Chapter 31 A TOWN THAT WAITS TO BE TAKEN
Three days had passed by, and Magnus and Xyra had really gotten lucky. Only one time through the entire journey had they been attacked. With Magnus around, most demons were kept at a distance. His magic worked well for that. Sleeping had been easy with the help of the barrier, and even just while traveling they had been safe. That was one good thing about traveling with a sorcerer who doubled as a hunter. He excelled in demon exterminating, and his magic made it look easy.
After a long, somewhat harmless journey, they had arrived in the next town, but it wasn't what they had thought. They had been expecting a small, quiet town at the base of the mountains, but this place was anything but small. In the center of the town was a huge building, one built like a castle. The other houses were relatively small, but the town obviously had a lot of money. It was almost as large as Drester, and that was saying something.
"Wow," said Xyra, the awe clear in her voice. "Can't say I was expecting this."
"Perfect," Magnus stated as he entered the town, a bright smile on his face. "The bigger the town, the more information, and the more information, the easier it'll be to find a talisman."
"So where do we look first?" she asked as she jogged up next to him.
"How about that castle?" He pointed towards the huge structure in the middle of the busy town. "He must be the owner of this place, so he should know something."
They walked for a little while, looking around at the different houses and shops. There really were a lot of people wandering the streets, going about their daily lives. They all looked rather at ease as they chatted aimlessly amongst themselves. Everything was just nice and controlled and very easy. Hopefully, the people were cooperative though. All Magnus wanted was some information.
Magnus and Xyra both stopped suddenly when a bell sounded. It was a rather loud, very deep toll, and they were sure that the entire town could probably hear it. That happened to be the point. Everyone had suddenly stopped what they were doing. Everything had fallen silent. When the bell tolled again, every single person on the street began to run. They all herded into stores, houses, whatever building was closer. They were all trying to clear out as fast as possible. Soon the only people left were Xyra and Magnus.
Both of them were just standing there, completely and totally lost. One moment everything had been completely normal, and now this place looked like a ghost town. In the silence, they could still hear the bell tolling.
"What's going on?" asked Xyra as she glanced around, looking for even just one person who was still left on the streets.
"I don't know," Magnus answered, looking around in the same manner. This really didn't make a lot of sense. What would make them run like that?
A door was suddenly thrown open from one of the houses next to them. Before they knew just what was going on, they felt a hand around their wrists, and they were pulled into the building. The door was then slammed shut, a click following, signaling that it was locked.
Neither Magnus nor Xyra knew what was going on, but they were both soon down on the ground, being held in place by only one person. The minute he hit the floor, Magnus's mind snapped back into place, and he tried to forcefully stand up, but he was pushed down harder.
"What the hell…?" he began, but he was silenced by the person above the two of them.
"Please stay quiet," their captor whispered. By the voice they could tell it was a boy. However, he sounded incredibly young, as if he was just a child. He was still managing to hold them both in place though, keeping them down on the ground.
"Just what are you…?!"
"I said stay quiet. They're coming."
Magnus and Xyra said nothing, but it wasn't because this boy had told them to. They were both listening to the sounds outside. It almost sounded like a stampede. The ground even began to shake a bit. They tried to spot a window to see just what was going on, but they weren't in luck. Every window was boarded up tight. It was as if the people living in this house didn't want anyone to find them. It probably had something to do with whatever was going on outside.
The sounds eventually stopped, and the shaking quit too. Magnus and Xyra, assuming everything was finally over, tried to get up, but the boy kept them down, forcing them to stay flat on their chests.
"Not yet," he said in a hiss.
"Which one?" they heard a voice say from outside. It was deep and rough, creating its own type of echo. Magnus instantly knew what was going on. Only one type of creature had that kind of voice.
"Let's do this one this time," answered another, the voice very similar to the first. It was a bit lighter but in no way less fierce.
There was a moment of silence before an explosion shook the very foundation of the house they were in. However, nothing had really happened to their hiding spot. What had exploded had been pretty near by though, possibly just across the street. Magnus and Xyra were unsure as to what was going on, but they decided that remaining quiet and staying down were two good ideas right now. They didn't need to draw attention to themselves or the child that had so kindly volunteered to save them. Their captor wasn't a captor at all.
Before long, the stampeding sound returned, but just as quickly as it came, it was gone. Everything was finally over, or at least they were hoping it was. When they heard the toll of the bell again and felt the child move off of them, they knew that everything was clear. The threat had finally left.
Magnus and Xyra both sat up, rubbing a few sore areas from being slammed into the ground so suddenly. Xyra was rubbing her head a bit while Magnus just made sure that he hadn't lost anything.
"I'm sorry," the child said to them. "I didn't mean to scare you guys. I was just trying to…"
"No need to explain," Magnus cut in as he stood up and dusted himself off. There was a kind smile on his face. "Thanks for helping us."
"Just what was that?" asked Xyra. "Were those things demons?"
"Yeah," the boy answered sadly. "They come through here every few days and raid some houses. They told us that as long as we don't resist, we'll get to keep our lives, however…sometimes they decide to take people instead of things."
"People?" She really didn't like the thought of that.
"Usually women, so I would be careful if I were you, miss." Xyra nodded in agreement. She was happy that she and Magnus wouldn't be staying for too long. They were only going to get information and then press forward. There was no way they would stick around for a few days or even just two. At least she was hoping that that would be the case.
"What's your name, kid?" asked Magnus as he began walking around the small house.
"It's Reeve," he answered a bit meekly, his blue eyes following the sorcerer. "You guys are travelers, right?"
"Yeah."
"You should leave as soon as possible. This town isn't safe anymore."
"We don't plan on staying long," Magnus assured him. "We're only here looking for information."
"About what?"
Magnus stopped looking around for a moment and turned his attention to Reeve. The boy had only asked an innocent question, and it probably wouldn't hurt to tell him, but if word got out that someone was searching for the Lazufeer talismans, it was possible that more people like the black sorcerer would show up. He had to keep his activities on a low. However, Reeve was just a child, and he probably didn't have any information on them anyway. There's no harm in telling him, I guess.
"Lazufeer talismans," Magnus answered at last. He was surprised to see a reaction from Reeve. The boy broke into a smile.
"Oh, there's one here," he said. Magnus was right in front of him in a second. Such a statement always drew that kind of reaction from the sorcerer.
"You're kidding," he said, not believing what he had just heard.
"No, I'm pretty sure that's the thing our mayor has. He talks about it enough. He really loves it even though he can't use it."
Magnus seemed to think this over for a moment before a smirk crossed his face. Xyra hated that look. It meant that he had some kind of plan, most likely one that involved a lot of danger. It had only been about a week now, but she had gotten to know him pretty well. It was easy to tell what he was thinking in situations like this. He had thought of a way to get the talisman. She just wasn't sure what his plan of action was.
"Would I be able," he began, "to see this mayor?"
"I don't see why not," Reeve responded. "It's not like he's isolated or anything. I can take you there if you'd like."
Magnus's smirk deepened at the offer. He placed a hand on the boy's head, ruffling his black hair under the cap he wore. The sorcerer looked overjoyed.
"Well, what are we waiting for?" Magnus began guiding Reeve to the door. "Let's get going."
Xyra sighed and followed after the two boys. Magnus always got so excited when one of the talismans was involved. He was being a bit calmer this time around, but that was probably because he had something up his sleeve. After all, they couldn't just go up to the mayor and demand that he give them the talisman. They couldn't steal it either. He had to have some sort of plan.