice guy. Usually hangs out in Barrow Fields if anyone knows how to entice her out of oblivion, it's him." "Hmmm worth looking into" Zane said using his seal to take them to Barrow Fields and there they found Rhodri by some ruins. "Hey" Zane said approaching. "Tell us what you know about Amanda Grey" Leo said. "Amanda? Yes, of course I knew her, I think about her all the time. She was so beautiful, so pure. She was afraid her sister would find out about us and use it against her, stop her from becoming Mayor. I'm no noble after all" Rhodri said. "Sounds like a demon bitch to me, looks like Lady Grey had a dark side" Ace said. "So we'd meet in secret in the Grey House cellar. I would sneak out to the stables and flash my lamp three times to let her know I was there. One night she didn't come out, and I found the cellar door locked. Her sister Elvira, Lady Grey as she's now known, told me she had died so some terrible illness, then the house was abandon and I never even got to...I'm sorry, it's too painful to talk about" Rhodri said with his back shaking. "I could tell you really loved her and she loved you too, don't blame yourself. She will always be with you in your heart and memories" Zane said as the three left the man alone. "Terrible illness my ass. A bloody rag, locked cellar, Lady Grey becoming Mayor I think we can connect the puzzle from there but first we need to find Amanda" Ace said. "You heard what he said we go to the stable and flash his lamp three times if that don't work we need to find Amanda body" Leo said as they headed back to the Grey House and from there entered the old stables. "Here" Zane said flashing the lamp three times. "Look!" Ace said pointing to the house as they saw up the hill the ghostly figure of a woman go around the house and enter the cellar. "That's Amanda" Zane said as they ran up the hill and opened the cellar doors. "Let's see" Leo said heading down the stairs with the others as the ghost of Amanda Grey appeared in front of them with her back to them. "Rhodri, is that you? I waited for you and I...wait, you're not Rhodri" she said turning to them. "Amanda we need to know what happened who killed you?" Zane said. "I prayed he would rescue me, but he never came" Amanda said as they looked behind her and there on the ground was a skeleton with a pole stabbed through her heart and a letter next to her body, "when the air ran out, I close my eyes and imagined I was dying in his arms, now I'll never see him again, and my sister has taken everything." "I knew it! The bitch is a cold hearted murderer!" Ace said. "I always suspect she was cold hearted but to kill you own sister? That is an evil even I can't comprehend" Leo said. "People must know the truth about her. Take this letter. Show the world what really happen" Amanda said before disappearing in a cloud of smoke. "Let see" Leo said taking the paper, "it reads 'The air is running out and I have hardly the strength to scratch the words on this letter. The lamp was extinguished hours ago, and my life cannot be long in following it. Now that I've resigned to my fate, however, I am concerned solely with my duty as the eldest of the Grey children, rightful heir to the office of the Bowerstone Mayoralty. I can only hope that these words are one day found, and the truth they speak become known to all. I die at the hand of my sister, Elvira. The new Lady Grey is a murderess. I grow weary now... Sleep is upon me and...' I can't make out the rest...that must have been when she died" Leo said before gasping as Leo and Zane spun around to see Lady Grey at the top of the stairs. "So, now you know the truth" Lady Grey said. "What is wrong with you?! How could you do this?!" Zane growled. "Amanda was a weak, romantic fool. She didn't have what it takes to run Bowerstone. She would have turned the whole place into an egalitarian slum but don't worry your pretty head with such big words. We can still be together. You can still have me" Lady Grey smirked at Zane as she came down the stairs, "wouldn't you like to be Mayor? Think of the power...it can all be yours! Just hand over the letter" Lady Grey said holding out her hand. "Piss off. You can keep your power for the next hour cause when I show this to the public you're not going to be Mayor anymore and will be brought to justice" Zane said. "What?! No one refuses Lady Grey. No one!" "I just did!" Zane smirked. "You're just like the rest of those imbeciles, infecting my city with their petty little lives! Fine then, tell everyone have your moment of glory but I will return one day and I will wash away all the filth with your blood. Remember that heroes" Lady Grey said heading up the stairs. "Good luck with that bitch!" Leo called. "Yeah!" Ace said as their high-fived. "Let's go" Zane said as they headed to Bowerstone North where they showed the letter to a guard. "Unbelievable. So Gethyn was right all along. I suppose we'd better release him. He better not start that nonsense about me spiking the water supply again though! We'll have to find a new Mayor too...I don't suppose you'd be interested in the job? You have proved your worth after all." "Me? Mayor?" Zane said. "Think about it, as Mayor you can fix all the wrong Lady Grey made" Leo said. "Okay yeah, sure I will be Mayor" Zane said. Later Zane stood at the top of the stairs as the citizens stood below clapping and Zane, Leo and Ace entered the Bowerstone Manor. "What is that?" Ace asked looking at the three glowing stones in the hall. "Not sure" Leo said as Zane opened the door into the bedroom. "Wow! The Mayor lives in this?" Ace said. "Not bad" Leo said. "Uh Zane?" Ace said. "What?" Zane said as Ace held up some paperwork. "I know where the Archaeologist is" Ace said.
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