So to start, the Shinga might actually be real. And – just give me a second. I have to run through the story here or my brain’s going to explode trying to keep it in.
Everyone makes bad choices sometimes, for all sorts of reasons. Me, I got greedy. A hundred gold a week! That’s more than I could ever make doing odd jobs, or as a thief, even if I did have to split it six ways. So I stepped in at the beginning when the deal looked like it was going to fall apart, set up Mugul as a competent, dedicated hero-type, pulled a random group of bystanders together, and boy did the money flow! I was happy to keep to the shadows, giving all the credit to Mugul, knowing I could step out at any time with my share of the money.
But things went bad fast.
Mugul and Efram pop outside of the stronghold covered in blood (for a mission that was supposed to be pretty low on the body count), just in time to see Ladiana, hyped up on blue crystal, blow up most of a city block. Claris just barely stops her from murdering yet another boss, not that it really matters at this point with all his henchmen dead, and I give a little (illegal) magical hint to the elves that show up that now might not be the best time to face off against a crazy sorceress and her servants.
Now I’ve been working with these people for a couple months, I can’t just leave them out to dry, so I get them out of town, even though I have to give up my best smuggling route to do it.
I have to assume they’re all wanted criminals at this point, either for aiding or being an out-of-control sorceress, but it looks like it’s not quite so bad. I arrange a meeting for Claris with the temple, and it turns out they’re giving her the benefit of the doubt. Efraim never made it out of town, but he’s okay somehow, and Mugul can take care of himself. I’m covered, of course. Sure, some good enough investigative work might connect me to this group of outlaws, but there’s a reason I prize my anonymity so highly – it’s just for this sort of occasion. That’s a lesson my mother taught me by giving me such a ridiculous name.
I’m still kind of shaky about the whole thing – not a feeling I’m used to – so when Mugul goes back to town, I head to the temple with Claris, and, though I have second thoughts thinking back on it, leave Ladiana in Efraim’s care. I guess I just had to stick with the one beacon of sanity in all this, the one person who risked standing up to Ladiana during the fight, and the one person who tried to talk her down when she woke up.
The meeting at the temple turns into a meeting at the palace, when who shows up but the Duke’s chief advisor (where “advisor” is innuendo for “powerful above-the-law wizard”). He’s very interested in how much control Ladiana had over herself, how powerful she was, how much of the crystal she drank, and other things that make it completely obvious he wants to experiment with the stuff himself. Now my friends know that I’m not a fan of the crystal, at least the ones who aren’t dead because of it, but I’m especially not a fan of this idea. I’ve heard enough stories and legends of powerful sorcerers to know that Ladiana isn’t one. Oh, she can do some serious damage, but she can’t call lightning from the sky, or cause earthquakes, or kill with a thought. Now if Ladiana on the crystal can destroy a city block, what do you think a real master like this advisor could do?
Look. I’m not the hero type. I never wanted to be, and I don’t plan to be, but I also don’t like being dead, and I don’t like my city being vaporized in a puff of smoke. An out of control super-wizard is exactly the sort of thing that could make me dead.
Of course, it turns out this wizard isn’t our only problem – and by “our,” I mean “my.” Like I said, enough quality investigative work could put the pieces together. My trail is hard to follow, but not impossible if someone cares enough. Most of my life has been about making sure no one has a reason to care enough. But guess what? Either the Shinga is real, or someone pretending to be the Shinga has it out for me. Dink comes crying to Mugul, then to me, and says someone paid him to take us to the wall – my part of the wall – the part where I live – the part where maybe one or two other people have any idea about. Except now Dink knows about it, and Claris, and Mugul, and the Shinga or someone, because when I crawl into the almost cozy little hidey-hole I try to avoid thinking of as home, I find the dead bodies of Rook and his fiancé, with a note saying no one messes with the Shinga’s business. So Rook was getting close to something, and the Shinga decided to kill him and put him in the most secure place between us to make a point. I can at least respect him for that.
And I was thinking of buying a real house and settling down with all this money I’ve been collecting, which, surprisingly, was not taken. So much for that plan.
I wanted to keep things slow. Take our time, get paid, never have more than one enemy at a time, but I’ve hit on a group with some real blood-lust – no sense of subtlety or precision – except maybe Claris…
What have I gotten myself into? If I ever get out of this, I’ve got to remember to quit while I’m ahead next time.