Toki's Tale

Rel sat slumped over a table, brooding over his drink with a scowl that could turn Chaos. He was depressed, even more so since the owner of this place had come to complain that he was bringing down the social tone of the place, and not to keep attacking the striped umbrellas. Toki had stopped him from dismembering the hapless Norn, and they had sat in the far corner of a terraced area outside the main tavern.

Toki sat opposite Rel in a heavy cloak, the hood down over her face. Most Norns felt uneasy around her, especially when she stretched her wings or flexed her claws. Even vampires could hide in cities, until the mob broke their door down.
She tore away from her thoughts and downed another cup of the sickly wine that had been brought to their table, on the condition they stayed there.

Rel drank from his cup, made a face and then drank again. He unscrewed his hip flask and poured in a little mead, then drank again. The taste, if anything, was worse.
"Why are you drinking it if you don't like it?" Toki asked.
"Because," Rel said, his accent finally uprising like an irate sea monster, "it gets me bloody well drrunk. And I'd rather be drunk then face up to what's happenin' here. To ye."
"What are you talking about?"
Rel looked up. He looked his age, his grey fur looking whiter than ever. He sighed and downed his cup, then the whole wine bottle. He winced and took a deep swing from his hip flask.
"Ye're becomin' a hero. An adventurrererrer. Rrerer. Err."
"You're drunk."
"So? Did I ever tell ye about the Heroes o' Midgard?"
Toki leaned forward, intrigued. Rel had never said much about his past, or what he knew.
"Tell me," she whispered. So he did.

"Rel, Berax, Caerth, Brox, Krlk, Jayla and Tramus. We were the Heroes of Midgard, we were. Seven of us, there were, and we were magnificent." He paused to drink from his hip flask again. Toki waited, eager to hear more.
"I was always a warrior. Dinnae know no other trade. But Berax was a Warrior of the Axe! Twice as strong as me and twice as quick, and had the most beautiful axe ye'd ever lay eyes on. He was a family man, he was, with a wife an' a son. They all died years later, though.
"Caerth was an elf, and a friendlier one ye'll never meet. Chaos got him, somehow, and he became the Black Lord. He's still around in Gorth, I think, more animal than anythin'. If ye ever talk to an elf, though, they'll say he was a great hero. They never want to talk about what happened to him. Bleedin' optimists," he grunted.
"Brox was a Hexenmeister, and the best in all the land. He knew the Colours like the back o' his hand, and used them too. He's still alive, a bit older than me but going strong. We meet up now and again, as the last of the Heroes.
"Krlk was the odd one out, sort of. A Grendel, y'see. He was a vicious sod, and drank mead straight from the keg. But when it came to fightin', he could take on ogres bare-armed! He had tremendous strength, but he was killed in battle by some Chaos Lord bastard.
"Jayla was a Prophet, and Berax's wife. She was the most powerful of us all. She could do things that still amaze me to this day. Made a few of us think about how to treat females a bit different, if you know what I mean. But she died with her husband and son, as I said. I was always worried about their deaths, especially because it takes summat awful powerful to sneak up on a Prophet.
"Tramus was a dwarf, but not just any dwarf. He was the Thane, the king of all the dwarves. Had a terrible temper, though, so we all paid him respect where it was due. He's still alive, though he's out of action. A Basilisk slashed his legs, and he's had a bad limp ever since.
"Not even fifty years ago that was, and now we're legends. Myths. Stories told around the fire. We did so much good, but still they forget us!" Rel snarled and viciously stabbed the striped umbrella with his sword.

Toki glanced over her shoulder. Several guards were approaching their table, followed by the owner, pointing at the tattered umbrella and speaking in a shrill voice.
"Rel," she said, shaking his arm. "I think it's time to go!"
There was a sound like a pig coughing, and Rel slumped backwards in his chair, asleep in a drunken stupor. Toki sighed. She was always reluctant to fight, but Rel enjoyed every minute of it.
"Oi, you two-" began one guard, before Toki closed his mouth shut with a well placed fist. One of his companions watched him fall and looked up to see a leather boot implant itself in his teeth.
The other guard had drawn a sword and ran at Toki with a surprising turn of speed. Toki turned and swiftly clambered up the wall, leaving tiny claw-marks. The guard stopped a few inches from hitting the wall, so Toki dropped a large section of roof on him.
The other guards had got up, so Toki leapt down to stop them battering Rel even more unconscious than he already was. She dodged their cumbersome hacks and slashes with ease, and kicked their legs out from underneath them. For good measure she picked one up and threw him at the retreating owner, who had fled the moment the fighting began.
Rel was still drunk, and still asleep, so Toki picked him up and left.

Behind her, deep in the shadows, a dark figure watched with blood red eyes.

Far above him, on the rooftops, another figure watched with bright green eyes which sparkled like dying suns.

Chapter 5

Chapter 7