The Flames of Retribution

The Lessard Manor was an impressive structure of Victorian design characterized by expensive glass windows, tall steeples, stone gargoyles and extravagant gardens intersected by winding stone pathways. The entrance to the manor grounds was barred by an impressive wrought iron fence patrolled by two human guards. Small lanterns lined the pathways leading up to the manor house casting a warm glow through the dark. The gardens to either side were a stunning spectacle of well landscaped flora that had been well chosen to accentuate evening viewing and even the flowers bloomed beneath the silvery moonlight overhead.

However should one take a closer look, it would reveal that the gardens were merely an outward facade of beauty, overlaying a backdrop of decay where little could survive for long. Beneath the surface of the foliage and dazzling array of flowers, spots of mold and wilt could be seen cropping up here and there. The signs were subtle, but given a few months the picture of beauty would be rotted away beneath the taint that was beginning to infect it. It was a full time task to keep anything living within the manor grounds and everything that was planted eventually withered and died. It was only through meticulous care that the the facade was maintained.

Maria had led Riaze back to the city, it's nighttime lights glittering like starlight for as far as the eye could see. It was a place she was loath to tread, but her vehemence drove her on. Cautious and wary, she led them through shadow and back alleys to avoid the main routes until eventually they left the din and commotion of the city behind in favor of the pleasant gardens that lay at its heart. A few evening strollers passed by their position beneath the boughs of a tree, but none sparred them a second glance. Clad in the remnants of wolf furs and leathers she had acquired from her abandoned campsite on the way, Maria was at least passably modest enough to not draw too much unwanted attention.

Raising a hand Maria extended her finger to point to the manor beyond.

"Draugr," she explained. The pounding of her heart filled her ears as her chest heaved heavily from the run that had brought them here. The physical exertion had done little to stem the unquenchable fire that lay within her eyes and she shook with the anticipation of the damage she and Riaze could unleash upon the unsuspecting family within. Believing themselves safe within their city and behind their walls, their arrogance would be their undoing.

Turning to look at Riaze the fire burned hot in her gaze. "Draugr," she reiterated. He would come, he would share in the carnage with her. She did not need ask to know it would be so.

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