Echo's warning hit like a bucket of ice water, instantly washing away my physical exhaustion and mental numbness. "Tails"-more than one, and they were already right on top of me!
Almost the instant she vanished, I lunged diagonally forward and threw myself to the ground!
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Three crossbow bolts trailing ghostly blue flames silently skimmed through the afterimage of where I had just stood and buried themselves deep in the pavilion's wooden pillar. Their tails shuddered violently, giving off a high-pitched hum! Whatever coated the tips gave off a pungent, sickly-sweet smell, clearly some potent poison or anesthetic.
Not guns. Crossbows. Professional, quiet, designed to capture or swiftly subdue. Just the Merchant Guild's hyenas' style.
I didn't pause for an instant. As I hit the ground, I rolled with the momentum, smashed through the low railing on the pavilion's other side, and landed in the waist-high ornamental shrubs outside! Branches scraped my skin, stinging, but they also gave me temporary cover.
I had lost my high-powered flashlight in the Rift Corridor, leaving me with only moonlight and the faint glow from the distant city to see by. Keeping low like a stalking cheetah, I raced along the shadows of the shrubs toward the depths of the park! Soft soil and thick fallen leaves swallowed my footsteps.
Behind me came the faintest sounds of clothing cutting through the air and hushed commands. At least three people, swift and well coordinated, were fanning out to surround me. Their tracking skills were excellent, producing almost no unnecessary noise, but their disciplined, icy killing intent felt like tangible needles trained on my back.
I couldn't lead them somewhere crowded. I had to deal with them inside the park, or shake them off completely!
I didn't know the layout of this city park,