by Jeff Sproul
"Aye, more than something," said the man. "Everything's wrong here, but that's why we're here. I don't know if the captain will be taking on extra crew. Especially ones we found here, but you're welcome to come back with me. I need to report in, and I've been separated from my group."
"Your group?" asked Chaxin.
The man diverted his attention to Chaxin. "Aye, my mates. We split up into teams for the hunt, to locate the creature and flush it out. But she's crafty, that one."
"She?" asked Verun.
He nodded. "Aye, I believe it's a she. At least, part of her anyway. We should get moving. Follow me." Without waiting for an agreement, the man turned around and walked swiftly up the street, the way the two of them had already been going.
Chaxin and Verun exchanged a look. Chaxin shrugged and gestured to the man, as if they should follow. Verun nodded in silent agreement.
The two of them quickly followed the man, but stayed behind him, letting him lead the way. He kept turning his head, checking the rooftops, the corners, the side streets, everything.
"What's your name?" asked Chaxin. "I'm Chaxin, this is Verun."
"The name's Samisun," he replied. "Are you two capable fighters?"
"We are," Verun spoke up. "What is it you're hunting, exactly? Is it after you, right now?"
Chaxin had no desire to correct Verun on the fact that he himself was probably not the most capable of fighters.
"We call it a hunt," said Samisun. "But it feels like we're the ones being hunted. She moves in shadow. She's incredibly fast, with abnormal strength. I only caught a glimpse of her as she dragged one of my mates away. We think she has poison claws. She's much faster than we are at running. She can scale a building in seconds."
"And this… is a person?" asked Verun. "Or a monster?"
Samisun glanced back. "Both."
Chapter 22: Keldara
The way Samisun was acting made Chaxin think back to Verun's overreaction with the fruits. But if what Samisun said was true, then perhaps there really was something to be concerned about. But so far, all he'd said was that it was some woman, who was also a monster? What did that even mean?
As Samisun led the way, Chaxin kept his voice to a whisper as he spoke to Verun. "Shouldn't he be more concerned about having just met us? He seems awfully trusting, don't you think? And don't we still need to find a grimoire? Are we sure we want to be following him? What if he's really being chased by a creature, and just using us as a shield?"
The cobblestone street appeared the same as it had since the moment they left the lodgings of Verun's associate. But luckily for Verun's sanity, there didn't seem to be any white fruit nearby.
Verun looked back to Chaxin, then turned his head forward, nodding slightly. "He's not concerned about us because whatever he and his people were hunting seems to be of far greater importance. As far as the grimoire is concerned, his captain could very well have one on their ship, and we'll be passing by the wharf anyway. We could always meet the captain, secure passage, and then stop by the wharf before they leave. And yes, I very much think that he's using us as a shield so he can safely return to the rest of his crew. But this works in our favor."
"A little further. It's just up ahead, past the warehouses," said Samisun, seemingly having no idea the two were discussing him. He'd paid less and less attention to Chaxin and Verun and more on their surroundings. His shield and sword were always at the ready, as if something might jump out at him at any moment.
"Hopefully their captain will be amicable towards answering our questions, as well as allowing us to charter safe passage away from here," said Verun. "But if Samisun and the rest of the crew are here in Trillin, hunting things, then that passage may not be as safe as I would prefer."
"I don't think we have any options," said Chaxin. "They may be the only ship near the island."
"If there's one ship that thinks it can profit off hunting or plundering, then there are bound to be others," said Verun. "No one remains ahead of everyone else for long. People catch on. Nothing stays secret. It all depends on their captain."
"Well, I'm sure that's not always the case," said Chaxin. "From what I've heard, not many people know about spoken magic, which you had no issue doing back in Purgatory. That seems to be pretty secret to me."
Verun tossed Chaxin a glance. "Do not speak of that, especially not in the company of others."
"Why? More secrets you wish to keep to yourself? Are you not fond of sharing?" Chaxin asked.
Verun sighed and shook his head. "It's more a matter of protecting them from the things I know, than keeping them all to myself. Trust me on this."
"I guess I'll have to," Chaxin replied.
As the three of them crossed another intersection, the structures around them seemed to differ in architecture and size. Whereas the buildings had been small and modular, mostly meant for housing and storefronts, now they were far more sizeable and vast, and not as makeshift. Most of the large warehouses had a solid stone foundation, and secure walls going up many stories. There were ramps, and the warehouses seemed to be sectional.
"What are these used for?" asked Chaxin.
"Mostly storing goods, to be later bartered and traded here in Trillin, or out in other towns and cities," said Verun. "Almost all trade goes through Trillin, here on Wake."
Samisun turned his head. "Not anymore it doesn't," he said, seeming to have picked up on Verun's comment, now that Verun wasn't keeping as quiet.
Verun's lips parted again to speak, but Samisun directed his attention forward, and didn't seem willing to discuss such topics while they were moving. The man was still on edge, but had relaxed considerably the closer they got to the docks.
Bang!
The three of them came to a sudden halt.
Chaxin's eyes widened, hearing the familiar sound of a gunshot ring out. It was just like the iconic sound that followed Kaiz's gun-spear. Was Kaiz somehow still alive?
"This way! Hurry!" Samisun called, as he took off running down the street. "My crew might've engaged the creature!"
Chaxin and Verun ran after the man, keeping close but remaining behind him. Chaxin wanted to find out if Kaiz was still alive. How could he be? He'd seen him fall. Had Deloris managed to save him and make her way out?
Samisun turned the corner on the warehouse to their right. There was a large opening, easily a story high and as wide as the house they'd been in earlier.
Without hesitation, Samisun rushed into the warehouse.
Chaxin looked to Verun, unsure if they should follow, but Verun didn't waver, nor notice Chaxin's glance. He kept running.
Upon entering the structure, a pungent odor assailed Chaxin's nose. The scent of rotting meat and spoiled vegetables was prevalent all around him, in the more localized area of the warehouse itself.
The warehouse was stacked with crates. In some parts, they were stacked all the way to the ceiling, which was easily two stories high. On the right side of the structure was a ramp, which led to the next floor. Square wooden pillars were situated at measured intervals, holding up the floor above.
Light streamed in from the main opening, but the further they got into the warehouse, the more the light diminished. The crates were stacked in sections, allowing space in rows and columns around them.
A light flickered up ahead. Chaxin was still running behind Samisun, but eased to the side to better look around him. Two figures were standing about a hundred feet away. One had an axe, aimed up at the ceiling. The other had a sword, with a cumbersome looking hilt. Both were standing still, their attention on the ceiling, or possibly the tops of the stacked crates.
"Where is it?" asked Samisun, closing in on the two members of his crew. "Where's the rest of your team?"
Chaxin's arms pumped as they neared the man and woman. Both had longer black hair and fair skin. The woman, who wielded the sword, also held a metal lantern down at her side. The man who wielded the long-handled axe was in a strong stance, still watching the ceiling
.
Samisun was the first to reach them. Upon noticing where their attention was, he rushed ahead of them a few feet and held his shield up, keeping his sword low. He glanced around hurriedly. "Where is it? I don't see it. Is it still here?"
Verun kept back a few feet and promptly opened his tome. He flipped through the pages rapidly. "What sort of creature are we fighting?" he asked. "What's it weak to?"
Chaxin gripped the mage-caster and pressed his thumb to the middle X, which drew the string back. He slotted a bolt in, and then grabbed another from the quiver, to prepare to fire immediately after, once he had a shot at whatever was in there with them.
As the five of them stood there, waiting for something to appear, Chaxin was the first to notice that the only sound was Verun flipping old pages in the tome. "What's it weak to?" he asked again, glancing up at the two crew members. "Fire? Frost?"
Chaxin looked over to the woman. He wanted to know if he needed to add fire to the bolt he was about to shoot. It was then that he saw her face. Her lips were parted. Her dark hair came down, framing her face. Her eyes were open and wide. They flit around, before focusing on Chaxin. Besides her eyes, she wasn't moving a muscle.
Chaxin's brow furrowed. He took a step closer to her as he lowered his weapon. She wore a black leather jacket and a pair of brown leather pants. Beneath her jacket was a cream-colored tunic, but parts of it had begun to turn a dark red.
"Something's wrong," said Chaxin, as his eyes scanned the woman. "She's not moving, except for her eyes."
Verun looked up from his tome. He spotted the woman and noticed the same. Then, he looked over to the male crewmember, as Chaxin stepped in closer to the woman and moved slowly around her.
"This man's the same," said Verun. "He's… paralyzed?"
"What?" Samisun turned his head, seeing both his crew members motionless. "Can you help them?" he asked as he back stepped towards them, but kept his shield raised.
Chaxin then noticed why the woman's tunic was turning a deep red. In the back of her jacket were multiple bone-like barbs, much like thick blades of grass. "There's something in her back. Some sort of… I don't know what these are? Shards of bone?"
"Please tell me it's not petrification," Verun muttered as he looked the man over, noticing the same spines lodged into his back through the vest he wore. "He's got them too. Some sort of paralysis venom?" he murmured as he reached out and pressed his fingers to the man's arm, and then his stomach. The skin was still pliable. "Looks like it's not petrification. If we can get them out of here, they should be fine, unless the venom does more than paralyze."
Samisun had been watching their surroundings the entire time, but so far, had seen nothing. "Keep your guard up, the creature must still be here!" he said, and then turned his head to look back to Verun. "Others would have heard the gunshot. Grab one of their weapons, and—"
A dark shape dropped behind Samisun, as if it was hanging, suspended in the air. Four sets of bone-like chitinous limbs stretched out, and in a moment, all eight pierced into Samisun's chest and tore through his body to stick out his back. His eyes went wide, he seized up, and then his body went slack, as if his life force had been instantly snuffed out.
Verun stumbled back. He flipped to a page in his tome and took one glance at it, before pressing his finger to an X at the bottom of the page. Upon doing so, orange gaseous threads coalesced on his palm, swirling until they became an orb. Without hesitation, he thrust his palm out towards the malicious form looming behind Samisun.
The orb of fire flew off Verun's palm and streaked toward the creature.
The monstrosity was mostly hidden behind Samisun, but it was using a lengthy portion of its body to hang from the high ceiling, which made it very long, almost as if it was a serpent of some sort.
The creature shifted its body, swinging out of the way of the fireball, which exploded against a nearby crate and sent burning embers in all directions.
The flash of light illuminated the area even further, as the creature drew itself down from the high rafters of the ceiling. Its body pooled into a pile of coils. All but one pair of its spider-like legs pulled free of Samisun's lifeless body. He was lifted like a sack and hurled at Verun.
Verun wasn't the most dexterous of individuals, but he realized what was going to happen as he saw Samisun's body rise into the air. He dove back behind a crate, just as the man's body came tumbling at him, smacking and flopping against the floor, leaving a streak of red behind it.
Chaxin was just a few seconds behind Verun's sudden attack. Samisun's body had just hit the ground, as Chaxin lifted his arm and ignited the metal bolt in the mage-caster with the press of a finger. Then, with a pull of the trigger, the flaming bolt shot off at the now-exposed abomination.
The fiery bolt smacked into the creature's shoulder, causing it to scream out in sudden pain. It was in that instant that Chaxin truly saw the monster they were up against.
She had the upper body of a human woman. Black hair, just past her shoulders. Her skin was a deep sienna. But coming out of her lower back were four sets of dark, multi-jointed, spidery legs. Just past her navel, her skin gave way to scales, and instead of legs, she had an incredibly long snake-like tail.
Her hand came up, but instead of fingers, her digits were like elongated and segmented claws, something between bone and flesh, with deathly sharp tips.
Those digits wrapped around the still burning bolt and pulled it from her shoulder. She threw it away with a hiss, then turned her head and set those golden eyes upon Chaxin.
Chaxin backed away slowly. He primed another bolt as his heart pounded in his chest. What the hell was this thing? Why did it seem far more terrifying than the giant cyclops?
The woman's lips curled. Her tail slowly receded, becoming shorter and shorter until it was roughly a quarter of the length it had been. She extended her arms and flung her wrists in the direction of the two crew members. For a moment, there was a strange glint of light between the creature and the paralyzed man and woman. Then, using her spider legs, the strange monstrous woman leapt up into the rafters.
The last thing Chaxin saw was her tail rushing up towards the ceiling.
The bright light of the fireballs and even his flaming bolt created a haze in his vision, making it even more difficult to see into the shadows of the rafters.
Movement in the corner of his eyes caused him to look back down.
The man with the axe slowly began to move. His body shifted gradually, as if some unseen force was reorienting his arms and legs a few inches at a time.
"Are you alright?" he asked the man, whose eyes had an utter look of terror to them. "What is that thing?"
The man was unresponsive, but he reoriented his axe in Chaxin's direction.
Now that he was much closer, Chaxin could see that the axe had a barrel, much like the one Kaiz had on his spear. In fact, the axe looked as though it functioned very similarly to Kaiz's gun spear. Which meant that the shot they heard had come from either this man, or the woman, and that Kaiz was surely not around.
It was those thoughts of Kaiz that made Chaxin slow to realize that the barrel of that long-handled axe was shifting towards him. The man's hand rose several inches at a time, until his fingers wrapped around the trigger lever.
"What are you doing?" Chaxin asked, his eyes wide as he realized that the man was aiming at him. "We're here to help!"
The sound of a torrent of wind suddenly sprung up from nearby. A stream of snow and ice ejected like a beam from Verun's hand. The wintery torrent smashed into the axe-wielder, causing his chest to flash-freeze. A thin sheet of ice formed on his chest and shoulders, as a pale white frost appeared over him.
"I think she's controlling them!" said Verun, his hand still extended after having launched the freezing ray. "Grab the woman's weapon, the creature doesn't seem to be very quick with controlling them!"
At Verun's direction, Chaxin rushed forward, just as the woman was beginning to lurch to the side to fa
ce him. Chaxin grabbed the woman's saber and pulled it from her grasp, just before her fingers clutched tight on a weapon that she was no longer holding.
With the saber in hand, Chaxin noticed that the cumbersome hilt was actually a smaller version of the gun mechanism that the axe had possessed. There was a trigger coming down from the hilt, but it still allowed for the hilt to be grabbed to completely function as a saber. From what Chaxin remembered, there still needed to be a projectile added to the barrel, but perhaps the monster wasn't aware of that functionality, or perhaps a bullet was already primed? With a glance, he noticed a pouch on the woman's hip, which surely contained a number of the projectiles, but now his hands were full.
"We are in over our heads," Verun whispered. "I'm not sure this is a fight the two of us can win. I've never seen a creature such as this before."
Sharp laughter sounded from the rafters. It echoed around and seemed to travel quickly, as if the source was constantly moving in a circle around them. Then, an almost enchanting voice rippled out, easily heard despite the distance.
"Come to hunt me?" came the monstrous woman's voice. "Or is it you that are the hunted?"
Chaxin's eyes widened as the woman spoke to them from the shadows. He turned to Verun. "Monsters can speak?"
Verun nodded. "Some can, yes. Many have different languages unknown to us, but she looks human. Part of her, anyway." Verun stepped closer to Chaxin, his eyes flitting around to try and discern the creature's position. "Chaxin," he whispered in a low breath.
"Yeah?" Chaxin asked, his attention having returned to the ceiling.
Verun gradually turned so he could face the way they'd come. "Run!"
Chapter 23: Nessa
Verun took off running.
With Chaxin already on edge, he turned right after him and dashed towards the entrance.
"We can't outrun it!" said Chaxin. "Did you see how fast she was?" Chaxin turned his head and looked behind them. His heart pumped as his gaze flit around the ceiling. He couldn't see her.
