Kings Game

Chapter 67 - New Hand

(1)

Despite her better judgment, Kell had agreed to go with Roran to meet one of Tasos's cronies about a new hand. She didn't like the idea of stitching someone else's hand onto her wrist, but she was starting to get desperate. Her last few fights had been abysmal, and now that her upcoming duel with Timara had been officially sanctioned she needed her full strength back.

The meeting place was situated on the outskirts of town, in the small valley between Mount Tasos and Mount Balaki. The place was mostly made of older brick buildings, half of which were still in good repair and half that were on the verge of falling apart. A variety of squatters could be seen living in the latter, peeking out through the cracks as Kell and her friends passed by the dilapidated buildings.

"Are you sure about this?" Kell asked, hating the uncertainty in her voice. She wasn't supposed to be uncertain, she was supposed to be a hardened warrior that didn't back down from anything.

"I trust Rhout," Roran said. "As for his contact, we'll just have to wait and see. Sarah will let us know if they start lying to us."

Kell grunted and settled into silence. Behind her, Nul followed along without comment. Kell suspected they were only coming along to see how they would attach the new hand. Thankfully, Karyn had been out of the apartment by the time they'd left. She hadn't told Karyn anything about this. She wasn't sure if she was trying to protect Karyn, in case things went wrong, or herself, in case things went well.

"We're here," said Roran, gesturing to one of the better looking buildings.

He knocked on the door. A tall man opened it. Kell didn't need to be told it was Rhout. She'd never met him before but she knew a Champion when she saw one.

"Roran," he said, then glanced at Nul and Kell.

"Rhout," Roran said in greeting. There were no introductions.

"Come on in, she's waiting."

Rhout ushered them inside and led them to a small windowless room lit by a single candle. The candle was on a table in the center of the room, next to which sat an old woman with scraggly white hair. Her eyes darted between them, jumping up and down as she examined each person until they landed on Kell. Kell was wearing her normal cloak, hiding her missing hand beneath its folds.

"This is Yatch," Rhout said, "She'll get you fixed up. I can vouch that she's a reasonable person."

Kell raised an eyebrow. "That's it? Just that she's a reasonable person?"

"I can promise that she'll add limbs instead of removing them," said Rhout, "Assuming you pay her of course."

"How much?" asked Kell.

The woman grinned, her teeth yellow and sharp. She gave a number. Kell's stomach flipped in on itself. It was expensive, even by their standards. They had received a healthy reward for their efforts in Uhlara, and Roran had started receiving a comfortable salary for working in the King's Court. Even with all of that, this would nearly empty their bank accounts. Kell would have to begin winning proper matches again if they wanted to maintain their lifestyle after this.

"We can pay it," Roran said without hesitation. "Is a note okay?"

"It would be hard for an old lady to carry around that much coin," said Yatch. "A note will be fine."

Roran turned to Nul who pulled out a slip of paper. They pulled out a blood pen and jabbed the inside of their cheek. Kell winced. She always flinched whenever Nul did that. Even Rhout seemed perturbed. Yatch didn't so much as blink.