Page 177 of I Ran Away to Evil 2
Knolith and Rufus shared a look before Rufus said, “Straight ahead to the palace.”
Knolith vanished again.
“So much for a relaxing evening reading and drinking tea while we wait out the rain.” Rufus reached out and wrapped an arm around the bard. He seemed in good spirits as Donna raced them down the road at a quick-but-not-that-quick gallop.
“At least we’re together,” Brownie pointed out, smiling at her beastman. She wouldn’t have expected to see him in such a good mood from everything that was happening.
“You know,” he added, “if we get everything donetoday, maybe we can go for a nice walk around town tomorrow morning? I wanted to show you one of my favorite spots.”
“That sounds nice,” Brownie agreed. Donna snorted, but the minstrel ignored her sarcastic horse.
“Perfect.”
As they made their way past the last of the flower fields and toward the actual city, Brownie couldn’t help but admire it all up close. Everything in the Hollow was crescent shaped, not just the city itself. The streets were lined with crescent-shaped cobblestone mosaics, the signs on shops were crescent shaped, the bread sold at the bakery they passed was crescent shaped, and each building had crescent-shaped windows.
The palace started to the left of the Green Oak Tree, and rose in twisted spires like unicorn horns. The main body of the palace wrapped itself in a crescent shape over the dungeon gate platform, ending high in the tree on the right side.
It was very artistically pleasing, and Brownie wondered if she should write a song about it.
She couldn’t wait to see it on a clear day, and promised herself that she would spend tomorrow getting a better look in the sunshine. With Rufus.
Upon closer inspection now, the estate was in a state of disarray as countless palace workers streamed into the courtyard outside. They all stood in the rain as the sounds of battle rent the air.
Rufus kissed her on the cheek before jumping down from the wagon. Brownie covered her cheek with a hand.
“I have some work to do,” he said. “Promise me you’ll stay with everyone else where it’s safe?”
Donna whinnied, and suddenly, the mare was shaking free of the wagon.
“I’ll stay with Donna,” Brownie promised, climbing down to join the horse.
He nodded. “I’ll be right back.”
And then, her beastman raced toward the screaming.
CHAPTER 107
Did Someone Call for Backup?
Rufus
I entered through the main doors and found Lady Amy at the bottom of a grand staircase that started smaller at the top but swooped down and wide at the bottom. The elf saintess, chosen avatar of the Green Oak Tree, stood with her bow drawn. Her long brown hair was intricately done up in braids, and her dress was torn high at the hip on the left side but longer to her knees on the right.
She was crying silent tears even as she restrung her bow with a strange untipped tree-branch arrow.
A gray elf in comfortable black evening attire with a pair of glasses and a short wand stood at the top of the stairs. “You should have drunk the poison like your father.”
“You will never get away with this!” Lady Amy declared, releasing her arrow. The shaft shifted midair, twisting into an elemental missile that would’ve hit Duke Lector if he didn’t portal suddenly three steps to the right.
The duke nodded at a cloaked figure obscured from Lady Amy’s viewpoint, but I managed to catch a glimpse of the small woman with shoulder-length blonde hair peeking out from her hood. To the saintess, he said, “Ah, but I already have.”
“Did someone call for backup?” I asked, running up beside Lady Amy just as ten Blackfog spies poured out from behind the duke. Weapons drawn, the group split in half, and each jumped down to attack us.
“Commander General Rufus?” the saintess asked, a new bolt already pulled back and flying. “How did you—?”
[You have attempted to use the Skill:Examine. You have succeeded. Six targets may be observed. 5Blackfog Spyselected.Duke Lectorselected. Target(s) under observation. Predictive analysis: 12%. Available predictions: attack trajectory.]
Faint lines appeared, letting me know the oncoming attacks of each Blackfog spy that jumped me. There were a few extra lines where the skill offered multiple trajectories, but the longer I fought, the easier this would be. There were two humans and three elves attacking me.
