Page 22Chasing up

Like I expected, the men were getting their stuff and headed for the exit. I sneaked as fast as I could (but still silently) to the stairway and headed upstairs. The door didn't squeak one bit as I opened it and closed it swiftly behind me. The two men were not in as much of a hurry as I was and I could hear them calmly going up the stairs. They'd closed doors neatly behind them and generally avoided leaving anything obviously disturbed.

I looked around feverishly for the best place to hide. The roof I came from was alright, I supposed and with a jump and a short dash i was soon hidden from view. The adrenaline (or equivalent, I was still sketchy on vampire anatomy) rushed through my body and I enjoyed it immensely. I kind of wished it was me doing those installations, getting into that building and working nefarious deeds. Well, up to a point anyway. When there were no direct people involved, it didn't feel as bad.

I wanted to explore it.

I really wanted to.

There was little time to think on it then. The men headed outside and moved off the roof on the other side. I wasn't sure how but I couldn't just go and look or they'd see me. It sounded vaguely like ropes were involved, but it was hard to tell with the building in between and them really trying to be quiet.

Should I pursue them?

Why not...

Because they would be dangerous, but of course I am not to be underestimated either.

So I jumped back to the building and looked for them.

Gone...

No wait, they were almost gone. I saw them walk almost a street further. It took a few careful jumps from rooftop to rooftop, almost dancing on the edge, until I was on top of them again. Figuratively speaking mostly. I stayed a bit behind them and tried to be aware of my silhouette, possibly outlined against the sky if they ever looked up. Of course I knew that people hardly looked up. Ever. And this was the case now as well. They didn't even look behind them, as soon as they got on the main street they walked as comfortable as if they were just out together on an evening scroll.

The best way to avoid attention.

Clever. Or rather experienced I presumed.

It was getting more difficult to keep up with them though. Not that they walked faster, but the houses and building were a bit uneven, which made jumping tougher. And louder. So I had to wait for them to be further away before I jumped and it didn't take long for me to actually lose them.

I was annoyed.

There were so many things I wanted to know. Where was 'the playground', or what was it? Who is Seriph? Were these guys locals? Actually I wasn't too sure they would even be locals. It'd be better to go do stuff like this when you didn't come from here. It meant you would have as little repeating chances of being caught. On the other hand, living here meant that you knew the place better.

I stood high on the rooftops, pondering what to do. There was more or less half of the night left and I wanted to make good use of it. Perhaps I could go to an Internet cafe and look either of them up. Nah, that wouldn't work. Seriph didn't sound like a rare term and 'the playground' even less so. If I didn't know what I was looking for I wouldn't be able to find it.

Damn those movies and their misleading presentation of the Internet. "The playground: 1 hit found." Even I knew that wasn't just highly unlikely but also stupid to expect. It could even be a codename, now that would really complicate things. Kai once called the Internet his playground, maybe I should just call him.

If I had a phone.

And his number.

All of this made me momentarily weary, I moved a few streets back towards the marina (which was close to the center but more easily recognizable from a distance because of the many, many sailboats) and dropped down to street level.

And saw a reflection of me in a glass window as I did so. It was completely dark inside, with curtains as well, so nothing inside could have seen me. In fact the darkness made my reflection all the more clear. I looked like a dark phantom that just fell out of the heavens. Though that would surely be higher than the roof above a third floor. Still. My dark clothing, it's shape made present only through the beaming street lights, gave an eerie look to my movements. It was cheering me up immensely. It wasn't Gothic, or predictably vampiric in any way. It was...

Like a panthress.

Feral, dangerous, seductive.

Maybe I was even pretty.

The layout of the city was a lot easier in principle than I was used to. Getting back to the cafes I met Esmeralda was fairly simple. The ocean was always there, so to speak, to guide you. Even if you couldn't see it directly, where it was was somehow easy to remember and see. I wanted something though. I had about seventy floryns left and it didn't seem enough to get a place to sleep for long. It felt wrong to be dependant on that squatter place, as it was no place for someone who aspired to go into dangerous things.

Besides, I felt better if I didn't have that many people around me most of the time.

It was a lucky find though, a storage room without windows, more than large enough to sleep in. Maybe it originally was a darkroom after all. Though it did seem a bit small for that. But who was I to judge, I didn't know anything about it as such. Walking with all these thoughts in my head had brought me casually and easily back to the cafe where, I presumed, Esmeralda would be. She was my only link in this city at the moment and ready to answer questions. I wanted to be more careful though and only ask what I needed to get further, not ask for actual solutions. That was important to me.

I'm sure she would understand.

It would be really difficult to chase people over rooftops. It's easy enough if the roofs are kind and fairly level. Yet this is hardly ever the case. Reality is an fickle mistress.