The next morning Samantha made her way to All the Fixin’s where she met up with Aiden and his father, Jacob. There, Aiden showed her some shoes that were modified to be training aids for new couriers. As he had instructed her to do the previous day, she offered to do favors for Jacob in lieu of paying in coin, but Aiden waved her off.
“Since he’s my pa, I’ll take on the debt as if I’m the one buying. This means you’ll be getting the friends and family discount! I’ll just add it on to what you’ll owe me for the job.” he explained, smiling cheekily.
Samantha didn’t love the idea of adding additional debt to the ambiguous amount she already was accruing with Aiden, but she agreed for the time being.
Once the bargain was struck Jacob took away her current shoes–now filthy and worn from walking around the slums and Aiden’s training–and gave her a fresh pair in her size. Samantha turned them over in her hands and admired the obvious craftsmanship and hard work that went into the flat cloth shoes. She noticed immediately that the soles were covered with the skin of a Sharout–a common catch in the river near the city. The scales were uniquely fine, tough, and textured so that they easily stuck and gripped to other surfaces. She had seen the skin used in weapon grips before, but would have never thought to put them on the soles of her shoes before today.
After donning the new shoes Aiden told her to practice at the training grounds until she had either mastered the jumps he had shown her yesterday or was too tired to continue. Just before he was about to start his day of running packages, Samantha stopped him.
“Wait! I still want to go to the under market. Can you tell me how to find it and how to get in?”
“So soon? Figures. Well, it is technically part of our deal so… pa! Can you bring out a shopping mask?” Aiden shouted towards the back of the shop where his father was working. He looked back to her and spoke in a conspiratorial whisper, “Don’t worry, I’ll just put the cost of the mask on your growing tab.”
Before Samantha could respond, Jacob emerged with some sort of helmet the likes of which Samantha had never seen before. The face structure was similar to some of the traditional theater masks that performers sometimes wore during plays, but completely blank and without any of the decorative expressions painted on. In addition, instead of being attached to the face with a strap going around the back of the head, there was a seam that separated the faceplate from the back that could be opened and closed with a latch and hinge system. Samantha couldn’t quite place the material that it was made of, but the surface was smooth, matte, and light gray in color.
Jacob handed her the object without fanfare and returned to the back to continue his work.
Samantha looked to Aiden, “At what point do I wear this when going to visit the market? Do I walk through The Gutter wearing this… or…?”
“Some people do. It depends how anonymous you want to be. I’ll show you where some of the entrances are before you start training so you know where to go. When you buy an admittance token, don’t let the guards rip you off. If they think you’re new or you look rich, they’ll try and pull one over on you. I’ve seen tokens go for as cheap as a few coppers, but definitely not more than 50.”
“Got it.” Samantha affirmed, “Will buying certain items get me in trouble with Enforcers or anything?”
“You sure have a lot of questions,” Aiden lightheartedly complained, “You don’t have to worry about Enforcers unless they catch you with something obviously stolen–stuff with family crests on them, for example. The market pays for Enforcers to stay out of the waterways when it’s active.”
“And when exactly is it active?”
“It’ll be open late tonight and close sometime before sunrise.”
With their brief discussion concluded, Aiden pointed out the various entry points to the waterways on a weathered map of the city that was hanging nearby on the shop wall. She carried the helmet under her arm for now and mentally marked down one location that tickled her memory, resolving to go there once night fell.
That still left her with several hours of free time, though. So, she did as Aiden suggested and practiced at the training grounds as long as she could before needing to relax her aura compression. After a couple hours of rest, she returned to the grounds for a second round of training. The new shoes made a noticeable difference in her maneuverability, but she was still unable to perform the toughest techniques Aiden had shown her as flawlessly as he had. Though she couldn’t train as hard as she wanted, she still felt herself making progress. Even if she didn’t improve her Agility, the new ways she was learning to move would let her push the attribute further than before.
After returning to her base a second time, the sky had darkened considerably. By the time she had rested enough for another session of stealthing, it was time to depart for the market. Unsure of what she might find and purchase while there, she emptied her bag so she could take it with her.
She donned the blank mask and latched it around her head. It fit well, sitting close to her skin but not too constricting on the various features of her face. Since it fully enclosed her head, it inhibited [Prey’s Perception] somewhat, but not as much as she would have expected. The wide eye-holes allowed her to keep most of her range of vision, and small cut outs by the ears left her hearing only minorly muffled. It was a fair trade-off for the anonymity it offered her.
Following her mental map to one of the places Aiden had noted earlier, she came upon a familiar alley with three hooded figures standing near the center. On her first day here, she had come across this location while exploring the area around her base. At the time she had overheard a group of men discussing some questionable activities, but had to leave before risking being discovered. This time, however, she openly approached the group with an easy confidence that she hoped would prevent them from trying to rip her off with the entrance fees.
The three turned to look at her, and she decided to act first, “I need a token and directions to the location tonight.”
The largest held out a hand wordlessly.
Making a complete guess at what would be appropriate payment, she counted out 12 copper pieces and placed them in his hand. He grunted after confirming the amount she paid, and passed her a carved wooden coin with the image of a River Lotus on its face. The wood surface was somewhat shiny, suggesting that it had passed through many hands over the years and had been polished smooth by people’s touch. On the backside, there was some strange symbol etched in that was not any form of writing she recognized. Perhaps some sort of code?
The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.
Two of the guards proceeded to lift the metal grate up from the ground so that she could descend into the waterways, while the man who took her money gave directions.
“Go straight ahead then take your third right. From there, follow the green torches until you reach the guarded doorway.” he said in a bored and gravelly tone, and then gestured to the open hole in the ground. He seemed somewhat impatient to be rid of her, so she didn’t bother wasting his time with words of thanks.
The pit was not large, maybe 3 feet in diameter, but it was more than wide enough for her to fit through. A rope ladder extended 10 feet or so into the darkened waterways, and she could hear the sound of gently flowing water coming up from below. As she descended, the guards refitted the grate over the opening above her, sealing her inside the passage.
The waterways were exactly what she expected them to be like, apart from the occasional qi-powered torch that lit the path. Carved out of the earth and lined with stone, small streams of runoff from the rains flowed at the bottom of the tunnel’s curvature. Various mosses and algae grew in the cracks and crevices that were frequented by moisture, and sometimes a rat would cross her path and look up at her with curiosity–too used to seeing humans to be wary, she supposed.
She followed the instructions diligently, and before long found herself in front of the aforementioned doorway. Upon approaching the guard, he held out a hand and she put the lotus token in his palm. Checking it over for a moment, he tossed the token into a nearby bucket.
“No cheating. No stealing. No killing.” he said, then opened the door.
The door smoothly swung inwards away from her, and she was blasted by the chaotic sounds of shouts, cheers, and overlapping voices. Stepping inside to get a better look, the door closed behind her.
A cacophony of hoots and jeers rang out though the space to her left as some sort of fight broke out from a group nearby. A man and a woman, both cultivators based on their aura, were throwing blindingly fast punches and kicks in the center of a small circle of onlookers. Other patrons walked around the scene without giving it much of their attention, as if nothing was more mundane than some cultivators duking it out in the middle of the walkway. That is, until the woman released a violent wave of killing intent, which quickly cleared the space.
A cultivator wearing a dark red cloak with a white River Lotus embroidered on the left shoulder began making their way over, but the fight was over almost as quickly as it began. The man used an art to deliver a bone-breaking blow to the woman’s midsection and she crumpled to the ground, coughing blood through the mouth slit in her mask. With a final kick, the man returned to his business and the onlookers dispersed. Seeing the danger of a larger fight pass, the red-cloaked guard returned to their original position near a supporting pillar. Samantha caught sight of several people exchanging money–as if they had quickly bet on the outcome of the fight.
“Oi, get out of the entranceway!” a gruff man snarled as she was unexpectedly shoved from behind. She turned to look at the rude person after recovering her footing, but he had already disappeared into the crowd. Standing off to the side so as not to be in anyone else’s way, she took in the room to try and get her bearings.
She was surprised to find such a large, open space in the waterways. The room was at least a hundred feet wide and was filled with throngs of masked patrons shopping at the many colorful merchant stalls. The temporary shops were haphazardly set up throughout the space, making the pathways through the market look less like neat rows and more like meandering wildlife trails.
Another bout of loud cheering drew her attention to the center of the room. A ring of wooden bleachers packed full of spectators shouted down at something she couldn’t see in the center. Now that she was looking at it, she realized that this one area accounted for most of the noise in the market. As curious as she was about what was going on inside the ring, she decided to leave it alone for now. She wanted to get some shopping done first.
Browsing through all the stalls she could as she walked, she found it hard not to get distracted by the sheer variety of wares. Trinkets, charms, qi art manuals, exotic pets, qi-forged weaponry, raw crafting ingredients, imported materials that were impossible to get from around Yivesh… so many things drew her eye and demanded her attention. There was a fair amount of counterfeit technique books and worthless knick knacks being sold by peddlers as well, but her merchant-trained eyes could tell that most products at the stalls were legitimate. Of greatly varying quality, but legitimate nonetheless.
“You there! Miss! In the blank mask!” an unfamiliar man called out to her, and Samantha turned in his direction.
“You’ve got a lucky streak about you--I can tell! What do you say to a little game huh? I’ve got all sorts! If you don’t know how to play, the first round is free and I’ll show you the ropes. Cheap bets with good payouts after that too, it’s a good deal!” he beamed, waving her over to a small table he sat at with various cards and tokens scattered across the surface.
Samantha gave a non-committal ‘maybe later’ as a response, before making a beeline for a stall with a banner which read ‘Cultivation Aids’ above it. As soon as she stepped within 10 feet of the stall, all the busy sounds from the rest of the market seemed to mute and become distant. She paused, wary at the sudden change, when the shopkeep laughed at her hesitation.
“First time visiting my shop? I’m using a silencing enchantment to make business a bit easier to conduct. It’s hard to bargain while trying to out-shout the arena crowd, no?” the woman asked, pointing out a crystal-ball looking item in the corner of her stall.
“Yes. It’s quite nice, having a bit of quiet after coming in from all that.” Samantha admitted, motioning generally behind her to the bustling room.
“Wonderful! So, what are you looking for today? I’ve got a little something for everyone, and at virtually every price point, so I’m positive we can strike a deal.”
Samantha had debated on what she should be shopping for before she came. She had originally come to the slums with 1 silver piece and 50 coppers that Thomas had loaned her. She had spent 3 coppers for information from Ol’ Man Whisper, and 12 to get into the market which left her with 1 silver 35 coppers to spend. Considering that a premium cultivation elixir could cost up to several gold, with the poorest quality products in reputable shops going for a single silver, she didn’t expect that she could actually buy much. Still, it didn’t hurt to look.
“I’m interested in the cheapest cultivation aids you sell, if you could point them out to me?” Samantha asked.
The professional woman asked no questions nor showed disdain that she wasn’t a big spender. She promptly dipped down out of sight to sift through some items behind the stall and pulled out three separate vials. In two of the vials were pills, while the third held a brownish-liquid.
Going from left to right, the woman explained, “20 coppers for this pill to increase your qi compression rate for a short time. 50 coppers for this pill to increase your qi compression rate even further. Two silver for an elixir that’ll make opening a new meridian easier.”
“I’m interested, but I’d like to see more of the market before committing. How long will you be set up here tonight?”
The merchant nodded amicably and placed the items back into the stall, “I’ll be here all night, until others start tearing their stalls down as well. I have multiple duplicates of each item, but these cheaper ones often sell out quickly, so don’t be away for too long!”
Waving goodbye to the woman, Samantha went back the way she came, seeking out the man who tried to call her over to his gambling table earlier. Even though these aids were relatively affordable, they would still take a large chunk out of her current funds. She would see what the gambler had to offer, and might take a chance on some of the games if she felt she had a decent shot at winning. After all, the night was still young. Maybe she’d come out of here a bit richer than before.