by Ajax Lygan
“We should go, now!” Saïgra warned, as the first bits of rotten fruit, mud, and rocks flew in their direction. Tempest and his companions quickly sprinted off into the smoky abyss as the sound of projectiles thudded into the walls and ground behind them.
Once they were sure they were out of danger, the group paused for a breather.
“Is everyone okay?” Tempest asked, panting.
One-by-one his companions gave their assurances, checking over their gear to make sure they were not missing anything.
“Stupid fools,” Tempest said, spitting on the ground. “I told them the truth, yet they believe that idiot spouting nonsense on his little box.”
“People will believe what they want to believe,” Saïgra said. “No matter if it’s the right thing or the wrong thing. They will willfully decide to ignore the truth, if it suits their own narrative better. These people are scared and angry.”
“Still, we’re trying to help them, yet, they attack us. Why even bother?”
Ella approached Tempest and placed her hand on his shoulder. “Because it’s the right thing to do,” she said, smiling. “Hold tight to your own words.”
Tempest let out a heavy exhale and nodded at Ella’s wisdom.
“How much further do we have to go, Riika?” he asked, pointing off into the distance. Riika pulled out the parchment and scanned the notes one more time.
“No idea, but we should be approaching a gate, sometime soon, which will put us in the city’s section her home is in.”
“All right, let’s get a move on.”
It was only a short trek until they reached their next obstacle. The wooden bridge hung over stagnant water leading to a thirty-foot gate with a steel portcullis on both sides. A small detachment of guards stood there at attention.
When they recognized the approaching group, two guards crossed the wooden bridge to meet them. “Halt!” they shouted. “By order of General Eldrict, this section of the city is under complete lockdown. No one may enter or exit unless they have written approval from the general or a higher authority.”
Tempest turned to Riika, who handed him the written note from Sophia. Tempest handed it to the guard, who began reading it.
“That’s from Lead Investigator Windcatcher. She is expecting us to meet her at her home.”
The guard looked at his companion before addressing Tempest.
“Is this supposed to be some kind of joke? No official paper, no seal…” The guard crumpled the paper and threw it at Tempest. “Go waste someone else’s time and fuck off.”
The guards turned and began walking back toward their post. Rage filled Tempest as if his blood was on fire—a fire fueled by the ignorance they’d faced earlier and the disrespect just now. He envisioned pushing them off of the bridge and watching them struggle to swim in the massive armor. But before he could do anything, Saïgra walked up behind them.
“Excuse me, sirs?” Saïgra said, waiting for them to turn around. “I am Lady Saïgra, an emissary of the Firegrove. My companions behind me are also members of the nobility who have been tasked by your superior Investigator Windcatcher to meet her at her residence, immediately. If you continue to show disrespect and prevent us from meeting our obligations, I will have to take issue with your superiors, including General Eldrict.”
The guards turned and looked at each other, before laughing hysterically in Saïgra’s face.
“Lady Saïgra, was it?” one soldier asked. “Thank you, no… truly, thank you. I haven’t laughed that hard in years.”
A visible vein protruded from Saïgra’s forehead and began throbbing as she attempted to maintain her composure.
“Listen here, I don’t give a pile of rat shit who you are. Our orders are explicit, no one gets through these gates without written approval from General Eldrict or a higher up.”
“Oh, is that all,” Saïgra asked, fumbling inside her leaves. “Why didn’t you say so?” Saïgra opened the palm of her hand where a pink flower sprouted and bloomed. As it bloomed, it released a faint pink mist into the air near the soldiers. A foggy haze coated their eyes as they came under Saïgra’s control.
“First, I would like you to apologize to myself and my companions for the blatant disrespect given earlier.”
“Sorry,” the two soldiers echoed in unison.
“Great,” she continued, straightening up. “Now, we would like you to open the gate so we can get through. Once you are done, you can resume your posts and forget we even had this conversation.”
The guards did as they were told, and Saïgra waved the others to follow. As Tempest caught up to her, he leaned in to whisper.
“What in the god’s name was that?”
Saïgra smiled and shrugged. “You’re not the only one with pheromones. It’s harmless though, and will wear off in a few minutes.”
The two shared a light laugh as they waited for the portcullis to rise. The guards lifted them just high enough for Tempest and his companions to duck underneath before letting the heavy iron bars crash back into the ground. This part of the city was a stark contrast from the urban shanties they had come from.
Single-family homes spread upon individualized plots of land that gave the owners a dedicated space of their own. The building materials were of a higher quality, with most of the homes built from stone and wood, giving them the impression of wealth. They walked along roads lined with ornately cut stone, giving the area a suburban feel in the city’s heart.
“Wow, this area is really nice,” Riika said, looking around. “Didn’t the guards say this area was on lockdown?”
“It’s likely someone important lives here,” Ella said. “Rather than prioritize curbing the rioting that’s going on out in the city, the wealthy always prioritize protecting what they own.” Riika spit at the ground as they continued further in. This part of the city was completely untouched by the chaos outside, save for the lingering smoke and ash that coated the many buildings like an early snow.
After taking another left, Riika took off on a jog as she waved for the others to follow. “Come on, it should be the last house on the end.”
The road ended in a cul-de-sac. Riika pointed to the house straight ahead. “That’s it; that’s Sophia’s house.”
The blue she-orc stopped on the edge of the street, allowing the rest of the group to catch up. The house was a single-story stone and wood abode. It sat on a half-acre of land far enough away from its neighbors to give it plenty of privacy. The yard had no visible nearby trees. It was a far cry from the largest house they had seen, however, it was quite large for a single person.
“Do you think she has family here?” Tempest asked.
“Who, Sophia?” Riika asked. “Nah, I don’t think her job would allow it. If she does, then I bet they are as imperious as she is.”
Tempest let out a single bark of a laugh before he caught sight of the look on Riika’s face.
Her eyes squinted as she looked around them, and she rubbed her chin like she was lost in thought.
“What’s wrong?”
“All the other houses we have passed so far have had some kind of illumination either inside or outside.” She pointed to the front of Sophia’s. “All except this one.”
Tempest looked around and, sure enough, there were candles, torches in sconces, lanterns, or some kind of fireplace illumination visible through the cracks and windows of the nearby houses.
“I’m starting to get a bad feeling. Stay behind me,” Riika growled.
He sprinted behind her as she pulled out Lightning Breath and made her way to the front door. As they lined up for entry, Riika turned her head and whispered. “The door is already open. On three, we go in swinging.” Riika raised her hand and initiated the countdown.
On three, she slammed her shoulder into the door, breaking it off its hinges. Riika and Ella went left as Tempest and Saïgra went right. He braced himself with a force shield as he sprinted down the hallway. Each room’s door was open, allowing him t
o quickly check each room for threats. Three bedrooms, a small bathroom, and a few closets were all that were there.
A shout from the other side of the home notified them there were no perceived threats. “We’re clear, but you guys should come in here.”
Tempest and Saïgra quickly shuffled into the far room. He stopped once he noticed the beginning of a smeared blood trail along the floor. It wrapped around the main living area, through the dining room, and then led out the back door.
Signs of a struggle were prominent throughout the room. Chairs lay on their sides, punctured picture frames rested in the fireplace, and books from a nearby bookcase littered the floor.
That wasn’t the most disturbing discovery. Tempest found Riika and Ella hovering over what looked like a shed, folded snakeskin in the middle of the kitchen. However, once Tempest got closer, he noticed striking similarities between the skin and that of an older, female mousefolk.
“Oh fuck, is that what I think it is?” Tempest asked, covering his mouth.
“If what you’re asking, is it a shed skin that looks like Headmistress Krenik? Then yes,” Ella said as she used a broken leg of a chair to move the folds around.
“Did you see anything over on your side of the house?” Riika asked.
Tempest shook his head. “Nothing like this, but honestly we were just quickly checking for…” Tempest halted his train of thought as he detected consecutive thumps quickly approaching from outside the home.
Riika was fast enough to grab Ella out of the way before the armored minotaur crashed through the exterior wall. As Tempest was the closest, he was not quick enough to react. His air left him as he caught the blow square in the gut, his body doubled over the head of the rampaging monstrosity. A crescendo of pops vibrated throughout his body when they crashed through the next wall and he was thankful he was completely numb, when they charged through the other exterior wall.
With a flick of its head, the minotaur sent Tempest’s frame soaring through the air before skidding along the night’s damp grass. With adrenaline coursing through his veins, Tempest attempted to jump to his feet, only to realize he was paralyzed from the waist down.
He leaned onto his elbows and used them like hiking pikes as he crawled away from his attacker.
The minotaur wore a full suit of plate armor over chain-mail. Each step echoed like a boulder falling down a mountainside as it made its way toward its weakened prey. Tempest swung his head all around, looking for his weapon; though, he was unsure how useful it would be against the shielding provided by the beast’s armor.
As if summoned by a dark puff of smoke, his weapon spun toward him out of the nearby shadows. His dazed vision and the darkness of night made it difficult to see. It was in the moment when the beast was within spitting distance, that Tempest saw the exposed slits at the front of the beast’s helmet. As the beast stood there laughing at the pitiful sight before him, Tempest flung his blade with his force magic.
It shot forward like a bolt being thrown from a ballista. The thud and grinding sound of steel on steel only stopped when the tip of the blade collided with the back of the helmet. The massive beast’s body stood still like a macabre statue as blood slowly poured from the gaps in the steel.
With no immediate danger around him, Tempest began to focus on healing his wounds. Cracks, creaks and pops echoed as his bones fused back together, restoring feeling back to his lower half.
The sounds of explosions and clinking steel brought Tempest to the realization that there were more threats left to deal with. He moved his arms and legs, wiggling his fingers and his toes to make sure he still had all of his normal functions before jumping to his feet. The minotaur’s body crashed to the ground as Tempest pulled the blade free from his foe’s helm and sprinted back around the other side of the house.
By the time he made it to his companions, the battle was already over.
The damage Riika had done was clear as day. She’d simply hewed the full plated bodies apart, every which way imaginable. Tempest was unsure if it was her indescribable strength or Lightning Breath that made it look like a butcher had sheared through canned meat.
Ella was walking around, smothering any remaining flames in the charred grass where her bombs had gone off. Pieces of charred flesh and steel lay strewn, still burning in the yard. The bodies were so mangled, it was hard to tell how many combatants there actually had been.
Then there was Saïgra.
She stood next to her own monstrosity. A ten-foot-tall rooted bulb seemed to have sprouted from the earth. As Tempest approached the three ladies, he got to see the plant peel itself vertically, releasing a gush of bloody and acidic juice from the inside of the plant, leaving only a pile of armor on the ground.
“Is anyone hurt?” Tempest asked. The three looked at each other and shook their heads. Tempest looked around, trying to count the number of enemies they’d faced.
“It was about a dozen,” Riika said, pointing at all the mangled pieces. “I’m honestly surprised we didn’t hear them earlier, but I could be to blame for that… clanking around all over the place.”
“It’s all right. I’m just glad you weren’t hurt.”
“What about you? You took that minotaur’s horns square in the chest, and from the looks of things, went through two walls on your way out, too.”
“He broke my back, and I couldn’t walk,” Tempest said, trying to ignore how close he’d been to dying. “But I was able to heal myself, so I’m fine now. Do we know who these guys are?”
“Looks like they are the same outfit that jumped us at the Cassaval Family Inn,” Ella said, approaching with something in her hand. She reached out and dropped the communication amulet onto Tempest’s palm.
“Only this time it doesn’t look like they were attempting to capture us,” Riika said. “They were heavily armored and swinging to kill.”
“Doesn’t it feel, I don’t know, off… though?” Tempest asked, pacing about. “Last time they brought fifteen, this time less. Even though they were heavily armored, they didn’t bring any equipment to suppress our magic.
“Overconfidence? Maybe they thought it would be easier to kill us instead of capture us. Or, maybe it was an attack of desperation?”
“If that was the case, wouldn’t they send everything they had at us?”
“True, and nothing indicated from Sophia’s letter that we would be walking into a trap. I would have assumed, given her occupation, she would have warned us somehow.”
“Right, but then how did they know she’d sent the letter and where to set up the ambush?”
“They had to have seen the contents of the letter,” Ella said, joining the rest of the group. “There’s no other logical way.”
“If it was last minute, that might be why we saw so few troops being sent. Maybe these were the only ones they had on hand. It could be a small outfit, with a large reach and deep pockets.”
“Okay,” Riika said, clapping her hands together. “I’m more concerned about them sending reinforcements, since they know where we are. Let’s focus on finding the reason why Sophia wanted us to meet her here. We can spend time discussing these details later… somewhere safe.”
The group headed back into the house, each taking and scouring a room.
Tempest returned to the bedrooms he had examined earlier. He started with the closest room. Spider webs and dust covered most of the floor. He could see several footsteps entering and exiting. Not much was in this room save for a bed, dresser, and a wooden mannequin that displayed an old officer’s uniform. It was much too large for Sophia, but Windcatcher was etched on the badge.
Her father’s? Tempest wondered. He found nothing as he searched through the six dresser drawers. The adjoining room was a bathroom that contained a wooden tub, an empty chamber pot, and an empty water basin sitting on top of a stool. All Tempest needed was a quick scan before he reached the final room.
The giant hole that stood next to the doorway, and continued throug
h the exterior wall reminded him of the injuries he’d suffered only minutes before. He rubbed his lower back as a bit of phantom pain flared. This room looked a bit more lived in, though it shared the same militaristic aesthetic as the first rooms he had entered.
The bed’s sheets and comforter were in basic colors, folded perfectly along the bed’s edges. The floor and furniture were clean except for the remains of Tempest’s earlier confrontation. The clothes in the dresser were perfectly folded and neat, showing the same aesthetic Tempest had come to recognize as Sophia’s.
In one of the last drawers, tucked under a pile of clothes, was a small painted mural. It was of a small avian family, a father and daughter. Tempest recognized the uniform from the other room on the avian man. The daughter’s feather pattern was enough for Tempest to recognize this was a photo of Sophia and her father.
The man’s stoic face was a stark contrast to the smiling little girl sitting next to him. He wondered what her father had been like and how he would handle the situation they found themselves in. The sound of creaking footsteps brought his attention to the hallway.
“Hey, we think we found something,” Ella said, pointing behind her.
Tempest nodded and placed the portrait back into the drawer before following Ella back toward the dining room. Riika and Saïgra shoved the dining room table out of the way, pulling up the rug underneath it and slinging the decoration over a chair, exposing a hatch in the floor. Looking up and noticing Tempest, Riika pulled open the hatch, revealing a wooden stairwell that descended into the floor below.
“When that minotaur crashed through the wall, he nudged the table and the rug a bit,” Riika said, pointing at the floor. “That’s when I noticed the hatch. The opening is too small for me, so one of you three needs to go.”
Tempest didn’t hesitate, slowly descending the stairs. It was completely dark, saved for the sliver of light from Ella’s elixir. The small room he found was the size of the bedrooms upstairs and contained a desk, a chest, and a chair. The wood walls and stone floor did little to help the musty dampness in the air.