“What the fuck!” Freya shouted as she leapt to her feet.

It took a second for Eli to recover from the surprising violence. As soon as he did, he started barking orders. “Lilly! See what you can do for the prof! Freya, guard Aria and Minerva! Aria, get backup! Ziran, Sira – head out the door and cut him off!”

“While you do what?!” Minerva asked frantically.

Without answering, Eli braced himself and ran towards the open window. He leapt at the last moment and sailed outwards, falling several stories towards the ground. He had just enough time to orient himself face-down and cast a spell.

“Ventilabis Retro!”

The shockwave pulsed from his hands just before he hit the ground, slowing his fall enough that he didn’t break every rib. It still was enough to hurt though, and he groaned as he rolled to his feet. Glancing around he saw that there were no witnesses to his fall – the window opened to an abandoned alley with an entrance about 200 feet away to a busy street.

This was a pre-planned escape route. Eli thought to himself. She knew she could get out here.

Cursing silently as he limped towards the street, he cast a duo of spells on himself.

“Guérir líkami! Qoy’ chaw’ qulSar!”

His broken ribs stitched themselves back together, allowing him to go from a slow limp to a full-on run. His eyes pulsed gold just before he hit the street, allowing him to peer through the crowds that walked all around him. Taking a calming breath he slowly scanned the street from the left to the right, his eyes narrowing when he caught a flash of green-tinged mana moving away from him.

Gotcha. He thought to himself, setting out at a light jog after her.

Eli had to fight his natural instincts not to chase her down at full speed. He knew just how destructive his magic could be, and there were hundreds of potential casualties all around them. Even if he somehow managed to capture the lizardkin assassin without injuring anyone, there would inevitably still be witnesses – something he would have to explain to the council.

As if to mirror his mood, the cloudy skies above them began to darken. The faintest of flurries fell around them, causing pedestrians to pick up their pace in order to get out of the cold. Eli mimicked their movements, subtly gaining on his target while using the crowds to cover his advance. As he moved closer, he could see that she was texting frantically on her phone, the heavy tome tucked safely under one arm.

Seeing his opportunity, he began moving quicker – intent on grabbing her from behind and hauling her into a nearby alley. Unfortunately for him, she chose that moment to turn and dart towards the nearby subway station. She stopped at the top of the stairs for a moment and her eyes went wide as they locked onto his.

Fuck. He thought to himself.

Abandoning all subtlety, Eli raced after her as she sprinted down the stairs. He reached the sign for the station just in time to see her glance backwards. Under different circumstances he might have admired her athleticism and grace, weaving in and out of the crowd as she bounded down the steps. She was able to put enough distance between her and Eli that by the time he reached the bottom she had moved further into the crowd.

He looked around frantically for her, his eyes scanning the crowd in the white tiled station. Dozens of conversations intermingled with the dinging sounds overhead that signaled the doors to the subway were closing. Eli’s enhanced mana sight found her stepping onto the waiting train and pushed his way through the crowd frantically. He saw her satisfied smirk through a window as the grey metal doors sealed shut, leaving him stuck on the outside. He reached the ledge of the platform just as the subway was beginning to pull away, causing him to grit his teeth in frustration.

No. She’s not getting away that easily. He thought to himself.

The train quickly began to pick up speed and he bent his legs, knowing he’d only get one shot at this. Glancing to his right he saw the last car of the subway, and his eyes locked onto a 3-foot long handlebar along the side. Hoping it would hold his weight he leapt out just before it passed him, grabbing hold of it with both hands. Using his momentum he swung around and hit the back of the steel train with his chest, landing on a narrow ledge with a thud.

Grunting from the pain, he quickly got to his feet as the surprised shouts from the crowd faded behind him. The light of the platform was quickly replaced by the darkness of the tunnel which was only broken intermittently by overhead service lighting. Knowing that he didn’t have long until the train reached the next station, he decided that he needed to act.

His mana-vision was able to pierce the darkness well enough to see that there was a door at the back of the train. Still holding onto the metal bar with one hand he gripped the handle with the other only to find that it was stuck fast. With a deep breath he called upon his mana, tracing his fingers along the lock.

“Trahere!”

The effect was almost immediate. The flimsy handle was pulled out of the door and right into Eli’s hand. The accompanying sound of metal tearing was covered up somewhat by the squeaking breaks of the subway car that signaled they would be reaching their next stop soon.

Grinning, he tossed the metal handle to the ground behind him. Not wanting to alert his quarry that he was still in pursuit, he cast another spell – this one on himself.

“Qarn al-Dhilat”

The mirage covered his body, making his form entirely see-through. Only a faint outline of him remained – one that he knew would be easily missed by anyone not paying close enough attention. He opened the door slightly and slipped inside, making his way through a 3-foot maintenance corridor to a second, interior door. Peering through the window he caught sight of the lizardkin woman, still texting away on her phone as she glanced around furtively. The book lay across her lap and she kept her elbows on it protectively.

That’s not a bad idea. Eli thought to himself before pulling out his phone and firing off a text to his group.

He finished his message just as the platform came into view. Seeing the lizardkin woman move through the crowd towards the door, Eli opened the interior door to the main cabin of the subway and slipped inside, taking great care not to touch anyone and alert them to his presence.

Once the train came to a complete stop the doors opened and the lizardkin woman strode out. Eli quickly followed her, weaving as best as he could through the crowd. She moved through the platform and up the stairs, emerging into yet another busy street. Her eyes darted back and forth as she searched for any sign of them, but when they found none she proceeded towards a nearby alley.

Apparently they were underground long enough for it to start snowing in earnest. Large flakes fell around them, and Eli couldn’t help but notice that the lizardkin woman was shivering from the cold. His grin widened at the realization – she was cold-blooded and wearing only office clothes. She’d gradually start to slow down unless she stopped somewhere to either warm up or find better clothes.

And when she does, I’ll be there to catch her. He thought to himself.

His theory was proven correct when she ducked into a clothing store. He moved in afterwards, darting in the open door immediately after another customer was leaving. He felt her hand brush his back briefly, causing her to turn and furrow her brow with confusion. From inside the store he watched her look at the door, then back at her hand, then shrug and continue walking wherever she was going.

Letting out the breath he didn’t know he was holding, he moved beside a rack of men’s suits and dismissed both the illusion spell and the mana vision spell. Glancing around he caught sight of Vessara on the other side of the store, rifling through winter coats. Apparently she found one to her liking, throwing it over her shoulder and moving towards the exit.

Eli grabbed her just as she was about to leave. “You know, shoplifting will get you in a lot of trouble. You should pay for that.”

She whirled around, looking at him with wide eyes. “You!”

“Me.” Eli said, never taking his hand off her arm. “You and I are going to have a chat.”

Her eyes flashed downwards for a fraction of a second – the only warning Eli received. In one fluid motion she pulled the folding stiletto blade from her back pocket and thrust it towards his neck. Based on the way she never hesitated or fumbled, Eli guessed this was a move she’d practiced hundreds of times before.

Luckily for him, he was no stranger to melee combat. The second he saw the knife his arm shot out, knocking her forearm to the side. As he did he twisted his hand, using his superior strength to hold her arm steady and keep the knife away from his body. With his other hand he struck outwards, hitting her squarely in the ribs and causing her to grunt with pain.

To his surprise, she opened her hand and dropped the knife. As it fell she twisted, dropping the heavy book on the ground. Her free hand shot out and caught the knife by the handle. Eli was forced to let go of her forearm and jump backwards as she thrust out again, the blade missing his chest by less than an inch. The moment she finished the move she leapt backwards and scrambled out the door to the street.

She’s good. Eli was forced to admit to himself as he picked up the book before bursting through the door after her, ignoring the cries of alarm from the other customers.

Any trace of a subtle cat-and-mouse game quickly evaporated as Eli chased her down the street. As she ran she pulled pedestrians, signage, and anything she could get her hands on behind her, forcing Eli to dodge and jump just to stay on her tail. His longer legs were able to keep him in the hunt though, and what started as a sprint quickly turned into a marathon.

“Aide-moi!” She began shouting to the crowds as he gained on her. “Il me poursuit!”

As people around him started to reach out and grab him or stand in his way, the optics of the situation began to dawn on him. To an outsider, it would look like a large muscular man was chasing down a much smaller woman. There wasn’t time to dispute her before a group of ‘good Samaritans’ stepped in and tackled him to the ground, burying him under a dogpile of bodies.

As much as Eli could have overpowered them with his magic, he knew that it would cause more harm than good. Despite that fact he struggled and threw people off of him, catching a glimpse of the lizardkin woman’s human face smirking at him as she blew him a kiss and began sauntering away. A rage boiled within Eli and he fought not to transform into an orc and continue the chase.

To his immense satisfaction, it turned out that he didn’t have to. As he struggled to his feet he saw a man and a woman wearing studded leather jackets materialize around Vessara, grabbing her by the arms and hauling her into a nearby alleyway. She went for her knife but was quickly disarmed by Sira, who deftly blocked the move before headbutting the lizardkin woman in the face.

Eli began shouting at the people around him in rapid fire French, explaining that she ‘stole a coat’ and that he was just trying to get it back. They were understandably skeptical, but when he threatened to call his lawyer they reluctantly let him go. Dusting himself off for a few moments he retrieved the book and began walking in the opposite direction of Sira and Ziran before looping back around at the next cross street and finding the alley they’d taken her into. He actually walked by it several times before he clued into what was happening.

“Qoy’ chaw’ qulSar!”

His mana vision pierced the illusion that Ziran had placed over both himself and the lizardkin woman. He was initially surprised Ziran could cast such a powerful mirage until he realized that he’d strategically placed himself, Sira, and Vessara partially behind a trash can – meaning that he only had to hide parts of their bodies. Seeing the look of concentration on Ziran’s face he nodded to him but said nothing, passing the trash can to see that Sira was kneeling beside Vessara. When he saw the look on Sira’s face he immediately knelt as well, knowing something was wrong.

“What happened?” He said, seeing what looked like black drool dripping from Vessara’s open mouth.

“I don’t know. She stopped breathing and I can’t feel a heartbeat.” Sira replied, placing one hand on the woman’s neck.

Eli’s eyes narrowed and he took Sira’s hand, pulling it back from the lizardkin woman. “Don’t let the saliva touch you.”

“What’s wrong?”

“I think she poisoned herself.”

“How?” Sira asked incredulously.

“I don’t know. But if she’s fanatical enough to kill the professor, she’s probably willing to die for her cause.”

“What should we do?”

“Call Aria. Tell her where we are and what’s happened. She’ll want to send a clean-up crew. In the mean time, work with Ziran to keep us hidden from the street – the last thing we need is someone seeing us with a dead body.”

She stood immediately and began dialing on her phone. Turning back to Vessara for a moment, Eli confirmed that she truly was dead before starting the grim task of searching her. He rifled through her pockets, retrieving her wallet, knife, and most importantly: phone. Seeing that it was a newer model that unlocked using facial recognition, he turned it around to face the dead woman for a moment before opening her messages.

“Aria’s on her way with reinforcements.” Sira announced. “They’ll be here in 10 minutes.”

“Good.”

“Did you find anything useful?”

“Maybe.” Eli replied, turning the phone to her. “Look at this last message.”

“I…don’t speak French.” Sira reminded him.

“Right. It says ‘I’ve been compromised. The professor is no longer in play. Moving to the safehouse. Do not respond.’”

Sira’s eyes went wide before darting towards the street. “That means there are more of them nearby!”

“Yeah. Let’s make sure we keep that mirage spell going, okay? Otherwise, they might find us before Aria does – and I really don’t want to go for round 2 in public.”
___

Eli collapsed onto the couch in their wing of the castle several hours later. Aria found them in the alleyway almost exactly 10 minutes later, along with several of her Elven contacts in the French police. It was a surprisingly quick process to extract them along with the body and take them back to the nearby portal. As they did, a second team cleaned the professor’s office, removing both the bloodstains and anything magical.

“Are all of your quests so…bloody?” Minerva asked, taking a seat on the far end of the couch.

“No.” Eli replied.

“Pretty much.” Lilly countered.

Eli glowered at her, but couldn’t keep it up when she nestled under his arm. He kissed the top of her head as she removed her disguise, her skin turning from pale white to green. The rest of his women mimicked the motion, removing their disguises and taking seats either on the couch or the floor. Even Sira and Ziran had joined them after summoning both Zee and Naz and giving them a summarized version of the events.

“What I don’t understand was why?” Aria said. “Why did she kill him?”

“I’ll call some of my old contacts to get more information on Vessara and tap the number she was texting, but the answer is probably in that book.” Zee said, gesturing to it. “Based on what you told me it was the one item she grabbed before leaping out a 3^rd story window.”

Eli shrugged in reply. “I took a quick look through it. It’s a survey of dragons and their lineages. Sure, it makes for interesting reading but… I don’t really see how that’s worth killing and dying over.”
“I’d like to read through it.” Minerva offered. “Give me somewhere quiet to work and a few days and I’ll come up with something.”

“A few days?” Eli questioned. “Minerva, that thing is a tome. It must be thousands of hand-written pages.”

She shrugged in reply. “I’m a speed reader. I can do it.”

“In that case, you can use my office.” Eli said, nodding to the room on the second floor. “I’d just ask that you not take it anywhere outside of our wing of the castle – at least, not until we know why Vessara was after it.”

Minerva nodded and stood, walking over to the bag which held the book. She carefully lifted it out and crouched before leaping through the open-concept space to the balcony of the second floor, flapping her wings once as she did. As she did he caught sight of the white underwear she wore beneath her black pencil skirt and couldn’t help but grin. When she landed she adjusted her shirt and waved to the group before opening the door to Eli’s office and disappearing within.