As the wave of words washed over me, a harried-looking young woman in a blue dress two sizes too large scurried into the room. She carried a pad of paper, real paper. Wow, that stuff is expensive, I thought. I’d only seen high-quality paper a few times in my life, and all when I had been young, when my father had still been alive. “I’m looking for two people,” I said.
Mistress Green waved her hand impatiently and said, “Yes, that is incredibly interesting. Now I am going to tell you how this is not going to go. I am not going to waste my time while my city is burning, while people are relying on me to defend their homes, just to play one hundred questions with a stinky adventurer holding a spear in my administration building. You get one more chance. Tell. Me. What. You. Want.”
I swallowed. Over the course of my life, I’d met a number of people with strong personalities. To be honest, I knew that some had thought of me that way. But Mistress Green was on another level. More importantly, I needed her help. I coughed and after carefully organizing my thoughts, I said, “I am looking for two people that live in this town. One, a man, is named Christopher Santos. The other, a woman, is named Jessica Porter. Both are Terrans. I have something to give them, and they will probably be traveling with me.”
“Anything more?”
“No,” I replied.
“Okay. Good.” Mistress Green turned to the young woman in the oversized dress. She’d been taking notes. “Take care of this, Akemi. I have a meeting with Vairie and the elders in ten minutes. If anyone asks for me and it’s important enough, leave a note on my desk.”
The impressive woman turned to leave but stopped with a thoughtful look. “What is your name again, girl?”
“Nora.”
“Nora, I heard there was a bit of an altercation with the guards when you reached town. I didn’t get details, and I don’t really care. However, you are a fighting woman—since you brought a big rotting spear into the building, I have no reason to think you aren’t—so I have a proposition for you. If you would like to earn some money, let one of my aids or one of the clerks in this building know. The town guards are heading out on a rescue mission soon, so you’d better make your mind up quickly. If you go, you will be paid.”
“Fight with you? What do you—” My words trailed off lamely as Plejia Green marched out of the room without a backward glance.
“So what—” I began.
“Please wait here while I work on this!” squeaked Akemi, the young woman in the blue dress. “Other aids will be wearing clothes like mine. If you need anything, just ask one of them.” Then she bobbed a nod and left just as quickly as her employer had.
After a few moments of unbroken silence, I suppressed a jump when Trend spoke—I’d forgotten he was still in the room. “Well, I think that went well,” he said.
I couldn’t tell if he was being serious or sarcastic. As I settled in to wait, I figured it didn’t really matter.
***
It turned out that Trend was being sarcastic. At least, his attitude made it seem likely. A few minutes into waiting for the Soron aid to return, he’d darkly muttered, “I wonder if she is always this effective. If these people leave with her, I’d be amazed.” The words had been pitched just loud enough for me to hear, but I’d ignored it.
There was no clock where I waited, so I had no way to really tell how much time had passed, but it felt like about half an hour before Akemi bustled back into the room with another person in tow. “This is her,” she said. “This is Nora.”
I studied the man she’d brought with her. He was older than me, but otherwise, his age was hard for me to judge. The man was also shorter than me, with tan skin, dark hair, and high cheekbones. His eyes were narrow, and I recognized that he was ‘Asian’. The term was commonly used on Ludus despite the fact there was no Asia—a holdover from Terran culture.
The man seemed to be in good shape and wore simple clothing—a mix of local trousers and a graphic T-shirt sporting a purple, smiling monster with a green belly. His battered old shoes had definitely not been made in Berber.
He studied the room, and his gaze came to rest on me. My breath caught for a moment. At first, I hadn’t thought he was particularly handsome, but when he studied me, the feeling I got was hard to explain. It was like this man was full of barely restrained energy, kept glacially calm through sheer will. I’d never experienced anything quite like it before.
“Uh, hi,” I said.
“Hello,” said the man. We looked at each other, and silence settled on the room.
Akemi coughed and said, “Nora, this is Christopher Santos. Chris, this is Nora, she was looking for you.”
“Ah, yeah,” I said, shifting my shoulders. “I was looking for you.”
“You don’t look like you are from Earth. Why did you want to meet me?” asked the dark-haired man. He regarded me levelly, but I noticed he had bags under his eyes, and one of his hands wouldn’t stay still. Looking more closely, I could see the signs of stress and fatigue.
“I’m not really sure,” I muttered, staring at the man’s legs. There was something off here. Something I couldn’t put my finger on. What was he hiding?
Akemi urged, “Mistress Nora, could we move this along? This is keeping me from other duties and Mister Chris was working on a fire detail.”
“Oh yeah, right!” I hurriedly pulled the letters out of my pack that Enheduanna had given me what felt like a lifetime ago. Then I handed over the envelope marked with an X and felt a curious sense of loss. I’d never opened it. Never looked inside.
Chris accepted the letter with a raised eyebrow. He turned it over in his hands for a moment before breaking the seal and then began to read. As the minutes ticked by, my anxiety grew. So many struggles, so many hardships had led up to this point. The moment felt surreal. And come to think of it, where was this Jessica person I’d also come to meet?
At least I wasn’t the only person in the room who didn’t handle the silence well. I noticed Trend shuffling from foot to foot as well.
Finally, Chris folded up the note and put it in his pocket. “I was not sure what to expect, but this is not…” he trailed off and frowned. “I am thinking of the word. My Luda is not perfect yet.”
“What did you speak before, when you were on Earth?” I asked. I knew from Enheduanna that Christopher was Terran, but even without that knowledge, I would have been able to figure it out. His Luda had a strange accent.
“Tagalog, some Bisaya, and some English,” he said and nodded. “Okay, I think the word I was looking for is ‘expected’. This not is not what I expected.”
“What did the note say?” I asked.
“The note said not to tell you. If you wanted to read it, why didn’t you just look at it before?”
“You know who that note came from?” I asked, and he nodded. “Then you probably know why. Also, I guess this figures. Anything to do with that woman is a pain. Sometimes I think it would have been easier if she’d just let me stay dead.”
“Could someone clue the rest of us in here,” asked Trend. “Or maybe you’re wrong, and this person let you die? That would make this whole meeting a little strange, yes?” I didn’t react to the guard, but he was seriously beginning to irritate me.
Chris pulled the note out of his pocket. Then he put it away again, clearly thinking.
Akemi cleared her throat and said, “Well, I think my business here is done so—”
“Please stay,” said Chris.
“Is someone going to tell me where Jessica is?” I asked, waving my other letter, the one marked with an ‘O’. “Why isn’t she here? Is she coming?”
Akemi opened her mouth to speak, but Chris placed a hand on her arm. In heavily accented Luda, Chris said, “Jessica is my friend. We came to Ludus about the same time. She was taken in the attack last night. Nora, I will go with you as the letter says I should, but only if we rescue my friend first. She should be going with us anyway, right?”
I blinked owlishly, wrapping my
mind around what had just been said. Then I remembered my instructions from Enheduanna.
“Once the letters are delivered, several developments will occur. If things go the way I expect, both Terrans will follow you willingly.”
Several developments my ass. How had she known? I shook my head and just sighed. Honestly, I should have known better than to think any part of this mission would be easy.
I briefly thought of my options. I could run away, which may or may not result in my death or banishment. Maybe another land wouldn’t be so bad? Right. That option was probably no good.
Using my Vibration senses, I could probably find the slavers. I could even catch up by air skating. But even being orb-Bonded, I was still in Berber, and there were a number of strong fighters in this country. A few had probably killed each other off in the battle before, but I didn’t know that for certain. I doubted the town leadership for Soron did either.
Then again, I could just stay in town and wait for the town guard to catch up to the slavers. I could let them deal with the problem. That passive approach seemed awfully dangerous, though. I doubted Enheduanna would care about any excuses I had if this Jessica woman were to die.
My last option was really the best one I had. During my wait time, I’d figured out what Mistress Green had meant before about a rescue operation. Maybe I could volunteer and go on the mission that she had mentioned. In fact, if I volunteered to help rescue the kidnapped townspeople, I’d even get paid for it.
If I could prove I was a mage or orb-Bonded-which would be easy—I’d even make more money. More powerful mercenaries always got paid more. This was common sense, because depending on their School, a powerful mage could single-handedly change the way an entire battle was fought by both sides. Not earth mages, though. Earth School was weak for anything other than digging wells and such.
I thought about my choice for another second. I wasn’t keen on running into a fight, but if I went, I’d be going with allies. Plus, it’s not like I’d have to push for the front lines. I’d have to at least make a good showing, but that didn’t mean I’d have to give my maximum effort.
In all the chaos, if I found Jessica, I could probably just grab her and escape, too. Then I could circle back to Soron, or come back with the triumphant guards to collect my pay. As an added bonus, I wouldn’t be dealing with the morality issues that most mercenaries face. If I did have to fight, it’s not like I’d have any troubles with my conscience.
The idea of slavers kidnapping people, especially kids, and most especially little boys didn’t sit well with me. The world would be a better place without them. If one of them slipped and fell on my sword, well, oops.
I thought furiously, all my options rushing through my mind in the space of a few heartbeats. I may not be clever, but I could be decisive. I asked, “So if we find Jessica, you’ll come? And you won’t come if we don’t?”
“Yes,” Chris said.
“Will you help convince her to come if she drags her feet? After being kidnapped and going through whatever she is going through, I doubt she’ll want to just jump up and go on an adventure.”
Chris’ eyes tightened before he answered, “Yes. She will come. But if she dies, the deal is off, and I will not come with you. The letter said that would be bad for you.”
Damn Enheduanna! I thought furiously. “Fine, we have a deal.” I turned and said, “Akemi, I would like to volunteer to join the group heading out to rescue the prisoners.”
The younger woman’s face lit up, “That is wonderful, how—”
Chris interrupted, “I’m coming too.”
“The hell you are,” I snapped. “If you die, you can’t come with me later.”
“Well, I guess you have another problem then,” he said, his voice calm. “I read the letter. I don’t take orders from you until I travel with you. I have not accepted yet.”
I put a hand over my eyes and exhaled slowly. If what he was saying was true—and I had no reason not to believe him—Enheduanna had neatly maneuvered me into a trap. Damn her! Damn that smug little—
Behind me, Trend chuckled, and I decided I really, really didn’t like the guard. With the pressure of weeks of pent-up stress, and my frustration hitting a boiling point, my eyes snapped open, and I loosened the chains on my temper a bit.
I turned, stepped, and punched in one smooth motion, restraining most, but not all of my enhanced strength. My fist broke Trend’s nose and knocked his helmeted head back against the wall behind him like a leather ball. He crumpled to the floor.
“I didn’t kill you earlier. Don’t test my patience.” My voice sounded strange in my own ears, and I wrestled within myself. I’d always seen violence in response to words as a sign of weakness or stupidity, but my life and my world were changing. It was ironic that Nora the Jackal could be understanding, but Nora the orb-Bonded may not have the luxury.
Trend looked up at me from the floor, blood on his face, his eyes tearing up. I recognized his naked fear. His hand didn’t even go for a weapon. In that moment, I could see this acceptance that I could take his life whenever I pleased.
I suddenly understood that he’d been acting out of frustration from earlier, the same type of frustration that had led me to hit him. He’d probably been needling me, mocking me to help repair his ego. The town’s administration building was a safe place for a guard, and he’d been frustrated that I’d beaten him and his sergeant at the gate.
I turned and growled, “Did you hear me, Akemi?”
“Yes, Mistress!” she squeaked, her eyes round with fright.
The girl’s reaction was like a bucket of cold water to the face. My satisfaction from punching Trend immediately faded, and I felt disgusted with myself. Was this how I would choose to use my power? The thoughts I’d just had about my new role as orb-Bonded hadn’t been untrue...but this wasn’t me. There had to be a better way to explore this world while commanding respect than hurting people weaker than myself.
I glanced at Chris. The Asian man’s gaze was neutral. He hadn’t moved and had just watched me. I didn’t know what it meant yet, but I decided not to forget it.
As uncomfortable as I was with my lack of self-control earlier, I decided to maintain my commanding tone. “Akemi, let’s get going. Your boss said that the guards are moving out soon. I don’t want to miss it.”
Chris nodded at me as we followed Akemi out of the room, the meaning unclear. I wondered what he was thinking. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Trend following us on unsteady legs. Good.
I schooled my face to indifference, remembering how it’d felt to hit the mocking guard. Who was I turning into? I sincerely hoped that the person I was becoming wasn’t someone I’d ever be ashamed of.
SNAFU
The manicured grass around me was green and felt wonderful between my toes. A few new-dragonflies buzzed around, all six wings humming as they sped through the air. The sun hung high in the East, so the time was late afternoon. I squinted at a fountain, looking for a mermaid statue I could only fuzzily remember. Yes, it was there.
This was Memory Park in Bittertown. Memory Park had been one of my favorite places to play back in happier times. When Muffin walked from behind a tree, the capybara girl’s sudden appearance didn’t surprise me in the slightest.
“Well, you adjusted to this whole thing quickly, didn’t you?” she asked. Muffin wore different clothes than last time I’d spoken with her. This time she had on green shorts and a yellow hoodie. The hoodie had green drawstrings and an image of broccoli on the front.
“What, should I be startled?” I asked. “I’m not a scholar, but I’m not stupid. Besides, this felt weird from the beginning.”
“Many ‘Bonded never adapt to meeting their orb controller this way.”
I shrugged. “Okay, nifty. Why are you here? Are you going to let me rank up now?”
“No, not yet. I’m impressed that you remembered that, by the way. But riding around in your head has been both interesting and fru
strating. You remembered that I would choose when you rank up, and you swallowed the spirit stone to do so, but you have completely forgotten about the Etiquette ability you bought.”
“Wait...what—ah,” I muttered.
“You insisted on that ability, and yet all this time while learning about the people around you and using the passive side of the power you purchased, you’ve just assumed that all of your sudden emotional maturity was...you. Your instincts proved helpful to choose the ability, but then you forgot you had it. Fascinating.”
There wasn’t much I could say to that. I asked, “So when are you going to let me rank up? Why are you here?”
The capybara girl narrowed her eyes at me. “You should be ready to rank up by the time you get to Tolstey—if you survive that long. You are in a unique mental state now where I could talk to you, and I decided to have this chat concerning your survival actually.”
“Oh?”
“Yes. You are heading to battle right now. My calculations are not giving you great survival odds. They will go up as soon as I give you my advice, though. The first piece of advice for you is that you are not using your natural adomopathy very well. You need to relax your mind and let your body learn, not your mind.”
“Uh huh,” I said, my voice skeptical.
“You will either figure it out or you won’t. I don’t have time to convince you of anything,” said Muffin. “The other thing I came to tell you is that I’ve noticed your decision on how to use your points at your next orb-Bonded rank.”
“That’s right.,” I said, not surprised that Muffin knew this since she lived in my head.
“Well, all of your choices are horrible, even worse than your first ones. You should really start rethinking all of it.”
Mitigating Risk (Nora Hazard Book 1) Page 21