Today, Emilie's room, was warm! At least, warmer than it had been. It was all still too chilly for her tastes. The small vent from above the door continued to blow, creating a small yet steady stream of warm but dry air.
It was finally Srijedeg, the fifth and last full workday of the week to be followed by the three day weekend. Many still worked on the weekend, but with less effort. Likewise, at the college today was the last day for actual classes, the weekend was set aside for the all the Practicums and testing that was required. What made today special for Emilie, was the lack of any classes. By chance, this was a day off, time for a well deserved break and short clandestine journey into the city. A journey which was still weighing heavily on her mind.
The outfit she would wear today was not a warm one. In fact, it was probably the coldest combination she could make. It was not something she was looking forward to, but there was no reason to doubt what her friend told her last night.
"Trust me, wear the coldest outfit you might reasonably wear. It will help when we try to pick up something warmer." Is what the goblin told her over dinner.
The logic kind of made sense but, it would have been painful without what she promised next. "I'll even lend you one of fire gems. It will keep you warm for a few hours till we get you some better clothes."
Of course, it was the first thing Emilie asked for when she saw her goblin friend outside.
"Do you, have it?" She spoke between chittering teeth.
It was cold and overcast today, out of the corner of Emilie's eye she saw a few snow flurries drifting by. There was talk about a larger storm system moving in over the next day. Weather wasn't something she knew much about. There were spells, divinations and enchantments that could guess at the weather, but as far as she knew none of them were particularly accurate.
Her family once had something they had tried to sell, it could sense changes in pressure, or something like that. Some kind of reward or gift her father got from a contract when she was about 2. Regardless, they had only managed to sell for a few silvers, likely the cost of the materials it was made with, maybe even less. It just wasn't that valuable, or that accurate. Though, it had been pretty to look at.
"Yes, yes…" Younehti's words and fumbling in her bag brough Emilie's back to the present. She pulled out a moderate sized red gem that seemed to glow. The promised fire gem, and given the glow it was fully charged, and warm, as she held it in her hands.
"Remember I want that back, those aren't cheap." The goblin's voice was unusually stern and her face showed no signs of amusement or humor.
It was larger than any mana gem or even mana stone Emilie had ever seen. The cost must have been at least a couple of gold, maybe even as much as a half dozen, about half as much as her parent's store might make in a year. As the warmth moved up her hands into the rest of her body it seemed more than worth it. If it wasn't for the shear cost, it might have been an acceptable option in place of the clothing they were after.
Younehti took Emilie north, passed the library keep and towards the shrine. It seemed a strange way to get to the main gate. Until they hit one of the watch towers along the wall and Emilie realized they weren't going out the main gate. The tower was guarded by a single lone guardsman and given his stance, a questionably competent one at that.
The guard didn't seem to be particularly awake as he slouched over, resting his head against his large staff like spear. Yet as the two approached he quickly stood up straight and showed a surprising level of alertness and awareness.
Holding his hand up he stopped the two from leaving out the college's side gate. "Do you two have permission to leave?"
"Not exactly." Younehti smirked.
"Well, then you can leave out the front gate. After signing out at the keep and take your demerits, this gate is closed." The guard lowered his hand but held his staff in the way of the exit.
"Or… you could let us out without saying anything."
The guard looked off to the side, suddenly unable to make eye contact. "I can't do that Younehti."
"That armor you're wearing looks rather warm. Like someone put an enchantment on it. Didn't know basic guards got enchanted armor." The goblin's smirk grew into a smile as her sharpened teeth showed through, like a shark tasting blood in the water.
"You're still trying to hold that over my head…" The guardsman looked embarrassed, and mildly annoyed as he rubbed at his face. "Look, I'm on for the next five hours. After noon though, it will be someone else. Leaving without permission is two to four demerits, but leaving without recording it is-"
Younehti stopped him, "seven, I know."
The number, seven rang in Emilie's head, as her heart skipped a beat. It was a lot. But her friend was confident, so long as they were back in five hours, they'd be fine.
The guard stood up straighter than before and moved aside, gesturing to the now opening gate. On his face was a small smile, as if trying to say, “I warned you”.
Immediately outside the walls the wind picked up, with it a handful of flurries blew by from the clouds above. By all accounts they’d see their first significant snow fall soon, but probably not today. Emilie grabbed around her own sides trying to hold in just a bit more of her body’s warmth. The magic gem helped keep her inside warm, but her skin still felt the sink of the cold air even through the long sleeves and canvas pants.
Pulling her mind away from the cold, she thought about what had just happened. It seemed like the two had some familiarity between then, "What was that about?"
"Eh, I made some enchanted armor awhile back for an assignment. It turned out really well, and I was allowed to keep it. Didn’t fit me so… I found someone who it did and made a friend with it." Younehti smiled at her own statement.
Emilie on the other hand was less amused, "You mean you bribed him."
"Details." The goblin waved off the comment and continued to smile.
The path from the northern watchtower was much less worn than the main road Emilie had taken on her way in. There was no gravel and certainly no stone. Just a moderately worn dirt path through the grass and shrubs. It seemed like they would continue to follow it north to the road that ran along the river. The lower road was just outside the city walls, on the opposite side of the Green River, so named for its green hue and reflected trees.
Occasionally a fishing or shipping boat would pass on the river, their destination unknown to anyone but those on the boat. It gave Emilie something to think about as they walked.
"Lot of boats on this river. It's one of the main arteries for this region." Younehti boasted about her own knowledge of the city. Filling the silence that was otherwise broken only by the crunch of dirt and rocks under their feet.
It occurred to the child that she really didn't understand how the country's larger economy functioned. She knew of course that the six kingdoms had a dense and well-maintained network of paved roadways. She had come up on one after all. But, there was also a large amount of traffic along the riverways of the continent. "I remember seeing a large dock when we arrived?"
"Yeah, Hammon's bay. It's an artificial bay the main dock sits on. Mainly, it's used to transfer lumber from the city. That's actually Tranlearba's main export, lumber. The college has a hand in planning how the forest gets cut down. About a thousand years ago, the city was at risk of deforesting the area and the college was able to work out a harvesting schedule that keeps the forest in good condition." Her tone turned sourer as she talked, "It's frustrating the city doesn't respect the college, with all it does for it."
Emilie thought it was odd that they wouldn't appreciate the source of their economic success, or at least a part of that success, "Why don't they?"
"Who knows. People are generally afraid or wary of mages, unless they need something from them… Though, I guess the students do sometimes make a mess in the market district."
Which seemed to be the real answer. A small smile crossed her lips as she realized it. The next few minutes were spent in quite reflection as they made their way along the road, eventually turning north bound again over a bridge Emilie had yet to cross, the Main Street bridge that lead into the walled part of the city.
As soon as they reached the other side, and passed the walls, Younehti pointed at the row of tavern-like buildings to the right. "That's the 'night market', you don't want anything to do with that place."
"What's there?"
"Brothels and bars mostly. Some merchants there sell questionable items like slaves and aphrodisiacs. Speaking of which, be very careful if you ever see a guy with that stuff. Some have been known to use it to rape unsuspecting women."
Obviously, that thought bothered her, but a more concerning statement caught her attention first. "They sell slaves here?" To Emilie's knowledge she had never seen a slave before. There just weren’t any in Wollseeth. As much as the thought bothered her, there was also a morbid curiosity about the practice.
"Yeah. As a goblin I'm always worried someone will try and snatch me up to sell. We make great laborers." If Younehti was actually worried her laugh didn't show it.
"But, isn't that illegal? Don’t you to be a criminal or in debt?"
"Ha! Maybe if the world were more just. Anyway, try not to dwell on it too much. I was just being flippant, that kind of thing almost never happens."
Slowing down just a bit, they passed a rather large street on the left, which had the sweet smell of various breads, and cooking meats. Again, Younehti quickly pointed out the street as 'Feast Road' and focused on one particular shop not far from the fork.
"What is that place?"
"Primarily, it's a bakery, but they serve food too. Guy makes the best beetroot soup you've ever tasted! That plus some of his sweet bread and you'll feel like you're dinning with the gods! Sweet and tangy together. Seriously, I'll treat you, when we're done here."
"You're being awfully generous, I mean, taking me out here. Using that favor with the guard and now offering to buy me lunch. Just, why?”
A shrug of her shoulders caused the goblin's smile to wane a bit as the truth came over her, "I don't have many friends, and my two best friends here graduated at the end of spring. I don't know, just lonely I suppose. Figured if I treat you, maybe you'd hang around." Younehti laughed at the absurdity of how it sounded, "Kind of pathetic right? I'm nearly a grown woman and leaning on a kid."
Yet, Emilie didn't think it was funny. She knew loneliness, and how it could stick to you like a nasty stomach bug that refused to leave and would tighten every time you went to rid yourself of it. "I like being leaned on. It makes me feel useful!"
The two soon passed another fork in Main Street, this one leading down South Market Street, the unofficial dividing line for the Night Market and the, lesser, or southern market. The shop these two were interested in was a few feet past that street, down a small unmarked road that seemed more like an alleyway. All along it, small shops dotted the path, with an occasional house or workshop between. The road being too small for any stalls to stick out, each store merely had only a sign in front of it, advertising their existence to the few who would wander this way.
In particular, one of these stores was a little run down, the wood outside slightly discolored and starting to warp ever so slightly, while the mortar in the stonework showed signs of cracking and was in need of repointing, like so many others here. A single moderate sized window looked into the shop. On display were fairly mundane common clothes. Likely cheaper and aimed more at commoners like herself. It took a moment for Emilie to notice the wears just behind those highlighted in the window.
This was clearly the shop in question as Younehti stopped in front of it.
"Robes?" She questioned.
"Yep! I've bought clothes here before. The shopkeeper is a good man, he'll give you a fair price and I trust the quality of what he sells."
Inside the subtle smell of wood, wicker and moisture hit Emilie's nose. There was a familiarity to it, not unlike her family's shop. Also, a nice bit of warmth from the burning stove that was heating the space up.
"Welcome! In, umm… You look familiar." The shop keeper was a bald middle-aged man, skinny and flamboyantly dressed. He appeared to be a human, probably an Ice Skin with some Planesland ancestry mixed in. His green eyes squinted at the goblin until they opened wide in recognition. "Younet?"
"Heh, close! Younehti."
"Of course! You’re one of the few goblins that shop here, I should remember that."
"Heh, I'm impressed you came that close! But I brought a friend today. She doesn't have a lot of coin and was looking for a way to keep warm with her current outfits."
"My pleasure young lady, I am Niwso. Clothing artisan who likes to give his wares away. Well almost." He smiled and laughed ever so slightly.
"I'm Emilie, please to meet you Niwso."
"So, if you're looking to add warmth to what you already have, you might be interested in a robe. You can see what I make on display here. Let me see if I have something that will fit you." The merchant sifted through some of the many drawers along the wall, before pulling out a few different robes. Each seemed a bit too large for her at first glance, but she trusted him more than her intuition.
"Let's start with this navy blue one that matches that hair of yours …"
After trying three out, the best fitting, and if she was honest best looking one flapped around her body as she moved around in it. Despite being the closest fit he claimed to have; the robe was still kind of baggy. Like it was a few sizes too big. The sleeves kept getting pulled down by their own weight and hiding her hands. It wasn’t unmanageable but, maybe she could ask the shopkeeper if he could pull it back a bit, or find something smaller.
“I do have something that will fit you better today, but I wouldn’t recommend it. You’re still growing, if I got you something that fits perfect now, it will be too small by spring. That robe will keep for a couple years. Unless you want to pay another 20 silvers in a few months?”
20 silvers, that was how much this would cost. Nearly a third of the money she brought with her for something that didn’t quite fit. Still, it was warm, if unwieldy.
“20 silvers…” she whispered, giving it another look over.
“Well… I could go as low as 18 silvers and 4…” The shopkeep paused and smiled again, “No, make it 18 silvers even.”
As she twirled around in it a bit more, the bottom edges kept catching against her shoes. That could easily be fixed without tailoring, just needed some pins, but what if they fell out? Maybe she could do a few anchoring stiches. Her father had taught her the basics of sowing and leather work. Not that she had been interested in it at the time.
"That price seems fair it's just… kind of hard to move without tripping over myself." She determined it was substantially better than freezing though.
It would work, but before Emilie could pull out her purse, the shopkeeper came up with another suggestion. "You know, I might have something else that could work for you."
Out of another drawer the Niwso pulled out something different. This almost looked like a sheet of dense cloth, save for the hood at the top. The dark purple material was shaped into a simple, but long cape or cloak.
Her finger ran along the fabric as she set down the previous robe. It was thicker than she expected, even more so than the robe. Most of the cloaks she had seen back in Wollseeth were just thin fabric, but this wool material was quite heavy. It would probably be warmer than a jacket if she wrapped herself up in it.
Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
Wrapping the top around her neck, she tied close the only sown buttons at the very top. Already she could feel the cloth holding in her body's warmth even without closing the front up. Even more, she could still move in it. Because it was open at the front it wouldn't be quite as warm as a robe, but that didn't matter. This was still many times better than what she was wearing.
"Warm isn't it? You could even make some simple buttons with a few pebbles and tie it closed" He pointed to the loops of yarn along the cloak's edge.
"Yeah, I… love it! How many coins? "
"14 silvers."
"That's it?" The price seemed low, considering it had about the same amount of fabric as the robe.
"It's just a cloak, most of the cost is in the materials and sheep's wool isn't that expensive to begin with. Honestly, I could go as low as 12 silver and 18 coppers."
Now it felt like she had to decide. The robe which was probably a bit warmer, but far baggier, or the cloak which was cheaper and would require a bit of effort to use well. About 13 silvers or 18 silvers. Thinking of it in terms of coins made the choice easy.
“I’ll take this!” She beamed and reached for her pouch.
"Very good! Do you know how to use buttons?"
"Kind of?"
"Here." The shopkeeper took a rough looking oval piece of wood and held it against the cloak's underside. With it, he made a hard pocket and wrapped one of the long yarn threads around it. "There. Simple button. Probably stronger than those sown in one at the top."
She gave a tug on it, it seemed as secure, at least.
"Here, I'll give you a few extras. I usually charge a copper for 5 but I get them for free anyway."
"You're too nice, Thank you. "
Niwso shook his head, "Not really. I know what it's like not to have a lot of coin, so I like to find ways to give the lower class the best I can for the coin they have. I still make a profit from everything I do so don’t think this is charity. Honestly, I know if I treat my customers well, they'll come back. Like I'm sure you will in the future."
He was right about that.
Emilie had a slight skip in her step as she walked out of the store, her pouch was a bit lighter but that wasn’t why. The cloth flowed around her as she moved, it didn't hold quite as tightly as the robe would have, but it was still far warmer than just the outfit she wore. If she held it all closed, it was quite nice inside. Even with the colder choice of outfits. It had cost her about a quarter of her available funds, but it was completely worth it.
She felt someone grab at her arm and pull, “Come on, let me show you that place I was talking about earlier!” Her friend practically drooled as she spoke.
Sitting in front of the bakery, a cold breeze blew down the street, but Emilie just tucked herself deeper into the cloak. The smile on her face grew as the tarty beet soup, more of a stew really, wafted up to her nose as she took her first spoon full. After nearly a week of nothing but squash, this would be a welcome treat that would further warmed her insides.
"Hey, try dipping the bread in it!" The goblin shoved half her tan loaf into her bowl before shoving it into her mouth.
The bread in question was some kind of brown honey loaf. It had some strange name Emilie had never heard before, something that sounded like it came from a dwarf. But was just as sweet as the soup was tart, and equally warm. A lite dip into the soup and Younehti suddenly looked like a god, of food.
"You ok Emilie? You look like you're about to cry."
"I just might. After eating nothing but squash, this could be my last meal and I would die happy."
"Ha ha, it's good. Don't know if it's that good."
The goblin's eyes turned from Emilie, as she glared at two younger Anthro men who were walking far too close to the other people in front of the shop. Their hands seemed grabby. Instinctively, Younehti grabbed at the purse in her pocket, and felt what seemed like a light brush next to her.
"Sorry." One of them whispered.
“Hey! Watch it.” She barked, before she could warn Emilie though one of the would-be thief had started running off.
Emilie, felt something in her pocket. Rather, the lack of something. "Hey, he stole my coin pouch! I had the rest of my coins in that!"
The one pickpocket ran off down the street back toward the market district. Emilie didn't even think as she bolted after him. Leaving her lunch mostly uneaten.
"Emilie! Wait!" Younehti yelled before getting up to run after her friend.
Emilie wasn’t particularly fast, still being a child, but she had to be today. Behind her, Younehti huffed. The goblin was used to swinging a hammer, so she had strength but no real stamina. “Emilie… wait!” She called out, knowing the pickpocket was leading her deeper into the Market, towards the Night District and probably passed that.
The thief ran down one alleyway, past some bars, and a brothel, before making a hard right, trying to lose his tail. Emilie, seeing she was falling behind cast a spell she wasn't quite used. A sonic spell that would empower her legs and speed her up. Her legs twinged as the muscles pulled and tore at the increase stress. Adrenaline took care of the pain as she gained on him.
Quickly thinking, she thought back to the glyph Morgan showed her, and inside her head she spoke the words. The Anthro fell forward landing face first into the stone pavement before he tumbled into a wall. From that ground he smiled and showed his hands. "Sorry little girl, I don't have anything." He mocked.
In the distance, the other thief was still running. In his hand, a coin pouch, her pouch. Again, she bolted after him. Behind her, Younehti tried shouting something else, as the various merchants looked on in shock. A small group of guards began to move in, and the goblin knew this would be bad. Younehti had to stop her friend.
The alley twisted and turned, as they tended to do. Small stone outcroppings and stone works made challenging obstacles for the young girl. Whereas the thief was quite used to the path, and barely slowed. Even with her speed boost, she wasn't gaining on him. Her hand grew warm as she thought of a fire spell, only for her to back down, there were too many people around. She might hit them.
At the end of this alley way was a small gate in the wall leading out into the industrial districts on the other side of the wall, and the slums. Emilie wasn't aware of this, but Younehti was. The goblin continued to try and stop her friend before she passed through into what was a no-man’s land for the guards. There would be a fine if the guards caught up to them now, but that would be massively better than not having any past that wall.
The thief ran past the gate and a couple guards yelled at him to stop but didn't follow him in. They then saw the young girl run though chasing behind him. "Hey! Young girl, you can't go in there! Shit…" The one whispered before stopping the goblin.
The thief eventually stopped a few hundred feet into the slums, out of sight of the guards and the gate. They didn’t seem to follow them in. Emilie quickly caught up to the theif and demanded her pouch back. "Give it back!"
The thief looked around at the abandoned building and smiled at the few curious eyes that dared peak out of them.
“Well, well. What do we have here? A little lost bird?” A rather tall and somewhat fat human man came out from one of the buildings.
It didn't take a wizard to know, he was a bad person. The sudden realization that she was alone hit her. Even her friend Younehti didn’t follow her in. There were no guards here, or merchants. Just miscreants, other thieves, and beggars.
"She knows magic, Rekal."
"Oh, a mage from the college." He nodded behind Emilie, and suddenly she felt her self-picked up off the ground, and had something shoved in her mouth. This was bad, very, very bad. Her heart raced faster than when she was running.
"If she's from the college, her parents must have money.”
“How much do you think we could ransom her for, ten gold?"
"Ten at least."
"Guards coming!" A warning call from inside one of the buildings caused most of them to scatter, except for the two, who were currently trying to pull her into one of the derelict structures behind her. If they succeed, who knew what would happen to her. She had to break out of this hold.
"Forget it kid, your mouth is shut tight you can't cast anything, AHHH!" Suddenly the thief and would be kidnapper behind her felt his arm grow ice cold and solid with pain. "You froze my arm, you little bitch!"
Breaking free, Emilie tried to pull the gag off, but they had tied it just a bit too tight.
The larger thief, Rekal, pulled out a large knife and appeared to be ready to charge her. "Fuck it, the coins aren't worth the trouble." He rushed at her. It was different from how Gezal and the soldiered in Wollseeth moved. It was slow, and sloppy. Like the lesser goblins she had slaughtered before. No, even they were better than this.
She had never killed anyone before, and didn't want to start now, but it seemed like maybe she didn't have that luxury. Her mind called forth the simplest spell she could think of, the one she used to fire off all the time. Holding her hand up, the man barely crossed five feet before the heat left her palm. A silently cast fireball. It was hard, but she tried to reduce the mana in it, weakening it enough to hopefully not kill him.
His sudden scream and dropping of the knife gave her hope, but the blacken skin along his arm and chest caused her to step back. The clinking sound of coins in a bag caught her ear as she found her pouch under foot. Quickly she grabbed and tried to run from the two that were now writhing in agony on the ground.
The gag was a challenge to remove, but a bit of flame magic made it easy. The smell of burnt hair was an unpleasant after effect, she could worry about that later though.
Ahead, she saw her friend at the gate. Emilie would grab her arm and flee beyond the city walls, back to the safety of the college. At least, that's what she thought, “I got my coin bag back! Younehti?” Emilie finished turning the corner to see the guards holding up her friend at said gate.
She wasn’t prepared to be grabbed by one herself and taken. “Hey, what gives? I didn’t do anything wrong! I was the one who was stolen from!”
“Come on little mage, you can tell it to our guard captain.” Several other guards ran past them into the no-mans land, one called out for medical help a few seconds later.
Younehti eye's seemed half glazed over with exhaustion, and fear as she looked to her human 'friend'.
"I got my pouch back." Emilie tried to look on the bright side, only to have the goblin sigh at her as they were taken deeper into the city. Towards the city jail.
"Sit there, and don't move!" The guards brought them to a moderate sized office space. In front of them was an empty desk. The two sat awaiting their fate, and wait they did. First minutes, then an hour, then two and more.
"I don't understand why we are here. We didn't do anything wrong?"
Younehti sighed again, "You did. I should have said something earlier. The city has very strict laws about magic use. You can't-"
The sound of the door finally opening next to the two of them caused Younehti to stop speaking. In walked a battle-hardened woman. The insignia on her armor, Emilie had seen one like it before, not identical, but similar. It was almost the same mark that was on Fortus' armor. Fear began to creep through her. Perhaps even more than what she felt with the thief and would be kidnappers.
The guard captain sat down behind the desk and glared at them for a few moments, saying nothing. It was the eyes of the captain that really got to her. Those cold hard eyes that would just cut at her at her like she was a threat to be warry of, watched, and if necessary, even dispatched. She was just like Fortus. Maybe they were related.
“This is why I hate mages.” The woman finally blinked as she spoke and shook her head. “Don’t get me wrong, I’m grateful you both helped bring these three in, but now I’ve got to deal with angry and panicky shop owners. You know there's a fine for using magic in the city?"
With those words a fear crept through Emilie's bones, and the sunken look in Younehti face didn't bode well at all. She was about to start pleading and begging, but the captain continued,
"…but the reward for those three will more than cover that."
"Reward?" Younehti's attitude suddenly changed as she perked up in her seat.
"Yeah, those three were not good people. The smaller Anthro idiots had rewards of fifteen silver each for their capture, and that larger human moron was thirty alive, fifteen dead. So, one gold in total."
That had to mean all three were still alive. Including the one she had burned so badly. In some way, that did make her feel a bit better. Despite having taken down other non-human foes, she wasn't quite yet ready to carry the weight of killing a human or humanoid.
"We’ve had a request in with the guild to help for a few months now, but… We just need to patrol those slums better." The captain continued.
Younehti's sunken face turned upward, and she was now practically salivating at the amount. "With one gold, I could buy a new mana gem with that!"
"The fine!" The captain practically shouted to quite the goblin's greed, and then gave a moment's pause. "Is normally two silvers for city residents. But since you’re with the college, it’s ten silvers for each offence, we counted four acts of magic use, so forty silvers."
One the desk the captain counted out two piles of ten silver coins, split between the two of them, and then added Emilie's coin pouch, which still had her remaining tender. "This is what's left over, and I believe this is your coin pouch, young lady. I recommend in the future; you physically attach it to your clothes. Though a good thief could still lift it. Those idiots wouldn't have been able to."
Taking a slight breath, the captain opened a book, a ledger of some kind and made a few notes. "Now… There's the matter of getting you back to the college after we discharge you."
"Oh, we can walk. We know the way." Younehti smiled and tried to bargain as she reached out for her share of the shiny metal tokens, only to be stopped.
"No. Unfortunately, we can't do that." The captain seemed almost perturbed by her own statement. "The guards work for the city and governor, and they have an agreement with the college. We are to transport you back to the college so they can deal with you further. Truthfully, I am a bit sorry I have to do this. You did the city a favor by catching those three, even if you did make more paperwork for us." The book closed with a slight thud that masked the sounds of the door opening again.
"Don't make any more trouble in this city. Next, we might have to do more than a fine." The captain called out from her office as the two were taken away to a waiting carriage.
On the plus side, the two didn't have to walk back, as they were placed in a somewhat cramped and a bit uncomfortable carriage. This one had bars on the windows and was clearly meant to carry prisoners about. The carriage coming up to Tranlearba was a palace with silken wooden seats compared to this.
"Emilie, I'm sorry I got you into this." The goblin held her 10 silver coins in hand, contemplating them. Perhaps, considering if there wasn't something she could spend them on right now, like buying her friend.
"I'm not!" Emilie's smile was true and wide, it took Younehti back a bit. "Maybe I'm not right in the head, but this was fun. I mean, I'm not looking forward to the demerits, but you helped me get this cloak, and we even came out of it with a few extra coins."
"Do you always look on the bright side?"
"No. I meant what I said. Today was great! It was an adventure!"
The sun was beginning to set as the two found themselves handed off to another set of menacing eyes.
The Archmage's office was dimly lit. Glow stones peppered the sides of the wall, but only a third were actually on. The two were made to sit in front of another desk, this time the Archmage’s. Clapping his hands together the rest of the glow stones lit up, bathing the office in a much more comfortable, pale-yellow light. “That’s better.” Iomsakad spoke, as he read the note that accompanied them.
Emilie’s eyes darted around the stone room. There wasn’t much to see, some private bookshelves, a few paintings, and some extra chairs by the walls. It was a pretty unassuming office all things considered. The sound of the paper being laid on the desk caused Emilie to look back at the powerful mage in front of her.
Iomsakad stared at the two with dispassionate eyes. For a man that tended to smile a lot, he seemed rather expressionless at the moment. Finally, he opened his mouth, "Fifteen demerits."
"For leaving the college?" Younehti protested.
"No. Seven are for leaving without permission and not signing out. The other eight for causing a commotion in the city. I was tempted to make it an extra twenty, but the guards that dropped you off insisted I be lenient.” He gestured to the paper on his desk. “Despite the commotion you did help the city, apparently."
The Archmage glared at the two, like one might look at idiots or at least people not worth one's time. "Do either of you even know why there’s a magic ban in the city, and why the fines are higher for people belonging to the college?"
Emilie could only shake her head no, even Younehti didn’t seem to know.
“Thirty-five years ago, a group of young mages went out to the brothels in the Market district. They ended up in a rather large brawl that grew into a deadly conflict. No one knows who started it, but it ended with fourteen of city’s population killed in the fighting, by magic. Of course, the families of those killed and city blamed the students, and the college at large. The governor under pressure from those families wanted the students executed, but the Archmage at the time had them settle for exile and a very massive fine that I believe many are still paying. That Archmage also stepped down afterwards, leaving the way for my predecessor. The people of Tranlearba still remember it. That is why we restrict students from leaving the college at the beginning and end of each term. To reduce the odds of another event. A restriction that we’re now going to have to extend by another week.” Iomsakad sighed. It seemed to be one of boredom more than anything.
He waved the goblin off without even looking at her. “Younehti, you can go.” As the goblin left, she turned slightly to give one half back to her friend. A silent, ‘Sorry', and 'thank you’.
Once she left, the Archmage continued "Emilie. You're new to the college, and still young, I trust you've learned your lesson here?"
"Yes."
"Good." Iomsakad smiled at her, with almost dead and hallow eyes. It felt, like a mask that just didn't fit right on his face. "Unlike some of the students I feel like you can bring a lot of value to this college. Just remember to follow our rules in the future."
With that, he waved her off as well.
As she left, a chill ran down her spine. Despite Iomsakad leniency, and seemingly friendly words, at times anyway, something about him just felt, off. Those eyes had this almost hallow expression to them, as if there was nothing behind them. It was like he didn’t see either Younehti or herself as a real person, more of an asset, with questionable value at the moment.
The walk back to her room felt longer than it should. The cloak around her kept her outsides warm, but inside, something felt cold, and almost hurt. Today was supposed to be an easy day, instead… She stopped walking on the dorm's 4th floor hallway as her mind paused mid thought.
A slightly twisted smile crossed her lips, today may not have been easy, but it was an adventure at least! She thought to her self.
Back in her room, the note to her parents remained unwritten on her desk. It was time she changed that and try to finished it.
“Dear Mom and Dad, I’m fine.
It’s been a hard couple of days. My classes are challenging, and the workload is way heavier than my classes in Wollseeth. Some of the students here are really mean, I think some don’t even care about magic. I’ve been bullied a bit, but maybe it’s getting better.
Despite the bullies, there are some really interesting people here, and I do like most of my teachers or mages as they all call themselves.
I messed up too, I went into the city and ended up with a lot of demerits. I’ll be able to work them off, I just wasn’t expecting to get some many so soon. I was able to get some warmer clothes, dad was right about how cold it gets up here. I’ll be fine for now, but if you want to send me something I won’t complain!
I gave an offering to Eshtar at the college shrine, I know dad said I should leave one for Elcus, but Eshtar just seemed more appropriate. I guess I have a patroon God now. It kind of feels that way.”
She stopped just short of signing her name, it still felt incomplete. Like there was more she should write but just couldn’t figure out the rest. Well, perhaps there was no rush. At least she had something on paper now.
A growling in her stomach reminded her she hadn't finished her lunch. Which was probably the biggest shame of it all. She wasn't sure if she could eat that squash crud they were serving here. Probably squash stew or baked squash again.
The smell as she walked down the stairs seemed to confirm her worst fears, squash stew. Oh well, it was food.
The loud and usually rambunctious dining hall quiet down a touch as she entered. A small number of students faced her way. Some laughed, a few just looked stunned. Maybe she didn't need to eat tonight. Though, her growling stomach said otherwise. "Traitor." She cursed at her own internal organ, as she made her way to the line.
The whispers in the hall all seemed directed at her. But perhaps that was her imagination.
"I heard She took down three thieves in the city."
"I heard she got twenty demerits, for it."
"Then she couldn't have done that. Why would they give her demerits if she brought in a bunch of thieves?"
Sitting down at an empty table she began to eat the rather sad stew and chew on what felt like two day old bread. It was a depressing change from lunch. For a moment, it felt like she would actually cry, half that soup and most of that sweet bread was lost. Hopefully someone came by and ate it, she'd hate to think it was just thrown out.
"There's no way. Those stories were all made up." The whispers continued.
"She couldn't have beaten a bunch of thieves. Could she?"
At least no one was directly bullying her. Emilie forced down the last of her dinner before taking a fast break from the hall. Ignoring the calls from what sounded like Morgan and a few others she might have known. She was exhausted by the day's adventure and just didn't feel like dealing with anyone right now. Maybe tomorrow.