A Drink Before Battle [M/M] ✅

38: Do You Know How To Use That?

The leisure district was eerily quiet. Along Sevei's route from the high street to here, the sounds of clamorous pandemonium had died away, along with the sight of people out and about. The shops here were all shuttered tight, and although a few guards could be seen at the doors of the larger gambling parlors and taverns, once Sevei reached the stretch of brothels, even that sight became rare.

The Golden Pearl had been crawling with Kyrzhan's private guards, but the Aviary seemed completely abandoned. Frowning with worry, Sevei slipped through a small gate that led to the back garden, where tables and benches nestled among bountiful flowers and a small carriage house kept a few horses. He could hear the animals nickering in their stalls, telling him they hadn't been used for departure, but the wet and muddy ground showed that several people had fled the house in a hurry.

Keeping his ears open and alert, Sevei produced a ring of keys from his belt and let himself into the house through a back door. The spacious kitchen he entered was in a state of disarray - spilled flour, dropped eggs, a few dishes overturned here and there. A delicious scent permeated the air, wafting from a simmering pot hanging over the still-burning hearth. Sevei drew his sword and crept carefully through the kitchen and out into the main lounge.

It was still dim here during the day, but the small windows set high in the walls let a few scattered beams of sunlight fall in dust-speckled shafts to the floor. As quiet as Sevei tried to be, his spurred boots thudded and jingled as he traversed the wooden floor towards the staircase, the sounds echoing around the seemingly cavernous room. He abruptly halted when he spied a foot poking out from behind a table.

It belonged to a heavy-set man with a rough look about him, who lay on his back in a pool of blood, clearly deceased. He wore a leather gambeson and a belt strapped with empty weapon holsters, no sign of any military insignia on any of his clothing. Holding his breath, Sevei stood still and listened to the utter silence around him while watching a rivulet of blood wind across the floor towards his feet, then turned and strode quickly to the wall below the staircase.

He slid an oddly shaped key into a crevice in the carved designs on the wood paneling, and opened a door that would be undetectable if you didn't know it was there. The door opened onto a narrow, unlit well of stone steps descending into the earth below the house. Sevei set his shield down next to the door, then stepped into the pitch black tunnel and closed the door behind him. He had to navigate the steps carefully in the darkness. He'd gotten about halfway down when his sword rang out with the impact of another blade striking down on it.

Sevei could barely see the other person's motion in the darkness. When they struck again, the two blades slid along each other until the hilts caught, and the unknown assailant leaned in hard, aiming to push Sevei down or back up the stairs. Sevei quickly wedged a foot on the step behind him and pushed back, both descending several more steps in a rush that almost lost Sevei his footing. The other person withdrew, but as the swords swept apart, the person launched themselves into Sevei's chest. A grunt sounded in the darkness as a shoulder slammed into Sevei's armor.

Sevei grabbed a handful of the other's clothing as they both stumbled sideways against the wall. He couldn't feel any armor on them, and it was apparent that this person was quite a bit smaller than Sevei.

"Oh!" Sevei said, "wait..."

But the other didn't wait. With astonishing agility, this slippery little guy twisted himself out of Sevei's grasp and landed a hit on Sevei's sword arm, knocking his wrist against the wall and almost causing Sevei to drop his sword.

"Wait!" Sevei said again. "I don't want to hurt you."

Sevei heard a whisper of laughter as the point of a blade caught in his maille coif, pressing the rings into his throat.