31 - Hunt Begins

The chill of the night air bit at Seraphina's skin as she pulled her hood lower, her sharp green eyes scanning the crowded marketplace. Caelum walked a step behind her, his movements practiced—measured. He looked like any other traveler, but she knew better.

They had been running for days.

Their usual escape routes were compromised. The black market, once a reliable source of aid, had suddenly gone silent. Safe houses they had counted on were either abandoned or under watch. Trusted contacts had vanished without a trace.

Seraphina kept her voice low. "This isn't normal."

Caelum didn't need to ask what she meant. He had already come to the same conclusion. His gaze flickered to their surroundings—merchants closing up shop, laborers heading home, a few figures loitering where none should be. The flow of the crowd was off, the city's rhythm disrupted.

"No, it isn't," he murmured. "Someone is cutting off our exits."

Seraphina exhaled sharply, frustration bubbling beneath her composed exterior. "Then we need to find another way before we run out of options."

Caelum's grip tightened on the worn leather strap of his satchel. "We'll need supplies first—food, water, maybe a change of clothes. We can't afford to be recognized."

She nodded. "Agreed. We move fast, stay unnoticed, and—"

A sudden shift in the crowd caught her attention. A beggar hunched against a wall lifted his head ever so slightly as they passed, eyes tracking them for a second too long. Across the street, a merchant at his stall seemed more interested in them than his own wares.

Seraphina didn't break her stride, but her pulse quickened.

"They're already watching," she whispered.

Caelum's jaw tightened. "Then we're running out of time."

Aldric's Operatives Move In

Aldric adjusted the focus on his binoculars, scanning the marketplace from the vantage point of a second-story window. The dim lantern light outside barely reached him, keeping him and his operatives in the shadows.

"There," he murmured, eyes locking onto a hooded pair weaving through the thinning crowd. "We've got them."

Mara "Fox" Valen leaned closer, her sharp eyes narrowing. "Took long enough. They've been ghosts for days."

Edgar "Red" Fallon smirked as he took the binoculars from Aldric. "I can't believe I can see their damn faces from here. This thing is sharper than a hawk's eye."

Royce Tannor let out a low whistle. "No magic, huh? Just glass and—what did you call it? Optics?"

Aldric glanced at him with a wry smirk. "Just a proper understanding of light and precision grinding."

Tobias Gray, ever the skeptic, crossed his arms. "You're telling me glass can do this?"

Gerrod Holt let out a dry chuckle. "Glass is a damn luxury. Nobody even knows how to make it. And here you are, making it see farther?" He handed the binoculars back, shaking his head. "You ever think about selling this to the highest bidder?"

Aldric's smirk didn't waver. "I prefer to keep my advantages."

Lucien, who had been leaning against the wall, watching the exchange with growing impatience, finally spoke up. "Fascinating as it is, we've got a job to do." He turned to Aldric. "What's our move?"

Mara smirked. "Alright, Lord Optics. What's the plan?"

Aldric didn't take his eyes off Seraphina and Caelum. He studied their movements, the way they reacted to their surroundings. Seraphina was cautious, but she moved with intent. Caelum, however, was different—his steps were measured. Not the hurried gait of a man on the run, but the careful movements of someone who is observing, analyzing, and calculating risk. Every glance was purposeful, his eyes subtly tracking patterns in the crowd, always searching for the next threat… or the next escape.

"They know they're being watched," Aldric murmured.

Mara leaned in. "Then they'll try to disappear again."

Aldric's smirk returned. "Not this time. We're cutting off every escape route before they even know it."

He turned to the team. "Red, Gerrod—start spreading false rumors in the underground. Push them towards the southern quarter. Make it seem like their only way out is through the docks."

Gerrod cracked his knuckles. "That, I can do."

"Tobias, go through the city records. If they try to change identities or forge passage papers, I want to know before they even finish signing."

Tobias nodded. "On it."

"Royce, you're our eyes on the ground. Blend in, keep track of their movements, and make sure they don't slip past us."

Royce grinned. "My specialty."

Aldric turned to Mara. "You and I will be waiting at the docks."

She raised a brow. "We're not capturing them in the marketplace?"

"No." Aldric's gaze sharpened. "We make them think they've outmaneuvered us. Then, when they reach what they believe is their last way out…" He smirked. "We'll be waiting."

Lucien crossed his arms. "I like it. Clean, quiet, no mess."

Aldric nodded. "That's the goal. No one can know Ravensbourne is involved."

Mara grinned, adjusting her cloak. "Let's get to work."

Aldric turned back to the streets below, adjusting the focus once more.

"Seraphina and Caelum were last spotted near the eastern district. If they're looking for a way out of Ravensbourne, they'll need to secure transport. That means either bribing a smuggler or seeking refuge with someone who has influence."

He lowered the binoculars, his eyes sharp.

"We're going to make sure every path they take leads to us."

And with that, the hunt truly began.

The streets of Ravensbourne were alive with movement—merchants calling out their wares, carriages rattling over uneven cobblestone, and the ever-present murmur of city life. But beneath the surface, something was off.

Seraphina kept her hood low, her steps quick but controlled as she weaved through the crowd. The weight of unseen eyes pressed against her skin. She had felt this before—the slow tightening of a noose, the quiet suffocation of a hunt.

Behind her, Caelum walked with the steady pace of an aging traveler, his posture betraying no urgency. But she knew better. Every step he took was deliberate, measured. His mind was working just as fast as hers.

"We're being watched," she murmured without turning her head.

"I know," Caelum responded just as quietly. "And not by amateurs."

Seraphina's jaw clenched. "How do you know?"

"Because they aren't moving in to capture us. They're guiding us."

That was what unsettled her the most. If it were just bounty hunters, they'd have made a move by now—come at them hard and fast, hoping to overwhelm them. But whoever was behind this was patient, methodical.

Caelum gave a slow glance to the side, as if admiring the goods in a merchant's stall. "Three men, near the fountain. They've been there for the last ten minutes, but none of them have bought anything. Two beggars, but their hands are too clean. And the flower girl on the corner? She's watching the street, not her customers."

Seraphina flicked her gaze over the area, only briefly. She spotted them immediately. The cracks in the city's usual chaos. The shadows that didn't quite belong.

"This isn't a net," Caelum murmured. "It's a web. And someone is spinning it around us."

Seraphina inhaled slowly, controlling her reaction. "So what do we do?"

Caelum turned slightly as they passed a row of market stalls. "First, we don't panic."

She almost laughed. "Not planning on it."

They reached a quieter side street, where the noise of the market dulled into background chatter. Caelum used the moment to speak freely.

"We have two choices: disappear or set a trap of our own."

Seraphina frowned. "Disappearing isn't an option. Every escape route we've tried has been blocked."

Caelum nodded. "Then we go to someone who can help."

She didn't like it. "Who?"

Caelum hesitated, then finally said, "An old contact. Apothecary near the river district. If he's still there, he might have a way out."

Seraphina exhaled sharply. "And if he's turned against us?"

Caelum gave her a look that was both resigned and firm. "Then we'll know exactly how bad things have gotten."

From a rooftop above the market, Aldric lowered the binoculars from his eyes, his face unreadable. His team was spread out, unseen but in place, keeping just enough distance to let the fugitives feel their own paranoia.

Edgar "Red" Fallon, crouched beside him, let out a low whistle. "Damn. You weren't kidding—those two are sharp."

Mara "Fox" Valen leaned against a chimney, smirking. "Good. Would've been boring otherwise."

Below, Tobias Gray scribbled quick notes on a small ledger, mapping out the movements of their targets. "They've realized we're here. But they don't know who we are yet."

Gerrod Holt, positioned closer to the docks, whispered through the communicator crystal. "They're heading toward the river district. Looks like they're trying to reach someone."

Royce Tannor, perched on a separate rooftop, chuckled softly. "Should we let them think they're winning for a bit longer?"

Aldric smiled faintly. "Yes. But not too long. We want them to feel like they're slipping away—right until we close the door behind them."

The hunt was nearing its climax. Now, all that remained was to see how their prey would react when they realized there was nowhere left to run.