The sheer enthusiasm he managed to convey with those words took her aback. He just beamed at her even when she failed to respond after he had interrupted her.
“I heard you saying you were looking for a sea serpent. I know nothing about that, but look there”
He pointed to a bounty for a dryad sapling. Then to one for a ghoul in a jar. He nodded.
“They’re both supposed to be delivered to the capital.”
He spoke as if the words couldn’t come out fast enough.
“There isn’t one for your friend, and the guild doesn’t hand out information about completed bounties. “
He lowered his voice and leaned in, because it was more dramatic.
“I’ve seen where they keep the records.”
Freas mind finally caught up to what he was saying. If she could find a bounty for sea serpents that had been taken down yesterday, she would know where Yasha was. Or at least where she was headed. A small spark of hope lit in her chest. It was another lead. She looked at the boy and noticed again just how young he seemed to be, but he had also just implied that she should break into the Hall of Adventure. If that was what it took then she would do it eagerly.
“Don’t keep me hanging, tell me.”
“I saw it once while—nevermind. There is a file room on the second floor, up those stairs.”
He gestured towards a set of stairs behind the receptionist’s desk in a way that was probably meant to be subtle.
Frea glanced at the receptionist again but the woman didn’t seem to have overheard them.
“Be quiet. There is no way we’re getting past her, unless you can cast Invisibility.”
“Don’t worry.” His smile grew to an unprecedented level of excitement. “I have a plan.”
****
The man, boy, whatever, was not much of a planner. Theo had introduced himself, he had then told Frea that they should wait until the guild had more people in it, then he would be causing a distraction—a task he had seemed very eager for—while she snuck up the stairs.
Frea felt that this was less a plan and more throwing a coin in the ocean and wishing for luck. It was, however, the best way she currently had of finding Yasha and so she went along with it despite her unvoiced doubts.
“I think you should get a cloak.”
They were in the market a few streets away from the hall. It smelled of fish and made Frea remember she hadn’t eaten anything since yesterday afternoon, before being attacked. She bought a perch—yesterday's catch—and dropped the whole thing into her mouth where it slid down her throat in one piece. Another benefit to being not entirely human.
“Why a cloak?”
Frea didn’t see the point of one. The weather was warm and while her savings were enough to buy a somewhat good one, they were also the only thing besides her clothes she owned.
“You’re gonna be sneaking around, you need a cloak. Also the lady at the desk has seen you, you need something to hide your face. Also also you’ll be looking dark and mysterious and blend in perfectly.”
“I’m not really the sneaky type. More the ‘grab it and run fast’ type.”
Frea coughed
“Not that I’m used to stealing things. Just, you know, sometimes.”
“Nah you don’t gotta be unseen, just sneak past the front desk. Then act like you’re meant to be on the second floor.”
He stopped walking to give an intense stare at her face
“I think you could do a good ‘don’t bother me’ look. That makes the right gear even more important.”
That made a weird kind of sense, Frea thought as she licked the remains of the fish sauce from her lips. They headed over to the section of the market for traveling gear, closest to the gates.
“Have you ever been on the second floor?.”
“I saw it through a window once.”
They walked past stalls selling mostly food, two smithies advertising horseshoes and plows. Frea came upon a stall bigger than those around it. It held cages with various animals displayed for sale.
“Greetings my friends! Looking for a pet to play with? We’ve got cats and dogs and these intelligent monkeys.”
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The smiling shopkeeper took off his black tophat and gestured to another set of cages
“Or are you looking for help with pests? Our dogs have been trained for ratting. Ah but that still needs someone to oversee them. We’ve got an exclusive family of shadowbats right here. Buy now before the young ones grow up and you can choose exactly where they build their nest!”
The bats were kept in a single cage, five of them. They strained against the bars of the cage. The two adults were the size of large cats and Frea could see shadow streaming off their black bodies in the sunlight like liquid. Clearly in a place for display, it sat front and center of the stall.
The cage was very cramped, the bats were struggling, pushed up against the bars as they tried to get out.
It made rage well up inside her. She had seen this before of course, had walked the markets of Shamut a thousand times. It had never stood out to her before how cruel the animals were being treated. She barely stopped herself from pressing her claws into her palm.
It was clear that the bats were trying to escape the sunlight, with the adults shielding the young. She would have expected screeching but there wasn’t a single sound. Right, shadowbats. They were probably the extra silent kind.
“We’ve gotta help them Theo.”
She met the eyes of the shopkeeper.
“How much for the shadowbats?”
“Eighteen gold for the lot of them.”
It shouldn’t have surprised her, she had no way to afford buying their freedom. It still hurt, and she was pretty sure the merchant was trying to fleece her, which was strange because she was dressed like a peasant. That probably meant he wasn’t trying to sell to them at all. Maybe just using the excuse to set a price for anyone listening. No matter.
There was no way she could justify leaving them to their fate. She shook her head at the shopkeeper and dragged Theo around a nearby corner.
“Those bats shouldn’t be kept like that. They should be free to swim in the sky.”
Theo’s face went from dubious to excited, then he nodded.
“I’m all for daring rescues Frea, but how are you gonna get them out?”
Frea glanced around the corner again. The cage seemed to be made out of wrought iron, but the bars were thin enough that Frea thought she might be able to simply smash the lock with a stone.
Theo spoke up behind her
“We could start a fire and grab the cage.”
“The shopkeeper wouldn’t abandon his stall unless the fire got big enough to be dangerous. Besides I’m sure there’s at least one water mage nearby.”
“Then we need something to make him look the other way. Something big.”
“A merchant doesn’t let his wares out of his sight in a market.”
Theo gave a smile
“Well then. But first you need that cloak.”
****
Frea was walking down the cobblestone market feeling like all eyes were on her. Here she was, a tall figure skulking around with a black cloak covering her from head to ankle. Surely she couldn’t stand out more in the sunny market street if she tried. So far she hadn’t been stopped by the guard, even if she sometimes got a wary look. Reaching up to her hood, she dragged it forward until her face was covered as she neared the animal stall, even if it made her look even more suspicious.
In her left hand was a fist sized rock. Was she really going to do this? Of course she was, she thought with a glance at the wilting shadowbats.
She slowed down to wait for the shopkeeper to be talking to a customer, then seized the moment.
She slammed the rock down on the lock of a small cage holding a cat. It made a horrible noise but Frea finished tearing the lock apart with her claws before anyone could find the source of the sound, the first cage door was wide open. Next was a cage contained a brown monkey, she attacked it too.
“Stop! Help! Guards!”
The shopkeeper shouted. Frea took a moment to look around as the second cage was opened. The shopkeeper was crouched down, red in the face. There were a lot of people in the market today, but the ones close were either backing away or standing still. No one was stopping her.
Third cage then. A much too big dog in the small cage. She smashed the lock, then tried to rip apart the rest of it. Her claws couldn’t quite manage to cut through the whole way, her hand got stuck in the bars. Before she could withdraw it the dog, scared out of its mind, bit down on her finger.
She pulled away her bloody finger just in time to see, and feel, a wooden club smash into her side. She bent in pain and put a hand to where the club had hit. The shopkeeper advanced for a second swing as he screamed.
“What are you doing!?”
Frea was taller than the small man, and managed to take a step back to avoid the hit. Frea was yelling in pain, the shopkeeper was screaming in rage, the dogs and other animals were howling, it was chaos.
Just then Theo emerged out of the crowd towards the bats. Frea recognized him by the worn green cloak, the rest of his face was covered. He briskly walked up to the bats and lifted up the cage. No one in the crowd interfered, either with Theo’s theft or Frea’s fight.
The shopkeeper brought the club up for an overhead swing. Frea took another step back but tripped on the cobblestone street. She caught her fall with her hands and twisted as the last moment, the club impacted the stone between her feet.
Theo turned around and strolled in the opposite direction of the approaching guards, away from the fight at a leisurely pace. He carried the cage of imprisoned bats, the animals panicked and furious,and the cat and monkey she had freed disappeared into the crowd as well.
Frea lay in the ground looking up at the red face of the man who had kept the animals in such horrible conditions. His back was arched, having put his all into the last swing. In the background the guards were shouting, running closer with every second. She had to stand up and run, get away.
She rolled over and pushed herself up with one hand, putting the other on the club the shopkeeper was trying to lift for another swing. Frea used the club to heave herself onto her feet. They fought over the weapon for a single moment but the guards were coming fast.
Frea let go of the club and raked her claws over the man's cheek and eyes. He screamed and doubled over as Frea turned and ran, away from the guards and down the nearest alley.
She looked down at her bloody claws and almost stumbled as she came out in the next street over. Left or right?
She’d slip away like an eel if she could get under water. With her gills she could stay there for hours until either the guards got bored or she could find a spot to surface. All she had to do was get there and dive in.
The river was her best bet.