Chapter 57: It’s in the title

Viv’s badass moment was instantly ruined when Solfis reminded her of the necessity of looting. The refugees had to function on minimum resources and so many horses, both alive and dead, could simply not be wasted. Marruk managed to catch a few of the wandering beasts, but others had galloped away or back to the edge of the deadlands and would have to be caught. With the sun setting, it was a lost cause without some help.

Viv managed to feel a trickle of mana coming from the cavalry leader and ‘liberated’ a magical item from his uncooperating form. It was a small brooch holding a shield enchantment that would protect its wearer from spell effects.

To an extent.

The fortunate finding was immediately given to Marruk, the most vulnerable member of the band. Money was also found in small amounts, except the officer who yielded a whole gold talent.

“Squee!”

With great ceremony, Viv offered the prize to Arthur for ‘extraordinary services and draconic excellence’. The small one observed the shiny, shiny gold for a full minute before placing it in her collar purse with motherly care. After that they departed the battlefield. It only took them a few minutes to cover the league separating them from the camp on stolen rides, trussed prisoner in tow, except for Solfis who merely ran. They found Koro waiting patiently at the edge of the cordon of guards with a number of torches providing lighting to the sentries. Many of those let out a dark, pungent smoke and Viv suspected that the wood was too green.

“Hey Koro, we need a retrieval team.”

“You killed many revenants then?”

“Not just. We also got about forty Enorian riders. Some of their horses are still alive.”

Koro whistled softly, then her gaze grew vague and a thin line of drool dropped from the corner of her mouth.

“Horse steak.”

“Hey, focus,” Viv chastised.

“Sorry! I, hmm, I have good news and bad news.”

“I could really use some good news right now.”

“We had the first baby delivered successfully! It’s a girl and she was named Bob in your honor!”

Viv slowly slapped herself and groaned in her saddle.

“And the bad news is that, ah, Mayor Ganimatalo was found dead in her tent.”

Viv’s first reaction was quite uncharitable as she forced herself not to glare at Solfis, who had once proposed this very option. He had been with Marruk then herself for the past two days. There was no way that it was him.

“What the fuck happened?”

“Investigator Tars says she took her own life.”

Koro’s face was a mask of intense confusion.

“Grandfather world is trying to kill us all the time, how can you just let him win? I don’t understand…”

Viv searched vaguely for something to say and found that she couldn’t be arsed. She didn’t understand Ganimatalo either. It didn’t matter right now. They were in crisis mode. Viv made her way to the command tent, everyone giving her a wide berth. Or most likely giving Solfis a wide berth. Two guards saw her and opened the flap to let her in without a word. Inside, she found Brenna writing in a ledger, as well as Corel and Tars. Viv had rarely seen the severe investigator since she had welcomed her in Kazar, a few months and an eternity ago, which made sense. She had not been involved in anything suspicious like mysterious disappearance after all. Tars wore leather armor and her skin was pale, though still tinged slightly green like everyone else here. A deep gash ran from her right cheek to the back of her head, and her ear was missing some flesh. The wound had scabbed over but it looked like it hurt a lot.

The tent’s occupants looked up at her as she arrived. Then Corel unexpectedly rushed her, only stopping at a few paces when Solfis followed her in. Marruk had stayed outside.

“It’s all your damn fault,” he spat, foaming at the mouth, “even since you came we’ve only had one catastrophe after another. Twenty years of growth and development ruined in two days.”

“The fuck? You’re blaming me? Me?”

“Boss, please, calm down…” Tars said with a plaintive voice.

“Don’t you see?” Corel raged, “Don’t you see? She brings bad luck. She goes to a fort? Necromancers. She goes to a town? Monster hordes. Military invasions!”

Brenna frowned. She closed her book with a snap.

“You are out of your mind, Corel. Grief is making you spew bullshit.”

“Fuck off, woman. You are blind.”

“So Neriad help me, watch your tongue. Your pain can only excuse so much. I won’t even argue with you. You know the utter stupidity of what you just said.”

“You are both looking at chains of logic but you don’t see the patterns. We have had more crises since she arrived than in the past five years combined.”

“And so it’s her fault? The civil war? The fucking civil war?”

“I know what I know. She is a calamity. The Calamitous Bob.”

Corel pushed his way out of the tent. Viv let him pass. Solfis didn’t.

One moment, the angry man was barreling out. The other, he was static with a claw on his shoulder and the golem’s alien gaze only a few fingers away.

//Do not let your emotions rule you, human.

//Or else.

“Are you threatening me?”

//Yes.

Corel sputtered and protested, but there was no winning a glaring contest with the golem. He finally left the tent in a huff.

“Well. That happened,” Viv summarized.

“Ahem. I know that tensions are running high but can you please keep your golem in check?” Brenna asked.

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

“He’s only tasked with defending me. You don’t have to worry,” Viv reassured, but the church servant did not relax. “In any case, we should be clear of revenants for the next two days. How are things on your end?”

“Births are going fine. We had mountain tribe people come and they agreed to help us through the mountains. I’m just very concerned about the lack of known wells in the mines you mentioned. We will be fine water-wise until then, but we only have three drawn cisterns for close to one thousand five hundred people. That’s five to six days of water for everyone. People die quickly without water.”

“I’m sure we can find a well near the foundries. They absolutely needed water. Even if we don’t or it’s too obstructed, we can go to the Yries, I’m sure they have sources. They would not have established a town without one. And they have stone weavers to help us.”