That pendant… who was that guy, really, to have something like that on him? Damen sighed and rubbed his eyes. He should really stop thinking about it, but he couldn’t. The symbol on it had been strangely familiar, and he wasn’t sure where it was from. It was at the tip of his mind, if only he could remember…
“That’s the fourth time you’ve sighed like that in the past fifteen minutes,” Javaid said, looking up from where he had been carving a lewd message into the side of a fountain. “What’s up?”
“Nothing,” Damen said. “Just thinking.”
“What? Nooooo. Are you sure you were thinking? I thought you were dancing.”
Adrian had almost fully pushed the memory of meeting Dae and Jav to the back of his mind. There was no need to linger on meetings like that, especially since he was sure he'd never seen them again. He hoped he'd never see them again. Another meeting like that would not be the most relaxing thing he could do, especially if they'd seen the pendent. Okay, maybe he hadn't pushed it as far back as he wanted to think he had. Adrian shook his head and focused on where he was going. The sounds of running feet caught his attention and he glanced back to see a group of young people jogging down the road. They looked familiar, and a second later he found out why: each of them had a light grey ribbon with the symbol of Jahtal in black on it tied around their arm. Oh, shit. Adrian suddenly took interest in the wall of a nearby house, only turning around again when they'd passed him. The group was heading towards a fountain, probably going to go steal something. An amateur group, to be displaying who they followed so openly. At least they hadn't recognized him. He didn't want the entire street to know who he was.
"Well, you need to get your eyesight checked, then," Damen shot back. He sighed and rubbed his forehead. He wasn't allowed to think in peace and quiet, was he?
Two people jogged past, and Damen stared after them for a moment before shrugging. They were just two strangers. It didn't matter what they were doing. But those ribbons… he shook his head. He was probably imagining things.
And then it came to him.
The Crimson Lord. That's what the symbol on Adrian's pendant had been. Then… who was Adrian, really?
Adrian waited a little longer, then kept going down the street. It was the same way the group had gone, but if they got in trouble, he should probably make sure most of them got away safely. It would mean blowing his cover, but… well, he'd figure that out when it came to it. He kept to the edges of the street, scanning the area around the fountain when he got to it. The group of amateurs had disappeared– good. Now he didn't have to feel obligated to help them. There were two men sitting near the fountain that looked familiar, but he skimmed over them quickly. They probably just had one of those faces– wait, it was the twins! Adrian increased his pace, annoyed that those two were in the same area he was. That was always a possibility that he would see them again, but so soon? They had been interesting, but they had also been trouble. He didn't want any of that at the moment. Jahtal, please, let them not see him.
He could be trouble. Damen really didn't want anything to do with the Crimson Lord. He had heard rumors of what the guy - or girl - had done, and he really didn't want to be caught up in that mess. He ran a frustrated hand through his hair. There was no reason to think about this right now. Right now, they needed to find someplace to stay the night before they moved on to the next town. They had gotten into too much trouble here already.
"Hey! It's the cocky asshole from the other day!" Javaid said.
Dae looked up, spotted Adrian, who really didn't look like he wanted to be noticed, and groaned.
Adrian risked one glance over at the twins to find both of them staring at them. Jahtal help him, they'd seen him. He looked away and kept walking. With luck, they wouldn't bother him. He was probably already late to the meeting Jessa was hosting. She would be mad, but right now it wasn't too bad. A commotion down the street caught his attention– a group of Queen's Men were walking down the street towards the fountain.
"The Crimson Lord burned another Queen's Men outpost to the ground! If anyone has any information that would lead to his capture, we are prepared to reward them with money! If you are found to be harboring this demon, you will be executed!" The man leading the group shouted. Adrian quickly moved to a small opening between two houses, but stayed there. This road was the fastest way to the meeting point and all he had to do was wait for the Queen's Men to pass. Most of the people were avoiding looking at the Queen's Men, their eyes full of hate. Good. Adrian smirked as the man repeated himself. That had been a fun time last night. And it was hilarious that they referred to the Crimson Lord as a demon when it was common knowledge he'd only made a deal with one.
"Oh no. We'll be executed if we're harboring the Crimson Lord. Let me just get him out of my pocket then," Javaid said, rolling his eyes in disdain. "Seriously, even if we knew who that guy was, why the fuck would we tell those guys?"
He scowled at the figures of the Queen's Men. They were annoying, and arrogant, and seemed to think that whatever they said was law. It might be in their eyes, but no one else's.
Damen watched as Adrian vanished between two buildings, and his suspicion grew. Did he work for the Crimson Lord? Or was it something else? He didn't want to know, but he did, at the same time. Was he really sure that he wanted to know what was going on with Adrian?
No, not really.
But still…
Adrian stayed hidden until the Queen's Men were long gone. It took a little longer than he wanted– Jessa would definitely be mad at him. It wasn't like she would do anything other than glare at him, though. He slipped back into the main street, casting one last glance at the brothers. They still didn't seem to be too interested in him, which hopefully meant they didn't care. Adrian looked back at where he was going, walking at a leisurely pace. It was only a few blocks to the meeting so there was no need to rush. They couldn't start it without him, after all.
After a few minutes of walking, Adrian reached the meeting building. From the outside, it looked like a neglected building. Most people would pass by it with no further thoughts. Adrian walked up to the door and pulled a key from his pocket. He usually kept it on a ring with all the rest of them, but taking out a ring of keys was a bit too suspicious. Adrian quickly unlocked the door and entered the building, locking it against behind him.
"Where did that asshole go?" Javaid asked, peering around. "Why was he here again?" Adrian made him suspicious. The guy was strange, and didn't seem to act like the person he said he was. There was something… wrong… about him, that Javaid didn't trust.
He glanced at his brother. Damen was staring towards two buildings with a complicated look on his face, a mix of horror and fear and annoyance. It was his conflicted face, when he didn't know what to do about something.
"What's wrong?"
"He went that way," Dae said, pointing.
"So… you're saying I should follow him?"
"If you want."
"I will, then." Jav stood, starting to walk in that direction.
"Wait! Let me come, too." Damen stood. "Let's go. Quickly, if we want to catch up to him."
Adrian listened for a second. A soft murmur of voices was coming from the meeting room. Either they had started the meeting without him, or they were talking amongst themselves while they waited. For their own safety, it had better be the second one. Adrian walked down the hallway and pushed the door open. Everyone stoped talking immediately and turned to look at him. Most of them had neutral expressions on their faces except for Jessa, who looked like she might kill him.
"Well, Sayel. Thank you for finally joining us." She pressed her lips together and crossed her arms across her chest.
"Oh, yes, sorry. There were some Queen's Men making a big fuss over us burning that outpost to the ground, so I got delayed." Adrian shrugged and sit down at the head of the table. "Jessa?"
"Hmm." Jessa stood. "As you all know, we took down the second-to-last Queen's Men outpost down last night." A cheer rose from the people at the table and Jessa smiled. "Only one to go, I know. It's exciting."
"But, as you know, we've been saving this one for last because it's the main one. More guards, more security, more supposed divine influence." Adrian tapped his fingers on the table. "This one will be harder and probably take longer, too. But after that… The Bad Part Of Town is ours." His lips spread into a slightly wicked smile.
The two brothers followed Adrian for a bit, but he soon vanished into one of the many buildings that surrounded them, Damen realized that it was probably hopeless. What were they supposed to do, look in every building until they found him? He was only following the guy because he was suspicious, and because he wanted to confirm something… but he couldn't exactly do that when Adrian had vanished.
"Where'd he go?" Javaid asked, looking around.
Damen shrugged. "I don't know, but there's no use looking for him anymore. We won't be able to find him, even if we tried."
"What if we waited until he came out?"
"No. What if he's in there for a week? Then what? Would we take shifts to watch for him?" He levelled a flat gaze on his brother. "Why does it matter, anyways?"
"There's just something about him that I don't trust…" Javaid said softly.
Damen stared at the houses around them. "Yeah. There is."
The meeting lasted for another half an hour in which they all figured out the important points of the plan. Adrian's heart was beating a little faster than normal as he said goodbye to the attendees of the meeting. It was a mixture of excitement and nerves, and he couldn't suppress a small smile as he started towards the door. Everyone else left through the back door, but it was easier for him to go out the way he came it. His next stop was closer that way. Adrian still appeared pleased as he locked the door to the house behind him and wandered down the road. Besides his usual check for Queen's Men, he didn't pay much attention to the people around him. It was just too much good news for him. Things like this almost never happened. It made him careless.
The two of them waited for a while, maybe about 25 minutes, before Jav got bored. He had started pacing back and forth, and then finally stopped and sighed. "You were right. This is a lost cause. Let's go."
His brother gave him a mocking grin, which made him bristle with annoyance. "Alright, Mr. Let's-Wait-for-Him." He snorted. "Not that I expected him to be out here by now."
Jav shook his head. "Let's go. I'm hungry."
The two of them started to leave, when Damen tapped his shoulder. "It's him," he murmered.
Jav turned and saw Adrian himself leave one of the buidlings, an enormous smile on his face. He scowled. "Asshole."
Adrian sauntered down the road, keeping to one side. What should he do to celebrate? Nothing too extreme, probably, since it hadn't succeeded yet. There was a little sandwich shop on the way to his stop, though. He could get something there. It was nearly time to eat anyway and he far preferred something from that shop to something he had at home. Adrian debated for a few more blocks, weighing the pros and cons of eating out for once. Pro, it would actually taste good. Con, getting trapped in such a small space wouldn't be good for his health at all. In the end, though, he decided against it. He could go there after the plan had succeeded, not before. It was best that way, even though the smells as he passed by the shop made his mouth water. Adrian sped up slightly and turned onto a smaller, almost deserted road.
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