Jeff Inlo - Chain of Bargains

Whether it was true or not was immaterial. He was forced to acknowledge the severity of his situation and the limitations of his knowledge. He could not fight supernatural powers and hope to survive.

With nothing else to do, Ryson eyed a path to the border of the city. Full retreat, even perhaps leaving the valleys entirely, seemed his only option. He would travel as far as necessary to lose the inferns. He did not wish to leave Holli behind in Ashlan, but he was out of options. He hoped that as long as he carried the beacon stone, she would be able to find him.

With absolute clarity, Holli could sense the magical pulse from both stones, almost see them like two separate strings of light cutting through a dark room. The single beacon that flowed from the rocks when they were merged together in Ryson's possession had broken apart. One vibration had turned into two, and she could follow them both through their magical tremors. She understood the meaning. Ryson had discarded one of the stones in order to summon her, and she would not delay in finding him.

After exiting the house of the spell caster Brenn, Holli remained upon the rooftops. She wished to avoid attention as she could ill afford any distractions. Honing in upon the signals, she assessed the qualities of both. One beacon created a distinct and direct line of magic. It did not move-not by lengthening or shortening, or by changing its angle of approach. She could almost pluck at it like a string on an instrument.

The second stone also beckoned her, but its signal wavered and trembled. The line of magic vibrated almost violently, as if it was connected to a large fish trying to escape a hook in its mouth. She knew it was that stone which Ryson held.

Narrowing first on the position of the unmoving stone, Holli fixed the direction of the beacon to a distinct section of the city. She used it to assist her, help her keep track of course and distance. It formed a clear reference point, but to locate the delver, she would have to follow the moving beacon.

In mere moments, she realized reaching him would be no easy task. Ryson was moving with great intensity. The trail of magic to the beacon stone he carried fluctuated as if it was being tossed about in a twister. Only Ryson's speed could account for the furious movement. Following the trail of magic was like trying to draw a line to an angry hornet buzzing furiously around its nest.

With the delver running in such a relentless fashion, she worried about his well-being. In fact, she began to imagine the worst, and she prepared for a full-blown encounter with human guards, goblins, and inferns. She could not imagine what else would press him into such wild abandon.

Her concerns were not without merit for the truth became plain as she continued to monitor the progress of the magical signal. If Ryson simply wished to meet with the elf, he would have found an area of safety after discarding the first stone. There would be no reason to dash through city streets, and such movement would be counterproductive.

After a few moments, however, the hectic pulses of the beacon began to subside. Ryson was slowing and the elf believed he had probably outraced any danger or found a place of sanctuary. Her relief was short-lived.

Before she saw anything, she felt it. The beacon stone in Ryson's possession lit up with a wave of power beyond her original casting. Instead of simply transmitting a pulse outward, she sensed energy surging back to the stone. Holli could feel the demon fire burning across the waves of energy like a brush fire stoked by high winds during the dry season.

From the very area she assessed as Ryson's location, she saw a bright flare light up the night, as if white lightning exploded, not from the sky, but at a localized point on the ground. Horrified, Holli understood the implications of such a burst.

Mystic fire could appear at the whim of a demon-even a half-demon. As long as the dark creature maintained a bond with its target, it could spread fire across any space, even through dimensions. Holli knew an infern had somehow obtained the discarded beacon stone and was using it as a direct link to the other rock held by Ryson. Even a delver could not outrun demon fire. He could race all the way to the far western coast, and still he would be vulnerable.

Leaping from rooftop to rooftop, she hoped to reach the delver as quickly as possible. She doubted she had to concern herself with drawing any attention. She expected Ryson was creating enough commotion to keep any guards and inferns occupied throughout the city.

Unfortunately, his twists and turns made reaching him even more difficult than she expected. She would never be able to catch him if she attempted to close in from behind. In order to contact him, she would have to anticipate his forward path and try to cut him off.

While Holli followed the chaotic path of the delver, she knew it was not totally random. His route had not been direct, but it had not been circular, either. He was trying to escape a certain point, probably the place of some initial encounter. Examining his direction, she believed she understood what area he was trying to leave, and to her fortune, he was moving toward her as opposed to away from her. If not, she doubted she could have caught him.

Racing across the rooftops, Holli saw several more bursts of fire. She also continued to sense the movement of the delver's stone. In that, she found hope, for as long as the stone moved, she knew Ryson was alive.

Tracking his path, the elf noted another distinct pattern. The delver was holding to alleys and side streets. He fought hard to remain within tight corridors. She knew it was a false hope to escape detection, but she also knew the delver well enough to understand his tactics. There was, however, one main avenue that Ryson would not be able to avoid if he maintained his direction. From up high, she could review his most likely path. Once he stumbled into the wider well-lit street, she believed he would quickly exit to a lesser traveled path.

Making her best guess, she positioned herself upon a tall building that overlooked two narrow alleys on both of its sides. If the delver stayed on his current course, he would break into the main avenue several blocks ahead of her. It was enough of a buffer for her to intercept him. Unfortunately, she had to anticipate his movements. If he turned left, she would have to chase him. That would be disastrous, but if he moved to his right or advanced directly across the avenue, she could cut him off.

As the delver dashed onto the main street and made an immediate left turn, Holli cursed, but she did not hesitate. She leapt from the building to a neighboring rooftop, then down to the ground. Once on the streets, she made her own dash. In the back of her mind, she had already formed a contingency plan and she carried it out as her last hope.

In a second instant, she was immediately torn between hope and horror. She could sense the delver slowing on the wide street ahead of her. She believed he worried over the humans nearby. The pause would allow her additional time to reposition herself, but it would also place Ryson in grave danger.

As expected, she felt the demon fire rage through her magical connection to the beacon stone. The night lit up with another flash of white light, but still the beacon stone moved. Ryson had escaped the assault, but it had been very close.

She felt yet another blast of demon fire, but the delver had again dodged the strike. He was moving again, making a mad dash to save his life.

In analyzing Ryson's movements, Holli believed she sensed a sudden change in the delver's strategy, and she saw his ultimate objective. The delver was heading out of Ashlan. She knew it wouldn't save him, but Ryson couldn't understand that. He was grasping at hope-a hope that was in itself false-but the path he chose might actually lead to salvation, if Holli was quick enough.