Chapter 118

The crowd only seemed to grow louder and more bloodthirsty as the Ranker sentenced those put before him, the prisoner’s screams on hearing their fate barely heard over the cheers, the volume rising with each mention of the ‘pit’, fists thrust into the air, the square echoing with the roar until chants of PIT! PIT! PIT! were rolling across the space in waves.

Elzodium didn’t react in the slightest, he may as well have been in private for all the attention he paid the excitable crowd, casually waving a paw for the next prisoner to be brought forward before reaching out for another fist full of candies from his harem.

The line wasn’t small but, eventually, the longboat full of prisoners had all been sentenced, some sentenced with just a grunt and the word “pit” by the lazing Ranker, but all given at least a word. The last was dragged away and then the crowd was left with nothing to cheer, only Elzodium yawning, as though he couldn’t care less that he was surrounded by tens of thousands of people, resting his paw on his chest as he slouched in his giant throne.

The Ranker’s eyes closed and everyone watched, waiting for something to happen.

Instead, the Ranker began to softly snore.

A few awkward minutes of murmuring passed by with the crowd wondering if their Ranker had really and truly just taken a nap and forgotten all of them were there. But then once they realised that was exactly what had happened they slowly began to dissipate. The energy that had charged the crowd a moment ago subdued as they realised they weren’t even an afterthought to Elzodium. The excitement was over.

Which was fortunate as Lyra was on her last legs, panting and sweating as she hung onto Opal, hands on the Goblin’s shoulders as she tried to keep herself upright and the crucial wool space Skill active.

Rain was more than a little worried. If Lyra fainted right now he would be trapped inside, and if she did not wake up quickly, well, he would most likely die. He could climb free of her wool, but the problem with that was he would be immediately attacked by the bloodthirsty crowd of levelers, and more importantly the Ranker.

He held no illusions about the strength of Elzodium and his chances against him. He might have had hard-fought success against Bane but there was no guarantees with this one, especially as Elzodium was the Ranker of an entire Mega City and presumably far far far higher leveled than a mere town Ranker.

He couldn’t leave, so that left him stuck and hoping for a snatched chance to escape out of view before the sheep girl collapsed.

It seemed that he had made the right choice as the crowd rapidly disintegrated, the many streets that fed into the square syphoning it away in every direction, the varying species eager to get on with their day.

Opal was leading the way now as Lyra was focusing on just staying conscious, carefully winding her way around and by the flows of people. Luckily Opal seemed to understand that they were in a dangerous situation and was moving Lyra along quickly, Rain’s recent near-death experience clearly leaving an impression on her.

They made their way through the streets and then through alleys until they found safe haven, an empty alley amongst a cobweb of deserted alleys well away from the heaving city streets, the buildings tall around them and muffling the sounds of the city. The sheep girl stumbled across the cobble as she was part carried, barely hanging onto Opal’s shoulders.

Then with shaky legs she slumped against the wall.

“O-Okay Rain y-you can come out now.” she managed to get out between breaths.

Rain, waiting on the other side, heard her, but he didn’t move. His eye was peering from her black wooled thigh and had just caught sight of a number of levelers entering the far end of the alley.

“Wha-what are you waiting for?” panted Lyra, her voice directed at her wool covered arm.

“Levelers,” hissed Opal, watching the group of levelers approach and causing Lyra to look up in surprise.

There were three of them. One a Lapine, that is to say a black-furred rabbit folk with chevron styled clothing, and the other two Human, two men in scuffed leather armour.

Unlike other Lapine that Rain had seen this Lapine looked ... significantly rougher. Old scars that hadn’t been treated with healing potions made long ragged tracks in his fur and there were many triangular knicks and knife cuts on his ears. He was the same as the two men in that way, like they’d seen a lot of fighting with blades.

They carried themselves casually, cocky in their self confidence, as though they owned everything they walked on. It only took a moment for Rain to get the impression that these three were part of some kind of gang.

Their steps slowed as they approached and paws and hands came to rest on the pommels of blades hanging from hips.

The Lapine eyed Lyra.

“Do you know what dye is little sheep?”

Lyra’s head wobbled as it moved, breath coming in pants.

“Wha-?”

“You’re a white wooled half-woollie-half-elf, there aren’t that many of that mix around. A little bit of dye and you’re nice and disguised. Which is likely a pretty important thing to be doing if, hypothetically, there were a large bounty on your head. It’s the first thing I’d do, and since I’m me, a dyed half woollie is also the first thing I’d be looking out for. Right, Lyra Bellerhorn?”

It took Lyra a few seconds to grasp what they were saying but when she did the outrage seemed to give her life and she straightened from the wall, taking a half step toward them.

“Are you saying what I think you’re saying!? Half woollies are being attacked randomly? Even those who have nothing to do with that bounty!? Those who are a completely different shade of wool!?” She looked on the verge of tears. “Innocent half woollies being harassed or worse killed?! No! No ... That- that can’t be...”