Bushcamp rubbed a pellet between his fingers, the subtle feeling of oil lathering the imprints of his prints. Dropping the ball down the shaft, taking his pick with a sewn package of powder small enough to fit in the barrel of the rifle. Pushing it deep down, he nailed the bayonet under the scope. Ornate ivory green helped camouflage in the dust of brush. His breath was shallow, calm, dissociated from the act he was about to commit. Gently tapping the trigger sent a blast that was neither loud nor quiet. Shattered glass fell, Haza covered her head as she curled inward. Valory froze the window just as another shot rang through. Covering Haza with a blanket of darkness, Dushyanta took hold of her as he walked through the walls to the opposite side of the hostel property.
Valory broke open a hole as she slid to the communal bath house. Cold water drummed in the vacant air. A navy sky above held no clouds, just the glimmer of stars. Lying by the roof’s edge: Bushcamp French, his smirk a passionless expression.
“How do you do, child?” He asked. Snapping her fingers, Valory cooled the condensing air. White vapor left Bushcamp’s breath. Licking his dry lips as he took another shot, breaking Valory’s concentration; leaving a hole through her foot. “Women, so frail…you're not the one worth the money. So where could she be hiding? If you tell me, child, I may spare your life.”
This man is scarier than the other one. Calm down, breathe…one sharp icicle to the throat will seal the deal.
“Overthinking much?” Bushcamp asked as he appeared by Valory’s side.
“H-how…?”
“You sure are tough, most folk would scream or grunt with a hole through their foot. Let me take the other one as well, just in case,” Bushcamp stabbed Valory’s other foot until she cried. “Good, it’s bad to hold it in. Expression of any kind is what proves that you are human.” Bushcamp took her by the hair, dragging her through dirt.
Dushyanta covered Haza’s mouth as he hid in the shadows. Concealing his presence required him to hold his breath, once he let go, the possibility of Bushcamp noticing them could occur. Akli’s gonna kill me…I’m sorry Val, but we know who they’re after. I can’t risk much more. Haza dug at Dushyanta’s arms with her nails, drawing blood, but he did not react. Keeping still through the terror, Dushyanta shifted between debris, hoping to not be caught by what Dushyanta assumed was an exceptional sense of Bushcamp’s. He was aiming for her head. He not only knew where she was even with covered windows, but he aimed to kill. Does he not care about the bounty? Either way, he isn’t an average bounty hunter.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
A ball flew by, blasting a hole through Dushyanta’s shoulder. Grunting, he squeezed Haza tighter. “Hahaha, found ya! Thought I’d take a guess, but look at me. Perhaps I ain’t too rusty after-all.”
How? Does he also have some power?
“Why do you children overthink everything?” Bushcamp appeared above their heads, squatting atop a broken wall. “Look at you darky, never seen one with such a complexion. Truly beautiful next to the little lady. You know I love women…they have an elegance that men can’t possess; the only thing they lack is the ability to keep quiet, ya know what I mean?”
“I think you're the one struggling to shut up!” Black arms sprouted beneath them, pushing Bushcamp by the neck and arms.
“Oh, fascinating, a stage two alignment. Your intelligence must be high to understand the principles of rot. However your application of weakness enchantments is…well, ironically quite weak.”
What is he talking about…? Enchantments…ah, I see. Sinking deeper into the black, Dushyanta swam beneath Bushcamp wrapping tendrils of disease that began to plague Bushcamp ill.
“Nice application boy, but one should stick with what they're good at,” Bushcamp spun the rifle under his arm; bang! Dushyanta went flying. “At best you can give someone the feeling of a slight cold. Now what is that gonna do in a fight?” Bushcamp put his head on a swivel, searching for where Haza could be hiding. “Ohhh Princess, where are you?!” Bushcamp sang like a bird in heat. Tap dancing around the vacancy. He couldn’t have hid her in the shadows, could he? What was the condition for rot practitioners…? Ah, I don’t remember, so few of them after-all.
Dushyanta drifted back into the darkness, swimming far out till he found Valory. As he grabbed her, another shot rang overhead. Bushcamp readied his rifle once again; an ordeal that took him approximately ninety seconds. Dushyanta fell back into the shadows, swimming with Haza strapped to his back. Applying drowsiness put her to ease and enabled Dushyanta to act with full agency. In the ninety seconds Bushcamp readied his rifle, he stopped at second eighty-nine. “They vanished…” He said. Walking over to the “crippled” Valory, Bushcamp swung her over his shoulder as he took to the south: currently where Dushyanta was headed, to reunite with Horo and the rest.
