A caution line of yellow tape was drawn across the front entrance of the Grinding Gears club, big black letters struck across the doors:
UNDER NEW MANAGEMENT
UNDER RENOVATIONS
Two goblins manned the front doors, shrinking back against the steel facade of the building beneath the canopy in a feeble attempt to keep the sheets of rain at bay. The one on the left held a ferocious frown on his face, eyebrows drawn in a deep V. His thick, green fingers patted heavily against the front of his jacket, a huff of frustration leaving him as he looked over to the goblin manning the opposite end of the door.
“I’ve got a light.” The voice was deep, a thick Kezanian accent overlaying the words. “Ya got any smokes?”
“Feh...” Leftie replied. “Ain’t got shit, the boss don’t bring shit like he used to, seems like he’s got himself locked up tight.” He grumbled, spitting heavily on the ground between the two of them. “Son of a bitch ain’t got nothin’ for us anymore...Hold up. Whassat over there?” The goblin pushed from the wall, gesturing out into the darkness.
“Eh?” Rightie’s head turned, eyes squinting as he stared into the night. “The fuck you on abo-” There it was! An orange red speck in the distance bobbed up and down slightly, sitting about head height, and moving ever closer to the two of them. As the speck neared them, they became conscious of a confident set of footsteps, one that usually accompanied a lady or gentleman with fancy shoes walking down the cobbled walk. Suddenly the figure became clear, stepping into the light that was kept beneath the canopy, stopping just shy of the point that his face would have been visible. The orange speck that they’d seen nearing was the burning tip of a cigar, and by the scent of it, a nice one.
It was a gnome, certainly, one dressed up like he was ready to party. A slim fitting black suit hugged his form, contrasting the bright white of his freshly pressed shirt, top button undone with a black tie hanging loosely around his neck. The gloved hands raised to grab the cigar between finger and thumb, the end glowing brighter as he took one more drag, exhaling a thick cloud of tobacco smoke as he pulled it from his lips.
“Evening, folks. Came to gather a debt.” The voice was deep, casual in the extreme.
The two goblins pushed from the walls to stand a bit more in the light, arms crossing over their chests. Rightie spoke up immediately, hand coming to rest on a crude cudgel that sat on his left hip.
“Club’s closed, Pal. Get skippin’ or get beggin’, we ain’t got no time for you tonight.” Rightie wasn’t in quite the mood for idle chitchat, and had even less patience for the high and mighty type.
Leftie nodded, eyebrows drawing together in slight recognition, something about that voice rang alarm bells in his mind, but he couldn’t quite...
“Come on now, it’s a debt owed me, I think I should be able to gather whenever I see fit.” The cigar fell from his hand, onto the ground where he ground it into the cobbles.
It was a common trick, one of the oldest in the book, just draw the eyes far enough away from what you want to do, then act. In that moment when his foot ground into the cigar and both goblins were thoroughly distracted the gnome made his move, pushing the black suit coat back far enough to grab the polished revolver from his right hip. It took three shots for him to be satisfied. Before either of the goblins could react a bullet had already burst through Righties skull, spraying gore against the soaked facade of the building, the next two shots were meant for Lefties kneecaps.
A scream ripped from his throat as he collapsed, virtually legless, nose smashing into the ground and breaking on impact as he fell. Then the thought struck him, why the voice sounded so familiar. He slowly turned his head from the ground, still writhing and groaning in pain as the lifeblood left his body from the two valves the gnome had opened up. His teeth ground together and his eyes traveled the rest of the way to see the gnome standing above him.
“M-Mister Shadowspanner! I thought that...”
“I was dead? No, no Charlie. I’m far from that, and as I said.” The figure stepped closer, polished shoes stepping into the pool of gathering blood, hooking onto his shoulder to carelessly flip him over. Two emerald eyes glared out from the darkness above, revolver flipping in his right hand so that he could hold it by the barrel. “I’ve come to gather a debt.” Before the goblin could speak again Tweaks Shadowspanner flipped the gun one more time and descended on the goblin like a shadow, whipping the already dying goblin in the head with the barrel. There was a sickening crunch, then relative silence for several seconds.
Tweaks came to a stand, looking down at his shoes and the blood that was on them, stepping back out into the rain to rinse them off.
“Wash the blood off of my shoes, but not off of my soul.” He shook the excess water from his shoes, stepping back beneath the canopy to stare at the ugly yellow tape that had been so carelessly slapped on the club that he’d built from nothing. “Light look past me tonight, I’ve not finished sinning yet.”
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“Tell me again, Izzy.” Nevec Winesipper grinned, leaning back in a chair in the demolished main room of the club. “I like hearing about how that conniving bitch squirmed.” Both feet kicked up onto the table that he’d been using as a desk over the past few days, eyes locked on the wonderful lady who lead the operation that he himself had formulated.
“Boss,” The woman said, eyebrows knitting together in frustration. “That’s the fourth time ya asked about it, I understand ya didn’t like the folks, but let’s not take this too far, yeah?” She could see the frustration grow on his face at her denial, and felt a small thrill of victory course through her. “I may’ve killed ‘er, but business is business. I like ta keep it that way.”
“Bah, you’re too fuckin’ soft.” Nevec strained to reach the bottle on the ground to his right, tongue protruding from between his teeth as he did it. “ ‘Sides, as your boss, you should probably just listen to me.” He twisted the cap on the bottle until the seal was entirely broken. “Ain’t any problem celebratin’ a victory anyhow.”
“Problem ain’t celebratin’, Boss.” She turned to him now, hand falling to her left hip, body clad in tight black leathers suited to the superficial look of an assassin, and the uniform Nevec had chosen for her. “Ya been obsessed with ‘em, Shadowspanner ain’t had any plans to come back, and the Boomgear girl was just doin’ her job. Now she’s dead, and ya expect him ta stay away?” She scoffed, eyes moving towards the entrance as though she expected him to bust in at any moment.
“The motherfucker ain’t comin’ back!” Nevec suddenly exploded, chucking the still full bottle at the ground as he scrambled to his feet. “We took everythin’ he had! And he ain’t got no reason to!” The goblin jammed a finger in the direction of Lizzy, eyes wide and wild. “You wipe those words from your mind, cause he ain’t comin’ back.”
Lizzy didn’t budge, she had more pressing matters to attend to, after all. Her violet eyes were locked on the door frame, both hands gripping at the blades that sat there. Nevec saw her ignorance and growled in his throat, stepping towards her closer, hand reaching to grab onto her shoulder only to be stopped short by a dagger slamming directly into his wrist, sending him reeling into the table that he’d been using. The pain that exploded through him felt like a fire had suddenly been lit within.
“What a shame.” Tweaks said from the doorway, feet clicking against the ground as he stepped through the threshold, fulfilling Lizzy’s earlier thought. His hands were dropped lazily into his pockets. “I’d hoped that you’d save a bottle or two for me, since I built this place from the ground up, but instead you killed my assistant.” His bright emerald eyes flicked endlessly between the two of them, crooked smile on his face. Nevec stayed slumped against the table, jaw agape and trembling in fear. “Now, I’m fairly certain I know how this happened, but I want to make sure.”
Lizzy wasn’t going to give him time to finish talking, body vanishing and reappearing directly behind the gnome who’d entered without welcome, both daggers now drawn from her hips and aimed for the spine of the gnome. The small man vanished from sight mere centimeters before her blades found home, reappearing back next to the table where Nevec squirmed. His hand gripped the wounded wrist, sending a howl of pain through the terrified goblin before he jammed the tip of the dagger deep into the wood of the table in use, the sound of splitting wood cutting through the anguished cries for a split moment.
Tweaks stayed crouched on the tabletop, hand clapping over the mouth of Nevec as he stared Lizzy down. To her eyes he was entirely unarmed, guns having been abandoned before he entered the building.
“Now now, Elizabeth, I’d hoped you’d be willing to speak before escalating this.” Tweaks hummed softly, hands dipping once more into his pockets. “Frankly, I’d be giving you a way out of this confrontation if you weren’t the one who’d carved all of the vileness into the flesh of Miss Boomgear.” His shoulders shrugged up and down. “Frankly, I’d say it was just business otherwise, but recompense must be paid.”
Lizzy simply nodded her head in agreement, despite the fact that she didn’t like the deed, she had certainly desecrated the body of the mans assistant, and raided his office space.
“I’m more than willin’ ta speak about it all, Tweaks, but I just did as I was ordered.” She flipped one of her daggers in her hands, sliding it across the ground to the unarmed Tweaks. The gnome hopped from the tabletop, sliding his suit jacket off to fall in a heap on the ground as Lizzy continued. “I know you don’t really wanna talk right now, so let’s just skip it all, eh? Fair and square, first to die loses.”
“Fair and square it is, Lizzy.” Tweaks picked up the dagger and continued walking forward, Lizzy matching the movement, both falling into combative stances in front of one another.
Both pairs of feet moved seamlessly across the floor as they began to circle as duelists do, eyes ceaselessly hunting for any opening. Lizzy was drawn tight as whipcord, eyes shifting between the dagger in the gnomes hand and his practiced steps, knowing that when the time came she would get only one chance to...There it was! Tweaks planted his left foot, lunging forward with the dagger, but also leaving his chest entirely exposed. If she could just block that one strike it would all be over.
A wolfish grin of victory crossed her features, glad that this would be over so quickly, swinging her dagger across in a parry to block his lunge...But meeting no resistance. She watched as Tweaks’ dagger fell from his hand, her blade already having transitioned into a full parry, swinging far too wide due to a lack of resistance that she wasn’t anticipating. She vanished into thin air, reappearing several feet further away from the man she was squared off with. Tweaks gave her a disappointed frown.
“Lizzy, what ever happened to fair and square?”
“It ain’t like I’m doing anything ya can’t, Tweaks.” She paused for three heartbeats, ice settling in her stomach. “If ya can’t stomach a fight like that, then be ready ta die.”
Tweaks paused, soft smile splitting his features, body falling once more into a preparatory crouch.
“My apologies, I wasn’t giving you the respect you deserve as a warrior. Shadows keep you, Lizzy.”
“May they guide ya, Tweaks.”
The flurry of movement that ensued was one that couldn’t be described as anything other than a waltz. The two moved in perfect sync with one another, blades moving in towards vulnerable areas at lightning speeds, the only sounds that echoed through the room were the sounds of steel on clashing steel. In spite of the situation, Nevec couldn’t help but be in awe of the two people, forgetting himself before the stabbing pain brought him back to reality.
The Goblin and Gnome danced in the shadows, bodies vanishing and reappearing at dizzying angles, twisting and writhing in and out of the shadows to lash at one another, or to defend against a strike. If it had lasted but a few seconds longer, both may have died. The last sight of the two that Nevec was awarded was Lizzy driving a dagger into the shoulder of Tweaks, the pain caused by such a thing driving Tweaks to howl in agony. Lizzy grinned, feeling victory for the second time that night. For the second time that night it was snatched away. The arm below the shoulder that was pierced jerked upwards, blade cutting nastily up her side, and numbing the nerves in her arm as he sliced up and through the armpit, both left with a single useless side. On closer inspection one would see that the two of them were in shambles, dozens of cuts dripping blood onto the ground, mixing with sweat and tears as they fell.
“You were a fantastic teacher, Lizzy. I hope you know that.” Tweaks smiled, the tears flowing with renewed force.
“You was always my favorite student, Tweaks.” She coughed, stumbling to the side slightly, slipping slightly on a slick of blood and sweat below, eyes widening at the mistake. In the next moment she felt the iron grip of the mans right hand grasp her throat, a sad smile on his face, but she was somehow glad. Unlike when she first taught him, she saw something new, something refreshing.
In her last moments before her windpipe was shattered by the downwards momentum of him driving her into the floor by the throat, she could do nothing but admire the resolve in him. Not bloodlust, just clear resolve to do what needed to be done. The wet crunch of broken bone and shattered life brought forth a silence that had been missing for over five minutes of continuous clashing blades.
Tweaks breathed heavily, tears still flowing. Two times in a period of two days had he been forced to hold one who he cared for as they passed on, two times in two days did he fail to do what needed to be done, or say what needed to be said to the precious souls. But payment was still due, so he stood, wiping the tears away and smearing blood on his face as he turned towards the cowed Goblin, still impaled to the table by knife.
“So. Two of them, then, Nevec?”
“Come on Tweaks, ya gotta know I didn’t mean no bad blood, it was just-”
“Business had no place in what you did, you cowering pile of excrement.” Tweaks’ feet shambled lifelessly towards Nevec, the same resolve in his eyes that drove him to kill his old friend and teacher. “And you deserve none of the mercy of a quick death that I gave to Lizzy.”
Nevec’s head whipped left to right, hunting for anything he might use, anybody he might call on to defend him, and for the third time that night defeat was given to the spirit of the cowed goblin. Nothing was around...Nothing but blood.
“To make amends to, or reward someone for loss, harm, or effort.” Tweaks came to a crouch in front of Nevec, breathing heavily, left arm limp at his side, dagger still driven through his shoulder. “Recompense is a funny thing, isn’t it?”
“I don’t owe no amends to y-” He made it no further, Tweaks standing quickly and stamping his heel on his extended leg, snapping it backwards to an unhealthy angle, bone breaking within. Nevec went blue in the face, screaming at the pain.
“You owe me everything. I made you who you are, I built the building that you bastardize, and I’ll send you to hell with it.” Tweaks didn’t speak with rage, only with a deadly calm, assurance that he would kill the goblin tonight. “So let me ask you, Nevec.” He smiled calmly at the goblin. “How many bones in your body shall I break before the pain comes even close to what you caused Cassandra?”
The screams that echoed from the building that night could have woken the dead if it was possible, but Tweaks had grown accustomed to the thought that the dead didn’t wake anymore. Never in spirit, never in soul.
They simply moved on, leaving him alone again.
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Three days passed before the news of the destroyed club was old news. Three weeks until the conspiratorial talk of a well dressed gnome massacring the staff and burning the place to the ground left common gossip and entered local legend. Three months passed before Tweaks arrived back home, still beat to hell, but able to walk. He found it so odd to walk the streets of Ironforge again after so long, left arm held up in a sling so as to not strain it. It wasn’t until he reached the small door that acted as the gateway to his privacy, entering without a peep.
Back to the usual, it seemed, the time for grieving had passed. Cassandra never did like wasted time, Tweaks thought. It was a miracle that they loved eachother in the first place with how much she hated it.
“Cassandra...” He spoke simply into the stony, stale air of his home, feeling the name dance on his tongue and through the air. “Cassie...” The tears started again at that, sending him into a curled heap on his bed, body wracked with sobs.
Tweaks never did expect it to rain under a mountain.
