††† Siegfried †††

It had not taken much to convince Bahsah that their party could handle her old clan. Less than Siegfried excpected.

True to her word, she provided a well secure sleeping place and a humble meal of dry vegetables. With renewed strength and purpose, they made for the mazelike corridors that led to the common living areas.

Bahsah suddenly held out her arm to stop the party.

"Next corner," the old feline woman whispered. "I smell at least five people— three of them feline and two scalies."

Siegfried just nodded at her and strode forward without caution. His lazy gait deterred the two guards with bows from losing an arrow instantly. They looked to each other instead, trying to find out if one of them recognized him.

By the time the guards reached a consensus, Sieg had burst into a sprint. He had drawn the enforcer's sword from below his black raincoat before the first bowman could even pull the string and put his strength into a diagonal swipe.

Apparently, there was a vast difference in the hardiness of the lizardman's scales compared to Rak's. Siegfried nearly outbalanced himself as his blade sheared through scales, muscles and bones. The force of his swing flung the upper body part of his enemy into the air.

Considering his own swiftness, Sieg was surprised that the feline guard next to him reacted instantly, trying to exploit the opening. Fortunately, the shapeshifter did not need to bring around his sword and, in turn, surprised the guard by raising his unarmed left hand. The organic blade jutted from his palm instantly, skewering his targets head through the eye.

Sieg kicked the body into the next guard while a dark-champagne coloured flash shot into the second bowman.

"I yield!" the last standing feline man cried out, slumping to his knees.

Sieg sheathed his sword.

"Hrn, you yield?" Bahsah said as she strode up to the guard, ignoring Siegfried's inquisitive gaze. "I don't think so, child. You were loyal to the usurper."

"B— Bahsah!" the frightened man exclaimed. "Shadow will—" his words were cut off by the lack of a throat to voice them.

Bahsah has moved fast enough to keep up with Siegfried, and her claws were still sharp as her arm was strong.

"He yielded!" Sieg called out after the apparently still quite deadly old woman.

Bahsah turned around, arching a questioning brow. "Where did you grow up, boy? Hrn, the city?" she asked in jest. It was not meant as a question as she turned and walked on immediately.

Sieg looked after her, clenching his jaws. This was just the way things were handled in The Wilds. There was no law enforcement, and he couldn't have just detained the man either. Still, executing someone who didn't fight back brought up a storm of warring emotions inside him.

Haylee had changed back into her partially transformed state and hurried after Bahsah, inquiring how the older feline could tell the exact numbers of different enemies just from scent. She was utterly unaffected by the casual murder. Her eyes sparkled with excitement at the prospect of learning to use her senses better.

Swallowing his agitation, Sieg followed them. He would address the issue when they were safe.

The cave that lay before them was enormous in size, but it was only apparent due to the high ceiling. The space in front of them was filled with slopes and bridges, plateaus and crude stone stairs in a completely random manner. There were one-room caves hewn into the sides— some with rotten planks in front to cover as a door.

All in all, it felt like they discovered a natural cavern system with winding tunnels and only worked out the necessary paths to connect them, which was most likely the case.

They passed beneath a natural Stonebridge that connected the elevated levels and walked into a narrow passage. Small caverns were sealed off by simple hides hanging off the front and the occasional wooden doorway. In some way, it reminded Sieg of the narrow alleyways in the older districts of the City of Nemeah. Only that it was far darker with just a few torches and braziers here and there to light the way.

The only voices Sieg could make out were coming from the plateaus above the alley. It seemed they used those caves only for sleeping as there was not much space for anything else in there. The air was damp and carried the scent of fresh moss with it, likely from a nearby underground water reservoir.

At the first junction, Bahsah urged them into the nearest home with a patched cloth curtain. A minute passed by before Sieg could make out several people walking by. The difference in hearing ability between him, Bahsah and likely a lot of his enemies was unsettling.

True to her word, Bahsah managed to get them through the naturally winding alleys without incident until they rounded the final corner leading to open space.

The rock had been carved out in a large circle, leaving an amphitheatre that connected the various levels of the area to a barren, flat surface of stone. In the middle of that circle towered a broad, round structure of hardened wood. It encompassed a column of rock from bottom to top of the cavern that served as a foundation.

“Hrn, you see how the second floor has a higher ceiling than the rest?” Bahsah whispered from the shadows. “That’s where the… entertainment for the members takes place,” she spat with distaste. “It’s midday, and most will be up there.”

Sieg squinted at the robust building. “How is it that I can see everything from here? I can spot any torches.”

“Lightbugs, hrn. You’re not from the forest at all, are you? Small, flying bugs they are— hard to capture, but their light is powerful.”

“Just tell us what we need to do,” Sieg growled impatiently.

“Hrn, I see only two guards at the door. Haylee and I can silence them unnoticed,” Bahsah nodded at Haylee, who gave a short nod back. “I take Haylee up to the leaders quarter from the outside, hrn. We can take out Shadow quietly if you keep their attention below. Guards will be stationed, but nothing you can’t handle. After clearing the ground level, free the people in the dungeons below,” Bahsah said with gravel to her voice. “Some of mine might still be alive, hrn. They’ll help you.”

“Sieg,” Ryden called out, laying a hand on the warrior's shoulder, “try to fight with your sword and enhanced speed only. No spikes or bone shields if possible. We don’t want to have anyone spread word about your true ability yet.”

Siegfried grunted an acknowledgement, hovering his hand above the pommel of the enforcer’s sword. Ryden and Rak had briefed him on most species he should be wary of, especially venomous reptilian and insectoid hybrids.

“Hrn, don’t overestimate yourself when you reach the upper floors. There will be many, and none of them are pushovers,” Bahsah warned.

“Not all of them might be bad either,” Ryden interceded. “Maybe we can spare those who cease fighting once we show our prowess.”

Bahsah snorted. “Most of the good people were imprisoned, killed or tortured for information. Shadow collected only the most depraved individuals for his purposes—”

“We spare who we can,” Sieg intermitted. “But only after we freed whoever is imprisoned down there. If they sound alarm early on, they might use those innocents against us.

“Okay, that’s reasonable,” Ryden conceded.

Bahsah vanished into the shadows to the left while Haylee kept to the right. Sieg couldn't see either of them but did not question their ability to evade the sight of those who had night vision.

It wasn’t long until he could make out two shadows near the fortress entrance, sneaking

along the outer wall. They moved simultaneously, and not a sound reached Siegfried’s ears as the guards dropped with their throats slit.

Siegfried, Sally, Ryden and Rak moved onward. It was ridiculously simple to approach, which was a testament to Shadow’s confidence in the Shadowclaws reputation. Just a few more lookouts with night vision would have spurned their silent approach.

A few shouts of encouragement and grunts of pain sounded from the upper levels, but the solid woodwork between the floors muted it. Chances were good that they could reach the dungeons unnoticed, provided they dealt with the guards quickly.

The main door was massive. Big enough to allow Rak and Sieg to enter together. A yellowish light from several small lanterns illuminated the figures of three startled guards. They resembled a boar in appearance, a thick hide with bristles and broad snouts. Two stocky legs supported their overweight frame and muscled arms with three-fingered hands.

When the first let out a startled squeak, Sieg had already closed the distance, cutting clean through the neck. He leaned back from a clumsy attempt at grappling and stabbed the second boar-man through the heart. Sieg sidestepped the last enemy as a green-scaled hand closed over the guys head, and Rak crushed the skull like an overripe apple.

Siegfried fought down the bile rising in his throat. Neither Ryden nor Sally showed any reaction, so he tried not to lose his breakfast either. He focused on pushing onwards instead.

Several corridors were empty, and they encountered few guards— none of them alert on their duty. A front assault at the headquarters of a faction was allegedly not often happening.

A thick slab of wood, made from a single piece, secured the way to the dungeons. To Sieg’s astonishment, they had not barred the door from either side— the solid timber used for that purpose leaning against the wall.

“Do you think it’s a trap?” Ryden asked as he saw Siegfried’s frown.

“Possible. It could also mean that there are no prisoners left alive to guard,” Sieg answered.

“Or they leave access to everyone in the faction,” Sally offered in a subdued voice. Her face scrunched up with worry and a hint of guilt that Sieg chose to ignore for now.

“It doesn’t matter either way. I’m going down first. Ry takes the rear,” Siegfried decided and walked down.

The wooden stairs gave way to natural stone. Small lanterns were sparsely distributed along the walls— the light in them flickered as if alive. A disgusting smell entered Sieg’s nostrils and became more prominent the deeper they went. It was a mixture of blood, decay and some old musky tang.

The corridor opened into a dimly lit cave, filled with differently sized cages, pillories and tables with strange contraptions. A feline man stood in front of such a table—completely naked. His sensitive hearing let him turn around immediately when Sieg entered.

“What the hell, man? It’s still my turn!” the heavily scarred guy shouted while walking towards Siegfried, glowering menacing. “Wait for—”

Sieg split the man’s skull without looking at him.

Malnourished, broken men and women occupied most of the cells. But it was the woman alone, strapped to the table, that held Siegfried’s gaze. She had been mutilated to the point that he couldn’t even guess her race, but her chest still rose and fell. Just like his sister Katharina had been held alive while he had to watch five years ago.

“What in the creator’s—” Ryden’s voice broke as he took in the state of the people in the dungeon.

“Ryden, take care of them,” Siegfried breathed, his voice barely above a whisper. With an eerie calm, he started to shift his bones and muscles around them. Four narrow, curved enamel blades grew from the sides of his forearms and a sturdy spike on each shoulder to deter enemies from biting him. He concentrated dense spots of enamel on various places on his ribs to summon them instantly as spikes when needed.

Lastly, Siegfried formed a second weapon from his left palm. He conjured a slightly angled and curved bone fit in his hand as a handle and then grew out into a sturdy enamel-covered sickle.

As he walked back to the stairs, Sally stepped aside, her gaze conveying a pained understanding.

“Sieg,” Ryden called at his back.

Siegfried didn’t stop. He wasn’t concerned with anyone in this faction spreading news of his ability.

As far as he knew, the dead didn’t talk to the living.