Lord of the Mysteries - Fountain of Blood (Fanfic)

Lex walked down the bustling sidewalk with the balding man—whom she hadn't bothered to ask the name of—and Cynthia trailing silently behind her. The city around them pulsed with steam-powered carriages and the rhythmic hiss of vents from towering industrial chimneys. The streets were teeming with people—exhausted workers, desperate beggars, the sickly, the hungry—yet Lex moved through the crowd with the ease of someone who owned the place. The chaos of the city seemed to part for her, leaving a cold, unnerving silence in her wake.

The two behind her kept a wide distance, yet couldn't escape the strange, oppressive energy she radiated. Lex was a puzzle—a force that they didn't fully understand but felt instinctively that they should fear. Her bandaged eyes did nothing to diminish the air of power that surrounded her; it was as if her mere presence commanded attention. Her red dress clung to her frame, striking against the dullness of the city, and the contrast made her feel like something… unnatural.

After a few minutes, Lex stopped in front of a tavern, 'Backlund Eggs & Things,' a modest establishment with an unremarkable sign hanging above the door. The low hum of conversations from inside filtered out into the street, but as soon as Lex turned and walked inside, the tavern seemed to hold its breath.

Cynthia and the balding man entered behind her, unnerved by the chill that seemed to hang in the air around Lex. The hostess, a young woman with anxious eyes, froze for a second when she saw Lex. Her hand trembled slightly as she wiped it on her apron before speaking in a voice laced with unease.

"Uh, ma'am, how many?" she asked, her gaze flickering to Lex's covered eyes.

Lex smiled, the expression barely touching her lips, though it sent a shiver down the hostess's spine. "Just three of us," she said calmly. The hostess, visibly unsettled, led them to a table at the back, her eyes darting nervously between them.

The table was set with a loaf of honey wheat bread and three glasses of water. Lex tore into the bread with hunger, ripping off a large chunk and spreading butter across it with a quick, practiced motion before popping it into her mouth. Her eyes briefly closed in satisfaction. Bread. Just bread, and yet it felt like a feast in this city.

She chewed thoughtfully for a moment before her gaze turned to the two of them.

"I have no money, by the way," Lex said, her voice still unnervingly calm. Before either could respond, she continued, "Now, tell me about the situation. Would you prefer I kill or capture the pirates? What about the murloc corpses? Maybe I'm getting ahead of myself, though. Do you even know where the pirates are?"

Cynthia leaned back in her chair, her body language trying to appear casual, though the subtle tension in her posture betrayed her unease. "The pirates are at the port. They haven't left yet. The only reason we can't get the corpses back is because the pirates are too strong. One of them…" She hesitated, her voice faltering, "One of them has strength like I've never seen."

The balding man, still visibly terrified, stammered, "He punched so fast and hard, I swear I heard the air crack. He's… not human."

Lex's expression remained unreadable, but her gaze sharpened, focusing on the two of them with an unsettling intensity. "What do you know about mysticism?" Her voice was quiet, but every word felt like it carried weight, as if she would tolerate no lies.

Cynthia blinked in confusion, and the balding man just shrugged. "Mysti-what?" he muttered. Neither of them had a clue what she was talking about.

Lex's fingers tapped slowly on the table, her mind working through the details. Normal people. They don't understand what they're dealing with. But if the pirates have something… else… something supernatural about them, they're all going to die.

She leaned forward slightly, her voice dropping to a low, almost dangerous tone. "Tell me more about this pirate with strength. Anything strange about him?"

The man visibly shuddered, recalling the incident. "He… he punched so fast and hard that it made a sound—like the air cracking. It wasn't just strength. It was… unnatural." His voice faltered, and his eyes flickered nervously between Lex and Cynthia.

Lex stared at them, her mind racing, but her expression remained deathly calm. Then, without warning, she raised her right hand. It was bare, the skin smooth and unblemished, and as she willed it, a twisted, grotesque hand appeared above the table. It was completely degloved—fleshless and raw, exposing the sinew and bone beneath. It hovered just above the table, its fingers curled unnaturally. The nails were jagged, yellowed, and cracked, making the hand look like something pulled from the depths of a nightmare.

The air around it seemed to grow colder as the hand floated, an eerie, silent presence, and without a word, it reached down to grab a fork. The hand moved with unnatural precision, as if it had a mind of its own, before it raised the fork and began picking food from Lex's plate.

Cynthia and the balding man froze, their mouths agape, their silverware dropping from their trembling hands. The grotesque hand moved with a disturbing fluidity, completely devoid of any natural grace. It was as if the hand existed for no other purpose than to serve its master—Lex. The sound of it scraping the plate was hollow, unnatural, and it sent a jolt of fear through them both.

Lex didn't even glance at them. She continued eating, her gaze never leaving the food. "This world isn't just filled with normal people," she said, her voice soft but carrying a quiet threat. "There are forces out there you won't understand. People who have power that isn't human."

Cynthia and the man exchanged nervous glances, fear creeping up their spines. The sight of the degloved hand—moving without any aid—was enough to shatter their fragile sense of reality.

"Do you understand now?" Lex asked, her voice low and commanding. "If you're going to survive this, you need to accept that things aren't as simple as they seem. The pirates you're dealing with? They're not just criminals. They're something worse."

The silence stretched for a moment, broken only by the faint sound of the ghoulish hand continuing its work. The room felt colder, the air heavy with the oppressive power that Lex exuded.

"Now," she said, leaning back in her chair, her smile returning, though it didn't reach her eyes. "Tell me everything you know about those pirates. Every little detail. Because it could mean the difference between life and death."

The balding man and Cynthia sat frozen, paralyzed by the fear and the growing realization that they were in the presence of something far beyond their understanding. And for the first time, they understood that Lex wasn't here to help them. She was here for something far darker, and they were just caught in the middle of it.