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 Mancuso looked at Consus eye to eye and asked, “What would you have of me?”

“We will have what you came for.  What’s that you have in the chest, old man?  Let’s take a look.”

“Who sent you?” asked Mancuso without showing emotion.

“Sent us?”  Consus acted stunned, unconvincingly.  “No one sent us, we was just out for a little loot.  Come on, did you find some for us?”  All the while advancing, the others now jeering and mock jabbing at him with their swords when his back was turned.

Mancuso shook his head slowly.  “The false-hearted always lie: a treasure seeker declares himself an explorer; a bandit claims to be a treasure seeker; but only an assassin or worse would admit to being a thief.”  He gently placed the chest down with stiff back and bended knee, never taking his eyes off of Consus.  Patting the small chest with his free hand he replied, “Now, why not come and take a look, little children?”

Training or no, this was just the push they needed.  At once, Consus and the others rushed at Mancuso.

In one swift motion, Mancuso flung his cloak at those just behind him and lunged at those before him.  His blade grew hot with a bright amber edge.  LaSor was no ordinary blade; it had a heritage older than Cah Bel and came from unknown origins.  It could slice through steal and stone as easily as through flesh.

The first Shadow Knight to come toward him must have known of LaSor’s history, for as soon as he saw the amber edge he dodged rather than parried Mancuso’s first slice.  Mancuso’s jab glanced to the side, but using this momentum he ducked to one knee swung around with the other leg outstretched and tripped this knight.  As the knight fell back he tried to balance his fall with a stone bench.  Mancuso sliced up through the bench leg.  It crumbled and Mancuso kicked it on top of the knight ... one knight down, for the moment.

Scroll 1: History's Mirror                                                                                    Chapter 1: Treasures from the Past