Khenal
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Chapter Four-Hundred Eight
🕑 Added 2025-11-04 03:46:21 +0000 UTC______
Pul
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He hopes everything is going well. The thieves are mostly laying low while the funeral happens, though there are still a few out being eyes and ears. Life doesn’t stop for a bit of death, and that’s especially true for the thieves.
Though if things go well, the guild won’t be seeing another sunset. His own involvement will be a bit difficult to explain if he gets caught, but Rezlar will be able to clear things up later. Spending a few hours in a cell won’t be fun, but trying to resist a guard will probably see him there and nursing injuries.
He’ll almost be sad to see the thieves go. Not for any sense of camaraderie or anything like that. The guild is something that needs to go. He’ll just miss having access to the crafters. He doesn’t want to think about why they have the skills they do, why they can make a weapon like he requested in such a short amount of time, but he can’t argue against the quality.
While he intends to get a cleaver made at a more reputable smith, he can’t deny it’s a good idea to have something a bit more subtle, which is exactly what this blade is. It’s a design Thedeim showed on his boards that makes Pul think of a filleting knife, though the blade isn’t flexible enough for actually making fillets. It’s definitely sharp enough, though.
It’s an odd design, more handle than blade, with the entire thing having a deadly crescent shape to it. The ring at the base of the handle allows for quick adjustment of grip, and with the interior of the curve being sharpened makes Pul think of a lot of bird talons, just a lot bigger and sharper. It’s a weapon designed to hunt weak points, quick strikes before backing off, small enough to get in, just large enough to do damage to what needs it. Thedeim called it a karambit.
The smith was intrigued by the design, and didn’t even blink when Pul asked for whatever subtlety enchantments he could get for it. It has room for more enchantments, but the subtle acceptance enchantment is not the sort of thing a reputable smith would make. They probably wouldn’t want to work on it to add more, either, but that’s a problem for future Pul. For now, he has a blade that is easy for people to either forget about or easily excuse. It won’t do much in a proper fight, but getting it past security is going to be a lot easier as any guard will either ignore it or not even register it as something that doesn’t belong. He hopefully won’t need to ever use it for that, but Thedeim says being prepared means having a lot of things you hope you’ll never use.
It’s also oddly calming to practice with, definitely not play with! He’s adjusting and twirling it to practice, not because he’s bored! Being bored is probably good, though. It means the rest of the guild is relaxed, which means the funeral should be going well.
And so he sits in the main tavern area, fidgeting with his karambit and considering going to Toja’s library to see just what books she has. As if summoned by his thoughts of leisure, a rapidfire set of knocks sounds from the door. The guard glares at the door for a moment before realizing it was technically the correct knock, just sped up, so he slams open the slide to see who’s out there.
“Bernuth?”
“Let me in! Emergency!”
The wolfkin doesn’t look convinced, but it’s not his job to decide if something’s actually an emergency. It’s been an open secret that Bernuth isn’t exactly welcome anymore, but he’s probably the only one who doesn’t know. Pul would feel bad about what’ll happen to the guy, if he hadn’t been a prime source of his misery for a long time now.
He’s let in and he immediately runs for Toja’s room, and Pul can’t help but follow. For all Bernuth’s faults, he’s not really the sort to panic like this. Considering the timing… the funeral must be about over. He pauses as that thought continues, going through all the things that are about to happen if Bernuth is coming bearing warning that the authorities are on the way.
And perhaps even more importantly, the news that Rezlar lives. He might be able to sell to Toja that Thedeim improvised something to catch Rezlar, but she doesn’t think the dungeon is smart enough for that, which would mean he had to be in on it. And if Bernuth was basically kicked out for incompetence, the penalty for actual betrayal will be much more severe.
So he turns and heads for the door instead, earning a confused look from the guard.
“Aren’t you supposed to say inside, Blank? Besides, if you go, you’ll miss whatever the boss does to him.”
Pul shrugs as he opens the door. “Watching is boring.”
A heavy hand lands on his shoulder, and he doesn’t even need to turn around to know it belongs to one of Toja’s personal guards. “Blank. The boss wants a word with you.”
Pul turns to look at who has his shoulder, and despite the guard looking professionally impassive, Pul can recognize the tension in how he holds himself. He takes a moment to consider, and even consciously makes an effort to put a thoughtful look on his face.
“Alright.”
The guard relaxes just a hair before realizing Pul’s face has gone neutral. He got to use the enchantment earlier than he expected. A quick flick is all it takes to rob the guard of his grip, though not of his hand. There’s so much in a hand, and a small cut just so is all it takes to make it impossible to hold anything.
Pul doesn’t stick around to see what else the guard might try, and instead bolts out the door. He can hear shouts of him being a traitor, but they are quickly drowned out by the shouts of alarm. The military’s here.
He’d be happier about that if he couldn’t hear feet stomping after him. He darts through the alleys of the thieves territory, trying to think of something to do. The first idea is to go running to the military, but he quickly discards that. If he could calmly approach, he could be easily arrested, which would be fine. But with someone still hot on his heels, it’ll look more like he’s trying to break through their lines, and they might attack him.
He needs to deal with his pursuer first. Even with being mindful of his own steps, it seems the one chasing him doesn’t need to hear him to keep the trail. It also doesn’t help that he can see the military marching through the wider streets, methodically tightening the net around the thieves guild and restricting the places he can use to try to ditch his tail.
A wall of stone erupts at the end of the alley he chooses to try next, trapping him with whoever is chasing him… someone with earth affinity, apparently. Pul still strides further into the alley before turning, waiting for his opponent to show up.
One of Toja’s guards steps into view, wide enough that escaping around him will be nigh impossible, and that size isn’t fat, but muscle. He pulls a short club from his belt and levels it at Pul.
"I thought Bernuth was in the middle of a bad pipe, but then you bail, and now the army is here? I’m gonna bring you back to the boss, Blank. Come quietly, and I won’t even have to break anything to do it.”
Pul scoffs. “Like you won’t beat me to a pulp for hurting the other guy’s hand.”
He smirks. “Boss did say you’re a smart kid. But you shouldn’t have let me set up.” He flicks his club and sends a section of wall slamming across the alley, trying to crush Pul with a surprise attack. But earth affinity is easy to spot at work, once you know what to look for.
Or rather: what to listen for. Pull moves before the wall does, darting back before sprinting forward. The guard’s eyes widen as he forgoes grander attacks, and instead tries to catch Pul with singular bricks and stones.
He follows the pull of his class advancement, just barely out of his reach, as he weaves around the attacks. There’s a rhythm to the assault… and the guard’s eyes practically scream which brick or stone will be moving, and where to. It slows his advancement toward his foe to dodge, but taking any of those attacks would not end well for him.
“Hold still!” shouts the guard as Pul gets close enough for the earth attacks to halt, forcing his opponent to engage him with the club. Pul would prefer to hang back a little to bait out a swing and zip in, but if he doesn’t keep on the pressure, he’ll be dodging the terrain again.
He feints and weaves, trying to get inside the guard’s defenses, but he’s not one of Toja’s personal guards for nothing. He keeps his guard close, using the club to keep Pul away from him. But they can both recognize it’s a stalemate that cannot last. Eventually, they’ll capture the attention of the military, and them both being captured is a win for Pul.
He can see the realization dawning on the guard, and can tell he’s going to try something desperate. He can feel the ground beneath him rumble slightly, before it suddenly falls away. It’s only a foot, but it’s still enough time for the guard to try to get a swing in while Pul can’t move.
Or that was his plan, at least. Pul kicks at the wall and ducks the swing that would have cracked his skull, and things suddenly seem to become clear to him. He can feel the life in the guard, flowing through him. He can see his heart pounding, lungs heaving, muscles bulging, as he tries to stop Pul. He can also feel the gaps in his armor, the shadows in the alley and against the guard’s skin.
He can see the countless ways he could end the guard, deliver him to the Raven so fast he’d feel his talons before feeling the street. Ways to paralyze, to bleed, to terrify… and he ignores them. He is not an assassin, and though a ninja has the skillset, he will not take lives he doesn’t need to. And he doesn’t need to take this guard.
Pul seems to dive sideways as he sets the wall to his own down for a moment, giving him the leverage to deliver a brutal kick right below the ribs. The force knocks the air out of the guard, and a little flick of life affinity confuses his ability to draw it back in, at least for a few seconds.
The guard collapses and Pul runs past, right into the view of several military elves. “Halt! Drop your weapon!”
He considers trying to pocket it and test out how strong the enchantment is, but decides against it. Instead he slowly lowers himself to place the karambit on the street, and raises his hands. “I surrender. I know Rezlar. Let him know you’ve got Pul, and uh… please keep my knife there safe. It’s easy to lose track of.”
The guards approach cautiously and Pul makes no moves, letting them quickly cuff him, and letting them know about the guard in the alley, too. He gets handed off as they go to arrest the thief, and Pul hopes they don’t forget his knife.
It’s hard for him to worry too much, though, and he can’t keep the smile off his face, even as he gets tossed into a wagon with a bunch of other thieves. He advanced his class from Rogue to Enlightened Ninja, and gained not only life and shadow, but gravity affinity, too. Wanting to tell his friends makes escaping very tempting, but he’ll play along for now.
He gets the feeling the countermeasures for shadow affinity are a lot more uncomfortable than just a pair of cuffs. No need to draw more attention when he just needs to be patient.
Comments
architectural engineer
god it's so hard to wait for the next chapter. its probably going to be coming out any second and yet i still can't wait.
Ben Bass
TYFTC! Yay Pul! That is so awesome and a great way for him to become and learn what it means to be a ninja! The ability and option to take life quickly if needed, and having the tools and options to NOT take it too. Love the addition of gravity as an affinity, that will really come in handy, just like it already has!
