After just having saved a mining settlement, whose shafts had become overrun by screamer bats, we decided to take the scenic route home, visiting a small coastal town called Fischdorf. The barely larger than a village town had its entire adventurers guild set up as one desk in a tavern.
We perused the quests, considering taking one, and chatted to local adventurers. We had planned to stay for some time at the beach, have lunch, and then travel onward.
The town's alarm bells sounded as I towelled myself off. Audo had to swim back. Isabelle threw our stuff together and then helped towel off Audo despite his protests. Layla reluctantly released the crabs and shellfish she had been gathering, then put her armour on.
"ADVENTURERS! Any available adventurers!" Screamed the woman running past, waving at us.
. . .
We got into the tavern. It was not very full, so there were few adventurers about and we were among the higher leveled. One pair stood out, level 36 and 38, they looked to be on a romantic getaway.
The guild hall representative stopped comforting her fainting friend, the woman who had gone running about screaming, and stepped up onto her chair.
"Adventures! Your attention please. We have an urgent quest, communicated through emergency magic means. All of you here are expected to assist, refusal may result in the confiscation of your adventurers cards."
That got everyone's attention.
"Many of you will know of Xeotheas's Girls orphanage. Many legendary female adventurers came from there, and it is considered among the most nobel and honoured professions to work there... Adventurers I regret to inform you. The orphanage for girls was attacked, its defences breached by organised slavers..."
She carried on explaining, and I could tell by Isabelle's determined look that she had heard enough.
The Xeothea Girl's Orphanage had been built into an unused fort not far from the capital, to thwart girls being snatched from the capital's mixed orphanages. It was rumored to have been set up by an exiled Amazon, and was still run today by fierce warrior women.
On two occasions, I remembered girls from my orphanage, located a couple days' trek away, being collected by representatives of Xeothea's. If they had caught the attention of men in town, were in some way more vulnerable, or were exceptionally pretty, then the heads of my orphanage looked for an easy solution.
Over a hundred years, it had been considered the safest place for girls, but some degenerate had seen that as a challenge.
The quest was to search the coast for the ship believed to be waiting for the slavers. Their caravan was whipping horses hard and heading straight for the coast. A deployment of the capital's guards and a detachment of the royal guard were in pursuit. No doubt many enraged adventurers were also joining the hunt. Even as an assassin, I had heard people telling tales of ex Xeothea's orphans. Isabelle, as had so many others, had been inspired by those stories.
. . .
Exiting the guild hall I scanned the skyline.
"Layla I need your eagle eyes, come on!"
She followed me, as did Isabelle and Audo, to a lighthouse. We jogged there to find the door locked.
"Audo?"
"Don't have to ask me twice, step aside guys!"
Smash! CHOP! Chop!
Audo shouldered his way through the remains of the door and held it aside for everyone else to pass.
He remained in position seeing a man and woman running up.
"We're here to help! I have FarSight!" Called out the man, a Lv38 archer.
This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
"And I can cast HorizonEye!" Added the Lv36 magic user.
Nearing the top of the narrow stairs I couldn't help but think, an archer with FarSight? I'm no expert on classes, there must be magic using branch of archer.
I was first to spot something... Now to get Layla or someone else to see the distant plume of smoke. Just visible above the rocky cliff edge, were the tips of the ships masts.
Dammit look north east east!
The sorceress's spell was impressive, creating a horizontal, poster sized, lens that floated out in front of her, greatly magnifying the view. It was as she swept the lens over the target, I got my chance.
"Woah, slow down, back up— Point it that way!"
She seemed annoyed at being bossed about by me, complying with a huff.
"There you see that?"
She started mumbling. "Huh, it's faint, let me magnify more... Smoke!"
"I think I see the tips of masts!" Exclaimed the archer.
"I see it too!" Exclaimed Layla.
I patted Layla on the shoulder as I pace past to the lighthouse's bell.
"Cover your ears!"
DING DING DING DING DING
I spotted adventurers heading the wrong direction and another group going the right way, stop and look up. The sorceress must have followed my gaze, she first faced the group going the wrong way.
"Cover your ears." Stated the archer with a smile.
"WRONG DIRECTION! THE OTHER WAY!" She used a skill that amplified her voice.
She went to call out to the group heading in the right direction, but I caught her arm. "That's too powerful, tone it down in the direction of the ship. Just say 'wait' to that group OK. Give the ship no warning."
She shook off a puzzled look, nodded then called out "wait!" at reduced volume, with hands cupped around her mouth to better direct the sound too.
Isabelle nudged Audo after the sorceress's first shout, they had started down the stairs, Layla close after them.
. . .
The group that waited were all sub level 10, Isabelle sent them to tell the guild, get the message out. The second group of four, were mid teen levels. My party was all now just within level 20.
Isabelle ordered Layla to run further inland, approach carefully, sniff out any guards and come back. The archer tried to muscle in and say he'll do it, only to choke on his words as Layla ran on all fours to the tree line. Can't summon spirit of cheetah Mr archer?
We began jogging toward the ship, not too fast and slowing to a walk, still a half kilometer out. We stopped and waited, huddled by a small tree and some shrubs. The wind beaten cliff edge was mostly bare.
Layla approached from behind us, clever girl! She'd run past us a short distance, to a point where the treeline was closer to the edge, less exposed whizzing across.
"Miss Isabelle! Two guards where the path enters the trees. Two more where it starts to go down to the cove. But-but please! The caravan is coming!" She said panting, immediately taking a swig of her canteen. "Here any minute!"
"Right kids, listen up! Paige and I will take point on this— I'm Leif.
I want you, beast girl, and axe man to go take out the two by the trees. Signal with a whistle, and we'll take out the two above the cove. Paige knows explosive magic, she can cause a lot of damage to the path at the top of the cove.
Then anyone with ranged attack rain hell down on the ship, as soon as anything gets thrown back, we run. Sorry rogue and spear woman, you're too low level, stay back ok. Healers too."
Lv 15 cloaked young man and lv 14 woman with a spear nodded their understanding. There was also a lv 14 girl in robes and a pointy pink hat with a wand, and their party's healer, a lv 13 lad that looked the same age as his level.
"Too late!" Layla stabbed her figure toward the treeline. The caravan emerged, slowing as it neared the cove.
"Ok same plan, no path damage, focus firing on the sails, let's stall this ship OK?" Leif corrected.
Doesn't sound right to me... "Leif, couple changes. Layla, beast girl, stays here, I'm going with the axe man, Audo."
"Huh?" Leif uttered.
I pulled out the hunting knife, then stared him down. I placed my free hand on Layla's shoulder to quiet any objection. Layla didn't need to kill anyone today.
"And you take Isabelle the ranger, an arrow is less flashy than magic, and your sorcerer Paige should save all the magic she has." I stated.
"Uh... Ok fine, jeez didn't realise field medics were so psycho." Leif grumbled.
Sneaking was easier without my armour. It was at the coastal town's blacksmith being worked on.
I'd spent some time with Audo, working on sneaking, he'd got a lot better. In return I had to pretend to learn some wrestling from him, it's the thought that counts. I had no idea how he felt about killing a human, I hoped he'll be OK.
