24

Jace stepped over the corpses of the dead as he walked towards the last remaining thug, the young man was frozen in fear. Face pale and hands clutching his sword in a white knuckled grip. "Where is she."

The young thug swallowed and tried to stop his body from trembling, he opened and closed his mouth a few times in an attempt to talk, eventually he got enough control over his nerves but kept eyeing the blood that was floating around him. "T-they probably took her to the new wing, the boss created a new team to gather slaves. Bad business I say but who listens to the new guy! I'm just trying to survive here man, I swear I had nothing to do with your daughter, the new wing is down that tunnel! The boss has his place down there too!"

Jace eyed him a few times, he nodded and turned. His armored boots splashed on blood as a carpet of the crimson fluid created a path for him, pushin aside the corpses. He barely noted its presence. He heard the thug collapse to the floor behind him, Jace let him live. The young man didn't smell off… Yet. he walked towards a closed double door, the blood coagulated into a fist and smashed through the wood. The blood swirled back around him, a loving life-blood serpent wanting attention from its master.

The dark tunnel flew by as he ran through. Eventually he entered another room this one covered in cages stacked on top of each other. His eyes sped through the room, untill he found a child curled into fetal-position sobbing. The blood charged forward and ripped the cage to shreds, the slaves in the other cages shrunk back into the wall. The child sat up and stared at him through teary eyes. Her sobbing stopped as she saw who it was, she rushed forward and tackled him, sobbing into his arms, he picked her up and held her to his chest. The other slaves looked on curious, Jace stroked her hair and then swept his gaze over the other cages, many of them filled. All of the humans were female, a lot of them young. The rest was filled with races that he had never really seen before. They must be rare and worth a decent amount.

The blood charged forward at his whim and tore the cages to shreds the prisoners flinched but then carefully made their way out of the cages. Jace looked around at them and then patted Aziva on the head. "Stay with your aunt." He picked her up and pushed her into Weira's arms, who lovingly wrapped around her. He looked from her to Plip, then swept his gaze over the rest of the people. "Watch over them."

The blood followed him as he continued on through the tunnel at the far end, he heard shouting and angry orders. It was time to chop the snake's head of. The prisoners behind him watched him round the corner and flinched when they heard the screams of pain and terror from further down into the dark. As scared as they seemed, they relaxed upon hearing those screams, they stared tentatively at the two people left behind to watch over them. Weira stood with Aziva in her arms, "We will wait for his return, then we will escort you ot of this hell-hole."

The people started muttering excitedly to one another. Meanwhile Jace was tearing his way through the thug's desperate last stand. Even elite scum was nothing but scum, he made that clear as his blade danced through arteries, adding to the furiously swirling swarm of blood around him. The thugs at the end of the hall started retreating pulling back into the last room. He smashed the reinforced steel door, and saw it dent under his assault. The blood pulled back and smashed forward tearing it of its hinges.

Inside a bald man missing an ear was holding a knife to the throat of a beatifull young child. She was a race he had never seen before, she had four elongated ears that were elf-like, two on each side of her head, her hair was bright orange and bright blue. It seemed more like stalks of grass than strands of hair, her teeth were sharp and pointed. Her eyes were a deep red, with bright blue pupils. She was small, perhaps four feet tall. Jace paused and eyed the man.

"Come any closer and I'll slit her throat."

Jace stopped walking, the blood rising behind him like a tidal wave. The bald man eyed it nervously. "Why are you attacking my people and destroying my home!"

Jace's eyes narrowed as he glared at the man. "Your people kidnapped my daughter and near-killed my wife. She may not survive."

The bald man cursed, "I told those idiots to investigate who they were kidnapping." He glared at an extremely buff man standing next to him. "I TOLD YOU TO DO A BACKGROUND CHECK!"

The buff man raised his hands, "We did boss! He's only a silver ranked adventurer!"

"Silver ranked my ass!" The bald man threw out another string of curses and glared at Jace, "I assume your daughter was in the previous room, Take her and leave."

Jace folded his arms, "I think not."

The man pressed his blade against the girls neck, she didn't so much as squeak and instead glared at the surrounding thugs with venom in her eyes. Jace put a hand on his blade, ready to draw. "Give the girl to me and I won't slaughter the lot of you."

The bald man hesitated, then frowned, he rolled his shoulders. "Swear upon the god of contracts and I will."

Jace frowned and shrugged, he was not so far gone in emotions that he would let an innocent die to sate his thirst for blood. "I, Jace, adoptive grandson of Trishla Hillmorr, friend of Jisarila Vin to Shurka, Prospective Knight of the Vin To Shurk family, Silver ranked adventurer, Father to a kidnapped daughter, Husband to a near death wife do hereby swear to the god of contracts to not kill this man and his scumbag friends should they release the girl into my care."

The bald man paled further as he listened to Jace, when he was done he released the girl and took his knife to the buff man and started stabbing him while screaming. "YOU KIDNAPPED THE SLOW MARCH OF DEATH'S FUCKING FAMILY?! YOU DOOMED US ALL YOU BLOODY IDIOT!"

Jace held his hand out to the girl, she looked at his hand and ignored it and stood by his side, her eyebrows raised. Jace shrugged, "I did swear." He turned around and left the tunnel back to the cave where the slaves had been kept. Weira raised an eyebrow as he stepped into the room. "We can hear the man screaming from over here, you didn't kill him?"

Jace smiled softly, "I swore on the god of contracts that I, Jace, would not kill him." He looked from Plip to Weira. "Neither of you are named Jace."

Bloodthirst seeped from the Plip's hood, Weira twirled her halberd. She looked up to him, her eyes hard. "Understood."

Weira and Plip walked off into the tunnel, the strange girl looked up at him. She smiled a bloodthirsty grin, Jace smiled back at her. "I am a man of my word after all."

A furred man stepped forward, he looked every part a werewolf. His voice however was smooth, with an accent pleasing to the ear. "Is it true what we heard, you are family to The Slow March of Death?"

Jace shrugged, "Kinda, doubt grans would do anything about it though. Our lives are our own to live."

The werewolf nodded and then stared at him and the blood surrounding him, he then looked at the little girl who had wrapped herself around his leg. Next he looked at the strange girl with the sharp teeth. "What is it you plan to do with us?"

The other prisoners stiffened and perked their ears. Jace shrugged, "I will get you out of here and then you are free to do whatever it is you wish to do with your life."

The werewolf nodded and bowed slightly, "That would be appreciated, we thank you for your timely arrival."

Jace looked at him and smirked, "Didn't come here for you or the others, you just happened to be here when they took my daughter."

The werewolf stood up and straightened himself out, standing at an impressive eight feet. "Regardless, we owe you our freedom and perhaps our lives. There will come a time were I will repay this debt."

Jace shrugged again, "Suit yourself."

Plip and Weira returned, a bit more blood on their armour and weapons than had been there before. Jace picked Aziva up in his arms, "Lets get out of here, I have had enough of tunnels to last me a while."

Jace led the procession of former prisoners out of the cave system and into the inn which was now empty, he stepped outside the inns door only to be immediately surrounded by wall of steel. Aziva froze and the girl with the sharp teeth hissed and lowed herself. A man in full plate armour stood behind a wall of pikes. Jisarila stood next to the man, ramrod straight and in uniform. "You are placed under arrest, you will have to come with us for questioning!" Jace glanced at Jisarila who nodded.

Jace took of his belt and sheath and placed it on the floor, he put his shield on top. The blood that was still floating in the air around hem flew into his armour and seeped into the metal, turning it crimson. Jace raised his hands, "I surrender, I was the only one who fought in the streets and these people are merely here by coincidence, patrons of the inn." He pointed a thumb to the people behind him. The werewolf growled slightly and several other people frowned and looked unhappy.

Jace turned his back to the guards, he sank to a knee and put a hand on Aziva's head and rubbed her hair. "Go with your aunt and Plip. Pops has some things to take care off first." Tears appeared in her eyes as she desperately clutched his pants. She wasn't stupid, she knew that being arrested was bad. Weira tore her away from Jace, eyeing the guards nervously. Jace stepped towards the guards, calmly, with his hands behind his head. He looked over to Jisarila, "My wife?"

She nodded, "She will live."

Jace took a deep breath and looked up at the sky, "That is good." Men stepped forward and put him in cuffs, not the thin metal things the cops back home use but massive things of black iron. He let them cuff him and followed as he was escorted to wherever the guard was based. He looked over at Jisarila, "How bad was it, will she make a full recovery?"

Jisa frowned and shook her head. "I am truly sorry Jace, the injuries were severe, even worse than they seemed on the surface. It is doubtful that she will ever be able to walk again. I put our own private healer mage at her service, she is one of the best. It does not look good, your young mage friend is the only reason she managed to survive."

Jace's shoulders sagged, "At least she survived, I owe Qyra a drink."

The captain of the guard that was escorting them frowned at the conversation between the two, "May I know what happened. All I am aware of is that someone was slaughtering citizens and frightening numerous people. It has been… hectic."

Jace looked over at the man, "Slavers nearly killed my wife and kidnapped my daughter, I simply got her back."

The captain of the guard frowned, "The Bloody Ears gang? Branched out into slavery now huh." The man spit on the ground, "Seems you did us a favour." Jisarila glared at the captain. Who quickly backpedaled, "I mean, uuh, don't just go killing people."

Jace smirked and the captain was trying hard to keep a smile off his face. Jisarila glared at the two of them, to little effect. "This is a disaster Jace, the guard has had trouble with slavers in the city later, we had a guy in undercover to lead us to the source. We had planned to raid them when they met with the slavers and catch the entire group at once! If you killed the undercover guard we have a big issue."

"Young man, blue eyes, shaved head, with a little stubble?"

Jisarila and the captain blinked and stared at each other. "That's the one, his name is Rimm."

Jace nodded, "You can relax, he's fine. No wonder he smelled off, he was a guard trying to save people. Can't speak for his mental state though, I think I might have given him some nightmares. Sorry about ruining the raid, there won't be anyone alive for you to use now."

They both froze and stared at him, "None?"

Jace shrugged, "Pretty sure I got them all."

The captain cursed, then shrugged. "We know where they were planning to meet the slaver, we'll just have capture them and get more information out of the slavers."

Jace turned to the captain. "Have fun." The man smiled, "I will."

Jisarila sighed and shrugged, "We're gonna have to hold you for a day or two, my grandfather took the opportunity to add you to the list of prospective knights. Kidnapping a knights family is a crime punishable by death. It should make you taking actions in to your own hands less troublesome. Adding in that they are slavers, which is extremely despised by the people. And then the fact that it was a gang that has caused problems all over the district, people will probably be happy about the fact that you cleaned house. We can spin the story to say it was with the aid of the guard or something similar."

Jace smirked, "Politics, glad they are working in my favour for once. I guess I owe you after this."

Jisarila shrugged, "Judging by your strength, and the fact that you are now officially a knight of my family. I believe you will be able to make it up to me."

Jace grinned, "I could always ask my wife to give you a kiss, that would help."

Jisarile frowned at him, "That won't do, she is hurt." Jace sagged, then straightened. "She is strong, she will be fine.