Spell Weaver [Book 2 Complete]

“All right, just be normal.” Alex waved as Scout walked out of the room and down the stairs.

He waited another ten minutes before doing the same, his magical disguise already in place as he reactivated his wards and locked the door.

Once outside, he looked around and knew he needed to get to the other side of the city before the group made it through the checkpoint line.

He looked up and made his decision.

Activating his movement skill, Alex leapt to the sequence of buildings that he’d begun to use to travel while On Call. The only difference was that he didn’t have his phone this time, so if someone were to stop him for using skills in the safe zone, he’d have little to no excuse.

The next twenty minutes were spent carefully making his way from one rooftop to the next, keeping an eye out for any of the Hunters that acted as patrols, blue armbands shown proudly. While the travel was tense and more exhausting than normal, it was uneventful. In the ten days he’d been responding to calls, he’d only run into a handful of other people on the roofs, and most of them bailed as soon as they saw him.

His haste to arrive at the checkpoint before the group came through left him winded and regretting his four-way split.

Maybe I should dismiss Mage. At least then I’d be a bit more prepared if this all goes south.

Scanning the cityscape while he thought, he hoped to find a decent vantage.

“You’ve got time. Probably another half hour,” Warrior’s thoughts were calming.

Taking his time, Alex resumed his scouting and repositioned more than once around the tall buildings. In the end, he realized he didn’t need to have things perfect right now.

The most important thing is not to get caught. This group seems to be coming through regularly. If I find a bad spot this time, I’ll just bail out early and do more scouting beforehand on the next attempt.

It was reassuring to realize that it was more important to get things right, stay calm, and play it safe, rather than try to get it perfect on this first try.

His thoughts were naturally drawn back to his mana-battery experiment, and he snorted at the irony.

Moving with more deliberation, Alex spent time searching for a decent spot. In the end, he found one that fit his new outlook on the situation.

He sat on the roof of a small bagel shop, nestled between two larger buildings. The one to the north cut off his line of sight to the checkpoint entrance, but gave him a great view of the following forty yards. As long as the group didn’t enter and take an immediate turn, they would cross his path.

Being stationary afforded him a certain amount of protection, in that he was less likely to draw the group's attention. Additionally, there was a narrow alley leading away from the spot that he’d taken the time to walk down, and finding an easy escape route made him feel significantly better about the uncertainty of the entire situation.

Once settled in place, all that was left to do was to wait.

It was unfortunate that waiting was the worst part. He sat on the small lip of cement that ringed the rooftop, his back resting against a large piece of machinery on the roof, likely part of the ventilation system. It created a great shield for most of his body, allowing him a narrow port of vision between the box and an adjacent pipe.

Time passed, and the longer he waited, the more certain he was that his plan had failed.

They must have turned once they came in. It’s taking them too long.

A bit more time passed, and he began to feel a bit paranoid.

Did they sense me somehow?

He glanced over his shoulder at the alley. Was it possible for his own escape route to turn into an ambush site?

Should I bail out now? Do I take a different exit plan, just in case? What if—

All doubt and questioning cut off abruptly as the group of adventurers entered his window of vision. The group and those they escorted kept largely to themselves, but their armor and weapons made those they walked near give them space.

From his vantage point, it looked like a sea of people parting before the group, like a wake to a boat.

Alex pulsed the scanning feature of his eye, surprised to find that all four of the team members were unable to be scanned. They were likely wearing items to prevent scans and analyze skills. While frustrating, it only lent credence to his theory. People with items or skills like that shouldn’t be let through the checkpoint without being easily stopped.

His thoughts were interrupted as he came to a different conclusion.

What if they were with the HA?

He saw a scenario, unlikely as it might be, where the group worked as some sort of black ops group for the Hunters and were able to pass through because the checkpoint was expecting them to come through.

Turning the idea over, he realized it wasn’t any less likely than the group having nefarious purposes and the checkpoint leadership being in on the deal. Not just that, but multiple checkpoint leaders would have to be in on the plan.

Suddenly, the idea that he was simply probing and worrying about a group of powerful, fully sanctioned awakened, seemed much more likely.

Alex shook his head. He had a hunch he was right, and checking in on the group wouldn’t hurt anyone. Doubt did nothing but try to shake his conviction.

The thought made the corners of his mouth turn up.

Carefully, he adjusted his positioning and focused on one of the group’s members who leaked the most mana. He applied his mental pressure to the block that prevented his scan, and with a bit of his Will applied, he was able to press through whatever item was blocking him.

He had prepared himself to shove against the wall, but the reality was that he just pushed it aside almost as if he were opening a door. Latest content publıshed on novel•fire.net