Perilous Jaunt Chapter 27
Chapter 27
Dante
We arrived back at Ansil, hiding beneath the coattails of darkness. It would have been three or four more hours until sunrise, which gave us more than enough time to leave the City again and travel a mile or two back into the forest, eliminating the risk of being spotted by anybody.
The three guards standing watch at the southern gate proved themselves to be very little trouble. They rubbed their droopy, sleep-stricken eyes that weren't covered by their visors as we passed them. After strolling between them -two stood to the left side of the gate and one to stood to the right- we made our way towards Rhona's shop. The streets were clear, save for a few vagrants that slept on the sides of the road.
When we turned around a corner, we were in front of Rhona's shop. I approached the door and banged on the wood with my fist, hoping that Rhona would be able to hear me through the lead.
"Why don't you try the doorknob?" Peter suggested.
"I don't think Rhona leaves her door un-"
Peter stuck out his right hand, while holding my possessions in his left, and turned the doorknob, which clicked and creaked the door open.
A stench crawled out from inside the shop that reeked worse than the dung of livestock, making even my strong stomach feel like vomiting. Luckily, I hadn't eaten anything since that morning, so my stomach was empty.
I shot Peter a look of worry, which he returned.
"Get behind me," I ordered, drawing my sword.
Peter removed his hand from the doorknob and got behind me without protesting. I heard a metal ring behind my back and assumed he drew his sword as well.
"Stay out here," I warned him. "If it's safe, I'll call you. If there's trouble, go get some guards,"
Peter immediately despised the idea and began to protest. "I can help!"
"You don't know how to fight," I reminded him. "Unless you want to get impaled or lose your arm, I suggest you go get some guards if a fight breaks out,"
"Fine," Peter groaned.
I gently pushed the door open with my left hand. The moonlight spilled through the open doorframe and splashed against the wooden floor of the shop, revealing a bloody corpse just a few feet away from my boots.
"Shit," I whispered.
I pushed the door further open, looking to my left and right to make sure that nobody was hiding in my blind spots. Then, after my eyes somewhat adjusted to the blackness, I took a few steps towards the dead body. It was a gray wolf, just like me, and he was lying face down with a pool of blood around his head. Once I finally stood over him, my eyes shifted to his left hand, which still gripped his drawn bastard sword. No blood. Must have gone down without much of a fight. My eyes traveled up his arm, towards his shoulder, and noticed a yellow armband. Talth.
_ _ I turned around to let Peter know I found a dead Talth, but, now that my eyes had become fully accustomed to the darkness, I was able to see that the tables where Rhona's guards had sat were turned over and lay on their sides.
In front the table on my right, I noticed there was a lion laying face up, his chest covered in a sheet of blood. He, unlike the wolf, did not wear a yellow armband. However, he did not have a weapon drawn. Next to him, there was a male kangaroo, who wore a Talth armband and lay faced down with a red layer covering his back. His sword, which was still in his left hand, had been stained with blood that seemed to glow in the moonlight. He attacked the lion before the lion even drew his own sword. I then assumed that one of Rhona's men avenged their fallen comrade by stabbing the kangaroo in the back.
I glanced over at the other table and saw no other bodies. So, that's two dead Talth and one of Rhona's men so far.
_ _ After counting the dead, I turned and looked back into the inner depths of the store. My eyes noticed a group of bodies mangled together in an orgy of blood and steel, just a few feet in front of Rhona's counter. They lay practically on top of one another, making it impossible to see who had slain whom exactly. I was however, able to count nine pairs of arms, five of which didn't wear yellow armbands.
"Dante?" Peter called to me from the doorway. "Is it safe?"
"Yes," I called back to him, just after finishing my counting of the arms.
Peter took a few steps into the store and gasped. "What the hell happened?"
"The Talth attacked," I said. "All six of Rhona's men are dead and there's six dead Talth here, too,"
"Is Rhona...?"
I sighed and looked up from the pile of bodies. "I don't kn-"
The front side of the counter, which faced me, was painted with million of tiny scarlet streaks that stretched out in every direction. Above the blood and on top of the counter, lay Rhona's corpse, which faced upwards at the ceiling with wide eyes. Her right hand hung down over the face of the counter and now only had three fingers instead of five. Meanwhile, her lips appeared to have been poorly sawed off with a knife, which had left behind flesh that was red and had jagged edges. I could also make out that some of her teeth, along with chunks of her gums, had been cut out as well. Rhona's throat had nearly been cut in half, revealing the pink insides of her neck. Further beneath her open throat, was her chest, which had been cut straight down the middle. The flaps of her stomach had been folded outwards, spilling her lungs, heart, kidneys and liver onto the counter, which, after closer examination, appeared to have been strategically placed around her on the counter, as if she had been prepared for vultures to dine on.
"Dante," Peter whispered behind me, fearfully. "Look at the wall,"
My ears flicked as I wondered what he was talking about, but then I noticed what he was referring to. On the wall, behind the counter, there was a message that had been written in blood, which most likely had come from Rhona.
_ _
Dante Peter
_ _
We are coming for you
_ _ "How do they know our names?" Peter asked.
"They..." I said, just before clearing my throat and trying to pull my eyes away from bloody message that had been written on the wall. Sadly, my eyes resisted my commands. "They probably tortured Rhona by cutting off her fingers and her teeth. Once she told them what they wanted...about us...they slit her throat. That must be how those Talth found us in the woods earlier,"
"And her organs?"
Jesus, it was getting more and more difficult to talk. "They probably did that after they cut her throat. They wouldn't have risked killing Rhona until they got what they wanted,"
"How the hell did they know we were here?"
"I dunno," I admitted. "Someone may have recognized us from the description of the posters and told the Talth,"
Peter became silent.
"Peter?" I asked, not moving from where I stood.
"Yeah?"
"Please close the door,"
He didn't respond. Then, I heard him walk back to the door, which clicked shut.
"Thanks," I said, once Peter walked back and stood next to me.
Slowly, rage began to burn inside of me. My fingers tightened so firmly around my sword's grip that it felt like they would break. The Talth murdered Esme and had cut Rhona open like she was some boar they hunted through the woods for sport. I could only imagine the pain both of them felt in the end. Their blood was on my hands, just as much as it was on Osric's.
"Those bastards won't live to see another day," I snarled and slid my sword into its scabbard.
I then walked behind the counter, going through the door behind it, and went into Rhona's stockroom. There were various items on an even numerous amount of shelves, which completely covered the three walls in front of me. There were some vials labeled with slips of paper that had been scribbled on with ink, some crates pressed up against the walls so I could have enough room to walk and three large jars just to my left that were filled with a neon purple liquid.
I stopped in front of the jars and carefully stared at their purple contents, which filled them to the very brim. Wait. Is that...?
I leaned forward and confirmed my suspicions. Painted on the all of the jar lids, which were bronze, were two black words. Devil's Nectar.
After making a mental note of where the Nectar was located, I searched for a new knapsack. After I scanned all of the shelves and realized that there wasn't a knapsack on top of any of them, I went over to the first crate on my right. I lifted the lid, only to find some scabbards, a few daggers and some arrows inside. I grabbed a handful of the arrows and put them into my quiver before moving onto the next crate.
The second crate, unlike the first one, had some very erotic materials. There were a few portraits of people having sex in very scenic locations, such as hillsides, forests, fields and rivers. There also was a jar full of a clear liquid, which had "lubricant" written on its lid. And, before I shut the lid on the crate, I noticed there was a wooden shaft in the corner, which was crafted into the exact shape of a canine's erect penis.
The third crate, however, was where I became fortunate. I found all kinds of clothing. Tunics, trousers, belts, boots and cloaks were all inside of the crate, which were made of the finest linens. But, on top of them, lay a brown knapsack made of burlap that was actually twice the size of my previous one.
I took the knapsack out and held it up for examination after shutting the crate. The straps were a little shorter than the ones on my last knapsack. However, aside from that, it was in perfect condition and was probably newly sewn based on the fresh scents of silk, corduroy, cotton and doeskin, which were probably kept in the same room as the bag when it was being made.
I opened the knapsack and wore it backwards so it would hang off my chest. Then, I found the Devil's Nectar again and used both of my hands to warily set each jar down into my new knapsack. I was happy to discover that there was enough space at the bottom of it for me to set the jars side-by-side.
I then stepped out of the stockroom and found Peter waiting for me by one of the sideways tables. He still held my book, purse and bullet pouches in one hand while he held his sword in the other.
"I'll take my stuff back now," I said, reaching out my hands.
"Found everything you need?" Peter asked, handing my things towards me.
"Even better," I said, setting my possessions gently down into my knapsack, just before pulling my map out from between my waist and my belt. "I found something that's going to help us kill Osric,"
"Kill Osric?" Peter said.
"Yes," I said, putting my map inside my knapsack and tying the bag closed.
"Wha-?"
"Look!" I snapped at the prince. "Ever since the beginning, he's been killing everybody we've met and will probably kill us if we don't stop him! The son of a bitch has to die! I know I promised Esme we wouldn't go after that asshole, but I don't care. I know that probably makes me a terrible friend, but at least I get to avenge Esme and Rhona,"
Peter blinked and was quiet for a moment. "Actually, I was going to ask what you found,"
My tail tucked between my legs and I felt guilty for snapping at the otter. "Oh... Sorry. I found some Devil's Nectar in the stockroom,"
"Devil's Nectar?"
"It's a liquid that burns," I explained, as I took off my knapsack and put it on my back.
Peter's eyes widened in disbelief. "Really?"
"Really," I told him. "It's very hard to come by, too," Then, I turned around to glance at Rhona's corpse. "I'm sure Rhona wouldn't mind,"
"Dante," Peter called me.
I rotated to face Peter once again.
"We should probably get going," he said. "It'll be daytime soon and we don't want to be seen,"
I nodded. "Yeah. Let's head out,"
Peter, just before turning to walk out the front door, sheathed his sword.
I followed closely behind him and stopped right as I stepped into the doorway. Then, I rotated to look at the gruesome state of Rhona's body and wished that I had been there to protect her. I will avenge you and Esme.
_ _ After turning back around, I stepped outside and shut the door.