The late winter air was cool, the wind whipping in through the window. Lucy stirred in her bed, pulling her patchy covers over here. The holes didn’t stop the bite of the wind, and her eyes slowly opened to look out her window. She cursed under her breath seeing it cracked open.
Throwing the thin, patchy quilt off, she walked over to the window and sighed. A letter was wedged at the bottom of the window, crudely folded. She snatched it and shut the glass, rattling it in its frame.
The letter was brief but specific. Another assignment in a place she desperately wanted to leave. She looked down at her exposed chest and cursed her mark covering her heart. The damned tattoo was a constant reminder of the death she faced here, adding to the already harrowing responsibility she carried.
Tower magic was nothing she ever wanted. But when they called, she was forced to answer.
She walked over to a half-burned candle and lit it. Setting the letter on fire, she slowly watched it burn while the meager flame warmed her fingers and hand. When the flaming licks got too close to her nails, she didn’t shy away from the pain. She embraced it, focusing on what it meant to feel. Pain like that meant she was still alive. It meant she was human.
A curse left her lips as the flames licked her a bit too hard even for her liking. She then stamped out the remaining ashes of the letter. No sense in starting a fire here, though there wasn’t much to burn. She then grabbed her clothes, axe, and pack.
It was, unfortunately, time to climb.
The letter stated that she was to join a new group to climb for the week. That was usual. She had no group in Alestead and wasn’t allowed to keep a group, either, so picking up new teammates temporarily was part of her role. But she wasn’t going to lie to herself - it would be nice to have some consistent people around her. She only wished they weren’t going to be assholes.
After meeting them, she felt a small glimmer of hope. They were good people. Naive, young, inexperienced, but honest and direct. She respected that. Their leader, a Fighter, was a man who wanted them to go home at the end of the day rather than try and make it to the next floor for coin or gear. He climbed with his sister, their Divine Magician and healer, and a cousin who cracked jokes that wasn’t inappropriate or demeaning. Maybe they were normal people, and this was an order to grow and improve instead of just another job.
She savored each climb with them, dreading leaving the tower to return to her pitiful room. When she got there, she’d lay out all her earnings for the day on her bed and sigh. This time, they did well. They cleared the second floor easily and progressed to the third, clearing that, too. Their group was cohesive and worked together well, and she was a good match. That was a rare bonus. But she had three large pouches of coins and two unidentified items on her pitiful quilt.
She stared at the items and wondered the same thing she always did. Would they notice if she skimmed some of her earnings off the top? How would they find out? She could pocket some of the coins away here and there, stash them so she could finally escape. The items would be harder to fence. They have their hand in just about any major dealing in the country, one way or another. But if she quickly traded it off in the city and immediately ran away? It might work.
But it wouldn’t be worth it. Not again.
Tears fell onto the sacks of coins as she remembered Rachel. Rachel was the only person in this world who ever gave two shits about her, and she was gone. Just like that. Now Lucy was alone, forced to make up for the debts that haunted her.
A chill in the air caused her to shiver. She looked up and saw her window cracked again, a familiar piece of paper wedged between the glass pane and frame.
“Shit.” Not alone, then. Never alone.
Reading the letter, she cursed again. Then yelled in frustration. Before she knew it, the pouches of coins on the bed were scattered and torn, thrown against the wall in a fit of rage. She grabbed the shimmering knife on the bed and stabbed her quilt once. Then twice. After her fourth strike, the weapon clanged against her wooden floor as she dropped onto the bed.
The letter was crumpled beside her. She stared at it while slowing her breathing. Her primary form of communication to the people that essentially own her.
The Assembly. Those bastards.
The team she’d been climbing with for four days had their own debts. Of fucking course they did. Everyone she interacted with did to some degree. Her next order was to separate the leader, Will, and threaten him to pay up. If he didn’t, she was supposed to kill his cousin. Then his sister. Both were Climbers in the same group, and both of them Lucy liked.
The letter finally burned, and she let her emotions burn with them. She ignored the pain when her finger tips started burning, too. It didn’t matter. None of it mattered. It was just another job, after all.
The only thing that mattered was Rachel, and she was gone.
*****
Getting Will to pay up was easy, as it normally was with Lucy. She had a way of convincing her targets that losing money was far more desirable than someone dying. The only catch was that he refused to let her climb with him again, and she understood. That was going to be the end result, anyway. Even though she dreaded that outcome she was used to it.
Walking back to her room, she paused before opening her door. Her heart beat like a drum in her chest. The door was slightly open, a cool wind coming from the obviously open window in her room. Did she forget to close and lock it? Or did someone break in?
Slowly opening the door, she had her answer.
“Hello, Lucy,” a man said, his back to her. He was staring out her open window. She couldn’t make out anything about him, but he was bald. His overcoat was nearly to his boots, and it was completely black, masking his features.
“Do I know you?” Lucy asked.
“Not yet,” the man said. “Please come in. And lock the door behind you.”
Lucy slowly stepped inside, never taking her eyes off the man. He was grungy and looked every bit nasty from the front as from behind. She immediately had an idea of who he was. Or at least what organization he was with.
“How did you get in my room?” Lucy asked.
The man huffed. “That’s a stupid question. Who do you think has the key?”
Well, that answered it. She relaxed a little. He was likely here to talk, not hurt her.
Lucy walked over and put her floor earnings on the bed. “There you go. And it’s done, by the way.”
The man furrowed his eyebrows. “Done?”
“Yes. What you, or whoever, wrote on that letter. My task. It’s done.”
The man’s lip curled in a wicked smile. It made Lucy’s neck itch. “I see. That’s good.”
Lucy sat down beside the pouches of coins. “This is the first time someone’s visited me in this damn city and you’re just standing there like an oaf. What do you want?”
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“My, my. So testy.” He walked over and picked up the sack of coins, clinging them all against each other in the pouch. He pulled it close to his face and listened closer to the noise, closing his eyes while the metal jingled.
Lucy forced herself to pull her eyes away. What a fucking weird guy.
“Your status has been elevated since you finished this last task,” the man said.
Lucy perked up. Who cares if he was weird, bringing news like that was always welcome. “Does that mean I’ll be reassigned?”
“In a way.”
Her excitement morphed into worry. She didn’t like that answer.
“You’ll be expected to tier up,” the man continued. “Climbing has the potential to be a good money maker, and you’ve proven yourself. Get into a higher tier and make more money.”
Lucy cursed. She didn’t want to stay here. But she couldn’t argue with him or question him, either. She knew those consequences. “Alright. Anything else?”
The man smiled again. “I’ll be your handler. Instead of letters, we’ll be checking in in person to measure your progress. You need to be in tier two by the end of next month, and you’ll have an expected amount per week to make. Starting then.”
Lucy didn’t like the sound of that. Was she stuck here forever? Of all the damned places in the world, she just had to end up in a city of death. She had to ask, consequences be damned. “Will it take time off my sentence? Like a trade?”
“You can’t exchange a life debt for coins, silly girl. That’s not how it works! You should know that.” He chuckled and stuffed the pouch of coins into his obnoxiously large black overcoat.
Lucy seethed but stayed silent. She wanted to rip that pouch from him and shove it down his throat. But then someone else would likely take his place, and she’d be punished on top of it. At least he seemed more attracted to the coins than her.
“Be thankful you aren’t in some backwater town doing work that’s far less glamourous. At least here you can use magic instead of your body. That’s something, girl. Don’t forget that.”
Lucy walked over to the window and stared out of it. A small bird flew by, bobbing up and down as its winged flapped in the air. Maybe one day she’d be free, too.
“I’ll see you in two weeks to make a plan for the next season,” the man said. “We’ll start using some of those items you find to better prepare you.”
“That’s a start,” Lucy said.
The man snickered. “Keep your head down and do as your told and you’ll be just fine. There are worse ways to live.”
Lucy, unfortunately, agreed. But there were also better ways.
“The name’s Mathias,” the man said. “If you need something, set a letter on your window addressing me and I’ll find you.”
Lucy set her head against the window and closed her eyes. “Just like that?”
“Just like that.” Mathias walked out of the door, not bothering to close it.
*****
Lucy hoisted her pack over her shoulder, reading herself to leave. The summer air was hot, and she was ready to cool down for the evening. Still, her pack was lighter than she wanted. Mathias wouldn’t be happy. Again.
Despite getting a class upgrade and being able to climb in the second tier, finding a group to climb with her grew increasingly difficult. The first tier was easy, as newer Climbers wanted her experience and abilities to help in their group. But those who progressed to the second tier floors were either already in a full group or were in a cohesive enough group to not want another, unfamiliar member.
The Assembly obviously didn’t predict that possibility. But it didn’t matter since Lucy would be the one to pay for it.
She slowly walked back to her room, dreading her meeting with the coin-obsessed man. She was supposed to secure a group to climb into the second tier by the end of the week, and the group she was with seemed promising enough to advance. But then they turned crazy after an unexpected encounter, imploding as a group. One of them even died. She was forced to stay late and answer questions about the incident, further impeding her climbing. It was a certifiable shit show.
At least there was another group to save them. It didn’t happen often to find other groups in the tower, but she was glad in the moment. Maybe they needed a sixth member since there was only five of them. It was bad luck she didn’t get their names. Her anger prevented her from being more rational, as the only thing she could think of was not murdering the rest of that pathetic group.
One of the Climbers in the five-man team carried a spear, which was a bit unusual. But she could ask around and find them eventually. If even just to thank them.
She adjusted the axe on her belt and started walking. No sense in delaying it.
As she approached her room, she opened took a deep breath before opening her door. This was it. Inside, Mathias leaned against her window while staring at her. He looked as creepy as ever.
“You’re late,” Mathias said, grunting the words.
“It wasn’t my fault. A Climber in my group died and I was being questioned. It took too damn long.”
He relaxed a bit. “Hmm. Did you kill them?”
Lucy laughed. “Unfortunately no. That would be the monsters in the tower. The ones that spawn inside, at least.”
“I see.” Mathias walked over and held out his hand.
At least he didn’t raise his hand to her in punishment. Lucy took off her pack and gave it to him. “It’s all I have.”
Mathias held it and scoffed. “It’s light. Too light. You need to climb higher.”
“Unless you want me to die, I need to climb what I can. Or find a group that will take me there.”
Mathias sighed. “I know. Plans are in the works to get you a group like that. Just… keep doing what you can for now.”
Lucy paused. That was uncharacteristically kind of him. Did she have a gold crown attached to her forehead or something?
“You have an additional task for the month, as well.”
“Fantastic.” Lucy started taking off her armor and putting it in a wooden trunk at the foot of her bed.
“There’s a man here whose father owes us a considerable debt. He’s agreed to take it on in his place, and we are the ones who will establish contact with him moving forward.”
Lucy didn’t bother stopping taking off her equipment. “Which means I’ll be talking to him. That’s fine.”
“Good. He’s a Ruby Magician, if you can believe it.”
Lucy held one of her boots in her hands, though didn’t drop it in the trunk. “Seriously? He’ll get himself killed before he can pay it off.”
“So I’ve heard. Which means you need to find him sooner rather than later and remind him of his… obligations.”
“All I need is a name.”
Mathias walked to the door and opened it to leave. Then he stopped and turned his head. “I’ll say this once, and only once. Careful with this one. He’s former military. He could be trouble, and we have contingencies just in case he is. But don’t piss him off. You’re valuable, and eventually he will be, too. As long as he doesn’t die first.”
Lucy felt a shiver run through her. So they had more plans for him, too, then. That wasn’t good. For her or for him. If she was valuable now, she might not be as much if he was too much in the picture.
Maybe she could convince him to get out before it was too late. Maybe he could take her with him? This wasn’t any sort of life to live. She knew that all too well.
*****
Lucy cursed to herself while she walked back to her room. The pack on her back was far heavier than she expected, but it made sense with the amount of coins she was carrying.
Wyn was smart enough to bring a magical pack, and that was going to be the very next item she’d find.
Wyn. She still could hardly believe the man that helped save her was the Ruby Magician Mathias warned her about. She could sense danger from him, that much was certain. But he was still naive. He wanted to help and be good, but that wasn’t how the world worked. It was survive or die, and he was pushing towards the latter.
If he was backed into a corner, though… there would be problems. And she really didn’t want another problem added to her list. She was in a decent place right now working with groups here and there without too much fuss from Mathias.
Mathias was his usually gloomy and paranoid self but his attitude changed immensely once Lucy dropped the stacks of coins on the bed.
“Shit,” Mathias said. His eyes sparkled seeing the sacks.
“That’s what I’m saying after carrying them on my back so far. Next time I’m coming with a magical pouch to carry them easier.”
“We’ll see about that.” Mathias reached down and picked up a sack, reaching inside to dig his hand through the coins.
Lucy sighed. It was just another day. Another person paying their debts, and another day of hers wasted away. While Wyn had the chance of being free, she didn’t. The thought always angered her, and she needed to push it out of her mind now to prevent that anger from boiling over like a heated pot with too much water.
“This is good,” Mathias said after a few seconds. “Good work, Lucy.”
“Does that mean I can trade for the magical pouch? It’ll make it easier to carry all those coins, after all.” Mathias didn’t compliment her much, so she needed to take advantage of the situation. Talking about his favorite subject could only help matters.
“Hmm. Yes, I believe it will be helpful. But grab two so I can use one as well to transport each payment.”
Lucy smiled. That was fine by her. She immediately started for the door, eager to leave Mathias to his weird behavior.
“Also grab whatever equipment you can secure to consistently climb in the second tier.”
Lucy had her hand on the doorknob but stopped. “Why is that?”
Mathias bit on a gold crown before giving his disgustingly sly smile. “Change is coming, Lucy. We have word that some guilds will be expected to take on some new members soon. Possibly even this coming month. And you’re going to be a part of that group.”
Lucy thought about what he just said. If she was going to join a guild, well… that actually wouldn’t be so bad. Having a community would be nice, and climbing with some consistent people would be a welcomed change.
But what would it cost? And what would they do if they found out where her actual alliance lied? If there was a threat of being kicked out, then she wanted to avoid that. So keeping her lips shut and being a good little soldier was what she needed to do. It would come easy as unfortunately she was used to it.
Lucy forced her way out of her own room. She needed to hit something, and things would get far worse if that something was Mathias.
So much for no more problems.