“If you mean Mona,” I couldn’t hide the hurt in my tone despite the fact that I was okay with what had happened. “Yeah. She’s not interested. I asked her if she wanted more, and she wondered who had put those thoughts in my head. Not even worthy of a straight answer.”
He snorted. “That means nothing. You probably caught her by surprise, and she panicked.” His knowing smile made me want to be anywhere but there. “She will come around. You just have to give her a chance and be honest.”
“I was, Al. And that honesty made me feel more vulnerable than I have in a while.” It was true. It’d hurt more than I’d initially thought it had and now—of all times—the emotional fallout of it was coming on.
I’d been turned down, and risked my friendship with one of the only people I had ever truly cared about because I let someone else convince me they saw their own issues in our relationship. And worse? I had let it color my own thoughts to the point that I had begun to hope for something I wasn’t sure I wanted.
“Don’t be that way, Ky,” Albarth tried to reason with me in a soothing tone that suddenly sounded like mockery. “She’ll come around.”
“I don’t think I care,” I blurted, my heart pounding against my ribs, and grunted as I pulled away from his grip.
I found myself joining Thea, her smiling face, and blue eyes a sight for a sore heart.
“Hey there.” She reached out and grabbed my hand, the contact was nice. “You alright?”
“Yeah.” I tried to play off the sudden desolation gnawing at the pit of my stomach with a smile.
She pointed to her ears. “Elves have really good hearing, so I know you’re lying.” She didn’t seem upset that I’d lied, though. “I’m not one to judge, but it seems like you kind of had your heart torn out. You don’t need to pretend.”
“It’s less pretending and more just coming to terms that I almost lost my best friend because I was stupid.”
“Love isn’t stupid.” She frowned and squeezed my hand.
“Less love and more people sticking their noses into our business with their own lives and baggage weighing on their ‘helpful’ hints.” She let go of my hand, and I looked up at her now-guarded face. “Not you! Oh my god, not you. My friends, Albarth and Sundar. It wasn’t their fault.” I felt like an ass now. “I’m sorry. They were just trying to help, and I’m letting my worry and anger cloud my judgment. I’m not normally so… primal.”
She looked relieved but didn’t take my hand in hers again. “I feel a little crass for having suggested you come to my place with all of what you are going through.”
“Don’t.” My spirit felt a little lighter for being able to talk this out with someone. “You couldn’t have known, and taking you up for some training would be a good idea.”
She punched my shoulder, a glint in her eyes as her nose crinkled in delight.
“We’re close to the Earth Square.” She waved to the others and snatched my hand up in hers. “Come on!”
We moved faster toward a group of people, and Thea simply plowed her way through the onlookers.
“Watch it!” One of the ladies shouted angrily then grunted as Mona barreled through with Sundar hot on her heels.
Dark tile floors made of granite with golden cracks and veins of other colors spread out throughout the square with a garden of several different kinds of trees and bushes surrounding the sides.
Within those gardens, several stalls stood tall, almost built from the living arboretum growing in the city like a haven. Animals of all sizes scampered about. Deer grazed on grass next to cows, rabbits munched on vegetables near the center of the square where a small mountain grew from the ground. On it sat a large bear with deep brown fur and a shock of silvery-white on his chest.
“That’s the guardian for this square, Tarben,” Thea explained, ensuring we kept a wide berth from the center. “He sleeps a lot, hardly cares when people come close, but is very protective.”
We moved on, but I couldn’t take my eyes from him. His back rose and fell as he snored like a chainsaw.
Suddenly he stopped, his eyes opening and head raising as if searching for something. Then he found it. He rose to his full height, thirteen feet of massive bulk that had to weigh a ton and tottered our way on his hind legs.
“Don’t. Move.” Thea’s warning breath crossed my skin, goosebumps spreading down my arms at the awe-inspiring spectacle before me.
Green and purple invaded my view of the beast as Sundar advanced to meet it.
It called out, a grumbling roar, some bear noises, and then Sundar grunted and bellowed back at him.
The noise stopped, and the crowd gasped; someone dropped what they were holding a clattering sound echoed throughout the square.
“What do you want, you great big bruiser?” Sundar put her hands on her hips, listening as Tarben grunted and chuffed at the air. “Well, it’s nice to meet you too, big guy. You didn’t have to ruin your nap for that.”
Paws appeared on either side of the large woman’s shoulders, and she cried out, her hands flashing forward to shove the bear away, then wipe her face.
He trundled back to his spot and laid down but didn’t close his eyes.
“Cheeky thing.” Sundar continued wiping her face off, then caught our gazes. “What? He sensed me and wanted to introduce himself.”
“Oh!” Monami clapped excitedly. “Her magic! Animal magic. He probably felt that and responded to it like the salamander did with Al.”
“Speaking of…” I looked back toward the wood nymph. “Whatever happened to it?”
He reached into his breast pocket and pulled the little creature out of it. It squeaked angrily and scuttled back down Albarth’s arm into the pocket.
“I tried to take him back, but he just won’t go.” He shrugged with a look of helplessness.
“So, wait, a guardian who barely wakes up, gets up just to greet you, and you have an elemental creature in your pocket?” Thea seemed confused, shocked, and completely stunned. “Who are you people?”
“Just wanderers.” I smiled at her, unable to really think of an actual explanation for what was going on.
“So, where’s this bowyer I’m looking for?” Albarth motioned toward the square in general, the shaded areas hidden a little from the afternoon sun. “I’m assuming it’s a bowyer, right?”
“Yeah.” Thea still seemed wary of us but turned toward the south end of the square. “Follow me.”
We moved toward a large tree in the corner were a woman tended a piece of wood with some sandpaper. Without even looking up, she greeted us, “Welcome to the Grove. I’m Nell, how can I help you today?”
“I’m Albarth, and I had been talking to Ünbin, who suggested I ask about the special?”
The woman’s head shot up, her vulpine features separating from the shadows, dark red fur covered her body, and her ears flicked back and forth excitedly. Her golden eyes narrowed at Albarth as she placed the wooden pole down with the sandpaper on it.
“You’ve been talking to him?” She stepped into the sunlight, her brown leather pants barely making a sound as she moved. She wore a plain brown apron over a green shirt that moved in the breeze.
“Yes?” Albarth seemed uncertain as he said it.
“I’m his wife, and he barely talks to me.” She snarled angrily, her teeth bared in her muzzle. “What makes you so special?”
“I’m pretty?” Albarth tried, his usual posh accent seeming odd as he fumbled for words. And Ünbin was married?!
She snorted. “Good try.” she walked around him, looking him over. “And he said to ask about what?”
“The special.” Mona stepped in. Nell looked her over and dismissed her off hand.
“Archers only.” Mona started forward, but Sundar grabbed her shoulder and shook her head as Nell muttered, “I swear the man only married me for my crafting.”
She walked into the darkness and faded from view for a moment, then came back with a cloth-wrapped bundle in her arms
.
“It’ll be two gold for the special,” Nell announced to low whistles and a glare from her. “My work is worth the price—don’t wanna pay, don’t waste my time.”
“What does the special include?” Albarth raised his voice to get her attention, the woman’s glare landing back on him. “If Ünbin suggested it, then I’ll likely buy it anyway, but I’d still like to know what I’m getting.”
“You’ll be getting a bow and three dozen arrows.” she set the bundle on the ground. “As well as a glowing recommendation to a leatherworker who will sell you an appropriate quiver and from the looks of your forearm, a bracer.”
Albarth’s hand automatically flew to his left forearm, but Nell just clicked her tongue. “Price of range is steep at times. You’ll get used to it.”
“If it’s what you both suggest, my money is well spent, thank you, Nell.” He stepped forward and offered her the gold with a silver for her trouble, which made her scowl fade a bit.
“Three stalls down on your right will be a gnomish man who Ünbin orders all of his quivers from, if you go there, he will get you the same kind of quiver that my husband favors.” She lifted her previous work and eyed it critically, then grunted and nodded to herself. “He also sells leather armor at a fair price. North side of the square is where the metal armorers pedal their wares.”
“Thank you.” Albarth bowed his head politely, and she just grunted back at him inarticulately before flopping down onto her backside to work on her piece once more.
After we were safely away, farther than I might have normally waited, I asked Thea. “What was she?”
“Nell? A bowyer.” She seemed confused, eyeing me as if I were dumb, then seemed to catch on. “Oh! She’s a type of sylph, a kitsune. Shapeshifting fox-people. She’s one of the few in the city if I recall.”
“That’s super interesting.” Mona smiled at the woman next to me. “You’re very knowledgeable Thea, how long have you lived here?”
“My whole life,” Thea answered readily enough, “Born a stone’s throw from Gage’s place actually, though my folks left more than a century back to go to the Sylvan Forest to be with our people. I had already been trying to sort myself out when they left and got caught up with the wrong crowd. I should’ve died, but I met Gage before the guards raided our hideout, and he beat some sense into me. Been a part of his personal squad ever since.”
“Wrong crowd?” I raised an eyebrow at her in question, but we had arrived at the gnomish leatherworker’s place by now, so she mouthed later.
The small man oiling a leather shoulder pauldron was all too happy to sell us his wares. Each main piece of his most basic gear cost four silver pieces, and the bracers and greaves each cost two silver pieces. The pauldrons, a shoulder piece that would also protect the neck to an extent, were six silver pieces.
“Do you have anything a little more… showy for my friend here?” Sundar asked the balding leatherworker. He wrung his hands a little in thought as Mona blushed and tried to push the larger woman away. “It’s just that we’re trying to accentuate her assets to a maximum level for a fight.”
He nodded, seeming to think on it for a moment with a frown, then squeaked. “I do! It’s almost like a corset, with a softer leather chest to do… uh… as you say.”
“How much would you be willing to part with it for my new favorite person?” Sundar leaned down over the man, casting a long shadow over him as she loomed.
“Five silver and 4 copper pieces.” He counted on his hands and did some math. “For the two of you, the archer with his specifically designed quiver, the corset top, two pairs of leather pants, greaves, and bracers for each that should put the total cost at three gold, five silver, and four copper pieces. Uh, before you ask, the quiver is a gold as it is specifically crafted to Master Ünbin’s needs.”
“You’ve treated us fairly, mister…?” Monami left the question unasked so he might provide his name.
“I’m Milton Brax, miss.”
“Thank you.” She smiled cheerfully at him, and he blushed deeply in return. “You seem to have treated us fairly. Here is my half of that, with an extra silver for your trouble.”
“Thank you miss, I do hope you like my work.” The gnome pocketed the coinage and looked to Albarth, who begrudgingly forked over his funds. “And sir, I will add that this leather vest will look quite dashing with your current clothing. I wish you both protection, and should you ever need anything, come back to Brax’s Hardboiled Hoard.”
I was absolutely enamored by the name, and I wondered if Nell had a name for her business other than the Grove, but she was unlikely to spill that particular information, so I let the thought perish.
Armor for Sundar and I was ungodly. Price-wise, it made sense that metal armor would be a little more expensive, but that much more so? Holy crap. I was a lot flusher than my friends from the prince, so I bit the bullet and bought the armor for Sundar and me.
The elven man running the place was a talker, and if we hadn’t gotten out of there as swiftly as we had, he could have talked me into another set of armor.
I bought chain shirts at eight silver for Sundar and I both, half-plate leggings with metal greaves that cost another eight silver and then four more after that. Finally, the bracers had been five silver putting the total expenses at five gold pieces. That left me with forty-six gold, five silver, and zero copper pieces. I could afford better, but there was no promise I wouldn’t find better from a drop, so I left it alone for now.
The metal armor was heavier than what I was used to, but not too cumbersome to move in.
I couldn’t abide the helmet as it limited my vision, the simple iron of the armor a gray color that I couldn’t take overly long. I asked the others if we could stop at Ophira’s place, and to sweeten the deal, I offered to buy them dyes for their gear.
As we walked through the city streets with our gear equipped, it felt like the people treated us a little differently. They moved aside a little more swiftly. Averted their gazes quickly if our eyes met in passing. It made me feel bad for being so different.
“Don’t feel bad.” Thea sighed when she saw the forlorn look on my face as the people around us moved aside. “They treat a lot of warriors this way. Give us a wide berth at times. Some see it as respect. Others as fear. Some enjoy both, and if you mean anything, you let it roll off you. You’re here for the people, not the awe or respect they give you for your service.”
“So, is the offer for me to come over and train with you still standing?” I glanced bashfully over at her after she spoke, and she turned my way in surprise.
“Yes, absolutely!” A little bit of a bounce found its way into her steps after that.
“Maybe after we finish this dungeon, I’ll come train with you.” She grinned to herself and began to whistle a spritely tune to no one in particular as we continued on. The others had fallen back a few paces, and I could tell they were speaking, but it was for them to know and me to stay out of.
Chapter Thirteen
We walked into Ophira’s small shop, the colors sending a thrill of excitement through me, but also somehow calming me. The familiarity of the bright hues that I would normally choose was nice, but the thought of choosing between them all made my heart race.
“How can I help yo—Oh!” Ophira blinked at all of us before a slight smile graced her beautiful features. “Haven’t even learned how to make dyes yet, and already you bring more customers than I might see in two days. Well done, Kyvir.”
“I told you I wanted this.” I found myself smiling despite her obvious jab at me not visiting to actually learn my craft. “We’re getting ready to go on a quest, but if you have a simple thing to show me while these guys browse your wares, I’d be delighted to learn.”
“Dye making is hardly simple, but I have a beginner’s dye I can show you how to make.” She waved for me to join her at the counter as she pulled out a bowl and a red plant that reminded me of a rose. “First, we take an item with the
desired color, in this case, the red of this flower. For organic materials like this, we will try to either chop or tear it apart and put it into the bowl. Go ahead.”
I lifted the flowers and carefully pulled the petals from the stems, eyeing the bottoms with a critical eye. I took the small knife that she had on the counter and sliced off the white portions at the bottom of a few of the petals, then tore them apart into small pieces before scattering them into the bowl.
“Excellent eye for detail, already I have a good feeling about you.” She touched my bicep, then lifted out a vial out from beneath the counter and handed it to me. “Next, we add our tincture.”
“What is it?” I held it up to eye level and glared at it, it was clear and looked like it could have been water.
“It is water, and a mixture of acid with liquified Aether.” My eyes widened at her explanation. “I will not explain how to make it yet, but know that I have plenty of this tincture, and you can buy it from me until such a time as I trust you with the recipe.”
“I love it!” I purred as I swirled the liquid.
“Add it to the bowl until it covers the leaves, but not any more than that; otherwise you risk muddling the color.” She watched as I added the tincture until it just barely finished covering the leaves. There was a little of the tincture left that I passed back to Ophira, who took it. “Next, you can either wait or take a pestle and grind the petals until the color begins to show.”
“How long might you normally wait?”
“Depending on the strength of the components you use, it could be as soon as five minutes, or as long as twelve hours.” She tapped the tincture. “This is a basic tincture that only works with organic materials. Other tinctures I make can separate the color from metal, ore, stone, and even monster crystals.”
“You can make dyes from monster crystals?” It was hard to hide the wonder in my voice. “How does that work?”
“Monster crystals are one of the hardest materials to use, Kyvir, and they are precious resources, I am teasing you.” She rolled her eyes and giggled at my expense. I had gotten my hopes up. “I have not done it, just for the fact that I have been unable to obtain any, but if you do not wish to sell them, bring them to me, and we will see what can be done.”
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