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Chapter 10:

Fafhrd was heading home when he decided to play a hunch and take a little detour.

Nestled against the south wall of the city lay the Southern Barracks, where the Overlord stationed approximately 1,000 troops that were used to guard the gates and upper walls and to provide patrols in certain, more affluent areas of the southern parts of the city.

Rumors swirled from time to time that the soldiers in the Southern Barracks were more troublesome than those in the North Barracks of the Citadel, but other, current rumors claimed that the troops had been paid on time recently and were well fed, so the probability of rebellion was low. Fafhrd figured if they could get the girl to the barracks, the soldiers would be able to deliver her to her father on the opposite side of town, thereby saving Mouser and him a lot of trouble.

Leaning against the side of a building across the street from the barracks, the tall northerner removed a boot and pretended to shake out a pebble before returning the boot to his foot. As he was doing this, he was observing the barracks and surrounding area as well as he could. What he saw convinced him that the area was being carefully watched.

While a lamplighter was in the process of doing his evening work on one of the few street lamps adjacent to the barracks, Fafhrd saw that several other people near the barracks looked rather out-of-place for it to be nightfall. He spotted at least four people who seemed to have no apparent business being on a street corner or in a doorway watching the main entrance and the Great Gate Road, which paralleled the south wall right in front of the barracks. Realizing that he would become yet another such out-of-place person if he lingered for more than a moment after returning his boot, he yawned and then moved on.

~F&tGM~

The man wasn't what Vondahghzio expected, but then again, wizards rarely were.

Whereas younger, less experienced mages often wore more ostentatious outfits to impress their clientele or frighten their enemies, more experienced wizards generally let their magic do their work for them.

Based on that, he hoped this one would fall into the latter camp.

The man wore a khaki-colored thigh length tunic with long, full sleeves over matching trousers. A black belt with two rows of small pouches on it cinched the tunic to give it a little fullness and his boots seemed to match the belt. The man was of medium height and build, and he had a short, jet-black beard with his hair swept back; the gray on his temples made him more distinguished as did his steel-blue eyes that were quite similar to Vondahghzio's own.

Finally, the rapier and dagger at his sides belied his profession.

However, when the assassin chief had explained his desires, the wizard had nodded.

"Do you have an item belonging to the person you seek?"

Vondahghzio produced a small pouch from which he drew the princess' small jeweled dirk. He had carefully removed the trace of his fallen companion's blood from it prior to placing it in the bag.

The wizard took the weapon in a white cloth that had appeared from his sleeve and looked it over carefully before saying, "Yes, this should do nicely."

The man named a rather exorbitant price to which Vondahghzio quickly agreed and paid without attempting to bargain. If this worked, the spell would be worth ten times the price. If it didn't, the assassin lord figured that he would have little trouble retrieving the payment from the wizard's body.

The wizard was, however, nothing if not confident. "Please, be seated here while I prepare. This will take some time, so I warn you that any attempt to interfere will ruin my work and your fee will be forfeit. My servant will bring you refreshments and attend to your needs to make you comfortable while you wait. I will be out to let you know when the spell is ready and to answer any final questions just before completing the last step."

With that, the man exited to begin his work.

~F&tGM~

The Gray Mouser gently slid the sleeping Princess' arm from around him and he rose to put on his shirt, boots, and weapons.

It had been a most enjoyable afternoon, but he was a little disappointed that the Princess' vaunted "technically" had been far tamer than she had led initially him to believe. That said, the Overlord still would no doubt spare no expense seeing him shipped off in one of the galleys, or worse, if he had even a hint of their activities during their time together.

Mouser smiled as he knew that not a single hint would ever come from him.

Wearing his usual gray trousers, he fitted Cat's Claw on his belt in the small of his back so it was hidden beneath his gray silk hooded tunic that he slid over his head. Scalpel was nestled in its gray mouseskin sheath, which Mouser strapped to his left side. He stepped into his supple, dark gray leather boots, and then positioned his small pouch in position on his belt. Inside, there were six round iron pellets and his sling positioned for immediate drawing from the top, below that were his flint and steel, some bandages, a coil of cord, and a small wallet containing the ingredients for the few spells he knew how to cast.

Feeling as if ready to go to war to deliver the princess if necessary, he looked at Altennia sleeping peacefully and wondered if, perhaps, there might even be a chance for them to be together someday. Realizing the unlikelihood of this ever happening, he decided on one other course of action.

~F&tGM~

The last remnants of daylight were rapidly disappearing and, as happened every night, darkness was beginning to settle like an unstoppable force over Lankhmar.

While danger was ever present in the so-called City of the Black Toga, with the coming of that darkness, it seemed to lurk ten-fold in the city's nooks, its crannies, and its darkened streets.

Fafhrd was well used to the danger and its multitudinous signs. Tonight, the signs weren't really there, but something felt wrong and it had felt that way since shortly after he'd left the South Barracks.

While he couldn't be sure, he'd seen at least two men who might have been following him as he made his way homeward. He'd seen each only once, and both had eventually turned to go their own way, but it still made him wonder if perhaps his own acting ability had failed him in this case and a set of keen eyes had also spotted him as being an out-of-place person outside the barracks.

Taking no chances, he took another detour and this time ducked into one of the less reputable establishments along Carter Street.

"No use crying over spilled ale," he grumbled below his breath as he bought a mug of the brew. Taking a sip, it was as bad as he remembered from his last visit quite some time ago. "I see you're still watering down your 'ale', Brono."

The barkeep gave him an evil sneer in repy, so Fafhrd shook his head in disgust and moved to the side behind a timber post where he could watch the door. He continued to sip the weak brew from time to time as he stood there, with each small taste bringing a new wince of disgust that anyone would deliberately ruin such a drink.

Some time later, a man with a hood entered the tavern. The dark-clad man looked around without seeming to spot anyone, so he soon sidled up to the bar and began talking to the bartender.

Brono the bartender nodded and raised up to get a better look around the establishment. Then he pointed in Fafhrd's general direction.

The barbarian cursed his luck. At nearly seven feet tall, he was a large man, and even standing behind a large timber post didn't provide enough cover. His pursuer immediately spotted him behind the column; when he did, the man picked up what appeared to be small reed on a string around his neck.

Though Fafhrd heard nothing, he saw the man blow what were apparently several notes into the little reed.

Knowing that didn't appear to be a good thing, Fafhrd slipped out the back door and ran into the Tenderloin District.

~F&tGM~

Just as the wizard had said, a thick ball of heavy black smoke appeared to be rolling along down the main street as little wispy tendrils seemed to branch out into each side street or alley it crossed. A long trail of the same smoke followed along behind it, giving it something of the appearance of a smoky snake.

Vondahghzio continued to follow the main mass of the magical smoke as it bumped along through street after street. More little wisps branched away as they continued along, yet the body of smoke grew no smaller as tiny, occasional flashes of what appeared to be distant lightning caused the smoke ball to look even more otherworldly than it already did.

Considering that it was most likely connected to another plane of existence, its unworldliness seemed quite appropriate to the assassin leader.

Vondahghzio had been following the smoke for over an hour when he saw it suddenly change. Its speed increased and the little flashes became more frequent and seemingly stronger. This, the assassin knew from his discussion with the wizard, was a sign of the nearing end game. The princess was close by.

He raised the small reed on the end of the chain around his neck and was about to blow it when the tiny insert in his own ear began to vibrate. From the frequency, he recognized the caller; from its intensity, Vondahghzio realized that the caller was close by, too. Therefore, he decided to continue following the rolling smoke for a bit while his men collected with the caller. He would be able to redirect them when the smoke trail located the princess.

Seeing the smoke ball picking up its pace and getting further ahead of him, Vondahgzhio speeded up to keep apace. Based on what the wizard had said, it shouldn't be long now.

~F&tGM~