Orrin caught Joyce as she stumbled out of [Teleport]. Mira landed like a cat and smiled around her.

“This is where Uncle Jude works,” the young girl said, running ahead to the Catanzano house. “Hi, Jefferson.” She waved to the guard on duty.

Orrin dragged Joyce as they followed the child. The guard smiled and waved back, before turning and yelling into the front door. Madi appeared at the door and ushered the group inside.

“Brandt and my father went to help, did you see them?” Madi asked. She was still dressed in her traveling outfit, her spear in hand.

“Was Sir Brandt fighting the bad men who kidnapped us? Is Uncle Jude with him?” Mira asked in response. Madi gave a stricken look to Orrin, who shook his head.

“We didn’t see anyone, but Daniel was keeping all of Wendeln’s guards occupied,” Orrin said. “I did make out a few people fighting but couldn’t tell who it was.”

Madi nodded and helped push Jude’s family inside. She set two guards outside of their door and spent five minutes using her social training to calm the women down. She answered questions with dodges and gave assurances without promises. Madi closed the door on them as Mira helped her mother get into a big comfortable bed. Joyce had been standing for days and her legs wobbled as she finally let them rest.

“They’ll be fine with some sleep,” Madi whispered as they backed away. “I’ll make sure my father keeps them protected. Although with their testimony, I can’t see a way that Lord Wendeln gets away with this. Kidnapping a guard’s family, attacking my father’s house, trying to kidnap Daniel...the list goes on.”

Orrin let Madi ramble. She was worried about her father, Brandt, and Daniel. He was, too.

Orrin’s buffs wore off, except [Utility Warder]. He still had a lot of mana and itched to get back to help but knew he needed to trust Daniel. He could wait a bit longer. Right?

“Of course, you can.” Tony’s voice entered his mind. “Yes, I’m still here. I’m warding the surrounding area. Silas can throw a fit all he wants, but I’ll be damned if that bastard Wendeln takes those women back.”

The feeling Orrin experienced was new. A group of people helping him, taking care of problems before he even thought of them. Competency in a team?

“What’s the plan?” Madi asked. “Should we stay here? Or...?” she trailed off.

“Daniel was going to escape back here as soon as possible. He should be back by now. The plan was to get out once your dad and Brandt showed up. There’s no way he’s fully recovered from being kidnapped,” Orrin answered, feeling the stress that he had been pushing down start to rise up. “I hope he’s okay.”

Madi stood next to him and put her arm on Orrin’s shoulder. “Our boy gets into trouble a lot, doesn’t he?”

Orrin’s lips pulled into a grin. “I don’t know if he’s just dumb and runs into trouble or if he’s unlucky and trouble finds him.”

They waited together, watching the sun rise firmly into the sky.

Daniel and Brandt popped out of the air and fell a few feet from where Orrin had teleported. Daniel had used his [Homebase] skill.

Madi let out a sigh of relief.

Brandt had Daniel’s arm over his neck and was keeping him up. Both were alive but also hurt.

Orrin started throwing healing spells on him as they ran to their friends.

“Are you both alright?” Madi asked, beating Orrin to the question.

“Daniel took a few hits from the monster’s claws but he saved my life,” Brandt said between gasps for air. He also had multiple triple-cuts along his leg and one across his back. The metal of his armor had been torn like cloth. “It was about to bite into the back of my head when he activated his teleport skill.”

Orrin paused in his casting of [Heal Small Wounds] between the two fighters, feeling his blood run cold. “The monster?”

“Something that Wendeln did, I’m sure,” Brandt continued, handing Daniel off to Madi. “But it went wild and started trying to kill him. Half his men went down trying to contain it as he retreated.”

“It wasn’t a red spider-armed monster was it?”

Daniel groaned. “I knew it. What did you do?”

As Orrin explained the fight with Nicholas and the summoned monster he’d accidentally freed in his attempt to free Joyce and Mira, Brandt and Madi helped get the healing Daniel into the house. Brandt’s wounds had closed quicker, with Daniel having had the majority of the damage. They pushed into Silas’ office and asked questions as Orrin did his best to answer.

Brandt left twice to send messages to Silas. A few minutes after he left the second time, he slowly re-entered.

“The Lords of Dey are convening to handle the [Hero]’s summoned monster together,” he said woodenly. “The others have placed Lord Wendeln in charge. The guards of all the houses are searching for Daniel as we speak.”

Orrin’s emotions flared. Without the normal comfort of [Mind Bastion], he raged. “Silas just went along with this?”

Brandt’s head snapped up. “Lord Catanzano was out-voted. His allegations were waved aside until the monster inside the city walls is put down. But he coded his message. We need to get Daniel out of the city until he can get a handle on everything. He’ll send for you when it’s safe to return.”

Daniel pushed himself to a standing position from his chair. He leaned heavily on Gertrude. [Heal Small Wounds] took some time to fully restock his lost blood. “Where am I supposed to go, Brandt? What about Jude’s family?”

Brandt shook his head. “I’m going to stay with them. I owe Jude that much. If they die, I’ll be cold first.”

Madi began running around Silas’ office, collecting items and pulling open hidden compartments. She tossed rolls of coins covered in cloth into a small bag, along with other small trinkets of precious metals. She stopped and looked up sheepishly. “We’re going to need money for supplies. We can travel east to Veskar because obviously, we can’t go to Odrana. They want Daniel. I don’t really know anybody there. We probably shouldn’t use my family name either. We-“

“Madi,” Brandt stopped her rambling. “You can’t leave. If you do, Wendeln will say Daniel kidnapped you. Your father will have no choice but to order everyone to hunt you all down.”

Orrin stayed quiet, listening to another voice.

“If you think for one second that I am going to abandon Daniel. Orrin, back me up here. You’re going with him right?”

Orrin didn’t respond, looking out the window that overlooked the front of the house. “Wendeln just arrived. Your dad is not with him.”

“Brandt, turn off the teleport ward,” Madi pleaded. “Orrin can get us out of here.”

“No.” Orrin touched the curtain, moving it out of the way. “He’s not here for Daniel. He doesn’t know he’s here. He tracked the girls.”

“What? How?” Brandt checked the window in a more professional manner, peering from the corner instead of the middle of the window like Orrin. “Damn it.”

“Tony’s out there. He wants to know...he wants to know if we want to take down a Lord of Dey with him.”

The room was silent as the group decided their next move. One by one they nodded and Orrin began to explain.

Daniel walked out of the Catanzano house holding a white sheet on an unlit torch. The surrender symbol apparently traversed both worlds.

“I’ve come to talk with Lord Wendeln,” he called out. “I’m Daniel.”

Lord Wendeln still wore his opal chain shirt but his golden and blue clothes were stained with blood. Likely his own men’s blood that had been spilled as he ran away from his son’s creation. He held his sword naked at his side and his well-trimmed beard was stained with sweat.

“The [Hero] at Silas’ house? What sort of treachery has that man gotten our fair city into?” Wendeln shouted. “Did you summon a beast into the heart of my keep at his bequest? If you admit to your misdeeds, I’m sure an arrangement can be found.”

Come quietly and we’ll only crucify Silas, Orrin interpreted. He heard Tony’s low growl in his mind. I hope he keeps it together.

“I will,” Tony said in his mind, but with the kind of anger Orrin had never felt in his life. The man was aching to attack Wendeln.

Daniel played his part beautifully. “You know I didn’t summon the monster, Wendeln. But I am tired of playing politics with Lord Catanzano and Tarris. They are so boring, keeping me locked up and leveling when all I want is to get out there and finish my Quests.”

Orrin didn’t have Tony’s mind skills but he could see Wendeln’s face go through multiple emotions. Hope that the [Hero] would come with him quietly. Confusion and fear at the mention of the Tarris family being involved as well. Something he couldn’t know, as it was a misdirection and false. And the greed at the mention of Quests.

“I can help you with that. You seem a smart young man, I’m sure we have much to discuss. Would you accompany me to-“

“I am a smart young man,” Daniel talked over the man, earning a scornful look. “And I know my value here. I also know that you already tried to kidnap me once. Why should I trust you not to do that again?”

Lord Wendeln smirked and pulled his beard into a point between two fingers. “If I wanted to kidnap you, I would have. What lies have people been feeding you?”

Orrin had been slowly creeping towards Daniel during the exchange. He took Daniel’s hand and placed it gently in a bag he was holding. [Camouflage] was up and Orrin stood a foot behind Daniel.

“Please let this work,” he muttered.

Orrin watched as Daniel’s hand pulled the item from his [Dimension Hole]. The body of Wayne the Toxic Rogue and kidnapper fell at their feet.

“This little birdy confessed it was you who tried to kidnap me,” Daniel challenged the silver-haired man who was beginning to look a little more worried. He put his hand back into what looked like an invisible bag and pulled out a long flower whip. Daniel gave it a quick snap in the air.

“Samara sends her regards. She really tried to fulfill your orders,” Daniel dropped the whip to the side and pulled out Gerty. “I know who you are and who you work for. Get the fuck out of this city or I’ll beat you down just like I did your Agent.”

Lord Wendeln laughed. The dozen men around him chuckled nervously. “So you took down little Sammy. I was wondering how you got back into the city. That must have been quite the feat for you. From my reports, you’ve barely reached level ten. Don’t be an idiot. Come with me and no one needs to die.”

“You’ll kill Jude’s family the first chance you get,” Daniel responded. Orrin moved away into position. He really hoped everything worked as they’d planned. “You already attacked Lord Catanzano’s house to kidnap me, you’ll probably do the same to the other Lords.”

“I don’t need to kill them if I have you,” Wendeln answered, sheathing his sword. “I don’t need to do anything to the other “lords” of this small city. If you work with us, we can have so much more than the meager scraps of a wasteland guardhouse. Do you know the kind of power the elves hold? What kind of power you can hold?”

Daniel shrugged. “I think I have enough. I don’t work with people who kidnap children and threaten my friends. You admitted to kidnapping me and Jude’s family. You admitted to breaking your own laws. And yet, you still expect me to trust you? What kind of idiot do you take me for?”

The feeling in Lord Wendeln’s eyes dimmed. “One that I didn’t want to dirty my own hands over. I guess that time has passed.” Wendeln folded his arms and nodded at Daniel. “Take him.”

“No, Shaw. That won’t be happening today,” Silas Catanzano, Lord of Dey announced as he dropped the magical veil he’d been hiding behind. Two others stood beside him.

Wendeln choked and tried to figure out what was going on.

Orrin smiled. Tony’s plan had worked. While Brandt had turned off the teleport ward, Orrin and Madi had teleported to her father. He had been able to locate the other Lords and Orrin had used the last of his daily mana to get all five of them to a street one away from the front of Silas’ house.

Silas had covered the rest. His class of [Allure Sorcerer] gave him the ability to use minor illusion spells, including a powerful veil or magical screen to hide behind. He’d muttered something about not using it in a long time when Orrin had asked him to use it.

Tony’s plan had been simple. Let the man brag and talk, thinking he was confessing to only the [Hero]. Silas would get a front seat to the admission. Lord Tarris and Lady Timpe, as well.

“Shaw...” Lady Timpe started to talk but turned her head. “I vote that Shaw Wendeln be stripped of his title of Lord of Dey.”

Lord Tarris, a tall man in a robe with thinning hair and glasses shook his head. “Seconded.”

Silas rolled his wheelchair forward. “Carried. Lord Wendeln, you are hereby stripped of your title and lands. Your men will be removed from your command and you will be banished from Dey. If you are not gone within the hour, your life is forfeit.”

Wendeln cried out and moved his hands in a similar fashion to his son. He began to chant and a small black hole appeared in the center of the street, growing bigger by the second.