Mana System Chapter 176: The hunt is on (Patreon)

Ska walked back through the city gate. He was going to relay what he found to Martin when a familiar scent crossed his nose.

He paused, inhaling deeply. Unlike the old scent trails located outside, this one was new, and he knew it was enough to trigger his skill. He rumbled in delight as he began to stalk his first target.

The trail meandered and at times went below and above the city streets in an effort to throw him off. But the efforts were in vain.

So lost in his hunt Ska didn’t notice the trap laid across his path. He knew his mistake the moment he made it as the wire went taut. He threw himself clear of the blast, only catching the edge of it and getting his hair singed off for his trouble.

Other guards rushed over to see what had happened. Ska roared in anger, some at his foolishness but most directed at the perpetrator of this trap. Ska could see a few people lying motionless near where the bomb had detonated and it made him furious.

“Gather a team and follow me,” he ground out to the other guards.

They nodded and rushed off to get more soldiers.

***

Gol was nearly at the meeting spot when he heard the distant boom. His head flicked toward that direction and he cursed. He had hoped for more time, it had to be that hunter. Dropping all pretense he rushed down the dark alley and toward the warehouses near the docks. He would have to rely on his stealth skills to remain unnoticed but time was now of the essence.

It took only five more minutes to get to the meeting location but he was out of breath and the other two were not there yet. He swore softly, realizing they weren’t due to show up for another thirty minutes. He hoped the explosion would have made them realize something had changed and hurry there.

Gol waited another five minutes, getting more paranoid by the second. He was just about to leave when Kru’Ka slipped in.

“Boss, what's going on? Was that explosion your doing?”

“Yeah, I picked up a tail. We need to wait for Nalam and get the hell out of this town! I can explain the rest when she arrives.”

Kru’Ka looked confused but nodded.

It was three more minutes before Nalam sauntered in, looking unconcerned. “What is all the ruckus about, the guards are in a tizzy?”

“We need to go, I was surveying the gate when a hunter entered town.”

“So,” Nalam purred, “we have dealt with hunters before, why is this one any different?” She asked, wrapping her arm around Gol and squeezing herself against him.

Gol shoved her off more forcefully than he had intended and she hissed angrily at him. “This isn’t just any hunter, it is a level twenty beastkin hunter.”

That seemed to make her pause. What she said next was not what Gol wanted to hear.

“Then if it has our scent it is likely already too late. The three of us can take one hunter. If we leave without completing our contract, the guild will only send professionals after us. Let's lure the rube here and be done with it.”

***

Ska was angry but he took the advice Martin had given him long ago and pushed it down so he could focus. It was hard but that point he had stuck into Intelligence seemed to be paying off and he was able to suppress the desire to race after his target and tear it limb from limb.

Six other guards followed him as he located the trail again, this time taking precautions in case of more traps. It was good he did as there were two more bombs placed along the route. One was large enough to kill everyone within a hundred feet.

The traps were disarmed and the explosives secured before they moved on.

The trail ended inside a warehouse Ska had circled it three times and scented the trail of all three of the individuals he had found entering the city. But it felt off.

“Keep the rest of the men outside and cover the exits. Stay in teams of two.”

The guards nodded as they took up position. Ska had already sent another guard to notify Martin about the bomb.

Ska gave a low growl as he quietly made his way into the large warehouse.

The scent of the three was everywhere, making it difficult to determine where they might be. A growl of frustration slipped out. Not because he couldn’t locate the intruders but because he had to play these games. Paul and then the Marshall had helped him overcome that weakness through training.

Ska knew they were in here so he tuned out the scents and scanned for anything out of the ordinary. His eyes passed over the shadow of an overhead beam but something was off about the shadow.

Ska extended his claws and leaped into the air, slicing them through the beam overhead.

There was a squeal of pain as globs of slime splattered on the ground. That seemed to be the trigger as the other two attackers appeared from nowhere.

Ska ducked a thrown dagger and snatched the next out of the air as he rushed a man wearing black leather armor.

He was almost upon the man before he was tackled from the side. He rolled with the hit and kicked his attacker off, eliciting a feline yowl.

He didn’t spare time to think about it being another felinekin as he jumped off the ground, avoiding two more daggers.

“Hold him down, he’s too fast!” the unknown man yelled.

Ska spotted the first thing he attacked as it oozed from the beam and started reaching for him. It seemed in pain though and was slow to advance. Ska took advantage of this hesitation and rushed the creature. That was the right move as the creature flinched back. It tried to duck out of the way but despite its bonelessness, Ska was quicker. Ska activated three abilities, Debilitating Strike, Double Strike, and Smash.

The thing let out a warbling howl of pain as chunks of it were sent splattering across the warehouse but Ska didn’t relent as he grabbed ahold of the thing with one hand and Activated Inescapable.

Ska kept dodging the other two attackers as he laid into the slime man. The man was lashing him with spiky tentacles but Ska endured the pain as he activated Shield of Defiance, his new skill that allowed him to shunt damage equal to his stamina away from his health.

The creature was slowing and the other two had realized their attacks were ineffectual so they split up and ran. It took a few more minutes but Ska eventually finished off the Golfin as the system message called it. Ska stood victorious over his kill, covered in his blood and the Golfin’s slime. His body was uninjured thanks to the enchantment on his claws and his shield.

When Ska got outside he found one guard had been killed and the other wounded by the escaping man. The woman had vanished and nobody had seen her leave. Not that it mattered, Ska would find her.

Ska poured a healing potion down the surviving guard's throat and rushed off after the man.

***

Martin had a bad feeling as he got Ska’s message so he headed toward the control tower for the shields.

When he got there he found the guards that were supposed to be stationed outside, dead and the door open. Without waiting for backup, Martin dropped his dice and summoned his creature.

Wisps of fog started to collect until they formed a wraith-like being. Martin hadn’t conjured this type of creature before so he wasn’t sure of its abilities but he would find out.

He wasn’t foolish enough to go inside the tower by himself and there was only one exit, so he erected his shield and waited outside the door.

It didn’t take long for a man he recognized to exit the tower, dragging a bloody sword.

“So, Kurt… you chose betrayal?”

The man looked confused but still pointed his sword at Martin, “N- no… this wasn’t me,” he said looking around in panic. “You killed them. This is your fault!” he yelled.

“God, what did they do to you?”

“No, no, no, no, no!” Kurt yelled, slapping his head, “You did this, you betrayed the city!” he screamed.

Martin shook his head sadly, “If it wasn’t for me and my friends, this town would have died along with everyone else, maybe not right away but soon enough that it wouldn’t have mattered. You had no plans in place to keep beasts out. Nothing to deal with sea monsters. And not even any idea how to deal with your dwindling food supply. All things we fixed, yet you say it’s our fault that some pompous prick wants what he isn’t entitled to? You’re lucky Paul isn’t here, he wouldn’t have tried talking you out of this he would have simply killed you and been done with it. But I am a more reasonable man. I can see you aren’t yourself, lay down your sword and come peacefully or I will have no choice but to kill you.”

Kurt spat, “you think you and your friends are hot shit, just because you are higher level. Well, you’re not. You may have fooled the city into thinking you have their best interests at heart but I can see the truth. You just want out access to resources and to use this town as your personal playground.”

“I’m done wasting time with you, Kurt, attack me or surrender.”

Martin raised his hand as his shield flared, he looked over at a second man dressed in black. The man seemed surprised that his dagger failed to penetrate the shield and he tried to run for it but the wraith grabbed him. Martin shuttered as the man and wraith screamed. Martin followed up the attack with a Void Bolt at the man’s leg, tearing it off.

“Don’t kill him, I have questions, just make sure he doesn’t escape,” Martin said coldly.

Both wraith and man stopped screaming as the man fell to the ground like a marionette with his strings cut. Martin didn’t miss the fact that the unknown man's bleeding stopped shortly after. With that nuisance taken care of, he turned back to the fuming Kurt.

Kurt screamed some gibberish about attacking his friends and rushed at him but the fight was pretty one-sided. By the time Martin had finished the only thing that remained of Kurt was a black pile of goo. Martin may have vented his frustrations a bit more than wise. He would have preferred taking the man alive but his skills weren’t really designed for disabling people and the wraith was busy watching the other man.

Plus Kurt had been irritating him for longer than these spies had been around. Martin had heard rumors of the man's feelings about how the town was being run. Until now he had chosen to ignore them for the sake of keeping the peace. But even if coercion was used, these acts were unacceptable.

Martin shook his head and walked inside to see the damage. Most of the controls were broken and all the technicians inside had been killed by either Kurt or that other man. Martin sighed and headed back outside. He found Ska and a few other guards standing around the wraith and the downed man.

“Did you get the others?” Martin asked.

“I killed one but two escaped,” he pointed to the one on the ground, “I’ll go after the last one, did you want her alive?”

“If you can take her alive without too much issue, do so, if not, make sure she doesn’t get away. They sabotaged our control room and killed Kurt.”

There were murmurs of concern from the guards.

“Don’t worry, we have contingencies in place. Four of you take that man to a holding cell and make sure he is ready to talk.”

The guards hauled the struggling man to his feet and slapped magic suppression cuffs on him. It took a few blows to the man’s head before he was compliant enough to be moved.

Ska had already raced off after the last saboteur. “The rest of you clean up these bodies and keep the public away.”

“What about Kurt,” one of them asked.

Martin pointed to the blackened form on the ground.

The guards looked angrily at the pile but nodded as they got to work. Martin sighed internally at the lie, but better the man dies a hero than being exposed as a traitor.

***

Ska chased the beastkin woman’s trail. She was stealthy but her skill slowed her down and Ska caught up quickly.

The building was an empty residence and Ska pushed the door open quietly.

“You might as well show yourself, I know you’re here,” he growled.

“So assertive,” a voice purred back, “perhaps you and I could come to another understanding?” she chuckled.

“Spare me your offers and honey-coated words. Come out and you may yet live.”

“Oh where would the fun in that be,” she said.

Ska heard a slight creak and jumped out of the path of two daggers. He heard a giggle and saw a flash of movement from the second floor. He growled in annoyance and jumped to the balcony avoiding another dagger.

“You won't win,” he stated.

“Perhaps,” a voice from behind him hissed before a weight landed on his back.

He felt her claws dig into his skin, but dropped to the ground on top of her, eliciting a grunt and making her release her hold. He twisted away before she could grab him again and stomped down on her chest. She howled in pain but tore into his leg with her claws. He ignored the pain as he slapped her hard across the face. “Enough, you lost!”

She hissed in defiance so Ska punched her in the head until she lost conciseness. After she went limp, he stepped back. He admired the fierce woman and if she hadn’t been an enemy of the city she may have made a good mate. She wasn’t Grimalkin but she was at least feline beastkin. He securely restrained the woman and tossed her over his shoulder to take her Martin for questioning.