47 – Dangerous visits

Lisette smiled at that. Ishrin was right to worry that she might have killed Goddard again, and she was very giddy to instead surprise him by telling him the opposite. She had realized how important the man’s redemption had been, at least to Ishrin, and thus she had adapted her behavior. Truly a masterful insight and capacity to adapt.

“I did not.” She said, a hint of a smile on her face. “I have no qualms with him. He had some information for you: he said that he overheard the guild master talking about the fact that a certain Dynasty is coming. I tried to ask him for more information, but a strange event happened and almost everybody was called back into the guild to prepare for an imminent attack. It was very strange indeed, because when I left Noctis I found nothing outside that could indicate an attack was coming.”

“I might have caused it.” He said dismissively, “did a little experiment.”

Lisette nodded. “That would explain the magic density anomaly. We might want to move camp before the prospectors from the guild arrive. They were being dispatched as I left town.”

“Okay. Anything else?”

“That is all.”

Ishrin hummed. Lisette was not sure what he was thinking right then, but she had a feeling that what she told him had made him change his mind about something important. He seemed to consider the next course of action carefully, frowning and corrugating his brows in deep thought. As she stood looking at him, she felt like she was back in the mountain right before disaster struck. She felt naked, as if a thick protective shell had been pulled away from her without her noticing, and her gaze settled on Ishrin’s eyes. They were not as strong and full of conviction. They were uncertain. That’s when she realized something about people that seemed to apply to herself as well: often times, when a powerful or charismatic figure emerged from the crowd of faces you encountered every day, you would be drawn to them like a moth to a flame. Seeking something from them. Reassurance. Protection.

Times were turbulent, and her flame had been snuffed not once, but twice. Her gaze settled on Melina next, and Lisette found her target was not as distracted as she had thought, but that Melina was instead looking right back at her. The two locked eyes for a moment before they both broke the stare simultaneously. Deep in the back of her mind, though, she was still tracking Melina’s movements, scared that the woman might once again snuff the protective flame Lisette had not even realized she was following.

Ishrin came to a conclusion. He did not like it, but sometimes things needed to be done even though they did not appear rational at all. He had to see for himself, investigate this dynasty affair that had spread so wide as to even catch Goddard’s ears before it could turn into something dangerous. He knew it was not rational behavior, and knowing about the thing would not change much about their plans. Even though they had not talked about it yet, he knew what they needed to do: go as far away as possible from Guild influence and gain power quickly before they were found.

Still. He felt the tug of need in his mind, and he knew he would not rest easy until he had more information. Thus, he informed the rest of his party about a crazy plan to enter town under the disguise of a ritual that should hide him from Syrma’s gaze, at least when he coupled it with the most powerful concealing spell he could cast.

There was pushback, as expected, which he handled swiftly and deftly. He had been appointed the de-facto party leader, at least for the moment, and he could resort to orders if he had to. What he did not expect, was for the problem to be of another nature entirely.

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Melina had pulled Ishrin away, talking to him in a whisper.

“I don’t think it’s a good idea.” She said. “To leave us two alone.”

“Why not?”

“She… hates me. How am I supposed to bond with her like that? She won’t talk to me, Ishrin. She—”

“She needs time. That’s all. She will forgive you.”

“You think so?” Melina asked, wide-eyed. She looked on the verge of tears.

“She is more than capable of forgiving you. At least rationally, it’s just that… she doesn’t have the emotional maturity to deal with the feelings part of it all. She is struggling, much more than you think. But she is growing.” Ishrin said.

***

Goddard was minding his own business in the small garden behind the guild. As a Tier 4 now, he was by all means a respectably powerful adventurer, however in Noctis all common sense seemed to have disappeared ever since Ishrin came to town, and even worse still after Syrma took Melina’s place as guild master. This meant that he was just another random guy, invisible and unnoticed.

“Heyyyyyy, Goddard!” A voice made him yelp, and he turned around in a hurry to see Ishrin’s shadow leap out of a wooden barrel and land beside him. It was his shadow, and the shadow only, as if the rest of the body was transparent or missing altogether.

“Ishrin! Gods!”

“Sorry. Oh, look! You lost weight! You bought new armor! Tier 4! What have you done to your life man, are you back on the straight and narrow for real?”

Goddard frowned, not knowing where to look to speak to Ishrin. “I have to thank you for that.”

“Well then you are welcome, my friend.” Ishrin said from behind Goddard, making the man spin around feeling like a moron.

“Why are you like this?” Goddard asked.

“I’m undercover.” Ishrin whispered. “So, you told Lisette about a… dynasty? What is it? She wasn’t really able to explain well, can you please give me some intel?”

Goddard shrugged. “I know only of the name of Dynasty, and I know for a fact that one is coming. I don’t know what it is, or what it means for us.” He said, after which he muttered something along the lines of not like she cared to ask. “All I know is that whenever that name is mentioned, trouble follows. I am seriously thinking about moving to a less dangerous town, Ishrin. I was waiting for you, and I swore that if you didn’t show up for another day or two, I would have gone without saying goodbye.”

Ishrin hummed. “I think it’s a great idea. Yeah. Move to another place, start anew.”

“Yeah.”

“But,” Ishrin’s presence was suddenly solid. “If you fall into your old habits…” he appeared and slid a finger down Goddard’s throat, an icy finger that felt like the steel of a sword. Before Goddard could gulp Ishrin was gone again.

“Ishrin?” Goddard called, but nobody answered.

***

The second stop was a more pleasant, and definitely less dangerous place. It didn’t meant it wasn’t without risk, though, and in fact Ishrin expected surveillance to be high and hidden. It didn’t let it bother him too much. He was here, sunk cost fallacy and all, and it would leave a bitter taste in his mouth not to cover all angles.

The little bell on top of the door jingled. From behind a small door that led to the back of the shop a raspy voice yelled.

“One moment, ye hear? Oh, it’s you! Tristan, right?” Dwymer said, adjusting his goggles.

“Ishrin.”

“Same thing. Where’s your flying friend?”

“She’s… not here.”

The dwarf didn’t miss a beat. “Ya got new armor, don’t ya? Let me see…”

The dwarf leaped over the counter and went to examine Ishrin’s armor as he still was wearing it, circling around him while mumbling and muttering to himself, adjusting his goggles every now and then.

“It’s enchanted.” He said with a huff. “Where did ya get it?”

“Curious?” Ishrin asked.

The dwarf shrugged. “Nah.”

“Okay then. Onto business.”

“Ya didn’t buy it nowhere in Noctis I can tell ya. Where did you go?” asked the dwarf.

“So you are interested!”

“Nah.”

“Admit it or I won’t say it.”

Dwymer grumbled. “Fine. This is some mighty well-made armor, enchanted to perfection. I can’t even tell what the enchantments are on it yet, but I reckon these are pretty powerful. I want to know who made it and meet them.”

“I can tell you, but I want information in return.” Ishrin said.

“Sure. It’s not like it costs me anything.”

“I made it.”

Silence. Only after several seconds did Dwymer speak again. “You ain’t shittin me. Are you?”

Ishrin shook his head.

“Fine, then, lad. You got me. Won’t happen again. What do you want to know?”

“Tell me about what’s happening in town. There seems to be a lot more… queer stuff going on here than last time I was around. Isn’t there?”

The dwarf sighed. “You have no idea…”