The Third Eye Initiative (18 page)

Captain Blorick, head of the Market District City Watch, sat at his desk with his hands buried in his face. His long, red beard appeared from beneath his hands and was tucked into his belt. His shoulder length read hair was messy, and hadn’t seen a brush in days. When one imagined a dwarf, that dwarf would look like Blorick. His wide nose, high cheekbones and intense brow were so dwarven that Blorick appeared almost a
cliché.

Blorick read the reports that his constables had brought him at dawn, which was several hours ago. He had read them over
and over again, always followed by a heavy sigh. What was happening in his district? During the night there were five Tundra Elves beaten, two of them to death, and one eviscerated and hanged.

There had been Elves in
The City for a few years now, but they were few and they had been cautious. Now that the alliance had been declared, they walked the streets feeling safe and at home. That had lasted for almost a whole day before the attacks began.

To make matters worse, five humans had been found murdered in their homes, the killings having taken place during the night. All of them were wealthy, and not a single one of them had been robbed. He spent the entire morning digging into the Watch files to find out what he could about them. When he had found what he was looking for, the implications made him feel sick.

Each of the murdered humans were known to be high ranking members of the Purity Union, Blorick was not stupid. He understood that the murders of the Union members and the beatings of the Elves were connected. His suspicion that the Purity Union was behind the beatings was all but confirmed when he learned of the death of their members.

Was it the Elves who had murdered the Union members in retaliation for the beatings? A large group had accompanied Ambassador Bel to
The City with the intention of making it their home. But were that the case, Blorick could not believe that they had discovered the names of key Union officials in that short amount of time.

He hoped that they weren’t connected, hoped that it was all one great big coincidence. He knew better, though. He only hoped that The Purity Union didn’t connect the elves with the murders. The fallout would be bloody.

Blorick felt terrible about what had happened to the Elves. They were in his district, and that made their safety his responsibility. He had let them down. He had sent out extra patrols during the night, most of them into areas known to have the highest concentration of Elves. It hadn’t been enough.

Blorick knew now that it had been a futile attempt. Many of his men were corrupt and easily bribed, despite the fact that he was quick to execute corrupt Watchmen when he had evidence of their sordid dealings. The only man he had that he trusted implicitly was
Isaac, and one man was not enough to protect all of the elves.

Blorick felt no sympathy or guilt for the
murdered Purity Union members. The organization was a breeding ground of racism and bigotry. They were suspected in many murders of non-humans, though the ranking members were never charged. Even if a low-ranking member was caught in a violent crime, they would take full responsibility for the attacks. The leaders called the shots, the rabble did the deeds.

This was going too far, however. His men had discovered a dead man on the roofs by the Market
Square with a crossbow pointed at the stage. Somebody had been trying to kill Ambassador Bel, but had been killed himself before he had the chance. Blorick had no doubt that the assassin was hired by The Purity Union. He had a good idea of who had taken him out as well.

Blorick knew that he couldn’t prove that the attacks on elves during the night had been the Purity Union, but he planned on paying a visit to them anyway. Maybe he could put some fear into them, get them to back away from this before it got out of hand. Before it became
city wide genocide.

“
Isaac, get in here!” he yelled. Though Dwarven, his voice lacked all but the tiniest hint of the common dwarf accent. He had lived most of his life in The City.

After a moment, the door to Blorick’s office opened and
Isaac entered. Isaac was man of middle age. He was tall, and lean. He face was clean shaved and his greying black hair was cut short and neat. He looked like a solider, serious and determined.

“
Yes, Captain?” Isaac asked.

“
Get a group of Constables together. We’re going to pay the Purity Union a visit,” Blorick said. Before Isaac could leave, he added “Make them a good mix of dwarves and humans. Friends, if possible. That ought to piss those assholes off.” Isaac nodded and left.

Blorick strapped on his half-plate armor and green city watch surcoat. He carried his large war-hammer in his right hand, leaning the head against his shoulder. He liked to carry it rather than hook it to the frog on his belt. It was an intimidating sight, and he used it to his advantage often.

Within the hour, Blorick, Isaac and the Watchmen marched in formation on horseback through the city streets. Five humans and five dwarves made up the group, not including Isaac and Blorick. The display was impressive, and people moved out of the street and watched in awe as the Watchmen passed. Usually the citizens saw the Watchmen in pairs or small groups on foot as they patrolled. A march like this was rare, and meant their business was important.

Finally the Watchmen reached the gates of the Purity Union Compound. The Compound was contained behind a tall brick wall, and a barred gate. It was made up of three buildings; a meeting hall on the east side, and lecture house on the west side and a large mansion on the north side. The meeting hall and lecture house were made of red brick and wooden roofs, both one story and looking much the same from the outside. The mansion was made of expensive oak painted white,
and a healthy amount of marble, and was three stories tall. As marble did not come cheap, the mansion was one of the most expensive buildings in Market, if not the entire city.

Two guardsmen stood outside the gate, one to either side. Blorick saw others patrolling the property through the bars. Blorick locked his gaze on the guardsman to his left.

“Open the gate,” Blorick demanded.

“
What business does The City Watch have in the compound, dwarf?” The guard asked in a haughty voice.

Blorick’s left fist crashed into the
guard’s nose, and the man collapsed to the ground. Blorick looked at the other guard, who was clearly shaken. “Open the gate.”

The guard produced a key from his belt, and had the gate open in seconds. Blorick and his men marched onto the compound grounds. The guards patrolling all cast looks their way, but none moved to challenge them. Blorick was slightly disappointed that they didn’t. When they reached the mansion, Blorick didn’t stop to speak to the guards manning the door. He tried the handle and, finding it locked, smashed the door down with his hammer. The guards looked pale and worried, but remained silent.

Blorick and his men entered the mansion. The inside was opulent, with statues, paintings and expensive carpets. The entry room was massive and cavernous, with two large winding marble staircases heading to an upper landing. Blorick marched up the stairs and past the guards. He was Captain of The City Watch and, other than the ass at the front gates, nobody dared challenge him.

They entered a long hallway leading away from the top landing. Orc slaves were performing a variety of tasks, from cleaning to carrying drinks and food to other parts of the mansion. A long red carpet lay upon the ground the entire length, and more paintings lined the walls. At the end of the hallway was a wooden door, and Blorick opened it without knocking.

Inside the room a woman sat at a desk, and there was another door on the right wall.

“
Can I help you?” the woman asked.

“
Where is Dormic?” he asked.

“
He’s in his office, but he’s very busy...” Before the woman could finish her sentence, Blorick marched to the door and opened it.

A man sat behind a large desk by the window. The room matched the rest of the mansion perfectly, with expensive decor and carpeting. The man was neither old nor young, but somewhere in between. He had long blond hair that was held back by a black band. He wore an expensive dark green cuffed long-coat, and a lighter green buttoned down short. Blorick recognized him as Dormic Marain, the leader of the Purity Union. His pale blue eyes narrowed at the intrusion.

“Captain Blorick. To what do I owe the pleasure?” Dormic asked, a hint of spite in his voice.

“
You’ve gone too far this time, Dormic,” Blorick said, in a tight voice.

“
I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Dormic replied.

“
I think you do,” Blorick said. “And this is not a good time to play games with me.”

“
If you’re going to accuse me of something, then go ahead and do it already. I’m a busy man.”

“
Some elves were attacked last night. Two of them died.”

“
That’s unfortunate,” Dormic said insincerely.

“
Unfortunate that they were beaten, or unfortunate that they lived?” Blorick said angrily.

“
You can’t be suggesting that we had something to do with it. Really, Captain. You should be careful of making wild accusations.”

Blorick turned to his men.
“All of you but Isaac wait in the hallway,” he ordered. The room emptied quickly. Blorick turned back to the Dormic.

“
I’ll say it again. I ain't for playing games with you, Dormic,” Blorick said ominously.

“
The only one here who appears to be playing games is you, Captain.”

Blorick took his hammer and brought it down hard in the middle of the desk, breaking it in two. Dormic leaped to his feet, startled. Anger quickly replaced the surprise in his eyes.

“Who do you think you are? I’ll see that that council hears of this abuse,” Dormic said.

“
Tell me what you know about the attacks, or I’ll show you
real
abuse,” Blorick said, unfazed by the man’s threat.

“
I seriously have no idea what you’re talking about. You can smash this house to pieces, it doesn’t change the truth.” Then Dormic smiled confidently. “Besides, we both know you can’t lay a hand on me without proof, dwarf. You touch me and your career is finished. I’m running for a position on the Council, after all. An attack on me by you might look like an act of hatred, not an act of justice. Not that justice has ever been anything but an act.”

Blorick took a step towards Dormic.
“You listen to me. If I find out that you’re behind these attacks, I’ll kill you. I don’t care if it costs me my career or my life.”

“
Shouldn’t you be investigating the murders of our members last night, instead of coming here and hurling you unfounded accusations? Is that not your job, good dwarf?”

“
I’ll look into it,” Blorick said in a sardonic way, making it clear he would do no such thing. “You remember what I said. I’m not forgetting the Union crimes this time. If even one of your low ranking lackeys is so much as seen spitting in the direction of a non-human, I’ll see that the Purity Union is abolished.”

Dormic smiled again.
“I hope that naive optimism serves you well in your job, dwarf. Good day, Captain. I’m sure you can see yourself out. I’ll make sure The City Watch is billed for the price of the desk.”

Blorick glared hard, wanting nothing more than the knock that condensing face right off the
man’s head. He knew he couldn't, however. The Purity Union had a lot of friends, and a lot of money. And if Dormic was elected to The City Council, they would have actual power as well.

***

Blorick went over the meeting on the long ride back to The City Watch headquarters. He had stopped himself from reacting. He did not want to give Dormic the pleasure, but the fact that the man was trying to get a seat on The City Council was bad news. The Purity Union had always craved real power. Now that power was within their grasp. He knew he couldn’t allow that to happen.

Blorick was conflicted. He knew what he had to do, but hated the idea. He was a good Watchman who liked to do things by the book. He knew the system was corrupt and flawed, and had vowed to not let that same corruption take him. Yet he was starting to see how foolish he was being. The City did not allow for men like him, and he sometimes felt that he was making his job much harder, and endangering other
s by adhering to a code of ethics that made no sense in a city like this.

When he reached the headquarters, he dispersed the constables and sent
Isaac back to work. He changed his clothes quickly in his office, exchanging his surcoat and armor for his causal street clothes. When he headed back into the streets he looked like an ordinary civilian dwarf.

He was shaking, but determined. He had never done anything like this before, and hated that he was forced to do it now. But what choice did he have?

He stood outside the doors to the Tarnished Tankard for a long time before he finally opened the doors and entered. The moment he stepped inside every eye turned to him. They gave him threatening stares filled with suspicion and hostility. He returned those looks in kind. Blorick did not intimidate easily.