Lowborn

Mindblind ran, fighting the wind, rain, and muddy terrain to stay upright with his burden. Raven had barely breathed when he found her, and there was no guarantee that she still was. Upon reaching the turf house, he turned his back toward the door and threw his weight into it. In a splintering of wood, the makeshift bar fell away. He stumbled into the room amidst alarmed screams from the women within.

Kayleen ran up and gasped, "Oh no. Is she okay?"

Mindblind didn't answer, but instead lay her down, drawing one of her own daggers from a sheath at her hip.

"Rayneena!" Yani cried out as she dropped to her knees next to her sister. Seeing Mindblind with the knife, her eyes went wild and she grabbed his wrist, long nails digging in. "Leave her alone! Murderer!"

"Get off me, Yani. I need to get to that cut," he snarled.

Then Kayleen was there, demonstrating strength and ferocity he would have never expected. She grabbed Yani by the hair, yanking her backward. The pain caused the prostitute to yelp and let go of Mindblind's wrist.

After slamming the other woman to the ground, Kayleen stood over her and said, "He's trying to help. Leave him alone."

Now unencumbered, Mindblind made quick work of Raven's pants with her razor sharp dagger. The wound was deep, and seeping blood at an alarming rate. It wasn't spurting, but that could very well mean that she simply didn't have much blood left.

Betty, who had bartered her charms for the wagon, walked up and reached into the bodice of her dress. She looked more than a little pale as she held out a small glass vial. "Humped a guy in town for this. He said it was a healing draught blessed by a priest. I was going to have someone look at it and tell me if it was any good."

At a loss of what to do, Mindblind accepted the vial and pulled out the cork stopper. He sniffed, finding a sweet, almost flowery scent. Putting his thumb over the end of the bottle, he wetted it by tipping the vial. Throwing caution to the wind, he sucked his thumb, feeling an odd effervescent sensation on his tongue, and in his forehead.

Betty gasped. "Your forehead. It's healing."

Encouraged, and able to feel the sting from the cut and his bruises lessening, he said, "Help me sit her up."

Betty and Alice wrestled with Raven's limp body, lifting her into a seated position and supporting her with their arms. Mindblind didn't waste any time in pouring a drop of the potion into the thief's mouth, which hung open.

Her lip quivered and her eyes moved behind closed lids. After another drop, she took a shuddering breath that alarmed him, though her next breath seemed far stronger. He looked down, seeing the flow of blood from her thigh slowing. A tip of the vial splashed about half its contents into Raven's mouth.

She coughed, and then quivered as if taken by a chill. The angry purple welts dotting her flesh from the hail faded, and when he looked down, the sight of the gash healing before his very eyes elicited a great sigh of relief.

After long, tense seconds, Raven's eyes fluttered open. Only the blood soaking her smooth skin remained from the cut that had nearly ended her career. "You... If you wanted to get in my pants, all you had to do was ask," she said in a drowsy voice.

Indigo entered, pushing the door shut behind him. "How is she?"

"What the hell happened, anyway?" Raven asked, her voice still a little weak.

"Later," Mindblind said. He stood up and turned to Indigo, having seen the Draxnian bent over one of the assassins as he ran past. "That fucker still breathing?"

Indigo shook his head. "Raven struck well. The killer was delirious as he breathed his last. He spoke of returning to Foxwood, and of being done with this costly, foolish mark."

"Think that's where the scum holed up?" Mindblind asked.

"Sounds like it to me," Raven said, sitting up on her own and waving off the women attempting to assist her.

Mindblind looked over his shoulder. "Lay back down. You need to rest."

"I don't think so," she said as she popped to her feet. "What in the fuck happened? I don't even look like a purple-spotted leopard any more, and I feel like I'm about to come out of my skin if I don't get moving."

"Some kind of healing potion Betty had." He turned around, held up the vial, and said, "Come to think of it, there's still some left." He nodded toward Cammie sitting in the corner nursing her ankle. "Should give her a bit for that ankle."

Looking remarkably fit and energetic for a woman on the brink of death only a short time before, Raven stretched. "If there's still anything left in that little bitty bottle, then it doesn't take much. The two of you should probably take a nip after she's up and moving."

"Guess it was worth the hump, huh?" Betty said in smug tones, turning toward Alice, the blonde who had become the defacto madame of the group, keeping things orderly and tensions at a minimum.

"You were going to give him a ride anyway," Alice countered. "You're a sucker for the young, desperate ones."

Raven chuckled. "Anyway, I'm not laying down. Pass that stuff around, then you're going to tell me what happened while I was out, and we're going to get my daggers back."

Mindblind smoothed his hand through his still-soaked hair, shaking his head. He passed the vial to Alice, who took it to Cammie, and then he began telling the story of the battle, with Indigo chiming in on occasion. There were indeed a few drops of the potion left once Cammie was steady on her feet, and what remained almost completely healed the bruises Mindblind and Indigo had suffered.

Raven pursed her lips, fiddling with her pants where Mindblind had sliced one leg from hip to knee while the two men finished their recounting of the battle. "Hmm. I can barely remember getting up once that dagger got me. I knew it had split me good, and I was trying to keep pressure on it. It was almost like my dagger told me to get up and throw it. After that, everything went dark."

"Perhaps it did," Indigo speculated, "Your blade appears to have the kiss of magic. Where our steel failed, yours cut through his sorcery to win the day."

"All the more reason to get it back." She looked up at the roof and cocked her head to the side. "Sounds like the hail's quit. We should search those fuckers and see if there's any kind of clue or anything we can use."

Indigo asked, "How are we to bury them?"

Mindblind scoffed. "Ain't using my sword to dig those scum a hole. Leave 'em for the cats and the vultures."

After a sigh, Indigo nodded his head. "Let them reap what they have sown."

"Wagon first," Raven said, still worrying at her pants. "I'm not getting tripped up by these."

The rain still fell in stinging sheets, but behind the fast moving storm, there were hints of blue on the horizon once more. The three made their way back to the scene of the battle once Raven had changed into her spare pants. She stopped at the first of the assassins, retrieving the dagger from his side that had started the battle. It still retained more than enough edge to begin cutting away his clothes.

Mindblind and Indigo went to search the men they had faced. Rifling through the man's clothes, Mindblind found nothing. The killer wore the now-familiar ring that marked him as a member of the guild, but otherwise carried nothing save his weapons. The man's sword was too slender for Mindblind's taste, though it would at least bring some coin if sold. The dagger was another matter.

Housed in a tooled sheath of dark — almost black — leather, the dagger had intricate scrollwork on the blade. What appeared to be some sort of precious stone was set in the pommel. Caring not a whit that the blade had been owned by an assassin, Mindblind unbuckled his belt and threaded the end through the loop on the sheath.

Upon standing back up, he saw Raven walking toward him, carrying a similar sheathed dagger and sword. She held the weapons point down, allowing the blood-saturated mud coating them to drip away as the rain washed it free. "Probably sell these for some extra coin. Find anything?"

"Nothing but a ring and the tools of the trade," he answered.

"What about you?" Raven called to Indigo.

"Much the same. There is a small bag, but it contains only a few coins and some hardtack."

"That's probably the only one who's very far from home — or has been," Mindblind suggested.

Indigo nodded. "I agree. It confirms the dying man's words."

"So we'd best watch our backs in Foxwood. Not as if we're going to be able to sneak in." Raven shook her head to dislodge the water droplets clinging to her nose and eyelashes. "Let's see what that big fucking bear has to tell us."

Indigo knelt next to the big man upon reaching him, and grabbed his arm. "As I suspected, this man was the master of the murderers. This ring would have once spared him in confrontations with the secret police of Draxnog."

Raven pulled her dagger from the killer's shield. It had pierced the metal ornament and went through into the wood. "I'm going to have to find someone who knows something about magic and get this thing looked at."

"Wonder if that thing's still got any magic in it," Mindblind asked, nodding at the shield.

Raven sheathed the dagger that had foiled the shield, drawing another instead. A quick flick of her wrist left the blade quivering in the wood. "Doubt it."

Indigo reached for the hilt of the sword, but as soon as his fingers touched it, he fell back into the mud, exclaiming something in Draxnian.

Hand on his sword, Mindblind asked, "What?"

Indigo shook his arm and flexed his fingers as he got back on his knees. "That sword is... It is evil."

Made curious by Indigo's reaction, Mindblind brushed his finger across first the blade, and then the hilt of the weapon. "I don't feel anything."

"This we should bury — deep," Indigo declared, pointing at the skull adorning the crosspiece.

Mindblind grasped the hilt this time. "Just a sword." He lifted it. "Doesn't feel as heavy as it should, though."

"You are not burned?" Indigo asked in amazement.

Shrugging, Mindblind said, "No," and stood up. The sword was certainly lighter than so much steel should be, and felt remarkably well balanced. He gave it a few slow practice swings, a smile spreading across his face.

Raven nodded. "Looks better on you than that little pig-sticker. You should grab the scabbard. People will think twice about fucking with us with you carrying that around."

"I am uneasy about this," Indigo warned.

Raven rolled her eyes and walked up to grasp the crosspiece. "Nothing. Maybe he had some wizard make it burn Draxnians when he was there to keep people from trying to steal it or something."

Indigo didn't look convinced, but he didn't protest when Raven wiped the rain out of her eyes and knelt down to remove the scabbard for the sword. After handing it up to Mindblind, she went to work on the assassin's clothing.

Mindblind slipped his arms into the harness and adjusted the straps, settling the scabbard on his back. After a couple of fumbled attempts, he was able to sheathe the sword. Drawing it proved much easier, as the hilt almost seemed to jump into his hand when he reached back for it. The weapon slid free and into a ready position with a dangerous sounding hiss.

A snort from behind prompted him to turn and look. Raven had cut through the man's pants and pulled them down, looking for anything of value or useful information.

"Looks like the big sword was compensating for his tiny dick," she said, laughed, and then stood back up.

The rain was beginning to taper off and the wind — though still strong — had lessened as well. The strip of blue on the horizon grew larger by the minute.

Raven gave the still form of the man on the ground a kick. "Not that far from Foxwood. I say we wait this out, then hit the road again. We got the boss, but that doesn't mean someone isn't going to take his place. I've got friends there, and we'll be safer with people around."

"There is wisdom in your words," Indigo agreed.

Mindblind nodded toward the turf house. "Let's go tell them what's up and get outta this damn rain."

"This isn't over," Raven iterated in ominous tones. "Even if all these bastards are dead, someone hired them. I want to know who the fuck it was."

The two men nodded in agreement and followed her back to shelter.

****

The chill winds of the storm moved on, and Mindblind quickly discovered that yet another turn in the weather was behind it. The day had started off pleasant, but behind the tempest, the temperature and humidity spiked.

It was a miserable, sweat-drenched group that rolled onto the main street of Foxwood just before dark. Unlike their last visit with civilization, this town was more akin to what Mindblind was familiar with. There was no attempt to hide the true nature of the town, to masquerade as a larger, richer city. There was little uniformity to the structures, and the streets looked to have been laid out by old farm roads, around which the town had arisen.

Despite the name of the place, there was barely a tree to be found.

As Raven had predicted, town guardsmen shadowed them. The men made their presence known, but didn't approach. When the thief directed the wagon to pull up in front of the local house of prostitution, the guards took up positions across the street.

"Alice and I will take care of business. Stay out here, and don't make any sudden moves. Those two watching us look green and nervous."

Mindblind nodded and leaned up against the wagon. Seeing the guardsmen eyeing his newly acquired sword, he couldn't help a snorting chuckle. He then shook his head, trying to dislodge a daydream of drawing that sword just to watch the pair fill their pants in fear.

Not long after, a woman with her breasts overspilling the bodice of her gown exited the brothel. She lifted her eyebrows as she looked over the group around the wagon, but continued across the street, her hips swaying. After a brief conversation, the prostitute returned to the brothel and the guardsmen went on their way.

Raven returned and nodded toward the door while addressing the women. "They're drawing baths. Alice will let you in on the details. We'll be at the Leaping Wench just down the street."

The women filed into the brothel. Kayleen walked with Yani, who had calmed down after a large dose of her tea. The dark-haired woman had a distant look in her eyes.

"C'mon, let's get to the Wench," Raven said, and then led the way.

For an inn on the less-reputable side of town, the Leaping Wench was surprisingly large. At two stories, the building loomed over most of those surrounding it. The exterior was taken care of enough to be inviting — especially in light of its surroundings — but not so well-appointed as to seem out of place. The sound of loud conversation and drunken laughter spilled from wide open windows on one side of the building.

No more than a single step inside the front door, an angry voice rang out from behind the counter of the inn. "Raven. What are you doing here, you sticky-fingered whore?"

"Looking for a bath and a bed that isn't infested with your fleas, you reeking ass boil."

Mindblind warily eyed the balding, spindly-armed man. The innkeeper's face was twisted into a snarl that bared his teeth, and he stared at Raven as though trying to strike her dead with his gaze. Mere moments after she tossed her return insult, the man threw his head back and laughed.

"Ha! Damn, but it's good to see you," the innkeeper declared, slapping his hand on the counter.

"You too, Magar," Raven said as she approached with Mindblind and Indigo following behind. "How many rooms do you have open? I'm dragging along these two and a pack of a dozen whores. Some of them will probably bunk up at Yvonne's Cradle, but they're going to need some beds."

Magar scratched his scraggly beard. "I've got seven open, but that's going to cost a fair pretty pile of coin." His expression changed into a leer, and he added, "I might give you a discount..."

Raven rolled her eyes and snorted. "Half price — when we leave. Or have you forgotten a little incident a couple of years ago?"

The innkeeper's shoulders slumped. "Kinda hoped you had."

"Not a chance."

"Fine," he replied, and then sighed. "You want me to have someone fill the tubs?"

"Yep. Know anything about Draxnians in town?"

"Besides him?" Magar said, nodding at Indigo. "Bunch on the east side. Mother-murderers, fronting with a chow hall."

Raven grinned. "Four fewer now."

"Well now, that's good news. Ain't seen but four in a fair few days, besides the women that do the cooking."

"I'm going to pay a visit after midnight," Raven said under her breath.

****

Mindblind groaned and settled back into the bath, a little surprised by how much he was enjoying the rare pleasure. The bath house was well-appointed, with three ceramic tubs, which each had their own pumps, and a stove for heating water only a few feet from the tubs. Unusual enough in large cities, it was a marvel to find such a place in a disreputable establishment on the seedy side of a prairie town.

Indigo had left his tub some time ago to return to the taproom. Despite expressing concern about the owner's trustworthiness and that of the rowdy clientele, he had fallen into an easy rhythm of telling stories at Raven's encouragement, and found an eager audience.

A lapping of water from beyond the wooden dividing wall revealed that Raven was still enjoying her bath. A moment later, her voice further confirmed it.

"Hey, Mindblind."

"Yeah?"

"Come here a minute."

He blew a sharp breath out his nose and said, "Hang on. Let me dry off and find my draws."

"To the hells with that. Just come here, damn it. I don't want to talk through a damn wall."

Trailing puddles from the water running down his body, Mindblind stepped out of his enclosure and to the end of the narrow hall. He'd closed the door, but Raven had left hers wide open. She lay back in the tub, her arms supporting her on either side, water lapping at the underside of her perky breasts.

When he glanced at the door, she shrugged. "You can close it if you want."

Ignoring the door, he asked, "What's up?"

"Kay said that Yani said my name — my real name."

"I had other things on my mind at the time, but yeah, I guess she did."

"Don't go yapping it around."

"Didn't plan to."

"Too damn soft for the likes of me."

Mindblind grunted and nodded his head by way of answering.

"Probably going to have to bunk up with Yani and keep an eye on her."

Wondering exactly what she was driving at, and baffled that she wasn't coming right out and saying it, as he'd come to expect from her, Mindblind leaned up against the wall. The flimsy partition supported him, but just barely. That summoned up an altogether unpleasant flashback to Delly's room, where the same thing had happened just before the chaos that had put him on this road.

"Suppose so."

Raven's shoulders slumped. "Never mind. Go ahead back to your bath."

An exasperated sigh passed his lips. "Look, what's with the games, Raven?"

The thief's expression and bearing suddenly switched back to the confident countenance with which he was familiar. "What games?"

She rolled over in the water, lifting her taut ass above the surface, and bent over to grab the edge of the tub. "Think I'm playing games with you? What are you gonna do about it?"

Blood surged into his loins at the sight of her. "Maybe go grab my draws and have a beer or two." If she could play games, so could he.

"Oh, is that so?" She asked, and wiggled her ass at him while eyeing his rising manhood. "Don't feel like working up a thirst, first?"

He was done playing at that point.