START OF 'CLASHING WILLS' ARC

17. A Deal Gone Wrong

Lace eyed Kiren cautiously as they circled around the practice yard. She held her guard high and watched her footwork on the fine gravel.

He went in for the first punch, leading with a right jab, as always.

Predictable.

Lace stepped to the left and let her open palm brush his muscled arm as it flew past, applying just the right amount of wind. Thrown off-balance, he stumbled a few steps before catching himself on the glowing chains Veera had erected as a rudimentary fighting square.

In the weeks that they had spent sparring, Lace had learned most of Kiren’s fighting style. Not that it did her much good. She still hadn’t beat him. Not once.

Lace went in to capitalize on the window she had created. Kiren threw out a leg, and she leapt over it. She struck Kiren in the face, a cushion of rushing air protecting her fist. His head snapped to the side, but the rest of him didn’t follow through with the motion.

He grabbed her arm before she could pull back and delivered a quick uppercut to her ribs with his free hand. She gasped, air going out of her.

Damn it… He knows to disable my breathing.

Lace lashed out with a kick, and he was forced to let her go in order to dodge. She backed up a few steps, desperately trying to catch her breath. He stayed on top of her, matching her movement for movement.

The apprentices that were gathered around the practice yard booed and cheered as the fight billowed this way and that.

“Ten on black,” Veera said. She handed a stack of coppers to Gantho, who was taking bets and noting down the amounts. This was the first time anyone was betting on the two of them, but it seemed they could still tell that Kiren was favored, judging by how the bets were landing.

Lace was pushed back against the chains, ducked out of the way of a grapple, and struck Kiren across the back as she danced away.

“Man, how do those two take this so seriously?” Jahn asked, lounging in the grass beside the practice yard. “I mean, I’m not complaining. Entertainment for me.”

Lace shook her head vigorously.

Focus.

Kiren had the strength and range advantage. She needed to use her Power effectively to counter that.

“I don’t know how you take this so seriously,” Bits said. He sat cross-legged, a grin plastered over his face. “I mean, we all know how this is going to end. With young lady Amar planted face first in the dirt.”

Oh, yeah? I’ll show you.

Lace dodged Kiren’s quick jabs until she could breathe reasonably. She feigned a stumble, and when he moved in to capitalize she put her hands together in a diamond shape.

His eyes widened, but he was unable to stop in time.

She compressed a massive amount of air into the space between her fingers and fired off the aero-shot. It hit him in the chest, point blank, and he toppled onto his back with an animalistic growl.

The crowd booed apart from the handful who had actually bet on Lace.

Her aero-shot still wasn’t strong enough. She hadn’t hurt him, only pushed him off his feet.

Regardless, this was her opening.

There would not be another chance.

Lace rushed the now-prone Kiren, blowing a stream of air at his face to dry out his eyes and blur his vision. She only had to pin him down…

Kiren swept her legs out and she went down on top of him with a low groan. She tried to push herself off, but he wrapped an arm around the back of her neck and held her close while he pummelled her ribs with the other.

Her lips parted in a silent scream.

Now they cheered.

Lace grabbed Kiren’s head by his hair and slammed it against the ground. Once, twice, three times. His grip on her neck loosened enough for her to struggle free.

Instead, he wrapped his legs around her waist and twisted, flipping Lace onto her back with him on top. He put a hand on her throat.

“Good match,” he said, panting. A drop of sweat quivered on his nose. “It’s over.”

The roar of the crowd rose to a fever pitch.

It was over. His hand was loose, but if he wanted he could clamp down on her throat and cut off her breathing anytime he wanted.

“Yield,” she said with reluctant slowness.

Kiren rolled off of her and stood. Lace remained prone, rubbing her sore ribs with a pained grimace.

Gantho handed out money to those that were owed and Veera let her ghostly chains dissolve into nothing, leaving only the wooden poles they had been resting upon.

Lace felt a sudden tug at her clothes and was dragged to her feet. She was met with Excelerate’s expressionless face. He reeked of alcohol.

“What do we have here?” he asked.

“Practicing,” Kiren said, stretching with an innocent smile.

Excelerate pointed at Gantho. “And that?”

Lace swallowed. “Uh…”

Excelerate let her go and wandered over to the crowd of apprentices. He snapped his fingers, and a crack like thunder echoed across the courtyard. It brought a great quiet in its wake as everyone turned their attention to the Hero.

Gantho went wide-eyed. “E-E-Excelerate! I mean, Master Excelerate! Hi! No, that’s not right. Um, good morning! How is…”

“Hand over the money,” Excelerate said. He reached out his hand.

Gantho sighed. The skinny young man handed over a heavy purse. Excelerate weighed it in his hand, whistled, and stowed it away in his robe.

“If you’re dumb enough to do this in broad daylight, you deserve to have this taken away,” Excelerate said. “Besides, they’re my apprentices. If you’re pitting them against each other, I take a cut.”

Gantho floundered for a response. He chuckled nervously, clearly unable to tell whether Excelerate was joking or not.

Lace wasn’t too sure, either.

The crowd dispersed at the Hero’s order, and he came back over to Kiren and Lace.

“I hope you’re not too tuckered out,” Excelerate said. “You have a trip to the Slog to catch your breath.”

“Why?” Kiren asked. “What’s going on?”

“There’s a situation.” Excelerate smiled faintly. “We’re hunting a Villain.”

Excelerate disappeared in a flash and appeared next to the dejected apprentices walking towards the Guild Hall. He put a hand on Bits' shoulder.

The blond man looked up, brow just slightly furrowed.

“You’re coming, too,” Excelerate said. “Your master wants your assistance.”

Lace groaned inwardly.

*****

Kiren clutched the horse’s neck tightly as its mane whipped in his face.

All the bouncing was going to make him sick and every galloping step sent a shock up his crotch. He gritted his teeth and endured it.

Citizens cleared the way, running out of the street as he thundered along it. Five others rode with him.

There was Lace, Excelerate, and Bits, along with the Hero known as Torchbearer, who he had heard about from Lace. Lastly was a man named Goldcoin, with styled, strawberry blonde hair and a waxed mustache, dressed in a finely-cut tunic with fur trim and gleaming buttons.

Excelerate had explained nothing about the job, only that they would be putting their lives on the line. Like that was anything new.

“Do we know the count?” Torchbearer asked, his voice hoarse and raspy like a cat with a furball stuck down its throat.

“No!” Goldcoin shouted over the noise of hooves on flagstones, his mustache bouncing in rhythm with his horse’s movements. “Eagle’s message didn’t explain much! He said it’ll be the best chance to nip Evangel in the bud, though!” He shook his head. “I would have preferred to sleep in an extra hour. I had this lovely girl from Farpoint, who...” He cleared his throat. “Anyway. Work to do.”

“Who’s Evangel?” Kiren asked.

“A new Villain,” Torchbearer said. “Crime boss. Only popped up recently. He’s been recruiting heavily for the past three weeks. Startling numbers. We have few clues who he is, or where he came from, but he’s trouble.”

Hell of a response, Kiren thought. They must be taking this guy seriously if they think it’ll take this many C Ranks and an A Rank to stop him.

Kiren shared a glance with Lace.

I’ll have to keep an eye on her. She can’t keep up with a Villain on her own.

They rode to the edge between the Slog and Small Miracle, where ramshackle shanties met cheap but orderly residences.

Kiren looked around as they dismounted, but nothing was out of the ordinary. No Villains in sight, certainly. The townsfolk stopped to stare at the handful Heroes and seemed unwilling to move on.

They waited for several minutes. Kiren tapped his foot impatiently.

Eagle-Eyes finally showed up, a longbow over his shoulder and a quiver on his hip.

“Situation?” Excelerate asked.

“Evangel seems to be engaged in some sort of deal with an unknown party,” Eagle-Eyes said. “He has protection, but nothing we can’t handle. They’re located inside a structure to the south. Moderately fortified. Its maze-like design will complicate retrieval.”

“Sounds like an easy job,” Goldcoin said, twirling his mustache around his finger. “We go in there, put a couple holes in the henchmen, and get the boss.”

“No,” Torchbearer said. “We cannot allow him any chance for escape. Evangel is too dangerous to be allowed free reign in the city. He has proven that even in such a short amount of time.”

Excelerate tugged on his mask. “We make two teams. An attack team and a retrieval team. The attack team will go into the structure, doing as much damage as possible while flushing Evangel out of hiding. The retrieval team will surround the building, pounce on Evangel when he leaves, and subdue him. Eagle-Eyes, that sound like it would work?”

The feather-cloaked Hero nodded. “Likely so, if executed correctly. Our knowledge of the structure is limited, however—I only caught brief glimpses through the windows—the attack team will have to proceed with caution.”

“Suppose we do this your way, old man,” Goldcoin said. “Who will be on which team?”

“Lace stays outside,” Kiren said. “Her Power is best for crowd-control.”

“Good idea,” Excelerate said with a nod. “I will lead the attack team. My Power will allow us to pierce through any potential defenses and get the drop on the Villains. I’ll take Kiren—his stamina will soak plenty of damage if things go south. Goldcoin, you’re also with me—we could use your luck. Eagle-Eyes, you’ll stay with the retrieval team, but I’m counting on you to cover the windows. The rest of you are on retrieval as well.”

“Only three people going in?” Lace asked. “Isn’t that kind of… risky?”

“I always make the risky play,” Goldcoin said with a grin. Several gold teeth shone among his pearly whites. “It tends to pay off.”

“He’s right,” Excelerate said. “Even with only me and Coin, the combination of our Powers makes us nearly unstoppable.”

“What about the second Villain?” Torchbearer asked. “You said there was some sort of transaction happening, didn’t you, Eagle-Eyes?”

“We’ll gauge his threat level during the attack,” Excelerate said. “I will either perform a swift removal or allow them to escape as we corner Evangel. Whoever they are, they’re not our target here.”

“This plan will suffice,” Eagle-Eyes said. “We have little time to waste. The transaction has already begun.”

*****

They left the horses and began moving south. The mark of the Heroes’ Guild emblazoned on the saddles would ensure that no one stole them.

The Heroes made up the front of their little troop, eyeing the nearby run-down buildings with trained vigilance.

Lace kept an eye on Kiren. He had been acting a little different as of late, but this was something else entirely. The way he had spoken almost made it seem like he was concerned about her safety.

I don’t know whether to be flattered or worried.

“Lace Amar,” Eagle-Eyes said, breaking her out of her thought. He slowed down until he walked next to her. “A word?”

“Of course, master,” Lace said, hiding her displeasure behind a polite smile.

“You made it in. Your father would have been proud.”

Lace couldn’t hold back a bitter twist of her lip.

“From what I’ve been hearing, it seems like he would have been happier if I’d stayed a barmaid for the rest of my life.”

Eagle-Eyes’ eyebrows furrowed almost imperceptibly. “You’ve been speaking with Counter?”

“In a sense.”

“Then you must know that what your father did or did not want is of little consequence now. You honor him in your own way. That is enough.”

“I think we have more important matters to focus on right now, master,” Lace said, biting back a snide retort.

“The girl is right,” Goldcoin said. He looked around at the people in the street and shivered. “Anyone else getting the feeling that we’re being watched? Like, more than usual?”

Lace looked more closely at the citizens. Pale, drawn faces followed them closely, eyes unblinking. She had the seen the looks of desperation and loathing that the poor gave the well-to-do when they passed through the outer city. She knew that feeling herself, and she knew it well.

This was something else.

Men stopped what they were working on to stare, holding their tools numbly, pipes hanging from their mouths as if forgotten. Women neglected their children to stand and gawk, oblivious to their surroundings. Even the children themselves halted their playing and hollering, growing deathly quiet.

“Greetings, Heroes,” said a man as they passed, his voice dull and monotone.

“Greetings,” said a boy no older than seven, sitting by the road in dirty rags.

Goldcoin waved uncertainly and tried on a smile.

The townsfolk stared.

He pretended to be brushing his mustache instead and muttered something under his breath.

“What’s wrong with them?” Lace asked.

“I don’t know,” Torchbearer said. “Perhaps some malady has afflicted them?”

“A problem for another time,” Excelerate said. “No time to linger on it now. We’ve got ourselves a Villain to catch.”

Eagle-Eyes signaled when they arrived at their destination by holding up a fist. Here, the street widened, becoming a tangled neighborhood of intersecting alleys and tightly packed shanties.

The feather-clad Hero pointed out the building of interest. A mismatched amalgam of hovels hammered together with boards and hung with tarps to form a lopsided complex. By all accounts, it looked abandoned. The material was so grey with rot that it was a miracle the place was still standing. Dark, empty windows gaped like toothless mouths, only a few covered up with ragged cloth.

“A drug den,” Kiren said. “Smart, meeting in a place like this. Doesn’t draw much attention.”

“Not that it did them much good,” Goldcoin said. “We’re about to show this rabble that Goldbrand doesn’t belong to them.”

“Okay, form into your teams,” Excelerate said. “Let’s get this over with.”

*****

Excelerate busted down a wooden sheet for a door with a lightning-fast blur of a kick. They all rushed inside, Excelerate taking the lead, Goldcoin in the middle, rapier drawn, and Kiren in the back wielding a plain hand-and-a-half sword. He had received some lessons from Counter, but the weight was still unfamiliar in his hand.

They passed into a dark, empty room, three doorways leading in different directions. They saw no one, just some discarded bottles of love potion and fires long since burnt out.

Excelerate picked the door in front and they went through a narrow hall constructed with odd planks and sheets of fabric. They came into what looked like someone’s sleeping quarters.

A man lay on a thin layer of straw in a state of partial undress. Two women lounged next to him with dazed, unseeing expressions, pink fluid dripping from their chins.

The man stood and attempted to button his trousers. He slipped on one of the pant-legs and swore as he regained his balance.

Excelerate stood aside. “This one’s all yours.”

Goldcoin stepped forward. He extended the butt of his rapier and the man stumbled once more, falling face first into the rounded basket hilt. He let out a dull groan as he fell to the floor. A thin line of blood trickled from his temple. He didn’t move.

Goldcoin rolled the man onto his back with the tip of his boot, face scrunching in barely contained disgust. “Unconscious.”

“Good,” Excelerate said. He crouched and waved a hand in front of the women’s faces. They giggled absently, too addled to notice. “Okay, clear.”

They continued, progressing ever deeper into the complex. Goldcoin and Excelerate fought a few hopped-up addicts that dwelled within. Every one of those that fought back seemed to trip over themselves, or fumble their weapon, or befall some other misfortune. No one was able to call for help.

His Power is luck, eh? Kiren mused, giving the mustachioed Hero a close look. You wouldn’t think much of it, but… It’s difficult to know the limits of his Power.

With this advantage on their side, Goldcoin and Excelerate were able to stroll through the place without fear of detection.

As they approached the center, the walls seemed to grow narrower, the ceiling lower. Rats scurried in the corners. The place stunk of animal droppings and mold, thrown in half-murk by the lack of windows.

Kiren’s palms were slick with sweat. Though he tried to talk himself out of it, his limbs were stiff with apprehension.

Time to do this. We’ll kill this Villain, whoever they are.

There was a door set into the wall before them. A murmur of voices could be heard from beyond.

Excelerate looked back, eyebrows raised.

Goldcoin nodded.

The grey-haired Hero turned back around, coiled up like a sprinter, and burst through a door with a flash of speed.

Inside was a plain room adorned only by a large, rectangular table in the middle, with two men sitting opposite each other. Light streamed in through gaps in a pair of rag-covered windows, illuminating the room enough to see. Eight sword-bearing merchant-guards lined the room on the left side with swords and bucklers, a half-dozen Slog-style ruffians with knives and axes on the other.

The two men looked up.

Mug’s scarred face blanched in surprise, hands gripping the thick tome on the table in front of him.

The other man wore a wooden mask, carved to resemble basic human features.

“Greetings, Heroes,” said the masked man with a rough, breathy voice. “I wondered if you would show.”

He lifted his mask.

Maxim’s bloated, purply face split in a ghastly imitation of a grin, his neck indented and rubbed raw by the rope he had hanged from.

“Creator’s Mercy…” Kiren whispered.

Maxim raised one finger.

The pale-faced merchant guards drew their weapons, eyes flitting uncontrollably as forced shrieks rose from their throats.