Galen awoke the next morning feeling more refreshed than he'd expected. He'd slept in beds before but not recently, and he expected to wake up with all sorts of pains in his back and neck. But he felt good this morning, which seemed to him to be a good omen. He sat up and glanced over to see Margis, in bed this time, still asleep. Sunlight poured in through the window, and Galen stretched as he got out of bed. He dressed quietly and slipped out of the room, hoping the door wouldn’t creak as it had last night. It did, but not enough to wake his Second. Galen stepped out and went down the hall to Iago’s room. After a few quick raps, Saalis opened the door.
“Mornin’ Pilot,” he said, stepping aside to let Galen through. Iago still lay in his bed, but the knocking had woken him up. He rolled over and rubbed his face.
“I apologize, I didn’t mean to wake you,” Galen said.
“No worries, Pilot. It’s time to get up anyway.” Iago sat up and rolled his neck around, stretching.
“Good. Saalis, I need to speak with Iago. Do you mind waiting in one of the other rooms?”
Saalis raised a questioning eyebrow. “Sure. I’ll go drop in on Jonir and Hal. If they ain’t up yet, then they should be.”
“Thank you.” Saalis nodded as he stepped out, closing the door behind him. Galen sat on the edge of Saalis’ bed while Iago grabbed his shirt off the floor and put it on.
Galen hesitated, making sure he knew what needed to be said before he started. He took a breath, and then launched into his concerns. “I need to know what our plan is now that we’re here, and I don’t mean in general terms. I know you have friends who can help us, but I need to know how you’re going to contact them and how you will arrange for us to meet about what appears to be a very dangerous topic.”
Iago looked at Galen for a moment. “You want to know who I’m trying to set up a meeting with?”
“To begin with, yes.”
Iago nodded slowly. “Ok. Tonight, if we’re lucky, we will meet with some people who work for a man named Nentini Oln. He’s kirza, which means he runs a merchant guild, and he also owns some warehouses here in Avis and another outside in Harbortown. He gets a lot of timber and fur shipments from Kirn merchants up north and sells ‘em here. He’s a very wealthy man.”
“How can he help us?” asked Galen.
“Well, he also has other interests, like slaving, fighting, and a few other trades. That means he knows a lot of people who can do a lot of things. I can’t say for sure he has dealings with crystals, but I’d bet he does. And if he deals in crystals, then he has to know purifiers.”
“You want us to make a deal with a slaver?” Galen asked, appalled.
Iago shrugged. “If you have any other suggestions Pilot, let me know. Crystals are not to be taken lightly here. Any dealings with them that aren’t approved by the Clerics can get you killed real fast. So unless you want to go ask the Clerics if we can borrow a few of their purifiers then we have to take what we can get.”
“I don’t think that tone is necessary.” Galen said, trying to sound important. “And I certainly know we can’t go to Clerics. But I don’t think a slaver is much better.”
Iago paused for a moment. “I apologize. But you have to understand, this is how things work in this city. You and I may not like what goes on here, but there’s nothing we can do about it. The only thing that will help us, in the short term, is getting crystal purifiers, any way we can. And Nentini Oln is our best chance at that.”
Galen cursed himself. He'd known deep down to expect this; that they would be dealing with their enemies in some fashion no matter what. He resigned himself to the notion of negotiating with someone who traded living people for money because he knew that Iago was right. Once they had purifiers they could continue their war against this evil. It seemed no one in this city was blameless for what happened beyond these walls.
“Yes, I know. I… realize that what is best for us now is to get our ships flying no matter what. Now, how do we set up this meeting?”
“It’s already done, I think,” Iago said as he started picking up his things and putting them back in his bag.
“What? How?”
“I went out last night and found a friend who could set up the meeting. He’s going to try and do it today.”
“Last night? When?”
“After we got to our rooms.”
“Why didn’t you say anything? Who went with you?” Galen was agitated now. He tried not to show it, but the fact that he’d been caught off-guard by this information upset him.
Iago shrugged and stuffed his cloak into his pack. “Some people don’t take kindly to being approached by a friend with five strangers. I thought it best to find him on my own.”
Galen paused. He didn’t know if he should be angry at Iago for doing this without him, or at ease that the meeting they needed was set up already. He remembered that he wanted out of this city anyway, so he decided not to burn any bridges just yet.
“Was anyone with you?” Galen asked, wondering if this explained Margis' disappearance last night.
“No. I went alone. Why?”
“No reason.” Galen decided to keep some secrets for himself. “But this is good. We have a meeting set up now, and we can get this done quickly, I hope.”
“I think so. When they find out what we’re offering, they’ll be more than happy to deal with us.”
“Does this meeting tonight require everyone but you to be absent again?” Galen said dryly.
Iago smiled. “No, Pilot. We need everyone at this meeting. If it’s just me they might think I’m trying to cheat them, but with all six of us there, they’ll take it more seriously.”
“Good.” Galen took a deep breath. Tonight would be his first real test at negotiations. He needed to make sure he was ready to bargain. “When is it?”
“Sundown at the Honest Soldier Inn. It’s a few blocks from here, but we need to take our packs with us. We should stay there a night or two.”
Galen agreed, and then excused himself so that he could gather his own things. He returned to his room to find Margis still sleeping. He nudged him on the shoulder.
“Margis. It’s morning, get up.” Margis groaned a bit and rolled over, glancing at Galen with half-closed eyes, while Galen grabbed his pack and threw it on his own bed. “You need to get your things together. We’re moving to another inn,” he said.
“We’re what?” Margis sat up, rubbing his eyes.
“We’re going to some other inn, to meet with one of Iago’s friends. We’ll be staying there a while.”
“Why are we moving? We just got here.”
Galen paused, considering his answer before saying it. “We have to keep moving to make sure we don’t attract attention. Also, Iago has past troubles here so we have to hope he isn’t recognized by someone who could cause us trouble.” He hoped that sounded like this was his decision.
Margis sat still for a moment, either considering Galen’s reasoning or just waiting for his body to acclimate to a waking state. Finally, he leaned over and grabbed his own pack. “I wonder what got him in trouble here. He’s never said yet has he?”
“That’s his business. If he wants to tell us then he can. But there’s no need to pry into the personal affairs of someone if they don’t ask for it.” Margis nodded in resigned agreement, but Galen, despite meaning every word he said, also wanted to know a bit more about Iago’s history here. For a brief moment, Galen felt that if Iago couldn’t trust them with the reasons why he was wanted here, then maybe he shouldn’t trust Iago. But that feeling passed quickly.
* * * * *
At first glance, the Honest Soldier seemed to be a slightly smaller, but more respectable place than most of the other inns in this district. It was only a short walk from their current inn, and when Iago led the group inside, they found themselves in a large common room, with a bar, and several large tables spread out, very similar to the Major’s Reward. However, this place sparkled in comparison. There was no ever-present smell of smoke and sweat, and also no blood-stains on the floor, something the Reward could not claim.
The common room was empty, except for the innkeeper standing behind the bar to the right. Iago saw two other doors besides the one they entered through, one behind the bar, probably for storage, and another on the back wall next to windows that showed a small courtyard outside. Stairs next to the back door led up to the second floor, presumably where the actual rooms were located. The place seemed quiet enough, so Iago walked up to the innkeeper, who was busy flipping through the pages of a large, leather-bound book lying on the counter. He looked up as the group approached him.
“Good day, sirs,” he said.
“We need a few rooms, if you have them,” Iago said.
“That I do. How many do you need?”
“Three.”
The innkeeper flipped through his ledger until he reached an empty page. He marked off three numbers on the blank page and then looked back up. “What name will these rooms be under?”
Iago glanced back at Galen, who stepped forward. “Galen Corovin,” he said.
The innkeeper jotted down the name with a practiced hand. “Very good. My name is Jonn and the Honest Soldier is my Inn. Let me know if you have need of anything while you’re here.”
“Well met, Jonn,” Galen said. Jonn proceeded to take the group upstairs and show them to their rooms. They split up just as before, and once they spent a few moments getting settled they all returned to the common room and found a table where they could relax for a while. As nervous as everyone felt, no one was eager to wander around the city, so they decided to spend the day entertaining themselves at the inn.
The Landers occupied their time with dice and card games, or telling stories, doing whatever they could to alleviate the boredom. Margis and Galen stayed with them for a short time before moving back upstairs to study their Air Magic notes in seclusion. Iago took part in the games briefly before retiring back to his room for some rest. The trip had taken its toll on him, both physically and mentally, and he was so overcome with worry that sleep became difficult. He hoped he could sneak in a nap before the meeting tonight so he would at least have all his wits about him, in case of any troubles.
He remembered his last encounter with Oln, over a year ago, when Oln needed him to look into a trading partner. He remembered Jonn still being here back then, but since he’d only been inside the Honest Soldier about 3 times now including today, he didn’t think Jonn recognized him. He’d always liked this place, though, and he wondered why he didn’t think of it as soon as he came into town. He figured he only thought of it as the ‘meeting spot’ and decided that actually staying there somehow lessened its importance. Regardless, under different circumstances, he could enjoy relaxing here for a week or so, even though there were far better inns to be found in other districts.
It wasn’t long after he lay down in his bed that he finally did drift off to sleep, and when he woke up, the shadows from the sunlight told him it was late afternoon already. He felt rested, a feeling he'd forgotten existed, and he was tempted to stay in bed a while longer. Another hour or two and sunset would arrive, however, bringing Oln’s people with it, so he reluctantly pulled himself out of bed and went downstairs, seeing Saalis and Hal at the table where he’d left them.
“Finally woke up, eh?” Saalis said.
Iago nodded and took a seat next to them. “Have you two been here all day?”
“Saalis slept after you did, Cap’n, but he woke up before ya’. I’ve been wanderin' around a bit, but I never went too far. And I didn’t buy anything,” Hal replied, eagerly.
“The others upstairs?” asked Iago.
“Yeah,” said Saalis.
“Jonir’s asleep, too. The Pilots,” Hal caught himself quickly, looking around to make sure the room was still empty, then continued, “the other... people are in their room writin’ some stuff.”
“Well, I guess we wait around a couple more hours. You got those dice still?”
Hal smiled and pulled them out of his pocket. The three played some simple dice games, mostly just games of chance to pass the time since they had no money to bet. As the afternoon turned to evening, a few more people entered the room, mostly men, and went upstairs to their rooms, except for two older men who took a table at the other end of the common room. Jonn showed up immediately to get them food and ale, then took his usual spot behind the bar.
Iago asked Hal to bring the others downstairs. The meeting would happen soon and he wanted all six of them present when it did. He needed a good showing, to ensure he was taken seriously, plus he felt more comfortable with everyone at his back, just in case something happened. He didn’t expect Oln or his people to turn on him without at least hearing his proposal, but it never hurt to be too safe around here.
Hal returned with Galen, Margis and Jonir, and they all took a spot at the table. They ordered food, deciding to pass the time eating. Once the food was served Galen leaned over to Iago.
“We’re meeting here?”
“Aye.”
“Is it safe to talk about this here, in public?” Galen seemed unusually worried.
Iago nodded. “It’s always been safe before. I think Oln and his people have an agreement with Jonn. When they show up for a meeting, everyone else sort of clears out.”
Galen nodded and returned to his food, although he didn’t eat much. Iago’s appetite had disappeared, too. It was hard to eat with your stomach churning from worry. He pushed his plate away and rested his elbows on the edge of the table. He laid his head in his hands and tried to think. He wanted to make sure he was prepared for anything. Galen would be able to handle the specifics of the deal, but it was up to Iago to make sure they were safe. He only hoped his trust in Beneschal and Oln were well-founded.
Saalis nudged his arm, and Iago looked up to see four people entering the Inn, a woman and three men. He straightened up, recognizing Cyara and Ballok, along with two others he didn’t know. All four stared directly back at him.
This is it, Iago thought, suddenly uncomfortable in his chair.
Cyara and Ballok came to their table while the other two took seats at a table nearby. Cyara, a pretty, middle-aged woman with long brown hair and a still-youthful face took the lead. She stopped at the edge of the table and looked everyone over carefully. Ballok, a slightly younger, well-built man, with a face that seemed frozen into a sneer, stood behind her.
“Cyara,” Iago bowed his head. “Good evening.”
Cyara smiled. “Iago. I haven’t seen you in some time.”
“I’m back for a few days. Why don’t you sit down?” Iago stood and offered her a chair at the end of the table. Cyara nodded her head in thanks and sat down. Iago motioned to another empty spot at the table and looked at Ballok. “Would you like to join us, Ballok?” Ballok walked over and took a seat, though he didn’t seem interested in being friendly.
“So, who are your friends?” Cyara asked. Iago introduced everyone else at the table in turn, starting with Galen. He gave only names though, and offered no other information. Each offered a small wave of their hand or nodded their head, but other than that no one said a word.
“Well. Now that we’ve made our introductions, perhaps you could tell us what you need? It’s been some time, but that ridiculous old beggar made this seem important.” Cyara wore a typical Anzarin long dress, light brown with yellow trim and a red shawl. She continually adjusted the shawl around her shoulders as she talked.
Iago lowered his voice. Jonn stood at the bar, but he kept his eyes down. The other two patrons ate quietly on the other side of the room, out of hearing range as long as no one talked loudly. “I need some help, Cyara, and Oln is the only one who can do it. We have a large supply of some very valuable items. Very powerful items, and highly illegal.”
Cyara furrowed her brow. “What are you speaking of?”
Iago leaned in close and lowered his voice to just over a whisper. “Mergoran crystals. Barrels of them.”
Cyara’s eyes opened wide and she leaned back in her chair. The sneer on Ballok’s face turned into shock as his mouth dropped open. He quickly regained his composure and leaned in. “Are you here to mock us?” he asked.
“Not at all. We have a lot of crystals but they’re untreated, and we don’t have anyone to purify them. I know Oln knows people who can do that, and if he can agree to help us here, then we can be agreeable to some kind of deal.”
Cyara and Ballok looked at each other, speechless. Finally, Cyara turned to Iago. “You know just talking about this can get us all killed. This had better be real or you’ll end up in even more trouble than you already are.”
Iago nodded. “Like I said, I’m serious. Get us a meeting with Oln, and we’ll make him very happy. But it needs to be fast.”
Cyara took a deep breath and paused for a long moment. Finally, she nodded. “Stay here, we’ll find you tomorrow and let you know. And like I said, if this is some kind of trick, then you better not show your face in this city again.”
Iago shook his head. “No trick, Cyara. This is real.”
Cyara stood up. “I hope so. Good eve to the rest of you. I hope to see you all tomorrow.” Cyara did her best to seem as cordial as possible, and she was probably one of a few people who could do it as well as she did. Ballok stood up, as did the two men at the next table.
“As do I,” Galen said. Cyara, Ballok, and their two companions left the Inn. Galen turned to Iago. “Is that it? We just wait until tomorrow?”
“That’s all we can do. If he’s interested, then they’ll come to us. But trust me, he will be interested.”
* * * * *
Galen woke early the next morning and rounded up a small blade, some cloth, and a basin of hot water from Jonn, so he could finally shave off the week of stubble on his face. For some reason, he felt compelled to look as presentable as possible when dealing with criminals, even though he still loathed the idea of meeting with Oln. He hadn’t been sure what to expect last night when Cyara and Ballok showed up, and to be honest, they weren’t the type of people he thought he would see. He thought slavers and such would be dirtier, or uglier, but those two weren’t. In fact, he found Cyara to be an elegant, graceful woman and he wasn’t sure how someone like that ended up working for a slaver. He wondered if Oln would end up surprising him as well.
After shaving, he decided he would eat breakfast first, and then work on his journal. He’d managed to write down all the events from the trip so far, though the incident at Duren Olan had been difficult to recount, even on paper. He needed to keep writing though, because it helped him relax. This city made him anxious, and being stuck inside of it was enough to completely fray his nerves if he stopped long enough to think about it. He could only pray that the meeting with Oln went through today without a hitch. If they could agree on a deal, then maybe, if they were lucky, they could leave tomorrow, or even tonight. If they were lucky.
Galen went downstairs to find the common room just as empty as it had been half an hour ago when he woke up. He caught Jonn wandering through and he asked him about breakfast. Jonn politely told him to wait a few moments while he rounded up some food from the back. Galen took a seat at the same table they had used yesterday and waited patiently, trying to not to let the anxiety in his stomach ruin his appetite.
Two men entered the common room from the street. They were short, with long, grimy, black hair and beards. They wore pants and shirts that were entirely black, and each carried a long, ornately designed dagger, sheathed through their wide black belts. Normally, Galen would have ignored them, being as preoccupied with his thoughts as he was this morning, but their behavior made him uncomfortable. From the moment they walked in, they watched him like they recognized him. They sat at a table near the entrance and looked around, giving the room a cursory glance, but every few moments, at least one of the two would glance over at him, as if to make sure he hadn't run off.
Galen turned sideways in his chair to avoid looking directly at them. He wondered if their actions were normal here, or if they knew they were being incredibly rude. Thankfully, Jonn entered the room, bringing breakfast with him – a plate of bread, cheese and ham, along with milk. Galen thanked him for the food and began devouring the meal, desperate for the distraction.
Hal and Jonir came down, and ordered the same for themselves. Galen greeted them, eager to have others nearby in case the two strangers were unfriendly. He never had a chance to find out, though, because they quickly stood up and left the inn, not even looking back. Galen watched them leave warily, but decided to leave well enough alone. He had more important things to worry about today.
By the time he finished eating, all six of them sat at the table, either arranging for their own food, or nervously chatting. Cyara or Ballok could be back at any time, so again they were stuck waiting, killing time anyway they could. Eventually the dice and cards made a showing, and this time Galen and Margis stayed downstairs.
They didn’t have to wait too long. Ballok entered the inn around mid-morning, alone. He approached the table with the same sneer he’d had on his face last night.
“Let’s go,” he said. “You’ve got your meeting.”
Galen’s stomach dropped. He nodded to Ballok, hoping no one saw the blood drain from his face. “I need to grab a few things from my room, first.”
Ballok grunted and Galen tried to steady his legs as he walked upstairs. Once in his room he reached for his pack and pulled out one of the bags of crystals. He didn’t know if taking both bags would be prudent, so he decided to bring only one for now, and leave the other in case something happened. He tried to hold the bag as casually as he could, fearing that somehow anyone who saw it would know it was filled with highly illegal Mergoran crystals, but he didn’t how to do that. So he just kept the bag close to his body, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and went back downstairs.
“We’re ready,” Iago said when Galen returned, and Ballok walked outside. Iago followed him and the rest of the group fell in line, Galen staying as close to Iago as he could. Ballok led them down the street, and then took a left through an alley between two small houses. They crossed through to another smaller street and walked about four blocks, before he led them through a second alley. Galen studied everyone who passed them, looking for any sign of an ambush, or even guards surprising them. But all he saw were people doing their best to walk by without interference, grimy kids playing in front of some houses, and a pack of dogs barking at anyone who came near. Luckily, it wasn’t long before Ballok led them to a doorway behind a large, crumbling building. Two men with short swords waited outside the door, one sitting on a barrel next to the wall, and the other leaning against the closed door. They both stood up as Ballok approached and the second guard opened the door for the group. Ballok walked in first, with Iago, Galen and the others close behind.
A large, empty room greeted them, with two doors at the back. Ballok ignored the doors, sliding his fingers into the crease between two wooden planks in the wall to his left. When he pulled, a section of the wall opened, revealing a hidden passage. He motioned them in, and they followed him down a short hallway, and then through another door. This one opened up to a much larger room than the first, although this one wasn’t empty. Stacks of wooden crates lined all four walls, leaving space only for the two doors in the room, the one they entered and another to the right. Four armed thugs watched them warily from the back of the room, a few paces behind a long, rectangular table.
Cyara waited at one end of the table, arms crossed, staring at Iago intently, and tapping her foot impatiently. In the middle of the table sat a very large man, almost as wide as he was tall. He wore a brightly colored red and yellow patterned tunic, brown leather pants, an expensive-looking gold chain around his neck, and what seemed to be gold bracelets around his wrists. He was naturally bald, rather than shaved as Iago was, though this man was at least 20 years older than anyone in their group.
Ballok motioned them to stand in front of the table, and Galen moved next to Iago, who waited in the center, directly opposite the man Galen assumed to be Nentini Oln. The other four fell in line a step or two behind them. After a brief moment, the fat man stood up, walked around the table and approached Iago, who remained still as a statue the entire time. The fat man, quite a few inches shorter than Iago, stood right in front of him and looked up at his face with a calculating stare. Finally, he spoke.
“Why aren’t you dead yet?”