Return to Jorgaldur Volume IV: Reunion

Target found

Only when they were out of sight did the vampire healer hasten to untie his companions. To his surprise, the bindings dissolved, with a faint smell of blood.

That made them shudder even more. Only a noble vampire who had lived hundreds of years would learn such a spell, out of sheer boredom. They had been following someone they couldn't afford to offend.

"Who were they?" the mage asked, terrified.

"I don't know, but they haven't even bothered to look at our belongings. As if they were scrap," the warrior added.

"I don't think we have anything that might interest them," the tracker sighed.

"What do you mean?" the archer asked.

"Have you noticed their weapons? Their armor? It looked normal, but it wasn't. They're very rich, and also very powerful. We haven't had a chance," she explained.

"We've been lucky. They could've killed us all. It'll be better to never talk about this, it could make them angry," the warrior suggested.

They all looked at each other and nodded. They could see the fear in the eyes of their companions. They had been at the mercy of a small group the adventurers had thought they could watch without being seen, or simply intimidate with their numbers if there were any problems. Now, they knew how wrong they had been.

The group rushed to pack up and get out of there. They didn't want to push their luck, so they headed in the opposite direction, willing to get as far away as possible.

"They've detected the aura on floor three," one of the vampires reported.

"Let's go!," another urged.

The same thing happened on the other floors of the dungeon. Several small groups headed straight for the next or previous floor pass. After a long wait, they had gotten the trail of their prey. They couldn't afford to lost it.

The first thing was to meet at the right floor, and then act together. They should capture her alive if possible, but dead was also acceptable. Her blood was their main mission. It was what their father had entrusted to them.

"You say you've seen the target?" Engenak's agent asked, somewhat incredulous.

He had listened to seven false notices, from groups that believed they had seen him, or were trying to collect the reward offered. Therefore, they had only reported a few of the spells that Eldi Hnefa most commonly used. The rest of those they knew had been hidden to confirm the veracity of the information. So far, they had all been clearly wrong.

"Yes, we have seen him use all three weapons. Also, a Burning Wall and a Frozen one. Even one that seemed to be made of lightning," a female voice reported.

The agent raised his eyebrows in surprise. They hadn't revealed that last spell, but they knew he had it.

"Will it really be him this time?" he wondered, hopefully.

He signaled to his companions, telling them that he might have a clue. Several of them came closer to listen.

"Have you seen anything else?" the agent asked.

"Well... Yes. It's kind of unbelievable. It was as if he had many spells. I guess he must have used some artifacts, or some of his companions were mages," the voice explained.

"What kind of spells?" the agent asked again, while trying to suppress his excitement.

"Well... There were some very striking ones that created circles around him, made of flame, ice and lightning. Furthermore, his weapons seemed to have an aura like fire, and he was also wrapped in something like that. Also, it was unbelievable how he threw his spear! It had great precision and force," the voice explained.

"It's him!" one of the listeners exclaimed in a whisper.

"We have found him!" another said.

There were several more gasps, including one from an agent who was worried, though she didn't show it. She had infiltrated that group to obtain information and send it to the resistance. She had warned that they were there, and who they were looking for. However, it wasn't easy for reinforcements to arrive in a short period of time.

She didn't quite know what to do. They were too many for her, and they were all quite distrustful. Although companions, they didn't turn their backs on each other. For now, she could only play along and wait for an opportunity, though she couldn't help but feel anxious.

"Where're you?" the agent asked, while gesturing to the others to be quiet.

"Third floor, the swamp. Is he the wanted on? Will you give us the reward?" the voice asked, no doubt excited.

"We still have to check, but we'll give you 10% for the inconvenience even if it's not him. The rest, if we confirm it. Don't lose sight of him," the agent asked.

"Sure!" she exclaimed excitedly. "Do you want us to capture him? They aren't many."

"No, better wait, he's more dangerous than he seems. Make sure they don't see you, and wait for our arrival."

"As you wish. We'll be here," the voice answered, disappointed.

Shortly after, all the agents received the message to go to the third floor. The objective was there. They had to follow orb 87, although they had to approach carefully so as not to be discovered. It was imperative that he didn't escape, so some preparations were necessary. They couldn't make mistakes.

"They bought it!" Gjaki smiled.

"Of course! Did you think I couldn't convince them?" Goldmi also smiled proudly.

She had won this time. In fact, Eldi had been last, as he had made the mistake of trying to repeat the same strategy as on the previous occasion. This time, they had both started with paper instead of scissors. With him eliminated, Goldmi had won the fourth round, and earned the right to rat Eldi Hnefa out.

They had already chosen the right ground for the trap. Now, they only had to wait, while hunting in the surroundings. They anticipated that it would take their enemies at least a day to gather and prepare. Although, just in case, the goshawk would continually make rounds.

As compensation, Goldmi had agreed to bake her an extra-large slice of her favorite mouse cake.

"The one time she can be somewhat useful..." the lynx had complained.

"You're just envious," the bird had replied.

Goldmi had ignored them after those two sentences, and left them to argue all they wanted. It is possible that the lynx was a little envious, although the elf would soon find some excuse to prepare her favorite dish too. At least, one of them. She had many favorites.

Eldi had said that she pampered them too much, and Gjaki had agreed with her. Of course, after the elf had threatened not to "pamper" the two of them, they hadn't brought it up again.

"I spoil them all," the elf said to herself with a smile a while later, while taking a kind of potato chip out of a fryer.

The main ingredient was a root vegetable, though not exactly a potato. It had a slightly spicy touch, and was green.

She blew, and bit into it, making it crunch. She savored it little by little, while lifting the rest out of the purple oil. They were ready.

"Well, I can indulge myself too," she said to herself, smiling, not feeling guilty about picking up another one.