Darkness and Hellfire

Chapter 61 This Is An Investment.

‘That cloak looks familiar.’ Isaac thought to himself. He had gotten a glimpse of their stalker when he rounded the most recent corner. ‘Damn he’s fast.’ Isaac was breathing hard and he could hear the other man’s heavy breathing as well. The other man started to slow down to a walk and Isaac gained some ground.

—

“I hope I lost them…” The man whispered and looked behind himself. Only an empty tunnel met him and total silence. “Good. I shouldn’t have followed them.” He whispered to himself and kept walking while trying to catch his breath.

He bumped into something and staggered back. Before his eyes a shadowy form appeared. A black void rose out of the ground in roughly the silhouette of a cloaked man. His eyes went wide. “I didn’t see anything I swear.” He told the walking shadow and started backing up. “I just got curious. It won’t happen again.” The man continued pleading.

—

Isaac had ended up teleporting into the darkness in front of the man because he felt like he couldn’t run anymore. He had turned around just in time for the man to run into him. He opened the shadows up around his eyes so he’d be visible but kept everything else closed off to hide his panting. He needed a drink, his throat was dry and his legs burned.

He let the silence hang as he stared down the rogue. He sat down, moving all his shadows to form behind him into a stool and crossed his arms. “Thomas.” He said to his stalker once his breath was even again. “I told you not to follow when we don’t want you to.” He pulled a waterskin out of thin air and took a swig. “To make it worse, you made me run after you.”

Thomas gulped. “I… uh…”

“Yeah, yeah. You ‘won’t do it again’ right?” Isaac said with annoyance dripping off his words. “Listen Thomas. I’m tempted to stab you with a few of these” He pulled a steel throwing spike out of his Inventory. “and leave you for the spiders. Everyone would think you got ambushed by a few creepy crawlies and got yourself killed. You understand the position you are in right?”

Thomas nodded and gulped again. “Y-yes sir. I do.”

Isaac took a deep breath. “What exactly did you see and hear? I can feel if you are lying so don’t try to bullshit me.” Isaac lied. He also wasn’t sure if bullshit was even a recognized term here but Thomas seemed to get the meaning regardless.

“I didn’t see anything. I heard some fighting and you talking about a bone dragon. I swear, nothing else.” Thomas told him with fear in his eyes and voice.

“Thomas, do you know what happened the last time someone pissed me off.” Isaac asked him with an even tone.

Thomas stepped back half a step and nodded. “They got dusted right?”

Isaac nodded. “Yeah. They got dusted. I killed them by touching them. I grabbed the one around his neck and it disintegrated so quickly that his head hit the ground before the torch he was holding. Another I punched and I didn’t even feel any resistance until I hit the back of his skull. The last one, he really pissed me off. Do you know what was left of him?” Isaac questioned. He was making sure to put the fear of angering a vengeful god into Thomas. The thicker he could lay it on the better.

Thomas’ throat was dry but he tried to swallow anyway. “There was nothing left but bones.” He replied.

“Good.” Isaac nodded and stood up. “Your eavesdropping hasn’t made me angry. The magistrate finding out what you heard would make me angry. Remember that.” Isaac told him and vanished.

Thomas collapsed onto the ground and breathed deeply. “Fuck he’s scary.” He whispered to himself. “Well Thomas you really fucked yourself this time haven’t you.” He shook his head and sighed as the tension was at least partially released. “Nothing happened. I followed them into the caverns and the paladin just smited a bunch of spiders. Normal day. Nothing new.” He told himself and stood up with a shake of his head to clear it. Thomas began his slow walk the rest of the way out of the spider tunnels.

Isaac had heard everything with a smile on his face. “Good. He better not snitch to Gio about my pet dragon. Then I’d actually do something. Probably not kill him, he seems like a nice enough guy, but definitely something he wouldn’t soon forget.” Isaac said while watching Thomas brush himself off and start walking.

“I better follow him. I’m totally lost.” Isaac said into his shadows with a frown.

—

Lenna was getting worried. She had only been at the exit for a few minutes but that was a few minutes too long as far as she was concerned. She was tapping her foot and she kept looking back down the main path. Another minute later she saw a cloaked figure slowly walk out of one of the side tunnels and turn in her direction. He froze, she recognized him right away, it was Thomas.

Isaac pulled himself through the darkness and out of where Lenna’s shadow would be if a light was shining at her face. He emerged and dispelled his shadows. “We had a talk. He should be fine.” Isaac told her.

Lenna spun around and breathed a deep sigh of relief. “That is not happening again.” She told him.

Isaac raised an eyebrow. “What isn’t?”

“I… I don’t like not knowing.” She let the rest of the statement up to his imagination.

Isaac gave her a smile. “Alright. I’ll try. Okay?”

She met his eyes. “Okay.” She sighed again.

Thomas had just gotten close enough to hear them. “Let’s head back, you two.” Isaac told them and started walking down the path back to Safeharbor.

Thomas made sure to hang back far enough that the guards wouldn’t notice that he was with them and would think that he was still just tailing them. Isaac and Lenna went about things as usual, only without the cart as any halved spider corpses and the rope that they were attached to had been left in one of the tunnels.

Back in their room Isaac sighed and threw himself backwards onto the bed. “I hope leaving him alive wasn’t a mistake.” He said to Lenna once she had closed the door behind them.

She sat sideways on the chair and leaned against the wall next to it. “I trust your judgment.”

“Thanks. I wish I trusted my judgment. It’s kinda hard after our entry though.” He replied referencing the incident in the cells.

“It turned out alright.” She assured him. Isaac nodded solemnly. “I have an idea.” She told him and he sat up on his elbows to see her. “Let’s go shopping. We have enough to get an enchanted sword. Maybe some better armor for you.”

“We do, don’t we? I had forgotten if I’m being honest.” Isaac replied. “That sounds like a plan. A magic sword would be nice.”

—

An hour later the two of them found themselves back in the smithy where Isaac had purchased his sword and Lenna’s ‘hair pins’. The boy that had been there wasn’t working the counter this time but an old dwarven man was. Isaac had learned that the short and stocky people were almost always dwarves, a race of people especially accustomed to living underground.

The old dwarf’s eyes were gray and so was his hair. He had a few little burn marks on his face probably from working in the forge for the last hundred years. “Are you the smith, you made all of these?” Isaac asked.

“Aye. ‘Twas I.” The dwarf answered.

Isaac smiled and pulled his blade out its scabbard. “I was hoping to find another one of these.” He said and handed the dwarf his sword.

The old dwarf looked it over and nodded. “Aye. I remember makin’ this one. It wasn’t bought for a long time.” He looked up to meet Isaac’s gaze. “Yah beat the hells out of it.”

Isaac winced. “I was actually hoping to get a brand new one to have it enchanted so that wouldn’t happen again.

The smith’s face lit up. “Well why didn’t ya say so at the beginnin’?! Leave this one here and I’ll make ya one fit for a lifetime.”

“How much is that gonna cost me?” Isaac asked.

“I can do it for fifty gold and you’ll have it back with the new one in two days.” The smith replied.

Isaac thought about it. “Alright.” He looked at Lenna who was looking over a longsword much like the one on her hip. “Find one for you?” Isaac asked.

Lenna shook her head and put it back. The dwarf scoffed. “What’s wrong with that blade laddy?” He asked while marching up to her and the hanging weapon.

“Your eyes are going, old dwarf.” She replied. “Either that or you mispronounced Lady.”

The dwarf stopped in his tracks and squinted at her. “Apologies lass. Maybe my eyes are goin’. S’what’s wrong with the blade?” He demanded.

“The cross guard is off center by a sixteenth of an inch.” She explained and took the sword off the rack and handed it to him. He took the sword with a frown and looked it over, twisting it this way and that before finally sighing and handing it back to her.

“Indeed it ‘tis. I’ll make another fit for an elvish princess for ya lass but it’ll cost ya. That sword was only worth twenty five gold because it was made for quick sale not enchantin’.” The smith explained.

“Fifty gold?” Lenna asked.

“Yes’m.” He replied.

Lenna returned the sword to the rack and drew the one at her hip before handing it to him. “How much to fix this one?”

He took the sword with curious eyes and the more he examined it the wider his old eyes became. “Where’d ya get this?” He asked. “It’s perfect.”

“That’s not my story to tell.” She told him. “Can you return this one to its former glory? I heard dwarves are the best smiths.” She prodded with a smirk. There was one way to always get a dwarf to work hard, fast, and cheap. That way was to poke their pride and Lenna had struck it just right.

“Aye. I’ll do it for free too under a condition.” The dwarf replied.

“Go on.” Lenna told him.

“I get to keep it for a week even though it’ll only take a day or two.” The dwarf spoke.

Lenna looked to Isaac who nodded. “I still have your spare.” He told her. “It should be fine.”

“The second is to become permanent customers. This is an investment.” The dwarf said shrewdly.

Isaac chuckled. “Deal.” He took out five platinum pieces and set them on the counter. “Finish my sword first. We’ll be back in two days for it. Then you can have the other one for exactly seven more.”

The old dwarf nodded and walked back to his counter to check the coins. Lenna unstrapped her scabbard and cleared her throat. “Forget something?” She asked.

The dwarf turned around and chuckled bashfully to himself while taking the scabbard. He sheathed the blade and counted the coins. “Deal. Two days for the lads and then a week for the lass’s.”

“I didn’t get a name sir smith.” Isaac said and reached out his hand to shake on their deal.

“Stan Ironeye.” He took Isaac’s hand.

“Isaac Wexler.” Isaac replied as they shook on their deal.