Alaric Silvercrest
Calistra marched down the stairs, and for the first time in two years, I saw worry in her eyes. I could have confused it for fear, had I not given up on the hope of exercising the demon that possessed her. She was clearly still not the self she had been 2 years prior, though without alerting the populace to the change, there was nothing I could do short of pray for her soul. It was pitiful, I knew, but seeing this change, I had a moment of hope that the gods had answered my prayer. She walked to me, and quietly approached.
“H-Have you heard any news lately from around the town? Is something happening in the woods?” The question was out of her recent character, but it was an odd enough inquiry for me to assume it was still something to do with this possessed version of my daughter.
“There has not been anything to do with the forest, but I did hear of a roaming magician who was said to be coming to town soon. He’s well known for his tricks and illusion magic… Though I doubt that’s what you’re talking about.”
“What… What is the magician’s name?” she asked.
It seemed odd to hear her ask, as the fliers had been talk of the town and the castle lately. “The Great Mage Cali..” I said, repeating the words off of the flier that was in fact, sitting right next to me as she arrived. “He’s set to be here by tomorrow night, if word is to be believed. It does sound like he’ll be focusing on impressing the town with his magic, though I am sure we can invite him to the castle, if you’d like, princess.”
Her eyes seemed to bug out at the mention of the mage’s name. It was a bit similar to hers, so that might be something to do with it? Or maybe I had imagined it… I couldn’t tell, to be totally honest. I could tell that she was uncomfortable. “Where… Did you hear this news?” I held out the flier to her, and she paled even further.
“I… I see…” she stuttered.
“Did you see something in the woods to spook you like this, dear?” I asked, and she shook her head almost violently.
“Nope! Nothing! I just…” she quieted down slightly, and turned to walk away. I thought I could hear her say something about “Something missing” and with that confusing conversation over, I motioned for one of my attendants to come over. I asked him to get a hold of her maid.
The one person who hadn’t given up on my daughter was her maid. They were constantly in fights, and the princess had requested she be replaced several times over the last two years, but I held firm and said that she would only be replaced by my order, and that she as there for as long as I pleased. That had not gone over well. In fact, the princess had accused me of defiling the maid. And while I cannot say the thought of her in my bedchambers had not crossed my mind, I could and would say there had been no such consorting. Luckily this accusation had happened in private, as I would rather like to avoid the idea of the king falling for a maid getting stuck in any of the guard’s minds. Or the other maids for that matter.
Though, none of them seemed to have any concerns when I questioned them about their expectations of my meetings with Regina. They were surprised to hear me call her by name, but assumed correctly that we were working to find a cure for our princess’ broken soul. It was no news to the castle staff that she had taken hostage one of the guards, and kept him in her closet. I refused to acknowledge the disgusting implications of such a truth, but I knew what she did from the gossip around the castle. Regina even told me about the man and when he was dragged into his own proverbial hell. His mind was likely ruined by this point anyways. No reason to steal him away, and doom another guard to such depravities. He’d been locked in there for a year and a half now. We had to provide his family with housing when he was known to be missing and assumed dead by the population of our town. Luckily the castle staff knew better than to spread the gossip of our misfortune. And we paid them well enough to avoid a leak.
Regina hurried over to the throne after several minutes of waiting. I couldn’t help the warm smile that crossed my lips as she looked in my eyes. One of the few staff who dared such a feat. “I’m glad you came. I just had the most interesting conversation with our princess.” I glanced around and lowered my voice as she came near. Paid well or not, I prefer the gossip inside the castle stayed at a minimum as well. “She asked about the forest. She mentioned something was missing, and then got incredibly flustered when I showed her a flier for the magician on his way into town this week.”
Regina nodded and asked “Do you want me to ask around town for something happening in the forest? If something is missing, a hunter or adventurer’s party likely knows a thing or two about it.”
I smiled, of course she would know exactly what I was asking of her. She knew me and the princess equally well at this point. “That, and if you could I would like you to get in contact with the Magician. Introduce yourself. Suggest you can get him a performance at the castle. If he seems safe, and harmless enough, please ask him if he’d be okay performing for the king in a private showing of his skill ‘to determine if he’s worthy of a full court appearance.’ I have some questions to ask him about his influence over the princess, and I think it should be done with some tact. You and I alone with him should be more than enough ears for now. We’ll keep the guards outside the door. Just in case…”
Regina smiled, curtsied and departed as quickly as she had arrived.
I already missed her smile.
Calistra Silvercrest
With a wave of my hand, a banner unfurled over the entrance to the town. It felt silly to make a spectacle of my own arrival, but the fliers had appeared in number without warning or distribution, and the sign felt like a logical next step. It simply said “Welcome Great Mage Cali, to Silverhold the capital of Aetherion!” And while it faced both inside and outside the gate, it mostly only surprised the people who were waiting to enter the city, as the guards directly underneath didn’t even notice as the banner dropped into place. I walked past the line, and bowed deeply to the guard opposite the one checking the papers of commoners. He was one of my personal guards once upon a time. I recognized his face, though he would never recognize mine now, so I pretended it was the first time. “I appreciate the warm welcome.” I beamed at the man. He cocked his head with confusion, and I pointed upwards. He had to physically take a step backward to read the sign, and his shocked face fell upon my hearty smile.
“That was… Not here a second ago.” He managed to get out.
One of the people waiting in line said “It just dropped from thin air!”
I was pleasantly relieved to have someone backup my magical slight of hand, as the guards seemed unsure of what to do with my arrival. “Don’t worry, I have no paperwork for entry, but I am well known, and ready to enamor your citizenry with magics of which they’ve never seen!” I handed a flier to the guard that matched the fliers that had been deposited around the city overnight while nobody was looking.
After a moment, my anxieties were fully washed away. “I… have been told to allow you access inside the walls of the capital, but you’re to perform your magics at the local tavern first and foremost. No trying to…” He pointed up at the sign. “No doing that around without permission. If you’d like to perform again after your first stop, you’ll need to get permission from your venue in advance. This whole mysterious flier thing only takes you so far.” He seemed grumpy about being told to let me pass.
Honestly, I figured it wasn’t him being grumpy, but mostly him putting on a show of strength for the common folk. It would be devastating if just anyone were allowed in to wreak whatever havoc they could concoct upon the populace without at least the threat of the guard being mobilized. I understood. Politics were what I was raised into, after all. I nodded and thanked him for his generosity, and then sauntered into the capital city through the same gate I had been turned away from less than 2 years ago. Aetherion was larger than the town surrounding it, but only due to the fact that it was very much a city, and the town was mostly just farmland and the occasional stream or road cutting through the lands. The town was mostly focused around the gates into the city, so that in the event of an invasion, the townsfolk could withdraw behind the city walls and be protected with the rest of the city.
It felt surreal after so long that the kingdom I called home, would soon welcome me home once more. But that was only step one of my plan. And I set it into motion the moment I vanished the tower. A few minutes of walking down familiar streets led me to the tavern the guard had told me to head to. He called it the local tavern, but the locals knew it as the rusty roof inn. Booze on the bottom floor, sex workers on the next two floors. The walls so thin you couldn’t fuck without hearing the cheering and singing of drunkards nor could you drink without the thumping of headboards against walls above your head. It had never been a place my father wanted me to go, but the stories of the rusty roof made it to all corners of the city. Which then made its way to the castle by maids, butlers, and guards alike. Though my maid had usually just complained about the place whenever it was brought up. “That’s no place for a young lady, let alone the princess!” She would say if I brought up anything relating to it. But look at me now. I was no young lady, nor a princess. I felt like this might prove to be an exceptionally exciting opportunity to further explore what may once again become my kingdom.
Outside of the rusty roof was the main marketplace. I had been here thousands of times. But this time was different. I was a stranger to the throngs of people. Through waves of crowds I was gently winding in and out of, I felt a small hand grab at my waist. I had no money. I had no coin purse even for them to take. But I’m not stingy, so I made one. I let their hand find it easily, before watching out of the corner of my eye as the street urchin ran off with my purse. I kept walking as if nothing had happened and I felt him look back towards me. As I didn’t stop to watch him, he was not stopping for fear I might realize his theft. Dale sat on my shoulder with a confused look in his eyes. After a few minutes I stopped to scry on the bag as the child opened it, showing Dale the scene as well through a a shared mental image. We could see their face from the surface of the coins I had made, thick gold from edge to edge. It was worth at least 4 times what the most expensive local coins would fetch. The look of elation on the child’s face was wonderful enough, but the comment his sister gave him when she realized what was inside… “Derek, we could afford to buy a house with that purse, and still have some left over to eat for months. Maybe years!… A-are you sure they didn’t see you?”
Derek shrugged and said “he didn’t look at me. I don’t know for sure though…”
I knew what Dale would say, if he could speak in the city. It would be along the lines of “You put a target on those children’s backs.” But It could be life changing if they handled it properly. And if I heard news of someone stealing the coins from those two, I would personally intervene. It wouldn’t be hard to make something in had conjured disappear. And that’s exactly what I would do if I scryed on the coins and they were all together under another person’s thumb. I wasn’t oblivious to the dangers I had put on the two, but the hope for their future seemed a good enough reason to give them a chance with it. Plus usually the person who would be most upset by children having stolen coins would be the person they stole from. I was more than happy to let them keep them! I smiled to myself as I ignored Dale’s worried glaring and entered the rusty roof. My good deed for the day. Now I can rest easy.
The air was stale, and smelled of vomit and sweat. The sounds of the building were hellish and disgusting. These were my people though, and this was where I was slated to perform. I noticed the stage to the right of the bar from the entrance. The bar itself sat in the middle of the room, in a small square of counter space while the stairs in each corner were peppered with scantily clad women and boys waving at the men drinking below. They likely each had a room to drag their drunken prey to and squeeze out whatever coins they could for a hand-job or a quick ride. I bet most nights those coins even covered the cost of that room and then some. A few of them were actually quite attractive, which should not have been the shock that I found it. It seemed my view of my people was set at a lower standard than they deserved. I would have to make sure I was better about my ways of thinking.
A few more faces of guards that I recognized were sat around the bar. I put on an illusionary mask to hide my features, and made my way to a stool near one on the end. I listened as they ranted about working at the castle. They deftly maneuvered around criticism of the princess though. Despite everything I had seen of the monster’s behavior, they maintained a rather civil and relatively boring conversation. Mostly talking about “I can’t believe how the tables have turned that I would rather be at the front gate or the castle gates than where we came from.” Some of them heaved a drunken sigh and they all seemed to agree with some variation of the sentiment. Not once was the princess, or even what their previous position had been, brought up. Professionals through and through. I ought to give them a raise when all is said and done. Though they likely weren’t talking because of how well they were already paid by my father. It has to be more than that though. This was loyalty even heavy drinking couldn’t crack. These were Aetherians through and through.
“Did you need a drink, hun?” The bartender asked me, and I shook my head.
“A glass of water might be nice though.” I smiled gently at the woman. She was very pretty. The kind of face you wouldn’t expect to see at a place like this, much less working here. Again, my mind was putting standards to my people they were well too far above for my small mind to grasp. As she handed me the glass of water, I leaned closer and she leaned in in turn, smiling as if preparing to turn me down on an advance she was all too ready for me to make. “Do you know what time the performance was scheduled from that magician?”
“Oh is that what brought you in? And here I thought it was my good looks and charm.” She winked. “From what I could tell from the fliers all around, he should be starting any moment. But I really haven’t even seen anyone who looks like the face in the fliers. Maybe it was an elaborate prank? Maybe I did it to get more patrons in here to buy beer and ale…” She teased.
“I don’t think that’s the case.” My smile was all to wide at the flirty nature of our chat. “He’s going to be on that stage, right?” I pointed. She nodded and looked at me as if I was the weirdest person in her bar. I may have been, to be fair. I drank my water and made up an excuse to step away for a moment.
I found a dark corner where people weren’t likely to see me, near the toilets, and vanished from sight. Now I would start the party. It was time for my first show. I walked to the stage, began to emanate a faint breeze that slowly became stronger, and then I began to conjure smoke. It was not normal smoke, so it was fine to breathe, but I did make it dark enough to make the swirling winds look wild and erratic. Then the smoke and wind disappeared together as I snapped, dropping my invisibility at the same time from my place on stage. “Hello rusty roof patrons. I have heard this is a place that can appreciate some magic.” I made a point to wink at the flirty bartender when I caught her eye. She seemed a lot less surprised than I would have thought.
A wild and raucous roar of the patrons boomed across the room as prostitutes and johns alike all began chanting “Magic! Magic!” And some said “Mage Cali! Mage Cali!” All the while the sounds of the chanting slowly faded, first by magic and then by nature as people realized the chanting around them had lessened, and they responded naturally by removing themselves from the raucous shouting.
Then I spoke again, letting my voice boom over the room with explosive power. “What would you like to see first? A display of power?” I let an explosion of fire rip out from under my robes, flying into the air and swirling together into a giant ball of flame that slowly evaporated into a point at the center of the ball, as the crowd stood in awe. “Or maybe something with more beauty and grace?” I opened a door in the wall where there was no door. In walked a unicorn. It stood by my side and I ran a hand down it’s mane as the door vanished again. Then I blew a kiss to the horse-like creature and it whinnied. It reared on it’s hind legs before, like a balloon, it had popped, leaving only images of fluttering butterflies that flew around until they each poofed into nothingness shortly after. The crowd was enamored.
I felt silly casting such powerful magic in the hopes of making myself look like a simple performance artist. But I understood the balance of magic better than anyone except Dale at this point. In fact I probably knew better than everyone who lived in the capital about what magic was even capable of. They would see this and expect it to all be illusions and tricks. Nobody could conjure a unicorn without some trick of the light or a shiny illusion to make people see what you want them to. That’s how they would react. That’s how they had reacted.
For the final act, I knew it has to be a good one. I had been going for about an hour and the whole bottom floor was stuffed with people who had heard the sounds of the crowd from the nearby market and found their way inside. “It’s almost time for me to go, but I want you to see who invited me here for your pleasure. She may not like me, and she may not want to be tied to this act, but her invitation was the only reason I could be here.” The final illusion of the night, I bowed as I conjured the imagery of a person. My old body, floating down from the ceiling, towards the stage, but then changing course to fly around the whole room first.
Her flawless smile and her perfect princess wave sent waves of cheers through everyone in the room but the guards who knew her, and one face that surprised me to catch in the midst of this seedy place; My maid. The illusion dropped to the stage in a perfectly choreographed move before running for me, vanishing as our bodies collided. I made a spectacle of the illusion being sucked into my body, though the imagery was likely lost on everyone but my poor maid who was now watching with a hint of fear in her eyes.
As the whole tavern rocked with cheers and requests for an encore, and so much else, I simply bowed a few times towards different sections of the crowd, and then vanished again, just as I had appeared. I watched the crowd spill into the now dark streets and found the face of my maid darken with worry. She stood still while the building returned to it’s normal activities, then after the rest of the visitors for my show had filtered out, she turned to follow. And I followed her. By the time she was out the door, I was in lock step. She turned her head back to the door over her left shoulder and I released my invisibility to her right. It took another four or five steps to notice my arrival, and she did so with a startled leap.
I smiled and gave a shallow bow. “Hello my friend.” I said calmly.
“You nearly startled me to death just now! And… Friend? Have we met before?” She pressed.
Shrugging, I smiled. “Need we have met for me to know you and I will be good friends in due time?”
“Honestly, I rather hope we would need know each other for such a belief, though I’m beginning to believe there’s more to your story than you’re letting on.” A soft sigh passed from her tired face before she simply said “I’m Regina.”
Of course she had a name, but hearing it for the first time under these consequences caused the briefest moment of regret to pass through my face. I pulled back into my default smile as soon as I realized. I nodded and provided my hand to her. “I’m The Great Mage Cali. My friends call me Cal. And you should too, my dear Regina.”
“And so of course I have to ask, Cal… All that with the princess at the end?…” She trailed off before finalizing an actual question. I knew what she wanted to know from the statement, but I played dumb for now. My shoulders arching into a frail shrug and my smile never breaking.
“I was told she was a beautiful angel as flawless in body as she is in soul.”
This proved to put a sad look on Regina’s face. “Once, I would have agreed.” She muttered, more to herself than to me. “Well, I can’t get you in to see the princess specifically, but I could possibly get you an audience with the castle court, if you’re interested!” She faked the enthusiasm and a smile, but I could see for the most part she had given up on this conversation. She clearly thought I was hiding something, so she felt no need to hide her ruse, figuring I would accept her request either way. She happened to be right, though I did my best to hold up my end of the banter.
I allowed surprise to take my face. This step might prove to be easier than I had planned for. “I couldn’t take such advantage of a new friend, Regina! I simply saw a question waiting on your lips when the show had ended and sought you out to share a conversation.” I tipped my head to the side with a saddened look. “A question I haven’t seemed to answer to your satisfaction, and now you’re inviting me to the castle? Preposterous! And besides, how would you provide such access?” Dale managed to find his way to me, climbing my robe to sit on my shoulders as I continued the conversation as if nothing had changed.
“I am a maid in the castle. I work directly for the king.” She said and this time my honest reaction shown through, the shock of the revelation was visible on my face. She continued “He had mentioned you were coming to the capital, and suggested I go and watch your magic. It was quite a bit more impressive than most magicians.. I think he would enjoy your spectacles quite dearly.”
A deep bow from both me and Dale who moved from my shoulders to my back with grace, then returned to my shoulders with ease as I returned from the depths of my bow. This, another spectacle, garnered a soft giggle from Regina. “I would be honored to perform for his Majesty.” I said in a humbled tone. “Thank you dearly for this potential opportunity. I knew we would be fast friends, Regina.”
She curtsied, and softly said “I’ll talk with the king, and have you sent an invitation. Where should I send the approval?”
“I don’t know where I’ll be staying at the moment. Maybe you know of a place with some decent accommodations nearby? I am… Unfamiliar with the area.” The lie grated at me more than it should have. I realized I had not lied to my maid for most of this conversation nor for most of my life under her care. She didn’t seem to notice or care, but she did have something else on her mind.
“I suppose it depends on the accommodations. There’s an inn nearby, where you can find a bed and a hot bath if that’s all you need.” She shrugged.
“Why thank you, my dear Regina. I shall be bathed and ready for word from you on the king’s reply for the next few days.” I smiled. Hope started to fill me once more as the idea of this whole situation being ended so much quicker than expected had landed right in my lap.
Regina simply curtsied once more. “You’ll be given the invitation when you check in with the front desk. It shouldn’t take more than a day.” She turned and sauntered off towards the castle.
I found myself at a beautiful inn, with wood carved into intricate patterns that decorated the archways between rooms, and the paneling of the walls. The furniture was posh and quite reminiscent of the castle’s design work. The front desk was a small podium with a young woman standing behind it, watching me slowly taking in the view. When my eyes met hers, it seemed she was taking in the view of me as well. I couldn’t help but blush as she maintained that eye contact with a welcoming smile.
“Welcome to the Rose Brunch Inn. Will you be staying with us for the night?” she gave a little tilt of her head at the end of the statement that seemed to have an insinuation that I was not capable of understanding, but it felt as flirty as the bar tender from before. And she was also quite attractive, though in a different kind of way. Her long dark hair was tied up in a bun where the bar tender had hair too short to be put up. This girl’s dress was much more of a lavish and upscale style that matched the extravagance of the room we resided within. Her face did not quite match that of someone expected to be wearing such fine clothing, though and I couldn’t tell if it was just the way she looked at me, or if it was something else about her.
The thought passed from my mind, and I laid several coins on the counter. “Several nights, if you’d have me. I expect to be here to the end of the week. Will this be enough?” I smiled and she counted the coins by dropping them from one palm to the other, avoiding breaking eye contact with me, as she bore into my soul with those sapphire orbs.
“Oh we’ll have you for as long as you need, cutie.” She giggled. “This is more than enough.” She handed a few coins back to me, and used the excuse to drag a finger down my palm to the tip of my middle finger, and leaned forward enough, I could see her cleavage across the podium. “And you come get me here if you need anything, darling.” The way her voice lowered to a purr with the last sentence brought a deep red shade to my cheeks.
I grabbed my key from the podium. “Thank you… What was your name, again?”
“I never gave it. I’m Sarah.” she leaned closer, clearly hoping I was flirting back with her.
“Thank you, Sarah, but I think I’ll need my rest tonight. I-I’m expecting a letter by tomorrow.” With a slight pout, she curtsied.
I looked back at her from the stairs to see her wink and give my a little lip bite. “Offer still stands, handsome.”
The next morning, I conjured a coin for the house keeper, and began heading down to breakfast to start my morning. Sarah was at the front desk, as I walked by.
“Did you have a pleasant night?” She said with a hungry smile. “You never came to get me. I was a bit disappointed, I have to say.” Her forwardness was enough to shake me away from flirting back with her, not wanting to push things too far.
I asked “Sorry, doll. Do you have any letters for me?” while blushing furiously.
The girl nodded and handed me the purple envelope.
I had breakfast and then walked past the podium one last time on my way out. She gave me a little wave and a wink as I bit my lip to avoid saying anything I might regret later.
I walked into town. Dale had joined me shortly after my back and forth with the front desk girl, and had given me a look as if to ask how my night had been. He had stayed outside as if he believed that I might actually go and find the girl in the night. He didn’t want to be in the room for such depravities. I shook my head at him. “You missed a nice bed for no reason, you silly cat.”
After getting ‘lost’ in the city for a while, I found myself walking through the market. I saw a face that was familiar between two stalls and stopped to wave at him. I smiled at the child, but his fear was palpable. I thought it best to ignore him for now. He could thieve away to his heart’s content for all I cared. Though he would likely not achieve the same results with anyone else. Dale pawed at my ear from his spot on my shoulders as I began making my way towards the center of the market. I looked towards Dale, and caught the same face looking at me again, but closer this time. He seemed scared still, but more ready to say something. And… In his hand was the same pouch I had conjured for him, outstretched to me, as he looked worriedly up at me.
“I-I’m sorry.” the stuttering child got out. I smiled, noting that he had only taken one of the coins from the pouch before returning it. There were still 24 left. He was quaking with fear and I reached out to take the pouch from him, still smiling.
“Thank you for finding my coins.” I made sure to keep my smile soft and authentic, then said “But why are you sorry?” I tipped my head to the side slightly, so he could see I was not threatening him in any way.
“I was the one… Who took them.” He whimpered, his voice trailing off quickly as he admitted his guilt.
“Yes, I know.” my smile remained while it was his turn to cock his head in confusion. “You can keep them, if you need them, dear. I have magic, and need no gold to fuel it.”
Now his eyes were the size of pool balls. He was tearing up and his confusion had only grown, but as I plopped the bag back into his palm, he realized I meant what I was saying. “You… You aren’t mad at me then?”
“Derek, I saw you and your sister grinning from ear to ear talking about what you could do with this money. Why limit yourself to the one coin. Go buy that house.” I reached behind his ear and conjured a new coin. This one was different. It was wooden, with a rune of communication on it. I placed it on top of the bag of gold and said “And this is your guarantee that the money is yours.” I watched as he picked it up separate from the bag, that was now being slipped into his pocket carefully. “If you ever have someone try to steal your gold, or you end up being unable to spend it for any reason, you put this right where I got it from.” I gently tapped a finger to the spot right behind his ear. “And you call out for Cali. I’ll do my best to come and help you as soon as I can.”
At the first mention of his name, his mouth was agape, but as I continued, the fear and anxiety of the moment washed away and was replaced with a wonder and awe that seemed unwarranted. If I weren’t handing him a cushy life in a magic pouch, I would have asked why he was gawking at me. “Th-Thank you?” he practically whispered.
“What is your sister’s name by the way?” I asked the boy.
“Her name is Fiona.”
“Derek and Fiona. I’ll remember you through this life, into the next, my dears. And feel free to give me a call even if you don’t need anything. I want to hear when your lives are in a better place too.”
“So then… It wasn’t you who set the city guards after the ‘thief child’?” He inquired.
“No. And I don’t like the sound of the guard being used for something so petty. If a child needs to steal to eat, it’s better he steal than starve. I’ll do my best to fix this wrong someday, but for now, stay safe and try to avoid stealing for a while. You certainly have the means now.” I winked at the child, and turned to leave.
“I… Thank you!” I heard the voice raise with confidence from behind me. I waved back over my shoulder, and walked on.
Derek and Fiona were not part of the plan, but maybe they could make something of themselves. I did hope to see them again. Hopefully under less pressure to survive next time.
Dale pawed my ear and whispered softly enough nobody could hear but me. “I hope you know what you’re doing. People knowing that money can be created from nothing is no trivial thing. If they tell their friends… or the sales person they use the coins with…”
Clearly I agreed, and understood the problems of this conundrum, though I hardly worried that children who had stolen a bag of gold would be running around the city telling people of how they had acquired it, even after my speech.
Fiona Slivero
Derek was telling me what had happened, but I still couldn’t believe it. “What do you mean he just gave you the gold back? People don’t just GIVE gold to peasants. And they sure don’t give it to a peasant who stole from them! Did you just not even try?”
He looked indignantly at me, and remained firm in his retelling of what was clearly a tall tale. “He gave me the gold back! He had the bag in his hand, and then put it back in my hands after telling me he knew I stole it… I don’t get it either, but that’s how it happened! I swear on the old gods and the new! He even gave me this thing with the rest!”
I paused and looked at the wooden coin. “How did you say you’re supposed to use that? I’d rather like to talk to this magic man.”
Derek broke down the way it was supposed to work, and I shifted uncomfortably in place, deciding if I wanted to follow through with this communication. It took a while of struggling to believe that anything would happen at all, mixed with even more struggling to believe that Derek would lie to me about something so important. I sighed and resigned myself to being in as much trouble as he was, given he had supposedly told this magician my name. It’s fine. I’ll just have to skip over my brother and go straight to the source.
I pressed the wooden coin to my head just behind my left ear, and I felt something odd happen.
Leave a Reply