The person who called himself Do-Fa-Ti, watched as his new apprentice turned into the hallway to the back door of the square. She was in a mixed group of humans and selkie. Do-Fa-Ti was surprised to see Enchanter among them. This was the third morning he watched them from his shop windows. After nearly a 108 day absence, his apprentice presented herself for training twice in twelve days.
Enchanter seemed to be moving more freely, with a lighter step. Do-Fa-Ti was reminded of the tier six’s words about the old selkie just being depressed. A shiver ran over his frame. He lived in a state of near complete terror for days after his impromptu interview with the tier six. He couldn’t call her Grandmother like her human companions did, nor Elder like the selkie did. He was many times her age. Calling her either of these things seemed faintly ridiculous to him. At the same time, there seemed very little of the tier four Irene Do-Fa-Ti knew in Redfalls left in this woman. That woman was soft and naive, or at least she appeared to be. No one who was soft made it to tier five, let alone tier six.
He shook his head and wrung his hands. Since Enchanter was with them they could not be going out into the halls. They must be using the transportation system.
It was just impossible that someone could go from tier four to tier six in only thirty years. His amulet made even identify spells report him as a tier lower than he really was. There were whispers of an amulet that could do the opposite, presenting a tier higher than actual. Do-Fa-Ti convinced himself that Irene must be one of his people in disguise. Someone who possessed one of each type of amulet. She wore the lowering one in Redfalls and the raising one here. As a tier five she was still dangerous, but manageable. Most people greatly underestimated the benefits of amulets.
He needed to know more about her. Her purchases in the square told him nothing. They were such random items he couldn’t make out why she would want them. His careful interrogation of his fellow selkie yielded the information that the Elder was leader of her own square, far to the north. The portal keeper started spreading the word that there was a coliseum there, with a Challenge day coming up. Do-Fa-Ti wondered if they were from Peking, but none of the selkie knew the Elder’s square’s name. The humans always just called it home.
Do-Fa-Ti stepped out of his shop. The door secured automatically behind him. He waded across the central pond, before stepping up into the back hallway. The portal keeper was just stepping out of the transportation room and into the hallway.
“Did I miss them?” Do-Fa-Ti asked. “The Elder’s group?”
“Yes, they are away to Stoneshelf,'' the portal keeper responded. That was too easy, Do-Fa-Ti thought.
“I don’t have the path on my map,” Do-Fa-Ti. “Can you tell me the cost?”
“It is high,” the portal keeper reported. “I haven’t been there in some time myself.” He quoted the amount. It was a little high, but nothing compared to some of the fees Do-Fa-Ti paid in the past when he was actively running.
“Let me fetch the physical coin for you,” Do-Fa-Ti said. “I’ll be right back.” He went back to his shop and pulled out the fee plus a tip for the portal keeper, then he tripled it, remembering he would need to pay for the trip back. Deciding he would look odd to the portal keeper if he made the trip with no luggage, he picked up the go-bag he kept in the back room. He didn’t bother with a weapon. Enchanter hadn’t carried one and Do-Fa-Ti was just another crafter.
Do-Fa-Ti handed over the charge and tip to the portal keeper. Me-So-Ray opened the portal to Stoneshelf and wished the jeweler a good trip. Do-Fa-Ti thanked him and stepped through. The receiving room on the other side was empty. There wasn’t even a portal keeper on duty.
Do-Fa-Ti took advantage of the situation and cast a don’t notice me spell on himself. He stepped out of the transportation room and hurried down to the central pond where he could mix with other selkie. He didn’t think for a moment that any of his camouflage spells would hold against a tier six. His best hope was to not draw any attention.
He ducked into the doorway of the stair access to the apartments above. From that bit of cover he swept the central pond. He found Irene’s group in the market area. It was not market day, so they were the only ones in the area. They picked two spaces that were clearly visible from all the apartment balconies above.
Do-Fa-Ti carefully positioned his body so that most of it was hidden. He settled in to see what happened next.
“Someone is watching us from the stairs near the back door,” Todd reported. Grandmother paused, from unloading Enchanter’s bench from a bag. If Grandmother did it, she could pull each piece out like it was any other bag. If one of the others tried it the bag would expel everything in one go.
“What do you mean?” Grandmother asked. “Aren’t they all watching us?”
“Yes,” Todd admitted. “Whoever is on the stairs’ interest is stronger, more personal.”
“How do you know?” She asked. Todd considered this question carefully.
“Physically he’s positioned himself in a way I can barely see him, but his position is highlighted,” Todd reported. “He is brighter, with a trace of purple. I think that means he is interested in you.”
“Todd!” Grandmother said excitedly. “This is your perk! You can tell when people are interested in your party. That is awesome.” Todd looked embarrassed. Grandmother swore there was a trace of red in his cheeks. “Enchanter,” Grandmother said, turning her attention away from Todd so he could recover himself. “Have you heard of the ability to sense when people are watching you?”
“Yes,” the selkie responded, “we call it guardian spirit.” Todd looked even more embarrassed.
“What do you call the ability to overpack a bag?” Alex asked Enchanter.
“I’ve never heard of that one before,” Enchanter admitted.
“Let’s call it the ultimate stuffer,” Alex declared. “That's the one I want.”
“What should we do about the watcher?” Todd asked seriously.
“Keep an eye on them and tell me if they come out of the stairwell. When they do, I'll get a good look at them. If they have a personal interest in us, it is someone we know,” Grandmother replied in a more serious tone, as she went back to unpacking.
Soon they were set up and Alex began his advertising call.
“Greetings of the day, friends and neighbors. We are the Elder’s party. We have traveled far to do business with you this day! Today and today only we are trading in spells! We pay six iron for any spell. If you can demonstrate it, we will pay double. For the first twenty spells that we have never seen, there is a bonus. Come forth and claim your coins,” Alex sang in his lower octave selkie.
A tide of selkie began to travel in the direction of the market. Do-Fa-Ti watched this response. He was in Seagrass when the Elder’s party first came there and bought spells. It had been a slow trickle of takers. These selkie knew what to expect and were excited to see the humans. Do-Fa-Ti even saw a couple calves being led by their protective mothers. He remembered the enormous number of ‘little humans’ the tailor reported selling to the Elder.
Stolen story; please report.
He decided to drift closer with the crowd to get a better look.
“They’ve stepped out,” Todd reported. Grandmother allowed her gaze to drift over the crowd moving past the door. She narrowed her gaze, as she cast a sight enhancement spell. The crowd jumped out at her. One of the selkie, walking close behind two others, had a slightly wavy appearance. It was a clear indication of a don’t notice me spell. Grandmother focused her attention as she waited impatiently for Control to weigh her tier and skill against the tier and skill of the caster.
The image broke, what appeared underneath wasn’t a selkie. The individual was about the same height as a selkie, but possessed none of the mass. It looked like a child with its thin build. Its skin almost sparkled white. It wore a mix of fabric and armor in white and gray. Large dark eyes dominated its face. Small white pointed ears were mounted too high on its head. Grandmother might have missed them altogether, only one was pierced by a gray ring.
The problem with recording all the time was that it was impossible to review all that footage in a reasonable amount of time. Grandmother relied on the computers to pull out the important bits. There were algorithms to pull out inscriptions, spell ribbons, tile patterns, faded mural’s, tapestries and abstract statues, along with a dozen other things. Anything outside of that and the computer needed to be told to look for it, or a human operator needed to find it themselves. Grandmother only remembered now that she never checked the recording to see what the jeweler’s true appearance was.
Grandmother widened her eyes and canceled the enhancement spell, as she realized this might be him. As her intense inspection faded, the selkie image of Do-Fa-Ti reformed over the figure, as the amulet’s cloak reformed. Control did not reassert the don’t notice me spell.
“It is Do-Fa-Ti,” Grandmother reported quietly to Todd. Todd nodded. He held his position on watch by Grandmother and Enchanter. He didn’t like this development.
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They were selling magic books and buying spells. He saw Enchanter give away ‘tiny newcomers’ to the calves. Do-Fa-Ti watched them for an hour or so before giving it up and going over to the inn. He ordered a beer and sat in a back corner. He made a quick trip to the sanitary facility where he could pour the beer out and refill his tankard with water.
He didn’t know what he expected to find the humans doing, but this was a disappointment. That was partly because it was so naive and predictable. Except for the dolls, he saw them do the same thing in Seagrass. The dolls just seemed soft. Did they go to a different square every day? Do-Fa-Ti opened his map to see where he was. They were pretty far from Seagrass, to the south. This square was still in the area considered the frontier by the selkie federation. There were five or six squares closer to Seagrass than this one.
A human sat down at his table. Do-Fa-Ti flicked his map closed, horrified that he’d made the most basic of mistakes and let his guard down. His startled gaze locked on the figure across from him. It was Todd, Irene’s heir.
Todd set a very large naked knife on the stone table between them. He held the haft of a spear with his other hand. The butt of it rested on the ground next to the table. The human cast muffle. Do-Fa-Ti hoped that meant he wanted to talk.
“I don’t like that you are here,” Todd said bluntly.
“I saw your group leaving for three days,” Do-Fa-Ti said in the human tongue. He hoped using Todd’s language would soften the man’s view of him. By the way the warrior's eyes narrowed Do-Fa-Ti could tell he’d misjudged. This was a man who didn’t like deception of any kind. He decided switching back to selkie would only make it worse. “I was curious what you were doing.”
“You could ask,” Todd countered.
“My former profession has left its mark on me,” Do-Fa-Ti admitted.
“Which profession is that?” Todd asked. “Spy or thief?”
Do-Fa-Ti shrugged his shoulders. It was a human mannerism he picked up during his time in Chicago. “Both,” he answered.
“I am not going to kill you now,” Todd said. “Tier five is about making the hard choice, not the easy one. Besides, Grandmother thinks you’re interesting. Next time you get curious about us, ask.” As a tier five Do-Fa-Ti knew he should find this threat from a tier four laughable. He didn’t. There was something about Todd’s certainty that made Do-Fa-Ti question his own ability to come out on top. Todd’s comment about tier five being about making the hard choice struck home with him.
“She killed him, didn’t she?” Do-Fa-Ti asked.
“Who?” Todd asked. The warrior's thoughts hadn’t followed Do-Fa-Ti’s.
“Ian,” Do-Fa-Ti responded. “I always suspected she might have; to stop him from using the ring. Ian was so confident he could talk her around… but then both Ian and Irene were gone. Londontown swept the square and Chicago was untouched.”
Todd fought hard to keep a straight face. He remembered Grandmother's words to him, ‘The love of my life died at Redfalls.’ Redfalls was the only square to be ‘swept’ by Londontown. After that they realized their own protection crystal wouldn’t withstand another similar action. The ring could only be Grandmother’s tier five spell ring of death. She used it on bears during the last migration at Home Square and killed hundreds of them. It sounded like Ian was planning to use it on Chicago. Oh yes, Todd thought to himself, making the hard choice.
“That would be Irene’s business,” Todd said to the not-selkie. “Come along now, we best be getting back. I want Grandmother to know I didn’t kill you.” Todd picked up his large knife and stood. He slipped the knife back into its sheath. He looked pointedly back at Do-Fa-Ti.
“What should I call you?” Todd said. The muffle spell was still active, the non-selkie checked before he answered.
“My name is Valin,” he said, “but you better call me Jeweler.” He rose to his feet and picked up his go pack from the seat beside him.
“Jewel-e-er it is,” Todd said, overlaying the notes of Do-Fa-Ti onto the word, blurring its two syllables into three. Todd dismissed the muffle spell and led the way out of the inn.
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Ellen expressed surprise at seeing her master in Stoneshelf. Jeweler countered with a rambling lecture in selkie about apprentices that did not practice enough. Alex put together another bench from ‘spare parts’ that just happened to be in the bottom of the furniture bag. Jeweler settled in at the back of the book selling stall.
Grandmother accepted the jeweler’s presence without comment. Enchanter was much more curious. When things slowed down in the afternoon, Enchanter moved over to interrogate the not-selkie. Todd smiled at some of the questions the old female asked the jeweler.
Early the next morning when the group stepped out of the transportation room in Home Square for another three day break, Grandmother signaled to Todd that she wanted to talk to him. He followed her up to the queen’s suite.
“Tell me about the jeweler,” Grandmother instructed after sitting on the sofa.
“My mother told me, keep your friends close and your enemies closer,” Todd said, as he took a seat on one of the chairs. She looked thoughtful for a moment. Todd very rarely spoke of his parents.
“That is an old saying from Earth,” she replied. “There is a lot of truth in it. The danger is with proximity comes familiarity and with familiarity comes friendship, with friendship; trust. Do not ever trust him, not with anything that you value, let alone your life. Not now, not in ten years, not in a thousand. He is what I call morally fluid, he will probably hold to our standards while he is with us. He won’t give notice when he stops being ‘with’ us, even if he is physically in the same room at the time. Eventually someone will kill him. If he stays long enough, it will be one of us.
“People like him are a weapon. One we can use or someone else can use against us. You're right about keeping him close, but we need to be careful not to fall into the trap.”
“I’ll remember,” Todd agreed, he was happy to hear Grandmother’s own misgivings about the jeweler. He thought about the things the jeweler said about Irene and Redfalls. It struck him that the only way Valin could know those details was if he was part of the team wanting to use the ring of death on Chicago. He also thought the jeweler might have dropped those hints trying to put a wedge between Todd and Grandmother. Grandmother’s attitude about the jeweler changed after he mentioned being at Redfalls. Todd remembered her saying she would think about who he had been there. Had she figured it out?
“Good,” Grandmother responded. “Now while he is with us, let's try to find out as much about him and his people as we can. We’ll do that by appearing to treat him like anyone else.”
“He told me his name is Valin,” Todd responded.
“An excellent start,” Grandmother replied.