Ratchet approached the child. He was stunned at the child's sudden and nonchalant exclamation.

"Sorry kiddo, did you just say you can take us to 'The Finders'?"

The child shook his head up and down.

"Hmm, hum. Miss Adriana told me that it was my job to bring you her. She knows you're looking for 'The Finders' and wants to speak to you."

Ratchet and Christi stood silent, the whole thing could be a trap. Was it worth the risk? Christi stepped forward.

"Take us to her then."

"Wait kiddo, shouldn't we first regroup with Sam and Piotr?"

Christi eyeballed Ratchet. For a man that was often the first to utilise the direct approach, he was hesitant all of a sudden. Was it Piotr's influence?

"If you don't want to come then run back to Piotr for help. It's alright, I understand."

Ratchet exhaled through his nose fiercely, he almost forgot how much of a brat Christi could be. This girl was just downright reckless.

"Would it kill you to think for a second?"

"I am, it's like Piotr said we don't have time to waste. You used to be braver."

"Used to be… never lost that cheeky gob of yours I see."

Ratchet cast his gaze towards the child idly observing their bickering.

"Take us to this Miss Adriana then."

The child scurried off, with a wave of his hand he beckoned them to follow and the pair did just that. Ratchet scoffed.

"Get one thing straight Chris, I ain't gone soft, certainly not because of Piotr. I'm here for you, not him. You remember that."

A sly grin crawled across the young girl's face, it was nice to see that anger had still not mellowed out. There was still life in the old man.

Piotr and Sam sat adjacent in a small compact room. opposite the two men behind a cold steel table was the older, lanky guard who had whisked the pair here. From above light leaked through a glass skylight. The guard delicately tapped a collection of papers on the rigid table. He gathered up his weapon. Piotr observed the deadly instrument.

He recognised it, a sap, standard issue for most guardsmen stationed in cities and towns. It was a blunt tool used for incapacitating targets with swift strikes to the gut. Wrapped tightly around the hilt or base of the sap were frayed leather bindings, maybe on a bad day the guardsmen wouldn't have been so tolerant. The guard clasped the weapon and hooked it to his belt.

"Well, I think that covers the criteria of questions I need answered. Thank you two gentlemen for your time and if I could please ask that in the future you would please refrain from assaulting further citizens. I understand you possess the ability to wield the law in whatever manner you may wish but respecting the citizens of Barakat and their safety would be much appreciated."

Piotr and Sam both responded with a nod of acknowledgement, Sam leaned forward, and he removed his top hat. Holding the hat close to his chest he met the guard's gaze and delivered a sincere message.

"I'd like to apologise once again for my appalling behaviour. Such brazenness is intolerable I am aware."

The guard frowned.

"You said earlier that you did so on account of learning more about 'The Finders?' correct? Quite the notorious group you're hunting, they've had quite the meteoric rise in the last two years. The group itself consists of a network of radical Barakat citizens, specifically merchants and traders closely working together. Around two years the group started circulating invites to anyone and everyone around town. In these invitations, they boldly proclaimed a wish to see a Barakat free of 'The Pioneers' influence. As you can imagine they don't take too kindly to folks like you."

Piotr wasn't surprised by this at all, there were those in Barakat who feared him and those who hated him. Being the poster boy of the Pioneers certainly didn't ease tensions. This fella seemed the observant type, Perhaps he could assist them.

"You asked earlier why we assaulted that merchant, Truth be told we omitted the full picture. 'The Finders' seem to have brokered some kind of mutual agreement with a mercenary who has been bothering us recently. We were hoping this group could lead us to him. Say? I imagine you monitor things quite closely here. You wouldn't have happened to notice a short, muscular man, who wears a hood, bushy black beard, mercenary type.

The guard stiffly sat back, he appeared to be searching his mind. He frowned.

"Nothing springs to mind, however recently a group of Fheitgr warriors took refuge up by the entry point to the Orton River. Journeyed here in two fairly large boats. Perhaps he's linked to them given the nature of his timing. However, like most situations involving Fheitgr, we've kept our distance. We'd rather not pick fights with Fheitgr."

As he finished his sentence he met both Sam and Piotr's eyes, the fear upon mention of the Fheitgr could not have been more prevalent. The guard rose to his feet.

"Anyways that concludes proceedings, you're free to go. Please keep in mind what I said."

Piotr and Sam stood up.

"Of course, you have our gratitude, sir, we will respect your wishes."

The guard gave a curt nod.

"Much appreciated Mr Henlein."

The man turned around and reached for the door handle. Suddenly a small spherical object crashed through the skylight from overhead. Piotr reacted first, he kicked the table over, grabbed Sam, and ducked behind. Despite the table providing cover, the explosion knocked them backward. The pair slammed against the wall.

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As the hue of smoke began to fade Piotr crawled to his knees. He grabbed his back, relatively unharmed, his metal-lined coat had done its job nicely. He spotted the guard from a moment ago, he was slumped in the corner. Shrapnel buried itself in the man's side and arm, he was dead.

Descending from above were two men clad in hoods and faceguards. One stood tall over the other, he was large and burly. Piotr observed the two, judging by their builds and choice of clothing these must've been the Fheitgr warriors the guard had mentioned.

Our mystery man is either Fheitgr himself or has friends in high places. First, we'll start with names, Let's call the big man Gorilla. The other man was tall and toned, and you Panther. Now Gorilla and Panther, how are you going to tackle this?

"That's him."

"Quickly before he recovers, dispose of him." Panther barked.

Gorilla held Panther back, Panther squirmed but Gorilla's vice-like grip held.

"What are you doing? Now's our chance, you heard Kydin, hit and run only."

"There's no honour in that, it's not the Fheitgr way. Kydin may fight like a coward but I refuse. Let him stand."

Piotr climbed to his feet, he stood ready. Fheitgr and their honour, what a naive way of living.

"Are you sure about this? You've just let your chance of victory slip by. All that awaits you now is death" Piotr said in a deadpan manner.

Gorilla laughed heartily, "This will be fun, it's been quite some time since I faced someone so confident. Let's begin."

Piotr drew open his trenchcoat and began manipulating a small assortment of metal lining sewn loosely into his coat. He crafted a sword and readied his guard. Panther dashed forward, he moved incredibly fast. Piotr chuckled, the given nicknames were on the money. Piotr reacted to this and blocked the man's wild strike. Piotr noticed his weapon was not crafted from steel or metal. No magnetic pull radiated from it, he would have to rely on his assets.

These two men were currently in an attuned state, their affinities and mana being in conjunction used to greatly enhance their physical attributes to that of a superhuman degree.

A Fheitgr specialty, He had remembered his training and the instructions his tutors had drilled into him. He could hear it now. "Enhance your reflexes, remember pressure points. Aim for the temple and the lower back of the head, the occipital bone, one swift strike will knock them unconscious. End the fight as quickly as you can."

Panther released his blade, he let it fall, caught it, and attempted another swipe at a lower height, Reacting to this Piotr brought his sword down and once again succeeded in denying the man. The Gorilla leaped over Panther, Piotr quickly yanked the sword back a couple of feet dragging his body along with it. Luckily for him, the room was compact, as long as he ensured the two remained in front of him at all times he could win.

"Hahaha, very good. More! More!" laughed the Gorilla.

The Gorilla crouched in front of Panther, he was poised ready to strike. Panther launched himself off the gorilla's back, he raised his blade overhead. The gorilla did not waste a second, he charged at Piotr. Piotr separated the sword into two keeping the blade while molding the hilt into a miniature gauntlet for his right fist.

He propelled the blade toward its airborne opponent. Panther, no surprise, quickly parried the blade, discarding the sword and brandishing a dagger. Now for the ace in the hole, behind the pair, Piotr quickly tugged the metal club free from the deceased guard's corpse. These two had been careless, Gorilla's lust for battle prevented the two from keenly observing the battlefield.

Soaring quickly and quietly through the air the club struck the back of his airborne opponent's head. Panther went limp. Gorilla drove forward, Piotr attempted to land a punch on Gorilla but his large hand caught his fist with ease.

"Good fight." Gorilla smiled with glee.

"Shut up." Piotr retorted.

The club, still airborne, quickly spun downwards and struck Gorilla on the back of his cranium, the impact knocking Gorilla to his knees. Piotr struck the man again and again until eventually, the gorilla slammed to his back. Gorilla and Panther lay sprawled out on the floor unconscious.

Piotr pointed his blade at Gorilla's throat. Better dead than alive later to cause more problems. He gripped his sword ready to plunge the blade, Sam stirred groggily. Piotr paused, dismantled his weapon, and quickly checked on Sam, he checked his pulse, he was breathing.

Thank god for that. Time to get going, that wouldn't keep the two attackers down for long. He propped Sam up and dragged him out of the room. The two entered what seemed like the main lounge, all the guardsmen inside were dead.

Throats were slit and shrapnel had found its home in bodies galore. Soon the town would be in disarray, everything had grown more complicated. Piotr and Sam exited the guardhouse and retreated to the inn.

Christi and Ratchet followed the young boy through the dimly lit sewers. Christi illuminated the space with her flame affinity. A small ember dutifully burned in the palm of her hand providing much-needed light for the trio. Ratchet stared at her prosthetic arm, Alex had something similar. He had been meaning to ask about her arm after Piotr had told him how she acquired it.

"Neat trick. Seems useful…. Your arm. I mean you couldn't use magic and now look at ya, Piotr's tech sure is something."

Christi glanced at her palm.

"Yeah, it was a gift from Piotr."

"How does it feel?"

"Like my arm, wasn't always like that for a while, it felt strange. The mana in my arm circulating the way it was, it took some getting used to."

Ratchet balled his fist, what was he even saying? This was going nowhere. He wanted to help Christi but he couldn't do that if she wouldn't open up and right now he wasn't making any headway. He would try again, a more direct approach.

"Do you want to talk about all that's happened kiddo?"

"About what?"

"About what happened in Chrodrift".

The flame flickered, and the light began to quell. Christi regained her composure.

"No."

"I think talking could help kiddo, you can't keep running away."

There it was again, that deathly silence.

"It's just up ahead." the boy spoke up.

The three approached a cobblestone wall, protruding inward was a small hole. Without so much as an explanation, the boy poked the sword equipped to his toy figure through. After a few seconds, the wall slipped back.

"Follow me, Miss Adriana is waiting for you".

He entered, turning into a narrow corridor. Christi and Ratchet promptly followed. Drops of water plummeted from the damp ceiling overhead. Eventually, they reached an open plaza. The ceiling, unlike before, now loomed tall, pillars of cobblestone erected around the plaza reached upwards and merged with the ceiling.

Huddled over a sprawled-out map on a table were a group of masked individuals like the midnight callers Christi and Ratchet had already encountered.

"So they've stationed themselves here at the mouth of the Orton River, scouting reports say they've also made camp in the mountain ridge here, now."

The talking ceased as the footsteps of the boy, Christi, and Ratchet neared. The huddle split, revealing a tall woman in the center. She was the one calling the shots. Best be alert, Christi thought.

She smiled, it was fake, artificial. The woman waved her hand.

"It appears our guests have arrived, leave us. I need the room."

The masked individuals departed. Quickly the little boy ran to the woman's side clutching at her trousers. She was blonde, Wrinkles thinly lined around her hard eyes, eyes that surveyed Ratchet and Christi.

Crouching down she hugged the boy tightly.

"Oh, you did so well Bruno. Now I'm going to talk to our friends here, Nick told me he needs help with the crates. It should be no problem for a big strong boy like you right?"

Bruno nodded and dashed off, dipping into another narrow corridor. The woman rose, and she flashed another artificial warm smile.

"Thank you for your patience, my name is Adriana. I am the leader of 'The Finders'. I heard your party of four was seeking us out. Am I correct?"

"Why did you refer to us as friends, we just met," asked Christi.

"I believe we can both benefit each other in this situation. We are friends in that instance. You had an incentive to seek us out."

"We learned from one of your men that you were hired by a hooded man with a bushy beard, we hoped you'd be able to point us in his direction," said Ratchet.

Adriana's face soured, and so did her tone.

"So you're chasing that scumbag…"

"You still gladly took that scumbag up on his offer," chimed in Christi.

"You know he looks an awful lot like you girl, tanned, baby blue eyes, murky green hair. He's Fheitgr."

Ratchet and Christi's eyes widened, and Adriana chuckled.

"And like most Fheitgr he's not a man you can say no to. Kydin's his name, quite the figure in the world of mercenaries. By normal conventions, none of us could hope to defeat a warrior like him. Not to mention the company of veteran mercs he has backing him, who too are Fheitgr. However, the word around town is that the Pioneer golden boy Piotr Henlein has suddenly shown up. He's traveling with a young Fheitgr amputee, an old man, and a silly-looking man who wears a raven-feathered hat. My, what a surprise you seem to tick off two of those descriptions precisely."

Christi glared at Adriana, she didn't like this woman, she was the crafty sort.

Adriana leaned back against the table.

"How about this for a proposition then since we're on the topic of deals made? I'll help you find your man if you help me kill Kydin and his mercs."