White Sand: 10 Hours Past

The bags under 789’s were so dark and heavy looking, they made her appear haggard. But it didn’t matter: her energies lifted when she held a glowing, blue-green pill in her hands. The pill that she had been making and testing, even had 669’s hair temporarily turn blue, was finally stable and ready for use.

“This Virya Refiner will help our magic.” The lackluster to her voice was gradually easing as she felt renewed spirits at seeing her finished product a success.

The pill was a recipe of rare plants that when combined created properties of restoration. But it wasn’t limited to restoring a person’s virya and magic power. It could also refine and purify the spell that they cast under the pill’s influence, making that spell permanently stronger one level. Naturally, there were side effects from overdose. She had yet to captured all the adverse effects, but she did note on the one that 669 had stumbled on. The temporary changes to hair color and unstable virya patterns that would make the atmosphere erratically switch to seasonal temperature changes. Refining was, after all, a process of energy pattern manipulation and strengthening. So doing it correctly without current virya stream impacts was a fine art, which only running trials could teach.

“789 we’re ready.” Indigo called out to draw the woman’s attention to the three pixies standing at her bedroom door.

“Let me grab my things.” 789 rose from her testing bench seat and hurried around her bedroom floor to grab various small pill bottles and vials that she stored in her spacial belt pouch. She then retrieved her glowing daggers from their wall hooks and sheathed them at her hip.

“Okay. Let’s go.”

“Where too?”

“Solace Tailors. Let’s have a chat with the kind woman there.”

The day was still waking for most people around Crossroad Village, but most of the market stalls were displaying open signs and had wares stocked for a new day of business.

789 and the pixies stood before the front entrance of Solace Tailors.

“Do you think she knows anymore that she’s already given?” Sangria asked through a yawn and deadpan tones.

“We’ll soon find out. Either way, we need to check her story again.”

They ambled up to the door. Violet went to open it, but it was locked.

“Now what?” She asked with her hands on her hips.

789 glanced around the area and saw a side gate entrance. She gestured to the pixies to follow her dash to the shop’s back end. They saw Lucy hanging up washed material on a line: silk swayed and billowed before the woman who was unaware of the intruders.

“Lucy Tank. Can we talk?” 789 called out.

Lucy sighed as she finished pegging up her material to the line. She turned and saw the woman standing a distance away. Harper had mentioned that others would return to talk about Fairy Blossom, and that she should be careful with her information.

“Who are you?”

“I’m 789. An operation henchman from the Cannon Fodder 4Hire company.”

Lucy’s eyes widened. She nodded with understanding and smile.

“I see. Please come inside. You have questions, no doubt. I’ll answer as payment for your care for Miki.”

They followed Lucy onto the back porch and into a simple sun room that connected to a living area.

“Would you care for tea?”

789 politely declined and got straight to her questions. “Who is Miki to you?”

Lucy poured herself tea then slipped onto the seat before 789. The pixies made themselves busy with inspection of the co-joined workshop area.

“Miki is my friend’s daughter whom we came to adore. The poor girl's mother suffered a horrific fate, so Alder has been determined to give Miki the best start to her life.”

“Miki’s mother is dead?”

Lucy nodded. “But this is as much as I will say on the matter.”

“Do you know where Miki is now?”

If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

There was a moment of tense silence between them before Lucy added. “You don’t need to concern yourself with her care. She’s with her father.”

789 frowned, wanting to ask more on the matter but decided to change the subject. “How well did you know Fairy Blossom?”

“She was my best friend.” Lucy carefully sipped her tea.

“Did you ever encounter Lord Marcus through her?”

The brim of Lucy’s tea cup hovered around her lips before she answered. “No.”

“What about Lord Ashton Sommerville or Tristan Miller?

Lucy slammed the tea cup to the table, so some spilled.

“Why are you asking these questions? Do you have any legal rights to do so?”

789 eased back on her chair as she studied the woman. A bit of rumor surfaced in her mind of Harper’s sister being accosted by Ashton.

“Was Lord Ashton one of your patrons?”

Lucy rose. “I think you should leave.”

“Why so defensive? He was, wasn’t he?”

“Leave!” Lucy vehemently snapped.

But 789 wasn’t going to let go of her lead. She had to push for a truth or everything could fail because of this moment.

“Here is what I think. Lord Ashton was introduced to your services by Fairy Blossom and became your patron.” She rose as she calmly approached Lucy. “One day Lord Ashton makes a pass at you.”

Lucy stood petrified as her mind slipped back to her last interaction with Ashton Sommerville.

“He becomes violent when you turn him down.”

Lucy didn’t answer, but her expression showed clear disturbance.

“But he left. Then returned in the evening when you were more vulnerable.”

This time Lucy’s body was trembling. “Stop it!”

“This time he didn’t ask for permission. What did he do?”

Lucy shook her head and began to back away from 789. “What didn’t he do.”

“Lucy. He’s dead. Can’t you move on from what he did to you?”

Those words made Lucy’s anger boil to a breaking point. “Move on?! He deserves to be cursed beyond death!”

Sangria sighed and said a spell to cool the woman’s emotional state. “We’re all women here. Tell us: we won’t judge. But we’ll help you if we can.”

Lucy stared at the fair pixie whose expression, although appearing sober, showed a determination to her words. For the first time, she felt there was a hope that she could muster her strength with true support from others. But she needed to be sure. She faced 789.

“You’re a henchman. Surely you would’ve seen horrible things.”

789 sighed. “Too many. Being a henchman is really a man’s role despite woman being called to the Majestic Will. There were men in my barracks who weren’t shy in telling me this and made me feel like a piece of dung for doing something I was forced to do. Some even tried to take my first just because they thought I was too weak to fight back. I owe a lot to 669, 777 and all my friends for giving me the strength to stand on my own.”

“You were raped too?” Lucy misunderstood 789’s words.

789 eyes bulged. “So Ashton did rape her. The bastard deserves more than being dead.”

Lucy sighed and nodded with her decision to tell her truth. “I met Fairy Blossom one day when she visited my shop for a new gown. We were friends right a way. Over the years, I came to rely upon her for business contacts. The Poirot, Sommerville and Miller lords were a few of my regulars.”

She further explained that the day she had been raped, was when her brother came to visit and caught Ashton in the act. He threatened to kill the man, but was soon overpowered by the young lord’s strength and the use of his status to ensure silent.

“Suddenly I was no longer getting orders. My last being for Bosgar Poirot.”

Lucy’s business suffered from some kind of social distancing that saw her patronage dry up. Harper’s order runs were also drying up, especially when it was clear that the Miller business was undergoing some strange impacts triggered by the brothers.

“Both mine and my brother’s work suffered. So Alder wanted to help us and said he’d do his best to get credits for both us and Miki.”

Indigo frowned as she scratched her head with her question. “Did he get the cash?”

Lucy nodded. “He came a couple of months ago to hand me a large credit pouch. When I asked where he got them, he wouldn’t tell me.”

“So you have no idea where he got it?” 789 probed the question further.

“No. Although, I suspected his cousin helped him get it. He did mention something about speaking to his family.”

“Who’s this cousin?” Violet asked.

“Boris Finch. I don’t know much about their relationship, other than Alder mentioning they once grew up like brothers.”

789 nodded. It seems their next stop was to visit the Poirot mansion and meet this Boris. “Thank you, Lucy. If you need anything, you can come to our company headquarters anytime.”

“If you’re going to help my brother and friends, It’s not a problem.”

The woman left the shop.

Lucy sighed and slumped back into her chair. She pulled out a silver disc from one of her side table drawers and turned it over in her hand. The symbol of silver lotus magically flashed across her irises. A knowing smile twitched at the corner of her lips.

The bait was set, seen and now about to be taken.