I fixed myself a cup of coffee and sat down at the table across from him. He still didn't lower the paper, look at me, or acknowledge my presence in any way, shape, or form. At the moment, I was simply a piece of furniture to him.
“Jacob?”
He finally lowered the paper and looked at me, but didn't say a word.
“I just wanted to say that I'm sorry,” I said, genuine emotion coloring my voice. “I was way out of line last night and I shouldn't have said what I did. I never want to hurt you, I was just frustrated and took it out on you. I'm sorry.”
He let out a long breath and set the paper down on the table. He gave me a long, level look, but I saw that his eyes were glistening somewhat.
“I know you didn't mean it, El,” he said. “I know you were just speaking out of anger.”
“I was. I was being a child. I'm sorry.”
Jacob reached across the table and took my hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. “Water under the bridge, kid.”
I gave him a smile that was both relieved and grateful. In all the years I'd been with Jacob – and through all of the arguments we'd had over that time – I'd never said something as cruel and vindictive as what I'd said last night. And I was ashamed of myself for it. I could only stammer incoherently with thankfulness that Jacob had a grace that I apparently did not.
“So,” he said and cleared his throat. “Tell me more about your adventure last night.”
“A – are you sure?” I asked.
He shrugged. “I may not have approved, but you may have some useful intel that we can use. Might as well take advantage of it.”
I launched into my story, telling him everything that had happened. Everything that I'd seen and done. He sat back in his seat, sipping his coffee, listening to it all without saying a word. But I could see the wheels in his mind spinning as he processed everything I was telling him.
“Spit fire, huh?” he asked, once I'd finished my story.
I nodded. “Yeah. I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it with my own two eyes.”
“And it actually killed the Scale?”
I nodded again. “Dead as the proverbial doornail,” I said. “I checked out the body on my way out and the thing was just a pile of ash. Crumbled and blew away when I nudged it with my foot.”
“That's really interesting,” he said. “Never heard of anything that can do something like that.”
I told him about what I'd found online the night before. He just looked at me with a raised eyebrow and a skeptical expression on his face.
“You read that on some random blog post?” he asked.
“It wouldn't be the first time we used information we found online to run something down.”
“We always have a secondary source before we move on anything though,” he reminded me.
“But I'm the secondary source,” I said. “I was there. I saw it.”
He rubbed his grizzled jawline and nodded. “Yeah, I guess you are. Didn't think of it like that before.”
“See? I'm good for something after all.”
He shrugged. “Don't sell yourself short, kid,” he said. “You're good for doing the dishes too.”
I gave him the finger, but smiled.
“Finish up your coffee,” he said. “Let's take a ride.”
“Where are we going?”
“I want to see this pile of ash.”
I nodded and downed the last of my coffee, dropping my cup in the sink as we headed out the door.
“You can wash those when we get back,” he said, grinning.
“Screw you, old man.”
Chapter Seven
“Yeah, that's a pile of ash, alright,” he said, nudging it with his foot.
Though most of the ash had already crumbled and blown away, there was still a big enough piece still intact that the head of the Scale was vaguely recognizable as what it was. At least, it was until Jacob stomped his booted foot down on it, obliterating all trace of it.
The sun was shining down and it was getting warm as it crept closer to mid-day. Jacob and I prowled around the lot looking for the body. I didn't have any of that acid he'd used before, so I'd had to just leave it. Thankfully, it hadn't been discovered – if it had been, there would have been cops crawling all over the place.
“Over here, Jacob,” I called.
I was standing behind two large, abandoned refrigerators. Dark, coagulated blood was pooled on the ground around the half-eaten corpse of a man I would have put in his mid-forties. The two Scales I'd seen going at him the night before had done a real number on him and there really wasn't a whole lot left. But Jacob came over and dutifully poured some of that magic juice on the body and in short order, it was gone. Reduced to a pile of unidentifiable, gelatinous goo.
I found it both amazing and somewhat disturbing that the human body could be reduced to a pile of jelly in a matter of moments by whatever was in that bottle.
“Okay, so we've got these two Scales going to town on John Doe here,” Jacob said. “Then out of nowhere, our mystery man shows up.”
“Yeah, that's about right.”
“And, where were you?”
I pointed to the rusting out husk of an old van sitting amongst a knot of tall weeds. “Over there.”
Jacob nodded and looked around the lot again, nodding to himself. “And then what happened.”
“Then all hell broke loose and they started fighting,” I said. “I have to tell you though, that this guy – who and whatever he is – can fight. He moves unbelievably fast and knows how to handle a weapon. Honestly, he should be dead – twice. My throwing star or my crossbow bolt should have finished him. But he was fast enough to deflect them both with one of his blades.”
“Blades that didn't work on the Scales,” Jacob said thoughtfully. “Which tells me he doesn't know what he's dealing with. Or how to kill it.”
“And given the fact that he can literally spit fire,” I said, “he's some sort of monster just like the Scales. The one thing I haven't quite been able to figure out though, is why he was fighting them.”
Jacob shrugged. “Could be anything,” he said. “Trying to establish dominance. Make sure the Scales know their place in the world. Territory. Anything, really.”
“Yeah, that's kind of what I was thinking too,” I said.
“Did you tip your bolt with poison?” he asked.
“Just like you taught me.”
“Then, in theory, the body should be in the sewer where you hit it,” he said.
I shrugged. “Yeah, in theory.”
“You sure you hit it?”
I arched my eyebrow at him. “I'm better than you with the crossbow,” I said. “Of course, I hit it.”
Jacob chuckled. “You don't lack for confidence, that's for sure,” he said. “Let's go check out your aim though. If you killed the thing, we can at least study it and try to figure out of there's anymore of these fire breathers out there to worry about.”
“Let's do it.”
We crossed the lot to the open manhole cover the Scales were using to get in and out of the sewer. I grabbed a light off my belt and switched it on, sweeping the area just inside the manhole.
“Looks clear,” I said.
Without a word, Jacob descended the ladder quickly. I followed and hit the ground, drawing one of my bronze blades while still holding the light in the other hand. Jacob had his sword held at the ready and was looking around the tunnel.
“Still clear,” he said. “Let's go find the body.”
We headed down the tunnel, walking as quietly as possible. We knew the Scales used the sewer as a highway as the maze of tunnels gave them access to the entire city. The last thing we wanted was to run into a group of them while we were down there.
Of course, being able to off a few of them and blow off a little steam might feel pretty good.
We walked down to the spot I'd shot that fire breather and stopped. I looked around – the body was gone. I shined my light on t
he ground it glimmered off some drops of blood in the dirt.
“Told you I hit it,” I said.
“Then where's the body?”
“Maybe the Scales dragged it off,” I said. “Had a buffet line or something.”
Jacob looked up and down the tunnel, seemingly unconvinced. “Yeah, maybe.”
We walked on a little bit farther, looking for the body – and found nothing.
“So, either the Scales dragged the corpse off,” Jacob said. “Or the poison was ineffective – which would be something of a problem.”
I shrugged. “Not every poison is going to work on every single one of the monsters out here,” I said. “Maybe we just need to find one that works.”
“To do that, we're going to need to figure out what it is we're dealing with here.”
“Or, just keep tipping our bolts with different poisons,” I said. “Trial and error.”
Jacob laughed. “Yeah, you may not get that many chances,” he said. “Not if these bastards can spit fire.”
We walked back to where the blood had been spilled and Jacob knelt down to examine it a little more closely. I was watching him and wasn't paying attention to our surroundings as closely as I should have been. Out of a dark pool of shadow stepped two Scales. It was like they'd been sitting there, camouflaged, just waiting for us to walk by again.
I didn't have time to even shout a warning to Jacob. I simply jumped over him, dropping the light and drawing my second blade. My swords were thin, the blades curved slightly, but they were razor sharp – and made primarily of bronze. They were the perfect weapons, and in my hands, they became the perfect killing machines.
One of those scorpion like tails shot through the air toward me. I turned my body and brought my blade down in a vicious arc. The bronze blade sliced right through the tough exoskeleton, lopping that wicked tip off its tail. The Scale shrieked, its screams echoing down the tunnel. Pressing my advantage, I lunged forward and drove the point of my blade straight through the face of the creature, silencing its keening wail instantly.
Yanking my blade free, I quickly spun to face the second creature who was already advancing on me. I spun quickly, narrowly avoiding the stinger on its tail – it was close though. So close, I felt the wind off its tail as it sliced past me.
The stinger hit the concrete of the tunnel wall and I made my move. Ducking under the creature's tail, I sliced with my lead blade and sliced the other way with my secondary. Both cuts slashed across the abdomen of the lizard-man and it screeched and a wave of blood – as well as its innards – spilled out through the gashes in its stomach.
The creature fell to its knees and looked up at me, an expression of pure hate in its eyes. I spun and slashed with my blade again, feeling a grin of satisfaction spread across my face as I felt it slice straight through the creature's neck. A moment later, its head fell off its body, hitting the ground and rolling over to where Jacob was sitting on his butt.
I looked over at him, concern washing over me. “Are you okay?”
He grinned. “Just fine,” he said. “Enjoyin' the show, is all.”
I sheathed by blades and shook my head. “Glad I could entertain you.”
“Come on now, watching you is like watching poetry in motion,” he said. “You're such a natural, you make it look effortless.”
“Yeah, that's not a word I'd use.”
He shrugged. “I would,” he said. “You're a talented hunter, El. Best I've ever seen.”
I felt the heat rising in my cheeks, secretly enjoying his praise. Jacob was a man who didn't hand out praise easily, which made it mean that much more to me. I walked over to him and helped him to his feet.
“We need to get out of here,” I said. “The rest of the Scales are sure to have heard their screaming.”
“Agreed.”
Together, we turned and headed back toward the ladder that would take us back to the surface. As I climbed the ladder and stepped out into the warm, sunny afternoon, I was still left with a million questions.
The mystery surrounding the fire breathing man only deepened and intensified in my mind. And I wanted answers.
Chapter Eight
Zarik
This Order of Midnight that Quint mentioned had me intrigued. More than intrigued, actually. I'd spent hours upon hours searching the Internet for this supposed group and came up empty. If this group existed, they were so deep underground that there wasn't even the barest of whispers about them online. Which, in this day and age, was remarkable.
Having turned up zero information on the computer, the only avenue left open to me was the one I actually preferred – getting out into the streets and having a look myself. As valuable a tool as researching was, I would always rather be on my feet doing something more substantive than scouring books and the Internet.
Quint had used the Dragon Door to go back to Chondelai to speak with the Keepers, leaving me there to dig up what I could on the woman and this supposed group of hunters. And I didn't want to have nothing to show for my efforts when he came back. So, it was time to get my nose out of the books and my feet out onto the streets.
The trouble was, I had no idea how to go about finding somebody – or a group – that was obviously very good about not being found.
Looking at my watch, I saw that it was a little after midnight. Having nowhere else to start, I decided to take their name literally. It had been past midnight when I'd encountered the woman before, so I rolled the dice, figuring that they did most of their hunting after midnight. Maybe that was when those Chokan things were most active.
It was flimsy, but it was the only thing I had going for me at the moment. I was just going to have to rely on a little good fortune coming my way.
I got ready, strapping my twin daggers to my hips – and hoped I didn't run into any of those creatures. Getting my new weapons was something else Quint was taking care of back in Chondelai. I could have had them commissioned by somebody here, but I thought the work of the Dragonborn smiths was always superior to the work of man.
Geared up, I headed out into the night. It was overcast and much of the world was gloomy and dimly lit. There was a chill in the air and in this part of the city at least, all was quiet. I made my way back to the vacant lot where I'd first encountered the lizard-men and the woman, hoping that luck was on my side.
Cautiously, I entered the lot and scanned the area. There was no movement. Doing my best to avoid being seen, I picked my way through the lot and to the open manhole cover. I knew what was down there and I hesitated. Without weapons that could kill the creatures, I was only going to manage to get myself killed.
But at the same time, if this woman truly did belong to some order that hunted them, the chances were good that she was going to be down there somewhere, doing what she did. And down there, without the proper equipment, if I ran into trouble, I was going to have some problems.
But, if I wanted some solid intel – not just on the girl, but on the Chokan as well – I was going to have to roll the dice.
Quint would kill me if he knew I was going to take that kind of a risk. But I thought of it as a no-lose proposition. Either, I was going to get some much-needed information, or I was going to be dead and wouldn't have to worry about having Quint pissed at me.
Taking a deep breath, I stepped forward and dropped down into the sewer, landing on my feet and coming up with my blades in my hands, ready for a fight. However, just like before, the tunnel in front of me and behind me was empty. No masked woman, no lizard-men – nothing but the bugs and rats that inhabited the place.
There was a silence down in the tunnels that was a little unsettling. It was as if the sewer itself was holding its breath, waiting for something to happen. I walked on, in the direction of the hole in the wall where I'd seen those creatures holding their disturbing little rally the other night.
I got to the hole and peered inside. The creatures weren't there and the air inside that cavern was still and silent. It was g
loomy and dark inside the seemingly deserted cavern. Curiosity began wiggling into my brain like a worm. Unfortunately for me, it was a worm that could lead to a sudden and grisly death. Images of having my insides torn out and consumed by lizard-men flooded my mind.
But still, I was curious.
Hard earned experience – not to mention, more than a few scars – reminded me that my natural curiosity wasn't always the best thing and had on more than a few occasions, led me into a dangerous situation. But I was confident in my ability to get myself out of a jam, and so, taking one last, long look inside the cavern satisfied me that it was deserted. At least for the moment.
So, I climbed in and picked my way along the rocky path that led down to the floor. The air still smelled of the fire that had been burning the other night and now that I was out of the stink of the sewer, I got my first clear scent of the Chokan.
And it wasn't a particularly pleasant smell. But at least, it was memorable. Besides, knowing that scent would come in handy. I would know beforehand if any of those things were sneaking up on me, hiding in the shadows, or were otherwise, up to no good.
It wasn't a smell I enjoyed and the cavern was as thick with it as the sewer was with the stench of rot. Picking my way along the cavern floor and doing my best to do so silently, I entered one of the tunnels that branched off from the main room – deliberately choosing the one that smelled the least like the Chokan. Although, truth be told, their stale scent was pretty heavy in all of them, which increased my chances of running into them.
It was an encounter I didn't want and would do my best to avoid. A soft sound, something like a furtive footstep behind me made me spin around, my blades up and ready. The tunnel behind me was empty, and when I scented the air, I didn't detect the scent of one of those creatures – the scent of them that filled the tunnel was older.
Deep pockets of shadow clung to the walls thicker than fog in San Francisco, and I strained my eyes, but did not see anybody lurking, waiting to launch an attack. I thought that perhaps, the sound had been some of the dirt and rock on the walls of the cavern tunnels becoming dislodged and falling.
Maybe. I sold myself that excuse anyway, but remained on higher than high alert as I turned and continued on.
No Such Thing as Dragons : Complete Series Box Set (Books 1 - 5) Page 18
