Part 3

The broad shouldered man stood up and wiped his fingers, greasy from his cooked rabbit dinner, on his disheveled shirt. Casting a quizzical eye toward Larzuk's smithy he headed for the well in the main town square and his rendezvous with the lore master, Deckard Cain. He looked down at his clothing, regretting the loss of his arms and armor, now undergoing repair at Larzuk's. This would be a reconnaissance mission, not a battle. With a stiff legged gait betraying his recent wounds, he headed past Anya's bath house and into the main square. As he approached the well, he noted that Cain was in a heated conversation with an athletic looking woman dressed in black leather armor and boots. Closing the distance slowly brought their conversation into earshot.

"No, you will not find Tal Rasha alone, my dear, he and Baal seem to have become one. For you to slay the most powerful Horadric Mage in history, you will have to face a vicious demon from Hell." Cain's condescending tone seemed to irritate his intended listener.

"Look, old man, I am not your dear. I am hunting Tal Rasha, and any other rogue mages wandering here in the North. I have certain information that unethical Vizjeri still wander free. If I have to face Baal, be certain that I will not do so alone. But it is Tal Rasha who I must dispose of if the current war is to find an end. He it was who bound the demon, and it is he who is accountable for the Lord of Destruction being set loose. His death shall serve as an example to all magicians who traffic in demonology!" The pitch of her voice had risen during her speech, as had her obvious agitation at being frustrated, at least somewhat, in pursuit of her goals.

The approaching man made a small gesture to signal that the two had another listener to their conversation. The woman gave him a quick once over and returned her attention to Cain, obviously not impressed. Biondi grinned, however, when Cain looked up and appeared to lose interest in the lady. Perhaps the look that crossed his face was one of relief; it was hard to be sure.

"Ah, there you are, Biondi, I see you are ready to travel." He turned to the woman in black. "Excuse me, my dear, but I am helping this man return to Lut Gholein. Perhaps you will consider accompanying him, if you need to do some more research into the whereabouts of Tal Rasha or the Vizjeri. Drognan has been useful in keeping me informed of news down south. He may have answers to some of your questions." He raised his eyebrows in hopeful expectation of a positive response, confirming Biondi's suspicion that he was going to be used as the vehicle for ridding Cain of this annoyance.

The woman looked at Biondi again with obvious disdain.

"Who is this, another recruit for Greiz? He had enough gutter scum in his mercenary band when last I was in Lut Gholein. He hardly needs another dead beat warrior to drink Atma's wine and do nothing for the lord of the city."

Biondi shook his head and answered her directly.
"No, I am not applying for a position with Greiz. I clean up pretty well, for whatever that is worth. In any case, I am on pressing business in the South that may coincide with your own. My weapons are broken and my armor is under repair at yonder smithy. Would you consider acting as my bodyguard during my visit? I can pay you handsomely." He paused as a look of pure skepticism crossed her face. "Judging a book by its cover is not always the wisest course of action." He smiled, hoping to either scare her off with his effrontery or provide her with a challenge her ego could not reject-- and was uncertain of which outcome he preferred.

After a pregnant pause and a hard look from the woman, she nodded to Cain and replied.

"What's a day or two? It's worth a risk, if you can show me the color of your coin." This last with a disbelieving look toward Biondi.

He reached into his belt pouch and withdrew a small earring with a large, pear shaped ruby hanging from it.

"This is one of a pair. Are you interested?" He noted with some satisfaction that her eyes opened with surprise at the display of an expensive bauble. Her nod and proffered hand sealed the deal.
"For three days, I cover your back." They shook hands.

He offered her his arm as Cain led them toward the Horadric portal, as was the custom in his homeland, but was not surprised at the rebuff and exasperated glance it earned him. This one would be easy to tease, he thought to himself, but doubtless deadly to cross. The pair of blade talons dangling from her belt looked well honed and well used, as did the studded armor made from the skin of something that was not a cow, and the matching black leather and chain gloves. He decided to keep the conversation going.

"Might I have the pleasure of your name, my proud protector? I am Biondi, known in the West as Il Buono."

Looking straight ahead, she replied in a voice that did not quite hide her resignation to the next three days of hired companionship.

"Those who know me call me Rusti. My friends have been known to call me The Rusty Nail. My enemies call me more trouble than they bargained for, if they live long enough to say anything at all." She turned her head to look at him. "You can call me Mistress Nail, until I give you leave to do otherwise." Her bold stare dared him to rise to her gambit. He decided to play this fish for a little longer before setting the hook.

"Well, Rusti, since I hired you, I will call you Wench if it so pleases me."

If looks could maim he would have been a bloody pulp on the streets of Harrogath The pure venom in her expression could have poisoned every well in the Highlands and curdled all of the milk in Ensteig. She stopped moving, her body rigid, her posture belligerent. Biondi kept walking and glanced over his shoulder to wink at at her as he replied.

"If you want the earrings, Mistress Arrogance, Rusti will do nicely." He grinned. "Mistress Nail takes too long to say when I need my bodyguard anyway, as those times tend to include fast moving hands with weapons in them." He turned to follow Cain to the Horadric Portal .

The blade he knew would fly from her hand imbedded itself, a foot to his left, into the trunk of the last tree in the row of poplars that lined the lane opening into the small plaza containing the Portal. Ignoring the foot of steel quivering in the wood, he caught up to Cain as the old man paused next to the circle of runes etched into the gray stone. He shook his head at Cain's raised eyebrow to forestall any questions, then turned to face his potential hiree as he waited for Cain to activate the Portal's arcane energies.

Rusti was pulling the dagger she had thrown from the poplar tree with a well practiced motion when the Portal began to shimmer. She stepped toward the portal, paused in brief indecision, and then sprinted into the circle as the magical energies gained momentum and started to hum.

"Welcome aboard the Horadric ship of fools, Rusti the Deadly Wench," he deadpanned. "Next stop: Lut Gholein!" She was just able to land the hard elbow to his ribs as their world dissolved into bright light and their breath escaped them in the vertigo inducing moment of magical travel.

An instant later, he stepped backward, temporarily blinded by the bright sunlight, and heard the whisper of air as her booted left foot snapped just past his jaw. Moving to his right, he heard two more blows hit empty air and realized that she had been temporarily blinded as well. As his vision cleared, he adopted the fighting crouch learned years before in Hand to Hand combat lessons, and waited for her to see him.

She stopped kicking for a moment as she got her bearings. Her vision clearing, she looked over her right shoulder and spied him ready for her; his smile playful, his body relaxed and ready. For a long moment she just stared at him, and then relaxed her fighting crouch. Running her right hand through her hair and shaking her head, she looked down, either inspecting the ground for imperfections or hiding her expression. Biondi realized that she was laughing from the small tremors of her shoulders and the slight shaking of her curly locks.

Staying poised, in case she was using a ruse to take him off his guard, he ventured a final sally.

"So, Rusti, did you come here for the sunshine, or do you intend to watch my back per our agreement?"

Her reply came out with a playful lilt he had not yet heard, apparently speaking to the stones at her feet.

"Oooh, I've got your back allright, El Bono, for the next three days and nights." She raised her face to gaze frankly at him, with a smile that did not quite reach her eyes. "And after that, I am gonna have your ass. You need to learn how to talk to a lady, pal, hired or not."

Biondi nodded. She was about what he had expected.

"Right," he replied, "Drognan awaits."

He once again offered his arm. She opened her mouth in protest but stopped at his hard glance. In a soft undertone he added: "Anyone who wants a piece of my back is less likely to suspect you are my bodyguard if you are 'on my arm,' right?"

She gritted her teeth, nodded slightly, and took his proffered arm. As they began walking down the street toward Drognan's residence she looked up at him with wry amusement..

"You know, big man," she began with strained levity in her voice, "That is the first smart thing you have said since we met. There is hope for you yet."

Forward to Part IV >>