Once they’d settled into their quarters, the three of them returned to Korvac’s office where a stack of files awaited them.
Everything Korvac had on the men and women who worked for him.
After spending days going through Bvorn’s documents, they weren’t exactly thrilled to spend even more time combing through papers.
Thankfully, this time Korvac was there to give them the code to the documents, so reading them was significantly easier.
Even so, they had hundreds to go through. Illyian arrived not long after they started, and brought a small stack of files with him.
“Unfortunately, most of my men are either not suited for fighting, or are too damned far away to get here in time. So, most of the people will have to come from the guild I’m afraid,” Illyian said.
They all busied themselves in going through each file carefully. Connor particularly wanted those with a grudge against The Syndicate, so anyone that had lost friends or family to the slavers was a prime target for the mission.
He wanted them motivated, and willing to make any sacrifice. He also felt he could trust them more if they had suffered because of The Syndicate.
He needed skilled people, but loyalty came first.
They ruled out more than half of the people outright, and Connor wanted to interview those that remained.
Not that he was going to let them know he was planning anything, or that they were even being interviewed.
Everything was kept absolutely secret, between only the five of them. Although, they planned to talk with Maya once she arrived.
“She wasn’t in the best of moods after what happened before, but she’ll be here,” Korvac assured them.
They didn’t waste time waiting for her though.
Adelia and Connor circled around and talked to each one under the guise of making sure they were settling in through this rough period with so many packed into the guild for safety.
Talking to Illyian’s men without giving anything away proved more difficult, but they managed.
Connor used his sense-heightening potion to help him analyze and read the people he spoke with. Adelia helped him, and together, they didn’t miss much.
They made sure to speak to people they had no intention of bringing along, just to make what they were doing seem more routine than it was. No doubt some would feel that something was going on, but even then nobody but them should know what.
While they were doing that Vadik, Korvac, and Illyian dug into the pasts of all those who might be joining them for the mission to see if there were any irregularities.
They were thieves, bounty hunters, and assassins, so it wasn’t as if everything they did was above board in the first place. Even so, they picked out a few that seemed… off.
They couldn’t prove that they were involved with The Syndicate, but that didn’t matter.
If there was any doubt whatsoever, it was better to exclude them.
They couldn’t allow anyone or anything to jeopardize the operation.
When Connor wasn’t interviewing people without their knowledge, he was drawing up plans, maps, and diagrams of everything he’d seen of the facility from memory for the others to study.
He wanted them to be as prepared as possible when the day to rescue Victor finally came.
A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
***
After another full day of work, Connor took a break and went down to the armory.
He liked his new rapier. It wasn’t as good as the dwarven-forged blade he’d lost, but it was still of good quality. Now, however, he needed something to deal with what he’d seen beneath Zauberer
He loved the speed and precision of rapiers, but they wouldn’t be much good against the armored, spear-wielding men that guarded the passage to Victor.
The question was… what should he choose?
Ideally, he wanted a weapon would fit well with the extra strength his new potion gave him, but he wasn’t overly fond of maces or war hammers.
Vadik strolled into the armory like he owned the place, with a smirk on his lips. “Thought I’d find you here. Looking for a new toy?” he asked.
“I guess you could say that,” Connor said, “you should probably think about something more suited to what we’ll be facing down there too.”
Vadik stroked the smokey-gray metal hilt of the scimitar he carried. It looked new and very expensive, with a grip of fine leather. “Nah,” he said, “I doubt I’ll find anything better than what I already have.”
“Yeah, I noticed that before… it looks exotic. Where did you get it?” Connor asked.
Vadik chuckled. “What? Are you after my blade now?” he said with a smirk. He drew the sword and handed it to Connor.
Connor examined it closely. The curved, dark-gray metal of the blade gleamed in the soft candlelight. It felt heavy in his hands. Far heavier than a steel blade, and it was clearly of exceptional make.
“What’s it made of?” Connor asked.
“Dark iron,” Vadik said.
Connor nearly dropped the blade. “Dark iron?” he asked, “how did you get a dark iron blade?”
Vadik shrugged. “I know a guy. Maybe, I can get you one too. If you’re nice to me,” he said.
Connor turned the scimitar over in his hands, making sure not to touch the edge. You could handle most blades without being cut if you were careful, but he wasn’t sure about dark iron.
He knew little about it except that it was far stronger than steel and more valuable than gold. The blade he held in his hands was likely worth more than every other weapon in the armory combined.
He handed it back to his friend.
“Want me to see if I can get you one?” Vadik asked with a smile as he sheathed his weapon once more.
“I’d definitely be interested. They can’t be easy to come by though,” Connor said.
Vadik laughed. “Don’t worry. I’m sure we’ll be able to work something out,” he said.
“Thanks, but why were you looking for me? Is something wrong?” Connor asked.
“No, nothing’s wrong… well… other than you know what. I just wanted my friend’s company for a bit. But, I’d better get back to work. I’ll catch up with you later,” Vadik said.
Vadik left, and Connor returned his attention to the weapons around him. Although they were just cheap junk by comparison.
He picked out a longsword, a crossbow, and a quarrel of crossbow bolts to go with it.
He was skilled with a variety of weapons, and crossbows should be very effective against the armored guards that stood between him and Victor.
He caressed the crossbow and stared into the polished wood. Was he doing the right thing? Would it be enough? What if they failed…
More than ever, he wished he had Victor’s advice.
A young man appeared in the doorway. “Korvac said to tell you that Maya is here,” he said.
“Thank you,” Connor said.
***
Maya and Korvac sat across from one another making small talk when Connor arrived. She looked just as she had before she was hurt by the bad reaction between her magic and the geas.
As for the where the rest of them were, no doubt they were hard at work elsewhere.
“You’re looking well,” Connor said.
“I could say the same,” she said with a wry smirk, “Korvac tells me that you have need of my expertise?”
“I do. You’re the expert on mind magic… have you ever heard of magical items capable of… controlling someone,” Connor said.
“Of course,” she said, “though I’d never make anything of the sort. I might not have many morals, but that is too far even for me if you’re going to ask me to—”
“No,” Connor said, “I need your help removing them. Do you think you could do it?”
“Does he always have such interesting jobs, or does he do it just for me?” Maya said.
Korvac smiled. “As special as you are, Lady Maya, he gives everyone interesting things to do,” he said.
“So, can you remove such an item?” Connor asked.
“It depends on the item,” she said, “something that can control a person is exceptionally rare, and the magic involved is always tricky, but I’m probably your best bet in the city.
“If I can’t remove it… then you’re dealing with something way out of your league. If you’re asking if I can remove a geas, then the answer is no. No-one can remove a geas.”
“Dealing with things out of my league is my specialty, and as far as I know, it isn’t a geas, but rather a physical item. Like a mind-controlling collar,” Connor said.
“A mind controlling collar? What’s this all about anyway? After the last job you gave me, I wasn’t sure if I was going to come this time,” she said, “Being connected to his mind when the geas activated wasn’t fun.
“I hoped that you might’ve found who put that awful geas on the target of my mind magic. I don’t like it when people leave nasty surprises like that for me to run into. Whatever it is you want me to do, I’m not doing anything until I know more this time.”
Should he trust her? She’d have to know sooner or later anyway… and really, did he have a choice?