Gunnar was suspended over the stone floors and Master Zeda’s dead body. Fear twisted his gut as threads of magic wrapped around his torso like vines, lifting him up to face her. As he neared, a message flashed.

Sheira: I saw magic! What’s going on?

But Gunnar did not dare take his attention from Mistress Leilani.

He hovered a couple feet from where she stood at the edge of the balcony. She smiled. Her voice was a near purr that cut straight through him. “I am forever in your debt, Mr. Ashwood.”

“If you don’t mind just setting me down, I’d consider it repaid.”

Leilani chuckled. “Always making jests.”

“Just covering for the fact I don’t understand what the hell’s going on right now.”

“No indeed,” Leilani whispered. “You saved me from a terrible fate, boy.”

“Zeda was never a traitor, was he?”

“To the Nighthawks? No. But he was a traitor to ambition. To progress. It is because of fools like him and all the other masters, that the mission in Mavenport was a failure. You’ve freed us of that ineptitude.”

“What happens to the Nighthawks now?”

“The tides have turned in Thailen. Our opportunity for taking this city has never been greater.”

“The Great Master is still out there.”

“You’re right, Gunnar.”

“Was he in on this too?”

“Pah! Faraday’s a sniveling coward, hiding out in some hole. But without all the other little whisperers in the guild, he’ll be malleable enough.”

“What happens to me?” Gunnar said softly.

Leilani’s expression turned into something very similar to remorse, though Gunnar did not buy it for a moment.

“I am sorry, Ashwood. But there is a traitor amongst the Nighthawks, and I’m afraid I must give them one.”

“M-Me?” Gunnar asked. “I was in Mavenport when the masters were captured.”

“Yes, but we all know you’ve got another hustle on the side. Who else has allies who can do their bidding while their master is far away? Who else abandoned the mission shortly before Zeda was killed? Who else was there for witnesses to see?”

“I mean, there’s another obvious answer.”

Leilani chuckled softly. “Your wit will not rescue you, Gunnar.”

“They’ll never buy it.”

“I think you overestimate your own influence.”

“Perhaps,” Gunnar said. He glanced out the massive windows, and Leilani followed his gaze. He pulled up a DM window.

Gunnar: Light it up!

He could not be positive Sheira was ready. But he knew she had Arcane Bolt primed for his escape from the manor, and she had been able to see the explosion of magic that had killed Zeda.

Gunnar glanced back at Leilani. Tendrils of magic tightened and drew him toward her outstretched hand, and he knew he was moments from joining Zeda’s fate. He could sense the warm resonance of the mistress’s Soul before she touched him.

But then, her hand withdrew, and she spun.

A blur leapt and collided with her, sending her tumbling down the staircase. There was a ferocious snarl, and the blur leapt after.

Gunnar could hardly believe it.

The dire wolf from Dravingdel’s party.

All at once, Leilani’s magic lost its hold on him, and Gunnar dropped. He reached out, and narrowly latched on to the bannister with the tips of his fingers. Heart pounding, he tried to pull himself up, but one hand slipped on the slick wood, and he nearly tumbled down. Hands latched on to him from above and pulled, and he scrambled over the railing.

Bolts of magic lit up the room, narrowly missing them before Leilani shrieked in pain, and the room filled with more loud snarls. He glanced at the bottom of the steps to see several wolves lunging at the sorceress with enormous fangs.

She brought a whole pack!

Gunnar heard no words, but he felt an affirmative twinge in his mind he was almost certain was the dire wolf.

“Let’s go!” Sheira shouted, jerking him to his feet. They sprinted down the hall as the room erupted in an explosion of light that shattered the glass windows behind them.

Gunnar’s Health was at 60%.

Which made no sense—Leilani hadn’t injured him, yet somehow, her spell had drained a good chunk of his points. No wonder Zeda had died so instantly when she dropped him.

His Stamina and Mana had endured a similar reduction, but thankfully, they began to replenish.

He felt a vague sense of reassurance hearing Leilani’s shrieks of agony behind him.

They hurried through the manor, the cries of guards filling the lower level of the house. Sheira led them down a pair of winding halls that opened up into a wide sitting room lined with book shelves. At the head of the room was a circular window. Gunnar glanced behind them to find a pair of guards emerging from a door halfway down the hall.

Sheira raised her sorcerous crossbow and fired.

The window shattered in a burst of emerald magic, and Sheira sprinted toward it.

Gunnar followed and leapt after her, the resonance of Arcane Bolt searing his skin as he shot through.

He landed on the hard gravel drive, his Health plummeting to 30% from the impact. He turned back. The guards did not follow. One fired a pistol, but the shot was far from its mark.

Gunnar drew his blunderbuss and dealt small amounts of damage to both of them, peppering them with scattershot. The guards scrambled away from the window, and didn’t return.

Turning back, Gunnar’s heart froze at the sight of a man with his back pressed up against Zeda’s carriage. Undeterred, Sheira strode straight past him.

That was when he noticed the blood at the man’s feet, and the clean slit across his throat. Sheira had done some good work while he’d been inside, preparing the way for their escape.

“They’ll be out here soon,” Sheira said, hurrying to the front of the carriage. “Some will go after your mistress, but you can bet some of those guards will be after us.”

In the distance, Gunnar heard the howls of wolves. He hoped the wolf he’d freed from Dravingdel’s estate had the sense not to engage too long. He felt another twinge in his mind he couldn’t quiet explain.

Sheira took a blade and cut one of the horses free of the carriage. The steed reared back, but Sheira whispered something unintelligible and kept a palm at its neck, and it calmed. The elf held up two short remnants of reins to him. “Hope you can learn quick.”

“Me too!”

Sheira cut the other horse free and leapt up with almost irritating ease.

Gunnar’s horse shied away from him, and he was forced to imitate Sheira’s neck pat.

[Would you like to Mount? Yes/No]

Gunnar assented. There were no stirrups to climb up, like there’d been on the one trail ride he’d ever been on as a kid.

Voices rang out at the front door, and Gunnar had no choice but to hope for the best. He grabbed on to the horse’s shoulder and swung himself up as best he could, almost overshooting, thanks to his elven Agility. Almost instantly, the horse leapt into a gallop, and Gunnar clutched onto its neck to steady himself.

Shots fired over their heads, and that really got the horses moving.

Gunnar nearly slid off at the sudden burst of movement, but somehow managed to hold on to the reins. Sheira was already leading the way out of the gate, and thankfully, his own horse followed.

Guards rushed from the front door, firing more shots.

Gunnar took a bullet to the shoulder that dropped his Health to 15%. His mount stumbled, and for a moment, he worried it would barrel over, but it regained its footing and kept going. A Health bar flashed over the horse’s head—90%.

Well, that was close.

An explosion behind them forced him to glance back.

The guards were splayed on the ground, wisps of emerald magic emanating from their bodies like smoke. Leilani stood at the edge of the window, gazing out at them.

Gunnar leaned forward on his mount, dug his heels into the horse’s ribs, and it picked up speed.

He and Sheira raced out of the gate, and across the open fields, and Gunnar just hoped that there was a limited range to Leilani’s attacks. Or perhaps, she was running low on Maa.

He braced himself, but the attack never came.

After a half-minute, he glanced back.

There was no sight of Leilani.

As he rode, he cast Word of Healing, but only managed to reach 40% before his own Mana was depleted.

They rode hard for several minutes, passing estates, and avoiding roads as best they could. As they rode, a flurry of notifications came Gunnar’s way.

[Congratulations! You have completed the quest, Mistress in Distress! Leilani has escaped from her captors. Here’s 120 XP!]

[Congratulations! You’ve reached Level 16 in Stealth. You’ve reached Level 13 in Stealth Attack. You’ve reached Level 13 in Basic Word of Healing.]

[You inadvertently freed the traitor you sought. You’ve earned the Unwitting Schmuck badge: +1 to Agility, +1 to Dexterity.]

[Congratulations! You have reached Level 22 in Glory!]

The achievements rang hollow, and only added to his frustration. Leilani had used him, and now, he would look like the traitor, and with all the other masters out of commission, she would be able to take over the Nighthawks.

When they were a good mile from Zeda’s manor, Sheira slowed and hopped off her mount in the middle of a small outcropping of trees.

[Would you like to Dismount? Yes/No]

Gunnar hopped off and landed in a crouch. Sheira slapped her steed’s butt, and the horse took off at a gallop. His own mount followed instinctively, and soon, the two of them were alone in the copse of trees.

“I’d guess we’re another mile from the edge of the Golden Hills,” Sheira said. “This is not the swiftest route, but it provides the most cover. We must be quick.”