The fish market lies in ruin, stalls overturned, ropes slick with brine, the air choked by a sickly green fog.
At the center, a paladin stands inside a glowing abyssal circle, his hands raised as he chants in a tongue that bites at the ears.
Around him, the catch on the cobbles twitches and swells, scales darkening into horned, twisted forms.
V steps into the market’s edge, katana ready, the fog curling around his boots.
The circle is still active.
The Fallen Paladin
At last. I knew the son of the manor would come.
The Fallen Paladin
You arrived just in time to watch me finish what your demons began.
He lowers one hand and turns, wearing a chilling, familiar smirk as the nearest warped fish lurches toward V.
✓ Quest Accepted
Force the fallen paladin to reveal his connection to V's past
“I simply give a faint smirk, flick the guard of my sword up with my thumb and say, "fish? The demons must be getting desperate." And in the blink of an eye i rush the paladin.”
SUCCESS (Superb Melee Combat, rolled +3)
V answers with a faint smirk, the sword guard ticking under his thumb, and then he moves. The fog blurs around him as he crosses the market in a single breath.
The paladin’s grin falters. V is already inside his reach, katana flashing up through the green haze.
Steel kisses fallen armor, sparks snapping off the blades. The nearest warped fish skids aside, forgotten in the rush.
The Fallen Paladin
Still that stance. Still that blade. I know whose son you are.
The words land as V drives the paladin back to the edge of the ritual circle, forcing him to turn from the chant. The glow gutters for an instant.
The Fallen Paladin
Your brother screamed for mercy the night the manor burned. I was there when they took him.
The circle cracks along one arc, and a dark seam opens behind the paladin, revealing a stair descending into blackness. He looks at it, then at V, suddenly measuring escape.
Quest Complete
Force the fallen paladin to reveal his connection to V's past
“The blade is drawn and pressed against his neck. "Move and your head will be the only thing going down those stairs. We're not done here."”
SUCCESS (Great Intimidation, rolled +0)
V’s blade settles at the paladin’s throat, still as a verdict. The dark stair breathes cold air behind him, but he does not move.
V
Move, and your head goes down those stairs. We are not done here.
The Fallen Paladin
...You speak like a son who was taught by loss.
The paladin swallows against the steel, then lifts one gauntleted hand, palm open in surrender. His other hand stays away from the broken circle, as if the ritual itself has begun to burn him.
The Fallen Paladin
I did not lie about your brother. I was there when they dragged him from the ashes.
The Fallen Paladin
Mercy would have spared him. They never let me choose mercy.
A crack runs through the circle and the green glow coughs out. The warped fish shudder, half-formed and uncertain, as if the paladin’s fear loosens their leash.
The Fallen Paladin
If you want the rest, keep that blade on me and listen. But speak quickly, before I decide the stairs are kinder than truth.
✓ Quest Accepted
Escape the ruined fish market
“"what do you know of my father? Where is tony, my brother?"”
SUCCESS (Good Willpower, rolled -1)
V
What do you know of my father? Where is Tony, my brother?
The paladin’s breath catches. For a moment, the green sparks from the shattered circle paint his face like rotten fire.
The Fallen Paladin
Your father was no saint, but he was not the one they feared most. He stood between worlds, and that made him useful to them.
The Fallen Paladin
Tony lives. Last I saw, they took him north, to a tower that drinks moonlight and spits out orders.
His lowered hand trembles. A drop of blood runs from where V’s blade presses too hard at his throat, and he swallows against it before he can keep speaking.
The Fallen Paladin
I knew your father by his mark, not his name. I knew your brother by his scream.
The Fallen Paladin
Now hear me. I can give you the road, but if I speak the tower’s true name, the thing below will know I broke.
“"You should fear the fate pressed against your neck more than the one that will find out. TELL ME EVERYTHING or i can show you some fates are worse than death."”
SUCCESS (Great Intimidation, rolled -3)
V
You fear what waits on your throat more than what finds you if you lie. Tell me everything.
The paladin goes still. The dim circle trembles on the stones, and the stair’s black mouth below them seems to listen.
The Fallen Paladin
Enough. I knew your mother’s house by the smoke, and your father by the mark he hid beneath his oath.
The Fallen Paladin
When the manor burned, I was there to guide the raiders in. They called your father a bridge they could not cross, so they took the sons instead.
The Fallen Paladin
Mercy, if there is any left, comes too late for him.
The Fallen Paladin
Tony was hauled north, bound in salt chains. The tower’s true name is... no, listen, I can still save my soul if I do not say it.
His voice cracks. The blade at his throat pricks him deeper, and a thin thread of blood slips down onto the cracked stones.
The Fallen Paladin
I tell you this much, then. Seek the tower that drinks moonlight. Ask for the gate beneath it. That is where they keep what they stole from your blood.
“"not good enough. Ill come for your soul next." I cut his head off and start heading in the direction he mentioned.”
SUCCESS (Superb Agility, rolled -3)