-Callia-

  Just as I moved the mother and baby through the void gate, the flooring shook with the heavy impact of boots landing from a large jump. A blistering warcry mixed with rage ripped out behind me. I had no time to pack away the gate as I ducked and slipped away from the initial attack. I slid to a stop at the far edge of the room and watched the ornate gate, which had closed, get blasted to pieces under a vengeful blade. I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised who made their way over first. It was the captain of the vault guard, his previously smug and confident expression twisted with obsession and hate.

  Immediately I abandon any notion of retrieving my gear, instead I jump away aiming for the roof of the building across the street. He launched himself in pursuit without a moment's hesitation. I twist midair, ducking under the wild swing, bringing myself to a graceful landing on my feet. The captain's landing had none of my grace. Instead, he crashed through the roof like a wrecking ball. Seeing my chance to make a clean getaway, I glance to the side down towards an alley several houses away and blink. I slide into the alley away from the line of sight and focus on restraining my presence and visibility to the maximum. I was so confident in the getaway I almost let myself relax in my hiding place when the heavy sound of boots on stone flashed down the road and right to my alley. I immediately vault from my cover and bounce between the buildings back up to the roofs.

  I can’t help but frown in frustration as I see the figure of the captain launching himself upward and catching on to the edge of the roof. Hiding didn’t seem to be working, so I changed the game. I knew he was fast, but that was in the confines of swordsmanship in a narrow room and hallway. Just as the captain pulled himself up, I let loose, sprinting and hopping along from building to building. At first a gap started opening up between us. Unfortunately, despite my ability to smoothly transition from house to house at high speed, treating the path almost like a smooth path, the captain soon hit his stride using a mix of jumping and crawling to start closing the gap. I pressed on leveraging more skills to move faster, but he was somehow keeping pace.

  It was the stinky presence of what I’m going to dub the vault demon that clued me in to the mystery of how the captain managed to keep pushing harder and harder. I could feel not just the captain but the demon emanating from his presence clawing at the ground trying to close the gap between us.

  “Hey, that demon is back; would you mind keeping it off me?” I whispered a prayer/request casually as I zipped around a chimney. I grimace as I feel the captain use the obstacle I tried to leverage to slow him as a platform to boost himself faster. In a moment, the distance closed rapidly. I snapped my head to the side at the last moment and blinked several buildings away. I didn’t hesitate to throw myself back into my sprint, but now in a new direction. I noticed not far ahead we were starting to catch up with the light of the central tower. Behind us was a trail of shattered roofs carving a clear line through the outer city. I took a shaky breath as I forced myself to keep going. However, I wasn’t the only one beginning to feel the burn. As I moved, I started to keep careful track of the captain’s condition so that he wouldn’t surprise launch himself from a chimney, forcing me to blink again. His lungs were starting to wheeze under the strain of the pursuit. It seems that I did in fact have an edge in one of my stats; a small flair of satisfaction sparked as my vitality and endurance gave me the decisive edge.

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  As we crossed from the night area into the day area, I noticed the gap between us finally stretching out to a more comfortable distance. As the gap grew, I noticed the precise moment he called it quits. His awkward crawling movement that likely utilizes a mix of climb and jump skills finally came to a stop, and I continued to put distance until even Instinct Track finally gave up keeping me aware of his presence. I slowed myself to a stop, letting my body process the air that it had been demanding to keep functioning. I grimaced as I crouched down, letting the burn in my thighs fade.

  I could certainly be happy that I managed to escape someone as dangerous as the captain with little more than a persistent chase through the city. I was now more concerned about the abundance of good gear I left unattended. I would be shocked if the Vault guards didn’t take the chance to snatch or destroy my stuff. What made it particularly unpleasant was the fact that I had just gotten them back from my long nap. Still with my special connection to the spear, I take a moment to send it to the void and then summon it back into my hands.

  I push myself back up from my crouch and look around to try to determine just how far the escapade had taken me. It takes a moment to spot a more familiar landmark of the outer city, the gate to the outside. The distance from my current location was about a quarter of the circumference of the outer cities. It would definitely take more time than the original plans accounted for, but then again, I don’t think Norold anticipated a rampaging captain chasing me like a bull. I sigh, taking the first step on my way to the rendezvous point. I can only imagine how annoying tracking down and finding the resistance again would be.

  Those thoughts stew in my head as I make my way, but it seems my earlier prayer for support managed to bring help even if it was a smidge late. I felt a familiar sensation tug my attention back towards the central tower. I don’t know if it was me being forewarned or something else, but for some reason an image of Lisie, the little girl I had befriended on my first night, came to mind. A frown crept onto my face. Using civilians as hostages was something the mage had proven they would not be above trying. Considering how much hatred and determination had chased me all the way here, I wasn’t about to let anyone I know spend any more time under the authority of my enemy.

  With tired but determined steps, I changed my course again, heading back towards the field of the citadel. The feeling of being tugged softly faded away, letting me know I was on course. The demons got their chance at stealing goods, which meant it was my turn to steal something or someone from the pope.

  Deep Support

  Harrok Slate glared down the large stone tunnel before him. All around him various earthkin raced back and forth, dragging away materials or bringing over new excavation charges. Just when they thought they could relax and let Callen’s work and inventions flow naturally, a new problem reached his ears far later than it ever should. The northern elves seemingly lost their minds, launching a massive invasion and destroying multiple villages, towns, and cities. Hearing that Callen repelled the attack on Port Town was some of the best news he had gotten in the whole disaster. It was at that point he and the other grandmasters convened an emergency council session, and it was decided that a new tunnel would be excavated to connect the city with the Stone Foot Clan and, by extension, the entirety of Port Town.

  Of course the whole project hinged on the idea that the city would in fact still be there and still have Callen once the elves were repelled. It was a risky bet, but Harrock Slate had done far worse bets when working on the many projects that defined his life as a runesmith. Still, the construction of this tunnel marked the first limit of support he would grant Callen. Everything the boy set his mind to seemed to turn into gold in Slate’s opinion, but the issue was the frequent unnecessary risks that made investing in him uncertain. He idly tugged at his beard, wondering which approach he should take to convince Callen to focus all his efforts on runework. At the present, he leaned toward fortifying Port Town until it couldn’t be disturbed simply because a happy inventor was a useful one. However, the idea of finding some means of forcing Callen to remain within the earthkin capital was looking more and more reasonable by the day.