The guards stormed into the room, brandishing spears. Some of their faces scrunched into confusion, seeing the six unconscious men, some restrained by ice, before settling harsh unyielding glares at our unlikely trio of a sly criminal leader, a half-demon boy with an appearance many years too young to end up here, and an adolescent girl… or at least an immortal gryphon posing as an adolescent girl.
“Hands up! You are under arrest for engaging in unlawful handling of goods. Make this easier upon yourselves, and surrender!” their leader, a broad-shouldered man with severe features, commanded us, more towards Jude than to me or Shara. His unwavering voice betrayed no hesitation, even as his eyebrows quirked slightly upwards at what I assumed was my appearance.
“Fucking hell, you set me up, boy?” Jude whispered to me, his voice laced with venom, while quickly nudging an elbow into my ribs.
“I said, hands up, every one of you!” The head guard repeated his command, this time not hiding his irritation. “And stand still, no movements.” All three of us lined up and did as he said in unison. From my peripheral, I could see a scowl of gritted teeth from Jude, in contrast to Shara’s lips tugged upwards with amusement. The latter made me almost as irritated as the head guard; was this nothing but entertainment to her? It didn’t appear as if she would aid in abating this situation.
Beyond Shara’s carefree attitude, this whole scene I found myself into laid a stack of frustrations on me. How exactly did I end up here, on the receiving end of threatening spear points?
I bit my lip as I quickly scanned the room, looking for a path of escape. There was only one door in and out, currently blockaded by the line of guards. My choices were to surrender, whatever that may entail, or to blast my way through the guards… or, a third choice, to make my own exit.
“Uh, Sir Warden?” Jude said, replacing his scowl with his signature smile, “It’s good to see you, but what exactly is your business here? We were just enjoying our day here.” His body remained still as a statue, though the edges of his smile twitched. A look in his eyes I recognized from earlier was present. Wily, calculating eyes searching for the advantages he could exploit.
“Quiet, criminal scum! There is no negotiating your arrest.” The head guard looked at Jude with undisguised disgust.
“Really? No wonder you City Watch lot aren’t too well-liked,” Jude replied with growing confidence. “I understand though, you guys have a difficult job. One that merits some appreciation, you know? So here’s a gift from me to you.” His hands reached into his pockets with practiced agility to pull out two red gemstones. He flicked them at the guards, the gemstones glowing bright the moment they left his hands. With even only a small drop of mana allocated to my mystic eye, it could see the unbelievable amount of pulsating magical energy stored within the stones. Magical energy which would discharge into a destructive, obliterating explosion.
“Get away!” I yelled while mana built up at my fingertips. At my will, an earthen wall began to spring up from the floor separating the guards from us, an earthen wall that I hoped was strong enough to withstand the explosion. At the same moment, I grabbed Shara’s wrist and materialized my wings. A burst of wind propelled us backwards, breaking through the wall. As we flew out, Jude threw at me a look of annoyance mixed with a wicked grin, realizing our exit could be his exit. Though he soon realized that I wouldn’t allow such a thing as I conjured an earthen wall to block the hole I made. If he died by his own doing, then so be it. Certainly, his death would bring less remorse than the death of these guards.
Ascending up, we flew away, the tightly-packed buildings of the lower district under me, the low-hanging sun glaring at my eyes. Mere seconds after our well-timed exit, a heavy explosion rumbled from behind us. I flew onwards, not daring to look back. We needed to escape, to be as far as possible from the situation that had unfolded. The guards there had seen our faces. What now? Was staying here still an option?
“Luqa, could you hold me more gently? At this rate, it seems as if you are seeking to rend my hand away from the rest of my body,” Shara commented from under me, breaking the ambient silence.
“Right, right, sorry,” I answered. Instead of following her request, I simply descended down, landing on the tiled rooftop of a building. The two of us sat down, trying to find comfort on the tiles. Staying here for a moment seemed safe enough. A few minutes of swift, desperate flight aided with wind magic separated us from Jude’s den. “What… was that? What the hell do we do now?”
“I do not know. I have never been in circumstances such as this,” Shara said. “Though how unfortunate that, with only mere steps from attaining our victory, fate took such a turn. If only those guardsmen decided to enact their justice at a slightly later appointment.”
“Ugh, tell me about it. That was some shitty timing,” I groaned. We stayed there for a few moments, my mind in thought. The memories of today’s events replayed itself in my head like reflections on glass. Then my mind landed on one specific memory: the stranger approaching us outside of the Mages Guild; the ghost of a smile she wore as she told us about alternative avenues for selling monster parts; her knowing words as we asked about her reason for even telling us: “I will benefit from this, more than you two ever could…”
“Luqa, we have an issue,” Shara tugged at me, shaking me out of my pondering. A hooded figure stood at the rooftop neighboring ours. They stared at us quietly, their presence nothing but a shadow. After a few moments of tense quiet examination, the figure undid their hood, revealing a sharp face with short, blonde, hay-like hair. It was the very woman my thoughts had landed on.
“You… what the hell did you lead us to?” I stood up and snarled at her. Her neutral, stoic mask remained composed in the face of my anger. Unconsciously, mana from my reservoir made erratic by my emotions caused the air around us to instantly chill.
“How was it? Did you find it to your liking?” she asked, her voice like the flowing breeze blowing through her hair. She tucked stray strands of her hair behind her ear, revealing cool, unshakable, blue eyes.
“Was that your doing, that swarm of guards?” I asked severely.
“Why, who else could be the reason?” Her eyes glistened with shameless pride. “Though, I have you two to thank.”
“Leave,” I commanded. “You’ve gotten what you wanted, whatever that is.”
Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
“No, not everything,” she said, shaking her head gently. “You two must answer to those guards as well. You have crossed the laws of this city, so you must come with me. No choice.” She held out her hand, a self-satisfied smile on her face, as if she were handing alms to the poor.
“How about no?” My arms wrapped around Shara, and my wings grew out to take us into the sky once more.
“Wait a moment, you’re making a mistake!” the woman yelled from under.
“Luqa, let’s hear her out. She may have more to say,” Shara pleaded as well, in unison with the woman.
“No, we’re done here for today,” I said with an air of finality.
“Luqa… fine. We shall have it your way,” Shara said with a demeanor not unlike a mother’s.
The buildings of the lower district, and then the city itself grew more distant and distant. It was all too much. We had gotten ourselves unknowingly into a web of threads, whose beginnings and ends we couldn’t see.
***
The sun had begun to set. The end of summer and beginning of autumn was beginning to become visible, in the cool air of the evening and in the fiery colors of the trees. The quiet grove was far enough from the city that Orson’s Wall was but a distant line in the horizon. I sat, my back supported by a tree, enjoying the gentle noises of nature I’d grown accustomed to. The overwhelming sights and sounds of the city of Lefke left an admirable impression on me, but I had spent too much time in untouched nature such as this to prefer the city.
“You have the pallor of a corpse,” Shara said, taking a seat close beside me. The two of us stared at the dancing bonfire in front of us. Her hand touched my forearm, her warm contact almost burning against my cool skin. “And as deathly cold as one, as well. Are you alright, Luqa?”
“Well enough to not die,” I said through deep breaths. “Flying is more tiring than it looks. I feel sore in places I never knew I could feel sore.”
“How interesting… and inconvenient, though I understand the sentiment. Gryphons are not creatures of long-term flight as well,” Shara replied. “Though, perhaps I should’ve been the one to spread wings and take flight to spare you the effort, hm?”
“I think that would’ve made everything worse, if that were even possible,” I said. “Things are probably already bad enough. At this rate, I don’t even know if entering that city is a choice we have. So much for the plan to be registered adventurers.”
“True, it appears as if the stars of fate have aligned themselves against you,” Shara giggled, playfully ruffling my hair, to which I could only sigh and slouch further. It took effort to keep my eyes even half-open. “Though, you were quite admirable, you navigator of the stars, seeking potential solution after solution. At least you can say you refused to yield.”
“Then what am I doing now?”
“Taking a well deserved rest,” she said, displaying a charming, toothy grin.
“I don’t know if rest is going to change things,” I said. “No matter what, it looks like I’ll never be an adventurer of that damned city’s guild, after setting my mind on it for so long.”
“Rest will clarify your mind and renew your mettle,” Shara soothed. “And while I can only praise your drive, do not be so rigid. After all, being an adventurer is only but a means to an end, right? You are after something else, something that doesn’t necessarily require being an adventurer.”
“I know you’re right,” I said. “But I’m too damned stubborn to appreciate your advice.”
“Don’t forget, we can simply travel to other cities and try our luck there. Besides, if you don’t mind me saying so, I enjoyed today’s somewhat hectic course. It is in such sidetracks branching from the main road that you will find… enjoyable experiences like this. At least we now have entertaining stories to share with others in the future.”
“Sure, sure. I’m glad you found this enjoyable. I certainly didn’t. I’m the one who did all the work today, after all.”
“Your words hurt me… but I cannot deny such allegations. I shall make it up to you tomorrow, then.” Her mischievous smile grew wider. “You will be most impressed!”
“I’ll keep my expectations low.” I rested my head against her shoulder, her warmth a comforting sensation easing me into sleep. “Once I fall asleep, you can lay my head against the tree, or whatever.”
“What do you take me for, Luqa? I am not that cruel a companion. Though, if you insist, I can certainly play the part…” she said playfully.
“Thankfully, I don’t insist at all.”
A large yawn claimed me. The fatigue I felt hit me all of a sudden. Rest was looking more and more desirable, indeed. But before my eyes could fully close, I caught a sight of a humanoid, cloaked figure in the distance. It was approaching us, its shape growing larger and larger.
“Shara, do you see that?” I said, alarmed but not moving from my place.
“Yes, it appears we have someone eager to join us,” she said.
As it got closer, its features became more apparent. It was a… man? He moved awkwardly, stiffly, with rigid steps. His clothes were completely worn, torn apart. Before he could get too close, he stopped and stood at his place. I felt the heavy weight of his stare upon us.
“Hello there, sir?” Shara addressed him loudly. “Do you need something?”
The man spun around and began walking away, his movements still awkward. His retreat wasn’t rushed but eventually, he receded into the distance.
“What was that, Shara?” I asked groggily.
“Oh, nothing but the common strange vagrant. Think not. Now, sleep to your desire, Luqa. I hope my shoulder is a sufficient substitute for those warm furs we lost,” Shara teased.
“We’ll get ‘em back later… Keep watch…”
“Of course. You shall have the most vigilant watch you could ask for.” My eyes closed, leaving me in darkness. A comforting sensation on the top of my head, a gentle ruffling of my hair, helped me relax and drift into sleep.
***
Within the depths of slumber, stifled voices spoke, like hushed speaking from another room.
“...Yes… that’s quite clever… but you are not good with words are you…”
“...That’s true, more than I’d like to admit… she… one of my companions is always on my case about it… calls me a statue…”
“...Hehe, how uncalled for… though… we are more unfortunate victims of it than her…”
“...Apologies once more… wait… he’s awake. Now we may talk.”
My eyes slowly opened to find a darkened sky, the sunset coming to an end. My head remained where it was, leaning against Shara. The bonfire had continued burning. Its light revealed the stoic visage of someone else sitting across from us.
It was the same woman from earlier. The one whose game we had been placed into as pawns.
“Hello there, Luqa,” she said. “It is finally good to know your name. My name is Metis.”