Codex

13 - City of Decadence

In just a few hours I came to the end of the open roads and into the dreaded woods of miscreants Flynn told me about. Not even ten minutes in, I came across a young woman, crying softly. "Mister," she wheezed, her ankle bloody and mangled, "please, help me."

I went to her aid immediately. "What happened?"

"A wolf. It, attacked me. Please, help me get back, to my father's cabin," her eyes watered.

"What were you doing out here?" I asked, picking her up off the ground and gliding in the direction she pointed.

"I was picking herbs for my sick father. I'm really glad you came along," she smiled weakly and touched me on the cheek.

"She's amazing, isn't she?"

To an idiot, sure.

We came to a dead end of sorts, with just two exits. I dropped her on the ground, "You can come out now, guys. Rob me, if you can!" I yelled to the environs.

A dart of sorts zoomed through the air, hitting my ice wall, so were a plethora of other projectiles, probably coated in poison.

"You're a smart kid, but we've encountered others like you," a thin cutthroat showed his face, clothed in camouflage, "you'll run out of juice soon enough!" He said, licking his lips. I was so tempted to tout about Division, it was the perfect goddamn time, but that wouldn't look too cool. A bunch of them surrounded me, at least ten brigands, plus there were others far off with crossbows.

"Try me," I said, lowering my stance and clenching my fists. They charged in together, assuming I was going to go close combat with them, but they couldn't be more wrong. Kor'zha, who I had summoned from the moment I left Aquan, was travelling beneath the earth. He made a ring of soft sand, causing them all to fall in–up to their chests. Chain Lightning, despite its perfect use-case in this scenario, was a little too powerful for humans and could possibly cause death, so I settled for a combination of Frost Trap to make sure they stayed put and Fire Blast to light them a fire for a while. Fire Blast was weak and would only cause small burns, it was good for distraction whilst Kor'zha dealt them a similar fate.

It happened so fast, the trickster girl only just realised this was the moment she should run.

"Well, for starters, wolves hunt in packs, they're rarely alone. You can't start off with a sob-story and show affectionate behaviour like touching my cheek, rookie mistake. And come on, no one's going to live in forests notorious for its bandit activity."

She trembled, probably having difficulty finding the strength to stand. I stooped near her, "Relax," and brushed her hair past an ear gently, "I didn't kill those guys so I won't kill you," then grabbed her by the chin, "you know a fellow called Richard Munroe, right? I want you to deliver a mess–" I stopped, then realised that idea would be a dumbass one. There was no way any form of message would reach Gassity before I did. "You know what, sweetie, I'm taking you with me. I want you to take me right to him."

"Why the hell would I do that?!"

"Hey, buddy, I'm trying to make this a one-kill mission. It'd be nice if it could stay that way."

"Munroe's gang is our only source of income. If he dies, we're basically dead too!"

"Aww," I tilted my head in sympathetic way, "don't say that. You're okay-ish at illusion magic, I'm sure you could work as a clown somewhere."

"Man, that was rude."

But it was a cool comeback, right? Admit it.

She folded her arms and looked away, exhaling and pouting like an angry wife. Maybe I should just leave her behind in the ground, I began thinking. It's obvious she was new to this with her amateur acting, but her stubborn ways made me feel like leaving her here to suffer.