Runaway dragon – Chapter 5

Swapping lair had appeared as the only sensible recourse at this point, in light of that Nivra and Eyren had been shadowed by an exterior force. Even if that identity wasn’t hostile to them, they realized the folly in sticking to the same pattern. Should one person be capable of tracking them, then surely others might follow. Relocating to a secondary inn nearer to a wall somewhere in the northern sections of the metropolis, both an act and a site which Osvij had recommended, they’d paid for only two set of quarters, with the implications that Eyren would be lingering near to Nivra’s seat for the time being, an affair which the northerner isn’t against by itself.

This Osvij fellow, however, he’s quite an odd one. He may make to be simply a superfluous mercenary or potentially a hunter in his attire, a type which generally keeps no unique desires aside from impercesms and the infrequent pleasure to distract them from their venturesome life. The chances that this man from Geb’nijk is either of them would be comparatively farfetched in Eyren’s mind still, for he’s simultaneously alert and a great judge of character. His instincts of where to trek inside a city outreaches each of the women, where he’s pulled them away from territories that he estimates as unwise, and he can handily gauge whether one person or another is a threat. Providing he’s a hireling of that sort, he’s a pretty damn great one, but Eyren is incredulous of this resolution. This gent has to keep a more complex lifestyle, but whether that is beneficial for them or not is hard to tell.

Having gathered in the lodgments where Nivra and Eyren are resting together – and the latter finally does get to sleep on a second bed in it – Osvij is standing by one wall while the other two have located themselves by their sleeping arrangements, studying the mister while they consider what to do.
“So, there’s some…y’know, answers I’d like to have”, Nivra mentions. “About what you told me earlier. Could relieve some of the bemusement and…mistrust we still got.”

Since he’s not peeled off anything besides a bag in his room, Osvij has his empty arms crossed beneath his cloak, peering at the Ahterilonan neutrally and bobs his head.
“Very well, I’m certainly not opposed to this. Fire away.”

“You’re serious ’bout what you said? You’d help me get outta Kambaresa scot-free?”

“That is my elected mission, yes.”

“Why? What do you gain from it?”

A light chuckle exits his lips, and he shrugs.
“Well, the reason and the reward are hopefully one and the same – I believe the two of us can work together, and from what I gather, my superiors align with me on it.”

“Your superiors? Are you part of a guild or whatever?”

“Something along those lines, yes. I represent a faction known as ‘Ne Jesut’.”

Nivra stares at him for several seconds, but the cluelessness she oozes fits exactly the sensation Eyren is getting.
“…what? Never heard of you guys.”

He smiles practically in a satisfied capacity and dips his head in comprehension.
“You’ll not find me surprised. Before I was recruited a number of years back, I hadn’t either. We are a neutral party, following only a set of ideals and philosophies which in some configurations line up with the Ahterilonan Resistance. Discretion, unity and the dismantling of the old systems of governance are our foremost stances, I would claim. Not too separate from yours, yake? We would likewise tilt towards not having the ‘Sun Lord’ Ennius rise to greater power, as it would threaten the stability of the continent.”

Eyren raises a disbelieving eyebrow against this portrayal.
“And what stability is that? It’s not as if our lands are especially safe wherever people go or live. Frequent wars, escalating bandit presence, the Herdbrand roving everywhere…our continent is not a paradise.”

Osvij bows his head acquiescingly towards her accusations.
“No, you’re right about that, but Ennius as a form of Emperor figure across everything would not upgrade this dilemma. Quite the contrary, his growing tyranny in Ahterilio reflects that the empire he would seek to erect is one that would be suboptimal for many regional systems that are cropping up in the background, and abysmal for normal people. Ne Jesut is working to facilitate an existence which deviates from the one which the populace knows, and Ennius’ ascent would shatter its potential.”

Nivra brightens when she listens to his words.
“On that much, we’re speaking the same language, pal. Glad that someone agrees with me.” Whereas she doesn’t aim anything outright at Eyren, the northerner surmises this is a manner of poke at her, one which she doesn’t comment on. “Sidetrack, but I gotta ask – how exactly did you find me? I mean, Eyren here was just around by chance and heard of a lucrative opportunity. Guessing it wasn’t wholly the same for you?”

“Mm, yes and no. I’ve been operating around intelligence related to the Resistance for multiple months, and this permitted me to ascertain that you had escaped from prison, distinctly when your captor issued public bulletins. It did become a smidgen troublesome, since I in fact planned to intersect with you in Ahterilio, but my arrival was overdue. Afterwards, I had to chase after your movements by deferring to the associated bounties issued or the bounty hunters who’d gone after your trail and hashed out details they’d attained on their own. I didn’t reach Kambaresa until a couple of days ago, as a matter of fact. As for your bodily appearance, that wasn’t a major hassle, considering there are drawn images of you posted in numerous towns.”

“Eh, yeah, that’s how I tracked her as well…” Eyren admits.

“Not that I wanna spurn ya right away”, Nivra starts, “but…I’ve already partnered up with someone in this city, as you can see”, she says and gestures at Eyren. “Dunno if I need another.”

Not seeking to be disapproving, Osvij tips his head tolerantly.
“Understandable and based on how the two of you corralled me earlier, pranti Eyren here is a proficient and clever personage, likely better than me in the martial department.”

Eyren snorts softly.
“I can virtually guarantee it. Got pretty substantial grounding in multiple styles and physical mindsets.”

“As you say. For all this, what’s your program for her once you’ve left Kambaresa? Will you continue to guide her into safety and to avoid the hunters who won’t cease badgering her across the continent?”

Upon this statement, the knight pauses for a moment, and she can practically feel how Nivra’s eyes pierce her hide, believably as intrigued as he is to have a favorable retort…one which Eyren isn’t suitable to deliver.
“I…guess not. My idea was to assist her in escaping the city intact, but then we’ll like as not split ways. I’m mainly staging this as returning a favor.”

“Matching precisely what I had hypothesized, then. With us, pranti Nivra, you would be able to attain increased security beyond these walls, being that we are in possession of a decent portion of nests and havens, secluded enough for you to lay low for months. While there, you could think over our proffer for a partnership and in parallel learn further about how to combat Ennius and his ilk throughout the realm.”

The dragon-horned woman lets her tail flip left and right on the bed whilst she leans rearward onto her hands, pondering the angles that he’s providing her.
“Hmm…it’s a generous proposal, won’t fault you for that. Might…take you up on it too. Kinda need to see this situation settling down, after all.”

“This would be wise, yes.”

“Are ya telling me I gotta pick between the two of you, in that case?”

“Heh, decidedly not. I’m clueing you in on the exact opposite – let us league our efforts, all three of us, and I’ll reinforce the odds that you lose your pursuers once and for all.”

Eyren tilts her head questioningly and gives him a once-over from where she’s settled.
“What of you, then? You’re…some genre of spy?”

Smiling casually, he shrugs with fairly minute care.
“Of a sort, yes. Granted that it would be more accurate to outline me as a ranger with spy associations. I was born in Geb’nijk, which you as a fellow northerner are realistically equipped to hear in my accent. Once upon a time I was employed by some institutions over there, but there came a time when Ne Jesut contacted me, and committed a further honorable role in the ongoings of the world.”

“So, does that mean you’re tied to the lord or whatever who’s in charge?”

“Not exactly. Even if I’ll profess not to hold every particularity about our leadership, I know that they command pretty vast influence in the shadows, which provides revenue adequately to sustain our operations, and I serve with their direction.”

“There’s more than one commander, then?”

“Heh. I’m sorry, but I don’t intend to give away the totality of our group’s ciphers to an outsider, pranti Eyren.”

“…right, okay. Could you at the minimum key us in on whether they commanded you to look out for Nivra?”

“Sure, but actually, there was no rigid instruction involved. These missions are generally administered with their operatives’ consent, as opposed to being ordered to it. Hence, they asked me whether I could handle it, and seeing as I recognized the essential in safeguarding pranti Nivra in the interest of what an asset she might become, I agreed to the petition.”

Nivra bobs her head.
“I’m satisfied enough with that answer.”

Eyren shrugs halfheartedly.
“Guess I am too.”

“Good! Then, mister Osvij, do you have an opinion ’bout what you reckon we oughta do in this state?”

The pale blonde man runs a hand across his clean-shaven cheeks and reflects on the premise of where they’re in.
“Well, my suggestion is clear as day, that we better locate a strategy to get you out of Kambaresa in quick succession, which absolutely warrants a bit of investigation.”

“Which is what we were up to already”, adds Eyren. “Hence the reason we spotted you.”

Snorting with amusement, he winks at her.
“I could tell. And I fathom that this is what you’ve been attempting, but the liability you’ve been running with up until now is that pranti Nivra shouldn’t be out in public spaces. I imagine she mostly hangs around in shaded slots while you go looking around, yes? This is how I found her, and if she tarries like this, you run the risk of letting our competition mimic my maneuver. In my background as a ranger, scouting and tracing individuals were part and parcel for me, so I’m better suited to the job than she is. I’m uninformed of your business in the city at present, pranti Eyren, but would it be inapt of me to suppose you’d accept cooperating on these exploits?”

She doesn’t quite get the gist of this, but in these minutes, Eyren is someways getting this inkling that she’s amounting to the outsider among the three, only on behalf of her unwillingness to assign her soul to a matching anti-authority campaign as theirs, and should it go past this line, she’d possibly be viewed as an obstacle. Maybe it’s not a bad thing then to play along. Gesturing nonresistantly at him, she peers to the side.
“I’m no one special, and like we spoke of formerly, I was one of those occupied with acquiring Nivra’s bounty. A squad of hunters sadly saw me as a foil to their prize and I had to fight them, where Nivra carried me through. I’m simply returning the favor. That’s my motivation, by and large. So yeah, you’d like to gang up? Then let’s do it.”