Pleated blasphemy

Chapter 22

Grey

Shroud made quick work of the two men she had followed into this chamber. They were also following her prey- the halfling marid.

I quietly followed her, bending at the knee I checked their pulse. To my astonishment, both were still breathing. She had just incapacitated them. The tales I have heard of the gore she lefts behind were nowhere to be seen.
Maybe she simply had no time for it.

The marid was not alone. He was followed by two cronies. They were not humans. That I could tell. But what were they?. Covered in black hooded cloaks, they reeked of fresh death. They seemed to be gliding not walking.

It could be ghouls..but no I had never seen their kind working in groups or with another kind. They cared more about food than anything else. But the smell... It fit their specific kind.

Ghouls mostly lived underground close to cemeteries, burial grounds and graveyards. They eat the flesh of the dead but they also killed the living and later on eat their flesh. Some of them were also desert-dwelling, Shapeshifting, demons that could assume the guise of an animal, especially a hyena. It lured unwary people into the desert wastes or abandoned places to slay and devour them. The creature also preyed upon young children, drank blood, stole coins, and eat the dead, then took the form of the person most recently eaten.

Shroud seems to be biding her time. One reason could be that the descendants of the Marids, who were also jinns, traced people by their scent long after they were gone. So she must be looking to find a place and an opportunity to kill it otherwise it will trace her to the Taboot itself.

And so we shadowed them tunnel after tunnel into that labyrinth of a place. They eventually entered a cavernous chamber with an underground river. Sunlight poured from a massive hole in the rocks. Many boats were tied up on the bank of the river. There was no one around other than those three and I knew she would attack now.

The three of them moved to one of the boats and started unloading wooden boxes from it.

I had already masked my scent, what I had to be careful with was my steps. One mistake and I will be found either by Shroud or by those three. I found myself a good spot to view the whole thing from above. Next, I positioned my poisoned tipped arrows at the scene before me.

Now all I needed was for Shroud to get that Card from that halfling Marid.

The three were not paying any attention to the opening into that chamber, they were too busy with the boxes. I was half surprised at their blatant disregard for the surrounding. It was I suppose their full trust in the safety that this Mountain provided. Or maybe it was because no one ever dared to steal or attacking from these pirates. Perhaps that has made them too proud --or lazy. If not the halfling, the Ghouls should have paid more attention. They were after all pure predators. Such predators don't slack around.

I smelled the air. Nothing of her was there in the air. Of course, the protege of Riaz would know her way around the ghouls. She had completely masked her scent, her essence with magic. It was done masterfully. Just to see her reaction, I tried breaching the protective meshwork of carefully laid spells. She visibly jerked. And then started looking around her gaze stopping at the rock where I was perched. I ducked just in time to miss that probing gaze. I immediately let go of her spell. I knew it had traps within traps. It would have snared a less skilled man. But I have been burned by these orders members enough times to have learned a lesson.

Shroud shifted her gaze to the three men and started appraising them one by one.

Picking a prey, are we?

I mused with a grin. My heart raced up in anticipation. Part of me wanted to see her shift. It would be glorious to watch from up here. A man could hope.

She did not shift. In the old fashion way, she draw her sword and stepped out from behind the rock where she was hiding. She moved with impressive speed not giving the ghoul a chance to react before she beheaded it. Killing the second one was not as easy. She struck out but it deflected -blow after blow. It moved fast dodging each strike masterfully as if it was an old dance for him. It had no weapon. Its weapon was its claws. That was barely being used. It seemed content with playing -- toying with Shroud.

It was a sight to behold, their stealth and the skill. Like two dancers writhing to a music only they could hear. Even the halfling Marid just stood there, doing nothing. His jaw was slightly unhinged.

At one point, the ghoul's claw got her. It sliced through her left shoulder. She let out a yelp of pain. Sweat was breaking on her forehead. The Ghouls' claws had some sort of toxins. In some ways, it resembles hers as it too could paralyze the prey albeit the effects of it did not set in so fast. It also helped the Ghouls track their prey. So if they injured one, it was nearly impossible to escape it.

The halfling Marid seems to recover after that and he jumped into the fray. Shroud had to fend off two of them at the same time. And she was doing a good job of it. But I could tell the telltale sign of exhaustion setting in. The toxins were getting to her. I aimed my arrow at the Ghoul's neck.

If only... I find... A clean shot.

They moved fast, Shroud coming in the way after every second. I sighed. If things get more interesting I had to intervene directly. Not part of the plan but...

The two opponents were circling her...the halfling Marid was taunting her. She grinned at him. Most people wet their pants at the look she was giving the guy but either the guy didn't know who she was or he was too ballsy. Well, let's find out.

The ghoul jumped on her back, she tried to move out of the way but her motions were not as fast probably because of the toxins. She stumbled a little as the full weight of the ghoul fell on her, but she didn't fall. The Ghoul grabbed onto her with its claws. It opened its mouth in an anticipation of a bite. And then it happened...

From up here, it looked almost surreal. Shroud claws had come out the moment the Ghoul tackled her from the back. She had dug her claws into the ghoul's wrists preventing its hands from touching her. Within seconds the ghoul's body became limp. Shroud grabbed it with its hair, its body no longer clinging to hers. She lifted the ghoul's head with its hair so it could meet her eyes.

It was the first time I saw fear in any Ghoul's eyes.

"Mine works better, doesn't it?", She crooned. Her lip curled up at a corner in a cruel smirk.

The ghoul was trying to open its mouth but without success.

"How should I kill you?", Shroud asked. Her voice was cold...so cold. " Speak up... I give that offer only to my most worthy opponents",

The halfing Marid was staring at the scene in horror. I suppose these Ghouls were his guards and without them... Well, Shroud was not exactly warm and fuzzy.

When the Ghoul couldn't produce any coherent words, she sighed.

"Well, my choice then", And with that, she plunged her claws into the Ghoul's chest. Seconds passed but somehow it seemed longer...too long. During this frozen limbo, I felt the air, the very essence of this place recoil in horror. And when she withdraw her claws from the Ghoul's chest there was nothing but a gaping hole left behind. Not a single drop of blood fell from it. The limp body of it took a painstakingly long time to drop to the ground and when it did it made no sound. It was as if only a husk was left behind.