Short coming Success

Story by Gilian on SoFurry

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"Wait,

say that again, you want me to help you do what?!"             Alexander wrinkled his nose in annoyance,

not that Gilian gave two fucks. The two of them sat in Gilian's office. Well,

he was sitting, Alexander was too busy pacing back and forth, obviously

avoiding the dragon's disorganized mess. His office looked like a hurricane hit

it. Papers, scrolls, and books were scattered across the floor, and what

wasn't, was in several horrendous unorganized stacks. Not to mention all the

energy drinks and whiskey bottles he had thrown all over the place, which was

to help him stay some what sane through this hellish paper work.             "Please pay attention this time

Gilian, I'll not repeat myself again." Alexander said, his voice was rich,

strong, yet smooth. "I have gotten confirmation from a source that Kissaki has gained an artifact, one that

holds the power to tell the absolute future."            "And that has to do with us sneaking

into that bastard's palace, why?"

Gilian motioned for him to continue.            "Haven't you ever wondered how

Kissaki has been so good when we bet on the outcomes of mortals?" Alexander's

eyes grew hard. "If he uses this artifact to predict the outcome, it proves

that he is cheating. And it is against the rules established long before your

existence for such a thing to happen."            Gilian rubbed the bridge of his

nose, trying his hardest not to reach over and bitch slap the angelic wolf for

that little insult. It was one thing for the white wolf to come stomping into

his realm and demand his audience, which he truly hated the deity of light for

doing. However, for him to even propose such a ridiculous idea; oh yeah, he

must have lost his mind. Yes, Kissaki was accurate as fuck when it came to the

bets they played. Even though they all could glance into the future, they were never

a hundred percent sure what could or could not happen. So, it had always been

fun to bet on the outcomes. However, he knew for a fact that such an artifact

could not exist. If it did, he would have already had it.             "So, Alexander, why don't you just

walk up into his palace like you do my mansion? Then demand him to give you

said artifact?"             "Gilian, surely you're not that

stupid?"

            "Alexander, surely you're not

trying to get slapped?"             They both paused from the loud cough

coming from his office door. Tempest, Gilian's butler and his right hand man

stood at attention, a china tea set with silver engraving in his paw. He gave a

polite nod to Alexander, followed by a trained smile as he placed a cup in

front of each of them. "Sorry to interrupt you, but I thought you both might

want some tea." The beauceron said, pouring their tea while glancing to Gilian.

As well as to stop you from destroying

everything in here.             So,

no punting the wolf out of my realm? Damn, I thought that'd be fun! Gilian relayed

through their link, followed by a heavy sigh. "Thank you Tempest. Also

Alexander," he glanced back over to the wolf who stood more at ease, "would you

mind taking a seat? While you're at it, turn down the brightness? I think

Tempest and I both would prefer not to have to wear these every time you're

here." He tapped his sun glasses.             Alexander went to say something, but

thought twice about it. His overall aura died down leaving a less glowing wolf

sitting in his presence. "Better?" Gilian nodded as he took off his sun

glasses.             Alexander's gaze followed Tempest

for a moment, watching as he took two massive stacks of paper, and carried them

out the door to his desk outside. "I'm still amazed." he finally said, focusing

back on Gilian. "That someone like you, can have someone so diligent, hard

working, and organized as your Second."Please do

not destroy anything. Tempest's thoughts rang loud and clear as Gilian clenched

the arm of his chair. If you do, don't

look to me to help you catch up on any of your work.Bastard. He

snorted, gaining a curious little stare from Alexander. "So why don't you ask

for audience with the big bad ice wolf?"            Alexander gave an over exaggerated

sigh as he neatly tucked in his six massive wings to take a seat. "Would you

expect Kissaki to just admit to having such an artifact? That, and without

proper evidence, I cannot convict another of the seven of such a crime."            "So, in other words, you want to do

an undercover mission to see if your sources were telling the truth?" Alexander

nodded, taking a sip of his tea. "So why do I have to go with you?"            Alexander cocked his brow. "Are you

telling me that the winds would not be interested in such an item that can pull

off something that the gods themselves cannot do?"             Okay, he had him there. Though he was pretty

damn certain that no such artifact existed. It wouldn't hurt to join in and see if it was true. That, and if

Alexander's accusations were proved to be false, it did not mean that he still

couldn't possibly... pocket one of the many treasures of Kissaki's realm. This

way he could sell it and pay off his blasted debt to the wolf. A risk he wouldn't

normally take.            However, with a scape goat like

Alexander, it was a risk worth taking.            Hooking his claw around the tea cup,

Gilian took a deep whiff of the aroma. "How certain are you of this?"            "If I wasn't certain, I'd have never

come here."             Gilian sighed and took a sip of his

tea before placing it down, "Alright, when are you looking to do this?"            The capital in the realm of Ice was as cold as any other day

the dragon had visited. The sky was blanketed in a soft grey as snow showered

down across the buildings that lined the street. It was not a place for the

weak of heart. The cold alone held an icy grip that only those with a body of

steel could take for days on end. That and the inhabitants were not the

friendliest bunch to outsiders.            All of this made it hard as hell to

attempt to even get close to the center of the capital by himself. Now with

Alexander tagging along, who was as sneaky as a pissed off Elephant, it made

this mission damn near impossible. Before they left, both Tempest and Gilian

had a hard time convincing Alexander to wear one of the tattered hooded cloaks

they had made. It would meld their presences in with their surroundings so not

to give off their scent nor elements and to make them look like the lower

class. Which meant they had to act the part, a task too degrading for

Alexander. He couldn't count how many times he had to elbow the angelic wolf to

stop acting out of character.             After much griping, yanking, and pulling, Gilian was finally

able to get the both of them close to Kissaki's palace without being notice.

From the outside, the dire wolf's palace was like a gothic cathedral made out

of nothing but thick crystal clear ice. In the snow it gave off a hue that set

it apart from all the other ice sculpted buildings in the capital. No matter

how many times he visited the place Gilian couldn't get over just how beautiful

it was. His eyes glanced over to one of the windows that was near the ground.

If his memory proved to be right, that was their ticket in. Tapping Alexander's shoulders, he waited for the white wolf

to stop gazing over the palace. "There? You see that window?" He pointed to a

tiny window near the ground. "If I remember correctly, I caught Kissaki's son

sneaking through that window when he was a cub. It leads to the kitchen and if

I also remember correctly, it's usually unlocked. From there we can climb in

and sneak inside till we find Kissaki's vault. That's where this little

artifact you're looking for should be.""And by any chance," Alexander said as he tilted his head

off to the side to block the oncoming wind, "that you may know the location of

this vault?"Gilian shrugged and huddled up under the cloak. If they

stayed out in this weather much longer he doubted either one of them was going

to be able to move, much less stealthily break into the palace. "Nope, not at

all."

            "You can't be serious?""You can't honestly think Kissaki would tell me where his

vault was located?" Alexander sighed. "I was hoping he trusted you more than

that, but the ice shall always be weary of those that are not of their own." He

glanced up and waited for Gilian to give the queue.Well, at least he wasn't going to make this any more difficult. Like they planned before, Alexander lifted

one foot up off the ground as Gilian made a swirl motion with his claw. The

winds were reluctant to move at his command, but allowed the deity of light to

tread on them. This way it would make it a lot harder to hear them coming.With a quick nod to each other, Gilian sprinted off first

with Alexander easily keeping up. At the window, Gilian would whip his cloak

off. With ease, launched himself up on the ledge and shoved open the window.

Then slipped inside. Thankfully there was no one there to see his flawless

entry. His ears perked as he hopped off to the side to let Alexander pull off

the same maneuver, just with more class as he landed with his wings spread out."Show off." Gilian muttered as Alexander looked back at him

with a puzzled look. Apparently the two of them had completely different ideas

for clothing. Gilian wore a long sleeve wool shirt and a pair of jeans.

Alexander wore his best outfit, a silver and gold robe that might as well have

belonged to one of the Vatican priests, minus the atrocious hood.  "Nothing." Gilian waved his paw. "Nothing at

all."Alexander didn't look the slightest bit convinced, but he

turned his head to the open kitchen door. "It's been far too long since I last

stepped foot in these halls, so I am not sure where this leads.""Pretty much its the hallway that connects to the main

section of the palace, but also trails off towards the more private areas. I

remember Kissaki taking me down here to his Library to play a game of chess.""Well, since you have more knowledge of our location. You

should lead." Alexander motioned.Shaking his head, he took Alexander along the path he knew.

If the vault was to be anywhere, it had to be in the inner depth of the palace.

Somewhere hard for anyone to reach, as well as a place Kissaki held the

absolute advantage. Nothing suited the dire wolf more than this. As they walked

along, Gilian noticed more and more statues 

of woman wearing toga's littered across the floor. Each of which was holding

a glass bowl in one hand that had a blue flame flickering with in it. Not that

Gilian could see any signs of them melting, nor did they seem to rid the halls

of their chilled embrace. Sadly though, he had less time to take in the finer details,

not with having to baby sit Alexander. "Hmm, I know it has

been some time, but I must say. I am impressed with Kissaki's taste." Alexander

said aloud, ready to trail his claws along one of the statues cheeks.             Gilian bit his lip as he took hold

of Alexander's paw and pulled it down to his waist. "Don't fucking touch

anything!" He growled at the wolf.             "What little does it matter if I

admire the craftsmanship?" Alexander pulled his paw away from Gilian's. His

eyes narrowed as the small rod that connected the matching golden lace around

his hair glowed lightly.            "Cause everything here is connected

to Kissaki you dunce. If you touch the statues, he'll sense you instantly. Why

else do you think I have the winds acting as your support to walk on?"            Alexander looked thoughtfully for a

moment and nodded his head. "Fair enough. I shall restrain myself. Though it

would be best to continue, the longer we wait the greater the chance of Kissaki

becoming aware of our presence. Whether I touch the statue or not."             Gilian slapped his face and shook

his head. Note to self, do not help

Alexander again. "Just, try to be quiet. Would you?"            "What little difference does it

make? You are the winds, sound is in your domain."            "Yet again we come back to the point

that Kissaki can sense our presence. I'm not risking our asses by over using my

powers on the winds just so Kissaki can pick up on it."             Alexander sighed and shook his head.

"This is far harder than I thought it'd be."

            This is far more than I need to be dealing with. The scales along Gilian's

spine grew cold, colder than the rest of his body. Grabbing Alexander by the

scruff of his collar, he yanked him around the closest pillar, placing a claw

on the bewildered wolf's muzzle. "Hush!" Gilian hissed. Thump, two more thumps,

five more thumps, seven more thumps. Loud and thunderous, they echoed through

the halls, shaking even the pillars themselves. Ice trolls, gotta love them! If

not for their smell, it's their massive grotesque bodies. Seven marching

behemoths walked down the halls. Each were armed with a massive spiked club

that hung from their waists while battle armor clung tightly to their already

thick hides. You

wouldn't normally have gaurds like that roaming around just to protect a palace. He

thought as he willed the winds around them to mask their scent, keeping his eyes

locked on to the set of keys disguised as a pair of earrings. He waited till they had vanished behind a corner before

releasing Alexander's robes. "Sorry about that." He smiled at the annoyance that

gleamed in the wolf's eyes."You could have just told me those grotesque things were

coming."Gilian could have, but it was more fun to have a reason to

yank Alexander up by his collar. "Will make note of that next time, but did you

notice that big ice troll in the middle?"            "Was hard to notice any of them with

your grimy paw on my muzzle." Alexander huffed.             "Okay well, he had a duller hide,

claw marks across his eye, and a ragged tooth that looked like it should've

been pulled out years ago."            "Get to the point."            "I thought you like to gossip."

Gilian smiled as he quickly ran in the direction where the trolls went too,

stopping short from the doorway. "He had keys about the size of a grown man's

hands dangling from his ears. Something tells me its for the vault."            Alexander's head snapped back at the

thought as he lingered behind Gilian. "Why in worlds would Kissaki let the keys

to his vault be used as an earring?" He asked after he was sure the dragon was

done listening to what was around them .            Gilian shrugged, expect the impossible. That was

something he learned from Kissaki a long time ago. The wolf did things that

were truly out of the ordinary, and because of it, it made him so

unpredictable.  Sometimes he had to wonder,

was the wolf really meant for the ice or the winds? Something he never asked

Kissaki. He knew he'd get a firm boot to the face if he did.            He motioned for Alexander to follow

as they kept to the walls. They needed to stay close enough to not lose track

where their prey went, but at the same time far enough so that they wouldn't

smell them. Ice trolls  may be stupid and

ugly, but in general have a good sense of smell. He had no choice but to cloak

their scent the last time and he couldn't risk it again.            The halls had begun to grow narrow

the further they went, and the chill from the walls were worse than ice winds

from outside! Every now and then he'd glance back to see Alexander's fur

puffing up to keep him warm. The lucky son of a bitch. Alexander must have

known what he was thinking because he was quick to give Gilian a sly smile,

which only made him want to slap the angelic wolf even more.            Finally the sounds of footsteps

stopped, and so did they. Gone were the flames that reflected through the water

blue pillars, and the beautiful stain glass that gave a sense of elder beauty.

Now they stood in the inner depths of Kissaki's palace. They were surrounded by

thick glacier walls. The icicles hung above their heads like deadly daggers ready

to pierce deep in their flesh. In front of them was a staircase just large

enough that the ice trolls could walk down. "How much longer do

we stand guard?" One of the bumbling idiots rambled, saying each word slow and

with care, yet there was a high pitch whine behind each word.

            "Till the Lord of Winter deems

it necessary!" Another with a deeper voice said.            "But we been doing this for three

months!" Mr. Whiner complained.            "And we'll do it even longer if it

means gaining the territory in the north like we were promised!" Gilian's ears

perked up at this one. He wasn't like the others. His words were smooth and

thought out, far more intelligent than most ice trolls he met. What caught his

attention was the sounds of metal hitting metal, like a pair of earrings. He caught movement from the corner of his eye. Alexander was

twitchy, he noticed how he was constantly looking back and forth between the

light next to him and Gilian. Fuck.

He had almost forgotten. The only lights around them were the dim yellow lights

flickering from the energy crystals along the walls, which did not illuminate

the halls enough for the white wolf. He could only hope the bastard wouldn't

give into his nature and attempt to light the area up more. If he did, it would

definitely alert someone of their presence and there was no way in hell they

were going to find any place to hide in this long narrow corridor.             "They're bitching about being here." He said

softly after noticing the demanding gaze Alexander was giving him.            "I do not blame them. I would want

to escape this crypt as well." Alexander muffled, sticking closer to Gilian

than he would have preferred. "However, that doesn't tell us what we need to--"            "Shh!" Gilian held up a claw,

gaining a nasty little glare at his back.            "What is so important about guarding

the big door? No one is stupid enough to risk the Ice Lords rage." Whiner

grumbled.            "Oh, but some have." The smart one

chimed. "Fools who didn't know what they were getting themselves into had attempted

to steal from our lord. Some had even come close, but the poor fools now face

something far worse than death." He gave a cruel, blood curdling snicker.

"That's why he has us here. To give the poor bastards a quick death."            Sounds

like Kissaki. He thought as he got on his knees and leaned in just a bit

further. It was hard to make out anything at this angle. Light from a flame, two guards standing at the staircase entrance, and

shadows of the others. Lovely. He

couldn't risk killing the bastards. It would be an open invitation of war on

his part. None shall kill those who

reside in the seven realms. Those that do shall invoke punishment or threaten

their realm with war. The words echoed in his head from Katrina, the deity

of water. The same reason went for why they could not enter another's domain

wielding their full power.              "Well fuck. This just gets better

and better." Gilian grumbled under his breath as he scratched his goatee.             "What is it that you heard?"

Alexander said as he knelt by his side.            "Well, I was right about them being

guards to the vault. From the sounds of it Kissaki hired them to give anyone

stupid enough to attempt to steal from him a quick and painless death, versus

letting him get a hold of them."            "Typical of the ice." Alexander

looked at Gilian. "They have never been one to show mercy, definitely for that

which they hoard. Viringar was the same, only makes sense his predecessor would

be as well."            "You make it sound like you wouldn't

do the same."

            Alexander's eyes widened. "I

do not kill mercilessly. I punish, and kill only if it is truly deserved. If

one attempts to steal my riches, they deserve punishment, but the life shall be

spared."             Gilian simply nodded in agreement. "Well

it seems like thats all they had to say about the vault. Now they're just

talking about the ice nymphs they have their eyes on."            "Which holds little value. We need

to get past them and get this key."            Gilian cocked his head to the side. "Easier

said than done. You ever try sneaking right by an ice troll? Its not pretty,

and they sure wouldn't mind having a snack."            "True, but if they can't see us, nor

smell us, then it would be different no?"

            Okay, he'll bite at this. "How,

pray tell, would they not see us? I'm not sure about you, but hiding our scent

again would more than likely alert Kissaki of our presence."            Alexander gave him a confident grin.

"The flames still produce light, and by manipulating the strands of light, I

can make myself  invisible to the naked

eye. That, and being surrounded by such odorous creatures such as they, do you

think warping the winds a bit to hide my scent would be such a treacherous

task?"            He opened his mouth, then closed it,

then tapped Alexander on the shoulder. "By George I think you're on to

something there. That might just be crazy enough to work. But there's still the

tricky part." He said motioning to the staircase. "How will you get the keys

from the seven dwarves down there?"            The corner of Alexanders lips curved

up further as he pulled loose the small rod that connected the hair tie. With a

flick of his wrist, he let the chain fly as he got to his feet. By the time it

hit his palm, it was no longer a hair tie but a golden staff that was near the

same size as the wolf. "Let me handle that. Just mask my scent." He said as

walked down the stairs. He hoped Alexander knew what the hell he was doing. Masking

the wolf's scent wasn't hard, not when all that odor was around. However;

before Alexander reached the end of the staircase, his appearance flickered and

vanished. Gilian didn't even have time to admire just how fast he was able to

pull off that trick, not when seven loud grunts and groans echoed up the

staircase followed by seven large thuds of the big oafs hitting the ground.             Rushing down the stairs, Gilian

almost whistled as he saw Alexander standing above the Ice troll who had the

key earrings. The entire crew were sprawled out across the floor, large welts

clear on their heads and necks. "That, was fast."            Alexander tossed the keys to Gilian.

"I'm the light." He said, as if that explained everything. "Now I hope you can

find out where to go from here?"            Catching the keys, Gilian looked

around. They were in a big dome room, large in size, with seven chairs and a

fire place being the only thing that lit the room. This was perfect for the

trolls since they normally did not like to be in the light that often. "Well

they stopped here so that could only mean one thing." Gilian peered down the only

other door that was in the room, which lead to yet another staircase. "Down we

go."            He saw Alexander tense and then sigh

loudly. Yeah, he wasn't liking this either. The staircase had less lighting

than the previous one and it was deeper underground. Which meant one thing.

They were both going where their elements were weaker.             "I suppose you shall have to go

first." Alexander said before Gilian could vouch for him. "You're ears are far

better than my own, and I can't see amongst the dark."            I

hate you so much. He bit his lip then paused as he glanced over to the

wooden chairs. He walked over to one of them and with ease slammed his foot

into it's massive leg, snapping it like a twig. "Now who said you can't be a

little innovative?" He grinned and lit the tip with the flames from the fire

place.            Alexander let loose a sigh of relief.

At least one of them was more at ease. Gilian couldn't help but become more

tense the further they went. Even the winds they walked on flickered weakly,

which didn't do well for his conscience. If they had to go any farther they

would soon give out unless he gave them more energy to sustain themselves. That

meant risking Kissaki's attention.            Alexander laid a paw against Gilian's

shoulder, however; the friendly gesture had the opposite effect.  "We are almost there." Alexander said from

behind, the light from the flames being pretty much the only source of light in

the room. Down here the energy crystals were so dim that they barely lit up the

stairs in front of them.            "Better be." He growled. He was

nervous, more than he should be, though not for being underground. Something

else was unnerving about this place. It was as if an icy hand wrapped around

his spine and squeezed tighter and tighter the further they went. His nerves

felt like they had been dipped into an arctic pond, frozen hot. The energy down

here was something he had not felt before, and yet had. Being a sapphire dragon

from the northern mountains of Fitilia, gave him the ability to sense magic

around him and to see it when he so chose to. Yet it was a gift and a curse. In

times like this he would rather not be able to sense such an unnerving dread

coming from the walls around him, or that something horrid was waiting for

them. Nearing the end of the stairs, they paused, the light of the

flame flickering across the icy statues that lined the corridor. "I swear,

Kissaki has some strange taste in statues." He said, noting the life like

nature of them.             "Indeed." Alexander walked past

Gilian to look at one. "Do not worry, I will not touch--" Eyes snapped open and

a loud muffled scream came from the statue, causing Alexander to fly backwards,

staff ready and aimed.             Oh

my god. Now it made sense why he felt like a cold grip was clutching at his

spine, which was only growing stronger as more and more eyes snapped open, all groaning

in pain. "These are the prisoners they spoke of."             Finally calmed, Alexander placed his

staff to his side and shook his head. "I see Kissaki has picked this up from

Viringar as well."            Gilian nodded, and took a deep

breath. It was something he read a long time ago. The elder gods as well as

some of the deities would practice binding mortal men in an eternal torment for

their greed. Which he found to be...inhumane. Though no matter how much he wanted

to feel bad for them, he knew that they had it coming. He just hoped he wasn't

going to join them in the land of popsicles.             Alexander tapped him on his shoulders

and pointed further down. A silver glint caught Gilian's attention and the

chill in his body intensified. Licking his lips, he walked past the halls of

eyes, ignoring their muffled protest as he neared the massive vault door made

of nothing but silver blue ice.             Yeah, the sensation was coming from

this, and it was Alexander who answered the question that was lingering in his mind.

"I'm impressed. Kissaki must have truly wanted to keep his treasure trove safe

from any intruders. Since he went through the expense of making the vault door

out of The Eternal Ice."            "The Eternal Ice?"            Alexander looked at him puzzled then

the realization hit him. "Ah, right. You're still too young to even know of

this, aren't you?"            "Careful Alexander, else I'll put

out the flames and leave us in the dark."            The white wolf glared at him. "Don't

you dare."            He simply grinned. Who knew a pissed

off wolf could make his unease go away? 

"So what is The Eternal Ice?"            Alexander wrinkled his nose as he

placed the tip of his staff on the door. Ice almost instantly crept up the tip

of it, threatening to consume it till Alexander pulled it away. "Holy shit."

Gilian whistled. "For an ice door to freeze over your weapon, now that's

something terrifying."            Alexander nodded. "In each of our

realms, there is a pure substance that is close to the Essence we serve. It's

so pure, so old, that not even we can command it. For in a sense like our

weapons, they are an embodiment of the essence." He said. "This is The Eternal

Ice, something only found in the farthest depths of Kissaki's realm. Whatever

is in here must be truly important for him to make a vault door out of this."             Gilian didn't need him to say

anything more. He knew exactly what he was getting at. "The artifact?"            "Aye. Now we must use the key to

unlock it and find it."            "Well, you see there's one problem."            "What is it?"            Gilian looked at some of the ice

prisoners. Those near the vault door had one arm missing, and he could see why.

In the middle of the vault was a massive hole, just big enough for an arm to

reach inside. After seeing what that door could do, he could see too clearly

how they ended up in the state they were in.            It didn't take Alexander long before

he caught on to what Gilian was looking at. "Darn it!" He snarled, his tail

fluffed up and swayed as his shoulders grew tense. "How are we to get in there

now?"            "Hmm." This was a vault made by

Kissaki. There was sure to be a trick to it,  and he had no doubt that the keys were yet

another lie to make one believe that it could open the door. That, and he

wasn't about to phase to wind and appear on the other side, Essence forbid how

many runic seals the wolf had possibly placed...            He snapped his claws and tossed the

handmade torch to Alexander. "Hold that." He said as his eyes glowed slightly.

"Holy flying fuck..."            "What? What is it that you see?"            What didn't he see? Hundreds of

runes were hidden in the door, shifting around in circles like a ton of

tadpoles in a little pool of water. Though, that wasn't what took him by

surprise. What really caught his attention was the set of cyphers placed on

each rune. The bloody ice wolf had made a specific code for each of these runes

using, no doubt, different languages. Which were then ran through what looked

to be not one , but multiple cypher encryptions.             The

fucking bastard. He bit his lip. If they were all in the same language, and

did not have cyphers placed on top of cyphers, there was a chance he could have

possibly undone the seals in the chamber and unlocked the door. Sadly, with the

way they were, it would take Gilian a year to figure out the runes before he

could even attempt to unlock the vault.            "Looks like we came to a dead end

Alexander." He grumbled in disdain, running his claws through his hair. "No way

in hell I'm going to crack open this safe. There's too many runes with too many

cyphers on them. It'll take too long to even bother with it. So we might as

well...What are you doing?"            Alexander was whirling the golden

staff between his claws, the torch on the ground, not that they needed it with

the light that was being produced by the staff. "Simple. I'm going to break

down the door."            "Waitwhatwhatwhatwhatwaitwhat?!

Alexander, hold your horses! You don't know what--"            A pillar of golden light flashed

past Gilian, followed by the mass amount of heat billowing from the attack. The

sound of ice shattering and breaking apart filled the room as an icy mist

blocked their view of the entrance.            "THE FUCK?! Alexander what the hell

are you thinking?!"             "We don't have time for this Gilian.

Kissaki will be here any moment. We need to obtain this artifact so that we can

bring it to trial."            "You idiot! Don't you understand the

notion of stealth?!" He paused, ears twitched as he slowly glanced over to the

walls. Thousands of icy tips were pointed all in their direction, from the

floors, ceiling, and walls. "Alexander..."            "Yes...?"            "I hate you..."            Before those damn spikes had a

chance to even budge from their resting place, a beam of light and lightning

shot inside of the vault, skidding belly first on the hoard of gold coins. The

entrance was, now blocked by a wall of spikes.            Alexander coughed and grumbled as he

got to his feet. "We need to make haste. If Kissaki..."            The sound of a coin purse echoed in

the dimly lit vault. Standing not to far from in front of them was a tall greyish

blue wolf decked out in a black silk shirt and matching slacks, with a smaller black

wolf  who wore a pair of jeans and a

trench coat standing beside him.            "Kissaki...Curse?"            "It seems like I won this bet."

Curse said with a grin as Kissaki simply shook his head. "Thanks Gilian."            "Wait, what bet? What are you

talking about?"            "Kissaki!" Alexander erupted,

slamming his staff on the ground. "What have you done with it?"            Kissaki tilted his head in a

quizzing manner. "What on earth, are you talking about Alexander?"            "Do not toy with me Kissaki. My

informant had told me of what you have done." He growled, obviously not seeing

the coin purse that curse was jiggling around in his paw. "He had overheard

your conversation with Curse in regards to the artifact you use to predict the

future of the bets we take place in! Where is it?"            "Hold up..." Gilian stood up. "Are you

telling me. Your informant got this information...by eavesdropping on a

conversation between two brothers...one of which is the Lord of Shadows? The

deity who is worshipped by assassins and thieves...alike?"            "Exactly." Alexander said, never

taking his eyes off of Kissaki, who kept that perfected poker face with a

cocked brow. "Raizel, my second, had heard their conversation, and had reported

back to me on it as soon as he was sure they had not noticed him. So answer me

this Kissaki. Where. Is. It."            "Alexander, I have no idea what

you're talking about." Kissaki said.            Curse coughed, dragging their

attention to him. "Maybe I should explain. There really isn't any artifact. We

just thought we make a quick bet on the two of you. So I came up with an idea

on an artifact that you would have

been interested in," he pointed to Alexander. "We knew you wouldn't be stupid

enough to try and sneak in by yourself and knew the only person you'd go to

would be Gilian. So. We made a bet. I said Gilian would come along. Kissaki

didn't think Gilian would be stupid enough to do so."            "A likely story Curse." Alexander

snarled. "Though one I'll not believe so..." He glanced at his staff which didn't

glow. If a lie was told in front of Alexander, his staff would glisten gold.

"So...there wasn't such an artifact in your midst..." He glanced to Curse who

simply shrugged. "So you tricked me into believing..."Alexanders eyes grew wide

with rage. "How dare you! This is outrageous! To even think of using me as a

means for a bet! Gilian, what are you doing? Stop being so quiet and...Why are

you sparking?"            "Oh. I don't know Alexander." He

said through gritted fangs, lightning surging across his very frame, crackling

across his fingers. "You tell me. How you thought, that you're no good,

sneakier than a pissed off Elephant of a second, could have hoped not to be caught by Curse. And to deliver a so

called MESSAGE of a so called ARTIFACT that does NOT exist!" His hair stood on

end as the static in the air began to pop, crackle, grow. Small strands of

lightning flickered back and forth across the entire vault as the winds began

to swirl around him. "Kissaki...Curse...do me one favor."                        "Hmmm?" a light smirk spread across

Kissaki's face.              Pulling forth Kervanos, he watched as the

lightning surged forth from his sword, licking the dragon's cheeks. "Look the

other way, just for a split second." He growled.            Alexander's eyes grew wide as he

clutched his staff, only to see the shadows crawling across the walls. Obviously

it hampered the lights powers. Glaring at Curse, the black wolf only held his

paws up.  "You  fucked up, so only right you get fucked." He

turned around."Gilian...Gilian Sapphire...Wait, we can talk about--""Talking." He clutched Kervanos' hilt tightly as the blade

roared to life. "Is done, and over. Next time, think, before you act.""Wait, Gilian, WAIT!"The dragon pointed his sword at Alexander,  directing the lightning at the white wolf

with a shit eating grin as he basked in the screams and howls that filled his

evening.            A soft rap came on his door,

followed by a very annoyed, "Gilian, wake up and stop drooling all over the

papers!"            "Huh?" He rubbed his eyes and looked

down. Oh. That's right. He got stuck behind on the paper work yet again. He

glanced around to see several extra stacks had magically appeared on  his desk that were in need of his disapproval

or approval. "What the hell? When did this shit happen?"            "Since you been asleep..." Tempest

sighed as he walked over to his side.             "Mmm...why didn't you wake me up?"            "Cause you had been quite grouchy

since you came back from Kissaki's realm. I rather not have you creating a

whirlwind and disorganizing the paper's again."             "Again?" He paused and thought back.

It was still a haze. He remembered a bottle of whiskey in his paw, and loud

yapping, and a pair of rough, strong lips on his. Then papers swirling around

and Tempest barking at him. "Did I get drunk again?"            "Yes...Don't worry I escorted the

shepherd you brought with you back home." Tempest said. Though he could see the

annoyance in his eyes. "Not that you cared so much for it. Since, you got upset

and blew all the papers away."             "Hmm...sorry?"            "I'm sure. Even though I had to spend

the entire evening reorganizing everything." He sighed and handed him a letter,

with the seal of the ice. "This is for you."            Gilian's brows furrowed as the

encroaching headache was becoming more...evident. "What does Kissaki want this

time?"            "I do not know, sir. Open it."            He drug his claw underneath the

folds and neatly opened it.             Gillian,After your

recent adventure into my palace with Alexander and the unfortunate

misunderstanding you both had, it has occurred to me that my palace and vault

was damaged in the incident. Now I know this entirely wasn't your fault but you

both did enter my palace to relieve me of my possessions. And even though it

failed and none of my treasure was lost, the damage still has to be repaired.

Attached here is an itemized cost of the damages and it is with great regret I

have to tell you that you are required to pay half of it. Due to your

involvement in the matter. Thankfully you already have a running tab with me

and I will simply add this on. Your Friend,The Lord of Winter,Kissaki.P.S. If you are willing. There is

some work that could be done to help pay off this debt by aiding in the repair

of the door.            "It does

seem..." Tempest placed his paw on Gilian's shoulders. "That you're debt with the

ice is increasing ever more."            "Tempest."            "No." Tempest shook his head. "I'll

be taking my vacation here soon. So I wont be helping you fix Kissaki's vault."            "I hate you...so much."            Tempest patted his shoulder as Gilian's

head hit the desk. "Its okay sir. I know...I know..."