Chapter 34: Masquerade
At Tressi and Jan’s urging, Vina adopted an extensive disguise and blended in among the older townsfolk who were transported in animal-drawn carts. Not even the women she sat with recognized her, and in the process, her disguise skill continually improved despite her sleep on the trip to Termily. To maintain her anonymity, Langternem was wrapped up as well and concealed among barrels of food and drink.
In the distance, the town of Termily began to take shape. Vina finally woke up when she smelled the smoke from numerous campsites and tents that had been set up outside the wall for the refugees from Randar. From her vantage point, she could see that the majority of the people there were Stigandorians. As they slowly approached the town, Tressi briefed her on their plan. "When we get to the gate, I'll present the guards with our signed paperwork. They won't be pleased, but given that we've secured you as means to activate a portal ring to a location of our choice, they'll have to honor the agreement I signed with Tacey. We'll be granted entry into the city, but we won't be allowed to stay."
Vina gave her a skeptical look. "And what if they don't honor the agreement?"
“It’s like a promise. If they refuse to let us use a portal ring, their entire city becomes mine," Tressi explained.
Vina tilted her head, "Wouldn't they just forcefully reclaim it?"
“No… Vina… these legal agreements are like a promise of death. If they don’t honor the agreement and don’t leave, Trina would kill the leaders in the city. It would be our city no matter what, in the end. But that won’t happen.” Tressi's eyes flickered, and runes appeared in Vina's vision. "This is our intended destination. Can you take us there?"
Vina studied the runes, not recognizing them from the ones she had seen in her book. "I can't say for sure. If it's not too distant, probably. Where is it?"
“I don’t know either.” Tressi admitted. “It was given to me through secure means by an organization in conflict with The Watch.”
“The same one that gave you The Watch’s code names?” Vina asked.
Tressi nodded. “That’s right.”
“They've proven reliable once, so you might as well trust them again," Vina concluded. “I’m concerned about some of the town members knowing I’m here. Trip for instance seemed quite hostile toward me. What happens if he turns me into the guards for my bounty?”
“You underestimate how much Prosit doesn’t like The Watch. As much as some do not like Blood classes and skills, The Watch is hated for what they’ve done to families. If you are our only way to keep our town together, they’ll keep their mouths shut. I’ve secured promises from the most belligerent of our town folks, though. Rest assured, they’ll keep their mouths shut.”
Vina nodded, feeling only slightly better.
Seeing Vina had exhausted her questions, Tressi continued, "Okay. Remember, you're part of my family now. You’re Tarla Alvara. This ensures they can't separate us. You're to head to the nearest refuge first with the rest of Trina’s followers. Get your arm treated by someone with an aspect and then return back to me. By then, I should have squared away things legally with The Watch's officials."
Vina nodded in agreement, and Tressi embraced her in a farewell hug, playing her part convincingly. Surprisingly, Vina sensed genuine emotion in Tressi’s vibrance. However, Vina herself felt detached, her emotions failing to resonate with the moment. As they drew closer to the walls, doubts began to plague her. "How can I activate a blood portal in Termily without the guards attacking me?" Vina wondered privately. "I should have asked Tressi if my safety was covered in our agreement."
As the line of refugees neared the entrance of Termily, the gate guards stationed there appeared prepared to fight. Tall and armed, they exuded an unwavering resolve to protect their small city. Their scrutinizing gaze fell on the newcomers, and Vina couldn't help but feel her heart race a bit. She reminded herself of her disguise, falling harder into the character she had set herself to be.
Tressi led the way and stepped forward to engage with the guards. The exchange of paperwork was a procedure cloaked in tension for Vina. She expected to be searched, exposed. “They’ll find Langternem if they search the food.” she thought. While the guards examined the document, Vina and the other refugees waited in an uneasy silence that hung heavy in the air. But their entry was approved in short order. A palpable sigh of relief swept through the group.
Once inside, Vina could see just how much the town had changed. It was filled to the brim with guards. Less people were milling about and those that were seemed to buzz with power in their vibrance. Her blood shot eyes caught numerous hidden aspects on the people that walked past her. Their group was escorted to a section of the town within the walls, but separated from the population. Each of them were required to get a pass for an approved purpose prior to receiving services within the town.
Vina was quickly swept up with the followers of Trina who had planned to go on a tour of the refuges around Termily, of which there were three. At the first one, Jan introduced her as Tarla to Solyn. The middle-aged man took her arm. He exclaimed, “Professed, you only set her bones today?” He shook his head in disbelief. “My goodness, I wish all of my Professed were this skilled.”
Jan only bowed his head slightly, but made no further comment.
Vina couldn’t help but smile at Solyn’s warm praise. “Jan does great work. It is already feeling better,” she admitted.
“Of course! With work this good, how could it not? Let’s take you to a back room.” Solyn glanced over his shoulder and called out gently. “Alora! I’d like you to observe this Professed’s work. You should aim for this since you have sworn off aspects.”
Vina heard the tapping of shoes down the long leftmost hall of the refuge. Her heart nearly stopped when a vibrance entered her range to sense.
“I’m coming. I was just helping our other guests,” came a young woman’s voice. A moment later, she came around the corner and Vina knew without a doubt who it was. The scar on the side of her head confirmed for her that this was the girl who had used the aspect of memory to torture her mother. She had grown by a couple of months, but Vina had no doubts.
Although Vina recognized her, the girl clearly couldn’t see through her disguise. “Hello. I’m Alora. I’m new to serving Trina, and I’m doing my best with a very low skill level,” she said with a smile.
Vina hesitantly shook her hand, leaving her glove on. As their hands met, Vina's heart pounded in her chest. Images of her mother being controlled by The Aspect of Memory flashed before her eyes. The temptation to end Alora's life was powerful, nearly overwhelming. Yet, inside the refuge, she knew she was powerless to act.
“You don’t have to tell everyone that.” Solyn admonished her gently. “Come on, let’s go. This way, Lady Tarla.”
As Solyn led Vina into a small, clean room, Alora followed, her curiosity evident. She watched with rapt attention as Solyn treated Vina's arm, asking questions and taking mental notes. Her interest wasn't cold or clinical; rather, it was marked by genuine compassion and a deep-rooted desire to help. The exuberance in her vibrance was infecting the more experienced men in the room, especially when Solyn began using an aspect to repair her injury. Smiles were found on every face, save for Vina’s.
She watched Alora out of the corner of her eye, struggling to reconcile this image with her memories of the girl who had once used an aspect to torment her mother. She saw only the girl dressed in white with golden buttons, standing in the refuge of Trina threatening her. Here, however, Alora's demeanor was patient and understanding, her hands moving gently and carefully while she assisted Solyn. The scar she had given Alora seemed less a mark of an adversary and more a testament to her own trials and tribulations. Vina was suddenly intently aware she was responsible for her suffering.
By the time the procedure was over, Vina found herself lost in a fog of dissonance. The Alora before her was not the person from her perfect memories. She was someone different, someone who had apparently chosen to heal instead of harm. Her disorientation was so complete she almost missed Alora's final words. “Be careful with that now, okay? Sir Solyn has only managed to quicken the healing process. Injuries are among the slowest to heal. He is still recommending you don’t use that arm for another week. If you have the money, you could purchase a mendica mixture from an apothecary. That would shorten the time by a few days, but I do know they can be difficult to procure at this moment. It was really nice meeting you, Lady Tarla.”
Emerging from the clinic, Vina felt as though she were walking in a haze, her mind turbulent with the startling revelation. Seemingly aware of Vina’s internal turmoil, Jan gently whispered in her ear. “Come on. Let’s go back to Tressi.” As she meandered back to the refugee staging area, she could sense Jan’s concern. Still, he maintained a respectful silence until she was safely back with Tressi, and only then did he resume his tour of the other refuges.
The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
“We have a problem,” Tressi announced.
Vina blinked, abruptly yanked from her introspection. “What now?”
“They want to meet the individual who will activate their portal ring,” Tressi explained. “We're scheduled to depart tonight.”
“They suspect something.” Vina muttered. “They know I have ties to Prosit and that Tacey was sent there. Tacey isn't here now, and they want an explanation.”
“And where is she?” Tressi pressed.
Vina's gaze hardened. “Let's just say Stine, The Darkness, has her ensnared. She won’t be joining us.”
“Alright. How should we handle their request to meet you? I don’t have the leverage to deny them. They can satisfy our agreement by powering the portal ring themselves. You simply provide extra leverage if they try to refuse and take the other avenue of our agreement."
“Can they kill me or take me away and still satisfy the terms of the agreement?” Vina asked.
Tressi hesitated. “As it stands, yes. You’re not bound up in this since you’re not a citizen of Prosit. You’re more like a volunteer. However, I could hire you as a contractor to perform a service in accordance with a lawful agreement between Prosit and The Watch. That would grant you some protections.”
Vina nodded as she considered her options. She still had the official proposal of cooperation that Tacey had given her. The idea of working with The Watch once again was less than attractive. If she could find a way out of Termily without binding herself with The Twelve, that would be the best solution. “Do it, but ensure my obligation ends the moment I leave Termily. I have other matters to attend to.”
“I’ll work on it,” Tressi assured her, her eyes flitting across her myriad screens.
While Tressi worked, Vina spotted Croft, The Bandit leader, hunched over a cooking station, busily preparing a meal.
As Vina watched him from a distance, her mind wandered back to their first encounter. She had captured Croft and his companions, a hasty decision made in the heat of the moment. One of his companions had been injured, and she'd left them tied up, claiming that her lantern would kill them if they attempted to escape. An empty threat, a bluff, but it had led to dire consequences. She had left to fetch guards, and during her absence, the injured bandit had bled out, dying through some interaction with the lantern that she still didn't understand. Then Duscan, the only bandit to have witnessed what the lantern did, joined Stine.
Guilt washed over her as she remembered the chain of events in detail. It had been a steep learning curve for her in the beginning, a bitter pill to swallow. She had been inexperienced, reckless with her newfound power, and her negligence had led to a loss of life. “I did it to Ebba too. I nearly did it with Alora...” she muttered. She looked down at her left hand, weak and healing for a second time in a matter of weeks. Stine had taught her that lesson intensely now.
She had been naive to think that she could wield such power without causing harm. The realization was like a punch to the gut, a harsh wake-up call. She had injured people and scared them. And all the while, she had justified her actions as trying to find her sisters and protecting her family. But now, she saw Stine’s lesson. She was responsible for their pain.
The gravity of her actions weighed heavily on her. She had to make amends, to atone for her mistakes. She needed to start with Croft. He deserved to know the truth. He deserved an apology. Whether or not he would accept it, was another matter entirely. But she had to try. She had to confront her past choices, to confront him.
And yet, she couldn’t will herself to get up and move. She sat there, paralyzed in thoughts until…
“Okay, here it is.” Tressi declared.
Snapped out of her thoughts, Vina was presented with a window filled with text outlining a contract. Scanning it, her frown continued to deepen. “Tressi… is your entire town dedicated to me? Am I your Asharaina?”
“No…” Tressi answered slowly.
“Then take out the clause that guarantees your safety. I’m helping you, not protecting you. I’m giving you one successful portal activation, not five. You’re also going to remove the retainer agreement. I am not going to return to your beck and call.” Vina gave her a hard look.
Tressi pursed her lips. “I see you aren’t lying. You really are part of the Halos Family. I figured you would just sign it.”
“There’s two families now. Mine is the Esca Family.” Vina clarified tersely. “Also, reduce the payment. I’m not trying to bankrupt your town.”
“That’s the going market price for a portal activation for a town of our size.” Tressi said.
Vina scoffed out a laugh. “Holy shit! They’re robbing you guys. Put it at like… one randar mark.” Vina got to her feet carefully. “And stop trying to bind me to you with weird shit like five activations.” She started to walk away.
“Where are you going?” Tressi asked, carefully.
But Vina ignored her as she walked away.
~~~
Vina received an approval pass to exit the town city under the guise of a foraging request to obtain ingredients necessary to make a mixture for her arm. She was surprised that the guards required her to prove her skill in foraging, but soon passed their test and was let outside the gate with signed paperwork safely stored in her user interface.
She made her way past the many stigandorian refugee camps outside the walls. Eyes watched her as she walked, but none stared for too long. Vina slowly gained confidence in her disguise as well as her ability to act like someone older than she actually was. “The pain certainly helps me pull this off.” she muttered to herself.
Skill Level up: Disguise has reached level 10. You are able to disguise your clothing and basic aspects of your appearance. Your chance of being discovered is relative to other people’s perception based skills. You have gained a skill point You have gained 450 experience points for leveling a skill.
Vina saw her skill options, but she was reminded of her promise to Tressi. She sighed as she selected the default option in the list: Disguise a feature and selected finger nails. Although she had made the promise in hopes of reconnecting with the town’s people, Vina doubted that she was like Tressi. She didn’t like covering up who she was, and yet she felt compelled to follow through with her promise despite it not having dire consequences.
You have kept your promise to Tressi. She has been notified.
She didn’t take her gloves off and try to use her new skill’s ability. It took her mental energy to keep just her eyes looking normal. Adding on yet another thing to think about seemed unnecessarily draining. Instead she approached the large patch of bushes she was aiming for. Her foraging skill did show that there were some interesting benefits to them, but she faked harvesting from them in full visibility from the guard gates in the distance.
She slowly moved around the bushes until she was out of sight. Then she activated hide in plain sight, and stealthed through the foliage, pushing her way through to the middle. The hatch was still blasted wide open, her mother’s runes still dead.
Vina headed down the ladder carefully toward the destroyed runed door. She wasn’t really sure what she expected to find or what she could do once she arrived in the underground hall. Her memories were clear about what Haco had done to Ebba’s body, and yet Vina had no experience with what condition a body might be in after all of this time.
With Gij’s tears fresh in her mind and a newfound perspective on the wound she inflicted on Alora, Vina flicked on her lantern and wandered in the cave once more. She noticed, however, that the entire place had changed from what she remembered. The walls and floor were smooth and no longer jagged or as rough as they once were. She reached out to touch the smooth surface, “Melted?” she muttered.
When she came to the edge where she knew the cave should have turned to the right and a hole should have been to her left, she could only see a cave-in. Debris blocked her path and scorch marks could be seen against the stones. “Haco came back.” Vina realized as she searched the rocks for a way past. She activated her Observe skill and began testing the stones with her good hand, careful to not stress her left hand more than necessary. Finally a stone about as wide as her shoulders lit up in her vision. She strained to move it to the side with one arm, but saw a small tunnel going under one of the larger stones, just big enough for her body. “Of course.” she growled, taking her backpack off carefully.
Sliding on her stomach with her backpack in front of her and her lantern attached to it, Vina pushed her way slowly, painfully along the tunnel.
Panic prickled at the edges of her mind as the walls of the tunnel pressed close around her. She fought down the instinctive urge to retreat, instead focusing on the faint light emanating from her lantern up ahead. Every sound seemed to be amplified in the confined space, and Vina could hear her own ragged breathing echoing off the tight walls. She moved forward inch by painstaking inch, the rough stone scraping against her clothes and skin, regret forming in her mind at leaving her armor in her backpack to avoid detection.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity, she saw the end of the tunnel. It opened into a wider area that she recognized as the hallway where the traps had once been. Now, it was empty, the traps long since deactivated or destroyed.
Feeling a sense of relief wash over her, Vina pulled herself out from the tunnel and stood, brushing off the dust and grime. The hall was eerily silent, with only the faint echoes of her own movement to keep her company.
She made her way through the hall, the faint glow of her lantern providing illumination just a few feet in front of her. The door at the end, the one that led to the room where Ebba's body had been, was destroyed just like she remembered. The runes that once sealed it were now just faint, scorched imprints on the surrounding stone.
Taking a deep breath to steel herself for what she might find, Vina stepped through the destroyed door and into the room beyond. The air here was different, heavy with an indefinable weight. In the distance, at the edge of her lantern’s range, she could see Ebba’s half melted armor and sword, but there was no body. Vina looked around, but began to recognize what was different. The ground beneath her feet was ash-gray, a stark contrast to the dark stone of the cave she remembered. She knew, without a doubt, that these were the ashes of Ebba.
For a moment, she stood there, staring at the charred remains. A sense of melancholy washed over her, but it was quickly replaced by a determination. “Haco came back for you, but not to put you to rest.” Vina didn’t like what she was going to do next, but she knew that she had to honor Ebba in some way.
With renewed purpose, Vina reached into her backpack and pulled out the rune covered box she had once used to kill Ebba. With a twinge of irony, she opened it and gently started to gather the ashes, each scoop a silent promise to not perpetuate the wrongs of her past.