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This imitation necklace must've been made as a fake
purposely, so that if this X3 dropped it, someone would know it to be fake and
throw it out. X3 was the guy who had robbed the store. A buddy, X1, had sent
him a warning to be careful, and then his boss, this DeathBringer, had backed
it up. This was a harsh gang, but most were. The D on the watch stood for DeathBringer-
DeathBringer Head Quarters! Black, hmm… I had a theory about that, but I had
to find out about this gang. I stowed the now all-important fake away, went
to the NeoComputer, and began contacting my sources.
Half an hour later, I had all the info I needed,
though I'd had to push for it. I shut off the terminal, grabbed my backpack,
and sped out the door. The cool breeze in the air felt good, and soon I was
at Meridell. I headed for the woods on the hill, turning left just before I
reached what had been Illusen's Glade. There was a slight path, though there
were no tracks. They were careful to clean up after themselves. Through a maze
of passages, around a thorny thicket, I wove my way as fast as I could. I finally
reached a cave, pitch dark.
Sensitive with my Air power as I was, I could
hear a tiny thrum of voices. I took out my flashlight, switched it on, covered
it with some cloth so that the light was dimmed, and began navigating my way
through the caverns. I followed the voices; though the sound was not very reliable
it was all I had. I came to a corner, melted into the shadows, and slipped to
the other side.
Luckily I had taken the precaution of hiding
myself, because two guards stood attention in the halls. I could tell these
guys were professionals; their stance was straight, their spears gleamed, and
their faces were flat. I could ease around them, or I could try to take them
out and have two less fighters to worry about. I decided to risk it. You only
die once, right? And I wanted to have some fun. I eased behind one guard and
began chanting a spell. The guard suddenly turned.
"Z5, something's he-"
I finished my incantation and sent out a blast
of Air power. The guard found himself floating in midair, totally helpless,
and he couldn't utter a sound either. I had fine-tuned the spell to include
that, though messing with spells can be tricky. The Z5 guard charged at me wordlessly.
I took out a special weapon- Crystal Boomerangs. The guard didn't stand a chance,
and I knocked the other guy out by letting him fall to the stone floor. I gagged
and bound them with a special knot. My weapons were specially prepared magically,
though I hadn't needed to use that side this time.
Resting in the shadows, I focused and listened,
and heard the voices again, sounding a bit closer. I took off.
Threading through the rocky passage, I suddenly
heard a thump and flattened myself against the wall, ignoring the sharp points
of stone. A guard came around the corner, muttering something or other. He never
knew what hit him, and I dragged the prone figure to the walls, did him up with
a gag and rope, and continued on my way. I turned around a corner and found
myself in a corridor with an open door.
Slipping into the shadows, I noted that nobody
had seen me. Several Kyriis lounged against the walls, Krawks swilled drinks,
and Kacheeks sat at tables in groups. Everyone was dressed in black, and in
a festive mood. Two wooden doors led out from the hall, one with a gold knob.
I kept to the shadows as I slipped toward the doors, noting the number of gangsters-
about threescore. Unblinking, I cast a spell of invisibility and then slipped
through the door without the golden knob.
I found myself facing a Mutant Krawk, his three
eyes focused on papers.
I examined my enemy. He was obviously a hardened
fighter, probably a mercenary at one time or other. Scars crossed his body and
he was missing a claw on one hand. His chamber was totally bare, except for
the desk and chair. This was DeathBringer. I decided to taunt from the shadows,
and see what this guy really was.
"Is the great DeathBringer stuck with homework?"
The Krawk's head snapped up and he slowly tried
to pinpoint my location.
"Who's there?"
"But there wouldn't be any fun if I told you,
now would there?"
He snarled and launched himself at what he thought
to be me. Actually, he was pretty close, but he smacked into the wall. I was
safely away, and still taunting.
"Oops, looks like you missed. You should try
being blind, I hear it helps your senses get sharper. I'd be glad to do the
surgery that it requires..."
He hissed. "Quit playing games!"
"Come on, that's what I'm best at."
This guy was good, and he was deadly with a
hall full of minions behind him. He could just call them in and order them to
search for me. Numbers would overwhelm me. But this guy had pride, and I had
damaged it. This was personal.
"You and your gang have been robbing."
DB flinched.
"Robbing for black items, such as black clothing
and black tools. Because once you have those, you can pull off a grand heist."
"I will have control over the Hidden Tower!"
dB raged suddenly. "And you'll go down with it as well!" So, he was aiming for
the HT. I deftly dodged another ferocious attack and revealed myself. He snarled.
"I've been dealing with an Aisha??? No trouble!"
I got mad then, as he wanted me to. Usually
anger disturbed a fighter's focus, but I had special training. I controlled
the power and channelled it into my Element storage, strengthening my power.
Confident that I was disconcerted, DeathBringer charged me. I chanted a spell
and he slammed into the opposite wall. I circled him.
"Don't underestimate anything, DeathBringer."
He glowered at me, rose, and charged again.
Using all my agility, I danced to the side and he rammed into the wall. Now
I knew what was so special about this guy- he had immense endurance. A rough
fight ensued. I wasn't seriously hurt, just a scratch or few, but I was getting
annoyed when I got an idea. I combined my Elements, did an incantation, and
blasted him with the power.
Hissing until I did another spell to gag him,
DeathBringer rose up into the air and slammed into the wall, and stayed up there.
To be continued…
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