I've learned a great deal about living life over these last seven decades. I would contend that battles are best left behind, foes are best left buried, and friends are best never forgotten.
-Basen Koh, unprompted
Reid didn't see Leah, Trace, or the mysterious Darrel when he returned to the Dusk Guild or before he left in the morning. The great battle in the arena was tomorrow, and Trace was no doubt busy with the final preparations. He would meet Leah later in the day to plan their outing. Despite the time it meant away from solving the Immaculate Collection's debt crisis, Reid looked forward to it.
Reid stopped by the merchant's guild first. The lobby was empty, except for a new face at the reception desk. The man asked Reid for his name and membership before he got on the lift.
"Got it. Thanks, Mr. Aveno. I just have to check anyone I don't recognize."
"Not a problem."
It was early, and the second floor was nearly empty. A few guild officials were setting up near the large notice boards, but the crowds of merchants were absent. The corva, Tassis, was in the same spot Reid had seen them yesterday, reading a book.
"You there," a sharp voice called as he walked toward the back notice boards.
Reid turned and found Tassis looking right at him. Reid pointed at himself, and the corva nodded. Reid walked over, and the bird-like person stood and bowed. Reid didn't remember this from his pamphlet on non-human races, but he bowed in kind, figuring it was a custom.
"Greetings, young human," Tassis said. The voice was still sharp but didn't sound angry or offensive. "I am Tassis. I couldn't help but notice you here yesterday with Kenagavis. Has he taken an apprentice?"
Reid shook his head. Part of him really wanted to apprentice for Kenagavis. Sure, he worked for Basen in a shop, but the orkenna had more merchant related experience than Reid could hope for. Maybe he'd ask. He could apprentice and work in the shop, right?
"A pleasure to meet you, Tassis. I'm Reid Aveno. You can call me Reid. No, Kenagavis is just a friend. I joined the guild yesterday, and he was helping me get my bearings."
Tassis clicked their beak. Reid had no idea what that meant, so he didn't react to it.
"I see, I see. Kenagavis is a good friend to have...a good friend indeed. What brings you to the guild so early, Reid? I don't often see members on the trade floor so early in the day."
Reid didn't want to share his predicament with everyone. He trusted Kenagavis, but he didn't know Tassis aside from the brief description he'd heard. Reid figured letting a powerful merchant know about his struggling business wasn't a great idea.
"I'm checking out the wanted item postings before work. I expect you'll see me doing that most mornings."
Tassis nodded. "Might I ask where you work?"
"You can, but I wouldn't mind if you told me a little bit about yourself first," Reid said with a smile.
Tassis' beak snapped with a click once more. "I see why Kenagavis took an interest in you. A deal then? I'll share, and then you share?"
Reid nodded.
"A deal struck! Come, sit on my bench."
They both sat, and Tassis put a feathered hand under their chin. The corva's arms were covered in feathers, but they didn't have wings. Instead, the arms were proportionally like Reid's own, with a five fingered hand. Instead of fingernails, Tassis had small talons, but the difference fit their appearance.
"I am Tassis, one of the few traders from Corvas. Do you know much of my homeland and my people?"
Reid shook his head. "Only some things I've heard in stories."
"Hmm. Stories are not a bad way to pass information, but they are filled with half truths and exaggerations. My people are not traditionally traders. We have a history of war, strife, and brutal feuds for power. That changed only in the last two centuries or so. The Horse Lords asserted control of Corvas and created a government that has thus far persisted. It isn't perfect, but it is better than what we had.
"Once we were no longer on a path of self destruction, it became apparent that we needed to connect with the other civilizations and races of the world. To that end, several orders were created. One of these is the Corvas Trade Consortium. You can think of it as similar to this guild, but our members are businesses rather than individuals. I was appointed trade ambassador to Avennia. I am not technically a guild member, but as the trade ambassador for my nation, I have been given special privileges. I come here and trade on behalf of all of Corvas."
That explained how they were so powerful. Tannis represented countless businesses back in Corvas.
"I won't dive into the details, but I get word from my people about desired goods, and I find them. My people benefit, the Avennish trade network benefits, and your King and the Lords of my country maintain a favorable disposition toward one another."
That was much more information than Reid had expected. He guessed Kenagavis had been right. Merchants do love to chat.
"That's incredible. It must be satisfying to do so much for your people."
"It is, it is. What of you, Reid? I know your people, but what drives you, and what do you do now?"
"I'm not from New Avennia, though I am Avennish. My hometown is a small mining village on the border with Urish between the southern mountains and the Broken Swamp. I came here to follow my dreams. I'm doing great, honestly. I wanted to be a merchant, and I've found a job and just joined the merchant's guild. I guess there's not much else to say. I'm working at the Immaculate Collection right now."
"The Immaculate Collection..." Tannis said, eyes lost in thought. "The name sounds familiar, but I can't place it."
"We're a magic item shop west of the Grand Market. Basen Koh opened it last year."
Tannis squawked and jumped up, taking a step back.
"You work for the Scourer?"
Now, that was a new one.
"Basen? I didn't know who he was before I started working for him. I haven't heard him called that, though."
Tassis regained their composure, brushing their tunic and unruffling their feathers.
"Excuse my reaction. It is childish. I know he is known as a great hero in your country. In my country, he is...I don't know the word in your language. He is the subject of stories that mothers tell their children when they want them to behave."
"Huh. Like a bog lurker? My mom always used to tell me if I didn't stay in sight, a bog lurker might get me. Or if I didn't behave, she'd send me to live with the bog lurkers. Those might have been real threats, though."
"I don't know this, but it sounds right. Years ago, there was some crisis on our southern coast. Our countries were new allies, and your King sent the Scourer to help. It is not spoken of, but stories of his terrible power are whispered through our culture. These stories are given great weight when visiting the remains of that coastline and seeing the destruction wrought. He helped us, but he is still a feared individual among my people."
Reid relaxed a little. He'd been worried that Basen had participated in some atrocity against the corva, but it sounded like he'd helped them. The whole idea of the event and Tassis' reaction to it made Reid uncertain about his fresh advertising plans.
"I had no idea."
Tassis sat back down. "Think nothing of it. It is a piece of superstitious nonsense, and I should not react that way. I will say, it is most impressive to work for someone so renowned."
"Thanks. People keep telling me that, but working with Basen is more confusing than impressive, I would say."
The lift chimed, and a group of people walked out. Tassis eyed them before turning back to Reid.
"Regardless of the reality, perception is important. But the mention of his name has brought back some stray memories. He's selling his collection—a bounty of magical items, correct?"
"Yep. I'm checking to see if anyone needs anything we have. Are any of your people in search of rare items?"
Tassis clicked his beak again. Reid really needed to figure out what that meant.
"Our mages bind with familiars, for the most part. As familiars become more rare, there is a growing desire for items, but the greatest need is for Greater Magic items. Your King has a ban on distributing any items above four stars outside the country, so such a trade is not possible."
"Ah. I didn't know that. Well, if you know anyone looking for something unique, send them my way."
The second lift chimed, and another group emptied onto the trade floor. Tassis watched the group again.
"I will keep that in mind, Reid. For now, I must bid you good day. Trading will begin soon, and I need to prepare and send messages. If you would like to learn more of my people and my homeland, I would not mind sharing. I miss them both, and it has warmed my heart to speak of them to another."
The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.
"Sure, I would love that. Good luck today, Tassis."
"You as well, Reid."
Tassis nodded and left to speak with a guild official. Reid turned his attention back to the boards at the end of the room. A woman looked over them casually, but all the other traders were focused on preparing for the market to open.
Reid approached the first board. It was mostly the same listings as yesterday, but there was one missing and a new one added. The missing one was for a healing staff. Basen's collection was particularly light on healing items, in Reid's opinion. The new notice was intriguing.
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Item Request Notice
Any Star Rating
Aspect: None
Searching for an item to unlock potential. Prefer once per week or better.
Pricing negotiable based on star rating, throughput, and other effects.
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Reid had identified an amulet that would fill the posting quite nicely.
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Greater Magic Necklace of Binding Potential
* 5 Star Magic Conduit
* Bindable
* Grants the binder the passive ability to sense the unlocked potential of others. The binder can sense an individual's total potential, magical rank, and the number of stars of potential taken by bindings.
* Once per day, the binder can unlock the potential of an individual whose potential hasn't been unlocked.
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Now that he had found a notice he could fulfill, it raised some questions. How would he negotiate the price? Would Basen need to know who they were selling to, and would the buyer even want an item that powerful? Reid knew binding a five star item to use an effect was a difficult ask. It would leave the mage with little potential open for any other magic.
He shook his head. Kenagavis was right. He was thinking like Basen. Someday, Reid's own growth artifact would be five stars. He didn't need powerful magic to battle evil or explore the world's dangerous places. He was a merchant, and as long as his magic did something in service of what he wanted to do, he was fine with that.
Reid grabbed the notice and scanned the other board. Someone was selling a set of three star throwing stars. There were three, and binding the entire set had a six star synergy. So, for nine stars of potential, someone could become a Greater Mage. It actually seemed like a good set with complementary offensive abilities. The downside was that the person was asking three hundred and fifty gold for the set.
That gave Reid pause. He hadn't thought about how much more expensive things that pushed the mage into the realm of Greater Mage might be. He looked back down at the notice in his hand. Maybe this was even better than he thought.
A clerk on the second floor flagged him and explained the notice he'd picked up.
"I'll mark you down for the contract. You have twenty-four hours to procure the item and bring it here, where we'll identify it as a courtesy to the buyer. Once we verify the item matches the description, we'll contact the buyer and arrange a meeting to negotiate. Do you know if you have a reserve for the item?"
"A reserve? I only joined the guild yesterday. Not quite familiar with the terminology yet."
"Of course. A reserve is the minimum amount you're willing to sell the item for. We don't communicate this to the client. Instead, we ask them for their maximum, which we don't communicate to you. So long as your reserve isn't more than their maximum, we'll set up the negotiation."
"Oh, that makes sense. I'm not sure. I need to ask my boss how much we should sell it for."
"Sure, you can tell us when you bring the item in for verification. How about a summary of the item?"
"I can give you the identification information."
"Perfect."
Reid hand copied the information from his ledger onto some paper for the clerk. The clerk looked it over and whistled.
"That'll be a high reserve. Best you speak with your boss."
"Do you have any guesses? I've never sold a five star item before."
"Things get crazy above four stars, honestly. Some items are only good for the progression. Some people just want to be Greater Mages without all the flashy magic. Those are the cheapest items. You can find some for less than fifty gold if you're patient. This is not one of those. Unlocking potential is one of the more valuable skills in the Kingdom. People need to be able to use magic for society to function, so there's a big incentive to unlock the potential of as many as possible. I would guess this could sell for two hundred gold. Maybe more to the right buyer. The downside is the pool of buyers is going to be small."
"But we have a buyer, right?"
The clerk shrugged. "It says any star rating and once per week or better throughput on the notice. That matches your item nicely, but it'll come down to price and whether or not the buyer thinks the binding requirement is an issue."
The conversation left Reid in high spirits. Given the potential value, he'd sell the necklace below market rates if it meant they could pay their bills. He left the merchant's guild and stopped by Veris's shop. She didn't have time to chat, as the nice day meant more customers stopping in for tea and breakfast. Reid picked up some tea for Basen and some breakfast for himself. He'd have to ask Kris if he wanted anything next time.
The Immaculate Collection was open when he arrived. That was a pleasant surprise. The other surprise wasn't so nice.
Looking through the window, Reid saw about fourteen small children running around, picking up items, and climbing on shelves. Two older women sat across the counter from Basen and laughed at the man while he spoke with wildly animated gestures.
"What is happening?"
Basen spotted Reid looking through the window and waved at him. He pointed Reid out to his guests, who both smiled politely.
Reid took a deep breath before plunging into whatever fresh chaos awaited him.
"Hey!"
A little girl next to the door shouted at Reid and pulled on his pant leg.
"What do you have? Can I have some? Who are you? Do you work here? Is there a bathroom? I have to potty."
"Uh," Reid said, unsure what to answer first. Potty. Definitely the potty question. He could pick up the items all over the store, but he did not want to deal with that. "Yeah, come on."
The little girl trailed him, hopping with arms raised, pretending to be a bunny. He was dismayed to find the other children lining up behind him, hopping to the desk.
"Hey, Basen," Reid said.
"Hey, Basen," fourteen children said in unison.
"Reid! Good morning. These are my good friends, Evelyn and Pam. Ladies, this is Reid, my new shop manager!"
"Wonderful to meet you, Reid," Evelyn said. "Basen has told us so much about you."
Pam nodded along and added, "A pleasure, Reid."
"Thank you. It's nice to meet you, too."
"Thank you. It's nice to meet you, too."
Reid ignored the gaggle of giggling children.
"Evelyn and Pam run the orphanage we're rebuilding. I was reaching out to friends, and I thought it would be nice to see them again."
Pam patted Reid on the arm. "You'll have to excuse us for bringing the whole village. Basen forgets that we can't leave them to tend to themselves."
"Or maybe I just like seeing them!" Basen objected.
"Magic!" one of the little boys shouted.
They scattered from the line behind Reid to see Basen and began chanting in unison.
"Magic! Magic! Magic!"
Basen stood. "How can I not give the people what they want?"
Evelyn shook her head, and Pam leaned in. "He does like to spoil them."
Basen came around the counter and knelt in front of the group.
"What should we do?"
A boy raised a hand.
"Tobias! What do you think?"
The boy looked at the back wall. "Dragon!"
Above the back door, a serpent was mounted to the wall. Reid had been unable to identify it and assumed it was a trophy.
"Tobias, you know I can't make a dragon. What else?"
A girl raised her hand. "Fairies!"
A chatter of agreement followed the suggestion, and Basen stood back up.
"Fairies it is!"
Reid couldn't often feel magic being used, but the subtle glow that filled the room from all the magic items dimmed slightly as Basen drew power from all around him.
The mage thrust out a hand, and glowing flames coalesced into three small human-like creatures. They each had four wings and pointy fingers and toes. Reid thought they looked a little dangerous to have around children. The fairies looked around in confusion. Basen pointed at them as they hovered, still held by his magic.
"Behave!" he commanded.
Then he let them loose. The fairies zipped around the store, laughing and whooping, while the children chased them with glee.
Basen laughed, and he motioned to Reid. "Is that for me?"
Reid handed him the tea he'd brought. "Yep. Does Kris like tea?"
"No. He claims it keeps him up all night. Wendy! Let go of Aren's hair! You know better!"
Basen moved to break up the scuffle, and Reid turned back to the two older women. They were ignoring the chaos around them, accustomed to the antics of so many children.
"Did Basen really burn down the orphanage?" he asked.
"Oh, yes. We'd been talking about it for an age," Evelyn said. "He said he'd be happy to rebuild it, but we kept pushing off his offer. Well, last fall, there was an issue with the roof. Half the kids got sick after we had a leak, and we finally thought enough was enough. We moved out, and instead of tearing it down, Basen saved time by consuming it in fire. It was something to see."
Pam nodded in agreement. "They don't normally let someone demolish a building with fire, but Basen could control the fire well enough that they let him. Our building was burnt to ash, and there wasn't even a singe on our neighbor's house. Didn't stop them from panicking the whole time, but there's not a lot regular folk can do to argue with high ranked mages."
"So Basen is paying for the reconstruction?"
"Partially," Evelyn said. "We're financed by the crown, but our funds are set by some city council. They've been ignoring our maintenance requests for ages. As far as I know, Basen got them to pay for half the reconstruction, and he paid for the other half."
Reid appreciated that Basen continued to work for the people. The old mage seemed to enjoy his time playing with the children. Reid looked back and found Basen speaking softly to the children gathered around him. He'd given them random items from around the shop to wear as armor or wield as weapons. They turned and faced off against the fairies at the back of the shop. The small magical creatures had conjured balls of light that they held threateningly.
After a short standoff, the groups charged one another. Tobias took the first hit—a dazzling spray of sparks to the face.
"Tobias! You're out!" Basen called.
The boy sulked but returned to Basen's side, but he quickly forgot the defeat, cheering on his companions. The fairies were quick, smart, and could "attack" at range, but there were many children. Five kids were quickly knocked out of the contest, but then a broom caught one of the fairies unaware.
"Gilfenismenks! You're out!"
The fairy vanished in a puff of light, and the children on the sidelines cheered. After another minute of frantic chasing and uncontrolled giggling, one fairy faced off against one little girl. It was the one who'd accosted him with questions when he walked in.
They ran and flew at each other, and a blinding flash stopped Reid from seeing what happened. The children yelped, and Reid and the orphanage's matrons blinked away the light from their eyes.
The fairy was gone, but the little girl sat on the floor crying.
"Carrie! What's wrong? You got him! Great job," Basen said, walking up.
Between her sobs, Carrie managed an explanation.
"The light...scared me. I had...an accident."
Reid winced. He'd forgotten about that.
"Oh dear," Basen said.
"That's my cue," Evelyn said.
She rose and went to the crying girl, she told her it would be alright. Carrie didn't seem to believe her, so she scooped up the girl and carried her toward the bathroom through the Archives.
Basen used some magic to clean up the floor, and the children returned to running around like crazy.
"How do you do this?" Reid asked Pam. He'd been around these kids for about ten minutes, and he was exhausted from trying to keep up with what they were doing.
"Patience and a lot of love. We don't run an orphanage because it's the most fun thing to do. We do it because these kids need us. For me and Evelyn, it doesn't have to be any more than that."
Reid was sure that he'd fight an actual dragon to protect these kids and their guardians. He'd only just met them, but they seemed so genuinely good that he couldn't help it.
They spent a while longer chatting while watching thirteen children dog pile onto Basen, but eventually, Evelyn returned and suggested getting the children back to their temporary home to settle down before lunch.
He and Basen wrangled the kids, and Reid had to chuckle as they tied them all together with rope.
"They'll run if you let them. Tobias escaped last week, and we had to involve the city watch in finding him."
They waved the group farewell and watched them walk down the road in their roped together line.
"Sorry about that, Reid. Don't tell Pam, but I did forget they would have to bring the kids with them. I had to take a sword away from Olivia before you arrived. Nearly took her brother's eye out."
Reid shook his head.
"It's fine. It was fun seeing them. They seem great. I think it's a really great thing you do—helping them out."
"Thank you. It is nice to hear my efforts don't go unnoticed, but I wish there was more I could do. Having an orphanage is nice, but children should have homes and families. Sadly, making that a reality is out of my power."
They returned inside the shop, and Basen looked over the mess with a frown.
"I have some good news," Reid said.
"Oh?"
"I think we can sell a valuable item, and I have a couple advertising ideas. I think Kris and I can make some progress on that today. There is one more thing I thought of...but it might be too much."
"Reid, I know we've only known each other for a short time, but believe me when I say I've been impatiently waiting for you to say those exact words."