Chapter 15

Agen’s Flying Mane

Zombie birds circled like scavengers over the stealthy procession. Prisoners were forced in a shackled single file through the woods. The youngest prisoners, mere children, cried while their chafed wrists were weighed down by chains and clasps behind them.

There were six men who guarded the prisoners. They were cloaked and I couldn’t tell what class they belonged to. Our party made no effort to hide our rampage through the forest and they heard us just before we came into view.

Mana rings filled the air before most everyone. Boule had been faster than us and now executed a surprise attack upon one of the men who unsheathed two daggers. Boule shrieked and leapt down. He landed upon the neck of his victim, fangs first. Zombie birds swarmed down upon another of the men, pinning him in place with pecks and scratches. That man foolishly struck out with a spear at birds that were more deft.

The last four men made a run for it, and I used Spectre Sentinel and focused the conjuring light to manifest ahead of two of them, just beyond a fallen tree in their path of flight. The two men leapt one after the other into suddenly appearing Spectre Sentinels who crushed them in a solid bear hug. The other two were chased into the woods by some of Hunter’s men.

The four we captured were at our mercy. After they were tied and sat down, Battie interrogated them. They had little to say for themselves, keeping silent for the most part.

“I’ll fare worse fates than anything you or the town have up your sleeves,” the largest of the men said.

“Your fate is already out of our hands,” Battie said. “The town guard will deal with you. I just need to know why Vicen wants these people.”

“We got nothing to do with Vicen,” another man spat.

“I don’t feel so well,” said the man who Boule had bitten.

Battie shook her head and rose to her feet. After brushing the dirt from her aprons, she approached Hunter and I as we worked on freeing the prisoners.

“Hunter,” she said. “See if you can ‘good-guy’ some information out of these sacks of garbage. I’ve done the ‘bad-guy’ thing. I got nothing from them.”

“Alright,” Hunter said and tried his hand with a charming and soft voice.

Battie replaced Hunter and we worked together on freeing the prisoners from their shackles. We listened to anything they had to say, and soothed those whose tears spoke for them where words failed.

Hunter could not persuade information from the men who hung their heads and simply waited things out with anger bending their brows. They didn’t even look up when Boullerd taunted them until Jack whistled and the monkey climbed to his shoulders. Jack pointed after the two men who’d evaded our ambush and Boullerd dove to the ground and sprinted after them.

Our party returned to the Inn, save for the prisoners who were loaded onto a cart and escorted straight to town. They were guarded by twice as many men and bounced unhappily along the uneven road as the cart squealed away.

Jack entered the Inn just before me.

“Where’s Boule?” I said.

“Oh he’s… out keeping an eye on things,” Jack said.

“Why don’t you boys enjoy something on the house as a thank you,” Battie said.

“If it’s all the same, I‘d like to pay,” I said.

“Nonsense,“ Battie said. “You boys were a tremendous help. We got more than half of them this time. Though I’m not surprised that they won't talk. Never do.”

“That’s what we really need,” Hunter said. “Someone willing to speak up against Vicen.”

“I like your cause,” I said, quite unsure about Vicen now. “I like what you’re doing out here. You need income to maintain your inn and be here. Am I right? I’d like to support you and pay what I can.”

Battie grunted and several others nodded. So I paid for a few drinks for Jack and I. Battie had a lot to say about Vicen and missing people. It was obvious the ambush had invigorated her. When Battie started losing steam, side conversations eventually started taking root and Jack and I moved to the same window we’d leapt from to enjoy soup over rice.

“Nice job today,” Jack said.

“You too,” I said. “You sure Boule’s alright?”

“You gotta stop worrying about him,” Jack grumbled. “I’ve told you how many times now?”

“I’m sorry,” I said. “I’ve grown quite fond of him. He’s not like a conjured familiar. He’s real, and I’ve seen conjured familiars perish before.”

“Stop worrying about Boule. Let’s talk about tomorrow instead.”

“What’s the plan?”

“It’s our last leg of travel. We’ll be arriving at Vicen’s temple the day after.”

“We’re so close,” I said.

“Remember what Battie said? This was the closest she was willing to build her Inn. Whether the danger comes in the form of monsters, or people, we need to stay wary.”

“Are we going to stay on the main road or on a path like the one those kidnappers were traveling?”

“Main road as far as I know.”

“Fair enough,” I said and took a nice big drink of my soup. “I’ll rent us a room. Then I’ve got to absorb some mana crystals. I might level some things up as well. Burning Flare for one.”

“That’s the spell that rains down shooting stars?”

“That’s the one,” I said.

“I don’t like it. It’s great for large parties but inefficient for the two of us. It’s supposed to deal damage to enemies that it strikes, and heal allies that it strikes. Right?”

“Yea.”

“That’s a lot of healing wasted since we’re only two people. Do you have something else that’s more exact that you can use?”

While Jack focused on the rest of his soup, I started going through the articles of my flagstaff. Each and every one of them had a specific use for specific situations, and I’ve been largely ignoring them in lieu of my favorites. Favorites that became favorites out of familiarity and comfort, not out of strategy.

Beneath a shredded flag and another banner was a necklace of lion's teeth that caught my eye. Something I’d only used twice before.

Agen’s Flying Mane.

Level 1 durability.

Level 5 power.

Level 5 speed.

Level 12 damage.

Level 6 distance.

Level 2 stun.

“I’ll use this,” I said. “Agen’s Flying Mane.”

“How does it work?”

“I aim my spearhead at a target and cast it. A replica of my flagstaff is conjured in gold light and then launched. It heals allies that it passes through and damages enemies it passes through. The spears fall into the ground after a short distance and turn into golden lions. Then the lions race to the nearest enemy and stuns them.

“That’s a good one,” Jack said. “I know you’ve got mana to spare so be sure to level it up before we leave tomorrow.”

“I plan on it,” I said.

“Another thing,” Jack said. “I’m getting low on mana myself. Do you mind using that Bobo’s portal spell?”

“Boera’s Mana Portal,” I said. “Yea no problem. Wait—why are you so low on mana?”

Jack massaged his chin.

“I’m using a lot to control the army I’ve been amassing.”

Through Boera’s Mana Portal, I refilled his mana bar to full, which barely took a dent out of mine. Then I paid for a room and spent the rest of the day absorbing mana, meditating, and leveling up Agen’s Flying Mane.