After contending with a group of Igstanpurian guardsmen, Zeke and Leila proved to be a difficult pair to contain. Until a pair of Inquisitors arrived at the scene, the standoff lasted for several moments until one of the Inquisitors cast a spell to discern their truthiness. While the Inquisitors got an undesirable answer, the two left empty-handed back into the dark alleyway they spawned from. Though answers were given, questions were raised until Zeke revealed to Leila of a magical item in his possession that staved off the Inquisitors’ pursuit for the truth momentarily. The two leave the cantina in the hopes of no more troubles ahead.
Zeke trailed closely behind the silent Leila, her eyes darted along the empty corridors and passageways. The young man figured it was simply nerves, given the sudden run-in with the city guards and Inquisitors, she probably was being cautious, he thought. The young man followed her through twists and turns, an elaborate path to hide our intended destination. Lots of precautions, Zeke told himself. As the time waned and dusk began to fall, the streets became vacant and quiet, ordinary folk were at home to eat their evening meals which reduced any wandering eyes no doubt.
The two arrived to a worned out two-story building located within a ghetto of sorts. To be frank, the neighborhood was rather poverty-stricken compared to the other adjacent ones.
Some neighborhoods were just left abandoned in the end, Zeke thought.
Leila knocked on the ragged door in an intricate set of knocks, after half a moment, a little boy opened the door and looked out carefully. He kept a lookout while waving the both of them inside. Once inside, Zeke took off the hood of his cloak to survey the small interior, the boy ran ahead to a small kitchen table. A tray with a silver pitcher along a plate of fruit was placed in the center of the table. The fruit looked surprisingly ripe given the circumstances, Leila nodded at the boy and handed him two gold coins, that immediate brought a smile to his small face. Leila unbuckled her cloak and placed it on the table and poured what looked like wine from the pitcher into two small glasses. She handed one of them to Zeke, which he took with his left hand and thanked the woman.
“Does this mean I pass the test?” He asked with a grin.
She returned with a grin of her own. “You have a good sword arm, that’s for sure. Did not expect you to have trinkets on you though. Veras will be ticked off once he finds out he had been played.”
“So what is this Eye of Ashara he was spouting about?” Zeke swirled the glass several times and glanced over a disinterested Leila as she looked through a nearby cupboard.
“It’s an amulet, said to possess some interesting powers, it had been locked away in the catacombs under the Central Didact, home to Igstanpur’s illustrious inquisitors.” She replied, there was some bitterness towards the end.
The pain in Zeke’s left eye finally subsided, he rubbed the patch gently while taking a sip of the house wine. Unsurprisingly sweet, it could almost be constrained as a fruit juice than alcohol.
“Bet you have a story for your eye,” she commented while placing a loaf of bread she found on the table.
“Not something worth telling, quite disappointing really.” Zeke took another sip from the glass. “So what’s the job? Our mutual friend only said that he could not make it and instead suggested that I come in his place.”
“I like your initiative, but we will need rest for tonight. But I will gladly divulge the details, though I will warn you now. The payoff is not substantial, the job itself has already been turned down by several interested persons.” Leila sat herself on the bench and began taking large bites from the loaf. “I can tell you’re good with a blade, how good are you at tracking? I need help finding someone, this someone happens to have stolen something very valuable from me recently.”
Zeke studied the woman for a moment, unsure whether the red-haired woman was truthful with her words. For the most part, there very little to suggest otherwise, though he felt that there were some details possibly omitted.
“I have decent skill in tracking, hunting someone is no different from hunting game out in the wastes. Do you know who’s the poor sod who stole from you? Might help to know what I’m look for too.” Zeke brushed his blonde hair back over his left eye and grabbed several grapes with his left.
“I have an idea who stole it, we just need to find him. Preferably before any Inquisitors show up,” Leila looked off the side, distracted almost.
She bit her lip and paused for a minute.
“As for the item in question,” her eyes darted back to Zeke, sharp and intense, “you’ll help me find the Eyes of Ashara and the bastard who stole it from me.”
Zeke calmly studied Leila with a glare of his own. The circumstances were almost laughable, fate had a sense of humor. Zeke broke out into a chuckle, Leila broke her somber demeanor and joined in the festivity. The young man found himself a seat across from her, after the laughter subsided, the two toasted to their new partnership.
Alright folks we’re done for this week, tune in next time to see where Zeke and Leila’s adventure or misadventure takes them. Thank you so much for reading along, if you wish to be updated on future posts please subscribe to our Facebook & Twitter pages, or subscribe via email. We have a donation button and an Amazon store, help us out! Please like and comment down below. See you guys soon!
Death By Mage 