Intruders 2

Luther held his breath, counting the footsteps. Three sets, spreading out as they entered the main room. He gave a slight nod to Luna, who extinguished the lanterns in one swift motion. The room plunged into darkness, broken only by moonlight filtering through the windows.

'Perfect.'

He struck the poker against the pillar, creating a sharp metallic ring. "Over here!" he called out, already moving silently to a new position. As expected, two of the intruders turned toward the sound, their silhouettes visible against the windows.

That's when everything went wrong. He seemed to have forgotten, this was a fantasy world, where people have powers...while he does not.

One of the figures raised a hand, and suddenly the room blazed with magical light—not from any lantern, but from a swirling sphere of energy that hung in the air. Luther's eyes widened as he saw their attackers clearly for the first time.

"Mages," Luna hissed from behind the bar. "Watch out—"

Before she could finish, one of the intruders made a sharp gesture. The air itself seemed to ripple, and Luther found himself thrown across the room like a rag doll. He slammed into a table, poker flying from his grip. Pain shot through his ribs as he rolled to his feet, his mind racing to adjust to this new reality.

This wasn't like any fight he'd been in before. These weren't street thugs or amateur criminals—these were trained battle mages. The book he was so confidently reading earlier didn't prepare him for the raw, visceral power of combat magic.

Luna's crossbow twanged, but one of the mages deflected the bolt with a casual wave, turning it to ice mid-flight. It shattered against the wall in a shower of fragments.

"The famous Laughing Mermaid," one of them spoke, voice distorted by magic. "Rumored sanctuary of heretics and god-worshippers. How disappointing to find it so... poorly defended."

'He knows about our hideout, who are these people?' Luna realized that things were more serious than she expected. 

"So the divine power I sensed is from this dog?" He turned towards Luther who was struggling to stand. "Is this some type of joke? He has no power at all, is the goddess out of her mind?" Suddenly a dagger threw by his face and when he turned in the direction it came from, Luna had already closed the distance, landing a powerful punch that sent the man skidding back. 

"Leave, while I am still being nice." She summoned two daggers that gave off immense divine power. Her outfit also changed to something more made for combat.

The other two mages stepped forward, their hands crackling with energy. "Stand down, blessed one," one of them warned. "Our quarrel isn't with you."

"Yet here you are, in my tavern," she replied, her stance relaxed but ready. The divine daggers hummed softly in her grip. "Breaking and entering isn't very diplomatic."

'I don't sense demonic energy. Just who are they and how do they know about this place? dammit, now we have to relocate.'

The lead mage laughed, a hollow sound behind his magical distortion. "The Watch has been very interested in your establishment's... unique clientele. But we're not here for them." He pointed at Luther. "We're here for the failed hero."

'Failed hero?' he thought, slowly reaching for a piece of broken table leg. 'That's a new one.'

Luna's eyes narrowed. "He's under my protection."

"Protection?" The mage's voice dripped with disdain. "You'd risk everything for someone who rejected the goddess's gift? Who can't even channel basic mana?"

"That's rich," Luther called out, drawing their attention. "Coming from someone hiding behind voice magic. What's wrong? Afraid someone might recognize you?"

The mage's posture stiffened slightly. It was subtle, but he caught it. A nerve had been struck.

"Shut up," one of the other mages snapped, sending a bolt of energy toward him. He rolled behind an overturned table just in time, feeling the heat of the spell as it passed.

Luna used the distraction to move, her daggers making the air whistle as she engaged the nearest mage. The clash of divine and arcane energy lit up the tavern in bursts of blue and gold.

Luther stayed low, moving between cover as spells flew overhead. He needed to even the odds, but how? These weren't street thugs he could outsmart with basic tactics. These were trained magic users who could literally bend reality.

Then he noticed something interesting. While the lead mage was clearly powerful, his companions seemed to be struggling to maintain their spells. Their movements were just a bit too rigid, their casting just a bit too slow.

'They're not battle mages,' he realized. 'They're academics playing soldier.'

He caught Luna's eye and made a subtle gesture toward the magical light sphere still illuminating the room. She gave an almost imperceptible nod, understanding immediately.

He grabbed a fallen mug and hurled it at the sphere. As expected, one of the mages instinctively moved to protect their light source, leaving himself open. Luna's dagger found its mark, not killing but definitely taking him out of the fight.

"Amateurs," the lead mage spat, genuine anger breaking through his magical disguise. "Must I do everything myself?"

He raised both hands, and the air grew heavy with power. Luna braced herself, divine energy flaring around her daggers. Luther looked for cover, knowing whatever was coming would be bad.

But before anyone could move, a deep bell tone reverberated through the streets—the Watch's midnight bell. The lead mage hesitated, his spell faltering.

"Time's up," he growled. "Consider this a warning." He gestured to his companions, and in a flash of light, they were gone, leaving behind only scorch marks and broken furniture.

Luna lowered her daggers, their glow fading. Her combat outfit shimmered and returned to normal tavern wear. "Well," she said, surveying the damage, "that was interesting."

Luther emerged from behind his cover, still holding the table leg. "Those weren't Watch soldiers, were they?"

"No," she agreed, already moving to bar the doors. "They weren't. But they knew things they shouldn't have known." She gave him a significant look. "Things about you."

"Yeah." He picked up his book from where it fell. It was slightly singed but intact. "Guess I better speed up my studying."

She sighed, but there was a hint of amusement in it. "At least let me teach you some basic defensive spells. Clearly, hiding behind furniture isn't going to cut it anymore."

"We'll see." He started helping her right the overturned tables. "First, we need to figure out who they really were. That leader wasn't just powerful—he was angry. Personal angry."

"Agreed." She checked her windows, reinforcing the wards. "But that's a problem for tomorrow. Right now, we need to clean up and warn the others. If they found us..."

"Others might too," he finished, picking up a broken chair, adding it to the growing pile of damaged furniture. "You know, for someone who runs a secret sanctuary, you're pretty good in a fight."

"And for someone who claims to prefer learning alone, you're not bad at teamwork." She tossed him a broom. "Now make yourself useful. The tavern needs to look normal by morning."

As they cleaned, his mind kept returning to the mage's words. Failed hero. It should have bothered him, but somehow it felt right. Better than being some chosen one, anyway. 

'Now that I think about, why were they picking a lock when they are that strong?'