Persepera

The 16th of Thargelion

The Year 4631 in the Era of Mortals

Arche met Polybus in the stone passageway outside Hippokrates’s chambers, admiring the architecture of the internal columns. The dark-haired man held a guarded expression, much of his earlier levity gone. With an inclination of his head, he indicated Arche to follow, then left. The path out seemed even more convoluted than the path in. A strange energy filled the air, tense and shifting. Arche checked behind him, but the passage seemed to change when he wasn’t looking. Perhaps it was more protection for the old man, perhaps it was simply the building’s nature. The Lyceum itself was a maze of architecture. To call it stone was not justice. The Lyceum’s walls were smooth and hard, a soft white with dark striations.

“What is this?”

Arche ran a hand over a section of wall. It was smoother than he expected, barely any friction to it, but it was as solid as a mountain.

“Reinforced marble. The entire building is made of it.” Pride was heavy in Polybus’s voice; the stuff must have been expensive.

“Seems difficult to work with.”

“I’m sure it was, but this place was ancient long before I arrived.”

“Oh?” Arche did his best to keep his burning curiosity from showing. “How old is it?”

“Hard to say, exactly. It’s claimed to have been built in the last era, before the cataclysm and ensuing apokalypsis.”

Arche stopped walking.

“I’m sorry, the what?”

Polybus turned and raised an eyebrow.

“Oh, are you unfamiliar with Tartarus’s history?”

Arche stared at him, wide-eyed.

“Very.”

“Hm, shame. There is a reason I’m in the asklepieion and not teaching academics, but here’s the simple version. At the beginning of this era, some four-and-a-half thousand years ago, there was a great flood, the cataclysm, that destroyed much of the world as we knew it. It destroyed most of the records of the previous era, so what knowledge remains is limited and highly guarded. When the waters receded, new lands and new people were left behind. Cultures that had never existed in Tartarus before were everywhere. Thus, the apokalypsis.”

“I don’t follow. Why does new people make an apocalypse?”

“The wars, for starters. Each addition added knowledge that Tartarus didn’t have before, but it wasn’t a peaceful transfer. It seemed all of Tartarus was plunged into conflict, for a time. Kingdoms rose, alliances forged, but each was quick to fall apart. We are in an uneasy peace, currently, but it is only a matter of time before the fighting begins again.”

“What caused all of it?”

“That’s difficult to say. Herodotos, our head historian, believes that there were once powerful rulers that held dominion over Tartarus, but some outside force either killed them or locked them away. What ensued was the natural result of a power vacuum, but the absence of these rulers was so profound that it dawned a new era.”

“And the Lyceum existed before all of that?”

Hippokrates had claimed to be even older. Four thousand years…the thought was unfathomable.

“So it’s said. Personally, I don’t know. All of that happened a long time ago. I prefer to focus on the present and the future.”

“What’s in the present and future for me?”

“Several things, depending on your wishes. First and foremost, however, aid has been requested and rendered, and so payment is in order.”

Arche hesitated before answering.

“I don’t have a lot of money on me, right now.”

Polybus laughed.

“You have time to pay, Arche. Ten days’ time, specifically.”

“Two weeks still seems a rather fast turnaround. What do I owe you?”

Polybus ran a hand through his dark hair.

“A complex and delicate procedure requiring two aides, more than three hours of work, and two bottles of anesthetic.” Polybus counted the items off on the fingers of his left hand, while the fingers of his right waggled in silent calculation. “I imagine it will be about a thousand drachmae.”

Arche choked.

“A thousand?” he repeated weakly.

His grasp of currency in Tartarus was still tenuous at best, but from his very basic understanding, that price was about what a skilled tradesman made in a few years.

“Each, though I may be forgetting to factor some things. Never fear, it need not all be paid at once. One of the secretaries can draw up a contract detailing a payment plan.”

Arche was at once immensely grateful for Odelia and her clinic.

“How long does it normally take a person to pay off a debt like that?”

“A long time.” Polybus shook his head. “Years, generally. A word of advice: don’t just make the minimal payments. That barely covers the interest.”

“Why is it so expensive?”

“The training required is quite extensive. It takes years to become a physician. Decades to improve biomancy to a degree to even perform the operation given to you. Not to mention compensation for time, use of facilities, the overhead the asklepieion takes, and the not-inexpensive anesthetic potions required for the procedure.”

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

“It still seems exorbitant. Almost extortionary.”

“It’s not a perfect system,” Polybus admitted. “But it is the one that was set in place. I have no control over the cost, I’m simply a physician. The prices are set by the Lyceum, which is directed by a council. Not even Hippokrates could budge them on this. It’s not all bad, though. You get the best medical care this side of Tartarus.”

“And work the rest of your life paying for it.”

“The Lyceum cares for its own interests first and foremost. Tell me, what do you think the average tuition per term is for a student?”

“I wouldn’t know.”

“A sponsored student is required to pay a price of forty drachmae for a two-month term. An unsponsored student can pay one-hundred-eighty for the same term.”

Arche’s jaw dropped.

“That’s insane. Who could afford that?”

“Scholarships are available to ease the price. Jobs are available at the Lyceum to help students pay off the weight of their tuition. Moneylenders in the city are all too happy to help desperate students make the last few drachmae to get into the next term. Some of the traveled students have been given money by their entire town to attend, with the promise that they will bring their newly learned arcane skills back for the betterment of their society. They say it takes a village to raise a mage.”

Arche let the magnitude of that sink in. He was still mulling it over when Polybus led him into a room filled with writing desks and shelves of rolled papyrus. Polybus walked up to a desk with a sky elf woman seated behind it. Half circle spectacles hung on a narrow nose in front of eyes that were a dark blue with no iris or pupil. Her skin was pale with a light blue sheen and her black hair was plaited and braided in exotic designs all over her head. She wore a simple, orange dress that highlighted the blue of her skin and eyes, but the lack of ornamentation did nothing to stifle the sheer air of regality that the woman carried in her posture. Seeing her reminded Arche of Cora. This was likely what the Ranger aspired to be.

“Polybus.” She tasted the name slowly, as though she hadn’t quite determined if she liked it. “You’re up late.”

Arche glanced sideways at a window letting in the sun. By the angle of the shadows, it looked as though it was either nearing or shortly after midday. He’d been up the entire night.

“There was a late procedure last night, Lapisallia. We’ve come for billing.”

The elf woman nodded once, then wetted her stylus in ink and waited for Polybus to continue. He detailed the procedure down to the last minutia, each of which was recorded and tallied. At the end, she turned the document over and held out the stylus to Arche.

“Total amount owed equals one-thousand-four-hundred-seventeen drachmae and five obols. Interest on the debt compounds at three percent monthly. Your signature shows that you understand the details as I have read them to you and agree to pay at least the minimum price of two drachmae, three obols, two weeks from now and every two weeks hence until your debt is paid or forgiven by authorized Lyceum officials. Please sign on the line. If you are unable to sign, we will accept your fingerprint signed in ink.”

The woman’s voice was flat, as though she read from a script and was tired of reciting it. Arche took the stylus and dipped it into the ink as he’d seen her do. He placed it against the parchment and began to sign. The ‘A’ came easily, but when he moved on to the next letter, his hand jerked, forming a sign that looked more like an ‘L’ than an ‘R.’

“Sorry, not used to writing,” he mumbled, then struck through the botched signature and signed next to it, taking care to not let his hand slip again.

Lapisallia did not remark on the signature. Instead, she retrieved the stylus and papyrus from Arche and set the latter aside to dry.

You have sworn an Oath to pay your debt to the Lyceum Apokryfos.

Current debt: 1,417DR, 5OB

Minimum Payment: 2DR, 3OB Tennightly

Interest: 3% Monthly (Compound)

“The document is magical in origin, as is the ink. You are bound to the debt you owe. Do not attempt to circumvent these bindings. If you need assistance in paying, please reach out to the department. Thank you, have a nice day.”

With that, Lapisallia dropped her gaze back to her parchment stack and promptly ignored him.

“You, too,” Arche replied, more than a little uncertain. He turned back to Polybus. “What now?”

Polybus smiled and gestured toward the door.

“Your friends left some time ago. You’re welcome to wait for them to return. Additionally, if you’re interested in joining the Lyceum, I can show you to the Admissions Hall.”

Arche entertained the idea for a moment – but it was only a moment. That decision, while enticing, had already been made. It wasn’t in the cards for him. Not now, at any rate, and certainly not at their prices.

“Thank you, but no. Do you have a map of the city I could have? Or give me directions?”

“Certainly. Where are you staying?”

“I’d like to see the map first, if you don’t mind. I don’t quite remember the name.”

Polybus nodded and led the way deeper into the Lyceum. Arche felt bad for lying, but after his run-in with the Hekatonkheires, he had no desire to share where he was staying with anyone. He didn’t think Polybus would sell him out, but he also didn’t know the man.

They came to a cozy looking office with several diagrams of anatomy hung around the walls. Arche was surprised at the complexity and level of detail as muscles and nerves were displayed and named in fabric stitching. Polybus crossed to the other side of the desk and took out a scroll of papyrus. Unfurling it to show a map of the city. Arche ran a finger along one edge, inspecting the craftsmanship.

Map of Ephyra

Rarity: Uncommon

Quality: Excellent

Durability: 3 / 3

Weight: 0.1 kilograms

Traits: Interactable

“It’s a beautiful map,” Arche said. “Shouldn’t it read ‘Ship’s Shape,’ though?”

“‘Ship’s Shape’ is what foreigners and the uneducated call it. Ephyra is the city’s ancestral name.”

“I fucking knew it!”

“Beg pardon?”

“Sorry, that was rude. Is the map for sale?”

“I couldn’t rightfully sell it. It was a practice map drawn up by one of our students. Consider it a gift.”

“Thank you, I appreciate it.”

Arche picked up the map and was met by a notification.

You have obtained an interactable map for the location you are currently in.

Display map?

Yes

No

Arche indicated yes and the map disappeared into his inventory. In front of his eyes, the map displayed the entire city, with a small icon indicating his location inside an enormous building labeled ‘Lyceum Apokryfos’ in delicate calligraphy. As he blinked it away, it resized itself into a translucent circle in the corner of his vision, unobtrusive unless he focused on it.

“This is amazing. Thanks!”

“You’re quite welcome. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I am quite exhausted from my shift and need to sleep before my next one starts. Turn right down the hall and at the end you will find the asklepieion’s waiting room. From there, you may leave the Lyceum and go wherever you wish.”

“Thank you for all your help, Polybus. You gave me back my eyes, I won’t forget that.”

“I should imagine not. Farewell, Arche. Take care of those eyes! They may be healed, but they will still require care.”