Free Web NovelBrayden didn’t have the faintest idea where Noah was. The hall was just too damn big. He’d been listening intently from the moment he’d arrived, but he’d almost instantly realized that they were going to have a bit more trouble than expected.
He was far from an expert on music or Formations — but he knew enough about them from the Formations Father had constantly used to protect the mansion. Brayden knew enough to recognize a musical instrument… and he knew enough to realize they were probably screwed.
There were dozens of musicians scattered throughout the halls.
Shit. This is bad. The whole plan was to use music to try and get everyone’s attention. How is Noah supposed to stand out when there are this many people with instruments?
But there was precious little he could do about it now. There was no way for him to get in contact with anyone. They’d been scattered across the huge hall. Now, all he could do was his best to keep an eye out for anyone he recognized.
And that was what he’d been doing. For the past hour or so, Brayden had wandered around the masquerade, peering at everyone he passed to see if he could pick up anything familiar. It wasn’t exactly the most complicated of strategies. He certainly wouldn’t have gone so far to say it was effective, either.
Brayden hadn’t had any luck yet. His attempts to find a few needles in a mountain of hay had gone just about as well as anyone with half a brain could have expected them to go. He hadn’t even bothered joining in with any of the conversations. He’d just kept wandering.
Surely the others are trying to draw some attention to themselves as well. They don’t know that Noah is here, but they know the rest of us are. How would they do that? Lee would eat, of course. But I’ve already found Lee. James… pointless. Finding him would be literally impossible. Isabel and Todd are pretty good at blending in as well. So are basically all of the demons.
And if Yoru wanted to find me, she’d have already done it.
Brayden repressed the urge to curse. This was ridiculous. The whole masquerade was a complete pain in the ass. It wasn’t going to accomplish anything. Then again, it wasn’t even made for them. This whole event’s purpose was to show off the tournament combatants up like a bunch of prize cows.
It was admittedly starting to get to him. Walking around and desperately hoping to spot one of his friends wasn’t going to work. He couldn’t just count on luck. There was just nothing he could do. He was helpless.
Again.
Damn it all. Why am I so weak? All these months of training and I’m no more useful now than I was against Father. But what can Space Magic do to help me find anyone? Even starting a giant fight would accomplish nothing. I’d just get taken out, and the room is so big that it’s statistically improbable that anyone I care about would even hear about it.
Noah had probably figured something out. He tended to. Maybe he’d just kill himself in the middle of the banquet floor. That would be sure to make some waves. But Brayden couldn’t do that.
Well, I could. It wouldn’t do much, though.
He let out an irritated sigh. His fingernails dug into his palms.
Is my destiny always to just be second seat, unable to do anything but watch from the sidelines?
His gaze caught on the dining area near him. A drink was starting to sound pretty good. Brayden headed over toward it. It wasn’t like he was any less likely to run into someone in the dining area than he was in any other area.
But before he could make it all the way over, he drew to a stop.
Looming over one of the tables was a giant of a man.
A rather familiar looking one.
There were only so many people that big. Even though there were definitely multiple enormous people at the tournament, this particular one was hard to mistake. His robes — which somewhat impressively actually fit him — had been stretched thin against the huge man’s muscled body. The mask he wore had been pushed partially upward to reveal the bottom of his chin as he shoveled food into his mouth, ignoring the rest of the party entirely.
Brayden walked over.
“Erek,” he said, coming to a halt at the edge of the table. “Didn’t expect to see you here.”
Erek paused. He glanced down at Brayden, then shifted his mask entirely out of the way to get a better look at him. There were several awkward moments of silence. Then the man’s eyes lit up in recognition.
“You! What are you doing here?”
“The same as you, I presume,” Brayden replied. Then he let out a sigh. “Actually, probably not. I’m looking for some people.”
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“You found one,” Erek rumbled. “You fought well in our round. It is always a pleasure to fight alongside a worthy warrior.”
“Thank you,” Brayden said. He pulled out a chair and sat down with a sigh. Maybe sitting beside the huge man would make it slightly easier for someone else to find him.
“You do not sound pleased,” Erek observed. “I feel your pain. This entire party is a waste of our time. I am here to fight. Not to pose for the perverts that stare at us.”
“I think they’re mostly staring at you, actually,” Brayden said, glancing around them. There were definitely a number of other mages looking at Erek. Some of them were probably agents for the mages trying to recruit new blood. “You’re a bit hard to miss.”
“It is not my fault that nobody in this empire knows how to eat right,” Erek said.
Brayden blinked. “Is everyone where you’re from as big as you?”
Erek let out a snort of laughter. “No. I am big. But if it is not the prying eyes of ants that bother you, why are you displeased? Does your blade hunger for blood?”
“Not exactly,” Brayden said. “I’m looking for some people. I was hoping the tournament would give me a good opportunity to locate them, but it hasn’t done much at all. I’m just sitting around and hoping that everything works out.”
“Placing your faith in the rivers of fate is a good way to find yourself drifting off a waterfall.”
“You don’t say,” Brayden said. He sighed. “If I could just stab my problem away, I would. But that isn’t how it works. Look how many people there are. The idea of finding a single person in this wall of flesh is nothing but a dream.”
“You found me,” Erek observed.
“You’re… rather findable.”
“Mm.” Erek stuffed an entire pie down his gullet. “I suppose I am. Perhaps it would be simpler for you if you were findable as well.”
“Probably,” Brayden agreed. “But I’m not. Even if I were your height, I doubt I’d be lucky enough to get anyone’s attention. This place is huge.”
“So it is,” Erek said. He was silent for a few seconds as he chewed. “It seems you are fucked.”
Brayden let out a bark of laughter. Erek certainly wasn’t the type to mince words.“Yup. That does seem to be the situation. Maybe you’re right about hungering for blood. I’d love to just stab something. Hell of a lot easier than all this shit.”
“That is my preferred way to solve problems,” Erek said. “Punching. Not stabbing. I tend to break any weapons I use. It’s never worth the time.”
“You don’t say,” Brayden said. He shook his head. “I just don’t think this is a problem I can punch away.”
Perhaps it would really be better to just let Noah do his thing. He could stand to the side and wait. Noah was the one that came up with the ridiculous plans. That had never been his strength. Even when he’d been a child, he’d never been a plotter. freewёbn૦νeɭ.com
Brayden just did.
He was a bodyguard. A warrior. Not a strategist — and certainly not a tracker.
“Most problems can be punched,” Erek said. “I’ve lived for a good while. I’m not old. But I’m not young. And I haven’t never met one issue that hasn’t been punchable.”
“Really?” Brayden arched an eyebrow. “You have a wife? Partner of some sort? I’m hoping the answer is no.”
Erek gave him a wide grin. “I have a wife.”
Brayden’s eyes narrowed. “I’m hoping your relationship has zero problems within it.”
“It is relationship,” Erek said. “All relationships have problems. But no cause has ever been strong enough to survive being punched.”
“Do you still have a wife?” Brayden asked. “Because I’m not liking where this is going.”
“Of course,” Erek said. He leaned down. “Do you think I would strike my wife?”
“You just implied that you do.”
“I do not have problems with my wife. That would not be possible,” Erek said. He let out a huff. “She is my life-partner. There are no problems between us. Only problems against us. I would never strike her. I cannot say the same for those who have displeased her.”
“I… see,” Brayden said slowly. That was much, much better than the alternative. He wasn’t exactly sure how it helped him. At least it meant he didn’t have to figure out how to kill his new friend. That would have been quite bothersome. He found himself rather liking Erek. “That’s… good?”
“She likes watching as I crush the life from our foes,” Erek said. He patted Brayden on the shoulder. “It gives me great motivation. Perhaps your problems would be solved if you were to find a better wife.”
“I don’t have a wife.”
“Ah.” Erek nodded sagely. “There is your problem. It seems you are bad at looking for things in general. You were right. It’s probably hopeless.”
Brayden almost choked. “What’s that meant to mean?”
“You are bad at searching,” Erek said. “So you should become easier to find.” fɾeeweɓnѳveɭ.com
“I don’t think it’s that easy,” Brayden said. “I’m just me.”
“Unfortunate. I would much prefer to be me,” Erek said. “But you cannot be me. I am me.”
Brayden couldn’t keep himself from laughing. “You’re right about that. I don’t think there’s much I can do to be you. Not sure how I’d get more findable… so I suppose I’ll just get back to looking. Thanks for the advice.”
Erek gave him a one-shouldered shrug. “Try to be me. Maybe you will be luckier.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” Brayden said as he rose. He turned, starting to head away from the table. He wasn’t even sure where he was heading. Probably to wander aimlessly while he waited, hoping that Noah would find a way to deal with things.
It’s not like there’s much I can do to cause a scene anywhere near big enough to draw the right kind of attention. Not on my own.
Then Brayden paused.
His head tilted slightly to the side.
Brayden turned back to Erek. “Question. If I told you that there was probably a way you could get out of this banquet a bit earlier, would you be interested?”
“That depends,” Erek said. “How much earlier?”
“That also depends,” Brayden said. His mouth curled into a smile. “How far do you think you can throw one of the people staring at you?”
Erek paused for a moment. A flicker of amusement tugged at his features.
“That, too, depends. Why would I be throwing them? I am not trying to get into trouble with the Faction Heads. I do not seek death.”
“Naturally,” Brayden said slowly. “But what if they were asking you to do it?”
“If they were asking me to throw them?” Erek let out a booming laugh. “Who would do that?”
“Never mind that. It’s a hypothetical scenario,” Brayden said casually.
“I would like nothing more,” Erek replied. He shook his head. “Never have I had someone willingly ask me to launch them, though. They would have to be an utter fool.”
“Hmm,” Brayden said. “Good to know. You mind waiting around here for a moment?”
Erek shrugged.
And, with that, Brayden turned to the crowd. His magic wasn’t really that noticeable. Space Runes were rare in Arbalest, but they weren’t unseen. They would be even less uncommon in Obsidia. But there was one more way to draw attention… and if people were doing things voluntarily, then he was pretty sure it wouldn’t be breaking any rules.
I might not be Noah, but I haven’t spent the last few months just sitting around doing nothing.
Maybe this is a bit dumb… but Noah doesn’t have a monopoly on doing stupid shit. It’s time to cash in on some of the fruits of my labor.
