The GrimJack Book 2 Suivre l’histoire

The creature desperately dashed through the dark streets of the Town of Hailzard. However, I was hard on its tail and the barrier around the town prevented him from escaping. All the manholes were covered, so there was no chance that he could hide in the sewers. The Drakeer was hysterical, with no place to hide or escape. I was still in his pursuit and I was getting close. The Drakeer dashed through the dark streets but as I came close enough to take a shot, I aimed and fired at him. However, the Drakeer sheered and managed to dodge it. The Drakeer somersaulted his body using one of the signs outside a shop and landed on top of the roof. From there he leapt from one roof to another, getting as far from me as possible.

However, I refused to give up. From his pace, I came to realise that the Drakeer was starting to tire himself out. I rode through the streets keeping an eye on his movements. We were coming close to the town's outskirts, where the local guards were standing with torches in their hands. Drakeers could not stand fire, so there was no way he could go any further. I knew that the Drakeer had to change the course of his motion. So I rode ahead and went to the other side of the town. As the Drakeer reached the border of the town, he realised that he could not escape. The guards spotted him and started shooting at him.

The Drakeer dodged their arrows and came down from the roof. He started running under the shadows of the street, with his movements as silent as the grave. He managed to get away from the guards, but little did he know that I was waiting for him. The Drakeer slowly walked down the street and as he came close, I came out of the shadows and aimed my crossbow at his leg.

With a click, the arrow pierced through the air and struck the Drakeer in the leg. The Drakeer screamed in agony and went fell to the ground. I immediately shot another arrow. The arrow struck his shoulder and the Drakeer screeched in pain. The Drakeer rolled on the ground and started to crawl away from me out of desperation. I shot another arrow, this time the arrow struck his lower back. The Drakeer screamed again and halted his movement. As I was approaching him, the Drakeer started whimpering. He raised his head from the ground and looked at me with vulnerability and fear.

"Please, I don't wanna die. I won't do it again. Just let me go. I beg you." The Drakeer said.

"You killed many innocents. You feasted on their flesh while they cried in despair and agony." I exclaimed. "They must have begged you too. Did you spare them? Did you show any mercy!"

The Drakeer was speechless. Meanwhile, I took out a small bottle from my cloak. The bottle contained alcohol. I spilt the whole bottle on the Drakeer's immobilised body. The Drakeer shook his body in disgust. I threw the bottle away and took out a matchbox from my pocket. I lighted a match and threw it at the Drakeer. The match ignited the alcohol and the Dakeer's body caught fire.

He squealed and shrieked as his flesh melted and his bones crackled. I walked away and sat down on the ground with my back resting on the wall. Meanwhile, the guards came to the site when he noticed the smoke and saw the grim scene until the very end with me. After a while, there was nothing left but ashes. Schneider was standing beside me. I took out a pot from my bag and using my hand, I swept the ash into the pot and then put a lid on it. I then gave the pot to one of the guards.

"Dig a deep hole in the ground and put the pot in it," I instructed. "Make sure that in the next five days, nobody finds it. Otherwise, you will have a nasty ghoul running free in the city. After a week, take it out. By that time the monster's energy would completely have dissipated. Cast the ashes into the river."

The guard nodded at me and took away the pot. It was morning already. I could see the sun slowly rising from the west, enlightening the horizon. I went to the Mayor's office to collect my payment. As I was leaving, a man came running at me. It was a delivery boy not older than eighteen. He came to a halt right in front of me, caught his breath and handed me a letter. It was from Adam.

He asked me to meet him in Mourancha six days from now. Apparently, he wanted to give me another job and it was urgent. Mourancha was the Country's Capital and it was East of Hailzard. Normally it would take a week to get there and that is if you do not stop at all. However, there was another route that could take you to Mourancha in five. But the locals did not prefer it as that route was pretty dangerous. But I had no choice. So without wasting another second, I mounted Schneider and rode for Mourancha.