[center][h2]From Rogues to Riches: A Black-Hearted Tale[/h2]
[url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XD_IRiEQdtA]Soundtrack[/url][/center]

Some say when the world was young, the sun cursed the land's people for their sins and boiled it alive, so now the Ra'sheeks seek repentance every day to Hayashim for forgiveness. Others say the God of Beasts, Vargul, fought Baelyr the Just and remade the land like the splitting of a skull, creating the Sundered Sea and draining the water from the eastern lands to fill it with desert. Others still say that the Evergod plunged the land with unrelenting heat to keep men from venturing further in to give credence to the heathen gods that dwelt there.  

All seemed plausible to Markus, who had seen enough black magic in his lifetime to not rule out any superstition, no matter how fantastical. Much of it had come from his beautiful companion as of late, who sat upon a relatively flattened stone above the wave of sand, seemingly bored out of her mind as the thieves in front of them argued and roughed one another up. Markus was a patient man, but they had limited supplies and if the fools hadn't figured out how to open the door to the vast rock before, he was going to take control. Better he than the sorceress stripping their flesh from their bones with a spell. 

Calliope had advised him to let Hayikk the bandit and his crew of miscreants feel in charge on this illicit expedition of theirs. It was two days after Markus had killed the Prince which led to their trek through the desert, and three days under the thrall of the now-dead Sultan before that. Five days away from their crew and the sea. If Markus hadn't managed to speak to Sketti during their captivity, he would have been concerned the Weather Witch crew would be dead. But they had taken refuge back at the Bloodaxe hideout and awaited the signal to return to pick the Captain and his First Mate up. 

Hayikk and his men had helped the two pirates escape in exchange for a share in the treasure of the map. Of course they both knew Hayikk would likely order their death once the treasure was found. But they'd cross that bridge when they came to it. Now, after long last the group of criminals had found the massive crag menacing the landscape above the dunes of sand, just before the sun had set. The heights above, around a dozen or so meters, led to an outcropping that gave them some shade as the sun truly began to disappear beyond the horizon. All was grey and blue now, and the runic gateway lay shut before them.

Upon the door were six sigils etched upon six 'circles' of stone that looked almost moveable, though it would take a strong man to realign them. Upon them were the images of two crows, a wolf, a shepherd, a lamb, and a serpent. 

"Perhaps the serpent would be taken away by the birds, yes?" A sleazy rogue said, his greased mustache crusted from his spittle. He rubbed his hands together and glanced Calliope's way, not being the only one who gave lustful glances in her direction. Markus felt sorry for them. "Move the crow to the left and the center. Crows see all, they must be in the center!"

"Idiot!" Hayikk spat. He was a short man with a stout stomach, who's only saving grace was that he had a large mouth and happened to be slightly less dim-witted than his fellows. He slapped his subordinate. "The man and the serpent must come first, like the story of Achem and the Balishdir!" 

"The gates cannot be thick, why not bash them open?" The most thuggish of them said, his arms nearly as thick as Markus' waist. If any of them should live to join the crew, Markus would choose him. The man might be a fucking idiot, but he could certainly pull a rope and haul a barrel when told to. 

"They're made of stone, fool. Perhaps if we bash your head into it, it'll open!" Their leader cried. The last two thieves pushed at the doors to no avail.

"Need some help?" The Blademage asked, smirking. Hayikk snapped a glare at him, his ugly mouth looked like the back-end of a bloated puffer fish. "Unless you think you could do better, stay quiet [i]friend[/i]. More than one man has lost his tongue mocking me." 

As the crew delved back into arguing, Markus motioned for Calliope to come closer. The two of them had on a new set of clothes. Markus was befitted in a rich merchant's attire when he had been an 'honored guest', though he'd stolen some scale armor and a sand colored cloak to help him better fend from the weather or attacking beasts. The outfit was actually handsome on him, as it accentuated his shoulders and gave him a crisp style. Calliope wore abyssal black pantaloons and a crop top, though she sported her fiery sarong and kept a cloak for herself. At first she felt it was good to leave the harem veil she had been given, but with the sand billowing across the landscape, she had kept it. It brought the added benefit of hiding her lips when she was chanting a spell. 

Once the sorceress leaned over, Markus whispered to her. At first they had tried to force the door open but Calliope had announced it was magically sealed. After having sat here for around an hour, Markus had figured it out. She began to chant for but a brief moment, motioning a rhythmic gesture with her fingers. The men jumped back as the stones began to turn and move with a rumbling certainty. 

By order, the pattern went Crow, Wolf, Lamb, Shepherd, Serpent, and Crow. It was an old Aradian adage of the order of nature. The Crow follows the Wolf, who hunts the Lamb, who is guarded by the Shepherd, who watches for the Serpent, who is devoured by the Crow. It was supposed to symbolize the one who waits for the opportunity to strike will find reward, whether it is the dead wolf, lamb, man, or serpent. The crow feasts. An apt story, seeing as Markus and Calliope were very much like the two crows awaiting their 'friends' to move forward. 

The stones struck home with a finality. Markus lifted himself off the small rock and gazed at the door expectantly. The others looked very perplexed, and one man pissed himself scared when the ground began to shake around them and sand poured from above like a running drain. Beyond the grains of falling sand, the door was now open, leading into the dark below. A strange sound came from the gaping maw of the rock as the air escaped it, like a beast growling with ill intent.