Page 39 of Monster Married
Inkiri didn’t have his swords. They were still in our room, next to our bed. Still, he was punching and levering, kicking at his attackers. There were two that I could see, and he was handling both, his attention and counterstrikes easily going back and forth between them.
I couldn’t follow the fight. One of Inkiri’s punches landed, and a bagu went down, leaving the second attacker, the one with the knife. The attacker moved.
I screamed. It looked like Inkiri had gotten cut on the hand, but then he spun his attacker and ran him headfirst into the wall. He finished that by hammering his elbow down on the bagu’s back, and I knew the sound would give me nightmares later on.
And…that was it. The first attacker was still conscious, staring with wide eyes and speaking. The second was down. He wasn’t moving. Inkiri picked that one’s knife up in one swift movement, then stepped back so he had both of them in view.
“What in the ever-living fuck!” Vergis shouted. He was running toward us.
“Rory!” I snapped to attention when I heard Inkiri shout my name, voice harsher than I’d ever heard it before. “Are you fine?” We looked at one another. He had the knife in one hand and was keeping a tight hold on the attacker with the other. The only blood I saw was on the first attacker’s face.
“I… Sure. I… Sorry.”
Vergis came to a stop, the ligua minder running toward us too, his contraption rattling behind him. That was actually funny, seeing the guy running with the ligua making a ruckus. I giggled.
“Oh, not this again.” Vergis pulled me to my feet. “Did you pee yourself?”
“What? Seriously, what’s your thing about humans who pee themselves?”
“Just you. Any pain?”
I was a bit sore, and maybe bruised from where I’d hit the wall. Too bruised and too sore for my taste. I shook my head though. None of it was anything I couldn’t handle, at least until I was sure Inkiri was okay.
Vergis called something over to the guy with the cage, who stopped like he’d been slapped, said something back, and ran in the direction of the town, this time without the cage.
“I can take care of them,” Vergis said as he turned his back to us. At the same time, he pulled his knife free, and his tone of voice might’ve actually made me pee if he’d been looking at me right then. “Take care of your mate, Inkiri.”
“Thank you,” my big blue monster said, and then he was right there, shielding me from the two bagua with his body. “Rory.”
“Is your hand okay?” I asked. “Are you okay?”
He clicked at me. “I’m fine, Rory. All of me is fine. They were not very well trained. They were slow.” He went about feeling me all over. I flinched when he touched my elbow, which he turned carefully, hissing when he saw the torn shirt and the bloody abrasion. “This isn’t very bad, but we’ll have it looked at all the same.”
Behind Inkiri, Vergis was speaking in Lugarra. He was either threatening or cursing the one guy who was still conscious, and Vergis had a bloodcurdling voice when he wanted to. He probably did have experience getting people to pee themselves.
Inkiri’s attention was drawn to what the other bagu was saying, but I could only tell from watching his eyes and the line of his mouth hardening.
“What? What’s he saying?” I asked.
Vergis said something, and the other bagu screamed.
“Do you know where Lissir and Noki went?” Inkiri asked.
Vergis grunted. “I’m not sure. Out on the town would be my guess.”
“What’s going on? Ink, what’s he saying?”
More bagu came running toward us, Vergis’s helper in tow. They all wore black, a lot like Inkiri, Lissir, and Fellisse did, so they were probably Raikengana. Protectors.
I didn’t understand the exchange that followed, but the new Raikengana, four of them, proceeded to tie up both of the bagua who had attacked us.
Inkiri talked with the Raikengana, or talked to their leader, who gave me a curious look and a once-over, then did the same with Vergis. Vergis interjected something at one point, but he was now leaning against the lower wall on the city side. The Raikenga leader shook his head, but stopped in his tracks when Inkiri spoke.
I really needed subtitles here, but from how Inkiri carried himself and from the reactions of the other four dressed in black, he had some clout.
They got ready to walk the prisoners away, the unconscious one carried by two of the Raikengana, the other cowering in fear when Vergis said something smooth as a guillotine’s blade to him. I had no idea how, but Vergis had managed to scare that guy good within moments.
“Hey, wait,” I said when they were about to walk away with the unconscious one. “Can I see that one’s face?”
