CHAPTER 23

The battle raged on behind me but I'd gone barely a block when something howled, long and low and rising, and then leaped from the wall behind me. My enhanced ears let me hear it touch down...although humans probably could have heard it too since it shook the ground when it landed. It came in my wake, snuffling noises as it followed the trail of blood droplets I was leaving.

I stretched out low to the ground and lengthened my stride, using Mystic Acceleration in bursts to speed my steps. It was maxed out, giving me ten uses per day; I saved the last three but spent the rest on gaining ground.

Finally, as the last one that I was willing to use expired, I slowed to a halt on the corner of Meto's Way and Fifth Street.

{Murray, I'm lost. Where is the bastion? I need to send the Guards to the caravansary. And I need a healer. Whatever that thing behind us is, I'm leaving a trail for it to follow.}

"Oi! I'm just a—"

I shook my neck to toss him off and then turned to face him, giving him my best Mom Glare. {You aren't allowed to leave my side while in service, right?}

"Uh...well. Not ezactly."

{Then you're going to be here when that thing, whatever it is, catches up to us. It's probably a demon. Based on what I've seen so far, demons tend not to like you very much.}

He shifted uncomfortably, bobbing in the air slightly as he rubbed the back of his neck and grimaced. Unlike Simon, Murray had a humanoid mouth, albeit with pronounced canines. (Not as good as my canines, though! Heheheheh.) The embarrassed and frustrated expression was much easier to read on his face than on that of most other demons I'd met.

"Look, Boss...if I step outside da limits ah my duties, it could really cost me at my review. Why don't we find somebody else, some human or sumtin'? Dey can give you directions, easy peasy."

{I'm not sure if you've noticed, but there's no one here.} I pointedly looked at the various shops around us; they were all locked up tight, heavy metal shutters pulled across the windows. As Daro had said, this current disaster was common enough that people were prepared for it. Well, maybe not the current 'war in the streets' kind of thing, but more limited magical disasters.

Murray followed my eyes and looked steadily more uncomfortable.

{We're at a crossroads. You can do one of those 'exigent circumstances' deals}, I reminded him.

He stuck a finger in his ear and wiggled it around while frowning mightily. I wasn't sure if he had an itch or if this was some demonic body language thing.

"A'right," he said at last. "But I'm gonna hafta charge ya a little more dan last time. One point o' Spirit. It'll show my bosses dat I was appropriately cold-hahted about takin' advantage ah ya when I had da chance. An' I don' actually know where da Bastion is from heah, so I'll have to fly up an' look around. It'll take a minute."

I winced. {Fine. But if you're taking that much then I want more than directions.}

"Yeah? Waddya want?"

I paused. I didn't actually know what else I wanted. The request had been more of a reflex than anything else. What did I want?

{Can you stop all this fighting in the city?}

"How in da Bright would I do dat? What, you t'ink just 'cause I'm a imp I can tell all da demons ta go home?"

{No, no. Of course not. Sorry. Um...} I ruminated. What did I need? Healing, for one. This monster off my tail. A way to find Marcus and Estelle and Eugene. The orichalcum back. Information about the path home that Simon had sold me. Information about Lord Gliv and how to stop him. Hm...maybe information about Murray himself? How much did he know and about what? What services was he able to provide for the right price? Clearly he knew much more than I did about Simon and his ilk, and since 'his ilk' were currently hunting me and my friends...

{How about you agree to answer all my questions from now on?}

"Eh, I ain't makin' no poimenant-duration deals. Also, dere's stuff I ain't allowed ta talk about wit' mortals."

Ooooh, interesting!

{How about you swear that you'll answer all my questions unless you can't?}

Murray looked at me for a moment. "Boss...sometimes it almost hoits bein' around ya."

{Oh no! I'm sorry. What did I do?}

He rolled his eyes. "Ugh. Stop bein' so nice, would ya? Are ya sure dat's da deal ya want? Like, really sure? Ain't no uddah clauses you want to add or nuttin'?"

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I thought about that for a minute. I glanced back over my shoulder at the faint trail of blood droplets I'd left behind.

{How much would an imp like you typically earn for a contract like ours?}

"Huh? Uh...well, not much. Usually nuttin', actually. We don't make nuttin' offa da translation contract and most clients ain't innerested in doin' uddah deals wit dere translaytah. Why?"

{The more you earn here on Earth the better you do at your review, right?}

"Yeah?" He sounded suspicious. "Aldough dis ain't Earth but yeah."

{How about this: I've got two hundred and something days to make it back to Earth or I lose my chance. For the right deal I would be willing to pay you five Spirit right now, and then after I'm able to heal normally again I'll pay you one Spirit every other day until I get home. Immediately before I step through the portal back to my home world I'll pay you twenty Spirit...oh, or one less than I have if I'm below twenty. I don't want to actually die.}

Murray's eyes literally bugged out. "Yah offerin' ta pay me like a hunnerd and twenny Spirit? Fah some directions?!"

{Would earning that much look good at your review meeting?}

"Brightness yes! Wit' earnin's like dat I'd bribe da review boahd ta do da review early!"

{Okay. Then I'll pay you those terms in exchange for you agreeing to be as helpful as possible to me from now until I step through the portal to home.}

Murray blinked.

"Wait...what?"

{You promise that you'll be as helpful to me as you can be without getting yourself in trouble.}

He scratched his horns, an expression of disbelieving confusion on his face. "Boss...ya unnerstand dat imps ain't supposed ta experience guilt, right?"

{Um...no? I've never met an imp before you. Why?}

He rolled his eyes. "No reason." He looked at the ground, frowning mightily and occasionally stealing a glance at me.

"Gotta say, negotiatin' wit' you is different," he said at last. "Most clients ain't so friendly about it. I had dis one guy I was translaytin' for, prolly da sharpest mortal I evah met. He hiyahd a demon named Hazibax ta do some contract review. Da deal was dat my client had written up a contract he intended ta sign wit' an Infernal and he wanted Hazibax ta review it. Well, screwin' ovah uddah Infernals is kinda our jam so Hazibax really went ta town on it. Made it absolutely clawproof. My client looks ovah da changes, says t'ank you, pays out...and den he offahed Hazibax da deal he had jes reviewed! Real sneaky. Smaht guy."

{That's neat. Back on topic, what about that deal we were discussing?}

Murray ground his teeth. "Yes, dat mortal sure was smaht. Us Infernals, we can be slippery. In fact, we is required ta be slippery. I sure didn't t'ink dere were many mortals smaht enough to pull dat kind ah t'ing. It really saved him a lot of trouble."

I had a feeling maybe Murray was trying to tell me something.

{Murray, could I hire you to do some contract review for me?}

"Huh? Oh, I am very surprised dat you would ask dat. It is not at all sumthin' I would have expected at dis juncture. I assume dat you are innerested in makin' a contract wit' some uddah dumb mortal fah food or soiveces or sumthin' and derefore I would be delighted ta help ya out. Fifty mana per hour."

"Done!" I waited for him to suck the mana out of me. "I'd like to make a contract with y—"

"Wit' some random mortal, right?! Or maybe wit' someone ta be named laytah?"

{...Yes. Right. I'd like to make a contract in which I pay someone five Spirit now and then after I can heal again I pay y...this person one Spirit every other day until I step back through the portal to my home world, and twenty Spirit at that time unless I'm below twenty and then I keep one. In exchange I want...the person I'm contracting with to be as helpful as they can to me as long as it won't actively get them in trouble.}

"Gosh, how very unexpected. I definitely did not expect tah hear such a deal proposed and I'm sure dat were any Infernal inspectahs to investigate da situation den everyone involved would say da same. Yes, dat is a contract I can help ya wit'. Foist, ya should..."

For the next three minutes Murray walked me through all the necessary language and loopholes. It was a lot more time than I wanted to spend given that something was hunting us. I stayed quiet and went along with it since I knew that I had gained a lot of ground on our pursuer while running away, and it was having to scent-track me through a city that reeked of sulfur. Still, I would have preferred to keep moving. Regardless, we eventually got to a point where Murray was satisfied.

"Okay, dat should do it. Whoevah ya end up makin' dis bahgain wit', I'm sure he'll be really pissed dat ya nailed everyt'ing down so tight. Let me know how it goes."

{Murray, would you like to make a deal with me under the terms we just discussed?}

He gasped, eyes going wide and putting a hand on his tiny chest in shock. "What? Ya tricked me inta helping ya figure out a contract dat I would be bound by? Boss, how could ya?" He sighed dramatically and shook his head. "You mortals is so slippery. Still, I'm jes a dumb little imp. Maybe once I get promoted ta a biggah and smahtah body I'll be able ta foresee such tricks. Still, it's a good deal and I shall derefore reluctantly accept."

{Great!}

"Yeah, sure. Now hold still. I'll try not ta make dis hoit, since da agreement dat ya tricked me inta composin' for ya specifies dat I am not ta purposely injah ya or cause ya any disaccomodation dat can be avoided widdout violatin' uddah clauses."

He touched me and I felt a portion of my life sucked away. It didn't hurt, precisely, but it definitely wasn't pleasant. It was like being achey and stiff and tired after sleeping in the cold when we went camping. On the other hand, my hope paid off: Losing that much Spirit in one go was enough to make my body shrink like it had before. And, just like before, when I shrank I reset to my base form. My floofy-tailed, not-bleeding form.

Murray fluttered back in surprise, the silver thread of my Spirit floating around his hand. "Whoa. Wasn't expectin' dat."

I lolled my tongue in amusement. {I was. I am a very clever dog.}

He snorted and balled the Spirit up, tucking it away somewhere although I would have sworn he had no pockets.

"A'right, ya current goal as I unnastand it is ta avoid da t'ing dat's huntin' ya while finding da Bastion. Since ya ain't bleedin' no more it shouldn't be able ta track ya past dis spot. Head dat way five blocks and I'll meet ya dere after I find da Bastion." He flapped harder, zooming up into the sky.

With a sigh I forced myself to trot as I followed directions. Once I had reached the specified spot, I moved to the side of the road and lay down with a tired huff. The stress of being on the hoist platform, and the fire, and the adrenaline from the fight...it was all catching up to me. I was weary in my every bone, and I couldn't keep my eyes from falling closed even though I struggled against it.