This choice: He has nothing. (You lose.) • Go Back...Chapter #6He has nothing. (You lose.) by: Unknown As the implications of what you just promised to do begin to crawl through your mind, shock gives way to dread. You look again at the gargoyle's bare palm. You could have sworn you heard his heavy steps as he plodded along to that exact grave. He had to have cheated or used trickery -- your temper flares hot.
"Cheating, monster filth!" You raise your mace before you bring your emotions back under control.
Instead of retaliating or moving to defend himself, the boy throws up his arms defensively. "W-wait! Slayer, sir, you promised! I-i played by the rules, and I heard your order was honorable!" When the blow doesn't come the hapless gargoyle fumbles for the bag of coins and holds it out, his desperation plain in his mannerisms. "You can have it, I can't spend it anyway, just don't kill me!"
You sigh. The shame of your actions pulls hard on your shoulders as you pick up the bag with your head bowed. You can't treat him this way. Even if it was a trick-- and you can't be sure it was-- it technically wouldn't have been against the rules. You should have been more alert, but the time for misgivings has passed. You stow your weapon and look down at the boy's feet. They're chipped in places, but they're also... statuesque. You're not sure how gargoyles are made, you realize, but this one's feet are inexplicably detailed. The texture of the sandstone throws off the effect, but his feet are long, strong, and muscled. Aside from the wear and occasional chip, each bone, ligament, and tendon is perfectly carved from the soft rock of his body. Perfect arches accentuate fine toes, every one of which ends in a perfectly-formed, though blunted, claw. It seems even living stone is subject to the whims of the elements. You're not excited by the prospect of worshipping some statue, it'll be degrading and strange, but not as dangerous or foul as most of what assails you in your line of work. Your honor as a slayer is already wounded, but you steel yourself to accept your fate. You toss half of the coins back to the gargoyle -- you're not going to apologize for your actions or harsh words, but you still want to make your intentions clear. "Let's just get this over with so I can get out of here." (You lose 1 MP from examining the gargoyle's feet)
"Gah--" he shouts in alarm, genuinely caught off guard by the gently arcing toss. The sack bounces of his chest with a clatter. He fumbles it in his hands before catching it and looking up. "You're really going to do it?"
The unguarded joy in his gravelly voice makes the corner of your mouth quirk up into a smile. You try, unsuccessfully, to hide the amusement in your voice. "Yes," you snort out, "I'm going to 'do it', just as soon as I check to make sure I wasn't cheated."
You half expect him to protest as you move past him towards the gravestones ahead. When he doesn't, you start to think he may have played things fairly. You check the first tombstone on the left and it's just as he says -- the stone isn't there. You grimace, disappointed that you didn't have a clear way out of the deal. He could be holding it still, you muse; if you were to cheat at this game, it's what you would have done.
You look up at the gargoyle -- years of training stop you from trusting him behind you for long. You're pleased to find he hasn't moved a step -- you're less pleased when the pride of victory is displayed openly on his face.
Still beaming, he shouts out to you, "It's the one in the back, beside the tree!" he seems more and more excited as words flow forth, the tone growing more smug. "I figured you could probably hear my steps, I weigh over 60 stone, so I tossed it!" You chuckle, his naive sincerity is infectious, and though it was a simple gambit, there was no way you would be able to discern where the stone landed, at best, with his strategy your victory have been pure chance. Your mood sours, in part because you believe it to be true, there's no reason for him to lie.
Still, you walk deeper into the graveyard, away from the flickering torchlight on the path for the final verification of your defeat.
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