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Chapter 28: Hunter And Prey

Chapter 28: Hunter And Prey

"Who is this Voss guy?" Mara asked as another strand of grave-thread snapped. The Abomination twisted beneath the rubble, wrenching one hooked limb free while the remaining cord dug deeper into its pale flesh. Rook kept his grip upon the scout’s bindings and pulled him away before the creature’s jaws could reach his face.

"Former officer from another Bastion," Rook said. "Volunteer Reaper. Did his job poorly."

Mara glanced at the scout dragging himself against the thread, then back at Rook. "Same as you do?"

"No. I do my job badly for free."

"That isn’t the distinction you think it is." Mara watched him as though waiting to see whether he would defend himself.

Rook ignored her. He wrapped the grave-thread once more around his useful hand and began dragging the captive away from the Abomination. The scout resisted at first, but another violent movement from the creature made him calm down and stop making the job of the man pulling him away from the monster any more difficult.

"He received dozens of contracts," Rook continued. "Fresh souls bound to him for protection. Not one of them made it even halfway to Yama’s Gate."

Mara’s expression changed. "What happened to them?"

"At first, people assumed the route was too dangerous. Most Reapers lose someone eventually, especially those stupid enough to attempt the Gate. Voss lost everyone. None gave up or returned, and since he came from a Bastion that had a high number of reincarnations, unlike ours, things got suspicious."

Behind them, the Abomination forced more of its long body free from beneath the collapsed building. The rubble shifted across its back, sending broken stone spilling into the road. Rook increased his pace, dragging the scout over the debris while Mara followed with their lantern raised.

"Eventually, someone investigated," he said. "They discovered Voss had been leading his contracts into an Abomination nest. The creatures ate the souls, and he collected whatever memories they left behind."

The scout twisted his head toward Rook. "That wasn’t..."

Rook jerked the thread hard enough to bounce the man’s face against the road. Mara winced at the impact.

"Damn," she said. "That’s messed up."

"Like everything else here." Rook continued walking without looking back.

They crossed beneath the remains of an archway just as another section of grave-thread broke behind them. The Abomination’s bound limbs separated slightly, allowing its front half to rise from the rubble. Its vertical mouth opened, and the layered jaws snapped together with enough force to echo through the surrounding streets.

Mara looked back once, then quickened her pace. "Why does he hate you?"

"Because I did the tracking," Rook answered.

"You investigated him?" Mara asked, glancing sideways at him.

"I found the nest, discovered what he was doing and handed him over to the Eleventh. Our people did a poor job keeping him locked up."

"Ah." Mara nodded as though the explanation had settled something. "I thought it might be because of your charming personality, but that is a legitimate reason to be pissed at you."

"Hey, my personality is charming." Rook sounded almost offended.

The scout chose that moment to twist against the cord binding his wrists. He rolled onto one side and attempted to pull his legs beneath him, only for Rook to kick him in the liver. The man folded around the impact and collapsed with a strangled groan.

Mara gave Rook a suspicious look. "He moved six inches."

"He tried to fly away," Rook said.

"That’s how flying starts." Rook faced forward again as though that settled the matter.

Stone shattered behind them. The Abomination tore another limb free, and the movement dragged the remaining grave-thread against the collapsed arch, where the cord had already been weakened by the creature’s hooked jaws. Several braids split at once.

Mara lifted the lantern and watched the long body rising over the rubble. "Well, we should leave. That thing is about to get out."

"You’re right." Rook caught the captive by the back of his coat and began dragging him with one hand.

Without the Reaper’s ability active, the man’s full weight scraped across the street. His boots struck loose stones, and his bound arms dragged uselessly behind his back. They hurried away from the Abomination, choosing the only road without lanterns leading into it.

The darkness thickened almost immediately. Mara carried their light ahead, revealing collapsed storefronts, overturned carts and the remnants of narrow alleys disappearing between the ruins.

Rook looked down at their prisoner. "Where’s Voss?"

The scout tried to push himself upright, failed and continued sliding across the road. "Deeper inside the Bastion. Please let me go."

"Deeper doesn’t really help." Rook tightened his grip on the man’s coat as a violent scraping sound rose behind them.

Mara glanced over her shoulder. The Abomination had freed the front half of its body. Several strands of grave-thread still held its twisted limbs together, but the cord was unravelling quickly. It dragged itself across the broken road, using its remaining legs to pull the rubble-covered length behind it.

The scout saw it too. "At the fucking respawn!" he shouted. "Near the Beacon fragment!"

"Good. Should’ve said that before." Rook stopped dragging him.

For one hopeful moment, the scout appeared to believe he had earned his freedom. Rook crouched and pulled a dagger from inside his coat. He cut through the grave-thread binding the man’s ankles, then sliced apart the belt wrapped around his wrists.

The scout scrambled upright. "Unfortunately for you," Rook said as he caught the man’s right arm, "I still need something from you."

The man tried to pull away, but Rook drew the dagger across his wrist. The blade opened the remembered flesh from one side to the other. Blood spilled immediately, running over the scout’s palm and between his fingers. Before he could react, Rook seized his other hand and cut that wrist as well.

The scout stared at the two wounds. Rook released him and took a step back.

"You’ll need to run," Rook told him.

"What?" The scout looked from his bleeding wrists to the dagger in Rook’s hand.

Rook kicked him toward the Abomination. The scout fell hard, rolled onto his shoulder and forced himself upright. He tried wiping one hand against his coat, but fresh blood immediately covered it again. His fingers trembled when he attempted to close them, unable to form a proper grip.

The Abomination pulled itself around the corner. Its front limbs struck the walls on either side of the street, dragging its long body into view. The vertical mouth opened, and its nested jaws unfolded toward the three souls ahead.

The scout looked at Rook and then at the creature. "Son of a bitch," he whispered.

Rook pointed toward a narrow alley. "I’d start running."

The Abomination drove another hooked limb into the road. The scout ran.

He vanished into the alley with both arms held awkwardly before him, blood falling from his fingertips and marking the stones behind him. His boots hammered against the road as he fled, every panicked step sending vibrations through the surrounding ruins.

The Abomination stopped. Its body turned with a slow scraping of hardened plates against stone. The jaws at the front of its body opened and closed as it felt the rhythm of the fleeing man through the road.

For several seconds, it remained caught between two targets. Rook had bound it, injured it and dragged grave-thread through several of its limbs. He stood in the open with Mara beside him, close enough to reach if the creature continued forward, but dangerous enough that it did not want to experience being buried again.

The scout was running, bleeding and alone. One was a hunter, while the other was prey. The choice was obvious.