Chapter 64 - Nice Guys Always Finish Last

"Christoff! You said you owe me a debt, right?”

The boy Eric was gazing so intently at blanched, but forced a nod, his exquisitely polished bronze helm catching the light the entire chamber was bathed in. “Fuck it if I don’t feel it like a weight on my soul.”

Eric flashed a hard smile. “Do me this one favor, and we’re square for all time.”

Christoff frowned. “Eric, you really, really have to run. I mean like, right now!”

Eric held the boy’s gaze for long seconds. “Tell Sue she holds all the cards. Okay? Any time she wants… it’s all hers. All she has to do is sit in the central chair of the ruins. Will you do that for me, Christoff?”

The boy’s eyes widened. He shared looks with the others. “Eric...”

“Tell no one!” he snapped. “Guard her with your lives. She’s more important than you know. Unless you want your town to fall to the orcs… guard her with your lives. Recruit whoever you trust. And only those you trust! But only after you tell her. Do that, and I’ll make you all paladins one day. Do we have a deal?”

Christoff was gazing at Eric with the oddest look. “Eric, how can you even...”

Eric grimaced, realizing he was going to have to play at least one final card. “How the hell do you think this all came about, Christoff?”

All three boys paled, gazing at Eric with something close to awe, before slamming fists to chests, the sound of exquisitely articulated gauntlets ringing against hammer-hardened bronze breastplates echoing through the massive chamber. “We’ll guard her with our lives, Eric. We swear it”

Eric mimicked the gesture. “Good. Be well, paladins. Prove to me that my trust is well-placed in you three, at least.” And with a final farewell nod, he was dashing back the way he had come.

Because he could feel it too.

The inevitable weight of doom slowly gaining on them as Eric overtook his companions racing along the tunnels.

Because whatever enchantments kept the magical town he had somehow forged from living dream safe, it did nothing against the awful tug he now felt against his arcane body. A body he didn’t even know he had, for all that it tasted faintly of the crackling aura of lightning Alice strived so hard to master. Not until he felt it being pulled and manipulated by another.

“This way!” he said, urgency in his voice, doing his best to lead them all down tunnels that twisted in directions unexpected and strange.

Until they had finally left the territory he had forged, before the reigns were grabbed by a treacherous worm who would rather see them dead than repay his debt.

“It’s fading,” Morlekai said, letting loose an explosive breath. “The connection’s weakened.”

“That’s because we’ve left Gilton Undercity,” Eric quietly said, now slowing his pace and keeping an eye on his surroundings. “So yes, we’ve technically crossed domains. I’m guessing that’s good against arcane trackers, and now there’s no chance of us inadvertently leading whoever’s coming for us to a city that should now be utterly beyond their ability to locate. The downside is, there could be god knows what, in this part of the tunnels. I don’t have a fucking clue where we are. Do you?”

Morlekai gave the tiniest of nods, his intent gaze not leaving Eric’s flushing features. “Actually I do. And Eric?”

“Yeah?”

“How the hell do you know what you know?”

Eric exploded with bitter laughter. “I don’t know shit, Morlekai! All I know for sure is that we were royally fucked over beyond belief, and that I sacrificed twenty years of my life to a goddamned sniveling rat who happily smirked in our faces and took our sweat and lifeblood as his due before making us pariah in our own homes, and sending what I can only guess are fucking intergalactic bounty hunters after us, when he could no longer use us!”

“Not that bad, Eric,” Louie said behind him. “But almost. CSA stands for Confederated States of America. What a certain cluster of power brokers and self-elected politicians now like to call themselves with the fall of the former USA. Assholes who think it's perfectly okay to press-gang free citizens and force them into pods, where they come out as either corpses or bound Conscripts, so long as they can forge an army. To 'bring America back,' they say. Fucking bastards. And even before we left, Master Grim found out they were using elite conscripts who somehow earned a Bounty Hunter class to bring in any 'suspect,' which just means anyone with potential that they think are worth collaring, if they're not part of an elite guild or citizens of a chartered city like Freetown."

Drake snarled and spat. “Fucking bastards are no better than slavers! They should just call themselves that!”

Morlekai nodded. “Slavers sanctioned by a shadow government that’s all that’s left of our fallen nation. That is what it amounts to. Slavers that a certain mayor was somehow able to contact, and sell us out to, even though he swore he had had no contact with any outside force since first we founded ‘our’ town!”

Alice glared and spat. "That little goddamned fuckwad's been playing us from the start! Of course he's aligned with the CSA! Those self-righteous bastards preaching about sacrifice while securing their power base on collard conscripts is right up that asshole's alley! Probably laughing in his cups right now! 'Oh, your little genius boy scout pulled some magic genie out of his ass that stole twenty years of his life and gave me my town? Great! I'll gladly let his drained ass get conscripted, and laugh in his face from my fortified city with a hundred bronze cannons! Thanks for playing the fool, fool! Didn’t you get the memo, losers? Good guys always finish last!’”

Eric clenched his fists, seething with rage. He could barely choke back the sob in his throat, feeling like a knife was twisting in his gut. Because so much of what Alice had said mirrored exactly how he felt. “If only you knew how absolutely stupid I feel right now, Alice. Betrayed like this, after we put our lives on the line for a town we owe nothing to! If only you fucking knew!”

“Oh, I know,” Alice said with a bitter chuckle. “Believe me, I know. Now shut up and run. We gotta move, and fast.”

Eric felt a cold surge of fear at the panic he saw in Alice’s eyes, even past her anger. “But I thought their hold had weakened?”

She flashed a bitter smile. “They’re CSA Rangers, Eric. And we all have bounties on our heads. And how much you wanna bet that there’s a hell of a lot more riding on this than putting so-called escaped convicts back in chains?”

Eric furrowed his brow, before his eyes widened with fresh outrage.

“Wait, you don’t think Stibbs actually...”

“Of course he did,” Morlekai spat. “No rat would so eagerly stab his so-called heroes in the back if he weren’t about to claim all the cheese.”

Louie chuckled. “So all the times he tried to talk us out of claiming that gold for ourselves… it wasn’t for the sake of preserving America’s wealth. It was because he was making a deal behind our backs, and our heads were a part of that deal.”

Morlekai flashed a feral grin as they raced down increasingly winding corridors, now made of ancient kiln-heated bricks with the drip of water and the occasional puddle making it clear they were near the surface once more. “That’s exactly what I think,” he said, just as a trio of 4-foot long rats turned around the corner.

Iado skillcheck made!

You have critically struck multiple foes!

Before collapsing in spurting fountains of blood when Eric drew and struck in a heartbeat, while the third, quite savvy for a rat, was already squeaking and leaping through the air, its nose quivering in outrage, when Eric flowed away with a fierce smile… before his sword arced out so fast, all that could be seen was the crimson shower of its passing, and two freshly cut rat halves were placed in storage before they even completed their arc through the air.

Eric took a satisfied breath as he cleaned his saber and sheathed his blade exactly how his mentor had taught him, for all that he could have blinked it clean as well, smirking at the bemused clap Drake gave him.

“My man!”

Eric winked but said nothing, wasting no time, stopping only to claim the corpses and the scattered blood spatter as well, in the literal blink of an eye, his Blood Mastery and ES Space skills synergizing perfectly to allow him even that impossibility. Even if Morlekai was now eyeing him a bit more intently than Eric liked. Because leaving any trace or trail unnecessarily, when hunters were after them, was the height of stupidity. But all his friend said was, “Well done,” as they all moved forward at a ground-eating jog once more.

At least the sporadically appearing clusters of patrolling rats gave him an outlet for his frustration, his fury at his own stupidity, sacrificing 20 years of his life, and ten points that could have done wonders for his Vitality and Strength… only to have the beautiful sanctuary he had forged fall into the hands of a treacherous bastard using it to pincer Eric and his friends into a trap.

Yet despite his most recent folly, over the past month, he had grown in ways striking and profound.

A trio of rats he would only dare face with a pair crossbows at the ready when he had first dared emerge from his sanctuary after escaping from the pod’s trap, he could now put down in the blink of an eye. With all his physical stats now at or beyond Olympian levels, he could slice through mortals and mundane beasts with the speed and grace of his favorite action heroes, the outcome just as inevitable as his foes falling in all the choreographed combat scenes his mother had taken such pride in putting him in, what now felt like a lifetime ago. The only time she had ever been happy with his acting, because his martial technique had been no act at all. It was the actual lines he was supposed to memorize but never could, that kept tripping him up.

Still, for all that he was grateful for the solace taking out monsters that had nearly killed him weeks ago now brought him, he forced himself to eat the bitter, meticulously going over, as best he could, the choices that had brought him to this very moment, fleeing for his life, when he should be preparing for the heist of a lifetime.

He had learned the bitterest of lessons that day.

A lesson he was determined to take to heart, and never forget.

Kindness for its own sake was absolute folly, if there was any chance at all that a third party could use your kindness against you. Whether by tearing free the priceless wonders you forge for another, or by taking advantage of your sacrifices to pound you to the ground.

In this ruthless world, it was the height of foolishness to invest in anyone or anything except yourself, with the sole exceptions being family or the closest of friends, where bonds of love, friendship, and reciprocity actually meant something. Otherwise, focusing on anything besides enhancing your own personal power would earn you only bitter tears in the end.

Because everything else you worked for or strove to accomplish could be taken away with a sneer by those who had focused exclusively on bettering themselves. Because refusing to follow the rules of conflict and dominion clearly established by the strongest would just give those in power the best of both worlds; their own growing strength, along with all your hard efforts as an added bonus. Though they might slice your throat as a consolation prize for playing the fool, and spit in your face while doing so.

It was all Eric could do to bite back a frustrated scream.

Because had he spent those ten points on himself and come back, stronger and more powerful than ever to a weak, near defenseless town that dared do naught but bend to their will… the mayor would have been forced to meet with Morlekai. And that would have forced him to honor his oath. They’d be on the path to wealth and power at this very moment, and Eric somehow doubted that asshole Stibbs would have dared to send bounty hunters after them then.

Eric shook his head.

It was beyond galling to think that his noble act had done nothing but fortify his enemies and put the lives of his only true friends in jeopardy.

He swore to himself then and there that he would never play the idiot and be blinded by foolish idealism again.

He would invest in himself exclusively until he achieved the impossible goal of growing so strong that he need bow his head to no one. Only then would he dare kindness for its own sake.

He flashed a bitter smile. Despite the loss of twenty years and the sacrifices made, he had grown in miraculous ways, in just a month’s time.

He was now eager to see just how far he could push the ability he had foolishly deferred from using when he had had the chance.

Assuming he lived long enough to actually claim any fresh territories at all.

“Morlekai...”

“Quiet, Alice. Just move. As fast as you can.”

Eric winced at the tension he heard in their voices, and he knew they needed to do more than just run in a panic. As fruitless as it might be, he was determined to do what little he could to better their odds, visualizing the unique tool he had. Over and over again, as he allowed his momentarily gauntletless fingers to brush ancient brick or rough basalt stone as they flowed from one tunnel to another in an effort to escape the bloodhounds on their trail.

Fortunately, his friends didn’t argue when he eased off from taking the lead. Even when he began slipping to the rear. Drake did frown, however, when Eric deliberately pulled a backpack out of storage with basic camping supplies, food, and his most compact recurve crossbow secured and loaded in its holster, now carrying his shorter bardiche against his shoulder like Drake and Louie were, sword still at his hip.

“Eric, what the hell?”

But Alice quickly got it. “Because they might know. Right, Eric?”

Eric jerked a nod. “We have to assume that our enemies already know exactly what we’re equipped with, or should be equipped with, since Stibbs has seen us spar and train. Especially since now we know damn well that there was nothing innocent about the mayor’s questions, the other day. If I don’t have at least a crossbow and bardiche and a pack with basic gear on me… they’ll get it. And my gift is one thing I don’t want our foes to know shit about.”

Morlekai just shook his head. “Our goal is to avoid them entirely, not bluff them, Eric. Focus on movement, not deception.”

Eric smirked at that, but didn’t disagree, making sure his pace was a match for the rest of the group, even when he went back to his visualization exercises, shaping and reshaping the massive trump card he had in storage, slowly draining what was fortunately a miniscule amount of his now much-improved Soul Reserves at an absolutely absurd and glorious 38, finding at least some comfort in sensing his ESS Manipulation skill bar coming ever closer to hitting Journeyman ranks.

But the worried looks his friends gave him made it clear he was being an idiot. Slowing them down. Tiring himself out. And worse, far worse, upon occasion, even making noise.

"Stop it, Eric!" Morlekai snapped when a large splash behind them made them wince, and the young vampire lord jump in alarm.

“Sorry,” Eric winced before their glares. “I’ll try harder.”

“You won’t try, you’ll do!” Morlekai hissed.

Eric clenched his jaw. The boy scout he had been would have smiled sheepishly, apologized, and backed down, or wasted time explaining. But all he said was: “You fucking owe me. So shut up and deal with it.” Earning a killing glare from Morlekai, and a wink from Alice who smacked her brother’s shoulder.

“He’s not stupid. You know there’s a reason. There almost has to be. This is Eric we're talking about,” she said with a smirk. “Enough talking. Let’s go.”

And perhaps in silent rebuke, Morlekai picked up his pace. Now running at near Olympian levels, perhaps to punish his sister for taking Eric's side, though her grim smile made it clear that even a chain-smoking beauty queen could do a marathoner proud with the points she had clearly put into Vitality with her last level up.

As had everyone else.

Eric was surprised Morlekai hadn’t turned into a storm of crows, but after a moment’s reflection, it made sense.

Far better a card one’s enemy does not expect, than a target a clever foe could immediately put down with any grenade-like concussive attack. And for all that he had thought grenades were no longer a thing… who the fuck knew, with black powder using orcs, or actual post-apocalyptic bounty hunters?

So Eric kept his focus on what counted, only daring to speak when he thought he was ready, head throbbing from attempting to visualize the placement of muskets and bowstrings in ways he thought would work.

Hoped would work.

Hating how much he was forced to depend on variables he had no control over.

Still, the more he knew, the better.

“So,” he ventured at last with a whisper, taking careful note of the narrowing limestone tunnel as they prepared to take another right along the intersection ahead. “Just how strong are these CSA Bounty Hunters?”

Quickness check failed!

And before Eric could blink, he found himself crumpling to the ground in a dazed heap, spitting out his own teeth when a ferret-faced man smiled down at him with glimmering red eyes, and a razor-sharp dagger jammed in his mouth.