by Melan, Bikerdude

"Some say sudden wealth is a blessing, but those people are suckers. Me, I am the more careful kind. So when it turned out The Grail of Regrets, this sinister relic I dug up from a long-forgotten undercellar, brought in an unexpected number of the rich and influential, I knew my only course of action was to sell, and do it quickly. My best offer came from Archibald Flint, the boss of Fiddler's Hill and its merry men: one of the bigger names in the business, and as they say, the occult. Not that I would say no: if a man like him wants something, an independent can only hold out so long as he has contacts left - or fingers. Trouble is, someone else also wanted to do him a favour... On my way to Fiddler's Hill, I took a shortcut through Willett's Bridge, an antique thoroughfare bypassing some of the slums I wanted to avoid. The place enjoys a bad reputation - high tolls, confiscated cargo, and a series of gruesome accidents. Not the best place to be seen carrying a precious relic, but when you are in a hurry it is easy to make mistakes. The ramshackle mansion above belongs to a man named Messer Montrose, a factor who lords over the place with a group of thugs, and whose contacts with the Bailiff of the nearby jail has made him above the law. His men were waiting for me high above the city, and after a savage beating, threw me over the bridge down into the muddy streets. And so..."