Once the kids were safely in our room, and the door was shut and locked, I knelt down and hugged them. I hated having to act callous towards and about them.

“Hey guys. I’m sorry about that. More than you’ll ever know. I’m just doing my best to keep us safe.”

“Were you about to fight him, Mr. Ivor? You got really warm near the end.” Ahte-tan looked quizzically into my face.

“Well, if he attempted to hurt any of us, Blainaut included, I would have made him very aware of what I’m capable of. Nobody hurts my friends. Nobody hurts my family. These are some of the most basic rules I live by.” I had taken a breath to say more, but there was a knock at the door.

“Ivor? It’s Blainaut. May we speak, please?” Blainaut’s voice was muffled by the thick, heavy oak door.

I motioned for the kids to be quiet, and opened the door. “Yes? What’s the matter, Blainaut?” I leaned against the door jamb, arms crossed.

“May I come in, please? I really think we should discuss the next few steps.” I motioned him inside, and took a seat on the bed, which crinkled under my weight.

“Of course. The next few days are going to be busy. It is best that we figure things out now.” Blainaut shut and locked the door, then sat heavily in the only other chair.

“You have impressed, disrespected and terrified Colben. I’ve never seen the likes of it before. Had I not been here, you would have been either attacked in the hallway, been arrested for a fabricated crime, or been set upon by ‘bandits’ either tonight, or on your way out tomorrow.” He wiped a hand down his face. “I’m not sure we won’t be, after all. Best to be on your guard. Colben is a good man, but his patience only goes so far.”

I sighed heavily. This can’t be good for our continued health. “Okay. I’ll make sure to keep an eye and an ear out. Now. About tomorrow?”

Blainaut clapped his hands together. “Yes. Tomorrow. Tomorrow, we deliver the remnants of the pelt to my tailor friend, Oswald Wooljaw. I’m certain he will be pleased to accept it. He might even pay a gold for it. I will see. Trade is brisk here in Gnok.”

“Do you know if Master Colben has a map you could borrow for the evening? I’d like to see more about this world I find myself in. It would be quite handy to have. I can Duplicate it, and we can make notes on our copy.” I reached into my pocket and pulled out the pen I kept there.

Blainaut turned his head to the side. “What is that, Ivor? I’ve never seen anything like it.”

I uncapped the pen, and handed it to him. “This is an ink pen. Inside it is a small chamber filled with ink, and it writes pretty smoothly. Hand it back, and I’ll show you.”

Blainaut returned the pen to me, and I pulled the pack out of the Bag that had my miscellaneous supplies. I dug around in it and presently came up with my notepad. I flipped open to a blank page and started writing a simple sentence.

This is how an ink pen writes. It is very smooth and easy.

Blainaut marveled at this, and I gave him the pen and paper. It took him a moment to learn how to write with it, but he got the knack quickly. “Amazing. And it will write continuously?”

Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

“Well, until the ink runs out, but yes. It will write for quite some time. A brand new pen might last me four or five months.” A sudden thought occurred to me. “I wonder… May I have those back, please?”

Blainaut dutifully returned them, and I started thinking. “Uh-oh. Ivor, I don’t like that look you’re getting. It has led to some amazing things, like your Bag, but it has also been detrimental to your health.”

“No, no. It’s fine. I’m just curious. Has my language ever been written down?” I asked.

“Not to my knowledge. It has been forbidden for centuries, as far as I’ve been told. Why? What hare-brained idea do you have this time?”

“Something that might be useful. Let’s find out.” I took a sheet of paper, and wrote “Conceal from sight.” on it, and stuck it to my chest.

“Was something supposed to happen? What does that say?” Blainaut’s eyebrow quirked up.

“It says ‘Conceal from sight’. I dunno. Maybe I should focus on it?” I closed my eyes and sat there for a moment, focusing on the paper and its words. “Just tell me if anything happens.”

“If something happens, I’ll be glad to speak up.” He crossed his legs at the knee, and leaned his hand on his chin, obviously bored.

I ignored the man, and concentrated once more on the paper, and the words there. Shortly after I started, Blainaut yelped in surprise and started beating me on the chest, breaking my concentration.

“Ow, hey! What did you do that for? I almost had something.” I rubbed the spot he had hit, and my hand came back covered in ash. “Oh. Well. That’s a thing that happened.” I looked at Blainaut. “Did anything else happen?”

“Other than you nearly catching fire, no. There was a bright flash, and the paper began to burn. You’re lucky.” He shook his head, “I’m surprised you’ve not killed yourself by now.”

I laughed heartily. “My mother said much the same thing as I was growing up.”

“Well, there’s a wise woman.” He smiled and chuckled softly. “I honestly don’t know why the Ancient Tongue is forbidden to write, but it is. I think it had something to do with an acolyte destroying an entire academy wing during transcriptions. The legends say he was embroiled in a disagreement with his instructor, who lamented being harsh with the boy shortly beforehand.”

“That’s it. I have it. Hang on a moment.” I tore another page out of the book, and rewrote the sentence with a five minute limit, only this time, I fed the magic into it as I wrote. The paper immediately took on a silvery sheen as I finished. “I think I have it.” My stomach took that moment to protest loudly its emptiness. “Huh. Doesn’t negate or diminish the energy requirements, though. Still, it may be useful at some point to know this.”

We continued to chat about the trip downriver, and how much it may cost, and the length of time it could take. The kids had curled up behind me and fallen asleep. There was boisterous talking and some music being played below us. We looked up, and the sky had begun to dim. At that moment, there was a knock at the door, and I hurriedly put the notebook and pen back into the pack, and the pack back into the Bag, which I hid from view.

A muffled voice came through the door. “Mr. Ivor? I have your dinner here. Along with some fruit pies I made for dessert.”

“Ah. Dinner is here, and it sounds as though Miriam made it.” Blainaut opened the door, only to be greeted by a dagger to his belly.

My eyes widened in shock, as Blainaut fell, clutching at the knife in his innards. The assailant’s eyes grew wide, and he turned to run.

I jumped up, and shouted “HOLD PERSON!” And the man halted, midstride. I rushed to Blainaut’s side, and looked at the wound. It was bad. “Blainaut, this will hurt. A lot. Hold on, please.” I yanked the knife out of him, and slapped my hands onto his belly, and spoke, “Knit flesh, heal wounds, make right.”

Blainaut’s eyes nearly bugged out of his skull and a wordless scream left his mouth. I felt bad for him. I really needed to find a way to keep that from hurting. “Ahte-tan. Help him to the bed. I need to have a word with our would-be assassin.”