by C E Keene
Arheis’ brows rose in surprise. He thought he’d completely missed out on the rewards for the kill, but apparently Zindar had waited to include him.
“Yeah, absolutely.” A frown twisted his lips. “You didn’t have to do that. Especially since you and Mira were the ones to finish it off.”
Zindar just shrugged and started walking toward the Hall, Arheis falling in step beside him. “We wouldn’t have killed it without you. It seemed only fair.”
They walked through Lacerda’s muddy streets in a silence that felt more strained than usual. Arheis was tempted to ask if they should wait for Mira, too, but he already knew the answer to that. She’d been clear with how she felt about taking the Guild’s credits. On top of that, Arheis wasn’t exactly her favorite person in the world right now.
But that did beg the question of why Zindar was treating him so… normally. He’d been there. He’d seen everything Mira had, and it had obviously affected him. As much as Arheis wanted to avoid conflict with the one friend he had left at the moment, he also didn’t want it to fester.
“I’m surprised you came to find me,” he admitted as the Guild Hall loomed in the distance. “Mira… she’s pretty upset with me.”
“Yeah,” Zindar said simply. His ears pressed closer to his head, but that was the only indication he gave of being bothered by it all. “I don’t know. I don’t like to think about it. You’re alive now, and that’s all that matters.”
Arheis’ frown deepened. He was reminded of his mom during those early years, after his dad first left them. She’d kept a smile, stayed positive for his sake, but he’d heard her crying at night. He knew it wasn’t okay. He knew it now, but he had no idea how to bridge that gap without prying the truth out of the Pruvari.
And that seemed like an intensely bad idea.
> You can tell Zindar is holding back, but your relationship isn’t strong enough to press for more.
Well, that answered that. Even the game was telling him there wasn’t a damn thing he could do about it right now. He’d lost reputation points with Mira and seemed to be on the verge of losing them with Zindar. It was best to tread carefully, at least until this whole mess blew over.
Still, he felt he needed to say something.
“Thanks for being there, Zindar.”
The Pruvari’s smile didn’t reach his eyes, regardless of how much he seemed to want it to. “Of course.”
They continued the last few steps to the Guild Hall, finding it nearly empty aside from a few initiates and the Curator, his nose buried in a book behind his large wooden desk. Arheis and Zindar approached, and the Pruvari opened up his pack to reveal the barely-contained head of the Morditul.
“You killed it?” the Curator asked, seeming surprised. “I thought you would have been Morditul food by now.”
Arheis winced, not daring to spare a glance at his companion. “Is that little girl’s father still here?”
“No,” the man said, stretching out that single syllable in a way that made Arheis’ brow lift, “but I’ll pay you for the bounty and let him know. I suppose you’ll want to register this kill, too.”
“That would be nice,” Arheis muttered, well past his limit for dealing with the attitude of merchants and other bureaucrats for one day.
The Curator said something under his breath, then reached beneath the desk, returning with a massive tome and a bag of coins. The process of registering the kill came first, taking only a few moments.
“That’s enough for a new rank, right?” Zindar asked hopefully.
The stout man ignored the Pruvari for a moment, scribbling in the tome. Numbers were added, a line drawn, and then he nodded.
“Yes, yes. Congratulations.”
Zindar’s grin was genuine this time, despite the Curator’s lack of fanfare as he moved on to Arheis.
> You have earned 750GC for your recorded kill.
> You have been awarded 20 Guild Points.
> Points to next rank: 55/80
The bounty was dealt with next. The Curator recorded their account of the fight, took the measurements from the severed head, and tucked it away somewhere beneath his desk, using a rag to clean the blood and other fluids it left behind. He signed his name to a sheet of parchment, had both of them sign, and then handed over the promised amount of credits split between the two of them.
> You have completed: A Father’s Vengeance!
You have gained 244 XP.
You have earned 1,000GC.
Arheis tucked the credits away. They weren’t a complete replacement for what he’d just spent, but he hadn’t expected to get anything from that kill except a loss of Morale—something he still needed to check on when he had a second. The fact that he was 1,000GC and 244 XP richer was all due to Zindar, and he wasn’t sure how to thank his friend without making things awkward again.
Luckily, the Curator provided the perfect distraction.
“Oh, some elf was looking for you two,” he said off-handedly, snapping the giant tome shut and returning to his other book.
“’Some elf?’” Arheis asked dubiously.
“Don’t give me that. It’s not like we see very many in Lacerda.” The Curator huffed. “The Naturalist. He said he’d be at the Hackleback.”
Arheis exchanged a look with Zindar, the Pruvari’s golden eyes lighting up with the promise of a new lead. They hadn’t heard from Galen in weeks, and Arheis had given up trying to contact the elf and ask how progress was going on the whole crystal thing. The fact that he was waiting for them must mean he’d made a breakthrough, and Arheis was eager to find out what it was.
The last of the accounting finished, he and Zindar headed over to the inn, and Arheis dared to hope that their long drought had finally reached an end.
5
Galen was already sitting at his usual table when they arrived, but so was Mira.
She had a tankard in front of her, and in the time it took Arheis to walk across the common room, she’d already taken another three sips and hailed for a fresh drink. He met her gaze only briefly, when she looked up at the sound of footsteps. Pain flickered across her expression and she drained the rest of her tankard.
“Ah, good,” Galen said, getting up so Arheis and Zindar could sit down, “have a seat.”
Zindar immediately sat by Galen, and if he didn’t know better, Arheis would have thought the Pruvari did it on purpose. There were only four chairs at the small table, and now only one of those chairs was open. The one to Mira’s right. Squeezing next to the wall, Arheis took his place there, feeling as awkward as he had when trying to find a place to sit in the lunchroom at his high school.
As he looked across the table, he noticed the slight shimmer of runes dancing across the wood. “You warded it again?”
“I did,” the Naturalist said. “I doubt anyone will be able to use this information for anything untoward, but I’d rather take precautions just in case.”
“And I’d rather not start a panic because someone misunderstood what they heard,” Mira pointed out.
He couldn’t argue with that. Lacerda had gotten a surprise visit from the Nepondus Queen, so they knew firsthand how much damage a beast frenzied by crystals could do. If they thought that was happening again, some of the villagers might resort to extreme measures.
“So what have you learned?” Zindar asked, unable to contain his excitement.
Galen waited for a long moment and Arheis noticed the server approaching out of the corner of his eye. The man exchanged Mira’s tankard for a new one that was filled to the brim with a spiced ale.
“You let me know if you need anything else and I’ll take care of you,” the server said with a wink.
Mira didn’t acknowledge the flirtation in the slightest. She just took the tankard and chugged another drink.
“When you first showed me the crystal, I wrote to an old friend in Iskaril. I sent him what we observed with the Nepondus Queen and asked him if he might know anything. Yesterday, I finally re
ceived word.”
Galen reached into his robes and pulled out a neatly folded letter. Laying it on the table, he smoothed out the creases so everyone could read.
Galen,
I’m sorry it has taken me so long to correspond. I do know more about the crystals you’ve mentioned. More than I can say in a letter. If you plan to visit Iskaril, I would be happy to share the information with you. Until then please tread carefully, my friend. This is a dangerous business.
Archie
“A dangerous business?” Arheis asked, brow furrowing. “What does that mean?”
“I have no idea,” Galen admitted, folding the letter along each crease and slipping it back into his robes. “Archie and I went to the Academy together in Provos. He’s a distinguished Naturalist. Last I heard he was working for the royal family.”
“You think that’s why he’s being so standoffish?” Mira asked.
Galen nodded. “It’s possible. The research he’s doing might be funded by the Crown, in which case he’s likely beholden to certain restrictions about the information he reveals.”
That was… strange. What would the royal family want with that information? Then again, Arheis had seen countless instances of people in power withholding information from those without. Sometimes for their own good. Sometimes just to turn a profit. He’d never thought it would happen in a game like Apex, but why not?
Everything else here was hyper realistic. Might as well have corruption at the highest tier, too.
But maybe he was getting ahead of himself. Maybe his own cynicism was coloring his view of the situation before he had all the information.
“Have you ever met the royal family?” he asked, trying to curb his personal opinions so as not to poison the facts.
“It’s been some time,” Galen said with a frown. “I met the King when I was still quite young. He presented an award to my class for our work on a particular project. But he passed away several years ago now with no living heirs. His brother’s son is Prince-Regent until the succession can be sorted out.”
That wasn’t helping Arheis’ cynicism. Turbulence on the throne gave them even more reasons to be involved in shady business. Still, he couldn’t come up with a solid reason why they’d want to keep that information on lock, and he didn’t want to state his suspicions aloud. Who knew if the game might punish him by decreasing his reputation further?
“Do you think it’s worth following up with him?” Mira asked, the cautious note to her voice telling Arheis he wasn’t the only one who was worried. “I’m sure you trust your friend, but loyalties have a way of changing…”
“I do trust him.” The elf’s words were firm, and so too was the gaze he leveled at the three of them. “I would trust him with my life. I… am unsure of how trustworthy the Prince-Regent is, but it would be foolish to cast judgment without more information. I need to speak with Archie first and see what he knows.”
“We should all go,” Zindar said, seeming unaffected by the touchy subject of politics. “The Guild Hall in Iskaral is one of the most prestigious in the world. It would be a good idea to register with them and maybe pick up some bounties while we’re in the area. I know you aren’t exactly fond of the Guild, Mira, but…”
“…we need the information,” she finished for him. “And there’s no way I’m staying here if there are more of those crystals causing problems.”
“Agreed,” Arheis said, exchanging a brief glance with Mira before looking to Galen. “Do you have any more information?”
“As a matter of fact, I do…” The elf pulled another sheet from his robes. This time it was a copy of a Guild bounty. “I saw this posted at the Hall here, when I went looking for you two. Apparently it’s been there for months now and no one’s responded.”
Arheis leaned in to look at the quickly scrawled text of the bounty.
> Guild Bounty: Terrible Tremors
Citizens of Iskaral have grown tired of the quakes that shake the city, disrupting daily activities. The Guild Hall is offering a substantial bounty to anyone who discovers the source and slays the creature.
Quest Level: ???
Reward: ???
A system message popped up as soon as he finished reading it.
> This Guild bounty originates from a Hall you are not currently registered in. You must register with this Guild Hall and meet their rank requirements to accept this bounty.
He’d planned to do that anyway, on Zindar’s suggestion, and the limitation wasn’t that surprising. It’d been the same in previous Apex games. Each region required a new registration, with ranks rarely transferring over. They’d have to get some kills under their belts before they could even really approach the Guild Hall in Iskaral. And considering how prestigious it was, who knew how many errands they’d have to run beforehand.
“Months…” Mira mused, a frown on her lips. “The damage is likely done, then. But there may be newer bounties we can follow up on, or requests from the locals.”
“Very likely,” Galen agreed.
Zindar’s fanged grin returned and he tapped his fist on the table, jostling Mira’s tankard. “It’s settled then. We’ll go to Iskaral as soon as possible.”
“Mm, one problem with that,” Mira said. “Unless you’ve been captaining a ship in your spare time, we’ll have to wait until a merchant happens by, or find someone in the village who plans on traveling to Iskaral.”
A long stretch of beach filled with sailors immediately leapt into Arheis’ mind. His lips tugged into a smile, and he said, “I can take care of that. I met someone when I first… er, before I came to Lacerda,” he corrected, catching himself. “He’s the captain of a ship called the Lady Katherine.”
“And he would take us to Iskaral?” Mira asked.
“It’s worth asking. I’ll send him a letter tonight, and hopefully we’ll have a response by the morning.”
Zindar’s excitement threatened to boil over. “I’ve always wanted to go to Iskaral. We haven’t been to a big city like that since Dalhurst,” the Pruvari said, looking at Mira, “and that was a fraction of the size of Iskaral.”
“I think we shall all find the trip very useful,” Galen agreed.
The four of them sat and talked for a while, with Arheis eventually getting up to fetch some parchment and a pen. He wrote to Treyous and sent the letter with a courier, paying a little extra for the boy to get it there before nightfall. It felt like they finally had some forward momentum, and the game even granted him a quest update to let him know he was on the right track.
> Your quest Mysterious Crystal has updated.
Galen’s contact in Iskaral has new information about the crystals. You have reached out to Treyous in hopes of securing passage on the Lady Katherine.
But it wasn’t all sunshine and roses. From the moment Zindar had mentioned Dalhurst, Arheis felt Mira tense beside him. She was engaged in the conversation on a surface level, and if he hadn’t known her all that well, he would have assumed there was nothing wrong. He did know her, though. By virtue of their bond, if nothing else. He knew she was hurting, memories from her past surfacing all because of a city Zindar used as an offhanded comparison.
Arheis wanted to talk to her; to ask her if she was okay. But she’d made it clear earlier that she wasn’t all that interested in talking to him right now. Still, as the four of them parted, he stayed behind to make the offer just in case.
“If you… want to talk, I’ll be around,” he said, pushing his chair out.
“Right.” Mira fidgeted, her fingers tapping the side of her tankard.
She wasn’t looking at him, and her posture was so guarded it almost seemed like she was afraid of him for some reason. Arheis took the hint and stepped away from the table, squeezing between the wall and her chair before heading toward his room to wind down for the evening.
“Arheis, wait.”
The common room was filling up, the din of voices growing louder as the night progressed, but still he heard her q
uiet plea. He stopped a few feet away from the table and turned back to her. She rose from her chair with a sigh and a glance spared toward the rest of the inn’s occupants.
“Can we talk?” she asked, gesturing behind him, toward the rooms. “Somewhere quieter than this.”
Under normal circumstances, Arheis might have registered the fact that when he said yes, he was effectively inviting her to his room. But he wasn’t even sure what “normal circumstances” were here. It wasn’t like he was bringing a girl back to his apartment after a date. They’d shared a single kiss and a bond neither of them could really explain. She’d done everything in her power to avoid him over the last two weeks, and it seemed like that trend was only going to continue.
So the nerves never came as he led her down the hall and fished out his key, opening up his room. He did feel a touch self-conscious over how messy it was, though. Nothing compared to his apartment, but he had a mild floordrobe going on and the bed wasn’t made.
Mira didn’t seem to notice either of those things. As soon as he closed the door behind them, she started wearing a hole in the floorboards, pacing across the open space.
“I owe you an apology,” she announced after several long moments of silence.
“You really don’t. I—”
She stopped in front of him, two fingers pressed against his lips.
“Please,” she said softly. “I need to say this, and I don’t think I’m going to get it out otherwise.”
“Alright…”
He felt suddenly unsure of himself. Unsure of how to stand, what to do with his hands, how to look at her without staring. It was all crazy. They were just having a conversation. But she’d touched him—was still touching him, until she remembered and withdrew her fingers—and that was more than she’d done in weeks.
“You may have noticed I’ve been… absent,” she began, choosing her words carefully.