Damn.
Damn damn damn.
I managed to put enough distance between us and the fighting before forcing myself to rest against the side of a building. My neck had finally stopped bleeding, creating a free hand with which to claw at the collar. It still beeped erratically, doing its best to keep up its duty to its dying breath.
I tore it from my neck in one quick jerk, waiting for some kind of electrical shock or poisonous cloud they threatened would happen upon tampering. Nothing happened.
I chalked it up to Darius's damage and threw the collar down, stamping on it repeatedly until the beeping finally gurgled to a dying electronic squeal. The collar went quiet.
Silence filled the air, interrupted only by the slight squeaking of my boots against the ground, shallow puffs of breath from the girl, and the downpour fading into a drizzle. We stayed there for a minute, motionless as the shadows surrounding us.
Eventually, I took a deep breath. “We need to move.”
Those were the magic words. They broke the spell of silence, causing the girl to snatch her elbow free and hold her sword between us.
“D — Don’t come near me!” she sputtered, grabbing at the worn hilt.
“...I’m not going to hurt you.”
She shook her head. “That’s not…” she floundered. “What did you do?” Her eyes were wide with fear and anger, the low lighting cast a strange glow over her round face; I couldn’t tell if it was my eyes or the shadows, but she looked like she had no iris or pupil. Two points of ears quivered slightly between bushes of white hair as she fumed and sputtered. “He was helping me. He was going to lead me to my fah… my father’s kill—“
The rest of her sentence was cut off in a stumble, her body folding in half as she fell to her knees. Planting the sword in the ground, she used it to prop herself up, leaning heavily as she looked back up at me. A pale sheen had crossed her face, and she looked almost sickly.
“Please...I need…” Her head swayed this way and that, trying to look around me as she began calling for Darius.
I considered my options. Technically I hadn’t agreed to anything. I could leave the girl here and run off; even if I did feel some obligation, she was out of immediate danger. Yet I couldn’t shake the feeling of need: my need to do as he asked, even if I hadn’t said yes, and her need to be protected at some level.
Especially right now. She looked powerless and confused, searching for someone that was not here. I glanced down at the collar under my feet, crushed glass crunching as I did so.
The very least I could do was get her to a safehouse. There should have been an Underground Community somewhere nearby; I could get food and medicine for the trip out, then work my way to find a guy that knew probably all the safehouses on the globe. Probably built a few of them.
Kneeling down so we were eye to eye, I put a gentle hand on her shoulder. Her panic subsided enough for her to look at me, meet my gaze.
“Darius isn’t here,” I said softly, calmly. Confidently. “But I know where he is. He’s waiting for us.” Taking her arm, I encouraged her to stand and supported her weight as she followed the pressure.
“Where?”
“This way,” I said, nodding down the street. “Stick close and I’ll lead you to him.”
Alone, it would have taken me a little over fifteen minutes. Watching out for her, hiding from noises or scents that were possible Keeper movements, took me roughly half an hour. I led her stumbling through fields, down quiet roadsides, and through dark forests until we finally splashed into a river. Magic was harder to track across moving water, at least as far as humans knew. And our scent would be harder to follow.
We splashed through as best we could, keeping ourselves waist-deep in the moving waters until I managed to spot what I was looking for; an old rusted ferry. Pulling the girl out of the water behind and leaving her in the broken-down cabin, I walked the perimeter. Humans were known for antagonizing strangers around here, and I wanted no extra eyes on us.
I listened and prowled, but nothing moved aside from natural wildlife. We were alone. The elf was still confused and panicked, but thankfully resting quietly.
Walking to the riverbank, I dug around in the rocks and mud just under the surface until my fingers brushed against something that felt like canvas. I grabbed and pulled, dragging a waterproof bag from the murk. Magic flickered around the edges, low-powered glamor doing its best to keep the bag hidden.
This ferry was one of many spots protected by the humans but used by the nons. Abandoned places were easy for us to utilize, on large and small scales. Larger places that could support a larger influx were only known as Communities, while smaller places like this could be used as supply stops. Pixies or elves or...someone...kept small stops supplied with tiny bits of preserved food, base medical supplies like bandages, and a few other helpful things.
I turned to find the girl standing behind me, the barrel of an awkwardly-large gun pointed at my head.
