Caracara's Hunt

"Breakfast?" Corwal asked while looking into the room.

He looked like a ghost. His eyes were bloodshot and his skin papery. It didn"t look like he"d had a wink of sleep.

"No one has come here since we entered," Arawn answered while standing up, He swiftly cleared up the desk before rushing off after his friend who was already making his way down the stairs.

Arawn only caught up to him in the street. Although Corwal looked sickly, he was still as spry as a foal. He beelined for a house nearby and pushed his way through the guards. The two men tried to stop him, but it was only a fanciful dream on their part. They were both lying on the ground in a few moments, and Corwal stepped over them to push the door open.

There was no need to go far. In the living room, Rain was sitting at the table. She was eating slowly while listening to two men reporting something to her. They quieted the moment they realized there was company.

Without a word, Corwal went to the table and pulled the pot on the table toward himself. He sniffed it, then looked around for any bowls.

"What do you think you"re doing?" the old woman shouted out.

In a shadowy corner to the side, the healer had been meditating like a statue. But once she saw Corwal push his way into the room, she rose like she"d come back to life. "Get your hands off the pot! It"s not for you. Go and make something for yourself, you lout!"

Corwal didn"t even bother turning to her. "Is this your hospitality?" he asked Rain with derision. "Not even going to offer a meal for your guests?"

The woman looked at him for a moment, then shook her head. "You look like h.e.l.l." She went to a cabinet nearby and brought out two bowls and spoons.

Inside the pot was thick porridge. It wasn"t too filling for Arawn, but the injured Rain and the hungover Corwal found it to their liking. Neither of them could have stomached anything heavy.

At that thought, Arawn shifted his gaze to Rain. She had fallen unconscious after the fight due to blood loss and overtaxing herself with ether usage. Her complexion was pale and gaunt-looking, but she was walking. Only half a day after her leg was almost chopped off, she was already on her feet.

In the Gutter, such miracles had been impossible. Without ether, there was no such thing as restoring the body to its original form. Anyone who got injured were as good as dead, because no one would shelter them while they healed. Injuries were the same as a death sentence.

Rain scrunched her eyebrows at him upon noticing his gaze, and Arawn looked down. He finished his porridge to the last drop before raising his eyes once more.

"Where are your records?" Corwal asked once their meal was finished.

Anger flashed through Rain"s eyes, but she didn"t say anything and just nodded. Personally, she led them outside and to a small house that stood somewhat away from the others. It was built of stone, so no earth mage could manipulate it.

From the outside, it looked like a miniature tower. It was round and with shooting holes instead of windows. The door was solid metal and could barely be moved. Three strong men had to be called to push it open far enough for a person to squeeze inside.

Once there, Rain lit a lantern and led them past two desks to a large bookcase. It was full of tattered journals and aged scrolls. The oldest of them were to the left while the newer-looking ones were in the darkness to the right.

Corwal went forward, and ether materialized above him. It shone with a cold white light, revealing the whole room. Rain scowled, but she could not prevent him from doing that.

Instantly, Arawn saw something that he"d missed in the wavering light of the lantern. By the opposite wall, there was a hatch in the ground. It was locked shut, but anyone with ether would not find it a problem.

There was also something behind the bookcase. No lock could be seen there, but the stones were arranged into a regular pattern. They formed a door in the wall. It could be just a trick of the architect, or maybe another hiding place.

"I don"t need your treasures," Corwal murmured as he went straight to the bookcase.

He scanned the journals and scrolls there while settling on one of the more recent ones. It didn"t hold his interest for long though. In some five minutes, he went through a dozen with his expression growing darker and darker.

Rain noticed it as well and went closer. It was hard to say if she just wanted to know what was wrong or if she wanted to be ready to protect her outfit"s history in case Corwal decided to lash out against the recordings for not having what he wanted.

"There"s nothing here!" Corwal declared in the end. His words were followed by a loud slamming of his fists on the desk. Its old wood groaned, threatening to give. "Did you take it away during the night? Is that what happened?"

"I just woke up two hours ago," Rain stated while standing between Corwal and the bookcase.

"That"s more than enough time."

Rain gnashed her teeth, looking ready to pounce on Corwal with her knives. "And why would I do that? There"s nothing for me to gain by lying to you."

"Really?" Corwal asked with a thunderous expression. Fury radiated off him like heat, and even the ether reacted. The white particles gathered around him, dusting his clothes in white. "You"d be able to say you played the legend himself! What honor! What story! Everyone would envy you."

"And then what?" Rain scoffed. "Do you really think I"m stupid enough to want you as an enemy? You"re no better than a rabid dog." She looked up into his dark eyes without the slightest shred of fear or discomfort. "I heard what happened yesterday. You"ve got nothing sacred. Even your own family is not off limits."

A pregnant silence fell on the room. Contrary to expectations, Corwal didn"t go for the woman"s throat. He closed his eyes and just breathed for a moment.

"You"d better be as smart as you think you are," he said in the end, his voice a promise of a cold and lonesome death. "If you don"t give me what I want, your outfit will cease to exist. Bring me the records I asked of you."

"I. Don"t. Have. Them." Rain emphasized each word while throwing her hands up in frustration. "It seems like Claus took them in secret when he left."

"And no one noticed? I find that hard to believe."

"That"s your problem, not mine." Rain took a step back and leaned against the bookcase. "I haven"t been here for over three months, since the day Claus left and Garshta booted my faction out. So no, I don"t know what happened to the records you want."

Corwal just stared at her, willing her to keep lying to him. However, Rain didn"t seem bothered. When he didn"t talk, she collected the scrolls he"d left on the desk and returned them to the appropriate shelves.

"And stop threatening me," she said with her back to him. "Scarlet Treason has already left, and as strong as you are, you will only die if you try to face all of us by yourself."

A low, dark chuckle was her answer. She turned with a raised eyebrow, and Corwal smiled at her. It was a slow, lazy expression, but there was something sinister and cold hidden inside it. For a moment, Arawn could barely even recognize his friend.

"They"re just dogs, so if I"ll whistle, they"ll come. Have no fear about that. But I wouldn"t even need to do that. I have an even more powerful weapon at my side right now."

His eyes shifted to Arawn, and Rain also looked at him. Surprise flitted past her expression, but it was soon replaced by disdain. "He"s just one person."

Corwal laughed, sounding mad, but Arawn didn"t give him the chance to explain himself. He stepped forward, deciding it was time to stop this nonsense. The two people were tired, angry, and frustrated with their problems, and for some reason they were taking it out on each other. Even if they had no real problems with one another.

First, he turned to Corwal. "I"d like to ask if you would really do that, throw me back into the nightmare, but it"s too scary of a thought… and I don"t think I"d like the answer."

The madness instantly cleared from Corwal"s expression, and he looked pained instead. "Arawn, I—"

Arawn waved away his words and turned to Rain. "You know you have to work with him to clear your name, but you prefer to antagonize him. If he leaves, what will you do then? The name of Broken Talon name for which you almost died will soon become a curse. You"ll be hunted down like animals."

"You"re exaggerating."

"I don"t know much, but from what I"ve seen, if one person in a family makes a mistake, the whole family is finished. Is that not it? Do you think you"ll not be blamed for the princess" kidnapping?"

At those words, the fight left Rain. She sighed and pulled a chair at the desk. "I didn"t know about this," she murmured. It sounded like she was speaking more to herself than them. "No one told us that Claus went mad. If I had known… I would have never wanted this name back." She rested her forehead against her hand, looking mighty tired. "That b.a.s.t.a.r.d Garshta hid this from me deliberately. Even if I won, I still lost. Our lives are all finished."

"So why don"t you give me the d.a.m.n records so I can catch him? It"s not that hard," Corwal said from the other side of the desk.

"You think I wouldn"t if I had them?" Rain asked with a glare. "I only learned about Claus" actions from Garshta"s lieutenants. They thought I should know about the t.u.r.d I had stepped into. It was the first thing I heard after waking up, and now I have to deal with your nonsense. I don"t have the d.a.m.ned records! This is all there is. Claus must have been smarter than you gave him credit for and brought everything with him."

She shook her head and forced herself to relax. "Your pet sorcerer is right. This is stupid. We"ve got no reason to fight."

"What are you thinking then?" Corwal"s voice was level, making it impossible to tell what he was thinking.

"Give me a day or two to gain my footing in this place. Although I"ve become the captain, it"ll take some time for me to learn everything that"s happened here. Once I do, we can talk again and see if I"ve got any clues where to find the b.a.s.t.a.r.d." A sinister smile stretched across her face. It was a match for Corwal"s earlier one. "Just so you know, his head belongs to me. And I"m not one for sharing."