by Derek Palmer
""You never really told us anything more about your father, Stian. He was a natural Mage, too, wasn't he?""
I felt a bit sad because of the question Bellcauniel asked me. Not much, but a bit. My mother must have known, but because they wanted to protect me, they hadn't explained anything about magic to me.
""I'm sure he was. I guess that he had to be. But he never said or did anything that even hinted at it.""
Of course, that meant that there might be some natural Mages among us. Scattered around the Kingdom, most likely hiding. At some point, we would need to find them. One more thing I probably needed to find out at Aston or at the University.
When that morning came, I hugged and kissed Bellcauniel for a long time - and then did the same with Fainauriel. The idea of a separation that would be at least a year but probably even more seemed much less devastating to them than to me. That was probably because of the relative difference in our ages. Knowing that fact didn't make it any easier for me. The whole idea of leaving my home again for an unknown amount of time was troubling enough.
Hantaliel accompanied me when I started my journey. There had been some discussion of whether I could continue being Arne, but we had decided against it. So, from now on I would be Stian Holth, the youngest son of a farmer; as the youngest son I needed to find out a new profession since my two older brothers would continue with the farm. I had little money and a forged letter of recommendation; supposedly from a former teacher of mine. We all knew that the letter mattered only formally. The really important thing was the hundred Crowns I had hidden and that I would be able to pay for admission. The letter would be filed in the records and those Crowns would go to the person with the right stamp. We had been thinking about which name I should use, but now it had been years since anybody had heard about Stian Elder - and Stian wasn't that uncommon a name. So, I would be Stian instead of Arne.
I had changed my looks somewhat. My previously longish hair was now short and I had washed it with some darkening liquid just for this journey. The plan was to go to a village I hadn't visited before and take a river boat to the coast. From there I'd take a sailboat to the capital. I could have done the trip with a horse or with a group of wagons, but it would be easier to stay anonymous this way, or so I believed. During the last few weeks, there had been so many different and conflicting thoughts rushing inside my head while I had been trying to learn and figure out all the things I needed to know and remember. When my final night with Hantaliel came, I was almost relieved that there was nothing more I could do or worry about.
My final thought before I fell asleep, was that I wanted to learn about sailing, and not just because I needed to learn about sailing.
--
Chapter 11
From my discussions with Birgit, I knew how traveling with boats worked. I also knew where to start my journey so that we wouldn't be spending the night in the town where I was known as Arne. Our stop there was long enough to make me feel uncomfortable. Not because of Birgit, but because of the other people whom I had learned to know during my visits. It was enough that Birgit was a bit unhappy because of my coming years of absence, I didn't want to give any excuses to other people I might know.
"Son, why don't you go to see the town. You have time; we don't continue until after noon."
I shook my head at the old boatman.
"My mother warned me about harbors. She said that I'd better stay in the boat while we stop since there are all kinds of dangers lurking in places like this."
The man burst out laughing.
"Son, if I were your age and got your looks, I'd be out there in a blink of an eye. Some women out there would probably make a queue and do you for free!"
I looked away and did my best to look embarrassed which made him laugh even more.
"You should really try it out here, son. Once we get to the coast, the women there will eat you alive and just spit out the bones. At the capital you won't even know what hit you. I can only suggest that you enjoy the ride!"
I looked at the man, making sure that I kept the embarrassed took on my face while shaking my head.
"I shouldn't. It's not that I wouldn't like it to happen but..."
"Well, your loss, son."
Luckily the man didn't push things any further but turned towards another male passenger who listened to him with interest. Once we were farther downstream we were taken to a boarding house for the night - and that man was shown a different place to sleep than the rest of us. I shrugged, slept and dreamed about Bellcauniel, Fainauriel and Hantaliel. Just as I should.
It was mid-afternoon the following day when we docked at the river-mouth. I thanked the boatman for the trip and I also asked him for a recommendation of a place to spend the night and a ship for the rest of the journey. The man thought for a moment.
"There's a place just outside the dock area which should be fine if you just want to sleep. Going there might also help you keep your money until you reach the capital."
"That's all I want for now. I mean, the experience you offered me last night would certainly have been nice but I'm much more afraid that something might happen that will ruin my plans."
The old man looked at me for a moment before smiling and nodding.
"Son, maybe you are smart enough to survive out there. Maybe. Keep that line of thinking - but don't swear off women If they come after you for free and want nothing of value from you. At least that way, you may save some money - unless you end up marrying one of them."
After laughing at his own joke, the man started telling me about the differences between the companies sailing between here and the capital. I listened very carefully since this was the sort of information I wanted to get. What kind of ships there were, how they sailed - and, of course, the prices.
"... so, taking one of those bulky coastal ships doing the cargo trade will maybe make your trip a day, maybe two, longer, but the price is one fourth compared to those fancy ones that are faster and carry those important folks. You being a country boy, you'll do well in those trade boats, I'm sure. Besides, those few companies are honest ones. They care so much about their reputation that they don't want to rob occasional passengers. Or, if they do, they make sure to dump your body to the sea."
From his grin I was sure that he was joking. Or, I was almost sure that he was joking. I hoped so. For the first time, I was a bit worried that I'd had to leave both my crossbows and my sword behind but especially because my sword was too easily recognizable - and there should not be much need for a crossbow in the capital. So, I only had two knives with me - and my new skills in unarmed fighting. I wasn't really anxious to test those skills.
I found the small boarding house the boat owner had told me about - and it was exactly what he said it would be. Not a fancy one and the room was small - but clean. Once I had agreed the price for one night and left most of my stuff there, I returned to the harbor and started looking for the trade office. All the ship captains visited the office if they had any extra room in their boats - or ships. That extra room would be used for goods - or passengers.
In the last year and a half, I had managed to make myself much more tolerant of crowds. I still didn't like crowded places since I needed to 'dull' my sensing abilities and that was constant effort, even if it had become easier and easier with time. Most likely I’d never really become a ‘townie’, never.
While looking for the trade office I also checked the market and the shops for the things they sold here. From my discussions with Birgit, I knew that the Crown collected tax for every purchase and they had recently raised the basic tax from one tenth of the price of the purchase to two tenths. Not only that, there were boxes into which the seller needed to pay the tax immediately after the purchase. If you failed to do so and got caught, you had to pay half of your sales as taxes for the next six months. If you got caught twice you did that for a year. Nobody had ever heard of anyone who had been caught three times.
Birgit had heard about those box
es, but they hadn't found their way to the smaller towns, yet. I had heard that some people were envious of those living in the Northwest coast since there was no such tax collected there. Too few people and not so much trade - and even less money used. Just how would you pay your tax with deer skins or with beef?
The tax increase was still a common cause of complaints. To me the prices looked quite reasonable - most groceries were still cheaper than in my old home villages, even if some of the basic things, like potatoes, were more expensive. In general, I could probably live here quite comfortably for some time with the money I got from my Bonds. However, eventually the money would run out - and what then? There would not be much work for a hunter around here.
After some searching and questioning I found the trade office I was looking for. The people at the office weren't really surprised at my question, once I had mentioned the recommendation had come from a boat operator. The trade people had their own opinion about the operators doing almost purely passenger transport and hearing that opinion allowed me to increase my vocabulary in Anglon.
In the end, all of us were sort of happy. The boat captain got one paying customer, the office got their commission, the Crown got some taxes - and I got my ride to Aston! Cheaply.
Once I had the boat trip figured out, the evening was still young and I wondered what I should do. This was by far the biggest town I had visited in my life and I still had some issues in staying a longer time close to big groups of people. I had been somewhat worried about finding my way around the town but it seemed that I'd be able to find my way here, at least. After all, all, the basic rules were the same: The Sun or the Moon was in the sky and buildings could be used as landmarks as well as hills or special trees. Then there was the fact that I also seemed to have some magical 'knack' in finding my way. Once I had been some place I'd probably be able to find it again if I needed to. If I remembered correctly, my father had been like that, too. That was something to think about.
Since I had some time, I decided to examine the town some more. I had my spare clothes and some books in the boarding house, but I carried my money with me in a few special pockets that had been made in my clothes. Even if I had never been in a town like this before, I didn't quite think of myself as a naïve country boy. First there had been my mother’s stories - or teachings - and then I had also had some lengthy discussions with Hantaliel. She had visited several towns multiple times in disguise, both good and bad areas. From her I had learned about the things to be aware of: Groups of young men ready to move quickly and surround their victim, women who could come and hug you and empty all your pockets in a blink of an eye, corrupt town guards... the list was long. The most dangerous ones were the ones you couldn't really predict; like a man with a knife ready to kill and rob anybody so that he could get some more drugs.
All those things were a good reason to not totally shut off my magical skills. I wasn't at all sure that this ability would give me any forewarning about something threatening, but at least it would warn me about approaching people. Besides, this might be a good opportunity to learn to fine tune my skills.
I ate - or tasted - some small things that were being made and sold in stands along the streets as the day progressed. Some of those things were good and some not so good. Some, being fried, were probably not that healthy and I decided not to take habit of eating them. However, right now I could use all the help that would make it easier for me to get comfortable in town. Inside town walls. I tried not to think about the idea of being closed behind walls too much.
Once I had decided that I had seen enough, I turned in the direction where I knew my boarding house would be. Now it was getting dark and behind the doors that had been closed were now bars and some other businesses. Only when I saw the red lights I really understood what the area was. I hadn't yet walked through there but I remembered seeing the street before. Back then it hadn't provoked any interest but now there was light and some voices. Not to mention two sturdy looking guys at the beginning of the street. In a way, those guys oozed authority just like the Guardians had done, but it was clear that they didn't were a part of any official organization.
"Looking for some fun, son?"
The voice of the man was deep but in no means threatening, merely curious or even humorous.
"No, just looking around on my way back to the boarding house."
"Of course son, all the men who come here are just looking around. Just looking."
Now there was no question if he was laughing or not. I did my best to look embarrassed - and harmless - since I had noticed that both men carried some wooden batons on their belt.
The other man decided to interfere.
"Son, there's no reason to be embarrassed since a man should really learn something about those things. After all, a happy wife is a good wife and a good way to keep your wife happy is to know certain things. Our girls may not be the youngest in the business, but they are pretty and clean and you can be sure that they know a trick or two about making a man happy while letting you know what feels good for a woman, too."
His sales talk was so good that I had to fight to prevent a small smile forming on my lips, since he sounded like someone who really believed in what he was saying. Since I didn't look fully convinced, he decided to continue.
"You are not married yet, son, are you?"
"No, I'm not."
When I said that, I felt that I was lying since I felt that I was married to those three women in that valley. We had been talking about it several times and the Elves didn't really understand the idea of marriage, even if a few of them had lived in a long relationship with their partner. Once they had figured out my ideas about relationships they had spent a lot of time to convince me that I shouldn't be fighting my urges while I'm out here. Still, there had been some feelings of guilt because of what I had been offered during that boat trip.
"Then, why don't you take a beer there and have a look, son? I'm not saying that they sell the best beer in this town, but it's quite drinkable and it should stay in your stomach since it's made of clean water, unlike some other stuff sold here."
I thought about it. I really thought about it. Even if I wanted things to be different, the truth was that I wasn't totally prepared for Aston, the capital. Hantaliel had tried to teach me everything she could, but knowing about things was still quite different that actually living them. My main problem was that I couldn't afford losing the money I had with me and at the moment I had no secure place to keep it. Yet I knew that, sooner or later, I'd be in a tempting situation and I couldn't sense any Magicians - or any other magic users - around here. So, it might be safe to let my guard down just a bit and see what it was like to live in a town. Besides, I was only going to see what was there, right?
The beer wasn't any better or worse than the beer I had tasted in my old home villages, just a bit different. I had made sure that it was served from the same barrel as all the others and the glass had been clean. Well, reasonably clean. I was quite certain that the beer wouldn't cause me any trouble. I looked around and there were a few men with a beer in front of them and at the same table with them was a woman, or in one case, two. They were talking and occasionally laughing, like they were getting to know each other. There was a man behind the bar who gave the people their beers and kept an eye on the area and there was an older woman sitting behind a desk, next to the stairs leading upwards. Even if I hadn't been in a place like this before, I remembered the stories my Guardian friends had told me. The discussions at the tables weren't just about getting to know each other, but also about business. About what would happen and what would be the price.
"Why are you sitting here all alone, such a handsome young man?"
I had sensed the woman approaching me but I hadn't turned my head until she touched my hand. Her touch was soft and delicate, by no means threatening and the way she had wiped my hand with her finger had affected me - just as she knew it would. She wasn't a girl but a woman in her thirties, t
he wrinkles around her eyes gave away her age since her body could still have belonged to a younger woman. Yes, quite lot of that body was visible through a see-through fabric such as I had never seen before. There wasn't much use for that kind of fabric back where I had been raised.
"I'm not quite sure myself. I've never been in a place like this before."
"You're not from around here, I can hear it from your accent."
All the time when she was talking she made sure to keep contact with some part of me, softly and carefully. All those little things were also mentioned in that small booklet written with the Old Language which didn't mean that they weren't working on me.
"No, my home is a couple of day's journey up the river and inland. I'm heading to Aston hoping to get to the University. I have letters of recommendation from my teachers."
Whenever possible, don't lie. That had been the main point of the instructions the older Elven women had given to me before starting to find suitable merchants and again before starting this journey. If you lied, you needed to remember what you had lied about and that was hard. It was hard enough to learn a new family name. I continued before the woman could answer or say anything.