by Skyler Grant
"What prices are we looking at?"
"Twenty a bullet for the piercers. Or I'll sell you ten for one fifty. Same for the stunners Seekers are thirty apiece. Explosive rounds, fifty."
That was more than Van wanted to spend, more than he probably should be spending. Still, the piercers were a matter of survival.
"I'll take the ten piercers," Van said.
Doxy portioned them out and handed the rounds over in a small box which Van tucked into a pouch on his armor.
"Want me to head next door and show you some helmets?" Doxy asked.
"I think the prices on that are going to be too steep for me. Bounties here pay well, but not that well," Van said.
"You could become a miner? Just joking, don't become a miner. Everybody here wants to be a miner."
"Money bad in it?"
"Money's fantastic in it, that's why everybody wants to be one. Does everybody have the luck to actually stake a claim that is worth anything? Most people try until they go broke, and then they're on the next ship out. Or if they're like you, they just shoot someone already with a claim and take it. Don't do that either," Doxy said brightly.
"Then I'd probably get sent after myself," Van said.
"Or you'd get a visit from the Sheriff. We've got a mean Sheriff."
"Then I shall avoid that fate. Thank you for the help. If I come into some more coin I might look you up about the helmet," Van said.
Outside the store he took a moment to load up one of the piercer rounds and kept the other five standard. If he had to, he could now hit a tougher target but was still geared up for the threats he was more likely to face.
The next few hours he spent getting acquainted with every bar in town. So far they'd proved a good source of leads. However nobody recognized the name Mortimer Snidley. Of course, the con man was no doubt using a false name. Van still had to try.
When he finally returned to the room he had a box of cookies from the bakery for Alexa. The hours he'd been away had done her some good. While some traces of discoloration remained they were nearly gone.
23
Buffalo fifty feet tall. Tigers with claws that can slice through ultrasteel. Ready to take your hunt to the next level? Contact Dynasty Tours today.
The next day found them outside a dress shop. Van was leaning against the wall and watching the traffic of well-dressed women going in and out.
"You're sure about this?" Van asked Alexa.
"While you are likely to find him in a bar as anywhere else, it isn't the right hunting grounds. This is a man that preys on women, steals their fortunes. He is a sort of hunter and he'll always be looking for new prey," Alexa said, keeping her eyes on the doorway.
There was some truth to what she said. Van still felt out of place.
There was a feeling of weight in the air, a looming sort of presence.
A diminutive man who looked to be somewhere in his sixties, dressed in rough-spun clothing, suddenly stood before Alexa and bowed. "I am An Liu of the Beggars. Your presence is required."
Alexa twisted into an even deeper bow. "I would not wish to disappoint the Beggars. This man is my apprentice. May he accompany us?"
An Liu looked at Van. "So long as he behaves."
Alexa dipped her head and glanced over at Van. "This is one of those moments where you are very, very polite."
Van had already figured that much out. This man may not look like much on the surface, but even Van's rudimentary senses could feel the power rolling off him.
Van tried to mimic the bow Alexa made, and was fairly sure he'd made a mess of it. An Liu simply turned and gestured, and set off through the streets.
They quickly left the wealthy parts of town behind for the outskirts where the homes were simple with doors open to the streets, the population barefoot and poorly dressed.
Van's senses quickly started becoming overloaded. There was essence here, or essence-users. This area must be populated by those mostly from the Dynasty.
They came to a large building that looked half-collapsed on itself, the door flanked by two figures who, like An Liu, radiated power.
An Liu gestured towards the doorway before stepping back and aside.
Alexa entered and Van followed.
It was hot inside, sweltering really, from a large pit in the middle of the room filled with smoldering coals. In a seat that looked to be carved from stone was one of the strongest-looking women Van had ever seen. She looked to be in her mid-twenties, barely dressed in a loincloth and a band of cloth encircling her breasts. If she were standing, Van thought she'd be at least half a head taller than him. Her flesh was a deep bronze hue, muscles rippling as she moved, and a number of strange tattoos upon her flesh glowed with reddish light.
The woman moved a hand and the coals flared brighter, filling the room with light.
Alexa bowed deep as before and Van followed suit.
The woman asked, after leaning forward to study them, "I've never met Princess Yui. Is she taller or are you true to scale?"
"You know who I am. I wish you didn't. I'm true to the original in size," Alexa said.
"Of course I know who you are. We are the Peasants. You can call me Song, I run our little band locally," Song said, her voice practically a bellow. "I know him too. Van Draya, the Gun Sage. But no, too weak by far. Another copy. Both copies, weak little versions of the strong."
Van was pretty sure he was being insulted—and there was nothing that he could, or should, do about it.
"For now. Do you plan to sell us to those seeking us?" Alexa asked.
"That is the question, isn't it? Someone would pay well for you both, and I've little use for Yui," Song said.
"Forgive me, I am certain I should know. Who are the Peasants?" Van asked.
"You tell him, little blood drinker. I listen with interest," Song said, leaning back in the stone chair.
"When the Chui Dynasty was formed out of powerful essence-users, there quickly arose twelve great houses. Most of the greater pathways found a way to marry into, or enter, the service of one of them. The Peasants were those who did not," Alexa said.
"No single pathway guides us. No honor binds us. No loyalty except to each other. We are not welcome in any manse or palace, and yet have eyes in all of them," Song said.
"Why are we here?" Alexa asked.
"Because you hurt the spiders. They are not Peasants, but they are small," Song said.
"It was just a job. The Guild hired us to bring one in and the others got in the way," Alexa said.
"I buy hired killers as a defense. I don't think more of you for it, but I believe it. Still doesn't help me decide what to do about you," Song said.
"Do you think she can help us?" Van asked Alexa.
Song chuckled and the rumble shook the room. "I have not yet decided if you live and you wish favors. Amuse me, little man. What is it you want?"
Alexa shot Van a warning look. Van figured at this point any damage was already done.
"I want to become the Gun Sage, like the other me. Stronger, even. But we don't know the path he walked."
"And the little blood drinker wants to drink her creator. They are all alike, their kind," Song said.
Alexa said, "And what do you want? I can sense some of your power, fire giantess. It strains you to be this small. You are too big for this place. You are too big for this planet."
"It is tiny, but at least it has eyes. You are useless, you are both useless to me as you are now, but you may be more. You are nothing, but at least you have potential. You and the Peasants are now friends. You will take what help we offer, you will give what aid is demanded," Song said.
That didn't sound like friends. That sounded like forced servitude.
Still, Alexa executed another low bow and Van reluctantly followed.
"Go while you can," Song said. They did, as fast as they could.
24
"Evolution is learning to remove the obstacles from your path. Ascension is removing yoursel
f from your path." Found on the wall of the ruined sanctuary of Onak
Alexa didn't talk until they were clear of the district.
"Well, that seemed ... terrible," Van said, when she finally came to a stop.
"We're lucky to be alive, or not bundled up and on our way to being sold," Alexa said, taking a moment to rub her eyes. "While this could be a good thing, it's still a good thing I wish hadn't happened."
"You think they'll come through with something?" Van asked.
"When you want an eclectic path knowledge you don't get much better than the Peasants. They may dress simple, but don't let them fool you. You don't get that strong without some serious resources and knowledge behind you." With a shake of her head Alexa resumed walking.
"Was she actually a fire giantess?"
Alexa laughed and shrugged. "Depends on your meaning. The path of the flaming mountain. They used to be a minor house until Clan Nakota wiped them out. Their paths were a mix of earth and fire. Their rituals might be good for you, though if you went through their evolution you wouldn't fit in that armor any longer."
"Are physical changes like that common? You look completely human," Van said.
"An evolution is an evolution. You transcend what you were before and become something else, something more powerful. On some paths you never stop appearing human, but usually the more powerful you become the more it starts to change you," Alexa said. "Speaking of that, how are your exercises going? You are remembering to breathe? To focus?"
"I had a greater awareness of those we met today. I still don't sense essence in the environment, but I'm getting better about sensing the strength level in people."
Alexa turned down a side street. Van could tell from the attire of people around him that they were entering another section of the city mostly populated by those from the Dynasty. There wasn't a lot of physical variation between the two peoples. The Dynasty was certainly fonder of robes.
"What are we doing here?" Van asked.
"We're fresh out of peaches and you need more power. I'd hoped the ones we had would do it. I think you're almost there. We have to push you over the line. This is going to be expensive," Alexa said.
"How much can a fruit cost?"
"Spiritual fruit where the essence can be directly absorbed into your body? I don't think you realize what a prize we found in the mail robbery haul."
Perhaps she was right. The district had a market filled with fruits unlike Van had ever seen, and it was vendors off in one corner that caught Alexa's eye. Almost all the patrons here were well dressed, wearing ornate robes studded in gems, and often followed by a servant carrying packages.
Alexa looked wistfully at a bunch of grapes that seemed to glow with a pale golden light.
"Do they sell spirit wine?" Van asked.
"They do, although it is quite wasteful unless done with the greatest of skill. Even the grapes are out of our price range. Those would give me a decent boost. At least we can get away with something weak. I think you just need a small push," Alexa said, moving on to study a display of oranges.
"So what happens? I just climb to the top of my tiny little hill and we do some rituals. Rituals that hopefully don't involve being naked in any ice caverns," Van said.
"We don't have an ice cavern," Alexa said with a glance at him. "And they aren't all quite so traumatic or life-threatening. Yours probably will be. You want to master a weapon. That means violence, trauma. Weapon paths are amongst the most dangerous."
"And that doesn't just happen the once, right? It isn't just body, but mind and spirit as well," Van said.
"And then the evolution when all three are complete, which is usually the worst of them all. I know you want to know more, but I don't yet have answers to give you. I think this world should have what we need for all. I still don't know what they'll be."
Van wasn't as worried. He knew on some level he should be. He also couldn't escape the feeling that some other version of himself had been through this before. Had faced challenges and survived. That version didn't have someone like Alexa to guide his steps—somebody he trusted this much.
It was a strange feeling, that trust. Van didn't think Alexa would hesitate to throw him into a situation where he could die. Really, she already had more than once. Yet, each time she had been by his side, and given so much of her time helping to train him. Van had saved her, and for all that Alexa might have a heart made of ice, she was loyal.
"We'll figure it out," Van said.
"We will," Alexa said, before she turned to a vendor and started haggling. After a minute of back and forth she exchanged three hundred of their hard-earned coins for a strawberry which she offered to Van.
"Eat up and hope you don't need another," Alexa said.
Van swallowed it down. At least it was delicious, and more importantly filled him with a raw thrum of power once again.
25
"Greed isn't just good, it is everything. To truly master yourself, you must first own everything." Path of the Golden Treasury.
When they returned to their room that night they found a message waiting for them, attached to the door. "Heard you are looking for me. If you are open to a better offer, meet at the west side livery. Midnight. -Snidley."
Van read the note and passed it over to Alexa.
"Think it's a trap?" Van asked.
"I actually don't. If it were a trap he'd be more subtle about it—he is a con man. This is something else. Curious to hear what he has to say?" Alexa asked.
"We could just track this note back to him. Given Guild security, whoever delivered it had to be caught on camera. Follow that lead back to him."
"Could. It bother you to go against a contract?"
Van thought about that. Honor was a big thing amongst the nobles back home, and so far as he could tell it seemed a big thing in the Dynasty too. While Van placed a high value on personal loyalty, these Guild contracts had largely been to capture or kill people he didn't know on behalf of other people he didn't know.
"Long as it doesn't mess with our business reputation, I can't see the harm unless it really is an ambush," Van said.
"Guess it's going to be a long day then. It's already late, let's head back out."
The streets of New Diablos were a different sort of world at night. Instead of vendors hawking fruits and mining supplies, there were those in various states of undress offering far more personal services, and those shouting out directions to one tavern or another.
That had largely been left behind by the time they got to the west side of town.
There was a carriage waiting outside the livery, a prominent sigil of a lion on a shield on the side. From within a pale hand motioned.
They boarded and found a young woman waiting for them, blonde and curvy, and dressed in an overly pink gown.
"I'm supposed to ask for your weapons. They'll be fine, just need to lock them up. I'm Silibah," she said with an awkward smile.
"You'll pry my guns from my cold dead hands, and she doesn't need weapons to kill you a dozen different terrible ways," Van said, settling into a seat.
Alexa flashed a feral grin, the air growing notably more chill within the carriage.
Silibah looked wide-eyed between them, "Please, he said it was really important. You should trust him. Morty is just the kindest and most decent man I've ever met."
"He's really not," Alexa said. "He wanted to meet with us. He can do it with us armed right now, but willing to listen, or the next time we meet we'll be coming to haul him in."
Silibah let out an exaggerated sigh. "He said you might not agree. He's really smart too, always knows what you're thinking. Fine." She rapped twice on the paneling facing the driver and the carriage lurched into motion.
"You know what he's wanted for?" Van asked Silibah.
"I know the terrible things people say. People aren't very nice. But Morty is starting a new life and we're very happy," Silibah said.
Van wasn't impressed. He didn't know if
any of the charges against Mortimer were true. However, Mortimer had sent this girl out to meet a pair of hired killers trying to find him. If he cared about her at all, it obviously wasn't enough.
Silibah wasn't a great conversationalist and the journey mostly passed in quiet. They were headed further out of town. When they came to a halt it was outside of a mining operation. It was quite the large one, from the looks of things, with tracks installed and carts loaded down with stone in a line near the entrance and a processing equipment.
It was a weird place for an ambush. It was a weird place for a meeting.
Van got out of the carriage first, reaching out a hand to help Alexa down. Waiting for them was a man with a polished handlebar mustache and an immaculate suit.
"There they are! Steel and Stone, quite the fledgling reputation you have in the Bounty Hunters Guild and all for me. I'm honored, truly, Mortimer Snidley," Mortimer said, giving Van's hand a vigorous shake before doing the same to Alexa.
Alexa said, "I'm the Stone of our deadly duo. There is an easy thousand to be made for hauling you in, so if you've got an offer to be made you'd best get to the making of it."
"Straight to business. You're a lucky man, sir, to have a partner this sharp. A lucky man indeed," Mortimer said to Van. "But yes, dear lady. That is exactly what I intend to do. A thousand? A pittance, laughable, insulting even. Insulting to us both."
"I don't feel that insulted," Van said.
Mortimer put on a winning smile. "That is why I wanted to meet you here. You met my Silibah? Lovely girl, charming, beautiful, well-endowed in every sense of the word, if you catch my meaning."
"Oh, I do, and it isn't making your case," Alexa said.
"You have every reason not to believe me. I know. But Silibah is the heiress to some of the richest mining claims on New Diablos. The Yuko, Simin, and Ungar mines," Mortimer said.
The names meant nothing to Van. Judging from Alexa's expression she felt the same.
