2 AL: IRENE
“Hello there!” Jake cried out. He was leading the way, with Sophia watching his back with her bow. Irene was bringing up the rear as usual with her slow gait. Irene looked forward trying to catch sight of what or who Jake saw.
When Irene caught up to them they were speaking to a group of four, made up of three men and a woman. The woman was visibly pregnant. They were armed with spears of different quality. One was little more than a sharpened stick. They were all wearing outfits in a green color that looked like they were woven from some kind of natural fiber.
“We are looking for Londontown,” Sophia said just as Irene got close enough to hear their words.
“You are nearly there,” one of the men replied. “It is about a twenty minute walk ahead on the north wall.”
“Where are you coming from?” the woman asked.
“The Speedwell,” Sophia responded. Irene didn’t like how two of the men shifted their stance and looked them over. They seemed too interested in the boar tusks that were sticking out of the top of Jake’s pack.
“Have you awakened your magic yet?” one of them asked.
“Yes,” Irene said. She threw an ice-bolt into a nearby songbird. The bird dropped out of its tree, dead. Irene felt a little bad about that but it was the only target in sight. She watched the group. Their body language changed completely. Before they were sizing Jake up, almost ignoring Sophia and Irene. Now all their attention was on Irene. They weren’t sizing her up. They watched her like she was a very dangerous animal they may need to flee.
“Do you know how to heal?” the woman asked. Irene moved her attention over to the woman. There was a greedy hungry look on her face. Didn’t she just see Irene limp up a full minute after the rest of her party? Irene thought. It should be obvious she couldn’t heal.
“No,” Irene responded. The woman’s disappointment was clear.
“We were told there is a healer in Londontown,” Sophia commented.
“There is but she is expensive. She always gives you the first heal free but after that it costs. Those tusks might buy you a heal,” The woman commented. She rubbed her protruding stomach in a gesture common to expecting mothers. Irene noticed a strange tremor in the woman’s hand.
“We still need to catch our quota for the day,” one of the men said. Irene watched them as they edged around her group.
“Perhaps we will see you later in town,” Sophia said in farewell. The woman nodded at this possibility and joined the rest of her party heading southwest.
“I don’t like having them behind us,” Irene commented.
“Me neither,” Jake responded. He caught the interest they showed in his prizes. “Let's get closer to the north wall, so they can’t come at us from that direction.” Their group moved north on high alert. Jake and Sophia slowed their pace so that Irene could easily keep up.
“They seemed afraid of you,” Sophia commented as they walked.
“They were afraid of the magic,” Irene countered. “I don’t understand. I thought everyone learned magic here.” Sophia nodded at Irene’s observation and looked thoughtful.
They reached the north wall. They kept it close to the right as they continued. Jake forged ahead, keeping a watch for the town. Sophia kept turning to sweep her eyes in an arc behind them. Irene concentrated on trying to increase her pace, while also trying to hide her limp. She suddenly didn’t like the idea of showing weakness. Although they were all thoroughly rattled, they saw no sign of the hunting party.
“There is something ahead,” Jake said. They slowed their approach, taking the time to study what was ahead. The north wall of the greenspace was broken by three arches. There was a short barrier across the opening with gates that swung open. It was late in the afternoon and most of the people were moving in through the gates. The few people leaving passed the gates without interference but only some people were allowed to pass in without interruption. Most people were stopped by guards that stood just inside the barrier.
“This must be it,” Jake observed. Irene and Sophia agreed. Their group walked forward and boldly pushed the first gate open.
“Hold there,” one of the guards said. “You need to pay the toll.” The guard was wearing an outfit made of leather. The edges of the collar and cuffs were marked with an edging of vivid blue.
“What toll?” Jake asked.
“What do you mean ‘What toll?’” the guard countered with contempt.
“We are newly arrived,” Sophia said, trying to calm the situation between the two men. “How much is the toll?” Irene could see the calculation in the guards eyes.
“Newly arrived, huh?” he said. “Those tusks should just cover it for the three of you.”
“That seems high,” Sophia replied. The hunting party encounter instilled in them that the tusks held a high value.
“Hand them over,” the guard said. He placed his hand on the hilt of a sword belted to his waist, drawing their attention to it. Irene shifted her walking staff to her off hand. She raised her hand where the guard could see it and spread her fingers wide. She readied herself to cast lightning. She hoped the spell would just stun the man.
“No,” she announced from behind Jake and Sophia. The guards dragged his eyes from Jake and the tusks in his pack. He looked at Irene with disdain. The disdain melted from his face to be replaced by fear as he focused on her. He took an involuntary half step back.
“Are you a wizard?” the man asked with a slight tremor in his voice.
“Would you like me to prove it?” Irene said, looking meaningfully at the man.
“Wizards and their parties are exempt from the toll,” the guard responded.
“And you didn’t mention that because?” Jake countered aggressively.
“I know all the wizards by sight,” the guard said defensively.
“I told you we just got here,” Sophia pointed out.
“Umm,” the guard said with a slight stutter. “I have to ask for a demonstration.”
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“Alright,” Irene said cheerfully, as she started to move her hand in his direction. She wasn’t actually casting but she couldn’t resist.
“Wait, wait,” the guard said nervously, jumping to the side. “Do you see that targeting dummy over there,” he said pointing to an oddly shaped contraption behind him. “Aim for that.” Sophia stepped to the side, leaving room for Irene to move through the gate. She stepped forward to study the area beyond the arches.
The area beyond the arches looked like a cross between an exercise room and a field. Sections of it appeared to be set up for different uses. Irene couldn’t identify any of the equipment scattered around. She had to take the guards word that what he pointed out was a targeting dummy. Not liking the vibe she was getting from the guard any better than the one she got from the hunters she decided to cast ice-bolt. She didn’t remember any stories of people casting lightning or stun. She decided to keep that ability to herself.
She cast three ice-bolts in quick succession. She learned to cast it very fast during her days of traveling alone through the first green. The guard cringed at each hit and took another step back on the third one.
“Welcome to Londontown,” he said to them through a forced smile. As her group moved past the guard, Irene noticed that everyone else at the entrance stopped what they were doing to look at them. She put her best effort into limiting her limp. They crossed the exercise yard and went through a set of open arches. Beyond them they found a courtyard paved in stone, dotted with plants growing in stone boxes. The square was ringed with stores. Their glass doors were propped open, inviting customers inside. A steady stream of people were moving through the stores and square.
The ceiling of the courtyard was closer than in the green but it was at least five stories up. The walls above the storefronts were glass dotted with balconies. Many of the balconies were occupied with people who seemed to be working on crafts.
Irene was shocked by the number of infants on display. Everywhere she looked, women walked with a baby in their arms or in a carrier. Many of the balconies sported a small crib beside the crafters and not just one baby. She realized with some surprise that many of the carriers were loaded with twins and even triplets. None of the children were walking yet but many of them were older than the few newborns back at the Speedwell. It made Irene think that women in the original exploration teams must have gotten pregnant within the first few months, if not weeks, of entering the ruins. What was most shocking was that many of the women with the oldest children were pregnant again.
Most of the adults were wearing clothing that came from the Speedwell. Mixed in were a few wearing the blue highlighted leathers or the green fabric the hunters worn. Although everyone in leathers and greens seemed to be armed, those in the Speedwell clothing weren’t. That difference made Irene’s group stand out, since they were dressed in Speedwell clothing but were also armed.
“We need to find someone that can tell us how things work,” Sophia observed.
“That looks like a restaurant,” Jake commented as they walked past the shops. He gestured to a section of the outside wall on the opposite side of the courtyard. It was fronted by an area set with benches and tables. “Let’s go in there.”
As they crossed the courtyard they passed by a large clear crystal that was floating in the air. It was about two feet tall and a foot in diameter. Irene paused to look at it. She wondered how it was staying afloat. After a moment or two of study she wondered if it was even really there or if it was just an illusion. She reached out and touched it to check if it was real.
A faint trace of purple filled the crystal. It was so faint she wasn’t completely certain it was there until she pulled her hand back and the crystal cleared again.
“What does it do?” Sophia asked.
“I don’t know,” Irene responded. “I was just wondering how it floated.”
Jake leaned forward and pushed against the crystal. The crystal did not move. Jake set his feet and tried again, putting his full weight behind it. It still didn’t move. Irene realized it also didn’t change color. It didn’t change color when Sophia brushed her hand against it either. The three of them agreed it was another mystery and continued on their way.
Everyone fell silent when they entered the restaurant. There was a counter in front of the entry with a staircase rising up behind it. Under the stairs a wide door opened up into a work area. There was a scattering of tables across the remainder of the room. About half the tables were occupied.
“Can I help you?” the man standing behind the counter asked Irene’s group. Jake led the way over to the counter to speak to the man.
“We just arrived,” Jake opened with. “We are looking for lodging. How can we arrange it?”
“I have rooms above for rent,” the innkeeper replied. “Five iron coins a night per room. Meals are a coin each. If you rent the room I will give you a discount. Two coins per person and you can have dinner, breakfast and lunch tomorrow.” The man paused for a moment, his eyes locked with Irene’s. “The apartments above are rented out by the structure. There are common staircases that open up in the square and lead up. If you put your hand on the door of an empty apartment the rent amount will appear as shadow coins. If you accept the cost will be deducted from your inventory. They cost one hundred and eight coins for thirty six days.”
That was only three coins a night. Irene received eight coins from the first two rats she killed. She didn’t keep a count past that. She didn’t think she gathered one hundred and eight coins but she might be close. The housing and the meals seemed too cheap to her. Especially after how many people tried to rob them on the way in.
Sophia and Jake shared a look between them. Sophia gave him a subtle node.
“I will take one room and meals for the two of us,” Jake responded to the man.
“Me too,” Irene said when the innkeeper looked at her before answering Jake, “A room and meals. How do we pay?”
“The bar here is a pay surface,” the innkeeper explained. “I put my hand on it and I can set how much you owe. Once I am done you will see the requested amount as a shadow coin pile. If it is acceptable to make a gesture like you are pulling the coins from your pocket and touch the shadow coins.” The innkeeper mimed out the action as a demonstration.
“You first,” Irene said to Jake. The innkeeper asked Jake if he wanted to pay the full amount or split it with Sophia. He responded he would pay today and Sophia could pay tomorrow. The transfers were quick. When it was Irene’s turn, she took the time to study the little pile of shadow coins. A count of the coins showed there were seven of them in the pile. They were set in a very particular pattern. She wondered if the innkeeper did that or if the coin pattern was a type of icon indicating the value of the pile at a glance. She faked the gesture of setting another coin on the pile and the shadow coins disappeared.
“How can I tell how many coins I have left?” Irene asked the man.
“Prize altars give you a full listing of your inventory including your coins. There is an altar in each of the rooms,” he explained. “We just started serving dinner. I can take you up to your rooms now or you can eat first.”
“Let's eat,” Sophia said. The innkeeper told them to choose any table. They settled into an empty table to wait for their food. Their fellow dinners gave them quiet looks as they hurried to finish their means. Only the babies seemed unaffected by their presence. There seemed to be an infant at every table. Several of the tables hosted twins.
“What is it with all the babies?” Sophia said quietly.
“Our fertility on the Speedwell was regulated by additives in the ship’s water. Everyone in the landing generation is naturally fertile. Without those additives a sexually active woman has about a 100% chance to get pregnant in a year,” Irene told Sophia. “I got a fertility implant from medical before we left but even it only lasts a couple years.”
“There were notices in the outer camps about getting the implants. Didn’t you get one?” Jake asked Sophia.
“I don’t remember any notices. I never heard of this before. Did you get one?” she said to Jake.
“I did,” Jake said to her. “But they warned me they don’t work as well in men and that my partner should get one as well.”
“You didn’t think to mention this before we left?” Sophia said in a dangerously quiet voice.
“I thought you knew,” Jake said in his defense. “There were notices everywhere, even my mother mentioned it.”
Luckily a server arrived with their meal and interrupted the tension between them. It looked like a typical meal of meat, potatoes and vegetables. At the first bite Irene realized nothing about it was familiar. Even the potatoes weren’t actually potatoes. There was a pink cast to them. They tasted a bit like the tubers they ate raw the night before. She wondered if it was the same thing only cooked.
“Who claims to be a wizard?” a woman’s voice called out stridently from behind Irene. Irene turned to look at the source. An old barefoot woman was standing on the stairs. Her hair was a wild mess of pure white. She wore a dress of blue silk that fell straight from her shoulders to the floor. It might have been better to call it robes, only there was no tie at the waist to hold it closed. As the woman angrily looked from face to face below, Irene realized with some horror that this was her mother.