"No." You said, throwing a wary look towards the Shaman who was now kneeling by the prone body of the man you'd saved. One hand was lying gently on his chest, and he was muttering under his breath. According to the data files you had saved before, some Shamans likely used such chants to help focus their abilities, though it was by no means universal. You didn't need your psychic sensor to detect that something was going on now. The Shaman's eyes were pressed tightly closed, and the air had taken on a somewhat greasy quality, as though a lot of power were being held in a very unstable containment field. It was a feeling you recognised from a hundred battles, and made your inner rage rise, renewing your desire to kill the man.
Ragnar was calm, his eyes still closed. His body seemed more at peace, but there was otherwise little to indicate that the Shaman's efforts were having an effect.
"This was the work of the beast that he was hunting. The Stone Lion."
Two of the guards looked up at the name, and even the village chief seemed taken back for a minute. The man, Santagatha, according to what he had been called before, seemed to consider your presence again. You had the impression of an intelligent man there, compared to the soldiers, and definitely to the Shaman, he was under-dressed for sure. Yet, his eyes were sharp, and he reminded you of a Psychic you had once worked with during an important mission. Now, that man had been dangerous. Always willing to throw down with his Shamanic rivals. Always trying to prove that his own kind were superuor. That the Psi-Corp had not been mistake.
How had he died again?
Ah yes. He ran afoul of one of the Inner Circle Shamans. He'd been melted from the inside. Not an easy way to go.
You really hated Shamans.
Still, you were seeing his shade now in Santagatha.
"You fought the lion." He said at last, it was not a question. "There are marks in your armour, and I've never known one to leave a victim behind without making sure that they are dead. There is nothing in this part of the land that could chase one off, so the only factor that is unknown is your presence."
His logic was sound, so you nodded slowly, noting with interest how he seemed to focus on your bullet-shaped head, and single camera-like eye.
"I may have had something to do with your man's survival."
"And you went to all the trouble of bringing him back here... did he tell you where the town was to be found, or did you know yourself?"
"I found it myself." You said, deciding not to get Ragnar into trouble if it turned out that the location of the town was supposed to be hidden. "It wasn't hard for someone with my abilities. Will Ragnar live?"
Santagatha looked towards his Shaman, who nodded distractedly.
"Yes, yes, I've already said that he will." The man said. His voice putting you in mind of a fat slug being stepped upon repeatedly.
"Good." You said. "I would hate to have gone to that trouble for nothing."
"The others?"
The other hunting parties...
"No survivors."
A look of loss and pain flashed across Santagatha's face, quickly folded neatly and covered up for later, but not nearly fast enough for you not to notice. A man of rigid self control then. I wonder, Santagatha, how many of these men did you know you were sending to their deaths?
"That's a heavy blow. Many of those men were important to us. Losing them is a harsh blow to our town. I had hoped... but no, that doesn't matter anymore. If you are here, talking to me, the beast is dead, yes?"
"It will trouble you no more."
"That's a relief at the very least... I had wondered if this would be the end of our simple town. Tell me, under whose power do you operate?"
"I don't understand."
"Who do we owe for this salvation? Men of Stone work for the Emperor's Sorcerers.. but none of those have been through this way in many years. I fear I was beginning to forget what they looked like until I saw you. But you are old, and worn. I do not know if a Man of Stone can retire for old age, but if they could, they would look like you. But then, Stone Men do not speak, and you clearly can. Perhaps then, you are not like the ones I know of. Perhaps you do not serve the Emperor. If so, I would know who it is that you serve. A powerful sorcerer, perhaps? A mighty Spirit of the forest? The shade of some ancient king? Under whose orders do you operate?"
>"None but my own." Announce independence. Declaring that you serve no higher power would set you apart from how these people define the Men of Stone, but it may also serve to make you more of a threat to them...
> "I follow the directives laid down by my creator." Technically true, you are an AI created by AI. By the time you were constructed, humans had had nothing to do with the job of making your kind for a very long time.
>"My creator is long dead." A lie, but a conditional one. The AI that created you was destroyed in the war. You can use that to imply you are the product of a human creator who died a long time ago, should you desire them to fit you into their view of the world.
> "My orders are my own business. I have returned your man to you, and spared you the wrath of the Stone Lions. Surely, that's enough for now?"
>"I have no reason to answer questions unless you can offer me something in return. Answer mine, and perhaps I will answer yours."
>Other?
