Chapter 5: Chapter 4

"Helena?!" berated Eruwen. "Okay, sure, it's a pretty name but it's just so boring."

"I like it. You're just miffed I didn't pick your choice for a name," replied the newly christened Helena.

"No I'm not!" said Eruwen loudly. She then looked over at Tamhas and asked, "What does miffed mean?"

Tamhas chuckled. "Mildly upset or annoyed. Seems pretty accurate to me."

"Fine. You got me," Eruwen said with a sigh. To Helena she then asked, "Fancy joining us for drinks?"

"I don't think I want alcohol messing with my head right now. Also I may not remember sleeping for so long but my body does, I am feeling quite restless. I want to go for a walk."

"You do? Where?" asked Eruwen with surprise.

"Anywhere. Maybe something will trigger a memory," Helena replied with a partial truth.

"That's not a bad idea," said Tamhas. "Do you want someone to go with you?"

"No thank you. I'd rather go by myself if that's okay, and if it's safe outside?"

"No more dangerous than the outskirts of any major city," Tamhas replied. "Safer than usual in fact with all the guild and army presence. But I would feel uncomfortable with you having no protection at all. Hey Sami," he called over to the other table, "have you got a few minutes?"

"Sure bossman," replied the orange haired woman. She nimbly got to her feet and walked over with - no, don't think it ... argh! I can't help myself - a cat-like grace. Sami was wearing brown britches tucked into a pair of calf-high boots. The rest of her was covered in a green hooded cloak that was streaked with various patches of light and dark brown. Helena could see the tip of a thin sword peeking out below the hemline.

"Helena here wants to go for a walk but she has no gear. Have you got anything pointy you could lend her?"

"Oh you know I do bossman," Sami replied with evident pleasure, her yellow cat eyes sparkling with fun. "Can you stand up please Helena. I need to take a quick look at you."

"Sure," said Helena.

Sami gave her a calculating look from head to toe. Happy with her assessment she then nodded to herself. "No calluses, no muscle tone, almost certainly no experience with a blade. So something simple will be for the best and I have the perfect choice for you."

Sami reached into her robe and from behind her back removed two small holsters from a wide belt with a golden buckle. She then attached them to the much smaller belt Kiara had made Helena wear, one holster over each hip. Sami had angled them in such a way that Helena found she could easily pull out the knives they contained smoothly and without stabbing herself. The straight daggers were of a cold, hard metal, not much longer than Helena's handspan and a finger's width wide at the tip. They had been polished until the blades of pale silver gleamed in the daylight, the edges looked razor sharp and the tips were indeed very pointy. The handles were wrapped in a rough twine to help with their grip. Both the blades and the handles were decorated with finely engraved flowing patterns.

"They're beautiful," said Helena in appreciation.

Sami replied, "They're yours. Keep them, my gift."

"What? No, I can't. Why?"

"Are you kidding? I would pay more than ten times what those little daggers are worth to get out of watch. I like my sleep. Also no one should ever be unarmed." Sami then pulled back her cloak to reveal she had more knives on her, a lot more. Blades both large and small were strapped to her arms, her thighs, there were extras attached to her belt and even slotted into her jacket. "But most of all I prefer to use these," she said, holding up her hands. The tops of which were covered in fine, soft orange fur and Helena could see that her fingernails were extending into small, wicked looking claws.

Helena holstered her knives carefully. "Thank you so much, and thank you for my name. I really like it."

"Great. It's from a story I read as a child, of a woman so beautiful two kings fought a great war over her. And no more thanks are necessary. Like I said. No watch. Sleep. I came out ahead."

"Oh yes," said Eruwen with an evil-looking smile. "Our kitty likes her cat naps."

In an instant Sami had the tip of a clawed finger in front of Eruwen's face. "What did you call me?" she asked, her voice full of snarling fury.

Eruwen held both hands up in surrender. "Me? Nothing. Nothing at all."

"Good. Remember that." Sami then flicked the tip of Eruwen's nose and walked off back to her seat, her striped tail twitching angrily behind her.

"Ow!" Eruwen exclaimed, rubbing her nose. "Hey Tamhas. That's assault of a guild officer."

"I know. Fully deserved," said a grinning Tamhas. "You know better than to call a Shamel kitty."

"Well I'll leave you all to your fun," said Helena to the pair.

"If you get lost just ask someone for the Griffin Inn. We own this building. It also stands out in the neighbourhood so I doubt you'll have a problem finding us."

"Okay. Thanks. See you all later then."

---

A minute after Helena left the barroom Tamhas spoke to a short, unassuming man on the opposite side of the table. "Rikhar, I have a task for you."

"But my beer," he whined.

Tamhas gave him a hard stare. "I'll make it up to you."

Rikhar flipped to a serious expression. "Sure boss. What you need?"

"Follow her. Stay out of sight but make sure she stays safe, and keep an eye on what she does." Rikhar nodded and swiftly left the building.

"Paranoid much," Eruwen observed.

"Always.

---

Helena looked back at the inn once she was outside the building. It was certainly recognisable. It was at least two floors higher than nearly every building around it and a huge, square, green banner stood on top of the roof. It carried the golden emblem of the creature the rest of the guild wore. Helena now presumed that was a griffin. The large flag would be visible from a good distance.

The street was roughly cobbled and wide, but very few people were around. Helena turned right towards an even wider road that adjoined the street. It appeared to be much busier and she felt that would be a better place to ask for directions. There were no signs of the catastrophe in this area that she could see. Helena stopped an old lady carrying a straw basket of fruit and asked, "Can you tell me which way is all the damage?"

The woman looked at her as if she was a bad smell. "Stupid girl," she spat. "You're on the damn royal road. Just follow it and you'll reach what's left." Helena thanked the old woman who became even more affronted. Helena didn't understand the reaction, maybe she was just upset for some reason. In the other direction, in the far distance, Helena could see the road pass through a huge pair of metal gates set into a massive, thick stone wall twice the height of the inn. The wall ran left to right before it was obscured by other buildings in her sight.

Walking in the direction she had been given, along the royal road as the old lady called it, Helena looked at the people and buildings around her. The road appeared to be a major thoroughfare as it was paved with precisely arranged, uniform cobblestones. The road was lined with shops with expensive looking wooden exteriors and large glass windows selling goods of every kind, along with frequent inns and alehouses though none as large as the Golden Griffins'. People walked on both sides of the road while horse drawn carts and carriages flowed up and down the middle. Soldiers in bright red uniforms were scattered amongst the busy crowds. The closer she looked at the people - mostly humans but she could see the occasional scaled Komo, cat-like Shamel, and a few other less common races she had not yet met - the more she could see dark bags and nervous fear around their eyes.

Helena spent some time looking into various shop windows but she had no money or desire to buy anything. At least not today. After around half-an-hour Helena came to the end of the road. Quite literally. The neatly ordered cobblestones became a broken, shattered line of rocks until even the semblance of a road was no longer clear. Partially damaged and half-collapsed buildings of brick and wood marked the edges until all that Helena could see ahead of her was a blasted wasteland of rubble. Without any obstructions in the way Helena could see that the vast city of Nodel had rested within the U-shaped arms of a mountain range naturally surrounding the city on three sides. The huge man-made wall blocked the remaining opening. Only the portion of Nodel that hugged the wall remained, damaged but still standing.

"Can we help you miss?" A pair of male soldiers in loose black trousers and buttoned, blood red jackets had approached her as she looked over the remains. One carried a spear while the other had a plain but sturdy sword on his waist.

Helena shook her head. "This is the first time I have seen it during the day."

"Is your home out there?" asked the swordsman.

Not wanting to explain, she replied, "A guild found and healed me."

The swordsman nodded with a touch of sadness. "The army and adventurers have a long history of not getting along but not a single soldier in the Royal Garrison survived. If the guilds hadn't been here ... well, this nightmare would have been even worse for a lot of people, many more would have died."

"I want to get closer."

"I'm not sure that's wise miss. There's nothing left except dirt and rock."

Helena just stared expressionless at the man.

The other soldier with the spear sighed mournfully. "I understand. If my home was out there I would want to go see. I'd have to. Let her go sir."

"Fine," said the swordsman reluctantly. "Take care and good luck miss. I'm not sure what I hope you find."

"Thank you. I'm not sure what I want to find either."

Helena took in the remains of the buildings around her to use as landmarks for her return and then began to walk along the vague outline of the shattered road. The crowds back in what was left of Nodel had made her feel uncomfortable, exposed, she felt as if they had all been looking at her behind her back. Now that she was out here all alone that itch was gone. The only other people around were more soldiers, thousands of them scattered far and wide across the flattened remains, scouring the rubble. Many stood near to large bonfires, Helena had no wish to see what they were throwing into those flames. Carrion eaters of wing and paw roamed the destruction feasting on its bounty. Thankfully none of the soldiers were close by or paid any attention to her, for now she had the luxury of time and space to think.

In complete contradiction to what Horrace had told the others she wasn't in shock, far from it, in fact she felt quite composed and lucid. The moments of her waking, the white-hot pain of the burns, were crystal clear in her mind. She knew it had happened and it had been horrible but it was over so why should she let it still affect her. Helena remembered every moment of that trauma, but here and now, she could look back at it with a calculating, analytical perspective. It was a trait that appeared to be ingrained.

That was why Helena had wanted to take this walk. She had not lied to Eruwen, she did want to see if something out here would trigger her lost memory, but she also had a particular destination in mind. She needed more information. Helena wanted to see if she could find the place she had awoken, and if her Interface had confirmed anything, it was the undeniable fact she had been close to the proverbial and physical centre of this disaster.

The wall of a tall, now roofless, building had subsided and was now leaning at an angle, resting against the adjacent wall. Helena carefully climbed up the slanted wall until she was perched on top of the vertical. From her vantage point Helena looked out across the vista of destruction. Even the mountains had been affected by the explosion as Helena could see several landslides had blanketed the edges of the once great city. All the damage actually made it easier for Helena to judge where she wanted to go. The closer to the foci of where the immense force had originated the more complete the devastation. There wasn't even rubble, just dirt and dust were left. At least it made the chore of walking there easier. A small consolation.

Even though she knew her destination it was still a long and arduous walk over fractured rock and broken beams of wood to get there. Her legs were aching and her face was covered in a light sheen of sweat from the early afternoon sun long before she could see her goal from ground level: a deep, circular depression in the earth a few hundred meters wide. A quarter of the way around the crater from where Helena now stood were three people, they were in the middle of an angry conversation with a small company of soldiers. They were too far away for Helena to see much, or hear what they were shouting at each other about so she put them out of her mind.

Standing on the lip of the crater Helena could see the signs of immense heat. Stone had melted then congealed into oddly shaped lumps, patches of sandy earth had turned into glass which had later fractured upon cooling. It was as if a great being had come along and scooped out the ground and then blasted it with the flames of an immense furnace. It seemed impossible to Helena that she had been here and survived but her first painful memory told her differently. This had been the place.

While Helena stood there looking at the site, her mind lost in thought, the shouting match had ceased and the three individuals involved, two men and a woman, had walked over to approach her. The man at the front was fairly handsome, but so generically it approached bland, with thick brown hair, and he stood there poised and self-assured. He appeared to be in his early thirties like the other two, whom stood at each of his shoulders in the manner of subordinates. The other man, taller with a pinched face and a bald head, was frowning in annoyance at Helena, while the dark haired, stern-faced woman appeared to be bored. They all wore immaculate and sharply pressed dark grey trousers and suit jackets over pristine white shirts.

The first words out of the bald man's mouth were, "You shouldn't be here. Leave."

"Why? I'm in nobody's way," said Helena firmly.

"This is an active site of investigation. Civilians aren't allowed."

Using a similar argument to what had worked earlier Helena said, "I'm with a guild."

He stared at her for a second before speaking. "I think that's unlikely, a classless Level 1 native."

Helena blinked but otherwise remained calm. "Why should I care what you think?"

"Why you little —" he started to say, taking a step towards Helena in anger.

The woman put an arm in front of his chest barring his way. "What the hells Edmond. Leave the meaningless NPC alone you idiot. Don't start shit with pissed off soldiers around."

That's useful to know, thought Helena to herself.

The other man, who had remained calm and collected throughout, said to Helena, "We are agents for the Adventurer's Council. If you are with a guild you have to tell us which one and who you are."

"No," Helena replied resolutely.

Mister Calm seemed to be slightly stunned by her answer, and at a loss how to respond to that. "No?"

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Looking at Mister Calm directly she said, "He was rude and you are arrogant. I don't think I like either of you. So no."

In the meantime the group of soldiers the three agents had been arguing with earlier had wandered over after spotting the disturbance.

"Is there a problem here miss?" asked one of the red jacketed soldiers. With a pair of small gold bars on her chest she appeared to be the senior officer.

"Yes there is ma'am. These adventurers", she said in an arched tone, "are being impolite and insulting whilst I was minding my own business. Honestly I am feeling rather threatened by them."

Mister Angry, Edmond, fumed while Mister Calm was left open-mouthed. Helena didn't know why she was acting in such a manner but she found she was rather enjoying herself.

"We have warned you three already. You have no say here. Take them somewhere else out of my sight," she said to her troops. Mr Angry was furious while the woman acted resigned. Mr Calm still looked to be completely flummoxed.

"I'm sorry about that miss," said the office after the three council agents had been escorted away. "You know how some mistwalkers are. They seem to think they have the right to do whatever they want, as if they are inherently our betters or laws don't apply to them. They are sometimes useful but that arrogance will often get them killed and not just by the creatures they fight."

Helena gave a nod of agreement, pretending she understood.

The officer then politely asked, "Can I ask what you are doing out here miss?"

"I was looking for my house and became lost. It's gone, it's all gone," Helena said, waving a hand across the landscape. "I saw this and well ... it's just all too much to comprehend. I want to go home."

Her act of feigned loss seemed to appease the officer. "You aren't the first survivor who has said that to me. Are you staying with someone? If you're lost I can have some of my troops escort you back."

"Yes, I'm staying with some friends. They have a place just off what is left of the royal road." Not wanting to appear hesitant or reluctant Helena agreed to the escort. After some internal arguing between the soldiers and money changing hands she found herself being accompanied back by two young male soldiers who seemed unreasonably happy with their assignment.

***

Helena made it back to the edges of the main road without any further incidents. After graciously turning down the offer of drinks with her escorts, who had said they were now off duty, she started her walk along the cobblestones back towards the inn. Evening was setting in and the remaining inhabitants of Nodel were doing their best to match Helena in the area of memory loss through the consumption of copious amounts of alcohol. Every barroom she strolled past was heaving as people drowned their worries and grief in drink. The evening was still warm so if the ale houses were full people were standing outside, drinks in hand.

The closer she got to the inn of the Golden Griffins the worse the crowds became and she was having to push her way through tangles of people to make progress. So when she finally saw the green flag in the distance she decided to take one of the off roads and a quieter route back. Thankfully these roads were clear, and Helena easily zigzagged towards the inn down the side streets. She had her focus looking upwards at the flag a few streets over so when she was pushed into a dead-end alley it came as a complete surprise.

Helena stumbled over her own feet but managed to catch herself on the wall before she tripped over. A skinny man a few years younger than Helena stood at the front of the alley trying his best to look intimidating. He failed and did not strike an imposing figure. Helena gave herself even-odds to beat him at arm wrestling, but the short sword he carried more than made up for any lack of physicality. She carefully took several steps back away from him.

"I'm here to collect an offering," the youngster said jovially.

Helena frowned in confusion.

"All I ask is a donation to The Ravens and you are free to go."

"Huh?"

"The Ravens."

Helena shook her head and shrugged.

The young man seemed annoyed she did not recognise the name. "We're the fourth most powerful nightclan in Nodel, but now, after what's happened, we will become the first. This is our time."

Helena shrugged again. Her shoulders would get tired at this rate.

"Look, just give us your money you stupid girl. This is a robbery," he said, no longer acting friendly.

"Oh. But I have no money."

"A woman like you, in such fine clothes, I think not. And those daggers look like they would be worth some coin. You can't fool us. Me and my friend must insist."

There was a footstep behind her. Turning her head, Helena saw a cloaked figure, also carrying a sharp looking short sword, who had previously been hidden in the back of the shadow filled passage, their face shrouded inside the depths of a grey hood. She tried hard to peer into the darkness but failed to see - information was suddenly dumped into her mind, the magic of the Interface at work.

Congratulations, you have gained the [Common Tier] skill [Identify].

Identify - Access the Status of any tiered entity. Details may be limited based upon various factors. Gaining levels in [Identify] will provide greater functionality and information.

A small window of text appeared now floated over the hooded man's head: [Race: Human] [Level: 15] [Grade: Tin] [Class: none]

She turned back to the front of the alley and the first man had a similar floating status: [Race: Human] [Level: 14] [Grade: Tin] [Class: none]

Tamhas had made Sami give her these daggers for protection however she had no memories of ever using a knife such as these before. They were an implied threat, not an actual one. She had no idea how to fight. Her daggers were essentially useless right now. Fight or run, she was not sure what to do. She could possibly push the guy in front of her out of the way, they were of a similar size, but what about the one behind? The two robbers removed her choices as they closed in on her from both sides.

Terror started to grip Helena as she backed up against the alley wall. She had her hands on her daggers but she was frozen in fear, too scared to even pull them out. If I try to attack them they'll just stab me with those swords. I'll die. Shit, shit, shit. What do I do? What do I do? Why haven't I screamed? Oh fuck, I'm going to die —

The skinny youth reached out with a thin arm to grab her - if you are ever unsure - something inside Helena reacted. Before she had time to even think she stood there motionless, both arms extended.

A dagger had pierced the young man's throat from front to back, and not just any dagger, Helena's, her hand still grasping the hilt. Her other dagger had been stabbed directly through the eye of another young man deep into his brain, his hood having fallen off his face. What? How?

Helena pulled back on both daggers sharply, the sensation of metal against flesh making her cringe inside, both men dropped to the floor like slabs of meat. The first man gurgled blood but moments after stopped breathing, the second had been killed instantly.

Congratulations, you have gained the [Common Tier] combat skill [Dagger Proficiency].

Congratulations, you have gained the [Uncommon Tier] combat skill [Dual Wielding].

Congratulations, your Level has increased: !!! System Error !!!

Experience could not be applied ...

Partial System Reintegration prevents levelling at this time.

Level is permanently locked at: 1

Before she could come to terms with what had happened, or what she had done, another man entered the alley blocking her exit. He was almost as large as Tamhas and loomed over her. Maybe not as wide in the chest and shoulders as the guildsman but ripped sleeves prominently displayed arms heavily muscled and covered in scrawled, ugly tattoos. In his thick fingers he held a crude but deadly looking club. It was almost as long as his arm and its tip was as wide as Helena's head.

He looked at the two bodies beside her, then back at Helena. "You shouldn't have done that bitch. Now I'm going to hurt you." He took a step forward making Helena take an involuntary step backwards. Her back was now almost against the rear wall of the alley.

"Oh. I thought you would want to kill me," said Helena somehow putting on a front of confidence she absolutely did not feel. She felt like she was going to throw up, or void her bowels.

"I'm not going to kill you, at first. I will take everything from you. I prefer it when they are hurt, but alive. If you're lucky you'll be dead before I finish with you. By the dark you're the sweetest looking thing I've ever seen."

A cold ball of icy fear formed in Helena's gut but then she used [Identify] on the man.

[Race: Human] [Level: 12] [Grade: Tin] [Class: Brute]

He's big but Level 12. I can manage that ... maybe.

"Should I really be scared of some ugly bastard at a lower level than those two were?"

The brute laughed darkly. "Feisty. Look again my prey."

[Race: Human] [Level: 37] [Grade: Bronze] [Class: Brute]

Helena's face became ashen. "How?"

Gloating the brute said, "The Gods reward those that serve them well, and rarely, very rarely, the night awards such a skill. Because of this blessing I have killed many in his name. He will be pleased, you reek of the day."

He swung his long, bulky club up across his shoulder with both hands and spat upon the ground. "Put away those tiny knives girl. They will be useless against me. Accept what is to come and it will go easier."

You only have the one life.

Helena took another final step back. Despite being terrified she took a deep, determined breath. Helena holstered her blades and stared at the fearsome brute; she stood still, perfectly serene, with calm acceptance. Where this sudden clinical detachment was coming from she had no idea but she knew it was what she must do.

"Good girl," the thug snarled, leering at here.

I must survive. To live I must take him down fast, if he hits me once I'm dead.

Helena watched the man closely and waited, tense but alert. A pair of rats scampered down the alley, one was an albino and gave the humans an evil, red eyed stare. Now. The brute started to swing. Strong but slow. A waist high strike to my chest to break my ribs and cripple me. Hurt, but alive.

Helena found herself ducking down low onto one knee beneath the blow, the wooden club passing within a whisper of her head. She again discovered both daggers somehow had made it into her hands, fingers wrapped tightly around their handles, the tips pointing downward. She lifted the blades and pierced deep into both of the brute's legs, cutting down almost to the bone just below the groin. Then she pulled down hard, shearing through cloth and flesh as if she was slicing paper. Helena spun to the side, the blades causing more damage as they ripped free. The brute collapsed onto his knees, roaring in agony as his lifeblood gushed out onto the ground, something important having been severed in each leg.

Before he could recover Helena followed through on her spinning turn and kicked him hard in the back with force causing him to unbalance. He collapsed onto the floor face first dropping his club. Without pause Helena then smoothly pushed both blades into his kidneys and twisted. He screamed like a tortured animal.

She leaned over the prone, whimpering body and whispered into his ear, "Good boy." Pulling out a knife with another bloody, scream-inducing twist, she then pulled back his head roughly by his greasy hair and held the blade to his exposed throat. "It seems, instead, that I will be the one taking everything from you." Then she neatly sliced him open.

Helena sat back on the ground panting hard, her heart pounding, blood from her victims pooling around her boots. What the ever living fuck has she just done, and how was she able to. Her actions had been instinctive, they felt practised. The act of murder had been so ... easy.

Live in the grey. If you are ever unsure then kill.

A killer. Is this who I was, who I am? With a bitter, choking laugh, Helena thought to herself: mysterious message writer maybe you do know the real me after all. Another manic thought popped into her head: I need to thank Sami again. These knives are amazingly sharp! Then as her adrenalin crashed and her hands started to shake, Helena began to quietly cry as darkness fell around her.

Only the living can regret.

+++

Congratulations, your Level has increased: [error] ~1

Congratulations, the skill [Dagger Proficiency] has improved: 1 -> 4

Congratulations, the skill [Dual Wielding] has improved: 1 -> 3

Congratulations, you have successfully ripped the [Very Rare Tier] skill [Mislead] from a defeated foe.

Status: Mislead - Any voluntary or involuntary access to your Status can be masked. This will override any perception based skills of equal or lower tier. Displayed level can be modified by a maximum of +/- 25 points. Gaining levels in [Mislead] may provide greater functionality.

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