Erya of the Silent Glade

“Very much…” I paused, when the waitress reached our table, carrying an expensive looking bottle. She carefully set it down, but instead of retreating again, she lingered, a curious expression on her face. “Can I help you,” I asked, when she didn’t show any signs of leaving.

“I don’t know, yet, but I surely hope so. Just like I can probably help you. Would you mind, if I sat down?” My head snapped up and, for the first time, I truly focused on her. She was older than I had thought, at first glance, her perfect posture and well tailored garments adulating her figure. Her hair was dyed a deep red, with a ruby sheen, and a subtle layer of makeup covered her wrinkles, without hiding them entirely. Intelligence and determination sparkled in turquoise eyes, set above a small, pointy nose and a firm, but delicate jawline. I’d have put her in her late fifties, maybe even early sixties, even though her voice still held a playfulness, I’d have associated with a much younger girl. She wasn’t trying to hide the traces, the years had left on her, but turned them into a part of her charm. In sum, she was, what I imagined “aging with dignity” was supposed to look like.

“Probably not,” I finally replied. “But I’d prefer to know your name first, if you don’t mind.”

“Of course, how rude of me. I’m called Lady Kirena, or Captain Kirena, depending on whom you ask. I’m the owner of the “Silver Swan” and a modest power in Free Land.” I tensed up immediately, my magic swelling in my veins, but she placated me with a smile and a hastily added: “no need to get all riled up. We’re keeping a close eye on our guests, around here, and I simply had to see the women, who nearly broke our array, for myself.”

“Array,” I echoed, one eyebrow raised, magic at my fingertips.

“The decorations around the gate, they aren’t just for show. They can detect magic. It’s not been overly useful, we don’t have that many mages around here, but if one of them does come by, I want to know, whom I’m dealing with. They nearly blew out, when the two of you made their way past. I’ve got nothing sinister in mind, I simply wanted to satisfy my curiosity and maybe, if we get along, offer you a partnership,” she finished with a shrug and I relaxed.

“I see. Very well, then, the least we can do is listen, provided the bottle your carrying is as delicious as I assume it’s expensive.” She sat down with a bright smile and fluidly removed the cork. A rich, fruity scent welled up, while she carefully poured three glasses.

“Oh, it is. This one, I’ve taken form my personal collection. Over the years, I’ve become a bit of a snob, when it comes to wine. It’s elven made. The pointy eared nuisances don’t drink themselves, but their magic makes the grapes they grow much more tasteful and a clever entrepreneur decided to produce wine for the other races. His business is booming, as far as I know. It’s almost impossible to get a bottle nowadays, without paying an arm and a leg.”

She raised her glass. “To new friends”

“And prudent caution,” I added under my breath. Before I took the first sip, I quickly made sure she wasn’t serving us poison, the abduction I had suffered at the hands of the Mask had been one lesson too many, but it was wine, nothing else. A truly delicious one at that. No wonder the elf was making a fortune, aside from the magical drinks of my home, I had never before tasted anything comparable. Smooth, sweet, rich and dry, a plethora of tastes, bundle into a single mouthful. “You didn’t exaggerate, it’s amazing,” I praised, “and it surely has earned you the time until the bottle is empty.”

“Oh my,” she laughed, “I shouldn’t waste my precious seconds, then, should I? But still, before we dive into the more juicy topics, how did you enjoy your stay, thus far?”

“The food and beverages are excellent, but the staff can be a bit nosy,” I answered with a twinkle in my eyes. “But that might only be the owner. She’s quite the presumptuous woman, I’ve heard.”

“She can be, but she can also be extraordinarily accommodating. It all depends on how you treat her, I assume. Hopefully, you can forgive her for trespassing on your lunch. If she has one flaw, it’s her curiosity, she simply can’t leave things alone, she doesn’t understand.”

“So, we’re things now,” I replied with mock outrage. “What an accommodating treatment.”

“Maybe you’re right,” she chuckled. “She can be a bit presumptuous. But haven’t my virtues,” she clicked her glass against the bottle, “more than made up for my vices?”

“Until now,” I admitted, “but I’m not so sure where this is going. I might yet change my opinion.”

“That’d be a pity. Before we continue, though, might I at least know your names?”

“Of course. I’m Erya, this is Morgan. No titles required.” She nodded slowly.

“You surely possess the confidence one provides, though. Let’s cut right to the chase, then, I wouldn’t want to keep you wondering. I’m curios who you are, where you’re coming form, why you’re here… but I imagine you aren’t simply going to share your life’s story with me. I’d offer to answer the very same question I’m going to ask, but I’m not sure you even care too much about who I am.”

To my surprise, Morgan took the initiative and said: “why ever not? After such an enticing introduction, I, for one, would surely love to know more about you. I’ll go first, if you don’t mind. What did you mean by modest power?” Lady Kirena chuckled happily, swirling the crimson liquid around in her glass.

“I see, a question I can’t easily reciprocate. In all fairness, though, I should warn you, I’m quite good at these games. What I meant is simple: compared to the other Captains, I don’t command many ships, nor a lot of soldiers, but I know more about the dealings, going on in this city, than either of them. I’ve got my hands in almost every pie and I can make good use of my connections and influence. My turn, then. How would you describe your power in this city?”

“That’s not…” Morgan tried to complain, but was cut short.

“What you asked? But it is, isn’t it? Maybe not the same phrasing, but the same question.”

“Immeasurable,” I interjected coldly. “But since you were kind enough to explain, I’ll do the same. We don’t have influence or political strength, but on a personal level, I suspect there isn’t anyone who could stand up to us.” I wasn’t yet sure, if I wanted to play her game, but for now, she wasn’t getting anything, she didn’t know already. Her enchantments must have told her as much, otherwise, she wouldn’t have been here, in the first place. “You said you’ve got your hands in every pie. Doesn’t that make you the uncrowned queen of Free Land?”

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“Not by a landslide. There are so many factions, not even all of them have a face, and earning modest coin here and there is a far sight away from actually having influence or making decisions. If you’re that strong, aren’t you going to claim the very title, you tried to attribute to me, for yourselves?”

“Who said, we’re going to be uncrowned,” I replied mirthfully. “But no, none of us have the ambition to threaten your little kingdoms. You mentioned a partnership, before. What do you have in mind?”

“Oh, the usual. Mutual benefits, shared resources, maybe a couple of children, further down the road,” she added with a smile. “Would you be interested?”

“It depends. You seem like a sensible woman, but we have our own goals and I’m not convinced you could be of much use to us. If this is a sales pitch, you’ll have to do a little better.”

“Then allow me to put in some preliminary work. You must have noticed, that magic is about as rare around here as diamonds in a pigsty. I can imagine all sorts of things, I’d like you to do for me, ranging from a few enchantments to an actual contract, depending on how far you’re willing to go. I don’t see a reason, why we shouldn’t reach a compromise that benefits us.” I was thinking fast and hard. Unfortunately, I didn’t have the innate connection to Cassandra, Viyara had and as far away as we were, none of our friends were within range of my own telepathy. But then again, I couldn’t possibly imagine, Cassy would turn her down from the get go.

Morgan was apparently thinking along the same lines. She tapped my foot under the table and gave me an almost imperceptible nod, before she said: “now we’ve established, again, why we could be of use to you, but the question remains, what could you do for us?”

“Right you are. You mentioned your own goals. Isn’t it obvious, how much I could help with achieving them? While I may not be able to aid you with battalions and ships, as much as others could, there’s hardly an intrigue, a deal or a grab for power going on, without my knowledge. Since you seem pretty self assured, when it comes to your strength, I imagine, my own brand of power would be even more useful to you than mere brawn.”

“I have to admit, it sounds very interesting,” Morgan replied, “but I fear we can’t make a decision, just yet.”

“And why’s that,” Lady Kirena asked, her eyes roaming from one to the other curiously.

“Now, that’s a question, we can’t possibly pose in return, is it? I’ll still answer, though. We’re not alone. We’ve friends with us and they’ll want to hear about your offer, first.”

“Really? Might I ask who they are?” My granddaughter looked at me, unsure of how to answer, if at all. After a moment’s hesitation, I took over:

“That’s not as easy a question as you might believe and definitely one you should ask them, yourself. I’m not going to satisfy your curiosity in that regard, at any rate.” To buy a little more time, I refilled our emptying glasses, before I added: “if you want to, we could return later and bring them along. If they’re interested, we’ll have much to talk about, surely.”

“Perfect. I’m always looking forward to meeting mysterious strangers. Say… there’s a performance here, tonight. A travelling group of renowned mimes has recently arrived and I managed to convince them to grace the “Silver Swan” with one of their acts. Do you think your friends might be interested? I’d of course make sure you have amazing seats and everything else, you might desire. I still have to prove, I’m an accommodating host, after all. It’d be my pleasure, if you decided to be my guests, tonight.”

“We’ll ask them, but I’m fairly certain they won’t say no. When would you have us?”

“Around sundown. The show won’t start for another hour or two, which should give us ample time to get to know one another. Here.” She pulled an embossed metal card from her décolleté, which showed a pearl underneath a stylised sun, and placed it on the table.

“Show it to the guard at the entrance, they’ll immediately lead you to me, or, in case I’m not there yet, to my private quarters. Well then, I’ve taken up enough of your time. As a small compensation, your lunch will be on the house. I’m looking forward to seeing you again. Until then, stay safe and good luck, whatever you’re up to. Erya, Morgan, it has been my pleasure.” She got up and, with a small bow and a bright smile, retreated towards the house.

“This was… interesting,” my granddaughter commented, when Captain Kirena was out of earshot. “Did you buy her story?”

“For the most part. I didn’t see the runes around the gate, but I didn’t look out for them, either.”

“That’s not what I meant. If she’s as well connected as she claims, she has got…”

“To know, who our friends are? Yes, I imagine she should. She should also know about Alassara and possibly, even the attack last night. Truth be told, it actually reassures me.”

“And why’s that? She might be preparing a trap for us, all of us.” I chuckled mirthlessly.

“And what kind of trap would that be? Poison in our drinks? Arrows from the walls? If she’s that stupid, it’ll most likely be the last egregious mistake she’s ever going to make.” Morgan rolled her eyes and explained:

“She’s invited all of us here, which means…”

“You’re worried, she’s going to try to take our ship or whomever remains behind? Good lord, you’ve never seen the dwarfs angry, have you? She has a better chance of coercing us into something unsavoury, face to face, than she has of getting her hands on anything valuable, while it’s protected by a walking wall of mithril. Trust me on this, if she really tries to snoop around while we’re gone, her goons are in for the worst beating, you can possibly imagine. Besides, Silas and Tharos spoke to the Captains… she’s bright enough to add two and two together. Maybe she even puts some stock in what they told them and doesn’t offhandedly discard the possibility of a real threat.” I paused and reflexively tried to run my fingers along my horns, which unfortunately weren’t there.

“No, I don’t think she intends to betray us… I imagine, she’s really interested in striking some kind of bargain. Just… put yourself in her shoes. She has to be pondering the rumours, spreading through the city, ever since the Mask was annihilated. She probably knows something has happened to Captain Dawn. The tides are shifting and I imagine, she simply wants to ride the crest and not get swallowed up by a whirlpool of chaos. Her best bet is to try and make sure, she’s chummy with whomever comes out on top.”

“And she believes it’s going to be… us?” I shrugged.

“I’d bet, that’s what she intends to find out.” I emptied my glass, savouring every last drop, before I poured us the last of the wine. “She might be in for a rude awakening, though. The last few times we met strangers didn’t go particularly well and I imagine our kitsune are rather fed up with people, trying to take advantage. I wonder how long they’ll remain civil, when they realise what she’s up to.”

“You don’t plan on telling them? I thought they were… family.”

“They are, but first of all, I could be wrong. Maybe she is simply curious and I won’t make it any harder for her, if she’s acting genuinely. Also, I like seeing our immortals lose their cool. Admittedly, it can become a bit dangerous, but it’s damned hot.” She rolled her eyes.

“Are you really that… no, I know you are. So… we head back and extend Lady Kirena’s invitation?”

“With a small detours. For once, I’d like to not stumble blindly from one catastrophe to the next. We’ll visit Alassara on the way and have a little chat. She must know a few things about our gracious hostess, considering she’s been around for her rise to power. Alright then, little one, bottom’s up, we’ve got places to be.” We clinked glasses and prepared to leave, when another waiter hurriedly made his way over to us, white like a sheet.

He was sweating profusely, fear emanating off of him in palpable waves. When he was still a few paces away, he already stuttered, trying to regain his breath: “excuse me, ladies, but my mistress would like to speak to you, again, before you leave. Would you be so kind as to follow me? It won’t take long, I promise, but she direly needs your assistance.” I shared a confused look with Morgan. What, in the nine hells, had happened now?