“While gold and silver are the primary currency used in everyday life, djinn cores are universally accepted, with standardized trading agreements used in the kingdoms of Europa and even distant shores of Afrika or the far east.”

-Benjamin Radeer, A Rogue Warden and Owner of the Eastern Trading Company, 350 AB

Noah, Thursday, September 12th, 564 AB

I breathed out heavily as I arrived. Alexa unwrapped her legs from around my back, her scarlet hair tousled over the pillow. I rolled over on my side and Alexa hooked a leg around my torso and ran a hand down my chest.

“You were pretty energetic tonight,” she said with a throaty purr. “What’s got you so riled up?”

“Do you want to have children?” I asked her. “Or did you before you gave your vows?”

Alexa sat up, her hips straddling mine. “Why are you asking me this?”

“There’s this girl…” I began.

“A girl,” Alexa said, a teasing tone entering her voice.

“It's not like that," I said, running my hands along the tautness of her stomach and up her spine. “She’s a provincial. She and I have been debating the ethics of Companions. She believes the use of your order is immoral because of how it forces you to remain childless.”

Alexa’s fingers continued to trace along the skin of my chest as she was silent, the darkness of my chamber hiding her expression from me. Only a beam of moonlight from the window casting her pale bare skin into an eerie glow.

“I did want children once,” Alexa said.

“And if you could have them now?” I asked.

“That’s a cruel question to ask,” she said, her voice not bitter but reproachful. “I gave oaths to the church, oaths that can’t be taken back. If I broke them I’d be excommunicated.”

“You could…” I began.

“No!” Alexa snapped then continued in a softer tone. “Your father did my family a great service, I became a Companion to pay that back and ensure my house continues. My life isn’t a bad one. It’s better than the vast majority of women in fact. There is no guarantee I would have even had children. It’s not a blessing even all Weaver’s receive.”

“I’m sorry,” I said. “I just…I just wanted to make sure you're happy.”

Alexa ground her hips into mine. “I’m content my prince, your father could have assigned me to worse duties than this, I don’t have to share my services with his royal knights or other members of your household.”

I bit back a groan as she pressed into me. I could see a flash of white as she smiled. “And the work I do for you does have its own pleasures.”

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Aranea

I slipped out of bed wincing at a pain in my abdomen, I hurried to the bathroom and looked down, seeing a red stain on my dress. My menstrual cramps made me wince again and I removed my nightgown, putting it in the tub to soak as I folded up a cotton cloth and wetted it, wiping up the rest of the blood. I was disappointed to see the blood, which didn’t help the other feelings I was going through. I’d been hoping for a baby but…

I pushed aside the feeling of missed opportunity. Cain and I had only just started trying and there was still plenty of time. I hurriedly washed my dress, removing the bloodstain and set it out to dry. I didn’t know why but I didn’t want Cain to see it. Cain got up and washed his face and brushed his teeth.

“Are you alright?” he asked, giving me a concerned look.

“I’m fine, just…cramps,” I said feeling silly for hiding this from him.

“Do you need me to do anything for you?” he asked.

“No I’ll be fine,” I assured him. “You should go to training.”

Cain hugged me and I winced, he loosened his grip.

“Sorry,” he apologized.

“It’s fine,” I assured him again.

He planted a kiss on my forehead and left. I breathed out a sigh, not knowing why I felt so tense about this. I made some tea as I gathered my books and journal into my basket and left for classes. I sat down beside Hannah and Deliah. I winced at the cramps but composed myself, not quickly enough to avoid all scrutiny.

“Are you alright?” Hannah asked me.

“I’m fine, it’s just my period,” I said.

“I can give you some pills I take,” Deliah said.

I was about to accept when I realized what kind of pills she was referring to.

“No thank you. Cain and I are actually trying for a baby,” I said.

“So soon?” Deliah asked. “I know Hannah’s pregnant but you're only seventeen…”

“All right everyone, class is beginning. You can have your conversations when it’s done,” Madam Layrora said, calling all attention to the front of the room. “We will be helping the academy prepare for an expedition they are doing with the first year Wardens today. We are very close to several lakes and rivers with various fishing settlements. There have been reports of higher than usual numbers of water djinn being spotted, so we will be creating Wards to gather corrupted Water ether for the first year Wardens to place. Has everyone read up on how to create the Ward?”

Everyone nodded, even though I knew for a fact that not everyone had. But that wasn’t my business. We began bending and tying the soaked willow boughs into the positions required.

I pushed aside the pain; it was discomforting but compared to the pain indoctrination I’d had to undergo to become a Weaver it was hardly anything. I worked diligently, and focused on creating the wards shown on the blackboard. I was tempted to alter them and try new designs but stopped myself. This wasn’t one of my own personal experiments, this was for helping save the lives of common fishermen who didn’t have skills.

Noon-day bell rang, and we broke for lunch. I hurried to the washroom to change my bleeding cloth. I rejoined my friends in the mess hall.

“You’re really trying for a baby already?” Deliah asked me.

“Of course,” I said. “I’ve always wanted to be a mother, haven’t you?”

“Eventually yes,” Deliah said. “but I’m not ready for that responsibility yet.”

“We’re Weavers,” Hannah said. “People’s lives are in our hands all the time, but a baby is too much?”

We continued to argue for a while before eventually finishing eating. I went up to the library again to finish taking as many notes as I could from the grimoire Lady Constence had lent me before she asked for it back.

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Cain

I didn’t go on another quest with Enoch today either. The bouncer opened the doors to the Golden Gypsy as I got close. I went inside, the smell of imported tobacco, booze and perfume heavy in the air. The women Solomon employed eyed me, along with everyone else, but I ignored them, moving past to the stairs and heading down. I sat down on the bench and watched through the portcullis as a Warden wearing only a pair of britches and no armor fought a Demon. I didn’t even know how Solomon had been allowed to let a djinn grow that strong inside the settlement walls.

Someone should probably tell someone else about it to stop that sort of thing from happening, but that wasn’t my decision. I’d promised to keep my mouth shut and that’s what I’d do. My eyes ran over the bars. I walked over and ran my finger over them, yanking it back as a splinter pricked me. Sucking on it, I grabbed it with my teeth and pulled it out. I examined the bars which I had mistaken for iron and saw they were actually just painted wood. There were also very small wards carved into them which explained why the Demon wasn’t able to use its skills to break out or attack the patrons above.

“Fascinating isn’t it,” Solomon said, coming up to stand beside me.

I glanced at the fight, watching as the man danced with the Demon, only faint scratches on his skin as the Moon djinn slashed at him with its scythe.

“He’s very skilled,” I agreed.

“Not that,” Solomon scoffed. “Hector is an alright fighter, but that’s just experience, not real skill or artistry. I’m talking about the wards.”

“They're holding in a Demon so they must be good,” I agreed.

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“They better be or my girls aren’t doing their jobs right,” Solomon said, breathing out a long plume of smoke from his cigar. “Do you know how hard it is to find women with the skills of Weavers not bound to the Church or some noble house?”

“No,” I said.

“Well, it’s hard,” Solomon said. “Each one of them costs around a Demon Core per month to keep here, but they make a good amount from their tips and I always treat them well.”

“Why employ them?” I asked. “Why enable that kind of sin?”

“Sin,” Solomon sighed. “I’m not a priest, boy. I’ve seen men and women do things that would turn your blood. The Church may preach as if we Wardens are more principled and better than others but, if anything, we’re worse. I’m honest about what I do and my girls are honest about what they provide. I’m breaking no vows or oaths, I’m just satisfying a demand.”

“If you weren’t supplying….” I began.

“Then someone else would,” Solomon said. “And that someone might be even less principled than me. I’m the evil you know Cain, and trust that you would rather not deal with the evil you don’t.”

I was silent for a moment after that, pondering his words.

“Why is he doing this?” I asked, gesturing with my chin toward Hector. “One wrong move and without his armor he’s dead.”

“Hector owes me about three dragon-cores,” Solomon said. “He isn’t that good of a Warden so it would take him years to pay that off. I told him if he did this fight with no armor to give the audience a real good show I’d wipe his slate clean.”

“And what if he dies?” I asked. “How do you explain a Warden dying in your tavern?”

“I don’t,” Solomon said with a shrug. “I dump him out in the Mist later and say djinn got him.”

“And his wife?” I asked.

“Hector’s wife isn’t going to miss him,” Solomon said. “At least not for very long.”

Hector ducked under the swing of the Moon Demon’s scythe and rammed his spear up through its chest before twisting away and ripping it out. The Demon had already sustained a large number of wounds and finally collapsed. There were a mixture of cheers and boos but Hector staggered over to the gate.

“My debt…” he said, his breaths coming out in heaves. “It’s cleared?”

Solomon opened the door and clasped Hector on the shoulder. “I’m a man of my word, go upstairs, the girls will give you a bath and a drink on the house.”

Hector staggered away leaning on his spear for support, one leg limping.

“So,” Solomon said, turning to me. “Let’s see how you fare today. Show me your battle rhythm.”

I managed to block three strikes from Solomon that day. He cut me at least a hundred times that number. I rolled to the side as a blur passed by me and brought up Achlys in a two handed guard. Solomon came to a stop.

“Why are you holding your dagger like a sword?” he asked me, his voice sharp and reprimanding.

I gasped and spat before I could speak. “Because I can barely hold it.”

“Hmmm,” Solomon said. “Perhaps I’ve pushed you too far.”

I breathed out a heavy sigh of relief.

“Or perhaps I haven’t pushed you enough yet,” he said, disappearing from the arena.

The wooden portcullis closed. I blinked, trying to comprehend what was going on as another portcullis raised itself up. The crackle of electricity sounded and my heart beat faster as a blue glow approached. A Storm Soldier djinn appeared in the doorway. It floated above the ground with no legs, just a long tail made of bands of electricity that ran up to its torso where blue etheric plates covered it.

Three arms extended from its torso, one holding a long two-handed jagged sword the other just ending in claws. The soulless eye sockets of the djinn bore into me as it charged towards me.

I froze.

My muscles were like ice as I screamed for them to move as the djinn swung at me.

“Move Cain!” Solomon shouted.

I dropped to the ground and the sword passed just over my head. The crowd above cheered, and I rolled over the sand as the djinn slashed down at me. I pushed up, and its claws slashed across my chest. Hot pain and blood sprouted, but my armor took most of the damage. I rammed Achlys into its chest and twisted as I darted to the side, dragging my dagger along with me. Its left arm lashed out, backhanding me across the face, and I felt my jaw loosen.

The health bar of the djinn dropped by half but it wasn’t done and it, unlike me, wasn’t under any restrictions about using its skills. A bolt of lightning snapped out, hitting me and launching me several yards away. I landed in the sand, dazed and stunned as my left shoulder burned. I rolled to the side again as the djinn cut down where I lay. A pulse of electricity moved along the ground, but I jumped up and landed after it passed. The djinn charged me again and I acted without thinking.

My dagger flew through my hands and pierced the Storm Soldier through one of its eye sockets. I wasn’t sure who was more surprised, me or the djinn. Its health bar was at a sliver now. I held out my hand and my dagger slapped back into it, taking the last of the djinn’s health with it.

34 XP gained, 1 Corruption absorbed into your Core

“Well done!” Solomon said, clapping as he entered the ring.

“You bastard!” I spat. “I wasn’t ready for that.”

“You won,” Solomon said with a shrug. “So, I guess you were ready.”

“And if you were wrong? Were you just going to dump me in the Mist and tell my wife some djinn got to me?” I asked, still pissed.

“I wouldn’t have let it go that far,” Solomon said. “A bold move, that throw with your dagger, how did you know you’d hit its eye socket?”

“I didn’t,” I said with a sigh, there was no point in staying angry, Solomon wasn’t going to apologize. “I wasn’t thinking.”

“Then you should think less when you fight,” Solomon said. “That was good instincts, your body knew what your mind wasn’t sure about. You acted, and you won. That’s how you win a duel. Go home and rest and think about how it felt in that moment. When you can let the conscious mind go, and live in that state, that’s when you’ll find your battle rhythm.”

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Cain, Friday, September 13th, 564 AB

I jumped, and cleared the Fire Soldier’s bident. Its wings flared out and I had to narrow my eyes to slits as a wave of scorching heat hit me, blistering my exposed skin. I landed on its spear, driving the point into the ground as I went into a fencer’s lunge. Achlys pierced through the ether case around its chest.

I dropped down before it could use the claws from one of its hands and rolled between its legs. It tried to use its tail to wrap around me but I pushed off the ground, slashing out and cutting off half of it. The Fire Soldier took to the air, turning around. It raised its bident and a bolt of fire blasted out, glassing the area where I had just been.

Another bolt of fire made me dodge again as the Soldier continued its bombardment. The glass where I had just been continued to melt as I moved from spot to spot. I counted the attacks as they happened.

“One, two, three, four, five, six..” I muttered.

The Fire Soldier dropped to the ground as it ran out of ether, and I charged back in. I dropped low, skidding across the ground as I slid under the thrust of its weapon. It slammed a burning wing towards me but I kicked up and drove my dagger through its chest again pushing with the palm of my hand against its pommel to put more force behind it.

27 XP gained, 1 Corruption absorbed into your Core

I winced as I felt the burns along my sides and chest. “Celestial Healing.”

The burns disappeared and fresh skin replaced them, pale against my lightly tanned skin. Solomon opened the gate and walked in with a flourishing showman’s gesture to the crowd.

“Thank you, ladies and gentlemen, for your patronage; please collect your winnings from your latest bets. The next fight will be in two hours.”

“You’ve been betting on me?” I asked, I wasn’t really surprised.

“Of course,” Solomon said, tossing me a small bag.

“What’s this?” I asked, catching it.

“Your share,” Solomon said. “People love a good close fight, even if you are just a Page seeing someone of your rank take on a Soldier djinn one on one with no skills is a good show.”

“I’m glad I’m so entertaining,” I said dryly. I tossed the bag up in the air testing its weight and listening to the clink. “These are cores not coins.”

“Always try to operate with cores more than coins,” Solomon said. “While some idiots might be fooled by counterfeit cores, it’s nowhere near the stuff they do with gold or silver. Mixing it with copper or nickel to dilute it and make more. Djinn cores can’t be mass produced to create inflation; they are always in demand; the value of your gold might change from one kingdom to the other, but the value of cores is stable across all Europa.”

The pouch of cores fit in the pouch on my belt, so I tucked it in there.

“Any other lessons for me today?” I asked. “I’ve got my assessment tomorrow.”

“No,” Solomon said. “I have more lessons for you, but you’d be better suited getting in a full rest then training till you puke again. This prince. He as good a duelist as they say?”

“He’s beaten everyone else at the academy. Even when he was a first- and second-year student,” I said with a shrug. “I’ve only seen him fight the one time though.”

“I’ll come to your assessment tomorrow,” Solomon said, clapping me on the shoulder. “Remember, winning is all that matters, fight dirty if you have to.”

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Aranea

I felt a tap on my shoulder as I was headed to the library, I turned around and Cain pushed me against the wall, his lips pressing against mine.

“I’m off early for the day,” he said. “Do you want to go out for a ride? I was thinking we could pick up something from the kitchens for a picnic…”

“I’ve got to study,” I interrupted him.

“Oh,” he said.

“Maybe Sunday,” I offered. “I just need to finish copying as much as I can from this grimoire before Lady Constence asks for it back.”

“You're right,” Cain said, taking a step back. “You should prioritize your studies, I’ll see you later.”

He gave me a quick kiss on the cheek and forehead before leaving. I felt a little guilty for not having the time to spend with him today, but I really was busy. I headed to the library and kept reading and taking notes. Hours passed like that and I had to stop when the light got bad. Candles and any other source of fire weren’t allowed in the library and I didn’t have an ether light to use in place of one.

Packing up my books I left the library heading to our apartment. Cain was sitting in front of the fire, there was a bundle of flowers in a vase on the table and I smiled when I saw the pale white blooms. I set my basket and joined Cain leaning against him.

“How was training?” I asked.

“Good, I think I’ve learned more in these past three days from Solomon than in the two weeks of training at the academy,” he said. “His way of speaking and teaching just seems to make more sense to me.”

“He’s really helping you?” I asked.

“Yes,” Cain said. “I don’t know if I’ll pass my assessment tomorrow, but I actually feel like I have a chance this time.”

“Then maybe…you should keep learning from him,” I said grudgingly. “I don’t like what he does, but if you feel like he’s a good teacher you should keep learning from him.”

“Here,” Cain said, placing a pouch in my hand. “That was my share.”

“Your share of what…?” I stopped speaking as I looked down at the three Demon Cores. “This is so much!”

“I didn’t see how much it was until a few hours ago,” Cain said with a grin. “You should keep them. When we learn how to store ether and draw it from cores you’ll need to keep a few on you.”

“What have you been doing to earn these?” I asked. “This is more than what a Page makes in several months. Maybe during an ether storm you could expect to make this much but…”

“They’re my share of bets,” Cain said.

“You’ve been gambling?” I said, my voice turning a bit harsh.

“No,” Cain assured me. “They were just part of my share for…things I have to do during training. I promised not to talk about them.”

Things started fitting together in my head. “They aren’t bets that you made but you still got a share,” I reasoned. “So they must have been bets placed on you. There are few things people bet on Wardens to do, most of them violent. You’ve been fighting, you hate dueling so it wouldn’t be other Wardens, but you're inside the city… You’ve been fighting djinn inside a settlement?”

“I can’t talk about it,” Cain said, pressing his lips together.

I opened my mouth but shut it. There was nothing I could do here. All I had were some suspicions. I could take them to the authorities but if they asked, it would get Cain in trouble too. I didn’t have any proof either so why would they even believe me. I stood up and went to the washroom and started washing the day’s clothes; I couldn’t make any decisions now, I needed to think.