Afraid of the Dark

Chapter 27: His Name

Achilles looks around the room while Cree pulls out his phone to open a picture that he shows the woman. "Wishful thinking, but have you by chance... seen this man?" he asks, holding the phone in his metal hand so he can hide how the real one slightly shakes by keeping it below the counter.

The woman's eyes widen a bit and she chuckles awkwardly. "Damn, I wish I could say I've seen Ophelia's Descendant in person. But no, unfortunately I haven't. Sorry, sir," she flashes an apologetic smile before turning away to serve a customer.

Cree's neck stiffens as he looks down and forces a weak huff before mumbling to himself.

"...His name is Regan," he says quietly and turns the phone back so he can see the picture he has of Regan. It's an older picture, from when Reela was ten. It's of Regan and Reela, the girl has a big smile on her face and two long braids down the sides of her head, and Regan has a small braid in his own hair and a beaming grin that Cree could stare at for days. Since coming out here, he feels like he has.

He has more recent photos of Regan, but this one will probably always be his favorite.

Cree takes another drink and puts the phone away. The longer he stares at it, the drunker he's going to get and he, unfortunately, shouldn't get hammered when he still has a lot of ground to cover tomorrow. And the next day. And the next.

However long it takes.

"...I'm comin' for you, Reg."

________________________________
__________________

The moment Avinalyn watched a man pull up to a tavern on a motorcycle and started talking to a big bird, they had a feeling he was probably Reela's father. Especially considering the fact that the people in the streets seem to be afraid of him. If this is the man who raised Reela, then that would explain a lot.

It took some time to locate him. Denkile is the capital of Manatria, at least until Mala'vin is rebuilt. It's a large city, at least compared to the continent itself. Manatria may be small, but the magic of the forest and surrounding Maanitel Sea threw them off when they first arrived. It left them somewhat dazed, like walking through a storm cloud, but not the storm.

But Denkile is relatively quiet. At first, Reela's father was too. But it wasn't long before rumors rose to the surface of a man with a metal arm that's been "terrorizing" local shopkeepers and bureaucrats.

They were successful in following these rumors when they finally located the man standing in front of a notice board in the town square. A place where numerous wanted posters and bounties are posted. He seemed interested in something in particular he saw, so much so that he tore one of the posters down and shoved it in his bag before moving on.

They've had to be mindful to not make Mog aware of exactly who it is they're shadowing. She wants to believe this trip to Manatria is to distract from their task of finding Reela's fathers. But luckily it's not hard to convince her of literally anything. They could tell her they're here chasing a unicorn that speaks fluent Russian and she'd sprint head-first into the forest to find it.

"Boss Boss Boss, look! A metal horse!"

Avinalyn just glances over to see Mog staring slack-jawed at the motorcycle parked outside of the tavern. Mog even went to Utopia recently. It's a wonder how she came back in one piece if she thinks anything made of metal is actually an animal.

They sigh and close their eyes. "Mog, that's not a..." when they open their eyes again, they see the orc slowly approaching the vehicle with an outstretched hand.

"Shh... Don't spook it," she loudly whispers.

Avinalyn hurries over to grab her wrist. "Enough. Don't tamper with it. We can't let him know we're following him, so once we go inside, keep your mouth shut and don't ruin this for me," they snap and Mog tilts her head at them as they let her wrist go.