Breaking the Rules Pt. 13

/I hope I don't need to tell you which way to go. Get a good head start, then duck off the road and hide./

"But she won't catch me! I have Weightless Foot!" he panted.

/That's what you thought with the Goof Troupe. Yours is low-proficiency still. What if hers is better?/

"Ack! She has it too!?"

/Can't be sure, but it wouldn't surprise me. It's the kind of thing a thief like her would have. Scrolls are generally the highest-proficiency version of a spell, you know, and they don't have a cooldown problem. I bet she's got a few, just in case. Whether she brought them is anyone's guess. How lucky are you feeling?/

"*Now* you tell me," Nuru said, gritting his teeth and running like his life depended on it.

The way the succubus was talking, it probably did. Halfway to cooldown, Nuru dove off the side of the road behind a line of bushes, and darted carefully back towards a cluster of trees, cancelling the spell. He slipped down behind the trunks, peeking out, and waited. And waited. And then suddenly some small shape came tearing impossibly fast down the road the way he'd gone. If he'd blinked, he thought he might have missed it. Were it not for the leaves dancing in its wake, he thought he'd not have seen it anyway.

(Holy crap!)

/She's an assassin, Nuru. The only reason you stood a chance is because you ripped her mind out through her love canal. That bought you a few minutes, but she doesn't have all day to come searching here, and there's too much ground to cover to check for prints every foot of the way. You could be anywhere within a mile in either direction. She's going to sweep from the air, but stay out of sight and you'll be fine./

(Time to call Tusa.)

Nuru activated the Oath, and waited. When Tusa showed up, he hopped to his feet.

"OK, real quick. We need to get back to the port, but I can't go back by the road and I can't be seen from the air. I don't want to make too much noise, either. Can you help me?"

Grunt

[This will be easier if I can pick you up.]

"How do you feel about being my mount?"

[Not ready for that kind of commitment.]

"No, I mean... just acting like it, not taking the permanent Mount Charm."

[I am also not built for that. I could carry you, but my neck will tire at anything other than a slow walk.]

"Your father carried me with my arm in his mouth. Hmm. What if I weighed less?"

[Your running spell. Yes, that could work. You'll need to warn me when it nears its end.]

"I'll cancel it as soon as you let go. My cooldown improves the less of it I use, so I won't be wasting any time."

[Then let us begin.]

"!Kafa Mara Nauyi!"

They alternated, slowly picking their way through underbrush and large groups of trees, followed by rapidly traversing open patches of ground or steep slopes or jumping long gaps of broken ground. Whether those were the result of some old battle between giants, Nuru could not tell. The thrill of the race caught him however, particularly when he thought he saw that huge bird swooping past overhead, and he jubilantly traipsed through the woods as quietly and as quickly as they could manage. Just as twilight was falling, he reached his makeshift camp, and settled in where Dayo had laid his basic protective wards. His last thought was the smoldering look in Sanaa's eyes as she drifted back to the demon world, knowing his seed was spilling for her.