Lih left his flat, and headed south into the rendezvous point. He moved south, bow ready, to where Nox was waiting by the tunnel. Nox had brought Nova to their hunting party.
He stepped toward Nox. There was something in Lih’s hand. “Donuts, if you want,” he offered. “How’s Ivan?” he asked Nox.
“Hello, you,” he said, kneeling down next to the friendly beast. “All right, Nova?”
He got to his feet and peered into the gathering dark. Damn, it was making his skin crawl. He couldn’t see anything, except… except he felt a sense of unease. Was it just him?
There are some things that won’t fit into nice, ordered boxes. Gut instincts. Feelings. As Dorian had been quick to point out, the Viktor Lih who went to Boda’s came back different. You don’t spend time with monsters and not have it affect you. It changed the way you fight. It changed the way you live and think, the way you trust. All of those changes forced on you by the simple need to survive. It left its mark on Lih.
Just to stay alive, Lih developed a … a hunch. Ah instinct. A little inkling that rang alarm bells well things weren’t right. When things weren’t what they seemed, or certain powers were playing tricks or about to strike. He’d gotten that inkling now; he’d had it since he first set foot in this place. He didn’t think the tunnels was just an old ruin with monsters hiding inside it. Something else was going on. He thought about the missing scientist. Where in the name of the creator did he go?
Nobody knew. Dorian suggested it was high time someone did. He assembled a team because he thought it was a job ideally suited to the domovoi, to Ivan and Nox especially. If they couldn’t track this thing to its source, no one can. Lih wasn’t happy, but Dorian had convinced him—if there was even a shred of truth, this was important.
What did Dorian expect they’ll find? Lairs and dens? Natural hiding places that nobody had yet detected. He hoped they'd all be empty.
But Lih’s inkling told him… something was wrong. He couldn’t explain it. And Nox wasn’t really interested in anything Lih had to say.
In any case he should check in; the domovoi channel should be within range at the tunnel entrance. He keyed the send button.
“Sir? We’re here. Respond.” Lih delicately adjusted the dials of his microbead, boosting its signal. “Sir? This is Lih. Do you read me?”
Crackle.
He stepped toward Nox. There was something in Lih’s hand. “Donuts, if you want,” he offered. “How’s Ivan?” he asked Nox.
“Hello, you,” he said, kneeling down next to the friendly beast. “All right, Nova?”
He got to his feet and peered into the gathering dark. Damn, it was making his skin crawl. He couldn’t see anything, except… except he felt a sense of unease. Was it just him?
There are some things that won’t fit into nice, ordered boxes. Gut instincts. Feelings. As Dorian had been quick to point out, the Viktor Lih who went to Boda’s came back different. You don’t spend time with monsters and not have it affect you. It changed the way you fight. It changed the way you live and think, the way you trust. All of those changes forced on you by the simple need to survive. It left its mark on Lih.
Just to stay alive, Lih developed a … a hunch. Ah instinct. A little inkling that rang alarm bells well things weren’t right. When things weren’t what they seemed, or certain powers were playing tricks or about to strike. He’d gotten that inkling now; he’d had it since he first set foot in this place. He didn’t think the tunnels was just an old ruin with monsters hiding inside it. Something else was going on. He thought about the missing scientist. Where in the name of the creator did he go?
Nobody knew. Dorian suggested it was high time someone did. He assembled a team because he thought it was a job ideally suited to the domovoi, to Ivan and Nox especially. If they couldn’t track this thing to its source, no one can. Lih wasn’t happy, but Dorian had convinced him—if there was even a shred of truth, this was important.
What did Dorian expect they’ll find? Lairs and dens? Natural hiding places that nobody had yet detected. He hoped they'd all be empty.
But Lih’s inkling told him… something was wrong. He couldn’t explain it. And Nox wasn’t really interested in anything Lih had to say.
In any case he should check in; the domovoi channel should be within range at the tunnel entrance. He keyed the send button.
“Sir? We’re here. Respond.” Lih delicately adjusted the dials of his microbead, boosting its signal. “Sir? This is Lih. Do you read me?”
Crackle.