Their party was led through the streets, covered on either side by a row of constables.

While they hadn’t been bound, Ulgrin certainly felt naked without a weapon at his hip or his staff over a shoulder. The still unnamed hammer had grown to be a stalwart companion in these trying times. I should really get around to giving it a title. But it feels wrong when I don’t even know what my ancestor called it. Certainly a problem for a later date.

Alco and his company led them to the wall bordering up against the Unicorn Quarter. There they found a stout keep bulging out from both sides. It was shaped like an octagon, with both halves on either side. A cylindrical tower rose from the central portion. He could just barely see the shape of a siege engine hiding behind the parapets, ready to reign hell in the event that the city was besieged. Not that it was likely to happen but it didn’t hurt to be prepared, no?

Ulgrin and his friends were ushered inside through a sturdy portcullis. From there most of the soldiers broke off, following the one’s hauling the corpse to some other portion of the base. Made of solid stone and supporting heavy enchantments, he knew the structure would withstand a lot of punishment should the worst come to happen.

Then they were taken to a small office. Ulgrin felt that it was a bit too cramped to suit a Knight, but Alco didn’t seem to mind. The noble simply took a seat and gestured for them to sit on the several stools tucked to one side of the room. Ulgrin quickly glanced at his friends to see who got the right. Raelza immediately took one and let out a relieved sigh to get off her injured leg.

Saezz gave a shrug and a dismissive snort, not trusting the dinky little wood to support his weight. Maya took one of the stools, not quite sure why they were pausing. Alyss rolled her eyes and sat down, prompting Ulgrin to take off his helmet and follow suit. Alder was too slow to realize this and sullenly leaned against the wall.

“Alright. Now that we have a bit of privacy…” Alco sighed and tugged off his helmet. Ulgrin got to see a youthful face enhanced by an elven lineage. He was certainly attractive, but it was marred by a ragged scar running down the left side of his face. A deep one, scar tissue dark and bumpy. The man possessed blonde hair and a set of piercing red eyes. He smiled. “It’s good to see you again, Alyss.”

“Likewise, Alco.” She replied somewhat shyly but with an undercurrent of awkwardness. Ulgrin could sense a lot of history there. “So I’m guessing you’ll be debriefing us about what just happened?”

“I shall. Could I please get your names for the record?” He asked, withdrawing a pen. Each member of the party gave their name in turn, leaving him satisfied. “Good. So from what you’ve said there was a fey creature intending to cause… a riot, yes? Could you start from the beginning?”

The others looked at him and Ulgrin nodded. “We arrived at the intersection square intending to investigate the noise. Finding it was a protest, we had intended to find another way around but… One of our party members saw something strange in the crowd and prompted Raelza to take a look as well. She noticed that the entity in question was sneaking through the area and headed for a rather… heated area of the protest.”

“Who first saw this?” Alco asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Me!” Maya said, beaming. “I saw the bad guy when I was on mister Saezz’s shoulders!”

Alco blinked. “Oh. Well… good to you, citizen. I can see how utilizing his height to your advantage would be useful. And you did the same, miss?”

“Yeah, it wasn’t difficult. Just needed a bit of balance.” Raelza shrugged, downplaying it. “After I saw that guy getting up to no good we decided to investigate. And by investigate I mean run towards them. A few people may or may not have gotten pushed out of the way by ol’ Saezz there.”

“He was gentle,” their lizardfolk friend replied. “Saezz did not intend to harm anyone save for our foe this day.”

“Right.” Alco sighed. “We can overlook any potential damages caused. Thankfully, it seems the crowds have all gone home for the day. Everyone’s too confused to keep protesting. I’m expecting the town criers to have half a dozen stories to push tomorrow morning.”

Ulgrin continued after nodding. “We saw the fey start to run for the crowd’s edge and intending to kill someone. So we utilized a special tactic to allow Raelza to shoot them with her crossbow. After that we engaged it in battle. It was a bit hairy but we managed to take it down in the end.”

The knight took a few moments to think, writing down the last of their statements. “I see. Well, ordinarily we’d likely push some fines for drawing weapons in public, or endangering the populace, but we can overlook that for now. There are clauses in Andire’s laws for citizens defending others in the case of monster attacks.” He gave a smirk. “You’ve also got a member of the nobility fighting alongside you. All nobles are expected to defend Andire in any way possible. That includes conscripting locals. Don’t worry about the legality of things.”

Letting out a sigh of relief, Ulgrin set his helmet on the desk. “That’s good to hear. Our group is a bit inclined towards jumping into dangerous situations.”

“Moving on from that,” Alyss started. “Why did it take you so long to respond? I would think that during a protest there would be constables stationed at least within a block. It took five minutes for you all to show up.”

Alco rubbed his forehead. “I’m starting to think it’s not as much as a coincidence that this happened. We’ve been having issues all day. Fires breaking out, buildings being vandalized, and stores being broken into. My fellow knights have been stretched thin and ordered elsewhere. Didn’t even know a protest had started. I was dealing with the aftermath of ordering a bucket brigade when we received a runner.”

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“This is no happenstance,” Saezz said, crossing his arms. “A weaver has threaded a plot into this city. Whatever plans that might be, they are likely not good for the populace of this place.” His tongue flicked out. “Something smells about this.”

Interlocking his fingers and leaning on his chin, Alco was silent for a time. Thinking it over, most likely. “You’re not wrong. But what can I do about it? I’m already stretched thin as it is. Gods, what if this happens again tomorrow? I’ll need to speak with my higher ups about this. Hopefully they’ll be amenable to deploying some of the Royal Guard. Or perhaps the military.”

Ulgrin rubbed his own beard. Idly he brought a hand up to his eyepatch and pulled it off. The hole would need to be sewn shut. Annoying, but easily patched. “About that… Perhaps we might be able to aid you?”

Alco’s eyes widened. “You want to help? How, exactly?”

“We’re adventurers. We can go to places your constables can’t. That, and we’ve already got a man with connections to the shadier parts of the city.” Ulgrin replied, laying his options out onto the metaphorical table. “Originally we intended to only be here for a few days, but if there’s a crisis happening then we need to do our part.” He looked towards the others. “That, and we’ve got a price on our heads. An underground bounty. We need to find the cause and rip it out at the root.”

“Right.” Raelza leaned back precariously in her stool. “Almost forgot about that part! If we’re going to have assassins put us in danger, then we should probably just throw out the middleman and meet the danger head-on, yeah? We’re already here to help the country, after all.”

“You’re here to what?” Alco asked, surprised. Raelza winced and sighed.

“Our mouthy friend,” Ulgrin started. “Means that we’ve been requested to enlist the Murky Court’s help against the Fallen Court. Do you know of their existence?”

“I know of them, but, well, the nobility’s response is to assume it’s not a real thing. All the threats thus far have been isolated incidents done by simple… cultists, I suppose is the term they’ve been called. If you’re saying they’re real…”

“They are.” Alyss stated. “The fey we fought was fairly chatty during the battle. I guess we didn’t think of it as an important detail to bring up.” She turned and flicked Raelza on the forehead, prompting the drow to pout. “But the cat is out of the bag, I suppose. I’ve been asked by my mother and Viscount Meier to investigate this while we’re here.”

“Hmm.” Alco thought for a moment. “Then I guess I’ll have to let you figure this out. I’m afraid that I can’t help very much in an official manner, but I can give you a few places to visit. Dens of crime and excess that might help you.” He drew a sheet of paper and began writing a list. “The constabulary hasn’t been able to investigate these places. Too dug in. Take this.”

Ulgrin gladly took it and studied the words for a few moments before stuffing the sheet into his satchel. “That’ll help. We’ll get down to the bottom of this, sir Knight.”

“Please, keep the formalities light.” Alco replied with a sigh. “I’ve never truly felt like one ever since I got this and was knighted,” he gestured to his scar. “As you might be able to tell from my position, I’m somewhat on the lower ranks of knighthood. They’ve put me here as a punishment, but I’ve not minded it. It’s good to help people.”

“Sounds like a story best told over drinks,” Ulgrin said with a smile. “Perhaps we can meet later? Unless you’d rather not have drinks with your ex-fiance, Alyss?”

“Eh.” She shrugged. “We met only a few times. He was nice, though. I certainly wouldn’t be opposed to a man like him if I had to marry, but I’m afraid that those things aren’t in my goals.” She turned to Alco, giving him a sad smile. “It’s good to see you’re in good spirits and have a job you enjoy, though.”

“Likewise, milady.” Alco gave a brief bow. “I take no offense. If you wouldn’t mind, I might take you all up on this offer… when the chance comes. I’m afraid my workload will be rather full for the near future. But if we manage to get to the bottom of the events happening right now, then I’d be glad to join you all.”

Ulgrin nodded. “We’ll be on our way, then. I expect that Wind will be waiting for us. He’s going to be angry.”

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Ulgrin was right. Fleeting Wind was pissed. An undercurrent of rage filled the man. His muscles bulged but he kept his anger hidden as he fussed over the girl. Checking over her for injuries and scrapes, he was the very image of a doting parent. Eventually the man’s anger faded and he calmed down somewhat. The inn was mostly empty, leaving them free to be chided.

“I should not be surprised that a group of adventurers dragged my ward into a battle situation but… I expected better of you, Ulgrin.” He felt those words hit him right in the heart. Ouch. How did he know that would be the best way to hurt him? “She could have been hurt. And you decided to bring her anyway!”

Saezz kneels down, just as abashed as the rest of them. “He apologizes. There was no opportunity to find somewhere to place her before the situation became untenable. She was as safe as could be. Saezz is the strongest member of this group.” It wasn’t a brag, but a fact.

“You don’t know that!” Wind growled, his fey eyes narrowing. “Could you have protected her from everything? Of course not. There are a myriad of factors not in your control, Saezz!” Alder flinched at the tone and Ulgrin put a comforting hand on the boy’s shoulder.

Alyss sighed. “If what you said is true, we’ve got a bounty on our heads. She would’ve been in danger no matter what.”

“Don’t use a nebulous source as your way to validate your decision.” The man sighed. “I can see that I’m not going to fully convince you of your errors right now. Too high on success.” Wind placed a hand on Maya’s shoulder. “Could you please go to our room for a bit, Maya? I need to speak to them about sensitive things.”

“But I helped…” Maya said, lips curling in a frown. “I helped pull a bunch of shadow-stuff off of Saezz! I saw the bad man to begin with. You shouldn’t blame them.”

“And I am proud of you. You are a brave, smart, and intelligent child. But you’re still a child.” He ruffled her hair. “Sometimes you have to let the adults fight for you.” He turned to the others. “I’ve got a trustworthy friend to watch over her. I’m guessing you all found a clue?”

“Not a clue, exactly.” Ulgrin replied. He pulled out the sheet provided to them by Alco. “But we’ve got knowledge of a few hidden dens to look at. Do you know any of these places?”

Wind gave it a look over before nodding. “I’ve heard about a few of them but only via a third party. It’s a start.” He turned to guide the girl upstairs before returning to them. “About the bounty. It’s real. Five hundred crowns a head.” Crowns were the local slang for gold coins. Quite the price. “Thankfully right now not a lot of hunters trust the source. They're unknown, so you’re not going to be hunted yet. Save for desperate folks.”

“Then we’d best get some more answers.” Ulgrin looked at the first name on the page. “The Bloody Thorn. Sounds pleasant. Anyone have any objections?”

“What am I getting myself into?” Alder asked, more to himself than any of the others. “This isn’t what I expected when I became your student.” A look of confusion covered his face, mixed with grim acceptance.

“None here, boss. Always wanted to sneak into a hive of scum and villainy.” Raelza said, giving him a thumbs up. “We’re gonna need something, though. A disguise for everyone.” She grinned. “I have a few ideas. Always love playing dress up with you boys.”

Saezz sighed. “Very well. But please don’t go overboard. Simplicity would be best, here. Perhaps a nice pair of robes for us?”

Raelza shook her head. “Boring. See, Ulgrin’s gonna become a golem protecting our lovely Alyss. She’ll be the daughter of a crime lord. It’ll all make sense in time.”

Fleeting Wind sighed. “Perhaps we can make intricate disguises next time we infiltrate a drug den? The sun is setting. We’d best get prepared.” With that the man ascended the staircase and followed his ward, leaving them to reflect on their actions.

He and his party prepared, expecting the worst to come. This city was proving more and more dangerous by the hour.

The plot thickens. I appreciate the edit suggestions. It's very helpful since I lack a proofreader. Thanks for reading, everyone! See you next chapter.