------------- The Shadow Conspiracy – 3 of 7 – Garreth Boors

Cameron had not stayed long, only long enough to say his goodbyes and answer a few questions form the Queen. He agreed to stay away from Foxmoor as much as possible, despite his preference for his old haunts in Dient. Seemed he had more pressing matters now to attend to in Carellon, though he would not say what that was.

Well into their third bottle of elven wine, the SGL had dropped all pretense of formality, following the Queen’s lead.

“What of the half-elf, Dahlia? What was his story?” Serenity smiled at the thought.

“Ah yes, the handsome one, eh? Liked those rippling muscles didn’t you, Doctor?”

“Garreth Boors. Probably would have been a normal half-elf adventurer all his life were it not for a chance encounter with a Shadow Agent. He was working as a tracker for the Commander of the City Guard in Southgaard. There had been a series of murders. Normal thing that starts one of these stories. But the local detectives were stumped. The murderer always managed to slip away. If they’d had the SGL back then, well, the situation might have been different. They called in clerics, but they got nowhere. They eventually posted notices at the FreeRanger’s Guildhall, hoping for some adventurers to come along and solve the case. Well, as you can guess, that’s not the kind of thing most adventurers sign up for. No offense, but the majority of venture companies are a few bricks short of a load, if you know what I mean. Fewer than one in a thousand even have a Detective or Demonhunter in their ranks.”

“Well, who should show up to claim the bounty but a bountyhunter, and a skilled detective to boot, Garreth Boors. He’d already made a name for himself up north with the Carellonian Wildriders, so they let him try. All alone, no companions or hirelings, he headed into the wilderness and came back with the murderer, a Shadow Agent. Of course, no one knew that at the time. The other thing that nobody knew, the Shadow Agent had partially downloaded his mental imprint on Garreth as he was dying. Garreth started to change, to think things not of his own, to know things he couldn’t possibly know. At length, he sought the original Shadow Agent’s contacts, not knowing what was happening to him. He was seduced and converted, and again, no one knew.”

“Over the years, his fame as a bountyhunter grew and even the King’s own Lord Marshall called upon him to track down villains and criminals. What better way to gain the trust of the court than to be their finest law enforcement agent? Who do you think it was that kept track of you over the last week? Who do you think told Colonel Fulkhan and the King’s Guard where to find you?”

------------- Credits

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