Chapter Seven

Go on ... go on ... don't stop ... go on ...

Kryll gasped for breath, his lungs burning. Beads of sweat trickled down his cheeks and gathered on his chin.

Panting, he dragged himself forward, his gaze fixed ahead. He didn't dare look back, the fear sat like a leaden weight on the back of his neck.

Keep going .... don't stop ..... one step ... one more step ... one more step ...

With every step he took and the weight he put on his right leg, a sharp pain shot through his ankle and radiated into his thigh.

...more....

Kryll took the next step. He was too exhausted to reproach himself; reproach himself for taking the supposed shortcut through the Brent Forest on the way to Minthral. That he had ignored his friends' warnings about the wolves that had been spotted.

There was only room for one word in his head:

!!! RUN !!!

But he couldn't run, his injured leg was too painful. A terrible truth spread through him, driving his already racing heart even further.

They would catch up with him. They would find him and eat him. And no one would notice.

He hastily scanned the surroundings with his eyes for a hiding place, a shelter where he could hide.

What for! he thought desperately.

They would follow his trail and inevitably find him. The pain had turned into a dull roar that seized his whole body and lay over the fear. His ears began to ring and his eyes went black.

*****

Lord Mitten looked down at his future underling.

He didn't seem to have laid down voluntarily, the limbs were too uncomfortably positioned for that. That would have been a stupid idea with two frost wolves close on his heels.

"Hm," he frowned.

Lord Mitten hoped he hadn't run into a stupid underling. That would complicate his plans considerably. Stupid people tended to make stupid decisions.... like lying down on the ground to sleep when being chased by frost wolves.

He studied his future subordinate more closely and came to the conclusion that he had probably run out of breath and collapsed.

Not stupid, just weak. he thought with relief. Weakness can be cured.

Lord Mitten wasn't too well versed in healing, but he had enough basic knowledge to treat a person without life-threatening injuries - who wanted to have to make their way to the nearest healer at the slightest scratch?

I certainly don’t.

He reached for the magical source inside him and let it wrap itself around the young man like a heavy carpet. His magical energy explored the body and gave Lord Mitten immediate feedback on his condition.

Hmm, exhausted and a sprained leg. Not ideal for a long hike. He directed life energy into the body, which accelerated the natural healing process. The leg would not be completely pain-free, but coupled with a little painkiller, slow walking should be reasonably possible. The stranger's face improved noticeably and his breathing became deeper and slower.

He opened his brown eyes.

*****

Am I dead? was Kryll's first thought.

But then why does my leg still hurt? was the second, directed as a complaint to whatever supernatural being was responsible for his post-living experience.

And why was he looking into the face of a cat?

"Hello." said the cat.

I am dead, Kryll realized.

"Allow me, my name is...," the cat paused for a strangely long time.

An absurd thought occurred to Kryll. Had he forgotten his name? And what did that say about the undead beast's mental state?

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"...Lord Mitten."

"Anyway, that's the name I've been known by here for some time," the creature continued.

"I'm looking for someone I can entrust with scouting new business opportunities. And that's when I came across you."

Kryll blinked in confusion. "Business? In the world of the dead?"

The cat stared at him.

"World of the dead?"

For a moment, Lord Mitten was worried that he had stumbled into a stupid human after all.

"Aren't I dead?"

"Not that I know of, no."

Kryll's mind was still sluggish and slow to get going. He tried to grasp at something that made sense, wondering which made more sense: that he was dead or that he had survived and was having a conversation with a cat. He was leaning towards dead, but when he looked left and right, his surroundings still looked suspiciously like the patch of forest where he had lost consciousness.

So not dead after all. Which definitely didn't explain the talking cat.

Kryll slowly straightened his upper body and propped himself up on his arms.

Lying down, the cat had seemed taller. Smooth, shiny dark brown fur nestled against a stocky body. Golden-yellow pupils stared at him from almond-shaped eyes and pricked ears picked up his every word. A white paw flashed out of the otherwise dark fur.

"Are you ... a monster?" Kryll had never heard of monsters that looked like ordinary cats.

"A monster?... hm." The tomcat licked his paw extensively. "I suppose that's how I'd be described these days."

Lord Mitten reminisced for a brief moment.

A long time ago, when he was still young and inexperienced and his family consisted of more members than him, there were various life forms that would probably be called 'Monster' today. However, he preferred the term 'Ancient Being'.

"And .... are you going to eat me?" Talking monsters, Kryll had learned, were powerful. Too powerful to put up a serious fight against. Fear took hold of him again.

"What? ...No!" Lord Mitten's whiskers twitched indignantly. What wild ideas the younger generation came up with.

"Oh."

"Then why are you here?" Kryll asked hesitantly.

"I might as well ask you that: what drove you to walk through the forest alone and at night?" replied Lord Mitten.

"Ahhh!" Kryll exclaimed. He suddenly remembered how he had got into this situation in the first place. Where were the frost wolves?! Was he still in danger?! He hastily got up as quickly as he could with his still aching leg.

"The frost wolves! Have you seen them? Are they gone?"

Lord Mitten eyed him.

Not the quick sort.

"I asked them to leave the premises," he replied.

Visibly relieved, the young man slumped back down a little and exhaled deeply.

Lord Mitten cleared his throat.

"To get back to the reason for my presence. As I mentioned before, I'm looking for someone to take care of some business matters for me."

"Business matters?"

"I intend to open a bookstore with old texts, poems and other antiques."

Kryll stared at the cat. "And you're looking for suitable staff here in the forest?" He tried to keep a neutral expression on his face. Monsters, he had heard, sometimes had strange preferences and peculiar ways of looking at things. However, as they celebrated them with the utmost seriousness, they would not forgive anyone for making fun of them.

"Of course not! The idea only occurred to me recently and no sooner had I thought of it than I came across you. I would call it a stroke of luck."

A stroke of luck.

He had left home to realize the big plans he had for his life in the next town. His home village had been too small to satisfy his fantasies. He had not yet planned exactly how he would forge his fortune. Once he was there, he thought, he would think of something.

So if fate had caused him to stumble across a powerful monster, why not...

...in a corner of his head, his common sense screamed that it was a stupid, stupid idea to get involved with mages and other powerful beings!

However, the cry was comparatively quiet and was soon drowned out by his thirst for adventure and business opportunities. After all, such an opportunity only came along once in a lifetime! So why not seize the once-in-a-lifetime chance and use the opportunities that such an occupation offered for future business!

Kryll gave himself a jolt and looked the cat firmly in the eye.

"I'm in."

"Great!" Lord Mitten walked delightedly around his new underling and looked at him from all sides.

"Then this is your first official assignment. Go to Minthral and inquire about properties that are suitable for business and for sale. And where to get delicacies."

A few silver coins appeared out of nowhere and floated in the air in front of Kryll.

"For food and lodging."

A bottle with indefinable contents appeared next to the coins.

"For the leg."

Kryll's surprise lasted only a brief moment. He would have to get used to it if he worked for a monster in the future.

He grabbed the coins, stowed them in his pouch and drank the brew. The pain in his leg was noticeably less.

"Oh, there's one more thing I should mention," the cat continued, staring at him insistently. "Anonymity is important to me, very important. So when I enter the city, I don't expect to hear anything about mythical monsters and talking cats. Should anyone inquire, you will be acting on behalf of your client, who wishes to remain anonymous."

Kryll nodded. He would do whatever was necessary to satisfy his mythical client and carry out his first assignment in the city to the cat's complete satisfaction.

Only he who dares much, wins much! And I will not be accused of having dared too little in life.

Kryll hesitated briefly before asking the question that was burning on his tongue.

"Why are you entrusting me with this task without really knowing me? I could betray you and simply disappear with the money."

Lord Mitten looked at the young man for a long time.

"That would be terribly stupid of you."

The cat suddenly seemed much taller. His long shadow fell on Kryll and he had the impression of being stared at by a predator.

"And you're not stupid." As quickly as it had come, the illusion vanished again and an ordinary cat sat before him.

Kryll swallowed the lump that had formed in his throat.

"No, I'm not." he confirmed.

"I thought so." the tomcat purred contentedly. "Then get going, I'll join you in a few weeks."

He paused for a moment and then asked: "What's your name, anyway?"

Kryll straightened up. "Kryll, Kryll Gyhlenhall."