Chapter 3

The big man seemed fine that all three had drawn weapons. He raised his left hand and made a sweeping motion. Andrew was flung to the side like a giant invisible hand had just brushed him away. Brena reacted and sent a dagger flying towards the man before Andrew hit the wall. The daggers didn’t reach their target, stopping and falling to the floor. Andrew was back on his feet, charging the attacking giant again. The giant said, “Be smart, boy. Stay down.” Andrew found himself flying across the room out of control. He slammed into the far wall this time, stunning him.

Brena saw this and started swinging her long dagger at the man. His gloves seemed made of metal, even though they looked like leather. He caught both blades and yanked them from Brena’s hand. He lashed out, smacking Brena across the forehead, knocking her out. Hara screamed and charged the man. His right hand reached out and grabbed her by the throat as she came into range. He lifted her off her feet, squeezing her throat, choking the life out of her.

“Slave, I will keep you as a plaything. I want to see how long you will last in my playroom.” He was grinning a death’s head grin as he shook Hara hard enough to make her eyes roll back and go limp in his grasp. Seeing she was out, he dropped Hara to the floor. Brena was just starting to regain consciousness when he reached down and grabbed her by the hair. He lifted her a foot off the floor, her feet dangling. “As for you, I can retire when I turn you over to the thieves.”

Brena was crying from the pain of her hair being ripped out at the roots. The more she struggled, the worse it got. Andrew was back on his feet now. Rather than charge their attacker, he held up his sword hand and yelled, “BLOODREND, I NEED YOU!”

At the Broken Sword, the entire building rattled as a sudden shockwave blasted the vault door open. Later, as Gareth studied the damage, he noted that the box the sword had been in was blown to pieces, bits of metal lodged in the metal walls and ceiling.

In nearly the same instant, another blast of sound blew out the lower windows of the Inn. Andrew held his sword, ready for battle, as energy flowed into his battered body. “Welcome back, my friend,” Andrew said.

‘Glad to be back.’ The sword did a quick study of the room, everybody looking at the Longsword Andrew was holding. The black metal glowed a deep, evil-looking red as Andrew swung it to the side, cutting a nearby chair in half. The edges of the cut smoked from the passage of the blade. The sound of its passage was a deep thrumming that generated fear in all who heard it. Andrew took note of this and decided he would ask later.

Andrew looked at the man and addressed him, “You can release my woman and leave, Or I can just kill you.” Andrew waited, and the man shook Brena again, eliciting another cry of pain. Brena had blood running down her face where the scalp had begun to rip from her skull. “So be it,” Andrew said.

He started across the room, holding Bloodrend before him. The big man gestured again. This time, he pulled his hand back, blood running from the cut that had appeared across the palm. He looked at the weapon Andrew now held, his grin growing more evil. He tossed Brena to the side. She slammed into a table head-first. She was out now, her scalp torn and a gash from where she had hit the table. Hara had regained consciousness, crawled over to Brena, and began carefully pulling her mistress away from the coming battle.

“That sword,” he said, “That is the Bloodrend.” Five thousand Plat royals for whoever brings it to the collector that wants it.” He grinned bigger, “I will just take that now.” He made a grabbing and pulling gesture towards Andrew.

Andrew felt the pulling but held his ground, refusing to be pulled. ‘Oh please,’ Bloodrend muttered. ‘That old trick?’ Andrew felt a surge of power run through the weapon. Whatever Bloodrend did, the effect of the invisible grip vanished. The big man grunted as another cut appeared on his right hand. He pulled out a massive sword from across his back. It was as long as Bloodrend. It didn’t have any sort of power in it. That was telling when he swung at Andrew. Bloodrend cut the weapon in half as it passed.

“Now, mister, I don’t care who you are. You have hurt my wives. Therefore, I am going to hurt you. Slow and painful, my friend, slow and painful,” Andrew said to Bloodrend. ‘Yes, master.’ Andrew swung the long sword, cutting into the man’s left arm at the elbow. Everything below it turned slowly to dust. The man held up his arm and watched as it dissolved. It took a few seconds, but the pain of disillusion finally reached his brain. He started screaming in agony and terror. Andrew swung again, this time hitting the right arm at the elbow. The dissolution continued up both arms.

Hara watched the fight and the destruction of their attacker. The third strike took both legs at the knees. The big man dropped to the stumps with a loud thump. The most frightening thing about this entire event was that the big man did not seem to lose a single drop of blood. The pain had rendered the big man silent now. His mind had shut down as his body turned to dust before his eyes. In a few minutes, the pile of dust on the floor was the only sign the man had ever been there. Even the dust faded away. The Innkeeper simply watched, dustpan and broom in hand. He needn’t have bothered.

‘Well, Master, that was most satisfying. The best I have eaten in months.’ Bloodrend sounded rather pleased with himself. The sword seemed to notice its current form; it morphed into a standard steel weapon in appearance.

Andrew staggered his way across the room to Brena and Hara. Brena had blood covering her face and chest. Her scalp was torn from the strain it had been put under. Hara had a bruise under her right eye. It had already swollen shut.

‘Bloodrend, can you help Brena?’ Andrew silently asked.

‘Yes, Master. I can do enough for her to awaken and finish the rest herself. You have three broken ribs and a slight lung puncture that will need looking into.’ Bloodrend didn’t mention the concussion. “Help her, save her, Bloodrend.”

Andrew placed the blade on Brena’s head, and the worst of the ripped skin began to heal. Hara watched this. Her eyes had gone wide with fear. “Master?” “Yes, Hara?” “That sword, it’s alive. I heard it speak to you.” “Yes, Hara. Bloodrend is very much alive.” As they watched, the healing slowed and stopped. ‘That is as far as I can take it, master,’ Bloodrend said. Andrew sat back and waited, his breathing becoming labored as blood leaked into his left lung.

Hara stroked Brena’s hair, murmuring to her. “Mistress, please wake up. Our Master, he needs you. He is hurt badly.” Brena groaned in pain. Her eyes fluttered, then slowly opened. She turned her head enough to see Andrew. “Andy?” she asked. “He has broken ribs, Mistress, and has blood in one lung,” Hara told her. Brena looked back at Hara, “Move me to him, my dear girl. I can save him.” Hara carefully moved Brena next to Andrew. Brena reached over to him and took one of his hands in hers. She could feel the damage to his body. It was far worse than Bloodrend had said. Several of his internal organs had been damaged when the attacker crushed him. “Hold onto me, Hara, hold onto me.” Hara wrapped her arms around Brena’s chest and held on.

Brena rolled herself to partially cover Andrew as her power flowed out to engulf all three lovers. A woman walking towards the Inn said the sun had lit up inside the building. She could see the windows had already been blown out. She felt a prickling on her face as the light assaulted her skin. Rather than hurt, it healed all the injuries she currently had. In her line of work, getting beaten was always a possibility. A client had done a number on her a few weeks earlier. She was still getting over those injuries. From inside, she heard screaming. She reported it didn’t sound like pain. It’s just someone screaming in rage.

Brena was floating in a world of blinding light. All around her were people. She couldn’t make out any details of faces. Just figures floating in the sea of endless light. There was sound as well. Peaceful music that soothed her soul. She could hear faint whispers of voices in the distance but couldn’t make out what was being said. Brena just wanted to close her eyes and sleep in this place. The world faded away as sleep took her.

Hara was in a grey place. No light, no darkness. She decided that she had died and been consigned to limbo. The silence was disturbing in its deepness. She could hear a pounding that matched the beating in her chest. She listened to what sounded like fluids being moved, bubbling and gurgling. It all came from her, she realized after a moment of thought. The sounds began to fade as the world grew darker around her. As darkness engulfed her as she fell into a deep sleep.