Wychling

Chapter 33

Deathly silence. The Sergeant hadn't changed facial expression once. He just searched Ulrich's features, looking for a lie, like a hawk scanning for rabbits. He asked the occasional sharp question, trying to find holes in the story, but there were none. A lot of what he said was unbelievable but lying to make himself more believable would be a mistake. There was no lying to this man. So, he told the story of his last few days. When he finished recounting the skirmish on the rooftops he was met with a long, searching silence.

"You don't believe me." Ulrich stated.

"I believe that you believe what you're saying...and fantastical as you say your story is, it does explain a few things. I was toying with the theory that the Watchman at the gates had somehow missed a grizzly bear walking into town. Then again, I don't know you and I'm not about to take your word completely. I'll accept there's a large creature loose and that Brother Ryland has an interest in it. The rest...I'll wait to decide."

He sighed and some hostility seemed to leave him.

"My name is Shimon. You've earned that much for whatever you did to help Corby. Tell me more about that." The Sergeant asked in more polite tones than he had previously used.

Ulrich swallowed his fear. Perhaps that was progress. He didn't respond right away, taking a moment to gather his thoughts. He didn't need to feign the pained expression as he remembered the sorry state he had found Corby in.

They had both long since retreated to opposite walls in the cell, Ulrich sat against his, Shimon just squatted, never unalert. The Watchman silently guarding the cells outside, was pacing up and down, allowing some privacy without leaving Shimon alone with a dangerous prisoner. Then again, Ulrich supposed, he had just seen his Sergeant stare down an angry mob by sheer force of will, he probably didn't think his help was needed.

"We spent the night in an old lighthouse by the docks, I did my best to help Tal with Suma's wounds. She went out early to get him some food. Sometime later he rushed off, all I could understand from him was that there was danger. To her, or him I couldn't tell, but he's too big to feel threatened so I figured it was the latter."

"I saw the people outside the tower spot him and decided it was best to move on myself. I picked up a tail; a couple of Acolytes, which given the events of the night before wasn't too healthy." Ulrich said, it was important to remind Shimon of the threat to Corby's life. Else Ulrich may well be dangling from a noose come the morning.

"I lost them in the crowd, but I saw Suma fighting some of the rest on a rooftop. I knew it would turn ugly, so...I tried to go around the mob, ended up in an alley. That's when I found your man there...beaten half to death." Ulrich paused.

He locked eyes with Shimon, careful with his next words, but trying not to seem too careful, like he was spinning a tale.

"I saw the two Acolytes, the ones who had been trailing me, approach him. At first, I thought I should turn around and evade them, but they quickly checked around, missed me, and one drew a knife. It was pretty clear that they meant to finish him off, so I killed them both." He stated flatly.

He maintained eye contact even as he felt the pressure from the Sergeant's gaze land on him fully. The pressure that told him magic was being used. Shimon didn't look surprised, but those eyes reassessed him from across the room, as if measuring Ulrich clinically.

"How?" Shimon asked.

No inflection on the word to give away his feelings on the subject.

"I fired off two arrows in quick succession and followed up with the knife to make sure. Caught the first in his lung and the second in his throat, stabbed the farthest one just to make sure he wouldn't twitch on the floor loud enough for anyone in the Church to hear." Ulrich stated concisely as he could, aware that the magic was pressing him to babble, give out more information, explain himself.