Sammy returned and pounced on Dista, figuratively speaking. She actually still kept around three yards between herself and her two guests at all times. “Dista, you know glyphs, right?”

Dista quirked an eyebrow. “Just what did we do all night last night?”

Sammy ignored him, “Do either of you know how to finger draw them?” Her eyes were bright with excitement.

Dista smiled and nodded.

Sammy squealed and jumped up and down. “Sweet, sweet. You have to teach me how to do it. I’ve only been able to do a few glyphs. Only four. I want to do more. Much, much more.” She stopped bouncing and grinned wide her excitement.

“It seems that this should be your payment for saving us,” Dista said.

Sammy sobered in a moment and glared at him. “Not. This is rent for allowing you in my refuge. You could be hiding in a very unpleasant place right now, just as protected from those preds. If you want to go there, I’ll take you.”

Dista held up his hand in way of defense. “No, that’s alright. So, why don’t you show me one of the glyphs you already know how to finger write.”

Sammy continued to glare at him for a moment. “Fine. But you have to show me some other stuff, or I’ll get mad.”

Dista nodded sagely as Jenna moved off to the side where she could observe. If Sammy tried anything dangerous to her lord, she would not hesitate to act.

Sammy began tracing a pattern in the air before her. Silver lines with varying sub colors glowed in the air. Dista covered his mouth with a horizontal index finger as he concentrated on what the child drew. The pattern was becoming more and more complex.

“What are you creating?” Dista asked under his breath. The glyph’s complexity just kept increasing.

Sammy made one last set of lines with both hands, completing the glyph. The room filled with glaring light, but Sammy cupped her hand under the glyph, her thumb, index and middle fingers raised as if carrying a serving tray. The tips of her fingers and thumb glowed a soft blue and the light from the glyph diminished to a gentle glow.

“This is the glyph used in the sewers,” Sammy grinned, pointing over to one of the lights glowing on the wall. “Cool, huh?” Sammy held her breath waiting for Dista’s evaluation.

Dista nodded as he stepped closer to look. Sammy stood a couple yards away. Dista blinked at her, not sure he had actually seen the movement. She had been here and now was there.

Refocusing on the glyph hovering before him, he said, “This is a rather complex glyph. Who taught you how to do it?”

Sammy shrugged, looking askance at him. He kept trying to get too close to her, she thought. “No one. I figured it out on my own, though I think I got lucky. If I don’t get it right the first time, I can’t figure out how to do them. Stupid glyphs. That’s why I can only do four. I keep trying and trying, but it just doesn’t work.”

Dista leaned forward and began studying the free-floating glyph. He stayed that way for quite some time, so long that Sammy got bored and got Jenna to help her fix dinner.

“Sammy?” Jenna said as she prepared the stove and pot for stew.

Sammy glanced at her, the knife she yielded flashing as she diced carrots. “What?”

“How is it you live like this, down here in the sewers?” Sammy’s knife began dancing through other vegetables. As the silence drew longer, Jenna sighed. “If you don’t want to say, that’s okay.”

“How did you guys get into so much trouble up there?” Sammy said finally.

Jenna quirked a smile. “Lord Dista was sent here to carry out some highly sensitive negotiations. Very secret stuff. There are those who would rather the negotiations fail. They wanted to kill him toward that end.”

Sammy stopped and stabbed the knife into the cutting board. She stared at Jenna for a moment and demanded, “Why would you tell me that? Isn’t it secret? Are you going to have to kill me now?”

Jenna laughed. “You really crack me up, Sammy. I’m sorry. No, nothing of the sort. I think you are exactly what you seem, however unlikely that is. I don’t think you will betray my confidence in you.”

Sammy stared at Jenna for a long moment, not sure what she thought. Finally she escaped into the mundane task of cooking again. Yet her eyes kept angling toward Jenna. The woman was not pressing her to tell her anything. She certainly did not act like a silly adult, let alone a stupid noble.

Dista came out of his contemplation to the smell of beef stew, which went well with the hard rolls Sammy had bought. They ate in a gentle silence.

“My parents were killed by a stupid noble around when I was eight,” Sammy said into the silent meal, startling Dista in mid bite. “Something to do with not liking some cheese or it being spoiled. Something stupid like that. Stupid nobles.” Sammy glared at Dista for a moment, but then looked back to Jenna. “The social service goons let me live with a really nice family for a little while, but then suddenly moved me to some real bastards. I think they didn’t like how good that first family was, probably ‘cause they did things the right way, instead of following some stupid rule or other.” Sammy took a deep breath and continued, “I ran away the first time they beat me half to death. Fortunately, I could hardly walk so they thought I couldn’t get away. Came to this city and got mixed up with the Camp and some other goons. They taught me some stuff and some stuff happened, but I was able to escape after I found this, my refuge.” Sammy indicated the room. “Been here ever since.”

Dista looked back and forth between the two girls, not sure from where this gush of information had come. Still, he knew enough when to keep his mouth shut.

Sammy turned to Dista with narrowed eyes, “You didn’t have anything to do with that cheese thing, did you?”

“Nope,” he said instantly.

Sammy hesitated and then nodded. “Good. Now,” she leaned forward, “teach me some glyphs. Many lots of them.”

Dista snorted. “Well, that matrix you drew.”

“Glyph,” Sammy corrected.

Dista crossed his arms and glared at her. “Matrix. A matrix is a glyph created by combining glyphs, and that is a matrix.” He waited for Sammy to challenge him, but she bit her lip and looked away, blushing. “That matrix contains four glyphs and several control runes, so you should be able to learn those four glyphs easily enough.”

Sammy’s edged backwards. “I don’t want to die, stupid noble. That fiery glyph nearly killed me the first time, and only time mind, that I drew it.” She sprang out of her chair, arms flaying outwards. “KABOOM! It blasted me a thousand feet and incinerated the whole room. Scary!”

Both Jenna and Dista stared at the animated girl, completely torn between laughter at her antics and horror at the mental picture each had of the carnage Sammy described. Dista finally released his own tension with a very loud snort.

“I would not show you how to draw Lsyl without the proper controls,” he said. Jenna gasped at the glyph’s name, the urge to laugh dying away completely. “Lsyl is not something that should ever be used by itself, and you are more than lucky to have survived it, young lady. That is why one should never just experiment with glyphs.”

Sammy crossed her arms and said, “Well excuse me for being curious. It’s not like I didn’t take precautions. I was wearing a full set of fire armor.”

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

Dista hesitated, a little afraid to ask. “What is fire armor?”

“You know, the stuff firemen wear.”

“Ah, yes, that makes sense,” Dista said, little emotion in his voice.

Jenna added, “I’m surprised it was able to hold up against Lsyl.”

Sammy nodded, turning away from Dista, having decided she was mad at him. She unconsciously moved her chair back to the table from where it had skittered off to. “I still have it, Jenna.” She ran over to one of the armoires and pulled out the fireman’s fire suit she had saved. “I was lucky, ‘cause I made it into the water quick enough.”

Jenna and Dista followed her and found themselves staring at the slagged suit, melted fireproof material warped and beaded, all save one anti-heat glyph broken and dead. Sammy looked at the suit with them.

“This is why I never drew that glyph a second time,” Sammy said, sobered for the moment. “I keep it around to remind me to be careful.”

Jenna cleared her throat, touching the hardened material. It should have been as soft as puppy fur. “But you still experiment.”

“Of course!” Sammy practically yelled. “Whose going to teach a homeless little girl to draw glyphs? They would have turned me over to the social service goons, or the Camp would have finished making me into one of their cutthroats. I’m not going back to that bunch of sadistic, know-it-all, I-know-what-is-best-for-you jerks. Neither group.” She stopped and took a deep breath, “And I am going to learn how to draw glyphs. Lots and lots and lots of glyphs.” She struck a pose and pointed at Dista with a flourish. “Show me how to make glyphs safely, stupid noble.”

Dista blinked in surprised shock, a deer caught in a bright beam. Jenna glanced at him and sighed. He had been blindsided and would be in a bad mood for it for days.

“Don’t give me orders, stupid urchin,” Dista finally managed.

Sammy narrowed her eyes and stabbed her finger at him. “Glyphs. Teach. Now. Stupid. Noble.”

“Stop,” Jenna said before Dista could carry on the infantile argument. “Lord Dista, you said you would teach her how to free draw those four glyphs, so stop being difficult.” She turned to Sammy, “And you, stop antagonizing him. He said he would teach you, so you are only making matters difficult.”

Sammy crossed her arms and looked away. After a long moment, she said in a subdued voice, “Sorry.”

Jenna elbowed lord Dista. Grunting, he said, “I am sorry too. Very well, per my word, let us begin.”

The lesson started out tense, but Sammy quickly became engrossed in mastering the techniques involved for drawing air glyphs. Many of the principles made complete sense to her after Dista explained them, and she wondered why she had not thought of them on her own. When she described her own method for drawing the light matrix, Dista pointed out ways she could do it better.

Some time later, Sammy and her two guests sat at a desk, another argument starting between the not-a-noble and the young urchin.

“Why do you insist on calling me stupid,” Dista snapped in response to something Sammy finished off with “stupid noble.” “I had nothing to do with your noble issues.”

Sammy crossed her arms, “I told you before, all nobles are stupid. It’s some kind of curse or disease. I have not been able to figure out which though.”

Dista threw his hands into the air, while Jenna retreated across the room. She was tired of playing babysitter to the two childish idiots. Dista said, “That is absurd.”

“It is not,” Sammy shot back, standing up with her hands on her hips. “Nobles are supposed to take care of the people who live on their lands, right? But what do they do? They tax them so much those people sometimes die of starvation. Stupid. They start minor squabbles or wars over inane, stupid things, like getting a piece of cheese that tastes bad or being called a bad name. Then they send other people, the very people they’re supposed to be protecting, out to do their fighting. Not only stupid, but they kill the best for what they call honor? How can that be called honorable? But they call it that. Stupid.

“I even heard its going on right this very moment. Some stupid nobles are trying to do something like create an alliance with the kingdom of Tajil by forcing one of our princesses, Kikkia I think, and some prince or other to marry, even though they hate each other. Stupid nobles. How is selling Lady Kikkia as a prostitute a good thing?”

“She would be getting married. That is not prostitution,” Dista said, frowning.

Sammy threw her hands into the air, “That’s what I’m talking about, stupid noble. How is forcing her to have sex with that prince whoever as payment for a dumb alliance not prostitution? You just don’t want to call it that because it sounds bad.”

“And you would rather have a thousand or ten thousand soldiers die instead?” Dista demanded.

Jenna sat on her bed, her legs crossed. She watched the two argue, curious why lord Dista was even bothering. She could not get rid of the feeling her lord was up to something where that child was concerned. And not just because he had been pretty clear he was.

“And how is that a forgone conclusion?” Sammy demanded. “It’s not like we’re even close to war with Tajil. They’re friends with Mandora, even if there’s no official alliance, right? Some noble just wants to make it official, by forcing two people who probably hate each other to get married, argue lots and then kill each other so that our countries will hate each other, start another war and kill some more of the best people alive.” Sammy had half crawled over the desk to get into Dista’s face, getting closer than ever before to him.

“That is not going to happen.”

Sammy sat back on her heels, sitting on top of the table. “You might be right, because they’re both stupid nobles and probably won’t think enough to be offended. But that aside, it’s a stupid solution where there’s a much better one.”

“Oh? And what better one would that be?”

“Take over guarding the Artsyl valley for half what Standa is charging,” Sammy said, crossing her arms and looking triumphant at Dista.

Both Dista and Jenna exchanged puzzled looks across the room. “I’m sorry, but I don’t follow. That is like coming out of nowhere, going nowhere. How is that even related to this?” Dista finally said.

“You don’t understand because you are infected with the noble disease.” Sammy paused and looked up at the ceiling, index finger pulling at her lower lip, “or is it a noble curse? I’m really not sure.”

“Sammy, don’t get sidetracked. I’m curious too,” Jenna called from the bed.

Sammy nodded and grinned at Jenna. “It’s simple. The Standa Empire currently guards the Artsyl valley with a full battalion. At least that’s the way the rumor goes. But the valley is claimed by Tajil and they don’t like the Standa forcing their ‘protection’ on them. But the Standa are afraid that the Orgum that the mines there produce will get stolen. But they charge the Tajil twenty percent of the Orgum produced in the valley for their protection and then buy the rest, at a reduced price from what the Artificers Guild charges for it. But the Standa soldiers lord it over the valley people and they hate them. But the Standa are having problems with the Gennam Empire on their eastern and northern boarders and everyone is saying that war is probably right around the corner. And that explains why it would solve our relationship with Tajil.”

Dista let out a long-suffering sigh. “I don’t follow,” he confessed.

Sammy glared at him. “I explained it.”

“Explain it better. Remember, I’m a stupid noble.” Dista relaxed his own defensive stance. He thought he was beginning to see what Sammy meant, but he wanted to hear it from her in more detail all the same.

Sammy threw her arms into the air, “You’re not dumb that way, stupid noble. Fine then. Here. If Mandora talks to Standa and offers to take over guarding the valley, that frees up a full battalion of troops that they need right now to deal with the Gennam problem they’re having. Standa gets to be happy because they get those troops where they need them. It makes Tajil happy because they don’t have Standa soldiers in their precious valley. Since we would only ask for ten percent of the Orgum, Tajil would be able to sell that other ten percent they have been losing for Standa’s ‘protection.’ Again, Tajil is happy. If we station the sixth and tenth divisions in the valley, that would make it even better. That makes both Standa and Tajil happy since the valley is well protected, and then you can just sign a normal alliance treaty without forcing Kikkia into prostitution.”

“Wait,” Dista said, holding up a hand. “Why would using the sixth and tenth make it even better?”

Sammy nodded and grinned. “Astute question, stupid noble. Because the sixth is a small division of highly skilled soldiers. The rumors go that they could probably take out the said Standa Battalion with hardly any loses of their own. That demonstrates that we’re serious about protecting the valley, but also shows that we don’t want to burden the valley with a large number of troops.

“And the tenth is from the western plains. Lots of farmer sons in those divisions, most likely. With the tenth there, we could help with planting and harvest. That would increase the food production of the valley, which makes the valley people happy. They may even start to like having the tenth stationed there, as long as they don’t set a stupid noble over them, and as long as they don’t start being all high and mighty.”

Dista sat back and regarded Sammy. “That does sound interesting, I’ll admit. But it is ripe with difficulties you are not considering. For one, Standa would not be happy at all with the prospect of losing their discount on Orgum. It would take a lot of work.”

“How would it be more work than anything else? I think it’s a good idea,” Sammy said, pouting.

Dista snorted. “In any case, would you please stop calling me stupid.”

“Why?”

“Because I’m not a noble?”

“I don’t believe you,” Sammy declared, turning her head away. She suddenly faced him again. “Get ready, we’re leaving in the morning.”

Dista blinked and Jenna stiffened. “Whoa, abrupt change of direction. I thought we were going to wait until just before the festival,” Jenna said.

“That’s what I had you put into that note. I figure if whoever is out to get you finds out about the note, and since stupid nobles are involved it’s highly likely, then going a few days early will get us surprise.” Sammy nodded firmly. “In any case, we go early tomorrow morning, so get a good night’s sleep.” She struck her favorite pose and pointed at Dista, “And you have to finish paying rent. Just cause I’m getting you there early doesn’t change anything. I’ve only learned how to air draw one of those glyphs.”

Dista settled back, forcing himself to relax. He smiled at the child and nodded his head. “Of course. But you will have to stay with me. I have no intention of living in the sewers any longer than I have to, not that this place doesn’t have its charm.”

“That works for me,” Sammy said, arms crossed and a strange mix of glare and satisfaction on her face. “I have no intention of letting you back in here after you leave.”