The walk back to the surface would have been exhaustingly awful without Joe’s magic. Each time his strength began to lag, a shot of [Effereous Endurance] revitalized him. When his legs began to burn after climbing up floor after floor of the awkward stairs, [Healing Touch] removed the pain. The worst part of the trip was it was boring and long. Now that he had the information needed, he just wanted to get back to Hah’roo, and even Jink, and let them know their gamble had paid off.
He finally stepped back onto the street, and the pair rose from where they had been seated on the front steps of a townhouse across the narrow lane. Night had fully fallen in the hour or so he was below the streets. Many of the houses were dark, but pleasant-looking street lamps lit the cobblestone roadway.
“Well, well, well. Don’t you look pleased with yourself? You need not utter a word, my good man. It is clear you were successful in your endeavor within the dark reaches of the serr’s lair.” The elf skipped up to Joe and clasped him firmly on both shoulders. His long pointed nose inched from Joe’s. “I am as proud as a new father watching my babe’s first steps.”
“Ok, ok. Jink,” Joe interjected. “Easy. Can you take it down a notch, please? I do know where to go tomorrow.”
“Oh, joy of joys. How can I not be thrilled? The end of the Night Skinner is at hand, and vengeance for those lost is nigh. I cannot wait to sing to the rafters and make merry before the full moon wanes this very month. Too long …”
Jink was interrupted by a white hand pulling him away from Joe. “This is all well and good but your villain is not defeated yet. And he will not be unless this one both rests and trains in the single day we left to us.”
“Fine, fine. If you must be about such mundane chores, then this is where we shall part ways. I plan to spend the night in frivolous merriment and celebration.” He deftly slipped free from Hah’roo’s hold and spun to catch her hand. He first pumped the digit in a vigorous handshake before folding over to brush his lips across the back of her knuckles. “I am most honored to have met you, Madam. I wish you the best of luck in your hunt on the morrow.” Swirling around, he caught Joe’s hand and gave it an equally energetic wag. “And you, my mysterious new mate, I expect to hear great things of you, regardless of your wee levels and apparent lack of expertise. I believe you will surprise the doubters and downers.”
“Thanks, Jink,” Joe stammered. “You’re the one saving the day as much as we might. You got us here.”
“Oh pish posh. Flattery will get you everywhere. But here is where we part. Best of luck to you both.” Placing a finger beside his nose, much like a reed-thin Santa Claus, Jink vanished in a puff of sparks and smoke, leaving the pair alone on the quaint little lane.
“What the …,” Joe gasped. “Why?”
“I think he is overly fond of making a spectacle,” Hah’roo harumphed. “We, too, should get going. We have much of the city to cross before we get back to where the inns are.”
“Wish we could fly back? That was fun.”
“And an extravagance we are unlikely to experience again soon,” she stated, walking along the sidewalk back in the direction they had come from. “Those elixirs likely cost close to a thousand gold each.”
“Really?” Joe groaned, following alongside the huntress. “Crap. I was hoping to do that again.”
“You could buy a basic flying potion for much cheaper, but Jink’s draughts included physical transformation and perfect flight maneuverability. That is something only the idle rich can offer up so effortlessly.”
They covered the next few blocks together in silence. As the went, Joe noticed the galeling stealing glances at him as they walked. Finally, under a streetlight, she reached out a tugged him to a stop.
“Do you trust me?” She asked him earnestly.
“Ah. Yeah. Actually I do. Why?” he sputtered.
“This needs to be fixed then.”
With a lightning-fast jab, Hah’roo crunched her fist into Joe’s nose. He heard the bone crack as his head snapped back. She quickly caught the back of his head, then jammed her fingers on either side of his nose and twisted hard.
“OW!!! Whab da crap, Hah’woo?!”
“Sorry, but it was driving me nuts,” she explained, clearly trying not to smirk but failing. “It’s straight again. Quickly, heal. You can mend your nose correctly this time and stop looking like a beaten thug.”
Through tear-filled eyes, Joe complied, wondering if this was really the woman he wanted training him to fight. She clearly did not pull her punches.
----------------------------------------
“Shh,” the white-skinned woman hissed as they reached the warehouses. “We are being hunted.”
“Wait? What?” Joe whispered. “How do you know?”
“The winds are telling me. Five men are trying to track us. No, not us. You.” She moved them tight to the side of the closest of the large buildings, sliding along it to reach the corner.
“How? I thought I was safe from locate abilities.” Joe huffed quietly, moving as carefully as he could up to her.
Your skill [Stealth] has increased to rank 1.
“All traits can be beaten by the right ability, Joe. The hunters must have something that bypasses your misdirection. Not fully, though, or else they would have ambushed us before I caught wind of them. We have a chance, but we must bring the fight to them. Trying to run for the tavern district before they located you would be a dangerous gambit. Better we tackle them while they are spread out searching, rather than combined and hot on our trail.”
She stopped scanning the intersection of roads ahead and looked Joe in the eyes. She did not say more but it was clear she was waiting on his answer.
“Ok. What do you want me to do?” he asked.
“For now, stay here. Quiet and hidden. The closest one to us is arrogant and brash. He can be taken out of this hunt quickly and unnoticed.” She stood and loosened the coils of her weapon around her body. “I shall be right back.
She glided across the roadway, which was wide enough for multiple wagons to pass each other. When she reached the warehouse across the way, Joe could still clearly see her pale white arms. Then suddenly, she vanished. It was not like she turned a corner. It was as if shadows just swallowed her up. Her stealth skill must be miles better than his Perception.
This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.
Thinking this thought Joe was aware of his own efforts to stay hidden. He eased back aa few inches, finding a bit more shadow to crouch in, while focusing on being as still as possible.
Your skill [Stealth] has increased to rank 2.
‘Nice,’ he thought. Rank 2 was still pretty terrible, but at least he was improving the skill.
Movement on the roof of the warehouse across the avenue caught his eye. A figure wearing a skull-like mask under a wide-brimmed hat eased his way up to the edge of the roof. The man crouched down and began scanning the area. Joe held his breath, trying not to move an inch. After what felt like an eternity, the man stopped his search and reached to his belt. He drew forth a white piece of cloth, much like a handkerchief, before lifting the material to his face. He held the fabric in front of his nose for a moment and then tucked it away. As the tracker did so, his gaze began to swing to where Joe was hiding. Like a hound on the scent, the hunter oriented himself right at where his quarry was tucked into the shadows.
A hostile entity has detected you. You are not hidden.
Before Joe could even try and move, a pale line swung across the sky and lashed itself around the hunter’s neck. It jerked tight, and Joe saw Hah’roo dive off the roof, yanking the surprised tracker from his perch on the shingles. The pair plummeted off the high roof of the four-story tall warehouse. At the last second, dust and debris swirled under the galeling’s feet, slowing her descent to a gentle gliding stop. The man tangled in her line was not so fortunate. He crashed head-first into the stone street with a sickening crunch. Joe used his wound-sight and watched the man’s blue aura fade quickly to the dull gray of death.
With a flick, Hah’roo freed her line and quickly ran her hands over the man’s belt, before dashing over to where Joe was. “That was the easy one. I doubt the others will give us such a blatant opportunity.”
“What was he using to track me?” Joe asked, still keeping as voice as quiet as he could.
“This,” she replied, holding up an embroidered square of linen. On the white fabric was a splotch of blood. In the corner of the square was stitched the sun and moon symbol of Phealti.
Joe realized immediately what he was looking at. “That effing bastard. Azbekt must have wiped my blood from his gauntlets after that beating in Temelmont Square and given it to these assholes.”
“My thoughts as well. Bloodhunters and bloodhounds are some of the more common classes taken by bounty hunters. That sample is how they are bypassing your nondetection ability.”
“So what do we do now?”
Hah’roo held up a hand and cocked her head. She held that pose, listening to something Joe could not hear for a minute before bringing her head close to his. “There are three together a few blocks away,” she whispered. “And one more that way,” she stated pointing in the direction they needed to go to get back near the dock and a place to stay for the night. “I am inclined to take the three first.”
“Why tackle three at once and not the solo guy.”
“The lone hunter is powerful. The three are only in their teens, new to their second class. With the right tactics, the trio are far more easily beaten than the lone seasoned tracker.”
“Ok. If you say so. Am I hiding this time, too?”
“No. One against three, even three with levels below mine, is a terrible idea. A lucky attack, and the outcome could be disastrous. This time you will have to help me. Ready, your … where is your quarterstaff?”
Joe looked to his hands and realized he had never gotten the weapon back when he recovered his gear back at the Canakin. With everything else going on, he had not noticed it was missing until now. Since it was pretty much a mundane stick with a minor buoyancy charm on it, he guessed no one else had given it much thought either. It was probably sitting in some corner of the cathedral or the jail.
Hah’roo’s look of disappointment made Joe feel about two inches tall. He opened his mouth to speak but only got as far as a shrug before she shook her head.
“Wait here,” she breathed. Looking upwards, she shot up into the night on a gust of wind, slipping through a window into the warehouse high above them. A minute later, she returned with a heavy hooked pole that looked like it was used to maneuver crates. “This will have to do. Remember it will not be as well balanced as your staff.”
“That’s ok. My [Staff Expertise] is pretty bad anyway. I’m not sure unbalanced is going to make much of a difference at this point.”
The woman pinched the top of her nose and sighed. “That is not a good thing, Joe.”
“I know. I know. Tomorrow we train. I promise.”
“If we make it to tomorrow,” the galing huffed. “Now, follow me. Step as I do; maybe we can work on your ability to sneak as well.”
Joe followed the sapphire-haired huntress, paying close attention to where she placed her feet and how she positioned her body. To his surprise, the dedication worked. [Stealth] leveled twice more as they slipped through the shadows around the warehouses.
Eventually, Hah’roo led them up a flight of wooden stairs. At a padlocked heavy door, she reached into her hair and pulled out a pair of crooked wires. Crouching, she inserted the tines of metal and, in seconds, popped open the lock. Drawing him inside after her, they inched their way through the dark space to a window.
“Watch,” was all she said.
A minute later three figures appeared from around a building, moving generally in their direction. While not the front figure, one of the hunters immediately drew Joe’s attention. The man was a bunny. A man-sized white anthropomorphic rabbit. He wore a vest, wide-brimmed hat, and leather pants. His big feet were bare, and he had a dark bandana tied around his neck. In one hand he held a black rod with bands of metal around the end. In the other hand, he carried a wicked-looking pick. The jagged spike of that second weapon, wiped away any levity Joe felt about being hunted by a white hare.
The next figure was female. She was lithe and lean, likely an elf. She wore a fur-collared duster and carried a complex-looking crossbow. She, too, sported a broad-rimmed hat like the rabbit and the skull-masked man. Joe could pick out other weapons littered around her body. Knives, darts, hand-axes, and more were tucked in sheathes and hooked onto her numerous belts.
The last hunter wore a leather collar that covered his shoulders, neck, and the lower half of his face. He had two swords drawn. One was a thick curved falchion. The other was a long thin, straight, blade that seemed to be made of molten lava. It glowed a ruddy red in the night’s shadows.
The trio of hunters stopped. They scanned the buildings on either side of them before the two men looked to the female tracker. She tipped up her nose, searching for his scent. A moment later she gestured at the corner of the warehouse where he and Hah’roo were peeking down through the window. They were almost entirely hidden but Joe was thankful when he received another skill notification.
Your skill [Stealth] has increased to rank 5.
Hah’roo leaned in close and whispered to him. “Follow me. Quietly.”
She slipped out of the office room they had been hiding in. Entering the warehouse proper, they found themselves on a wide balcony. An opening in the middle of the decking overlooked the main floor two stories below where they stood. There were plenty of boxes stacked on their level, and Hah’roo wasted no time dragging Joe deeper among the crates.
When she found a spot to her liking, she pulled Joe into a crouch. “This is where I leave you. They will find you but try not to make it easy on them. The more they spread out to search for you, the better our chances are. I will not be far. Are you ready?”
Joe knew he wasn’t, but he gave her a thumbs-up sign anyway. The rope-dancer nodded and slipped into the shadows, leaving Joe on his own.
A moment later, he heard the creak of a door opening from the direction of the office. He briefly closed his eyes and slowed his breath.
‘Here we go,’ he thought, stealing himself, tightening his grip on the gaff in his hands. ‘I can do this!’