67: Star Child: Dunes of Tolapo XXVIII

"Leave it to a American peasant to rely on such inferior weapons." Damon scoffed.

"Ass lord you've been unconscious for days after nearly dying thanks to your own stupidity. You are the last person that should be talking about inferiority." I said curtly.

Damon scowled at me then stomped toward me. He forgot that Bone-lasher was just around the corner. The moment he stepped towards me Bone-lasher poked his blood soaked head around the corner and growled at him.

Damon paled and squeaked then took a few steps back, even Alberto paled a little. I rolled my eyes then turned to Bone-lasher.

"Is there anyone nearby?" I asked. Bone-lasher lifted his head and sniffed then growled loudly.

[Four more running this way!] Bone replied.

"Wait what?" I exclaimed. "Why running?"

"What's going on?" Baset asked.

"Bone says I there are four more soldiers running our way!" I replied. Everyone's eyes grew wide and started to panic.

[They are just barely visible to me, it will take then a while to get here.] Bone-lasher updated me.

[Thanks.] I said.

"We have time before they get here. Let's not be here when they arrive." I said.

Bone-lasher turned around and ran towards the front door and crashed through it, leaving a massive hole. I ran after him and the others followed closely behind.

Bone-lasher was already on the rood of the house across the road when I made it outside. He turned to me and I felt like he was waiting for instructions. I turned and looked to Iris.

"Can you understand the language here in Niger?" I asked. She shrugged.

"If they speak Arabic and French then yes. If they speak a regional dialect then no." Iris replied.

"All I heard was yes, Bone grab her and keep up!" I exclaimed as I channeled volt attribute mana into my legs. I jumped to the roof that Bone-lasher as perched on as Bone-lasher jumped down and flicked Iris onto his back.

"Wait? What?!" Iris screamed as she held onto Bone-lasher's fin for balance and support. Bone-lasher jumped back up to the roof and followed closely as I raced towards the direction of the incoming soldiers.

<We're going to do something stupid.> I said to Iris via the telepathic link. I was grateful it was still up. I left the channel open so Jane and Astrid could also gear back with the group.

<All we ever do is stupid stuff Chase, so what's new!> Iris snapped back.

<We're going to capture one of the soldiers so we can figure out what their end goal is.> I explained.

<Actually Chase as far as your plans go this is pretty smart.> Jane said.

<First time for everything…> Astrid said.

<Ow! My pride…> I said sarcastically.

Thanks to Bone-lasher sharing his vision I could tell exactly where the soldiers were. They were running down a alley with a lot of turns and bends, plenty of places to set up a ambush. I skidded to a stop on the roof at the far end of the alley and Bone-lasher stopped beside me. The soldiers would be vulnerable when they turned the corner and ran down the strip. I pulled the Skazzas off my shoulder as I knelt down then looked down the sights.

'Just like hunting thrads, just like hunting thrads, just like hunting thrads…' I told myself over and over again.

The first and second soldiers rushed around the corner into the kill zone but I didn't fire yet. I waited until I saw the third solider run around. I zeroed in on the third soldier and fired without thinking. The deafening pop from the Skazzas was followed by a spray of crimson as the soldier lurched back from the wound in the chest. I fired a second shot hitting its target as well then turned and switched targets to the second soldier and fired once more, hitting center mass and dropping him instantly.

The first soldier reacted before I had a chance to turn and fire at him and he ducked into a small doorway that provided partial cover.

<Tri-clops knock him out.> I ordered. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Iris jump down from Bone-lasher and start casting a enchantment spell sigil. A small ball of gas formed in front of her hand then shot out and hit the ground beside the doorway. A huge cloud of gas expanded enveloping the area and the soldier. He came stumbling out of the could coughing and wheezing before he collapsed on the ground.

<Got him!> Iris exclaimed Triumphantly.

"Good…." I felt a sudden wave of nausea come over me as bile rose in my throat. I scrambled to the edge of roof and vomited violently onto the alley below. I heaved at least ten times before my stomach finally settled. I wiped my mouth and sat up to look at Iris. She had a sympathetic look on her face.

"First time killing a human." It was a statement, not a question. I nodded and stood up shouldering my Skazzas.

"I pretended they were thrads. Made it easier to pull the trigger." I replied then felt my stomach heave again. I covered my mouth and forced myself to swallow back whatever was coming up.

"I'm surprised you decided to kill them and not knock then out." Iris said.

"I killed those soldiers in the square." I said.

"You had the sonic vipers kill the ones in the square. This is your first time you killing a human yourself."

"Yeah, none of them can make it out of the village alive. Not even the Paragon. It'll put the village at risk, my Auntie at risk." I looked away and clutched the strap of my Skazzas tightly.

"Lets hurry and grab that guy and get out of here." Iris said.

[Bone?] I asked. The gas had dissipated at this point and it was safe to approach the soldier. Bone-lasher jumped down off the roof and rushed over and collected the soldier with surprising delicacy and carried him over to us.

<We got a soldier, did you guys move somewhere else already?> I asked over a open channel.

<Yeah, we're heading hunkering down in a abandoned house. You all should be able to get to it quickly.> Jane replied.

[I see them…] Bone-lasher said.

<We'll be there soon.> I replied.

We arrived at the abandoned house in no time, it was pretty easy to get inside since their was a giant hole in the roof from the recent attack. Iris quickly secured the hostage to a chair with some rope Jane found in the house then cast a utility spell over the room.

"I can't believe you a actually managed to capture one of them." Baset said. I shrugged then looked up at Bone-lasher through the hole in the roof.

"Pretty easy when you can see where they are going almost two miles away." I said.

[I'm the best hunter!] Bone-lasher purred proudly.

[That remainsssss to be ssssssseen!] Alpa'nagia sneered.

[Don't you two start!] I warned sternly. Bone-lasher growled lowly then returned to my crystal. Alpa'nagia hissed and retreated further into his space.

"We're going to start the interrogation now…" Baset said grabbing a knife from the kitchen. "Thanks to Iris no one can hear outside of this room. So if you're squeamish then I suggest going into the other room."

"Thanks for the warning." I said then started to walk into the next room.

"Of course a peasant can't stomach a little wet work." Damon said. Which gained a roll of eyes from everyone in the room except for Alberto.

Jane and Astrid followed me into the other room but didn't get a snide comment from Damon like I had. While the room the others were in would have been considered the living room, this one looked to be a study. There was a small desk in the center of the room surrounded by hundreds of old tomes stacked from the floor almost to the ceiling.

Jane walked over and picked a tome off one of the smaller stacks and flipped through it. She groaned loudly a second later and closed the book.

"Of course I can't read it." She sighed.

I took the book from her and flipped to the first page, much to my surprise it was written in the Runic language using rather simple words too. I was surprised she couldn't understand it.

"It's Runic, I can read Runic kinda. You should still be able to." I said then switched to Torapos. "Can you understand me?"

Jane scrunched her face and shook her head.

"It sounds like gibberish again…" Jane said.

"Same here." Astrid said from the door.

"Spell must have worn off then." I said then looked around the room for some paper and a pen. I found some in a drawer in the desk then moved to a wall and started writing a spell sigil. The door opened and Damon and Alberto came stumbling into the room. Both looked a little green around the gills. Surprisingly no sound came in from the other room.

"Something wrong?" Astrid asked, cocking a eyebrow at her teammates.

"N-not at all! Lady Baset just wanted us to check on you three." Damon quickly said.

"You two weren't in there very long." Jane observed.

"We're not really needed there. Too many cooks and all that." Alberto replied.

"Whatever." I said dismissively as I kept on writing the sigil. Damon scowled and stomped over to me.

"And what are you doing?" He demanded.

"Deciding if I want to let Bone-lasher eat you." I said curtly, only partly joking.

Bone-lasher growled in anticipation, I could feel a deep longing to do permanent and lasting damage it Damon.

Damon curled his upper lip at me then saw what I was doing to the paper. He watched me for a moment the scoffed.

"Are you drawing a spell sigil? Like that is going work." He cackled.

"It does work." Astrid said then walked over to Damon and grabbed him by his arm and started dragging him away.. "Now leave him alone so he can work."

"Are you serious Astrid?" Alberto asked. Astrid turned and nodded.

"We were fighting a ascended viper thingys and during the middle of the battle he just starts writing a spell sigil. The spell he wrote was able to kill hundreds of thousands of them all at once…" Astrid replied.

Both Damon's and Alberto's eyes widened in shock then they both quickly looked to me. I finished up the spell sigil I was working on then held it out to Jane.

"Hold this." I said. Jane walked over and grabbed the spell sheet, looking it over. I walked back over to the desk and grabbed a few more pieces of paper then returned to my spot on the wall and started writing another spell.

"What spell us this?" Jane asked.

"That spell I used to allow you all to understand Torapos." I replied without looking up from my work. "I'm calling it Rosetta Stone."

"Like the tablet the ancient pharaohs inscribed with the Runic language?" Astrid asked. I paused then turned and looked at Astrid.

"That's what it is? I thought it was the name of some kind of translation school or something." I replied.

"You can write out a spell in the Runic language but you know nothing about the single most important splicing artifact related to the Runic language?" Alberto balked incredulously.

"He was born in a country that hates splicers, I can understand him not knowing." Astrid said.

"Thanks…" I said then went back to writing my spell.

"What's up with you Astrid, why are you suddenly acting so nice to the peasant?" Damon demanded.

"Did you lose your duel?" Alberto probed.

"No, she backed out." I said, only slightly bitter. Damon and Alberto gasped and then turned to look at their teammate.

"YOU DID WHAT?" They both shouted.

"Do you two need to shout that loud?" Jane exclaimed.

"Why would you back out of a duel with that peasant! He's a nobody! A no talent nothing!" Damon exclaimed. He was so caught out in his outburst that he spat a little in Astrid's face. Astrid wiped off the globs of spit then frowned at Damon.

"He might be a nobody but he is not talentless. In the short time that he has been at the college he has come to understand more than most scholars learn their entire lifetime." Astrid replied.

"It only took him a week to understand the Runic language." Jane said.

'My understanding is only basic.' I thought as I finished the second spell sigil I was working on. I held that one out to Jane as well and she quickly took it from me. I then started on a third one.

"Not to mention what he did that Transcended viper thingy.." Astrid added.

"I was trying to heal Alpa!" I exclaimed.

"Your evo can talk now Chase! I'd say you went overboard a little bit!" Astrid snapped back.

"Jealous…" I said looking up from my work only to flash her a cocky smile. Astrid's jaw tensed then she folded her arms and glared at me.

"What spell are you even making now?" She demanded.

"A new one, hope it works." I said curtly. "The last one is a offensive spell I'm calling frostveil way."

The door opened again and Iris walked inside. She looked completely unfazed by whatever she'd witnessed in the other room. When she saw me against the wall writing a spell she sighed walked over to Jane.

"Making crazy spells again?" Iris asked.

"Yes." Jane replied. "Though one of them is that translation spell, with all of us in here we can use it."

"Good, Lady Baset is wrapping up with the interrogation. He spoke french." Iris said.

"Does she know what's going on?" Astrid asked. Iris nodded.

"Yes she does…and Chase, you are not going to like it…" Iris said.