Deus Ex Machinarium

Anh carried both of them in an erratically chosen direction. At first at a significant altitude, then just above the treetops. The only thing that mattered was gaining distance from their former camp. After a little over a candle the tanai dryily informed Brandt that they needed to find a place to land. On that prompt hoomin chose a tiny patch of land barely visible from above, where they landed.

Almost immediately Anh laid beside a tree, closed his eyes, and lost consciousness. His body turned limp and only thanks to the quick reflexes of the Nord he didn’t fall. Hoomin caught his companion, sat beside him, and allowed his body to rest on his shoulder. Steady, although shallow, breath assured Brandt that the tanai was going to be fine, for the most part.

He guarded his helpless companion for the remainder of the night. Some candle after Anh collapsed Nord managed to lay tanai’s body beside the tree and covered him with his jacket. It was quite chilly, as one could expect at this time of the year, but Brandt considered hunting some food and taking a lookout for a chase a more pressing issue than guarding Anh.

When Bivos rose from beneath the horizon Brandt had already gathered some wood and set a fire near the resting tanai. He also hunted, skinned, and began roasting some unfortunate squirrels. The smell of these had finally awakened Anh. He slowly rose from the bed of twigs and leaves, some of which intertwined into his robe and hair. It took him a while to regain some sort of composure and some of this time he spent plucking debris out of his person.

-” How long” - he finally said groggily, while trying to untangle his hair - ”have I been … sleeping?”

-” A couple of candles.” - replied hoomin, while lazily turning two sticks with two carcasses of squirrels stuck to each.

-” My head. Hurts. As if a herd of cattle ran through it.”

Brandt continued to roast their breakfast.

-” We are alive.”

-” Yes.” - muttered Brandt

-” I reckon this means we lost them.”

-” I think we did” - the hoomin replied -” When I hunted our breakfast, I was on the lookout, but found no signs of pursuit.”

-” Finally” - Anh exhaled -” They have been so relentless that I have started to be convinced that Arneg was actively helping them out.” - tanai shot a quick gaze at the meat being roasted - “I’m hungry. How far off course are we?”

Brandt looked straight at him.

-” I’m afraid, this is something you ought to assess.”

Anh nodded. Immediately his face lost any semblance of an expression, as he escaped into his mind.

-* Well, we float at forty-three kimers per candle *- dryily said Tow - * if we try, there is no headwind, and are well rested. But we were dragging this hoomin over here with us*

-* He is kind of a beefcake * - commented Thernohh -* easily twice our own mass, discounting the equipment. We were traveling for about a candle with some tail to it. Let me do some quick calculations *

-* I guesstimate it will be about thirty. Our heading was, for the most part, northwest * - said Tow -* Anh, ask our employer what he wants to do now *

-* Good guess! On the low end, I came up with twenty-five. Thirty on the high end *

-* Thank you Thernohh *- Said Anh -* Yes, Tow. I’ll ask.*

-” Between twenty-five and thirty kimers”- Anh finally said to Brandt -” Somewhat to the northwest.”

-” The breakfast is almost ready. Sadly, no seasoning. Which I guess you can understand.” - Brandt gave one of the sticks to the tanai.

Anh was a little reluctant before he took a first bite.

-* Eww. Unseasoned. Not even salt. * - commented Greeo, the rest of the kinfolk nodded in agreement.

-* We need to eat though *- casually said Birdekk.

They both ate in silence for some time.

-” So. Mr Zerster. What are we going to do now?” - Anh spoke after he swallowed his last bite - “ I recognize, we can safely go home, regroup, and maybe return.” - Tanai was quite confident in his speech.

-” We continue.” - calmly replied Brandt between two bites of his meat

-* What?* - exclaimed Birdekk and Tow in unison

-* Oh, come on! This is silly* - added Thernohh

-* Don’t act surprised! I told you he is unstable* - Greeo triumphantly gloated

-* Hush. We will hear what he has to say * - Anh calmed his kin -* then we will carefully weigh the substance of his arguments, discuss it among ourselves, have a little argument, and then we will disagree and go home*- then he turned his attention to Brandt -” That is highly illogical.”

Brandt casually threw away his stick into the fire, then addressed Anh.

-” We are too close to our goal.”

-* Obsessed!* - Greoo scoffed

-” Please. Mr Zerster. We need to, at least, restock and rest. Now that we lost the Ordos” - Anh twisted himself into weird shapes peeking into the woods around, as if unsure of his own words - “we lost them. Right They are not here?”

-” As I already said, we are free.”

-” Yes!” - exclaimed Anh - “So we now return to Isdelburg, or wherever else, and try once again! We just need to…”

-” We are going to continue with our previous goals” - Brandt interrupted him sternly. This immediately made Anh fall silent.

-” Why?” - he finally asked, perplexed - “This is insanity!”

-” Is it?” - Brandt hung his voice, causing the tanai discomfort.

-” Where are you going with this?”

-” They are going to go to the second site now.”

-* What?*

-” What? How?” - Anh relayed Tow’s musings - “How do you know that?”

-” They rummaged through your luggage. They must have found your notes. So now, since they can’t get us and don’t want to return empty-handed, they will head where we were headed.” - Brandt started to poke the fire before him - “Which makes us need to get there before them.”

-* He is getting us chase *them*?* - commented bemused Birdekk - * this man has clearly lost it. We need to get out of here.*

-* I agree* - added Tow -* What does he hope to achieve!? A fight against however many men armed to the teeth? Just the six of us?*

-* Of whom five are not a combatant of any kind* - casually added Thernohh

-* Way to state the obvious* - scoffed Greoo - * Also, I told you, following this hoomin will get us dead!*

-* Gloat later!* - Anh reprimanded her harshly -* We need to get out.*

-” Mr Zerster. Do you have any contingency plans? How do we face them if we face them?”

-” An opportunity will present itself.” - shrugged Brandt -” We don’t need to be reckless. But I also am not losing an opportunity to get at least a glance at a precursorial site not swept clean by them. You are going along with me.”

-” What?”

-” I still can’t navigate. You can, and we have a contract.”

-” No, no, no!” - Anh shouted - “ I signed up for a peaceful expedition! Not for murder, theft, and heresy! Not for…” - tanai made a sweeping move with his hands - “...this!” - disgust was oozing from his words.

-” Yet. Here we are.” - Brandt tilted his head and tried to assume the best impression of being goofy - “we need to make do with what we have.” - it didn’t amuse Anh.

-” What do we have? All I have are my clothes!” - Tanai was furious.

-* Tell him about the notes!* - snarkily added Tow

-* Notes, utensils, sextant, clothing, spices…. Shall I continue?* - Thernohh added

-* We need to return to the camp and retrieve our things.*

-* Agreed.*

The tanai started to move angrily around the fire. The hoomin was tracing him with his gaze, whenever it was possible.

-” Listen!” - Anh continued to unload at Brandt -” I don’t care who you are, what you want to do, and where you are going. I just don’t. I kept to my contract as well as I could. Through all this madness. Now! Now I’m done. I’m not going to float into the path of Ordo Pro Cvrsi. We’re done. I’m going.”

Brandt calmly stood up.

-” I’m afraid I can’t allow you to do that, Mr Trawins.”

Anh paused and turned around. Brandt stood where he sat just moments before Calm and relaxed, as he always seemed to be.

-” You what?”

-* This will end badly* - Birdekk’s voice was the only verbal thought in the chaotic mess of emotions that erupted inside the tanai’s head. Greoo was panicking, Tow was mumbling something indiscernible. Thenohh just shut down, her row of consciousness akin to a steady hum. Before them loomed a hoomin who, up to this moment, proved to be the most dangerous of their ilk their variunity ever met. Moreover, the man was threatening them.

-” Up to now, Mr. Trawins, you have impressed me, and, allow me to be bluntly honest, you were a valuable asset. However, if I allowed you to leave, you would become a liability.”

For Anh, the world fell into an uncomfortable silence. Everything was blurred and seemed to move at a slow pace. Only the tall and standing man before him was in perfect focus.

-* DO SOMETHING!* - shrieked Greoo

In a blink of an eye burning wood was raised into the air and with all of their combined hexergic potential Anh, Birdekk, Tow, Greoo and Thernohh hurled the fiery projectiles at the hoomin. All that while trying to gain some separation from the opponent, they tried to move back, although they still kept eye contact with the hoomin.

All were proven to be done in vain, as Brandt dodged the projectiles with the finesse of a circus gymnast, then equally quickly, jumped at the tanai. He closed the distance between them in a heartbeat and then tried to grapple the tanai like a wrestler.

Inexplicably, he missed, and the momentum threw him to the ground, where he landed on a pile of wet, rotting leaves.

-* Great job, my folk!* - shouted Anh, and then again tried to gain distance from the hoomin, who already sprung back into a fighting stance.

There was no more than ten mers of distance between them when Anh stared into Brandt's eyes and paused, mesmerized. The hoomin was covered in leaves and other plant matter kept a combat stance and didn’t move. After a few drips his scruffy face was adorned with a half smile.

Brandt’s move was lightning fast. Anh only registered a blur after which three shiny blades suddenly were flying at him. He instinctively raised his hands in defense, and even that, as ineffective as it would be, wasn’t fast enough anyway.

What he witnessed didn’t make any sense. Two of the knives Brandt had just thrown flew in random directions. Pushed away from their trajectory by some unknown force. The third one almost reached him, but as soon as it touched his robe it just shattered into a million splinters without causing any harm.

-* What * Just * Happened.* - barely uttered Thernohh, but apart from her, there was just an eerie silence in the mindspace.

Brandt lowered his hands and gazed sternly at the tanai. Then his expression softened, as well as his stance. He raised his hand and pointed at the confused tanai.

-"You!" - he said in an accusatory tone, but then sighed - "You, Mr. Trawins. You are Aberrant."