Drone

24 The Paramountess' Garden.

Vidder stepped into the lamp-lit night of Soutvor. He had lost Niklas' scent and had to search the surrounding areas by night. Here, the familiar smell of Niklas had returned.

His hands trembled, and he anxiously grabbed his armor to steady them. He should have brought more med.

"Hey, you!" someone cried from behind him in Relric. "Show yourself!"

He turned to see two uniformed night watch officers with rifles slung over their shoulders. They cried out when they saw him.

"Demon!" one cried as he fumbled for the rifle.

"The one that killed the sawmen!" the other cried as he did the same.

Vidder cursed himself as he realized he had forgotten to take off his drone mask.

Despite his lack of med, these men could be the boost of valor that he needed.

"Put your hands where we can see them!" one of the men cried.

"It's a demon!" his companion shrieked. "Just shoot it!"

"I don't have silver bullets!"

"Well, thank the old gods for that," Vidder said in Relric, rolling his eyes. When his voice was filtered through his mask, it took on a metallic edge. He reached back and drew his duel Drone blades from his shoulder harness.

"Kill it!" one screamed as he pulled the trigger. His rifle bucked, but his shot went wide.

Vidder frowned as he looked to the side where the bullet had absently kicked up dirt a few feet away. He snorted. "Nice."

The guard frantically pulled out a ramrod and fished for another bullet. His partner fired, and it took Vidder square in the chest.

Vidder staggered back a few steps with a gasp and glanced down at his chest piece.

The bullet had blasted a small star-shaped scar in the paint and a shallow divot in the metal before disintegrating into spall. What had the Relrins even done with their stolen Remnants to still use such primitive weapons?

The terrified guards screamed when they realized the bullet had been useless. Vidder charged them, and in a few speed-packed strides paired with a few well-placed strikes, their bodies dropped at his feet.

He let out a sigh of satisfaction as the valor inside burned hot. He regarded his Drone's blades, now wet with blood, the crimson drops reflecting in the lamplight.

A muttering to his side roused him from his trance. A homeless man tried to edge away, never taking his eye off Vidder. How had Vidder missed him?

"Please!" the man whimpered. "I didn't see anything."

Vidder frowned again. He saw now that this man was a Sharderin. One who had stayed in Relgar. "Why do you shrink from your savior?" Vidder asked in Sharderic.

The man gasped in surprise. "That tongue. You're–"

"A new Sharderin." Vidder cut in. "You have no valor." The man wasn't worth the effort, so Vidder rammed one of his blades into one of the corpses on the ground and drew his prylux pistol.

Striiike. The yellow flair struck the man, threw him several meters, and slammed him against a building. The streetbound Sharderin collapsed to the ground in a motionless heap.

Vidder holstered his weapon, ripped his blade from the body at his feet, and trotted off. The noise had probably woken the immediate populace, and as much as he would like to lay waste to this town. He was here for Niklas.