FSE

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Several hours later the sun had begun to set when the five met up once again, all of them taking precautions not to alert the town guard to their presence before they arrived at an abandoned restaurant. For a while no one talked, and most hardly looked at one another as they sat in the darkness and the silence. Zen and Serathin sat in a booth off to the side while Xander looked down at the counter and traced lines in the dust. Draggor paced back and forth on the other side of the counter and Alkali just sat there on the end of it with his head in his hands.

"Is anyone else thinking that we're really not good at this?" Serathin asked, the hybrid ducking as several objects were thrown in his direction.

"I for one say that we need to leave," Draggor stated simply. "Let King Pandez come here, maybe he can clear out the infestation and maybe that will slow him down enough for us to get a lead to Ka'Le. This alpha werewolf is three steps ahead of us every single time, and he's too entrenched in this city to try and get any help on this."

"I agree," Xander chimed in. "We're not going to get anywhere if this guy catches us, at least with running we have a chance."

"Run to where, though?" Alkali finally added. "And how long before he finds out this plan and catches us off guard once again? If we're going to escape, or confront, the first thing we need to do is address the real issue we have here."

"Alkali, I don't know..." Xander said as he looked around, the others perking up at what the ferret had said.

There was a moment where everyone just looked at each other, Alkali opening his mouth for a second before he stopped and closed it. "It's true, isn't it..." Serathin spoke up. "What Lord Dryskale said, you suspect that there's someone feeding him information."

"What?!" Draggor said as he walked over. "Is that true? Do you really think that someone in this group is a traitor?"

All five suddenly erupted in a flurry of arguments and accusations as the conversation quickly spun out of control. Even with Alkali trying to shout above them they had a hard time, but finally the ferret casted a spell in the air that caused everyone to remain silent even though they tried to speak. The other four stopped when they realized what the necromancer had done and slowly turned their heads to glare at them. He explained that he just needed them to calm down, and once it appeared that they had gone from angry to fuming, he snapped his fingers once again and everyone could speak once more.

"We don't know for sure that's the case right now," Alkali said calmly. "It's a theory, but there are other possible reasons for how this alpha werewolf is possibly tracking us... for the life of me I can't think of one right now, but I'm sure it's out there. The important thing is that we stop accusing one another and get back to the task at hand, we can deal with potential suspects later."

"So there are potential suspects?" Serathin asked. "I think if you suspect someone you need to let it out in the open so we at least have a chance to defend ourselves against it."

"I agree," Zen replied. "I don't want to work with people who don't trust me, and if that's going to be the case, perhaps we should go our own separate ways and just try and get out of here."

The fox barbarian's point once again sparked debate, though not as inflammatory as the first time, it grew more heated as others began to point out the potential reasons why another one might be working for the alpha werewolf. Just as Alkali was about to ready another spell to silence the group they all did so at once, only this time it was due to the noise that Draggor heard above them. They remained silent and looked up, no one moving as they heard the wood above them creak softly while sprinkles of dust rained down on them. When the sounds stopped everyone slowly moved towards their weapons, but before they could draw or cast the ceiling suddenly shattered and rained down on them as werewolves crashed in from the roof.

Both Serathin and Zen were pinned to the ground quickly as Draggor managed to set one of the werewolves on fire before he was brought down as well. Xander and Alkali attempted to fight back to back but were quickly overwhelmed and slammed down on the counter by the powerful creatures. As everyone attempted to continue to fight the werewolves slapped shackles on their wrists behind their backs, restraining them as they took their weapons and other items. Once they had been completely disarmed they were brought to their feet and marched out of the partially destroyed building.

Their route continued to take them through the back streets of the city until they reached a reservoir that was controlled by a small dam that had been built to keep flood waters controlled. They were led down into the stone structure as the werewolves escorted them deep into the heart of the dam itself. At first it was pitch dark and the only light they had to see was the torch the lead werewolf carried as they walked. Eventually they reached their destination and were greeted with a bright, almost blinding light that caused them all to flinch as they stepped inside.

"A little overkill, don't you think?" Alkali said as he had to squint due to all the balls of magical light and torches that were around the small room. The werewolves escorting them merely laughed and continued to push them forward until they were in the center of the room, where they were made to kneel as more of the monstrous creatures gathered around them. Loud, piercing howls filled their ears as they celebrated around them, and as the five looked at one another they all suddenly felt their heads get wrenched upwards as the pack stopped suddenly and bowed their heads.

The werewolf that moved in front of them was easily eight feet tall and packed with solid muscle covered by a layer of deep brown fur, his brilliant green eyes looking down at them as his muzzle turned up in a fanged smile. "The infamous Alkali, what a pleasure to meet you at last," the alpha werewolf said as he sat down on the steps that the five knelt in front of. "And Xander the Blue too, what an honor, perhaps later we'll get to hear one of your performances?"

The rest of the werewolves laughed as Xander couldn't help but roll his eyes, the alpha still grinning as he looked at the other three. "It's hard to believe a group like you has caused so much trouble for the kingdom," he stated. "When I heard you had come to my neighborhood I wasn't all that interested, at least not until King Pandez put that juicy steak of a reward in front of Lord Dryskale. After that there was no changing his mind, and considering how gracious of a host he's been to let us stay in his city and grow my numbers, who am I to refuse such an offer?"

"So you caught us, good for you," Alkali spat. "You really think that you're going to be recognized by the king for your efforts? They'll put down your pack and probably you as well for crimes against the king as soon as you show your face."

"You're one to talk," the alpha replied as he leaned in close. "I know about you going to Ka'Le and why. What did you think was going to happen to you if you succeeded? The king was just going to forgive and forget and let you back into the capital? Well... I suppose I don't know what he was going to do either, you're just going to have to ask him when he comes here to collect you and give Lord Dryskale his reward."

The pack once more grew rowdy at the mention of the reward, and though they continued to talk, the group continued to try and find a way to escape their bindings. "Hey I have a question," Serathin suddenly spoke up. "Since you'd only be getting a reward for those three I don't suppose you'd be up to letting Zen and I go, huh?"

"Serathin, you slimy backstabber!" Xander shouted.

"I'm just asking!" Serathin shouted back before he looked at the alpha werewolf. "Seriously though, can we go?"

"I swear if you were the one that did all this..." Draggor growled as his hands glowed slightly red despite the magical inhibitors around his wrists, "you'll have to go to the ethereal ice planes to cool down once I'm done with you."

"Man you guys are ornery..." Serathin muttered. "It sounded like he was wrapping up and I needed a little more time."

"Oh?" the alpha said with a chuckle. "More time for what?"

"This," Serathin replied as he finished picking the locks on his restraints and let the chains drop to the ground. "Don't worry guys, I'll get help after..." the hybrid looked around, his victorious tone falling away as the others looked at each other and the werewolves began to chuckle. "...no... no shadows..."

"Oh dear, did your little escape attempt get foiled?" the alpha werewolf mocked as the others of the pack laughed. "You think I wouldn't guess you would be able to get out of your bindings and use that little shadow trick of yours to escape? Luckily I had someone tell me all about it."

Just as the hybrid turned around to look at the alpha in question he felt a blow against the back of his head that sent him tumbling to the ground. Alkali, Xander, and Draggor stared wide eyed and with jaws dropped as Zen stood up and let his own restraints fall away, rubbing his fist where he had struck the thief. "No way..." Draggor said as two of the werewolves came forward and grabbed Serathin by the arms.

"You don't know your group as well as you thought," the alpha said with a grin. "For instance, the reason Zen is so good at being a barbarian is he is a naturally-born werewolf, a monster inside him that he has a little better control over than the average one. I sensed him come into my territory the second he stepped foot in the city and it just took a little mental manipulation to make him my own. After that... well... you know the story."

As the two werewolves brought Serathin back to his feet Zen slowly walked forward, and with a low bow called the larger creature his alpha, and as he did so his body began to twist and deform before their eyes. The rest of the group watched in horror as his orange fur grew thicker and his body grew more muscular, his hands and feet growing wider as he grew until he was just underneath the alpha in height. His muzzle snapped open and shut as the teeth within grew to deadly talons, a similar effect happening to his claws as his transformation quickly progressed until an orange-furred werewolf stood where the fox barbarian had been a minute ago.

"He will certainly make a fine addition to my pack," the alpha said as he stroked the fur between Zen's ears as he looked at the three still in chains on the floor. "Now you three I'm not allowed to touch as per the missive, so you will remain in my domain until King Pandez can come and collect you." His muzzle slowly shifted over to Serathin, who remained pinned by the two werewolves holding him. "For you; however, I have no such order, and to keep you a prisoner here or release you may prompt another escape attempt... But I'm told your powers of shadow manipulation are rather fascinating, and I could always use such skills in my pack."

It took a few seconds for the hybrid to realize what the alpha was talking about and his feet scraped against the floor as the two that held him brought him forward. "Wait wait wait!" Serathin shouted as he was brought to his knees in front of the alpha with his arms outstretched. "C'mon, you can't make me a werewolf! I wouldn't be any good at it, I'm not a fighter like these guys, I'm stealthy! Have you ever heard of a stealthy werewolf?"

"Sure I have," the alpha said as he leaned in, cupping Serathin by the chin before he moved his head away. "Don't worry yourself, you'll make a fine addition once you succumb."

Once again Serathin tried to pull away, but the two werewolves held him fast as he turned back to Alkali, Xander, and Draggor. "Little help here guys?" he asked as the alpha leaned forward towards him with fangs bared, and as the other three attempted to move forward the creatures around them pinned them fast to the ground by their shoulders as Serathin balked. "C'mon, you can think of something! Zen, snap out of it man and help me out! Someone do something before-!"

The sound of the scream echoed through the dam as the alpha plunged his fangs deep into the sabrewolf's shoulder, holding it there for nearly a minute as his eyes looked evilly at Alkali, Xander, and Draggor as he did it. When he was finished he opened his jaws and the other two werewolves let go of Serathin as well, the thief slumping down before falling to the floor as blood stained the holes in his tunic where he had been bitten. The entire time Zen continued to watch with a glassy look in his eyes, the former fox unresponsive as the alpha ordered the ones that held the others to get them back to their feet.

"I know that it must feel rather rough right now," the alpha werewolf said as he licked the blood from his lips. "If it makes you feel any better things will probably get much, much worse. Take our newest convert and make him as comfortable as someone going through their conversion can be, as for the rest of you, escort our new friends down into the holding cells. Come morning we will tell Lord Dryskale to contact King Pandez and that he will soon have his reward."

The two that had held Serathin down in the first place picked up the semi-conscious sabrewolf and got him to his feet as the other three were moved out of the room, but as their paths crossed Serathin fell forward into Alkali and sent both of them to the ground. The other werewolves around them quickly picked them up and separated the two, and finally they just picked up the delirious hybrid while the others prodded the ferret to move forward with the rest of them. Soon Xander, Alkali, and Draggor lost sight of both Zen and Serathin as they were brought deeper down into the dam...

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"Well this situation has gotten significantly worse," Draggor said once the werewolves had deposited them in a small cell, the warlock fiddling with his handcuffs to try and loosen them. "How is it that we always somehow end up being captured?"

Both Alkali and Xander said nothing in response to the claim, the ferret merely rested his head against the wrought iron bars that made up one wall of their cell while the dragon looked around the concrete walls that composed the other three. With Zen being controlled by the alpha werewolf and Serathin infected it painted a dire picture with little in the way of hope. It didn't help that all three were still bound in wrist restraints, the metal enchanted to prevent any of them from attempting any kind of magic. For a long while the only thing that permeated the air in the way of sound was the sound of dripping water in the distance and their own deep sighs.

"I think I preferred it when we got captured by the huscoon brothers," Xander said finally once he had thoroughly exhausted his search of the cell. "At least they gave us a room with a bed... and weren't about to contact King Pandez in order to have us all brought back to the capital and executed."

Alkali's head banged against the bars once, but as he was about to do it a second time his eyes lit up in inspiration and he turned back towards the bar. "What was that, Xander?" he asked.

"What, that we're going to be executed?" Xander restated. "I mean Draggor might get away with magical imprisonment, but I'm pretty sure-"

"Not that," Alkali interrupted. "The huscoons. Now these enchantments block arcane magic, but I'm pretty sure that whatever our new totem buddies are go beyond that. Perhaps we can get them to somehow open the door or our cuffs, or if Serathin is still conscious then they can rouse him to open the door for us so I can suck the soul out of that alpha and watch him as his life bleeds out-"

"Whoa, we get it," Xander stopped the ferret's rant short as he stood up once more. "Alright, so for the latter of what you said I don't think the thief is going to be much use, the conversion process of lycanthropy is taxing at best even if it comes from an Alpha werewolf. Let's just hope that one of them can magically open doors or something."

Xander concentrated on the totem that they had been given and a few seconds later a purple ball of light illuminated the otherwise dark room before it formed into the familiar shape of a huscoon. "Hey you guys!" the brother known as Ian said happily as he looked down at him. "What can I do for my new friends?"

"We could really use your help," Draggor said as he stood up as well. "We're trapped in a dam by a psychotic werewolf and need to bust out of here so we can somehow stop him from getting us all killed."

"Oh dear," the huscoon replied as he looked down at the cell, then at their restraints. "Unfortunately our interaction in the physical realm is rather limited and I don't think astral projection will help you much." Ian floated there for a few seconds before his hand shot up and a happy grin grew on his face. "I know, I'll contact that sneaky guy!"

Everyone shouted for him to stop but before they could he had already disappeared, which caused the three to groan. After a few minutes as they were debating trying to contact a different brother, the glowing purple spirit returned with a dismayed look on his muzzle. "He was not quite in the mood to come here and talk," he said as he tapped his fingers together nervously. "What he did say, though, is that he had already given the ferret the tools to escape yourselves and to do so quickly, followed by a few expletives and a bit of screaming."

The other two looked at Alkali in question, and the blackguard necromancer just shrugged his shoulders before he looked down at himself. Alkali thought hard to what the hybrid could have possibly meant before he remembered the events in the alpha's throne room. "The sneaky hybrid reverse pickpocketed me," he stated, Draggor and Xander tilting their heads as Alkali gestured down towards his hip. "He escaped those cuffs on him which meant he had a set of lockpicks on him, then gave them to me, so one of you two are going to have to fish them out."

"Oh great," Draggor sighed as he and Xander moved close to the ferret and turned around to try and reach their hands into the pouch on his robes. "So we're just going to play feel up the ferret for a set of lockpicks that no one here knows how to use to break out of magically enchanted handcuffs and the cell door to then sneak out of a werewolf-infested dam. Should be a piece of cake."

"I have a little experience in the subject," Xander said as his hand reached too far down and caused Alkali to jump slightly. "So if you find them first, Draggor, give them to me, it's not going to be pretty, but it should be enough to hopefully get us out of these things."

The three imprisoned adventurers continued to press against one another for the better part of an hour before finally the dragon managed to fish out the small leather pouch. Once he had the tools in hand he carefully bent down and used his flexibility to slide his cuffed hands from his back to his front, keeping a death grip on the thieve's tools while he did. With the light that came from their totem Xander's brow furled in concentration as he moved over to Draggor and began to pick the clock on the cuffs. More than once the tool he used slipped out and clattered to the floor, but after a lot of trial and error the magical cuffs finally clicked open and the demonspawn rubbed his scaly wrists in appreciation of their liberation.

After a few minutes Draggor's white-hot hands melted through the metal of the cuffs that bound the other two, then did the same with the lock on the cell door. They dismissed their totem and plunged themselves once more into the enveloping darkness, which this time was a blessing for them as the demonspawn used his superior night vision to lead the way towards their freedom. Along the way they were nearly caught by a patrolling werewolf guard, but with Alkali's hands freed, the three soon passed a dessicated corpse and walked as quietly as they could up the stairs. Though they were without their weapons as soon as they saw their escape they took it, running out into the night air as the sounds of wolf howls could be heard over the crashing water of the nearby river.

"Looks like they discovered our handiwork," Draggor mentioned while they ran through the woods back to the town. "Won't be long before they start hunting us, you two got a plan?"

"Of course I have a plan!" Alkali shouted. "My plan is that we run back to the city, and while we do that I'm going to think of a plan!"

It took nearly an hour for the group to pick their way through the dead of night to get back to the city, aided only by the moon above to find their path and avoid potential patrols. When they reached the torchlight of the city the moon had reached its zenith, which meant only a few hours left until the morning light, would hinder their ability to move around undetected. Along the way they quietly discussed their plan of action on how to deal with the werewolf alpha and his pack hunting them down. They knew they would never outrun them, especially with the thick wilderness that was coming up on their trip, they would be caught quickly and more strictly confined. That meant they would have to take down the alpha themselves... but even as they stopped to rest, they were still iffy on how that was going to happen.

"Well we can't take them straight on," Xander ruled out. "That alpha has an army that will defend him to the death, and even if we had the other two members of our group, it'd be unlikely we could take them all."

"Alright then bard," Alkali said. "What can we do to take down an alpha without directly fighting him?"

Xander scratched his head and paced around the cramped building they had temporarily holed up in. "Alpha werewolf, alpha werewolf..." he said as he tried to find some piece of information in his library of knowledge that could possibly be helpful. "They can control regular werewolves, can't change back into human form... uh... often arrogant creatures. There's often only one in an area, two alphas are too dominating to share territory, so they would just duke it out over control."

"That's it!" Alkali suddenly exclaimed. "Xander, do you know if alphas respond to things like challenging their authority? Like if a werewolf was to try and fight him for control of the pack, would he turn it into a duel?"

"Well... yeah, actually," Xander replied. "I mean, I think they would, since like I said alphas fight each other all the time. The only thing is I believe that they only respond to challenges from other werewolves, so unless we can find another alpha werewolf in the area, I think we're out of luck."

"What about Zen?" Alkali asked. "I know he's not an alpha werewolf but he wasn't turned by him either, I think he might be a naturally-born lycan. If we can get him to challenge the alpha then he can get control of the pack, get them off our back, and we can take our rogue and get out of here before Pandez even knows about it!"

The bard thought about the idea for a second before he slowly nodded his head. "I suppose that would work," Xander admitted. "But we still have the problem of the alpha's control over him. His betrayal has shown that the alpha can manipulate him like the others in the city, so even if we can somehow convince him, he would likely get dominated again before the fight actually happened."

"Leave that one to me actually," Draggor spoke up, the other two turning towards the demonspawn. "It's not quite my prefered school, but I can cast a spell to block the mind-influencing effects on our barbarian friend long enough to get him in front of the alpha. We're going to need to make a bit of a pit-stop, though."

The three carefully journeyed through the dark city back to the scroll shop run by the wolf mage Poker. Despite the late hour there were still people and patrols out on the city streets, which made it harder for them to sneak through. More than once they also saw bandits prowling the dark alleyways looking for them, the corrupted bandit group Serathin had dealt with also on the hunt for them. By the time they reached the shop they had more than one close call with the werewolves, and when they reached the door and saw it ajar they realized that it wasn't over yet.

"Poker?" Draggor said quietly as he poked his head into the shop. "It's Draggor, we need your help..." the words of the demonspawn trailed off as he opened the door and looked inside. Sheets of parchment and scrolls were strewn about everywhere, covering the floor and desk as the three carefully made their way inside. When they got far enough inside Draggor lit a lantern to truly survey the destruction.

"Looks like Zen told the werewolves about this place," Xander mentioned as he traced his fingers in the deep furrows made into the shelves. "They didn't want anyone attempting to give us information... best be on our guard, we don't know if they're still here or not, or the condition of the shopkeeper."

"I think I may have an idea on that one," Draggor said as he backed away from the door he had just opened. Before the others even got close they could smell the acrid odor of blood wafting out of the room. Looking inside merely confirmed what they had suspected, the sheets of the bed soaked red with the former shopkeeper still lying on top of it. "Looks like they got him while he was sleeping."

"I'm liking these werewolves less and less," Alkali stated as they all looked down for a second, then quietly shut the door to the carnage that laid within. "From the looks of the decay they were here a few hours ago, so unless they posted a guard here, we should be fine for a while."

"It's going to take more than a while for me to sort through this mess," Draggor explained with a sigh as he looked at the disarray in front of him. "With Poker gone I just have to hope he had a conventional means to arrange his spells and then try and sort it out from there. Spread out and take a sector of the store, what we're looking for is in the mind-affecting school, obviously, so disregard anything else."

After they divided up the parts of the store the three went to work sorting through the hundreds of scrolls that laid out on the floor. As more time passed the feeling of desperation began to grow heavy in the atmosphere while the pile of unnecessary scrolls grew in the middle of the room. As Draggor sorted through the area he thought would be most likely to find it he did find one scroll that he looked at, rolled back up, and put away in his tunic before continuing the search. Finally it was Xander who held up a scroll case, which after Draggor authenticated was the right one, put it on his belt before they left the destroyed shop.

The first colors of dawn were in the sky as they snuck carefully back through the city. By now the patrols were on full alert and more than once they had to fight their way or run from a group of guards that spotted them. After one particularly disastrous run-in they found themselves in the storm sewers once again, two dead werewolves at their feet as they breathed heavily. "We're never going to make it back to the dam at this rate," Xander said once he had regained his composure.

"Not to mention once we get out into the woods they can attack us freely in their wereforms," Draggor noted. "Plus... getting to Zen without detection will be next to impossible once in their lair."

Alkali remained silent for a few seconds, scratching his chin before he looked up at the grate where the first streams of sunlight began to filter in. "Where do you think we are in the city right about now?" the ferret asked.

"Lower financial district near the courthouse, why?" Xander asked before he saw the grin on the ferret's face and his eyes widened. "No... you can't be thinking..."

"Oh yes," Alkali stated simply with a nod.

"Hells no," Xander replied curtly. "If you think that's a good idea then-"

Before the dragon could finish his sentence a orange ball of light appeared before it manifested into one of the huscoons. "Hey Zen is wondering where you guys are," he informed them. "Should I tell him where to meet you?"

"No!" they all shouted at once at the totem, which prompted him to disappear and for Xander to shake his head. "Alright, let's go do this."