Death Cap - Twenty-Eight - Discovering That You're not as Special as You Think

Death Cap - Twenty-Eight - Discovering That You're not as Special as You Think

Death Cap - Twenty-Eight - Discovering That You're not as Special as You Think is an Important Growing Moment

I ran across the rooftop, then jumped off the back of it. It wasnt too big of a leap, the alley below was barely a metre wide. I wouldnt have been able to lay down flat across the width of the alley if I tried.

It still felt like I was jumping over a chasm, and if I wasnt in such a hurry I would have climbed down and found another way around.

Right then, my job was to get the hell away from this part of the city. The further from the crime scene I was, the harder it would be to track me. Even if they had magical skills, I suspected that changing clothes, reducing my magical use, and staying away from the area and any bullys notice for a while would help a lot.

I didnt hear of the bullies catching many criminals in the slums. Sure, they strutted around and kicked down a door or two, but I knew some of my neighbours were thieves and they were more likely to be brought to justice by an irate neighbour than by the law.

So, I was pretty confident that Id be safe in the deeper slums if I could just get there.

The moment I was on the other rooftop, I jogged over to the edge and looked around until I found a fire escape. It didnt reach the roof, but it did reach the top floor, so I sat on the edge of the roof and scooted off and fell a few feet onto the topmost platform of the escape. It creaked and clanged, and I was a little worried before it settled.

I climbed down the escape, only to realise that it stopped a floor off the ground above a large stinking, wooden dumpster in an alley. There was a wall, made of old wood and rusty tin, behind the dumpster. I made sure to jump clear of the wall and landed with a hard omph.

Good thing Im not thirty years older, that would have been hell on my knees, I said to Sir Nibbles.

He chattered something, then hissed while looking out towards the end of the alley.

There they are!

There was a bully at the end of the alley. A big blue bastard who immediately took off running towards me. He had the normal bully gear on, but he also had a long baton in one hand and a metal shield with the city crest in the other, like a thicker, smaller riot shield. His entire lower face was covered in a gas mask with two large filters.

Shit, I cursed as I spun around and scurried up the wall. The edges bit into my hands, but I was lucky enough that they didnt cut.

The fall to the ground on the other side was rough, ending in a poor roll that made it so that I had to untangle myself to get to my feet. At least I had a wall between me and the bully. I darted to the end of the alley and looked left and right, trying to decide how to get out of the area fastest while losing my pursuit.

Then the wall in the centre of the alley exploded apart as the bully ran through it, shield-first. There was a faint glow clinging to him. A skill?

The sewers mostly lead to the Gutter, so I went against the flow while trying to keep a decent pace and avoiding the smaller off-shoot tunnels in favour of staying in the larger ones.

No one popped their head in, and I didnt run into any bully patrols.

Either they didnt care to follow me down, or theyd lost track of me at some point.

How bad was my situation? I... wasnt sure, but it wasnt ideal. Id need to keep my head low for the next while. I was partially disguised, but I didnt trust in my abilities there.

The big problem was all the evidence I left behind. Theyd be on the lookout for someone who was small and used mushrooms as weapons. That could be traced back to me, maybe.

I was small and sold food mushrooms, but maybe that was close enough to get them sniffing around.

Fuck me, I muttered. I soon found a familiar section of the sewers and headed homeward.

At least Id done my job and distracted the bullies. No one would be able to claim otherwise. Between those having bowel issues in public and those hallucinating, theyd certainly gotten a cartons worth of egg to the face.

Which didnt bode well for me, actually. Embarrassment was easy to forgive, but hard to forget.

I pulled out of the sewer, then just stood on a familiar, quiet, street. What was I supposed to do now?

I didnt want to head home stinking the way I did... so I went to an abandoned place I knew where I could access some running water, then, over the course of half an hour, I washed myself off with freezing-cold water that stank of rust.

My clothes, of course, were probably ruined.

And I was starting to feel the unfortunate gurgles that came with contact with [Bottle Pop] spores.

The union was going to owe me so much money when this was over.

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