Chess opened her vault and took out the three small boxes of pyth’s she’d collected and counted what she had. Sipping on the brandy as she sorted through the bags.
Pyth
Name
Quantity
Rarity
House Cleaning Pyth
7/10
Common
Shield Bash Pyth
4/10
Uncommon
Dash Pyth
2/10
Uncommon
Power Strike Pyth
5/10
Uncommon
Logistics Pyth
3/10
Uncommon
Binding Pyth
6/10
Uncommon
Curved Shot Pyth
2/10
Uncommon
Inventory Pyth
13/10
Uncommon
Harvest Pyth
3/10
Uncommon
After she’d finished playing with the powders, she replaced the boxes and took out the one with coins. She’d collected various denominations and decided to finally count them, now that she was killing time drinking alone.
Kan had run her through the values of the local currency when she’d asked.
"A shitty ale at a shitty inn is usually a half copper bit or a little bit, and a loaf of bread is a full copper bit," he had explained. "The average washerwoman or lumberjack earn around a silver chit a day and a good steel sword will run you a gold crown. One silver chit equals ten full copper bits and ten silver is one small gold crown. Five smalls make one full crown, or jack, and 25 full crowns make one Mithril coin. Which is called a Ril. Ten Ril are worth one platinum or a plat."
He’d said there were higher denominations but they were only used by the very wealthy to better store their wealth and not used in public.
Surprised at what she found Chess rubbed her hands together. I’ll have to do some trading. If I can fill out another Inventory Pyth, I can upgrade it a rank and double my space. The boxes I collected from the slaver barely fit in here and I can’t put anything long into it yet. Speaking of the Inventory powder, she noted, that it appeared that a full measure of a pyth was somewhere around a cup.
After growing herself a small table and sorting through them, she counted each stack and smiled with delight at what she had. 67 half-bits, 34 bits, 13 chits, 1 small crown, and 2 jacks.
She played with the coins for a bit before dumping them into powder bags to keep them separate and returned the box to her vault.
Another box she’d forgotten drew her eye, and she pulled it out then opened the lid.
She gave the flask a little shake before taking a sip while frowning at the documents inside. About a quarter left, she thought before picking up the top letter and reading it.
The kanji-shaped words made her blink for a moment before their meaning became clear. And her mind registered she had to start reading from the bottom left corner of the sheet. Weird.
The page seemed to be a letter between lovers, so she set it aside and grabbed the next. It was the next in the series from the same sender and so were the next half dozen.
Chess stacked them beside her and kept going. The next three had itemized lists of goods taken and sold with abbreviated names in a column. A buyer's list, she smiled at finding something useful. Taking another swig of brandy, she put them in a new pile and took out the next.
A racket outside interrupted before she could continue.
A loud sound of metal crashing on metal rang out above the pounding rain outside, followed by bellowed orders.
“Everyone Out! Muster Up for Rites!” Sergeant Kan’s voice carried crisp and confident throughout the camp.
Chess stared at the papers for a moment. Do they mean me too? Fuck it, I might as well pay my respects, she shrugged.
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She put the papers back in the box before shifting to her feet and wobbling a little as dizziness struck her. Damn, I might be a little drunk, she thought, grabbing the hammock to steady herself.
Freya’s bloody tits! Maybe I should stay here. No, Chesty, that would be worse than showing up drunk, she reasoned with herself as she swayed.
Tucking the box back into her inventory before letting go of the hammock, Chess made her way to the tent flap on coltish legs while grabbing any reasonable handhold to steady herself on the way.
She stood at the flap for a minute waiting for the spinning to settle. This is ridiculous I barely drank anything! Hell, I can still think straight!... I think.
Shit... I forgot I weigh less now than I did on earth. She groaned, now I have to watch how much I drink. Wait, why doesn’t Constitution help with booze. Or does it?
She blinked at the flap for a moment more before clumsily brushing it aside and stepping into the cold downpour. The shock of the rain brought her up short, and she stepped back inside, a little steadier than a second before.
Maybe, just maybe, I’m more than a little drunk, she decided. I need Sprig! Okay, try number two. This time she stuck her head outside and started humming ‘the song that doesn’t end’ so she could pick Sprig up before stepping out under its cover.
She made her cautious way towards the open space around the cooking fire and the men gathering there.
As she approached, the soldiers were lining up in orderly ranks, so she took up station near one of the bordering tents.
Five cloth-wrapped bodies were lain out under a canvas awning.
No sudden movements and I should be fine.
“Hey,” Ashley said as she approached, her cloak tented overhead and scuttled in close to take advantage of Sprig’s cover. She studied Chess's wet dress then looked up at sprig over-head and opened her mouth to speak.
“Don’t ask,” Chess said, cutting the girl off with a wry grin, feeling her cheeks heat. My cheeks are burning from the booze, yup definitely not embarrassed about being wet, she reassured herself and swayed on her feet.
“So, Rites huh?” Chess prompted, looking up at the large trees looming overhead before turning to glance at the girl.
“Serus told me his aunt has a large inventory space. So, they are doing them here for the men before the sisters head back. It’s more than big enough to store the dead, so they can be taken back to their families for inheritance. He thinks it's rank 6 or 7, can you imagine?” Ashley said, bouncing on her heels.
Holy balls, how big would rank 7 be? She brought up her sheet to look. Shit, it could be 21 feet cubed if she has 16 Mind. “How in the world does anyone get that much pyth?” Chess wondered aloud.
“The church takes the pyth from the dead as payment for doing last rites and blessing the bodies so they don’t rise,” Ashley explained hugging her bushy tawny tail for warmth, still rocking on her heels.
“Right, that would explain a lot. They also get some from harvesting for people that don’t have other access,” Chess extrapolated, watching the men get sorted. The sisters had yet to arrive, but Kan and Caldur were standing at rigid attention in the driving rain as the men finally found their places.
“Yup,” Ashley nodded.
“Wait, the inventory is a sort of stasis?” Chess asked excitedly.
“Stasis?” Ashley asked.
“I mean the bodies don’t rot inside,” Chess explained.
“Oh, no, they don’t,” Ashley said.
“Ok, but how does looting affect receiving an inheritance?” Chess asked, scratching the tip of her ear.
“It doesn’t,” Ashley said simply.
Chess thought for a bit then asked a little irritated, “So, we could’ve looted your parents?”
Ashley looked at her like she was stupid. “That’s what we paid Yhyslimron with.”
“Right,” Chess said rubbing her face. And I thought the nutrients in their bodies was the payment. Tells me what I know.
Chess studied Ashley’s golden eyes for a quiet moment. “It’s good to see you opening up. If you ever want to talk...” Chess left the statement hanging.
Ashley pressed her lips together, nodding once, before turning back to face the gathered men.
There I go being a cliché ass, Chess thought, tugging on her braid before following Ashley’s gaze to the men.
Sholer and Lynn were approaching the awning at a slow sedate pace, the two armored men following a few paces behind. Sholer had a polished steel dome floating a few feet over her head to stave off the rain. Lynn used what looked like a blob of shadows to do the same.
Working to remain as still as possible, Chess studied the casual use of magic by the sisters and their steaming guards. The comparison to Caldur’s rain-soaked men was stark. Is it Caldur insisting his men avoid the use, as Sholer said, or is it something deeper? Surely, they could make an exception for the rain.
After a short word with Caldur, Sholer stood before the gathered men and took a firm stance, feet shoulder-width apart, her face blank. She stood there for long minutes her gaze taking in each person in turn. When it fell on Chess, she felt a chill cruise through her and a steely weight settle into her stomach. Well, at least it didn’t feel like she saw my soul or anything.
Sholer’s voice rang out in a staccato chant. The rain beating a counterpoint to her rhythm upon the gathered heads.
The chant had the sound of an often repeated and practiced ritual, like the hymns sung in church. Chess remained still and watchful, letting the incomprehensible words flow around her. Is this what it was like to have church performed in Latin during medieval times? I wouldn't be surprised if they did something similar here.
An intense blue light sparked before settling over the bodies. As it seeped down the enshrouded figures started to glow a faint blue that gradually darkened to a deep navy as the chant grew in intensity.
The service continued like this for a long time after the color had solidified on the bodies and Chess started growing bored.
I'm starting to understand that drunk aunt no one likes, that only shows up for funerals. Freya, what was her name; Fran? She thought, taking a glance at the respectful still men around her. She had to force herself to keep a straight face, fighting the sudden urge to giggle at the ceremony. I guess funerals for people you don’t know are awkward no matter where you are.
She looked down at Ashley momentarily. The girl had a few tears marring her cheeks but wiped them away when she caught Chess looking. Chess turned her gaze back to the front, giving the girl her space.
Sholer’s chant came to a sudden halt, the rain continuing the beat for long seconds after.
The men let out a loud barking cry and thumped their fists to their hearts three times before bowing towards the glowing dead.
Chess put her fist to her chest and bowed a second behind everyone else. She almost tipped completely over into the mud, and only taking a step forward saved her.
Sholer and Caldur’s gaze shot to her at her blunder, and Chess blushed fiercely.
Great, just great, of course, they noticed, she thought as she straightened and gave them a sheepish grin.
Turning away from Chess, Sholer went to the first body and opened her vault. The large portal formed off to her right, the interior covered with a cloudy blue radiance. Sholer moved her hands through a series of precise but smooth motions, and the disk of the shiny steel that she used to stave off the rain slid under the body and lifted it smoothly, and deposited it into her vault. Uh, yeah, maybe Kan was right: she’s scary.
Sholer did the same for the rest of the bodies before turning to have a muted conversation with Caldur.
“Alright, back to work! We are breaking camp at dawn,” Kan announced and the men dispersed.
“Well, that was...” Chess said while scratching her ear again.
“Boring?” Ashley supplied tilting her head to smile at Chess. The smile turning her tear-stained face radiant.
“You said it,” Chess said, returning the smile. At least I learned something.
“Come on, I have something Caldur might want to see,” Chess said making her unsteady way towards the talking pair. When Ashley didn’t immediately follow, she turned back. “Unless you want to get soaked?” She shook Sprig significantly.
Ashley blinked at her slowly before turning on her heel and taking off, raising her cloak overhead once more, her wet and sad-looking tail wagging behind her.
“Suit yourself,” Chess muttered. I guess I can’t blame her for avoiding Sholer.