The Arbiter
Copyright© 2025 by James Girvan
Chapter 36
Instead of calling ‘Sarah’ on the fact that she could understand me, I pulled Silver, gems, and other goodies from my inventory while watching her face. She recognized a healing potion, and the weird pan flute thing I’d stolen from the dead Goat-man. That last one gave her a little shudder.
“Footman, any idea where we are? You’ve been getting us lost for an hour or so.” I called up front.
“Not really, but I’m driving us west and eventually we’ll run across something. Food and a bed might be a good idea?” He threw back. I had no idea what we might do next and figured he could work his magic without my input.
“Sniff something out for us, off-grid and cash based is the goal.” I was repeating what he already knew, but as mentioned earlier I was drained.
I stole the weapons from the other two. I trusted Robbie somewhat but the girl was ... dangerous? Maybe. Useful? Possibly. But Robbie claimed her so that made her a bargaining chip against him too.
The girl hadn’t healed herself yet, and a mostly naked chick with bruises on her would raise alarm bells. Pulling out her sceptre again, I passed it over and pointed to her face and torso. “Heal it up, don’t go saving your mana for nothing.”
She didn’t do anything besides store her weapon so I pulled it out again (this time from her inventory) and held it in my own hands, pointing it at my own face while letting go a smile as I said “heal yourself”. I felt kinda stupid doing it.
Since she didn’t do anything, I asked Robbie, “Hey, can you tell me if her Mana is too low or something? I passed her the Sceptre a few times but she just stores it and doesn’t heal herself.”
“I just got the damn collar back, that kind of ‘deeper reading’ takes time to come to me. Every time someone either leaves my awareness or some idiot takes the collar off I kinda go back to baseline of what I can sniff out.” He called back with just a little snark.
“Fine, sorry.” I snapped. “I’ll remember that you want to keep that thing on all the damn time when you next need to use some nasty truck -stop shitter and start gagging as you approach the door...”
I pulled out the Sceptre again, handing it to the bewildered healer. “Do you think she doesn’t know that she’s a Healer?” I asked, my hand covering my mouth from her line of sight. “She would have regenerated all her Mana by now a few times over already, she’s had ample time to heal up her cuts and bruises even if she is only a newbie with a few Mana” The more I thought about it the stranger it seemed.
“Possible,” he called back, “I have to say the word ‘Status’ out loud to get my screen to open, maybe being mute blocks her from her skills?”
We were going around in circles, and as tired as I was I just took all of their weapons and curled up in the backseat and drifted off. ———————————————————————- “Albio, I think we’re too far south, I just saw a sign for Atlanta...”. Robbie’s voice dragged me back up out of my stupor. I guess he hadn’t found a good place to hole-up for the night.
“OK” I grunted, glancing at the still sleeping form to my left. “ ... so we need to drive north-east a bit? Need me to drive a while?”
“Yeah,” he managed to say it while yawning.
There was plenty of gas in the tank, plus plenty of snacksand some questionable roadside sandwiches approaching room temperature on the seat beside me. Robbie must have stopped a little while ago and I’d slept right through it. I glanced at the clock on the dashboard, then at my own Health. Seven hours of crappy sleep but I managed to heal one point at least. A healer sure would be a nicething to have at this point.
The two ‘pack’ were out cold in the backseat before I even pulled off the side of the road, Sarah now leaning against Robbie when she had been up against the opposite window when I was back there.
Driving aimlessly is a great exercise while trying to think. A small chunk of your brain maintains things on cruise control while it steers, controls speed, and makes dozens of small decisions every second, leaving the rest of the brain to work things out.
Three questions tumbled about in the rest of my unoccupied mind as piloted the car north-east. What to do next?
For the last few months, I had simply been an extension of Mace’s orders, with no real control over my life. My decision to leave wasn’t a spur-of-the-moment thing. It had been building for some time, ever since I realized my life had an expiration date, and I had taken the option to escape when the window presented itself. Still, I needed a viable plan other than wandering aimlessly all across the Southern states. That would eventually lead to being picked up by my government if I was lucky, or picked off by this government if I wasn’t ... I coudn’t imagine me leaving that prisoner’s Weapon behind was going to endear me with either of them.
I needed to know what to do next for myself, here on Earth, what to do next for myself with the portals, and lastly what to do with those two collared in the back seat. Robbie was still useful to have around with his experience on the edges of society and that damn Fade skill. Sarah might become useful in the future, but right now she was a drag. I felt like I was at a bar with hen party in my sights. I might just spend all my time and money on one girl, only to have the whole group disappear at midnight. Alternately I might ignore them all and keep my cash but go home alone. The ‘Hail Mary’ might see me spend my time talking them into a four-way after plying them with drinks and weed. (Seriously, I pulled this off once with three closeted-bi college girls, I don’t think I have ever been so tired. Five stars, would do again.)
What did I want and what would I risk to get it?