Chapter Text
Ryan couldn’t help but feel like the towns on the Northern border of the Kingdom all looked the same; dirt roads, badly built houses that were started to crumble with age with tall, imposing and well-fortified walls that surrounded the perimeter. The people all wore clothing in dark colours, and their weathered faces glowered at them with mistrust as they walked through the streets. Ryan could see that the Great War with the Northern Territories, long since over with the accord struck between the Kings of the two Nations, still held a heavy impact over the lives of the civilians and could understand their wariness of strangers, even if it did make him feel like under constant watch.
Despite this, the Northern towns shared a lot in common with the other towns and cities all over the country, and as Ryan stood with his back against the wall of a hollowed out, derelict building - of which nature had begun its steady reclaiming if the weeds growing up the walls and peaking out of the caved-in roof were anything to go by - where he could see the majority of the town market before him. But, more importantly, he had a perfect view of his friends as they went to and fro between stalls, every movement of theirs tracked by the suspicious gazes of the locals.
Ryan sighed, leaning back against the building and digging his free hand into the pocket of his coat. His other hand held his staff close to his body, its orb dimly glimmering in the meagre light of the overcast day.
“Remind me again why we’re here?”
Ryan turned his head slightly, keeping the majority of the open air market in his sights as his attention shifted to Michael. The younger man was stood with his arms tightly crossed and a scowl on his face as he too leant against the building. He stared blankly at the market.
“I still work for the King, Michael,” Ryan replied, fixing his comrade with an amused smirk. “He asked me to check on a few things in this region for him, and Geoff wanted to come along. You could’ve stayed at home.”
It was strange how easily Achievement City, and his life with The Hunters, had become a home to him. How his life now seemed to revolve around this small group of people, small group of friends(and, as his eyes flickered to where Gavin stood across the way, something more than a friend), and how he barely thought about where his home was; enjoying the warm, comfortable feeling that spread through him at the thought of returning back to their city with its mismatched houses and mismatched people.
Michael huffed and his shoulders slumped. “Everyone else wanted to come,” he replied simply, scuffing the heels of his boots against the side of the building. “I wasn’t gonna sit around twiddling my thumbs doing nothing.”
“As opposed to now?” Ryan joked dryly. Michael groaned.
“At least there’s something new to look at,” Michael reasoned, unfolding his arms. One hand came up to run through his messy curls whilst the other rested on his hip and he stepped away from the building, out from underneath the shadow it cast and out into the dim sunlight. He looked up, an unimpressed scowl on his face. “Shame the scenery fucking sucks though.”
“Careful Michael, it’s not smart to insu-”
“Would our esteemed guests like to purchase a souvenir? A token perhaps, to remind them of their time in our beloved city.”
Ryan, whose attention had been split between Michael and the figures of the rest of his group in the distance, hadn’t noticed the woman’s approach and barely managed to contain his startled look, his hand involuntarily tightening around the hilt of his staff. Michael visibly jumped, a hand jumping up to grip the hilt of the sword strapped across his back.
The woman was old; her thin white hair pulled into a tight bun, stray strands framing her weathered face, with a heavy coat wrapped around her thin frame whilst frails hands clutched tightly at a large tartan bag. Despite the fragility of her frame, at her tallest Ryan hazarded that the top of her head would barely reach Michael’s chest, and her sharp grey eyes focused on the two of them as one of her hands shot out to grip Michael’s arm.
Ryan immediately straightened up and took a step away from the wall. The woman let go of Michael’s arm, almost as if burned, and returned to the handle of her bag. She stared at Ryan.
“I’m sorry to have startled you, fair travellers,” the woman began in a surprisingly deep voice for a woman of her size. She opened the bag and dug a hand inside as she looked between the two Hunters. “I saw you standing here away from the main market and wondered if, perhaps, you would be more inclined to buy something if someone came to you.”
Michael held up his hands and shook his head. “I’m sorry Ma’am, but we’re really not here buy anything. We’re waiting for our friends.”
“Perhaps you would consider buying a trinket for these friends?” The woman pressed, pulling out an intricate glass vase from the depths of the bag. Ryan’s brow furrowed, his senses picking up the slight tingle of magic from within, and he instinctively took a step closer to Michael. Michael’s eyebrow rose, both at Ryan’s sudden proximity and at the appearance of a vase taller than the bag it was pulled from. “This is only one of the many items produced in our fair city, the process behind its detailed design is a particular secret of this place and, as you can see, it’s of a very high quality. For you, generous travellers, 4 Ingots.”
“Madam, we’re re-”
“If that doesn’t interest you, we also have delicately cut figurines, or cloaks spun from the finest Erzielen wool - guaranteed to keep you warm even through the harshest of winters. If not for you, perhaps for a lovely lady,” her eyes flickered from Michael’s face over to where Gavin was stood by Jack, happily chatting to one of the stall owners across the market. The younger man was waving his arms around enthusiastically, in the midst of an explanation of some sort, with a bright grin on his face that made a rush of protectiveness surge through Ryan. The old woman’s eyes returned to Ryan and a sly smirk graced her lips. “Or your young man.”
“I’m sorry Madam, but we’re really not interested,” Ryan responded, placing a hand on Michael’s shoulder. “And we really should be moving on now, I’m sorry to have wasted your time.”
Michael’s gaze was momentarily quizzical before he moved out from under Ryan’s protective hand, slowly walking towards the rest of their group but pausing before stepping out into the market. He folded his arms and cocked an eyebrow, the look on his face clearly telling Ryan that he wasn’t moving any further without him.
The woman’s hand gripping onto the sleeve of his coat brought his attention sharply back to her, and he pulled away with perhaps more force than he had intended. Unbalanced, she tumbled forward and Ryan’s hands shot out to steady her.
“Thank you honoured Sir,” the woman croaked, fixing Ryan with a pointed look. She pulled back slowly, her grip tightening around the handle of her bag. “I will not intrude upon your day any further.”
Ryan felt her eyes watching him intently as he walked over to Michael.
"What was all that about?" The younger man hissed, walking alongside Ryan as the mage reached him and started slowly moving towards the rest of the group. "Is she following us?"
Ryan, who couldn’t shake the feeling of being watched, shrugged. “I don’t think so,” he replied, moving from a casual pace into a quick walk. Michael didn’t comment as he matched his speed and the two of them brushed past a number of stalls, walking towards the rest of their group as the four of them moved on.
Jack, who had a polite look of exasperated interest on his face as he listened to Gavin’s steady stream of conversation, noticed their approach first. He smiled warmly in greeting, whilst Gavin stopped mid-sentence and bounded over to Ryan, eagerly grasping his hands and excitedly tugging him forward.
“Hey Love,” he greeted, pushing himself up on the balls of his feet to deliver a quick kiss. Ryan snaked his arm around Gavin’s waist and pulled him closer, Gavin mirroring him and slipping his hand into Ryan’s back pocket with a contented smile. Jack and Michael, used to this show of affection between their two friends, didn’t react; instead Michael dug his hands into his pockets, hunching his shoulders slightly as Jack raised an eyebrow.
“What happened?” He asked, levelling Ryan and Michael with a steady look. Michael sighed, a deeply exasperated sound that made him look visibly deflated afterwards, whilst Ryan chuckled, musing on Jack’s level of perception when it came to his friends. He felt the arm around his waist tighten slightly, Gavin turning to look at him with quizzical eyes.
“Nothing,” Ryan shrugged, giving Gavin a reassuring squeeze. The younger man squirmed slightly, letting out a squawk of protest at the movement that made the group chuckle. Jack raised an eyebrow, a light smile on his face, clearly asking for Ryan to elaborate. “Really, we just had a run in with one of the locals.”
Michael snorted. “Run in? She basically jumped us.”
“She?” Gavin asked incredulously. “You got scared by a woman?!”
“We didn’t get scared dumbass,” Michael retorted, lightly punching Gavin on the arm and being unphased by Ryan’s joking glower afterwards. “She was old and harmless.”
“Uh-huh,” Gavin teased, leaning forward in Ryan’s lose hold to playfully ruffle Michael’s hair. Michael growled, glaring vehemently at Gavin as he flattened down his curls, and was interrupted in retaliating by the appearance of Geoff and Ray - the two having noticed the lack of their companions as they walked on through the market. Geoff, sleepy eyes and scruffy beard only succeeding in masking his quick-witted intellect, greeted them with a lazy wave as Ray sauntered into the space between Gavin and Michael with a lopsided grin.
“Nice of you guys to join us,” Geoff exclaimed, a hand sitting on his hip whilst the other scratched his chin. “Whilst you’ve been standing around doing nothing we’ve been busy being useful and gathering information.”
“The King only wanted me to do a land survey,” Ryan replied, raising an inquisitive eyebrow. Geoff shrugged dismissively, the links of his chainmail rattling together and reflecting a little of the dim sunlight. “Counting animals and things. Going to a market can’t help us with that.”
“Besides, it’s a massive waste of our time,” Michael grumbled, rubbing the back of his neck and shooting a furtive glance around at the marketplace. “We’re supposed to be out slaying monsters, saving people, sorting out problems and shit, not counting sheep!”
“You didn’t have to come along,” Ryan replied patiently, absently adjusting his grip on his staff. To his side, Gavin fidgeted. “The King only asked me, remember?”
“Pfft, as if he thought we’d let you wander up here alone.”
“I think Burnie just wanted to give us something to do,” Jack mused, a kind smile on his face as he looked between Geoff and Michael; his calm voice immediately diffusing the small amount of tension that had built up and the anger on Michael’s face instantly vanished. “Y’know that he likes to keep tabs on us occasionally. It could be worse.”
Geoff snorted. “This is pretty far down on the list of things I’d want to do for Burnie,” he groaned, a bored look crossing his face. “Right there beside doing taxes and training new recruits.”
“We’re not that bad,” Ray teased, folding his arms and shooting an amused smirk Geoff’s way.
“You’re not that bad. You know one end of a sword from the other and haven’t accidentally stabbed anyone you weren’t meant to stab,” Geoff grumbled, slowly walking off in the direction he’d come from. The group followed behind at a steady pace. “Better thansome dumbasses I’ve had to train.”
“Didn’t you once have to train someone who’d never actually held a sword before?” Jack mused, an amused look in his brown eyes. Geoff stopped walking and faced him with a scowl.
“What did I tell you about bringing that up again?” He growled, an eye twitching. Jack, far from being intimidated, let out a hearty laugh and clapped him on the shoulder.
“I’ll try to remember that for next time Geoff,” Jack chuckled, the sound infectious and causing the rest of the group to hide smirks. The corner of Geoff’s mouth twitched.
“You’d fucking better,” he replied in mock-anger before sighing. He rolled his eyes, a hand snaking up to scratch at his chin again, before turning and continuing his walk. “C’mon, let’s head back to the inn. I could use a drink.”
“You’re rather quiet today,” Ryan mused quietly as he and Gavin strayed behind the rest of the group, arms still around each other’s waists. Gavin looked up at him with confused hazel eyes, his eyebrow raised in an unspoken question. “It’s just a bit unlike you to be so quiet.”
Gavin shrugged, shaking his head. “I’m just tired, I’ll be fine after I’ve had a kip.”
“A what?” Ryan asked, a disbelieving chuckle bubbling to the surface. Gavin grinned.
“After I’ve slept, you silly billy,” Gavin spun out of his hold and gripped onto his hand, swinging it up and down happily. “You’ve heard me say that before!”
“It always sounds like food to me!” Ryan defended, ducking forward quickly to grab Gavin around the waist with one arm and to haul him up over his shoulder. Caught unawares, Gavin let out a surprised squawk and squirmed. “Like a type of fish.”
“Ryyyyyyy! Let me down!”
“Nope! If you’re tired then let me be the kind and caring boyfriend that I am and carry you to the inn. You can have a rest until we get there.”
“Have a rest?! How can I bloody have a rest when I’m stuck like this?!” He smacked at Ryan’s back, the mage’s thick coat absorbing it and turning it into something barely stronger than a tap. Gavin groaned, trying not to blush at the looks the townsfolk were giving them. “Ryan!”
“We’re nearly there-”
“I can walk!”
Ryan rolled his eyes before setting Gavin’s feet on the floor, keeping a steady hand on his arm until he was sure that the younger man was settled, and grinned when Gavin took his hand and dragged him up the path with a cheery ‘Thanks!’.
The walk didn’t take them long and soon they were being ushered by Geoff into the inn and to a table in the back corner of the downstairs dining room. The room was small, with a low ceiling, and filled with tables and mismatched chairs - all below an old chandelier half-filled with lit candles that cast shadows in every corner of the room. The table they were sat at was opposite the small bar in the corner, underneath an old faded picture that Ryan guessed would leave a patch of discolouration on the wall beneath it from how long it had been hung there, and the room itself was mainly empty of patrons; asides from an elderly looking man sat by the bar reading a thickly bound book.
Ryan slipped into the seat beside Jack, Gavin plopping down into the seat next to him with a soft ‘oof’ as Geoff stood at the head of the table, his hands splayed flat onto the scrubbed wooden surface and a look of pure business on his face. “Right, listen up. We have a job to do-”
“I have a job to do,” Ryan interrupted, letting out an exasperated breath. Geoff waved him off impatiently.
“Whilst Ryan wastes time counting cows, we’re gonna launch an investigation,” Geoff smacked his hand on the table with a triumphant look; a look that only grew at the confused looks on the faces of his teammates. “There’s been some real freaky shit happening around here, and we’re gonna find out what’s causing it and sort it out.”
“Freaky like…bandit freaky?” Ray asked, leaning back in his seat with his arms tightly folded. Geoff shook his head.
“Freaky like creepy ass sounds in the night and people going missing.”
“Ah, that freaky.”
“How long has it been going on?” Jack asked, a serious look clear in his eyes.
Geoff shrugged, sitting heavily into his seat and reaching towards the middle of the table and the goblets of liquid waiting there. He took a sip from it and almost immediately grimaced at the taste. “Ugh, what the fuck is in here?!”
“Geoff.”
“I couldn’t get the folks here to tell me an exact date,” Geoff explained as he scowled at the drink. He pushed the goblet away with a huff. “A couple of weeks maybe?”
“Anything new that could’ve caused it?”
“Nobody I asked today knew anything,” Geoff replied, leaning back in his chair with his arms folded over the metal armour guarding his chest. “They’re suspicious as dicks though. It was difficult to get anything out of them.”
“What’re we gonna do about it then?” Michael asked, absentmindedly playing with the bandages wrapped tightly around his wrists.
“Help them,” Gavin shifted closer to Ryan and raised an eyebrow as he looked towards Michael. Michael paused, his fingers curled around a frayed bandage edge, and he slowly turned his head to look at Gavin.
“Of course we’re gonna fucking do that dumbass!” He growled, teeth bared and eyes ablaze. “We’re not just gonna fucking sit hereand do shit.”
“Boys,” Geoff grumbled warningly, looking between the two carefully with narrowed eyes. Michael huffed, pulling at the bandage thread, whilst Gavin grinned sheepishly and shuffled closer to Ryan. Ryan, hand hidden by the tabletop, placed his hand reassuringly onto Gavin’s knee and squeezed lightly.
“You want to question more people,” Ryan asked bluntly, smiling warmly at Gavin who placed his smaller hand upon his before looking towards Geoff. Geoff nodded.
“Standard divide and conquer.”
“I’ll keep my eyes open when I’m out tomorrow, it shouldn’t take me long.”
“Take Michael with you,” Geoff suggested, nodding towards Michael who shrugged in response. “I take it Gavin’s already going with you?”
“Yep!” Gavin beamed, flinging an arm around Ryan’s shoulder and throwing a thumbs up towards Michael with his other hand. “With Team Nice Dynamite to help you out you’ll be finished in no time!”
Ray’s snort of laughter was clearly audible in the silence that followed, as was his indignant cry as Michael smacked him.
Despite appearing small from the outside, the inn possessed a number of bedrooms on its first floor extending back towards the rear with a pair of communal bathrooms at the end of a dimly lit corridor. The floorboards creaked beneath Ryan’s feet as he made his way back from the bathroom, dressed simply in a white t-shirt and a loose pair of trousers, towards the room he was sharing with Gavin and Ray. The two were awake when he entered, but just barely; Ray curled up on the portable cot on the floor by Gavin’s side of the bed as the Neulin man lay spread out on the mattress with a goofy smile on his face. Their conversation trailed off as soon as he stepped into the room, closing the door behind him and effectively cutting off the echo of Geoff’s voice from down the corridor, before he set his clothes on the dresser and climbed into bed beside Gavin.
The brunet shuffled over to give Ryan space to lie down and rolled onto his side, wrapping his arms around the older man with a happy sigh.
“Get a room,” Ray groaned, his voice sounding muffled and far away.
“We have a room,” Gavin replied sleepily, shifting closer to Ryan. “You just so happen to be in it.”
“Christ Gav, your feet are cold.”
“Mmhm, I can warm them up against your legs though.”
“Hell no, you’ve got socks. Use them.”
Ryan’s eyes flickered closed as Gavin shifted away from him, the warmth from his body heat disappearing as well as half the blankets as the smaller man clambered to the end of the bed and shuffled towards the dresser as soon as his feet touched the floor.
“I should probably turn off the light,” Gavin mumbled, and Ryan heard him rummaging around whilst muttering quietly under his breath. “C’mon socks, where did I pu-whoops!”
Ryan heard the unmistakable sound of clothing hitting the floor, and he sat up with eyes open to look towards where his boyfriend was stood sheepishly by the dresser; the pile of clothes he’d neatly piled upon it no longer visible. From his cot on the floor, the sound of Ray’s even breathing drifted towards him and Ryan watched as Gavin tentatively looked over in his direction; the brunet visibly relaxing when Ray didn’t wake.
“Let me guess, my stuff’s on the floor?”
Gavin ducked down, pulling up the bundle of Ryan’s clothes when he stood, and chuckled. He placed the bundle onto the bed and picked up Ryan’s coat. “Yeeeah, I’ll fold it up again I pro-”
Gavin was interrupted by a dull thud, the archer immediately stepping to the side to get a better look at the object that had dropped. “Er, did you have anything in your pockets?”
“Not really,” Ryan replied, his brow furrowing in confusion as he got up and went to the end of the bed, eyes carefully looking at the floor.
Gavin spotted it first, which wasn’t all that surprising. The archer’s eyes were more attuned to spotting unfamiliar things and Ryan immediately followed his line of sight after the younger man let out a triumphant yell. Barely noticeable, the wooden object tucked just out of the way beside the leg of the bed frame and blending in with the wood of the floor, struck him as odd and he reached out for it, batting Gavin’s hand out of the way in the process.
“What is it?” Gavin asked curiously, tracking the movement of the object as it came up into the light.
“I don’t know,” Ryan replied quietly, turning the wooden object over with bare hands. The object was small and crudely carved; the surface oddly smooth in some places yet coarse in others. The details on the figure were difficult to make out, and Ryan found himself moving closer to the oil lamp on the dresser to see it better.
He couldn’t distinguish much about it but the bow and arrow it was holding were as clear as day, causing Ryan’s blood to run cold.
“Is it yours?” Gavin asked, startling Ryan out of his thoughts. Ryan shook his head, placing the figure onto the dresser and moving his clothes from the bed, leaving them unfolded in the place they’d previously occupied. A look of confusion settled on Gavin’s face, and Ryan leant forward to deliver a reassuring kiss; his hands resting lightly on Gavin’s hips.
Gavin hesitated for a moment before returning the kiss, looking deep into Ryan’s eyes as they broke apart. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” Ryan replied with a small smile. “It’s not mine, but I think I know whose it is so I can return it in the morning.” Gavin still looked slightly confused so Ryan pushed him gently back towards his side of the bed. “C’mon, you said you were tired earlier. Now’s your chance to sleep.”
Gavin scrambled under the covers and Ryan turned off the light, sliding into the bed and wrapping his arms around the younger man as he promptly pressed himself against him, shivering lightly against the cold that permeated the room.
Outside, although far in the distance, the low rumbling of thunder filled the night.