Shards of Old

I could hear muffled noises of opening doors and rummaging through the inn.

I was at a crossroads. Whoever that was, they were definitely looking for something here, and judging by the magnitude of noises, they were getting increasingly impatient. If they are not going to find whatever they are looking for, they would come to me for sure, especially because the bedroom of the owner was right next door.

As to confirm my thoughts, I could now hear someone going up the stairs and starting opening the doors on my floor, one after another.

I could either hope they will find whatever they need before they get to my room, or to run away through the window. Neither of those seemed like it would end well, so I went with a more direct approach.

When I heard another door slamming shut and opening again, I poked my head out of my room.

-Excuse me, what is this commotion all about?

Right as I spoke, he instantly pointed his finger at me. He was wearing a silver ring, with a large green crystal. Now, when he got close I noticed that it had to be the same guy I saw with the merchant back when I arrived. He still was wearing the same armor, but now it was torn in a few places and on the belly there was a massive hole in it. He was clutching his hand to it, which was now bandaged with some cloth and soaked in blood.

-You...

He tried standing straight, but only winced in pain.

-Arbo Guard Force. I am on duty. Please do not obstruct the investigation.

That worked for me.

-Of course, of course - I put my hands up, making my lack of an arm clearly visible. - But that looks nasty. What's going on? Are you alright?

-I must inform you that the owner of this establishment is an outlaw wanted on the continent. I need to search through this place, and that includes your room, so please move aside.

-Please go ahead. I am not gonna obstruct the law. - I replied, stepping back, letting him enter my room.

He lowered his hand and walked in, looking carefully for something, still clutching his belly.

He apparently did not find anything, cause after looking through the wardrobe he turned back to me.

-Everything is in order. Please remain in your room until I complete my search, after which I will have to close this establishment, so please, prepare to leave.

-Leave? I paid up front! And I have no means of transport to leave this place.

-I am sorry for your loss, but I cannot refund you your money. This whole place will be closed and the right of ownership transferred. You will have to discuss that with the new owner, whenever it's gonna be decided on who that will be. The means of transport can be arranged, but you will have to wait until the investigation is complete. Then I will be taking the culprit to the mainland, and you will be welcome to join us on the journey. Sorry for the inconvenience.

For what I knew, he could've been telling the truth. The place was indeed fishy, along with the innkeeper. I decided to go along with it, since it was pretty convenient to me - I was getting an easy way to get out of there.

-If you can arrange the transport then I am more than okay with it.

-Very well. Excuse me then.

And he went back to his search.

That went a lot more smoothly than expected. For all that I knew he might've been an actual officer sent here to investigate this place. I couldn't help but wonder what he was looking for, and what will happen if he is not gonna find it, judging by the way he "searched through" my room. I was pretty sure that it was in the sealed room downstairs, and I didn't think anyone would notice that there was a door there without seeing the room beforehand.

Few minutes later I started hearing some more noises and grunts in the corridor outside my door.

I peeked my head out.

It was the guard again, this time he was trying to open the door to what I thought was the innkeeper's bedroom, but the door was locked. The noise was him trying to kick down the door and grunting in pain every time he hit the door. After a few bangs he gave up, and instead he put a hand on his ring.

When he moved his hand from his stomach I realized that his wounds were worse than I thought. The most of the blood that I thought was from his hand was actually from the wound under his armor. I couldn't see it very well but judging by the amount of blood, it was not pretty.

-Sorry but I will need you to move aside for a moment. I have to use magic and I don't want to hit you by accident.

-Uh, sure.

I stepped out of the room and took a few steps back giving him some space.

I didn't hear the spell, but the effect was quite something.

With strained cracking, I noticed something growing right by the door. A sapling. It slowly started growing into the hinges, which started creaking, slowly stretching, and soon after breaking. With a face full of a mix of concentration and pain he started guiding the branches through the hinges, trying to destroy them. It was a weird way to get through the door, but it was working. Since the spell was pretty concentrated and contained, I started wondering why he told me to move away. Even if he lost his concentration, the growth rate was so slow that anyone would easily move away.

Right as I thought that, he was getting to the last hinge on the top of the door. As he stood up to reach it easier, he flinched, apparently upsetting his wound, and just like that, he lost control of the spell.

The effect was quite spectacular. The small sapling shot up into the ceiling, breaking through the remaining hinge and going straight through the roof. Before he managed to regain concentration and stop it, the tree was already thicker than my arm and started sprouting leaves. Some branches started growing through the ceiling onto the roof, breaking it, showering us with broken wood and dust.

-Woah, careful! - I yelled, jumping even further backwards.

-Sorry.

Well, he managed to get through the door, but talk about overkill. At least I knew how that massive tree sprouted in the other house.

When you start learning magic, one of the first steps is to learn how to shut down your mana flow, to not exhaust yourself via accidents like this. And he was supposed to be one of the people sent after a wanted person? Even taking his wounds into consideration, it was no excuse.

By the time I processed what just happened he was already inside the room, looking around.

My room was now blocked by the pile of rubble and some branches. Well, I didn't really care, but now I had no place to sleep. I looked at the other rooms - every door was sealed with some kind of a wooden growth, forming a large "X".

He soon left the room with no distinct expression on his face.

-This concludes my search. I am sorry for blocking your room, but I had no choice.

No choice? More like you were incompetent.

-Well, I guess I will have to spend the night downstairs - I smiled. - Are you staying here as well?

-Indeed. I have sealed all the homes before making my way here, so this is now the only place open.

-Sealed?

-Yes - he pointed at the doors with wooden growths on them. - This whole village was the property of that innkeeper, so it will all now be under the lockdown until further notice. Please, follow me downstairs so I can explain how we will proceed with the transport.

-Oh, ok…

I followed him to the main floor. The sight was quite unusual. In the place where he grew that tree upstairs, here you could see actual roots that were molded into the ceiling, snaking and spreading from one point, each one in a spiral-like pattern. If you didn't know what happened upstairs you'd thought that it was some kind of decoration or a relief.

Most of the ground floor was otherwise untouched, besides one table that had been knocked over, and next to it there was the innkeeper, bound by a wooden growth, similar to those that the guy had been putting on all the doors.

The other door that was leading to the kitchen and the hidden room were already sealed as well. That meant that either he never found the room or there was nothing interesting in all those documents, which was hard to believe.

-Please do not approach the prisoner.

-Is he dangerous? - I asked, taking a closer look, looking for the crystal he was using earlier, which was seemingly missing.

-No, his magic crystal has been confiscated, but there is always a possibility that he will fight back physically - he replied, pointing at his wounds - So please keep your distance.

The man on the floor looked at me. His mouth was tightly bound with a vine, so he couldn't speak, but his eyes were determined. I don't know what was on his mind, but he definitely didn't look defeated or resigned, so I decided to heed the warnings and sat at the bar. The guard sat at one of the empty tables and groaned in pain.

-So, about transport… - He started, while clutching his stomach - We are going to leave tomorrow. We… I have a ship stationed near the port.

While he said that, the eyes of the man on the floor widened, and he also started listening carefully to the conversation.

-You do? - I asked, surprised - I never saw it while I was there.

-It was hidden.

-Oh. Why are we staying the night here then? I would prefer not having to sleep on the floor any more than it is necessary.

-I am again sorry for the current situation, but I need to finish a few things before leaving. I can't stress it enough, I never expected that someone else would be still on this island besides the culprit, so I wasn't exactly prepared for these circumstances, but it is what it is. I have already done everything that is possible to move as soon as I can but there are still things that need to be done.

-I guess I have no choice. But what am I supposed to do until then? My room is inaccessible, nor is any building for that matter.

-I need you to stay here for the time being. And also not to leave my sight for that matter.

-What, am I now being detained as well?

-No, no, of course not. It is unlikely that you are working with him - he said, kicking the innkeeper. - But better safe than sorry.

He looked at me with a hint of distrust.

-It is rare that innocent and oblivious people find this place, but it is possible.

-This again… I am going to say the same thing that I said to this guy - I pointed at the bound man. - I was supposed to be dropped off at the continent, but for some reason I got dumped here. In short, I got scammed.

-Hmm. No matter.

He stayed quiet for a good minute, looking at me and the innkeeper, seemingly deciding something, after which he turned his back to us and muttered something.

A yellowish-green light suddenly flooded the room and disappeared almost immediately after. Startled, I looked towards the guard. He turned back towards us with a hint of relief on his face.

My guess is, he probably used some kind of a helping spell, which was actually pretty impressive.

After a while he made up his mind and walked up to the man on the floor, casting some spell. The wooden growth that was binding him sprung to life and sprouted vines that started wrapping around itself, forming about two meter long makeshift rope. It then wrapped itself around the wrist of the guard.

He pulled out a small knife from somewhere and cut the vine that was binding his legs.

-Stand up. We are moving.

-I thought we were supposed to leave tomorrow?

-Yes, but I am not risking the escape of this one. With this wound and an additional… baggage… - he looked at me. - I am not taking any chances.

-Rude. But understandable. Lead the way then.

I stood up and followed him outside the building. The innkeeper first was resisting a bit, but after a smack in the head with a hilt of a dagger he changed his mind and followed suit.

He led us to the ruined house, the one with the sprouted tree. For the first time I was able to see up close the destruction that a fast growing tree can make.

The front of the house was completely destroyed. The base of the tree was about where the main door used to be. The back wall of the first room was distorted by the roots that rapidly spread through the wooden floor, in similar fashion to the tree back in the inn. The roof was mostly destroyed by the branches that sprouted right through it, and was now a pile of rubble in the attic of the house. I couldn't really tell from that side, but the back of the house seemed mostly intact.

And in the middle of where the room used to be there was indeed a person. Or to be clear - a body.

I could now clearly see that that was the other guard - the same guy that was guarding the stalls with the other one. He was wearing the same armor and he had a similar looking wound in the middle of his stomach. But it was a lot worse. He was pierced through with a long, sharp wooden spike that was lying broken a bit further away, covered in blood.

Something that looked like a base of that spike was sticking out from the floor behind the tree.

And most importantly - he was most definitely dead.

I expected that already, but seeing an actual corpse up close is definitely a different experience. Especially of someone you saw not so long ago alive and kicking.

I just stopped in the middle of the street and stood there, unsure what to do with myself.

Seeing a dead body up close did not shake me as much as expected, but still was not a pleasant experience.

-I am sorry for bringing you here - the guard started, kneeling by the corpse - but before we leave I have to take care of this mess.

I did not answer.

He picked the body up and carried it into the forest. We followed him, the bound innkeeper didn't have much choice in the matter really, but since we got here he was glaring at the corpse and the guard with a weird expression on his face. I couldn't really place it, but if I was to guess, it was a mix of guilt and hate. And maybe a bit of fear.

After a minute of a walk, the guard stopped and placed the body by one of the trees. He fixed him into a sitting position and then cast a spell.

The tree sprouted some new branches, just by the ground. Like vines, they started wrapping around the body, slowly growing thicker and thicker. Soon enough, the layer of wood covered it whole, and after another minute it disappeared completely. It just looked like a tree trunk with a growth on the side and a slightly thicker root.

That was definitely an unusual way to have a funeral, but considering the circumstances, it was quite nice. I slowly started to feel sorry for the guy.

-I am done - he said after a while.

He stood up, clutching his wound again.

-I know that's a bit rude, but care to explain a little bit about… that? - I gestured towards the broken house.

-He resisted arrest - he replied dryly. - I acted in self defense.

-Self defense… with a tree?

-Yes.

-And the other person…

-We got attacked. We both got hit. I got lucky. He didn't.

-I am sorry for your loss - I said, feeling like I won't get anything more out of him on this subject.

-You don't have to. I did not know him for long. We just got paired up for this job.

That was a bit cold, but I couldn't help but notice that he was shaking. I guess seeing someone die in front of you would do that to you.

I decided to not push him and just dropped the subject.

-So we are ready to leave? Any other unfinished business?

-You seem to be eager to leave - He pointed out, calming down his shivering. - Any particular reason?

-Not really. After you arrested this guy there is basically no one left on the island besides us. Why would I want to stay here?

His expression changed dramatically. He was now on full alert.

-Basically no one? What did that supposed to mean? Have you seen somebody? Who? Where?

-Whoa, easy… - he surprised me with that barrage of questions. - What's up with that reaction?

-Answer - he touched his ring, looking at me with suspicion.

In the corner of my eye I noticed that the bound man was now also looking at me. But his look was almost like he was begging for something. This situation was something I did not expect. But I think I knew what the innkeeper was on about.

-Calm down. As I got here some stupid merchant scammed me for quite a bit of gold. I thought he might be still here, because I didn't believe that guy - I pointed at the innkeeper - but if you say you checked everywhere, he must have really fled as soon as he could. I guess I won't get my money back.

-A merchant?

-Yes. Weren't you there? I am pretty sure you even saw me enter the town for the first time. What's this all about?

-Nothing - he took his hand off his gem. - I thought you found someone else.

-You mean you are looking for someone here? What, his partner in crime?

He didn't answer.

I had a good idea who he was looking for. If that merchant was not his target, as far as I knew there was only one person that was in this town. The kid. That would also explain the looks that the innkeeper was giving me during this exchange.

For whatever reason, this guy was after his son. I had a good idea where the kid might be hidden, and the innkeeper knew that. Even if he was indeed a wanted criminal, I did not feel like giving up a kid to this man just yet. Especially after that clear display of hostility.

For now I decided to get off this, apparently sensitive, topic.

-So where are we going now? You still did not tell me that.

-To the ship. We are leaving.

-You know, I was in the port today and haven't seen any boats over there. You said it's hidden but it's hard to believe that I missed a whole ship.

-But you did. It was hidden with magic when we got here, so it was to be expected.

-Ooh, impressive. I didn't know such spells existed.

That was a lie. I expected that it was hidden with magic, but judging by what the hag told me, he shouldn't be able to use more than one element. Was he an "abomination" as well?

-Is he really worth that much of an effort? - I continued the conversation. - Something like that must not be easy to pull off. How much is he worth?

-What, you looking for a cut?

Ha, so there was a bounty.

-No, no, I don't want to have anything to do with this. I am just curious, that's all.

-100 platinum. And anyone found accompanying him twice as much.

I had no idea how much that was, but It was safe to assume that platinum was more expensive than gold by quite a bit. That also explained why he was so persistent about the search.

-That a nice sum. What the hell did he do? And why so much more for others?

-He is known for illegal slave trade, and he apparently enslaved someone he shouldn't have, thus the higher price for others, to guarantee their safety.

That was alarming. Illegal slave trade? That clearly meant that a legal one existed. And that was not good news.

Not letting this revelation change my expression I continued our talk like nothing happened.

-Ah, I get it, you hope that I am one of those people so you get some more money.

He twitched. I guessed right.

-No. I can tell that you are not one of his slaves. But that does not mean I am going to leave you on this deserted island.

I started doubting that it was his good heart that guided him to that decision.

Well, whatever his reasoning was, this was the easiest way to get to the continent, so I didn't mind. I planned to ditch them as soon as possible anyway.

After a brief march, we finally reached the port. Nothing changed since I last was there, that included the distinct lack of boats.

I stopped on the pier and looked expectantly at my escort.

Without a word, looking down at his feet, he walked past me a few steps. Then he turned right towards the water… and disappeared.

-What in the…

The space where he disappeared in, started now weirdly pulsing, and the image of the water was distorted.

The rope that he had wrapped around his arm was floating above the water, disappearing into this weird pulsing distortion in the air.

Following it, I leaned forward and as soon as I reached the point where the rope vanished, I felt something hard.

There, in the space where he disappeared, I could feel something like a dome, cold to the touch. Every time I touched it, the distortion pulsed, letting me see parts of the bubble. I couldn't really tell how big it was, but it definitely stretched as far as I could reach with my hand, without falling into the water.

-Give me a second - I heard from somewhere in front of me.

Seconds later, I almost lost my balance, because the invisible thing I was leaning on disappeared, or rather it appeared for a second - it was a big blue bubble floating in the water - and then vanished, revealing a boat, and on the deck there was the guard, holding in his hand a blue crystal, as big as his head.

-Get on.

Without much of a thought I climbed on, using a small ladder made of vines, similar to those that I've seen him use to tie down the innkeeper.

The ship was about 6 meters in length and 2 in width. On the deck there was a small cabin that extended below the deck, on top of which there was a large, green sail. On the back side there was a rudder, and that was about it. It was pretty primitive if you ask me, but a boat is a boat. There was also the matter of the weird spell that was hiding it beforehand.

The guard now started to pull the innkeeper to the deck, but making a bound man climb a ladder wasn't exactly an easy task, especially when the person of interest is not exactly keen on cooperating.

Using that as a distraction, I started inspecting the crystal, which was now lying on the floor near the main cabin.

It was unusually light for its size, but besides that seemed similar to all other gems I've seen so far. It was almost see-through though, which I found odd, considering it was used to fuel such an interesting spell. I tried lifting it to the light, to take a better look and thanks to that I realized something - the crystal wasn't light nor see-through. It was hollow. It was just a shell that got used up and was now at its last legs.

As I put down the crystal, my "companion" finally managed to get the prisoner up the deck and started dragging him below the deck.

Downstairs was pretty barren, it was just an empty room with a round table in the middle. I couldn't see very well in the dark, but there was a magic circle burned into the table top, with a three legged circular stand in the middle. I couldn't decipher the spell itself without light, but I assumed that was what the crystal was for.

The guard dragged the prisoner into the furthest corner of the room and then bound his legs again, using the rope that he was using as a leash up till now.

Then he went back and brought the crystal back from the deck and placed it on the stand.

Instantly, the whole room lit up with a glow of the crystal and I started feeling an uncomfortable tingling in my arm.

-Done - he exclaimed. - We can sail now.

He again went back on the deck, but this time he started hoisting the sails and preparing for departure.

I followed him outside. Now the blue bubble was back. It was surrounding the whole boat from every side, and, looking down, it was even under the water.

That was some interesting spell, but I couldn't stop wondering how long it's gonna last.