NOVEL SIMPLE Ch. 23 Unexpected Guest (Charles)
The process of teleporting from one underground smuggling den to another felt very similar to being teleported from one world to another. There was a squeezing sensation not dissimilar from being crushed by a sentient delivery truck and then he found himself standing in another place entirely.
Though, Charles had to admit that in that instant he’d much rather be in an empty road than the dimly lit cavern he was now in. Stacks of contraband, wooden crates, and filled shelves surrounded the large circular space in the center. Magical runes lined the central magic circle Charles stood inside as he let out a shaky breath he hadn’t realized he had been holding onto. Blinking hard, Charles could now see a small group of sweaty men off to one side. They collectively stared at him with slack jaws and wide eyes.
“You guys are good.” Charles coughed and patted his chest. “Sorry. That squeezed my lungs a bit.”
He coughed again.
“Yeah, so you’re good.” Charles nodded to the group of workmen. “I can offload myself.”
Charles started to walk off of the magical circle but was stopped by a man’s voice.
“What’s the meaning of this?”
Shifting his gaze behind him, Charles spotted what must have been the mage that served as the receiving end of his teleportation. He was an older man with a patchy gray beard and faded robes. He looked over Charles' portly stature and narrowed his eyes at his stained sweatpants. This was the part of Alison’s plan that had Charles worried.
The catch twenty two was if Alison was teleported first then there was no longer any threat to keep the vile mother to her word. On the other hand, Charles going first meant he had no real means of forcing the members of Basilisk within the Fevel branch to allow him through. Unfortunately for Charles he hadn’t been given any cheat skills or magic so he was forced to do the only thing he’d be able to do so far. He had to talk his way out of the situation.
“Change of plans.” Charles straightened his posture and spoke confidently to the mage. “The vile mother will send new orders in the next shipment.”
“Who in the blazes are you?” The mage spat defiantly.
“Look, how could I have come through the teleportation circle if everyone on the other end wasn’t fully on board with my arrival?” Charles reasoned as he strode confidently off of the circle and towards the exit on the far side of the room. “Don’t worry about who I am. You’ll be told if you need to be told.”
The mage spluttered but couldn’t come up with a response before Charles was at the door.
“Hold up.” A new voice stopped him short.
Charles tried to keep his face passive as he turned towards the woman who had been leaning against a stack of crates in a dark section of the room. This woman had to be two or so years younger than Charles, so he estimated she was around twenty, but her eyes held the maturity of someone far older and more experienced. She stood level to Charles and inspected him closely with bright green eyes. Her rich golden blonde hair lay in a neat ponytail down the back of her dark brown leather armor. She was thin, athletic, and carried herself with complete confidence. An array of various sized daggers decorated her belt.
“I’m quite busy, I'm afraid.” Charles grumbled out, trying not to let on just how attractive this woman was to him.
“I’m Sharon.” The blonde girl smiled eagerly. “And I’d like to come along on your mission.”
Charles blushed. “That’s not possible. I have strict orders and no one here is involved.”
“You’re an assassin, right?” Sharon stepped closer to Charles.
She smells wonderful. Charles couldn’t help but think as a floral scent reached his nose.
“What gave you that idea?” Charles’ wanted to deny it yet he found himself trying to lean against the doorframe in what his brain thought was a mysterious and flattering pose.
It was neither of those things.
Sharon giggled. “Come on. Don’t be coy. You’re presenting yourself as a harmless fat oaf, but there’s no way the vile mother would send someone so useless.”
Charles felt his ego deflate a little.
“Well you just have it all figured out don’t you?” He straightened himself with a huff.
“Please let me go with you.” Sharon leaned her body against Charles.
Charles wanted to step back, but he was fully against the wall at this point so there was no escape from Sharon’s sudden advances.
“Please.” She whispered while looking into Charles’ eyes and placing her hands against his chest. “It’s been too long since I’ve been part of a challenging contract.”
Charles’ could feel the daggers on Sharon’s belt pressed into his belly. He only prayed that Sharon would assume he had his own hidden dagger pushing back against her.
“That’s enough Sharon.” The stern mage’s voice crashed down on Charles’ like a cold bucket of water.
Both he and Sharon looked over to find the rest of the room watching them with a mixture of interest and fear. Sharon scowled and was off Charles in a flash.
“You have a problem Douglas?” She snarled at the mage.
Charles didn’t see when it happened but at some point Sharon had removed a pair of thin daggers from her belt and was holding them loosely in each hand.
“You’re not in charge here Sharon.” Douglas the mage stood firm while the rest of the workmen cowered away from Sharon’s fierce gaze. “You can’t just flirt your way into a job you’re not needed for. Let the man go about his business, you psychopath.”
Sharon’s face darkened and Charles saw her knuckles whiten against the grip of her weapons.
“You know Douglas-”
Sharon’s response was interrupted by the door next to Charles bursting open. A disheveled woman spun into the room and nearly lost her footing.
“They’re here!” Her scream echoed around the cavern.
“Who’s here?” Douglas asked, stepping forward.
“The crown’s guard!” She pushed past and ran towards the opposite side of the room.
The rest of the workmen scrambled after her as the woman unveiled a hidden passageway hidden behind an empty stack of crates. From up the stairs behind the door the woman had just come through, Charles could hear the faint sounds of steel clashing against steel and shouts of distress coming from above. Douglas cursed.
“They found us at last it seems.” He strode over to the mass of people fighting to get through the escape route and began barking orders.
Wait… I need that guy to stay! Charles' blood ran cold as he realized the danger he was now in.
If Douglas wasn’t around for the next scheduled delivery in a little under two hours then Alison would never arrive. As much as she scared him, Charles had to admit he did feel safer with her around. He racked his brain trying to figure out a way to get Douglas to stay while not condemning them both to being discovered by the guards raiding the smugglers' den. It wouldn’t be long before they found the staircase and came down here. He doubted there was any way he could convince the guards to let the mage use teleportation magic right in front of them. In desperation, Charles turned to Sharon who was busy eying the back of Douglas in the distance.
“Do you still want to be involved with my mission?” Charles asked her quickly.
Sharon turned, the murderous intent gone from her face in an instant. “Of course. I’ll do anything you need me to do.”
There was something off about this woman, Charles was sure of it, but it was a type of crazy he could take advantage of at the moment so he was willing to take that risk.
“I have an associate coming in less than two hours. I’m going to start barricading the door. I need you to get Douglas to stay here so he can bring my associate through the next scheduled teleportation.”
Sharon smiled wide. It wasn’t the warm seductive smile she had given him earlier. No. This smile was thirsty for blood.
“With pleasure.”
