Daniel uses some spare metal to handcuff the last remaining bodyguard and throws him over his shoulder. “Ready when you are.” He says.
I open a portal and let Daniel step through before I follow him, repeating the process until we’re standing at the gate of the Baradia compound, in front of the same two guards as the last time I was here.
“We need to speak to Morah.” I say in the calm and monotone that [Concentration] forces me to use, not that it bothers me at all.
The guard looks to me, the beaten-up kid in my arms, and then to Daniel and the unconscious man over his shoulder before sighing and speaking into the amulet on his neck. After a few seconds he turns and beckons us to follow.
Morah is already waiting for us at the door to the mansion with her usual calm and expressionless face. She might have a skill like my [Concentration] to keep calm. She waves off the guard immediately, who turns around and walks back to the gate.
“What happened?” She says as she sees the kid in my arms and moves to let us in the door.
“Three guys were beating this kid in an alley. Daniel and I stopped them. He needs healing, badly.” I say calmly but urgently.
She looks to the guy Daniel is carrying, her eyes scanning over the sigil on his uniform. “Fuck, that’s one of Helstin’s goons. Where are the other two?”
I teleport the two bodies from my storage core onto the tile floor, blood pooling out almost immediately. Now that there isn’t a fight currently happening and we’re no longer in a dark alley, I can finally get a good look at the two guys I half killed.
The brawler is the first one I take out, and before I thought he was just some human, but now I can see he is a beast-person or something. He has short tan fur covering his face and exposed skin and claws extending from his fingers. He also has vertical pupils, like a cat.
The other guy, the one I’ve been assuming is a noble, is a Veltark, the same race of blue people that the kid is. Although his skin is a darker blue, nearing purple, and his shoulder-length blue hair sparkles slightly in the light. His chest cavity is burst open like some kind of alien crawled out of him, and his face is full of anger and fear.
“I see.” Morah says as soon as she recognizes the bodies. “I’ll call Doctor Hari. She should be able to get here soon enough to heal the kid. In the meantime come lay him down in a bed.”
I follow Morah's instructions and follow her to an empty room and gently lay the kid down, making sure to be as careful as I can. He almost certainly has internal injuries with how badly he was beaten. After he is taken care of, Morah leads us to a sitting room to discuss the situation. I make sure to keep the kid in my spatial perception just in case.
Morah lets out a sigh, and I see some annoyance on her face. “So, what happened?”
Daniel looks at me and shrugs. “You should tell her I was just there as backup.”
I nod my head and start talking, making sure to keep up my [Concentration] so I can get the facts out without stumbling and stuttering. I’m pretty sure I’m going to crash hard when I drop the skill. I can feel it keeping so many emotions in check right now. I give Morah the story as truthfully as I can and with as many details as I can, making sure to include that the noble guy gave the order to kill, and I never technically launched an attack of my own.
Morah seems annoyed at this whole situation, but not necessarily at me or Daniel. She actually thanks us, which surprises me, and tells us that while we will not be taken into custody, we are not free to leave the city and should expect more questioning from city officials in the days to come.
“So, who were those guys?” Daniel asks.
“Helstin Valethryn and his goons. I always expected he would die because he pissed off the wrong person. Honestly, I thought it would be Merrick who did him in. He’s always been a little shit, throwing around the weight of his house to get what he wants. I don’t know why he was beating that kid, but it’s something Helstin would do.”
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“Is House Valethryn powerful?” I ask, hoping I didn’t just make a powerful enemy.
“Yes, both political and military power. They are mind mages. Powerful ones too. But don’t worry about any type of grievance or blood feud from them. Helstin was all but disowned by his family. The only person who gives a shit about him is his older sister, who should be leaving first landing soon due to her age.”
“Why did the bodyguard die like that? What were the tattoos on his neck?” I ask.
“It was a contract, and he broke it by killing his master, thus killing him.”
Just as I’m about to ask another question, Morah stands up and says that the doctor is here. She quickly heads to the front door to let her in and introduces us.
“This is Doctor Hari.” Morah says as she lets in the seven-and-a-half-foot-tall woman.
Doctor Hari is easily one of the biggest people I’ve seen since arriving on Helot, minus Corvax and his people. Her skin is a deep red, and she has red horns growing out of her forehead and back along the top of her head like a crown, complementing her back hair. She is thin and slender, and her purple eyes scan me up and down, stopping at my skeletal hand for a moment.
“I’m Ray. Thanks for coming on such short notice.”
“Oh, don’t worry about it, sweetie. I heard that there’s a child who needs my help.”
Morah leads her to the room with the kid, with Daniel and I following behind her. I notice Daniel is staring at the back of Doctor Hari as we follow her. His eyes have a certain look to them.
“Really? The giant demon lady?” I say as I let out a chuckle, slowly starting to drop my [Concentration], and letting all the emotions wash back over me. I feel the uncertainty and uneasiness return along with the fear and anger of the fight. I force myself to breathe deeply and steady myself.
“What? You’re telling me she’s not the hottest woman you’ve seen in your entire life?”
“She’s up there.” I say, my current level of [Concentration] more than enough to figure that out.
Doctor Hari must be able to hear us, because she looks over her shoulder and gives Daniel a wink before turning back around. I look over to Daniel, and for the first time since I’ve known him, I see him falter, stumbling a step as his cheeks turn slightly red before he turns his head away from me, an unconscious man still slung over his shoulder.
In the room with the kid, Doctor Hari immediately starts poking and prodding him with gentle fingers and a delicate touch before turning to tell us the news.
“Several broken ribs, internal bleeding, and plenty of swelling and bruising around the chest and head. Poor kid. I’ll start working immediately." Hari says, her eyes and voice full of compassion as she looks at the beaten and broken child.
Morah walks over to Daniel and me. “Well, that wasn’t what I was expecting. Thanks for coming to me and not just leaving the bodies in an alley. I really appreciate it.”
“Does that happen a lot?” Daniel asks before I get a chance to.
“It happens enough. Get enough young and powerful people in the same place, and some of them are going to kill each other, no getting around it.” She starts leading us towards the front door, obviously wanting us to leave.
“What about the kid?” I ask, my [Concentration] having fully ended by now. “Can you let me know when he wakes up?”
“Yes, but it won’t be until late tomorrow. Hari put him in a short coma so he heals faster and hopefully wakes up without any pain or trauma. I also need to find his family. Do you know his name?”
I shake my head. “Nope, sorry. But let me know when he wakes up.”
Morah sees us off through the gate and has Daniel give our prisoner to the guards. Apparently he’s in for quite a storm once he wakes up.
It’s only been about an hour since we left the Necromancers Guild, so we decide to head back there with dinner like we originally planned, although we walk back to get our thoughts and story straight.
My mind keeps going back to the face of the noble, and then the brawler, just as he realized he was going to die. As much as my brain is trying to rationalize what happened by telling me that I technically didn’t kill those two, I find myself not caring that much. They were huge pieces of shit, and probably deserved to die. If it were back on Earth, they would be the kind of people who got away with anything because they were rich.
Daniel must sense my brooding, speaking to break me out of it.
“That was a fun little break from the monotony of item crafting. Wish we had found that kid before they beat him to a pulp, though.” Daniel says.
“You’re just glad you got to meet Doctor Hari.” I say, noticing Daniel blush slightly at the words.
“She’s a fine woman. And a doctor to boot! Can’t beat that, sexy and sophisticated.”
“Daniel and Hari sitting in a tree—” A fist slams into my gut, forcing me to stop my teasing with a grunt.
“What are you, twelve?”
“I can’t wait to tell Corvax about this.” I mutter.