Danger, as far as Chloe was concerned, was usually a good sign. Dangerous places probably had dangerous people or monsters, and that meant dangerous, and delicious, brains.
Sett pointed at a spot on the map. “We’ll follow the official road out of Rellstead for a while. About halfway to Vorraska, we’ll take a turn and cut through the Stormbane Plains.”
Chloe immediately perked up. “Ooh! That place sounds fun.”
Several of the other travelers gave her side-eyes. Even Raenof raised an eyebrow at her. Sett, though, just grinned. “Stormbane’s anything but fun. It’s home to thunder wolves. Big things about the size of a wagon, the fully grown ones are really good at lightning magic, so best be careful around them."
Chloe felt nervous hearing that. The last time she dealt with lightning magic, it was Sabine, and that was not a fun time. If these wolves were anything like her, she wanted nothing to do with them.
“So, that's why I strongly recommend everyone have a horse. You can outrun them if you ride hard enough as long as you stick to my pace." Sett explained.
After that, he pointed to another part of the map. “After Stormbane, we’ll pass through the Slagspire. No monsters there, but the terrain’s extremely rocky. No place for wagons unless you want your stuff cracked, flipped, or dumped off a cliff. Keep your gear light.”
Finally, he straightened and looked at everyone. “Any questions?”
One man raised his hand. He was tall, wiry, with a really smooth chin. "What if I don’t got a horse?”
"Then go get one. I'll give everyone here an hour. Be outside the Guild with a mount, or don’t come.”
“I already paid you. I don’t got enough coin left for a horse.”
“Tough luck, then. Should’ve planned better. If you can’t afford the ride, you’re not ready for the road.”
“You serious?” the man snapped, taking a step forward. “That’s it?”
“Yup. Go cry about it somewhere else.”
The man didn’t take the rejection well. He jabbed a finger at Sett. “You’re a damn scammer, y’know that? Taking our money and makin’ us buy our own horses? What kind of shady outfit is this?”
Chloe leaned forward a little, eyes wide. Oh. This is gonna be good.
Sett didn’t even blink. “You’re still here.”
“Damn right I’m still here! I oughta knock that smug look right off your high horse!”
The angry guy threw a punch. But Sett didn’t dodge and caught the punch mid-air. The man froze, then started to squirm as Sett’s grip tightened enough that everyone nearby could hear the sound of something breaking. “For your information, this is free of charge."
The man let out a strangled yelp. “Okay! Okay, just let go!”
Sett released him. The guy stumbled back, cradling his arm and mumbling as he limped away toward the stairs. Nobody stopped him. Nobody even looked like they wanted to.
Sett turned back to the rest of the group. “Anyone else got concerns?”
No one said anything. Chloe, however, had already started toward the stairs herself. Not because she was scared or anything, she just wanted to get Mr. White. She missed riding her horse.
***
Once they had their horses, Chloe and Raenof returned to the Thieves’ Guild just in time to rejoin Sett and the others. Everyone was already mounted and more or less ready to go. The black-hat mystery guy, of course, was riding on a black horse that matched his entire suspicious outfit.
While they waited near the gate for Sett’s signal, Chloe leaned toward Raenof. “Sooo… we’re thinking that guy’s the blood magic creep, right?”
Raenof gave the cloaked figure another glance and nodded. “That’d be my guess.”
“Well, what do we do about it? 'Cause I’ve got a few ideas, and they all involve fireballs, or rock shots, or punching. Or a lot of other stuff actually.”
“I figured. But fighting him here would be messy and loud. I’d rather not have another public incident like the carnival.”
“Fine. So what then?”
“We wait and watch him. If he tries something, we act.”
“Alright. I’ll watch him for the entire trip!"
“Just don’t make it obvious.”
“Pfft, don't worry, I'm good at watching."
They rode out of Rellstead not long after. Mr. White trotted ahead with his head high.
Chloe watched him with a grin. He really was the best horse ever, strong and shiny and obviously cooler than all the rest. The other horses looked plain in comparison. Even Raenof’s horse just plodded along like it had no personality at all.
Anyway, the ride was mostly quiet. The usual travel stuff happened. Watering your horses, checking your bags, snacking on swords. Well, maybe those things weren't supposed to go in that order, or combination, but Chloe didn't care. She spent most of her time staring at Mr. Suspicious, who kept riding near the back.
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But even with all her staring, nothing weird happened, which was already weird enough. He was definitely planning something. Chloe could feel it in her… well, whatever she was supposed to feel it in. So why’s he just sitting there? Come on, do something already!
Days passed without much of anything happening. Chloe was starting to wonder if she’d been wrong about him after all.
But then, one night, the group stopped beside a river. Sett raised a hand and spoke up. “This is our last stop before we go off the main road. Tomorrow, we enter Thunder Wolf territory, so rest up.”
Everyone dismounted. Chloe slid off Mr. White and gave him a pat. “Thanks buddy, you should go rest and start doing more uh, horse things."
He snorted and clomped toward the water. Raenof got off his horse too, glancing once more at the suspicious man before looking at Chloe. “Well, looks like he still hasn’t done anything.”
Chloe narrowed her eyes. “Exactly. And that’s totally weird.”
“I’m not disagreeing. But it's also true that he’s been calm so far."
“Yeah, well, people who aren’t up to something don’t wear that much black.”
“Chloe, Aren’t you also wearing mostly black now?”
“Yeah? And?”
“So… doesn’t that make you suspicious too?”
“No way, I look cool wearing black. He looks mean and suspicious."
Raenof chuckled. “Fair enough. But seriously, what are we gonna do if he actually makes a move?”
Chloe shrugged. “Stick to the plan, I guess. Punch him if he gets weird.”
Raenof opened his mouth to reply, then froze. “Wait. Chloe. Did you hear that?”
At first, Chloe thought it was just the wind. Then she heard the sound of bones cracking. Then came the screams.
Chloe turned toward the noise just in time to see Sett and the other travelers collapsing to their knees, clutching their heads or their chests like something was ripping them apart from the inside. And right in the middle of it all stood Mr. Suspicious.
The man lifted his hands, and blood ripped free from the travelers around him. The blood writhed through the air, tearing screams out of their throats. That was not a good sign.
“Last time I saw blood magic, it did not look like that!” Chloe yelled.
Raenof looked skyward, then winced. "Uh, I think I figured out why."
Chloe glanced up too, squinting at the pale circle glowing above the trees. “Oh, the not too shiny circle. What about it?”
"Blood magic gets stronger under the full moon. And we should probably—”
Raenof’s voice broke off with a wet cough. Chloe turned her head towards him just in time to see him drop to his knees, clutching his chest as blood spilled from his lips. Wait, no, no, no!
Chloe turned her gaze to the man at the center of it all. No, not just a man anymore. Suspicious Man had officially leveled up to Creepy Blood Mage. And she knew exactly what had to be done.
She immediately conjured a fireball with her hands. Then, with a sharp flick, she hurled it at him.
The fireball came screaming through the air, but the blood mage had other plans. The blood around him wriggled and mashed together, then suddenly popped into this gross, slimy red blob before flying towards Chloe's fireball.
The two spells smacked into each other midair. And soon, the fireball just fizzled away. Darn, time to try something else.
Chloe ran to the side, her body unraveling as black tendrils tore free from her arm. Her hand shot across the ground, stretching towards the blood mage.
But the mage slipped aside easily, a bit too easily. Chloe narrowed her eyes. He was definitely slower before. I swear he’s faster now. Is this all because of the not so shiny circle?
She yanked her hand back, growling under her breath. Before she could try again, the mage lifted both arms. The blood swirling around him hardened into pointy spears.
Chloe tensed, ready to dodge. But the spears flew past her. Huh?
The sound that followed hit her harder than any spell could. The high, panicked whinnies of horses cut off all at once. Chloe turned towards the river. Mr. White!
Her legs carried her to the riverbank before her mind caught up. She froze at the sight. Every horse was dead, their bodies sinking into the mud as their blood tore free, spiraling toward the mage. Among them was Mr. White.
Chloe's mind went blank. The world shrank until there was nothing left but her and the corpse of her horse.
She had felt a lot of things before. Fear, sure. Happiness too. Sometimes annoyed on occasion. But this was new. This was hot and sharp, crawling up her throat and curling in her chest. This was anger.
Chloe had never hated anyone she fought. Not the bandits. Not Sabine. Not even Ynett. At worst, she felt scared, but not hate.
But the blood mage was different. He had killed Mr. White.
A barrage of blood spears soon punched through her chest, arms, and stomach, tearing black ichor out of her body. Chloe staggered, but she kept walking.
Meanwhile, the blood mage brought his hands together and shouted. The spears buried in her body pulsed once, then detonated.
The explosion tore her apart. Her limbs and head separated from her torso, flying all over the place. Unfortunately for the blood mage, Chloe wasn't going to be stopped so easily.
Chloe's scattered limbs twitched, then dragged themselves back together. Black tendrils burst from torn flesh, weaving her arms, legs, and head back onto her body.
In a few seconds, the scattered pieces of her body knit themselves together. Black tendrils lashed and coiled, pulling her limbs back into place, anchoring her head onto her shoulders.
Afterwards, she stood up, whole again. Seeing all this, the blood mage was visibly afraid.
Chloe surged forward as she ran as fast as she could. The mage flung his hands out in desperation, launching spears of blood towards her. How annoying.
She dropped low as she ran on all fours. Chloe's body twisted and coiled in an unnatural way, weaving through the barrage. None of the spears hit her.
The mage raised his hands to try and unleash another spell. He never got the chance to finish.
Chloe lunged upright, closing the last few steps in a blur. Her fist drove into his chest. The impact launched him through the air, his body crashing through one tree, then another, wood exploding into splinters as he broke through trunk after trunk before finally skidding to a stop.
But immediately after, Chloe went back onto her own two legs as she broke into a sprint. Her gaze never left the man.
However, she stopped when his outline melted. The shape of the mage dissolved, collapsing into a spreading pool of blood that steamed on the dirt.
Chloe narrowed her eyes. This was the second time now.
She closed her eyes and sharpened her mana sense. She had failed to find the blood mage once before, but this time she pushed herself to the limit. One way or another, she would track him down.
A ripple brushed against the edge of her awareness. Chloe felt his presence, across the river, hidden among the trees.
Chloe sprang forward and ran across the river. She skimmed across the surface, never sinking even a little, the spray of water bursting at her heels. This time, there would be no escape.
