Between Life and Death
Back at the inn, Rayla and Sher Aka burst through the door.
“Get anything you will need Sher Aka, you have to leave and inform the guild.”
“I know!”
She then rushes around the room grabs her card and equipment and some money as a drowsy looking Scarlet and a worried looking John come into view, “Sherry? What’s wrong?”
“No time to talk. This entire town is a deathtrap. I need to inform the guild asap.”
“What? Why what ha-”
John can’t even finish his sentence before Sher Aka leaves the room and runs to the stables.
“Rayla, explain.”
Taking a deep breath, Rayla answers, “This town operates above a giant pit of slaves, hundreds of them, and their watchers are intelligent undead.”
“What!?”
“This isn’t a C-Rank request, this is an S-Rank quest.”
Scarlet answers, “Alright I had enough, I’m calling the knight.”
“No, not yet! If you do that it would raise suspicion. They’re probably on the look out right now for anything strange because we killed one of the undead. Only summon that knight if they actually catch onto us. Right now we aren’t a target yet.”
Gritting her teeth, she puts the locket away again, “Fine, go buy some bread, cheese and other foods that are preservable. Once the guild sends help we won’t have the luxury of three meals a day in this inn.”
“You’re right I’ll go, but before I do, how is Thoma?”
“She…Hasn’t gotten worse yet, so that’s a good sign.”
“Good, I’ll go buy the food. John, you pay for the next three weeks upfront.”
“On it.”
The next day at eight a.m. a horn blaires outside the inn, “Attention all workers, for your own safety, Tennison Steel Corp. will be enacting a curfew from 9 p.m. to 4 a.m. A murderer is on the loose. Please remain calm and stay indoors until the curfew has been lifted. Attention all workers, for your own safety…”
Looking outside, Rayla sees a troop of guards following around a wagon blaring the information through the street.
“Let’s hope Sher Aka makes it…” she whispers under her breath and looks over to Rose, “And you too…Please…Please, make it.”
Throughout the day Rose had two more coughing fits and one more during the night, each one of them potentially lethal without John’s help.
During noon of the next day, after another of Rose’s coughing fits, John sits down Rayla and Scarlet, “I’ll be honest with you, it’s not looking good.”
“Wh-What? B-but the coughing is getting less, right!?”
“Yes, that is a good sign but Thoma Ahad’s body is getting weaker. Provided the coughing keeps getting better, Thoma Ahad has a 50/50 chance to survive. If it doesn’t it’s almost certain he will die soon.”
Hearing this, Rayla looks like she’s about to faint and Scarlet looks angry as her tears run down her face.
Scarlet then runs into Rose’s room and yells at her, “You’re a proud strong Dragon, Rose! You hear me!? You need to survive this! I won’t forgive you if you die like this! You hear me!? You need to live! Grow up strong, pretty and happy! You hear me Rose!? Do you hear me? Please…Hear me…”
Over the next two days Rose’s body keeps getting weaker while the coughing fits also lessen.
Rayla asks, “How is his pulse?”
“Too low.”
“Do you…Do you think it’s time…”
“He hasn’t coughed up blood once today, I think we’re at the critical moment that will decide between life and death. I’m going to use all my mana and as much life energy as possible from the both of you after which I’ll pass out. If this doesn’t save him he can’t be saved.”
“I understand, please do it.”
“Life a mysterious thing, transfer vitality from this person to another. Life Transfer.”
“Life a mysterious thing, transfer vitality from this person to another. Life Transfer.”
“Life a mysterious thing, transfer vitality from this person to another. Life Transfer.”
“Life a mysterious thing, transfer vitality from this person to another. Life Transfer.”
“Life a mysterious thing, transfer vitality from this person to another. Life Transfer.”
“Life a mysterious thing, transfer vitality from this person to another. Life Transfer.”
“Life… a mysterious thing. Transfer…Vitality from this person to another. Life Transfer.” “Life…a…a…” Thump
The next day at noon, Sher Aka bursts through the doors of the main branch in Old Kroy, “I have an emergency! I must talk to the Guild Master right now!”
Other adventurers look at her in shock while the secretaries just calmly ask, “Do you have an appointment?”
Which causes Sher Aka to pick up the secretary by the neck, “There are thousands of lives at stake, tell me where they are right now.”
“Th-The top floor.”
Hearing this, Sher Aka lets go of her and runs up the stairs barging right into the Guild Master’s office who seems to be having a meeting.
The guildmaster, an older looking Wolf-Beastfolk man with multiple scars all over his body yells at her, “Oy! You’re not supposed to be here.”
“It’s an emergency! Thousands of lives are at stake!”
He narrows his eyes, “This better not be an over exaggeration.”
He then looks at his guest, “Leave.”
“Yes, Sir.”
“So, what happened?”
“We took the C-Rank quest to confirm the existence of slaves in the Tennison company town and free them if we can. In our investigation we found hundreds of slaves working in a secret underground facility being led by intelligent undead.”
“What? Are you sure?”
“Yes! We had to kill one of them, they are probably on high alert now!”
“What about the rest of your party?”
“They had to stay behind. One of our members got so sick he is on the verge of life and death, a carriage ride would have killed them.”
“So, what proof do you have of this?”
“Only my word.”
“Sigh So, what do you want me to do with this?”
“Please Sir, I vouch with my life on the line. Please send as many S-Rank adventurers as quickly as you can, if they don’t find anything you can hang me.”
He thinks for a second tapping his fingers on the desk for a bit before going to his crystal ball saying, “Damian Crawford, emergency override, code red.”
The Crystal ball starts to glow and from it, multiple projections of different adventuring parties emerge.
“Everyone, we have an emergency. We have hundreds of slaves in a cave under a company town, they’re being guarded by intelligent undead. They have been alerted by the C-Ranked party we sent to investigate who killed one of the undead. We have thousands of workers and families that need to be evacuated while you free the slaves and get to the bottom of this. I request any of you who are able to get to Old Kroy or to a portal relay within two days.”
“Also! Please, we need a healer that can help someone resistant to light magic. If…If he’s still alive by that time he’ll need one…Please…He’s just a child.”
“You heard her. Are there any questions?”
The day after, back in the company town, John wakes up after having been passed out for one and a half days.
Still groggy, he forces himself to stand up and walks over to Rose’s room but gets stopped by Rayla, “You shouldn’t be walking yet.”
“Thoma, is he-”
“He’s alive. He hasn’t woken up yet but he also hasn't coughed up any blood since then. I…I think he might be getting better, or at least not getting worse.”
With a loud sigh John slumps to the ground, “Did I mention before how I’ll get high blood pressure because of you guys when I’m old?”
“A few times maybe.”
“You’re lucky that half of my hair has a silver color, that way it’s less noticeable when I gray prematurely.”
“Thank you for sacrificing your hair for us.”
“Please don’t say it like that, now it sounds like I’ll go bald. Anyways, they better knight me or something for this. I saved a princess after all.”
“We’re lucky if we don’t get executed for endangering the princess in the first place.”
“Sigh Why are you suddenly so negative? That’s my thing not yours.”
She gives him a dead look, “Well…To be honest, I’m not in a great mood. Thoma might not be dying right now but he’s still far from waking up…And even further from being healthy again. Then there is also the thing that we’re living over a hornets nest of disaster and it’s possible we’re being hunted. I’m just so exhausted, John.”
“I get it…Sorry about that.”
“It’s alright.”
“How is Scarlet?”
“She’s completely fixated on him. She only leaves his side to go to the toilet. The only times she rests are when she’s close to passing out and has me take over the watch.”
“Sigh That’s not healthy either.”
Rayla helps up John and says, “It’s also not healthy to run out of bed when you can barely stand up. Come on, let’s go to bed.”
“Alright.”