The vault of an ancient mage sealed shut with a sound Valravn felt in his bones.
Stone dragged against stone as massive doors locked into place behind them, ancient mechanisms grinding and clicking until the chamber was completely closed. The sound lingered and something in his chest tightened. For a long moment, he simply stared at the door in awe.
Such a masterpiece.
Finally, he had arrived. Finally, he could fulfill his life’s goal.
He glanced back. Five of them familiar enough that he didn’t need to look long.
"Still with us?" His protége asked lightly.
Valravn exhaled through his nose, a faint smile touching his lips. "Sorry. I’m just.. excited. We’re finally here."
That earned a quiet laugh. Warm. Easy. The kind that used to mean safety. Home.
The vault opened into a wide chamber, its walls etched with runes worn smooth by centuries. Relics rested in silence, crowns sealed behind wards, weapons wrapped in dormant magic, chests heavy with coin.
His lover moved closer without thinking, her shoulder brushing his arm. A small, loving gesture he had grown used to—one he cherished more than he ever admitted.
"You were right.” She murmured. "There were no traps."
She had always been there. From the days he was nothing more than a small-time bandit, to the rise of a crime syndicate whispered about in fear in the streets. She stood beside him through all of it.
"The trials earlier were enough" Valravn replied calmly. "Hah! They’d be complete assholes to put a trap here at the final step."
And he was right. His eyes drifted toward the pedestal at the chamber’s center.
There it was.
The artifact waited there. It was small and unassuming. It did not shine. It did not pulse. It simply was. He had chased whispers of it for months, piecing together rumors, dead languages, and half-forgotten truths to reach this place.
He approached slowly.
"You don’t have to touch it yourself" One of the others offered. "Let me—"
"No." Valravn said, not angrily. "This one’s mine."
He reached out.
The moment his fingers closed around it, something ancient stirred, recognition, power, possibility. It felt right... Exhilarating. This item… it would change the world. It could change him.
For just a breath, he allowed himself to relax. His guard lowered.
"Huuuuff~ I’m glad I’m here to share this victory with you a—"
A sharp blade went in.
Pain tore through his side, hot and immediate, slicing through scar tissue and muscle alike. Valravn staggered as the artifact clattered to the floor, his hand flying instinctively to the wound. Blood soaked through his clothes almost at once.
He turned, disbelief written plainly across his face. His protégé stood closest. Blade still wet in his hands.
"Why?" Valravn asked
No one answered. His lover took a step back. That hurt more than anything else.
"Say something…" Valravn demanded, his voice rough. "Tell me... fucking why."
Silence stretched, thick and suffocating. Finally, one of the others spoke. "It was decided."
Valravn laughed once, breathless and incredulous. "Decided by who? Tell me who got you all to do this!"
His lover wouldn’t meet his eyes.
"You promised me." Valravn said quietly, looking at her now. "You said if it ever came to this, you’d tell me. You know I’d do fucking anything for you. For all of you."
They flinched. They knew. He had always preached loyalty and lived by it. Benevolent, even merciful, despite his criminal stature.
Fire sparked to life in one of the others’ hands.
Valravn backed away slowly, blood dripping onto the vault floor. "How long?” He asked. "How long have you been planning this?"
His protégé swallowed. "Since the port city"
Valravn stared at him, disbelief hollowing his chest. "You trained under me for years... I saved you! You were nothing...”
"I learned from you." The protégé shot back. "Including when to cut losses."
That landed harder than he anticipated.
Valravn looked at each of them in turn, the people he had fed, protected, trusted with his back and his bed.
"I would have burned the world for you." He said softly. "All you had to do was ask."
Magic lashed out, fire grazing his shoulder, ripping a shout from his throat. Pain flared sharp and bright.
And with it came clarity. This wasn’t negotiation. This was cleanup. They are not letting him go. He's getting killed today.
Valravn turned and ran. There's no way he's dying. Not after this.
"Don’t let him escape!" Someone shouted.
He tore through the corridors, boots slipping on stone as blood poured from his side. Spells screamed past him, fire scorching the walls, shards of stone tearing into his legs.
The night air hit him like a blade as he burst from the exit. And then the ground disappeared.
A ravine stretched wide and endless before him, wind howling up from the abyss. He skidded to a halt at the edge, boots scraping loose stone into darkness. There's no way out. He's stuck
Footsteps closed in behind him.
Valravn turned slowly, swaying, blood pouring freely now. His cloak was ruined, skin split and burned beneath it, scars layered over fresh wounds until his body barely felt whole.
He looked at them one last time.
Straightened with what little strength he had left.
"I made you all." *He said. “You will not die a peaceful death. I will come back. You hear fucking hear me? Fucking remember that. I'll kill you l—"
The fire struck him full in the chest.
Heat consumed him, tearing a scream from his throat as the blast hurled him backward into the ravine. Flesh burned. Cloth ignited. Pain became everything
Then dulled, as the fire sealed what the blades had opened.
Darkness swallowed him as he fell.
...
...
...
You can keep some notes on this character. You'll be the only one to be able to see this:
