Tegol sat at the massive desk in his office pondering what he'd learned from the thug named Spider. At first the punk had exaggerated things saying that he & the others were attacked by dozens of mercs, mages, barbarians, amazons & even demons! After a few slaps & punches aimed at appropriate painful places, Spider came to his senses, finally relating the true events of the battle. He had no idea how many in the Medieval Tavern had actually attacked them. Things happened too quickly & his tiny brain couldn't comprehend it all. He did remember seeing Marz turn on Riko & a giantlike creature beheading two men with an axe. Seeing an amazon woman come after him had been the last straw. He fled as fast as his legs would carry him.
After hearing Spider's story, Tegol dispatched a few men to Marz's apartment. They had returned moments ago, informing him that the apartment owner said that Marz moved out over two weeks ago. I should have known, Tegol thought. Marz was reluctant to give me the location of his apartment until I had him tortured in order to get the information out of him. It figures that he'd move again after that.
Tegol opened the door of his office, calling in four of his bodyguards. "Get hold of the best spies we have in the organization," he told them. "Have them portray visitors to Bizmar in need of lodgings. They will seek accommodations at the Medieval Tavern & thoroughly scope out the place & its inhabitants. I want to know exactly what we're dealing with before I prepare another attack on it."
The guards nodded their understanding & turned to leave. "Wait!" Tegol said. "Have our men pass some coins in the street. Find out where Marz's new hidey-hole is then send some assassins there in case he shows up. Make it known to everyone that Marz Nightcrawler is now marked. I'd like him brought in alive so that I can personally break every bone in his body before I kill him."
The four men left to carry out the crime lord's orders. Tegol sat back in his plush chair, lit a pipe & began blowing smoke rings. An evil grin spread across his scarred face as he thought of all the delightful things he'd do to Marz & his newfound friends at the Medieval Tavern.
Marz paced around the room like a caged animal. He began to hum so his mind would be filled with music rather than any thoughts about what he was about to do. It hadn't taken him look to learn that others could easily pick up thoughts in this tavern, so he needed to avoid them. He opened the shuttered window and poked his head out into the night air, glancing down at the building structure. Vines clung to the side of the building and the stonework was uneven, providing decent foot and handholds.
Marz made his way out the window and climbed down easily, humming all the while. He paused once he reached the ground to brush broken vines and mortar dust off his clothes. Then he froze in place, hearing a vicious snarling sound behind him. The youth turned VERY slowly and saw the wolf, who appeared ready to lunge at his throat.
"Easy now," Marz whispered, not daring to move. "I promise not to hurt you if you'll do me the same courtesy." The wolf stopped snarling and cocked its head. Marz continued to speak soothing words to the wolf as he backed away from it slowly. "I'll bring you back a nice plump chicken later if you just wait here real nice like."
Suddenly, the wolf padded up to the youth and began to sniff him all over, memorizing his scent. Marz let out the breath he had been holding while extending a hand toward the creature, who smelled it then licked it once. "You're a beautiful animal," Marz said, relieved that the wolf had decided not to rip his throat out. "I really have to go now," he continued, as if he were talking to a child. "But I swear I'll bring you back a meal soon."
Again Marz slowly backed away from the creature, knowing that if he ran, the beast might lunge. He continued to talk gently as he moved further away. The wolf sat on its haunches and watched the boy until he was out of sight. Then she ran to the front door of the tavern and let out a blood-curdling howl before she began scratching at the door, hoping for entry.
Marz breathed a sigh of relief once he was far away from the wolf and the tavern inhabitants. He made his way through the moonlit streets of the city cautiously, constantly on the lookout for any face he knew to be on Tegol's payroll. He ducked into an alleyway when he saw Zime and six of his cronies coming toward him. Marz still owed Zime 100 gold he had borrowed and lost on a card game. Having no desire for a confrontation with the loanshark now, he hid in the shadows of the alley until Zime and his men passed.
Once he no longer heard their footsteps, he silently made his way out of the alley, peering around the street. Satisfied that the area was empty, he continued on to the small house he had rented a little over a week ago. Before going inside, he scoped out the parameter of the building but found nothing out of the ordinary.
Marz unlocked the front door, entering the dark living area. He closed the door behind him before lighting a lantern on a table to his left. The light illuminated a sparsely furnished room that was spotlessly clean. Marz's step-father had beaten cleanliness into him as a child, going so far as to lock him in a closet for two days because of a speck of dust he'd found on the floor.
Marz made his way to the kitchen and lit another lantern that sat upon a small dining table. As soon as the light filled the room, he froze. On the floor across from the table lay the boy named Josh, his small body covered in blood. Marz's hand instinctively went to the sword at his hip. He spun around when he heard a noise behind him but wasn't fast enough to block the large club that came smashing into his skull.
Marz staggered and his vision blurred. When the club connected a second time with greater force, he fell to the floor, instantly unconscious. The man with the club closed the door to the pantry where he had been hiding. "He's down Cretos," he said loudly. Another man came out from his hiding place in the bedroom off the living room.
"Nice job Blain," he said, looking down at their victim. "Let's tie him up and disarm him in case he comes to while we're draggin' his arse over to Tegol." Blain procured some small lengths of rope from a pouch at his belt and the two men went to work securing their prize. Both smiled, knowing that Tegol would reward them greatly for bringin him Marz Nightcrawler.
Erlic recounted all the incidents that transpired within the last minutes. First, he noticed that Marz was very agitated with Xenon about something. What it was he didn't know. But something had made the boy very uneasy. He had watched Marz as he put the katana back down and go upstairs to his room. Erlic had just put his sword away, when a dark figure entered the inn.
Another friend or foe? he wondered. He would have to keep his eyes on him. No sooner had he thought this that two other figures entered as well. One was a woman, bearing a fighter's traits and the other a man with blonde hair, also a fighter from the looks of it. He scanned the inn. Arcanum was sitting with Cat. This was a common occurrence for Arc. The two at the bar were still there chatting away. Kartha was speaking with Xenon about something he couldn't make out since her back was to him and he couldn't read her lips. The newlyweds also sat at the bar. It seemed strange that all of these newcomers should show up at this inn, at this late hour especially when it was a brand new establishment.
The howling of the wolf didn't bother Erlic for it was nighttime and wolves were noted for their antics. What attracted his attention was the scratching at the door. He immediately went to open it and Tai Liu lunged inside grabbing his arm, seeming to want to drag Erlic outside.
Chang Po rushed towards Erlic. "She wants you to follow her for reason I do not know," he stated. "She normally does not act this way."
Erlic recalled the words of Xenon about having the wolf stand guard. "Chang Po," Erlic stated, "Which room is Marz in?"
Chang Po told him and Erlic went rushing up the stairs. He was gone but a minute when he came down and approached Xenon. "Seems our boy left his brains upstairs," Erlic told Xenon. And in a softer voice he whispered: "Only because the window is open, the vines hanging down from the building are no longer intact and the boy is gone. Not only that, but if he is loose in the city, I wager you that every one of Tegol's people will be looking for him. How else would you explain this wolf wanting me to follow her?"
Xenon was caught somewhat off guard.
"I tell you what Xenon," Erlic said. "I'm going after him before they find and kill him. Are you with me?" He stooped down to pet the wolf, waiting for Xenon's answer.