96. COUNTERATTACK: TABITHA

Dawn was breaking when I limped back into the quarry. They had moved the bodies out of sight, and there were temporary repairs done to the gate, so it closed. Am'mā ran up to me as soon as she saw me.

“Don’t worry. We rescued Mayakku. Sten is keeping her safe while things quiet down.” I said.

“Thank you, thank you, thank you. But what about your leg?” she exclaimed.

“I will need Ört to have a look at it. The City gate will be opening soon, and I need to find out what has happened. Our first counterattack is happening at noon.” I said in a rush.

“Come and sit for a bit and have a meal. You won’t be good to anyone if you collapse.” Am'mā can’t help mothering everyone, and she had a point. I followed her to the cooking fire, and she dished me some oats and honey and brought me up to speed on what was happening at the quarry. Most people were asleep after a long night and recovering from various injuries. The Catkin were a very close unit, and the loss of Ilaiya was deep. She really wanted Mayakku back as well. I think mainly to confirm she was OK.

Then Nyx arrived and was very agitated. It seemed Wiremu and Mayakku got to the cave, but Nyx was not going anywhere near the Sand Elemental. That was interesting and a bit worrying. I couldn’t pin down Nyx to the specifics of why.

Dusk was at the Quarry, so I rode her into the city. I went straight to Safe House 2, but it was empty. Everybody had crammed into Safe House one. The Canine Queens were damaged. Drugič had a broken arm, and Najprej had been sewn back together in several places. Ört was moving very gingerly with some broken ribs, and Skavt was limping. The only one who was healthy was Kryddor. The potions were working, but bones would take a week or so to knit together. Ört had been using his healing skills and the herbs and potions, but he was now tapped out of energy. His aura was helping everyone, as was Ruku’s Refreshing Mists.

Ruku and Modrica were fine. The Comedic Rhythm were all traumatised to varying degrees. Canwr and Bwr were the worst. When I went to see them, Canwr’s hand wouldn’t stop shaking, and she looked nervously around and any unexpected noise. Trummer seemed the least traumatised. Zabavno and Manus were wary and nervous. When I got the story, I could understand why. Not only did they watch gruesome and violent deaths, but they watched rats chew on the corpses. The Pack Rats might be helpful, or they might be a problem, or they might be both.

Zabavno and Manus felt up to coming with me to meet the Duke’s Heir, Eluf. The Duke and his family were humans in Obalno. It did vary throughout the kingdom. We settled the others into a new Inn under a different name. I dressed in sexy business attire for the meeting, and the three of us went to meet the Heir.

We were ushered into a reception area, and Eluf, the Duke's Heir, was flanked by two advisors. There were four security personnel around the room. We had been searched, and weapons had been removed before entering the building. Eluf was a tall, well-built man who obviously trained with martial weapons. As a member of the Duke's household, I am sure he had specialised training in various classes and specialisations. He had a full beard and looked out of place in the posh reception area. He did not look like a supporter of the entertainment arts but rather one who preferred action. Looks can be deceptive.

As we entered, my Spatial Awareness caught a slight frown on the advisor on the left. All three had Staus Masking abilities, and I didn’t want to push through them without reason. Eluf, in particular, will be very sensitive to any mental influence and, I imagine, quite resistant to it. It is no good being a noble if any merchant or spy influences you.

“My Lord,” the lefthand advisor started, “Allow me to introduce Zabavno and Manus of the Comedic Rhythm here to accept your sponsorship.”

I plastered a bright smile on my face. “Allow me to introduce myself, your Lordship. I am Skygge of the Comedic Rhythm and the Elemental Traders. I apologise for your adviser's lack of information about me, but I try to keep a low profile.”

Eluf cut off whatever his adviser was about to say, “Greetings and welcome.” His voice was deep for a human. “I was not expecting you to come, Skygge. In fact, I was told you would be against my sponsorship.” He was obviously not happy about the poor information he had received.

“On the contrary,” I gushed, “we are all rapt with your sponsorship offer. Of course, from the Elemental Trader's view, we are just a small Trading House, and we have invested a lot into the Comedic Rhythm. We are just starting to see a return on that investment. Bringing in other Sponsors is a way to spread the risk of the investment and multiply the growth.”

“The Sponsor offer is exclusive.” the outspoken advisor said pointedly.

Eluf spoke again, “Where are the other three members? I was hoping to meet you all?”

“I am sorry, your lordship, but we were attacked after the performance last night, and while they are OK, they are shaken and didn’t feel up to coming out or very safe in this city.” I replied.

“Attacked! By whom and where was the Watch?” Eluf was very unhappy. I was more and more convinced he was being manipulated. Manipulation can work both ways.

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“It was a gang with blue bandanas. There were over thirty of them, and we left well over twenty bodies in the street. Have you not had a report on this? I think there is something seriously wrong with the Watch as we didn’t see them, and you know nothing about it.” I figured if he was not part of it, he could be part of the clean-up.

“Why do I know nothing about this?” Eluf demanded from his Advisers.

“I will find out, my Lord.” the outspoken Adviser said.

“No, Tjenner.” he said, turning to the other Adviser, “Birgin, you will have the Captain report to me this afternoon.” He turned back to me, “There were over thirty and twenty dead? How are you not harmed?”

“There were some injuries, Sir. We hired a Mercenary Group to protect us, the Canine Queens. They are very professional, so street thugs are not usually a problem. Because there were so many thugs, we do have some injuries that will take time to heal. We think this was a targeted attack.” I replied.

“Targeted? Why would someone target entertainers?” Eluf asked.

“We have to assume it was because of your sponsorship offer, as it is a very generous offer. Nothing else makes sense.” I misled him.

He looked puzzled for a moment, then asked, “Have you had any other offers?”

I shook my head, “Whoever is behind it would also need contacts in the gangs. Persuading the gang to field that many people would be costly, and they will not be happy with their losses. I imagine they will be looking for additional compensation. Then there is the bribing of the Watch to stay away.”

“My Lord,” Tjenner interjected, “this is all speculation. For all we know, they were just caught in the middle of a gang war.”

“Birgin,” he said thoughtfully, “I think doing a financial audit of the Nobles and the Watch is worthwhile. We only need to go back a month to see if there are any unexpected major expenses. Also, ensure the Watch Captain brings the patrol schedule and incident reports from last night to our meeting.” Birgin nodded and turned to go.

“I should do that, my Lord,” Tjenner said.

“No, you organised this sponsorship deal. You need to stay to finish it.” Eluf said.

Tjenner was so obvious to read I thought he was only a minion and the boss was not Eluf the Heir. I think Eluf is not the rough man of action he portrays, but he knows more than he lets on and has a keen intelligence there. He has his own people in play, and I doubt he agreed to this sponsorship by being manipulated into it.

“The Comedic Rhythm will need some time to recover, but we do want to discuss this Sponsorship agreement.” I smiled at Eluf. I was careful not to use any of my mental skills. “Have you ever wondered how we perform the Barman and the Nobles daughter?” I asked him.

His eyebrows rose at this, and his whole manner changed. He got excited as he said, “Absolutely! I have seen the show three times and can’t figure it out!” This was a lot more natural than everything he had shown to date.

“A performer's secrets are not for a public explanation,” I said, using my hand to indicate all the people around us. “However, perhaps we could arrange a more private meeting?”

“That’s not a good idea, my lord.” the Tjenner said.

I just raised an eyebrow at him with a small smile on my face. I had him, or maybe he had me, but he obviously wanted a private meeting too. I had been careful about my dress, body posture, and expressions, engaging his curiosity, and no other skills were required. I say other skills because all the previous ones were from Sentient Lore, but that was not obvious. I realised this was also what he was doing, and with him being a Noble, he was trained in it.

We walked out of there over the protests of Tjenner without signing anything, and I had a dinner date three nights away. Counterattack one complete.

When I checked my status, I realised my Adjuster Skill had levelled. That was a subtle Skill, and I didn’t realise I was using it. Interesting. The Skill came from my Racketeering Specialisation, which seems to benefit me more than I realised.

I escorted Zabavno and Manus back to the new Inn, and Ört was able to spare some energy to reduce the healing time on my leg. Ruku’s Refreshing Mists was also a great skill. I collapsed for the rest of the afternoon. I hadn’t slept for two nights, and while a higher constitution helps with reduced sleep, I also expended a lot of energy over the last twenty-four hours.

I woke up for dinner. I planned a night, gathering intel and setting up for more attacks. I had an advisor to investigate. My coin is on him being a middleman, and I need to follow these leads to the next step up, having eliminated Eluf as the boss.

We had also been attacked through the Healers Association, the Mercenary Guild and in business dealings. This is in addition to the physical attacks by the Seadogs and the Smuggler Ship. All this shows someone with many fingers in a lot of pies.

The Healers Association was first on my list tonight for several reasons. One, they close at dusk, and the building will be empty early. Two, they are more likely to have something in writing as they would not be an organisation that would normally be used to pressure someone. Yes, nobles and influential people on both sides of the law will have their pet Healers on retainers, but healers are not deceptive by nature. They want to heal people and make money while doing so. Three, they should be the easiest to break into.

Next up was the Mercenary Guild. That was more difficult because it is open around the clock. There is minimal staff after midnight, but it is a big place with a lot of paperwork. They also deal with rogues regularly, so they will be a tougher nut to crack. I am not expecting much, and I am unsure if it is even worth the attempt. What they might have is information on the Smuggler crew.

I might just skip to the Seadogs. I have already scouted them, and after last night they will have a lot fewer people to defend with. I plan to cause havoc while there, but the information comes first. The Seadogs are my main target for the night. I plan to kick them while they are down.

My problem is what to do with the Rats tomorrow night. The Black Shadow should have died in Jern, yet this Rotte has made connections that include Modrica. Nijel was spreading the legend of Black of the Shadow Guild, but she died in the legends. Yes, I have made connections in the towns on our way here, but not as the Black Shadow. Was Rotte making guesses and struck it lucky? Did it have something to do with the Rats they bond with? I also plan to scout them tonight, although I will probably not have time.