The Witch's City

by M. Gregg Roe

  Next had come the caravan with the sick lizard. Very sick. Violently sick. There was nothing in the entire world more disgusting than a projectile-vomiting giant lizard in Siljan’s opinion, and she had the misfortune to witness it first-hand. (She still had nightmares.) She was just grateful that she hadn’t been asked to help clean it up. But the smell—the unbelievable smell—had lingered for days. Sometimes when she went outside she still thought she could detect it.

  Some kind of highly-contagious (and disgusting from the sounds of it) respiratory disease broke out in Fisherton. Alessandra and Isadora rushed off to deal with it, taking along Ariel and Bianca. Siljan was briefly excited, thinking that it meant a break from her studies. But then she realized that she was in charge of the temple, and that wasn’t necessarily a good thing. People were now coming to her with their petty issues and complaints. She was now the one who had to deal with any visitors, and there suddenly seemed to be a deluge of them. The woods nearby were teeming with primitive types who were constantly injuring themselves as they worked to become better hunters or gatherers or pillagers or whatever passed for an occupation there. Julien helped Siljan deal with the suddenly-numerous visitors, but she had to attend to their injuries and illnesses alone, and it was utterly exhausting.

  Not long after that, two unexpected visitors arrived on a Novox caravan. It was her big brother Bjarni and his wife Mina. Siljan was thrilled. She really liked her brother and his little slip of a wife. And she couldn’t be expected to do her share of the work around the temple with them visiting, could she?

  Her brother and his wife had scarcely left to return to Rohoville when Aliva and her father appeared. Siljan hadn’t seen Albert in ages, and it was interesting seeing how the others reacted to him. But much to her disappointment, they only stayed for two nights before flying off again.

  Finally, early in the final month of Summer, Siljan boarded a caravan bound for Rohoville. Her long-awaited recruiting trip had finally begun. Hurray!

  ♦ ♦ ♦

  By the time Siljan arrived at her room in the castle, all she wanted was to be dry. It had rained the entire way, creating so much mud that the trip had taken an extra day. Save for one night in Merryton, she spent the entire trip damp and alone in the enclosed area at the back of the wagon. It ruined her plan to befriend the caravan guard that she thought was kind of cute.

  Her final day at the temple hadn’t gone according to schedule either—her schedule, anyway. She packed her things right after breakfast and then took a long soak. She had planned to take a nap that afternoon to rest up for her trip. Instead, she spent the entire afternoon being briefed by Alessandra and Isadora on exactly what she was supposed to be doing on her trip. They were fully aware of her plan to do a quick, half-assed job. They told her everything in excruciating detail and also providing it to her in writing. She was assigned additional tasks: meet with Ariel’s parents and answer any questions they had; deliver documents to Celebern; buy things for the temple and bring them back—an insane number of things; ask Preston about Morton’s magic gauntlet—Siljan hadn’t even known it had been left with him. Isadora even wanted her to check on Audrey’s friend Violet’s baby in Dymar. How was she even supposed to have time to find cleric candidates?

  After putting on dry clothing, Siljan spent time with her parents. She told them about the things that she had been doing lately, although not everything, of course. They were pleased by her healing work at the villages, and very impressed that Kyran was now working directly through her. Siljan went to bed early and slept in late the next morning. It was wonderful, and it looked like it was going to be a nice day weather-wise.

  After a late breakfast, Siljan went straight to see Adrian, hoping that one of his students might be a possible candidate. He was happy to see her, and he not only had one, but he was actually there being tutored! His name was Vydan, and he was a spell-caster, an elf, and looked healthy. That was good enough for Siljan. That he was also reasonably good-looking was just a bonus.

  Siljan took Vydan to lunch at Gunhilda’s Cafe and made her pitch. He told her that he was interested and that he didn’t even need his parents’ permission because he lived on his own! Siljan told him where she could be reached and that he could take his time deciding. Siljan was certain that he would accept. One down, and on her first day. Her plan was working!

  That afternoon, Siljan went to the temple building and spoke with Asria, Branwyn, and Oliver, telling them about her mission and seeing if they knew of anyone. It was a long shot. If they knew of a good prospect, they would probably have already recruited them for their own temple. And indeed, they didn’t have any suggestions.

  Siljan went to check out the huge inn being constructed in the northern part of the city. Darius—who she knew well—was the owner, and it looked to be almost done. Siljan didn’t believe for one minute that Darius was no longer working for Novox, no matter what he claimed. Celebern was obviously bankrolling the place, and he probably had some nefarious purpose in mind. But that was no concern of hers.

  Back at the castle, Siljan complained to her mother about all of the things she needed to buy. Sabrina asked her why she didn’t just give money and the list to the chamberlain and let him take care of it for her. Siljan felt foolish for not having thought of it herself and promptly did as her mother suggested. It would all be purchased, packed up, and ready for her when she headed back to the temple in about a month. Hurray! It’s good to be a princess!

  Vydan came to see Siljan in the castle late that afternoon. He worked there part-time in the library. He told Siljan that he accepted her offer. She gave him an approximate departure date and thanked him. Everything’s going great!

  Siljan went out for a walk that evening. She decided that the only way the day could be better would be if she were to find a handsome young man waiting for her in her bed. Sadly that didn’t happen, and the next portion of her trip went much worse.

  ♦ ♦ ♦

  “I’m sorry,” said the shorter of the two castle guards—an older man who looked vaguely familiar. “There are no guest rooms available right now. We’re hosting a large trade delegation from the south.”

  Siljan just stared at the man. She was barely awake after taking an overnight ship through horrific storms. And that was a day later than planned because the first ship she had tried had sprung a leak and been forced to return to Rohoville for repairs. The trip from Rohoville had taken almost twice as long as it should have due to the weather, and for the first time in her life, she had gotten seasick. Violently seasick. Healing magic hadn’t helped at all, and she desperately wanted to just lie down and sleep.

  After her initial success, she had failed to locate another candidate in Rohoville. That didn’t really concern her because the Witch’s City was much larger. She might even be able to find more than one. She was already looking forward to pawning off work on the new acolytes.

  The other thing that had happened to her had been depressing. To get around her issue, she approached a young man that she was already acquainted with and considered a friend. Everything went fine until she tried to kiss him after their dinner together. He rejected her, and the reason was her stupid title! He couldn’t get past the fact that she was Princess Siljan, and that her parents were the king and queen. After that, she just gave up.

  “Do you know who I am?” Siljan demanded, trying to look intimidating. That was difficult, because she still felt nauseated. The dried vomit on her shirt probably wasn’t helping either.

  “Yes, Siljan. We know who you are. I remember when you were a little girl, running around the castle hallways with the other children. But there still aren’t any rooms available.”

  That explained why the guard looked familiar. “Fine,” sighed Siljan. “Sorry to bother you.”

  She went out into the plaza. Most of the vendors had already left, but she spotted a familiar figure in the process of packing up. She slowly walked over because the ground sometimes felt like it was movi
ng.

  “You look terrible, Siljan,” were Almera’s first words to her.

  “I feel terrible. I may never take a ship again. Can I stay with you? The castle is full.”

  Almera nodded, looking sympathetic. “Of course you may. Just give me a minute to finish putting everything away.”

  “Doesn’t Audrey usually help you?”

  “Not very often these days. She’s teaching a class right now.”

  It took a moment for Siljan to figure out what Almera meant. Her brain seemed to be working both slowly and poorly. “For Grasapa?” she asked. She thought that Audrey was just a student.

  “Yes. A beginner’s class that her boyfriend is in.”

  Now Siljan was questioning whether her brain was working at all, because that made no sense. “Saxloc is studying Shorinken?”

  “No. Her other boyfriend. I’ll explain after you’ve had some rest. I have something that should settle your stomach.”

  “Okay.” Siljan remembered that Almera had a problem with seasickness.

  The walk to the mansion seemed to take forever. The sun came out and began to bake the moisture out of the ground, rapidly making it both hot and humid. That made Siljan feel even worse. As soon as they entered the grounds, she ran behind some bushes and vomited. She had to cling to Almera’s arm to even make it inside. Almera left her in the parlor with a cup of water while she went to prepare a guest room. When she returned, she had another cup. What was in it tasted terrible, but Siljan drank it all in hopes that it would help. Finally, Almera helped her upstairs and put her to bed. As she drifted off, she realized that she had called Almera “Mother”.

  ♦ ♦ ♦

  Mid-morning, Siljan put on the robe she found in the wardrobe and made her way downstairs carrying the tray that she had found awaiting her the previous evening when she awoke. (Almera had thoughtfully left her some food and drink in case she was hungry.) The combination of sleep, the medicine Almera had given her, and a long bath had restored her. But just to be sure, she planned to spend the entire day doing as little as possible.

  She found the kitchen empty and left the tray by the washbasin. Then she located some cheese, bread, and an apple and ate them all, washing them down with water. Her stomach grumbled ominously, but everything stayed down. She was praying that her seasickness had just been an aberration.

  Siljan cleaned all the dirty dishes and put them away while wondering where everyone was. She went back to her room, donned clean clothes, groomed herself, and then went for a walk around the grounds. It was still humid and already warm, but there was a nice breeze and lots of sunshine. She knew the place well, which is why stumbling across a small log house in the southeast corner startled her. The plaque next to the door left no doubt as to who lived there. Siljan walked up and rapped loudly on the door. Audrey looked very surprised when she answered a few moments later.

  “Siljan. I didn’t know you were here.”

  “I got here yesterday. I’ve been sent to recruit more clerics for the temple. When did this happen?” she asked, gesturing to indicate the house.

  “While we were off dealing with Morton. It was a surprise.”

  Siljan shook her head. She knew that Draymund and Almera liked Audrey, but building her a house seemed extreme even for them. “Well aren’t you lucky? And what’s this I hear about a second boyfriend?” Siljan would be happy to just find one.

  Audrey explained as she gave Siljan a tour of her cottage, as she referred to it, and Siljan told her about the trip so far. Then the two of them sat down in the sitting area. It sounded to her like Audrey was no longer dating Saxloc. Erwin was the one she kept talking about.

  “Isadora told me to check on Violet and her baby while I’m here,” she explained. “Do you want to go to Dymar with me tomorrow?”

  Audrey shook her head. “No. Your timing is good. Violet will be coming here two days from now with Quentin. She’ll be staying two nights. We’re having a Sparrow party.”

  “Really?” It was finally some good news.

  “Yes. Do you want to play? You can take my place. Then I can concentrate on being the hostess.”

  “Sure. That sounds fun.” Siljan used to play frequently when she was younger.

  “The last one was. Cinda, Marryn, and Carlinda will be here. It’s all women.” Audrey frowned and hesitated before continuing. “There’s a young woman named Rosalind that will be there. She’s mentioned wanting to be a cleric. You should talk to her.”

  Siljan stared at Audrey in amazement, hoping that she was serious. “I definitely want to talk to her. Who is she?”

  “I’m assuming you used to shop at Sharp Edges. Did you ever notice a very short half-elf clerk.”

  That did sound familiar. “Mousy-looking? Shy?”

  “That’s her. She’s less shy now and we discovered she’s a spell-caster. She’s actually the reason that Sharp Edges was destroyed.”

  “What are you talking about?” It was the first she had heard about it.

  Audrey frowned. “That’s a long story. Why don’t we go eat somewhere and I’ll tell you all about it? Then I have class this afternoon.”

  “That’s fine. I need to talk to Grasapa and see Celebern.”

  Siljan smiled. Things were definitely looking up.

  ♦ ♦ ♦

  Siljan hadn’t planned on buying anything, but after a few minutes of browsing at the thrift shop she found two shirts and a skirt that she really liked. They were good quality and remarkably inexpensive. She would definitely be shopping there whenever she visited the Witch’s City. She walked over to the wooden table that Rosalind was sitting behind, perched on a stool. An older couple was already there. Siljan waited patiently, observing the polite and friendly way that Rosalind dealt with them.

  As the couple walked away, Siljan placed her items on the table, saying, “I would like these.”

  “Of course.” Rosalind started neatly folding each item. “That will be nine copper pieces, please. I haven’t seen you here before. I’m Rosalind.”

  Siljan handed over a silver piece. “I don’t need change. I’m Siljan, and I have a proposal for you.”

  Rosalind gave her a startled look as she put the silver piece into a small metal box that she had taken out from under the table. She folded the last item and piled it on the other two. “You’re the one that goes adventuring with Saxloc?”

  “Yes. I grew up here, but my parents live in Rohoville.”

  “Your parents rule Rohoville,” corrected Rosalind, flashing a smile. “Or at least your mother does, according to Almera.”

  Siljan grinned, amused by Rosalind’s quip. “That’s exactly right.”

  “What did you mean by a proposal?” asked Rosalind.

  Siljan glanced around and saw that there was only one other person in the shop, and it was someone she was expecting. “I’ve heard you might be interested in becoming a cleric. My temple is looking for people that we can train. Do you think you might be interested?”

  “I … maybe. But I have work right now.”

  “Why don’t you take a break?” suggested Draymund as he walked up. “I’ll take over for a while. Take as long as you need, Rosalind. This is a real opportunity.”

  Rosalind’s face lit up. “Okay. Thank you, Draymund.”

  Siljan was soon sitting with Rosalind in a small room at the back of the store. The only furniture were three rather worn upholstered chairs. Two small windows high up on the back wall provided barely-adequate illumination.

  “I’ve heard about you,” began Rosalind, “but I can’t remember which temple you’re at.”

  “It’s a temple of Kyran. It’s west of Fog Lake—north and west of where Audrey is from.”

  Rosalind pursed her lips in thought. “Kyran is associated with fertility and good harvests. Also with drinking and carnal pleasure. Right?”

  “Yes,” replied Siljan. “That’s pretty much it. There’s a vineyard nearby, and we make grape wine there.”

&n
bsp; “That’s right. I’ve seen bottles from there. I’ve heard it’s strong, but I can’t tell because I can’t get drunk.”

  “What?” She had been told about Rosalind’s ailment, but not that.

  Rosalind shrugged. “My body doesn’t absorb alcohol. It just passes through. Are you sure you would want me? I have health problems.”

  Siljan waved a hand. “I heard about that. It’s not a problem. If you are interested in becoming a cleric, can cast spells, and are breathing, then I’m interested.”

  “That’s funny, but I’m still working on my first spell.”

  Saxloc had told her about Rosalind’s bizarre attempts to cast Illumination, and she had begun to experiment herself. “That’s fine. We can train you. Alessandra and Isadora are both skilled spell-casters.”

  “How does this work? Would I have to pay?”

  “No. You will be given chores—cooking, cleaning, and such—but that’s all. We will give you a place to live and provide all your meals. And a small stipend.”

  “What if I don’t like it? Can I quit?”

  “You have to commit for at least a year,” replied Siljan, hoping that wasn’t a deal breaker.

  Rosalind scrunched up her face and nodded. “That sounds reasonable. I’m interested, but I need to talk to some people first, including my parents.”

  “Take your time,” said Siljan quickly. “I’m staying at the mansion and I’ll be in town for at least a few more days. After that, I’ll be in Rohoville until the fifth day of next month.”

  “Okay. I want to talk to Saxloc and Audrey because they’ve been to your temple. Maybe Gabriel too.”

  “Draymund’s also been there; start with him.”

  “I will.” Rosalind narrowed her eyes as she asked, “Is there a lot of sex there?”

  “Yes,” replied Siljan as she began to blush. “But it’s not required or anything.”