Loose Ends

This note is found on level 2 of the Tomb of Archon Barthollem. Deceived. Stuck down here in the dark like a rat in a trap. I write these words so I might have vengeance. It's unlikely that this will be found but, if someone reads this, know that Malvek Brevele is a traitorous cur.

I am Nazahn Untraze. I am a foreigner to these lands, and unashamed to say that I am both a thief and assassin. I tell you this now so you know that I am truthful in my later words. I have been in the secret employ of a wealthy noble, one Malvek Brevele. Most of my work for him was stealing key pieces of information and material for leverage. I have slit the throats of no less than three of his rivals or their agents. I broke into in the chambers of the man above Malvek and placed certain evidence. This resulted in the man's arrest allowing Malvek to move into his position of power. None of this is new. Same things happen with wealthy men and scheming nobility the world over.

More recently, he bade me to recover an ancestral artifact from his father's tomb. The family Signet Ring. A thing that should not have been buried he says. But the argument between father and son led to rash decisions. I care not for the reason, his coin was always good, but I say nothing and let him speak. He went on to say "The tomb is lavished in my family's vast wealth of the ages. Touch nothing. I am not paying you to plunder my ancestor's tomb. You are only to recover my father's signet ring and return. And make sure you carry a torch. Seldom a light escapes those depths. Do not dare return without the Signet".

I found the entrance easy enough but it just revealed stairs into blackness. After lighting a torch, I descended into the tomb and wandered these halls for hours, searching for a single name amongst these countless thousands of dead. At last I gave up. But I would not leave empty handed. I was driven to find the wealth Malvek spoke of. I went farther and farther into the darkness. There were some treasures, but nothing of what he hinted at. I pressed on, ignorant of the risk of losing my way back.

Once the torch started flickering I knew, as if I had planned the betrayal myself. Malvek had played me like a fool. His careful choice of words stung at my pride and ensured that I would be driven to find the Signet despite any risks. And the subtle suggestion to bring a single torch, I was a fool to bring just the one.

Here I am to stay as I write these final words. Now I see the deception for what it was. Only the elimination of a loose end. My light is done, and so am I.

Nazahn