Sael's long legs combined with the boost from Hasten was letting him tear across the grasslands. Dust and debris from his wild rush were leaving a trail slowly erupting behind him yet the weird creatures were slowly starting to gain on him. Even with Hasten's boost, his speed was inferior to the flying monsters as they flew in a straight line. For the first time since he'd unlocked his class, Sael cursed not being a magic user. "I could really use a fireball or lightning bolt right about now. My highest stat was intelligence, why didn't I come with magic!"
Behind him, the ground exploded as another of the Spotted Pergyena's punched the ground where he'd been just a moment before. Despite the desperate situation, he'd butchered the one corpse before running off. Receiving two Spotted Pergyena Wings as his reward. Sadly he hardly had time to ponder the weird creatures' equally weird name. Dirt sprayed up across his back as new craters continued to be born from each attack as he barely managed to outrun them. The stream of thunderous blows sounded like he was in the middle of a battlefield in some war movie trying to outrun artillery.
Ahead of him one of the giant trees was almost in reach, he hoped that the winged beasts wouldn't pursue him under the branches. It was a long shot but he didn't know what else to do, there was no way he'd manage to kill the flock of monsters. Nor was he willing to test his body's high vitality against such explosive attacks, he might heal fast but if he was just a pile of mush he doubted it would matter. Just as he moved to dodge the next incoming attack the world seemed to speed up. The blow landed close enough behind him that he was sent tumbling from the shockwave.
Managing to stop his wild roll he found the next winged attacker already in its dive bomb towards him. Eyes wide he raised his spear hoping to at the very least take his attacker with him when the winged hyena was yanked to the side. He'd barely made it under the branches of the giant tree when one of the tentacled koalas lashed out in a blur and snatched the beast from the air. As he watched several others were reeling in more of the flock. Their manic laughter was so loud it made Sael's nose bleed from the psychic damage but the koalas seemed un-phased. As the first koala reeled in its prey the cute face spread open revealing a giant maw with dozens of rows of shark teeth before chomping down on it.
Although the winged beasts were nearly the same size as the koalas they chewed and chomped slowly devouring them. The few flying beasts that avoided the lightning fast tentacles flew away trailing manic laughter. Sael slowly crawled away hoping not to attract the attention of the feeding koalas and swore never to go near one of the giant trees again. Only once he was well clear of the branches did he stand back up. "Great every time I start thinking I'm pretty badass something comes along to knock me down a notch or five."
Slowing his breakneck pace down he focused more on his surroundings. No longer as confident in his battle prowess as he had been. As the second day ended the grasslands were giving way to land covered in crags. Short twisting trees grew here and there seeming to pop up in random places from the rough landscape. That night Sael camped out using one of the crags to shield him from a sudden storm that had rolled up. He also set the range of his alarm as far out as possible, worried that more of the flying monsters might ambush him.
Luckily his sleep wasn't interrupted by any ambushing monsters and the short overhang of the crag had allowed him to stay mostly dry. The crags covered the region known as the Ruptured Lands and he found that to be an apt name. It was also the place where he was supposed to meet Peter. Gregory had been certain he would be able to find him but he hated the idea of just wandering around hoping to stumble across his target.
Moving along the rough ground he actually found it easier to use his newfound physical abilities to hop around the rough land than to try and navigate the crags. As the day rolled into the late afternoon he was just starting to curse Gregory and his quest system when his enhanced senses caught the sound of someone yelling on the wind.
Following the sounds, he found a man with his arms and legs wrapped around the branch of one of the twisted trees. Beneath him, three sheep were milling around. As Sael watched one of the eight legged sheep leapt up and snapped at the man that yelled curses back down at it. Not only did the sheep have eight legs but when it bite at the man its jaws projected forward like a shark and filled with just as deadly looking teeth. Sael landed on a rock jutting out of the stony ground right near the tree.
"Down to stupid beasts. Down! Don't you know better than to bare your fangs at your better?" The man's angry speech digressed into a stream of swears before he noticed Sael balanced on the stone. "You! You there get me down this instant! Don't you know it's rude to watch someone in danger without offering to help!" Below the sheep let out a hungry baaaa before trying to take a bite out of the man who'd started sagging down.
As he pulled himself back up tightly against the branch he's tone instantly changed "Er pardon my rudeness lord. I forgot myself in the moment of panic. If you could find it within your most compassionate heart to aid me I would be most grateful."
Wrapped around the branch it was hard to tell how tall the man was. His chest was lean and darkly tanned a fact that was visible since he wore no shirt. His pants looked to be made of thick fur covered hides while his hair was a curly brown mess.
'Most likely this guy is Peter. What are the chances of running into someone else randomly out in this wasteland? Still, never let a good opportunity pass you by!' Working to keep the grin off his face he cleared his throat. "What's in it for me?"
That man with his cheek still pressed to the branch as he hung on for dear life let out an exasperated gasp. "You would attempt to extort me in my hour of need? What kind of monster are you?" Sael was just about to claim to be joking when the man continued. "Excellent call, I'd be doing the same in your shoes! So rare to find a proper entrepreneur out in the sticks like this. If you help me I'll pay you. Fifteen silver coins or information equal to its value! Normally I'd say my life isn't worth more than thirteen silvers but I'm willing to sweeten the deal simply because I love meeting another willing to put money before morals! Now if you don't hurry our agreement will net you nothing!" It did look as if the man was starting to lose his grip on the branch.
Sael hopped down from his rock catching the attention of the three sheep-like creatures. They turned and charged forward at breakneck speed crying out BAAA like it was a war cry. Unfortunately for them, running for his life seemed to have boosted Sael's agility considerably. As he walked past them, his three rapid thrusts were so fast neither his attackers nor the stranded man saw the attacks or even the spear being summoned and dismissed.
Drooping from the branch as shock loosened his grasp the man stared down at his rescuer suddenly doubting his plans to trick the man out of his reward. 'Damn it. First, I get chased by those ungrateful little fluff balls and now the first mark I've seen in ages turns out to be some sort of monster.'
Dropping down from the tree branch Sael could see that the man was only about five foot six or so and more importantly that the furred pants were actually furred legs complete with hooves for feet. 'If he tells me his name is Peter Pan I swear I'm going to punch someone.' "Er, your an um Pan?"
"Pan! Pan! Did you call me a Pan?" The half goat man stomped his feet letting his sharp hooves chop into the stony ground as he jumped up and down in rage. "Do I looook like a Pan to you? You see me flouncing around with a flute tooting out songs and prancing about? How about horns you see any horns?? WELL HUMAN?" the irate little man glared up at Sael.
Despite his tantrum, Sael only found it entertaining not sensing any real hostility coming from the other. Cocking his eyebrow he grinned "No, but I've never met a…" he motioned towards the stranger. "Whatever you are."
"I'm a Satyr of course." He grumbled while walking back towards the tree to pick up a satchel that had been out of Sael's line of sight. For his part, Sael just thought 'There's a difference?' Still, he had enough tact to not say it out loud.
"Sorry about that. Are you by chance Peter?" The satyr was just slinging his satchel over his shoulder when he turned his eyes narrowing.
"Depends on who's asking." Sael grinned wondering why anyone would ever say something that was so blatantly an answer. Before pulling out the scroll from Gregory and handing it to Peter. While the satyr read the scroll he butchered the Fluffy Feeders getting several bundles of their wood and once again wondering what mad god named these creatures.
"So then Gregory decided to cash in his favor finally? Good, Now I have an excuse to get some more books from him." Suddenly the satyr's eyes lit up "Do you perhaps have any of his most recent translations with you? It has been a while since I had a good… read." He suddenly let out a goat-like baaa of his own before looking embarrassed. "Er, please ignore that." Looking saddened by Sael shaking his head that he didn't he continued "Anyways, what is it you are wanting? You get one question and only one. That was what I owed Gregory." Peter grumbled hating having to pay any debt, he'd been sure a Sage would never need information from one like him. It had been the perfect plan.
Sael just nodded "I only need to know one thing. Where can I find the Fairies Fallen Castle?"
Peter hopped up and down his sharp hooves chopping into the ground once again. "What kind of question is that? I can't tell a human something like that. Don't you know satyrs are part of the Fae Courts? Such information is worth far more than a few explicit books! There is no way, pick something else. How about the location of a spring where nymphs bathe?" Peter wiggled his wooly eyebrows in a manner very similar to Gregory.
'No wonder these two idiots got along so well. However, Gregory warned me about this before I departed.' Sael kept his thoughts to himself and responded "Nope, Only thing I need to know. Don't tell me you plan on breaking your contract. What kind of trader are you? Shame, I'll have to let the Trader's League know about this breach. Hopefully, this is your first breach, I hear the league gets pretty nasty after the first offense." Peter's sudden panicked look almost made Sael feel bad.
Almost.
But anyone stupid enough to give a blank check in return for some smut books deserved what he got. Besides he wasn't going to let something small like a guilty conscience stand between him and completing a quest. "Come on, How about this. I was saving this one for a special deal but I know where a Sylph's blossom can be found. Eh? Don't you want a shape shifting Fae for a love slave? They can be anything and everything you want! Pretty good deal don't you think?"
Shaking his head Sael shuddered thinking he had more than enough women troubles as is without adding another to the mix. "Nope, Fallen Castle or bust. Look, I'm on a tight schedule. I still have to get a birthday/I fucked up gift too. So, let's cut the chase and get to dealing. Are you paying up or am I heading back to the nearest Trader Leagues branch office?"
"Why do you want to know the location?" Peter seemed desperate.
"My business." Sael replied not willing to spill the beans on his quest.
"The summer and winter courts don't get along well. You know the fallen castle belongs to winter? Why would part of the summer court want to seek out the winter castle? As odd as it is that a human is part of their court it would be even odder to seek out the winter court."
More than a little shocked that somehow Peter knew he was linked to the summer court he did his best to keep it off his face and just crossed his arms waiting. "Fine fine but you didn't get this information from me!"
After crouching down to draw a rough map in the dirt Peter picked up his satchel and prepared to depart. "Wait, where are you going?" Sael held out his hand waiting. "My silver."
Peter dropped his satchel and once again jumped around tearing up the ground. "Thug! Robber! Highwayman! We just traded fair and square now you want more?"
Sael rolled his eyes "I collected on Gregory's owed favor. You did promise me silver for your life, correct?"
Peter gave up on his tantrum realizing it wasn't having any effect and angry that his attempt to conveniently forget the owed money had failed. Grudgingly and as if it physically pained him he handed over the silver coins only to yelp when they disappeared. "An Arrived! Well, you just get more and more unbelievable every second. Well, I can't say it's been a pleasure but should you have any business propositions in the future I'm always looking for a shrewd business associate."
Chuckling at how quickly Peter's personally flopped all over the place depending on the needs of the situation he answered "Actually, I might have such an offer. Do you know about the Adventurer's Ball?"
After explaining Dego's plan and his need for more capital for betting Peter's eyes lit up so brightly Sael was certain he could see dollar signs in them. Peter promised to meet him during the Adventurer's Ball certain that not only could he gather up the capital to really make it worth it but that he had a number of additional ways to increase their profit. Grasping one of Sael's armored hands in both of his before he turned to skip away in a very Pan-like manner.
**********
Sael's original plan was to return to Little Well after getting the information from Peter. But based on what Peter had shared, the Fallen Castle's location was actually further south. Heading all the way back to check in before retracing his travels seemed inefficient. While debating he spoke out loud to nothing "Hey system, You're spying on me, right? How about a gate or recall skill since you like giving me quests just when I need them." He waited half expecting a system message but hearing only the chirping of a few birds. "Bleh, Well fine. Pretend you aren't spying on me every moment… not like I can do anything about it. But you know, a little more detail on the quest menu would be nice!" Nevertheless, there was no response and with a sigh, he decided it would be wasteful to head back now.
Over the next few days, he traveled further south running into several flocks of Fluffy Feeders but nothing more dangerous. Besides the wool, he did get a few skins which he hoped Beth would be able to make something useful with. Thinking about her reminded him he needed to get her a present still.
Midmorning on the second day since leaving Peter he finally found his goal. True to its name the Fallen Castle looked as if it had crashed from the sky. Broken terrain looked as if it had been blasted away from the crash site while a castle that looked straight out of a fairy tale had definitely seen better days. Several of its towers were broken apart while fissure and cracks could be seen even from this distance running through the walls. The entire structure tilted to one side as if it had crashed down at an angle. There was a drawbridge in the front but it hung off to one side as if one of the chains used to raise and lower it was broken. It definitely looked abandoned and though he sat for several hours watching he never saw any movement.
After finishing lunch while staring at the castle he figured there was no point in waiting any longer. Bracing his legs he leapt to the next stone jutting out of the ground in the direction of the castle. In his wake, he left a shadow that watched him from countless eyes before sliding silently across the ground after him.