B3 Chapter 423: Return to Deadacre, pt. 1

Kaius stared up at the Dusty Stables with a surprisingly anxious knot in his stomach.

It looked exactly as he remembered it. On the street level, gated stables held tamed or bonded beasts that weren’t suitable for staying in the inn. Each had an arched opening, plain but made of sturdy, quality wood. At the front, a wide staircase led up the side of the building to the entrance where the common room lay, with three more storeys stacked on top of that for individual and group rooms.

Yet for all that the Dusty Stables was identical, he had changed. When they’d last seen Hensch, they had told him they were going on another mission; that they’d be away for a few weeks, a month tops. Yet here they were nearly half a year later, with another member and a tier higher.

Their entire return to Deadacre cemented the feeling in Kaius’s heart. They had grown strong, but the world hadn’t.

Everyone they passed seemed fragile, frail, and slow. They had felt that way before, of course — they’d been far stronger than the average for a long time — but the difference had never been so stark as it was now. Especially when he felt his aura brush over people. No matter how much he tried to keep it constrained close to him, there were always slip-ups. While it wouldn’t quite make people stumble, they definitely noticed the power; looked at them differently.

With respect.

It was an experience he wasn’t used to.

It was like the average person had been carved from rotten deadwood, while he was forged from iron. A disconcerting feeling, to say the least.

As a group, they had drawn attention, even more so when they reached the Guild — the entire common room had fallen silent. On the journey in, Ro and Rieker had explained they had pulled in almost all of the Iron and Steel teams. From there, word had spread about the capture. With how distinctive Porkchop was, it had been obvious that they were the ones who had returned.

Similarly obvious was that they were Silver. Shortly after the stunned silence, the teams in the common room broke into hushed whispers, pointed looks falling upon him and his team. Rieker took charge immediately.

“Quiet!” he had roared, silencing the common room. Kaius could remember it now, clear as day, the way that everyone had snapped to attention instantly.

“Clearly there is news. Let people know we’ll have an important announcement in the coming weeks. Until then, leave this group be. They’re in need of rest, not badgering with questions. Those can wait until the Guild is ready to answer them. Am I understood?”

The crowd had just nodded stiffly. Right after, Rieker had ushered them into a side room and apologised: in his experience it was easier to get this sort of thing out of the way early.

They were sent on their way with an insistence that talk of beasts, honours, and ruins could wait for at least a week or two — longer if needed.

Of course they hightailed it to the Stables, and now Kaius struggled to make that first step. Had Hensch worried; noticed they were gone? Had he thought they’d simply moved on like delvers do?

What would they say to him? Other than Rieker and Ro, Hensch was perhaps the person who knew them best in Deadacre. He was a friendly man, always keen to make conversation when they relaxed in the common room. How did they explain the changes? Would he still be his same jovial self when he learned not only were they Silvers who had made the tier in record time, but that Porkchop was a greater beast?

Behind him, Porkchop snorted and shoved him forward with his nose.

“Come on, Kaius. Hensch will be excited to see us.”

Kaius sighed. He knew his brother was right, but it still felt abnormally hard. Regardless, he couldn’t stand in the street all day, and it would be rude to make Kenva wait for her first experience of Hensch’s hospitality.

“All right,” he said, shaking off his malaise. “Let’s go say hey to Hensch.”

“Gods, you’d think he was facing a hangman’s noose,” Kenva whispered behind him, smiling.

Kaius just chuckled, brushing the comment off. Walking up those stairs felt like returning home in a way — near identical to the few times he had told his father he’d be back in an hour and then gone hunting for the rest of the day. Regardless, it was time to face the music.

Laying a hand on the brass handle, Kaius pushed the door in. He hadn’t heard much sound inside the inn, so he hoped it was quiet. It should be, at least — early afternoon as it was. There wouldn’t likely be anyone in for lunch, and delvers were usually a busy sort.

Thankfully, opening the door, he found it utterly empty save for a familiar man behind the bar, wiping it down with a rag, and a large cat lying by the fire. The cat perked up, ears pricking as they came into sight.

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Hensch froze, his swipe across the benchtop stopping midway as he stared at them with wide eyes.

Kaius slowed to a halt, giving the man an awkward smile. They stood there in deadlock until the man’s bonded beast, Yan, let out a deep mrow, bowing to stretch the kinks out of his back before padding across the common room. Despite coming up to Kaius’s waist, the cat acted much like any common pet would. He stopped in front of Kaius for a moment, tail swishing through the air as he sniffed him with interest, bumped against Ianmus, then sat in front of Porkchop looking up at him. Yan tilted his head for a moment, let out another meow, then butted up and twined his way around Porkchop’s legs.

Kaius smiled at the beast’s familiarity. It broke the deadlock.

Hensch rubbed his eyes, staring at them in disbelief. “Are my eyes failing me, or is that ye, Kaius? I haven’t seen you in months.” He broke into a wide grin a moment later, throwing his rag to the side. “Oh, my boy, it has been far too long. Why are you all standing there? And I see you’ve got a new team member! Come in, come in! Please, sit, let me pour you some drinks.”

Before they could say anything, Hensch’s hands were already blurring, reaching underneath his bar to pull out four tankards. From the hand-pull on the bench, he drew the flagons full of foaming dark ale. “Do I have to repeat myself? Sit, sit. I’ll fetch you something to eat. My lunch isn’t long gone, so there’s still plenty left. Come, sit!” he insisted.

Kaius immediately relaxed. What had he been worried for? This was Hensch. The man was sent by the gods themselves.