The Calm Before the Storm

Things couldn’t have gotten worse…

When Grove reported that the deal of the previous night had been sabotaged by an interloper, the Baroness’ liaison looked less than pleased. He commanded Grove to remain in the Black Talon’s headquarters and await instructions from their mistress. Grove had tried to plead to the liaison to give them the chance to vindicate themselves. But he wouldn’t budge…

“You will obey our mistress’ command, Mr. Grove. Or else you, and your rabble will no longer enjoy her kindness.”

There was no escape. If he wanted his group to continue enjoying the freedoms and benefits of the Baroness’ patronage, they had to obey her every word. Begrudgingly, Grove had to nod and accept the command.

The next day, he received another command from the liaison. A command given by the Baroness herself:

“Find the Bounty Hunter and kill him. I want his head on a plate by the end of this week. Do not fail me again.”

The command was received with a sense of dread by some of the Black Talons. Others were keen on getting a chance to eliminate the newcomer who had humiliated them before the entire Guild and had disturbed their business. Grove wasn’t happy about this new order…

Every Black Talon group member was expected to look for Wolf, find him and kill him outright.

Grove didn’t like this idea. He knew that most of the Black Talon group were rowdy bullies who didn’t give too much thought about the consequences of these kinds of actions.

They’d be drawing too much attention to themselves. Wolf received requests from the Guild Master directly, which meant he was trusted. The other adventurers knew who he was and they loved him. Everyone knew that the bounty hunter and the Black Talon group had some bad blood between them, so people would naturally point their fingers at the Black Talons.

And if they failed? The Wolf would either kill all Black Talon members, or deliver them to the authorities to be jailed, judged and sentenced. If their crimes were revealed, it would be the death sentence.

No matter how much he thought about it, there was no scenario where he would come out on top. There was no win-win.

With nothing left to lose, Grove made the call to all Black Talon group members to gather at their hideout for their eventual manhunt for the Bounty Hunter. It would take a day or two for them to find the Wolf, which would give them time to make a plan to avoid the authorities  

The hideout was packed with weapons of all sorts, from knives and swords, to great axes and polearms. Every member would be fully geared for battle with the best armor they could afford. Some of their members were versed in magic and would be useful if the Bounty Hunter decided to use his magical powers to summon demons or fire. Grove still didn’t believe Wolf could do such a thing, but he had to prepare.

His main concern was Wolf’s firearms. He had seen a nobleman use one of those pistols against a breastplate made of steel. One shot of those was able to pierce through the thick protection. He had taken a good look at Wolf’s own firearms and realized he had far more potent and advanced firearms than the nobles he knew carried those weapons. If that Bounty Hunter had access to such weaponry, then his men would not stand a chance against him unless their armor was enchanted like Grove’s.

The more he thought about it, the less hope there seemed to be.

Grove sat quietly in his room while the members of his group were enjoying their drinks and meals. Having thought long and hard about how this situation was going to end, he decided to write a letter:

“Dear Mother,

I apologize for not sending a letter sooner. I’ve been working really hard here in the city and had little time to write back home.

How’s my little sister doing? Has she finally entered the magic academy? I’ll send her some money to pay for her tuition if you’re struggling.

I’m sending this letter to let you know that I’ll be taking a very big job for my boss really soon. And I’m not sure when I’ll be coming back from this assignment.

My friends and I will be leaving in a couple of days for this job, so you won’t be hearing from me for a while.

Mother, I’m really sorry. I know this isn’t something you’d approve of. But I made this decision on my own, and I have to accept responsibility for my decisions. Both the good and the bad.

If you don’t ever hear from me again, then I pray you’ll make no inquiries on what might’ve happened to me.

Whatever people say about me, whatever you’ve heard them say of my work, please don’t let them get to you. I do what I must for your sake and my sister’s. I would do it all over again.

I hope to see you and my sister again soon.

I wish I could’ve made you proud.

Good bye.

Your loving son,

Grove.”

Meanwhile…

The Outlander was seen returning to the Adventures Guild looking furious. Nobody that knew him approached him or spoke to him. Truth be told, despite his rough demeanor, nobody had seen him this upset and ready to thrash anyone who stood in his way.

When Alana saw him approaching she was about to say something but seeing the fury painted in the face of the Bounty Hunter, she froze in fear. He gave her a quick side glance without saying a word and went straight to the Guild Master’s office. This was bad…

Alana hurriedly picked up her ledger and other documents, and rushed to the office. Even while she was climbing the stairs she could hear the voice of the Outlander yelling with frustration. For what she could gather from the shouting, Mr. Wolf had just been in a meeting with her Royal Highness Princess Alice and had a lead on a “dried up old….” something that rhymes with runt… she believed.

By the time she reached the office entrance, she heard Mr. Wolf walking at full speed towards the door she froze as the door opened abruptly and saw the Bounty Hunter yelling at the Guild Master:

“I don’t give a shit what you say! And I sure as f*ck don’t need your permission to hunt down these assholes!”

Mr. Wolf dropped his cigarette on the floor and met Alana’s eyes. She felt fear in every fiber of her being. She was not looking at the Arda-randir she knew… only a seasoned killer on the warpath.

~Mr. Wolf…?~ She managed to say to him in Elvish.

~Don’t expect me to return soon, Miss Alana. I’m going to war…~ With that said, Richard walked away.

Alana looked at Wolf disapppear as he ran down the stairs in a hurry. She then turned to look at the Guild Master who looked like a defeated soldier after he lost a battle. The receptionist rushed to Brando who had a look of desperation in his eyes.

“Guild Master! What’s wrong? What did Mr. Wolf do?”

Brando looked at Alana with frantic eyes.

“It’s not what he did that scares me… it’s what he’s going to do that I’m afraid of.” Brando sat down with the assistance of Alana. “With the Outlander no longer holding back… there’s no telling what kind of damage he’ll do. We should expect to hear very soon about a massacre.”

Alana’s blood ran cold as ice. Richard Wolf, the World Traveler, was going after the Black Talon and their sponsor tonight…

Outside the Guild, Wolf tapped his ear to make the communication circle appear over it:

“Order: 300 revolver rounds - High Impact bullets. 100 rifle rounds - Manstopper bullets. 30 shotgun shells - buckshot. Leave them on reserve.” The Wolf then pulled out from his pack a pump action shotgun and loaded it. “It’s time for war…”