The last of my group, including me, looted the bodies as fast as we could before leaving rapidly and discreetly. We weren't in any shape to take on more than two or three Kurskins at a time after losing so many, but I was determined to stick to the plan. I'd figure something out. I had to.

  We were heading to the second inn, this one just as likely to be filled with Kurskins as the last. This time, I hoped they would be asleep. At least that way, we may be able to kill a good number of them before they start to kill us back.

  The inn was a considerable distance away, and we didn't want to draw attention to ourselves during our journey there. The city guard roamed the streets at night, and I had no idea which side they'd take once all hell broke loose. I was surprised but thankful that the city watch's alarm hadn't sounded yet. Unlike my soft bellow with my war horn, the city's alarm would surely wake even the deepest sleeper.

  I wondered just how long we had until that horn blew.

  We rounded a few corners to get on a straight path to our target. The roads were getting wider as we ventured deeper into the main section of the city. Danver had a lot of commerce, and the wide roads were necessary, at least in the busy trade districts.

  'One moment, please,' Val thought to me.

  I raised my arm, signaling to my team to stop.

  "What is it?" Ersabet asked.

  "I'm thinking about something," I said to sidestep her question.

  'Two Players are walking on a street two blocks to the north.' Val said.

  "What 'something' are you thinking about, John?" Ersabet asked, annoyance clear in her voice.

  "I'm thinking we take a detour. Follow me."

  Ersabet shook her head. "We need to stick to the plan."

  "The plan is to kill as many Kurksins as possible before they are all alerted to our uprising," I said. "Now follow me."

  "What about the next inn?" she asked.

  "That's still our target. Like I said, this is just a detour. Now, be quiet and follow me."

  She held my gaze for a moment longer than was comfortable and nodded. "Lead the way."

  We turned toward the north at the next intersection, and Val kept me abreast of their movements.

  I took a right at the next intersection and made everyone pick up their pace. At the next intersection, we would turn left, and if Val were correct, we would meet the Kurskins as they passed.

  I stopped my small group about twenty yards from the final turn.

  "Two Kurskins are walking the next street over. When we turn left up here, we should meet them at the next intersection. Ersabet will have to hang back because I can't predict their actions if they see A Dalari. But she'll be close by if needed. So, it will just be the three of us. If the lizards don't seem worried by our presence, we let them pass, and then Ersabet will catch up with us; we'll then stalk them and kill them while the rest of you keep walking ahead. But be ready to jump in if either of us is having trouble."

  Everyone nodded, even Ersabet. I saw the questions in her eyes.

  "Yes," I said to her. "We're going to talk about it after all this is done, okay?"

  She smiled. "Then let's get it done."

  Ersabet hung back and stayed in the shadows as my two remaining hunters and I walked toward where the Kurskins would soon be. We kept our weapons sheathed to appear as unthreatening as possible. And if my hunch were correct – that these specific Kurskins were none the wiser of the deaths of their friends across the town - then they wouldn't even think twice about us. Humans were beneath their attention unless we had something they wanted.

  I could hear them now, talking and laughing. There was one male and one female. Perhaps they had just finished a romantic date together…well, their date was about to be crashed.

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  I kept pace, and the Hunters never flinched at our march toward danger.

  The Kurskins appeared in view from behind the buildings that had previously blocked them. They glanced our way and resumed their conversation. Good. We meant nothing to them. They passed in front of us, and we continued straight. I began to slow down and let the other hunters take the lead. I looked over to Ersabet, and she was already almost to me. Damn, she was quick.

  We turned to the Kurskins, whose backs were now to us. I met Ersabet's eye and nodded. There was no time to hesitate.

  I activated Silent But Deadly and ran while crouched toward the Kurskin nearest me. Ersabet moved just as quietly as I did, and that was without any Player skills.

  We tried to attack in unison, but Ersabet was faster. In the blink of an eye, she had driven a dagger into the soft underside of her target's neck.

  Just as I struck, my feet were swiped out from under me by the Kurskin's tail, and I hit the ground hard. He spun and hissed at me in rage.

  From the corner of my eye, I saw Ersabet remove the dagger from her victim's throat and deftly throw it at the Kurskin hulking over me. His hiss turned strained when Ersabet's dagger embedded itself into the side of his head.

  I scrambled backward as he crumpled to the ground.

  Ersabet offered me a hand up, which I took.

  "That was embarrassing," I said as I brushed myself off.

  "You should be embarrassed," Ersabet said. "You were busy focusing on me and not yourself. Had I not been here, he would have killed you."

  "I already said it was embarrassing. You don't have to rub it in."

  "You overestimate your abilities," Ersabet said matter-of-factly. This flaw will get you killed if you don't come to terms with your actual skill level compared to that of your opponents."

  "I'm a Player now! I'm playing the same game as them."

  "But you are not on their level," Ersabet said through clipped speech. "Not metaphorically and most definitely not literally."

  "Okay. point taken."

  'I'm beginning to like Ersabet more as time passes,' Val said.

  "Not now, Val. You can annoy me after this is over."

  'Hmm. Hopefully, you can find the time, as it seems you'll have a lot on your plate once the Kurskins start hunting you down.'

  I ignored Val and refocused back on our current mission.

  It was a good sign that those wandering Kurskins hadn't been notified. There was no local chat feature between Players, as that would break immersion and create unfair advantages; therefore, players would have to find out about the culling by word of mouth. It would give us time. And more importantly, it would provide Harl time to draw out the city guard.

  The Kurskins were violent, evil sociopaths, but they don't randomly rise up against the population and go on a killing spree. Not in Danver, at least. It would be a hard sell to convince some in the city watch that the Kurskins had declared war on Danver, but I believed in Harl, and he seemed to believe in himself, too. If Harl could get enough of the city guard on our side before the Captain of the Guard caught wind, the Captain may have no choice but to side with his men, Special NPC or not.

  We kept a steady pace, and I had Val on the lookout for other Players we could take out along the way. She only spotted one, but they were to the north of the inn we were targeting. The Player was making haste south, according to her.

  If a Player was running, that could only mean one thing in my mind. The jig was up.

  I forced us all to run because, according to Val, that other Player was on a direct course for the inn that was our next target.

  We pushed ourselves as hard as we could without burning through our stamina. We'd need our energy later.

  I pulled everyone behind a carriage parked next to the last building at the intersection, near the inn.

  "Wait here," I said.

  I skirted around the carriage and peeked up the street. The inn was well-lit, and the fireplace glowed brightly. Even from a distance, I could see movement inside. A lot of movement.

  Something was going on, but I had no idea what and had no intention of sneaking closer to find out.

  I flinched as the inn door burst open and a line of well-armed Kurskins marched out the front. They were heading away from us to the north.

  There were a lot of upper-class establishments in central Danver – bars, restaurants, bath houses, and the like – that the Kurskins enjoyed to their heart's content. It was where we sent our largest group of Hunters.

  "Val, I counted thirteen."

  'Thirteen is correct, and that includes the Player who alerted them.'

  We had been so close. If I hadn't taken that detour to kill those two others, we might have made it in time to get the jump on this group. I shook the thought out of my head. We would have been slaughtered if we had tried to fight twelve Kurskins. This could be for the best. We could pick some off from behind, instead. No matter what, we had to take them out as carefully as we could.

  I slinked back to my group.

  "Thirteen Kurskins just left the inn. They were alerted and are now heading north. I think our friends need our help. Shall we follow?"

  Both of my Hunters slammed their fists over their hearts. I should learn their names, but not knowing would make it easier to mourn their deaths. If we all made it through this somehow, I'd buy them as many drinks as they wanted and learn their life stories.

  I looked at Ersabet. "I think the real battle has begun. Ready?"

  Ersabet inspected her purple nails. "I am always ready, John. It is in my nature."

  "And she calls me overconfident," I thought to Val.

  'A Dalari rarely lies. It is beneath them.'

  "If only you felt that way."

  'Please, Ethan, I haven't lied to you for days.'

  "Better start the recount because I'm pretty sure that's a lie."

  Val harumphed electronically. 'Fine. That was a lie. Let's see if I can set a new record in honesty this time.'

  "I wish you luck. For my sake."

  'Thank you, Ethan. Now, I believe you have some more killing to do.'